In the slightly cool and cold forest, white mist permeated the panting of the horses, and the warriors who had prepared their equipment mounted their horses one after another.
They had polished the spearheads, and two horse shields wrapped with patterned cowhide protected the rider's left and right thighs. Swords and handaxes hung from their belts, and everyone wore mail.
The feathers of the iron helmets were soaked with dew, and all the cavalry soldiers felt the discomfort of moisture.
We are facing a cavalry raid. Although the soldiers have practiced on weekdays, most of them are actually going to the battlefield for the first time. Although they raised their swords in front of the king and swore to fight hard, it is really time. Before the war, who could not be nervous?
Aston, the cavalry captain, held the reins and the spear in his other hand.
He looked at his soldiers and said angrily: "I see the always strong army! That's you! Now follow me and attack! Don't be afraid, just let the iron hoofs trample them to death! Let's go!"
p>
Aston didn't say anything more. He saw the timidity shown by some young warriors inadvertently, but it was all meaningless.
The captain was already taking action, and the other soldiers followed suit.
One hundred and fifty mounted warriors advanced along the forest road leading to Lindisfarne. The horses maintained a brisk and relatively easy speed. The warriors ate bread, the horses ate wheat, and the people The horses are in excellent condition.
The pursuit went much smoother than Aston imagined. He thought his pursuit would encounter resistance, but in reality it was like a quick outing.
He hoped to catch up with the enemies who attacked the camp and avenge the dead. What was more important was to kill them to prevent them from escaping back to report the news.
What is the real situation? The twenty Vikings carried bloody axes and deliberately shuttled through the primitive woods. They were afraid of being caught and killed by the counterattacking enemies. After all, a group of them ran out of the seaside camp to hunt. Not to mention the rudimentary tools at hand, the manpower was too few. Even though they were brave, they still died from being stabbed in the heart by Wanjian after fighting with the enemy.
The Vikings did not follow a clear path, and walking through the forest on foot was even more difficult.
The family leader planned to explain to his brothers the disaster caused by the sudden appearance of the enemy's large army, but it was too late!
At this moment, the mobility of the cavalry was fully demonstrated.
"Soldiers, we are about to reach the beach! We will advance on the beach and will soon arrive at the monastery."
"You all must be careful! Maybe the enemy's camp is on the beach! ”
“Get ready to mount your spear! Just as drilled, give up and kill them with your sword.”
...
Aston said a lot, but he did not ask his men to understand it all. After all, the current situation could not be conveyed to the entire cavalry column.
His orders can only be conveyed accurately to the people around him, but in fact this is enough.
He led the way, with more than a dozen riders around him closing in behind, giving the rearAn excellent demonstration of cavalry.
Battles always happen under very unexpected circumstances!
It is still dawn, the first ray of sunshine is still shyly hidden under the sea level, and a faint yellow appears on the sea level in the east.
It had rained just a few days ago. It was obviously summer, and the desolate wind made the Viking warriors sleep uneasy.
Most of the Vikings camped on the edge of the woods on the beach. They were awakened by the flock of birds and the strange vibrations of the earth.
Soon, a group of brothers who were camping in the woods ran out in panic.
They were yelling.
"No! The enemy is coming!"
"Brothers, get up and fight!"
When people heard the unusual alarm, they got up one after another. , before they could figure out the specific situation, suddenly a group of behemoths jumped out of the forest.
Is that a group of rampaging wild boars? !
No! It's a horseman!
When the Viking warrior was frightened and hurriedly picked up his shield and sword, it was already a little late.
The Northumbrian cavalry aimed their spears at the enemy.
Captain Aston was overjoyed at this moment, although he was shocked to see an astonishing number of enemies camping on the beach, and the monastery not far away was obviously burned to pieces by fire, and the Butcher Destroyer was now covered in flaws. , your own cavalry can fully exert its maximum tactical effectiveness.
The cavalry team naturally formed a double-layered and relatively loose riding wall, and the horses crashed through it with great force.
At first, some Viking warriors who tried to fight were knocked down directly, and their ribs were broken by the iron hoofs of the following cavalry, and they died suddenly.
Some people were also pierced by spears, but the cavalry released their grip after completing the kill, pulled out their swords and continued to fight on horseback.
