Chapter 37: Last Ditch Offensive

Silence reigned on the battlefield as the last of the artillery strikes concluded. For a moment the only tanks that could be seen were Medaka, Wildcat, and Duck Team. As the tense silence continued, Victoria and Canaveral stared at the cloud of black smoke on the horizon that dispersed in the sky above them like a massive mushroom. "Christ, it's like someone set off a tactical nuke," Victoria said, poking her head out of her tank.

Suddenly, at the edge of the cloud, the smoke started to shift. It broke with a burst and a charred, beaten Panzer IV Ausf. H erupted free from its clutches. Then, Wolf Team followed, with its own scorch marks adorning it. Rabbit Team emerged next, its turret locked in its position facing the rear of the tank and its 75mm gun badly damaged. Pheasant, Turtle, and Meadowlark Team followed in similar states. Scorch marks and dents, but still ready for battle.

The tanks drove north and away from the carnage behind them. Miho slowly poked out of the commander's hatch and looked ahead of her. To her surprise, just ahead was the fake village built by the Sensha-do Federation for the match. "Everyone, let's stop at the village ahead of us. I don't think Pravda is pursuing us anymore," she instructed, "Mako, stop us next to the entrance, we'll take guard there." At the entrance of the village, Anglerfish Team pulled aside on the gravel road and parked as the other tanks drove past.

The rest of the tanks parked alongside the main road. Finally, they could have a moment of rest. Each member slumped away from their instruments and finally had a moment to relax.

Yukari reached into a metal storage bin and pulled out a large thermos flask and some disposable cups. "I packed some hot chocolate in case we had a moment of rest. Here," she said while pouring a cup and handing it to Miho.

"Thank you Yukari," Miho said gratefully as she took the cup. She sipped on it slowly to relish the taste and warmth as Yukari handed out cups to the other members of Anglerfish Team.

"So, what now?" Hana asked.

Miho sat in silence after lowering her cup. She tried thinking of a strategy they could pursue, but her mind was still foggy and tired from the battle they just had. "I-I don't know," she replied solemnly. She put her free hand over her face and groaned. "That was such a bad plan! Why didn't I expect Pravda to easily counter-encircle us?! It's their doctrine to do something like that!"

The radio fizzled to life. "Hey Miho, don't beat yourself up over that," William said faintly, "I was the one who wanted us to attack the center anyway."

"William!" Miho exclaimed, "where are you? We didn't see you emerge from the smoke."

"We're still in the smoke cloud. We can't see much and both of our tracks are destroyed. We might be able to get the Tiger back up and running, but we'll need some time," William answered.

"Okay, we're taking a moment to rest at the fake village. We'll hold out here until you can regroup with us," Miho decided.

"Alright, we'll do our best to get back in action. We're not out of this fight yet!" William encouraged. He switched off his radio and looked out his periscope. "I think the smoke has cleared enough for us to get working," he said. He pulled himself up into the commander's cupola and opened the hatch. The area around his tank was still hazy, but he could see for a few feet around it. Just as he started climbing out of the cupola; however, the tank was rocked with a sudden impact and the sound of screeching steel blasted through the air. William fell backward onto the engine deck and then onto the ground with a grunt of pain. "What the hell?!" he groaned as he pulled himself up from the snowy ground.

In front of the Tiger H2 was the T-IV-100 with a new, considerable scratch in its dark green paint. "Ugh, even after you get knocked out you still get in my way!" Katrina complained angrily.

"Hey, watch where you're going!" William chastised, "I could have gotten a concussion from that fall."

Katrina rolled her eyes. "Hold on tighter next time," she answered while climbing down from the T-VI-100. She walked over and took a look at William. "Yeah, you look fine," she said before turning back when her eyes fell on the Tiger H2's turret. "Hey wait a minute, you're not eliminated!" she shouted.

"Quinn, take her out!" William ordered.

Quinn scrambled back into his position and aimed the cannon at the T-VI. He hastily pulled the trigger, but all that responded was an empty clicking sound. "Huh?! Is it not loaded?" he asked.

Addison quickly lowered the breech, where a fresh Panzergranate 39 shell was sitting. "Oh great, the firing mechanism is broken too," she concluded.

Katrina howled with laughter. "Aw man, your equipment can't even handle a little bombardment and a collision! That's great," she teased, "No wonder most of your team got knocked out."

"Oh piss off," William grumbled. "So what, are you gonna eliminate us now or what?" he asked.

