Varus... O! Quinctilius Varus... give me back my legions!
Publius Qunctilius Varus marches his legions towards winter quarters, led by his German ally Arminius. Fateful warnings from Varus' local allies are ignored...
You are walking into a trap, Varus! The German will betray you. He will betray Rome!
Arminius? A traitor? I think not.
Rome may have raised me, trained me. But my loyalty is to my people.
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Mettius was marching alongside his men through the forest, screening the environment for anything suspicious. This "shortcut" that Arminius suggested is an appalling one indeed: a single road, on the right, steep hills and on the left a swamp. Maybe when they get out of the valley they will get a change in scenery.
On the rear of the Roman army followed women and children who could not leave their husbands and fathers alone or die so they joined with them and marched together. An Eagle Cohort was placed right in front of the camp followers so that if anything happens they could protect the civilians. Mettius' trusted friend, Titus was part of that cohort who himself had his wife with him on this campaign.
The Roman army was composed of three Eagle Cohorts, three Legionnaire Cohort along side three Auxiliary Infantry who wielded spears instead of the Gladius followed by Auxiliary Cavalry and the general's guard. Around the main army were stationed German horsemen who acted as scouts with Arminius leading them, they were gone.
Varus was right in the center of the Roman line with the Auxiliary Cavalry so that it would be easier to form up the men in case of an ambush. He seemed unfazed that they could be ambushed quite easily and it would mean certain death for all the soldiers under his command, he trusted Arminius even if he left for some time on a scouting party.
"Is there something wrong, sir?" asked the soldier carrying the golden eagle of Mettius' Cohort.
"It's just that it's... quiet." he replied getting a confused look from his fellow soldier then he continued "too quiet."
After a full minute of only the sound of their feet marching, they started to hear what they made out to be war cries.
"Ambush!" someone yelled out right before the earth started to shake and the confused soldiers looked up their hill to the right to see balls of fire rolling down towards them. With almost no time to form up, the fire smashed right into some of the cohorts while others completely missed their targets, but now there was something else coming down the hill, Germans, a lot of them charging right at the forming Romans who moved lightning fast right after they got hit and losing some of their men.
Mettius was one of the lucky ones, the balls of fire missed his cohort and he organised it fairly quickly and now he must drive off the German assault.
"Come men, to our brothers!" he shouted and charged with his men at the Germans that were in combat with one of the Auxiliary troops. He briefly saw that the camp followers were unaffected by the initial assault, but now the enemy has cut them off, coming from the rear. Titus' centurion ordered a box around the civilians to protect them.
All around them, almost everyone was fighting for their lives, including Varus, who charged some of the German archers that dared to wander out of the treeline and were routed almost immediately.
"We're under attack! Look to the eagles! Defend them! Hold on!" Varus shouted the order as hard as he could while charging at other archers that appeared from the swamp.
The fighting was brutal, the Romans weren't organised and they got hit hard by the Germans using hit and run tactics, but they weren't helpless. They relied on their training to never break and fought on like lions in contrast to the German ferocity who used all their might just to scratch the Romans.
"How will we fight against such hate?" asked a soldier perplexed at the brutality that the Germans possessed.
"Hate back, son. Hate back." an older comrade answered him before the two resumed fighting.
The Romans started to push back the Germans, but they couldn't be the last of the ambush forces. They made back to the trees and disappeared completely, but not before blocking the way back by chopping down some the pine trees that littered the forest.
"Keep moving! We must get through! Where is Arminius? Someone find Arminius! We need his auxiliaries!" a panicked Varus shouted and everyone started moving at a quickened pace down the road.
The Romans pushed out into a clearing with a massive swamp on the right and more hills and cliffs on the left. They continued marching, following the road that would lead them out of the forest, but more groups of Germans appeared to block their path with archers now on the high ground.
"Keep moving! We must get out of this clearing before more Germans catch up from behind!" Mettius ordered and he finally got close to Titus' cohort. "Are the women and children safe?"
"They are safe and sound. I'll die before I let anything happen to them!" Titus answered his friend's question before his centurion issued orders.
