by Carlo Zen
“And where is division HQ?”
“Here.”
Dirichlet rolls out a map on the table with a dry rustle, and after he points out the location…hope flares ever so slightly. Not as bad as I feared.
“This is close to our railroad… Looks like we have a chance to regroup.”
“I’m sure we could. The problem is time.”
Ahhh, time. We meet again. Time, time, time. That is the one thing the free market cannot remedy, I must admit. Finding a way to reliably secure a supply of time would revolutionize global economics.
“Failing to regroup means we’ll be obliterated.”
“Exactly. I hate to point out the obvious, but that also means these next few days will decide the battle.”
Tanya nods to say that the colonel’s comment is spot-on.
If they can just reorganize their lines, the division could rise from the ashes. All they need is more time. Whoever came up with “Time is money” knew what they were talking about.
“By the way, while I still want to discuss the regrouping in detail…can you tell me exactly what happened on the front lines?”
“What do you mean, Colonel?”
“It seems like your forces were ripped apart before you even got started…”
Dirichlet’s shoulders slump as if that hit a nerve. After a few moments of silence pass as he carefully chooses his words, Dirichlet takes out a standard-issue cigarette ration. “We had just repelled a probing attack the enemy conducted along the whole front the other day. Since we had managed to drive them off, the mindset that we’d ‘pushed them back’ must have set in not only in my regiment but throughout the entire division. That hubris came back to bite us. There were faults in our defensive positions.” With a sigh, he begins smoking.
“Faults?”
Seeming somewhat tired, he rephrases. “Well, it had less to do with the actual line of defense and more to do with our mentality. I think everyone was overly focused on a spring counteroffensive.”
“A counteroffensive?”
“That’s right,” he spits in response to Tanya’s question. “Division’s orders were to prepare for an advance. No one was paid a second thought to defending the ground we were holding.”
The positions at the front hadn’t been fortified or dug in. The patrol lines must’ve fallen all too quickly. It’s all coming together now. The Imperial Army was already committed to mounting an attack. From the get-go, the plan was to advance farther. In that case, it’s not that surprising no one ordered the troops on the front to diligently construct defensive positions.
This is especially true on the eastern front, where the average soldier’s main struggle is against the cold and the mud, not incoming fire. Apparently, these troops forgot that supply-route maintenance, equipment repairs, and more rely on the existence of trench works.
“…The enemy caught us unprepared.”
“That’s right, Colonel. I guess the damn Communists have a good grasp of human weakness.”
Dirichlet’s comment is logical.
At the very least, it’s an unquestionable truth in Tanya’s experience. Her demeanor seems to say, Well, they’re Communists. “They’ve certainly broken a lot of people. They must have a solid understanding of how to go about that, finding weak points and revealing just how vulnerable people can be. Boy, sure is a rough bunch for anyone with good sense.”
“Ha-ha-ha. If even an officer like you is willing to say that, then tell me, where do I find sanity?”
“We’re at war. Such a thing is a rare luxury.”
The common sense of war, the nonsense of peace.
There’s no reason to think it especially strange that the supply of rationality fluctuates so erratically. This is simply the nature of the market. Even so, Tanya firmly believes in the righteousness of market principles. Too many simpletons like Being X obsess over the moral dualism of good and evil as is. That’s more than enough reason to not give up on the market.
“Couldn’t have said it better myself. Getting back on topic, we currently lack intel. To remedy this, we’d like your unit to conduct a recon mission for us, Colonel…”
“Scouting the area and recovering the remnants of our defeated friends while we’re at it, right?”
“Will you do it?”
“We got enough practice on the Rhine. Leave it to us.”
Frankly, it’s rarer to receive a mission we haven’t done before. When Tanya pounds her chest to display her willingness to undertake it, Dirichlet cracks a bitter smile.
“…It would be tactless to ask at what age you served on the Rhine, huh? All right, Colonel Degurechaff, we’re counting on you.”
Tanya nods. Their trust is not misplaced.
From there, all the preparations are made without a hitch. After a short briefing about the rough location of the position, Tanya departs from the provisional HQ ready to begin the reconnaissance mission.
“Okay, we need to grab Weiss and Grantz.”
“…Everyone’s here already.”
“Fantastic.”
Are aerial magic officers just the sort of people who naturally know how to be in the right place at the right time? Tanya’s subordinates are already waiting by the time she zooms out of there.
These guys have great timing. War dogs are all about how you use them. Moments like these, they come in handy.
“Major Weiss, you’re on patrol duty. Split the battalion in three and get a handle on our situation. Reports say the enemy has an artillery division operating nearby. Locating it is our highest priority.”
That force might be hunting me. Revolting. If nothing else, we have to confirm whether they exist or not. Otherwise, I’ll never sleep.
Ah, damn, that’s right. Something needs to be done about Tanya’s empty stomach before bedtime. Our terrible foe, hunger, has dulled many a mind throughout history.
“Before we leave, I’d love to snatch some provisions from the field bakery company.”
“Understood. But you don’t need to worry about provisions.”
“What?”
