It has been three full days since Voyma Kashad returned.
In his wooden house, Mechasta checked his leather armor, and from time to time he waved the iron sword inherited from his father.
Suddenly, his son broke in with a bow on his back.
"Dad, I must participate in this battle. But my mother thinks I am not suitable yet. I think I have grown up."
The person who came was none other than Mechasta's The youngest son, Tyravis, was originally meant to be a "healthy person". At only ten years old, he obviously had the idea of becoming a hero.
Mechasta admires his son very much, because after the death of his eldest son, only his younger son can inherit his career. He likes his youngest son. After all, he is his own son. He is full of shadows of his youth.
Just like Mechasta, the younger son Taravis has vertical tattoos on his forehead and chin. As for Tyravis, if it was his father's rejection, he would take the initiative to ask for the same tattoo as his father.
However, Mechasta felt that only a truly strong man could have a tattoo exactly like his own, and even his son would not be allowed to do so without merit.
"You want to fight? Come to me!"
Telavis hurried over, his fluffy brown hair shaking in place.
"My father, mother and sister don't want me to fight. I don't think I am young at all. I want to fight like everyone else."
"You still have to fight. ?" Mechasta squatted down and put his hands on his son's shoulders.
"Of course! I am a man! I want to shoot the Varangians and protect everyone."
Hearing this, the leader Mechasta was deeply moved.
After all, it is a battle, and people will die in the battle. His wife only has the last son. It is understandable that she cherishes her son, but excessive love is nothing more than depriving an excellent hunter of the possibility.
"I give permission. Tellavis, tell me, how will you attack the Varyags?"
The boy immediately took off his short bow: "The past I practice archery every day according to your regulations. I am already a very good archer. I don’t want to shoot squirrels anymore. I want to shoot the enemy. If you give me an iron-headed arrow, I will shoot through the enemy’s neck. "
"Very good!" Mechasta nodded deeply: "Then, I will arrange you to the tower. I will give you a lot of iron-tipped arrows, you can have a clear view. Shoot a lot of enemies. Listen, you have to become a new hero in the end..." Speaking of excitement, Mechasta pulled out his iron sword and grabbed his youngest son's hand. The two of them held the sword together: "Telavis, you have achieved meritorious service. In the future, you will be the owner of this sword. You will be the leader of the tribe."
Staring at this grandfather's sword , Taravis held it, his heart beat wildly, and the heart of a warrior awakened!
At this moment, the leader Mechasta can no longer care about so much. He knows that he isThe son is placed in a more dangerous position, and it is in that position that the archer's ability can be better utilized. The son is really good at archery, and his very short stature may greatly improve the survival rate.
This is a time of crisis, and the youngest son Tyravis is not a naturally noble person. Even the leader himself does not feel that he is noble. At the critical moment, the tribe no longer cares about the life and death of individual people. The only thing everyone has to do is to unite to defend against the enemy.
Even the little girls of the tribe must take up arms. At the very least, they must continue to deliver arrows to the archers or carry the necessities of the battle.
In extreme cases, little girls have to draw bows and shoot arrows.
The gray squirrel tribe is like this. They live in an environment with relatively high competitive pressure. Even women who seem to be weak, or even little girls who seem to be powerless, are always trying to take advantage of them. Practice archery with a short wooden bow. They were originally involved in hunting to support their families, and in times of crisis, they could theoretically serve as warriors.
The tribe has never suffered a real disaster in the past. Now the great disaster has come!
The leader Mechasta not only persuaded his wife to participate in the battle, but at least she had to shoot arrows to cover it.
There is also his youngest daughter Saipolava, a girl who originally meant "cute little squirrel". At only eight years old, she was also asked to pick up a short bow and become an archer.
This is the Gray Squirrel Tribe. They rely more on bows and arrows than the Salmon Lord Tribe. But the quality of their bows and arrows is very average.
The Ross people had no idea that the gray squirrel tribe was on guard.
In other words, Otto didn’t have the heart to think about this matter at all.
Because in his opinion, even if the new servants claim that the enemy is very strong, the problem is not big. The result of the battle is basically that the combined team can completely solve the problem with just one attack. .
The Russians finally rested for three days.
These days, Rurik also got the siege equipment he needed, especially a batch of very long ladders, which are sturdy and heavy. Naturally, it takes more than ten people to carry them on their shoulders during transportation. Very laborious.
But the Ross warriors thought of a simpler method, which was to drag a ladder and walk on the ice. A total of four ladders were towed in this way, which was not a laborious task due to the ice.