Katrina smirked. "Tell me where the rest of your team ran off to," she demanded, " and then maybe I'll consider letting you go."

William gritted his teeth in frustration. This girl knows no bounds! He seethed. Maybe if we work fast enough, we can intercept them before they reach the village, or at least give Miho a warning to prepare. "Alright, they fell back to the fake village," he answered.

Katrina gave him a fake cheery smile. "Thank you so much for your help!" she cheered before skipping back to her tank.

William rolled his eyes as the T-VI-100 started turning away. "C'mon, let's get to work!" he called to his crew. He climbed up to the turret to grab his commander's radio. "Miho, Pravda is heading your way! Be prepared for battle!" he warned.

Miho's eyes widened as she finished her hot chocolate. "Thank you, we'll be ready," she replied while throwing the cup away. "Rabbit Team, retreat into the church so you can fix your turret. Everyone else, form a defensive ring around the church. We'll use the town as cover and use our artillery to whittle them down as they approach."

The M3 Grant reversed back into the church where the thick stone walls would protect them from enemy fire. Wolf Team took a position facing east with Turtle Team while Anglerfish Team, Meadowlark Team, and Pheasant Team faced south. To the west, the town bordered the frozen Footprint Lake, where tanks were not permitted. All they could do was hold out for an opportunity. "Wildcat Team, are you in a good position to provide fire support?" Miho asked.

"Yes ma'am, unlike our friendly rocketeers, we've got plenty of ammo left. Probably at least 100 shells or so," Victoria replied.

"And Medaka and Duck Team are en route?" Miho asked.

"Yep! Medaka Team dropped off their launcher at the starting lot and are on the way now. Maybe you could use them to outflank Pravda when they form an encirclement," Victoria suggested.

Miho considered the idea momentarily. "Maybe, we'll see how the situation develops," she answered. At the edge of the horizon, a formation of tanks appeared. Miho pulled out her binoculars and through the haze of snow, it was obvious that the line of tanks was Pravda's heading their way. She could barely make out the T-IV-100 and a T-34-76 leading the way. "Rabbit Team, how long do you think the repairs will take?" she asked.

"We're not quite sure yet," Azusa answered while the turret crew worked on the turret ring. Below them, the hull crew worked on fixing the 75mm gun.

"How far should we let them go before firing on them?" Hana asked.

"Let them close in to about 2,000 meters before we'll begin firing, but we're the only tank left here that has that kind of range. Everyone else will probably only fire on them at 1,000 or 500 meters," Miho answered, "only target the IS-2 and T-VI-100 once we are within 1,000 meters. Any shots before that will be ineffective."

"Alright," Hana replied as she looked through the gunner's sight once more. She began adjusting the turret slightly to level the gun with the formation.

"Yukari, load Panzergrante 39," Miho ordered. Yukari nodded, pulled the long 75mm shell from its rack, and shoved it into the gun. A tense moment followed the breech clicking shut. "Everyone, get ready for combat."

The Stridsvagn M/41 SII, Christie Flying Tank M1932, Semavente 75/18, and Type 95 Ha-Go joined the Panzer IV in readying for battle as the crews loaded their guns. As Pravda's tanks neared the 2,000-meter point, they slowed to a stop. "This is close enough, even our 85mm can penetrate the Panzer IV at this range," Katyusha ordered. The T-VI-100 and Katyusha's T-34-76 stopped first, followed by six T-34-85s, the KV-2, and the IS-2.

"Everyone, use the houses as cover," Miho instructed. Oarai's tanks moved so that a house protected them from Pravda's tanks.

Katyusha frowned as she assessed the situation. "Cowards, hiding behind buildings to avoid battle," she complained. Getting closer would give us a shot but leaves us vulnerable to their pitiful guns. Suddenly, she felt a yawn overcome her. "I could use a nap," she mumbled. "Someone go down and give them an offer to surrender. Give them three or so hours. Nonna, where is the RF-8!?"

The second T-34-76's turret turned around so the gun was facing away from the village and the captain pulled out a large white flag. The tank broke away from the line and began driving to the village.

"Hold your fire," Miho ordered. She pulled out her binoculars and examined the tank and noticed the white flag. She climbed down from the cupola and dropped down onto the snow beneath her. At the edge of the village, she met the representative from Pravda.

"Are you the commander of Oarai?" the representative asked.

"I am," Miho answered with a nod.

"The great Katyusha has graciously offered you an opportunity to surrender. I suggest you take it," she stated.

