A large army landed on Tombstone Island, some were excited and some were cowardly. Especially those guys from Novgorod, they have never known in their lives that the world is so vast. Their former world was limited to a corner of Lake Ilmen, and the distant world was full of dangers.
They found themselves on a large island. It seemed that this was the home of the Varyags?
The team was gathered by Arik on the small flat land on the island in the north of the wooden castle. Together with the remaining people stationed on Tombstone Island, as many as 1,200 men who could hold weapons gathered here.
People were whispering to each other in a hustle and bustle. Most of them were Russians commenting on the Novgorod people and denounced them as natural slaves. As for the Novgorod people, they are now submissive and do not know what to do. Yes, they even thought that this island was the home of the Varyags! Each of the many Varangians was a head taller than them, and any one waiting for him would definitely be killed.
Arik looked at his soldiers from a high place and issued a brief battle mobilization. He called on the two groups to obey his orders, and he would strictly follow all the orders of Duke Ross.
Immediately afterwards, he began to once again equip the Novgorod army commanded by Medvet with a variety of axes and iron spears. The very next day, Arik couldn't wait to train these messy guys in the "Russian team fighting techniques" using the traditional fighting skills of the Russians, so as to quickly correct their so-called group fighting mentality of "fighting without distinction of priorities". Beating tactics.
What made Arik happy was that this group of Novgorod lakeside residents did come, and they also brought some stone farming tools and fishing gear.
The information Arik learned after landing was that the fleet transporting troops, ordnance and large amounts of food from the rear had not yet arrived. He estimated that the fleet had not left the port at all.
The island's suddenly tripled population had to fend for themselves until supplies and grain came from the Duke's gift.
The fishing skills of the Novgorod people began to impress some Russian soldiers. What was even more shocking was that some guys brought rapeseed. They actually plowed a small piece of land on the island to sow cabbage seeds.
"You are really a group of simple farmers. You are self-reliant, just like those farmers in Mälaren. This is good, it can reduce my pressure." Arik just didn't know a clear theory, that is, being born as a human being, you are born with With strong subjective initiative, as long as there is no interference, you can spontaneously create wealth to support yourself.
As early as the second day after Arik landed on Tombstone Island, a fleet continued northward. Kawei, his Lilia, and the fleet escorting some of the tributes rushed to the mother city of Roseburg.
Another boat quickly rushed to Lake Mälaren to report to Otto and Rurik who were waiting for news.
Finally, on May 24th, the ever-large fleet carrying a large amount of supplies finally arrived at Tombstone Island.
A batch of black chromium iron spearheads and gray-black quenched wrought iron spearheads produced from Elon Orava Fort were removed. These ordnances were tied to wooden sticks to become powerful weapons, and then attached to axes, they became long-lasting weapons. A halberd!
A large number of wooden bows and crossbows covered with linen caught Arik's attention, including some of them, such as the newly made torsion slingshots and a batch of matching harpoons with barbs.
Among the heavily armed warriors were a group of short men carrying longbows. They were all servants of the Covin people of the Gray Squirrel tribe. There are actually many children here, especially the younger brother's two close followers, Kanuf and Fisk.
Things were far more complicated than Arik thought. He saw Fisk, who was still bald. This twelve-year-old boy was carrying the sword of his father who died in the battle. Does a child dare to go into battle to kill the enemy? But seeing that he was also carrying a crossbow that seemed to be made of wood, I thought that this guy was only qualified to be an archer now.
Harold Zuosen serves as the escort officer of the fleet, and his appearance really surprises Arik. Even the old guy Harold Johnson is dispatched. Doesn't it mean that Roseburg is already empty in a sense? Fortunately, Harold Zuosen claimed that he was responsible for the escort last night, and the next step was to quickly return to Roseburg.
Kawei also returned with this fleet because he had a deeper mission.
But now, he wants to give Arik another gift.
Some special crossbows were placed on the ground in front of Arik's feet. The strange thing was that their wooden bow arms were all standard Stika.
"Is this a wooden crossbow?" Arik was deeply doubtful.
"Exactly."
"Are they useful?"
"At least, it's better than an ordinary short wooden bow. Accept my gift, so that it can shoot ordinary arrows and at least kill ordinary enemies."
