//------------------------------// // Chapter 6 // Story: Titans of war // by Trigger_Finger //------------------------------// “Sir… this is absurd! We’re not to communicate with the enemy!” James hissed. Alex looked to him with a cold glare as he continued to tune in the radio then finally found the frequency. “Do you see me Russian boy? Because I see you.” Alex spoke into the radio with an ice like voice. Vlad looked to their radio which, for the first time since they had arrived, crackled with Alex’s voice. The Russian man grabbed the radio before listening carefully. “You may have bested me before, Russian boy… but I know your game.” Alex spoke into the radio before looking to Jackson and nodding. “Armour piercing.” He ordered. Trixie looked to Jackson who quickly pointed to the AP rounds. She loaded one into the chamber of the main cannon then James quickly took aim. “Oh and James…” Alex spoke, almost in a whisper. James shakily looked up to his ruthless commander. “Don’t miss.” Alex said as he handed the soldier a homemade brew of alcohol, made just the way James made it. James smiled as he snatched the oil bottle then slammed back the entire drink in just a few gulps. His hands steadied as the alcoholic beverage quickly set in. He lined up the shot with the T90’s hull then pushed the fire button. CLICK. The entire crew looked to James who gulped. “MISSFIRE, GET OUT OF THE TANK!” Alex yelled. They all scrambled as they rushed out of the tank then for cover. In the T90, the crew sat in silence. “What do you think he’s going to do?” Dmitry asked fearfully. Vlad kept quiet then gulped. He knew far too well that the M1’s range scanners outmatched theirs and that they could be watching them right at this very moment for all he knew. “I don’t know… but let’s not stick around to find out.” Vlad stated. Dmitry nodded then quickly started the tank before speeding off down a canyon passage. “Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck… FUUUUUCCCCK!” Alex roared as he watched the T90 drive away. He looked back to his group who all had fear stricken across their faces. “Loader, you touched the shell last, it’s your duty to remove it.” Alex ordered Trixie who in turn gulped. “Sir… I’ll do it. She doesn’t know how to safely unload misfired shells.” Jackson spoke out. Alex scoffed then nodded. “I’ll go with you… James, Trixie, keep an eye on the tank.” Alex ordered then he and Jackson ran off towards the tank. They slipped in but as they did, their hearts began to race at exceeding rates. Sweat beat down their faces as Jackson stepped behind the chamber port. “Why did you stand up for her… she’s just a stupid animal?” Alex asked. Jackson shrugged. “If she fucked up… then our tank would be toast… and so would we.” Jackson replied. Alex smirked. “Well… let’s see if we’re toast.” He unlatched the seal and opened it, the shell came sliding out and Jackson caught it, trembling in fright for he knew, if he messed up, it would be the last thing he ever did. He held the shell as shivers went down his spine. “Come on, before that other tank gets away.” Alex hissed. The commander stepped out first and Jackson carefully handed him the misfired shell. Alex slid down the side of the tank with utmost precaution before slowly pacing along. Alex slowly walked over to the cannon wall then gently set the shell down before whistling to James and Trixie. As he reached the tank he looked to the two lookouts. “Which way did the tank go?” He asked. James just scratched the back of his head drunkenly, not remembering too much. “It went uhhm… well uhm, you see… I uhhhhh…” James slurred. Alex slapped him upside the head. “Drunken fuck!” He yelled. “Sir! They went that way, look, track marks.” Trixie announced. Alex paced over and looked to her find. He smiled then rubbed her check affectionately. Elsewhere… The T90 came to a complete stop as Dmitry checked the scanners then killed the engine. Vlad opened the hatch and took a peek with his set of binoculars. “SIR MOVEMENT, 9 O’CLOCK!” Dmitry spoke before Vlad could even spot anything. It took him a moment longer but he spotted the rustling of bushes nearby. “Hold your fire!” Vlad ordered, suspicious to what it was. There was no noise indicating that it was their enemy tank and it looked a little large to be human. Suddenly, several buffalo warriors rushed out and started hurling spears at the tank. Vlad swore as he sealed the hatch. The crazed buffalo began to pummel the tank armour but to no avail. “WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU’RE DOING?!” Vlad roared, loud enough so that the buffalo could hear him. “” The leading buffalo yelled. Luna quickly translated it to Vlad in English. “Tell them we’re not the ones who did it, that was someone else.” Vlad told Luna who quickly translated the message. The beatings stopped for a moment then one of the buffalo spoke again. “He asks why they should believe you?” Luna told him. Vlad rolled his eyes. “Tell him that if I was the one who destroyed the village, then why wouldn’t I have killed him yet?” Vlad told her. Luna quickly repeated the message in buffalo tongue. The group heard the buffalos step off the tank and Vlad cautiously opened the hatch. They all stood with spears ready but Vlad kept his hands where they could see them. “Friend…” Vlad spoke softly and slowly, to try and ease the tension. Some of the buffalo lowered their spears. He let out a deep exhale then slowly lowered his hands. In the distance sat the M1 Abrams and its crew as they spied on the Russians and the buffalo. “Elevation… four inches.” Alex told his gunner as he sighted in the spotting scope. Their scanners had all but been fried in the fire during their last battle so they had to rely on manual spotting. “Fire when ready.” Alex told the gunner. James took close aim with the main gun then fired. The 105mm cannon boomed in the silent air and the round erupted against the side of the T90, taking the entire group by surprise. “DMITRY, LET’S GET MOVING!” Vlad yelled. Dmitry flicked the switched for the tank to start but it just whined in retort. “DMITRY!” Vlad yelled. Without the tank moving, they were sitting ducks. The buffalo all scurried away as another round collided but not with the tank, with the group of buffalo. Finally the T90 roared to life and Vlad spun the main gun towards the M1’s location and quickly fired off a round that struck its side. As soon as the round collided with the opposing tank, it scampered off down a canyon passage. “DMITRY! Follow that tank!” Vlad boomed. Dmitry cranked the vehicle into gear but they only moved forwards a few feet before the cogwheels spun freely. The young Russian man groaned in defeat. “Sir… we’re off the track.” Dmitry reported. Vlad quickly peeked through the vision scope then swore regretfully. Moments later, Dmitry turned off the tank engine and the group exited the vehicle just as the buffalo returned. Dmitry let out a huffed sigh as he saw the damages. The round had shattered a linkage in the tread and the cogwheels had simply spun it off. The buffalo leader trotted up and spoke in native tongue before Luna translated it. “He asks how are we going to defeat them now?” She told them. “Dmitry, get Ivan’s equipment… I think he has something that could be of use.” Vlad ordered. The young Russian scurried into the tank just as a tractor contraption came racing into the gulley. The two stallion brothers hopped off their tractor and began to do a dance as they sang a song. “Shut up!” Vlad roared and the two became quiet and gulped. “How long will it take you to fix tank?” Vlad asked and the brother with the moustache answered. “A few hours, on one condition…” The stallion replied. “There will be no negotiating.” Vlad countered and the brother sighed as he shook his head. “Oh my dear chap, it’s nothing really. All I want in return is the rights to that other vehicle, the one you plan to destroy.” He stated. Vlad thought about it for a moment then nodded. “Excellent. The tank should be done by tomorrow morning.” He informed the group just as Dmitry hopped out of the tank. “TOMORROW! We don’t have that much time!” Vlad yelled. Dmitry rushed up and handed Vlad a rather large sack which he quickly opened, revealing and old RPG-7. “Why the hell would Ivan even have this?” Vlad muttered to himself. “Can it defeat that tank?” Dmitry asked. Vlad sighed as he thought about the possibilities which at the moment, seemed pretty slim. “Maybe.”