They worked through the night, Morojo and Takes.h.i.+, as they were not needed in battle the following day, and would be able to get their rest then. They completed their tasks admirably, and by the time the light of dawn started to flicker down, their eastern wall was complete with a new, far more powerful weapon, that turned as easily as if it were made out of air.
And that eastern wall had been put back together, in a rather jigsaw-like fas.h.i.+on, with wood replacing the gaps where stone had once been, and extra logs that were utilised to scaffold, and ensure that the heavy wall would not come tumbling down, even if every single one of its bricks were pulled out.
"You"ve done a splendid job Takes.h.i.+." Gengyo p.r.o.nounced, tapping the solid metal of the barrel with his hand. "We"ll be able to go cause quite the amount of havoc with this… But for now, you had better go and get some sleep. Make sure Morojo comes with you."
"Yes sir!" Despite his extreme tiredness, Takes.h.i.+ was still able to smile with excitement, mightily proud of the weapon he and the other smiths had bestowed their general with.
And so, another day of war began, with one side feeling a degree more bitter than the other. They had yet to secure any significant victory – despite their damage to the wall – and with how hard they were working on a night, they were very tired indeed.
The Red Feather men, on the hand, were more than ready for a good bit of war, after spending the majority of the previous day relaxing and drinking, before getting an early night, and gleaning their own fair share of sleep.
"What does the battle have in store for us today?" Jikouji asked to no one in particular, casting a sideways glance at the new cannon.
"A good bit of chaos, and a sprinkle of destruction." Gengyo replied with a smile.
"Sound delicious." Morohira commented, as a ripple of laughter spread along the ranks in response to his ridiculousness.
The Mastudaira men spent no time waiting on ceremony this day. They were tired enough from the previous two nights, and with each moment that pa.s.sed, their desire to drift off only increased. They needed the adrenaline of battle to course through their veins, and fend off that fatigue.
The products of their labours were brought out once more. They were able to repair the frames of the previous two ballista, and so save them some time. Alongside these two, was a further ballista, and four siege towers, all looking eager and ready to go.
The stone faced Matsudaira army wheeled them forward slowly and purposefully, towards the range they had established the previous day. It was far enough so that it was out of the way of the cannons – they had found – but also close enough so that the power of the colossal machines did not fall off, and their stakes were able to cause damage to the stone works.
The work was still ongoing in the tunnels as well. This would likely be their last day down there.
The siege towers were brought round, not to the gate bearing wall, but to the southern one, where they knew there to be a lack of ditches, and they would at least be able to get close to the wall.
Matsudaira made a prediction here. It was expensive – material wise – to lay the kind of land mines Gengyo had constructed to defend their gate. He certainly would not have enough to cover the entire perimeter. And so, he took a gamble.
Drawn by the horses, the siege towers ambled across the field, with their army of men behind them, feeling rather secure in their objective, with all the attention so focused on the ballistae. Those four working in combination would almost surely be enough to ensure that the eastern wall came cras.h.i.+ng down.
They had been in their cannon"s range for a while, but still Gengyo had not given the order to fire. "We"re going to be taking damage if we wait any longer." Jikouji warned.
"It"s our surprise card, our hidden tactic. Once we reveal it, the enemy will be given their chance to react. We have to wait until they"re in too deep, so that they cannot draw back. Even then, it"s risky."
The siege towers would soon round that corner, and be untargetable, and the ballistae would soon be set up in their desired position.
"Begin fire on the siege towers. Quickly now! We"ll need more men than that operating it." Gengyo spurred his idle troops into action, and the preloaded cannon was turned swiftly, and aligned with the frontmost siege tower, before a torch was held to its fuse, and its ingredients were ignited.
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM
A thunderous noise, like the raging of a G.o.d. As soon as they Matsudaira army heard that, they new it to be bad news. But there was already a hefty cannon ball travelling towards them, and their cries of dismay were cut off, as would shatter as easily as gla.s.s, and men were torn to pieces.
"LOAD! FASTER THAN THAT, LET"S MOVE!" Jikouji barked, ensuring they worked at the speed that they needed.
The men inside the siege towers were panicking as were the horses. They were torn as whether to go forward, or flee back. One of their towers had already fallen, but they could still mount a troublesome a.s.sault with the remaining numbers.
Their disordliness proved to be their downfall, as yet another cannonball was fired, and another after that in quick succession. Before long, the bones of the once mighty towers were scattered across the field, and soldiers were left bare, defenceless as they tried to turn back for camp, by a very long and out of the way route so that they wouldn"t be subject to fire.
As soon as their positions were secure, Matsudaira ordered the fire of their ballista, keen to punish Gengyo for his over focus on the siege towers.
"LOAD AND REPOSITION! TAKE THOSE BALLISTA OUT!" Jikouji called out once more, already gritting is teeth in antic.i.p.ation of the ballistae being fired.
It moved easily, with barely any force required, but it still required a few more minute adjustments before it was perfectly aligned to fire. All these little things cost them time, and by the time they held close the torch to fire, Matsudaira had also sent his volley of bolts their way, and the impact of their landing synchronised with the ignition of that hefty amount of gunpowder, causing quite the tremor indeed. A few men were even cast from their feet.
CRUUUUUUUNCH
A more satisfying sight for the Red Feather men it was hard to imagine. Those ballistae that had caused them such a hard time the previous day, being dealt with so easily, by a single shot of their mighty cannon. The ma.s.sive wooden bow folded under the force of their cannon ball, getting crushed to pieces.
Even with just one ballista down, a cheer arose from their ranks, as the men hurriedly loaded in order to release another.
One after the other the ballistae were brought down without a hint of inaccuracy or luck. It became apparent to the Matsudaira forces that this change in the Red Feather armoury was significant. Not only could it fire far, but it could turn and aim as well. Like that, a whole night of hard work was crushed to dust by a far superior implement of war.
Had Matsudaira been a different man, then such an easy defeat might have clouded his mind with anger. Yet he had just received a report from the tunnelling team. It would not be long till they broke through. The end of today, if they pushed.
"Take this victory, Miura Tadakata. My men will soon come flooding under your walls, and with sheer numbers, we will overwhelm you."
With this in mind, he ordered his men back and down. "Establish sectional tunnelling teams. We will progress a few metres from the wall today. Have them cycle through s.h.i.+fts, as we rest the other men, and prepare them for battle tomorrow." He gave swift orders to his right hand man, aligning the final details before a more grand a.s.sault.
It was a shame, undoubtedly. Collapsing the eastern wall with their ballistae or mounting the southern with their siege towers – that would have been a more perfect victory. A stronger one, with the advantage most certainly in their favour. Now, their fight would be more of a brawl, but their victory was guaranteed.
With the advent of their new weapon, it took guts to swallow his pride and step back, realizing that he could not out trade him in that regard.
Seeing the retreating soldiers, the Red Feather began to cheer all the louder, not quite understanding just how messy things would become the following day.
"It seems its time for something a bit more creative. A bit more exciting. The climax will soon be upon us."