Notes:
Yamato Class Battleship – in the muv luv universe, these massive battleships survived world war two and some of them were refit to modern standards in the advent of an alien threat known as BETA. The Nagato, the ship this story will be following, is one such ship.
Sea-Hawk Helicopter – the Muv Luv equivalent of the real life Sea King helicopters.
Sea-sparrow missiles – Anti-air missiles designed to be launched from ships. Note: the real life sea-sparrow missiles could not be fit onto battleships; attempts to do so with the US Iowa class battleships found that the missile system could not sustain the strain of a battleship's turrets firing.
CIWS - "Close In Weapon System", it is a ship's point defence weapon designed for shooting down enemy missiles and aircraft at close range.
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Prologue
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1998 - Sadogashima
The sounds of fire continued to rage. The sounds of panic, desperation and death easily distinguished themselves through the limitations of electronic communications as the battle for Sado Island – or also known as Sadogashima – raged on.
For Captain Hitsumiro Noyuki, Captain of the Imperial Japanese Yamato-Class Battleship Nagato, it was a particularly painful situation. Being a native of Sadogashima, seeing his home being overrun by the alien monsters known as BETA – Beings of Extra-Terrestrial origin Adversary to the human race – was something that he wished to close his eyes from and convince himself that it was a dream. Even though it was nighttime he could see the boats sailing out to sea, hoping to reach the safety of the First Fleet, and beyond that he could see the advance of the alien swarm, devouring all in their path. However, he had a duty to preform and he refused to abandon that duty.
"All ships, firing target Kawada coastline!" the voice of Admiral Tadokoro, Captain of the Yamato and commander of the First Imperial Fleet, the fleet which the Nagato was a part of, barked over the intercoms on all ships. "FIRE!"
"Fire!" Noyuki yelled on the bridge of his own battleship, as did every captain on their own ships, still unwilling to abandon their duty in the face of utter defeat.
Even as the shells tore large holes in the alien swarms, Noyuki and every other Captain knew this was only a delaying tactic – there was no saving Sadogashima now; there was only saving the last defenders and evacuees of the island that was once a part of the Empire of Japan. Now, just like the lands in China and Russia ravaged by the BETA, Sadogashima, Noyuki's home, was about to become an inhabitable wasteland.
Shells after shells proved to be ineffective, and when the last survivor got onboard a ship of the navy, Admiral Tadokoro closed his eyes and issued the order that every captain knew would inevitably come: "retreat".
Noyuki had known that this would happen – since the American garrison deserted Sadogashima, they had been left to fend for themselves. While the Americans, the men who had promised to help them defend their homeland, fled, the Japanese attempted to hold their ground – and paid for it in blood. However, what could they do? Abandon their people? Even so, with the overwhelming odds, Noyuki could only stay calm during the battle by forcing himself to forget that it was a lost battle, instead focusing on the next order, the reloading of the shells, the aiming of the next target, the making of decisions... anything to delay the moment when the order to retreat would come.
However, the three words came from the Admiral's voice: "All ships, retreat".
The fight and tension escaped Noyuki like a balloon being deflated – instantly, his shoulders sagged, his disciplined posture was broken and his impassive face was replaced by one of anguish. "...turn this ship around. We're... leaving."
Even as the Nagato sailed away from Sadogashima with the rest of the First Imperial Fleet, Noyuki slumped into his chair. Being a Captain at the young age of 20 – and of a Yamato-Class Battleship, no less – was a major achievement for the young naval officer. He had distinguished himself in campaigns in China and Russia, and he had been credited with saving many lives of both pilots and sailors thanks to his quick thinking, moments he had taken with silent pride. However, all of it – joining the navy, saving lives, becoming the Captain of the Nagato – seemed utterly trivial and insignificant when he looked outside the window and saw his hometown being desecrated and ravished by the Alien threat he swore to protect his nation from.
If he could not protect his own town, how could he possibly hope to protect anything?
"...Captain?"
