The Argive Ch. 126-130

After everything that happened with the Spartans, Praxis expected many members of the old army to heed the call. He thought the grounds would be overflowing with youthful and vengeful young men ready to do their duty for their home city.

What he found instead was a decisive lack of bodies.

"Where are all the men?" asked Praxis as he found Asterion and Mikon. "I just did a rough count. I see all the Messenians that came with us but maybe no more than a hundred Argives. Where are the rest of them?"

Asterion's response was utterly devastating.

"They didn't come, my king. These are the only men that answered the call."

At that moment, Praxis was truly speechless.

Maybe beating Nikandros was a pipe dream after all?

*****

It took Akadios three days of traveling to reach the city of Sparta after the disastrous battle between the Messenian, Argive, and Corinthian forces that was already being called the Battle of the Brothers. Along the way, Akadios heard further news being carried south by merchants that Praxis of Argos had retaken his home city, creating a significant setback to the plans of King Nikandros.

This Praxis of Argos was becoming a very dangerous man. Akadios suspected that Nikandros had already heard the news about the fall of Argos because the king allowed Akadios an audience at once.

"What happened to that army, Akadios?" demanded Nikandros, who was practicing with his sword in the central courtyard of the Spartan palace. "I gave Xanthos nearly eight hundred men to squash his stepbrother like a bug. And the next thing I hear is that Argos has fallen to this Praxis. Where did it all go wrong?"

"I'm not sure exactly, my king," replied Akadios. "Xanthos should have been able to defeat his stepbrother. The only advantage that Praxis had was defending a good position. They were using that tightly-drawn formation once more, the same one that they used during the Battle of Messene."

"You mean the same one that routed a force four times their size," grunted Nikandros. "So is it any wonder they did it again? Especially when this force wasn't made up of Spartans?"

Akadios sensed that the questions might have been rhetorical and said nothing in reply. Nikandros continued to stew for a moment before he stabbed the ground with his sword.

"I should have known better than to send that fool Xanthos against him. You don't send a sheep to corral a wolf. This Praxis of Argos is more of a threat than I've realized. He will need to be dealt with before this is all over, before I have total control of the Peloponnese." Nikandros stopped for a second to rub at his beard. "I will have to take matters into my own hands."

"Do you want me to send word to the army, my king?" asked Akadios. "Tell them to prepare to march?"

Nikandros opened his mouth quickly but then closed it just as fast.

"Not yet," replied the Spartan king. "It's obvious to me that he is a better-prepared foe than the ones I've faced before. And this formation that he is using can't be dealt with by sheer numbers alone. We will need another advantage to destroy him. Send word to our allies instead. We're going to need as many men as possible for the coming campaign. Do it at once, Akadios."

Akadios nodded his head. "It will be done, my king."

Chapter 130: Not Enough Men

Praxis' mouth was still open as he gazed at the nearly empty training grounds outside the city. Only about a hundred men had answered his call from yesterday, and they could be seen standing to the side while the Messenians started their training.

One hundred men wasn't going to fix anything. Praxis couldn't defeat the Spartans with less than five hundred in total.

"Where are the rest of them?" asked Praxis, still in a state of disbelief. "Are there more coming? Do we need to wait for them to arrive?"

Asterion shook his head. "I've been here for an hour now. The hundred men that we did get trickled in at about the same time, and then there was no one else. The numbers have been the same for the past half hour."

"This can't be right," muttered Praxis. "Maybe they didn't hear me. Maybe they didn't understand the message."

"Or maybe they did," suggested Asterion. "Could you really blame them if so few showed up to take on the Spartans, especially with their recent victories? Maybe they're frightened because they know just what they're going up against. Maybe that's why most of them didn't show up."

Asterion's words made sense, but Praxis was still finding himself hot-tempered as he marched over to the Argives, scanning the crowd as he went. Many of their faces were familiar, with a good portion having served in the Elites before the fall of the city. The rest of them were fresh-faced but all the men gathered had one emotion in common.

Fear.

"Is this it?" asked Praxis once he had their attention. "Is this all the men in Argos who are willing to defend their city?"

Silence greeted his question but that wasn't entirely unexpected. In a way, Praxis was calling them out. If their city was so great and worthy of independence, why hadn't more answered the call?

Praxis put his fingers in his eyes when no one replied. Once he removed them, he scanned the crowd for an old familiar face.

