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Anno Domini 828,June-4-9
"Please, afenti. We did what you asked of us. Why are you going to execute those who supported you in this fight?" said one of the Greeks of the city, pleading for the lives of the hundreds of arrested n who were already being lined up for hanging.
"I gave clear orders. I did not want unnecessary deaths. Those were the orders of a strategos of the Empire, backed by the imperial throne. If I order you to stop, you stop," I replied in an icy voice.
"I beg you for rcy, please. rcy. We have suffered too much under the Sarakenoi, and many could not restrain themselves. My own sister was raped and forced to marry one of them," he said through tears.
"And that is supposed to change sothing? I gave orders, and you chose to disobey them." I made a gesture with my hand, and one of my n kicked the chair out from under several of the guilty, one by one.
The rope tightened. So were not fortunate enough to have their necks break instantly and began kicking at the air, struggling against the noose tightened around their necks.
I made sure everyone saw what was happening. I gathered a large portion of the collaborators so they would understand the price of acting without authorization.
When the last of the hanged n stopped moving, I ordered the next group to be brought forward. Unlike the previous group, who had murdered defenseless civilians and raped won, these n had simply disobeyed in combat by killing surrendered soldiers.
"Do you know why we are hanging them, or did you never understand?" I said from my chair, looking at one of them as the noose was placed around his neck after he was lifted up.
"For giving those Sarakenoi the sa treatnt," he replied, looking at defiantly.
"It goes far beyond that. You ignored the order to stop killing them. Do you know how much each one is worth in the market? Ten gold coins per head. You cost the imperial war effort thousands of nomismata just to satisfy your rage." I placed my foot on the chair and made it wobble. The man began to hyperventilate.
I looked at the other fifty who were about to be hanged and did the sa to each one, holding the chair steady with my foot while they breathed uncontrollably and squeezed their eyes shut.
"I feel rciful. Your offense was serious, but not as grave as that of the previous group. Take them down. You and the rest will stand as a warning. The next ti you ignore , that will be your fate. My orders are law, unless the Basileus Rhōmaiōn says otherwise," I said, pointing at the hanged n swaying in the wind coming off the sea.
My n obeyed. They cut the ropes and freed the rest. The families of the hanged n removed the bodies to perform their funerary rites. I had no interest in letting them rot and contaminate the area.
"So, what do we do now?" Sigurd asked, visibly satisfied.
"See if we can repeat this elsewhere. They are already condemned. When the Abbasids try to retake the city, they will have to withstand a siege. If they surrender, they will all be put to the knife. We can use this place as a base of operations, both on land and at sea. The more cities we take, the greater the pressure," I replied as we walked toward the harbor.
"You know, my niece distinguished herself in battle. She killed three Sarakenoi in her first real fight," Sigurd said with obvious pride.
"She has proven herself in combat. Let us hope she can keep up and that she is not discovered, because I will not be able to do anything if that happens," I replied without stopping.
When we reached the harbor, I observed a couple of Sarakenoi military ships. Aside from those, only rchant vessels remained, which had already been sent back to Crete to be integrated into my comrcial fleet.
I had already begun organizing the loot using so n I had kept in reserve for those tasks, the few who could read and write and who were useful for maintaining control of my loot ledgers.
We spent five full days like that, counting gold and silver, jewels, weapons, fabrics, and the possessions of the Sarakenoi rchants. Since we had been forced to spare much of the city, the loot had not been as substantial as I would have liked, but at least the Varangians seed satisfied. For them, who had arrived with lower expectations than mine, the expedition had been a success. The jarls, above all, were pleased with the number of prisoners they had managed to capture, since that was what they valued most: labor.
At last, we rested. The heat was suffocating during the day, so we made use of that ti while our networks of informants continued to work. Information began to circulate, the idea that we had co to free them from the Sarakenoi yoke spread slowly, and at the sa ti we prepared shipnts of weapons to introduce into other cities. The goal was to infiltrate my trusted officers and coordinate internal attacks when the ti ca.
"Strategos, an army is at our gates," one of my officers said upon arriving, his voice clearly tense.
"Good. It seems we finally got the attention we wanted," I replied with a faint smile. "Give orders for only a couple hundred n to take the walls. I need them to believe we are few. And tonight, do not light many fires. Share the hearths. I do not want them to be able to count how many we are."
I walked toward the walls as the orders were passed along.
At the news of the enemy army, my n began to move. They prepared arrows and bolts, set out cauldrons of water ready to be boiled if necessary, and began prying stones from the pavents to have missiles to throw if they attempted an assault.
Only a couple hundred n deployed on the walls, just enough to observe.
From there, the enemy's overwhelming nurical superiority was obvious. In open ground, they would have crushed us without difficulty. At a glance, I could tell they outnumbered us at least two to one, perhaps more, and a large part of their force consisted of cavalry.
I ordered an imperial banner to be raised in full view, the double headed eagle, as we watched the Sarakenoi forces deploy before the city. A few minutes passed until at last an emissary approached carrying a white flag, requesting parley.
"Why have you rebelled against the rule of our caliph?" the envoy asked in Arabic.
