Legion of Mars

When he was growing up, his father returned from service in one of Roman's might legions out near the frontiers. He rose up the ranks of the army he served under that enabled him to become centurion of his cohort. He returned just in time to see his wife give birth to him. He gave him the first name of Julius, named after the famous general that saved Rome from disaster (or a tyrant if you believe some folk.) His father always told him that he would become famous someday, which was why he gave him the name of Julius. Julius himself wanted to be like his father someday and fight for his empire. The problem was that he wasn't always good at anything; whether it be sports or some swordplay with his father. He can't practice swords with his father as he would cry over one bruise or one scrap after such confirmation. The other kids would tease him and pick on him simply because he was too weak in a fight. He would always come home with bruises and scars, crying about how the kids would pick on him. While his mother tended to him, his father would give him a disapproving stare.

One time, after they were done with chores, he asked what was it like on the battlefield. "It is a horrid thing." His father would tell him while they were seated at the small table outside the villa. "Seeing your friends die quickly without even know it is the worse thing a man could take. But I have always believed that there is something beautiful in the very first moments of the battle. It is where moments of highest emotions, the fear of mortal men, the frustrated bloodlust and screaming overconfidence of Rome's enemies. In the moments when the battle is joined, the purity of the human species is first revealed to the foe. And it is there that men decide there own fate, and the gods sort them out in the end."

Right now, his father's words would come back to haunt him.

He gulped when he saw the big caribou conversating with Lucius and his officers. He already felt intimidated by his large stature and the giant hammer he wielded. He wondered if Lucius felt the same as he did. When he first came into the legion, he had heard stories of Lucius Maximus Darius and how he was respected among the legion. He had led his men through thick and thin, and personally lead the charge himself at times. For that, he was widely respected as both a general and a soldier fighting alongside his men. In a way, Lucius probably never felt scared as he was.

He was at the front of the phalanx in which the legion had formed to slow down the caribou. In all honesty, he wanted to be in the back of the action so he wouldn't get himself harmed. Gallus didn't share his interest and insisted that he be placed on the front where the action was. He won't be alone in this. Two of his comrades, Aulus Vorenius Caecina and Titus Scribonius Pudentius, will be alongside him in this engagement.

He had briefly known both of them during his stay at the camp. Aulus had olive light skin with dark brown hair and dark brown eyes. The first time he saw him, he was only wearing a tunic at his bottom, revealing a number of scars along his chest, stomach, and legs. He was a veteran of the legion for at least five years and counting. He was at least ten years older than him and outweighed him by two or three inches. Yet despite the scary appearance, he was a pretty nice guy. He shook his hand with a smile and said: "Welcome to the meatgrinder, rookie." He said with a deep voice.

Titus, on the other hand, had light brown skin that was different than Aulus's skin. He stood at least a couple of meters taller than both his commander and Aulus. He had little hair on his scalp as with all of his people. He had light blue eyes and, unlike Aulus, was moderately well built. Turns out, he came from a tribe north of Africa that did a sort of cultural exchange program with the Romans as a way to improve their relations. While Roman did control much of Africa due to the Second Punic War, there were still parts of the region that had resisted invasions for some time, while those same tribes raided Roman territory in return. After many years of back and forth, Emperor Claudius reached an agreement with the surrounding tribal leaders. Rome would leave them alone (at least for a while from his understanding) and in return, they would proving tribal warriors for their auxiliary units. Aulus was one such individual. He wasn't here because he was chosen to be here. There was a mix-up with the orders and Aulus came under Lucius's command. Nevertheless, he was a great swordsman and fearless when he came face to face with his enemies. When the time came for Aulus to transfer to a random auxiliary unit, Lucius pulled a lot of strings to make sure he stays in his legion.

Both sides were silent for a long time. It was as if the gods themselves snuffed all sound from existence save for the swaying of trees to the wind and the sound of wildlife all around them. "So are you challenging me to a battle?" The big caribou finally said with a raised eyebrow. It was as if he thought that the Legate standing before him was some sort of joke like a Syrian merchant claiming to have a foreskin of Hercules himself.

