[A/N] : It been some time since I actually write something to this length. Anyway, welcome to this brand new fanfiction of mine titled 'Requiem From Horizon'. This chapter will serve as a prologue-sort of chapter, with flashback and just conversations to establish event. Since having one like this will enable me to write the other chapters easily, I decided to finish this chapter first. If you read this fanfiction just for shipgirls, I recommend you to jump into Chapter 2 which actually have actual content.

Anyway, hope you will enjoy this chapter.

01 : Unknown Horizon

Where am I?

That was the first thing that Fukuda thought of when he was finally awake. Lying on a soft cushion, he found his eyes staring at a grey ceiling. His surroundings was dim; there was only the table lamp flickered on the nightstand beside his bed. He blinked confusedly and looked around. It was almost empty. The only thing he could make out were the simple steel bed he was lying on, the lamp on the small plastic nightstand, grey plastered wall and a steel door in front of his view. The door seemed to be firmly shut. There was no window or anything like that. Checking himself, he found that his standard white officer uniform of the former Imperial Japanese Navy was replaced with a simple hospital gown.

What exactly had happened? Why am I here?

He didn't really understand about why he was here, lying in a room that looked like a prison cell. All he remembered was explosions, and then a blackout. He knew he was unconscious during that time, but how he was brought to here didn't make any sense. It can't be a hospital room, judging by the barren layout of this room. So, what could it be?

Am I captured by the Abyssal?

He ran through his mind, checking whether he was still breathing and kicking as usual. He knew that thinking around wasn't going to help him. His first priority should be organising his thoughts and calming himself down.

I'm Rear Admiral Nagasawa Fukuda, the commander of 5th Torpedo Squadron and part of 3rd Fleet of the Combined Fleet. I'm just 26 years old, still single. I'm a commander, yes, a commander, commanding those wonderful shipgirls to fight the Abyssal that suddenly appeared and challenged our dominance of sea during this period of eternal peace.

He took a deep breath. He didn't lose his memories, as expected. Then, he wondered, what was his last memory?

What is the last thing I remember before waking up here?

Just as he started to flip through his memory, he heard a loud clanking noise. His eyes fell upon the door.

That was the door's sound…

A loud click was heard, and the door creaked open. Fukuda gulped, wondered who was it. He hoped it wasn't an Abyssal. He heard some disturbing rumours about some humans who actually became the commanders for the Abyssal force. So, he really hoped he didn't see the rumours to be true.

It was an Englishman, probably around Fukuda's age. Dark brown short hair, hazel eyes, neat appearance, the man was dressed in a plain white shirt and black slacks. Nothing else.

"How are you feeling, Rear Admiral?" the man asked in English, with a hint of Welsh accent. He showed no expression, just a questioning look.

Fukada shrugged, "Feeling fine, just confused. May I ask where am I and who are you?"

"I don't have the liberty to talk about where we are right now, but I can assure you if you follow my instructions, you will be safe. As for who am I, just call me Williams." The man said. "Since you're awake, follow me. I will fill you in later in a suitable place."

Fukuda froze, wondering if he should just trust this man called Williams. He did not know whether this person was a friend or foe.

"Just tell me this, are you with the Abyssal?" Fukuda asked, with a narrowed gaze.

Williams looked at him, and shook his head, "No. Come on, I will give you some food. Just follow me."

It seemed like I have no choice but to follow…

Passing through an empty corridor that had only doors, lamps and black walls in sight, he was soon being led into a room that had only a table and two chairs. There was a black plate at one side of the room, but Fukuda concluded that it might be a one-way window. Fukuda felt a bit uneasy once seeing the room.

"Is this an interrogation room?" Fukuda asked.

"Yes, it is. Don't worry, I will cuff only your left hand and your legs to the chair. You have freedom in eating and drinking." Williams said as he pushed Fukuda onto the chair facing the door.

Fukuda felt the urge to escape, but he did not want to risk his life. He did not know the layout of this place yet, hence escaping from here was almost impossible. Therefore, he just let Williams cuff the parts he mentioned on the chair with plastic cuffs. After checking that the cuffs were secure, Williams took the other seat. He just sat there quietly, without saying anything. Fukuda didn't say anything. He wondered what he should do at this point, whether he should start lying or telling the truth if it was related to the recent event, the one that led him here after a period of unconsciousness.

