by Carlo Zen
“That was my plan as well, but I think that’ll be difficult, seeing as it’s hard to tell where the highway is exactly.”
Plus, there’s no guarantee that our troops are even retreating along that route. And it won’t be easy to tell what branch they’re from, either. What should we do? Tanya mulls it over for a bit before deciding to call First Lieutenant Grantz, who is flying nearby.
“Lieutenant Grantz, I’m detaching your unit.”
If we don’t know, we’ll just have to find out, obviously.
“Ma’am! What are my orders?”
“Go ahead of us and get in touch with the friendly rear guard. Even if they accidentally start shooting, whatever you do, don’t lose your cool and return fire.”
“Understood.”
The way he smiles wryly as he nods—he knows what he’s about. He may not compare to Weiss yet, but Grantz is on his way to becoming quite reliable.
The way he quickly rounds up his subordinates and flies off—prompt and effective, the way a junior officer should be. The ambition and assertiveness he displays are admirable. The precious trust that allows me to send him and his unit off without worrying is something he’s earned himself.
“Lieutenant Grantz has certainly become dependable.”
“Colonel?”
“Back on the Rhine, he would’ve been too scared for me to feel comfortable sending him off on his own.”
Maybe I have a talent for cultivating subordinates. Considering the rising value of the human capital under my command, I think it’s safe to pat myself on the back. The thought brings on a private cringe, but the feeling of pride is undeniable. It isn’t a bad thing to confirm an ability to foster growth no matter the circumstances.
The opportunity to bask in triumph lasts for only a moment.
“Speaking of the Rhine… Back then, the situation on the ground was the opposite of what we have now. A retreat this disorderly would have been unthinkable over there. What a time.”
Tanya nods in agreement with the comment Weiss utters while flying at her side.
“We have the supplies, but we end up abandoning them… This is why lapses in discipline are such a terror.”
On the Rhine front, Grantz (a second lieutenant at the time) wasn’t reliable, but the army as a whole could be counted on.
How about now?
“Colonel, Major, look over there.”
I turn my binoculars in the direction my adjutant points.
Agh, what a waste!
Those charred wrecks used to be imperial vehicles!
“…I guess those trucks were abandoned along the highway? If the Service Corps back home saw that, they’d faint.”
“I can’t show Colonel Uger this disgrace.”
To the guys in charge of handling the already strained vehicle situation, this would be a sight too cruel. War really is nothing but a colossal waste. Heavy sighs are a tradition now. There’s no telling how many I’ve heaved on the eastern front.
“Hmm?”
“What is it, Lieutenant Serebryakov?”
She seems to have found something, and sure enough, when I look where she’s pointing, there’s a strange pattern in the mud on the ground.
Any trained soldier would know what it is at a glance: the tracks left by a large unit on the move.
“A division of mechanized infantry? And by the looks of it, it isn’t one of ours …”
“What makes you say that? I can’t see enough evidence to identify them as an enemy unit.”
For better or worse, the puzzled adjutant must be a stranger to routs. After that initial thought, Tanya reconsiders. Come to think of it, the Imperial Army is an entity that wrests victory from the jaws of defeat with the power of logic.
My subordinate’s only experience with what happens when an army breaks down and flees in a panic is probably limited to reading about it. After all, humans are creatures who draw on their experience first.
“Visha, more people should take after you and learn to be a student of history instead of their gut.”
She responds with an affirmative “Yes, ma’am…” My adjutant is incredibly attentive. There’s never a need to repeat anything for her. She shows such promise.
The lesson continues. “Remember this. A routed army will always escape along the path of least resistance. Not even the Imperial Army’s mechanized infantry is an exception. But you’ve seen what it’s like down there. Our abandoned vehicles are so covered in mud, it’s hard to tell they’re ours, but they were mainly dotted along the highway.”
What a mess. Tanya sighs. She can’t help it if they tried to choose the easy route and all got mowed down.
“So because this unit chose to go through the boggy terrain, it must be the Federation Army?”
“No doubt about it,” spits Tanya. “It looks like their priority is continuing the advance. And they seem to be moving pretty quickly.”
“Do you think there’s a chance they’ll catch up with the rest of the army by the time we rejoin?”
“…Well, our mission is clear. Assisting friendly troops as they retreat until we can link back up with the rest of the Kampfgruppe doesn’t sound so bad.”
“Understood.”
“Good.” Tanya nods and they continue flying for a time.
Looking at the markings left on the ground and given the lack of a large armored unit or any mechanized infantry in general, the location of the enemy force seems to creep into view.
…That must be the Federation’s spearhead.
Seeing evidence that friendly troops were chased down is deeply horrifying. If at all possible, I would prefer for the enemy to not be directly in our path of retreat.
I mentioned to Weiss the possibility of assisting our fellow troops, but…frankly, we don’t have the numbers to take on an opponent of this size.
“Colonel?”
Tanya pulls her attention away from the ground back to the sky. Her adjutant next to her is handling the long-range-communications kit.
“Do you have a moment?”
When she nods, she’s offered a wireless receiver.
“It’s Lieutenant Grantz. He’s joined up with a supply unit.”
