Fourth Vector Ch. 32

Adalbert's world was nothing but pain. His hands formed into fists as he tried to pummel her head and finally, he'd managed to disengage her as she was sent flying across the floor. Blood spurted from his body, and as he finally looked down, a terrible sight beheld him.

Only a jagged and ruined piece of flesh where his cock once proudly stood. Blood gushed forth like a small fountain of chaos. Feet away, Magda spat out what remained of his severed cock, her eyes viscous and alive with bloodlust.

Delirium began to overtake him. The edges of his vision grayed. Pain still paralyzed his lower body and there was so much blood, so very much.

It was at that moment that he became aware that Magda had recovered from the slug she'd taken to the face. She'd produced a knife that had been hidden on her body and she was approaching him now to finish the job.

Instinct took over. His hand fumbled for the pistol that was on his desk. Magda's eyes locked on the weapon and her speed increased. It was a race to see who would connect to the other first.

Magda won the race in one sense, sinking the knife into the fleshy part of his thigh as his hand pulled the pistol between them. One shot rang out as Adalbert once again shrieked in pain. Unbeknownst to him, her blade had severed his femoral artery--a fatal move.

Yet that gun had served its purpose. Magda crumpled to the floor quickly, her body taking on a lifeless pallor. Death came to her quickly.

Adalbert wasn't far behind. His vision was rapidly losing clarity and his hands ceased working like they should. The pistol dropped to the floor, and soon gravity was beckoning him forward. He hit the floor with a low thud, which drove the knife deeper into his leg. With blood now pouring from the two wounds, Adalbert closed his eyes for the last time.

What a way to go.

General Ferberg was the one to find them, having responded to the noise of the gunshot and rushing back into Adalbert's quarters. There he found the grisly scene, the two bodies next to each other and enough blood to suit a battlefield.

Once more, there was an opening in the Lordship of Cormfeld.

*****

A few hundred yards away, Kat looked out on the city of Daban with an overwhelming sense of regret. The majority of the city was in Swabian hands. The portion under their control boiled down to a small strip of land that enclosed the natural harbor of the city, where a final defense had been positioned, but it was hardly a place to make a last stand. At any time, the Swabians could push in this last exclave and Daban would be lost.

That was the reason why she was looking out on the city from theDestiny. All the essential personnel had long since moved to the ships in the harbor, a safe place in case the final battle really kicked off in earnest. Even a good portion of the army had been withdrawn from the city since the men didn't have any space. It would have been no good cramming all of them into the small frontage of the harbor, and so several formations were already making a new home on their steel bulwarks.

For Kat, the message was simple. The fight for Picardy was over. It was time to withdraw with what was left of their army and prepare to make a last stand somewhere else.

But where though? Carinthia was the obvious choice since the Swabians would no doubt come after her next but there were rumors of a force to the west, somewhere in Apulia, that gave her hope. If Apulia was still standing after the Swabian onslaught, perhaps it was the next best place to go?

She was interrupted in mid-thought when Abigail showed up at her quarters, briskly knocking on the door before entering. The leggy brunette commander had an excited look on her face, one that immediately caught Kat's attention after all the doom and gloom lately.

"Look at what I've just received," said Abigail as she thrust a dispatch into Kat's hands. It was a long message, one that took Kat a moment to read but by the time she was finished, she was just as excited as Abigail.

Kat looked up from the dispatch. "Who did this come from?"

"It came from the Carinthian vesselSea Serpent," said Abigail proudly. "From Lt. Commander Rivas. Apparently it was passed along by Queen Reina from their ambassador in Kalmar. There's been some kind of action in Kalmar that's being described as a rebellion!"

That was interesting news indeed. For the past four years, Kat's cousin Eric had ruled Galicia with an iron fist. Eric didn't suffer dissent very lightly (or at all) so it had never been much of a question before to hear about unrest in Galicia. To hear that there had been a rebellion was promising news.

Kat resumed looking at the dispatch. "The rebel leader is someone calling himself the Galician King, and he's escaped with a good portion of the Galician armed forces."

