Chapter 116: Panhala Fort Battle! Part: 2
The artillerymen quickly debugged the cannons, and the elevation was adjusted to hit the city wall. Amir cursed as his guess came true, and seeing as they were preparing to launch an attack, he quickly ordered his people on top of the city wall to evacuate towards the second line of defence.
"Fire," Kiran said.
"Boom boom boom boom boom boom boom."
Seven consecutive back-to-back cannons roared as the sound superimposed, causing there to be turbulence in the already turbulent air. The Vijayanagara camp was filled with the smell of gunpowder, as the top of the city wall was cleanly sheared off.
The ground rumbled like a mini-earthquake as the bombardment continued, but Kiran was not satisfied because he could see that the old man had already evacuated the city wall and should be concocting some devious schemes. An hour more of bombardment, and the city wall gave way as it slowly crumbled into pieces with all the pain it had to endure. After the wall crumbled, it was clear what the old man wanted to do, as Kiran could see a second defense line between the houses. He couldn't even get a proper shot through the cannon as a lot of buildings got in the way. "This sly old fox," he muttered under his breath.
He fell into contemplation as he was sure what the old man wanted to do, but he could not think of any good solution. He was inherently not good at aggression tactics. Even though he was not proficient with aggression tactics, he was assigned to this fort because Vijay wanted him to conquer Panhala and defend it tightly, and defending, that he could do better than anyone among his peers. Martial Logananda had plans to make Panhala the hub for procuring resources from the empire because it already had a developed transportation system to Nagpur, another important node to fully occupy Maharashtra, making their lives easier.
He couldn't think of any tactics to outplay the sly old fox, and he couldn't wait any longer as he was on a tight deadline, with all the immediately available resources of Vijayanagara used to fund this war, he couldn't waste a single dime. The only advantage he still had left was the hidden cards of the gunners and the grenadiers. Making up his mind, he ordered the heavy infantry to open up the way.
The heavy infantry, clad in strong iron armour and carrying large shields, formed their formation on the battlefield again. A whole brigade of heavy infantry stood in a tight formation, making an indestructible charge. The moment they crossed the wall, they endured a barrage of attacks from multiple directions. Arrows cut through the air, hitting the exposed spots on their bodies, and crossbows tore through the iron armour, breaking people into two pieces.
"Slash!"
The formation was crumbling; hundreds of tightly knit, individual squads compressed the formation again as their brethren fell down one by one. They only took their place and were getting slaughtered. Kiran's eyes blazed with fire as he saw this scene; his army was getting slaughtered, but this was the price he had to pay for him to get close enough. And getting close enough is what they goddamn did. The heavy infantry was forced right through the heart of the Mughal defence line.
"While I would have liked to arrest you and bring you back to the Empire as a captive, unfortunately, we have lost a lot of people because of you," he said with hatred in his eyes.
Amir Ali Khan guessed what was about to come. He let out a sigh as he took his beloved Talwar in his hand, tightened his grip, and stood up in an upright posture. He had an intense intent to fight in his eyes, and his aura began to change to that of a warrior who cared about nothing but defeating the opponent even at the expense of his life.
Kiran, who saw these details, was not fazed, as he himself had the advantage of being much younger and stronger. He could end it all with a single bullet, but he chose not to because he accepted the person in front of him as a respected opponent.
"Come," Amir said as he was the first to move, swinging his Talwar at Kiran's head, forcing him to dodge at the last moment. Kiran backhanded his sword and swung it, taking leverage from his momentum. The old man quickly ducked down, with rich experience switching the Talwar's face and tried to give an uppercut slash. It was very close, and in the last movement, Kiran moved his head sideways, chipping off the tip of his ear.
Their confrontation went on like this for a few more moves, and the injuries of both parties got higher and higher. If it were anyone else against Amir Ali Khan, they would have lost, but unfortunately, it was Kiran Pujari who took pride in his swordsmanship. Among the four generals, he was the best there was. Although he was slightly at a disadvantage against Amir Ali Khan, his younger and stronger body made up for it.
As Amir's pace began to wane, unable to sustain the same level of intensity, Kiran seized the moment. With calculated precision, he initiated a subtle slash aimed at the older man's head, only to pivot at the last instant, transforming the motion into a swift forward thrust.
"Squish."
The sword pierced through Amir Ali Khan's chest, cutting through his body and emerging from his back. His form stiffened, and he gradually bent forward, the blade firmly lodged in his chest.
He stumbled across the military camp and plopped on a chair without any energy. With difficulty, he pulled out the sword that had punctured his lungs out of his body. Looking at Kiran's young face, he felt unwilling. This was the last stubbornness of the old man. As he held the bloody Talwar in his hand, he steadied his back for a final time and launched the Talwar into the ground.
"Well, you win," the old man, with a bloodied and tired body, said in his last moments, the clearest he had ever been.
With the death of the commander, the battle ended with a hard-won victory for Vijayanagara, with only 7000 soldiers remaining. It was the hardest victory Vijayanagara had to face to date.
Overcoming the grief of the fallen soldiers, Kiran swiftly regained his composure, realizing that the war was far from over. He promptly issued orders for the reconstruction of the damaged walls and strategically positioned the unused 12 KG calibre cannons as defensive artillery atop the walls. The fortifications were reinforced, creating a more robust line of defence.