Please fight until the last light has faded.

"It has been an honor to fight alongside all of you."

The sounds of battle echoed throughout the facility. The thunderous roar of cannons, the staccato thumping of anti-aircraft batteries, and even the harsh bark of my pistol added to the cacophony. Together, we held the line, even as the smoke began to obscure our vision, burned our eyes, the smell of cordite heavy in the air. We fired and fired and fired at the enemy, a legion of mist-shrouded monsters that continued to steadily advance on us, no matter how many we downed or blew apart. And above us, one by one, the lights flickered and died.

At first, we didn't notice, as we were too busy fighting for our lives, but as the darkness settled in, our guns' flashes became more visible until it was the only viable light source. I looked up and saw only one false star remained, one last obstacle. I stared at that star, practically willing it to fade out and die, to end this horror. The enemy was nearly on us now, the mist emanating from them becoming intertwined with our smoke in a horrible curtain that grew ever closer. And then, at the very last moment, the star winked out, and we were plunged into darkness.

I waited to wake up in a different room, just as I had last time, but nothing happened. The creatures were gone, my comrades were gone, and even my gun was gone. But I was still here, suspended in this void. I tried to scream, but no sound came out, I tried to swim in the inky blackness, but I got nowhere. What if I never wake up? What if this is it? Alone, trapped in the void, for all eternity? Just as madness began to creep into the edges of my mind, something snapped.


I bolted upright, screaming, tangled in my bedsheets. Still trying to escape the void, and betrayed by my blanket, I tumbled out of bed and fell to the floor with an unceremonious thud. Once I managed to get my bearings and untangle myself, I began to get my heart rate back under control. As I caught my breath, I felt the sweat dripping down my forehead, and I knew the sheets would be soaked as well.

This hadn't been the first time I'd had this particular nightmare; ever since I'd come back from that fateful expedition to that Siren lab deep beneath the polar sea, I'd been haunted by what happened. The last one was a week ago, and I hoped it would have stopped there. Apparently not.

With a tired groan, I got to my feet, tossing the blanket aside as I looked at the clock. Just a few minutes past midnight. I'd barely gotten to sleep this time, and quite frankly, I didn't feel like going back to bed just yet. It looked like a nice night out, so I decided to slip into some casual clothes and go for a stroll…


Despite my long absence from the base, it was good to see some things hadn't changed. At night, when most people had gone to bed, it was blissfully quiet. I could see the odd light on in the dorms here and there, but for the most part, everyone was fast asleep, with just the odd night owl or the security watch still awake.

So when I rounded a corner and saw someone else awake, I was more than a little surprised. I hadn't seen her before, but she was wearing an outfit similar to Essex's, and like Essex, had long hair. However, unlike her sibling, it was a silvery grey, and she wore it in twin ponytails. Her eyes were cast up at the sky, a rapt expression on her face. As I got closer, I expected her to hear me coming, but she was so engrossed in the stars she didn't even so much as glance in my direction.

I decided to break the ice and say hello rather than just startle her as I walked by. "Nice night, isn't it?" I asked, keeping my voice low.

While it had the desired effect of getting her attention, it also had the unintended consequence of startling her. She jumped slightly as she gasped, her eyes snapping to me. "You scared me!" she declared in an accusatory tone, then hastily added on, "...sir."

"Sorry," I apologized with an embarrassed grin. "I was, uh, actually trying to avoid scaring you. You seemed a bit…lost in thought."

She stared me down with those blue eyes of hers for another second before she readjusted her seat on the wall and shook her head slightly. "Wasn't lost in thought, just…lost in the stars."

"The stars?" I repeated as I glanced up at the sky.

"Yeah, I like to come out, late at night, when there's nobody around and just look up at the stars." When I looked back at her, she gave me a slight smile. "Haven't you ever done that before?"

"Not in a long while," I confessed as I sat down next to her and looked up at the sky. "Last time was probably back when I was a fresh-faced ensign. Standing those late-night watches, out on a cruise, just go out onto a bridge wing and look up at the stars. Just watch and…wonder."

