Dreadnought*

Poeri Haziran 01, 2022

The massive Klimenti Voroshilov Two (KV-2) assault howitzer rolled to a stop. The driver, one Private Pavel Ivanovich Zhukov from a tiny village in the Urals, kept complaining that the "road is mushy Comrade Captain, there is too much mud, he wants to slide into the ditch."

Captain Pyotr Sergeivich Yershov had felt it as well, the road was churned up from the heavy vehicle traffic in the area. A fast moving rain shower had provided just enough moisture to muddy the road. As one of the few good roads in this part of Lithuania, both the Soviets and the Nazis had been on it since the German invasion just a few days before.

Captain Yershov hated to admit it, but they were somewhat lost. He thought they might not be too far from Kaunas, but he wasn't sure. He had traveled a lot in the Baltic states prior to the war. But he had been young and had paid perhaps a bit less attention to the countryside than he had to the young ladies in his youth group.

"Take it easy for a few minutes, boys. I need to talk to the infantry."

As Yershov climbed down the side of the massive turret, an infantry sergeant major came over, but not before yelling at one rustic looking private that his hole needed to be a lot deeper or the fascists would surely make his young wife a widow.

"Tovarishch Kapitan! I am Sergeant Major Tikhonov, 72nd Infantry. My major is busy looking for the rest of our battalion, what can I do for you?

"Da, Starshiy Serzhant, is your infantry to stay and defend this crossroads? As we," gesturing to the KV-2, "have no prior engagements, perhaps we can stay and help. We too have no idea where the rest of our battalion is."

In truth in the few short days since the German Army Group North had rolled across the border into the Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic nothing had gone to plan. The fascists were seemingly everywhere, their thrice-damned Stuka bombers were unopposed. More than one curse had been levied at the Red Air Force. Of course, the captain had no way of knowing that most of that force had been caught, and destroyed, on the ground.

"Yes, Tovarishch Kapitan, our orders are to hold here until we are relieved."

"Very good Starshiy Serzhant Tikhonov of the 72nd Infantry, we shall..."

Yershov paused.

"What is your full name?"

Drawing himself rigidly to attention, the soldier barked, "Starshiy Serzhant Ivan Petrovich Tikhonov at your service, Tovarishch Kapitan!"

"Very well, Ivan Petrovich, I look forward to killing fascists with you!"

Whistling, the captain strolled back to his vehicle. With infantry in support, they had a chance. As long as those damned Stukas stayed away!

And so begins another of my sojourns into writing historical fiction. Valued reader Bret suggested that one of my endeavors to craft something entertaining might well be turned to the subject of that lone KV-2 at the Battle of Raseiniai in Lithuania which I posted about the other day.

I've done a bit more research on the topic, I didn't realize (though I should have) that the battle took place in the first week of the German invasion of the Soviet Union. That there was a bit more to the fight than a lone Soviet vehicle I should have known. There were infantry in the area, also a few KV-1s, the Dreadnought's smaller cousin.

While the plot for a full novel has yet to coalesce in my fevered brain, I have snippets of stories that may or may not be weaved one day into a vast tapestry of...

Yeah, yeah, calm down Sarge, let's not put the cart before the horse.

MrGarabaldi, there will be Czech-built tanks running hither and yon, maybe even a Soviet 122 mm gun or two lobbing shells at the Germans for our man Paweł. I also think LoFan John might be onto something with his suspicion that perhaps Hollywood used this story as the basis of the film Fury, which is, as you know, a Sarge favorite.

I might even scrape together a photo or two of smashed up German panzers for Juvat. Though I daresay a busted up Soviet tank would do just as well, I mean Juvat and I are old timey Cold War types, when the Soviets were the bogeyman and their equipment was extensively used by the folks we tended to regard as "the bad guys."

Stay tuned.