The sun was sinking lower and lower on the horizon as another day in the south pacific drew to a close. Blue seas continued to churn below, while the sky slowly streaked with reds and violets. Already the edges were going dark.
Across the twilight sky four witches flew in close formation. In the lead was a stern-looking officer with her brown hair split into twintails. Her chest was adorned with numerous citations and ribbons from the Karlsland military, worn despite the discomfort they posed on the last leg of the group's journey.
To her right was a blonde, her blue eyes alight, the tips of her hair black. Her uniform, though also typical for a Karlsland officer, couldn't have been more different than her flight leader's. Her only ornamentation was her rank insignia, and the uniform itself seemed badly wrinkled.
Flying even with the blonde but opposite her was a redhead trailing bunny ears. Goggles were perched on her forehead, but if asked she would say the group's flight wasn't fast enough for her to need them.
To her left, furthest back in the formation, was another girl with her hair pulled into twintails, but these were much more relaxed. Cat ears poked up from her black hair, but her playful antics from earlier had given way to yawn-inducing fatigue.
Together, Barkhorn, Hartmann, Yeager, and Lucchini descended toward a virtual armada of ships concentrated in the ocean below. "I can't wait to get down there and sleep," Francesca stifled another yawn.
"Just tuck in on my wing," Shirley said, offering her junior a warm smile. "I'll get you there safely."
"That's not all I'd like to tuck in on," Francesca said teasingly.
Barkhorn shot her a dirty look. "You already slept through most of the briefing! How much more rest could you need? And you!" She rounded on Hartmann, clearly reminded of something. "You were late for the mission briefing. I expect better of -"
"It was too early!" protested Erica. "How can they expect us to study the mission effectively like that?"
"It was at 0900!" Barkhorn clenched her teeth. "Landing order is myself, Hartmann, Yeager, and then Luchinni." As ever, she tried to deflect everything with business.
The reason for their long trek across the ocean was a new front against the Neuroi. The chain of islands to the west was a Liberion colony, but a new Neuroi nest formed in the area and the islands quickly fell. Below them were the dozens and dozens of ships sent to take part in liberating the islands. They ranged from humble tenders to the mighty Iowa-class battleships of the Liberion navy.
The four witches sent over from the 501st were intended to bolster this fleet's own witch wing – a primary squadron assigned to the speedy fleet carriers – and a secondary group that flew from the smaller escort carriers.
Three minutes later all four witches were safely aboard the fleet carrier that the other witches were based on. As Luchini lowered into the hangar, Barkhorn was already out of her striker unit. Mechanics waved casually to her and went to work on her striker. Efficient, she liked that.
"So, are you looking forward to your other mission here, 'Trudy?" More of Hartmann's blithe behavior, Barkhorn didn't like that at all.
"It's an important duty," Barkhorn said proudly, unslinging her twin machine guns and stowing them in the same rack that held her striker unit. "With how rare witches are, every one of them needs to be as proficient as possible." She had been assigned to oversee the training of a witch unit that had so far made abysmal scores in combat.
"VW-9 though," Shirley was saying, shaking her head slightly. "I haven't heard good things about that unit."
"What have you heard about them?" Erica blinked. She hadn't heard about the squadron by name until Minna's preliminary briefing mentioned it, but if it was with a chiefly Liberion task force, it made sense that Shirley would know more about it.
"Well, it's really more one out of the three of them that has me worried." Yeager completed the shut down sequence on her striker, and as she clambered out, her long ears and bunny tail receded. "Flight Lieutenant Keyes, she was originally part of the Afrika campaign. But her entire squadron was wiped out in a Neuroi ambush."
Erica gasped, gaping in shock. "She was the only survivor?"
Shirley nodded grimly. "Her power helped see her through, she can regenerate harm to herself and her striker. It couldn't help her squadronmates though..."
"I've heard of her," Lucchini, her striker unit settled and now tended to by the mechanics, had come prancing over. "They call her 'Jinx' 'cause everyone thinks she's bad luck."
"Welcome to the Lexington," called a voice, and the four witches turned to see a figure striding toward them. It was another witch, her hair black and shoulder length. Her eyes were an icy, chilling blue, and a pistol poked from a holster on her left hip. Overall, she had an intense bearing and looked like she wasn't someone to mess with. "I'm Squadron Leader Evans." The unit patch on the shoulder of her uniform showed the beefy head of a shark, its teeth rendered in great detail, its eyes ominous, and its hide striped white and black. "Of the Tigersharks." She snapped a salute, which Barkhorn and the others – slowly in the case of Hartmann – returned.
