Three Novels of Ancient Egypt

Seqenenra had great confidence in the men of the Theban fleet, yet he recommended to the commander of the scouts that he stay in constant contact with the naval battle. The darkness started to dissipate and morning to come and the battlefield started to reveal itself to the watching eyes. Seqenenra beheld his archers, bows in hand, with the few chariots readying themselves to fight beside them. And on the other side he saw the Herdsmen's army spreading like churned dust. The enemy was waiting for the morning to appear and as soon as it did so, the chariots moved in readiness for the battle. Then some of them swooped down on some of the forward fortified positions and arrows flew, horses neighed, and warriors screamed. Other forces leapt forward, then engaged with the Egyptian archers and some of the Egyptian chariots in violent combat. Seqenenra shouted, “Now the battle for Thebes is joined!”

Pepi said in vibrant tones, “Indeed, my lord. And a fine beginning our soldiers have made!”

All eyes were trained on the field, watching the progress of the battle. They saw the Herdsmen's chariots attack a line, then split into separate groups and charge the archers rapidly and violently, pouncing on any Egyptian chariots that barred their way. The dead fell quickly on either side, with death-defying courage. The archers showed their mettle, standing firm against their attackers, picking off their horsemen and steeds and decimating them, leading Pepi to shout out, “If the fighting goes on this way, we shall get the better of their chariots in a few days!”

Meanwhile, the Herdsmen's forces would charge and fight, then retire to their camp, while others swooped down, so as to not exhaust their strength. At the same time, the Egyptians defended themselves without let or rest, solidly established in their positions. Whenever Seqenenra saw one of his horsemen or chariots disabled, he would angrily cry “Alas!” keeping an exact tally of how many of his army had been lost. The numbers of units used by the Herdsmen for the attack started to increase and they started to charge first in threes, then in sixes, then in tens. The fighting grew fiercer and fiercer and the number of the Hyksos's chariots multiplied until Seqenenra was overwhelmed with anxiety and said to Pepi, “We somehow have to counter the increase in enemy numbers to restore balance to the field.”

“But, my lord, we must keep our reserve chariots till the final stages of the fight.”

“Don't you see how the enemy comes back at us every little while with new troops fresh for the fight?”

“I see their plan, my lord, but we cannot keep pace with them, so many are their chariots and so few are ours.”

The king gritted his teeth and said, “We never expected that they would have this superiority in chariots. Whatever happens, I cannot leave my archers without relief, for they are the only archers in my army.”

The king ordered twenty chariots to charge in five units.

They swooped down like predatory eagles and brought new life to the field, but Apophis, hoping to repel Seqenenra's new onslaught once and for all, sent twenty units into the field, each composed of five chariots. The earth shook — with their clatter, the air was filled with clouds of flying dust, the battle reached fever pitch, and blood flowed like a river. Time passed and the battle's violence neither abated nor diminished, until the sun was at the center of the sky. Then scouts came and announced to the king that the Herdsmen's fleet had pulled back after having two of its ships taken captive and another sunk. The news of the victory came at just the right time to strengthen the Egyptians’ resolve and steady their hearts. The officers broadcast it among the battling divisions and to those waiting their turn to enter the fray and it called forth an echo of joy in their breasts and an upsurge of energy in their hearts. However, the same news rang in Apophis's ears too, and, overcome with anger, he immediately changed his deliberately paced plan and issued an order to the whole chariot force to charge and exact revenge. Seqenenra saw a vast flood of chariots swooping down on his valiant archers from every side and clutching them in its sharp talons. The king was greatly alarmed and shouted out in rage, “Our troops, exhausted by constant struggle, cannot withstand this flood of chariots alone!”

He turned to the commander of his army and said in decisive tones that brooked no discussion, “We shall enter a decisive battle with the forces that we have. Order our brave officers to lead our divisions to the attack and inform them of my desire that each perform his duty as a soldier of immortal Thebes!”