Chapter 13

I was fuming as we pulled back towards Miho. And not just because we've gotten some clever opponents.

When we just heard the news, we immediately tried to contact Rabbit Team to get them to pull back with us. But no matter how Hank tried, the M3's crew didn't respond.

When I pulled out my binoculars to check why it's out, I was downright infuriated by what I saw.

The M3's hatches hung all open. And looking through one of them, I saw its interior completely deserted. The newbies fricking ditched their car.

I don't know how many swear words I yelled at the situation, but I had to take a drink after sitting back down. Then I ordered Gabriel to pull back at full speed, and started to worry about our flag tank: a single 38(t) is nothing in front of an M4A3E8.

"Hurry up, comrade." Fidel whispered nervously to his tank as the IS-4 rumbled down a mountainside.

The crew was taking to a rather laid-back attitude, watching Lion Team do target practice from a distance – he figured the confrontment had been nothing above that – when they heard that their "capital" was under siege. Fidel was not the person you'd expect to panic, but this is a serious situation.

Clang!

A shell impact broke Fidel's train of thoughts. A few M4 tanks had been fleeing from the Lowe's gun, only to run right into Bear Team's way.

"Открытый огонь." (Otkrity ogon, Open Fire) Fidel said absent-mindedly. And with 2 clear shots of the 122mm gun, the Shermans were sent out of the game.

"Fire!" Miho commanded her crew.

The whole faction – her tank (which Louis had referred to as the Kommando-Panzer), the flag tank, and the Type 89. The Grizzly had stayed behind to hold the attackers back for as long as they can, which probably isn't very long. Their commander is brave, no doubt, but they don't have any advantages to rely on. All her team had now on their side was mobility and disguise. The latter was referring to the camouflage netting carefully draped over the tanks by Lion Team in advance (she silently thanked them for it), which proved to be of tremendous help in the woods. But she knew this won't last long. Eventually, they'll either run out of fuel or get caught up, and camouflage won't do anything against shells.

She could see the commanders of the Shermans, poking out of the turrets. The one in the middle had long blonde hair, and was waving at them. She silently wondered who that is. The flag tank is visible behind that tank, carefully driving so as not to be hit.

But the old truth covers it all: Tides can turn.

A loud whizzing from the sky made all the tanks grind to a halt. Then, a salvo of rocket bombs slammed into the attackers. However, the mobile status of the tanks and the fact that they had only 1 Calliope resulted in only 1 Sherman being taken out. The majority of the rockets blew craters into the ground all around them, but it didn't hinder the assault.

Then, something else came into view. The T-14. And Hippo Team.

Relief washed over Miho as the assault tank fired.

We're saved.

PAKOW!

Saemonza winced as Erwin fired off her S-18/1000.

The situation before them did not look very well. Their team had only 1 tank capable of dealing any damage, and Saunders has their last M4A3E8. However, the T-14 she was riding on gave her some reassurance nonetheless.

Bringing her mind back, she reached into her backpack and pulled out a Type 98 mine. Striking the ignition fuse, she hurled it at the foremost M4. The explosive blew right on its frontal armor, but when the smoke faded, the M4, albeit with deformed front armor, was still up and fighting. Only 3 seconds later, one shot from Oryou's Type 97 AT rifle finished it off.

Then the rear Firefly went up. Peering over the turret, the girls saw the IS-4 grinding towards the surrounded tanks, firing dauntlessly upon the enemies. When it had approached, all the attackers have been smashed flat. Literally.

"Is everything over?" Caesar asked hopefully.

"Нет, товарищи." (Nyet, tovarishchi. No, comrade.) Fidel's voice came through, "We have been smooth so far, save for the little skirmish we just laid down. However, their 2 Pershing tanks are nowhere in sight, which puzzles me. Also, the remainder of what pуководитель секции (rukovoditel section, section leader) Louis experienced seem to have disappeared. This is unnatural."

And as soon as he finished that thought-

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! POP!

The rear of the T-14 was struck, all of a sudden, by 3 rounds, all in the same spot. The tank shifted and shuddered, and the white flag popped up.

"FIDEL, YOU FREAKING CROWMOUTH, CURSE YOU!" Andrew yelled from the inside, "The Pershings are on our rear! I see them! AND the other Shermans! We're surrounded!"

"Oh, as if I should know!?" Fidel yelled back, provoked.

"Can we shut up and deal with the threat for now, the two of you!?" Erwin yelled, "you are acting like Hitler and Guderian after Normandy!"

And the defenders began their desperate stand.