"Well, if it isn't someone from Liberion's hat, eh?" Shirley adopted an over the top rendition of the accent of that particular Britanian Commonwealth nation.
Evans – Kyra to her few close friends – snorted. "The flight was uneventful I hope?"
"Yep, boring as watching paint dry," Erica chipped in, smiling. "So, where's the rest of your squadron?"
"Down in the mess," explained Kyra. "I imagine you're hungry so we'll head there first, and then one of my officers can show you to your quarters. We keep all the witches close together, in the officers' quarters block closest to the hangar."
The four remaining Tigersharks were in the officer's mess, enjoying the rare treat of ice cream with the rest of the crew. As she lead the 501st members toward them, Kyra gave a sharp whistle. One by one their heads snapped around, and they rose from their seats. First was a bespectacled witch with the iron X-flag of a Karsland soldier on her uniform. "Hauptmann Rebecca Kauffman, Karlsland," she said, her tone crisp but pleasant.
"Warrant Officer Megumi Sendai, of the Fuso Empire." This one was taller than her squadron mates save Kyra, her black hair pulled into twin buns. She had a bright smile, and a familiar looking sailor-type uniform that lead to Erica and Luchini exchanging a grin.
"Flight Lieutenant Katie Windsor, Britania." She was blond, her hair trimmed short. She wore a leather jacket, and had aviator goggles loose around her neck.
The fourth witch to introduce herself had also been the last to stand, and now leaned close to Katie. "I'm Pascuala Santamaria, flight lieutenant, Hispania." She made a little bow and then smiled at the four newly arrived witches. "Gertrude Barkhorn," she said, pointing to the proficient Karslander. "Erica Hartmann, the Blond Knight of Karlsland!" The disheveled blonde grinned and rubbed her nose. "Charlotte Yeager." The redhead stood proudly. "And Francesca Lucchini."
"That's me~" Lucchini said cheerfully. "So, how long are we supposed to be assigned to this squadron?"
"Till our reinforcements from Dacia arrive," said Kyra. "They're midway through their training course now." Witch academies existed all over the world, part pride in each nation wanting the foundation of its own corps, and part pragmatism in case the Neuroi managed to destroy one. Only a few usually had an active class at any given time due to how rare witches were, and the Tigersharks were lucky to have the next batch to graduate earmarked for them.
"It's a shame they can't figure out a way to speed up the process," Shirley rubbed her chin in thought, her mind always on how to get things done faster.
Barkhorn frowned. "Speeding it up will do more harm than good if it leads to poor caliber witches. We can't afford heavy losses from hasty training."
Kyra nodded and gave Barkhorn an appraising eye. "From what I've read of your record, I think you can handle the unit." Her expression softened slightly as she looked back down at her meal, but then she looked faintly unhappy. "I'd prefer to do the remedial training personally, but operating one of our star witch squadrons on the front lines doesn't leave much time. If I'm not flying missions, I'm involved in planning missions."
Barkhorn snapped a precision salute. "You can count on me, ma'am!"
Still holding her bowl, Megumi took another spoonful of ice cream, her expression melting as the sweet treat did. "Now grab a bowl and sit on down!"
There was a cheer from the present Strike Witches as they bustled over to the food line.
The starry night had come and gone over the mighty task force. One of the smaller carriers in the group was the Gambier Bay, home to VW-9's three witches. Amidst the rest of the crew they ate breakfast, two of them together but the third off eating with some of ship's regular pilots. Flight Lieutenant Elizbeth Keyes, the most senior of the witches, should have been in command of the unit, but with the Africa black mark on her record, she was probably lucky she hadn't been drummed out altogether. Instead, the eighteen year old Liberion redhead was going to be among those getting special training from one of Karlsland's hardest aces.
Lieutenant Jeanette Roy sat with the squadron's other witch, Ensign Hikari Senka. Jeanette was a plump blonde in her mid teens and wore glasses over her blue eyes. Her uniform was crisp and carried the few awards she had so far garnered. Command did not really agree with her, although VW-9's size made it easier to manage than the likes of the Tigersharks, particularly with the reinforcements the unit had just received.
