Putting her peddle to the metal, Katrina flies through the INN sailors in the intersection. At the last minute the men leap out of the way and Yachigusa fires wildly at the speeding vehicle, punching a hole through one of the barrels. Bruno fires back hitting the Lt. in the leg. Thinking they are clear, Bruno and Katrina have no idea that LMG gunner Akutagawa has been waiting in ambush since the first car was sighted and they are heading right towards him.
A full blast from the Lewis gun shreds the delivery truck. Katrina is taken OOA , tires blow and with a scream of tearing metal the truck crashes onto its side. Bruno, in an acrobatic leap, lands uninjured next to the burning vehicle and while Akuagawa reloads, pulls the limp body of Katrina from the ruined cab of the truck. He then lets off a barrage of pistol fire at the LMG gunner nicking him on he head.
In a blizzard of judo blows, Rikki takes Ensign Tsukasa OOA. Yet her victory is short lived as a burning sensation sears into her side, against all the odds, seaman Mikuni has successfully shot her through the smoke screen. Dr. Hans in the mean time has started to drive away in the service truck. He is annoyed that the vehicle is sluggish and slow in the soft soil of the plowed field as he has no idea that the rear right tire is now virtually flat from the bullet of one of Mikuni's earlier shots.
Ignoring Jack and the Dragon Bones, the Jagers advance up the street. They alternate their fire with shooting at the retreating British and at the INN sailors in the crossroads by the barracks. In a lucky shot they take seaman Yachigusa OOA. Half the Germans have been wounded in the fire fight with the men of Captain Patsy and Lt. Commander Dartnell but the morale of the Jagers remains high-they have the honor of the Imperial German Empire to uphold after all!
The situation from a birds eye view. In the lower left Bruno, behind the brewery truck, is trading shots with Akutagawa and his LMG. Oberst Dikkmann, with his captured rifle, is assessing the situation from his second story room. To his right the model A with Karl and Tinker continues to burn and Captain Patsy's crew can be seen retreating trough the rough terrain behind the barn. The Jagers are advancing past the paddock with the Dragon Bones in the upper right. While on the street in the upper left center, the now seriously wounded Rikki is facing the remainder of the INN detachment. Dr. Hans and his delivery truck is in the field just off screen behind the brewery to the right of the street.
The Oberst has taken a position in the window and opens fire on the unsuspecting Akutagawa. With a curse he realizes that both shots have missed. (Heavy wound, his unfamiliarity with the Nipponese weapon and the weight of the bayonet may be to blame for his poor marksmanship as he empties the clip at the INN sailor and fails to hit even once.) In fact in all the excitement and noise of battle, the INN sailor fails to even notice that he is being attacked from the rear. He continues to fire at the truck but the smoke is a virtual screen and he fires blindly at the vehicle. Bruno is in a better position and wounds Akutagawa again.
Serious wounded (actually it was a light wound but he panicked and failed his morale even though he had Elite status) himself, Lt. Mizune and Mikuni take cover behind the barracks. Things could not have gone worse for the young officer, he has only one unwounded man left, (the LMG gunner who while still firing is totally out of contact with his commander) and his prey has effectively escaped. An unknown number of hostiles are coming into the village (the Jagers). It is time to leave and inform INHQ of the situation here. The strong German security forces implies that the secret is of immense importance and stronger forces need to be assigned to take this knowledge. On the outside chance any of his men survive, Mizune blows the recall signal on his command whistle. As the INN sailors fall back, Mikuni carries the unconscious Yachigusa with him. (A quick look at the ensign revealed his broken neck so he was left behind.)
Covering both their front (the INN) and left flank (British), the Jagers continue their leap frog advance towards the barracks.
With a last volley , Captain Patsy's crew withdraws, Nyle is OOA, Jack lost and Bud is wounded. Heavy damage thinks the captain for such a small group. Hopefully the information and pictures gained was worth the sacrifice.
Back in the forest where this disaster started, Lt. Mizune waits to see who responds to his recall order. His last glimpse of that she-demon (Rikki) was of her limping through the field covering the slowly retreating truck. A a future reckoning is needed...he will not underestimate her the next time. In the distance, LMG gunner Akutagawa, seriously wounded and with his weapon jammed, attempts to fall back to the safety of the woods.
He fails. Hit in the back by several shots from the Jagers and two more hits from Bruno, the brave INN sailor drops cradling his now useless weapon in his arms.
Not yet realizing victory is theirs, the Jagers, wounded and tired, will soon collect any prisoners of the losers and find those that have survived the raid. This round is over, how many more are to come is for the future to disclose.
Casualties
British: in an unprecedented amount of luck, Jack Balance survived his bullet wounds and close encounter with the Dragon Bones. Unfortunately he was captured by the Germans. Nyle Kadet failed to recover.
Germans: Tinker and Shultz died of their wounds (the latter was cut almost in two by Minuze's katana). Although horribly burned, Oberleutant Karl Kriegsmank was able to crawl from the burning car and survived. Katrina died in the arms of Bruno who has vowed eternal revenge on the INN.
INN Sailors: true to the samurai code all the sailors left behind died. Yachigusa recovered from his wounds.
Results:
British: Captain Patsy received a nice fat reward for her pictures and first hand description of the Dragon Bones. The surviving crew was very happy with their shares (larger with two fewer members as they thought Jack was dead-oh well them's the breaks). Imperial HQ is now assessing the data from her and previous expeditions.
Germans: The capture of Jack produce no real information apart from the fact that the British know of Dr. Hans and his "pet." The identification of INN personnel was very unsettling and will require a "measured" response. Rikki was given the "Kaiser's Medal" for her defense of the doctor. After recuperation she will be reassigned to a position worthy of her special talents. The Jagers were honored with promotions and appropriate military honors. The loss of Katrina, the truck and several hundred litters of high quality spirits was economically devistating and forced Johan Braumeister to sell the brewery. He and his men also have a grudge against the INN.
Imperial Nipponese Navy: Almost a total failure; for the loss of an officer and more than half his men, Lt. Mizune gained only the minuscule knowledge that the secret of the Dragon Bones was important. Permission to commit seppuko was denied in the face of this failure as INHQ wanted to punish him through the humiliation of living with his disgrace. Mizune will do anything to erase this mark on his honor and will volunteer for every future deadly mission.
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