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POV of a Roman soldier
Anno Domini, 832-March-23-24
''How are you holding up, Anastasius?'' I said while looking at my brother, who was breathing audibly as he pulled our armor out of the chest where we had kept it stored.
''What do you think? The same as you. We spent almost two months training and now we have to march against the enemy. Of course I'm taking it badly. I thought we would have much more time before this happened, but here we are, preparing for battle'' my brother said, still breathing unevenly before opening the chest and revealing the armor we had been ordered to put on because we would soon be reaching Italy.
''Yeah'' I said through clenched teeth as I also pulled out the chest and began taking out each piece of my armor while the metallic noise filled the small space where we had been sleeping for the past few days. ''I have this feeling of pressure in my stomach and I don't think it's the seasickness you supposedly had anymore. If I didn't feel like vomiting during the first few days, I suppose it isn't because of that now either''.
''We'll be close to land very soon. Start getting ready'' I heard the kentarchos shout as he moved through the transport section of the ship.
With the pressure already weighing on us, we quickly began changing clothes, removing the light garments we had been wearing while traveling across the sea and putting on the armor the State had issued to us so that we could serve as soldiers during our training.
For almost a month I had been training while fully equipped in the armor to get used to its weight, but even so, I didn't think I was truly prepared for what was coming.
So, stripping down until I was wearing nothing but my undergarments, I put on a layer of soft linen that covered my entire torso. After that came a padded jacket, which served as the first layer of the armor.
I did the same with my legs. First I put on a pair of soft linen trousers and then a second padded layer.
Afterward I pulled out one of the heaviest parts of the armor: the hauberk, a coat of mail that reached from my neck down to near my waist and which I had to tighten around my body using straps at the front.
On our legs we simply wore a similar layer of mail that went over them and was secured with straps to keep it in place, leaving almost our entire bodies covered in chain mail.
On my head I first placed a thin layer of linen, then a padded coif and finally the mail coif, which covered my head and part of my face. It didn't take me long to pull the front section across my mouth, leaving only my eyes exposed.
With that done, I grabbed the brigandine and in a single motion, accompanied by all the metallic noise it produced, pulled it over my torso. After tightening the straps along the sides, the armor was firmly secured in place.
I put on my leather boots and wrapped strips of cloth around them to keep them as firmly secured to my feet as possible. After that I put on the guards for my arms and legs, steel plates connected with leather that were meant to protect the outer sides of our limbs from blows.
I finished by putting on my leather gloves and finally my helmet.
I could feel all the weight pressing down on my body along with the heat caused by wearing so many layers, but when I finally looked toward my brother, I saw that he was practically finished as well.
''I'm ready'' I said while fastening my belt, sliding my sword into its scabbard and taking hold of my shield and spear.
''Same here… Let's go'' my brother said.
He began moving, staggering slightly because of the motion of the ship while we occasionally bumped into other soldiers who were doing exactly the same thing. Little by little we gathered in the narrow corridor of the ship that connected the compartments where we had been transported.
With all that metallic noise, the sound of trumpets beginning to echo through the air almost went unnoticed.
Finally we emerged from beneath the deck and reached the surface.
The land was no longer very far away and it seemed like only a matter of time before we reached it.
On every nearby ship I could see soldiers gathering on the decks, although farther away one force stood out above all the others: the auxiliaries who served directly under the Magister ton Scholon.
They were little more than barbarians or recent converts who had joined his ranks because they seemed far more connected to their savage side.
They were said to be ferocious warriors, although that depended on exactly who they were, because the Magister was known for having far too many auxiliaries drawn from different places and using them depending on whatever problems appeared along the front.
''Positions! Quickly! We're going to run directly onto the sand and you'll have to climb down carefully. If you fall wearing all that armor, you'll break every bone in your body, so don't push'' the kentarchos shouted while moving among our group.
Obeying the words of our commanding officer, we moved toward the front while raising our shields in case arrows began raining down on us.
But this attack was supposed to be a surprise strike, so there shouldn't be much organized resistance.
Or at least that was what we assumed.
As the ship approached the sand of the beach, I could hear the many prayers being whispered around me by my companions.
Apparently I wasn't the only one who was nervous. After all, for many of us this would be our first real battle.
No fighting with our fists in some alley or pulling out a small knife to frighten someone. Now I had a sword almost as long as my arm hanging from my waist and a spear capable of driving straight through a man if I used enough force.
This was no longer the kind of game a street fight in the alleys of a city could be.
A powerful impact shook the entire ship when the vessel carrying us finally struck the sand and began sliding slowly onto the beach.
