by Lazlo Ferran
Now all my forces lay deployed for battle. As the dust finally settled, it was perhaps two hours from noon. I had debated whether to send small units of troops back to the camp for water, as we would be thirsty before noon, but decided we should hold formation. Staying as we were for a few hours could have an advantage. Korim would be distracted, not knowing where we would attack. Also it would make his men testier and wear down their concentration
Also, there was Geb. I wanted to keep Korim focused on the battlefield, in the hope that this would give Geb the chance he needed to launch his surprise attack.
For just an instant I glanced west, looking for any signs of Geb’s small Army. I thought I saw something glinting as it moved, far away on the plain, but I could not be sure.
Zhuan’zhuan stood beside me, as he had done on many previous occasions, waiting for battle to commence. Only Abdil’khan had known me longer.
The minutes passed, with neither side showing any movement. Then suddenly a few arrows thudded into the ground a few sachine in front of Zhuan’s forward Division. A few of the arrows appeared to have something small and white attached to the the shafts.
This continued in a haphazard fashion for some time. The arrows did not reach any men and I guessed the enemy archers were at the limit of their range, as we had planned.
A horsemen from our forward ranks rode back towards us. He saluted.
“Sire. The arrows appear to have message attached to them. Shall we read them?”
“Bring me one but only one.”
I turned to Zhan’zhuan. “I don’t want the men reading them.”
Zhuan said to the man, “Do as our Lord asks”.
The man sped off and reaching the front ranks. Stopped and dismounted. We saw him walking cautiously forward to the nearest arrow, set at an oblique angle in the gritty soil.
Watching the Enemy walls, he pulled out the arrow and turned and walked quickly back to his horse. Mounting, he brought the arrow to us.
I untied the white muslin from the shaft and read the message crudely written in our language, in black paint.
“Go home. Heathens. You are not welcome here. This is our land now and you will die trying to take it from us. Lord and King Korim.”
“Hmm Arrogance.” I showed the man the message. He laughed.
“It is just the usual thing Sire.”
“Tell the others.”
We waited until I guessed we were less than an hour from noon. I was feeling very uneasy in the saddle. Several times I had to get down and stretch my legs and I gave permission for any other rider who wished, to do so.
I was turned away from the Fortress when I heard a sigh from the men. I spun round and saw round objects, with strange dark streamers, flying towards our lines. These objects did reach our men and the men jumped aside to avoid being hit. The round objects lay, inert on the ground. I heard men exclaiming “Bastard. They are our men!”
I knew what they were. There were four of them. They were the heads of our four Scouts. The streamers were their long hair, unbraided by the enemy. I hoped my men would not be unnerved by this barbaric act.
“Do not worry,” said Zhuan’zhuan. “The men are used to this.”
The Moment for us to sound the first trumpet blast approached. I nodded to Zhuan’zhuan and he shouted the order. A loud trumpet blast of three notes rang around the mouth of the gorge, echoing from one side to the other. The sounds gradually died away to silence.
“The enemy must be wondering why we don’t charge.” I said.
The Great Gates opened and horsemen could be seen, ten abreast, coming out and down the hill. With the dust they were kicking up, I could not see whether the column was still passing under the walls or not. Zhuan’zhuan called a man and sent him off to the right flank to take a look. Eventually, after what seemed an age, he returned.
“The column is about 200 deep, about two thousand men!”
Zhuan’zhuan looked alarmed as they came towards us.
“It is as I expected.” I said.
The gates were still open and we could see other horsemen exiting under the wooden arch and turning to our left. Eventually five hundred horsemen moved to a position in front of Abdil’khan. Matching his force. This was also as I anticipated. Korim would be hoping to defeat us in the middle and would only want to commit enough troops to hold the flanks, not to try and outflank us. Because he had the safety of the Fortress and a plentiful supply of water and food, he would commit the minimum force he thought might beat us. He had little to gain by over-committing himself.
