//------------------------------// // Chapter 75; Preparing for the final offensive // Story: The War of 1002 // by Fireheart 1945 //------------------------------// The city that sprawled in the distance was enormous, easily the largest city James had seen so far in this world. Though it was still far away, it was obvious that it has taken millennia to get to it's current population and physical size. This city, like Canterlot, had ben designed to be a great city, and while it was landlocked, it was hardly a problem, considering that its population could fly. James sighed as he again viewed the forts that had been built in front of the walls; unlike the latter, these were much more recent, but ever more potent. Large guns could be made out on the forts quite easily, even from here. And while it would be harder to see from a horizontal standpoint, there would trench lines running between the forts and quite likely in front of them. "Nope," he muttered, lowering the binoculars. "I thought the same," Shining said, a spyglass still levitated in front of his eye. "They spent a long time on some of these, and even the more recent stuff will be tough." Just then, Crystal Clear, along with three other pegasi, swooped down from the clouds and landed in front of them. "it's no go with another tunnel," Crystal said at once. "They've dug a big, deep trench around the city to prevent it, and it looks like they patrol daily to make sure that we don't try it." "Well, whatever you say about them, they do learn from past mistakes," James said, in lieu of something much worse. "We'll just have to come up with something else. Just what, I'm not so sure." "Whatever we do, we'd better come up with something, and fast," Shining noted. "I mean, we could try starving them out, but that would almost certainly result in the deaths of much of the civilian population. And if we attack head-on..." He let that ring in the silence that followed. "We're not doing that," James replied. "Seconded," Rolling Barrel answered. "Maybe head-on attacks have their place in warfare. If so, it's not here. We're not going to be able to use the tricks we've used before." 'How many soldiers do we have in the allied forces as a total?" James asked quietly, again raising the binoculars and taking another gander at the enemy defenses, such as he could see." "About seventy thousand ponies, give or take a few hundred; twenty thousand Saddle Arabians, maybe seventeen thousand zebras, some ten thousand changelings... Add fifty thousand or more griffons who don't like the emperor, and that's maybe one hundred fifty-seven to one hundred sixty thousand soldiers on our side, with the logistics to match." "And how many of them?" "Some seventy to ninety thousand; hard to say exactly. Enough to hold us out. Hard to tell how many of them are enthusiastic, but they're there, they have weapons, and their defensive artillery is a big equalizer. Not to mention..." Barrel grunted discontentedly. "Yes... those weapons, originally designed as prisons for the Princesses." James shook his head. "They did have a plan for afterwards. And, if..." "Yes... if..." Barrel mumbled. "Luckily, Blue Fur volunteered, and he's been working on a project to neutralize the problem. The only thing is, he's not telling me what, or how, he intends to go about it, or what the details are." "He'd better work fast, or they'll turn this piece of the country into a landscape of burned scars," Shining replied. James didn't answer. What Shining had said was too obvious. "At least the guerillas are quieting down a bit, now that word about the king's betrayal is spreading. Fewer people are willing to fight for him these days, and those that are-" "Hate the very idea of taking orders from another species, however directly or indirectly," Barrel interrupted roughly. "They're not all going to just throw down their arms and go back to work." James knew that; some people could never take the idea of being given orders by people from another country. He wasn't sure whether to admire the guerillas or not for their stance and will to resist. "Some of them will," he said by way of reply. "And that means we get more things we need at the front line, and we'll need fewer troops in the rear to protect convoys. So we'll gain efficiency, and they certainly won't be getting more, even they lose none." "This entire pathetic excuse for an empire is falling apart anyway," Barrel said, spitting on the ground. "It's already dead. The corpse is still twitching, that's all. What's left of their government is here. Everything else is in chaos." "And yet the 'corpse' might still bite or kick us in it's death throes," James cautioned. "We have to remain vigilant, and eliminate their weapons before they can vaporize the army, or part of it anyway. We're remaining here until that happens." "We can't just-" "Oh, we won't be doing nothing, I promise you," Shining said. "We'll be splitting the army to encircle the city. When their super cannons are gone, we'll close in and begin to invest it properly. However, everything hinges on the first part of my last sentence; the destruction of their mega weapons." "Right," James said. "I think I'll pay a visit to a friend on that matter..." ------------------------------------------------------ James entered a blue-and-white striped tent. His action quickly caught the eye of Blue Fur, who smiled. "Ah, hello, General." "Morning, Blue," James replied. "I'm guessing this isn't a social call, even if that would be nice." "You're right. It's not." "That's as well," Blue fur replied, still grinning. "I like being useful. I think you'll find that we've already begun making progress." James followed him a few feet to something that resembled a dismantled anti-tank gun. "As I can see. What do you have in mind?" "Well..." Blue fur scratched the back of his head with a hoof. "The part about this project is that it