Chapter 14: The Battle for NY Harbor
Welcome back y'all! I just wanted to take a second and say thank you so much for 200+ follows! I hope everyone will continue to enjoy this story!
At long last, I present to you chapter 14! I'll explain why I took so long at the end but for now let me just say one last thing:
This chapter is going to be a bit a darker in the form of descriptive violence depictions and scenery, but nothing too far (IMO) so there's the warning!
"You cannot go into battle believing you will lose." - Akisame Koetsuji, Kenichi: The Mightiest Disciple
"There's still some things that need to be done before we can have indulge ourselves in this world more."
'Tsk…as if I'd let you do as you please.' Shikikan scoffed as he was thinking about what Observer said.
'That said, what exactly are they up to? What are they preparing for? How long do I have to figure this out before they act? Where will they strike? And what exactly is that smell?' He questioned as he was brought out of his train of thought when he smelled something fragrant assaulting his nose. Realizing what it was, he quickly rushed over and took the large fryer basket out of the fryer and set it on the rack above.
'Phew, any second later and they would've started to burn.' He sighed in relief as he remembered that he shouldn't be so lost in thought when cooking lest he start a kitchen fire on his ship.
"Oh! I know that smell like the back of my hand! Is it ready yet Shikikan?" A starry-eyed Zuikaku appeared with Shoukaku in tow.
"Everything's cooked, so all that's left is to just put everything together, so give me a few more minutes and I'll bring it all out to where everyone is." He smiled.
"Please hurry Shikikan! I can't wait!" Zuikaku replied excitedly.
"Patience Zuikaku, good things come to those who wait." Shoukaku scolded.
"Haiii…" Zuikaku sadly replied.
Feeling a bit bad for her, an idea popped into his head. "Since you're here Zuikaku, wanna do some taste testing for me?" Shikikan smiled as he took the biggest shrimp tempura out of the fryer basket and handed it to her on a plate.
"Really!? I'd love to!" Zuikaku happily cried out as she grabbed a pair of chopsticks and bit into the juicy, warm tempura. "Nothing beats freshly fried! So good!" She exclaimed, hearts bubbling out of her head as she savored the large fried shrimp.
'Too cute..' Shikikan thought as he patted her head.
"You'll spoil my sister rotten, Shikikan." Shoukaku pouted.
"Sorry, I just can't seem to help it." He chuckled as he handed her a plate with another tempura on it. "Mind giving me a second opinion?"
Shoukaku looked at the plate for a second before an idea popped into her head as a mischievous smile creeped up on her face. "Only if you feed it to me."
Not thinking too hard about it, he complied. Grabbing a pair of chopsticks, he picked up the tempura and brought it to Shoukaku.
"Ahh.." She hummed as she brushed some hair behind her ear. Slowly leaning in, she blew on the tempura before gently biting into the tip. Lingering a bit at the end of the chopsticks before pulling back out, Shoukaku glanced up to see that her plan worked when she saw a red-faced Shikikan staring at her in embarrassed shock.
"A bit too hot, but that's just something I'll eventually get used to." Shoukaku smirked.
"W-w-well it d-did just c-come out of the f-fryer…" He stuttered.
"Hai, the tempura was delicious too." She continued to tease him, a growing blush rising on her own face.
"I'm pleased to see that you are back to your normal, lecherous self, Master." A harsh voice from the kitchen entrance called out to him.
"H-hey Sheffield, Belfast, s-something wrong?" He embarrassingly asked.
"I believe that I should be the one asking you that." Belfast smirked. "But I've just come to report that Miss Victoria has been notified of Observer's threats and that she is currently relaying the information over to High Command."
"I-I see, thank you." He took a deep breath to calm himself down before continuing. "Any word from the scouting team?"
"No enemies have appeared on radar, so if I may be so bold, I believe we are in safe territory as of now." Sheffield replied.
"Good to hear." He sighed in relief. "Could I ask you to tell the scouting team to come back aboard and leave the scouting to the Manjuus? I'll have lunch ready in 10."
"As you wish." Sheffield nodded before heading back out.
