Chapter 120: Mohammad the Vth's Reaction, Part: 2
Seeing his cousin Fakir in front of him, he couldn't help but glare at him. Mohammad stared daggers into the eyes of Fakir Ali Pasha. Fakir, who didn't get an answer but got a stern gaze from His Majesty the Emperor, felt his back starting to get cold from fear.
Before long, the silence was broken by His Highness himself. "Look at what you have done. You can't even do this simple thing. How come you don't know anything about the attack on Vijayanagara, and I have to hear it from my intelligence officer? What is your Ministry of War doing? Why should I employ you, you idiot? If it weren't for my mother, I would have kicked you out of your post long ago...."
The scolding went on for a few more minutes before Mohammad calmed down. He then had Moin Ali explain the situation to Fakir. Fakir, with his head down after all the scolding, suddenly raised his head in disbelief. More than anything, he couldn't believe that Aamir Ali Khan would die, as he knew exactly how experienced Aamir was. And although he would not like to admit it, it is well-recognized that Aamir is way overqualified to be a general on the battlefield. But how could he be willing after the old guy questioned his authority as the minister of war in front of everyone?
Mohammad, looking at Fakir, who was lost in thought, got angry again as he yelled, "What are you thinking about, idiot? Answer my question."
Fakir, who regained his senses quickly, replied, "Your Highness, we can mobilize a brigade directly from the Mumbai port. It is relatively near to the Panhala Fort."
Hearing this reply, Moin Ali frowned, and Mohammad fell into deep thought. Observing Moin Ali's concerned expression, Mohammad asked if there was any issue with the minister's plan. Moin Ali, seizing the opportunity to speak, expressed his worries.
"Your Highness," Moin Ali began, "I fear that if we divert our manpower from Mumbai as per the minister's plan, it might give Vijayanagara a chance to attack, sensing our weakness. The Panhala fort incident has already shown their preparedness, and we must plan carefully to avoid further vulnerabilities."
Mohammad, upon hearing Moin Ali's doubt, remained silent. He didn't answer and instead stared at Fakir, waiting for his reply. Fakir, finding the question thrown back at him, was momentarily stumped, unsure of the best course of action. However, an idea flashed in his mind, and he replied, "Your Highness, we have newly built fortifications in Mumbai. Add on top of that the new cannons that have been sent. It will not be a problem to defend the Mumbai island from any threats for at least a month. Moreover, we have a standing army of 50,000 people stationed there, which is 1/3 of our army strength at the southern border. On top of that, we have the Arabian Sea Navy stationed there. I think it is not a problem to have them reinforce the Panhala Fort. As we know, Vijayanagara does not have a prominent Navy."
Mohammad, finding the answer somewhat agreeable, looked at Moin for his opinion. Moin, though feeling somewhat uneasy for some reason, finally agreed, not noticing any loopholes in the plan.
One day later.
This time, it was the Minister of War himself who broke into the Royal Palace as he hurriedly yelled in panic. Listening to his panicked voice, His Majesty Muhammad had to come out of his work in order to meet him.
"Your Highness, it is not good. Mumbai is under attack, and from our sources, the southern part is already under the control of Vijayanagara."
"What? How is this possible? Is Mumbai not fortified extremely well? How did this happen? Who is the commander in that region?"
"Your Highness, it is all due to the cunningness of the Vijayanagara Empire. I don't know from where the Vijayanagara Empire has procured it, but it has the largest battleship we have ever seen. Even in plain sight, it could be seen that it weighs at least 1000 tonnes. From the battle reports we have acquired, they used the same giant cannon that took out the Panhala Fort from a farther distance to take out our artillery on the city wall of Mumbai in a similar way, along with breaching our city wall, making an opening for their army. With the help of their own cannons and some sort of new weapons that spew out fire, they were easily able to breach into the southern part of Mumbai Island. It was Mustafa Ali who was in charge of this battle, and unfortunately, he was also killed in battle."
Hearing this, Mohammad became furious again. He didn't know where to put his rage as he took the utensils by his side and smashed them onto the ground, yelling, "Damn it, goddamn it." Soon, Moin Ali also arrived with the same information, But with more details. Mohammad finally got to know how Mustafa the commander of the south Mumbai army used the cannons sent by the armoury to make private profits by selling them to merchants to assemble the weapons on their own ships. He also learned about how the officials in Mumbai deserted on a massive scale, running away from the battlefield instead of fighting the Vijayanagara Empire.
Seeing all these details, he knew that Vijayanagara had outsmarted him this time. Taking all of this in, he grew even more angry as he yelled at his cousin, "Idiot, bastard, look at what you have done. Don't the people under your command even know discipline?"
He took out his talwar in anger. He was about to swing at his Minister of war, Fakir Ali Pasha, but soon, seeing the terrified face of the minister, he couldn't help but remember his mother who doted on his cousin. Because of this, he turned his swing midway, hitting Fakir just with the flat side of the blade.
"Go away, you are fired," Muhammad growled in a furious tone, choosing not to end Fakir's life in that heated moment. Sparing him was perhaps the greatest mercy he could afford at that particular time. Following this tense encounter, Muhammad swiftly issued orders to mobilize troops within the Kingdom, gearing up for a counter-attack against the Vijayanagara Empire. The urgency and anger in his voice reverberated throughout the royal chambers. Additionally, the forces stationed at the western border, initially assigned to fend off Arabic invaders, were now also called into action, their focus redirected towards this new and pressing threat.
Muhammad himself was gearing up to join the battlefield. However, in the subsequent days, the unfolding news disrupted all his intended strategies, thwarting his carefully laid plans. As reports trickled in, revealing the staggering losses suffered by the Mughals with the fall of Cuttack, Paradeep, Bhubaneswar, and Puri, Muhammad found it challenging to accept that Vijayanagara had successfully established a connected defensive formation in the state of Odisha. Restlessness consumed him, especially considering that the Mughal army was still days away from reaching the intended target. But maybe God played jokes on him; a few days later Ratanpur Fort fell down. Mohammad had a red circle in his eyes. He didn't get proper sleep all week. City after city, town after town, village after village came under the control of the Vijayanagara Empire.
The relentless onslaught of setbacks weighed heavily on Mohammad, disrupting his well-laid plans and pushing him into a state of exhaustion and desperation. The landscape of the battlefield was shifting rapidly, and the once-confident ruler found himself grappling with the harsh reality of an unexpected turn of events.
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