107 Tactical changes

Second Master and Major Bǎo stood at the head of the troops. They had all tried, somehow, to assemble outside the Manor House on their parade ground, squashing in so they could hear. Many more were standing outside the Manor gates which were thrown wide open so they could see and perhaps catch the occasional word.

"Today is the start of something new." Second Master surveyed the men's faces, he knew this was very different warfare from his father's day and very different from what the men had engaged in to date. 

He continued, "We are no longer the army of Chen, the army of Shipao, we are Twin Hammers, we are of two nations and we grow stronger through it. I raise my fist in salute to the men of Chen! The men of Shipao!" 

The roar went up. Men smiled and raising their armaments shouted the name, "Twin Hammers! Twin Hammers! Twin Hammers!" punching their fists in the air.

"Our methods of attack will no longer be face-on with sword and spike, horse and bow, the old way, the way that got so many of our comrades killed!" 

Heads shook and some looked down. They knew. They remembered and it was still raw, still fresh. The barrels lay in carts holding many men's ashes. The men of Chen wanted revenge and Second Master played to this.

 "We will adopt new methods, novel methods and absorb that into the knowledge you already have." He paused and men turned to each other and nodded. The air was as electric.

"All of these new ways you've experienced since training with Major Bǎo and his men and with Niao out in the fields. 

It's truly novel and requires us to work in very close quarters, but we have something the Mu's do not have." 

He paused and looked at the men all straining to catch every word, 

"Belief! Honour! Brotherhood!" 

The cheer went up, stamping of feet, banging of steel, waving of arms. 

He had lifted the men in a way his father had never managed. From the shadows of his rooms, Senior Master Chen watched his son, pride swelling in his chest. At that moment he realised he was no longer the big man of yester year. He sat back in his chair, and for the first time in many a year, he smiled. "Attendant, bring me some wine, I want to celebrate the birth of Twin Hammers."

Senior Master continued his rousing speech, then sent the men to their various units. It was time to send out the troops and their unit leaders were called for final briefings before dispatch began.

The men were ready.

The men were fired up.

The Mu army, although twice the size of Twin Hammers, was not prepared for what would be coming their way.

The units were formed around individual strengths, around skill sets the men already possessed. There was no longer 'one size fits all' that everyone conformed to in the regular army, now the men were grouped according to their innate abilities and trained in that. They trained each other too, creating tight units who knew the strengths and weaknesses of every member. Their fighting force enhanced, they trusted each other in ways they'd never done in the regular army.

There were four such units each of differing sizes.

Twin Swords were the swordsman, using two sided blades of the new metal alloy mix discovered here, in Shipao. It was something one of the Shipao blacksmiths had discovered whilst creating a ceremonial blade for the Governor.  It had a glow about it which glinted when moved quickly through the air, looking like blue sparks of supernatural power, but more importantly he had created a super sharp and long lasting edge that cut through inferior metals like butter. Armour too was no match for the blade. This was going to be the metal alloy of the future,  Twin Hammers future. 

The swordsmen were a largest of units, with approximately nine hundred men. They worked both at close quarters and from horseback, the new sword giving them great advantages, being both lighter and sharper. They were the face of Twin Hammers. They carried the flags, they were the men the enemy engaged, unaware of the ancillary units lurking in the undergrowth.

Twin Bows were the bowman who had perfected small but lethal crossbows; quick to load and quick to fire from the ground or on horseback. Many were from the original archery division and had accumulated extensive knowledge of what was needed to create the best bow. Between them they had arrived at this crossbow,  as powerful as a full sized bow but easier to carry. They numbered some four hundred and flanked the Twin Blades. Their darts were coated with arsenic, so even a graze would eventually kill the enemy without the necessary treatment.

Just on their own they were a new force with a snarling conviction. Niao likened them to packs of wild dogs. You were never sure which would deliver the final blow, but the pack would decend and rip you to shreds. She called them wild dogs and they adopted it as their nickname.

Then came the two new units, those ones which worked with subterfuge.

Twin Blades were mercenaries, about a hundred strong. With skills of the hunter and the assassin, they were a formidable force who hunted only at night.

Their ranks were named after a pride of mountain cats. Each unit had its alpha pair who's growls and barks were recognised by their 'pride'. At night these sounds put fear into the enemy. At night, they carried well over distance.

Then came the adults, those who had all the skills and did most of the work. They followed the commands of the Alphas and worked in packs to bring down groups of soldiers who would be sleeping, eating or resting. They had their own calls the pack would recognise. It was perfect communication. 

Then came the adolescents, those who had some of the skills and were the back stop should anyone get past the adults.  Their skills were very good and would take part in the hunt for men, but they were still learning the finer points. If a large group of the enemy was found, the adolescents would take part in the killing once the guards had been dispatched. They learned knowing they would become pack leaders in their own right one day.

