Eagle Byzantium

The Roman Turks who also noticed the movement of the Archer Division, even though they had not received the order of the Giliki Sultan (who was now in Ankara, and the communication channels had been cut off by the pilgrims who occupied Konya), also spontaneously left the various fortresses in Seleucia and western Cilicia, and gathered under the banner of "Emir of Caria" Yesutin, together with some Roman soldiers who withdrew from Nicaea and Tarsus, led by the Turkish noble Toulon, a total of about 5,000 people, also entered the suburbs outside Zephilim, ready to rely on the castle and the river to stop Gawain's advance.

But Andreev and Jarguba cleverly sailed into the estuary from the sea, detoured to the lower reaches of the Zephilim River, and suddenly carried the battle flag to block the flank of Yesutin's team.

The Roman Turkic army on the hill outside the city was extremely terrified. When Toulon and others who had seen it saw the red cross sword flag of the enemy on the opposite side, their morale plummeted. "Your Excellency Emir, what should we do now? There are enemies in front of our army, and there are also large groups of enemy troops on the flanks and rear roads. They can wade across the river to attack us at any time."

Emir Yesutdin could only give orders: Toulon led a thousand people and deployed them on his right wing to guard against the Andreev detachment entering from the river island (actually there were less than a thousand people, but many of them were pirates who were familiar with the local geographical situation. They drove small boats in and out, set fires everywhere, and created a strong momentum). He also left 300 people to defend the fortress, and he only led a team of less than 4,000 people to stretch out on the hill.

The Roman flag formation was very rigorous. The front row was a wooden fence, and the spearmen were lined up behind them. Behind them were mostly lightly armed archers, and the cavalry were deployed on both sides to block Gawain's front. The sound of chanting and beating drums continued all day long.

On the desert plain, under the red hand flag, Gawain, riding on the black Sabina, and the generals were concentrating on observing the battle. "Everyone, as long as we annihilate the main force of the Conia army in Zephilim City, and then go straight to Seleucia, we don't have to spend any effort at all. In this battle, the cavalry team does not need to attack the hilltop to avoid bad luck, but to set up a battle formation at the shallows of the river on the left and wait - at the second hour tomorrow morning, the flag of Saint Theodore will be raised in the middle of the army as a signal. Branas and Dolus led the Guardian Brigade and the Paulicians to advance from the left and meet with the Andreev detachment. The Red Hand Brigade will move forward and attack from the front. The Guard Brigade will attack from the right wing of the enemy army. Please remember the order of the flag signals. Those who rush forward will be killed, those who hesitate will be killed, and those who discuss military strategies will be killed. I will be in charge of the Red Hand Brigade. If I die, Giovanni will take over the command; General Branas will be in charge of the Guard Brigade. If Branas dies, Dolus will take over the command. "

After the arrangement was completed, Gawain looked at Branas fiercely, and the other party swallowed his saliva in a hurry, and immediately said that he would not stop until his death. He would lead the new brigade in the future and fight to the end for Her Royal Highness the Princess and General Stratigus.

Then Gawain left a small number of cavalry on guard. He rushed back to the camp quickly, and the entire archer division immediately prepared for battle. Everyone understood that as long as they fought well in this battle, they would have no obstacles in entering Seleucia.

Soon, in the early morning of the next day, the red sun broke through the clouds. The Red Hand Brigade and the Guardian Brigade, which were deployed with their backs to the east, were standing in formation. The armor was shining. A total of 8,000 warriors stood densely on the reed sand. Flag officers and brotherhoods rode their horses from time to time, galloping back and forth in the formation and shouting to boost morale.

Among them, the five bandas of the Branas Brigade were arranged in a goose-step formation with a wide field of vision and the ability to move quickly, and were deployed on the left side of the Red Hand Brigade; in the middle of the two brigades were the two most elite cavalry companies, forming a double-line wide formation, with spear tips flashing and feathers on horse heads fluttering in the morning breeze, staring at the Roma army on the hills in front of them; on the right were the six banda detachments of the Red Hand Brigade, arranged in an inverted "L" shape, with the first three detachments facing Yesutin's position, forming a horizontal confrontation line, and on the far right of the "Hell's Bloody Mouth" detachment, followed by the "Jackal", "Gongara", and "Apollo's Arrow" three new detachments were arranged along the diagonal line, the old detachments were all arranged in a compact column holding lances, thorn spears, and wild boar spears, and the new detachment with the Germans as the core was full of death warriors holding two-handed swords, broadswords, and two-handed halberds in the front row.

In the array and between the detachments, the Italian veterans held long shields and sharp swords, taking the responsibility of supporting all parties.

As the sun shone, the general commander Bogotschalk kept shouting "The door of the little kingdom of heaven has been opened" and "The key is the sword in your hand". The priests and monks held various icons and came to the front of the array to cheer loudly, which made the Pauline believers on the left wing very dissatisfied. "Cornama Vixen" rode on the horse, looking at Gawain standing on the high hill at the end of the array, shrouded by the morning light, and secretly calculated whether this man and Anna would fulfill their promise and give her and the true believers a piece of promised land after they captured the territory.

"Gawain, with such a military appearance and the favor of the Lord, you can return in triumph!" At this time, the sedan chair behind Gawain landed, and Anna, behind the curtain, saw the huge lineup of his archery division and said excitedly.

"Within a week, Her Royal Highness the Princess will enter the city of Seleucia." Gawain knocked his hand on his chest and swore generously.

"Very good, if this goal is achieved - Gawain, I will temporarily abandon the surname Komnenos, so as not to make you feel tied down, but will wear my own crown and put on my own in the city of Seleucia. Ziyi, renamed Anna "Dukas, from now on, I will fight with you in this world with a new look." Anna behind the curtain slapped the cork handrail and said loudly. Agnes and the fat eunuch next to her were so frightened that their faces turned pale. They really didn't understand the princess. What do you think, Your Highness?

"Anna, Seleucia, will be your Castamonu Castle."

"It's also yours, Gawain!" As Her Royal Highness the Princess shouted, Gawain gritted his teeth, his cloak was as sharp as scissors, and galloped down the hill. Rows of soldiers passed by on both sides of him. He raised his hands high. Huh, "Your Highness, the divine revelation has come true. With the favor of the Lord, our army will surely win."

"God's will will prevail!" All the soldiers raised their flags and weapons and shouted in response. Next to Anna's shoulders, the icon battle flag of Saint Theodore suddenly rose, with a black flag beside it. Rolling and fluttering in the sun.

"See the flag, the whole brigade moves forward." Branas of the Guardian Brigade turned around and saw the signal, and drew his sword. Then all the detachments of the brigade shouted one after another, following the Roma army On the right side of the hill, across the curved river, they marched forward in a swagger, with the obvious purpose of meeting the Andreev detachment and fleet on the opposite side.

"Your Majesty the Emir." The Bey, Ghazi and slave soldiers around Yesudin all pointed at Branas's brigade moving forward like a long snake. "This enemy flank is exposed in front of us. Do you want to go down the mountain and attack them?"

Yesudin looked at this scene with slight beads of sweat on his forehead, indicating that he was hesitant. (To be continued ~^~)