Disclaimer: I do not own any rights to the Muv-Luv series. This is merely a fanfiction.
Author Note: I'm not familiar with ALL the versions of Muv-Luv, nor the complete time line (there's not much info past the year 2004), so if I get a few things wrong please forgive me.
MUV-LUV ALTERNATIVE: THE SECOND BETA OFFENCIVE
Chapter 1: 9.0 Disaster
Friday, March 11th 2011. It's a calm, partly cloudy, yet cold late morning aboard the USS Harry S. Truman that's cruising about 30 miles off the coast of Japan's northern region of Honshu. Despite the calmness there's still a war raging on. And despite the several victories against the dreaded BETA in Europe, east Siberia, and the destruction of a main hive in East China, the BETA are still heavily defending areas they've already taken, or worse, have made advancements in others. One area they've held onto despite numerous attacks to retake it is Japan.
The southern half of Japan has been in BETA "hands" since 1998. And despite the best efforts of the Imperial Guard, the UN, and US forces, the BETA still hold all the territory they took back then despite suffering massive losses. Mysteriously, after suffering so many attacks and losses the BETA always seem to have more in reserve as reinforcements. Whether the BETA are just hiding their true numbers that are much higher than predicted, or just clever troop shifting to make it seem that way, no one really knows.
It's almost lunch time as the "Truman" reaches the northern leg of its Naval maneuvering exercises and begins its 180* turn back southward. It's at this time when young 19 year old, brown eyed, brown haired, newly promoted Lieutenant Dennis Emory George Washington (call sign and nickname "General") heads into the Mess Deck. A chill runs down his body as the coldness from outside seeps into the ship from just about everywhere. Dennis never really much liked the cold even though he comes from Western North Carolina in the Appalachians. At least today's lunch menu is a nice hot meal.
As Dennis grabs his tray, another young man comes up behind and wraps his arm around the new Lieutenant's neck causing him to yelp in surprise. "And how's the new Lieutenant doing today!?" says the young man with a wide grin. Dennis looks and sees his best friend and wingmate Lieutenant JG (JG = Junior Grade) John Howard Pillar (call sign "Rock"). The blond haired, green eyed, 19 year old from a small town in southern Oklahoma has been with Dennis ever since flight training nearly two years ago. Dennis breaks free of the neck lock and moves down the lunch line to get his food, not giving an answer.
"Aw come on partner, don't be like that. You deserve the promotion for saving her." says John in his south western American accent (think cowboy accent). Dennis gets a little annoyed. "You know very well I don't. It was just sheer coincidence that I happened to come upon that eight year old girl that had gotten swept out to sea nearly four days before during combat exercises." says Dennis. "True, but the Navy couldn't have asked for a better introduction of America's first new F-35 TSF squadron to the Japanese public. After all with all the delays and controversy, many people, including the Japanese, thought this new TSF was unnecessary." says John with another smirk.
Again Dennis has an annoyed look. As he receives his food, a small sirloin steak and mash potatoes with carrots, he speaks back up. "This whole thing is just blown completely out of proportion. I can understand getting a commendation for the rescue, but a promotion seems a little much in my opinion." he says as he picks up his tray to head for a table. John picks up his tray with roast chicken, collard greens, and okra and follows behind. "Well can you blame them? I mean how else was the Navy going to show off rewarding the pilot who 'heroically saved' a young girl from being lost at sea forever, to the Japanese?" says John as they both sit down.
"So you admit it was just a publicity stunt to show off to the Japanese. Geez you know as well as I do that I don't have the experience nor the training yet to command in a squadron or battle." complains Dennis. John takes a large bite of chicken. "Maybe, but you need to relax a little. The last time the Navy saw any action in Japan was in the battle four years ago when our 'beloved' Commander Wheeler was just a new Lieutenant JG. The BETA haven't even budged or caused any serious trouble since then. I doubt they'll be causing any trouble anytime soon. I bet you'll have plenty of time to get some experience and training to get some good leadership skills." explains John as he eats some more of his chicken.
Dennis looks down at his untouched food and is reminded of an old fighter pilots' adage. "Enjoy every meal like it was your very last. For at anytime it may very well be." "You know as well as I do that a battle could break out at any time. My lack of experience and leadership could very well get people killed. I'm not prepared to have that happen. I'm going to go talk with Cmdr Wheeler to have me taken off the combat exercise roster for the next few months so I can learn how to command. I need to know how to lead before I can lead." says Dennis.
