Isaac ran to where Warspite was dragging a Lurker from the water.
"How did it get so damn close?!" Isaac asked as the ships in port awaited orders.
"I felt something watching me, Commander. This one was cloaked in some kind of optical camouflage and was just watching us from the bow of the Pennsylvania. It only decloaked once I killed it." Warspite explained.
"Are you feeling anything else?" Isaac asked as he placed his helmet on his head, ready to give orders.
"Nothing here, but if this Lurker is here, we can assume the sirens are inbound and they're closer than we think." Warspite said as she turned her eyes to the sky.
"Aircraft?" Isaac asked.
"Launch whatever you can, and quickly. I've seen those things move during Her Majesty's escape from the British Isles. They're fast and deadly all the same. And with this new ability to cloak, they could already be within our airspace, not to mention what advancements they have made in their munitions." Warspite said as Isaac nodded.
"Richthofen, Eagle, Zeppelin, launch whatever you can to intercept potential incoming aircraft. All Battleships, form a shell around the port, if they are doing this level or recon, they're planning something big, we hold this port, no matter what. Cruisers, situate yourselves around the carriers to provide additional AA support. Vengeance, this is your time to show us what you can do, set up just behind the battleship shell and launch your compliment of aircraft behind the other Carriers, if possible, place a beacon on your aircraft to allow the carriers to identify. Malan, I don't want you to debut here. Stay below deck or get on the AA guns to help coordinate Eagle's defense. I entrust her AA safety to you, so don't let me down." Isaac spoke quickly, watching the ships obey his orders the moment he gave them.
"Liebling, what about Laffey and I? She hasn't left yet." Nimi said.
"You two defend Shinano. Speaking of, Taka, can you hear me?" Isaac asked.
"Loud and clear, Shikikan. What can we do?" Taka asked.
"Get your men on Shinano's AA guns. She is under a lot of stress right now and I don't want her to over exert herself. I expect excellence from you guys today. I don't want a single bomb or Aircraft to get through." Isaac demanded.
"We won't let you down, Shikikan." Taka spoke as Isaac heard him shout his orders to his men.
"Admiral." Nimitz and MacArthur ran to him.
"Nimitz, The Missouri is going to stay within the Battleship shell with Vengeance. Assist her with AA and target detection. You have a manned vessel with no shielding capabilities. You're too vulnerable." Isaac said.
"With all due respect, Admiral, I have an excellent repair crew and exemplary damage control, we can assist in the shell." Nimitz said.
"Negative. These aren't the Japanese or the Kriegsmarine. This isn't a human threat. These are the Sirens. And I know the sirens just a tad bit more than Union Naval Intelligence. If they see an easy target, they won't hold back. You are the easiest target here, since your vessel isn't controlled by a Kansen. You can't put up shields, and your crew is nothing but soft targets to be mowed down by plasma fire. Trust me, Stay with Vengeance, and you'll live to see more battles in this war." Isaac commanded. His reasoning sound, Nimitz accepted his demands and went to order his crew. Isaac then turned to MacArthur.
"What about us?" MacArthur asked, his tone sounding less enthusiastic than Nimitz's.
"Get Sergeant Dawson in the air with the Catalina. Get it above the clouds and into an area where he can survey the battlefield. I need eyes anywhere I can get them, so having him up there while my carriers are busy intercepting and attacking will be a big help. I also need you to use your influence here to request AA from the Australian army and any Union forces on the Continent. I don't need the heaviest ordinance that the Army has, but if you could get those bombers back on standby, it would be really useful since we have no clue what we're up against here." Isaac said, stunning MacArthur with the urgency he put into his orders.
"I'll get the General of the Aussie forces on the line right away. Dawson will be in the air in 5, your Bulins did a good job patching that old Cat back together, so she's in perfect running order. I'll get men on the .50's on the Sherman's and help wherever we can." MacArthur said, finally seeing why everyone followed Isaac so strongly.
