Taxes are only within machine gun range!

Chapter 195 Floating Corpses for Thousands of Miles
"This intermittent communication almost ruined things." On the plane, Milton, controlling the control stick, said, "Command just sent us a message saying that Juan's special operations platoon was almost preparing to attack that cannon. If that had happened, we would have launched a ground attack and directly crushed our friendly forces."

"It's alright... the planes behind will have it easy. Just attack in whichever direction the enemy is retreating." Flora laughed. "They'll probably kill more enemies than we do."

Milton was the first to fly over, his main target being the howitzer. Flora didn't have much time to attack either, only firing a volley at a machine gun emplacement.

"The primary objective now is to locate and completely destroy the enemy's communication antennas," Milton glanced down and continued, "The secondary objective is to annihilate the enemy's armored forces."

In this attack, both aircraft carried rockets of different calibers and types, including S-8O and S-13O.

It is mainly used to attack enemy armored forces crossing rivers from the air.

After this round, they will immediately return to resupply, replenish their machine gun ammunition, and equip themselves with napalm bombs for use against personnel.

It wasn't that Milton disliked 1000kg aerial bombs, but rather that he was truly running out of money.

Milton only realized what it meant when these two planes took off: buying a plane was a small expense, but getting it flying was the real money sink.

Napalm is still the cheapest and most effective weapon, and it has a wide range of effects.

Anyway, the enemy doesn't have any particularly strong concrete fortifications, so it doesn't take high-yield aerial bombs to take down the target.

The battlefield was not very large. After destroying the artillery positions, Milton quickly saw the front line. He had not yet found any communication facilities, so he prepared to carry out a secondary objective: attack the main enemy force that was landing on the beach.

A force of T55, T64 and BMP-1 armored vehicles, along with various assault boats equipped with machine guns, was charging frantically toward the rebel positions, firing bullets and shells indiscriminately in an attempt to cross the river.

Even on the opposite bank of the river, the wreckage of a T-55 tank and several infantry fighting vehicles can be seen.

This indicates that Lopez's armored forces had successfully crossed the river, but were repelled again by the rebels when they were establishing a bridgehead.

Even from the sky, Milton could see that small battlefield piled high with countless corpses.

“They’re all light infantry…” Flora couldn’t help but say. “The heavy body armor we provided couldn’t stop anything at all.”

On such a frontal battlefield, the damage that infantrymen could inflict with their rifles was actually very limited; the vast majority of deaths were caused by artillery.

Heavy body armor, capable of easily blocking full-powered bullets at close range, is as fragile as paper in the face of artillery.

“Being able to block shrapnel and stray bullets can greatly reduce casualties.” Milton then turned his head and glanced at Flora, who was not far away. “If you are hit directly by artillery fire, even a god can’t save you.”

"Enemy tank units are launching a fierce attack; destroy them."

"Tax Owl No. 1 is responsible for the north shore beachhead, and No. 2 is responsible for blocking the south shore ferry crossing. We only need to destroy the hovercraft; we don't need to ensure that the tanks are destroyed directly."

"Take away the beginning and the end, you know what I mean."

Flora's voice came through: "Number 2 received..."

Milton stopped talking and focused his gaze on the enemy who were still crossing the river—most of them hadn’t even noticed the enemy in the sky!

Air strikes are actually very stealthy. Even for subsonic aircraft like the Su-25, without radar assistance, by the time they realize an attack is coming, they only have a few seconds to react.

On the battlefield amidst the raging gunfire, enemy soldiers couldn't hear the sound of approaching planes at all—even the rebels facing the direction from which the planes were coming had difficulty spotting their friendly aircraft immediately.

When Milton finished pressing the lever, locked the aiming ring onto the T-64 tank that was firing wildly in front of the northern beachhead, and pressed the launch button, a dense barrage of S-12O rockets rained down on the tank that was already approaching the shore.

Boom boom boom...

