Codegease: Air and Land Warfare 1946

Page 177

"That's right, Sergeant. Your rank has risen and your IQ has risen too, huh? Ah, but it seems the enemy in Magdeburg is sending out some pretty strong signals. They can even pick them up here."

"So, sir, what is the battlefield mode?"

"I'm sorry, I can't show you this, I can only describe it verbally."

"what?"

"Battlefield mode must be enabled when communication mode is working properly. During this time, you can transfer new maps to your PDA. The map we are currently using was created by Britannia's surveyors who recorded the terrain and city streets through aerial photography and other methods. This data was then handed over to their respective departments for processing, and all PDAs with battlefield mode enabled can then update the map content in real time."

"Wait, this is a bit confusing." Jonathan scratched his head. "With updates and fixes all the time, when exactly is this map usable?"

"So, to put it another way: Battlefield mode is like drawing a new map for you, offline mode is just for viewing the map, and communication mode is for sharing your location with others. Do you understand?"

"oh oh……"

"The key is that this battlefield mode has another feature - once it is activated, it can display the positions of both the enemy and the friendly forces on the map panel. Of course, this 'enemy coordinates' is just a point randomly marked on the map. It doesn't mean that they know which latrine we are taking a dump in as soon as they activate it."

"That's amazing! Once we activate Battle Mode, we'll know exactly where Britannia is deploying her troops, right?"

"Therefore, there is a hurdle that we cannot overcome at present when opening this mode: this mode requires a password consisting of letters and numbers to activate, and according to our prisoners, different units have different PDA unlock passwords. As for the size of the unit, he did not specify. It could be a division or an army group. In any case, Lieutenant Oleg and I captured our PDAs in Bernburg, and they are not the same ones used by the group in Schönebeck."

"Damn it..." Jonathan's smile immediately vanished. "But speaking of which, sir, the communication mode doesn't require a password?"

"Nonsense, think about it. PDAs are for their officers, that is, platoon leaders and above. What if all the officers have different passwords? If this guy dies, and his subordinates want to use the PDA for emergency help, or if someone from another unit finds his PDA, how can they use it? How can they tell the password when the person is dead?"

"Tsk..."

"However, Captain, I have a question," the pilot said, as if struck by a sudden thought. "You must have gotten all this information from the prisoners?"

"Of course, of course, you're probably worried that he's not telling the truth, aren't you?" Drucker pointed to an empty vase next to him, telling him to pour out what was inside.

"Look at this." Good heavens, all five fingernails from the thumb to the little finger of one hand were covered in blood and lay in front of him. "Don't worry, with this unlucky guy never being able to scratch his itch again, what lies could he possibly be spouting?"

……

Just then, a soldier ran in and told the captain that there seemed to be enemy activity on the other side of the river.

"Jesus, all men, to your positions!"

Faintly, one could hear the low rumble of cannons in the distance, and clusters of sharp gusts of air gradually approached the city.

"Take cover!"

Jonathan burst out the door, intending to run towards his men, but suddenly a shell crashed down on the road ahead, tearing a jeep apart and tossing it in front of a nearby house. The surrounding streets instantly transformed into a series of gushing, muddy, fiery, and blood-red flower buds, as if from a leaking steam pipe.

"They're here! Brittany is attacking!" He ran faster through the streets, his ears filled with the shouts and gruff voices of soldiers, and the dust and debris that had been blown off the city by the explosions. The fragments, like a blizzard, carried the entire riverbank, pushing the soldiers into the late winter.

"Sergeant!" When he saw Karl calling him from the other end of the street, a strange whistling wind suddenly came from the sky behind him. But just as he subconsciously looked behind him, he discovered that rockets were also pouring down from the sky like a waterfall, drawing a pair of silver lights straight across the sky.

The flames shattered the earth, and Jonathan collapsed to the ground. Before everything went dark, he only remembered seeing a strange fighter jet fly overhead—it was huge, whipping up a gale similar to that of German fighter planes, and its swept-back wings were full of rocket pods that could only be seen on armed helicopters in Brittany.

