Chapter 5

After close to two weeks of training, the new recruits were making good progress. The Orcs and Gobs cooperated with their human allies extremely well. They seemed to almost intuit every movement their fellow soldier is going to make and move alongside them in perfect unison. After training with them, it soon became very clear to the human men why Orc mercenaries are so sought after.

The Baron was very pleased with his decision. The Orcs were making an excellent addition to the pikewall, and the Gobs were getting very good at firing on the move. He very much wanted to keep as many of them as possible at the end of this campaign.

Their forces contained a total of 750 men. 329 pikemen, 60 swordsmen, 297 gunners, and 47 skirmishers. He had lowered their number of swordsmen, keeping only the best, most experienced men to serve as a sort of smaller ‘shocktrooper’ unit for storming fortifications and fighting in close proximity where a longer weapon would be a liability. They were outfitted with the best armor Klarwasser had on hand, though only a small number had enchanted plate, the vast majority of them were still issued unenchanted armor.

As the Baron was filling out the Klarwasser ledger, totaling up the expenditure of hiring, arming, and feeding hundreds of Orcs at once, a knock sounded at his door, and before he said anything the door flew open, revealing a grinning Fergus holding a scroll with the seal of Londonsburg on it.

"Baron, Skipper's giving us new orders. Didnae read them, not sure if I'm allowed."

The Baron got up from his chair and took the letter.

"Only Ludwin and I are allowed to read these letters, though Ludwin will most likely tell you about it if you ask, as will I.”

The Baron opened the letter and swiftly skimmed the content.

"Ok…seems we are to head to Castle Cornwall to reinforce the garrison. We will be there for around two weeks, though we may be there longer depending on how the enemy moves. It's just about a day's march from here, south-western Londonsburg, close to the border. Near the city of Cornwall. Apparently Orcs only really care about the castles strategically, so even though it’s a huge castle right next to a city they don’t attack any of the civilians and things continue as normal..."

The Baron looked at Fergus incredulously.

"That is very strange. Do their civilians not take up arms to resist the invaders? Not even a few radicals?"

Fergus shrugged.

“Donnae ken, guess not. I ‘eard Orcs’re real different from us, like the way they think ‘bout stuff. It should make fightin’ ‘em somewhat interesting, and we donnae have to worry about anyone massacring civilians. I ‘ear last time it ‘appened you intervened.”

The Baron smiled and nodded.

“Ah, sweet memories. Some so called ‘honorable’ allies I had when I worked with the Human king of the Huo Empire. His general lost control of his troops and they had set their sights on a nearby village containing an ethnic minority, I believe they were Ottoman. I got combat, and I got to feel morally superior. A win-win situation really. The only thing I regret is that I did not act sooner.”

Fergus smiled and nodded.

“That’s real good, Baron. We gotta make sure tae look out for that in tha future. I will be takin’ action immediately.”

The Baron laughed raucously and slapped Fergus’s back.

“I would be right next to you!”

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About three miles out from Castle Cornwall, a Gob scout returned to the Klarwasser column. Baron was at the front, mounted on horseback, flanked on either side by his lieutenants.

“Boss! Cornwall’s under attack! It just started! Does Yorksburg gits’re assaultin’ da castle!”

“Are you sure?”

The Gob nodded emphatically.

“Saw it with me own eyes!”

The Baron smiled and turned to his column.

“Excellent. Doubletime it men! Our allies depend on us!”

A cacophony of acknowledgements came from the column and they began to move quicker.

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In no time at all the Klarwasser mercenaries made their way to the forest’s edge, just a few hundred paces away from the ongoing battle. It seemed to be going poorly for the defenders. While the enemy had yet to fully breach the walls, they were making steady progress. Siege ladders were docked and held in place by Orcs, a siege tower was almost to the walls, and a battering ram was smashing into the castle gates every few seconds.

The castle was fully surrounded, though the side with the battering ram looked to be thinner than the other sides. All around the battering ram were dead and dying Orcs, arrows sticking out from bodies and heads caved in by rocks thrown from the walls.

It’s only a matter of time at this rate.

“Form ordered ranks men! Gunners in front!”

