Chapter 106 106: Standoff

Remember to leave your opinions about what you would like to see, as I always read them and if they are good and helpful, I will most likely add them. ----------------------------- If there are spelling mistakes, please let me know. Leave a comment; support is always appreciated. I remind you to leave your ideas or what you would like to see. ------------------------------- Jahrdrung-25-Sigmarzeit-18,2490 IC After that imperial order, I had remained watchful for days, waiting for news. Finally, an imperial messenger arrived—not with the response I was expecting, but to inform me that the griffon egg I had been promised was about to hatch. He was accompanied by caretakers from the Altdorf Zoo, sent to assist at the exact moment of hatching. Meanwhile, I kept a close watch on the border with Marienburg, keeping the Merxheim militias on alert for any attack along the river. At last, the chick broke free from its shell, and from that moment on, I had to keep it with me at all times. I fed it constantly with meat and took care around its beak; even newly hatched, it was sharp enough to take a finger off anyone who moved the wrong way. From then on, I carried it with me everywhere so I could feed it whenever it was hungry, only leaving it with the caretakers when they needed to check on its health. For weeks, as the tension dragged on, the creature accompanied me alongside my steed, always waiting for the response that would, sooner or later, arrive from the merchant city. Nearly a month passed before they began to show signs. Across the river, large contingents of mercenaries gathered, camping and waiting for reinforcements. The difference was that the bridge built by the dawi was now complete, with some of its fortifications halfway finished. There were good positions for cannons, and the old bridge they had once used to cross had been destroyed—there was no sense in keeping it and splitting forces to defend two crossings. For days, the mercenary companies remained on the other side of the river, watching us. Eventually, a rider appeared carrying the Marienburg flag. Seeing the clear signal of intent to negotiate, I approached with the Imperial banner. "Representing the interests of the Great Free City of Marienburg and by unanimous decision of the Directorate Council, I come to negotiate with the Imperial representative who has the authority to do so," the envoy said. "If you want someone with negotiation authority from the Empire, you'll have to wait a long time," I replied, staring at him. "The city of Marienburg and its directors demand an explanation for the erratic actions of the Empire in attacking our mercenaries and merchant vessels," the envoy continued. "Retaliation for allowing a group of Bretonnian knights to pass through Fort Bergbres on their way to Reikland with the intent to plunder our lands, while the conflict continued, seeking to profit by selling weapons to both sides," I answered without looking away. "Those are nothing but false excuses to justify the attack. Our honorable city has never..." he began. "Shut your mouth, liar. We have witnesses—captured Bretonnian knights who swore before the Lady that the commander of Fort Bergbres allowed them through. When they were defeated, all their men confirmed the story," I interrupted. I saw his face tighten and his pupils dilate; he was a trained diplomat, without unnecessary reactions. "Those are nothing but vile Bretonnian lies meant to tarnish our city's name. The Directorate demands compensation of five times the damage caused..." I turned my horse away, denying him the satisfaction of hearing more, and returned to my side of the river. I went back to the fortifications the dawi were still building, while the envoy remained there, motionless, for almost an hour, waiting for attention. Eventually, he returned to his people, and I saw the mercenaries beginning to prepare to advance. I gave the order to the artillerymen to get ready and, if possible, to fire without damaging the new bridge. The rest of my forces positioned themselves to block any crossing attempt. On our side, a strong contingent of armored pikemen and numerous musketeers formed up, their weapons a mix of old and new models. Not wanting to be the first to fire, I waited for the mercenaries to try crossing the bridge. After a long wait, a group charged forward. Among them were several ogres—huge and heavy—followed by more mercenaries running to keep pace. Once it was clear they were the aggressors, I gave the order for the heavy cannons to open fire on the formations gathering to take the bridge, while four dawi organ guns fired directly at those attempting to cross. What followed was a cacophony of screams and thunderous blasts. Within seconds, most of the ogres collapsed on the bridge, and the few mercenaries still standing were trapped among shattered bodies. The stone of the bridge was slick with blood, and many rolled in it, their legs, arms, or bellies torn apart by shrapnel. The heavy pieces from the fortifications had blown huge holes in their ranks. The musketeers began firing immediately, buying time for the artillerymen to reload the organ guns while new groups of mercenaries tried to cross. Soon, archers began harassing us from the other side. I decided to use my magic—not as in Bretonnia, where I turned their arrows into harmless clumps—but for something more efficient: diverting each projectile before it could reach my men. A single invisible push was enough to make all the arrows miss and fall far from our positions. As the battle continued, more mercenaries rushed the bridge, but they were met with a constant hail of musket fire and organ gun volleys. Some Imperial mercenaries with firearms tried to return fire, but the weapons they carried were old and inaccurate, missing more shots on their own than because of me. The cannons roared without rest, cutting down dozens every minute. Marienburg had not brought heavy cannons, and their mercenaries had few modern firearms. Perhaps the city could have acquired pieces from Nuln, but either they didn't, or they didn't get Imperial