Empire Ascension: The Rise of the Fated One-Chapter 228: Battle of Kashmir Part - 11

Southern gate, Hari parbat Fort, Srinagar

As Rudra approached the gate, the thunder of hooves echoed across the battlefield, his cavalry rallying close behind him.

Ahead, he saw Harish Pal and his troops encircled, fighting desperately as they were hacked from all sides by Ladakhi soldiers. In his haste he lifted his horn and blew a long, resounding blast.

Hearing the call, Harish shifted his formation, creating a gap wide enough for Rudra and his cavalry to storm through.

Caught up in their assault on Harish’s men, many of the Ladakhi soldiers failed to notice the approaching reinforcements until it was too late.

Rudra surged forward like a storm, his long khanda stretched forward.

With the force of his charge, his blade stabbed through three soldiers in a single sweep. His blow was so powerful that it pushed others back along with the momentum.

He maneuvered his blade skilfully, wrenching it free and swinged in a wide arc that cleaved through another group of soldiers.

As Rudra approached the huddled enemies blocking his path, he pulled back on his reins, and his horse reared up. Its hooves slammed down on two Ladakhi soldiers with deadly force, knocking them a few yards away while the crunching of bones reverberated in the nearby vicinity. More soldiers left the path and began to break free as they were trampled by the rest of the cavalry pouring through behind.

With each swing of his blade, Rudra cleared more space around him.

"Somebody stop him. Archers take aim!"

Few stray arrows flew his way, but they got deftly deflected by his quick blade movements.

Glaives were raised, but his swift strikes severed limbs before they could get close. Wherever he went, only the trail of broken bodies remained in his wake.

"He is a monster! impossible!"

"More are coming! We cannot stop them. Run! Run!"

"Leave Leave, Make the way,"

Fear rippled through the assembled enemy ranks as Rudra’s cavalry charged in with full force.

Soldiers near him hesitated, then began to scatter, fleeing in any direction that offered escape.

Those who tried to block the cavalry were crushed, and the rest fled like headless chickens, desperate to avoid the advancing death.

Harish, now free from his precarious position, quickly gathered his remaining soldiers.

They moved aside, letting main forces surge past and followed Rudra’s trail for help.

Soon, the courtyard was filled with the sound of pounding hooves and the flash of steel.

Following the plan, the cavalry split into three groups, charging toward the northern, eastern, and western sections of the fort to secure key areas.

Rudra led the way, guiding his horse toward a corridor in the northern direction, pushing deeper into the palace with two horsemen close behind him.

As he cut through the retreating Ladakhi forces and entered a narrow corridor, a volley of spears flew toward him.

It was unexpected.

To save himself and his horse, he quickly bent his steed and dodged to the side, crashing to the ground. Dust flew as his horse skidded with a loud neigh.

The spears missed him, but a few struck his comrades who followed closely behind.

As he sprang to his feet, the enemy soldiers, who had been fleeing moments ago, turned back to attack.

It turned into a one vs five.

One palace guard lunged at him with a sword. Rudra sidestepped, grabbed the guard’s wrist, twisted it sharply, and forced him to drop the blade. Rudra grabbed him by the hair and slammed his face down onto his knee, knocking him out instantly.

Another guard tried to flank him, dagger raised. Rudra blocked with his forearm plate, grabbed the guard’s neck, and used him as a shield against the swings from his comrades.

The guard collapsed from the stabs, and Rudra threw his body toward his attackers, creating some space.

One of the guards at his extreme right, swung his sword in a wide arc, but Rudra ducked, picked up the fallen dagger, and sliced the guard’s leg.

The guard fell, writhing in pain, and Rudra quickly sliced his neck. He threw the dagger at another approaching soldier, then grabbed a fresh sword. The remaining guards hesitated but soon advanced. Rudra deflected one soldier’s strike and stabbed him, leaving only one guard standing.

The last soldier tried a diagonal slash. Rudra dodged, sidestepping at the last moment, twisted the guard’s arm, and, with a crack, forced him to drop his sword. A solid punch to the chest followed, and Rudra ended it by snapping his neck. 𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮

He heard more soldiers approaching. Quickly steadying himself, Rudra saw Ladakhi soldiers charging toward him with glaives, joined by Mujahideen fighters wielding shields and talwars.

Just then, Harish Pal arrived with his remaining men. Rudra signaled them to hold back as he pulled out his urumi, flicking the whip-like blade into readiness for the battle ahead. The weapon coiled at his side as he prepared for the next wave of enemies.

Rudra charged forward, swinging his urumi like a deadly whip. The flexible blade struck hard against the enemy shields, bending and slicing through the gaps with ease. It twisted around the edges of the shields, tearing through armor and catching soldiers’ limbs or legs alike, pulling them down one by one.

A glaive came thrusting toward him. Rudra dodged aside and snapped his urumi to wrap around the weapon’s shaft.

