21st century Goguryeo

Chapter 277

“Get that bastard! Our 2 o’clock, distance at 3050! Set it as the first target!”

Sergeant First Class Kang Kyung-hyun shouted to target the unidentified black tank that did not show up on the intelligence database. However, all he heard was the moaning from Staff Sergeant Lee Ho-jun. He turned around and glanced at Staff Sergeant Lee.

“Are you hurt?”

Staff Sergeant Lee’s right eye was red and swollen. The pain must have been immense since all he could do was clutch his eye with his hands and groan. In short, his vision was not in a fit state to set targets. He must have been injured while looking through his scope.

“I guess I have no choice.”

Sergeant First Class Kang Kyung-hyun pulled the control lever from the lower console to fire the guns himself and grabbed the trigger. After removing the safety cover from the launch button, he placed his thumb over it.

Boom!

Another shock rang across the turret. The White Tiger tank had slid at a 65-degree angle from the southern direction, and only the turret had turned right. Despite the tank weighing 45 tons, the shock shook the entire vehicle. Sergeant First Class Kang Kyung-hyun, who had lost the timing to fire back, shouted through the headset.

“Sergeant Kim! Why are you staying put in battle? Back up.”

Sergeant Kim Kyung-soon, the driver of the 722 tank, regained his senses from his commander’s shouting. He fixed his helmet back on and raised his head.

“Back the tank up!”

“Sorry, sir. Backing up now.”

With the roar of the engine, the 722 tank bounced back. Sergeant Kim stepped on the right brake so the tank would face south. The 722 tank turned and was now aligned with the road.

“Should I keep going, sir?”

“Keep going! Staff Sergeant Lee is injured so, he can’t fire the guns.”

Sergeant First Class Kang aimed at the black tank that was slowly moving forward while speaking to Sergeant Kim, the tank’s driver. When he locked on to the target, he pressed the launch button.

Pew!

With the press of a button, the black tank erupted in flames and exploded.

Sergeant First Class Kang Kyung-hyun clenched his fists after seeing the enemy tank go up in flames and turned his scope to the left. Numerous black tanks started to emerge from between the collapsed tanks.

“Back up! Move back!”

A loud noise that seemed to tear open the air moved past them.

Woooooosh~

Numerous explosions continued behind the 722 tank. The enemy tank’s rounds luckily all missed thanks to the SECM jamming waves.

Sergeant First Class Kang Kyung-hyun, who did not have the time to be shocked, set his next target and pressed the button to fire.

Pew!

The photon round struck the targeted black tank’s turret and exploded.

“Great! We got another one.”

If Staff Sergeant Lee Ho-jun was not injured, they could have taken down the new enemy tanks quicker. Sergeant First Class Kang was struggling since he had to do both targeting and manning the gun.

Boom!

As Sergeant First Class Kang was about to lock on his next target using his periscope, it turned off with a flash of light as if it was struck by lightning. Also, a powerful shockwave that almost bent the turret started to ring across the entire vehicle. Sergeant First Class Kang covered his face with his arms and screamed. It was as if the rounds exploded right in front of his eyes.

Argh!

The 722 White Tiger tank lost its balance once again. It left the road and started to charge towards the flower beds behind the pedestrian road.

Vroo! Vrooooom!

The White Tiger tank crashed into the flower bed and stopped.

Creaaaaak.

White smoke started to billow out from the engine. Numerous explosions continued at the tank’s surroundings, causing pieces of dirt, wood, and concrete to fly in all directions.

Boom! Booooom!

The black tanks started to fire at the 722 tank that had crashed into the flower bed.

Boom! Boom! Crash!

Another shock rattled the turret, and it now started to shake the entire interior of the 722 tank.

“We’re going to die here if we don’t do something!” Sergeant First Class Kang Kyung-hyun thought and radioed the platoon commander.

“This is Black Beer 2! Our gunner is injured, and the periscope is broken. We cannot fire back and move while being under enemy fire, requesting back up!”

The White Tiger tanks under the ranger battalion did not realize the American tanks were the M4 Warthog tanks equipped with the 16MJ class rail guns since they did not receive an update on their friend or foe database.

“Sergeant Kim! Pull yourself together!”

Sergeant Kim was in a daze after being tossed around inside the tank and crashing into the machinery. The White Tiger tank had never received such a shock before, so the crew was in a daze and a state of shock.

All that came back through the headset was Sergeant Kim Kyung-soon’s moaning.

“Sergeant Kim! If we stay here, we will be barbequed. We need to get the hell out of here, now!”

Sergeant First Class Kang Kyung-hyun moved to the gunner’s seat and checked the sights to manually aim the turret. However, the sights must have been struck by the enemy rounds since all he could see was blackness.

“Damn it. Nothing’s going our way.”

