NOVEL NEXT RM Vol 4: War – Chapter 5: Case Yellow (Day 1 – Firepower) – Edited by Yovis
"Driver, forward. Load, AMP." Captain Strauss Henriken says to his crew. As the commander of the 303rd Mechanized Company, he is now leading one of the many spearheads that will stab at the Central Maginot Line.
"Ammo up!" The tank loader, Hans, shouts as the gun breach snaps into place.
"First Platoon, we will be coming up against remnants of the Allied forces on the first enemy defense line. Focus on taking out enemy installations and armor, however, you have free reign to pick out targets of opportunity. Anything left alive will be dealt with by our Pumas. Over." Strauss announces, prompting the other three Leopards in the Platoon to answer.
"1-2, copy all."
"1-3, received."
"1-4, good copy."
"Line formation. Let the Pumas form up around us." Henriken says before sending the battle tactics to the accompanying Puma Platoons over the net.
Gradually, a line of Leopards and Class-B and Class-C Pumas advances through a small patch of greeneries, somehow left untouched by the rocket carnage. After rolling over roots and branches, the armored formation drives over craters and potholes. Were they still using old war vehicles, this series of shell craters would have stopped them deep in their tracks. Fortunately, the modern suspensions and powertrains in the Leopards and Pumas make traversing these uneven terrains nothing more than a breeze.
As the AFVs surge forward over the smoking No Man's Land unimpeded, dismounted infantries can be seen moving right behind the protection provided by the war machines. Taking cover behind the armor, the Panzergrenadiers offer additional eyes and ears, protecting the vulnerable flanks of the vehicles against dangerous approaches that somehow escape the tankers' notice.
Using their advanced optical equipment, the vehicle crews scan the Allied defense line, or what's left of it, only to see no movement at all. Strauss frowns at this, unwilling to believe the rocker barrage could have wiped out everything in one go. Maginot does have subterranean infrastructures, surface artillery strikes can only destroy so much of their fighting force at once. To verify his suspicion, Strauss turns to his gunner. "Zimmer, keep an eye out for anything that moves. I need to check something."
"Sure thing, Cap." The gunner replies, swiveling the tank turret ever so slowly to scan the bombarded trench line.
Changing the setting of an MFD in his command station, Strauss connects to a UAV that is assigned to his Company. Controlling the gimballed camera beneath the UAV, the Company Captain scans the area ahead of them once more. Despite squinting his eyes hard and changing the view settings of the drone many times, Strauss really can't spot any movement or enemy signature at all. The only things he sees are either corpses or overthrown tanks and truck wrecks. Did the survivor really just run away or perish that easily? Surely not, right?
Instead of committing himself and thus the rest of the company to the push, Strass decides to... "Company, halt!" Stop the formation immediately.
The entire combined arms formation slows to a halt, with the accompanying Belkan Panzergrenadiers crouching and spreading out behind the armor. While it was an abrupt command from Strauss, not a single element in the Company voiced a question, yet. Instead, they opt to scan the horizons for any sight of hostilities. Intel has already confirmed the destruction of enemy indirect artillery units. So the only possible way for the Allied forces to resist was to stage a hasty ambush against targets coming at them from the Belkan lines. With that in mind, Strauss commands the UAV to scan for potential hiding places. If their spirit hasn't been broken, then the Allied remnants will be using those spots to mount their resistance.
Lo and behold, Strauss' instinct pays off. Situated atop a small hill that flanks the side of their Company's advance is a hastily reinforced fighting position. There, remnants of Central Maginot soldiers use corpses and destroyed vehicles to camouflage a barely serviceable heavy bunker as being destroyed. Whereas in reality, the bunker is equipped with a host of machine guns and probably some hidden AT guns. Strauss only discovered this ambush because one of the Loyalist ambushers got anxious and stopped faking death when his Mechanized Company ceased its advancement. Though the Loyalist soldier was then promptly pulled down by his fellow 'corpses', they're still spotted anyway thanks to the ultra-high definition camera on the Belkan UAV.
"Attention all 303rd elements." Strauss tunes to the Company-wide radio channel. "Detecting an enemy ambush, bearing 325, distance 1000, marking the location on your map now. Be advised, that I am seeing a large bunker with machine guns and possible AT weapons. Enemy infantrymen are faking deaths with numbers ranging from a platoon to an echelon. Over."
"Second Platoon, copy."
"Third Platoon, copy."
"Fourth Platoon, copy all."
"Fifth Platoon, copy. How do you want to clean this up, Captain? Other elements also reports sporadic resistance from the Allied forces, but not to this extent."
Strauss immediately replies. "There must be someone both brave and talented enough to organize the survivors to set up an ambush like this. I can applaud their spirits but I will be cursing them for their stupidity in not outright retreating or surrendering. Since they've been preparing hard to welcome us into Ustio, then let's not shy away from giving them a hello-neighbor gift."