"Perhaps." Lucius spoke with a calm voice like it was a normal day at a Roman market. Julius was amazed that his commander hadn't even shited himself yet.

"Very well then." The caribou general spoke. "If you are intended to interfere with the king's justice, then you and your......things will die." He heaved his hammer from his back. It was as big as an ox from the looks of it, and the way it spews out electricity from the pallet end isn't enough to put confidence in his commander. "It's a shame that I have to kill you." The general spoke. "You seem like a fearless warrior that has seen many battles in the past. I shall make note of your bravery when I am finished with the rebels."

"We shall see." With that being said, Lucius and his officer and bodyguard turned around and went back to their cohort. The caribou general did the same, most likely preparing for the battle to come. "LEGIONARIES!" Lucius bellowed. The cohort parted ways to allow the commanding officer to come through. It took him a second to realize what was happening, but luckily his centurian was right beside him and pulled on his collar to him before he could make a fool of himself. As the Legate came through, he continued his speech. "Today, we will face the most dangerous and barbaric enemy this world has ever faced. The enemy will be relentless and without mercy. They even have an advantage with this 'magic' they have. But you all have been with me throughout my years campaigning for the glory of Rome. We faced the Picts in Britianna, the Germanic tribes north of the Daube, the desert rats of Syria and Parthia, and the barbarians of Arabia. You have all been trained and ready for this moment.

I know that there are some of you who are new to my legion, but let me assure you that you carry the blood of heroes within you! You have been trained by the finest commanders and centurions in my legion, and to some, I have trained with you myself. This is what we have prepared you for. I expect all of you to follow my instructions to the fullest. Do this, and we shall emerge victoriously." He stood at the end of the phalanx, his eyes scanning each of his cohorts. "The gods are with us this day, and we shall not disappoint them. Let us send these animals to Hades!" He drew his sword and shouted "Roma Invicta!"

"Roma Invicta!" The rest of the soldiers shouted. They returned to the standard formation from which they were moments ago. Julius himself was, for the most part, much more confident after that little speech he gave. He hadn't been there through ever land the commander said, but he was sure as Hades that he will try his damnable best to look like a fearless soldier in the face of danger.

He looked back to the caribou, in which their commander had finished doing some speech. The entire caribou army hollered and shouted in their strange language. They were even banging their shields with the weapons they had on hand. The general himself looked back at the assembled soldiers with a blood curling grin. He gulped.

A hand was soon felt in his left shoulder. He turned and saw the face of his Centurian commander, Gallus. "It will be alright." He said in a calming voice. "Just make sure to not do anything heroic, and you will be alright." For his part, Julius nodded.

"TESTUDO FORMATION!" Lucius shouted. The soldiers, including Julius, started to align their shields with others to form a packed formation covered with shields from top to bottom. Since he was in front, he raised his shield in front of him and planted it down on the ground. A shield in the back connected to his, blocking out the sun as it towered over him. He heard the shuffling and banging of shields while it was going on. In the end, once the noise died down, he and his comrades were completely covered in darkness save for the small sunlights that have pierced in many holes. They were now completely enveloped into a sea of red scales.

"BRING ME THE HEAD OF THIS COMMANDER, AND YOU WILL GET A SHARE OF MY HAREM FOR TONIGHT!" The scary caribou shouted. With that one command, the caribou army charged at them with blood-filled screams of terror.

"Just be brave. Just be brave." He repeated the mantra over and over again in his head. The confidence he had felt moments ago from Lucius's speech was now replaced with fear at what was in front of him. He had tried to be brave even when the enemy was closing in. His centurion to his left merely glared at the approaching horde coming towards them.

After what felt like an eternity, something clashed into his shield. He nearly fell off balance at the force of the impact if it wasn't for the fact that the centurion, either through premonition or instinct, grabbed onto his shoulder the moment the caribou collided with his shield. "MAKE SURE TO STAND STRONG!" His centurion said. "AND DON'T EVER THINK OF DIE RIGHT HERE AND NOW! IF YOU DO, I SWEAR BY MARS HIMSELF I WILL PERSONALLY COME DOWN TO HADES AND SKULL FUCK THE LOT OF YA!" He nearly shuddered at Gallus's little speech. He was a friendly guy when he first met him, but seeing this side of him during battle scared the shit out of him.

