Dragon and Herdsman

Still, a good woodland tracker would have little trouble spotting the camouflage. Draycos would have to do something about that. "Go—over the top," he instructed the silver K'da, unhooking his tail from her crest. "Go on—jump."

She frowned, peering closely at his eyes. "Jump over the barrier and join the others," he repeated, fighting hard to keep his voice steady. The clock was counting down here, and he still had a lot of work to do. "Go on. Go."

Her frown cleared. With an effortless bound, she leaped over Jack's barrier, landing beyond it with a crunch of grass and leaves that made Draycos wince. But at least she was gone.

A few feet down the main path another side path headed off to the right. Draycos moved a couple of paces down it and sliced off a pair of good-sized bushes. Dragging them back to the opening, he propped them up to block the path. He interwove some branches through them to keep them from falling over, then arranged some leaves at their bases to hide the slashed ends.

The Malison Ring soldiers were probably smart enough to spot Jack's camouflage. But they were also probably smart enough to be suspicious of it. With this second and considerably less obvious barrier a few feet farther along, they might conclude that Jack's was merely a decoy.

Draycos put a few more finishing touches on his camouflage, making sure it was better than Jack's but still detectable if they looked closely enough. Then, leaping into the trees, he headed back to the clearing.

The soldiers had finished their consultation and were on the move again. Unfortunately, whether through luck or tracking skill, they were heading straight for the path the group of K'da and Erassvas had taken. Even with the barriers he and Jack had erected, it wouldn't take the soldiers long to catch up to the refugees.

Draycos would just have to slow them down a bit.

The main force paused as they reached the entrance to the path, giving the two pairs of outriders time to work their way into new flanking positions. Then, guns held ready across their chests, they headed in.

For a moment Draycos studied their movements. The outriders were moving through the undergrowth nearly as quietly as a K'da warrior could have, keeping in sight of both the main force and each other. The second of each pair seemed to be trying to walk in the footsteps of the first, minimizing the chances of snapping a dry branch hidden beneath the leaves.

Each pair was also staying far enough apart that a K'da dropping on them from above couldn't take out both with a single attack. Clearly, they were well trained and well-informed.

But they weren't informed quite well enough. Easing down from his tree, Draycos headed into the forest to prepare his attack.

He was curled out of sight beneath a fan-shaped group of wide-leaf ferns when the two left-flank outriders arrived.

He let the first pass him by without interference. Then, as the second stepped into range, he reached out a paw and stabbed a claw neatly through the heel of the soldier's left boot.

The man gave a strangled gasp as his leg collapsed beneath him. "What?" his companion demanded quietly, hurrying back to his side.

"My ankle," the first ground out, crouching down to clutch at his heel. "Something bit me, right through my boot."

"You mean like a snake?" the other said, starting to take a hasty step back.

But he was too late. Reaching behind him, Draycos jabbed him in the same spot.

Either this one didn't handle pain as well as his companion or else Draycos's claw had found a more sensitive spot. Instead of a stifled gasp, the man let loose with a full-bodied bellow as he dropped to one knee.

"Alki, you idiot," someone snapped from the path. "Shut up—

"We got trouble, Lieutenant," the first outrider called back, his voice taut with pain. "Snake or something. We both been bit."

The lieutenant swore. "Get back here," he ordered. "Imre, Quars—go help them."

Two of the main force left the path and pushed their way through the bushes. They reached the injured men and slung their weapons over their shoulders to leave their hands free to help them up.

And as they did, Draycos leaped straight up through the concealing ferns into view.

There was just enough time for the soldiers' eyes to widen in shock; and then K'da paws slapped hard against the sides of their necks beneath their helmets, dropping them unconscious to the ground. Draycos slapped his tail across the throat of one of the two men he'd first hit, sending him flying, then paw-slapped the other.

But quiet or not, his attack hadn't gone unnoticed. "There!" one of the remaining four soldiers in the main group shouted as Draycos landed back on the ground. "There he is!"

"Fire!" the lieutenant snapped.

And as the four men swung their weapons around toward him, Draycos deftly inserted the tip of his tail through the trigger guard of the nearest fallen soldier's gun and squeezed the trigger.