Mediterranean Hegemon of Ancient Greece

“Father, you are still ill, and the physician won't allow you to leave! You need to trust that Titus and the others can handle this!…”

Titus suddenly walked in while the two argued.

Lucius asked in surprise upon seeing him, “Titus, why did you come? Has everything in the camp calmed down?!”

Lucius said while winking at him.

Titus, however, wasn't in the mood to pay attention to him. With an exhausted and worried face, he looked at Camillus and said impatiently, “Lord Dictator, I immediately rushed here as soon as I heard you had woken up. Volch and Tarchna had sent envoys and said that with Caisra and Veii's fall, they demanded the withdrawal of their troops so that they could defend their city-states from the invasion of the Theonians-”

“If their claim about the Theonians occupying Caisra and Veii is true, how can they reach the camp? Titus, are you sure they are really envoys of Volch and Tarchna?!” doubted Lucius

“The ones that had come were the consul of Volch and a senator of Tarchna. They arrived at Ardea by boat, then rushed over here as soon as they landed. From what they told, the Theonian warships didn't intercept them.”

Titus then angrily continued, “But as soon as they arrived, they went around the camp and spread the fall of Caisra and Veii. Now, the already restless camp became completely chaotic, with not only the Etruscan army demanding to leave but also the soldiers of our colonies on the north bank of the Tiber River and the troops of some of our Latin allies! Meanwhile, Quintus and the others are blocking several of our camp's gates with their troops. However, the Etruscans declared they would fight their way out if we didn't let them leave! With skirmishes already breaking out between the two sides, I had to rush here to ask for your advice!”

“All of this is the scheme of the Theonians!” Lucius exclaimed angrily, “Damn the Etruscans! Damn those Latin city-states! We should crucify those plebeians!…”

Camillus suddenly sighed and said, “The fire of Ostia…burnt the hope of the soldiers fighting, Caisra…and the fall of Veii, in turn, fractured our army…alas.”

Camillus suddenly stopped speaking and lay quietly with his eyes slightly closed.

“Father!”

“Lord Dictator!” The two shouted anxiously.

Then, after a while, Camillus asked, “Titus…did you ask them how once….the Etruscan army separated from us…how would they go back?”

Titus immediately replied, “Yes. They said they could cross the upper reaches of the Tiber River and immediately head east into the mountains to bypass Veii. Since that mountainous area is still under their control, it is relatively safe…”

Camillus nodded slightly. Then, with his expression remaining unchanged, he said hesitantly, “The current situation…no longer allowed us to force them to stay…otherwise…it will only lead to a civil war in the camp…whoever wins or loses…the only one to benefit will be the Theonians, while our friendly relations with Etruria…our colonies…and even our Latin allies…will be destroyed thoroughly…since that would be the case…it would be better to let them go…”

“Lord Dictator!” Titus said worriedly, “Since our return from Hernici and fighting the Theonians until now, adding to the plebeians who fled, we have lost nearly thirty thousand men! Once we allow the Etruscans, our colonies and our Latin allies to leave also, we would probably have less than fifteen thousand soldiers left, making us unable to recapture Rome and would also allow us to get attacked by the Theonians!”

“Titus!” Camillus shouted with difficulty and then, in self-blame, uttered, “I had made a terrible mistake…when I heard about the fall of Rome, I had wanted to retake it immediately…that's why…the army suffered so many casualties…which resulted in us falling into such a huge predicament…it's all my fault…”

“No, Lord Dictator, you're not the only one eager to swiftly reclaim Rome; it's also what our entire army wanted!”

“Now we all know…quickly retaking Rome is… impossible to achieve…” Camillus sighed softly. Then, after coughing a few times, Camillus said with a pained expression, “If attacking Ostia…is already so difficult…what would happen if…we had really attacked Rome?!”

Titus and Lucius couldn't refute his words, as it was a fact, so they remained silent.

Suddenly, Camillus opened his eyes with a glint, “Titus, do you still remember how we defeated the Celts?!… We had attacked a group of Celts that went to collect food…then attacked the plundering group they sent to raid other villages…victory after victory…then made the Latins…Etruscans…Sabines who suffered from the Celts joined us…resulting in our number growing larger and larger like a snowball… Meanwhile, the Celts were forced to stay within the city of Rome…not daring to leave …to the point where they were too frightened to fight us head-on…and could only choose to retreat…but in the end, we managed to catch up with them and defeat them!”