Even without looking up, Noyuki knew that voice: It was Lieutenant-Commander Abasaki Hiroshi, the second in command of the Nagato. Despite being over ten years older, the Lieutenant was content and comfortable with his position in simply aiding the young Captain, knowing that what he lacked in experience he could make up with talent and skill. However, there was no time for such thought now.
"...Captain," the Lieutenant continued, "We did the best we could, given the circumstances. The fact we saved that many lives on Sadogashima was a miracle-"
"That is nothing but an excuse, lieutenant." Noyuki muttered. "I failed in my duty."
"With all due respect, sir," the Lieutenant argued, "You did your utmost best! Everyone who knew you would be absolutely proud of you!" This would not do; it was most likely the absolute worst time for the captain to fall into a depression. The BETA were poised to strike at the mainland and Japan would need all of her resources, including the Nagato. It would be devastating if the Captain of a battleship was in this state, and as the Lieutenant, his trusted confidant and friend, he needed to pull him out of it.
Just then, there was mild shaking, as well as a flash coming from the otherwise nighttime sky. Fearing the worst, Noyuki sprang out of his seat and looked out the window, as did everyone else on their bridge.
It was something out of Noyuki's nightmares. As if it had not been enough that the island had fallen, there now stood on that island a BETA hive. Even now, he could see it's structures grow, becoming a grotesque home to the alien invaders.
"A BETA Hive... on Japanese soil..." One of the crewmen uttered in despair. "Sadogashima truly is no more."
However, seeing the hive stand on his home, something ignited in Noyuki's mind. "...Lieutenant... no, Hiroshi."
"Yes?" the Lieutenant turned, surprised to hear the trembling had disappeared from the Captain.
"...I swear on my life," Noyuki clenched his fist, "I will return here. I will return here with the Nagato, and someday, whether it be one, ten or sixty years from now, I will wipe the BETA off of the face of Sadogashima!" he was reaching yelling point now. "No matter how long it takes, I will return home!"
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It was a fog that appeared suddenly and without warning.
An hour into their retreat back to a mainland harbour, a sudden fog had descended upon the fleet. It was no such fog that Noyuki had seen nor experienced before – lookouts were reporting zero visibility, radio crewmen were reporting that they could not make contact with any other ships and everyone was worried. Not to mention, it was completely unnatural for a fog to just appear like that, with no warning whatsoever.
"...I do not like this." Noyuki muttered, remaining on the bridge. He was looking through the window at the dense fog, wondering just what was happening.
"I have never seen anything like it, sir." the Lieutenant added. "Nothing is working – it's as if we have been cut off."
Everyone was silent for a moment, the tension being thick in the air. However, it changed when someone cut it with a shout. "Captain! We see something! They look like lights!"
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The Atlantic Ocean – 1944
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Standing up, Noyuki narrowed his eyes. Sure enough, he saw lights, and at the same time the fog was beginning to lift. However, the radio operator was still having no luck.
"All ships, this is the Nagato, requesting a reply, over... damn, no one is responding."
Just then the fog completely lifted – as swiftly as it came. However, instead of admiring the weather phenomenon there was now a much more pressing matter for the entire crew to deal with.
The lights turned out to be originating from a massive ship, and even worse, it was headed right for them.
"Look out! Collision!"
"Hard to Starboard!" Noyuki yelled. "All hands, brace for impact!"
The massive battleship slowly lumbered towards the right, and to their great relief the two ships missed, even though it was only by mere inches. After realizing that the ship was no longer headed for an imminent collision, the crew managed to get enough panic out of their systems to take a close look at the ship that they had nearly slammed right into.
To Noyuki, who was watching from the bridge, it seemed like something straight out of a history textbook. He recalled seeing the same ship from a black and white picture, and while he may have initially believed it to be some sort of replica he knew that none existed in Japan. His other first thought that it was an aircraft carrier recommissioned to fight the BETA, but even if that was the case that would not explain the fact that the aircraft being carried were zero fighters – antiques, useless on the modern battlefield.
And the most damning evidence of all were the words "Akagi" painted on the side.
"...what kind of sick joke is this?" the lieutenant muttered. "The Akagi? What is going on!? It should have been sunk at midway – over 50 years ago!"
