Game of Thrones: I am Dothraki, not a barbarian

Chapter 201 Artillery Bombardment of the Combined Fleet
When the combined fleet was 1,400 yards from the entrance to Pentos Bay, Lajalo raised his right hand.

On the gun emplacement, Baqu nervously wiped the sweat from his palms. As the newly formed Dothraki artillery sergeant major, this was his first combat experience.

This distance was a bit far for him, but fortunately there were many ships on the other side, and they were very close together.

"Fire!" came Rahalo's voice.

At that moment, all eight Napoleon cannons roared simultaneously, smoke billowed up instantly, and twelve-pound solid iron balls hurtled out at astonishing speed, drawing visible arcs in the air.

However, the distance is indeed too far.

All eight shells landed on the sea a hundred yards in front of the Combined Fleet, creating huge columns of water that shimmered in the sunlight before falling back into the sea.

"Damn it!" Baqu's hopes of achieving victory with a single shot were dashed, and he punched the cannon.

The crew of the Combined Fleet saw a column of water suddenly rise in the distance and were startled by a thunderous roar, but then realized that nothing had happened and breathed a sigh of relief.

"Ha ha!" a sailor burst into laughter. "Are the Pentos men fighting fish?"

“They’re trying to scare us to death with their noise!” another person scoffed.

Stannis frowned as he heard the mocking laughter.

The deafening sound he'd just heard sent a shiver down his spine, somewhat reminiscent of the battle in the Reach. But the explosive devices he feared were all immovable, and since no damage had been caused…

"Keep moving!" he ordered. "Maintain formation!"

Rahalo observed the results of the battle, showing no sign of frustration, and comforted Baqu.

"Don't rush, Baqu. This is your first real combat experience. We're just letting you fire a couple of shots to warm up. Once they get close, that's when you'll create a miracle!"

Baqu turned around and ordered the gunners to adjust the angle and the amount of propellant, and then began to reload the shells.

Fifteen minutes later, the combined fleet had advanced to a position one thousand yards from the entrance to Pentos Bay.

“Now!” Rahalo raised his right hand again.

"May the Red God protect you!"

Baqu kissed the hilt of his knife, then slashed down with the curved blade, shouting, "Fire!"

This time, all eight Napoleon cannons fired simultaneously once again.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Eight shells roared out!

A shell struck the mainmast of a Dromon warship on the port flank, the twelve-pound solid iron ball slamming into the thick oak mast with astonishing kinetic energy.

The mast was as thick as an adult could hug, but under the impact of the shells, it was as fragile as paper.

Click!

The massive mainmast broke in the middle, and the upper half, along with the rigging and crossbeams, collapsed with a crash.

The mast, weighing several tons, crashed onto the deck, completely collapsing the superstructure below.

Three sailors who were operating the rigging had no time to dodge and were crushed to pieces by the broken mast, their blood seeping from between the shattered deck.

The broken rigging lashed through the air like a snake, ensnaring several crew members who were trying to escape, dragging them down onto the deck, where they screamed in agony.

The second shell struck the foredeck of the warship, where a complete infantry square was lined up and waiting.

One hundred Braavos soldiers, clad in chainmail and wielding shields and spears, shouted as they saw the inconspicuous black dot slowly flying towards them:

"Raise shields! Block projectiles!" Although it looked slow, the twelve-pound solid cannonball struck the center of the dense formation at a speed of over two hundred meters per second.

The result was disastrous.

The shell pierced the shields of the first three ranks of soldiers, completely piercing their upper bodies, and then continued forward, smashing the heads of the fourth rank of soldiers, followed by the fifth, sixth, and seventh ranks. Blood mist exploded, and the deck was like a red firework bursting!

Then, the shell carved a path of carnage through the crowd, completely piercing through the entire formation.

Severed limbs and fragments flew everywhere, instantly staining the deck crimson with blood. Soldiers who weren't directly hit were also thrown over by the immense impact, slamming against the bulkheads, the sound of bones breaking clearly audible.

The sergeant major standing nearby was sprayed with chunks of blood and flesh. He stood there dumbfounded, staring at the hellish scene before him, repeatedly muttering:

"Oh my god... oh my god... what kind of monster is this..."

There were already thirty or forty corpses lying haphazardly on the deck. Some were unrecognizable, while others, with severed limbs, were still groaning in pain. Blood flowed down from the gaps in the deck, dripping onto the faces and bodies of the rowers on the lower deck. Screams and chaos erupted from the rowers' cabin.

The fleet's morale began to waver; this attack from a distance, which they could not retaliate against, was completely beyond their comprehension.

"What kind of weapon is this?" an officer asked, trembling.

Stannis forced himself to remain calm, but his face had turned ashen.

Turning around at this point would be too late; not only would slowing down be difficult, but exposing the hull to the enemy would only make things more dangerous.

"Keep advancing! Only by getting closer can we launch a counterattack!"

When the combined fleet advanced to 800 yards, Lajalo gave the order to fire for the third time.

This time, Baqu and his gunners had basically mastered the trick, and the first shell hit the sterncastle of a Dromon warship.

The heavy wooden structure disintegrated instantly under the impact of the 12-pound shell, the command room was completely destroyed, and the three officers inside were crushed to death on the spot.

The rudder was also damaged, and the warship lost control and began to drift aimlessly on the sea.

The second shell penetrated the side of another warship.

The broadside of the Dromon was only about forty centimeters thick, utterly incapable of withstanding the impact of a 12-pound shell. The shell tore open a huge hole, and seawater began to rush into the ship's hold.

The oarsmen were killed or wounded in the explosion, and the air was thick with the smell of blood. Moreover, the water beneath their feet was getting deeper and deeper. Ignoring the oarsman's repeated warnings, they threw down their oars and fled to the upper deck.

The ship's propulsion vanished instantly, and it began to fall behind the formation.

The third shell struck the ram at the bow.

The heavy bronze ram was shattered by the cannonball, and fragments flew in all directions like hand grenades.

The throats of a dozen archers standing at the bow were slit by bronze fragments, and their blood stained the entire foredeck.

The fourth shell hit the base of the mast.

The immense impact left the mast teetering precariously. Whenever the sea breeze blew, the mast emitted a terrible creaking sound, as if it would collapse at any moment.

The fifth shell pierced the deck of a warship and crashed directly into the lower storage compartment.

The bows, arrows, ropes, and rations stored inside the cabin were completely destroyed by the shells.

Even more frighteningly, the sparks from the impact ignited flammable materials such as kerosene, and thick smoke began to billow from inside the cabin.

(End of this chapter)