Chapter 12
"Damn, this is not good." I grumbled.
We're sitting in Alisa's hospital room with Kay and Naomi. The doctors said that Alisa's endured serious dehydration and malnutrition during the occupation of what Alisa told us to be Der Teufel des Blutigen Nebels, or the Devil of the Bloody Mist, known in short as the Bluhtnebel. It appears to be a devil, forged from the countless extremist IJA soldiers who had perished in WWII. It is rather neutral on tankery, but is strongly against boy participation – left-wing, as I expected. She came across the thing in an alleyway when coming home from school several weeks ago, and apparently, she was not having a good day, enabling the devil to dock onto her negative emotions, and control her.
"He'll come back." Alisa sighed, "those leftists are the kind who won't admit defeat unless smashed into the 2nd dimension."
"Hey, cheer up. It's not your fault the asshole is out there stirring up mayhem." Andrew chided.
"And another thing you probably won't like." Alisa said, "this one, Kay knows about."
We turned towards the Saunders captain. She sighed.
"Oh well…your school would be matched up against us. And we've been given some heavies. So, it's going to be really hard on you."
"What heavy?" I asked.
"That's a surprise. All I can say is we've two."
"And we have 3." John said before I can remember to yell at him to shut his trap.
"Care to name it?" Kay said, interested.
"All I can say is that we've a Firefly with attachments, and my tank is a German behemoth that wasn't ever finished."
"And another thing." Alisa dug out her iPad. "The MEXT said that the matches will now include this."
I checked out the screen. Basically, they're introducing infantry into the games via what they call Panzerinfantarie, with not much regulations, the most important being: no weapons that can't be carried by more than 2, and no permanent fortifications. The infantry can either be the crew of a destroyed tank or on foot at the beginning.
I don't know how Alisa expected me to react. But I laughed.
"PERFECT! Just what I want!"
That earned strange looks from the American girls. But I didn't care to explain anymore. I motioned to my comrades to start packing, and patted Alisa on the head, earning a tiny squeak of surprise from the girl.
"Get well soon, I'm looking forward to seeing you on the field."
"Is there nobody else?" John complained.
We're back at Oarai, and explained the situation to Miho. We intentionally didn't talk about how we'll counter the Bluhtnebel, saying that 'there's always a way for those clever enough to find it', and told them about the upcoming match and the new game mode. When I asked who will be the Tanker-Infantry, though, everyone pointed at my crew and Andrew's team.
"Well," Caesar said, "if you don't get us a few guns somewhere, how do we fight off the tank?"
"You said that." I said, and swept out of the room. Hiding in the shadows of the tank garage, I activated the Panzer Ace, and bought an Italian-made Carcano 1891 rifle with a bayonet and a Beretta Model 38A submachine gun. For Erwin, I got her an MP-38/40 and a Solothurn S-18/1000 antitank rifle; for Saemonza, I bought a Type 100 submachine, a Type 2 AT grenade launcher and some Type 98 AT grenades; for Oryou, a Type 97 20mm antitank rifle and a Type 11 machine gun as well as Type 99 magnetic mines, all of the weapons including the ammo belts. And I went back in, and in the shocked glances of all the Oarai tankers, shoved the guns into the Hippo Team's arms. "You do now, and based on what you said earlier, you in?"
Caesar looked at me, stunned. "Where did you get these?"
"I opt to remain silent. Anyway, anyone have ideas on what Saunders fields?"
"Shermans definitely, Fireflies, maybe Grizzlies. They have some Easy Eight Shermans too."
"Why are we even worried?" Mason piped up, surprising everyone, "we have a Lowe, bless God! And an IS-4! We'll smash'em flat!"
"Mason, Michael Wittman died under the gun of a Firefly, a tank that was supposed to be weaker than his Tiger I." I reminded him, "we must be careful."
The weeks passed, with me training the infantry and Miho training the tankers. The girls wanted to do some very colorful paintwork on their tanks, which led to me yelling at them for 15 minutes. The History Buffs were actually pretty fast learners, and got along with our training really quick. In a few days, I managed to get Oryou to learn how to fire her Type 97 (which even I don't really know how to use, but hey, we've got the magic), and Saemonza was starting to be able to wield the Type 100 properly. As for Erwin and Caesar, they don't need training. They learned everything about their weapons by themselves on their books. We taught them how to navigate trenches and fortify themselves with the allowed materials, but I'll skip talking about it, since it's kind of boring and will take hours to finish.
The day of the match finally arrived. The girls drove to the grounds in our RSO and SdKfz 251 trucks, giving the assembled crowd an evident surprise. As for us, we decided to drive our tank to the starting point first and then use our motorbikes. Unfortunately, the attention our uniforms and guns attracted is a bit too much, and the Oarai armband we wore only worsened things.
