Naval Enemy Weapons Counter Command

Archive Division

Author: RADM Frederick Löwe

Curator Signature: FADM Francis D. Monaghan (USPACOM)

Format: Printed and Typed Report

Date Created/Delivered: 01/01/2019 - 05/01/2019

Addressee: The President, Secretary of Defense, Secretary of the Navy and all four-star officers of the United States Armed Forces. (Naval personnel combatting Abyssals directly can be briefed after they've been sworn to secrecy.)

Subject: Unidentified Hostile Oceanic Organism codenamed 'Abyssal', history of NEWCCOM

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For the past few months it has come to our attention that there have been numerous instances of disappearances of seaborne craft. These incidents just so happened to have been strictly limited to just the Pacific Ocean and upon later discovery were not mere accidental sinkings or maritime disasters, but deliberate attacks. This fact is further correlated by attacks reaching as far South as the Coral Sea, as far West as the Philippine Sea, as far north as the Bering Sea and far enough east so as to threaten our very coastline and overlap our Hawaiian territories.

The enemy in question has been initially known as the Unidentified Hostile Oceanic Organism but has since been codenamed by the United States Navy as the Abyssals at the behest of former Pacific Combatant Commander Fleet Admiral Eli H. Hamner following a quote recorded from a Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force Lieutenant: "The enemy was like an Abyss, as every unit we sent at it simply disappeared into a seemingly bottomless void."

The following transcript is a compilation of information regarding the very first encounter/incident with an Abyssal unit. Said information are eyewitness reports from crews, after action reports submitted by officers and various data recordings and Morse code decryptions. Units involved were surface elements of the United States Navy, specifically the Guided Missile Cruiser USS Antietam attached to Carrier Strike Group Five of the Seventh Fleet.

~25/02/2018~

~Location: 19.4914 N, 132.5510 E~

~0629~ 'Unidentified target picked up on radar.'

'Roger Antietam. Radar scans indicate an unidentified craft of small dimensions heading at two nine zero, speed two four. Most likely a speedboat.'

'Negative your last. A speedboat doesn't have the range to be out here in the Pacific.'

'Roger Antietam. Could be pirates offshore to catch merchants. This lane is thick with traffic.'

'Unconfirmed pirates could be tracking merchant shipping as of recent. Existence of pirate mother ship supporting illegal activities plausible. Requesting permission to approach with intent to secure.'

[Pause recognized as decision making time from the Strike Group commander]

'Roger Antietam. RADM Atkinson permission granted. Good hunting.'

~0741~ 'Flagship. Antietam Reporting. Sonar and radar scans indicate something is out there.'

'Roger Antietam. Correction needed. Pirate vessels can be scanned with radar and sonar?'

'Affirmative flagship. It's odd. Pirate vessels are surface vessels. Not submersibles.'

'What of visual scans.'

'Difficult. Target is moving too fast and is too small to properly triangulate.'

'Small? Approximate size?.'

'Motorboat. In accordance with most pirate vessel sizes. However, range of vessel is inadequate for this sea.'

'Possibility of mother ship operating in concert with pirate vessel.'

'Negative. Radar scans indicate only one vessel.'

'Roger, enter attack range and halt target. Use of force is permitted by RADM Atkinson if necessary.'

'Roger. Antietam out.'

[Curator's Note: the following is the most accurate transcription of events that have taken place after the previous events of 0741. Significant data has been lost in the encounter/incident and gaps are those lost data.]

~0759~ Cmms eqpmnt dwn 11 mn elpsd bfr we saw thng. Pwr srgs on ad off. Lt Gregg worrd wnt to fnd Capt [ ] to asume cmmd. Lst contct [ ] Stke Grp.

[ ] sghted. Nt motor[ ]. Enmy frng. Nt mssles but shlls. Shp mnuvrg hrd. Shlls [ ] be PACKING DOZENS OF POUNDS OF EXPLO[ ]

IMPACT at 05(?) [ ] drct hit prt side whch mde lrge hle in [ ] Ripped through [ ] lk it ws papr. Hle sze of semi-truck. Mny ded and injd incl Lt Gregg and XO. Cpt [ ] wndd.

Enmy close. [ ] say enmy is black ad slk wth glwng prts. SUBMARINE. Gnnrs hld [ ] at by wth lng rnge fre. CIWS effct good.

[ ] no good. Scnd HARPOON CANNOT HIT IT, NO EFFECT. Mssles uslss. [ ] scrs drct hit on enmy. Gns wrk good.

