Chapter 4

We started using the second catapult along with the first one and the ballista. Our musketeers started firing in turn. It was too far for most of our bowmen and they stopped after a few shot their arrows to no effect. Robby's group then started firing and shooting arrows. The Cincy's were caught by surprise and milled about aimlessly for a critical half hour. The fact that every large group gathering drew immediate fire from our heavy weapons did not help them get organized.

I saw Cincy's running toward the river and realized that Calveen's attack was going well. Robby's men saw it, too. They started to move in firing as they went. We moved closer and continued to fire our muskets and now could add arrows with some effect. Our catapults and ballista were clearing ground violently.

Janet stayed with me and I, therefore, was hanging back to protect her. "Janet," I hollered, "Get back! I don't want you hurt!"

"No, she replied, "I will stay with you."

"But I must be leading the fighting."

"No! The Under Elders, Robby, Roger and I decided that you must not risk your life. You are our leader and you cannot be risked at this time."

"Dammit, I need to be with my men."

"You are with your men and are close enough to the fighting."

Two men, one on each side, grinned at me. "Jonathon, our job is to protect you during the fighting. Don't make our job more difficult than it is."

"Okay, I give up. I'll be good."

"Good, Jonathon. Now, do what you do well, direct us to victory," said Roger as he came up behind me.

"All right! Roger, move your fire from the muskets closer to shore. We don't want to hit Calveen's or Robby's men." Roger directed one of our runners to tell his gunmen what to do.

"If we can get word to Robby and Calveen, it's time to start the round-up and not kill unnecessarily. Or, at least, it will be that time by the time we can get word to them. Also, remind Robby not to shoot Calveen's men."

"They won't," Roger said, "Nan read about uniforms and all Calveen's men and all Robby's men are wearing yellow streamers to identify themselves. It was Janet's idea to use them and she told Roger and Mickey to get the word out." With that, all the men around me broke out yellow rags to tie about their arms, even Janet had one for herself and another for me, which she tied on my arm.

It took over another hour but, finally, the last of the Cincy's surrendered. We found the "Great Cin" dead killed by a musket shot. We had over seventy prisoners. Calveen and Robby had met and shaken hands earlier. After the surrender, Roger, Janet and my bodyguards allowed me to cross the river and meet up with Calveen and Robby.

Calveen's first words were, "I knew you were putting this battle together. No one else would use the tactics and technology like you." He grinned and we embraced.

I formally introduced him to Robby, who he had met casually before and to Roger, who he had never met. He was delighted to see Janet giving her a hug and asking about Susan and Ann who were fine and back at the Oaks.

We had few casualties. Most of them were from men who got too close to the Cincy's during the fighting. We called in our outlying camps but did place sentinels. We then started the lengthy process of questioning Cincy's and determining what to do with them. Even unarmed, they represented a fighting force and potential terror threat to all peoples. Calveen proposed they be taken back to Sin Loos and enslaved. I didn't like the idea of slavery but wasn't willing to let these crazies loose either.

Our questioning found another issue. Most of the Cincy's weren't Cincy's! When they conquered a people, they added the men fighters to their army though watched them closely. One of Robby's men had received a hint of this when four men surrendered to him and another started to kill them. Robby's man was faster. Those four were all Landgon's. Janet quickly went to them and questioned them. They knew some of the same people but her family and Linda's had been wiped out in the conquest.

She came back to me and held on to me for a while. With Janet, Robby, Calveen, Roger and Mickey, I formed a council of war on site. We decided that the real Cincy's would go to Sin Loos and slavery. The others would be allowed to return to their areas or become part of our community, as they and we might desire. We had not mentioned our founding of Atlanta as yet to any prisoner.

Calveen had brought over two hundred people with him, many of whom wanted to form family groups. I congratulated him and asked about his father. He told me that Calver was serving the remainder of his term as Charge but was leaving Sin Loos and joining us when that was finished. There were about twenty people who would travel with him then.