John just looks at him in a little disbelief while munching on some okra. "Dude come on. Isn't that a little drastic?" he says. "It's better I do it now than wait to regret it later when battle does eventually come. The more time I waste waiting the less likely we'll be able to fight in battle properly." answers Dennis. There's a moment of silence between the two before John speaks back up. "Well I'm sure if anyone can lead us into battle it's you General." Dennis grunts. "Please don't call me that. I know my parents named me after our first president, and I don't mind it as a call-sign, but I hate it as a nick-name you guys have given me." complains Dennis.
"Is that an order sir?" asks John a little sarcastically as he eats the last morsel of food on his tray. Dennis lets out a small sigh. "If you need it to be to stop then consider it one." says Dennis. John stands up. "Yes sir!" he says as his gives a mock salute with a big mocking grin. He then picks up his empty tray and walks off. Dennis looks down at his still untouched food; now having grown cold. He lets out another sigh. So much for having a nice hot, warming lunch. He won't "enjoy" this meal much.
As 1:30 pm (13:30 hours military time) rolls around, Dennis heads down into the hanger deck of the Truman. After a few minutes of looking around he finally spots who he's looking for. Commander Bruce Roy Wheeler (call-sign "Bronco"). Next to him is his wingman Lieutenant JG Samuel "Sammy" Curtis Williams (call-sign "Target" or "Tar" for short). Both men are standing next to Cmdr Wheeler's F-35C TSF with its left engine having just gotten through being taken apart for maintenance and is just now being put back together. Cmdr Wheeler's F-35 is one of only 2 C Models in the squadron. Dennis of course has the only other one. The C models, having only just been put into service, still seem to have a few bugs to be worked out. But the need for these new Stealth TSFs is in high demand because of their stealth advantage. And even now the Military needs all the advantages it can get against the BETA.
Dennis approaches Cmdr Wheeler. Wheeler sees him coming and ends his conversation with Sammy. Dennis comes to attention and gives Cmdr Wheeler a salute. Cmdr wheeler gives him a salute back. "Sir! May I speak with you for a moment?" asks Dennis with a serious look. "Of course Lieutenant. Just give me a moment." answers Cmdr Wheeler. Cmdr Wheeler says something to Sammy about finishing up the maintenance and then points over to the side of the hanger bay at Dennis. The two head over to the side of the hanger bay.
"So Washington, what is it you need to ask of me? You seem to have a serious look." asks Cmdr Wheeler. Dennis stands at attention. "Sir! I request to be removed from the combat exercises roster for the next few months." says Dennis. Cmdr Wheeler is a little shocked by this request. "At ease Lieutenant. Why do you want to be removed from the combat training roster? You're one of our top pilots so this is a surprising request." asks Cmdr Wheeler. "Permission to speak freely sir?" asks Dennis. "Granted." responds Cmdr Wheeler.
"Sir. You know as well as I do that my promotion was just a publicity stunt to impress the Japanese after I saved that little girl. You and I both know that it was too premature for me to have been promoted. I have no training in combat command and control and have had no combat experience what-so-ever. To have been thrust into the second in command position of the squadron like this I think was a mistake that could be very costly. I am requesting that I be taken off the combat training roster so I can go be trained properly in a command role." explains Dennis.
"Hmm." contemplates Cmdr Wheeler for a moment. "I know how you feel Lieutenant. But remember there have been many junior officers that have been thrust into the leadership role before they're ready during war time throughout history." explains Cmdr Wheeler. "Yes sir, but history has also shown that most of them failed after taking command precisely because they were not ready. And the few that did succeed either had the sheer raw talent for it, or the enemy they were fighting made some very stupid mistakes." he explains.
"I, sir, do not have sheer raw talent for it and the BETA make few if any mistakes. Also it's been years since the US NAVY has been in serious combat with the BETA in the Japan region. I may be a great pilot, but I have no leadership training. I see no reason to have to thrust a junior officer like me into battle when there's no battle to be thrust into and when there seems to be time to properly train me for combat command." explains Dennis.
