Sacrifice

Chapter 41 - The Ships

Raphiel waited in the square, straining for sound or movement, but the unhappy murmurs of the other Cirts and the pre-morning dark gave him no hint of the coming rescue. Makiel grabbed his elbow and pointed to the wall far to the left. Two figures lowered themselves over the barrier and dropped to the streets.

"How are we to know who they are?" whispered one of the other elders, as the figures approached and the Cirts drew back in fear.

Raphiel shook his head; he didn't know.

But Makiel stood and called out to the figures. "Are you here to bring me luck sir?"

The figures came to a stop, and then one of them answered. "I rather thought to check on your ribs before you started on the voyage."

Makiel grinned. "It's them," he announced and went forward to greet his new friends.

Raphiel came forward as well to grasp Adir's hand with thanks.

"Do we leave now?" he asked.

Adir shook his head. "There are a couple of guards in plain clothes watching the compound. My friends and I will need to take care of them first."

Raphiel's grip tightened. "Do you intend to kill them?" he asked.

"We carry only charged batons," Adir answered. "No one will die tonight, though the doctors will be tending to a large number of shock burns and headaches come the morning. Stay here, we'll be back soon."

The two men exited the compound, and the watching guards were caught between them and the friends that Adir had left on the outside.

With the threat of watchers eliminated, Adir waved Wirin and Judan into the compound. They came in lugging piles of ropes. With the ease of practice, they unravelled the ropes into ladders and swung them over the wall that bordered the Great Southern Desert. Quickly and silently, the Cirts were ushered up the ladders and into the desert.

# # #

Adir crept to the rocky ridge that oversaw the launch site. Laya was there, watching the movement of the guards.

"Any surprises?" he asked in a hushed voice.

"No," Laya answered. "Guards are positioned and rotating as the plans say they do. Shift change just happened."

"Good," Adir said. "Let's get going."

Adir's men and women entered the launch site as silent as ghosts, shrouded in black clothes and masks to avoid identification. As they advanced, the launch site guards and scientists dropped like rocks from well-placed shocks that left them out cold. When the coast was clear, Miriam emerged, and the Cirts flooded out of the desert.

"Launch workers over here," she ordered. "All civilians report to the guards who escorted you here. They'll make sure that everyone is loaded onto the correct ship. For the guards who have decided to come with us, make sure that the family members that I approved are logged in and ready to go in two hours. For the guards who are staying behind, make sure you clear out by 11h00 and not a moment after."

She checked her watch briskly.

"We have six hours until launch, let's get to work."