Vikings: Lords of the Ice Sea

Chapter 383 Viking Fire and Greek Fire

When Genoa was attacked, more than a dozen horsemen rushed out of the city gates to inform the coastal towns of this alarming news.

Subsequently, other attacked towns also sent messengers, their horses faster than ships. By the time the Vikings attacked Naples, the Eastern Roman fleet in Sicily had already received word.

"Viking fire?"

The fleet commander was amused by the novel name. He summoned the fleet scattered in ports such as Syracuse and Messina, and hastily assembled a hundred warships to head to Naples with the help of strong southerly winds.

May 31st.

When the Eastern Roman fleet arrived at Salerno, which was in ruins, locals said that the Vikings had turned back north after attacking the port.

"Follow!"

The Eastern Roman Empire pursued northward, passing through Naples and Ostia. According to information relayed by the land riders, the Viking fleet appeared to be lingering in the waters near Genoa.

The commander looked at the nautical chart and changed the navigation target to Nice, to the northwest.

June 2nd, morning.

Commodore Hadawah, commander of the Mediterranean Fleet, stood on the stern deck of the flagship, gazing at the boundless blue sea. The fleet carved thirty-six white streaks on the calm surface, its sails drinking in the southeast wind.

Suddenly, a scream from high up on the mast shattered the tranquility.

On the southwestern horizon, a sea of ​​sails was spreading, eventually forming a fleet that blotted out the sky. The red banners of the Eastern Roman Empire fluttered from the mast tops, and a massive array of one hundred warships was approaching at full speed.

"All personnel, prepare for battle!"

Signal flags were raised throughout the fleet, and the Viking fleet changed formation. Four gunboats moved to the forefront, lined up in a row, and opened their broadside gun ports.

The Eastern Roman fleet spread out in a wide front and, taking advantage of its numerical superiority, surged forward rapidly. The oarsmen shouted slogans as the warships cleaved through the waves, and the distance between the two sides quickly closed.

Two thousand meters, one thousand meters, five hundred meters.

"Fire!"

At the same time, the four gunboats spewed fire, white smoke rose like walls, and solid iron bullets whistled through the air. In an instant, wood chips flew everywhere, broken oars danced wildly, the bow of a light galley was damaged, the mast of another ship broke in half, and the sails covered the struggling sailors like shrouds.

On the gunboat's deck, gunners used damp mops to clean the scorching cannon barrels, then reloaded gunpowder packs and shells. The second salvo was more accurate, hitting the waterline of an Eastern Roman warship, causing seawater to rush in and the ship to list.

As the distance closed, the remaining Viking warships used ballistae to hurle oil canisters, attempting to repel the enemy with their superior firepower.

The Eastern Roman fleet's offensive momentum stalled; they had never experienced such intense and terrifying long-range bombardment. The commander decided to change tactics on the spot, ordering all the light galleys to flank the enemy fleet.

The battle intensified, with the gunboats continuing to fire, but unable to stop the encirclement from closing in. Ignoring casualties and enduring the barrage of crossbow bolts, the Eastern Roman light galleys quickly entangled the Viking outer fleet.

"What formidable morale!" Hadawa stood on the stern deck, a faint white mist spreading across the sea directly in front of him. More than thirty Dromon warships were approaching. These heavy warships had thick hulls, and cannonballs could not penetrate their waterline to cause them to take on water and sink, only killing the crew on deck.

From the left and right flanks, a large number of light galleys completed their encirclement and were attempting to close the gap. The Greeks, utilizing their numerical advantage, were attacking a Viking warship with two to four galleys each.

"Send flag signals, break formation, and have conventional warships cover the nearest gunboats! As long as the gunboats are still there, it doesn't matter if the conventional warships are all destroyed."

At 10 a.m., the two flanks of the Viking fleet were engulfed in a melee. The azure sea was stained light red with blood, and corpses and broken ship planks floated everywhere on the surface.

At this moment, the gunboat was less than 100 meters from the enemy, and thick white smoke filled the air. The captain issued the order:

"Gunners, fire freely. Use solid shot and grapeshot at will, but be careful not to hit friendly ships. Twenty marines will guard the broadsides, and the remaining sailors will be given crossbows and melee swords to prepare for boarding action if it breaks out at any time."

Upon receiving the order, a gunner loaded a gunpowder pack and a large bag of iron balls into the breech, aimed at the approaching oar-powered warship, and fired.

In an instant, hundreds of iron balls rained down on the deck of a galley warship like a storm, clearing out the sailors and officers on deck.

"Good job!"

The captain cheered loudly, but before he could celebrate for long, he suddenly saw a flame coming straight at him. Immediately afterwards, more fire-breathing ships entered the firing range, their metal pipes spewing out scorching flames that incinerated the Viking warships in sight.

The naval battle entered its most brutal phase.

The Viking gunboats fired a barrage of solid shot and grapeshot, while the Roman warships retaliated with Greek fire. The four outermost conventional warships were set ablaze. The Vikings used water pumps to draw seawater to extinguish the fire, but this damned Greek fire could not be put out by water and instead floated on the water, continuing to burn.

Left with no other option, the captain rang a bell, ordering the crew to abandon ship.

Without the conventional warships acting as a shield, the gunboats on the inner side were also subjected to flames.

In less than half a minute, the gunpowder packs at the broadside gun positions were ignited, and the fire spread rapidly. The surviving crew members jumped into the sea, clinging to wooden buckets or broken planks and drifting with the waves, praying for rescue from friendly forces.

"These Greeks are crazy. Is this really necessary?"

Hadava stood on the ship's railing, observing the chaotic sea. The Eastern Roman fleet was in no better shape. One after another, the planks of fire-breathing ships cracked, their flamethrowers were damaged, and the leaking Greek fire ignited the hulls. Other fire-breathing ships had their decks thoroughly pelted by shrapnel, and without anyone to steer them, they floated silently on the sea, obstructing the movement of surrounding vessels.

The battle lasted until 11 o'clock. The Eastern Roman fire ships were almost completely destroyed, leaving only sixty warships. The sailors' morale was low, and ships located at the edge of the battlefield gradually withdrew.

The Viking fleet also suffered heavy losses, losing two gunboats and thirteen conventional warships. The remaining ships formed three groups and headed north, disengaging from the battle. The Eastern Roman fleet did not stop them but instead withdrew southeast.

The battle ended with the Eastern Roman fleet suffering even greater losses, but it achieved its pre-war objective: to repel the Vikings and prevent them from entering the eastern Mediterranean.

The Viking fleet's achievements included destroying major ports on Italy's west coast, destroying Frankish ships, severely damaging the Roman fleet, and significantly weakening their naval power in the western Mediterranean.

After this mutually destructive naval battle, the real beneficiary was the Agrib dynasty of North Africa, whose pirate ships became active again, raiding the islands of Corsica, Sardinia, and the Italian coast.
(End of this chapter)