"Good. I'll be onboard the Vengeance providing orders to the battlefield. I'm patched in to the Odin, Norfolk, and the port. If you see something amiss, I need to know about it, there's no way an attack like this is only centered here. Let The Australian General know that any known ports on this side of Australia are in danger of being invaded and overrun. I can't spare anyone and the best I can do is protect Brisbane for all I'm worth." Isaac spoke.
"Understood." MacArthur spoke as he gave Isaac a salute before running into the port to give his orders.
Isaac turned to his eyes to the skies as his carriers all launched their fighters.
"Richthofen, are you in your lead element?" Isaac asked.
"Ja, Kommandant. Why do you ask?" Richthofen asked.
"I will have Zeppelin and Eagle follow your lead. You will be the air wing commander for this. You do with their fighters and yours as you see fit." Isaac said.
"I understand. I won't let you down." Richthofen said as Isaac changed the channel to all of his carriers.
"Girls, I am going to take some of MacArthur's men and have them man your AA guns to give you more focus in controlling your aircraft. I know it won't be the best arrangement, but we cannot afford to let anything through. Let them help." Isaac said, earning him affirmations from his four carriers.
"Good." Isaac said as his breathing quickened. Before him, his ships had all moved into position, hundreds of AA guns pointed to the sky. The sound of the twin engine Catalina taking off gave Isaac hope. That was until Richthofen radioed him seconds later.
"Kommandant! Get the shields up! Glide bombs inbound!" Richthofen yelled as Isaac's visor zoomed in. Sure enough, he could see several fighters breaking off to attempt to catch the so called 'glide bombs' that looked more like Torpedoes with wings.
"All vessels! Shields to full! AA guns take out those incoming!" Isaac yelled as the sky tore open with the sounds of Flak and AA fire.
"Was this truly the best way to start the attack? Making ourselves known so early?" XIV pondered to herself as more 'glide bombs' were launched from the carrier class drone ships in addition to their normal assortment of aircraft.
"XIV, status." Empress's voice was heard from XIV's rigging.
"We have begun the assault on Brisbane. I have ordered the other fleets to hold off until we break through here." XIV spoke.
"And if he destroys you, then those fleets will never attack, order the assault on Australia now, that way if this battle drags on, we can surround him." Empress explained hastily.
"We? I'm the only one actually here, Empress." XIV spoke.
Empress growled at XIV's near insubordinate tone.
"You know what I mean. If it weren't for the failure known as Observer Zero and the incompetency of our outdated drone fleets, we would have squashed this bug the day he appeared on our radar." Empress spat.
"And you're taking this anger out on me, why? I know what I am doing. After all, it was I who helped hand you Eagle Union on a silver platter, or did you just so happen to conveniently forget that fact?" XIV spoke coldly.
"Well... you have a point. Destroy him quickly. Do so, and dominion of Australia is yours." Empress said as she cut the line.
"I plan on it." XIV said as she continued pressing her fleet towards Brisbane.
The sounds of muffled AA guns roared outside as MacArthur sat on the radio.
"Are you honestly asking me to believe this report, General?" A voice asked on the other end.
"Yes. I know how it sounds, but you have to listen. Every port on this side of the continent is under threat from the Sirens. We can't break away from Brisbane to even attempt to defend the other ports, according to the Admiral." MacArthur spoke, hearing the other end through headphones.
"Every port, though? With a statement like that, protocol dictates that unless there are enemy boots on the ground, we need approval from the proper governing bodies to issue an emergency mobilization." The voice said.
"Look, I don't give two fucks what your protocol is, General. If your protocol prohibits you from defending until troops are on enemy soil, then you might as well kiss this country goodbye. I don't have the forces here to retake Australia for you in case Admiral Garner fails, and then you decide that you don't want to defend your citizens. Either you fight now and help us or, when we fail to protect the other ports because we're tied up here by the main assault force, you give your country over to the sirens and hope they don't kill you and your men just because you wear a uniform." Macarthur barked.