His men spread out along the tree line, quickly and efficiently forming rows of guns and pikes.

“Luckily for us, they do not seem to have noticed our prescience! We have the element of surprise! Men! I have a plan! A simple plan!”

A few stragglers were still moving to their places. The Gunners were checking their flashpans and fiddling with their plug bayonets.

“We are going to break through their lines, destroy their battering ram, get everyone inside the castle, and then cleanse the castle of the Yorksburg infestation. Gunners will approach and fire when they have entered effective range. The first row will fire then affix bayonets while the second and third row move forward. They will then follow suit. The pikemen will be on either side of the gunners to prevent anyone from getting too close! Swordsmen will be behind the gunners, and when each row has fired and affixed bayonets you will lead the charge! Understood?”

The Baron’s men shouted ‘Yes sir!’

“Then form up men! One of the powder wagons will use their powder to blow up the battering ram before entering! The pikemen are not to advance past the front line! Remember! Your job is to protect the wagons and keep the enemy off of our flanks!”

The Baron’s men again shouted their acknowledgements and ran to form up. One of the Gobs jogged over to the Baron.

“Well, what do wez do? Wez is skirmishas’!”

“Well, I suppose you should skirmish them. Or you could ride on the wagons and fire from there? Yeah, let's go with that. The Gobs are to ride on the wagons and fire from there, then when the ram is given to you men it will be your responsibility to light the powder! Understood?”

The Gob yelled ‘Roight’ and left to tell his fellow Gobs.

The three rowed line of gunners stood in between blocks of pikemen, pikes shouldered. Behind them was a block of heavily armored swordsmen, along with Udo, Gaius, and Fergus, as well as various covered carts with Gobs riding on top behind them. The Baron raised his saber and tilted it forward.

“Let’s get to it men!”

The mercenaries yelled in unison and began to move forward, each row taking their first step after the one in front of them until the whole formation was moving as one, cohesive unit made up of neat lines and rows.

Klarwasser marched forwards until they had entered their effective range, around 200 yards. The enemy were surrounding the castle, all in neat lines and rows, shields raised to protect them from whatever the defenders threw at them. On either side of the gate ladders were docked on the walls and Orcs were climbing, making slow progress as falling stones knocked men off of ladders.

A loud crash could be heard over the din of battle as the battering ram slammed into the closed gates. They were nowhere close to being knocked down, but it was only a matter of time. The Baron looked around to see if anyone was pointing them out, and he found none. None of the attackers had noticed them yet, or at least not enough to raise an alarm.

“Forward fifty more paces! The closer we are the more effective the volleys! Swiftly men!”

After fifty more paces the lines came to a halt. The pikemen lowered their pikes on either side of the gunners, spear points aimed towards their enemy at three different levels. The first row raised their guns, and the Baron raised his saber before slashing down.

“Fire!”

The thunderous boom of over a hundred guns firing at once echoed through the valley Castle Cornwall was situated in. The shot slammed into the backs of the Orcs, killing dozens on impact. The men stepped aside to open a gap while they pulled their bayonets out of their sheaths.

The second row rushed through the gaps and formed up. When they were all in place, they raised their muskets. The Baron again raised his saber and swung it down while yelling at them to fire.

As the siege attackers turned to see what the noise was and found another volley of shot crashing into their lines. The second row copied the first row, and the third ran past both rows to form up. As soon as the third row got to the front, the swordsmen got ready to pass through the lines and lead the charge.

“Fire!”

Many Orcs had managed to wheel around and present their shields forwards. Many bullets were blocked by shields and armor, but many also were able to punch through their defenses or find a gap in their mangled formation. Additionally, the defenders noticed the turned Orcs and had begun to loose their powerful bows into their backs.

The third row quickly affixed bayonets and made room for the swordsmen to pass by. As soon as their allies had passed, the three rows immediately closed ranks. The Baron thrust his saber forward.

“Charge men! Grind the Yorksburg Orcs to dust!”

The men roared and began to run forwards, swords raised in the air and bayonets chambered for a thrust. The pike formation moved with them, though not nearly as quickly. It was possible that the enemy could counterattack and surround the charging forces before the pikes had arrived, but it was unlikely.