Another five hundred horses came out and moved to our right flank, high above Yedigei. This also we expected. In actual fact, I did not think Yedigie could win on this flank. The ground was too steep. I only wanted him to hold it. Our main attack was on the left. Here I hoped Abdil’khan might gain some advantage from the fact that Korim’s horsemen would be too high to be able to fight effectively against our foot-soldiers. Abdil’s men would be able to get under their guard.
Both flanks and the centre Division, paced forwards until they were only fifty sachine from our own. Here, they stopped.
I hoped Geb was at the appointed position.
Now, as the final moment approached, I looked up at the sky. Wheeling there I saw a bird of prey, perhaps an eagle, high above the mountain slopes. As it wheeled I thought it seemed like a friend. We have a saying that if you ever see an animal that seems to be part of your family, it is because you are about to die and you will be reincarnated as one of its kind.
‘An eagle is not a bad thing to be,’ I thought to myself. I watched the bird for a few minutes. There was almost total silence. All that could be heard, was the occasional stamping of a horses foot, a clash of metal, or the sound of the breeze moving tiny grains of grit, circulating around the high walls of the mountains.
I looked at Zhuan’zhuan. He always carried a small pocket sundial, as did all my Generals. He was looking down at it and noticed my glance. He shook his head. Still not time.
Suddenly I remembered Ahmed and his family.
“Damn. I forgot to talk to Ahmed or instruct anybody to put them somewhere safe.” I could not see them. “Oh well. It is too late now.”
The air was as taught as a bow-string. I felt it would snap with the tension. I felt a bitter taste in my mouth. The air grew harsh and metallic. My heart was thumping in my chest and my mouth was as dry as the desert. I shielded my eyes to see if there was any movement on the walls. There was none.
I waited. Suddenly my mind was filled with thoughts of a yellow flower. It was the little yellow flower I had found on the north side of the camp. That morning I remembered I had gone looking for it and found it, still as bright and yellow, in a small patch of green, even though all the grass around had been trampled flat. But when had I seen it? For some reason I became obsessed with trying to remember the sequence of events before and after seeing the flower. I could not remember, even though I tried as hard as I could. Something caught my eye.
“It is time My Lord.” It was Zhuan’zhuan.
He snapped shut the small brass case and replaced it in his pouch.
“Sound the trumpets.”
A second blast rang out, this time of five notes. Before they had died away, there was the sound of marching feet and Zhuan’s forward division were moving forward, up the steep slope.
I looked to the left and right and saw the two flanks, the right led by Yedigei on his white horse and the left led by Lord Abdil’khan on foot. Both were moving forwards.
After they had gone perhaps, only five sachine, the Enemy opened fire. A rain of arrows came down, most bouncing harmlessly off the shields or the ground. The men in the front ranks had the very long shields, almost the height of a man. The ranks further back, the bowmen and swordsmen, had smaller shields and held them above their heads.
I thought about the dread that must surely be going through the minds of every spears-man in the front ranks. There was the most horrific
task. Like other armies, our spears-men in the front line were mainly men who had relatives in the line next to them. This was the only way they could bring themselves to face the task they had to do. In some parts of our country, men shunned horses, preferring to do battle on foot. They supplied our foot-soldier and it was a matter of great pride in some villages to supply men for the front lines. These were the bravest and often many generations would serve in the front ranks. Cousins and brothers would stand beside each other and defend each other to the death. Theirs was the task of taking the brunt of the attack, the first clash. The men behind them would push them into the enemy, trying to open up a gap, where there was weakness. If they were pushed back, they had to hold firm. Above all they must not turn or let the man beside them become unprotected by their shields. The shields overlapped slightly and this solid wall must be held.
We were in effect the first reserve and on our five hundred horses we could reach any part of the battle field, wherever we were needed, quickly and we stayed still.
Zhuan and Kazangap’s men in the centre marched until they reached the enemy but instead of being able to push with their shields, they were overreached by the enemy horses, much better trained for battle than I had expected, and I saw the spears of my men wagging ineffectually in the air, pointing vaguely at the heads of the horses of riders. Soon, our lines were divided, not by braver men, but by the strength of horses.
