Halig kicked a rebel away and quickly turned his head. Torstein also paused, wiping a splash of blood from his cheek.

Out on the freezing, dark ocean, the gray fog was slowly parting.

At first, it just looked like tall shadows moving against the crashing waves. But then, the distinct shapes of carved wooden dragon heads broke through the mist.

One by one, massive longships with red and white striped sails glided into the shallow waters.

There were easily over 200 of them, completely blocking the horizon and trapping Erik’s 10 transport ships against the beach.

"Those are not our ships..." Halig whispered "Erik, look at the banners on the masts. Those are Danish longships..."

After hearing such words, the entire Iron Kingdom frontline seemed to freeze. The rebel warriors also slowed their pushing, parting like a red sea to let their warlord ride forward.

Halfdan rode his warhorse right to the front of the bloody melee, ignoring the dead bodies under his horse’s hooves.

He raised his double-bitted axe and pointed it at the massive fleet arriving from the sea, letting out a roaring laugh.

"Surprised, my dear nephew?" Halfdan bellowed, "Did you think you were the only one who could make powerful friends?"

"You made a deal with the Danes?!" Erik shouted, spitting blood onto the sand. "You sold out your own homeland to a foreign King just to get back at me?!"

"I am saving our homeland!" Halfdan roared back, his face twisted in anger. "You sold Norway to Ragnar’s smoke and machines! The Danish King and I made a simple pact. He gave me the ships and the men to trap you on this frozen rock. Once we wipe out Ragnar’s greatest commander and steal your metal fire-tubes, the Danes will help me take back Norway! I will rule it as their vassal, the traditional way, with axes and real warriors!"

This was a massive ambush designed to cripple the Iron Kingdom’s military leadership and steal their technology.

Thousands of Danish warriors were already climbing over the sides of their ships, splashing into the shallow water with their swords drawn.

Torstein gripped his bloody steel mace, his face pale. "We have nowhere to run. Just give the order, and we will die taking as many of them with us as possible."

Though Torstein’s bravery was honorable, Erik hated the idea of dying on a random beach.

Erik looked back at his uncle, who was still laughing, savoring his victory.

Finally, he looked at his own 10 transport ships, sitting on the shoreline right behind his men.

When they left City Titan, the 10 ships were packed with men, food, and water. But more importantly, they were carrying massive, heavy barrels of extra black powder to supply a long siege.

Even after the heavy shooting today, there were still dozens of untouched powder barrels sitting deep in the cargo holds of those 10 ships.

Erik started to laugh. It was a loud, hysterical, manic laugh.

"What the fucking hell are you laughing at?" Uncle Halfdan barked, "Have you finally lost your mind, boy?"

"No, Uncle!" Erik shouted, a crazy grin stretching across his face. "I am just amazed! You made one massive, incredibly stupid mistake!"

"What mistake?!" Halfdan sneered, raising his axe.

Erik turned his back on his uncle entirely and grabbed Torstein by the shoulders.

"Torstein! Listen to me!" Erik ordered, "I want you to take 50 of our fastest men! Run onto our 10 transport ships right now! Go into the cargo holds, bust open every single barrel of black powder you can find, and dump it all over the wooden decks!"

Torstein’s eyes widened. "My King! If we do that, the ships will be ruined! We will never get home!"

"We are not sailing home in them!" Erik roared, shoving Torstein toward the ramps. "Do it! Dump the powder, then light a slow fuse using a piece of burning cloth! Once the fuses are lit, push our 10 ships out into the crashing waves so they drift right into the middle of the tightly packed Danish fleet!"

While the massive army of exiles watched in confusion, 50 Iron Kingdom soldiers sprinted up the narrow wooden ramps and boarded the transport ships.

"Stop them!" Halfdan screamed, suddenly realizing that his nephew was trying to pull some kind of crazy trick. "Charge! Do not let them touch those ships!"

The rebels surged forward again, swinging their axes and raising their shields.

"Hold the line!" Erik roared, stepping forward. "Give Torstein time! Push them back!"

Steel maces crushed skulls, axes bit into leather armor, and blood soaked the freezing sand.

Erik took a shallow cut to his left arm, ignoring the burning pain as he kicked a rebel warrior backward.

Out in the water, the thousands of Danish warriors were wading through the shallows, closing the distance to the beach. They were only 100 paces away.

"Fuses are lit!" Torstein screamed from the deck of the flagship. "Push them out! Push the ships!"

The men jumped off the sides of the transport ships into the water. They put their shoulders against the heavy iron-plated hulls and pushed with all their might.

The crashing ocean waves caught the ships, slowly pulling them away from the beach and drifting them directly toward the tightly packed armada of 200 Danish longships.

"Get out of the water!" Erik yelled, waving Torstein and the men back to the dry sand. "Everyone fall back! Hit the dirt! Cover your ears and close your eyes!"

The Iron Kingdom soldiers dropped their weapons and threw themselves flat onto the bloody sand, covering the backs of their heads with their hands.

Halfdan’s rebels, confused by the sudden surrender, stopped fighting and stared at the men lying in the dirt.

Halfdan rode forward, looking past Erik’s men toward the ocean.

He saw the 10 empty transport ships slowly drifting into the Danish fleet. He saw the small, glowing orange lines of fire slowly burning across the powder-covered wooden decks.

"What is that...?" Halfdan whispered, his eyes widening.

Out in the water, the Danish warriors were shouting at the empty ships, trying to push them away with their oars.

A tall Danish captain reached out and grabbed the edge of the flagship right as the small burning fuse finally touched the massive pile of exposed black powder.

"Erik..." Halig whispered into the sand. "Are you sure this is going to work?"

Erik squeezed his eyes shut and buried his face in the sand.

"Hold your breath, Halig." Erik whispered back, bracing himself. "And pray the Danes don’t know how to fly."