Abigail nearly laughed. "It has to be Jack! He's alive!"

Kat found it hard not to match Abigail's excitement. "This is incredible! If this is the case and it is Jack and he has a significant portion of the Galician Army with him..."

Kat had to stop before her stomach did a somersault. This opened the door to so many possibilities. If he'd managed to break free from his captivity, then they could link up together!

"He was last spotted moving to the northeast," said Abigail. "What country would that put him closest to?"

"Apulia," answered Kat quickly. "The Apulians are the next closest neighbor in that direction. It all fits, Abigail. What we've heard about this fighting in western Apulia and Jack's escape. Jack is in Apulia and he's fighting with Galicians!"

Abigail shifted her weight to her back foot. "I wonder how best we could join up with his forces?"

Kat didn't answer that question because the answer was only too obvious. Barely hanging onto Picardy, would it not make sense to link up with Jack in Apulia if he was already there? And if he was there, he was unlikely to pull up his forces and go to Picardy if he was already having success in Apulia.

No, going to Apulia would be the only way.

Both women shared a cautious look with each other. They knew what would have to be done, and the task of actually doing it was going to be a difficult one.

"We need to talk to Aedan," said Kat finally. "It's the only way. Maybe if we make him see sense about Picardy, he'd be amenable to going to Apulia to continue the fight."

"We should get Greg involved to give the marine perspective, Kat. He's said how many times that our position here is no longer tenable, and to his credit, he's right. We only hold onto a small part of the harbor. We can't stay here any longer, and joining with Jack will be the right thing to do."

"Come on then," said Kat as she managed to waddle off the bed with her large pregnant stomach. "Let's go see him."

It only took them five minutes to find Greg who was on the deck of theDestiny having a talk with his captains. They waited until he was finished before dropping the news, taking time to explain the whole dispatch to him.

"You're sure about this?" asked Greg with a cautious glare. "Is it really Jack?"

"It has to be," said Kat. "This person is calling himself the Galician King. Who else could it be? It's not a position that can be faked because of the bond. Galicians would know if it was really him or not."

"And you believe he's the one that's in Apulia?"

Kat nodded. "It makes sense. Apulia would be the next destination."

Greg thought it over for a moment before giving a simple shrug. "It seems we have another option besides Carinthia then. If Picardy falls, we can always go to Apulia to join Jack's forces."

Abigail smiled. "We need to talk to Aedan about this. We're going to get pushed out of Picardy one way or another if he won't let us bombard the city. We've been apart from Jack for so long. Now's the time to be reunited."

*****

"Absolutely not! We're not leaving Picardy! Ever!"

Kat, Abigail, and Greg all shared the same look of frustration with each other while listening to Aedan's outburst. It had taken some time for them to locate the Picard King, who was now using the Picard vesselBallard as his headquarters after the loss of the palace to the Swabians. At the current moment, Aedan was sitting down at his desk while across the room, Queen Ciara was trying to help Prince Davin walk on his own. The year-old prince let out a shriek of amusement as he once more fell on his rear, a stark contrast from the attitude of his father.

"Aedan, we have to be upfront with our fortunes here," said Kat, trying a different tactic. Springing Aedan with the news might not have been the best course.

Aedan looked less than amused. "Our fortunes are that we are still in Picardy. Are we on the ropes? Yes, but as long as we're still here, we have hope."

Once again, the three of them shared the same look of apprehension. They had to turn Aedan away from this folly that Picardy could still be held and get as much of their force out of harm's way as possible.

"We are hanging on here by a thread," said Greg. "Half of the army is already on our ships ready to sail anyway. The simple fact of the matter is there's no room for them here on Picardy. The land that we actually hold is already too crowded for the size. We have to get them out of here before the Swabians decide to do an all-out assault. They've already been launching mortars day and night to get us to break. Soon, that assault will begin and we won't be able to hold it back with our current situation."

Aedan shook his head haughtily. "The men are stronger than you think. They won't let themselves be pushed off their homeland."

