Volume 5: The Hegemon of Southern Italy, Chapter 5: The Battle of Trionto (Part 3)

On the Daonian side, the center and right wing each had 3,000 light infantry, including archers, slingers, and javelinmen. Most were freemen from the port of Thurii, while a few hundred veteran light infantry battalion soldiers drawn from the First and Second Army Corps served as officers.

The four hundred-plus cavalry on the left wing had always played a minor role, but according to the plan, this time they would become the key to victory in this battle. No wonder even the usually steady Laedes was losing his composure, repeatedly reminding each cavalry squad leader of the precautions to take once the fight began.

"I said, Battalion Commander, we all understand clearly—don't worry!" Solikos said. This large group of cart drivers, financed by loans from Cheiristoya's bank, not only increased the alliance's tax revenue but were all skilled at riding and driving, with enough horses to spare. They became a prime target for recruitment into the cavalry squadron. As citizens, they unhesitatingly donned their armor and took the field. Solikos was right at the upper age limit for conscription, and he was quite enthusiastic himself. At fifty years old, serving as an infantryman would certainly be tough, but as a cavalryman, he thought his experience made him more than qualified to be a commander.

"All right, then prepare for battle." Laedes nodded.

"We understand, but do those behind us understand? Don't screw it up when the time comes!" a young cavalry squad leader interjected.

Laedes turned his head, smiled at him, and said, "Don't worry, Kuchius. They've fought in more battles than you've eaten salt. In Persia, they faced far more cavalry than this."

The young cavalry squad leader was unconvinced and wanted to say more.

Just then, someone shouted, "Look, our slingers have gone out!"

Without a war horn or loud shouts, the slingers, led by veterans, quietly broke ranks and quickly ran to the front of the enemy formation. At a distance of over two hundred meters, they began to whirl their slings. The Croton soldiers, still arranging their formation, were immediately hit by a "rain of stones." Many, unable to raise their shields in time, were struck in the head, not a few bleeding profusely.

"Shameless Daonians! Treacherous Daonians! Apollo will surely punish you!" Philadelphus hadn't expected the enemy to pull such a move and was caught off guard; he immediately burst into curses.

"Attack! Attack! Attack now!" he shouted frantically.

"Woo!... Woo!..." The high-pitched attack horn sounded.

Alxisos, who had long been eager, immediately pointed his spear forward: "Cavalry, advance!"

Eight hundred Croton cavalry formed an inverted fan pattern. Each rider squeezed his legs against the horse's flanks and shook the reins; the warhorses began to trot slowly forward.

Laedes' cavalry was in a loose wedge formation, with two veteran horsemen at the tip, each holding a red flag fluttering in the wind. Seeing the enemy already in motion, Laedes took a deep breath, suppressed his excitement, patted the neck of his snorting beloved horse, and waited until the enemy cavalry had reached a certain distance before shouting, "Advance!"

"Hyah! Hyah!..." The men urged their horses forward. Unlike the Croton cavalry, who held the reins with their left hand and tucked their spears under their right arm in an attacking posture, the Daonian cavalry held the reins with both hands, their spears still hanging from hooks. From a trot to acceleration, they controlled their horses' speed, careful not to let them reach full speed, lest they tumble off before contacting the enemy.

The spring midday sun wasn't scorching, but the warhorses snorted like clouds, kicked up clods of dirt and grass, and raised clouds of dust. The five-hundred-meter distance was covered in an instant.

When they were only fifty or sixty meters apart, Laedes, behind the standard-bearers, shouted, "Right turn!!!"

Solikos, riding abreast to his left, immediately shouted, "Left turn!!!"

The two standard-bearers in front swiftly separated to the left and right.

In cavalry combat, with such speed, it was easy for rear riders to break formation if they weren't careful. The wedge formation's characteristic was a small head and a large tail, so the rear cavalry could see the direction of the front riders. Coupled with the two red flags fluttering in the wind, even on a dusty battlefield, the Daonian cavalry managed to act in unison. They smoothly split the wedge into two streams, circling around the oncoming enemy from the outside front.

The Croton front-rank cavalry never expected the Daonians to do such a thing; they were completely dumbfounded. But they dared not stop. Without prior planning or coordination, making any sudden move would not only disrupt their formation but also cause the cavalry behind to crash into them, trampling them into pulp. They had no choice but to charge straight ahead and then turn back around.

But after passing the Daonian cavalry and continuing forward, they suddenly saw countless sharp spears thrust out from the morning mist, gleaming with a cold, sinister light.

"Heavy infantry! Heavy—" the Croton cavalry exclaimed in horror, trying to rein in their horses. But the strong inertia drove them and their mounts straight into the spears. In an instant, men screamed, horses neighed, spears snapped, and blood splattered...

