"So what? Do you want to show that you have been beaten? Stupid!" an infantryman asked with a smile. Facing the infantryman's ridicule, Ryan didn't offer any retort. Instead, he just gave a helpless smile. The slight freckles on his face moved with his smile, and then he crawled back atop his tank, settling into his position as captain. "Bauman! Drive!" he commanded.
When Ryan and his crew returned to the village, they observed another SS infantry unit cleaning the battlefield. The bodies of three SS soldiers lay on the ground, their faces covered with white cloths, one stained with blood. Captain Carter's No. 111 tank had been dragged out of the small ditch next to it, a steel cable connecting it to Marcus' No. 112 tank. It was evident that tank 112, which had rushed back to the village, had pulled it out. Fortunately, the ditch wasn't deep, so no professional trailer was needed. Captain Carter was relieved; after all, using a trailer from the camp was somewhat embarrassing.
Carter was studying a map with Marcus. The map showed a road extending through the forest to another small village, and not far east of that village lay a town. They were discussing whether to rally the tank company and attack the next village. Tanks 114 and 115 had been covering part of the soldiers from the 5th Armored Grenadier Regiment who were attacking the wilderness and protecting the village's flank. Now that they had returned, the tanks stopped outside the village.
Of the five tanks in the 2nd tank row, tank 124 was under repair, and the remaining four were on standby on the other side of the village. At the village entrance, a No. 3 assault gun from the division artillery battalion was stationed; its command was to cover the troops attacking in this direction. With the village now secured, the assault gun crew lay on the vehicle, basking in the sun.
"Hey, Rennes! I heard you destroyed a Polish tank?" Captain Carter called out with a smile, pointing to his own tank and continuing to laugh at himself. "I didn't seem to have much luck my first time on the battlefield! My tank drove into a ditch, and there's not much else to boast about."
Ryan, turning around to let Bruce and others rest in the tank, walked over, scratching his head and shyly replied, "That tank wasn't destroyed by me, my shell missed, and the tank's track broke. The crew abandoned the vehicle and ran away." His face, slightly reddish, made the shallow freckles appear more pronounced.
"But it's still your record," Carter smiled, pointing to Rennes' tank, which bore more marks on its barrel. He then quickly changed the subject. "We'll continue to push forward, pass through this wood, and then take down the village! We aim to take this town before 4 o'clock this afternoon. Do you see any problem with that?"
"Is there infantry to follow us? I'm worried about the tanks acting alone," Marcus frowned and said after a moment of thought.
Rennes stared at the map for a long time before responding, "I think we should be fine. The Polish defenses don't seem very strong. It looks like they're trying to gather their forces towards the town. If we push now, we can prevent them from doing so."
"And if we encounter the main force of the enemy? What if they counterattack or our assault fails?" Carter glanced at Rennes and asked.
"If we set off immediately, and if we're lucky, we won't meet resistance in the next village. Then we're likely to reach the town by 2 pm, and our 9 tanks should be enough to overcome the Polish defenders there," Rennes reasoned, measuring on the map with his palm.
The mechanic from tank 111 approached; he was a young recruit. Seeing him, Captain Carter immediately inquired, "What did Lieutenant Polk say?" Lieutenant Polk was the platoon leader of the 1st tank platoon, and Carter wanted to gauge his officers' opinions before making a decision.
"Lieutenant Polk thinks we should attack," the mechanic replied.
"Then everyone back to your vehicles!" Carter commanded, waving his hand. "First row of tanks, scout ahead. Second row, keep up and cover. Check your fuel! Start the engines! Keep the radio clear!"
"The last one can't be done at all," Rennes joked as he walked towards his tank, eliciting laughter from everyone. Then, amidst the roar of engines, the tanks started moving again.
Rennes leaned on his door and shouted loudly at the assault gun group not far away, "Hey! We're heading to the next village to see if there are any captives! Want to keep up?"
The commander of the assault gun, who had been discussing with a company commander of the grenadiers, looked up at Rennes, his yellow teeth showing. The company commander replied, "Send a few armored vehicles to keep up with them; we'll start together."
The grenadier commander nodded and immediately got up, "Jamie! Get some men on the vehicle! Let's head to the next village to see! The rest of you, hand over half your ammunition and pack your bags! Quick! We leave in 1 minute!"
