Gallia 100 C.D

“AYUUUUUUUUUU”, the shout of a woman bearing through childbirth came through the modestly assembled brick hut in the centre of the village. The call was echoed for one person, her husband. “I’m right here, my love you, I’ll always be here you try taking long breaths”, out of options, Ayu, the chief of the Veraxes, suggested what can only be considered one of the dumbest things a person can say to a laboring wife.

“I know that you little shit…OH, if I wasn’t in labor, I would have strangled that…*huff* puny neck of yours right here RIGHT NOW” Maya was by no means polite, even in the most remote sense of the word. They had finally conceived a child after four winters, and the process of giving birth was just as arduous.

As the husband and wife bantered, a man covered in fur pelts walked towards Ayu. He was by all means large in stature with eyes that exuded the intent to kill. There was a darkness in them that is rarely found in any man. To Ayu, this was his brother Jeeva and also his most trusted commander.

“Still in the process, huh…You really did a job on her, didn’t you? She must be pissed”, Jeeva teased his brother, having gone through the process of childbirth only a year prior. “You heard her didn’t you…what can I say? She gets it from her mother. I sincerely hope our child isn’t that way…I love many things about her, but restraint isn’t something she was blessed with.”

Jeeva patted his brother on the back, reassuring him of a brighter future to come. “My informants have brought news that the lord of Junia has departed the city with a legion 14,000 strong. From the looks of it, he might be aiming to wipe us off this region entirely. It is up to you, chief…fight or flight.” An air of tension had now descended this auspicious occasion, one which was clearly unwelcome and alarming.

Ayu entered into a deep rumination on hearing the plight of his people. As he stood there thinking of all the possible scenarios looking for the best outcome, the only thing that came to mind was fleeing the battle. ‘Even if we decide to run, we cannot possibly hope to get everyone ready to migrate in time. Some of us will pay the price of this journey in blood.’ Ayu ironed his will and looked Jeeva in the eyes, signalling he had reached consensus.

“We need to migrate deeper into the Hydes mountains if we hope to escape this calamity. If they are a 14,000 legion, it will take them at most a day to reach us, which gives us little time to have our people ready to depart. How many men can we muster in such a short time?”

At Ayu’s question, a tinge of hesitation appeared on Jeeva’s face. Nonetheless, he answered his brother, “4000 men at max and if I push it, then maybe another thousand”. “That will not do; we need at least 6000 to just protect the 20,000 people as they migrate”, Ayu responded, disappointed in his lack of manpower.

As they were speaking, the cries from inside the hut started to settle down, and Ayu was jolted awake from his rumination by the cries of a baby. He hurriedly entered the hut to see his wife covered in sweat and spit from all her pain and shouting. Maya was a petite woman with respect to the massive clansmen of the Veraxes; compared to people of the city-states like Junia, she would be considered average.

Her blue eyes looked at her husband and then at her son; a tenderness could be observed in her disposition as she looked at the fragile little existence. The little one was pale and tiny, just as his mother was. Ayu moved closer to his wife and bent down before her bed to look at both his wife and child. He kissed her forehead and then took the child from her arms as she began to rest her eyes. “My son…” Ayu just stared at the young baby losing himself in his serene eyes, suddenly it dawned on him, ‘THE EYES’; the boy had heterochromia.

As Ayu looked into them, one blue the other a strange hue of red, he found himself standing in a battlefield dyed in the carnage and blood of men. Just as he looked in front of him, he saw a man sitting upon what could only be defined as a gargantuan mound of dead bodies oozing blood that wet his feet. He could only see the man’s back, but he could tell it was an existence unfathomable to him or anyone he knew. Ayu could feel an unholy amount of pressure descending on him as he fell to his knees on the battlefield. As he raised his head, he saw the man look at him from atop his deathly throne. Their eyes met, and yet Ayu could only make out the red glint in his eyes before he was transported again.

This time when Ayu opened his eyes, he was standing on water, everywhere his eyes peered, he was greeted by only water calm and serene. As he willed himself forward, he found his soul in eternal peace after the deathly stare of the Reaper had unsettled him. Again, Ayu saw a man standing far of in the distance. Similar to Ayu, he too stood on water, creating ripples as they both moved towards each other. As Ayu looked to make out the man’s face, he was greeted with the sensation of imbalance as he began to drown in the water he was standing on. Right before being sucked in, Ayu saw a blue glint in the man’s eyes.

Heaving like a madman, Ayu found himself back in his hut. He hurriedly looked around to ensure his surroundings. He saw his wife, brother and the midwife looking at him. ‘What was that… Where was I… What the FUCK just happened to me?’, in his confusion, Ayu failed to realise that he was sweating buckets, so much so that he had wet through his pores and into his clothesline.

