The portals opened and hell came forth, entire urban centers were destroyed and massacred in the span of a few days, my Squadron is trying to put some semblance of order back, thing is, we’re too late.

0500 hours  ##/##/2XXX
The entire base was woken up by the Bugle call as usual, i did my usual chores and prepared myself for another boring day as tank commander in a Osorio platoon down in bumfuck nowhere Brazil,morning formation as usual, or at least it should be as usual, it wasn’t.
We couldn’t believe the news, they showed us the photos, images and radio calls. it was a nightmarish sight, down below the scorching sun we were shocked, some soldiers started crying, others were visibly stunned.

It didn’t take long for the flurry of questions to come, the commander quickly shut them all down with a big “We don’t know”, the commander gave us the orders “Prepare for combat and await further orders”  this what we’ve all been waiting for, after so many long days of training and abnegation our skills would be finally put to work, those that a few minutes ago were filled with shock and confusion were taken back together by the commander’s imperative call, we all answered in unison with “AÇO!’’.

0601 hours
We all knew where to go. I found my crew, my three best friends, Manuel, my gunner, Bino, my driver, and Jacson, my loader.
Manuel upon seeing me smiled and said “‘bout time eh seargeant” he was a short mulatto with a big smile and broad shoulders, Jacoson was with him, he was a lanky white youngman, he joined when he made 18 eager to operate the tanks, his head was low i could feel his anxiety and his concerns.
“Manuel, where 's Bino?” I asked
- ” At the motor-pool, he told us to meet up with you and get the guns,” I nodded. The corridors in the base were filled with soldiers running from place to place. 
we moved to the Armory quickly, there was a counter at the door frame Enrique was, he was our armorer, a big old black guy with glasses, from inside the Armory you could hear: https://youtu.be/x6T_PrloR30 playing 
“Seems you Osorio boys will finally use your toys, eh?” Enrique said, ending it with a giggle. 
Jacson answered “Come on Enrique, this isn’t a joke, people are dying, my family was in Rio i don’t know if they are ok” 

Enrique quickly changed his tune after that, I could see a line forming up behind us, lots of guys wanting to get their guns out asap.
“Enrique, get us our pistols and two SMTs” Enrique nodded and moved back to the darkness of the armory room, he came back two Taurus SMT 9s in one hand and 4 taurus PT92 in the other, he put them on the counter and said “Lemme get your ammo and knives” he returned to the darkness, meanwhile i took the guns and gave them out to Jacson and Manuel, they quickly put them into their pockets, we still had to get our rigs, “Jacson, you get a smg, i ain’t gonna lecture on how to use it”  Manuel was staring at his gun i checked the mags on my pistol and smg, both empty, FUCK YOU, ARMY REGULATIONS

Enrique finally returned with 2 loaded mags for each gun and 3 bayonets, he smiled and said “Did you forget your NCO knife, sarge” he ended it with his signature laugh, he was right, i still needed my NCO knife, i earned it in Minas Gerais after concluding my NCO course.
“You two, anything you need to get in the locker room?”
Manuel quickly answered “My music player and some other shit i leave there”
Jacson was interrupted by Manuel but quickly answered back afterwards “Some photos and my wallet”
>Motherfucker was thinking about money in the middle of a fantasy-nigger invasion, smh.
“Let’s go then” I said after picking up my magazines and loose ammo Enrique left at the counter.

0650 hours
After picking up everything we needed and preparing our rigs and magazines we returned to the Sacred motor-pool, a big photo of Osorio himself in one of the walls, as if he was still watching after his boys and his tanks, row upon row of tanks in these garages, i quickly found ours, “Legendario” choosing the name was easy, it had a good pristine new Brazilian 2 tone camo and a 105 L7, few tanks had the 120mm, Bino was working overtime loading up the tank with the ammo and spare parts, we moved to help him, after 25 minutes we were ready to move alongside the rest of the squadron, Tenente Aguerres was leading the expedition our orders would be given in-transit to the near town, anxiety and expectation filled the already sulky air inside the Osorio.
0717 hours
“Move out, convoy, turret pointed to 10 o’clock” i was standing on my seat watching the movements, we exited the garage and the sun hit the Legendario, we did this before but now this would be the real deal,our squadron was composed of 2 platoons 4 tanks each, 8 tanks in total, i was the third in the row,  the Legendario was the Fourth, the commander saluted us on our way out, we were the first to leave, while we were leaving the base i could hear the bugle play, it was “Cavalaria avançar e degolar’’ (Cavalry advance and cut their throats)  i only ever heard that on training, but i knew exactly what it meant, we all knew, Manuel did a ‘’Woohoo’’ Inside the tank that was louder than it should but we were all in the same spirit.
We took the old Imperial time roads, our orders were to stablish a perimeter in the nearby town and hold until the armored infantry arrived, we didn’t know what to expect but i doubt the Fantasy niggers could pierce our Osorios. 
Now playing on the Manuel Player 3: https://youtu.be/WjfuLpoRy6k

0736 hours
The travel was idyllic, that was the worst part the sheer alienation of hearing birds singing and the cool wind on your head while everything you know and love is on the verge of destruction, it’s like God is playing with us, the sound of the tracks reverberated our guidons flapped on the wind, we saw jets pass over us they were going to the major population centers probably to bomb those places out of existence, the flyboys must be as concerned as us down here.

0756 hours
 “Squadron, HALT!” The voice of Tenente Aguerres was heard on the Head phones “Objective at 150 meters northeast, i want three teams, Legendario, Pernambuco you’re with me…” As Tenente Aguerres continued organizing and preparing our advance into the built up area ahead, I prepared the REMAX turret, a Brazilian CROWS so to say, i cocked the bolt on the Browning, and returned inside, closing the hatch, a feeling of “I can do it” overtook me, i was ready, Manuel was glued on his gun screen sights, Jacson was sweating even though we have an AC unit on-board.
“Sargeant anon, Wedge formation you take point”
- “ACO!”
As Tenente Aguerres, Pernambuco and The Legendario were going for the main entrance of town following the road, the rest of the column divided itself, 2 were going to the right, 2 to the left, a classic pincer maneuver, the enemy would not survive.
The terrain was flat, the town was beautiful, you could hear a shootout down in the center of it. The PMs must be trying their best, no time to waste the weapon of heroes will join the fray, God help us.
“Bino, Avançar” I exclaimed on the microphone, and the Legendario moved.
Now playing on the Manuel Player 3: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GtV4blc489c

0802 hours
Small puffs of smoke could be seen coming from the city, as we closed the distance and finally entered the city i ordered Jacson to keep an eye out using his Camera, and advised Bino to go slowly, screaming could be heard through the deserted streets, cars were destroyed and abandoned, fortunately we could still move our way
“Squadron, subjugate any enemy resistance and rendevouz at the center of the city” Agurres said, he was right behind us.
Bino was moving expertly through the Abandoned cars when we saw movement at around 65 meters to our front by one of the streets. Something was observing us, I was sure of it.
“Team, be advised, possible enemy movement 65 mikes 1 o’clock,Permission to fire, sirt?”
“Permission granted, fire”
“Bino, HALT. Manuel, target, 1 o’clock, 60 meters, street corner wall, enemy, engage, LOAD HEAT.”
The tank quickly halted, the turret turned so quickly i almost lost my balance, the sounds of a brass case entering the breech was heard 
“UP!” 
“Firing!”
The fighting compartment was filled with a small quantity of smoke, the vibrations could be felt for some time after, when the blast and smoke cleared i could blood and guts spilling to the street where the brick wall once stood, the car alarms were beeping loudly, if the enemy didn’t know about us before he sure do now.
The shooting from the center of the Town could still be heard, no time to waste
“Bino, Advance”
Before Aguerres could ask for confirmation i energetically exclaimed “Tenente, kill confirmed, possible enemy scout, he’s no more”
Aguerres quickly responded “No time to waste gentlemen, double time it, pass over the cars if need be”
- “Yes, sir”
“You heard it Bino,have fun, just don’t get us stuck here”

0820 hours, 1 round spent
The sound of crushed cars could be heard alongside the screaming, and blaring alarms, the usual feeling of being observed was felt, after that show of force the enemy knew he couldn’t stand a chance, mobility, firepower and shock capability was the name of the game, whatever remains of this city is making their last stand downtown, and i hope i can reach it on time, The strondous sound of a 105 mm gun could be heard coming from our right flank, the boys on there also found their scouts, the remaining enemy must be trying to finish the resistance downtown quickly then retreating to the left flank or to our 12 o’clock, that direction is covered by a big “Serra” no way they will be able to scale that hill, they have no choice but to die to our guns.
It felt good
“Sarge! enemy up front they are making barricades and preparing some kind of catapult”Manuel exclaimed
 I relayed the information to Alguerres, the Street wasn’t wide enough for a combat formation and those guys were blocking the way to a roundabout.
A whip like sound was heard and there came a small pickup truck flying in our direction, i instinctively put my head down and looked away, a rookie mistake, fortunately Bino managed to steer us away from the point of impact, it ended up hitting a house to our left leaving a big hole in it, blood could be seen spilling out of the smashed pickup doors.
“Manuel fire at will! load HEAT and HESH!”
I couldn’t see the enemy at the other side of the barricade, the barricade was composed of trucks and cars stacked on-top of each other, whatever was there was big and strong, that’s for sure.
I started Firing with the REMAX, short controlled bursts i aimed for the gas tanks on the barricade cars, the tracers would ignite the fuel, Manuel hit the barricade with HEAT shell, unfortunately it passed through, inhuman screams could be heard on the other side, the Barricade started burning with the ignited fuel smoke obscuring the recent made hole.
“Bino full speed ahead, smash those putos out ‘o there” I exclaimed ecstatically, the adrenaline was overwhelming.
The mighty sound of the Osorio's heart reverberated through the street and we passed through the burning barricades. I could feel the tracks smashing something soft when we touched the otherside.
A big mistake, when the smoke cleared from the optics we were face to face with a big minotaur (É uma cilada Bino)
the creature was almost as tall as the Osorio, the damn beast must have been hiding, waiting for us, A big concrete telephone post in it hands the beast was ready to strike the gun barrel, I quickly swerved the REMAX and pushed the button, the Browning perforated his chest, blood spilling over the tank and dirtying my REMAX sights, the beast fell and the tank advanced,seems the HEAT shell destroyed their catapult, i scanned the area and saw many other small creatures routing, they were running downtown, i managed to get one of the smaller ones with a single shot the others climbed the roofs and escaped our sights.
“Squadron, advance, downtown, no time to waste” Aguerres reminded us “Seageant anon, good fucking job killing that Goat thing”
Now playing on the Manuel Player 3: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YWPmU3dEncc&t=0s

0820 hours, 2 rounds spent
The risk of another ambush was real, we moved as fast as we could through the straight street leading us downtown, the sounds of the shootout could still be heard, police and ambulance sirens were becoming louder, smoke could be see rising from downtown, seems like their last stand is about to end, time is running low, the sound of the Osorios’ engines filled the street, Tenente Aguerres told us the other 2 groups were converging downtown at the same rate as us.
I wonder where everyone went, maybe they are hiding, or maybe dead, but if so where are all the bodies? 
I alerted Aguerres and Pernambuco about my sights and climbed my hatch with a small cloth in-hand. I had to clean the REMAX, blood from that minotaur was obscuring my sights.
“Sarge, get down!” I heard Jacson yell and was quickly pulled back into the tank falling ass first back into my seat, the sound of broken glass and Browning MGs  could be heard outside.
“Fuckers are throwing molotovs”
I quickly closed the hatch, the REMAX monitor was still obscured by the blood, not a lot could be seen, I will have to rely on Jacson, Manuel and the other tanks for awareness.
“Did they get the pricks?” i asked Jacson 
“Yes sir, you should’ve seen it, they turned into pink mist, not sure if there’s more stalking us right now, better safe than sorry, i guess”
“Yea, those must been the ones that were manning that barricade we passed”
The sound of gunfire was getting clearer and nearer, we were almost there.
“All units be advised, our Armored infantry platoon has just entered the city, expect them to be here shortly” Aguerres said.
“FULL THROTTLE!” I yelled to Bino, I was pushed back into my seat by the sudden acceleration.
0827 hours, 2 rounds spent
We finally reached it, the Prefecture plaza, a big park was in the center, the type you would take a good afternoon walk at.
The sounds of gunshots were louder than ever, in-human screams could be heard, i couldn’t see much out of the commander’s cupola or the REMAX monitor
“I see a lot of targets, sarge”
“Engage, Engage” i retorted, the Osorio coaxial came to life, firing in short bursts.
I climbed my hatch, had to clean that fucking blood out of the REMAX, the world outside was burning with action and sound, the main focus of resistance came from a 3 story government buiding, the local police fortified the position and were killing all that came near, lots of black bloated inhuman corpses littered the place, the streets were filled with the damn things, they saw our tank, some were making their way here, building and trees were on fire, a shield line was stubbornly infront of the resistance building trying to assault the place, our line of sight was obscured by the park.
“The other two groups will be here any instant, prepare to charge through the park!” Aguerres said through the comms
I didn’t have much time, i could be hit by a stray arrow or a molotov any moment, i quickly wiped the REMAX sight, those fucking squat black furry things were screaming their way here the machineguns opened up on those fucking rat-things, cut down as quickly as they saw us.
“My REMAX is back in order, ready to charge!” I said over the comms
I got back into the tank and closed my hatch,now with an clear monitor i could see the enemy and the Police resistance clearly, their shooting was getting more and more scarce, their ammo was running low, small fires could be seen from the windows, the enemy shield line was making their way to the entrance i could see another minotaur with them but i couldn’t see much, the park was in the way, around 17 meters of green area was between us and them, it was safe to say the park was infested with them, squat silhouettes could be seen, i shot at them but couldn’t confirm their deaths.
“ALL UNITS, ON MY MARK…. CHARGE, CHAAARGE!” Agurres commanded almost in Jubilation.
“ENGAGE AT WILL KILL THEM ALL, CUT THEIR THROATS!”
The Osorios sprung to life, Jacson loaded a HEAT round, manuel started shooting using the coaxial, a soneto of automatic fire filled the air, the tanks moved forth, running over trees, stone walls and crushing the rats that were hiding in the park, the sound of arrows impacting the armor could be heard alongside the breaking glass and fire of molotovs thrown in desperation.
Now playing in the Manuel Player 3:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aGzUqvbv3uI
Finding and engaging any targets that appeared in my field of vision, my ammo was running low, and there were a lot of them. 
They were running away from us like cockroaches upon light, the machine guns were cutting them down,  Pernambuco was taking the left flank, he was being hit hard by their arrows, some of them were getting stuck into the armor. 
The few rats that dared to stand and fight were cut down and turned to pulp by our tracks and guns.
“Sarge, something big is coming, 12 o’clock!”
A big minotaur,  charging against our tank, was moving very fast and using the trees as cover, the other tanks were busy dealing with the rats.
“MANUEL, TARGET, BIG GOAT HEADED MOTHERFUCKER, 1 O’CLOCK, KILL THE FUCKER BEFORE HE GETS TO US”
The Minotaur was about 4 meters out and moving at full speed, he had a tree trunk in his arms, probably planning to hit the REMAX and then jam the tracks, unfortunately for him, the Turret was faster
The cannon fired at point-blank. We could have used the damn thing as a club if Manuel took a few milliseconds more to turn the thing, the sound of the Brass impacting the breech-basket was like music to our ears.
His chest was burned into mist, his body fell close to the tracks. I could hear something pop.
Now was the time to deal with the Phalanx, we emerged from the park and they were using the police barricade as cover. Their black shields and armor were like shadows under the sunny morning sky.
I emptied what remained of the REMAX’ ammo on their pathetic line, they didn’t scream, black blood splashed against the white and blue paint of the building and cars.
Screams of the dying were loud along the sirens, jubilation could be heard from the Barricade building, machine gun firing could be heard from the right and left flanks, the other two groups just found the stragglers.

0837 hours, 3 rounds spent

“D-did we win?” Jacson questioned
“Hell yeah we did, I told you, “confia no pai”, no way you can lose with me in the gunner seat.” Manuel answered, proudly.
“All units regroup at the Police department building” Aguerres commanded.
The other tank groups were entering the plaza while Bino maneuvered the tank, parking it near the police dept building, alongside Pernambuco and Aguerres.
I opened the Hatch and climbed on top of the tank, the roof was cluttered with spent casings and fresh blood, the world outside was different,way more cruel and chaotic, the sound of sirens still echoed along the streets, clouds of black smoke climbed to the sky, the gentle morning sun glowed brightly, birds could be seen flying up above giving no attention to the death and destruction down here.
A trail of destruction could be seen where the Osorios passed, uprooted trees, destroyed stone walls and bodies human and inhuman alike.
Jacson opened his hatch and looked around, seems he was hit by the same feelings as me.
Some PMs holed up inside the building came to welcome us at the entrance,  it was the time to meet the people we just saved.
I took my helmet off and stowed it inside, picked up my SMT-9 and gave the order to disembark, my legs felt weak, as if my body knew the world outside was hostile to me and was trying to convince me to remain in the tank, my boots hit the floor, i put my black beret on.
“Bino, Jacson stay with the tank, reload the REMAX clean the blood and check the tracks, Manuel you come with me” I said while the rest of the crew was leaving their hatches.
Aguerres was already at the Dept’s entrance talking to the PMs there
“Tenente” I said while saluting the lieutenant 
“Sergeant anon, you and your partner, with me, the rest of the crews: establish a perimeter around the park” The rest of the men saluted the commander and moved to their tanks yelling orders to their subordinates
“You guys came right on time, our ammo was about to run out” one of the PMs said, he had sergeant rank on his shirt ‘Richardson’ was his name
“This way” Richardson said pointing to the corridor the sound of steps and yells could be heard around the entire building, coming from the floors above and the rooms along the corridor
“How’s the situation in the rest of the country?” Richardson asked
“Contact has been lost with Rio and Sao Paulo alongside multiple other cities, all kinds of strange and horrifying reports all around the country, contact with the Regional command is still strong, they are as confused as us, our objective right now is to secure this town and make contact with the 2 Light infantry battalion and the Region logistical depot, i assume you are already up to par with your duties in this situation”
“Yes Tenente, we are spread thin here though, we have patrols all around the town, we still have contact with most of them but they are laying low, they invaded the town during midnight, we lost a lot of innocent people at that time, killed during their sleep, we lost a lot of our men too, the ones who managed to reach the Department on time are either spread around or here with us” 
We reached a room at the second floor
“Come on in” Richardson said, opening the door. The room was an administrative office with lots of bookcases and a single central wooden table, the windows let a lot of light  inside, giving a good cosy feeling to the entire room.
“This is the map of the town” Richardson said spreading a big colored map on the table
“This is us” He pointed to the plaza the serra could be seen behind it
“I got men all around us in a 2 km area around, and this is the access to the federal highway” He pointed to the far east of the town a big interstate road dominated the map there.
“Fire departments here and here” He said pointing to two buildings one at the east another at the southwest  “We expect the fireman there to be waiting for us, the streets are too dangerous for our patrol cars to get there though, those fucking rats have established multiple barricades and blockades at random locations”
“Probably independent units of a larger army” Aguerres added
“Yes exactly”
“Reports from Rio and other cities and the Southeast indicate the enemy there is unorganized, we are dealing with something a bit more dangerous here, do you have any info on those minotaurs?”
“The cornos? they aren’t minotaurs Tenente, seems they are oversized rats stitched together and armored to make them look like minotaurs” Richardson said
“Fascinating” 
“So we are dealing with oversized rats, you guys sure they didn’t come from Brasilia?” Manuel said finishing it with a slight laugh
We all laughed for a second
“I’ll relay all of this to the commander, Sergeant, i want you to rally your troops and shelter the local population, we’ll have our hands filled cleaning this mess up, Sergeant anon, take command of your pelotao and move East to secure the access to the Federal road” 
“Yes sir” i said and saluted the Tenente, Manuel did the same and we moved back to the Legendario.
Upon exiting the building I noticed the bodies of the Phalanx members turned into a deep black goo, their shields and swords were still there, I had no time to examine it at the moment, so I ignored it, the sound of sirens was replaced with yells and orders, but the heavy atmosphere persisted.
The plaza was filled with soldiers and civilians, the APCs were cluttered with crates and equipment tied on-top of them, the soldiers were unloading everything with the help of the civvies, where did those civilians come from?

0847 hours, 3 rounds spent
Pernambuco suffered some damage on the paintjob, lots of arrowheads were stuck on the frontal turret armor, Cleyton the commander of the thing was standing on the roof inspecting the plaza.
“Manuel, i’ll organize the rest of the group”
Manuel jogged back to the Legendario, i made my way to Pernambuco
“Cleyton, new orders, you are under my command we are to make our way to the Federal highway and secure it alongside 2 charrua teams, sintonize our frequency Manuel will send it to you over the general comm as soon as possible”
“Roger that anon, you better not lead us into an ambush” Cleyton said smugly
The Charruas were setting a perimeter around the plaza, finding their commander was easy, big buff guy with a black beret, headset and aviator glasses ontop of an IFV Charrua, Lieutenant rank on his shirt, I jogged my way there.
“Sir, sergeant anon, tank commander, requesting  two CGs for an armored task force.” Saluting the tenente i felt a cold shiver running through my spine, as if i committed a grave mistake
“The Federal highway? you gonna need the entire platoon to secure that, take your tanks to the east exit, my boys will be there, you better not leave them hanging, don’t disappoint me, sergeant anon.” the Tenente was staring at me through the sunglasses, i could feel the weight of the responsibility he was putting on my shoulders
“YES SIR” i saluted and jogged back to the legendario
The Osorio was parked by the police department building a gentle shadow was cast on it, a small green bird was relaxing on top of the barrel, seems he didn’t mind all the destruction going around, i climbed on top of it, Jacson was servicing the REMAX the roof was cleaned of blood.
“Jacson, finish this quickly we’re leaving” i said to him and gestured to Pernambuco to move to the east-most street, i entered the tank, stowed my SMT-9 and donned my helmet, the beret was inserted into one of my shoulder flaps, Manuel was already on his seat
“Manuel contact Pernambuco send them our frequency, their callsign will be C1, we will be C2, where’s Bino?”
“At his seat, praying”
“We wait then, you better pray too.”
I climbed my hatch, sticking my head out, 4 Charruas passed through us moving to the east road
“I’m finished, turning the engine on” Bino’s voice was heard on the intercom
The Legendario came to life, Jacson entered his hatch, the bird on the barrel flew away, Pernambuco started moving his way to the east street
“Panzer-vor” Manuel said through the intercom, in a high pitched voice, fucking weeb.
“Pernambuco, C2, C2, testing frequency,over”
“C2 here, pronto,over”
“C1, confirm, pronto, out”

0853 hours, 3 rounds spent
Now playing in the Manuel Player3 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=336CeMHbENc
The tanks made its way through the east streets, Pernambuco was the last in the column, the Charruas were in the middle, small stores and houses filled the scenery, trees casted gentle shadows on the way, the sound of the tank treads and powerful engines filled the air, sometimes we had to clear the street off an abandoned car, couldn’t pass over them like last time because of the APCs following behind us, black smoke could be seen rising to the air, but  not enough to block the beautiful sunshine, some dazed and confused civilians  were making their way to the plaza, carrying as much as they could in their hands and bracing their kids, that visage reminded me this shitshow is far from over.
The travel to the east gates was idyllic, midway there we found an orange tree, me and Jacson managed to get some and then we continued the march through the town.