“I should have predicted this.” I muttered, under my breath.
I looked over to the left flank and could see that Adbil’khan was doing better. There was a tight mass of fighting men there but he was slightly higher up the hill than I had thought he would be at this point. To my right, Yedigei on the right flank was simply holding his own, his horsemen fighting in groups among the enemy. There was enough depth there to allow him to fight in this way and I was unconcerned for now.
For a moment I thought I saw Kazangap himself, his Red plume high up the hill, perhaps three of four lines into the enemies, his sword swishing this way and that. He at least was determined to make progress.
I noticed that the Enemy’s central Division seemed to be giving in the middle, even on our left, which was where Zhuan’s men, without such strong leadership as Kazangap’s, would have been expected to struggle the most. I suspected the usual tribesman tactic of giving way in the middle so that one’s outer ranks could outflank the enemy.
A rider approached us from the right of of our Division.
“Sire! The gates have opened again. I think more horsemen are coming!”
“How many?”
“I don’t know. Perhaps five hundred had left, by the time they were out of my sight. The dust is awfully difficult to see through.”
“Thank you. Go back to your position and report to me when you can tell me more.”
“Yes, Sire!”
The dust was becoming a big problem. We could not see our right flanks too well as the dust, with the wind, was blowing from west to east across the battlefield. We could however see Abdil’s men fairly clearly.
“What is Korim up to, bringing more men out? He has no need of them at the moment.”
I had more pressing matters though.
“Zhuan. Get me a runner.”
A man was sent for, on a fast horse.
“Find Kazangap, or one of his lieutenants. Tell him not to advance but to hold his ground. The enemy is trying to outflank him.”
The man sped off and we tried to see through the dust to see what was happening.
“This is bad! I cannot see what is happening”
“I am going to the right so I can see between the dust”, I shouted. Then Arstan and I were speeding off across the slope, until I could get a clear view through the space between the dust cloud from Zhuan’s men’s battle and that of Abdil’s to the gate. I could see the horsemen riding straight towards me!
I had just time to watch Abdil’s men for a moment before deciding what to do. Abdil was definitely making slow progress but I guessed he was now two or three sachine further up the slope than he had been and the most forward of our forces now. He was succeeding. But were these horsemen sent by Korim to outflank him or to outflank Zhuan’s men? I guessed the former and I also wondered if it was possible Korim was using the dust to obscure as much of the battlefield as possible.
I rode flat out back to Zhuan.
“We need to get more men to Abdil. We need to protect his flank. Line the horses up, ten wide!” I was shouting at the top of my lungs. I wan’t sure if he could hear me but he nodded and shouted some orders to his Lieutenants. In less than a minute we were riding toward the gap in the dust at an oblique angle up the slope. I could hear myself coughing and I could feel the sweat running down my face inside the helmet. The first ten minutes of battle were often the most uncomfortable. After that, you were just glad to have protection.
Arstan stumbled once on the uneven ground and I spoke some soothing words to him. As we cleared the main dust cloud I could see the enemy reserve engaging the front of Abdil’s men. We were a little late and things would be trickier. We would have to drive a wedge in now to force them away from him.
I aimed Arstan for the gap between the closing lines of enemies and rode right up to the narrow end of the slot before the first spear struck my armour. It clattered away and then another hit the side of my helmet, knocking my head sideways. I lunged at the first of the three riders who had so far engaged our men. I noticed, almost with idle curiosity that all the enemy men were carrying spears as well as bows and swords. This was unusual and would give them an advantage over us. I was surprised that they had been trained in all three disciplines of battle. My sword cut deep into the man’s sides on the third swing, in between two of the plates, front and back which protected him. Like us they were using the lighter version of plate armour, four on the back and four on the front. Some armies had soldiers with two plates on either side as well but we deemed the weight compromised a man’s manouvrablilty too much.