After what felt like eons, we finally wormed ourselves out of the crowd and reached the stands, facing the Schwerer Gustav replica that served as the screen.
"Ladies and gentleman," a voice declared, "may I introduce the participating tanks of this match. The Saunders University High School team will deploy 35 M4 Shermans, 10 Sherman Fireflies, 8 M4A3E8 Shermans and 2 M26 Pershing heavy tanks."
"So that's what Kay meant by the 2 heavies?" John muttered, "Shoot, easy pickings for our Lowe."
"Oarai Girls Academy Team will deploy 1 Panzer IV G, 1 StuG III, 1 Panzer 38 (t), 1 M3 Lee, 1 Type 89B, 1 Mark I Grizzly, 1 M24 Chaffee, 1 T14 Assault Tank, 1 Sherman Firefly with T34 Calliope rockets," the last two caused quite some surprised talking, "and 2 heavy tanks that we have been asked to keep as surprises." The audience went nuts at that, discussing excitedly over what they could be. We were completely puzzled by this abrupt change.
"As for infantry, the Saunders side will deploy the crew of any disabled tank as infantry, while Oarai's division consists of the crew of the StuG III, the T14, the Firefly, the Grizzly, the Chaffee, and one of the mystery tanks."
"Now, both teams will commence their positions."
"But we didn't ask them to keep our IS-4 and Lowe a secret?" John asked in a whisper as we went for our motorcycles.
"Who knows, maybe the Bluhtnebel is up to something. Just be ready."
We assembled at the side of our Panzer VII, and I looked at it.
We've done some modifications to the tank (but not before getting an affirmative reply from the tankery federation) that slightly boosted its power. The tank now had a bulldozer blade mounted on its lower front, defending the area between the bottom of the tank and the ground, able to be controlled via a set of levers mounted next to the driver's seat. On the side of the tank, we've added what resembled the Schrutzen armor plates Miho's Panzer IV has, but much larger and thicker, and with less of a gap between it and the structure of the tank; the front didn't receive these kinds of armor plates, but got metal sheets linked on to the chassis by a series of iron frameworks which will break when the sheet cannot withstand any more shelling. Extra treads had been mounted on the engine compartment along with toolboxes and a few iron crates holding a secret weapon (federation-approved, again). And I had ordered a Flakvierling 37 20-mm AA cannon hexamount to be attached onto the commander's cupola, which had also been renovated to resemble the cupola on a Panther or Tiger tank. Most importantly, the engine has been upgraded (costing a lot of points) to what the Panzer Ace shop calls a Tier 4 engine, giving the tank the speed of the Panther.
Looking around and seeing no trespassers, I started my rather propaganda-like short speech.
"Okay, everyone." I said, "This is our first show. We're probably the first boys ever to set foot on tankery, and we'll doubtlessly meet resistance, even if we do well. What I'll ask you is to never falter and never listen to a word from those accursed naysayers. This is also our first match since being teleported to this world. I fight for what I believe to be just, and I know you all do too. Since we wound up in Oarai, we will lead it out of the darkness, into the light, with every last bit of strength we process, and NEVER EVER let the MEXT disband it." I raised my MP-41. "Heil den Gepanzerten Truppen der Oarai! Es lebe die Gerechtigkeit und der Sieg!"
(Hail the Oarai armored troops! Long live justice and victory!)
"Sieg Heil!" my friends cheered, raising their weapons into the air.
"Now let us commence!" I said, jumping onto the turret, "Möge der Geist von Michael Wittmann mit uns sein! Gott mitt uns!"
(May the spirit of Michael Wittmann be with us! God, be with us!)
Meanwhile…
Up in the heavens, an old man chuckled, watching the boys assume positions.
"Valiant souls." He muttered, "I bless you on your path to victory."
Our strategy was simple: Miho and her friends, along with Takashi's M24 Chaffee, will defend the 38(t), our flag tank, while my Lowe, Andrew's T-14, Fidel's IS-4, Jacob's Pershing and Mason's Grizzly go bust some heads, with the Firefly Calliope on standby for firepower support. Rabbit Team and Duck Team, the lightest tanks, were sent out as mobile scouts. I told them to resort to hit-and-run tactics, since their tiny guns can't do anything to even an original M4.
We wandered around the match grounds for several minutes before something happened.
"Lion team," Miho suddenly spoke thorugh the mic, making us jump a bit, "Please get to Rabbit Team as soon as possible. They're being chased."
"How many? We're not busting our cover unless we've got a big scene for our debut."
"22 M4 Shermans and 7 Fireflies, as well as 2 M4A3E8…"
"Hmm, good, enough." I turned to look at our team. "Gabriel, get us to the Bunnies."
