After a relaxing solo soak in the tub, Mike got out, dried and dressed. There was a soft knocking on the door and Mir'ami entered. She was now dressed in the normal clothing of the citizens, although she wore it so that it moved quite seductively when she walked. That may have been simply Mike’s mind playing games with him, as she had been one of the women who had just given him a totally nude show a short time ago.
He thought he could almost see the outline of her red triangle of pubic hair through her shorts. She apologized for her and the other women’s earlier entry into the bath area saying that the Spaniards had expected it and the women didn’t want to make Mike angry by offering less. He responded that he appreciated their gesture, but he would honor the local traditions and mores. She giggled as she said that men and women bathed together normally here.
Oh, said Mike. I guess no one bothered to mention that to me. I hope you girls weren’t offended by my refusal to allow you into the tub.
She said, No, we just honored your custom of bathing alone.
Mike said, Please don’t spread that custom around. I don’t want the other citizens to think that I find anything wrong with their customs.
She smiled as she said, There are also other services that we are willing to give you, as we have all been used by the deus so that it doesn’t hurt us anymore. I noticed that you were trying to hide your body’s reaction to us and I am flattered that you find us desirable. Was there any one in particular or all of us in general?
Mike answered as politely as he could, You are all very beautiful, but I have made myself a vow of celibacy, at least until the people here have accepted me completely as one of their own. He didn’t want to cause further problems by mentioning that he’d always been partial to redheads and standing before him was one whose pheromones were being multiplied by her beautiful appearance to the point where if she stayed much longer, Mike wouldn’t be able to hide the growing bulge in his pants. He told her that when the time was right, he would be more than happy to take the girls up on their offer, but only if it was their offer and not some sense of duty.
She smiled again with that smile that increased his bulge and as she thanked him and turned to leave, he was pretty sure that she was watching the effect she had had on him with amusement. Over her shoulder she said in the sultriest voice he had ever heard, I can’t speak for the others, but it would be a pleasure, not a duty for me. This time he knew she was watching as the bulge grew. Then she was gone leaving her sweet aroma and gentle teasing laughter behind to torture him. Different time, but women still knew how to control men!!
Think cold shower, very cold shower son. Mike said to himself.
Chapter 21
Work work work?
The citizens continued work on the fortifications over the next few days and Mike split his time between learning all he could about the local customs from the elders and training his Protectors, who were quickly joined by Hue and his 25 Watchers. They were all very quick to learn basic hand-to-hand concepts both against unarmed and armed opponents.
The local people seemed to have a natural ability when it came to aiming the crossbows and were as good at moving targets as they were at stationary targets. Now if Mike could get them into the gunpowder era, they’d be more than a match for the Spaniards.
Right now, he thought they could decimate the Royals with their crossbows, but the bolts didn’t have the power to hurt a Spaniard through leather and iron. It would take a lucky shot to the throat or into an eye to kill a Spaniard with the low powered weapon.
The crossbows could be made more powerful, but then the diminutive people wouldn’t be able to cock them. The large catapults could stop an armored horse mounted Spaniard, but were too slow to load and almost impossible to aim against a fast moving enemy. They also didn’t have the range of the Spanish cannon, so were no match in a heavy weapon duel. Mike assumed that the Spaniards had some horses, although no one here had ever seen one.
By the fourth day, all the work was completed. It was unbelievable that these people had using hand implements and animal pulled wagons constructed fortifications that would have taken at least as long to be built by a mechanized construction crew.
The manufacturing guild was just as good at their word, having produced enough ballistas and ammunition to fill every firing position constructed plus they had a dozen extras on carriages that could be used as mobile artillery pulled by teams of draft animals. There were stockpiles of standard iron tipped bolts and fire bolts at every position and wagons loaded with extras that could be moved where ever needed.
There also seemed to be as many crossbows now as there were citizens. These had either been in storage or had been constructed during the last four days as well. There seemed to be a change in the clothing as well. Many of the younger citizens were sporting clothing identical to that of the protectors. Mike called Marcel aside and said, “Marcel, perhaps the time is right for some of the Watchers to begin training companies of the younger citizens.
We have the fortifications and the weapons, but we don’t have the disciplined soldiers needed to use them during the chaos and through the fear found in a real battle. There is a huge difference between playing soldier and being one.
The Protectors and Watchers have been learning discipline and how to follow orders as well as how to fight. Now we need to do the same for the people who will be defending the city against enemies.
Mike, Erman, Hue and Marcel followed by a throng of protectors and citizens surveyed the fortifications. Any one approaching on the road now faced a series of left and right turns around walls that would eliminate an all out charge straight towards the gated walls.
Each turn brought the attacker under a battery of ballistas firing into the spaces between the rows. This also eliminated the chance for an attacker to advance wall-to-wall using them for cover.
The backside of each wall was in a direct line of sight with ballistas. There were three walls with gates, but with a very astute bit of tactical thinking suggested by Hue, the first wall was placed as people came out of the serpentine rather than part way through it.