As expected, when the mixed force arrived at the next village, the Poles had placed some roadblocks but had not stationed any troops to guard it. The German Grenadiers jumped off the armored vehicles, set up a perimeter around the village, corralled the local residents who hadn't escaped into a large house, and hoisted the bright German flag on the largest roof. Meanwhile, the rest started cooking. They opened some cans, poured the contents into their mess tins, stirred in a lot of water, apparently keen on having some broth. The other members of the vehicle group were also eating their canned food and brown bread, but Rennes only handed out some compressed biscuits to Andrei, which were quite unpalatable. Though they were hungry, the biscuits weren't very nutritious, having been stored for too long and acquiring a smell of rancid oil.
"We can't move along with you! Just maintaining the defenses of these two villages is stretching my company thin. I can't spare more troops to follow you... I heard you're continuing east. Please be careful," the grenadier commander discussed with Carter during their meal. Carter promised to leave a tank to help strengthen their defenses.
"The assault vehicle team is preparing to search north. They're taking an armored vehicle, so our defense strength is weaker. I suggest that when the infantry arrives to take over the defense line, we will advance," he said, returning from the assault gun to continue discussing with Carter. "If you insist on attacking, then please leave another tank."
Carter thought for a moment, consulted with the two platoon leaders, observed the surrounding terrain with a telescope, and finally agreed to the grenadiers' request. "Okay! We'll leave tank 121 and 122 from the second row here, under the command of the 2nd platoon leader. The remaining 123 and 125 will follow the main force and continue forward."
The weather was becoming increasingly favorable for them. The fog along the Polish border was gradually dissipating, and visibility was improving. The sky was clear, and German bombers, like a swarm of locusts, finally appeared in the eyes of the German soldiers. This was undoubtedly good news. The deployment of the Air Force significantly increased the pressure on the Polish ground forces. According to the slight data provided in the distributed brochure, the Me-109 fighter in the German Air Force was much more powerful than anything the Poles could muster. The distant explosions and the black smoke rising on the horizon, along with the occasional Stuka dive bomber flying overhead, all confirmed that air power was firmly in the hands of the Germans—at least all available information indicated a German advantage.
Though the support of the Air Force was welcome, the battle on the ground would continue. After passing through the woods, the map in Ren's hands showed that the road ahead was clear and open. They thought they wouldn't encounter any trouble, but they were hindered by a problem of their own making—the road they were traveling on. The last intersection had been destroyed by a Stuka bomber, and a large crater ten meters in diameter had obliterated the section of road they needed to use.
"Damn it! Air Force... those idiots... do they even have brains?" a frustrated voice came over the headphones.
Carter's inquiry followed: "Can you get around?"
"It's troublesome! The fields all around are easy to get stuck in and could stall the engine," a driver answered after surveying the terrain. "But I think we can give it a try."
Carter, half-exposed from the turret of his tank, nodded when he received the news. "Go around and force your way through! Be careful! Don't get stuck!"
All the tanks started again, carefully driving towards the surrounding farmland. The first tank smoothly navigated around to the left, followed by Marcus's tank 112, which also turned left, following the rut of the first tank. Behind them, tank 125 grew impatient, turned its head to the right, and drove into the field on the right.
At that moment, a loud noise came from tank 125: "Boom!" Thick smoke rose, and the broken tank track slipped to the front of the vehicle with the rotating wheels. Tank 114, which was following the rut of tank 112, suddenly panicked and drove into the mud next to it, struggling twice before the engine died.
Rennes, still on the move, hit the ground running and quickly grabbed the telescope dangling from his chest. Pressing his throat sound generator, he shouted, "No enemy at ten o'clock! None at nine o'clock either!" He swiveled the telescope, only to be met with a wall of black smoke. "Vision blocked by black smoke at eleven o'clock! Beware that direction!" he warned.
"Car 124! Take cover! We're under attack! God!" Marcus 112, who had advanced to the front edge of a large crater, yelled, "I'm directly up front! No enemies in sight!"
From the radio, a weak, panic-tinged voice crackled, "This...hiss...2...5...here is...car 125..." It was the captain of car 125, sounding disoriented and slightly panicked: "I...we...were hit..." Around car 125, thick smoke quickly dissipated, suggesting it was not from the vehicle itself but rather from an explosion's dust and smoke.
"No enemies found!" came another voice over the headset, this one from the captain of car No. 115. "I'm **** outside! No sight of the enemy!"