Hikari Senka hailed originally from Fuso, but had grown up in Liberion. As a mark of her heritage, her striker unit – despite being an FM-2 of Liberion manufacture – was painted up with Fuso's distinct sun and moon emblem. She was small and slender, her hair a shade of violet noticeable even from across the dining hall. Fusos had such odd hair colors sometimes.
Hikari was no stranger to combat. However, she hated it. Going out to fight always left her feeling like a dogfight had already started in her belly. She much preferred operating as a scout, which her powers were very useful for, but the imperatives of the war dictated otherwise.
"Say," Hikari said, looking up from her breakfast at Jeanette. "You're from Gallia, right?" The blonde nodded idly. "Then... can I ask why you're still out here fighting? I mean, the Strike Witches liberated Gallia..." Gallia and many parts of Europa had been damaged in the fighting. Neuroi hives remained to be stamped out elsewhere around the world, but many displaced Gallians had returned home to work on rebuilding their homeland.
Jeanette slowly chewed her food, mulling over her answer before replying. "I could join in Gallia's reconstruction. But as a witch, I can keep fighting, and make sure no one else has to watch her homeland burn." Her words were calm and measured, but they radiated with an intensity that sent a chill down Hikari's spine.
A ripple spread across the room, first of silence, then of hushed whispers. Looking, Hikari saw the familiar sight of Squadron Leader Evans striding across the galley toward them. Her animal features – those of a white tiger – always seemed appropriate to Hikari, for Kyra was beautiful but most definitely not someone to mess with.
Kyra stopped in the midst of VW-9. "Girls, as of today you'll be assigned under Lieutenant Barkhorn. She'll be tasked with getting your performance up to that of a regular combat unit. Yes, even you, Senka," Kyra's lips quirked ever so slightly as the girl jolted. "Meet her on the flight deck in ten minutes." With that, Kyra turned and departed.
Ten minutes later, Senka, Roy, and Keyes all stood side by side on the carrier's flight deck. Their strikers were loaded into racks behind them, and Lieutenant Barkhorn stood before them, hands clasped behind her back, her stance iron rigid, and her brown eyes fierce. "VW-9," Barkhorn began. "Sparrow Flight, as your patches say. I've been assigned to train you up to a better standard. Your accuracy is 37% below normal. There have been avoidable training incidents that damaged equipment." At that, Hikari's ears turned pink, and her eyes dropped from Barkhorn's feet to her own. "And your scramble times are double that of even average units. Reconnaissance is about all you do well. Today we start on fixing that." She lowered her hands to her sides. "Mount your strikers and grab your training weapons. Launch and wait up there with Lieutenant Hartmann. I'll be watching your launches from here." She tapped her ear. "Lieutenant, how's the weather?"
Above, one of the witches was already airborne, checking the flight conditions. "It's great!" Erica called back over the radio, and as everyone watched her, the witch rolled into a tight corkscrew.
As the girls dutifully clambered into their strikers and began preflight checks, Shirley watched from the hangar deck of a neighboring fleet carrier. "So, do you really think Barkhorn can get them in shape?"
Kyra leaned against the storage rack of her striker unit. "Wouldn't have asked the lieutenant to do it if I thought she'd be wasting her time." VW-9 was assigned to the seventh fleet, centered around the landing craft currently disembarking troops and engineers to the island of Leyte, those troops assigned to build a forward base for conducting operations against the Neuroi. The group had a few battleships and cruisers, but was mostly composed of destroyers and smaller carriers. In comparison, the third fleet where the Tigersharks were assigned was home to the biggest, fastest, most powerful ships. Despite being assigned to separate fleets, Kyra was still in overall strategic command of Sparrow flight, and that meant their well-being was her responsibility.
"So, this is your striker?" Shirley leaned over the Commonwealth pilot's striker unit. It was painted blue, its structure thicker than most striker units thanks to the armor it carried. While not completely boxy and graceless, it had a beefy look to it. "An F6F? If you're using Liberion hardware, why not go with the P-51?" The redhead's love of her P-51 and its Merlin engine were almost as legendary among witches as her speed.
"Durability," Kyra said. "Higher climb rate too. It's an air-cooled engine which limits its power a bit behind your Merlin, but it can take a hell of a beating and keep me flying."
"If you were faster you wouldn't have to worry about being hit," Shirley winked playfully at the squadron leader.
Kyra gave a snort of vague amusement and turned her eyes to the ascending Sparrows. Roy had gone first, followed by Keyes and finally Senka.
