//------------------------------// // Chapter 10 // Story: The Great Equestrian War // by Thegrohingnation //------------------------------// In the days following the sinking of the RMS Friendship, the princesses declared that all civilian travel to Saddle Arabia by sea is prohibited. Travel there is not, however, completely forbidden. Princess Celestia made an announcement stating that necessary travel shall be made via airship. Airship, one of the newer wonders of Equestria. Despite being significantly safer than boats, it has its flaws. Being that it's slower and cannot carry as many passengers, thus making ticket prices much higher. It's seen as more of a luxury for the rich than a means of travel. There is also the issue of weight. Many shipping companies prefer naval vessels, seeing as more cargo can be shipped. Despite these drawbacks, Celestia insisted that the ponies rely on airships for travel until the blockade around Saddle Arabia had left. As added safety, for the commercial ships, the Royal Navy has been ordered to act as escorts for cargo ships. They hope that the sight of Equestrian warships may force the Deutsche to end their blockade around Saddle Arabia. Since the Battle of Ravensburg, the Deutsche infantry has gone on the offensive pushing back the Saddler's western army. Several months of brutal fighting through the south mountains ensues as the bodies pile up. Finally, in late October the Saddler army finally collapses and orders a full retreat, with the Deutsche hot on their trail. As is by some miracle, heavy rains set in behind the retreating army, forcing the Deutsche to almost a complete stop. In the east, with the initial 40,000 men holding strong against the Saddle Arabians, they engaged in a brutal slugfest. Numerous battlefields scatter the countryside. Late in June, General Kleist’s men pushed the Saddlers almost to the border. The Saddlers respond with a massive counter attack, catching General Meulle’s division off guard. Realizing he is outnumbered, he sends word for reinforcements. June 3rd, 8:15 am South Meditermarean sea As Celestia’s sun rises in the morning, bringing warmth and light through the fog, the passengers of the RMS Friendship begin to arise from their slumber. Those already awake make their way to the dining hall for breakfast. Currently, they are five days into their six day voyage; for they are bound for the horn of Saddle Arabia. With another day of clear skies ahead of them, they are expected to dock sometime tomorrow around noon. Making his way back to the pilot house with his morning coffee, Captain North Sea prepares the route for the day. Looking over the railing, he watches as the other two ships in their small sailing party slowly chug along the water. He watches as lanterns begin to be lit, as the crews start to awaken. North Sea continues on his way, greeting passengers as they pass, before he comes to one of his sailors, Thunder Cloud. Former weather employee in Cloudsdale. “Ah, Mister Thunder Cloud.” He addresses his Pegasus friend.” What do the skies have planned for us today?” “Supposed to be beautiful today, Captain. Half an hour to an hour we should be out of this fog.” “Good. As you were.” With that, Captain Sea makes his way to the bridge. He passes by a few passengers before entering the bridge. Making his way to his position, something catches his eye in the fog. Grabbing a pair of binoculars, he peers out the window. “What is it, Sir?” “I don't know. I thought I saw something in the fog.” Immediately, the first and second mates rush up to the window to look for a possible ship. Instead, they are met with the dull grey fog. For a brief moment the fog clears just enough for one of the sailors to spot sails in the distance. “ There!” He shouts, pointing in the direction. “Sails in the distance, Bearing 140.” Captain North Sea snaps to where the ship was spotted. As the fog begins to clear, he spots the mystery ship “Sweet Celestia, that’s an entire fleet. A series of flashes are seen coming from a couple of the frigates. “Captain, they’re trying to signal us!” The Second Mate shouts. “They want us to turn around!” “Get a signal out. Inform them that we are a civilian steamship.” North Sea barks as two crewmen head to the signal light. Suddenly a cannonball lands off the bow of the ship. "Oh shit! They're firing on us!" One of the sailors shouts. "Captain, your orders!" "Easy lad. It's a warning shot. They want us to turn around and that's what we'll do. Helmsman bring us around. We'll try and bypass this blockade, just as long as nobody tries anything." Just as the words were leaving his mouth. Two blasts are heard from the two freighters' small 3” deck guns. The first shot landing just short of a frigate, the second however slams into the side of it. Instantly the Deutsche navy returns fire with a full broadside. "Dammit." Captain Sea mutters. "Helmsman, get us the fuck