At the conclusion of Isaac's reading, and upon placing the papers under her hand, Hood's hand closed slightly, causing Isaac to smile a bit.
"I think she heard it." Isaac said as Nimitz looked at him.
"It's almost surreal how much these girls can endure." Nimitz said as Isaac looked at him.
"It is, but I try to keep them from harm nonetheless." Isaac said as noises in the port drew his attention.
"Alice, please keep an eye on Hood. Call Arizona from the Vestal if you need to." Isaac said. Alice nodded and returned to tending Hood.
"Why Arizona, Admiral?" Nimitz asked.
"We found out that she has a strange ability when it comes to Humans and Kansens alike. When Arizona tends to injuries, those injuries heal considerably quicker and with a very low chance of complication. If not for her, I'd still be laying in a bed dealing with second degree burns and a broken hand." Isaac said.
"Does it have any adverse effects on Arizona?" Nimitz asked.
"It does, Admiral." Alice said.
"Oh?" Isaac asked.
"When she does a lot of medical work, she tends to get extremely tired to the point of collapsing. We have limited her to 4 hours per day, since no matter how much she heals during those 4 hours, it does not seem to tire her too severely." Alice said.
"I see. I should have expected something like that. A miracle like that would be way too convenient to not have a downside." Isaac said.
"Well... I know it's a bit much to ask, but the Corpsman onboard the Missouri are overloaded with the injured from the battle. Do you think we could make use of her ability to get my men back in the fight?" Nimitz asked.
"I don't see why not, as long as she is alright with being assigned to the Missouri until she's treated your men." Isaac said.
"I won't ask right away. Hood needs her more right now, the men left are all pretty much stable, so they can wait until Arizona treats Hood." Nimitz said as Isaac nodded.
"So long as she agrees to it, I'll allow it." Isaac said as Isaac turned to Alice.
"Please alert Odin if Hood should wake up. Apparently, I'm being treated to a night on the town by the good Admiral." Isaac said.
"As you wish, sir. Please drink responsibly. I'd rather not be coming out to remove you from a wrecked car." Alice said as Nimitz and Isaac laughed.
"I'm being serious, Isaac Garner. If I find you blacked out drunk, I'm going to have your wives make your life hell." Alice said as she tapped her foot.
"Hmmm. I shall accompany the Shikikan. I... would like to have a few drinks myself." Shinano said softly as she walked into the medical bay.
"Shinano. What happened to you tending to Eagle... Eagle!" Isaac said as he rushed out of the room, heading for the top deck.
"I guess it would be good for you to join us, Miss Shinano. You seem to have an air of calm around you, and that's what he needs right now." Nimitz said.
"I figured as much, Union Admiral Nimitz." Shinano said as she and Nimitz slowly followed Isaac towards the top deck, leaving Alice to tend to Hood.
Isaac ran up the gang way that had been attached to the Eagle. Running through the corridors, Isaac looked for Eagle in every room and every hallway.
"Eagle?!" Isaac yelled as he ran through the crew quarters. He kept running, not hearing her response. Eventually, he came to the captain's quarters, where he found Eagle resting in the bed, curled around a pillow.
Isaac knocked on the doorframe, but did not get a response. He showed himself in and went immediately to her bedside.
"Eagle... Eagle." Isaac whispered as he shook her shoulder gently.
"Hmm? Darling, is that you?" Eagle asked.
"Yes. I'm here now. I'm sorry it took me so long to come by." Isaac whispered as Eagle rolled over and latched her arms around Isaac's neck.
"But you're here now, and that makes me happy. It's like my dream came true." Eagle said.
"Your dream?" Isaac asked.
"I was dreaming that you were here with me in this bed. We were celebrating our victory in battle." Eagle said softly.
"Well... We didn't win outright... but the enemy fleet sank, and we didn't. So I guess we did win, somehow." Isaac said as Eagle pulled him onto the bed.
"How do you feel?" Isaac asked.
"I just feel a bit of pain all over. But Shinano helped me a bit with the repairs. The only things left are the holes on the flight deck." Eagle said softly.
"What about Malan?" Isaac asked.
"He's in port. I did everything I could to keep him safe, so he was uninjured." Eagle said as she ran her fingers across his face.
"That's good to hear." Isaac said as Eagle pinched his cheek hard.
