GuP: A Saga of Jouko

Chapter Four: White Death vs. White Feather

Dangit, we're too far... "Hannes, get us out of here, and try to move closer to that Firefly. Apparently these shells won't work at this distance." Hannes slammed the throttle, and managed to get the Sturmi out of the way of an incoming shell, driving into the trees. Moving through dense forest was difficult, but Jouko's guidance was a great help for Hannes, who was lucky to have a commander who knew forests well, growing up in a similar environment to this. Unfortunately, given the density of the forest they were in, Jouko had lost sight of the Firefly, and was now desperately trying to find it again. The trees were making it very difficult to find that tank, and just as she was about to give up and order the Sturmi to maneuver out of the forest to engage the main Saunders force in a surprise attack to hopefully take out the flag tank she heard a shell fly past, and seconds later, another.

Looking behind, it was the enemy Firefly.

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You're not getting away easily....

Naomi fired another shell at the retreating Sturmi. Whoever was commanding that tank was really good at her job. Was it that girl from Finland she met before the match? If so, no wonder, some rumors say her grandfather was friends with the White Death himself.

Seconds passed as Naomi watched to see if her shot had landed. To her dismay, the Sturmi was out of there before it could come within 100 meters of her shell. "Sandy, drive us down. We're hunting that tank down even if we get knocked out. The longer we keep that thing occupied, the bigger the chance we get of winning this match."

Sandy began moving the Firefly down into the forest. Naomi tried to keep her eyes on that Sturmi, initially able to maintain sight of it. However, as they both descended into the trees, both lost sight of each other. Where is it... you're not escaping me, not on my watch... "Chloe, can you radio the other tanks?"

"Commander Naomi, we can't transmit any messages in this dense forest. At best we'll only get garbled audio." Dangit, looks like we're gonna have to settle this one way or another. "Alright, Sandy, I'll look outside to try to get a better view so as to catch that Sturmi again. Drive on my orders, don't let up the chase." The Firefly continued to ride through the dense forests as Naomi used a map to try to navigate. Minutes passed by with little knowledge of the main combat that was going on with the rest of her team. All her orders were to try to snipe the enemy flag tank or knock out as many as possible, and here she was, stuck in a goose chase with another sniper possibly assigned to knock her out specifically.

More minutes passed, there was no announcement of victory yet. But, there was something that caught Naomi's eye. Painted in green with the Jatkosota symbol prominent on its side, it was none other than that cursed Sturmi. "Sandy, drive to our left, I've finally caught sight of that tank." As Sandy drove the Firefly to a suitable shooting position against the Sturmi's rear, Naomi took aim and fired. Miss. "Jenny, another shot!" As the shell was slammed into the barrel, Naomi took another shot. and it missed again. Now it knows we're here for sure...

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"I've gained sight of it again! Hannes, drive faster and get us as much distance as you possibly can, but evade as many shells and trees as possible." Hannes obeyed, but was confused on why Jouko was being so, well, typical. "Don't question it Hannes," piped Löfström, "Commander Jouko knows best, so it's best to listen to her." So, she increased the speed of the Sturmi and swerved this way and that, avoiding trees and shells as best she could, though she was unable to avoid several trees which impacted the Sturmi, causing it to slow several times, but despite this they continued to gain more distance between them and the Firefly. Minutes passed by as the chase dragged on. Jouko didn't know how the main battle was going on, and Frisell's radio was unable to work properly due to bad signal in thick forests, but she had good faith in her teammates, as well as her fellow tankers.

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"That tank's speeding up, don't let it get away, Sandy! Jenny, keep those rounds coming in!" Shot after shot after shot was hurled at the Sturmi. Naomi needed to take this thing out before the team could lose. Come on, give me a hit, just one. Dumb enemy drivers, too good at their job... It's getting away from me...

Seconds passed as that Sturmi gained distance. Naomi still fired shells at it, but didn't seem to hit anything but the ground or the trees surrounding the both of them. Just as she was about to give up, things took a turn for the worse. That Sturmi was drifting, and in some extremely lucky circumstance, in a clearing, perfect for drifting. Now, its barrel was pointing directly at her Firefly.