out of here! Petty Officer Eel, make sure the passengers are safe. Keep them calm." "Aye, sir." Two shells strike the ship. The first slams onto the deck before exploding into a shower of shrapnel. The second hits the signal lamp killing the two sailors trying to message them. The RMS Friendship moves in behind the two freighters, as they continue to fire at the Deutsche ships. Many passengers watch in awe and horror, from the dining hall, as the small skirmish unfolds. Panic erupts as a shell explodes off the side of the ship, fortunately not penetrating the ship. For the next few minutes, the two freighters attempt to hold their own in hopes that the Friendship would make her escape. Three more shells hit the freighters, as smoke starts rising from below deck. “Captain, message from the Eclair. They want us to make a run for it, saying that they'll buy us some time.” With a sigh, Captain Sea replies. “Very well, full ahead to st-...” Before he can finish his sentence, the RMS Friendship takes two direct hits. One strikes her just below the waterline, flooding the lower compartments. The second slams into the boiler room, before exploding. “Oh shit.” Is all he can say before the entire ship violently explodes into a massive fireball, ripping the ship in half. 238 of the 250 onboard are killed in the explosion. The Deutsche fleet eventually continues on their way after disabling the last freighter. July 5th, 10:53 am Outside of Hausham, Deutschland The two armies clash into each other. The fields of the small town of Hausham turn to chaos. General Meulle’s division along with three other brigades. The 1st brigade led by General Erwin, the Pony Brigade commanded by General McColt, and the 5th Rifle Brigade led by General Cruitz. In total, about 20,000 men engage overwhelming forces. Three divisions of Saddler infantry stopped the retreat and pushed back. Two divisions are attacking from the south, and one from the west. Meulle deploys his division forward to the south, allowing the other three brigades to hold his right flank. He sends three of his brigades forward holding his fourth in reserve. Four Saddle Arabian brigades slam into Meulle’s division. Fortunately his men remain determined to drive out the Saddler invaders, and stubbornly hold their position. They fire a volley directly into the approaching force. The shock from the musket fire causes the Saddlers to halt and take aim, releasing their own deadly wave of lead. Several shells, from General Erwin's artillery battery, explode overhead raining shrapnel down on the unfortunate soldiers below. Despite the losses and incoming artillery, the Saddlers pressed their attack on the Deutsche position. Looking beyond his lines, General Meulle spots another Saddler brigade in reserve Just in front of a small farm, General Meulle watches the battle unfold. From his position, he can almost make out the Saddler's artillery position. Four sections of cannons are deployed while another battery is to the right targeting Erwin and McColt's brigades. Fortunately, it seems as though General Cruitz's brigade is too hidden in the trees for the Saddle Arabian cannons to be of effect. The sounds of the battle are deafening as the artillery of both sides target their enemy's position. Just to the left of where Meulle is standing rests his own batteries, twelve sections of 12 pound field cannons. Taking the brunt of the fighting on the right, the pony brigade, under General McColt, hold strong, positioning themselves just atop a small hill in front of a farm. The front three regiments unleash a volley of lead into the approaching infantry. Seeing a flanking option, McColt moves his fourth regiment to the right of his ponies. Despite the incoming fire, his brigade stubbornly hold their ground. Across the battlefield, Major General Aklim watches on as his corps assaults the Deutsche lines. While at first he was hesitant of his commanding general’s plan, the more he thought about it leading up to this attack, the more honored he felt leading this attack. Now he sees this as a heroic deed for his country and sultan. General Haldedge, commander of all Saddle Arabian forces in Deutschland, realized that his retreating army needed a buffer to allow space in between them and the enemy; and also to allow his battered army to resupply without issue. He ordered General Aklim to launch a counterattack against the enemy, hopefully taking out a corps or two, until the rest of the army can redeploy in assistance. He hopes this plan will work based on the reports from his scouts, that the enemy is spread out, slowly moving south. General Aklim now leads his corps back north towards the enemy. July 5th, 2:45 pm North of Hausham North of Hausham, a brigade of Deutsche infantry makes their way towards the fray. A fairly fresh brigade, only having seen light skirmishes so far, consisting of 5th Frankfurt, 23rd Rhineland , and