The Scarlet King (23 page)

He no longer was seeing his bride in great
pain, but rather was visualizing the bones themselves. By changing
the angle of his pull slightly he could visualize the forces on the
bones. He leaned back even harder, pulling against the fracture,
and suddenly the healing bones let free and the foot straightened.
The cracking sound was audible and only partially covered by the
scream that Heather let out. The sensation of the bones moving and
grating against each other was far more evident to Daniel, who had
such a firm grasp on her foot and ankle.

With the bones now aligned, Daniel began to
very slowly relax the pressure on the foot and ankle. Jeremy was
about to give Heather some more of the ether, but Daniel stopped
him, saying only, “It is done.” Daniel carefully felt for the pulse
on the top of the foot and was relieved by the strength he felt. As
Heather began to breathe more normally, he carefully wrapped the
ankle with a supportive cloth and with Betty’s help pulled the soft
boot back on. He used more of his supportive cloth wrap around the
outside of the boot to further stabilize the ankle. Only when he
was finished did he realize that he too was drenched in sweat as
was his true friend Jeremy.

Betty spoke up, saying, “You go eat. I take
care of the Princess.”

Daniel and Jeremy joined the others of the
Forest who were still finishing the breaking of the fast. No one
mentioned the work they had been doing or the screaming that they
heard. The talk was mostly of the Forest and of the different hunts
they were planning on their return. Daniel and Jeremy said little,
letting the normalcy of the campfire and the talk of the hunters
quiet the turmoil they felt within. When one finally asked Daniel
of Heather, he replied, “The foot will heal, but the setting of the
bone was not pleasant.”

It was late morning before Heather and Betty
appeared at the campfire. She remained pale but was moving with the
aid of her crutch fairly well. Daniel and Jeremy had spent the
morning carving another crutch with a better handhold and many
decorative figures carved into the wood. Heather accepted the gift
with a gentle smile and broke the fast with but a little food.
Betty kept insisting that she needed to eat more, but Daniel knew
the weak appetite was from the ether and would pass soon
enough.

By midafternoon Heather was no longer the
patient but again in command, asking questions about supplies and
the well being of everyone. She arranged for a meeting with the
commander of the Red and at that time introduced him to Daniel and
Betty. Their talk was mostly of the need for additional food
supplies for an army needing to be fed. Daniel spoke up, saying,
“There are others from the ship headed our way bringing dried
fish.”

The commander of the Red looked at Heather
and asked, “Is the one you referred to as a young priest amongst
those coming?”

Heather shrugged her shoulders and turned
towards Daniel for a response. Daniel replied, “He was not needed
for the sailing of the ship, and I would expect him to volunteer,
but he is not used to carrying heavy loads.” He then asked, “Why is
this important?”

Heather explained, “We received a message
from the Red Ambassador which said little, but the back of the
scroll was decorated much like the door to the Cave of Knowledge. I
was hoping the decorations were in fact the real message, but I can
read it not.”

At Daniel’s request the commander of the Red
produced the scroll and Daniel began examining the decorative
design. He then began leafing through his tattered notebook and
found a small sketch he had made of the door. The similarity in
design was obvious as were the differences in the detail. He said
only, “We must wait and hope that the young priest is with those
carrying our supplies.”

The talk turned to the metal and wood tubes
that those of the East had worked so hard to protect and transport.
Daniel’s interest again was significant and he had many questions,
but Heather had no answers. She finally said, “I would you and
Jeremy spend time and learn the secrets of the tubes, for I think
they are some sort of cannon but use not powder.”

Jeremy was more than happy to be involved in
something that could lead to another explosion. He showed Daniel
the tube they had captured and the round balls, which appeared to
fit well into the end of the tube. Daniel picked up one of the
balls and rolled it down the tube. A definite metallic
thunk
was appreciated when it reached the end. But tipping the tube
allowed the ball to simply roll out.

He was most interested in the base of the
tube, which was stained from the heat of the fire. On the top of
the base was an opening with a tight fitting cover that swiveled on
a hinge pin. The area was stained, and Daniel actually licked the
stain trying to determine if it was from his powder. The taste was
metallic salt in nature without the bitterness of his powder. Small
areas of rust were evident around the cover, and it took Jeremy
some work to get the cover to swing free.

Daniel sat and thought while Jeremy worked.
It seemed as if the metallic base was designed to be heated in the
fire, and water was most certainly added through the small opening
at the top. But how did that produce energy to fire a cannon ball?
They asked a few others to help reposition the cannon tube so that
the tube was supported by rocks; the metallic base sat over a small
fire pit they created.

As Jeremy built the fire and heated the
base, Daniel experimented with ways of adding water. As the metal
warmed, the water quickly turned to steam and the small opening
needed to be closed quickly without Daniel getting burned by the
escaping steam.

When it seemed as if they understood how the
water was added, Daniel had Jeremy load the cannon tube with one of
the round balls. They made sure the cannon was pointed away from
the camp. Daniel added some water and closed the small port. They
could easily hear the hissing as the water turned to steam and the
pressure began to build. As the pressure built, the cannonball
began rolling out the end of the tube and simply fell to the ground
as the steam escaped out the end of the tube.

Jeremy exclaimed, “Now, that is what I would
call a very disappointing explosion.”

Daniel sat scratching his head and thinking.
After some time he finally said, “They must have had a way of
keeping the cannonball sealed at the base of the tube until the
pressure built up.”

Jeremy asked, “What are these iron loops for
at the end of the tube?”

