Chapter 16: Counter Attack

I finally understood what was wrong with this war. She was totally at odds with my view of war. It wasn't that kind of conflict that I wanted to participate in. The men who participated in it had no will of their own, just robots that only obey.

-If I told you to throw yourself into the trenches right away, would you? "I asked my men". Obviously you will because these are the orders. And that's what the concern is, we don't discuss orders and that's quite logical.

- You contradict yourself a little sir. *Habib said*.

-Yes and no. To me, soldiers are above all human beings. I would never have told you to charge these trenches without a reliable plan. Know it, when I give an order it is because it is thought out in advance. *I say pointing them with my fingers*. The incident the day before yesterday is over. It is time for the 36th Regiment to change its way of doing things. And not only that. Now I would like to know who is the best shooter here.

The men turned and all began to stare at a shy-looking young man. He had brown hair and was short even though he barely maintained it. He was relatively short, around six feet tall, but he stood upright as ordered.

-Come here.

He walked squarely in my direction and I almost burst out laughing in front of my men.

-My lieutenant.

-What's your name?

-Cody, Cody Tamer sir. *He replied promptly*.

-Cody ... Said my little Cody, you wouldn't have lied a little about your age sometimes.

He shriveled when he saw that I had pierced his secret. Must say that by dint of seeing the wavelengths of certain people I ended up becoming a master in the art of probing men. Having said that, I vowed to never survey my family and that includes Friedich, Arianne and the others.

-Follow me Cody. We're gonna become the best friends in the world.

After the failed assault of the last time my unit was brought back to the rear HQ just to rest. Another group of cannon fodder had taken our place. I took the opportunity to rest and eat. In the afternoon while I was at the officers' mass I saw Lancell sit down opposite me.

-Sorry this is my last piece of bread.

-I am aware of what happened during the assault. I'm sorry for your men.

-If they had listened to me, the family letters service would have had less work. How are you doing?

- I must have lost 17 men and a few wounded but otherwise everything is fine.

-Hey ? *I said shocked*.

17 in all this mess, my ego just took a hit. Would Lancell be a better tactician than I am?

-It's thanks to the book you gave me. *He said*. My men are very disciplined and Decken helps me a lot.

-Happy for you.

I wrote several books on strategy when I was in high school. Depending on the period and the model to adopt. How to order ? My books were the solution.

- Besides, I passed it on to the other head of regiment and since they applied your advice the losses in their units are down. They jumped on it when they found out you were the author.

What an idiot I am the only one who does not apply my own advice. Maybe because deep down I wanted to fight a little nag.

-Zell. *Lancell said putting his hand on mine*. You can ask me anything you know. I'll do my best to help you.

-Lancell you're a genius. *I say, taking her hands*. I have instructions for you to the other lieutenants.

-Well slowly. * He said, blushing *.

-I'm counting on you brother. I say stroking her head.

Later I went to where my men were and gathered them in the yard.

- Guys, I have some news for you. *I said*. From now on you will begin an intensive training program with the other sections of the battalion. I have already referred it to Colonel Dietrich and he agrees.

It's false but nobody knows anything.

-We are going to review together everything from A to Z. What you are now, in my eyes you are not soldiers. You are not even shit but you are not far off. In the following week you will have to assimilate a maximum of knowledge that the basic soldier must know. I leave the rest to Warrant Officer Lineberg.

Fried cracked his fingers and walked over to the regiment with a sadistic smile.

-Finally you decide to act. *He said*. Take my advice, folks, and the war will seem unbelievably easy.

-One last thing. CODYYYYY *I screamed*.

-SIR. *He said coming out of the ranks*.

-Take your gun and 5 boxes of ammo, we go to the front.

-Frontline ?

- Hurry, we don't have all the day.

We went there in a car with my driver. Once in the area I greeted my superiors and went to the front line with him. Cody was all shaky as we sat above the trench. He put down his bags of dirt as I had shown him and got into a firing position.

-My little Cody, how far can you go without scope ? *I say taking out my binoculars*.

-Without scope ?

-With a metal sight. *I clarified*.

-Ah .... I would say 100 maybe 200 ...

-We'll say 300. Get in position.

-Yes sir. 300 *he whispered*.

-I hear you.

I saw him jump slightly then I chose the caracasse of a vehicle at 250 meters.

-You see him there.

-Yes.

-Touch the retro.

-The retro?

-Yes the rearview mirror. shoot.

He took his time, but he opened fire. The ball passes a few centimeters nearby.

-Start again.

-Who's there. *Said a lieutenant passing by*. The little genius Cailum not recovering from his failure?

-Again.