"Oh no-"

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That Firefly was not letting up the chase, and was still firing away, shots zipping by growing ever closer to hitting the Sturmi. But, at the perfect opportunity, enough distance was finally met for Jouko to execute the next part of the tactic. At a small clearing in the forest, a lucky coincidence, Jouko shouted, "Now! Drift left!" Hannes, with renewed confidence, pulled the lever as fully to the left as possible. The Sturmi's tracks tore up the grass, slowing the turn until it was now facing the Firefly, which was rapidly closing the distance between itself and the Sturmi. Again, with split-second precision, Jouko fired, sending the shell directly into the Firefly, knocking it out in a bright and brilliant mixture of orange and black, shortly thereafter followed by a small white square transposed in front.

There was no time to celebrate. Now, they needed to rejoin the main fight as soon as possible before things got any worse. Given they were in a part of the forest where the signal was stronger, Jouko demanded radio reports. "Frisell, tell our team we have just dealt with the Firefly. Ask them their status and that we're on our way. Hannes, drive as fast as you can. We have to get there before Jatkosota gets knocked out of this tournament." After doing so, Frisell gave a mournful reply: "Nearly all of our tanks are gone, only Rumi's Panzer is left as well as Mika's BT-42." Hannes drove like never before, driving through thick woods, avoiding trees, bushes, and other natural obstacles that stood in the Sturmi's way, as Frisell continued to ask for updates on the situation, and Jouko stuck her head out of the cupola to listen closely for the gunfire in the distance as well as use her binoculars to look out for the way out. As the sound of shells being fired grew louder and louder, Jouko climbed back into her seat and readied the cannon as the brightness of the open fields grew more and more prominent.

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"Come on, we almost have you..."
Megumi was not allowing victory to slip. Those tanks were as good as toast. As long as that cursed Sturmi didn't show up and ruin everything at the last moment, they were well on their way to the Semifinals. "Keep up the chase! We're slowly whittling down their numbers! Vice-Commander Kay, status report!"

"All good, Commander Megumi! We're pouring in more lead into them, but those stubborn tanks won't allow that lead to dig itself warm and cozy into them. We're trying our best, though!" Nobody had heard of Naomi since she last reported she was chasing after an enemy Sturmi into the forest. Was she still in the match and knocked out the Sturmi, or had the opposite happened? No time to think now, the match is as good as won.

"Uhh, Commander?"
"What is it, Kathy?"
"Enemy Sturmi to our three!"

Aw, crud. Naomi did get knocked out.
"It's aiming at us, keep firing!"
"Commander Megumi, it's about to fire!"

No, not now. They were so close... they'd just taken out the tank guarding the flag tank. They weren't about to get smoked right when victory was in their grasp. Climbing out of her cupola, she spotted a flash from the Sturmi. Was this it? Was this gonna be the end of the match? It couldn't be, there was no chance. Whatever, there was always next year for Saunders.
Bracing for impact, she expected the shell hit.

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Finally emerging from the dense forests, the Sturmi ended up on the right flank of the Saunders team, just as the BT-42 was taken out, leaving the Panzer flag tank undefended and alone. But there was a clear shot on the enemy flag tank, the M4A1(76) Sherman. Jouko readied to fire. She knew the Continuation flag tank would survive for long, so she needed to act now. Taking aim, Jouko fired a desperate shell at the flag tank. Unfortunately, fate was against her for a second time, in the same form. Another Sherman, commanded by Saunders' Vice-Commander, drove into the shell's path and was immobilized.

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Megumi heard an explosion, though no impact. What had happened? It took a few seconds to process it, but she realized. Kay had driven onto the shell's path just before the shell could traverse the distance, and took the hit for Megumi. As she looked back at the wreckage, she could see Kay waving to her, white flag popped out.

"Come on... just one good hit..."
Keeping watch for that Sturmi, it was still heading for the Saunders formation. Some tanks were trying to shoot it, but it was evading shells. Soon, a flash came from where the Sturmi was. Megumi could see the incoming shell, and ducked inside her tank for cover. This time, there was an impact, rocking the tank. Seconds later, a white flag.

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"Quick, Löfström another shell!" Another shell was pushed in within seconds, and Jouko once again took aim. Shells were coming their way, as the rear Saunders tanks were firing at them. They were bouncing many shells, but once Jouko had found the perfect opportunity, she pulled the trigger and fired. At the same time, a shell from one of the M4s shot straight at Continuation's flag tank.

Both flag tanks were immobilized, and it was hard to determine which had gone down first. If both flag tanks had been knocked out at the exact same time, then there would be another match the following day to determine a winner. The judges reviewed the footage as both teams gathered in their own respective areas, anxiously waiting to hear the results. Minutes passed by that felt like hours. Jouko's stomach was twisting into another knot each passing second. She had to pray her shot made it before Saunders' shot did. If it was a draw, at least they had another shot at the semifinals, and maybe Jouko could try sniping the enemy flag tank first opportunity she got.