There are also as many as twenty wooden shields. They are deliberately built to be thin. They are definitely unable to withstand the shooting of their own crossbows. They are obviously completely incapable of dealing with the clusters of stone arrows fired by the enemy's short wooden bows. Enough.
What is very interesting is that the wooden shields made of these thin branches are completely transformed into a sled.
On a quiet morning, the coalition of Russians and servants, totaling 350 people, began a new journey. A group of soldiers who stayed behind assumed control of the newly conquered territory. The main thing was to control the remaining tribesmen and prevent them from rebelling.
Although someReluctantly, Rurik left his Rumia in the Salmon Lord's village with the remaining tribesmen.
In this battle, at least there were no women in the Russian army. The ones that were there, except for Rurik, were all strong and capable men.
The weak north wind brings coldness, even though everyone knows that spring is not far away, and the glacier under everyone's feet will soon return to its original appearance.
Winter is by no means a good time for war. The leader Kaihas is always strong. He knows that the female relatives of his tribe are completely controlled by the Russians. Miraculously, the Russians do not do anything excessive to the women. But he firmly believes that this is based on the cooperation of his tribe.
The boy with the golden ponytail sitting on the sled, maybe he is the real reasoner. However, this rationality must also be based on the cooperation of the men of the Salmon Lord tribe.
The tribe was conquered, and the tribesmen had to fight for their new masters.
Learning that although he would be on the front line of the battle and would encounter a concentrated attack from the enemy, the new master promised that the first batch of people to invade the enemy's settlement would have the right to be the first to pick out the spoils.
The warriors of the Salmon Lord tribe are still equipped with the same crude and crude weapons. All the men wore animal skins and furs on their heads. Together with the so-called boots, they were almost made of cut leather with holes tied to hemp rope and tied to their feet.
These so-called snow shoes are far less reliable than the finely stitched leather boots of the Russians. If they have any advantage, they are probably more slippery when stepping on the ice.
They carry short wooden bows on their backs and hold short spears. Their hemp rope belts were also tied with small linen sacks, in which a batch of dried meat was stuffed.
Some of them were crude and shabby, and Rurik felt a little sorry. Even if they were to be the main offensive force and would die in large numbers, they should not have sent a group of people in extremely bad condition to lead the charge.
This group of servants, the Covins, led the charge with simple weapons. Behind them were two hundred Russian troops fully armed with metal and leather.
Rurik, who was sitting on the sled, was guarded by his mercenaries, because the mercenaries performed very well in the battle. In Otto's heart, these outsiders had become a reality. One's own people.
Rurik could not sense the inner feelings of the Kovin tribesmen who opened the way. Along the way, he often discussed battle-related matters with Jevro.
"Those bloody arrows have lost all their feathers, don't worry, our crossbows don't need feathers when the distance is relatively close."
"If there is a wilderness in the future In combat, all crossbowmen must first break away from the formation and kill a group of enemies with arrows. Even if you are involved in the formation, you must find ways to shoot arrows from the gaps."
"We broke some arrows. There are still 1,300 available. You ask your brothers to be ready. Once the crossbows are gone, you can continue shooting with the captured bows and bone arrows..."
Basically, Rurik is the one giving orders, and Jevlo's job is to listen and remember them deeply.
Jevro kept nodding his head. He secretly admired him in his heart. This child must be born to know how to fight. Rurik is really a strange person!
It took Woimakshad a day and a half to escape from the fallen Salmon Lord's mountain fortress to his own tribe. He ran at extremely fast speeds along the glacier.
The Ross army carried a large amount of food, siege equipment, and even a total of four thousand arrows of various types. The army had been walking along the glacier for two full days.
If the leader Kaihas hadn’t personally led the way on this trip, Otto would have long suspected that this group of Salmon Lord tribesmen were deliberately playing tricks.
Finally things took a turn for the better.
At night, the already cold temperature became even worse. Fortunately, the weather was kind during this period, and there was no severe snowstorm to cause disaster.
The Russian coalition lit a large number of bonfires by the river. It was these bonfires that aroused the vigilance of the sentinels of the Gray Squirrel tribe who were already on alert.
Otto and Rurik sat next to the campfire, nibbling on the snow rabbit meat that had been frozen into lumps but was now roasted until it was sizzling with oil.
Kejas came over nervously: "Great Chief Ross, we are about to enter the territory of the Gray Squirrel Tribe, and we will pass through that low wall."
Get The trusting Jevro now had access to Otto, who translated truthfully, and Otto's beard trembled with joy.
