Chapter Thirty Seven
Friends across the River
ANNA
Her ears picked up the sounds of cannon fire as the Coalition's snaking column was still moving through the woods. Anna's brows furrowed deeply. Wait. That can't be right. Were her ears playing tricks on her?
As Frederick and Kristoff had predicted, the Coalition would arrive in Korynes after noon. It was half past eleven, and they were already back in familiar territory. Soon, the Coalition would arrive back at the riverbank where they'd been ambushed by the Imperial Horde. It brought back rather grim and horrific memories of how they'd lasted a full day against the attrition tactics of Field Marshal Kane which had been designed to cripple them slowly and painfully, and the enemies had very nearly succeeded had it not been for the League of Sorcerers, led by Elsa and the rest of the Warriors.
The League of Sorcerers had swung into battle alongside the remaining Coalition soldiers left on the battlefield, and had pushed back hard against the Imperial Horde, turning the tide almost instantly. But this time round, the Coalition was on their own and with distinctly fewer numbers after their long campaign through Empire territory.
And we're regressing back to Korynes. Anna hated the idea that they'd wasted the entire winter chasing the Imperial Horde and tried to force the Empire into surrendering, only to be routed by the Imperial Horde back to Korynes. But Anna knew that it was the only way to save the Coalition. If she hadn't ordered that retreat, they would've all been dead by now, lying out in the snowy plains and getting buried by the falling snow.
It'd even begun to snow again, though this time nowhere near as heavily as the relentless blizzards in days past. Still, it made their lives tougher, slogging through the snow as fast as they could to maintain the distance between themselves and the pursuing Exonians. Frederick and Kristoff were still in the midst of coming up with a strategy should they need to defend against a siege in the middle of winter, though that didn't seem too likely. Then again, this was Field Marshal Kane they were strategising against.
Another deep boom reverberated throughout the forest. The soldiers in the column all seemed to stiffen at the sound.
So it's not my imagination. Anna tightened her jaw as she stared straight ahead. "What's going on?" She said aloud.
"Don't know," Hansel said from her side. Both the Witch Hunter twins had been assigned by Kristoff to stick close to Anna while he and Frederick commanded the entire column and got them safely behind the walls of Korynes to join up with the single Vjorman division.
"Want us to range ahead and take a look?" Gretel asked, putting a hand on her long rifle.
"No," Anna said. "Frederick's scouts are already screening our advance. If they spot anything, they'll report back and Frederick will send a messenger to me. Though I hope there's nothing to report."
As if right on cue, a lone Arendellian soldier on horseback entered from the edge of the woods in the far distance, riding against the flow of the long column. In truth, Anna had been staring at that spot, just waiting to see if Frederick would send a messenger. And he had.
Damn it. Anna's jaw tightened further and her shoulders tensed as she sat up straighter in the saddle. What's going on out there? Are the Vjormans engaged in some sort of battle? But it can't be, can it? There's no way the enemy could've slipped between us and the city.
It seemed to take forever, but the messenger finally managed to push through the woods and the rest of the marching soldiers, and arrived at the centre of the column where Anna and the Witch Hunters were riding. He rounded his mount and reined up alongside Anna.
"Your Majesty," he saluted as best as he could. The soldier - a corporal - was breathing hard and fast, evidently spent from rapidly trying to ride against the current in search of the queen. "Field Marshal Frederick sent me." When the eyes of the Queen's Guardsmen and the nearby soldiers turned to them, he lowered his voice. "May I request a word in private, Ma'am?"
"Of course," Anna nodded to the soldiers near her, and they vacated a hole in the side of the column where she and the Witch Hunters could emerge from the column and allow the rest to continue on without them. Her own entourage, comprising Hayley and the members of the Queen's Guard, were given the order by her to ride on.
When they were slightly deeper in the woods, Anna reined up and turned to the corporal. "What is it?" She tried to mask her impatience. "What did Frederick want to tell me?"
"It's the Vjormans," The corporal swallowed. "The scouts spotted them outside the city."
"Outside?" Anna's eyes went wide. "What do you mean outside?"
