First battle

The three tanks advanced through the gradually dissipating fog, their engines roaring loudly enough to shake the very air around them. Behind them, a convoy of armored vehicles followed closely, carrying dozens of SS infantry soldiers who had dismounted and were now ready for combat. Even though only half of his body was exposed, Rennes could still feel the immense vibration from the tank's engine.

In the distance, the outlines of houses in a small village were just becoming visible through the fog. The SS soldiers quickly positioned their machine guns on a low wall beside the road, the distinctive clacking sound of bolts being pulled back filling the air. Rennes knew they were approaching the Polish defense line, prompting him to duck back into the safety of his tank's turret and slam the door shut.

"Clark! Search for targets up front! Open fire immediately if you spot anything," Rennes commanded, securing the door.

"Boom!" The ground shook slightly, signaling that one of the tanks had fired. However, it wasn't Rennes's tank that had discharged its weapon.

"Andrea! Brace yourself! Who found a target? Car 2! Marcus! Did you fire? Respond quickly!"

"His... His... Car 3... you... what?... I can't hear..." Marcus's voice crackled through the headphones, barely audible over the static. "1... on... hell!"

"Fire!... fire!" Another voice erupted, likely Carter, the commander of Car 1, issuing urgent commands.

"Damn! Car 1 has opened fire! Bowman! Reverse!" Rennes scrambled up from his seat, trying to open the hatch above him. "Car 2! Launch smoke bombs! Cover our retreat!"

"Smoke... bombs! Fired!" The response from Car 2 was clearer this time.

"Boom!" The hatch was open just in time for Rennes to hear another loud blast from outside. He was grateful for his headphones; without them, the noise would have been unbearable. However, the blast stirred up dust and debris, forcing him to retreat back into the tank, slamming the hatch shut as he cursed under his breath.

"Stop! Bowman! Stop! I'll say it again! Stop, you bastard!" Rennes yelled repeatedly until he finally felt the tank come to a halt. He then pushed open the hatch and climbed out again.

Lifting the binoculars hanging around his neck, Rennes surveyed the small village ahead. He could see over a dozen Polish defenders retreating, and among them, a French Renault FT-17 tank slowly backing up.

"Andre, 11 o'clock! See the infantry? Don't aim, just hit them with a grenade!" He quickly pressed the throat microphone, issuing another command, "Bruce! Load armor-piercing shells! Quick! Quick! Quick!"

As he felt his tank's turret slowly turn in response to his commands, Rennes noticed that the smoke from Car 2 had spread, obscuring his vision. Not far ahead, Car 1 was reversing, forced to knock down a roadside fence and veer into a ditch.

"Boom!" A violent jolt rocked Rennes's tank, throwing him off balance. His head slammed against the rear door, a sharp pain shooting through his skull.

"Damn it!" Clutching his head, Rennes stumbled back into his seat and tightened his grip on the armrest. "Aim and fire again! Target that Polish tank! Same direction!"

"Boom!" Car 2 fired once more, and a house in the village collapsed into a cloud of thick, black smoke. It was evident that Car 2 had missed its target and, in frustration, had shot at a building instead.

"Boom!" Tank 1 also fired, but given the angle of its barrel, it was unlikely the shell had hit anything.

Feeling the turret adjust slightly, Rennes instinctively tightened his grip on the handrail. "Boom!" The tank recoiled deeply as it fired, the brake compressing to its shortest position followed by a tremor.

Rennes hurriedly peered through the captain's periscope, spotting the French Renault tank about two or three meters to the left of their target. The shot had missed, but he saw a Polish tank driver and another crew member panic and flee from their vehicle.

"Suddenly! Suddenly! Suddenly! Suddenly!" The German machine guns erupted into action. Rennes climbed out of the tank again to see German infantry using his tank as cover, rushing into the village amidst flames and smoke. An armored vehicle sped past, its machine gun spitting fire continuously.

"Move forward!" Rennes ordered his driver through the throat microphone. "Advance! Load armor-piercing rounds! Keep an eye on 11 o'clock! Clark! Watch for infantry!"

Within seconds, Tank 113, commanded by Rennes, roared to life and began rolling toward the village. Tank 112, still emitting smoke, halted its panicked movements and followed suit.

"Car No. 2! Car No. 2! Do you copy?" Rennes kept calling through the intercom, seeking confirmation.

Finally, he received the reply he needed. "I am... No. 2... No. 1... may need help! I saw them turning into the ditch."

Not sure what had transpired, but relieved that his communication equipment was functioning better, Rennes pressed the talk button firmly. "There's an abandoned Polish tank in the farmland about 900 meters at 11 o'clock! It's a French Renault FT-17. I'm going to check it out! You go back and see if you can assist Car No. 1!"

"No. 2... I see! Take care of yourself!" Marcus's voice came through clearly this time.

The tank following Tank 113 stopped, then slowly began to reverse.

"Suddenly! Suddenly! Suddenly!" The front machine gun of Rennes's tank fired suddenly, followed by the mechanic's excited shout through the headset: "Polish! I hit him! Haha!"

"Front left!" Bowman, the driver, then shouted. "They're firing at us! From the left front! Cover me! I'm going to back up! Damn!"

As he spoke, Bowman brought the tank to a halt.

"See that? Ten o'clock! Andrea! Point the coaxial machine gun there! Aim high! There's a machine gun nest on the second floor!" Rennes used the captain's periscope to scan the left front for about twenty seconds before locating the Polish machine gun position. It was situated in a two-story chapel across the village square, its roof partially collapsed from a recent shell impact. Next to the chapel was the building Marcus had inadvertently destroyed.

As his tank began to reverse to adjust its position and angle, a German SS soldier, using their tank as cover, was hit by a Polish bullet and fell beside the road.

"Boom!" The German infantry retaliated, and a shot struck a Polish soldier protruding from an upper-floor window. The soldier cried out in pain and then hung limply by the window, his rifle swinging in the air.

"Suddenly!" Rennes kept his eyes on the machine gun nest through the captain's periscope. He knew his tank's coaxial machine gun had opened fire. The target area was quickly obscured by flying gravel and dust, but tracer rounds continued to pierce the smoke, effectively suppressing the Polish position.

"Cease fire! Andre! Stop firing!" Rennes kicked Andre's back gently to get his attention, then shouted the order.

After a brief pause, the tank's machine gun fell silent. The German infantry moved past the tank, rushing over the small square and up to the second floor of the chapel, where they discovered the bodies of five Polish defenders.

As the rumble of the engine filled the air, Rennes's Tank 113 halted in the farmland behind the chapel, near the abandoned French Renault FT-17, surrounded by several infantry guards.

Rennes pushed open the hatch, removed his headphones, hung them on the side hook, and jumped out of his tank. He walked over to inspect the crater created by their tank shell and examined the FT-17 closely. The track on one side of the French tank was broken and covered with rust, which could have been caused by neglect or possibly from the impact of their shell.

A German soldier sitting on the engine of the Renault tank mocked the disabled vehicle: "We're both in battle for the first time, but you guys seem to only shoot at the sky, huh?"

Rennes pointed to his own tank, indicating the dented fender and the scratches on the front armor plate from bullet impacts, but he remained silent. He knew that despite the chaos, they had managed to suppress a machine gun nest, force the enemy to abandon a tank, and eliminate about six or seven Polish soldiers. Compared to the outcomes for Tank 1 and Tank 2, this was a significant achievement.