The Last Frontier of Fire and Sword

The first round of "shooting" cut off the Russian infantry phalanx by one layer. The remaining Russian soldiers let out a earth-shaking roar, brandishing long axes and sabers, and rushed toward the gap in the bastion.

Due to the continuous falling of shells on the walls of the bastion and Polotsk, they could only rush to the bastion at the fastest speed.

In this position, the collapsing soil hit by the shell formed a gentle slope. Even without a ladder, the soldiers of Tsarist Russia can board the bastion from here.

"Fire."

Before the enemy approached the bastion, the mercenary group's musket fired the last wave of bullets. Then they retreated to the back and sides.

They were replaced by the Pikemen led by Father Spaso Kukecki. The pikemen lined up in five rows densely in the gap, enclosing the gap in a semicircle. The soldiers standing in the front were wearing the uniforms of the pikemen. They nailed the four-meter long spear to the ground obliquely, leaning forward, pressing the end of the spear with their heels, and pointed the spear directly at the gap.

The first batch of Tsarist Russian soldiers who rushed through the gap saw the dense spear heads and instinctively wanted to stop. But the companion behind did not know the situation in front, and still rushed forward desperately. They pushed their companions in the first row and hit the tip of the gun.

Seven or eight Russian soldiers in the front row were instantly pierced into blood gourds. Their bodies hung on the tip of the gun, bending the gun body.

"Pikemen! One step forward." Father Spaso Kukecki yelled.

All the spearmen yelled, and they took neat steps, took a step forward, and pushed the Russian army back.

At this time, the musketeers who retreated to the two-wing triangle fort had also completed the reloading. They raised their muskets and flanked the Russian army gathered in front of the gap.

Because the Russian army's formation was too dense, and it was attacked simultaneously from the left and right wings. The Russian soldiers were caught off guard and were killed and injured for the most part.

In the distance, through single-scope telescopes, Yakov Cherkaski also saw the plight of the first offensive troops. The Russian general waved to the artillery commander, motioning him to fire.

The artillery commander "shows" hesitant "color" on his face. Because there are still compatriots under the bastion, if you fire at this time, they will definitely be hurt.

But General Yakov Cherkaski’s orders cannot be violated, and often only one disobedient officer will end.

Between the "life" of his colleagues and the "kinky" power of the general, the artillery commander chose to succumb to Yakov Cherkaski.

The artillery reloaded the shells, and under the command of the commander, more than ten shells flew out of the barrel and landed accurately on the gap in the bastion and the triangular fort on both sides.

This time, the artillery "fired" the flower shells. At that time, the blooming shells were in the cast iron shell. A paper tube filled with gunpowder was "inserted", and the lead of the paper tube was ignited by the high temperature generated by the "shooting" of the artillery, and then the shell was detonated to form fragments. .

The shelling was so caught off guard, whether it was Chechen or the other officers of the mercenary regiment, they underestimated the cruelty of Yakov Cherkaski, and they paid the price in blood.

Even worse are the Russian soldiers. They had no idea that they would also be the target of attack. In particular, the artillery chose the most eye-catching target of the bastion gap for the accuracy of the "fire" attack. This also caused great casualties to the Tsarist Russian soldiers inside and outside the gap.

After experiencing a moment of loss of consciousness after the shelling, the soldiers of Tsarist Russia immediately woke up. Some people waved their arms behind them, trying to tell the artillery to stop firing, but then the second batch of shells fell accurately. This time, the lives of more than 20 mercenary regiments and Tsarist Russian soldiers were harvested.

The soldiers who had not collapsed in the face of the rain of bullets had completely lost their will to fight. They dropped their weapons and fled towards the Russian positions behind them like an avalanche.

"Father Spaso Kukecki, are you okay?"

Cheerchen ran to the gap and found Father Spaso Kukecki who was standing in the first row in a pikeman uniform. His body is full of red and white filth.

In the shelling just now, the triangle fort on the left where Cheerchen was located was hit by four shells. Two unlucky musketeers were smashed into their heads by the cannonball that came directly, blood and brains sprayed all over the faces of the people around them. Fortunately, only two of the four blooming shells exploded.

"I'm okay, boy." Father Spaso Kukecki stood up and adjusted the ship's helmet that had been crooked to one side.

The safety of Father Spaso Kuktsky was a miracle. Because in the two rounds of shelling just now, eight shells fell around the priest, and six of them exploded. Six people around Father Spaso Kuktsky were dead, but none of the shells wounded the priest.

Seeing that the priest was indeed unharmed, Cheerchen nodded comfortably. He was preparing to organize the troops together with the priest and rescue the wounded, when suddenly there was a neigh of war horses from the position of the Russian army. Sixty cavalry lined up and rushed through the gunpowder, towards the bastion.