He found it in Cilix, an old member of the Elites.

"Cilix, come forward please," said Praxis.

The man obeyed instantly, not stopping until he was at Praxis' side. He was one of the few warriors that Praxis knew as being extremely gifted--a really talented fighter. Praxis stepped away from the other Argives, beckoning Cilix to walk with him.

"It's good to see you again, Cilix."

"And you too, my king," said the lean but muscular warrior. "I wasn't sure if I was ever going to see you again. When I heard you were back, I couldn't help but be grateful that you survived the fall of the city."

"I barely survived," said Praxis. "If not for some help, I would have barely made it into Arcadia. What about you? The last I saw of you, we were separated during the retreat. You were certainly making the Spartans bleed though."

Cilix grinned. "They're just like any other men. They all bleed. There were just too many of them though. We started taking losses. Do you remember my brother, Cineas?"

Praxis nodded. "Your younger brother if memory serves. How is Cineas doing?"

"Not so good, my king. He died in the attack. Took a Spartan sword directly to the gut." Cilix let out a deep sigh. "Nothing has been the same since. I've been waiting for my opportunity to avenge him. I even left the city, hiding in my uncle's country farm until it was safe to return. I never forgot the vengeance though. That's why as soon as I heard you were putting this army together, I knew I had to sign up."

"I'm grateful that you did, Cilix. You've always had the heart of a true warrior. I just wish I had a lot more of you. And a lot more of the rest of them," said Praxis, gesturing to the rest of the force.

Cilix winced. "The numbers are a little disappointing, no? I thought more men would answer the call."

"You and me both. Which is why I'm coming to you now, Cilix. I want to know why there's not more of them here. You've been with these men all morning and you've been in the city, listening to the people. What's being said right now? Surely you must have some insight on why most of the men have stayed home instead of joining us today?"

Cilix swallowed heavily, signaling to Praxis that he did know the reason. It still took him a minute to form the right words to respond though.

"My king, the people are scared."

"Scared? What are they scared of?"

"Reprisals," answered Cilix. "They are afraid of fighting the Spartans again, knowing what happened the first time around. None of them doubt you. You are the leader that this city needs but they remember what happened months ago when the Spartans took the city. They think that even though the Spartans are down right now, they won'talways be down. They will probably come back, and those that fight against them will be the first to die."

"But if we don't stand up to them now, then they will subjugate us again," replied Praxis. "There's no scenario where the Spartans just let us regain our independence peacefully. War was always going to be an outcome."

"They know that too, my king. And many of them have lost their confidence that we would win such an interaction. I think that's why they stayed home today. It's easier to stay home than to admit they might be fighting for a hopeless side."

It was that last statement that really rankled Praxis and caused him to start doubting himself. "Do you really think our situation is hopeless, Cilix?"

Cilix was the type of warrior who would never answer that question seriously.

"Never, my king. I will fight the Spartans until my last breath. However, I can't deny that the outcome of such a fight is unknown to me. They are good fighters themselves."

And there was the rub. It was about the only way that Cilix would admit a lack of confidence in any outcome against the Spartans, but if even a mighty warrior like Cilix lacked the faith, what did that mean for the rest of them?

Suddenly, Praxis understood why most of them stayed home.

"We need to show this entire city that Argos can stand up to Sparta, even if it's on our own," said Praxis firmly. "It's the only way forward."

"I fear that will be the toughest part," admitted Cilix. "Especially getting these men to believe that they can go toe-to-toe with the Spartans and win."

Praxis might not have wanted to hear what Cilix had to say but his words were honest. He would have to find a way to lead by example if he wanted more warriors to show up for their cause. After dismissing Cilix back to the rest of the men, Praxis gathered the rest of the Argives around him.

"It never ceases to fail that I learn a lot from talking with a man like Cilix," said Praxis, gesturing to his old friend in the crowd. "Years ago, it was about fighting, and he can still take credit for showing me how to use a shield as an offensive weapon."

There was some light chuckling from the crowd, and Cilix beamed with a grin.

"But today, Cilix had a lot to tell me about not only himself but the rest of you," continued Praxis. "And I understand where you're coming from. I understand why there's so few of you here. The fact of the matter is that everyone is worried about the Spartans. They're worried they will come back even after we've thrown them out. They're worried that Argos will fall again and that it's hopeless to stand against them. That is the heart of the matter, isn't it, men?"