Arik shrugged: "Not bad. Brother, is there really you in the edict?"
"No, but the expeditionary force must have someone who specializes in repairing weapons. You see." Kawei pointed at the temporarily anchored cargo ships and longships one after another, "The big leader. It's the Duke! The Duke decides, especially you My brother has decided that all our Russian troops will use bows and arrows in this battle."
"Is that it? I hope the warriors will fight the enemy bloody. You know, swords are bloodthirsty."
"I'm not that particular." Kawei said bluntly and shook his head.
Both Kawei and Arik moved their families back to the home port of Roseburg, and a small group of frail women and children on Tombstone Island were also temporarily moved.
The entire island has turned into a huge military camp, but it is hidden in thousands of small islands and reefs. The vast area is essentially no man's land. Only a few businessmen know their location. The vast number of Melalen people Little did they know that the Russians had quietly prepared a strategic reserve force.
The Principality of Rus was suddenly nominally born. From the very beginning of its birth, it showed a stronger mobilization ability than others. In fact, this kind of mobilization power is still lackluster. Rurik has not yet had time to establish a complete system, and the tribe is not fully mobilized. But even so, if you add Novgorod and Elon-Olava Castle in the distance, then There are also as many as 4,000 to 5,000 people involved in the current stage of combat preparations.
So, what happened to Rurik, Otto and their party who were stranded in the Lake Mälaren area during this period?
The entire Lake Mälaren has become unprecedentedly lively, thousands of porridges are passing by on the lake, and the waves are becoming turbulent.
A large number of recruited soldiers gathered in the most lively Melalen Market in a short period of time. The place became unprecedentedly lively, with so-called crowds of people.
Similarly, Gould Island was also surrounded by merchants from all walks of life, and the Ross goods that arrived were completely sold out. Out of business principles, Gould consciously raised some prices, not to mention the guys who had urgent needs, they cursed and bought the things.
There are even some selected farmers who choose to use their unripe wheat as collateral to complete loan transactions with tribal leaders. After taking the money, they went to the market to buy leather, wooden shields, and even axes of reasonable quality sold by the Gran people, and even some durable smoked fish pieces that were dried to a hard texture.
Although Origen promised to reward everyone with some wheat, this generous promise was unprecedented, and the peasant warriors of Melalen were not too sure.
Until one day, someone saw a group of people pushing and pulling two-wheeled carts loaded with sacks, escorted by their leader Origen, to the dock where the Russian ship was parked.
Olegin began to fulfill an extremely important clause in the agreement. No, he came in person.
At this moment, both Otto and Rurik were staying on the Avlora in person, and they simply slept in the "Captain's Lounge" at the bow of the ship.
The noise attracted Rurik to stand on the high platform at the bow of the ship. He held on to the wooden ship's side mast and carefully touched his head to the torsion slingshot covered with oil-soaked coarse cloth. He immediately saw Olegin's old wrinkled face.
"Hey! It's the respected king!" Rurik shook his right hand vigorously, his voice was loud, and he showed a very obvious smile.
Rurik clearly has a sense of humor in it, but what about Origen? He only felt that Rurik, a brat, showed respect to him very wisely, which was a sign of smooth cooperation.
After a moment, Otto appeared wearing a velvet hat, with a snow fox coiled on his head, and two wild goose feathers stuck in the sky. Otto dresses more like a businessman, but he is also doing business now.
The planks for boarding the ship were laid, and Otto and Rurik stood in front of Olegin.
Otto glanced at the two-wheeled vehicles: "It seems that all the grain you want me to carry is here."
"Exactly, enough to feed my army for ten days."
"Okay." Otto turned his head and greeted the people on the boat. He turned his head again: "I will remember our agreement, and please remember the agreement."
"Of course. I just have one question now."
"What is it?"
"This ship..." Origen pursed his lips: "Can she carry all my food? At least not a cargo ship. I want to go up and have a look."
"Come on board for a visit? Come now."
Otto had no intention of hiding it. He had already discussed it with Rurik, and a person like Origen was qualified to visit in person. His visit was a bilateral courtesy.
Those private soldiers of Origen, who were dressed in black, appeared as porters without any weapons. This was also an act of goodwill from Origen.
