Chapter 91: Battle for the Port: A City Under Siege Part 1

Adrian looked at the notes in his hands. "This one’s Ahmeds, this one Johns." Pointing his finger his assistant gave a nod. Adrian tried to find a flaw in Ahmed’s and other than minuscule differences such as the strength in his stroke at certain places or the flick at the end of his words, it was a nearly identical copy of the letter in front.

"It’s good enough." Adrian said, "Nasr won’t notice a difference, especially considering how little the man has interacted with him."

"So shall we move forward with the next stage?" His assistant asked. Adrian gave a nod, getting a bow in return. He stood up writing a letter, telling John to meet him in two days. Then he wrote a letter to three more people, those who have power within the city guard.

William stood on the wall. He had been summoned noticing the strange movements of the enemy camp. William knew an attack was imminent. "Tell the city guard to take all civilians to the port, they will only be in the way during the siege." He fired the order off to one of his commanders who hurriedly went to carry out the order.

Looking at what Nasr had, made William more confident. No artillery or wall busters, only siege towers and gate rams. Although the number of towers was large, he had over ten thousand men to hold. Nasr knew he couldn’t starve him out and so was probably gambling on the chaos the civilians would create. The city guard got into work and although there was chaos on the streets as people were hurriedly rushed away, the Kingdom’s army paid it no heed, quickly mobilising as they had practised.

William manoeuvred himself. He analysed where the attack would be heaviest and positioned himself there. He also made sure Issac would be where the attack was the weakest. Although he wanted his son to learn, he wasn’t stupid enough to throw his heir into the lion’s pit yet. He would learn a lot no matter where he was and him being in a safer location made no difference. Issac didn’t fight it, knowing his father was in work mode and would not take no for an answer.

"ARCHERS!" Williams’s voice called as his commanders followed along down the entire wall. It stretched for nearly two kilometres, wrapping around the entire city. A near thousand archers with flame-tipped arrows held their breath waiting for the command starting tens of siege towers and three rams approaching. "LOOSE!" Once within range, the order was given and the archers fired. A second sun formed within the sky quietly followed by an overbearing shadow falling onto the Safrid attack

Most were blocked by the towering wooden structures but it mattered not to William. "ARCHERS!" He shouted once more, "LOOSE!" Once more the same sight was created. It was a slow march for the Safrid’s not having much of a way to counter. They tried to fire their own arrows but the distance and height made it nearly impossible to hit.

Nasr watched in the distance atop his horse. He was already expecting this outcome. He only had hoped to be able to use artillery against William, but knew he couldn’t destroy his city that was vital to his economy. Without Yusuf’s funds and an ongoing war in the north, he needed to keep what he could intact.

Light arrows continued to fall on the siege towers that inched closer. One suffering immense targeting began to burn, its wooden frame spreading the fire. Inside the hundred of Safrid men scrambled to escape, climbing down it steps or simply jumping off, they rushed to escape not wishing to burn to death. It was a small victory for William but he knew he was lucky to get one to catch fire so easily.

The Rams were quick, however. They rushed the gate. All three arrived at each entrance of the city. Oil, tar and rocks were thrown down on it. Arrows rained down on the force behind who took cover behind shields returning fire themselves. The first casualties of the Kingdom started.

William saw this. The roof shielded the rams catching alight as they plunged themselves into the city gates over and over. He saw his men waiting to meet them and the archers in the gate towers fire down. Reaching for his waist he pulled out a horn. Blowing it hard, he waited for a couple of seconds before the sight of two hundred heavily armed cavalry charged from the side of the open field. They aimed for the columns of men following behind the siege towers, charging in and quickly escaping.

Nasr watched as the cavalry came and went, harassing his men. They moved forward aiming for those with the Rams. Gritting his teeth he hated Harun right now. The man had destroyed his calvery force and he was left with less than he needed. But he didn’t let it get to him. Sending his own in, the horses chased the Kingdom, who continued to harass where they went before running off.

It relieved the pressure off the Kingdom for minutes but William knew the psychological impact it would have on the attackers, always having to watch their back from random raids. He knew the commanders of each calvery segment were skilled at their jobs and gave free command for them to act as they pleased after the horn.

The siege towers were close. The archers had taken a step back allowing the infantry to take the main stage now. William was happy with the results. One tower gone meant one less point to defend. His men had quickly reorganised themselves when it fell. He saw as the tower came to a halt and its large wooden bridge fell onto the wall. Inside the faces of Safrid warriors.

With his sword in hand, he stood behind the shield wall. It was a sturdy line and it was time to finally test the full capabilities of the men that he had worked so hard to train. Charging in the Safrids clashed with the wall creating a loud thudding sound. All around the wall, similar sights played out as the archers fell back. Their role was over and all they could do now was provide help at the gates when they were breached.

