The Stone Hills. Winter...
Tamric Drubine cracks an eyelid open when he's awoken by a shake to his shoulder. He sighs as he sees who's sitting on his bed "Go away" sleepily says Tamric Drubine, he goes to close his eyes when his shoulder is given another shake "Damn it Lis" mutters the nobleborn youngster from the kingdom of Sarcrin in the Southlands, who then adds "I'm trying to get some rest before the battle in the morning".
"It is the morning" says Lisell Maera as she looks down at adolescent who is covered in blankets "Well it almost is" adds the teenager from the city-state of Brattonbury in the Southlands, who gives Tam another shake, and she tells him "Get up".
As Lis stands up, the former heir of the knight of castle Drubine in Sarcrin, groans and sits up in bed, he scowls as Lis pushes open wider the slot in the lamp on the stand next to his bed in his room, and says to him "Everyone's getting ready". Tam sighs, then kicks off his blankets saying "At least get out as i dress".
"You need help putting on your armour?" says Lisell Maera in a teasing fashion, who then adds "I bet there's plenty of she-dwarves willing to help you out with that". Tamric Drubine goes red in the face, and the sixteen year old teen from Brattonbury briefly laughs at him, before she relents, and makes her way out of his room, to wait in the corridor outside.
The nobleborn youngster shakes his head, and as usual he doesn't know what to make of Lisell's behaviour of late. Especially since summer, when they were in the region of Belinswae.
She's physically attractive, Tam won't deny that. Lis always has been. But her attitude concerning some things, has the former heir of the knight of castle Drubine at a loss at what to think.
He knows they're not especially close, he wonders if their backgrounds have something to do with that. He suspects so. But they are good friends who always look out for one another. But with Lisell's current attitude, and often reckless behaviour, in times of war as it is now. Tamric Drubine knows that she's in for whole lot of trouble if she doesn't watch herself.
The nobleborn youngster, who will soon turn thirteen years old, dons his armour, and gathers his weapons and equipment. Tam briefly checks his sword, then he makes his way to the door, and out of his room, here deep in the Kraelin clan mountainhold.
"When did you get in?" asks Tamric Drubine "Early last night" replies Lisell Maera, who like her fellow Southlander, is armoured, and has all her weapons, as well as her equipment. "And you?" asks Lis as they head down the corridor, towards the tunnel to the right. Glad that Tam's room isn't too deep in the mountain, because the deeper you go down, the less likely the dwarves are to light wall lamps to see things by.
"The day before yesterday" says the nobleborn youngster, who then asks "Did Percy come with you from the west?" Tamric Drubine then adds in a hopeful tone "If he did, he didn't happen to fall off a cliff did he?".
"Yeah he came back, and unfortunately he didn't fall off a cliff" says Lisell Maera "Pity" dryly murmurs Tam as they turn into the tunnel, where they walk along with dwarven warriors, who are making their way towards a set of steps in the distance. The two humans who are thankful that the tunnel is both wide, as well as high so that they don't have to stoop down as they walk, which they have to do in some places in the mountainhold. Switch to the elven language, so that they can converse privately.
"Seems the clan leaders were surprised with the spot that was chosen" quietly says Lisell Maera, who follows that up with "I hear tell that you picked the spot too, before he told them about it". "It seemed the right place for a smaller force, no pun intended, to attack a larger army" says the nobleborn youngster from the feudal kingdom of Sarcrin in the Southlands.
As they head up the steps to one of the dining halls in the mountainhold before the battle that's planned for early this morning. Lisell Maera nods her head in agreement with what Tam just said.
She knows he has a talent for planning and battle tactics, something he's learnt from lord Farque and Dorc da Orc, and to a lesser extent from Riley Hait the mercenary ranger.
But now here, in the war between the dwarven clans of the Stone Hills, against the armies of the justifiers of Belinswae. Tamric Drubine's talents are being put into practice.
