The summons came at dawn. Leonidas's men stood ready in full kit, crimson cloaks snapping in the cool morning wind. A herald read the orders in the courtyard, his tone flat, but his eyes carried something sharper.
"Leonidas of the Iron Cohort will march north to secure the village of Amyklai. You will combine with fifty under Kleon and fifty of new levies."
Whispers rippled through the ranks. Levies—raw peasants barely given shields. Not trained Spartans. Not even hardened allies.
Theron stepped closer, voice low. "They mean to drown us in weakness."
Leonidas didn't look at him. "Then we teach weakness how to stand."
---
The march was uneasy. Kleon strutted at the head of his men, smirking at Leonidas as if the council had finally tied a weight to the peasant captain's ankles. The levies trailed at the rear, shields mismatched, spears cut from green wood. Their loyalty bars hovered in Leonidas's overlay like dying embers:
Levies – Loyalty: 45% (low, fragile)
Kleon's Unit – Loyalty: 61% (fractured)
Iron Cohort – Loyalty: 96% (iron)
It was a trap, clear as daylight.
---
At Amyklai, the situation was worse than expected. Raiders had taken the village and fortified it with palisades, archers perched on rooftops, and a ditch dug at the northern gate. A direct charge would bleed them dry.
Kleon snarled, pointing up the hill. "We hit them hard and fast. Break their line before they can shoot."
Leonidas shook his head. "A charge with levies in the front? They'll break before we're halfway. You know it."
Kleon's glare burned. "Afraid?"
Leonidas ignored the jab. He studied the ground, his mind painting lines across the ditch and rooftops. If the levies fold, the wall collapses. But if they hold just long enough…
---
He called the levy captain forward—a gray-haired farmer with trembling hands. "Your men fear this fight," Leonidas said plainly. "Good. Fear makes them alive. But they can't run. So give them one task."
The man swallowed. "What task?"
"Hold the ditch. Not charge. Not kill. Just hold. My men will cover their flanks. If they last ten breaths, the wall holds. Ten breaths is all I need."
The man blinked, then nodded. "Ten breaths."
---
The battle began with fire. Arrows hissed down, clattering against shields. The levies quailed but Leonidas barked steady commands: "Shields up! Breathe! Ten breaths!"
The Iron Cohort anchored their flanks, moving like iron teeth locking shut. Doros roared encouragement, Kyros laughed in defiance, Theron's spear darted like a snake.
The levies wavered, but when one broke, Leonidas himself stepped into the gap, shield slamming against wood, voice calm. "Nine breaths left."
The overlay shimmered:
Levies – Loyalty: 50% (rising)
For the first time, their line didn't crumble.
---
Kleon, furious at Leonidas's control, hurled his men uphill in a reckless charge. Predictably, his wedge staggered under arrow fire, shields breaking, formation fraying.
Leonidas clenched his fist. So predictable. He signaled the Iron Cohort to shift. "Brace left! Anchor Kleon's flank!"
The Iron Cohort slid into position, their iron discipline covering Kleon's chaos. The enemy faltered, shocked as the fractured line stitched itself into a wall.
The system pulsed:
[Shared Breath Activated: +3% permanent loyalty to Kleon's men.]
Leonidas almost smiled. Even his men trust me more than him now.
---
With the ditch secured and Kleon's flank saved, Leonidas gave the signal. His fifty surged uphill in perfect rhythm, smashing into the palisade. Spears thrust through gaps, shields hammered wood. The levies followed, emboldened, their fear hardening into resolve.
Within minutes, the raiders' line collapsed. The rooftops emptied, archers scattering into the hills. Amyklai was free.
---
After the battle, the villagers cheered, pressing bread and wine into Spartan hands. The levies stood taller, pride burning in their eyes. Their overlay bars now gleamed steadier:
Levies – Loyalty: 60% (stabilized)
Kleon stormed up to Leonidas, face twisted with rage. "You undermined me again! My men follow your word, not mine!"
Leonidas's voice was cool. "Your men follow the wall. If you can't give it to them, they'll find it where it stands."
Kleon's fists clenched, but he didn't strike. He couldn't—not with so many eyes watching.
---
That night, the system whispered:
[Event Complete: Fractured Allies Stabilized.]
[Gift Path: Unit Upgrade Progression Advanced.]
[Hint: A new evolution of the Iron Cohort approaches.]
Leonidas lay awake under the stars, listening to the slow, steady breathing of his men. Evelyne's knights might have numbers, Rome might have discipline, Persia might have fear, but none had this: men who chose to hold when others expected them to break.
Iron sharpens iron. And my wall will outlast them all.