New York Battleground…
The battle had only just begun. Hanz was ordering shell after shell to be loaded and fired downrange. Only they were shelling the tanks engaging the flag tank's force. They were fighting a group of Jadgpanthers and Panzer Iv's that had snuck up on them and taken out one of the M36s.
"Geladen!"
"Feuer! Alle Feuern!" Hanz shouted into the radio, a little panicked. The gunner shot off another shell, sending a Panzer IV sliding a bit down the hill. A white flag popped up. He heard the Chaffe zoom down into the formation of tanks and watched as it took out a Jadgpanther then a Panzer.
"These tanks ain't shi-" The radio cut out mid-sentence as Hanz watched the tank's engine burst into flames and a white flag pop up. The tank had also spun out from the hit it had taken.
"Verdamtt! All tanks maneuver behind me, I'll provide covering fire!" Hanz said. "Head to support Shield team! Or the town!"
"Copy that, good luck." He felt the tank rock back from another shell being fired. Through the vision ports of the cupola, he could see the tanks reverse and drive back downhill. They were taking a long way around to avoid the German tank destroyers blockading the more direct route. Turning his attention back to the front, he saw the German tanks start to turn in the direction of the retreating Sniper units.
"Fahrer, full speed into that tank! Gunner, fire on the tank on the right!" He felt the tank lurch back, and it went barreling down the hill at full speed. The turret slewed to the left, lining up on the tank destroyer. The gun was bouncing, but if the gunner timed it right, he could fire.
"Feuer! Brace for Impact!" The gunner fired, hitting the Jadgpanther square on the side, and with a loud thud, the 68-ton heavy tank slammed into the side of the second tank destroyer, taking off its left track and knocking off some of its roadwheels. The tanks slid down the hill a bit but came to a stop. The crew was a little dizzy from the impact, but everyone had braced and were otherwise OK. He could see the commander of the tank they had rammed jump inside right before impact.
"This is Sniper 1, we've been knocked out… We took out two tanks with us. Good luck Kommandant, everyone." Hanz said into the radio moments before it cut off.
At Jay's position, he was listening to the whole engagement over the radio, trying to visualize what they were facing down. He was quickly shaken from that thought by the whistle of a german high-velocity gun. The tank rocked as the 128mm shell landed and exploded next to the Hellcat, which was tucked behind the IS-3. The tanks had tightened up their formation, firing whenever one had a shell loaded. The firefight was relentless, but they had knocked out a few of the tanks. Every one of them being a Panther. The Jadgpanthers had been holding firm, even against the 120 and 122mm guns of the American and Russian tanks. They were eating shells to the face as well. Burn marks and scratches from machine guns and cannon fire marked the heavies. The night was falling fast over the battlefield and the only light from the JayPac tanks was when the guns flashed. Suddenly the A13 rolled past the group, firing off a shell.
Inside the cruiser tank, everyone was sweating hard. Even with the breeze from the driver's hatch being open blowing cool air inside the tank. Pascal was barking orders and loading shells into the breach. After a few minutes, the driver spun the tank 180 degrees and barreled down the way they came. The turret was cranked to the other side of the tank and the process repeated itself.
"Two more tanks are taking up position! Jay, you need to get out of there!" Pascal shouted into the radio.
"God damnit.." He said under his breath. The Hellcat rocked back as it fired another shell downrange. He watched as the T34 took out a Jadgpanther, and the IS took out the Jadgtiger. The Super Pershing fired once more, taking another panther with it. Unfortunately, the firefight had drawn more enemies to their position. Jay looked at his map, trying to figure out a way out. "Shield 3, how many tanks are on the left flank?" There was a bit of silence in between the sound of cannons firing and armor being hit.
"One tank left now, add that to the count," Kyle replied.
"All tanks, here's our plan. I'm gonna fire a couple of smoke rounds towards the more heavily defended right flank. Under that cover, we're gonna make a break for the west side of town. Shield 4, I want you to meet us at the park in the center of town. If you see a tank that ain't ours, knock it out."
"Copy that, Waifu is moving out." Jay popped open the cupola, looking at the reinforcements that had come. They were trying to move the knocked-out tanks in their way.
"Gunner, traverse right. Load Willy-Pete." He heard the round being shoved into the breach. The firefight was getting a little lighter as a few tanks had been put into a semi-recovery vehicle state. "Range is 500 meters." The gun slewed on target. "Fire!" The round left the gun and flew in a beautiful arch to its target, just in front of the tanks that were firing. "Again!" Within 6 seconds another shell was sent further back, giving them a nice wall of smoke.