Out of the fire and into the frying pan! The crew of the 722 tank was out of luck. While Sergeant First Class Kang muttered to himself, the metal X-16 railgun rounds from the 16MJ class rail guns continued to fly towards the 722 tank. 30% of the rounds continued to strike them. The powerful Hydronium armored plating luckily prevented an internal explosion and damages, but they were not completely safe.

Clank! Booom!

With another powerful shock, the White Tiger tank shook. It felt as though being in a barrel that was being pounded with a bat. The crew were becoming severely stressed. That was when the sounds of allied guns started to ring.

Pew! Pew! Pew!

The ally 723 and 724 White Tiger tanks guarding the outer area of the Osaka City Hall rushed into the area and started to fire back at the enemy. Soon, no more metal rail gun rounds were flying towards the 722 tank. Also, the sounds of rail guns and photon cannons died down and the area became quiet. The 723 tank radioed in.

-This is Black Beer 3! Black Beer 2! Are you all right?

“This is Black Beer 2! What’s going on out there?”

-We took down all the enemy tanks. You can come out now.

“All right.”

-How’s Staff Sergeant Lee and Sergeant Kim?

“They’re not severely injured, but they are bruised.”

-That’s a relief.

Sergeant First Class Kang Kyung-hyun finished speaking on the radio and checked his surroundings after opening the hatch. The 722 tank’s surroundings were in a wreck. Craters covered the area and pieces of dirt and concrete littered the area.

Sergeant First Class Kang exited the turret and jumped off the tank. When he glanced at his tank, he despaired.

“Man, it’s in bad shape!”

The exterior of the 722 tank was severely damaged. The optical equipment mounted on the turret’s exterior was completely blown off, while the outer plating that could easily withstand 120mm rounds had scratches as if it was struck by something sharp. Based on the outer appearance, the 722 tank seemed gruesome and was in no fit shape for battle.

“Man, it’s making me tear up. How did this happen to our vehicle?”

Staff Sergeant Lee and Sergeant Kim Kyung-soon approached Sergeant First Class Kang Kyung-hyun who was covering his face with his hands while sitting on a fallen tree.

* * *

February 21st, 2021, 23:00

The deep seas N 49° 4′ E 154°27 181km east of Lishua Island within the Kuril islands.

On February 20th, two Super Hocula submarines had set sail from Oki Island at 13:00. They moved through the Kuril Islands and had now passed Lishua island. The submarines were now 181km east of the island at 3000m under the surface, moving at 60 knots, faster than most torpedoes.

The Lee Hui-hyung (SSP-091) and the Choi Joon (SSP-092) Super Hocula submarines had a load displacement of 23,550 tons, and they were tasked with the important mission of attacking mainland America in 45 hours.

America had never been attacked by a foreign power since its founding. Hawaii was attacked during the Second World War by Japan’s Kamikaze attacks, but that was only a small island, not the mainland. The actual nation on the continent was never assaulted. Also, while every nation was being attacked and had their existence threatened by war during two world wars, America’s geographical location had allowed it to avoid being damaged directly. Instead, the war had brought the nation economic profit.

The geographical advantage of America played a vital part in it becoming a world power. The lack of military struggle within the nation allowed it to advance rapidly in both the economy and the military. The reason America could mass produce weapons was also thanks to its geographical advantages.

The pride American citizens had about not having been invaded by a foreign military was as high as the sky. However, the U.S. government, its citizens, and the USSC council never dreamt that their nation would be attacked by a foreign power in a few days. Not just any nation, but Corea, a small nation from the east.

The two 180m long Super Hocula submarines were sailing through the pitch-black depths 3km from each other. The Super Hocula submarine’s design surpassed any standard submarine before it. It was equipped with an A12 cell K-VSL vertical launchpad that had X-1 plasma cluster bombs, and SD-SLBN Gungnir-II missiles (sub-to-surface) loaded and ready to launch once the targets were set.

The SD-SLBN Gungnir-II missiles had a range of 15,000km and a speed of Mach 45 and consisted of two types, ballistic and cruise, to attack the enemy targets. Based on the distance of the target, it could be launched as a ballistic missile for further distances and as a cruise missile for closer targets.

Colonel Lee Yeon-jae, the captain of the Lee Hui-young (SSP-091), came down to the battle station and asked the operations director while looking at the large screen, “How do things look ahead?”

The tactical screen showed the movement of every object within the depths and surface of the ocean up to 250km ahead of the submarine in 3D shape detected by the sonar. The compound sonar operated by the Super Hocula submarine was the upgraded version of the sonar type hypersonic IUSW-B.L 01 radar being used by the CS-SD Poseidon naval defense satellite.

It was the latest high-tech equipment that combined the functionalities of sonar and radar that allowed the user to see everything within the depths, ocean surface, and an altitude of 20km within a 250km radius.

“Based on our sailing route, we are not detecting any enemy submarines or vessels, sir.”

“Keep an eye out for U.S. planes above the surface as well.”

“We will vigilantly keep watch, sir.”

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