The river instantly turned into a sea of ​​fire!
The soldier who was still firing the machine gun from the top of the tank turret was instantly turned into a bloody mist!
Although the T-62 was not directly destroyed, the hovercraft that carried it across the river did not have such protection and was scrapped on the spot. The T-62 sank, with only one turret barely visible above the water.

Without a snorkel, the tank's engine would stall in water deeper than 1.5 meters.

The once roaring "King of Land Warfare" is now just an iron coffin waiting to die once it shuts down.

At the same time, a series of sparks erupted at the temporary dock on the south bank where troops were gathering to cross the river. Soldiers of the 2nd Infantry Brigade were densely packed near the dock, and an air-to-ground missile, combined with rockets and machine guns, reaped huge results in just a few seconds.

The sudden attack from the sky caused the surviving soldiers to scatter in panic.

The illusion of using resource advantages and information gaps to deceive the enemy's artillery positions and carry out precision strikes, while armored units coordinated their river crossings in an orderly manner, creating a convincing infantry-tank combined force, completely collapsed under such an attack.

The combat skills that were originally attributed to the excellent matchmaking system in the Latin American region were finally exposed in the face of heavy losses.

They only have an excellent commander, which is a facade. They are fine when things are going well, but once they suffer a blow, the organized, disciplined, and combat-effective appearance they have under the advantage of command, information, and equipment will be immediately shattered.

Anyone who does a simple calculation of an aircraft's payload and warhead weight will know that the current situation is not so dire that an entire infantry brigade would be driven to utter despair.

Unfortunately, they lacked that kind of combat training.

The junior officers were completely incompetent in their command. When a large number of soldiers saw two terrifying-looking planes dropping bombs on them, they were terrified and turned to run away without hesitation, no matter what the officers said.

Driven by their survival instincts, the soldiers fearfully rushed towards their own positions, running frantically in the exact opposite direction of the attack, recklessly assaulting their own lines.

The supervisory team almost frantically ordered the soldiers in the machine gun positions to fire on the fleeing soldiers, barely managing to stop the collapse on the south bank.

But the soldiers who had already crossed the river and established a bridgehead on the north bank were in deep trouble.

Moving forward, you'll see the resistance forces that have begun organizing a counterattack; moving backward, you'll see the river.

However, these soldiers did not hesitate much. They simply abandoned the equipment that affected their weight and chose to jump into the river.

Jumping into the river might allow them to swim to the other side, but if they were captured by the rebels, given the things they had done, they would likely be killed a thousand times over.

The resistance forces, who had almost been driven off the beachhead, rallied with the help of ground support and recaptured many of the positions they had seized. Relying on their local numerical superiority and under the command of Lack, they quickly returned to the trenches with machine guns.

Before they could retreat and were outnumbered, the 2nd Infantry Brigade's beach landing force was quickly wiped out.

In this situation, the heavily armored rebel soldiers, armed with automatic rifles, acted like rogue warriors, shooting down any enemy soldiers who tried to resist.

The government forces paid a heavy price, even sacrificing armored vehicles and tanks, to seize the bridgehead, only to have it retaken by the rebels.

"Friendly aircraft, return! Take cover! Be aware of friendly air fire!"

"The direction is about 30 degrees north of east."

"Charge! Retake the beachhead and drive all the enemy into the river to feed the fish!"

"Friendly reinforcements have arrived! The aid promised by the 'Hell Tax Collector' is right on our heads! Our planes are darkening the sky! The enemy is finished!"

"rush!!!"

At this point, Lak had already donned heavy body armor and personally arrived at a position very close to the front line to conduct true frontline command.

After shouting, Lark finally lowered his head and looked into the very simple trench, which was less than shoulder-high.

In just over twenty meters of this area, more than ten corpses were piled up.

More than half of them were rebels.

Lak looked up again, and at that moment two more Su-25s flew by, launching another round of rockets and machine gun fire to sweep across the enemy forces on the river and its banks.

Buzzing... Boom!

Two BMP-1 infantry fighting vehicles, which had just completed their turn and were full of soldiers, exploded. The comical Type 73 skid gun did not cause any damage to the rebels. Instead, the explosion that followed sent all the people in the vehicles, along with a speedboat carrying many people, flying into the air.

