ancient greece mediterranean ruler

Chapter 978 The Madness of the Carthage Fleet
"After some time, the wind will get stronger." The old helmsman also expressed his judgment.

The old captain nodded: "Fortunately there is such a southeast wind, otherwise I would never dare to do such a risky thing today."

He sighed softly, and then said to the young sailor: "Lower the sail."

Just when the sailor lowered the sail, the old helmsman had already swung the rudder and turned the bow of the ship that was originally facing east to the northeast.

The sail fell, feeling the wind, and began to flap.

The old captain held the sail control rope in his hands, smiled, and said confidently: "Everyone, please pay attention, the ship is sailing north, and the Dionian warship will chase it, but don't worry, we will go home safely. of."

Everyone responded solemnly.

This merchant ship is 13 meters long and 4.5 meters wide. In addition to the captain and helmsman, there are only ten sailors, a total of 12 people.It is exactly the opposite of a warship. It is light in front and heavy in back. The bow is narrow and upturned, and the stern is wider. The sails and rudder are at the stern. Ten sailors are separated on both sides of the hull. The center of the hull is tightly covered with linen. , Highly raised goods.

The old captain pulled and released, and the sail quickly rotated to a suitable position. The sail quickly inflated, and the speed of the entire ship suddenly accelerated.

The merchant ships behind also followed the ship and accelerated to the northeast.

.............................................

"Your Majesty Commander, the Carthaginian fleet is fleeing north, and Stefankas is leading the fleet to catch up."

When Sekerian heard the news, he turned to look at the waves and frowned slightly: "Escape to the north... It seems that the Carthaginians want to take advantage of the south wind."

"Do we need to catch up?" the captain asked.

Sekerian made the decision without hesitation: "To transport food to Carthage's 10-strong army, only 300 merchant ships are not enough... Since Carthage wants to trick us into leaving here, no! We will stay here. , we will never let their next fleet enter Lilibi Port easily! However, we cannot be careless and let the clippers strengthen their connection with Stehuacas. I want to know the movements of the 1st Squadron at any time!"

"Yes!"

Seclian's order allowed 200 warships to cruise in the sea near Lilibi, while 80 warships led by Stephachus chased the Carthaginian fleet and were almost approaching Mortea.

Mortea was once a strategic military town of Carthage in Sicily. Dionysius led an army of 10 people and went through great pains to destroy it. The Carthaginians did not rebuild it, but built it nearby. A new military town, Lilibi, was built. Therefore, more than 20 years later, the city of Motia was still the same as when it was destroyed. It had not been cleaned up, including the road leading from the coast that was mobilized and built by Dionysius. The causeway of Mortia. Due to the existence of this causeway, the shallow sea between Mortia and the coast turned into a pocket-like bay. Stefankas concluded that the Carthaginian fleet did not dare to enter, otherwise it would You can catch the turtle in the urn.

Stefankas correctly judged the course of the Carthaginian fleet. Since he led the fleet to make preparations in advance, he gained a little advantage and got closer to the Carthaginian fleet, especially when the fast warships were rammed and sunk. They captured several merchant ships that were lagging behind, causing some chaos in the Carthage fleet, and even colliding with each other and capsizing.

This is because the current location of the Carthaginian fleet is exactly on the west side of the island of Motia, and on the west side of the island of Motia is another small island, Aegusa. The two islands are only separated by Less than ten miles away, it was relatively narrow. The merchant ships at the back felt the danger and rushed to speed up, immediately making the entire Carthaginian fleet become crowded.

But the situation soon improved, because after passing this section of the sea, another small island, Pharbantia, appeared diagonally ahead. The Carthage fleet immediately divided into two teams, and one team continued Moving forward, one group turned west, while the Carthaginian crew members who fell into the water leisurely swam to the islands nearby.

After learning the enemy's movements from the lookout, Stefankas frowned. He roughly knew what the Carthaginians wanted to do: there were many small islands in the sea ahead, and some were exposed from the sea. , a reef that cannot be called an island. During this period, Sekerian led the fleet to cruise the western waters of Sicily. On the one hand, it was to cut off Carthage's maritime transportation, and on the other hand, it was to familiarize the newly built fleet with the sea conditions here.All crew members regard the sea area in front of them as a dangerous zone, especially at high tide. Some reefs are submerged by the rising sea water. Ships unfamiliar with the sea conditions can easily hit them, causing damage or even sinking. The new Sicilian fleet has experienced Such a lesson, so Sekerian specially asked people to draw a map of this sea area separately, so that every captain would keep in mind.But that being the case, they are certainly not as familiar as these Carthaginians who have been sailing here all year round. These cunning Carthaginians must want to use this sea area to get rid of their pursuit and create some trouble for them.

