Chapter 10

The anti-artillery shelter was a large basement, dimly lit and damp, looking like a boiler room. When I entered, it was completely empty, and I couldn't help but feel a bit angry. The women soldiers in my platoon were really out of line, not a single one obeying my order to take shelter from the German artillery fire here.

I thought about going out to teach them a lesson, but the rumbling of the artillery outside made me hesitate. I sat on a long bench against the wall, recalling the shells that had exploded near the observation post earlier, which still made my heart race and my breathing quicken. My legs were trembling uncontrollably.

"Lyda," Jeanne suddenly appeared at the entrance, slightly out of breath, and said, "Why are you hiding here? We've been looking for you everywhere."

"Ah," Jeanne's sudden appearance rescued me from my fear. I took a deep breath and tried to sound calm as I asked, "What's the matter?"

"German soldiers have been spotted behind our position. The deputy platoon leader sent me to find you. If I couldn't find you here, I was going to look for you at the observation post."

"Oh, Germans have appeared behind the hill!" Hearing this, I felt a bit more at ease. When I was at the observation post, I had heard Khlopov say that the Germans were trying to bypass us and cross the road to attack the rear defense positions, cutting off the hill from the rear. Although I didn't know what kind of battle was about to unfold, I was certain that the German offensive would fail. This was an unchangeable fact; otherwise, Leningrad would have fallen long ago. So I remained seated on the bench and asked calmly, "What kind of Germans?"

"I... I don't know," she answered, a bit flustered. "The sentry on duty said he spotted Germans. I thought I should report it to you first, and then you could report it to the higher-ups..."

The artillery fire outside stopped. Although I had been anxious a moment ago, that fear was now gone. Everything had returned to normal. I interrupted her, "How many Germans?"

"Comrade Platoon Leader!" Jeanne, influenced by my calmness, also regained her composure. "The report came from the platoon's roving sentry. She said the Germans..."

"What kind of force...?"

"I can't tell," Jeanne replied, realizing her answer was inadequate. "I think we must report this immediately! ... While I was looking for you, the deputy platoon leader went to the cliff to observe the enemy."

I stood up and said to Jeanne, "Let's go. Take me to see the Germans."

Katerina and the two squad leaders from the second and third squads were standing at the edge of the cliff, using binoculars to observe the enemy below. I walked up to Katerina and asked in a low voice, "How's the situation down there?"

"The situation is not good," she said, handing me her binoculars with a worried look. "There are probably about a battalion of Germans, supported by three tanks and ten armored vehicles, advancing towards the northern side of the road. The defense line might be breached."

"Perhaps not," I said with a dismissive smile, raising the binoculars to look down at the hill. A few hundred meters away on the road, German infantry were advancing in a dispersed formation towards the northern side of the road. Three heavy tanks were leading the way, firing their guns and machine guns, moving slowly and crushing bushes, stumps, and barbed wire under their tracks.

The defending troops, possibly lacking anti-tank weapons, occasionally leaped out of their trenches, carrying explosives to attack the tanks, but they were quickly mowed down by the machine guns on the armored vehicles behind the tanks. The tanks stopped about fifty meters from the trenches, firing their guns and machine guns to cover the infantry as they dismounted from the armored vehicles and took up advantageous positions.

"Katerina, assemble the platoon immediately," I ordered decisively, seeing the situation below becoming increasingly critical. Katerina acknowledged and ran off to gather the troops.

In no time, the fully armed women soldiers ran over and lined up in front of me in three neat rows. Jeanne, the second squad leader Nalisha, and the third squad leader Nadia also returned to the ranks. Katerina stepped forward and saluted me, "Comrade Platoon Leader, the platoon is assembled. Please give your instructions."

I stepped forward and addressed the thirty-odd women soldiers with a serious expression, "Comrades, the situation is very serious. The Germans have bypassed us and are attacking the militia division on the northern side of the road. The militia has no combat experience and will find it difficult to hold back the enemy. We need to support them..."

"Comrade Platoon Leader," the second squad leader Nalisha interrupted me, "How can we support them? There's a cliff behind us, and we can't go down."

"Who said we need to go down?!" I replied sharply, annoyed by her interruption. "We will support them from the hill with our firepower."

"But we only have rifles, which won't be very effective," she said bravely, despite sensing my displeasure.

"Who said we need to use rifles?" I paused deliberately and then announced dramatically, "I have decided to use the anti-aircraft machine guns for direct fire."

"Direct fire?!" Her eyes lit up with surprise. "You're right, the anti-aircraft machine guns can provide strong fire support to the militia. However..." She hesitated, "According to regulations, changing the use of weapons requires approval from higher-ups..."

"Enough," I interrupted her impatiently. These Russians are so rigid. By the time we get approval, the northern side of the road will probably already be breached by the Germans. "I will take full responsibility. Here are the orders: Deputy platoon leader Katerina and the second squad leader will remain at the original gun positions to maintain air defense. First squad leader Jeanne and third squad leader Nadia will immediately bring the anti-aircraft machine guns here. We need to engage in battle immediately and eliminate these German soldiers. Understand?"

"Understood," the women soldiers shouted with high morale.

"First anti-aircraft machine gun is in position."

"Third anti-aircraft machine gun is in position."

I stood at the edge of the cliff, raised my right hand high, and shouted while observing the enemy through the binoculars, "First machine gun, target: German tanks."

"Understood, target: German tanks," Jeanne, sitting in the gunner's position, repeated my order loudly.

"Third machine gun, target: armored vehicles to the right of the tanks."

"Target: German armored vehicles," Nadia also repeated my order loudly.

"Fire!" As I shouted, I swung my hand down, and the two anti-aircraft machine guns opened fire, sending a barrage of vengeful bullets towards the enemy.

Through the binoculars, I saw an armored vehicle hit by a dense barrage of bullets, immediately emitting thick smoke like a burning torch. The bullets clanged against the tank armor, but only produced a series of sparks, indicating that at this distance, the machine gun bullets were not very effective against the tanks.

"Jeanne," seeing that the attack on the tanks was ineffective, I quickly ordered, "Stop firing at the tanks and target the armored vehicles and infantry on the sides."

The German tanks, under attack, stopped shelling the militia positions and turned to fire at us on the hill. However, due to the angle, the shells all landed halfway up the hill, causing no damage. The infantry supporting the tanks also frantically turned their guns towards us, but their weapons' range was insufficient to harm us. To me, this was a one-sided slaughter.

One after another, the armored vehicles below were destroyed, and the explosions from the ammunition were continuous. Nearby infantry were mowed down by the flying shrapnel, and the survivors screamed and ran around with their guns.

More militia soldiers leaped out of their trenches and charged towards the German tanks. The Germans, now preoccupied with their own survival, could not organize an effective defense. The militia quickly reached the tanks. One tank burst into a brilliant flame that enveloped the entire massive body, then burst into a raging fire. The hatch cover clanged open, and a thick, flaming smoke billowed out, followed by several soldiers who jumped out, screaming and waving their arms, rolling on the ground to try to extinguish the fire on their uniforms.

Our anti-aircraft machine guns continued to roar, pouring ammunition into the German ranks, mercilessly cutting down the German soldiers. Where the bullets struck, no one was left standing.

The remaining two German tanks were also destroyed by the militia. The militia division began a full counterattack, and with our two-pronged assault, this group of German soldiers was doomed to be completely annihilated.