Mettius' cohort was now facing the swamp alongside some legionnaires to defend the flank while the rest of the army fought to drive off the Germans, but he was surprised when he heard barking and then he realized that the Germans brought war hounds, even though weak against the soldiers yet they were quite numerous, the dogs charged and managed to mostly injure the men before being dealt with.
"AHHH! My feet!" a soldier cried out.
"Shut up." another one merely cringed to him.
The Romans have driven off the Germans and now arrived at another clearing and a crossroads that lead to the left and right and between them there was a marsh, the toll was high among them though. A lot of the fellow soldiers were slain and injured, but they had to move on, to stay still would mean to die at this point. Hope was starting to spread among the soldiers, they were nearly out. Just one more clearing and they are safe, but their excitement died out when they saw a mass of German Cavalry on the far left side emerging from the forest. Varus could not believe his eyes, those were Arminius' auxiliaries.
"You... you're on your own. Horsemen - with me! Double-time!" Varus fled with what remained of his bodyguards. But in doing so he lead the German cavalry away from the main Roman army.
"Varus! Accursed coward! Push forward while he distracts the enemy!" Mettius assumed command with no opposition.
The Romans routed the remaining Germans that now were left without cavalry support, but as they were about to get out of the clearing they hear horns form the right side of the crossroads.
"Look to the rear! Berserkers!" shouted Titus getting the attention of Mettius.
"Go! Get the standards out! The legions do not fail!" Mettius tried to motivate his men to continue for just a little longer. The marsh should slow the enemy down, granting the Romans some precious time.
"At the double, sons of Mars!" shouted some centurions.
Everybody was now running as fast as they can with the cavalry trying to fend off attackers. the civilians were in the center of a box formed from what remained of the army and gunned for the exit that was in sight. Just a straight sprint and they are out, but just as they got their hopes up German soldiers appeared behind them from every part of the forest and some of them are firing arrows that manage to pick off a few unlucky soldiers.
"Rally, men! We're nearly clear of the forest!" Mettius shouted "Come on, heroes! For Rome!"
They almost reached the exit, but now some Germans were blocking their way. This made the Romans push themselves harder and started charging towards them. They had no chance, the Romans pushed right through them and made way for the women and children to get out of the forest first before they themselves escaped out of the encirclement.
They couldn't believe it, they made it out alive of that infernal forest where so many of them had perished. They started to put as much distance between them and the woods, but something seemed different. The forest looked different. The plains looked different. They no longer were in the center of Germania, but instead in an unknown land far away from Rome and their home.
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A few hours earlier, Twilight Sparkle and her friends were so happy that they were finally going on a picnic, the sun was shining, the birds were chirping and the trees would give them shade. It will be just perfect. And Pinkie Pie was the living proof of it.
“Ohmygosh! This will be the best picnic EVER!” she shouted in excitement.
“Shimmer down, sugarcube. We already know it.” said Applejack.
“The timing couldn’t be more perfect. Right on my day-off from princess duties and when I have time for my friends the weather is the most welcoming.” acknowledged Twilight.
“Maybe because you deserve it, Twilight. You were working so hard for the past few weeks that me and Spike were actually concerned about your health, but now you seem in perfect shape.” said Starlight.
“Yeah, you really scared us Twilight.” continued Spike.
“I appreciate your concerns, but I am a princess and I assure you I am more than capable to carry out my duties.” Twilight finished.
The group of friends reached a clearing near the Everfree forest and sat down in the shade of a lonely tree a long distance from the forest itself. They set up everything and it was a relaxing sight for all of them.
“I have to say that this atmosphere is really calming.” started Fluttershy.
“You’re right! I could use a nap right about now.” replied Rainbow Dash before flying on one branch of the tree and almost instantly went asleep.
“Oh for cryin’ out loud. This time was supposed to be spent together, not napping.” sighed Applejack.
“There’s no problem Applejack, darling. We all came here to relax, didn’t we?” retorted Rarity while she used her magic to keep a small mirror in the air and was analyzing every spec of her muzzle.
