Mark Turner stared in shock at the Cleveland-class cruiser as it joined the Brooklyn-class and Benson-class as their escort to Pearl Harbor. Is it fully automated or something?! He thought as he saw no crew members on the CL, but decided to ask the commander of the base about it later. After all, the commander should have some answers to all the strange things that happened here. If he is still alive, that is, he thought and continued looking around.

And soon, his fleet passed by some wrecks of unmistakable Siren design just floating in the water, which only boosted his belief that someone was still alive and kicking at the base. But then, the comms officer, who he asked to oversee the comms just in case, smiled at something and spoke the words that were enough to confirm that they weren't too late there.

"Pearl Harbor, this is SS John W. Brown, accompanied by SS Nightingale, SS City of Flint, two LCVPs, one LCM, USS Laffey and USS Helena. We request permission to dock," he said and turned to him after receiving a response.

"Commander Baker allowed us to dock, sir. The base is still ours," he reported and Mark nodded in response with a ghost of a smile gracing his lips. After all, there still was a chance of victory.

Enterprise looked at the docking ships with a raised eyebrow, when she noticed that all of them were fully crewed, unlike the others she had seen so far that needed only one Kansen - as Atago insisted they all were called - to achieve the same results.

But, what she hadn't expected was the sheer amount of supplies and the number of men in the landing crafts. Two of them were basically filled to the brim with soldiers - about 36 each, while the last one housed a tank, but which variant, she didn't know. She never cared about ground vehucles and why should she anyway?

"Commander, I see that you managed to sink at least one Siren fleet. I would've never thought that it was possible," the captain of the fleet said after introducing himself and the commander chuckled, before gesturing to the warehouse that worked as his office and as he turned, she thought that it would be for the best to follow them.

Harvey gestured to his guest to sit down on one chair, before he sat down behind his desk and was about to start speaking, when he saw Enterprise enter the room as well and sighed in relief, knowing that her presence would help him with explaining.

"I wanted to say something to you in private, just in case that a Siren follower was hidden, acting like one of the men under your command," he started and looked into Mark's eyes, seeing that he understood the precaution.

"And what is it?" he asked with a raised eyebrow, most likely doubting what Harvey just said. And so, he decided to at least partially include Enterprise in the conversation.

"Look behind you and tell me, who do you think it is," Harvey cryptically answered and watched the captain's reaction with amusement in his eyes as the other male's eyes landed on the beauty behind him.

"Who is she?!" he demanded to know, unable to close his mouth for a few more seconds, before turning back to face Harvey, who motioned to Enterprise to sit down next to the captain, his face suddenly devoid of any emotion.

"She is the embodiment of the Enterprise and she was instrumental in both recent victories against the Sirens," he answered in a no-nonsense tone and rolled his eyes as the captain started laughing… only to stop after he saw that Harvey was serious.

"So, you want to tell me that you successfully cracked the mystery of the cubes that cost the life of all researchers that were trying to do it for several months?" Mark asked, his tone serious and Harvey noticed the shrewdness, typical for successful merchants, hidden beneath the surface.

"Yes. And we have the only surviving researcher from the Graphite/Diamond project here on base, so your question is a bit wrong," Harvey stated and smirked slightly at seeing the shock on Mike's face. After all, he wanted someone else to experience what he felt in the last ten days.

And then, the two men reached an agreement about two crates of cubes being included in the next shipment of supplies, in exchange for lending one Bulin to help with loading, unloading and repairs of ships under Mike's command.

Zuikaku was angry. Not only did her sister run away from her homeland, she also allied herself and Atago with the Gray Ghost! That simply won't do! Anyone who does such an act should be executed, she thought and filled her mind with every single way of how she'll be able to kill the accursed Gray Ghost and her allies, before sending one Zero to scout ahead.

But, what she saw only angered her more and more the longer she continued with the scouting.

They managed to get supplies and repair their defenses?! Doesn't matter. Akagi-senpai would destroy them easily. And then, the Sakura empire would rule supreme over the Pacific! No, not only the Pacific, but also the Indian ocean!

And yet, she failed to notice that a Cleveland-class cruiser spotted her Zero and shot it down with expert precision, breaking the connection just as she spotted the ship of the traitor of a sister, inadvertently alerting the base about the incoming attack.

"Ayanami, Takao, you two will attack them, when they focus on shooting down our planes. Not that they have enough AA batteries for that… ahahahah!" Akagi suddenly said and their two non-CV companions nodded, both without the Black cube that boosted only the CV trio.

But then, Zuikaku noticed something coming their way and she sent two Zero fighters to deal with the aerial intruder, soon noticing that it was a F4F and then she knew that they were spotted and the enemy was most likely preparing for a battle.