Noyuki, meanwhile, got on the radio and switched to a public channel. "Attention, unidentified aircraft carrier! This is Captain Hitsumiro of the Nagato. This is a restricted combat zone under the authority of the Imperial Japanese Navy: First Fleet! State the name of your captain and ship name immediately! I repeat, this is Captain Hitsumiro of the Nagato, this is a restricted combat zone..."
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Major Sakamoto Mio of the Fuso Navy got off of the deck, having fallen as the Akagi made an emergency turn after seeing a ship of unknown origin nearly collide with the aircraft carrier. Having gotten her bearings straight, she turned to take a good look at the said ship. It certainly was nothing like she had seen before, with a shape that looked similar to the Yamato but was completely metallic, lacking the wooden decks that all battleships had.
Realizing that this was no time to be standing around, she immediately ran towards the bridge. Arriving at the command centre of the Akagi, she heard the strange words on the radio: some nonsense about this being a restricted area under the authority of some "Imperial Japan". At the very least, the man on the other side of the radio sounded like he spoke Fusonese, so communications would be easy – or so she hoped.
Taking the radio, she spoke. " 'Captain Hitsumiro'," she said cautiously, "this is Major Sakamoto Mio of the Fuso Navy. We do not know this "Imperial Japan" you speak of; you are currently in the middle of our convoy."
There was silence on the other side, then the man responded: "Convoy? Major, our ship is currently in formation with the First Fleet-"
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"Captain," the Lieutenant said silently, interrupting him as he was about to tell this "Major Sakamoto", "You... might want to take a look at this."
The Captain paused mid sentence as he looked up and he finally realized the full scale of their situation. The Yamato was nowhere to be found; instead they were indeed surrounded by ships that the crew of the Nagato knew to have been retired decades ago. "What... what on earth is this? Where are we!? Where is the first fleet!? We could not have been in the fog for that long!"
"Captain Hitsumiro?" the voice of Major Sakamoto continued over the radio. "please respond. Captain?"
Noyuki paused to think for a moment, weighing his options. Instead of wondering whether or not this was a hallucination, instead he now had to focus on their next move. There would be plenty of long term questions later. As for the matter of their situation, Noyuki knew that his first priority was to find out where he was and to find a way back to Japan. With not even the global positioning systems working, he had no choice but to rely on the locals."...Major Sakamoto," Noyuki conceded, "...I request permission for our ship to join your convoy. We appear to be lost."
There was silence on the other side for a few moments, during which Noyuki assumed a discussion was being made, then the reply came. "Understood. We will permit you to travel with us, but be warned, we will sink your ship if you attempt to harm us."
"Rest assured, Major, we have no such intentions."
After setting the radio down, Noyuki hoped to get some rest. However, none came when another announcement dashed all hopes of relaxation. "Sir!" the radar operator announced. "Unknown object, flying in at a high speed! It is approaching the unknown fleet!"
"Is it theirs?" The Lieutenant asked.
"We don't know, sir!" the operator replied.
Just then, the lookout radioed in. "Captain, this is the lookout! The Akagi and allied ships are entering combat stations!"
Noyuki paused. Does this mean that the unknown flying object was an enemy? Was it friendly? Was it a sign that the "Fuso" fleet was going to betray them? "...all hands, combat stations. Prepare anti-air defences."
"Aye Captain!" The Lieutenant yelled in acknowledgement of the orders. "All hands, combat stations! Prepare anti-air defences. Activate CIWS. Sea Sparrow launchers one and two ready! This is not a drill!"
The Nagato raised her cannons and her turrets, placed under long white spheres, began to spin and aimed themselves at the sky. However, at the moment there was nothing to shoot at and simply stood at the ready, waiting to unleash their deadly payload at a moment's notice.
Back on the bridge, everyone was silent, wondering just what was about to happen. "...could it be a blip in the radar?" someone suggested after a while, breaking the silence.
