Volume 5: The Hegemon of Southern Italy, Chapter 9: After the Battle of Trionto

During the Peloponnesian War, Athens sent a great expedition to Sicily, only to be defeated by the combined forces of Syracuse and Sparta, with over six thousand men captured. At that time, Sparta faced the awkward situation of being passively beaten at sea while unable to breach the Long Walls of Athens on land, and they did not force those six thousand prisoners to attack Athens. If Davos were to do such a thing, he would be setting a precedent, and the words "treacherous and cruel" would likely become his label. This would not only make the city-states of Magna Graecia secretly wary, but even the Daonian citizens who originally respected him would gradually distance themselves, delivering a serious blow to Davos's prestige. Therefore, with his lofty ambitions, he certainly would not make the mistake of chasing after trifles while neglecting the essentials. Since victory was already assured, he did not mind taking a little longer to capture Crimissa. So as soon as the battle ended, he ordered a preparatory battalion and over five thousand freemen to escort the prisoners back to Thurii, leaving only two Army Corps and two preparatory battalions to garrison Castron.

Compared to the previous night, the citizens of Castron, overjoyed at the victory, were very willing to vacate rooms and prepared a hearty dinner, inviting the Daonian soldiers to stay. In contrast, the soldiers and freemen who had to escort the prisoners, walking another one or two hours through the night back to Thurii while being equally tired and hungry, had a much harder time. However, for these participants, it was their first battle, and such a large-scale engagement at that, and to achieve victory brought them immense pride. They walked with their heads held high, and even their scolding of the prisoners was forceful and clear, eager to return to the city and boast grandly about their heroic deeds to acquaintances.

The captured Crotonians were in the most miserable state. To prevent escape, all their armor and clothing had been stripped away, leaving them completely naked as they trudged through the night. Whenever a sea breeze blew, their bodies, which had long since exhausted all warmth, shook uncontrollably like reeds. If they walked too slowly, the shafts of the escorting soldiers' spears would strike them like whips, causing unbearable pain.

Kolebus was also among the captives. Though he sighed at his misfortune at being captured again, compared to his comrades who had died in battle or drowned, he was still grateful to be alive. Thus, he comforted his weeping countrymen, saying, "The Daonians may be detestable, but they keep their word. As long as we do as they say, we will surely return alive to Croton!"

Even though it was night, the entire populace of Thurii came out to welcome the victorious returning column. After a day of anxious waiting, seeing the returning soldiers and the far larger number of Crotonian prisoners than last time, they all understood: there was no doubt that the Daonian army had won the battle!

Unlike Castron, the people of Thurii shouted the name "Davos" most of all, celebrating this hard-won victory, for they all knew that it was the magistrate who, in the Senate, had stood alone against opposition to precipitate this battle, ultimately leading to victory.

The senators also breathed a sigh of relief, especially Philistos. As the military commander left in charge of Thurii by Davos, he had not a single soldier at his disposal and was constantly worried that the Crotonian fleet might see through the disguise and land at the port. Now, the return of three preparatory battalions and the freemen finally gave him confidence. Moreover, with such a heavy defeat, Croton would be hard-pressed to defend itself, let alone dare to make a landing operation in Daonian territory.

Kynogoratas and some Thurian senators asked the soldiers about the entire course of the battle. As Thurians, seeing the Daonian Alliance defeat Croton gave them a cathartic sense of revenge and pride.

That night, whether preparatory citizens or freemen who had fought, they were treated as heroes by the Daonian populace, greeted with enthusiastic cheers and generous rewards. They felt proud and, at the same time, strengthened their resolve to become Daonian citizens.

...

Antaoris, the chief general of Crimissa, was sound asleep at home when he was urgently awakened. Hearing the messenger's report that "the Crotonian army has been defeated," he could hardly believe his ears. "Yesterday, at the port, I saw with my own eyes Croton's massive fleet and nearly forty thousand troops (including the freemen and slaves transporting supplies)—a force of such size never before seen in Magna Graecia! It should have swept through the Daonian Alliance. How could Croton be defeated after just one day?! How could Daonia possibly have more soldiers than Croton?! Did Tarentum join the fight?!..."

Full of doubts, Antaoris hastily threw on his clothes and rushed to the north gate, where Euricpus, Pleades, and others were already waiting.

