Gunpowder God (52 page)

Captain Dylon looked confused. “I do not understand. We’ve known each other for over thirty winters: Have I ever let you down or not obeyed an order?”

Eukides rose up and patted Dylon’s horse on the head. “No, never. But this will be the most difficult order I have ever given.”

“Now, I’m worried….”

“I’m an old man and few will miss me. You’re twenty years younger and have been my personal bodyguard for most of your years. Now, I want you to leave my service and take care of my family.”

“You don’t expect to leave this battlefield, do you, sir?”

“No. If we don’t win, I will die here. Either from an enemy bullet or sword, or by a dagger from one of the Investigator’s agents. It is possible we may eke out a victory, but if we do not, I need someone I trust to return to my estate and guard over my wife, my children and grandchildren. You know how easy it is for people of any station to disappear during wartime, and I’ve made a lot of enemies over the years. Many would not hesitate to take their enmity out on my family, especially if it will fatten their purse.”

The Captain nodded. “I understand, your Lordship. I give you my sworn oath to Galzar that I will leave here at your request to watch over your family. But I’m most unhappy about it, yes I am.”

“You don’t have to leave now, my friend. Stay here and watch the battle. If the Union Army is successful, come and join me. We will rejoice together our victory. However, if the League wins the battle, turn away and do not look back.”

T
hat evening, Marshal Albides, resplendent in polished silvered armor and red cape, showed up out of the dark and unannounced at Eukides’ campfire.

“May I have a seat, Captain-General?” Albides asked, as he tried to lower himself without injury. To Eukides he appeared besotted with wine or ale.

“Of course,” he answered, pointing to a stool nearby. “You can drop the titles; here we’re both just soldiers.”

“Thank you,” Albides slurred. “I will get to the point quickly. I know you’re wondering what it is I want; I would be, if I were in your boots.”

Eukides nodded his head.

“I understand the princes are unhappy that you are their commander, although none of them has any real military experience. Except for Prince Varion, who supports you wholeheartedly, the rest are a gaggle of geese! I would no more follow them, than I would charge my horse off a cliff.” He ended his pronouncement with a big belch.

“I appreciate your support,” Eukides said, which he found both surprising and welcome since the two men had hardly shared a word since leaving Agrys City together.
The Marshal must fear Roxthar as much as the rest of us or he wouldn’t need to be deeply in his cups to speak the truth
.

Albides shook his head as if to clear it. “For the record, I concur with your decision to place my Temple Bands at the forefront of the Union’s foot. True, both armies are untested; however, the League’s Army did fight in the Battle of Agrys City and includes many Hostigi veterans. Their commander, Captain-General Hestophes, has never been beaten. We need to make a swift end to this battle and with my Guardsmen we can accomplish this.”

“That was my thought,” Eukides replied. “The Temple Bands are not only our best troops, but the only ones with real experience fighting against the Hostigi. I place more faith in our cavalry, who are comprised mainly of men-at-arms and princely bodyguards, than the Union’s infantry who are truly untested.”

“I see we share the same views on military matters; maybe we will share the same on potables.” Albides paused to bring out a bottle of drink from a pouch hanging from a belt at his waist. “This is a flask of Ermut’s Best, maybe Kalvan’s finest achievement. I was able to commandeer a wagonload during my time in Beshta.” He took a deep draught and then passed the bottle to Eukides.

Eukides didn’t like to drink on a battle’s eve, but he needed to cement this temporary alliance with Marshal Albides if they were to have any hope of winning tomorrow’s contest. He took a sip and felt the warmth flow down from his mouth straight to his stomach. “Ahh,” he said, “Excellent!”

Albides snorted. “I knew you were a man of discernment and taste. Win this battle and I will see you receive a hundred bottles of Ermut’s Best.”

Eukides took another drink and passed the bottle. “It’s a deal.”

Albides paused for a moment, gripping the seat bottom, so that he didn’t fall off his stool. “I’m sure we’ll find at least that many in the baggage train, but if we don’t I’ll have them sent from my home in Balph. I also wanted to inform you that I pressed on Archpriest Roxthar to include most of my Guardsmen in the van. He went off like one of Kalvan’s
rockets!”

They both laughed.

