Reborn In 17th century India with Black Technology

207  War Of Ahom Part: 6

Ahom Kingdom, Saraighat town, Guwahati city, Northern battlefront.

The war horn has been blown, signifying the commencement of the war. But this time, unlike the numerous attempts made by the Mughals before, which ended in failure, this attempt is going to be the last one, as it is decided to be the final battle that decides the fate of this war. Near the town of Saraighat, on the Brahmaputra River, a defensive blockade has been formed by the Ahom ships and some floating barriers. The flow of water is calmer than usual today, making it more conducive to today's battle. Also, since the river is flowing downstream from where the blockade is placed, the Mughal ships could never quickly advance upstream.

Each of the Ahom ships carried 20-kilogram calibre cannons imported from the Dakshin Bhartiya Empire.

The Ahom flag fluttered on the ships as the river flowed; it bore a red colour with the depiction of the mythical Ahom creature, Ngi Ngao Kham. This sacred animal held significance in Thai Assamese culture, resembling a tiger with an eastern dragon's head, complete with massive wings. On the ships, the sailors are waiting with vigilance because they know this is the most important battle in their lives. It was a battle for independence. If they lost this battle, their beloved Kingdom would become part of the invading Turkish Empire. They did not want that to happen at any cost. They clenched their fists and eagerly waited for a moment to fight for their nation.

At Guwahati, there was no waiting involved as the Mughal troops showed up on the horizon at the South Bank of the Brahmaputra River near the Dharapur village, accompanied by their own cannons. As the Mughal troops marched forward, Lachit was surprised to see that these Mughal forces carried muskets with them. This revelation astonished him because, in previous battles, the Mughals did not utilize these muskets. Now he finally realized that the Mughals were using the muskets as a hidden card.

*Hehe*

He chuckled because he had done the same thing; he had also kept the firearm as a final card to surprise the Mughals. Despite both sides appearing even, he had an advantage because he possessed flintlocks, albeit not in large numbers. Still, The faster firepower would go a long way, especially in situations requiring a volley.

After taking a final look at the approaching Mughal troops, he retreated inside the city to continue preparing the plan.

Hamza Umar, commander of the Mughal forces, also saw the tower of Guwahati from a distance. He frowned, as the task he took on looked tricky, especially since Dakshin Bhartiya Empire had decided to meddle in this war. The more concerning thing was that the Dakshin Bharatiya Empire had been acting very restless at the southern border, where frequent skirmishes took place. Although the matter did not lead to an all-out war, as both parties were not ready for another full-scale war between the two empires, the Mughal Empire suffered a lot in these small skirmishes as it was already engaged in the war against the Ahom Kingdom.

There has also been intelligence that, since the skirmishes started, a lot of people from the Dakshin Bhartiya Empire have been spotted crossing the border in civilian clothes and disappearing in the vast sea of people. Although they could be considered civilians who migrated from the Dakshin Bhartiya Empire to the Mughal Empire, Hamza knew that was impossible. Especially for civilians from Dakshin Bharatiya Empire to cross into the Mughal Empire, as it was always the other way around. Hamza could sense that this was some ploy attempted by the Dakshin Bharatiya Empire, but unfortunately, he could not do anything about it, as this matter was far above his pay grade.

Back to the battle, General Hamza and his army approached the walls of Guwahati, and the cannons on top of the wall started firing.

"Duck!"

Hamza yelled as a cannonball just missed his group, whizzing past his head and hitting a boulder on the other side of the hill.

He got a cold sweat, which he quickly wiped away. Fortunately, they were standing behind a small hill. This is one of the reasons that the Mughal Empire could still persist despite suffering a lot of casualties when trying to conquer Guwahati. The hilly terrain not only provided excellent cover for the Ahom but also for the Mughals.

*Bang* *Bang* *Bang* *Bang*

Cannons continued to bombard whenever they got a view of the Mughal army, but the Mughal army swiftly ran across to find cover behind another hill. This continued for a few more hours as the Mughals got close enough so that their own cannons could be used. The Mughal cannons were small 10-kilogram calibre cannons designed to be manoeuvrable and carried by six men working together.

