Codegease: Air and Land Warfare 1946

Page 116

"They say we have a specialist who has already gone to the British Isles, and the specifics may have just begun. Right now, the only good news for us is that Kostyan was able to build this second pontoon bridge over the Oder River before the main bridge was repaired."

“I exchanged views with Marshal Konev from Czechoslovakia last night.” Zhukov paused. “They can now send an army group to us, which will also help relieve some of the pressure on our supply lines… However, this will only alleviate the pressure in the south; as for the north…”

"The Baltic and Northern Fleet ships are still quite a while away from here, and they probably won't make it in time. Besides, the German warship is still sunk in the Pias Canal outside Szczecin, with most of its body exposed, and we can't tow it away."

"That's the idea... We must either annihilate the remaining enemy in the salient or drive them back into Berlin. Otherwise, we won't have enough ammunition, and the troops holding out in the northern and southern suburbs of Berlin will only be able to shell the city before the encirclement is complete. This will also deplete our supply reserves... In short, the longer we wait, the more things may go wrong. We don't have much time left."

The marshal and the general both fell silent...

……

"Comrade Marshal!"

After quite some time, an officer rushed in carrying a telegram.

"The enemy within the Minscheberg encirclement has surrendered!"

"Oh?" Zhukov was surprised. "Who started it?"

"The comrades at the front said that their lieutenant colonel had been injured and lost blood. He had been given emergency treatment but had not fully recovered. So they had to send a captain with the field officer's uniform and identification."

"Okay... I understand, you can go ahead and get busy."

Chapter 121 Conservative or Bold? (Section 180)

A group of Britannian soldiers found a box on a street in Berlin.

A few minutes ago, a squadron of Soviet planes flew overhead, dropping some ammunition and this thing on the people in the city.

There was no explosion or fire, which meant it was safe. They carefully opened it and found only a bunch of photos and a scroll of text inside.

The photos show two Soviet soldiers standing on either side, and a haggard-looking middle-aged man in a white shirt standing in the middle with his hands raised. There is a red patch on each side of his collar, indicating that he is wearing the lining of a Britannian uniform, and the top button is loose.

The only difference between these photos is the angle from which they were taken, but there could be no other reason for these unarmed people standing among Soviet troops.

Because there is another photo, this one of the disarmed man, with his identification tag showing his name, rank, and unit number, which can be matched one by one in their expeditionary force, without any falsehood.

The key was in the words on those slips of paper. The soldiers didn't understand Russian very well, so they had to take them to the command center to show to the higher-ranking officers.

……

"Berlin thugs, your foolish attempt to break the encirclement has been utterly crushed by the Soviet Red Army. Compared to the lieutenant colonel in the photograph who surrendered to us, your comrades who died outside the city were clearly stubborn and incorrigible. The blood you shed on this land was futile and a loss. This gentleman who gave up resistance clearly understands the preciousness of life better. With the power of the Soviet Union, we solemnly declare that the only thing you can do now is to give up resistance. Otherwise, when we wipe this city from the world, we will not care whether you can be sent back to your sinful homeland with your bodies intact."

……

"Destroy all of these things and do not let them out."

Inside the Capitol's command center, several guards, under the strict orders of the Duke of Sassler, took these items to a bonfire outside the building; clearly, these paper products were no longer needed to fuel the fire.

"This loss is too great! Too great!"

General Windsor and Lieutenant General Wood, along with their respective staff officers, were engaged in a heated discussion at the map table. Marendor, along with his two officers, Carrie and Eddie Hill, were listening in. The Duke, not wanting to quiet the argument any further, quietly stepped aside and picked up the prepared casualty statistics table from the table to examine it.

His own 45th Army, along with General Malendor's 41st Army, had been holding out in Berlin as a force to counter the siege fire and air strikes from the north and south in order to protect the core landing zone. Their losses were relatively small; in the past ten days or so, they had suffered more than 7,000 casualties from aerial bombardment and artillery fire alone, and the vast majority of them were wounded to varying degrees. Only a few hundred were actually killed or permanently incapacitated.