“Ayu, you alright?”, seeing the questioning gaze of Jeeva, Ayu nodded and looked at the baby in his arms, wondering whether it was all a dream or…

…

Outskirts of Junia 100 C.D

Emmanuel walked at the head of a massive legion as each of their steps made the earth echo in the area around them. The rhythmic marching of the troops had a calming effect on a general like Emmanuel.

‘The barbarians have been a massive pain in the ass for the last five years. Their growing numbers are a constant reminder of impending raids. After dealing with these pests and securing the north, I can then plan the expansion towards Lyden, I’ve been itching to fight those money-minded idiots for quite some time now, and it will not be without gains. Having a city like Lyden opens many trade opportunities for Junia. My son will have the greatest economic and military power bestowed upon him when he comes of age. He shall be the ruler of all Endaria.’

Emmanuel was an ambitious man by all accounts, coupled with his strategist mind. He was a force to be reckoned with. Alas, he was born at a time when extraordinary men were plenty abound; every city-state that existed in Endaria was well endowed with talents, some who even outshined Emmanuel.

The glory that Emmanuel sought was kept under constant check by these other mighty ones. This system of checks and balances had prevented any change in the territorial geography. Since Titanomachia, these mighty ones had protected their city-states with an iron grip and would continue to do so. If Emmanuel hoped to break this grip, he needed more than just martial and military prowess.

‘Bringing Endaria under one banner will be a most gruelling endeavour, but I will make it so that my son shall be eligible to achieve it. If he can’t, then I shall train his children to do so. Nonetheless, Endaria will kneel before Junian might!’

Emmanuel continued devising plans for the future as the march continued on. His Legionnaires continued to shake the earth with the same vigour that was present when they had departed. Soon they will reach their destination and then…WAR.

…

Gallia 100 C.D

A massive military encampment can be seen from the skies with multitudes of candlelight and campfire to light it up. The 1^st Legion of Junia had settled some 2 miles away from the Veraxes village, and they had made it abundantly clear that they were here for war and chose not to hide their presence from the enemy.

“Make sure they can see that we have been encamped here; I want them to feel the dread of death looming over their heads. I want a 1000 Legionnaires to always be on patrol and alert at all times.”, Emmanuel commanded all three of his battalion commanders.

““YES GENERAL””

All three of them left the command tent and started issuing orders to their men. By this point, Emmanuel had spread a map of Gallia on his table; he was focusing on a very key area which he believed to be a chokepoint of sorts. Looking up, he exchanged glances with another man who sat opposite him. The man had short black hair and was garbed in military attire with a short sword hanging from his side, while a shield was touching his foot on the ground. As he stood up to get a closer look at the map, one could see his pitch-black eyes as if a black hole consuming everything giving back nothing.

This was the strongest legionnaire of all Junia, Marcus King, and a king he truly was, a Martial King. Marcus was Emmanuel’s most trusted subordinate and childhood friend; he had been adopted into the Junius family as Emmanuel’s brother. They had grown up together, but Marcus had not experienced the luxuries that Emmanuel had. From a young age, Marcus had been trained in satanic ways to improve his martial prowess as fast as possible so that he could be the sword and shield of Emmanuel. To that end, he was truly extraordinary; he was a true spartan warrior-like figure. Not only was Marcus a great warrior, he had been trained as a strategist too, which was the reason he had stayed behind to look at the map.

“I wish to create a three-pronged attack with you leading the central forces, Marc. The attack is to force them towards the foothills of this mountain right here. I will manoeuvre a force of 5000 right at the foothills. The aim is to create a chokehold that would turn into a pincer attack after they have no sides to escape from and keep falling back. What do you think?”

“Hmmm…this will do but don’t forget they might already have intel that we are much stronger than them. When faced with such overwhelming numbers, a smart man always chooses to run away. Ayu is no fool, of that I assure you, brother, he may not be a great fighter, but his strategic ability may even trump yours.”

“What do you propose then? We simply can’t let them flee only to come back again. The barbarians have been an eyesore for long enough we need to wipe them off or make it so that they never come back. They certainly won’t leave peacefully, so blood it is.”

Marcus pondered while moving the pieces on the map; Emmanuel could see that he was up to something, so he waited for it to finish. “Seeing as we wish to deal a heavy blow to them, the only thing that can help us at this conjecture is a preemptive strike. I suggest we take 3000 men and attack them in a few hours. Not full out war but a raid of sorts after which we have at our hands a significant advantage. The raid can be targeted to kill women and children while avoiding frontal combat with their men. At the break of dawn, we fall down on them using your stratagem.”

“Hmm…Since they will be busy making preparations for the evacuation of their population, they will not expect a preemptive strike. Since we have been here for hours, even encamping, they might think we are preparing for dawn. A splendid idea as always, Marc; I presume you wish to lead the raid then?”

“Yes, I have a bone to pick with Ayu and his brother.”