Chapter 433
"Go! Go! If you don't obey orders, you'll be punished by military law!! "Soberkos roared. His face was covered in sweat and tears.
The rest of the Diónia cavalry finally turned around and left.
Soberkos seemed to have exhausted all his strength. He fell backward, his right fist still firmly pressed against his chest.
The blue sky, the white clouds, and the dazzling sun. The sunlight that shone on his body was so warm … A smile appeared on Soberkos' face …
"Long live Diónia …" he murmured. At this moment, he was not thinking about Turií who gave birth to him and raised him for decades, but the Diónia Alliance that was only established a few years ago.
When the enemy's spear pierced his chest, he did not dodge. Instead, he closed his eyes. In the depths of his heart, he saw the beautiful Elysium that was revealing its full appearance to him …
… …
In Triene, there were only about 500 militia in the city. There were no other citizens. It was almost an empty city.
Why did this happen?
Because when Cypross proposed to send the most soldiers to participate in the battle at the Citizen's Assembly, the citizens questioned him, "If the enemy suddenly attacks Triene during the battle, how can we defend the city with so few soldiers?"
His reply was, "Let the people temporarily move to Kenapetya and receive the protection of the Dionysia Alliance. They will only return after the victory of the war …"
In the end, the reason why the Citizen's Assembly passed his seemingly absurd proposal was because Syracuse's main camp was on the riverbank not far away. Syracuse's huge fleet was wandering in the bay, like a tiger lurking in the grass, waiting for Triene at any time, causing the citizens to fear day and night. Therefore, they all hoped that the victory of this battle would completely eliminate this huge threat.
After obtaining the approval of the acting governor of Kenapetya, Asistes, more than 40,000 Triene citizens brought their food and belongings north to seek refuge.
After Cypross left with 8,500 soldiers, there were less than 500 militia left in the city. They closed the city gates and nervously monitored the movements outside the city.
"Look, Syracuse's fleet!" A soldier pointed to the sea outside the port and shouted nervously.
For the past two days, Syracuse's ships had been entering and exiting the Ramato River, and the people of Triene were somewhat used to it. But this time, not only were there cargo ships, but there were also warships, and the number was astonishing. There seemed to be no less than 200 ships.
"There are soldiers on the ships!" When the Syracuse fleet sailed into the Ramato River and was very close to Triene, the soldiers on the city walls could clearly see that there were two ships entering the river, one after the other, and each ship was filled with soldiers.
"This … I'm afraid there are more than 10,000 people!"
"It's impossible for us to defend this city with just these few people!"
"Let us retreat now."
…
The Triene soldiers screamed in panic, but they soon discovered that the huge fleet did not stop near the Triene River. Instead, they sailed straight upstream.
The soldiers breathed a sigh of relief, but the Triene General Blomalas, who had been looking down at the two "dragons" in the Ramato, had a grim look on his face, and a terrible thought occurred to him.
"Immediately ride your horses to the battlefield! Tell the Coalition Commander that tens of thousands of Syracuse soldiers are on their way to the battlefield. I hope they — "At this point, Blommatos suddenly thought of something and could not continue.
According to the report from the scouts, the Allied Army had already started fighting against the people of Syracuse. All the units of the Allied Army should have sent in all their forces. Even if the generals knew about this, what could they do to stop the enemy's reinforcements?
Looking at the equally nervous messenger, Bulomathos tried to calm himself down. "Go quickly."
"… Yes!" The messenger turned and was about to leave the city wall.
Bulommatos said cautiously, "After you send the message, stay near the battlefield. Once the battle is over, come back and tell us immediately!"
"Faster! Faster! "Leptineus stood behind the piper who controlled the rhythm of the oars and personally gave the order.
Under the fast beat of the drums, dozens of sailors rowed the oars with all their might. This was the 50-oared warship at the forefront. It moved quickly on the surface of the water, and naturally, it brought the fleet at the back and the side of the ship forward. Coupled with the southeast breeze, the entire fleet did not slow down even though they were going against the current.
