Volume 6: The Meeting of Two Heroes, Chapter 82: The First Great Victory

“The Daonians are coming! The Daonian reinforcements are here!!......” The archers on the watchtowers inside the camp were shouting along with the wounded Samnite soldiers, but their voices rang with joy: “Our reinforcements are here! Our reinforcements are here!!......”

Finally! Alexis let out a long breath when he heard the news.

The soldiers’ morale soared at the shouting; their exhausted bodies seemed to be reinfused with strength as they roared in unison, struggling to drive the enemies who had broken into the camp back out...

Upon hearing the cries, Torek refused to believe it. When he turned and saw the Daonian army charging in, any scattered stragglers instantly swallowed by their advance, all the strength seemed to drain from his body. He stumbled and fell to the ground, with only one thought in his mind: “It’s over! I’ve fallen into the Daonians’ trap!”

The Samnite warriors, equally exhausted after prolonged bitter fighting, saw the ferocious Daonian legion soldiers attacking from behind. Though panicked, most did not flee but instead turned, gripped their spears, and braced to meet the assault. With eyes bloodshot from the killing, they had only one thought: fight!

But the steady stream of fresh troops arriving and the pincer attack from front and rear made the Samnites’ resistance futile—and even prevented them from escaping the encirclement in time.

As the Samnites kept falling, the remaining warriors finally lost their fighting spirit and began to rout... Some were so weary that they simply threw down their weapons and surrendered... So after a while, the battle largely ended. What remained was the pursuit of the fleeing soldiers.

...

Inside the Daonian camp, soldiers of the Third Army Corps were either gathering the bodies of their fallen comrades, receiving treatment in the medical camp, or resting against the earth ramparts or lying on the ground...

Legion Commander Alexis listened grimly as his adjutant reported the corps’ casualties: “According to the medical camp’s preliminary count, our corps has 412 dead, 251 severely wounded, and 537 lightly wounded—a total of 1,200 casualties...”

1,200 men! Alexis clenched his fists, visibly moved—that made up 15% of the corps’ main forces; the losses were rather heavy!

Seeing the pained expression on the legion commander’s face, the adjutant quickly consoled him: “There was no helping it. We were facing the fierce Samnites, who outnumbered us nearly three to one...”

Alexis sighed and said nothing.

Just then, the previously quiet camp suddenly erupted in excitement.

Alexis saw Davos entering the camp with his guard, making his way toward the center while chatting amiably and offering words of comfort to the soldiers he met.

Alexis hurried over to greet him.

Before he could get close, Davos strode forward and gave him a very firm embrace. “Well done, Legion Commander Alexis!”

Those words instantly dispelled much of Alexis’s sighing, grievance, and discontent. He snapped to attention and saluted, replying forcefully: “Reporting to the Supreme Commander, the Third Army Corps has completed its combat mission and is now resting and reorganizing.”

“You did far more than just complete a combat mission!” Davos looked around at the soldiers who had quickly gathered. Their faces, covered in dust and bloodstains, were etched with exhaustion. With emotion, he struck his left chest heavily with his clenched right fist: “Brothers of the Third Army Corps! You held this isolated camp alone, fought bitterly against an enemy three times your number, and made sacrifices and tremendous contributions to the final annihilation of the attacking Samnites! You saved Potentia! You eliminated the danger of invasion to our Lucanian territory! You changed the entire situation of the war in northern Daonia! Not only do I thank you, but the entire Daonian people thank you! You are the heroes of Daonia and will be remembered in the Temple of Hades in Thurii! Hail, the Third Army Corps!”

Davos’s passionate words reached the ears of every soldier, both Lucanians and Greeks, and they wept with emotion.

“Hail, the Third Army Corps!!!”

“Hail, Davos!!!”

“Hail, Daonia!!!”

Unceasing cheers rang out over the camp. When the captured Samnite warriors heard these sounds, their faces showed indescribable pain and dejection...

In this battle, Davos had used the Third Army Corps as bait to lure nearly 27,000 Samnite warriors into attacking the camp. Taking advantage of their exhaustion from the march, he secretly assembled two corps to surround and annihilate them... More than 10,000 Samnite warriors were captured, over 7,000 were killed or wounded, and only nearly 3,000 escaped into the mountains. At the same time, he easily retook the city of Poseidonia, seized a large quantity of supplies and matériel piled inside the city that had not yet been transported to the Samnite camp at Potentia—it was a thorough and great victory.

On that same day, the Syracusan army that had crossed the north bank of the Lamato River remained inactive. They built a crude camp at the confluence of the Lamato and Korta Rivers, and over the Korta River they constructed a pontoon bridge using several dozen fast boats, allowing supplies and provisions shipped from Hipponion to be smoothly delivered to the Syracusan camp. The soldiers finally got a full meal.

