Reborn In 17th century India with Black Technology - Chapter 1138

Capítulo 1138: Greek war: Overwhelmed!! (2)

25th May 1698.

Once the citizens of Sauda realised that it was not the fireworks that were lighting up the sky, but emergency flares to inform the police and the Bharatiyas of the imminent enemy attack, they rushed toward their homes in a frenzy. Shops were shuttered in an instant, and people poured into the streets in blind panic. Some were trampled underfoot, while screams and shouts echoed through the once peaceful avenues. The town had descended into utter chaos.

Officer Henry Papalakis, standing in front of his office, had a serious and sombre look on his face as he looked at the bright red emergency signal flare that continuously shot into the sky.

“Ahh, help!”

“My child! Where is my child?”

“Somebody help me!!!”

His attention was suddenly pulled by the shouts and screams of the people on the streets that echoed from far and near. Henry clenched his fist, his beard trembling, ” Comrades,” he called out. ” The enemy is upon us, but the people are panicked, the people are crying. This, this atrocity cannot go on any longer. We have been trained for such a situation, so go. Go to the streets and control the situation, bring order to the chaos, and if anyone tries to cause a disturbance, break his bones and throw him aside.” His words left no room for discussion.

The officers nodded and were about to take charge, but suddenly he stopped them, ” Wait!” Thinking about it, he added, ” If we are short on people, find some local volunteers and have everyone safely go home.” The police left in a hurry.

Henry Papalakis looked at his deputy and instructed, “Since an enemy attack has happened despite the existence of the Bharatiya Navy and the army, the enemy should be prepared.”

“We cannot take chances, take out all the weapons we have in the warehouse and send them directly to the police on the street, also inform the officers and volunteers to be ready to face the enemy if the situation calls for it.”

The deputy officer nodded with a grave expression and ran towards the warehouse. As for Henry, his job was not done yet. He officially declared the emergency protocol throughout the city and had messengers relay what was happening in Sauda throughout the island, and also sent a messenger to inform the high command.

After doing all this, he geared up with a vest, a sword, and a gun and personally went to the front lines to command the police operations himself.

The military outpost of the Bharatiya Army was quite far away from the actual city, so the signal flare was not directly visible to the outpost. Brigadier General Aditya Malhotra crossed his arms and sat right at the training ground as he watched his boys hitting the drills with great intensity.

He was very satisfied with the results. Due to the boys seeing no action for well, forever, Aditya thought that they had fallen behind in their training, but apparently, he was wrong, and he was happy to be wrong.

Aditya was in such a good mood, but unfortunately, it was ruined when the sound of a motorcycle rang out loudly, catching his attention.

Aditya Malhotra turned around with unhappiness. ‘ Who was the bastard riding the motorcycle within the training grounds? ‘ he cursed, but the person he saw was not one of his own. The uniform the rider was wearing was from the Navy. A bad premonition appeared in Aditya’s heart.

The man riding the motorcycle stopped in a hurry and fumbled down, even forgetting to click the side stand. The man saluted the Brigadier General with as much composure as he could muster and spoke out, ” Your Excellency, I’m here to inform you that our navy is under attack by a large enemy fleet. Their intentions are yet to be known, but Captain Amarinder Prasad requested the support of the Sauda Brigade.”

The expression on Aditya’s face immediately changed, and he completely forgot about the unhappiness. He looked towards his lieutenant, ” Prepare for battle.”

The lieutenant colonel didn’t beat around the bush and immediately alerted the officers of the five battalions.

” This is not a drill, suit up and get ready for battle.”

” This is not a drill, repeat, this is not a drill.”

Sergeants and lieutenants all yelled at their soldiers, getting their squads and platoons battle-ready as swiftly as possible.

Within ten minutes, the second and third infantry battalions suited up and assembled on the training grounds.

” Second Alpha Company reporting to duty.”

” Second Bravo Company reporting to duty.”

” Second Charlie Company reporting to duty.”

” Second Delta Company reporting to duty.”

” Third Alpha Company reporting to duty.”

“….”

As the roll call began to be heard, the fourth artillery battalion, with its fire support company, heavy artillery company, mortar and rocket company, as well as their forward suppression squadron, all manned their weapons and brought them into a marching formation, ready to move.

Simultaneously, the first support battalion, comprised of the engineering company, medical company, logistic company, and the transportation and maintenance company, quickly incorporated themselves into the marching order, ready to move.

Finally, the 5th special operations battalion, comprising the commando company, Marine Company, and the Ranger Company, armed up to the teeth and stood ready to move, “Bajrang Bali Ki Jai!” Their battle cries echoing throughout the training grounds.

Brigadier General Aditya Malhotra gave a slight nod with his cap and shouted, ” Sauda brigade, move out.”

The Scouts and the Rangers spearheaded the march, while the infantry, artillery, special operations, and support followed from behind.

