Uncertain Honor Read online

  “Sir, I’m first Decanus,” Philetus corrected.

  Alerio cast his gaze to the beaten path of the gap. No mercenaries poured from between the trees. He could be mistaken about an attack. From the back of the formation, a voice offered.

  “Higher up on the slope to the south,” the doomsayer advised. “There’s a rocky, open spot.”

  “Corporal Philetus, get your Century out of the valley and to the rocky spot,” Alerio directed. “Set a twenty-man shield barrier. I’ll help Optio Kalem. Go.”

  Clearly, the men respected Philetus as he had them jogging away from the gap with only a couple of commands. While the Century moved away, Alerio sprinted to the Optio.

  “Kalem, I didn’t mean to hurt you,” Alerio stated while placing his shoulder under the NCO’s arm. “But I didn’t have time to explain.”

  “You only aggravated the injury, sir,” Kalem told Alerio. “I questioned the application of Optio Donatas’ instructions. And the weapon’s instructor gave me a personal and painful demonstration of the technique.”

  Alerio watched the young Legionaries scramble uphill before checking behind him. Any question about his overreacting to the situation vanished with the appearance of mounted warriors and foot soldiers swarming from the gap.

  The two men reached the foot of the slope and stumbled upward. Before they had gone far, four infantrymen rushed to take their NCO from Alerio. Relieved of the burden, he scrambled to the clearing.

  “Set three ranks of twenty infantrymen,” he ordered. “Put the last two squads behind us to watch our rear.”

  “Why, sir?” Philetus questioned.

  “To defend the Century’s position,” Alerio replied.

  “I know that, sir,” Philetus pushed back. “Why is a Colonel out here with a first maniple Century? You could have galloped to the camp, guided the Legion back, and claimed a victory. Instead, you’re on a rocky slope with eighty unbloodied infantrymen and an injured NCO. Why, sir?”

  “When you put it like that, Corporal, I was better off bored,” Alerio offered. He held up a hand when Philetus started to protest the increase in rank. “The reason I’m here is exactly the reason you asked why. Sixth Century is isolated, outnumbered, surrounded, and about to go into battle. Where else should a Battle Commander be?”

  “You picked a terrible place to apply the literal translation of that title, sir,” Optio Kalem observed. He shook off the helping hands and moved to the right side of the fifty-foot formation. Drawing his gladius, the Optio declared. “I have the right flank, Colonel Sisera.”

  Seeing his Sergeant take a side, Philetus shifted to the left and drew his sword.

  “And I have the left flank, Colonel Sisera,” the acting Tesserarius announced.

  Alerio spun in a circle locking eyes with frightened Legionaries. In training, they had drilled with their maniple as one of twelve Centuries. In a line of shields over six hundred feet long, their Century was just a number, and the infantrymen had the reassurance of neighboring Legionaries.

  On a dusty slope with a horde of mounted warriors and soldiers gathering at the base, the young men of the Sixth Century could only see the overwhelming numbers and visualize their own deaths.

  “I have just promoted Lance Corporal Philetus to Corporal,” Alerio stated. He held up his hands as if seeking an answer. “Do I have your approval?”

  A few timid consents came back from the Century.

  “I said, I appointed a squad leader to Tesserarius,” Alerio exclaimed. “I asked for your endorsement and I get back the bleating of a herd of lambs. What say you?”

  “Rah, sir,” several squad members replied.

  “Let me introduce myself,” Alerio bellowed. “I’m Alerio Sisera, a farm boy from the Tuscany region. A Legionary from the Eastern Legion and a Legion Raider. I am an infantryman just like you.”

  “If you’re like us, sir,” the doomsayer challenged. “why aren’t you scared?”

  Alerio dipped his chin as if the answer to the question validated the pessimist’s point. After a brief period, he lifted his face, inhaled, and smiled.

  “Because, I know three things you don’t,” Alerio responded. With a motion as if bragging, Alerio slapped the armor on his chest. The sharp report caused several Legionaries to flinch. And he repeated. “Three things.”

