Chapter 496: Engagement
With the East African central government issuing its orders, the border forces were eager to act. The first gunshot was fired on the battlefield of the Zambezi River basin.
Inside the Songho outpost, Merkel addressed a group of East African army officers: "Yesterday, the Portuguese arrived. They've set up camp about a kilometer outside the Songho outpost. It looks like they plan to engage us in open terrain."
However, Merkel was mistaken. The tide had turned, and the Portuguese—especially under the leadership of French commander Clément—were actually reluctant to launch further offensives.
With reinforcements flooding into Songho, Clément realized that capturing the outpost was no longer feasible. And without taking Songho, the plan to secure the southern bank of the Zambezi River was doomed.
But Clément also couldn't afford to retreat to Tete. If East Africa seized the opportunity to pursue, it would be a disaster.
So he told the Portuguese officers, "We can't pull back. Honestly, every town in Mozambique is critically important. Take Tete, for example—it's the only Portuguese settler town within a 200-kilometer radius. If we fall back to protect it, that would mean abandoning the western frontier."
"So what do we do now?" someone asked.
Clément replied, "We have to use the narrow western plateau corridor to block the East Africans at the western edge. This will prevent them from slipping past us and attacking Portuguese positions from behind."
This was a forced move. Earlier, Rodé and Cléry's vanguard had failed to neutralize the Songho outpost, losing the initiative. The Portuguese could only hastily build defensive fortifications, and to avoid a surprise East African attack, they had to set up their camp two kilometers from Songho.
Naturally, their makeshift defenses couldn't compare to the Songho outpost, which East Africa had been fortifying for years. They didn't even have enough stone to construct proper barriers. But something was better than nothing.
Clément continued, "I know you're all worried. We're not planning to go head-to-head with East Africa. We just need to delay them. If it becomes unsustainable, we'll withdraw to Tete."
As the Mozambican army made its move, East Africa gave its Black troops one final round of instruction to minimize errors—though expecting no errors was unrealistic.
"Line up as you were taught. Three rows. Don't stand randomly. Don't leave big gaps."
Because of formation issues, soldiers from the 512th Division had to personally correct the mistakes of the Black troops. Even though they had undergone training in Southern Salzburg Province, many had already forgotten what they'd learned.
In truth, what East Africa had taught them back there was quite limited—most likely due to language barriers. The training had gaping flaws.
That's why experienced East African soldiers were needed to guide them. These veterans had already moved on from flintlocks, especially the new recruits who had probably never even seen one. Since the Black legions were mostly equipped with outdated firearms, old hands had to lead the instruction.
"Advance slowly. Don't run, but don't drag your feet either. If you turn your back to the enemy, our machine guns won't show mercy."
…
As reinforcements rested at the Songho outpost, Clément led his forces back to the front. He found himself stuck—East Africa had completed its troop deployment, his plan had fallen apart, and yet he couldn't withdraw.
Clément said, "Let's clash with East Africa. I believe that once we eliminate these reinforcements and take the outpost, they won't have any more forces inland to stop us."
He still wasn't ready to give up. In his mind, the defenders of Songho were now roughly equal in number to his own side. He didn't believe East Africa could mobilize any more troops.
Enough talking—time to act. This time, East Africa launched a probing attack. The Black legions were at the front. Thanks to last-minute corrections, they advanced in formation without chaos, slowly closing in. Due to their outdated weapons, the battlefield saw a return of line-firing tactics.
Following their white officers' commands, the Black soldiers formed three ranks and fired in volleys toward the Mozambican troops. But the accuracy was poor. After an entire volley, barely any Portuguese soldiers fell.
Watching this, Clément and the others realized the East African Black legions were poorly equipped. Clément relaxed significantly. He had heard rumors that East Africa didn't use Black troops—but now here were tens of thousands of them. Clearly, East Africa was no different from other colonies; they too needed their "second-class soldiers."
Clément remarked, "Songho can't house all their troops, so they're forced to fight outside the walls. This is our opportunity."
Tit for tat. Since East Africa had fired first, Mozambique responded in kind. The two sides' Black soldiers began exchanging fire. But compared to East Africa, the Portuguese Black soldiers were more organized in battle.
"East Africa's rifles don't have range. They're still using primitive muzzle-loading flintlocks," noted Portuguese officers with delight. In this area, Portugal had the clear advantage—though East Africa had far more ammunition.
"Have the cavalry unit come from the rear—flank the East Africans and put some pressure on them!" ordered the commander of the 512th Division from the Songho outpost when he saw the Black legions starting to falter.
…
A similar situation played out on the eastern shore of Lake Malawi and in the Zambezi River basin. Mozambique's two main forces were pinned down by East Africa's Black troops.
Both sides won and lost in these early skirmishes—but all combat was handled by the Black legions. The regular East African army had yet to enter the fight and remained watching from behind.
However, in the north, East Africa was making major moves. On the Ruvuma River, over a hundred small boats carrying East African soldiers began crossing southward. Like elsewhere, this region was undeveloped, with scattered villages and tribes dotting the wilderness.
"Our brigade will now split into three directions and push deep into Mozambican territory. There's no major enemy presence here, so we must expect guerrilla tactics. The terrain is complex and densely vegetated. Be ready for ambushes."
East Africa's approach in this sparsely populated region was cautious and methodical—advancing step by step. It was a strategically important zone, and they couldn't afford any mistakes.
Ernst, in particular, feared guerrilla warfare. That's why he had ordered the East African army to develop tactics specifically to counter it.
The results showed promise. Portugal had only about 300 armed men in the north—a negligible threat. However, the local tribes were highly hostile to East Africa's presence.
Many East African natives had fled to northern Mozambique over the years, making East Africa notorious in the region. The tribal resistance was fierce and caused real trouble for the advancing army.
In response, East Africa began a brutal crackdown. Any tribe that participated in the resistance was shown no mercy. Those who didn't resist were forcibly driven south. Large numbers of tribal populations fled deeper into southern Mozambique.
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