67 - Defense Part Three
Three days later, Aulis and Dew arrive at Centurion. They could have arrived a day earlier, but the drivers did not want to force their tired horses. Upon entering the naval base, the two men don’t know where to look. More than once they are convinced that they could make Arana a great place if they could rebuild it in the style of the old empire.
A short while later Aulis and Dew finally make their appearance in front of the commander of Centurion. Because Captain Raidon is at the front with part of the New Legion, Captain Brandon is currently the commander of Centurion.
"Gentlemen, what can I do for you?" he asks as the three of them sit around a table.
"We’re actually here for two reasons, Captain," Aulis begins, "as mayor of Arana, I am charged with making new houses for the residents. People still live in the old barracks, and it's time for everyone to have their own place. After consultation with some of my residents, we have come to the conclusion that it is best to rebuild Arana from the ground up. We would like to do this in the style of the old empire. That’s why we hope that you have the building plans to build a city in the old style in your library."
"Hmm yes, I think that we might have those. There is so much information in the library though, that it will take a while for my people to find those plans."
"That doesn't matter. As far as I've heard, the beginning is always the same. It starts with a legionary fort, right? In that case, squad leader Floris can certainly help us with setting up such a fort."
"Hmm, you could be right about that. I do remember something like that. But you were talking about two reasons?"
"That's right. The second reason has to do with the road that runs from here through the mountains. We traveled here with the first convoy from Arana. Along the way we have come up with a plan to not only maintain the road, but also to facilitate travel. We had the idea to set up inns in three places, where travelers can spend the night, and messengers can change horses. To do this, however, we need your permission, as we are really only working around Arana."
"Hmm, you have big plans to improve the island, don't you? Despite your young age, you come up with some good plans. I may have a solution for you. This island used to have its own governor. I myself think that this island, thanks to the mountains, is far too inconvenient to be controlled by one person. That's why I was thinking about splitting the area in two, with the mountains as a separation. Now, however, I think we should do that at a later time. If I appoint you to make those improvements, could you also come up with some plans on this side of the mountains? We ourselves don’t have the time for it, thanks to the war with Chakra."
"What do you have in mind, Captain?"
"To be honest, I don't have any plans as of yet. Captain Raidon is the one who devised the plan to rebuild the entire island to support the New Legion, but he was called away before he could make any concrete plans. That means that as far as I'm concerned, you have a free hand to rebuild this island."
"That's quite a job, captain. We are already struggling in Arana to make the village independent. Let alone the rest of the island."
"Well, as we have already agreed, the New Legion can help to cover the costs. We can also offer some manpower. I assume that you need a lot of muscle for all the projects you come up with. Just make sure you let me know about all current affairs."
"Thank you for your support, Captain. I think that together with Dew here and squad leader Floris of the garrison in Arana I will think about what we can do for the island. For now though, we will return to Arana as soon as we have the build plans. When we have a concrete plan, I will let you know.”
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When Morris rides through the gate of the camp at the head of the column, Captain Harris is already waiting for him. Harris and his ten cavalrymen guarded the camp, while the others were on their way to the new port. While the cavalrymen go to take care of their horses, and the legionaries go to their tents to take care of their armor and recover from the long morning march, Morris addresses the other captain.
"Good afternoon Harris, are there any new developments?"
"No, it's been pretty quiet for the last twenty-four hours."
"Strange, after all this time being under attack with short intervals, and now it suddenly remains quiet? Maybe they're preparing a bigger attack. Your men's horses are still fresh, so if you don’t mind inform the fort to prepare? Then they can send messengers to the other forts."
Even before Harris has turned around to send someone on his way, a loud alarm sounds from the nearby fort. Sheepishly, he looks at Morris: "I think they received the message."
As soon as the alarm sounds, it is suddenly a hustle and bustle in the camp again. Soldiers who have just taken off their armor have to put them back on immediately. Some had even gone to the canteen to see if there was anything to eat. Others had taken off their dirty uniforms to wash them, but they too now have to put their wet uniforms back on quickly. Despite this chaos, it doesn't take long for all ninety-three soldiers to be ready for action.
Morris stands at the eastern gate, from where he has a good view of the border fort. From the flags that the Chakras carry, he can see that this is an attack by two regiments. That is a lot bigger than they have done lately. Suddenly he sees that a group of about two hundred warriors breaks away from the rest and moves towards the camp.
"Pay attention men, there are a few coming here!" He shouts at the soldiers near him.
Moments later, the warriors try to cross the ditch. They don't find jumping in too difficult, but most of them seem to have a hard time climbing out again. One after the other falls silent with a crossbow bolt in his body.
After several minutes, the ill-considered attack is stopped and the Chakras withdraw until they are out of reach of the crossbows. Nearly forty bodies are left in the ditch.
Morris soon sees that a bunch of men are sent back to the main force. They probably saw that despite the strong defenses, there are only a few soldiers in the camp.
Not much later, his prediction is proven true. Almost the entire attack on the fort is stopped and the two regiments of Chakran warriors rush to the camp of the New Legion.
Because the Chakras intended to take the fort, the main force actually has the necessary siege weapons with them. Fortunately, these are not the heavy weapons found in the legion's books, such as catapults, trebuchets, and siege towers. The Chakras mainly carry ladders with them, and a single battering ram.
"Men pay attention, they can only use half of those ladders if they want to get over the ditch, so get most of the soldiers away from the west and north walls. That ram can still be a problem, so let Ice be ready with two teams as a flying brigade. Send Sergeant Mateo this way to take command of the walls, and send Harris and his cavalrymen to the stables." Two soldiers both rush one way along the walls to carry out the orders.
While Morris and Harris prepare their cavalrymen, there is plenty of fighting at the walls. Thanks to their heavy armor, the soldiers of the New Legion are perfectly equipped to defend a position. As soon as the Chakran warriors get to the top of the ladder, they find the soldiers there with their two-handed weapons. These are almost impossible to fend off while the warriors are on the ladders, and also the ladders are occasionally damaged if a war axe or war hammer hits a rung. In addition, they are also constantly bombarded by the soldiers with their crossbows who are not under attack.
At the east gate, things are not looking so well. Because there is no ditch here, the Chakras have been able to bring their battering ram into position. The first time they wave the ram, nothing happens. At the second time, however, the gate doors begin to creak dangerously.
"That won’t last long men!" Sergeant Ice calls out to his two squads.
"Squad one, form two rows of contiguous shields, squad two, grab something to get up on so you don’t shoot the others in the back. That cart there would do nicely, and otherwise just grab some crates, then get up there with your crossbows. As soon as that gate breaks, I want to see a barrage of arrows."
The soldiers quickly do as they have been told. The first squad divides in two, with the front five putting their shields on the ground and leaning low against them. The other five soldiers are ready to lift their shields and place them diagonally on top of the other shields. This creates a wall of shields that is higher than most men. Between the shields, the soldiers of both rows can stick their swords.
The other squad, meanwhile, is busy setting up a barrier behind the first squad. Their squad leader has taken sergeant Ice's command a bit more broadly, and ensures that the barrier can also serve as a fall back point, should the first team be overrun.