Ch. 11: I regret Nothing!
The cold winter breeze made Marcylus shiver. His army had reached the northern borders of Rome. They were going to sack a rebel town and live there for most of the winter. The general had plans to use it as a base of operations for his campaign against the Gauls. His troops assembled outside the town and prepared to attack before the first snowfall. If they didn't have a good base it would be a hard winter indeed. The rebels inside immediately rose a white flag from inside their base.
Once they were inside the town, Marcylus talked to the leader of the town.
" Why did you surrender to me sir?" asked the humble general. The leader responded by offfering his army's services to Marcylus. The general smiled and shook his hand. An alliance was formed between the two armies. The winter began to wear away. Marcylus became worried. Phylus was long overdue. His mission should have taken a week maximum, but he was already three weeks late. He knew that the spy had gone into Gaul territory. He could only ask Mars to protect him and bring him back safely.
The army trained themselves while a forgery was built. With this technology, they could easily defeat the Gauls. The new weapons began surfacing a week after the building was constructed. The army then retrained with the new weapons. Marcylus could feel the power his army now possessed. They could defeat anything. As the winter wore away, He found himself feeling slightly older. He was now 30 years old. Once the first signs of spring came and went, Marcylus' army mobilized. They quickly marched north until the army reached a forest. Marcylus cautiously sent two men to scout the forest. A few minutes later both men came running back to the army with fear on their faces.
" My lord the Gauls are attack-" cried one of them just before an arrow pierced his heart. Marcylus drew his sword and sounded a charge. The army formed up before heading into the forest. The Trees loomed overhead as they charged. Marcylus could hear the enemy army screaming a battle cry. A few moments later, he spotted their skirmishers. His cavalry followed him to the right. The rest of his men went straight at the spearmen.
"For the Brutii!" called Rexell. His men crashed into the enemy forces. Swords were quickly imbedded into the stomachs of the ill prepared Gauls. They began a retreat. The Romans continued to advance. Rexell halted them. The archers then moved forward and began firing at the Gauls, who were only one hundred metres away. Marcylus halted his cavalry before commanding his Principes and Triarii to advance under the archers' base of fire. The men moved forward while Gauls started falling in ranks. They organized themselves before rushing into the well prepared Roman lines. The snow became red as swords and shields were used to kill hundreds of men.
The Romans had the advantage. Marcylus circled around the battle with his cavalry. A few moments later, he charged into the unprotected backs of the Gauls. Spears splintered, arrows flew and killed single men, Swords were awash with blood. Marcylus dismounted and cut into the Gauls like a knife through water. His sword waved through the air, inspiring the men to fight harder. Gauls began falling in twos and threes as some tried to fight the Roman general. He easily cut a bloody swath throught their ranks. horses neighed and Marcylus glanced down at the snow. It was completely red. A few minutes later the Gauls began a retreat. Marcylus ordered his cavalry to hunt down as many as possible. The men cheered and raced to mop up the enemies.
" My lord, we have a large number of wounded. I suggest sending them back to Agiacaa"
" Alright i'll leave that to you. Get the wounded back to the town, I will set up a temporary base here."
Brutii had won a great victory. But it was bittersweet. An hour later while Marcylus was walking through the woods, looking for firewood, he found Phylus. He had been executed and hung. The general knelt down and wept for his friend. He prayed to the gods to bring his soul peace. He then vowed to kill every last Gaul he could.
" Marcylus! the camp is ready my lord." called Rexell. The man came behind Marcylus, seeing Phylus. He knelt down and prayed as well. The pair then headed back to the camp for the night. During that night Marcylus tossed and turned, not getting one minute of rest. He came down with a severe sickness that none of the physicians knew about. They ordered the General to stay in bed for at least another two days. Marcylus knew the Gauls may launch a small assault on the camp in that time.