Hell On Tracks
Part 22

The Friday before the matches against Maple was different than most other practices had been. There was no maintenance period at the start of class, nor was there the usual drills. It was all practice skirmishes, and live-fire drills. Taking shots at an opposing force while coming under fire from said opposing force, utilizing cover to avoid a hail of fire from an opponent you couldn't see or reach, knife-fight skirmishing, that sort of thing.

Blondie complained loudly about the fact that we weren't in our usual tanks for the practice, but I ignored her. Making sure the tanks we were used to were undamaged before the big match was probably pretty important, and if it meant we got to use the M4A3s and M4A6s that so often just sat unused in the garage, well, I wasn't going to say no. They may not be the Hellcat or Stuarts of the Oddball Collection, but no tank deserves to be sitting out of matches just because they aren't the standard M4.

I thought we did pretty well, on all fronts. Sure, we got knocked out a few times, and one incoming shot absolutely annihilated the portside drivewheel and made us swap our A3 for an A6, but we also got more KOs than we were knocked out. We excelled in the knife fights, to which I thank Angel's incredibly quick reaction times. Everyone did their best, and that's all I could really ask for.

The real event came at the end of practice, with Kay's post-practice announcements. This was going to be where we found out who was participating, and who would be sitting in the bleachers, cheering on their teammates. Theoretically, there might be a third category, those who don't come at all, but I honestly have no idea who might be in that group beyond maybe the Bandits.

"Okay everyone!" Kay began. Everyone in the crowd stopped their conversations to listen. "Tomorrow, we will be hosting wonderful guests from Maple High School! We will also be having a series of practice matches with them at Camp Intrepid. The first match will be a five versus five match on a reduced area on the main field. The second will be a five versus five on Practice Field One. The third and final match will be a ten versus ten match on the main field. Tank Commanders, I expect you and your crews to be up and here by six o'clock!"

Kay went on to list who would be participating on what team, by TC. I only recognized a few names, but the important ones to me were Haru and I being in the first match, and Kay, Naomi, and Arisa all taking part in the third match. This was going to be the first match where the Big Three of Saunders' Tankery program were participating since the match against Astoria. Honestly, I was kinda hyped to see them in action again.


Later that evening, I received a text message from Haru. She was the captain of the match one team, and all of the TCs were invited to her place for a late dinner and a planning session. She'd even gotten pizzas from one of the better pizza places on the ship. I may be more concerned about eating healthy food than most of the students here at Saunders (despite most of them somehow still being insanely fit and attractive despite the sheer amount of fast food available), but even I couldn't say no to good pizza.

I sent Haru a quick reply and then pulled on a raincoat and my Tankery boots, and headed on out. It was raining tonight, but I didn't let the weather get me down as I walked over to Haruna's house. Of course, that didn't stop me from wishing for any kind of vehicle. Haru's house wasn't exactly close to my dorm room.

My mind wandered as I walked through the rain. Mostly about the upcoming match, but also what Maple had bought recently, and if that purchase included a special tank, would they field it in the first match, or save it for the big one? It would depend on whether they wanted to test their new tank against a peer force, or within their own combat structure. You had to expect Kay to put at least some of her big guns in the 10v10, so if it was a heavy tank, they could probably knock it out. The basic M4 with the short 75 might not be able to do the same. But if it was something light and fast, like a Cromwell or Comet, it might be better to use in the big match.

Whatever the case, I probably wouldn't be able to factor it into any planning decisions. It was too unknown. I hated planning around unknowns.


Haruna's mother opened the door to their house when I knocked, and quickly ushered me up to her room. My first impression of the room was that she was really into music. The walls were covered in posters from various bands and various concerts, including a few that even I could recognize immediately, like The Beatles, AC/DC, Sabaton, a couple of familiar look pop artists whose names weren't on their posters. Haru herself was sitting on her bed, doing something on her phone, and listening to headphones that were connected to a record player.

