Chapter 3

Operation: Heaven Sent

Main Objective: Protect ships and airplanes that are evacuating the civilian and military population of the island.

Secondary Objectives:

At least half must reach safety.

Protect the lead ship.

The route must be clear of enemy forces.

Ships:

USS North Carolina

MN Richelieu

KMS Prinz Eugen

IJN Atago

MN Charles Martel

USS Benson

IJN Akizuki

Main Theatre: Okinawa, Pacific Ocean

The island of Okinawa was in chaos. Everywhere you see, smoke and fire could be seen belching out, as if in a mission to consume the whole area. It was so much that the sun was practically blocked out.

Down on the ground, the people of Okinawa were scrambling to get to safety. They were guided by the military garrison stationed there to safe zones from which they could be evacuated. The task was hard enough, but with the enemy right at their doorstep, it was made even worse.

The news of the situation reached JMSDF headquarters in Tokyo and immediately gathered a large fleet of warships, along with a few requisitioned civilian ferries for the operation, with a number of ship girls as escorts, to evacuate the civilian population and the garrison. Even before the operation began, it was clear to everyone in the fleet that they would have to make several sorties in order to evacuate every single one from Okinawa.

However, problems soon began to present themselves. The clearest among them was that ships would be vulnerable to enemy units in the approach towards the island and the return trip back to the Home Islands. It was predicted that some will not come back.

Another is that local harbor could only accommodate a small number of the fleet, and so it forced them to adopt a switching tactic, which meant that some ships would have to wait out at sea. The ship girls that were with them would act as protectors of the 'sitting ducks' that were waiting.

But there was little time to calculate the impact of the aforementioned problems to the operation. If Okinawa fell, the whole of Japan would be at risk. They just have to make do on the fly.

Zuikaku winced as a shell landed near her, throwing both shell splinters and high amounts of sea water in every direction. Some hit her, but the damage was superficial. She got an arrow from her quiver, loaded it to her bow, and then launched it, watching the arrow transform into a flight of miniaturized Mitsubishi A6M Zeroes.

As her planes gains altitude to join with the rest, she retrieves another arrow and loads it into her bow. She did not fire immediately, as she took the time to assess the situation.

There was a considerable amount of ships still waiting at the harbor mouth. The evacuation process for the civilian population, while orderly, was slow. Not to mention that the Abyssals is still raining down death and destruction on the island, and those are getting closer and closer to the harbor.

In her mind, it was steadily approaching the red area as far as the situation goes. Returning to her task, she released her arrow, which then turned into Nakajima B5Ns. The planes then move forward to strike at the enemy.

Then, she noticed something strange. No, it was more accurate to say that everyone did. The Abyssals have diverted their attention away from the harbor, and soon were converging on a spot they only know.

She, including others, were initially bewildered by the actions of the enemy. The feeling didn't last long, as they soon prepare for a renewed attack by the enemy. Some even launched catapult planes so that they could have advance warning of their actions, while their submarines went forward to scout as well.

Silence reigned on the area. The only noise that can be heard was the alarm, and the muffled sounds of the civilians being loaded into the boats. Tension was high, and coupled with minutes of nothing, lead to everyone forming scenarios one way or another.

Zuikaku launched a squadron of Zeroes to scout with the other planes. While she waits for them to be in position, she tuned in to the reports being made by their submarines. All was clear, they said.

Humming to herself, she switched to her air crews to confirm the reports. For a moment, all said clear. However, a few minutes later, one reported to sight some unknown contacts just a few miles north from their location.

'Unknown contacts?' She thought to herself.

"Nagato! One of my pilots have located unknown contacts north." She said to the overall commander of the ship girl force, then switched back to her pilot and asked him to further identify the contacts. There was only silence in the line.

She tries to contact the pilot a few more times, but the same result happened: silence. Shot down or just interference? It stretched for an uncomfortably long time for her, but finally, there was traffic on the line.

It was static at first, but it gave way to a voice. She was relieved that the voice belonged to the same pilot who reported the sighting minutes ago. But there was no time exchange pleasantries, however brief it is, and so she went straight to the point: she inquires the pilot to clarify his findings.

However, his reply leaves much to be desired. He said that he couldn't believe his find, and adds that with 'look at the horizon and see to believe it.' With that, the line went dead.

Zuikaku relayed what he said to her comrades, and their expression after hearing it screamed 'seriously?' She was in the same boat as them. After all, it was vague, and a bit rude as well.

Still, it was better than nothing, and so they all look at the horizon, harboring a healthy dose of caution and skepticism just in case. It wasn't long before they could hear the tell-tale whine of a 14-cylinder prop engine. It didn't take them long to see the source, a silhouette of a Zero fast approaching.

However, the unidentifiable silhouettes that is following the plane got their attention. Seven were counted in total, all popping one after another. At first, Zuikaku and the rest thought that the pilot had betrayed them, and that he was directing an enemy strike force towards the local harbor, but a closer examination shelved those initial thoughts quickly.

For one thing, the shape was not humanoid, but blocky and angular in their entirety. Second, if it was the enemy, then they would be already taking potshots at the sitting ducks that is the ships of the JMSDF. Third, there wasn't an ominous cloud following their wake.