0901 hours, 3 rounds spent

“Sergeant, we’re about to hit a roundabout” Bino said on the intercom
“All units, prepare for combat, possible barricade at the next roundabout, out” I said on the general frequency
I closed my hatch and stowed my SMT. Inside the tank everything is different, you have to use periscopes and LCD screens to see the world around you, you feel like a scientist using a microscope, the REMAX was ready, 250 rounds in the ammo counter.
“LOAD HEAT” is commanded
The sound of a round entering the breech was heard
“Pronto!” Jacson affirmed
We turned on the corner street and there it was, another barricade, black smoke was rising from behind it
“TARGET, BARRICADE, 1.0.0, ENGAGE AT WILL.”
The cozy suburban street was brought back alive by the cannon, broken glass, car alarms and flying leafs filled the atmosphere.
“HEAT, PRONTO”
“Advance full speed, Fire at will” i said over the intercom
The tank began to charge, I started firing with the REMAX the bullets penetrated the cars in the barricade like butter, I made sure to pepper the place right didn't want a repeat of the last situation.
The foremost charruas also joined me in this shooting gallery.
“All units advance full speed, get out of their killzone” i said over the general frequency
“C2, copy”
“CGs, copy!” 
A loud ripping sound was heard and 2 burning wrecks were thrown at our way
“FUUCK!” Cleyton, the Pernambuco’s commander yelled on the radio
The sound of the wrecks impacting the street filled the air, the sound of something crashing into a house could also be heard, no time to waste, the Legendario was about to breach the barricade
“FIRE AT THE CENTER OF THE BARRICADE” i yelled to Manuel
Another strondous sound, more broken glass, the HEAT shell passed straight through the barricade exploding upon hitting the street at the other side, dislodging some cars out of the barricade, made Bino’s job easier.
“Brace for impact!”
The tank hit the barricade full force, parts and scraps of cars flown to the air alongside the tank, the roundabout was filled with the damn rats, bottles with burning rags in their hands and minotaur somewhere, the tank maneuvered it’s way through, the machine guns fired killing everything some molotovs impacted to the floor leaving small burning patches on the streets the screaming of the rats was becoming louder thanks to it.
Molotovs impacted the roof of the tank, blinding us. I couldn’t feel the heat inside but without the cameras we were sitting ducks.
“Bino, keep us moving” I said over the intercom
The tank maneuvered and then suddenly began turning on its own axis, almost making me lose my balance, the sound of the Charruas and their machine guns could be heard, the flames still enveloped the cameras.
“The tracks are jammed!” Bino exclaimed
“It’s up to the Charruas now, Manuel see if you can use the backup sights”
“Already doing it” the turret moved and the machine guns engaged, i couldn’t see anything.
“Jacson, pass me the fire extinguisher” Jacson moved his hands to the lower part of the turret basket and gave me a small red extinguisher.
I folded the stock on the SMT9 sling around my neck, on the other hand the ready for use extinguisher, i began opening the hatch, the heat hit me at once the sounds of machine guns were louder now
I sprayed the extinguisher through the small gap the half-way opened hatch made and managed to extinguish enough of it so I could open it entirely. The heat of the fire wasn’t enough to stop me from seeing the carnage.
the roundabout was filled with blood and rat corpses the two catapults could be seen their crews slaughtered near them, small fires and scrap metal littered the place, the charruas were dropping their ramps, the infantry began bayonetting any survivors, two of them with fire extinguishers were moving my way another Charrua was maneuvering back towards Pernambuco, who was stuck halfway inside a house, the two burning wrecks by the street near it.
The two soldiers climbed the Legendario and extinguished the fires on the turret. I thanked them, disconnected my intercom cable and climbed down to check the tracks.
Part of a compacted car was stuck in the right track, jamming it, it wasn’t that big, so getting it out of there wouldn’t be that hard.

0923 hours, 5 rounds spent
The smell of fire and blood filled the air, both Osorios were immobilized, two charruas were trying to tow Pernambuco out of the house it was stuck in, Bino and some riflemen were clearing the debris in the legendario’s tracks, they had to lift the skirts.
I was on top of my hatch observing the situation, the sun up above was getting warmer and i could still feel the residual heat from the molotovs, thankfully the cameras were still ok, they were made for this kind of thing.
“C1 to command, we will be out of schedule, tanks are currently undergoing track repairs at point B-23-13, over.” I omitted Pernambuco’s situation, it was too shameful for command to know.
“Command to C1, what’s the ETA on your repairs,over” 
“C1 to command, around 14 minutes, over.”
“Command acknowledges, finish your repairs and proceed to your objective, remember to refuel your tanks, out”
While i was busy talking to command i could see Pernambuco finally managed to be dislodged from his situation
“The tracks are clear, sergeant!” one of the riflemen helping Bino yelled
“Finally, put the skirts into position and go back to your vehicles” i answered
I entered the tank and closed the hatch, the air inside was cold and comfy, unlike the outside sunny warmth.
The sounds of metal being moved was heard and the soldiers moved back to their APCs, Bino entered the driver’s compartment, all ready to go ,The two charruas and Pernambuco entered the roundabout and we joined formation and then proceeded to the eastern gate.
“Jacson, replenish the turret ammo rack” Jacson was almost falling asleep when i said that, he was startled awake and began moving about
“Manuel, put the turret in position”  The turret moved and Jacson had access to the hull, he began moving HEAT rounds back in the turret and putting them in the turret bustle.
Along the way we began eating the oranges we picked, even Bino received one thanks to the turret being already in position.
The travel to the Eastern gates was relaxing, if you ignore all the cars in the way that is, thanks to the hydropneumatic suspension it wasn’t that bad.

0928 hours 5 rounds spent

We finally reached the highway, the road stretched into the horizon and was completely deserted, green fields dominated the view some “serras” here and there  but otherwise , trees and the long empty asphalt highway were all you could see for, the yellow painted stone portals that demarcated the town’s entrance were an imposing view contrasting with the natural surroundings, there was a gas station nearby, i ordered all vehicles to be refueled there, the infantry moved out of their APCs they would secure the entrance, fortifying the place with whatever they could find, for the next minutes we protected the perimeter while the infantry started fortifying the place.

0104 hours 5 rounds spent
“C1 to command, objectively accomplished, the federal highway is secured, awaiting further orders”
“Command to C1, return to the plaza for debriefing and new orders, the infantry will be able to man the place, we need you and Pernambuco here now, over.”
“C1 acknowledges, RTB, out”
I alerted the infantry platoon about their new orders, and now with a filled gas tank me and Pernambuco made our way back to the plaza.

0959 hours 5 rounds spent

The plaza was converted into an open air military base, trucks and jeeps were unloading material and weapons, tents were set up, antennas and communication equipment, national flags, lines of men being organized into squads and platoons, old bolt action rifles in their hands, badly worn uniforms, the kind of thing you would expect from fresh recruits, drill instructors were yelling, they were training the local men so we could get more manpower it was all very nostalgic.
Some tanks and Charruas were being tampered with in the parking lot, the sounds of angle grinders and the glow of welding gear called my attention.
Bino maneurvered the tank alongside the Pernambuco's driver and in no time Legendario and Pernambuco were parked alongside the rest of the vehicles that were being modified, i couldn’t see exactly was being made, but i could see Enrique directing the crews and “repair” teams
Me and the rest of the Crew left the tank, Pernambuco’s crew did the same, while the crew were stretching out i moved towards Enrique, he quickly noticed my presence and turned towards me
“My king! welcome back, how was your little adventure, killing a lot of rats eh? yeah i know what you’re about to ask so i’m gonna save you some time: We’re installing anti-infantry-assault-devices, a really pretentious name for  12 shotguns barrels installed around your tank and connected to a button in the crew compartment, these are gonna ruin any faggy-ass rat’s day”
Enrique said while gesturing to a Osorio with  2 set of 6 barrels welded on each side of the turret in a half star formation
“Perfect, put one of those on my tank and get us more 9mm ammo and 5 HEAT shells” i said
“Can do, king” Enrique replied, a smug smile on his face.

1125 hours 5 rounds spent
I made my way to the command room on the second floor of the police department, muffled sounds of heated conversation could be heard from inside.
*knock knock*
“Come in” voice called from inside the room
I opened the door, Tenente Aguerres was discussing something alongside the other lieutenants and the regiment commander. That buff infantry lieutenant I talked to earlier today was there too, still using sunglasses.
“Sergeant anon, sir you called?” i saluted and walked inside
“Yes sergeant take a seat” Aguerres said and pointed to a wooden chair
i took a seat and Aguerres pointed to a map on a flat white board
The regiment commander was seated alongside us, it seems he was as clueless as the rest of us here.
“Gentlemen our situation is dire, we have a secured a mostly intact population center and initiated the mobilization of the local population,right now we are the exception Brasilia is in martial law and we lost contact with most state capitals 
the military regions are mustering all they can to fight the hordes but they got us with our pants down, most units in the field right now are undermanned and received 15% casualty rate, 
the Policia Militar are in worse situation all around the country, the air force has begun the biggest bombing campaign South America has ever seen, but our ammo depots, factories and logistical hubs are in dire danger, as of right now we lost contact with our region’s supply depot 
A mechanized cavalry recon squadron is on their way to it right as we speak, as you all know, the depot is built alongside the federal highway and directly connects to a railway station, securing it is our priority right now.”
Aguerres then pointed to me, everyone was looking at me and I felt my body temperature rise.
“Sergeant anon, you just received a field promotion, you’re now 1st sergeant, catch it”
he threw a piece of green and grey cloth at me, i catched it, it was the 1st sergeant rank insignia
“No need to sew it now, for now your orders are to take command of an armored task force alongside lieutenant Augusto.”
Lieutenant Augusto stood up, a big buff white guy wearing aviator sunglasses and a black beret.
“When do we depart?” Augusto said, his voice was deep and low, expected from a man of his size.
“Prepare your tanks and men, i want you to depart until 1300 hours, i want the depot secured until 1000 hours of tomorrow, anon, you will take command of the first squadron, four tanks will be enough, now you two are dismissed” Aguerres said saluting us and then turning to the regiment commander.
I made my way out of the room alongside Augusto, stepping into the corridor and closing the door behind me, Augusto said 
“You’re okay kid? ‘tis your first time talking with the brass?” 
“Yeah yeah, I'm ok, first time receiving such weight on my shoulders, with everything going to shit around us, don’t worry I'll be ready.” i replied
“Yeah, it’s not like mopping the floor or cutting grass all day like you’re accustomed to” Augusto said
“Yeah, don’t even remind me, I did too much of that shit in my 4 years of soldiering, go on ahead without me, I need to check the armory first.” i said, a smile forming in my face
“Right” Augusto said, nodding and walking off.

1132 hours 5 rounds spent

The colonial era architecture corridors smelled different, my boots made lots of noise on the wooden floors, I took the stairwell down and made my way to the armory on the first floor.
“Look, I need a gun, I know there’s few of those Pentaguns but I really NEED one” the voice of Manuel came from the armory’s corridor, I turned the corner and there it was.
Manuel was talking to the armorer on the other side of the counter, trying to convince the poor fella to give him a revolver shotgun.
“I’ll say it again, WE DON’T HAVE PERMISSION TO GIVE YOU IT, we need every gun possible to arm the volunteers, we ain’t gonna give a shotgun to a corporal just because he asked for it, and no don’t even try to bribe me.” The armorer said.
I approached the counter
“1st sergeant anon, 21st armored cavalry regiment, i need a Pentagun shotgun and bandolier for one of my crewmates we have a mission to depart to and our pistols won’t be enough”
Manuel had the biggest shit eating grin i ever saw, the armorer moved as if he was struck by lightning
“Y-yes sir” he said and moved inside the armory
He came back with a Pentagun with filled ammo loops on the stock, a filled ammo sling, a small box of 12g blanks and a grenade launcher muzzle cup.
“The entire kit, sir” the armorer said with a slight smile on his face
“Thank you very much, our chances of survival are higher now” i said
1247 hours 5 rounds spent
We’re taking the Federal highway, around us endless green fields and mountains, the cool wind is blowing, me and Jacson are sitting on our hatches up on the roof, the sun is warm, colourful birds are flying about, at the distance you can see jet fighters flying at supersonic speed if you got a good eye.l
we got eight vehicles here with us, 4 Osorio 105s, 2 IFV charruas with 25mm turrets, each carrying 8 men, 2 APC Charruas with REMAX .50cal turrets, each carrying 10 men, Lieutenant Augusto is the highest ranking man in the column, i’m the lead the vehicle, Pernambuco is right behind me, the second Osorio section is at the tail of the column.
All Osorios and Charruas are equipped with the anti ambush device, though I doubt it’s effectiveness in these plains.
Even though according to the maps we were around the vicinity of the depot, the roads simply led to a tall monolith a purple light emanated from it and the land around the monolith was overgrown some rare trees here and there a clear dirt trail path linked the monolith to the federal highway, the cavalry squadron was there their cascavel armored cars and Guarani APCs formed a perimeter around the monolith the commander could be seen using his Cascavel’s radio while sitting on his hatch, some men were doing guard duty others were disposing of bodies, some parts of the grass were bloody crimson, others had small craters and bullet impacts.
The column’s vehicles entered the grassy field where the depot should be. Lieutenant Augusto parked his IFV near the squadron commander’s cascavel, and they started to talk. I was too far away to hear what they were saying.
“Shit,did those rats steal the entire depot?” Manuel said
“I really don’t know what to expect of this anymore” I replied
Jacson was staring at the monolith as if lost in a trance
“Maybe it’s some kind of portal whatever it is, it replaced the depot but i don’t think the depot would just disappear into thin air like that, maybe it’s like a gate” Bino said in contemplation.
“Well we need that depot and the guys in that depot need us, we’ll end up having to enter this metaphorical gate” I said.

1253 hours 5 rounds spent

Lieutenant Augusto made contact with the 21st regiment command, the orders are still the same, secure the depot, everything points out the rats are coming forth from this kind of monolith located all around the country, we will be trailblazers.
The cavalry squadron was dismissed, they returned to the town, we inspected the bodies they killed, disfigured rotten creatures, their heads were torn open turned into open mouths filled with teeth, they wore medieval clothes their flesh was rotten it is the kind of thing you’d expect from a really well made horror movie, the cavalry squadron assured us we could go on the other side unharmed, they tested the passage themselves by sending an APC there, the APC returned unharmed.
We all made a circle before going through the portal and prayed, we prayed for some minutes before finally getting ready for the leap of faith.


1307 hours 5 rounds spent

My tank is the first in the column yet again, the monolith calls us with it’s hypnotising purple esplendor, the monolith is wide enough for a Osorio, the APC said that passing through the monolith is like passing your hands through jelly, accelerate and you’ll be there, he said the climate is temperate “European” was the word he used, nothing but plains and forest on the other side but the depot is surely there, he knows that because he heard the sound of gunfire and explosive there, our boys need us.
“All units advance!” Augusto said
Now playing in the Manuel Player 3: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Ldyg-yEcB4
The sound of the engines and our combined anxiety filled the air, the purple light and the black monolith became more and more closer to our optics, until the tank passed.
The world became a surreal mess as if I was part of a modernist painting colors and shapes intermingled and moved  through my mind. I tried to scream but my mouth didn’t move.

1310 hours 5 rounds spent
1310 hours? 5 rounds spent 

I could feel the tank move a few meters forward, my eyes were closed, I felt sick in the stomach as if I just returned from a rollercoaster ride.
“Sergeant are you ok” Jacson said putting his hand on my shoulder
I opened my eyes, the world was lucid again through the REMAX display i could see green fields and snow covered peaks we weren’t in Brasil anymore
“Yeah, i’m just a bit sick gimme a few seconds” i said as my body started to come to its senses
“Yeah” Manuel said with a nauseated face “i feel the same”
“Same down here, thankfully i had a light breakfast” Bino said over the intercom
“So I'm the only one who doesn’t feel like emptying his stomach right now? heh lucky” Jacson said with a slight smile.
I opened my hatch, the air outside was cold, the sun was hidden behind the clouds, I grabbed my SMT 9 and climbed the hatch, the wind greeted me as i sat on the charred roof, Pernambuco was parked a few meters to the right positioned as if in a half circle formation, behind us the great monolith stood, it’s purple light wasn’t there anymore the Charruas were moving through it, they took their place in the half circle formation as they came.
No sign of the depot, just like the APC crew advised, we see a river and a stone road alongside the shore. It goes through a forest, it’s all very beautiful, but the sound of automatic gunfire at the distance quickly breaks the atmosphere short bursts by the sound of it. it’s a 7,62 MAG firing, about 700 meters from here coming from the east towards the forest no birds were startled by it so they must be firing those guns periodically for some time now.

All vehicles have crossed the monolith, the cold wind is blowing, some soldiers puked their breakfast out and the sound of gunshots is still loud, Tenente Augusto is trying to get radio contact the infantry is inspecting the surrounding environment checking if it’s safe for the tanks to cross if there’s ambushes nearby or for a place to pee, the usual stuff.
The stone road is the only sign of civilization around here, on the other side of the river there’s a dense forest, the road trails far through the horizon it probably connects to a port town or something.

1312 hours? 5 rounds spent 
Now playing in Manuel Player 3: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WbMFtmdjPZk
Augusto got in contact with the region’s depot. They are by the river some 2 kilometers east, we'll have to go through the forest, i hope we don’t get stuck here.
We are following the stone road through the forest in the direction of the gunshots, i’m sitting on top of my hatch first tank in the column as always, thankfully we can still hear some animals here and there otherwise it would be a sure sign we were being stalked, the sound of the engines feel anachronistic here, the trees are completely alien to anything we ever saw back in Brasil but they would be at home in Europe or Russia the wood becomes denser the more we move Eastwards enough to make you feel a bit claustrophobic specially with the fact the tanks are almost as wide as the road, inside the forest the cool prairie wind couldn’t reach us that made me a bit sad i was starting to enjoy it.
“This is giving me slight deja-vu from earlier today” Bino’s voice sounded from my head mic
“Yeah different world same shit” Manuel replied
Behind us was Pernambuco, Cleyton was eyeing the forests around him and he looked very anxious.
“C1 to C2, come in C2 over” I said over our radio frequency
“C2 here, send your traffic, over” Cleyton’s voice was heard
“Are you ok Cleyton? you seem to be very anxious right now” I said in a understanding tone
“Yes i am, just very stressed don’t worry about it anon, over” Cleyton said, he sounded a bit sad.
“This is all, C1, out” I finished the transmission
The brown and green camouflage on our vehicles felt a bit out of place in this shadowy forest, good thing we don’t plan to stay here for long.
We finally reached the end of the forest, we spent some minutes passing through it, ahead of us was the familiar river around it green plains the type that would be used for sheeps and bovine cattle around it rolling hills and a medieval looking European village at the river’s shores, the village wasn’t big and black smoke was rising from multiple points, small fires could be seen, shadowy figures prowled the few unblocked streets i could see as they limped about their heads moving erratically in abrupt movements in random directions at such speed a normal person would have his neck broken.
The depot stood over the fields some 250 meters to the village it’s classical colonial architecture and large size was alien to this place, through my binoculars i could see a few  figures trying to climb the walls and the garrison inside watchtowers built into the walls fighting them off with point blank firing and bayonets, around the depot long lines of bodies and red stains on the greenery could be seen, the figures didn’t look like rats, seemed more like men, probably the same that roamed the village.
I gave the signal for the column to halt and radioed in what i saw to Augusto
“Out of the road, maintain formation and move to the depot” Augusto was succinct in his orders 
I passed the orders to Bino and the Legendario moved out of the stone road and into the grassy fields, the vibrations of the track turned more gentle the sound of stones being broken and tossed about were gone, the cold wind blowed once again but now it carried the rotten stench of death and sulphur 
much like back in Brasil the scenario was idyllic but the situation was apocalyptic, the green fields were littered with rotting corpses, they all looked humanoid but some had horrific mutations, their heads replaced with open mouths, arms turned into blades, just like we saw back in the monolith in Brasil, i held my SMT close and put it in semi auto.
“Are those zombies?” Jacson said over the ‘coms 
“Maybe, not sure what to expect after today and the footage they showed us this morning” I replied to him
“What should we call this place?” Bino said
“No idea, isn’t it better to let the higher ups decide?” Jacson said 
“Rio seguro” I said
“Heh, not bad but does this mean we are colonizing the place?” Manuel said
The tank approached the depot gates
“Heads up, we arrived” I said and entered the tank, putting the SMT back on SAFE
The tank stopped in-front of the Depot’s gates, the gates were painted white with a green line running close to the ground barbed wire was planted on-top and every few meters a small white watchtower built on the wall, some parts of it were painted crimson red with blood and gore of the “zombies” that attacked it, on both flanks of the green metal gate stained dark crimson was small white stone guardposts converted into machinegun nests i could see the men inside there move about, they must have their hands full with all the killing that happened.
Our guidons fluttered in the wind while we waited the gates to move, Augusto asked for a sitrep but all i could say is 
“They are moving about inside i’m sure they saw us but we are waiting here”
I climbed my hatch again, the smell of rotten and decaying flesh was even stronger than before, i saw one of the machinegunners inside the posts he nodded to me
I heard the sound of a metal door being opened but it came from behind, i looked to see what it was and saw Augusto leaving his IFV charrua and moving here, he had one hand over his mouth shielding his nose from the stench and in the other a IA2 rifle
He came close to the Legendario and right on time, the gates began to move.

The gates began to move the sound of the metal rattling and the gate engine echoed in the valley, the courtyard was filled with soldiers and civilians from the nearby village the soldiers were very happy to see us, the civilians though, they seemed a mix of awe and apprehensiveness children were hugging their parents and closing their eyes probably expecting us to kill them, how adorable, they were dressed as you’d expect from medieval europe, there were a lot of them but I couldn't see them in detail they were a bit further away in the courtyard.
The tanks and charruas rolled in and some soldiers helped the drivers maneuver in and park the tanks at the courtyard, quickly we were surrounded by soldiers and a few curious villagers. The sound of chatting and murmurs was drowned by the heavy engine rumbling.
I gave the order to dismount and took my helmet off, with a black beret on my head I climbed down the Legendario.
I could see Augusto talking to a man with golden rank insignias by the gate
“You guys finally arrived, we were already praying for deliverance and expecting this place to be forgotten about” one of the soldiers said.
“Yeah we came to rescue your sorry asses” Manuel said while climbing his hatch
“I presume those are the unlucky villagers” i said pointing to the mass of ye-olde dressed people, some had fluffy ears and tails, but they all seemed “normal”
“Those fucking zombies layed siege to us for the entire morning we managed to save some civilians and stopped most of them but some passed through” a soldier with a old FAL in hands said
“Don’t worry the ones who passed through the portal were dealt with” i replied
“Portal? thank god, this means we are not stranded here, right?” A younger soldier said
“Damn are those the Osorios?! I never saw those out of a parade, awesome” I heard a soldier squeal
The chatting soon turned into an incoherent verbal mess with everyone trying to say something.
The sounds of the engines were no more and the crewmen were now alongside each other in the courtyard answering questions and chatting with the soldiers and the few civilians who didn’t shy away from us. Me and Bino refrained from interacting with the crowd and sat on top of the legendario, Bino began checking the cameras and radio equipment for damage.
The national flag and the Division flag fluttered in the wind, the climate and people were so different from back home but it definitely felt like we bought a piece of Brasil here with us.
“You think we’re staying here for long?” Bino asked
“Maybe, the depot will need security though i doubt they will devote precious Osorios to this place” I replied
The black smoke from the village was getting heavier, we should do something about it, people live there, I thought.
“Hey” A familiar voice came down from the left of the turret
“Who is it?” Bino asked while he was busy checking the Legendario’s radio and GPS equipment
“It’s me, Cleyton” The voice said, shortly after Cleyton climbed the tank and was on top of the turret with us.
“Catch!” Cleyton threw a can of Guaraná soda to me
“You too Bino” Then threw one to Bino as soon as Bino turned around to him
He sat on top of the loader’s hatch and opened his own can
“A tough day eh?” Cleyton said
“I had tougher” Bino said and opened his can
“Yeah…” I opened my own can, the sound of the crack and the gas leaving the can was like music to me, this is probably the first soda can opened in this world.
I was almost lost in this Guarana trance when short quick footsteps followed by not so short and not so quick ones were heard by the tank

“Knight-man... can you please help me!?” The juvenile voice was ragged and tired, surely because of the short sprint this lad did to reach the tank, behind him a young lady around my age with fox ears and a fluffy tail wearing medieval peasant clothing.
“Those monsters are there at the village, I left my dog there, can you please help me get him?!” The vulpine child said, with a determined face, his heroic stance was ruined  quickly by a bonk on his head by the young lady
“I’m sorry about my little brother, sire” She said and then bowed her head forcing her brother to do the same.
“No need to do that to your brother, we’ll save his doggy” I said with a smile, the kid reminded a younger me, when i was more naive and innocent, before the world forced it out of me.
They spoke portuguese but with a different accent and a more ye-olde vocabulary, the kind you’d expect from an old colonial novela or book.
The girl and boy both had brown hair, the boy’s tail wagged from side to side like a dog, while the girl’s tail was held low, they looked very cute together.
“They speak portuguese?” Cleyton said in a surprised tone
“We are as surprised as you, sire” The girl said in a quiet tone.
“You’re gonna save Féhfeh?” The boy said, stars in his eyes, his tail wagging even quicker now.
“Yes, but first we need to plan this small rescue operation and all the other things” I said, trying to think on how we would do this.
“Thank you very much sire, i can not thank you enough for this” The girl said, her face lighted up, her ears stood up and a gentle wag from her tail signalled her satisfaction.
“Well, you can begin by giving me your name” I said summoning my inner Don Juan, I could hear Bino snicker behind me
“It’s Cecilia” The girl said with a calm smile her deep eyes staring at me
“Anon, a pleasure to meet you” i said
“My name’s Cesar!” The boy said with a gleaming smile while hopping up and down.
“I’m Bino” He said with a wave of his hand
“Cleyton” Cleyton did the same
“So what does Fehfeh looks like, Cesar?” I asked Little Cesar
“Small, around this size with white fur with brown points” Cesar said while using hands to show the dog’s size, it was small, probably a puppy.
“Our house is by the river Fehfeh should be there, it’s rather small compared to the others and there’s a small fruit tree by it, you won’t miss it” Cecilia interjected
I was about to climb down when Jacson and Manuel appeared alongside Augusto, the gunner and loader were carrying wooden unmarked crates but Augusto had his hands free.
I salute the Tenente Cecilia and Cesar moved out of the way while Manuel and Jacson began to climb the tank with Bino’s help
“Sergeant, new orders for you, you and a Armored Infantry squad are to clear that village, leave the fires to the infantry they have been issued fire extinguishers, Here’s a map one of the villagers drew from memory” Augusto said and passed me a small white paper piece, in it a hand-draw map of the village, i quickly found Cecilia’s house
“Is this it?” I showed her the map while pointing to what I presumed was her cottage.
“Yes, yes it is” She said, nodding her head.
“Catch!” I threw my almost full can of soda to Cesar, and he got it.
“Thanks, Knight-man” Cesar said while sniffing the liquid inside.
“Orders acknowledged Tenente, we’ll clear the village” I finished it with a salute
“Crew, mount up!” I commanded.

