Rough Riders On Mars! Chapter 32 – Preparing For The Future

Chapter 32 – Preparing For The Future

We spent the next week repairing the fort and our station in town. The townsfolk were doing the same with their property. Of course, their job was much harder than ours. We helped where we could, but still it was a sad business.  Miss Linton spent much of her time caring for the wounded, When she could, she went with Professors Boas and Edgren to the Ceraunian Congress to give advice and support to the fledgling government.

I had to administer to the military situation. To that end, I sent out patrols to look for evidence of Reytik and his minions.  Jordak took the Iska Mahayi to the west to quell Reytik’s allies and rally her supporters. She was to be out for a month, so for that time we were relegated to ground movement. For this reason our patrols were close to our base. Chronto was also away, gathering men for the scouts. He was due back in two weeks. Upon his return, I could begin training my regiment to be true cavalry. This would extend our radius of operation and allow me to find suitable locations for outposts.

I did find time for a visit to the Ceraunian Congress myself. While I was there, the congressmen were debating how the rural districts would be equally represented if seats were allocated by population. Obviously, a bicameral legislature was the answer, with one chamber having an equal number of representatives from each district. With that settled, they moved on to their next topic of debate.

I returned to the fort to begin preparation for a scouting expedition down the Thyanis canal. My goals were to judge the tenor of the residents in that direction and to gain news of Reytik. I was taking two squads, one of my men and one of the scouts. In addition to the soldiers, Professor Edgren would accompany me along with 5 Martian sutlers and a couple of wagons.

My plan was to advance three days down the canal to see what there was to see in that direction. I was

going to avoid contact with hostiles if at all possible. With the number of wounded we currently had and with the recruits just getting into camp, I could ill-afford any more casualties. Banto, the sergeant of the scouts, and myself were to be mounted on Moa-iti. Professor Edgren was to ride on one of the wagons. The troops would be on foot.

for the defense force began to arrive. I made arrangements for their quartering and basic training. My staff and I spent much time evaluating our recruits to find suitable positions for these men. Their first orders were to scour the town and surroundings for abandoned weapons. This allowed us to arm the men without placing undo hardship on the haggard city.

 I was able to borrow two wagons from those transporting rubble out of town. Our foodstuffs I bought from our usual supplier. Fortunately, the rather short siege caused only a minor interruption in the importation of goods. We had brought our own tentage and other camping equipment, so I was adequately fitted out. I left our supplies and transport at the fort to be loaded and went over to the station to deliver my orders before I departed.

I put Lieutenant Ballard in charge while I was away. I had him police Ceraunius to keep the peace. He was also to send out small patrols to keep a lookout for hostiles from Reytik or curious desert raiders. Finally, he was to repair our telegraph line from the fort to the station and if enough wire was available, he was to run a line to the government office as well.

I arrived back at the fort to find everything set for our departure. Our wagons were loaded and each was hitched to a great Bumatak. This is a large animal, resembling a wooly rhinoceros with a single massive horn on its snout. They are docile creatures that lumber along at a good walking pace for the men. I figured that we could make ten miles a day on this mission.  For the first day’s march, I posted a half-squad of my volunteer cavalry with a half-squad of scout recruits in front of the wagons and the other two half-squads behind. This would allow the men to get to know each other, and the recruits would learn a few tricks about being on the march. I was somewhat concerned about having so few tried men with me, but this was a training mission in friendly territory so I expected few problems.

We marched north from the fort until we came to the Thyanis canal, then followed it in an east
southeasterly direction. The terrain was flat farmland as far as the eye could see. Periodically, we would pass a small village. These housed the local farmers and a small office for the local government officials. These offices were populated by clerks as the “Headman” was in Ceraunius attending the congress.

At the end of our first day’s march, we stopped outside a midsized town called Corax. I ordered our camp pitched to the west of town. I left Sergeant Fish in charge of setting up the camp while Professor Edgren and I went into the town to talk with the headman.