Nex Vexillum: Mission One

If you have written a zombie or horror related story, share it with us !
Post Reply
User avatar Great Britain
cosmo
Last Man Standing
Last Man Standing
Posts: 2574
Joined: 11 Sep 2009, 11:42

Nex Vexillum: Mission One

Post by cosmo »

Cassius walks along a pathway, his long red cloak flapping in the wind, and beside him walks Marcus. They are in a new complex, recently built outside Romes city walls, deep in a small woodland area which was specifically built for the new Nex Vexilum unit to train away from prying eyes.
nex vexillum: mission one


The compund consists of a large square building with a courtyard and archery training ground in the middle and off to one side are a carpenters shop and blacksmiths.
Cassius looks out over the training ground, a large unit of Hastarti are in formation lunging forward with long spears, he watches as captain Quintus walks over and berates one of the Hastarti, takes his spear and lunges forward thrusting the spear tip at about head height, he returns the spear to the soldier and orders the unit to begin again. Another unit is practising using their Gladius to hack at wooden posts instead of thrusting as was normal for that sword.

At the archers training area a small group of Cretan archers are showing a new archer auxilla unit how to draw and fire their bows to get maximum distance with the arrows. Marcus looks over at Cassius who has a small smile on his face " the training is going well "
Cassius looks back at Marcus " let us hope so, we may need every man at his best if another outbreak occurs "

" let us pray to the gods there are no more situations like that in Germania, im not sure even with the extra troops we could handle a larger problem " replies Marcus

Following the last outbreak, a number of nations were invited to send envoys to Rome to witness the living corpse that Cassius had returned to Rome and many of those envoys had reported back to their rulers what they had seen, agreements had been reached and many agreed to support any Roman actions that needed to be taken, whether within their borders or not, others had offered to send troops to assist should any other outbreaks occur. The Greeks, who had dealt with a similar outbreak near Athens in 430 bc, (*1) donated two units of Hoplites for training.

The problem was that many nations consisted of various tribes with no one in overall control therefore the idea of contacting each tribe independently was not considered as that would reveal to all what was happening and the idea of secrecy would be pointless.

Cassius was glad that many had seen and understood the threat these things posed to all civilisations and had acted accordingly, he was sure the other nations secretly had units in training in case a outbreak occured in their borders, but for now, common sense had prevailed and despite any other conflicts amongst the nations, the majority had seen the need to work together. Even the savage Picts had accepted the need for co operation, but the thing that concerned him most were some of the Gaulish tribes who refused even to send envoys but at least Cassius had made use of Marcus`s contacts and between them they had found a number of mercenaries that would be useful in any future battles.

" A Denari for them? " smiles Marcus
Cassius smiled " nothing particular my friend, only that if we dally any longer we will miss the starting bout of the games " with that Cassius increased his pace
Marcus laughed " its of no matter to me, the first events are only to arouse the crowds bloodlust "
" Ah " said Cassius " but it is of import to me, I have heard things about one of the equarii (*2) and i want to see for myself "
Marcus looks at Cassius with surprise " you are still seeking recruits even though you now command almost four thousand men? "
" Aye I am, I want as many capable men as I can get, who knows how many we may have to face in the future, what could we do against an entire cities population if they were infected, no matter about four thousand men, we would need forty thousand and more "

" There is wisdom in your words, but I worry about keeping the secrecy with so many men involved " comments Marcus

They made their way through the narrow streets which were bustling with activity, mostly traders trying to sell their wares. They passed a few taverns where the sound of raucous laughter rang out and occassional words spoken in anger. Despite Marcus' urgings to stop and partake of a brew Cassius walked on, eager to arrive at the arena, they could always get a drink at the arena itself, he thought to himself, after all there were many vendors selling food and wine.

As they turned onto the main thoroughfare leading to the entrance Cassius could see that the arena would be dangerously overfilled with people, it seemed as if most of Rome had turned out for the games. The noise was deafening as they took their seats, good thought Cassius, they had arrived in time to see the early acts.

