Davos narrowed his eyes. His sharp gaze pierced through the fighting soldiers ahead, through the dense dust, and he saw the Persian royal flags waving in the wind gradually growing larger in his field of vision. He couldn't help but smile.
After Artaxerxes ordered all the reserve troops to press forward, his royal carriage had to follow closely behind the main force. If he had remained in place, he would have been surrounded only by his Royal Guard, numbering only a few thousand, which would have been too conspicuous and made him feel very unsafe.
The driver carefully steered the four Nisean steeds (these white horses came from the most fertile Nisean plains in the Zagros Mountains, and were considered by the Medes to be the finest and largest horses. They were once presented as tribute to Assyria, and the Persian royal family further sanctified them, declaring the Nisean white horses to be sacred objects bestowed upon the Achaemenid royal family by the gods, and no one was allowed to possess them privately except for Persian officials specially authorized by the king) pulling the royal carriage, following the reserve troops towards the fiercely contested battlefield.
Feeling somewhat anxious, Artaxerxes felt that the reserve troops were moving too slowly. He was about to order Teribazus to urge the troops in front to speed up when he saw the strategist suddenly rein in his horse, put his hand to his forehead, and look up at the sky. The royal guards beside him also did the same.
Artaxerxes subconsciously looked towards the sky ahead.
At this time, the sun was already setting in the west. Artaxerxes hastily looked up, and even with the dust obstructing his view, he felt the sunlight was particularly dazzling. He quickly closed his eyes, and was about to open them when he heard Teribazus shout in panic, "Catapults! The stones are fired by the Daonian catapults!"
Artaxerxes was shocked. Ignoring the stinging in his eyes, he hurriedly opened them and saw a dozen round, black shadows flying swiftly overhead, followed by a roar from behind.
Artaxerxes looked back and saw dust flying up a dozen meters away from him, where dozens of coconut-sized round stones had smashed into a patch of craters.
Artaxerxes was instantly covered in a cold sweat.
"Your Majesty, the Daonians are trying to attack you with catapults! Quick! Retreat!" Teribazus didn't get the Persian King's permission before urgently demanding that the carriage turn around and retreat.
The Persian King's luxurious carriage, pulled by four Nisean steeds, was not only larger than ordinary carriages, but also much heavier. It was not easy to make a quick turn, let alone turn around, and the carriage was surrounded by royal guards, making it difficult to clear enough space in a short time.
At this moment, behind the Daonian infantry formation, a simple three-meter-high watchtower had been erected at some point. Under the control of the engineering corps laborers, the experienced catapult unit's aiming officer was standing on the watchtower, looking ahead, and according to the impact point of the first round of stone bullets and the position of the Persian King's carriage, quickly correcting the catapult's firing data and loudly reporting to the catapult unit next to the watchtower.
The catapult operators quickly adjusted the catapult's elevation angle and the force of drawing the string… Soon, the second round of stone bullets was launched.
At this time, Artaxerxes' carriage was still turning around when he saw dozens of stone bullets whistling down from the sky.
The first one landed next to the carriage, smashing a royal guard to pieces. Brain matter and blood even splattered on Artaxerxes' face.
In an instant, Artaxerxes' mind went blank, and he stood there blankly, not reacting to the guards' panicked shouts.
"Boom!" Another stone bullet landed in front of the Nisean white horses, and the splashing dust hit them. The frightened white horses realized the danger and tried to break free from the carriage's yoke, completely ignoring the driver's commands.
In the violent shaking, the carriage actually threw the distracted Artaxerxes out.
"Your Majesty! ! ! … …" The royal guards rushed to rescue him in panic, but at this moment, a stone bullet hit the carriage squarely, and wood chips flew everywhere, accompanied by screams.
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The Persian senior generals all knew that catapults were siege weapons made by the Daonians, and siege weapons were rarely used in field battles between armies. Therefore, they fell into a dead end of thinking and never expected that the Daonian army would use catapults to attack them in a battle, so they entered the range of the catapults completely unprepared.
