Toyef Bilinski couldn't fathom why this vista kept summoning ghosts from his past. His mouth would twitch up in a smile, then droop with sadness, but mostly it stayed somewhere in between. After his brief communion with memory, his expression grew tender yet tinged with regret. It was a beautiful sort of regret—like pristine snow yielding to fierce sunlight: immaculate, ephemeral, yet piercing enough to cut to the marrow and brand itself upon the heart.

  He spat over the edge, as if expelling both youth and remembrance; they vanished into the void below. (Focus.) He raised his monocular and swept it across the wall. Initially, he struggled with the lens's distortion and the concentrated dawn light. (Even my most trusted eyes fail me now.) Setting the lens aside, he rubbed his eyes vigorously. A handful of soldiers stood scattered atop the wall, but their activities remained indiscernible. (He aimed better than I ever did, this lad.) A satisfied smile warmed his features. "Not bad!" He was about to praise his apprentice when the trebuchet arm shuddered twice, accompanied by the ominous creak of wood under strain. (It's too heavy.) "But perhaps aiming slightly higher would be preferable."

  The young dwarf's enthusiasm evaporated instantly. "I'll still take you to the casino," Toyef promised. "Green, three more turns upward."

  "But," Thorin Durin protested, "I've already aimed quite high! Three more turns and we'll hit the wall face, not the foundation!"

  "A touch higher won't hurt. We've never launched something this massive before—the range might fall short." The red-haired dwarf's reasoning lacked conviction. "Enough!" Green Varmint halted the rotation.

  Toyef leaped down from the crane. "Now, secure the winch cables, then disengage the wheel locks."

  "Are you certain about this elevation?" Thorin followed at his heels. "I believe my aim was perfect."

  "You aimed splendidly, my boy. Even better than I did in my prime, when these eyes could tell at a glance whether a girl was virtuous," he winked roguishly, "you've outdone me." He affectionately tousled Thorin's red hair. "But what I possess that you lack is experience. We'll know the worth of that soon enough."

  "Release the wheel locks!" Green Varmint extracted a serrated wooden latch from between the horizontal and vertical wheels. "All clear, Mr. Bilinski!" Blue Rascal announced.

  "Everyone, maintain distance," Toyef Bilinski commanded the uninvolved to retreat. "Walin, you too, step back." Walin Barklo Vaslov raised his head, transfixed by the trebuchet, and withdrew mechanically. "Ready yourselves!" he instructed the twins. "Await my signal!" He embodied the commanding presence of a battle-tested general. "Three!" Blue positioned her hand on the winch lever. "Two!" She braced her stance. "One! FIRE!"

  Blue Varmint thrust the lever with all her might. The winch instantly surrendered its resistance, and the Dragon Sinew retracted with lightning speed. Freed from their safety locks, the wheels offered no impedance, rotating in concert with the descending counterweight. The projectile began its ascent, gradually at first, then with escalating velocity until it crested the balance point and traced its parabolic journey. For Walin, the world seemed to slow to a crawl, his faint heartbeat the sole audible sound, overwhelming even the mechanical thunder of the engine.

  The counterweight slid seamlessly into the trebuchet's base without striking ground. The stone was reaching its highest point, going incredibly fast. The rope net containing the missile swept past its apogee; the stone commenced its aerial trajectory. "MAGNIFICENT!" Walin's fists clenched in exultation as he bellowed his triumph. Toyef Bilinski flicked sweat from his palm. "We did it!"

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  In the breath following Walin Barklo Vaslov's jubilation, a deafening crack of splintering timber shattered the moment—the trebuchet's arm, constructed from three joined beams, fractured at its rear connector. Nails and cordage at the junction exploded outward in all directions, while the third beam, supporting the projectile's network, plummeted earthward. A child's shriek pierced the air, swiftly muffled as his mother clamped her hand over his mouth and clutched him tightly. Blue Rascal stood paralyzed, judgment deserting her in the crisis. Her twin brother barreled into her, shoving her clear as the massive timber crashed to earth.

  "Everyone, clear the area!" None displayed greater composure than Toyef Bilinski. "Walin, escort them to the mounts, prepare for immediate withdrawal if necessary."

  "Did we fail?!" Walin Barklo Vaslov's gaze darted frantically between the devastated trebuchet and Toyef. "Where did the stone land?!"

  The stone had indeed launched, but the catastrophic failure moments before release had extinguished all hope for this assault—such a calamitous malfunction would inevitably compromise the projectile's trajectory. Green Varmint gathered Blue Rascal in his arms, but Toyef signaled them to remain.

  The second timber now threatened collapse. "That area is perilous," Toyef cautioned coolly, attempting to restrain Thorin Durin. "Stay back, lad." His warning went unheeded. Thorin scrambled frantically onto the crane, forcing the red-haired dwarf to reluctantly assist in moving the apparatus.

  Upon reaching the arm's pinnacle, Thorin realized with dismay that Toyef retained the monocular. "Blast it!" He slapped his forehead in frustration. Toyef Bilinski hastily mounted the crane, instructing Green to operate it. "Can you discern anything, lad?"

  "Without the monocular, I can't make out a—"

  A thunderous boom reverberated through the earth. "Where did it strike?!" A spark of agitation flashed in Toyef Bilinski's eyes. Thorin snatched the proffered monocular, pressed it against his left eye, neglecting to adjust its magnification. "Well?" Toyef had barely reached the platform. "Did we succeed?"

  Thorin Durin answered with profound silence. "Speak, child!" Toyef implored. When Thorin finally responded, his voice carried the solemnity of a cathedral bishop at sermon.

  "...It appears to have struck the wall's foundation!"

  "And?!" Toyef pressed eagerly.

  "Though it missed the optimal impact point, it still connected with the wall's base!"

  Toyef Bilinski's fist crashed against the arm with such force that he nearly dislodged the remaining timbers. "THAT is the value of experience!" His booming laughter proved contagious, sparking scattered chuckles among those below. "Did it work?!" Walin exclaimed, caught in the euphoria.

  "But..."

  "Indeed it did, Lord Walin." Toyef Bilinski leaned out, nodding affirmatively to Walin. "Blue!" he commanded the female dwarf, "Salvage the Dragon Sinew and take it with you! You'll depart last," he gestured to Green, "Incinerate the trebuchet, then follow!"

  "But..."

  "But what?!" Now Toyef's patience had evaporated.

  "It doesn't appear to have penetrated the wall."

  A metaphorical deluge of ice water cascaded over Toyef Bilinski. "What did you say?!" He snatched back the monocular. The wall remained unbreeched—the stone had merely gouged a shallow depression at the foundation, essentially just chipping the surface stonework. "........" Toyef found himself speechless.

  "Sir, what course should we—"

  "Leave. Leave immediately." Toyef seized the nearest dwarf and deposited him unceremoniously on the crane before boarding himself. "Adhere to the plan!" he shouted to Green Varmint. "We withdraw regardless—Cynthian forces are already mobilizing..."

  From the east emerged the distinctive sound of stone striking stone—crisp yet somehow oppressive. The pair prepared to descend via the crane. "What produces that sound?!" Toyef Bilinski ordered Green to halt the crane's descent. Thorin Durin reclaimed the monocular.

  "What transpires below?"

  "It... he appears to be moving!"

  Only now did Toyef Bilinski fully recollect that their projectile was no ordinary stone. His lips parted in a broad grin. "Pull us up!" he commanded the twin brother.

  "Will it succeed?" Thorin gradually lowered the monocular.

  "I believe it will."

  Then, the Stone Troll's roar shook the world with unprecedented force.