The Pen and the Sword (Destiny's Crucible Book 2) Read Online Free PDF Page A

bag and a second application of the dowel. The
carriage was faced toward the target, the barrels’ elevations adjusted by
screws, and gunpowder from a powder horn tapped into the firing vents.  A thin
wooden rod was used to ignite the powder in the vent; its end was kept glowing
in an ember chamber carried by one of the crew. The barrels were fired
sequentially and the carriage quickly repositioned after each recoil. After
firing, a rod with a wet cloth on the end was run down each bore to quench any
embers, preparing the barrels for the next firing cycle.
    As
soon as the first triple-gunned carriage was ready, Denes selected eight men as
potential gun crew leaders. While trials had shown that a six-man crew was the
minimum necessary for an optimal rate of firing, Yozef insisted on an eight-man
crew. He didn’t elaborate that in battles, inevitable casualties meant crews
needed enough men to ensure the guns were manned and fired as long as possible.
    The
original eight men drilled for days until they could operate the guns blindfolded
and fire the outer barrels every thirty seconds. Denes appointed the original eight
men as gun crew leaders and they, in turn, trained other men, half from the
Abersford area and the other half brought in from Clengoth. Within another two sixdays,
eighty gun crewmembers were trained, hopefully well enough not kill to themselves
or others on their side, if forced into a battle.
     
    Gunpowder
     
    Successful
development of the swivel gun carriages led to unanticipated discoveries, as
Yozef had found with many projects. This time, it was Denes who broke the news
after witnessing another test firing.
    “I
can see how these ‘swivel’ guns, as you call them, might be useful in some
circumstances, but they must use a lot of gunpowder, which is in short supply.”
    “Short—!”
Yozef turned to Denes with dumbfounded look. “I guess I hadn’t thought where
the gunpowder is coming from. Yawnfol! Come here.”
    The
young foundry supervisor trotted over. “Yes, Yozef, a good test. Every Narthani
dummy was hit at least once.”
    “Yawnfol,
where do you get the gunpowder for the tests?”
    “Oh,
yes, that’s been a problem. We ask around for anyone willing to part with a few
spoonfuls, and traders as far as Hewell Province know to look for any sources.
The cost is more coin than we expected, but you told us not to worry about
that.”
    “Well,
Jesus Christ! Can’t anything go easy?” a red-faced Yozef yelled.
    Denes
and Yawnfol both stepped back, startled, neither man knowing what Yozef said, because
he’d used English, and they’d never witnessed such a display from him.
    Yozef
stomped away forty feet and stared at the eastern peaks, fuming to himself. I’ve
got to stay sharper. I’m getting too involved in the details of my brilliant
ideas and ignoring obvious issues. With the cannon, first I was oblivious to
the loading problem with three barrels, and I’m just now learning about the
gunpowder shortage. Such mistakes will get me or others killed.
    With
a cooler head, he walked back to the puzzled Denes and Yawnfol, hearing the
former tell the latter, “Don’t worry, he’s not mad at you, he’s just Yozef
Kolsko and acts odd at times.”
    “I’m
sorry, I was only surprised to hear we’re short of gunpowder. Isn’t it made
here on Caedellium?”
    “Of
course,” said Denes, “many know how to make it. It’s just that the crystal
ingredient is scarce. No one likes to dig around voiding pits or animal manure
piles, and even that source is becoming harder find. Much of the gunpowder was
imported by traders to Preddi City until the Narthani took control.”
    Potassium
nitrate. Those were the crystals Denes referred to. The other two ingredients,
carbon and sulfur, were easier to find, but the islanders didn’t seem to know
about mineral deposits or guano. Here was where Yozef’s fertilizer project would
pay off.
    He
had discovered deep guano deposits covering the cliffs of an