Another One. :) Part VI

The Autumn months turned into Winter. Snow began to come in, fast and hard, and with it came the annual situation: The passes closed, full of building-high snow drifts. All seven of the villages were completely isolated from one another and from the rest of the country. The townspeople had to look after each other or all would parish. It was a very hard winter, especially for Liana.
She watched as Tammello, son of Thire, played a game of Pieces with her little brother, Feldon. It irritated her. Her sister, brother, mother and father had so easily excepted Tammello. They had all instantly fallen in love with the boys helpful attitude , sad face, and work ethic, but she did not like him at all. The boy had caused the death of her brother, whom she had loved so much. With a zeal that rivalled her mothers kindness, she hated him. As she watched them laugh and play together, she tried to avoid grinding her teeth. It totally infuriated her to see that. He should be treated as an outcast and servant, not a member of the family. Unable to stand it anymore, she stiffly walked off to her own room.
Mersona continued to work the bread dough as she watched Tam shake little Feldon's hand again. Tam was doing a great job of teaching the lad good strategy. Well, good strategy as far as she could tell. She didn't know much about that kind of thing. The front door slammed, and her father walked through the door out of the snow and shed his thick leather robe. "Hello Feldon, Tam. Mersona, whats for dinner tonight?" he asked. Mersona smiled and ran to him, giving her father a big hug like she had ever since she could remember. "Goat stew, cheese, that new wine that Tam brought home, and some fruit and vegetables from the storage." Father smiled, "Sounds wonderful, dear. Tam, after dinner, you and I are going to talk about the Rebellion of Kybore, three hundred years ago, and how they won that war. We will show the strategies of both the Imperial armies and the rebel armies." Tam smiled, "I've read about that war, sir. I look forward to it." Mersona listened for awhile, but then lost interest. she had dinner to make while mother did the repair work on the blankets.
Feldon listened closely to the conversation after dinner from his hiding spot around the corner from kitchen. His father and Tam were deep in the conversation, talking about ancient battles. Tam was saying, "but if the rebels had used the standard skirmish formation to see where the enemy soldiers where waiting to ambush them before reaching the main Imperial forces, then they would have lost an entire brigade of there best javelins and crossbowmen, wouldn't they?" Thire spoke, "Yes, but that would have been a small price compared to how many they actually did loose by marching right into the ambush and then being swept away by the main army who came marching up the road in a battle line. How would you have led this operation, Tam?" Feldon listened intently. Tam had taught him about these formations earlier. Skirmish was a very long thin line used to cover a lot of ground and discover the enemies strength in numbers and the type of soldiers they have. Battle line was a standard line in battle, good both for charging and holding against enemies. They had several different variations, like double line, and angled formations. There was column formation, used on long marches along a road. There is shield wall, a very tight formation for holding against enemy infantry charges. Feldon listened intently as Tam spoke again, "Why use a skirmish line or march right along the road into the ambush? Both would cost precious lives. If the terrain is perfect for an ambush, scout it or just plain avoid it." Thire chuckled, "The battle was inevitable, Tam. They had no other choice." "Oh I know, sir. But why did the rebel general, the famous General Kelson, get almost his entire the command killed by letting the enemy choose the ground. Why didn't he form his lines in the corn fields and let the enemy come to him. His objective, after all, where to stop the enemy from reaching Moguthrun Fortress for as long as possible while supplies were being gathered and war machines were being built." This made Thire smile appreciatively. "Well then Tam, what would have been the best possible solution to this problem in your eyes?" Tam answered with all the confidence of a horde general, "Kelson should have had some of his troops begin to dig earthworks while the others stayed prepared for battle. Either the enemy would have held their position or they would have attacked. The rebels may have been outnumbered eighth to one but they had the superior fighting skill and the better provisioned army. They may have even had some 'earthworks to fight from. This would have, not only saved countless lives, but also allowed for far more supplies to be gathered and more siege weapons to be built at the fortress, thereby altering the outcome of the entire war." Feldon's eyes began to droop. Thire said, "Well done, Tam. You are correct. Now, off to bed. You need your sleep." Feldon heard the chairs scrape against the floor as the two men got up. Silently, he crept off to bed.