Miho shook her head defiantly. "No, we won't surrender," she answered.

"Very well, Katyusha will grant you three hours to reconsider your position. Good day," the representative finished while turning away and reentering her tank.

Miho stared at the T-34 as it drove off. Three hours… Alright then, let's get to work. She turned around and headed back to the team. "Everyone!" she called out. Everyone turned to her. "Pravda has given us three hours to consider surrendering to her. What do you think?" she announced.

"No way!" they responded passionately.

Miho smiled at their determination. "Alright, then let's get the M3 back up and running," she said. Suddenly, the wind picked up around the village and snow started falling harder. "Let's get our tanks inside the church so they don't get covered in snow and so the engines won't freeze up," she instructed before running back to the Panzer IV. Miho climbed back into her position as everyone's tanks started reversing into the church. The Panzer IV was the last tank to enter the church and stopped facing the large entrance. "Alright, that should do," Miho said. Behind them, the M3 Grant was surrounded by toolboxes and storage boxes that had spare parts inside them. "So what do we need to get fixed first?" Miho asked as Anglerfish Team approached the impromptu workshop.

"We've almost got the 75mm gun fixed, but we're having a lot of problems getting the turret ring to work properly again. Could you help us with that first?" Azusa asked from her commander's hatch.

Everyone got to work. Half the team helped the hull crew get the 75mm gun fixed while the other half helped with the turret. A lot of work had to be done, but with a little bit of elbow grease and the extra help, they were able to repair the damage long before Katyusha's three-hour deadline. Everyone finished up their work and put the tools away. "It'll need a bit more work once we get back to the garage, but for now, it'll do," Azusa stated as she closed the last storage compartment.

Miho nodded in agreement as the two commanders exited the tank. "You did a good job not panicking after we escaped from Pravda," she complimented.

"Thanks, captain," Azusa replied, "William actually helped me learn how to keep myself calm during situations like that."

"Oh really? He must be a good teacher then," Miho said.

"Well yeah, that's why he and the Americans transferred here," Momo commented. She was leaning against the front of the Stridsvagn not far from them.

Miho giggled. "I suppose so, let's start a new strategy meeting," she said. Anglerfish Team unloaded a foldable table from the Panzer IV and set it up in the middle of the church. Miho spread a map out on the table and everyone gathered around. "So it looks like we're back at square one," she stated.

"Only this time we're surrounded by Pravda's team, and we're down most of our heavy tanks," Momo added.

A gripping silence fell over the team. The situation was not in their favor, to say the least. "We first need to break out of the encirclement," Miho said.

"How? I mean, we're outnumbered six to eleven and those aren't just early model T-34s and BT series tanks. Those are the best tank models the Soviet Union mass-produced and we can barely penetrate their armor," Koume said, "the Semovente just can't reliably hit them with HEAT shells from more than 500 meters."

Miho's commander's radio sparked to life. "Miho I got bad news. Our engine just kicked the bucket because of the cold. We can't get it started," William informed.

"Maybe we should just surrender," Melitta stated, "let's face it, only Anglerfish Team can hit them at long range and take them out. The gun on the M1932 isn't very good. That's why we put the bazookas on the wings, but without the wings and in the storm, we're really just a fast Semovente without the HEAT shells to pack a punch."

"The Type 95 doesn't have much firepower either," Fukuda added, "it'd be practically impossible for us to knock out one of Pravda's tanks at any ranges."

"Is this a bad time to add the fact that we're lost?" Canaveral added over the radio, "I can't see anything out here. The snow has picked up a lot. If we were in Oregon, school would have been shut down."

Miho sighed. "Yeah, this is probably a bad time," she replied.

"Think about it this way! If we don't know where we are, then neither does Pravda," Noriko added jokingly. Nobody laughed.

Miho looked grimly at the map and the commanders around her. They all looked tired, cold, and defeated now that they were facing the realization that relief was not on the way. A bitter silence reigned over the church. Their options for breaking out looked less possible with every second.

"We can't surrender!" Momo cried out, "it's just not an option!"

"Why not?" William asked, almost with hostility, "you're not the one stuck out here in the freezing cold with no engine!"

Everyone's attention was turned to Momo and the student council. Miho looked up from the map with a frown and spoke up. "If we don't…" She paused and took a shaky deep breath. "If we don't win then Oarai will be… shut down."


"I'm leaving," Shiho stated while standing up from her seat, "the battle is decided. Miho has once again failed her name."

