The Depths of Neptune - Chapter 20

As soon as the council of war had ended, training had begun in earnest. By week’s end, the legions had been divided into the northern and southern armies, each with a unique focus. The southern force focused on the new formations, doing unusual drills for marching and quickly aligning in smaller, three-man rows at the sound of a trumpet call. They learned odd commands like kneeling in ranks, which made a little sense once the Consul had them train with arcuballista, which apparently would be used in similar ways to the new rifles.

The northern force, on the other hand, trained in marching and deploying with cannons, keeping clear of where they might fire until the last moment. They had also taken to firing the cannons around the men from time to time, apparently to acclimatize them to the sound of gunfire.

Llassar was still unsure where he was going to be during all of this. The prince was going to be attached to one of the armies, where Llassar could continue with his education while still being able to help lead the men in combat. If he had his pick, Llassar would prefer to go with the northern force. He appreciated the deadliness of the cannons after seeing them in action and had no doubt the Consul’s rifles would be just as impressive, but he’d already had to adapt to the Roman, or at least Britannian, way of fighting which was vastly different from what he’d grown up learning.

Besides, he hadn’t been involved in the training Velius and his legion had been undergoing over the past few months. He’d had to remain in the capital with Cormac, ensuring the man was focused and learning how this new government was supposed to be run.Their world was changing, and the old ways and their leaders had to adapt with them. It would be up to people like Lucilla and Cormac to lead them into whatever form this new empire evolved into.

As if his thought manifested his existence, Llassar saw the prince striding toward him, determination etched upon his brow. While it was a change from the way the young man had been avoiding him, spending far too many hours in his rooms than where he needed to be, there was something in the prince’s expression that bothered Llassar.

Cormac stood before Llassar, hands defiantly clasped behind his back as if mirroring Llassar’s stoic pose. Llassar studied him, his gaze unwavering.

“Cormac, I thought you were spending the day with the Emperor observing the public audiences.”

Cormac’s voice was tinged with frustration. “I was. We’ve been going all morning, and they’ve taken a short break, but I don’t think I’m going back when they reconvene.”

“Why not?”

“Because this is pointless. Farmers upset about legions damaging their fields during training exercises, merchants angry about tariffs or accusing the Empire of favoritism, it’s all so hollow. These matters could be handled by bureaucrats. A true ruler needs to make decisions, lead his people, not adjudicate petty complaints.”

“Normally, they do go to bureaucrats. The Emperor and the Consul believe there’s some benefit to the people having direct access to their leaders. It also allows the Emperor to keep in touch with the Empire’s realities. It’s how most things are handled in Caledonia. Don’t you think a leader should be accessible to his people and understand their desires?”

Cormac’s eyes flashed with impatience. “He should understand what they want, I guess, but these people are only worried about their little problems, not the fate of the kingdom as a whole. If it’s really important, the leader can always talk to those bureaucrats and find out the people’s concerns.”

Llassar arched an eyebrow. “Is it possible those bureaucrats might have their own thoughts and agendas? Is it wise to know your people solely through the eyes of another man?”

“Fine, I guess not,” Cormac conceded, “but I didn’t come looking for you to get into more rhetorical debates.”

“Then why were you looking for me?”

Cormac’s voice took on a determined tone. “I know my father wants me to learn from you and observe how the government runs, but I need to do more than just watch and listen to meetings. I need to be out there, making a difference.”

Llassar’s expression remained unchanged. “You’ll have plenty of time to make a difference when your father steps down. But the only way you’ll succeed is by understanding how to do it right.”

“You didn’t learn by listening to others talk, nor did my father. You both fought your way into power. You learned to lead by doing. I’m done being treated like a child, hiding behind others while they make the real decisions. My father assigned me to be my people’s proxy here. As equal members of the Empire, we deserve equal say. You were at that council of war. YOU had a seat at the table while the Romans had nearly a dozen. My people deserve representation beyond my mere attendance and expected silence. I demand my rightful place.”