But the troops in the eastern salient of Berlin were in a much worse situation.

"The Edward III Legion of Windsor, holding its ground on the eastern outskirts of Berlin, undertook many missions to counter the Soviet offensive during this period, and also engaged in the most frequent and numerous direct confrontations with the Soviet army. They not only suffered more than 20,000 casualties, but also a large number of soldiers experienced considerable discomfort during the battle. Although ten days is enough time for these legions to adapt to a battlefield environment, if this 'new thing' is so new that it is unheard of, it is hard to say that this large army will not run into trouble."

"General Wood's Black Prince Legion was at the easternmost edge of the occupied territory and was initially the vanguard of the airborne forces. They were also the quickest to adapt to the battlefield. However, the Soviet encirclement and pincer movement on the eastern salient of the city in recent days has undoubtedly dealt a heavy blow to this elite force. While most of the soldiers were relieved that they were able to escape, they left behind nearly 30,000 corpses, some rotting, others with heads in despair. No one knows how the Soviets filled the craters with the dead bodies, nor does anyone know how many soldiers who were originally in high spirits raised their hands when there was no hope of breaking out."

Two legions, two fists. The former had their knuckles swollen from being punched, while the latter had a finger and a half cut off. And on top of that, they didn't even know how much damage they had inflicted on the Soviet army.

The photos the Soviet army just used to humiliate them seem insignificant now, because these guys seem more concerned with how to fight next.

Because a not-too-large reinforcement is coming soon, how should we arrange it?

……

“Our losses are too heavy!” Lieutenant General Wood said cautiously. “If we don’t preserve the eastern salient of Berlin, the last salient of 30 kilometers east to west and 17 kilometers north to south, the bridgehead will be locked again, and all our efforts so far will have been in vain. Moreover, our losses do not allow us to launch another attack. Besides, the Soviet offensive momentum has weakened considerably compared to the first two days. If we wear them down here, we can hold out.”

"No! No!" Windsor, ever the contrarian, chimed in again. "How can we just hold out here? We have to target the enemy's weak points and launch a preemptive strike! I know the Soviets are tough to take, but that's no excuse! If they were all impregnable, we would have lost the entire salient by now, right? They must have places we can exploit! They must!"

“Hmm… I understand your thinking, General.” Lieutenant Colonel Eddie Hill leaned closer. “But, to be honest, we haven’t found any weaknesses in the Soviet army yet, have we? The weakness you mentioned doesn’t exist right now, and we certainly can’t just make a move indiscriminately. So let’s stick to our old method: wait until the Soviets attack, then stir things up even more, so that their offensive will eventually come to a halt. That’s the safest way.”

“No, this time I have doubts about your idea, son,” the Duke interrupted him. “The Soviet army only recently seized the eastern part of the city; there must be places where they haven’t established a firm foothold, and besides…”

"Forgive my impertinence, but could you provide some useful information and tell me the target of our counterattack?" The lieutenant colonel was surprisingly angry. "Impossible. We must defend ourselves at all costs. Rashly advancing will only waste our resources. Now is not the time for a head-on confrontation, absolutely not!"

……

After the battle, no one had a solution, and the message sent to the front lines was still "hold firm."

The Duke, however, thought differently. He felt there was something he could use, so when there were few people in the command center, he stopped the communications officer and contacted Area 11.

……

That evening, in the western part of Berlin, the Duke stood at a sub-portal—a portal responsible for transporting supplies and serving as one of the points of contact for the 37th Army to traverse the world and receive reinforcements.

Then, as a supply convoy was passing by, he saw a familiar-looking young man coming out with the trucks.

"Your Excellency!" He ran over and saluted when he saw the Duke.

“Caronville! Good boy!” the Duke called out the name of his “guest.” “Have you been settling in well in Tokyo?”

"Uh, it's alright. Ah, well, Your Excellency must have something important to tell me, a marginal person, to come to the front lines on such an expedition."

