Chapter Forty
Roar of the Cannons
MELODY
Frankly, she didn't expect to be back in the heat of action so soon. Well, better than having to deal with the Confederation, Melody thought as she mechanically nocked another arrow, sighted and let fly. The arrow exploded a distance away, sending a pair of Exonian skirmishers flying and shrieking.
Engaging in the intense activities as she did would drain any other person and push them to their physical limits. First, she had gone on a "black ops mission" to liberate Stormtide, and then cutting through possibly hundred of prison guards to get to the Warden's office. And now, back on the battlefield not a day later, where I might very well get my brains blown out.
A lesser individual would have called it quits, but not Melody. Maybe that was her greatest flaw: not knowing when to quit.
Seeing something from the peripheral of her eye, she pivoted on the balls of her feet and fired another arrow straight into the heart of an enemy skirmisher aiming his musket straight at her. He jerked back and toppled over, leaving his partner exposed.
"Got enough sleep, I see." Oliver said, fighting alongside her. Skirmishers worked in pairs, and Melody felt most comfortable with her former archery classmate fighting by her side.
"Got a few winks once we got back." Melody said mildly as she shot down another pair of skirmishers.
"Good for you." Oliver chuckled good-humouredly as though he were relaxing on a beach and not on a battlefield. With a swiftness that impressed Melody, he spun and shot an explosive arrow into a big rock about fifty yards out, blowing fragments in every direction that cut into enemy skirmishers and blood flew everywhere. "I wasted no time cracking open a new bottle. The upper class of Turnsheim know how to make good stuff."
"Drinking before a battle?" Melody raised an eyebrow as she and Oliver ducked behind a large rock etched in the ground, enemy fire pinging and zinging all around.
Oliver shrugged. "Like any other soldier does."
Fair enough. Melody glanced over at Oliver's quiver. "Got enough arrows to last?"
He spared a look over his shoulder. "Hope so. Don't think the skirmishing can go on much longer, eh?"
Overhead, solid shot flew through the air, following the bass thumps of the cannons from both sides. Muskets firing in every direction, screams and shouts filled the air like musical notes complementing the cracks of the firearms and the thundering roars of cannons.
The problem with fighting on the ground was, Melody could not see the big picture like Anna and the rest could. She could not see the columns manoeuvring in place, how far they really were from the enemy, where the cavalry troops were, and how close the cannons really came to tearing a hole through the formations. It was the price to pay though, since Melody couldn't bear the thought of not doing whatever she excelled at the most: combat.
As the skirmishing battle wore on, more and more smoke began to embroil the atmosphere, making it increasingly hard to see, but not to the point where everything was hazy. That would come later, when the line infantry would unleash the full fury of a unified volley.
Melody turned to her right and saw the nearest pair of skirmishers. They were Northuldra, the forest tribe that Anna and Elsa had found some time ago. The one nearest to Melody pitched forward as she took a lead ball through her stomach, and her partner fired off a round that incapacitated the enemy on the other side of the smoke.
All around her, Melody could see Northuldra and Danish skirmishers alike, all holding their positions as best as they could, inching forward ever so slightly to better cover. Behind her, the infantry had deployed into long, neat lines three ranks deep, and a distance behind them was a second line. And then a third. It was time.
"Skirmishers, fall back!" Melody yelled at the top of her lungs to be heard over the agonised screams of pain and the erratic rattle of musketry. "Fall back now!"
Her command was echoed by sergeants and the rare lieutenants amongst the skirmishers, and the message got through quickly enough. The Northuldra and Danish alike fired one last ragged volley at will, and then retreated back to where the infantry was formed up and advancing slowly.
Once the skirmishers had passed safely back behind friendly lines, Melody found the colonels in charge of overseeing the brigades. "Any news?" She asked hopefully.
"We got the order, Ma'am." The nearest colonel informed her. "The Field Marshal has given us the authority to open fire on our mark. Will you be doing the honours?"
"I'll do it." Melody said. She was slightly tired, but adrenaline was still coursing through her veins. Looking back up at the hill where the command post was, Melody saw the figures of the Warriors watching the battle with the cloudy sky casting a light glow on their backs. The sooner we break through the defences, the sooner they can enter the city and find Elsa.
"On my signal." Melody said, watching the front ranks. "Load!" She hollered, hoarse voice scrapping her throat.