"May I offer you my assistance, Master?" Belfast offered as she walked up to him.
"Allow me to help as well as thanks for the treat, Shikikan." Shoukaku giggled, much to Shikikan's chagrin.
"I don't know if I'll be of much use but let me help too!" Zuikaku added.
"Sure, everything's pretty much done, but I could use some help putting everything together and carrying it all out."
"Don't sneak any bites now, Zuikaku." Shoukaku teased.
"Mo, Shoukaku-nee…" An embarrassed Zuikaku whined, earning light hearted laughter from everyone.
[In the main lounge area of the ship]
"….Hmmm? Where am I?"
"Good afternoon, Nee-sama. You can rest easy. The Sirens left and we are in the lounge area of Shikikan's ship." Kaga casually greeted. Currently Akagi was lying down on a comfy looking couch with a blanket over her as Kaga was tending to her injured arm on a nearby chair.
"Kaga, you're injured?" She asked before feeling a tightened sensation on her arms. Looking down, she noticed that her other arm and legs were neatly bandaged and that underneath the blanket, her attire was slightly torn and dirtied.
"Tis but a flesh wound." Kaga waved her off as she finished bandaging herself. "Your wounds were also nothing worth noting, but I took the liberty of tending to them while you were still passed out."
Tilting her head, Akagi took a few seconds to remember why she passed out before finally remembering.
"Where's Shikikan-sama!?" She jumped up off the couch and scoured the large lounge area.
"Fret not Akagi." A voice revealing to be Takao walking up to them with Atago in tow. "Of all the injuries sustained during that fight, only you, Kaga, and Atago required actual treatment."
"I see….but that still doesn't answer my question."
"Shikikan's in the kitchen over there." A mildly bandaged up Atago pointed behind her. "He seemed to be doing a lot better now, but we all agreed to give him some alone time."
"You passed out as soon as you saw Shikikan collapse, but rest assured that he's doing fine, Akagi." Takao added. "He was more relieved and exhausted than in pain when he did that."
"Oh Shikikan-sama ~ You shouldn't worry your Akagi like that~" Akagi sighed in relief as a smile began creeping up on her face. "I believe that he'll feel much better if I was with him, so if you three will excuse me." She pardoned before beginning to walk towards the kitchen.
"Sorry to say Akagi, but it Shoukaku, Zuikaku, and the Royal Navy's Belfast already went to go check up on him." Takao informed.
"…What was that?" Akagi asked in a low tone before she began sniffing the air. "This smell…"
As soon as she said that the three aforementioned kansen and the Shikikan appeared from the kitchen door, carrying large platters filled with sandwiches.
"Oh! Smells good! What's for lunch?" Hornet asked excitedly.
"Shrimp tempura sandwiches. There's a lot so don't hold back." Shikikan replied as he set down the platters on a nearby long table.
"Thanks for making lunch, Commander." Helena smiled.
"Thanks for working so hard." Shikikan replied as he ruffled her hair.
"Alright everyone! Lunch is served!" He called out as everyone crowded around the long table.
"Shikikan-sama~!" Akagi sung from afar.
Turning towards his right, he was surprised to see a kitsune practically pouncing at him. Luckily for him, she stopped just before reaching him. "Oh Akagi, you're up! How are you feeling?"
"I'm perfectly fine now that I'm with Shikikan-sama ~!" She cheered happily as her tails wagged vigorously. "I was so scared that you were in pain when you fell over like that you know?" She pouted. "But now I'm just relieved to see you up and well ~."
"S-sorry about that." He smiled sheepishly with a rising blush forming. "How are your injuries though?"
"This wound is nothing compared to the thought of you abandoning me, Commander!" She proclaimed.
"N-no need to worry about that since that'll never happen, Akagi." He shyly replied, not realizing the weight of his words and how it would affect Akagi.
{Affinity up! x5}
"Ahhh! Just hearing you say such kind words fill me with such joy! Akagi loves you so!" She cheered as she clung to his arm.
'Why do I feel like there's a bunch of daggers being pointed at me?' Shikikan nervously questioned.