From what Lis has heard mention as her time as a runner in the army of the Kraelin clan. Tam has devised plans of attack that dwarven warriors have undertaken, and been successful with. Plans that he's been given free reign to devise and develop, without needing the authority of those higher up to give the go ahead for.
As they enter the busy dining hall, where dwarven warriors are getting a quick meal, as well as food supplies for the day, for no one knows how long the battle will go on for. The two Southlanders look around, then Lis says in a slightly dry tone "There's Percy, so lets not go there".
Not seeing either lord Farque or Helbe the elven thief, who they weren't expecting to see here anyway, the teenage orphan from the coastal city-state of Brattonbury, spots a number of dwarven warriors they know well, at one of the long tables. The two human youngsters head to that particular table.
Sitting down next to one another, and after greeting some of the dwarven warriors, who are eating quickly, and a pair of she-dwarves bring over a couple of trenchers of food for them.
Both Lis and Tam look at the warrior Threl, who asks the two of them in the common language "Hey up lad and lass, you know what unit you've been placed in today?". Tamric Drubine shakes his head, and says "I don't" he glances at Lisell Maera beside him, who is peeling a hard boiled egg, and he asks her "Do you?".
"I don't" says Lis, who having peeled the shell off the egg, plops it into her mouth "Just as long as it isn't with Percy and those clanless that's always around him, i don't care where i am" quietly says the nobleborn youngster in the elven language.
The orphan teenager nods her head in agreement with that, then after munching on the boiled egg, she quietly says in the same language "Knowing our luck, we'll be put in some unit that's close to where he's positioned" she dryly adds "To keep an eye on him more than not".
"You're probably right" murmurs Tam in elven after he takes a sip of warm goats milk in his mug, that's been spiced, and had a dash of grain liquor added to it, then switching back to the common language, he says to the dwarves at this end of the long table "I guess you lot will be in the thick of it" as they're mostly heavy hammer and axe warriors.
"Aye lad" says old Tharlo, who like most of the warriors at this end of the long table, is in heavy chainmail, mixed with armour plate. He nods his bald head, to a pair of dwarven warriors to the right of Lis, and adds "Kyne and Kalm are with the heavy spear though, they might be getting more of the action than the rest of us, with what that lord of yours has planned".
Tamric and Lisell nod in understanding, for though the nobleborn youngster has a detailed understanding of today's battle plans, and the orphan teen might only know only the basics of it. They both know that all the spear units will be vital with what's been planned for this morning against the enemy.
So quickly they've come to take his orders, Tamric Drubine thinks to himself, who like Lis, knows that though the clan chieftain, Baedin Kraelin is in command of the clan's forces. It's lord Farque who is giving the orders. And not just here in the Kraelin clanhold. But also in the other clanholds throughout the Stone Hills.
For the Stone Hills dwarven clans are badly outnumbered by the armies of the justifiers of Belinswae. Armies that are incompetent a lot of the time. But even so, with their vastly superior numbers, they would be deep into the mountains proper if it wasn't for the undead warlords tactics. And the fact that they've attacked the dwarven clans of the Stone Hills during winter, instead of waiting for springtime to invade the clanholds.
After finishing their breakfast, the two youngsters from south of the equator, get up and leave, as have most of the warriors who they were sitting with at the end of the long table.
The two Southlanders keep away from sir Percavelle Lé Dic who is still at a long table, surrounded by the squad of clanless he's incharge of. Who he's telling a tale to at the moment, about his exploits during a battle he was in a number of years ago.
The nobleborn youngster, and the orphan teenager glance sideways at one another as they hear the loud, heavily armoured knight. Who can easily be heard over the boisterous dwarves left in the dinning hall.
They're relieved to hear that he's not talking about any battle that he's had with Dorc da Orc over the years. He's be specifically told not to mention the large ork. And miraculously so far this winter in the dwarven clanholds of the Stone Hills, he hasn't.
