"Liebling. We're in private now. Nobody will interrupt." Nimi said as Bremerton, Nimi, Belfast and Isaac walked into his quarters on the Norfolk.
Isaac walked wordlessly to his bureau and laid the folded Union Jack on the top, leaning it against the attached mirror.
"Liebling... please, let it out." Nimi said softly as she held his hand.
"She... she was the first one to treat me like a proper person." Isaac said softly as Belfast and Bremerton looked at each other.
"So she holds a very sentimental place in your heart?" Bremerton asked.
"That doesn't begin to explain it. She was my friend. My best friend. And even when the world's oceans separated us, I had a feeling she felt the same." Isaac said as he sat on his bed.
"She did, Master. Forgive me for speaking out of turn, but Her Majesty would often discuss you in private. King George V and Howe know of you, as do the Maid corps of the Royal Navy. She spoke fondly of your... sub-par tea and the time she spent with you. She said you made her feel less like a queen... but more like a person. And she found that to be quite endearing." Belfast said.
Isaac chuckled before sighing a heavy sigh.
"Believe me... I know. Her last words were directed to me." Isaac said.
"If you don't mind... what where they?" Bremerton asked.
Isaac looked at the three girls.
"She told me that she loved me." Isaac said as tears fell from his eyes sinking into the carpeted floor.
"She confessed?" Belfast asked, her tone one of shock.
"Her body disappeared right after she said it... but the look in her eyes, the feeling of her hand on my cheek... it felt like she had been holding those words back for a long time." Isaac said as he put his face in his hands.
Belfast looked down at her feet with clenched fists.
Nimi looked worriedly at Belfast and Isaac before deciding to sit next to Isaac, her small fish appearing in her lap.
"I wish there was something more I could have done." Belfast spoke.
"There are things I wish I could have done too. But... it was her choice. And nobody had any right to deny her... but I wish I could have." Isaac said.
"But without her sacrifice, Warspite would have died." Bremerton said.
"I know... and that would have hurt her even more... there was no happy ending to that predicament." Isaac said as he laid back on the bed.
"A proper catch-22." Belfast said.
Bremerton and Nimi looked at Belfast before turning back to Isaac who was crying softly, remembering his time with Elizabeth and as an extension, his time with his family.
"Liebling?" Nimi asked as she crawled across the bed to him and laid down so her face was right next to his.
Isaac turned to look at her before gently taking the destroyer in his arms and holding her close and allowing himself to grieve his loss in the comfort of his lover's embrace.
"Will you be keeping an eye on him?" Bremerton asked.
"I will. It was her majesty's decree that I be assigned to Isaac. So I shall care for him as I cared for her." Belfast said as they watched Nimi run her hand through Isaac's hair as she petted his head.
"We're all here for you, Liebling. You're not alone." Nimi said softly as a knock came to the door.
"I thought Pennsylvania was to ensure that nobody disturbed the Commander." Bremerton spoke.
"She was. It must be important." Belfast said as she walked to the door and cracked it, only for it to be forced open by an overeager Destroyer.
"Isaac!" Eldridge cried as she ran into the room and jumped onto the bed next to Isaac.
"Eldridge!" Nimi cried as she held Isaac close, concealing his face until he could compose himself.
"Nimi, let go of Isaac. I heard Isaac is sad." Eldridge said as she stared at Nimi.
"Hello, Eldridge." Isaac said as he pulled himself from the crook of Nimi's neck, his poorly concealed tears confirming Eldridge's assumption.
"Isaac okay?" Eldridge asked in the all too familiar voice Isaac knew from back in Newark.
"Isaac not okay." Isaac replied, forcing a smile after playing along with her.
Eldridge scooted closer and hugged him for all she was worth.
"Isaac gonna be okay." Eldridge said softly as Nimi rubbed his head more.
"I'm sorry Commander. I couldn't catch her before she got here." Penny said as she poked her head into the room.
"It was unreasonable to ask you to keep everyone away. It's alright." Isaac said as he held his destroyers in a hug.
"Well... if that's the case, I have someone else who wishes to see you." Penny said as Omaha made her presence in the doorway known.
"Long time no see, Commander." Omaha said with a hand on her hip.
"It has been a while." Isaac said, putting another forced smile on his face.
"I heard about what happened. Are you holding up alright?" Omaha asked.
"Not really... but with everyone coming in... I am forced to face the fact that it doesn't matter. We have a job to do, and time won't stop just because I wish to grieve my losses." Isaac said.
"Commander, that isn't a healthy way to think about it." Bremerton said with a sigh.
"Well, it's the truth, is it not?" Isaac asked.
Bremerton sighed more.
"Are you feeling the slightest bit better?" Bremerton asked.
"I think being able to finally let the tears flow has helped a little... and of course the support of this fleet is dulling the pain." Isaac said as he nodded to Eldridge, who had refused to release him from her hold.
Everyone present smiled at Eldridge's display of support.
"We got to talking on the way here, she's missed you very much. Like almost to the point of fighting Rodney back in Tonga." Omaha said as she scratched her head.
"I can tell. I don't think she'll be letting go anytime soon." Isaac said as he rubbed Eldridge's back and kissed Nimi's forehead.
"Mmm!" Amagi squealed as she bit into her freshly made Takoyaki.
"Is it really that good?" Ben asked as he sat to her right.
"It's her specialty. The officers under me used to enjoy her cooking back during the war." Michael said as he indulged in the pan cooked octopus ball.
"Can't complain. It's fresh, and it's life sustaining." Wilhelm said as he ate his own portion, keeping the mask covering all but his mouth.