1352 hours? 5 rounds spent 
Now playing in Manuel Player 3: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BN1WwnEDWAM

The Legendario and an APC Charrua moved out of depot, the sun was high and the cold wind blew, the village was infested with those mutated abominations some houses have been completely consumed by the fire, on top of the Charrua the infantry was, a mix of IA-2s and FALs in their hands the bright green flags on their Jackets and vests was a stark reminder we were strangers in a strange land here.
“Should we try to draw them out?” Manuel asked.
“Yeah, I'll alert the infantry, let’s test this out” I said and reached for the Legendario’s radio equipment, sintonized it to the Charrua frequency.
“C1 to Charrua, we’ll try to draw the enemy out with machine gun firing, prepare for combat, over”
“GC-2 Acknowledges, out” The voice said over the radio.
“Jacson, ‘faça as honras’ “ I said to Jacson and his face lit up with a smile, he then quickly climbed his hatch and charged his .50 machine gun, shortly after bursts of machine gun fire aimed to the sky were heard.
The infantry jumped down from their transport and took battle positions to the flanks of the tank, they crouched and held their rifles, I climbed my hatch so I could communicate with them, the Remax was in front of my hatch blocking my vision so i had to stand outside of the hatch, i have my SMT-9 in hands, ready to fire.
Jacson ceased fire and I inspected the area with my binoculars, and there they came they moved forth, some limping, some sprinting, their eyes were black and filled with an unnatural rage well at least in the ones that still had eyes, some had their heads broken open and turned into open mouths oozing with a blood and filled with sharp bony teeth, others had their arms replaced with bone blades.
“Fire! Fire at will!!” The infantry sergeant yelled
The FALs and IA2s came to life and the air was filled with the sound of the firing, not long after the MAG also opened up.
The zombies quickly fell one by one leaving their rotten blood and bodies on the grassy fields around the village.
I gestured for the infantry to move and relayed the command to Bino
We moved slowly so we wouldn’t be taken by surprise in-case there were more of them hiding, until we finally reached the village.
“C1 to command, over” 
“Command here, send your traffic, over”
“Mission accomplished the enemy has been neutralized the infantry is doing their jobs now, over”
“Command acknowledges, tidy everything up there and RTB, out”
“Manuel, you take command, I have to do something.” I said and then disconnected my cable and jumped off the tank. I had the map in my head and the village wasn’t big so there were no problems in finding the cottage.
My boots hit the mud, even the ground felt different from Brasil, the village smelt of burnt wood and rotting flesh, I had to cover my mouth and nose with a short scarf I kept on me still it didn’t help much.
I walked forth into the village’s central mud road, i could hear and feel the Legendario and the Charrua move about, soldiers went around with red fire extinguishers putting down fires, bodies in different levels of decomposition could be seen here and there, i tried to ignore them, death is different when you see it with your bare eyes.
Their house was by the river just like she said, a small humble wooden hut, i hope i don’t end up finding their zombified parents or something and i hope Fehfeh is still alive
I came to the door of the small hut, the windows were blocked by green curtains and the cold wind blew from the river. I knocked on the door, not expecting any response, I simply did it out of habit.
I waited some second and then noticed my obtrusiveness and opened the door, it was locked.
“Fehfeh are you there?!” I said out loud into one of the windows
I heard the sound of quick and heavy footsteps going to the door and quickly shouldered my SMT9
The door opened violently and forth came a big man with an axe in his hands and fluffy appendages on his body, he was much bigger than me.
We stared at each other for around 15 seconds,with my SMT aimed at him and in his hands a big axe. That awkward silence was finally broken by a small dog and a brown haired vulpine woman who I presume to be his wife appearing.
The dog barked, although it was just a puppy so his barking was more endearing than intimidating.
“I see you aren’t one of those creatures, my apologies I was about to open your head just like those creatures are opened.” the man said relaxing his stance, his voice was low and loud
“No problem, i would do the same” I said while putting the SMT-9 at the Safe position.
“Who are you? Are you the source of all that sound? Are you a wizard? what clothes are that? ...” The woman said, without a breath in-between.
“Elena, please, let me ask the questions.” The man interrupted her
“Who are you?” The man asked while looking at my eyes
I moved my Scarf out of my mouth and nose
“1st Sergeant Anon, 21st Armored cavalry regiment, Brazilian Army” I said, instinctively putting myself at attention.
“So you aren’t a wizard?” The Woman asked, now with a calmer voice
“No senhora, I'm just an armored cavalry man.” I said preferring not to use the word “tank” lest I confuse them further.
“Are you the source of that noise?” The man asked with a curious look in face
“Yes sir, we killed the monsters that were in this village, we used guns, it’s hard to explain how it works but i’ll be able to show it to you shortly” I said.
The man was about to say something when his wife interrupted him
“And what about your clothes? aren’t you a cavalry-man? where is your armor?” Elena asked
“Again senhora, it’s hard to explain, but you’ll soon see it” I said and then turned my eyes to the puppy
“Is that Fehfeh?” I asked
“Yes, how do you know?” The man said
“Cesar asked me to find him, i’m very happy you and the dog are still alive and well” I said
“OUR CHILDREN ARE SAFE?” Elena yelled
“Yes, senhora they are at the Depot in that direction” I said and pointed towards the depot, it was obscured by the village houses so they couldn’t see it.
“Thank the gods, they were away from home when these monsters came, we locked ourselves and prayed the monsters didn’t find us, Fehfeh was with them but he bolted back here when this all started” The man said.
“Well, good that everything is alright, I'm sorry about all of this happening so suddenly and about my less than good introduction but now I have to go” I said, already expecting my ass to be chewed for abandoning my tank in the middle of a combat zone.
“Wait, we’ll go with you!” Elena said as I was already turning around and preparing to sprint away.
“Let’s go then, i need to return quickly to my guys otherwise my boss will be very angry” I said and began to walk off, they followed me.
The rumble of the engines and the vibrations caused by the tracks could be heard and softly felt even from here.


1402 hours? 5 rounds spent

I came to the central mud road, there were no more fires anymore but the smell of smoke and rotten and burnt flesh lingered the soldiers were checking houses and ruins and carrying bodies out of the houses, some of the bodies were burnt to a crisp others were small, not the kind of thing i want to see or dwell my mind in.
I moved my scarf back over my mouth and nose so the smell wouldn’t fill my mouth.
The two behind me had an incredulous look on their faces which quickly turned to sorrow.
“Young man, how many of us survived?” The man asked 
“I don’t have an exact number, but a bunch you’ll see when we get there.” I replied
I could feel the ground shake and heard the sound of the Legendario and not long after it appeared the mighty warmachine moved swiftly through the mud road splashing mud behind it, it stopped in-front of us.
“By the gods, what is that thing?” Elaina said in a gasp
“It’s my Horse” I replied with a smile, which unfortunately couldn’t be seen behind the scarf.
They had their mouths open in awe and admiration upon seeing the Magnum Opus of the Brazilian Arms industry, it’s olive green and brownish red camouflage mingled well with the brown mud and grass around us, the Panoramic cameras stared at us with their mechanical eyes.
Elaina hugged her husband tightly expecting the worse
I climbed the tank and knocked on the commander hatch, the hatch was quickly opened, almost hitting my nose with it’s heavy metal structure
“Welcome back Sarge” Jacson said
“Pass me the cable” I said
The cable was threw out of the hatch, i picked it up and connected it into my helmet
The couple wasn’t as fearful as before but still showed some apprehension
“We are moving back to the depot, it’s where the rest of the villagers and your kids are, climb up onto this part and hold on tight” I said while pointing to the engine bay area
Both of them nodded in synchronism, Elaina picked up Fehfeh and both of them moved to climb onto the tank, I helped them get up.
“We’re gonna move over some rough terrain so hold onto the turret and beware the wind” I said to them
“Bino, go slowly, we got some guests here” I said pressing the intercom button.
Jacson opened his hatch and moved up showing his head
They were both startled by this; even Fehfeh barked, but Jacson quickly waved his hands and showed he meant no harm; his skinny and lanky body probably helped to convey this.
They both still showed some signs of fear and apprehension in their body language, their tails were kept low and close to their body.
The tank began to move, usually Bino moves in a swift and sudden jolt after a stop, but not this time, this time he did it smoothly, and it stayed that way for the entire short travel between the village and the depot.
We reached the gates, having two medieval peasants with fluffy tails holding onto our turret while one of them held a puppy must have looked very exotic for the guards at the gate.
The crowds that once surrounded the tanks at the courtyard are no more now, only curious soldiers and villagers remained, inspecting the vehicles while the crews tended to them.
I could hear the couple whispering to each other behind me.
The tank parked into its place in the courtyard  
“Where are they?!” Elaine said then promptly jumped off the tank, her husband followed.
I felt like I just returned home after a working day, it seems this place is slowly bleeding into me, still the climate and sky reminded me this isn’t my home.
“So who are those two?”  Jacson asked
“parents of some kids i found” I replied
“Crew dismount!” I yelled, holding my intercom button.
I disconnected my cable and climbed down the tank, my boots hitting the floor didn’t make much noise, they were sticky with the village’s mud.
“Mommy!” Little Cesar came running out of one of the Depot’s buildings which i assume was the cantena, and then glomped his mother, Fehfeh barked cutely upon seeing him and started licking him while being held by Elaina
Cecilia came right behind him, holding the Guaraná can I had given to Cesar earlier.
She stared at me for a second and then moved to her family’s warm embrace. 
Now that I see it, they are all using similar clothing, probably all made from the same  material and by the same person.
Cleyton appeared, he came from the same building as the Vulpine siblings, he looked  at me and did a mock salute before going back inside the building.
The vulpine family hugged each other and stayed like that for a while.
Jacson and Manuel exited the tank Bino followed shortly after
I took off my helmet and held it in my hand. All the activity was starting to wear me down, at least it wasn't as bad as that one exercise we did in Argentina, but being in a different world sure felt strange, oddly enough it seems the time zone was the same, fortunately.
“I’ll get something to eat, who’s with me?” Manuel said
“Me, i’m starving let’s go” Jacson said
“What about you Sarge, and Bino?” Manuel questioned me and Bino
“I will stay, i need to digest what happened and check the tank” I replied
“Yeah me too, i’m staying with Sarge” Said Bino
“We’ll bring you guys something to eat” Jacson said and then both of them walked off to the cantina.
This has been a long day, I can't even believe this is the first day of this shit, better not even think about all this shit.
I climbed the tank and threw my helmet in and entered it to grab some of the oranges we picked back in Brasil.
The cold wind blew, I felt chilly now that my blood isn’t filled with adrenaline, a shame our uniforms aren’t meant for this climate.
I came down to the courtyard again, Bino was checking the storage boxes and frame on the other side of the turret,i had to use my beret to carry the oranges, the vulpine family was still together and keeping to themselves not far away from the tank the other people in this courtyard also kept to themselves, the sound of chatting didn’t fill the air, if it was a different day i would be relaxing in my room and listening to music or reading or something, but here i am.
I took a small wooden chair kept close to one of the walls and brought it near the tank. The tank was still warm thanks to the activity and the engine. 
I set down my orange-filled beret on the floor and leaned my SMT-9 against the tank’s skirts. I picked an orange out of the beret and opened it with my NCO knife while sitting on the chair.
Fuck i would kill to have some café now, i hope the boys bring some to me
… wait, didn’t I already kill a bunch? huh, didn’t expect killing to be this easy, it was kinda fun actually, maybe this war isn’t gonna be that bad.
I began munching and sucking on the orange in hand. It will be some time before I find another orange tree, for sure.
My internal ramblings were interrupted by a small puppy approaching my orange filled beret.
He was about to bite an orange when he was picked up by feminine hands, I couldn't stop Fehfeh because my hands were already busy with a knife and the eponymous coloured fruit.
I looked up and saw Cecilia, she was just staring at me with those deep red eyes while hugging Fehfeh with a empty guarana can in her hand, Her tail was wagging slightly side to side, I stared back, we stayed like that for a while, you know what they say about the abyss? yeah, i felt like there was something there in those eyes, something scary.
“Anon?”  she asked, her voice was like music
"C-Cecília?" I replied tried to re-composure myself after being lost in those eyes
“Are you ok anon?” She said with a worried look.
“Yeah, of course, not the first time i have to be away from home” I said trying to maintain an air of masculinity “I’m just a little tired, that’s all”
“Anon, i just wanted to say, thank you very much for what you’ve done for us” She was blushing slightly while saying that.
“It was nothing, don’t worry you don’t have to repay me” I said, my internal temperature rising upon saying those words.
“Anyway, you want one?” I said pointing to the Orange-filled beret.
“Can I have this one?” she pointed to the orange i was munching on
“Sure if you don’t mind it’s half eaten and filled with my saliva” I said with a smile expecting her to decline
“YES! i-i mean, yes” She said with a embarrassed expression
I gave her the orange, my face was a mix of surprise and incredulously.
She put the dog down and  threw one of the oranges away, Fehfeh then bolted towards the orange.
“That solves it, heh heh” She said with a smile
I picked another Orange from the beret and began opening it with my NCO knife
“That’s a nice knife” She said while munching on her orange
“Got it after becoming a sergeant, they give it to all that finish the course” I said, nostalgia from those far-away days coming.
“Was it hard” She said pausing her munching
“Not much, the worst came after” I said, munching on an orange
“Ei, throw me one of those oranges!” Bino interrupted us from up on the turret.
I promptly threw one of the oranges to him, he picked it up mid air and returned to his chores.

I heard footsteps behind me.
“Anon, we have to thank you for what you did” I heard the still unnamed father say while i was turned towards the turret.
“Oh, don’t worry, no need to pay me or anything” I said while turning to them.
The family looked very cute together, they all had the same hair color and clothing fabric, although only Eliana and Cecilia had red eyes.
“Nonsense youngman! we are in-debt to you, if you need anything just ask” The father said in his deep and low voice
“Well, I'll keep that in-mind you can take an orange if you want” I said pointing to the beret “Oh another thing: what’s your name?”
“Ha ha, how could i forget telling you that, it’s Julius” He said with a big smile after a hearty laugh.
“What are these fruits?” Elaina asked while inspecting an orange
“I don’t know how to explain, they are citric i guess, you gotta peel them first” I said pointing to the orange with my knife.
“Here, you do it, I'll go get some chairs” Elaina said, passing the Orange to Julius.
Elaina returned with chairs for everyone and we all sat down forming a half circle by the tank, Jacson and Manuel returned with sandwiches and coffee thermos they joined the circle, even Fehfeh came and sat on Cecilia’s lap for a nap, we all drank and ate together telling jokes and stories, answering questions and learning from each other.

1602 hours? 5 rounds spent

Augusto and the Depot commander appeared at our little family circle, me and my crew promptly stood up and saluted the men.
“I see you are already fraternizing with the locals, Sargeant anon come with us.” Augusto said
“Yes sir” i replied energetically
I followed the two men, we moved to a briefing room, the other tank commanders and a few other familiar faces from the regiment were there.
I took a seat while Augusto and the base commander along with some others prepared some kind of presentation.
Cecilia followed me, somehow she passed unnoticed by the others, or they simply didn’t care a civilian was following a sergeant, she took a seat beside me and smiled at me, I smiled back ignoring the possible repercussions this little audacious act of hers could bring.
She hugged my arm, my body temperature was rising and I could feel people staring but as soon as I was about to protest the lights turned off and the projector was turned on.
It projected a surprisingly well made hand-drawn map of the region. I could see the river, Rio seguro, the depot, portal and the road flowing along with the river shores to the limits of the projection.
“Woow” Cecilia said lowly 
“Good afternoon gentlemen, I’m Major Romerio, commander of this logistical depot it’s an honor to have Osorio’s men here, but let’s go straight to the point, we are expecting a big enemy army to arrive here at any moment now, according to the villagers those monsters were the pathfinding element of the actual army we don’t know what to expect but we’ll need to make and hold the line, runners have been sent back to Brasil but reinforcements are not guaranteed, you will be the frontline until further orders”
He used a stick to point to the edge of the village following the road
“They will take the roads, the forests are too dense for you and for them, the locals warned us not to stay in the woods during the night, the same is true for the enemy, you will have to hold the road, take whatever you need from the depot and prepare the defenses”
Romerio turned to us and placed his hands to his back and then moved to the left giving space for Tenente Augusto who took his place as the center of attention
“We lack scouting units, therefore everyone of you will have to pull double duty and set up observation points, unfortunately we do not have AP mines, as you all know the government destroyed all our stockpiles of it thanks to some international convention, of course these conventions do not hold against this “enemy” so i urge you all to improvise what you can.” Augusto said his eyes were all over room as if he was inspecting us before a parade
“You will be massively outnumbered, do not underestimate the enemy he is fighting for way longer than you and seems they still have some tricks up their sleeves, 
casualties on our side are expected, you do not have permission to retreat, if you fall this entire depot,village, road and most importantly…. the portal, will be in their hands, fight as if your backs were turned to a river and make sure the enemy cannot proceed, we’ll do the rest”
Cecilia held my arm tight while Augusto proclaimed his fatalistic and dutiful words 
Augusto marked on the map where we would regroup and wrote what we needed and the callsigns of each vehicle.
He then turned back to us.
“You know what to do, get what you need and regroup at the courtyard, AÇO!” Augusto said energetically and finished it stomping his right foot
“AÇO!!” The crowd stood up at attention and yelled in unison, Cecilia was startled by this.
Copies of the hand-drawn map were distributed as we left the briefing room, they were still warm, straight from the laser printer.
The men moved through the corridors, the sound of the boots almost in unison filled the air, I moved towards the warehouses, where I procured some MREs and a Brazilian flag, then me and Cecilia returned to the Legendario with our hands filled.
The rest of the crew were already preparing the tank for departure around the courtyard the scene repeated itself, it seems while the leaders were in the briefing the crews were doing their job here, preparing for combat, checking the tracks, cleaning optics, replenishing ammo and making inventory.
Cecilia’s family were around the Legendario talking to Manuel while Bino and Jacson were tidying up everything on the turret, me and Cecilia approached them, the sun was setting the cold wind blew making Cecilia’s hair flutter in the wind, and the flag i was holding to follow suit although in a more gentle and inconspicuous manner.
“What’s the status” I asked my crew
“Ready to go, fully armed and we got enough supplies for 3 days” Manuel said
“Make it 5” I gave him the MREs me and Cecilia had in hand, he picked it and passed it to Bino and Jacson who stowed them in the side-boxes.
“Anon, what’s happening?” Julius asked me with a serious tone and making visual contact
“We are expecting the enemy to come at any moment we are preparing to move out and hold the line at the road” I replied in a equally serious tone
“I see, good luck and take care, son” He said
“Anon please come back don’t you dare leave me alone, I need you” Cecilia said in a very hysteric tone hugging me tight “If you die there I'll curse your soul! I'll wait for you here so don’t you dare leave me alone!” 
I don’t know what was more surprising, the once demure and quiet Cecilia breaking in my arms or the absurdity of a woman I met earlier today  saying this to me.
“If god wills it i will return safe and sound if not you’ll have to curse my soul because i’m a very stubborn man and i take my duties very seriously” I said with a smile staring into her tear-filled crimson eyes, my heart was beating as fast as it ever did and something akin to fear was beginning to sprout in me, i barely managed to contain these feelings as i stared into those eyes i saw my future.
I reciprocated the hug and we stayed like that for a while, her brown tail wagging calmly side to side, her brown hair smelt very nice. 
I could stay like this forever like I was lost in our very own cathartic existence isolated from all the rest.
“Anon?” Julius said tugging at my shoulder
I turned my head to him, the vulpine brunette still in arms
“Welcome to the family anon,but if you plan to move out and join the fight you better do it now, my daughter is very very clingy” He said with a big smile in his face, Eliana was at his side chuckling with a hand over her mouth
“Yeah, i figured” I said still looking at him
“Cecilia it’s time, i’ll be back, i promise” I whispered into her fluffy ears
“You promise?” She said while staring deep into my eyes in a very creepy way.
“Yes” I assured her
“Give me a kiss then” She said unblinking staring at me
“This will be my first kiss” I said
“Mine too” she said in a demure tone
We closed our eyes and felt as our mouths and tongue connected, we explored each other’s mouths for a few seconds until i broke the kiss
The sound of clapping was heard, her family and my crew were clapping as if our heartfelt love scene was some middle school theater act
“My little daughter finally got herself a husband” Eliana said tears streaming down her cheeks
“The sergeant finally catched one!” Manuel yelled
Cecilia was blushing, her face was almost as red as her eyes.
“Ok, that’s enough Manuel” I said staring in his eyes
Around the courtyard the crewmen were already boarding their tanks, the infantry squads were in different states of preparedness, some were still loading their Charruas, others were making prayers.
“Take this Cecilia, so you have something of mine to hold on to” I said while offering my NCO knife still in its scabbard to her
“Thanks anon.” She said, a hint of sorrow in her tone but a smile on her face.

