Westrons Pt. 24

General Keinarsh was commanding on the Central front. I knew very little about her career, and had no way to judge if she could hold her own against superior Crolian numbers.

I'd had 14 regiments, to face 20 Crolian regiments. If she was facing the same kind of odds ... my first priority had to be to help her. Moving forward, in the north, and occupying territory, wouldn't do us much good.

And a Crolian victory against Keinarsh could cancel out everything we'd done at Kesmansha.

- "You'll command here." I told Langoret.

She simply nodded.

- "Your regiment stays. But I'll take Yna."

- "I understand." Yna was too aggressive to waste in a defensive or positional role.

- "You'll have Tudino. But I'll take Neslann." Both regiments had suffered casualties, but I liked Neslann, and wanted her with me. I also couldn't leave Langoret with only the weakest regiments.

I left her General Leydz, and all four of the Penchen regiments. Senau could stay, as liaison officer. Much as I liked their fighting qualities, they couldn't keep up with Westrons on the march.

Langoret would have 6 regiments, and more guns than she knew what to do with. There was no way to tell exactly how many Crolians had died at Kesmansha - perhaps 4 or 5 thousand. We'd also taken over 3000 prisoners.

There was also no way to know how many men they were able to collect and re-form. But one thing was for sure: they didn't have many guns left. We had captured most of their cannon.

- "One hundred and three." said Tallia.

The Crolians weren't mad enough to attack Langoret when she had that many guns. They probably didn't have the confidence, anyway, after Kesmansha.

I would march south, then, with Yna and Neslann, Votuda and Cyrte, Avette and Semmana, plus Faregil and Frad. Isa would go with me, of course.

- "You'll stay with Langoret." I told Tallia.

- "But you need me." she protested.

- "Langoret needs you more." I said. "She has all those captured guns to deal with ... and prisoners."

- "You don't want me with you."

There was no arguing with Tallia when she took that tone. We were inside my command tent, and I'd already sent my bodyguard outside, so that we could have a private conversation.

Rather than argue with her, I simply picked Tallia up, and carried her to my camp bed.

- "Oh, no. No - nono." she said. But she didn't fight me very hard as I stripped off her breeches. Nor did she resist when I kissed her inner thighs, and worked my way to her core.

"Ohh ... really? she said.

***

Isa had been reminding me, at least once a week, that I needed to spend some time with Tallia.

- "You were right." I told her.

- "She's going to miss you." said Isa.

***

'It is not I who commands the army, but forage and flour.' Frederick the Great said that. For some reason, it had always stuck in my head.

But now we had to try moving an army - a small army, without a supply train. Every soldier would carry ammunition, water, and food for 6 days. We would also have our 3-pounder guns, so many of the troops would have to carry round shot.

- "We'll run out of food - won't we?" asked Faregil.

I hoped that we could move fast enough, and get to our destination before we ate all of our food. I didn't want to pillage my way across Crolian territory, 'living off the land'. Mercenary armies in the 30 Years' War had left complete destruction in their wake, and turned most of Germany into a desolate wasteland.

Napoleon's troops had stolen and requisitioned food wherever they marched, earning them the hatred of the people they robbed. In Spain, that strategy backfired - badly.

I didn't want to establish some kind of precedent in the here and now, but the Crolians hadn't been gentle when they crossed into Westron territory. 'Liberating' a few herds of Crolian oxen might not be the end of the world.

- "What are we going to do without artillery?" asked Avette.

- "Remember Limset?" I said. "But we may not have to fight at all. If we appear on their flank, the Crolians won't feel very comfortable about attacking our Central army."

We moved. I had Talley's maps, based on the best information the Woles could provide. The land we passed over was undefended; no enemy forces contested our passage.

But we didn't find the herds I'd been hoping for. The Crolian army, it turned out, had already requisitioned most of the animals in this province to stock their supply depots. The local farmers weren't expecting us, of course, and we arrived at speed, so that we did find some of the livestock they'd hidden from their own troops.

Our troops wanted meat, but they had to take what they could find: sometimes onions, sometimes a root-vegetable like a turnip.

- "Just because it's edible doesn't mean we should eat it." complained Neslann.

