"The cannonballs are coming!" Helm at the observation post shouted, but even if he didn't, everyone heard the sound of a cannonball piercing the air.

"Huh~" The shells whistled, and more than a dozen sound of breaking the air made everyone on the Z-49 creep.

"Boom!" More than a dozen water columns erupted in front of and behind Z-49, and the water column that rose into the sky surrounded Z-49 like a white cage. The waves from the explosion hit the Z-49's hull, causing the destroyer, which was less than 800 tons, to jolt violently on the sea.

"3 shots to close range on the starboard side! They're getting more and more accurate! Standing at the lookout post, Helm looked at the three water columns less than 15 meters from the ship's hull, holding on to the fence against the terrifying shaking.

On the deck, three 88mm rapid-fire guns were firing desperately, and within a few minutes of engagement, the decks around the three gun emplacements were already covered with shells that still emitted heat and gunsmoke. However, in the face of the rain of British firepower, the resistance of the Z-49 was simply negligible.

On the opposite side is the 16 L-class destroyers of the Third Destroyer Fleet directly led by Brigadier General Tierrit, the cutting-edge L-class destroyers are equipped with 3 4-inch (102 mm) naval guns with a speed of 29 knots, which is better than the Z-49, which has been more than 10 years old, in terms of firepower and speed, and the flagship Linxian at the head has a speed of 28.5 knots, equipped with 2 6-inch (152 mm) naval guns and 6 4-inch naval guns, and the firepower of both sides is not an order of magnitude at all!

"Damn, we can't get rid of them!" Inside the bridge, Major Booth watched the fire flickering in the fog.

The Z-49 was already racing at a speed of 27.5 knots at this time, but the British fleet in the distance was not only not thrown away, but was getting closer and closer, its figure in the dense fog was becoming clearer and clearer, and the shells were hitting more and more accurately! If it weren't for this thick fog, Z-49 would have been hit with holes by now!

Afraid of something, there was a sudden violent explosion at the stern of the Z-49, and the entire hull shook violently, and Major Booth, who was caught off guard, fell on the fence of the bridge in embarrassment, and his military hat fell off his head, fell off the bridge, and then was blown into the sea by the sea breeze.

"Damage!" Major Booth, who had regained his steady, also lost his hat and shouted loudly. The Z-49 had no armor on its body, and the British shells could rampage through the hull without hindrance, and even a 100-millimeter high-explosive bomb could hit the core compartment of the ship with one shot. Whether it's a boiler room or a turbine room, any compartment that hits itself will become a target!

"There is no abnormality in the engine room!"

"There is no abnormality in the boiler room!"

"There is a slight flooding in the steering room and emergency repairs are underway."

"Gun Position 3 is destroyed! The No. 2 gun group suffered heavy casualties! The aft deck is on fire! Saving is being organized! ”

The reply from the microphone reassured Major Booth a little, and although 2/3 of the firepower was lost, the most important power was not damaged. However, Major Booth on the bridge could not see it, and the stern deck of the Z-49 was already in shambles.

A piece of the stern side and deck were torn off, the 88mm guns at Position 3 were completely destroyed, the barrels were blown off, the gun mounts were twisted and deformed, and the emplacements were scorched black, and the gunners disappeared from the deck of the Z-49 as if they were not in this position. Those who were blown to pieces by the explosion and scattered into the sea were lucky, but the second gun position had become a hell of flesh and blood.

The debris that had been blown up and scattered swept across the stern, and the originally clean bulkhead was now pitted, like a pockmarked face. The No. 2 gun position, which was a backpack type with the No. 3 gun position, was also baptized by fragments.

The open gun emplacements were unguarded, and the flying debris unscrupulously smashed the surrounding gunners into broken sacks. Seven gunners were 4 killed and 3 wounded, 1 was cut off half of his skull by fragments, 2 were covered with fragments and died on the spot, 1 was cut open by fragments, and the intestines squeezed out by pressure flowed all over the gun position, and he struggled in pain for several minutes before he breathed. The three guys on the other side of the gun were lucky enough to be blocked by most of the fragments from the gun mount and tail, but they were still scarred and wailing in pain.

However, this is already a great blessing in disguise, if it had not been thrown away all the depth charges before, then the Z-49 might have suffered an even more terrible disaster, and the detonated depth charges would have completely shredded the entire stern, instead of just a slight flooding of the steering engine room, which would not affect the ability to sail.

Now that this fog is a life-saving barrier for Z-49, the flames on the deck will not only provide excellent targets for the enemy, but the rising heat will also disperse the surrounding fog! Perhaps driven by the instinct to survive, several sailors who were fighting the fire rushed to a place only a few meters away from the flames, not caring that the flames would pounce on them at any time.

With the efforts of the pump, several water dragons pounced on the fire, and the fire was immediately contained. The wounded at gun emplacement 2 had been carried back into the cabin, and the sailors with rubber hoses rushed up and rushed at the gun emplacement, and the sea water mixed with blood and minced flesh flowed freely on the deck, washing down the bulkhead like a red waterfall into the sea.

The reserve gun team found that this naval gun was still usable, and just 7 minutes after the Z-49 was shot, the 88-mm naval gun on the No. 2 gun position roared again!

However, the fighting of the sailors on the Z-49 was not enough to turn the tide, and if it continued like this, it would only be a matter of time before the British caught up and sunk!

Major Booth fell silent, the Z-37, Z-57, and Z-59 were now rushing towards this side at full speed, and if they held on a little longer, their pressure would be greatly reduced, and the British would have to disperse their fire against the remaining three destroyers. But in this way, the entire second detachment was at risk of being eaten by the British.