"I think you're selling yourself short Lieutenant. And there's no better training than real life battle experience. You'd be surprised at how quickly you can adapt and improve under high stress situations like battle. I should know." explains Cmdr Wheeler. "I understand sir. But getting the proper training for those kinds of situations can improve survivability and improve the chances of victory. And right now sir any military needs every chance at improving survivability and victory possibilities against the BETA. We can't rely on instinct and heightened abilities during combat alone. If we have time to properly train junior officers to become better leaders when need be, we should take it." retorts Dennis.
Cmdr Wheeler lets out a loud sigh. Dennis has a point and it's true that every military around the world needs every bit of advantage it can get against the BETA. The US Navy is no different. Cmdr Wheeler stands there for a moment before responding. "Okay Lieutenant. I see your point. I'll need to have a talk with the captain about this before you can be officially taken off the roster and put into command training." he looks at his watch that says 1:40 pm (13:40 hours in military time). "Report to the Captain's waiting room in one hour at 14:40 hours (2:40 pm) and we will tell you our decision." orders Cmdr Wheeler. "Yes sir!" Dennis responds by standing at attention and saluting. Cmdr Wheeler returns the salute and the two men go their separate ways.
After an agonizing hour long wait, Dennis is now outside of the Captain's waiting room just behind the bridge. He lets out a small sigh of nervousness and lightly taps the door. "Sir! Lieutenant Dennis Emory George Washington reporting as ordered sir!" he calls out. "Come in Lieutenant" comes the response from the Captain. Dennis enters the Captain's waiting room, closes the door behind him and then stands at attention in front of the two men. Captain Douglas Archibald Michael Harrison is sitting behind his deck with many papers across it all in neat little stacks. Cmdr Wheeler is sitting on a brown fo-leather couch on the right side of the room. "Have a seat please Lieutenant Washington." says Captain Harrison as he motions to the chair in from of his desk. "Sir!" responds Dennis as he salutes. He then takes a seat in the chair.
Sitting at his desk you would never know that Captain Harrison was 5 inches with a very physically fit physique. His thinning retreating hairline and conservative round glasses also hide it well. Despite only being 52, the life of a wartime officer has put several more years to his look. He almost looks like a 70 year old grandfather to everyone. Dennis glances over to Cmdr Wheeler. The 6ft even commander Also looks a little older than he really is. Despite only being 28 years old he almost looks 40. Though his strong looking jaw-line and neatly combed over brown hair do tend to make him look a little older anyway. "War can sure age a person dramatically." thinks Dennis to himself. In any military service you either look too old if you're a surviving veteran, or too young if you're a novice. At 5ft 10 inches Dennis feels so small compared to these two battle hardened veterans.
"So Lieutenant Washington, Cmdr Wheeler tells me you want to be taken off the combat training exercises roster to be sent off for command training." says Captain Harrison, snapping Dennis back to the matter at hand. "Yes sir." Dennis responds. "Cmdr Wheeler told me what you told him and I agree with you on some points such as every military needs good trained officers when they can get them. I however do NOT agree to you saying that you have no leadership talent. I had a chance to look over your records and found several occasions during your flight training where you were put in charge of your flight group and excelled at it. So I don't really understand why you want to go be 'properly trained' for command. Please explain. And note you can speak freely." says Captain Harrison
"Sir. To be frank, everyone in my group had a chance to lead during training exercises at one point or another. And we all did a respectable job of it. But leading a simple training exercise is far different from leading an actual squadron into heated combat. I may have done an okay job of leading a few training exercises. But that's not going to cut it in actual combat. If I'm going to hold the rank of Lieutenant and be second in command of this squadron then I NEED this training. Besides Lieutenant JG Williams has more command like experience than I do since he's been Cmdr Wheeler's wingman ever since even before I came aboard. I'm sure he would make a good second in command while I'm away sir." explains Dennis back.
Captain Harrison stays silent for a brief moment. "I do admire an airman who puts the safety of his own men above his own. And I see with this request this is what you're trying to do. I do agree with you that your promotion was premature and was something of a 'publicity stunt,' but I had my orders to promote you from my higher ups. You are right to request proper command training before something like this turns disastrous. And while I am of the opinion that you have the talent to lead, I cannot have a man who doubts himself to lead in combat. If this training will at least give you confidence to lead in battle then so be it. That is why Cmdr Wheeler and I have come to the same conclusion you have. We have decided to gra-"
Suddenly the ships alarm goes off interrupting Captain Harrison mid sentence! "General Quarters! General Quarters! All hands man your battle stations! This is not a drill! Repeat! All hands man your battle stations! This is not a drill!" comes an order from the ship's commander over the intercom. The three men in the Captain's waiting room instantly jump up from their seats and start heading for the bridge. Dennis happens to glace at the clock on the wall above the captain's desk. It reads 2:47pm (14:47 military time).
