บท 1: The Legion
Germania
In the fields of Germania, two armies were about to clash. Red armored soldiers could be seen holding large square shields as they marched to form several lines of square formations. These soldiers are the famous legions of Rome which has been expanding their territories for the past century aggressively. Their many wars have brought down many ancient kingdoms and nations that have brought great shock to the known world that barely any person never heard of them. On the opposite side of their army are the coalition of barbarians from the different tribes of Germania united to halt the expansion of Rome.
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Tiberius POV
"A great day for a battle isn't it you're highness?" Shouted a man.
I looked towards the man who was smiling excitedly, my right-hand and childhood friend Darius Noxus, he's a twenty-one year old, has short black hair and is the bastard son of the Noxus family, a powerful patrician nobleman in Rome. Darius was sent to me at a young age to become a member of my praetorian guard.
Looking towards the legions I recall why we were here and why there is a battle. Rome's northern borders have been harassed by Germania's barbarians for the last a couple of years. The barbarians have always been raiding the outskirts villages and towns for a long time yet lately it became more frequent. The Emperor finally had enough and ordered me, his stepson Tiberius Claudius to pacify and bring Roman rule to Germania.
"Yes, it is" I responded while looking at Darius. "We've finally cornered the barbarians, now they don't have a choice other than to fight us in the open field where our heavy infantry has a greater advantage." I smiled at him. "Very soon our victory will be upon us."
Darius grinned and replied. "And our revenge right?"
"Yes, the soul of our fallen will be at peace in the underworld." I bowed my head as I recall what happened. "They've been harassing us since the beginning of the campaign. We've lost many good legionnaires from their constant harassment, but in the end, the mighty legions of Rome will triumph like always."
Looking towards legions, I noticed they've completed their preparations. The legions formed several neat lines of square formations with even spaces in between as to allow the reserves to quickly support any gaps in the formation. The soldiers seem to be split into their respective cohorts on the battlefield. They quietly stand holding their large shields and javelins as they waited for the sound of trumpets that would signal the beginning of the battle.
On the other side of the open field, I can see the coalition of barbarians gathering into line formations. Contrary to the disciplined and neat line of the legions, I can see how undisciplined the barbarians were, their lines are disordered with no sense of unity at all. I watched as they shouted and screamed vulgar words towards their direction trying to taunt them.
"Uncivilized mongrels"
Observing the barbarians I noticed how ill-equipped they were for battle, wearing only animal skins or leather clothes, I can even see some of the barbarians were topless or naked showing their tattoos proudly like it would protect them from our steels. Unlike the legions they were poorly equipped yet even so those barbarians are still a threat, they were taller, bigger and stronger than any Romans. "But what we Romans lack we compensate with discipline and unity in the battlefield."
Looking at the field I nod as I compare the two armies, with this battle the campaign that lasted for eight months will about to reach its conclusion.
"I can finally prove to the emperor that I am worthy to be his son and heir to the throne." I quietly whisper to myself as I think about the emperor's reaction when I bring the news of victory.
I signaled my flag bearer to begin the march.
Woooooo!
As soon as my signal was received I heard the sound of blowing trumpets signaling the start of a battle. I watched as thirty thousand legionnaires marched towards the forty thousand barbarians,
Comparing the two armies sizes I smiled in confidence. "Being outnumbered in this battle will be costly but I know we will win."
I smiled as I predict what will happen. The barbarians have short patience and will soon recklessly charge towards the shield wall after they failed to harass the front with their archers. They have fewer range weapons than the legions and their cavalries numbering only around five thousand. Like Gaul was before it was conquered, the forest of Germania made horses difficult to rear in large numbers. The barbarian coalition are mostly infantry. They could have been a bigger threat to Rome if they were properly equipped but too bad that they were too uncivilized and divided to put in use the resources of Germania properly.
Unlike Germania the Roman Empire has a proper standing army. The legions were trained by veteran instructors and were equipped by the vast resources of Rome. While the barbarians lived in tribes divided, fighting one another when resources are scarce because of the lack of trust to trade with each other. They only unify to form a coalition when there is a bigger threat like they do when they raid the borders of Rome.
They were strong together when they were united but their unity is fragile. Their armies being undisciplined would rout once their casualties reach a certain number, they would scatter as every man runs for himself. Unlike the barbarians the legionnaires were trained to strictly follow the commands of their ranking officers making routing rare unless certain defeat.
Observing the coalition I noticed how they don't have proper military ranks as Rome does, their army was divided by their respective chieftains and shamans.
I shook my head at their stupidity. "Fools they are, their commands won't be relayed properly with that kind of line up."
The military system of Rome is more advanced compared to their neighboring countries. Its military system is why Rome dominates the Mediterranean. Because of the military system that Rome invented, the Roman Empire became what it is today. With the ever-growing empire and its proven system, they will soon grow larger as the empire expands. The borders of the empire will grow longer as they continue to expand in all directions as they conquer the neighboring nations.
"This is why Rome became an empire in only short amount of time." I smiled confidently.
I dreamed about the future of Rome when my thoughts were interrupted by loud screaming. Looking towards the front I see the barbarians beginning to harass the legions with their archers as I had predicted. Watching the legionnaires get into testudo formations I see the arrows fly into the air and falls down towards their direction.
CLANG!
I heard the sound of arrows deflecting on the shields.
"Argh, my arm!" A legionnaire screamed.
Even though the shields of the legionnaires were bigger than any other armies in the world, some of the arrows still managed to get into the gaps. The rain of arrows dealt injuries to the legions but failed to do any real damage to the army. After a while I see the barbarians losing their patience seeing that their attack was ineffective and broke what little formation they had as they charged towards shield wall.
I sigh as I watched their reckless charge. "This will be a long day."
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