"They seem to be…" the corporal shifted in the saddle. "…trying to retreat over the river."
"What?" Anna's world began to spin, and she gripped the reins tighter in case she fell. "I…I don't understand."
"Me neither." Hansel, who'd been listening in, took the soldier by the collar. "Speak up, man."
"I…I don't know anything else. That's all the Field Marshal told me. I'm just the messenger."
"Let him go," Anna said sharply. "Both of you, return to the column and wait. I'll send for you if I need you."
Shrugging, Hansel released his grip on the corporal, and both he and Gretel set off for the column.
Anna turned to the messenger again, urgency evident in her stiff posture. "Take me to the Field Marshal."
###
Debouching from the forest, Anna found the soldiers who'd already emerged from the woods formed up in battalions, stretching horizontally across the large snow covered plains at the foot of the hill. They'd evidently been told to halt the march and wait for further instructions, and they watched curiously and in confusion as Anna and the messenger rode past them and up the hill at breakneck speed. At the crest of the hill, Field Marshal Frederick, Kristoff and a section's worth of Arendellian scouts were in deep conversation.
"What's going on?" Anna demanded, not waiting for the corporal to announce her arrival.
Everyone turned to see the queen hastily swinging herself from the saddle, almost tripping and landing in a heap. Silently, the scouts immediately ripped off synchronised salutes in parade ground fashion.
"Your Majesty," Frederick greeted, saluting her too with perfect form. His eyes were subtly clouded even as he did so.
Kristoff nodded to the scouts. "Give us a moment, would you?"
"Sir." The scouts barked, saluted again to both Kristoff and Frederick, then gave them a wide berth, retiring a distance away to await further orders. The corporal who was with Anna similarly excused himself and melted away to join the scouts.
"What's going on?" Anna repeated, her palms sweaty and heart racing.
"By the looks of it, the Vjormans have been forced out of the city." Frederick reported, his tone bearing a hint of worry though largely still placid. "They're slowly retreating, though it looks like they've been at it for days. Our scouts spotted the Exonians on the city wall and on the ground." Frederick's expression hardened. "I believe they're trying to force the Vjormans to turn their backs and cross the river so that they can blow them out of the water with the artillery."
"Shit," Anna swore aloud, her eyes fixed on the city that was visible from the hill. From here, she could see tiny figures formed up on the opposite side of the river, engaged in a fierce but protracted firefight with those now holding the city. "How did this happen?"
"We don't know," Kristoff was positively grim. "But we'll get our answers when we pull the Vjormans out of there."
Anna rounded on her husband. "Pull them out? We're supposed to be regrouping with them inside the city!"
"I don't think that's an option anymore." Kristoff said dryly.
Anna turned back to the scene of the battle. As much as she hated to admit it, she knew he was right. They were supposed to be quartering in the city of Korynes to wait out the rest of winter. Instead, they now found that the Vjormans had been forced out of the city, on the verge of being decimated no less.
"What are we going to do?" Anna asked, looking to the faithful Field Marshal for answers.
Frederick looked at her, then at the river. "I have a plan to save the Vjormans, but it's going to be a risky affair. We might incur very heavy losses if the Exonians on the other side of the river are able to counter our rescue manoeuvre."
"Do it." Kristoff said firmly. "It's our only chance."
"Yes, Sir."
"And get the League on board too." Anna added. "We need all the firepower we can muster if we're going to pull this off quickly."
Frederick saluted, then beckoned the scouts and messenger. "Listen up," he said in a calm, authoritative voice. "I need two dispatches. One to ride down the hill and inform the general staff that we're going to mount a rescue op. Six cavalry troops from the Xerflorians and a full brigade of Molcorran infantry to support the Vjormans, and a Danish battery to match the Exonians' guns. The other dispatch will cross the river now and inform the Vjormans to move on our signal."
The soldiers snapped salutes, then hurriedly split into two dispatches to carry out the Field Marshal's orders. Anna watched as they left swiftly, then turned to Kristoff.
