Chapter 4: When a Sea is Born
A few days had gone by since that fated night when Belfast and Zuikaku had confronted each other about their secret love for the strongest Eagle Union. Just like Zuikaku said, she and Enterprise had spent dedicated days going over attack formations, techniques, and practice drills to name a few.
Belfast was a witness to these events. Much to her heart's pain, she would lay her eyes whenever they would go out to sea. Today was different compared to the other sessions. Instead of finding herself either passively gazing at them from the dock or beach shore, she was standing on Hornet's carrier ship out in the middle of the sea.
Hornet was lazily sunbathing in a bikini and black sunglasses on without a care in the world. Another witness of today's event was Shoukaku who had her carrier ship parked near Hornets.
"Are you sure you don't want to hang out over here, Shou?" Lazily replied Hornet with her head slightly turned toward the direction of the Sakura Empire girl that looked bored.
"Hehe, don't mind me, Miss Hornet. I don't do so well on another's ship. Something about the waves and the sounds they make while they hit the hull makes me seasick, surprisingly enough unless it's my own ship." She forced out a fake smile to play off her act.
Hornet grinned and kicked herself up from her beach chair that she was in. The sounds of a chair being dismantled filled Belfast's ears, yet she didn't care to turn her head. "Cool, then there shouldn't be a problem if I vault over there, right?" She said without even waiting for a solid yes or no.
"Kyaa!" Shouted Shoukaku when Hornet had jumped from her ship to land on Shoukaku's ship. "That was dangerous, you know that?!"
"Life's all about excitement! Hey, you got a pretty sweet deck floor here," complemented Hornet who continued her lounging around.
The seething irritation from Shoukaku went unnoticed to the blonde twin-tailed carrier.
"Hey, Belfast! Join us over here," shouted Hornet. She changed expressions two seconds later when she received no response from the Royal Navy light cruiser. "Hmm, wonder what's up her mind."
Belfast was indeed deep in thought as she looked at Zuikaku and Enterprise during their lecture.
Over where Zuikaku and Enterprise were, the two had been exchanging weak strikes to each other. "Your strikes are too wide and predictable. This is even more emphasized with a fighter like me who doesn't even specialize in the fundamentals of swordplay," she said sternly with her bow blocking repeated blows from her katana.
"Hey, don't sell yourself short, Ent. You're… you. Your reflexes and intuition are the sharpest. I can only imagine your ability if you did take the time to study it," commented Zuikaku between haggard breaths and blocked strikes. She grew irritated at the defensive play of Enterprise and tried to fake a wide strike from above, however, at the last minute, she lowered her blade for a strike from below.
"Hmph, that one had more meaning," said Enterprise as she quickly blocked the strike at the last second.
"Oh, come on," said Zuikaku. She pushed hard against the bow that was used as a shield only for the bow to be pulled to the side that caused her to fall forward. "Ah!" Her face was spared from the cold waters when she was grabbed by her white crane hoodie.
"Complementing your enemy won't get you anywhere, Zuikaku," softly said the Eagle Union who brought her back to her feet.
"B-But… you're not the enemy…" replied Zuikaku with a blush.
Enterprise widened her eyes for a brief second and then smiled with a chuckle. "Fine, I get it. I doubt that I'll need to worry about you making small talk with a Siren," she said.
"Darn right. But still, I can feel myself improving with our battles… if only slightly."
"Don't be discouraged, we've only been training and running drills for only a few days. I remember when Yorktown would run me to the ground that she had to drag me back to shore," softly said Enterprise as she fondly remembered a different and simpler time.
"Yorktown?"
"Huh? Oh, my older sister… it's nothing." She felt embarrassed that she showed this side to Zuikaku, yet she couldn't help but feel happy at the memory. When she thought about her older sister, she would think about her final days and Yorktown's desire to pass the torch onto her to bear all the responsibilities that her older sister once had. The difference there was that her older sister had a smile on her face from the beginning unlike her. Still, it felt nice to think of a happy memory of her older sister that brought warmth to her heart. Her eyes then looked back to Zuikaku but her mind wasn't fully back to reality as she could only see the lips moving from the other carrier. In this unfocused state, she looked to the side and noticed Belfast looking at them.
Belfast had been staring without faltering yet when Enterprise had locked gazes with her, she found herself looking away and acting less rigid. Something inside Enterprise had registered this small action as cute.
"… so, what do you think?" Said Zuikaku that succeeded in bringing the Eagle Union back.
"Huh? I'm sorry, but what were we talking about?" She said with shame at herself for drowning out the conversation.
Zuikaku felt dejected but soldiered on with a smile. "I… was wondering if you wanted to… um… come over to the Sakura Empire? There's a new food place that's gaining a lot of traction, and others say that the food is really good."
"That sounds very fun. We can do it today and make it a group thing since Hornet, Belfast, and your sister are here," she said happily.
Zuikaku twitched her right eye at the fact that her feelings were miss directed. "Okay…" She quickly responded while holding her breath in sheer dumbfoundedness. She'll take this victory no matter how small it was, and she'll even stomach the maid if she so happened to agree to tag along.
A loud incoming message emanated from the Eagle Union's bow and command tower. "It's from Cleveland," she said seriously. She accepted the message and Cleveland's voice resonated from out of the bow.
"Enterprise... Enterprise..."
"I'm here, what happened, Cleveland?"
"Enterprise, I'm sorry to throw this at you at the last minute but we have a distress call from an unknown SOS." The sound shifted over the audio as a recorded message played in place of Cleveland's voice.
"... N-need... help... sirens everywhere... my sister... they got my sister... looking... for me..." The recording stopped and Cleveland came back. "The rest is hazy, but they also provided the location of their SOS shortly after the message."
