Authors Disclaimer: This chapter, and others after may include some words, phrases, or situations that nowadays are no longer applicable, or are frowned upon in use. Please keep in mind that this story, while one of pure fiction, is based around the world as we knew it in the 1940's directly after WW2. While I will not be using some of the more harmful language that was used back then to describe African Americans, I am still going to try to keep this as Era appropriote as possible. Thank you for your understanding, and I hope you enjoy.
Night had fallen by the time Laffey and the Kashino reached Fiona Beach.
"Does anything hurt, K?" Patty asked softly as she finished up wrapping K-9's missing limbs.
"Nah. It stopped hurting a long time ago, Patty. I've gotten used to it." K-9 said as Isaac walked over.
"You're the Commander that's gonna save my skin, huh?" K-9 asked.
"You bet. Any Kansen I find is welcome in my fleet. And even Sirens, should they surrender without contest." Isaac said.
"You say that like you already caught one." K-9 said.
"I did. She has been very helpful in increasing our knowledge of Siren tech, and Siren strategy." Isaac said.
"Huh... you're an odd character, Commander." K-9 said as she descended into a coughing fit.
"Is she going to be okay?" Isaac asked.
"They let her go for a really long time, Commander. Several months without maintenance, and then nearly a year of decommissioned use by the Dutch meant she wasn't kept up to military standards, allowing a lot of her systems to go into disrepair after her abandonment." Patty said.
K-9 managed to stop her fit and took a deep breath.
"I'm okay, Commander. I can make the trip. Please, don't give up on me too." K-9 said softly.
"You don't need to make the trip. Kashino has you covered." Isaac said as the Kashino pulled up next to the stricken sub.
"What do you mean?" K-9 asked.
"We're going to attach floaters to your vessel to supplement your ballast system. I don't know the status of your ballast tanks and these floats will prevent your vessel from sinking should your ballast tanks burst while in tow." Isaac said as he looked at his watch.
"It's 2300. I want to be gone by 0130 at the latest. Let's get this under way. We need time to get away from this beach." Isaac said as the girls jumped into action.
"Has anyone seen the Admiral?" Nimitz asked as he walked into the port.
"He's down at Fiona Beach. Patty told him of an abandoned submarine down there so he bolted out of here earlier this morning." Odin said.
"What? Abandoned materials are still military property. He should know that." Nimitz said.
"He does. But apparently, this sub has a kansen. And the way Patty talked about her, she's in a bad way since they refuse to maintain her." Odin said.
Nimitz sighed.
"So he felt bad for the submarine and is on a rescue mission?" Nimitz asked.
"Yup." Odin said.
"This will cause unneeded headaches with the RAN." Nimitz said.
"In my personal opinion, we only need the support of the Australian Army. The RAN doesn't have to be involved in our operations. And their care for Kansens seems pretty apparent since Patty was told not to come back, and they are pushing hard to scrap this one specific submarine." Odin said.
"So it's not a matter of jurisdiction, but a matter of morals?" Nimitz asked.
"We are essentially the same as you humans. Just, we are the embodiment of warships. But we still have the same parts in our bodies as the typical human woman. And we have wills, dreams, and hopes. Without our ships, we are indistinguishable from a normal human, so why should we be subject to being owned by humanity? You own our vessels, yes. But not us." Odin said.
"So you're saying that stealing this submarine is the same as rescuing an abused child?" Nimitz asked.
"Yes. Given how Patty described her own treatment and the treatment of K-9 as of late, I would say abuse is an apt description." Odin said.
"I see. I never really gave it much thought before meeting Admiral Garner. But I've been met with more moral quandaries since I've been here than in the majority of the Pacific war. But it just goes to show how noble Isaac truly is then. Knowing how he was treated back in the Union... I can see that he wants nobody else to suffer like he did." Nimitz said.
"He keeps saying that... but I don't understand. I was punished for something like that back in Fiji along with Friedrich. But I don't understand." Odin said.
"In the union... people like him are constantly put down due to the color of their skin. As a colored man in the Union, his rights, in the eyes of the public and the government, are not equal to someone like me. In the union, he can't drink from the same water fountain as me. He can't use the same bathroom. He has to sit at the back of the bus, as the front is reserved for white people. Even in the military, the most noble occupation, colored men are treated like lesser beings compared to their white counterparts. His most basic human rights are subject to ignorance by the general public. And worse still, colored people in the Union are the subjects of random acts of violence. There is even a group, the KKK, that seek to keep colored people as lower class citizens. But some of the more extreme members of this group resort to violence and terrorism. Burning crosses in the yards of colored Americans. Public beatings of colored men and women. Lynchings. And these men are never brought to justice, as the courts do not give the colored population the time of day. The union... for Isaac... is hell compared to the field of battle that he finds himself on." Nimitz said to a very shocked Odin.
"Oh my god... that's horrible. But... I guess we're no better, us Germans." Odin said.
"I am in no position to speak about your government. But I have to say that the reports of camps and mass graves are appalling." Nimitz said as Odin nodded.
"I am in agreement with that statement, Admiral. We of the Kriegsmarine do not support the actions of our Army and the atrocities committed." Odin said.
"So I guess as long as he doesn't get too carried away, I can understand his reasoning. We should prepare to hide this sub from the port authorities. And knowing them, they'll report us the moment he brings that sub to port, so we need a way to prevent that." Nimitz said.
"I can jam their communications. "Odin said.
"Work on doing so, or cut their communications all together." Nimitz said. Odin ran off to begin working on it.
"Alright, Admiral. Get her back here. Once she's here, we can leverage with the RAN." Nimitz said to himself as he looked to the south.
Isaac looked at his watch.
"Alright, are we good to go? I'd like to get out of here now if able." Isaac said as he looked over the beach.
"Ready to push off, Shikikan. We can arrive in Brisbane at 0500" Kashino said.
"Push off and tow her as fast as you can. I'll take K-9 with me. Take Laffey and Chief and sail back up the coast. Stay blacked out so they can't see you." Isaac said as he loaded K-9 into the jeep with Patty and Australia.
"We'll meet you there, Commander." Chief said as Isaac nodded.
"Go, quickly." Isaac said as he hit the gas and was off towards Brisbane.