Total War series 1. Declarations

It was a cold day.

The Congress room of Carthage was alive with anger. It was empty, for all but two. A Roman diplomat had entered the room, posture defiant, and demanded that Hannibal be held accountable for breaking the Treaty set forth at the end of The Punic War.

"Carthage was he who broke the Treaty, not Rome, yet you declare us the oath-breakers?" The Diplomat screamed.

"Rome is a plague, to come and take us all into its grasp. I will not allow it."

"How dare you accuse Rome of such crimes! Rome is a beacon of justice, law and civilisation." The Diplomat retorted.

Hannibal laughed.

It was not a jolly laugh, or even a maniacal one. It was a bitter laugh. A laugh that remembered The Punic War, and his father's tales of what Rome had inflicted upon Carthage. Yes, maybe his mind was warped by the eyes of a child, but he knew what Rome really was.

"You are as hypocritical as you are power hungry, Roman." Hannibal said.

"Enough! The sole purpose of this visit is for one thing. You must return the lands that Carthage has stolen, or the Might of Rome will be upon you!" The Diplomat demanded.

"So, my choices are die young, or die old, bitter at how I could've stopped Rome. When Carthage is burned, its walls destroyed, I am to remember this day? The day that I chose to give up?" Hannibal asked.

The Diplomat remained silent.

"I thought as much. I cannot allow Roman aggression to take away from Carthage's power. Here, in the sight of Ba'al-Hammon, I declare that Rome shall expand no more! I will stop you in your tracks, Roman. You and your 'Republic'." Hannibal proclaimed.

"Then War is upon you, Hannibal, son of Carthage. Rome will sow your fields with salt, burn this city to the ground! We will destroy Carthage so greatly, that in a thousand years, none shall know it ever existed."

"Then Ba'al-Hammon protect you, Roman. For Hannibal Barca is upon you."

The Diplomat exited the room, fuming with anger.

Hannibal turned, and smiled.

"It will be a good War. A Decisive one, at the least."


	2. Preparations

"I am telling you Hannibal, it can't be done! It's impossible!" Maharbal proclaimed.

"Then I will make it possible." Hannibal said, looking Maharbal in the eye to show his dedication.

Maharbal could not muster a response. Hannibal's pure, unadulterated, perseverance always managed to awe him. Hannibal was not the sort of person to abide by rules. If he was at a disadvantage, he would change the game. That is why Maharbal admired Hannibal, and had not immediately labelled Hannibal insane for his plan.

He wanted to cross the Alps.

"Maharbal, when have I ever given you cause to doubt me?" Hannibal pleaded.

"Never, Hannibal, never! But I cannot imagine this happening, not in a million years!" Maharbal exclaimed.

"I am not asking for your advice. I am asking for your co-operation, and only because you are my friend. I am your superior officer, and you will join me on my campaign. I would prefer that you come willingly, however." Hannibal commanded.

"Very well then, Hannibal. I... shall muster the troops." Maharbal stutters.

Maharbal left the room, while Hannibal watched his every move. Hannibal felt excited. For the first time in a long time, Hannibal felt _alive._

* * *

"This day, Men of Carthage, we conquer the Might of Rome!" Hannibal proclaimed.

It was a slightly ironic statement, as the large majority of his army was comprised of Gallic, Illyrian and Thracian mercenaries.

They still felt like Carthaginians, though, and not a single one of them knew why. That was why Hannibal could win. Not because he could command armies with the fluidity of a master, but because he could inspire the army to want, no, _desire_ to do as he bid.

And that was why he would win.

Almost.


	3. Pillars

Hannibal looked over the Alboran sea and marveled at the Pillars of Hercules. Such creations of the Gods were truly impressive. Two massive mountains that spiraled above the others made Hannibal appreciate Grecian mythology.

Obviously, Ba'al-Hammon was the true God of Gods, yet he was still awe-struck at the magnificence of the mountains. Hannibal may have been a great commander and leader, but he was ashes next to the pure power of the Gods.

He turned his gaze to the makeshift boats being built for the crossing. Yes, Carthaginian power in Spain had been present for some while, but the navy in the region was nowhere near big enough for the vast host that was Hannibal's army. He did, however, need to commandeer some quinqueremes purely for the transport of his elephants. They were mostly useless due to their disposition to go mad in battle and trample his own troops, but an intimidating sight for the Romans nonetheless.

"Some in Carthage say we are mad, Maharbal. I hope that they are wrong." Hannibal joked.

"Our men will follow you anywhere, Hannibal. They love you such." Maharbal responded.

