Outside of Florence, 1142

Ah, Kaiser Heinrich thought, a proper battlefield.

This was the first time in many years that the Kaiser would be facing a professional army on a true field of battle. Ever since his automatic Chancellorship the only foes for the picking were random brigand parties and the occasional city garrison, although the Milanese in Genoa gave him fits and annihilated his entire bodyguard, save for Captain Ludwig.

Here though, it was finally different. He was facing a large Milanese army, commanded by a proper man of nobility. The field would be mostly open and flat. It would come down to the army's strength and his generalship.

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The stakes were high for both sides. Not only was the Milanese heir to the throne (although it was little more than two islands now) present, but this was their final army on the mainland. They had besieged Florence in hopes of gaining a toehold onto the mainland. If this army was to be defeated then they would be crippled for quite a long time.

Meanwhile, on the Imperial side, the Kaiser had just suffered an embarrassing defeat in a bid for his second Chancellorship. If he was to lose this battle then his reputation would never recover and his plans would be useless. In addition, the Imperial heir, Prinz Henry, was also present. If things were to go terribly and both royals were to die, the Reich might very well be plunged into civil war trying to figure out who would rule.

Right now, however, that was not on the Kaiser's mind. He was focused on relieving his beloved city of Florence. He would not be alone in this task. The city's garrison, over 500 strong, was sallying out to assist Heinrich in this operation.

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Their placement would be crucial. The way the Kaiser had deployed, making the Milanese face him, put the garrison in the one spot of the battlefield that wasn't flat and open. It also happened to be in the Milanese rear.

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In the best-case scenario, their presence would go unnoticed and they would slam into the already-engaged Milanese being pushed to the limit by Heinrich's army. In the worst-case scenario, they would simply keep several Milanese regiments occupied while the Kaiser defeated the main body of troops in front of him. He hoped that the garrison commander realized what his objective was, in any case.

Heinrich's main plan was to simply walk right up to the Milanese army and crush it. Nothing subtle. He hoped that Prinz Henry was paying attention, as the Prinz had just gone behind his back in the most recent Diet elections, all but securing Maximillian Mandorf the Chancellorship. The Kaiser prided himself on being up front and a man of action, and was slightly disgusted that Henry was turning out to be the opposite.

The march took place, but before the main engagement a fierce archery duel took place. The Milanese had superior weapons and numbers (Heinrich caught Prinz Henry muttering something about Staufen and pavisses), so his archers were tasked to do little more than absorb fire until he deemed the time right to attack with the infantry.

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Anxious, the Kaiser ordered the charge quickly and the melee was on.

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With the Florentine garrison being tied up in the woods, the Milanese enjoyed a small numerical advantage which was beginning to tell. Despite spotting some men running for the rear, Heinrich could see that his line was cracking. He motioned to Prinz Henry, who trotted over.

"Now, we charge in and push things in our favor."

Seconds later, the Prinz was still dumbfounded as he watched the Kaiser, followed by his escort, charge into the thick of fighting. A second later he recovered and followed his father into the melee, both of them catching and mauling a regiment of Italian militia trying to flank.

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Captain Ludwig, armor stained with blood, rode up to the Kaiser and the Prinz.

"Where the hell did they come from?"

A glance towards Florence provided the answer. Apparently the worst-case scenario with the garrison had happened.

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Several regiments that had routed the Florentines were making their way down the hill. Things were not looking good for the Empire.

"We'll never survive against that," Heinrich said to both escorts. "Let's overturn this line and free up the infantry. CHARGE!" Waving his red-gleaming sword high into the air, he plunged into the main battle line, several quicker horsemen following.

Prinz Henry just looked at Captain Ludwig, who shrugged. Was the Kaiser being this reckless on purpose? Also shrugging, he lead the rest of the cavalry into the fray.

The Imperial advantage lasted exactly three seconds. A series of loud swears signalled the arrival of Count Manno, the Milanese commander, and his escort. Now it would simply be which side's leader would go first.

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This was not terribly difficult to figure out. The two Imperial escorts were battle-hardened and extremely loyal, not to mention being more numerous and of German stock. Meanwhile, the Milanese were known for counting their money more than for their fighting prowess. Add in the fact that they were very hungry, having lived off of the Italian countryside for years, and the outcome was inevitable. Manno's cavalry ran, with Heinrich and Henry giving chase. Eventually the Milanese heir was slain, providing the turning point for the battle.

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Unfortunately, the Imperial army had no other cavalry, and the two escorts' mounts were too exhausted to provide chase towards the fleeing Milanese. The victorious army could only watch, trying to catch their breaths, as a significant remnant of their foe, spurred on by their second-in-command, headed for parts unknown.

Intelligence reports that the army circumvented both the Papal forces and Genoa, and passed out of our line of sight to the west of Milan itself. I assume that they are in the whereabouts of Marseille now, the Kaiser wrote in a letter to Chancellor Mandorf that night. In the future, I request more cavalry so the job can be properly finished.

He sealed the letter and sent it off. There. Now to move on to more pressing matters.

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