"Ho? Did you two enjoy your beauty rest?" Eugen mocked as Kaga arrived next to Akagi.
"Ara ara, Akagi, I'm sure you and Kaga must be famished after not having anything to eat for so long. Come, let us go have a nice lunch. We have much to catch up on after all." Atago giggled rather ominously as she tugged Kaga away.
"Zuikaku, you're still growing. Eat up!" Shoukaku sarcastically nagged as she dumped more sandwiches onto a very happy and willing Zuikaku's plate. "And no, I'm not just trying to prevent our esteemed senpai from having any of Shikikan's cooking." She added, giving intentionally obvious glances over to Akagi.
"!? Why you…please excuse me for now Shikikan-sama. I have some troublesome kouhai in need of some discipline." Akagi growled as she regretfully let go of Shikikan's arm and stomped over to the quickly fleeing 5th carrier division.
'I'm surprised they aren't more tired especially after all that fighting…' Shikikan thought.
"Hey Commander, what is this green stuff on the sandwich?" Enterprise asked as she inspected the sandwich's content.
"Hmm? Oh, it's just some tartar sauce I made and mixed with some wasabi paste for a little heat."
"…There's no lemons right?" She asked wearily.
"My, are you still picky with your food Miss Enterprise?" Belfast teased.
"You see Commander…" Hornet started as she walked over to Enterprise and wrapping an arm around her shoulder. "Sis hates lemons with a passion." She snickered.
"I never knew the Grey Ghost had such a weakness." Wales smirked.
"I-I just think lemons don't do anything but ruin things." Enterprise huffed, only to heavily blush when Shikikan started to laugh a bit.
"Don't worry Enterprise, I didn't use any lemons." He chuckled before an idea popped into his head. "But I am surprised though."
"About what? Me not liking lemons?" Enterprise guessed as she took a bite of her sandwich.
"About how you have a cute side too." He teased.
Thrown into a surprised coughing fit, Enterprise chugged some water before looking at him with pure embarrassment.
The lounge was filled in lighthearted laughter as the legendary Grey Ghost's face was beet red.
"Heh, sorry about that Enterprise, I couldn't help myself." He laughed.
"I-it's fine….I-I just wasn't expecting that." She shyly looked away.
"Me neither." Wales stepped in. "But to be honest, can't the same thing be said about you Commander?" She smirked.
"Huh? What do you mean?" He asked honestly confused.
"She's talking about that face you had when you were hilariously mocking Purifier." Eugen chimed in.
"Oh right, you mentioned something about that earlier. Was I making that strange of a face?"
"Strange? Nein. Devilishly charming? Sehr." She spoke as she leaned in closer to him, a finger on her smirking lips as she stared at him with mischievous eyes.
"She's right Commander. Even I felt myself swooning a bit when I saw your face." Wales smugly added.
"U-umm…" He hesitantly took a step backwards.
"My, your normal shy self is just as charming, Master." Belfast smiled as karma found its way back to Shikikan.
"What comes around goes around Commander." Hornet said, earning laughs from everyone at Shikikan's expense.
After twenty minutes of playful banter over lunch, the ship finally arrived back at base. As they stepped out, they were welcomed by almost everyone who stayed back.
"Welcome back nya!" Akashi cheered.
"Did anyone get hurt?" Vestal asked as she eyed everyone.
"Oh! Akagi-san! Kaga-san!" Yamashiro yelled excitedly as she went up to the kitsune.
"I'm glad to see you both again. Welcome back." Fusou added.
"Ara, Yamashiro, Fusou, how nice to see more familiar faces. Are you well?" Akagi asked as she hugged Yamashiro.
"Hai, all has been well. Milord has treated us all very well. Speaking of which, where is he?" She asked.
"He received a call from a Vice Admiral Victoria so he's probably still on the ship deck." Kaga pointed behind her.
"Akagi-san! Kaga-san! You two are injured! What happened!?" Yamashiro worryingly asked when she noticed the numerous bandages on the two's arms and legs.
"It's nothing to worry about Yamashiro. After Kaga and I woke up, an armada of Sirens and Purifier herself ambushed us."
