Arc of Fire

Every rose has its thorn.

On the side heading to the 15th Armored Division, the losses were not just that of Major General Lundorf, as several senior staff were killed trying to rescue the general.

If not for the division chief of staff wisely choosing to leave in the opposite direction, the situation could have been much worse.

As the sound of the enemy tanks’ engines faded away, the chief of staff climbed to his feet and yelled, “General! General!”

The few surviving staff members got up and checked the general’s breathing and pulse, then shook their heads at the chief of staff.

The chief of staff clicked his tongue, looking in the direction of Loktov, his view completely obscured by the recently deployed smoke bombs by the guards; he couldn’t see the city or the fighting on the open ground between headquarters and the city.

Of course, now the chief of staff just needed to walk a few dozen meters more to step outside of the smokescreen to see the battlefield normally.

However, the impression left by the sudden attack of that T-34 tank was so profound that even though his reason told him the enemy had left, he still didn’t want to leave the protection of the smokescreen.

“Is that the White Horse General…?” muttered the chief of staff, but he immediately realized he was now the acting commander of the troops and shouldn’t display an attitude that inflated the enemy’s prestige.

So he cleared his throat and put on a stern expression that he hadn’t used since he first donned the staff insignia, “Immediately begin reorganizing the troops; the attacking units must have dispersed. Send out messengers to regroup them.

“Withdraw all forces to Karlinovka and establish anti-tank gun positions. Also, have the artillery withdraw to prevent a surprise enemy night raid.”

The mobility of those T-34 tanks was so strong that the chief of staff resolutely didn’t dare to have the division’s artillery spend the night in unprotected areas.

After passing down the commands, the chief of staff asked, “Where is the 513th Anti-Aircraft Artillery Battalion now? We need their 88mm guns right now!”

The surviving map staff immediately reported, “According to the map updated at noon today, Battalion 513 has already crossed the area around Bogdanovka and is marching at full speed.”

Chief of staff: “Have them hurry up! They must get here by tomorrow!”

————

When Tank 422 rolled into Loktov, the streets were already crowded with people.

Before the tank even entered the city, shouts of “They’re coming! They’re coming!” rose, followed by a deafening chorus of “Ura!”

The crowd was jubilant, as if the entire war had been won.

Wang Zhong yelled from atop the tank, “Don’t gather around! What if the enemy shells us? They’ve got 150mm howitzers! Don’t cluster together! Disperse! Go home!”

He was unaware that his blitz had terrified the enemy’s artillery units, sending them packing.

It took five shouts before the crowd reluctantly dispersed.

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Then a lieutenant in dusty military garb appeared, following the tank.

“Stop.” Wang Zhong patted the turret’s steel plate, then heard the sound of a hammer tapping the control stick—a noise he was almost accustomed to, barely noticing unless he paid attention.

Leaning down from the turret, Wang Zhong looked at the lieutenant, “Are you from the Fifth Belyansky Regiment?”

“Yes, General.”

“Where’s your regiment commander?”

“He fell. I am the regiment commander now. Give your orders, General.”

The joy of victory momentarily faded.

Wang Zhong bit his lip, “I see. What’s your name?”

“Pavel Alekseyevich, General.”

Wang Zhong: “How many of you are left?”

“Eighty-one fit for duty, everyone else, even if alive, has been taken to the hospital by the stretcher-bearers.”

Wang Zhong: “You’ve all worked hard. I will have the Guardian Army take over your sector. Head to the train station and prepare to board the next train for retreat.”

The lieutenant was stunned, “You don’t need us anymore? We can still fight.”

Wang Zhong found himself at a loss for words; he meant to have them retreat to resupply and rest, but Pavel made it sound as though he had abandoned them.

Wang Zhong: “That’s not it. I just…”

Lieutenant: “We can defend the station. We still have two machine guns and have captured a lot of equipment. Our technical supplies have never been as abundant as they are now! We can still fight, General!”

Wang Zhong was silent for a few seconds before replying, “I want you to reorganize into a company, take the smoke bombs we captured from the enemy—you have smoke bombs, right?”

“Yes, plenty.”

“Good, take the smoke bombs, find a place to eat well, drink well, rest for three hours, and after dark, I want you to move out of the city to cover the tank repair crews.”

“No problem.”

Actually, this mission should be relatively safe; the enemy was likely still in disarray and wouldn’t be able to mount any operations tonight.

Wang Zhong simply didn’t want these soldiers to feel abandoned.

The enemy had been driven back, but there was still much to be done tonight.

Wang Zhong spoke to the driver, “Drive back to the brigade headquarters, uh, do you know where it is?”

“I don’t know.” Beliyakov answered bluntly, “Did we come to find you, or was it the sergeant major who led the way?”

Wang Zhong: “I’ll show the way. Forward, turn left at the street corner ahead.”

————

Wang Zhong entered the command post of the battle group—which was actually the brigade command post. Pavlov looked up and said, “Three miles from here and we can hear cheering, General of the White Horse.”

Wang Zhong: “I need to organize the mechanics from the auto repair shop to go out of the city to repair tanks tonight. There are eight tanks that just broke down and can be fixed.”