Hundreds more ran up the stairs filling the freed-up room, creating an even tighter defence. William stabbed, his sword slipping through the gap in the shield killing a man. He saw ladders begin to scale up the wall. "WATCH FOR LADDERS! DON’T BE FLANKED!" His voice boomed across his part as the Kingdom soldiers in their free moments pushed them off the wall, the screams of men following behind.

William put a whistle in his mouth. He had trained his men to know exactly what it meant. He controlled his breathing and counted the seconds in his mind as he attacked and defended. The Safrids could barely create a breach on the wall, desperately throwing bodies.’One more minute.’William counted. The battle raged and counting the final seconds, he blew hard on the whistle, its sound spreading.

Like a well-oiled machine, the front row of attackers slipped to the back, giving way to those behind. They allowed themselves to catch their breaths and have a short rest. Those who had died before the while was blown were quickly replaced. All across the wall, the same sound of a whistle blew, the same scene taking place. Although the wall was more narrow land than they had trained on, it just meant he had to cut down the cycle, instead of a row of six, it was three.

Those behind, although catching a breath, didn’t stop working. They used their strength to help hold the line, not allowing their people to be pushed back. Through the sound of iron clashing and people yelling, a large explosion of wood resounded to William’s right. The middle gate fell and a swarm of soldiers ran through. He had thousands of men watching the gates, and he didn’t worry, quickly refocusing on his count.’Three more minutes.’

He looked to the far left and right. The siege on the left was having a harder time a breach was being created. Men swarmed up the stairs to hold, but never too many left the gate unsecured.

The right faired better. They, like William, had a sturdy wall that refused to give ground. He wondered how the rest of the wall was doing but had no time to worry, focusing on his section.

He saw his plan work out better than he expected and although they were outnumbered, his men tired less, making up for the loss. The Safrid’s meanwhile could only throw men at the wall that seemed to never tire. The calvery still outside the walls, attacked the charging men when they least expected, boging them down and releasing the pressure off of those on the wall.

William blew again and the rows switched. He moved back up, providing minimal support from where he was. He knew the wall couldn’t be held forever, but it was going better than he expected. The Safrid men although dedicated to the fight, were obviously war tired from the repeated losses against Harun. Although they were better after one victory, it still took a toll on them.

Blood and limbs flew through the air. The wall became harder with each body, as soldiers dragged their comrades back only for the place they held to be quickly replaced, taking valuable seconds away from defending. William looked down at the gate. It was a large melee, with the Safrid men disorganized throwing themselves at the tightly organized wall. Archers rained hell onto them from safety.

William knew that it was possible to hold. He had not seen Nasr yet but it was obvious with over twenty thousand men all fighting each other. Behind him the chaos of the civilians in the city had died down, being taken away from the fighting, and although he didn’t trust the city watch, he left enough men to make sure they didn’t try anything sneaky. He looked to the left and saw that a large foothold had been created. Men flooded up the steps to help ease the situation, but William knew it was a matter of time before it fell.

Blowing the whistle again, he took to the front, stabbing his sword through the gaps in the shield wall. They had been slightly pushed back, a foothold being created in the wall, but the Safrid men paid for it, giving so many lives for it. He didn’t know and didn’t count. It was a part of the job. A second explosion rang, a second gate being pierced at the far right. He knew his son was over there and a moment of worry crept in, but he pushed it away, knowing if he didn’t focus he would die.

Life or death. Each moment, action, and thought decided it. He had to focus fully on the battle ahead and controlling his army. His face had been covered in grime and blood, but it was a non-issue. He saw his men’s determined faces. They were giving everything for this battle and he felt pride in what he created. He stepped forward again killing another, but felt himself taking two steps back. They were being pushed.

Loud cheering came from the far right. He didn’t know who it belonged to and hoped it was his men. He knew the battle ended over there and wasn’t surprised. It was the smallest front and each side could easily break. His son knew better than to say anything if he was captured; no edge could be given to the enemy. He blew the whistle retreating to the back once more. With a second he looked over trying to see.

He could see the Kingdom men scaling down the wall and knew it was their victory over there. He didn’t celebrate. The tower was set alight, not allowing for it to be used again, but a force remained to deal with anyone who tried it again. The right was fine for now. The gate could hold for a while longer now.

Once more he took a step back. The never-ending swarm of Safrid men continued to attack. He saw the distant horse run after Safrid men, the sun reflecting off their armour. Looking to the left once more, the gate hadn’t been breached yet. He assumed the tar had stopped it from being able to move any longer and hoped that the gate would hold. The wall however was another issue.

"SEND RESERVES TO THE LEFT!" His booming voice called down the wall. Although it threatened to be drowned out by the noise of fighting, it was heard as a runner who had been prepared went to get the reserve force. He couldn’t allow the Left to fall so easily if the gate couldn’t be breached. He didn’t dare order his men away from the gate, in case he was wrong but knew that the wall could still be held.