Chapter 45: The Last Stand of the Black Eagle
"They're advancing off the hill!" a Jagdpanzer IV/70(V) commander exclaimed over the radio.
"All frontline tanks, fire at the enemy," Maho ordered, "Rear guard and Panthers, take out the skirmishers."
At the front, the casemates aimed their massive guns at the advancing formation of Oarai's tanks. "That's um… quite the formation…" one of the gunners said nervously.
"Don't be intimidated! We are Kuromormine's best! We don't lose!" her commander shouted, "fire!" In response, the first Jagdpanzer IV fired its long-barreled gun. Its shell whistled through the air rapidly to crash into the ground near Luca Team.
"Wow, that was fast!" Avaron exclaimed, "return fire!"
"Affirmative!" Sando replied. She roasted the turret to the right to see the enemy. Despite the shaking, she was able to aim the double-barreled 37mms near the Jagdpanzer IV. With a twitch of the finger, she squeezed the trigger to send a rapid volley of 37mm shells from her gun.
The guns fired and spat a flurry of shells toward the Jagdpanzer IV. All ten shells splattered across the sloped front armor of the German tank destroyer but failed to knock out the tank. Avarom scrambled to jam two more magazines of ammunition into the two guns, but the Jagdpanzer IV cut her off with a swift shot to the front armor. The front burst into flames as the shell connected and the comparatively thin armor couldn't hope to stop the high-velocity round. The MTLS-1GI4 sputtered to a stop in a cloud of smoke. As it stopped, a white flag popped out, signifying its elimination. Avaron sighed and put the magazines away. "Good luck with the rest of the match guys," she said on her radio.
"Stay safe," Miho replied. Kuromormine's frontline forces fired on Oarai once more. The shells flew around them and some got close to hitting their targets. In front of the Panzer IV, one of the Sturmpanzer's 150mm shells exploded into a massive fireball. "Push through!" Miho ordered. Anglerfish Team sped through the smoke. "Remember to use your MGs on their vision ports!" she reminded.
In response, a storm of machine gun fire erupted from Oarai's tanks. Kuromormine's sights were lit up by a swarm of bullets. Sparks flew off Kurmormine's tanks and lit up the air before fizzling out on the grass below. Immediately, more shots from Kuromormine missed further and further away from Oarai's formation.
"I think we're gonna make it!" Laika exclaimed. The formation had nearly bypassed Kuromormine and was making good progress. The turretless enemy assault guns and tank destroyers began slowly turning around to face Oarai again, which gave them some time.
"Shall we rejoin the main group, Captain Nishizumi?" Fukuda
asked as the Type 95 disappeared back into the forest behind Kuromormine.
"Harrass them for just a little longer, then yes, break away and rejoin us!" Miho replied.
"Affirmative!" Noriko exclaimed. The PT-1A shot out of the forest just as one of the Panthers started turning towards Oarai's main force. "No you don't!" she shouted. Akebi fired the 45mm gun into the side of its turret, but it failed to penetrate and left a black scorch mark. The Panther started turning back towards Duck Team. Shinobu veered the tank to the left around the Panther and away from its gun.
An 88mm shell ripped through the air and slammed into Duck Team's frontal armor. The tank suddenly sputtered to a halt with smoke pouring from the impact site. The white flag went up almost instantly. The Tiger I flag tank's turret turned forward again and faced the quickly bypassing Oarai main group.
"Guerrilla Group, fall back now, you've done your part," Miho ordered.
"Yes ma'am!" Fukuda replied.
"Got it Captain," Anzu added.
Turtle Team quickly reversed into the forest with shells flying into the trees around them. Pheasant Team quickly turned around to follow only to face Maho's Tiger I. "Take them out," Maho ordered.
"Dodge left!" Fukuda ordered. The Type 95 swerved to the left and barely missed the incoming round. The Japanese light tank sped around the Tiger I. Before they disappeared into the forest, Fukuda spun the turret around as they passed the Tiger. We still won't penetrate the armor, even from the rear, she thought, so she aimed for the track and fired. The HE shell hit the track perfectly and shattered the links. Then the Type 95 broke through the bushes at the edge of the forest and disappeared from Kuromormine's sight.