Llassar frowned, his gaze still fixed on Cormac. He had spent much time with the prince, who had many flaws, but this tirade felt off.

“What, exactly, did you have in mind?”

“I’m not doing any good watching the senate or the Emperor arguing about this or that. The real fight for our future is happening with the legions, about to cross over to the continent. I demand to go with them.”

Llassar contemplated his response. “You understand this will become far more dangerous. There’s a chance none of the men who take part in the invasion will return. Neither Talogren’s son nor the Emperor’s daughter is going with the legions, and the Emperor’s daughter is married to the man leading the northern army. Do you think it’s wise to put the sole heir of your people in harm’s way?”

Cormac’s voice grew defiant. “Don’t give me that. If the legions fall, there’ll be nothing stopping the Carthaginians from reclaiming our islands and putting us all under the sword. It’s just as dangerous here as it is out there with the legions. I’m not asking to be on the front lines, but I could learn from traveling with either Velius or the Consul, watching them lead armies in the field.”

“You’ve watched armies in the field already. Now is the time for you to learn other things.”

“No. There won’t be another chance to witness a war like this, and I won’t shrink from my part in it. I’m not a sheep in the field. I refuse to stand idly by while others fight for me.”

Llassar frowned again, his suspicions growing as he realized exactly who the Cormac sounded like. Llassar had heard the princes new wife speak of sheep in fields on multiple occasions, referencing something out of their mythology.

“I will write your father about it,” Llassar said, opting to stall while he considered his options. “There’s still time before the legions sail, and I’m sure your request will sit better with your father if you can demonstrate your proficiency in governing.”

“Fine. I’ll go back and continue to listen, but you need to take me seriously. I want to be a part of this invasion.”

“Believe me, Cormac. I am taking this very seriously.”

The prince eyed the older man for a moment before storming off. Llassar was left to ponder the situation. When the prince had started spending extra time in his quarters, he’d initially assumed Cormac was simply enjoying the pleasures of a new marriage. Medb was, after all, beautiful in her own right. But now he wondered if there was more to it.

Conchobar had warned him that Medb was cunning and that Llassar should be cautious around her. Although he’d tried to keep an eye on her as she toured Devnum or spoke to various groups of women, his focus had been on Cormac. As the couple appeared to be getting along well, Llassar had thought their union was working out.

Perhaps he hadn’t taken the king’s warning seriously enough, after all.

***

Factorium

“Let’s see it,” Ky said as Hortensius lead him excitedly into the factory.

Ky had made multiple trips to the rapidly growing industrial center over the last week, going over every detail of new rifle construction. Because of the groundwork Ky and Lucilla had had Hortensius lay over the last several months, all of the tools needed to construct the rifles were more or less in place, which meant they only needed to construct the first prototypes of each piece of the weapon and make sure everything fit together well.

There were some obvious places where they could speed up the process, such as the manufacturing of the body of the weapon itself.  Hortensius had set up a separate building to deal with carpentry back when he’d first started working on the arcuballista, which also had a solid wooden body.  Ky hadn’t given it much thought at the time, since they’d been able to keep up with the construction quotas quite well and the quality had been good enough, but with the machining factory now under steam power, it turned out that making the bodies of the rifles themselves was actually the slowest part of the process.

A lot of the process was still being done by hand, including the parts turned using water power that were still guided by eye and cutting to blanks, instead of having a machine that could lock in precise measurements and cut the exact part every time. He’d already had Sophus put together plans for a more sophisticated wood processing facility, that could be used for more than quickly producing the rifle blanks, but that would ultimately call for a second steam engine to be built.

It was all doable, but it would take time, which they didn’t have. Ky’s decision to equip the northern force with older cannon had been made for this very reason. There simply wasn’t enough time to arm a full legion, let alone multiple legions, with the new rifles and artillery.Velius might be getting two legions, but only one of them would be armed with the newer weapons and cannon. The other would essentially be a replacement force to pick up the weapons of their fallen comrades, at least until manufacturing could catch up.