The Baron charged with them, slowly transitioning from trot to canter to full gallop as his men got closer and closer. The Orcs were quickly closing ranks and filling in gaps, but they could not possibly do it quickly enough. Soon enough, the two sides clashed.

The Baron’s horse slammed into a small knot of Orcs who had yet to effectively form and raise spear points. He sent one of them flying, and the rest tumbling to the ground. The Baron’s saber found the neck of an Orc as he fell, opening it from side to side. He parried a spear thrust and leaned to the side, sliding his saber down the haft and slashing up from clavicle to jaw, his enchanted weapon going through the Yorksburg Orc’s body like a hot knife through butter.

The swordsmen and gunners crashed into the disorganized attackers, finding gaps in both formation and Orcish guards and exploiting them easily. Kaltzbagers flashed around round shields and found unprotected flesh. Bayonets crashed into shields and Orc alike, punching through the wooden faces and piercing Orcish brigandine.

Udo thrust with his longside alongside the gunners, piercing the faces and slashing the vitals of any Yorksburg Orc he could. Fergus hooked the ankle of an Orc and pulled, dragging him towards them and bringing him to the ground, where he was swiftly finished by multiple bayonet thrusts. Gaius swung his greatsword down in a great arc, smashing through Orcish helmet, shield, and armor as his massive arms and twisting body produced an ungodly amount of force.

Udo parried a thrust aimed at his neck with the false edge of his sword and thrust, piercing the Orc’s brigandine. He did not make it all the way through, his sword stopping just short of touching flesh. The Orc responded by untangling their weapons and thrusting around Udo’s sword. Udo tilted his torso at the waist, just barely avoiding a direct hit. The spear tip traced a trail of gore across the side of Udo’s head and cut out a small chunk of his ear.

Udo threw himself back, slamming into the men behind him. He did not go through, as their formation was very dense. He slid down the While it was not a mortal injury, Udo’s vision was blurry, and his head felt heavy. A spear thrust down at the prone human and found a gap in his armor, piercing into his armpit. It was pure luck that the spear did not reach deep enough to end his life.

The Orc pulled back his spear and chambered a thrust, but before he could let it loose two pikes crossed over the top, pushing the Orc’s spear down as another pike thrust over his round shield and into his neck. As the Orc slowly tumbled backwards, spewing a fountain of blood, Udo was dragged out of formation. Two of his comrades had pulled him out and on to his feet, basically picking him up as they rushed to get him medical attention,

The attackers on the other sides of Castle Cornwall were finally beginning to notice, however, they were prevented from assisting their allies by a wall of pikes. The battering ram had been dropped and its operators were killed. The gate was nearly clear already as his men hammered their enemy against the anvil of the gate.

The powder cart had been pushed forward, the Gobs firing off shots on any isolated targets they saw or any archers who turned to rain arrows on their new foe. They hopped off as a dozen men hoisted the ram onto their shoulders and practically threw it into the cart, which creaked and lowered as the massive log and cast iron ram’s head was lowered onto it.

Ludwin scrutinized the battlefield, carefully considering his options and looking for opportunities when he noticed that there was a gentle slope leading down towards the enemy. He rode over to the cart and began pointing and shouting.

“Aim the cart towards the enemy! When you light the fuze, push the cart towards the enemy! Pikemen! Allow the cart to come through your lines! In fact, help push it! The momentum will carry it forwards!”

The cart was swiftly aimed at the pike wall, and by extension the enemy. A soldier swiftly lit the fuze by striking a flint against his sword and began to push with his comrades. The fuze was long, so they had time before it blew, around twenty seconds. As the cart began to gain speed, the pikemen in front of it parted, protected by their fellow soldiers in the formation.

The cart gained speed and momentum as it began to go down the slope while being pushed by over a dozen men. They let go and allowed the cart to speed towards the enemy, careening into the thick of the organized Yorksburg Orcs, crushing those who did not dodge and forcing those who did to throw themselves to the ground.

“Now begin to move back! Slow and steady! Do not break formation! Do not break ranks! We are heading towards the gates!”

