Chapter 115: Rebel Issues

A few days after the meeting, the rebels began to mobilize their forces, rallying them at the bank in the western part of the city. All the rebel leaders were present, and the majority of their followers were preparing for a daring operation.

Men and women alike would find themselves acting as patriots for the return of the rightful rulers of the city. They armed themselves with muskets, knives, axes and anything else that could kill a man. Their eyes brimming with determination as they attempt to get retribution for their fallen comrades.

As the host of rebels marched towards the Hirschmann Palace, their numbers swelled as they made way closer and closer to the place where Generals Bertrand and Tauentzien were staying, as they arrived atb the city square their numbers had bolstered to a ridiculour total of 90,000 men, which was tenth of the city's population.

At the palace, Bertrand and Tauentzien were not as oblivious as the rebels hoped. Although it was too late to send a messenger to the other Luxenberg forces in the city, they could at least mobilize the forces at the palace and begin preparing for a siege. Hopefully, for them, the battle will draw th attention of their allies who will rush to their aid. All they needed to do was hold out until then.

The Hirschmann palace was a 3-levelled grand building that was matched with a large plot of land for its exterior. It had a vibrant garden on the eastern side of the palace while boasting a large flat courtyard with a Roman sculpture-styled fountain in the middle of it. There was also a garrison building located in the northern part of the property.

To the west of the palace was just flat grassland with a few trees. The entire property was surrounded by a thick, fancy looking metal fence that stood tall and firm. Bertrand was in charge of preparing the courtyard and garden in the assault, where as Taunetzien would be in charge of turning the palace itself into a fortress.

In total, the palace garrison had 10,000 infantrymen at its disposal. Bertrand dispatched the cavalry to the walls' defences as there was no real need for cavalrymen inside a property. Bertrand's 2nd Corps was still camped outside the eastern wall. With no time to send an infantryman as a messenger, these men would be the only troops available for the meantime and soon enough the assault on the palace began.

General Bertrand surveyed the battered walls of the Hirschmann Palace from the one of the top rooms facing the courtyard. The relentless barrage of musket fire from the rebel forces below echoed through the courtyard.

The rebels had managed to break through the only gate that was located next to the courtyard in the south. Many rebels had positioned carts along the other fence lines, using them to vault over the metal barrier that kept the palace out of reach from the average person.

General Bertrand adjusted his bicorne hat, the leather creaking a familiar sound in the cacophony of battle. Nearby was General Tauentzien, a younger, though equally steely commander, sternly directing the deployment of Luxenberg soldiers along the broken windows of the palace.

 The palace, once a symbol of Hirschmann's power and prosperity, was now a besieged property, its grandeur marred by shattered windows and smoking barricades. The rebels who were a ragtag army wielding muskets, knives, and axes, were proving a surprisingly resilient foe. Their ferocity was matched only by their numbers.

The assault continued throughout the day, wave after wave of rebels attempting to breach the palace walls. Bertrand and Tauentzien, coordinating their defences with practised efficiency, repelled each attack. The Luxenberg soldiers, though heavily outnumbered, held firm, their superior training and weaponry proving decisive. 

The palace's stone walls, while damaged, withstood the onslaught. Bertrand, ever vigilant, noted the rebels' dwindling ammunition and the growing fatigue in their ranks. Their lack of combat experience was evident. The sheer weight of the Luxenberg defence was gradually wearing them down. The situation, while perilous, was slowly turning in their favour.

It also helped that nearby cavalrymen for the northern wall rode with haste to support the besieged infantrymen in the palace. There were about 2,000 of them who charged through the streets and arrived at the palace just in time to overwhelm an already weary army.

As dusk settled, casting long shadows across the blood-soaked courtyard, the rebel assault finally faltered. Exhausted and demoralized, the rebels retreated, leaving behind a trail of fallen comrades. 

Bertrand and Tauentzien, though weary themselves, felt a sense of grim satisfaction. The Hirschmann Palace had held. The Luxenberg victory was hard-won, but it was a victory nonetheless. The rebels' attack and ultimately insufficient force had proven no match for the disciplined defence of the experienced generals and their loyal soldiers. The siege was over.

The rebels had lost 70,000 men to well dug in soldiers of the Luxenberg army and their supporting cavalry, they could not use their overwhelming numbers to rush them like they had done in previous skirmishes. The fact that they were outgunned and not well versed in combat was the reason for their downfall. 

Their efforts were not totally in vain however, they manged to claim the lives of 4,000 Luxenberg infantrymen and 600 cavalrymen in the process. It was hard thought on both sides, yet it was the more experienced soldiers that prevailed. If the rebels had more discipline and experience they would have wiped out the Luxenberg forces easily.

With this major defeat, the rebels had suffered a critical blow, their forces were now almost a quarter of what they had mustered. General Bertrand was quick to press on his advantage, during the coming days he and General Tauentzien would lead the forces of Luxenberg to conquer both the bank and merchant warehouse. 

Bertrand was ruthless with the rebel remnants, sparing none of them wo dared to surrender. His actions were swift, expelling rebels left and right. His mission was to exterminate the rodents who dared to attack the soldiers of Luxenberg.

Soon enough the rebels were beaten into submission.