“It's all ready, let’s make a prayer before the orders come” Bino interrupted us, he was on-top of the Legendario’s turret behind him the orange sunset.
Manuel and Jacson lowered their heads and came closer to Legendario and Bino, i took my place among them, Cecilia and her family also lowered their heads, curiosity stamped on their faces.
“You lead it, Bino” I said, my head still lowered
Bino nodded and began reciting it, we repeated every sentence after him, we gave no mind to the sounds and activity around us.
“Lord!
Forge my spirit with courage
and my steel with determination.
Allow me to pass all obstacles 
always using Fire, precision and shock.
Forge me a warrior of steel, cold and deadly
That makes the enemy positions tremble.
Give the strength to be omnipotent in the battlefield,
always moving forward riding in my war-machine.
And if one day, in the middle of the fight, i must go,
Never forget, lord!
That my armored heart to this green and yellow land it belongs,
For the simple reason that i am because i want to be:
AÇO!”
We lifted our heads in unison, the Vulpines behind us were still curious.
“It’s been a long time since i last did that” Bino said
“I thought it would feel better if you say it before going to battle but it still feel straight out of a cartoon” Jacson said
“Could be worse, now MOUNT UP!” I said and commanded, and began climbing the turret

1645 hours? 5 rounds spent

March orders have been given and the armored column is moving towards the unknown, the rumbling of the engines and whistling of the tracks was the only thing heard for miles, mud was splashed as we moved, around us the dense, dark unfamiliar woods of this new world.
Up in the sky and far away a big volt of buzzards filled the sky ahead, their black wings almost couldn’t be seen thanks to the distance but they were a cruel and unnatural visage, a pressage of what’s to come.
We reached a clearing along the road, the vultures were like an asymmetric blurt of black ink upon the indigo blue sky. 
The clearing was a godsend, it had enough space for our tanks and battle positions and also enough position for maneuver in case we needed.
But time was in short supply and we could be encircled and exterminated like rats, that would be ironic considering we spent the entire morning doing just that.
“C1, halt” Augusto’s voice came from my headset
“Bino, halt” I repeated the order almost in mechanical reflex
I climbed my seat, opening the armored hatch and exposing myself to the fresh forest air. The sound of engines filled my ears, Charruas and Osorios maneuvered and took combat positions in the clearing, then came the familiar sound of the hydraulic ramps and the boots hitting steel and dirt, The infantry formed a perimeter and began digging in while the tanks and APCs maneuvered and took firing angles.
The vultures were coming closer, small puffs of smoke rose from where they were circling, The enemy is coming, the men around me might die today. 
I might die today, strange feelings came to me when this idea dawned, before i didn’t really care whether i live or die, i was fine simply doing my job and living minute to minute, but now that i promised that woman to return alive i had to change, the hardest act i did this entire day for sure, what a strange fella i am.

“All tankers, prepare for battle, thermal sights on, C1, C2 pick forward positions.” Augusto's voice whistled from the radio, shutting down my overly emotional thoughts.
“C1 acknowledges, out” I responded.
“Bino, put us in a place that leaves us with our backs to the river and gives us an angle of fire to support Pernambuco.” I commanded via intercom.
The tank maneuvered, I entered back into my seat and closed my hatch.
“Thermal sights, scan the woods in front of us.” I said to Jacson and Manuel who had their eyes locked into their screens, they both acknowledged my words with a nod and clicked the switch to Thermals.
The atmosphere inside the tank was heavy, a small led light illuminated all of it, vibrations from the movements reminded us we were still part of the world, if it wasn’t from that it would be as if we were stuck in our own pocket dimension.
“In position... sir” Bino said
“Now we brace for the storm and keep the engine running” I said.

1707 hours 5 rounds spent.
Now playing in Manuel Player3: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pKWhBbccTX8

The vultures were above us, they knew what was about to happen and so did us.
The sound of battle drums and tank treads echoed from the forest, a curve in the road and the dense forest made so no thermal signature could be seen in the dense woods, but the drums, the stamped of feet out of synchronism and the armor still haunted our ears.
It was then that I saw the head of their column, Rats equipped with spears and hatchets, their thermal signatures were small just like them. 
They saw us in the clearing, one of them jumped in surprise.
The machineguns fired, the surprised rat was tore to pieces his blood smearing all around him, fragments of his bone cutting the faces of the rats behind him, who then fell much like him soon after the sound of the machinegun bursts echoed like a symphony, the column stopped coming leaving the remains of the rats to rot.
Retaliation came soon after, powder charges exploded in the other side of the dense woods soon after loong metal bolts were sent flying in our direction falling all around us, no penetration but the sound of thumping against the armor was heard like rain, one of which hit the REMAX right in the machinegun receiver, the gun was useless now.
Outside the screams of the infantry, blood curled screams of pain and misery, I turned my REMAX towards their positions and I could see many men impaled by rods, some were screaming others were already impaled dead by those enormous bolts, the remaining soldiers got back into position and began firing back with their rifles.
“Load arrow, now!” I commanded Jacson.
Jacson quickly inserted an APFSDS round into the breech, arming the 105mm gun.
“Pronto!” Jacson alerted me
“Manuel fire back at their position, cut the trees!” I commanded Manuel, seeking revenge for the dead soldiers and my broken machine-gun.
The gun fired, the round passed through the tree line like a knife through butter, cutting many of the trees and opening view to their small firing site.
The other three tanks and IFVs followed my lead and shot at the tree line, explosions and fragments flew around as the powerful rounds tore through the once idyllic woods bringing doom to whatever was on the other side.
Heat signatures on the other side of the firing line showed nothing but dying diminutive bodies and quadricular frames with multiple holes up on carriages, those were the launchers that fired on us, now they were nothing but scraps.
The vultures must be happy with their newfound meals, the battle drums could still be heard and the tank tracks were getting closer, our day was far from over and our blood was still fated to taint this earth.

The familiar sound of a 105mm L7 echoed from the treeline, leaves and dust went up and around and a red tracer impacted Pernambuco in the frontal armor, a metallic screech soared high following the impact, the culprit of such attack was an Argentinian TAM tank still in it’s homeland camo arrow heads stuck in it’s armor at multiple points served as decorative reminders of it’s new ownership, 
The TAM is a light tank based on the Marder IFV design, it is the pride of the may-sun republic. 
Through my thermal lens I could see it’s silhouette among the trees.
“LOAD ARROW, TARGET, 157, TAM TANK, FIRE AT WILL!” I yelled, not capable of controlling my panicked state.
“Target, TAM tank, firepower is comparable , armor is inferior, within range , geographical and climatic conditions are advantageous; firing at the frontal angle, aiming for the right side of the turret” Manuel mumbled, doing his gunnery analisis and deductions out loud.
“PRONTO!” Jacson yelled, the sound of the breech closing acting as a natural punctuation to his speech.
The TAM had it’s turret aimed at us as if it could sense we were the predator and it was the prey, the TAM fired another shot impacting our turret at the left side, no penetration but the vibrations of the impact echoed in our ears, our training didn’t prepare us for this but Manuel was acting like a machine glued to his monitor locking the Fire control into our prey and sealing the enemy’s fate.
Quickly after the impact on our armor our cannon came to life with a deafening roar impacting the TAM turret through the front passing through exactly where the gunner and commander would sit, a small hole marking the point of entry and a red tracer out from behind signalling a complete penetration, this has been the first shots made in anger by a TAM tank, and the first tank on tank battle between Brazil and the smiley sun republic.
“Load arrow again and find the other hermanos!” I commanded my crew
The other Osorios began firing their guns at the treeline, to dissuade any other enemy advances and open the sightlines as well as trying to hit the other TAMs.
“Tanks advance! the infantry needs breathing room” Augusto's voice came from my headset, ordering us into a dangerous gambit but exactly what was expected from the tanks named after the Reckless Maquis of Herval.
“AÇO!” I shouted enthusiastically on my headset.
“Bino advance, get us away from the infantry and close to the enemy!” I proclaimed over the intercom
The powerful engine of the Legendario came to life, the force of the torque threw me back into my seat, while the Osorios moved forth I scanned the area with my Thermal camera.
The hot smoke from an engine exhaustor gave away the position of a lonely TAM moving about in the woods, no time to alert Manuel, I took over the turret with my controls and locked the FCS on the wannabe medium-tank.
The target was lazed and locked in little less than two seconds, I pressed the trigger prompting the gun to fire the Arrow at center mass in the Argie tank.
The tank exploded like a bomb, shaking the trees around it and starting small fires, the remains of the hull turned into a brutalist monument to Argentina’s light armor.
“Tank neutralized, Arrow again” I cheered
The other Osorios also fired, filling the air with dust and deafening sound.

Black smoke rose from multiple points in the woods, the sound of machine guns and autocannons took over the symphony.
(THUMP THUMP THUMP) 
The 25mm sang, opening way through the forest with it’s cruel verses, the staccade of 556 and 762 followed, the rumble of engines mixed and combined forming a drawn out mechanical roar that echoed miles around.
 Out from the woods came another tracer impacting C3 at the sides, the injured Osorio stopped and turned it’s hull towards the threat, the tracks pushing earth as they moved, It’s turret couldn’t move but this didn’t stop the violent retaliation, the muzzle connected with the sight and the Osorio fired, the barrel recoiled spewing forth fire and a tracer. Through my Thermal display I could see the lone TAM and the tracer as it impacted it’s frontal armor, turning the Argentinian tank into a brazen bull, smoke and fire rose and after 5 seconds a big explosion.
“C1 to C3, damage report, over.” I radioed in to C3
From the other side coughing and small interference was heard along with a voice “Turret horizontal mechanism out of commission, changing to manual that is all, over” A man said through the radio.
“Roger that, out” I said.
The Legendario stopped, we were now very close to the woods, enough to give us space to maneuver and fire, enough to give the enemy confidence to assault us.
C3 moved along, it’s turret was at the 12 o’clock position, the Osorio had manual controls for the turret but it was far from optimal, having C3 here was a burden more than anything.
“C1 to C3, Retreat back to the infantry line we can’t risk losing you here, over”  I commanded over the radio.
“C3 acknowledges, retreating, out.” After those words were said C3 began to move back, maintaining the frontal armor towards the treeline.
Lots of thermal signatures, the enemy infantry is moving towards us, big and small fluorescent grey silhouettes in my display holding flaming molotovs and axes, there's so many of them. 
From outside their ragged battlecry along the beating of the drums and our gun-simphony soared high they fell as they came, their hot blood leaving fluorescent pools in the ground and trees but no matter how many of them fell and died the wave continued moving, the sound of our machineguns dictated their cadence and in no time they were among us ignoring their fallen comrades and with bloody faces throwing their fire-bombs and climbing on-top of our roofs, Pernambuco was in flames the roof and engine compartment became a firepit, that didn’t mean much, thermal insulation and engine intake ports controlled by the driver made so only a volcano had enough heat to put us out of commission.
“BINO, REVERSE REVERSE!” I yelled in the intercom, fearful of the chance of ending like Pernambuco
The legendario came to life and began reversing, Pernambuco and C4 followed while firing their machineguns into the amorphous horde of creatures thinning it each shot. 
C4 was akin to an ant-hill, multiple rats were beating the hatches,REMAX and cameras with their clubs and hatchets.
“Shit they are on-top of us, climbing the turret” Jacson exclaimed. I could hear their feet against the armor. I turned the REMAX around and I saw their ugly fluorescent  rat-face in the black and white thermal display . 
They had problems maintaining balance thanks to the speed of the Legendario; some were already falling down while others hung tight holding to the bars and storage bin on the sides of the turret.
A smile came to my face to my right was a makeshift button connected to a small cable fixed to the turret wall via black adhesive tape. The Anti-infantry shotgun barrels mounted to my turret were about to prove their worth.
I pressed the button, 12 shots were heard simultaneously and screams came shortly after crunching noises came from below while the tracks finished the jobs. 
I swiveled the REMAX around, no rats or any other pests survived the 12gauge gambiarra.
The great wave of silhouettes was still converging into our position, autocannons and machine guns made sure they were turned to crimson mush as they came.
BOOM
The sound of a 105mm firing echoed but it didn’t come from one of us. C3 was hit in the turret side, they probably had casualties on-board now.
The other three tanks all turned their turrets towards the new threat and fired, while the remaining REMAXes continued firing at the monstrous horde coming our way. 
We all fired our powerful cannons, neutralizing the brave tank that dared to make a stand and turning it into a funeral pyre.
The firing stopped, for a moment all you could hear was the crackle of open flames and moaning of the dying. 
I switched out of thermal vision in my display, a thin black smoke enveloped us from all around. The once green grounds became crimson red with the blood of the rats and hominids that tried their best to stop us. To our sides the infantry with green painted enthusiastic faces stood in awe at the carnage; some of them were making their way to Pernambuco to help the flaming tank; others were carrying wounded and dead back to their respective armored carriers. The APCs and IFVs stood back behind us untouched by the brutality of the fighting with thin whitesmoke rising from their gun barrels like prideful displays of their combat prowess.
Above us the vultures circled the now orange sky, the sun was setting as if in shame upon seeing this level of carnage, soon the night would be upon us and we would have free reign over the blind prey or so it should but the locals warned us of the forest at night and none were bold sufficiently to gamble their chances against whatever called these dense woods home at night.
“All units embark and prepare to leave, the IFVs will lead the column, tanks stay in the middle, one IFV at the rearguard.” Augusto’s authoritative voice came from the radio
“Thank god” Jacson said with a tired tone  “ I thought we were about to be the next… to be hit.”
“Be grateful to the sun if it was still up we would hunt down the bastards to the last” I replied to his comment.
The cackle of open flames in the woods and moaning of the dying echoed alongside the rumble of the powerful engines, we entered formation and began moving back to the depot, confident the enemy wouldn’t continue their advance now with most of them decomposing.
We lost around 9 men, 5 wounded. C3 lost it’s commander and loader, Pernambuco lost it’s cameras and needed repairs in the REMAX thanks to the intensity of the flames that hit it, Legendario needed a machine-gun replacement, it was a decisive victory with around 4 TAMs destroyed and a unknown number of monsters killed, Legendario accounted for three of the kills.

1746 hours? 9 rounds spent

We moved back through the same path below an orange sky, the tanks were in the middle of the formation this time I didn't dare to open my hatch. The possibility of one of those fuckers stalking us and waiting for the moment to strike was high.
The air inside the Legendario was musky and warm thanks to the sweat and stress we went through. It was humbly illuminated by small lights on the ceiling.

“Damn this was close” Jacson said with a jittery voice

“Yeah, you guys did a spectacular job today, go get a drink when we get to the depot” I congratulated my men, making sure to say it over the intercom so Bino could hear it.

“Hooray, maybe this job ain’t that bad, hah hah hah” Manuel said with a hearty laugh, his eyes fixed to the LCD monitor in front of him.

“I’m surprised they managed to inflict that many losses on us” Bino said with a calm voice, his words coming from our headsets.

“Can’t underestimate the enemy, they will come back better prepared than today and be ready for that.” I said, to the entire crew.
The movements of the tank prompted me to hold on tight to one of the handles in the roof, the kind of thing you don’t notice when up on top of the hatch.

“We’re almost there, i can see the depot” Bino announced
I unlocked the hatch and opened it, the familiar sound of metal clanking greeted me.
I pulled myself up and saw the orange skies and the sun covered by gentle clouds, in front of us the armored column and the depot with it’s white and green walls, the sound of the armored wheels grinding and the engines screaming, the ever familiar melody of the armor.
The column stopped for a moment while the gates were opened, the sound of the metal gate moving gave way to the cheers of the people on the other side of the walls.
A hero’s welcome for sure as the vehicles entered the courtyard military and civilians alike cheered us. The medical teams were ready with stretchers and red boxes filled with medicine and medical equipment.
We parked our vehicles and took the wounded and the dead away, the dead went to another part of the depot, away from prying eyes, while the wounded went to the small over-burdened depot infirmary.
Some crowds still remained in the courtyard, talking to the soldiers and inspecting the damaged equipment, a repeat of what happened when we first came here.
Legendario was parked with it’s turret turned to an angle so Bino and Jacson could reload the bustle rack, Manuel was on top of the turret alongside me, helping me check the REMAX and the damage

“Those crates you guys stored in the turret, what’s inside of them?” I asked Manuel while disconnecting the pins the held the M2 Browning in place, it’s receiver has been punctured by the bolt, the bolt was already thrown away to the courtyard

“Survival kits in case we need them, not the best place to put them but good enough for an emergency, i guess” Manuel replied dismissively as if thinking of something else, he disconnected the servo arm out of the way and helped me lift the M2 out of the station.

“Anon!!” A female voice called me out, I lowered the M2 to the floor and turned towards the sound.

The click clack sound of quick steps upon the stone floor echoed as Cecilia moved closer and started climbing the tank, seeing a woman climbing the tank with such determination was strange, out of place even.
She climbed it to the top and then glomped me throwing me down on the roof.

“I heard so many noises, i thought you died, i’m so happy to see you.” Her tail began to wag while she nuzzled against me.

“Yeah, it’s good to see you too.” I said as I hugged her.

“I’ll take the Browning to the depot, you go and finish this here, sarge” Manuel said

“Lemme help you with this'' I said then pushed Cecilia to the side and moved to the Browning laid on the roof, Manuel climbed down to the courtyard and motioned with his hands for me to pass the Machinegun to him, which i did, the hunk of gun was heavy and i had some difficult lifting it, Cecilia helped me pass it over to Manuel and he went on his merry way to the depot with the big gun on his shoulders.
“Ok now help me with this one” I pointed to the Loader’s M2 Browning attached close to the hatch.

“What we gon do?” Cecilia said while moving close to the Browning, i unloaded the Browning and pressed the trigger to let the hammer fall startling Cecilia.

“We’re gonna take this and put it in the REMAX” I disconnected the steel pin that kept the Browning attached “Ok help me hoist this, one , two , three!” We hoisted the Browning together and laid it in the REMAX support.

“H-heavy” She said while touching her slim arms.

“It’s gotta be otherwise it will break easily” I connect the support pin in the REMAX and then moved to the other side to connect the servo arm

“Can’i do it?” Cecilia said with enthusiasm while pointing to the ammo box

“Sure, first you need to open the cover, find a small metal piece at the sides it will open it” I said while she quickly moved to the gun and started touching it curiously.

“Found it” She said while opening the metal cover, showing the gun insides, her mouth wide open in surprise.

“Ok now take the belt and-” I was interrupted by her quick and smart movements, she put the belt in the feed platform 

“Like this?” She said with a slight smile.

“Now close the cover and pull the charging handles back until this part here is held back” I said pointing to the hammer.

She closed the cover and tried to pull the handle, it almost didn’t move. She was too weak to pull it entirely even with both hands and both handles.
I gave a small slap on the cover to make sure it was closed then motioned for her to move to the side, then I pulled both handles. The mechanical noise of the bolt and mechanisms moving made her smile.

“W-what happens now?” She said with anticipation in her eyes.

“I need to connect it to the fire control system inside the tank and test the computer trigger and safety, but it is already ready to fire as it is, just have to switch the safety off.” I said, shutting down the smile she had and replacing it with a slight pout.
“You need to teach me how to fire it one day” Cecilia said, her pout quickly replaced with a lovely smile.

“Of course.” I said while connecting the cables in the REMAX, afterwards I tested the camera, trigger and safety, making sure to order Cecilia to unload the gun and switch the safety before.

Jacson and Bino finished loading the bustle rack and moved out to the depot, leaving me and Cecilia alone to tend the tank.

I gave my tank a final check and then moved out towards C3, our wounded tank it’s green and brown camo was the same as all the other vehicles in the greyish courtyard but the mark of a successful penetration could be seen by those with keen eyes, a small pin hole in one side of turret giving way to a larger one in the other side, it’s stowage boxes were ripped open, some water was still dripping out of one of these boxes, like a beast bleeding after a wound. 

Inside the scene was way more brutal. Blood and some bits of flesh decorated the interior, leaving a strong iron smell, the two dead crewmen were already taken to the triage site in another part of the depot.

Thankfully the Osorio uses an electric mechanism for the turret, otherwise this place would have become flammable, looking through the inside i could see the emergency manual rotation mechanism opened, it is usually installed inside a compartment in the turret side, in case it’s needed you simply open the compartment’s box hatch lock the hand-crank in place and use muscle strength to move the heavy turret, every crewmen is trained on how to do this but the hand-crank is located by the commander’s side.

Upon seeing this scene Cecilia, produced a incoherent sound akin to a grunt or a ‘yipp’ and then began following my eyes in my inspection and checking, after her curiosity was satisfied she turned to the penetration holes in the turret’s sides and stuck her finger into the smallest one, after this small tactile experiment she produced another ‘yipp’ sound and asked me what was the cause of the penetration of the tank and the death of the crewmen.

I answered while using hand signals to better convey the speed of the projectile:
“Imagine an arrow flying faster than your eyes or ears can track hitting a single small pinpoint of a wooden sheet, upon penetration the wood breaks and turns into barbs. That’s what happened but it was Steel and composite material instead of wood, and the arrow was made out of Steel and tungsten.”
A confused yet curious look stamped her face, her ears twitched and she went back to inspecting the holes.
While she was perplexed by modern ballistics i went towards pernambuco, the tank that turned into a pyre, much like the Legendario it’s roof turned into a shade of black  thanks to a incendiary bottle, although unlike the Legendario the engine bay was also affected, the green and brown livery turned to a charcoal like black, but worst of all was the Remax and the loader’s camera, which broken due to the heat, surely it would be a easy repair but a check on the other cameras would be needed too, this all reminds me of the cruel fighting in Hue during the Vietnam war damaged tanks, dead crews, having to make do with those same damaged tanks.

 While I was lost in my overly prosaic thoughts the sound of engines was heard outside the gates. A Staff jeep, ambulance and a lot of logistical trucks were waiting on the other side while a recently awake guard moved desperately to open the heavy green metal gates.
The dusky skies emitted their orange glow to the courtyard while the column of vehicles entered the courtyard, the staff jeep was the first in line, inside of it i could see Tenente Aguerres and the Regiment commander, I instinctively saluted while they passed through and moved deeper into the depot.
The ambulance and trucks followed the jeep, leaving my field of vision.

“Who were those guys?” Cecilia asked in an anxious tone, she was inside C3’s Hatch, her eyes and ears sticking out.
“My boss and his boss” I answered with a smile.

“Anon, you want to go to my house?” She said, like a teenage girl while moving herself out of the hatch, her shoes were sticky with the fresh blood from the commander’s station.
“Sure, but it will have to be quick, they will probably call me anytime now.” I said, lending her a hand to help her move down from the turret.
“Thanks anon, here” She said, offering me my Sergeant knife in its scabbard “It’s yours, thanks for trusting me with it.”
I took it from her hands and fixed it to my belt “No problem, you seem worth it anyway.”
She held my hand and moved down from the turret, her dress fluttering in the gentle afternoon wind as she did.
We moved out of the base, attracting some looks as we did. The guard at the gate saluted as I exited the courtyard into the greenery outside using one of the built-in doors in the gate.

The grass fluttered in the same gentle wind we felt inside, the marks of tracks and wheels on the grass were readily apparent, moving down the same path I speeded forth in my tank now on-foot gave me an interesting feeling, something akin to nostalgia mixed in with curiosity.
The night was beginning to set in while we moved down into the village, the inhabitants were still cleaning everything up, putting the mutilated corpses into carts, cleaning the stone-walls of blood, with one or another individual going around distributing lit white candles, the air was getting colder, the humid river’s smell began to lift into my nostrils while i made my way with Cecilia back to her house, the sound of chatting filled the environment while slowly but surely darkness began to envelop the land and as it did the orange flame of candles began to appear and duel against the shadows for the rule of the night.

We approached the river Cecilia’s house sat near the shore, the cold humid wind coming from the river greeted me, my eyes were gifted with the visage of the sunset against the indigo blue water of the river the sun in it’s red splendour waved for us one last time as it disappeared against the horizon.

