Codegease: Air and Land Warfare 1946

Then came the second and the third, one after another, and the street was filled with these white cotton candy drops with a few drops that made a sound like balloons being popped.

"Huh? A shell hitting a smoke grenade?" The tank commander was either a little confused or just having some thoughts after the scare.

"Cease fire! Cease fire!" he shouted, silencing the commotion caused by the black gun barrels.

The streets fell into an unsettling silence amidst the incessant rumble of artillery fire in the distance…

“They may be adjusting their formation, soldiers.” Rosyth continued to issue orders. “Listen to me, infantry, begin to withdraw in groups. Leave five men behind to accompany the assault guns. We’ll park the tanks now and block this main road. Then we’ll retreat together, understand?”

"Yes, sir, it's your decision."

"Good, driver, prepare to follow the soldier's instructions over the radio and wed into the mess behind you."

……

"Huh? Why can't I move?"

“Perfect, sir, this road is blocked by your war chariots.”

"Very good, everyone in the car, listen up! The smoke screen should be clearing soon, get out of there!"

"Yes!"

Rosyth put down the radio, opened the hatch, and prepared to fire.

However, at that moment, a crisp rifle shot suddenly came from the top floor of a building in front of the assault gun!

"Ah!" A bullet came flying, and the sergeant yelled as he rolled with all his might onto the turret. The gunner who climbed out behind him quickly came over and tried to take him away.

……

And inside the building where the shooting took place.

"Hey! Ilia!" Ekaterina pulled back the bolt, spent cartridges ejecting from her bastard mouth. "There's more than one bastard! Hurry up! Forget about hiding..."

"Shut up!--"

Two snipers lay prone on the windowsill, their Mosin-Nagant sniper rifles aimed at and eliminating any enemy they could see still near the assault gun.

"The comrades who came to help should..."

Next door, two unfamiliar soldiers were fiddling with a bazooka—they were the helpers sent by Captain Antonovich.

"All right!"

“Ogono!”

……

"Sergeant?!"

Rosyth, along with the gunner who was still struggling to drag him off the tank, watched as the rocket descended from the sky, landing on the roof of the tank and turning into a sea of ​​fire that buried the two of them...

……

A few kilometers away in downtown Berlin, inside the German Reichstag building.

"Colonel, the troops' defenses have been stabilized."

"Okay, I understand."

"Colonel! The assault guns of the Negri squadron, responsible for resupplying, have lost contact!"

"Hello! Hello!" While the communications soldier was still calling, the telegram's cry was extremely urgent: "Calling command center! Situation report!"

"What is it, soldier?" Colonel Kari put down what he was doing and rushed over.

"Reporting, Colonel, our assault gun has just been destroyed by the enemy. We are now preparing to withdraw according to the sergeant's last order!"

"What's the situation on the streets now?"

"The enemy's smoke screen hasn't cleared yet, and they're likely to continue their attack! The street beneath our feet is blocked by assault gun wreckage and rubble. Should we hold this position or hasten our retreat?"

"All of you, take cover where you are and keep an eye on the enemy's movements. I'll send a mech squadron to your rear now. Don't be afraid."

"Yes!--"

“Lieutenant Colonel Eddie Hill! You continue to be in charge!” the colonel said, turning to the lieutenant colonel.

"Okay, leave it to me."

Colonel Kari waited quietly in front of the radio, fearing something might have happened.

"Calling command center, it's us again. We just managed to use night vision goggles to observe the enemy's movements and found they've stopped advancing. And it seems..."

"How does it seem?"

"They looked at our destroyed assault guns... then said something... ah, they walked away, seemingly preparing to abandon this street we're on now, they're heading to other routes!"

“The enemy is not stupid. Leave two or three people here to keep watch, and the rest of you slowly retreat and rejoin the nearest main force.”

"understand!"

The colonel put down the radio and breathed a sigh of relief.

"Colonel? Is it safe?" Eddie Hill asked with concern.

"Well, it seems the Soviet tank units can't get through from there, so the pressure on this line will be greatly reduced."

"It seems so, Your Excellency. We are now locked in a stalemate with them."

"It seems that the battle situation tonight will not change much."

"Yes……"

……

"Reporting to the Colonel, all planned roads on the southern front have been blocked with rubble and the remains of tanks and mechs, and the Soviet troops have stopped advancing."

"Well done. Please convey my thanks to the soldiers."

"Yes."

"It seems this tactic is working somewhat, Eddie Hill."

