Disclaimer: Portland Rants!
So Guadalcanal by Christmas was a lie. Oh well.
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Retrospectively, I probably should have speed up last chapter so that the Battle of Santa Cruz happened on Christmas.
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Whoops.
Happy new years though!
Reviews:
The One: Well, who wouldn't be seduced by Portland? If you say Indy, I will come to your house and murder you.
Severak: Maybe. But Portlanta might sink pretty soon. (Both Metaphorically and Physically)
Portland's POV:
"Enterprise, radar check?" South Dakota motioned.
"Nothing in range yet." She checked. "Maintain radio silence."
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I took a bar of chocolate that I had saved in my pocket and began to nibble on it.
"Don't eat that." Enterprise plucked my snack away from me. "Eating before a battle will lower your decision making and agility."
"But I'm hungry..." I whined.
"Maintain radio silence." Enterprise reminded me before sailing in front.
It's 4 and I just want to have breakfast... (1)
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I threw my head back the moment I was sure that Enterprise was not looking. Jeez, how tight necked can she be? Does she just expect me to stay silent and prepared to fight for this seven hour patrol?
Now I know why Hornet was so deathly afraid of her. Enterprise is just so strict! If only Indy was here, that would make it far more bearable. I could just imagine Indy, sailing across the sea with me, the wind blowing through her shiny white hair. I wonder what she looks like now?
I sent her some perfume a few months back. Has she used all of it yet? I have to make sure that there's at least a stock of fresh cologne that I can buy at the store. It takes a couple weeks for shipments to travel to Alaska, so I might have to send some preemptively to make it in time. But maybe Indy forgot to use the essence, and she will have to sacrifice some of her precious space to store it?
Does Indy have enough space in Alaska? It is true that there seems to be limited room in the polar regions. I was so close to transferring to Indy, but we got turned back because they had no more room. Furthermore, the base in Alaska must use radiators to help heat up their rooms, and they can't really have much of them. What if Indy is confined to a small little attic room in Alaska? What if Indy has a roommate?
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A shiver ran down my spine.
Indy, a roommate? Certainly that is plausible.
If Indy were to get a roommate, there would be no doubt she would get bullied! Indy's the quiet type of girl, and if trouble were to come her way, she probably would submit. Indy would have been taken advantage of! Maybe that's why she didn't send any letters back to me; perhaps she's being threatened! She also can't get away from her abuser, since they are roommates, and that hostile workspace will certainly change her!
I can see it clearly. When Indy comes back to me, she will be nothing but a broken shell of herself. Bruised and bullied, her trust in others will evaporate like a bowl of water on a warm sunny day. Perhaps she'll become one of those stay at home NEETs like Long Island, and hide whenever she comes upon human interaction!
Perhaps, she might not even like me anymore.
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Nah, what are you thinking, have some more faith in your sister! The worst that could probably happen is that Indy would just put herself at the will of others. Indy is the submissive type, and she would probably submit to those roommate abusers. Perhaps they would use her for their own desires! I've seen it in a piece of literature that I recently read called Metamorphosis. This is quite dangerous. I really wished that Ind-
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"Portland, you're getting distracted." San Juan whispered to me, pulling me back into formation.
"Sorry." I snapped back into reality. "My bad."
"I'll go easy on you because of my sister's wishes," San Juan warned, "but if you ever get lazy again, I'll tell Enterprise, okay?
"Okay." I steered behind the Secretary.
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-y would tell me more about her life. If she sent more letters to me, I wouldn't have to guess on such matters like these. But not to say that Indy's problems are trivial, not at all. Any girl getting abused in Alaska deserves attention, and even more so because it's Indy! Especially since she's getting sexually exploited!
But could this be a good thing? When she does come back to me, I would be able to rebuild her step by step. And when I eventually do seduce her, she will already have gained valuable experience.
No, what am I thinking? Indy must be protected and venerated! This abuse shall not be tolerated, no matter what benefits it might bring to me. But the selfish side inside of me is quite convincing as well. I need a second opinion on this.
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"San Juan," I turned to her, "What are your thoughts on prostitution?"
"Good in moderation." She stretched.(2)
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San Juan respects her sister a lot. She just said that she would pardon my dis-attentiveness for her sister's behalf. And since she affirmed a belief in prostitution, then it must mean that she would be willing to sell her sister into it. It doesn't matter that she didn't mention Atlanta by name, but it would be implied under my logic. However, what if San Juan is just a pervert?
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"San Juan." I turned. "Are you horny?"
"Not yet." She shrugged.
Got it, She said no. That extremity is out of the picture. Now, if a completely normal moral light cruiser is willing to take advantage of her sister, surely I can do the same without consequences. I might even become more respected by assimilating into ordinary cruiser behavior. That's it!
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Tonight, I will lewd Indy!
Enterprise's POV:
This isn't good. We have yet to find the Sakura taskforce, and it's already dawn. Where could they even be? They have to have a force somewhere nearby.
"Grim, double the amount of scout aircraft." I called the eagle. "Report any possible sign of capital ships."
"Caw." Grim reported back.
"I know it's dangerous." I responded. "But we must strike a decisive battle here before the Sakura Carriers disappear."
This doesn't make sense. If the Sakura navy isn't here, where can they be?
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India? That doesn't make much sense. Royal Knight Warspite has taken a purely defensive stance since attacking the Andamans. If the Sakura Empire tried to attack them, then why would they push so hard here at Guadalcanal?
