Leaving the horses with most of his men, Tenan and his men watched the enemy from a safe distance. Before, the Kanovians had been ready to leave any day, now it was obvious it would take them weeks to recover. Tenan studied the enemy then called for Talhan. The Dwarve settled next to his commanding officer. "Would it be possible to poison an entire well," Tenan asked carefully.
Talhan looked down at the well the army was using. Slowly, he nodded. "It wouldn't take as long as you think."
Tenan gestured towards his men. "You have all fifty of us at your disposal."
He waved the offer off. "All I need are some buckets. My Dwarves and I can do the rest."
Tenan weighted the risks. For his men to make buckets, they would need tools. He had none. The only other option was to sneak in and steal what they needed. Tenan rubbed his blonde stubble thoughtfully, "Well, that shouldn't be too hard."
But that night, both the moons shone brightly, and the silvery light reflected perfectly off their pale faces. From the shadows, Tenan and Talhan contemplated what to do. Then, quite suddenly, an idea came to Tenan. Talhan didn't much like it, but when he couldn't come up with anything better, he assented.
Grasping both his wrists, Tenan began dragging the Dwarve towards the sentry. "Halt!" The man cried.
Raising his hands, Tenan pretended to be perturbed. "Roast me alive man! Scared me nigh to death you did." He hoped his accent was good enough.
The man didn't lower his sword. "And who are you?"
Tenan gestured to Talhan, whom he'd been dragging. "Scout. I found this cursed Dwarve lurking about, so I thumped him good. Thought Torzac might want to speak to him."
The man glared down at Talhan. "You're right there."
"Well, come on then, give a man a hand."
Sheathing his sword, the sentry grasped Talhan's legs just as Tenan brought his sword hilt down on his head. With his blade over the unconscious man's neck, he knew he should kill him, but he couldn't bring himself to.
Talhan grunted and pushed Tenan out of the way. Tenan tried to stop him, but it was too late. Talhan had already sunk his blade in the sentry's throat. Talhan's gleaming eyes met Tenan's as he wiped his blade clean. "You know what Torzac does to sentries who fail?" Without waiting for his answer, Talhan plowed on. "I did that man a favor." With that, he replaced his dagger and jogged on.
Darting between tents, Tenan followed Talhan through the quiet camp. As they went, they placed small bottles filled with a flammable liquid Bomin in strategic locations. Grabbing a few buckets, they hurried back, touching the long fuses with a lit pipe as they went. Just as they passed the sentries body, the first bottle exploded behind them. Picking up their pace, they sprinted as the flaming liquid splattered everything and everyone and ignited on contact. Soon the entire camp was aflame again.
Talhan howled in laughter. "When they get all those fires put out, they'll spend the rest of the miserable night treating their blistered skin!"
"What was that?" Tenan asked in amazement.
Talhan grinned mischievously. "Lazeth. It smolders until it explodes. Everything it touches ignites or burns. Quite handy in a pinch, but very volatile to make."
"How come I've never seen it before?"
Talhan's grin broadened to show teeth gleaming in the moonlight. "Torzac tried to force us to make it, but we kept using it against him until he finally gave it up. Terrible way to die, but the Kanovians deserve it." He looked like a dragon spitting fire as he said it.
