Muhammad looked at the pouring rain outside, his heart filled with anxiety.
"Have you managed to contact them?" Muhammad turned his head and asked the Staff Officer.
"No, the radio is full of static. We can't establish contact," the Staff Officer replied.
The Type 63 Armored Vehicle was still equipped with an old-fashioned vehicle-mounted shortwave radio. The maximum effective range of the whip antenna was only fifty kilometers, and the constant thunder outside caused strong interference, preventing them from contacting His Excellency Qusay.
It was truly a case of dreading something only for it to happen. Muhammad dared not imagine the reaction of the Military Region Commander if he learned that His Excellency Qusay had met with an accident in his defense zone. His military career would likely be over.
He shouldn't have agreed to let His Excellency Qusay personally go to the swamp to search. In fact, the idea that the Iranians would attack from the swamp was still only their own speculation; the Military Region had not endorsed it. This was why he had sent personnel to scout the swamp.
Now, with the sudden torrential rain, even the Type 63 Armored Vehicle, which boasts good off-road performance, would likely struggle. If they failed to get out before the downpour, the consequences would be severe.
Muhammad dared not dwell on the consequences. Almighty allah, please ensure the safety of His Excellency Qusay!
"Keep calling until contact is established," Muhammad ordered.
If the rain stopped and they still couldn't make contact, Muhammad would have no choice but to report to the Military Region and request them to dispatch a helicopter to scout the swamp and locate His Excellency Qusay as soon as possible.
Many people spent a sleepless night because of the heavy rain.
Ahvaz.
Abol stood in front of the map, deep in contemplation.
Organizing this counterattack and choosing to launch the assault from the swamp was his established plan, but it had been debated extensively within the Military Headquarters.
Abol knew that many people were starting to oppose him, especially as the rift between him and Khomeini grew wider. Khomeini was very dissatisfied with Abol's lack of support for some of his actions.
He strongly chose to attack from this position so that he could drive the Iraqis back in the shortest possible time.
The situation in Iran was unstable, especially after Khomeini's Great Purge within the military. The combat effectiveness of the army had not yet recovered, and the nation could not sustain the enormous war expenditure. Therefore, Abol chose a high-risk maneuver.
However, fate seemed to be playing a joke on him. Even with ample preparation, they had underestimated the difficulty of traversing the swamp. Just when they were about to finish, heavy rain started at this critical moment.
Almighty allah will surely favor the Iranian people who believe in Him.
"Chairman, we must consider other methods. Should we withdraw the Armored Division?" General Sharaf asked.
"No, we cannot withdraw. Even if we tried to retreat now, could we get out?" Abol asked.
"Chairman, General, I have a suggestion," a Staff Officer said boldly.
"What is your suggestion? Speak," Abol consented.
"We are currently equipped with large CH-47 Chinook Helicopters. We can use these helicopters to provide aerial resupply to the Armored Division that has not yet exited the swamp. Combined with their existing supplies, this will be enough for them to win a week-long assault," the Staff Officer said.
Resupply using helicopters? That is indeed a method. In Iran's arsenal, the CH-47 Chinook Helicopter is the largest helicopter. It is a multi-role, twin-engine, tandem-rotor medium-lift transport helicopter developed and manufactured by the Boeing Company of the United States. Unlike ordinary helicopters, it uses a tandem-rotor configuration with two propellers positioned front and back on the top, lacking a side propeller at the tail.
This type of helicopter has a cargo capacity of up to ten tons. Iran was equipped with a total of 68 helicopters of this model, manufactured under license by Agusta Southern Helicopter Company of Italy. Due to parts shortages, half of them have been grounded. Even if thirty units were mobilized, they could transport three hundred tons of supplies in one go, which would be sufficient for the operation.
However, this still doesn't solve the problem. The current difficulty for the Armored Division is the heavy rain, which has made the swamp even muddier, rendering tanks unable to pass.
"We can have the helicopters load cement and scatter a large amount of it onto the required route. After the cement falls into the swamp, it will solidify within two to three hours, temporarily creating a road passable for tanks. Although it might not withstand the full weight of the tanks, it will be much stronger than the swamp alone."
If Abol was considered bold for choosing to attack through the swamp, the Staff Officer before them was even more fanciful, suggesting using cement to construct a road?
Constructing a passable road requires vast manpower and resources. If cement is merely scattered from the sky without any other construction preparations, can the resulting path withstand the weight of a sixty-plus-ton tank?
"Sharaf, we need to conduct an experiment to verify if this method is feasible," Abol said.
The sky gradually cleared. The weather in the Middle East changes in an instant.
Qusay and Wahrih's small detachment, a team of nearly thirty people, were struggling to move along the muddy road. They had abandoned their armored vehicle on the way.
Last night, thunder and lightning raged. Perhaps allah deliberately wanted to test the brave Iraqi soldiers. Armored Vehicle No. 01 also unfortunately got stuck in the mud, its tracks churning helplessly in the mire but unable to escape the danger.
