Spring came too quickly and the sun melted away the snow, swelling rivers and streams. The damns and bridges were blown up or on some, spans were removed to make them inoperable. Mal and two others spent a month with those chosen to be scouts. When they weren't working on learning to communicate and gain their horses trust, they were learning the fine details of tracking, scouting and how to blend into their surroundings without getting caught.
The hours were long and Mal and Marcus stayed apart on purpose to keep their minds focused on the task at hand. But though the winter had provided much needed water, the spring was dryer than normal, making things a little more easy to traverse and wok through but as the temperatures began to rise on the plains and things began to dry, Mal came to the council late one evening and spoke to them about a final plan that could end the war before it got too far started.
She explained that the plains had gone many many years without fire. Fire was how nature renewed itself and replenished things that were lacking. The fields in Kansas and Nebraska were teaming with layers of dried grass, weeds and all manners of things. The plains anywhere in the plains states were in similar conditions. If they timed things just right, they could set fires along the way to dog Daniels troops, forcing them in directions the Alliance wanted them to go, but it would add a layer of danger and vulnerability as the plains burned unattended. Smoke would be thick and many things could burn including people.
The only thing the scouts could do is warn people, get them off the plains and into the mountains away from the threat and make sure there was nothing left in the way of supplies that could be destroyed. If they started now, they could have the northern half of the plains cleared of herd animals, people and supplies before starting a fire and letting nature do the rest.
The council members and the members of the Alliance seemed to be a little nervous about this but they agreed that it could take care of many problems along the way and help clear debris and areas that could be opened to farming again when the war was over. Marcus and the rest of the leaders gave a cautioned agreement to it. But he expressed how much they needed to be cautious but it needed to be done soon.
Mal nodded and took off with her troop of scouts to start from the Wyoming and South Dakota borders and make their way south east. They encountered very few people and little in the way of supplies. Mal had known this was how it might be but things could always change in the days when last they were checked. No fields had been planted, no crops growing and the few people they encountered were already heading west since rumor of war was coming. They didn't wish to be involved or they were the type that simply wished to be left in peace.
As they traversed the plains, small groups of scouts and Indians broke off and were staged to monitor certain access points across the Missouri river. They were simply to scout and do nothing unless troops were coming across in a place they were not meant to. They could be routed with the use of fire and sabatoge to go where the Alliance wanted them to.