"Loose!" Gan Ning shouted from the ship as another Ballista Bolt that was aflame was launched towards an enemy ship, this time one that the young Athenian Captain beside them was targeting, the enemy Trireme was targeted low, crashing in to the bowels of the enemy Trireme. The sounds of screams could be heard as the ship began to set on fire from below, a large hole appearing in the side of the ship were oarsmen were based. Gan Ning then turned to his Ballista Crew, "Reload!"

"Increase Pace, ramming speed!" Centurion Cato shouted again, as they neared the enemy Trireme that they had targeted themselves. Dom felt the adrenaline kick in as they approached their target, part of him worried that they would destroy the ships before they had chance to capture them, but the experience was exhilarating.

"The Naval Battle is lost before it began." The first captured Player said to the second BigBilly.

"Hopefully the Persians weaken the Greeks enough so they win the land battle." BigBilly responded, whilst the two Generals beside them stayed silent. The Persian Mardontes seemed to be watching the mixed crew of the Bellona with interest, whilst the other seemed to be relaxed and seemingly waiting for the battle to end.

"Brace!" Centurion Cato shouted as the Bellona rapidly approached the enemy ship. The oars being pulled in so they didn’t catch on anything and kill the oarsmen that held them. The enemy ship could see the Bellona approaching at speed, but could do nothing to move out of it’s way as it powered towards them.

Everyone on the top deck quickly prepared themselves as the Bellona’s towering ram crashed in to the slightly smaller Trireme. Trireme’s were smaller and more agile than the Quinquereme such as the Bellona, however that wasn’t overly helpful in the current formations where ships clashed all around them. The Ram of the Bellona smashed in to the front corner of the enemy Trireme, digging deep and killing the oarsmen that were in the bowels below. The enemy ship shook vigorously as Gan Ning prepared to dive onboard.

"General, wait." Centurion Cato shouted with a shake of his head, realising the damage to the enemy ship was more than enough. "Oars in water! Pull Back!"

The order was quickly followed, as the oars at the rear of the ship that could safely be put back in the water were put back in the Aegean Sea and slowly released them from the Trireme they had rammed. Centurion Meng Ai meanwhile ordered his men to release arrows on the enemy Trireme as they disengaged from it as the enemies were attacked from the height above them.

The Bellona disengaged, allowing the Aegean Sea to begin flooding in to the side of the enemy Trireme that then began capsizing. The Crew on the deck realised what was happening and jumped free from the ship, some stripping their light armour quickly so they could try and stay afloat. The Oarsmen inside began trying to climb to the top deck, fighting over themselves as the Trireme took on more water.

"We won’t be adding that to our fleet then." Centurion Septimius grumbled from beside Dom as the Bellona pulled further away, the power of the sea rushing in now causing the enemy Trireme to bubble as it took on more and more water.

"Bank left, I want that one alive!" Centurion Cato shouted from the front, pointing at the enemy rear line, where more ships could be seen approaching the battle, with some of them seeming to begin changing their mind. A gap was forming in the enemy lines where Gan Ning and Sun Ce on the not so distant Sibylla caused chaos with their Ballista, with a small force of allied Trireme taking out the enemies around them.

Dom looked and could see some of the Allied Players were engaged in battles themselves, most having come alongside an enemy ship and boarded them, with those on the smaller ships on the far flank lost to his eyes now, but the sound of battle travelled on the wind towards him.

The Trireme they had disengaged from was now taking on more water as it started to roll in the water as it began to sink, a lot of the crew still onboard. For Dom, he had been involved in several Battles since he started playing World Conquest Online, but the sounds of the Oarsmen screaming for help as their ship sank made him feel uncomfortable. He was happy to fight and kill someone in a fight between them, but it felt strange in this situation.

It seemed the look on his face showed his discontent at the loss of life, as Mardontes amongst the prisoners looked at him with a keen eye, before grunting to himself as if he had made a decision.

"Admiral, allow me to stand at the front of your ship, some of the fleet may surrender if I tell them to do so." The captive Mardontes shouted, as he also looked at the inevitable destruction around them.

"I’ll allow it, but they are my prisoners." Dom stated, internally happy if he could capture some ships without having to risk the Bellona more.

"It’s better to be a prisoner than die." Mardontes shrugged, with two Players and other Captured General looking at him with surprise on their faces. Dom nodded in response as Actumerus untied Mardontes and directed him towards the front of the Bellona, where Gan Ning prepared to launch another Bolt from the Ballista.

"Increase pace!" Centurion Cato shouted as they aimed towards their target.

"Come alongside it, rather than directly towards it. The Captain is one of mine and he’ll surrender." Mardontes said to Centurion Cato, who looked at Gan Ning and then Dom for instruction. Gan Ning shrugged his shoulders, whilst Dom nodded.

"Slightly more power on the left, I want to come alongside it. Oarsmen prepare to pull your oars in on my order!" Centurion Cato shouted as the Oarsmen on the right reduced pace slightly so that the ship turned slightly in the water.

"Centurion Meng Ai, fire a warning Arrow." Dom ordered, his Archer Centurion having excellent aim. His Arrow hit the enemy mast when he realised it, as Mardontes stood at the front of the Bellona.