Marcus sat, looked around and called out to a vendor who came rushing over with a tray of ales, he bought two and handed one to Cassius. They had indeed arrived with time to spare, it was almost twenty minutes later when the tumblers and acrobats started to leave the arena which was always a prelude to the blood letting

The first event began with two riders being led out into the arena, both were wearing helmets that covered their faces with no holes for them to see out from, they wore a crude chain mail armour and were armed with a spear. They were led to opposite parts of the arena and the men leading the horses let go of the reins and stepped back, the crowd roared and the signal was given to start the games. To make it easier for the crowd to recognise which rider was which, they had horses of different colours, one white and one brown and the man standing near to the white horse started shouting instructions to the rider, who lowered his spear and began walking forward. The rider of the brown horse sat and waited for a minute then moved forward , the two horses were moving directly at each other until at the last moment when the rider of the brown horse veered off to the right and swung his spear out to his left, the tip of the spear grazed the upper arm of the other rider and blood began to flow down his arm. The horses once again had to stop and turn to listen for instructions which were becoming hard to hear over the baying of the crowd who started to shout various directions to the riders who ended up going around in circles much to the amusement of the onlookers.

Eventually the noise lowered somewhat and the riders were once again able to hear the instructions from the referee`s. The rider on the white horse moved forwards slowly then suddenly galloped with his spear aimed at the chest of the rider on the brown horse who seemed to cock his head as if to listen and as the spear tip approached him and it seemed as if it must hit its target he quickly spun and lowered himself to be level with the horses side
the spear missing him by inches. As he swung back up to sit upright on the horse he swung his spear out and struck the other rider on the side of his helmet, unseating him. If had he not been wearing the helmet, the blow would surely have killed him. This ended the bout and the brown horse rider was proclaimed the winner, the riders removed their helmets and left the arena with the horses

" Interesting " says Marcus " That rider seemed to sense what the other was doing, and he is certainly comfortable astride his horse "
" Not only that " replies Cassius " did you notice where he struck his foe? "
Marcus nods " Yes, the head "

They sat and watched the games for another hour then Cassius began to fidget in his seat
Marcus looked around just as Cassius stood up " stay Marcus, enjoy the games, I shall return shortly "
" you are going to inquire after that rider? " asks marcus
" yes, I have seen all I need too for now, I think we can use a man who rides like that " replies Cassius as he walks off, squeezing past some of the jeering and shouting crowd. Marcus watches him go wondering if he should join him but he decides to remain and watch more of the games.

Cassius walks through the ampitheatre until he reaches a heavy looking doorway with a thick wooden door where two Auxilla stand guard " I would make enquiries of one of the gladiators "
The guard nods after considering Cassuis for amoment and enters the building, he returns a few moments later with a short, dirty looking man. Cassius looks at the man " I would know more of one of the mounted gladiators "

" You will need to be more specific sire " the man replies " I have eight equatarii here at present "

" the rider of the brown horse in the first event " says Cassius

" Ah the Dacian " says the man as he causually looks up at Cassius " what would you know of him "

" As much as you know and if what I hear is favourable then I may wish to speak with him " replies Cassius

" As I say, he is a Dacian, often difficult to control and quick to anger, he is not one of mine thank the gods, he is part of Senator Ianus troupe " says the man

" take me to him " commands Cassius

The guard opens the door and the short man shrugs and leads the way into the dimly lit underbelly of the gladiatorial arena, they walk past many cells, some with men in them, others are empty. The man stops at a cell, inside is a long haired man washing with his back to the cell door.

" Dacian, dry yourself " shouts the man

" What do you want you loathesome boar " snaps the Dacian

" You have a visitor, attend " replies the man

The Dacian turns and sees Cassius as he picks up a cloth and starts to wiping himself dry as he walks over to the cell door.

" How can I serve a commander of the glorius Roman army " he asks

" General actually " replies Cassius " and you could answer a few questions "

The Dacian looks across at the short man still standing by the door who walks away when Cassius indicates with a nod that he should leave them alone.
After they both watch him walk away the Dacian mutters before throwing the cloth to the floor" one day I'll shall put my blade to that mans throat" then looking at Cassius " now General, what are these questions you seek answers to? "

" your name for one " says Cassius

The Dacian looks at Cassius with interest, few would ask the name of a condemned fighter " I am known as Asa " he replied

" Well Asa of the Dacians, are you content with the fate the gods have sent you? or do you feel there is more to life than the games "

" I was not always a Gladiator, and I will one day have my freedom again, then we shall see what fate the gods have for me "

" And what would you do with this freedom you seek, will it lead quickly to the afterlife? " responds Cassius
Asa thinks for a moment " in truth general, I do not know, other than return to my homeland and seek out my brother "

" Then I am in a position to offer you both a purpose and your freedom " says Cassius looking intently at the man as if trying to read him " if you would be willing to work and fight alongside Romans " he added with a smile.