……

"This is the 26th Infantry Regiment, repeat! This is the 26th Infantry Regiment of the 1st Infantry Division of the United States Army! Schönebeck is under attack! Repeat! Schönebeck is under massive attack by the Britannian army! They are attempting to besiege the city. Send reinforcements immediately!"

Section 285, Chapter 214, Schönebeck, the Water and Fire Chessboard (Part Two)

"Hello, Major Mayer, it's really cold this morning."

Good morning, Captain.

Coming from the sky towards Berlin, the two KMF (Kingdoms of Finance) aircraft slowly merged together and flew towards the Elbe River.

"How long has it been since we last saw them?" The captain looked down and saw familiar yet unfamiliar figures below the KMFs, which made him wonder—fighters, things that the Britannian Empire had been sitting in warehouses gathering dust for so long, were now unexpectedly fighting alongside the expeditionary force on the front lines, braving the fires and dangers of District 45.

"Hmm, they can't get around the KMF in the air at all, and their firing direction is not as flexible as the KMF. What's the point of their existence? To help the armed transport planes occupy empty spaces in the airport?"

“Larger, relative to the KMF,” the major replied casually. “Go down and see for yourself, take a look at their undersides.”

"OK, OK. Pilots, don't move." The captain slowly descended the altitude. "Huh? Major, I don't remember these fighter jets being equipped with so many rocket pods?"

"The generals ordered the modifications."

"Oh really? Well, these big guys are really being treated badly. They can't compete for the sky, so they can only do the work of sweeping the floor."

"Get back to altitude, Captain," the major repeated calmly. "Get back to altitude. Escorting them is no easy task."

"Is this necessary, sir?"

"You'll understand immediately."

"Major Mayer, please respond." At this moment, the fighter squadron leader spoke up, "We are about to enter the attack route, please make sure to follow."

"Understood." The major nodded, watching as the fighter jets tilted slightly away from the KMF's formation and charged towards Schönebeck. "See that, Captain? The only thing the fighters lack compared to us is agility. You'd better step on the throttle quickly, if you're a qualified escort."

……

"He's awake! The sergeant's awake! He's alright!"

Carl and Tommy dragged Jonathan into a house that had been bombed earlier. After bandaging his lower back, the head of the family, who had been knocked unconscious, finally woke up as enemy warplanes and artillery shells rained down on him, trying to kick him out of his daze.

"Jesus, how long have I been asleep?" He looked blankly at the dark ceiling above him, several dirty faces, and light leaking in through a gap in the roof.

"Not bad, sir, our class is fine right now."

"What about the others?" The sergeant eagerly pulled out his walkie-talkie. "Hello, Captain? Can you hear me?"

"I've been waiting for your voice for a long time, young man. Can we still play?"

"Tell me where the enemy is?"

“Take your men and head to the north bank of the river immediately.” He listened to Captain Drucker’s battlefield summary as he picked up his gun again. “Britannia is attacking us from two directions: across the Elbe to the north and the road to Magdeburg to the west. It seems they understand what this little town means to them, which is why they’re fighting so desperately—if Schönebeck is handed back to them, we’ll lose the initiative here.”

"Yes, Captain, these extraterrestrials are getting smarter and smarter."

"Quickly take your men to the north bank of the river. The enemy's artillery has destroyed the first line of defense. They desperately need manpower. I've already called for artillery support!"

"Yes, sir! Follow me, guys! Stay away from the middle of the road!"

Houses were still being hit by falling shells all around, and enemy warplanes were firing rockets and guns from their noses. Anti-aircraft barrages were already being poured into the sky. The urgent task now was to get through the dust-shrouded intersection in front of them and temporarily ignore the ruins and wounded soldiers all over the streets.

"Keep an eye on your surroundings!" Along with Jonathan and the others, there was a Sherman tank heading towards the river. As they passed a small house, there was a sudden loud crash, and the outer wall collapsed towards the tank.

"Watch out!" The sergeant leaped onto the tank and pulled the machine gunner, who was standing on the engine cover, off the tank.

"Oh, damn it!" The brick wall shattered like glass, leaving the M4 mostly unharmed, though a brick that landed behind Jonathan happened to hit its wound.

"Ah, thank you, sir." The machine gunner's eyes widened. "Um... are you alright?"

