When fifty yards from the foe, Jack placed his bugle to his mouth and sounded the charge. As the last note rang out a round-shot caught the bugle and dashed it from Jack’s grasp, ripping it from the cord by which it was attached to his shoulder, and almost tearing him from the saddle. So dazed was he that he dropped his sword, and, allowing it to dangle from his wrist by the sword-knot, caught a rein in each hand. He, however, headed his horse directly for the officer who seemed in command of the Lancers in front of him. The Russian, seeing the trumpeter making straight for him, drew aside, and Jack, passing him, dashed in amongst the men behind him. He went in between two files, and almost before he could realise it was through.
His momentary dizziness passed, and he clutched his sword just as those behind him crashed into the Lancers. The combat was short and sharp. The Russians had again received the charge at the halt, and again were scattered.
Then in front of them Jack perceived more squadrons drawn up to bar their way, and these were wheeling back from their left so as to fall upon the flank of the little body as it passed.
‘Bring up your left shoulders!’ shouted Jack as they dashed on, and this they did.
They were soon up with the second body of Lancers, and as Jack went by he noticed the same clenched teeth, the same uncertainty of purpose. Though they were in the correct position for their attack, the Russians did not press it home, and the handful of Englishmen went by, brushing aside the lance-points with their swords and losing only one or two men in both charges. But their horses were by then almost done up, their pace was only a shambling trot, in many cases little better than a walk. With renewed fury the guns on the Causeway Heights opened on them, though Jack noticed that the guns on the Fedioukine Hills were silent. Afterwards he learnt that this was due to the brilliant and timely charge of D’Allonville with his Chasseurs d’Afrique.
The part of the valley along which the survivors of that terrible charge were struggling bore dreadful testimony to the havoc which had been wrought. Men in the blue and white of Lancer and Dragoon, in the laced pelisse and crimson overalls of the Hussars, lay scattered about in every conceivable attitude of agony and death. Shattered horses and mangled riders lay around. Some men were seen limping painfully, helped by comrades, some even crawling, over the ground strewn with headdresses and accoutrements. And while the enemy still plied them with shot and shell, Cossacks clung to them, spearing without mercy the stragglers, cutting down those who were too weak to move. Besides which, little bands of the defeated Russian Lancers pursued remnants of the brigade till the Russian artillery, unwilling that any of the ill-fated cavalrymen should escape, opened with grape and shell on both friend and foe together.
The Russians retreated, and the devoted few held on their way a little farther. Jack was hoping they would, after all, win back to where, still some distance ahead, he could see the scarlet coats of the Scots Greys, when Dainty suddenly fell dead-lame.
Jack, who was in rear of the others, instantly dismounted and found the poor animal had been struck in the foreleg by a bullet. ‘Faithful friend, I will get you out of this inferno if I can,’ he muttered; and led Dainty, who limped on three legs, along for some distance. His comrades had got some way down the valley when two shells, in rapid succession, burst over them, and several men and horses, mostly of the Hussars, fell killed or wounded.
While leading his limping horse Jack suddenly noticed on his right a dismounted man of his own regiment engaged with five Cossacks. He turned aside to help him just as a shell exploded close by him, one of the splinters of which struck poor Dainty, and, penetrating to her heart, killed her on the spot.
Jack was dazed for a moment, but he recovered and ran towards his comrade. The shell which had killed Dainty had also killed three of the Cossacks. Jack, taking another from behind, ran him through, when the last man, after firing at Jack, galloped off.