"This way."

The Duke led him into a house that had been secretly prepared beforehand.

“Come here, child,” the Duke said, gesturing for him to sit down. “The situation for the expeditionary force is not looking good.”

After recounting the entire situation, the Duke led him to the map, wanting to ask the lieutenant colonel for his opinion.

"So you're saying that you've already been bleed too much by the Soviet army, and the 37th Army that's about to arrive is still a little short of completing its rest and reorganization. It certainly can't participate in too intense a battle right away. At this point, defense is too passive, while offense has concerns about the rear, right?"

“That’s right. Now we’re thinking about how to preserve the eastern salient, otherwise everything will be over and we’ll be back to square one.”

……

Caronville scanned the map and thought for a long time.

"Then, sir, I have a question: what is your purpose in wanting to ensure the existence of the salient?"

"How to prevent Berlin from being locked down again?"

"Yes, so how many locks does Berlin have on its head right now? And if the enemy wants to completely lock us down, how many locks would they need to put on us?"

"What does that mean?"

“I completely disagree with Lieutenant Colonel Eddie Hill’s defensive approach. On the contrary, your and General Windsor’s ideas have potential.” Caronville pointed to the map. “The eastern salient must be preserved, and an attack is necessary, but it certainly shouldn’t be aimed at the Soviet army’s strongest positions.”

"Sir, I would like to know what the Soviet troops are doing in the northern and southern suburbs these past few days?"

"Artillery bombardment, artillery bombardment, and occasional small-unit infiltrations, it's still the same today."

"It seems the Soviet army intends to secure the city with a three-pronged encirclement before launching an attack, and they're right." The lieutenant colonel clenched his fists. "Now that we've crushed their main artery ten days ago, it's time to work on their capillaries."

"Have you made up your mind?"

"Sir, your army group should be at near full strength now, so you can do this: immediately send the 37th Army over to defend Berlin in your place. This will free up your resources and allow them to adapt to the environment in advance. Then your troops can break out from the west of Berlin, which is the weakest point in the Soviet encirclement, creating a salient of similar size to the one in the east of the city that you can control."

"But what happens after we get the salient? Won't we just be sitting ducks?"

"No, this is bait, sir. I'm a little unsure about something. You mentioned earlier that the Soviet troops in the north and south didn't observe any major activity during the encirclement of the eastern forces, so I'm having trouble confirming whether they have any pre-positioned attacking forces in the north and south. If not, then the new western salient is completely stress-free, and its very existence would be enough to annoy the Soviet army. But if it is, do you know what it is that needs to exist alongside the main force?"

"Oh? Another supply shipment, right?"

"If the Soviet army has any counter-offensive forces, they will definitely take their supplies and ammunition with them, and that's the key. Your Excellency, you need to use this air power to find the Soviet army's railway supply lines, then lock onto their train stations and military trains and attack them fiercely. Attacking the army is secondary; burning their supplies is the best strategy. Whether the Soviet army is stockpiling supplies now or transporting supplies for a future counter-offensive, these train stations and locomotives are indispensable. Even if they have trucks, so what? Just chase them down and attack them."

"Oh, so this is a way to probe the enemy's strength and lure them out?" The Duke suddenly realized. "I understand what you mean, child. Thank you for your advice."

"Shall I head back first? But I'm a little worried about you, sir. Do you know how to get to those targets I mentioned earlier?"

“Obtain the enemy’s railway map, then follow the clues. The old man’s thinking is slower than the young man’s, but he’s not stupid.” The Duke smiled with satisfaction. “As for who will lead the air assault, you don’t need to worry about that.”

"No, Your Excellency, quite the opposite. Based on the battle report you just gave me, I am truly worried about the power and outcome of the aerial surprise attack."

"That's because you don't know that along with the 37th Group Army, there were also two old guests from ten days ago who came to help."

“Tristan, and… my God…” Caronville shrugged. “Well, this is the first time I’ve felt sorry for the Soviets.”