"...perhaps-"
Their discussion was interrupted at that moment by the sound of a sudden explosion which illuminated their view on the right side. From what Noyuki could see, he made out the fact that some red light had streaked across a Fuso Destroyer, promptly causing an explosion. However, even though the light moved, it resembled something which stirred up anger within the young captain.
"Lasers!"
The cry came out among the crew. "Keep calm! Watch out, it could be anywhere!"
"Captain!" one of the officers reported back on the bridge. "The unidentified object is coming within visual range!"
Hearing that, Noyuki and Hiroshi immediately looked out the window to see the approaching object.
His first impression was that it was some type of advanced aircraft. It had a hexagonal pattern on it's outer body, with colours of black and red. It also looked siminar to a flying manta ray, or perhaps a drone. However, any hope that the aircraft was friendly instantly disappeared when the... thing fired some sort of beam from it's body, giving Noyuki shock number two: The beam turned. It had turned from it's original exit angle from the body and made a direct hit on a cruiser, sinking it immediately with most hands.
"What in the world -" Noyuki gasped. No one had seen anything like this. To the crew, it was a nightmare come true – a fast, homing laser-class hostile.
"Sir! The Fuso ships are opening fire! The Akagi is also launching her planes!"
Noyuki forced his eyes away from the unidentified hostile aircraft. "Set the hostile to track number 0901." he ordered the radio operator before lifting his binoculars to look on the deck of the Akagi. "...Lieutenant," he said slowly as he saw the leader of the formation ready to take off, "...what on earth is that?"
"What is what, sir?" Hiroshi asked in confusion, to which Noyuki simply replied by handing him the binoculars. Getting a look of the flight deck, Hiroshi frowned. "I... I don't know sir. What on earth is she wearing?"
"I don't know, but whatever those are, they definitely aren't pants." Noyuki muttered. "Pants don't have propellers."
"She's... she's flying, sir." Hiroshi told Noyuki as the planes on board the Akagi took off.
"Flying? Let me see..." the captain took the binoculars again, seeing the formation. "...by gods, you're right. Just what is going on here..."
However, there would be time for questions later. Shaking his head, he lowered his binoculars. "We've got other stuff to do, Lieutenant." He then turned to the general bridge crew. "Deploy Dolphin Squadron. We have ships down; there are bound to be survivors in the water."
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"Dolphin two, ready for take off."
"Dolphin three, ready for launch."
"All units, this is Dolphin-Lead, affirmative. Launch at the ready. Keep tight and don't let the lasers distract you."
"Yeah, and maybe the bedbugs won't bite."
To Lieutenant Kinoshita Minori, the 19 year old pilot and leader of the Nagato's search and rescue unit "Dolphin Squadron", it was definitely one of the stranger missions: rescuing crewmen of world war two era ships that had been destroyed by laser fire from a small black and red object.
"Do you think that... thing will shoot at us ma'am?" her co-pilot asked as their Sea-hawk helicopter took off from the Nagato's helicopter pad, followed by two others.
"Only one way to tell." Minori muttered, moving towards the site of the first wreckage. As they flew, another bright red flash streaked behind them. Minori did not see what happened due to the fact she was concentrating on her flying, but she didn't need to - her co-pilot told her everything.
"Holy shit, that thing just shot down a Zero like it was nothing! It didn't even need to aim!"
"Ma'am," the voice of the pilot of Dolphin three came over the radio, "this is Dolphin 3; we have eyes on the crash site and we see the pilot of the downed Zero treading water. We'll break off and regroup with the unit at the earliest possible time."
"Dolphin-Lead acknowledges, Dolphin three." Minori replied, staying on course. On her peripheral vision, she could see the helicopter that was following them from the left break off. "...Dolphin two, this is Dolphin-Lead." she spoke again. "Break off and head for the second sunk destroyer; we'll handle the first one."
"Dolphin two acknowledges, Dolphin-Lead." the cool and calm voice of Dolphin two replied, and the helicopter on the right broke off as well, leaving Minori's helicopter quite alone as it lowered altitude. Minori tried to get as close to the ocean as possible, gambling with the helicopter with the danger that it might get caught or blown into the sea, turning them from rescuers into one of the victims.