essentially, er, borrows... concepts from... other sources." "'Other sources'... you mean the enemy." "Yes. I hope to be able to copy what they are doing while avoiding the moral downsides, which is to say that what we're making will be powered by alternative means." "You won't be abusing civilians and P.O.W.s to get things done," James translated. "Yes. What I have in mind, and what I'm instructing my colleagues to build, is essentially borrowed technological and magical advances. I'm frankly surprised that non-magic creatures like griffons were able to come up with such things where we were not; different attitudes toward war, I suppose, but we should have been able to at least foresee these ideas, if not actually use them first." "Let's get back to the basics. What are you building, and what kind of projectile will it be using?" "I'm trying to put together a sort of sniper cannon, if you understand what I'm trying to convey. Unfortunately, standard projectiles like those fired by our usual artillery pieces do not have the range to hit the king's palace from here, and to move within their known range would be suicidal. As it stands, we are barely able to see the city currently, and I'd advise not going into range." "And? What's the solution?" "A cannon that fires an energy-based ordinance, as opposed to physical shells. It's not unlike the rifles we captured during earlier campaigns, but the energy use will be different." "How so?" "Having the newly-constructed Crystal Empire on our side provides certain advantages. Namely, that of crystals that can magnify magical energy. The enemy's current versions use a more, er, brute force manner to dump energy into the weapon in order to use it. While they use a crystal ball to hold that energy, it is inefficient and wastes much of that same energy, though I do not deny that it's effects on our forces have been considerable, otherwise I might seek other ideas." James felt a surge of uneasiness. He wanted to win the war, sure, but not at the cost of selling his or anyone else's soul. "But where would we get the energy to fire off? I'm not having unicorns drain themselves to death to power this thing." "I would never ask you to, dear boy. While our version will still use a crystal ball" - he pointed at a transparent sphere nearby - "we intend for the energy to come from volunteers, some of whom are in on this very project. Some, indeed, have already transferred some magical energy to the object in question, as you can see by the lovely shades of color that are flittering about inside." "Volunteers to transfer magical energy... I see..." "Sir, we do know about other power sources. We could use them if the way we are powering this thing is immoral. Rest assured that we have many ways of powering this cannon if you require it." "Okay. And I assume the barrel on the weapon is designed to keep the shot accurate?" When Blue Fur nodded, James went on, "How do you intend to keep the shot from melting the barrel?" "Via spells placed on the barrel. They will channel the energy in one direction while simultaneously preventing a meltdown that would prove problematic for a second usage." "Alright. Now, how do we aim this thing? I mean, that city is miles and miles away. I'm sure they'll notice something once we start blasting away." "Indeed. Which is why we are also attempting to create a telescope that is second only to the royal observatory, in quality if not in size, and coordinate where that is aiming with the place the shot will actually hit; obviously, the sight we're building will be no good if we can't hit what we're aiming at." "Yes, that would be unfortunate." James thought about it. The weapon would indeed b a copy of griffon design, but it would get its power from willing individuals, and would be more energy efficient, allowing the gunners to fire more shots with less ammunition, such as it was. "How many of these things are you building?" "We intend to build two; if one fails, the other ought to make up for it, and if they both work, the enemy will be in for double the trouble, won't they?" "They will. You sure you've got everything together?" Blue Fur stared at him for a few seconds, but not out of hostility; James had come across this look before, and he knew that the blue pony before him was currently fitting the cannon he'd designed together in his mind and imagining how it would work when someone shot it. After a pause of about thirty seconds, Blue Fur said, "I believe so. The model we've got here should work with the magic of volunteering unicorns, and we can make the appropriate adjustments if another source of energy is required. It would take time to adjust, but we can manage." "Good, because I doubt you've cleared this with Celestia or anyone else." "I suppose the Princess would hardly be happy if she found out about our present means of powering these," Blue Fur replied reluctantly. I guess we'd better get to work on finding an alternate power source, in case this does not meet with Her Majesty's approval, though she might scrap the project altogether if she hears about it." By that, you're warning me not to tell her or Luna. James could make that out well enough. What I know is, they'll hear about it anyway. I might as well tell them, and keep the whole thing rosy. If they decide to cancel the project just because of one of the possible energy sources - and I'll make sure to list all the ones Blue told me about - then... we'll see. He was having difficulty deciding if it was worth it to disobey such a command, or to pretend that the letter didn't reach him in time. He shook his head; doing something bad once made it easier to do it again. He'd have to check out multiple options, in case this one was scuttled. "How soon will these be ready?" "Three days, sir, given no delays. Of course, delays happen; unexpected problems-" Both of them started; there had been a small