Reborn In 17th century India with Black Technology-Chapter 1204: WWI: Attack on the British Isles (2)

Galway, England 1702

The port of Galway, as a newly opened semi-military and semi-civilian integrated port, was bustling with activity. Although the local people found it odd that no battleship was docked in the harbour like it usually was, the liveliness and excitement of the port did not diminish in the slightest.

As a port most frequented by fishermen who ventured into the depths of the Celtic Sea and the English Channel, the entire harbour carried an air of simplicity and earthy freshness, utterly different from major ports like Bristol, Liverpool, or Edinburgh. Fishermen shouted and boasted about their catches, their voices rough with salt and pride, while small-time merchants haggled endlessly over prices, arguing over every single coin as if their lives depended on it.

Nearby, the smell of ale mixed with the pungent smell of fish drifted out from low-roofed taverns along the docks, where sailors and fishermen in rough, stained clothes crowded inside to drink beer, exchange gossip, and warm themselves after long days at sea, adding to the port’s lively atmosphere.

Unfortunately, this lively scene was completely shattered by the loud ringing of the warning bell installed at the very centre of the port. As the bell, as large as a cow, began to ring, it was as if time itself had frozen, plunging the entire harbour into an eerie silence. Sailors on the docks, fishermen haggling over prices, dockworkers unloading cargo, and men gossiping in taverns all fell quiet at once, eyes wide and hearts racing.

But the silence lasted only a split second. The very next moment, like an athlete injected with stimulants, the entire port burst into frantic action.

People stopped whatever they were doing and ran out of the port with all their might, merchants, sailors, dockworkers, it didn’t matter, all of them ran, with the only complaint being they could not run fast enough. It was utter chaos.

The officers responsible for maintaining the law and order of the port hurriedly adorned their caps and jumped into action, beads of sweat forming on their foreheads and their faces red with nervousness. The loss of the European fleet against the Bharatiya Empire was not actively publicised, but the kingdom did not try hard to cover up the matter either.

So even though most commoners, serfs, and slaves did not know about the current predicament of the British Empire, some well-informed commoners like the merchants and people who generally travel a lot knew about it, and given that most people frequenting the port of Galway were mostly fishermen or merchants, and that these people frequent the Celtic Sea, the English Channel, or the Atlantic, they already knew that the Bharatiya Empire had defeated the European fleet and beat them up black and blue.

So when the loud bell rang, the majority of the people immediately guessed that they were going to be attacked by the Bharatiya Navy.

The shadow of the Bharatiya Empire left behind in the hearts of most Europeans could not be underestimated. The common fishermen and merchants, as soon as they understood who their attacker was, did not hesitate and immediately retreated from the port. Even the British fleet, which they thought was mighty, undefeatable, and capable of taking on the Bharatiya warships without taking a step back, had succumbed under the might of the Bharatiya Empire. What could they do with their small arms and legs?

Some merchants jumped onto their boats and desperately paddled away from the port, while others were too scared out of their wits and immediately ran further inland. The fishermen, knowing that this situation was not right, decisively dumped all their stock into the sea in order to reduce weight and ran away.

On a large frigate docked in a harbour, a man stood on the bridge looking at the situation with stunned silence. It was Captain Henrique Wellington who was at a loss for words. Half an hour ago, the scenery in front of him was that of a bustling port city, but half an hour later, it had become an abandoned ghost town.

He felt a little resentful and annoyed that the officers responsible for maintaining law and order also ran away, but ultimately, there was nothing more he could do. After all, even he was feeling restless and wanted to run away.

’Gulp!’

The only reason he did not already do so was that if he did abandon his post, he would be called names such as a traitor, a backstabber, and a deserter.

The punishment for anyone guilty of any of the above was death. He did not want to flee in the fear of being killed by the Bharatiyas, even before the Bharatiya warships reached the port. At least for now, he was alive, and there was a faint glimmer of hope. What if the Bharatiyas don’t attack the port and simply want to show off their battleships as a deterrence? They won’t be so dumb to actually plan to occupy the port, right? So if he chose to retreat now, that faint glimmer of hope would disappear, and his death would be as good as certain.

"Everyone, alert. Assume a defensive formation," he shouted, his voice loud and clear. He commanded only ten ships, none of them capital vessels. The most powerful among them was his own Drake-class heavy frigate.

Under normal circumstances, his ’Cecilia’ was enough to intimidate any troublesome merchant ship, but now it was facing the Bharatiya fleet, which chewed through ships like his ’Cecilia’ as if they were nothing more than a morning meal. He knew his actions were futile, yet for him and his crew, there was no escape. They were trapped between a rock and a hard place. Even knowing they could not win, they had to put up at least a show of resistance.

Most sailors did not understand this line of thought. They did not want to fight against the Bharatiyas at all, and their voices of dissatisfaction were loud and clear, but unfortunately, when the captains of their ships asked who was willing to take the responsibility of being a traitor and deserter, everyone quieted down and looked towards the horizon with sullen faces.