…
It was only 3 minutes before I saw Rabbit Team's olive-green M3 Lee far away in front of us, fleeing from the fleet of medium tanks on its tail. I snickered.
"Why do you think Kay pit so many on the M3?" John asked, loading an AP.
"Well, it's our only tank with 2 guns, as well as the only one with a howitzer." I replied, stuffing a magazine onto the Flakvierling 37 hexamount mounted on the machine gun rail of the commander's cupola, "besides, she probably wants the intimidation factor. And it might not even be her, maybe it's Alisa, curious about what we're going to use."
"Sir!" Lucas called out, "Enemy Shermans are in sight! Locked and loaded! Aim is stable!"
"Good." I said, "FIRE!"
Kay was laughing at how the poor M3's crew was reacting when it happened.
Right after she made a remark on how the M3 must be a newbie to the sport, one Sherman in the foremost row suddenly exploded, hit by a shell. The impact was so powerful that it flipped the entire medium upside-down, the white flag coming out from the hatch on the chassis bottom. Then, a rocket – Kay was sure it's a rocket, because it shot flames from its butt – hit another Sherman, one perilously close to hers, instantly white-flagging it.
"What WAS that!?" A shocked tank commander yelled through the radio, "weren't we just chasing an M3? How can it do THAT!?"
"It wasn't the M3!" Another girl yelled, this one horrified, "look in front of it!"
Poking her torso out of the cupola, Kay lifted the binoculars on her neck and peered beyond the figure of the fleeing M3. What she saw felt like a stab of icy terror in her heart and mind.
Grinding towards them, in a cloud of smoke and dust, was the unmistakable figure of a Panzer VII Lowe super-heavy tank (she recognized it from War Thunder). And it's been renovated. The front is covered by a series of iron plating, adding further protection on the already thick armor. More of it hung on the sides and all over the turret. And something big loomed on the top of the tank. As the distance closed (the speed is something else scaring her: this thing is going at the approximate speed of an ordinary Sherman!?), she identified the shape to be a Flakvierling 37 20-mm autocannon hexamount. As she watched, the turret turned, and the tank belched out another shot, this time taking out 2 Shermans by striking their frames, which were too close together.
Terrified yells dominated the radio. The mere image of the tank is enough to scare the daylight out of the M4 Shermans, not to mention its unstopping advance and how it is taking out their comrades with laughable ease. A few brave crews attempted to retaliate, but their 75mm shells simply bounced off the tank, doing nothing other than scraping off paint.
"All teams, try to concentrate fire! Fireflies, shoot! Quick!" Kay screamed as the turret of another M4 exploded from a 155-mm shell.
As the Saunders main force was panicking…
"Alright, all set?" Erwin muttered through the throat microphone, stuffing a shell into the main gun of their StuG III.
The Hippo Team had decided since the start of things that they, with their Pak 40 main gun, shouldn't be cowering behind the scenes. They proceeded to follow Rabbit Team from a distance until the Saunders main force caught them, and had driven onto a nearby forested hill, set up a small battleground the way the boys had taught them, and prepared their weapons. Saemonza was a few meters away in a foxhole, her Type 2 grenade launcher propped against her shoulder and its bipod extended; Oryou was on top of the tank with the Type 97 AT rifle, also aimed at the Sherman fleet below.
"Ready." "Ready." "Ready."
"Good. Now, UTE!"
The weapons spewed flame, sending a volley straight at the unsuspecting Saunders students. The 75mm struck home on the butt of a Firefly, taking it out completely. The Type 2's warhead flew high into the air, coming down against a Sherman's top and taking it out. The Type 97 didn't score a direct kill, but the round still destroyed the main gun on a Firefly. At the same time, Lion Team's tank roared again, overturning another M4.
"Fire two!"
The girls' weapons growled again, taking out another 2 M4 Shermans.
But then, through the commotion, the single M4A3E8 seemed to realize where the attacks are coming from. Its gun turned, and with a flash of light and an explosion, the white flag popped out of the StuG III.
Cursing, Erwin dropped a shell she was holding. Caesar spoke through the radio.
"Sorry, Commander Miho. Hippo Team, tank destroyed. Proceeding to infantry assaults."
And, lifting her Solothurn and MP-38/40, she hopped out of the tank, and motioned for her comrades to follow.
…
"Ah, bless them." I sighed.
So, Hippo Team is out. Not very good. Their 75-mm KwK is one of the only weapons the original Oarai team has that can knock out a Sherman. But still, we've the chance to turn the tides. Fidel and his IS-4 would be downright deadly to even the Easy Eights.