"Ee, but with Shikikan's leadership, their entire fleet was destroyed, and Purifier fled after we gravely wounded her.
"That's a relief. But just in case, could I suggest you two visit Akashi or Vestal? You can never be too careful with your injuries after all." Fusou suggested.
"Someone call nya?" Akashi purred as she popped in.
"Is it true Purifier showed up Eugen!?" Z23 asked.
"Ja, we were about to end her too, but Observer came at the last second and escaped with her." Eugen waved her off.
"I see,….is Herr Kommandant okay?" Z23 questioned with a worried look.
"I'll tell you all about if you come with me to the showers. I actually managed to work up a bit of a sweat." Eugen smirked as she dragged a flustered Z23 trying to break free with her to the Ironblood dorms.
[Back on the ship]
"Alright sounds good. Thanks Victoria." Shikikan said as he ended his call with the Vice Admiral.
"What did she say?" Enterprise asked.
"HQ sent out a notice to all the factions to be on guard in case of a surprise attack. They aren't taking any chances with Observer's words so most of the factions have begun strengthening their frontlines as precaution." He grimaced.
"Why the long face then? Isn't it a good thing that everyone's taking careful steps?" Hornet asked.
"It is, but is just strengthening the frontlines really the right response?" He pondered aloud before shaking his head.
"Master?" Belfast asked.
"Never mind, no use in stressing over presumptions. For now, try to keep in touch with everyone back home and let me know ASAP if anything is off."
"Yes sir!"
'I say that, but what is this awful feeling I have?' He thought, not able to shake the anxious feelings he was getting.
As he and everyone else got off the ship, a voice called out to him.
"Welcome back Commander." King George V greeted. "Sheffield's given me a brief summary of what happened. Very well done."
"Thanks, KGV, anything happen while I was gone?"
"Nothing but Cleveland trying to stop Saratoga and San Diego from shooting you with a confetti and whipped cream filled cannon and a lot of paperwork still needing to be done. I truly do not envy your position." KGV chuckled.
"Thanks Cleveland." Shikikan said as he head-patted Cleveland.
"Hehe, it was nothing~" She grinned.
"On a more serious note though…" KGV said with a frown. "What's your stance on the current situation Commander?"
"As much as I want to stop them beforehand, we have no way of knowing what they're planning. All we can do is be ready to respond at a moment's notice." He sighed.
"We will be ready, Commander, but do remember to take care of yourself. There's a vast difference between your endurance level and ours." KGV consoled him as she patted him on the shoulder.
"Heh, true. But for now, you said that there's still a bunch of paperwork, right?"
"Correct, allow me to escort you there as I get you up to date."
"Master, I shall be there to fulfil my duties as today's secretary once I inform Her Majesty of the current situation." Belfast bowed before walking away towards the Royal dorms.
"So, I heard a lot happened on this mission?" Cleveland asked as she and Helena were the last ones on the dock.
"Yeah, but first, here Cleve." Helena said as she brought a plate full of Shikikan's sandwiches to her. "Commander made us a light lunch and I thought you'd want some."
"Oh! Thanks Helena!" Cleveland said as she enthusiastically started eating. "Delicious!"
Hours later, nightfall had just begun at one of the Eagle Union's most secured bases: NY Harbor.
"Urghhh, I'm SOOOOO bored!" A blue-eyed beauty with short silver hair groaned.
"Stop complaining Washington and just do your job." A beautiful dark-skinned woman with long braided black hair scolded.
"Huh? You tryna to pick a fight with me or something South Dakota!?"
"Settle down you two. You can fight later, meaning after we complete this patrol." A blonde haired, blue eyed lady in a formal, yet also very alluring white uniform sighed as she stepped in between her bickering patrol members.
"Hhmph, fine." The one known as Washington huffed.
"You really should try to tone that overly violent side of you and learn to properly smile Washy. But I guess the tomboyish personality is better than no personality at all though….." The blonde heavily sighed.
"Patrol fleet. Can you hear me? How's it going on your end, North Carolina?" A voice from the blonde's radio asked.
"Nothing out of the ordinary at the moment, Baltimore. How goes the coastal guard duty?"