Behind this by a hundred yards or so was a second so that anyone breaching the first wall would be in an open kill zone between the walls with direct fire from the second wall augmented by fire from the bluff on the side. The second wall’s gate opened into the cultivated region and the third wall protected the city proper.
Each wall had a catwalk on the inner side from which defenders could see and fire down at attackers, but crouch behind the wall for protection. There were also firing ports at ground level that could be opened to allow ground level firing of ballistas. The openings were large enough to allow good fields of fire for the ballistas, but too small for attackers to use to get through the walls.
They then climbed the hill to overlook the harbor entrance. The view from here showed the batteries of three ballistas on each bluff that could fire into any part of the channel deep enough for a boat or ship to enter. Below was a strange arrangement of huge pulleys hidden behind piles of stone so that they could not be seen from the ocean side. A series of a dozen cables stretched from the pulleys to an anchor position protected the same way on the other side of the entrance.
Each cable could be lowered so that a boat could pass safely over, or pulled to just below the surface by teams of animals to block the channel. The concept of using a dozen small cables was strictly for mechanical limitations. The animals could quickly pull the small cables tight, while the weight of a single large cable was almost impossible to pull tight enough that its own weight didn’t cause too much sag in the center.
As the throng watched, a ballista crew loaded a fire bolt to demonstrate their use. It was lighted and fired, leaving a small trail of smoke to mark its passage. It impacted the other bluff about 20’ above water level so that the spectators would see the results of it hitting a solid target.
The chief gunner told Mike that they had fired some into the channel fo
r ranging and lead times for moving targets, but they didn’t look very powerful when all you got was a splash and a small burning oil slick. He assured Mike that they could hit a boat moving at any speed through any part of the channel with any or all of the ballistas. If powerful was what he wanted, he got his wish.
The bolt hit the far bluff with a spectacular fireball about 10’ in diameter that sprayed down into the water and continued to burn everything it had touched for several minutes. One of these into the galleon’s rigging would probably destroy the ship. A half dozen would be about like having an F-4 strike it with a load of napalm.
One of the boats now left the dock and as it turned toward the open ocean fired a fire bolt into the harbor entrance. From leaving the dock until in firing position was a mere minute or so. The mobile harbor defense force would wreak havoc on any survivors of the attack from the bluffs or on any force that found some way to successfully navigate down the river or through the swamps to get to the harbor by boat.
Mike noticed that the boat was a new design that he hadn’t seen before. It mounted two ballistas, one fore and one aft on platforms and no masts nor rudder station. It was about half the normal length, but wider and looked like it used 20 “paddlers” two turning each of the five paddle wheels on each side, four crew members at each ballista and a fifth, probably the boat commander with the forward ballista. Erman told Mike that there were four of them with one manned at all times by the newly formed “Harbor Defense Force” made up of fishermen.
The harbor was now secure with its sheer almost straight up and down cliffs, look out posts and protected firepower. The land side appeared safe, but that was still a question that would not be answered unless the citizens had to defend it against a determined attack. The weak link was still, as it had always been in war, the soldiers and their will to prevail.
In a mere four days the city of Tif’n had gone from a wide-open undefended town to what was probably the best-defended fortification in Joe'Ja. Hue had started his training program and had several hundred of the younger citizens drilling with crossbow and ballista and practicing hand-to-hand techniques. Mike began drilling his Protectors in formations.
He taught them basic drill techniques for marching and changing direction and formations so that they could bring massed crossbow fire into use in an orderly way. Hue took one look at this drilling and asked to be taught as well. Mike printed out sets of drill diagrams on a computer and the Watchers were soon drilling to Hue’s barked commands, moving in formations that changed to meet theoretical changes on the battlefield and striving to keep the most firepower available to repel attackers from the new direction.
Massed weapon firing was picked up very quickly. The troops learning to volley fire by rank, reloading as another rank fired and how to fire and advance or withdraw.
A training schedule was established that had a platoon of 40 watchers training outside the city gate, in the area between the gate and the cultivated area, while another 40 were on watches and performing normal watcher duties. The rest of the now 400 man strong Watcher Battalion as Mike had named it were doing their normal duties within the city, but on instant call if needed.
Mike noticed that many of the city’s dwellers who were too old or too young to join the “Battalion” would spend their off time watching and copying the training being conducted. The Harbor Defense Force had one crew drilling on their boat per day and doing their normal duties the three days that other crews were on duty.
Mike’s own 25 protectors, led by Marcel were always available to him, although he had Marcel put them on a rotation so that normally there were only six on duty at a time. All met for training one day per week. Mike even spotted Mir'ami and the other girls from the Government Center watching as he and his protectors drilled on more than one occasion.
Marcel agreed with Mike that they weren’t needed as a bodyguard for Mike around the city and so they were more of a “Palace Guard” protecting the Government Center. Marcel was quite adamant though that should Mike leave the safety of the city, they would be with him.
