Chapter 25: Cooperation (I)

"If you have children, you will understand the intensity of love for them." - A woman in medieval Florence

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"You're still working for Marcha?" Calabis asked as his eyes moved to the Tiver-like shield hanging diagonally from the other's saddle.

The other party stood up in the saddle, nodded, and then took off his mask, red hair with wavy curls, antelope-like eyes, a fair face, and an ambiguous expression, "I heard that a Roman legion was heading towards Khersonnes, so I was going to tell them the location of the Pontic baggage, but I didn't expect that it was you, and it was you who led the team." ”

Then, Helenputina, the queen of the Amazons, put her finger to her lips and made a turtledove-like sound, and behind her, the tall "Storm Ella" also came out of the darkness of the woods on horseback, carrying a string of lead balls ready to be thrown, and El Capa slid gently down from the canopy of the tree, with a bow on his back, like a bird with light feathers.

After a moment of silence, it was Helenputina who spoke, turned the horse's head, and said, "I know the exact location of Pontus's baggage, come with us." ”

When the queen walked in front, Carabis could not help admiring her mount, which was very light and delicate, not affected by the roots and branches at all, unlike these Roman horses, which only liked to walk with rough steps, often tripped, and needed to be constantly pulled by the rider to get back on track.

Finally, Calabis could see through the branches of the trees and down the hill. The baggage camp of the Pontic cavalry - sure enough, there were many mules, horses, and donkeys. A baggage cart pulling two wheels. Some of the Scythians, possibly in animal skins, who were probably scouts, wandered around, and the men and coachmen formed a large circle around the wagons and sat in piles to roast the fire.

"They'll move on tomorrow, but you see, battalion officer." Arminius pointed his hand at a certain place, and there were several Pontic cavalrymen carrying trumpets and banners. Obviously, it is a dangerous forecast, and it seems that Tak Schiller is still thoughtful in arranging, and the main force of the brigade must not be too far away.

Calabis stared for a moment, and glanced twice at Helenputina next to her, who understood and nodded.

All their men and horses were in this hill, waiting until dawn the next day, and from time to time a group of Pontus cavalry ran in, after a short supply rest. And he went to the battlefield again. Calabis looked back and saw that his horsemen were holding their horses down and lying down. Some of them took out the barley and whispered to the horses to eat, and when they were done, they brought their chews again, while the infantry coughed in a low voice, and kept fiddling with their hands the branches and leaves on their helmets.

Taking this as a signal, Elkapa scrambled up a tall canopy with his bow and arrows on his back, his little golden pigtails flicked around, and Ella clung to the queen's side, drew his sword, and while everyone was waiting for the horn of the assault, Calabis suddenly asked, "Where is my child?" ”

"Foster care in the city of Pontica Bion." The queen, who was holding her breath before the battle, was "surprised" by Calabis and blurted out, and then the two looked at each other, and the queen saw that Calabis laughed.

"It's a daughter, Calabis, and you have a daughter." Ella couldn't help but shout in a low voice.

"Say no more!" The queen pointed to the edge of the hill, where two military slaves, a man and a woman, were walking towards the hillside where they were lurking, holding the sacrificial brazier, talking and laughing, and Calabis looked at it with some stupidity, as if he had seen himself and Porti three years ago.

With a sharp trumpet, and a restless chirp, the frightened flock of birds flapped their wings and flew out of the woods, and the two slaves raised their heads and watched the birds fly away, and then the woman came back to her senses and covered her mouth in panic - she saw that suddenly out of the woods came a group of people, holding cold and shining blades, and fierce faces, covering strange branches and leaves, like evil spirits that had come out of hell.

Before the two slaves could cry out, they were stabbed to death by the soldiers in front of them, and their bodies fell sideways in the grass, and the footsteps of the soldiers behind them stepped over one by one, and when Calabis walked over, he looked down, and the sacrifices were scattered all over the ground, and the face of the slave girl was lying across it, her eyes were wide open, and her hands were still holding the arm of the slave man's corpse hanging down

The Roman raid team, lined up in a rapidly downhill fan, silently split the wooden fence, rushed into the Pontic baggage camp, they saw a person stabbed, followed behind, then raised their hands to burn the baggage cart, the camp of mules and horses instinctively shouted and fled, the few Pontus cavalry on the other side of the wooden fence, saw the scene of the Romans attacking, a specialist in the trumpet, hurriedly raised the trumpet to his mouth, puffed out his cheeks, ready to call all the people to fight, and warn the distant team.

A deadly arrow flew from the canopy of the great tree in front of the hill, and in a precise spiral motion in the air, pierced the throat of the trumpeter, and his body jerked upward, and the trumpet made a dull and strange sound, and fell under the horse.

The two riders beside him, who were just about to step into the saddle, were also killed by the arrows with the screams of death, and the banner of the whole camp fell to the ground, and could no longer be erected, and many of the hired Scythians jumped on their horses in panic, abandoned the task of guarding the baggage, and ran lifelessly along the passage between the cliffs of the hill, towards the pocket killing array.

But in the light of the fire, the Roman cavalry who had come downhill from the woods also stepped on their horses from one side, unsheathed their Celtic longswords, and shouted battle trumpets, and the horses' hooves turned up the white and yellow dirt behind the snow, and all of them were like arrows from the strings, and slashed the charioteers and escorts who were running on the road, and Calabis pulled down one of the officers who were in charge of food in Pontus, and then the two soldiers held each other down, and plunged their swords into the officer's back, "Burn as much as you like, and do not pick up the spoils, but take only a large sum of money, Governor Marcha will reward us! Calabis jumped into the cart, "Don't kill the mules and horses, cut off all their harnesses." ”

Some veterans, picking up the leathers, saddles, and blankets that were scattered all over the ground, which were supposed to be used by the Pontus cavalry, were now randomly placed on the backs of the captured mules and horses, and rode up as they could, and the whole camp was swallowed up by the fire, and the food and treasures were either burned or robbed, and in the side corners of the hills, Ella and Helenputina, who were watching the battle, watched the scene of Calabis's victorious surprise attack, and Ella shouted: "This guy has become stronger." ”

"yes, yes, it's too strong!" Ella turned her head to see that it was a few tax collectors who were rubbing their hands next to her, and she was very excited. (To be continued......)