Jump to content

From the Smouldering Ashes


Recommended Posts

"Madame Général, the enemy is approaching.", one of the staff officers reported, though Arnault-Delareux did not need such commentary. She could see it herself through her own binoculars, as the staff observed the battle unfold before them. "Is everything ready?", the general asked dryly and another staff officer dilligently reported. "As ordered, Madame Général. Fire should be incoming any moment." Arnault-Delareux merely nodded while continuing to observe the enemy movements.

 

The Republican Army of Maine, one of the southern Commonwealth sympathisant factions had managed to cross the old border and was now approaching the Acadian positions along the Saint John river. With the collapse of the Commonwealth and its successor states and the retreat of the Japanese, the centralised administration had quickly grumbled and Arnault-Delareux had quickly escaped north to her homeland in Acadie. But while she had escaped a mob that wanted her dead, she had not escaped the brutality that would follow, as the country broke apart and differing factions vied for power over the vast lands. In the absence of any other instance, liberals and leftists battled the entrenched elites, and with much bloodsheds, one side or the other would eventually prevail. Acadie fell on the ordered side. Whatever republican sentiment there was, the Général had quickly moved to surpress it, depending on both loyalists and local milice irregulars, responsible for keeping order in these harsh times. But while Acadie, by virtue of its longstanding ties to counter-revolutionary thought had stayed under the nominal control of the Archduchess of Acadie and the de facto control of the Armée d'Acadie, neighbouring Maine stayed democratic and soon mustered its forces to defend its newfound freedom from neighbouring reactionaries. Clashes along a disputed border ensued and within a week, Acadie and Maine were at war, the former being assisted by like-minded Quebec, the latter assisted by its fellow New Englanders. A lot of bad blood existed between the two sides, as a new conflict ensued in the region, rekindling memories of the Saint Lawrence War, and the annexation of Acadie into the Commonwealth.

 

Up to now, Arnault-Delareux had ceded the field to the New Englanders and had retreated towards the Saint John river. The enemy had attacked with a large expeditionary force that she could not hope to defeat with the sparse border guards. Instead, the Général had chosen to buy some time, to allow reinforcements from the North and East arrive and concentrate the forces for a counter-attack. And although she had to cede great amounts of land, Arnault-Delareux found herself now confident to push the enemy out of Acadie. The republican forces, which up to now only encountered sporadic resistence from poorly trained and equipped local milice units had grown careless and as they approached the village of Grimrose, an army was awaiting them already. First, a few single fire exchanges could be heard, then several mortar rounds. The Acadians had opened fire. But Arnault-Delareux kept most of her forces in reserve. She didn't want to just win. She wanted to win decisively. It was questionable whether Acadie could subdue Maine. Their fellow New Englanders were going to liberate them again and unless Quebec actually provided troops and not just material, the Acadian forces were insufficent for any such effort. But still, knocking out Maine's forces and forcing them onto the defense would prevent a protracted fight on Acadian soil, something that could easily exhaust the small duchy.

 

And the tactic paid off. Through her binoculars, Arnault-Delareux could clearly see the assault mounted by the enemy as they tried to flush out her forces with their superior mass and in the process establish a bridgehead on the Eastern side of the river. But in doing so, they played in Arnault-Delareux' hands. A slightly sadistic grin formed on her face, as she watched the primitive wave of soldiers. "Apart from mass and vigour, they haven't much else. They aren't much without their technology and aircraft...", she remarked with a condescending tone. "Madame Mallet, please tell the reserves to advance as soon as the field is clear again. We shall not give them enough time to even breath." One of the staff officers saluted and hastily picked up a field telephone to relay the orders. Meanwhile, it was just as the first enemy troops reached the riverbanks, that a sudden whistling set in. The republican forces looked around, a few more experienced troops, maybe former servicemen, immediatly ducked or sought whatever cover they could find in the field, and within splitseconds the first rocket tore into the field, throwing dirt and debris in every direction. More rockets followed, blanketting the field and stopping the assault immediatly. For about ten seconds, rocket after rocket exploded among the southerners and after a sole two seconds of silence, which the Acadian soldiers took to confirm that the battery of Almace rocket launchers were now reloading, with a loud "Pour l'Acadie! A l'attaque!", the counter-offensive began.  The still disoriented troops that survived the barrage and knew not whether to press on or fall back were quickly gunned down and overwhelmed, as the troops in Faraway green uniforms finally showed themselves. Meanwhile, a squadron of Acadian Chasseurs à cheval, mounted infantry sheered off from the small cavalry reserves of the Armée d'Acadie, in order to flank the retreating troops. With carbines and sabers ready, they were to make sure that the enemy not regrouped. Somehow, Arnault-delareux wondered what times she had been thrown back to. But with most of the militias lacking in anything heavier than a mortar, old tactics became increasingly effective again.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...