by Mark Rounds
"This game of hide and seek is over," thought Benning as he pulled the pin on his grenade. He took careful aim and hurled it at the jeep. In the same motion, he began rolling away from his current hiding place.
There was a guttural shout in Russian and the Krasni flattened out like wheat in a hail storm. The grenade actually hit the hood of the jeep and from there, bounced up into the air where it exploded.
One of the Krasni was obviously seriously wounded, but he waved his two compatriots on. They got into the brush before Benning stopped rolling. The first Krasni, more by luck than by design, took cover literally on top of the rattled cadet.
Both Benning and the Krasni trooper grabbed for their weapons but since they were flat on the ground, this was more of an ordeal than they realized. Benning was the first one to figure out he would never get his submachine gun unslung, so he kicked the Krasni trooper in the face, muffling his draw. This gave him time to draw his Luger and fire three times. The third round hit the Krasni trooper in the chest.
Benning had little time to be jubilant, for the other Krasni trooper came running at the sound of the gun fire. The big Krasni infantryman came upon the scene just in time to witness his comrade's demise.
Without thinking, he fired his Browning automatic rifle until all twenty rounds in the magazine were expended. Both troopers on the ground, Krasni and cadet, were hit many times by the big slugs of the BAR.
#
As soon as Barb heard the grenade blast, she began creeping toward their old hiding place. She had crawled forward just far enough to see it when the gun fire broke out. In the time it took to draw her little PPK, the Krasni had emptied the big rifle. Even though thirty meters was an impossibly long shot for the .380, she fired anyway, hoping to draw the Krasni trooper off.
The rounds missed, but it caused the Krasni trooper to take cover. Barb had no illusions about the potency of her firearm. She silently cursed the fact that she hadn't at least included a grenade in her kit.
She began running back to the clearing where Stack was waiting with the half-track. She heard the bolt go home on the Krasni rifle and took cover just in time. The Krasni trooper sprayed a ten round burst in her general direction. None of the rounds got close, but it allowed the Krasni trooper to shorten the distance between them.
Barb jumped up and began zig zagging as she ran. She hit the dirt as the Krasni trooper emptied his weapon again. The rounds were closer this time, as the big trooper had something to shoot at.
As her adversary fumbled for a new magazine, Barb took off and ran straight for Stack and the safety of the half-track. She crested a little rise and saw the camouflaged shape of the vehicle a mere forty meters distant.
"Nothing is going to stop me now," she said as she stretched out her long legs and began to sprint in earnest.
"Hit the dirt!" shouted Stack's voice, although Stack himself was nowhere to be seen. Barb dove for the ground with enthusiasm. From only four or five meters in front of her, the MG-34 that had been previously mounted on the halftrack began to fire.
The machine gun stitched a neat line of holes across the Krasni trooper's wide chest. Incredibly, the trooper did not fall. He finished seating his new magazine into to his weapon.
"STOP," shouted Stack at the top of his lungs. "Put down your weapon."
The Krasni trooper moved like a robot, first loading the weapon, and then aiming it at Barb's prostrate form.
"Noooooo," screamed Stack as he fired a short burst at the big man's knees. The impact of the slugs slammed the wounded trooper to the ground. Barb looked back in horror as the grievously injured man attempted to bring his BAR to bear. Stack fired one last time, stopping forever the Krasni trooper's will to fight.
"I think it's OK now," said Stack after he loaded a new belt into the machine gun.
Barb could see him now, concealed in the brush directly ahead of her. He had apparently dismounted the MG-34 and moved it forward.
"You were under strict orders to stay with the halftrack," said a breathless Barb. "I am so very glad you didn't."
"I heard gun fire so I dismounted the machine gun to see if I could help," grinned Stack. "When I heard the gun fire start to move closer and closer, I decided to set up an ambush."
"Very professional," said Barb. Suddenly, she remembered Corporal Benning. "I have got to get back. The Krasni have hurt Benning bad."
"I'll come with you," said Stack.
"No you don't," said Barb. "That radio of yours is critical."
"Not you too," said Stack. "Look, I have run the engine in that damn half-track for the last hour now. The only way that battery could be run down enough not to transmit would be through a bullet hole. Running the track wouldn't help that. Besides, that little pop gun of yours can't stop Krasni's the way this old MG-34 can."
"I can't argue that," she said. "Come on."
Stack grinned and hefted the machine gun. They came first to the Krasni trooper who had been chasing Barb. Stack collapsed in a heap at the sight. This was the first time he had seen someone in death. It didn't help that Stack's MG-34 had torn great gaping holes in the young man's body. Barb steadied him as he slid to the ground. She did not feel so good herself. After a couple of seconds, Stack began to come around.
"Sorry about that," said Stack in a subdued voice. "It must have been the excitement."
"Not hardly," said Barb in a kindly tone. "But the only reason I didn't puke or faint too, was the fact that I had to hold you up."
"Thank you very little," said Stack sarcastically. "But hadn't we better get going?"
"Yeah, right," she said, unable to take her eyes away from the sight. Even after they had put a considerable amount of forest green between them and the dead soldier, the vision still haunted both of them.