The cavalry washed away the unprepared people like a tsunami. The Balmok Vikings whose camps were too close to the south, where the cavalry came to kill, suffered heavy casualties on the spot.
As many as fifty people were trampled and stabbed to death in the first round of impact.
However, more Vikings rolled and crawled towards the rear, and some even ran away empty-handed.
"Stop it!" Aston waved his iron sword high and ordered the cavalry team, which had lost its impact, to reorganize. After hearing the news, the cavalry soldiers suspended their offensive.
This seemingly absurd and stupid behavior objectively caused the once-confused Vikings to have a moment of respite. They began to set up a shield wall and faced the unprecedented situation with nervousness or fear. Enemies so terrifying that even your imagination cannot conceive of them.
The Balmoks have never seen any form of "cavalry regiment" at all, and quite a few young people have never even seen a horse. The fishermen in Shetland had seen horses, but in their concept, riding a horse was a difficult task. This group of enemies who suddenly killed them were all fighting on horseback.
For the incomprehensible enemy, the Vikings protectStaying vigilant, they didn't know why the enemy stopped suddenly. Maybe they were preparing for another round of attack? Perhaps so, but if one chooses to flee now, turning his back to his mounted enemy, an Odin warrior will lose all glory.
"Brothers, hold on! Don't be afraid of them! We maintain the shield wall, and they can't do anything to us!" Some family leaders shouted, which calmed some people's hearts in the crisis.
Some people also shouted: "Hurry up and notify Biyongni and Geiger's people so that the Russians can come too."
As soon as they finished speaking, someone shouted again: "Don't think about it. They are here! Rurik of Rus has tempted some brothers to be turtles. They want to defend and will not come to help us easily."
"Then keep the shield wall and we will advance slowly to squeeze the enemy. Pressure, surround and kill them all."
This is really a good idea. Some people began to move forward slowly, and the shield wall that had formed a whole was now turning into a convex shape.
On the other hand, the cavalry captain Aston gritted his teeth. His order was indeed not out of cowardice or out of his mind.
What he learned was the Frankish cavalry tactics of the current era. It is said that in the face of an enemy who has formed a well-organized array, a hasty collision will cause large-scale losses to the horses.
For the kingdom, any group of cavalry horses are carefully selected, and the number of horses in the entire kingdom is also limited.
Every horse is important. He was also surprised to see that the enemy had actually sent a wall made of huge bucklers on the coast, and he did not dare to act rashly!
"Damn! This is really like the Great Wall left by the Romans!" He couldn't help but sigh.
Some of the soldiers around me asked with spears: "Sir, are we charging?"
"Charge! You lead the first team to charge, the second team, and the third team. Stand by!"
King Aynred's cavalry consisted of five hundred men, so organized that it amounted to a slightly reduced Frankish version of the cavalry standard.
However, the Kingdom of Northumbria, which had suffered from years of civil war and poor productivity, was really poor (except for the monastery), and the king lacked the financial resources to continue to expand his cavalry force.
The king organized the cavalry into ten squads. He took three squads on this trip, and now they are all handed over to his loyal cavalry captain to participate in this battle.
The fifty riders of the first team rushed forward with great momentum, shocking the Viking line that formed a macro protrusion and hastily retracted.
"Don't be afraid, brothers, protect yourself with your shield."
"Brothers with spears are waiting for opportunities to stab them to death."
"Don't let them hit you Break our shield wall."
The Vikings naturally thought that the enemy was going to charge, but this was not the case at all.
The Northumbrian cavalry adopted classic Frankish tactics. They had taken back their spears on the battlefield and rushed to the Viking line with their bloody spears, deliberately keeping a wooden pole at a distance. Hold a spear with both hands or even one hand to stab the enemy behind the shield.
Some Vikings were directly stabbed and scratched in the neck, and one had a bleeding hole in his chest.
Completely different from the Frankish cavalry who all wore mail armor, only a very small number of Balmoks wore mail armor.
Most people just wore animal skins. The leather used as clothes played a role in armor to a certain extent, but it could not protect them from the cavalry's spears.
People in the chaos were shouting, hoping that the spear-wielding brothers behind would kill the enemy. The brothers in the rear are not watching the show. They are worried that their short spears are too short in the current battle.
