Multiple authors story - write one paragraph each

[GiantMonkeyMan]

31

A slave! The embarresment of such a label. I was ashamed to say the least. Even more so when the brute cast me to the floor again as he pushed me towards a fur-covered tent, surrounded by several guards. He kicked me inside and I was powerless to resist, too tired from the endless walking and in desperate need of food. I was greeted, inside, by other such faces. Fellow soldiers who had been captured, or sent by the general to give falsified information. Slaves to a rabble of barbarians.

[Franconicus]

32

Odin, please assist me in misery!

The next night was the most terrible in my life. I will never forget. Even now, after a long time, I find sometimes awake by my own cries. From time to time some of these beastlike creatures came into the tent and picked one of my comrades. They luged him outside and soon afterwards I could hear how he was slaughtered. I'd liked to say that my comrades died like men, but actually they did not. They were crying for help, for mercy or for their mother. Some just cried because of pain. Their death was slow and painful. It lasted for hours and many lost their minds before they lost their lifes. One comrade after the other was picked and in the end I was the only one left. I expected to be the next. However, when the death cries of the last one had died nothing happened. I was alone until the next morning.

[Kagemusha]

33

As the cryes of my friends and brothers on arms silenced, i fell on somekind of hybernation. Suddenly strong arms crabbed me and i was pulled on the raw open air the sun shined straight to my eyes as i was dragged through the snow.
When the Tartars finally drop me to the ground i understand i was at the place where my brothers had been butchered.
The open field was coloured red by the now frozen blood.Human remains were scattered all around the field hands, legs heads and innerds of men. Some of the men where impaled and their now frozen faces where still showing the terrible agony before death had given them peace.
The whole enemy force was mounted or stood on around the butchering site.Armed and fully repaired to continue their hidious plans.
The enemy chief Balimir stood in center of the remains and talked to his men on loud clear voice.

"Sons of Steppe. Look carefully and see what happends to the enemies of the great Balimir! This army has been slain with little effort from our brave warriors.Soon we will go south and take the land of these weaklings.Soon our horses eat the grass of the gardens of these weak Romans."

Then Balimir turned around to face one of those poor men that had been impaled and to my terror i saw that the man was still alive.It was one of the Roman Centurions from our army.Balimir lowered his voice and talked to the man with his rusty form of Latins.

" And after our horses have taken their share of your pretty gardens. We will warm the beds of your women and your children will call us their father and they will learn the ways of true warriors".

With his last forces i saw the Centurion trying to spit on the face of the Tartar chief.But all that came out was blood.Balimir just smiled to the poor man and swept some blood from his face and tasted it. Then he turned around and next second his sword severed the head off from the brave Centurion, giving him the luxury of death.

[GiantMonkeyMan]

34

He turned to me, the centurions blood splattered across his face like the snow had splattered across mine in my people's retreat. He took a few steps forward with his sword at the ready. But first he was to taunt me, as he had to all those who died before me.

"You cowardly Roman dog," he said in atrocious Latin. Then he came closer, his mouth near my ear. "I will bed your wife with your children watching."

In pure anger and with the last of my hope dwindling I thrust with my head at him striking him in the face. His blood and my own drenched my features but I ignored that as i broke free from the guard who looked at me dumbstruck. The laughing barbarians had stopped laughing, as the crowd stops laughing in a colusseum when one of the beasts breaks free to the slaughter.

[Rodion Romanovich]

I dashed for a small forest nearby, still acting purely by instinct. I was surprised that I was still alive. What seemed even more surprising, was the fact that the enemy hadn't reacted until I had gotten several yards away from them. Then I heard a whistling sound through the air, and I instinctively bent down, seeing a crow-feathered arrow land in the snow ahead of me. Then came another one which, uncommon for these creatures, luckily happened to be less well aimed. Then I reached the first trees, trying to zig-zag so that the trees would cover me better, and make it more difficult for them to hit me. I heard hooves behind me, they had apparently started to come after me, when their arrows unexpectedly hadn't hit me. As I tried to look over my shoulder to see how far away they were, the ground disappeared under my feet. I flew through the air for a surprisingly long time, before I hit the ground again, gliding down a steep incline, tearing up small plants and earth as I tried to slow down the fall towards the ice below, but I realized I wouldn't be able to stop, I would crash through the ice and end up in the cold water. I closed my eyes.