“Is it always this beautiful?” I asked focused on the sunset
“What?” She retorted, confused.
I nodded and pointed to the sun with my chin.
“O-oh, yes it’s always like this, it’s nice here.” She answered and kept making her way to her humble house by the shore.
I followed her, just now I noticed I was still equipped for battle; overalls, tanker helmet, webbing gear, pistol, SMT. Not the most casual wear and surely not the best for visiting a peasant family.
I took off my helmet and disconnected the dangling cable, putting it into one of my overall’s pockets. Cecilia opened the wooden door and moved in gesturing for me to follow.
“Sister!” A young voice called out from inside.

I passed through the threshold. The air inside was warmer, the house’s main room was illuminated by the humble light of candles. Eliana and Julius were sitting by a large wooden table in the center, their faces lit up when they saw me and Cecilia . Little Cesar quickly ran out of his seat and glomped his sister’s leg. 

“It’s good to see you’re back in one piece, anon” Julius said, like a proud father.

“We heard a lot of explosions, we thought they brought up mages and it was finally going to end for us.”  Eliana said in her usual half anxious, half curious tone.

“It was tough, but nothing that big, I might be able to take you there to see the results of the figh- ” I was interrupted by a dog barking and the ‘tick tick’ sound of paws running on a wooden floor.
The diminutive dog made its way to me and started jumping trying to reach my helmet, it’s mouth was wide open and panting loudly, I tried my best to protect my beloved helmet and hands from the vile diminutive beast bent on tasting them, my efforts finally paid dividends when cecilia picked Feh Feh up and held it in a hug, changing it’s focus of attention to her.

“Hello anon” Cesar said with a big smile stamped on his face while waving his little hands to me.
“Hi” I answered, in a similar tone and a similar smile.
“I-is that your helm?” He asked, pointing to the helmet in my hand
“Yes, this is my knight helm, you want to try it?” I said, beaming a smile to ease Cesar.
“Yes, please!” He said jumping in place. 
I put my helmet on his head, it didn’t fit, the helmet was almost twice his head’s size.
“Look mom, I'm a knight!” He said, waving to his mother, flaunting his new green carapace.
“You really are Cesar, I'm proud of you.” His mom stood up and moved close to him for a hug.
Julius let out a hearty laugh, “ Maybe one day you’ll grow up and be like anon there”
“Can i?” Cesar asked with puppy eyes, his tail wagged around rapidly
“Of course, we’ll need all the help we can get, just study a lot for it.” I replied, forcing an honest smile.
Our little family reunion was interrupted by a bugle call in the middle of the village’s main road. It wasn't any of the usual commands relayed by bugle, it sounded more like music to draw attention towards itself.
I picked my helmet back from Cesar’s head gently, and bid my goodbyes to the family, and went out to see what was happening. A small crowd had formed itself at the mud road, the light of candles and torches illuminated their silhouettes against the night.
In the middle of the crowd standing on-top of an old ammo-crate was a Brazilian soldier, with a black beret at his side, a black soldier with a bugle and a camo cap.

“The 21st Regiment invites all the inhabitants of the village to participate in the funeral of our downed soldiers who fought and died at the river shores by this village’s surroundings.” 
The Black beret soldier proclaimed, a hint of anxiety in his voice, I suspect the speech was improvised.

“Oh goodness ” Eliana said from behind me.

“Seems it’s time for me to go back, you can all come with me if you want.” I said looking at them and making my way up to the Depot.

Alongside me Cecilia and her family and a long line of villagers, all making their way to the depot’s gates.
Like a procession they brought candles and flowers.
The depot’s gates were wide open, the guards were standing proudly with weapons in-hand, making us feel like prized guests. 

We moved on through the courtyard and the lined armored vehicles, moving on to the back parts of the depot, where the triage facility was set-up.

The light of candles was joined by the led spotlights that adorned the courtyard, the bright white lights and the orange flames, some villagers covered their faces with their hands so they wouldn’t have their eyes burned by the bright unfamiliar lights.

We finally reached the point we were being subtly led to. trucks were parked alongside a cozy looking administrative building with white/green walls, the courtyard was thin, the administrative building (which contained the infirmary) at one side and the walls of a big warehouse at the other side, the trucks were parked with their backs pointed to us.
9 bodies hidden beneath olive green blankets were positioned with some spacing on the courtyard, a Chaplain wearing the standard camo uniform with a white habit piece over it welcomed us, behind him the soldiers were in formation.
I left the crowd of civilians and moved closer to find my crew. I found them in the formation, an empty spot in-front of Manuel left for me, close to Augusto and in-front of the formation.
I took my place, wore my helmet on and turned myself immobile, like a statue.
The Chaplain continued addressing the crowd. The wounded men were positioned by the warehouse wall, their bodies adorned with white bandages.
The Chaplain did the cross sign and gestured for Augusto and the Regiment Commander to come forward.
The Regiment commander began to address both the crowd and the wounded soldiers, commending them on their bravery and sacrifice.
he ordered them to come forward, they began marching their way in front of the Regiment commander, Augusto had a wooden tray with green fluffy cloth inside.
The regiment commander produced red bronze, cloth medals out of the tray and began to pin them into each of the wounded soldier’s uniforms, he then stepped back and saluted the 5 men, and they saluted back, some had to use their right hands because of the wounds, the commander then put his hand down, and dismissed them, they moved out of center and took places in the formation behind the commander.
The commander and Augusto stepped back and the Chaplain resumed the ceremony.
After 
The ceremony proceeded as normal, while the Chaplain did the prayers, the civilians held their heads down in respect and the soldiers behind repeated the prayers alongside the Chaplain.
The prayer ended, Augusto gestured while looking at the soldiers behind, and a group of 5 soldiers equipped with Mosquefals bolt action rifles marched parallel to the warehouse walls, their wooden rifles rattled subtly against their shoulders while the sound of their boots echoed.
Augusto turned towards them, ordered them to turn left.

“Ready!” The sound of bolts being moved and bullets being chambered in succession was heard.
“Aim!” The rifles were pointed up
“FIRE!” 5 shots were fired, the civilian audience flinched.

“Ready!” The bolts were circled once again, the children began hugging their parents strongly, startled by the thundering sound of the blanks being fired.
“Aim!” The rifles pointed up, some civilians covered their ears.
“FIRE!” The shots rang once again, some civilians flinched again, and my ears began to ring.

“Ready!” The metallic sound of the bolt being circled echoed along the ringing of my ears.
“Aim!” The rifles pointed up, this time the children weren’t so scared anymore, some were curious even.
“FIRE!” The rifles fired, this time the civilians didn’t flinch.

The soldiers put their weapon’s muzzles against their shoulders after a short gun salute. 
The bugle player behind the formation started playing https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ejbPaV89qzI

Augusto, The Regiment commander and the Chaplain ordered us to make way for the bodies, and commanded volunteers to help carry the bodies to the trucks.
The bodies were loaded into the trucks one by one, the trucks maneuvered and moved out of the depot alongside some soldiers. And just like that the ceremony ended.
The regiment commander and Augusto called me and the other tank commanders to an office in the administrative building.

As I entered through the cosy looking wooden door, Cecilia followed me closely, the other tank commanders didn’t pay any heed other than some odd stares.
We entered the office, a green metal table in the middle and white walls all around, an office desk at one of the corners, the place was minimalistic for sure.
The Regiment commander gestured for us to line up parallel to the table.

“First Sergeant Anon, your platoon and infantry complement will be sent to Brasilia, the Capital needs to be reinforced, you will be sent alongside platoon 2 and 3.” 

He positioned a topographic map with lots of notes and colored symbols on the table, and began to point his finger to what I assume would be our route to Brasilia.

“Get what you need from the depot, and move out through the portals back to field HQ at the town, from there your vehicles will be transported by truck and train to the capital, further briefing will happen upon arrival at the capital, for now resupply here, move to the portals get to our field HQ, fix any battle damage there and promptly embark to Brasilia, Any questions?” 

We all asserted negatively to that question.

“Well then, dismissed!” The commanded proclaimed

“Aço!” We responded with enthusiasm.

2207 hours 9 rounds spent

Below a starry sky I moved towards my tank, my crew should be there waiting for me. all preparations have been finished, we are to lock our turrets and move back through the monolith, back to Brasil. 
Soldiers were loading their APCs with equipment, attaching what they couldn’t load inside to the sides of the vehicle, they carried everything, from rucksacks filled with ammo to Flamethrowers, we even got a flamethrower fuel trailer to reload the canisters, the tanks weren’t so different, we tried to fill the vehicles with everything we might need, from toilet paper to fuel additives making our vehicles look like those travelling buses you see in India and Asia. 

Thankfully it was all in a neat homogenous olive green color so we didn’t look like clown cars.
We still haven’t found a replacement for C3’s crew, I hope command already got that taken care of when we reach the field HQ, for now C3's driver and gunner will be the only ones inside that tank.
The tanks were about to leave, we were in column formation well not really a column it was more like a snake thanks to the space in the courtyard, our headlights emitted that characteristic light, some villagers were around to bid us goodbye, the trucks were behind us being loaded with crates and our dead were buried somewhere safe.
I was the leading vehicle in the formation, just a short gesture and a command over the radio and the war-machines would thunder to life, i was about to do just that when Cecilia ran towards the tank and began climbing, she had a cloak over her and the same dress she wore earlier today, she also had a knapsack over her shoulder.

“I’m coming with you” She said, her high pitched voice imposing itself over the low rumble of the engines.

“You may enter the tank then, watch your step, the equipment here is worth half the tank.” I said and made space for her to enter through the hatch, her slim body facilitated it.

The loader hatch suddenly opened, Jacson appeared, tanker helmet and juvenile face.

“Sergeant, are you sure this isn’t gonna bite us in the ass later?” He said with a concerned look

“I’m not paid to care” I said without giving much thought to it.

I gestured a pendulum movement pointing towards the gate with my right hand and said over my headset  “Convoy, Move!”
The Legendario began moving, pushing me back with it’s powerful torque. I felt something warm hugging my legs from below.

I adjusted the helmet on my head and saluted the guard at the gate. The villagers were cheering as we moved out, i moved out of the hatch, putting my legs to the side of the turret, so I could escape the female that now dwelled in the commander’s station, in front of me was the REMAX so i had to put my head a bit to the side to see forward.
We travelled the same dark forests just like earlier in this same day, but now there was a heavy atmosphere surrounding the woods and the odd feeling of being stalked. I kept my hand close to my SMT and had my eyes wide open. 

Through the foggy darkness we advanced, our headlights wrestling the shadows away from our path, in no time we reached the clearing where the Monolith was located, it’s eerie purple light inviting us, behind us the sound of the river waters, an interesting dichotomy.

“Bino, go straight ahead” I said on the intercom while I moved inside the tank, closing the hatch above me, Jacson did the same.
I had to share the seat with Cecilia, thankfully it wasn’t that awkward. I held tight to the tank and tried to maintain my eyes open while we passed through. 
My vision distorted in an assault of bright rainbownish colors, I heard metallic screeches and laughing, I felt as if my body was floating in cold water, my lungs compressed, I closed my eyes and felt a tight hug.

The sounds stopped, my body felt rigid and warm again… I opened my eyes, Cecilia was hugging me, Jacson was hugging the gun breech, Manuel had both his hands on holding his head.
The tank continued moving, the screeching of the tracks and rumble of the engines felt as a proverbial compass in this disorientating moment. 
I pressed a button on my multi-purpose screen and it turned on, it was all dark and hard to see, the headlights weren’t on anymore.

“Bino, Turn on the lights” I said over the intercom, my mind and voice still a bit blurry.

“I-i can’t Sarge, it’s not working”  He retorted, his voice was equally blurry, like he was in a tough hangover.

“Switch to IR lights and put on the googles” I said, while switching my display to FLIR.

“It works!” He said, with a satisfied squeal uncharacteristic for him.

“We’ll check the lights when we get to field HQ ” I said while swiveling the REMAX around to get a good view of the place around us.

Some Wheeled vehicles were moving towards us, they stopped to give us way. Seems it is an entire Recon squadron, 2 6x6 APCs, 2 Cascavels and 4 unarmored jeeps. I moved up my Hatch to greet them, I saw one of the Cascavel Commanders doing the same.

“TURN OFF YOUR HEADLIGHTS!” I yelled to him

“FUCK, YOU CUCK, YOU STARTLED ME” He retorted in a equal volume, with a raspy voice. Inside my tank I could hear giggles.

“JUST TURN OFF YOUR HEADLIGHTS, BEFORE GOING IN” I yelled again.

“OK, THANKS” He Yelled and went back inside, then all the vehicles in the squadron turned their headlights off, making the only lights in the environment be the ones in the highway. 
The highway sprawled forth into the night with it’s bright traffic lights contrasting deep with the wild and expansive environment around it, at the distance some hills and mountains could be seen, but the rest of the environment could only be described as a tropical prairie, the 21st regiment’s home habitat.



2308 hours 9 rounds spent

We entered through the city’s yellow stone portals, the soldiers there saluted us as we entered, they had coolers filled with beers and some were playing guitar. Didn’t expect anything else from the infantry.
The rumble of the engines echoed through the deserted looking town, the sound of music, and chatting could be subtly heard if you had a good ear to pick it from the sound of metal tracks and diesel engines.

I opened my hatch and took my helmet off, donning my black beret and keeping the headset close. I lifted myself up towards the night sky above the opened hatch. I was greeted by the gentle wind and the leaves from the trees above the streets.


Most houses were abandoned and not a lot of the street lights survived, the skies above were filled with stars, and from this sky one constellation shone brighter than the rest, the southern cross imposed itself as a king  between the starry skies, the same southern cross that blessed us and accompanied us during all those wars and disasters in old times. I felt at peace.

We moved through the same streets that were once infested with rats and barricades, the broken glass and scrapped burnt metal littered our way, dogs fought over the fleshy spoils, sometimes they would slip on the brass from spent casings. 

Cecilia climbed the hatch and joined me at the top of the turret, Jacson did the same, peeking his head off his hatch.
We kept moving through the town's idyllic streets and in no time we reached the plaza, the place was filled with tents, trucks, crates, soldiers and policemen. The National flag was fluttering subtly atop a post.

Enrique, the regiment gunsmith and quartermaster moved out of a big tent and began moving closer to my tank while Bino maneuvered it around finding a place to park it, the other tanks did the same at their own places and pace.
The tank stopped, I disconnected the headset and checked to see if everything I needed was on me.

“My noble, welcome back to Earth.” Enrique said in his usual sly tone. “And that damme, does she speak portuguese?”

“Yes a’do?” Cecilia answered, with a strange accent I only heard in historical novels.

“Anyhow, what’s catchin’ with the tanks?” Enrique said to me

“C3, needs a check on the electrical system in the turret and repairs on the turret sides. Pernambuco needs a check on the cameras and data collection systems in the turret, they might be burned out” I said, climbing down from the tank turret.

“C1,C2,C3, That’s all very lame, you should get the boys to name all of them.” Enrique said, finishing it with a slight laugh in his usual sly manner.

“I’ll think about that” I replied, in a dismissive way.

“Always so serious, you’re gonna end up a bullet magnet with that kind of 

‘disptosition’”  Enrique said, sly as ever.

“Disposition” I corrected him

“Yes, yes that’s the word, hahaha” Enrique laughed.

“By the way, I need a new .50 on the loader’s hatch ” I said , straightening myself after touching the ground.

“AH! yes, perfect, you reminded me, we’re planning to install the brownings on top of the cannon barrels, like the jews do, we will connect it to the gunner station with a solenoid trigger and attach a lanyard cable to the bolt handle so you can use it, from the hatch” He said, with a different more enthusiastic tone.

“Don’t tell me you plan to put a 60mm mortar in the turret too.” I said, a smile growing in my face

“If we had any… we would chief, we would.” He said, his fervorous enthusiasm declining with a wave of un-achievable ideas. 

“We’re going to Brasilia and I'll need all the firepower I can get. See if you can put two brownings on-top of my cannon, will ya?” I said, straightening my Beret and taking a look around.

“Sounds like a great idea,by the way, how did the Anti-infantry device work for you?” He said, looking at the barrels fixed to the side of the tank turret. 

“It saved us, killed some of them when they thought climbing the tank was a good idea.” I said.

“Good to know, you seem tired, me and my boys will do our job, go and take some rest.” Enrique said with an understanding tone.

The rumble of the engines began to mute, my crew began leaving their hatches; the same scene repeated itself on the other tanks and APCs.
I made my way to the police department, two policemen were there at the doors, one was smoking a cigarette holding it in his mouth, his other hand holding a MD-97 FAL by the barrel.

The other had a Pump action shotgun and was holding it as if he was one of those GI-joe action figures. Both were wearing greyish blue uniforms and black kevlar vests. 
When I moved closer they both stood at attention and saluted, I moved into the police department.

The place felt good, it had a nice cozy feeling to it, wooden floors and old walls, colonial era architecture never failed to put a smile into my face.
I was looking for the armory, the corridors were illuminated by bright white lights, those contrasted pretty well with the wooden floor and white stony walls. I heard steps coming behind me I turned to see, it was just Cecilia, her cloak and medieval clothes didn’t feel much out of place here compared to the outside.

I kept walking down these cozy corridors as i approached the armory room
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YGifd1bd8go
Could be heard, almost like a whisper, Cecilia began humming the song and as we approached it became louder and louder. The vulpine woman playing the role of my shadow began to bob her head to the rhythm.

The wooden door was opened. Inside the room and on the other side of a black metallic counter whose walls were adorned with rifles of all kinds and sizes was a policeman with a white t-shirt, he had his legs up on the counter and a book in his hand ‘As armas de Nelmo Suzano’ was printed on the book’s green cover.
The music was coming from an old CD player on a shelf on one of the white walls.

“Oh welco-” The policeman said as he struck into attention and stood up upon seeing my uniform.

“Boa noite, sergeant, what are you looking for on this fine night?” He said, setting the book on the counter.

“Just taking a look around” I said while I did just that, trying to locate something that was worth my time. Cecilia moved closer to the counter, curiously inspecting everything in her reach with her eyes or hands.

“Can’i have a look at that?” Cecilia said, pointing to something behind the counter I couldn't see.

“Oh, you got some good taste, little lady” The policeman opined

“It’s old but it still works like a charm” The policeman said while setting an old pistol with a nice heat-sink like barrel attachment and wooden pistol grip under the barrel on the counter.

“7,63mm PASAM, the gringos call it broomhandle mauser, as you can see this one was from the original Rio’s stock, we have some of them here along with the ammo for it of course.”He said while going back over the shelfs to take what I assume was a crate filled with ammo and magazines.

Cecilia took the gun and started feeling and touching it, pressing the magazine catch, and meddling with the sights. It was too heavy for her, as soon as she tried to hold it with one hand it went down as if gravity was suddenly activated.
She tried shouldering it, holding the front grip, she was leaning back while aiming the gun at the wall. It was obvious this was the first time she held a gun, at least she knew you had to shoulder it, probably learned it after seeing the funeral ceremony.


“And here’s the ammo and magazines” The policeman said, setting an open wooden crate on the counter.

“Senhorita, please be careful where you point that thing, even if it’s not loaded” He said with a grumpy tone.

“tis heavy, you got anything lighter?” She asked, putting the PASAM on the counter.

I unholstered my PT-92, took the magazine off and cleared the chamber, putting the loose cartridge and the magazine on the counter alongside the PASAM. Then I gave it to her, the polymer in the Beretta should be easier for her.
While she inspected every part of the Beretta and began moving it around with one and two hands in the grip I took the PASAM.

Wood and metal, a wonder from Waffenfabrik Mauser still with it’s original markings and still in great state even after all these years, a metal wire stock with a leather butt is fixed to the back of the pistol grip with a metal screw, the front wooden grip was fixed below a barrel heat-sink like attachment, making the already bulky pistol look like a small SMG with a hefty weight to go.

“I like this very much, can I take it?” I said voicing my approval and enthusiasm with a big smile stamped on my face.

“No problem, Sergeant, you can take it, get some magazines too, it can take 32 round magazines from police SMGs too.” The policeman said, taking a seat.

“Marvelous” I said, putting my hand into the wooden box trying to fish a magazine out.

“I like this one!” Cecilia said with the pistol in hand and a smile on her face.

“Here, for you” I said, taking the PT92  magazine pouches out of my belt and putting them on the counter.

She picked up the pouches and began to inspect them, then began to look around in her dress for a place to fix them.

I felt my holster and noticed it was too small for the hefty size of the PASAM.

“You have the holsters for the PASAM?”  I said, picking some 20 and 10 round magazines out of the crate and setting them on the counter.

“Sure, let me get it for you.” He said, standing up and going back to the shelfs.

I took off my holster and set it on the counter and began trying to unscrew the wire stock off the pistol, the screw didn’t bulge. 
I tried to take off the front-grip and succeeded, it came off easily after unscrewing two pins on the lower side of it.
Much of the frontal weight was gone after that, leaving only a neat metallic handguard filled with ventilation holes.

The policeman returned with a bulky piece of wood vaguely shaped like a pistol, it had a circular grip screwdriver fixed to the side with a leather belt, and an open rectangular space below which I assume is so the extended magazines can fit in.

I picked the holster-stock from his hands and immediately took the screwdriver. Its point was oddly shaped and didn’t fit correctly into the screw but it did its job. I feel like this isn’t a screwdriver.

“Doyou have a belt like the one Anon is using?” Cecilia asked the Policeman while I was busy unscrewing the stock.
“Sure, one second” He said, moving back into a different part of the room away from our eyes.

I put a fresh loaded magazine into the PASAM and racked the bolt, the sound of the German steel chambering a round echoed in the small room.

I began loading magazines while the policeman brought back a belt and some ammo pouches for the C96’s magazines.

He left the belt and ammo pouches on the counter and went towards the CD player on top of a shelf
After some fiddling
https://youtu.be/NOD9bgEcfD4 started playing, reverberating along the lonely empty halls and corridors of the department’s building.

I took the ammo pouches, Cecilia took the belt. We looked at each other for a moment, I slid the C96’s safety mechanism to the safe position and snuck into its holster, then proceeded to put the holster into my belt.

“Time to go” I said, snapping my fingers to get her attention.
She nodded with a smile and we moved out, towards the tanks and the rest of the platoon.

I stepped out of the department’s building, i was greeted by the lights of the plaza, the cold night wind and the overbearing sound of equipment and logistics, it took me some time to find the Legendario in between the many tanks, Manuel waved to me and i noticed the two M2HB machine guns installed on-top of the 105mm L7 cannon, it was awe inspiring, something straight from my childhood fantasies, i loved it. 

I felt drawn to it like a moon is drawn to a planet and began to walk towards it with my mouth held open and a big smile stamped on it.

“My king! What do you think of it? I still remember when you first joined us, and I saw you reading one of those old weapons enthusiast magazines, it had one of these in the cover and you were eying it up like a child.” He said with a big white toothed smile on his black face.

“We are using old soda bottle crates to hold the ammo, it can hold up a lot but make sure to use the cloth bag inside the crate to make sure no water or sun reaches the ammo, you know the deal.” He interrupted me before I could ask about the crates.

Manuel and Jacson began to climb the tank and entered their hatches
“It’s about time you guys move out, you’re the commander you should know it” Enrique reprimanded me, looking at his watch.

“Of course, you know me, always distracted with something, I'll be going” I said, my expression changing from happiness to worry.

“Yeah, well at least now you’re distracting yourself with a woman” Enrique said while giving his signature laugh. “Good luck on Brasilia” He said, saluting me and the tank, then moved out of the way.

Cecilia entered the tank, i waited for her to give me space and then jumped inside, the tank was a different world from outside, a faint bluish light illuminated it, the sound of equipment and switches being turned on, the cables, displays and signs; it was a different world all together, 
It took me a long time to get used to it, especially the size of it, from the distance the tank doesn’t seem too big but it’s true imposing nature gets clearer when you’re closer to it, it never stops being imposing no matter how much time you spent around or in it.