"We're here to help!" the voice of the medic called from the passenger area of the helicopter. "Don't panic, we're here to help!"
Perhaps the Fuso sailors were too tired to notice the fact that this aircraft was somehow staying in the air without wings, or maybe it was the fact they read the "rescue unit" portion of the words "Japanese Naval Rescue Unit" painted on the body of the helicopter. Whichever the case,they did not question. "Take the wounded!" they shouted back. "We've got three! The rest of us can stay afloat and wait!"
Moments later, the medic began the task of dragging the wounded onboard, spilling blood on the floor of the Sea-hawk once again as Minori watched the skies nervously, hoping that the strange aircraft did not decide to take a potshot at their helicopter.
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"The battle isn't progressing well, captain." Hiroshi reported. "The Fuso Navy's zero fighters are being shot down like flies. Dolphin three is trying to rescue as many as it can, but it's overwhelming it's capacity. The Fuso ships are too tied up in combat to risk sending out their own rescue efforts."
"Any word from the commander of the Fuso Fleet?" Noyuki asked.
"They're too busy with their battle to deal with us, sir. So far, that flying girl seems to be dealing the most significant damage to the hostile, but nothing permanent. That hostile seems to be capable of regeneration."
"Damn it. If it isn't numbers, it's regeneration." Noyuki growled. They couldn't fire the sea-sparrow missiles; it might hit a zero, or worse, the flying girl. They could not also risk shredding the air with the CIWS fire for similar reasons. "Our hands our tied." he muttered.
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Mio knew that the battle was not going well. The single Neuroi had caught them off guard, and the conventional fighters weren't lasting long against the lasers. If only she had her wingman, or even another witch by her side, she might be able to finish the battle here and now.
Using her eye, she had seen the core of the neuroi – she just needed to hit it. However, the Neuroi was too quick and the Zeros could not distract it long enough for her to make the finishing blow.
I need to change my tactic. She decided. I'll-
However, that thought never came to mind as a Neuroi beam that was fired directly at her made it's way.
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"new target at 6 o'clock!" the radar operator of the Nagato reported. "It's another hostile!"
"What!?" Noyuki turned and looked out the window just in time to see a laser shoot out from behind the ship, missing the window by inches -
-hitting the "flying girl."
"Flygirl's been hit! She's going down!" a lookout reported.
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On the helicopter deck of the Nagato, Minori watched as the injured crewmen she had picked up were led off of the deck by both the helicopter and the onboard medics. She leaned back in her seat to catch some rest, but that was short lived when a call came. "Dolphin-Lead, this is bridge. Do you copy?"
"Bridge, this is Dolphin-Lead, I copy loud and clear." Minori replied, snapping herself into a posture in which she was sitting up straight.
"Dolphin-Lead, what is your unit's status?"
"We are dropping off injured survivors onto our ship, sir." she reported. "Dolphin two is on it's way back, and Dolphin three is still picking up downed pilots."
"Affirmative. Dolphin-Lead, new assignment: fly-girl's been hit. We need you to pick her up."
"Flygirl?" Minor asked. "You mean the girl who was flying around with the weird machines on her legs?"
"That's the one. She's been hit and she's down in the ocean. We need you to get her ASAP."
"Affirmative, Bridge. Dolphin-Lead out."
It was just as the communication ended that the helicopter's medic slammed the door shut and yelled from the back. "We're all empty now! We're good to go again at any time."
"Glad to hear. We've got a flygirl to pick up." Minori responded as she brought the Sea-Hawk up again even as another laser shot flew above them.
"...there goes the last zero fighter." the co-pilot muttered. A few moments later, he had a sudden thought. "Hey ma'am?"
"What is it this time?" Minori asked, clearly annoyed that she was once again being interrupted by her co-pilot's paranoid concerns.
"Flygirl and the Zeros are down, right?"
"Mhm. So?"
"So that means... we're the only ones in the air now, right?
"Make your point, damnit."
"Wouldn't that mean... those things would be coming right for us?"