He would actually believe what he said.

The showdown between the Roman cohort and the caribou went on for some time. Despite the size of the caribou and the weapons they were carrying, they haven't punched through the formation the legionnaires have created. At some point, some of the caribou that attempted to grab the shields in front of them, including his own. He remembered seeing a strong caribou trying to pry the shield off of his hands. He had tried to hold his shield and fight against the strength of the caribou, but he wasn't as strong like the rest of his unit. Hell, this is his first time in combat for the gods sake! The caribou warrior, who carried a decent set of armor on him, looked at him with blood-crazed eyes, his axe ready to pierce his skull. He was frozen solid at this creature's stare. He wasn't cut out for this! Sure, he wanted to be with the legion ever since his father told him stories of his victories, but he didn't want to be thrown into the battle headfirst.

A pila was perched into the chest of the caribou, knocking him off of his shield. Despite the leather armor he was wearing, it did little to protect it from the impact of the pila. Blood was pooling around the assaulting caribou It wasn't thrown like it was made to do, but rather it looked like someone was wielding it like a pike and thrust it into the caribou. Looking behind him, he saw Aulus holding said pila like a spear. "Ain't war fucked?" He screamed, his predatorial grin revealing his almost yellow teeth. Julius can only nod.

The sound of a whistle, even in the midst of the battle, can still be heard. "FRONT LINE, THRUST!" He knew exactly what he had meant when he said that. Another caribou took his place next to his comrade the moment the whistle sounded, this one with no chest armor and two axes in each hand. With a function like a school of fish, the legionaries in the back of him placed down their shields. The front of the testudo pushed the caribou off of them. Some of the caribou fell over in surprise as they never expected the Romans to just push them away. After recovering from the sudden push from their scutum, they charged once again. Julius thrust his gladius into the approaching caribou's chest, the blade plunging deep into his abdominal. The caribous' eyes widened as he screamed in pain, blood pouring out of the wound. He froze as he saw the blood oozing out of his chest, some even landing on his face when he thrust the sword. Aulus grabbed his shoulder, pushing him out of his trance. After shaking off the shock, Julius then withdrew back as Aulus took his place, his gladius finding a home in a caribou's helm. He moved all the way to the back into the line, but nearly tripped in the process.

Titus looked behind him to see Julius coming to the back of him. "First taste of blood, eh?" He said in a slight African accent. After years of being in the legion, his accent hadn't changed much. Though he did learn at least a bit of Latin to help him follow orders and talk more often to his superiors. "You look paler than a lioness in heat."

Julius couldn't help but look at his hands to confirm what Titius had said. While there was some blood on his hands, he could clearly see what he was talking about. They were indeed more white as he was. The noise of the battle and the screams of the dying drowned out as he started at his blood-filled hands. He had just killed someone for the first time, and he felt a strange sensation as if his emotions are running wild. Sorrow, pity, anger, hatred, relieved.

But above all, he had the urge to do it again.

Tempest had been a soldier for most of her life. Since she had been picked by the Storm King when she was little, she had been trained day and night to become what she is today. Throughout her time in the army, she had personally lead campaigns against anyone the king wants to conquer. She had seen soldiers from both sides fight till the very end with brutal efficiency. Granted, there were a few things she had regretted doing under the Storm King's banner, but she had ultimately redeemed herself in the end.

Now, looking at the Roman soldiers standing in their strange formation, she was ultimately impressed.

Lucius, the so-called "Legate" of the "Roman" legion, spoke to the caribou general for a while. She had managed to pick up some chatter here and there, the words "glorious king" and "rebel" thrown around a lot. It was, for the most part, boring as the caribou boasted about his king and his "liberation of the male spirit". Lucius, for his part, kept putting on a straight face despite the big caribou near him. After some back and forth, Helgrad declared that he will kill his men. Not long after his declaration, he commented on his bravery and that he will "record it".

