Thomas Hoover - The Moghul

"Jesus, I see why elephants are so feared on a battlefield."

"Yes, but they cannot fight the entire battle…" Shirin's voice trailed off as she stared through a hole in the side of the howdah. Suddenly her eyes flooded with fear. "Oh, Allah! Merciful Allah! Look!"

A close-ranked formation of Imperial horsemen, perhaps fifty in number, was advancing toward them from the eastern perimeter of the plain. They wore body armor of black steel and they ignored the infantry battling around them as they charged directly for the circle of Jadar's elephants.

"Who are they?"

"I think they're Latifs special Bundella guards. I've only heard about them. His elephant must be near and he's ordered them to attack. He must realize the prince is vulnerable now. He hopes to kill Prince Jadar in a quick action and so end the battle." She stared over the side of the steel howdah again. "If they fail, then he will send his regular Rajput cavalry."

"What's so special about Bundellas?"

"They're from the region of Bundelkhand, and their horses are said to be specially trained against elephants. The native Bundellas…" She ducked down and stared wildly around the howdah as an arrow grazed by. "Where… the matchlocks!"

Hawksworth quickly pulled up one of the muskets and checked the prime. He passed it to Shirin and took a second for himself. As he looked again over the top of the howdah, he saw the elephants guarding Jadar start turning to face the approaching horsemen. Their own elephant had now reached the defense lines and it immediately assumed its normal place in the protective circle.

Many of the approaching Bundellas were already being cut down by the spears of the Rajput infantry, but over half managed to penetrate the outer defense perimeter and reach the circle of elephants. The horsemen immediately began firing rockets into Jadar's elephants from long bamboo tubes they carried, intending to frighten them and disrupt their ranks.

As Hawksworth watched, three of Jadar's encircling war elephants shied skittishly away from the fireworks, creating a momentary opening in the line. Before the opening could be secured, two of the Bundella cavalry dashed through the space. Once inside the defense perimeter, they parted, one riding toward either side of Jadar's elephant. One of the horsemen took careful aim with his bow and shot a barbed arrow connected to a line deep into the steel-net armor of the mahout seated on the neck of Jadar's elephant. The horseman quickly whipped the arrow's line around his saddle horn and reined his mount. The horse seemed to know exactly what was expected, as it instantly reared backward, unseating Jadar's mahout and toppling him into the dust.

As the mahout fell, his steel ankus clanged against Jadar's howdah, momentarily distracting the prince. When he whirled to look for his mahout, the other Bundella spurred his stallion alongside the elephant's rump, lifting a heavy spear above his head. But instead of hurtling the spear toward Jadar he turned and plunged it deep into the ground beside the elephant.

"Shirin, what's he doing? How can…?"

The horseman twirled his long reins around the shaft in a quick motion, tethering the horse. Then he balanced himself atop the saddle, unsheathed his sword, and with an agile leap landed on the armored rump of Jadar's elephant.

He secured his balance in less than a second, then grabbed the side of Jadar's gilded howdah. Hawksworth stared spellbound as a rain of Rajput arrows glanced harmlessly off his black steel body armor.

"Now!" Shirin's voice was almost a scream.

As though in a dream, Hawksworth leveled the long barrel of his matchlock against the rim of the howdah and took aim. The stock felt alien and bulky in his grip, and its lacquer inlay smooth and cold. He saw Shirin thrust her own musket alongside his own, struggling to keep its heavy barrel balanced. As the horseman raised his sword to plunge it into Jadar's exposed back, Hawksworth squeezed the gun's inlaid trigger.

The stock kicked into his face and a burst of black smoke momentarily blinded him. Shirin's matchlock had discharged at the same moment, and he looked down as she tumbled backward against the padded side of the howdah, still grasping the gun's heavy stock.

Then he heard a cheer from the Rajputs and turned in time to see the Bundella spin in a half circle. Hawksworth realized one musket ball had caught him directly in the face, the other in the groin. He vainly reached to seize the side of Jadar's howdah to regain his balance, but his foot skidded and he slipped backward… into a forest of Rajput spears. The flash of a sword took his head. Jadar had never seen him.

That settles one debt, you cocky bastard.

There were shouts from the other attackers still outside the defense perimeter and two horsemen reined their mounts and charged toward Hawksworth and Shirin. As they approached, the elephant began revolving to meet them.

Hawksworth reached down and grabbed the last remaining musket and rose to fire.

As he looked up, he stopped in astonishment, for a second refusing to believe what he saw.

Both Bundelkhand horses were advancing on their hind legs, rearing and bounding toward them in high leaps. He watched transfixed as one of the Bundellas discharged his bow past the neck of his horse, directly at the howdah. The arrow missed Shirin's dust-covered hair by only inches.

Hawksworth lifted his matchlock and leveled it against the rim, wondering for an instant whether to aim for the man or the horse. Then the matchlock blazed and he watched the horseman buckle backward in the saddle, toppling into a circle of waiting Rajput swords.

Suddenly the howdah shuddered, throwing him sprawling against the side. As he pulled himself up, he realized the other horse had secured its front feet against the side of their elephant. The Bundella was staring directly in his face, pulling an arrow from his saddle quiver.

The horseman's bow was already half drawn when Hawksworth heard the sing of a bowstring beside him. As he watched, the end of a shaft suddenly appeared in the right cheek of the Bundella, buried to the feathers. The horseman's own arrow slammed into the side of the howdah, and he reached to claw at his face with his saddle hand, forfeiting his grip. As he slipped backward off the rearing horse, the Rajput infantrymen beheaded him in midair.

Hawksworth turned to see Shirin drop her bow onto the floor of the howdah. She slumped against the steel side, her eyes glazed with incredulity at what she had done.

They watched wordlessly as the perimeter of Jadar's elephants was again drawn together and secured. As the other horsemen were driven back, a coherent defense barricade of concentric circles was gradually established around the prince. The outer perimeter was a line of Rajput infantry armed with long spears. Inside their line were Rajput swordsmen, who now had linked together the skirts of their long, steel-mesh cloaks to form a solid barrier. And inside these was the last defense line, the circle of armored war elephants.

As their own elephant instinctively rejoined the line protecting Jadar, Hawksworth reached to touch Shirin's hand. As he did, he noticed her thumb was bleeding and realized for the first time she had not been supplied a bow ring.

"I think we can hold off the infantry with the elephants. But I don't know how long…" Her voice trailed off as he looked up at her face. She was leaning against the side of the howdah, pointing wordlessly toward the east.

He turned to see a vast wave of the Imperial Rajput horsemen bearing down on their position. They numbered in the thousands.

"God Almighty." He reached weakly for another arrow, trying to count those remaining in the quiver and asking if he would live long enough to shoot them all. "It's over."