"Clear sky and calm waves all around. Perfect for a night run along the coast if you ask me."
"Yo Baltimore! I want a tennis rematch tomorrow! Don't chicken out on me now!" A grinning Washington jumped in.
"Heh, you're on." Baltimore chuckled. "Hmm? Hold that thought. Apparently the knights are picking up strange movement off the harbor. I'm going to go help them check. Let's talk some more later." She said before signing off.
"I wonder what they saw." North Carolina pondered aloud.
"Hopefully, something interesting. I'm itching for a fight!" Washington grinned.
"Be careful what you wish Washington." The blonde sighed. "Either way, I wouldn't get your hopes up. NY Harbor is one of the most heavily fortified bases in the world. We would know well in advance if a threat does show up."
"Tsk, yeah, you're probably right about that Sis. Damn, I really wish I was in the group that went to that Azur Lane base. I couldn't be more jealous over the brawls they've had over there." Washington grumbled.
"Enterprise said that they encountered Purifier and a massive fleet with her right, South Dakota?" North Carolina asked.
"Yeah, under the leadership of the Commander over there, she reported that they wiped out the entire fleet and even heavily injured Purifier." South Dakota replied.
"Didn't they also have some sort of exercise where practically everyone on that base fought against a small handful of Kansen led by that Commander and still lost?" Washington asked.
"Yes. Just what kind of person is this Commander?" North Carolina continued to ponder aloud.
"I don't know but it sure sounds a lot more exciting over there then here." Washington complained.
BOOOOOOOM!
"WHAT!?" All three of them yelled as they heard a large explosion, right near where the nearby Newport Harbor was.
"Patrol fleet! Come in! I repeat! Come in now!" A new voice urgently yelled from North Carolina's radio.
"Colorado!? What's going on!?" North Carolina yelled back.
"We've been had! The Sirens somehow sneak through all of the radar screens and scout planes we've had patrolling! They're shelling all of our facilities and there's too many of them for just the hands-on deck we have over here! Get over here ASAP before Newport Harbor falls!" Colorado said before signing off as quickly as she entered.
"Apparently I was wrong about knowing of a threat in advance. We need to meet up with the other patrol group and get to Newport Harbor stat." North Carolina informed before dashing off.
"Looks like your wish came true." South Dakota dead panned before following after the blonde.
"When I said I wanted a fight, I didn't mean a freakin' invasion! Ah whatever, I'll make them regret messing with the Eagle Union!" The tomboy smirked before cracking her knuckles and chasing after the two.
[A few moments ago in Shikikan's office]
"And….done." Shikikan sighed as he signed off the last of the once seemingly endless stack of papers.
"Excellent work Master." Belfast smiled. "I'm sure your shoulders must be feeling quite stiff. Would you care for a shoulder rub?"
"Yes please." He immediately replied as Belfast's assumption held very true.
"Hehe, so enthusiastic. Very well allow me to relieve you of your tensions." Belfast giggled as she stepped behind his chair and began her massage.
"How does this feel Master?" She asked as she skillfully kneaded her hands into the knots in his shoulders.
"Like a great reward after such a long day. Thank you Belfast." He sighed blissfully.
"My." Unknown to Shikikan, Belfast had a very faint blush on her face.
A few minutes of comfortable silence past as Belfast continued her soothing ministrations.
"I believe that should be all of the knots. How do your shoulders feel now Master?"
Getting up and stretching his arms, he felt renewed and at the most peace he felt all day.
"Better than ever. Thank you Bel." He smiled gratefully.
"I'm glad to be of service of you Master." Belfast curtsied.
"To be honest though, I am a bit worried about coming to the point where I wouldn't be able to live without you." He chuckled.
"My, how should I react to that statement? Is living with me that unappealing?" Belfast teased, managing to fool him with her fake tears.
"N-not at all!" He panicked. Quickly thinking of how to fix this, he said the first thing on his mind. "I meant like I don't want to be a burden on you! I-I'd be honored to live with someone as hardworking and pretty as you!"
[Affinity up!]
