Chapter 111: Memorial Service

After a long night of bloody struggle, Berengar stood at attention before his troops, who were now fully dressed in their battle attire, with their musket's slung over their backs. Currently, the men that comprised of his army were holding a brief memorial service for the men who died the night before, between 100-200 men had perished in the ambush from the previous night, and while the enemy's forces were nearly annihilated by Berengar's army; Berengar felt nothing but sorrow for the lives of his fallen soldiers which were lost in the conflict.

Unlike most Generals, Berengar deeply cared for the lives of the men under his control and tried his best to mitigate losses. Every soldier lost meant that someone from his workforce would have to take their place, which decreased productivity. War was necessary for the expansion of a State, and thus benefiting the Nation that enforced their demands in the long term. The short-term costs were something every leader must become accustomed to. Still, it was not an easy responsibility to bear. If Berengar had deigned to mind his place in the world and sit back in Kufstein and peacefully flourish as he had initially planned, then these men most likely would not have lost their lives so early.

Yet, these lowly ambitions could no longer contain Berengar's growing desire for power. As a man who had very little in his previous life in terms of authority and wealth, the moment he tasted true power for the first time, his thirst for supremacy became unquenchable. Despite his relative benevolence when compared to monarchs of the past, Berengar was still a man. Like all men, he was inherently prone to the corruption brought forth by absolute power. In his old life, there was a saying, "Absolute power corrupts absolutely." While Berengar had grown increasingly malicious towards his potential enemies. He was still compassionate to his loved ones and those he was responsible for. However, now was a time of war, and he could not give a warm-hearted speech about how great the men who perished the night before were. No, Berengar knew he had to inflame his soldier's desires for vengeance, and as such, the speech he touted as the fallen soldiers were laid to rest was one of fire and fury.

"I look upon every one of you are standing here before me, and I see men, men who have given up everything to fight the enemies of Kufstein courageously. Please make no mistake, the men who ambushed us last night may have been mere peasants drafted into service to fight against us, but they were still the enemy! They chose to ambush our camp while we slept, and they chose to kill over a hundred of our brothers in arms! These men who have perished have fallen defending their comrades, their officers, and their Lord! Henceforth I decree that the family of any man who dies honorably in battle shall be given exemption from taxes for a duration of time! I am certain that the men who have perished on this day desire but one thing from all of you, and that is to avenge their deaths! So I have decided before we march on Innsbruck, we shall lay siege to the Castle of Schwaz and route out the man responsible for this attack. I promise to have him and anyone else deemed responsible beheaded, where their heads may be mounted on pikes outside of the ruins of their once-mighty castle! God with us!"

Having finished his speech, the men gathered before him, numbered in the thousands, all began to chant the battle cry repeatedly.

"God with us!"

As they did so, the honor guard fired a volley into the air after the men were fully interned in the graves below. Berengar vowed to build a memorial upon this spot for the men lost in this battle when he finally won this war. Seeing that he had now stoked the flames of vengeance in the hearts of his soldiers, he gave an order to his troops.

"Now, pack up camp, and set forth for the city of Schwaz! Now is not the time for tears, now is the time for battle! May God show mercy to our enemies, for we will not!"

With that said, the army began to gather their equipment and pack up the siege camp; within an hour, the army of over 5,000 men was once more on the march; the city of Schwaz was nearby and had invoked the ire of Berengar and his troops. Though Berengar would not harm unarmed civilians, those who resisted his conquest were considered enemy combatants and would suffer the same fate as the defenders.

Nobody expected Berengar to lay siege to Schwaz on his way to Innsbruck. Though this would give his enemies time to rally against him, it ultimately would not matter, for the power of steel and shot was not something these feudal armies could easily contend with. It would be quite some time before his advanced weaponry became known to all and even longer before anyone had successfully replicated it. For the time being, Berengar's armies would become the most dominant force on the European battlefields.

Schwaz was merely the first of many battles that would take place over the coming months as Berengar began his conquest of Tyrol. While his armies marched to Schwaz, another army was marching towards Kufstein. Though it would be a couple of weeks before they arrived, their intentions for Kufstein and its people were far viler than anything Berengar had in mind for his enemies.

As winter raged across the Austrian alps, more than one army was on the march, the war for Austria had already begun, and time was of the essence; luckily for Berengar and his forces, he possessed the power of gunpowder and could easily render the once-mighty walls of Castles to ruin in a matter of days. His 12 lb cannons gave him an enormous advantage when it came to siege warfare—something which he would demonstrate to the world shortly.