"That's right, Colonel. Just as we expected, although the Soviet tanks are heavily armored and well-equipped, they have never been able to completely let their guard down in front of piles of rubble, let alone crawl over them with their tracks. Although their infantry have weapons that can threaten the KMF, they are overestimating themselves without numerical superiority and close-range combat. In addition, with the blockade of tank wreckage, I don't know if the situation on the eastern and northern fronts will worsen tonight. At least the south is safe."

"Perhaps we can find a way to make this idea more widely known and successful?"

"Why not, sir?"

"Good boy."

"So, Colonel, what about those sub-portals?"

“There’s only one last piece of equipment left for the last door, which will be assembled soon.” Kari shook his head meaningfully. “I have to say we’re in a really mess. Not only is our territory getting smaller every day, but we even have to relocate the two sub-teleportation gates that were deployed in the north and east of the city.”

"Anyway, His Highness Schneizel understands our difficult situation, so what?"

"Most importantly, the transport of supplies for the operation to break out of Berlin in a few days is now urgent. Fortunately, there were no problems during this transfer, otherwise... we would have been in big trouble..."

"If that's the case, why don't we abandon the expedition?"

“Give up? Kid, you’re still too young…” The colonel stopped talking and shook his head. Eddie Hill might not understand what he meant, or perhaps, as a dutiful and guileless young officer, he would never understand.

"Your Excellency believes our expedition is ultimately inevitable? Then, since the situation is now under our control, Your Excellency can confidently go to see the General and see if there is anything troubling him."

Kari didn't say anything, glanced at Eddie Hill's face, and then walked out.

……

The general wasn't nearby. He asked several soldiers and ran all the way to a place more than a kilometer west of the Capitol—there was a roundabout with a stone pillar more than sixty meters high in the center. Colonel Carrie remembered that this thing had a name on the map: the Victory Column.

Under the cover of night, the general and his guards stood a hundred meters away from the stone pillar, watching several aircraft mechs with flight wings gathered around the gilded goddess statue on top of the pillar, intently cutting something—the sky no longer belonged to Britannia, and the general had actually ordered the surviving, dormant aircraft mechs to do this under the cover of night.

It has to be said that the statue's size is really... KMFs are generally over 4 meters tall, but this statue is over 8 meters tall. It would take one KMF riding on another KMF's shoulders to reach its head. Because of this, the general seemed to have considered the enormous weight that the statue would bring, and he ordered five Gloucesters to go up there in one go.

"Alright, General! The statue's base has separated from the pillar!" Gloucester shouted through his megaphone.

"Okay! Lower it down!"

After speaking, the five Gloucesters, each holding a rope tied to the statue, together dragged it into the air, then carefully moved it away from the pillar, slowly lowering it. With a dull thud, like a stone door opening, the gilded statue was placed beside the general.

"Hmm! Very good." The general circled it once, examining it carefully.

After he finished looking around, he suddenly looked towards the stone pillar, raised his right hand, and loudly commanded an engineer squatting next to him.

"Detonate!——"

As soon as the words were spoken, the base of the memorial column suddenly erupted with a terrifying thud, as if it had donned a skirt of flames and smoke. As dust covered the surrounding ground, the stone column began to slowly sway and tilt, until finally, it resembled a helpless sapling, watching its crown draw ever closer to the ground in the howling wind.

Thick smoke billowed, like a giant drumstick striking the city center, and the Berlin Victory Column vanished in the swirling dust.

“General…” Colonel Carry looked at the scene before him and asked his superior in disbelief.

"Oh? Kari." The general actually looked quite pleased.

"What is the purpose of doing this?"

“Sigh…” Marendo turned his back, sighed, and looked up at the statue of the goddess of victory, which shone with a luxurious radiance in the surrounding lights.

"Originally, I planned to keep this as my spoils and collectible after I had perfectly defended this city. Now it seems that I may have to use it as my last trump card to 'bribe' His Highness the Prince."

Chapter 79, Section 126: Tomorrow, Unresolved Old Feuds

The sun has once again risen above the eastern horizon, and it's another morning.

The streets of Berlin's outer suburbs have been completely occupied by the red jungle. The iron grip of the military has thoroughly bitten and killed the city, and no one thinks anything can break through this jaw made of steel.

This has made the night outside Berlin, which was somewhat unsettling last night, almost indistinguishable from the days before the outbreak of war on October 28th.

Right now, on the highway east of Berlin, on the side leading into the city, there are tanks and trucks queuing up to enter, while on the side leading out of the city, only one ZIS-5 truck is bouncing past this line of green metal behemoths. The truck bed is empty, completely bare, even cleaner than the sights of a T-34 tank.

The man in the driver's cab looks familiar. Wait, upon closer inspection, isn't that Sheva? How come he, a member of the guard company, is dealing with the horses of the logistics soldiers?