"Alright," Barkhorn's voice crackled in their earpieces. "I'm on my way up." As her striker unit fired up, a glowing blue circle of runes appeared beneath her. Barkhorn hurled along the carrier deck before launching skyward. "Climb to 7,000 meters. We'll practice your maneuvering. Then we'll do target practice, followed by dueling drills. Whoever isn't paired with another will take turns dueling me. Then an engagement drill against a Neuroi mock-up."
Shirley snickered. "Neuroi mock-up, I wonder if they realize that will be 'Trudy herself?" In addition to a practice machine gun, she was carrying a slender rifle that projected magical energy in a beam similar to what Neuroi fired, if dialed back so no one would be injured. It had proven a valuable training tool in familiarizing witches for what they would be up against in the field.
"We'll see." Overhead, planes could be heard rumbling along the flight deck. Scout planes went up in search of the enemy. The Neuroi hive lay to the west, further into the islands, but the invaders could come from any direction, and so the planes launching from all the carriers spread a wide net.
"Senka, tighten those turns!"
"Y-yes ma'am!" Hikari rolled into her next turn, tucking her weapon in tight to her body. In flight, the scout had the features of a fox squirrel, tan ears poking from her scalp and a bushy two-tone tail protruding from the back of her uniform.
Above her, Elise was coming over in a loop to pounce on Hikari from above. Her red hair feathered with the manifestation of her magic, and just like the red-tailed hawk, she dove down on her prey.
"You're more agile than she is! Use it to your advantage!"
Elise's gun chattered, spraying paint pellets down toward Hikari. With a squeak the girl rolled evasively, wondering what Barkhorn's advice was even supposed to mean. Rolling onto her back, she fired her own marker at Elise.
Despite the weight of her heavy striker, Elise went into an evasive spiral. It threw Hikari's aim off enough that she was reduced to spraying shots in her target's general direction.
Elise pulled out of her dive, gaining speed as she raced toward Hikari. The junior witch turned sharply and headed away, but Elise rolled onto her side, aimed, and fired. Hikari felt momentary relief as she saw Elise firing at her and clearly missing, until she plowed headlong into the stream of markers aimed out in front of her.
Splattered with paint, Hikari cried out and spluttered as she got a mouthful of orange dye. "Senka!" Barkhorn's stinging reprimand rang in her ear. "Don't break in a straight line! Loop! Dive! Turn! Anything to make yourself a harder target!"
Hikari shot a bitter glance skyward, where Roy was locked in a furious aerial duel with Barkhorn. Despite being occupied with the Gallian flier, Barkhorn had still been finding time to critique Elise and Hikari on their duel.
"No hard feelings?" Elise offered Hikari a small smile. The redhead had an usually heavy striker unit, meant for carrying high-explosive rockets or other ordnance under the wings. Though finite in number, they were good at blowing large holes in Neuroi in a hurry.
"Mm!" Hikari managed a very weak smile of her own as she wiped away more orange paint. She turned her blue eyes to the still-ongoing duel between Roy and Barkhorn. The ace's speed was incredible, there was no hesitation in any of her maneuvers. Her aim was sharp, but Jeanette managed to evade it.
Barkhorn managed to settle in on Jeanette's six o'clock position, and stayed there with her superior agility. Jeanette's more sluggish striker, the heavy, robust P-47 could not shake her. Jeanette increased her speed, but Barkhorn was still very nearly able to keep up with her. Jeanette wouldn't be able to get away fast enough, for Barkhorn was already leveling her marker.
Suddenly Jeanette lost both speed and altitude. Barkhorn, surprised, flew right over her. Jeanette raised her heavy machine gun and opened fire, spraying the sky with marker pellets. Barkhorn dove sharply, spinning in midair as she went. She fired on Jeanette, splattering the lieutenant with paint.
"Not bad," said Barkhorn, lowering her marker. She glanced down and saw a telltale orange splotch on the side of her striker. Frowning, she rubbed it off. "Now, again."
Hikari sighed, her heart already sinking. She would rather be out there with the scout planes, using her powers to find the Neuroi. That was her strength. She preferred to leave fighting to the other witches. But what Barkhorn said next sent Hikari's already glum mood right to the sea floor.
"Senka, you're with me. Roy, you will duel Keyes."