Fortunately, we were eating up the leagues as we marched. All of our training was paying off. The troops complained about the food, about the cannonballs they had to carry, and the surliness of the local population. But they didn't complain about the pace I was setting, or the distance we covered.

Maybe they were too tired.

There was one obstacle looming, ahead of us, which had me worried. The Vonau river was too broad and deep to ford, or even swim.

Three bridges spanned the river.

They were all held against us.

We had perhaps three days' food remaining, most of it unappetizing for Westrons. Talley's maps had very little information about the lands to the east. But if we went west, that would eventually put us behind our own Central army.

Better than nothing, perhaps - but it wasn't what I'd hoped to achieve.

I gave the troops a day's rest, while I cudgeled my brains to find a better option. Isa listened as I suggested a few crazy plans. I sent patrols to look for possible fording sites.

In the end, it was Colonel Neslann who came up with a stroke of genius. What follows is Yna's description of what happened.

We were opposite the bridge at Smund ( the westernmost of the three bridges). Neslann spoke to the Captain of her rifles, then to her 2nd Company commander. She got out her writing materials, and wrote a short letter. She sealed the letter, and then, almost immediately, broke the seal.

- "What are you doing?" I asked.

Neslann crumpled the letter a little, then dropped both letter and envelope into the dust.

- "Has to look like it's travelled a bit." she said. She collected her now soiled paper, and stuffed it back into the dirty envelope.

Then she turned to me. "Let's go." she said.

- "Go where?" I asked.

- "Come on. Follow my lead."

We walked onto the bridge. Neslann and me, with a small guard - seven, eight troopers. The Crolians were on the southern side. They just watched us come. There was a full company there, with a battery of guns.

"I'm here to speak to your Commander." said Neslann.

- "Captain Humal." said a big, ugly Crolian. He looked confused.

- "Colonel Neslann. And this is Colonel Yna." Neslann saluted, and handed over the dusty envelope. "My orders." she said.

The Crolian didn't know what to do, so he read the paper. When he'd finished, he still looked completely confused.

"By the terms of the Treaty of Carnmor, I am empowered to take possession of this bridge." said Neslann.

- "Treaty?" said the Crolian Captain. It was obviously the first time he'd heard of any treaty.

- "Truce." said Neslann. "Ceasefire. Probably only temporary, but you know how these things go. It may only last a few weeks. Maybe a few months."

I had to make an effort not to goggle at her. She was so calm, so ... matter-of-fact about the whole thing.

The Crolian Captain was plainly stunned. His mouth was hanging open.

"You didn't know about this?" said Neslann.

- "My orders are to destroy the bridge if the enemy tries to cross." he said. That was when I noticed the demolition charges stacked at the end of the bridge. They hadn't been placed yet, but that could easily be remedied.

- "You didn't receive any new orders from headquarters?" asked Neslann.

Involuntarily, the Crolian glanced to the west. Southwest, actually.

- "This is the first I've heard of any ... truce." The Crolian Captain was embarrassed. He could have consulted one of his aides, but he seemed flustered.

That was when I heard the fifes. Neslann's 2nd Company were marching onto the bridge, as if they were on ceremonial parade.

- "Oh, that's embarrassing." said Neslann. "We have orders ... well, you know. Colonel Yna - would you take charge of those troops?" She didn't wink, or even blink. But she wasn't telling me to halt those soldiers, either.

- "I'll deal with them." I said. I went to meet her 2nd, and pretended to engage the Captain in conversation. Meanwhile, the troopers kept marching across the bridge, until they walked right up to the Crolian battery.

That Crolian Captain was so befuddled, he never gave the order to fire.

Neslann raised her hand, and waved it over her head. Then she grinned.

- "Present!" Her 2nd Company raised their muskets.

"I think you'll find, Captain," said Neslann, "that we've captured this bridge."

***

I hugged her - right in front of the whole army. "You're a madwoman!" I said. "A genius - but a madwoman."

It was one of the ballsiest things I'd ever heard of.

It also meant that we could bring the whole army across the river. After that, it was a question of moving fast, before the Crolians could react to the news that we were on the south side of the Vonau.