"They found out about us!" she shouted, breaking all the conversations that happened around her - which she hadn't paid any attention to anyway - and soon enough, there were two dozen of newer model Zeros following the pair that she sent… only for the enemy fighter to suddenly turn and speed off towards the enemy base.

"Follow it! We can't let it reach the Grey Ghost!" Kaga shouted and the quintet of Sakura Kansen set out to keep the enemy fighter in their AA range.

And yet, they didn't expect the fighter to slow down to allow one Zero to pass it by, before doing a some sort of a weave, taking down several Zeros, before finally succumbing to their superior numbers and exploding.

"Use up the last cubes on the Arizona, Helena and Laffey. We'll need as much help as possible with repelling the incoming attack!'' Commander Baker shouted and James quickly distributed them and gave instructions not to look at the ships after placing the cubes and withdraw their hands, if the metal started being hotter than usual.

"How long before they reach us?" pvt. Greg Porter asked, a sniper modification of M1903 Springfield rifle in his hands and determination in his eyes.

"Based on what Enterprise said, they're about 1.5 hours away at full steam. And that is estimated just for the triplet of CVs," he answered and put his hand on the boy's - he was just freshly released from the boot camp after all - shoulder and gave him a reassuring smile, just as three flashes of light erupted from behind him and as James turned, his smile widened, when he saw the Arizona finally above the surface and was testing her guns' traverse speed.

It burns and hurts! Huh? Not anymore? Wait… what is that light doing here in the darkness? I think that I should follow it. I don't want anyone else to feel the pain I did. And find Penny as well…

Almost there! Just a little bit closer! Penny, be alright! I'm coming!

And then, she felt the gentle breeze around her and started testing her guns.

I'm sleepy… *yawn* But that light most likely leads to a more comfy resting place… and tastier booze too… I'll maybe meet some new friends as well… Removing self-imposed limiters…

All systems are green, let's go.

And she opened her eyes, due to the annoying sun glaring right in her face.

If only my recon helped the others… Please, be safe, sister. I am useless anyway…

Wait, where did the light come from?! And why do I feel… happy? And is this… hope? SG, help me here, please.

[Err. Item 'Emotions' not found.]

I see… the only option I have is following the light then. Thank you, SG.

But, no response came and she opened her eyes, a small smile on her lips.

Harvey was openly smiling, when he saw the Arizona already preparing for the incoming battle by testing her weapons, soon followed by the rest of the fleet, except the merchant ships, the Enterprise, the Shoukaku, the Vestal and the landing crafts. Hell… even the crew of the M4A1 with the new long 76 mm gun joined in and did some maintenance on it.

They and us both lost the element of surprise. I think that they'll try to attack the ships first with their planes and only after that is finished, they'll attack the rest, he thought as he messed around with the aiming of the AA guns under his direct command, before he tried the big red button labeled 'FIRE'.

As expected, all AA guns fired at the spot they were aiming at, each shooting only a very short burst of ammo, which was alright with him, due to allowing for quicker changing of targets and losing as little ammo as possible. After all, if Enterprise was anything to go by, the trio of CVs might be able to send out all of their carried aircraft in under five minutes and thus, every bullet lost by missing meant a bigger chance of losing.

And then, he sent the Bulins to do some fixing on the Arizona, knowing full well that she'll most likely have the same issues as if she was just launched for the first time, soon following them to meet the personification of the BB before him.

Cleveland was in the middle of conversation with Helena, when the comms cracked, signaling that someone was attempting to communicate with them and so, she put it through, mildly surprised that it was the commander speaking from the Arizona.

"Attention all hands. This is commander Harvey Baker speaking from the Arizona, who is also the flagship of this defensive formation. I have finished the planning of our defense. Arizona, Enterprise and Shoukaku will stay at the back to protect them from enemy fire. Cleveland and Helena will provide AA support. And Laffey, Downes and Atago will be screening for torpedoes and intercepting any enemy forces that decide to close in. You also have the permission to activate your rigging."

"Vestal will be on standby and provide field repairs with the Bulins. The rest of us will provide AA support from the ground, in case that the enemy sends some bombers around Cleveland's and Helena's AA envelope."

"Hmm… not a bad plan. That way, everyone has something to do and the enemy forces would have to send in their own vanguard to try and break through the defenses," Cleveland mused and noticed that Helena no longer had the sadness showing in her eyes, which were filled with determination instead.

"We'll make it through," she stated firmly as Cleveland reached the exit from her bridge, intending to reach her own ship and get into position, and she smiled, when she heard that. After all, Helena was finally starting to break through the PTSD she somehow suffered.

Toichi didn't expect one thing, when he reached the base. It was surprising just how the Yanks seemed to trust him and his men, even if they were still technically enemies. But, he knew better than to look a gift horse in the mouth. After all, he didn't want to breach the trust and lose his only chance at freeing his homeland from the Sirens.