The men yelled in acknowledgement and began to slowly step back, keeping their formation orderly and their pikes forward. As they performed their fighting retreat, the powder finally ignited in a massive, deafening explosion. Dozens of Orcs were killed in the blast, and dozens more were severely injured by the shockwave and shrapnel created by the cart, the ram, and the Orcs closest to it.

An Orc wearing gray plate armor looked over the parapet to the Baron and waved. The Baron bowed his head in greeting and gestured to his men with his saber.

“Hello there! Open the gates! We were sent by the Skipper of Londonsburg! We’re here to-Oh shit!”

The Baron flung himself to the side and hung off the side of his horse as he dodged a spear thrust aimed at his flank. He allowed himself to slam into the ground as he drew a pistol from his chest holster and fired into his attacker’s heart.

The Orc at the top of the castle gave the Baron a thumbs up and left the parapet, yelling something that the Baron couldn’t quite hear.. As he got up and pulled himself back onto his horse, the Baron breathed a sigh of relief before taking a deep breath.

“Men! Finish our enemy! Hold the line! The gate is opening! We’ll be within the walls soon enough!”

The men cheered and redoubled their efforts. The Orcs pushed up against the gate were slaughtered, and not a single Yorksburg soldier made it past the pikewall. The gate began to creak, opening very, very slowly.

“Ready yourselves pikemen! You are responsible for keeping us alive! After the carts have passed, you will perform a fighting retreat inside the castle!”

The pikemen cheered and held firm. As soon as the gate was open wide enough, the carts started to roll through. The gunners and swordsmen, now mostly out of enemies, assisted in pushing the carts, and after a few minutes the last cart was moving through the gates. The enemy was beginning to increase the pressure on the pikewall, moving their forces from the other side of the castle.

“Let’s get moving men! One step at a time! Ludwin! Inside! Talk to the commander until I finish here!”

The pikemen shouted their acknowledgement and began to slowly move, one step back at a time, back row to front row. They kept their ranks close, and every man stepped in perfect unison. The front row kept the Yorksburg Orcs at bay while the rows behind them took their steps, and those rows pushed back any Orc who approached as the front stepped back.

The progress was slow, but steady. They were greatly aided by the castle garrison’s efforts, volleys of thick arrows loosed from massive Orcish longbows tore through the Yorksburg brigandine and weighed down Orcish roundshields.

The Baron rode through the gates and immediately dismounted. As someone approached to talk, he shoved the reins into their hand and ran back to his men. He grabbed a round, iron grenade dangling off of his belt and lifted a finger, producing a small flame.

“Loud noise incoming! Try to ignore any shrapnel that hits you! Don’t stumble!”

He touched the flame to his bomb’s fuze and chucked it over his men’s heads. It landed on the ground in the midst of a formation of Orcs and exploded a few seconds later. Anyone caught within the blast radius, around fifteen feet, were killed instantly, about ten Orcs. Many more caught pieces of shrapnel, some only getting minor injuries while others were either killed outright or would die soon with no medical intervention.

A small amount of shrapnel made it to the pikes, but most of it bounced off armor, and the rest created small, non-life threatening wounds. Most importantly, none of them stumbled. The Baron took stock of the battlefield, looking over everything with his discerning, battle tested eye.

The siege towers surrounding the castle were all burning and falling apart, which was good. However, because the towers were being destroyed, the rest of the army was beginning to consolidate their forces on this side, creating a massive wave of Orcs which threatened to steamroll everything in its way.

The left flank was holding just fine, but the right was beginning to have some trouble. A few men had been dragged out of formation or found a lucky arrow or spear point in their neck. The Baron would need to intervene. He felt around his body for grenades, and found none remaining. He figured he wouldn’t be needing any and left them in a cart.

The Baron clicked his tongue, then eyed the flaming towers again. The two closest to him had become completely engulfed in flame and, more importantly, were close enough for him to act. His eyes began to glow green and he began to perform a martial ritual.

He put his hands down palm up near his waist and lifted them slowly as he took in a deep breath. The glow in his eyes intensified, and he could feel the heat leaving his fingers. He widened his stance, bending his knees and leaning forward as he raised a fist near his head. He exhaled as he stomped forward, and the flame on the towers began to slowly die down. His eyes began to shine a dark green light onto the men in front of him and he thrust his fist into the ground, gouging out some of the frozen dirt.