It was also why Ky had held off the landings until the last possible moment. He hoped the delay would give Hortensius the time he needed to produce enough weapons.

Hortensius led him to his office, where a finished rifle sat on the table. Sophus’ images had failed to capture the impressive length of the weapon, which would be almost as long as he was tall once the bayonet was slotted in place.

“She’s a beauty,” Hortensius said, lifting it up gingerly.

Ky’s eyes roamed over the assembled weapon, taking in every detail with quiet admiration.

He had seen and measured the individual components, refining the machines that produced them with minute adjustments. Seeing it all together, however, was something else. Hortensius had outdone himself. There were a few places the weapon could use some refinement, but even as it was, it rivaled anything built by craftsmen in the nineteenth century.

‘The new, narrow borer Hortensius built has done especially well,’Ky thought as he looked down the barrel, letting Sophus examine the rifling. Maybe the experience he gained building the larger borer for the cannon has paid off. If this was the case, then the rifles only improve over time.

“You’ve truly outdone yourself,” Ky praised, his voice carrying a hint of awe. “There’s room for refinement, of course, but this weapon is ready for the field as it stands.”

“Thank you, Consul. What surprises me most is how easy this is to produce, once we got everything in place. It’s a complicated weapon, but compared to how we would forge weapons and armor just a year ago, this took a lot less time and manpower, thanks to the machines. I am still amazed by how simple some of these machines make the process. Not only is it surprisingly fast to set up the machines and cut, bore, or mold a part compared to the time and effort required to slowly beat metal into shape by hand, but the training has become so much more simple. I can train a man in a few days to operate one of these machines, as opposed to a lifetime of apprenticeships and training to get a worker capable of making usable equipment.”

“I told you, when we first started working on improving your foundries, that we would make every part of the manufacturing process easier and more efficient. It’s the only way we are ever going to produce enough military supplies to compete with the Carthaginians.”

“Well, it’s a good thing too, because this is extremely time-consuming to make, considering you need hundreds of these for every one of those,” Hortensius said, holding up a small paper tube about the length of one of his fingers, although significantly thinner than the man’s sausage like digits.

Ky sat the rifle down and reached over to take the paper cartridge from him. As he held it up, slowly rotating it, Sophus put up a display showing the size of the round compared to the rifle muzzle he’d just been examining.

“You used the wooden blanks to roll them to the right size before tying them off?”

“Yes. That was actually pretty clever. I can’t imagine how hard this would have been without them. We also finished the first of the small measuring tools you described to quickly measure the right amount of gunpowder and then easily pour it into the tied-off paper tube. Even with those, it’s a slow process. If everything is set up right at a station, it still takes almost two minutes for a worker to construct one cartridge. To get the numbers you’ve indicated, it’s going to take a fairly large workforce. Probably larger than what I need to run the factory producing the weapons to fire them.”

“Yes. Unfortunately, the amount of changes needed for a version of the weapon where we can more easily automate the cartridges is significant. For the last year, I’ve been hitting you with one new technology after another, and since the winter, those changes have been even more significant. What we need now is time for your people to settle in and work with the same technology for a while, instead of constantly learning something new. Machine-driven efficiency is good, but it can’t reach its full potential if the workers are constantly having to learn this or that new piece of technology.”

“So, this is it for new toys for a while, huh?” Hortensius said.

“No. We’ll still introduce new things here or there, but they will be smaller changes and at a slower pace.”

“You’re the Consul. If you say it’s so, we’ll follow.”

“I still want your participation. You’ve made some interesting additions and corrections of your own once we got these things off the page and into production. Did you have any questions or concerns? I’m going to be sailing out with Valdar in a few days, and we really need these new production lines to get up to full speed as quickly as possible.”

Hortensius furrowed his brow in thought. “A few concerns. The demand for paper is already high, and using it for these cartridges is going to put a strain on that. I can already see that being a bottleneck in cartridge production.”