Minori suddenly felt a shadow above her and looked up, only to see the sky being obstructed by the underside of the hostile aircraft.
"Oh..." Minori gasped. "shit!"
She jerked the helicopter right immediately, and it was just as well – the laser streaked by their previous position, missing them by mere inches.
"Too close! This is WAY too close!"
"Bridge, this is Dolphin-Lead!" Minori screamed. "We've got one of the hostiles on our tail and we can't shake it off! Requesting support!"
"Affirmative, Dolphin-Lead." the voice of a bridge operator replied. "Help is on the way. Watch the skies for the sparrows."
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"Target bearing locked! Sea sparrows, locked onto the hostiles!"
Noyuki nodded. For better or for worse, with the Zeros and flygirl out of the way they could actually use their weaponry without the fear of hitting an ally. "Commence firing of the Sea-Sparrows!"
The Sea-sparrows were ship-based anti-air missiles designed to intercept flying objects. With the advent of the jet engine back in their world, the conventional anti-aircraft turrets manned by crews were deemed too inefficient. While the primary roles of these missiles were meant to shoot down cruise missiles, it would do the trick here regardless... or so Noyuki hoped as the missiles left the ship and streaked into the air.
"Let's hope it packs enough firepower. The least we can do is distract it." The Lieutenant commented. Moments later, the missiles impacted onto the hostiles, exploding and obstructing the view of them with smoke.
"Did... did that do it?" one of the crewmen asked.
"Radar," Noyuki asked, "How does it look?"
"The signatures are still there, sir! However, it appears to have changed course - " the operator turned to the captain. "they're headed for us!"
"Good. That will get them off of Dolphin Squadron." Noyuki muttered. "I want all hands off of the decks! Get some armour between yourselves and the hostile!"
The crewmen, with the exception of the hanger and medics, all got inside the ship, ready to try and hold on for as long as possible.
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"That did the trick, ma'am – it's off of our tail!"
"Great, now let's pick up flygirl and get out of here!"
The Sea-Hawk Helicopter continued on it's path, relieved of the danger of being shot down by stray lasers. Soon enough, the helicopter landed on the water – as a sea-hawk, it was designed to be able to land on water for short amounts of time.
"Are you alright!?" The medic yelled over the sounds of the helicopter, reaching out his hand for flygirl. Looking closely, he saw she had an eyepatch of sorts, and other than the fact it lacked pants her uniform indeed did look like something out of a history textbook.
"I'm fine." Mio told him as she took his hand and climbed aboard the helicopter. "Just who are you guys?"
"I'm Sergant Sagawa. The co-pilot is Officer Shirokawa and the pilot is Lieutenant Kinoshita. We're part of Dolphin Unit, the Nagato's very own rescue unit."
"The Nagato?" Mio asked. "So you guys are from the strange ship?"
"Hey, you guys are the ones who are strange from our point of view." Minori countered as she began bringing the helicopter up.
"Hmm... doesn't look like there are any injuries." the medic nodded, examining her for any injuries. "It looks like your legs are burned and I'm betting you have some bruises from the impact, but thankfully it was water. It shouldn't be anything serious, but we're bringing you back onboard just in case. It's not safe to be treading water out there."
"Thanks." the Major sighed. "The damn Neuroi caught me by surprise. Otherwise, I would still be flying."
At that point, Minori had to ask something. "Huh? What the hell is a Neuroi?"
The Major turned towards the pilot's seat with a bewildered expression. "Huh?" she asked. "Are you saying you don't know what a Neuroi is?"
"If I did, I wouldn't be asking now, would I?"
"Unbelievable..." Mio muttered. "I thought the whole situation was strange, but I didn't expect it to be like this. To think that you three wouldn't know what a Neuroi is..."
"The entire ship doesn't know." Minori responded flatly.
"And you all decided to just jump in without knowing what you were facing?" Mio laughed. "That's either very brave or very foolish."
"We didn't have much of a choice." the co-pilot cut in. "It was going for us anyways."