A period of unconsciousness…

"Williams, can I know how long have I been out cold?" Fukuda asked.

"Just three days." Williams answered quickly.

Fukuda eased himself on the chair. Three days… I wonder if my girls are still fine…

A beep was heard from the door, and it was pushed open. Fukuda raised his head to see who came in. Much to his surprise, it was a tall, imposing woman in the same attire as Williams, just with a pencil skirt instead of a pair of slacks. What were peculiar about her were her red long hair that was styled with a crown braid at the back of her head and similar red eyes.

Without much words, the woman set down a clear plastic plate that had a steaming noodle cup and a cup of white coffee on it.

"I hope you don't mind, Rear Admiral." She said. "It's the fastest thing I could get for you here."

"No, it's okay. Thank you." Fukuda said, his eyes noticing the sword strapped at the side of the woman's skirt. It seemed to be a English two-handed claymore.

The woman just nodded, and moved to the back of the room. Fukuda looked at Williams, and the Englishman just nodded.

"A man can't work with an empty stomach, right?"

"Yeah. Thank you for the food."

Fukuda started to dig into his meal slowly. He had heard news about how a prisoner didn't receive any food for a week just because he didn't cough out any information to the interrogator back during the Gulf War, hence he decided to eat his food slowly to make sure they digest properly in his stomach. No one said anything, as Williams and the woman watched Fukuda dig into his meal. After a minute or so, the woman left the room. Fukuda didn't ask where she went. She reappeared five minutes later, with two cups of hot tea and a folded steel chair. Both of them drank the tea and the folded chair was placed at one corner for the woman.

"I guess the English love tea." Fukuda commented as he took a sip of his coffee.

"Yes, we do. Tea is better than coffee." Williams said.

"So, you're going to interrogate me with force?" Fukuda asked.

"That's only if you're not cooperative enough and we are short of time. Personally, I don't like hitting people." Williams scoffed. "Only idiots will use those as a means to get someone to talk."

At least they are reasonable.

Fukuda thought as he put down his fork and set the empty plate aside. "I believe you can start questioning me about what you want right now."

"Alright, I will get down to business, Rear Admiral. For your record, we know who you are and we are not with the Abyssal. That's for sure. Therefore, we require you to tell us the truth whenever we ask you a question. It might take up some time."

"Sure, go ahead."

"I will confirm with you about your identity first. You're Rear Admiral Nagasawa Fukuda, a 26 years old Japanese from Niigata. You enlisted in the Navy five years ago and distinguished yourself quickly to become a Lieutenant by the time of Attack on Yokosuka Harbour, the flashpoint which led us to a war with the Abyssal. You found yourself serving in the Combined Fleet under the command of Fleet Admiral Isoroku Honjo. After a series of combats, you became a Rear Admiral last year, and since then became the commander of the 5th Torpedo Squadron of 3rd Fleet. Your last mission was to command your squadron to assist in the Battle of Katherine Pass from Sasebo Naval District. Correct me if I'm wrong." Williams said, without even batting an eye.

"You're correct. I'm an admiral, a commander of a squadron of fleet girls."

"Tell me, what's your mission at that battle. That battle was handled by the 1st Fleet, with the 3rd Fleet being the reserve unit. So, did things go horribly to the point your squadron had to be deployed as reinforcement or as a support unit to exploit advantages?"

What should I said at this point? Should I lie?

Fukuda started to shudder. He still haven't reached a conclusion whether to trust them or start lying. He was aware that lying would do him no good if his story wasn't reasonable or didn't match with their intel. He didnt want to make his position worse than it started.

"… To act as support. My squadron, which consisted of 4 destroyers and 2 light cruisers was ordered to escort another squadron that consisted of 2 aircraft carriers, 2 battleships and 2 heavy cruisers to assist the 1st Fleet who asked for support."

"What's the purpose?"

"For flanking the Abyssal. After we breached through the Abyssal line, we reached the bulk of their forces, but parts of the 1st Fleet had to pull back for resupply. Hence, 3rd Fleet was called in as replacement."

"I see. That matches our intel. We are aware that the 1st Fleet was facing difficulties in exploiting the advantages at that point, so part of the 3rd Fleet was deployed."