“I’ll check on them next. With the introduction of the new bleaching and pulping chemicals, they are increasing production speeds, but I agree, it’s going to be an issue. We’ll look at expanding their facilities so they can bring on more workers.”

“Which we’re also running short of.”

Ky sighed, acknowledging the reality. “Yes, I know. We’ll do what we can to get you people.”

Manpower remained their largest bottleneck, across all industries and the legions themselves. Every factory, mine, and mill owner asked for more workers, and the legions had still not reached the recruitment numbers they needed. Even with the addition of the Ulaid and the influx of immigrants, there just weren’t enough people for any single part of the war effort, let alone for it as a whole. If things went well in Germania, he hoped it would increase immigration of people to Britannia, looking for safety, work, or both.

“I did have a question about the bullet. I’m confused both by the name, since this looks nothing like jewelry, and the design. While it’s much faster to produce since it’s lead and doesn’t have to go through the entire process of becoming steel, it’s still much slower than making balls of lead like you have us making for the grape shells or even the larger cannonballs.”

“Round ball molds are easy to clean and reuse, and it is easy to make new molds as the old ones wear down. This design, with its ridges, pointed top and slightly concave bottom makes the molds both harder to clear and use again and becomes misshapen much faster. From every description of how the rifles operate, I don’t see why a ball wouldn’t work as well, and it would be much easier to manufacture. The same problem exists with these shells. That, at least the name I understand, since some are going to have the interior cavity for gunpowder, but we have that with round shells now, and they work well.”

“I can see from a manufacturing standpoint balls would be a better choice, but for these weapons, it won’t, although not always for the same reason. The main reason for the design of the bullet goes hand in hand with the softer metal. When the gunpowder explodes, the pressure pushes the bullet forward, like with the cannon you’re already familiar with, but it also distorts the end of the bullet, because of the concaved end. It expands the rear edges of the bullet until it locks into these rifle grooves, which causes it to spin.”

“Yes, you mentioned that when we were starting work on the new cannon, and doing the rifling on those, but we hadn’t gotten as far as making any of the shells yet. I’m not sure what I expected, but this shape almost certainly wasn’t it.”

“I know it’s very different, but it’s for a reason. Not only does it get a rapid spin from the rifling, but the cone shape also helps it fight against air resistance. The two together is what gives this weapon the kind of range it has.”

“The air dynamic that you told me about.”

“Aerodynamics. Yes.”

Hortensius pondered, then connected the dots. “Then these other rifles you gave me plans for, without the rifling and using the small round projectile, won’t have the same capabilities.”

“These other weapons are something my people would call a musket. Rifles get their name from the grooves cut into the barrel, which we called rifling, and yes, the muskets are a significant step back. The main difference between the two is accuracy and range. There’s also a difference in stopping power, but inside each weapon’s range, the stopping power is enough that the difference won’t matter. Our allies will get these muskets. They’ll be a significant step ahead of armies still using swords and bows, but will still leave them outmatched by our legions if they either turn on us or sell the weapons to the Carthaginians.”

“I see. I guess that answers my questions.”

“Good. What about the primer caps? Have you had any problems with those?”

Hortensius shook his head. “No, but we’re going to have to build a second stamp press for them or cut back our production of rifles. Between parts for rifles and these muskets, we’re already pressed to keep up with the assembly processes. Especially since we need significantly more of these copper pieces if Sorantius’s demands for deliveries are correct.”

“They are,” Ky confirmed. “We’re going to need a lot of these bullet cartridges and a lot of these primers. Sorantius has already started to work on what he’s going to put in them, but we’re going to have to be very careful with them every step of the way since the entire point is for them to explode when enough force is applied.”