"And if I hear you try to sacrifice yourself like that again, I'm going to beat you senseless." Eagle said with a pout on her face.
"I was just trying to make sure you all got out safe." Isaac said.
"If you had gone in, I would have turned right back around and went in with you. Living without you... is not something I wish to endure." Eagle said softly as she drew him into a tender kiss.
Isaac gave up his fight and returned her kiss, being sure to keep his weight off of her.
"Will you stay here with me?" Eagle asked softly as she released his lips.
"I will return, my love. The Admiral wants me to step off base for tonight. But I will come back tonight." Isaac said softly as he ran his hand through Eagle's hair.
"Aww... Okay. I'll let you go. You need some time to destress as is." Eagle said as she kissed him again, savoring all she could before allowing him to leave.
"You better come back to me." Eagle said softly.
"I will, my love. After all, Doctor Eagle might need to cure a hangover." Isaac said with a smile.
"The doctor will be waiting." Eagle said softly as she allowed herself to fall back to sleep.
"Shikikan, are you in here?" Shinano asked.
"I am." Isaac said as he quietly exited Eagle's room.
"Let's get going before it gets too late. We don't want to be traveling at night time." Shinano said as Nimitz nodded.
"Travel? How far are we going?" Isaac asked.
"Not far, but since it is almost evening already, we don't want to be caught out at night." Nimitz said.
"Well... alright, let's go then. Do we have to stop to pick up your first mate?" Isaac asked.
"No. He should be bringing the car around as we speak." Nimitz said as the three of them headed out towards the docks.
"Shinano opened the door for Isaac as the three of them piled into the older looking car. Isaac sat with Shinano in the back as Nimitz sat in the passenger seat.
"Shinano, are you comfortable?" Isaac asked as Shinano snaked her tails over Isaac's lap.
"I am, Shikikan. It isn't as tight in here as you may think." Shinano said as she looked at Isaac.
"Just checking. I know you have quite a bit of... fur to keep in check." Isaac said. Shinano looked at him as he felt her hand set itself on his lap under her tails.
Isaac looked at her and then forward as he felt a blush cross his face.
"So, Mr. Garner, what was your life like before all of this?" Nimitz asked.
"Well, you know how life is in the Union for a colored man like me. It wasn't easy, but so long as we kept to ourselves, we did alright for the most part." Isaac said as he felt Shinano's hand creep up towards his hip.
"Did the military ever interest you?" Nimitz asked as he turned around, causing Shinano to stop moving her arm.
"Not really. I didn't really like the idea of being on the front lines, I much preferred my life as a mechanic. I also went to MIT for Engineering, which helped my produce what we know as the Philadelphia project." Isaac said.
"USS Eldridge?" Nimitz asked.
"Yeah. Such a sweet girl. I think of her like my own daughter." Isaac said.
"Wasn't that project a failure though?" Nimitz asked.
"In a way, yes. But With her now having control of her own ship, I have modified it so that the system works as intended." Isaac said.
"Really?" Nimitz asked.
"Yes. When Eldridge is in the fleet, the whole radar signature of the fleet is scrambled. So what the enemy sees, is most definitely not what is actually there." Isaac said.
"Hmm. Would that tech be able to be used on other ships?" Nimitz asked.
"I don't see why not. But I would need to redesign them for each ship." Isaac said as he felt Shinano's hand creep upwards again as she scooted over and leaned against him.
"Shinano, what are you doing?" Isaac whispered softly.
"Hmm?" Shinano asked softly as she laid her head on his shoulder, using her remaining tails to cover his lap.
"Why the redesign, Mr. Garner?" Nimitz asked.
"The... the design uses open currents to produce EM waves. Those waves trap radar pings, either scrambling or nullifying the radar depending on distance." Isaac said as he felt Shinano's hand on his chest, allowing him to breath a sigh of relief.
"I will have you later, Isaac Garner." Shinano's voice sounded in his head.
Twenty minutes later, they arrived at a bar on the edge of Brisbane.
Isaac gently shook Shinano, waking her from her nap.
"We're here." Isaac whispered as Nimitz got out and opened Isaac's door. Isaac got out and helped Shinano out as the three of them waited for the first mate to park the car.
"Let's head on in then. We have much to discuss, Mr. Garner." Nimitz said as the four of them walked inside the bar.