Hundreds of such cannons were placed in a line spread across the hills, and their firing started.

*Bang* *Bang* *Bang* *Bang*

Although the power and range were not comparable to the cannons placed on the wall, the Mughals made up for this defect by bringing the cannons to a very close distance of a few hundred meters so that the 10-kilogram cannons' range could be met. Although the power was not enough, it more than made up for it in quantity.

*Bang* *Bang* *Bang* *Bang*

But the large cannons on the wall were not idle, as they also shifted their aim towards these small cannons. If the enemy could get an angle of fire on you, you could also get the same angle of fire on the enemy. Hence, although the Mughals were hiding behind the hill, their artillerymen experienced a significant amount of casualties because all the firepower of the Ahom was focused on them, as the rest of the Mughal army was not visible. It was alright though, Hamza thought, as it was a small price to pay to enter Guwahati city.

It was not looking good for the Ahom side, as their cannons were getting destroyed one after another. Although their cannons were more powerful, they could only aim at one target at a time. So, the Ahom could not resist the hundreds of cannons scattered throughout the hill in the front, continuously shooting at them from different angles. As their cannons were bulky, the time it took to calibrate the cannon also caused a lot of casualties.

Hamza, recognizing the opened blind spot where no cannon shot could reach, swiftly signalled in the air to initiate the naval attack simultaneously. At the same time, he mobilized the army.

"My dear soldiers, the city of those deranged kafirs is right in front of us. Move forward with bravery, as Allah demands it. Let us bring Islam to these blasphemers and bring peace upon their wicked souls."

"Yeahhhhhh!", The soldiers roared.

"Allah Hu Akbar ", Hamza Umar also roared as he unsheathed his sword, pointed it towards the city wall, and roared again, "Alhamdulillah Bismillah al-Rahman al-Rahim, charge!"

Before the Ahoms could react, the Mughal army charged down the hill with full force and entered the city wall where the blind spot of the cannons was detected. The Ahoms, noticing this development, tried very hard to pull the existing cannons on the wall towards the Mughals, but they were not fast enough as the Mughals utilized the ladder and got up on the wall. There was a plan to pour oil and set them on fire by the Ahoms, but it became impossible as the musketeers below guarded the climbers, continuously firing shots whether someone was there or not, creating a blanket of bullets. As the first man got on top of the wall, he also had a Musket, which he then used to eliminate the soldiers who were running towards him, but unfortunately, he died the next second.

Even the Ahom soldiers carried Muskets, So the threat was mutual.

However, the conditions were more favorable to the Mughals as they were larger in number and quickly outnumbered the soldiers on the wall. After outnumbering the soldiers on the wall, they quickly managed to open the emergency door made of iron under the wall. Utilizing this opening, the rest of the thousands of Mughal soldiers entered the walls of Guwahati.

Hamza Umar was very happy as he took the lead and entered into the city. But as soon as they entered the city, it became anticlimactic because no people could be found. The streets were empty with no one in sight.

*Bang.*

He knocked down a door of a house with a hard kick and looked inside. Surveying its surroundings, he found no one, but he noticed something peculiar—the house was clean, and there was not a lot of dust accumulation. "Looks like the people have been evacuated not too long ago," he murmured. "Did they give up Guwahati?" He couldn't quite confirm this speculation of his, but he grew happy just thinking about its possibility.

After factoring in his losses, he now had 20,000 soldiers inside this city. He was confident that he could withstand any attack from the Ahoms later after fully taking control of this city.

But unfortunately for him, things are not as simple as they seem.

500 meters away

There is a clearing without any buildings, and on the other side of this clearing, there are hundreds of small houses filled with Ahom soldiers waiting for this exact moment when the Mughals are boxed in inside the Guwahati wall.

Lachit Borphukan was also smiling after witnessing the green flags waving at a distance. This plan of luring the Mughals inside the city was inspired by Yogendra Singh. After reading about the Bharatiya general emptying the Mughal base and then striking the head, Lachit thought of the opposite—making the Mughals believe that the base was empty and striking them at the moment when they are least prepared.

Seeing the Mughal flags coming closer and closer, Lachit smiled as he ordered Neerab, "Fire."