approval—or perhaps, as with most mercenary armies, they rarely carried cannons with them. Several more groups tried to cross, but the concentrated firepower at that single point made passage practically impossible. In the end, the mercenaries began to fall back. I noticed men wearing the heraldry of a mermaid from the city—probably officers trying to rally them—but it was clear they had lost the will to fight. By the time evening came, everything had gone quiet again. I devoted myself solely to feeding the voracious beast that demanded food constantly. But I doubted very much that this would end with just a simple local skirmish. That's why I immediately began dividing my forces across every possible point where the river could be crossed without the need for a bridge. At least three known areas received reinforcements, deploying organ guns and calling in the militias from Reinsfeld to help cover those crossings, waiting for any movement from Marienburg. Since this had practically escalated into a war, there was nothing left to lose. I repositioned the cannons along the river. Marienburg would have few reasons to prolong the conflict if I managed to sink every single ship sailing under its flag. Thus, for the rest of the day, any Marienburg vessel that appeared on the river—whether in Imperial waters or in those of the merchant city—was bombarded without mercy. Within a few hours, more than a dozen ships lay at the bottom of the Reik; another ten were stranded on sandbanks on our side, and a couple more in Middenland. Their crews were quickly captured and put to work digging trenches, in preparation for a long standoff. During the night, my artillery kept sinking ships, but by dawn, all of them stayed out of range of our cannons. Only occasionally would a captain try to cross, only to end up stranded or sunk, with his crew taken prisoner and likewise forced to dig defenses in the shallower stretches of the river, while we looted whatever was valuable from their holds. Shortly afterward, the mercenary army regrouped in front of the bridge and also at different fords along the river, clearly trying to split our attention. Too bad for them I had already anticipated that tactic and had garrisons ready to respond to any crossing. The Marienburg negotiator appeared again on the bridge, but I knew time was on my side. Losing trade revenue was painful, but I wasn't losing everything—I could still sell in Altdorf, and the dawi gold kept flowing. Even running a deficit, I could hold out for months before being forced to negotiate. I doubted they had the same resilience with a large part of their trade blocked. So the negotiator stood there on the bridge, and when he tried to approach closer to shout orders, I gave the instruction to fire at the bridge—without hitting him. I had no interest whatsoever in talking. For days we remained in that constant deadlock: they tried to cross, we repelled them with the firepower of our organ guns, which covered every crossing. River traffic was completely paralyzed; from kilometers away, one could see ships lining up to return to their city. In those days, almost three hundred dawi arrived from the mountains to join my nearly ten thousand men guarding the river. Duran, upon hearing of what happened from his workers, quickly gathered warriors from newly allied clans and sent them to reinforce us. They also brought a freshly forged cannon, which I placed at a strategic crossing. That brought us to four heavy pieces covering the Reik, well-positioned and ready to fire. Marienburg kept amassing mercenaries on the opposite bank, but there were no longer massive attempts to cross—only minor skirmishes. However, after three weeks of tension and beginning to feel the financial strain from reduced sales, complaints began arriving from Altdorf: Imperial merchants could not trade in Marienburg, as their ships had been seized in retaliation. The guilds of the capital sent letters threatening to sue me if I didn't lift the blockade. Even so, neither Marienburg nor the Emperor seemed to want this to escalate into a full-scale war. It was a matter of seeing who would yield first. Meanwhile, the dawi continued building fortifications. Every possible crossing now had basic defenses: small walled towers, quick to build but able to house fifty men. Though simple, they were enough to stop mercenaries who had already lost all previous skirmishes. No one wanted to be the next victim of our shrapnel. The calm broke when Marienburg attempted a coordinated attack: several simultaneous offensives against all crossings and an attempt to break the river blockade using cannons mounted on their ships. ''But Sigmar seemed to be on our side'' the first shot from one of our cannons struck the enemy ship's powder store, causing an explosion that set two more ships ablaze, as their own powder stores detonated when the same red-hot cannonball hit them as well. Within seconds, the river was filled with bodies and burning wreckage. On land, the crossings failed completely. The power of the organ guns was devastating; even the ogres who tried to force the bridge were cut down before reaching the halfway point. The bridge itself held without issue, protected by the heaviest concentration of artillery. After this defeat, the Marienburg negotiator returned to the bridge with his flag, and this time I agreed to speak. The truth was, with revenues reduced by nearly half, I wasn't sure I could sustain the situation much longer without cutting back on construction expenses. He requested the presence of an Imperial ambassador. We sent a ship to Altdorf, and two days later it returned with the envoy. Negotiations began between them, and although I don't know exactly what was agreed upon, by the end of the day the mercenaries began to withdraw. The ambassador conveyed the order to once again allow Marienburg ships to pass along the Reik. ----------------------------- If there are spelling mistakes, please let me know. Leave a comment; support is always appreciated. I remind you to leave your ideas or what you would like to see. -------------------------------