Chapter 94 - Tanks
Chapter 94 – Tanks
"Del, are you sure we are going to do this?" Anna asked.
"Yeah, it's quick money, and it's definitely way easier than fighting special forces, and Anna, don't forget, their eyes aren't as sharp as those spec-ops boys that we saw," Del said.
"They're tanks, but I get your point, we can use range to our advantage, such as shooting them from half a kilometer away," Anna commented.
"Exactly, that's why I have a scope on this RPG, it's to help us to acquire the targets," Del said.
"Well, good luck to us all, have you observed the terrain or something?" Anna asked.
"Yeah, as far as I can see, we can hide in the forest encircling this railroad. The tanks would be outside of the forest. There was no way the tank would be able to enter the forest," Del said.
"The gap between the trees is not big enough?" Anna asked..
"Yeah," Del said.
"So, we will have tanks spreading out in open grassland. If you ask me, that's quite hard for them to spot us, so yeah, I think you have a good plan there, but now, let's ask the military officer for more intel first, don't you think?" Anna asked.
"Yeah, I agree with that, let's ask him first about that," Del said.
Del picked up his backpack and he headed outside again. This time, he wanted more intel from the military officer. He needed to know what kind of tank he would be facing. If he didn't know, he wouldn't know what kind of threat he would face.
First of all, Del had to decide what type of light tanks or medium tanks that he would be destroying. After all, a T-XX tank was different from an A-XX tank. The former was slower than the latter, but according to the manual that Cole gave to him, it packed a heavier 75mm gun. The latter was faster, but it was equipped with a lighter cannon, 40mm one to be exact.
"Sir, what type of tanks that the company ahead pack?" Del asked the military officer.
"As far as I know, they are packing with T-35 medium tank and A-25 light tank. Do you think you can handle that?" The officer asked.
"Well, leave it to me, sir," Del just smiled.
"I will count the destroyed tanks by the number of explosions that I see, alright? The T-35 weak point is right below the turret, it's where they store the ammunition. You blow it up, the rest of the tank will go kaboom," the officer said.
"Thanks for the information, sir," Del said.
Del then opened the military handbook and searched for the T-35 tank specification. T-35 tank was a tank designed around ten years ago by the separatist military and it was the backbone of their armored units. It was cheap to produce and easy to procure. Its 75mm gun could penetrate any Ilbistirum's light tank or armored car.
However, like any cheap stuff, this tank was well-known to be unreliable and quite a death trap for the soldiers inside of it due to the placement of the ammunition racks that were close to the crew. The tank was also prone to fire.
The A-25 light tank, on the other hand, was agile and carry enough firepower to harass Ilbistirum's light tank. However, it was easy to penetrate its armor with even a 30mm gun. The tank was only rated for protecting against large-caliber round, but not tank rounds. It could be said that it was a cheap vehicle for harassing the infantry.
"Well, we can go through the forest to approach them," Del said.
"That's a good idea, they are blind as bats right now, however, even I wouldn't be too naive and let enemy soldiers encircle me," the officer said.
"What are you trying to tell me, officer?" Del asked.
"There should be troops in that forest, making sure that nobody sneaks on them, that alone should deter you from going there. Still, if you somehow manage to navigate your way in that forest without any light source, you'll be fine," the officer commented.
"That's what I'm planning to do, sir," Del said.
"Well then, good luck," the officer saluted.
Del saluted back and he dashed for the forest. The officer just put his hat down and Doctor Rubert was cold sweating. The train operator was equally confused. It was not the first time for them to see an idiot contractor going after impossible targets just for some money.
"That boy is reckless," the officer commented.
"Yeah, couldn't agree more," Hubert said.
Del didn't hear them though, the sound of money was much more enticing than the fear of facing the death. Anna wasn't different either, with more money, she would be able to get back to Eric as fast as she could.
They dashed into the darkness of the forest while keeping an eye out for someone with the separatist uniform. The separatist used a dark blue uniform instead of a dark green uniform that the Ilbistirum military used. Overall, it wouldn't be hard to spot them.
They run to the forest while Del looked at his position on his tablet. Once he was close enough to the enemy's predicted location. He immediately stopped running and begun to walk, once he became closer, he begun to crouch, every inch mattered because one wrong move would result in his death.
"Anna, do you think we make the right move?" Del asked.
"I think we make a right move, the tanks can come to the train faster than the train can retreat, we can serve as a good delay for them. Still, Del, thinking about it, can we have enough money to get back at Eric?" Anna asked.
"Well, if we work hard, they will pay us hard, so, let's be positive, ok?" Del asked.
"Yeah, I agree with you."
"Now be quiet, let's initiate military communication procedure," Del peeked from behind the bushes as saw one of the separatist soldiers walking in front of him, however, the soldier didn't notice due to Del's camouflage.