The man swung towards me but seeing all the men approaching behind me, swung his horse away and was gone. I urged Arstan forward but Zhuan and one of his lieutenants were too quick and were past me, engaging the final two horsemen before I could.
“Push them back!” I cried and looked down our line of horsemen to see if this was being done. We had the disadvantage of being on the lower part of the slope but progress was being made. Slowly but surely we forced the horses away from Abdil’s Division.
Then, the worst possible thing happened.
Another column of horses split us away from Abdil. Korim had sent yet more men. Now we were fighting on two fronts. If only we had been closer to Abdil still, or Korim had sent his men a few moments before, they would be the ones fighting on two fronts.
I spun Arstan around again, thinking that I would call to Abdil’s men to turn and help us but they were pushing slowly, away, up the slope. They would not hear me now if I shouted.
We were effectively cut off and sandwiched in a long line between the enemy. A sword whizzed past my head, only a few vershok away. I instinctively ducked and turned to see the sword coming back at my head. I let go of the reins and met the blade with my shield, just in time. The blade rang off the edge of the shield and impacted on my helm, just above my eyes. Everything went black, I could not see, and I knew I had to rely on Arstan. I swung the reins and dug in my heels. Arstan must have hit the other horse or something because I felt him slither on the bloody stones before regaining his balance and lurching forward. I could see again and saw we were riding in the wrong direction, down the slope and towards where Geb would be coming from in a few moments.
“This is all wrong.” I said to myself. “Korim has anticipated everything and we are being slaughtered.”
I turned Arstan across the battlefield again and away from the rock wall of the mountain, only a few sachine away. Most of our riders were down now. I could see Zhuan’s horse, riderless, and two of his lieutenants’ horses standing o
ver him, lying face down on the ground.
“No!” I cried, more to myself really, as no one could hear me. The men were going to dismount, to try and pick up Zhuan. If they did that they would surely die.
I urged Arstan back up the slope and stumbling over fallen bodies, we reached them. One had already dismounted.
“Don’t dismount!” I said to the other and held his arm. At first he didn’t recognise me but searching the face in the helmet, he said “Sire! Zhuan’zhuan is down!”
I looked down at Zhuan, he was not moving. A large pool of blood was growing under his chest.
“Leave him. Heh! Soldier. Mount and ride with me! That is an order.” I said to the man on the ground. He glanced up at me but shook his head. He would not come. I could see more horsemen, perhaps a dozen riding towards us. Only two or three of our riders, further down the slope, were still fighting.
“Come on!” I said, clutching the arm of the rider and dragged him after me. His horse followed willingly and slipping, we descended to the other men. I rode past them, shouting to follow me. I wanted to make for the few men in Zhuan’s original force, at the front, who were still alive. There were so many bodies, the slope seemed a pile of twisted metal and red and white cloth. Some of the riders tried to follow me while others were too well engaged and could not.
‘I have broken all the rules of Battle.’ I thought to myself. I had put myself at the greatest risk.
Just then I felt a searing pain in my shoulder and felt my body being physically swung round. I could feel Arstan slipping as he tried to follow the order he thought I was giving, with the wrench I gave on the reins. In slow motion I felt him start to go down, losing his footing on the blood.
‘Oh no,’ I thought. It was a cold and lucid thought. An enemy soldier, on foot, was standing next to Arstan and had been just about to lunge with his spear but now he dropped the spear and held out his hands, as if to try and hold up Arstan. The great horse fell slowly on top of the man, pressing him, screaming, to the ground and I felt my leg being crushed. The terrible pain rushed up my leg and into my chest but I was too winded to make a sound. I lay there for just a moment, wondering if it was worth moving or if I was dying, but I still felt plenty of life in me. Half sitting on the ground, half on Arstan’s saddle, I urged the horse to get up and he did manage to right himself. But then the pain in my leg and shoulder were so great that I closed my eyes for a second and then he was standing up. I pulled my foot out of the stirrup just in time. Had he started to drag me on the ground, I would have been lost for sure.