Red Ball Express

The trek across the Rhine was thankfully uneventful. Though the ARES units were quite able machines, they were not amphibious. Special equipment had been designed to be mounted onto external plating to protect joints and other sensitive areas, but this only allowed them to traverse bodies of water that were 10 feet deep at most. Bridges couldn’t always be counted on to still be structurally integral either, let alone still standing. NATO had gone back to the old ways to take inspiration from the pontoon bridges used during World War 2. Several of these floating bridges were maintained by garrisoned infantry battalions to ensure they were clear and safe 24/7. With the light weight of the ARES units, they were also able to traverse the floating bridges with little trouble beyond a small balancing act.

Much of the time was spent in solitude. Allison would scan her sector, check her place in the formation, and scan her sector again. Sometimes she would cycle through radio channels and try to tune in on FM bands, but most of it was just pirate radio music broadcasts. She had to keep the airway clear and open so no listening on the job. As they trudged on, she wondered what kind of people they would meet. In Croatia and other Balkan countries, most of the survivors were bands of old soldiers. Bitter and resentful at the world for plunging their lives into a never-ending chaotic dance that overshadowed all aspects of their life. She found it hard to communicate with them, especially when they saw the American flag on her ARES unit. Most wanted nothing to do with them. They would say they were fine on their own, so Allison’s team began to be used to clear out infected nests instead of providing humanitarian aid escorts. Though supplies would still be sent, there were no thank yous or exchange of pleasantries. They took what they wanted and went back to their business. Allison wondered sometimes if they were helping the right people or not.

This was different. This had to be different. A new country with new people. She realized that she had never asked Hideo or anyone about the overall situation in Germany. Though No Man’s Land was being slowly reclaimed, bit by bit, every day with every mission accomplished, there was still much room for surprises. Who knew what kind of bandits or raiders stalked the towns when they left? But soon she would have to wonder no more. Their objective was coming up on the map: a small little village called Burgwalde. They had skirted around the cities of Frankfurt and Cologne to get to it undetected. It was situated on the eastern side from where Kassel used to be. Kassel had been a hive for the infected for such a long time that NATO gave up clearing operations and instead opted to firebomb the whole town to the ground. It was deemed as a necessary sacrifice, but Allison wondered why they would do such a thing when efforts to fully clear Frankfurt and Cologne were underway. Perhaps it wasn’t big enough to be seen as historically significant. Or maybe they figured that since World War 2 had all but devastated the town once, they would rebuild it again when this was all over. She wasn’t here to make any judgement calls. She was here to do her job. And right now, her job was to get these supplies to the survivors in Burgwalde. The team passed by the ruins of Kassel and saw an encampment on the horizon.

“Alright, section. Let’s look lively. Hearts and minds as you Yanks always say.” Hideo called out over the radio.

The encampment was set in the ruins of the village. It was rather small, to say the least. Allison had heard the expression back in the States about other small villages being said as: “The entire town was 15 miles an hour.” She didn’t really understand what that meant until she saw how small Burgwalde was. There was a church and what looked to be old shops, but it was much different than it had been before everything happened. Rickety iron fences were set up with gates on wheels or appropriated buses in their place. There were militia soldiers set up on balconies and makeshift watchtowers to watch for approaching threats. Hideo walked in with Franziska in tow while he had Allison, Charlotte, and Carwyn to take up positions on the other side of the fence. The trucks trundled in and then left after they had offloaded all the supplies. Hideo came back out and rallied everyone on him.

“What’s the plan, boss?” Charlotte asked, unprompted.

“Locals say that some big machines are being moved around further inland. They suspect that they’ll be on their way here to do the usual bandit extortion racket soon enough. I made the call and command said we could do some light recon to confirm the intel.”

“They are in Nordhausen,” Franziska said. “We should make our move before sundown before they’re forced to use thermal or night vision optics.”

“Right you are, Miss Franziska. We’re heading out, team. Make a heading due east. Miss Allison, you’re on point. If we get into contact, you’ll spot targets for Miss Charlotte.”

“Roger that, sir.”

Allison checked her Heads-Up Display (HUD) for the cardinal direction of east and stepped off. It was starting to get late. The sun was going down and it wasn’t too far from the horizon. She calculated the distance. A twenty minute march to the city would allow them to take up an observation position. Allison noted that there was a ridge to the south located on the map.

“Ell Tee. I got a vantage point overlooking the city. Looks like it’s called Tiefenbach. Should give us some good cover.”

“Excellent work, Miss Allison. Let’s make for it and establish an observation post.”

The team moved out, taking care not to silhouette themselves on the horizon. There was no telling what kind of surprises would be waiting for them. If raiders really were present, then it would be hard to get the drop on them. The route around the southwest of the town led to a small hill. Before the apocalypse, Tiefenbach had been a nature reserve. Though it was still beautiful after all this time, it also had lost its protected status. As the team approached the hill, Allison periodically switched to thermal vision and back to scan for any signs of human or infected activity. It was Franziska who alerted them instead.