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Alaska? The Sakura Empire wouldn't send more ships there. Nothing of value exists, and sending aircraft into the Aleutian winter is a bad idea. Besides, they're currently on the defensive anyways.
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Hawaii?
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Saratoga should be able to hold them off until we can return. But that's not going to happen, they must be here.
As I was aiming my second patrol squadron, a 55 caliber gun poked into my back, throwing me off balance. (3)
I turned around, and sighed. "Portland. Pay attention to your surroundings. This is the most important lesson in war."
"That's not true." Portland disagreed. "That's bogus!"
"Can you teach a better lesson?" I raised my eyebrows.
"Sure!" Portland jumped out. "Let me teach you about Indy, the cutest sister in the world! Indy, known as Indianapolis, is a heavy cruiser enlisted into the Eagle Union with the signal CA-35. Part of the Portland class, Indy is the cutest ship in the entirety of Azur Lane. She boasts silky white hair and cocoa chocolate tanned skin, making her the cutest ship ever built. While she is most famous for her cuteness, she is also world renowned for her love of donuts, steak, and her older sister that she adores. Although she tends to have insecurities and communication problems, Indy outshines all other cruisers through sheer cuteness. Furthermore, she is talented in many things, such as laundry, massages, and being cute! It should also be included that she is battle hardened, as she employed her cuteness while serving with the aircraft carrier Lexington before being transferred to the Aleutian islands for seducing too many ships with her unparalleled cuteness. Did I also mention that she's super cute?"
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"What?" San Juan's look resembled pure confusion.
"How can this be applied to real life battle experience?" I rubbed my chin.
"Wait, you're actually taking this seriously?" South Dakota turned to me.
"Everything could be a valuable lesson." I replied. "Go on."
"Okay!" Portland began. "Indy, although venerated for her Cutenes-"
"No." San Juan interrupted. "There's nothing to learn here. It's basically useless"
"I respectfully disagree." Portland refuted. "The sheer enlightenment by the knowledge gained from merely inadequate descriptions of Indy's pur-"
San Juan interrupted. "Okay you know what? Let me prove my point. Hey Hornet, come over here!"
I glanced over to my left, where a group of ships were massing in the distance.
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"Hornet?" San Juan squinted.
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"That's not Hornet, is it?" San Juan responded.
I began launching planes behind my back. "Everyone, stay still." I whispered.
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"Grim, ships spotted on the Eastern Horizon." I muttered into my radio. "Torpedo bombers launched."
"Caw Caw Caw Caw CAw." Grim rolled his eyes.
"I know, that was my fault." I bit my lip. "I'll send them out unguided then."
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A single Avenger glimmered in the morning sun, with its squadron curling into two ruffled wings behind it. The bird of prey let out a mechanical roar as it tracked the flock of Sakura surface forces. Like a craft of origami, the carnivore folded out into an attack run, and made its way through a fog of fire, flames, and bullets.
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I didn't know what I was expecting. With ease, the Sakura cruiser lethargically steered away as my Torpedo bombers made their attack run. I kept this as a secret from the Eagle Union. Right now, we are inferior against the Sakura Empire. Our capital ships outnumbered, our torpedoes out performed, our firepower outmatched. Midway was a fluke; through all the thick fog and the temporary night sky, I blindly fired with the aim of intuition. Never will that miracle be fed to us again.
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The Sakura Vanguard scurried away from the lethal glare of the 20 plane eagle.
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But our resolve will always be first. And our industrial might will follow.
"Send our second wave." I recalled grim as I spun against the wind, throwing plane after plane into the sky. "It is time to repeat Midway."
"Caw." Grim saluted.
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"Enterprise, wait." Portland put her hand on my shoulder, halting my frenzy. "There's something off."
"I am your superior officer." I ignored her, directing my returning fighters towards the rapidly vanishing legion of Sakura sheep.
"Stop!" Portland shouted. "The Sakura had done this before at Coral Sea, think about it. Why are there battleships in the ocean?"
"To guard transports, obviously." South Dakota interjected.
"But there were no transports." Portland continued. "So that means they must have been ready to fight us."
"Why would they not rush us?" San Juan asked. "Two battleships is far more surface firepower than we can handle."
"Because of our air power." I signaled Grim as he returned to the cyclone of vultures rotating around the Head of the Eagle. "They can't touch us without being hammered from the sky."
"Exactly!" Portland shouted. "Since the Sakura Empire was planning to fight us, they must have fighters to cover their advancing force!"
"But there were no fighters." I handled my last bomber and notched it into the catapult.
"Meaning that the carriers are preoccupied!" Portland grabbed the rim of my bow.
"With what?!" I shook my bow away from her hands. What is her problem? WE need this decisive victory!
"Hornet!" Portland pleaded.
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I lowered my bow.
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Oh god.
Footnotes:
(1): Yup! Santa Cruz was fought for the majority of the day, ever since first contact at 6 AM to Zuikaku's final strike at 3:23 PM. Poor Portland.
(2): San Juan has ordered Cleveland a multitude of times. Shockingly, she got nowhere.
(3): 8 in, 55 caliber, 440 inches long, I think. Math is hard.
It's really weird actually. I thought I will just love winter break, cuz I get to play games all day and finally not have to worry about stuff.
But now, I just realized that I have nothing to do.
Except for my winter break homework. I guess I'll just cram it in the final weekend. What could possibly go wrong?
Anyways, see you next week!