Enterprise could feel an uneasy sensation to the message that fought against her as she considered the sister portion. "This unknown SOS, they didn't give their hull number, or even where they are from?"
"None, Ent. We can only assume that they might be Sakura Empire, Iron Blood, or one of the others. The Eagle Union and Royal Navy have already accounted for the active ships at sea right now, and by the time we request a roster update from the Sakura Empire or Iron Blood, it might be too late."
"This sounds serious, Enty. I can reach the Sakura for an update on active ships but what if it's someone who didn't even inform anyone that they were heading out to sea, like the younger ones?"
"I didn't even think about that?!" Came the worried cries of Cleveland.
"Both of you relax. Send me the details of the location of the signal. I have Belfast, Hornet, Shoukaku, and Zuikaku with me to engage any Siren resistance."
"Alright, thanks Ent, and please be careful. We don't know what Siren level this is, and I would feel a lot better knowing you were the one engaging," said Cleveland over the audio.
"Understood." She cut the audio call and looked to Zuikaku with a reluctant nod.
"Is this going to be a sortie?" Questioned the Sakura Empire.
"Unfortunately. Zui, while you might be excited about this mission, please don't let it cloud your duties. The safety of the SOS ship comes first if possible before enemy engagement."
"I understand. I won't dishonor your name while I'm under your command, Enty." She gave her a smile filled with enough charm and light to brighten anyone's day.
Enterprise did indeed find herself quite charmed by the formal nature that Zuikaku would respond to her as if she was an Elder of the Sakura Empire, yet would have a friendly tone to it coupled with her usage of a nickname. It was like an endearing blend of the two.
"Hornet! Bel! Shou! We have an incoming unknown SOS!" She yelled loudly.
Hornet pulled up her sunglasses with a pout. "Really? Well, that's a bummer. Oh well, guess it can't be helped." She was about to inform Belfast to clear out of her ship, but the maid had already abandoned it since she had her rigging on in case of active duty. She landed gracefully on the water and made her way to Enterprise. "Always one step ahead, she is, " Hornet said with a grin.
Hornet's ship dematerialized into particles and transformed into her rig with her regular outfit replacing her bikini with a flash of light. "Alright, all set." She felt the deck give out and then she fell downward. She barely managed to get her balance in time and avoided the water. "Hey. Shou, a little heads-up next time you pull the ground from under me!"
Shoukaku covered her laugh with a hand and blasted off to join the others. "Huh? What's her deal?"
"Everyone, we will be engaging possible Siren threats on this mission. We must use caution and discretion while we rescue the stranded ship first."
"Enty, let me be the one to back you up," said Zuikaku.
"No, our formation will be different this time. You will be with your sister to maximize the output of both of you. Belfast will take the lead and be with me, and Hornet will watch our rear if they try to attack from behind."
"I shall remain vigilant, Enterprise. Just leave the waves of underlings to me and focus on the ringleader of this operation," responded the Royal maid with a small bow that made Zuikaku cross her arms with a displeased face.
"What's with the extra layer of precaution?" Asked Shoukaku with worry.
"The SOS didn't have time to describe the severity of the threat, also I feel like something is off," said Enterprise with an uncertain look in her eyes.
"Well, you did mention it was an unknown SOS, which sounds pretty shady. Like, why didn't they lead with their identity first? That's like one of the first rules of ship distress 101. Hull class identification, coordinates of the distress, then the threat if given enough time," said Hornet.
"Indeed, this distress feels far off from a standard one," said Belfast.
"It could be a younger ship that hasn't learned or forgotten the standard protocol in the heat of the action," said Zuikaku.
"We can't ignore it. She said that they had her sister... we can't let anything happen to them," declared Enterprise with unwavering conviction.
Everyone agreed yet felt too uneasy about it even after they had heard the message played back while they were headed to the location.
(A short time later)
The waves were the only sounds to be heard as all of them remained on high alert of a possible ambush from the enemy.
"There... I see..." Enterprise's eyes widened as something in the distance was burning angrily and creating a huge amount of smoke.
"Those monsters, please tell me that the girl is still alive," said Zuikaku with anger pouring into her.
"W-What?!" Enterprise finally had a better look when she spotted a raft-style boat with concrete waist-high walls that simulated the outline structure of a boat. A crude command deck had been built in the center with old scrap metal and chipped window glass. Anyone seeing it off in the distance would immediately think it was a small supply boat. There were about twenty or so barrels that were burning inside the walled structure, further simulating that it was a ship in distress.
"If this is a joke, it isn't funny," replied Shoukaku with a worried voice.
Enterprise was the first to notice the malefic unnatural force in the air. "Everyone, get behind me!"
No one else had the time to question it when a large fiery strike had shot out from behind the boat.
Enterprise shot the incoming blast with her arrow that when the two collided, smoke poured out of the enemy's attack, covering them all.
"Ugh... it's hard to breathe in this thing..." Grunted Hornet while coughing.
Enterprise remained unfazed as her eyes were not fooled by the chaos that was unfolding. "I'm done with your games, Purifier." She aimed her bow and shot a powerful strike that created a shockwave that blew the dark smoke away.
Her powerful strike hit the decoy boat, causing it to flip over and fly across the water.
Everyone witnessed a pair of yellow eyes above the water looking back at them from where the boat had originally been. These sets of eyes widened with a joyous implication that the user's smile was greatly widened under the murkiness of the water.
The enemy emerged from hiding with her massive yellow and black alien rigging in tow. "Hahaha... Haha! Yes! Enterprise, you are exactly the pathetic ship I was hoping to catch, and you brought friends, too," she bellowed with an evil grin that held no innocence.
"Purifier, what are you scheming this time? And where are the pair of sisters?!" Yelled Enterprise wildly that made Belfast and the crane sisters exchange a worried look.