Yna had said that the unfortunate Crolian Captain who'd been duped had glanced to the southwest, when Neslann had mentioned their headquarters.

We marched for a day, carefully scouting ahead. We captured four couriers (three headed east, one going west). They couldn't believe that we were Westrons. They were so shocked, in fact, that they gave up far more information that they should have.

The courier going west bore a message to the Crolian Commander, informing him that the bridge at Smund had been captured by hostile forces. I was tempted, for a moment, to let that message go through.

- "They must have sent the same message much earlier." suggested Isa.

- "Yes - but possibly only saying that we held the bridge. They won't have heard that we've crossed over with an army."

The other couriers, though, gave up valuable information when we questioned them. The Crolian General, Grolby, had 20 regiments under his command. He was also expecting to give battle in the next day or two.

***

We were up and moving before dawn. That turned out to be a good thing, because we heard the thunder of cannon fire just before midday.

I didn't have to encourage anyone to pick up the pace.

Votuda was leading, with Cyrte. I trusted Votuda's judgment. Yna and Neslann were right behind. Next came Avette and Semmana, followed by Faregil and Frad.

I started the morning with Avette, but when I heard the guns, I put on speed. My bodyguards - and Isa - had to keep up with me. They did.

As we marched, we could hear the steady dull roar. That only encouraged us to keep moving. My party and I were all breathing heavily by the time we caught up to Neslann's regiment.

- "Sounds like we're getting close." said Neslann.

The guns did sound louder from here. The ground began to slope away from us, so that we were going downhill.

Then we emerged from the tree line, and could see the whole valley of the Rassbrook laid out before us.

The battle was underway. There was so much powder smoke, we couldn't see anything of the Westron positions, or even the majority of the Crolian units. But one thing was quite clear: we'd arrived almost directly behind the right wing of the Crolian army.

This was almost unprecedented. It was a gift - and we had to take full advantage.

I ran forward again, to find that Votuda had shown her good sense once again. Instead of immediately launching her two depleted regiments into an attack, she'd waited.

- "You did the right thing." I told her. The last thing I wanted was for her to waste our incredible advantage with a series of piecemeal attacks.

- "I was tempted." she admitted.

- "You deserve a title for Kesmansha." I said. "But I suspect that you'll add to your reputation today."

Yna was straining at the leash, like a prize hound that scents the quarry. But I waited until Neslann's regiment came up, before issuing orders to advance.

I needed a good observation point. The Rassbrook was a narrow stream, but quite deep in places. Isa pointed out a little overlook - a large boulder, really - on our side of the stream. It was the highest point available, so I went there.

First, though, I unleashed Votuda and Cyrte, Yna and Neslann.

You don't need military experience to understand what it meant, when our troopers attacked the Crolians from the rear.

Votuda didn't bother skirmishing; she simply advanced, and poured several volleys into the rear of the Crolian regiments. No amount of training can adequately prepare you for an attack from directly behind you.

That Crolian regiment simply couldn't cope. The most veteran troops on the continent probably couldn't have withstood that. They crumbled, and broke.

Avette and Semmana arrived. I gave their troopers a few minutes' rest, and then sent them in.

I wanted the best vantage point possible, so I climbed the great boulder overlooking the Rassbrook. There were still Crolian soldiers on the other side, and a few of them tried long-range shots at us.

- "General." said Ishana. "You're too exposed."

- "Cook." said Koroba. "Please - come back."

- "I have to be able to see." I said.

Koroba tried to step in front of me. There's just wasn't much space on the very top of the rock. It got worse when Madze tried to get in front of me as well.

- "Please come back, General." said Nasta, tugging at my coat.

- "He has to be able to see." said Isa.

- "Let go, Nasta." I said, and tried to pull away from her.

My coat slipped from her fingers. I was struggling against her hold, so when that restraint vanished, I stumbled forward.

And collided with Koroba, who was on the very edge of the great boulder. She gasped as she lost her balance, and clutched at my sleeve. I grabbed at her, too - with the end result that we both fell off the rock, and plummeted into the stream.

It was cold, and surprisingly deep.