[GiantMonkeyMan]

Chapter 2 (or 3? i am not sure):

The water was cold. And that was a major understatement. It felt like flames tearing at my skin, dragging me down until I could hardly move in it's icy grip. My lungs felt like they would collapse on themselves but i stayed under water so my recent captors would, hopefully, not see me. I felt the current tug at me and a lump of ice struck my chest as I flew with the river, or stream, but I stayed under. It was worse that what I imagined my comrades had gone through. Until I couldn't take the pain any longer.

[Kagemusha]

37

Would all end in here, in this freezing river? I could just stop kicking and soon all would be over. No more cold, hunger and the continuous fighting. Then as my conciousness started getting dimmer and dimmer. I saw a picture in my eyes of my wife and children looking at me smiling. No! I am tougher then this this river or these bloody Tartars cant stop me. So i continued kicking with my frozen feets and inch by inch, meter by meter.I started getting closer to the river bank.

[Franconicus]

38
I had to reach the forrest again. All around I could hear the sound of horses and the howling of the tartars. Balimir had sent all of his men to chase me. Several thousands steppe horesemen chasing one exhausted Germanian. I felt like a little rabbit chases by a pack of wolves. I tried to hide in a bush and listened to the sound around me. They were everywhere. It was only a question of time. Then I heard dogs. Oh Odin! Dogs! This was the end. The sound of the men and dogs came closer and closer. I even forgot to shiver.
Then I heard another sound. The familiar sound of trums. At first I did not realize what that ment. Drums? I heard them on my right and on my left, coming closer. Then I hear the sound of trompets. The Barbarians howled like wolves. Then I heard drums in front of me and in my back. Drums and trompets from all side. The glorious undefeatable Roman legions had arrived. While the Barbarians were busy chasing me they were surrounded by the Roman army. And now they had to fight in the woods. Volleys of arrows banged into the rows of the Barbarians. They realized that they were cut off and acted confused. Disorder everywhere. Another volley. Then marching feed. The legionaires pushed the Barbarians into the thickest wood.

[GiantMonkeyMan]

39

I ran for the vague lines in front of me. The barbarians still pursued, but they were shocked by the ambushing Roman army. I glanced over my shoulder to the right and saw the encircling legionaires lock their shield to keep the Tartars in as auxillia archers filled the woods with arrows. Even though many of the deadly missiles struck trees and branches, enough found their way to strike the horsemen and stop them reaching their quarry, me. I was closer now, to the friendly lines, but one horseman broke from the group and his horse frothed at the mouth as it hurtled towards me. It was Balimir. He had a bloodied face, and an anger to match.

[Rodion Romanovich]

40
I realized I wouldn't make it to the line in time. Desperately I looked around me for something to use as a weapon. My eyes fell on a small tree that had been broken by the storm. Just as the barbarian closed in on me, I jumped over the broken trunk, and lifted it upwards and fast as I could, before the legs of the advancing horse, then jumped aside in order not to get struck. I felt a pain in my side and the skin just above my hip soaked in a thick liquid, but I got up again, running desperately for the line. Ahead of me I saw a dozen spear-armed infantrymen coming forward to meet me and help me the last way. Then I realized I hadn't eaten anything in three days. I started laughing heavily, and then passed out. When I woke up, I was safely behind the line, my wound being treated, and I was given something to eat and drink. The barbarians hadn't reached the line yet. I got to my feet, ignoring the loud protests from the greek physicians, and reached for one of their swords, running forward towards the line. This time I wouldn't abandon it.

[Franconicus]

41

What can I say about the battle? The Huns were pressed into a small part of the forest. Roman legionairs had enclosed them and our archers fired one volley after the other. Now they were using arrows with fire. The horses of the Barbarians acted like mad. They did not obbey anymore and ran into the Roman spears. Balimir was already dead. An arraw has penetrates his left eyey and ended his reprobate life.

When I was running to our troops, I saw a man leaving the battle field. He wore the uniform of Germanian auxiliars. I called him in my mother tongue to ask how the battle was going. He turned around and looked at me. It was Claudius, the cursed traitor!