"John & Lucas, keep up the fire. Gabriel, move forward slowly." I commanded. And I popped out of the top of the tank, gripped the handles of the Flak 37, and unleashed a hailstorm of rounds into the panicking Saunders tanks and infantry.
On the stands, just before the Lowe scored its first kill…
A girl with brown hair looked at the screen, and shook her head, frowning. Oarai is not in a very advantageous situation: The M3 is being pursued, the StuG and Panzer IV are taking up defensive, and the more powerful tanks are nowhere to be seen.
"This is not right." She thought, "maybe these soldier-boys are cleverer than I thought, or they're planning something big…?"
"Saunders M4 Sherman is out!"
The girl's head shot up. On the screen, a cross covered one of Saunders' Shermans. The footage from the drones still showed the fleet of U.S tanks, but the foremost one is … flipped upside down?
"One of Oarai's mystery tanks shows itself!" The speaker blared again, "it's a Panzer VII Lowe super-heavy!"
WHAT!?
The girl looked at the relay. From the direction the M3 is fleeing, a large, grey figure appeared, marching toward the Saunders tanks with unquestionable power. A ball of flame & smoke exploded from the muzzle, and two Shermans went down. As the cameras zoomed in, the top of the tank opened, and out came a…boy!?
The audience stands exploded in yells and shouts, but the girl didn't have time to pay attention to that. As she watched, the boy gripped something mounted on the top of the tank: a Flak-37 20mm autocannon.
The Shermans are panicking. And more puzzling still, she noticed a few at the rear of the formation are white-flagged too. Weird, because these can't be the work of the Lowe.
Then, an M4A3E8 fired onto a nearby hill, and-
"Oarai StuG III is destroyed! Crew is in infantry combat!"
So that's who, the girl thought. Very clever. Trying to immobilize the enemy by destroying the front and back tanks. Kind of like what the Volkssturm did to Soviet T-34-85 tanks in Berlin.
She shook the thoughts out of her head, and went back to the match.
Back on the field…
I laughed as I felt the tank send another shell flying at Saunders.
The numerical advantage Saunders had was no more. By now, over half of their Shermans lay haphazardly on the field with white flags sticking out. The crew members were obviously Panzerinfantarie, seeing as how they hopped out of their tanks and fired RPGs and all kinds of infantry weapons on us. However, none of their guns can do us any damage, and now, all the girls are laying all over their tanks with the white flag on their helmets popping out. Most passed out from the impact of the bullets, but a few are conscious enough to look at us in fear as we moved forward.
Finally, the Saunders main force turned and fled, leaving behind 24 white-flagged tanks and at least 120 knocked-out infantry on the field.
I picked up the radio. "Commander Nishizumi, this is Lion. Successfully eliminated …" I did a quick count, "17 M4 Shermans, 6 Fireflies and 1 M4A3E8. Awaiting further orders."
"17 Shermans!?" Momo screamed, shocked.
"Tank and crew." I spoke.
"Well," Miho said, "did you see their flag tank?"
"Nein." I scanned the battlefield, but saw no tank with the blue flag on its engine compartment.
"Well, go pursue them, then."
…
After hanging up, Miho looked around at her crew, who had parked their IV next to the 38(t) as defense.
"Seems to me that game's over." Saori said, "The first encounter, and the boys knocked out 24 tanks. Saunders is done with."
"I guess I could sleep now?" Mako's dreary voice came from beneath Miho. Nobody bothered to answer.
But all of a sudden-
BOOM!
The Chaffee of Eagle Team (Takashi's team), which had been guarding the 38(t)'s left, burst as a shell struck the turret ring. A few seconds later, the white flag came up.
"What the!?" Miho thought in shock, pulling out her binoculars. She looked, and saw, to her horror, the remaining M4A3E8, along with 8 Shermans and 2 Fireflies, grinding down on them, guns alive.
"All teams, please get back to the Starting Point as soon as possible! Under attack! Eagle is down!"
"Was!? Der Kapitän wird angegriffen! Und Eagle Team ist am Boden!?" Louis screamed through the mic. "Lasst nicht zu, dass sie Hand an unseren Kapitän legen! Wir ziehen uns zurück und kommen, um zu helfen!"
(What!? The capital is under siege! And Eagle Team is down!? Do not let them lay hands on our captain! We are retreating and coming to help!)
"Дерьмо! Держитесь на своем! Наш Сталин-2 идет на подкрепление!" Fidel yelled.
(Dermo! derzhites na svoem! nash stalin-2 idet na podkreplenie!
Shit! Hold your ground! Our Stalin-2 is coming for backup!)
"This is Falcon Team! T-14 is pulling back!"
"Coordinates received! Firing T34 rockets!"
Please, the heavies have to get here in time…Miho thought, as the guns of all their defending tanks sounded all around her.