Hearing this, Belfast's once faint blush had burst into a deep crimson one.
'D-did I just…' Realizing his bold words, Shikikan was also beginning to heavily blush.
Surprisingly to him though, instead of an awkward silence, he heard Belfast giggle and speak.
"How flattering." She smugly smiled as she stepped closer to him, her face just a few centimeters away from his. "It's a maid's duty to dedicate her all to her master. Would you like to see, Master~?"
"B-bel I-" He began.
Brrng! Brnng! ALERT! EMERGENCY ALERT!
Unfortunately, Shikikan was interrupted when a loud alarm-like sound rang from his desk's computer.
As the two nodded understandingly, they quickly made their way over. Accepting the call, he saw Fleet Admiral Teitoku and Vice Admiral Victoria on the screen, both with very grim looks on their faces.
'This can't get good.' He thought before saluting them. "Sir. Ma'am."
"Dire news Shikikan." Teitoku started, a very serious tone in his voice. "The Sirens have infiltrated the Eagle Union's Newport Harbor and have succeeded in destroying all of the military facilities there."
Hearing this, both him and Belfast went wide eyed.
"What I don't understand is how they got through. That area should be one of the most heavily fortified bases in the world." Victoria said.
"….Damn it…" Shikikan cussed. "What's the current status?"
"Newport Harbor is done for, but thanks to the Kansen and Eagle Union forces, almost all of the civilians there have been evacuated to the nearby NY Harbor. That said, there are far too many Sirens and not enough forces to commence a counterattack. It's taking everything to just stop them from pouring into the harbor and blowing up the city." Teitoku grimaced.
"We've sent in all of our available personnel as reinforcements, but they won't be enough to fend them off." Victoria started. "Shikikan, I know you just got back from that mission earlier today, but we need you and the Kansen there." She added all while biting her bottom lip in regret.
"Consider it done. I'll round up everyone and head out ASAP." He replied, nodding to Belfast to alert everyone. But before she could take a step, the Fleet Admiral spoke once more.
"I'm sorry, but not everyone, Shikikan. Only those from the Eagle Union." Teitoku said in an annoyed tone.
"Da-!-Fleet Admiral!? Is now really the time to be worrying about political affairs!?" Victoria yelled.
"Don't you think I know that already Victoria? At ease." He sternly replied. "This wasn't my own decision to make, it was the other members of High Command as well. Aside from their pride of not wanting to be saved by our once sworn enemies and potentially being indebted to them, they decided that relations will only worsen if you brought along the other factions with you to save the Eagles' territory."
"Even if it meant losing this war?" Shikikan replied, his voice far from just annoyed.
"Trust me, if it were up to just me, your entire base would already be on route to deal with this whole situation." Teitoku sighed.
"…What about those in the Royal Navy? Can I at least have them come with?" Shikikan asked.
"Normally that would the case, but apparently there has been a falling out recently between the Eagle Union and Royal Navy leaders. Borders have been closed on both sides and any trespassing will be treated as a sign of war until further notice." He shook his head in both frustration and exhaustion.
'Starting to really hate politics and drama right about now…' Shikikan sighed in rising annoyance.
Just then the door to his office swung open, revealing both Enterprise and Akashi.
"Commander! The Sirens invaded the Eagle's-!" Enterprise started, only to realize she just interrupted a very important meeting.
"Seems like they already know nya…."
"S-sorry…"
"It's fine Enterprise." Shikikan smiled weakly before getting back to business.
'At this pace, there won't be anything left to save.' He reasoned
"Fleet Admiral, with just the Eagle Union girls, I'll be heading over immediately. Please inform them to hold out until we get there." Shikikan saluted.
"My sincerest apologies for the burdens, Shikikan." Teitoku saluted back before he bowed his head apologetically.
"Please be careful Shikikan. I'll do whatever I can to help from here." Victoria added before they ended the call.
"Enterprise gather all of the Eagle Union girls and tell them to get ready for a sortie ASAP. We're going to repel the Sirens from NY Harbor, one way or another." Shikikan ordered.
"Yes sir!" Enterprise saluted before darting out of the room.