"Let's get the hell out of here! Driver, get us to the west side." Jay ordered. The tank lurched and rumbled as it got underway. The other tanks did the same, with the T34 and the IS-3 covering the A13 and Hellcat. "Sasha, can you give us some more smoke please?"
"Copy that comrade." He watched as the heavy tank began spewing a large cloud of white smoke, which was being painted by the sunset and the silhouette of the forest. If only he could see the reaction of the tank crews who were still getting set up.
Leon and his crew were having a good battle. They had lasted a while and they were protecting the lighter vehicles, just as they were made to do. Leon checked his map, making sure they were on course to the park.
"This is Scout 1, we've made it to the town. We're on our way to the park." Jay's voice cracked over the radio.
"Roger, we're about 4 blocks away from the park."
"Leon, I got a really bad feeling about this," Peterson said. "I'm looking at the map here, and this park would be a massive strategic point."
"All tanks halt." The group of tanks took up defensive positions and came to a stop. Leon looked at the map again. According to it, there was a bit of a defilade all around the park. He scratched his head a little.
"Peterson, you have my permission to go scout out the area. Take another Chaffee with you as well." Jay's voice came in.
"But Jay, this is too dangerous. Maybe we should rendezvous a little north of the park." Leon suggested. There was a bit of silence.
"For all we know, they could have only a few tanks there. If we get this park, we'll be set for the battle." Jay replied.
"Copy that, Scout 1. Ryan, on me!" Leon watched the two Chaffee's drive away, disappearing behind a couple of buildings. He decided to keep the remaining tanks where they were to minimize the risk of getting ambushed.
Peterson had strapped down the banjo he had always taken into battle against the floor near the commander's seat. He then turned his attention to the outside, pulling himself up through the cupola. He made sure they weren't going to run into anything dangerous, that dangerous thing being a bigger and scarier tank. He knew he had to act swiftly and stealthfully. The two tanks arrived at the far corner of the park. With a hand signal, he ordered the other Chaffee with him to maneuver over to the other far corner. From his point, he could see the blue and grey and white painted panzers of New York's team.
"This is Peterson. We've spotted a couple of tanks from the southeast corner of the park. Tanks are as follows." He did a double-take, just making sure he wasn't seeing things. "I've got two Panzer IVs, three Panzer III's, a pair of Panthers, and a Puma armored car. I believe it's the 50mm armed one." He waited for a response from the commander, apart from the soft humming of the idling engine, he could hear something else. The sound of treads growing closer and the whine of a diesel engine. But this whine was familiar.
"This is Scout 4, we spot the same thing. Strange, you'd think they would have something heavier than a Panther in reserve… right?"
"DRIVER, REVERSE!" The driver, in a panic, slipped the tank into reverse and floored the gas. As it had gotten dark, the streetlights had illuminated the town streets, and by now, they had gone a couple of blocks back. Staring them down, was a black mass in the shape of a King Tiger. The tank had stopped and its gun pointed right at the Chaffee.
"They also have King Tiger… Good luck team." That was the last transmission from Petersons tank before a long pause and then the faint strumming of a banjo. Jay knew what he was gonna get himself into, but the presence of that tank changed it entirely.
"So, what's the plan?" He heard another large boom echo from the direction of the Park. "Aside from becoming Tiger fodder," Pascal asked.
"The only thing we can do. We go in and fight." Jay replied.
"And that entails?"
"Kyle, you and Sasha are gonna lead the spearhead. They set an elegant trap for us to fall into. Have all their tanks bunched up while a King Tiger covers the flank. Scout 2 and 4 already set off part of the trap." Jay got onto the radio.
"Shield 4, I want you to start your advance in 3 minutes," Jay said. "Once it's time to roll, you're gonna push into the town and take out the King Tiger."
"Copy, but what about you guys?" Leon asked.
"We're gonna buy you those three minutes, at least that's what I assume, right comrade?" Sasha asked.
"On the money. Saddle up, guys. This is where it all counts." Jay dropped down into the tank and closed the hatch. The darkness didnt help with the reduced visibility. "All tanks move forward." He watched the Stalin and the T34 roll forward ahead of them and his tank followed closely behind.
"Are we really doing this?"
"Gunner, get us pointed ahead." The turret swung around to face the forward direction. "Yes, we are." There was a slight hint of fear in his voice. Something that could be felt over the airwaves. He didnt want to say aloud but he was getting those shakes that he had when they were facing Lone Star had come on full force. But, something stopped the shakes entirely, he could faintly hear a tank battle going off almost a block away. The bright muzzle flashed illuminated the air, as the area where the tanks were had become dark. The lights in the area had been taken down from the gunfire. With each gun flash, he could take a quick list of what he saw. And Peterson was almost completely right. Everything except the flag tank. It had gone. All this time they had closed the distance, albeit slowly. And across the way, he could hear the panicked shouts of the flanking force as they were being decimated by that missing tank.