The next moment, something happened that would usually never happen: Cannon shots were fired inside the city, as Lachit and his troops were at a higher elevation than those of the Mughals.

**BANG** **BANG** **BANG**

ON THE MUGHAL SIDE

The soldiers were relaxed as they got the news that the city was empty and the Ahom forces had already withdrawn. A pair of soldiers among them were laughing and strolling in the streets, going from house to house looking for valuables.

*Tsk*

"These wretched sinners did not leave an ounce of silver, much less gold. All these houses have been cleaned up; not even rations could be found."

"Yeh, tsk tsk."

While they were grumbling among themselves, they heard a sound that sent shivers down their spines—the sound of the Bharatiya heavy cannon.

"BOOM!"

The cannon shot directly hit the house they were in.

19:11

*Rumble*

The house could not resist the force of the cannon and collapsed, burying the soldiers with it.

Hamza Umar was shocked as he finally figured out why the city was empty, but unfortunately, what he figured out sent chills down his spine.

"They are going to bury us with the city," he said with great shock.

"Ahhhh!"

A cannonball hit a group next to him, turning them into mush, like a sledgehammer falling on a watermelon.

These things greatly intimidated Hamza, but as a seasoned commander, he quickly rallied his troops to boost morale.

"Forward, there is no other way than forward. The nearer we go, the harder it is for them to aim. The cannon shots are being fired from a higher elevation. Move forward, as we move forward, the advantage of the Ahoms will become less and less as we can take the houses as cover. Alhamdulillah, let's go."

He roared as he charged towards the cannons at full speed, running at an eccentric pace as he zipped past house after house, not keeping his direction static. Seeing their commander's action, the soldiers also slightly regained their morale as they charged forward. If the movement of the Mughals were now seen from a top-angle view, it could be seen as thousands of zombies charging towards a direction as they quickly ran between buildings. Thousands of these Mughal soldiers charged through hundreds of buildings like going through a maze, but what was waiting at the end of these houses greatly shocked them.

Past the clearing that was in front of them, it was a defensive wall made up of Ahom and Bharatiya soldiers; everyone in the front was carrying muskets and flintlocks. Since they were in the clearing, the cannons seemed to be already positioned toward them. Just by the looks of it, it could be seen that the combined troops of Ahoms and Bharatiya were at least 22,000 soldiers, and given that they are in a better strategic position, Hamza figured out they were royally fucked.

Lachit Borphukan saw this scene with a smile in his eyes, "What is it? Oh, right, like our Bharatiya friends say."

His smile became wilder as he said, "Happy Diwali, friends!" *Bang, Bang, Bang, Bang, Bang, Bang* (Guns)

**BANG** **BANG** **BANG**. (Heavy cannons)

All the tens of thousands of soldiers of the Ahoms and the Bharatiyas stood stretched in a line of 200 meters, their cannons quickly filled with cannonballs, firing them one after another. The switch took place swiftly at record speeds; *swish* volley after volley, shots were being fired. Nôv(el)B\\jnn

Hamza's eyes were filled with numerous cannonballs coming towards him. Seeing the scene, he wanted to curse, "Oh Fu—"

*Splat*

Unfortunately, he didn't get the privilege to finish his curse, as he soon turned into mush after being hit by a cannonball, his head becoming Chutney.

Seeing their general die in such a way, the soldiers tried to run back to the wall, but the cannonballs were fired at the houses alongside them, it was a meat grinder. The scene resembled the Battle of Stalingrad, the deadliest battle fought in the history of humanity, where the lifespan of cutting-edge weaponry was only a few minutes. The Mughal soldiers who managed to retreat back to the wall faced another surprise. As some of them got out of the wall, a platoon of Bharatiya soldiers wielding flintlocks was waiting for them—a massacre ensued.

*Bang, bang, bang, bang*

Hearing the sounds coming from outside the wall, the Mughal soldiers inside the wall knew that they would be killed no matter where they went. So, they quickly dropped their weapons and raised the white flag.

P.S. I thought this arc would end with the next chap, but it seems like it will take 2 more chaps, this time confirm.