Asa looks at Cassius " The thought of working with Romans is not appealing to me, however, the thought of my freedom is, what would you have me do to gain this? "

" Ready yourself, I shall show you " replies Cassius

Cassius walks away from the cell and out towards where the short man is lingering " I will buy the freedom of that Dacian, have him released and brought out to me " he says as he reaches for a small pouch on his belt, unties it and throws it to the man.

" I cannot do as you ask General, this is not one of my fighters to sell " the man replies as he grips the money bag and watches warily as Cassius reaches under his tunic and pulls out a well worn document and hands it to the man whose eyebrows raise as he reads it.

" You will do as I instruct, send the bill of compensation to me at my quarters, and if the good senator should raise arguements, send him to me also " says Cassius

Cassius waits outside, the sound of weapons clashing and the crowds roaring can be heard clearly as the door opens and the Dacian is brought out, he stops just outside the door and raises his hand to shield his eyes from the glaring sun.

" Follow me " says Cassius as he leads Asa towards the seat where Marcus was watching the games, Marcus however is now walking towards them.

" I was just coming to find you, I have had my fill of blood for today, for some reason the sight of men fighting for entertainment no longer raises my excitment " says Marcus

" This is Asa, the rider from the earlier event " says Cassius
Marcus looks at the Dacian " you rode well today "

" I rode only as well as I needed to, my opponents movements were too obvious " replies Asa as he follows the other two away from the arena and back towards the hidden barracks.

As they approach the gateway into the barracks, the four soldiers standing guard snap to attention. Cassius slows his pace, then stops and turns to look at Asa " before we enter, you need to know that what you see and hear in this place is secret, every man in here has sworn an oath never to reveal anything, even under duress of torture. I must ask for your word on this also, should you break this oath your death will be swift, now what say you? "

Asa looks up at Cassius " you have bought my freedom, for that I owe you, you have my word that none shall hear from my lips what I see today "
Marcus looks over at Cassius " good enough " says Cassius and starts again toward the gate

As the men walked along the pathway beside the training ground, Asa looked out at the different units going through the motions, he noticed a unit of Hastarti training with what looked like pole weapons.

" Those are not Roman weapons, what are they? he asks

" Rhomphaia (*3) " replies Cassius " This unit trains with any weapons that can help when we are called upon to fight, we do not limit ourselves to swords and shields "

Asa looks at Cassius, then at Marcus who was watching him with a mischeivious smile. Asa again looks around the training ground and wonders what he has gotten himself into.

Marcus notices one of the engineers gesturing to him and turns to Cassius " I shall join you shortly, I need to speak to this man " with that he veers off and heads toward the engineer and Cassius and Asa walk on, As they approach another unit, Cassius calls out " Captain Quintus, would you join us please "

The captain looks over and nods, then resumes barking orders to the men as Cassius and Asa arrive at Cassius's where he opens the door and invites Asa to sit. There are chairs around a table and Asa picks one with its back to the wall. A point Cassius notices before picking up a flagon of wine and some goblets and places them on the table, captain Quintus arrives and Cassius invites him to sit with them as he pours each of them a goblet before turning to Asa and telling him of the unit, their mission, what they faced in the land of the Huns and occassionally inviting Quintus to speak and add detail.

Asa sits quietly when they have finished and slowly nods his head " My people tell of such things in our stories, but those are usually about the peoples to the far north and east of our lands, I had thought them mere tales to frighten children "

" Sadly, the threat is very real " says Quintus

" Would you find quarters for our newest recruit captain, see that he is settled in, tomorrow we will test his riding skills " says Cassius looking at Asa with a grin

Quintus and Asa leave Cassius and closing the door behind him Quintus says" come, my room is not far, I feel the need to sup more wine and I do not like to drink alone ".

They had both settled in Quintus`s room with a goblet of wine each, when Asa asks " so, tell me of this General, is he another glory seeker? " To which Quintus bristles and a look of anger flashes across his face, his hand instinctively moves to the hilt of his sword, Asa notices and says " No offence, but I would know something of the man who will hold my life in his hands in battle, and I would know even more as I see you are so ready to defend him "

" You need not fear that he will throw away your life easily, that is not his way " replies Quintus " he is a good general, a capable leader, a valiant fighter and above all, a compasionate man, the men know this and respect him for it "

" Glowing praise indeed " says Asa " and there is little doubt he has your loyalty "

