An Original by MJB. Tell your friends about it. :) : Part IV

Tam and Merrick sat outside of the barracks where Merrick lived and Tam had spent the past seven years of his life. The six chests that contained all of Tam's belongings sat beside them. Both men were silent as the sun sank. The sky was a beautiful red and the wind blew, ushering in an early winter. Tam sniffed, smelling the coming of heavy snow. He did not mind the snow. In his childhood days, he had played with all of his friends, practicing at throwing snowballs, lighting fires, and other things which, though they were fun, were also practice for what life would be when they grew to adulthood. Merrick nudged Tam out of his trance and pointed down the path. Thire was walking towards them, leading pair of oxen that were pulling a cart. Tam recognized it as one of the Kyborite carts. Thire pulled up and the three men began to load without a word. When all six chests were in the back, Merrick gripped Tam in a crushing hug. As the two embraced, he whispered in Tam's ear, "Remember, Tam, that you are always welcome here. Whenever you can, come back and train and visit me in my forge in the market place. " Tam nodded, tears being squeezed from his eyes. Then Merrick let him go and put his hands on his shoulders. Merrick was only five years older than Tam. He sniffed and said in a very husky voice, "Live life to the fullest, and treat everyday as your last. Treat every act as a service to Almighty God, and thank Him for the blessings he has given you. Good by for now, my brother." Tam cleared his throat and managed to say, "I will. Thank you for your hospitality, Merrick. May god bless you for your kindness to me." They two of them shook hands and then Tam climbed up into the wagon seat next to Thire. Thire nodded to Merrick and said, "Good night, Sir Merrick. In the next few days, I will be ordering a special set of swords. I will bring you the description soon." Merrick nodded and bid them both a good night. On the way back to Thire's home, the elder man began to explain what Tam's duties would be, "Your duties will start when the sun hits your mirror. You will be staying in Turgon's room. They will start with feeding, milking, and watering all of the goats. When that is finished, you are to go to the store house and take inventory and organize it. When that is finished, go to the armory and clean, polish and repair all of the weapons and armor in there. After this, ask my wife Leona what you can do. She will probably have you run go into the market square for something or another. You will work until she gives you nothing else to do. When I get home from my daily business I am going to educate you on what it takes to be a Minister of War. I will also train in the old styles of fighting and strategy that very few know in the mountain villages these days. After this, you have time to do as you please, but I must warn you, make sure you get your rest." Thire steered the wagon in between his large house and his even larger barn. He unhitched the oxen and lead them into the bard while Tam pulled the first chest out of the wagon. Suddenly, the door to the house opened, and out stepped four shadowy figures. One was Thire's wife Leona. She was tall and beautiful. On each side of her was a young woman. One was probably fifteen and the other closer to eighteen. Both were also very lovely. A young boy was down in front of Leona, no older than ten or eleven. Tam pulled another chest out of the wagon as Thire walked up and said, "Hello family. This is Tammelo, son of the great warrior Thracken, former Minister of War. he is coming to help lighten our burdens. Tam, come and meet my family." Tam set the chest down and walked stepped closer to them. He had seen them all before, but he could not pick them out by name except the boy, whose name was Feldon. Turgon had brought the him along on a lot of the older boy's games, if only to watch and to learn. The young ladies, he had only seen a handful of time, he just remembered standing back with Turgon and Feldon, watching as the other boys ran races for their attention. Thire walked up and put a gentle and affectioned hand on each of their shoulders, saying there names as he did, "This is my wife Leona, this is my eldest daughter Liana and my second eldest, Mersona, and you know my son Feldon." Tam nodded and said, "I am glad to be serving you and I truly, deeply regret your loss." Leona stepped up to him and took his face between her hands, forcing him to look her in the eyes. After a few moments she smiled at him and said, "Welcome to your new home, Tammelo. Thank you for being willing to help us. You will be put into Turgon's old room. Now let us get your belongings into there." When she released him, Tam bowed low, smiling and with tears in his eyes. Then He and Thire put his belongings in Turgon's room. After that, Tam was alone. He lay out close for the next day and then took off the close he was wearing. He flung himself onto the mattress, and lay there for a long while, thinking of his friend Turgon and the times they had shared together. When he finally fell asleep, the pillow was damp with tears.