"Take care of yourself." He pulled him up and pushed him back onto the tank. Then he led his men to the riverbank. They had only taken a few steps when another shell flew into the ground ahead. Beside the crater were two overturned Dodge jeeps.

"It's insane..." You can vaguely see the black floodwaters rushing towards the city from the opposite bank of the river, bathed in sunlight. But what's even more terrifying is that you can't hear any tanks or anti-tank guns firing. All you can hear are the shouts and screams of soldiers.

“Mr. Baker? Where are you?” He tried to call the field leader he was in contact with on the walkie-talkie.

"Red house, first floor, come in quickly, bro!"

Upon entering the house, Jonathan stared incredulously at the chaotic scene. Lieutenant Baker and several other soldiers were clearing away a pile of collapsed wooden planks—underneath the planks, a foot wrapped in leggings was still moving.

"Perfect timing, buddy." The lieutenant swallowed hard; the bloodstains on his face showed how badly he had been hit by the shelling. "The enemy has already begun their advance, and I need a few favors."

"First, hide the houses around here to buy some time to reorganize the defenses." As he spoke, he brought over a few smoke grenades to the sergeant. "Second, I need you to help me find the anti-tank gun crew two houses away; they just lost contact with me. Finally, find someone to report to the mortar pit in the yard; they need someone who can help with calibration."

"I'll get right there! Tommy, grab the shells, Carl, go find the anti-tank gun!"

……

After the shells were thrown into the crater in front of the house and detonated, Karl led a few men and carefully ran outside, listening to the whistling of bullets overhead.

"OK? Is anyone there?"

When we got to the house, the 57mm anti-tank gun was hidden there, and two soldiers were bandaging up the poor guy.

"I'm sorry we're late." Carl checked around. "Who are you missing?"

"The gunner is unconscious. Can you lend a hand? At least this cannon can still be fired."

The men hurriedly ran from the pile of rubble that the artilleryman was pointing at, and slowly dug out a few AP shells and placed them in front of the gun mount.

"I hope we're not the only group still on the front lines, brothers."

"Relax, I didn't see any boats or pontoon bridges the enemy brought to cross the river. Their main target should still be the bridgehead... Good heavens, the enemy has gathered so many people under the cover of darkness tonight..."

"They're getting closer and closer to the bridge on the other side of the river." Carl looked at the group of puppets rushing towards them in the distance. "Jonathan? Can you hear me, Sergeant?"

"Roger that! Listen up, bro!" The sergeant was crouching in a nearby building, next to the mortar crew who had just reported for duty. "There's too much smoke here. Use your shells as a guide. I need to designate the targets for the mortars!"

"No problem! Quick, quick, AP, 700 yards, prepare to fire!"

The dust was wiped off the shell, and then it was carefully filled in. Then, with a sharp whistling sound, the shell turned into a white ray that reached its destination, hitting an infantry fighting vehicle. Like an orange being cut by a circular saw, it burst out with hot, shiny juice.

"I see Corporal Ceasefire, don't reveal your position!"

Infantry fighting vehicles immediately became beacons for mortars, because they could fire from places where the enemy couldn't see them, and they didn't generate much dust that would be conspicuous on the vast battlefield. So, through Jonathan's binoculars, the KMFs and black tanks were constantly being engulfed by dust mushrooms rising from the ground, while he could only keep looking haphazardly at the opposite bank of the river with his robotic arms and turrets.

"Captain Drucker, can you hear me?" The sergeant took a deep breath. "The enemy is closing in on the riverbank, and the troops guarding the bridgehead are almost exhausted. When will our reinforcements arrive?!"

"Stay calm, sir. Air support and artillery are already on their way. Don't let them cross the bridge, understand?"

"Tell me how to stay calm?! The entire riverbank is practically under enemy control, and we desperately need heavy weapons!" As he spoke, a shell whizzed past Jonathan's house and struck a Sherman tank parked nearby. "If they had just one more cannon, we'd all be dead!"

"Okay, Sergeant, listen up. Once we confirm the enemy's follow-up forces, I authorize you to immediately issue the retreat order for me, okay?"

After the communication ended, the sergeant felt a mix of emotions.