The blood immediately stained the entire river red.

Countless corpses were swept downstream by the river.

Lark glanced at a slightly stunned soldier beside him and patted him on the shoulder: "Don't blame our friends, they didn't know your family was on that speedboat."

This soldier was a survivor from the village that had been massacred—he joined the resistance immediately after leaving his home.

To deter the rebels from taking further action, government troops specifically tied the villagers they hadn't yet killed to the bow of the boats during the river crossing operation.

Firstly, it was to see if they could slow down the speed at which the rebels pulled the trigger; secondly, it was also a form of psychological deterrence.

But this ship was right in the straight line of the machine gun fire.

No one can escape it.

“They were already dead the moment they were caught.” The soldier remained silent for a long time, then shook his head. “Please give my thanks to the ‘Hell Tax Collector’ for freeing my family.”

After saying that, he shouldered his gun, jumped out of the trench, and charged toward the enemy's position.

At this point, there were no longer just those two SU-25s in the sky above the battlefield.

As long as the rebel soldiers looked up, they could see contrails circling the battlefield in the distance, and they could see attack aircraft swooping down from tricky angles every now and then to suppress and straf the enemy positions.

Two Su-25s were responsible for attacking armored units, while the remaining Dragonfly attack aircraft formation suppressed mortar positions, searched for communication stations, and occasionally strafed soldiers near the dock with machine guns.

The sound of machine gun fire could be heard from time to time, taking away the formidable enemy they had been struggling to defeat for days. The sense of redemption, the dreamlike feeling, made many soldiers advance almost in tears.

The enemy's firepower is weaker than ever before!
Dong Dong Dong... Dong Dong Dong!

"Charge! Charge!"

"Seize the flanks! Seize the flanks!"

"A tank's hovercraft was damaged, and the tank is stranded... Look, the crew is abandoning the tank and running away! Quick, take them out and steal the tank, quick!!!"

"Got it!"

"Get the tank out of here! Hurry! Everyone, cover this tank with your lives!!!"

"This is our bridgehead for counterattacking the other side!"

"The enemy is retreating! The enemy is retreating!!! Look, their supervisory squads have stopped firing at the deserters; they've started running away!"

"The government forces have been defeated! The tank army has been defeated! We have won! We have won!!!"

"..."

……

As the inevitable defeat on the main battlefield began, a terrifying silence fell over the command center of the Guatemalan 2nd Infantry Brigade.

The officers who were just playing the murder mystery game not long ago are now crammed into the command post, living in constant fear. The roar of fighter jet engines overhead still makes most of them weak in the knees.

Everyone looked at Ross, who was sitting in the middle, with pleading eyes, as if this former CIA agent was their last lifeline.

"Mr. Ross, what do we do?!"

"The rebels are already organizing their crossing of the river!"

"The enemy has completely taken over the skies; they've even started using transport planes to airdrop supplies to the rebels!"

"Our tanks are like scrap metal in front of their planes! The Russians need to give us an explanation. Did they sell us defective equipment?!"

"We must provide an explanation!"

"..."

Ross, annoyed by the commotion, slammed his fist on the table and yelled, "Enough! What's the point of all this arguing now?! Tell me, what kind of tank can survive an attack aircraft?"

One of the officers looked at Ross with utter pity and asked, "Commander Ross, do we still have a chance? Can we...can we get back to Quetzaltenango?"

Ross was cursing in his mind.

What chance of winning is there?!
The other side even sent Su-25s. These Russians have really no bottom line since the collapse of the Soviet Union. They can sell such fighter jets just like that.
These Russians might as well just sell their aircraft carriers.

Those colleagues in the CIA are useless; they didn't even send a single word about such important intelligence!
Despite their weak air combat capabilities and slow speed, these air gunships are incredibly lethal to ground troops and severely damage their morale. If the US military were in their shoes, they might be able to maintain morale under such an offensive. Ross, however, had a way to continue relying on the overwhelming superiority of the army to forcefully withstand the enemy's air attacks and complete the crossing.

