It's better to conquer them than to command the steel torrent

Chapter 224 | Racing Against Time

The 4th Battalion of the 202nd Guards Airborne Infantry Brigade of Imperial Russia was in an even worse situation. Because the transport plane leading the formation had gone astray, the 4th Battalion was 15 kilometers off course from its intended coordinates.

To make matters worse, three-quarters of the battalion's paratroopers landed right above Marianna's reserve positions. The Imperial Russian paratroopers thus became prime targets, becoming easy targets for Marianna's soldiers below with light machine guns and anti-aircraft guns!

Faced with intense light and heavy fire, the Imperial Russian paratroopers suffered heavy casualties, with only a very small number escaping.

The most crucial battle took place at the 'Belsil' firing position west of Sedan Fortress, which contained more than a dozen large-caliber howitzers protected by reinforced concrete bunkers, as well as four heavy mortar bunkers.

Two to three hundred Imperial Russian paratroopers launched a surprise attack without fully assembling, engaging in a brutal offensive and defensive battle with the defenders. By the time Marianne's reinforcements arrived to relieve the siege, half of the artillery had been destroyed.

The Imperial Russian paratroopers fought to the last man, even when they were in dire straits, they fought to the bitter end, and very few surrendered, thus delaying the war for a great deal of time.

Due to the fierce attacks by the Imperial Russian paratroopers, the 155mm howitzers and 135mm mortars of the Bersil fortress could only fire intermittently for a considerable period of time, unable to provide effective fire support to the front-line troops.

The disastrous consequences of Marianne's command's earlier misjudgment quickly became apparent.

Two-thirds of the Air Force's combat units are deployed in the Low Countries, and a quarter are deployed in the Taliban. There are very few fighter squadrons in the eastern region.

Caught off guard, the Ivanos Empire's air force almost seized air superiority for a time.

Fortunately, the MS406 and D520 fighters of the Marianna Air Force were far superior in performance to the I-16 fighters. Marianna pilots used their superior performance to cause great trouble for the invaders, shooting down many transport planes, including the transport plane carrying the commander of the 7th Brigade of the 2nd Airborne Corps, which killed Colonel Bezughlai on the spot.

In fact, most of the Imperial Russian paratroopers who landed were annihilated by Marianne's army after they had reacted, leaving only scattered and isolated light infantry who were too vulnerable to a proper field army.

Moreover, unlike the 101st Airborne Division paratroopers in Bastogne in history, the Imperial Russian paratroopers did not hold pre-established positions and were also subject to heavy snow in winter.

The Imperial Russian paratroopers paid an unprecedented price, including their elite forces—the Guards Airborne Infantry Brigade.

The Sedan Fortress and the Maas River became the graveyards of Imperial Russian paratroopers.

This 'bait' played a decisive role, not only eliminating a portion of the highly threatening heavy artillery but also drawing the attention of Marianne's army. The ferocity of the elite Russian paratroopers also terrified many.

Meanwhile, the ground troops that broke out of the Ardennes Forest also advanced rapidly to the riverbank, preparing to force a crossing of the Maas River.

The 2nd Guards 'Orlova' Tank Brigade established a temporary position east of the Maas River, and the 1st Guards 'Solovyova' Tank Brigade followed closely behind, establishing a foothold about 4 kilometers away.

Subsequently, the 1st Special Vehicle Brigade and the 38th Engineer Brigade also followed suit.

The 1st Special Vehicle Brigade is a newly formed unit, established just a few weeks ago. It was cobbled together from several vehicle recovery companies and artillery companies, and is equipped with seventy or eighty makeshift self-propelled guns based on T-34 chassis, a motley collection including:
| Self-propelled howitzers, 33 vehicles equipped with 122mm howitzers.

| Self-propelled cannons, 11 vehicles equipped with 107mm cannons

| Self-propelled anti-aircraft guns, 32 vehicles equipped with 25mm or 37mm anti-aircraft guns

These T-34s were all temporarily modified during repairs after being damaged; they were simply welded cannons and 8mm steel plates, making them rudimentary and hastily modified.

In addition, the special vehicle brigade also has 24 76.2 mm self-propelled cannons converted from BT-7 tanks.

This was the solution devised by Brigadier General Frolov of the General Staff. Since towed artillery couldn't pass through the Ardennes Forest, they figured out a way to load the artillery onto vehicles. These fewer than one hundred makeshift self-propelled guns were the best Ivanros could manage in a short time. Colonel Tikhonov, formerly the commander of Orlova's Tank Brigade, was now a brigadier general. His staff reported him both good news and bad news.

The good news was that the sporadic long-range artillery fire from Mariana's army posed no threat; the bad news was that the main force was under air attack and would be at least two and a half hours late.

Brigadier General Tikhonov ordered all units to organize assault groups, force a crossing of the Maas River to establish a bridgehead, and also demanded that the engineering corps erect a pontoon bridge as quickly as possible.

Every second counts! Everything must proceed with utmost speed!
Taking action without conducting detailed and thorough reconnaissance is extremely risky. The hydrological conditions are unclear, and a forced crossing is very likely to fail.

Therefore, the naval infantry brigade responsible for the amphibious landing launched a full-scale attack without leaving any reserves, organizing five or six reinforced battalion-level assault groups to simultaneously cross the amphibious assault from multiple locations.

The Imperial Russian Strike Army inevitably encountered a series of problems—the water was too deep for the marines to cross the river, the pontoon bridge suddenly collapsed, and tanks got stuck in the mud and couldn't move, etc.

Even so, the invaders' tenacity and madness deeply shocked the defenders.

The vanguard that crossed the river first even dared to launch a preemptive attack with only four or five tanks. Four or five T-34s and more than a hundred Marines charged toward the 164th Regiment of the 55th Infantry Division of Mariana, which was assembling, throwing Mariana's army into chaos. Of course, in the end, only one T-34 withdrew...

5月6日傍晚18时45分，‘布苏尔’火力据点以东9公里。

"Da da—da da da—"

"Send the infantry! Sweep through!"

A remnant of Imperial Russian paratroopers retreated to a forest and low-lying area, where they put up a stubborn resistance. Marianne's army dispatched armored vehicles and infantry to assist in the mopping-up operation. After several hours of fierce fighting, the last dozen or so survivors were all shot dead.

"Finally, we've dealt with them. Those die-hard Ivanross, were there any prisoners?"

Cecil Morrow pushed open the hatch and poked her upper body out of the turret of her Panhard armored vehicle.

An infantry lieutenant replied cursingly, "Only a few wounded. Damn it, they've kept us waiting for so long, and now it's dark."

Moro jumped out of the car, stretched, and moved her stiff hands and legs. She complained, "I'm so hungry. We should have dinner. Hurry up and have the field kitchen at the battalion headquarters send some bread over."

The 3rd Mechanized Division, to which Moreo belonged, had been withdrawn from Hungary two months prior. It had been classified as part of the 2nd Army and stationed near the Maas River line.

Just as the officers and soldiers of the 12th Cuirassier Regiment were wolfing down their bread, they suddenly received an order to "reinforce the 55th Infantry Division as soon as possible."

But just half an hour later, the order changed to 'the situation has changed' and 'reinforcements are suspended,' which left everyone confused.

The officers were confused by the inconsistent orders, unsure of what to do, as their superiors had ordered them to remain in place.

"Then let's take a break. Aren't you all tired after fighting all day?" Moro didn't seem to care. She called out to a few infantrymen, "Hey, you guys come over here and help us change a tire."

Amidst confusion and chaos, a crisis looms...

(End of this chapter)