Cody drained his five shots and reloaded his gun.

-Hey I'm talking to you. *Yelled the officer*.

He was going to push me but I grabbed his hand and with a few movements I threw him to the ground. The soldier accompanying him pointed his rifle in my direction and Cody did the same.

-Calmos. We have an authorization from the colonel. Unless you want to report it directly to the division. The chief of staff is my uncle.

The lieutenant stood up and spat on the ground before cursing me.

-Bastard Noble.

I don't like to use my status to avoid taking the easy way out. But sometimes I prefer to avoid pissing myself off. Once he was away we went back to our business.

- Do you really have an authorization from the colonel?

-No. *I replied dryly*.

-Eeeeeh ...

-But the Chief of Staff is really my uncle. *I say with a smirk*. Come on fire.

Cody ends up getting the trick. After half a day he had hit a significant number of targets over 250 meters. He wasn't quite Swan's level yet, but I wasn't looking for perfection either. The next day we trained on moving targets at HQ. Birds, balls dropped in the sky and many more. Right across Friedich who was running his guys.

-Come on ladies. At this rate the war will be over.

-When you want to hit a moving target. Targets its point of arrival. *I said*. The bullets also moves. She has a weight and the wind affects her. The further away your target is, the harder it is to hit because the bullet is affected by the wind. Its penetrating force is also affected.

An officer passing by stared at me in amazement.

- Takes into account all these parameters.

-Yes sir.

The soldier threw one of the ball in the air and Cody managed to hit it on the first shot.

-Good job. *I say giving him a book*. Read the chapter on snipers and you'll see everything in it.

-It's you .... *Said the officer who put his hand on my shoulder.* You are the author of the book.

-I don't see what .....

-I'm a big fan ... What you write has changed a lot of things about ..... And shit I didn't introduce myself. I'm Captain Michner from HQ. I have just been assigned to Company B with the 36th.

I greeted him immediately to be polite to my new boss.

- No need to do the same ... I just wanted .... Woaaah. *He said in amazement*.

- Captain, could you do me a favor? *I said*

-All that you want.

I don't know why I felt this man was going to be of great help to me. After that I went to see Sabine. She had tried to save my old captain, I suspect she studied medicine.

- Sergeant Keita?

-Second Lieutenant Cailum?

-You won't have done medical school by chance?

-Just a year. I got kicked out following a plot hatched by girls who didn't like my skin color. I tried to defend myself but the judge said the army or the jail. I chose the army.

Interesting profile. And since she tried to save this asshole the other day, she doesn't give a fuck as long as she saves people.

-People like me struggle to find a decent job because of people like you. *She told me bluntly*.

-Reassure you I'm not on that side. How would you like to become the medic in my regiment ?

-Me ?! She wondered.

A plastic dummy served us as a guinea pig.

-Always look for the exit points of the ball. If there isn't one, you have to try to get it out as quickly as possible. A bullet is a foreign body filled with bacteria and it can easily become infected. *I explained.*

The seminars I gave on the front were more and more followed. Thanks to Captain Michner the whole company was part of it. He might have been a fat guy, but he was a nice guy. So I was able to continue the training. The training of infantrymen or the training of Sniper while passing by the first aid. I was only recycling those who could not have had the same training as me by adding a few personal touches. To help me I called on my friends from 51st who were with Lancell. So I could see faces like Yago Finsh or Bryce Hartkins again.

-If the blood starts to flow apply pressure on the fist to enter to stop the bleeding.

-It might hurt him sir? *Asked a soldier*.

- Better if it hurts a little that he just dies. *Sabine retorted*

I smiled at her and continued with my lesson. The whole battalion had changed into a training camp. At the end of the week I went back to the front line with Cody.

-Fix that. It is a somewhat special telescope. *I said*.

-About what?

-Do it.

He did so and got into position. The scope was attached to the left side of the weapon.

-As you can see there is a lag between what your telescope shows you and the place where your gun is pointed.

-It's crazy sir.

-Hm, what do you see?

-I see their trench. I see the guys bustling about. I see ... A mortar? He shouted.

-No panic. What is the first rule of the book?

-Always keep control even if your companions leave in lint.

-Exact. Print it in your brain. We're going to do an adjustment pull. The last time we had chosen a deserted place. This time the enemy will retaliate.

- Take cover then sir.

-It's nice to worry. Stand up.

-Hey but I will ....

-We will try a certain position, prepare yourself.

After emptying two boxes of magazines and triggering an accidental firefight between the two camps Cody was all set.

-The guy with the machine gun. Fire.

An impeccable shot in the head. He was definitely progressing very quickly.

-The guy running there. He's a messenger. shout him down.