Inside, Maho grew frustrated with her mother but outwardly remained stoic. "Please wait," she said, "I don't think you're seeing Miho's full potential."

Shiho turned to her daughter with a raised eyebrow. "Full potential?" she asked with a stern voice. "There is no such prospect left for her."

"I disagree," Maho stated.

Shiho's stare darkened. For the first time Maho, her perfect prodigy of the Nishizumi style, openly disagreed with her. You don't really believe that your daughter is worthless, do you? Her inner voice asked.

What? She lost, that's all there is to it! A Nsihizumi does not lose, not to mention intentionally!

Is someone's worth really decided by Sensha-do alone? Abandoning your own child, decrying her heroic actions, and forcing her away is inexcusable! Do you have any idea how much it hurts to be denied by the very person who's supposed to provide for you?!

Shiho's eyes shook and movement in her peripheral vision caught her attention. She looked down to see Ross eagerly running over to the grandstands after the recovery vehicle returned Leopard Team and the other knocked-out tanks back to Utqiagvik. He quickly found Yoshiko, Jungoru, and Natalie and ran over to them. Natalie eagerly reached up from Yoshiko's lap to be picked up. She squealed happily and hugged Ross when he picked her up. "I missed you too sweetie," Ross said with a smile, "I hope she wasn't too much trouble."

"Oh no, she was just fine," Yoshiko replied.

"Good to hear," Ross replied, "how's the match going?" He turned to look at the spectator screen to see a drone slowly fly into the church where Miho and the rest of her group were sheltered in.

"If we don't win then Oarai will be… shut down," Miho said. The screen's speaker relayed the message to everyone watching.

Ross completely froze and stared at the screen. "What?" he managed to whisper in shock. A feeling of horrible dread and realization came over him.

The rest of the team that was knocked out heard it too. They stared in equal shock at the screen from their wrecked tanks. "Shut down? Like the entire carrier?" Joseph asked.

"Then we'd have to go back to Oregon," Kass added.

"And no more Sensha-do," Jody followed.

No… that can't happen… it just can't! If I have to go back to Oregon then… He came to the grim conclusion. He'd no longer see Miho, he couldn't help her reconnect with her family, and his chance of using Sensha-do to get scholarships for college would be gone forever.

The Oarai residents spectating the match froze as well. They'd lose their homes, their jobs, and their community. You can't just decommission a whole city without losing those things.

That's why Miho hardened her stare at the map. "We're not surrendering," she stated, "we're not fighting for just ourselves now. We're fighting for all of Oarai."

Shiho sat back down slowly. "Very well. I'll stay," she said.

"She's right," Azusa added, "we can still win this. There are no invincible armies!"

Manfred's eyes lit up with an idea. She opened her chest holder and pulled out a flare gun. "Our uniforms came with these Sturmpistoles that are also flare guns! We can use the flares to blind Pravda and break out!" he suggested. He dropped a few flares onto the table. "These can be activated by hand too, just pull off the tab and throw."

"And we'll hit their strongest point of the line with it. Pravda will expect us to go for a weaker section of the encirclement, so we'll surprise them by doing the opposite and blinding the heavies with the flares," Miho added, "Victoria, you'll begin firing on the village's coordinates on my orders."

"Then once you've led them to me, Wolf and Anglerfish Team can break away in the chaos and find their flag tank!" William suggested, "I'll keep them occupied long enough!"

A small smile appeared on Miho's grim face. It filled the team with a glimmer of hope. It may be a risky and bold strategy, but they had no alternatives and nothing left to lose. "Let's do it, everyone!" Miho exclaimed while putting her hand over the map. Everyone followed and stacked their hands together.

"1, 2, 3, Oarai!" they shouted together.

"Hey!" the Pravda representative called out, "are you guys surrendering or what?!"

Miho walked over while everyone ran over to their tanks while Anglerfish Team put away the table. "We will not. We're going to fight until the end," she answered sternly.

The representative scoffed. "Suit yourself," she scoffed before walking off to her T-34. "We'll crush you regardless."

Miho climbed into her position at the front of the church. She stared into the snowy abyss ahead of her. "Miho, it's been exactly three hours since the ceasefire," Saori informed.

"Alright, thank you. Panzer vor!" Miho called out.

The Panzer IV began moving forward. It was already picking up steam when it emerged from the church. But the Christie suspension and 1,000 horsepower engine of the M1932 allowed it to surge ahead of them. Miho's eyes widened when she saw Melitta standing halfway out of her hatch with the Sturmpistole in hand. "Is she driving with only her feet?!" Miho exclaimed.