"So you already knew that?"

"We needed confirmation. It's better to hear it from a person that was there personally." Williams said. "And? The story doesn't end there for all I know."

Fukuda shrugged, "We… The naval base I'm based in was attacked. An air raid if I recall. We suspected that the air raid was deployed from a gap in our defence. Anti-air batteries had put up a resistance, and it just dealt some damage to our base."

"I see, but there was a second one, isn't it?"

"Yes," Fukuda nodded. "You want to know the details?"

"Exactly," Williams said. "That's what we are missing actually."

Fukuda sighed and started to tell Williams about the whole incident.

"How's the 5th Carrier Group and 6th Torpedo Squadron doing right now? We need SITREP."

"They're still engaging the enemy, sir! No casualty(casualties) but reports indicate that it's going to take a while before our fleets can return to the port to reinforce the defence."

Fukuda clicked his teeth upon hearing this. The Rear Admiral was worried about the prospect of another air raid. The port had already taken hits. It was bad, but manageable thanks to the anti-air batteries consisting of SPAAGs and SAMs located at the port. From the busy commanding post he was operating in, he could see smoke pilling up from the port. Some transport ships harboured at the port were still burning, helicopters buzzing about, personnel running there and here to evacuate the wounded and more Type 87 SPAAG vehicles were brought in.

"Seems like the Abyssal got us this time."

"Yes, this is bad."

Admiral Shimizu Heihachiro said as he looked out of the window alongside with Fukuda. The 52 years old full-fledged Admiral seemed old and fragile, with his grey hair and old eyes but still having an imposing appearance. Just like Fukuda, he was wearing the standard white officer uniform.

"Sir, should we really leave the business at Katherine Pass to 1st Fleet? I don't really think there will be a second air raid." Fukuda said.

"The forces that came here was just mere recon, trying to probe our strength. The offensive at Katherine Pass was going well, but it was delayed for some reason." Heihachiro said. "I had a bad feeling about it anyway. It felt like they were buying some time."

"Buying some time for what? Our fleet had intercepted what can be said to be the enemy's reinforcements. So, the enemy shouldn't be able to support the forces pinned down at Katherine Pass." Fukuda said, still remembering the recent report about the detection of an Abyssal fleet sailing to Katherine Pass.

"I don't know. Maybe, maybe not." The old man said. "Anyway, strengthening our defences should be our priority. If there aren't any more attacks, I will just send those girls to support the 1st Fleet."

"It will be hard if they come for a second time." Fukuda said. "Most of our AA sites and land-based fairy-operated aircrafts have been taken out. We even had to deploy personnel armed with AA launchers."

"I know, but we have to do what we can right now."

"… Aye, sir." Fukuda said.

"Sir, report!" one of the radio operator at here shouted. "The 5th Torpedo Squadron have reported that they can't find any signs of the enemy's aircraft carriers. They requested to return to the port and reinforce the defence."

Fukuda shuddered. It meant that the possibility of a second air raid was possible.

"Should I give clearance?" Fukuda asked his superior.

Heihachiro thought for a while, before nodding. "It will be better."

"Yes, sir." Fukuda turned to the radio operator. "Tell them RTB, quick!"

Thirty minutes past, and Fukuda's squadron had returned to the port. Fukuda had just reached the port area when his shipgirls had returned from the recon.

"Yuubari, how's the squadron's condition?"

"Oh, admiral. Just fine."

Fukuda can see that the other girls were safe and sound, unstrapping their ship rig for resupply and a brief maintenance. His squadron's flagship, light cruiser Yuubari, saluted to her admiral followed by the rest who caught up later.

"Thanks goodness all of you are fine." Fukuda sighed in relief.

"Of course we are, you idiot. There was no enemy in sight except for a few stray Abyssal fighters." Akebono, one of his destroyers scoffed. "It's a waste of time. Don't you want us to cover your sorry arse here?"

Fukuda just let out a soft laugh before scanned his girls. His fleet consisted of light cruiser Yuubari, light cruiser Yura, destroyer Akebono, destroyer Oboro, destroyer Shiratsuyu and finally, his favourite, destroyer Shigure. He shrugged once looked into the shy girl.