Even though I couldn't see her, there was no hiding the smile in her voice. "What'd ya wonder about?"

"What's out there, are we alone in the universe, what life is like on other planets…and just how beautiful the night sky can be." There was something else I'd pondered, almost nightly as I gazed up at those stars, but I decided to skip that one. "You?"

"The same," she hummed. There was a quiet pause before she ambushed me with her next question. "Commander, do you like stargazing?"

It was something I hadn't considered, and the initial portion of my sleep-deprived answer was a lot of stuttering and stammering.

"Ahaha, it's fine if you aren't really into astronomy," she chuckled, "If you're ever interested, just let me know."

Eventually, my brain finally synced up with my mouth and I was able to speak coherently again. "What, like with a telescope and everything?"

"Mhm!" she eagerly nodded.

"Man, I haven't done that since I was a kid," I sighed wistfully. "That and the telescope wasn't exactly the greatest."

The mystery woman jerked a thumb back in the direction of the barracks. "I've got a pretty good one back at my place. Just need to find a good spot that doesn't have a lot of light pollution."

"Oh, I know a spot," I immediately volunteered. "I can show you tomorrow if you want."

Her eyes lit up like the stars in the sky. "Really?" she asked with an excited smile. "Does that mean you'll come with me?"

I chuckled and held up a hand to try and quell some of that enthusiasm. "Maybe," I forestalled. "I try not to make any big decisions without a good night's sleep first. But I'll definitely give it a thought…" And it was at this point that I realized I still didn't know her name. I chuckled weakly as I rubbed the back of my neck. "My apologies, but you seem to have me at a bit of a disadvantage. You seem to know who I am, but I don't even know your name."

Her eyes widened in surprise and she hopped off the retaining wall, coming to attention and saluted smartly. "I'm the third ship of the Essex class, Intrepid! Although my poor luck during the war earned me quite a few unflattering nicknames…" She sighed as some of her natural exuberance drained from her, and she chuckled weakly to try and force some good cheer back into her voice. "Heheh, that's all behind me now! Commander, under your command, I'll show you just how powerful I am!"

"Ah, so you're the Intrepid I've heard so much about," I said with a salute before extending my hand to her. "It's nice to finally put a face to the name."

Her expression immediately became wary as she hesitantly took my hand. "You…you have?"

"Of course," I smiled. "Bremerton's mentioned you quite a few times."

"Oh, Bremmy's mentioned me?" Her smile came back immediately at the mention of the heavy cruiser. "That's kinda funny, she was the one who pointed you out when I first arrived."

"Huh. Small world," I mused before I tried(and failed) to stifle a yawn. "So sorry about that, I should probably get to bed. But drop by my office tomorrow afternoon and I'll show you where that spot is."

Intrepid smiled brightly and gave me a thumbs up. "Sure thing, Commander! Good night and sweet dreams!"


The next morning, I woke up, and after breakfast, headed over to Bremerton's office for our morning sessions. Ever since I got back from Northern Parliament, she'd been helping me deal with readjusting back to life at the base and working through some of the things that I'd seen on that excursion to the hidden Siren base.

She began, as she always did, with the same question. "So, how'd you sleep?"

"Had the nightmare again," I answered. And while they might have been the words she'd heard before, something in my voice must've already tipped her off that things were different this time.

"You sound less…stressed…about it today," she said, carefully probing. "Did it change somehow?"

"Not exactly," I smirked. "More like how I dealt with it."

Bremerton grinned and leaned back in her chair, her eyes alight with curiosity. "Go on."

"Well, I decided since my heart was already racing last night, I might as well put it to use and go for a walk. While I was out, I ran into Intrepid."

Her eyebrows raised and her smile grew. "Oh, finally met her, huh? So, what'd ya think?"

I chuckled softly as I remembered that night. "Little awkward at first. She was stargazing, and I didn't want to scare her so…I accidentally scared her. But after that, we got to talking, she seems like a nice girl. She even gave me an open invitation to go stargazing with her."