Tanya changes gears and stops her musings to assume command. Then she grabs the receiver and questions Grantz.
“Give me a sitrep.”
“Please wait a moment.”
She hears Grantz talking with friendly troops in the background. To be frank, that initial reaction doesn’t inspire confidence.
“…It looks like no one knows for sure what’s happening on the battlefield as a whole. Even the general info we’re getting is garbled and confused, so I’m not sure if it’ll be much use…”
“Don’t worry about it, Lieutenant. You’re not to blame.”
Grantz’s tone is apologetic, but it’s obviously not his fault. Knowing who bears what responsibility is one of the bare-minimum requirements of a leader. Taking out your frustration on your subordinates is the worst thing you can do.
“For now, we’ll prioritize linking up. Send over the coordinates. Make whatever accommodations are necessary to receive us.”
“Understood.”
“Good.” She hangs up and lightly shakes her head.
I know that I know nothing. You could call it an achievement, but all we’ve really done is accept our unpleasant state of affairs. Well, misery does love company. Time to share with Weiss.
“Vice Commander, we’ve made contact with friendly troops, but”—Tanya shrugs and grumbles—“we learned nothing.” It’s a simple matter to convey how dire the situation is. Weiss clearly understands as he responds with a grim expression.
It’s probably not only him. Tanya’s face is very likely all twisted up in frustration as well.
“Is the Eastern Army Group a collection of babies?”
“Major Weiss, be fair with your criticism. We’ve been pretty out of it ourselves ever since Norden. We can’t really talk when it comes to p
erformance.”
Security is the greatest enemy. Corpses galore. That’s just how it is.
“This is war. Everyone gets a turn on the receiving end.”
“…It reminds me of the Rhine,” Serebryakov chimes in, sounding tired, and Tanya agrees with a nod. Thinking back on it, we did have quite a bit of trouble thanks to a mistake on HQ’s part.
The fact that the ones who pay for those mistakes are the people in the field will be an eternal structural issue.
“If experience is anything to go by, we’ll have to pick up shovels for trench combat soon.”
“Ha-ha. How nostalgic.”
Perhaps he’s taken Tanya’s grievance as a joke. Weiss clowns around, missing her point in a fundamental way.
“Down there should be supplies that were left behind, so scrounge some up.”
“Huh?”
“I’m serious, Major. Grab enough for everyone.” There’s no smile on Tanya’s face as she gives the order, not bothering to hide the displeasure in her tone. He must have realized she meant it. He stiffens up and replies in a slightly hoarse voice.
“…Understood. I’ll take a company down. Please cover us.”
“You got it.”
Staying alert while riffling through abandoned gear with backup nearby is not such a hard job. It’s just depressing.
It takes hardly any time at all for Weiss’s group to collect a good amount before getting ready to move on again. For Tanya, who was on the lookout for enemies, the whole venture goes so smoothly, it feels anticlimactic.
“…That’s strange.”
The battlefield hasn’t been swept clean yet, sure, but it hasn’t even been looted? Really? Some theories are beginning to feel more certain.
Not much later, we meet up with the troops Grantz managed to contact. We find them sooner than expected.
Best-case scenario, the imperial lines haven’t been pushed back that much…and the worst case is that the retreat is delayed.
After a brief examination of the troops we’ve just met up with, what stands out the most is how orderly they are. Yes, normally an orderly retreat is ideal.
But…under these circumstances, it’s horrible news.
Despite the utter chaos and confusion on the front, this calm, organized unit is retreating far too slowly. In other words, it’s proof that the Eastern Army Group’s orders are not keeping pace with the developments on the battlefield.
…They can’t even smoothly withdraw as a cohesive whole!
Well, this is a problem, A grim expression still on her face, Tanya calls out to the most senior officer nearby. “I’m Lieutenant Colonel Tanya von Degurechaff of the Salamander Kampfgruppe. What HQ or Command are you attached to?”
“Eastern Army, Twenty-Third Division, Fifty-Fourth Regiment. And you? You’re clearly aerial mages…”
The exchange is to the point. Everyone takes a moment to confirm the collection of ribbon bars and rank insignia of those present.
The outcome is rather expected… In terms of medals awarded, this fellow is a notch lower than Tanya, who wears the Silver Wings. But on the battlefield, an officer one notch lower than the Silver Wings recipient is basically a few steps short of a god.
“We’re here on emergency deployment orders. I’d like to consult with you about the situation.”
“You’re welcome to, Colonel.”
“Sorry, but who are you?”
“Ah right.” The older officer smiles wryly. “I’m Colonel Dirichlet, commander of this regiment.”
The manly commander’s smile acknowledges that they’ve both gotten the short end of the stick.
“From the top, I’m Lieutenant Colonel von Degurechaff of the Salamander Kampfgruppe. This is my second-in-command, Major Weiss.”
“You’ve got multiple Named, huh? That’s awfully reassuring—if you’ll be escorting us, that is.”
Tanya finds some hope in the fact that he seems like a pro who has a firm grasp on the situation and understands his duty. It’s especially wonderful how his first impressions of her height and appearance don’t show on his face.
