Stories Thread

[navarro951]

Inside the 1st Lydians Fort...day before their last battle.

Panaitolos' captain kneeled before him. The captain treated Panaitolos' knee wound. After finishing up, he bandaged the knee and sat next to the General.

"Think well make it out of this one General?"

Panaitolos chuckled"I think you and I both know well be living with Hades by night tomorrow."

The Captain turned to the General. He looked out on his men readying themselves for their last fight.

"So you request for mercenary troops was denied huh?" the captain inquired

"Yes, but reasonably so. I can imagine our rider was told something along the lines of "he got himself in this mess he can get himself out". Its too bad he probably wont make it in time to deliver the news. We may never really know."

The captain turned away from the general. Now viewing his troops as well.

"I had the men pack one item of importance to them and had the items snuck out to get to their families."

Panaitolos nods...

"Very good of you. Their will be many more widows soon, and it will be nice for their sons to have something they were here with." Panaitolos Sighs... "I cant decide now whether I came here for glory or for my men or for my country. Its not the same when you know you face death."

The captain unsheathed his sword. He ran a cloth across bringing it to a clean shine.

"I think tomorrow the answer to that will be simple. We will fight for us. You will fight for me, and I for you. And each man will have his last brother here at their last triumph."

The general turned to his captain...

"Suppose we will be remembered? Will their be a point here?"

"We will remember each other in the after life. Even their we will give our enemies hell."

They laughed and fell to silence, watching the sun fall behind the edge of the world. And Panaitolos breathed in his last whiff of truly peaceful air....

[Ibn-Khaldun]

Event 3: Rise of Persia!
Rules

The Old Magistrate, Aristenos, rushed through the corridors of the palace. He was frightend and his face looked pale. Almost near the Council Hall he stopped to catch his breath and then entered the Hall.

"Strategoi of the Council! I come bearing some shocking news! Persian rebels in Persepolis, Gabai, Karmana and Propthasia have taken to arms and overthrown our governors, killed our garrisons and declared themselves enemies to our kingdom!

I wish was all, but those Persians have accepted Pahlava as their protector and one Member of Pahlavan Royal Family have been named the King of Persia! I don't know what his name is but he should reach Persepolis soon,
and to make things even worse..." Aristenos stops and sighs... "these rebels have assassinated many of our Strategoi."

"The slain are many, but amongst them are the former satrap of Persis, Andromachos Syriakos, who had his heart pierced as archers bombarded his camp with arrows at night, were amongst the first to be murdered, but almost immediately afterwards Polyxenidos Lykikos and Apelles Iliou Troikou had their throats cut by some hired blades while they were inspecting the defence of Babylon. Anaxarchos Kyrrhestikes Syriakes were next in line when he swam in the Tigris river, while Hamaktyon Nikopoleos Syriakes was poisoned in Damaskos. Lastly..." Aristenos makes another pause... "Lastly the Basileus' own brother, Theodoros Syriakos, was murdered in Phoinike while he was hunting. He got separated from his bodyguards, and by the time they got to him, he was already dead: pierced repeatedly by many swords."

Aristenos lowers his head and shakes it lightly.

"May the gods show mercy on us, for we might be seeing another Rise of Persia!"

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

Story is written with The Celtic Viking

[Cultured Drizzt fan]