" My name is Lucius Quintus, I came from a small village in the Appenines. When I was but a mere child of nine years, the village was attacked by bandits, everyone was killed and I survived only because a roof beam had collapsed upon me and rendered me unconcious. The general was part of the unit that came to investigate, though he was not a General then, he found me and and watched over me, when I had recovered sufficiently to tell what I knew of the attack, he ordered that a horse be brought for me, that I may see what happened to those who had shown no mercy"

" He took you, a young child in battle with him? " asks Asa in surprise

" I was in no danger, he held the reins to my horse in case the horse bolted or reared, when he found the bandits hideout, he positioned his men and launched his assault, when the battle was over, not one of the bandits had survived "

" harsh justice indeed " says Asa

" But richly deserved, those bandits had butchered the men, women and children in four other villages before we found them. That day, he adopted me and sent me to live with his family. I was well educated and well cared for. When I struggled at my studies, he would tutor me, when my stamina was not good, he went on runs with me. I owe him more than I can ever repay, and it is my honour to serve at his side ".

Asa sits back and nurses his drink thoughtfully as a gong is struck and he looks at Quintus enquiringly.

" time for food " Quintus says and heads for the door, Asa pauses for a second before realising he was expected to follow.

They enter the mess and collect trays of food, Quintus takes a seat at a long table, Asa sits beside him and they eat in silence.

Cassius enters and takes a tray, turns and looks for a seat, he spies a place at a table and sits, around him are soldiers, riders, engineers. Quintus nods towars him " you see for yourself now the kind of man he is. How many other commanders do you know would sit amongst his men and not with his officers "

Asa watches Cassius who is eating at the same time as talking with the men at the table, occassionly laughing at something one of the men says. An interesting man for a Roman Asa thinks.

Weeks pass, during which time Asa proves himself to be an expert rider and a good teacher, he and Quintus are becoming firm friends, often sparring with each other, verbally as well as in training.

Cassius is in his room, it is late and he is about to retire to bed when there is a knock at the door, " enter " he calls out
The door opens and Asa stands in the doorway " General, I seek permission to speak to the engineers, I would have them make something for me "

" Granted " says Cassius " though out of curiosity, what do you require built? "

" Swords and spears have their place, but I have something else in mind, though until I can test it for myself I would not wish to give too much detail " says Asa as he nods and leaves, closing the door quietly.

The next day Cassius rises with the sun, as he dresses Marcus arrives and seats himself in Cassius room, " you should look upon our Dacian " he says to Cassius whilst nodding toward the window.

Cassius looks out across the square to see Asa poring over something with one of the engineers before picking up a stylus and marking something on a parchment.

" So, this Dacian has been educated " says Cassius thoughtfully " not many are able to write and make calculations ".As he watches, the engineer and Asa head into the workshop and shortly the sound of metal being worked rings out.


Cassius is sitting in his office doing the paperwork when Marcus enters, how goes it? " he asks

" I would face 100 Gauls single handed than do this form filling " sighs Cassius

" Then I may have news for you " replies marcus " We have visitors "

Cassius stands and moves to the window, he looks out and sees a small group of senators heading toward his office

" Let us hope this is for some other purpose than a mission " says Cassius gloomily

After meeting with the Senator`s, Cassius calls his officers together " prepare the men and equipment, we have a mission, we sail by midday tomorrow "

Marcus looks across at Cassius " where? "

"Strange reports have been coming in and now we have lost contact with the town of Dimmidi " replies Cassius. He looks at Asa who accompanied Marcus into the office " I want you to ride with the legionary Cavalry and Captain Titus, though you lead the unit, you would be well advised to listen to any advice this man has to offer ".

Marcus wonders " are we taking the artillery for this? "

" We will take our Onagers for this, Ballista`s may not be any use here, this is a desert region, so we will have to take the ones we constructed, prepare the wagons and have them loaded " says Cassius thoughtfully

" Our onagers? " Asa asks " they are not the normal ones?

" no" Marcus responds, "we worked for weeks to reduce the size of the onagers, they can now be loaded onto wagons and transported faster than if we dragged large ones, and in a desert area the larger ones would becme bogged down in the sand"

" We can load two of these onto a single wagon, they would be no good against fortified walls but as yet these things have shown no interest in staying inside walls " adds Cassius

" Where is this Dimmidi? asks Asa

" It is a town near the Numidian borders, it helps defend the trade routes. The Numidians and Egyptians have already agreed we have safe passage, they will also send troops to assist us in this " answers Cassius

The meeting breaks up and captain Quintus heads off and starts to get the men organised and ready. Captain Titus walks away talking with Asa and nods his head before Asa heads over to the engineers quarters.