Tam woke the next morning with the sun full on his face, as it was reflecting off the mirror. He rolled out of bed and stretched his muscles out. Then he slipped into his clothes and left the house without making any noise. His first task was to feed, water, and milk all the goats. The task was not difficult, but it took three hours as the family of Thire owned forty dairy goats, eighty meat goats, and thirty shaggy goats. The buckets of the milk he stored in a cellar. Inside the cellar were long trenches of water that kept the milk in the buckets nice and cool. After Tam came out of the dark cellar for the last time, he shut it, and stretched his back and arms. He never imagined that buckets of goat milk could get so heavy. With a sigh, he made his way toward the cellar when Leona suddenly called from the kitchen door, "Tammelo, come and eat some breakfast or else you won't make it throughout the day." Tam grinned and ran full tilt towards the house. When he made it to the door, Leona smiled at him, "Come on in, the food is getting cold and breakfast is the most important meal of the day." Tam nodded and went to the table. Thire sat at the head of it while Leona set at the foot. On one side sat Liana and Mersona and on the other sat Feldon and Tam. As soon as everyone was seated and the table was ready, Thire said a prayer for the food and for the family. He also thanked God for the new member of there family and prayed a special blessing over him. With an "Amen" the family dug into the food. There was sourdough bread, good rice, cheese, milk mixed with a black drink made from the beans off of trees imported from a far southern land called Nesromaut, and fruit that was bought from merchants from the cities who traded it for other various items. Thire looked up from his plate and asked Tam, "How are the goats doing today?" Tam swallowed his mouthful and then answered, "They are all fed, watered, and milked. They all appeared to be healthy and the shaggy goats' wool is coming in quite nicely." Thire cocked an eyebrow, "How do you know so much about goats?" Tam smiled and said, "My father wanted to be a goat farmer like you, sir. He wanted to pass his title on to me as soon as I was married and he would simply build a house, raise some goats, and live happily ever after. He learned as much as he could and taught me a lot also." Thire sipped his drink and then said, "Very good. What of the store house and armory?" Tam shook his head, "I have not gotten there yet, but I plan to as soon as I have finished eating. Is there anything I can do once I am done with those tasks?" Thire nodded and swallowed his mouth full. "Yes. I need you to go into town and buy some fabric, some leather, and some good quality sharpening stones. Leona will give you the money. If there is any left when you are done with your buying, you may use the rest to buy yourself something. I would recommend the small baker shop or the tavern if you are hungry, and anything between Merrick's forge and Vron's carpenter shop for other items." Tam nodded respectfully, "Thank you sir. You are generous." Thire just smiled, "You are family now Tam. you can expect to be treated as such." Tam felt a lump in his throat. He quickly drank some of his brew to force it down. As soon as the meal was done, Tam headed for the store house. The building was another cellar except it was far larger and had many more items in it. Everything was in organized chaos. Different herbs and seasonings hung from random rafters, barrels and casts were everywhere and boxes, jars and skins of different liquids were everywhere. Tam was about to get to work when he felt a light tap on his shoulder. He turned to see Laina standing behind him, holding a tablet with a parchment on it. It contained all of what should be in the store house. "You may need this, Tammelo, son of Thracken." she said dispassionately. Tam bowed and said, "Thank you, Liana, daughter of Leona." She turned away and headed towards the house. Tam watched her go and then turned to his daunting task. For the next four hours, Tam checked and rechecked the stock, organized everything, from herbs to barrels, to jars, to boxes, to skins. He checked off the last thing and found that the family seemed to have one more wine skin than they should. He picked it up and looked at it, wondering what to do with it. Then he heard Leona calling from the kitchen again, "Tam, come and eat some lunch." Tam tucked the wine skin under his arm and ran to the door. When Leona looked at it questioningly, Tam said, "According to your records, this one is an extra." Leona looked at it again and then said, "Well then you can have it. Drink it through the day and it will keep you awake and energized, but do not drink too much too fast, or you will intoxicate yourself." Tam nodded and said, "Thank you." He hung the skin by the door and sat in his seat at the table. Thire had left for the council lodge several hours ago. Leona set a plate of fish on the table and then frowned. Walking to the door she called, "Feldon, come and eat, please." Within a few moments, Feldon came running in, covered in dust and hay and straw. He grinned and plopped into the chair next to Tam and said, "Hi Tam, watcha doing?" Tam