"That was an impressive reaction…" Maho whispered. "All units, take a defensive position around the flag tank and vice-captain's tank so we can initiate repairs. Do not pursue the enemy," she ordered. She pulled out her map and watched Oarai put more and more distance between them. She nodded silently and came to a conclusion. "They're moving towards the town. Mauko, Sangou, prepare for combat," she warned.
"That's what I call a shoot-out!" Joseph exclaimed as he reloaded his Tankgewehr. He slid the bolt shut and rotated the handle back into its firing position as he stood outside his commander's hatch.
"I have a feeling it's only going to get more intense from here," William suggested from his cupola.
Lisette nodded as she leaned against her cupola. "No kidding, those girls carry some impressive firepower," she added.
Miho looked over her map and focused on the town they were approaching. They had to cross a river to reach it, but the map indicated that it was shallow enough to ford. She also looked over her remaining tanks in the main group. 11 total, plus two guarding our artillery she thought. The town was simply designed with a lot of townhouses and apartments arranged in straightforward, evenly-spaced blocks. One particular zone was pretty closed off, with only one entrance. Already she began to formulate a plan. If we can get their flag tank ahead of their main force, bait them into following us into that zone, and then block it with a heavy tank, then we can force them into a dual without their support… she pondered, or perhaps we could grind them out in another battle of attrition and expose their flag tank…
"What's our next move, Captain?" Erwin asked.
The StuG, Sav, and Semovente would make perfect ambush tanks! She realized. "We're going to attrite them down at the town and expose their flag tank. We'll use our casemates in ambushes from advantageous positions. Once we have them exposed, we'll throw everything we have at them!" she answered.
"And you better remember to call for artillery support!" Victoria added, "I've still got like 100 shells and I've got a few firing positions in that area with great concealment. They'll never find us!"
"I hope your gun crew carries that enthusiasm," William joked.
"We'll survive," Seiji replied.
Miho looked ahead of them and saw the river approach. "Alright everyone, line up at the edge of the river. Line up with our heaviest tanks to the left against the current to shield the lighter tanks," she instructed.
At the left end of the formation, Hyena Team stopped at the edge of the river. Its length and weight provided an excellent shield against the river's current. Leopon Team stopped next to them as well. On the other end of the line, the light Type 95 and Semovente 75/18 capped off the end of the line with the M3 Grant next to it. "Is everyone ready?" Miho asked. She looked over the line as each commander radioed in to confirm their readiness. After the last confirmation, she looked down at the river ahead of her.
The air suddenly felt incredibly cold and the river seemed to pick up pace. She froze, remembering everything that had led her to leave Kuromormine. The thought of almost losing a tank crew under her command and a group of close friends…
She steeled herself with a deep breath and fixed her gaze forward. "All tanks, advance across the river," she ordered. The Panzer IV crept forward. Next to her, her teammates followed and dipped into the water. Ripples splashed around their tracks as each tank entered the river. But as they settled onto the riverbed, the tank's maintained their traction. The engines were clear of the waterline and they could move ahead. For a moment, it looked like all tanks wouldn't have a problem fording the river as they inched away from the shore.
"Woah!" Tanner yelped as the T1E1 lurched forward. The front of the heavy tank dipped into water as it sunk into the riverbed.
The right track of the Porsche Tiger dug into the muddy river bed. "Uh oh, we're stuck!" Tsuchiya called out as she struggled for traction.
"Come on, not now!" Tandy shouted as the Type 100 dug into the river bed. Clots of mud built up around the road wheels as the tracks struggled against the mud.
Katrina fell back against her cupola as the T-VI-100 tilted backward. She grimaced before quickly pulling herself back up. "What's going on? Are we stuck?"
"We're stuck," Alexei stated dejectedly as he slowly pulled the levers back and forth looking for a hint of traction. The KV-1K wiggled back and forth for a hint of traction, but it only dug deeper into the river bed.
"That's… six of our heavy tanks. We're stuck too," William informed.
"All stop!" Miho ordered, "everyone who can still move, reverse out of the river so we can pull them out." She knelt into the turret of the Panzer IV. "Yukari, could I get the tow hooks again?" she asked.