"There has been no rebellion here, Sarakenoi. The city fell under siege while you limited yourselves to watching from afar," I replied in Arabic, deliberately using the Greek term to refer to them.
"Impossible. The request for aid arrived four days ago," the envoy shouted, clearly agitated.
"It becos possible when you catch guards asleep at their posts and they fail to notice us placing ladders against the walls while they sleep peacefully, just before we slit their throats," I answered with a sarcastic tone.
"Damned infidel," the envoy spat before turning around and returning to his army.
It did not take long for them to begin taking positions for a siege, blocking the gates. However, sothing caught my attention imdiately. Everything seed rushed. They did not dig trenches or raise palisades. They did not secure the encirclent as experience in sieges dictated, which suggested they were planning sothing foolish.
For hours we watched the Sarakenoi set up their camp, while at the sa ti preparing basic siege equipnt. So approached to try to asure the walls, but they only received arrows that forced them to withdraw. Even so, they tried again and again, taking asurents however they could.
Taking advantage of the mont, I sent a ssage to the strategos of Cyprus. It was likely that the Abbasid fleet would try to blockade the port if given the chance, so I asked him to patrol the area with his ships and prepare in case an opportunity arose for a naval engagent between our fleets and the Abbasid one.
The ssage was sent aboard a drakkar, so there would be no chance of the ship being intercepted.
anwhile, we continued observing the Sarakenoi attempts to prepare battering rams to strike the gates. In response, I gave the order to reinforce the doors and place wooden support beams so they would hold for as long as possible. At the sa ti, we prepared enormous quantities of arrows on the walls, along with bolts, and left several crossbows ready to be loaded by those not actively fighting on the battlents.
The night passed with relative calm. I left only a few dozen guards on watch, but with several rotations so the watches would be short and fatigue avoided, thus reducing the risk of a night assault.
Apparently, the Abbasids decided not to launch any night attack. They limited themselves to continuing work on their ladders and battering rams, while we began setting up barricades inside the walls, anticipating the possibility that the gates might be breached. Upon inspection, it was clear they did not look particularly solid, and there was not enough ti to replace them or install an iron grille as reinforcent. We simply did not have a forge large enough to do that work in such a short ti.
Sooner than I would have expected, we noticed the Sarakenoi beginning to form up. They already had ladders and a battering ram ready, which indicated they would attempt an all or nothing assault against one of the gates, though they would likely also press other points to disperse our forces.
We placed pavises on the battlents to improve protection against projectiles and began distributing double rations of food. The battle seed destined either to be decided quickly or to drag on, depending entirely on the decisions of the Sarakenoi general, especially if he realized we were not the re hundreds he thought we were.
Before the attack began, a group approached carrying flags of parley.
I watched as they rode forward to a safe distance, and one of them began to shout.
"I offer you an honorable surrender. If you lay down your weapons and armor, I will grant you fair terms, infidels," said the Sarakenoi leader.
"Well… those are very generous terms, truly," I replied, drawing my sword and placing it on the wall. "Co and take it," I shouted back, pointing to it.
"Brave words for a dead man. When this is over, I will have you chained by sunset, infidel," the Sarakenoi leader shouted.
"Whatever you say, Sarakenoi. I wish you luck. You are going to need it," I replied in a sarcastic tone, and after that he returned to his camp.
"Good. The idiot is going to throw his n into a slaughterhouse. Put seawater in the pots and start boiling it. Archers, stay on the stairways of the walls. The mont they get close to the walls, everyone up to defend them," I began issuing orders as we watched the Sarakenoi.
The water quickly began to boil. Most of my n remained hidden while thousands upon thousands of Sarakenoi advanced slowly.
We let them co closer. Apparently, they had not planned mobile defenses and wanted to retake the city at any cost. I assud it was so they would not look like fools before their caliph, since if word reached their lord that their cities had fallen in a single day due to poor leadership, their heads would likely roll. It had to be that, unless he had so other idea.
The Sarakenoi began to run.
"Now. Co on. To the walls. At the very least we can kill a few hundred," I shouted to my n.
The sound of the drum echoed, and several of my n began climbing to the walls carrying bows or crossbows.
The archers nocked arrows and began firing in loose, uncoordinated volleys, forcing the enemy to keep their shields raised. It was less lethal than a tight volley, but effective at striking legs.
At the first rain of arrows, several Sarakenoi fell to the ground, wounded or dead.
The sound of bowstrings echoed along the walls, mixed with the cries of the Sarakenoi who were beginning to reach the base of the fortifications.
Ladders began to go up.
Instantly, the Sarakenoi tried to climb, but bolts pierced them cleanly from the sides. Rocks split their skulls. The ladders were failing.
"Sigurd, with ," I said as I grabbed one of the ladders that had been set too long.
"Yes," the Varangian replied.
"Now," I shouted.
We shoved with all our strength, and the ladder, with several n still climbing and others holding it, ca crashing down. I watched as the Sarakenoi slamd into the ground.
"Let's see how many we can kill," I said with a smile.
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If there are spelling mistakes, please let know.
Leave a comnt; support is always appreciated.
I remind you to leave your ideas or what you would like to see.
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