Journal #4 - Private Jacob Allen, Jekotian 83rd Airborne Armored Division

June 27, 2985

I don’t know how many times I’ve said it, but thank god for engineers and their ‘magical calculators.’ As an AP shell tore through my left armor breaching the hull, I turned my tank to present the right side to the enemy, and an engineer started repairing my armor on the left. Poor bastard got blown away by a HE shell half-way though the repairs. Seconds later the platoon’s weapons specialist Brian Aslakov calls over the com,

“High Cherenkov radiation levels from the tank I just marked, it’s got a fission reactor, keep your distance!” As soon as I heard that, the only thing on my mind was ‘shit. This complicates things.’ If a single round breaches the reactor, anything within a five meter radius will be decimated. Thank god its just a low-power reactor.

I rotate my turret to face the marked tank and see it’s an Imperial Heavy tank. Three other friendly tank turn to this threat, two of them light armor, one a modified medium tank with an armor piercing auto-cannon. All four of us open fire, careful to avoid the engine compartment. Me being the biggest threat, the tank turns to face me and opens fire with a rail-gun, tearing off three inches of frontal armor.

Brian Aslakov in the modified medium tank opens fire with his auto-cannon, and accidentally pierces the enemies’ reactor. I curse over the com and yell for everyone to get back. Then the real surprise comes. The breached tank starts venting gas. I realize Brian screwed up his Cherenkov radiation readings. It didn’t have a fission reactor. Before the tank blossoms into a fire ball, it fires a nuclear warhead at our communication array, consuming two light tanks, a medium tank, and our supply jeep.

We lost six good men in that skirmish, can no longer contact any allies, and one-hundred pounds of munitions exploded creating the largest ‘hit me’ sign in this entire region. For the first time in my life I find myself praying to the gods to see us safely through this. We can’t last much longer. If we’re lucky a friendly MAC saw the explosion and will investigate. If we’re unlucky? An enemy MAC is already preparing for saturation bombing.

As we prepare for another night of restless sleep, I remember what an old friend used to say, “When in doubt, shoot. When cornered, take them to hell with you. When without hope, run.” It was an age old phrase meaning shoot when it doubt, detonate your munitions to take them to hell with you, and live to fight another day if you cant win.

Private Jacob Allen,
Jekotian 83rd Airborne Armored Division