After struggling for half an hour in the rain, everyone was exhausted. Unexpectedly, just as they were about to escape the danger, the engine finally ceased working due to excessive strain: continuous high-speed rotation had caused the engine bearings to seize. (That is, the bearing shells between the crankshaft and connecting rod were sintered. This was a common flaw in the export model of the Type 63 Armored Vehicle; the engine quality was substandard. If it had been a German engine, there would have been no problem.)
They were completely miserable. Qusay felt like crying but had no tears. They had gone in circles, even getting the direction wrong, and were completely lost. Now, even the fighting vehicle couldn't move. This training was truly close to real combat.
There was no other option. The radio was also broken, preventing them from reporting the situation to the Thirty-Fifth Brigade Headquarters. Qusay had no choice but to order them to abandon the vehicle and return on foot, treating it as an armed cross-country exercise.
Qusay led all the soldiers and began the arduous trek back from the swamp on foot. If they couldn't return quickly, at the very least, Muhammad, the Commander of the Thirty-Fifth Brigade, would be in huge trouble, and he didn't know how furiously his father would react.
The sky was azure. After the rain cleared, the sun didn't seem so scorching. Their already soaked military boots trod silently on the slippery ground, moving forward.
Qusay used the compass to head consistently west, aiming to exit the swamp at the nearest point. Once out, they needed to quickly contact the Thirty-Fifth Brigade to prevent them from launching a large-scale search. Even reaching Halfaya, which was within the national boundary, would allow them to contact the local garrison.
Only by leaving this detestable swamp could they make further plans. After the heavy rain, the Persians' attack would also be disrupted, and there would be no immediate danger of a surprise attack.
An arm-thick cobra was sliding through the muddy ground. It had sensed prey nearby, and seemingly quite a lot of it.
Qusay led the team, walking at the front. The current situation was very similar to his training in the unnamed mountains back then, and he was used to it.
Suddenly, he caught sight of a nearly two-meter-long reptile winding its way toward them: it was light gray all over, barely visible in the mud, almost fooling him. Its head was thick and oval, its pupils relatively round, and its snout and mouth gap large, with well-developed retractor muscles at the jaw joint; its fangs were short, and it had a brownish-yellow ring pattern on its neck. He estimated that once it reared up, a pair of beautiful black and white spots would appear on its hood, resembling spectacle markings.
It was a cobra!
Qusay raised his hand, and the team behind him stopped. Following Qusay's gaze, they all saw the cobra.
Cobras frequently appear in places like Iran and Iraq. Every year, more than a hundred people die from cobra bites and poisoning. At the same time, most soldiers know how to catch cobras.
For Qusay, it was even less of a concern. Catching a snake bare-handed was something every special operations member had to be able to do, let alone when he was fully armed.
It had been a long time since he had eaten Snake Gall. He was already sick of the field rations from the past few days.
The technique for catching a cobra is very simple. Because a cobra can only see what is directly in front of it, you just need to attract its attention with something in front, and then slowly approach from the rear with one hand to grab the cobra instantly. The key is to be slow; otherwise, if the cobra focuses on your hand, you'll be in trouble, especially now, without Antivenom Serum—a bite would be fatal.
Qusay successfully diverted the cobra's attention with a wooden stick, and his right hand deftly grabbed the snake at its seven-inch spot (vital point), twisting and pulling upward to pinch its head.
The cobra weakly thrashed its body. Its life was over.
Qusay pulled out his Multi-tool Military Knife, quickly sliced open the snake's belly, and took out the Snake Gall. This was a good item. He tilted his head back and put it directly into his mouth.
The cool sensation permeated his heart and lungs. Although it was a bit fishy, it was quite good.
Qusay savored the feeling, chopped the snake meat into several pieces, and said, "Come on, everyone take a piece. Eat it, and you'll have the strength to continue marching."
A few soldiers took a piece, but many others did not reach out.
Eating raw snake meat requires courage.
"One piece each. That is an order," Qusay stated. If they balked at raw snake meat like this, back during his training, he had eaten scorpions and lizards raw. If the field rations ran out before they got out of this damned swamp, this snake meat would be excellent sustenance.
The remaining men reluctantly took a piece each, put it in their mouths, closed their eyes, and began to chew.
The burly Hades was the last to take the snake meat, his expression of pain obvious. It was clearly more terrifying than charging through a hail of bullets for him.
"Eat it, like this," Qusay said, picking up a piece of snake meat, cutting off a chunk with his knife, putting it in his mouth, and chewing vigorously.
The snake meat was chewy. Qusay chewed it laboriously with his teeth, holding his breath to prevent the excessive fishiness from making him feel nauseous.
Eating these things raw is also one of the training subjects for special forces. Behind enemy lines, lighting a fire is strictly forbidden to avoid detection, and eating wild fruits simply doesn't provide as much energy as these proteins.
Hades took the snake meat and, imitating Qusay, closed his eyes and began to chew.
Qusay ate while looking into the distance. Suddenly, a peculiar phenomenon caught his attention. Although the area had been washed by heavy rain, signs of human activity were still very obvious, especially the deep wheel ruts—a convoy had definitely driven over this spot recently!