“Where’s Bino?” I asked 
“Down there, praying” Jacson responded while trying to set his seat to the right height.

The sound of the MTU engine coming to life reverberated, while I turned the GPS and battle management system up, soon an overhead satellite map and multiple unit demarcations appeared in a display to my side.

I connected a cable to my helmet, and was greeted by a Hail Mary prayer coming from Bino.

I gave the orders to the rest of the platoon and got the news in-between questions about dismissed ‘what i was doing’. C3 has a full crew again, Pernambuco lost it’s meteorological antenna and one of it’s cameras, thankfully we won’t need it that much in Brasilia, i hope.

“We don’t have enough trucks to transport you guys to the train station, you’ll have to drive it there, don’t worry the railway battalion is still operating, they will set everything up there for you” One of the mechanics updated me on the situation via radio.

I gave the order to move and the grinding sound of tracks hitting the asphalt along with the powerful rumble of the engines filled the plaza, soldiers and civilians saluted as the powerful war machines moved out.

0043 hours 9 rounds spent, First day.

The sound of radio chatter, grinding tracks and the ever-present engine is all around me. The inside of the tank became way more uncomfortable now we have an extra passenger. 

I got our destination marked on a map display. It also shows the allied units nearby, we are supposed to use it for fire support but it also works as a GPS and battle management system.

Let’s see, our objective… move towards the train station in that small town. I forgot the name, load up on trains with the help of the railway battalion and move to Brasilia, fairly simple, thankfully.

I opened my hatch, the fresh cold air greeted me.
I pulled myself up towards the sky, and took a seat on top of the hatch-well, the column moved through the night, our headlights illuminated our way along the lamp posts in this quiet lonely highway.

The APCs had lots of crates tied on top of them, mostly ammo boxes, but some MRE packages thrown in too. Seems supplies won’t be a problem.

“Anon, let me hop-ontop too, the sound here is unbearable” Cecilia’s voice came from down under, i moved to the side and looked towards her
She held on to the tank’s roof and began trying to pull herself up, with some difficulty. 
I held her wrist and pulled her up, she thanked me with a nod and took a seat by the hatch.

“Bet the grinding sound is horrible for you with those big ears” I said, looking at her fox ears.

“It’s beyond horrible, not sure how it is for you, but i felt like a stake was being driven into my ears after some seconds of it.” She said while touching her temples.

I felt lucky for having a helmet, during training they “let” you stay without the helmet during operations to teach you why you should use it, without it the rumble and grinding will make your ears scream and your head hurt, without mentioning the brain problems you might have later down your life, even with the helmet.

Cecilia began looking at the stars while I tried to keep myself looking at the horizon, forests, green plains and some hills, barely visible at night.

“The stars here are so beautiful, much better than the ones back home.” Cecilia voiced, her eyes wandering through the skies, while she tapped my shoulder.

“Uh? ah yes, they really are, see if you can find the southern cross” I spoke, fixed on the horizon, using my binoculars to find something of note in the darkness.

“Southern cross?” She asked, her ears poke up when she did.

“Yeah, it’s like a cross made out of stars, you won’t miss it” I replied.

“That one?” She exclaimed while pointing to the Southern cross.

“Yes, that one.” I replied. “Pretty nice, no?” 

“Yes, it’s beautiful” She said, with an amazed expression. 
“I love you!” She cried while hugging me, why this all of the sudden?
“What are y-” She held a finger to my mouth before I could finish.
“Shhhh, let me stay like this for a while” She grunted, while hugging my arm.

I kept looking at the horizon, my eyes began to burn and I began to feel sleepy. I can’t sleep now. I need to lead my guys.

“Hey what is this?” She said holding out the first sergeant markings I was awarded earlier today, I almost forgot, i’m not a third sergeant anymore, i’m a first.

“Markings you attach to your shirt, so other soldiers can know your rank. I'm supposed to use those but I forgot, also… stop fiddling with my pockets without my permission.” I said, trying to reprehend her and pointing to my third sergeant markings. 

“Do you want me to sew them on, i’m quite good at it, my mom taught me how to do it when i was little and she had me make my own clothes and also Cesar’s and people in the village tell me i have a talent for it and I-” I interrupted her in the middle of her over enthusiastic self promotion, i fidgeted with my marking and ripped it off the ripping sound of velcro startled her at first, her expression soon turned one of curiosity and incredulity.

“No need to sew it, i can just attach it” I said while I ripped the other Third sergeant markings left in my shirt and started attaching the first sergeant ones, she stared at me and the markings as i did.

“This is nice. Can you show me how it works, can I make one of those?” she said, in the same tone as before, i gave her the old third sergeant markings and showed her the velcro on it.

“There’s velcro on the marking and on the shirt, they kinda glue themselves together when you attach them, not sure how they are made, but you can find them at any sewing store.” I said

We passed through a convoy of civilian trucks and buses as we went along the highway, didn’t expect them to be so organized, many trucks and buses, the trucks were filled with all kinds of stuff and the buses were overloaded with people, i could see a lot of them standing up inside it, the buses themselves were a combination of travelling interstate ones and urban ones you pick to go to work or school, seems they are going back to our town base.
Their headlights felt like searchlights in the darkness of the night, a big stream or even a chainlink of searchlights on wheels.

Now playing on the Manuel Player 3: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tPp9zkjfj7Q

After some more kilometers we saw the small town and it’s train station. It was quite loud and bright as a sun, a very small sun.
The town was full of people, soldiers and sound. We passed through the entrance and a soldier with a cap noted something down in a notebook.

Another soldier showed us the way to the station by moving his arms around, it seems they know who we are and why we are here, this means radio communication is still up, marvelous.

We reached the station’s loading bay, there was a long train with lots of those flat freight carrying cars attached, along with some normal cargo ones.
We stopped our tanks, the Charruas stopped a bit further, a bunch of guys motioned for us to stop by a loading ramp that was filled with equipment and spare treads, the kind of equipment we had back at the regiment’s.

“Dismount!” I yelled inside the opened hatch and then quickly repeated it over the radio “Take five while we prepare everything for loading”.
I took my helmet off, left it on top of the tank with the cable still attached and jumped off the tank, and one of the railway battalion NCOs came to me.

“Sergeant, where’s the lieutenant?” The soldier asked me, after noticing my rank.
“Up there with the Charruas, I'm in the command of the tank platoon.” I replied while pointing towards the Charruas, which were opening up their ramps and unloading soldiers.

“Good, you guys are right on time, we’ll have to replace the tracks for the railway ones, i assume you’re already familiar with it, so let’s jump straight to it and start, we’ll get the equipment here and start with your tank, get your men to it and i’ll go check on the infantry and get them here to help” He said, pointing towards some other Railway guys that were bringing the necessary equipment to make this easier on our backs, then moved on towards the Charruas.

The dreaded railway transport exercise, rarely made because it’s just so tiresome and time consuming, the Osorio is too big for our railways, so we need to change the tracks to a narrower model much like tiger tanks in WW2. That’s what you get for designing a tank for export and then selling it to your own country.

0940 hours 9 rounds spent, Second day

They didn’t have enough accomodations for us, we’ll have to sleep in the tanks, Bino is lucky, he can sleep as much as he want in his uncomfortable yet private position, we in the turret must rotate, each one sleeping 6 hours then waking up the other, this way we can always have someone manning the guns. 

Well at least we got a extra pair of hands here with us, unfortunately we also got a extra body here in this cramped turret, which makes it even more uncomfortable, and i’m the unlucky one she uses as chair, she just sits in my lap and nuzzles up to me, when i was younger this was a dream of mine but now that it’s happening and i’m sweating liters i don’t want it anymore, at least she has a good smell.

I was woken up by Jacson, he shook my head around until I woke up before I could react he went back to his seat.

The sound of the train sliding through the tracks reverberated all around, the sound wasn’t so loud inside the tank, but I could feel it. It felt a bit better than the average trip, maybe for the novelty of it, nah it’s probably because there’s way less bumps.

There was a lazy atmosphere in the air, Manuel was sleeping, holding his cheek while resting his head against one of the computers on the walls.
Jacson was sprawled on his seat, one of his arms over his eyes, the small circular spent case disposal hatch was open. I could feel the sunshine and fresh air coming from it, but it would be much better if there wasn’t a hot body and fluffy tail and hair on top of me.

I woke up Cecilia, by patting her head.
She greeted me with a good morning and went for a kiss, i stopped her midway and moved up towards the hatch. I could see rays of sunshine coming in from the viewing prisms.

I reached for the hatch and opened it, and I was greeted by the early morning lazy sun. Around us was an endless plain of green. We were about to pass by a small stone bridge in the distance, I could also see some highways and forests.

I moved up and took a seat by the side of the turret, using one of the stowage boxes as a leg rest, the tank was secured to the train car via strong cables, the turret was free to move in case we needed to fire at something, i miss those exercises they were some of the most fun i had in my life, but i guess they were too expensive so instead they had us play Steel Beasts and clean the barracks.

Cecilia moved up and tried to climb the hatch, with the expected result, I held her hand and helped her climb. 
She thanked me, took a seat and started rubbing her eyes.

“We’re going to the capital, there’s a huge battle going on there, we might not return alive. We can leave you on the train, you can go back and forget about us and return to your family.” I told her frankly, while the train passed over the small bridge.

I turned towards her and was greeted by a loud slap on my cheek. I had my helmet on, and it took up most of the impact for me. She had a hurtful expression and grasped her hand, something told me she was injured by my words and not by my hard carapace.

“What the hell do you think I am? You think I followed you just in the whiz of the moment? you think i didn’t see the bodies and don’t know what may happen?” She yelled at me, tears started mounting up in her eyes. Made me feel like shit.

“N-no i didn’t mean li-” I sighed loudly “Sorry, sorry for that, i just” A hurricane of emotions brewed in my head.

I held my head with both hands and tried to digest the situation.

“LOOK, I’M USED TO DEALING WITH COWARDS, I expect women around me to be looking for a single thing, a single emotion and to go away as soon as they get it, i thought you were the same.” I yelled out.

“I’M NOT!” She replied in a yell.

I heard a violent sound below and the loader hatch was thrown open
Jacson emerged from it with a angry expression

“SARGE, please I'm trying to sleep here, you’re gonna wake up the entire train!” he said, trying to contain his indignation.

Her face turned a red tint and i didnt how to react to Jacson, so I kept myself shut.

He moved back inside and closed the hatch, leaving us two alone again with our shame.

“The kiss we had, before you went to battle yesterday, did you think it was just a whiz of a moment thing?” She asked me candidly

“I don’t know, I feel like my mind has been going through a hurricane. If I think too much I won't be able to fight, and if I think about the wrong things I'll think too much, this kiss is an example.” I replied, in a similar tone.

“I’ll stay with you until you’re able to think straight then, just don’t be a douche again.” She said, in a more merry tone.

Dealing with women is harder than assaulting enemy bunkers.

1240 hours 9 rounds spent, Second day

We reached Goiás, the big state where Brasilia, the federal district, is located. Our arrival was on time. 
The station is very far away, so we'll have to drive our way to the central plateau, to Brasilia, it will take some time.

The road to Brasilia is open, I stand over the tank and feel the rising sun on my back. We have the firepower and the guts. I hope we can make a difference, there's no anxiety in the air, we know what we can do, we were touched by battle and came out on top.

The cables securing the tanks and APCs to the freight cars are disconnected, men run all around the station repeating the work and movement, engines are turned on and the tanks move out of their cars, an awe inspiring sight, we need to change the tracks and make our way.

After it’s all finished and we’re covered in grease and sweat we take a time to do a small prayer, and after that we moved out, deserting the once filled train and station.
The railway battalion saluted us as we moved out.

Another highway, different state.

The environment here is completely different, the air is drier, the land is browner, there’s not so much vegetation, and there’s lots of depressions and elevations in the scenery, though I don't think most would classify as hills, everywhere we move we see civilization, much like back in the South but in greater numbers, some restaurants and rural properties here and there, hotels, shops, warehouses and factories all by the highway, along with an immense quantity of vehicles moving away, people fleeing from the city i assume, this is the time you miss having motorcycle scouts with you.

We passed by a lot of small towns on the way, some of them were deserted, others were still holding.
We made some stops to refuel in an abandoned gas station, we got some candies and bakery goods out of one too, sadly it was deserted so we couldn’t pay for it, it seems we are robbers now.
1534 hours 9 rounds spent, Second day.

Now playing in the Manuel Player 3: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MXQLJVJBcaA

We reached it, we finally reached it, the dusk sun is upon us and the outskirts of Brasilia are in view, Brasilia is a very small city, around it is a aglomerate of smaller towns, we reached one of those, it’s much akin to any other Brazilian urban environment, although way more chaotic.
Black smoke rose, shots and blaring sirens were heard, the cruel symphony of a dying city.

In the battle management system i could see friendly units all around me, mostly concentrated around the military district in Brasilia and the Brasilia air base

“Attention all Units, we got contact with the Plateau command, we are to move to the Southern Wing in the Brasilia Air base, Legendario lead the way.” Tenente Augusto said he also told Bino what route to take. 
I wonder where the other two platoons are, they will probably reach the city later, somehow we ended up being the fastest ones to get here, even though we had to travel over worlds.

Inside the tank the atmosphere was merry, we finally reached our destination hard not to get happy, even though the destination is burning before your eyes, unfortunately we had to contend with having an extra body on-board.

Through the REMAX display I could see graffiti filled walls and colourful houses, and shops.

The tank moved throughout the suburban streets
 
The sound of artillery fire and jet engines echoed all throughout, the beautiful symphony they trained us to partake in.
The red tracers from Autocannons and machineguns lighted up the barely visible horizon

“Sarge we need you to prepare the brownings, the cables should be by the Remax” Manuel said, his eyes glued to his gun sight display.

“Be careful anon” Cecilia said before I opened the hatch and pulled myself up.
The smell of gasoline and diesel was around in the air along with the earthy smell of asphalt and bricks.

By the REMAX pedestal there were two cables, each one connected to a browning machinegun over the gun barrel.
I seated myself on the hatch and took both cables in each hand and then pulled them as strongly as I could, the sound of the heavy bolts being moved greeted me, i pulled it until i heard the clack of the bolt being secured in the ready position and then left the cables as they were and moved back inside the tank, closing the hatch.

“PRONTO” I yelled as I came back, the sound of the closing hatch punctuated my speech.

The vibrations of the tracks felt clearer, inside the tank only it and the humming of the engine could be heard, everyone was concentrated on their display and Cecilia was glued on my display.

We kept going through the streets, some bodies littered our way, along with abandoned cars and shot-up walls and houses.
We turned a corner and a small group of people appeared in my display, around five of them down the street and running towards us, their clothes were ragged and I could see one of the females holding a small child while she ran. They are still alive.

They saw us, I could feel their happiness and satisfaction at seeing the steel behemoths, happiness and satisfaction that was cut short by the undead that were right behind them, their ghostly white skin and horrible wounds a cruel reminder of their fate.
The civilians weren’t fast enough and i couldn’t get a clear shot with the Remax, the undead were right behind them, one of the men was tackled and kicked to death, another one had the same fate, a third one tried to fight back and was overwhelmed soon after.

I tried to get a clear shot but the woman was on the way and they were still a bit far. The tank kept moving towards them but I still couldn’t get a good shot. The browning isn’t precise enough. I can't risk hitting the child and the mother.

“SARGE DO SOMETHING!” 
“Anon!”

The fourth man got a head start, the woman lagged behind, the monsters tackled her down as she screamed, the man turned back and saw her being ripped apart as she desperately tried to shield the child. 

I got a clear shot.

I pressed the button and opened fire on the undead that were on top of her, their bodies were ripped apart by the .50 BMG bullets.
When I released the trigger and blood and guts were all that remained in the display, the surviving man rushed towards the mother’s now lifeless body.
I disconnected my helm cable, opened my hatch and rushed out as the tank moved towards him jumping out from the turret and into the street, almost falling head first as I did.
he was crying loudly, the sound of a child crying was heard beneath the mother’s dilacerated body.
He moved her body, sullying his hands in her fresh blood and retrieved the crying child.
He hugged him tightly and turned towards me, his face was contorted with anger, tears streamed down his face.

“Why didn’t you do anything?! YOU COULD HAVE SAVED HER!” He screamed at me in a belligerent stance.

“I-i’m sorry i couldn’t shoo-” I tried to excuse myself, stepping back towards the tank

“LIES!” He interrupted me, he hugged his son and kneeled down crying loudly.

I moved back and climbed the tank which had stopped to wait for me, I delayed the entire column.
I moved into my hatch, and entered the tank, defeated.
The tank started to move again

“PORRA!” I yelled and punched the tank’s wall, not hitting any equipment “Can’t even save a single fucking family!” 

Frustration Frustration, i’m inside a forty ton killing machine, i have years of training and killed multiple enemies but i can’t save a single family, why?

“Anon, a-are you ok?” Cecilia said, motioning one of her hands towards my shoulder.

“Yeah” I sighed and tried to present myself as a healthy human being “Yeah, i am, just a bit stunned by all”

“Anon, you don’t have to bottle that up” She said candidly with an understanding expression.

“I have to, now forget about that.” I said, refusing her help and ignoring her.

We aren’t that far away from the Brasilia air base and the southern wing, just a few more minutes and hopefully there won’t be any more problems in the way.

“Almost there, just a few more streets and then we’ll be at the southern wing.” Bino's voice cracked in the intercom.

The sound of artillery and rocket fire echoed in the distance, ASTROS batteries are doing a reprise of the M270s performance during Desert Storm, hitting multiple targets per barrage and acting as the fingers of God for an entire division, i wish i could see the spectacle, but here in the suburbs inside this warmachine the best i can do is listen to the symphony or maybe Opera would be more fitting, given the whirling scream of the firepower. 

We reached the big boulevard, it’s actually a federal highway the same one we took to get here, it runs straight through Brasilia, a carotid artery, our way to the heart of Brasil, burned out and splintered cars litter the way, destroyed by artillery fire, blood and bone mended, carbonized along with their vehicles, highway of death a fitting entrance to the city.

We had to move to the opposite driving hand, because the southward way was filled with burning cars, we pushed the cars out of the way and crashed our way through to the other-hand of the highway and then continued our way south.
Black smoke rose towards the sky, the sound of firing became clearer, it seems these sounds will be with us until this city’s last dying gasp.

We moved to a scissor’s intercept in the road and took the way towards the Brasilia air base, to our right was a residential unit, just some lonely streets with mansions or something like that, to our left, greenery and a flower shop. 
This part of the road was littered with abandoned cars and corpses, we had to move around the bigger ones and slowly pass over the smaller ones, crushing them under our treads and weight, a very satisfying ordeal although also a time consuming one.

After some time of this we reached an open ground, the road turned into a roundabout and we had to cross over to the other side to get to the airport. We could see some billboards with ads here and there.

Now playing on the Manuel Player 3: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5YWRREgi8dA

The sound of screaming jet engines filled the air, jets were landing in the airport FAB’s F5s and AMX i suppose, it was punctuated by the ever present sound of artillery.
Dead bodies and bloody grass and dirt littered the area around the entrance of the airport, some machine gunned cars were also present.
There was a big towering billboard frame in the entrance to the airport, right ontop of the highway, it was turned into a hardpoint, sandbags and concrete, firing ports and machine guns.
Around it turned cars made into walls, sandbags and chain link fences, the entrance was blocked by a tall tourism bus the windows of which were covered with metallic frames, gun barrels pointed outward from inside of it.
As we approached the bus moved opening the way for us, the sun was setting as we entered.
On the other side soldiers motioned for us to keep going towards the terminals, they didn’t use the standard Brazilian camo and the usual FAL or IA2 rifle, they used futuristic looking bullpups with carry handles, air force infantry.
The car renter building was converted into a barracks, men could be seen formed up on the parking lot there, receiving a speech or briefing, the cars were gone, used to make the walls.
The sound of the raging artillery was ever present, sometimes punctuated by the scream of rockets or the takeoff of a plane.
We reached the terminal, a officer there was surprised to see us, he motioned for us to go to the runaway access, from there another equally surprised NCO motioned us to a hangar and there we stopped, the sun was gone and the night was above us, the airport had illumination, and the hangar was lighted by LED spotlights.
The hangar was being used to store munitions, lots of bombs, rockets and big ammunition boxes filled with autocannon belts, lots of space for us to park the vehicles.

I opened my hatch and pulled myself up as the tank maneuvered a bit and parked with it’s back towards one of the hangar walls, i could see the other tanks and APCs doing the same in their own places, our parking formation is something pre-established, we trained this early in our careers and refreshed it every year.

I felt tired and frustrated, I moved out of the hatch making space for Manuel and Cecilia to exit, I saw the other crews leaving their vehicles, they looked tired, we had a long journey here.
This is only the beginning… God this whole situation, all this stress, makes me want to puke, i can’t even save a single family, what a fucking waste of man years of training and the best equipment we could muster. 
Jacson opened his hatch and pulled himself up, he looked sleepy, Manuel pulled himself up shortly after, Bino’s hatch opened and he emerged from it, they all climbed down from the tank.
An Officer came along with some other NCOs, I stood up on top of the tank and saluted him, alerting the men around me of the authority in the vicinity; they then echoed my motion and proceeded to salute.

“I am Major Ferroso commander of Brasilia's southern front, we didn’t expect to receive our armored reinforcements. I am very happy to see you gentlemen here today.” The Major had a deep loud voice that echoed in the hangar, it made him feel like a giant surrounded by Dwarfs.
“Who’s in charge of this task force?” He asserted while looking around at the many men in attention, trying to find the alpha in the pack.
“READY SIR!” I yelled and proceeded to jump down from the turret and moved in front of him, striking myself into attention again.
I saluted him energetically, making sure not to show weakness in front of him, he wasn’t a tall man. He had Blond hair and brown eyes. His skin was pale. He seemed to be in his early 50s.

“Sergeant Anon, First sergeant, First Combat car platoon, 1st company, 21st Armored cavalry regiment, 6th armored brigade, 3rd division.” I felt like i was giving him my whole genealogical tree, i felt anxiety brewing in me as he gave a deep look and twisted his brow.

“A first sergeant in charge of an armored task force, quite uncommon. What are the facts behind this?” He said, looking deep into my eyes.

“Uncommon valor deserves uncommon responsibility, sir!” I replied stoically.

“To paraphrase Camões, one needs to have hands-on experience to truly master something, you do seem to be too young to have had such, Sergeant.”

“Sir, i have come back from the portals where these beasts have poured from, i have personally destroyed 2 Hostile Armored combat cars and killed more of those things than i could count, all the men here can vouch for me, Sir!” I replied making sure not to seem too confrontational.

“Sir, Third Sergeant Manuel Peixes, master gunner of the 21st regiment, gunner of CC1 i can personally vouch for my sergeant’s valor in combat.” Manuel interjected, a big mistake, you're not supposed to talk over an officer.

“Third Sergeant Peixes, I did not give you permission to speak, silence yourself” He said to Manuel who was close to the Legendario, an angry expression on his face. “Combat experience does not save you from military discipline” 

“Sir my mistake, sir” Manuel apologized.

“Very well Sergeant anon, your unit is way ahead of schedule. I hope your travel here was fortuitous, we are having problems getting reinforcements towards Brasilia, the whole world is on fire, but we’ll win, make yourself at home tonight, tomorrow your men will receive briefings, there’s food in the terminal, and a field hospital on the strip.” Ferroso said, he changed his tone. 

 “Remember to tone in to the right frequency.” He finalized as he made his way out of the hangar.

I felt as if my remaining energy was stolen, taken away, tiredness and soreness all that remained, all the exertion from a combat filled day had catched up to me and I felt bad.

The men prepared tarps on their vehicles and brought their sleeping bags out, after a short session of congrats and back taps from my crew I made my way back to the Legendario and into the commander’s seat, the only place that felt like home.

Climbing the tank seems like an easy thing to do for those that never saw a tank in person, well it isn’t for me. I am not the tallest person and right now i’m out of energy, it took a while until i could use the foot rest to propel myself up without slipping off. And then made my way to the commander’s hatch.