The sun was setting by the time the three witches of VW-9 returned to their carrier. Hikari went directly back to the quarters the trio shared aboard the small ship, while her two flightmates went to the galley. She scrubbed her face, partly to try and get the orange paint off, and partly against the tears leaking down her cheeks. Training under Barkhorn really reminded her why she hated combat. Even her own comrades could outfly Hikari, and so Barkhorn had made mincemeat of her, both in flight and in unending correction of Hikari's mistakes.
Witch units were typically more relaxed than regular military, but Barkhorn seemed to think that the important role witches played in the war meant there should be a corresponding increase in discipline and preparation.
Even though Hikari knew she should have been hungry, she didn't feel like eating. She had been about to disappear under the covers when the door swung open. In marched Elise, her red hair still slumped with sweat from their earlier exertions. Behind her was Jeanette, the blonde smiling gently at her junior witch.
"What are you guys doing here?" Hikari wondered. But then she noticed the girls were carrying food trays.
"We figured you wanted to be alone, but we all need to eat," said Elise, setting a tray down beside Hikari. "So we figured we'd grab something and have ourselves a little dinner party here."
A warm smile lit Hikari's face, and she found herself touched by the concern of her flightmates. "Hey," said Jeanette. "We're all allies in enduring Barkhorn's wrath, we ought to stick together." The blonde seated herself legs crossed upon her bunk and set her tray in her lap.
"She likes you," said Hikari, pulling the cover off her tray. It had been piled high with a little bit of everything, potatoes, chicken, vegetables, even some sweets. All armies ran on their stomachs, but for witches that went double and their rations were increased accordingly.
"She's hard on all of us," said Jeanette, lowering a steaming mug of coffee and rubbing her neck.
"Yes, but at least she didn't tell you that you ought to just wash out," Hikari said glumly, even as she began eating. The presence of her comrades helped lift her spirits, even if they were all borderline misfits as she was.
Jeanette looked momentarily stumped, trying to find the right words to soothe her junior after such a stinging remark. "She's just trying to get you to do your best. 'Trudy wants you to prove her wrong!"
Elise burst out laughing, drawing the critical gazes of her companions. "Sorry, I was just imagining Barkhorn's reaction if she heard you calling her that."
"Yeah..." Hikari leaned back, smiling a little. "Discipline!" Her voice was half mock-screech, half her best imitation of Barkhorn's deeper voice and rigid bearing.
Laughter rolled around the small cabin again, and Hikari felt more of the tension from their overwhelming training fade away. During the worst of it, Hikari had wondered if she should just give up, but now she felt a stronger sense of belonging in her flight.
The following morning, Kyra stood on the Lexington's flight deck, flanked by the other seven witches currently in the Tigersharks, all preparing for launch. The night before, scout planes had detected several Neuroi moving together eastward along the northern edge of the island cluster. It was suspected they were looking to hook around and attack from the east, catching their enemies by surprise, or that perhaps they were looking to attack supply chains. Either option was unacceptable, and so the third fleet's admiral had sent his ships steaming northward by cover of darkness, so that they would be within striking range at daybreak. As the sun rose, witches and fighters alike prepared for launch. Crews milled about the flight decks, aviators clambered into their craft, and the flight decks were alive with the sound of engines roaring to life and propellers slicing the air.
"We're all ready," reported Rebecca, Kyra's second in command. Her hair was an odd bluish-gray, almost metallic. Considering her affinity for tinkering, it seemed only natural. She tapped her ear. "And the fighter squadrons also report ready for launch."
"Good," Kyra nodded smartly. Radar contact had confirmed the Neuroi presence, three of them. At last report, the Neuroi had swung slightly southeast. It seemed likely they knew the fleet was there, even if they weren't moving to attack just yet.
"Too bad Trudy couldn't come with us," said Erica, the tips of her hair fading from blond to black. "She's going to miss this fight..."
"Yes, well," said Shirley, her striker already hovering along the ground. "She's technically assigned as commander of Sparrow flight for the duration of their training, so that means she can't run off to party."
"We've got launch clearance," said Kyra, turning to her witches. "Let's move." Their engines rose in a whining, buzzing chorus of distinct tones, and by wing pairs they sped down the flight deck before going airborne.
"Squadron leader," called Katie. "The Neuroi are turning south and spreading out. Time to intercept, twenty minutes." As the witches headed out from the carrier, they moved into a pair of the 'Finger four' formation Karlsland had originally created. One witch flew lead with her wingmate trailing slightly to one side, while number three flew to the other side of the leader and slightly behind and their wingmate further to the side and back. Kyra headed one formation, while Lieutenant Yeager headed the other.