[GiantMonkeyMan]

42

At first the traitor looked at me quizically, because of the blood ans sweat covering my face, but then he realised and his face turned into a worried grimace. He turned the other way and casually jogged away from me, trying not to attract attention, but I charged him screaming in rage for the comrades he had helped torture. In the end he had to stop and, drawing his gladius, we were locked in combat. My speed and experiance gave me the advantage but the lack of energy put us on level terms. This was going to be a hard fight.

[Franconicus]

43

And it was a hard fight, indeed. My anger gave me power. I attacked and the traitor had to retreat. However, my power decreased with every second. I knew I had to end this war soon or I would loose. I raised my sword to the decisive strike. I aimed for his head, but I missed it. My own kick drove me forward and made me make a false step. The traitor hit me at the shoulder. I fell on the ground and the traitor raised the sword for the final strike.

Once more I faced death, once more my guarding spirits saved me. Some legionaires had followed our fight and were now coming closer. Claudius realized that he was in danger. He turned. Unfortunatelly, he could catch a horse, mount and disappear.

I passed out. The last thing I thought was: "We will meet again!"

[Rodion Romanovich]

Chapter 4

44
One month has now passed since the battle in that forest. For several weeks I have been unable to stand up due to my wounds and the exhaustion from the week of starvation. The doctors told me it was lucky I hadn't eaten more, because Balimir's blade had penetrated deep into my side and had I eaten, the wound would have turned into a mess that not even a man with the favor of the Gods would have been able to survive. I have dreamt horrible dreams during these weeks. I have dreamt of endless steppes, howling wolves, and horrible two-headed creatures looking even more diabolic than the barbarians that had slewn my comrades so ruthlessly. I have also dreamt of vengeance, and restoration of my honor. I don't yet know if it was the tree trunk lifted by my hands that had killed Balimir, or if it was my sword that slewn the three barbarians that rode towards my part of the line in the forest. All I knew for sure was that I had kept silent about that light that I had spotted on the steppe in that first battle. That light haunted me in my fever nightmares. After dreaming about it for the third time in a row, I wondered if it was perhaps more than a light. Perhaps a sign from the Gods? In any case, I was finally able to move again. I knew only little about the whereabouts of the roman armies, but they were preparing for a larger battle against the huns, a victory that unlike the small skirmish in the forest would completely and utterly deprive the huns of their will to plunder roman lands.

[Franconicus]

45

We are making plans, but destiny rules!
While we were preparing the desicive battle, the Tartars disappeared all at once. Maybe the death of their chief was too much - this time! The war was over.

Our general returned to Rome to recruit more men and to prepare another campaign. I went to Rome, too, because he made me the commander of his new Germian Guard. What an honor, what a reward. Some weeks ago I had been slave of Barbarians, now I was the commander of an elite formation. So I saw this town for the first time in my life! ROME! The centre of the world. Home of Gods and Cesars. I walked through the city and could not belive my eyes. Greatness and luxory, dirt and vice.

However, even here I could not forget the cries of my tortured commrades. And I could not forget the face of - Claudius.

[Rodion Romanovich]

46

It was during one of these days in Rome that I received the mission I had been waiting for. I had known for a long time that a mission was on the way, else I wouldn't have been kept in Rome for so long, or been promoted with so much ceremonies. When I finally met the commander Tiberius the instructions were handed out quickly and formally. The huns were coming back, they had already caused much harm in Belgica, and now they were heading for cities just north of the Alps. And this time it was the main hunnic force, led by Attila himself. Our task was to garrison the city of Aureliani while all auxiliaries and regulars that could be found were assembled to the south and west of the city, ready to come and relieve the garrison in three weeks. It was the 28th of May today. We were to march from Rome before dawn.

[Franconicus]

47

When we entered Aureliani I was in front of my Germanian Guard; 500 men on white horses, with the uniform of the guard, the lances, swords and axes, all with long red or blond hair and beards. We were very impressive. The inhabitants cheered when we marched through the town.

I went to the palast of the governor. Well, compared with the palasts I knew from Rome it looked like a stable for pigs. At least it was one of the few buildings made of stone.

I met the governor. He was nice, but very nervous. He might have been a good administrator, but he surely was no warrior. He urged me to take the commandership of the garrison.

Then we inspected the troops. It was depressing. Years of garrison duty had ruined these units. Their equipment was in a bad state, their discipline and their moral was extremly low. Not a single one passed the inspection without blame. In the Steppe, even when we had been beaten by the tartars we had had some pride. The men that I met here had no pride at all.

