Squirrel Patrol

Preparations

  The gyrfalcon was eager to spill blood. He was perched back on ledge between the two rooms, observing the sleeping horde. Calling it a flock did not give honor to its capabilities. Orn's eyes were only half shut, looking over the incredible number of birds packed into the farmhouse. The smaller birds wedged themselves between the larger fowl, both for warmth and to prevent being trampled. 

  It was quite a few hours until dawn and Orn forced himself to relax, a contradiction to be sure. In his mind, he pictured the coming battle against the squirrels. The successes and failures of both sides, the maimed and the dead scattered in the fields. The triumph of his air corp chasing the ragtag remnants of the fur army to oblivion. His breathing slowed and he shifted slightly, calmly settling in for the night.

...

  The patrol had been working heavily, collecting the items Nibble needed for his fireworks. The only part holding the assembly back was containers to pack the mixture in. Just when the team thought they were screwed, Scratcher came strolling in, whistling a happy tune. He had come across a copse of bamboo some distance away. It was the perfect container for the job.

  While the squirrels were busy hacking and stuffing the bamboo, Nuts was doing sentry duty. Not that there were obvious dangers lurking about, only that he had the feeling this plan would go awry. Looking through the trees from a point deep in the wood, he could see the overgrown field in the meager quarter-full moonlight. The farmhouse on the far end of the property was difficult to make out, but Nuts was sure there were sentries posted.

  Corporal Berries had walked up behind him, not making much noise, but enough for Nuts to identify who made that sound. "What's up, Berries?"

  "Thought you could use a break by now. Nibbles is finishing up the last of the bombs, and I told everyone else to grab some sleep. Except for Jazz. He felt good enough to work the perimeter with me for a few hours."

  Nuts wasn't very tired either, but he knew the benefits of even a few winks. "Appreciate it, Corporal. Let's get moving around oh-four-hundred. Time for food, recon, planting the rigs, and getting the heck out of the kill zone." Nuts gave Berries a slap on the shoulder as he moved toward camp.

...

  It was awhile before something disturbed Orn's rest. At first he believed it to be some irritation in his feathers, and he pecked at it with his beak. Finding nothing there, he stilled himself. It was not something on him. It was something nearby that he sensed. Not able to place a name to it, he awoke fully and flitted to an outside opening, peering into the slowly dispersing darkness.

  Orn estimated it was between one or two hours before his army would take to the air. Looking behind him, the flock were asleep, twitching and nuzzling each other for warmth. Turning back, the remainders of moonlight allowed cast only the faintest glow over the field in front of the farmhouse. The commander's pupils dilated to extract every piece of illumination they could. Was that a speck of light in the deep forest that matched the sound of leaves moving? It went away so quickly, he doubted himself even suspecting he saw something. After waiting a few moments more, feeling nothing else, he returned to his inner perch and resumed his rest.

...

  Nuts awoke before the rest of them. Mentally tired, yet physically rested, he quietly went to each squad member and tapped them awake. Berries joined them as he walked his route. Jazz silently appeared among them, as if he had been there all along.

  They all broke out some cold rations to eat as Nuts went over the plan and each of their responsibilities.

  "Vermin,", the sarge asked. "What were you able to fix up ahead of time?"

  "Not a whole lot boss, seein' as we helped Nibs an all." Vermin added, "But I did make four net snares we can either hang in the trees, or try and sling over some of those openings. Hangers are easier to set up, but ya need luck. Slings are more effective, but ya need luck and guts." He put extra emphasis on the 'and guts'.

  "O.K.", Nuts replied. "Take three with you, use two of 'em to cover the larger openings. You decide whether the third should be a sling or not." Nuts looked at Bushy, "Bushy, can you split up the meds so we'll have something to rely on for the front and back of the house?"

  Bushy opened his mouth, but Berries spoke first. "Did and done, Sergeant.", smiling as he held up a small pack of supplies. Bushy added with a flick of his paw towards the corporal, "What he said, Sarge."

  Nuts said to the corporal, "Don't get too far ahead of me, Berries." It dampened Berries' grin a little, but inside, Nuts grinned enough for both of them.

  "All right, Nibble. What have you got for us?"

  Nibble pointed over his shoulder to where the explosives were stacked. "Two sticks each, eight second fuses. Light it. Throw it. Run to Mama." He paused. "Third step's important. When it goes off, the blast radius is about twenty feet. Might get singed out to thirty."

  Scratcher's mouth dropped opened as he looked at Nibble. "I'm good, Nibs. You can have my share." It looked like more were ready to join that chorus, but Nuts interrupted.

  "Everybody packs, Scratch. We'll be lucky if even one of these things is effective." Nuts didn't want to say the next words, but the truth was important. "Besides, if you get outmaneuvered, you can always use one to take a bunch of birds out with you." 

  The patrol looked at each other, or at the ground, accepting the implication. Win or lose, this battle would be for all the nuts and berries.

  The sarge finished the review by assigning locations. Bushy and Vermin would head out first, scouting and setting snares, then taking positions northeast and northwest of the house. Berries would direct half the squad from the front of the house, due north. Scratcher owned the southwest corner where the largest wall gap was. Roadkill would be positioned on the east, where there was a window. Jazz would move into a high tree and provide cover for the south and east. Nuts claimed south through the back door for himself. 

  No complaints emerged, so Nuts instructed them to start firing just as sunrise touched the top of an enormous spruce at the west end of the field. They all verified which tree it was, collected their gear, and set out for the attack.