Our scouts on horseback had returned to the column, from their pursuit of the four enemy horsemen. Two had been killed by arrows and the remaining nineteen scouts were divided into small groups. The group of five was sent ahead while smaller groups of two went out in different directions. Klysestes made it clear that if they found the enemy, they were to make for the column immediately and report.

Our two hundred slingers, archers, and javelin throwers marched a good distance ahead of the column to serve as a scouting vanguard. The column marched down the dirt road leading towards the mountains east of Demepolis. We had yet a good march to reach the Cythadia Mountains, which held the pass to Lektrios.

Helion, Estrianes, and I were now towards the front of the line or at least closer to the front than the middle. I noticed the slave in front of me was struggling to carry his masters bronze shield, spear, and food. I wanted to help but instead saw the foolish sentiment from my mind. Helion was the first to speak up, “You know, in all famous stories of war,” he panted slightly, “no one ever speaks of the march.”

“Or the fucking summer heat,” I added, wiping sweat from my brow. My helmet still rested on the crown of my head, and slight breeze felt like a blessing.

“You both complain like children,” chimed Estrianes. “We’ll likely stop for rest soon.”

“Who among us is complaining?” asked Helion. “Are we not permitted to make observations?” He and I snickered.

“I observe women marching beside me.” All three of us had to laugh at that. Such is the talk of young men.

“Well, which are we, women or children?”

Estrianes smiled, “Whichever offends you more.”

A murmur passed through the line, though no one prepared for battle. Many crested helmets ahead of me were looking off to the side of the column. We could not see by standing on our toes so we had to wait until we were closer. Excitement ran through me, though dread was not far behind. I swallowed hard as we approached.

For a moment, I almost did not recognize the bodies. Three of our horsemen lay dead in the grass, arrows sticking out of their chests and their horses missing. The three of us kept our calm, even when we word made its way back that two more were found in the same state on the other side. Five dead men were not enough to give us pause, yet we got a sense of what we were likely to find the closer we marched to our destination.

“Our enemies fight like cowards,” said Helion. “Why don’t they face us in the field, with honor?”

I nudged him, “Because they fear they’d lose.” An older man looked back at us and rolled his eyes. “Once we arrive at the beach and augment the Lektrian phalanx, the army will be too big for them to ignore and they will have to face us directly.”

The order to halt trickled back through the line followed by sighs of relief. The men spread out a little and set their shields and helmets down. Some sat while others stretched. I took a long pull on my water skin and dumped some of it on the back of my neck. The water running down my back, under my linothorax, felt good. The slave in front of me set his master’s belongings on the ground and lay next to them panting. His master dropped a water skin next to him and ordered him to drink but not too much.

I saw past a number of men to see my father and the other nobles stepping from the line and forming a circle. “Come, let’s stretch our legs,” I motioned my companions to follow me.

“To eavesdrop on father?” asked Estrianes plainly.

“When was it ruled a crime for sons to be near their father?” I replied with a wink. The three of us walked from the line, dropped the shields previously slung over our backs, and sat within earshot of the nobles, careful not to look their direction. Father and Ankarithesos looked at us and returned to the conversation. Thinking back, the nobles weren’t trying to be sneaky. I think there’s just something exciting about eavesdropping when you’re young.

“This doesn’t sit well with me. They seek to blind us by killing our scouts,” said Ankarithesos. “One can only hope the rest still live.”

“If they don’t come back, it matters not if they live,” replied father.

A noble with a finely groomed red hair, whose name I could not recall, scratched his beard, “What if all the skirmishers are sent further ahead of the line to scout? Surely the enemy’s scouts won’t have the strength to contend with two hundred missile throwers.”

Klysestes rubbed his hands over his face, “You propose we leave our column undefended? Is that it?”

The redheaded noble looked offended. “You call one thousand hoplites undefended?”

“If the enemy can simply ride up, fill part of our line with arrows and ride away without reprisal, yes.” The other nobles nearby watched the men debate. “I propose we send eighty ahead of the line and keep the rest to guard our flanks.”

“There is wisdom in this,” father said reluctantly.

“Very well,” announced Ankarithesos as he looked at the uncertain nobles. “Send them out now. We resume the march after a moment’s rest.”

****

After a brief rest, we continued the march. Overhearing the plan, we stayed at the edge of the column so we could spring into action if needed. We watched the skirmisher vanguard move ahead quickly. My eyes scanned for our scouts returning as we walked along. The mountains on the horizon were much taller now. I figured we had only another hour before reaching them. At that rate, we would be in the mountains and make camp just before the sunset. Helion seemed quieter. “Deep in thought?” I asked.

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“I was just thinking about the pile of hoplites back in Leoniki,” he replied after a moment. “What if that was an omen?”

“What if it wasn’t?” answered Estrianes. “The priests who read the goat livers before we left told us the gods favored our cause.”

“See those thoughts from your head,” I told Helion. “Father always said, ‘those who seek to save their own lives in battle find only death. Those who accept their own death, return home victorious.’”

“I don’t expect any of you cunts to return,” I looked to find Kyron and his friends closer to my group as I realized. “What makes you think you can march up front with the nobility?”

That made my blood boil. I could feel my face redden with anger. “Nobility like my father? I think we stand in the right place, you arrogant fuck.”

“Is he a noble? I hadn’t realized,” Kyron replied snidely. The other noble sons laughed with him. “We all but own your family.”

“The fuck did you say?!” I roared. Estrianes moved to hold me back and Helion wrenched my spear from my hand. “Kyron! I all but own your sister!” I said, making an obscene gesture.

