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EXP: 31,310, Level: 7
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The patrol captains eyes were wide, his face was turning pale, and he was out of breath as he dropped his shield and said “Wait, spare me, I’m useless in a fight now, and our patrol wasn’t looking for you. Let us go and we’ll leave you alone!” The Aegeans looked at their captain in disgust as they had a warriors philosophy of “either with your shield or on it.” Blood was flowing from his arm at an alarming rate, and I wasn’t sure if he was aware of it.
“You’re going to die soon anyway.” I told him matter of factly.
“Spare my men.” He begged.
“Why? We won this skirmish, and you don’t have many men left. Give me a reason, why were you out here?” I asked, I was patient he was dieing, and as soon as he did the Aegeans would likely rally, or at least try to.
The captain looked at his arm, and his men, “our spies in the north east reported an Imperial legion marching over the caravan road. Our patrol was sent to confirm this. We thought you were a part of the legion.” I smiled and breathed a sigh of relief, it might have been providence but I was happy. I was really happy, to be back into the safety, and company of my countrymen, a well supplied army of my country men was a dream of mine I had for a long time, ever since I woke up in Abasi’s tent.
“Captain,” I said “I will spare your men on one condition, and honestly you don’t have room to negotiate. If your men surrender their armor, shields, and weapons, they’ll be free to go.” He nodded, and grunted the order. The Aegeans were reluctant to do it but eventually my men were properly armored. There were five Aegeans, and the P’Tah captain with a tourniquet around his arm left out of the forty men that attacked us. Then I took a look at my men.
In war, people die, it doesn’t matter rather the war is for expansion of the empire, to defend one’s homeland, or for the glory of the Emperor people die. It is a horrible, terrible fact, but people die, and their unfortunate deaths are necessary, not for the Emperor, but for the citizens of the Empire, and not for a General, but for the man on your left, and right, It is as simple as that, or at least it is for me. The politicians are the ones that made war not simple.
Of the thirty five men that left the mine, there were twenty seven that were left. When we were finished burying our dead we left. We now had limited time, the Aegeans would report back to their garrison, and that would bring the entire three thousand Aegean mercenaries, five hundred Khart warriors, and five hundred P’Tah cavalry men our way and toward the Imperial Legion, and us.
Time was no longer on our side, we had a head start and a long one but that would close soon. Our one boon was that the Imperial Legion was heading toward us. I urged the group on to something closer to a forced march. We took to the caravan road keeping out of sight, and out of mind was no longer going to work. We now had to make every minute count, the hours ticked away. That night, we made more distance than we had any other day since we left the mine. I wondered how close the Legion was, I also worried about how close the P’Tah forces were.
That night I saw the glow of campfires in the direction that the Legion was coming from. I breathed a sigh of relief. After the kind of constant nagging worry that I was feeling all through the march from the salt mine I actually felt like a heavy load was lifted off his shoulders. I started cleaning my armor by fire light. I had no lamp oil so I used sad to polish the plates of my lorica segmentata to a burnished version of polished steel.
I was expecting a Legion scouting party to show up that evening, and sure enough the light of our own fires attracted the attention of such a scouting party. Soon after that our group was approached by a patrol of Legionnaires. We did not draw our weapons, in fact most of us sat around the camp fires when the Centurion leading the patrol entered our camp, and asked “Who’s in charge here?”
I stood up and replied “I am, I’m Lucas Victus, third centuria, fourth cohort, first legion to retake Fort Commodus”
The Centurion looked surprised at my introduction, he could tell that I was an Imperial citizen or a least from imperial stock. My armor still fit me and with it maintained I looked like a soldier, which further supported the fact that I was a soldier. He grasped my forearm, greeted me like a comrade, and introduced himself as Pontius. After the pleasantries I said “I need to speak with your general as soon a possible.”
Pontius blinked a few times, and asked “what for?”
“Your legion is about to march into an ambush” I said without beating around the bush.
The centurion canted his head, and asked “How do you know this?”
I explained in a short version the circumstances over my groups previous battle, the explanation the P’Tah captain gave me, and how my group moved to intercept the legion. The Centurion gave orders to his men, “Patrol! Escort Lucas’ men to the Legion's camp. I will take Lucas, and his second to speak with the General on horseback.” I on my roan horse, Leif on the dunn he took from the mine galloped to the Legion’s camp.
The camp, was fortified, walls, and barricades had been made by earthworks, that was surrounded by a ditch. Inside tents were in even rows, on either side of a waste ditch, which lead out of the camp. At the far endo the the uniform rows of tents was a larger tent belonging to the General on the left of that was where the horses were stabled, on the right was another larger tent. For all of its size the imperial camp did not waste an inch of space. As soon as the horses were stabled I was directed into the General’s tent and told to wait there.