Cassius sits astride his horse, watching as the men and supply wagons move past heading for the docks.

Cirta was a dirty, bustling town full of market traders and food vendors, the scent of various spices mixed with the smell of camels and horses hung heavy in the air. Cassius allowed the men four hours to rest and look around, then they would be on the march again. He had no information about the various other units joining them and assumed they would join up with the column along the way


They had been marching for almost 4 hours, the sun blazed down and the temperature was uncomfortably high when Cassius ordered the column to halt. " Captain Quintus, have the wagons brought up " orders Cassius

" Aye Sir " comes the reply.

The wagons arrive and Cassius orders one of the Onagers be unloaded as Marcus rides over to Cassius " We may well need that General " he comments.

" We have five still Marcus, one more will not decide this battle, but the condition of the men might. Let those men who wish to remove their armour do so, it can go on the wagon and be transported that way, it is far too hot to ask the men to march and then fight ".

" It will leave the men vulnerable to attack, we could lose many if bandits strike " notes Marcus.

" This is true " says Cassius " Captain Titus, have your men ride ahead in line abreast, watch for our front and flanks ".

There was not enough room for all the armour and kit the soldiers had, so every wagon was crammed to capacity and after ensuring that the wagons were secure Cassius orders that the unloaded Onager be set ablaze. There is no point leaving it for any possible enemies to make use of.

Several miles and a few hours later one of the riders returns " A dust trail sir, off to the west, looks like a couple of units of javelin men ".

Cassius nods and the rider gallops away again.

" Marcus, there is a pass through the mountains ahead about ten miles, we shall make camp there " says Cassius after consulting a map " lead on with the wagons, we shall rest here for an hour then march to you again ".

" I see our Numidian allies are ready to let Roman blood spill but send few men of their own to assist us " notes Marcus.

" Indeed " replies Cassius " but something is better than nothing, if it turns out to be a minor outbreak we can allow them the glory of dealing with it while we advise ".

Cassius orders the men to halt and rest except the engineers who he sends ahead with the wagons in order to prepare the campsite.

The heat was becoming unbearable, he looks at the men and sees them suffering under the blazing sun. Resting here is doing little good he decides.

" Captain Quintus, have the men ready to march in five minutes if you please " he commands
" Aye sir " comes the reply.

A few minutes after the column starts off again there is a shout from within the ranks, " rider sir ".
Cassius looks around and a long way down the column he sees a dust cloud heading towards him " whoever this is is in a hurry " he thinks to himself.

He keeps the men marching but slows the pace a little, after a few minutes the rider catches up with him " Sir, by order of senator Ianus, you are to wait here for a group of senators to catch up with you, they will travel with you on this mission and make a full report on the situation here ".

Cassius looks at the men " we cannot wait here in this heat, it will do the men no good and we need them at their best if we are to join battle, we have an encampment being prepared two miles ahead, the good senators can meet up with us there " at which the rider looks aghast, no one has ever defied senator Ianus like this " General, you do not seem to understand, senator Ianus commands this”.

"I understood fully, however, senator Ianus does not command here, the good senator can find us at our encampment " snaps Cassius. He looks across at some of the cavalry with him and they slowly move closer to him, the implied threat is enough for the rider who beats a hasty retreat back to the senator`s group.

The column continues onto the camp accompanied by two units of Numidian javelin men who had been sent to assist them.

Cassius is sitting by the fire with Marcus, Quintus, Titus and Asa beside him when a group of riders enter the camp, they dismount and one of them walks towards Cassius, he is wearing a purple sash indicating he is a high ranking senator.

"I understand you deliberately disobeyed my orders General, a full report will be made to the senate and I assure it will not reflect well on you, I already view you with disfavour, you took my best fighter, one I expected to make a lot of profit from " he looks at Asa " you should thank your gods for your good fortune Dacian”.

Cassius stands " I care little for your report, only in the success of our mission and I would be ill advised to go into battle with men that are heat damaged. Add that to your report senator " with that Cassius turns and walks into his tent ending any further chance of conversation with the senator.

The officers and Asa glare at the senator who shrugs resignedly walks away.

" Pompous fool " comments Marcus.

" We could put a sword in his hand and stick him in the front line " jokes Quintus.

Asa looks at Quintus " best not, lest my horse turns and I accidently impale him on my spear " he says looking serious.