"Alright, here's the current situation." Fukuda started. "According to Admiral Shimizu, the enemy's goal is possibly to weaken our base to support the 1st Fleet and probably to disrupt our fleet's sortie. However, this had failed since we had deployed earlier than they expected."

Fukuda stopped for a while to catch a breath before continuing, "However, Admiral Shimizu believed that the enemy may launch another air raid to continue burning our base down. We can't let that happened. We had lost much of our AA capabilities to the surprise attack. Hence, this is where all of you come in. Just hold out the enemy's aircrafts if there are, and patrol our perimeter. If possible, engage the enemy's aircraft carriers that was responsible for this attack. Is that okay?"

His girls gave positive answers in unison.

"Alright, after resupplying and a short rest, start sorting out. That's all."

All of his girls went back to work after giving off a salute, except for Shigure who still standing at her position. Fukuda just stood there without much words.

"Anything, Shigure?"

"Er… Nothing. Just… will Admiral be safe?" Shigure looked up at the admiral, a worried look drawn across her face.

Fukuda tried to pull off a confident smile at her. Reaching for the shy girl, Fukuda patted Shigure's head.

"Don't worry, I won't die that easily. Just be at ease, help everyone and stay alive."

Shigure just nodded, with a faint smile.

—Then, sirens started to wail.

"All hands, enemy contacts! Multiple bogies coming from the north! All hands, prepare for AA combat!" the base's PA system blasted off following the sirens.

"They're here…"

"Shigure!" Fukuda turned his head to Shigure who looked at him with the same worried look. "Don't worry about me. Join up with the rest. I will head back to the command post."

"Admiral, be careful!"

"I will! Just get out there and join the defence!"

Fukuda started to run back to the command post. The sounds of the 35mm cannons of the Type 87 echoed through the air, followed by the zipping sounds of Abyssal aircrafts flying by. Fukuda looked up, and it was a clear mess. Tracers flew up like spotlights and black dots coming down like hawks. Explosions soon followed on and the ground shook. Fukuda just kept running, preparing for the worst.

Fuck this, I can't just die right now.

—Just at that moment, an explosion happened near him.

Despite not close to get burned by the exploding bomb, the shockwave threw him away. He crashed onto the ground after flying ten metres away. Groaning, his whole body ached followed with a wave of disorientation.

Dammit… Get up, Fukuda, you know you have to stay alive. You promised Shigure…

Fukuda tried to get up on his feet as confusion filled the air. Somehow, the bombing intensified and unmistakably, the sound of jet engines' roars screamed through the sky. He managed to get up after a few seconds of trying, and he looked up weakly.

What the fuck?

Instead of seeing the land-based fairy-operated aircrafts fending off Abyssal aircrafts, he could see several grey coloured F15 Eagle jet fighters flew by as they tailed something that looked like futuristic black aircrafts. Missiles zipped through the sky as they danced around in the sky, leaving Fukuda stared at the sky confusedly.

What are those aircrafts? Abyssal?

He had heard about Abyssal utilising real bombers to attack ground-based facilities alongside with some heavy coastal cannons that could blast off an island off and news about dangerous Abyssal beings that reign on land with their dangerous cannons. However, the usage of real aircrafts by Abyssal forces to counter humans' real aircrafts was unheard of. Only when Fukuda noticed that the combat up on the sky grew closer to ground, he quickly legged back to safety.

—Then, explosion.

This time, it hit a building near Fukuda and the shockwave knocked dusts and rubbles everywhere. In the confusion, Fukuda fell onto the ground, and blacken out.

"… That's what I encountered. I don't know what happened next." Fukuda shrugged.

Williams just sat there, calmly sipping his tea as he listened to Fukuda silently along with the red-haired woman.

"So…" Williams said as he set his empty cup down. "Can you describe what the aircrafts look like?"

"First, can you tell me whether my girls are alright?" Fukuda pleaded. "If you picked me up from there, you should have news about them."

Williams remained silence for a while before saying, "Do you remember anything else?"

"Tell me about my girls first." Fukuda growled. "I told you already, that's all I remember up to this point."

Williams looked straight into his eyes, and sighed. "Just tell me this, you remember anything related to the ground?"

Fukuda wanted to press forward, but his instinct told him that Williams will not bug out of his questions. Feeling lost, Fukuda calmed himself down as he clenched his fists.

