A/N: This may be a little different from what I originally planned this collection to be, but I think it's just as important.

Save My Soul...Please

There was humming in the air as the returned spirit of USS Kidd leisurely kicked her feet back and forth, paintbrush and palette in hand. Sitting on the banks of the Mississippi in Baton Rouge, she was painting none other than herself. Or her original self; USS Kidd, DD-661.

Kidd was in a pirate get up, complete with a (unloaded) flintlock pistol and tricorn hat atop her brunette hair that she decided to grow out and tie into a messy ponytail.

Several times she was told that her outfit looked like what the Nelson sisters wear. Probably the only major difference is that Kidd dressed much more like a scallywag!

Even though Kidd dresses up like a pirate, she only does it to humor others that think she was named after the pirate.

In reality, she was named after Rear Admiral Isaac C. Kidd, who was the commander of USS Arizona and was killed on that fateful day.

Kidd honors her namesake by wearing Arizona's insignia on her tricorn.

Before the Abyssal War, the woman Kidd possessed was an aspiring painter struggling to get through college. Working several minimum wage jobs to pay off her student loans wreaked havoc on her grades and the paintings she did get finished did not sell.

She was in a deep pit of depression and exhaustion and was only saved when the Abyssals attacked.

Some may be drawing parallels to a certain Austrian.

Luckily, the war did not lead to a terrible economic depression.

Kidd got a full ride to a university of her choosing. She graduated with above average grades, but nothing too spectacular. Now she spends her days painting anything and everything. And they do sell. She does occasionally wonder if her paintings sold because people liked them or because Kidd herself had become a famous hero of the war.

Either way, she made enough money for a living doing what she loves.

Although, she does donate her paintings of USS Kidd to the museum to help their funds.

Then her phone rang.

She pressed a button on her Bluetooth to answer.

"Hello?"

"Kidd, it's Laffey," the destroyer said in an urgent tone.

"Oh, hey, Laffey. What's up?" Kidd asked as she painted away.

"You need to come to Orleck ASAP."

"Why's that?"

Laffey held out her phone and unintelligible sounds came from the Gearing-class.

"Is she...crying?"

"Yes!" Laffey shouted. "And she won't stop!"

"And you can't counsel her?"

"Hey!" Laffey exclaimed. "I may be able to go to hell and punch Satan in the face and come back alive, but I don't know the first thing about comforting a crying kid!"

"Alright, just hang on," Kidd said. "I'm in Baton Rouge. I'll be there in a few hours."

Kidd arrived at the USS Orleck Naval Museum and parked her car next to Laffey's motorcycle. She stepped out of her sedan and onto the dirt roundabout of Calcasieu River. She put on her tricorn and walked to Laffey.

Laffey was standing near the grass. She was wearing a denim crop top jacket and matching pants. She had a black shirt under her jacket as well as black riding boots. Her wavy blonde hair was in a ponytail and it was evident that she didn't bother wearing a helmet. A pair of sunglasses hung on her shirt.

"Where's Orleck?" Kidd asked.

Laffey pointed to a bawling pile in the trees.

"Alright..." Kidd breathed in and began walking to Orleck. "So what are you doing in Louisiana?"

"I wanted to know more about the successor to my class," Laffey said. "And Kennedy Jr. is too self-absorbed in her own popularity. And I don't speak Korean or Taiwanese so I can't just hop over the Pacific to talk to them."

"Taiwanese speak Mandarin," Kidd corrected.

"Whatever," Laffey shrugged. "You and your political correct crap."

Kidd just rolled her eyes. "Well, Benson knows Cantonese and Mandarin. You could ask her to go with you as a translator."

"Now you tell me," Laffey muttered.

It was no secret that Laffey was very crude, impolite, and sometimes just outright disrespectful. However, this woman has both spirits named USS Laffey boiling inside her. So she feels a lot of pain.

Especially when she was nuked.

Twice.

And she lived to tell about it and experienced the acid bath afterwords.

They soon reached Orleck. The Gearing had on a white enlisted sailor uniform complete with a white hat atop her short brown-haired head. There was a pin of the Turkish flag as well as the American flag on her hat. She was still huddled into a ball facing away from them. She was still wimpering, but not as loud as earlier.

"Hey, Orleck. It's me, Kidd." Kidd knelt down next to her and put a hand on her back. "What's the matter?"

Kidd shooed Laffey away with her other hand and the Benson/Sumner-class backed off.

Orleck continued to whimper, but did not move from her position. Kidd continued to comfort her as best as she could.

"There, there."

It took several minutes before Orleck calmed down, but she still didn't show her face to Kidd.

"Here," Kidd said calmly, handing out a bottle of water.

Orleck took several gulps followed by deep breaths.

"Are you alright?"

Orleck shook her head.

"What's the matter?"

"I'm...I...I-I-I-I'm going to be destroyed..." Orleck finally croaked.

Kidd looked onto the decks of the Orleck. There were people on the decks and most likely there would be some inside.

"It's a lack of funding," Orleck continued dryly. "Who would visit ship that didn't serve in World War II? Who would visit a little known ship named after a little known man who was captain of tugboat during the war? Of course, he risked his life and did heroic deeds and rescued people so that others may live while he gave his own life."

"Uh..." Kidd tried to talk.

"Maybe I'm just not wanted," Orleck carried on. "Texas didn't want me after Hurricane Rita. Louisiana took me in, but now I'm just...sorta...here."

Tears fell from her eyes and onto the grass.

"I guess that's fine. No one will miss me anyway. But..."

"'But'?" Kidd echoed.

Orleck trembled.

"But I'm not the only one that's at risk here!" Orleck shouted.

"Who is..."

"That's right! You don't know either! Do you?!" Orleck's head whipped around to face Kidd. Streams of tears poured down Orleck's face.

And her usual brown eyes were red. Not from irritation or exhaustion.

But her irises were red and they were glowing!

"Do you?!"

Kidd's response escaped her lips before she could stop it as she felt a very faint, but particular aura of despair.

"Abyssal!" Kidd clamped her hand over her mouth as she realized what she just shouted.

"What?!" Laffey exclaimed. She ran towards them and was about to throw her fist at Orleck.

"No, wait!" Kidd ordered.

"Fine, I'll tell you!" Orleck continued as if nothing happened. "DD-446! USS Radford! Her museum is aboard my ship! Radford avenged O'Brien and Wasp when she sunk I-19. And she rescued survivors from Helena; a survivor of Pearl Harbor. She used to have her own museum in Ohio. But it was closed down! And I am her second chance!"

Orleck's outburst left her in tears and she began to cry.

"I don't want to go!" she wailed. "Radford doesn't want to go!"

A dark aura began surrounding Orleck and she cried to the heavens.

"Please! Somebody! Save my soul!"

Kidd threw her arms around Orleck and embraced her tightly.

"It's okay! We'll help save you!" Kidd declared.

Laffey relaxed her fist and her face softened.

"Please!" Orleck whimpered. "I don't want to say goodbye!"

"Don't worry! Don't worry!" Kidd said briefly glancing up Laffey. The dark aura faded, but it was still there.

"You don't have to say goodbye."

A/N: Yes, it's true that the Orleck is in danger of being closed down. The museum is running a fundraiser on their website (it's the first result when "USS Orleck" is Googled). It's a lot of money, but if everyone chips in a little, she can make it. The fundraiser ends December 31, 2018.

Please share this news so they can get as much support as possible to help them save their ship.