The cubs were newly recruited and raw. They lurked and watched, tripping any who came their way.  They were killers, true assassins but were new to the arts, Niao and Bǎo's men had been teaching.

The final, unexpected unit, were the Twin Anvils. These were men who wielded big, heavy hammers in the smithies during the day. They produced special weapons for themselves, uniquely created to fit each man's hand, and weighted for each persons physique. One side was a hammer head, the other an axe. It was made of the special alloy mix, so it too, had a super sharp, long lasting blade. They could kill a man, down a horse, break a wheel on a wagon with one blow. The men were feared; big, muscular and straight from the hearth, they moved on legs of steel. But they could run! Every day they trained in the fields, running across paddy fields, through woodland, over dividing fences, carrying their arms on their backs. Second Master led them, training with them each morning, then wielding the hammer to turn out armaments,  sword guards, helms, shoulder and breast plates, leg guards and metal inlays for shoes. They caste the small, hollow darts for the Twin Blades and Twin Bows to use with catapults or crossbow and small phials to carry the necessary poisons to lace them with. 

Xin had seen to this. She left nothing to chance. Her herbal knowledge was extensive. Her poisons knowledge, more so. I didn't ask. She would have been an incredible villan if she'd been left to rot in that town. 

Xin, I and the cubs walked onto the parade ground.

I looked around. It was clear the alarm had gone up. Xin looked at me, " this time we hunt together, you and I, but we lace our knives with arsenic powder." She was angry beyond belief. I'd not noticed this in her before.

"What's got you Xin? Why so fired up?"

Without looking in my direction, she told me. "When I was eleven I was abused by a group of men who thought it was funny to keep me captive and repeatedly rape me. When they'd had enough of me, they threw me down into the refuse pit with the carcasses, the night soils and the rotting vegetables. They thought it was a good game and laughed at their prowess. I was so scared and shocked by what had just happened." She paused, I could tell memories were surfacing. I reached out and touched her shoulder. "I hurt in places I didn't know existed. I stayed there, terrified for hours before I dragged myself out. I bled for days. It was my first moon cycle and I was scared stiff. I honestly thought I was dying." She shook her head. "I became a mouse, terrified of my own shadow until those two other vagrants, Haiyang and Min, found me one day. They were kind to me and took me in. We stayed together and got by. I wasn't abused again, the scars on my face left me," she paused again, touching her cheek, "ugly."

The cloud of the memory suddenly left her face, as if she'd rolled it up and put it away on a high shelf. With a beaming grin she looked at me and bounced in her steps. "Then you arrived and my life began." The smile she gave me made my heart melt.

"You're wonderful and the bestest sister I could ask for!" She leapt at me, swinging off my neck. I grabbed her, "I feel the same way, you firecracker!"

My heart broke, thinking of what she must have gone through as a vagrant. I put my arm round her. "It'll never happen again, I won't let anyone hurt you. If they try I'll kill them, understand."

She gave me a weak smile, "if I don't kill them first."

The cubs, who overheard, went pale. The thought of someone hurting a child like that horrified them. But now they understood her, now they accepted this macabre side to her as no more than to be expected. "We're only cubs Madam Xin, but we'll stand by you."

Xin smiled and I saw wetness in her eyes. Is she crying?

Xin and I left the cubs with Twin Blades. They weren't trained nearly enough to fight but they could work as a third and watch. Cubs must watch their elders. 

We went up to Second Master and waited until he finished. Looking down, he saw us.

"First two Mu men dispatched over by the fields. Permission to take the Twin Blades for a hunt, cubs included."

He looked at Xin, then Bǎo. Bǎo nodded, "time to get the unit working. I'll come over with you and we can set up groups. Each must, repeat must have a minimum of two experienced Blades. No more than two cubs and perhaps three semi-experienced youngsters or adults.  I want eight in a pack". I nodded.

To an outsider it must have sounded strange but using animal terminology made sense; they learned like cubs, they became adolescents and through practice became dominant adults. Packs were already forming amongst the men and we encouraged it.

Now it was time to put our theories into practice.

"Pack leaders. Meeting. Now."

Bǎo walked away from the parade ground and waited. All assembled.

"Orders, Sir?"

Twin Blades went out first. They left in their packs, checking different locations.

Twin Swords went into the town of Shipao. They moved in units of eight,  checking with stall holders and shoppers for unusual activity. Their presence gave a sense of security to the townsfolk.

Twin Bows moved in their units towards the entrance to the mountain pass. They had already scouted out suitable staging points and took up their positions. 

Twin Hammers returned to the hearths. They were busy. They would join the fight when needed, but as yet, their service at the anvil was the greater.