Stephakas thought for a while and then conveyed the order to slow down all the warships and be more vigilant. At the same time, he also decided not to disperse the fleet for the time being, but to pursue the fleet heading straight north first, which must be stopped. Close to the coast and prevent it from entering the port of Elyx not far ahead.

Unexpectedly, the Carthaginian fleet that turned westward, after seeing that the Dionian warship did not follow, immediately circled Agusa Island and turned south, while the fleet heading north split into two again. Branch, separated by an island and reef, turned westward one after another...

Under such circumstances, Stefankas had to order the warships to disperse and shuttle between the islands to intercept and attack enemy ships, because he could not allow these Carthaginian fleets to suffer almost no heavy losses. Sneaked back to the south. Although there must be a main fleet in the south, it would be shameful for anyone to see that they had been chasing for a long time and had not achieved any results. What's more, Sekerian specifically emphasized "Don't let go." A Carthaginian merchant ship.”

Thus, a large-scale hide-and-seek game on the sea began.

..........................................

At this time, in the sea near Lilibi, the cruising Dionian main fleet received news from the clippers sent to the southwest: Another Carthage fleet smaller than the Sicilian fleet was heading towards Lilibi. Coming from the direction of Libi.

"Commander, your judgment is correct, the Carthage merchant ship is here again!" the flagship captain praised.

Sekerian seemed a little dissatisfied: "The number is a little small. Inform the fleet to expand to the southwest. Before the Carthaginians discover it, quickly meet them and eat them as soon as possible! Maybe there will be another one soon." A wave of merchant ships is arriving.”

Just when the Dionia warships received the order and began to line up, the Clipper's lookout opened his eyes in surprise. He suddenly saw that the Carthage fleet in front began to change from a column to a horizontal formation. , and adjusted the direction of the sail, the speed of the merchant ship suddenly accelerated: Are the Carthaginians crazy? !You should be able to see our warship from this distance. Why don't you run away and rush forward instead? !Do you still want to use merchant ships to fight us? ! "

The lookout didn't know that in the center of the Kataiji fleet on the opposite side, Captain Barikos was manipulating the sails while shouting loudly to the nearby merchant ships: "The time has come to test your courage! If you feel scared, this It's time to leave!"

"I have been sailing for decades, and I have never seen any kind of wind and waves. I even followed Morbar, crossed the Pillars of Hercules, visited distant coasts, and saw the chariot of the gods (today's Mount Cameroon)... …Isn’t it just death? There is nothing to be afraid of!”

"That's right! We old guys have lived to this day just for this moment! When we die, we can reunite with our former comrades in Baal Harmon's temple!"

"Don't just talk about us. Compared with us, you are still young. You haven't enjoyed enough life yet, and you haven't seen enough wars. When Dionia's warships rush towards you at close range, you will be Don’t be so scared that you don’t know how to handle the sail.”

Barikos laughed loudly: "Don't worry, my ship will rush to the front, avoid the collision of all Dionian warships, and enter Lilibi safely. I want the Dionians to know that before they Those who were defeated were not the real Carthaginians, the real Carthaginians were the heroes of the sea and they could not be defeated!”

"That's right, Barricos, show the ignorant Dionians what real sailing is!" The crew on the ship waved their arms and responded frantically.

Barikos smiled: "Brothers, get ready, the adventure is about to begin!"

He controlled the sail, and this small merchant ship, which was less than 10 meters long and only three meters wide, with a total of 8 crew members, took advantage of the wind and rushed towards the Dionian warship on the opposite side like an arrow shot out. past.

Under his leadership, 60 merchant ships that were almost the same as him were like sheep with their heads smashed, rushing into the arms of hungry wolves.

The captains of the Dionysian warships were very surprised to see the performance of this Carthaginian fleet, but they would never allow themselves to be merciful because of their opponents' stupidity. Under their orders, Dionysians Ya's warships all folded their sails, relying on nearly 200 oarsmen to row hard together. The warship with a huge body also sprinted forward at an astonishing high speed, and the bow of the flashing black light was about to meet them. The incoming waves cut through each other, and water splashed onto the deck.

The Carthaginian fleet was like a row of waves driven by the southwest wind rushing towards the Dionian fleet, and the Dionian fleet charged almost one-on-one with a double horizontal formation and the frontline warships. It's like an Olympic boxing match, exciting.

But when the two sides approached, the Carthaginian merchant ship and the Diorian warship were like a baby facing a giant. There was a huge difference in size. A slight collision would break all the bones.

　Thanks to book friend Brother Dao for the tip!Your support is my motivation to write! !

　　
　
(End of this chapter)