The sun was kind enough to decrease the intensity of its rays, and the details that were soon made clear gave everyone a shock. There were those that exclaimed loudly, but many stood silent. They were still processing what they are seeing.

What was approaching them were the old, metal hulls of some of their comrades and allies. The ships have encountered the Abyssals, courtesy of the damage painting portions of their hulls. As if to announce their presence and greet them, all seven sounded their horns.

Zuikaku started ruminating inside her mind different explanations on how it was possible. Some were quickly shelved, and some were set aside for a possible review in the immediate future. So many questions, so little answers.

She could see that the closest to them was a destroyer, and judging by the silhouette, it was a Benson. It was followed in the following order, based on their silhouette: Atago, Akizuku, an unknown cruiser she didn't know, Richelieu, Prinz Eugen, and lastly, North Carolina. No action was taken when the lead ship entered the perimeter, and the subsequent ships that followed it.

Their entry seemed to trigger something inside the Abyssals, as an even fiercer artillery barrage rain down on the island, and what's worse, it was closer to the harbor, making the evacuation more precarious than ever. Even more worrying, an enormous, ominous black cloud could be seen just over the horizon. The writing was on the wall: the enemy was to annihilate them all.

Instead of despairing, the rescuers put even more effort into evacuating the civilian population, and the defenders readied their weapons for what could possibly be their final hour. Their new 'companions' had also something to say, courtesy of the North Carolina and Richelieu firing their main guns at the nearest target, and the cruisers and destroyers doing a 180 and sailing back to meet this threat. This was cue for Zuikaku and the other carriers that were present to launch their squadrons of dive bombers and torpedo bombers to attack the enemy, with fighters acting as defenders for both the attacking squadrons, and the fleet.

What followed could only be seen as chaotic. Shells from both sides rain down on their targets, aircraft shot down as they made their attack run, and the gap between the two sides gradually shrinks. Even more stunning was that the evacuation was stepped up even more, with civilians being loaded to life boats before being transported to ships that were in open water. Still, there were still many waiting at the harbor, and the situation still looked grim.

Zuikaku lost track of time when this chaotic situation played out. Her body was on auto-pilot, launching aircraft one arrow at a time. Only when Vice Admiral Shimura Oji radioed to everyone that every civilian had been accounted that she was released from the spell.

She took a quick run-down of the situation. By then, a quarter of allied planes had been shot down, some had taken moderate damage, and of their special allies, the Akizuki, had been sunk after being bombarded by concentrated fire, but not before taking down a number of the enemy with a combination of guns and torpedoes. The Abyssals were cut down in size, but there was still a sizeable amount of enemy units in the area.

There was only thing to do: clear a path for the return trip. But the only question was: where to attack to make it happen? It was difficult to pinpoint an exact location, thanks to the numbers advantage by the enemy.

It would appear that they are well and truly trapped. It was then that she took a look at their special allies, and she immediately radioed both Nagato and the Vice-Admiral of their actions. Our special allies, she reported, are attacking the north-eastern and eastern flank of the enemy, which seemed to buckle and crack under the assault.

This meant that they have a way to return in relative safety, but there is always the risk of the Abyssals of shoring up the hole their allies exploited, or to swing from other directions to catch them on the run. There was silence. After much deliberation, it was decided to exploit the opening made by their special allies.

Their formation was made up of the more vulnerable ferries and critically loaded ships at the center, with warships and ship girls making a ring to act as escorts. They set sail immediately, but they came under heavy bombardment when the enemy caught their intention. The civilians onboard huddled together, praying that they could make it out safely.

Ship girls throw everything they had left to protect their objective, supported by missile strikes and gun attacks by JMSDF ships. Their special allies, after clearing up enemy units in their attack, swung around and started attacking their pursuers. The engagement was equally intense, with both sides taking even more damage.

Finally, after what felt like hours but in actually took half an hour, the fleet was free to return safely to the Home Islands. Relief was the first emotion to envelope the group, before elation came in and took over. Zuikaku took this moment to take a good, long look at their allies, their hulls riddled with battle damaged, who were sailing with them in a parallel course.

Initial questions still need answers, but she doubt that they will be answered immediately, or in the future. Regardless, she was thankful for their help. She was doubtful that they would have made it out as they have now.

She closed her eyes for a moment, before opening them with her attention wholly devoted to them returning.

The surprisingly successful nature of the Operation, with the even more unexpected sight of the old bodies of some of the ship girls, made headlines around the world. Over the course of many weeks, more civilians were evacuated with relative ease, thanks to the savage beating the enemy received in the hands of the fleet.

Some were already calling it as one of the most successful operations in this entire, but many knew that it was achieved in the tactical level. Strategic wise, it was a blow as it meant that the Abyssals have a strong starting location for future operations against the Home Islands. It was for this reason that many within the JMSDF were already planning for an operation to seize back Okinawa.

A/N: This chapter was under revision many times, with me having a difficulty what kind of operation I want to do, before settling down on this one. This is still set on Vanilla Kancolle.

So, what do you guys think? Was it alright?

Also, I want to ask you guys for suggestions for Chapter 4. This includes the mission objectives, the ships that will be participating, the location, and the universe it is set in. I will try my best to make it happen.

-cellum95