“I’ve got something on the radio sir.”

“What’s that, Miss Franziska?”

“Tuning in now.” She replied. There was a silence in the air as the rest of the team was set on edge. “We’ve been spotted. They’re sending a scouting party. Coming straight from the city.”

“What do you want us to do, sir?” Carwyn asked.

“Spread out. Take the high ground. We’ll see them coming from miles away.”

“Setting up.” Charlotte stated. “Time to get your hands dirty, FNG.”

That meant Allison. She was very familiar with the vulgar term, and she let it slide for now. As they moved up and spread out the formation among trees, Franziska came over the radio again.

“I’m getting readings. Electronic interference. Large signals…it’s originating from the city. It looks like a-”

The hill exploded. A shell struck the trees and sent them crashing to the ground.

“Scheisse! MARS unit identified!” Franziska called out.

Seconds later, cannon fire raked through the woods the team had moved through.

“Second MARS unit identified!”

“Aye, you’re working overtime today, Franny!” Carwyn joked.

“I warned you not to call me that! Don’t make me jam your comms system!”

“Engage at will, team!” Hideo ordered.

“Hey spotter! Spot these guys for me!” Charlotte barked.

“Right!”

Allison set herself up and zoomed in. She switched back to thermals and watched the giant walking MARS units light up, blocky as ever. Some parts were cold as if they had been treated with a thermal signature dampening paint, but not all the parts were like that. It was easy to pick them out.

“Bearing, four zero! Range, two and a half klicks and closing!”

“Firing!”

The shoulder-mounted launcher roared as the TOW missile was launched out the tube. Unlike other laser-guided or heat-seeking missiles, there was virtually no way to defend against a TOW missile without taking out the operator or the missile itself. The entire missile ran along a length of wire that was directly linked to the vehicle. It was controlled entirely by the operator as they sat and guided the missile to its target. Chaff, flares, and even a smoke screen couldn’t help you if the operator was looking at you through thermal vision. Allison watched the missile streak through the dusk and impact the leg of the MARS unit, blowing it off and causing it to fall over. It sent an errant round towards the hill that streaked right past Allison’s ARES.

“Whoa!” Charlotte backed off a bit and looked to her spotter. “You good, new girl?”

Allison hadn’t moved at all. She stayed rigid in her place and her running lights were still green.

“Target, re-engage!” She called out.

“Eat this.” Charlotte leveled her cannon at the crippled MARS unit and fired, sending an 105mm APFSDS (Armor-Piercing Fin-Stabilized Discarding-Sabot) straight at it, impacting directly into the joint, separating it from the legs entirely. It exploded and fell over.

“Target! Ceasefire! Next target!”

“Now who’s working overtime?” Charlotte said as her cannon reloaded.

“Bearing, five seven! Range, three klicks and closing! We got a fast one!”

“Lasing!”

Lasing was the term given to the process of designating the target with the laser. The fire control system automatically adjusted the reticle to match the predicted lead needed to hit the target based on all outside factors and type of shell being fired. The MARS unit fired its auto-cannon, a Gryazev-Shipunov GSh-23L commonly seen on the MiG-23 as its main gun. The hill was peppered with shells again as it moved in, spraying almost wildly, kicking up dirt and taking down more trees. Allison heard the APS (Active Protection System) kick in and neutralize a few stray rounds before they could hit her, but a round did impact her shoulder armor. Allison steadied up and pulled her carbine up into position as she watched the MARS unit run to and fro, making crazy turns and spewing smoke out its rear. None of this helped it to dodge the 105mm round that struck through its crew compartment and penetrated the rear plate, sailing out the back. The two-legged unit collapsed with its loss of control and went still.

“Target! Ceasefire!” Allison shouted.

She scanned left and right. No other thermal signature big enough to be a MARS unit. She did see a lot of vehicles being moved.

“I can’t see any other big boys, Hideo. What’s the plan?” Charlotte asked.

“Well, I dare say we’ve made a mess of things. Perhaps we should report back.”

“Ell Tee…” Allison started to say but something in her mind told her to not bring up what she was about to.

“What is it, Miss Allison?”

“I just…I think we should wipe them out. What if they trace us back to the village and make an example of them?”

There were a few moments of silence as the idea was mulled over.

“She has a point, sir.” Carwyn said, ever the model soldier.

“City fighting is not our forte as a single ARES Assault Team, but you are right Miss Allison,” Hideo admitted. “If we don’t deal with this problem here, then it will certainly make for harder times ahead.”

“What’s the plan?” Charlotte asked.

“Well…Miss Allison?”

“Yes sir?”

“How would you like to take point on this next engagement? You seem like you have the head for this.”

“It’s your call, sir.”

“Very well, Miss Allison. Impress us.”

And like that, she had just volunteered to go head first into an urban engagement with a guerrilla force without any prior intel on their strength or equipment. It was too late to take it back. Now she was going to have to put the screws to these bandits before they took her out. Were that all things in life were so clear-cut.