smiled and ruffled the young boys hair, saying, "Well now I'm eating lunch, but then I am going to the armory to clean off and polish up all the weapons and armor there." Feldon's eyes went wide, "Wow! My father doesn't let me in there alone. Can I come with you?" Tam looked at Leona, who said, "No Feldon. You need to finish taking care of the horses, oxen, and donkey. When you are done with that, you have your education to work on." Feldon pouted a little and Tam said, "Feldon, an education is far more important than any old weapon. Without the know-how, you cannot use a simple stick, much less a mighty war sword. Tell you what, when I get my chores done and you get your studies done, I will teach you a few tricks with the wooden stick and perhaps even the short sword." Feldon's grin returned and he dug into his fish. Tam was about to also when a thought occurred to him, "Leona, you do not mind if I teach him that, do you?" Leona shook her head, "Oh know. By all means. Turgon was going to, so you owe Feldon that much in a way." Tam nodded and took a big bite of fish. The young women came in and sat down. Liana was silent, but Mersona talked as much as she ate. "Mother, what do you want us to bring into town? I mean besides the normal products. Is there anything extra?" Leona shook her head as she chewed. Mersona said, "Tam, when you come into town today, could you bring me something to eat and drink?" Tam swallowed and said, "Yes I can, but it may be some time. I need to clean the armory first and that may take awhile." Mersona nodded and took a bite of her food. As soon as she swallowed that bite, she had another question, and so it went for the entire meal. When Tam was finished, he went to the armory, which was the room across from Turgon's room. Tam opened the door and beheld more weapons in one place than he had ever seen. Swords, bows, glaives, spears, axes, knives, arrows, halberds, and even a few odd ones that he had never seen before but suspected them to be in the whip and chain family. There were also three suites of armor, each one slightly dusty. Inside a small cabinet, Tam found a rag, some small pots of oil for the swords, some skins of water, an empty bucket, and a dark substance that Tam suspected was homemade polish. He set to his tasks with a will. He dusted, cleaned, and polished the blades until he could clearly see his own reflection and then he sharpened them on a rolling grinder until he could shave with the blades. The wood he cleaned and polished the wood until it shined brightly. The cloth and leather objects he scrubbed the then rung out and pressed. The armor, he took apart and cleaned and polished piece by piece, putting all back together correctly when he was finished. When he was finished, he took the polish, oil, and water bottles and put them away in the cabinet. Then he noticed some smaller doors inside the cabinet. Pulling each one open, he found bars of bees wax, extra oil, sharpening stones, files, and extra bowstrings, feathers, and arrow heads. How very resourceful, but I may need to ad bees wax and bow strings to the shopping list, he thought to himself. When he was finished putting everything away he took the rag and rinsed it in the water bucket and then dumped the water out. That done, he went to Leona and she gave him the money and sent him into town.

to be continued...

An Original by MJB. Comment as you will:) : Part III

Tam stood on the dais in the arch of the crescent shaped table in the council lodge. The six members sat at the table with there wives standing behind them. They were smiling and congratulating Tam for his success.
"Well done, young man. You have done very well. Your father would be proud." said Rozzel, Minister of Foreign Dealing, the oldest, and considered wisest member of the council. He had known Tam's father, Thracken, when he was a boy.
"Yes. Just from a quick glance, I can tell that the supplies and items you took from the Kyborites will be more than enough for a good amount of time, perhaps all of winter and into spring when pooled with our other supplies." said Deviss, Minister of the Town's Stores, Taxes, and Finances.
"You have clearly redeemed yourself and even gained a healthy amount of prestige, my boy." said Galaar the spokesman of the Council, and indeed, the entire Wold tribe of the Sappian mountains.
"Yes and the horses and wagons you brought will be very useful. No the doubt the warriors who don't keep them will sell them for a fair price. They will help will carting goods to the other seven mountain towns." said Levet, Minister of Construction and Transportation of Goods, the youngest member of the council, but not at all the least valued. It was he who organized the construction and repair of buildings and other structures needed the the town.
Thire, official Minister of Education and acting Minister of Military Affairs, sat on his seat with his elbows on the table and his chin on his hands. He stood and began to pace, as he did when teaching, "You have done very well Tammelo, son of Thracken. Your father would be very proud of you. Now I wish to bring up to you the offer you made me when we were last in this lodge. Marcus, would you please read it for us from the records?"