''Now! Down! Carefully and don't push!'' the kentarchos shouted as he began descending the ladder along the side of the ship, becoming the first among us to set foot on land.
Slowly we began climbing down behind him, trying to help those descending ahead of us because some were having difficulty moving with all their equipment weighing them down.
We quickly formed up on the beach while we began noticing small barges being lowered from some of the ships, since those were transport vessels and apparently they were unloading horses.
''Quickly, we have to cover our landing while the supplies are unloaded, so cover the approaches. Come on, march in step'' the kentarchos said as our formation began advancing while keeping the rhythm indicated by the kentarchos as he walked with his command staff.
My feet sank slightly into the sand and as we moved, I caught sight of the first opponents of the day, since there were several mounted men watching us from the top of the beach.
We all looked toward the kentarchos, who simply continued advancing and maintaining the rhythm while observing them.
''There are too few of them. If they charge us in this position, they'll kill themselves trying, so don't worry'' the kentarchos said while moving his staff in time with the march.
Breathing a little more calmly, we continued advancing until we reached the top and saw that the group watching us consisted of around ten horsemen who, upon seeing us approach, began retreating toward what appeared to be a castle on the horizon beside a fishing village.
So we remained there waiting while the entire army began disembarking rapidly. We watched as a large group of cavalry moved away and rode toward the castle while the rest of the army began forming up and advancing as the sailors pushed the ships back out to sea.
Time passed while we looked around in every direction without really knowing what to do. The wind, somewhat cold because of the season, struck us, but the multiple layers of protection seemed to offer some defense against the elements.
Another group of horsemen began moving, this time in a different direction, although that group was composed mostly of barbarians with only a small group of Romans leading them as they rode toward the horizon.
After doing nothing but remaining alert and listening to the sound of our armor, we suddenly went on guard when we heard horses again and lowered our spears toward the direction of the sound.
''The gastald of Sipontus has surrendered. The Magister ton Scholon orders all forces to begin moving toward the local port to help receive the supplies and prepare for the march'' one of the riders said.
''You heard him. Let's go'' the kentarchos said before beginning to march.
Several of our formations quickly advanced toward the castle.
The small town standing beside the sea was already gathering a group of men who had surrendered.
Apparently, the local army that had been besieging several Roman positions farther south had taken most of the local men with it. Only a small reduced force had remained behind, barely capable of resisting an attack and once they realized that an entire army had suddenly descended upon them, they had no choice but to surrender since they did not even have enough men to properly defend the castle walls.
Much of our work consisted of deciding what we would take from the local storehouses while leaving enough for the population to survive, since much of what remained consisted of seed grain for the next harvest and simply taking it would leave them without any means of sustaining themselves in the future.
Because of the surrender there was no looting and I noticed that many of the barbaroi auxiliaries following us were irritated by that.
But although there was plenty to do, we did not remain there for long. The army split into multiple groups advancing in different directions, attempting to seize as many settlements and castles as possible before the enemy could react to our landing.
So without even giving us time to establish a proper camp, we would have to quarter ourselves in the homes of the locals as we pushed deeper inland.
And once we began marching along the roads, a droungarios started guiding us forward.
Throughout the day we captured three small villages where we spent more time working with scales than anything else, mostly determining how much we could take and how much we had to leave behind, since many of the local fortifications were little more than extremely small castles containing no more than a hundred or two hundred men. Although many took refuge inside them, they did not take long to surrender, though several castles continued resisting under siege.
So when the sun began to disappear and after the long march we had been forced to endure, we finally reached the last small village our unit had taken and used the empty houses to rest while at the same time establishing a quick defensive position against any surprise attack, simply blocking several of the roads that led directly toward us and selecting the men responsible for standing night watch.
Since neither my brother nor I were chosen, we simply slept and when we woke up, we continued our advance, leaving behind those who had stood the night watch while a new group arrived to garrison the area.
Once again we marched and I could feel my body beginning to ache slightly as we continued forward until the kentarchos finally ordered us to stop.
''Formation!'' the kentarchos roared.
As we moved into battle formation, I saw a group of troops standing ahead of us. They appeared rather disorganized, but they were armed.
''Spears and close formation!'' the kentarchos ordered while his officers moved into their combat positions so they could direct the fighting.
''Shit… shit'' I said while breathing somewhat erratically.
We heard the trumpet carried by one of the dekarchos and began advancing slowly with our spears held out in front of us while our opponents quickly tightened their own lines, revealing shields of varying sizes and armor that appeared to be a collection of equipment gathered from several different places.
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If there are spelling mistakes, please let me know.
Leave a comment; support is always appreciated.
I remind you to leave your ideas or what you would like to see.
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