It only takes seconds for the three men to get to the bridge. The bridge is hectic with officers and seaman running back and forth all over the place. "REPORT!" shouts Captain Harrison as he runs over to Commander Dan William Carter. "Sir! Sonar is picking up a big disturbance on the seafloor about 45 miles off the Japan coastline." says Cmdr Carter. "What kind of disturbance?" asks Captain Harrison. The ensign monitoring the sonar station speaks up. "It appears to be an earthquake sir. A very large one at that. A Mega-thrust kind by the way it sounds. And it's continuing to intensify. It's already over 7.8…. make that over 8.0 now and still getting worse." explains the ensign.
Captain Harrison quickly turns to the communications officer. "Get on the horn to the Japanese government and military and have them stand-by to receive a possible large Tsunami alert from us!" he barks the order. "Yes sir!" says the communications officer as she quickly turns to her equipment. He then turns to Cmdr Wheeler and Lieutenant Dennis. "You two! Get the squadrons ready and together in the Pilot's Mission briefing room. Have them stand by in case we're needed for rescue operations." he orders. "Yes Sir!" comes the simultaneous attention and salutes.
"What the…. Sir!" shouts the sonar officer. Captain Harrison and other two look back at him. "What is it ensign?" asks the captain. "I'm picking up something else. Something that doesn't belong in the sound pattern of an underwater earthquake. Give me a moment." says the ensign as he begins to listen harder into his headphones. Then something dawns on him. "No…. It couldn't be." he mumbles. He quickly types on his computer and within seconds, pictures and underwater sound profiles of several BETA variants pops up on his screen. The captain and the two pilots' faces drain of color. The computer matches up sound profiles with the sounds coming from underwater right now. They match up with several types. "C-Confirmed! Presents of several types of BETA confirmed coming from the epicenter of the earthquake! Matches belong to Tank, Grappler, Destroyer and…. Fort classes confirmed!" shouts the ensign.
"My God… are you telling me that the BETA may be responsible for starting this earthquake?" asks Captain Harrison. "The way it's looking that looks to be what's happened sir. Hang on a moment." says the ensign again as he listens into his headphones again. "Earthquake now up to 9.0!... Confirmation of a large Tsunami detected underwater! And it appears the BETA are being dragged right behind it!" explains the ensign. It finally dawns on everyone what the BETA are doing. "My God. This isn't just some natural disaster they've released on us. This is a full scale amphibious invasion of Northern Japan using an earthquake and Tsunami as their heavy bombardment before landing! THOSE BASTARDS!" the captain shouts.
"This wouldn't be the first time they've used a natural disaster to their advantage. Remember when they used that Typhoon to help cover their invasion of Japan? We couldn't use our full military force and we couldn't evacuate many citizens. 36 million people were dead within a week." says Cmdr Carter. "Yes but that number's going to be dwarfed! There are practically no defenses on the north eastern shores of Japan! All of it's to the south near the main BETA territory line or on the western coast of Japan in case they try to invade from China or Korea again! Damn them! I hate to say it but it's a brilliant flanking maneuver! And the earthquake and tsunami are going to knock out communications all over this area so many won't see them coming until it's too late! It'll be an absolute slaughter." says Captain Harrison.
"We have a more pressing matter sir." says the ensign. We're right in the Tsunami and BETA's path. ETA till they arrive is about 17 minutes." he finishes. "What are we going to do sir?" asks a random seaman. Captain Harrison bites his thumbnail for a second as he quickly makes up his mind. "Only thing we can do." he turns to Cmdr Wheeler and Lieutenant Dennis again. "I'm ordering all TSF squadrons to launch immediately! Get to your TSFs and scramble to the Japan coast to defend what you can. We have to at least try and slow the BETA down." he orders. "Yes sir!" comes the double attention and salutes. Both Cmdr Wheeler and Lieutenant Dennis run out of the bridge.
