Chapter 142
The signal to attack rang through the skies above the city of Turín. The freedmen and slaves gathered at the docks in the north and south of the city received the signal and immediately rose in revolt. They took out their hidden weapons and attacked the defenders.
The south of the city was located on the south bank of the Krati River. Initially, the citizens who went to the plains south of the Krati River would work late into the night. It was dangerous to cross the river at night, so they built some thatched huts to spend the night. Later on, it gradually developed into a village. Due to the occasional Bruti crossing the mountains to plunder livestock and kill citizens, the city walls were built for safety. As a result, the south of the city was not large and there were not many guards. It was only in the past two days that they increased the number of guards. However, due to the false news of the truce, they let down their guard. The attacks of the freedmen left them panicked and unable to defend themselves.
The Crotone soldiers crossed the moat and set up siege ladders without being attacked. They quickly occupied the top of the city, lowered the drawbridge, and opened the city gates. The Crotone army surged in and dispersed the defenders. They boarded ferries, cargo ships, and merchant ships in an orderly manner. The freedmen served as sailors and quickly sailed towards the north of the city.
When the Turín generals heard that the Crotone army was approaching the city, before they could give the order, they heard the news of the freedmen rioting at the docks of the north and south of the city. All of them panicked. They hurriedly gathered the citizens to go to the docks to suppress the free citizens. The elderly over the age of 50 and the youths over the age of 14 all put on their armor and picked up shields and spears. To them, this was a crucial moment of life and death for Tuliyi. Every citizen had to stand up and protect their home.
Even though it took some time to gather the citizens, everyone was united against a common enemy. The freedmen, who lacked weapons and equipment, were forced to retreat. But at that moment, the Crotone army disembarked.
Once they disembarked, they charged straight at the Turín army. The line of the freedmen that was almost scattered quickly stabilized.
Both sides fought on the narrow streets of the port. Even though Crotone soldiers continued to disembark and outnumbered the Turín citizens, they were unable to spread out in the narrow alleys. Even though Crotone's soldiers were tall and sturdy, the Tuliyi soldiers were mixed with the elderly and youths, and even the generals were on the field. Behind them, there were a few hundred Tuliyi women shouting and cheering for their loved ones. It was a solemn and stirring cry! Crotone was fighting, while Turín was fighting with his life, so the battle was in a stalemate!
Melantius, who had always been at the front, was dragged behind because the ferry he was on was leaking. When he arrived at the dock, it was already full of boats, and he finally found an empty spot to go ashore. Seeing that the battle was at a stalemate, he immediately ordered the demolition of the buildings on both sides of the alley.
When the Crotone soldiers began to outflank them from both sides, the Turií were gradually losing ground. They held on for a while longer and finally retreated as their citizens were killed and wounded.
Neancis did not want to escape. Instead, he faced the swarm of enemies head-on. Ever since he took office, this general, who was born as a commoner, had always been well-received by the citizens with his down-to-earth style and diligent work attitude. However, less than two months after he reached the pinnacle of the highest position in the city, Turi suffered a great disaster. He died in shame under the spears of Crotone's soldiers, while Polyxis and the other generals turned around and fled for their lives.
Burcos and Plesinas led some citizens, women, and children to retreat to the acropolis on the hillside behind the city. There was the Temple of Apollo, the Altar of Goddess Hera, and the holy fire had been burning for 41 years since it was built. It was the place where the spirit of the Turís citizens was sustained, the place where their souls rested, the holy place! The Turís decided to make their last stand here.
After Melantius occupied and pacified the other districts, it was already late. He ordered the soldiers to light torches and surround the acropolis of Turís. Then, he asked Polyxis to send a message: surrender immediately, or he will burn the acropolis of Turís.
Burcos and the others did not expect the Crotone to be so ruthless. After all, Apollo was also the protector of the Crotone city. After a painful choice, they opened the gate. At this point, the Crotone had completely occupied the city of Turís.
… …
When the news reached the Turís, Devers was watching the citizens' military training in the training camp. When he learned that Turís had fallen, he and his officers were shocked.
"I really did not expect that Turís would fall just like that!" Hilos said emotionally.
"If it wasn't for the fact that the Turís didn't handle the conflict between the free people and the slaves well, they wouldn't have let the Crotone win so easily!" Amyntas was obviously not convinced by the Crotone's achievements.