Unfortunately, it was all not to be.
After minutes of review, the announcement rang out loud and clear:

"Victory for Saunders University High School!"

Her shot had come too late... by eight milliseconds.

Eight.

Jouko was devastated. Eight milliseconds?! Collapsing to the ground, she couldn't afford to show her face. This was their shot, this one last chance for Rumi to get Continuation to the Semifinals, and she had blown it all away by eight milliseconds. Give me a break.

Mustering the courage to stand up after a few minutes, she faced her team defeated, expecting backlash, criticism, and all sorts of verbal abuse. She had come too late to save her team, all because of her focus on a single tank. Expecting the worst, she stood in front of her teammates. However, she was met with compliments, and congratulations instead. "Well, we might have lost, but your performance against that Firefly was definitely the highlight of this performance." Touko's words came as a surprise. Mika came next: "From hearing Frisell's reports, you must be lucky to have a tank team like that. Your driver and loader have served you well."

Rumi came last. Jouko expected the worst criticisms, given this was her last tournament before going to university, but all she got was compliments from her as well.

"It's truly unfortunate Continuation never got to the Semifinals when I was with you, but this was the closest we've ever gotten to getting there, all because of you, Jouko. Don't beat yourself over it, you did well today."

Jouko felt tears coming to her eyes, but quickly did away with them, trying to make it look like she was wiping away sweat, and embraced Rumi. She was unlucky that match, but what she was lucky to have were supportive classmates.

Everyone else gave their compliments, before leaving to meet with the Saunders commanders. Kay was the first to greet them. "I forgot your name, Jouko, isn't it?" "Yes, that was a fine match we fought." "Well I'll be, turns out I got lucky driving forward a bit, you are one heck of a tank commander!" Jouko smiled, "My father always taught me to be mobile and accurate at all times." Alisa was busy celebrating over winning the match, so it was Naomi's turn to talk with Jouko. "Say, you were the commander of that Sturmi I was fighting during the match?" Jouko responded, "The same." "Impressive work, you really know your way around tanks, given your age." After Naomi, Jouko was introduced to Megumi, the commander of Saunders. "Pleasure to meet you, Jouko. Your team fought well, and I'm impressed by your skills against Naomi. I see great potential in you. I hope you will see more success next tournament." Jouko felt proud, all of her dissatisfactions, disappointments, and depressive mood was gone. Now, she felt ready to take on the world. That's what a supportive community does to you, after all.

After both teams departed to their respective carriers, Jouko called her family. It was the first time in weeks, she had been too focused on Sensha-do to remember about them. "Mother, Father, please forgive me for not calling you earlier." His parents reassured her, "Oh, don't worry, Jouko, we know how much you've been working on Sensha-do. We watched your matches in the tournament, my goodness, you were amazing!" Jouko smiled, and they talked long into the night about how Aarne and Antero were doing in their shooting competition. They were doing quite well, and were still in the competition. In fact, they were going to face each other in a battle for 1st place in a week. Jouko told her parents to wish her friends good luck for her, before saying goodnight, doing her nightly devotion, and going to bed, bummed out over the tournament loss but satisfied with her performances during the tournament.

Watching the rest of the tournament's matches with her fellow classmates, she could be seen taking notes on the maneuvers, tactics, and strategies used by each school. She watched Kuromorimine's style of fighting, commonly called the Nishizumi Style, which had dominated Sensha-do for the past 9 tournaments. She saw several flaws, and began writing up several ways of combating it. At the finals, however, as she watched the school's Vice-Commander, Miho, the younger sister of Kuromorimine's Commander Maho, abandon her flag tank to save a drowning crew, causing Kuromorimine to be defeated after the flag tank was immobilized, robbing them of what would've been their 10th consecutive win, an unsurpassed feat, she gained great admiration for her, and when she heard of how badly treated Miho had been after the match, she was upset, but kept these emotions to herself. She shouldn't interfere in other schools' business. But, she expressed an interest in meeting Miho soon.

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(AN: Well, that's pre-anime stuff done, next chapter will touch on Aarne and Antero's shooting match a bit, and skip over to the 63rd Tournament, where "historically" Ooarai made its debut and won the tournament.)