Francesca Lucchini shielded her eyes from the sun and peered across the horizon. "I see them!" The perky twelve year old called, pointing to a black speck. As the others spotted that Neuroi, the distances closed. Its glittering black shell reflected the newly-minted rays of sun, but there was no sign of the other two.
"Squadron leader, I can sense the other Neuroi around here somewhere." That was Katie again, using her sensory powers. The same perceptions enhanced her reaction times in combat. "They're close!"
"Trying for an ambush," muttered Kyra.
"Betcha they're hiding in the clouds," said Megumi Sendai, raising her machine gun and priming it.
A lance of red slashed through the air in front of the formation. Witches cried out in alarm and broke away from the attack. Clouds boiled away from where the beam had fired, revealing another Neuroi lurking like a deadly insect in a woodpile.
"Break by flights!" ordered Kyra. "Yeager, pop that one! We'll draw their fire!" The Squadron leader climbed, bringing Katie, Rebecca, and Erica with her.
"Katie, where is the core?" asked Shirley.
Katie could sense a Neuroi's core at reasonably close ranges, and set her eyes on the Neuroi's oddly angled form as it emerged from the clouds. It had a teardrop-shaped body, triangular fins protruding up near its leading edge, and angular extensions along the sides that resembled folded wings. "It's front and center!"
At Shirley's signal, her formation broke again. Megumi and Pascuala took the lead while Shirley and Luchini hung back slightly. The lead pair opened fire, cracking open the Neuroi's shell. The Neuroi and its companion opened fire, spraying columns of ruby light that forced Megumi and Pascuala to break off and shield before they got a chance to fire on the exposed core.
That was, of course, the reason why Shirley and Luchini hung back. The girls opened fire on the multifaceted ruby that was the Neuroi's heart, but the invader banked just in time. Armor piercing bullets ripped into the shell immediately adjacent the existing hole, but failed to score a killing shot.
"Incoming drones!" Katie's voice rang through the ears of the Tigersharks, and as Kyra looked up, she saw a line of tiny flying tetrahedrons arcing toward them in a dive. Each had a single glowing dot on their forward facing, and they opened fire on Kyra's flight group. Kyra blurred forward, clearing the deadly beams, while Rebecca rolled gracefully around the attacks, and Erica and Katie threw up shields. Angry scarlet splashed off cool azure, while Kyra and Rebecca opened up on the leading drones.
Kyra's Bren light machine gun was famous or perhaps infamous for being, by the average soldier's measure, too accurate for a machine gun, but she liked to know her rounds would go right where she wanted them. Rebecca on the other hand carried a 20mm cannon, its ammo capacity small compared to a machine gun but its rounds explosive.
"Where did the drones come from?" wondered Shirley as she lead her group on another attack run, trying to blast the previously-wounded Neuroi's core before it could regenerate over that weakness. "One of these, or the third Neuroi?"
"I don't know!" said Megumi, but her face broke out in a grin. "But the carrier fighters are catching up to us. They'll be here in just a few minutes!"
The extra firepower was good, but it concerned Kyra somewhat. While regular fighters were still usable against Neuroi, they tended to take heavy losses. On the other hand, the loss of a single witch was, even at the best of times, a force strength loss equivalent to at least a whole squadron of regular planes. In the end, Kyra welcomed the help.
Aboard one of the third fleet battleships, the fleet's commander, a craggy vice admiral stood listening to the reports rolling in. His planes were almost to the engagement zone, while his witches had already encountered two of the three Neuroi. The third was still unaccounted for, but could have been the source of the drones. Of course, it could have also been looking to attack the fleet itself. As such, the destroyers, cruisers, and battleships ringing the carriers were all on alert.
A cheer rang out across the bridge, almost eclipsing the news that had brought it: Evans and Kauffman had just brought down a Neuroi, thanks to its shell being softened by a group of fighters.
As the cheers subsided, a sailor spoke up. "Admiral, we have an incoming message from the seventh fleet."
Looking out the view ports, the admiral cracked a smile as he imagined the battle too distant to actually see. "Looking for the ballgame's score?" His voice was casual, confident, and he elicited a chuckle from several of the crew.
"Sir!" the sailor's tone of rising panic quickly cut through the laughter. "Task unit 77.4.3 reports they're under heavy Neuroi attack!"