The ground rumbled for a few seconds, everyone in the area nervously stole glances at the men next to them. Then, the rumble intensified.

Great spikes of earth shot out of the ground, impaling dozens of Orcs engaged with the Baron’s men. An Orc got hit with two spikes, one lifting him up by piercing his lower back, the other impacting his arm and ripping right through, leaving it dangling by a few threads of sinew. He screamed and was swiftly put out of his misery by a spearpoint entering his throat.

“Right flank! Into the castle! Break ranks!”

The spikes of earth served a dual purpose: To kill Yorksburg soldiers, and to create a barrier between them and Klarwasser.

The Baron took a deep breath as he turned his attention to the left flank. His body felt very cold, but the towers were still burning strong. He repeated the form, to similar results. As soon as they noticed the Baron doing it again, an order rippled through the Orcs on the left. They swiftly pulled back just as the spikes rose, with just a handful of Orcs unlucky enough to get caught. A spike rose and impacted right at the neck of a retreating Orc, his head moving up and off of his body along with the spike.

The Baron’s breath was coming in rough and ragged, but he could still move just fine.

“You know what to do! MOVE!”

The left flank quickly turned and ran now that there weren’t spears at the backs. The Baron stood in front of the gate as the pikemen passed, taking in deep breaths. The towers were almost out, but not completely. And, being closer to the castle allowed him to access the braziers they had on the walls.

The Orcs were beginning to reform and move around the spikes, as there was still one side that had yet to be blocked. The gate was being closed, but it was moving far too slow. The Yorksburg Orcs could easily cross the distance fast enough to make it in.

The Baron took another deep breath and fell into a deep horse stance, hands on his chest, palms facing the sky. His eyes flashed green and he stepped forward, yelling as he thrust both fists into the ground. He went right through, and continued until the dirt was up to his forearm.

Chunks of earth ripped themselves out of the ground, flying towards the Orcs in an arc. The Baron’s body was freezing cold, however, there was an idea he had been considering lately. His eyes flashed quickly and brightly, forcing anyone looking at him to squint. The chunks of earth exploded, fist sized pellets of earth fanned out like the spread of a shotgun.

Overlapping cones of death rained down on the Yorksburg Orcs, anyone caught within the barrage was killed instantly. Dozens of Orcs cut down in less than a second. And even those on the periphery of the cones received horrific injuries. Arms and legs were turned to mush, rendered completely useless and unsalvageable by the magically propelled rocks.

Even though Orcs rarely broke, they still felt fear and a desire to live. They threw themselves to the ground to avoid the rocks and prayed that their helmets would keep them safe. Anyone unfortunate enough to have any of the shrapnel touch their helmets found very quickly that they did not.

The doors continued to close, but the attacks did not move. The screaming of mangled Orcs echoed around the valley for miles. Dozens killed in an instant, and dozens more receiving life threatening and permanently debilitating injuries as stones ranging in size from a pebble to a fist punched through them with the speed of a bullet propelled by gunpowder.

His idea worked perfectly, but the Baron did not have time to celebrate. The siege towers had been completely extinguished, and he could feel time slowing down, bit by bit, and he was starting to feel numb all over. He stayed in place for a few seconds before some pikemen came to assist.

They quickly dug the Baron out and dragged him into the courtyard proper. The Baron collapsed, shivering violently. His breathing was short and ragged, and the only thing he could make his frozen body do was curl into a ball. Udo, Ludwin, and Fergus immediately ran over. Fergus had grabbed a lit brazier and slammed it down next to the Baron.

One of the pikemen who helped dig the Baron out shouted at some nearby Orcs.

.

“Start a fire or something man! Baron’s getting cold!”

The Orcs stared at him blankly. The soldier quickly closed the distance and yelled in their faces.

“Start a fucking fire!”

The Orcs nodded and quickly got to building a fire next to the Baron, and in just a few dozen seconds there was already a raging bonfire. He looked into the fire and breathed deeply, the red glow of magic completely masked by the orange glow of the bonfire. After he finished his breath, he could feel heat coursing through his extremities, revitalizing his freezing body.