Many of the men in the crowd nodded. Quite a few even spoke up, agreeing with Praxis' statement.

"I know that many of you are fearful about what happens when we must face the Spartans again," continued Praxis. "But make no mistake--we must face them again. I've met King Nikandros of Sparta before, and I know how ruthless he can be. How uncompromising he can be. He will never permit Argos to go our own way, not after he's tasted our subjugation. Sooner or later he will come north and we will have to fight."

"And hopefully not repeat the same outcome as last time," said a man near the front row, causing several others to nod in agreement.

Praxis looked at the man, a man who had no remarkable characteristics. He wasn't a member of the Elites before the war, and Praxis didn't even know his name.

"You there, what is your name?" asked Praxis.

The man paled a little at being called out so publicly. "My name, my king? It's Davos."

Praxis nodded in acknowledgment. "Davos, do you believe that we can fight against the Spartans? Do you believe we can win against them?"

Davos struggled with his answer. He clearly wanted to say yes but his more rational instincts won out.

"I don't know, my king."

Praxis grunted and then pointed at the Messenians nearby. "Would it surprise you to know that this group of Messenians held their position against a force of Spartans nearly four times their size?"

Most of the Argives' heads pivoted to look at the Messenians, who had joined the conversation in order to listen. Looks of amazement could be seen on the faces of many, and even a few who questioned how it could have been done.

"Would it also surprise you that this same force of Messenians stood up to another force more than double their size just a few days ago?" asked Praxis. "How would you feel if I told you we had a formation that could not only stand its ground against the Spartans but win against them? With overwhelming numbers?"

"I'd say that I'm listening, my king," answered Davos.

Some other men laughed at that statement, and even Praxis cracked a grin.

"These men here with me, these Messenians," started Praxis. "These are the deadliest fighting force in all of Greece. They've come together with a fighting technique that we call the spear phalanx that's as unorthodox as it gets, but it works. If you stay here with me, we're going to teach this method of fighting. You will be confused and angry as we teach it to you. It will feel unnatural. It will feel like we're asking you to hide behind your shield in battle. But you will be able to stand up to forces many times your size and still win."

"Even Spartans, my king?" asked Davos.

"Even Spartans," confirmed Praxis. "I wouldn't ask this of you men if I didn't believe in this cause, if I didn't believe in the phalanx. I wouldn't ask you this if I didn't believe in Argos. We're going to show our city how to believe too. We're going to lead by example. We're going to fight the Spartans and we're going to win, etching the name of Argos in legends that will be told for the next thousand years. When I'm done with you men, you will be the most elite force in Greece, and nothing will stand in your way."

Praxis took a deep breath as he looked at the men, many of them feeling their spirits rejuvenated by his speech. "But first, I must ask for your courage. Will you join with us today? Will you let us teach you how to fight in our phalanx? Will you show the rest of the city that there are still men willing to fight for Argos?"

As one group, the men yelled aloud in approval. What used to be timidity and fear had morphed into confidence as they rose to their feet. Praxis watched as each Argive was given two Messenian mentors to start, and both teachers guided their new student on the proper movements to maintain the phalanx.

These men would have a long way to go. In a way, their movements were a reminder that at one time, the Messenians in the force were beginners too. And if the Messenians could be trained, so too could the Argives.

"I heard your speech."

Praxis turned around to find Lysandra standing behind him. The stunning redhead was grinning at him as she approached his side and looked out at the men.

"You heard all that?" asked Praxis. "I'm embarrassed now."

"Why would you be embarrassed? It was a wonderful speech."

"You really think so?"

Lysandra nodded. "You gave these men exactly what they needed. They needed to be shown that it could be done. You needed them to believe in the cause. You needed to give them confidence." Lysandra gave him a sideways grin. "I needed to do the same thing a couple days ago with someone else."

Praxis connected the dots quickly. He started to smirk. "It looks like I've been taking tips from you. I took your lesson and gave it to them."

Lysandra giggled. "I'm glad to see that you took to heart what I had to say."

"Even more so than that. I ought to cut out the middleman and put you up there in front of them."

Lysandra stuck out her tongue. "No, thanks. Besides, I wouldn't look as good in a cuirass as you did."

Praxis chuckled and pulled her into his arms. "I doubt that very much, my love."