//------------------------------// // Chapter 1 Squeaking Through The Snow // Story: The Pinto of Ardennes // by Bronycommander //------------------------------// Chapter 1: Squeaking Through The Snow Ardennes, Belgium, 15th December 1944 Thomas König, a man of the age of 34 was patrolling with his friend, Otto Krause through the endless snowy terrain near the border of Germany and Belgium. The situation in Germany was the same militarily and politically; bad. The German forces suffered only defeats and heavy losses in the west since the Allies landed in France back in June and on the Eastern front, the Red Army gained similar successes, causing costly defeats for the German forces. Overall, the Wehrmacht was severely battered, thinned out and barely in possession of heavy weapons. Chronic fuel shortage led to a loss of mobility, which was particularly strong due to the Allied air superiority. But this all had a surprising disadvantage for the allies. The western Allies had advanced faster through than the Allied and German High command had anticipated. As such, the Allied soldiers suffered from fatigue and their supplies ran dangerously low. The German high command decided that this could be used for a surprise attack through the Allied lines in the Ardennes forest, where the enemy had battle-weary troops and new recruits, thus expecting the least to be attacked there. The goal of this attack was to capture the Port of Antwerp, a supply point for the allies. Not only would the capture cost the allies precious resources, it would also split their fronts and forces in two. With this, the Führer hoped to make a peace with the allies and be able to fully focusing on the Eastern Front. The timing was well chosen as the cold weather prevented the Allies from using their superior air forces, so the German ground forces could take advantage of that in their upcoming attack. But it was not without risks. The Wehrmacht would use everything that was left for this, failure would cause the Reich to collapse. Thomas himself was a hardened veteran, having fought in Poland, France and Africa. But his spirit was low. In Sommer 1943, his family, consisting of a wife had son, had died in a bombing raid, having been everything he had, fighting to survive so he could see then again. Now, he his only motivation to fight was to end this war, so that not more civilians would lose their lives in this bloody conflict. “Hey, Thomas, think we will get them this time?” His friend asked. “Hard to say, it’s a lot at stake. With the loss of my family, I have nothing left to fight for or to look forward to see when this war is over.” The former father and husband pointed out with a hint of sadness in his voice. “Sorry, didn’t want to wake bad memories. My friend, Harry got sent to the Eastern Front, I hope he doesn’t encounter the She-Bear of Krasnodar.” Otto replied with fear. “And that Josef survives too with his wife.” “I get ya, still, as Harry is a private like we are, he shouldn’t have anything to fear from her and Josef’s guarding Factories and fuel depots behind the front, that’s pretty much safer than the Eastern front and we have also better chances at the Western Front compared to our comrades in the East.” König pointed out. “Yeah. By the way, how do you like your StG 44?” Otto asked him, causing him to smile slightly. As Thomas inspected the sides of his weapon he replied, “Very much. Compact as an SMG but with the stopping power of a rifle. Plus the low recoil makes it easy to control.” “Indeed. But the MP40 s also easy to control.” Otto replied, inspecting the sides of his weapon. “Say, what do you think of this operation Skorzeny will be commanding?” Thomas thought for a moment. “Well, it’s risky. Not only are they risking being executed as spies by the allies should they get caught in the enemy uniforms but this whole thing resembles a house of cards: If not a single goal is achieved, everything that follows is also almost impossible.” Both men did not know much about this operation. They only had heard rumors. It was named Operation Greif. German soldiers, wearing captured British and US Army uniforms and using captured Allied vehicles, were to cause confusion in the rear of the Allied lines but the actual goal was not known to many. One rumor was that those commandos intended to capture General Dwight Eisenhower and his staff. “Yes. I wonder though how disguising Panther tanks as M10 Tank Destroyers will work. They look similar but the distinctive box drive is what can tell them apart.” Otto added. “Yes, another risk. I wonder how they will get along with US infantry weapons, and vehicles, like the Sherman and Greyhound.” “Guess we will know when the reports come in. While all are English speaking volunteers, some…Eternal Knights would be perfect for this job.” Otto suspected. Thomas raised an eyebrow in confusion. “What in the world do you mean?” “Well, imagine it like members of the Führer’s bodyguards, specialized in stealth operations.” “Uh-huh. Frankly, I think they will need much luck for this to work and the element of surprise. It will be hard not to blow cover and not to be attacked by their own forces.” “Yeah, but I’m sure Skorzeny has this worked out. I must admit I’m a bit nervous about tomorrow.” Otto’s hands trembled slightly. It was understandable. He was also experienced but unlike Thomas, he had only fought in the Netherlands during Operation Market Garden and in the Battle of Hürtgen Forest, but otherwise, not seen much action. “Me too, me too. Just use cover as good as you can and keep moving to avoid being an easy target and by working as a team with my squad mates. Sometimes, it was just luck. Experience is the best teacher. What makes me a bit uncomfortable, are the forests, deep valleys and narrow roads. It makes it hard to advance quickly. And the shortage of fuel is also a big problem.” König told with concern. “Indeed. We only have a chance. We can’t fail. And I’m pretty sure our paratroopers can help us out in this battle.” Otto sounded confident. “I sure hope so,” König replied, knowing due to the high losses that most pilots and paratroopers had little to no experience for this, the offensive would be their first deployment. “If I may ask, had you ever thought of what you do after the war is over? I haven’t thought about it yet.” The SMG gunner asked, being curious. “Not really. Before my family died, I thought of them welcoming me back with smiles. But now…I don’t know. Wait… Do you hear that?” He asked his friend. “Hear what?” Otto asked before hearing it too. A faint cry coming from the woods. “Stay back! I don't take good!” It sounded like a young boy, having strangely a British accent instead of a Belgian, fearful but filed with tenacity. “Let’s take a look!” Thomas yelled, trying to locate where the sound was coming from. “Wait a sec, our orders are-“ “I don’t care! I won’t let a child die here!” Ever since his family’s death, Thomas had sworn to himself to let civilians suffer the same fate as he did, sprinting towards the source of the cry. They both saw a Wolf standing in front of a small den, too small for him to reach, growling at it, where the child seemingly was hiding. Both soldiers made sure the safety of their weapons were on, not wanting to alert possible enemy patrols nearby. Thomas raised his bayonet. “Hey! Wolf!” He yelled, the wild animal turned around, growling at him, apparently famished. With another growl, combined with a howl, the wolf charged at him, the soldier parried the wild animal by swiftly swinging the butt of his rifle towards the head. The Wolf let out a painful whine as he got thrown back and retreated into the woods. König quickly swiped the blood off his weapon, then asked the boy in English, “Are you hurt?” “N-no. I’m f-fine.” The child replied still a bit shaken, coming slowly out of his hiding spot. The men looked confused at each other as strangely, the shadow of a small pony became visible. The next sight was the shock of their lives. Out of the den came a small pony, having a spiky, mahogany tail with matching mane and hazel eyes. Showy was that the pony had patches of dark brown on a piebald coat, smiling weakly at them. “Thanks a bunch. If you hadn’t come, I had ended as snack for the Wolf.” The colt sounded grateful. None of the soldiers could get out a word, their brains trying to reboot at the impossible sight. “Can you help me to get home?” The foal asked with slight concern.