"Alright... fine. How many men will I need to allocate to this? I'll need to make a report to the senate to get approval." The General said.
"How many?! Send every fucking battalion you have! The Union gave you tanks, trucks, planes, and field equipment. Use it, there's a war on, buddy!" Macarthur yelled as the General cut the line. The curtain to the tent opened.
"Sir." Witmer said as he stood in the entrance.
"Seaman Witmer? Why are you here?" MacArthur asked.
"I was too far from the ship when she departed to join the Vengeance in the firing line. I've been placed under your command by Admiral Nimitz for the time being." Witmer said.
MacArthur rubbed his temples.
"What do you do?" MacArthur asked.
"I deal with damage control." Witmer said.
"Can you load and fire a .50 caliber Machine gun?" MacArthur asked.
"Yes sir." Witmer responded.
"Then get with the tankers and get on a .50. If the sounds of AA out there is any indication, we're going to need every bullet we can spare in the air." MacArthur said as the radio came back on.
Witmer saluted and left posthaste, heading across the docks towards where the Tanks were moving into position around port to set up a makeshift AA circle.
"The Senate has confirmed with Brisbane port Authority that you are indeed under attack, and that your requests for aid are valid. The Senate has authorized full mobilization of the armed forced to assist in any way we can, up to and including the liberation of the lower Pacific, seeing's how both attacks in the past week have come from the lower pacific." The General said.
"Good. It's about time you got your head out of your ass." MacArthur snapped.
"We have also been authorized to use any tools at our disposal, including the captured type 96 AA guns we took from Sakura. Do you have need of this equipment, General MacArthur?" The General asked.
"Captured Type 96 Sakura guns? Sure. I'm sure that supply ship of his has Ammo for it. Yes, we can accept them." MacArthur spoke as a massive explosion rocked the port as Warspite's AA took out the first flying bomb.
"What was that?" The general asked.
"Look man, I don't know what the hell is going on out there. They have flying bombs for fuck's sake." MacArthur snapped.
"Flying bombs? Should we assume that the other ports will be under similar siege?" The General asked.
"I would. Maybe it's because Admiral Garner is here, or maybe this is their true assault strength. But we should assume that every Australian port will be under this level of siege until the leading Siren is dealt with." MacArthur spoke, realizing now that Australia would need all the help it could get.
"Understood. For now, I must go, I have to inform the Battalion commanders of these incoming threats." The General said as he cut the line.
"Fucking Aussies..." MacArthur grumbled as he changed the radio Frequency.
"Admiral?" MacArthur asked, only for the radio to respond with the loud rhythmic banging of Octuple Bofors guns.
"General, did we get through?" Isaac asked as he picked up the radio.
"Yes we did. The Aussies are mobilizing to every port on this side of the continent, including this one. If we can hold out, we'll get support in the form of AA guns and trained men." MacArthur said.
"Good. I see a circle of Shermans in the center of port. I commend you for your quick action." Isaac said.
"Your praise is not warranted, but is appreciated. What more will you have me do?" MacArthur asked.
"Keep tabs on Dawson and make sure you don't lose anyone needlessly. This isn't like our last battle in New Guinea. We don't have an advantage here. The only thing keeping us alive right now is the wall of steel and lead being put up by the battleships and cruisers. Carriers have yet to identify the targets. So we're playing a mostly defensive game." Isaac reported.
"Understood. Speaking of, I'm getting something from him, I will return." MacArthur said as he switched the radio frequency again.
"Sergeant, I hope you have something for us. We're taking far too much fire from an enemy we can't see." MacArthur spoke.
"I don't see any enemy ships, General. But I am seeing puffs of smoke coming from the water that match the frequency of the rocket attacks. Didn't the spy we found come in cloaked with some sort of optical camouflage magic bullshit?" Dawson asked as MacArthur imagined the Sergeant scratching his head.
"They did, from what I've heard." MacArthur said truthfully.