If you want to do good work, you’ll obviously need good coworkers. Knowing you won’t be tripped from behind means there’s one less direction you have to worry about—which is great. The good thing about the medal system is that you can usually expect people to live up to the ribbon bars decorating their chest.
“I think we can help you out. We’re operating independently from the rest of our Kampfgruppe. Until we receive new orders from the General Staff, we can support your rear guard.”
“Well, I can’t ask you to come under my command, but having your assistance will definitely make things easier for us.”
Plus, he understands the chain of command. You don’t see this type of commander every day.
“Though we’re a Kampfgruppe on paper, at the moment, we’re deployed as just an aerial mage battalion. Setting aside issues of command authority, we’re quite agile. I’m sure it won’t be a problem for us to support you guys for a few days.”
“We’d appreciate it.”
Then shall we?
He picks up on Tanya’s meaningful glance. “I’ll take you to our temporary headquarters… There’s some pressing business to attend to.”
“Thanks. Lieutenant Serebryakov, come with us. Major Weiss, the unit is in your hands. Coordinate with the deputy commander of the 54th Regiment as soon as possible.”
After leaving an undefined jumble of tasks to the vice commander, Tanya runs after Dirichlet. His broad shoulders project a sense of reliability.
Yes, we’re running.
The jaunt to the regimental headquarters happens at a jog. This is rather impressive. At his age, Dirichlet must be in great shape if he can run down this road in such horrible conditions.
And he appears only even more impressive once we reach our destination.
“We may be some distance away from the front lines, but I’m surprised such a nice house is still standing. Honestly, I assumed you were leading us to a campsite.”
Maybe the Council for Self-Government secured it for them? Either way, a building that hasn’t been scorched or riddled with bullet holes is noteworthy. It’s a proper place to sleep! Tanya smiles, admiring yet again how capable Dirichlet has turned out to be.
“Yes, we were lucky a building was still standing…especially in this weather.”
“I must agree about the cold, but what about booby traps?”
“This is the east, Colonel! I wouldn’t have moved the HQ in here without having the field engineers examine it first.”
A houseful of competent officers—gone in an instant. Even the heartless would be devastated by such a loss. And what a disgraceful error to make. After seeing that blunder happen again and again, it starts becoming reasonable to be paranoid about cleaning out buildings.
“Ha-ha-ha. Do excuse me.”
“No, please, it’s a legitimate worry if you’ve heard about whole command posts getting blown to kingdom come.”
The cold-blooded conversation we’re having in this toasty house really highlights how impermanent our world is.
“Now then, I’ll be straight with you. The situation is not ideal.”
“While I do want to discuss the wider situation as we go along, perhaps we should begin by exchanging information. Would you like to hear what my unit witnessed on our way here?”
After Dirichlet responds with a “Sure thing,” Tanya gives him a brief report. The General Staff may have ordered a general advance, but the friendly positions at the designated coordinates have already fallen. The various traces of an enemy force we saw along the way line up with the fighting retreat Dirichlet’s troops have been engaged in.
“On top of that,” Dirichlet continues with a pained expression, “it’s unconfirmed, but we have reports that some of our troops got nailed with heavy artillery.”
“Heavy artillery? You must mean a unit bringing up the rear got hit while lingering
near the forward-most line, right?”
“…Apparently not. It was the regiment right next to ours.”
That’s incredibly strange. Big guns are slow. Deploying artillery in a hurry is practically impossible. We received a thorough education on the Rhine front that artillery is slower by far when compared to infantry.
That’s why I figured if a unit got hit by heavy artillery, they had to be on the forward-most line.
“The enemy troops are advancing with considerable speed. We should probably assume they have a unit with a powerful artillery division coming along.”
Tanya is about to shake her head and say, You must be kidding. But no imperial soldier would joke around at a time like this.
“…I’m jealous. An entire artillery division…”
“I couldn’t agree more. But as you know, it’d be asking for the impossible, Colonel von Degurechaff.”
Tanya nods readily in response. “Indeed.”
Human lives are expensive, but shells are cheap. The Federation is already blessed with human resources, and now they’re calling up artillery divisions?
It would be difficult to call this a fair playing field. Ultimately, the existence of the invisible hand of God that Adam Smith1 was talking about means the world is unfair by design.
“Lieutenant Serebryakov, review our encounters with enemy troops on the way here. I want to know where that artillery division is. If need be, send out a unit to perform recon-in-force.”
“Yes, ma’am. Right away.”
Serebryakov is already drafting the order even before her mouth stops moving. She’s an excellent adjutant. Someone who will do what they’re told as they’re told! Truly a blessing, especially considering the times.
“Now then, what’s our defense plan? From what I’ve seen, we can’t even establish an integrated defense on a division level.”
“That’s correct. We can maintain only intermittent contact with division HQ at best.”
So? Tanya raises the question of their grim future with her eyes alone, drawing a wince from Dirichlet.
“I suppose you can say we just barely received the brief for a fighting retreat, but it’s unclear if the other units are managing to pull out or not.”
A jumbled retreat? Argh… Everything is coming to a head. Tanya shudders and gazes at the ceiling.