“I would expect no less,” Eukides replied.

“However, Roxthar did agree to the four Bands you asked for when I threatened to retire from the field if he did not. I think he wants the other two Bands as guards in case the battle went awry, but I told him they were to be used as a reserve.”

Eukides nodded, appreciating Albides’ diplomacy in referring to the remaining Guardsmen as a reserve, rather than as a line of steel to keep the Union’s infantry from retreating or running away.

“Not to protect his Holiness’s arse, either!” He took another drink, although more sloshed out of his mouth than went in.

They both had a good laugh about that. It was good to know that they shared the same opinion of Archpriest Roxthar and his meddling in affairs he knew little about.

“I can see you are a man of your word,” Albides said, his voice lowering.

Eukides didn’t know what else to do but nod.

“Then I will tell you something. Not all of us in the Styphon’s Guard relish working with the Investigation. The Investigation has made a lot of us rich, but many others believe it has stained our reputation. I promise you this, when the war is over, there will be some changes. You have my word on that.”

“I was wondering how Styphon’s Own Guard stomached that butcher in bedsheets,” Eukides said.
Ermut’s Best must be potent, otherwise I would have never been so free with my tongue
.

“Many of us are up to here with it,” Albides said, bringing his left hand up to his chin. “Unfortunately, High Marshal Xenophes is more interested in obtaining gold to finish building his palace in Balph than in the health of Styphon’s Own Guard.” He paused to belch. “Did you know that we’ve lost almost half our number in the past five winters? And now Styphon’s Voice Anaxthenes has created his own personal bodyguard. I think the Supreme Priest wants to destroy the Temple Guard…all because of that murdering swine Roxthar.”

Eukides wasn’t sure how best to reply. So he just accepted the offered flask and drank deeply, saying, “To victory and Ermut’s Best!”

Albides chortled, then replied with his own toast, “To Galzar, may he once again reign supreme!”

After running the disposition of the League’s army through his head once more, Hestophes decided that the soldiers were seated as well as they could be. He had reorganized the Hostigi pike and shot regiments, breaking them into three pike units and two of shot. The pikemen, well over three thousand pikes, were placed at the center and backed by another five thousand Agrysi pike and shot units of questionable ability. He had found horses for the remaining two regiments of Hostigi arquebusiers and musketeers, and was holding them in the rear as a mobile reserve.

Hestophes had placed the cream of the princely bodyguard and noble lancers, including all the Hostigi cavalry, some three companies, in the right wing under the command of Duke Mnestros, who had fought with the Hostigi before and would know how to use them best. The left wing was made up of some four thousand mercenary cavalry and the remaining princely men-at-arms and lancers under the command of Prince Clytos of Glarth, who was already battle-tested.

If he could be in three places at once, Hestophes would have taken command of the left wing himself. However, Kalvan had taught him that a commander selected his best captains to man the battle divisions, then got out of their way. His job was to manage the entire army and see to it that the reserves were used where and when they were most needed. The men whom he really wanted as commanders, Prince Phrames or Prince Sarrask, were back in Nos-Hostigos. He’d have to make do with what he had at hand.

Great King Kalvan had also sent along three flying batteries composed of ten guns each, mostly obsolete four- and six-pounders, that were being replaced by eight-pound guns in the Royal Artillery’s ordnance. Along with the twenty-three guns, mostly old bombards, that made up the League of Dralm’s artillery, he had a decent number of artillery pieces. And an idea of what to do with them.

The rest was up to Lytris, Goddess of Luck, and the Wargod Galzar. Even the best swordsmith could not forge a master blade out of impure iron, which was the majority of the Agrysi troops—on both sides!

Hestophes watched in wonder as the Styphoni troops began their ascent of the long ridge that held the League’s Army. He had prayed they would attack his position, but hadn’t been able to convince himself they’d do anything so stupid. Occasionally, one of the League’s small cannon would fire and a gap would appear in the enemy blocks, but not for long as the Styphoni quickly closed ranks again. He was keeping artillery fire to a minimum as he had a role for the guns later in the battle. If he didn’t use the guns at all, the Union commanders might wonder why?

