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...
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