The next day the column sets off heading for Dimmidi. Cassius deliberately keeps the pace slow so as not to tire the men and within a few hours one of the riders scouting ahead rides back to report several bodies not too far ahead.

Cassius and Marcus ride ahead to investigate and they see a number of Camels with their intestines ripped out and only a couple of human bodies.

Marcus notices that one of the fallen men is still alive and dismounts to see if he is able to tell them what happened.

"Kill me " the man manages to say.

"Are you bit ? " asks Marcus.

"Yes, kill me, I don’t want to become one of the wanderers " the man replies.

"Wanderers? " asks Marcus.

"My people have two names for those creatures, wandering souls and children of the Djinn (*4)........ I have a family and do not wish them to see me as one of them " he adds as Cassius joins them.

"Can you tell us what happened here " he asks

"They came in the night, we could not escape, I am the only one left of our group, we fled from Dimmidi "

"So Dimmidi has fallen to them? " asks Cassius

"Not when we left, they had closed the gates, but the things were surrounding the town....I don’t know how many but there were hundreds of them outside the walls " the man replies.

Marcus offers the man water but he refuses and again asks for them to kill him. Cassius draws his sword and looking into the mans eyes tells him he will make his death quick and painless and with that slides the blade up the neck and into the man’s skull, killing him instantly. He orders that the man be buried to protect his body from the creatures and wild animals.

Cassius looks at Marcus " We will need to be aware from here, we are still at least four days march from the town, so these things are not confined around the walls it seems ".

He orders the men to march line abreast so that they could cover a larger area and sweep up any lone wanderers and before long they see a small group of about fifteen wanderers shuffling about and Cassius calls to the Javelinmen.
"Numidians, clear those creatures, but do not throw your javelins, it will waste your weapons and tire you to no effect, hold them and strike to the heads, it is the only way to stop those creatures for good” at which the Numidians speed off and soon dispatch the creatures.

Cassius halts the column and calls for his officers to join him. The senators join the group. " We are less than two miles from the town, we need to be ready. I don’t want those things to surprise us so we shall take battle formation here and march in good order to the town. I want the Hoplites and Hastarti to form a long battle line, those with Rhomphaia to guard their flanks. Don’t let any of those things get behind us. Titus. I want the cavalry to ride around the main group taking out as many of them as they can, Marcus, will you organise the Onagers when we arrive. Senators, I suggest you remain at the rear of the formation”.

Senator Ianus bristles "We are quite able to take our place in the line and hold our own general”.

"Maybe so, but if you fall, who then would write that report for the senate? No sire, I need you and your group safely out of our way " replies Cassius " After all, this is what we have been training for ".

The other senators agree with Cassius and its obvious that Ianus doesn’t like to be disagreed with.

Asa steps forward “General, if I may. “The engineers and I have been working on something for the cavalry to use. Swords and spears have their place but they can become lodged in the bodies and even unseat the rider when they try to withdraw them”.

Cassius glances at Asa "What have you designed? ".

Asa excuses himself and rides down the column to the supply wagons and he reaches in and collects a few sacks that look heavy. He rides back to the group and drops the sacks onto the floor, one sack splits and spills what look to be tools onto the floor.

Marcus picks one up and tests it weight. It looks like a engineers hammer but the metal ends have been rounded into ball and the handle is much extended.

"An interesting idea " says Cassius " Captain Titus, distribute these amongst your men and those who wish to use them can, they look like they might smash a few skulls easy enough from horseback. Good work Asa”.


With the army in formation they march on until they are just within view of the town itself. Cassius orders them to halt, better to rest the men and see what they are facing before rushing headlong into battle he thinks to.

" Why are we stopping here, the enemy is ahead of us, we should be moving to engage them, if this were my army we would have this finished already " grumbles Ianus.

"If this were your army senator, they would already be dead and numbered amongst those we face snaps Cassius "You do not charge into a fight without knowing your opponents strengths and weaknesses " he turns away ignoring the senator. "Marcus, are we able to do as we discussed?” he asks.

" No, the wagons are not strong enough to take the recoil, we will have to bring the wagons in and use the Onagers from the ground ".

Cassius nods and Marcus moves off to get the wagons.

"So what is your plan General " asks one of the other senators.

"We will bring the artillery up and lure the creatures to attack us here, better they tire than our men” responds Cassius. "Your group should retire a small distance behind our lines, a word of advice for you, keep your sword close at hand and don’t let them bite you ".