"Jesus Christ, Kraut. Just take the damn thing off. You're eating for fuck's sake." Ben said, slamming his hand on the metal table.
"Do I come after you for eating with half your chest exposed, you American ape?" Wilhelm asked.
"What did you call me, you Nazi fuck?!" Ben roared as his fists created dents in the metal table.
"Both of you, enough. Or I will have no choice but to run you both under the keel." Amagi said sternly before returning to her still steaming Takoyaki with a drooling smile.
"Amagi, my dear, you're drooling." Michael said.
"It's so good and fresh, I can't help myself." Amagi said as the lights flickered.
"Action stations." Michael called immediately.
"Understood. Are munitions ready?" Wilhelm asked.
"Your plane has been loaded. I only have one contact on radar, so we may be dealing with another fishing vessel." Amagi said as Michael nodded.
"Ben, if we confirm a fishing vessel, you know what we have to do." Michael said.
"I know. And we can still claim to be at war with Japan... but it still feels wrong." Ben said.
"We can't let them know. They think us to be some mythical sea monster. And if that keeps them from coming after us, then that's what we need them to believe." Michael said.
"But we left those other civilians live." Ben argued.
"Because it was clear they were being used as human shields. But we haven't seen anything from the Sirens in two days now. So if they're out here, they might be on their own." Michael said.
"Fine. I'll knock them out if they're friendly, but I refuse to kill anyone who doesn't deserve it. I trained as a medic. I was trained to save lives, not take them." Ben said.
"And yet you killed many men during your escape from the research facility." Wilhelm said.
"And I'll kill you too if you push my buttons." Ben snapped as the four of them made their way to the top deck.
Amagi smacked Wilhelm and Ben with her umbrella.
"I mean it! Gods... you two are worse than Akagi and Kaga ever were..." Amagi said as she followed Michael to the bridge.
"Ow..." Ben said as he rubbed his head.
"Schiesse..." Wilhelm spoke as he followed Ben's example.
"Hits like my mother..." Ben said.
"Ja. Not one for nonsense." Wilhelm said as he turned towards the stern and ran towards the aircraft catapult.
Ben made his way to a small motor boat that was strapped to the side of the Amagi.
Michael was posted up on the metal desk by the window with a massive type 97 on his shoulder.
"Do you have a visual?" Michael asked.
"I do. It seems to be a... tug boat." Amagi said as she looked out the window.
"Another tug? I wonder why so many of them are out and about." Michael said as the buzz of Wilhelm's ME-155 became apparent as he took off from the stern.
"I don't know. But they aren't flying any flags, just like the last tug we saw." Amagi said.
"Shit. Ben, can you hear me?" Michael asked.
"Yeah yeah. I'm motoring out that way now." Ben said as they watched a small wooden boat bounce across the waves towards the tug.
"Well?" Michael asked.
"It looks like a normal tug. No particular markings." Ben said.
"Anyone on deck?" Michael asked as he aimed up the massive rifle and watched Ben board the vessel through the iron sights of the rifle.
"Yeah. They haven't seen me board. They're armed with Arisaka rifles and type 99's." Ben reported.
"More pirates?" Michael asked.
"Those are military weapons. Maybe a small splinter group?" Ben spoke.
"Doubtful. They would have contacted us the moment they picked up anything on radar. I know the fog conceals us from view, but we aren't immune to radar. Since they're in here with us, they would definitely have seen us." Michael said as he found one of the crew members on the bridge of the tug.
"So, we kill them?" Ben asked.
"They're armed. They are acting suspicious. We have no choice." Michael said as Ben sighed.
"Fine." Ben said as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a small vial of blue dust.
Ben crushed the vial in his hand and took a deep breath as the glass cut his skin, allowing the dust to enter.
"Let's fucking go!" Ben yelled as the dust traveled through his veins and hit his brain, sending his senses into overdrive.
"Let's see what those Siren fucks really did to me." Ben said as he stood from behind a crate and rushed forward towards a group of crewmen.
"Talisman, target confirmed hostile, be ready to bomb it when Ben is done." Michael said.
"Understood." Wilhelm said as Michael focused.
Michael breathed and let it out before pulling the trigger, sending a 20mm round flying from the bridge of the Amagi and into the head of the crew member piloting the tug boat, killing him instantly.
"I am still amazed you can hit those kind of shots without a scope, dear." Amagi said.
"You know I was cross trained as a marksman before I was transferred, right?" Michael asked as he adjusted his target.
"I know, but that was nearly 1200 meters away from the tip of my bow. That isn't something a normal marksman can pull off." Amagi said as she sat next to Michael.
"I was top of my class. Other than that, your optics help me aim via landmarking. So that's how I managed the shot on that first pirate vessel." Michael said.
"I see. So my rangefinders help?" Amagi asked as Michael let another round fly, taking out one of the crewmen who was about to fire on Ben.
"They do. You can see farther, so you make for the perfect spotter." Michael said as he set the rifle down, seeing that Ben had finished off the last crew member by snapping his neck and throwing him overboard.
"Ben, come back to the ship. I'm going to have Talisman send it to the bottom." Michael said.
"Alright... damn... that blue stuff is really something else." Ben said.
"What blue stuff?" Amagi asked.
"I found a vial of the stuff they put into my body during my torture. Apparently it helps make me better as a soldier. Kind of addicting now that it's wearing off... I want more." Ben said as he breathed heavily.
"Are you injured?" Amagi asked.
"I feel a small cut on my side, nothing more." Ben said as he motored back to the Amagi.
"Talisman, you're clear to drop. Send it to the bottom." Michael ordered as Ben climbed aboard.