By torchlight, Crotonians were seen straggling in from the north like beaten dogs. Their steps were unsteady, their minds dazed, their faces etched with fear and exhaustion. Helmets were gone, breastplates discarded, shields and spears lost somewhere. They stumbled through the city gate and collapsed on the ground, weakly shouting, "Is there any food? Is there any food?..."

Seeing the pitiful state of the Crotonians, Antaoris and the others grew deeply worried.

Finally, they waited for Myron, who had retreated back. Though he too was disheveled, his spirits were still fairly good.

"General Myron, what should we do now?!" Antaoris asked urgently, which was precisely the most pressing concern for the people of Crimissa at that moment.

Myron did not answer immediately but instead asked, "Is there any food? I'm starving!"

As Antaoris and the others watched Myron and the returned soldiers wolf down the dry, cold bread, they could not help feeling a measure of disdain.

At that moment, Myron was in no mood to observe what the Crimissans were thinking. As he ate, he mentally pondered how to reassure them. After trudging through the marsh and with no enemy pursuit, he had gradually regained his composure. On the way back, while regretting the series of mistakes he had made before the battle due to underestimating the enemy, which led to defeat, he also kept thinking about what to do next to counter the victorious Daonian advance... Crimissa was undoubtedly the key to turning the situation around!

He wiped the bread crumbs from his mouth with his hand, stood up, and took in the expressions of those around him. "Gentlemen... I am sorry. We fell into an ambush by the Daonians. In the fighting with them... we suffered a defeat. I don't know how many men we lost... but it is certainly not few..."

Myron's mind flashed with images of countless soldiers struggling in the water. He clenched his fists in anguish, letting his nails draw blood from his palms. "And the Daonian casualties are... far fewer than ours..."

What?! Everyone was shocked: an army of tens of thousands had set out, only to inflict small losses on the Daonian army while suffering heavily themselves—unbelievable! How was the battle fought?!

"Did the Daonians field many more soldiers than us? Or did Tarentum also join the fight?" Antaoris asked hastily.

Myron smiled bitterly. He had wanted to conceal the truth, but even if he did not speak, once the Daonians arrived, the Crimissans would soon find out, which would only breed more resentment toward Croton. It was better to be frank and let Crimissa prepare early, so both sides could stand together through the storm. So he told the truth: "Daonia probably deployed about the same number of men as we did. Tarentum did not join..."

"Are you Crotonians all made of dough?! How can you be so easily defeated by the Daonians!" Pleades shouted indignantly.

He voiced the sentiments of the Crimissan leadership: the previous defeat had already made things very difficult for Crimissa. Crimissa's envoys had then promised that they would no longer be enemies with Daonia, and only then were the prisoners saved! Now, Crimissa had broken that promise, aiding Croton in attacking Daonia, which had once spared them. If they failed again, what would Crimissa do?

Myron's eyes widened as he glared back. In his youth, he had been a multiple-time champion of the Olympian Games, and later served long as chief general of Croton. The natural authority he exuded made Pleades somewhat uneasy. Avoiding Myron's sharp gaze, Pleades gathered his courage and said, "If it weren't for you Crotonians insisting on war against Daonia, saying 'We will teach Daonia a lesson they won't forget!' we Crimissans, trusting our ally (the previous agreement between Croton and Daonia stipulated that Crimissa would remain a neutral city-state. But Crimissa, deeply influenced by Croton, considered itself an ally of Croton), declared war on Daonia. Now you've lost, and lost badly! What are we Crimissans supposed to do?!"

"That's right! If you hadn't forced us, we would never have dared to provoke Daonia!" someone in the crowd loudly echoed.

"Forced, you say! You Crimissans still wanted to follow Croton and get some benefit from Daonia!" Myron sneered inwardly, but he could not say that aloud, as it would only escalate the conflict.

"So what do you want to do? Negotiate peace with Daonia?" Myron looked around at everyone and said solemnly, "Now Daonia holds the advantage. They will demand only more. Will Davos, after capturing Crimissa, slaughter the citizens to avenge his fellow mercenaries? Will he turn Crimissa into a subordinate state under his control, like Nerulum?"

After Myron finished, the faces of the Crimissans, including Ataros, turned grim.

"What we can do now is to hold Crimissa city! Daonia has no fleet. The sea is in our hands. We can use ships at any time to bring in grain and more soldiers. The Daonians cannot starve us out!" Myron declared with passion.