Hitler vs. Stalin (Part 3)
"H-hold them off! I don't care if they call themselves the Revolutionary Guard, they're just a bunch of lousy militia! The moment they get close, shred them with the machine guns!"
Chaos erupted along the front lines. To make matters worse, all the veteran Serbian soldiers had already marched north to face the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Consequently, the troops deployed on the Greek front were mostly raw recruits, old-timers on the verge of discharge, or absolute bottom-of-the-barrel dregs.
The core of shocktrooper tactics was to bypass the main line and breach its weakest, most vulnerable point. However, the Hungarian Agricultural Cooperative Revolutionary Guard had no need to waste time searching for such a spot. There wasn't a single section of the enemy line that wasn't vulnerable.
Adolf Hitler offered his critique as he stared at the Swiss-cheese trenches.
"Hmm. So this is the 'trench warfare' Vice Chairman Shtal spoke of. But are machine gun nests usually so sparse?"
"Well... we should still proceed according to the manual, sir. According to the aerial reconnaissance photos, this sector has the fewest men."
"Is that so? Let's see what the manual says, then."
STEP 1. Bombard and obliterate the weakest point of the enemy line.
"Alright, let's go!"
The greatest strength of the Hungarian Agricultural Cooperative Revolutionary Guard lay in their combat tractors. These combat tractors were divided into two categories: first, the self-propelled artillery tractors used to tow heavy cannons; and second, the assault tractors designed to directly breach enemy lines.
First up were the artillery-towing tractors. Unlike the assault variants, these towing tractors lacked any steel plating for protection. Their sole purpose was to haul heavy artillery. By using multiple tractors to tow massive, multi-ton heavy cannons, they had successfully granted mobility to otherwise static siege guns.
"Fire, fire! Don't worry about saving shells!"
In an instant, the heavy artillery reduced the trenches to ash. Yet, a trench was still a trench; its fundamental purpose was to withstand heavy artillery fire. It was time to move on to Step 2.
STEP 2. Deploy the assault tractors to breach the suppressed line and secure a foothold.
"H-haah... Is the bombardment finally over?!"
"Yes, but... what is that sound?"
"W-what on earth is that...!"
The Serbian soldiers, scrambling to ready their machine guns and mortars, were struck utterly speechless by the bizarre weapon appearing before their eyes.
"J-just shoot it!"
Ping! Ping! Clang!
Firing their machine guns was useless. The thick steel plating bolted onto the machines deflected every single bullet.
It was time for the steel-clad assault tractors to break the line.
"Drive! Keep driving!"
"Our Revolutionary Guard comrades are relying on us!"
"Yeehaw! Man, it's been a while since I felt this kind of rush!"
During peacetime, these combat tractors belonging to the Revolutionary Guard spent their days clearing uncultivated land or reclaiming farmlands ruined after the Hungarian Agricultural Revolution. For them, daily economic labor was their training. Having spent years clearing land across all kinds of rugged terrain, the tractor drivers possessed exceptional driving skills, allowing them to maneuver through the chaotic battlefield with ease.
Ah, if there was one difference...
"We finally get to fire this cannon!"
"...Can you really call this a cannon? The caliber is kind of..."
"A mortar is still a cannon, you idiot! Just shoot!"
The official combat tractors developed by the Austro-Hungarian Imperial Army, built under Shtal's guidance, had advanced significantly up the tech tree. Thanks to this, the Imperial Army's combat tractors closely resembled modern tanks, complete with continuous tracks and a turreted main gun.
However, the combat tractors operated by the Hungarian Agricultural Cooperative were fundamentally more "tractor" than "combat." They had literally driven their actual farm tractors straight off the fields and onto the battlefield. Still, wasn't it basically a tank anyway? The drivers had simply bolted mortars and machine guns onto the tractor frames. In this era, a tank was merely a land ironclad meant to support infantry assaults. It didn't matter if these makeshift tractors lacked heavy firepower. The Revolutionary Guard infantry marching right behind them would provide more than enough.
"W-what is that thing?! Aaah!"
"I don't care if it works or not, just shoot! Shoot it!"
The mere appearance of the combat tractors threw the Serbian forces into utter panic. Although some time had passed since combat tractors first debuted on the world stage, actually witnessing their majesty on the impoverished, underdeveloped Balkan front was a rare occurrence. Furthermore, most of the Imperial Army's official combat tractors were deployed on the Italian front. For these Serbian soldiers, this was the first time they had ever laid eyes on such a machine.
