1444, Byzantium Resurrects

Chapter 140: Fighting in the Yellow Sand
On the hard yellow soil, a cavalry was galloping, their horses' hooves trampling the ground and stirring up yellow sand all over the sky.

There were about 800 riders, wearing turbans, their faces wrapped in white cloth, carrying bows and pots on their backs, and curved swords on their waists. They rode tough and drought-resistant berbu horses, with a pair of eyes exposed in the air, looking around vigilantly.

Obviously, this was a group of Berber light cavalry.

"Captain, we have penetrated deep into enemy territory, but we have not encountered a single Christian baggage train."

"Should we go back now?"

The centurion raised his head and looked at the sun hanging slantingly in the sky.

"Let's continue and wait for the sun to set."

Everyone grumbled a few times, but still nodded in agreement, took out the dried meat from the cloth bag on the horse's back, and swallowed it with cold water.

The cavalry continued to move forward, the sun's light gradually changed from yellow to orange, the dazzling disk gradually dimmed and sank into the distant horizon.

All around are endless grasslands and deserts, with more sand and rocks than water and soil. As the sun sets, the temperature drops quickly. The cool breeze in the evening blows on the desert travelers who have come from afar, blowing away the heat of the whole day.

The riders untied their face scarves, exposing their necks and cheeks that had been covered all day to the cool breeze, feeling the long-lost refreshment.

The barbarian horse under him also raised its head and walked more briskly.

"Captain Basel..."

"do not move."

Basel held the reins with his left hand and raised his right hand, signaling the riders to stop.

The riders quickly stopped and waited quietly for their captain to make a judgment.

They all knew that although Captain Basel was extremely serious and ruthless during combat, he was friendly and capable. He was not as arrogant as ordinary aristocratic officers and was very much loved by the soldiers.

It is said that he was originally the son of a tribal sheikh. The tribesmen had lived on the grasslands near Surt for generations, making a living by grazing and trade.

Nearly ten years ago, Christians who came from afar occupied the city of Surt under the leadership of the Greek emperor. Old Sheikh, who was negotiating trade in the city at that time, died tragically in the chaos. Several hostile tribes defected to the Greek emperor and took advantage of this opportunity to seize the people and pastures that should have belonged to Basel, and sold them into slavery. This lasted for several years.

Six years ago, the hardworking Caliph Yahya selected strong slaves and prepared to form a loyal new standing army in order to get rid of his heavy dependence on major tribes and local emirs.

Among the crowd, Yahya took a liking to this sturdy man at first sight. After testing, he found that he not only had outstanding martial arts and extraordinary conversation, but also had a bizarre life experience. He immediately appointed him as a centurion, commanding one hundred new army cavalry.

The New Army Cavalry is a professional army and will not engage in agricultural and animal husbandry like ordinary Berber tribesmen.

At the beginning, Caliph Yahya and his military advisers developed a detailed training plan for them, and invited professional armorers and weapon masters from Italy and Syria, preparing to use the Royal Mamluks as a model to build them into an elite heavy cavalry that could play a decisive role on the battlefield.

However, soon after the establishment of the new army, the Battle of Kerkennah broke out, the Hafsid dynasty's joint fleet was completely wiped out, the Kerkennah Islands and Djerba Island were lost one after another, Christian pirate forces marched into the central Mediterranean, the trade routes on which the Hafsid dynasty depended for its survival suffered a severe blow, and fiscal revenue dropped sharply.

The increasingly tight finances forced Yahya to temporarily put his original ambitions on hold. Following Basel's advice, he established a light cavalry with sabers and horse bows as their main weapons in light of local conditions. Each man rode two horses and a camel, and relied on the high mobility brought by the light cavalry to carry out roundabout maneuvers, and the battlefield positioning also changed accordingly.

Later, with the fall of Misrata, the coup in Tripoli and the increasingly rampant pirate forces along the coast, the core areas of the Hafsid Dynasty were no longer safe, and the eastern frontier was in urgent need of an elite mobile force, so the New Army cavalry went out to fight.

From then on, Basel and his Centurion team were active in the front line against the Christian invasion. He witnessed the ferocity of Slaves, the Bloody Legion, chased the roaming pirates, and fought a bloody battle with the well-equipped Knights of Saint Simon in the yellow sand. He was very familiar with the Christians' combat methods and had rich experience.