“Colonel Dirichlet was kind enough to have a supply company from his regiment deliver us calorie-dense meals. Since they’re on active duty in a war zone, they understand that sort of request.”
What consummate professionals. Tanya nods in satisfaction. When the one in charge has a good head on his shoulders, everything runs smoothly. It’s something to be thankful for. One less thing to worry about.
“Lucky us. All right, then let’s send out scouting parties starting with the people who’ve already eaten. It’s urgent that we get a full picture of our operational area. First, we’ll check out the riskiest direction…”
Tanya prepares to further detail the need to check their surroundings, but then her mouth closes. A harsh sound pierces her ears. After the unmistakable whoosh of a flying object is followed by a low rumble, Tanya instantly screams.
“Incoming!”
It’s the sound of shells streaming down.
A familiar roar.
Ahhh, those bastards got us.
“Shit!”
The enemy stole the initiative!
“Enemy attack! Climb…”
Lieutenant Grantz is about to take off when she shouts him down reprovingly.
“No, find shelter! They’ve got us pinned! Take cover in the trenches!”
After diving into the nearest crude trench, Tanya spits, “Damn it, I can’t believe we’re too late!”
The guns are practically serenading us to announce our disadvantage. Anyone who’s ever experienced the difference between warning shots and a true bombardment in a trench, their ears will remember even if they prefer not to. Once you learn it, you never forget.
Hiding in a hole on the receiving end of heavy-artillery fire is far from pleasant. Against the familiar backdrop of the riotous battlefield, Tanya screams in spite of herself.
“It’s too soon! This is happening way too soon!”
&n
bsp; A full-scale bombardment this quickly? At this point, I’m uneasy about everything.
We managed to get to cover, but these are the most basic of trenches. If my survival comes down to whether they can withstand a direct hit from a large shell, I’d say it’s extremely unlikely. And even if we want to fortify them now, we don’t really have the materials or the tools.
So what do we do?
Surely not pray?
That’d be ridiculous.
Most people would call this utter humiliation.
“Damn! I guess this is what you’d call the worst,” Tanya utters, acknowledging the indignation.
This is a war on freedom.
My choices are to either submit to that scum the irritating Commies call God or forge my own destiny, obliterating Being X and those Commies alongside him.
Fine, let’s do it.
The answer is simple.
As a civilized person who loves freedom and modernity, my duty is clear.
“Officers! Rally your troops!” The impacts, explosions, and the resulting thundering force Tanya to raise her voice. Shouting at a volume that might injure her vocal cords, she cuts through the noise to what’s to be done. “Get ready to counterattack! Battalion, prepare to strike on the double!”
“What?”
“It’s a preparatory bombardment— Hello!! Get going before the enemy infantry shows up! Pop ’em in the nose the moment they get here!”
That’s how it always was on the Rhine front.
After the shells come the humans.
There’s no reason it should be different in the east.
“Major Weiss, rally the battalion! Do we have a line to Colonel Dirichlet? If it’s dead, then send a liaison.”
“Look over there!”
When Tanya turns her head dubiously to look where the finger is pointing, she notices that’s the direction of the house serving as provisional headquarters, the building they just left moments ago. Except it isn’t there anymore.
…Ahhh shit, those fuckers. Now we have to talk about headquarters in past tense!
“…I get it now.”
It’s clear why the enemy decided to go all out with their initial salvo, why they could fire for effect immediately—the Federation Army artillery had their target zeroed in from the very beginning.
Figuring out the scheme took only a little deduction. That lone house hadn’t simply survived. The structure had been left intact on purpose to serve as a target.
“Regimental headquarters has been wiped out!”
“I can see that. And the colonel?”
“…I don’t think he made it.”
Weiss’s reply is simple and clear.
My wishful thinking came back to bite me. Tanya fills with regret. For once, it seemed like there’d finally be a capable colleague to hold down the fort. Who could have predicted that he and the rest of HQ would be blown to smithereens?
I didn’t see it coming. Ahhh, what a wonderful confession of ineptitude.
I should be shot for not even considering that possibility even though we’re at war. What negligence! Carelessness! Failure!
This is the kind of incompetence that makes me sick.
“Fine, we’ll act on our own discretion. Assume Colonel Dirichlet fell in battle and that the chain of command is unclear. We will consider this spot to be headquarters temporarily.”
“Shouldn’t we find the second-in-command in the Fifty-Fourth Regiment?”
“It’s a waste of time.”
My adjutant’s suggestion is fine in most cases but mistaken under the current circumstances.
A handoff of command with no proper meeting would throw everything into disarray. There’s no way we can afford the luxury of devoting pointless labor to something impossible now, when every second counts.
“B-but—”
“Lieutenant Serebryakov.”
“Yes?”
“Have you forgotten? Time is finite. Extravagance is the enemy.”
Right as Tanya is about to continue the lecture, she shuts her mouth when it becomes apparent that the artillery fire has halted. On the Rhine front, the end of the bombardment was a signal of what always came next…
“Enemy attack!”
