Chapter 278
The battle lasted for four hours, and in the end, Tarantum lost 15 warships, including four triple-oared warships and four troop ships. The Maypu Alliance Fleet lost 23 warships, including seven triple-oared warships. In the end, the Maypu Navy took the initiative to retreat, and the Tarantum Navy, who was busy saving the soldiers who fell into the water, had no intention to pursue. They just wanted to leave this strange sea as soon as possible, reach Brindisi, and complete the reinforcement mission.
During the fierce battle on the sea, the Maypu Alliance Fleet had learned that Tarantum was about to reinforce Brindisi from the sea, and launched the largest siege regardless of fatigue. Twenty thousand soldiers of the Maypu Alliance Fleet carried ladders and pushed siege vehicles, attacking Brindisi wave after wave …
The Tarantum garrison, which had been fighting hard for two days, only had a few hundred people left. It was all thanks to the help of the freedmen in the city that they managed to survive until today. Faced with the tide of enemies, the freedmen, who lacked combat experience, panicked …
… …
The Tarantum Navy rushed to the port of Brindisi and had just put the soldiers ashore. They had not yet assembled and regrouped. The city of Brindisi was breached, and the defeated soldiers, freedmen, and their families ran to the port in panic, trying to find a sail to leave the fallen city as soon as possible. The soldiers who came as reinforcements also felt that something was wrong, and asked to leave on the ships again. Everyone scrambled to get on the ship, followed by the wailing cries of the defeated soldiers and their families. The entire harbor was filled with people, and order was in chaos. Many people fell into the sea during the pushing and shoving …
Faced with this situation, the commander of the navy did not know what to do, and let the warships under his command rescue them. However, the pursuit of the Maypu Alliance Fleet made the people who were eager to escape push each other, scrambling to climb onto the ships, causing two warships to capsize due to overload.
The commander of the navy felt that something was wrong, and had to urgently order the fleet to leave the port. In the process, the soldiers and sailors fought, causing several warships to fail to successfully leave the port.
At this time, the soldiers of the Maypu Alliance Fleet had arrived, and like hungry wolves, they pounced on the Tarantum people who were trembling with fear, using spears and swords to kill them who had raised their hands in surrender. The flowing blood soon dyed the sea of the port red …
The soldiers, sailors, and survivors of the Tarantum Navy could not bear to see this tragic scene and fled the port in a hurry. Who knew that their disaster was far from over. Soon, they were intercepted by the Maypu United Navy, who had previously retreated. Although there were many ships in Tarantum, the fleet full of civilians lost speed and agility and became the target of the Maypu United Navy's warships.
During the fierce battle, the Tarantum battleship was knocked over, but there were no ships to rescue the people who fell into the water. The sailors were frightened by the tragic scene in the port, and all they wanted to do was to go home. The two sides switched positions, and the remaining 45 warships and some troop ships of Tarantum left the battlefield.
However, the victorious Maybach and Pratt Alliance Fleet was still chasing them …
… …
On the fourth day after Polydorus asked for help from Diónia, the allied forces of Mecca and Prussia who had recaptured Brindisi advanced westward on a large scale after a short rest. By the afternoon, they had surrounded Manduria again. The entire city of Tarantum was in a state of panic. Messengers were sent to Diónia for help one after another …
On the morning of the fifth day, Diónia's reinforcements finally set off.
It was already the beginning of September, and the weather in the morning was beginning to turn cold.
After saying goodbye to their families, the soldiers of the First and Second Legions gathered in the Victory Square.
After counting the number of people, the Commander Devers announced the departure.
The whole army marched to the northwest of the city and came to the foot of the Temple of Hades. They knelt down and prayed devoutly.
The bronze bell in the temple rang, and the priest in charge, Plesinas, led dozens of male and female priests of the Temple of Hades to sing the hymn of Hades for the soldiers and gave them blessings.
If it was in other city-states, they might have to divine luck before the expedition, but the Devers canceled this procedure. He believed that war was a matter of life and death for the alliance. Victory depended on strength, strict training, and careful planning, rather than relying on the illusory grace of God. He did not want the soldiers to develop this bad habit.
After the prayer, the whole army turned east, went out of the city gate, and went straight to the port of Turií. The soldiers' families and the people who saw them off lined up on both sides of the road to see off the troops.
What made Polydorus sigh was that there were very few families who wept and did not want the soldiers to go to war. While they wished the soldiers safe, they also encouraged them to gain merit. The other people, on the other hand, were more envious of the soldiers' good luck. They were unconvinced that they would have performed better if they had gone.