  In the silence that followed, the doomsayer asked, “What do you know that we can’t see with our own eyes, Colonel? Besides a thousand mercenaries coming to murder us.”

  A pessimist had the ability to say what everyone feared was the worst of any situation. The remarks dumped the Century’s attitude into a unified slump. Now that they hit bottom, Alerio faced the task of bringing them up to a fighting frenzy.

  Chapter 27 – Hold and Fury

  Hasdrubal Gisco allowed his horse to pick its way down the mountain trail. His bodyguards rode in front and behind, keeping the mounted and foot mercenaries away from the Qart Hadasht General.

  He was exceedingly proud of mixing the two types. Most commanders kept the cavalry and foot soldiers separated. That might work for a fight on flatland, and he would do that later. But coming through the mountains, he had struggled with which unit should cross first. He decided on intermingling them, so he had spears and shields plus the swift horsemen in the first wave.

  At the bottom of the final dip, Hasdrubal followed the flow of soldiers and mounted warriors out into a valley.

  “General, we have a unit of Legionaries pinned on the hillside,” his Captain of Horse described. He pointed to the rocky clearing and added. “I suggest we leave them and move forward with the attack on the Republic Fort.”

  “Why weren’t the Legion farmers swept away when you first emerged from the mountains?” Hasdrubal demanded.

  “Sir, I didn’t have enough horsemen,” the Captain told him. “If I had more cavalry, they would have been trampled to the last Legionary.”

  “And if I had more soldiers, I would have engaged and defeated them,” a Major of the Light Infantry inserted as he rode up. “Let me post a Company here to contain them, while we march on their fort.”

  General Hasdrubal looked at the rows of Legion shields and remembered the naval battle. The shape of the shields on the decks of the Roman warships haunted his nights. And he recalled the failure caused by dividing the Empire’s fleet. Making a fist, he shook it at the hillside.

  “Splitting our forces is not a good strategy,” the General declared. “Major, attack that formation and remove those shields from my sight. We’ll wait here until our rear is secure.”

  “Excellent, sir,” the Major agreed.

  Privately, he wanted to punch the arrogant Qart Hadasht commander. A small detachment of Legionaries perched on the side of a hill posed little threat to their rear. Delaying the assault on the Legion Fort however, put the entire plan of a surprise attack at risk.

  ***

  Alerio indicated Optio Kalem then rotated until his hand pointed at Corporal Philetus.

  “Here is the first thing I know,” he stated. “The center sector of this formation will have more kills than either flank.”

  “How can you know that?” a Legionary questioned.

  “Because I am that good at backing up my men,” Alerio boasted.

  “Now hold on, sir,” the Optio shot back. “I believe the right flank will prove superior in this fight.”

  Alerio and Kalem faced Philetus and jutted out their chins. The new Tesserarius hesitated for a heartbeat unsure why they were angry at him. Finally, he got it.

  “No disrespect Colonel, Optio, but I know these smelly mules better than anyone,” Philetus bragged. “And I can state as a fact that the left flank will save the day.”

  “Hades, you say,” Alerio roared. He reached out and lightly punched the men in front and behind him. “These are trained killers. If you can beat them, I’ll buy the Century two cows for a sacrifice.”

  “And what if our section beats the flanks,” an infantryman in front of Aler
io questioned. “What then, sir?”

  “Three cows,” Alerio shouted. Cries of Euge and Bravo burst from the Century. He waited for them to settle down. “The second thing I know is half those dogs in the valley are horsemen. Look at them. They will not get off their mounts to climb this hill and throw themselves on our blades.”

  Another round of cheering greeted the Colonel’s observation.

  “What’s the third thing you know, sir,” a Legionary asked.

  “I know that back at the Legion camp, I have bodyguards, a valet, and lots of food and vino. Let me be honest, being a Battle Commander is a pretty good job,” Alerio assured them. Then with each following sentence, he raised his voice until he was shouting. “As a matter of fact, it’s a great job. But right now, there is nowhere in the Republic that I would rather be than on this hill. Standing here, ready to unleash death with the Merchants of Mayhem, the fighting infantrymen from the Sixth Century.”