She needn't follow through with the rest, because all soldiers who had gone through the drills manual knew what came next. The lieutenants roared the command, and the formed infantry began the process of pouring measured powder into the pan and the rest down the barrel, ramming the lead ball home with the ramrod, cocking the weapon and waiting for the next command.
"Level!" As far as the eye could see, hundreds of muskets in the front rank swung into place, butts planted securely on the right shoulder. Melody imagined that to her left and right, the rest of the Coalition were doing the same as the enemy drew nearer.
And then came the word everyone had been waiting for with bated breath and fever pitched adrenaline.
"Fire!"
The volley that slammed out was magnificent and deadeningly loud. Hundreds, and possibly thousands of muskets in the front rank cracked in unison, butts delivering kicks into the shoulders of their wielders.
The effect was withering. At a hundred yards, the defenders had stopped to do the same. Only the Coalition did it faster. Exonian soldiers in the front rank spun away or pitched forward, and men from behind stepped in to take their place.
"First rank kneel and load!" The command was given again by the lieutenants. Now that Melody had started the ball rolling, she only needed to let things take their course. "Second rank level!"
The first rank of the line knelt, loading their muskets. Meanwhile, the second rank levelled their muskets, primed and ready to fire.
This time, the opposite side was faster. A volley slammed out, scything men from the Coalition's ranks. Men from the first and second ranks were hit, blood spraying and flying, and screams filled the air as the sounds of muskets going off echoed.
"Fire!"
The Coalition returned fire, another unified volley cutting through the Exonians like death. Very soon, the standard procedure set in as it had on every battlefield Melody had been on. Unified volleys of musketry turned into ragged firing, each man loading, shouldering and firing at will. No commander in military history would ever have succeeded in getting his men to fire at the same time once things had descended into this stage of the firefight.
The strong scent of black powder and musket smoke filled the battlefield, both sides having halted their advance. Soon, the grey clouds of smoke obscured everything from sight, making it impossible to see how the enemy was holding up. The only report of their survival came when pink-white muzzle flashes lit up from within the smoke, and more shots rang out from the Exonian line.
General Ivon had already repositioned one of his batteries to redirect cannon fire to the centre of the Exonian lines. At a shout from Ivon, the guns belched fire and unforgiving steel arced and descended upon the Exonian ranks, sending men and limbs scattering. With six guns firing round shot into the same spot, the enemies would have no choice but to break sooner or later. They could only withstand so much bombardment before their lines broke, and that would be when the Coalition would charge.
Hopefully that would be soon.
ANNA
Things had been going according to Frederick's plan so far. The Imperial Horde were spread thin across the fields, holding out against five divisions and two brigades. As it was, the Imperial Horde looked like it was taking the worst of the fight, being strung out as they were.
Obviously General Hydrech had managed to dig in deep, but the numbers were nowhere near enough to fortify their position. Apart from trenches and deep ditches dug all around the perimeter as well as firing bays, the city was exposed with no walls to protect it like Turnsheim had. And now things about to get a whole lot worse for them.
"Should be right about…" Frederick glanced at a pocket watch. "…now."
From the far left, Anna could see figures like tiny ants pouring out from behind a ridge. They surged over the fields towards the left flank of the city, which was guarded but by very weak numbers.
Hydrech had invested most of his troops into dealing with the five divisions at the front, since none others had attacked the other sides of the city. However, now the error of his ways would be realised. The other five divisions came on with shocking speed, and Anna could already see some rapid reorganisation from the Imperial Horde as they hastily tried to transfer reserve units to defend the left flank of the city.
With the enemy confused and disoriented by the sudden appearance of an additional five divisions, it was time to capitalise.
"Send in the cavalry." Frederick commanded.
Within minutes, a great number of big men with armour plates and sabres rode out on their sturdy mounts to deal the enemy their worst nightmare. Seeing cavalry cuirassiers emerge from the smoke and riding towards you at breakneck speed did wonders for crushing morale.
As far as Anna could tell, it was working. The Exonian field commanders barely managed to get their battalions formed up in squares to repel the cavalry charge before the cuirassiers slammed into them. The end closest to the cavalry fared the poorest as they had the least time to react, and the cavalrymen slashed away, cutting them down as they rode on towards the rest.
With the enemy hurrying into square formation, that would give the artillery their best targets. Anna waited for General Ivon to unleash destruction, knowing that the experienced artillery commander would capitalise.
