Tyranny of Steel

In the dead of night, the Cavalry of the First and Second Divisions of the Austrian Army rode out through no man's land into the fray as the Iberian forces and their foreign volunteers fled from the field of battle after witnessing the supposed fall angels from the heavens.

In reality, this chaotic sight was nothing more than Austrian flares illuminating the Iberian positions and artillery fire falling upon them. However, the superstitious medieval people of Iberia had no way of knowing of such military advancements in the hands of their enemies. 

Despite this, the Iberian Catholics were so frightened from the horror they witnessed that they began to abandon their encampments and supplies as they fled for their lives, turning their backs to the Austro-Granadan alliance. 

Berengar ordered his Cavalry to run down the survivors in response to this. Thus he charged into the fray once more, with a revolver in one hand and a saber in the other; he began to fire upon the fleeing Catholics as he neared their position. 

A loud bang went off as the 1422 Service Revolver fired its .38 SPC projectile down range and into the back of an unsuspecting Iberian Crusader; his white surcoat was immediately stained with his blood as the projectile blasted through his armor and into his chest, reaping his soul in the process. 

Immediately following this shot, Berengar's mighty steed strolled past another routing soldier where he cut down his saber and into the man's unarmored neck, where the head flung off his shoulders in a merciless decapitation. 

By the King of Austria's side were the veteran forces of his Royal Guard, as well as the Austrian Hussars who unleashed their advanced weapons upon their foes as they charged forth on horseback. Those who did not use revolvers were issued with needle carbines specifically intended for Cavalry use. 

The overwhelming volume of fire from the 10,000 strong cavalry forces as they advanced upon the tens of thousands of fleeing Iberians was enough to cut them into ribbons. Bodies fell into the muddied terrain where they either bled out or were crushed by the weight of the Warhorses' hooves.

To the Castilian Duke who had just recently engaged in conflict against a brutal guerilla campaign waged by the Granadan Royal Guard, it was as if hell itself had ascended from the depths and swallowed the Iberian peninsula. As he fled on foot from the Austrian Cavalry, a member of the Royal Guard rapidly caught up to his position, where he noticed the tabard on the man's torso. 

Realizing that the cowardly man fleeing before him was none other than Duke Lorenzo de Benavente, the Cuirassier quickly pulled out his pistol and aimed for the man's leg, where he fired a shot. The first shot missed entirely, but the Cuirassier remained undeterred; he quickly fired another shot which once more missed.

It was not until the fifth bang had resounded from the revolver's muzzle that the bullet penetrated through the Duke's shin, fracturing the bone in the process and crippling the man. Lorenzo immediately fell into a pool of mud as the Cuirassier dismounted his horse and arrived before the once proud Duke. 

As the Cuirassier approached, Lorenzo surrendered his arms and admitted defeat; as a nobleman, he was afforded the privilege of ransom. No matter how advanced the Austrian army may have become, he was sure that his feudal rights as a nobleman would be respected. 

The Cuirassier bound the nobleman in ropes before dragging him off to the Trenchline. As for Berengar and the other members of his Cavalry, those who managed to escape were fortunate enough to have seized a horse from the encampment before withdrawing. The others were killed in battle or captured, much like their previous commander. 

Over tens of thousands of men from the Iberian Army were disarmed and led back to the Trenchline, where they were destined to become captives of the Austro-Granadan alliance. After arriving at the trench line, the Cuirassier laid the Duke down before Berengar and his Generals, who gazed upon the man who had tormented Arnulf and the Granadan Royal Guard for some time.  Arnulf was so thoroughly enraged at the losses he had suffered over the past few months that he immediately backhanded the Castillian Duke, who had a smug expression on his face.

"You bastard, what is so funny!?!"

Lorenzo chuckled before announcing his perceived immunity.

"I am a Duke and am afforded ransom by the laws of men! You can not harm me!"

Berengar's lips curled into a wicked smile as he heard this claim before pulling out his revolver, which was now reloaded and pressing it against the man's skull. What remained of Lorenzo's army gazed in horror as they witnessed their liege's rights be violated. The young Austrian King pulled back the hammer of his weapon and began to mock the man, who immediately lost all confidence in his smug statement.

