Chapter 3

Finally, Durani took one last look at the Soviet tanks disappearing at the end of the road, gritted his teeth, and followed Muhammad along the small path.

In fact, Muhammad had already distinguished himself by destroying one Soviet tank. Now, the Afghan guerrillas had suffered enough from the Soviet armored forces, which was why they had invited these Pakistani instructors.

Apart from Pakistan, there were also instructors from a certain Eastern country.

However, once they arrived here, they had no nationality. If something happened and they were captured, it could not be acknowledged.

As for Muhammad, it was even more so. If he died, his body would likely be left in the deep mountains to be eaten by wolves.

At this moment, Muhammad was brimming with fighting spirit.

The six tanks of the 42nd Tank Regiment were continuing to advance, completely unaware.

"Has the 413th tank not caught up yet?" asked Lieutenant Belikov from the middle tank, referring to the tank that had already been destroyed.

"No, we can't contact them by radio either," said the loader, who also served as the radio operator.

"It's mountainous terrain; our radio signals are not good," the gunner explained to Belikov.

Damn mountains, sometimes the radio signals would suddenly disappear. This T-62 tank's radio was an old model. They were originally a second-line unit, and their equipment was never updated in time. Now, they had to complete a task that only an elite corps could accomplish.

Many had already grown tired of life here.

"Continue forward. After reaching Area 3, we will wait for 413," said Belikov.

Puganov of 413 always lagged behind. If he had known, he should have placed him in the middle, not let him clean up the battlefield. That guy was probably playing with the dead bodies right now. Belikov was very dissatisfied, but there was nothing he could do; the radio had no signal.

During the pursuit, they had left the infantry behind. According to the last contact, the infantry would wait for them in Area 3, eighty kilometers away.

The rumbling of the tanks, even just sitting inside, could make one's mood irritable. The tank was a solid chunk of iron.

Belikov couldn't hold it in any longer. He opened the hatch on top, raised his seat, and exposed half of his body.

All around were barren mountains, not a single tree. The sun shone fiercely on the ground. Belikov turned his body halfway but saw nothing pleasant.

Life was better back at the base, along the Caspian Sea, where beautiful women were everywhere. What a pity.

"Captain, be careful of snipers," the gunner reminded him.

Once they left the base, they had to stay inside the tank. This was an order issued by headquarters a year ago.

No one really followed it. Running for hours, completely inside the tank, was unbearable.

But hearing the gunner's reminder, he still retracted his body back into the turret and pressed the switch on the throat microphone: "Attention, we will soon enter a canyon. Be cautious of guerrilla ambushes on both sides. 402, 404, use the high-caliber machine guns to fire at the mountain tops."

Although they didn't need to treat every blade of grass as an enemy, Belikov still needed to be more cautious about the terrain.

Following his order, the hatches of the two leading tanks opened, forming a half-shield behind. Reluctantly, the loaders climbed out and began operating the high-caliber machine guns on top of the turrets.

This task was dangerous. Originally, the T-62 did not have a high-caliber machine gun. It was proven difficult to use it against the enemy's attack helicopters. However, it could still be used against other targets, so later, all T-62s were equipped with a 12.7 mm high-caliber machine gun. Now, this machine gun was useful for sweeping the mountain peaks.

However, although it was installed, it could not be fired remotely. The loader had to climb out to shoot, making him a good target for the enemy's snipers.

If there were accompanying infantry, they could climb the slopes on both sides to protect the armored forces. Now, they could only rely on the loaders.

Loading the ammunition belt, turning off the safety, the loader aimed the high-caliber machine gun at the bare mountain top.

"Rat-tat-tat." Pulling the trigger, a stream of fire spewed from the machine gun's muzzle.

Dust flew up on the distant slope.

"Instructor, have we been discovered?" Durani's heart tightened at the sound of the machine gun.

"Of course not. The Soviets are just randomly firing at the mountain sides. It's a probing shot," Muhammad said.

"How do you know?" Durani suddenly asked.

Do you think this is a TV show? Muhammad explained to Durani, "Listen, the enemy's machine gun is firing in bursts, at least twenty to thirty rounds at a time, covering a wide area. This is a probing shot. If they had really discovered us, skilled shooters would use three-round bursts to eliminate the target. Now, go back to your position and get ready. Fight bravely to drive the Soviets away! Allah is great!"

Hearing Muhammad's words, Durani felt reassured and bravely prepared for the fight.

"Yes, we will drive the Soviets away!" Durani said and quickly moved to his position.

If Muhammad had more people, he would have placed them on the mountain peaks to attack the weak top armor of the tanks from above. However, Muhammad now had only two people, while the enemy had six tanks. So, he had to hide at the exit of the valley, planning to destroy one Soviet tank first.

The valley was long and narrow, with the entrance and exit also narrow. Several large rocks blocked the entrance and exit, allowing only one tank to pass. So, as long as the first tank was destroyed, the valley entrance would be blocked. Then, Durani would wait on the other side of the valley entrance for the Soviets to retreat. If they were lucky and destroyed another tank, the remaining four would be trapped.

This valley was an excellent place for an ambush, like tightening both ends of a sack, leaving no one inside to escape.

Now, hearing the rumbling of the approaching tanks and feeling the ground tremble, Muhammad hid behind a large rock at the valley's exit. Soon, he would act when the Soviet tanks arrived.

The six T-62 tanks were cautiously advancing in the valley. The hatches on the right side of the leading two tanks were open, and the loaders fired at the mountain tops every few seconds. The ammunition belts rattled, and the machine guns spewed fire, sending dust and sparks flying on the slopes.

Suddenly, the loader's machine gun stopped, and his body fell on the gun.

This time, the shooting stopped a few seconds earlier than before.

"Hey, Nikolai, keep firing," the gunner pushed him.

Suddenly, the gunner felt something wet on his hand. Looking closer, it was red.

Red liquid flowed down Nikolai's body.

Sniper! There was an Afghan guerrilla sniper on the slope!

It wasn't that the sniper used a silenced rifle, but that the sniper was very skilled, knowing to shoot when Nikolai was firing. The machine gun and engine noise masked the sound of the shot. The sniper was a seasoned veteran, likely using an AKM.

"Report, there are Afghan guerrilla snipers on both sides," the commander immediately reported to the lieutenant over the radio.

"Speed up and get out of here," Belikov shouted over the radio.

Now, in the valley, with snipers on both sides, they were in a difficult position. Their only weapon, besides the high-caliber machine guns, was the 115 mm smoothbore cannon, which could destroy the enemy, but the sides were too high, and the tank's elevation was too low to reach them.

The high-caliber machine guns could be used, but they were not remote-controlled, and the tank crew had to expose themselves, making them vulnerable to snipers, as seen just now.

The terrain was unfavorable, so they needed to get out of here first. Later, they could use the tank cannons to fire high-explosive shells and flatten the suspicious areas.

Hiding inside the tank, Belikov saw through the periscope that a dozen people were rushing down the slopes on both sides.

Indeed, they were Afghan guerrillas!

What? Why was there a fight up ahead? On the way, Muhammad didn't know that another guerrilla group was hiding on the mountain.

However, seeing the leading T-62 tank almost in front of him, Muhammad didn't hesitate. He stood up from his hiding place, and the RPG-7 on his shoulder was his only hope.

The round turret was so clear in the sight. He pulled the trigger!