"Is there finally going to be a war? How long will it take for us to reach the enemy's village through the low wall?"
"There is still about one to two days of journey. We will walk all day tomorrow. , we can arrive in the daytime the day after tomorrow."
Otto nodded deeply and asked seriously: "Have you been to those people's villages? You must make sure you know the path."
"I know it completely, and I guarantee it with the lives of my people."
Otto was not in a hurry to speak, he chuckled, and said nothing.
Obviously, the leader of the Salmon Lord tribe is very smart.
Otto patted the shoulder of this little old man who was a few years younger than him: "You understand your mission, you and I don't need to say more. Go back and tell your people to prepare for battle. Listen, you are responsible for taking the lead in the attack, if..."
Otto's tone suddenly became serious: "If you retreat without my order, I will kill the retreaters."
Hearing what Otto said, Kejas's eyes widened like bells.
It seems that the warriors of the Salmon Lord tribe either charge and win at the cost of heavy casualties, or they are killed by the Rus in the rear on the grounds of slackness.
Kejas informed the tribesmen who were in complicated moods about the Ross people's orders, and everyone gradually unified their thoughts, that is, they were determined to defeat the gray squirrel tribe in one fell swoop. Otherwise...
Even if it is for the sake of my own tribeThe lives of women and children must also be fought to the death.
It’s a new day and the team continues on their way. Completely different from the previous days, Otto ordered his warriors to be on high alert, especially the archers in the team, to hold their bows tightly at all times.
Even Rurik ordered his crossbowmen to be on standby at any time.
They continued to walk on the glacier because theoretically the enemy could not build a low wall on the glacier.
As it turns out, there really is a low wall spanning the frozen river.
Otto immediately ordered his men to be on guard, and then ordered his servants to find out.
Kehas had never seen anything like this before. He sent two of his men to find out. After learning the information, he personally informed Otto of the information and his understanding.
"Big Chief. I think the Gray Squirrel Tribe is already on alert. Maybe the escaped slave you mentioned has informed the enemy of all the news."
Otto sometimes even I was thinking that the fleeing guy had frozen to death in the forest. After hearing Kejas's description, Otto was willing to believe that what he described was true.
"Big leader, please be more cautious."
"Prudent? Forget it! My sword will cut off all enemies, and my son's wisdom will make the rebels It's painful." It was obvious that Otto did not care at all for the so-called advice.
A group of men from the Salmon Lord tribe began to work together to move the big trees that had been brought down on the ice.
As the Ross people inspected it in person, it was clear that the tree had been cut down recently. When the ax hit the trunk, you could see the ice crystals in the knife edge. This was not the case with dead trees.
Different from Otto's indifference, seeing such a scene, Rurik could not let go of his doubts and worries.
Doesn’t this explain the problem? The enemy is already on guard!
Are the armies going to attack a city? Is it really appropriate to forcefully attack a defended city?
Obviously Father Otto thought it was a good fit.
Rurik thought, maybe it was just because the first attackers were so-called cheap servants. Thinking about it in an absolutely rational way, Rurik couldn't say that what his father did was wrong. Precisely doing this is particularly beneficial to the Russians themselves.
The big tree was pulled away, and the team truly set foot on the territory of the gray squirrel tribe.
The Russians camped by the river again. They lit a bonfire, intending to wrap themselves in animal skins and sleep. After eating and drinking, they waited for tomorrow's battle.
"The war will start tomorrow, so you should prepare well. Maybe this is for the war you predicted." Otto blessed his son and stuffed the barbecue in his hand into his mouth.
It is impossible for Rurik to say that he is not nervous. In fact, quite a few Ross warriors are also nervous, or in other words, nervousness is mixed with strong excitement.
But those servants, they are almost afraid.
Because of the history of the struggle between the Lord of Salmon and the Gray Squirrel,Both tribes were sporadic hunters who crossed the border to conduct sneak attacks. They had never organized a team of more than a hundred people to launch an attack. This had never happened before.
Rurik ate some barbecue. He had been thinking about something for a long time, and now he said to his father: "I suspect that our actions have been discovered by the enemy a long time ago."
Otto was surprised: "How can you see it?"
"Does building a roadblock on the glacier not explain the problem?"
Otto thought about it and took the lead. It is indeed reasonable for everyone to move forward in such a swagger that they were discovered early. But so what?
Otto said arrogantly: "I don't care if they find us. After all, tomorrow night, we will occupy their village. Rurik, I will have to catch a beautiful girl for you by then. She will be your woman."