After that, Lucius returned to his soldiers and started a fiery speech that seemed to have an effect on the men as they stood there ready to take the brunt of the enemy force. Lucius, from her one time meeting him, was completely different from the king she served before. He really did care for his men and would do anything to make sure they come back safe from whatever nation they were from. The soldiers themselves were all willing to die for him if need be.

Helgrad shouted his command to charge and the caribou soon charged the Romans with nothing more than bloodlust in their eyes. Despite the forces being even in terms of forces, the caribou's slight heavy stature would intimidate even the bravest of creatures. Of course, she had taken down a number of them since this all started, but they were tougher than they looked. She had expected the Roman soldiers to break rank and fight to the death once the battle had started.

Then Lucius yelled out "DEFENSIVE TESTUDO!"

Almost immediately, the soldiers in the front of the line aligned their large rectangle shields, with the ones in front planting their shields to the ground while the others were connecting to the ones in front of them. This happened all in the spam of five seconds, meaning that the soldiers were more drilled in the art of war than the average Equestrian. It looked like scales from where she was at. She had never seen this type of maneuver.

The caribou barbarians soon clashed with the formation, and to her surprise it held. The caribou for their part were both confused and frustrated. They tried to chip away at the defense by hacking away at the shields but to no avail. One got the smart idea of grabbing the shield in front of the soldiers. The caribou almost succeeded, but he was soon stabbed in the chest by a Roman soldier wielding those small swords of theirs, or "gladius's" as they were called. That didn't stop the others from trying the same tactic as their fallen brethren. The Romans, for their part, either stabbed or slashed at the aggressors with little effort on their part. Piles upon piles of dead caribou littered the ground. They even moved several inches closer when the caribou started to move back. She knew they wanted to retreat, but knowing the reputation of the Hammer, it would be impossible.

"Fifteen Denari."

Turning her head, she found Lucus' second in command, Validus, beside her as he was watching the battle with a predatory look in his eyes. It was like that of a lion that had found a tasty meal all alone on the savannah. "Come again?" She asked.

"You fucking deaf?" Validus looked at her, the once predatory gaze he once held now turned to one of minor annoyance. "I said I bet you fifteen Denari that I get more kills than you." He said, his face turning into a grin. "It's always tradition within the commanders of the legion to bet on which one gets the most kill." He pointed to Lucius's bodyguard, Oriana, as she stood by his side at the end of the shield formation. "Oriana got the most kills last time when we were in Britianna. Bitch got lucky, I'd say."

Tempest still looked at him like one of those crazy preachers in Trottingham who spout out how much Celestia is a god. "I don't have what you would call a "denari"." She said. "The only thing we have close to it are gold bits." At least the gold bits were more valuable than the "Storm coins" that the Storm King issued as currency within his empire.

They were pretty much as valuable as a bottle cap.

He shrugged. "Fine. Fifteen bits say that I kill more caribou than you." He stretched out his arm towards her, his palm open. "Deal?"

"It's a deal." She shook his hand. Another thought entered her mind. "Wait, why would we be needing to kill. Your soldiers are doing fine at the moment."

As if to answer her question, the sound of a horn had been blown. She saw Oriana holding the horn right to her lips.

Validus smirked. "The real fun is about to start."

Lucius watched from the back of the testudo as the cohort kept on the defensive. They even gained several inches amidst the piles of dead bodies in their wake. He was impressed by the legion's progress so far. He had expected a considerable number of casualties on the cohorts side once the battle first began. Despite the caribou's lack of control when it came to the battle, the sheer size of the beasts was something to consider as a weakness. When he had first given the order for the testudo formation, he had thought that the caribou would throw themselves at the shield and breakthrough after some time.

To his surprise, the caribou haven't even broken through the shield wall the cohort had set up.

He would have expected something like this to happen. The caribou knew nothing of Roman tactics and defensive strategies that had forged a simple city into a powerful empire. While the caribou themselves have some numbers on their side, along with battle-hardened soldiers, the Romans themselves have fought endless wars against all foes from all sides. His legion was no different, having been in the thick of it since he started to take command of the legion. For the legion, it was just another day at the front.