He concentrated because the target was moving. There is a big lag between distance, speed and the time it takes for the bullet to hit the target. Despite that he hits his target.

-Touch.

-No I brushed the back of his neck. *He said*. His helmet saved him sir.

-Whatever. Aim at the guy in the blockaus there. He's an officer. You see him ?

-Yes.

-The guy next door is a sniper like you. You see it ?

-Yes sir.

-Kill the officer.

He fired and the officer collapsed. The destabilized enemy sniper tried to escape but was shot in the kidney. I then indicated the mortar position and Cody blew up their ammunition. In one day the young boy's face had changed. I watched him proudly.

-Good job.

The time passed quickly. After our joint exercises I went to the colonel's tent to tell him about my plan, no matter how hard he was. At first he laughed before staring straight at me like he was dealing with a madman.

- You are stupid to ask me that. Even to you Cailum I cannot accept .....

-Up to you. Either you follow my plan or we all die on the next rotation.

-We are not officially at war with the Yukon. All such action ....

-In this case tell the division to write a statement.

- Enough of your arrogance Cailum. *He said raising his voice.*

Behind my sunglasses it was impossible for him to know what I was hiding, however I looked away before heading for the exit.

-You better think about it sir. Otherwise we will all fit between 4 boards.

- I should arrest you right now.

-I'm not holding you back. But in reality what I see saying next is exactly what will happen if you do nothing.

The best way to impose your ideas is to put people in front of the fact. I don't know who said that anymore, but he was right. When we found ourselves again on the front line, we were about 5 lieutenant on the base quadruple. What I had said about the strength of the regiments could vary quickly in wartime. You quickly find yourself dealing with orphan soldiers. As a result, the size of your regiment goes from 200 to 1000 men in a very short time. The first line had changed in 3 weeks of absence. Having undergone heavy shelling there was now an incredible fog of war making visibility between the two armies almost nil.

-So what do you say? Habib asked.

-They won't attack. Maintain a guard at 10%.

- One in ten men, sir?

- As many guys as possible should be resting by then. Spin the info.

How to carry out a night attack without being noticed? The ideal would already be to avoid enemy projectors but with this fog between our two trenches they have become obsolete. How to silence 5000 men who are charging a trench? It's simple we stuffed our boots with feathers. A surprise attack and again a night attack is done in silence. We move in groups of twenty taking care not to be heard. I categorically refused to let an idiot scream at the moment of the fateful assault. We had launched the assault around 4 am and it took us over 30 minutes to cross. As the enemy trench was in sight I motioned to the guys to take aim.

-Fire. I whispered.

Our perfectly synchro shots took out the guards without anyone hearing them. Why this ? Quite simply because we used crossbows, and for the time there was no quieter weapon.

-Secure trench.

-Open area.

-Recharge the crossbows we have more than one shot per head.

With 200 men, the first enemy line was quietly invested. The rest of the plan was going to be much more brutal. Each team had a well-defined role. By infiltrating the enemy's trenches, grenades were thrown into the underground barracks which served as their resting area. The noise awoke the whole garrison, at least what was left.

-All chaaaaarge. *Shouted Friedich*.

Our guys stay in the rear rushed towards the enemy lines, screaming.

-Band of morons. I sighed. And then fuck. Everybody with me. I screamed.

We cleaned the trenches we had passed. Some soldiers raised their hands to surrender but there was really no time to take prisoners. I finished them off with a bullet to the heart.

-Don't stop. *I tell my men*.

These guys were damn efficient. We condensed 9 weeks of training into 2 but the result was impeccable. I had succeeded in instilling in them the basics of CQB.

-Keep your gun pointed in the direction you are aiming. *Troy said to one of his men*.

Another who had cleaned a barracks came up with his gun pointed upwards. Troy slammed him against the wall and nearly finished him off.

-It's me sir. Danny. *He said scared*.

-Never point your gun at your allies stupid. *He said*.

While we had cleared the first two trenches the 3rd opened fire on us with mortar and machine guns. We stayed well inside.

-At my signal, all the sniper shut down the machine guns.

I waited for the interval between each burst then I gave the order. The synchronization. This is the second gift that Ares gave me. By aligning my wavelength with that of an ally I can awaken in him his latent potential. It includes Decken's reflexes, Swan's analytical skills, or Friedich's strength. And even the charisma in some. I did not use it on Cody or other yet the sync of their shooting was impeccable.

-Clear.

-Continue the suppresive fire.

-Yes sir.

