ancient greece mediterranean ruler

Chapter 763 The Dionia army is coming
At this time, the sentries in the city of Adi also heard the "crash, clatter" footsteps, but they did not raise alarm. After all, Adi was far away from the center of the Latin city-state, and also far away from the Herniki, Aequi, and Ma people in the east. Apart from some territorial conflicts with the Volscians, the West rarely had major wars in the past.And now Antium and Satnicum, which belong to Rome, are blocking it to the south. During this period, the war in the south has subsided. The Adi people think that they are very safe, and they have not thought that they are enemies at all. It was the Roman army that was mobilizing, so no scouts were sent to investigate at all.

After passing through the city of Adi, the first and third legions of Dionysia began to approach the coast. This black army was discovered by the passing Latin merchant ships and caravans. They were taken aback and hurriedly called the police to neighboring towns. More organically The police merchant ship turned around and headed south, preparing to notify Antium, which was heavily garrisoned.

In fact, there was no need for this at all. After Antium guard Paulus was restless at the top of the city for more than two hours, he finally decided to send out a few scouts again and venture out of the city to explore the Dionian army again. trends.

At this moment, the men suddenly shouted: "General, fireworks are lit on the port lighthouse!"

Paulus was startled and quickly looked back, only to see a straight plume of black smoke rising from the direction of the port.

Are there enemies coming from the sea? !Paulus's heart tightened again, and then he saw cavalry rushing towards the city, shouting under the city wall: "General Paulus, countless warships and troop carriers appeared on the sea outside the port! !"

Paulus was shocked: Do the Dionians want to repeat the last battle that captured Antium? !
"Immediately dispatch 500 light infantry and [-] heavy infantry to the port to set up defenses!" He ordered the adjutant without hesitation.

"Yes, General!"

After Paulus finished speaking, he quickly descended from the city, mounted his horse, and rushed to the port with the escort.

There has been panic in the city, especially the serious congestion at the gate of the inner city leading to the port. People from countless ports are scrambling to rush into the city, and some even shouted in panic: "The enemy's army is coming! Run quickly!..."

Paulus and the escort struggled to squeeze out, and they rushed to the towering lighthouse on the breakwater without stopping.

When he boarded the lighthouse, what he saw in his field of vision shocked him: It was already past noon, the sea outside the port was sparkling, and endless shadows of sails appeared on the sea in the distance, beyond his sight. Connected with the sea and sky in the far distance... These sailing ships all have one characteristic. Their sides are glowing with golden light, which is very dazzling.

Although the Romans did not have a strong navy and had almost no large-scale naval battles, Paulus, who had served as a military and political officer for several times, was quite experienced in wars and often asked Camillus for advice humbly, so he could judge that it was Most of the terrifying fleet this time are troop carriers, because troop carriers have a characteristic. After the soldiers board the ship, they must hang their shields on both sides of the ship. This not only frees up space in the ship, but also makes it easy to take. It can also defend against long-range attacks by enemy ships, which can be said to kill two birds with one stone, so it has almost become a common tradition for troop transport ships in various countries in the Mediterranean.

How many reinforcements have the Dionians sent? ! !Paulus was shocked and asked with a slightly trembling voice: "Have the chains at the port been put down?"

"It's already pulled up."

"Where is the sentry tower on the sea boom? Are the soldiers in place?"

"Don't worry, General, the archers have already boarded the guard tower, and there are enough tar, arrows, and rags ready."

"That's good!" Paulus felt a little comforted, and he added: "The army in the city will arrive soon, you don't need to panic."

"General." The person in charge of the port said: "According to the observations of the lighthouse sentry, this huge fleet is probably not heading for Antium. It should be heading north!"

Paulus was stunned and looked at the distant sea carefully again: Although the fleet was too far away to see clearly, compared with some ships that were escaping to the port of Antium, the white sails showed only The side, coupled with the flash of light at the side of the ship, and the distance between their fleet and the coast did not seem to have changed much during the time they were talking... Obviously, the Dionian fleet is continuing to sail north!

"Are the Dionians preparing to land on the coast north of Antium?" Paulus whispered uncertainly.

The person in charge of the port reminded him: "General, if the Dionians landed in the north, it would be better to land in the south. The last time they landed on the southern coast, they finally occupied Antium."

Paulus then remembered: There is a low hilly area between Antium and Adi. Although it is relatively flat, it is obviously not convenient compared to the south, so...