The constant back and forth between the legion and the caribou had been going on for some time, with the caribou take massive casualties the first time around. They had resulted in trying and grabbing the shields of the frontline legionnaires, but their efforts would be in vain as the legion fought back by thrusting their swords or using pilas as spears towards the caribou.

In the back, he could see the caribou general barking orders in his strange language, his face contorted into rage and disbelief. A group of hooded individuals stood beside him, still almost like statues.

'This has gone on long enough' He had thought. While he wanted to continue the battle long enough to see who will stand victorious, he didn't want to be in this cursed forest as much longer as anyone else. Plus, he didn't want to get the hooded figures a chance to cast whatever magic they had under their belt. He looked over to see Oriana already loading an arrow into the notch of the bow. "Ready?" He asked. She looked over with grim determination on her face and nodded. "Good. Sound the horn." She moved her left hand behind her lower back and grasped a goat horn a moment later. She pressed it against her lips and blew it with all her might.

With the sound of the horn, the carnage began.

Arrows soon flew from every direction as the archers in his legion opened up on the horde of caribou. The archers in his company are said to be the decedents of Cretean's finest, ones that have once served Alexander the Great. Now, the deadly archers were under his command and fired with such accuracy that any existing archers within the legion would be put to shame. Several groups of caribou were slaughtered before another volley fired away. The general had a surprised look on his face.

Lucius pulled out his sword from its scabbard and yelled "CHARGE" as he started to run across the battlefield to join his soldiers. From his side, he heard two arrows flying next to him, hitting an unfortunate caribou in his head and his heart. Lucius engaged with one of the creatures that wielded a large sword. He swung the blade down towards him, but he had managed to step to the side in time. The caribou heaved it up and started to repeat the process, but he had never finished as he slashed his sword across his exposed belly and slicing it open. His guts spilled out and fell to the ground. The caribou, with pain in face, kneeled down and gripped his stomach. Lucius finished it off by thrusting his sword into his head. His body soon hit the ground facing upward as he kicked the body off of him. His sword was covered in blood and brain matter. Seeing this as an opportunity, the legion went out of its testudo formation and charged at the confused caribou soldiers. It wasn't before they threw their pilas into the caribou did they engage in bloody combat.

He looked to see Validus and Tempest joining the battle as well, while Oriana shot arrows at any soldier within her range. Validus rushed in and stabbed a caribou warrior in the sides as the creature was about to finish off a downed Roman soldier. Without hesitation, he slashed another caribou that was unfortunately in his way. His wide grin present as he gutted another caribou with a two-handed axe on him. Tempest threw strange glowing balls from somewhere, blinding any unfortunate soldier caught within its range. It hit some of his soldiers as well, but the caribou were still affected by the objects. This allowed some of the unaffected Roman soldiers to finish them off. After she ran out of said objects, she drew her sword and decapitated the head of a warrior that didn't see it coming. In the furry of battle, she slashed left and right, killing or at least wounding any caribou soldier near her. She blocked every swing and slash with a graceful ease of a Thracian dancer.

Facing an attack from all sides, the caribou soldiers started to turn and run, leaving their wounded comrades to their fate.

Lucius couldn't help but smile as the warriors retreated with tails between their legs. His legionnaires had managed to wipe out half of their forces with minimal casualties on their side. If the caribou were easy to defeat, then this war is already won. "GET BACK AND FIGHT, YOU COWARDS!" Helgrad furiously yelled as he stood at attention, his face red hot with anger and embarrassment. He started swinging his hammer at the few retreating caribou, its runes glowing brightly as each target was hit. "MAGES, DESTROY THOSE MONKEYS!"

The robed individuals, who have stood in the sidelines since the battle began now started to take action. The horns on each of their heads started to glow a bright orange. Lucius, upon seeing the pedicle, didn't take him long to connect the dots. The hooded people had something to do with this "magic" Tempest mentioned earlier. He could try to reach them and distract them long enough for his legion to rally, but the problem is that the mages were some feet away. Even if he would try to reach them, whatever magic they would cast would still hit him and his men. Plus, some of the caribou were still fighting his legion, either in hopes of stalling them until their soldiers got away or fighting to take out as many men as possible.