"I thought this was almost over." Anna sighed in exasperation as another distant boom could be heard from across the river. "I thought that by evening, we'd all be sitting inside the safety of the city walls, eating proper food and not having to worry about the Imperial Horde catching up to us and mounting another ambush. And yet," she glared at the city. "Here we are."
"I'm sorry," Kristoff pursed his lips. "I know how much you wanted this to be over. I did too. But," he took her hand. "We just have to face reality. We're still stuck out here, and we're not going to be able to make winter quarters in Korynes."
Just hearing her husband say the words made her heart sink. Before, it'd felt like a strange nightmare but now, it was all real. Her body tensing, she stared at Kristoff's sympathetic expression then down at the battalions at the foot of the hill that were by now receiving the orders from their respective officers about what they were about to do. She could almost imagine the dismayed looks on the faces of the soldiers from every division, be it Arendellian or otherwise, and hear the groans that escaped their cracked, dry lips.
Everyone was tired and hungry, all looking forward to a supply of hot, proper meals inside the city. But that anticipation and hope would die the moment their officers gave them their new orders. Anna clenched her jaw, feeling her own stomach growl and her hopes dashed. But there was nothing else she could do, except start thinking about where they would go next. The Coalition was extremely short on supplies and food, and with the Imperial Horde still pursuing them and the city being held by Imperial forces, they were being caught in a pincer movement and starved.
Something clicked in Anna's mind and her eyes widened in realisation. Of course. Hans already knew that the city no longer belonged to the Vjormans. He knew that there would be nowhere the Coalition could hide from the Imperial Horde, and so he'd let them go under the pretences of the parley. He'd known all along.
"Anna?" Kristoff stared at her worriedly. "Anna, are you alright?"
She whirled, fixing him with a look of dread. "Hans. He knew from the start that we would come to this. Kane must have sent an enemy division by another route unknown to us, and wrestled the city from our grasp. They're planning to sandwich us between the enemies in the city, the river and the enemies right behind us. It's going to be massacre if we don't get out of here!"
His face grew ashen. "Bloody hell," he swore. "We ran right into their trap and never saw it coming."
Anna gritted her teeth and looked down at the riverbank. "We just have to hope we can get the Vjormans out in one piece and then figure out our next move from there."
Down below at the riverbank, Molcorran battalions had already begun wading through the water with their muskets held about their heads, moving in loose order just like the skirmishers would. This made for tougher targets should the Exonian artillerists on the city walls decided to hurl twelve or eighteen pounder steel balls at them.
Xerflorian light cavalry crossed with them, most of them moving at the flanks to avoid getting bogged down by the infantry. The cuirassiers hung back for this particular manoeuvre, as their chainmail and armour would slow them down especially in the water. They needed speed, mobility and shock tactics to make this work.
Meanwhile, as more men continued to cross to aid the Vjormans, Danish artillerists wheeled their guns into position on the crest of the hill, and the wagons full of ammunition were placed a good distance away from the guns. A full artillery battery deployed, three sixteen pounders and three eighteen pounders aimed directly at the city walls. Artillerists measured the distances and calculated the trajectories of their projectiles as others primed the cannons. Earthen ramparts were hastily compacted behind the cannons to prevent them from wheeling backwards upon firing.
The first of the dragoons and infantry must have made contact with the Exonians on the other side, for a gun across the river belched steel, launching high into the air and rocketing towards the riverbank that the Coalition was on. The single round shot fell short, crashing into the river and sending a huge wave rippling towards the ranks of soldiers and cavalry still crossing the river.
"They know we're here." Frederick reported, coming over to join them. He looked a little tired from running around and managing everything, but he still appeared alert, clear-headed and prepared for what was ahead.
"Let's hope our boys can get this over quickly then." Kristoff replied.
Anna couldn't help but nod. The sooner the Vjormans could successfully retreat over the river, the sooner they could decide on their next move before the bulk of the Imperial Horde led by Kane arrived to crush them.