Bremerton looked immensely pleased by that as she made a few notes. "And are you going to take her up on that?"

"I dunno," I answered honestly. "On the one hand, I used to love doing that sort of thing when I was younger. On the other…" I trailed off, the memory still making me uncomfortable.

"Watching the lights in the sky vanish one at a time was certainly upsetting," Bremerton finished empathetically. "But in this case, I think watching them here, in the real world, will help you see that they aren't going anywhere."

A small smirk crossed my face as I thought about it. "And if they do?"

Bremerton pondered it, then smirked back and replied, "Well, at least you'll be the first to know."

"Fair enough," I laughed, feeling somewhat better about staring at the night sky again. "Yeah…maybe…maybe I will."

"Good!" she beamed as she made more notes. "I think this will be good for both of you."

My good mood immediately turned suspicious. "Wait, what do you mean, both of us?"

I could see her wrestling with something, whether it was what she was going to say or how to say it, I didn't know. Finally, after a few long moments, she explained herself. Sort of. "Intrepid's…she's…she puts on a brave face, but I think she could really use a good support like you, Commander."

While I wasn't entirely sure what she meant by that, I surmised that would be for me to find out in time. "I'll take your word on that, then."

Her smile returned, confident as ever. "Trust me, Commander," she reassured me. "I got this."

I smiled back, although I was still unsure. Only time would tell…


Later that day, true to her word, Intrepid dropped by the office to find out where that stargazing spot was.

"Afternoon, Commander!" she greeted me as she shut the door behind her. "Are you busy?"

"Afternoon, Intrepid," I replied as I set my work aside and pulled up a map of the island. "Just some sorties for tomorrow, nothing that can't wait."

"Sorties?" she repeated, her eyes growing wide with excitement. "Am I on that list?"

Suddenly feeling put on the spot, I checked the roster before I shook my head. "Not tomorrow. Looks like you sortied a week ago. Still have to let the other ships rotate through." When it was obvious she was about to protest further, I quickly added, "Besides, if you sortie tomorrow, we'd miss stargazing tonight."

That perked her right back up. "You mean it, Commander?"

"Absolutely," I confirmed with a grin.

She excitedly punched the air before she calmed down somewhat. "So what convinced you?"

I hesitated, glancing around to make sure Bunker Hill hadn't come back from her errand yet. "Bremerton, actually," I confessed. "I, uh, I see her for…counseling sessions."

Her smile faded somewhat, those blue eyes filling up with concern. However, she kept her tone reassuring and casual, without a hint of judgment or sympathy, which I greatly appreciated. "Nothing wrong with that. Sometimes it helps to get things off your chest, y'know?"

"It does," I smiled softly. "It was nice to have a counselor on-base when I got back from the Northern Parliament, try and work through what happened out there."

Her smile faded away completely and a look of barely restrained horror crossed her face. "Oh god, are the rumors true? Did they lock you up in the gulag? Did they torture you by chaining you up and making you fight trained bears? Feed you nothing but borscht?"

"What? No!" I emphatically declared, trying not to laugh at the sheer ridiculousness of her claims. "Who told you that?"

"Well, the gulag thing was sort of a group idea, I think," she began sheepishly. "They tried to come up with reasons why you were gone for so long. The rest of the stuff was mostly the destroyers letting their imaginations run wild. I didn't put much stock in it, but you never know…"

I shook my head and grinned for a moment. "Nothing like that, they just really needed my help up there. I was free to leave at any time, but if I did, I would have been abandoning them at a critical moment." That, and they had to show me that strange Siren base. I tried not to let it get to me in front of Intrepid and forced the grin to stay on. "So, shall I show you where we'll be headed tonight?"

"By all means," she smiled as she gestured to the map. "Hope it's not too much of a hike, considering we'll be carrying a telescope the whole way."

"It's going to be a little bit of a walk," I admitted. "We're going to have to get far enough away from the harbor to avoid the light pollution, but the good news is that we don't have to go to the ends of the earth to do so. There's a clearing on the other side of the ridgeline here," I tapped the spot on the map. "Nice, quiet, no trees. Should give us a good view of the stars without too much glare from the base. The only question is when's the best time to go?"