Wasted time?
His feet were kicked languidly on the desk in front of him and he shifted through the piles of paperwork, all of them bearing official seals. His face was full of vitality as he gazed at documents most other men would think of as boring. Behind him a man stood face stern with a silver studded sword strapped to his belt.
“Patrokles the last troops have been levied; there really is no point to staying here in Selukeia as a paper-pusher. We have much bigger things to do, the Phalavans await !” his eyes gazed hungrily to the east.
“Hyllos I want this military post as much as anyone. But your blood thirst does surprise me, never have I seen a man so eager to walk to his own possible death? Hmm. However, the Arche is not just properly served by rushing off into battle against its enemies; it is served by making sure it runs properly! Bureaucracy is key to our continued prosperity. “
Hyllos smirked, his arms crossing over his chest, “so says Patrokles, a man already famous in Selukeia for running at the first sign of a nobleman. Or perhaps even worse a noblewoman!”
Patrokles brow furrowed “we both know that I don’t have the tact to stay in with the nobles, they are to frivolous, to ready to strangle me with my own words. Perhaps I will never have the same influence in the court as others, but again I could care less. I can rule but I can not speak, I am quickly finding a large difference between the two…”
Hyllos smirk widens “words to live by.” His face goes blank once again “but my friend, I feel as though we are spending to much time here, every second in this city is a second not spent securing the east, which is I might add the reason we are here in the first place.”
Patrokles sighs, “Fine, fine, you are right. I took command of the 1st Babylonian to save the Arche, and that is what I shall do.” He grins, “Though I fear the city has spoiled me! How can I go back to the road when I can live a cushy life as a governor?”
Hyllos smiles as well “sloth has never been you vice Patrokles, something I deeply admire in you!”
Patrokles shrugs “to right, it seems I choose the road. Go to the troops, its time they knew what they are going to have to live like as a soldier in this army! Its time to prove my devotion, its time to make my name!”
Hyllos rubs his hand together eagerly and rushes out of the room his last words being “Hail the Arche!”
Patrockles smiled “hail the Arche!” He looked back at the piles of paperwork on his desk, almost reaching down to sort it and organize it…
He shrugs, let the next bureaucrat deal with it.

[Cultured Drizzt fan]

The Road Not Taken:

"We are at a crossroads Patrokles." Hyllos face was slightly dirty from the roads grime, his sword still slung in easy reach, “the reports filtering in place Sokrab e Zandig’s army at almost three times our number. Even I am not eager to go to battle against that force. Even I am not so bloodthirsty.”
Patrokles laughs “ I am glad you finally see the light my friend. This is a serious thing, this isn’t some rebellion, this is a trained army. If we march to battle against them people will die.” Patrokles sits and places his head in his hands “but we could take them, I have to believe that. We were recruited to fight the Phalavans, and so that is what we shall do.”
Hyllos leaned against a tent, “we do have another option, let Phanias deal with Sokrab and head to Persepolis, wait until the army is dealt with and then move on to our objective.” Hyllos shrugs “his royal army could make short work of him.”
Patrokles smirks “you are singing quite a different tune compared to how you were acting when we were in Selukeia,” “then all you could talk about was getting on the road, about taking the fight to the Phalavans.”
Hyllos casts his gaze to the ground “that was when I was talking as your friend, now I am talking as your bodyguard. You could get yourself killed in this battle. And where would that leave me, with a shattered disheartened army that would probably disintegrate in days.” Hyllos crossed his arms across his chest. “Like or not those men out there aren’t as important as you.”
Patrokles grins wiry “perhaps it would be best not to say that to their face." patrokles face crinkles "I am starting to think our roles have reversed, I am the one eager for battle while you try and hold me back.” “You are however forgetting something Hyllos.”
Hyllos looks up “what is that?”
“You always win those arguments, and we always end up marching into battle.” Patrokles whistles to one of the captains “get the army ready, we are marching into Gabai! For the Arche!” Patrokles walks away, still leaving Hyllos against the wall.
For almost an hour, Hyllos leans there until finally, “Damn, he’s right!” Hyllos exclaimed, “I really need to get back to winning these arguments.”

[Cultured Drizzt fan]