He cursed the gods and himself for not seeing it sooner. He wasn't a perfect commander by far. There were even times where he had miscalculated a battle that nearly got his legion wiped out. This failure, however, might be his downfall.

A caribou warrior came at him with a bellowing war cry. He barely had enough time to raise his sword to his face to defend himself. He carried only one sword in his hand as he aggressively attacked him. The caribou raised his sword over his head to slash down on his head, but it was all the opening he needed. He thrust his sword into his stomach like the last warrior he did it on. The caribou felt the pain in his abdominal region and dropped his sword. Before he could clinch it, Lucius swung he blade vertically and immediately killed him.

An explosion sounded near him. Looking to his left, he saw a scorched patch of burnt grass near the trees. Several of his legionnaires layed there withering and moaning, some of them had burnt skin across their arms and faces. Another explosion sounded off a second latter. He looked again to find another patch of scorched grass like the last one. Thankfully, it seemed like it missed some soldiers by a margin. "Where's that damn calvary at?!?!" He shouted over the carnage. He was currently that the Equites would be charging a second ago after his archers fired the first volley.

The ground under his feet exploded, and he was thrown off to the side.

He blinked as he tried to figure out what happened. Red blurry images entered his vision while his ears ringed like crazy. He blinked several times as his image returned. He could see explosions all over the place and his men lying on the ground moaning. He couldn't see any dead bodies form his direction, but he assumed the worse. Images of what happened before hit him like an ox running through an Athenian antique shop.

Before he could get up, A shadow loomed over him. He turned his head to see one of the mages was standing over him with a smirk on his face, already forming a fireball on top of his horn. His lips moved, but he couldn't hear anything. Over in the distance, he could see Oriana and Tempest running towards him. He knew it was meant for him. He cursed the gods and all that they have done to him so far.

Before the fireball was launched at him, the sound of galloping hooves on pavement sounded. The mage looked behind him just in time for a spear to plunge into his head and his lifeless body dragged through the ground as the equities charged. A legionnaire with a centurion helmet on his head rode a fair brown mare with a blonde mane and tail. His fair features, along with his sea-green eyes, looked at the Legate before him. With one fell swoop, he used his spear to thrown the lifeless mage to the sides. "Sorry we are late." Centurian Favious Comminus Sarius, leader of the Equities, said in a voice similar to the nobles living in Rome. "We had a little trouble with some ghastly creature that nearly turned one of my men into stone." He took off his helmet and comb his hair with his left hand, his short and curly blonde hair nearly shining in the daylight. "Go thing I was swift enough to decapitate it before it caused any more damage."

"Duly noted." Lucius said as he started to get up. His body screamed in protest, the burns on his legs not doing any wonders. He looked on to the battle that was still going on. His cavalry had managed to break through the foliage and charged at the remaining caribou soldiers that haven't retreated. The mages that were once in the back were reduced to a few as the charge from earlier broken their ranks. With their magical support gone, and being attacked from both sides, the caribou had decided that it wasn't worth hunting down these rebels and ran away. The cavalry pursued them without mercy. He couldn't see the general anywhere. The coward must have runoff.

The last of the caribou in his field of vision were finished off. The rest had run away in random directions. All around him, the soldiers were already cheering.

He couldn't help but smile. Victory was finally theirs. The gods were not done with him yet.

"What are our loses?" Lucius questioned Validus as he sat upon a stump. A medic was already attending to his burning wounds by applying oil and other essentials. He winced as the medical oil he had forgotten the name of stang his skin like a knife gently applying to a particular part of the skin. The wound itself wasn't too bad, as there were only burnt marks on the side of his left arm and right leg. He would be able to walk and fight again, but the medic insisted that the oil must be applied for a while before his wounds would fully heal.