Obviously, these are all well-trained cavalry. They quickly changed the formation from the "one" formation to a wedge shape when they were within the "firing" range of the bastion musket at high speed. In this way, the mercenary regiment's firepower would reduce the frontal blow to it.

At this time, only more than twenty pikemen remained in front of the gap in the bastion.

"It's Boyer Cavalry. Be careful, everyone."

Cheerchen, who had experienced the battle of Smolensk, reminded loudly. He knows the horror of these black gods of death.

The Boyer cavalry quickly rushed to the gap in the bastion. They stopped the galloping horse abruptly, and then used a strong bow and pistol to shoot at the gap; the other part of the Boyer cavalry scattered. When they reached the triangle fort, they lighted the grenade in their hands and threw it on.

The pikemen of the mercenary group gathered in front of the gap were caught off guard by the "shoot" at such close range. Almost all of the soldiers in the first row were shot and arrows. Father Spaso Kukecki shot an arrow in the thigh, and when he fell to his knees in pain, a pistol bullet hit his boat helmet. Fortunately, the helmet crafted by Werner's craftsman saved his "life"-the bullet slid through the smooth helmet and was bounced away without penetrating the helmet. But even so, the priest was shocked.

But Cheerchen hesitated to be protected by the Pikemen in the middle, and was not harmed.

"Sir, you and the priest retreat first."

A squad leader of the Pikemen commanded the two Pikemen to drag the wounded Father Spaso Kukecki to the back, and then shouted at Cheerchen.

Cheerchen nodded. He knew that not only did he stay here without any help, but it would distract others.

Cheerchen carried the injured Father Spaso Kukecki back to the back. He said to Piedro and Fatima who were hiding in the hidden road: "Hurry up and bring the organ."

Before the gap, the Boyer cavalry had rushed to the bastion. They blocked the steel shield in front of them and resisted the spears of the spears. Some Boyer cavalry knelt down and crawled under the gap of the spear formation. Seeing this, some pikemen also threw down their spears, drew out their daggers and squatted down, fighting with the Boyer cavalry under the spears.

This is the battle that most tests personal strength. Obviously, the Boyer cavalry trained since childhood is even better. They easily settled the mercenary group soldiers who were confronting them, and then stepped on their bodies to climb to the feet of the first row of pikemen.

The saber imported from Damascus cut open the unprotected leg of the Pikeman. The pikemen in the first platoon cried out one after another and fell to the ground. The pikemen who couldn't fight back were so bewildered by this style of play that they dropped their spears and dispersed.

But this took advantage of Boyer's cavalry's mind. They rushed into the Pikemen's phalanx and furiously hit them with sabers and hammers.

The defense before the gap collapsed.

Yakov, who saw this scene through the binoculars, gave a triumphant smile.

But the smile instantly solidified. Because he saw three flashes of fire flashing through the head of Polotsk, and then three plumes of black smoke rose in front of the gap in the bastion.

"These executioners even fired at their own people." Yakov cursed. He also didn't want to think about how he treated his own people.

The defenders of Polotsk were certainly not so frantic. Since they had pre-booked the elements to be "fired" by the artillery according to Cheechen's calculations before the war, these three shells accurately landed in front of the gap in the bastion without injuring their own people in the bastion. .

But of course Yakov Cherkaski didn't know all of this.

Inside the bastion, the Boyer cavalry who broke into the bastion were also hit hard. The forty-eight large-caliber musket called "Organ" "fired" a dense rain of bullets at the Boyer cavalry from both sides. This time, neither the steel shield nor the precious four mirror armors helped them. The bullet easily ripped the Boyer cavalry's body and smashed them into a sieve.

More than a dozen Boyer cavalrymen were killed on the bastion, and most of the Boyer cavalrymen were beaten by artillery shells and "organs" from the head of Polotsk. At this time, finally had time to drop the long spear that was not conducive to close combat. The pikemen with short swords and the reserve team of the mercenary group surrounded them from both sides. Behind the pikemen, they were in the second line of defense. A lot of spare time mercenary regiment reserve team. After an exchange of fire and short-term combat, the inferior Boyer cavalry was completely driven out.

Among them, there were still three Boyers who were not afraid of death and rushed into the hidden road along the walkway of the bastion.

In the hidden road, Fatima was waiting for them in time. This female assassin from Crimea is now wearing Ottoman-style long metal plate chain armor, wearing a Tatar helmet made of Damascus stainless steel, a Damascus scimitar in one hand, and a steel shield in the other. Posture.

The three Boyer cavalry glanced at each other. Two of them used a knife and one used a hammer, and they surrounded Fatima.

