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Anno Domini 829, February 13-18
With Theophilos' orders already in my hands and the imperial authorization to lead the army into Bulgaria, I had nothing left to do in Constantinople but depart at once and march as soon as possible. The mobilization of an army is always suspicious to the Bulgarians. They surely have spies, or at the very least they are not fools. The movement of troops would alert the merchants, who always keep sharp eyes open to know when a war is about to erupt, so they can be the first to ignite whatever is necessary for war.
Thus, once our army was assembled outside Constantinople and many of the supplies I had brought were already prepared, unloaded from the ships, and the prefabricated siege machinery set aside so it could later be assembled with maximum speed, we began preparations for the journey to Adrianople.
"BASIL, what is wrong with you?" someone shouted angrily.
When I turned, it was none other than Bardas, clearly furious, frowning as a group of men followed him toward me.
"What do you mean, Bardas? What is your problem? Are you shouting at your commander-in-chief?" I said, staring at him as the Varangians rested their hands on their pole hammers and swords in case anything happened.
"Do not play innocent… my sister already told me what you did. My father must have called in every favor possible to secure me the position as leader of the cataphract tagma, and you, for some reason I truly do not understand, decided I was not worthy to command them, and now I am merely a kentarchos… a kentarchos, Basil, damn it… not even a drungarios… a damned kentarchos… tell me, does that make you happy, bastard?" he shouted angrily.
I answered by punching him in the face, sending him to the ground.
He quickly covered his nose as it began to bleed.
"Disrespect me in front of my men again and I will hang you for insubordination. I made it very clear to your sister that if you attempted anything foolish I would hang you, and you have just done something foolish. I did not think you would be this stupid, but I will grant you a second chance. I have waited my entire life for this moment, and I will not waste it because of a pampered fool like you. I will have my vengeance and no one will stop me. Be grateful you have a command at all, because if it were up to me, you would be a simple rider given your complete lack of military experience," I said angrily.
"Idiot… we are family… you should be helping me, not doing this," he said, covering his nose while his teeth slowly turned red from the blood running down.
"Oh… have you forgotten that I never wanted this marriage, you piece of fool? That I was forced into it? Have you forgotten that? And you think I am going to be happy helping you? You are mistaken. I will make life difficult for you and your father, lovers of power that you are. Now return to your men before I grow tired of you and execute you for insubordination," I said, frowning.
"This will not end here, Basil… do you hear me?" Bardas said through clenched teeth.
"Give me a rope and I will hang this wretch myself," I said, extending my hand.
Upon hearing those words, Bardas quickly began backing away, then turned and retreated while his men followed.
"Coward," Sigurd said, watching Bardas.
"That same coward wanted to command our most important heavy cavalry wing against the Bulgarians. Do you know the chaos it would have caused if this fool had refused to lead a cavalry charge out of fear? The chaos… the dead…" I said, clenching my teeth.
"I pity you," Sigurd said with a faint grimace, "that you must deal with someone so foolish as family. I sometimes think my older brother is a fool, but he always concerned himself with managing my father's lands rather than being a warrior, so we are different and see each other as such… but this Bardas claims to be a warrior, and yet he is so far from being one…"
"He is young… I think he is somewhat younger than I am… having been born privileged, perhaps that stupidity clung to him. It is my duty to rid him of it so he becomes useful and not a burden. As I said, I waited many years to make this a reality; I will not let someone ruin it," I said as I mounted my horse and began riding toward Adrianople.
After putting that kentarchos in his place, I returned to my mindset. The entire army began preparing to march according to the signals. I ordered all units to move in completely different-sized formations and without apparent order. If there were any spy or merchant wishing to sell information, he might miscount our numbers.
We marched swiftly, and within two days we finally reached the city of Adrianople, taking the road that led directly to the fortress guarding Thrace and Macedonia.
Adrianople had changed during my absence. The walls appeared in far better condition, there was a second line of fortifications, and several strongholds could be seen on the horizon. Skleros had clearly done good work with the supplies given to him. From afar it was evident that this region was heavily fortified and thriving.
As we approached, a cavalry force rode out led by none other than Skleros, who observed me with a broad smile.
"Basil… how long it has been. I heard you married the sister of the basilissa herself. You once told me you disliked politics, and look at you now, the basileus' favorite," Skleros said with a wide grin as he slowly approached on horseback.
"They forced that marriage upon me, and I am not the one to refuse the basileus Rhōmaiōn, unless I have a taste for the darkest cell in his prisons."