"All tanks halt and open fire!" Jay ordered. "Range is 75 meters!" The gunner pulled the trigger, and the tank rocked. There was a cloud of dust shot up from the ground past the group.
"Opening fire!" The sound of the 40mm going off, followed by the armor impact was satisfying. Unfortunately, he had hit the side of the Panther.
"Shields 3, Shield 2, anytime now!" Jay shouted. He semi-braced himself for the impact of the round. At that moment Shield 2 had opened fire, blasting the Panther.
"Sorry comrade, we were loading a shell." A King Tiger then came flying around the corner at high speed, taking a pot shot at the Stalin. The hit was critical and the Soviet tank had its flag pop up. This was followed quickly by some very intense Russian curse words.
"Gunner, hit that tank where it hurts!" Before he could fire, the A13 rushed passed, proceeding to open fire on the heavy. The shots did nothing serious, however. One-shot did manage to damage the tracks. "Pascal, what the hell are you doing? Driver, forwards!" The hellcat maneuvered around the Soviet tank, easily outrunning the gun of the Tiger.
"We're taking one for the team!" With three shots, the exposed turret ring of the tiger was easy pickings for the A13 and its crew. The turret became stuck at a 94-degree angle, effectively making the tiger useless. The heavy tried to traverse the hull to get the gun around to hit the hellcat as it drove its circles, but damage from the earlier hit was substantial enough for the track to give way in the turn. What the Tiger crew didnt expect, probably was the T34 to follow up with a massive hit to the turret, causing that white flag to pop out.
"Tank down, we're getting another shell ready to go." He heard Kyle say. Jay breathed a sigh of relief.
"Thaks for that. Driver, get us back. We'll take out the rest of the tanks from a distance. Fire at will."
"On its way!" The tanks rocked back, hammering the cornered tanks. They were focused on the group for a bit, raining shells into the area. "Cease fire! Kyle, fire your Machine gun at the point for me." The cracking of Machine guns ripped through the air, lighting up the area where the tanks once stood. All that remained was a cloud of smoke and the already knocked-out tanks. Jay's blood ran cold and he popped open the hatch to get a clear look behind him. He saw Pascal do the same, seeing the hatch fly open on the M18.
"Shield 3! Watch yourself! Flag tank behind you!" Pascal shouted. The turret began to swing around, as well as the hull. Jay saw the Puma's gun flash for a moment, followed by the engine of the T34 going ablaze. The white flag popped up and the armored car began to drive away.
"We're chasing that thing down! Let's go!" Jay exclaimed. The tank spun around and accelerated down the road. The A13 followed suit, close behind. Two began to chase the Puma down a long winding road, dangerous enough at high speeds. Add tanks firing rounds and it was a recipe for disaster. Jay knew the risk of his decision, but there was no turning back. The three blasted out of the town, with only lights illuminating the street every hundred feet or so, he could see the Puma disappear and reappear from view. A shell screamed between the two tanks, coming from the Puma. A few minutes into the chase, Jay looked at the map, and seeing a small neighborhood coming up, he grabbed the radio to talk to his partner.
"Pascal let's slow down and try and get through that suburb."
"Alright, but how are we gonna get that flag tank?"
"Leave that to me. If I know that girl as well as I do, she'll fall right into this." Jay said. Even he knew he was full of it, it was all he had left at this point. From the lack of radio communication, he could tell that the flanking force had been decimated. He and Pascal were the only ones left in the match.
"This is one hell of an idea you got here." He hard Pascal say. Jay ordered his driver to ease up and head into the suburb. This neighborhood was very dilapidated. Most of the houses were falling apart, the streetlights were barely on, some of them flashing on and off.
"Get us beside that house." Jay pointed to a semi-destroyed house that was on a small hill.
"I don't know about this Jay. Maybe we're playing this a bit too risky than planned." Pascal said.
"They aren't gonna forgive me for this," Jay said. "Just remember that failure is not an option." The Hellcat and the A13 made their way to the house. Both tanks came to a stop after getting into position. Each tank was watching each other back, Jay strained his eyes to look ahead in the dark.
"We don't have a plan, Javier," Pascal said. "I know we don't, you usually don't go for the run and hide unless you're desperate."
"I know. Something is telling me that she's just as desperate, and she's probably thinking of a way to take us both out." Jay answered.
"Then you two wouldn't mind giving up then." Both of them froze. "I don't know what to be more surprised by? The fact that you two were the last ones standing, or the fact that I caught you both with your pants down."
"Fuck…" Jay muttered under his breath. He turned to see a Panzer IV looking at his tank. "Hello again, Sophie."
