Duke Nathaniel’s eyes were fixed on the sky. He’d been roused from his sleep by Galrac early in the morning to look up to watch some sort of buzzing metal bird fly across to the sky and circle around their camp. It was unsettling the both of them.
Another early morning spring breeze brushed across them, cold but sweet. They were somewhat exposed on top of the keep, despite the battlements. Though it was a nice morning, with the sun rising above the horizon. But their eyes were still locked on the metal bird, the two still thinking. But both had the same gut feeling.
“It’s an observer from Chin,” Galrac finally murmured, “It is watching our position and trying to find weak points.”
“Like the fact that we only have our morning guards out manning the defensive positions?”
Galrac nodded, “Should we sound the alarm?”
Nathaniel simply nodded in return.
Galrac reached for a small bell by the watch position and tolled it three times. A few breathless moments passed.
The keep’s main bell then started to boom, the massive bronze thing slowly swinging into action, each swing bringing another clang as the camp bellow descended into chaos.
Screaming and the sound of pounding feet nearly drowned out the sound of the bell, streams of men rushing from the camp by the keep and the secondary one several yards down the road. Others were busy putting on armour and leaping onto their horses. All of this had been now practised and turned into procedure in the days they had been waiting, giving a little structure to the chaotic rush.
The hand gunners and cannon crews got into their positions on the ramparts along the river, pikemen rushing to the barricade on the bridge. The cavalry of all stripes rushed into hidden positions in the forests, waiting to counter any breakthrough. The foot knights got behind the pikemen on the bridge. By the mouth of the bridge on their side the rest of the troops organised themselves, peasant levies, crossbowmen, men-at-arms and the church militias, forming the second line and the bulk of their forces.
Everything was getting set, the streams of men all getting into their compact formations. Nathaniel had decided, despite the risks to do this. Since they’d be protected by the ramparts and barricades from direct fire from handguns and any cannon would have to get within line of sight before firing, giving him time to give the order to disperse.
It wasn’t flawless, but he’d have the opportunity to escape if the battlelines fell and he had the perfect view of the battlefield from there. Well, perfect other than that buzzing bird overhead, which was probably giving the enemy a far better view.
“Galrac, are there more than one of those bird things now?”
“I- I think so… But sir, do you spot that, right over there?”
Galrac pointed out across the bridge and along the forest lined road. There was a dip in the terrain four-hundred yards before the bridge, so they couldn’t see the portion closest to them. But, far out along its winding length there was something there. Along the grey road there were green things moving along it, it was hard to make them out with the colour of the forest but by squinting, he could make them out.
But as he tried to make out what they were, something far more concerning happened.
A sort of whistling sound started to make itself known against the background noise of his troops getting into position, getting louder and louder until-
BANG
A deafening explosion appeared in the air just on the flanks of their formation, the air rippling as tree branches were shredded by- By something... It was like a thousand knives had been thrown at the forest canopy at lightning speeds.
Nathaniel brain started to move quickly, remembering his campaigns across other kingdoms. He remembered how the Tsardom found a way to make their cannons deadly at short range by stuffing their cannons with shards of metal and rock instead of cannon balls. They must have-
Another whistling sound came and this time it was on target. The shrapnel ripped into a formation of infantry, limbs and flesh being shredded off of their bodies as the men slumped to the floor, a massive swathe of men simply cut down in a ragged circle. Blood soaking the ground and his ears left ringing.
But he didn’t have time to think as he felt the keep rumbled, whipping his head around to see the aftermath of some sort of explosion ripping apart the very earth dangerous close to the rear camp.
The world had simply become one of terror as he saw his plans start to unravel in a matter of moments. He felt someone shake his arm then start dragging him down the stairs and into the keep. He didn’t resist as the control of his body seemed to have simply left him, his consciousness retreating into his skull.
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“Shot in.”
“Shot out.”
“On target, fire for effect.”
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His ears were still ringing but his hearing was coming back slowly, and the sounds that were replacing the ringing were far worse.
The screams of men in agony, the shouts of sergeants trying to keep their men in position, some people presumably loosening formation and the sound of priests and monks trying to drown the other sounds out with their prayers. The suddenness of the unseen attack causing a severe moral shock.
“Sir”
“What?!”
“Sir!”
Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
Nathaniel finally shook himself out of his daze and looked at Galrac, their gaze firm but scared. He chastised himself for that display out there, he was a duke, the first of him name in his house, a grand general-
BANG, BANG, BANG
His ears lost their hearing again as a flurry of explosions filled the air outside of the keep, round after round pummelling his troops as him and Galrac hit the floor. The keep rattled and even as his ears rang he could still make out the blasts. One explosion after another.
The air outside of the window was filled with flashes as the smell of gunpowder and smoke started to fill his nose, the blasts still continuing, time becoming illegible as the bombardment kept going and going until…
The flashes stopped.
Nathaniel pulled himself up, his body wandering to a window and looking out. His shaky legs pushing him forwards.
What he saw was a scene of surreal carnage.
Men were scattered all across the ground having been cut down by the shrapnel like wheat during a harvest. Many more were badly wounded, curled up and crying. Some were trying to assist those that were wounded, some were panicking and running. And the ground… The ground was churned up and had been turned into a mix of blood and mud with cobbles stained red, noble and peasant blood mixing together as it trickled between the cracks. His swirling mind thought it was only a shame he couldn’t observe this further…
But there was only one sensible option here. To get away as fast as possible with all he could without spooking the men any further. They needed to slow the enemy down still.
But the backup plan… The solution.
Nathaniel turned to Galrac.