"Sir! It'll take us at least 30 minutes to launch all our TSFs. The tsunami and BETA will be here in 17. We won't be able to get them all launched in time." says the Air traffic control officer. "Then we'll launch as many as we possibly can before they get here." responds Captain Harrison. Captain Harrison then turns back to the communication's officer. "Tell the Japanese Military to scramble whatever they can to their north eastern shores! Tell them we've detected BETA coming in behind the Tsunami and that we'll launch whatever we can to help hold them off." he orders. "I already have sir." answers the communication's officer. The captain gives a smile. "Good girl." he says.
It only takes moments for Cmdr Wheeler and Dennis to get to the Pilots' Changing room where pilots from all across the ship are running in, in regular clothes and running out in their skin tight flight suits. Just as Dennis is getting his right leg into his suit, two distinct shutters go through the ship with a muffled roar of jet engines. When you've been on a carrier even as long as Dennis has you can instantly tell what kind of craft has just been launched. "Sounds like they're already getting some of the Super Hornets launched. 1 minute 8 seconds since the captain gave the order. That's got to be a new record." says Cmdr Wheeler as he glances at his watch.
The F-18 Super Hornet is still mainstay TSF of the US Navy, having fully taken over the roll since the F-14 Super Tomcats were retired from service in 2006. While the F-18s are starting to show their age a little they are still the most formidable Naval TSFs of any Navy, after the new F-35s now that is. Just as Cmdr Wheeler and Dennis zip up their flight suits, two more shutters go through the ship; one of them different than the other. One of the F-35s just launched. "That would more than likely be Sammy's. He was the closest to the pilot changing room." says Cmdr Wheeler.
Cmdr Wheeler and Dennis both run out of the changing room together and down the corridor to the hanger. There's a fork at the end, left leads to the hanger bay while right leads to a stairwell that goes several decks down. Just as the two reach it they nearly run into six of the members of the F-35 squadron and several more of the F-18 squadrons'. "Harper! Jones! Smith! Coleman! Boyd! Parson! And the rest of you! Where the hell have you been!?" shouts Cmdr Wheeler. "Sorry sir. We were in the recreation room watching Coleman's college basketball team's game. It took us a while to get here because of all the people running around." says Harper as he gives a quick salute. Cmdr Wheeler gets an irritated look on his face. "Well hurry up and get changed and get to your TSFs! We're under emergency scramble orders!" barks Cmdr Wheeler. "YES SIR!" comes the unanimous response from all the other pilots.
Cmdr Wheeler and Dennis both start running back to the hanger and just as they enter it four more shutters rumble through the ship. Another F-35 and three more F-18s. "Sounds like they're now using all four launching catapults." says Dennis. Just as Dennis reaches his F-35 he hears someone call out to him. "About time ya got here! I was beginning to think I would have ta launch without ya!" calls out John. Hudson looks over and sees his wingmate already in his TSF and preparing for emergency start up. John's cockpit closes and Dennis sees another F-35 go up the port elevator. Dennis enters his cockpit and gets help strapping himself in by the maintenance crew. A moment later they leave and his cockpit closes and just a second later John's image appears on his screen.
"I wouldn't dream of letting you take on the BETA all by yourself John. I was with the captain, remember. I had to run here all the way from the bridge. I take it 'Duke' and 'Claw' have already launched?" asks Dennis. "'Target' and 'Claw' already launched and that was 'Duke' just going up the elevator. Best we join them. I hope we can get up there in time through this rush." says John.
"Duke" call-sign of Lieutenant JG Crystal "Chris" Margret Abernathy is the squadron's only female pilot. She's a redheaded, rough and tumble, yet voluptuous tomboy whose boyish, yet hard personality, made her seem like John Wayne in his movies, thus her "unfeminine" call-sign of "Duke." Thanks to her beauty though, she's the candy of most of the male crew's eyes. And "Claw," call-sign of Roberto Miguel Apostol, from Spain and John's bunkmate, is here from the Spanish Navy to be a part of the F-35 test group from the European Union who is supposed to receive the TSF later in the year.
Cmdr Wheeler's face appears. "Cut the chatter and get to the elevators! ETA to the Tsunami and BETA hits is two and a half minutes!" he says. "But sir my XWS-116 hasn't been loaded yet!" says John. "NOW ROCK! We're under emergency scramble orders! That means we launch as is! NOW MOVIE IT!" shouts Cmdr Wheeler. "Yes Sir!" responds John. John has already started up his F-35 and has it walk over to the closest elevator on the starboard side. Dennis starts up his F-35 and follows close after to the second starboard elevator. The head mechanic appears on Cmdr Wheeler's screen as they head up. "Please be careful with your left engine. We had to the rush the last few steps of re-assembly and we haven't had time to test it. So take it easy until you know the engine is performing properly. If you think it's not working right, shut it down." he says. "Thanks for the advice. I'll be careful" responds Cmdr Wheeler.