……

By the second night, when the front lines in the east of the city were closing in, a deafening explosion came from the west, sending the chaotic sonic waves to Zhukov's command post.

"Comrade, we can continue to tighten the encirclement and drive them all back to the city."

“I understand, so…”

An officer suddenly rushed in, carrying a telegram.

"Comrade Marshal! The western part of Berlin is under heavy attack by the enemy! The situation is dire!"

"More details!"

"The enemy has launched an attack on the 96th Guards Infantry Corps' defense zone with a large number of mechanized troops, at least two divisions in size, and has also deployed air force! The corps' defenses are now under great strain, and its command has requested a retreat to avoid total annihilation..."

"This is terrible! There's only one army stationed in the west of the city. If..."

"Are there any other moves by the enemy in the north and south directions?"

"There is no relevant information at present. No enemy counterattack has been seen on the eastern front, and the situation on the northern and southern defense lines is also stable."

"Pass on our orders! The 3rd and 5th Shock Armies are to immediately deploy all nearby reserve counter-attack forces to cover the army's retreat! At the same time, order the command of the 96th Guards Infantry Corps to abandon the area west of Berlin and move to join forces south of Berlin!"

"Yes!--"

……

"Marshal, this hand of cards is probably unplayable..."

“I know, my dear comrade, I know…” Zhukov sat back down at the table and fell into deep thought. “But we can’t make any rash moves now, whether it’s in the north or south or in the east of the city.”

"Why? If we don't send a telegram to Moscow now, it might be too late..."

"We need to find out if these enemies are planning to advance westward and join up with the British..."

Chapter 122, Section 182: A Triumphant Start

The sun was rising; the dark night sky over Berlin was finally brightening.

Now, in the command center, Duke Saslais's brows relaxed more and more as he learned time and again that earth-shattering explosions were coming from further north of the city.

Now, they have opened a salient spanning over twenty kilometers in western Berlin, enduring a relatively mild Soviet counterattack. But compared to these troublesome matters, they have finally captured Potsdam, the city adjacent to southwest Berlin. Now, all the buildings bordering the city of Berlin are under their control.

Reports from the front lines indicated that the Soviet troops seemed to have abandoned these areas and were retreating rapidly, but the Duke still had some concerns—no one could guarantee that this wasn't a deliberate, swift retreat.

The KMF air commando team and two Knights of the Round Table had not yet returned from the battle, and only General Windsor was accompanying the Duke to handle the war, while Lieutenant General Wood called Lieutenant Colonel Eddie Hill, one of Marendor's subordinates, aside.

“My child, I am very worried that His Excellency the Duke may have lost his mind due to the long war. Now that we have suffered a defeat in the east, instead of sending his own troops to reinforce the salient, he is opening up a new front. Is he trying to improve the situation or is he harming us?”

"Do we still have a way, General? Perhaps the previous airdrop into Kosten gave the Duke confidence. After his explanation, almost the entire command agreed to the same plan." The lieutenant colonel shook his head, his face full of disbelief.

"So, in your opinion, the only thing we should and should do now is to do everything we can to protect the salient?"

"To put it mildly, the great victory of the previous airborne operation might just have been a coincidence between us and the enemy. Our correct approach is to maintain a strong defense and advance steadily. The Soviet army has already proven that they cannot be defeated by our trivial tricks."

“Well, how should I put it, young man?” The lieutenant general nodded. “I know you may know the enemy better than I do, but sometimes being overly cautious isn’t a good thing. That’s what I think the Duke is thinking, and I hope we can both focus on what’s in front of us first.”

……

Stepping out of the command center, the lieutenant colonel put his uncovered flask back into his mouth, his face numb as he stared at the sky.

"Is that really the case? This battlefield isn't suitable for me; it belongs to someone else?"

……

Meanwhile, dozens of kilometers away in the skies north of Berlin, two Pe-3 fighter jets flying in formation were still struggling to adjust to the darkness.

"Second Lieutenant! Uh..." The wingman looked confused. "What should we do now?"