Double The Sergeants Raid

By: AliasCWN

Chapter 1

Fine sand hung in the early morning air like a thick cloud. Tanks lumbered through the dust, appearing and disappearing as shells exploded around them, throwing even more dirt particles into the mix.

Captain Hans Dietrich wiped the dust from his goggles for the second time in less than five minutes. The fine particles clung to the lenses, obscuring his view of the ongoing battle. He spun around as a shell hit the tank next to him, setting it on fire. The crew scrambled to escape the hunk of twisted metal, pushing past the bodies of their dead crew mates. Another shell landed nearby sending shrapnel flying through the air. The survivors screamed in pain as the hot bits of metal showered down on them. Of the three who had made it out of the tank, only one was still moving, moaning in pain.

The captain leaned down to tell his driver to stop so they could offer aid to the solitary survivor. Ground troops rushed forward to help as the halftracks gunner gave them cover. The bulk of the tanks continued to move forward leaving him to direct the action from the rear of the conflict.

A call on his radio drew his attention from the rescue before him. He reached up and pushed the headphones tighter against his head so he could hear over the sounds of the battle. Lt. Bernhart, his second-in-command, was yelling something about the Americans.

"Slow down Lieutenant. Repeat your message."

"The Americans, Captain, there is a pocket of resistance hiding among some burning vehicles. Approximately a dozen or so soldiers using the trucks for protection."

"Take some men and deal with it Lieutenant. I don't want any resistance left between us and our lines. We don't want them at our backs while we try to fight a frontal battle."

"Yes Sir, I'll handle it Captain." The young officer's voice was crisp and full of confidence.

Dietrich allowed his thoughts to turn to the young lieutenant. The youth was optimistic and firm in his belief that Germany would triumph over her foes. He had an untarnished pride in his country that had not yet been touched by the war. The captain mourned his own innocence lost under the heavy responsibilities of leadership. He vowed to do everything in his power to keep the lieutenant from suffering the same fate for as long as possible.

Another explosion close by brought his thoughts back to the problem at hand; how to drive the American forces from this sector of the desert.

A group of three Sherman tanks were trying to spearhead an attack to punch through his lines. Keying his radio, he ordered more tanks to reinforce that position.

His panzer division had been held in reserve for most of the battle, now that they had been called forward, he was determined to prove that they could make the difference between victory and defeat.

One of the American tanks took a direct hit and burst into flames. Unlike earlier, when one of his tanks had been hit, there were no survivors to crawl out of the Sherman. The fire spread quickly, reaching the ammunition and shells stored inside. The intense heat exploded the unused ordinances sending lead and shrapnel flying in all directions. He watched as several of the foot soldiers were hit by the wild barrage. Dietrich again reached for his radio to order the men to stay well clear of the wreckage until the danger had passed. His troops gave the Sherman a wide berth as they pushed forward behind their own armored vehicles.

Remembering Lt. Bernhart, the captain raised his field glasses to try to spot the officer but the dust and smoke was too thick. Trusting the young officer to complete his task, Dietrich turned back to the battle.

Bullets zipped past his head from behind a nearby hill. He directed one of his halftracks to circle around and make sure the firing ceased. The bulky vehicle had barely disappeared behind the dune when its machine gun started to chatter. It rolled back into view moments later and rejoined the main force; there was no more fire from that position.

The German tanks continued to advance for the next half hour, keeping the American tanks from breaking through the lines. Little by little the Sherman's gave ground, falling back toward their own lines. A feint by one of the American tanks sent one of his chasing after it, where it was pulled into a well-executed trap and destroyed. Seeing the maneuver, the captain called to his tank commanders, warning them to avoid making the same mistake. Yet moments later a second German tank fell prey to the same trick. The Sherman would attack to get their attention and then pretend to be crippled. The German tank crews, sensing an easy target, would give chase and drive within easy range of other, hidden Shermans. When the third tank was lost in the same manner Dietrich screamed into his radio. His commanders got the message and stopped chasing the 'crippled' Shermans.

His crews were getting cocky as the Shermans continued to withdraw. Chatter on the radio increased as his men excitedly reported the American retreat. Dietrich picked up is radio to warn them to slow their pursuit. He could see the tanks picking up speed as their confidence grew. With the uneasy feeling that the Americans were giving up too easy, he called to his commanders to halt.

His own unit heeded his call but the others ignored him to claim the easy victory. They continued to race head long after the enemy forces. Suddenly the high-pitched whine of mortar rounds filled the air. With a shout he ordered all the tanks to reverse toward their own lines. Gears ground and engines screamed as the bulky monster tried to reverse out of the range of the mortars.

The American mortar teams already had the range of the main body of tanks. Rounds dropped among the closely packed armored vehicles. The tanks that survived the initial barrage tried desperately to get clear before the teams could adjust their range settings.

Dietrich's own unit, having stopped at his command, was spared the worst of the damage. Even as they pulled back they could see their less fortunate counterparts rumbling to a stop as they fell to the accuracy of the Americans.

The German victory quickly turned into a full blown disaster as tank after tank was destroyed. The base commander was screaming into the radio to attack even as the field commanders sought to save as many of their tanks as they could.

Dietrich listened to the chaos as his halftrack carried him clear of the carnage. There was no doubt at all in his mind that if they continued to attack, it would cost them every last tank in their arsenal. The trap had been well designed and perfectly executed, and the German commanders had walked right in to it.