As they approached the hiding place where Corporal Benning had last been seen, Barb took the lead as Stack covered her from a clump of brush a few meters back. When she saw what remained of the two troopers in the brush, she did toss her lunch. Stack saw that Barb was having some difficulty and rushed to her side. Somewhat forewarned by Barb's distress, he was a little better prepared for what he saw. This time he stayed conscious.
"This isn't fun anymore," said Barb grimly as she recovered. "Calling it a game seems like a cruel joke."
"It is cruel," said a serious Stack. "But it is not a joke. It never was. Welcome to the real world."
They both stared at the two dead troopers for a long time. It was only the sound of moving armor that caught their attention. As both Barb and Stack looked up, they saw that the Krasni were attacking again.
"We've got to get the word back," said an agitated Stack.
"Why?" said Barb petulantly. "No matter what we do, more good people will die. Let's hold up and wait for the end."
"I don't have time to argue," said Stack as he shrugged off his harness. "But I do know, that if I can get word to the hill soon enough, it will be good Krasni people dying and not our friends. It will make some sense of Benning's death."
Stack took off without another word and began running for all he was worth, back to the halftrack. Ten seconds later, Barb passed him like he was standing still. He could see the tears streaming down her face as she ran. He reached the half-track just in time to hear her finish a concise and detailed military report over the radio. Her voice didn't waver as she gave the facts and figures of the Krasni attack.
She saw him come around the end of the half-track and froze him with a fierce look. Gone were the tears. In their place was a cold fire that dared him to mention the weeping of just seconds before. The vision of a tearful Barb Hastings was buried in his mind forever and Barb never gave him the opportunity to mention it again.
Chapter XXI
Taol was out being visible and inspecting the troops, shoring up their morale. There wasn't a great deal he could do in the way of preparing defenses, but they needed to see the commander. As a consequence, Taol wasn't on the radio net when Hastings' second report came in.
The first Taol knew of it was when Svoboda came running up to the dugout he was inspecting.
"Colonel, Trooper Hastings has just radioed in a report," she stated breathlessly.
"Give me the overview," said Taol, "and save the details for later."
"Hastings thinks they are moving their entire force against us," she continued. "She says they are coming up the same way on the same side. They are moving everything this time, infantry tracks, support vehicles, a couple of armored vehicles, the works."
"This is news indeed," Taol said. "Get a squad of the light infantry out to the left and right flanks for eyes. Then get everything else forward and fill all the forward positions. Use the headquarters troops and have them fill in the secondary line of defense. While you are at it, go ahead and take my command track forward as well, maybe its MG-34 will help a little. Have Stoltz's reaction force remain in the rear for a reserve."
"Yes sir," she said as she saluted smartly and ran off to get things rolling.
“Now even the career NCO's are treating me like a real officer,” thought Taol sarcastically. “I wonder if they know I am making this up as I go.”
Taol ran back to his command half-track and got it moving forward. They placed it in one of the vehicle dugouts in the secondary line of defense. Taol clustered Stoltz's reaction force around his command vehicle figuring to use them for quick reinforcement or counter attack.
After everyone was set, Taol got back into his half-track, switched the radio back on and got on the common frequency. Taol could hear small unit leaders giving the commands needed to implement the broad outline he had given to Svoboda.
"To all units," said Taol after things settled down. "I have a couple of announcements to make. First item, do not fire continuously after the booby traps go off. We want to send the message that if they remain still, they won't be fired on. Second item, use grenades whenever you can. The enemy can't tell where they are coming from and that fact might help to unnerve the Krasni even more.
“Final item, and this is the big one. Up to this point, you have performed magnificently, completing every task I have assigned with vigor and imagination. Just keep doing what you're doing, the way we trained you. This battle only has twenty-seven minutes left. Hang in there and give them Hell."
Taol took off his headset just in time to hear a ragged cheer go up from the ranks. There was more back slapping and carrying on when the word got down to the infantry without radios. After a minute or so, the section and squad leaders got everyone back in their holes and ready for business, but the mood was a happy one. They knew they could do it.
Taol put his headset back on and called Jeffy over to the command frequency and gave him a short briefing on all the actions he had taken.
"Well Sar Major," said Taol as he concluded his report, "what do you think? Did I miss anything?"
"No sir," said Jeffy with a laugh. "What's more, you did it without consulting me first. I think you have just graduated."
Taol was surprised and pleased. His moment of pride was cut short by the blast of one of Svoboda's booby traps. The last action of the game had begun.
#
While Sokolov was waiting for word on the arrival of the headquarters section, one of his flanking jeep patrols returned. They were burdened with three stragglers from the aborted pincer movement to the north of the hill.
They had quite a story and were eager to tell it, but Sokolov had other things on his mind. He shuffled them into an infantry squad and promptly forgot them as the remainder of the headquarters section showed up. Sokolov watched as Yosep gave a barely perceptible nod.
"Yosep has done the impossible again," thought Sokolov with satisfaction.
Vicktor spread the headquarters vehicles among the infantry sections to provide increased fire support. As he was completing this task, the jeep patrol which went south reported in. The report was interrupted by an explosion and the sound of gun fire.
