56 Rat Trap

(King Gustav Adolf / Marshal Wrangel / Count Axel Oxenstierna POV)

"Your Majesty, with favorable winds, it will take us from twelve to fourteen days to reach Piława." (Marshal Wrangel)

"We have to take Konigsberg quickly and we are going to Gdańsk, I will force Sigismund to give up his claim to my throne and all the land in Livonia ... It is a pity that neither Moscow, Turks, nor Cossacks will help us." (King Gustav Adolf)

"We do not need them, they are nations of savages and barbarians. After the successes in Livonia and Lithuania, there is no strength that would be able to stop Your Majesty." (Marshal Wrangel)

"Maybe that's true, my astrologer gave me a horoscope ... the heavens and the stars are on my side." (King Gustav Adolf)

"I would not underestimate our enemies if the troops of Hetman Sapieha and Radziwiłł were working together..." (Count Axel Oxenstierna)

"Dear Count, enemies cannot be overestimated either, Poles are a nation in conflict, the King does not have much power, and their troops and tactics are outdated." (Marshal Wrangel)

"Pride comes before a fall. Dear Marshal, it was the Poles who forced the Duchy of Prussia to pay tribute, it was the Tsar who knelt before the Polish King." (Count Axel Oxenstierna)

"History, old times ..." (Marshal Wrangel)

"Silence! I don't need a conflict among my commanders." (King Gustav Adolf)

"Please forgive us. The Marshal and I have only the good of Sweden and Your Majesty in mind." (Count Axel Oxenstierna)

(End POV)

Two weeks before loading the Swedes, I ordered the evacuation of Piława residents, it was not something that the residents wanted to agree to, but I always believed in common sense and logical solutions, I gathered everyone on a small town square.

"Our information shows that in two weeks this place will be attacked by Gustav Adolf's troops. You have a choice, you can stay or leave this place, I will not force anyone. However, anyone who stays in Piława, I will treat as a potential Swedish spy, and the punishment for treason is death." (MC)

If the circumstance forced me to do so, I would use a proven Soviet tactic. I would have committed a massacre, and later I would blame the Swedes... exactly like the communists from the NKVD in Katyń... Fortunately, the residents showed understanding and common sense, which allowed them to avoid mass suicide.

"Lord, what are we going to do next?" (Ilya)

"When the inhabitants leave their homes, we will close the city. We will barricade every entrance. The Swedes will be able to enter the city from the port side, but they will not be able to leave ... unless in wooden coffins." (MC)

I also ordered the Cossacks to occupy the buildings and use windows and all kinds of gaps to fire at the Swedish troops, they also had a large supply of grenades ... if there was a need to use fireworks. The day before the landing of the troops, I was also going to pour out Greek fire on all the roads leading to the port, almost all of them, only one way was to be left open. The fire barrier was supposed to make the Swedes move in the direction I want... The whole city was going to be one big rat trap ... and I didn't even have to lay out the bait.

Another advantage I had was the size of the port. The Swedish fleet consisted of 125 ships, but there could not be more than ten ships in the port at the same time ... So it would be logical that among the first ten ships to land there would be several thousand soldiers and it would be infantry, most commanders and officers, and Gustaw Adolf himself.

As there were still a few days until the invasion and to make my people bored, I ordered and build some fortifications, it was an additional obstacle for the Swedes who could try to break through by force in an act of desperation.

I spent every free moment with my people, I ate with them and ate what they did, we sat together by the fire, we sang songs together and slept together, I tried to remember every name, every story told ... Not because it interests me, but because I have to earn their loyalty and trust.

"Lord, ships at sea, lots of ships." (Saddat)

I quickly climbed one of the higher rooftops in the city and looked at the sea ... I was not able to count the number of ships, I could not see their flags from this distance, but there were too many of them, they must be Swedes ... It begins.

"Tell the people to go to their positions, the enemy is approaching." (MC)

Saddat went to alert my soldiers, and I was left alone, watching the calm sea, the approaching sails of the galleons and the transport ships... I took the amber out of my pocket.

"I hope Jurata remembers." (MC)

I just need to wait for the right moment... but the waiting was exhausting, each minute lasted an hour, or so it seemed to me. Apparently, patience is a virtue, I don't know who said it ... but he has never been on the battlefield and has never seen an enemy approaching.

Just a few more miles ... I don't know how long it took. but the first ships have already entered port ... two galleons and five smaller transport ships.

"I hope it works ... Jurata, Goddess of the Sea. Use your power and make the Swedish ships make them sink and rest at the bottom of your sea." (MC)

At first, I didn't see any change in my surroundings. The sea was calm ... but suddenly something changed in the air, I felt a metallic stain in my mouth ... iodine, it was the taste of iodine. The gusts of wind became stronger, the calm surface of the sea slowly began to cover itself with small waves ... the gulls and terns screamed and took flight.