Now Kyron’s face flushed with anger and his friends restrained him. A particularly tall hoplite, with an air of nobility, walked between our two groups. “You!” he pointed to Kyron’s friends, “Move your friend further up the line.” He turned to us and pointed, “You shut the fuck up and march. Save it for the real enemy.”

I did the best to calm and snatched my spear back. We walked in silence for a while after. Helion made a joke that fell on deaf ears. There was something Kyron had said that made no sense to me. “What meaning did Kyron have when he claimed to own our family?” I finally asked my brother.

It was not clear if Estrianes was being stoic or ignoring me. He swallowed hard looked down. “Put that shit from your mind. Kyron is a liar.”

I shoved my brother, “You want to tell me or will I have to beat it from you?”

After a long pause, Estrianes answered, “Estriadites told me that Klysestes purchased father’s debt and now holds it over him when it’s convenient.”

“He’s my brother too, why did he not tell me?!” I asked angrily.

Estrianes raised an eyebrow, “Likely because of your temper.”

“What meaning is that supposed to have?!” Helion and Estrianes stared at me.

“Do you even realize your voice is raised?” replied Estrianes. That gave me pause.

We marched on quietly, listening to the conversations around us. The men in front of us were talking about crows that they saw. I was still fuming about what Kyron had said. When they wouldn’t stop talking about crows, I finally looked up. “Who gives a fu-” A large number of crows were circling in the sky. We walked closer and I could see the men in front of me gawking at something.

Just off of our path was a dead man lying crumpled in the grass with a javelin in his lower back. He wore a bright blue shirt and trousers. That was the first time I had seen trousers. Everyone I had ever known wore some variant of the almost knee-length tunics I had worn.

The corpse had a wispy black beard to match his long black hair. His short bow lay beside him and a quiver was strapped to his hip. His clothes seemed somewhat ratty and no shield was present. The closer I looked, the more it seemed the corpse was similar in age to Estriadites.

Everyone around me pressed and pushed in with excited faces as word came back to them about the exotic corpse. I looked around to see which direction he may have come from. To the south rose distant plumes of smoke, likely another village that was sacked. I looked back to the corpse before moving on and notice the eyes were different. His were thinner, maybe? There was a slant to them that I’d never seen before.

I had not long to think before we were displaced by more hoplites with curious faces. “He seems like a farmer or a herdsman,” I said, deep in thought as we walked. “Did you see the eyes?”

“Estriadites told me tales of horse nomads from the plains beyond the Narcius Sea to the north,” replied Estrianes. “He said they are fond of bows and ride chariots or single horses in great number. I remember this because he spoke of the shape of their eyes.”

I had long been jealous of my older brother. At five years my senior, he got to experience what father was able to provide when he yet held coin, not yet bled dry by debts. That meant he had been tutored by both a scholar and a warrior as is what is expected of the sons of nobility. By the time Estrianes and I were of an age to be tutored, father could no longer afford it. Estriadites did his best to teach us. It would be a lie to say I didn’t learn, but he wasn’t a good teacher. Perhaps I wasn’t a good student. Learning always came easier to Estrianes.

“Do you think the Elahkarians conquered his tribe?” I asked. Crows hung heavier in the air as we continued closer towards the mountains.

Estrianes walked in silence, contemplating the question. Finally, Helion nudged him. “I don’t know. I think-” he replied. “I think they are probably mercenaries. I wouldn’t imagine it takes too much to bribe barbarians, at least compared to civilized folk. They’re also said to be horse nomads, meaning they’re practically a village on horseback. Try catching them. Try forcing them to fight.”

The men in front of us start moving at a jog. I looked up and a large flock of crows is almost above us. The order comes back through the line to halt. Walking out of the line, not far ahead of us were the nobles, themselves leaving the front of the line and walking towards bodies that lay before us. Estrianes and Helion follow me as I jog to see what had happened. Kyron and his friends also emerged from the line.

Some of our slingers and javelin throwers were stooped over bodies that they were looting. I saw them tug gold rings off dead hands. Others picked stripped bows and armor from the fallen. I ran ahead to get a better look, my companions lagged behind me. There had to be around fifty men lying motionless in the grass, more than half were our skirmishers, with some dead horses. A few had wounds being tended to, but one cried out in pain, holding his bloody stomach.

Two of our slingers ran up to the group of nobles and bowed. “We were scouting and were attacked by twenty horsemen,” said their leader. “I think they thought we were a group of farmers. We ran so they would follow us and then attacked when they were close.”

“Did any escape?” asked Klysestes.

“Three, one had a javelin in his back, so it’s unlikely he made it far.”

“You did well,” stated Ankarithesos. “You and your men have first claim to what can be found among their dead.” The two slingers bowed and then walked back to their men.

My father nodded, “It’s good the men march past the bodies. This will let them know our enemy can be beaten.”

“Agreed,” said Klysestes. He looked up to the mountains, “We’ve finally reached the safety of the mountains.”

Father looked over at me, “Spread word. Tell the men to drink water.” He held his hand sideways up to the sun and then lowered it a little. “We have less than two hours before sunset. We should reach a point where we can make camp.”

A surge of importance flew through my head. My father entrusted me with a task, and I set my mind to purpose. With a bow, I turned and promptly tripped over a body who groaned loudly. The counterweight of my spear jammed into the ground, and I managed only to fall to my knees. I got up quickly and aimed my spear at the man, my face turning a hot red.