"Welcome!" Akagi lead the group of Sirens into their base. "This is our humble abode. Please make yourself at home"
"Intriguing." The head of the envoy, Purifier, pressed her hand against a Sakura tree. The branches slowly began to wither.
Akagi gritted her teeth in response to the Guest's blatant disrespect before forcing a placid smile.
"How might we be able to service you?" Akagi offered.
"Any hospitality is welcomed." Purifier replied. "It's has been a long time since we arrived to the surface."
Akagi knew that they were lying, but chose to ignore it. She had business on her mind.
"Then you should stay with us." Akagi motioned to a prepared house filled with the most advanced spying technology the Carrier could lay her hands on.
"I would not want to impose." Purifier declined the invitation. The Siren was aware of the presence of several ulterior motives, but could not decipher the exact reasons themselves.
"I insist." Akagi pushed.
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"We have to return to the depths. I forgot to do some... homework." Purifier, put off by the Carrier's eagerness, began to look for an excuse to leave. Ever since the beginning of the three month diplomatic maneuvering, Purifier had always found it suspicious that it was Akagi that contacted her instead of the other way around. The fact that she could reach Sirens was alarming in and of itself.
Nonetheless, Purifier signaled to her cohorts to start making their way back home, much to the shock of the inviting Carrier.
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"What if I could promise you land on the surface in the event of a upcoming war?" Akagi panically fabricated an impromptu intention.
"Tell us more." Purifier stopped walking toward the exit.
"Stay with us for a bit." Akagi tried to negotiate.
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Purifier started to walk again.
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"I can guarantee most of the Eagle Union land to you if you help us out." Akagi shouted after them.
"Now we're talking." Purifier smiled.
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In the entirety of their charade, it was never clear who was playing who: The Sirens or the Sakura.
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Disclaimer: Indy best girl
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I don't know whether to be happy that Indy is doing better than Saratoga in the popularity poll or sad that Indy is 30th.
The Cult of Indy is disappointed in you.
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At least Intrepid is doing well-ish. Now, we just have to wait for Montpelier's block to open up for voting I think.
Who do you guys think will win?
Reviews:
Rick: Well, if Stalin is a Man of Steel, would that make Portland a Man of Indy Bathwater?
War Corgi: Yeah... I wonder why...
Severak: CUE THE CHAINSAWS
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Portland's POV:
"Is everybody awake?" I rattled my hand on the whiteboard.
"I guess." Montpelier pulled a dark blue hoodie over her eyes. I had decided not to confront her on sleeping during our late morning meetings. She was working hard for the past few days, and she did depend on her beauty sleep to function.
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"Well we're ready." Baltimore sat down at an office chair.
"Intrepid is still out at sea with Essex." Louisville informed me as she sat down on the couch next to a slumbering Gridley. "She won't be able to make it."
"That's unfortunate." I nodded. "When are they getting back?"
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"In three to four days." Baltimore estimated. "I haven't heard anything from them since yesterday's somewhat disastrous call."
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A slow silence filled the room. Essex hasn't taken warmly to our cause. It is fairly possible, no ... quite probable that we will get into a confrontation. I quickly changed the topic to avoid dwelling on this thought.
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"Okay." I reached for a pair of reading glasses. "Let's get started on our updates and then talk about our positions for the future."
"Again?" Montpelier groaned. "That's so boring!"
"This is important!" I snapped.
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"Sorry." I apologize for my outburst. Montpelier simply leaned back into her chair.
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"...So I have managed to dispose of all but one key to the armory." Baltimore flashed the metal object in her purse. "If there were to be a rebellion, they would have to go through us to get ammunition."
"That's good." I responded before turning to Louisville for her report. "How about you?"
The cruiser just shrugged.
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"Well I suppose that's to be expected." I compensated for my overworked assistants. "We need to talk about the Elephant in the room."
"Intrepid's not here." Montpelier sleepily snorted before going into a coughing fit.