Andrew swore as he leapt off the busted T-14 with a Super Bazooka, his Garand and Thompson M1923.

Things are not looking well. The Pershings are invulnerable to almost all the guns here, and while Fidel's IS-4 is immune to the guns, the fact that the Pershings have been well-concealed meant that hitting them would be of great difficulty.

He looked in the direction of the heavies, and had to admit that the commanders of the tank were seriously damn smart. Their tanks were big and normally easy to spot, but they've employed camo paint and netting to distort and break up the outline of their tanks. Furthermore, they utilized flash suppressors on their guns, so that the supposedly bright flash is reduced to but a dim light in the distance.

Sighing, he took cover behind the T-14's chassis and peered down the scope of the M1. After searching for a while, he saw the upper half of one of the Pershings' turrets, some 200 meters away atop a hill. The tank was resting in a dug-out tank fighting position made out of earth and wood and painted metal sheets. Beneath the roof was a long rectangular porthole, and the turret of the tank is visible within. A small stretch of barbed wire covered the front.

Andrew checked the compass on his watch.

"One enemy Pershing sighted. Enemy is fortified, but AT rifles and tank guns should be able to break through. Direction 3 o'clock, 40 degrees elevation. Over."

"Aw, come on, hurry up!" I moaned.

We're driving at top speed already, but we've put way too big a distance between us and Miho. We've currently arrived at Area 4, only 1 kilometer away from Miho's position. We got reports from Fidel a few moments ago, and just when all seemed to calm down, Andrew burst in yelling that his T-14 is done for and that they've got the Pershings and all remaining Shermans closing in. Needless to say, I freaked out. And I silently cursed Rabbit Team: with their mobility, they could've gone and offered some support. Their howitzer does have the potential of beating an M4. But they chose to ditch their vehicle and run. Deserters.

"Sir!" Lucas's voice cut off my thought, "suspicious structure on hilltop at 10 o'clock position!"

"Fire!" I commanded. Whether or not it really was an enemy, I don't know, but I just want to be safe.

The 155-mm howitzer round slammed into the hilltop with pinpoint accuracy, sending up a shower of dirt and wood.

Then we saw it: lying in the crater of the shell was an M26 Pershing heavy tank, white flag atop its turret. We stared at each other, stunned.

"Man," John whispered, drawing back from his periscope, "that was real damn close."

"Forget them." I declared, "Lucas, search for further enemies."

"No need to, I see them right now. A whole lot of them are crawling in the woods."

"Good. John, load HE round. Lucas, turret traverse 20 degrees; aim for the flag if you can see it."

"Jawohl, kommandant."

The tank fired the HE right into the dense of the American tanks, sending up a thick cloud of dust. A hit from another tank made the interior shudder, but we paid no attention.

Then, it came. The flag tank. The last M26 Pershing.

Whoever the gunner in the tank is, her aim was deadly. As soon as we saw them, their tank fired off a round, demolishing 2 armor plates instantly. Then it turned towards Duck Team. The girls fired, but their round just bounced helplessly off the turret side. The Saunders tank roared, and the Type 89 was flipped fender-over-fender, smashing against the ground before its white flag came out.

"Come on, you guys, APCR that bastard!" I screamed.

But before we struck-

THOOM!

The earth in front of the Pershing's left track suddenly blew apart, and I saw the treads come loose. I looked around, trying to find the source of the attack, and saw-

A boy, perched in the treetops, holding an M2 Brandt mortar in one hand and a shell in the other, looking down.

"MASON!?"

"That's as much as I can do for now! My tank's a goner!" He yelled, "Someone shoot out its butt!"

"Can't! I couldn't get around it!"

And then-

BOOM!

The Pershing's rear exploded, and I saw fragments of armor fly up into the air. A few seconds later, the Pershing's white flag came up.

"WHAT!? WHO!?"

"Hey, we have to score a kill anyhow, right?" Miho suddenly said.

"But how did you-"

"Yukari's idea. We fired an AP shell into the rear, where the turret meets the chassis. Guess it went through."

"Oh, well, you are quite goddamned smart that split second." I muttered, amazed.

"Saunders flag tank immobilized. Therefore, Oarai Girls' Academy wins!"

A moment of stunned silence. Before-

"Hurrah!" "Урa!" "Sieg heil! Sieg heil!"

The boys cheered, raising their weapons and firing into the sky. John pumped his fists into the air, while Hank, Gabriel and Lucas laughed and hugged each other. I grinned from ear to ear, and fell into my seat as relief washed over me.

We won. We really won.