Vijay lowered the binoculars and showed a look of surprise. He did not expect the Galway Port, a world-famous Irish city, would be so deserted and destitute. ’ Well, at least not too many people will get hurt, ’he thought in his heart with a sense of relief. After all, his war was with the nations of Europe, not the people of Europe, but then again, he felt a complex mix of emotions churning in his heart. In his last life, the British had come to his motherland and enslaved it for 200 years, but now he, in this life, was on the shore of Western England, ready to raise one of the cities, followed by many other to hell.

(I am aware that Ireland, Scotland, and England are all different nations, but in this timeline, due to the existence of Vijay, England became way more centralised and its reach into Scotland and Ireland has become deeper than what it is in reality, hence an Irish port is included as one of the targets as well.)

Yashvardhan came into his sight and made a few gestures with his hands. Vijay, who was lost in thought, immediately woke up as his eyes regained clarity.

He nodded and ordered, "Fire a warning shot, see if they surrender." 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

Vijay once again brought the binoculars to his eyes and intently looked at the tiny ships forming a defensive formation.

Soon, several fireballs shot into the air at supersonic speeds and plunged into the water only a few metres away from the Drake Class frigates and Douglas Class clippers.

A moment later...

"Do you surrender, or do you wish to resist?" the Bharatiya communications officer called out loudly. He had separated from the fleet in an emergency boat and boldly steered closer, stopping directly in front of the largest Drake-class frigate.

From a distance, the scene looked like a tiny insect provoking a giant dragon. Yet, strangely enough, this dragon was trembling with fear and did not dare to punish the puny insect that had challenged it.

Henrique Wellington almost peed his pants when the cannonball came so close to him. He thought he was a goner, but luckily, he survived, and he did not want to experience the same situation again. It did not matter if he was declared a traitor and would be put on the gallows tomorrow; all he wanted to do at this moment was live one more day. Not caring about anything, he spoke out with difficulty.

"We-We S-Surrender!"

The communications officer of the Bharatiya Empire smiled with a knowing expression and instructed, "In that case, please disembark from the ship and retreat. You have 10 minutes."

"Ye-YEss! Right away"

Henrique Wellington felt like he had been given an amnesty and immediately turned around to get on the emergency boat, but to his surprise, the officers and sailors he commanded did not even wait for the emergency boat to be brought down onto the water. They directly jumped into the sea and desperately swam towards the port.

Henrique’s lips twitched, but he was in no position to complain, so he hurriedly lowered the boat himself and paddled towards the harbour.

However, just as he got a few metres away from the warship, a loud explosion rang out. In the next moment, the ship he had been on only minutes ago split cleanly in half and began to sink rapidly. Henrique could not see it with his own eyes, but he heard the exclamation of his shipmates. Hearing the shouts, his face turned as pale as paper. He bit his lips until they bled, and hot tears welled up in his eyes, but he did not turn back. Instead, the force he put into every stroke multiplied, pushing him forward even faster.

The Bharatiya fleet rampage did not end there. Thirty minutes after the ships were destroyed, the bombardment of the entire harbour and the port commenced. Within a few hours, the entire port was in rubble.

Naturally, Vijay did not come all the way, crossing the Celtic Sea and the English Channel, just to attack a relatively unimportant port like Galway. After Galway, the fleet raised hell in Bristol, and then in Dublin and Liverpool, crippling the industrial arm of the British Empire. Moving forward, Belfast was not spared either.

Vijay considered going through the English Channel and targeting the heart of the British Empire, London. Although he could not hit the heart of London, since it is quite inland, he would still be extremely happy to let Stuart taste gunpowder, but sadly, when he was about to take action, a sense of danger tingled in his mind, so he gave the order to retreat.

Vijay caused a huge ruckus throughout the week the fleet was in the British Isles, and as a consequence, 80% of all the ammunition supplies had been used up, and the fuel for the Ramachandra Class battleships was running low as well, so he understood where the sense of danger was coming from. It was the lack of logistical channels. In fact, if it were not for the fact that the European Union no longer had a proper navy to pose a challenge to him, he would not dare to come so close to the British Isles and plough their fields for them as if he were a friendly neighbour. So he decisively chose to retreat back to the naval bases in Africa.

’Pity. If I had the chance to make proper preparations, not only could I have hit London, Norwich, Newcastle, Edinburgh, and Inverness in the Isles, I could have hit Amsterdam, Hague, Lisbon, Porto, and Lagos as well, ’he felt a little regretful. But then, thinking about the circumstances which led to the current situation, he couldn’t help but shake his head in exasperation. ’Who knew the Europeans would mobilise both their Atlantic Fleet and Mediterranean Fleet and capsize in the gutter.’

’Well, at least the naval capacity of the English has taken a large hit. It should take quite a while for them to recover’.

’Now that the English would not be able to make too many of those Sovereign Class and Nelson Class battleships for a long time, it would take a long time for the European navy to recover as well.’

A sharp glint suddenly appeared in his eyes. ’Looks like the time is right, I can play that card, ’he said to himself, a smug smile slowly etching on his lips.

P.S. Can’t believe I missed today’s upload by a few seconds. Hell, my track record of almost two years has been broken today, damn it.