"Alright, bro... I'll just consider today a nostalgic trip to the Ardennes Forest, you son of a bitch..."

……

Fortunately, despite the loud noise from the fighter jets overhead, the 105mm howitzers managed to land a few kilometers away, slowing down the enemy's advance across the river.

"Come on, come on, hurry up and die, I'm telling you..." Obviously, the artillery fire was not dense enough to block off such a wide area, even though many Britannian KMFs and tanks were being dismantled or broken down.

"Sir, the river!" This was Karl's latest piece of bad news. Upon closer inspection, a whole bunch of KMF grappling hooks suddenly flew out of the river and landed on the American side of the bank.

"What the hell?" The soldiers were taken aback. They hadn't expected that a whole bunch of frog-headed dolls, humanoid like the KMF but much rounder in shape, would emerge one after another from the river. Right in front of the soldiers, in places where anti-tank guns couldn't reach, these dolls, clad in steel armor immune to light weapons, brazenly threw their waterproof boxes on the ground, opened them, and pulled out the machine guns and recoilless rifles used by the KMF.

"Everyone! Retreat! Retreat into the city, quick!"

The sergeant called up the mortar crew members who were standing nearby. They each grabbed a few mortar shells and then destroyed the mortar mounts and ammunition boxes that were inconvenient to carry away with a hand grenade.

"This is terrible..." In the distance, a large number of enemy armed helicopters flew in like locusts from the opposite bank of the Elbe River, gradually obscuring the rising sun in the east of Schönebeck.

Chapter 215, Section 286: Schönebeck, the Water and Fire Chessboard (Part 3)

As the riverbanks began to burn, the sky above the Stars and Stripes seemed to recede a few steps.

Helicopters and ground troops had already begun rushing into the city, while the KMFs flew to higher and farther places—commanders knew that now that the sky was bright, the fighters with white stars on their emblems would soon arrive.

Indeed, everything unfolded as expected, just like the battles of the past few dozen days. With the order to attack given, the Mustang fighters, which had rushed to the scene, plunged the sky into chaos once again.

"You go left, I'll go right!" Easy, still diligently among the first to join the battle, led his men through the January chill, their .50 machine guns flashing with dazzling ammunition belts, delivering a final warmth to the enemy.

"We're outnumbered, boss!" the wingman yelled desperately. "Those guys can't get away to bomb!"

"Stay calm! If all else fails, lead the enemy into our own anti-aircraft fire!"

"Maurice has been shot! Maurice's plane has been hit! He's falling!"

……

"Get off the street!"

The Mustang fighter jet in the sky had long since burned off one of its wings. Its once white body had turned black and was covered in thick smoke. It fell onto the road like an iron barrel and rolled around.

The soldiers had long since hidden themselves in the streets and houses—not because of the chaos in the sky, but because three uninvited guests had arrived in the open. Yes, those things that had emerged from the water, perhaps KMF stuff.

"Son of a bitch..." The wreckage of the fighter jet happened to hit one of the puppets, but the other two guys dodged it. However, this gave the rocket launchers an opportunity, and the bazooka took the opportunity to send the second unlucky guy to his grave.

"Take cover! Hurry!" Only one machine gun was left, and it was still enthusiastically returning fire to the soldiers, its eyes fixed on the direction the bazooka had just fired.

"Damn Jesus, why didn't the plane kill the one who wasn't injured?" Jonathan yelled at his corporal while leading the mortar crew he was covering, "Karl, why haven't your heavy machine guns fired yet?"

"The gun barrel's empty, Sergeant! We were too wasteful when we were dealing with the helicopter!"

The corporal was absolutely right—look at the helicopter that crashed and got stuck on the roof of the building, riddled with bullet holes and flashing with fire, and then look at the three or four white birds flying in groups over the soldiers’ heads and heading deeper into the city. Did they really want to use Garand to kill them with a single shot?

"Why the hell hasn't the backup arrived yet?" Jonathan panicked completely. "Calling! Can anyone hear me?"

“Calling Sergeant Campbell, this is ‘Tough Barbie’.” It sounded like a tank commander’s voice. “We need you to describe your situation in detail.”