"Huh? Wow, for being the strongest and toughest... you sure aren't the brightest shipgirl. There is no pair of sisters. There never was," she said, enjoying the grand reveal that hit Enterprise hard.
"Then who was the one that sent the..." Belfast had her answer when Purifier had spoken again.
"Help... me... they got... my sister," she said with a device in her hands that altered her voice to that of a shy and scared girl.
"How truly monstrous," said Belfast with narrow eyes.
"Thanks for the compliment. I made this device by myself, and I also made this little beauty right here," she held a transceiver-like device in her other hand.
"That... explains everything," said Enterprise with narrow eyes.
"This one was a little trickier to make. I had to salvage parts from destroyed ships until I had enough of the key parts. Once that was done, I could mimic a distress signal to the Azur Lane's communication structure."
"No wonder that it felt shady. She masked the origin of the signal to resemble that of a fellow Azur Lane ship calling out for help," remarked Hornet.
"You got that right, blondie," laughed Purifier.
All of them quickly realized that the sky had turned into a reflective multi-colored sky with cracks and openings that showed a deep void behind it. All around the Shipgirls, a fleet of mass-produced siren ships had materialized from out of nowhere.
"Ah! She played us like a flute! Zui, I'm getting scared," said Shoukaku.
"I got you, sis. Nothing is going to hurt you with me around," declared Zuikaku.
"At what ends did you plan to achieve with all this?" Replied Enterprise unamused and deathly serious.
Purifier gritted her teeth at the uncaring nature of the Eagle Union. "This doesn't impress you? Wow, I'm so hurt. White-haired girl, I like her energy but you... so gray and boring."
"I refuse to humor you with any emotion of your liking."
"Ugh, you're such a bummer. I bet Observer Alpha died of boredom when she and her... little side project went down," she cracked a crazed laugh that was truly unsettling.
"You mean the Orochi warship?"
"Wasn't that your miserable band's secret weapon?" Shouted Zuikaku.
"Hmm, maybe... maybe not... it was Observer Alpha's pride and joy. I, on the other hand, have my own little side project."
She held up a small black object that made Enterprise express a deep fear. Visions of a night and endless fire entered her mind. "That's... the black mental cube..."
"Correct, Enty. This is the exact one that has your data stored safely inside. I could have given this to Observer Alpha but... I had a change of heart," she smiled sinisterly, telling them it wasn't a change to the side of good.
"You betrayed your ally..." Commented Enterprise.
"Pfft, please, Observer Alpha would have done the same thing after she no longer needed to work with us. She stated that somehow, her grand plan would have benefited the rest of us, but it was all lies. Now she's dead... thanks a bunch for that, Enty. You know, we're not that easy to take out. Nothing is stopping me from reaching across time and space and pulling her back into this reality as if the last few weeks didn't happen at all. But that would be boring… and a waste of my energy. I don't need her, and I don't need the others now that this little beauty is finally ready for usage after modifying it a lot."
"Enterprise, it would seem that the standards that we held for the Sirens have managed to lower. Quite surprisingly for how low they were to begin," said Belfast.
"She's horrible; seeing all of this as just a game. Purifier! I will never allow you to win. We... will never allow that!" Shouted the archer.
"Hmph, surrounded and super brave. That's fine. It would be boring if otherwise. I did invite you all to see me at my grandest, so humor me—praise me!"
"Oh, what's she blabbering on about now? I'm getting sick of her monologuing," said Hornet.
"You will stand there and listen to my evil plan! Okay? Ugh, where was I... ah, yes... I made that distress signal as a shot in the dark to get Enty to show up. I feel so lucky that all it took was the pathetic cries of two sisters with the sad ending that one might bite the bullet."
"You will be biting it in the end," retorted Enterprise.
"Unlikely, this mirror sea is my grand piece to my plan. You see, Enty... I like your body..." she said with vicious undertones.
Both Zuikaku and Belfast felt ashamed and confused at what the Siren had said that made them blush.
Enterprise looked more disgusted than ever at the Siren.
"I like that strong body of yours that holds unlimited potential. So, I'm going to be your biggest number one fan and take this power into my own body. The data in this mental cube that holds your power will finally help me achieve unimaginable perfection with your power and my ability to distort time and space! This mirror sea is intended for that purpose. Think of it as a testing ground for possibilities like creating a new warship in here that can be used outside. That was one original purpose of the concept of the mirror sea, but now… with my version, I modified it so it can allow the warship to be built inside me. A feat that the black mental cube wasn't designed for as well. But who cares, since it's been modified too, so screw all that! It's great since I'll be melding two bodies together for power only, and don't have to worry about pesky memories and personality traits that sadly accumulate within the data stored in the mental cube. Ugh, honestly, I don't know what that tentacle-obsessed nut had in mind to filter out those stupid flaws during the data extraction," she finished with a disrespectful jab to her former Siren companion.
"She's completely off her rocker, and whose she to call someone else a nut?" remarked Hornet.
"Shut up! Overflowing power will soon be mine. And you are all here merely to be witnesses of my greatness, then you will all die," she smirked evilly.
"Belfast, on my command, use your smokescreen to hide us from the enemy ships. Zuikaku and Shoukaku, work on taking out the ships with Belfast. And Hornet, can you give me a window to give her the finishing blow?"
"You can leave that to me, sis," smirked Hornet.
Enterprise locked eyes with Purifier who didn't take notice of the quickly forming plan.
"Your plans will fail."
"And why's that?" Smirked the crazed Siren.
"Anyone who decides to stand alone is doomed to fall, especially the ones who cast aside their allies—now, Belfast!"
