Rome Must Fall

After seeing all the rebel soldiers charge down the mountain, Maximus stopped putting out the fire and intently observed the situation unfolding below: the Romans’ javelin attack made his heart race, the gladiators’ charge filled him with excitement, the deadlock between the two sides made him anxious… And then he saw the troops at the back of the Roman formation split into two groups, starting to flank the rebels’ wings. The inexperienced recruits, who wielded farming tools and had never experienced combat, almost instantly collapsed upon seeing enemies attacking from the rear…

It’s over!

Even though Maximus had some expectations based on his memories from his previous life, witnessing the rebel soldiers crying out and fleeing up the mountain in disarray made his scalp tingle and his hands and feet turn cold. It took him a while to regain his composure before urgently shouting, “Agnes! Cornelius! Take your subordinates and quickly retreat up the mountain!”

“Pigres! The members of your wagon team…get on the wagons and follow them up the mountain!”

“Vorenus! Children! Follow me!” Maximus ran back while continuously shouting with all his might.

He heard the responses from Agnes, Pigres, and Cornelius coming from the camp. However, at the same time, accompanied by the panicked cries of other members of the Logistics Team, some people rushed toward Maximus.

The situation was urgent, and Maximus couldn’t spare a moment to look closely. He hurriedly led them in a hasty retreat towards the rear, up the mountain.

……………………………………………

Glaber was overjoyed when he saw the enemy in full retreat and immediately gave the order, “Send out the cavalry to pursue the enemy!”

“Legionnaires…” Glaber hesitated for a moment and said, “Maintain formation and advance towards the enemy’s camp at a normal pace. Leave the task of pursuing the fleeing soldiers to the cavalry and auxiliary troops.”

Glaber’s cautious approach stemmed from his lack of confidence in the combat ability of these newly conscripted Roman soldiers. The gladiators’ charge earlier had left him frightened. He was worried that the Roman soldiers would scatter during the pursuit, and if the gladiators counterattacked, an unexpected situation could arise.

Vettinius had no objections to this plan.

The Roman cavalry and Campanian auxiliary troops pursued from both flanks, forcing the retreating soldiers to flee up the mountain.

As the Logistics Team had abandoned their firefighting efforts, several fires reignited in the camp, causing even more panic and confusion among the retreating soldiers. Thus, when many of them looked up and saw hundreds of people from the Logistics Team gathering together and climbing up towards the rear of the mountain, they aimlessly fled toward the rear of the mountain as well.

As more and more people followed, the rear of the mountain became the main direction of escape for the fleeing rebel soldiers, including the gladiators. Since they were at the forefront when the battle started, they were left behind when the retreat began. However, they were not like the frightened slaves. As soon as the pursuers approached, they turned around and launched counterattacks. The Roman cavalry and auxiliary troops suffered losses from this encounter and didn’t dare to continue to fight them head-on and chose to bypass them and pursue other fleeing soldiers.

By the time the gladiators made their way around the vineyard farm and reached the rear of the mountain, the routed soldiers in front had already been dispersed. The Roman cavalry and auxiliary troops vaguely formed an encirclement around the gladiators.

During the chaotic retreat, the gladiators gradually regrouped, facing the impending encirclement. Although they were tense, they were not panicking. After all, most of them had experienced being surrounded by enemies in group competitions in the arena. Therefore, spurred on by Spartacus’ and Crixus’ loud shouts, they quickly formed a circular formation of hundreds of people and advanced slowly towards the upper part of the rear of the mountain.

The weak Roman cavalry and Campanian auxiliary troops were unable to stop them and had to release the blockade, becoming a trailing force on three sides.

Initially, the slope of the back of the vineyard farm was gentle, but it became steeper and narrower as they ascended. Moreover, the width gradually narrowed. When the gladiators reached a certain height, the slope was no longer wide enough to accommodate their formation.

Spartacus immediately ordered the circular formation to be transformed into four vertical columns and continued to retreat upward.

The trailing Campanian auxiliary troops faced the vigilant gladiators but didn’t dare to launch an attack. It wasn’t until a signal from the rear sounded that they hastily withdrew.

It turned out that Glaber had followed the Roman army to the rebel camp, and when he saw the auxiliary troops confronting the gladiators on the rear of the mountain, in order to avoid losses, he gave the order to withdraw the troops.

At the same time, he summoned a guide who used to be a guard at the vineyard. He had avoided the rebels on the day of the raid by chance when the farm overseer ordered him to go to Naples to buy farm supplies.

“Besides this side, are there any other paths down the mountain?” Glaber looked up at the mountain and asked.

“My lord,” the guide respectfully replied, “this mountain, except for this side that has a gentle slope and can barely reach the mountaintop, other areas are exceptionally steep and impossible to climb. Moreover, as you go higher up the mountain, the narrower and steeper the paths become. Only near the mountaintop, there is a plateau that can accommodate a few hundred people. My overseer once opened up a small vineyard there…”

Listening, Glaber suddenly asked, “Is there a water source on this mountain?”

“No, there is no water source,” the guide understood Glaber’s implication and shook his head. “We built a reservoir in the vineyard up the mountain, but it’s not large enough. Even if it’s filled with water, it wouldn’t be enough for so many people to drink for a day…”

Glaber was feeling relieved, but he was not completely at ease. He pointed to the mountain and ordered Vettinius, “Immediately recall the auxiliary troops from Campania and have them build a new camp on the mountainside to block the enemy’s path down the mountain and let the legion soldiers maintain vigilance. Additionally, send the cavalry to circle around this mountain and thoroughly examine the terrain, checking if there are any other possible routes down.”

“We’re not pursuing the fleeing troops?” Vettinius asked reluctantly.

Glaber sneered, “I saw it clearly just now. Those damn gladiators have mostly escaped up the mountain. Once we annihilate them, the other fleeing slaves are not worth mentioning.”

“What about the surrendered slaves?”

“Kill them all to save us from wasting manpower on guarding them.” Glaber sighed lightly, “It’s a pity though, this is just a small slave rebellion. We can’t parade them triumphantly down the streets of Rome after victory!”

Vettinius, who had participated in the triumphal procession with Sulla in the past, didn’t find it regrettable. He replied, “Legatus, I will proceed with the orders.”

……………………………………………….

After the enemy withdrew, Spartacus did not let his guard down. He and Hamilcar, along with more than 20 gladiators, held the rear and stationed themselves at a narrow section of the mountain road.

Not long after, he saw Roman soldiers forming up at the foot of the mountain. While the auxiliary troops once again discarded their shields, spears, and armor, and picked up shovels and other digging tools, a sense of unease crept into Spartacus’ heart.

“Not good, the Romans want to trap us on this mountain!” Hamilcar voiced his concern.

The gladiators beside them had their faces filled with alarm, all looking at Spartacus.

With a stern face, Spartacus withdrew his gaze from below and said to everyone, “Let’s go back up the mountain, there’s no need to defend this place.”

“What if the Romans attack us up here?” a worried gladiator asked.

“I actually hope they continue to advance,” Spartacus replied with a remark before turning around and heading up the mountain.

Hamilcar understood his meaning, while the other gladiators were somewhat puzzled, but they also followed suit.

The mountain road wound its way upward, and as Spartacus walked, he suddenly stopped. He saw a row of wagons parked near up ahead, with no horses hitched to them.

Spartacus approached and examined each one closely. Inside the wagons, there were either bags of flour or smoked meat, along with some sealed wine jars and plenty of dry bread…

Spartacus felt slightly relieved and muttered to Hamilcar, “Maximus is quite well-prepared. But why leave everything here? In case the Romans attack us up here, won’t it all fall into their hands?”