Marcus was the recorder of the council. He was the most educated member save perhaps Thire and wrote the best and the fastest. He went to the shelves where all the documents were kept and pulled out a book from close to the end. He flipped to the last page and cleared his throat. With a strong, clear voice, he began to speak, "Tammelo, son of Thracken took a knee and said these words, 'I plea for the chance to redeem myself for the failure to provide meat. For the life of Turgan, I offer my life, such as it is. Do with it as you will'" Marcus closed the book and bowed. Thire nodded respectfully, "Thank you, Marcus. Tammelo, does that offer still stand?" Tam took a knee once again and nodded, "Yes sir." Thire walked over to him and helped him to his feet, saying, "Very well. As soon as my business here is done, we will go to your quarters at the barracks and gather your belongings." Tam bow and stepped off the platform. Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. Galaar called, "come." It was Keller, a sharp eyed young man who scouted for Tam on the raid on the Kyborites. "Begging your pardons sirs, but I have here something that Tammelo found on the raids." He ran up and handed a large leather document case to Tam, who, in turn, handed it to Thire, saying, "You should look at this, sir. It is very important." Thire nodded and said, "Thank you. In the mean time, go to the barracks and gather your things. Be ready for me by nightfall." Tam bowed and left the lodge.
Tam walked in a bit of a daze back towards the barracks. The beautiful evening was lost on him. When he reached the massive building, he stopped on the outside and took a long look at it. Merrick's family had built it as a large house and as a combat training building. The top floors were a home, with a living, dining, and kitchen area. The bottom floor was divided into twelve large rooms. Nine rooms were dormitory rooms with basic closets and beds. One was a hand-to-hand combat room with swinging bags from fifty to a three hundred pounds of small stones or sand. The bags themselves were made of rough canvas. The second was a long narrow room, used for practicing archery and other ranged weapons. The third and final room was racked from wall to wall with wooden practice weapons and swinging oak logs for practicing with weapons. Tam walked through each room, pushing the swinging logs and bags, stroking his favorite training weapons, and remembering all the good times. Merrick taught me what my father couldn't do for me after his death, he thought, and a flash went through his mind, Tam swung his fist at the bags, slashing his hand on the rough canvas. "Exhale as you strike, not too early, not too late." said Merrick. Thracken stood next to him and said, "Yes, but put your hips into it. Don't use only the power of your shoulder, but also the energy from your twisting hips. Relax, you are not big and strong like Merrick is." A tear went down Tam's face as he made it to his own room. Inside were six large wooden chests. Three contained clothes, one contained all the things that his father had left him, and two had weapons in them. Tam looked around the small room, a lump in his throat. With a shuddering sigh, he heaved the chest with his father's heirlooms and tried to settle it on his shoulder. It was heavier than it first seemed, but Tam persisted. As soon as the chest was on his shoulder, he walked out to the path and set the chest down. The second chest was even more difficult, and when he went back for the third, Merrick stood there, a chest on each shoulder. Tam just nodded in thanks, the lump in his throat even larger. Tam grabbed the last chest and the two walked out together. After they set their cargo down, the two just stood there silently. Then, Merrick said, "I never showed you what was in your father's chest. He gave my father the key. Now I will give it to you. Take a look at your father's gifts." He handed a ring of keys to Tam, who knelt down and opened the chest without a word. Inside were many valuable things. A large leather bound book with another lock on it, a golden ring with an insignia shaped like a howling wolf's head cut out of a ruby, a smaller box with an odd puzzle combination lock on it, a suit of flexible scale armor made of high quality steel, and a long, curved sword. Tam looked at it all for a long time. Then he took the ring and slipped it on his finger. The sword, he pulled out and drew from its scabbard. It was obviously a two handed weapon, the like of which Tam did not know how to use. The blade had to be at least four feet and the handle was nine inches and tinted a very dark silver, almost a shiny black. The wrapping of the handle was tanned wolf skin with silken cord for a good grip. The scabbard was also black. Tam choked, remembering watching his father walk away with his very sword on his hip, and remembered him coming back being carried on a stretcher. He would never forget that day. He sheathed the mighty weapon and place it neatly back in the box.

To be continued...