Belfast scattered a large smokescreen that covered the overall area that shielded everyone from the enemy. When the white smoke had covered the vast area, the first response emerged in the form of countless airplanes brandishing the Sakura Empire symbol. They dropped bombs on the enemy ships, signaling the start of the conflict.
The first one that emerged was Shoukaku who gracefully floated in the air with the white parts of her crane coat floating like wings. She played the flute which gave her a deeper control over the actions of her fighter planes.
The next was both Belfast and Zuikaku. The fire user of the Sakura Empire unleashed a giant slash of flames to her side that provided them with a short barricade from getting attacked on that side by the enemy. She then charged at three ships with two of her burning planes, diving headfirst toward the side ships. She loaded her blade with a burning mini plane, then jumped into the air and cut downward in a vertical slice. The flames expanded and cut across the middle ship as if it was butter.
Belfast took more concentrated fire from the enemy ships, but due to her quick usage of her smokescreen, and her evasive tactics, she was able to gracefully evade across the water like a beautiful dance. Her counterattack was her burning shells coupled with the main cannon fire from her rigging.
Purifier scrounged up her face in annoyance at their struggle. Her focus was forced to turn when she spotted a large number of B-25 bombers coming at her. "Ha, it looks like you want to play, blondie," she viciously mocked as she fired high-powered lasers at the bomber planes.
Hornet shot out of the smoke with a wide grin to challenge Purifier's sickly smirk. "Hey, dingus, don't you know that monologuing never gets you anywhere? You could have already done what you said you would!"
"Err! Shut up!" The Siren was forced to start moving when a few of the bombers were able to reach her and start unloading their firepower at her. Her laser cannons moved and danced like a vicious light show sworn to take out all bombers in their path. "I'll show you, blondie! You'll be the first one I destroy!" She brought the black mental cube close to her chest as a distortion in space appeared near it. The mirror sea also began to respond with a feel of heavy energy gathering.
"That's as far as you go!" Shouted Enterprise with her bow ready. Her shot fired toward the Siren.
"Darn you." She directed a few of her cannon lasers, along with a large group of black Siren jets that raced toward Enterprise. The arrows of the Eagle Union were hit by the lasers, but Shoukaku's planes were able to take on the black Siren jets in place of Enterprise.
"Great work, Shou," quickly replied Enterprise to the older crane sister that made the sister's face take on furrowed brows. If only she wasn't playing her flute, then she would have had more to express. Enterprise continued her assault with three arrows this time that fired at once.
The Siren aimed at her arrows but this time, they turned into her fighter planes that evaded the crossfire of the lasers. "You're so tenacious!" She laughed as she activated a reflective shield that took out the three fighter planes in an instant. She then turned quickly around to dispatch the last remaining B-25 Bombers from Hornet's fleet. "Ships, swarm that pest!" She commanded as a large Siren destroyer ship advanced on Hornet from behind.
Hornet grunted in fear as she was forced to fight it head-on.
Purifier's instincts kicked in when she barely dodged another failed attempt from Enterprise's arrows from hitting her. "Don't you think you should throw in the towel?" She mocked at the Eagle Union.
"Hmm, not really."
"Huh?" Purifier failed to notice until it was too late that the arrow that she evaded had turned into a fighter plane and turned sharply around to drop a payload at her. She screamed as she was thrown off her black and yellow alien-like jet rig. The black cube was then dejected from her hand and the distortion had canceled out.
Enterprise locked eyes with it as an image of the fallen version of her flashed in her mind. "This time, I will do what I should have done!" She launched a powerful arrow at it filled with all her hopes for a brighter future.
The arrow briefly chipped it, much to the surprise of the Eagle Union as she was expecting it to shatter like glass. The chipped part then began to shine with a purple light that responded to the heavy energy that had gathered. Upon this contact, the cube fully exploded followed by a dark smoke that filled the air.
Everyone was caught in the smoke and they all felt separated from each other as if they were in their own personal world.
(Hornet)
Hornet coughed from the smoke. "Ent! Where are you!?" She shouted into the void that was the black smoke. Her vision was limited, and she could not find her sense of direction in this blackened world. Her body froze up when she remembered the destroyer that she was fighting. That same destroyer had its cannon lined up to her face in a point-blank hit. She quivered in fear as she saw her life flash before her.
Out in the void, the radiant light of an arrow tore through the darkness with wild unchecked force at the destroyer. This shot tore through its hull and flipped it over to its side as if it was nothing.
"Whoa… Ent… was that you?" She asked the darkness where that arrow of light came from; the darkness did not reply.
(Belfast)
Belfast found the encroaching darkness to be unsettling to her. Her heart ached at the isolation she felt from the others in this black smoke that felt like it had a mind of its own. Aside from her heart aching, she could feel shifting shadows all around her as if she was being watched.
The loud sounds of fighter planes pulled her out of her worries as she squinted to see the iconic planes of Enterprise. "Enterprise! I'm over here!" She shouted, however, the planes continued to fly away from her. "I don't understand. Why are they ignoring me? Why is Enterprise ignoring me?" She said with a heavy worry at the fact that those airplanes were an extension of her friend, and yet, they coldly ignored her.
(Enterprise)
"Hornet! Belfast! Zuikaku! Shoukaku!" She urgently glided across the water in search of her friends in this dark void that light from the sun couldn't pierce. Regret started to set in as she remembered that this black smoke had been due to the black mental cube being destroyed… at least, she thought she did.
Two sets of bird-like shadows entered the corner of her vision as they quickly came into focus to be her airplanes. "What?" She recollected the number of arrows she shot and the number of planes she deployed but the discrepancy in the number she saw and the number that survived didn't make sense. They flew silently close to her, making her unease. "Deviate now," she said sternly, yet they didn't follow. "I said deviate now! That's an order." This time they indeed deviated from her only to engage in combat as each one launched a payload at her.