“Excuse me, sir! Can I borrow a log?”

The Baron tilted his head to look over at one of his men, a young man, most likely in his early twenties. The Baron smiled and gestured weakly towards the fire.

“H-help yourself.”

The young man grabbed a large, flaming log and ran off. The Baron’s smile slowly faded and he looked around to see if he could find someone in plate armor, though he didn’t move an inch from the fire. A few moments later, the Orc commander came and found him literally curled up in a ball on the ground.

“Oi, youz da Baron? I ‘Eard Jack’d be sendin’ youz, didn’t really fink it was gonna ‘appen! I’m Jake by de way.”

The Baron smiled a very weak smile at Jake, still shivering. He looked miserable. Miserable and cold.

“Well then, Jake, I’m here. Is the enemy still attacking?”

A loud Boom! was heard from the other side of the gate. It shook the ground violently, and a great plume of dust flew up in the air. Jake smiled brightly.

“Doubt it.”

“Well then, go find-”

A Gob ran over to Jake, literally jumping for joy.

“Boss! Does Yorksburg gits is retreatin’!”

The Baron smiled and took a deep breath before speaking.

“-alright then. Excellent. Um, if you don’t mind. Could we save the formal introduction until after I have warmed up?”

Jake laughed raucously.

“Roight! Don't wanna interrupt yer lesiure! See ya after countin’ da dead!”

He turned around and walked off. The Baron held his hands over the fire. Never before had he missed modern conveniences so much. As he was finally able to move again, he remembered something important and shot up from his fire.

“Udo! Is Udo alright?!”

The Baron ran over to the medicine wagon and found Geidpfeld working on a Londonsburg Orc. The Orc was missing every finger but his thumb on his right hand. Geidpfeld placed a bulb of garlic in the Orc’s palm and touched a lit match to it.

“Geidpfeld! Have you seen Udo?”

Geidpfeld’s eyes began to glow pale pink, signing with his hands over the bulb of garlic. The flame burned faster through the bulb, and bone slowly began to form where each finger used to be. Geidpfeld responded without looking away from his work.

“He’s fine. Up and about, in fact. Spear tip caught his cheek and gorged out some of his ear, then that same spear tip pierced his armpit, though it missed the axillary artery and didn’t go deep enough to kill.”

The Baron breathed a sigh of relief.

“Then I won’t interrupt your work further.”

Geidpfeld nodded his head in thanks and the pink glow in his eyes grew more intense. His full focus was on healing the Orc. The Baron left to find Ludwin to discuss what was to be done after the battle and found him on the parapet watching the Orcs pull back. Next to him was Fergus and Udo.

“Ludwin! Good to see you survived the battle! Sorry for leaving you a little behind, by the way, you know how much battle excites me! Anyway, we need to coordinate with our allies and put our things where they need to go. And by we, I mean you Helmut and Jean. I ask that you go find them quickly.”

After gazing at the marching Orcs for a few more seconds, Ludwin patted Fergus’s shoulder, then turned towards the Baron and saluted. There was no smile on his face, which was slightly surprising to the Baron.

“Yes sir. Of course.”

He looked irritated, and his words contained a small but noticeable hint of venom. The Baron responded, sounding genuinely worried.

“Ludwin? What’s wrong? You sound tense.”

Ludwin sighed and looked the Baron dead in the eyes.

“With all due respect, sir. You just left me out there. I had no orders.”

The Baron gave Ludwin the smile he gave his own son when he felt he was frustrated with his actions.

“Oh. Ludwin. You’re no longer a simple Lieutenant, you’re my vice commander! You have full autonomy to act when I am not there, your orders are to be followed and your authority respected.”

He walked over and patted Ludwin on the shoulder.

“I left you behind because I trust you, Ludwin. You’ve got a good head on your shoulders, and you’ve got a keen strategic mind, I can see it. I have seen the way you look at a battlefield, the same as I. You’re able to take it all in at once. Next time I leave you like that, remember, I trust your judgment.”

The Baron turned towards the retreating Orcs and fell into a parade rest as he spoke..

“You need to trust in yourself, not in me. My choice to have you command the men after I was injured all the way back in Holenstadt may have been arbitrary, but the decision to keep you in that role is nothing but recognition for your talent.”