An Original by MJB. Tell me what you think!!! :) : Part II

Tammelo, or Tam as his friends called him, stood on a clifftop, looking at the caravan of Kyborites below him. Next to him was a sharp eyed scout named Keller, who rattled off every detail he could pick up from the carts, "Fifteen wagons total, twelve are marked by an unknown symbol, probably a private merchant, and three are marked with the Kyborite military symbol. It looks fifty-one soldiers, one is obviously a knight or noble of some kind, and there are about thirty drivers. They are heading towards the forking passes." Tam scratched his chin thoughtfully, taking it all in with his own sharp eyes. "Go back to the men. Tell them to put twenty on one side of the pass about two hundred paces before the pass forks and twenty on the other side at the same distance before the pass, and tell them not to come out unless I draw my sword." Keller nodded and trotted back to the men, passing Merrick who walked up to Tam. "What do you have in mind?" Tam loosened the scimitar in its sheath and said, "I'm going to go talk to them. Come with me if you will." Merrick pulled the glaive from the case on his back and tested its edge. Then they went down to the paths. The two Sappians stood on the path as the oxen-drawn-wagons pulled up. When the wagons halted, Tam called out over the crowd, "Who is your captain?" The Kyborites were still, until a tall man on a gorgeous white charger rode up to the front to meet Tam. Tam and the rider looked each other up and down for a few moments. The Kyborite was tall, thin, and very pale. The rumor was that they also had fangs. The man inclined his head respectfully and smiled, revealing that the rumor was true. "Greetings, Sappians. I am a Paladin of Kybore. These man-at-arms and I are carrying supplies for the soldiers of Sappia who are combating rebels in the Naith region." Tam inclined his head as well. Something is not right here, he thought. "Understood. It is our duty to check all visitors who come through the Sappian Mountains. We just need to see your papers and you can be on your way." The Kyborite nodded and pulled a large document case out of his saddle bags. After opening the case, he urged his horse forward and handed the papers to Tam, explaining each one, "There are three: One from the king of Sappia, one from the king of Kybore, and one from the private merchant, who has graciously allowed us to use his wagons." Tam took each document and held them up with their backs to the sun. After closely examining each one, he handed them back to the Kyborite, saying, "I'm sorry, sir. I am afraid that there is a problem. The document with the King of Sappia's seal on it is missing the seal of our nations Grand Commander Dessimus. I am afraid we cannot let you through our mountain passes." The Kyborite noble went speechless and then stammered, "There must be a mistake. None of the documents have any other seal on them." Tam nodded, "Of course they do, see." He pulled out a document from his own pocket, and held it up. A large seal showed through the paper, set there by water mixed with a special kind of plant pulp. The Kyborite turned his horse around and conferred with two of the soldiers. Suddenly, as if on a sudden impulse, he drew out a long, leaf-bladed broad sword and charged at the two men, hefting his shield at the same time. Tam whipped out his scimitar and arrows flew seemingly out of no where. The paladin caught them on his shield and swung at Tam's neck. Tam parried the blow and was about to strike when Merrick took the Kyborite's head off with a single sweep of his glaive. At that moment, the howls of many wolves sounded as the Sappian warriors under Tam's command charged, dressed head to toe in wolf skins and armed to the teeth. The battle went fast and hard. At first Tam found himself charging the main group of Kyborite soldiers, but he suddenly found himself facing two of them. One wielded a mighty two handed sword while the other flourished a hammer and a shield. They attacked as one, driving Tam back. Tam caught a hammer blow with his sword and deflected a strike from the massive sword. To gain time, he kicked the swordsman square in the chest, knocking him back off his feet a few paces. The hammer man came in, swinging his weapon at Tam's head. Tam ducked under it and slashed at the mans feet. The leaped above it and struck. Tam blocked with his sword and slammed his shield into the mans face, just as the two-handed swordsman got to his feet. Tam leaped at him and slashed with perfectly angular strikes, driving the man's back against the cart. The man made a fatal error and over exerted his swing. Tam slid under it and cut the man from shoulder to hip, spinning immediately after in order to face the man with the hammer again. The man jabbed with it and caught Tam in the shoulder of his sword arm. Tam inhaled sharply and dropped his sword. Instinctively, Tam grabbed the hammer and wrenched it from the mans grasp, dropping his shield at the same time. The two opponents grappled, trying to maintain control of the Kyborites large kite shield, until Tam swung his fist, catching the man on the chin, and ripped the shield. the next few moments were all a blur. Tam and the man separated and exchanged skillful punches and kicks. The man was taller, but Tam was faster and stronger. Within a few short seconds, the man lay on the ground, with Tam on top of him. In one act of desperation, the man kicked Tam over and grabbed a knife of a fallen warrior. Tam saw his sword laying next to him and swept it up. The Kyborite charged, knife pointed straight at Tam's chest. Without thinking, Tam slapped the blade aside and stepped past the man, decapitating him as he past. Tam turned to face his opponents and saw them lying dead on the ground. With a choked gasp he staggered back against one of the carts. I have just ended the lives of two