Chapter 515 Welcome to California

When it comes to the Sunshine State (California), what comes to mind first? Sunshine, beaches, beauties, bikinis, Hollywood, or beef noodles?

Of course, the impression of California at this time is still far from that of later generations. What it shows to the world now is its other side - the cruelty of nature.

The desert valley called "Death Valley" is the lowest and driest area in North America, and it is also the only way to the future Sunshine State.

Death Valley, as the name suggests, is very unfriendly to life. It is shrouded in heat and dryness, with an average summer temperature of more than 38°, and the highest temperature can even exceed 56°.

There were about 400,000 gold diggers who resolutely crossed this "death zone" in order to reach their destination faster. At least 4% of them never got out alive, so the travelers at that time called it the Funeral Mountain.

Today's US military relies on more adequate preparation and stronger qualities than future gold diggers, so its first army only lost a few hundred people when passing through Death Valley, but the huge mental pressure and fatigue brought by crossing this dangerous place are difficult to eliminate.

Lieutenant General Stephen Carney had been on guard against possible sneak attacks by the Austrians.

However, the expected encounter did not happen. In fact, this was because the Austrian garrison was too far away from here, and the local climate was not only a torture for the Austrians, but also for the enemy.

The temperature difference between day and night in Death Valley is very large. During the day, it is often hot enough to dry people out, but at night it is so cold that frost can form on the stones. Therefore, if you want to ambush there, you have to bring a lot of baggage, otherwise the enemy will be eliminated by nature before you wait.

In addition, the most important point is that the unmanned terrain is not suitable for ambush; the narrowest part of the 225-kilometer-long passage is nearly six kilometers wide, and the widest part can even reach 26 kilometers. The terrain is generally low with many salt flats and sand dunes.

This terrain treats both sides equally, without any difference. The complex terrain will hinder the use of the Austrian army's superior firepower, so Archduke Karl Ferdinand chose to wait for the opportunity.

Due to his family background, he has been studying the art of defensive warfare, but when he learned that the American troops on the opposite side had chosen to fight in separate forces, he decisively decided to take the initiative.

Stephen Kearney divided his 30,000-man team into two parts. He assigned most of the cavalry and light infantry (similar to the Austrian hunters) to Major General Carter, who was responsible for opening the way in front.

At the same time, in order to find out the fate of the previous vanguard brother troops, the remaining large group of infantry and baggage teams were led by him to hold the line behind.

Although Major General Carter's troops only had 8,000 people, they were highly mobile and had strong combat effectiveness, and could be used as outposts for reconnaissance.

If the traces of the vanguard friendly forces were found, they could provide on-site support, and even if they were ambushed, they could retreat in time.

The reason why the large force led by Lieutenant General Stephen Kearney chose to slow down the march was because the previous rapid march had already reached the limit of the soldiers' physical and mental strength.

The Austrian side learned from the mouths of the previous American prisoners of war that the enemy's subsequent full force, firepower configuration, and personnel arrangements.

In fact, it was not difficult to obtain this information. After working in the mine for a few days, those pampered American officers were willing to tell everything when they were questioned, and they kept almost no secrets.

As night fell, Lieutenant General Stephen Carney lay down early. The commander was exhausted after days of rapid marching, and there was another troop in front of him as a target. Gradually, his tense nerves relaxed, and a strong sense of sleepiness came with it. Soon, snoring came from the tent.

The soldiers outside the tent also stretched their waists and fell asleep with their guns in their arms. The sentry sat on the top of the caravan and looked up at the stars in boredom.

The comrades by the campfire did not enjoy the treatment of tents. They only had a simple blanket and a quilt made of linen, but it did not prevent them from enjoying the warm stove and delicious food in their dreams.

The military discipline of the US military at that time was very lax. They did not even build a sentry tower outside the camp, but chose to drive the caravan out and let the sentry sit on the roof to observe. The advantage of this method is that it saves trouble, but the disadvantage is that it is basically useless.

An American sentry spotted a group of people and even a caravan from a long distance away, but he did not react. Instead, he waved the light in his hand in the night.

The other party also waved in the same way. Since the signal was correct, he turned his head and continued to count the stars.

On the other side of the dark night, the convoy began to unload the goods and set up the launch pad. At the same time, the elite hunters spread out in all directions and one of the small teams approached the sentry just now.

Facing an enemy force that may exceed 20,000 people, the total number of the Austrian surprise attack team did not exceed 1,000, but don't underestimate them, after all, this team brought more than a dozen carriages full of rockets.

With a sharp whistle, the sentries in the American camp looked around for the source of the sound.

Suddenly, a soldier pointed to the sky and shouted.

"Look! It's a meteor! It's flying towards us!"

Then there was a loud bang, and the rocket exploded above the camp, blooming into bright and deadly fireworks.

The rockets used to attack the US military camp at this time were not the latest ones, but a mixture of various types and models of rockets in the "inventory", so the contents were naturally different.

Along with the beautiful fireworks display, various debris, kerosene, combustibles, and small steel balls were scattered in all directions. Of course, there are also high-explosive rockets specially used for siege.

They were seen rushing into the opponent's camp. Just when the enemy nearby thought it was a stink bomb, a violent explosion suddenly occurred. The air wave was enough to lift the enemy soldiers away.

The rockets in the sky were thrown at them as if they were free, causing the American officers and soldiers in the camp to wander around like headless flies. Especially those unlucky ones who were hit by incendiary bombs would not die immediately, but would be carried around with fire. Run around until you are burned alive or killed by friendly fire.

The fire spread rapidly in the US military camp, and the shining fire was the best target. More gorgeous rockets dragged long trajectories and hit the enemy like meteors.

Feeling unbearably hot, Stephen Carney suddenly opened his eyes and found that his tent was on fire.

You must know that in the dream just now, the general had just received the presidential award in the White House and spoke in front of his competitors. After that, the first lady invited him to the secret garden to chat about life. When people are in dire straits.

Stephen Carney, who was awakened by the heat, immediately escaped from his tent and was stunned by the sight he saw.

The military camp in front of them looked like the end of the world was coming. There were frightened and fleeing soldiers everywhere. The sounds of screams and explosions were endless, and the camp had been turned into a sea of ​​fire.

The wood and corpses crackled and exploded in the fire, and the surroundings were filled with choking smoke. The pungent smell spread into the mouth and made people nauseous.

He fled this flaming hell as if he was dying, falling down several times along the way and bumping into several of his comrades.

But Lieutenant General Stephen Carney miraculously survived. The gasping survivor saw meteors continuing to hit his camp in famous parabolas from the nearby slopes on both sides.

Others in the U.S. First Army were not as lucky as him; the fires, explosions, smoke, and the resulting chaos and fear caused many soldiers to lose their way in the fire, and there were even unlucky reasons. I'm so stressed that I go crazy. I use my gun to kill the moving shadows.