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"Well, we need to prepare for a fight against Essex once she comes back in…"
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"Four days." Baltimore responded.
"Yes." I nodded.
"Did you get Saratoga to help?" Louisville asked me.
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"Well she's not going to help Essex?" I looked away.
"You botched it." Louisville groaned.
"It's against the Idol code or whatever." I defended myself. "But we need to find a good way to fight against Essex."
"Is that even possible?" Louisville asked critically.
"Everything is possible." I ignored her defeatism.
"But you were absolutely destroyed by Essex during the tournament." Louisville pointed out. "How can you beat her now?"
"I could have eclipsed her fighting skills." I offered.
"That's not true." They denied in unison.
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"So then how do we beat Essex?" I asked.
"We can't." Montpellier muttered in her half-sleep.
In the likely case of a fight against Essex, who would win? Essex would have the airplanes, built in power, and public legitimacy. But she would be running low on fuel. That may be her flaw. But she could just easily get fuel from anyone that she asks. She has both quantity and quality leveraged to her side if we would ever get in a confrontation...
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"Then how do we deal with her?" I faced the issue.
"We could try and convince her again?" Louisville asked. "The main reason that she was opposed to us was our spontaneous removal of the Sirens. If we can show that we are reliable and responsible, she may jump onto our side."
"And how would we do that?" Baltimore glanced over at a stack of neatly arranged papers next to her. "Reliability and Responsibility are not something I, or anyone else, would use to describe Portland." (1)
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"Well if we show her that we have a steady plan to beat the Sirens and the Sakura Empire, I think she would at least hear us out." Louisville compromised. "Essex can be impartial at most times."
"I suppose that could be true." Baltimore conceded. "Do you have a plan to deal with the Sakura Empire?"
"How about a large-scale shore bombardment of their positions?" I thought.
"And get decimated by Coastal batteries and land based aircraft? No way Jose." Baltimore pointed out the feasibility.
"Then what about an Air bombing campaign?" I shifted my viewpoint. "We won't even have to get close to them."
"We're already doing that and it'll take far too long for it to capitulate them." Louisville shook her head. "Come on Portland, You must know something. Think back to your roots."
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Think back to your roots…
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Think back to your roots...
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"Let's drug the Sakura Emperor!"
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"What?" Montpelier raised her eyebrows.
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"That's actually not a bad idea…" Louisville admitted.
"Wait, you guys actually think this is sane?" Montpelier, now wide awake, turned to her contemporaries.
"That could work." Baltimore rubbed her chin. "With the loss of the Sakura Emperor, the structure of their society and war machine would come crumbling down."
"They are dependent on her orders." Louisville noted.
"We can't drug the Sakura Leader!" Montpelier objected. (2) "You might be able to get away with that with Indy, but how are we going to even capture her! And what if they just get more furious?! There are serious repercussions that-"
"Is there a better option?" I asked her. "Can we quickly beat the Sakura Empire in any other way?"
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Montpelier opened her mouth, but right at that moment, Bluegill slammed open the door. "There's somebody starting a riot at the town square!"
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"What?" Baltimore shot to her feet. "Who is it?"
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"Independence." Bluegill caught her breath at the entrance.
I grabbed my armour and flew out of the room, Baltimore on my tail.
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"... This is a disgrace to law and order!" Independence's voice slowly grew louder as I reached the outskirts of a small, but growing, crowd. "Portland has exiled our leader and taken control for herself. We can not let this maniac's power grab stand!"
"What happened?" I whispered to Baltimore as she caught up to me. "I thought you said you had the support of the Officer Corps."
"Well Independence is a whole other issue." Baltimore admitted.
"Can't you just tell her to stand down?" I asked her.
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"Umm, the thing is, I'm as powerful as her." Baltimore informed me. "I only control some Cruiser Squadrons. Independence is third in command overall in the Officer corps prior to Enterprise's arrest."