Cmdr Wheeler starts his F-35 and walks it over to the second port elevator. Just as the elevator starts going up he notices another pilot just getting into his F-18 and the others from earlier just starting to come out into the hanger. As he reaches the flight deck he sees both Dennis and John already locked in and ready to launch by the two front deck catapults and Chris already locked and loaded on the right port side catapult. Cmdr Wheeler walks over and locks into the left port side catapult. "Captain, four members of Spear Squadron ready for take off!" says Cmdr Wheeler. For the brief moment before the captain orders them to launch, Dennis thinks about their squadron name, "Spear." One of the most used and deadly weapons ever used by man in his early wars. It was usually one of the first weapons to be used when battle started and could cause horrific wounds and death. A perfect name for the Navy's first ever F-35 squadron.
"We got 40 seconds until that Tsunami reaches us. Happy hunting out there. LAUNCH 'EM!" orders Captain Harrison. Dennis is fired off fist, followed a couple of seconds later by John. Then the port side catapults let lose. First Chris and then followed a couple of seconds later by Cmdr Wheeler. As he recovers quickly from the several G's pulled by the launch, Dennis looks out his view screen to his right and sees what looks like a large, long, slightly curved line in the ocean baring down on the Truman at an incredible speed. It takes him a moment to realize what he's looking at. "Good God! That Tsunami's HUGE! Spear two to Truman. That Tsunami is just about on you. Brace now!" he calls out. "Thank you Spear two. We were just about to." comes the obvious answer. The F-18 Cmdr Wheeler saw just getting its pilot has made its way onto the flight deck and quickly locks itself into the front launching hooks in record time and kneels.
The Truman, now having turned into the Tsunami, crashes headlong into the large wall of water. The massive wall of water is about nine meters tall at this point. The Truman pitches upward as the massive wave crashes around its hull. But the Truman is a tough old ship; built to withstand waves twice this big for hours on end through a Typhoon. It only takes a few seconds for the speeding wave to pass by and allow the Truman to settle back down on the ocean surface. It takes about 20 seconds for the pitching to settle down. Everyone on the bridge comes out of their bracing positions. "Well that was quite the ride. Ok people let's see how many more fighters we can launch." says Captain Harrison.
"SIR! WE'VE GOT A MAJOR PROBLEM!" shouts the sonar officer. But before Captain Harrison can ask, a massive shutter shakes the Truman hard knocking everyone off their feet and then a large explosion from the flight deck send debris scattering everywhere and into the superstructure. "What the hell was that!?" shouts Cmdr Carter. Captain Harrison is the first to look out the window. What he sees horrifies him. The F-18 that had been on the catapult waiting to be launched is now a fiery wreck on the flight deck. And standing right where it was is the swaying, long purple tail with a red stinger of a Fort Class BETA. The tail has punched its way completely through the Truman from keel to flight deck.
Before anyone can react, the Fort Class' ten massive long legs erupt out of the water like tall towers suddenly pushing up from the water. A moment later the long, large legs bend over and grab a hold of the Truman's bow. The several hundred ton BETA's sudden added weight causes the Truman to pitch forward; so much so that its stern lifts out of the water exposing its massive propellers and rudders. However the sheer weight of the Truman gradually brings the ship back, relatively, level and its propellers and rudders back into the water. The massive pitching has thrown everyone around on the bridge.
Captain Harrison slowly stands back up shaking out the ringing in his head. He looks out the window again to see the Truman still pitching heavily forward with the Fort BETA still holding on tightly. He then turns to the weapons control officer who is still holding onto his console for dear life. "DON'T JUST SIT THEIR YOU IDIOT! SHOOT THAT DAMN THING OFF MY SHIP!" shouts Captain Harrison at the top of his lungs angrily. The weapons control officer snaps back at the sudden yelling. "Y-Yes sir!" he responds. He quickly taps on his key board and then takes control of two joysticks in front of him.