"Of course!" Yukari replied. She opened up the box where they stored the cables again and pulled them out. Then she handed the steel cables to Miho.
"Perfect, thank you," Miho replied as she took the cables. She climbed out of the Panzer IV and stepped onto the roof of the Panzer IV's turret once it stopped on the river bank. Leopard Team was in front of her. She saw Lisette climb out of the Type 100. She stepped down onto the turret roof from the cupola with a little wobble, before she caught her footing. "Are you alright, Lisette?" Miho called out.
Lisette took a deep breath and nodded. "I'll be fine! Toss over the tow cable!" she called back.
Miho held the end of the cable with her left hand and took the spindle of steel cable in her right. Once Lisette was in position, she tossed the cable across the gap between their tanks. Lisette caught the cable and jumped down onto the Type 100's engine deck so she could attach it to the tank's rear. Miho sighed with relief once Lisette was done with her task and both of them climbed back into their cupolas. "Is everyone ready?" she asked over the radio.
With each free tank attached to a stuck tank, they began to tow the suck tanks out of the river. The lighter tanks wouldn't be able to pull them out on their own, but the stuck tanks still had some power to help get themselves unstuck. Both Tandy and Mako pulled their steering levers back to reverse their tanks. The Type 100 struggled against the mud while the Panzer IV reversed until the cable was taut. The situation was the same with the other five tanks as each puller struggled against the weight of the heavier, stuck tanks. But with some persistence and assistance from the stuck tanks, they were pulled just enough to get unstuck from the muddy grip of the riverbed. The Type 100 climbed back onto the land with mud coating the lower hull and tracks.
Miho let out a breath of relief. "That was close," she whispered as the rest of the tanks were pulled back onto land. Once they were all on land, they detached the tow cables and put them back into their storage bins.
"So what's our next move Captain?" William asked.
Miho looked at her map again and thought for a moment. Further up the river was a bridge, but it was a long detour that put them back in the path of Kuromormine's force they had just escaped from. It doesn't look like we have any other choice. Maybe if only the heavy tanks go, the risk of being found will be lower… She pondered over the idea for a moment before activating her radio. "Heavy tanks, there is a bridge down the river you can cross over, but there is a chance you'll be found by Kuromormine on the way. Do you think you can cross the bridge and regroup with us in the town?" she asked.
William thought about it as he looked over his map. Maybe… it's not a long distance, he thought. "Alright, let's do it," he decided, "all heavy tanks, follow Atrox Team." The Tiger I H2 turned to be parallel to the river and passed the rest of Oarai's tanks that would stay and ford the river. It was followed by Leopard, Chamois, Hyena, Leopon, and Mongrol Team.
Miho turned back to the river as the heavy tanks drove away. "Alright everyone, form up again. Mallard Team, I need you to be the leftmost tank to block the current for everyone," she directed.
"Understood ma'am!" Sodoko replied. The B1 Bis drove to the end of the formation and stopped at the edge of the river. Everyone lined up again with Mallard Team at the left end, then Anglerfish Team, Hippo Team, Turtle Team, Rabbit Team, Pheasant Team, and finally Wolf Team at the other end.
"Begin fording," Miho ordered. The line of tanks slowly dipped into the river again. They began crossing the river slowly and carefully to make sure they didn't lose traction again. We're making good progress! Just a little further… she thought as they crossed the halfway point.
Karina felt the M3 Grant start to sputter. "What's going on?!" she asked as she looked down at the gauges. Suddenly, the tank ground to a halt as the engine shut off. "The engine stopped!" she called out with panic.
"What?!" Azusa gasped. She looked down at the engine deck and noticed it was starting to fill with water. "We have water in our engine compartment! There must be a leak in it somewhere," she informed anxiously over the radio.
"Everyone stop!" Miho ordered. They had barely pulled ahead of Rabbit Team when they stopped, but already the current was starting to push against the M3 Grant. With its tall structure, the medium tank started to tilt to the side as the current crashed into it.
"Leave us behind! We'll be fine! If you stay here Kuromromine might catch up to us!" Azusa called out.