Anything else? I just blacked out and that's all.

"… There is."

"Hmh?"

"But it's fuzzy." Fukuda said. "Promise me, tell me how you pick me up and where's my girls after I tell you this."

"Sure, that was my plan anyway."

Fucking arsehole.

Fukuda groaned before started to speak. "I caught a glimpse. Blurry, feeling pressed, but I think I saw black figures and hear gunfire. Not sure why, neither I know what exactly happened when I was blown away. However, I think maybe Abyssal started to crawl into the port and the people at the base opened fire. Maybe. Just that, it was just a glimpse before I passed out."

Williams just nodded, hummed a while before saying, "Thanks for that information. I wanted to ask you about that last unanswered question of mine but I will fulfill my promise first."

Williams cleared his throat before started to speak. "I'm afraid I don't know about your girls' status. We've lost comms with Sasebo Naval District after that attack. That air raid was a large-scale, a deliberate annihilation."

Fukuda's eyes widened.

"Are you serious?"

"We actually picked you up from an ambushed convoy. You was in a medical truck, lying flat with wounds. Most had died, and you was just barely alive. Before we could even pry further into the destroyed naval base itself, we have to retreat after encountering… Abyssal ground units. That's all I know."

Fukuda shuddered. He was lost in words.

"Sir Williams, if I may speak."

The woman suddenly spoke.

"Granted." Williams said.

"We shall end the questioning here." The woman said. "He's in shock."

Williams took another glance of Fukuda before sighing. "True. I didn't want to give him a shock. Admiral Nagasawa, we will end the questioning here for now. I will ask you about the other details on a later date."

Fukuda's mind was still running wild. He was scared, and worried about his girls, especially Shigure whom he viewed as an important person, even like a lover. The red-haired woman dragged him along to lead him back to his cell. The whole journey was quiet, without any much words except for the sound of their footsteps.

"We're here." The woman said as she unlocked the door.

Fukuda just nodded without much words as he stepped in. His heart clenched.

I really wanted to rush out there now… to find the others…

"Rear Admiral."

Suddenly, the woman called him. Fukuda turned his head with a quizzical look.

"Anything?"

"About the shipgirls you mentioned, I think they're alive."

Fukuda's eyes widened. "Really? But I heard—"

"We picked up their emergency beacons. They were on land, and it's possible to recover them. I will inform you if I receive news about them."

"… Thank you." Fukuda said. "Do you have any reason for doing this?"

"Not really. I understand your feelings. The feeling of fearing that your comrades are going to disappear just like that."

Before Fukuda could continue their conservation further, the door was shut tight. A loud clang followed on, leaving Fukuda alone in the cell.

"Did you really need to tell him about that?"

The woman turned her head and found Williams frowned at her. The woman, maintained an expressionless face, walked away. Williams followed on.

"I just told him that for the ease of questioning, sir."

"I didn't want to get that kid's hopes high, Monarch. If we can't recover those girls, he will be fucked for his entire life."

The woman, Monarch, shrugged, "Anyway, do we have news from Crossroads?"

"Operation Jefutty Garden is on the way. We will get news soon."

Monarch didn't say anything, leaving Williams sighing at the back.

"Sir," Monarch suddenly speak out as they neared the exit of the interrogation area. "When is my fleet ready to go?"

"Eager to sortie?" Williams grinned.

"I want to sink those bastards, sir." Monarch said coldly. "Telling a battleship to miss a battle is like telling her to just sit down and enjoy tea for the rest of its life. The rest will not take it well either."

Williams just laughed. "Don't worry, I heard that your fleet will be seeing action soon. Send my regards to Victorious and the rest."

"I will."

Monarch continued walking, leaving Williams smiling at the prideful woman.

"Guess things really hitting the fan…"

[A/N] : Alright, this is the end of the first chapter of this story. This is actually a story that I been forming up in my mind since years ago but not able to make it sensible. I'm actually surprised to be able to write this chapter immidiately in a go. I done a draft that is entirely different from this actually, but it felt strange in my mind. So, this one came. Anyway thanks for reading and hope you enjoyed this chapter. If there's any mistakes or errors in this chapter or any questions, please feel to bring them up in the review. Much appreciated.