explosion as the engineers tried to fit the crystal ball to the end of the gun barrel; the crystal ball had gone flying and had smacked someone in the stomach (though he appeared okay; the engineer, an earth pony, got up after only a couple seconds on the ground). "And that would be an example of an unexpected problem," Blue Fur sighed. "I can only suppose that at least two spells repelled each other. We'll have to find and correct the problem before we can try that again." "Keep me up to date. I want regular reports." "Trust me, you'll get them... the triumphs as well as the failures." ---------------------------------------------------------------------- James looked again at the map he had. The allied forces were moving in everything they could spare from guerilla hunting for the final onslaught. The war was about to end, and the reinforcements were necessary. Enemy artillery and trenches were only two things the enemy would deploy. Sadly, what amounted to a minefield also stretched around the city; primitive, but no doubt effective; some were only single artillery shells, others were massive buried quantities of dynamite and gunpowder. Night flights by thestral soldiers had produced a decent idea of the defenses with which the allies would have to deal with, as well as the scale of the city itself. It was big. And it was ready as it could be. The defenders weren't idle. They were scouting the allied forces as well. They'd have some idea of what he could throw at them. At the same time, though, they were losing control of their country. While the first rebellions against the Imperial forces had been put down, those who had a will to resist it were making themselves known. Sometimes Imperial units could put down a town or village that refused to obey them; other times, they were swept away by the rebels. Given the general chaos, James doubted that a lot of necessary equipment, ammunition, and food were reaching the city, which wasn't surrounded yet. More and more disaffected villagers and townspeople were joining the Noble Council's forces every day; not a huge number, but still encouraging. Even a few deserters from the Imperial army were reaching them, though James, and most of his officers, believed that at least some of them were spies, and were thoroughly checking each and every new soldier. A moth-eaten country and a well defended capital; this was what they were up against. "Terms," James said, as though a griffon delegation were there to receive them. He wasn't sure the exact nature of the coming peace. It would, of course, be necessary to remind the defeated party that messing with Equestria again would be a mistake, but he'd never been one for rubbing someone's nose in the dirt. Something like what Chrysalis' successor had received would suffice; hard enough to make the other side regret fighting, but soft enough to preserve independence and offer a peaceful future without anger or hate. "My very thoughts as I came." James turned around. "Princess Celestia," he said, and so it was; the Princes was entering the tent. "My sister will also be coming," the Princess went on. "Grayfeather has been proving difficult to gain information out of, but she should be bringing a decent report once she gets here, and Cadence will of course be joining us from the Crystal Empire." "And why, might I ask, have you come?" "To personally see this terrible conflict end, and to preside over the peace to follow. All this bleeding and dying is almost over." "It's not entirely over," James said, shaking his head. "There's one more bout of dying to go through before this is over and done with." "Another reason I've come; to try to persuade Raneiro to surrender without more useless loss." "Won't work," James replied, again shaking his head. "Not the kind to give up, ever." "All the same, it might do some good," Celestia said. "If the rank and file of the opposing army hear about what we have to offer, they might join us in greater droves than they are now." "And some will be spies," James said. "We've already busted two that we know of. Others might be saboteurs." "Perhaps." Celestia sighed. "I intend to try to talk with their king soon." "I'd advise you wait until we blow the palace to pieces," James advised. "The very prisons in which they wished to encase you are now being redesigned to fire upon us as weapons of mass destruction. We're just outside of their known range. If you in particular try to approach, I have no idea how they won't just vaporize you. I assume Luna has told you what she has learned?" "She has; some of what she has to tell you are things I already know about." Celestia frowned. "So those prisons are in the king's palace?" "Yes, we've confirmed that. Blue Fur is working on a sort of artillery to snipe the palace. If successful, we'll be able to approach and besiege the city properly." "I see. I don't think we have a cannon that can fire that far, so the ammunition it uses must be an alternative source." She frowned. Oh boy. "Well, yes. But, before you reject it based on our previous encounters with the enemy, we have multiple means of utilizing energy for the thing, and any unicorns that wish to transfer magic to Blue Fur's preferred manner are volunteers, not enslaved prisoners." "Be that as it may, I do wish to visit this project before we go forward." Celestia paused. "And I'm not sure how the enemy would respond if we happen to kill their ruler." "Collapse, probably, or else squabble over who takes over, both of which are bad for them and assist our cause." "Or they might unite out of sheer desperation and whoever replaces Raneiro might be even worse. I'll have to think about it before I decide to approve it." "With all due respect," James said, trying to keep his temper down, "we're not going to be advancing on the city until those things are gone. You know that they're attempting to modify them to hit Canterlot