Melitta just waved as the M1932 blasted out into the open field. The engine screamed into the snowstorm. Melitta aimed her flare gun at the section of the encirclement with the most tank silhouettes she could see and pulled the trigger. The flare shot forward with a scream and pierced the snowstorm with a bright light that reflected off the snow.

"What the hell?!" Katyusha shouted as her eyes were assaulted by the light. Not knowing it was a flare, Pravda's tankers looked straight into the light, temporarily blinding them.

Not to be outdone, Miho pulled the tab on her flare and threw it to her left where it would cover the front of the encirclement. Only a pair of T-34-85s hid behind the snowstorm and were blinded by the light. Oarai boldly drove forward as fast as possible while keeping their eyes on the ground just in front of them to avoid the bright light. "Victoria, begin shelling the village!" Miho ordered.

The 8-inch howitzer replied as its thunder roared across the Alaskan tundra. Following it was an eight-inch shell that exploded near the edge of the village, near Pravda's tanks approaching it from the north. A pair of T-34s harshly stopped at the explosion, giving Oarai just a little more time.

Unfortunately, the flares didn't last long in the snowstorm, but Oarai's column of tanks had broken out by the time it faded. As they sped southward, the T-34-85s accompanying Katyusha and the heavy tanks pursued from their right, forming a flank.

"I'll take care of those Reds for you captain!" Anzu exclaimed cheerfully. She put her sweet potato chips away and climbed into the Stridsvagn's turret., pushing Momo into the loader's position "Yuzu, drive fast and erratically, but get us close like those Sturmtruppen things that Schwarzadler adores!"

"You got it President!" Yuzu replied. The Stridsvagn veered right towards the T-34-85s, four of them in total.

Anzu smirked cheekily as their guns closed in. They fired, but Yuzu veered the tank out of the way just in time. Anzu replied with a sabot round straight into the left tread of the lead T-34, causing it to break and veer away from the Stridsvagn. Once it had closed in, the Stridsvagn sped around to the left side armor of the second T-34 and fired a round into it. The round exploded and knocked out the tank easily. "Two more!" she exclaimed easily.

Yuzu spun the tank around the rear of the now disabled T-34-85 and faced the rear of the third T-34-85. Anzu smiled excitedly and pulled the trigger the moment the breech clicked shut. The shell zoomed at the turret of the Soviet tank, shed its sabot, and slammed into the turret. The tank was shaken by the impact and was knocked out.

The turret of the fourth T-34-85 was almost finished rotating and sloppily fired at Turtle Team. Yuzu shoved the steering levers forward and the Stridsvagn M/41 SII surged forward, narrowly avoiding the shell. The light tank sped around to face the last undamaged tank. After Momo loaded a new shell, the gun fired and sent a shell into the engine deck, knocking it out.

"Gotcha!" Anzu cheered.

"There's still that one with the broken tread!" Yuzu reminded.

Anzu looked back into the gunsight. "Right, right, don't be such a spoilsport," she jokingly reprimanded. Suddenly the left side of the tank erupted into flames and an explosion blasted the tank. It was so fierce that the light tank toppled onto its side, despite the weakened explosives.

"Nonna, status report!" Katyusha demanded.

The smoking 122mm gun glared at Turtle Team as the IS-2 looked over its fallen prey "Just another bump in the road," Nonna replied, leaning back from the gunsight.

"Well hurry and catch up! We've got Oarai in our sights!" Katyusha ordered. The group of tanks tore through the Alaskan Tundra. Meadowlark Team led the way, but Anglerfish, Pheasant, Wolf, and Rabbit Team followed close behind. Chasing them was Katyusha in her T-34-76, Katrina in the T-IV-100, and the KV-2 barely lumbering fast enough to keep up. The IS-2 quickly left its prey behind to catch up with the group. "Damn it! Where even is Oarai's flag tank? I don't see them!"

"We should still have enough fuel to look for it after we knock these pests out!" Katrina answered, "we may need to wait until the storm lets up!"

"Miho, how long until you reach us?" William asked.

Miho checked her map and the distance between the area where they used the artillery to escape and the village. "Maybe halfway!" she estimated.

William just nodded in response, although only his crew could see him. "How are we going to get the gun to fire without electricity from the engine?" Quinn asked.