"But the general of the Crotone is not simple either. Even with the help of the free people, he was able to use tricks to deceive the Turís, and then launch a sudden attack. The Crotone soldiers were also well-trained to be able to take down the city of Turís in less than five hours!" Devers analyzed rationally, "The army of the Crotone can be said to be one of the strongest enemies we have encountered so far, apart from the eight hundred Sparta warriors led by Kelisopes. We must be vigilant!" Devers warned the crowd.
"But we are not afraid of him!" Amyntas shouted, unconvinced.
"That's right, we must have this spirit! We take our enemies seriously, but we are not afraid of them. We are willing to fight any enemy! "Devers encouraged the crowd.
"Commander (In the camp, Devers asked the crowd to call him by his military title, not his administrative title), what should we do next?" Alexis asked.
"What do you think?" Devers asked.
Alexis thought for a moment and said, "Send more scouts to monitor the movements of the Crotone army, and strengthen the defense of Amendolara …"
"Very well, we will wait and see," said Devers. Even though the Crotone had taken over Turís and displayed their strength, the Devers were happy to see that none of his officers offered to show goodwill to the Crotone.
Looking at the soldiers who were actively training on the training ground, thinking about the Crotone army that was ravaging the city of Turís, the Devers were not afraid.
… …
At the same time, in the city of Turís, Melansius did not restrain his soldiers after taking over the city, allowing the soldiers to run amok in the city, robbing property, injuring people, and even raping women. The people of Turís were miserable.
Melsius had his eyes on the most luxurious house. After chasing the owner away, he moved in himself and held a banquet with the officers under him to celebrate their victory.
As he was drinking to his heart's content, he heard the prostitute in his arms say that there was a disciple of the historian Herodotus in Turís. He was immediately interested and asked the guards to invite this person over.
When Ancetanos arrived, he saw a group of Crotone men lying on the reclining chairs in the hall, drinking wine and chewing on delicacies, with beautiful women in their arms. Most of those who took the initiative to smile and flirt were high-class prostitutes, while those who pretended to be happy were mostly Turís women.
Some of the Crotone men were loudly boasting about the victory and flattering Melansius; some were telling vulgar jokes where the poor and stupid protagonists were Turís; some only cared about groping and doing shameful things with the women in their arms in public … Amidst the laughter and flirting, Ancetanos stepped on the marble floor that was dripping with wine and entered the hall with a straight face.
"Oh, the Turís historian is here!" Melansius drank a lot, but his mind was still clear. He patted the plump chest of the woman in his arms and said, "Go get him a glass of wine."
The woman handed the wine to Ancetanos, and he took a sip without hesitation.
"Turís, are you drinking to celebrate our victory?!" an officer took the opportunity to mock him with a smile.
"No, I'm just reminiscing about Sybaris, the city-state that was once famous for its wine in Greece. Back then, it was powerful, and Crotone was weak, just like today's Crotone and Turís, but the strong bullied the weak and eventually died," Ancetanos said calmly.
"Ha! Ha! Ha! " Melansius laughed. "Unfortunately, it was the weak Crotone that destroyed the strong Sybaris! Today, the weak Turís is occupied by the strong Crotone. You're wrong! "
"With the gods above, no matter how powerful a city-state is, it can't escape destruction in the end," Ancetanos replied forcefully.
"Maybe one day … ugh …" Melansius burped and said disapprovingly, "But you and I may not have the chance to see it." He then sat up and said loudly, "I heard that you're the disciple of Herodotus. If you write history in the future, will you include my name and this glorious victory for future generations to know?!"
"No, only the crimes and scandals you committed in Turís!" Ancetanos replied coldly.
"How dare you!"
"Do you want to die, Turís?!"
…
When the officers heard this, they all cursed angrily. Some even threw food at him.
Melansius waved his hand and ignored Ancetanos's provocation. Instead, he raised his glass and said proudly, "'The victor proves his strength with his actions, and the loser can only prove his weakness with his excuses.' This is the maxim of athletes. The ancient heroes would only enjoy the joy of conquering Troy. No one would care about the pain of the conquered, the Trojans. They have to admit defeat, just like Lucania … "
At this point, he suddenly thought of something and asked, "I heard that the Consul of Amendola, Dai … Devers, used six thousand men to annihilate ten thousand of the Lucanian Alliance Army. Is this true? Is it fake? Is it Tarantum's credit? Or is it really his credit? "
"It's indeed the battle that he planned and organized," Ancetanos answered truthfully.
"It seems that this Devers is quite a character … I wonder who's more powerful, me or him?" Melansius looked eager.
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