Steampunk Apocalypse! - 185 Napoleon

Ed sat down at the dinner table with his previous life’s mother. A loaf of white bread and a bowl of soup were waiting for him. He happily dug into the meal, not even waiting for his mother to join him.

“So.” His mother hesitantly spoke. “Your father and I have been discussing it, and we believe it’s best to send you to school.”

“School?” He looked up and nodded. “That’s fine.” His mother usually had the ultimate say in the home, so he knew there was no point in arguing.

“You’ll be going to school on the mainland.” She continued. “You’ll need to learn French.”

Ed’s face grew dark upon hearing the additional details, but he kept his silence and simply nodded. The awkward silence carried over for the rest of the meal.

…

Time passed, and soon, the nine-year-old boy left the island of Corsica and joined an academy on the French mainland. However, things did not go well for the young child, as he was a foreigner that did not speak the French language well. Additionally, he was short for his age and his title of nobility was low on the totem pole. The children of higher nobility quickly made sure to show him his place.

“Gahahaha!!!” A large boy with messy blond hair laughed as he mercilessly pushed Napoleon down a flight of stairs.

“UGH!” Ed groaned as his head slammed into the hard floor. His eyes flashed with vengeance as he glared at the bully.

“What are you going to do about it?” The bully gestured with his hand, inviting Napoleon to fight back. “Trash commoners like you shouldn’t be in this school.” He took a step down the stairs, and a posse of his rich friends followed closely behind him. Soon, they reached the bottom of the stairs and towered over Napoleon.

“Is he so short because of malnutrition?” A skinnier brown-haired boy joked. “Maybe we can put him to work on one of my uncles’ farms. I hear they feed the pigs quite well.”

“I’ll kill you!” Ed screamed in rage, but only broken French came out.

“Gahahaha!” The largest boy laughed as he pushed Napoleon back to the ground. The group of six or seven boys took turns kicking him while he was down, bruising him all over. They didn’t even bother sparing the face, and why should they? It’s not like there were consequences for showing a commoner their proper place in the world.

…

Napoleon slowly regained consciousness. He trembled as he forced himself to stand up, but there was rage burning in his eyes. ‘I’ll make them pay!’ He thought as he glared at where his long-gone bullies had originally been standing.

…

Months passed. Napoleon continued to be bullied during this time, forcing him to keep his head low. He began exercising more, but there was little to do to aid his stunted growth when compared to his peers. It seemed he was a late bloomer when it came to height, so instead he focused most of his time on a newfound interest in war tactics. While the academy library was sparse on the topic, as it was not a military school, there was much to learn from the books that were available, and soon, he came up with a plan.

The day for Napoleon’s plan soon arrived. Today, they were being taught horse riding. Most of the nobles had long since mastered it, and even Napoleon had gotten the hang of it over the past few months. He controlled his horse to move towards the largest of his bullies. “How about a race?” He confidently taunted, certain the noble would take the bait. They cared too much for their imaginary honor to let even the smallest slight pass over them.

“Humph.” The noble snored. “Seems we haven’t taught you a lesson lately. Fine, but if I win, don’t blame me for my actions.”

“Haha, same here.” He smiled in reply.

Soon, the children were given free-range with their horses. Napoleon and the bully took off in a flash, leaving all the others behind in confusion. The two horses galloped side-by-side, the wind rushing past them. Ed glared at his opponent, the ruffling of his hair blocking part of his view. He glanced behind him, happy to see that no one was following him.

“Now!” He flicked the reigns, causing his horse to speed up even more. He had long analyzed all of the available horses and had made sure to choose the fastest one. He had even arranged for his opponent to get stuck with one of the slower horses today.

“Damn!” The bully clenched his teeth as he too flicked his reign in an attempt to catch up. Unfortunately, Napoleon remained just a single step ahead of him the entire time, leaving victory just out of his grasp. Of course, what he didn’t know was that Napoleon was leaving such a small gap completely on purpose.

Soon, the two boys reached the forest. They were quickly concealed from the outside world by the trees. Suddenly, Napoleon pulled on his reigns, causing his horse to jump for no apparent reason. Confusion covered the bully’s face for only a brief moment before he felt his horse stumble forward.

“AGHHH!!!” The bully screamed in horror and pain as his horse crashed to the ground, crushing his left leg. Upon glancing behind him, he saw a thin wire that had cut his horse’s legs, causing the fall to the ground.

“Looks like I win.” Ed taunted as he pulled the horse back around and looked down upon his opponent from up above. His disdain for the bully couldn’t be hidden, and there was also a hint of something else in his eyes. Rage? Anger? No. It was simply boredom. His victory had come far too easily, proving that the bully was never really an opponent to begin with. “I’ll be sure to tell the teacher about your bravery today that allowed your precious friend to survive.”