"Okay, so did you need something, Akashi?"
"I overheard the news from Enterprise and just wanted to let you know that I've already told the Manjuus to prepare your ship for departure nya."
"Thanks Akashi." He walked over and rubbed the green haired cat girl on the head.
"Master, will you yourself be alright though?" Belfast asked with a concerned look. "You've been up since sunrise and have been hard at work up until now."
"I should be fine for the most part. Your shoulder massage really freed me from most of today's stress." He smiled as he tried to assure her.
"But I'm sure you're still exhausted though. You were practically falling asleep just earlier." She argued.
"Actually nya, I might have just the thing for a tired Shikikan nya." Akashi said with a lightbulb seemingly shining above her head. "Meet me on the docks before you get on your ship nya." She said before dashing out.
Before making his way for the door as well, he stopped at the doorknob when he caught a glimpse of the sheathed sword dangling on the wall by the sword strap he got from Akashi.
'Better safe than sorry, right?' He reasoned as he grabbed the sword strap and affixed it to his hip.
"May I suggest bringing this firearm you had in your desk with you as extra precaution?" Belfast offered as she brought over the desert eagle he had stowed in his office desk in one hand and the holster strap for it in the other.
"Thanks Bel." He said as he geared himself up.
"I sincerely hope that you will not need to fight yourself." Belfast frowned. "I regret not being able to come with and protect you."
"We can't help it Bel. Politics and all." Shikikan sighed. "Let's hurry." He added before the two rushed to the docks.
[A few minutes later, on the docks]
"What is this?"
"It's Green Bull nya! Not the healthiest thing nya, but it's the most caffeine packed and adrenaline boosting energy drink money can buy, so drink up nya! I stocked some more on your ship too just in case nya!"
Opening the can, he took a sip of the bubbly sweet beverage. "Huh, not bad. Thanks Akashi."
"Anything for one of my best customers nya!~"
'I don't like the sound of that…..' He sweat dropped. "I'm guessing you already added this to my tab?"
"Fufu, nothing better than a Shikikan quick on the uptake nya."
"Commander…..all systems green." Laffey called out from behind him.
Taking a deep breath, he resolved himself for whatever's about to come. "I'm off, please take care of the base while I'm gone."
"Understood Master. May you victoriously return safe and sound." Belfast curtsied.
"Be careful and stay safe nya!"
Not even a second had past after he got on board, the ship made a beeline for NY Harbor.
"Drat, we just missed him." Zuikaku frowned as she arrived with Shoukaku a few minutes too late.
"You should've told us sooner Akashi." Shoukaku frowned.
"There was no time nya. It was an emergency request and I had to ring up Shikikan's bill nya." Akashi shook her head.
"I wonder how Akagi-senpai and Atago will react when they find out that instead of telling them that Shikikan was leaving to go fight a war, you were more interested in making a quick buck." Shoukaku evilly smirked.
"NYA!? Anything but that nya! I don't have enough lives for them both nya!" Akashi cried out as she latched onto Shoukaku's legs and desperately begged for her life.
[Back on Shikikan's ship]
"Full speed ahead. We haven't a second to lose." He directed his Manjuu crewmen.
"Commander, do you have a plan?" Enterprise asked, her face pale from the news of the current situation still.
Nodding his head, he walked over to her and the other Eagle girls, all of them just as pale as Enterprise currently was.
"For starters, please understand that I know how you girls feel, trust me." He said, trying to gain their attention. "We will stop them, and we will save everyone there."
That seemed to have managed to get through to them as they all stopped looking as if they were silently screaming and panicking in their minds.
Since everyone was still at a loss for words, he continued. "Tell me about NY Harbor and if you can, who you know that's there now. The more information I can get about the city's setup and our allies there, the better I can prepare our counterattack."
This managed to get them to break their silence as they explained all they knew about the city and about their friends there.
"Okay so in short, NY Harbor is known for its massive bay area and trading harbor in addition to its seemingly impenetrable defenses that fortify a large sprawling city." He summarized earning small nods from the girls. "Then if we include all of your experienced friends there, I can confidently confirm one thing to you girls."