Enmy too clse. ENTIRE SHIP LOSES POWER MOMENTARILY. Sspctd EMP DEVICE. Impsble too smll an enmy.

Hd good lk at enmy as [ ] by. BLACK ARMOUR(?) AND LOW PROFILE. Drct hit agn on enmy. An anmal SCREECH is herd ad rptd but dismsd.

Antietam rtrg frm btle zne to rendvs wth Stke Grp as enmy also rtrg. [ ] we cn mke it. [ ] ded. 52 injd. 3 impcts regstd nr bow, brdge ad strn.

Enmy rtnd wth reinfor[ ]. Sitn crtcl. Gns frng non-stp. 5 inch, CIWS, MGs, work. ALL STANDARD MISSILES FIRED FOR NO EFFECT. Mssles spn OUT OF CONTROL. Reinfmts lok famlir.

IMPACT AT 39(?). Mssve explsn amdshps. Hapon lanchr disbled. Anthr 3 IMPACTS. [ ] lstng. Dmg cntl crws crrct lstng but mre impcts wpe thm out.

~0855~ Anteitam snkg. Btle ovr bt enmy cls in. EVERYONE IN THE WATER SEES ENEMY UP CLOSE. Enmy nt motor[ ] or [ ]. Enmy fkng alve. HU[ ] AND SHARK MON[ ]. Enmy lvs immdtly ad crw adrft untl 0915 whn Stke Grp helis arrvs.

As one can imagine, it takes an infinite amount of mental fortitude to correctly read this transcription from the cruiser Antietam and not right it off as some B-grade movie crap. But the reality is so shockingly and disturbingly different, that we are reminded from this incident that we know more about outer space and other planets, than we do about our own Earth.

The lost of the Antietam was one of the biggest military disasters of the century to the US Navy. Multiple intelligence bureaus went to great lengths to cover up the incident as never before had a modern US Navy warship been sunk, nor had so many casualties been inflicted on Navy personnel in the modern day. All survivors were sworn to secrecy, but the disappearance of such a large vessel would never have gone unnoticed.

Eventually news headlines around the world began spewing out stories of strange craft and unidentified sounds reported by the occasional seaman. More daring persons have ventured out into the ocean looking for clues about this new threat. Unsurprisingly not many returned. Interestingly the theory that gained the most approval were extraterrestrial encounters, which honestly did the service a huge favour as such a thing is completely out of the question and firmly believed to be nonexistent. Yet, murderous speedboat sized battleships that bleed and screech do exist.

Myself and the Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Jackson M. Richard were apart of the few people who were told and thus aware of a the new scourge of a naval power that sailed our seas. Our plans were instantly brought to the table, including the Top Secret War Plan Orange. I cannot go into much detail regarding the materials of said document, but I can say it was a hypothesised strategy should the United States Navy be faced with the threat of mobilising it's forces against not only the Russian Federation, but also the People's Republic of China naval forces combined. The plan had a high chance of success and realism to it as our navy outnumbers both countries combined and then some.

But against the Abyssals we were caught so flatfooted we might as well have dropped anchor and stood still for them. Their tactics were outdated and honestly, know that I'm looking back at the initial encounters, pretty flawed. Yet, said tactics had not seen usage for over 70 years and hence we were wholly unprepared against such efficient usage of their advantages and hiding their apparent disadvantages with simple brute force and superior numbers in their attacks.

In spite of this, predicting that this new terrifying enemy would come with it a practically endless void of questions as to how they function, exist and/or live, the President had a new organization created within the US Navy. Said group is known simply as NEWCCOM, or the Naval Enemy Weapons Counter Command, tasked with the formation of a logistical and support structure to evaluate, study and develop tactics against the relative superiority of the Abyssals. The above transcription of the USS Antietam was their hallmark, and their beginning.

Of course, the fledgling organization came under immense flak seen only in Kamikaze attacks. Many naval officials and civilian reporters called the organization a 'folly', 'waste of resources and manpower' and even 'the rearguard for cowards' to the 'Newcomers' or 'Nuke Command'. Despite this the organization was a resilient one led by selected resilient an able individuals ranging from all over the world. Hence the NEWCCOM identification badge is simply one of the Aegis shield of Zeus and a superimposed LGM-30 Minuteman ICBM as the focus. But one cannot really talk about NEWCCOM without first speaking of Vice Admiral Frederick Löwe.