“Ah guess it’s been hard for me also, sorry for overeacting girls.”
“There is no need for apologies. Come, try this cakes that Twilight got from Celestia herself.”
“Heh. Don’t mind if ah do-” Applejack was about to bite into the miniature cakes when all of a sudden the ground began to shake.
“Uhh, Twilight, what is going on?” asked Spike a little spooked right before Rainbow Dash fell from the tree branches and landed right on her head.
“Oww, ok! Who’s the tough guy!” she sprung into action.
“Calm down, everypony. I think it’s just an earthquake.” suggested Rarity right before some things bolted out of the Everfree treeline.
“You were saying?” asked Rainbow Dash sarcastically.
“I have a bad feeling about this. We should keep an eye on them, come on girls.” said Twilight before hiding in some foliage followed by the rest of her friends.
The women and children got out of the forest, many of them exhausted and terrified with many crying for their loved ones that have perished. After them, the Roman army emerged and escorted them further away from the cursed forest. Some of them were faced at the entrance, but the Germans didn’t pursue them. They knew that a head-on fight would mean the end of them.
The Romans eventually stopped at the top of a hill overlooking the forest and a small town nearby. This would be the perfect place for an encampment.
“Get those walls up and get the wounded treated! I don’t want anymore dying on my watch! Come on, faster! If the Germans attack we would be sitting ducks!” Mettius barked orders to every fit man to not rest after they have already been exhausted after the horrific encounter.
“Looks like the role of a general suits you quite well, my friend .” appeared Titus out of nowhere.
“I am merely doing my duty to this men and their families.” he replied.
“At these rate, we will have a fort built by sundown. Even though we lost a lot of materials in the forest, not to mention food.”
“I was just thinking about that. Titus, gather some men and start foraging for food. The civilians are our priority.”
“Yessir!” Titus saluted before running off.
“Oh and Titus,,,” Mettius stopped the soldier for a second to look at him, “good job in defending them.” he complimented his friend who just smiled and returned to his task.
All around the camp could be heard cries from the severely injured who were treated in the most basic needs. Some of the soldiers got off with only a few cuts and slashes, but the unlucky ones could have from gashing wounds to limbs cut off to even losing one of their eyes during combat.
Twilight Sparkle and her friends were in awe at the sight of the strangers who seem to have just escaped Tartarus.
“What are they?” asked Rainbow Dash.
“They must be humans like the ones I encountered when I went after Sunset Shimmer, but these ones seem... different.” answered Twilight Sparkle.
“Whatever they are, those clothes look very appealing in a way, like a uniform.” continued Rarity.
“They must be like the Wondercolt, but... you know... human.” finished Rainbow Dash.
“They look so serious. Do you think they would like a party.” Pinkie butted in before they saw the horses.
“Oh my goodness, so degrading!” said Rarity disgusted.
“They are like the horses I saw in the human world. They seem to have a strong connection with each other.” added Twilight.
“I think we should go before they notice us and maybe get upset.” suggested Fluttershy.
“Ah agree with Fluttershy. They haven’t done anything now so maybe we should check on them tomorrow.” supported Applejack.
“Very well then, we’ll come back tomorrow and maybe we will talk with them then.” confirmed Twilight and they all made their way back home without getting the attention of the Romans.
The sun was setting and the fort was finally finished with a moat around the walls with spikes at the bottom, the soldiers almost collapsed of exhaustion into the makeshift beds they all carried while marching. But the threat of attack hasn’t passed yet, the Germans would try a night attack when they all are sleeping and end them all without even knowing it, so Mettius had a handful of guards rested so they could stay awake the whole night and be vigilant.
“I want you to be cautious of anything. If the leaves sound strange, you sound the alarm. If the scent of the air is different, you sound the alarm. If there is ANYTHING suspicious, you sound the alarm! Dismissed.” ordered Mettius retiring to his quarters.
“Yessir!” the guards saluted then they went to their posts while everyone else was already sleeping.
Author's Note
Roma invicta!
This is my second story. I hope you will like it.
See you next time.