She barely dodged the twin bombs that filled her face with heat and water from the explosion that came into contact with the sea. She didn't have enough time to regain her balance when a third plane emerged from in front of her with gunfire that grazed her left arm, then, it launched its own payload that swallowed Enterprise in water and heat.
(Zuikaku)
Zuikaku made her way through the darkness until her fingers connected with someone else. "Shou!" She cried in joy when both crane sisters were able to hug each other after finding the other.
"Thank goodness I found you, Zui," cried the white-haired crane sister.
"It's going to be okay, sis. All we need to do is find the others and get out of this mirror sea," she said with confidence.
"What is this black smoke? This is different from the last time we were trapped in the mirror sea," said Shoukaku.
"I'm not sure… it feels like It has a mind of its own… huh?" Zuikaku faintly saw the outline of a figure that was watching the two. "Enterprise…?" she responded when she noticed a black outline of a bow.
"W-Why is she standing over there so silently?" Said Shoukaku.
The dark outline of Enterprise responded with her eyes opening to see the eyes of a Siren with their yellow ghostly shine.
Zuikaku instinctively pulled out her sword with a tremble to it. "Enty…?"
Her nerves came back when she put the facts together and held her katana with more confidence as she challenged the yellow eyes that stared back. "She's a Siren!" Declared Zuikaku with her steadfast resolve.
The yellow soon began to dim and the figure approached them close enough for their features to take form.
The brown-haired Sakura carrier's heart faltered as if it plummeted from orbit when those former yellow eyes turned into the purple eyes that she had fallen for. Her blade then trembled when the figure turned out to be Enterprise. "No... this isn't possible, " she said with horror.
This individual looked like Enterprise with only a few differences. She no longer dawned her captain's hat that the Eagle Union was fond of, instead, her head showed a messy style of hair both cut shorter than Enterprise and wildly displayed. She had on a worn-out black scarf around her neck, her shirt looked like the one Enterprise wore with only a few minor alterations, mostly being a different kind of stitching in the black detailing and her having no tie. She wore two long black arm warmers with white cuffs at the wrists, and one leg warmer on her right leg with light wrappings at the top. The coat that Enterprise wore with honor and pride had been reduced to a fluttering cape that had seen countless battles as part of it looked like bullets had grazed it. The black scarf could have been an extension of the former coat with the possible sleeves lightly wrapped around her neck as two long strand pieces of fabric were shown to dangle near her chest area. The final detail was that she had a bullet wound that looked fresh on her left arm.
"Enty...? What happened?" Whispered the brown-haired girl loud enough for her to hear how broken she sounded.
Enterprise did not respond.
Zuikaku looked into her eyes to see the eyes she fell in love with, however, these eyes lied to her as no light shined from them as they once did. These eyes were tired and broken as if they had seen a thousand battles, experienced so much death, and had been pushed to the brink of a dark void, only to be brought back into the only world they knew: conflict.
"Enty... it's me... please say something," she pleaded with tears as she couldn't bear the sight of the one she loved looking so broken.
Enterprise responded with her bow drawn as she fired a radiating arrow at the katana of the Sakura Empire.
Her blade flew out of her hand as she would have never expected Enterprise to shoot at her. Numbing pain soon flowed through her hand at the intense force that vibrated when her katana was knocked away.
"Zuikaku! Enterprise, what is going on with you?" Begged Shoukaku. She defensively hugged her younger sister who dropped to her knees in pain.
No emotion was shown from the Eagle Union as she readied another arrow. She then canceled her aim and backed away into the darkness.
"Zuikaku!"
Zuikaku took her mind away from the pain as the familiar voice filled her ears. It didn't come from the Enterprise that had fired her katana away but from behind her.
A blinding arrow zoomed past them and hit the last known area that Enterprise had been at.
"Shou, Zui, I saw a flash of light come from that direction. Who was that? What did you see?" Begged Enterprise at a confused pair of crane sisters.
"How did you? What on earth is going on?!" Yelled Shoukaku.
Zuikaku looked up to see the warm purple eyes of the Eagle Union with her normal outfit and hair. "Enty?" She said, spellbound by the events that had just taken place.
"It's me. Huh? What happened to your hand?" Asked Enterprise with concern.
"You should know! You were the one that knocked her sword out of her hand!" Yelled Shoukaku.
"What? I would never do that to Zuikaku," cried Enterprise with reason.
"S-Sister… don't let your anger cloud your reasoning. The one who shot at me had a drastic appearance change than the one Enty is usually in. She was clearly… a Siren." Softly spoke Zuikaku with a small smile that nothing had happened to Enterprise. She then saw that she also had a wound in the same arm as the other Enterprise. "Enty, you're hurt..."
"This... is nothing. I'm more concerned about your hand," she said as she pieced the scene of events that happened.
"Eh, don't worry. It's only numb, Enty," she said with joyful humbleness.
Their short moment of joy had ended when the black smoke started to disperse. In the distance, a large sound of metal plummeted into the water. With the smoke nearly dispersed, a large visible ship had appeared from it like a ghost ship coming out of a fog.
All three of them retreated away from it as the mass seemed to keep growing.
With sunlight finally visible, everyone started to group up with each other with renewed happiness that no one was injured.
"Where did that enemy ship come from?" Asked Belfast.
Enterprise felt like she was in a trance as she moved hypnotically forward with a look of frightening fear in her eyes. "This ship..."
The remaining black smoke that had slowly dissipated had moved upward like a sheet being pulled away. Slowly, the features of the ship had started to unravel, however, there was no mistake for Enterprise who already knew what ship it was just by glancing at the underside.
"... is mine," she gravely spoke as the black smoke had disappeared to fully show the USS Enterprise in all its might.
"That can't be... there's no way!" Shouted Belfast.