Opened it with the familiar signature klink and klank and hopped inside into the cushy and sweaty seat, it was occupied, i had to enter the turret carefully for Cecilia that vulpine women bent on becoming my shadow is napping on my seat while sniffing it quite loudly, her tail sways gently below hovering over the dirty turret basket.
How many dreamless uncomfortable nights have I spent on this same seat, how many moments of success and failure, now there’s some sweaty animal woman on it, hogging my place and trying to invade my life. 
 I set myself down on the floor almost stepping on her brown tail but avoiding it at the last moment.

“Anon?” She said quietly in a snoorish tone upon hearing my boots hit the steel floor.
“Here, make space for me. I want to sit too.” I said as I gently moved her to make space for me in the seat. 
“Are you gonna sleep here too?” she asked in a sleepy tone while hugging  me
“Yes, I also need to check something here” I said as I turned the REMAX LCD display on.

All REMAXes come with a built in training mode, i was certified as a instructor earlier in my career so i know how to activate it, just have to turn some things on, put the gun on safety and turn the training mode on, it’s like playing a video game, they even have some scenarios to play.

I boot it up and the bluish hue of the screen illuminates the tank, I need to check the accuracy of the browning and the dispersion of the shots otherwise i won’t be able to sleep at peace this night, i select a scenario with plenty of targets close together and start it the graphics look like shit. 
The shot dispersion isn’t that bad at the 80 meters range, enough to hit a chest with some inches of dispersion, enough to hit a single target without collateral damage... I could have saved that woman, I just had to shoot. Her husband was right. I could have saved her but I didn't, why didn’t i? I should have done it…

I turn the display off, I feel even more tired now knowing of my own pathetic failure. 

Cecilia is napping against my shoulder, hugging my chest while sitting on my lap, her ears are nugging up against my neck, her body heat will make sure I won't need a blanket for tonight, I feel dirty and unworthy of this affection but pushing her away will cause more drama so i’ll just try to ignore her. I slept through worse.
I close my eyes and try to forget all this, try to forget where I am and what I did as I slowly drift off to not so serene slumber inside this bi-metal and composite casket. tomorrow will be worse...

0560 hours 9 rounds spent, Third day

The bugle played alvorada signalling the start of a new day, the sound came from multiple speakers located around the air base, our hangar had at least two of those, playing in sync.

I heard it from inside the tank, my eyes slowly opened. I could feel breathing close to my face along with the awful smell of an unwashed mouth. I was face to face with Cecilia, she had black spots under her eyes and was staring at me with an intense glee.

“Did you sleep well?” I asked her.
“No… I couldn't, these loud thunder noises kept waking me up, so I just hugged you tight and closed my eyes.” she said, the intensity of her gaze felt out of place now.
“I slept like a rock, didn’t dream of anything... “ I yawned out while I checked if my equipment and chest rig were still on me.
“My father says that’s a bad omen” She stood up from my lap and gave me some space.
“We’ll find out” I blurted out as I opened the hatch and climbed up.

The screaming of the jet engines and firing of the artillery, the morning sun and the familiar hangar and vehicles. That was my first experience of the outside today. 
I didn’t feel like we were at war, it seemed strangely idyllic here in the lazily illuminated hangar.
Soldiers went by, men from my unit. Doing maintenance, chores, unloading equipment, going by their usual day, but far away from homebase.

I stood up on top of my tank, and walked down towards the front of it, checking the point of impact of an Argie 105mm sabot we received yesterday back in the other side of the portals, the beautiful result being the impact of a supersonic dart against the composite material like a small stab wound.

My tank was a beautiful piece of engineering, as expensive as it was effective a true heir to the chariots and horses of old, fated to always lead the charge and decide the battle.

“First platoon, attention!”  A loud voice echoed in the hangar, silencing all other voices, I reflexively stood at attention on top of my tank upon hearing it.

I saw the men from my platoon doing the same as Major Ferroso entered the hangar.

“Where’s the tank commander, first sergeant anon?” Major Ferroso solicited as he moved forth towards the center of the hangar.

“Ready, sir!” I responded as i jumped down from the tank and towards him
“At ease” Ferroso ordered as i saluted him

“You smell horribly sergeant, did you just wake up?” Ferroso said as he covered his nose
“It was a tough day, major” I shrugged.
“You aren’t much different from the infantry manning the perimeter at this point, but I guess that’s expected from the cavalry.” He said as he produced a clipboard filled with papers.
He pointed to my tank and moved closer its front, putting the clipboard on top of it
“Let me go straight to the point” He produced a map out of the clipboard.
“A BOPE unit just secured the armed forces hospital in downtown Brasilia, they need reinforcements to hold their position while we evacuate the personnel and equipment back here.” He said pointing to a skull mark on the map on top of the hospital.
“We want your full platoon along with your infantry to move there and secure the perimeter, hold it for the following days while the helicopters bring the people back” He ordered as he began fiddling with a pencil and looked around the hangar.

“Roger that, sir. When are we going to move out?” I asked as I produced a small notebook out of a pocket, all commanders were instructed to keep one and note down their orders.
I noted down the orders and units present

“You are going to move out at 1400 hours, prepare everything for your men until then-” The commander stopped midway through his speech with his mouth held open as he looked up towards the tank turret.

“What the fuck is she?” He yelled as he pointed towards Cecilia who just climbed up and began moving down towards us.

She jolted up in shock from the sudden movement and alarm. 
“Me?!” She said meekly while pointing to herself.

“WHO ELSE?!” Ferroso roared back.

She looked at me, then at Ferroso, then back towards the open hatch she just left from, then towards me again, then she stared at the papers, then stared at me. All this in the span of a few seconds.

“I-i’m his wife.” She proclaimed pointing towards me.

My world has just been destroyed with her saying those words that I never expected a creature from the female gender would say to me. She just destroyed my career and the track record i’ve been making for myself (possibly dooming the defence of Brasilia along with it).
I’ve begun to cold-sweat profusely, the likes of which not even death could make me do, I felt my vision blackening and my legs faltering.


“T-that’s not t-true” I jittered as I held onto the tank for support.
I feel nauseous

“Yes it is, you even kissed me… sealing the deal” She meekly said as her face began to turn red.

“First sergeant anon” Ferroso said, while holding onto my shoulder

“Sir?” I looked up to him, defeated.

“In different circumstances i would have you mop the entire landing strip, clean the toilets for 4 weeks, do laps around the air base every day, be my personal driver for two years, and a long list of other punishments, including expulsion from the army if you dared to complain for even a second about it” He listed, in a very different tone from earlier.
“But I need you on that commander’s seat for the following days and i simply don’t have the patience to deal with this kind of shit during a alien invasion or whatever THE FUCK this is, so just makes sure this won’t be seen as you kidnapping a nubile young women from her hometown and brainwashing her to be your wife or whatever the fuck you’re planning you fucking horny motherfucker.”  He yelled out.

“T-this means i’m still in the army?” I muttered below my breath timidly.

“The what? sound like you have a pair you dumb fool” He yapped

“This means I'm still in the army, sir?” I said, trying to lift myself up

“YES, of course it means, you idiot, now prepare your men to leave and hide that fucking wo-” He stopped mid-sentence as he noticed the ears and tails on Cecilia.
“Is that a fucking dog tail on her” he whispered to my ear “What the kind of fuck are you doing to her you animal?”

“N-no sir, that’s natural, she comes with it!” I tried to defend myself, pointing towards the dumbfounded woman on top of my tank.

“You there, woman!” Ferroso yelled to her “Did he tell you to wear that tail and ear? don’t worry he has no power over you anymore you can say it out loud”

“What?” she responded, dumbfounded and surprised.
Ferroso was about to repeat his question when I motioned for her to show him her tail and ears.
She became even redder.

“I-i won’t do it, anon!” She cried.

“What?” Ferroso and i said in unison

“What the fuck did you tell her to do, you animal, i’ll have you court martialed for this shit, enough is enough” Ferroso said as he began to try to arrest me.

“No, no, no, Major this is not what i said, she misunder-” Ferroso was about to punch me when Cecilia held his shoulder.

“Please don’t!” She cried.

“S-see?! the ears are real”  I laughed it off.
Ferroso stopped and stared at her ears, for a few seconds, paralysed.
Cecilia moved her ears up and down.
Ferroso released his grip from me and entered a state of deep thought.

“Sergeant anon, 1400 hours, I want you out of my base, you copy?”  Ferroso yapped.
“Yes sir!” I responded, victoriously.


Ferroso left the hangar along with his retinue, the men of my platoon were staring at me and Cecilia, Manuel had his cell phone out and pointed at me.

“Manuel, turn that shit off!” I yelled while covering my face.
“I’ll show this to your kids soon enough, hahahaha.” He said as he turned the cellphone off and put it in one of his pockets.

Clapping was heard, Bino was the only one at first then the rest of the men followed.
“Happy marriage to you two, hahaha.” Bino said.

“Cease this, i want the tanks and infantry ready to move at 1400 hours, i want the maximum amount of firepower possible coming with us, stock up on medicine and food too.”  I began ordering my men, ending their party-like demeanor and as I did the sound of boots entering the hangar was heard again.

“First sergeant anon, we need to talk, follow me!” Lieutenant Augusto moved quickly and motioned me to follow him as he moved towards the back of the hangar and into one of the offices.

“You have the authority of a Lieutenant, but I see you still aren't ready for that” Augusto said, his words felt like knives in my heart.
“I cannot argue against that, sir” I responded, as we entered the hangar office, which was deserted and empty, safe a metal table and metal chairs.
“Take a seat, soldier”  I did as he said, the chair was cold.
He did likewise and stared at me.
“I need you to do your job, but I'm not sure I can trust you.” He paused for a moment. “Can i?” 
Silence reigned for a few minutes as my mind raced for an answer.

“Yes… sir, I still have a lot to learn, but I know my craft and I trust my capabilities.” I pushed out, anxiety brewed in my body, I tried to act tough but it was hard.

“In my life I saw lots of men like you, I read about men like you either in reports or war memoirs, they either die early taking a lot of good men along with their fall, or they become some of the best soldiers a country can muster.” He tapped the metal table as he proclaimed.
“I heard a lot about you from Aguerres before all this too, a hard worker, professional when needed, but usually an immature, unprepared and lax person. You were supposed to be promoted to first sergeant a long time ago but… well, you’re simply not ready for the responsibility, or at least that was the case before you passed through the portals.” He stopped tapping the table.
“Prove yourself again or die trying and you’ll be promoted to Lieutenant, our forces are coursing thin and Aguerres won’t be able to come. Am I understood?” He stared at me with a vigour I've only seen in the eyes of an infantryman during the finishing assault.

“Yes, sir!” I stood up as I yelled it out.

“That’s what I want to see, go back there and prepare your men, I'll handle the dust feets” He said as he stood up.

I left the office along with Augusto, the men were surrounding the front of my tank, laughs could be heard from that herd of men as I approached.
They were pestering her with questions, too many questions, she looked like a beautiful little cherry fruit surrounded by camouflaged men.

I was about to start eavesdropping when Augusto came back from inside an APC with a camera in hand.

“Ok everyone! shut up and smile for the camera, this will be going to the Division’s museum”

The crowd changed disposition immediately upon hearing the Lieutenant’s authority, they began moving around yelling to each other trying to find the best way to put everyone in the photo, some men that were nearby were pressured verbally into getting into the crowd. That included me which they shoehorned into getting on top of the tank and hugging Cecilia, being the centerpiece of the picture.

We all stood there for a second, tightly packed like bread in a bag, i was lucky because i was sitting on the tank, hugging a woman, the woman in question seemed to be overly stressed and close to a breaking point judging by her facial expression, such qualms faded away as she came closer to me and hugged me tighter.

Augusto took multiple photos. My mind wandering off thinking of the battle ahead… always thinking and thinking, finding ways to organize my mind, searching for the way out of the fear and anxiety, and worst of all: Thinking about the future, when you’re young and lonely you don’t fear death or maiming, you’re only responsible for yourself and you should know very well how cheap your life is. 

But now at this moment hugging this woman i finally felt true fear, the fear of losing someone dear to me, the fear of disappointing them, the fear of abandoning them, a grueling and invisible pain surged through my mind and chest as I fantasized about the multiple ways i could die this very day, of what awaited me in the dark. And how Cecilia would react to me dying. 

Tears started welling up in my eyes, I found someone I wanted to protect above all else but I knew I couldn't always be there for her, that one day i would be lying dead in the cold steel casket. 
In my defense I would say it was my duty, my oath, my honor, my homeland and my vocation. But that wouldn’t be enough to change the fact that I could never repay what I will take from her when I draw my last breath in this life of eternal struggle.

“Ok that’s it gentlemen, finish preparing everything up.” Augusto's voice sounded up calling me back up from my deep dive into my own mind.

The men started falling out of pose and moved towards their tanks and vehicles, I still felt a bit stunned and out of bearings on top of the tank, with Cecilia at my side.

It’s still too early in the morning, so I took a look at my watch: it’s around 8 AM, we still have 4 hours to prepare.
First things first, we need to change our ammunition load, we’re carrying too many sabots, we need canisters and HEAT, we also need extra shotgun shells for the anti infantry assault devices.

I slapped myself awake, startling Cecilia then jumped out of the tank and moved towards Augusto.

“Sir, we need-.” Augusto interrupted me mid speech with an open hand pointed to me, I didn't notice he was busy talking to one of his sergeants.
“Yes, make sure all men have maps and grappling ropes. This city is already on the way to becoming a labyrinth.” Augusto said to the young man in front of him who responded with an affirmative nod and an enthusiastic “Yes sir”  as he departed away from the hangar.
Augusto turned towards me as if beckoning me to speak up.
“Sir, we need to replace our ‘Arrow‘ rounds, HEAT and HESH won’t be enough.” I told him

“I’ll see what i can do, for now prepare you men and supply them with all they need, we’ll probably stay there for a while so make sure to bring extra ammo and food, as well as toilet paper. Make sure to pair your best crews with my IFVs.” He said while pointing to the IFVs. 

The beautiful machines, although old and under armored, mere APC Charruas equipped with old Engesa 25mm two man turrets originally meant for the Urutu APC, many would call it a stopgap but it has it’s charm and i learned to respect the power of our 25 mils, the fact it has enough space to carry a full squad plus some is a good bonus too.

The Infantry squads and the crews were around or inside their vehicles, talking and relaxing, my crews were doing the same.

Augusto left the hangar, I moved towards the center of the hangar. The Osorios were all parked in a line pointing their cannons to the wall in front of them, I felt as if they were saluting me.

Cecilia was following me closely.

“All tank crews! attention, fall in!” I yelled out filling the hangar with my voice. The crews immediately responded, moving out and forming in front of their tanks. C-1 to C-4.

Legendario, my tank C-1, and it’s crew. 

Pernambuco, C-2, commanded by third sergeant Cleyton, my partner tank.

Brother, C-3, Commanded by corporal Vila, the ex-gunner of the tank forced to take the 
commanding position after the commander and loader died on the other side of the portals, we won’t be getting replacements any time soon and I don't want to put infantrymen in that tank.

Brummer, C-4, Commanded by Carlos, the blondie.

The men were far from straightened and sharpened, their jumpsuits were beaten and grease stained, their faces were equally beaten, I fear they didn’t get enough rest.

“Good morning gentlemen” I greeted them, they responded in unison “Good morning, sir!” 
I never liked being in command of a formation, too much power. If I told them to get down on the ground and do pushups they would in a heartbeat it never felt right on me, but it was my responsibility.

“As you might have guessed by now, we will be operating away from the regiment for a underdetermined amount of time, this means no repairs and no command and control from Aguerres and the Brigade commander, we are now under the plateau command our orders are to prepare to march to defend the armed forces hospital, we leave at 1400 hours.” I looked at them as I moved back and forth, Cecilia always following me closely. Their eyes followed her as I moved. “What’s the status of the combat cars?”  I asked.

“Sir, all tanks are optimal, C3 needs a new loader.” Cleyton said.
I looked over towards Cecilia who freezed upon meeting my gaze. I looked at her arms, too scrawny to load the 18kg shells at a reliable rate, her muscle memory isn’t ready for the kind of quick firing we are drilled to do either.
“Corporal Jacson, you are hereby transferred to the loader position of C3.” I said after transferring my attention to Jacson, our loader. “Yes sir” he said as he awkwardly looked over back to our tank and then towards C3.

“Get your things and transfer to C3 at once, i want to finish all major preparations now. The rest of you zero your guns to 300 meters and trade your arrow munitions for HEAT and HESH, we won’t be needing their anti-tank power here but make sure to stow some in the turret just in-case. this is the order of the day… dismissed.” I finished and then looked over to Cecilia, who was eagerly waiting for me to speak. I motioned to my tank with my hands and began to move towards it.

Jacson moved his way up towards the turret, opening one of the storage boxes on it’s side and picking up an army bag.

I climbed the tank and helped Cecilia do the same.
“Get in the loader’s hatch, you’ll take Jacson’s place until we get a new black beret.” I told her while pointing to the loader’s hatch.
“I’ll try my best anon.” She meekly responded. 
She tried to open the hatch but couldn’t lift it, so I went forward and opened it for her.
“Get in and lift the seat up, I'll show you what you have to do.” I told her as I went to the commander’s hatch, Jacson was close-by. I nodded to him as he picked up his bags and personal items from the storage box.

I entered the commander’s position, Cecilia was looking around trying to get her bearings, the L7 cannon breech was between us, it was unloaded.

“Ok first of all, behind you there’s a helmet with headphones, put it on when we go to the fight you won’t be able to hear me without it, and you might lose your hearing if you don’t use it during combat.” I told her as I put my helmet on and connected the intercom cable on it.
Cecilia proceeded to do as I did although with much more difficulty thanks to her fluffy ears, it took a while until she found the sweet spot but the uncomfortable look in her face remained for a bit longer despite that.

“Test, test” I said as I pushed the intercom button.
Her mouth moved but i couldn’t hear her, she started to look for the intercom button and found it shortly after.

“Yes I can hear you, anon.” She said, a happy expression on her face, but I could see she was overwhelmed by all the hardware around her and by the uncomfortable headset.

“To your right, you see that door? look for a black button close to it and push it with all your force.” I said as I turned the APU on, various lights and meters in the turret started turning on along with the unmistakable engine droning which made Cecilia flinch slightly.

She began to look for it despite the initial flinch, like a curious cat spying every corner until she found it and pressed it once with no success, she repeated the action this time with more strength and the bulkhead bustle door began to open.

“I never thought I would see something like this in my life, I feel like a woman shouldn’t meddle with this kind of thing, I'm a bit scared.” She said with a slight chuckle.

I told her the differences between APFSDS, HEAT and HESH projectiles and what each does, she listened to my voice intently. I could see she was a bit more relaxed now.

“Ok, let’s do this.” I said with a smile pointed at her. “Loader, load arrow!” I yelled out as if we were in combat.

She jumped into action like a startled cat, she pressed the bustle door button and stopped for a second fishing for a APFSDS with her eyes, some seconds later she quickly moved her little arms and pulled a shell out, it’s pin-like tip a guarantee she learned what i told her.
She pushed it towards the mouth of the breech and let it fall. 

“What do I do now anon?” She asked with an amused look on her face.

“Ram it in, it will close as soon as it enters so make sure not to get your fingers caught” She looked at me with a hint of fear as i said it “Don’t worry, it’s not dangerous.” I assured her.

“Ok then, let’s go!” She yelled as she pushed the shell in, a click, a clack and the breech closed as she pushed her hands out of the way quick as a bolt.

“Good, it’s inside the gun but it’s not ready to fire yet, you see that red button close to the gun breech? that readies the gun to fire at my command, press it.” I told her while pointing to the big red button, it armed the electronic firing mechanism, firing manually was possible without it but only the gunner had access to the manual firing mechanism.

She pressed the button and retreated a bit, trying to get her bearings.

“Congratulations, but i don’t know it’s loaded, you need to yell ‘pronto’ out, that’s how we do it.” I said to her and as soon as i finished she enthusiastically shouted “P-Pronto!” With a big smile on her face.

“Ok, you now know the basics, you can take off the helmet now” I said to her as I took my helmet off and put it down on one of the stowage bins in the tank.
She removed the troublesome helmet with a satisfied expression stamped on her face.

“Time to take the shell out of the cannon, there’s a lever below the breech block, see if you can find it and wait for me a bit.” I told her, as she looked at me with a confused expression that soon turned into determination as I pulled myself out of the tank and moved towards the loader’s hatch.
“Coming down make space” I said as I was greeted by a brown fluffy tail that moved slightly to the side to give me space.
I moved down and landed on the turret floor. I proceeded to open the small shell removal hatch to my left, this allowed some wind and light to penetrate into the confines of the tank.

“This thing here anon?” Cecilia called me while holding to the lever that opens the cannon breech.

“Yes, pull it and the breech will open, ejecting the shell and letting it hit the basket here” I said as I pointed to the white metal basket that collected the spent shells.
Cecilia pulled the lever a click and a clack sound reverberated through the turret followed by the sound of the brass hitting the basket.
“Perfect, i want you to pass that shell and 4 more arrow shells to me through this hole here” I said as i pointed to the shell disposing hole.
“Ok!” She nodded enthusiastically like a child at a playground.

I pulled myself out of the tank and moved to the side of the turret ready to pick up the ejected shells.

We did it rhythmically shell by shell. I could hear the metal door open and her moans of effort each time as I stacked the shells down on the hangar floor. 
I was sweaty when i finished the job, Manuel approached me with a coca cola can in one of his hands offering me it. “Good work champion, doing some pair bonding, eh?”
He was drinking from a can of his own.
I picked the cold red can from his hands. “Thanks” I said as I moved up towards the commander’s hatch of the tank.

I opened the can and took a sip of it as I moved, I reached the hatch and moved inside. “Heads up, have a drink.” I Said to her as I entered the commander’s position and offered her the red can of coca cola.

“I’ll move the turret, can you take a look outside and tell me if there’s anyone in the way?” I asked her as I took a seat.
“Yes, one second” She said after taking a sip of the sweet soda and proceeded to pull herself up, leaving her tail sticking down the hatch.
After a few short moments she returned “it’s ok, anon, go ahead” she assured me.

I took the controls in hand and laid my eyes down, moving the turret until the hull ammo rack was accessible, upon reaching the sweet spot I stopped the turret.
I looked to the side and I could see Cecilia holding her ears shut, fox ears are too sensitive for this kind of work, I guess.

“Ok Cecilia, i’ll pass you the shells and you put them in the bustle, got it?” I asked her as I moved down towards the hull and began opening the rack’s cells.
“Got it!” She responded, I could hear the bustle door opening.

I passed her HEAT and HESH shells one by one, and as I did she became slower and slower, making painful sounds and breathing raggedly, by the third shell I felt I needed to intervene.

“Ok stop, lemme finish this by myself before you break yourself” i said as i tucked a Heat shell under my arm and moved towards Cecilia who was close to the bustle.
“No, anon lemme help you, i can do it.” She protested as I pushed her away from the bustle.

3 Shells remaining, but I fear her arms are at the limit.
I push the shell in my arms into one of the empty cells in the bustle.

“I don’t want you to hurt yourself, this position is only temporary.” I said without looking at her as I returned to the hull-rack.
“I don’t want to be some useless piece here, I want to help you!” She protested, her voice was some decibels higher than normal.

“I don’t care, if your arms become fatigued you’ll be useless for the rest of the day” I told her calmly as I opened one of the hull-rack cells and pulled a HEAT shell out of it.
Some seconds of hesitation were heard in her trembling mouth before she finally spoke out again “T-that’s not true, i know that when the time comes i’ll be ready!” 
I moved back up the turret basket, towards the bustle.
“If you force yourself and manage to do it when the time comes you might break your muscles which will make you even more useless than you already think you are.” I said as I pushed the shell into one of the bustle’s cells. 
I looked at her and could see a mix of anger, resentment and sadness. I couldn’t look at her for very long lest I be swayed by her eyes. 