The entire Union of Styphon’s Friends’ center was dominated by the red cloaks and flags of Styphon’s Own Guard, which numbered in the thousands. He hadn’t expected the Temple Bands to fight at the front and hoped his center held. With their glaives, the Red Hand could bash their way through stationary pike files, disordering the ranks and killing many of his pikemen. Some arquebusiers and calivermen were posted between the files, but too often they shot prematurely and were ineffective against heavily armored infantry, like the guardsmen. Two Temple Bands were being held in reserve, most likely to keep the Union troops from retreating, as Styphon’s Own Guard had a reputation for killing retreating troops and deserters.

As Kalvan had demonstrated before, the guardsmen weren’t very effective against pike charges, especially downhill. Hestophes ordered the green rocket fired to signal the center to charge. The Hostigi veterans manning the front lines led the charge down the hillside, pikes to the fore.

Those three-lances pikestaffs of ash or oak were tipped with an iron head that, unlike standard pikes, had a sheath of iron over the wood an arm’s length back from the pikehead. Typically, if an enemy was able to maneuver their halberdiers or billmen into the pikemen’s front ranks, they were often able to chop off the pikeheads from the pole, disabling the pikes. This forced the pikemen to have to use their swords, which were weapons of last resort and poor defense against a glaive or poleaxe.

This innovation gave the Hostigi pikes protection from halberds and other pole arms, such as bills or the Temple Guards’ glaives.

Hestophes still didn’t understand Kalvan’s distain for pikes, which had proved their value on every battlefield the Hostigi had fought. Once the Great King had even disarmed all the Royal Army’s pikeman and given them muskets with long knives attached to their barrels. The enemy had seen this as a weakness and would have exploited it had not the Hostigi princely army’s pikemen come to the rescue.

Maybe Kalvan’s innovation would have proven itself if every handgun was a rifle, instead of a smooth-bore musket. In a few winters, they might even have enough rifles to test it. But until they did, the pike was a vital part of the Royal Armory and he would press that home at every staff meeting.

He watched as the first ranks of pikemen slammed into the Temple Guardsmen, driving them back down the hill. The danger here was that the pikemen would move too far and too fast, and find themselves enfiladed by the enemy infantry or even cavalry. So far they were pushing the entire center down the hillside, while the sleeves of arquebusiers were advancing alongside.

Then the League’s left flank began to recoil as the enemy horse began to push them back. It appeared Captain-General Eukides had stacked his best lancers and princely bodyguard into the Union’s right wing. If they were able to rout the League’s cavalry, the entire wing might be disordered, leaving the center vulnerable from the side.

He wondered if it was too early to commit the reserve of two thousand Hostigi arquebusiers and musketeers.
I’d better not, just in case the center gets into trouble
, he thought.

A rider rode up and practically jumped off his horse. He was wearing the green and maroon of Nos-Hostigos.

He approached Hestophes, cupping his mouth. The thunder of volleying muskets and arquebuses made it almost impossible to hear anything, except the screams of dying horses.

“Sir, reinforcements from Eubros.”

“How many?” he asked, shouting.

“Two hundred light cavalry with spears and musketoons. Where should I send them, sir?”

“Have them reinforce the left wing. Maybe Prince Clytos will have a use for them.”

“Yes, sir,” the scout replied, turning to run back to his horse and jump into his saddle.

Ahh, to be young again
, Hestophes thought wistfully.

This is my finest hour
, thought Duke Mnestros, as he led the Hostigi right flank against the Agrysi horse of their left wing.
It will never get any better than this!

Here he was surrounded by loyal princes and the greatest men-at-arms in Hos-Agrys; there was Prince Bosphros with his flag bearing a white rose on a black field and Prince Clytos with a silver helmet with red plumes on a green field on his flag. His own banner bearer carried the banner of Eubros, three gold crowns on red. There were so many colorful lesser ducal and baronial banners that they were like a rainbow of light and color swirling all around him and his bodyguard.

From Hestophes, Prince Phrames and Prince Sarrask, he had heard all the stories about the great battles of Fitra, Listra Mouth and Chothros Heights, where the Hostigi faced the flower of Harphaxi nobility. Right now he was reliving those battles on his own, with his own princes and an enemy of the vilest sort, men worth killing and maiming.