Strauss pings the Class-B Pumas. "Ladies and gentlemen hit the location with everything you got. I want them to have tinnitus as an entree. Fire at will."
"Hah! Now that's more like it, Strauss!" Nozo, the driver of Strauss' tank, exclaims with a big smirk while his mouth is holding an unlit cigarette.
"Yeah, been getting a tad too quiet for my taste. Damn sound insulation of the Leo is just too good sometimes." Zimmer comments, already aiming at the enemy bunker. "Gonna set the AMP fuze to point-delay, Strauss. Figured you would want First Platoon to get the last hits in."
"You spoke my mind, Zimmer. Hans, keep on loading AMP after this."
"Gotcha, Cap." Hans gives a thumbs-up right before the Class-B Pumas unleash hundreds of 30 mm rounds at the target.
A blink later, the enemy hill and bunker receive an impromptu session of terraforming as numerous explosions blanket the area. Visibility of the site immediately drops to near zero as smoke plumes and falling detritus hamper even the eye in the sky. Fortunately, it doesn't take long for the scene to settle down just enough for them to make out the blackened bunker that is in the state of near collapse. Using the UAV, Strauss spots a group of soldiers stumble out of the bunker with their guns clenched tightly. They seem to be in a daze as they rush to check out the 'corpses' in the trenches around them. With how much HE the Pumas dumped in that particular instance earlier, it will be a wonder if anyone outside makes it out intact.
"Damn, I think that was the most intense barrage I've ever seen the Pumas do." Nozo comments after viewing the spectacle from Zimmer's POV with an MFD in the driver station.
"Yeah, but they seem able to take more where that's coming from." Strauss radios the rest of First Platoon. "Alright, Leos, hit them where it hurts."
"1-2, with pleasure, Captain."
"1-3, gladly."
"1-4, we've been waiting for this for two years!"
"Zimmer, hit it!" Strauss commands the gunner, prompting the man to say.
"On the way!" The Company Command tank rocks slightly at the recoil of their 105mm gun. With the Captain's tank firing as the cue, the three other Leopard Main Battle Tanks also chime in, jettisoning large red tracers and black smokes from their barrels.
A split second later, the large Loyalist bunker is hit with four Advanced Multi-Purpose, all with their fuzes set to point-delay. Unlike point detonation which is suitable for engaging armored vehicles and buildings, point detonate-delay is primarily for bunker busting and destruction of heavy fortification. In this particular fuze setting, the four AMP warheads penetrate through the thick concrete walls of the Loyalist bunker before exploding in the interior. The collective blasts from all four of these shells are enough to eviscerate all biological matter in the confined space first and foremost. Then, the explosive shockwave will destroy and collapse the large bunker, already weakened by prior rocket attacks and autocannon fire. Shockingly, however, the entire hill suddenly goes up in a blast of water vapor, dirt, and smoke cloud before the supersonic booming can be heard by the Belkans.
"WHAT THE FUCK JUST HAPPENED?!" Nozo the driver jumps in his seat with his cigarette dropping on the floor.
"Yggdrasil blesses us, I can feel the tremor in the air even inside the tank." Hans comments in a cold sweat.
"Did they rig the entire hill to blow or something?" Zimmer asks calmly, though one can still see a trickle of sweat running down his forehead.
"I don't know, but I am damn glad we don't have any of our own near it. Had we played this by the rules, the Panzergrenadiers might have died trying to clear out the interior." Strauss says, breathing out an audible sigh.
His attention is then grabbed by a radio call, not from his Company, but from his superior.
Accepting the call, he greets. "Colonel Rommel, sir!"
"Gods above, Captain Henriken, I could see the explosion from your side. Is your Company fine, Captain?" Colonel Erwin Rommel asks with mild concern. The Colonel commands the 404th Division's 3rd Panzergrenadier Regiment and is Strauss' direct superior.
"Reporting, we're fine, sir. The 303rd has taken no casualties in that explosion. The enemy set up an ambush for us, which we took care of at range and resulted in that major blast earlier. I hypothesize that the enemy bunker was rigged to blow. I suspect that there will be more booby-trapped locations as we go deeper into enemy territory, Colonel." Strauss tells his suspicion.
Nozo comments off-handedly to himself. "Thank the Gods that we have firepower on our side."
The voice on the other side hums before replying. "Understood, Captain, you did well in handling that ambush. Otherwise, it could have been costly for your Grenadiers. I will take your suspicion into serious consideration and will forward it to the Marshal. Godspeed, Henriken. Over and out."
Strauss gives the Colonel a mental salute before sighing. "Right, we still have to push to Sedan by nightfall."
Strauss then communicates with his Company. "Alright people, continue our push forward and watch out for any trap or Loyalists hiding in the corpses. The last thing we need is for a casualty coming from the enemy's last huzzah. Clear this sector seriously so we can immediately set out for Sedan."