The Baron turned back to him and smiled.

“When I am not around, the men are to follow your orders. I have made that clear to them, but it seems I have not made it clear to you. And I am doing so now.”

Ludwin took a moment to soak up his words before saluting and running off, presumably to find Helmut and Jean. Fergus looked impressed with the Baron.

“I ken you ken what you’re doin’, but that was right beautiful, what you did there.”

Out of the corner of his eye, the Baron could see Udo nonchalantly making his way towards the stairs.

“I meant every word of it-Udo! Come here!”

Udo froze in place and sheepishly turned around. He smiled his most charming smile and leaned nonchalantly against the wall.

“Hey man. You need something Baron?”

Udo was trying to look innocent, and his voice was casual. The Baron looked unamused.

“You got injured out there. You very well could have died if you weren’t dragged to safety. From now on, I mandate that you wear a helmet into battle.”

Udo looked absolutely crushed.

“But, but you promised man! I hate wearing helmets man! I-I-I mean, sir! My head feels all wrong with one on! And the real injury was to my armpit man!”

The Baron thought for a moment.

“How about this. If you can beat me in a duel, you can forget the helmet.”

Udo looked crushed.

“But sir! That’s not fair!”

“Not my problem, son. You dying is, though. Just be grateful I love you enough to keep you alive.”

Udo walked off, shoulders dropping, staring at the ground as he grumbled. The Baron looked around to find Jake and found him near the medical wagon. As the Baron approached him, Jake turned to him and pointed at the wagon.

“Dat’s cool as ‘ell! What a good idea! Medical wagon! Can’t believe wezz neffa fought ‘o dat! You Empire gitz is smart as ‘ell when ya wanna be.”

The Baron laughed and waved his hand dismissively.

“That is not an Empire thing, it’s a me thing.”

“Den youz is smart as ‘ell.”

“Well it was Helmut who gave me the idea.”

“Meh, don’t fink it matta’s really. You implemented it so it’s youz'ez! Roight, so, wez gotta talk. Deyz been attackin’ us every day! Even if dey’re pullin’ back, dat don’t mean wez is safe. Dey could just be switchin’ out for fresh gits! So youz better get your men roight ready for it!”

The Baron smiled and gestured to the courtyard. His men were quickly and efficiently moving supplies from the carts where they needed to go. And, most importantly for Jack, they seemed to have no qualms about taking orders from non-humans, which was the biggest problem with Imperial mercenaries abroad.

“Don’t worry, we’re the best in the world whether it comes to battle, logistics, or even construction. And I imagine my gunners will be invaluable to the defense of this castle. Even Orcs have trouble staying cool when under small arms fire.”

Jake nodded sagely.

“Roight, I been finkin’ da same fing! ‘Ole time I been ‘ere I been finkin’, ‘man, wish I ‘ad some guns’, ya know? I ‘eard you lot use em, figured dey’d be real good for defendin’ shit! An' dey'd make da Gobs more useful.”

“Your instincts are correct, nothing beats out a firearm for defense. You can get a man ready to for line infantry duty with just a weeks worth of training! Much easier to use than a bow!”

“Really? I been wonderin’ why we don’t use ‘em as much. Answers I got were dat it’s cowardly. And I mean, it do be kinda cowardly to fire at gitz from a couple ‘undred yardz away, but well, can’t argue wif results! Fink you can spare a gun or two for me? Personal collection type fing.”

The Baron walked over and threw his arm around Jake’s shoulder, leading towards the wagons.

“I’m sure we have something laying around you can use. More importantly, we need to discuss our logistics. We brought a lot of supplies with us, but we need to make sure they last.”

“I know all dat! Why not ‘ave your boyz talk to my boyz? I doubt youz is doin’ dat personally all da toime. I don’t!”

Jake laughed raucously. The Baron smiled and released Jake, plucking a musket from a nearby stack.

“Yes, I tend to make my lieutenants take care of that stuff. Let’s talk guns!”

The Baron displayed the musket to Jake. He checked the flashpan and found it empty, so he cocked the hammer back halfway.

“Alright, so here’s how it works…”