Building a Viking Empire with Modern Industry-Chapter 107: Salt mines

It was late into the fourth morning of the "Leicester Expansion Project" when the railhead finally reached the outer perimeter of the city moat.

Yet, unlike previous Viking raids where berserkers would rush into the fray chewing their shields and screaming for Valhalla, the "Track-Laying Division" operated with the cold, rhythmic efficiency of a metronome.

The "Iron Gear" marksmen fired their bolts from the safety of the mobile barricades continuing to suppress the defending Saxon archers who stood terrified on the ramparts.

As for the force that rushed the final hundred yards of open ground to the gatehouse, it was the "Interns."

These were the conscripted levies from the Midlands—poorly trained and equipped with standardized Jernheim shovels and pickaxes.

Fearful of the "Performance Review" (execution) if they retreated, the Interns boldly charged the enemy garrison under the protective fire of the repeating crossbows.

As for the veteran "Can-Openers" of the Heavy Infantry, they continued to hold their position around the "Screaming Kettle" locomotive until it was time for the final inspection.

Arrows fell from the ramparts as the Leicester garrison revealed themselves to fire upon those who were digging the final approach.

Crude javelins were thrust at the Interns from the hoardings. It was a Saxon vs. Saxon fight at the moment, as very few Vikings were risking their lives in the mud. Blood spilled across the freshly turned earth, and bodies soon filled up the drainage ditches.

Without using the "Mobile Foundry" to breach the gate, it quickly turned into a stalemate as the enemy defenders rained stones down on the construction crew.

When Ragnar saw the workflow begin to bottleneck, he stood atop the coal tender of the locomotive and adjusted his conductor’s cap.

He raised a yellow flag.

"Range Department! Clear the workspace!"

Ragnar waved the flag, signaling the Interns to pull back behind the earthworks and the Torsion Spikes to advance.

The marksmen fired from their defensive positions while the heavy ballistae bombarded the wooden hoardings on the walls.

Canisters of grapeshot shredded the wooden defenses, allowing the Interns to advance with sufficient covering fire.

Eventually, the Saxon defenders withdrew their heads, allowing the Interns to rush back to the rail ties. After the volley suppressed the front row of defenders, the Grenadiers advanced.

They didn’t storm the walls; they simply lobbed ceramic pots of "Spicy Mix" at the base of the wooden gate.

The chemical fire filled the gateway, the heat forcing the defenders to retreat from the murder holes.

Afterward, the Grenadiers pulled back, allowing the Interns to once more charge the smoking ground to lay the final rails.

This time, Ragnar sat back on the tender, drinking a cup of "Black Broth," and enjoyed the show.

While the construction continued to wage on, Ragnar spoke to Ealdorman Aelfgar, the consultant who had brought the levies.

"Your former serfs have provided more support than you realize, Aelfgar. Their digging technique has improved by 40% since Tuesday. They are dealing quite a degree of psychological damage to the enemy forces."

Aelfgar merely scoffed at Ragnar’s remark; the Viking was obviously using the levies to wear the enemy down and save the lives of his own expensive soldiers.

Of course, any warlord worth their salt would use such a tactic; after all, it cost a great sum to armor, train, and insure the "Iron Gear" soldiers.

Ragnar would preserve their lives as best as possible, and until now, Ragnar still considered the Interns as "Probationary Employees," not fully vested members of the Directorate; as such, he did not care for their safety like he did that of his own stockholders.

The course of the battle continued in such a manner for quite some time.

Every time the construction reached a stalemate, the Grenadiers and Marksmen would break it, allowing the Interns to continue their advance.

Unlike previous sieges where Ragnar had tried to preserve the infrastructure, here he had to lay track right up to the door.

The battle waged well into the evening before Ragnar pulled back his workforce to the "Siege Site" for the night shift meal.

Under the continuous hissing of the steam engine, the battle for the city had reached a psychological breaking point.

In total, over two hundred Interns had suffered workplace accidents this day, but for Ragnar, even his allied levies suffered significantly fewer casualties than the enemy; after all, they were protected by superior engineering and gained significant ground against the enemy forces who were choked by the chemical smoke.

Ragnar’s goal was to repeat this tactic the following day. Tomorrow, the track would touch the gate. And then, he would ram it.

Ragnar, of course, was suspecting the city’s Guilds to surrender; the merchants inside Leicester had seen the train. They had seen the efficiency.

Unless they all wished to see their warehouses burned by the "Spicy Mix," there would be some form of corporate restructuring that would transpire this night.

As Ragnar had guessed, shortly after midnight, the sounds of fighting erupted inside the city. The Merchant Guilds, realizing that the local Earl was going to get them all liquidated, had mobilized their private guards.

A few hours later, the massive wooden gates of Leicester creaked open.

A white sheet was waved frantically. Under cover of darkness, Ragnar’s "Loss Prevention Team" was ordered to march into the city and secure the assets.

Though this action had been done without the knowledge of the local Earl, ultimately, the defenders felt the price to pay to secure their Lord’s honor was too great.

Thus, Ragnar was welcomed in by the merchants who threw their weapons away and saluted the steam engine with the respect reserved for a wealthy investor.

While the Earl slept in ignorance throughout the night in his Keep, the city’s market district was swiftly secured by the Directorate.

The surrendered garrison was treated as "New Hires" and were afforded proper lodgings and humane treatment by Ragnar’s army, which thoroughly surprised the Saxon Consultants beneath his command.

Ealdorman Aelfgar decided to inquire about Ragnar’s behavior as they rode.. or rather, as the train rolled slowly.. into the city square, which was being secured by the "Can-Openers."

"Director... why are you treating the defenders with such dignity? They shot at us for four days. By Saxon law, you should execute every tenth man."

Ragnar looked ahead into the gas-lit darkness of the city streets and saw that the enemy forces were being lined up—not for execution, but to receive their new grey tabards. With a corporate smile on his face, he replied to the Consultant’s inquiry.

"They have surrendered and voluntarily breached their contract with the Earl; they pose no threat and clearly act in the interest of the market. As long as they do not pose a danger to my supply chain, I will treat them with the dignity that potential employees should be afforded. After all, their stubbornness in the face of overwhelming thermodynamics should be commended, for they lasted far longer against my Torsion Spikes than I had initially estimated. Only a savage would liquidate a skilled workforce!"

Ragnar may be willing to give no quarter to competitors who tried to steal his intellectual property.

Still, to a force who had properly surrendered and thrown themselves at his mercy, only their upper management would pay the price for rising against him.

The average spearman who was following orders could not be blamed for the poor fiscal decisions of his superiors.

This was how a civilized Director conducted himself in the art of the Hostile Takeover.

After saying his piece, Aelfgar and the other Saxon Consultants began to see Ragnar in a new light. He was not as bloodthirsty a conqueror as the Church claimed.

Instead, he had some insights into warfare that could change the way in which such a thing was conducted within the civilized world.

To the feudal Lords of a barbaric era, this idea of treating the disarmed combatants as "Human Capital" was a new and bold concept, one which the Directorate would become renowned for as Ragnar waged his many wars of consolidation.

"Besides," Ragnar added, patting the hot iron flank of the locomotive. "We need someone to unload the coal. And I certainly am not going to do it."

As the sun began to rise over the captured city of Leicester, the Earl.. who had finally woken up to find a steam engine parked in his courtyard.. was dragged out of his keep in his nightgown.

Ragnar stood on the cowcatcher of the locomotive, looking down at the shivering nobleman.

"My Lord Earl," Ragnar announced, his voice amplified by the morning silence. "You have been evicted. But do not worry. I hear there are excellent job opportunities in the salt mines of the North."