“Learn your limits, we don’t have the luxury of forgetting about them.” I said as I avoided her eyes and moved back to the hull-rack.
“I don’t want to be useless, not here, not with you.” She said, I could hear her picking up the coca cola can. 
“I know, I love you for it, but play to your strengths, lifting and operating heavy equipment is far from being your strength.” I consoled her. 

I produced a new HEAT shell from the hull rack and moved it to the bustle, Cecilia was drinking from the can, holding it with both hands, a downtrodden expression on her face.

“For one, I'm getting hungry, why don’t you go get us food?” I said as I pushed the shell into the last bustle cell. “Go ask Manuel about it, I'll finish things here by myself.” Her expression quickly changed as I saw a hint of excitement build up, she gave me the half empty coca cola can.  
“I’ll be going” She yelped as she jumped up and tried to pull herself up, just to fail and slip thanks to her weakened arms.
I bit down on the can and held her as she fell down on my arms. “I fould yu aout yor ams.” I tried to say through the can in my teeth. 
She gave a hearty laugh and took the can from my mouth, kissing me and then taking a sip from the can.
“Ok, i’ll propel you up now” I told her as i put her down and held my hands together so i could push one of her feet up. She took a few moments to notice what I was trying to do, but when it finally clicked she proceeded with her right foot and I quickly pushed her up towards the loader hatch.
I heard her feet on the roof and some chatting from outside but I paid it no mind and focused on removing the spent casings that were in the turret. One by one I threw them out through the small circular hatch in the loader’s position.
When I was finished I moved to the commander’s position and moved the turret back to  12’o’clock and turned the APU off, the droning sound of the auxiliary engine faded away, the smell of burnt powder, sweat, metal and synthetic material invaded my nostrils.

I moved to the commander’s station, my place in the tank. The world changed a lot yesterday but my job remained the same, usually stories set in the end of the world involve the protagonist being freed of the shackles of his job and society. Zombies, rats and monsters are running around and my job is still the same. I wonder if I'll still get paid.
I sat down on the commander’s seat and stretched myself, trying to relax while I used the LCD displays as an improvised mirror..  
I took my helmet off, my SMG was still on me ever since yesterday the sling was tensioned against my chest to the point where the SMG felt like a tumor. a wooden holster with my Mauser pistol was attached to my belt along with my sergeant knife, it was heavy and cumbersome.
My pockets are filled with magazines and clips, a sweaty black scarf on my neck, my face looks tired and beaten black orbs under my eyes complimented my look, thankfully my hair was short so it didn’t look that bad.

I took my SMG off and stowed it beside the commander’s station. Good old Taurus SMT-9.

I stood up on my seat and opened the commander’s hatch, the lazy morning Atmosphere invaded the tank, along with the sound of men and equipment moving around.

I checked my watch: 10:50 AM… we still have much time to prepare. Outside this hangar I can hear the guns firing, the rockets flying and the jets screaming. A brutal battle rages on while I stand idle inside my tank, when i close my eyes i can feel the vibrations of the track reverberating around my body, my ears still ring from the marvelous fire of the 105, my eyes remember very well the effect of a 50 BMG impact on a enemy’s body. 
As if commanded by an external energy i proppelled myself out of the seat and onto the top of the tank.
Manuel and the rest of my crew were coming back with styrofoam boxes filled with food, they were accompanied by crewmen of the other tanks all of them carrying some kind of food inside similar boxes or otherwise.

We all sat down on top of the tank’s turret and began eating, plastic forks and knives, cramped boxes filled with rice, beans and grilled meat.
 Manuel and Bino talked about the tank, Cecilia looked at me expectantly. I ate my food with absent eyes, my mind was somewhere else, the burning thoughts fixated on the mission ahead.

“So, do we have enough ammo?” Manuel asked before filling his mouth with a piece of meat.
“I’m not sure, Augusto went around to see what he’s gonna find, but don’t expect much, most tanks around here use 90mm guns.” I answered.
“What about spare track links?” Bino asked, “There’s a huge chance we’ll need to replace them in the field if we keep up this mileage.” 
“We’ll have to improvise, for now focus on the battle ahead, we’ll need extra fifty cal and thirty caliber ammo, find extra grenades and shotgun shells too, get it from the infantry if need be.” I answered before drinking water from my canteen. 

Cecilia felt out of place here, she was trying to follow the conversation but I could see visible confusion on her face.
“W-what about the food?” she asked in a shy voice.
“That’s right, the way things are going we will be cut-off from this base and will have to sleep in the vehicles for some time, we should bring as much food as we can.” Bino stated.
“Ok people, order of the day, get as much food, ammo, fuel and water as you can and put it up on the vehicle, use ropes if you have to and instruct the other crews to do the same.” I said as I stood up.

“First Sergeant Anon, there’s absolutely no 105 mm ammo in this base for us, I got extra 762, 50, grenades and 25 mm  but that’s it.” Lieutenant Augusto shouted as he entered the hangar, accompanied by men carrying boxes of all shapes and sizes filled with ammo.

“First Armored platoon! load up on whatever you can, if your tanks don’t look like Gypsy wagons by 1400 hours I'll have you do a hundred pushups.” I shouted out so everyone in the hangar could hear it.

1340 hours 9 rounds spent, Third day

The engines roar to life, hydraulics ramps close, the black smoke of the diesel engines hover up as radios crackle to life.
“Heads up platoon, radio check, over.” I said over the radio while I closed my hatch and turned my displays on.
“C2, copies, all systems ready, over.” Cleyton’s voice sounded from the radio.
“C3 ready, we are not NBC protected anymore but we got the gas masks ready, over.” Corporal Villa said over the radio.
“C4 ready as always, already finished my prayers.” Blondie spoke through.
“Infantry is ready and eager to fight” The voice of Lieutenant Augusto came from the radio.

“Load HESH and keep eyes on your flanks, maintain formation and communication at all times, out.” I advised through my radio.

The tanks began moving, leaving the hangar one by one, the grinding tracks leaving marks on the floor as they moved with immense weight and roaring sound.

I looked over towards Cecilia who was in the loader’s station, she was trying to fit her ears into the CVC helmet with varying results, after some strenuous moments she finally managed to fit it in, albeit at an uncomfortable position.
“Am i gonna have to wear this piece the whole day?” She asked while setting the ching piece in.
“Yes, I'll see what I can do later, for now that’s it.” I said as I set the combat frequency on one of my radios.

“Hydra, Hydra!  this is India-Mike 2-3 requesting fire mission, danger close, map grid 212535 Alpha, I say again. Fire mission, danger close, map grid 212535 ALPHA, GENESIS coordinates November-Bravo 2316!” Subdued panic could be heard in the voice of the young soldier on the other side along with the fire of machine guns.
I looked over to my map display and could see the coordinates of his fire mission, it was on the north side of the city, far away from our objective.

“India-Mike 2-3, interrogative: what elements are you up against? over” A stoic voice sounded over the radio.
“Massed Necros and orcs, they are using the cars and zombies as moving shields while they move to  molotov range, over.” The machine gun fire was getting louder and his voice more ragged.
“India-Mike 2-3, positive, wait one, over.” The stoic voice paused for a second “A flight of Super Tucanos are moving to support you, GENESIS coordinates have been denied, over.”

Our tanks began leaving the airport gates, the thundering sound of nonstop artillery and the scream of jet engines could still be heard from inside the tank.

“All units be advised, Osorio armored unit is entering the city, moving towards hotel foxtrot alpha, callsign is Rhino 21.” I said over the radio, maintaining a neutral tone while I looked over the map display.

“ALL UNITS BE ADVISED, bio-chemical hazard confirmed at sectors Echo Mike, Sierra Mike Uniform.” A muffled voice yelled on the radio. “All units operating in these sectors, don gas masks immediately!” 

“Shit, that’s the military sector and the ministry terrace, they are already that deep.” Manuel commented. “That’s where we are going to goddamnit.” 
“You heard him, put the muzzle.” I said as I opened a container mounted on the wall of the tank and produced a S10 gas mask from it.
Manuel did the same from his station while Cecilia started panicking looking for a similar container in her station.
“Why do we have to do this again, this tank is supposed to be NBC protected isn’t it?” Manuel protested while he donned his gas mask.
“Only on paper, there’s structural faults that compromise the seal, not including the gun breech.” I said as I helped Cecilia find her mask, the mask was too big for her face but it managed to seal, thankfully i managed to instruct her to open the filter before donning the mask.
“You’re fucking kidding me, this is supposed to be one of the best tanks in the world” Manuel protested yet again as he began fitting the gas mask to his face.
“Early Leopards 2 also had this structural compromise; it was only fixed later on, Brazil never had to prepare for nuclear warfare so it was far from priority. We can fix it ourselves later too.”  I said as I began meddling with the belts on Cecilia’s mask to ensure a seal.

“All units, don gas masks, now.” I said over the platoon radio.

“Hydra this is Bravo Papa 3-5, encountering uhh, possible magical enemy elements here, please advise, over.” A middle aged voice said with an un-confident tone.
“Bravo Papa 3-5, confirm you are encountering enemy magic users, over.” The stoic voice said with a bit of a surprised tone.
“Hydra, that’s a positive, big hat and all, he got two of our guys and seems to have a barrier around him right now, bullets can’t pass.” The man answered, as lone gunshots sounded from around him.
“Bravo-Papa 3-5, disengage and mark enemy positions for artillery strike, you have priority over.” 
“Copy that Hydra, SQUAD WE ARE LEAVING, Jonas laze that bitch!” The man yelled out before the end of the transmission.

We took the highway, lots of cars were moving around, most were going the opposite way, trying to escape the plateau or get evacuated in the airport, our steel beasts had right of passage by being the only ones riding towards the fight.

Jets and helicopters littered the air space, firing and diving in a show of acrobatic skill and military precision, the sound of far away explosions and automatic firepower punctuated every maneuver.

“Bravo Papa 3-2 to Rhino 21, what’s your ETA, over” I heard it coming from the radio.
“Bravo Papa 3-2, this is Rhino 21, ETA is 10 to 16 minutes, over.” I said on my radio.
“Roger that Rhino 21, Bravo Papa 3-2, Out.” The same voice said again.

We followed the highway into the center of the city, the grey towering buildings became more common, the sounds of gunfire and explosions became closer, our machine guns fired from time to time to deal with two legged inhuman pests that dared to sprint in front of us as we drove closer into the heart of the city.
The radio was filled with calls for fire and situation reports, a red light illuminated the interior of the tank.
Cecilia fought against the helmet in search of a more comfortable position. Manuel was glued to his display, Bino was concentrating on the path ahead.

“Cecilia, heads up, keep your eyes open on your display and periscopes, if you see anything creeping up towards us you need to tell us.” I ordered Cecília.

She nodded, took her hands away from her helmet and glued her eyes to the display mounted on her station using the controls to move her camera.from time to time she would deviate her eyes from the display and start looking through the periscopes around her station,always tapping her fingers against the tank in a very impatient and dejected way.

“The area is secure, sarge. Stop worrying, all she’s gonna see is Police and soldiers running about.” Manuel said, keeping his eyes glued to his display as he moved his panoramic sight around. “Maybe a few civilians here and there too” 

“I’m aware.” I said as I looked over the map display, most of the battle was going on in the North and Northeast, with few signs of enemy infiltration into the city. But more and more reserve units were being forced to the limits of the city as the enemy began encircling us, the picture was being made in my mind, the reason for the incessant artillery and sorties. The capital was made so it wouldn’t be vulnerable to naval blockades or advancing armies. But this enemy operates by different rules and a total encirclement will doom the plateau.

Well… that’s not my problem, I will follow the orders and protect the hospital.

We kept moving through the city, military trucks and civilian cars with lots of junk on top of them moved about. It seems like every civilian we see is trying desperately to abandon the city, filling their cars with whatever they can and moving South as fast as they can.
It’s so strange seeing them. Inside the tank you feel protected and powerful, what in the world could make you turn and run? The civilians here were as alien to us as the enemy.

“Tango 12 to Hydra, we have confirmation on invisible hostiles in sector Bravo Golf Papa, we are not able to pin them down, they are moving south! Hydra please advise” A ragged voice came from the radio.
“Hydra to Tango 12, interrogative: enemy hostiles? Are they armed? please confirm” The stoic voice broke a bit when he said that.
“Tango 12 to Hydra, Negative, they are not armed, it seems they are some kind of invisible beast, we managed to kill one, sending video feed now.” The ragged voice said again.
“Receiving video feed, Tango-12, wait one…” The stoic voice said with an assured tone. “Hydra, you see it? this creature was completely invisible some seconds ago but now that we killed it and the blood’s running cold it’s becoming visible to the eye” The ragged voice said, the sound of flesh being meddled with was heard in the background.
“Hydra to Tango 12, you are to bring the carcass to the nearest rendezvous point, nearby checkpoints will be briefed about the situation and instructed to receive the carcass, over.” The stoic voice ordered.
“Copy that Hydra, Tango 12, out.” The ragged voice said as he finished the transmission.

The tank kept moving, turning streets and evading cars on the way.

“BGP, that’s the presidential guard battalion, it’s in our sector, you think the thermals will see those things?” Manuel asked
“One hundred percent, just make sure the infantry won’t have to deal with them.” I assured him.

We are getting closer and closer, military trucks filled with food and crates make their way around, soldiers are everywhere, some are tired, others are eager and moving to their destinations and vehicles. Helicopters litter the skies.
Ambulances move around in a hurry while their sirens scream.

I open my hatch and pull myself up, I am greeted by a whirlwind of sounds. The hustle and bustle of the urban military sector has been replaced with the symphony of war, up in the air jets are fighting, unloading their autocannon belts and rockets on some unseen enemy.

They cannot empathize with us and we cannot empathize with them. We are cavalry, they are knights.

The more we moved, the more soldiers we saw. 
They looked at the tank with awe and surprise, some of the more tired ones stood up and followed us with their eyes, something inside them was calling upon them to follow us, their tired limbs and soldierly duty stopped their aspirations.

“Imbel’s headquarters is in this sector.” Bino commented in a monotone voice.
“Yes, the commando brigade too, this is the most well defended sector in the entire center-west region of the country.” I answered.
“We won’t stay here for long then.” Manuel added.
“I suppose so, with some luck we’ll be able to get some respite before going straight to the front. We have to rendevouz with the Bope unit in the hospital first.” I commented.

The loader’s hatch unlocked and I felt my heart beat faster for a second as I instantly reacted and went back inside the tank.

“Cecilia, don’t, you cannot show yourself now.” I exclaimed down to her, still holding onto the hatch.
She pouted and nodded “I’m just getting too anxious down here, and I cannot understand what you’re speaking, it seems you’re talking a whole different language.” She added.
“I mean, we are aliens after all, right now we have to meet up with another unit in a healing house, afterwards we’ll probably be moving deeper towards the enemy, this is the most well protected region in the entire city so don’t worry.” I told her.
“I get it. It’s not like they will be able to hurt us inside this… this machine.” She commented. “I never saw them in person before, I’m very… very scared, but having you here eases my mind.” She expressed it with a heartfelt tone.

Manuel giggled in an arrogant tone, completely aware of our vulnerability and vincibility, the details Cecilia wasn’t aware of.

“You’re already a thousand times braver than the average woman by being here, some days ago you were just an average peasant girl in a world completely different from this, I can’t think how hard it is for you.” Manuel said to Cecilia.
“Yes, but some things are very similar… knights in armored horses, flying beasts with thundering sound, and meat for lunch.” She chuckled at the end. “Although I'm… I'm still very scared, it seems these horrible sounds are only becoming louder and louder.” 
“It will only get worse.” I added as I closed my hatch.


“Cecilia, when I joined the army they made me swear a vow.” I said to her,
“A vow?” She asked curiously.
“Yes, to do my duties as a soldier even if the sacrifice of my own life was implied.” The smile on my face quickly disappeared as I processed my grim words.
“And are you ok with that?” She asked me, she was looking straight into my eyes with a steely face, her legs were still trembling though.
“Yes, there is no fear in my heart, if I die here…”  I said straight to her, she didn’t respond, her face contorted into something similar to disgust and confusion and she looked away.

The tank turned again, I checked the map and concluded we were very close to the rendezvous point.
I moved towards Cecilia and held her hand, she turned towards me. “I’ll be with you, I’ll protect you to the best of my abilities.. but if I must go I will go without hesitation.. Forgive me for not being able to do more than that.” I told her.
She held my hand grasping it with both her hands, mustering all of her strength.  “If you leave me…” her face began shriveling in sorrow. “What will be of me?” She asked, trying to hold her tears away.
I couldn’t answer that, instead I pointed to the Taurus pistol in her holster. “That will be my will, it will accompany you wherever you go, if you need my strength use it.”  I said to her as I began moving my hand away from her grasp, her strength was no match for me.

“Sergeant, we are approaching.” Bino alerted me, I opened my hatch and stuck my head outside, I was greeted by the warm wind of the open park, to my side was the big hospital, bustling with people, soldiers and helicopters, wounded were being loaded into helicopters and trucks while the soldiers patrolled the perimeter.
The tank entered through the guard station, squeezing itself through the entrance, pushing through part of the fence as it did.

The sound of horse hoffs impacting the concrete resonated in the bustling atmosphere.
 I looked towards it and saw a tall man on top of a brown horse. The horse was wearing a bulky gas mask, similar to the ones I saw in WW1 photos, he was wearing a fancy white uniform with red details, a black gas mask, golden helmet, black gloves and boots. He was holding an Enarm machine pistol as he moved towards the tank, a long saber rested on his hip.
His face was painted green and black with standard face paint.

A living anachronism, an imperial dragoon from the Guards cavalry regiment, an elite unit that has guarded the emperors and capitals since ages ago.
I felt an aura of authority emanating from this man, he approached me confidently while the tank was still moving.

“Tank, stop” I exclaimed on my intercom, the tank then gently stopped a moment following.

The dragoon approached and saluted me “Rhino 21? I am corporal Almeida from the first dragoon battalion, first company. We’ll be operating together from here on out orders from the regiment. Who 's your CO?” He asked, voice muffled through the mask, while controlling his horse away from the tank tracks.

“Lieutenant Augusto, first IFV in the column. We will park our vehicles and await further orders.” I said, pointing to the LT’s vehicle.

The dragoon nodded “Very well, we’ll see again soon, sergeant” he added as he galloped towards the Lt’s vehicle.

“Bino, forward, park our tank by the building.” I commanded through the intercom.

The tank surged forward, moving towards one of the empty parking slots, close to a multitude of lighter and smaller military vehicles.

“Are we gonna have to use these damned masks the entire battle?” Manuel complained.
“Yes, better not stress over it or you’re gonna be looking through a puddle of condensed sweat soon enough.” I responded in a cheeky tone.

“Attention! platoon, park your vehicles and wait for further orders, out.” I said over the radio.
“Crew dismount!” I exclaimed shortly after, as I disconnected my intercom cable and moved out of the hatch.

The sun was high in the sky and as I stepped on the asphalt I felt the rising heat touch my body.

The vehicles moved up towards the parking lot, the sound of grinding tracks and diesel engines filled the environment as they moved towards their places.
Helicopters came and went, landing in an empty grass yard by the hospital while men in camouflage uniforms with white suits over it brought patients from the hospital into the helicopters.

On that rather large yard there were lots of military tents surrounded by crates of equipment and ammunition.

Lieutenant Augusto and the Dragoon corporal both left their mounts by the parking lot and motioned for me to follow them into one of those tents. I did, leaving my tank to it’s crew.
We moved together towards the tent, soldiers with gas masks guarded the entrance.

We entered the tent, it’s center was dominated by a big wooden table with maps and documents sprawled over it, a smaller table on the corner was taken up by a series of radios and communication equipment being tended by a scrawny soldier.
On the other side of the big table, parallel to us, was a big man with fancy major epaulets and an air of authority wearing a standard issue gas mask. Alongside him a tall dragoon without his golden helmet, his white uniform was immaculate, a modern chest rig was used on top of the traditional uniform.

“Good afternoon gentlemen” He greeted us, his voice muffled by a gas mask, and motioned for us to get closer.
“Sir, Lieutenant Augusto, first armored infantry platoon, 21st regiment” Augusto saluted as he entered the tent.
“Sir, First Sergeant anon, first combat car platoon, 21st regiment” I did likewise after him as I moved closer to the table.

“Corporal Almeida, you’re dismissed, return to your unit and await further orders” The Dragoon captain ordered.
The major pointed to the map, a few kilometers north highway up from us.
“Gentlemen, you arrived just on time, our recon did it’s job and now the enemy is moving south towards us, our recon “lost” the reconnaissance battle and our units have feigned retreat and now there’s a huge horde of creatures i’m not trained to describe coming straight towards us.” He looked at us after tracing his finger through the map.
“It’s sheer muscle mass moving towards us, nothing like we or anyone has ever dealt before. Air power is unable to completely stop the mass but it managed to thin it quite a bit, although we’re getting conflicting reports of numbers and combat power.” He set his hand on the table.

“Captain, go ahead.” He motioned for the dragoon to speak.

“Very well, we suspect that parts of the enemy force are using the sewers to move through towards us. The sewers of the city are a legitimate labyrinth and there's a low to zero chance they will actually reach us, but it’s something we’ll have to check nonetheless. My dragoons will take care of that. 
So i’ll merely need you support in securing our way out of those holes and a good bulwark against the main force.’’ The proud captain explained.

“How much time do we have?” Augusto asked.
“Around two hours.” The major responded.
“Our men are ready to go as soon as the order is given, Sergeant anon will be in charge of the Osorios, I'll lead the infantry,” Augusto added.

A tall man in a black police uniform entered the tent, captain rank along with a skull and knife badge adorned his battered and worn out uniform.

“Sir, Captain Trovão, second platoon, police special operation battalion, requesting orders, we cannot wait any longer for this.” The strong man exclaimed while saluting.

The Major deliberated for a minute before opening his mouth.

 “You’ll provide infantry support to the first armored platoon, you’ll be under direct command of first sergeant anon of the 21st combat car platoon.” He told the police captain.
“Yes sir!” The police captain saluted and stood at ease.


“Our artillery’s callsign is Sledge five, we have a one ‘o five light gun battery waiting orders, and we are within range of the divisional artillery back in the ministry terrace and the astros at the airport, fire missions from them must be requested via high command with the respective Genisys coordinates”  The major explained, pointing to the hospital yard in the map where an artillery map sign was.

“Battle plan is simple; The armored component will block and fortify the highway interchange viaduct here. It's a perfect place for a defense and I couldn't ask for better. 
While the dragoons act as flank and subterranean guard around and below it. The BOPE unit will be with the tanks. I’ll leave the specifics for the men on the ground. Our artillery is running out of ammo so use it wisely.” The major added, pointing to multiple points of the map while touching his chin ever slightly.
  
“Operation starts now, you are to move towards the highway interchange and set your positions, the first dragoon platoon will go forward first, the operational area is all yours all the other units have been moved to the flanks or other more essential positions in the sector.” He finished with a salute.

“You're dismissed.” He finished as we saluted and moved back towards our vehicles, The Dragoon and BOPE captains followed us, we each went our own way towards our units.

I climbed up my tank and opened my hatch.I was greeted by a gas masked Manuel as I entered the familiar commander’s station.
I connected the intercom cable into my helmet and tuned in the radio.

“All units, column formation, prepare for marching out on Augusto’s command, over.” I said over the radio. The tanks began to move, forming a column in the parking lot. Minutes began to pass as we patiently waited for the order to move out.

Infantry began moving about, their faces obscured with camo paint, they mounted their transports while helicopters roared above us. After a few moments the dragoons appeared galloping forth towards the streets, their horses and fancy uniforms felt out of place among the armored vehicles and the modern soviet inspired city. It was an awe inspiring scene. The black gas masks and the polymer guns assured me they weren’t some dreamy mirage.