Chapter 208: The Devil's Mark
At around two-thirty in the afternoon, the rain on the Samock Straight finally stopped. The sky began to brighten as if the sun was about to come out. Colonel Matteo assumed the weather might clear up as the temperature rose slightly, but a gust of wind brought with it a flurry of tiny snowflakes mixed with rain.
Unbothered by the weather, Colonel Matteo shut the hatch and retreated back into the sweltering heat and choking smoke inside his A7V tank, envying the infantry outside. At least they didn't have to suffer from the suffocating, toxic air that tank crews had to endure until their last breath.
"Order the men to take up advantageous positions," Matteo instructed the communications officer. "There are still at least thirty enemy tanks in the straight. If the French get desperate, they might charge all at once."
"Yes, Colonel!" The signal officer relayed the order using flag signals, a common communication method for A7V tanks since Matteo's command vehicle was the only one equipped with a radio.
Soon, fifteen A7V tanks took their positions on either side of the road, forming a semi-circle, with all cannons trained on the exit of the straight. They waited in tense silence, watching for any sign of movement through the drifting snowflakes.
Suddenly, the radio operator at Matteo's side reported, "Colonel, we have a message from General Felix. Charles' forces have broken through at Rhodes and are advancing toward our position. They'll arrive in about an hour and a half, with at least thirty tanks!"
"Charles' forces? Mark I tanks?" Matteo asked, his eyes lighting up.
"Yes, the Mark I," the radio operator confirmed. "The front-line officers have confirmed it, and there are no reports of them being equipped with cannons—just machine guns, as usual."
The soldiers inside the tank cheered, their voices mixing with excitement.
"Looks like we'll be busy again!"
"Another feast of Mark Is for us!"
"I love the Mark I. Is this Charles' obsession? His fixation on machine guns?"
…
Matteo ignored their chatter, lost in thought. After a moment, he gave another order to the signaler. "The third tank platoon will hold this position. The rest of you, follow me. We're going to engage the Mark Is!"
"Yes, Colonel!" The order was quickly relayed, and soon, the first and second platoons lumbered forward, their heavy A7Vs slowly turning on the rugged terrain before following Matteo's lead vehicle, No. 501.
The tank column proceeded south along the road for ten minutes before Matteo gave the signal to halt.
"Perform maintenance and ventilate the cabins. Prepare for battle!"
Ventilation was crucial—not only to allow the crews to breathe but also to clear the smoke and improve visibility for the drivers, gunners, and machine-gunners. Matteo wanted his units to be in peak condition before they engaged the enemy, even if their opponents were "only" Mark I tanks.
One by one, the A7Vs stopped, their hatches flinging open as plumes of smoke billowed out. The tankers stumbled out, coughing and gasping for fresh air, some even laughing with exhilaration.
"Are we really going up against the Mark Is?"
"Absolutely! I heard there are over thirty of them!"
"I can't wait to beat Charles. This is the best news I've heard all day!"
…
The A7V had been designed specifically to counter Charles' Mark I tanks. German tank crews received only two types of training: essential operational skills and Mark I performance data. Everyone, including Colonel Matteo, considered the Saint-Chamond and CA-1 tanks irrelevant. Infantry and artillery could easily handle them with anti-tank rifles and 77mm field guns. Only the Mark I—Charles' tank—was considered a worthy adversary.
To mark this rivalry, A7V No. 506, nicknamed "Mephisto," even bore a "devil" design on its front, depicting a demon seizing a Mark I tank in its grasp.
(Note: "Mephisto" A7V tank's design depicts the devil clutching a Mark I tank. This vehicle was later captured by Australian forces and remains preserved today.)
Colonel Matteo did not step out of his tank. Instead, he climbed to the top hatch, poked his head out, and scanned the other end of the road with binoculars, wary of a sudden enemy appearance.
Glancing up, he noticed two Avro planes circling above.
Would they report the A7Vs lying in wait here to the Mark Is?
Could Charles' tanks change course, knowing they faced an ambush ahead?
Unsettled by these thoughts, Matteo ordered his men back into their tanks, and the ten A7Vs roared back to life, slowly advancing along the road.
Just then, two infantry battalions arrived to join them. Soldiers gripped their rifles, jogging to keep pace with the tank formation. Although large and cumbersome, the A7V tanks had a balanced suspension system and shock absorbers for a relatively smooth ride. With a top speed of 10 kilometers per hour, they could outpace the infantry.
After another twenty minutes, the unit reached the vicinity of Samock, and Matteo felt a sense of relief. It seemed the enemy hadn't passed through here yet.
Just a few hundred meters east of Samock was a fork in the road, which also led to Tramm but would require a detour. Matteo briefly considered the possibility that the French would take the fork to bypass them. However, he dismissed the thought; the route was too deep within German-controlled territory, and the Mark I's track limitations meant it would likely break down before reaching the end.
The tanks proceeded in a single-file line along the road. Matteo checked his watch, estimating that the enemy was still a few minutes away, giving them enough time to secure the high ground.
Suddenly, the sound of cannon fire shattered the calm, and three A7Vs were immediately struck, smoke billowing from their hulking forms. One tank was hit in the fuel tank, bursting into flames as its crew scrambled out, engulfed in fire, their screams piercing the air.
"What's going on?" Matteo demanded.
"It's from Samock, Colonel! The enemy's ambushing us from the village!" a voice replied.
"Turn toward the town! Target the village! Order the infantry forward to eliminate those guns!" Matteo shouted.
"Yes, Colonel!" The command was promptly relayed.
Matteo's first thought was that the attackers must be infantry guns. After all, the Mark I tanks weren't equipped with cannons. If artillery was firing on them, it had to be from the French infantry.
But as the A7Vs began pivoting toward Samock, the sight that greeted Matteo left him in stunned disbelief. Emerging from the village were tanks—models he had never seen before.
They were noticeably smaller than the A7Vs but equipped with a rotating turret, each carrying both machine guns and a small-caliber cannon. The smoking wrecks of the three A7Vs were evidently their handiwork.
A chilling realization dawned on Matteo. He had walked right into Charles' trap.
(End of Chapter)
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