I have to admit that their so-called "Garands" are very good. I bet that even the pigheaded Army would've been head over heels in trying to base off the next Arisaka off of it, he thought as he looked down at the gun in his hands and then nodded at his men as they walked towards one of the spots they thought were best to attack aircraft from with the rifle.

"Who do you think would lead the attack? The Akagi or the Nagato?" Nara Akikazu asked and Toichi suddenly went to a halt as he remembered one of his conversations with Atago about her brethren.

"The current leader would be Nagato-sama, but if she disappears, it might be Akagi, who was elected as the next leader. That is in case, if Shinano-sama disappears as well," she said, a bit of disgust in her voice, when she said "Akagi", everyone present knowing how she was a staunch supporter of the Sirens.

"I fear that it will be Akagi. And where is Akagi, Kaga follows," he said, shivering a bit after saying that, not caring that they saw him do so. After all, no one of them liked such… intense women like Akagi or Taihou - about whom they heard some concerning stories as well - having that much power in their grasp.

"Anyway, let's worry about this later. We don't want fear to harm our ability to fight, right?" Toichi asked after a few tense seconds of silence and his men chorused their agreement as one.

"Achoo!"

"Nee-sama?! Are you cold?" Kaga asked, worry in her voice.

"No. Someone talked about me behind my back. They won't survive too long anyway… ahaha!"

Meanwhile, somewhere in the Atlantic ocean

Observer Beta was openly smirking, when she saw the entire fleet that she gave to the madman enter her Mirror sea in the predicted ways. Now is time for Plan A, she thought and nodded at the trio of Peace Breakers and quartet of Oceanas to signal the start of what she called Operation Crimsonfall.

It must work, otherwise the Empress would appoint Zero into my spot, she shivered at the thought of a what-if scenario that somehow managed to be quite common since Earth 012. And she'll meet the same fate, if either all the Black cubes, that she managed to get her hands on, are lost or a significant number of the unsuspecting Kansen escapes before receiving it.

However, if it succeeds, she'll be able to deal with that Union pest and his pet Ash 2.0. He seems to be more fun than that failed painter with short mustache anyway, she thought and watched as the trap was sprung.

Mirror sea, somewhere near Bretagne

Something was wrong. Very wrong. And yet, no one knew exactly what. Not even Odin was able to read the situation and that worried everyone. After all, it should've been just another Mirror sea used for training, but somehow it wasn't.

"It's awfully quiet here… I don't like it. At all," commented a blonde girl with red eyes, her usual cheerful tone gone from her voice. And that made her companions all the more wary and vigilant to such a point that they jumped at someone readjusting their rigging to cover a wider area with their firepower.

"I think that everyone, but me, Friedrich, Z1 and August, should leave this Mirror sea. And do I need to repeat myself, Parzival?"

Everyone wanted to protest as Bismarck, the leader of the Iron Blood, said it, but they knew better than to try and disobey her direct orders. Not even Prinz Eugen dared to do so and she had the most freedom with what to do, outside from the Bismarck-class sisters, Odin and Friedrich der Grosse..

"Not so fast," a voice said from behind and a humanoid Siren stepped out from her hiding space, followed by several others that completely surrounded them, all of them with their riggings activated.

"Deal with the blueprint-only ones and I'll modify the memories of the other ones," the voice of Observer Beta commanded, but before Bismarck and her entire faction could act, everything went black.

Mark looked in awe at the Bulins as they finished adding anti-torpedo bulges and some 20 mm Oerlikon AA guns, made entirely from scrapped parts, on his ships.l and they were actually working like new, which only made him even happier than before. And to top it off, they even improved the boilers!

But, the only downside was being forced to stay in port, until the threat ends. He understood that it was necessary, because the enemy force would most likely attack them first, if they left now. And so, he used the opportunity to note everything they'll need at the base, ranging from building materials to ammo, food and oil.

The Hell itself would have to freeze over at least a dozen times, before I'll betray the Union by not supplying Pearl Harbor in the future, he thought and sat down in one of the AA gun mounts. And right after that came the news that they were prepared for.

"Incoming aircraft! From 11 o'clock!" announced an unfamiliar female voice and soon enough, the sky darkened in the reported direction.

"Confirmed. Enterprise, Shoukaku, launch your own fighters!" commander Baker responded and Mike let a small smile to escape his lips, when he saw the rapidly deploying F4Fs from the Enterprise and raised an eyebrow, when he saw Shoukaku blowing some tunes on her flute, making Zeros appear practically from nothing.

The Battle of Pearl Harbor has begun, he thought grimly as the sky was lit up by exploding aircraft soon after they met.