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"So this is going to be a tough one then." I sighed. (3)
"I say that we all march on for Justice!" Independence began to rally. "Enterprise was the heart and soul of the Eagle Union. Through the thick and thin, she had always helped us get back on our feet. It was her that saved our nation! It was her who created the bedrock for our glorious Officer Corp! It was her that stood up for us! So we must stand up for her!"
A series of worrying shouts followed the Carrier's demagoguery.
"We must stand for what is right! That's who the Eagle Union is!" Independence pointed to the sky. "Repel the usurpers! Bring back the rightful leader! Protect the nation! This is our call to action. As the Officer Corp, we have the duty to protect the rights of all of the Eagle Union. This is the time to strike back! Storm the palace of renegades!"
A low murmur began to form amongst the crowd.
"I'm going up there." I nudged Baltimore, dropping my superstructure behind me as I pushed my way through the crowd unnoticed.
"This is a fight between right and wrong, law and chaos, good and bad!" Independence curled her hand into a fist. "We must respond to our duty: Defending the Eagle Union! Reclaim the nation that was lost! We will stay true to the rightful path! Semper fortis, Semper fi! March with me in a crusade against the conspiracy! Down with the Traitors, Up with the Stars! Down with the Traitors, Up with the Stars! Do-"
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"Get down." I walked up the stairs.
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"So the traitor meets me." Independence snorted, turning my way. "You are a fool. You should have stayed holed up in your little room."
"Did you not hear the news?" I folded my hands behind my back. "Enterprise died from Siren Hands."
"I don't believe that for a second." Independence glared. "It's far too convenient to blame your personal enemies for your actions."
"What proof do you need?" I settled.
"I don't need proof." Independence seethed. "I already know it's false."
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"Then let me tell the story and I'll have the people judge it." I presented my narrative to the flock.
"Then go ahead." Independence leaned back deviously.
I began the tale. "It was during Saratoga's concert-"
"You were helping out with Saratoga's concert." Independence jumped the gun. "You couldn't have been seeing Enterprise!"
"I was given a special task by Saratoga." I shoved it in her face. "You can ask her if you want."
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"Then go ahead." Independence folded the first round strategically.
I strolled down the metallic corridor as I made my way to the Secretary's room. The complex itself was a really confusing mess of rooms and dead ends, so baffling that I almost got lost twice. Finally, though, I had managed to end up directly in front of two sculptured, yet now dusty, wooden gates.
"The complex wasn't confusing." Independence tried to poke a hole through it. "There are clear maps of where everything is located."
"Not everybody has photographic memory." I tried to paint Independence in a bad light. "Sorry that I'm not up to your elitist standards."
"Enterprise?" I knocked on the door.
Upon the lack of response, I decided to wait for a minute.
"Who in their right mind would wait for so long?" Independence threw her hands in the air. "This is obviously a forged story."
"It's protocol for non-officers to wait to be admitted to the Secretary's room." I taunted back.
"Only during day hours." Independence smirked.
"It's still polite manners." I salvaged my argument. "Though it would make sense why you wouldn't get it."
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Still no answer? That's not really punctual of her…
"I'm coming in…" I opened the door, letting the antique entrances swing open. The dust flaked off the exterior of the wood down to the floor as the handles collided against the wall.
"Enterprise?" I once again called as I flipped on the lights. The furniture around the room was tossed around the floor in a messy fashion. I continued to walk forwards, observing the hurricane-struck room. Before I could reach the gold-framed mahogany desk, a putrid yet so familiar stench whiffed by my nostrils.
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Blood.
"Right." Independence crossed her arms. "We only have your biased testimony. What good is that?"
"Well it's the only account of what happened that night, right?" I pushed.
"Anybody could make a fake account of the past!" Independence turned to the crowd. "That night, I also went to Enterprise's room and saw fifteen clowns with rainbow colored afros practicing archery."
The laughter from the crowd was muffled by my next response.
"If you were in Enterprise's room, then how did you know I was helping Saratoga?" I twisted her words.