"I told you guys that I would beat you. No matter what you do." She said. She was standing in the window of the house they were parked next to. "Oh, and if you even think of making a wrong move, you're done."
"Alright, what the hell do you want?" Pascal asked, facing her. Jay assumed that Puma was aiming at Pascal's tank. "You caught us, so why didnt you shoot?"
"And not milk this moment?" She asked. "You must be crazy. You robbed my shot of knocking out that redneck idiot and his band of misfits. This is the reparations." Jay couldnt see it, but he could imagine the face she had at the moment. No humility.
"Jay, this is Shield 4, we're almost at the suburb. You were right about them not double-checking their targets." Jay just kept silent. Sophie turned her attention to Jay.
"Why are you so quiet, Javier? I remember you being more talkative."
"Look, you just need to shut it. You've made your point already, we've lost! Ok?! But so what?"
"Pascal, that's enough. Sophie, you don't know us that well. Honestly, you never came into contact with us. But for us on the other hand, well.." Jay was interrupted by a shot being fired, quickly followed by the sound of a shell making an impact with the Panzer IV keeping watch. "We know you all too well." He dove into the tank, shutting the hatch.
"Pascal, knock that tank out."
"We're working on it! Ah, bollocks.." The sound of a shell hitting its target echoed through the night. "It's all on you, Jay, go get her."
"Forwards driver! Leon, cut her off at the back roads exit!"
"We're trying!" They gave chase. He could see the Puma zoom past. The driver drifted onto the road, and the hellcat flew down it to keep up with the German armored car.
"Driver hit the lights!" The headlights of the tank destroyer lit up the road, making it easy for the gunner and himself to see the target and the road.
"Jay, we only have 5 more rounds of AP, 7 High Explosive!" His loader shouted.
"Were gonna fire the AP round in the chamber, then load High explosive, I have an idea," Jay said. They both zoomed by the heavy Pershing, the hellcat was staying glued on the Puma's tail, maintaining about 60 feet of separation.
"Gunner, I'm leaving the firing to you. Fire at will, and aim for the tires." Jay said. The gunner nodded.
"On its way!" The tank rocked, the shell flew just over the engine deck of the Puma.
"Again! High Explosive." The tank rocked again. "Leon, try and intercept her! We're passing 10th street now!" Jay shouted. The tank fired again, followed by a return shot. Their shell arched almost perfectly, exploding under the tank. The Puma began to swerve a little. The two tanks exchanged fire, each getting more accurate than the next. Then it happened. The two tanks fired simultaneously. Both gunners were right on target. The high explosive shell front he hellcat hit square on the middle tires of the Puma, the impact itself blowing the tires off the tank, and causing it to roll. The hellcat's bogey assembly on the right side took a direct hit a fraction of a second later, causing the tank to spin out. The tank turned suddenly, its momentum carrying it forward to the side of the road. The two tanks sat for a moment, The flag coming out of its canister echoed through the tank and everyone held their breath. Jay turned to see the T26, all scratched up with shell marks and impacts rolling up to them. A judge ran up to the tanks.
"Ma'am, who won?" Leon asked.
"Right now they're saying that you guys won, though it may be overturned." She said. Everyone was silent, Jay leaned on the cupola ring.
"Nice shot, dude," Jay said to his gunner. "You may have just won us the match."
"According to the footage, JayPac has been confirmed as the winner! Congratulations guys!" The Judge said. Then chaos. Nothing but the screams and shouts of joy from the crews of each JayPac tank. Some of the Waifu's crew were even crying tears of Joy. Jay himself just heaved a long sigh of relief. It was over. They had won. And then it hit him.
"I'll be right back," Jay said, hopping down the side of the tank. He was hugged by Leon, to which he gave a squeeze and wrestled out of his grip to rush towards the puma. He stopped when he saw the crew crawl out of the armored car. Sophie looked destroyed, and it was a look he had seen before. When they had last played together, in a similar situation. He walked up to the crew, brushing by them and going right up to Sophie.
"Well..you got us. You happy now?" She said.
"Of course, I am."
"Then why are you here? Milking every second from this?"
"No. I'm here to tell you that it was one hell of a fight." He said. "You should've taken the shot." He said. "But hindsight is 20/20, right?" She just got up and walked away from him.
"I guess you were right, huh? I've had the crown for too long."
"Heavy is the head that wears it. Guess that goes for density as well." She said, walking over to the sidewalk. "I'll get it back soon enough, so enjoy it while it lasts, Javier."
"Right, I will. Hopefully, we'll meet up in battle again." He said, before walking off back to his tank. The group of boys all rushed him and hoisted him onto their shoulders, cheering and shouting.