Imperator: Resurrection of an Empire

*Sigh*

I can't beleive the fervor of my men, i mean sure i gave them the designs for the new ram and ladders the same night that I unlocked them but those crazy bastards went and worked throughout the night to have them ready by the time i rose in the morning.

And then the legion was raring to go ready to use 'my' new inventions against the defending city.

But I quickly put my foot down on that one, first because the engineers needed a chance to rest since should anything happen to the engines or war they'd be needed to repair them.

Meanwhile I instructed the men to learn how to actually use these newly developed engines before rushing off to their deaths.

This of course cause their soaring morale to deflate some but then a course of cheers sounded out, and songs of glorious battle were being sung song which both uplifted Julius's heart but also caused his face to redden.

~~

Beneath the sun and stars we stand,

With iron heart and sword in hand,

To honour Romanus, our noble land,

We march, we march as one!

Raise the standard, raise it high,

The eagle soars against the sky!

For Romanus, for glory, till we die,

We march, we march as one!

In foreign fields, on distant sand,

Through blazing heat and bitter strand,

We carve our fate, we make our stand,

We fight, we fight as one!

The clash of iron, the battle's cry,

The shield-wall strong, our foes will die,

For Rome shall reign, we never lie,

We kill, we kill as one!

The world shall know of Caesar's might,

Of Romanus steel and Romanus right,

Through darkest storm, through blood and fight,

We march, we march as one!

We march, we fight, we live, we die,

With honor fierce, our spirits high!

For Rome! For Rome! Our battle cry—

We march, we march as one!

~~

As the legionnaires went about their duty, the chorus of the song had begun to reach a fever pitch. His men were beyond happy, so much so they could sing of death upon the eve of battle. Their roaring voices carried through the air all the way until the song itself could be heard from within the very city they had besieged.

As and Julius hid himself away inside his tents from atop the city walls the defending garrison began to shake in fear the growing cadence of the enemy song was shaking their very hearts and minds to the point many wondered why they couldn't just join with the Romanus host set before them, for what reason do they fight against this foe.

The discord grew to such a point that before Julius had given the order to attack, the city gatehouse had opened an a part of people came out from within before the gate was closed tight behind them.

As they slowly approached the siege camp sentries began to bring the camp itself to life, but in the end after seeing that the numbers were low and they were flying a certain flag.

After he was summoned out from within his tent, Julius himself was surprised to find that the approaching party was the real reason that the ongoing song was finally brought to a close.

The approaching part was 5, with only two of those being armed and looking like bodyguards more than anything.

Julius strode from his camp, taking with him only 2 others, Yuri being one of the two.

The meeting was set in a neutral clearing, halfway between the walls of the Greecian defenders' city and the Romanus encampment.

A small gazebo had been erected, draped with fabrics bearing the blue of the Greek city-state and the red of the Romanus standard a joint effort to provide the emmisarries and general forces comfort during their discussion even in neutral territory.

The mid-day sun casting long shadows as the leaders gathered.

The Greek side as was introduced to Julius is led by Dion, a seasoned general, who has gathered Alekos, the strategist; Petros, the younger commander of the city guard; Lydia, a priestess and advisor known for her wisdom; and Niketas, a former mercenary with experience fighting against Romanus army in the numerous conflicts they've had up till now.

Their expressions showed a mix of caution and respect for their formidable opponents.

On the Romanus side, Julius had stepped forward.

Behind him stood Yuri, his close aide, an intelligent and sharp-eyed woman with a poised demeanour, and Marcus, his silent, stone-faced bodyguard chosen as the one within the legion aside from Yuri who had the greater Martial Force.

They had arrived without fanfare, their movements calculated and orderly performing just as military officials in an informal setting should, even if two of their members were in fact royalty.

After a tense silence as the two sides sat down at a table prepared for them, Dion spoke first.

"Commander Julius, we thank you for agreeing to this meeting. Our city has heard much of the might of your legions, yet we are at a loss as to why you would bring your banners so far from your home. We are but a small state in this wide world and no threat to your kingdom located so far away."

Julius nodded his head, his gaze sweeping over the assembled Greeks, assessing each of them in turn.

"You are right to question our presence. We come not out of mere conquest, but in response to the attack on our ally, even if they did not know, the greecian nations collectively invaded upon the Spartan lands, lands we of Romanus are allied with, and so per our agreement we came to our allies defence, first expelling the invaders from within their own lands, and then without needing to force our ally to break with their own laws we've left them to tend to repairs brought on by the result of this war, however we who are not bound by such laws have of our own accord to cross the borders to bring about a true end to this war, and return the captured Spartan captives taken in the beginning of this war back to their homes, while also giving those who were unjustly slain as a result of the war fair recompense by those whose hands made the situation possible to begin with."

Lydia, the priestess, frowned but kept her tone calm.

"But sir Julius, forgive if I might what does this have to do with us here in Arcadia?."

Yuri watched Lydia closely, noting her calm demeanour.

She interjected with a measured tone.

"Priestess, as our lord stated just moments ago, the invasion was conducted under a joint force comprised of all the Greecian states forces, this put all four of the Greecian nations on the opposing side to the Spartan's and by proxy our own Kingdom."

Petros, the young and impulsive garrison commander, spoke up.

"Rubbish! Such things are lies spit from your mouth it was the Spartans who invaded upon Argosian lands that's what caused the call for the allied forces to come together, to drive out the encroaching tyranny of kings that's been purged from these lands!"

Julius's gaze sharpened slightly, but he kept his tone calm.

"They the invaders you say? And yet why is it there was no damage or losses on the Argosian side until our own involvement which repelled the Greecian forces back over the border? And more to the point as we'd stated before Spartan laws do not allow them to cross the borders unless given leave by their god, and that leave as per custom is to be issued out to all so they can clear the path lest they find themselves in the Spartans path."

This stunned the young commander as well as most of the assembled Arcadian representatives.

"So... so then that means we are the aggressors who broke the peace only to be beaten back to the point that even our homeland located past the buffer state of Argosia already has come to be in Romanus's sight?"

"That is correct Priestess, our legions have already crossed the Argosian landscape and now find ourselves here, well at least this legion has as for the others I cannot say if they've also reached this far after their dealings in Argosia and and Macedon I am as of yet unaware of if any more of our forces have also reached other parts of Arcadian lands."

This also surprised the Arcadians mainly those on the Military side.

The news that Agosia had fallen, while news that this was not the only Romanus legion to have invaded upon their lands was the greater shock still.