"Hiya, Haru!" I said with a wave as I entered. Haruna looked up from her phone, and smiled.

"Hello, Tally! I wasn't expecting anyone to be here so soon!" Harua said, taking off her headphones and turning off the record player.

"Eh." I intoned with a shrug. "A little cold never bothered me. Anyways, any preliminary ideas for the match?"

"A few, but I want to wait until everyone shows up before sharing. So I don't have to restate, and everyone can pitch in."

"Okay, fair enough." I said with a shrug. Haru gestured for me to sit down next to her, and she turned the music player back on. Apparently, she had been listening to Sabaton, more specifically, their album devoted to tank battles across history. I personally wasn't a huge fan of metal music, but their tribute to Sensha-do was a very moving power ballad that even I could enjoy.

Haru and I chatted and listened to music while we waited for the rest of the team to show up. We compared our favorite types of music and favorite bands - Haru loved classic rock, and her favorite song of all time was (Don't Fear) The Reaper, by Blue Öyster Cult, while I was more a fan of orchestral works, with my favorite being The Imperial March from Star Wars.

I was just starting to get impatient when the other three TCs arrived. The three of them had arrived all at once and they were all soaked. Apparently the rain had gotten worse after I'd walked over, and their borrowed Willys Jeep wasn't well enough protected against the rain to keep them dry. Haruna's mother offered us a seat at their family kotatsu for the dinner and planning session, which everyone gratefully accepted.

Once the pizza had been served and everyone was nice and warm under the kotatsu, Haruna unrolled her map over the table. The area in which our smaller match was going to take place was outlined, and it mostly centered on the town. The hill was completely out of bounds except as a bit of a natural barrier with its sheer cliff face.

"Okay, so what's our plan, Haru?" I asked.

Haru gave me a look of uncertainty, before plowing forward with her explanation. "The town is probably going to be the focus of the field. It's the only significant cover besides a few crops of trees and the riverbed. So, I want to push the town in force and try to eliminate any opposition there as soon as possible. Platoon One, with tanks One, Two, and Three, will be pushing into the southern part of town." Haru gestured to the three other TCs in sequence. Next she gestured to herself, and then me. "Four and Five will be Platoon Two, and will be securing the northern part of town. Questions so far?"

TC Three raised her hand, pausing in her notetaking. "Should the platoons have different names than the tanks? So we don't get confused?"

The other two nodded along. I nibbled at my pizza thoughtfully, brainstorming name ideas if nobody suggested any.

Haruna didn't say anything for a long moment. "We'll, ah, get back to that one. Any questions related to the plan?"

This time, I spoke up. "Are we sure that full commitment to the town is smart? The 6-pdr on the Ram is better at range than the 75mm, so it would make sense for them to stay back and use their range advantage."

"What would you recommend, then?" Haru asked.

"Platoon Two, whatever we end up actually calling it, instead pushes up the riverbed. It's close enough to the town that we might be able to rush to their support if Platoon One gets engaged by a force they can't deal with." I started. Four sets of eyes were glued to me, even as I indicated places on the map. It was unnerving, and I began to stumble over my words. "It also gives us an op-opportunity to secure a, uh, flank against forces here, and, um…"

I disguised by nerves by taking a bite of pizza and chewing slowly. It helped somewhat, and I gave a look to Haru. I sincerely hoped it was one that was just asking for help instead of full blown panic.

"Okay, you've made your point. Any objections to Platoon Two taking the riverbed?" Haruna asked. Everyone shook their heads. "Alrighty then. Are there any other questions or ideas, or should we move to brainstorming platoon names?"

Nobody had any more plan-related comments, and we spent the next while trying to come up with platoon names while enjoying the pizza and bantering back and forth. We eventually settled on Houshou for Platoon One, and Saratoga for Platoon Two, after the first two school ships. We also settled on Haru for flag tank, but that was an easy decision to come to.