"It doesn't matter whether they win or lose," thought Sokolov as he grinned wolfishly, "As long as they engage the cadet observation post. If the cadets are fighting, they can't report. We have our surprise."
Vicktor gave the order to get the attack under way. The process took longer than he anticipated because the headquarters troops were a little reluctant to engage the enemy after their drubbing by the cadet raiders. Yosep was reduced to the field expedient of knocking their heads together until they agreed that it really would be a good idea to go forward.
Time was now against them as there was little more than twenty five minutes left in the game. Vicktor finally got the column moving. With Victor leading and Yosep in the rear, persuading the stragglers to keep up, it took only minutes to reach the jump off line.
There, the Krasni disembarked their infantry and deployed their forces in a line abreast formation. Vicktor had them concentrate on the same side they did before. The main reason for that type of approach was that they had practiced assaulting this side of the hill during training. Vicktor also hoped that they would not expect them to do the same thing twice.
"Colonel Sokolov," said a disembodied voice on the radio.
"Go ahead," the Colonel replied gruffly.
"Sir, the smoke is clearing."
"I can see that. Clear the radio." In truth, Sokolov had been expecting the smoke to clear for some time now. Since his force had only two or three rounds of smoke left, he intended to wait until he had closed with the enemy before expending what little he did have.
They jumped off in good order. For the first five minutes, they made good time under the remaining smoke. Then one of the Krasni troopers hit a trip flare that Svoboda had providentially left behind. Immediately, an intense fusillade of small arms fire broke loose. The infantry went to ground.
The incoming fire lasted only a couple of minutes, and casualties were light. It took a single command from Sokolov to get them up and moving again after the cadet’s fire had faded.
The Krasni went forward another fifteen meters. A grenade exploded under the tread of one of the accompanying halftracks. The vehicle slued violently around, tossing the gunner to the ground. Heavy cadet fire again erupted from the hill top. It was accompanied by large caliber anti-tank fire. One of those anti-tank rounds hit the flank of the stalled halftrack. The original impact was followed up by several secondary explosions from grenades and ammunition stored in the vehicle. Both crewman were killed.
"Fire smoke," Sokolov said over the common frequency.
His reply was the booming of the large caliber weapons on the Hellcat and the Sherman. Orange marking smoke blossomed on the brim of the hill. The color looked incongruously gay in a dark and dreary atmosphere, but the new smoke renewed the cover they had been moving under.
"Get up," bawled Yosep after the cadet fire faded away. "Get off of the ground, or by heaven you'll answer to me."
"Be careful," said Lieutenant Ustinov. "With this new smoke, they can only find us if we trip their booby traps. Watch where you put your feet and this can still work!"
With some serious persuasion on the part of Sokolov and his command staff, the troopers did get up and begin moving forward, but the pace was very slow. Sokolov drove to the rear where Yosep was watching for stragglers.
"This is not good, Yosep," he said without preamble.
"No sir."
"If we stall out once more, the rank and file infantry will break unless something miraculous happens."
"Do you have something in mind Colonel?"
“Yes, gather up a squad of the steadiest infantry for me. Keep them close. When the next fool stumbles over an obstacle, we will mount the Sherman and ride it into the midst of the enemy just like our forefathers and set up a hasty defense. Ustinov will have orders to move as much of our force as he is able through any hole that we make."
"We, Colonel?"
"Yes Yosep, I'll need you to steady the squad that comes with me."
"Have you considered the possibility that Ustinov will not be able t
o control the troops after we leave? You and I and the luckless infantry with us would be cut to ribbons."
"Are you suggesting that you stay behind Yosep?” said Sokolov with surprise. “I have never known you to falter before."
"I was not thinking of remaining behind myself, Vicktor,” said Yosep quietly. “I think you should stay with the troops. I will volunteer to lead the assault. I have every confidence that you can motivate enough troops through the breech to be successful."
Sokolov paused. Yosep never used his first name unless things were very dire. It was one of the relaxations of rank that commanders sometimes allowed senior enlisted men. It helped maintain a commander's view of what was real.
"Sorry, my friend," said Sokolov after a prolonged pause. "But I must lead this one. I can't justify giving this order unless I go too."
"In that case sir, I will go with you."
"I would appreciate the company, Yosep."
Just then, Sokolov heard a grenade blast that was punctuated by a long wailing scream. Down came a tremendous volume fire from the hill top. Just as before, the infantry went to ground. As they waited, Sokolov glanced at his watch. Less than twenty minutes remained in the battle.
"We will move out as soon as this firestorm abates," said Sokolov while the lopsided fire fight continued. "Meet me at the Sherman when you have the infantry together. Time is of the essence."
"Yes sir."
The income wave of destruction abated. But now they were very close. One inexperienced Krasni NCO began to shout orders to his squad. A barrage of more than a dozen hand grenades silenced him. The tide of projectiles from the cadets’ weapons washed down again upon the prostrate Krasni forces. Because they had already taken cover from the last attack, no one was physically hurt. The only casualty of this last barrage was the morale of the Krasni infantry.