One day Hue came to Mike with a problem. The older citizens felt that they were being left out of the defense planning. Mike went to the Elders and asked if they had any suggestions. Gabre’ had a simple and logical solution which pleased everyone.
He suggested that the guilds supply personnel for manning the ballistas and look out posts, freeing the Watchers of those responsibilities. This would allow the less agile citizens to contribute in areas where their older bodies would not endanger them nor compromise the safety of the defenses and at the same time give the younger Watcher force more mobile manpower without having to enroll more members. The elder force would use the same type of work schedules as the younger.
This seemed like a great force multiplying option to Mike and with everyone in agreement, the case was settled with the new unit being named the “Defensive Battalion”. This now gave the city a rapid defense force of 400 Watchers, Mike and his 25 protectors, 400 Defenders to man the heavy weapons and 136 sailors in the Harbor Defense fleet plus the 12 animal handlers responsible for managing the harbor entrance cables. These last were put under the command of the Harbor Defense fleet to give better control of comings and goings within the harbor.
Before they broke up the meeting, Mike said in a stage whisper while looking over his shoulders as if seeking listening eavesdroppers, I hope the women don’t hear about this. They’ll be wanting their share too! Gabre’ laughed and said, Didn’t you know? They have already organized.
They have established groups responsible for feeding the soldiers at their posts, tending to injuries and generally filling in for any manpower shortages around the city when needed. I understand the movement was started by some of the mysterious female nonentities who inhabit rooms near your own in the government center.
To himself Mike thought, and I’ll bet the leader of those nonentities has red hair, while aloud he laughed, Women never cease to amaze me. I guess the next meeting will have to include them? From behind a wall behind Gabre’ came a laughing older female voice that said, Thank you for that warm invitation, Does that mean that during the next meeting we can be on that side of the wall too?
Gabre’ said, That’s my wife, ‘Manda. It is our custom to include the women in our decisions. We weren’t sure how you would respond to that, so they have stayed out of sight, but within listening range. The runners you see coming and going on occasion are bringing their input.
Mike said, In my time, men and women have equal say in everything, although I’ve found that when they want, women can have more of an equal say than men. ‘Manda laughed as she came around the wall, a strikingly beautiful silver haired woman of about the same age as Gabre’, It can be the same here my friend. To this Gabre’ gave a solemn nod which ended with a wink and a smile.
The meeting ended at that point with everyone laughing as they went about their own duties.
Chapter 22
And now I are one.
Everything went along smoothly for a couple of weeks with everyone dropping into normal routines. Each day was a mixture of Mike learning more about his new home and the citizens becoming more used to his wanderings and questions. All fear of him had long since evaporated and even the little children would smile back when he smiled at them.
Like all routines there were small glitches to be ironed out such as his occasionally being stopped and asked to settle disputes between citizens, which he always referred to the Elders. Some people still obviously thought he ruled from behind the scenes even though he took no part in any city decisions that didn’t pertain to defense.
There were some puzzles that Mike still could not solve. Some of the materials and technologies were far beyond what should have been possible to this level of society. No matter how or who he asked, he always received the same answer. Secrets of the guilds!!
There was also the question of history or the lack there of. There didn’t appear to be any wri
tten nor verbal record that explained what had happened to the old societies. It seemed that as far back as any tales went things had been as they were now. Pressing for a time frame, Mike found that no memory extended beyond the previous 1000 or so years. It was as if the old world ended and the new began in a day with no memories carrying over.
He still had no reason behind the diminutive size of the people. Natural selection didn’t seem to apply. There were no genetic throwbacks in the people he had seen. All were almost exactly the same size and shape, with identical basic features as if they were all copies of a single model, with different hair colors and minor body differences to break up the monotony.
For such small and isolated gene pools as the cities appeared to have, there was no indication of inbreeding defects. Disease seemed to be nonexistent. Cloning of some type perhaps long ago when something happened to the existing population?
Questions with no ready answers. The only thing that he could see that was an obviously natural phenomenon was the change in the coastline. There had been serious studies into global warming in his time and this could be a result with surf carving the new coastline as it removed the softer sand and rock while being held at bay by the harder rock. This was the southern part of the Appalachian Mountains, which had considerable granite content.
No other outsiders had ever been seen before the arrival of the Spaniards and then Mike. There were reports from the north that wreckage from some disaster at sea had washed up on a beach many years ago that included many strange items. The people never ventured far from port and never beyond sight of the land, as there were many strange forces at work on the open ocean that would swallow a boat.
Mike was given a description of a wall of blackness that would rise without warning far away from any land and destroy anything it touched. This was a tale used to frighten children they thought until Mike assured them that it was real. He was hounded for descriptions of it by some of the Elders who taught the young and maintained what there was of historic knowledge. Mike gave them a blow by blow account as well as he could remember and wondered if this was the final stop between his time and this one or if it was a random effect that connected many different times.