"The Picards maybe," said Greg. "But you can't say the same for the Javans or the Carinthians. That's not forgetting that half the Picard Army is onboard our ships right now. The majority of the forces in the harbor are Javan because of their better firepower."

"They won't break, Greg," said Aedan with a testy attitude. "They can't break. We won't let ourselves be thrown out of our homeland."

"But at what cost?" asked Kat. "Would you see our entire force destroyed just to say that we made a last stand in Picardy? Especially when we can regroup in another location and try again?"

"I won't abandon Picardy for Apulia, whether Jack is there or not." Aedan's voice rose to the next level. "I've fought in this war too long to give up on this country now!"

Kat shared a helpless look with Ciara who was now watching the scene with growing interest and concern. She brought Davin over to sit in her lap, while she herself rested next to Aedan.

"They do have a point," she said quietly under her breath to her husband. "There isn't much of a life for us here and we're risking everything we have by staying in this harbor."

For the first time that day, Aedan's eyes actually softened as he looked at his wife. "I can't abandon Daban."

She smiled sympathetically. "Aedan, Daban is already abandoned. We're on the water right now. The Swabians have most of the city. Ignoring reality isn't going to change that."

Aedan put his head in his hands. "What would my father say if he could see Picardy now? After all this turmoil and death, we're still nowhere closer to winning this war."

Greg saw an opening and took it. "Aedan, we have a chance right now. We have an intact army and a naval force that can transport it anywhere it wants to go. Sure, Picardy may not be the destination for this army, but somewhere out there, Jack is waiting with additional forces. If we can combine all of us into one fighting force, we can finally stand up to the Swabians and start rolling back their advances."

"Why can Jack not come back to Picardy?" asked Aedan helplessly. "He knew the situation here and how dire it was. Why would he go to Apulia and not come back here?"

"Think about it, Aedan," said Kat. "The waters in just about every direction are crawling with Swabians right now. It's very likely that a Swabian fleet is patrolling between Apulia and Picardy. He may not have enough forces to take them on directly. Remember, he only has a small group with him from the sounds of it."

"And we're supposed to sneak this army through Swabian infested waters just to reach him?" asked the King. "That hardly seems like a better option."

Abigail crossed her arms in front of her chest. Her patience was wearing thin. "It's the best option we have. Those men in the harbor right now are Javan marines and every second they stay there, the riskier the situation becomes. If the Swabians attack with full force right now, we might not be able to extract them even if we decide to leave. Let's recognize that the Swabians have won this round and let's live to fight another day."

Aedan didn't answer. He pushed up from his chair and approached the small porthole to the outside. It faced the city, providing him with the only view he had of his capital. While he stared out the porthole, the rest of them looked on with vague curiosity. Ciara seemed to provide the most impetus to get him to change his line of thinking, followed by the logical plea of Abigail and Greg.

If only it was enough to get him to change his mind.

"I don't think I can actually abandon my own people," he muttered after a few moments of silence. "I can't leave them to this fate."

"You won't be abandoning them," argued Kat. "But if you let yourself and your army get captured now, you will be doing Picardy a great disservice. It's the only way the Swabians can get a total victory in this war."

Kat stepped around to the porthole and forced the King to look at her. "You're worried about your father and what he would think at this moment. You remember that I knew your father from all those years ago. I know how you try to measure up to the ruler that he was. What would he be more proud of right now--the fact that you recognized the hopeless military situation and withdrew to fight another day? Or do you think he would be disappointed if he knew you sacrificed everything just to say you never left Picardy. What would he choose?"

The king let out a small sigh. "He would do the best thing for his people. He would choose to save his army and his people."

Kat offered him an encouraging smile. "I think that tells you everything you need to know, right?"

Aedan never had a chance to answer. At that moment, a near constant stream of popping was heard as it faintly echoed throughout the room. The sounds were familiar to all of them, having heard it constantly over the previous year due to the battles with the Swabians. Small arms fire was being exchanged, but by the rapid and quick pace as well as the increasing volume, it involved a large body of men.

