Gora had only been to the surface once as a prefect. He didn't want to look out over the wide expanse of land and realize that somewhere in the distance his daughter-in-law and grandson, who might soon be born, must be alive or dead. And his home was underground after all.

–Oh. What people…" Cobra announced. Beside him stood the same heavily armed fighters as last time. Apparently, the others were covering the perimeter without fear of what might happen inside it. The men of the Mountain, not so heavily armed, were looking at the Hiwi with a little interest, perhaps trying on their image, and at the surroundings, trying to see where the others might be hiding. Though in such darkness and lack of lighting, it was unlikely that anyone could be seen.

–That was fast. – The Mountain nodded his head. – How many were there?

–238. And the seven ran away. – smiled Cobra. – That's a good haul all at once… They were preparing an ambush, apparently, for chums who wanted to fix the road. Well, we weren't gonna fix the road. We don't need it… That's why we saw through the ambush in no time… They are weak, of course. They're used to doing everything by the book, but when it comes to business, they don't know what's what… Well, are you satisfied?

–Quite pleased. – The prefect looked around, at the mangled railroad platform with the roof collapsed on it, at the crumpled railroad tracks and the occasional human body, which had apparently been blown apart by the explosion. – You work fast.

–You bet! Brave guys know what they're doing. – Cobra smiled again. – Well, now it's your turn… We've freed these routes. Do what you want with them… We're interested in your underground routes. We want to use them for our own needs.

No wonder they asked for it. It's the most valuable resource he has at the moment. Using it, the chivi can move their units in unnoticed. And launch new strikes against the Maquis, eventually changing the status quo in the Donetsk-Makeyevka grouping. Everything is quite expected, except that the question remained whether they know that the underground routes are thoroughly improved or just trying to take what they can. It will be very useful for the future to know the answer to this question.

–You can refuse us, of course," Cobra continued, smiling again. – But, you realize we'll be a little offended, so to speak.

–All I need is to know your travel needs in advance so I can prepare everything… These routes are already taken, and to fit you in I'll have to cancel some of mine… That's not a problem, but I need to know in advance. You give me a day's notice, you get the route. If you don't, you don't get it. That's the first condition.

Cobra smiled. He could see that he was dealing with a very difficult man, one who should be respected first and foremost. And he was obviously better to have among friends than enemies.

–You're cunning, Prefect. Cunning. – Cobra smiled again, though not as smugly as before. – Your condition will do.

When the new commander of Squad 14 was informed of the near total destruction of two companies near the Deese sector, he was more surprised than upset. He had lost many times more in operations, but never had it been such a surprise… And at the same time, when he had lost men in the past, he had gotten the worst of it from Khmelnitsky… That brainless shirtless guy who thought that he was at the mercy of the sea....

He had once gathered more and more units around him, made Unit 14 the largest, but that was his only merit. He couldn't command or strategize. Not at all. Just a few instructions to plug a hole or prepare a new raid. Nothing. Absolutely nothing on the scale of the plagues.

Zubkov was sick of it. To follow these rotten orders as long as something was not jeopardized. This "as long as not" was the Achilles' heel of his leadership. That was how Zubkov was able to lure to his side the three supreme judges, and part of the special forces headed by Seversky, and individual commanders who wanted something more than just hiding in holes from the empire.

And the judges didn't come cheap. The first one was easier. All he had to do was find a good-looking whore for his intimate pleasures. Younger and with serious experience. There was not much choice, but he had to convince her that the best candidate was 15 years younger than she really was… But, in fact, without glasses he wouldn't be able to see it anyway.

The second one was a little more complicated. He's the one who gets the plague money. I wonder how exactly he's going to spend it. Buy land and titles from the empire? Or buy what?

Actually, it doesn't matter so much when he's already agreed to it, having received his own.

But the third was the most difficult – he wanted two battalions for personal use. Well, we managed that too. Although a bit pathetic to give such a mediocre combat forces, but the goal was worth it. In short, he still did not mention the quality of these battalions, so he received the most slag from the long-joined "Detachment 14" and already decayed battalions № 210 and № 240. The names were still with numbers, from the good old days, when they tried to attribute a bigger number to themselves to make it seem that there were probably as many units as well.

Seversky did not have to be persuaded for a long time, especially since he himself hinted that he was ready to get even with Bolotnikov and any of his friends. And it was enough to convince him that Khmelnitsky was his old friend. And at the same time to push the idea that

Khmelnitsky himself was extremely weak and ineffective in the leadership of "Detachment 14".

Of course I'm weak. If he wasn't weak, he wouldn't have overlooked all these preparations. And in general, it would be worth thinking about – what if all these developments were made not by him, a patriot, and the enemy plague? What then? The whole army would have developed… He is an old fool. Khmelnitsky. He expected that everyone around him supports him and considers him almost a father. Well, not many people turned out to support him. Now they're sitting together in their penal battalion. That's where they belong. Although, it must be admitted, so far they've been quite successful. And one of them, the Jackal from the chiwi, turned out to be a big shot. He's told us so much already.

Of course, first of all, he told that he had told a lot of things to Bolotnikov, who had already taken him prisoner. Still, we should be careful with him – you'll give them impossible tasks, and they'll do something to solve them… But the Jackal himself told a lot: and about the confrontation between the SCK and the Church, and about new opportunities of Zheleznov in the grouping "Donetsk-Makeevka", and about how much they know about "Detachment 14". The latter was especially striking – it turns out that the Kiwis have their own informant among the Maquis. And this is the same as the informant of the chums. And whether it's the one they found thanks to Zheleznov. It's Ranierov or not.

It's hard to say. Zubrilov had already become confused by all these informants in the last six months. Especially since he personally leaked some information to the plagues. Like in the case of Kremenchug. This party was too favorable for him. And it paid off! To sacrifice a little to seize the initiative…

But as for the rest, it was no longer him. A lot of information, including the fact that he had become Commander-in-Chief, was not spread with his knowledge, and some real informant of the Chum or the Kiwi still existed in his Squad 14. A real one, or several.

Ranierov had been pointed out by the prefect. The data he had provided left no doubt that Ranierov had every reason to snitch to the plague, and given his character, it should have been a matter of course. But now the situation had changed dramatically – Zubkov, now in charge, did not benefit from anyone leaking anything without his knowledge. Whether it was one person or several, any leak was now only to his detriment. And given the speed at which all kinds of information was spreading, it was becoming dangerous.