Carrying heavy sacks on their backs, they walked up to the middle side of the Aurora with firm steps, and stood on the deck one after another, where they unloaded the sacks for the time being.
Immediately afterwards, the Ross warriors accepted the moving work.
Just now, Origen, who had already boarded the ship, entered the cabin of the ship along the wooden ladder. The huge space gave him a strong sense of oppression under the illumination of an oil lamp. No ship has such a structure! It's like a warehouse floating on the sea!
The Aurora changed Origen's entire understanding of cargo ships. The ships he owns and this large ship must no longer be said to be inferior, and should be described as seriously backward.
A large amount of food began to arrive in the cabin. After seeing her huge capacity, Origen no longer had any worries.
Standing on the bow deck of the ship, he stood at a high place, and the poop she saw was even taller. He didn't notice the things wrapped in linen on both sides of the bow, but he suddenly hoped to get this big ship! Just because a king needs the greatest flagship!
Origen trembled, making no secret of his desire: "Otto, my brother. Your ship is so wonderful. I hope you will give her to me."
"Huh?" Otto was stunned and backed away for a while, but Rurik turned into a completely angry cat.
"No!" Rurik stood directly in front of his father, looking up at Origen and denying it bluntly.
"Isn't it okay to buy it with money?"
"What? Still have to pay?"
Olegin shrugged: "Is there anything in this world that cannot be measured by money? How much does your big ship cost? I will pay you a hundred pounds of silver coins."
"You! Are you humiliating me?"
"Huh? Do you think the money is too little?"
Origen said it casually, and he felt that one hundred pounds of silver was too much. What about reality? The mere construction of the hull of the Avlora cost the equivalent of more than one hundred pounds of silver coins. With the installation of messy follow-up equipment and even the decoration of internal devices, the overall cost of this large ship has soared to two hundred pounds.
However, how can the value of the Aurora be measured in money?
Origen did not give up immediately: "So, two hundred pounds? How about it?"
"No! It just won't work! Unless you pay two hundred pounds of gold!" Rurik gritted his teeth and directly stated a price that the other party could not accept.
Because that's two hundred pounds of gold! Maybe Origen could come up with an equivalent amount of wheat. Even if he plundered the entire Melalen tribe, five pounds of gold would be the theoretical limit. After all, gold came from Roman gold coins, which were not common currencies used in trade.
Olegin had no choice but to give up and sighed helplessly: "Since you Russians can make it, you can build ships for me in the future, right?"
Listening to this, even shipbuilding costs a lot of national money, and building ships for others should lead to even greater benefits. Otto wanted to take over this guy, but was decisively stopped by Rurik.
Since ancient times, military weapons have been a lucrative business, but some weapons must not be sold. This is called "keeping one hand in hand." Even if Rurik knew that he could indeed cheat the Malaren people by selling large ships.
This matter is not about money at all, but about national defense! If this was really done, Rurik felt that it would be political suicide. Melalen has a large number of people. If they control a group of large ships, the Russians should weigh how long their advantage can last.
Origen returned angrily, feeling a surge of hatred. Fortunately, this old guy is a rational person. For the sake of the overall situation, he easily suppresses his hatred until it disappears. It was his son Carl. Whenever he saw the big ship anchored in his home port, he felt that it was an invasion and provocation.
Boats of this size are not allowed on Lake Mälaren! If there is one, it must be the flagship of the Malaren people!
It's a pity that the glory belongs to the Russians...
Perhaps his father's plan to buy a boat right away, or even order a new boat, was rejected by that kid Rurik. Karl's clenched fists almost broke his bones.
Karl also felt a sense of hatred and even a sense of yin in his heart. He hopes that his old father will die soon so that he can become the king in advance. At that time, he can use the name of the king to forcefully buy the Russian ships. If the Russians do not agree, then he can threaten them with military power. Isn’t it beautiful?
In fact, to this day, Karl's attitude towards the Ross people is still that of "a group of guys who betrayed everyone and went north to catch ferrets." He never felt that the Russians were very strong, even though the big ship was swaying under his nose every day.
The time is getting closer to the departure date of June 1st.