  “We’re the Merchants of Mayhem,” a Legionary parroted the Colonel. Another boom, “Come up here, you dogs, and meet the Merchants of Mayhem.”

  The fear and depression of the inexperienced Legionaries vanished. Replacing the trepidation, each young man felt pride in himself and in his Century. The untested Legionaries were as ready for battle as Alerio Sisera could make them.

  ***

  Although they had faced off against each other before, neither Colonel Alerio Sisera nor General Hasdrubal Gisco acknowledged each other. And why should they? In their previous meeting, they moved counter to each other on flagships, staying on opposite sides of the transports. In the valley at the Eastern Range, one wore armor, held a shield, and blended in with the Legionaries around him. The other, dressed in a magnificent robe of office, sat on a powerful horse isolated from his troops by bodyguards.

  From the slope, Alerio noted the Qart Hadasht General. But from the valley floor, the Battle Commander for Legion North wasn’t even a consideration. Had it been known, every mercenary under Hasdrubal’s command would have charged up the slope. As it was, the General left the removal of the Legionaries to the only soldiers accompanying him, mercenary light infantrymen.

  ***

  “Here they come,” Corporal Philetus advised. “Steady on the line.”

  His words weren’t necessary as the Legionaries could see the soldiers climbing the hill. But there was comfort in routine and the Legion maintained order by making sure their heavy infantrymen knew the plan and what was expected of them.

  “Third rank, relax,” Optio Kalem instructed. “There’s enough of them, you’ll get your chance.”

  Expectation of performance allowed the infantrymen and their officers and NCOs to connect over expected results, behavior, and cohesion of actions. The system had worked since the days of the Roman Kingdom. A final ingredient ingrained in each Legionary and the activity supported by the other practices was extreme violence.

  “First rank, draw,” Alerio ordered.

  “Rah,” twenty infantrymen at the front of the formation responded.

  “Brace,” Alerio warned.

  Kalem and Philetus echoed the command and the forty infantrymen in the two ranks locked their knees, hardened their shoulders, and overlapped their scutum. Two breaths later, a crushing weight slammed into the wall of shields.

  ***

  “Hold,” Alerio instructed. Along the line, more soldiers slammed into the motionless shields. Tucked in behind the wooden scutum, the inexperienced men wanted to throw off the weight and fight. It’s how they had been trained and the natural reaction to being attacked. But the Battle Commander repeated. “Hold.”

  Kalem and Philetus, the NCOs, felt the nervousness of inactivity as soldiers stacked up against the front of the Legion wall. Tremors in their sword hands revealed their state of mind. Yet, Colonel Sisera stated for a third time. “Hold.”

  The first soldiers to reach the Legion line were pushed down as more came up the hill and crowded them from behind. As if a reservoir overflowing its dam, mercenaries climbed onto the backs of their compatriots to reach the Legionaries.

  “Third rank, kill those heroes,” Alerio directed.

  Spears jabbed over the ranks and sunk into faces and necks. The bold soldiers died. But their bodies remained as dead weight on top of the scrum.

  “Hold!” Alerio commanded again.

  More mercenaries climbed onto the backs of their stalled comrades. Quickly, on hands and knees, they moved forward only to encounter spear tips. Their bodies added to the mass on top of the stalled soldiers.

  “Hold!”

  At first swords, spears, and knives poked at the Legion shields, attempting to penetrate the wall. In moments, the press from behind left no space for offense, only pushing.

  Although gladius drills were paramount to a Legionary’s training, following closely behind in time on the practice field were shield-to-shield matches. The Sixth might be unbloodied and new to battle but through months of hard work, they were as good as any veteran unit at holding a wall. But they had been idle and under the strain for long moments now, without attack orders.

  Just when the infantrymen began to feel powerless in the face of the onslaught, the Battle Commander’s voice rose above the grunting.

  “Sixth Century, stand by to advance, advance,” Alerio shouted.

  The warning seemed impractical. They had no room to move nor the manpower to displace the soldiers. A melee and individual fighting would allow the Legionaries to cut a space in front of their shields. To advance was asking the impossible. The Legion NCOs agreed but remained silent.