Tam and Lis walk by one of the large coal fireplaces that keeps the dinning hall warm as they exit the hall. It's built into the wall, and has an angled shaft above it, that heads higher up into the mountain.
Somewhere that shaft comes out of the side of the mountain, allowing the smoke to get out. The dwarves in the mountainhold don't have to worry if the smoke is seen. Because here in the mountains of the Stone Hills, there's a wind that's always blowing, that gets rid of any lingering smoke quickly.
It doesn't matter what the weather is outside, or what season it is. There's always a wind blowing through the hills and mountains. It's just how strong the wind is blowing from day to day, that's the only variable.
It's an extremely rare day anywhere in the Stone Hills, when the day is completely calm and there's no wind at all that's blowing.
The two humans from south of the equator head the same way as all the dwarven warriors are going. They're going down through the tunnels, heading to the southside of the mountainhold.
It's while the walking through one of the massive common halls, that's used for market days, that they're hailed by a familiar voice. Tamric Drubine and Lisell Maera head towards a pillar, where stands a couple of dwarven warriors.
The former heir to castle Drubine in the kingdom of Sarcrin in the Southlands looks up, and sees that no outside light is coming in through the shaft openings cleverly built into the ceiling of the massive hall over fifty feet above the floor. He knows that it's still well before dawn outside.
"Greetings Jarka" says Lis to a young looking dwarven warrior, who wears a bearskin cloak over his armour "Greetings Lassie" says Jarka Mard, the youngest son of the chieftain of clan Mard, he looks at Tam, and slightly grins and adds "And greetings to you young lad".
"And you Jaŕg" says Tamric Drubine, who like Lisell Maera, nods to the large dwarf with Jarka, the mute Omick, who is carrying a heavy crossbow across his back.
Jarka points to the tunnel that all the dwarven warriors are making their way to, and he says to them "I'm to tell you that you've both been assigned to the unit we've been placed in" the young warrior who is from the neighbouring clanhold to the northeast, continues with "We're with a unit of crossbows and archers in support of some of the heavy spears".
Both Tam and Lis are slightly surprised by that, as they'll be a lot closer to the heavy fighting than they thought they would be. Jarka glances around, then quietly says in the elven language "You are both to observe the flow of the battle from our position too".
The young dwarven warrior, who is one of only a small number of dwarves in the Stone Hills who speaks the elven language, as does his father who taught him, while the mute Omick understands it. Then says to the Southlanders in the language of the elves "And young Tam, you are to make any changes that you see fit" Jarka Mard then adds "The unit commanders will give the orders to any of your changes".
Tamric Drubine understands why they've been assigned with the unit that Jarka is in. As he'll make sure that any changes in the battle plan that the nobleborn youngster comes up with. Will be done so. As the young son of the Mard clan chieftain is highly respected throughout the Stone Hills, even though he's not yet fifty years old.
Jarka is here in the Kraelin clanhold with a war party of about fifty warriors. His father has sent them to support their neighbours. Not just because the chieftains of the two clans are old friends. But because Jarka's father knows that if the enemy aren't stopped here in the Kraelin clanhold, they'll be in his clanhold next.
As they enter the tunnel that continues down into the mountain that goes south, Jarka Mard switches back to the common language, and quietly asks the two Southlanders "Have you both been in fairly large battles before?".
"Yes" reply Tam and Lis in unison, the young dwarven warrior in the bearskin cloak nods his head, and with a smile upon his bearded face, he says "I haven't". The nobleborn youngster and the orphaned teenager look down at him in surprise, Jarka with the grin still upon his face tells them "Oh I've been in skirmishes against the enemy over the last month or so, and I've fought in battles against other clans" Jarka Mard then adds "But never anything on the scale of this, i doubt if many of the other warriors have either" he briefly pauses before saying "I'm looking forward to it".
Behind him, the mute Omick grins and nods in agreement with his clan chieftain's youngest son . . . . . .
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