Drums beat as the camp turned out. It had been three days since Erik had overheard the discussion in Calis’s office, and the six prisoners had been training hard, focusing their attentions on doing whatever was necessary to remain alive. Foster became even more of a tyrant, abusing the men at every turn, and de Loungville studied them closely, looking for any sign they might fail to meet his demands.
Now a new day began with an unexpected twist. The prisoners moved out of their tent a good half hour earlier than usual and saw that the other men who lived in the compound were all hurrying to the command building. As they followed, they were intercepted by a guard, a soldier named Perry of Witcomb, who said, “Fall in behind me, and stay together. No talking!”
The six fell into their usual order, with Biggo at the lead and Sho Pi at the rear, Billy, Luis, Roo, and Erik in between. They reached the building as the door opened and Calis and de Loungville emerged.
De Loungville held his hand up for silence and said, “Listen up!”
Calis said, “We’ve been discovered. Two of our sentries were killed last night.”
A muttering broke out among the men in black, and de Loungville had to call for quiet again. Calis continued, “You all know what to do; we break camp now.”
Instantly the thirty men in black raced to their tents and the majority of soldiers began hurrying to their assigned places. Foster turned to Perry of Witcomb and gave instructions. The soldier gestured to the six prisoners and said, “You lot, come with me.”
They followed the soldier through the frantic but organized activity, and he led them to a large tent not far from the blacksmith’s shop. “Find clothing that fits,” he ordered, “and put it on.”
The six entered and in the gloom saw a pile of common clothing. Erik stripped off his boots and then his tunic and trousers, throwing the ragged grey garments into the corner. He joined the others in rummaging through the pile, picking up tunics and judging their size, casting aside those that were obviously too small. Luis and Billy as well as Sho Pi found clothing quickly, being of more average size. But Roo, because of his diminutive stature, and Biggo and Erik, because of their bulk, took longer to find clothing that fit. Eventually, all six stood wearing fresh garments. Erik had found a dark blue tunic with an open collar and long sleeves. A pair of sailor’s trousers were the only pair of pants he could find that fit. He gave up trying to push the flared legs into the top of his boots, and let them fall outside.
Laughter caused Erik to turn and there he saw Roo with an angry expression. “It’s the only one that fits!” he said as Billy and Luis made rude observations. The shirt was open to the waist, and a lurid purple color. Making matters worse, the only pair of trousers small enough were a bright crimson.
“Then pick one that doesn’t fit,” said Erik, trying hard not to laugh.
Roo peeled off the offending shirt and looked some more, finding a plain white tunic that was only slightly too large. He tucked the voluminous tails of the shirt into his loud red waistband and Erik nodded. “Now you look only slightly ridiculous instead of completely ridiculous.”
Roo grimaced, then smiled. “Red’s my lucky color.”
“Get out of there!” called Perry and the prisoners came out of the tent. “Get to the smithy, and get aboard the last wagon in line. There will be two mounted crossbowmen behind you, so don’t imagine you’ll get a chance to go for a stroll.”
He started to move away, then turned and said, “And tuck those nooses out of sight.”
The six prisoners had grown used to being required to wear the nooses at all times, outside their tunics. They had put them back on after changing. Now they tucked them inside, so they wouldn’t be seen.
Biggo had to quickly strip off his tunic and put on the noose, then put the tunic on, as the neck of his shirt was close-fitting. Luis said, “A bit lumpy for high fashion, my friend, but it will do.”