Shrieks erupt in all directions and the familiar sound of gunshots begins chattering. The textbook progression of events makes me want to curse our enemies. But something in the air seems off; I have a bad feeling that insists on being heard. When I listen to figure out what’s causing it, the answer is simple. There isn’t enough sound.
“…I don’t hear enough LMGs!”
Given the gunshots booming from every direction and the few explosions mixed in, each position must have begun to mount a counterattack according to the defense plan. Did they lose all heavy equipment during the retreat? Our outbound fire sounds miserably weak.
“There isn’t even a silver lining to find. What the hell is going on?!”
What should sound like a unified orchestra of imperial firepower is instead warped and jerky, like a broken phonograph. Individual units are putting up valiant resistance, but coordination is clearly lacking. This is the moment when regimental or divisional fire support should be raining down, and its absence is conspicuous.
The cause is simple to explain. The enemy lopped off the head of our local chain of command with their opening attack. Their damn artillery division or whatever did a real fine job!
In short, this is the worst-case scenario.
Considering how we no longer have the means to mount an organized defense, we’re in serious danger of seeing the entire regiment collapse. “We really screwed this one up.” Tanya curses at the heavens.
Even if she wants to take over, she hardly knows anything about the Fifty-Fourth Regiment’s defense plan, since she was operating under the assumption that Colonel Dirichlet would be handling it. Most importantly, a new chain of command hasn’t been established yet.
I had assumed we would have time to discuss things in detail after we finished a search of our surroundings! That was so mindless of me! Even I wouldn’t deny that the blunder deserves a firing squad.
No. Tanya shakes her head. The priority now is assuming command, not self-criticism. In order to get through the crisis, she raises her voice as high as she can manage.
“Listen up! Officers of the Fifty-Fourth Regiment, gather round! Yes—you guys!”
She revives the dazed and confused troops by invoking command and rank. It’s a primitive but battle-tested method. Never make fun of the simple, classic approach, especially in emergencies.
“Colonel Dirichlet and the others are dead. I’ll be taking command temporarily!”
Convincing the dazed officers of the Fifty-Fourth Regiment that I’m the boss is an easy task. Standing there blankly, the officers would be best described as…cogs that do as they’re told.
These guys exist to follow orders, so if we give them the appropriate lubrication, there’s still hope.
“C-Colonel?!”
“Hurry up and bring me your second-in-command! Get a move on!”
After lighting a fire under the rumps of the Fifty-Fourth Regiment’s officer corps, Tanya starts scattering sharp words of encouragement.
“Go to your positions and prepare to intercept! The enemy is coming—you know what to do!”
These are orders born of defined pledges.
“Move! Move! Get ready! Officers, do your duty!”
They’re magical words that light a path for lost troops who don’t know where to start. As long as they understand the purpose of intercepting the enemy, the training that’s been drilled into their heads will overpower their confusion to some degree.
“Ready up!”
“Hurry! To your posts! Pick up the pace!”
This instinctive reaction of those blank-faced troops must be the result of daily training.
When they first jolt into motion, the speed is sluggish, but the shift to a defensive posture isn’t lethally slow
.
Even at a temporary foothold during a withdrawal, an army will always need at least a bare minimum of preparation.
“…Probably time to get moving ourselves. Very well. Major Weiss, I believe the possibilities are opening up.”
With this, things should be okay for the moment. Tanya is finally getting a sense that things are in motion.
Honestly, it’s a shame that there’s no chance of getting anything close to the near-instantaneous response of the Salamander Kampfgruppe, but this is a moment to make do.
Once you’re in the game, you have to give it your all for a chance at victory.
“Tsk! Have we still not found the second-in-command?” Tanya immediately spots the young officer she grabbed just a few moments ago wandering around aimlessly and screams at him. “Hey, you! Where’s the Fifty-Fourth Regiment’s second-in-command?! I’m pretty sure I ordered you to bring him here!”
“…Who’s in command?!”
“It’s your unit! You don’t know?!”
“Ma’am, I, uh… I was only just assigned here—attached to the HQ section. I literally arrived the other day…”
Still dumbfounded, Tanya realizes her mistake.
As the rest of the troops yell and run in every direction, Tanya and the other outsiders—the mages of the 203rd Aerial Mage Battalion—have nothing to do. In that case… She regrets not sending Weiss and the others out to search sooner, but it’s too late.
“Take cover back where the provisional headquarters used to be! When a high-ranking officer shows up, explain what—No, wait. Just give them this message: ‘The 203rd Aerial Mage Battalion has temporarily assumed command. Contact them immediately.’”
What in the world is happening…? Tanya peers up at the heavens. The last time she looked up, there was a fine ceiling overhead. Now there’s nothing but irritating cloud cover.
Shouting curses is about all she can do at the moment.
“How did these complete amateurs become officers?! The hell is going on?!”
Suppressing the urge to click her tongue, Tanya shakes her head.
It would have been nice to at least have discussed a plan with the Fifty-Fourth Regiment…but it seems like there’s not enough time. Given the situation, something needs to be done now. Reflection and regret are luxuries only the living get to enjoy.