The cannons manned by Danish teams and led by the competent General Ivon, commanding officer of the combined Coalition's artillery batteries, roared in rapid succession, each boom going off one after another as sixteen and eighteen pound steel shot tore through the gloomy sky and sent crashing down onto the city walls and the fields below them where the Exonians were formed and trying to force the Vjormans into the river.
From the other end of the river, more Exonian cannons responded with a deep, thundering salvo of shots that soared through the air, this time landing closer to the riverbank. Unfazed, the Danish artillery teams continued loading their next rounds into the guns as the officers around them shouted commands.
Frederick offered Anna a spyglass and she levelled it to her eye. The Coalition battalions had made contact alright, and so had the dispatch of sorcerers. About twenty of them had been fetched across the river on cavalry horseback, and they were unleashing all manner of sorcery on the Exonians. Men in red uniforms were blown back from their lines in the droves by one sorcerer, while others were engulfed in thick darkness conjured up by another, with similar occurences playing out with different variations of magic. All the way up and down the city's wall, the sorcerers were levelling the playing field against the enemy, assisting the Molcorran infantry and Xerflorian cavalry in systematically turning the tide of the battle.
Anna saw the Vjormans on the riverbank open up a wide gap to let the Xerflorian light cavalry through. Emerging from the water in triangle formation, the first dragoon in the troop wielding his sabre smashed into Exonian lines before they had a chance to form square, the carbines of the subsequent cavalrymen ploughing holes and spraying fountains of blood up from among the enemy.
The infantry swarmed the riverbank, reinforcing the weakened Vjorman lines. The Vjormans, regaining confidence, cheered and roared as the Molcorran infantry joined them. The sound of a hundred muskets went off in ragged succession, raising a fresh cloud of thick white smoke, engulfing and obscuring the riverbank once again.
Another salvo of cannons discharged, and six more round shot were sent rocketing through the dark skies and crashing down onto the city walls where the Exonian artillery had positioned their guns, demolishing two of the enemies' cannons in the process. The Danish teams cheered victoriously before resuming their work.
"The tide's turning," Anna said, relief audible in her voice. She could feel her body slowly growing less tense, her heartbeat growing less erratic. All of a sudden, she felt very tired and lowered the spyglass. Her vision blurred, and her world began to spin. Her knees buckled and she fell, but Kristoff caught her in time.
"Anna!" He exclaimed, holding her up firmly. "Are you alright?"
She nodded, though the attempt seemed to make her more disoriented. Applying a hand to her forehead, she blinked hard, trying to get her vision to clear. "Just a little lightheaded, I think," she said, not knowing what this was. It'd come so suddenly that she didn't even have time to react.
"Sit down, Ma'am." Frederick helped to lower her down to the ground with Kristoff's help. A look of concern was written across his usually stoic face as he glanced at Kristoff, then back at her. "I believe you're exhausted."
"You don't say," She mumbled half coherently. Her blurry vision had cleared but she was breathing hard and fast again. Her collar felt damp, and she wiped a hand against her neck, drawing cold sweat. "Cold sweat during winter. That's new." Her stomach lurched and she gagged, mentally preparing herself for what came next.
Frederick turned to a nearby runner. "Get a medic up here. Now!"
"No, wait!" Anna called out, shaking her head. "I'm…I'm okay." The horrible sensations were beginning to pass, though her stomach still flip-flopped a little.
"Are you sure?" Kristoff asked anxiously, one hand supporting her back and the other feeling her forehead.
Nodding again, she controlled her breathing. The feeling soon passed and she tried to get back to her feet. Her legs still felt a little weak, but other than that, it was like nothing had happened.
"What was that?" Kristoff looked worried and baffled.
"I…I don't know." She admitted truthfully, staring back blankly at him, then at Frederick.
The Field Marshal still had that concerned look on his face, his eyebrows knitted slightly. He looked like he was about to say something, but his attention was called away by a messenger on horseback dismounting upon arriving on the crest of the hill.
"Sir!" The messenger saluted. "The Vjormans have begun retreating, and the rest of the Coalition is laying down cover fire to screen their escape."
"Victory is almost ours," Frederick summarised, turning back to Anna and Kristoff. "The plan worked."