"R-run away!"
"Aaaaargh!"
In an instant, the defensive line collapsed, and the Serbian soldiers began to flee in a disorganized rout. But their nightmare was far from over.
"Hehehe, how long has it been since we last set out to 'survey the farmland' of the Balkans?"
"Huh? I see a pack of wolves in the Balkan fields."
"What? Wolves? They look more like a swarm of locusts to me."
"Either way, they're pests eating away at fertile soil. Shall we exterminate them?"
"Let's go!"
Having thoroughly worked the Wright brothers to the bone, the aircraft produced by the Hungarian Agricultural Cooperative had also taken a massive leap forward. Of course, they were still far from becoming the absolute rulers of the sky. However, they were more than capable of fulfilling the traditional role of light cavalry. They rapidly scouted the battlefield, flew low to the ground, and strafed fleeing remnants with mounted machine guns.
Whether it was a strategic bomber from World War II or a Great War fighter acting as light cavalry, to the infantry on the ground, they were both an incomprehensible, inescapable terror.
"Did you see that? Behold the majesty of the Hungarian Agricultural Cooperative Revolutionary Guard!"
"Cooperative Leader Hitler, those bastards from the Bosnian Agricultural Cooperative would lose their minds if they saw this. Those savages could never dream of waging war with such advanced technology."
"Hahaha! Enough flattery. Secure the trenches quickly. Given how agonizingly slow these tractors are, we have a long way to drive to reach Belgrade!"
The infantry of the Hungarian Agricultural Cooperative Revolutionary Guard was, in truth, relatively mediocre. Consequently, they compensated for their weak infantry with aircraft and tractors. The Hungarian Agricultural Cooperative operated on a scale that was practically a state within a state. With massive investments pouring into Budapest, they had more than enough industrial capacity to churn out tractors and planes by the dozen.
On the other hand, what about the Bosnian Agricultural Cooperative Revolutionary Guard?
"Only a disorganized rabble like the Hungarian Cooperative would rely on crude tricks like combat tractors. Come, let us show these Serbian peasants the true meaning of Stahl-Leninism."
Unlike the Hungarian Cooperative, which favored a firepower-heavy infantry doctrine, the Bosnian Guard were masters of guerrilla and mobile warfare. Joseph Stalin, being more a disciple of Lenin than of Shtal, enthusiastically employed the guerrilla tactics Lenin had developed.
They had been fighting the Serbian forces since the very beginning of the special military operation in the Balkans. Furthermore, Stalin possessed extensive experience roaming the Siberian wilderness, fighting the Socialist Revolutionary Party and Cossack cavalry.
Their specialty was armed demonstrations. They had an uncanny ability to find the exact sweet spot—just out of range of enemy machine guns and artillery, yet close enough to observe the enemy and be observed in turn. And then? Whenever they felt like it, they would use their superior mobility to slowly shift their forces around.
"T-they're moving over there!"
"They're trying to breach the trench! Move, now!"
The Serbian soldiers ran themselves ragged, sprinting back and forth along the trenches. Day and night, the Bosnian Guard moved relentlessly across the front line. Faced with their phantom-like mobility, the Serbians' stamina was rapidly ground down to nothing.
And the moment they spotted a weak point in the line?
"Rain down every mortar shell we have! Charge!"
They immediately dismounted from their bicycles and horses, storming the trenches armed with shotguns, submachine guns, and explosives.
"Aaaargh!"
"Request reinforcements immediately! K-urgh!"
"Send these Serbian scumbags to heaven!"
"Long live the Revolution!"
Though few in number, every single one of them was an elite soldier. They were a hardened force that had spent years patrolling the Bosnian border, constantly engaging in small-scale skirmishes. Once they leaped into a trench, they achieved a casualty ratio of at least five to one.
And when enemy reinforcements arrived?
"Retreat! The breakthrough failed!"
They would vanish from the trenches in the blink of an eye, melting away into the distance. This cycle repeated endlessly from one end of the trench line to the other. To top it off, they raided supply wagons whenever they pleased—a task where Stalin's past experience as a bank robber shone brilliantly.
Once the enemy's numbers were sufficiently depleted and their morale was utterly shattered, it was time for the actual breakthrough. The most elite shocktrooper companies of the Revolutionary Guard would unleash a devastating assault, armed to the teeth with close-quarters weaponry.
"Move fast! Our comrades are fighting to the death with the Serbians in the trenches!"