As if on cue, the guns roared like ravenous predators, this time shooting howitzer projectiles into the air. These rounds arced in steep trajectories over the heads of the Coalition troops, and smashed into the enemy squares. The compact formations made for fantastic targets and damage was maximised as the cannonballs hit their designated spots and the ground exploded in clouds of dirt and blood.
The Coalition's infantry advanced, closing the range to seventy five yards. Half batteries from each division were dragged forward by the artillerists, and round shot was swapped for canister. With the enemy formed in squares, they didn't present as great a threat as compared to when they were in line, and firepower was at an all time low while they were busy fending off the cavalry.
Just in time, the friendly cavalry withdrew to the wings as musketry increased its effectiveness at close range in ragged volleys like never ending drumbeats. At seventy five yards it was hard to miss and the enemy was taking it very badly.
To add the cherry on top, canister shot slammed out one after another, and from the command post, Anna could hear the single deadly thump, loudest from the left, and distant from the far right. Canister shot hit the squares and exploded, sending thousands of lead balls scything through flesh and bone.
"Now," Frederick said to his runners. "Fix bayonets, charge and reform under cavalry protection."
"And this is where the fun begins." Kristoff told the Warriors.
He was right. The Coalition was winning. Hydrech had spread his forces way too thinly to defend the left flank and the front face of the city both at the same time.
Battle cries rang out from the Coalition's side of the battlefield as they charged with bayonets fixed to their muskets. They met the enemy head on through the smoke, tearing into the infantry squares. The Exonians quickly withdrew, dissolving into chaos after receiving the initial charge.
"Wow." Maui said in awe. "In all the thousand years of my life, I have to admit I've never seen a siege like this."
"In a good way or bad?" Tracy asked.
"Overwhelmingly in our favour." Maui grinned.
"You can say that again." Anna said as she kept her eyes glued to the battlefield.
The only obstacle that remained in the way were the artillery batteries safely hidden in the blockhouses of the city. Enemy cavalry had been dispatched to slow down the other five Coalition divisions, but obviously it wasn't going to hold for long against the Coalition's sudden shock tactic.
Also, there was no way the Exonians would be able to reform now that they had broken. It would be an almost impossible task once all formation had dissolved, and they had retreated back into the city to regroup.
That left the fields free for the Coalition to reform, and reform quickly they did. Following the bayonet charge, the lieutenants and sergeants quickly reorganised their men into their various companies and battalions, and the advance continued swiftly.
General Ivon's artillery had also wheeled up onto the battlefield, taking its place a short distance behind the advancing infantry. With the fields clear, it was safe to move the guns a lot nearer, giving them better accuracy and range.
As the guns in the city continued to rain solid shot into the advancing Coalition, Ivon's batteries answered with their own. Booms filled the air as Ivon's nine and twelve pounder guns began to hammer the city's nearest buildings that were being used as blockhouses.
Stone and brick disintegrated into millions of pieces as ball after ball found their marks on the buildings. Walls exploded entirely, while others left remnants of blown bricks, revealing the enemy guns like sitting ducks. Ivon's artillery made short work of what remained.
The fighting soon poured into the streets, with Coalition soldiers crossing into the city and fighting with the Imperial Horde loyalists from house to house.
Taking a battle into the streets was a messy affair, since fighting in urban territory would come as a disadvantage to regular infantry. However, this posed no problem for skirmishers. Again, the Northuldra and Danish skirmishers shined, claiming house after house, street after street as the Coalition began to push into Korynes, slowly but surely.
"Have we taken the edge of the city?" Anna asked Frederick after some time had elapsed. By now, the sun was already well up into the sky and a small measure of warmth was breaking through the cold winter air, and she suspected that it was nearing noon. It's long past time we saved Elsa.
"Yes, Your Majesty." Frederick said. "My runners tell me we're pushing them further east, where they'll have no choice but to retreat over the bridge and give up the city."
"Good, good." Anna turned to her friends. "Shall we?"
"I suppose now's as good a time as any." Janus glanced at Tracy. "Get us into the city."
"Right." Tracy rubbed her hands together. "Let's hope that the Coalition guys don't shoot us down when they see us."
"Let's hope not."
A Crossing Point opened, and the Warriors began to file through it.
"Good luck, Your Majesty." The disapproval in Frederick's tone was ever apparent, though masked by military decorum.
"Be careful." Kristoff called out to Anna anxiously.
"I will." Anna gave them a tight smile and stepped through the Crossing Point to join her friends.