World War II: Starting with the defeat of the Desert Fox

Chapter 36 Thea's "Resentment"

I just realized that PC users can't see the images. I'll repost the images in the paragraph comments below them later. I've tested it and the images are visible on PC; mobile users can ignore it. (The previous images have already been posted in the paragraph comments, which PC users can review.)

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Bog Arab.

About two kilometers northwest of the command post, on a beach facing the Mediterranean Sea, there is a shooting range.

That was a place for troops to train in shooting, especially for new recruits who had just been transferred from Britain to the North African battlefield. They had arrived here after a nearly two-month sea voyage and needed some time to adapt to the desert climate and regain their combat effectiveness.

Amidst the sounds of gunfire, two cars drove along the road into the firing range, eventually slowing down and coming to a stop.

The rear cargo bed opened, and Thea, exhausted and looking like a lump of mud, jumped down listlessly.

(The image above shows a British Austin K30 military truck. To facilitate combat operations and quick loading and unloading, some military trucks are not even equipped with a cab or doors.)

She looked around and saw rows of fully armed soldiers firing their guns. Her eyes widened in shock as she exclaimed, "God, are they going to shoot us?"

Ferguson followed closely behind, glancing at the shooting range with a barely perceptible smile playing on his lips:

What do you think?

"Disobeying orders on the battlefield is no small matter, Captain."

"They need to make an example of them to warn others not to do this!"

Another maintenance worker chimed in:

"Yes, Captain, you've got us all killed!"

Thea swallowed hard, her face filled with guilt, almost bursting into tears: "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry! It's my fault, I shouldn't have done that..."

Ferguson raised an eyebrow: "So, you owe us a life. How are you going to repay it? With your body?"

Thea looked at Ferguson incredulously.

His subordinates couldn't help but laugh, and the laughter grew louder and louder until even Ferguson couldn't hold back.

"Look carefully, Captain." Ferguson gestured forward. "This is a shooting range, not an execution ground. Don't you see Major Cross?"

Reminded by him, Thea searched through the crowd and indeed found Major Cross walking towards them.

Major Cross is the commander of the Ordnance Corps, their direct superior.

Thea breathed a sigh of relief, her tense nerves relaxing, and a hint of embarrassment appeared on her face.

"You bastards!" she cursed angrily.

Ferguson and the maintenance crew were used to it; they knew that their superior, while outstanding in military affairs, lacked common sense and often made a fool of himself.

The maintenance crew unanimously agreed that if the captain hadn't been a woman, she would definitely have been an excellent soldier.

"Stop standing there, 3rd Repair Squad!" Major Cross yelled at Thea and her group. "Go to the armory and get your equipment. Today's mission is to fire three hundred rounds of ammunition!"

"Yes, sir." Thea responded and led her troops in formation toward the armory.

She hadn't walked far when she turned back: "Sir, we're maintenance soldiers, why do we need to practice shooting?"

"Do you have a problem with that?" Major Cross retorted loudly.

"No, sir," Thea stepped forward and replied, "I have no objection, sir!"

Major Cross snorted, stepped closer, and stared at Thea, his tone laced with sarcasm:

"You know why, Captain. You, as maintenance soldiers, dared to challenge a German armored regiment with only twenty-seven men."

"Therefore, the general believes it is necessary to train them so that our Ordnance Corps can replace the Eighth Army in destroying Rommel's Afrika Korps!"

"Do you understand, Captain?"

"Understood, sir," Thea replied loudly.

This can be considered a form of punishment, or it can be seen as a test of obedience.

Alternatively, the repairmen could be given enhanced self-defense capabilities.

A dozen minutes later, the troops received their equipment, lay on sandbags, and joined the target practice team, with Captain Thea supervising them from behind.

Ferguson, recalling what had just happened, quipped as he glanced at his target, "Captain, perhaps you should be standing on the other side!"

The maintenance crew burst into laughter again, and some even missed their targets because of it.

"Go to hell, Ferguson!" Thea yelled. "Shut your mouth, or I'll shove all the spent cartridge cases into it!"

After a pause, Thea added, "But I mean 'sorry,' you were punished because of me."

Ferguson pulled the trigger, and with a "bang," the bullet hit the bullseye on the 100-meter target.

"Please, Captain," he said, loading the empty magazine, "we should thank you."

Thea looked exhausted and confused: "Thank me?"

The maintenance workers responded all at once:

"Yes, Captain, we became heroes because of that."

"This is a perfect life experience. Twenty-seven men wiped out an armored regiment. I can brag about it for the rest of my life."

"Yes, when I told Linda about it, she was ecstatic. I became her hero!"

"Didn't you see the way everyone else was looking at us? Everyone was envious of us, even jealous!"

……

Ferguson re-aimed, pulled the trigger, and fired another shot before turning to Thea: "If I had to do it again, I would do it without hesitation. So, this is none of your business!"

The maintenance workers chimed in:

"Yes, me too."

"In the name of God, I cannot give up this opportunity unless I'm a fool."

"Battlefield Punishment No. 2? That's nothing!"

……

Thea was finally relieved of her psychological burden, as she had always felt guilty that her subordinates had been burdened by her.

Suddenly, chaos erupted within the troops. The gunfire ceased, and the soldiers rose and surged toward the other end of the road, shouting:

"Is it him?"

"Is it really him?"

……

Thea grabbed a passing soldier and asked, "Who's coming?"

"Thorn," the soldier replied, "he passed through here."

Looking along the road, a convoy was approaching, led by a jeep, and Thorne could be vaguely seen sitting in the passenger seat.

Soldiers on both sides of the road cheered and leaned forward to shake hands, while others asked for autographs, forcing Thorne to slow down and try his best to respond.

Thea thought Major Cross would stop it, but the next second, she was shocked to find the major himself among them, holding a notebook and pen.

Thea snorted indignantly, "While we were all being punished, this guy reaped all the benefits and honors."

"The truth, Captain?" Ferguson stood beside Thea, nodding at the approaching jeep. "You should know, he's the one who pulled us out of punishment. Without him, we might still be digging trenches and carrying ammunition!"

"Of course it's true," Thea objected. "We were punished for helping him; it's his responsibility!"

"No, Captain!" Ferguson replied.

"Without him, we might all be dead, the defenses would have collapsed, and the whole of North Africa would have been occupied by the Germans!"

"so……"

"That's not necessarily true, Lieutenant!" Thea objected. "Nobody knows what will happen; it might be better this way."

Ferguson chuckled wryly: "Could there be anything better than burying a German armored regiment?"

"Of course!" Yaya replied.

Ferguson tried to dispel Thea's resentment towards Thorne.

But it turns out he didn't understand women.

As they were talking, the jeep pulled up in front of them.

Thea, who had initially appeared angry, instantly transformed into a smile, and her boisterous manners became ladylike. She carefully cultivated a graceful and elegant demeanor as she waved to Thorne: "Hi, Thorne, you've been promoted to captain? Congratulations!"

Ferguson stared with his mouth agape for a long time, not quite reacting, internally cursing "WTF!" a hundred times!

"Hey, Captain." Thorne stopped the car, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes. "Are you all alright?"

"Yes, we're fine!" Thea's face lit up with a bright, sunny smile, all her fatigue gone.

Thorne then poked his head out and greeted the others, "Hey guys, how are you?"

The maintenance crew responded in unison:

"We're fine, Captain!"

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Captain!"

"Thank you so much. I heard it was you who got us out."

……

Thorne smiled and said the same old thing: "You're welcome, it was nothing!"