“For now, we’ll split the time on the one stamp press we have between each of the weapons and the primer casings, until we get more presses built. I think we’re going to have to expand again, to make room for all of this, which means going into another building and having to build another steam engine, in addition to the one you promised the woodworkers and weavers. We’re starting to get stretched thin. We might be able to bring on people to assemble the bullet cartridges fast, since it doesn’t require a lot of training, but I only have a handful of men able to assemble the precision equipment.”

“I know. I think this will always be our problem. Do the best you can, both in getting the supplies we need and the people trained so you can expand. Thankfully, it’ll be winter soon, and that should slow down the pace of operations to help you catch up. If things go well by the beginning of winter we’ll start seeing a larger influx of refugees from northern Germania who will be looking for work.”

“Until then, we’ll do our best, Consul,” Hortensius said.

***

Devnum

Ky stood on the bustling Devnum docks, watching Valdar’s ships being loaded, men running up and down the gangplanks. In a way, it felt oddly comforting and normal. It reminded him a bit of his squadron in the hanger bay, preparing the ships for a patrol. True, the occasional seagull call changed the soundtrack of the moment slightly, but it still had the same feel.

“Consul, do you have a moment?” Bomilcar said, suddenly appearing next to him.

Surprised, Ky turned towards the Carthaginian. “I thought you left with Velius this morning.”

Bomilcar shook his head. “I asked to stay behind. There are some things I wanted to speak to you about when you returned from Factorium.”

“You have good timing. Valdar has been pretty impatient, and started loading even before I returned. We should be leaving in the next hour or so.”

“Lucilla told me where I would be able to find you. I’ve been here at the docks since shortly after breakfast.”

“This sounds important.”

“It depends on what your answer is to my proposal. Since the council meeting, I’ve been thinking about our objectives, and how I can contribute to them.”

Ky eyed him curiously. “With Velius and the southern force?”

Ky had half expected this request. He’d been surprised by a note he’d received from Velius shortly after the council of war requesting that Bomilcar travel with the southern force as his second in command. During the assault on Insula Manavia, it was all he could do to keep Velius from putting the Carthaginian general in chains, so the request had been especially surprising. Still, Bomilcar had participated in most of the training for the legion that was going to be assigned rifles first, so it made sense. Ky had already approved the request, since Velius was going to be out on his own and Bomilcar’s excellent tactical sense would help ensure their success.

“No. I’d like to travel to Germania, but not with the northern force either. I have contacts among several of the tribes currently under Carthaginian rule. While it wouldn’t be a stretch to say they hate Carthage, I actually got on with them fairly well. They understood we all had our duties to perform, and I did what I could to help them. I arranged for several food shipments during a bad harvest; and for their young men to at least stay in the region, instead of being shipped off to Persia or somewhere else far away. At the time, it had been a purely strategic move, since support in that region had always been weak and I considered a little inconvenience on our part was a small price to pay for strengthening allegiances. My view wasn’t popular, but at the time the emperor and his advisors were focused on pacifying the newly conquered Persian territories, so they let me do as I liked. I heard that the person who replaced me in that area changed many of my policies when I was reassigned to begin the preparations for deployment here.”

Ky’s brow furrowed, concern etched on his face. “And you think they’ll remember you and agree to listen to you. You know it could end badly, right?”

Bomilcar nodded. “I’m aware. Hopefully, they’ll give me a chance to defend myself before things go too far, but either way, I think it’s worth the risk. If I’m to redeem my former allegiances, I must do it all the way. Only making amends when there’s no personal risk doesn’t count, does it?”

“Maybe not. You know there will also be … concern here if you leave?”

“I know. That’s why I’m asking your permission,” Bomilcar replied, his eyes never leaving Ky’s.

Ky hesitated a moment, considering. It was time to see if what he’d told Velius had been true or not. Either he believed in Bomilcar’s change of allegiance, or he didn’t.

Finally, Ky said, “Alright, then I’ll take the heat here. Lucilla will help you with Ramirus, and he’ll smuggle you onto the continent.”

Bomilcar straightened, gratitude in his eyes. “Thank you for having faith in me.”