The battle longships of various tribes were gradually prepared, and in a short period of time, a group of fishing boats were quickly transformed into transport ships to make up the numbers.
What about the Russians? In nearly a month, five cargo ships anchored at Gould Island Pier have undergone major renovations.
In terms of structure, the Aurora is a massively enlarged version of an ordinary cargo ship.
The hulls of all cargo ships are still the same, and they are all equipped with pine decks and spliced with higher railings. A "wooden house", also known as the poop, was built at the rear end of the deck to protect the rudder and provide all sailors with a stable shelter from wind and rain.
The cargo ship's sails were also completely replaced. The original straight beams were removed and replaced with longer, tilted beams.
In other words, these cargo ships anchored at the port have all been equipped with brand new triangular Latin sails, but none of them are equipped with bulbous bows, which will inevitably cause them to suffer some losses when sailing. Special wooden strips were nailed to the bow of their ship, numbers spelled out in rune script were pieced together, some pine gum was applied, and chalk soil was sprinkled on them. This is the so-called temporary ship number to facilitate command.
The first people to land on Gould Island were the old warriors from Tombstone Island. This group of guys attacked and looted the Gotland village three years ago, and looted the Estonian village last year. Although there were only thirty people here, Each of them is a combative bull, they are the elites on the battlefield, and their strength cannot be underestimated.
Finally, the large force that Rurik had longed for most came from the home port. They formed a compact fleet and arrived at their destination carrying a batch of key strategic supplies.
Each wooden box was carried off the ship, and Rurik inspected it as usual to confirm that it was the required "ammunition."
They are a large number of conical cast iron projectiles, each with an inclined groove intentionally left during casting. The advantage of this design is that it can rotate on its own during flight, using the gyroscopic effect to ensure that the trajectory will not tremble. .
There are also a large number of crossbow arrows. Their arrow clusters are of various shapes, but the quality is not very good.
So what can be done? The rear was given too much time to prepare for war.
What pleased Rurik the most was naturally the unloaded batch of newly manufactured torsion slingshots. In terms of weight, they were weapons like Roman scorpion crossbows. They only needed three men to carry them and they could maneuver quickly. With such a weight, naturally its power is not very strong. Rurik could conclude that these quick-made products were far less powerful than the previously carefully processed treasures.
It's better than nothing. As soon as they arrived, they started to be installed on the cargo ship.
Ross's army was assembled. On the first day of landing, they completed their assembly in the courtyard of the center of Gould Island's wooden fort.
Just look at them! A group of warriors wearing chainmail and leather armor. They carried shields on their backs and wore helmets reinforced with metal sheets. Many of them had iron masks to protect their faces. They had steel swords and steel axes hanging on their waists, and all of them had to get the bows and crossbows assigned to them.
The Corvin warriors of the Gray Squirrel tribe who wielded longbows, and the Rus people who settled in Ironburg, thirty of them were equipped with longbows made of white wax rods, and the leader of Mechasta personally commanded this "Northern Force" Among them was his eleven-year-old son, Taravis, an accurate archer.
There were also some childish faces in there, Kanuf and Fisk, and ten boys who were naturally strong. Especially Fisk, Rurik and Otto, who were standing high to review the soldiers, all saw this kid carrying his father's sword on his back. Obviously, this battle is the best coming-of-age ceremony for him who has just grown up (he is an adult at the age of 12).
Other children lined up in neat lines, which were particularly strange among the many lines. Because they are girls, Rurik's ten Slavic maids, and their commander is Carlotta herself.
Could it be said that the Ostara people have become so difficult that their female leader is the only viable soldier? Now, there are eleven people in the Ostara Army. They are all girls. They use either winch steel-arm crossbows or pure wooden crossbows. The military training these girls received was to shoot arrows with all their might. They were the girls who were given accurate names under Rurik's command. Their existence was like Odin's Valkyries.
They themselves are producers of commodities, and they must serve as priestesses on important festivals. They are also loyal female warriors of Rurik, and this battle is their first battle.
Through frequent crossbow training, they have long become excellent "small animal hunters", but this time, the prey may become the enemy.
Everyone, including the sailors who participated in the war, a diverse team of more than 300 people, gathered in this small courtyard.