When Paulus thought of this, his expression suddenly changed: The Dionysians were preparing to land on the coast farther north, attack the Latin allies, and possibly even attack the weakly defended hinterland, and finally push straight towards Rome...

Thinking of this, Paulus broke out in a cold sweat, because he immediately thought of it: the Dionysian army from the south that appeared in the early morning was probably going to meet this huge number of fleets, and they had passed through Rome. The blockade line set up on the border of Wolsey has entered the hinterland of the Latin city-state area! !
It’s no wonder that Paulus didn’t think about this in advance. He still had the original information in his mind, “Dionysia’s army in Volsey only has nearly ten thousand people.” He did not get Dionysia to send more troops to Volsey. news (because the Third Fleet has completely blocked the sea lanes south of the Latium area during this period), so he subconsciously believed that if an army with no numerical advantage passed through the blockade and penetrated deep into the enemy's rear, even if it could occupy Even if it is a temporary advantage, it is difficult to escape the fate of being encircled, suppressed and wiped out. Such invasion tactics are suitable for fast-moving and light mountain races, but not suitable for the regular Dionian troops, which are mainly heavy infantry.

Although he had been taught a lesson by the Dionian Navy before, it was impossible for Paulus, a former Roman military officer who was accustomed to traditional land battles, to free his imprisoned brain so quickly.

"Immediately send out scouts to track along the coastline, find out where this fleet landed, and then report it immediately!" Paulus issued an order urgently: "Send a messenger to inform Satnicum and Willet Lei's garrison told them that Dionia's army had entered the hinterland of the Latium region, and that their navy was going to land on the coast, so that they could be ready to attack! And...send messengers and rush there quickly Rome, inform the Senate and make them ready!"

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The combined forces of the Dionian First Army and the Third Army passed through the Latin town of Lavinium on the seaside.

Although this city is small, it plays a very important role in the hearts of the Latins, because in the legends of the Latins, they were second only to Hector in Troy, a powerful city-state in Asia Minor in the ancient Mediterranean era. Descendants of the hero Aeneas (it is said that he is a member of the Trojan royal family).

After Troy was occupied by the Greeks, Aeneas took some Trojans and fled to Italy by ship. They landed in Latium and were welcomed by the Latin king. He married his daughter Lavini to him, so Aeneas Neas built a new city on the Latin Coast and named it after his wife. This is the origin of Lavinium.Later, the son born to the two built a new city near Lake Alba, a volcanic lake north of Lavinium, named Alba Longa. From then on, this city became the center of the Latin people until the death of the royal family. The twins born to Princess Silvia lived in the wild and were fed by she-wolves, founded Rome, and eventually destroyed Alba Longa.

Although Lavinium is the origin of the Romans, it is actually a small city-state with low city walls and not many residents. When I saw the Dionian army strutting past the city, the top of the city The sentries were trembling with fear, and the people in the city were even more frightened.

However, the Dionian army did not stop marching, and they continued north along the coast.

"Two legion commanders, the first cavalry legion and the second cavalry legion have rushed back -" Before the scout cavalry could finish his words, the rumble of horse hooves sounded behind him.

"Amintas, Lizaru, our cavalry regiment is back on time!" Ryders shouted on his horse.

"How's the situation?" Amyntas asked.

"At least before we left, we didn't see any troops from Antium and Satnicum leaving the city." Ledes patted the horse's neck and said with a hint of contentment: "During this period, they actually sent a lot of troops. There are a few scouts, but none of them escaped our interception. What about your side? Have you reached your destination?"

"We've passed Lavinium, we should be there soon." Amintas wiped the sweat from his face, then shook his hand and said with a slight complaint: "We started to gather and set off before dawn, and we haven't stopped yet. We have probably walked seventy or eighty miles without stopping, and my brothers are already very tired. If it weren’t for the fact that we have been walking on a flat road, we might not have been able to complete the mission assigned by His Majesty.”

"I don't think the brothers will complain." Leders looked at the tired-looking legionnaires passing by and said with relief: "They should be very happy to be able to participate in the war that is about to begin. excited."

"Not only are the soldiers excited, we are also excited!" Lizaru interjected.

Several legion commanders looked at each other and laughed.

The Dionian army finally stopped advancing.Under the command and arrangement of several legion commanders, [-] legionnaires backed up the silver-white flat beach and leisurely formed a military formation four miles long and eight columns thick.

(End of this chapter)