Chapter 894
After Miltias left, Leotychides immediately said, "Tagrou, quickly inform the reinforcements to head to the port immediately."
"Yes, Commander." Tagrou received the order, but did not execute it immediately. Instead, he asked doubtfully, "Isn't it too risky for the Carthage people? They've sent tens of thousands of troops to cross the mountainous region where transportation and food transportation are inconvenient. Separated by Serinus and Minoa, they want to take down Agrigento. Once our reinforcements arrive, their plan will fail. These tens of thousands of Carthaginians may not even need us to attack. They may collapse because of the lack of food supply in time … "
"Yes, this Carthage Commander Margo is really daring. It seems that he has great faith in the ability of his army." Leotychides looked at the wooden map hanging on the wall, his eyes gleaming. "That's why our reinforcements must be fast."
… …
Ever since the Dionysian Army occupied Serinus, half of its port had been quickly transformed into a simple military port. Not only could the warships of the Sicilian fleet dock for supplies, but they could also be pushed ashore for maintenance and repairs. This gave the fleet a stable and safe foothold in the west of Sicily, making it convenient for them to patrol and attack the western seas.
Now, more than 150 warships of the Sicilian fleet were docked at the port. Soldiers from Minoa, Agrigento, Gela, Kamalina, Econome, and other friendly cities on the south coast, as well as 1,000 soldiers from the Diónia reserve corps, a total of 6,000 soldiers were boarding the warships in batches.
In order to transport the reinforcements to the port of Agrigento in one go, Miltias did not even let the soldiers board the Corvus Warship in order to make more space for the warships.
He felt that the entire fleet could not be used to transport the soldiers. At least half of the warships needed to be used as escorts. This was a precaution that a naval commander must have.
Miltias, on the other hand, retorted that only half of the warships had to be used for transport. Now that the enemy was in a critical situation, if Agrigento was breached due to a lack of troops, who would bear the responsibility? Moreover, after the transport of the troops, the Sicilian fleet had to cruise to the west, so it could not be delayed.
Both sides parted on bad terms again.
So Therian simply boarded the first ship to leave the harbor. Out of sight, out of mind.
In order to save time, as soon as every warship was loaded with soldiers, they would immediately depart. Thus, when Miltias boarded the flagship and left the port, the entire fleet stretched out four to five miles to the east, forming a single straight line. Because every ship was fully loaded with soldiers, the speed at which they sailed was slow.
Miltias was also a little anxious. He looked at the soldiers lying on the deck and estimated the time it would take to get from Serinus to Agrigento at this speed. By the time the transport was completed, it would already be afternoon, and the fleet would not be able to patrol.
At this moment, he actually hoped that there would be a stronger northwest wind like the day Carthage's army landed. That way, they would be able to greatly shorten the voyage time.
Just as he was lost in his thoughts, a cry of alarm suddenly rang out from above his head. "Attention! Attention! There's enemy activity in the southeast!! "
Miltias was shocked, but then he felt puzzled. Carthage's warships had been destroyed, so how could there be enemy activity in the southeast?
Just as he was puzzled, the lookout on the mast anxiously shouted again, "The clippers have raised two blue flags! Two blue flags! "
Blue flags meant that it was not Carthage's warships that appeared, or else the clippers would have raised their yellow flags. But two blue flags meant that there was a fleet nearby, and their numbers were comparable to the Sicilian fleet. Regardless of whether they were hostile or not, they posed a considerable threat to the Sicilian fleet.
Miltias panicked. He clung to the side of the ship and tried to look southeast, but he could only vaguely see a few small dots on the sea in the distance.
Among the commanders of the Four Great Fleets, Miltias and Flarios did not have the experience of independently commanding a large-scale naval battle. During the war in Southern Italy, Miltias was only the captain of a three-oared warship. After the establishment of the Fourth Fleet, the Ministry of Military Affairs had provided the Devers with many candidates for the position of fleet commander. Their qualifications, achievements, and abilities were similar, so the Devers had a hard time choosing. In the end, he chose Miltias because Miltias had once served as the captain of the Devers' ship. The Devers still had some impression of him, which gave him extra points.