In fact, before the war, Davos ordered 30 catapults to be deployed behind the center. Although he had the fluke of using beheading tactics, he did not have much hope that it could be realized, because as far as Davos knew, the Persian King Artaxerxes rarely personally went to the front line in previous battles.
The focus of the catapults' attack was not on the center, but on the Persian right wing, the reserve army behind the Ducas' troops, to prevent them from providing timely assistance to the front.
According to the Daonian military system, a legion was equipped with 10 catapults. Therefore, in the army led by Davos, there were nearly 200 catapults, of which 170 were concentrated in the rearmost part of the Daonian army's left wing, facing the Ducas' troops. At the same time as the Keso-Kontes tribe feigned defeat, the catapult unit here also erected watchtowers in a timely manner to closely observe the movements of the enemy's reserve troops.
Just as the catapults in the center were aiming at the Persian King's carriage, part of the reserve troops on the right wing had already been bombarded by stone bullets, because they were eager to provide assistance and entered the range of the catapults early.
The stone bullets fired by a single catapult did not actually cause much damage, but the concentrated firing of 170 catapults was not only impressive, but also created a terrifyingly effective killing effect. As long as they landed within a general area, they could create a small, bloody scene.
The front-line troops deployed by Artaxerxes in the battle were either the elite of the Persian army or the fiercely fighting affiliated tribal troops, while most of the reserve troops had average combat power, and the Caspian Sea League troops behind the Ducas' troops were even reluctant to contribute to Persia. They came here only to deal with the errand, but were asked by the Persians to rush to the front for rescue. After being attacked by several rounds of stone bullets, their already low morale was completely lost, and many people fled in panic…
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While the messenger on the Persian right wing was going to the Persian King for help, the Daonian legion soldiers, who had made full preparations in advance, poured into the gap in the Persian line and, together with the Keso-Kontes tribe's warriors, launched a fierce attack on the Persian archers who had rushed to block the gap.
As the Persian reserves were deployed, the heavily wounded Persian archers were forced to retreat. Taking advantage of the Persian reinforcements being attacked by ballistae and thrown into chaos, countless soldiers of the Daonian legion continuously surged through the gaps in the Persian lines, turning to attack the flanks and rear of the Dukia troops on either side of the gap.
The Dukia warriors, who were already low in morale, were attacked from both sides and quickly collapsed. Some even responded to the Kso Kant tribe warriors and joined the Daonian side.
When the messenger reported the situation on the left flank to the command center, there was a burst of cheers. Both the old generals and the young staff officers were excited because they knew that victory was assured.
Davos also had a smile on his face and asked, "How is the cavalry battle on both wings?"
Philistius replied in a loud voice, "Your Majesty, the Persian cavalry has already begun to rout. Our cavalry is reorganizing its formation, preparing to launch an attack on the flanks of the enemy's wings."
"Very good! Very good! Very good!" Davos praised three times in a row, his smile widening, and he completely relaxed. He turned to look at his old comrades who were also chatting and laughing easily: "It's very hot, everyone must be thirsty, right? Henni, distribute the sour plum juice we brought to everyone."
"Your Majesty, drinking sour plum juice is boring. We want to drink fine wine in the palace of Babylon!" Amyntas joked loudly.
"Hahaha..." Everyone laughed.
..............................................
Although the Daonian legion soldiers continued to defeat the enemy on the left flank and widen the gaps in the enemy lines, and although the Daonian cavalry and light infantry, after defeating the Persian cavalry, turned to attack the flanks of the enemy lines... the Daonian army had already grasped the key to victory, but for the vast battlefield spanning more than ten miles, a complete victory would not come quickly.
It was not until dusk that the Persian army completely collapsed. The last to fight were the Persian Immortals and Greek mercenaries in the center, who were thus heavily surrounded and unable to escape.