Not long ago, the city of Tripoli was under siege, and Emir Nasirlan asked Tunisia for help. Caliph Yahya summoned tribal sheikhs and emirs from all over the country and announced the assembly of troops to rescue Tripoli.

Basel, who was promoted to the rank of centurion due to his meritorious service, was the vanguard of the army, and was ordered to harass the food supply route and conduct reconnaissance.

Basel squinted his eyes, calmed down, and listened attentively to the sound coming from the wind.

He knew very well that the hot noons and cold nights were not suitable for long-distance journeys for Christian baggage trains. They would often speed up their journey in the cool evenings and early mornings, and use the rest of the time to recuperate.

The wind blew a little stronger, and the sound of rumbling cars and the sound of camel bells came with the wind, appearing faintly.

It has been confirmed that there is a team not far to the north, deep in enemy territory, and they must be Christians.

Army? Baggage train?

It is unknown at the moment.

Basel dismounted, put his ear to the ground, felt the vibrations from the earth, and counted silently in his heart.

When the surrounding cavalrymen saw the captain in such a state, they immediately perked up, gathered their horses, checked the light arrows in the pot, and held the scimitars at their waists.

Whether to fight or to run depends on the decision of the centurion.

"There are carriages, lots of them."

"The escort is very small."

Basel got up, dusted himself off, and spoke briefly.

"It looks like we've finally caught a big fish."

"Change horses, check weapons, and prepare for battle."

When the riders heard this, they became excited, rubbed their hands, drew out their scimitars, and started to fight.

The moon was rising, and the saber shone with a cold light.

The noise of the carriages grew louder and louder, and the riders held their breath, waiting for the order.

The sound got closer and closer, then suddenly stopped, followed by the noisy voices of Christians.

The distance was very close and they were discovered.

"For the sake of Allah, to drive the infidels out of our land, charge!"

Basel swung his raised saber heavily, took the lead and rushed down.

Eight hundred Berber riders roared and rushed down from the hill where they were hiding.

They were well-trained and at the signal of the centurion from Basel, they quickly divided into three groups and rushed in three directions, preparing to encircle the Christian baggage train in one fell swoop.

One thousand steps, eight hundred steps, five hundred steps, the distance was getting closer and closer, and the full picture of the enemy was revealed.

They had indeed caught a big fish. The baggage train consisted of more than twenty carriages of various sizes and models.

Basel rushed to the front and found that the enemy was not as frightened as he had imagined. Under the command of the commander, everyone performed their duties and appeared busy but not chaotic.

What was even more strange was that this large baggage train did not have many guards. The soldiers did not form a formation to resist, but instead ran towards the carriages.

There are mainly two types of carriages. The taller carriages form a diamond shape, protecting the smaller carriages in the center.

On the body of the car, a hideous monster was spewing flames.

He was a little confused and looked around.

Under the bright moonlight, the vast plain was in full view, and there was no possibility of an ambush.

snort! Pretending to be mysterious!

Basel called to the riders around him, squeezed his legs hard on the horse's belly, and accelerated forward.

"Quick! Raise the Emperor's Lantern! Report our position to nearby friendly forces!" Georg ordered loudly in the center of the baggage train.

"Set up the tower shields and organ cannons. The halberd soldiers must guard the gaps between the chariots. The musketeers and heavy crossbowmen begin to set up. Listen to my command and prepare to fire!"

He stared at the Berber cavalry that was getting closer and closer. Besides nervousness, there was also a hint of anticipation in his eyes.

This time, he was ordered to lead the Riorea Legion to transport supplies. He specially transferred a team of light cavalry originally assigned to them to a place not far behind, using themselves as bait to attract the enemy to attack, in order to test his new tactics.

Before setting off, Georg had already set up the formation perfectly, with sixteen Roman chariots as guards on the outside and the rest of the baggage wagons in the center.

The soldiers skillfully took out a lightweight paper cage and unfolded it. Hanging underneath the cage was a fuel block made of pine oil and candle wax.

The fuel block ignites when it comes into contact with fire, and the rising heat inflates the paper cage, which then sways up into the sky, flying higher and higher.

Although it was not his first time to release a bird, Georg was still amazed by this convenient and fast means of sending messages.

No one knows where Emperor Isaac got these little tricks from.

The enemy cavalry were obviously frightened by the Emperor Lantern, but they soon realized that these little gadgets floating in the sky could not cause them any real harm, so they continued to wave their whips, speeding up.

On the Roman chariots on the periphery, the organ cannons had been raised, and rows of black muzzles were pointed at the oncoming cavalry.