To the west of the Syracusan camp, close to the Tyrrhenian Sea, the people of Trina remained in constant panic. On one hand, they sent out numerous scouts to keep a close watch on the Syracusan camp; on the other, they dispatched messengers to Scylletium while maintaining contact with Clampetia.

In Scylletium, even though the Croton army had swelled to 17,000 men, raising the allied force there to 30,000, the citizens were still uneasy. The Syracusan camp was less than 30 stades from Scylletium—a march of just a few hours could bring them directly to the city walls. Now all the people of Scylletium had abandoned their homes outside the city and fled with their families into the city proper.

For Croton’s massive assistance, the Scylletium leadership, headed by Pretinis, could hardly criticize anything further. But with the Syracusan army pressing in overwhelming strength, the outnumbered Croton-Scylletium alliance had no recourse. The only thing they could do was periodically send scouts south to check on the progress of the Daonian corps.

Early that morning, the Daonian Fourth and Fifth Army Corps had struck camp. To prevent the Syracusans from using the abandoned camp, they not only removed the tents and pulled up the wooden palisades but also demolished the earth ramparts and filled in the ditches. They expended extra effort to repay the warm hospitality of the Caulonian people and to assuage their own feelings of guilt.

The previous night, when Philistos informed the Caulonians that “the Daonian army must prepare to withdraw,” Pretinis and the others—though knowing the matter was already irreversible—still made every effort to retain this relief force that could guarantee Caulonia’s safety.

Philistos had to harden his heart and refuse their pleas.

But on the day of departure, nearly the entire population of Caulonia came out to see off the Daonian army. They not only helped the soldiers strike camp but also brought freshly baked bread, barley porridge, and oxygala, hoping the men could eat a full meal before marching.

The deep affection of Caulonia and their heart-wrenching pleas for them to stay moved many Daonian soldiers. Bound by military orders, they had to march north, but they offered similar words of comfort to the Caulonian people: “Don’t worry! As long as you hold Caulonia city, once we join forces with the other allied states, we will quickly defeat the Syracusan army and then come back to rescue you!”

Philistos said the same to Phrynires, though more diplomatically.

Phrynires, as if not hearing the uncertainty in Philistos’s words, spoke with firm resolve: “Caulonia has been besieged by Locri too many times before. In all of Magna Graecia, no one is better at defending a city than we are. We will hold out until you return. I know the Daonians keep their promises!”

Pretinis’s words added weight to Philistos’s sense of pressure.

At nearly dusk, the Fourth and Fifth Corps finally arrived at Scylletium. And at that very moment, the Syracusan-Locrian allied force led by Fasipezas completely surrounded Caulonia.

That evening, in the Scylletium headquarters of the South Italy Alliance, the Daonian southern front commander Philistos, the Senate’s special envoy Antistanos, the Croton chief general Ascamas, the Scylletium chief general Pretinis, the Scylletium field commander Acesias, and the Trina special envoy Asopias sat around a large wooden table on which lay a map of the Othonia Plain.

Acesias stood up, holding a wooden pointer, to brief all present on the current situation: “Gentlemen, according to our reconnaissance, the Syracusan army has set up camp at the confluence of the Lamato and Korta Rivers.”

He tapped a mark on the map with the pointer. “This is the edge of the Ophemia Plain. Going west, it is only 15 stades from Trina—”

“To be precise, it’s only 13.9 stades!” Asopias emphasized loudly.

“Ahem... regarding the western situation, Lord Asopias naturally knows more than we do.” Acesias corrected himself with a bit of embarrassment. “The Syracusan camp is 13.9 stades from Trina, and the terrain is flat. However, they need to cross the Lamato River, which is not fordable on foot. That’s a considerable trouble for the Syracusans—”

“The Syracusan navy has already taken control of the Lamato River channel. It will be very easy for them to ferry the army across the Lamato!” Asopias stressed again.

Acesias grew annoyed. “Lord Asopias, if you enjoy interrupting others so much, why don’t you just give the briefing yourself!”

Asopias shook his head. “I’m only supplementing the information you presented. You yourself just said, ‘We Trinan people know the western situation better than you.’ Letting all the gentlemen here fully and meticulously understand the battlefield situation will help us more rationally devise a follow-up plan. Because this war is no longer just the affair of Scylletium or Trina—it is a crisis the entire South Italy Alliance must face together!”

“Lord Asopias is right! Acesias, don’t be impatient. Speak slowly, and give more details.” Pretinis quickly stepped in to smooth things over.

“Yes, the war has come to our lands. Everyone is somewhat anxious, but the more so, the more we need to stay calm if we are to defeat a strong enemy.” Antistanos also offered words of comfort.