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Edward had been watching the battle in the CIC through the eyes of the drones and it was a horrifying example of the power of modern weapons. He’d almost wanted to throw up when the camera of one of the drones zoomed in on a set of lightly armoured spearmen get shredded by a 120mm shrapnel round. It was just so… Graphic. The corpses and dying men scattered all around as bloodied survivors ran.
But he couldn’t deny it was a well thought out plan so far. The howitzers had destroyed the rear line camp of the enemy with most of their supplies; and the bombardment by the 120mm mortars with shrapnel had cut through almost the entirety of the kingdom’s second line. Now all that was left was the small frontline force on the bridge, most of the handgunners and cannons on the ramparts along the river and their cavalry that had managed to gather in the forest.
At this point it’d take a miracle for the kingdom forces to win; especially with the marines flanking around by going across one of the small wooden bridges to the north. Apparently, that assault had already been successful; but they were having to walk so it’d take some time for them to get into position and Edward doubted Victor would be waiting for that. He was not going to let up momentum at all.
So, he guessed that the column of tanks and IFVs currently cresting over the ridge in front of the bridge was his attempt to take the bridge.
It was three vehicles wide with the front line consisting of two Defenders and a AVCE Defender, the engineer’s variant with the main gun replaced with a howitzer and a dozer blade mounted on the front. The Defenders were the current peek of MBT design, large and chunky with their turrets currently pointed forwards, creating an almost uniform sloped front with their hulls. Their green camo making it hard to distinguish them from the air. Nathaniel looked at the AVCE in the centre. Is he going to? Oh.
The kingdom’s cannons fired first, most of the cannon balls missing their targets but one hit a tank straight on the turret cheek. It simply bounced off, spinning up into the air before diving into the ground with a thud.
Without stopping the tanks simply turned their turrets and fired back. The HESHFS shells blasting the ramparts, the guns, and their crews to pieces. HMG and 20mm autocannon fire quickly following to spray the hangunners with lead. Hidden pits cracked open as the tanks rolled over them, but it did not stop the Defenders.
But as the two Defenders on the flanks stopped, firing another round into the ramparts, the AVCE continued onwards, barrelling towards the barricade on the bridge at full speed, dozer blade lowered.
The drone’s camera zoomed in, capturing terrified soldiers start to throw themselves off of the bridge and run away, handgun fire harmlessly plinking off of the tank. Their muskets completely ineffective against Chobham composite armour.
The barricade was then reduced to splinters as the tank rammed through it, crushing the few remaining defenders into paste under it’s tracks or throwing them several meters forward. Behind the AVCE was a platoon of Crusader IFVs. The similarly chunky but taller vehicles proceeding to dump 30mm HE rounds into the second line of defences.
By now it seemed like the enemy was in full retreat. The hail of fire only getting worse by the moment as machine gun squads on the opposite bank set themselves up and started to suppress what was left, and the rest of the tank platoon had brought themselves up to the riverbank.
Once the AVCE and Crusaders had crossed they fanned out. Men dismounting from the Crusader IFVs and clearing out last few valiant hand gunners, who were charging the infantry to predictable results.
It seemed like it’d only be a few minutes before the crossing was cleared by this single combined arms company and it’s handful of support assets which the rest of the brigade would be crossing…
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Galrac swallowed. He was going to die today, that was for sure. Him and the rest of the knights who had managed to steady their horses. But they were ready for this one final dash to the bridge. The handgunners had been cut down before they could reach the fuse, but the nobles shall not fail like them. They will light the fuse and blow those devils only route to their heartlands. His liege’s plan must be successful.
He took a few deep breaths and gave the signal.
The trumpets sounded the order to attack, every knight whipping their horses into action as they charged. The sound of hundreds of horses’ hooves sounding like an oncoming thunderstorm, with this one made of steel and flesh, it’s lances lowered and carrying flaming torches as they charged out of the forest. A few men’s horses tripped over some tree roots or smashed into their trunks, but the rest kept going.
Everything started to collapse immediately as the deafening sounds of their guns filled the air.
Men and horses started to explode all around him, those big metal carriage’s guns laying waste to swathes of the charge. But they kept going.
Their infantry’s guns opened up, piercing plate and crippling horses. But yet, they kept charging. Their lances still lowered, their bright banners rippling in the wind.
They were closing the distance and fast, but the rate of their casualties was higher.
He felt a bullet rip into his arm, ripping sinue and muscles in him, but yet he kept going, his heart pounding faster than it ever had with all of his focus on a gap in their perimeter.
Closer, closer and closer still, he was nearly there. He was nearly at his objective, and while his other arm could no longer reach to the torch behind him, he could always throw his lance aside to get it.
But that moment would not come as his horse had a hole blown through its head, the beast then swerving even as it still galloped, before tumbling to the ground with Galrac still saddled on, bones snapping and cracking as he hit the ground.
He then tried to look up, to try and move an arm to free himself, but another round hit, piercing his skull before he could.
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“Rear Admiral Fletcher, second company, second battalion, has just told me they have the bridge, and all hostiles are either dead or begging for mercy with only one casualty for us. I told you it was perfectly possible.”
Victor’s voice sounded incredibly smug, despite the poor quality of the connection, Edward staring, mouth agape at the fields of bodies littering the area. Now with the wheeled Panther APCs where now rolling over them as the parked up.
Edward swallowed, “I- I didn’t doubt that you’d have such low casualties, I was just inquisitive of your exact plans.”
“And as you can see, it all worked out fine in the end. You can get more of a peek into the next set of plans if that’ll stop you from worrying?”
“Well I think its more a matter of me being your direct superior and the commander of this operation.”
“Right, right… Tho- I’ve got something on another line, please hold.”
The line crackled into static for a moment, Edward nearly slamming the phone down just before the line came back to life, “Well admiral, we have a prisoner here who might be some use and wants to talk to you.”