Gabai:
The people stood behind closed doors, their fear palpable throughout the city, the first Babylonian kept the city under tight watch. With curfew and martial law imposed until the Arche could bring in a more stable government. Patrokles stood in the governor’s manor watching darkness unfold across the buildings.
“They are afraid of us… Why is that Hyllos, we came here to save them. And yet they sit in their houses terrified.” Patrokles face crinkled in confusion.
Hyllos laughed “come on Patrokles, these are the very people who rebelled against us. Can you honestly say you care if they are scared of us or not?”
“These aren’t the ones who rebelled; these are the town folk, the people who had no hope of standing up to the armed Phalavans. And because of that I do care if they are terrified of us.” Patrokles looked over to Hyllos.
“Those town people don’t care who their leaders are, do you think their life was any worse under the Phalavans? It was exactly the same, the same distant uncaring government.” Hyllos snorted.
“And why is that? Why doesn’t the government care Hyllos? Aren’t we here fighting for the good of those people and that government? Your logic seems flawed.”
“All right, let me put it like this the Arche is huge, it cant catter to the will of all of its people. To these people right here it seems as though no one cares about them, that the only reason we are here is simply to keep an iron fist over them.” Hyllos shook his head.
Patrokles head shook and he stood staring at the city a while longer before saying, “you know, Hyllos I never have asked you where you grew up.”
“Babylon, The greatest city in the world! That’s what my parents always said. I love it there..” Hyllos looked back to the west
“and yet you are the one who hurried me out of the fertile crescent, you are a strange man Hyllos.”
“maybe, but at least I know what I want in life. Maybe you should try and figure out what you do.” Hyllos grinned and walked out of the room
Patrokles sat, and thought.

[Βελισάριος]

A few miles away from Petra.

"That's the last of them, sir." One of the Companions approached Hierax and pointed in the distance to where the corpse of a Ptolemaic soldier lay with about three arrows in his back. "The others are too far away for our infantry to reach them, shall I order my men to pursue?"

"No," was the young general's half-whispered reply. For a moment he seemed to ignore his adjutant, but then he continued: "Let them rest, there will be plenty of bloodshed to come."

The elder soldier could sense the tension in his voice and he approached. "My general, what ails?" and as he drew closer, it became clear what the cause of this nervousness was. The soldier followed Hierax's gaze to a spot in the blood-stained sand where, half-burried, lay the torn body of the enemy general, Paramonos Philopator.

"He was a great general." The Hetairos said, more in acknowledgment of Hierax than of the deceased.

"Far greater than I." was the disappointed reply.

"Yet he was not my general." Firmly stated the soldier. This made his young commander finally turn from the body to face his lieutenant. "And it is you, general... my general who earned victory today. It was you... it was your hand with this very sword that slew this titan." And he grabbed his general's arm and held it towards the heavens. "It was your strong arm that led us, your mighty sword that brought us victory. Glory to thee, my general!"

Hierax peered into his loyal soldier's eyes and only nodded in acknowledgment. "Bring me a messenger," he said "I must notify the Basileus."

"Aye, sir." He let go of Hierax's arm and hurried to carry out his orders. But the young general still held his arm up, and beyond the blade of his sword, just over the weapon's sharp edge he could see a shadow forming in the violent storm, a hardly discernible figure but he knew immediately what it was- Petra. The city that had caused his brothers in arms so much grief, whose armies his father had fought for years. Now, it lay within his grasp- within the reach of his sword.

"You shall bring me glory."

[Cultured Drizzt fan]

Home:
Patrokles stands outside of his tent surveying the great army before him, Hyllos stood at his back
"You know Patrokles; you never told me where you came from either."
Patrokles looked back smiling "your right Hyllos, My father is from Macedonia, and a military man who had served the arche for much of his life, he was always on the road. My mother is a native, from" Patrokles smirked "Babylon, Ironic isn’t it Hyllos. I spent the first 10 years of my life in Babylon, and I have to agree with your parents, it is the best city in the world, I will always remember it fondly as my home."
Hyllos laughed, “This wouldn’t happen to be the reason it was so hard to get you out of that dusty desk in Babylon would it?”
Patrokles laughed as well, “perhaps it was Hyllos, and perhaps it was. In fact, I wouldn’t mind heading back their,” Patrokles smirked at bit mischievously. “Once the Phalavan campaign is over we will see it again Hyllos, I can promise that.”
Patrokles sighed Hyllos frowned and looked over “what’s wrong?”
“I was just thinking how much about me has changed since I started serving the arche as a general, but enough of that, keep the men in line while I am at the council. And Hyllos”
“yes?”
“Send A messenger to Liatus, ask him to await us in Babylon, I need to talk to him on my way to the council.”