Just then, a call came in over the radio. "Lieutenant Kinoshita, can you hear me? Dolphin-Lead, reply immediately."
Minori pressed a button on her radio. "This is Dolphin-Lead, bridge. Reading you loud and clear."
"The two hostiles are right on top of us. It's too dangerous to land – hover and standby until further instructions."
"Affirmative." the pilot cut the link, then cursed. "Great, what the hell do we do now?"
Mio, however, had other concerns. "Are you telling me that your ship, the Nagato, is intending on facing two Neuroi alone?"
"Sounds about right." the medic sighed.
"That is suicidal!" Mio argued. "Didn't you see what it did to the entire fleet? One battleship doesn't stand a chance against it, not without witches!"
"Girl, you're starting to babble." Minori said, thinking that her mention of "witches" was a sure sign of delusion. "Get some rest."
"How can I, with two Neuroi flying and nothing to stop them!?"
Just then, the Major noticed something and immediately looked out the window. The medic followed her gaze and found out that she was looking towards the deck of the Akagi, where another girl, this time wearing a sailor top with the same kind of strange machines on her legs, stood.
"You had a second?" Minori asked. "Why didn't she sortie with you in the first place-"
"She's a non-combatant! She's not supposed to be wearing that!" Mio exclaimed, but surprise quickly turned into a smile. Despite the girl's own words, Mio knew that she had found something special the moment she had laid eyes on the young girl named Miyafuji Yoshika. Even though the girl said herself that she did not want to fight, the major knew that, in the end, her desire to protect would win out.
The entire helicopter crew was now watching as the girl did a shaky takeoff. Minori feared that she nearly fell into the ocean, but to her surprise she saw the girl start taking off.
Mio opened the helicopter door and yelled towards the girl. "Fly, Miyafuji!"
Minori's mind was spinning. Flying girls aside, the tactical situation was getting worse. "Oh f*ck this!" Getting on the communications systems, she radioed the Nagato. "Bridge, this is Dolphin-Lead, do you read me!?"
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"Laser damage to port side! Minor damage to bulkheads!"
"Keep firing! Use everything we've got!" Noyuki ordered. "Let's demonstrate to those antique-sailing Fusos what a real battleship is!"
Just then, a radio call came through. "Bridge, this is Dolphin-Lead, do you read me!?"
Even as the ship shuddered from another shake, Noyuki grabbed the radio. "Dolphin-Lead, this is Bridge. We read you loud and clear."
"Captain, that second flygirl taking off – she's a rookie!"
"What!?" Noyuki, who was not even aware that a second girl was in the air, looked at the general direction of the Akagi with his binoculars. Sure enough, there was a second flying girl, except her movements were much more wobbly than what the first girl could do.
"Furthermore, she's allegedly never even flown before! She's going to get herself killed out there!"
"What the hell is the Akagi doing, letting her deploy like that!?" Noyuki yelled. "I'll contact-"
Suddenly, there was some scuffling on the other side, with the voice of Minori shouting "Hey, let go!" being audible before a clear -and familiar- voice finally spoke again. "Erm, test test, is this Captain Hitsumiro Noyuki of the Nagato?"
"That is correct. Major Sakamoto Mio, I assume?"
"That's right. Captain, I heard your conversation with your rescue unit. I'm asking you: Please trust Miyafuji."
"Miyafuji?" Noyuki asked. "You mean the flygirl?"
"If that's what you call us, yes." Mio replied. "Please, trust her. I know that she's new, but I'm confident that the two of you can take down the Neuroi."
"Neuroi?" Noyuki asked.
"Those flying aliens."
"So those ARE aliens..." Noyuki muttered. "Well, as much as I would love to trust her, we don't even know what to do. We're throwing everything we've got – sea-sparrow missiles, CIWS, we've even-"
There was another hit, shaking the ship some more and causing Noyuki to skid a bit before regaining his balance. "-we've even fired our main cannons at it; nothing's working. They keep regenerating."
"Neuroi have cores." Mio told him. "If you can destroy the core, the entire Neuroi will be destroyed."