“What?” The bully replied in confusion, not understanding what the young Napoleon meant.

Ed didn’t bother answering as he climbed down from his horse. He pulled out a dagger from his waistband and stabbed it into the neck of his own horse! “NEIGHHH!” The horse began to panic, spreading blood everywhere. Ed then walked up to a thick tree and placed both hands against it. “ARGHHHH!” He shouted as he suddenly slammed his head into it. Blood covered his forehead and dripped down his face, making for a scary sight. He smiled towards the bully one more time before turning around and running away.

“BANDITS! THERE ARE BANDITS IN THE FOREST!” Napoleon fearfully shouted as he hurriedly fled from the woods. “BANDITS!”

Soon, a group of horse-riding students found Napoleon, and they were shocked upon seeing his bloody face. He explained how the bully had held them back to allow him time to escape and get help. The students hurriedly gave Napoleon a ride back to the stables so that they could inform a teacher. He was then rushed to the medical bay so that his wounds could be examined and cleaned.

…

The next day. No news of what happened in the forest spread to the students, but rumors naturally spread. Of course, only Napoleon knew the truth, and he had expected the school to keep it under wraps. He had secretly hired homeless men to kill the boy, and he had no need to worry about them backing out of the deal. He hadn’t informed them the boy was an important noble, nor did he reveal his own face, voice, or even body to the homeless men. He had concealed himself and used a third party for every transaction. Additionally, he knew who the families of the homeless men were, and if they attempted to betray his expectations, then he could easily arrange for the destruction of their families. Fortunately, that was unnecessary, as it seemed everything had gone as he planned.

Over time, the rumors grew more and more exaggerated, and eventually, the school couldn’t keep it under wraps for any longer. The noble boy had been gruesomely tortured to death by the homeless men. Enraged nobles came down upon the school with the fury of a thousand suns, and it was soon revealed that the school was shutting down. Most of the nobles could easily transfer to other academies, but this left Napoleon in a certain limbo. He was not like other nobles that could simply choose to attend any academy they wished.

Near the end of the school’s final days, Napoleon was suddenly called into the headmaster’s office.

“Sir?” Ed questioned, not understanding why he was here.

The headmaster was an older man with a balding head of gray hair. He patiently dipped his pen in ink as he wrote down various notes. After a moment of silence, he looked up to the boy. “Very little gets past me in this school.” He slowly and solemnly said. “From what I’ve heard, you’ve taken an interest in military strategy and tactics during your time here?”

“Mm.” He nodded to confirm it. He actually planned to become a writer someday, but he indeed had taken an interest in the military.

“I’ve arranged for you to attend a prestigious military academy. Most of the other commoner students have been made similar offers, though for less prestigious schools depending on their aptitude.”

“I’m grateful.” Ed gave a nobleman’s bow. It seemed he wouldn’t have to disappoint his parents by returning to Corsica after all.

“Here.” The headmaster handed a small book to Ed. It detailed some of the basic information about the academy.

“Thank you.” Ed nodded as he turned to leave.

“Was it worth it?” The headmaster suddenly asked as he returned to writing in his book.

“What do you mean?” Ed nervously questioned as he glanced back at the slumped over headmaster.

“Was it worth it?” The headmaster repeated his question without looking up.

Ed hesitated a moment before choosing his words carefully. “I have no regrets about my time at the academy.”

“I see. That’s good then.” The headmaster nodded. “I’ve heard rumors of the father of a student being caught in an affair. Another student’s mother has been accused of an affair as well. Yet another has had their parents accused of tax evasion, and another had plans to rebel against the crown.”

“I see.” Ed nodded. “It seems that many things go on behind the scenes for French nobles.”

“Indeed.” The headmaster slowly nodded. “However, there is always a trace of such things left behind.” He looked up at Napoleon, a serious look in his eyes. “Fortunately for you, I belong to the camp that’s against those nobles. I arranged for the tracks to be covered, and the military academy should be able to protect you even if anything is later exposed.” He stared silently at Napoleon for several seconds. “Don’t waste this opportunity, and don’t make the same mistakes again. A man that learns from his mistakes is a great man, and a man that doesn’t isn’t even a man. Everything about a battle should be known before it is fought, and the outcome is determined before blows are ever exchanged.”

Ed’s eyes widened in shock. Sweat covered his palm as he awkwardly opened the door and fled the office. ‘So, I had been exposed after all…’ Cold sweat covered his back as he realized how lucky he had gotten. If he had been caught, then forgetting about himself, even his entire family may have been beheaded. Fortunately, the old headmaster had saved him and had even been kind enough to give him advice for his future.

…

Years quickly passed as Napoleon studied as his new military academy. During his time there, he was an outspoken nationalist in support of his homeland of Corsica. He wished for Corsica’s independence from France. However, he continued to be bullied for his short stature, birthplace, and accent. Fortunately, there were more commoners at the military academy, and Napoleon managed to restrain his urges for further revenge. He had failed once already, and he couldn’t risk exposing himself as the perpetrator behind the fall of his previous academy.