The man was originally posted as the Captain of the USS Antietam in 2016, but an encounter with an Abyssal in perhaps a fated first contact led to Löwe losing his right leg, dozens of the men and woman under his command and his ship. Needless to say when he was offered the promotion from Commodore to Rear Admiral (he had been due for promotion to Commodore before the Antietam incident and was hospital records indicated him as a Commodore in rank) and the position of head of the new organization he reportedly flat-out refused saying 'I would rather die at the helm than age behind a desk'.

But Löwe's career was far from being as clear cut as just getting into the newest Arleigh Burke or Ticonderoga class and battling against enemy forces in a vie for superiority. After the Antietam disaster the spotlight was on the department for failing to provide sufficient safety precautions and support for the vessel and it's crew, if there was such a thing when facing an alien and hostile enemy. Someone needed to be blamed and Congress ultimately dropped the hammer on Löwe who was ultimately the commanding officer of the day and was thus held responsible accordingly. He was only barely saved when the President and Secretary of Defense intervened and all charges which would've given the man a death sentence were dropped.

But the continuous loses against superior Abyssal forces meant that somehow Löwe had to fight against them, yet already his public image had been shattered and he knew it would be difficult to assume command again on a naval vessel. Thus, he became the head of NEWCOMM and went about building the organization into the intelligence powerhouse we know today. But for him, fighting the Abyssals wasn't just about stopping the hostile race from potentially conquering the world itself, but rather a personal vendetta of avenging the men and woman lost under his command that day. Löwe used this as the driving force behind his organization and the men and woman serving in it and thus, results came in slowly but steadily.

The first real question that had to be answered about the Abyssals that basically the entire world wanted to know was what exactly are they. A few years down the line even an aquatic life biologist serving with NEWCCOM from it's inception will be saying: 'A deep-sea race of biological organisms somehow integrated with mechanically functioning weapons and armour that presents an intelligent and hostile force against all of humanity.'

The Abyssals, while not wholly unstudyable were still an enigma which would take quite a while to fully decipher - not too different to the original Enigma cypher machine. But like the original coding machine, capturing the source a few times meant we began to achieve answers and slowly the blanks could be filled in, if only slowly. Capturing Abyssal wrecks/corpses (the organization still hasn't made the proper distinction between the two) and studying them has revealed their generally organic makeup behind a layer of armour which in actuality is their skin.

Their armaments seem to be highly miniaturised versions of equivalent class naval weapons that still retain their original firepower. The same could be said for their armor, as a battleship class can take more hits than a cruiser class and so on. These weapons and armour schemes are unfortunately inaccessible as they generally begin to breakdown when not in contact with salt. Tests have concluded that Abyssal forces can operate effectively on land and sea, yet their superiority in the latter is as such mainly due to the reliance of salt immersion or contact. Furthermore these traits are widely accepted to be physically impossible and as such applying any hard science to said weapons and armour schemes is just as impossible.

Whilst the majority of vessels possess animal like qualities and bodies, the higher classes of vessels (i.e. cruisers and up) have jarringly humanoid features. This has realistically plagued the majority of NEWCCOM personnel due to the morality and psychological issues of dissecting the female Abyssals. Yes, ever since the Antietam incident it has been confirmed that female Abyssals, along with all the female traits of human women do exist and fight on the front lines against us. It is for this reason that fighting Abyssals that have animal traits aren't nearly as difficult as the same situation against female Abyssals, and previous defeats can be attributed to this fact.

The Abyssals do have a class system, albeit one based more on actual ranking systems we cohesively with our own and foreign navies have devised. The more animalistic and motorboat-sized 'shark' types are destroyer class. The part humanoid and part mechanical are light cruisers, with the slightly more humanoid ones being heavy cruisers. Battleships are the more aggressive types and so far only two classes have been confirmed and are categorised by their much more obscene amount of weaponry. Carriers too exist and are the current staple airpower of the Abyssals with large helmet-like attachments for launching helmet-like aircraft.

Now the main issue here is the class of Abyssals we've very rarely seen up until their first major appearance at the Battle of the Pacific and since have been a part of Abyssal ranks ever since. The more powerful and aggressive Abyssals that vary wildly and come in different shapes, sizes and classes of their own we've ranked as 'Princesses'. Not due to any sort of humour or whim as it was based on the comment of a US Navy officer who rightly remarked that the two Abyssals who stationed at the rearguard: "They're sittin' like Princesses back there. They must be the heads o' the fleet."

Nevertheless, that concludes my report, sir. Regardless of the finite amount of information I can process about the enemy, we all know at least who they are and how to kill them. Like every large beast, even a swarm of ants can fell it, and as such every enemy humanity faces as a whole will succumb to us, eventually.