William smirked as he got an idea. A terrible idea, but it should be fun at least. He pulled a screwdriver and a pair of jumper cables from the tank's storage compartment. "Improvise, adapt, overcome," he stated. Addison and Quinn stared at him like he had gone mad as he unscrewed the side of the breech and exposed the wiring within.

"How exactly are you going to power it?" Quinn asked.

William climbed out of the tank and onto the engine deck. He opened it up and pulled the engine battery out before returning to his post. "Battery should work," he answered.

Quinn and Addison just looked at each other. "Fuck it, why not," Quinn relented with a shrug.

"Just be careful," Addison warned and opened the breech. "Hook it up!"

William connected the jumper cables to the battery and carefully shaved the cable shielding away with a pocket knife. Once the copper was exposed he carefully took the cables and connected them to the openings. A spark of electricity zapped the cables and created a spark show that caused William to stumble back momentarily. "Did that work?' he asked.

"I think I saw the firing mechanism spark," Addison answered.

"Friendly tank's approaching dead ahead!" Quinn shouted.

"Looks like it's time for a trial by fire," William stated. He handed the cables to Addison and loaded a Panzergranate 39 into the gun. "Happy hunting!" he said as he climbed into his cupola. "You're coming right at us Miho!" he called out over the radio.

First, the M1932 swerved to miss the Tiger as it flew past. Then the main force split to move around. Anglerfish and Wolf Team continued driving left, away from Rabbit and Meadowlark Team. Then came Pravda. The first tank to enter Quinn's sights was a familiar foe. "T-IV dead ahead, adjusting!" he called out. The gun shifted and settled on the hull of the T-VI-100. "Fire!" he called out.

Addison shoved the cables onto the exposed wiring. They sparkled and popped like fireworks, followed by the instantaneous explosion of the shell firing. It flew out the barrel with a roar and slammed right into the center of the T-VI-100 ahead of them. The heavy tank stumbled forward momentarily and stopped with its gun settling towards the ground.

Katrina's jaw dropped as William poked out of the cupola in triumph. "God…. FUCKING DAMN IT!" she screamed furiously and punched her cupola.

A second roar of thunder followed her as the 152mm gun of the KV-2 erupted with fire. The shell hit the Tiger H2 harshly and exploded with a great flash. The two tank commanders awkwardly stared at each other as the remaining Pravda tanks drove past them. "So… nice weather we're having!" William called out as his tank smoked from the explosion.

Katrina glared at him before sighing. "Fuck it. It's close enough," she relented. She shrunk away into her cupola to wait for the officials.

Katyusha continued the chase, completely fixated on the tall statue of the M3 Grant. "You know, that tank's always annoyed me. It's so tall it's like it's mocking me!" she exclaimed, "take it out!"

The 76mm gun fired in response, but the shell flew over Rabbit and Meadowlark Team harmlessly.

"I don't see two of their tanks!" Nonna called out over the radio as the IS-2 caught up.

"I don't care! Chase them to the edge of the permafrost!" Katyusha replied angrily.

The 152mm and 122mm guns responded with a pair of shells that flew past Katyusha and exploded near Rabbit and Meadowlark Team.

"Jeez, put a sock in it already! You'll never hit us!" Melitta complained.

"Aya, turn us around to return fire!" Azusa ordered, "Saki, load standard armor-piercing."

"But I'll barely be able to aim!" Aya protested.

"It's better to go down fighting!" Azusa replied. The turret swung around to face the enemy. Saki loaded the gun swiftly. Aya tried her best to aim the gun with all the movement and fired. The shell sped away and scrapped the side of Katyusha's hull.

Katyusha's eyes lit up with more fury. "How dare they scrape the paint of the great Katyusha! Vanquish them!"


Anglerfish Team and Wolf Team drove through the tundra aimlessly, looking for a clue that would lead them to Pravda's flag tank. "Any ideas Koume or Carpaccio?" Miho asked.

The radio remained silent for a moment, which caused Miho to frown with discouragement. "Wait, there's something else on the map," Koume said.

Miho perked up. "What is it?" she asked.

"South of Footprint Lake there's Ikroavik Lake and on the east side of the lake there seems to be a complex of some sort," Koume explained.

Miho looked at her own map, and sure enough at the very edge of the battlefield was a pair with brown splotches depicted on the map that looked like buildings from above. "Alright, Mako head east until we reach the lake and follow the shoreline, but be careful not to drive onto the lake," she ordered.