The wagons arrive and the miniature Onagers are unloaded and positioned just behind the ranks. Cassius nods and the battle formation moves forward with the engineers carrying the Onagers. They halt again after fifty metres and remain in formation and when the creatures do not react to their presence they move forward again. They continue this three more times, getting closer to the towns walls each time. A chill runs through the men as one or two of the creatures raises their heads and moans.

"Steady men" calls Cassius.

Other creatures turn and look at the advancing army, they snarl and start running towards the line of men, jaws snapping at the air.

Cassius orders the battle line to halt and prepare to engage the enemy. The engineers lower the Onagers and start to ready them for firing and fires are lit for the archers to use.

Almost the entire horde is now racing towards them, Cassius looks at Marcus who gives the signal for the Onagers to fire their flaming missiles. Five trails of thick black smoke leap over the men on the front line and arc towards the mass of bodies coming at them, the first one lands, exploding in a large fireball, bodies are blown around like leaves in the wind, arms and legs fly off in all directions, many are set alight but still the remaining creatures continue their charge.

Further missiles slam into the horde with the same results, each time one explodes there is chaos and carnage.

" Onagers, fire at will " shouts Marcus over the noise and more smoke trails blaze across the sky.

Cassius watches intently, the Onagers were thinning their numbers but there are still too many for the front line to hold.

"Archers, fire at will" shouts Cassius.

A hail of arrows fills the sky and many of the creatures are ignited, others are struck more than once and the force of multiple arrow impacts knocks them to the ground, others are skewered in the head and the bodies start to pile up.

The first of the horde reaches the phalanx and are impaled on the pikes, when two or three are lodged at the end of the pike a Roman Hastarti soldier moves in and slides his blade up under the chin and into their brain. Others are decapitated, then, with their foot or shield they knock the bodies off allowing the hoplite to impale more of them.

Quintus gives a signal and the entire front line moves backwards three steps so that the Hoplites are not overwhelmed by the creatures who are gaining a height advantage by climbing on the bodies of the fallen.

"Numidians, to me" orders Cassius.

The javelin units form one either side of Cassius "watch closely, what you learn here may one day help to protect your people, it is a shame that our Egyptian allies did not arrive earlier that they may have witnessed this also ”.

The battle rages on and slowly the numbers of the horde are beginning to thin out. As the bodies accrue at the front line Quintus gives the signal again and the line steps back. Cassius waits for the right moment for the main group of attackers to be dealt with so that he can release the cavalry to finish the small groups off. He looks around the battlefield and watches until any large groups have been dispersed before looking over at Titus and nodding.
The Cavalry move off splitting into two groups, each group takes a path around the flanks of the front line.
Asa leads the group to the left and Titus the group to the right, some are still holding their spears but many have adopted the club hammer weapon as they ride off into the melee, smashing skulls as they ride by.

Cassius looks back to check on the Senators and sees two of them retching, another holding his sword and looking panicked. Senator Ianus having already lost his stomach contents is standing there ashen faced, staring open mouthed at the horror. Cassius almost felt a little pity for Ianus even though he was a pompous fool, he could no doubt handle himself in a normal battle but this was anything but a normal battle, this was something the good senator had never experienced.

The sounds of the battle diminished and Cassius looks around to see the last few being dealt with by the Cavalry. He glances a the medics tent and sees that there were surprisingly few casualties being treated, there was a heap of bodies beside the tent though.... those that had been bitten.

Cassius lowered his head, more good men losing their lives to stop this accursed infection, more wives and mothers and children who would mourn, never knowing how their loved ones really met their end.

Marcus walks over to Cassius "Is it over?"

Cassius looks around. The Cavalry are returning to the camp, the men in the frontline have lowered their weapons and are regaining their breath, the engineers are packing away the supplies used by the Onagers. It seemed as if the battle was over for now.

Suddenly a shout rings out and Cassius looks around to see senator Ianus riding at high speed towards the gates of the town. "Senator, stop, we do not yet know the situation inside”.

The Senator looks over his shoulder “I am senior here and I shall be the first into the town”.

" Glory hunting fool " says Marcus " he only wants to be the first in so as to be seen as a hero, no doubt he thinks it will help his standing with the people and senate”.

The Senator rides past a group of men busy finishing off any of the fallen creatures that are not yet stilled " You men, come with me" he orders.