After becoming the commander of the Fourth Fleet, Miltias spent most of his time leading the fleet to patrol the Adriatic Sea, fighting pirates and helping the army transport supplies. The only so-called naval battle was when Dionia conquered Mesapi and Puchetti and attacked the Maypu Alliance's fleet. As the opponent was too weak, it did not take much effort to defeat them.
Now that Miltias might encounter his first major naval battle, the situation was so complicated. He could not tell whether the other party was friend or foe, so he could not make a sudden decision to fight. Not only did his fleet not have a formation, but every warship was filled with soldiers, which slowed down the speed and weakened their combat ability. The entire fleet was now in the sea near Germe, so it was difficult for them to retreat. As a small town, Germe's small and crude port could not accommodate the Sicilian fleet.
Under such circumstances, he could not help but panic. He tried to calm himself down and gave his first order, "Raise the flag of Apollo and sound the bugle!"
As the bugle sounded, the golden flag was raised to the top of the mast and fluttered in the wind.
When the warships in front of the flagship heard the bugle and saw the fluttering flag, they turned around and moved closer to Miltias's flagship.
The flag of Apollo was: With the flagship as the center, move closer to it. The distance between the warships will be shortened, making it easier to command and defend.
Miltias's current idea was: With the fleet full of soldiers, it was not conducive to battle. His flagship was closer to Serinus, and when all the warships moved closer to him, if the unfamiliar fleet launched an attack, he could lead the fleet back to Serinus first.
The Dionysian fleet stretched too far out on the sea, especially the warships in the front. The lookouts could not see the flag on the flagship at the rear, nor could they see the signals from the fast ships cruising behind. They could only see the warships at the rear making tactical movements before they could make corresponding changes. The transmission of such information was a little slow at this critical moment.
… …
As the fast ship that Sykerian was on was the first to leave, it was already a distance away from the rest of the fleet. As he sat at the bow of the ship, the crew could tell that he was in a bad mood and no one dared to disturb him. The entire ship was abnormally quiet.
At that moment, his expression suddenly froze. He touched his ears and asked the captain, who was observing the situation, "Did you hear that? I think there's a bugle. "
The captain shook his head blankly and listened carefully for a while before replying honestly, "My lord, I didn't hear it."
The captain's words did not make Sykerian feel at ease. He stood up and looked behind him, then raised his head and asked, "Is there any movement from the warships at the back?"
After a while, the lookout at the top of the mast replied, "There's no change."
"My lord, perhaps you heard wrong," the captain said.
Sykerian did not seem to hear it. He felt uneasy. Perhaps this uneasiness had been buried when he learned that Miltias had ordered the entire fleet to be filled with soldiers without guarding the warships. But now, the uneasiness had become stronger.
He no longer hesitated and said decisively, "Turn around and take a look."
The captain complained in his heart that Sykerian was being paranoid, but he did not dare to object. After all, Sykerian was once the commander of the navy, an ever-victorious general and a hero worshipped by his crew. His prestige was too high.
… …
As the Diónia warships turned around and headed back, the fleet was also approaching the Sicilian fleet. Many small black dots appeared in Miltias's vision, making him shudder with fear.
At that moment, he heard the lookout at the top of the mast exclaim, "Two yellow flags! Two yellow flags were raised! Enemy! Enemy! … "
The last bit of hope in Miltias's heart was shattered. Now that the other warships had not completely closed in, it was too late to retreat to Selinus. Fortunately, he had already prepared a plan while waiting. "Blow the bugle again. Let the warships dock at the nearest beach, drop off the soldiers, and return to battle!"
Of course, these words could not be expressed with flag signals, so his flagship had to take the lead and let the other warships follow suit. So after giving the order, the flagship headed straight for the coast.
The Diónia warships that were patrolling the southeast side of the fleet did not recognize the approaching fleet. However, as the enemy warships continued to close in, the formation slowly unfolded, the sails lowered, and the oars began to move faster. This was the standard preparation process for a fleet to enter battle. Of course, it was the enemy without a doubt.
It turned out that the fleet did not come from Carthage, but from the eastern Mediterranean region of Phoenicia. Ever since the storm destroyed Carthage's navy, Carthage had completely lost their naval superiority. The Diónia Sicilian fleet rampaged on the sea. Not only did they cut off Carthage's communication with Sicily, but they also began to threaten Carthage's maritime trade. In this moment of life and death, while Carthage sped up the construction of new warships, he also thought of his motherland.
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