Dust Devils - A Girls Und Panzer Story

Mojave Rose v. Bascom

So far.

While being pursued, Mia had her eyes fixated on the enemy team, watching as they try in vain to catch them. Neither Shermans nor Crusaders can hope even to match a Stuart's speed. And a Puma? Laughable. In their frustration, the enemy has resorted to firing on the move and were missing horribly. In the back of her mind, Mia was concerned that a lucky shot would put them out of action, but thankfully none were coming close.

Until one did.

The ground on her right side suddenly exploded—an eruption of flame and smoke. Portions of the earth were flung into the air and came back down, showering the Stuart with sand and dust. The debris cloud from the explosion was accidentally breathed in, compelling Mia to cough.

"That was...different. It wasn't like the others," she thought to herself after catching her breath.

She looked back on the tanks chasing them where another big explosion was heard near the Puma, but she couldn't tell if they came from the Shermans or the Crusaders, if it came from them at all.

"Where are those shots coming from?" she pondered.

Valarie and the rest of the team were positioned on the top of Hill "X-Ray". All sat silently, guns at the ready. The area that they were in seemed explicitly designed to pull off an ambush. They were surrounded by larger hills that hide their vehicles from outside observation. At the foot of "X-Ray" was a patch that traveled horizontally. There were two exits at each end. The plan is that the Stuart and Puma would enter through one end and exit the other, followed by the enemy team, where a flurry of fire would hammer them. The distant echoes of cannon fire got closer and closer—a signal of their imminent arrival.

"Alright guys, here they come," Valarie said over the radio.

Moments later, the Stuart and Puma rapidly came into view.

"We're here! They took the bait!" Aurora reported.

"Copy. All tanks, prepare to fire on my mark."

In no time at all, the speedy machines have already left the area. Not long after their departure, the first of the enemy emerged. A trio of Shermans was driving on the path where they halted. Ahead was the dust their harassers have kicked up, looking to their right, was a firing squad.

"Holy shit!" was all one of their commanders could say.

A frantic order to reverse was issued, but it came too late.

"Fire!" Valarie commanded with a yell.

A volley of cannon fire descended the hill onto the three Shermans. All three were knocked out, some receiving multiple hits that rattled the crews within something fierce. The rest of the enemy team, witnessing the carnage, stopped just before coming into view of Mojave Rose.

"So that's where they are, eh?" remarked a commander of a Crusader.

She took out a map and scanned it. She pointed to a particular spot. "Yup. Right there."

A voice came from the radio.

"We're gonna circle around and cut off the other end of this patch. Make sure they don't go anywhere," it said.

"Copy that. In the meantime, now's a good time for a little fire mission..."

A portion of Bascom's tanks has driven around the more enormous hill in front of 'X-Ray'. They positioned themselves on the other side, in a spot where they couldn't be spotted. They don't know it yet, but Mojave Rose was trapped.

While Mojave Rose was blind to their situation, the spectators were not. The giant T.V. screen laid it all bare.

"Aw geez..." Buchanan commented. She and Redwood sat on some bleachers within a large tent.