They arrive at the gates and the Senator dismounts, handing his horses reins to one of the men, he stands there adjusting his clothing and smoothing his hair, he walks to the gates and bangs on it with his fist. Silence answers him, he pushes at the door but it doesn’t move " You men, help me to open, this they must have barricaded the door closed ".

The men line up against the door and push with all their might. The door moves open a small amount, the men push harder and the door suddenly swings wide open and a mass of creatures pour out completely overwhelming the men at the door. Ianus tries to run but the mass is too much and he is swamped by a sea of tearing claws and biting teeth, his screams ring out for what seems like hours as he is ripped to pieces.

Cassius orders the men to hurriedly assume battle formation again and the men rush into position whilst the engineers hurry to get the Onagers ready once again.

Marcus runs over to Cassius "By the gods, this is a battle we cannot possibly win. There were over twelve thousand people in this town, if they have all been turned we have a major problem, that damn fool Ianus has condemned us all to death or worse”.

Cassius has already had the same thought but he keeps it to himself.

" Marcus,we cannot let the whole mass of that crowd out into the open we must contain them in a narrow space, ready the onagers for firing, but I want you to use the goatskins of lamp oil as ammunition, do not light them, and target the doorway ".

"The Onagers are too small and too far away to do any damage to a walled city" says Marcus

"I know but that is not my intention" replies Cassius.

Though Marcus has no idea what Cassius has planned he runs off and issues orders to the engineers
a minute later he nods to Cassius that they are ready to fire.

"Artillery...fire " he orders.

Bloated skins filled with oil fly over head and land a few metres short of the doorway, one of the skins splits and the oil is splashed all over the walls and floor.

"Again" shouts Cassius.

The mass of bodies is becoming a crush to get out of the gate now as more and more of the creature’s sense food is close. The Onagers fire again, and again, oil is soaking the whole area now although some skins have remained intact and just lay on the wet floor.

"Again" orders Cassius, and a minute later more goatskins fly overhead toward the gates.

Many of the creatures that managed to get outside have been soaked in the oil but it doesn’t stop them from making a headlong charge towards the Romans.

"Marcus, now use fire" shouts Cassius.

Flaming missiles launch outwards and as they impact the ground they explode igniting the oil on the walls and ground and the skins that had remained intact explode in the heat.

Cassius watches the devastating explosions, watches the blazing bodies and limbs hurled in all directions, watches as those not knocked to the floor or blown to pieces are set alight, watch’s as the whole area becomes a raging inferno.

The gateway is alight and those creatures inside are huddled so close to each other that the flames leap from one to the next and so on down the massive crowd. Those that had got out before the fire charge at the line, Cassius nods to Asa and Titus and the Cavalry set off and slam into the onrushing mass, heads are crushed as the cavalry rides through, then turn their horses and ride into them again swinging wildly with their hammers. Each time a hammer descends another body drops to the floor and lays still and eventually those who had avoided the fire are destroyed and only those inside and burning are left. Cassius orders the hoplites and Hastarti to get as close to the gates as possible with the heat so as to stop any from escaping.

The few that manage to get outside are impaled swiftly and dispatched efficiently and many are caught in the crush of their charred and twisted brethren.

The fire spreads swiftly throughout the town, sparing none inside.


Back at the barracks, Cassius and the others have unpacked and are cleaning weapons and clothes when a convoy of wagons rolls onto the training ground.

Cassius walks over to one of the wagons "What is the meaning of this, we are expecting no supplies".
The wagoneer looks over "We were ordered to bring these goods to this spot " he says.

"Ordered by who? " asks Cassius.
"By me" comes a voice from behind the other wagons.

Senator Gregorius rides into view. He dismounts and walks over to Cassius with a big smile on his face
"Following the valiant action taken to protect the safety of Rome and its citizens by yourself and your men, the senate decided that there should be some reward ". He signals to the wagoneers and they dismount and start unloading wines, ales, and food from all over the empire. Gregorius looks at Cassius and grins “By order of the senate, you and your men will partake of a feast the likes of which Rome has never seen".




(*1) as recorded by Thucydides who noted a sudden and mysterious disease that killed almost one third of the Athenian population

(*2) equarii were mounted gladiators, usually wearing blindfolds and armed with a spear, referee`s would call instructions to the riders so that they could find each other, the crowds often shouted misleading instructions to the riders for their own amusement

(*3) Rhomphaia.. a Thracian weapon consisting of a long pole with a slightly curved blade almost as long as the pole
You do not have the required permissions to view the files attached to this post.
Download
Image
Post Reply