even as we speak." Celestia simply stood there for a moment, watching him quietly as she thought. "I realize that. But the death of their ruler may have unpredictable consequences. And Luna and I want Raneiro alive. He must stand trial, along with his accomplices, as Chrysalis shall." She raised a hoof to forestall him. "I know. Our peoples' lives matter much more. However, if it is at all possible to take him without killing him, and if it can be done without the loss of a city or suffering heavy casualties, I intend to." James let air out of his nose. "I see." "Don't worry, James. I don't intend to allow our enemy any leeway. If they refuse the peace, and I concur with you that that is extremely likely, then we will immediately - and I mean immediately - go forward with Blue Fur's plan - assuming the ordinance is not morally unacceptable." "You mean, like right after they refuse and the parley is over." "Yes. Now, please come with me. We all have much to discuss." --------------------------------------------------------- As it turned out, Celestia didn't ban the plan that James and Blue Fur had hatched. She had looked into the matter of volunteer unicorn magic, and, though she had insisted that Blue Fur use another type of ammunition, he did have numerous alternatives, most of which the monarch did approve, and the project was therefore not much changed. After a short lunch, Celestia called the commanders of the army to discuss options during the siege to come. "Assuming all goes well," Barrel said, tracing a line on the map with a stick, "We should be able to surround the city and keep military necessities from entering. But that's only part of the job. Our ultimate goal is to capture and occupy Gryphos, and that won't happen until we push the guys on the other side out of the way." "With the losses and disasters they'd suffered the past few months, will they have any will left?" Celestia asked. "Some won't, in and of themselves, but their officers and the diehards who follow their orders will make them fight. I must point out that, in an attempt to force a battalion of ponies to fight us at Trottingham, they held families hostage, so the soldier himself might not be the only one at risk if the higher-ups think he's a defeatist. And the fanatics have a will as well, along with the nationalists that would rather die than let us rule them. When it comes to each of our lines coming against one another, some of them will fight, some will flee, others will surrender, but we won't know to how much of a degree they'll do any of those things until we begin our offensive." "And that will take some major preparation," Shining said. "We still don't know everything there is to know about their defenses. It will take some time to dig trenches to keep their forces fenced in, and to dig more to allow our forces to close with their own defenses before we begin the final assault." "Not to mention we'll need to smash those walls," James put in. "They're not as thick as those as those of Ragna Fortress, but they'll take some shelling to bring them down. Our tanks won't be as useful in the streets as they are in the open plains, as cities have plenty of hidey-holes for anyone who has any idea of what to do with an explosive, and make no mistake, they will fight street by street in Gryphos. If we don't manage to break through their lines, and keep going, this will be a costly fight." "It's already going to be costly. At this point, almost anyone else on the other side would have given up," Barrel said. "But their king, who imagines himself an emperor, is going to fight to the last, rather than have the crown removed from his head. I can't promise you that when the battle starts that we'll take him alive." "If there is a reason to take him alive besides justice, it's the need to keep him from becoming a martyr or symbol for the griffon people," Celestia said. "I want him alive, if at all possible." "You may want him alive, Your Majesty," Barrel replied, "but I'm not convinced that we'll be able to take him out of his palace, or what will be left of it, that way. We can try, but we're not promising anything." "I understand. Try not kill him if you can avoid it. That said, if he should die in defense of his own capital, it shall be a result of his own foolishness, and we'll proceed from there." The commanders nodded, though James could tell that no one was enamored of the job Celestia wanted them to do. "It is the will of my Sultan that I aid you in this attack," al-Malik said. "We shall be in the forefront of the fight." "We shall be with you as well," Jelani confirmed. "My thanks to the both you," Celestia said to them. "Fight well, and this war will soon be over." "The Noble Council is with ya as well," Graywing said, "so long as ya remember that our destiny is ours to make aside from the outcome of the war." "I have no intentions to take your territory or force an unfair peace upon you," Celestia said, turning to him. "I promise that your destiny shall yours... but let it stand that we will not tolerate invasions of our territory, by griffons or anyone. I hope I make myself clear; Luna and I - and Cadence as well - shall not sit back and allow our ponies to suffer because of the ambitions of world leaders, and we shall protect and defend our allies." "Aye, I get it," Graywing said, nodding slowly. "So long as you keep yer word, ya got nothing ta fear." We can engage in guerilla warfare and wreak havoc if you don't deliver on your promise, James translated in his mind. To her credit, Celestia understood that as a riposte, and nodded as well. "Are we all agreed on the plan so far?" she asked. There was a general murmur of consent. "I know that circumstances will necessitate further planning and perhaps reshuffling of our ideas. But we shall end this war, make no mistake." That also met with approval, with a much more serious affirmation.