Abmon

Prolog

The Roman army is at the top of our valley preparing for battle. We are making our own preparations, preparations for war! Rome has extended its arm far, a little too far; it is time for us to fight, fight for our Freedom, our people, and our country. They have the superior numbers and war machines but we have a fighting spirit that far surpasses theirs; for we are fighting for our friends, families, and homes. They are only fighting under command of a officer and don't want to be here hundreds of miles from their homes.

While we are discussing defensive strategies and organizing troops the pathetic Romans are enjoying sleep and a ration of meat and cheese. Our men are sending parties to set up a defended area full of traps and dug in militia, Rome is busy setting up their tents and making minor fortifications vastly overconfident of their army. Our militia is working on putting up a temporary wall for the town to protect us against attack. The wall is basic but should suffice because when it is complete we will get to work on a more permanent fortification. Our militia is 2,000 strong and we have a small chance of victory against the 6,000 Roman soldiers.

The first wall is complete; its construction only took about 1 day of nonstop work. Now many of the workers are digging a system of tunnels that are hidden and can only be found if the enemy searches our capital building really well, as if. Other wise defense is based mainly on the traps that have been placed, the wall, and several small 1 man ballista. Our small town of Abmon is the only town we have and if need be we will fight to the last man to protect our claim.

We have sent another troop of soldiers to set up more fortifications and to block off the rest of the valley with traps and fortified dugouts plus they would refortify the traps that were already their. A messenger has just been sent by the Romans.

"Augustus demands your immediate surrender."

"He holds no power here."

"Then prepare to be destroyed."

News soon reached both sides and the reaction was the same, pure rage, the only difference was the direction of the rage. For the Abmonians the rage was directed at Julius Caesar for thinking that they would surrender . For the Roman commander the anger was directed at the town of Abmon and everyone in it for causing him to have to stay away from home for another night; as he sulked off to his tent a unusual feeling overtook him, nervousness.

The night was restless as everyone could not sleep for fear of the battle. The only people sleeping were those who where the first line of protection for the town. They slept peacefully knowing that they would need their strength to hold off the Romans for more than a few hours. They dream of reinforcements coming to their aid.

Far away another force is starting to mobilize. Instead of foot they travel on horse and will be able to reach the town of Abmon relatively quickly. They are armed to the teeth and will fight to protect their only remaining ally against the hordes of the enemy.

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First blood Abmon soldier

They are swarming down into the valley like an avalanche. We will try to hold them back, but even with our fearsome combat capabilities they shall not be stopped; it is for this reason and this reason only that our courage wavers. I can see them closing the gap between us.

"Prepare to engage the enemy!!!"

The soft murmuring of swords being drawn out of sheaths suddenly fills the crisp, clear air. A burst of exhilaration passes through me and all of the other soldiers. We can see the Romans in their clean bright uniforms just before they fall prey to our batteries of personal catapults. They are now in a state of confusion as they attempt to find their assailants.

Our camouflage is working they don’t suspect a thing. One comes so close that I could touch him, but it is not our time to strike. Now that they've passed we begin to follow them. When they see our hastily made wall they look confused. Unfortunately for them they can no longer gaze at it when we attack.

The first few go down without a fight but as we make our way farther and farther into them some are beginning to notice us. The goal of this mission is to capture the commanding officers in charge of the legion stationed here. Several Romans have raised the alarm and now our small group of 100 is facing of against 400 angry Romans in the middle of the forest.

For every soldier we take down two take their place. I am beginning to tire and so are all of the troops on both sides. There is only one difference, we have to keep fighting the Romans get to rest. Many of our personal catapults are running low on ammunition which are causing the catapult crews to search for more rocks and not fire as much. As night falls combat grows increasingly more one sided until we completely over power the besiegers and capture their commander.

Now that the battle is over the paramedics are completely wiped out trying to heal everyone who was injured. The fighting wasn’t just in our sector of the woods it also broke out along the northern wall and the woods surrounding the eastern wall. A total of 200 men were lost and 30 were from my battalion of 100. So many others were injured that they stopped counting after 500. Two prisoners were taken and are being interrogated while the villagers are building the thicker and higher.

The decision has been made that we will leave tomorrow night after releasing the prisoners back to the romans. Now that the wall is higher and thicker we should be able to escape with all of the crippled and elderly while the militia is leading the way and the soldiers are bringing up the rear. I take part in building up the wall and loading supplies before resting for the remainder of the night.

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Escape Abmon Soldier

The day of escaping from the town was perfect. A blanket of fog fell down into the valley blinding the Romans but giving us an advantage for we had lived here for so many generations that navigating the traitorous terrain was second nature. My battalion was at the rear of the formation which made our mission to defend the villagers from attack from the back and to go at the same rate of the slowest person while going fast enough to get away.

Several of the old people are riding military horses because they were slowing us down so much while others are actually leading the way for the inexperienced children. Charioteers are in front of everyone else to scout the surrounding area for a place to rest for the night.

Far behind us the noise of a war horn fills the air. The commander of our group knows what it means and tells us that the Roman soldiers have just attacked. When the news reaches the villagers they panicked and began going faster. Despite our best efforts they continued to rush ahead. After the ruckus died down we had to find a hidden place to camp before the fog blows away.

A galloping of hooves beneath our hidden ledge warns us to be quiet or the scouts will sound the alarm. Many are quiet fearing for their live while others whisper to each other in fear of their lives. Soon the scouts leave which allows for talking to begin. The enemies are close so we shush the chatter boxes on keep a sharp eye out for the roman infantry. In the first row there are vicious elite legionaries and behind them there are standard troops. Our problem is the elites if we can defeat the elites the remainder will hopefully surrender.

Day break at last. The sun is brushing the tip of the mountains which allows for us to escape while the Romans sleep unaware of their preys departure. Soon we encounter a river which gives us fresh water but also places a gruesome obstacle in the path.

All of the villagers are making rafts to send us down the river. My squadron is busy setting up fortifications in the hills and making camouflage netting for the rafts. When the Romans come only we will still be here to cover the villagers retreat. The best we can hope for is death in battle not capture.