This great battle severely damaged the Persian elite troops. High-ranking Persian generals such as Mardonios, Harpagos, and Pessitidaes were either captured or killed. The only regret was that Artaxerxes escaped the battlefield.
Therefore, Davos, who had won the battle, issued an order: the cavalry should continue to pursue the routed troops, and the legions should also shorten their rest time and accelerate their march towards Babylon.
The fastest to pursue were, of course, the Numidian light cavalry. They did not have a great advantage in the battle against the Scythian cavalry and other light cavalry in the Persian mixed cavalry units, but because the main force of the Persian cavalry was defeated, their opponents had no intention of fighting and fled one after another, allowing them to rest in the second half of the battle, and therefore had more physical strength than other troops.
The Numidian cavalry's rapid advance left the city of Nicephorenia, not far from the battlefield, lacking sufficient defenses. While taking in the routed soldiers, they were suddenly rushed into the city, and eventually had to surrender.
Before entering the city to rest, Davos sent a messenger to the west, telling Leotychides, who was rushing to come, that the Daonian army had completely defeated the Persian army, and that he did not need to lead his troops to join them, but instead return to Asia Minor to completely conquer the area.
Early the next morning, the Daonian cavalry continued to pursue eastward, and caught up with Artaxerxes and the Royal Guard beside a tributary on the north bank of the Euphrates River.
The Persian king at this time was completely different from his previous spirited appearance when he led a mighty army out of Babylon. After the army was defeated, the soldiers scattered in all directions, the king's prestige was gone, and even many of his most trusted Royal Guards fled during the night, leaving less than 500 people guarding him.
And after he was attacked by a ballista and fell from his chariot, the 60-year-old suffered such a strong impact that he fell into a coma and has not yet woken up, which also slowed down their escape.
After being caught up by the Daonian cavalry, Teribazus, who was still following the Persian king, led the remaining guards and simply chose to surrender, while requesting that Artaxerxes be given the respect due to a king.
Davos, who arrived later, readily agreed, and also sent the best medical personnel in the army to treat him.
With the Persian king in hand, the Daonian army's eastward advance was even smoother. Important towns along the Euphrates River, such as Colsor Tea and Talmand, opened their gates and surrendered.
In early December, the Daonian army entered the Babylonian region.
When the troops where Davos was located passed through a small village, the old generals in the army became excited, because the name of this village was Cunaxa.
"Back then, we camped here! I remember that the tent I lived in seemed to be in this position!"
"Over there! That's the battlefield! We crushed the Persian king's left wing with one charge, but unfortunately, Cyrus the Younger was too reckless, otherwise we should have won that battle..."
"What's there to regret! Fortunately, he failed, so His Majesty emerged and led us to create Daonia, so that we can return here today as conquerors!"
"That's right, we all have to thank His Majesty! Long live His Majesty!"
"Long live His Majesty!!"
When the old generals were moved by the scene and sincerely cheered to Davos to express their gratitude, Davos, the king of Daonia and the new overlord of the entire Mediterranean, stood motionless on his warhorse, like a clay sculpture. He stared at the open space where Georgiris was standing in front of him, filled with emotion: It was there that he was reborn from a 21st-century Chinese citizen to a humble mercenary in ancient Greece, struggling to survive from the very beginning, and creating Daonia with great effort, fighting hard in this strange world for more than 30 years...
At this moment, memories flashed through his mind, like a dream.
"Report! Your Majesty, Babylon has opened its gates and surrendered. Colonel Kouchius has led the vanguard into the city!" The messenger's shout awakened the dazed Davos. He looked around at the soldiers who had already begun to cheer, and a smile slowly bloomed on his face: No, this is not a dream! This is the turbulent ancient Mediterranean world! And I, Hades Davos, am now the most powerful person in this world!
He waved his right hand forcefully: "Go! We're going to Babylon!"
"Yes, Your Majesty!" Everyone responded in unison, and thousands of soldiers excitedly crowded around this great king, galloping towards the eastern city that had opened its arms to them...