Daniel responded not but simply watched his
friend, who began trying to fit all sorts of things into the hoops
which extended just pass the barrel. In the wagon were many pieces
of wood, and the short ones seemed to fit quite well against the
end of the tube being held by the iron loops. They put another
cannonball into the tube and placed one of the wood pieces across
the end of the barrel. Daniel again added the water, which began to
immediately turn to steam. As before, the cannonball rolled to the
end of the tube until it was wedged up against the small board
which blocked the end of the tube. Now the steam began escaping
around the edge of the cannonball but nothing more happened.

Daniel was thinking hard now and asked to
see the board Jeremy had used. In the very center was a small cut
which seemed to have been made with great care. He asked Jeremy,
“Do all the short boards have this same cut?”

Jeremy began rummaging around in the wagon
and called back, “Looks like.”

Daniel then asked, “Are there longer sticks
about the length of the tube?”

After a bit more rummaging, Jeremy called
back, “There is a bundle of skinny sticks about that length. Do you
want some of them?”

Daniel replied, “Bring the bundle and a few
more of the short ones.”

They built the fire back up and this time
they rolled the cannonball down the tube, but held it in place with
one of the long skinny sticks, which pushed tightly against the
small board wedged across the end of the barrel. When Daniel added
some water and closed the small port, the pressure quickly built
until the force on the board wedged across the end of the tube
became too great and it broke. When it broke, the long skinny stick
and the cannonball were ejected at great speed. There was no
explosion, just the sound of breaking wood and the rush of the air
as the cannonball began its journey. At first Daniel and Jeremy
just stood and stared at how far the cannonball had gone, and then
they began to hoot and holler as they danced around in a victory
celebration.

They made enough of a commotion that they
were soon joined by Heather and the commander of the Red as well as
many others. Little encouragement was needed for Daniel and Jeremy
to again set up the steam cannon for another demonstration. As the
metal base was heating, Daniel explained the principle of using the
partially cut board to regulate the pressure in the cannon.

When the base was hot and the cannonball
loaded, Daniel again added the water, which began hissing and
turning to steam immediately. As before, when the pressure built
sufficiently, the board blocking the end of the barrel broke along
the previously cut mark and the retaining board and cannonball came
flying out of the cannon accompanied by a cloud of steam but little
noise. Daniel and Jeremy could not help but again hoot and holler a
bit at the success of the firing. When the commotion had settled
down, Heather asked, “But can you hit anything with the steam
cannon?”

Daniel was quiet for a bit before saying,
“It would seem the critical component is the strength of the board
retaining the cannonball. The saw cut determines the pressure that
is allowed to build up, and if it is uniform it should be almost as
accurate as a cannon using the powder.”

Discussion turned to how the weapon could be
used. The commander of the Red expressed his concern that it would
be subject to capture by the mounted troops of those from the East.
Heather agreed and also added, “The advantage of height would be
significant.”

This discussion was interrupted by news of
the arrival of others from the ship carrying supplies. They were
loaded heavily and could but travel slowly. Amongst them was indeed
the young priest, who carried a surprisingly large burden for one
of the city. As they were relieved of their loads, food was brought
out and the evening meal started early as their story was
heard.

As others ate and told stories, Heather and
the commander of the Red continued their meeting. Mostly they
discussed the shortage of supplies, for even though they had
confiscated much from those of the East, they had supplies for only
another week or two at the most. After discussing many options, it
was decided that the only practical method was to create a supply
line connecting their forces back over the mountains to the cove
where those of the Red had wintered. The commander of the Red felt
that his people remaining behind would be capable of ferrying the
supplies to the top of the ridge, but would need help in lowering
those supplies down the cliff face.

After they had worked out a plan for
establishing the supply line, their discussion again turned to the
steam cannon. They both agreed that it would best serve their needs
if it could somehow be brought within the city walls. This
discussion reminded Heather of the scroll and she asked the young
priest to join them. He examined the back of the scroll carefully,
turning it towards the fire to bring out the detail of the
decorative pattern. He then sat back on his heels with his eyes
closed, as he searched through the pictures in his mind trying to
make sense of the pattern.

He finally spoke, saying, “It is written as
was the door on the Cave of Knowledge, but some of the forms have
been copied poorly and I cannot be positive of the meaning. Maybe
with more study and better light I could be more sure.”

Heather could not help but roll her eyes
slightly, for the young priest was forever cautious about his
ability. She asked him, “What think you is the major message?”

The young priest but looked at the ground
and said not for some time before replying, “It would seem to
describe a secret passage into the palace.”

Heather turned towards the commander of the
Red and asked, “Do you know of such a passage?”

The commander the Red replied, “I know of no
such passage.” After a moment of thought he added, “There is much
mysticism of the ancient ones who once occupied our city. They were
great builders and could have certainly built a secret
passage.”

Chapter 12

Jason and the others aboard their ship had
watched Daniel and the others of the Forest make their way inland,
leaving them behind. Captain Cook gave the orders to set sail. They
headed offshore in a waiting pattern, returning each afternoon to
look for a light signal on the headland. The days wore on with
their routine of sharing watches, but frustration continued to
grow, as their inactivity seemed endless and their worry of their
friends increased.

Jason was at the helm slowly tacking back and
forth, going nowhere, just out of sight of land, when the lookout
spotted two ships abeam in the far distance. Jason put his book
down and stared, but was unable to see the ships until they were
actually pointed out as small dots, visible only occasionally with
the swells. Jason changed course and headed towards the ships,
saying, "Seems like we should see who they are."

They allowed Captain Cook to continue his
rest until they were sure that they were indeed the black ships
from the East. The day was growing old and Jason directed their
course back out to sea. Enough light remained so that they could
tell that the black ships also changed course and were giving
pursuit. As night fell, Captain Cook and Jason conferred. Jason
said, "From my reading it would seem that our ship should
outperform theirs when headed into the wind, but suffer when
sailing downwind. I would propose we test this before engaging them
in battle."