With a quick pull, he wrenched it from the soldier’s grasp and swung it back, using the glaive itself to strike into the enemy lines.

The soldiers, seeing his swift, ruthless attacks, backed away in fear, trying to avoid his deadly moves.

Seizing the moment, Rudra waved to Harish Pal, who had been waiting with his men for the signal. With a nod, Harish rallied his troops and charged forward, crashing into the enemy ranks alongside Rudra.

Together, they tore into the soldiers with relentless force, pushing deeper into the fort.

Meanwhile, on the northern side of fort, palce garden.

As Commander Norbu, Prince Yeshe Namgyal, and Mughal Commander Aftab scrambled toward the gate, they stopped abruptly, realizing that their escape route was blocked. There, standing firmly, was Tsewang with Commander Jigmet by his side, blood trickling down Jigmet’s ear. A small but determined group of soldiers flanked them. For a moment, Prince Yeshe mistook them for reinforcements.

Furious, Yeshe yelled, "Now you decide to show up? Where the hell have you been dying until now? Open the.."

But his words faltered as Aftab laid a hand on his shoulder and sneered, "They’ve turned, my friend. Seems your loyal ’hound’ has decided to bite back."

Commander Norbu, bewildered by the betrayal, appealed to Tsewang, "Your Highness, don’t turn traitor now! What do you even hope to gain by this?"

Prince Yeshe scoffed, "So, it was you. Driven mad by the loss of your whore wife, weren’t you? You gave them the tunnel paths to avenge her? Do you think this will earn her a place in heaven?"

Tsewang’s eyes were steely as he pointed his blade. "Just returning the favor."

Commander Norbu went pale, hearing Tsewang’s response. It was the same situation, but the tables had turned, which his inner guilt could not deny. But Prince Yeshe couldn’t understand what had compelled so many to stand behind Tsewang, even though if he turned real mad?

Suddenly, the palace gates swung open, and Rudra emerged, covered in blood in their rear. Behind him, his forces poured into the courtyard.

"What kind of hospitality is this?" Rudra called out with a smirk. "We came with such high expectations, and you’re trying to flee without so much as a greeting? All those preparations, wasted."

The fort was already filled with noise of clashing steel and shouts of men, but Aftab quickly assessed the situation.

While Tsewang and Rudra had reinforcements, they were spread out across the fortress, locked in combat with the remnants of Yeshe’s forces. He noted they still had about a thousand soldiers between them, enough to still make a last stand while enemies are clinging with only few hundreds on both sides.

Aftab leaned toward Yeshe. "If we’re going to break out, we must strike now."

Yeshe nodded, fixing his eyes on Tsewang. "Help me hold the rest. I’ll teach that brat a lesson of his life."

Aftab raised his talwar, pointing it at Rudra. "I’ve been waiting to repay your empire for seizing what’s ours. By Allah’s grace, today I’ll send a message to your Samrajya by taking your head."

Rudra scratched his ear mockingly. "Sorry, couldn’t hear you over all this noise. Are you begging to kiss my ass?"

Aftab’s face twisted in rage. "Kill them all!" he roared, rallying his troops forward. "Gang him up. We have the numbers!"

The Ladakhi forces surged forward, forming a tight counter-formation that held Rudra’s forces and Tsewang’s men at bay. The air was thick with tension as the leaders clashed in brutal combat along with their minions.

Aftab encircled Rudra with five of his men. He charged at him with fierce determination, his talwar slashing through the air with deadly intent. Rudra ducked and deflected the blow with his urumi, the whip-blade flicking forward to slice through Aftab’s defenses while keeping the others at their end. Aftab spun back, parrying each strike with practiced precision, while Rudra’s strikes danced and twisted, forcing Aftab and his subordinates to dance at his tune.

To the side, Prince Yeshe lunged at Tsewang, his face twisted with rage. The two clashed, with blades flashing. Yeshe struck with reckless abandon, but Tsewang’s moves were precise and unyielding, honed by skilful expertise.

Each strike met with resistance, and Yeshe’s anger grew as he found himself unable to break Tsewang’s stance.

Meanwhile, Commander Norbu rallied his own forces to break through Tsewang’s line. He was able to cut down few of Tsewang’s men with his glaive, clearing a path to the gate. But as he stepped near the bar, Commander Jigmet blocked his way, as he brought his own glaive to fend him off.

"Not so easy Norbu. I will be your opponent," Jigmet growled, blocking a swing of Norbu’s glaive with his own. They locked in a furious struggle, each trying to outmaneuver the other.

As the brutal melee intensified, Rudra’s urumi became a whirling storm, weaving through shields and armor alike. The flexible blade wrapped around the enemies’ weapons, yanking them from their hands, and each crack of the blade sent soldiers stumbling back in fear.

Harish Pal’s group, was equally engaged as he rallied his forces to cut down the ranks of Ladakhi sides.

The courtyard erupted into chaos as soldiers fell. Kashmir fate hung in balance as the final showdown is about to begin.