"Is that so?"

Berengar laid his finger upon the trigger as he slightly pulled it back, however before the gun could go off, Berengar grabbed ahold of the hammer and slowly laid it back down to a double-action position, where he looked upon the Duke a kind gaze as he lowered the firearm.

"You are right; you are afforded ransom..."

Duke Lorenzo sighed in relief as he witnessed Berengar's smile and merciful words, whereas Arnulf immediately began to protest this course of action. However, Berengar immediately raised his hand, silencing him in the process where his warm expression shifted to that of a demonic gaze.

"Let's play a game, shall we?

The moment Lorenzo heard these words, he immediately felt as if his soul had been plunged into the depths of hell; his lips began to waver as he struggled to find the words in his mind.

"What... What do you intend to do to us!?!"

Berengar began to stride back and forth with confidence as he began to express his evil plan.

"It is quite simple; I will cut you and your army loose, where you shall be allowed to run north, back to your homes. However, when you have reached a certain distance, I will order my artillery to open fire on you all. If God is truly on your side, then you will survive the barrage and make your way to freedom; if not, well then may the Lord have mercy on your soul."

Arnulf gazed upon Berengar's back with a look of shock as he heard these words, whereas Adelbrand had a cruel smile etched upon his face. He felt that this "game" of Berengar's would be genuinely entertaining. As for Lorenzo, he could not fathom what he was hearing; he had personally witnessed the destructive display of the Austrian artillery and immediately began to shiver in fear.

"And... if we refuse?"

Upon hearing this, Berengar kneeled in front of Lorenzo, so he was at eye level and spoke with a chilling tone.

"Then my army shall execute you all!"

After saying this, Berengar stood up and turned around so that he was facing his troops; after a few seconds of hesitation, Lorenzo swallowed the saliva pooled up within his mouth with an audible gulp before nodding his head in affirmation.

"Alright, we will do it!"

After hearing this, Berengar turned around with a smile on his face as he began to speak in a cheerful tone.

"Wonderful! Remember, not one step back, or I will shoot you myself!"

After saying this, Berengar turned back towards his army, giving them their orders.

"Release the prisoners!"

Those who had not heard Berengar's plans gazed upon him with shock, but they refused to disobey; as such, they cut the Iberians loose, Where they marched forward on foot towards Castile. Two of his underlings supported Lorenzo as they helped the crippled Duke march along. 

After the army of prisoners was out of earshot, Berengar immediately issued an order to his artillery brigades.

"Load the guns and prepare to fire once they have reached a safe distance, do not stop firing until every last man has been obliterated! We will see who God truly favors in this conflict!"

After hearing the King's words, the Austrian artillery began to make range adjustments before loading their field guns with the 75x200mmR shells. Only after the Iberian prisoners had reached a distance of over 600m, the thunder of the field guns echo in the air. 

The moment the familiar sound of the sound barrier-breaking crackled in the sky, the prisoners gazed in horror as they began to panic and sprint north as fast as they could muster. Lorenzo had not informed them of their fate, for it was far too cruel to say. The first shell to land upon the Catholics directly fell upon Lorenzo as he made the sign of the cross and said one final prayer; in the next moment, he was blasted to bits. 

Berengar looked upon the army in the distance through his binoculars as the shells continued to fall upon them; by the end of the barrage, not a single man remained standing. In his cruelty, Berengar had wiped out an army of tens of thousands of men who had already surrendered. As for those who managed to escape the senseless slaughter made up but a fraction of the force that initially consisted of a hundred thousand strong. 

With this victory, 1/5th of the Iberian Forces had been slaughtered; if not for their fear of the flares, and artillery they may have managed to put up a better fight. Yet, Berengar's military technology was so far advanced over his enemies that they believed it to be an act of demonic sorcery; the very thought that Berengar had caused Angels to fall from heaven was enough to force their retreat before they had even begun to fight. 

As for the remainder of the Iberian Armies, they would come to know of this change in a few weeks, as the survivors of this conflict would report everything they had witnessed to their superiors, and thus the Catholics would be prepared for such unfathomable sights. The war for Iberia had only just begun. 

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