Ryan, too, straightened up, scanning the horizon for any sign of the enemy, but all was eerily quiet. "The smoke has cleared! No enemies in sight!"
"This is car number 112, all clear ahead!" Marcus reported.
Seizing the moment, Renn jumped out of his tank and dashed towards the damaged tank 125. He moved cautiously, his timidity apparent, yet he pressed on until he reached the tank. Turning back to the crew of tank 115, he shouted, "It's a mine! Not an enemy attack!"
"Marcus! You're in charge!" Carter commanded as he climbed out of his turret, "I'm heading back to tank 124."
Everyone disembarked, surveying the surroundings before gathering beside the road to inspect tank 125, half-sunken in mud. The mine had blown off its track and shattered a heavy wheel. Rennes climbed onto the tank to help extricate car 125's unlucky captain. He wrapped his arms around the captain from behind, pulling him out of the hatch.
As he saw others approaching to assist, he yelled, "Don't come closer! There might be mines!" He urged everyone to stand back.
Forty anxious minutes passed. The first company remained in place, shaken but safe. The driver of tank 125 had sustained a head injury, and his hands were full. With a broken track and a damaged wheel, and no suitable tools for repair, the tank could no longer advance.
"Now we have two options," Carter began after some thought. "First, we all stay here and wait for backup. Second, we leave a tank to cover, while the rest move forward and execute the original plan."
"Stay put," Marcus decided after a pause. "We only have one platoon's offensive strength. Even if we capture the town, we can't hold it against a counterattack."
Renn, stroking his chin thoughtfully, pointed to a map marker behind the town by the river. "If we take the town and then push forward to secure this bridge, we could consolidate our defensive position."
"The river isn't wide, but what about my flanks?" Lieutenant Polk asked, pointing to the thin lines on the map.
Ryan smiled, pointing towards the town by the river. "I learned this tactic in school. We can ambush with a tank hidden in the town. If the Poles cross the river with infantry, without heavy weapons, a single tank could drive them back."
Polk considered Renn's suggestion, the young man's face dotted with freckles. "Yes, I think that could work."
"Then let's do that," Carter decided.
By noon, after a quick meal, the first five tanks left tanks 124 and 125 behind and headed towards the distant town.
The second row of the 1st Battalion of the 3rd Armored Regiment of the 3rd Panzer Division had completely withdrawn from the battle.
"Captain, Lieutenant Polk. The reconnaissance is clear," Renn reported after hopping back over a low wall into a collapsed yard. He ran up to Carter and the others, whispering, "There are about a hundred Polish infantry resting along the street, with four vehicles positioned strategically—one on the street and three near the end closest to us. The bad news is they have two Renault FT-17 tanks, badly positioned for us. We might only be able to take out one initially."
"But there's good news too. They're disorganized and not on high alert," he continued, sketching a quick map of the town's layout in the dirt. "They haven't set up defenses in the town, so most buildings are safe. I didn't dare get too close, for fear they'd spot me."
"Very thorough, Sergeant Renn," Carter commended, clapping Renn on the shoulder before beginning to assign tasks. "Renn has the only record of the tank that we have fired, so his tank will take out an FT-17 right away, reducing our threat by half."
He turned to Marcus, "I'll follow him, covering his left. You follow me, covering the right of both of us, and we'll cut through them. Use machine guns to drive them out of the town, towards the railway bridge."
Then he addressed the captain of tank 114, "Your tank is loaded with grenades. If there's an infantry counterattack, you're responsible for dispersing them. Lieutenant Polk! You cover our rear. Any issues?"
"How many tanks lost before we retreat?" Ryan asked, standing up.
Carter paused, then nodded solemnly, "If three tanks are destroyed, the rest can retreat. Let's move!"
"Andre! Target the FT-17 at the end of the street. Destroy it as soon as possible. It's the only big threat," Renn instructed his gunner as he climbed into his tank.
"But I missed last time," Andre replied, frowning.
"Don't miss this time! Or I'll make you squint, Andre," Renn joked lightly while pressing the throat sound generator, then added more sternly, "Bruce! Load the armor-piercing shells! Check the ammo! Bowman! Start the engine and go straight in at top speed!"
As Rennes's tank crested a low hill and sped down towards the town, the Polish defenders finally spotted the approaching German tanks.