Most Westrons don't swim. I kept my head. First, I unbuckled my sword belt, and let it sink. Then I kicked, hard, to regain the surface. Koroba was flailing about. I had to wrestle her to get a decent grip, so that I could tow her to shore - all of ten feet away.

I was laughing so hard, I had trouble dragging her out of the water. There were plenty of hands to help us both, though. Koroba was spitting up water, still panicking, while I just couldn't stop laughing.

How glorious was that? How many great generals fell into a stream?

I got back onto the boulder in time to see Avette's brigade go into action, just to the left of Votuda's attack.

All of the Crolian artillery on their right wing was overrun - from behind.

The Crolian infantry beyond that, fully engaged with the Central Westron army, panicked. I could hardly blame them. They must have thought that there were 20,000 enemies behind them. As Gneisenau said: The side attacked always overestimates the strength of the attacker.

A couple of Crolian regiments broke away and fled north, towards the river. Some of them might escape, but most would find the Vonau impossible to cross.

The rest of the enemy's right wing simply collapsed. Entire regiments surrendered en masse. There was still some shooting, but the battle was effectively over on this side of the field.

A great cheer went up as the Westron army (or their left wing, at least) realized what had happened.

The centre of the Crolian force was in deep trouble. They tried to bend away from us, to refuse their now exposed flank. The reserve was committed, and for a moment, they halted Votuda's advance.

I sent Faregil's brigade to support them, but it wasn't entirely necessary. The Crolian centre was doomed. There was some hard fighting to come, yet, but the issue could hardly be in doubt.

The Crolian centre fought hard, which allowed their left wing to begin a fighting withdrawal. There were some good troops there: the enemy army didn't break all at once. But it did begin to crumble.

By late afternoon, it was all over. This time, I let my Colonels decide how far they would pursue. There was no reason to hold them back. Votuda, Neslann, and Yna knew their own troops best. They also knew how much (or how little) ammunition they had left.

I crossed the battlefield, looking for General Keinarsh. Faregil left me a company to act as escort.

It was a charnel house. There were dead and wounded Crolians everywhere - sometimes two and even three deep. There were Westron dead, as well, though fortunately nowhere near as many.

The wounded were crying for water. I had Faregil's soldiers share the contents of their canteens. It would have helped to have Dr. Boska and her team her. Realistically, though, we could have had twenty Boskas, and the field still would've been a slaughterhouse.

Gut wounds were almost invariably fatal. Musket balls that struck an arm or a leg didn't just break bones; they shattered them. For that kind of injury, there was only one prescription: amputation.

A surgeon. A saw. Two attendants to hold the patient down. No anaesthetic, except alcohol. A piece of leather or wood to bite down on. No knowledge of infection.

If I'd known more chemistry, I might have been able to help them. But I couldn't re-invent antibiotics. Nor could I teach a graduate course in advanced medicine.

The only consolation I could offer myself was the conclusion that if I wasn't here, the Westrons might not have won at Tonol. Limset, for sure. Kesmansha. And now this battle, whatever it was going to be called.

I found a Colonel, and asked for directions to General Keinarsh's command post.

- "General Keinarsh? You mean General Berandot."

***

I did a double take. And then another take, for good measure.

- "General Berandot?"

- "Keinarsh was killed, three weeks ago." said the Colonel, whose name was Lupona.

- "How?"

- "A training accident, I believe. There was no time to appoint a new commander from Cercen, so Ber - I mean General Berandot assumed command."

- "Where could I find ... the General?" I asked.

Colonel Lupona was very helpful; she detached a small squad to lead us to our destination.

- "Shall I go, instead?" offered Isa. She knew very well who Berandot was, and all of our history. The soldiers of the New Model Army had told her every story about me that they could remember.

- "No." I would have to meet Berandot at some point. "Thank you for offering, though."

The Commander in Chief of the Central Army hadn't changed. She was still haughty, brusque, and imperious. She was snapping orders at her aides.

Until she caught sight of me. Her mouth opened slightly. If she'd already been told who had come to her aid, she clearly hadn't believed it.

- "You? What are you doing here?" She managed to make it sound like I had committed some kind of military folly by marching to her aid. Or dereliction of duty, at the very least.

- "Nice to see you, too." I said. "Could we have a word? Privately?"