They were both taken aback; they exchanged puzzled glances while Raven stared at them both with a smile, murmuring, "What? Is this a secret between you two?"
Sword of the Sky replied nervously, "Nothing in particular. We were just talking about tomorrow's plan, isn't that right, Zain?"
Zain looked at him and answered, "Yes, indeed. We were only discussing what we'll do tomorrow, so don't pay any attention to it."
Raven nodded and said, "So that's settled, then."
"Would you two mind telling me what this plan is?" Raven asked.
Both Sword of the Sky and Zain turned their gazes to one another again. Then Sword of the Sky began to speak.
"Regarding this matter, we need to include two more people in place of Yolan and Kolten, because this plan requires many members."
Raven objected, "That's not important right now. Recruiting members will be easy — just tell us the plan."
Sword of the Sky did not object at all and continued from where he had left off: "This plan depends more on luck than on action."
"One of the conditions is that the creature must be alone and unable to fly."
"Second, we must hurry and prepare the site to set the trap. We are free now, so this is the most suitable time."
"We will dig a pit about ten meters long and between five and six meters wide. In the pit we will plant many strong wooden stakes. It's better if they are trees with sharp points — it seems the skin of these creatures acts like armor protecting them."
"Third, and this is the final step: the bait."
Zain and Raven echoed behind him, "The bait? What is this bait?"
Sword of the Sky turned his gaze toward Zain and said, "You will be the bait."
Zain's and Raven's eyes flew wide open at the force of those words.
Raven rose from his seat, slammed his hands on the table, and shouted, "What are you babbling about? Why would he be the bait?"
Sword of the Sky answered him immediately: "Because he is the fastest among us all. Haven't you seen him run before?"
"As soon as he senses danger, his instinct to flee awakens with all his strength. No one can match him in that matter — it's been the primary reason he has survived until now."
"In fact, he is the perfect person for this task."
Raven lowered his head to think.
Sword of the Sky looked into Zain's face and then said, "You are not obliged to do it. I can take your place."
Zain was silent for a moment, thinking, but firmness soon appeared on his face and he had already made his decision.
"I will do it as I said; it must be me."
The anxiety gradually faded, and Raven returned to his seat with a cold expression. He sighed and said, "The plan you built is indeed sound, and I don't rule out its success at all."
"But from what you said earlier, it appears the four of us are enough to carry out this plan."
Sword of the Sky did not think long before answering, "What if we fail? What if this plan doesn't work?"
"At least if we have more members with us, we can distract it so we can all survive by running and hiding in narrow corridors that might strangle that wretched creature."
Raven fell silent, showing signs of being convinced.
He stood up, his hands on the table, and said, "Wake Dustin to help you and move at once."
"I'll take care of bringing two more members."
Raven left while Sword of the Sky and Zain headed to Dustin's room to wake him.
They stood at the door and Zain knocked twice.
The door opened slowly. Dustin looked drowsy; one eye remained closed while he rubbed it with his hands.
He let out a long sigh and looked at Zain and Sword of the Sky with a hazy expression, taking time to recognize them.
He was still not fully certain when Sword of the Sky spoke: "Hurry and change your clothes; we have work to do."
Dustin still hadn't grasped it, so Sword of the Sky repeated, "Come on, hurry up. There's no time for explanations; we don't have time for idling."
Dustin finally moved and returned to his room, closed the door, and began changing out of his sleepwear.
Zain and Sword of the Sky waited at the door for two minutes until Dustin came out fully prepared.
Thus they set off until Sword of the Sky ordered Dustin and Zain to bring three shovels.
Dustin didn't ask any questions; he simply followed Zain in silence.
Sword of the Sky waited at the stairs.
Within two minutes two men appeared within his sight.
Fawar recognized them and began to climb the steps.
Dustin and Sword of the Sky followed, and so they all left to search for the ideal spot to set this trap.
Along the way Zain began to explain the course of events to Dustin, while Sword of the Sky remained tongue-tied.
After about half an hour the three stopped in a circular clearing surrounded by several partially destroyed buildings, where many narrow alleys and passages existed that would choke this unlucky creature.
In fact, Sword of the Sky thought about how successful this trap might be and was seized by a feeling of an imminent victory.
He had thought carefully before choosing this point, because in these alleys and passages the demonic beast could be brought from anywhere in the city by passing through them to reach the decisive point.
The same applied to the other members: if the first person (Zain) failed to draw it, another member could bring it as well, and if the beast was close to one of them, the others could distract it and become the bait to lead it here.
The plan was certainly well-designed.
Dustin began to dig while Sword of the Sky and Zain went off to look for trees to cut.
A few minutes passed and they found the first tree and began to uproot it.
It was a withered lemon tree, scorched by the sun.
Lemon trees did not naturally grow in the desert; the city's inhabitants had cultivated them by importing them from other regions.
The tree was not at all tall, which made uprooting it easier.
It was about three meters tall.
Sword of the Sky uprooted the tree while Zain hurriedly took a knife from his bag, removed the useless branches, walked to the edge, and began to shape it into a stake.
With the help of Sword of the Sky they finished the first tree and carried it toward Dustin.
They left to look for more.
As for Dustin, he was still far from the target, having not yet reached a depth of one meter.
The companions found another tree roughly twenty paces from where they had uprooted the first one.
They acted quickly, removed it together, and began work anew.
They carried it beside Zain and left to search for more.
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
They finished uprooting ten trees and turning them into sturdy stakes in a record time of two hours.
As for Dustin, he was still digging and had reached a depth of six meters.
Zain was helping him remove soil so it wouldn't fall on him and end everything.
Sword of the Sky sat on the ground making a covering for the pit out of leftover branches and stuffing palm leaves over them so that later they could place soil on top as if they had never dug at all.
The desert was full of palm trees, and it was not difficult to find them, so it was not surprising that Sword of the Sky found one in record time.
The three cooperated to finish the task quickly.
Sword of the Sky finished completing the pit cover and jumped up with his shovel to help Dustin.
It was like the work of construction laborers.
Thanks to their cooperation they managed to accomplish the task.
In a total of three hours the three completed a pit approximately ten meters deep and between five and six meters wide.
Only planting the stakes and covering the pit remained.
It did not take them a quarter of an hour to finish the perfect ambush.
A strange feeling overcame the three of them: joy, worry, and the fatigue that is the fruit of effort.
Dustin collapsed, stretched out on the ground, followed by Zain and then Sword of the Sky.
They were panting constantly, their hands clasped behind their raised heads as they gazed at the moon behind the gray clouds, up to a sky that was blue mixed with some darkness.
Perhaps it was the darkness of night and the absence of the sun.
Sword of the Sky rose and said, "We don't have time. Let's return now to take a bit of rest."
"The fruits of our labor will show tomorrow."
The two rose and set off on the way back to their hideout.
Sword of the Sky entered first, followed by Zain and Dustin.
Everyone headed straight to the bath to clean their wretched state; sweat, soil, and desert sand had covered them.
After showering they went to their rooms and fell prostrate on their beds.
As for Sword
of the Sky's bed, it seemed someone had entered his room and changed it for another one.
Sword of the Sky smiled, jumped onto the bed in a silly way, and fell asleep immediately.