"Well, that would have been useful to know before we started fighting." Noyuki muttered. "And just how do you propose we destroy the core?"
"That's where Miyafuji will come in. If you can expose the core, Miyafuji should be able to fly in and destroy it at a close range."
"...understood." Noyuki nodded. Truthfully, this felt like a stupid idea and half of him was convinced that this was either a dream or a hallucination. However, as much as he wanted to keep that idea in his head, the number of times he felt pain after pinching himself proved otherwise.
Placing his hand on his command console, Noyuki thought about the entire situation. Here they were, isolated with no means of resupply, surrounded by ships half a decade behind them. The were lost – possibly in time, too – and yet they were still fighting aliens with the aid of zero fighters and flying girls who didn't wear pants.
However, one thing was certain: No matter what the scenario, there was a hostile and it was his duty to bring it down.
"Load Sea-sparrows five and six." Noyuki commanded.
"Aye Captain! Sea-sparrows five and six loaded!"
"Target: Track number 0901!" Noyuki yelled, with 0901 being the first Neuroi to appear. "Commence firing of the Sea-Sparrows!"
From the midsection of the Nagato, two streaks flew up and headed right for the Neuroi circling overhead, impacting it on the main body. As Noyuki saw the impact from the bridge, he sincerely hoped that it revealed the "weak spot" the major had told him about.
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From the helicopter, Mio saw the Nagato fire it's streaking light. She admitted that she did not know what it was; the closest thing she could think of were the rockets that Sanya used. However, there would be time for discovery later. Right now, there were Neuroi.
Having watched the impact with her eyepatch removed from her eye, she saw it through the smoke – a glint of purple.
"There!" She yelled into her receiver. "Now, Miyafuji!"
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"Captain! Look! The flygirl!"
Noyuki looked up at his Lieutenant's beckoning to see Miyafuji flying under the "Neuroi", bringing a rifle up and shooting at the alien with it. Looking through his binoculars, he could see some sort of purple object shatter.
Was that the core!?
A moment later, the entire Neuroi exploded in a shower of white lights and fragments, eliciting cheers from the entire bridge. "Track number 0901 – eliminated!" the radar operator announced.
"Woo-hoo!" some of the operators cheered. "One down!"
Noyuki allowed himself a small smile, remembering that there were originally two of them. The rest of the crew calmed down as well when the radar operator announced: "Track number 0902, closing in!"
"Commence firing of the CIWS!" Noyuki yelled, knowing that there was no way the turrets could miss at this close range. On the ship, the turrets, marked by their distinct white cylinder heads, aimed at the surviving Neuroi and fired, shredding it's armour away.
"Captain!" Mio's voice came through the radio. "The second core's been exposed! Let Miyafuji finish it off!"
"Affirmative, Major." Noyuki nodded. "Cease firing!"
The turrets ceased their relentless assault on the Neuroi just as the flygirl Noyuki recognized as Miyafuji flew by the Neuroi, again peppering a certain spot with rifle fire.
Just like the first Neuroi, the second one exploded as well, marking the end of the battle.
It took the crew a few moments to comprehend that they had just not only survived, but emerged victorious against an alien threat that they had never encountered before. There was stunned silence on the bridge which was only broken by the voice of the radio operator – and he too, seemed stunned.
"T-track number 0902... eliminated."
There was another moment of silence, and then cheers erupted. The crewmen were elated at having pulled off a victory right after their bitter defeat at Sadogashima. It was a morale boost that they needed; a reminder that they could still fight and win.
"So, uh, Bridge?" Minori's voice came through a radio lying in the middle of a celebrating command bridge, "Are we clear to land yet?"
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"Incredible..." Mio gasped. To think that a rookie witch and a single ship were able to take down not one, but two flying type Neuroi – and on their own first battles against the Neuroi. Looking out at the ship, as well as the witch who was now flying towards it, probably to land, she smiled.
Miyafuji Yoshika... and the Nagato... she thought. It looks like things will become a lot more interesting.
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Author's Notes: I really don't have much to explain here, just that I think I will have a lot of fun writing this.