But he had a bunch of useless soldiers who scattered like birds and beasts when attacked from the air and did not obey his command. Even a god could not organize a counterattack.

To make matters worse, air superiority shifted instantly, causing Ross himself to feel a sense of crisis.

We have to leave.

Given Milton's extremely brutal style, taking a helicopter would be too risky; he might be shot down before he even had a chance to make a call.

Guatemala's infrastructure is quite poor, so evacuation by land would have to be done off-road, and the highways would definitely be destroyed by Milton's planes carrying high-yield aerial bombs.

Cross-country evacuation inevitably requires highly skilled soldiers and the smallest possible scale.

These people are useless and can't be managed.

Ross made up his mind to abandon the 2nd Infantry Brigade, but he still smiled and said, "Don't worry, the rebel army is still at a huge disadvantage, and we still have a very, very good chance of winning."

"Calm down and think about it carefully. The enemy only sent a few planes. Is it really necessary to scare you like this? When have you ever heard of the air force being able to decide the outcome of a battle? When have you ever heard of an example of defeating the enemy solely through air force?"

"Don't believe me? During World War II, Meyer... Göring once promised that he could completely defeat the British army with just the Luftwaffe, but did he do it? He obviously didn't. Compared to the German Luftwaffe at that time, what are these few planes we encountered? They won't affect the overall situation."

"The advantage is still in our hands, just not as great as it used to be."

“And don’t forget who I am.” Ross wrote the letters “CIA” in the air with his finger. “Milton’s advantage won’t last long.”

An officer with even a modicum of military knowledge remained deeply concerned. He asked the most crucial question: "Perhaps our army still has the strength to fight, but what about logistical support?"

“Our supply lines are too fragile. If Milton sends just one attack aircraft over there, it could cause us incalculable losses.”

"Even if people can go without food, tanks and armored vehicles will really go on strike if they run out of fuel and ammunition."

Ross cursed under his breath at how this officer hadn't died on the front lines, but his face remained calm, adopting a confident demeanor: "Don't worry, we still have some supplies in stock, and don't forget... your Mr. Lopez is good friends with the King of the Sky of the Juarez Group in Mexico."

"With supplies and planes, our predicament won't last long."

That's complete nonsense. How could the Juarez Group possibly be involved in such a battle?

However, the officers were so panicked that they were incapable of thinking clearly. Hearing Ross say this, they all seemed to have found a glimmer of hope.

"Yes, we still have friends, we still have stockpiled supplies... As long as they can be delivered, we can still win. The rebels have already lost too many men, and they're almost at their limit!"

"Commander Ross, what should we do next?"

Ross said, "Send all the troops you can muster to the front line and do everything you can to stop the rebels from crossing the river. Don't worry about losses anymore. As long as we can win, any losses can be made up for."

"But remember, make sure to spread out the deployment—Milton wants to blow it up, so let him blow it up."

“Air defense missiles cluster together, aim at the same target, and fire simultaneously, which significantly improves the hit rate. Remember, we are not entirely without room to counter Milton Air Force.”

"do you understand?"

The officers nodded one by one, then asked, "Mr. Ross, what about you?"

Just now, Ross had withdrawn the "Grey Wolves," who had been assigned to various company and platoon-level units as frontline commanders, back to his own side.

Rose clearly had his own plans.

Could it be that they are planning to behead the enemy commander, Lak?
Ross shook his head: "No, I need to coordinate resources with the CIA—don't forget, we Americans can cramm tanks onto planes and have them fall from the sky."

That's utter nonsense; the CIA simply can't mobilize such resources.

Not to mention mobilizing resources, they are even preparing to withdraw and completely abandon Lopez.

But that's enough to fool the people present.

"Good!" The officers present were overjoyed. "We'll mobilize the troops and block them right away! Milton's first wave of air raids should be almost over, and we can organize ourselves!"

Once CIASAD's heavenly army arrives, everything will be alright.

Ross nodded and said, "You can go ahead."

The officers nodded and left the command post.