Five hundred steps, two hundred steps, one hundred steps.

"Raise your shield!"

The enemy cavalry drew bows and arrows from their backs, bent their bows and drew arrows, and shot at the chariot formation.

The soldiers in the chariot formation raised their huge tower shields, huddled under them, and prepared to withstand this round of attack.

Whistle--

The arrows hit the chariot formation and pierced the shields and chariot bodies. The power of the horse bows was too weak to cause any damage.

The soldiers walked out of the tower shield and returned to their posts.

The enemy cavalry obviously realized this and did not continue to make meaningless actions. They put away their bows and drew their sabers again.

"preparation--"

Georg's heart was in his throat, this was the first battle since the establishment of the Riorea Legion. It was related to his own future and the future of the legion. Not only must he win, but he must win beautifully!
He knew that the emperor had invested a lot of effort in this legion, and many senior officials were very jealous and were waiting to see them make a fool of themselves.

This time, he must prove his and his legion's abilities, silence the gossips, and repay the emperor's grace!
He held up the Jerka family crest on his chest and gave the lobster a gentle kiss.

Closer and closer, the enemy was caught off guard and came into the optimal range of the organ cannon.

"Fire!"

Georg roared.

bang bang bang-

At that moment, flames spewed out from the dense and slender muzzles of the organ cannons, turning the darkness into day.

Bang, bang——

The musketeers and heavy crossbowmen also fired, and projectiles and crossbow arrows streaked through the sky toward the enemy.

After the gunshot, the riders in the front row fell to the ground, and their horses raised their front hooves and neighed miserably.

The riders fell to the ground, wailing in pain. The cavalrymen behind them had no time to stop and stepped on their comrades, causing secondary injuries.

Because the enemy was completely unprepared, the formation was too scattered and the distance was too close, in just one encounter, nearly one-third of the riders were either killed or injured, and lost their combat capability.

At the same time, the flames and noises in the dark alarmed the remaining horses, and they began to flee uncontrollably, even throwing their masters off their horses.

"Reload the ammunition and keep firing!"

Georg ordered.

"Captain, what is that?"

Basel was not hit by a bullet. He finally calmed the frightened horse down and heard the frightened voices of the soldiers beside him.

"Why would the enemy have a weapon like that?"

Basel shook his head. He didn't know either.

As a veteran of many battlefields, he had certainly seen the power of firearms and was no stranger to it.

However, neither the large siege artillery nor the small muskets that could be set up on the spot could produce such horrific results.

This feeling is like being baptized by a hail of bullets.

Basel quickly recovered from his initial panic, gathered up his remaining cavalry, and led them out of the enemy's range.

The cavalry retreated two hundred steps away. Basel reorganized the formation and counted the number of people. He found that nearly half of them were missing. His heart was bleeding.

"That must be a firearm. It takes a long time to reload!"

"Keep charging! This is their last resort!"

He looked at the frightened expressions of his men, gritted his teeth, rode forward again, and stood at the front of the team.

"For Allah!"

The cavalrymen continued to charge, hoping that what the captain said was true. They closed their eyes silently and prayed to Allah.

"Fire!"

Another burst of dense noise shattered their fantasy, another hail of bullets, and another mess.

This time, the riders who had managed to survive two shots refused to charge again, believing that the Christians had been aided by the devil, and fled in all directions.

Basel failed to build on his previous luck, as a bullet hit his left palm and broke three fingers.

The intense pain and cries from all directions irritated his nerves. The strong soldier finally gave up and ignored the corpses and wounded on the ground. He fled with his few remaining subordinates.

Their misfortune apparently did not end there. A cavalry team received a signal from the Riorea Legion and rode at full speed to catch up, chasing them all the way.

After a midnight pursuit, the centurion of Basel lost too much blood and fell to the ground and died. The remaining soldiers knelt down and surrendered. The encounter ended with a great victory for the Eastern Roman Empire.

Such scenes are not uncommon throughout the battlefield.

With the help of religious sentiment, the city of Tripoli was able to temporarily resist the offensive of the Eastern Roman Empire and fought back and forth with the besieging soldiers.

After long negotiations and compromises, the Hafsid army was finally assembled and marched to the battlefield one after another, engaging in small-scale conflicts with the scattered and looting Crusaders in various directions.

Both sides are waiting for a decisive battle, a chance to make the final decision.

The battle is intense!
(End of this chapter)