The governor told me that desertation was an issue. He had not dared to tell the men that Attila was 'ante portas'.

The fortification were in a bad state, too. The wall were made of stone. Years of peace have led to disrepair. In this state they would not even stop an attack from cavalry.

[Rodion Romanovich]

48

I sighed. What could we improve in the coming few days, before Attila appeared? Reinforcing some key parts of the wall with wood, perhaps. Repairing a few of the wall-mounted ballistae. But the by far worst problem was that there were too many easy approaches to the city. Too long section of wall to defend. By noon I went outside the walls to scout the surroundings alone, while the rest of the garrison stayed inside, temporarily under the command of the governor.

To the north, there was a long grass-covered field, ideal ground for a fast attack. To the east, the ground was hilly, and also covered in grass. Also that a good approach for attackers, maybe even better, at least for infantry, as it allowed them to stay in cover while approaching the walls. To the south, there was a steep slope downwards very close to the wall. The enemy would not attack there, because of the danger of ladders being tipped over falling a very long distance. Finally, to the west, there was a muddy swamp area. The enemy would not attack from there either. Thus we could concentrate the defenders to the northern and eastern walls, but that was still a too long distance to cover.

There was no time for rearranging the ground too heavily. A few pits could be dug out, maybe some small rocks and broken glass thrown out over the northern field. But we wouldn't be able to change the eastern approach. Maybe we could use that to our advantage instead? If the eastern approach was the best approach, the enemy would try to attack from there, and do so in the morning, putting the sun in the eyes of the defenders. But the enemy did not know a relief force was on the way. While this would make our struggle to defend the city hopeless, it would, if the relief force arrived in time, in the end enable us to surround and destroy a large portion of the hunnic army before it could retreat to safety and regroup. But the garrison inside the city would not like the idea of that plan, so it had to remain a secret until the last minute. But how could I order the garrison to help me chop up the ground at the northern approach without making them realize what was about to come, making them want to desert? I realized that I had to choose between better defenses and a smaller garrison, or worse defenses and a larger garrison. It was not difficult for me to make up my mind - the germanian guard alone with good defenses would do better than the full garrison without proper defenses. I would tell the garrison the truth, order them to help me prepare defenses along the northern approach, then give those who didn't dare defend the city permission to leave, but only if they helped us prepare the defenses. I would treathen that any regiment who tried to escape before that, would see their regiment decimated, but I doubted I would be able to carry out such an order - but the troops didn't know.

[Franconicus]

49
Latest news brought by pigeons told me that we had two days left for preparations. Not much, but I was bent on using the time.

The next hours were filled with activities. I sent a group of my guard to the next river. Their mission was to demolish all bridges and ferries. That would not stop the Tartars, but we would gain time.

The garrison and the citizens in the town had to work all night long, barricading the gaps in the walls as well as the streets inside the town.

In the morning I called the garrison and the people to the market place. I told them my plans for the next two days. When I ordered them to start working, no one mooved. Then one officer of the garrison stepped in front and said: We will not work. We will not stay here any longer. Your plans are foolish. You will never be able to stop the devils. We will leave right now. All we want is enough supply.

He turned to the warehouse. I gave a wink to my guard. They thwarted him with their swords in their hands. The garrison soldiers took their weapons, too. For a moment it looked as if the defenders of the town would slaughter themselves.

Then a cavalier entered the market place. It was one of those I had ordered to destroy the bridges. Everybody looked at him. I could see the exhaustion and desperation in his face. Before he opened his mouth I knew the news he brought us. I had seen the arrow stuck in his side. Again, the Huns were much faster than expected.

[Rodion Romanovich]

