Episode 33: Tactical planning

At the end of the next night, they came to the supply camp. The loggers wouldn't be out for a little while yet, so they could come to the edge of the trees without worrying about someone stumbling across them. The camp had made ample use of the lumber available to them; a log palisade surrounded the tents and even some wood buildings. There was a clear cart-path running away from the camp on the far side from the trees. They led the horses back into the woods far enough to avoid detection and met to plan strategy.

Arthur took charge immediately. "Team two, you're E&E. Max, get to work on your tacticals."

Max and his six men moved to form a separate group.

Arthur faced the remaining team members—except Thunder, who was asleep again—and explained his plan. "Team two will maintain an exit and extract us if necessary; you shouldn't worry too much about that. Our job is to penetrate the enemy camp, assassinate their leader, and retrieve whatever information we can about their operations. Going in is going to be the hard part because leaders themselves are rarely very good at combat; that's what the army's for. I've seen this camp layout before and have the most command experience, so I'll take point. Isabelle, you have my back. Orlaith, you are to provide close-range archery support from five feet behind her. Percy, make sure that nobody closes to melee range with Orlaith. Going out it will be extraction forces, Orlaith with her bow, Percy behind her, and Isabelle and I will spread to provide trailing cover for the flanks. Got that?"

Everyone nodded.

"Good. Now, here are the tactical scenarios that we might have to adjust for. . . ."