Rurik and Otto spoke one after another. After some war mobilization, a deafening shout came from the closed wooden wall, which shocked the foreign businessmen doing business at the dock. It was as if the wooden wall locked a group of monsters, scaring them into hurriedly checking out and leaving in a hurry with some of the latest soap they bought and arrived at Gould Island.
The day of the expedition is approaching, and the entire Gould Island seems like a volcano about to erupt, and everyone is actively preparing for war.
No, Rurik, who was under the greatest pressure, wrote another letter and sent it to Arik and his army who were already stationed on Tombstone Island.
Regarding these matters, Otto has completely handed over the tactical and strategic matters to Rurik. The current situation is such that even a fool can realize that Rurik is the wisest person and the most suitable combat commander. By.
Facing the war, Otto's heart was as calm as a windless lake. He actually felt a little regretful. According to the agreement, the Russians should not be involved in the battle on land. He had to comfort himself. It was too difficult to "grab food" with more than 3,000 alliance troops with only 200 soldiers. It would be better to "stand by and watch" as agreed and wait for Origen to separate a large army. Pile of loot.
On the morning of May 31st, the day before the expedition day, Lake Mälaren was already crowded with ships, and many desert islands had become anchorages for armies of various tribes.
There are fishing boats plying the various moorings everywhere, and fishermen are selling their catch, and even some arrows, wooden sticks and other weapons made by the fishermen.
It was also at this time that Arik, who was stationed on Tombstone Island, received an order from Duke Ross.
Yes, Rurik gave the Strategic Reserve such a task in the name of Otto.
First, train the army so that it stays awake every day and can go into the battlefield at any time.
Second, especially train the Novgorod army so that they can imitate the fighting of the Russians as soon as possible.
Third, strengthen the defense of Tombstone Island so that enemies and potential enemies cannot threaten the safety of the Tombstone Island wooden castle at any time.
Fourth, dispatch patrols to go deep into the vast sea to intercept and kill all Gotlander fishing boats as they did last year. At the same time, it serves as a warning to guard against any form of sneak attack on the kingdom by the enemy. If a large number of enemies appear, eliminate them resolutely.
"Damn, this order is really..." Aric put away the wooden board and urgently called his people together for a meeting. He read out the Duke of Ross's order, trying to hide his regret.
If we were to intercept and kill the enemy's fishing boats as usual, why go to such trouble to assemble so many troops? He felt that he was destined to miss the war. Just sending five patrol boats could not lead to a big battle with the enemy. He was eager to attract the enemy to Tombstone Island so that he could complete their annihilation.
"Huh? That's right. If the Gotlanders attack my Tombstone Island, wouldn't an army of a thousand people be able to kill them all? That would also be a great victory!"
Look at their own armaments. Because they received a batch of equipment from Fort Ross, the strength of the Novgorod army has increased. He had ten steel-armed crossbows, ten wooden crossbows, more than thirty short wooden bows, and four torsion slingshots used to defend the wooden fort. He also keeps twenty long boats docked in the fjord in the north of the island.
With such an army, it would be no problem to raid a Gotland village, but taking the initiative to attack would go against the wishes of the uncle's leader. Unless, Tombstone Island becomes a battlefield.
The setting sun shrouded the world, and the shores of Lake Malaren were filled with bonfires. A large number of tents appeared around the bonfires, as well as people from Lu Su. Under the setting sun, there were an unprecedented number of battle longships on the lake. They swayed and collided with the waves.
Under the calm appearance, each soldier is either nervous or daydreaming.
Many people are destined to be unable to sleep this night, because tomorrow is the day when thousands of ships will go on an expedition!
Origen, for example, was so excited that he couldn't sleep when he thought about getting the opportunity to command an army of three thousand men at the end of his life.
Rurik felt nervous, but he was not afraid of trouble. After the transformation, the Ross fleet and even the cargo ships had become "battlefield giants". Enemies who dared to challenge would not be turned into scarecrows by crossbows. .
Otto, on the other hand, should eat and drink. Having experienced many battles, he didn't think what the future war would be like.
Arik, who was located on Tombstone Island, stood on the wooden wall and looked at the sunset and the south, and couldn't help but reveal an evil smile full of ambition...