“Alright, there are three hours till nightfall; that should be enough time to get it organized.” Pavlov turned his head and said, “Sofya, go to the auto repair shop and get some people. Tell them we need a skilled workers team in three hours.”

Sofya nodded and then ran towards the gate. As she passed by Wang Zhong, she paused and gave a small smile.

Wang Zhong: ?

“War heroes always get the favor of girls; it has always been so,” Pavlov said. “Anything else you need me to do?”

Wang Zhong: “I need to resupply ammunition and fuel. Also, I need a large number of anti-aircraft camouflage nets and branches to hide my tanks. The enemy will assuredly launch an air raid tomorrow; Stukas pose a great threat to these tanks.”

Pavlov: “Lyushenko! Order the Guardian Army to camouflage the tanks!”

Wang Zhong: “Guardian Army?”

“The Church has handed over five battalions of the Guardian Army to us. They are all locals who have been organized; their equipment is poor, but they have enough bullets. They’re just the right bunch for odd jobs. As for the shells, let me confirm—are the tank guns the same as our 76 anti-tank guns?”

Wang Zhong fell silent, this touched on an area he was not knowledgeable about.

He was a military enthusiast, sure, but he wasn’t hardcore enough to be clear about what kind of shells each artillery piece used.

Although the bore of the T34’s L11 cannon was indeed 76.2mm, the same as that of the ZIS-3 anti-tank gun, he really had no idea whether the two used the same ammunition.

After a few seconds, Pavlov sighed, “It is only in times like this that I remember the rumors about you from before, General.”

Wang Zhong: “My gunner is an instructor from the Armored Training Corps; he surely knows. I’ll send him to the command post of the quartermaster’s department to get the shells; he won’t make a mistake!”

“Indeed, then let him do it.”

Wang Zhong: “What are the casualties among our troops?”

As he asked, he remembered the lieutenant from the Fifth Besshensk Regiment.

Pavlov stopped, took off his glasses, pulled out a microfiber cloth, and began to wipe them, not answering.

Wang Zhong: “Tell me, I’ve prepared myself.”

“We’re still looking for the wounded, but those alive have been accounted for since you just have to assemble and count them. There are 611 people still alive in the Guard’s 31st Regiment. One third are injured.

“I reckon we can still dig out a hundred or so wounded from the dead, but how many can be healed and return to the ranks, that’s hard to say.”

Wang Zhong pursed his lips: “Were the losses that great?”

Pavlov continued, “The good news is, the enemy suffered greater losses. In the past, even when the enemy was attacking, their losses were less than ours, but this time they’ve had a hard time.”

Wang Zhong nodded: “That might be the only consolation.”

“However, most of their higher casualties were caused by the tank units under your direct command, including the BT-7 and the later T34s. The enemy still won in terms of casualties caused by front-line meat grinder.”

Wang Zhong: “The enemy is well-trained; I’ve come to understand that fully.”

“Also, there’s more good news. Although Position A was suppressed by enemy artillery fire, miraculously, one 203mm gun remains. We still have five 203s and will be able to deliver a big blow to the enemy tomorrow.”

Wang Zhong frowned: “Can we call for aerial reconnaissance to locate the enemy artillery positions? It has been seven days since we first saw our air forces; shouldn’t the Air Force have been replenished by now?”

Pavlov: “You’re asking a brigade staff officer this question? You should be asking the Front Army staff chief, he has authority over the Air Force. I…”

Before he could finish, a Judge entered with a telegram: “New orders from the Front Army headquarters.”

Wang Zhong was taken aback before realizing that his telegrams were managed by a group of Judges. He reached out his hand: “Give it to me.”

After taking the telegram, he read aloud, “The 63rd Army Group is expected to arrive at Loktov by tomorrow afternoon. Your unit should make every effort to delay the enemy. Our intelligence indicates that your unit’s front may face an entire enemy Armored Division, along with a portion of an Armored Rifle Division.

“We believe the enemy armored group is crossing Bogdanovka, anticipating that your unit will face a fierce armored assault tomorrow.”

Wang Zhong looked up at Pavlov: “That’s what they (Front Army) say.”

Pavlov snorted: “Such ‘timely’ information. Does the Front Army know that if it weren’t for the Crown Prince’s delivery of the T34s, this place would have already fallen? I guess they don’t.”

Wang Zhong: “Then let’s tell them!”

He turned to the Judge and said, “Send a reply like this, and take note!”

The Judge immediately took out a notebook and pencil, ready to take down the message.

Wang Zhong: “My unit suffered heavy losses today. If it weren’t for the newly joined T34 unit—and the commendable performance of the remnants of the 23rd Tank Army, Loktov would have fallen. My unit urgently needs to resupply ammunition and personnel, especially armored forces and anti-tank weapons. Additionally, we require Air Force support, Aleksei Konstantinovich Rokossovsky.”

The Judge wrote frantically, looking up at Wang Zhong only after finishing the last word.

Wang Zhong felt as though something was missing. After thinking for a moment, he said, “Read it back to me!”