The rest of the group charged into the 3rd Trench as the enemy fired at us. We were really in a bad remake of 1917. Except that our assault did indeed have a goal. With each charge that one led on an enemy position, ten of our own were brought down. However, the 3rd trench capitulated very quickly and for good reason our Snipers were doing an impeccable job. With that we had managed to seize their artillery, their mortar, and the ammunition.

-Bunker Clear.

-Blockaus clear.

-Armory clear.

-Very well. *I yelled* Take the wounded to the bunkers and treat them.

-Finsh bring the radio back. *Shouted Friedich*.

-I come.

The day was gradually breaking and the enemy had lost its main outpost. Our assault made it possible to push back the front line. It will still cost us a tenth of our guys. However, the hardest part was yet to come.

-What happens next? *Asked me for one of the lieutenant during the strategy meeting*.

-Now we defend.

The enemy bombardments began an hour after their trenches were stormed. We therefore took the opportunity to hide in their well sheltered bunker.

-It's nice of them to have dug these tunnels for us. *joke Danny*

-They are more comfortable than ours anyway. *Bryce said*

-What's up it Streiss you're all calm today. *Asked a guy*.

It was in his interest, although this little asshole stuck out my eyes I would be the last of the son of a bitch to deprive him of what still makes him triumph in life. Also during training I went to see him at the jail .

-You came kidding is it ?

-Exactly. *I replied*. Alas it's not as funny as I hoped.

-What do you want ? Haven't you humiliated me enough like that?

- It was you who humiliated me by leading 95 of my men to death. In general I won't give a fuck but those ones were under MY responsibility. And they died by YOUR fault.

He looked down and looked away.

-I know what you're feeling. I was the same at one time.

The guard came and opened the cell. Streiss looked at me in surprise.

- Lieutenant?

-I believe in the second chance. The second and last chance. You will participate with us in the attack.

After the bombardments we quickly got out of the bunkers and that's where the enemy charged our lines on horseback. The cavalry yeah, they thought it worked like that in our time.

-Install the machine guns. *Lancell ordered*

There was a machine gun on the flanks of the trench so as to form crossfire. The enemies then appear less numerous instead of a huge block in front of us. It is a system that the Germans put in place during the Battle of the Some. And it turned out to be damn effective with 16,000 English dead in one day. I let you imagine the number of enemies that we were in the process of liquidating. While the cavalry was charging, a trump card was brought into play which had been kept in the sleeve. The bullets killed both horses and riders. Enemy skulls were jumping and limbs were torn off by mortar shells.

-Saber tooth here Grimnir you read me ?

-Here Saber Tooth I get you 5 out of 5. *Swan replied*.

-Very well I'm sending you the coordinates of these guys. *Friedich said*.

-Thank you Grimnir. Get out your umbrellas, it's going to rain a lot of shell.

Swan's artillery was insanely precise in, believing he was seeing where he was aiming. A guy took a shell in the face. His body was thrown into the air cut in half. It was quite a disturbing spectacle for all of us. The guy had flown about ten meters in the sky and he saw the lower part of his body facing him. In his gaze he found it hard to realize what was happening to him and it was understandable.

-MOLON LABE. I screamed out loud.

-MOLON LABE. Repeated my men.

Molon Labe, the motto of the Spartans who worshiped the god of war. This cry motivated warriors on the battlefield. And it simply meant "Come and take". Come if you dare.

- Shoot keep shooting. I screamed.

-At your service.

During the Russo-Japanese war the Japanese army pushed back an enemy cavalry more than 2km away. Our shots didn't have to be precise. A thousand bolt-action rifles that shoot in the pile are enough to slow them down. To ensure the effectiveness of the device a line had formed above the trench and the other with the guys squatting. Add to that the mortars we diverted from the enemy and get you a real wall of lead. This carnage continued for about an hour. At one point our guys were signaling the Yukonites to fall back. Those good guys didn't deserve this, any general supposed to order his men to fall back. Yet nothing at all and the bodies were piling up.

-We are running out of ammunition sir.

-Cailum. *One of the lieutenants yelled*. We have to get out of this position.

-Zell we have to fall back. *Lancell yelled.*

- Piss off. *Prepare for departure.*

Leave while we have the advantage. It rebuts me. But I had no choice, the life of my men above all. Too bad we'll see that again when I have more men under my command. Everyone was in order to start according to what I had told them but there were only a few hundred of us left and a thus was heard.

-What's that noise ? *Said Troy.*

-The sky look at the sky.

-These motherfuckers are bombing their own guys. Run. *Habib yelled*.

From where I was I saw Lancell evacuate his last men. The bombardments were closing in on his position. I then ran in his direction and pounced on him to protect him. Alas a shell fell on our position.

-Damn it where did i make a mistake?

To be continued