soldiers. They may have had families, he thought. Suddenly he felt sick and vomited. Merrick came around the cart and slapped him on the back, saying, "Complete victory. We lost none, but a few of the boys are injured. The Kyborites lost the paladin, twenty-eight soldiers and nineteen wagon drivers." Tam looked at him, still slightly dazed, "You killed the drivers? Were they armed?" Merrick nodded, "By the time we got to them they were. The rest are at the back of the caravan, disarmed and armored and waiting to be dealt with." Tam shook himself into a better sense of awareness said with a bit more confidants, "Good. Well done, my friend. Find the white horse and get those documents for me, please. Take an inventory of all the weapons, armor, supplies, and livestock," Merrick saluted and lumbered off to make sure that the orders were carried out. Tam took a deep breath too steady himself. He began to walk around the sight, encouraging wounded warriors and wrapping bandages. Keller, the sharp eyed scout, ran up to him and handed him the document case. Tam nodded in thanks and pulled himself into the seat of a wagon. Inside the case were the three documents he had already seen. Inside were also lists of all the contents of the wagons. Tam smiled, that will save us some time. He then pulled out a package that was sealed with the Kyborite royal symbole. Tam broke the seal and looked at the contents. The Sappians had just finished writing down the weapons and armor used by the Kyborite soldiers and the livestock when they heard Tam yell, "Men, to the rear of the caravan and form up." They all gathered their papers and hustled to obey the command. At the rear, Tam strode up and down the ranks, complimenting and praising his men. After a while, though, he turned to the prisoners. "You were not sent to supply our soldiers, but the very rebels that they are trying to stop." he said with obvious authority, "For this, you are to return to your homes without weapons, food, or armor. You will also go without your wagons or supplies. They are ours now. Go." The Kyborites got up and began heading back the way they had come. Tam turned to his warriors, "Well done, men. Mount the horses and the wagons, we are going back to our town with fresh supplies." The men cheered as they rushed to obey their orders.
The council members of the town stood with their wives as they watched Tam, mounted on a handsome white charger, leading a caravan of wagons drawn by oxen into the town square. The people laughed and called out congratulations and encouragement to the young man, who simply smile and raised his hand and bowed his head. After several moments of this, Tam dismounted his horse, opened the saddle bags and pulled out the document case. With quick strides, he walked up to the councilors and bowed. He then presented the case to Thire, Minister of Education and acting Minister of War. The man took it and said, "Well done, Tammelo son of Thracken." Galaar nodded and said, "Come let us talk in the council lodge, Tammelo." Tammelo bowed, turned to his Merrick and whispered, "Make sure all of the items are accounted for and store them in the empty warehouses. You and the men can find a way to distribute your shares evenly tonight after the correct percentage is selected by Deviss, the Minister of Town Storage and Taxes." Merrick nodded and gave Tam a slap on the shoulder. Tam stepped quickly to keep pace with the men and women around him.

To be continued...

An Original by MJB. Hope you all like it!!! :) : Part I

Tammelo slammed his hands and feet against the weighted bag again and again. Black rage ran through him like molten iron. "Why?" he snarled under his breath, "Why did it have to happen this way?" Tammelo, or Tam as he was called by his friends, stood six feet and two inches tall and weighed two hundred pounds. Now he stood, punching, kicking, kneeing, striking the bag as hard as he possibly could. A layer of thick, oily sweat covered his lean, muscular frame and dripped from his fiery red hair into his startling blue eyes. After several hours, Tam's tortured body could take no more of the rigorous activity. He sank into an awkward sitting position, gasping like a fish out of water. As he sat there, he looked over himself and noticed the blood oozing from the black and blue cuts and bruises that covered his hands, feet, knees, elbows, shins and forearms. There was even a nice red bruise on his forehead from slamming it straight into the rock filled bag. As Tam reviewed the self-inflicted damage, the barrack-room door opened and in stepped Merrick. Merrick was a giant of a man, standing seven and a half feet tall and four hundred pounds of iron hard muscle. His entire body, from his head to his ankles was covered in brown hair. He took one look at Tam and shook his head. With a few long strides, he walked over to Tam and lifted him effortlessly of the floor, saying in his deep voice, "Tam, beating yourself to death helps nothing. Whatever happened could not have been your fault." Tam slowly began to hobble around, spitting out through clenched teeth, "Did you hear what happened, Merrick? Have you any idea what I caused?" The giant shook his head slowly. "I only heard that the hunting trip did not go well." he said softly. Tam began to walk in a circle, testing the strength of his battered legs as he spoke, "We had a large group of wild boars surrounded in a large clearing. It would have been simple just to shoot them there. We had them dead to rights." As he spoke, his voice increased in volume, until it was a wrath-filled roar, "But I, being the idiot I am, wanted to get slightly closer, and I stepped on a twig, snapping it. The boars began to run, and Turgan, the son of Thire, was killed by one of the stampeding boar." Merrick stood silently for a few moments, and then said in a soft rumble, "Even so, it cannot be your fault entirely, Tam."