Some angry Viking warriors began to break away from the line. The brave men held shields and axes, vowing to kill one or two cavalrymen.
This move played into the hands of the Northumbrian cavalry.
Individual soldiers broke away from the front and became targets of key strikes.
The warrior wanted to chop the horse, but the experienced cavalry quickly maneuvered, then sprinted and chopped it to death with a sword.
There were Vikings with bows trying to shoot their opponents, but there were too few archers, and the ones on horseback were as nimble as fish.
After all, the Vikings had the upper hand, and they began to try to counterattack, but the enemies actually ran away on horseback.
The courage they had just mustered up weakened again, and a second wave of cavalry rushed over in a moment.
The once loose front gathered into a turtle shell, and the Vikings had to go through the disaster they just encountered.
The battle is so useless! Those enemies didn't dare to fight openly and openly, so they just ran away when they were counterattacked!
Viking warriors were killed one after another, and after a few rounds, only one cavalry was killed.
The horses were chopped down and the cavalry warriors were chopped into pieces by the angry Vikings.
But in terms of exchange ratio, the Northumbrian cavalry has a huge advantage.
The battle situation has become extremely delicate. The most realistic situation now is that nearly 600 Vikings are facing off against 150 Northumbrian cavalry. It seems that Rurik and the warriors who really obey his orders are fighting. Watch from the sidelines. Occupied in this way, the Vikings' military superiority could not be reflected at all. Someone wants to launch a counterattack, but how can he chase the cavalry with his feet? ! What's worse is that if a group of people breaks away from the team, they will become the target of the cavalry.
If the fighting continues like this, the Viking army will sooner or later be exhausted physically and mentally by this group of mobile cavalry. And this is exactly what the cavalry captain Aston longs to see. After the enemy is exhausted, he will face the kingdom's large army. Victory belongs to Northumbria!
That’s probably it!
However, a large number of arrows and stones fell from the sky. Aston watched helplessly as the team that had completed a round of harassment missions was hit by arrows and fell from their horses while running back to the rear. What's more, the horses were roughly hit by stones, and the cavalry fell to the ground on the spot.
What is going on? !
It’s Rurik! The Vikings counterattack began.
The perspective is on Rurik, when he is shouted to death in confusionAwakened by the sound, he immediately got out of his tent. He hurriedly ran to the civil platform where the torsion slingshot was placed, and saw the cavalry to his surprise!
Byongni and Geiger's men gradually woke up, and the Shetlanders also took up arms.
Just like what they had practiced in the past two days, everyone picked up the wooden sticks that served as spears and waited for Rurik's order.
Biyongni and Geiger hurriedly climbed onto the platform.
"What is going on? Those horsemen are all enemies? Who are we fighting with?" Biyongni asked in panic.
Geiger also asked: "What should we do? I saw some brothers were killed by those horsemen."
Rurik tried his best to remain calm. To be fair, he did not It was thought that the line of the Balmoks would be overrun by a small force of cavalry. He felt the absurdity of the world. The Kingdom of Northumbria acted like a fat sheep waiting to be slaughtered. Why was it so brave now? The enemy actually has such a powerful weapon as the cavalry? !
"Let's... take a look at the situation first."
"Why?" Geiger was very flustered, "Brothers have never fought against this kind of enemy. Many people will die. !"
Rurik immediately turned his head and asked harshly: "Have we ever fought against them? Do you want me to give up my current formation? Listen, this formation is designed to defeat cavalry. "
Biyongni patted Geiger on the shoulder: "Listen to Rurik, let's wait!"
"This... must be a coward."
Geiger was angry, and rationally considered that his brothers in Vashobi could not suffer losses. He could not afford to lose at all. Since Rurik had the means to fight cavalry, it was most appropriate for him to keep quiet.
The change in the battle situation was not favorable to the Vikings. Rurik and others stood on relatively high ground, and he gradually understood the enemy's tactics.
"You're not just riding on the wall?! Why are you starting to play with spears when you get to the formation? Fortunately, I prepared a wall of spears to stab you to death."
Rurik felt Some looked down upon the enemy, but when he thought about it carefully, he realized that they might not have figured out the classic tactics of collision and formation breaking by Western European heavy cavalry in this era, or their weapons level could not keep up.