"Surrender immediately." Mardontes shouted to the enemy Trireme as they came alongside it, the enemy ship already confused as the Bellona changed angle and didn’t aim to sink them as it had with the previous attack.

"Admiral?" One of the Trireme’s crew shouted up at him, with Dom realising that they had made a good capture after all.

"You heard my order." Mardontes ordered angrily, a snap in his tone.

"Yes Admiral, pull in oars and lower the sail!" The Captain shouted, showing that they weren’t involved in the battle and therefore not a legitimate target.

"Row at a slow pace and rescue who you can from the Darab, do it at reduced oars and approach slow." Mardontes ordered again, before turning to Dom who watched on in shock. "Please take me to the rest of this flank, a some of these are my ships and I would like to save who I can."

"Help the Admiral." Dom said to Centurion Cato, shaking his head at the development as he headed back to the Player Prisoners. Gan Ning looked disappointed at the front of the Bellona on the Ballista, having enjoyed himself and wanted to target some more ships. Gan Ning kept it directed at the next Trireme as they approached just in case, whilst Centurion Septimius tried to signal the ships around them to let them know that they should push for enemies to Surrender.

The Battle on the right flank had been very short, however as Dom turned back to look, he could see that it had been chaos. Enemy ships were engaged or sinking, whilst his own fleet seemed in a relatively good place. He knew that if the enemy had kept their whole fleet here, rather than leaving some behind to slow them down, it would have been a much closer battle.

"Once we have finished here, I want the fleet to turn left and begin clearing the enemies that are engaged with our Athenian allies. If we have won this flank easier than expected, we can push through the battle much easier." Dom ordered Centurion Cato who was stood beside Mardontes, who nodded in response. Gan Ning also seemed to stand up in preparation to engage again.

Dom approached the two Players and the Captured General that was part of the first Players forces. He had a couple of questions on his mind and he wanted answers so he could prepare for the next part of the Battle.

"Why did General Slaughter and the Persians split their forces?" Dom asked them, His other Batavi Emperors Guard stood at his shoulder.

"I know it seems idiotic from General Slaughter, but he had little choice and strategically it is better for us." BigBilly replied as he rested his head back on the side of the ship.

"If you hadn’t captured our flagship so quickly, I think we would have done better. Who would have known the enemy would also have a Quinquereme." The other Player added.

"Why was it better?" Dom asked BigBilly, ignoring the other Player.

"Our Plan was to fight on this flank, cause some chaos within the Greek Fleet and hopefully capture some ships, before sailing straight through and coming around the far side of Samos and back round to Mycale." BigBilly replied, "With our Quinquereme at the front, we had a strong front, Mardontes was placed in charge by the Persian forces and we were sent as the Player Representatives."

"Where are your ships then?" Dom asked him in response.

"I don’t have one as I one of GeneralSlaughters Lieutenants, where as SimonTheSquirrel here sent his crew with the Persians to Mycale." BigBilly explained.

"Unlike GeneralSlaughter, I realised that I didn’t want to risk losing my one ship for minor gains." SimonTheSquirrel explained, "We’ll hide it away and then fight the land battle instead, but I also wanted to experience the Naval Battle upfront."

Dom understood SimonTheSquirrel’s perspective, if he was in a similar situation, he would have also saved his ship and tried to get involved with the battle for what ever gains he could get.

"So why was GeneralSlaughter willing to risk loosing his Quinquereme?" Dom asked BigBilly.

"We aren’t based near the Sea, instead we are on a small lake with limited use of a ship of this size. GeneralSlaughter received it through a mission reward and other than being rather good to look at, it’s not had much use." BigBilly explained honestly, "If we could capture some Greek Hoplite through this battle, we could massively increase our infantry. He has headed to Mycale with promises from the Senior Persian General Tigranes that he would be given a fair share of the prisoners when they won. If they lose, He’ll just retreat and take a large chunk of the retreating Persian Army with him, they’ll be much happier to retreat to a guaranteed safety than punishment when and if they return home, or slavery if they are captured."

"So he used his ship as a Bargaining Chip for a high position in the alliance, and if he wins he gains Hoplite Prisoners and any Persians he can persuade. If he loses, he can take the retreating Warriors and potential Heroes with him?" Dom asked for clarification.

"That is correct, the Quinquereme may be a big loss for most players, but not for him." BigBilly replied, a grin on his face as he showed GeneralSlaughter’s intelligence.

"So whilst you Battle for an increased Navy, He Battles to increase his Infantry." SimonTheSquirrel added, "There is a better chance of doing that here than at Plataea. We are planning to do the same thing, just on a smaller scale. All of the Players agreed it, you’ll find a small amount in the Navy and the rest will be preparing Mycale."

"So the massive Fleet Battle we were promised?" Dom asked, impressed by GeneralSlaughter’s planning.

"Once it was clear the Persian’s wouldn’t be willing to fully commit, they persuaded this part of the fleet to cause chaos and retreat, giving them more time to reinforce the true battlefield." BigBilly replied teasingly. "The Persian morale was low, but it will be much stronger on the land."