I looked about the General’s tent, it was weather worn, and adorned with very few accoutrements, a cot in one corner, a folding desk for the obscene amount of paperwork a general had to put up with, and an armor rack. The generals lorica was battle worn, and weathered, and aside from a trunk there was little else. I started to compare this general’s belongings to General Caius’ whose belongings, a lot of frivolous things, too many decorations, and there was always the feeling of theatrics, or costume to them.
The flap of the tent opened, and the General stepped in, and asked “so, I’m marching the Legion into a trap?”
I snapped to attention, and snapped him a salute, and sized him up, he was maybe an inch taller than I was, but carried himself as if he were fifteen feet tall. His hair was dark brown, with red tinges streaking through, on his left arm he wore an intricate tattoo made of the same blue as Leif’s people. He had a broad chest, and the look of battle hardened, but not battle worn.
“General sir! Yes you are.” He indicated a log turned upright, and ordered “sit, tell me about this ambush. Where it’s going to be, how many men in the ambush, and most importantly how do you know about it” as he handed me a map of the region.
I sat down, gave an approximate position on the map where I believed an ambush would be met, and gave me explanation. “General sir, I believe that an ambush will be encountered here. This is the approximate location where my legion was ambushed, and it is within a few days march from Fort Commodus. Further as places to ambush a legion, it’s perfect bottle necking us into narrow ranks, and making any maneuver difficult. Lastly the sun passes in such a way that an ambush in the late evening will have the legion fighting the sun.”
I paused letting the General absorb the information before continuing “Rather or not there is an ambush there, do understand that an attack is coming, and the legions attack is known by spies. The force that will attack you, will be one of two equaling forces garrisoned at Fort Commodus. The force will consist of three thousand Aegean mercenaries, five hundred Khart warriors, and five hundred P’Tah cavalry men. If there is a P’Tah legat he’ll be in a war chariot. The attack will be initiated in stages. First the Khart warriors will charge the ranks, flanking either side of the cohorts, before hitting the middle, they have been known to spit poison into their enemies eyes, blinding them. They are armed with a club made of a hardwood handle, and stone head, and a strange shield made of cowhide, and bent hardwood.”
I took a breath once again letting the General take in what I had said, once he had indicated that he was ready for more information I continued “once the Khart have softened up the legion, the Aegean’s will commence the attack in full force, making every effort to break through our flank, or if the Khart manage to soften up a hole in the cohort. Will try to push through there, and break down our flank. They’re armed with scaled cuirass, hoplon, and a spatha, their rear ranks are armed with bows as well, and I should mention right now most of my men are now armed in a similar fashion.”
The General nodded making a special note, before letting me press on “Finally, when the legion is committed, the cavalry will attack its flank. During all this, chariots will rain arrows and spears into the ranks on the move.The P’Tah forces are normally armed in either a leather or scaled cuirass, a figure eight shield, and either an axe or a khopesh, a sword like this” I withdrew my khopesh, and let the General inspect it. After the general wrote all of the information down, and returned my sword he asked “Now how have you came upon all of this information?”
I nodded and answered “That is a fair question, for quite sometime, after The First Legion was slaughtered by the P’Tah ambush I was a slave to a shepherd, and had often visited Fort Commodus as part of the duties as a slave. I had the chance to ask questions, with the forts officials, garrison captains, and the soldiers. I sometimes got answers, I sometimes got kicked. Either way no one cares about a slave, so I was able to gain a lot of information to use one day.”
The General stood up and said “Thank you, sir. You, and your men can return to the Empire with your heads held high.” The General was about to let me out of the tent when I said “General Sir. Don’t send me away.”
He paused and looked at me with a strange combination of both anger, and amusement at my defiance, and asked “Why?” He indulged me.
I responded “I swore an oath, that I would retake Fort Commodus, and serve the Empire. If I return to the Empire without doing so I will have failed my duty.”
The General’s features changed to something more amiable he asked “What’s your name?” remaining standing.
“I’m Lucas Victus, third centuria, fourth cohort, first legion to retake Fort Commodus.” He grabbed my forearm in greeting “I am General Cicero Virilus Bracca. Leader of the Second Legion to retake Fort Commodus, and any man with that kind of loyalty, and knowledge about the area would be a valuable asset to the Legion. How many me have you been leading?”
I answered “Twenty six, eighteen legionnaires, seven volunteers who were slaves, and my friend. There were thirty four when I left the mine.”
The General nodded and said “Your men are welcome to my camp tonight, and I don’t mind attaching you and your men to my legion. We’ll get them taken care of in the morning.” With that he opened the tent flap, and we stepped out into the camp in time to see my men, and the patrol return.
Last edited by jdd2035; 11-26-2017 at 12:04 PM.