Miho stared anxiously at the M3 Grant. Sure, they would probably be able to forfeit their tank and get pulled out by rescue crews safely, but they could also tip over before they were rescued. Miho squeezed her eyes shut and grit her teeth in frustration. We're not leaving them behind! She decided. She hurried climbed down into the turret and grabbed the stowed-away tow cables. Then, she rapidly climbed into the cupola and out of the hatch. As she pulled herself out of the hatch, she saw another commander climbing from her hatch. Koume and Miho's eyes met as they climbed onto their tanks' roofs. They had come to the same conclusion. Both of them held a spindle of tow cables. "Hippo, Turtle, and Pheasant, Koume and I are going to attach a tow cable to Rabbit across you. I want you to attach your tow cables to our tow cables so we can all pull Rabbit to the shore!" she explained. She attached her tow cable to the Panzer IV again and tied the other end around her waist to free her arms in case she need to grab onto a tank. After Koume did the same, the two looked over the first gap they needed to jump.
Then they leaped from their tanks. Everyone watched in awe as Miho and Koume crossed the first gap between their tank and the tank next to them. Miho crossed over to Hippo Team while Koume crossed over to Pheasant Team. They both hit the roof of their neighboring tanks and fell to their knees as they barely made it across. But they got back up determinedly.
Koume looked over the last gap between her and Rabbit Team. She stood on the engine deck of the Type 95 and looked over to the M3. I need to get on the Type 95's turret to make that jump… she thought nervously. She quickly climbed onto the Type 95's small turret before taking the plunge and leaping onto the engine deck of the M3 Grant. She sighed with relief as she gained her footing on the stricken tank. "Thank you so much Koume," Azusa said gratefully as she climbed down from the M3's turret.
"Let's wait for the thanks when Miho's across, okay?" Koume replied.
Just as she said that Miho landed on the Sav M/43's roof next to Rabbit Team. One more! She thought determinedly. She stepped back to get a running start on the Sav's roof before running forward. She put all her effort into her jump as she reached the edge of the roof and jumped as hard as she could. She flew across the gap with rushing water below her. Time seemed to slow down as she neared the M3's engine deck, but gravity caught up with her. She started to fall lower and lower until her foot barely managed to hit the edge of the engine deck.
But then her boot slipped. Miho barely managed to register it until it was too late. She started to fall toward the edge of the engine deck, where her head would undoubtedly hit the edge and knock her unconscious and into the cold river. But a pair of hands grabbed her arm and caught her before she fell too far. Miho looked up fearfully to see Koume and Asuza standing over her with her right arm in their grasp. With a grunt, they pulled her onto the engine deck and to relative safety. "Are you okay Miho?" Koume asked.
"I'm alright, thank you," Miho replied while untying her tow cable. "Let's get Rabbit Team unstuck!"
"Right!" Azusa replied. She took the cable from Miho and attached it to the M3 Grant.
Miho and Koume looked back to their tanks. "Let's just ride the M3 until we reach the shore," Miho advised.
"Yeah, that's safer than jumping across again," Koume agreed.
The formation began crossing the river once again. Slowly, but steadily, the M3 Grant was pulled free from its stricken position and they were able to cross the river without any more problems. Karina repeatedly pulled the ignition switch of the M3 desperately. "Come on, come on, come on!" she demanded. As they crossed onto the shore and out of the water, the engine drained and suddenly fired up again! The American motor came back to life with a roar and Rabbit Team let out a cheer.
"Alright! Let's get back to our tanks," Miho said. She and Koume jumped down from the hull of the M3 and rushed back to their tanks. Just as they climbed up and into their positions, they heard a thundering sound in the distance. Miho's eyes widened instantly as she recognized Kuromormine's cannon fire. "Forward, forward!" she ordered quickly. Oarai's engines fired up as the drivers punched their throttles and the tanks surged forward. Just in time as well, as explosions rocked the ground behind them and kicked up a massive fireball. "Quickly, to the town!" Miho directed.
Erika sneered as she looked down on Oarai from the hills behind the river. "Damn it, they got away again!" she complained.
"Everyone, there is a bridge nearby for us to cross this river. We'll be taking that to pursue them," Maho informed.
Eriak nodded as Kuromormine's formation started moving forward again. We're going to tear them apart!