In the meantime, Sauda Bay.

Senior Captain Amarinder Prasad was passing orders to the communication officers at lightning speed.

“The three battleships will assume a triangular formation, with the rear against the shore.” He poked the safety pins right into the wood, with a group of communication officers intently observing the strategy and writing it down on a piece of paper.

Amarendra continued, ” The heavy frigates and Clippers will take over the post of fire suppression. Both the battle groups will now be combined, and the heavy frigates will assume the responsibility of defending the battleship and also dishing out the firepower. As for the Clippers, their entire purpose will be to distract the enemy and dish out as much firepower as possible.” His eyes seared into the communication officers.

The officers, each responsible for communicating with the heavy frigates and Clippers, didn’t utter a word, but then nodded their heads in agreement, their eyes showing the determination to relay the senior captain’s will and his words word for word.

” As for the 18 light frigates and Clippers, you have one goal. Similar to your heavy counterpart, attract the firepower away from the battleship and make the enemy waste as much ammunition as possible.”

” The military transportation vessels, you will stay in the rear and continue to provide necessary logistics support whenever needed.”

” With that being said, to your battlements, gentleman.”

“Jai Hind!”

“Jai Hind!”

After the communication officers left to relay the message, a man was brought before him by his executive officer. He was initially confused, but remembering the man’s face, his eyes lit up.

“You are the captain of the second reconnaissance ship, yes?”

“Yes, Sir.”

“Tell me what you know. Who are our enemies? What is their strength? Also, do you have any information about the first reconnaissance ship?”

“Yes, reporting to the captain. Our enemies are primarily the Italians. The entire Armata Federazione Italiana is only ten kilometres from the shore. As for their strength, it is estimated at around 148 warships. The first reconnaissance vessel was attacked by the enemy and destroyed. One boat did manage to survive, but the Italians were ruthless and used culverins to fire upon it as soon as the reconnaissance clipper sank.”

Amarinder’s eyes widened. It was too much information to process at once, and even for an experienced captain like Amarinder Prasad, it was overwhelming. Questions flooded his mind. Why had the Italians, their allies, attacked them? Why had they mobilised their entire fleet? Why strike without warning? And why spare no survivors?

His gaze flickered with confusion, but the danger of the moment forced him to steady himself. Drawing in a slow breath, he suppressed the turmoil and began preparing for battle.

Ten kilometres from the shore.

Marco Antonio Giustiniani, the Supreme Commander of the Italian Navy, sat with four of his senior subordinates.

“Status?” Marco asked calmly.

Alessandro Farnese, the Capitano di Vascello (senior naval captain), rose from his seat, walked to the map table, and began positioning markers, large and small ships, across the bay with practised precision.

“They have taken a defensive formation, sir.”

“With their batteries against the coast and all their guns triangulating to the middle of the bay, there are no loopholes.”

“From what the scouts have reported, we estimate that they have 40 warships, three of which are confirmed to be Delhi-class battleships.”

“We do not have complete information about the weapon systems, but it is safe to say that the range and firepower are superior to ours.”

Looking at the board, Marco Antonio was left in thought. ‘ Flanking is out of the question, but brute force is not the way either.’ He stroked his chin with a slight annoyance on his face. ‘ With the advanced weapon systems of those bastards, I am bound to lose more than what they do. I have to think of something else.’

He kept staring at the map without uttering a word, and suddenly his eyes lit up.

He got up and started to explain his strategy.

Back at Souda Bay

Amarinder received the intelligence from a scouting vessel.

“Captain, the Italian fleet has begun to approach the bay.”

“but…”

Amarinder frowned, ” But?”

“But they are not directly entering the bay, but coming in from behind Nisida Souda.”

‘Nisida Souda.’ Amarinder mutterred, and his face changed colour. This was a small island right at the entrance of the bay. ‘ Are they using the island as a cover?’ His heartbeat began to increase. The situation was not looking good.

“I remember we installed coastal defence cannons on Nisida Souda. They are operational and manned, yes?” He looked at his executive officer and enquired.

“Yes, sir, they are, and they are manned as well.”

Amarinder slightly felt relieved, ” In that case,” he looked towards the communication officer, ” have them reposition the artillery towards the arrival of the Italians. I don’t know why these bastards decided to backstab us, but blow them to hell.”

Soon, the firework communication system began to operate, and the messages reached from the end of the bay to the entrance, 7 km away.

But even after sending the message, Amarinder remained deeply worried. The cannons had only been installed after pirates had once used the island to slip past the Bharatiya Navy. Fortunately, they had been caught, and the cannons were added to be safe, but there were not many, only four in total, covering both directions. This time, even if all four cannons were turned to face a single direction, he had no idea how much damage they could inflict on the Italian ships.

Thoughts began to surge in his mind, thinking of what else he could do.

Ill add an image of the battle location check it out

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