Intrepid looked down at the map, studying the spot until she nodded satisfactorily. "Yeah, I think that'll work, Commander. As for the best time…" she looked up and ran the numbers in her head. "This time of year…new moon…best time is…about eleven to midnight."

I was rather surprised at that time. "Really? That late?"

"Yep," she confirmed. "That's when there's the least amount of light."

"Huh. And here I was thinking it was darkest before the dawn," I quipped. "So aside from a telescope, what else do I need to bring?"

The carrier hummed thoughtfully as she tapped her chin with her finger in an adorable fashion. "A water bottle, maybe a few light snacks, a flashlight. Oh! And an adventurous spirit!"

Her enthusiasm was infectious, and I found myself smiling along with her. "I look forward to it. I guess I'll see you tonight at…ten, then?"

Intrepid smiled and nodded. "Ten it is, sir."


The day went well until I realized that neither of us actually set a place to meet at ten. It also didn't help that I realized this about thirty minutes before we were supposed to meet up. Roundly cursing my stupidity, I hurriedly packed everything, double-checked it to make sure I wasn't compounding the error, and dashed out the door.

When I couldn't find her at either the Eagle Union dorms, my office, or at the first spot we met, I stopped and gathered my thoughts. It wouldn't do me any good to roam the base, yelling out her name, and it would more than likely piss everyone off. I also didn't know Intrepid well enough yet to try and make any sort of reasonable guess as to where she would go. But I did know someone who would…

I quickly fished my phone out of my pocket and pulled up the message thread between Bremerton and myself.

You up? I texted, and waited, hoping for a swift reply.

Fortunately, I got one. Yep! Whatcha need?

Intrepid and I didn't set a meeting spot for stargazing tonight. Know where she might go?

One sec.

There was another long pause, and I could only wait nervously as the seconds ticked by at an agonizingly slow pace. Finally, I saw that she was typing again.

Got ahold of her. Where you wanna meet?

I let out an audible sigh of relief, and my heart felt like it slowed down by several hundred beats per minute. West base entrance. I replied.

I'll let her know. And you two should swap numbers when you get there. ;)

Will do. Thanks, Bremerton. You're a lifesaver!

Have fun you crazy kids

With that, I slid the phone back into my pocket and headed out to the meeting spot, one disaster having been narrowly avoided.

Fortunately, it didn't take long for me to get to the base entrance where I saw a lone figure standing there. I quickly recognized her as Intrepid, and I called out to her as I waved. She turned, saw me, and waved back.

"Hey there!" she grinned as I approached. "Guess we should've hammered out that last detail, huh?"

"Yeah," I chuckled and sheepishly smiled back. "We were both just a little too eager, I guess." An idea went through my head and I pulled out my phone once again. "Oh, which reminds me, let's trade numbers."

Intrepid nodded emphatically as she fished her phone out as well. "Ooh, good idea! Also, friend me on Juustagram, that way we can DM each other, too."

We quickly exchanged both phone numbers, as well as Juustagram accounts, and put our phones away. It was at that point that I spotted a large, rather secure-looking case on the ground behind her. At first, I mistook it for a munitions crate, but then realized it might have been Intrepid's telescope. Just to make certain, I pointed to the box and asked, "That yours?"

She turned to see what I was looking at before she nodded. "Yep! That's my telescope! Need to make sure it stays safe when I'm on the go so I got that case for it. Like it?"

"Well, it looks sturdy," I began. "For a second I thought someone left a weapon behind."

She giggled and shook her head, setting her twin ponytails shaking. "Nope! A telescope like mine is really fragile and really expensive, so I've gotta make sure it's well-protected. Last thing I want is to drop this down a hill right as we get set up and have it damaged."

"Good point," I conceded. "Are we all set, then?"

"All set!"

"Then let's get stargazing!"

A/N-And so it begins! Until next time, fair winds and following seas!