A horrible grinding sound pierced the air as William's formation raced to the bridge. One of the suspension wheels of the Tiger I H2 flew off and rolled around in the grass before falling over. Multiple suspension wheels on the Tiger locked up as the heavy tank came to a halt. "What the hell?!" William called out. As the tank stopped, he jumped down to look at the suspension. Every roadwheel of the Schachtellaufwerk was covered in dried mud and the roadwheels were completely stuck.
"What's going on?" Joseph asked over the radio as the formation came to a stop around William.
"The mud dried and completely jammed our roadwheels!" William answered as he ran around to the other side of the Tiger. The right side was the same as the left as dried mud caked each wheel and jammed them.
"What are we going to do?" Laika asked over the radio.
William looked behind him. They're probably coming right at us to use the same bridge to pursue Miho… we're a sitting duck out here! He thought nervously. "Leave us behind, go regroup with Miho. We'll hold them off as long as we can," he stated.
"Hell no! I'm not leaving you guys behind!" Joseph protested.
"Do it damn it!" William shouted, "we can't chip out this mud in time, especially if we're sitting here arguing! Go on without us!"
Joseph, Lisette, Laika, Katrina, and Nakajima looked between themselves nervously as they gathered around William. Laika and Nakajima looked like they were going to comply and order their tanks forward. "No," Joseph stated.
"That's an order!" William demanded.
"Then court-martial me for insubordination. Everyone, get into defensive positions. We're holding the line here," Joseph ordered.
Lisette immediately nodded in agreement. "I'm not abandoning you," she added.
"I agree," Katrina added.
William clenched his jaw and turned to Nakajima and Laika. "Listen, Miho put me in command of this formation and your orders are to regroup with Miho and leave me here. Do you understand?"
Laika and Nakajima were at a loss for words as Joseph and William stared at them expectantly. Suddenly, Nakajima made the first move and stepped back. "Understood," she stated as she turned around to walk toward her Porsche Tiger. Laika looked back at her momentarily before giving William a nod and walking back to her tank.
William turned to Joseph. "We don't have the time to argue about this, get out of here now!" he demanded.
Joseph shook his head in refusal again. "No, we're going down together," he replied. He turned around and went back to the T1E1. He climbed instead momentarily before coming back out with a tow cable. Putting these to good use today… he thought as he walked over to the stricken Tiger.
"You can't tow it out of here and get away from Kuromormine," William told him.
"Yeah, but we can get the Tiger facing the enemy," Joseph replied. He attached the cable to the Tiger and then to the T1E1. He ran over to the driver's hatch and told Tanner to get the Tiger turned around. Lisette and Katrina ran back to their tanks while William begrudgingly returned to his Tiger once it was turned around.
The four tanks faced away from the bridge that was in the distance behind them. Kuromormine appeared on the horizon of the open field ahead as the Freikorps braced for battle.
The Black Eagle would make its stand together, orders be damned.
Miho lifted her binoculars as the formation of tanks neared the town. She scanned the edge of the streets to check for enemy units. Initially, she didn't see any, but as they crossed over onto the street surrounding the town, she saw a lone medium tank poking around the corner ahead of them.
Saori was also poking out of her hatch with a pair of binoculars over her eyes. "That looks like a Panzer III. It might be an L or maybe an M. I'm not sure…" she stated.
"They must have assumed we'd reach the town eventually and left the III behind. What are they playing at?" Miho wondered aloud.
"Let's take it out before the others get here. They must have thought we'd want to play defensive here, so they left the III to break us up," Erwin suggested.
Miho nodded. "Let's take it out then. Mallard, assault guns, loop around the street to attack it from behind. Pheasant and Rabbit Team, let's pressure them from the front to distract them," she instructed.
Mallard, Turtle, Hippo, and Wolf Team turned right and drove off the road they were following toward the town. Pheasant, Rabbit, and Anglerfish Team continued driving forward towards the Panzer III. "We just need to keep them pointing toward us, so don't get too aggressive," Miho warned. "Rabbit Team, I want you to go ahead first with the 75mm pointed right down the street before you cross into their view. Pheasant Team, follow to their right but don't get ahead of the 75mm until after it's been fired," she instructed.