the 18th Lippe. Commanding them is Brigadier General Edwin Boyd. The drums and pipes begin as they enter the town. As the sound of battle slowly approaches, Erik leans over and whispers to Peter “Do you think we'll actually get to fight this time?” He asks. “Probably.” Peter replies. “From how fast they want us down here I'd say we're going straight into the fight.” Michael adds, jumping into the discussion. Several others around them also chime in, hoping to finally see some action, before being silenced by an officer. The 24th Bremen infantry brigade, having only deployed last month, has participated in one fairly large battle prior. Even then, most of the brigade was held in reserve. The men of the 23rd Rhineland continue down the road in anticipation for the coming battle. The sound of battle echoes closer with every step. As they march, they pass by several wounded men laying and waiting outside a field hospital. Many residents are also assisting with treating the wounded. Many stop for a moment to watch as the brigade marches by. "Give 'em hell, boys." They hear several cheers from the locals. Serving as a morale boost for the green soldiers, the nerves of the brigade are calmed slightly. With spirits high, they press on towards the fighting. They move swiftly through the city and begin deploying to the south of Meulle’s position, hoping to sweep the enemy's right flank. Moving past Meulle’s left flank, the new brigade goes unnoticed by the enemy, as Meulle’s extreme left moves forward to cover General Boyd's men. "Battalion!" Colonel Lehmann shouts. "By right flank, march!" Instantly the 23rd Rhineland, just as they had been trained, forms their line of battle. The company commanders position themselves in front to assist in the forming of the line. "Battalion, forward march!" Several skirmishers march ahead of the main force, hoping to catch the Saddlers by surprise. Cresting a hill, the skirmishers open fire on one of the Saddler regiments. The skirmishers quickly reload and fire again into the enemy. As they ready their third shot, the rest of the regiment reaches their position. Holding fire, they regroup into the firing line. Realizing that they are being flanked, two Saddler regiments turn to face the new threat. "Battalion, fire by rank!" As they hear the order, the first rank fires; unleashing a deadly volley of lead. A few seconds later the second rank fires. Peter quickly reloads. He felt practically deaf as the rear rank fired their volley. His senses are assaulted as the overpowering smell of burnt black powder and smoke fill the air. The sound of the gunfire, cannons, and screams from the wounded fills his ears. A cloud of smoke appears in front of him. He jumps as the man next to him falls to the ground in pain, clutching his stomach. A quick glance down the line, sees that several others have also been shot. Reloading his rifle, he takes aim again at the opposition force. A pressure wave flies past him as an enemy cannon shell strikes the line several yards down. The front rank fires again, obscuring Peter's view of the battle. As the second rank takes aim, the enemy fires another volley. The sound of whistling minié balls fills the air. Two shots from Meulle’s artillery explode over the enemy, sending deadly shrapnel into the line. Two large holes are carved through the line, as the Deutsche unleash another volley. The constant pressure is enough to force the Saddlers back as Boyd’s brigade moves forward. As they march, the two Saddler regiments regroup and push again against their position, this time with two more regiments. July 5th, 4:37 pm As the battle rages on, both sides are becoming desperate to inflict the final blow the would determine the victor of the field. Ammunition began to run low, resulting in a bayonet charge from Cruitz and McColt’s brigades; sweeping the enemy across their right flank. With Cruitz and McColt pushing from the right, Boyd pushes from the left almost encircling the enemy. General Aklim, realizing that he is trapped, prepares for a final push. He hopes to break through the Deutsche center. As he's about to give the order, a rider from the main Saddler force rides up to him. “General, message from General Haldedge. The main body has regrouped and is resupplying south of the border. You are to withdraw with your corps and rejoin them.” “Very well.” Slowly the Saddle Arabian force begins to withdraw from the fighting. Many were relieved to see that the Deutsche weren't pursuing them. Most likely because of low ammunition. The battered corps moves south about 15 miles to the border of Saddle Arabia. When they arrive at the main camp, they are praised for their glory and bravery on the field of battle. On the Deutsche side of the border, the main force finally arrives at Hausham. They begin deploying a couple of miles south of the city. Both sides now wait to see who will make the next move.