"Yes, I knew. I only wanted to annoy you. How are you? Ready to take your revenge against the Bulgarians? As much as I asked to take part, Theophilos wanted the rear well secured, so while I would rather stand beside you as in the old days fighting the Bulgarians, now I will guard the rear while you kill those wretches," Skleros said, extending his hand.
"Good. With some luck, better soon, once much blood has been spilled and we hear the screams of the Bulgarians across what was once imperial territory," I replied, gripping his hand.
"Exactly. Well, I used enough of my income to give you an important gift. I hope it proves useful, as I spent the profits of all my estates for two years on this alone. I managed to secure about one thousand cataphracts, personally recruited and equipped from the families working my lands in Anatolia. They may serve you well," Skleros said, pointing toward a distant formation of heavy cavalry.
"Thank you. I know well how costly it is to raise a force from nothing, and that you went to such trouble is no small thing. All aid is welcome, especially against the Bulgarians, who likely field much cavalry," I said, signaling to my men.
"It is a strong force, more than the Bulgarians can gather in short order. But if the war drags on, they will surely outnumber you, and let us hope the emperor can send reinforcements," Skleros said, watching the marching lines moving around us.
"I am aware. I intend to make full use of our local numerical superiority. I hoped you could provide the latest reports from your spy network so I can move with greater certainty," I said with a faint smile.
"Yes, I will put you in contact with the groups I have in the region. It is vital you manage your own networks, though being in Crete makes it difficult to establish something so far away. In the Levant you should maintain strong intelligence webs. Nothing is more important than good information," Skleros said.
"I have taken that into account, my good mentor… I have taken it into account. So, is there anything in particular I should watch for regarding the Bulgarians?" I asked.
"At present the Bulgarians are mostly in the north, as the season of fieldwork approaches, so many of their levies are tending the land. The only forces you are likely to encounter for now are those of local Bulgarian lords and patrols guarding the roads. Beyond that, resistance should be minimal. Their defenses are at their lowest. You should be able to advance without serious difficulty at least as far as Diampolis or Lardea. Beyond that, organized Bulgarian resistance will likely begin," Skleros said, patting my shoulder.
"I will bear that in mind. Let us hope all goes well and we can drive the Bulgarians back to the Danube in this campaign," I said, unable to hide my smile.
"Do not be so ambitious, Basil. Focus on your orders. Control of the sea is better. From there we can expand the frontier and free the Roman captives in those lands. Many slave camps holding Romans are in that region. Freeing them would be significant. Thousands, perhaps tens of thousands, could join our side if we strike swiftly," Skleros said.
"I will consider it, Skleros… but first I have a stop to make before anything else," I replied with a wide smile.
"Then go, Basil. Rest today and march at first light. I will try to supply you with as much as I can. Though the harvest was good, many people from Syria have recently settled here by imperial order to repopulate Macedonia. There are more mouths now, though not necessarily more food," Skleros answered.
Thus we finally took position. The army established camp outside Adrianople while we received several wagonloads of grain, along with draft horses to support logistics, provided by Skleros, who did everything possible to assist us.
Reviewing my troops before beginning the campaign, I had seven thousand cavalry: four thousand cataphracts, and three thousand Anatolian themata cavalry, half of whom were my own medium cavalry, Varangians and Greeks in heavy armor but without horse armor. I had seven thousand archers, two thousand crossbowmen, and eighteen thousand infantry. Only thirty-five hundred were fully equipped, a mix of Varangians and Greeks clad in full heavy armor covering their entire bodies. The rest wore brigandine, lacking more specialized protective pieces in certain areas, supplemented by more common armor to cover those parts. The remaining themata infantry were not well equipped, though at least they had padded armor, helmets, shields, and some mail among them.
At dawn we marched north, sending our lighter cavalry ahead as scouts and vanguard forces to engage Bulgarian border guards.
As we crossed the frontier, we already encountered bodies. Bulgarians lay dead along the road, having fallen while retreating.
We advanced along the road, following the river, moving toward my first objective.
Several villages along the way were sacked, waves of freed Greeks and enslaved Bulgarians sent back toward the Empire, toward Adrianople, to finance the war effort.
Upon reaching Diampolis, we swiftly began assembling the siege machinery, as it was an important Bulgarian city on our path. I left a small force maintaining the siege while the army spread north and east. I personally rode toward Karnobat, watching its silhouette rise on the horizon.
"I have returned."
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If there are spelling mistakes, please let me know.
Leave a comment; support is always appreciated.
I remind you to leave your ideas or what you would like to see.
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The battles, in first person? If so, in a single POV or multiple POVs or third person?