Then his voice became more and more energetic, “That war…I remember it lasted for more than half a year. Then against the powerful Theonians, we…we should have also adopted such a strategy as only by persisting in a long and fierce battle with the Theonians can we ultimately achieve victory!”

Titus was moved upon hearing this, but he felt a bit uneasy, “Unlike the Celts, who only know to burn, kill, and loot, the Theonians are far more cunning in their approach.”

“But…the Celts didn't have powerful enemies like Carthage…and the Samnites!” Camillus responded confidently.

Finally, Titus was convinced and said, “I will immediately convey your order to Quintus and the others…”

Despite Quintus' opposition to Camillus' decision, the Roman generals ultimately agreed to allow the Etruscan army to leave. However, they had to accompany their colonies' soldiers and ensure to send them back safely.

After they departed, the generals also generously allowed their allied Latin to return to their respective city-states. However, they didn't leave in a hurry like the Etruscans. Instead, they rush to the command tent to sincerely express to Camillus that as long as he called on them, their city-states were willing to continue fighting together with Rome to drive away the outsider – Theonia!

However, the Roman soldiers who remained in the camp were greatly affected as they watched their comrades who fought side by side with them depart. Inevitably, panic started to take hold, prompting the generals to exert significant efforts to barely quell the chaos within the camp.

. . . . . . . . . . . . .

About thirteen thousand mixed soldiers composed of Etruscan and soldiers from the Roman colonies marched eastward and arrived at Tusculum. Then, after a night of camping, they arrived at Fidenae on the afternoon of the second day and crossed the Tiber using a pontoon bridge.

But as they departed the riverbank and headed eastward into the mountains, they swiftly came across the prearranged Theonian army positioned ahead, effectively blocking their path. This encounter compelled the panic-stricken mixed soldiers to prepare for a fierce battle.

Then, as the two armies approach each other, the Etruscan soldiers of the cities of Volch and Tarchna suddenly turn their shields and spears, launching an attack on the flank of the Roman soldiers.

The sudden betrayal of their allies surprised the unprepared Roman soldiers, leading to their ranks falling into chaos.

The Theonian army then took advantage of the situation and launched a fierce attack from the front, causing the mixed army to collapse quickly.

Apart from those who managed to escape through the Tiber River and fled to the city of Fidenae, the Theonians captured most soldiers of the Roman colonies. On the other hand, the soldiers from the other Etruscan city-states surrendered one after another, with the Theonian army suffering almost no losses and achieving a complete victory.

. . . . . . . . . . . . .

Earlier, Phryntor had led the Mountain Reconnaissance Brigade and launched a successful night attack on the city of Caisra. However, a few Caisrian manage to take advantage of the night to flee to the neighbouring city of Tarchna.

The people of Tarchna became horrified and intimidated by the Theonians' ability to capture a city just overnight. Especially since Tarchna now lacks young and strong citizens, resulting in them being unable to resist the attack of the Theonian army. Thus, they sent an urgent message to their neighbouring Etruscan city-state – Volch, while also sending an envoy to Caisra to check on the situation.

After capturing Caisra, Phryntor immediately sent people back to Rome to report their victory.

Filled with joy, Davos promptly dispatched two brigades from the Third Legion to Caisra, executing their pre-established plan for garrisoning the city.

Phryntor was very busy when the envoy of Tarchna arrived at the city of Caisra as he not only wanted to stabilise the city's order quickly but also handle the complex matters of the port on time because King Davos had repeatedly emphasised that they shouldn't plunder or barge on the merchant ships of other city-states. However, they could seize the merchant ships of Carthage.

In response to the envoy's arrival from Tarchna, Phryntor only told him he needed to go to Rome to talk to His Majesty about any of their proposals or requests.

Seeing that the Theonian general who had taken control of Caisra didn't speak ill of him or threaten to use force, the envoy of Tarchna felt relieved and decided to promptly make his way to Rome.

Not long after, the envoy of Volch also arrived.

Davos received them warmly and expressed his desire to ally with the Etruscan city-state to confront the Romans jointly.