"Look, in the front part of the ship," pointed Shoukaku with shakiness to her voice.
The same person that had wounded Zuikaku's hand was standing on the edge of the runway with a captive Purifier held in the air by her throat.
"Huh, okay this day is getting freakier and freakier, " commented Hornet.
"Ah! You can say that again," quickly added Shoukaku.
The other Enterprise gazed only at her counterpart as if she was the only one else in the whole sea. Her eyes remained tired and broken, yet they had not lost their fire of determination.
Purifier gasped for air as she looked down with horror at the uncaring Enterprise that refused her any breath. "I am your master... you dare treat me like... this?"
The copy Enterprise finally looked her way. "Forgive me..." She dropped her as she gasped for air on the ground. Her short reprieve was immediately silenced with a hard kick to the Siren's head that briefly knocked her out. "... I hope that's better," she said flatly.
She walked closer to the edge with her eyes never leaving Enterprise and extended her arm out. "...Engage!"
Those words made Enterprise widen her eyes as fighter planes that brandished her design took to the skies. "Everyone, get away from me! She's only after me!" Enterprise lined up her runway rig and fired her own wave of fighter planes.
Both forces collided with each other in a fierce dog fight. Metal and gunfire sounded as Enterprise tried to contain the battle.
Shoukaku and Zuikaku glided in synch toward the false Enterprise.
"What are you doing?!" Shouted Enterprise.
"We are not going to let you take her on by yourself. I can still use my other hand and Shoukaku can reinforce your planes with her own," shouted Zuikaku as she loaded her katana with fire and slashed at a group of three fighter planes that swooped downward.
Belfast and Hornet also took charge. "I might be down most of my bombers, but I can still fight for sure," declared the blonde Eagle Union.
"Everyone here has your back, Enterprise." Said Belfast who took aim and fired away at incoming hostiles.
The fight grew more chaotic with each passing second as more fighter planes were shooting out of the runway of the fake Enterprise.
Enterprise was just barely matching the speed of reinforcements as she decided on pulling out her bow and jumping into the heat of the battle. She fired at any fighter planes that got close to her or Shoukaku who had her flute in her mouth to command her planes.
The fake Enterprise ramped up the heat as her fighter planes avoided dog fights and began to launch bombs.
"Ah, crud, I'm down to my last wave of bombers. Do I have any torpedo bombers on me?" Hornet hectically searched like someone checking themselves for spare change. Oddly enough, she could tell that there were no hostile enemies that were being aggressive toward her with most of them flat out avoiding her. There was even one that had a clear shot at her yet didn't take it, resulting in Hornet dispatching it with gunfire. They also partially avoided Belfast who was forced to dodge a few. The majority were focused on Enterprise and Shoukaku with Zuikaku as well since she was the most actively forcing her way forward.
"This is bad. I'm having a hard time knowing which ones are mine," said Enterprise as she tried to maintain a leveled rational mind in this heat of battle. She grunted as she was forced to deploy focused bursts of gunfire in certain areas where she identified enemy planes. Above all, she maintained her careful eye that she didn't hit her allies.
"Enty! Shou! Give me some cover!" Yelled Zuikaku who was close to reaching the enemy carrier. The flaming airplanes that she had that defended her were quickly outmaneuvered by the fake Enterprise's fighter planes.
She was only allowed to keep going as two of Shoukaku's fighter planes had taken out the aggressors. Sadly, those planes didn't last long as more hostile reinforcements encroached on the brown-haired carrier.
"Already on it!" Shouted the Eagle Union as she fired an arrow that split into three that took out the reinforcements. She then fired a powerful shot at her counterpart.
The fake Enterprise looked at her command deck that briefly shined with a blue grid aesthetic. Her bow then appeared in her hands as she shot down the arrow with her own with a pinpoint aim.
"Whoa, sis... I didn't know you could do that," said Hornet.
Enterprise gritted her teeth. "Not only does she have my arsenal and power, but she also has my proficiency with the bow."
"Yeah, that's crazy, but why is she keeping her ship in that mode? Wouldn't it be better if she activated her rigging?" Asked Hornet.
"Yes, it's not practical to make yourself a wider target, especially when your opponents are in this mode. She's trying to mock me…" replied Enterprise with a deep stare at her stoic counterpart.
The fake Enterprise summoned three arrows and aimed at Zuikaku.
Quick on her feet, Zuikaku evaded the arrows but the waves of water from the backlash pushed her back. "I can't get closer than this!"
Both Enterprises exchanged arrows that were either canceled out by flying fighter planes or deflected by their own respective arrows.
Enterprise hated herself for admiring the eyesight of this imposter that could shoot down a thin line from different angles and speeds just like her.
"We're not making any progress here!" Zuikaku gasped as a group of fighter planes had flanked her from behind.
"Get down, Miss Zuikaku!" Shouted Belfast as she launched her burning shells at the planes.
"T-Thanks for the assist," reluctantly replied Zuikaku.
Belfast politely acknowledged the jester at the very least with a hint of resistance. "The situation truly is dire. Our enemy's battle tactics appear to be berserker-like. She's truly not holding back her punches."
Zuikaku lowered her gaze in an understanding of the enemy that lay in front of them. She was wild and uncontrollable. Just by looking at the way she commanded her fighter planes spoke great volumes. "She... has no respect for the battlefield or her fighter planes..."
Belfast nodded in agreement and they looked at their Enterprise whose tactics were the complete opposite.
Enterprise would slowly and carefully launch new planes just enough to keep her enemy in check. Anymore and Shoukaku's planes would end up getting confused as to which ones they were fighting. She also kept her payload bombs to a minimum and used gunfire as her primary. The only thing she was comfortable using was her bow which matched her counterpart's power into a draw as the imposter would launch more arrows wildly to make up for her one-woman army offensive.