"Over there!"
"Strike them from the rear! We're going in!"
Meanwhile, cavalry and bicycle units bypassed the trenches entirely, striking the enemy from behind. It was a tactic only a truly elite army could pull off. They constantly deceived and exhausted the enemy, infiltrating in an instant when an opportunity arose, while other units rapidly flanked the line.
Unlike the Hungarian Revolutionary Guard, which compensated for its soldiers' lack of experience with overwhelming firepower, the Bosnian Guard executed textbook shocktrooper tactics. Given the vastness of the Eastern Front and the abundance of gaps to exploit, they simply made active use of horses and bicycles to enhance their mobility.
Yet, the true value of the Bosnian Guard did not lie in their combat prowess alone. Tactics of this caliber could be executed by any elite German unit. While far more cost-effective than dragging along hordes of tractors and airplanes, it inevitably demanded a higher toll in human lives.
No, their true terror lay elsewhere.
"Sir, we've spotted a concentration camp built by the Serbians!"
"...Utterly repulsive. Liberate it immediately!"
"There's a village ahead!"
"Deploy the entire medical company. If even the soldiers are starving, the civilians' health must be in ruins."
Operating a massive fleet of tractors and aircraft created an enormous logistical burden. The Hungarian Revolutionary Guard, already slowed down by their sluggish tractors, had to focus entirely on racing toward Belgrade while managing supply lines and maintenance.
In contrast, the Bosnian Guard, possessing exceptional mobility and requiring far fewer supplies, had the luxury to establish liberated zones at every key stronghold they passed.
"T-the Serbian devils are finally gone!"
"Thank you, thank you so much!"
"Don't mention it. We're on our way to take the head of Fuhrer Apis. Any young men want to join us? It's your chance to become the protagonists of history. Do you know how to ride a bicycle?"
"No..."
"It's simple. You can learn in two days."
In fact, their numbers actually grew after each battle. Unlike the Hungarian Cooperative, which adhered to orthodox Stahlism, the Bosnian Cooperative was heavily influenced by Stahl-Leninism. They left behind doctors, political officers, and drill instructors in every town and city, expanding their liberated zones systematically.
"The Greek army will be following behind us. Please treat them kindly."
"Of course! As long as they aren't Serbians, we don't care who they are."
"We will leave some weapons here. The Serbian army is pathetic. You will be able to fight them yourselves."
"Thank you!"
"Arm yourselves, everyone! Let us crush the devils of Yugoslavia!"
The Balkan peoples, already seething under Serbian oppression, welcomed the liberators and transformed themselves into armed rebels and insurgents.
And as Hitler and Stalin swept through the front lines...
"Hitler has broken through Albania!"
"Advance immediately! We must move while the line is breached!"
"Stalin has liberated the entire Macedonia region!"
"Resupply in the Macedonian liberated zone and regroup. Do not stop the advance!"
The Greek army and Shtal followed closely behind, consolidating their control over the occupied territories. It was a campaign executed to near perfection.
Their advance was so rapid that for every single kilometer the Imperial Army moved in the north, the Revolutionary Guard covered a hundred. While it sounded like an exaggeration, such a lightning-fast advance was only possible because the Serbian forces facing Greece were little more than a disorganized rabble.
Though their roles seemed somewhat reversed...
Hitler relied on sheer numbers and overwhelming firepower.
Stalin relied on elite soldiers and rapid mobility.
Either way, a single month was more than enough for them to encircle Belgrade.
So, who was the winner of this epic race from Athens to Belgrade?
"As expected, Hitler is nothing but a loudmouth. It is only natural, seeing as he has never fought a proper war in his life."
"..."
By a hair's breadth, the victory went to Stalin.
"Hmm, then the score between Cooperative Leader Hitler and Commander Stalin is tied at 1-1."
"...What did that bastard Hitler even do to deserve a point?"
"Ha! While I was busy handling banquets and protocol at the presidential palace, you were doing nothing but preparing for war, Stalin! Honestly, a score of 1 to 0.5 would be more accurate."
"Yes, indeed. Isn't war merely an extension of politics? That is why I awarded a point to Cooperative Leader Hitler."
Stalin's face was filled with dissatisfaction, while Hitler looked immensely relieved.
"Since it's a tie, you'll have to settle the score."
"The deciding battle..."
"Is Belgrade, then...?"
They turned their gaze toward Belgrade, the city of evil. It was finally time to bring their long, persistent ill fate with Serbia to an end.