Tam blurted, "I was the one put in charge of this hunt. I was the one who stepped on the twig. It was one of my men who died. I failed in every possible way." Merrick lost his patience. He strode over and grabbed the seething young man by his shoulders. With a growl like that of a bear, he spoke, "Listen to me, Tam. Whatever happened, happened. Staying in here, beating yourself like is not the way a man would take his failure and helps nothing. Now put some clothes on. The Council wants to see you." Tam sat there, glaring at Merrick, but then hobbled over and got into his tunic and breaches. Tam knew that his older friend was right. Five minutes later, the barrack room was empty.
The council lodge stood near the center of the fairly large mountain town. It was a long house, lit only by a large fire on one side of the lodge, crackling gloomily in the fireplace. Inside the lodge was a dais with a crescent shaped table sitting on a dais. At the table were seven chairs, six of which had men sitting in them and their wives standing behind them. Six large timber wolves, which had been raised from pups, prowled around the lodge. A knock sounded on the large, oaken doors of the building. "Come." said Galaar, spokesman and representative of the council, said in his booming voice. The doors creaked open and Tammelo, son of Thracken entered the room. He slowly, half strode, half hobbled to the dais and stood in the arch of the table. After a few moments, Galaar spoke, "Tammelo, son of Thracken, you have been called before us to answer for your failures on the hunt. They are twofold. One: You failed to bring back meat for town stores. Two: One of the men, Turgan, son of Thire, was slain under your command. You failed in your responsibility to protect him." Tam stood there, blinking back the tears of both shame and sorrow at the loss of his friend. After a pause, Galaar continued, "Under the laws of our town, you would be given a single chance to redeem yourself for the failure on the hunt, but the death of your man complicates the issue. For that, you would be stripped of all rank and privilege and confined to a place where you would be tutored by your father until he thought that you were ready to regain your rank." Tam nodded. Thracken, Tam's father, was the minister of war, whose now seat stood empty at the council table. The man had been slain in a raid on enemy Carthonites who were invading the kingdom of Sappia, the mountains and southern border of which, Tam's people guarded. Tam had been eight years old at the time and stood eighteen in front of the council now. Galaar continued, "Seeing as how your father is no longer with us, you pose a unique issue." Galaar went silent and looked at his fellow councilors. Each one, in turn, looked first at Galaar, and then at Tam. After what seemed like an eternity, Galaar turned to Tam and asked the one question Tam did not want to hear, "What do you think should be done for your actions, young Tammelo?" Tam gulped and then bowed deeply. He spoke in a trembling voice, "I plea for the chance to redeem myself for the failure to provide meat. For the death of Turgan-" and he turned towards Thire, the Minister of Education and the current Minister of War, "-I offer my life such as it is. Do with it what you will." and he took one knee and bowed, head down. A few wayward tears dripped on the the carpet. The council began to mutter together. Their wives spoke as much as the men did. At length, Thire stood up and began to pace the dais as if giving a lecture, "We will consider your suggestion, Tammelo. In regards to your opportunity to redeem yourself, I believe that you should be given this chance." Thire turned his attention back to the other councilors and said, "There is news of a Kyborite caravan coming through our section of the mountains. They will be here in two weeks. I suggest that we allow Tam to lead the mission to investigate." The councilors all looked at each other silently.
Tam walked out of the lodge and met Merrick, who had been waiting for him. the big man asked eagerly, "Well, what is going to happen." Tam looked at his large friend and grinned, "Do you want to go on a raid with me?" Merrick just grinned.