"Got it," Mako replied. Saori handed her a compass and Mako began slowly turning the tank left until the needle pointed east. Wolf Team followed close behind and the tanks sped east. The terrain actually helped them as the snow and wide open fields provided a relatively smooth surface to pick up speed. The pair of tanks sped toward Ikroavik Lake. As they headed east, the storm seemed to begin to fade. Eventually, the snowy haze faded and the gray sky was replaced by a vibrant bright blue. Consequently, Ikroavik Lake appeared before them in the distance. "Halt," Miho ordered and pulled out her binoculars to look across the lake.

On the other side, at the edge of her sight, Miho saw several large piles of snow with patches of dirt exposed. She narrowed her eyes and studied the area when she noticed that the piles were in a wider quarry that dipped into the ground. "That'd be a good place to hide a flag tank. It's at the edge of the battlefield, out of the way, and there's plenty of cover. Let's check it out," Miho said.

The pair of tanks turned left to follow the lake shore to the north. They drove around and crossed over the gap between Footprint Lake and Ikroavik Lake to the other shore. "Wolf Team, search the north quarry, we'll search the southern one," Miho instructed.

"Got it," Koume replied. The two tanks split as they drove toward the quarries. Miho anxiously looked around as they slowly approached the quarry. A dark green Soviet tank would stick out like a sore thumb in the snow. The Panzer IV dipped over the quarry edge and drove into the pit. It slowly drove forward, looking for the flag tank that would end the match and let them go home to their warm beds and rooms.

Anglerfish Team approached the final pile of dirt cautiously. It was fairly large and tall, large enough to hide a tank or even two behind. "Stop," Miho ordered, "Hana, turn the gun so it's facing right and be ready to fire if the tank is hiding behind the pile."

"Right," Hana replied. She gently roasted the turret to the right while Mako drove the tank a little further to the lift to give the gun some room. Once they were in position, Miho took a deep breath.

"Alright, advance," she ordered. Mako drove the tank forward around the pile. For a brief moment, the entire crew was on edge as they drove forward. They rounded the pile and faced an empty corner of the quarry. They all let out mixed sighs of relief and annoyance. "Hopefully we can find this tank soon," Miho said.

"Don't worry Miho, I bet we'll find it soon," Yukari encouraged.

Miho smiled and reactivated her throat mic. "Find anything Wolf Team?" she asked.

"Nothing yet," Koume replied.

Miho sighed. "Alright, we're heading towards you now," she said. Mako turned the tank around and they drove out of the quarry back onto the tundra. Suddenly, a shell flew through the air from behind them and sheered off a portion of the turret spaced armored. The metal screeched causing Miho to cover her ears with surprise as the metal flew through the air. "Contact behind us!" Miho called out.

Mako spun the tank around as fast as she could. Miho looked through her binoculars and saw a unique pale white turret hidden in the snow at the edge of the quarry. "Do you see it, Hana?" Miho asked.

"I do! Its gunsight is shining in the sunlight," Hana replied as the gun started to settle on her target. The tank burst from the snow, throwing a cloud of white into the air.

"Fire!" Miho ordered. The 75mm gun fired and blasted a shell toward the enemy tank. However, it hit the armor at a bad angle and ricocheted into the snow bank beside the T-34-85. The tank shook with the impact though and a small red flag sprung up from a pile of snow covering it on the engine deck. "We've found their flag tank!" Miho exclaimed.

"We're on our way, Miho!" Koume called out. The Semovente turned around and climbed out of the quarry pit to the north and began driving south to regroup with Miho.

The T-34-85 fired again, this time launching a smoke shell at Miho so they could make their escape. The smoke burst over the Panzer IV as the flag tank turned away and drove towards the northern quarry. "Mako, head south, we won't let it get away!" Miho ordered.

Mako quickly adjusted the tank so that the compass she had was pointing south. She slammed on the steering levers and the Panzer IV's tracks spun to life.


"I think the storm is starting to let up!" Manfred exclaimed as he stared through his gun sight. The haze of the snowstorm was actually starting to fade as the M3 Grant and M1932 fled southwest with their pursuers not far behind.

"That means they might be able to hit us easier!" Azusa pointed out with a hint of anxiety.

"Don't worry Asuza, we've led them far enough away from Miho that they'll never find her or our flag tank," Melitta reassured.

Azusa nervously nodded in agreement. "Alright then, let's take them out for real!" she decided. Saki slammed another 37mm shell into the gun. "Fire, Aya!"

Aya pressed the trigger and the tank gun responded by sending a shell toward Katyusha once again. The shell hit the front armor and bounced into the sky. "Give it up already!" Katyusha cried out, "you're never going to take me out!"

