"The God Wars" - Chapter Twelve: Farmer Militia

The God Wars

Chapter Twelve:

Farmer Militia

By Dwayne MacInnes

The village behind Theena and her ragtag group of militia was burning. Thick gray smoke billowed up into the air. Ares and his bloodthirsty horde had just overrun the village. The farmers turned militia was no match for the god of war and his minions of cutthroat mercenaries. The attackers quickly overcame the village's defenses and the defenders fought tenaciously hoping to buy some time for the women and children to evacuate south.

Now all that remained of the village of Knopso's defenders was Theena and six militiamen. The tired warriors hurried south ahead of the ravishing army of Ares. It appeared that Ares was taking his time heading for Zakrostas torching every village and hamlet on his way. The war god's scorched-earth policy did not even spare the fields of ripening grain or the livestock.

It appeared that Ares chose this route over that used by the previous invasion by the minotaurs and cyclopes because the villages were untouched. He had deliberately gone out of his way in order to wreak as much destruction as possible.

Theena looked at the sky. The sun burned in an ominous blood red through the smoke obstructing its view. Black ravens and gangly-necked vultures were gathering across the countryside for the meal that the god of war was providing. It was no mere coincident that Ares and vultures were associated together. Because often where you found one, the other was not far behind.

"Teukros," Theena ordered. "Run ahead to the next village warn them that Ares is on the march and his bloodlust runs high. Ask if they have any militia that would help us to slow down Ares advance. Then make sure that all refugees head for Zakrostas or Atlantis itself."

The young teenager looked at Theena with a tired expression on his blood-smeared and soot-stained face. He still held the spear he had fought with in Knopso it was his only weapon. The youth nodded his head silently; he was too exhausted to speak -- let alone to run to the next village. Yet Teukros summoned the last reserves of his strength and began to lope down the trail to Thelos the next village.

Theena looked at the five men that remained. They too were all exhausted and more farmer than soldier. However, they knew if they failed in slowing Ares' advance, their family and loved ones would be put to the sword.

"There is a pass through the Tekos Hills further south of here. We may be able to slow them down there if we hurry," Theena said.

The farmers accepted Theena's authority. Even though it was not common, women sometimes fought next to the men in combat. With all the village leaders either dead or fleeing, Theena quickly took control of the strategy of the combat. Because of her able command, the farmers actually succeeded in slowing down the advancing horde long enough for the villagers to flee. However, it came at a high price. There were now only seven combatants left out of the 136 that began the fight.

Pheidas rode along with his band of bandits that owed their allegiance to Ares. The war god was always good at providing valuable plunder when he set out for war. Even now, a horde as never seen on the continent before was marching southward to destroy the Atlantean city of Zakrostas. The rumor was that they might hit the Atlantean capital itself -- the city of Atlantis.

The pillaging and plundering would be great. For centuries to come, the poets would tell the story of Ares and his army of mercenaries, bandits, and renegades. Pheidas planned to earn himself a line or two in the epic poem that would inevitably result.

For the moment, Pheidas and his mounted men were to scout ahead of the main advance. The village of Knopso surprised everyone with how effective the farmers fought. The outcome was a forgone conclusion and all the farmers did was to prolong their agony.

Men trotted their horses along the dusty trail. Many of the bandits wore a mask over the face. It was not to hide their identities, but to filter out the smoke and dust that choked the air. If Pheidas pushed hard enough, his men could make Thelos in time to pillage it before they lost the sun. He had the numbers and the men were eager. Hence, he started to pick up the pace and kicked his horse into a gallop. The band following him did likewise, kicking up huge cloud of dust in their wake.

* * * * *

Theena looked to the northwest where the road turned from Knopso. She could spy the telltale cloud of dust of a cavalry unit on the gallop. She signaled to the three men on the opposite hill by raising her spear and waving it back and forth. Then she dove behind a boulder and looked towards the two men with her.

"Do you think this will work?" asked a burly farmer, he had a dirty and bloody bandage on his head.

"Iamenos," Theena said. "There is no guarantee. But, this should slow them down."

"If the gods are willing, we may actually survive," Oros a smaller and older farmer replied.

"Forget the gods," Theena spat, "they have forsaken us. We must look to our own devices."

There had not been as much time as Theena would have liked to prepare. Nevertheless, she put the men to work as soon as they reached the pass. The men surpassed themselves by working so hard and quickly. They had to be on their last reserves of strength. They had fought a pitched battle, undergone a forced march, and still were able to accomplish many of the tasks that Theena demanded of them at the pass.

* * * * *

Pheidas rode his mount hard. He had hoped that his men would be able to overcome a few straggling refugees from Knopso before they reached Thelos. Although, they did not have much time, they could still squeeze in a little fun before they sacked the village.

Pheidas smiled when he saw the pass for it marked the midway point between Knopso and Thelos. The men were making very good time and the horses were still strong enough to gallop even further.

The bandit leader raised his spear over his head and circled the tip before aiming it to the pass. The men gave a loud cheer and race after their leader. Their bloodlust was at its fever pitch, and the men could not wait to ransack another village.

The pass was only a quarter of a mile long and Pheidas was just coming out the other side when a rockslide tumbled down in front of him. Pheidas pulled his horse to a halt and nearly ended up unhorsing himself in the process. Dirt and rocks rained down between the bandits and the exit.

Pheidas wheeled his horse around; he scanned the hilltops for any partisans. What he saw was a spear flying towards him, and then striking him in the chest. His blackened bronze armor did little to halt the force from the spear. Before he tumbled from his horse, he witnessed a woman on the hill smiling to see her aim was good. Pheidas fell from his mount and spilled his lifeblood into the thirsty road.

The other bandits gave a cry and some tried to leave from the other end. However, another rockslide closed it off as well. The riders wheeled about on their horses, the hillsides of the pass were too steep to climb quickly and a few spears and arrows rained down on them.

Several men were unhorsed as the projectiles pierced their armor leaving them dying in the dirt road. The bandits were desperate and some dismounted and tried to scrabble up the rocky slopes. Logs, rocks, and few arrows fell upon them killing many. However, their numbers were too great and they were eventually able to reach the summits.

Both sides were exhausted from the efforts to either gain the top of the hill or the attempt to forestall the ascent of the bandits. A fierce hand-to-hand combat resulted when the two sides met. Even though they again fought tenaciously and gave better than they received, the militia was finally overwhelmed.