"Zuikaku... we need to retreat and let Enterprise handle this," she said sternly.
"No, all we need is a different plan."
"There is no better plan... she's fighting against us in a matter that we never witnessed our Enterprise fight. She lacks her self-control and all we're doing is limiting Enterprise from matching her."
The despair in Zuikaku's heart could cause her to fall right there. She refused to believe that, yet, her numbed hand that experienced the arrow that deflected her katana spoke differently. Has she always been holding back that much? "Shoukaku, retreat," shouted Zuikaku with a heavy heart.
"What?!" Said both Shoukaku and Hornet in disbelief.
"We must retreat and let Enterprise handle this herself," she explained.
"I'm not leaving my sister to fight alone!" Raged Hornet.
"Hornet, I want that... please, it's me she wants," calmly spoke Enterprise with a sisterly soothing voice that made Hornet hate herself for wanting to comply.
"Grr... beat her up sis and show her the power of the true Enterprise!"
Enterprise nodded with a smile.
They all retreated further back to give the battlefield to Enterprise. "Thank you, Zuikaku," she said as both Zuikaku and Belfast passed her by.
The fake Enterprise raised her hand to halt her fighter planes from further engagement. They circled the battlefield to wait and see what unfolded next with a calmness that matched the eye of a storm. A flicker of life had been shown in the fake Enterprise as her gaze laid only to her counterpart.
"You mock me and try to force my hand. I refuse to sink to your depths of war. However, to hold back against you would be like lying to myself. Just this once, I shall respond to your level of war." A spark had ignited in the Eagle Union's eyes as she unleashed a full-wave that took to the skies like an angry approaching storm.
The fake Enterprise responded with more fighter planes taking to the skies and her current ones were no longer docile as they charged into battle.
This version of their dog fight was more brutal and evasive as each plane was fighting without regard for the others.
Enterprise commanded her planes to bomb her counterpart's ship, yet her counterpart responded with defensive arrows and fighter planes taking the hit. "You still mock me?! Even after giving you what you want?!" She fired a handful of arrows that split into smaller ones, however, they failed to reach their target as they were blocked by a wall of fighter planes that took the hit.
Enterprise felt disgusted by how her counterpart forced her fighter planes to sacrifice themselves like bees wasting their stingers to protect the hive.
The fight grew heavy and the pile of broken metal continued to grow all around the mirror sea.
Off in the distance, the others looked on with terror-induced captivation in their eyes that rendered them from looking away. "This is cruel! Even by herself, they are only mirroring each other!" Said Shoukaku.
"Ent has the advantage of dodging attacks but the other... she's like a fortress that would throw her allies to protect it," said Hornet.
"Even this situation is pointless!" Cried Zuikaku as she quickly made up her mind and blasted to join the fight.
"Wait! Get back here!" Cried Belfast who followed her.
"Both of you get back here!" Tiredly shouted Hornet.
"Have you gone quite mad?! We will only be getting in the way!" Reasoned Belfast.
"I don't care! Maybe listening to Enterprise and doing what she asks makes you feel better, but it's getting us or her nowhere. I understand that we will only get in the way, but we won't be doing that..."
Belfast could no longer hold back her displeasure at the words that hit hard. "I do not idle around and weakly accept her orders! If that was the case, then I would have never been able to make her start loving herself."
"Ha, if that's the case, what do you call this bad situation?" Replied Zuikaku.
Belfast grumbled under her breath, but after seeing the stalemate that had appeared from their one on one fight, she knew that something had to be done as well. "Well, alright. Enterprise is quite valiant but also endearingly foolish in that same regard that she would jump through fire alone If she had to for the sake of others. What is your plan, Zuikaku?"
"It's simple, we need to stealth our way onto her ship and provide Enty with an opening. That's all she needs... an opening." She reached across the water to pick up a broken sheet of Siren metal from the former massed-produced ships and hid underneath it.
Belfast did the same as she pulled it over her. "A decoy distraction… very well. Is your hand okay for this encounter?" she said as they both glided across the water unnoticed.
"I'll manage," replied Zuikaku with the only thing in her mind was making sure Enterprise was safe.
Both Enterprises had been locked in an unhealthy obsession with the other that they both failed to realize Zuikaku and Belfast's advancing presence on the battlefield.
Enterprise dodged a few more attacks that came her way and summoned more arrows. The roaring sounds of gunfire headed her way that knocked the arrows out of her hand. "Ah! Can she read my mind?" She asked herself as she jumped and used her bow to smash an incoming fighter plane.
The fake Enterprise fired one arrow packed with full force toward Enterprise. It didn't reach her as it collided with Enterprise's own arrow that vibrated the waters into a frenzy.
"Fine then… let's do this," she said dangerously and calmly. She pulled back her bowstring and fired a radiating shot with the same output as the last one.
The fake Enterprise responded the same and with equal power.
Both of their arrows flew across the sky with their impact already destined.
"Now!" Shouted Enterprise as her arrow split into three fighter planes that caused the enemy arrow to miss the impact.
Enterprise was ready to dodge the attack, but her counterpart was one step ahead. Just like Enterprise, her arrow split into three fighter planes that sharply turned around to face Enterprise's three fighter planes.
"What are you…?" Enterprise dropped her jaw low when the three enemy planes turned back into arrows with the same velocity that the first original arrow had. All three of her fighter planes were shot down as they failed in reaching the fake Enterprise.
Enterprise was left spellbound by this tactic that she had not yet reached. It shook the pillars of her strength that this imposter had mastered that elusive technique.
The fake Enterprise got ready for a final arrow assault as her plane reserves were approaching their limit. She quickly became alerted by the presence of enemies on her ship.