Leona watched Tam work quickly and efficiently from her vantage point in the kitchen. Every morning, the goats were fed, watered, and milked. Every morning, the inventory was counted and the armory was cleaned. Every other day, Tam took a trip into town. When it was far too vicious out in the snow, Tam stayed near the house and did other chores, such as cut firewood, watch the goats, and he was often seen using a knife to carve small figure for the game, Pieces. He carved soldiers, civilians, cavalry, siege machines and towers, buildings, and other small implements of the game. Leona watched him now as he came back toward the house. She smiled and opened the door for him, asking as he stepped through, "How is it out there, Tam?" Tam stomped the snow off of his boots as he replied, "Its pretty mild considering how it's been for the past few days." Leona smiled up at him, "Are you going to take a trip into town?" Tam nodded, "Yes I will." Leona laughed and looked at the young man slyly. Tam raised his hands disarmingly,"What? Does that surprise you?" Leona just shook her head, asking, "So what are we low on now? Wine? No that's not it. Flower? I don't think so. Weaponry care items? No. What is it this time?" Tam blushed a deep red and looked away, saying, "I was going to ask Merrick for four or so sets of horse shoes. I wanted to know if Thire would let me buy a few of the horses and one of the donkeys off of Councilman Galaar. I would need horse shoes for them. The only thing is that I need somewhere to put them. Since the barn has empty stalls, even when it's full of goats,I was going to ask Thire if I could keep them there." Leona just couldn't help herself. She burst into uncontrolled laughter. Tam just shuffled his feet. Leona regained control of herself and then turned back to the turnips she had been washing, smiling confidently. Tam began to walk out the door, and Leona called after him, "Say hello to Parrisha and her family for me." Tam's natural color didn't return until he reached town.
Thire and the other members of the council watched Tam walk into town. They were on a break to get some fresh air and to enjoy watching the snow fall. It was a beautiful thing to behold, especially when the wind was still. Thire rubbed his mustache and neatly trimmed beard, thinking about the young man he was training to be a Minister of War. The boy was a natural when it came to leadership, strategy, tactics, battle, and combat in general. He was far more than qualified. But there was one requirement that Tam had not quite fulfilled. He was not married. Every councilor was required to be married for several reasons. A man's wife would help keep him accountable, could also keep him motivated, and also support him. The wives of the councilors had a decent amount of power, even though they were not encouraged, though not prohibited, to speak while the council was in session. Truth be told, Thire was not too terribly worried. Tam had been spending a lot of time with Narrath and his family. Galaar stood next to Thire, a smile on his hawkish features. "Tam has been spending some time with Parrisha." Thire grinned, replying, "I know, Tam has dinner at their house at least once every several days." Just then, Tam walked out of the Inn, the Sleepy Pup. Parrisha was on his arm. Both were smiling and laughing together. Thire chuckled as Galaar asked, "Now, why would they go out into the cold and go to another place when her mother is considered one of the best cooks in the town?" Thire just shook his head.
Parrisha watched the man at her side. Tammello, son of Thracken and apprentice to Thire had become very special in her eyes. When she was betrothed to Turgon, she had liked Tam. He was a good leader and a notable warrior with a bit of a fiery and passionate temper. Turgon was a real man in her eyes at that time though. Turgon had always been able to keep his temper in check and was always unwilling to take total and complete responsibility, thinking that it would overwhelm him and he would fail. The betrothal had been arranged. Then, on a hunting trip, Turgon was slayne. At first, she was devastated. It had taken several months for her to recover. But then, she had walked through the doors of the inn and saw Tam standing there, his head down and tears dripping off his face. Her heart went out to him and she decided that she was going to get to know him more. Now, she more than liked him. He had become very dear to her and it was obvious to all that he felt the same way about her. "Are you alright, Parrisha?" he asked. She snapped out of it and looked at him, smiling sweetly. "Of course I am. I'm with you." He was always so considerate and always made sure she was comfortable and safe. He smiled and said "Come on. There is a nice little place on the other side of town." Parrisha cocked an eyebrow. "Isn't there only a few houses, an abandoned manner, and a little warehouse there?" Tam winked. "Yes. That's right." Parrisha smiled and leaned on his arm. She trusted him with her life.
Merrick looked the inside of room over one more time. It was set up with tables, chairs, a large fireplace and a new cellar, freshly dug. The old warehouse had been fixed up and turned into a tavern, complete with new walls and a new cellar. One of the rooms had been turned into a boarding room as well. Everything was perfect and ready for the first two costumers to come in. With a smile of satisfaction, Merrick took a seat by the fire, thinking back to the day when Tam and Merrick had met. Some merchants from the lowlands of Sappia had come in and were selling fresh crops that could not be grown in the mountains. Some of the merchants brought their children. One family, a family of jewelers, where selling some very well made rings. Tam had been looking at him with his father. His father told him, "Meet me back here when you've had your fun." Tam nodded and ran off. Merrick was with his father at their booth, selling weapons to the merchants. Merrick got bored and wandered off. When he found Tam, he had been pinned in a corner by the jewelers' sons. They were teasing him and shoving snow in his face. Merrick went up and said, "Hey. Why don't you pick on someone your own size?" The three boys were smaller than Merrick, but they did not figure Tam would fight, seeing as how he was only eight. But he did. The three converged on Merrick. The first two tried to pin him and got driven back by his sheer size. But then the third and oldest blackened his eyes with a blow and the fight was on. Tam leaped onto the smallest ones back and began to use one hand to hammer the boys head while Merrick took the other two, blow for blow. Tam and Merrick had been friends ever since. The man smiled and said, "Sir, my lady. Would you be interested in our special tonight?" Parrisha laughed and hugged Tam hard around the young man's brawny chest. Tam was speechless.