……

Well, this all started twenty minutes earlier. Sheva and Company Commander Anton were strolling around Berlin—their regimental command post had advanced into the city. They looked around at this building, wandered down that street, and wondered if they could take a break. Sheva was thinking of doing just that, and had just returned to the command post and found a comfortable spot to sit down when trouble broke out on the highway outside.

What happened? Two ZIS-5 trucks were originally there to transport ammunition and supplies for their regiment, but after the supplies were delivered, one of the trucks broke down. The engine wouldn't start for a long time, and the truck couldn't move. The driver of the other truck, which was in good condition, saw what was going on and realized that he would have to lend a hand, so he stayed behind to help out.

Now that he's come to help, what about his own truck? This supply transport can't be delayed; we can't just leave it here blocking traffic, can we?

Anton, the company commander of the guard company, then dragged Sheva out and said, "Go, comrade, help drive the truck back to them," plus "You're the only one in the whole company who knows how to drive a truck well," and sent him to the seat in front of the steering wheel.

Sheva wasn't having it, and started complaining to the lieutenant.

"How am I supposed to come back? By running back, by the time I see you again, Company Commander, I'll be able to see the red flag flying over the Capitol again, and then I'll be sitting on the steps drinking vodka."

Anton knew this was an excuse, so he punched him in the chest and told him to remember which neighborhood this was, and when he got there, he should park the truck for someone, ask other truck drivers for directions, and hitch a ride back.

Sheva then curled his lip and started the truck's throttle.

Having not touched the steering wheel of a ZIS truck in a long time, his hands and feet were really itching to get back in. He sat in the cab, humming a little tune, enjoying the breeze, and the ups and downs of the road gently swayed him like a child on a swing.

Well, I don't know if the company commander had ulterior motives. He was originally planning to take a nap with some alcohol, but now, listening to the engine's constant whirring, all his drowsiness disappeared like truck exhaust fumes onto the land.

The only problem was the lack of alcohol. Sheva had been in such a rush with the company commander that he'd left his water bottle behind—it still had some vodka mixed in with water to satisfy his craving. Drunk driving with 12 points on your license? That wasn't a thing of the past. For Sheva, a real heavy drinker, a sip of alcohol followed by a quick stop on the gas was like a vacation.

Sheva drove with increasing enthusiasm. He glanced at the road and saw only one truck in front of him, with the adjacent lane clear. He planned to honk his horn and rev the engine to overtake it—an action that was technically against the rules.

However, just as he was about to step on the gas pedal, something else damn went wrong!

Ahead was a T-junction, with a small road perpendicular to this road leading out of the city connecting to it from the side. It was on this small road that a truck sped over and was about to crash directly into the car in front of Sheva!

Sheva hadn't been drinking, so his mind was still quite clear. As soon as he saw the car in front of him crash, he immediately slammed on the brakes.

With a screeching sound from the brake pads, a cymbal-like clatter echoed between the green car body. He stopped to look and realized he hadn't kissed the rear of the car in front of him, but a reckless fellow from another road had given the car in front of him a close kiss.

More and more people gathered at the accident scene, which wasn't the worst part; the real problem was that the cars on the highway were now packed tightly together, forming a complete traffic jam. Sheva couldn't move forward, nor could he reverse, so he could only shake his head helplessly and sit in the driver's seat, waiting for this mess to be resolved.

He rested his left hand on the car door, his head looking in another direction—the direction from which that reckless fellow had rushed out, where the path led to a group of barracks surrounded by low fences and scattered signs.

Sheva wasn't very well-educated, and he couldn't understand what was written on the signs, but he could clearly understand the Russian writing on the side signs—Temporary Settlement Point No. 3. In the days after Germany's surrender, he had passed by this place, which was lurking beside the road into the city, quite often.

He also understood that this was not a Soviet military camp, but a shantytown, a shantytown left for German civilians whose homes had been turned into ruins.

As the bloody years of war came to an end, what remained before the four nations of the United States, the Soviet Union, Britain, and France was a devastated German landscape. Ragged houses, barren fields—the once beautiful homes of the Germans had long since been reduced to ashes. No one would willingly choose to live a life of humiliation in the high-rise buildings once called "home," filled with rubble and charred walls—there was no running water, no electricity, and no shops or trams downstairs.

Even if you cough up blood in your "home" and breathe your last breath, no one will know—the clinic that was just across the street from you has become a garbage dump, and the hospital can't even provide the carriage that could take you for treatment. The only response you get is, and will always be, the cold echoes that bounce back from the surrounding walls.