"Right!" Azusa and Fukuda replied.
"Artillery Team, have you relocated to be in range of the town?" Miho asked.
"Affirmative, but we have a firing mission, do you need us right now?" Victoria replied.
"Negative, is the mission from William?" Miho asked.
"Affirmative," Victoria replied. Right before she cut off, the thundering roar of the 8-inch howitzer blasted through the radio momentarily.
"Understood, keep at it," Miho replied. She quickly switched to Baiji and Medaka Team. "Alright, you two need to keep guarding the artillery, but once we draw Kuromormine's flag tank into the town, I want you two to detach from Wildcat Team on my signal and reinforce us and get the jump on Kuromormine."
"Alright, some action!" Li Ming exclaimed, "we've got your back Miho."
"Same here Captain," Canaveral replied.
Miho nodded to herself as they neared the town. Her second group was already far enough away to be out of the Panzer IIIs sight and it was still poking around from the street corner they first saw it. "Alright, we're going to be in their range shortly, be prepared to angle the armor or veer the tank Mako," Miho stated.
Mako nodded. "Understood," she replied simply.
"Saori, Hana keep their attention on us with the MGs," Miho ordered.
"Right!" Saori and Hana exclaimed. Hana stomped on the MG trigger on the floor under her feet while Saori took the grip of her MG into her hands. A flurry of bullets burst from each MG and little tracers raced through the air before ricocheting off the Panzer IIIs armor.
"They've spotted us, alright Mauko, go!" Saguaro urged.
A monster of a tank hid away in the shadow of an alleyway. Its commander was itching for it to jump out of the shadows and hunt its prey. She tapped her foot against the turret basket eagerly. "Finally!" Mauko exclaimed.
Sodoko loaded a 47mm shell into her gun in the turret of the B1 Bis. It didn't have a lot of penetration, but it'd still take out a Panzer III from the rear. As Mallard, Turtle, Hippo, and Wolf Team crossed onto the street, the earth started to shake around them. "Everyone stop!" Sodoko called out. As the group came to a stop. A large camouflage wall of steel started to emerge from an alley ahead of them to the left. "What is that? A wall?" Sodoko wondered aloud as she glanced out of her cupola's periscope.
Once the tip of a massive and long gun poked out around the corner, Koume's eyes widened in recognition and fear. "It's their Maus!" she cried out.
Miho frowned and grit her teeth. "Everyone in the second group, fall back. Everyone on me, we need to take out the Panzer III quick!" she directed.
"Affirmative!" Sodoko replied. The second group's tanks started to retreat back out of the street. However, the Maus rotated its turret just fast enough to face them before Mallard Team could get behind a building. The 128mm gun fired with a burst of fire and an earsplitting roar. The shell raced through the air faster than Sodoko could even see it and exploded against the B1 Bis. Smoke and fire covered the large French tank as it sputtered to a halt. "We're down!" Sodoko called out.
Erwin grit her teeth in frustration. "Fire at it Saemonza!"
"But we can't penetrate it anywhere!" Saemonza replied.
"Immobilize it by taking out the tracks!" Koume instructed, "driver, poke us out for a second. Carpaccio do you think you can hit its tracks with just a second?" she asked as she slid a high explosive shell into Wolf Team's gun.
"I'll try," Carpaccio replied. Their driver poked the Semavente out just enough for Carpaccio to get a shot. She clicked the trigger just in time before their driver pulled them back and before the Maus could react. The shell blasted a section of the Maus's track with a fiery explosion.
But the rumbling of the Earth didn't stop as the Maus lumbered forward. Mauko laughed arrogantly. "You'll need more than that to take out a Maus!" she cackled.
With Miho's group, Rabbit Team neared the street corner the Panzer III was hiding behind. Asuza stared out of her periscope as they reached the corner. "Stop!" she called out. As the M3 skid to a stop, the street came into view, but the Panzer III was nowhere to be seen. However, down the street, the massive lumbering Maus rolled past toward Oarai's second group.
Oh my God… they brought the Maus… Miho thought. Her eyes widened in fear and she clung to her cupola tightly as the super-heavy tank drove down the street toward its prey.
