Free Arrows of Fury: Empire Volume Two by Anthony Riches Page B

we catch up with our sister cohort.’
    ‘And exchange us for the men they stole this morning? I think that will take longer than you imagine, Centurion, and even when you do there will be another man posted to command my archers. Do not trouble yourself on my behalf. As long as I am with my people and have the strength to bend my bow I need nothing more.’
    Marcus paced to the window, looking out into the grey dawn at the mustering Hamians.
    ‘Archers. I’m afraid that archers are not what’s needed now, not while there are barbarian warbands in the field.’
    The other man appeared at his shoulder, his soft voice close to Marcus’s ear.
    ‘We had guessed as much. While we sat here and waited, centuries of men with heavy armour and spears were in and out in less than a day. It soon became clear enough to us that our having been sent here was a cruel mistake. Now that we are yours to command, it is my expectation that we will soon have heavier armour thanthis …’ He fingered the thin rings of his light mail vest, drawing Marcus’s attention to its insubstantial nature compared with his own mail, which was both longer and significantly heavier. ‘… and spears of our own.’
    Marcus nodded, his eyes fixed in appraisal of the soldiers parading outside the window. They were wiry for the most part, a few simply skinny, more bone and sinew than muscle, though they shared the broad powerful shoulders that defined their skill at arms. Their mail looked too flimsy to resist a determined spear or sword-thrust, their conical helmets lacked cheek guards, and their impractically light shields were circular rather than being shaped to fully protect a soldier’s body. None of the equipment on show would act as adequate protection in a pitched battle.
    ‘Can your men run?’
    ‘If you mean over a distance, the answer is yes, Centurion. We are hunters, for the most part, used to covering ground in search of game. How they will perform weighed down with mail coats and heavy shields such as your men carry is another question. But I make one request of you, Centurion, and that is not to take their bows from them. To do so would be a grave mistake.’
    Marcus turned to face the Hamian, his face creasing into a frown.
    ‘As soon as I can manage it they’ll be issued with a thigh-length coat of heavy ring mail capable of stopping a spear, a leather arming vest to wear underneath it and protect their skin from the mail’s rings when that spear-thrust arrives, an infantry gladius, two spears, an infantry helmet and a full-length shield. All of which weighs more than you might imagine until the first time you put it all on. Then they’ll have to march, or run, up to thirty miles a day once we’re on campaign. The additional burden of a bow isn’t going to help them cope with the load.’
    Qadir spread his arms, palms upwards, and bowed, his eyes remaining fixed on Marcus’s.
    ‘I understand, Centurion, and I can see that you are right. And yet …’ He paused, searching for the right words to make his point without angering his new officer. ‘… Centurion, to take their bowswill be to take their souls. Each man has grown close to his weapon, over long years of practice. He has fired thousands of arrows in practice, until he can put an iron head into a target the size of a man’s chest at one hundred paces, and can do this six times in one minute. The very core of what these men have learned over those years is that to hit the target time after time after time they must lose all awareness of themselves, simply focus on the centre of their target and become servant to the bow that seeks that target. These two centuries contain some of the best bowmen I have ever seen loose an arrow, capable of great accuracy with weapons they have come to love as dearly as their own children. And so I tell you, with very great respect to your rank and obvious character, that if these men lose their bows then they will also lose their hearts.