"You..." Rurik felt that his father was dizzy because he drank half a bottle of liquor. Indeed, on the way to the "Northern Hunt", Rurik prepared some spirits in glass bottles for his father for his personal enjoyment.
Rurik shook his head vigorously: "There are too many women around me. Let us fight the battle of destiny. Now I have a suggestion."
"You said Let's do it."
"We will set up a large number of bonfires, even if no one is warming up."
Otto was confused, but Rurik's explanation surprised him: "Since you and I. They all believe that our whereabouts have been discovered, and we must be monitored from a distance by them. I am a little worried about the camp being attacked, so I want to use some strategies. The enemy cannot accurately judge our number in the dark, they can only use the campfire. Let's estimate. We set up a lot of bonfires. Maybe the enemy will think that we have dispatched more than a thousand warriors. If the enemy is afraid, we will see the kneeling crowd tomorrow. If we can win in this way, I will be happy. "
Here, Otto did not understand the idea of "conquering the enemy without fighting" in Rurik's words. He thought it was incredible.
On the contrary, he used tricks to scare the enemy into stupidity, and he was happy to use them.
Since then, the number of bonfires in the Ross camp has been rapidly expanding. Since you only need to carry a lit branch, you can quickly make a bonfire. In a short period of time, the number of bonfires in the Ross camp has been at least Five times the expansion!
For the gray squirrel tribe, the leader Mechasta led a dozen shrewd tribesmen to the top of the village wall, and his son even climbed the tower.
People in this era have very good eyesight, and the world has never encountered light pollution. Standing relatively high, the people of the gray squirrel tribe can easily notice the bonfire in the distance.
Mechasta's face was trembling: "Damn it, why are there so many of them?"
Some tribal warriors said guiltily: "Chief, they are many, but they are not good at fighting." Right."
"They are not good at fighting? They are Varyags!" another person retorted.
Someone comforted themselves and said: "They have traveled a long way.Maybe already out of breath. They must have brought limited food supplies, and as long as we hold on to the wall, we can force them to evacuate. After all, we have a lot of food. "
The words of this tribal warrior really comforted Mechasta: "Get down, everyone! They will come over tomorrow to take care of the brothers and prepare them for battle. Listen, as long as we persist for a long time, no matter whether reinforcements come or not, and we exhaust the enemy until they have no food, we will win. ”
This night, many people stayed up all night.
A new day came in the desolation. The highly nervous Russians even gave it to the Salmon Lord tribe of servants. The soldiers received a batch of wheat cakes, and every man who attacked could get half a piece.
Many of them had eaten food made by the Varyag people for the first time in their lives, and it was also precious wheat cakes. They felt that the strange behavior of the Varangians was a hint that everyone would fight for them.
In fact, it was not the case. On this day, the Russians also had a good meal before going to war, and then brought their own attacks. They used city ladders and large shields to overwhelm the servants, and the servants launched a battle.
The Ross army is coming!
A large number of men from the gray squirrel tribe. Standing on the wall with bows and arrows and short spears, there was a terrifying roar in the distance, and these tribal warriors couldn't help but tremble.
Mechasta shouted, "Don't be afraid!" You are the best hunters! When enemies appear, aim for their necks! Remember, their necks have no armor, shoot through their necks, punch through their veins, and let them know who is the best hunter! "
It must be said that Mechasta's instigation has achieved some results. Because the hunting skills of the tribal warriors are their savage pride.
The roar is getting closer and closer, Finally, the dark crowd emerged from the forest in the distance. They suddenly appeared when the morning fog had almost dissipated, and their guide was none other than Kaihas, the leader of the Salmon Lord.
Kehas. The reason for his confidence was that he had a large number of Ross warriors behind him.
Otto did not say much. After he made a gesture, Kejas knew that the Ross people had given him an offensive mission.
The Russians will definitely not participate in the first attack. It seems that the men who are the first to enter the village and divide the spoils first are given to the Salmon Lord, but they are actually letting everyone explore the way.
At this point, Kejas has understood everything. Everyone can only move forward bravely.
But he still made another inspiring call: "Brothers, we have been with them for many years. Hatred is coming to an end! The Russians support us, let us attack and take revenge! ”
It seems that today’s battle is the revenge battle of the Salmon Lord tribe. They started charging with howls. The Russians carried big shields and shouted slogans, taking each step steadily as if they were pit after pit. Moving forward quickly, only the men of the Salmon Lord brought four large ladders and attacked the ice-reinforced Gray Squirrel Hill Fort like a glacial river.
There is no pre-battle call, no battle report, and no delay.
The battle has begun.