The battle was over, and the Roman legion triumphed over its mysterious foe. Right now, the legion was scattering the battlefield for any wounded caribou to put down, while also scavaging the carnage for weapons and armor that may be of use. While it was against Rome law to scavage the battlefield like a pack of looters, they were in unknown territory with an unknown enemy. They need all the equipment they can get. Meanwhile, Lucius was sitting on a stump while being attended to by a local medicus. Along with Validus, Tempest was also beside him. Blood had coated her armor, almost mistaking it for her dark purple coat. She had a few scars around her neck and hands.

"None, sir." Validus spoke. "We have a dozen wounded from external burns, but other than that we don't have a single casualty." He looked up in the canopy. "Mars was definitely on our side today."

"Who is this Mars?" Tempest asked.

"The god of war." Lucius answered her as the last of the wraps were wrapped around his arm. "Every Roman commander would be a fool not to pray to Mars for glory and victory." Before the caribou had charged the cohort's lines, he made a silent prayer to Mars for a swift victory. The medicus nodded as he moved away from the group and onto the next group of soldiers in need of treatment. "In any case, it is a victory well deserve." He looked at Tempest as her opal blue eyes scanned his wrapped arm. "Don't worry. The medicus say it's a flesh wound." He said. "I can still fight if you are asking about that."

She shrugged. "It's more along the lines of if you want to fight at all." She looked at him with a hard look in her eyes. "You saw what those mages did to your men on the battlefield. You are extremely lucky that they only wounded your men."

"It was.....unexpected. I have to admit." Lucius admitted. "But I am still alive, and I can thank the gods for that." Indeed, he was lucky that the so-called "mages" had missed his men and only wounding them in the process. By Hades, he was surprised that there wasn't a single casualty on his side during the fight itself. While he would have dismissed it as what Tempest had said, he couldn't help but feel that something was watching over them. Whether it was the gods themselves or something else, he didn't care. As long as he was breathing, he couldn't complain.

After all, if anything the battle was flawless in his book.

"Regardless, what you did today was risky." Tempest continued. "The king now knows you are here, and he will likely send a huge army to find you."

"Then we will be prepared." He raised himself up from the stump. "You have already seen my men in action. Do you trust us now?"

Tempest bit her lip. "I must admit; your men were definitely professional when the battle first began. It takes a lot of discipline, even in the heat of battle. Those formations you did and the orders you gave give me the impression you lead your soldiers into war one too many times." She then gave Lucius a soft look, almost as if a weight had been lifted from her shoulders; if only by a little. "So yes. I trust you and your men." Her look soon turned into a glare. "However, that doesn't mean that I won't trust you personally. I'll still keep my eye on you just in case."

He nodded. "That is fair." He rolled his shoulders, feeling the cracks and the adjustment of his joints. It hurt like Hades. Gods, he hated being old. "Validus, order the men to gather whatever supplies they could find and meet us back at the camp. We are getting ready to move out."

Validus pumped his fist to his left breast and said "Yes, sir." He turned around and started to bark orders to the cohort. The words "Fuck", "Whores", and something about chopping the heads off of any lazy soldiers and stuffing them into an ox's ass rang around the battlefield.

"He seems like a.......nice fellow." Tempest commented as she saw Validus yelling like a Suebian warrior drunk on wine.

Lucius shrugged. "You get used to him. Besides, he and Oriana got me this far." He turned to Tempest. "We should return to camp with the good news. My soldiers need some good news after this whole debacle." After being in the forest for gods know how long, his men need any good news they could get.

Tempest nodded. "We should. I'll take you to the resistance base once your men packed up everything." With a silent confirmation, she and Lucius walked towards the direction where his base was. He had to admit, this expedition was a complete disaster. They are far from home and surrounded by an enemy whose powers dwarfed that of any man. Stranded in a forest that was supposed to be dangerous, he didn't think for a second that his legion would survive the encounter. Yet they were triumphant in their battle with the caribou, a sign that the gods had not abandoned them entirely. It seemed the gods were watching him the entire time and gave him luck.

The question he had on his mind was for how long?

Reminded of his earlier conversation, he turned to the battlefield to find his bodyguard. While there were many men scrounging whatever they could find, finding a blonde Germanic woman wouldn't be that hard to find. Yet she was not here.

'Where the bloody hell is that women?' He thought.