Some heavy infantry were sent flying by the sheer impact, but the other soldiers, as if seeing nothing, stood motionless, both hands gripping the spears planted butt-end in the ground. In front of them, dozens of horses and men lay sprawled in disarray, struggling in pools of blood...

There were no true heavy cavalry in this era. Not just Greek cavalry, but cavalry of any Mediterranean country had never faced a tightly packed spear formation and dared to charge straight into it. The cavalry behind tried in panic to control their horses to avoid crashing, but the sensitive, timid warhorses screamed first and suddenly skidded to a halt. The riders were thrown forward by inertia, crashing into the forest of spears and being impaled clean through...

Alxisos, stuck in the middle of the cavalry formation, finally managed to stop his horse. But he saw comrades around him falling, spinning in place, or unable to move no matter how much they shouted. The sounds of wailing, shouting, and horse neighing blended together, throwing the entire cavalry into chaos...

Alxisos realized he had fallen into a Daonian trap. The situation was critical; he had no time to think further. "Left turn! Left turn! Get out from the side!"

He shouted at the top of his lungs, and his guards echoed his cries. The chaotic Croton cavalry found a steady hand and soon regained some order.

Just as they were turning their horses to try to bypass the spear phalanx ahead, the two Daonian cavalry units that had previously circled around suddenly closed in like a pair of human arms.

Shouts of killing rose all around Alxisos. He suddenly understood that his cavalry was surrounded—cavalry surrounded by infantry and cavalry! This was almost impossible, but it was becoming reality!

"Charge out to the left together! Everyone charge out!" Alxisos screamed hoarsely, nearly out of his mind.

But an even more powerful, resonant voice drowned out his shouts: the heavy infantry's charge horn sounded.

"Brothers, kill these Crotonians! Avenge Timasion and the others!" Xanthiparis took off his helmet and was the first to charge forward with his spear.

More than a thousand mercenaries roared and surged forward with him. The soldiers who had been knocked down earlier struggled to their feet, drew their short swords, and joined the fray.

The previously solid "spear wall" turned into an all-penetrating stream, quickly seeping into the chaotic Croton cavalry. Killing stationary cavalrymen was a simple task for these battle-hardened mercenaries. Most even let the valuable horses be, and instead used a method of two mercenaries handling one cavalryman: one to occupy and distract the enemy, the other to seize the opportunity, quickly approach from the side and rear, and stab the spear diagonally upward. The spearhead would pierce through the gap in the leather armor under the ribs, into the lungs, straight to the heart—a single, fatal blow. If the rider dodged the thrust, the mercenary would promptly sweep the spear downward, knocking the cavalryman off his horse. Before the man could get up, his head would take a heavy stomp, snapping his neck.

The mercenaries were highly efficient at killing. Even the Daonian cavalry instinctively kept their distance from these ferocious fiends.

The battle ended quickly. Except for a few dozen Croton cavalry who escaped, over a hundred surrendered, and the rest were all killed. Alxisos fell in the melee. The Daonians also captured more than four hundred warhorses, with only a little over fifty cavalry and twenty-odd mercenaries killed or wounded. It was a complete victory! Davos's invented tactic had succeeded! Laedes listened to the results reported by his men, beaming with smiles, but he knew the overall battle was far from over.

He detached seventy cavalry to continue pursuing the remnants and urged the rest of the horsemen to hurry to the nearby city of Castron: "Hurry back and get the javelins!"

"Laedes, we'll go with you." Xanthiparis and many mercenaries rode up on captured warhorses.

"You..." Laedes instinctively wanted to refuse, but the mercenaries had played a decisive role in this battle, so he couldn't say it directly.

Xanthiparis saw through his thoughts and said, "You don't have many cavalry under you now. Our riding skills may be poor, but we're better at throwing javelins than you. More men will put greater pressure on Croton. The sooner we finish the fight here, the sooner we can reinforce Davos!"

Xanthiparis's words reminded Laedes. He stopped worrying about whether they were cavalry or not. "I hope you can keep up with our pace. I won't wait for you."

"Don't worry." Xanthiparis smiled.

...

Philadelphus still didn't know that his cavalry had been nearly annihilated. The light-armored infantry he led in the center were now in deep trouble.

When the attack horn sounded, the light-armored infantry surged forward.

The enemy slingers hastily retreated.

They advanced again. Then came a rain of arrows... then javelins...

After suffering some casualties, the light-armored infantry drew close to the enemy.

Just then, the enemy's central light infantry withdrew as a whole.

The light-armored infantry pursued again, and the enemy retreated again. The faster the light-armored infantry chased, the faster the enemy fled; the slower they chased, the slower the enemy retreated... The two sides always kept a gap of several tens of meters.