"Look at the harbor," said Greg as he gestured through the porthole. Even from theBallard, they could see the signs of muzzle flashes.

It appeared that the Swabians' last effort was now finally underway.

Kat grabbed Aedan by the shoulders. "We have to make a decision now! We have to get this army out of Daban. You have to give the orders!"

The king opened his mouth to speak and the next words to fly off his tongue surprised them all.

*****

"It looks just how the prisoners said it would look. That's one hell of a nasty looking camp."

Trevor couldn't help but agree with Zach's assessment. From their vantage point on a small hill just outside the Javan prisoner camp, they surveyed all they could see. None of it looked promising.

For one, the prisoner camp was well-located. Better defensive ground it couldn't have been. It was located at the confluence of two small rivers into one larger one, forming a v-shaped area of land that was protected on most sides. The rivers weren't very deep. Trevor was familiar with them and knew that at this time of year, they would be running only a foot or two deep as the summer wore on. If they were attacking in the spring, it might be a different story as the mountain thaw usually made the river two or three times deeper.

The only side connected to solid land was another defensive boon. The prisoner camp stood on flat ground next to the river but their rear slopped up to a dominating hill that was thick with tree cover and underbrush, making it nearly impossible to see what was going on there.

"Are you sure there's no men on that hill?" asked Trevor again to Zach. "This position is only safe if you park a sizeable unit of men on that hill to watch for attackers. There's no one there?"

Zach shook his head. "I've had my men run patrols on either side of it. They've reported the underbrush is so thick that men can't get in there, and our patrols found no sight of any activity around the base of the mountain. No, the prisoner camp is alone."

Trevor's eyes narrowed. It was the most basic military logic to always occupy the high ground, and this camp had been put deep in enemy territory without using the local terrain to its advantage.

It was practically begging to be attacked and that's what made Trevor nervous. The threat of a trap was still on his mind and that's why he had his patrols range far and wide to make sure the Javans weren't waiting in the rear to spring on them.

Yet, the patrols had found no sight of the Javans outside of their camp, and despite his reservations, they were going to move forward with the attack this evening. The sun was getting low on the horizon and once dusk started, the men were going to cross the river and begin the initial attack. It was Trevor's idea to use the darkness as their ally in this one, despite Zach's reservations. Just in case this was a trap, he knew the Javans wouldn't go into the forests after dark.

Trevor wanted a clear escape route just in case this went sideways.

"All right, we're going to split up again. I'm going to command the left flank and Zach will have the center," said Trevor as he then pivoted to look at Nina beside him. "I want you on the right flank. The goal will be to envelope the camp totally. I don't want any Javans getting the chance to escape and warn their friends."

"Shouldn't be too hard," said Nina before gesturing to the camp. "It looks like the prisoners were telling the truth. I'd imagine only about three battalions down there by the size."

"Three battalions of Javan marines," said Trevor sternly. "They can still hurt us if they're allowed to organize a proper defense. Our goal was to move quickly and quietly so we can catch them off guard. As long as that still holds true, we should be successful tonight."

Zach looked over at the sinking sun. "Let's make sure the men are in position. It's getting close to nightfall."

"Good luck to both of you," said Trevor. "And let's not take any risks we don't need to take."

The three of them broke apart to move to their respective wings. Since Trevor was on the left flank, he had to cross the larger river first in order to get to the other side where he could hide on the banks of the small river. The ground was wet and muddy--evidence of the storm that had raged earlier in the day. Despite the pouring rain, the river was still at its usual yearly lows, and Trevor hoped his men would be able to get across without too much trouble.

Right as the last bits of light vanished from the western horizon, the signal was given. With a roar of approval, the men of Tyrol sprung up from their hiding positions and charged across the river in small groups. They waited until they set foot on firm ground on the other side before the first gunfire was exchanged, the men using the darkness to move quickly without having to worry about coverage.

The Javans guarding the camp showed every indication of surprise. Fire wasn't returned right away as they scrambled to identify the direction of the attack. The first guards were cut down easily--those that walked the perimeter and those that occupied the guard towers.