Although Fatima was surrounded, she did not show any fear. She placed the Damascus machete across the steel shield, watching six directions and listening to all directions.

The three Boyer cavalry saw that Fatima's flaws could not be found at all. One of the officers' beards pointed at the Boyer cavalry behind Fatima with his eyes. The Boyer cavalry understood, he brandished his saber and struck him. The heart of Fatima.

Fatima turned the Damascus scimitar and placed it on the back of her heart as if she had eyes behind her back, blocking the blow. At this time, the bearded Boyer yelled and slammed Fatima's head with a page hammer.

Splitting and attacking together, it turns out that this is the real killer move.

Just listen to a bang. The steel shield in Fatima's hand blocked the page hammer. At this time, the third player, Boyer, also rushed up with a saber.

Fatima pushed hard with her steel shield's hand, and "swinged" Bearded Boyer's hammer. Then, she turned around and pushed away the saber behind her, and split his head with a knife before the third Boyer cavalry could react.

This set of movements is smooth and flowing, but the blade is as fast as lightning. The shoddy pointed helmet did not block the Damascus scimitar's chopping, so the Boyer cavalry with the knife only felt a hot head, and a stream of heat emerged from the top of the head, and then fell to the ground.

After solving an opponent, Fatima waved the scimitar in her hand and swung away the blood from the knife. She pointed the tip of the knife at the ground obliquely, and provoked the remaining two Boyer cavalrymen.

"You want to come one by one, or you want to go together." Fatima took off her helmet and let her brown hair fall on her shoulders.

Then she threw the helmet on the ground.

At this time, the gunshots and shouts of killing in the bastion had ceased, and only the artillery on Polotsk Castle was still making a loud noise. Above the hidden road, the figures of mercenary soldiers appeared. Obviously, the other Boyer cavalry were either repelled or eliminated.

"Fatima, do you need help?" Cheerchen shouted, standing on the hidden road. By his side, Pidro was holding two pistols at two Boyer cavalry.

"No, I can handle it," Fatima said.

"Do you want to come one by one, or do you want to come together." Fatima asked again.

The bearded Boyer cavalry and his companion glanced at each other.

"We will have a fair duel with you, one-on-one," said the bearded Boyer cavalry.

Fatima nodded. The bearded Boyer stood aside, obviously he wanted the other Boyer cavalry to go into battle first.

Then the Boyer cavalry also took off his helmet, revealing a handsome young man's face.

"My name is Ivan. I am a nobleman from Kursk, and our family crest is a deer head." The young man introduced himself.

"Fatima, the captain of the mercenary regiment's guard. I don't have a home, let alone a family crest." Fatima said.

Ivan nodded. He dropped the heavy shield on the ground and drew a short dagger from his waist.

Ivan split his two thighs apart and put on a posture of a hungry tiger. Fatima still kept the shield in front of her, and the point of the scimitar pointed at Ivan.

With the force of Ivan's hind legs, his body slammed into Fatima, and the saber in his right hand slashed towards Fatima's neck. Fatima blocked Ivan's slashing with a steel shield. At this moment, Ivan's left dagger slammed into Fatima's chest.

It turned out that Ivan's saber was a false move, and the real fatal blow was the dagger in his left hand.

At this critical moment, Fatima took a sharp breath, and her abdomen and chest slammed into her body like a full bow. Ivan's dagger reached its limit within a finger of Fatima.

Fatima looked at the poor Ivan and smiled. She kicked Ivan's chest with her right leg and kicked Ivan away. Ivan flew out fast, Fatima's speed was even faster, she quickly caught up with Ivan's body that flew out, and used a scimitar to wipe his neck. As a result, Ivan's life was lost.

Throughout the process, the bearded Boyer cavalry kept watching, without any movement.

Fatima looked at the beard and motioned that he could also take action.

"You are strong."

The beard picked up Ivan's saber and said to Fatima with dual weapons.

"Mamluk's swordsmanship, the fighting skills of the Ottoman palace. I didn't expect to see it here."

"I'm just a soldier in the mercenary regiment." Fatima said.

The bearded saber danced with a knife. He interlaced the leaf hammer and the saber, and then cleared the face of the saber.

"Boyer warrior Gomez, please advise."

As soon as the bearded voice fell, the saber cut to Fatima's throat. His move turned out to be exactly the same as Ivan.

This time, Fatima twisted her waist and avoided it. Because she had a hunch, this knife, like Ivan, was a false move.

Sure enough, when the saber crossed Fatima's front and back, Gomez's hammer hit Fatima's chest from top to bottom. Fatima accurately blocked the steel shield where the hammer was about to fall.