50
I looked at the men in front of me. Nobody moved. The men who had previously tried to find a horse and a weapon and flee were as petrified as the statues around the market place.
"Here you see the reason why we are to fight today!" I yelled, but my voice felt weak, and barely reached more than the first five rows of men. "The tatars have come to our lands to kill not only men, but also our women and children!" Still hardened faces in front of me, and my voice way too weak to make an impression on these men. "There is no retreat!" I continued. "There's no retreat, and no mercy! We now have but one option - to fight, or to die. We can choose to fight like cowards, and die here for no purpose! Or we can fight honorably, and in our death take most of the tatars with us, so that the remaining forces become too weak to be able to hurt our countrymen any more! Another roman army is marching towards this city as we speak. If we're lucky, they'll arrive in time. If we're unlucky, we'll be dead before they get to our aid. In any case, it's our duty to fight hard. If we fight hard, we will die with honor, or survive. If we fight like cowards, we will die as cowards no matter what happenes." Finally my voice reached it's full potential, roaring over the plaza, echoing against the stone buildings, statues and rows of white marble columns. I had been swallowed by my attempt to make a proper speech, and did not know if my words had had an affect, until I now went silent, and swept my eyes across the audience. They were silent, their faces empty. But it was not dissent that had formed their faces, it was their deep concentration, their successful attempts at getting rid of their fears. A man who realizes fear won't save him but kill him does not panic, I thought. It was the taks of the general to explain that to his soldier. And I had succeeded.

My thoughts were abruptly interrupted by the sounds of drums and trumpets, followed by a thundering sound on the field to the north of the city. The huns were here. The siege was about to begin.

[Franconicus]

51
We ran to occupy the walls. The Huns gathered at the northern side. First they were just few, but new hordes arrived constantly. This went on for the whole day. When the night began to fall the Huns heaped wood they had brought along and set it on fire. The whole northern side was bright. Then Hun cavalry galloped to our walls. Only small groups, though, they lavished us with arrows. Our defenders took cover. For hours and hours the Huns received reenforcements and made their attacks. We had no casualties. I knew that this was just the foreplay. Maybe the Huns wanted to scare us or wanted to keep us awake.

Around midnight I decided to work a curcuit. I wanted to inspect the other sections and talk with the guard. When I reached the southern gate I saw that it was open and that horsemen were entering the city. At first I thought that this was our reenforcement. Second view told me that the cavalry was tartarian. A small but endless stream of Huns entered our city and was soaked up in the streets.

I wanted to shout and alarm the guard. However, there was no one. The walls were deserted.There was no one to stop the Huns. The town was lost.

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Hey, is this a two men story now?

[Rodion Romanovich]

51
Hey, is this a two men story now?

Seems so

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Chapter 5

52
I quickly turned around to run for the plaza, where we had our reserve. Halfway there, I heard the tatarian cavalry closing up on me and dashed for cover inside one of the houses. The cavalrymen passed, while the main force was still gathering just inside the walls, preparing an attack on the men to the north and in the plaza.
When I got out I spotted another german soldier in the otherwise empty street, and I opened my mouth to call for his attention. The words stopped in my mouth. It wasn't one of us, it was Claudius. I grabbed my axe and approached the traitor. I calculated that the street would remain empty for a minute, before the small scouting cavalry group the tatars had sent ahead would return the same way. That would be enough time for the duel.
"So we meet again", I said. The traitor turned around slowly, smiling.
"Last time you fought me next to a line of roman soldiers, and I won. This time you're fighting me next to a line of hunnic soldiers."
I ignored the taunt, and kept my eyes fixed on the traitor's eyes firmly, until he had to look away. His eyes returned again, but my anger and his shame of his treachery made it impossible for him to meet my gaze. I had won the first round, although not a single blow had been dealt with any weapon.
Filled with frustration, the man raised his sword to attack. I stepped aside and tried to deal a blow over the traitor's side. Miraculously, the traitor managed to twist in the air and raise the hilt of the sword to slow down axe blade, but it bounced off his sword and hit the traitor over the shoulder - the left, not the right, unfortunately. The man quickly regained control, and sidestepped back and forth, refusing to attack this time.
"You learn fast, Claudius", I taunted him. "Is it my turn to attack now?" The man nodded, trying to look grim, but the nod looked miserable and ridiculous in a way. Without warning I made a quick step forward, a feint attack, then a quick sideways movement followed by an attack. The injured man reacted quickly, and the axe missed.
"Your turn", I smiled.
"On the contrary, it's still your turn. It's your turn every turn, or you won't be ready until the hunnic cavalry returns." The traitor was right. I had to end this quickly. Again I prepared for an attack. Feint, sidestep, feint again, a rush forward, and a blow dealt to the back of the traitor. This time he couldn't parry, but the blow was too weak to have much of an impact. Then I heard the hooves of the tatars coming back. I would only have one more chance. Then I got an idea. Reaching for my belt, I carefully extracted the small dagger that was my reserve weapon. Maybe this could break the garde of the treacherous murderer? I made a third rush, feinted an attack, then sidestepped as quickly as I could, and then chopped as hard as I could towards the traitor's hip. A normally stupid move, that would open my garde and allow the opponent to deal a lethal blow to my neck or chest, but the traitor was too mentally pressured to react normally, and the flat edge of his sword got pressured towards his body, locking it in a position where he wouldn't be able to move it to parry my dagger. And then I struck my dagger into the chest of the traitor, penetrating into his heart. Blood spurted over both of us, and I prepared to turn around to run into the house and hide again. But then I felt something in my side. I looked at it. It was a dagger.