The first artillery shell struck Kuromormine's line of tanks like a bolt of lightning. The sound of the explosion blasted through everybody's ears as the formation entered the Freikorps range. "Open fire!" William commanded. The orchestra of guns that followed rivaled the artillery.
One of Kuromormine's remaining three Brummbär sputtered to a halt as its track was knocked off by the artillery strike. "We've lost a track!" the commander cried out. Suddenly the assault gun was set alight by a 90mm round that blasted its frontal armor.
The Tiger II that wasn't commanded by Erika burst into flames as well. A massive scorch mark on its turret face. It sputtered to a stop with a white flag, knocking it out. Jody smirked as she moved her sight away from it towards the next tank in line.
Before Kuromormine could even respond, the Freikorps' loaders had already reloaded their guns. "Fire!" William shouted. The guns replied with another volley of fire. This time, a pair of Jagdpanzer IV/70(V)s were struck and burst into flames. Just in front of Kuromormine's Panther group, an artillery strike from Wildcat Team rocked the medium tanks and caused them to halt.
"Return fire!" Erika commanded fiercely.
Kuromormine's guns finally responded. A volley of fire blasted the Freikorps as their tanks shook from the impact. William's hand slipped from his periscope and he nearly fell from his post. He caught himself on the turret wall and lifted himself back into his post. He looked in his periscope again to see a Jagdpanzer IV/70(V) staring back at him from roughly a kilometer away.
The 100mm gun of Chamois Team saved him as it roared and blasted the opposing tank destroyer in the front armor. "Thank you," William said breathlessly.
"Save the thanks for the later!" Katrina snapped, "next target!" The T-VI-100 was rocked with a shot to its frontal armor. A small white flag popped out of its roof, signifying a knockout.
"Next!" Erika snapped to her gunner. The turret of the Tiger II rotated away from the eliminated opponent towards Leopard Team and the Type 100.
Jody and Lisette glared at Erika's Tiger II. "Fire!" Lisette shouted. The Kwk 36 responded with a flick of Jody's finger. The Type 100 shook with the power of its gun and the shell raced through the air to the Tiger II. But the thick sloped armor of the Tiger II took the shell and caused it to ricochet into the air. "Damn it!" Lisette growled.
The longer 88mm gun responded with its own fire. The Type 100 was set alight without the thick armor of its opponent and knocked out. Lisette slumped down against the wall behind her. "Sorry guys…" she weakly said into the radio.
"Damn them!" Joseph spat, "fire again, give them everything!" He shoved his commander's hatch open and hastily loaded his Tankgewehr. Both guns of the T1E1 fired simultaneously and he followed it with his own anti-tank rifle fire. His ears rang as he watched the shells crash against the Jadgtiger's thick armor. "Again!" he demanded.
The heavy tank destroyer responded. A 128mm shell tore through the air and exploded against the T1E1's hull. Joseph felt his back slam into the edge of his hatch as the tank rocked from the explosion. His sight filled with smoke and tears burned his eyes while his ears rang from the explosion. Through it all, he heard the sound of his tank's white flag deploying.
William took in the scene around him. His friend's tanks were charred and knocked out while the ground around him was smoking from the rain of shells. In front of him, he could see Kuromormine's tanks slowly close in on him. Their guns slowly pointed at him. "William," Addison started, "we're down to our last armor-piercing shell."
He frowned and nodded. He took one last look at the enemy but saw that the flag tank was protected behind the line. "Quinn, fire freely," he stated solemnly.
Quinn responded by firing one last time. The crew savored the sound of the shell's propellant detonating, the blowback of the recoil, and the sight of the shell flying away into the distance. An unlucky Brummbär near the front of the formation took the hit and was knocked out. "Everyone… it was a pleasure," William stated, "thank you."
He closed his eyes and felt the shockwave of several hits blasting the Tiger I H2, knocking it out of the match.
000
Hi everyone, glad to upload again. Thanks for reading and everything. Life's been... a thing for a bit so it feels good to inch a little closer to the end of this story. Also, thank you to those who upvoted and commented on my post on the Girls und Panzer subreddit. That was really cool.
Next Time on Girls und Panzer: Tank Aces
Chapter 46: Where All Roads End