In seconds the Truman's two forward 36mm Vulcan cannons come to life and turn towards the Fort BETA. The one on the starboard side in front of the bridge opens fire on the Fort's tail while the port side one opens up on its right legs. The armor piercing rounds from the starboard Vulcan rips into the Fort's tail. There's a loud moaning roar from underwater. "HA! You like you poor bastard!? Now let go of my ship!" shouts Captain Harrison. The tail suddenly whips around out of the gun fire and then whips strait towards the starboard Vulcan. The tail crashed right into it smashing it to pieces, but the tail doesn't stop. It's heads right towards the ship's superstructure and right at the bridge.
"Ah hell…." is the last thing Captain Harrison says. The tail crashes right into the bridge and smashes it flat; gruesomely crushing, or impaling, everyone on the bridge, including Captain Harrison. But the tail keeps going and slices its way completely though the superstructure. The top half, including part of the bridge, tips over the starboard side and splashes into the ocean. The tail then whips around and smashes the port side Vulcan. The fort's tail finally gets retracted into the hole it had made. And just when you think it can't get any worse, the Fort BETA begins to pull itself onto the Truman's flight deck.
The ship moans and groans in protest as the massive several hundred ton beast pulls itself up and over the bow of the ship; bending and stressing, and shaking the ship in ways she was never meant to be. But somehow the Truman doesn't give in and the Fort BETA manages to stand on the flight deck despite the massive shaking it's causing. Then, despite all the damages she and her crew have taken, the two stern Vulcan canons come alive and begin firing on the Fort BETA. The crew have managed to get to the secondary control room and activate what's left of the Truman's defenses. Whatever happens the crew knows they'll have gone down fighting till the very end.
The armor piercing rounds harmlessly bounce off the Fort BETA's super tough legs, but some of the rounds managed to pepper into its soft underbelly and "head." The Fort BETA rears back on eight of its legs while giving a loud moan and then slams its two front legs back down. The two front legs pierce strait into the ship and all the way through out its keel. The two Vulcan cannons stop firing as most of the Truman's power cables get cut. But one of the Fort BETA's legs pierces the forward catapult's stream boiler. The boiler had already been fully re-pressurized, ready to launch more TSFs with superheated steam. The boiler subsequently explodes in a massive blast causing the ship to heave up and then back down. The explosion rips out through the flight deck sending large chunks of flight deck and steal shredding into the Fort BETA's belly and head.
The Fort BETA lets out a soft but long mournful sounding moan and then collapses dead onto the flight deck. One last death blow from the Truman herself before she dies. The Fort BETA lands mostly on the port side of the ship. Its massive weight plus all the water flooding into the ship causes her to start listing heavily to port. Gravity quickly takes over and the Fort BETA slides off the port side of the ship. However one of its legs is still stabbed into the ship and the sudden yank of weight causes the Truman to capsize. The Fort BETA's leg dislodges and then it sinks to the ocean floor. The Truman quickly pitches backwards and quickly begins to sink by her stern upside down. Within moments the once proud ship slips beneath the ocean surface with all hands. The surviving crew choosing to drown rather than be eaten alive by BETA should they escape to the surface. All this happens in less than five minutes.
Five miles away the F-35s and F-18s that managed to get off the ship form up when they suddenly loose all contact with the Truman. After a brief moment Sammy speaks up and says something that everyone already knows. "Sir…. We've just lost the Truman."
End of Chapter 1!
To be continued in Chapter 2: Wave upon Wave.
Author Note: Well I'm back with a new story. This time from the world of Muv-Luv. Please note that I have only watched the anime and haven't played any of the games or read the manga. I'm also getting some more info from the Muv-Luv Wiki site. If I get or am getting some things wrong please forgive me ok. Just enjoy the story. As for my Stelliva and Lucky Star fanfics that I've been ignore for almost 2 years now please note I will eventually get back to them. I just don't know when. Could be next week, or next year. I'll write them when I feel like it. And yes I am basing this story on the March 11th 2011 earthquake in Japan. Please note I have not done this to offend anyone, if this story does offend someone because of the disaster then please forgive me and just ignore the story.
Chapter 2 preview: The US Navy has just lost one of its super carriers and the BETA are moving quickly with an unexpected flanking maneuver. Can rookie pilot Lieutenant Washington handle being suddenly thrust into battle and can he do what he's been dreading to when the time comes? Can he actually lead? He'd better learn quickly. See you next Chapter!