Only after everyone had left did one of the "Grey Wolves" speak up and ask, "Boss, no reinforcements are coming. Are you having them cover our retreat?"

“Yes.” Ross stood up, put on his heavy body armor, picked up his equipment, and said slowly, “If these idiots can buy us a little time to escape before they die, that’s enough.”

If a retreat order is given at this point, the 2nd Infantry Brigade will certainly be severely damaged, and it will definitely not be able to take away its heavy equipment, but it will definitely not be completely annihilated.

The rebels were nearing their limit; if they simply kept running, they could barely salvage an entire brigade. The routed soldiers, returning to Quetzaltenango, might be able to rebuild a defensive line and continue the stalemate with Milton's main force.

But that would put Ross at great risk—Milton's planes would shoot at anyone they saw, regardless of who they were.

Moreover, the routed soldiers might take advantage of the chaos to retaliate against the officers, using their heads to gain the right to surrender. Ross was very afraid of being shot in the back.

Therefore, sending them all to the front lines to draw the attention of Milton's air force and the main force of the resistance, while the "Grey Wolves" escape in the chaos, is the best strategy.

Even if this leads to terrible losses for the 2nd Infantry Brigade, and it may be wiped out as a whole.

"Let's go, take our equipment and rations."

"Let's go... Ah, interesting, it's really interesting that someone like Milton would appear in Latin America."

"Lopez is completely finished now. I wonder what his expression will be when he receives the news of the defeat at the front, and when he learns that the armored forces he bought with all his savings have been wiped out. Hahaha!"

The "Grey Wolves" chatted and laughed, showing no sign of sadness at their defeat, as if they had only lost a game of arcade.

They had planned their escape route long ago.

Head south along a tributary of the Seguala River, cross the mountains to Solora, where there is a CIA safe house. Take a vehicle to Guatemala City and fly back to the United States to lay low.

Soon, the command post came up behind them.

"Group 2 move closer to me, Group 3 disperse."

"Watch your formation, be careful..."

Bang bang bang bang!
Suddenly, a burst of gunfire erupted from ahead, hitting one of the "Grey Wolves" and knocking him to the ground. The "Grey Wolves'" expression changed drastically; after being knocked down, he kicked out and scrambled behind cover.

Ross immediately realized what had happened: "That special forces unit that blew up our howitzer! They didn't go back!!!"

"But it's been days already, they should have run out of ammunition and food by now!"

"It's definitely a supply drop."

"Alright, it's just a small unit, we can wipe them out easily." Ross wasn't too concerned. "Connor, you're in charge of suppressing fire..."

Before he could finish speaking, Ross suddenly saw a plume of yellow smoke rising in the distance ahead, very, very clearly.

He was stunned for a moment—the enemy had just revealed their position?
Wait, that’s not right!
Rose has seen this before!
"Air raid warning! Air raid warning! Find cover! Take cover! Take cover! Quickly!!!"

"The terrain here is complex, making it difficult for aerial units to spot us!"

Ross roared in terror, feeling that this scene was all too familiar—this was how American soldiers always fought: if they encountered a slightly tough opponent, they would immediately hide and call for air support.

They would wait until the enemy forces were decimated by the attack aircraft before coming out to clean up the mess.

Now Rose is finally getting a taste of what it's like to be a former rival.

Wrong!

"Come out and fight me if you dare!" Ross's brilliant tactical plans and his ideas of easily crushing the enemy's so-called special operations platoon in complex terrain with his superior military skills were nothing but a joke in the face of close air support.

There's no logic to it.

For the first time, Americans experienced the terrifying consequences of losing air superiority.

Less than a minute later, a Dragonfly attack aircraft appeared in the sky, its 12.7mm Gatling gun aimed at the area where the "Grey Wolves" were hiding, and suddenly opened fire.

hum!
bang bang bang...

As machine gun bullets rained down, far, far behind Ross, streaks of light, the kind of fire that only napalm could produce when it exploded, rose into the sky.

P.S.: This part of the story wasn't easy to write, so it took a little longer than usual. Sorry.

(End of this chapter)