"The people of Diónia love war!" Polydorus had forgotten who told him this, but now it seemed that it was indeed different. He could not help but look at the Commander Devers beside him. The 20-year-old young man showed a calmness and seriousness beyond his age. Plus, the people of Diónia had a commander who was good at fighting, which was why they could rise today!
But under the pressure of the enemy's army, the strength of the Dionysian Army made Polydorus feel a little more at ease, because the Dionysian Army could be relied on!
There were hundreds of cargo ships docked at the port, including those from Diónia, Tarantum, Metapontum, Heraclea, and even Castellón …
Under the guidance of the port's management, the troops entered the various docks in an orderly manner. They boarded the ships under the command of the squad leaders and division leaders. Everything was in order.
The passenger ship that Polydorus was on was the first to leave the port. He had to return to Tarantum to inform the Senate and get ready to receive the reinforcements from Diónia.
He was accompanied by Antonius, who needed to negotiate with Tarantum about the Dionysian Army's entry into the port, settlement, rations, and many other matters. Originally, this task should have been undertaken by Felicius, but after the Devers left Diónia, Turií still needed someone to guard against any accidents. As the second-in-command of the army, Felicius was naturally the most suitable candidate. Felicius could not go, and the two commanders, Capus and Dracos, were people who only knew how to fight and were not good at socializing. Therefore, the Devers could only let the first commander of the first legion, Antonius, be responsible for communication. In fact, the second commander, Alexis, was also a suitable candidate, but the Devers felt that compared to the slightly aloof Alexis, Antonius was a little more tactful.
There were some special personnel of the Legion of Dionysia on this passenger ship, such as the legion's engineers. As the Dionysian Army's encampment in Tarantum had been determined in advance, the engineers would rush to the site first to inspect the terrain and plan in advance how to build the camp, the size of the camp, the layout of the tents, the width of the trenches, etc., so that the army could immediately start building the camp once they arrived at Tarantum.
The soldiers stepped onto the shaky deck and placed the helmets, linen breastplates, round shields, greaves, spears, and javelins that weighed dozens of kilograms on their backs against the side of the ship, then waved goodbye to their relatives and friends on the shore.
One by one, the ships sailed out of the port.
In the morning, a strong northeasterly wind blew in the Taranto Bay. All the ships lowered their sails and sailed straight east with the help of the wind. From time to time, waves would hit the hull from the side and rear, splashing water and wetting the clothes of the soldiers, but it did not affect their mood at all.
"I heard that the people of Tarantum are very rich. This time, we helped them defeat those aborigines. Will they give us enough silver coins to thank us for our rescue?!" a new recruit said excitedly.
"Fool, do you know how many soldiers we have to go to Tarantum this time? It's 14000 people! This does not include the cavalry brigade, the engineering battalion, the medical battalion … Even if Tarantum gives us dozens of Talient, after deducting the amount that will be handed over to the legion fund, how much can be distributed to each of us?! " Another soldier warned him disapprovingly, "You might as well kill a few more aborigines and accumulate a few more battle achievements, so that the Alliance can give you a few more acres of land!"
"Speaking of this war, I'm angry just thinking about it! Their three legions are lucky. They captured Asprushtum and Grumentum. Why do they always have a war?! Isn't it because most of them are Lucanians?! It was not easy for us to go out to rescue the city-states in the south, but in the end, the Locri people asked for peace before the war even started. Tell me, isn't this infuriating?! This time, when we go to Tarantum, I hope those aborigines don't learn from the Locri people and let us make a wasted trip again! "Another soldier's words resonated with the surrounding soldiers and also aroused their concern.
"Don't worry, the Mesapi are not as weak as the Locri people. I heard that they are very fierce, and the people of Tarantum have never taken advantage of them. Otherwise, after such a long time, Tarantum would have established several sub-states in the vicinity. This time, the Mesapi have joined forces with the Puchetti people and defeated Tarantum one after another. Their morale is high, and they might even have the intention to destroy Tarantum. Why would they negotiate with us? "A soldier who knew the situation of Tarantum said.
"That's great! Only by defeating the Mesapi can we show the power of our Diónia. We will become heroes and save Tarantum! "A soldier announced loudly, causing the others to cheer excitedly.
"I heard that the women of Tarantum are all good-looking. When we become heroes, can we marry one of them?" Someone joked. He was immediately pushed by someone else, "Stop dreaming, Percials. Those citizens of Tarantum are arrogant and have always looked down on the people of the other Greek city-states. Do you think they will marry their daughters to us, who are 'farmers' in their eyes!? "
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