I turned to the traitor one last time, before starting my run into the house.
"Rome will fall anyway", the traitor whispered. "You can't divide your enemies and make them fight each others forever. Eventually they will unite. And then you realize, too late, that they were more numerous, and stronger, than you could ever have imagined." The man coughed, and his face turned stiff. I turned around and ran inside the house. Suddenly I felt very different about the man. I wondered what his history could be. Now I would never know.

I carefully removed the traitor's dagger. It hadn't struck deep, I was happy to notice that it wouldn't affect my fighting here today. Suddenly the horns and trumpets started again. The tatars were launching the main attack towards the plaza.

[Ludens]

Hey, is this a two men story now?

You two are doing so well I didn't feel like interrupting.

[GiantMonkeyMan]

sorry guys... i've been writing my vietnam story but what i have read of you has been good so far

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The sound of the hooves striking the paved streets echoed deadlily throughout the city. I glanced out the house's window briefly before pulling back to get out of view of a group of Tartars speeding by. Once they had gone I crept back into the street and set off for the town center, where I hoped my comrades were putting up a defense. I rounded a corner to find a bloody heap of townspeople, slaughtered like cattle by the rampaging Huns. One was still there, looting the dead Romans. It disgusted me. These people were truley barbaric but my surprise attack allowed me to deal a swift blow to the Hun ending this raider's life easily. I glanced at the bodies and noticed with great sadness some of the faces who had argued for fleeing the city. They had stayed and fought instead. And died. The only thing i could do for them was respect their memory, mount the dead Hun's horse and head for the town center to fight off the Tartars with my comrades and brave souls such as they were.

[Rodion Romanovich]

54
At the town center, the slaughter had already gone very far. The last men of the garrison were trying to hold up their shields to withstand the pressure from hunnic infantry auxiliaries, but they were overwhelmed, pressured so hard that they crushed into each others and packed so densely they could barely move. And the constant attacks on their wall of shields had started to tire them so they could barely keep the shields up. Then I saw a wave of hunnic cavalry heading for the town center from another direction, ready to crash into the flank of the line. I tried to think fast - what could I do? I quickly called the attention of five other cavalrymen who had ended up in a situation similar to mine, and were heading to reinforce the town center. When they had my attention, I begun a charge towards the flank of the incoming hunnic cavalrymen. The huns changed course to meet our charge, and I quickly ordered the men to turn around. It seemed like we had managed to draw the attention of the hunnic cavalry away from the line, so the line would hold out for a bit longer. The chase continued for about half a minute, before I also heard hooves ahead of me. As I approached a road crossing, to my horror I saw another group of cavalry appear from around a corner. We were, five cavarlymen, were trapped between two huge forces of tatar cavalry. I turned to my comrades:
"This is it", I said. "This is the end. Let us raise our voices to a last war cry and charge! Let us end our lives with the loudest warcry the world has ever heard!" We raised our voices in a desperate scream, surprisingly loud for five men, and then ordered our horses forward.
Then something strange happened. The huns in front of us turned around, as if struck by endless fear. As I looked over my shoulder, the cavalry behind us turned away too. Then I heard it, the sound of horns. The tatars were ordering a retreat, they were in full flight, even though they were slaughtering the garrison. Something must have happened. It was then that I heard the sound of brighter horns, from the horizon. Brighter horns, and trumpets. The roman army was here! One of my comrades spoke:
"The roman army is here, the tatars are fleeing! The battle is over" But I shook my head.
"No, the battle is not over", I said. "The battle has just begun. We can still intercept the fleeing tatars near the gate."
"Not without sacrificing our lives", my comrades insisted.
I pointed towards the side of my chest, where the traitor's dagger had struck.
"Look at this", I said. "This won't kill me today, nor tomorrow, not even in a week. But it will kill me in a month, slowly, step by step. Rome may be falling, and may deserve to, but barbarians like the tatars do not deserve to be the ones to feast upon this empire. If we cut them off at the gate while they're in desperate flight and aren't paying attention, we can kill dozens of them before falling."
Then I charged away in the direction of the gate. I could only hear the hooves of two of the other men behind me.