“Look, some brothers have escaped from Zhenqiang.” Geiger pointed with his hand.
"Coward!" Biyongni said angrily.
"Cowards? I think we have been called cowards countless times by the brothers in front of us while we are here."
"Geiger! This is all Rurik's plan. I think it’s right.”
“We should help them!”
Rurik’s mind was really confused, and he shouted angrily: “Stop arguing!”
After saying that, he looked down at Javlo who was on standby and shouted: "Jevlo! Take the men and pull away all the bull trebuchets, enter the shooting range and kill them! Go call the Shetlanders again, you We need to bring all our bows and crossbows to reinforce our brothers!"
For a moment, Yevro panicked: "My lord, are we no longer in position? ! "
"Bah! Yevlo, the enemy must still have a large force! Now you lead the people to drive away those cavalry, go quickly! Don't dawdle! "
"Yes! "Yevluo randomly called his guys: "Follow me. ”
Rurik just moved out, pulled the trebuchet to a relatively suitable range, and began to throw stones.
The Shetland holding the bow collapsed after reaching a distance. Not far away, the Viking warriors in front fired a large number of arrows to drive away the cavalry. Jevro simply took his ten mercenary brothers and rushed directly to the front line of the battle formation with a steel-armed crossbow.
[Get cash red envelopes] You can get cash by reading books! Follow the WeChat and public account [Book Friends Base Camp], cash/points are waiting for you!
The appearance of reinforcements gives everyone a huge boost, but the enemy cavalry
Even with the losses, the cavalry captain Aston feels that his casualties are really small, and the first priority is still to weaken and fatigue the enemy.
Knowing that the enemy is letting go. Arrows and stones were thrown, and another round of attacks began.
Fifty cavalrymen charged forward proudly with their spears raised. Although Yevluo and others were instinctively afraid, everyone saw it. The horses seemed to have no defenses in their chests, and they were immediately relieved.
“Listen to my orders! Shoot the horses! preparation! emission! "
With a command, eleven heavy crossbow arrows flew out, hitting as many as eight horses on the spot.
Most of the arrows did not reach the chest of the horses, and even Pierced in the heart. The horse fell violently, and the cavalry squad leader was completely stunned, and the remaining cavalry tightened their reins.
"Yes. Condition! Escape! Go quickly! ”
Although it was a bit shameful, the captain, who was afraid of being wiped out by some kind of weapon, hurriedly announced his evacuation, and other cavalrymen turned around.
The sudden death shocked Captain Aston in the distance. He had to fall off his horse. After he got up, he saw that the fallen cavalry was being killed by the enemy, and the remaining cavalry were retreating.
"There is a situation!" Stop attacking! We evacuate temporarily! ”
Aston himself gave the order to retreat, and the shocked cavalry hurriedly followed the captain’s horse into the forest.
Seeing that the enemy’s terrifying cavalry suddenly disappeared, they were The Vikings, who had complained endlessly, finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Now, the Balmok Vikings, who had been very swollen after winning many battles, felt like they had been slapped, and now they were all awake. Come here.
Because there were many dead bodies of brothers around them, they started to collect the corpses, but were directly stopped by Jevlo who was sent by Rurik.
" What are you doing? Why not come to support? "
"You sit back and watch your brother die! Aren't you going to let us collect the body now? "
...
Yongni could think of all kinds of harsh words, but he calmed everyone down with just one sentence.He roared angrily with his sword: "Have you forgotten what the killed enemy Pathfinder said? There are two thousand enemies! There are many of them, and they may come soon! We will retreat to Rurik to maintain the line and fight decisively. Start soon!"
Hearing this, some family leaders began to retreat with their own people, and the rest of the family didn't care so much.
At this moment, twenty people suddenly burst out from the woods to the west. They were bare-backed and had tattoos on their chests to prove their friendship.
They ran and shouted until they rushed into the camp and told terrible things; "A very large number of enemies are moving towards the beach. We wanted to explain the situation but were worried about being attacked by the enemy's cavalry. Our The description is absolutely true."
Everything seems to be going smoothly, and this beach that has been soaked in blood is bathing in the blood-red dawn.
Is the rising sun too red? !
The Vikings withdrew with all their strength to the camp set up by Rurik, waiting for a fight that would be witnessed by Odin (the sun).