Over time, Napoleon grew quieter, and he continued to read more and more. Math, geography, and war strategy and tactics. His interest in reading never ceased, and he truly believed he would become a writer someday.

As time continued to pass, so did life. Unfortunately, Napoleon’s father soon died. Without the support of his father, his income quickly plummeted. At the age of fifteen, Napoleon graduated from a military academy in Paris and enrolled into the military as a second lieutenant in an artillery regiment.

…

In the years to come, Napoleon served in the French military. Eventually, he took a leave of several years to fight for his homeland’s independence. Unfortunately, things did not go as he had wished, and he was eventually forced to return to the French mainland. There, he continued to serve in the artillery regiment.

Napoleon’s chance finally came during the Siege of Toulon. There, he successfully led a plan to capture a hill that allowed their artillery forces to dominate the harbor and force the British to evacuate. His reward for such a feat at the young age of 24 was the promotion to brigadier general. This soon placed him in charge of artillery for the entire French army within Italy.

…

Napoleon’s rise of fame only hastened when the time for the Italian Campaign of 1797 came. His mobile artillery forces dominated the battlefield. Whenever engaging the enemy, he purposefully directed the majority of his armed forces behind enemy lines. This effectively cut off his enemies supply routes and communications. Additionally, it forced the enemy to fight Napoleon on his own terms or forced them to retreat into hostile territory. Either scenario always resulted in a win for Napoleon’s forces.

Napoleon soon became a war hero due to the Italian campaign. He captured over 150,000 prisoners over the course of the war, and he won every battle while making it seem effortless. The wealth seized during the war only increased his influence further, allowing him to create his own newspapers. With news directed by himself, he only became more popular to the French people.

…

Soon, Napoleon was sent to Egypt to improve France’s hold on the Mediterranean Sea. There, he defeated the Mamluks, and despite their forces being equal in number, Napoleon only lost twenty-nine men during the battle. His army’s’ morale greatly boosted, the campaign continued into the Ottoman Empire’s coastal cities. Unfortunately, there were repeated uprisings in the lands he conquered, and his forces quickly dwindled. Even worse, his men grew sick, and some had even contracted the bubonic plague.

Eventually, Napoleon abandoned many of the sick and wounded, even going so far as to poison some of the weaker men as an excuse to leave them behind. With their retreat sped up, they managed to flee to Egypt. There, he chose to return to France despite not having orders to do so.

Upon returning to France, the French Directory wanted to punish Napoleon for desertion. Shockingly, it was not because he had returned but because he had not returned soon enough. Poor communication lines had resulted in him failing to get his orders, and the French had not done well during the War of the Second Coalition against Britain, Austria, Russia, the Ottoman Empire, Portugal, Naples, and other nations. Fortunately, things had finally improved for France, but the French Directory was now bankrupt and unpopular with the people.

‘Now is my chance!’ Ed thought as greed flashed in his eyes. Together with his brother, who was speaker of the council, he worked to direct a coup d’état. The French Directory was soon overthrown, and Napoleon was elected as the first consul for a period of 10 years. However, after just a few years in office, he rewrote a new constitution, and thanks to his war hero status, it passed the house by a large margin. The new constitution gave him near unlimited power, essentially making him the new dictator of France. He happily declared himself the First Emperor of France.

During his rule, Napoleon quickly went about reforms in the country. As someone that grew up in lower nobility, he understood commoners far better than his peers. He quickly passed laws instituting equality before the law, property rights, religious toleration, reformed education, and more. His reforms were popular with the people, thus further solidifying his rule as emperor.

…

Time continued to pass, and the surrounding empires grew unhappy with Napoleon. A low-born becoming emperor of a nation was an insult to their dynasties, and the reforms he passed were bound to spread to their own kingdoms. Should their own citizens get the wrong idea, then it would be their heads on the chopping blocks next.

One day, Napoleon sat in his office working on some documents. Suddenly, there was a pounding on the door. “Come in.” He answered.

“Sir.” An advisor entered and gave a nobleman’s bow. “I have dire news to report.”

“Hmm?” He looked up from his documents curiously.

The advisor gulped nervously. “Your majesty, the British have broken the peace treaty… They’ve declared war on France.”

“What?!” Ed hurriedly stood up and slammed his fist against the table. By his current age, he had actually grown beyond the average height of men, making for an intimidating presence. However, much to his dismay, the British had been spreading rumors that he was short in height ever since he rose to power. Still, he was willing to let it go if it meant peace for his new empire.

“…” The advisor trembled as he took a few steps back.