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"Who said I couldn't be at both those places that night?" Independence haughtily defended herself. "I am the third highest ranked officer in the corps, I have access to both backstage and the Secretary's room."
"Well I never saw you and you never saw me." I caught the logical fallacy. "If you did go to both places, we should have met that night."
"Well then I saw you." Independence called my play.
"Then that is what gives my testimony weight." I calmly sneered as I finessed her.
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"So you've seen a messy room." Independence rolled her eyes. "So what? That doesn't prove anything! For all we know, Enterprise might have been practicing interior design!"
As much as I wanted to contest that point, I knew that I couldn't convince Independence, and more importantly the crowd that had formed behind her, with solely stories. A nagging bit of me also sided with the fake Indy, "She's right, you know." It complained. "You don't have any physical rational. Why should they believe you?"
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I couldn't rely on easily deniable tales; I had to bring in facts.
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"If Enterprise was truly alive, then why did the campaigns in the Philippines stall for so long?" I shifted the focus. "If she was the miracle maker you believe in, then why couldn't she expeditiously put aside the Sakura ships' operations like she normally did?"
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"It is only natural that the Philippines be harder to defeat due to their proximity to the Sakura Empire." Independence answered, taking a short pause. "It would have been an even harder peninsula to take if Enterprise was not at the helm."
"Then what about Enterprise's degradation of tactics?" I pressed my attack as Independence's uncomfortableness began to show. "She used to plan massive coordinated air strikes while now she soley draws either a full assault or an aerial strike."
"Why change something if it works well?" Independence stuck her chin up.
"On the same coin, why would Enterprise settle for a far less inferior strategy?" I smiled.
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"The reason is because Enterprise had to!" I took advantage of Independence's silence before she could make up a response. "Or rather, Enterprise didn't have the talented skill set that she used to have since she was replaced by a Siren!"
"There you go again." Independence tried to mitigate my attack with sarcasm. "Oh NO! SiREns aRE sCaRY!"
"The Sirens are scary, in fact." I agreed. "Only one surface ship has ever beaten them in combat. Guess who that is?"
"Well then if Sirens are just so scary, why haven't they returned yet?" Independence sputtered.
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Crap.
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I opened my mouth, before deciding to close it after I realized that I didn't have a response.
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"There." Independence regained her lost confidence. "That's what I thought. You're nothing more than a hoax!"
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"Sometimes the truth is stranger than fiction." I bit my lip.
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"What was I even doing, entertaining a debate with the likes of you…" Independence laughed arrogantly. "That's what I expect from a double-crossing criminal. You can play your little games with your band of degenerates, but when facing the law and consequences, you'll fold like paper sheets."
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"Well a criminal still governs as well as Enterprise did and certainly better than a Siren." I defended myself. "Besides, I have proof that Enterprise had died. You have nothing."
"I have disproved your logic." Independence smirked, her venting passive aggressiveness pressing a dent into the floor. "You are the one that has nothing."
"But what are you going to do after you potentially take control?" For the first time in the dispute, I turned the attention to Independence. "By taking control through arresting the previous leader, you will be the same as me."
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"Well that doesn't matter." Independence cracked her knuckles. "Under the law of the Eagle Union, you are under arrest for treason."
"You can't arrest me." I prepared to fight, raising up my fists. "You have no power!"
"No power is necessary to remove corruption and treachery." Independence pulled out a pair of handcuffs.
"And on what authority are you arresting me with?" I clicked my tongue indignantly.
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"I am the highest ranking officer at base." Independence asserted.
"No you're not."
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The sea of ships parted as Essex strolled through.
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"I am."
Footnotes:
(1): Hey! Portland can be punctual... As long as it has something to do with Indy...
(2): Well, several 6 digit nuke codes have something to say to that...
(3): That's what she said.
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Sorry.
What?
Essex arrived ahead of Schedule? Does that mean Intrepid is finally back home?
And what will happen to Independence?
Probably nothing major since they have plot armour...
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Anyways, see you next week!