Chapter 7: Salamis

The Greek city-states have called a council of war. The remaining allies, those who have yet to surrender have fortified the isthmus of Corinth and destroyed the only road that leads to it. They are virtually impenetrable. And since they can't be surrounded, they can supply themselves as much as they like. There is one problem, however - the navy. If the Persians have naval supremacy, they can land troops behind the fortifications and re-enact the Battle of Thermopylae.

I debate with the Corinthian admiral, Adeimantus about the best course of action in the war. Adeimantus believed we should create a blockade to prevent a Persian landing. I, on the other hand, favoured an offensive strategy to ward off the Persians and destroy their fleet as much as possible. The Corinthian objects to this, citing valid concerns about it being dangerous.

"No need to worry, as I have seen at Artemisium, when we get up close, it tends to work in our favour."

He wishes to disagree, but knowing the Athenians will provide the majority of the fleet, he knows they cannot resist. Despite the supposed Spartan naval leadership, everyone knows that I am the one in charge. We agree on defending the narrow straits of Salamis and attempting to lure the Persians into the trap.

Then comes the next part of my plan. Salamis is strategically insignificant and the Persians won't attack without good reason. I send a servant to Xerxes to deliver a message. He tells Xerxes that I am on the side of the Persians and wish to defeat the Peloponnesians. He tells the emperor that the Peloponnesians were planning to evacuate the straits. Now, Xerxes believes that if he wishes to win, all he needs to do is block the straits.

That night, I received word that admiral Ariabignes, brother of Xerxes was leading his ships into the straits.

When they got within in hearing range, I spoke as loudly as I could and every sailor of every ship shouted the same, creating an all mighty roar, "O sons of the Greeks, go, liberate your country, liberate your children, your women, the altars of your ancestral gods and the tombs of your ancestors. Now is the struggle for all things."

Upon hearing this massive rally, the Persian ships began to panic. They tried to withdraw but their great numbers proved a liability and all order collapsed. Our ships advanced in good order and cut-off the Persian retreat. We rammed them. Each of our ships had twenty hoplites on them, making them much heavier and slower than the Persian ones. It did give us a few advantages - we could ram harder and fight better when boarding ships.

We rammed and boarded many of their ships, sinking and capturing them. This time, their superior numbers counted for nothing. Their admiral's ship boards mine. Time for a final battle between the two naval leaders. I place my black helmet on my head and take up my spear and shield. As they board our ship, we scream and shout. The Persians board in silence, a sharp contrast to our shouts.

With my hoplites, I form a shield wall. They board and attempt to smash through it. With our spears, we impale them and with our shields, we throw their corpses overboard. The Persians unleash a hail of arrows. It bounces off our helmets and shields. One unfortunate person is struck by an arrow in the shoulder. He will live - nothing fatal. We are thrown over by a ship ramming ours. Fortunately, it causes minimal damage. Unfortunately, my spear and shield were thrown overboard and the Persians took their opportunity to board. I withdraw my xiphos sword. It is fairly short, only around 60 cm long. I hope it doesn't disadvantage me.

I backpedal as I exchange slashes with who looks to be their admiral. I slash at his legs, he blocks it. I slash at his head, he blocks it. I thrust at his chest and he deflects it. Now he's on the offensive. He lunges at me and slashes at my arm. His curved blade leaves a laceration on my arm. My reflexes are slower than during the battle of Marathon. It's been 10 years and I'm now 44. That being said, Leonidas was about 60 when he was killed in battle. He thrusts into my chest.

My armour is made from many layers of linen glued together. It's cheap and basic, but it's the strongest armour in the Mediterranean. His sword simply bounces off, though I still feel a thump in my stomach. I grin and thrust. He parries and spins, slashing at my shin. Fortunately, it simply bounces off my bronze shin greave. He is beginning to tire and has become noticeably frustrated. He smacks me on my helmet in an obvious attempt to rattle me. It doesn't work. I take advantage of his exhaustion and thrust into his chest.

Persian armour is made of many scales tied together with leather beneath it. It is expensive an ornamental. It can easily block slashes from swords and arrows. However, it is useless against a direct strike from Greek weaponry. My sword pierces straight through him. He coughs and spews blood. I quickly pull my sword out and kick him into the sea below.

I return to my command post and by the end of it, the straits of Salamis are choking with ship wrecks and dead bodies. The Persians have turned and fled. By my estimates, we lost 40 ships, while the Persians lost 200. The final figure shall never be known, nor does it matter. What matters is, with the Persian fleet destroyed and their morale in shatters, the threat to Greece is over.

Now it is time to win the war. We must remember, even though the Peloponnese is safe, Athens is still occupied by the Persians. It will be a long time before Greece is safe.

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