"Ah!" Shouted Zuikaku as she swung her burning katana at the fake. Her eyes widened as the fake bent backward with the blade missing her by an inch. Zuikaku maintained her swings, but they proved to be difficult without the use of her main hand that gripped her katana firmly. Her strikes had lost speed and were sadly too wide, putting more swing time in between attacks.
The fake did not attempt to acknowledge that this was a struggle as she deflected each strike with her bow in a dance that the two engaged in.
Zuikaku grunted at the ferocity in the guard that the fake had. It wasn't even defensive rather, a defensive assault was more specific, in which she moved forward with her bow and intensity in her eyes. It further made Zuikaku accept the question of how much Enterprise had been holding back. She felt her katana get bashed sideways, resulting in her getting kicked in the stomach and then being launched off the side.
"Zuikaku!" Cried Enterprise as her heart broke at the mistreatment of her friend.
The fake darted her eyes to see Belfast opposite her, aiming her gun barrels at the fake.
There was no reaction as the fake deflected the incoming hail of bullets with her massive bow. "Enterprise! Shoot her now!" She yelled.
The force of the bullets didn't even force her back as the fake hunkered down to endure the assault.
Belfast's ammunition emptied as she stood there with a still breath.
"Weak... all of you," replied the fake as she drew her bow and fired.
"Belfast!" It all happened so fast, yet for the Eagle Union, it was in slow motion as she saw Belfast hold her arm gauntlets up and tank the shot that pushed her off the edge.
Something inside Enterprise snapped as her anger flared and her vision became fueled with utter hatred to this fake that stood before her. No longer spellbound, she felt like her arms had taken a mind of their own as they were already ready to launch an arrow as soon as Belfast hit the water. "You don't get to hurt… the people I love!"
This arrow was different than all the others. If the others were fueled for a specific purpose of halting the enemy, this arrow was designed to kill with absolute force with the intended purpose of destroying everything in its path. The bowstring tightened to the point of breaking as it was pushed to a limit that Enterprise never dared venture. It crackled with unchecked power that even caused the waves underneath her to cave in. "It's over!" She launched the arrow as it tore through the sky, even making the cracks in the sky tremble.
The fake Enterprise gazed at the mighty blow and accepted her fate. As her final atrocity, she picked up Purifier who had been knocked out for a while but started to finally stir. She picked her up by her sailor outfit as the Siren struggled weakly. "Why? I gave you life..." weakly replied Purifier with genuine fear.
"Not by choice and you can take it back. Three birds, one stone," replied the fake Enterprise as she closed her eyes to accept the blow.
Purifier, not wanting to die, activated her shield in a faint attempt for survival. Sadly, the shield shattered upon the excessive blow of the Eagle Union that angrily tried to engulf them in a show of radiating blinding light.
The others were horrified when they heard the screams of the Siren pierce the world of the mirror sea. Enterprise's attack had no longer maintained the form of an arrow but that of a beam of burning energy.
Enterprise's heart stopped for a brief second as she and her counterpart gave each other one final look. Regardless of their distance, it felt like they were merely a few feet apart as both soon recoiled back simultaneously. The next thing that she felt, was a burning hot pain that appeared all over her right arm. The instantaneous pain was only dwarfed by her rigging carving itself openly as metal, blood, and fabric filled her vision.
Hornet and Shoukaku were statue levels of shock as they witness Enterprise get blown back violently as if she took a hit from something.
"Sis!" Cried a panicked Hornet who dashed to catch her before she hit the water.
At the same time, the fake Enterprise had sustained the same mirrored damage as her with her right arm getting torched and lacerations appearing all over her shoulder and arm. She lay motionless on her runway that had been carved open by Enterprise's attack.
Purifier's condition was unknown as she was thrown into a crack in the purple void that resided in the sky that closed afterward. However, one could only speculate the unreal damage that she sustained from being the front victim of the attack.
The mirror sea soon died out, and the surrounding area had returned to normal
Zuikaku and Belfast floated on the water and the shouts of Hornet had brought them back to reality. They both stood up to gaze in horror at the state of Enterprise who laid in her sister's arms with a vacant look and spasming body. Unimaginable pain rendered the strongest Eagle Union emotionally shot and broken.
"Ent! Keep your eyes open! Damn it!" Cried Hornet as her older sister couldn't take the pain and passed out quietly in her arms. Hornet haggardly inhaled between loud cries, and she radioed the one message she thought she would never make. "USS Hornet, r-requesting emergency assistance upon d-docking… USS Ent… Enterprise… has sustained critical injuries… I repeat… USS Enterprise has sustained critical injuries!"
Hornet picked up her sister in her state of panic while she unknowingly left behind Enterprise's hat that floated on the water.
I had a blast and a tough time making this chapter. I feel sad that I left it in a dire mood like this one, but all will be revealed soon. I know that I shouldn't say this, but if you have read my previous works, you will know that I don't kill off characters that frequently so… no, no one's dying! I also hope that I managed to make Purifier resemble more like her in-game version as in the anime she's literally only in episode 10 for like one minute. Funny enough, I started getting into the game around the Hololive event where I read the story and was introduced to the character of Purifier as Purity. She was so adorable and dorky that it hurt me that I had to do her like that. The next chapter might take longer to come out as I reached the point of no return where I want to make sure my ideas are fully formed and planned out. It's still going to be a love triangle at its core with a little wrench thrown in there. I'll also update my Neptunia fic soon as I admit that I have pushed it aside.
Also, I will keep improving on the Sirens as they will be a key point in the story, and I felt like it wasn't my best work. I was kind of left there while reading the backstories on them that I told myself that these are pretty much the Vex from Destiny. So, there's a lot to unpack there to give them justice in this story.
Thank you all for reading this chapter and I'll see you all in the next one!