There was no time to hesitate, Major Booth clenched his fists and made up his mind: "Send a report to Z-37, Z-57, Z-59!" Order them not to come to their aid! Rush to Helgoland at full speed to join up with the 5th Destroyer Group and launch a counterattack! Long live Germany! ”

Major Booth raised his head and looked around at everyone on the bridge, then squeezed a smile out of his face and said bitterly, "Sorry, gentlemen, we have to run for our lives alone." ”

He was answered with a neat response: "Long live Germany!" ”

Although Major Booth told the other three destroyers not to come to support, he forgot one ship, the flagship of the 1st Destroyer Group, the destroyer Ariadne, who had come to meet him!

At 7:05 a.m. on September 8, 1914, 19 minutes after the Z-49 engaged the enemy, the roar of 105-mm naval guns was heard 2 nautical miles in front of the left.

"Ariadne?!" Major Booth's face turned white at this moment, although he had 5 105mm naval guns, the destroyer that was 1 year earlier than the Z-49 was much slower than himself! In the face of the British, who have an advantage in speed, they will not be able to run away! And the commander of the 1st Destroyer Group, Lieutenant Commander Varys, is still on it!

"Turn on the light signal, and our ship will cover the retreat of the flagship!" At such a distance, the signal by light was faster than by wireless telegraphy, but before Major Booth's order could be given, the gland of the searchlight on the Ariadne not far away passed through the thick fog and brought Lieutenant Commander Varys's order: "Our ship is slower, and it will be the rear of the second detachment." ”

The Ariadne, who came to search, was moving in the opposite direction with the Z-49 at this time, and soon the two ships staggered, and the Z-49 gave a light signal: "Good luck"

Ariadne responds: "Long live Germany"

Looking at the hazy shadow of the ship in the fog, Lieutenant Commander Varys was not ready to turn immediately, as the first generation of destroyer lead ships of the German Navy, more than 10 years of service experience made the Ariadne at this time only 23 knots, if you make a sharp turn now, not only will the speed be lost, but the five 105 mm naval guns on the ship will not be able to play a role. Therefore, Lieutenant Colonel Varys decided to give it a go, first disrupting the British formation, and then waiting for an opportunity to break away.

Therefore, the Ariadne not only did not distance itself from the British fleet, but took the initiative to meet it!

Faced with the sudden appearance of the ship's shadow, the British decisively abandoned the Z-49 and aimed their fire on this seemingly larger target.

And in the face of the Ariadne, which took the initiative to close the distance, the British shelling was greatly disappointed, and all the explosive water columns were nearly a thousand yards away behind the Ariadne.

"The British thought we were light cruisers! They're aiming too far! Lieutenant Colonel Varys shouted excitedly.

As the first German destroyer lead ship designed at the same time as the Bremen-class light cruisers, the Nymph-class, named after a woman from Greek mythology, has a silhouette that bears a striking resemblance to the Bremen class.

The Nymph class, which did borrow from the Bremen class design, abandoned the original flat deck design of the German Navy destroyer, adopted a mid-bow design, and the front and rear knapsack 105 mm naval guns were equipped with 30 mm thick semi-encircling shields, as well as three towering chimneys, all of which made the Nymph class look like a shrunken Bremen class.

At this time, the fog on the sea made the shadow of the Ariadne hazy, and the British misjudged the target, so all the shells hit the Ariadne behind.

Those who waste their chances pay the price, and this phrase quickly became embodied in the British.

The Ariadne kept an eye on the largest figure in the British queue and poured fire desperately into it, which was Commodore Tillett's flagship, the Linsen.

In just a few minutes, the Ariadne was hit by more than 10 105-mm shells, which not only destroyed a 4-inch naval gun on the side of the Linxian, but also penetrated the forward engine room and caused its speed to decrease.

However, the British soon reacted, and the Ariadne was instantly surrounded by a column of water.

"Z-shaped route! Rush to the water column ahead! Following Lieutenant Colonel Varys's order, the helmsman began to turn the rudder as hard as he could, maneuvering the Ariadne through the water column.

Lieutenant Colonel Varys was gambling that the British would adjust the muzzle of the gun if they didn't hit, so that he could dodge the follow-up shells by charging towards the water column. However, this was only gambling, because it was not a warship that was aiming at the Ariadne.

Perhaps the heavens favored the struggling Germans at this moment, and the Ariadne was lucky enough to be 3,000 yards away from the British.

"Starboard torpedo battle! Target, enemy cruiser! ”

This is the ultimate goal of Lieutenant Colonel Varys, to disrupt the formation of the British with torpedoes!

Three 3-pack 450-mm torpedo tubes on the Ariadne began to rotate slowly.

"The target is locked, the azimuth is 50 degrees to the right, the target speed is 18 knots, the distance is 3000! Set depth of 1 meter! ”

"Ready for launch!"

"Firing interval is 3 seconds!"

"Launch!"

Driven by high-pressure gas, 9 torpedoes escaped from the launch tube in less than 30 seconds, flew outboard and fell into the sea, and the engine drove the propeller to start spinning, pulling 9 white tracks on the sea surface.

"Left full rudder! Heading 150! We are detached! As soon as Lieutenant Commander Varys finished speaking, a violent explosion occurred in the swollen hull of the Ariadne.

"Shot in the engine room! We're out of steam! ”

The Germans ran out of luck.

After being beaten in the face by the Ariadne, the Lynsian delivered a vengeful blow, and this blow cost the Ariadne's life. The side of the Ariadne, which was turning, was completely exposed, and a 6-inch shell hit the side and penetrated into the engine room.

The Ariadne's steam turbine was completely destroyed, meaning that she could never survive the British guns again.

"A report was sent to Wilhelmshaven that our ship had completely lost power, and all the officers and men of the ship were determined to fight until the last moment. Long live Germany! (To be continued.) )