"Man, I wish we still have our wings, then we could fly up and take them out!" Melitta bemoaned. The pair of Oarai tanks continued to speed further south.

Nonna; however, intended to stop that. With careful precision, she aimed the gun as close to the M3 Grant as she could with the vibration shaking the sight. "Stop!" Nonna demanded. Her driver slammed on the brakes and the tank slid to a stop. The gun settled in just the right position for Nonna to quickly aim it. She calmly pulled the trigger, sending a 122mm shell toward's Rabbit Team.

"No!" Azusa shouted as she saw the shell fly toward the M3's rear. The shell crashed into the tank with a massive explosion following the impact. The rear of the M3 burst into flames as it spun around across the snow.

"Stop!" Katyusha ordered as well, "take out that BT-series wannabe!"

The T-34-76 slid to a stop, followed by the KV-2 next to her. The pair of guns settled on the speeding tank, but Melitta was ready. She stared at the guns while letting her feet do the work. When the pair of guns fired their shells, she slipped her foot off the left stick, causing the tank to veer left. However, the sheer size of the explosion caused by the 152mm shell shredded the right tread and the tank spun around across the snow. The debris flew under the tank and the edge of the hull dug into the snow. The M1932 tumbled over and flipped wildly. It flipped once, twice, three times, and then came to a stop. Melitta shakily poked her head out of her hatch while snow fell around her. "Ow, ow, ow," she moaned while her head spun in circles from dizziness.

"Ugh, finally we took them out," Katyusha complained, "now-"

She was interrupted when a small shell flew into her frontal armor and exploded. The T-34-76 shook and a small white flag popped out of the engine deck. A few hundred meters ahead of them, Duck Team spun around and began speeding away. Suddenly, another round impacted the KV-2 and knocked it out. Medaka Team drove in front of the retreating PT-1A with a smoking barrel. Finally, a thundering roar tore through the battlefield, and the IS-2 was engulfed in a gigantic explosion as a 203mm shell slammed into the side of its turret.

Victoria leaned out of her hatch with her binoculars in her hands. "Maybe we should try direct fire with this thing more often," she commented with a smirk.


The Panzer IV surged over the edge of the quarry and slammed back onto the snowy field. "Hana, do you think you can get a shot on it?" Miho asked as they started driving forward.

"If we stop, then I think I can!" Hana answered.

"Mako, stop the tank!" Miho ordered. Her driver obliged and the tank slid to a stop across the snow. Hana focused entirely on the target ahead of her as Yukari loaded a Panzergranate 39.

"Ready to fire!" Yukari called out.

Hana pulled the trigger back. The gun erupted with a roar and fired a shell toward the flag tank, but the commander of the flag tank was paying close attention to Anglerfish Team's cannon. Just as the gun fired, she ordered the tank to veer. In the second it took for the 75mm shell to race towards the T-35-85, the tank veered out of the way.

The Soviet tank was racked with the shell's explosion and the track links vibrated forcefully with the stress. The tank slid to the left and leaned against the right tread as the driver tried to correct the tank's course. Suddenly, the right track gave way under the pressure and snapped to pieces. The tank slid further before the suspension dug into the deep snow.

"Wolf Team, do you have a shot?" Miho asked urgently.

The Semavente came to a stop a few hundred meters away from the crippled tank. Carpaccio stared through the gunsight as Koume slammed a HEAT round into the short gun. As she returned to her periscope she could see the stricken tank ahead of her. The cold air reminded her of the familiar freezing waters of the previous year's accident. She froze as she remembered how her tank veered away from an incoming round. Memories flowed through her head, just like the water flowed into her Panzer III.

Then the thundering roar of the Italian cannon ripped her from her mind. The cold air vanished as the heat flowed through the cabin, forcing the water out of her tank and blasting the memories of the past with a thundering explosion.

"Pravda's flag tank has been eliminated. Oarai Co-ed Academy wins!"

000

What an exciting battle! How do you guys rank it among the others? Well, we've still got one more battle so don't finalize those lists just yet. Still, I think for character development and plot, this one is pretty high up. Well, that's all I've wrote, so thanks for reading.

I've been pretty busy, but I'll try to find some time to reply to everyone's reviews! Don't think I've forgotten about that. Thank you so much for them and for the favorites and follows. They really do mean a lot.

Next Time on Girls und Panzer: Tank Aces

Chapter 38: Lavender Helps on Sick Days