[Franconicus]

55

If I recall that night I have to admit that my idea was noble - and stupid. Fortunately the Tartars were gone long before we reached the gate. Gone like the wind.

The Roman army came and occupied the town. What they found there did not raise their moral. Only a hanful of defenders were alive. The rest and most of the population was slaughtered by the Barbarians. Our brave army started to chase the Huns at once and once more I was left back with a small garisson.

We were waiting impatiantly for news from our main army. After three days we received it; or better said we saw it. Attila was not very well known then. It was the first time he tought the Romans a lesson in mobile warfare.

While the Romans were chasing the retreating Huns another Hun army, much bigger than the first and as mobile, appeared in its rear. Our legions were surrounded and they had to fight their way back. Only one of ten made it.

Now we had the same situation as before, we were trapped by the Huns. This time we had 2,000 soldiers, good trained ones. However, on the other side there were 50,000 Tartars.

To make our situation even worse the Huns had burned the warehouses with the supply. We did not have enough food for more than two days. No reenforcements could reach us. We were left alone.

[Rodion Romanovich]

56
Two days of food supply meant either we'd have to lure the enemy to attack, or we would have to attempt to sally. The huns had lost most of their infantry auxiliaries in the pursuit, before crushing the roman main army. But their cavalry was at full strength. There was no way of outranging their bows, which meant a sally would be suicide - the enemy would just keep their distance and rain their deadly salvoes over us. Making a trap inside the city would be the only option.

I wondered who had opened the gates last time. There must have been a traitor among us, maybe he was still here. Then we could, for once, use treachery among us to an advantage. I quickly assembled the men and explained my plan to them. We needed to let the enemy cavalry inside, but slow them down, and once inside rain our own, shorter ranged arrows, over them.

In the coming hours, waggons were put in side alleys, ready to quickly be rolled forward and create barricades for the tatar cavalry. Our archers quietly sneaked up on the walls, but remained lying, hidden from the enemy's view. Our cavalrymen stepped off their horses and armed themselves with long spears, forming something that resembled a phalanx, and they too remained hidden in side alleys. A man positioned himself next to the chains used for raising the gate. And I positioned myself close to the walls, alone. Then we raised the gates.

At first the huns stayed back. Then, a few of them carefully approached the walls. Looking inside, they must have seen empty streets, just like last time. We waited. Not until after several minutes, did I from my hidden position see movement in the tatar camp. Several of the tatars bowed before a small man with more horrible face than any of the others, and pointed towards the walls. Less than a minute later, the attack had already begun, with perfect formations and full speed towards the gates. It was by then I started to realize what an effective leader this man, that I would later learn went by the name of Attila, was.

I let them storm inside the gates. Like last time, they wanted to assemble a large force just inside the gates before beginning their charge up the alleys. Raising the horn in my hand, I prepared to give the signal. Then, suddenly, lack of discipline got the better of one of the archers, who couldn't resist firing into the tatar formation inside the gates. Only about a thousand tatars had been trapped so far - it was not enough, not enough at all. But now that the ambush was detected, I had no other option than make the signal, and let the slaughter begin. The gates closed behind the cavalrymen, and the next moment barricades, spearmen, and volleys of arrows from the walls begun their work on the trapped tatars. It was more of a slaughter than a battle. Only about a handful of the tatars agreed to surrender. The tatars had lost their entire force, while we had lost some 50 archers and 15 spearmen, with another 50 of each being lightly wounded. Even despite these figures, I was far from satisfied. The trap was consumed, and we were back where we started. One thousand men was just a fraction of the hunnic force. The only advantage we had, was the the huns didn't know we had such a shortage of supplies, and that the huns were possibly looking for a way of resupplying themselves, which would force them to take the city quickly.