“Damn it!” Ed ground his teeth. “Prepare an invasion force immediately! It’s only a matter of time before Russia and Austria join forces with the British. Other nations are likely to join as well.”

“Your majesty!” The advisor hurriedly nodded as he turned to leave and pass on the orders.

Now alone, Napoleon stared quietly at the documents on his desk. “Damn British!” He threw his documents to the ground. “If they want war, then I’ll give them war!”

…

Napoleon quickly sought a decisive strike against his enemies, not bothering to wait for them to attack first. Thus began the War of the Third Coalition. Napoleon quickly triumphed over the Russian and Austrian Empires, causing the dissolution of the 1,000-year-old Holy Roman Empire. Ironically, this destroyed empire would later be replaced by Germany and its surrounding nations, which in turn would lead to the world wars. Of course, Napoleon would never know of such things.

Unfortunately, the War of the Third Coalition was not the end. A Fourth Coalition and Fifth Coalition followed, and France won each of them with ease. France dominated Europe, and there were little his enemies could do about it. His reforms spread to other nations, increasing his popularity with the commoners even further. When a newspaper interviewed him about his military career, he declared that he learned nothing from his battles, and he fought his very first battle just like the last. He knew everything he needed to know before a battle ever started, thus determining his victories before a blade was ever even drawn.

Things seemed to have finally settled down after the Fifth Coalition. Napoleon had solidified his rule and established his dynasty. It seemed the French Empire simply could not be stopped. However, the Russian Empire soon refused to follow Napoleon’s laws and economic reforms. Angered, he established a force of 400,000 men in preparation to invade the Russian Empire once again, and hopefully it would be the final time. He had defeated Russia many times before, and he felt this time would be no different.

Napoleons troops marched through the vast distance of Europe, and he hurriedly rushed to invade the Russian Empire. He believed speed was of the essence when it came to war. However, he was shocked when he arrived to find that the Russian cities had already been burned down, and there was not a single Russian soldier in sight!

“What is this?!” He angrily shouted at his commanding officer.

“Sir!” The officer saluted. “My men spoke with the citizens. The Russian’s burned down the cities themselves and retreated further towards Moscow!”

“Are they mad?!” He yelled in shock. He quickly led the troops deeper into Russian territory, and he soon encountered Russian forces. However, the Russians did not fight back. Instead, they continued to retreat further east while burning everything in their path.

Napoleon’s frustration grew greater as he continued east. “I’ll take them at Moscow!” He angrily ground his teeth. “Not even they would burn down their capital!”

Soon, the Napoleon army reached Moscow, and the Russians finally fought a proper battle. Unsurprisingly, Napoleon won the battle, just as he was famed for always doing so. He quickly occupied the city as Russian forces retreated even further into the wastelands of the east.

At this point, he expected Moscow and the Russian Empire to surrender. But shockingly, the Moscow Governor burned the city down! Napoleon occupied the ruined city for five weeks, expecting the Russian Emperor to eventually negotiate with him. But soon, news arrived that there was a coup in France, and Napoleon had no choice but to retreat from the war early to return home and settle the coup.

While retreating from the freezing Russian lands, winter suddenly arrived three weeks early. The French army was low on supplies, as everything on the way to Moscow had been burned down. With no food, lack of other supplies, and an early winter, things quickly grew dire for Napoleon and his men.

The Russian Winter proved to be too much for his men, and battles with the Russians on the way out only increased their problems. By the time Napoleon returned to France, his 400,000 strong army had shrunk to only 40,000 in size.

With Napoleon’s army demolished, the surrounding nations would definitely not let the opportunity escape them. The Sixth Coalition began with Russia, Prussia, Austria, Sweden, Great Britain, Spain, and Portugal declaring war on France. Napoleon quickly took command and won a series of battles, but he simply didn’t have enough troops to hold them off. However, he did not give up and believed that he was fully capable of turning the war around.

Shockingly, the senate soon betrayed Napoleon, as they negotiated a secret peace treaty with their enemies. They disposed of Napoleon as emperor, and his generals soon followed in a mutiny. Forced to abdicate the throne, he was exiled to the island of Elba. Later in life, he would attempt to retake power in France, but a seventh coalition quickly put a stop to it. His rule as emperor was over, and he was forced to live out the rest of his life as an ordinary citizen in exile.

Later on, Napoleon’s legacy would lead to the fall of Feudalism and the rise of Germany. He had forever changed the face of Europe and would be remembered for years to come.

…

Ed woke again within the void. It took him several minutes to recover from the shock at having lived such an amazing life. ‘So, I failed to invade Russia…’ He recalled his other previous life as a German doctor. ‘In my life after Napoleon, I predicted Germany’s failure to conquer Russia and Britain… And in my current life, I’ve adopted hobbies of experiments and warfare… Are they all related? Do past lives influence future lives? I can’t be somebody of historical significance in every life… right?’