Even though the fleet was moving quickly, Leptineus's expression was still solemn. As the commander of the navy, the crushing defeat against Carthage a few years ago had almost caused him to lose his brother Dionysius's trust. Hence, since the start of the battle, he had made up his mind to redeem himself. He wanted to prove his ability to Dionysius, and to the people of Syracuse who mocked him for sitting in his position based on blood and not ability. Hence, he had to arrive in time for the battle. He could not disappoint his brother Dionysius and embarrass himself!
"The river confluence is just ahead!" The lookout who was leaning on the mast shouted.
Leptineus quickly walked to the bow of the ship. In front of him, the calm river forked, one to the left and the other to the right.
Leptineus's tensed face finally showed a hint of excitement. "Prepare to turn the rudder to the left!"
In fact, there was no need for him to give the order. The experienced helmsman was already adjusting the course of the warship.
Watching the warships steadily turn into the left side of the river and continue to cut through the waves, Leptinis finally smiled. According to the map that Dionysius had sent someone to give him yesterday, he knew that there was a large stretch of flat beach on the right side of the river four miles ahead. That was the place where he had determined that the fleet would land.
To ensure a smooth landing, he did not bring a single three-oared warship with him. That was because a three-oared warship was too large and long. Not only was it not suitable for docking on the beach, it could easily obstruct the navigation of other ships.
"En Amennas!"
"My lord," the leader of the Campanian mercenaries on the same ship replied.
"Get ready, it's all up to you soon!" Leptineus said encouragingly.
Most of the landing troops carried by Leptineus's fleet were Campanian mercenaries. Compared to the civil militia of the city, these mercenaries were more experienced and could fight on their own without relying on a tight phalanx. This was also the reason why Dionysius had chosen to let them fight on the land. For the sake of this battle, Dionysius had racked his brains. He had even considered some of the details.
However, Leptineus did not like these mercenaries, especially the Celts and Numibians. He felt that these natives were barbaric, bloodthirsty, indiscriminate, looting, and disobedient. If it were not for the sake of victory in this war, he would not even want to get close to them.
"Hahaha! My brothers can't wait to kick the ass of the great Greeks. This is probably the easiest battle we've ever fought for Lord Dionysius! " En Amennas laughed loudly. He had been holding back his energy to make a great contribution and gain Dionysius's recognition. Masias, who had also come from Campania and started out as a mercenary, but had now turned into a courtier of Dionysius, was his role model.
"You're right, Chief. We only need one charge to make the enemy kneel and surrender! "The mercenaries on the ship were full of confidence.
… …
Dionysius had indeed thought things through. However, he did not expect that before the battle, he had repeatedly reminded the leaders of the Numibian and Celtic cavalry to assist the right flank. However, these warlike foreigners had reverted to their old ways. After defeating the allied cavalry, they were busy chasing, killing, and looting the spoils of war. They had long forgotten Dionysius's orders.
This caused the right flank led by Phoebidas to continuously retreat without support. The right flank, which was still struggling to hold on, was almost pressed into a semicircle.
What Dionysius did not expect was that in the middle, the 15000 Syracuse elite infantrymen, who he had high hopes for, were slowly retreating in the confrontation with the Dionyian army, which had a similar number of soldiers, after a period of stalemate in the beginning, they were slowly retreating. The retreat of the middle also affected the left flank.
After receiving urgent reports from the left, middle, and right flank, Dionysius felt that the entire front was retreating. Yes, the entire formation! He no longer had the carefree mood he had at the start of the battle. He ordered his adjutant, Damocles, and his attendants to stand close to the back of the middle formation, shouting at the soldiers to encourage them to perk up and fight back against the enemy's attack.
However, amidst the roars, screams, and the loud noise caused by the clash of spears and shields, the effect was almost negligible. The middle formation was still slowly retreating.
"What's going on?! Why haven't the reinforcements of the Fasipesas arrived yet?! " Dionysius asked anxiously. His irritation affected the War Horse he was riding, which kept shaking its head and neighing.
"Sir, the messenger has just reported that the troops led by the Fasipesas are only a mile away from the right flank," Damocles immediately replied.
"You go!" Dionysius pointed at him. "Direct the Fasipesas directly to the right flank and attack the enemy's flank!"
"Yes, sir!"
"Where is Leptinus' fleet now?"
"They have already passed the position of the left flank, sir."
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