[Franconicus]

57

While my men were still celebrating our victory the Huns prepared their next strike. Attila was not a man who would take a defeat easily, even if it was just a minor one.

When night fell we saw fires all around. Then the Huns started to bombard our town with fire balls. Normally we would have ordered the citizens to take care about the fire. However, there were no citizens left. Soon the town was burning.

Then the Tartars started to assault the town. They came from all sides. We were not enough to even occupy all sections. Their first wave opened the barricades, that had closed the holes in the walls. The next wave simply broke through the walls and opened the gates.

According to our plan the officers tried to retreat to the barricades at the centre. However, the path was blocked by the fire and they were either killed by the Huns or died in the flames.

I also tried the reach the centre of the town, decided to fight until the bitter end. I had no illution about my chances. Somehow I reached the centre, but I realized that I was alone and that I was surrounded by the flames. It was so hot and the smoke took my breath away. I prayed to my goods: "Odin, Thor, hear me! Did you save me from the cold in the steppe just to see me die from fire? Help me!"

There was no reply and I realized I had to find a way to save myself. I ran through the streets until the fire forced me to turn around. I ran to the other end, the same. I was trapped. Then I saw a house, quite big and solid made of stone. O entered it and I saw it was a temple. There was a strange statue of a man at a cross. Propably it was the god. Although I was in a hurry I wondered who would pray to a god that looked so weak.

I looked around and saw that I was save - at least for the moment. The walls would stand the fire. I saw that the altar was hollow and I hided myself inside.

[Rodion Romanovich]

58
I waited for an entire day inside that altar. The footsteps of the tatars, and their gargling voices could be heard outside for half a day, before everything got silent again. I waited another day, refusing to leave the hiding spot, even if my entire body was aching worse than any battle wounds could have made it do. I cursed the undisciplined archers who had put me in this situation, and caused the death of our entire garrison, for in return killing little more than 3000 men out of Attila's hundred thousand. Not until three days had passed since the battle, did I move out of my hiding spot. I could barely walk on my stiff legs, but the wound in my side miraculously felt better - it wasn't going to kill me, as I had thought. When I got outside I could barely keep the tears back - almost the entire city was burnt to the ground, little else than the house I had been hiding in was left. There were bodies everywhere, eyes picked out by carrion birds, clothes soaked with blood stains, and faces burnt beyond recognition. The horizon was crimson from the setting sun, but the sky above was colored in black and grey, covered by the silhouettes of schreeching crows and vultures. Apart from their noise, and the sounds of a few still glowing pieces of wood, the place was silent, eerie. I had never seen a battlefield like this before. What I had once thought was a matter of honor, now seemed absurd, disgusting. As I went for the gates the silence was broken. One of the bodies was talking to me. I turned around quickly and reached for my axe. It wasn't a corpse, but the body was so badly damaged and oddly shaped that I didn't understand how it could be alive. But yet, it spoke. I leaned forward to hear what it said.

[Franconicus]

59

Chapter 6: ORDEAL

I looked at that face, but I had to turn my face because I could not stand the look. I heard the words - an endless tream - but I did not understand a single one. However, I understood their meaning - they were words of pain and desperation.

I looked at his clothes. He was not a Roman. Not a Hun either. I assumed he was an Allani, who had joined the Hun army. I forced myself to look at the face, again. Disgust and horror made my body shiver. However I realized that this man was neither deformed by combat wounds nor by torture. The wounds came from the inside. He had lumps all over, scarlet ones, some bleeding. I had to turn my face again. The man, I call it man, was still screaming. I understood his request. I took my axe and liberated him from his pain without looking at him again.

I left his corpus behind. Noone could have buried all the dead bodies in the town. I only hoped that another creature would take care of them.

Without a thought I followed the traces of the Huns. After a while I met a horse and could speed up.

I passed areas complety destroyed by the Barbarians. Only very few people seemed to have survived. Those who had run away when they saw me. My company were the unburried deads.

Although I hurried I could not get closer to the Huns. They were very fast, as usually. Ghosts ride fast, my mother used to say.

I folloewd the Huns for weeks. They crossed the Alps and I saw thatthey were heading for the centre of the world. And it looked like the world would loose that centre soon. However, then I saw something else. First only a few, three or four, then more and more and at last douzend of them. Dead Huns. Not killed by combat. They had they same faces as the man I killed when I left the town.