The expected impact of the steel shield and page hammer did not occur, but a gunshot reached Fatima's ears. Fatima took the steel shield in front of her, and the bearded Boyer turned her back to her, holding the hammer in her hand and reaching into the air. And the direction he was facing was Cheerchen.

Fatima's pupils suddenly dilated. She finally understood that whether it was a saber or a page hammer, it was a fake move by the bearded—his real goal was Chelchen.

"Head! How are you?"

Because there was a big beard blocking her, Fatima couldn't see Cheerchen's current situation.

"I'm fine."

Fatima let out a sigh of relief when he heard Cheor Chen's voice. At this moment, the beard fell down. His eyes were full of unwillingness, and there was a blood hole in his chest, and it was this blood hole that took his life.

"I shot."

Pidro said to Fatima with a smile while blowing on the still smoking muzzle.

At the moment when the beard turned around, Pidro, who had been watching the duel between the two, felt that the beard was going to be against Cheorchen. He pulled the trigger faster than the beard, and shot it to death.

Yakov Cherkaski threw the telescope to the ground fiercely. When the Boyers were in a heavy siege, the general of Tsarist Russia didn’t expect to send troops to help, but the artillery fire from the walls of Polotsk was on the bastion and the army led by Yakov Cherkaski In front of him, a barrage was formed. And, on his two wings, an unknown number of cavalry units appeared. These cavalry only wandered outside the Russian firepower range and did not attack, but Yakov Cherkaski had to be distracted to guard against them.

What worries Yakov Cherkaski even more is that the Lithuanian cavalry that appeared in the south separated the main force of the Russian army from the sub-units deployed to the west, causing him to lose contact with the Russian army in the west. .

As the saying goes, what you are afraid of. The Russian army to the west was indeed plunged into annihilation. Oshka and Jarosh, the two Titans under Anjay, saw that there were only a few hundred people in the Russian army to the west, and they could no longer hold back. They pleaded in front of Orina, begging to let themselves lead thousands of cavalry out to destroy them.

At the beginning, Orina did not agree to Oshka and Yarosh's plan because of fears that the main Russian attacking mercenary regiment guarded the bastion defense force and needed support. But when she saw Cheerchen repelling the two rounds of the Russian offensive from the tower, Orina finally let go of her heart.

The brave female city lord immediately decided that Oshka and Yarosh led three thousand cavalry out of the city, and severely hit the small Russian army to the west.

The 800 Russian troops outside the west gate were not native chickens. Seeing a large number of cavalry rushing out of Polotsk, they hurriedly set up a defensive formation and sent people to ask for support from General Yakov. Four hundred pikemen were deployed on the four corners of the phalanx, with the musketeers in the middle.

The Lithuanian light cavalry circled the Russian infantry phalanx. Sometimes they quickly approached the phalanx to induce the musketeers in the phalanx to waste bullets; sometimes they approached the small phalanx of the pikemen on the four corners and fired arrows.

The equipment of the Tsarist Russian Pikemen is extremely simple, and their captain-level officers only have a half breastplate. Many pikemen were injured in the rain of arrows from the Lithuanian light cavalry. Although these injuries were not fatal, they greatly affected their combat effectiveness.

Seeing that the time was right, a group of Lithuanian light cavalry armed with ultra-long guns finished in front of the Russian army's phalanx. The ultra-long spears in the hands of these hussars are made to imitate the long spears of the wing cavalry, except that they do not have the gorgeous preparation of the wing cavalry. uukanshu.com they can be called a weakened version of the Wing Cavalry.

The cavalry formed three long lines. Their horses slowly accelerated and reached their highest speed when they were 50 meters away from the Russian army. At this time, the lack of training of the light cavalry also emerged. The original uniform offensive formation, due to the difference between the cooperation of the light cavalry and the pros and cons of individual horses, presents a chaotic situation—some people are too far forward, and some people are too far behind. Group combat has become a single fight.

However, the poor performance of the Russian army and the huge advantage in the number of Lithuanian light cavalry secured the victory for them. The Russian musketeers in the first row were nervous and fired before the light cavalry entered the effective "fire" range. After that, the musketeers in the second, third, and fourth rows also burnt out the bullets in the barrel before the officer ordered them.

The light cavalry armed with ultra-long spears broke through the Russian army's phalanx after paying dozens of losses. The morale of the Tsarist Russian soldiers was completely shaken. No matter how the officers shouted, they no longer obeyed the orders, but began to flee for their lives. The solid phalanx collapsed.

Next, the light cavalry began to reap the lives of the Russian infantry who had lost their will to fight. As their counterparts have been doing for thousands of years. The last frontier of fire and sword