The British North American Revolution [5/6]
anonymous
August 24 2009, 03:29:44 UTC
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Winter came in like a lion, the first snowfall Montreal saw a storm instead of a flurry. The city was the final Canadien stronghold left, and a hard winter would not help their situation. Thankfully, an ally arrived with the frost.
Nessa, Ross, and Anne feared him, but Matthew called him Father Winter and embraced him, in spite of the ice crystals that grew in his hair and the frost that clung to his clothes. General Winter was ready to do battle against the Empire that was harming one of those who’d made a pact with him.
By late November the river had frozen, leaving the British ships sitting ducks for the Canadiens used to the bite of ice and snow. Along with the embodiments of the other colonies, Matthew went with fifty other Canadiens from Montreal to raid a ship that had been left frozen nearby.
Unlike the British, the Canadiens were protected by the winds and pelting snow. It made it harder to see them, and it was difficult for the British soldiers to tolerate the cold. Dressed in animal pelts and woollen coats, the rebels looked like wolves.
They swarmed the ship, and while two Canadiens were wounded in the fight, they won and killed every single redcoat on that vessel. Nessa saw Matthew stand over the body of a man he’d just killed and saw the wolf in him again.
“Come near at your peril, Canadian wolf,” she said without realising. Under her strength and ocean-made made stubbornness was the gentleness of a dog. Under his soft gentleness Matthew was lupine strength and ferocious protectiveness. For a moment, the timid boy she’d allied herself with frightened her. At her side, Anne whimpered.
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Only one battle was truly fought in the winter, and that was a half-hearted attempt to capture Montreal. It was the only battle Matthew could say was a complete victory. Under the protection of General Winter, the Canadiens rushed out of the snow like ghosts and overtook the helpless British soldiers without a struggle.
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The second springtime came with the realisation that Nova Scotia and Newfoundland could not hold off the increasingly rare military ships for much longer.
“We’re exhausted,” Ross told Matthew. “And any ships that get past us go to Breton and Evangeline.”
“We have to take them, then,” Nessa replied coldly, tugging at her recently-shorn hair.
“No!” Ross replied, standing and slamming his hands on the table. Anne jumped. “We can’t just… invade New Brunswick and Cape Breton.”
“Evangeline won’t hesitate to invade you,” Nessa pointed out. “She’s a Loyalist through and through. So is Breton.”
“We don’t have the men or the supplies needed,” Ross replied. Nessa scowled. There was too much to do and their rebels, their army, was spread too thin as it was. The only place where they were winning was Montreal and the surrounding area.
Winter came in like a lion, the first snowfall Montreal saw a storm instead of a flurry. The city was the final Canadien stronghold left, and a hard winter would not help their situation. Thankfully, an ally arrived with the frost.
Nessa, Ross, and Anne feared him, but Matthew called him Father Winter and embraced him, in spite of the ice crystals that grew in his hair and the frost that clung to his clothes. General Winter was ready to do battle against the Empire that was harming one of those who’d made a pact with him.
By late November the river had frozen, leaving the British ships sitting ducks for the Canadiens used to the bite of ice and snow. Along with the embodiments of the other colonies, Matthew went with fifty other Canadiens from Montreal to raid a ship that had been left frozen nearby.
Unlike the British, the Canadiens were protected by the winds and pelting snow. It made it harder to see them, and it was difficult for the British soldiers to tolerate the cold. Dressed in animal pelts and woollen coats, the rebels looked like wolves.
They swarmed the ship, and while two Canadiens were wounded in the fight, they won and killed every single redcoat on that vessel. Nessa saw Matthew stand over the body of a man he’d just killed and saw the wolf in him again.
“Come near at your peril, Canadian wolf,” she said without realising. Under her strength and ocean-made made stubbornness was the gentleness of a dog. Under his soft gentleness Matthew was lupine strength and ferocious protectiveness. For a moment, the timid boy she’d allied herself with frightened her. At her side, Anne whimpered.
----
Only one battle was truly fought in the winter, and that was a half-hearted attempt to capture Montreal. It was the only battle Matthew could say was a complete victory. Under the protection of General Winter, the Canadiens rushed out of the snow like ghosts and overtook the helpless British soldiers without a struggle.
----
The second springtime came with the realisation that Nova Scotia and Newfoundland could not hold off the increasingly rare military ships for much longer.
“We’re exhausted,” Ross told Matthew. “And any ships that get past us go to Breton and Evangeline.”
“We have to take them, then,” Nessa replied coldly, tugging at her recently-shorn hair.
“No!” Ross replied, standing and slamming his hands on the table. Anne jumped. “We can’t just… invade New Brunswick and Cape Breton.”
“Evangeline won’t hesitate to invade you,” Nessa pointed out. “She’s a Loyalist through and through. So is Breton.”
“We don’t have the men or the supplies needed,” Ross replied. Nessa scowled. There was too much to do and their rebels, their army, was spread too thin as it was. The only place where they were winning was Montreal and the surrounding area.
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