Hannibal chuckled. He knew he had the power to command men, but love? No, the vast majority would only be distracted by his persuasions, which would be worth nothing when they ran out of money and food.

The First Punic War had taken a lot out of Carthage, and as such Hannibal had not strained his influence in the politics of Carthage by asking for ample supplies. He would simply have to rely on settlements in his way helpfully providing supplies for him.

Despite the slightly depressing sight of his coffers and food supply, he was buzzing with anticipation. Soon, he would be in his element; inspiring men in battle and killing Romans.

"Come, Maharbal, we must embark and cross over this body of water the Gods saw fit to put in our path."

"Aye, sir."


	4. Saguntum

"Saguntum."

"Will we besiege them, Hannibal?" Maharbal inquired.

"Of course we will. They have an agreement with the Romans, and we are the Roman's enemies. The friend of my enemy is still my enemy."

"Shall we construct battering rams and siege towers?" Maharbal asked. Maharbal had always hated siege warfare, he preferred to fight on open plain, where maneuvering was much easier, and there were less choke-points the enemy could take advantage of.

"I think not. We shall starve them out. Our food supplies will hold for a while, and experienced fighting men are more valuable to me than olives and bread."

"Of course, Hannibal."

Hannibal's army had been spotted by now, and he could see a rider spiriting away to the Romans already. However, Hannibal was none too worried, as the Romans were busy fighting Demetrius of Pharos in Illyria.

"Ensure no more riders get out. They must have no hope, or they will not surrender. Completely encircle them, and order the men to construct palisades and ditches around so that they will be sheltered from projectiles from Saguntum. I will lose as little men here as possible."

"As you command, Hannibal."

Hannibal had noticed that Maharbal had withdrawn since he had forced him to join him on his campaign. It was only a personal loss, yet it still annoyed him, as he had known Maharbal for his whole life, yet one action had destroyed what could be described as Hannibal's one true friendship.

A lamentable loss, but nothing that would stop him from gaining vengeance against the Romans.

The only thing that could stop him from that goal would be death.

Or so he thought.


	5. First Sightings

"There they are."

The Alps had just risen over the horizon, and Hannibal was eager to traverse them as fast as possible. He was not used to the biting cold of this region, especially considering he was born in the warm heart of North Africa.

He was running low on food, and morale, and as such he wanted to get plundering and conquering Italy as fast as possible. One thing that granted him solace was how unprepared the Romans were. Whilst they were busy fighting Demetrius, he had sneaked past them and was ready to ravage their homeland, to repay them for the multitude of offences that were committed on Carthage as a result of the First Punic War.

His army were unhappy, cold and itching to fight. He had heard of several fights between mercenary troops in his army from different parts of the world, and he knew they would have to get out their aggression before long.

Hannibal didn't trust the tribes of the area, even though some of their warriors acted as mercenaries for him. The tribes knew these mountains, whereas Hannibal did not. He would have to be careful to avoid ambushes. The tribes might've made a deal with Rome for gold, slaves or food in return for some guerrilla warfare to whittle down some of Hannibal's forces.

"Soon we will be amongst the Romans, hacking and slashing, burning and pillaging. I pray for that moment to come with great haste. I promised to Carthage and my father to destroy the amoral dogs known as Romans."


	6. Trebia

"Can you smell that, Maharbal?"

"All I smell is corpses and shit, Hannibal." Maharbal replied exhaustedly.

"No, you do not smell corpses. You smell _roman_ corpses, my friend. The best smelling corpses in the world!"

Hannibal's eccentrics elicited a small chuckle from his battle-weary second in command.

The Trebia flowed silently as the screams of those Romans who were lucky enough to survive were being finished off by their Carthaginian opponents.

"Look at them all, Maharbal. Look at how many we have killed this day!"

"Is death something I should be celebrating, Hannibal? How many sons will not return to their mothers, how many fathers will not go back to their wives, how many lives have we taken this day? And you're happy about this?"

Hannibal stood straight, eyeing his friend with what could only be described as otherworldly fury.

"These people, no, these dogs, they almost turned our city to ash! They almost took the pride of Carthage and ground it in to the dirt! You don't think they would kill us all if they had the chance?" Hannibal exclaimed.

Maharbal looked tired and cowed by his friend's anger. He simply sighed and slowly left Hannibal alone on the field, surrounded by nothing but the dead.

Hannibal thought to himself, Maharbal simply didn't understand why the Romans must be destroyed, why they must be obliterated and their memory turned to ash. He didn't have the drive to see this campaign through to the end. To Rome.

But Hannibal did.


End file.

Total War series, Suspense