"Well, I think they managed to do it with the entire assault fleet." Dawson reported.
"What?!" MacArthur asked.
"The entire assault fleet has been cloaked and is approaching based on the advancing puffs of smoke." Dawson reiterated.
"Understood. Give me your distance from port, If we can fire, I'll need you to spot." MacArthur spoke as Dawson replied.
"I'm only 40 miles from port. But I don't know how we're going to track this fleet." Dawson said.
"You leave it to me. Just keep them in your sight." MacArthur spoke as he flipped a switch on the radio to open a secure line to the bomber airfields.
"Air Commander, come in." MacArthur spoke.
"MacArthur, what can we do for you?" The Air Commander spoke.
"Can you get those flying fortresses in the air again?" MacArthur asked.
"We figured we'd be getting another call for our bombers. We only have the 500 pounders left so we won't be able to do much against those heavily fortified shield ships if they are present in this battle." The Air Commander said.
"No need. Do you have practice bombs that you can fill with paint?" MacArthur asked.
"Plenty... why?" The Air Commander asked.
"Call me crazy, because I think the admiral's influence is rubbing off on me... but we have enemy ships we can't see. So we need to paint our ships a massive target to shoot at." MacArthur spoke.
"I see. We'll get right on it. Expect us in 20 minutes." The Air Commander said before cutting the line, allowing MacArthur to report back to Isaac.
"Admiral, I have intel." MacArthur spoke.
"Let's hear something good, General." Isaac replied.
"Dawson has found the advancing fleet, but they are using the same cloaking ability that you and the girls spoke of when that new girl killed the spy." MacArthur spoke.
"Shit... that's going to make things more difficult for us here if we can't see what we're shooting at." Isaac said.
"I have the bombers spinning up now. They're going to be loaded with paint bombs so that we can hopefully see what we're shooting at. Other than that, we will have to let them in closer since they're 40 miles out. And if the paint doesn't work, we have to predict our enemy's movement based on the rocket's exhaust from launch." MacArthur said.
"There's a hope for us yet. Thankfully the shields are holding steady for now. Good Work, General. Now assign one of your men to the radio, I would like you to command your forces from the front. We need quick and decisive action without downtime for litigation." Isaac spoke sternly.
"On it." MacArthur said as he got up and took off the headpiece before running out to join the defense.
Out in the port, the chaos had not let up in the slightest. AA gun barrels were glowing red on every single ship capable of throwing flak into the sky. Shields flaired as Siren Aircraft from the Assault forces splashed into the water after being shot down. Bombs and torpedoes from said aircraft were stopped short by the heavy battleship shields, but the toll was being taken by every member of the fleet.
"Girls, we have to hold out just a little longer. The enemy will be in range and we can fire back to disrupt their attack and give us some room to breathe." Isaac said as he noticed the next wave of rockets coming in.
"AA shoot down this wave! Warspite, if you can put anything else into your shields, do it! This wave seems to be focused!" Isaac yelled as Elizabeth looked across the water to see nearly a dozen rockets slam into Warspite's shields, the last rocket shattering her shield.
"Warspite, retreat! Let the others close the loop, you're in danger of being singled out!" Isaac pleaded.
"Nonsense, Commander. I will not hide and allow my new allies to take the brutal toll of war alone. I have long made peace with the powers that be." Warspite said as she kept her AA guns firing at the next wave of aircraft.
"Elizabeth, order her!" Isaac cried out.
"Warspite, an order from the Commoner is an order from me! Retreat, now!" Elizabeth ordered. Warspite looked over at the Queen Elizabeth after seeing the next wave of rockets coming right for her.
"Your Majesty... it seems that my time has come. I hope I made you proud." Warspite spoke as the radio went silent across the fleet.
"Warspite, move now!" Elizabeth screamed, watching in horror as another dozen rockets impacted the Warspite, detonating along every inch of the deck and splitting the hull down the center.
"WARSPITE!"