  “Advance,” Alerio ordered.

  Mimicking Colonel Sisera, Kalem and Philetus repeated the command.

  Twenty Legionaries added pressure to their unmoving shields. Even without the forward motion, or the ability to step out, they opened spaces on the sides and stabbed with their gladii. From grunting, the mercenaries at the front screamed in pain before dying.

  “Advance,” Alerio commanded again.

  Where there was no give the first time, on the second thrust, the shields moved the length of an upper arm. And while the scutum did little damage, the blades had momentum when they struck from between the shields. Twenty soldiers crumbled to the ground joining the first victims of the Legion tactic.

  “Step back,” Alerio instructed.

  Between the dead and dying and the bodies of the bold falling into the gap left by the retreating Legionaries, the corpses created a barrier.

  “First rank, stand by to rotate out,” Alerio bellowed. “Second rank, rotate forward.”

  The Legionaries who held the brunt of the initial attack moved to the rear for a rest. Fresh arms and legs moved to the front and found a different landscape. Where the mercenaries had climbed the hill and attacked directly into the Legion line, the mounds of bodies slowed the next group of assaulters.

  “Sixth Century, defend yourself,” Alerio said freeing the infantrymen.

  Released from a command, the individual Legionary stabbed, and blocked incoming blades as needed.

  “You had us worried, sir,” Sergeant Kalem admitted after sidestepping to Alerio.

  “The Sixth doesn’t have the experience to recover if they engaged too soon,” Alerio told the NCO. “The delay steeled their nerves and put a press of bodies in the path of their blades. By the time we released them to fight, they couldn’t miss.”

  “Thank you, Battle Commander,” Kalem acknowledged before sliding back to his flank position.

  Along the line, gladii snaked out and found flesh while the big infantry scutum blocked most of the Empire blades.

  “Front line, stand by to advance,” Alerio advised.

  From disjointed stabs and blocks, the Legionaries along the front began syncing their attacks. In a veteran Century, the change would have been instantaneous.

  Alerio waited for the Sixth to match movements before declaring, “Advance. Step back.”

  Now freed from the press of bodies, the infantry sh
ields struck as if giant fists. When the hardwood retreated from the soldiers’ faces, the front row of Legionaries stepped into the gap, and delivered a unified row of steel. Leaving devastation in their wake, they stepped back to the starting position.

  “Front row, stand by to rotate out,” Alerio called. “Second rank, rotate forward.”

  Again, while the same Empire soldiers fought on, the Legion put recovered muscles and rested bones into the fight. While the Legionaries were fresh, their command staff did not get relief from their duties. Kalem, Philetus, and Alerio directed their sections, encouraging the fighters on the front and guiding the second rank to take out looming threats. In many cases, they shoved forward during the melee to strike down a particularly dangerous mercenary. Thanks to the active NCOs, Alerio needed only to watch in two directions. To his direct front and farther down into the valley.

  After another rotation, two Legionaries on the front line felt a body squeeze in between them. Glancing down, they were shocked to find Battle Commander Sisera hiding behind their shields.

  “When I give the word,” Alerio coached, “the three of us are going to push out and attack the soldiers. Do you understand?”

  “Yes, sir,” they replied.

  The Colonel nodded before stepping off the front line and returning to the rear.

  ***

  “It looks to me like an even body count,” Alerio shouted. “That’s less roasted meat.”

  Sergeant Kalem and Corporal Philetus hadn’t thought about the offer of sacrificial animals since the battle began.

  “Looks even to me, sir,” the Optio agreed.

  “I believe the left flank has more,” the Corporal bragged.

  Young men were always hungry and the Legionaries of the Sixth were no different. Even during the fury of battle, the talk of roasted beef made their mouths salivate.

  “I can’t have that,” Alerio exclaimed. In a move that surprised the NCOs, he shoved to the front row and screamed. “Center section, forward.”

  The Battle Commander, flanked by two infantrymen, broke the Legion line. Slashing and hacking, they waded into the mass of soldiers.