He paused, earning curious gazes from everyone.
"That you all are acting way too paranoid right now." He stated, earning surprised looks from everyone.
Walking over to pat Laffey and Eldridge on the head, he explained. "From what I understand, your friends there are all experienced fighters and that the Eagle Union bows its head to no one. Believe in them to hold out until we get there. Otherwise, you won't be able to smile at them like the heroes they're all waiting for."
"Alright! Now that's how you fire someone up!" Phoenix yelled, her eyes literally blazing with determination.
"Those Sirens got another thing coming if they think they can just waltz on into our turf!" Hornet grinned.
"Come on, get motivated, now! Sit around like this and you'll go dumb!" San Diego said as she ran around and got everyone on their feet.
"Sandy's right! Come, let's go do some warmups before our performance!" Saratoga added as she got everyone to follow her out of the lounge.
"Thanks for that Commander." Cleveland smiled as she and Shikikan stayed behind.
"I promised to do whatever I could to help you girls right?"
"Hehe, yeah." She grinned. "I finally get to reunite with my sisters after so long, but I wish it was under better circumstances."
"Can't say I blame you for that, Clevebro." He teased.
"Don't call me Clevebro!" She yelled.
"But since they're your sisters, I'm sure they're working as hard as they can so they can see their awesome big sister again." He smiled as he patted her head.
[Affinity Up!]
"G-geez…." Cleveland blushed.
"That said, chin up! They're going to want to see you grinning and brimming with confidence once we get there!"
"Okay!" She happily cheered. "I'm gonna go join everyone else and do some warmups, wanna come?"
"I'll pass, I want to run some simulations in my head before we get close." He replied as he chugged on another can of Green Bull.
"Alrighty, but I'd go easy on those if I were you Commander. Vestal hates that stuff and will probably not be very happy if she sees you drinking so many." Cleveland chuckled nervously.
"Y-yeah you're probably right about that. Let's just keep this a secret between us." He sweat-dropped.
"Sure thing!" She cheered before heading on out, leaving him alone with his thoughts.
'Now then, how the hell am I going to make this mission a success?' He questioned, unconsciously disregarding Cleveland's warning and opening another can while he walked to the command room.
As soon as he stepped in he noticed two things. The first being Laffey fast asleep against the wall and a Manjuu floating up and down in front of you, seemingly telling him to follow it.
"Shikikan? Can you hear me?" A voice called out when he followed it to a large monitor. Tapping the screen, a familiar face appeared.
"Victoria? Yes, I hear you loud and clear." He replied.
"I have some updates for you regarding this mess. The first being that the force you will be dealing with is roughly 10 times larger than the one you fought earlier today, with about 40% of them being Siren elites."
"…Please tell me that's the bad news."
"It is, but there's still more bad news." She sighed. "Newport Island has been completely devastated but luckily most of the civilians there have been evacuated. Unfortunately, though, the ships they're all on are being attacked by the Sirens. The Kansen are doing everything they can to protect the ships, but they aren't going to last long enough for the rescue ships to get away. Once you get there, prioritize clearing out an escape route for the rescue ships first and foremost."
"So, they're indiscriminately killing everyone and destroying everything that moves." Shikikan scowled.
"Alien invaders through and through, but I do have some slightly good news. The island supply depot for the Kansen near the harbor is still mostly intact so you will have a chance for them to resupply before you push further in."
"They are most likely planning to use the supplies there for themselves, so I'm guessing it's being heavily guarded?" He guessed.
"Unfortunately, yes….I'm really sorry to have to throw so much at you Shikikan." Victoria frowned.
"Don't worry about it, as long as I have the girls with me, I'll manage." He said, trying to sound positive.
"Thanks for that Shikikan. I'll try to coordinate with the Eagle Union forces and see if they can lend a hand, but for now, please do what you can and stay safe." She requested before signing off.
'How bad would it be if I started drinking some liquor right now?' He sighed as he slumped down against the nearby wall and massaged his temples. Not hearing the sound of footsteps, he soon felt a small hand on his head.
Looking up, he noticed that Laffey walked over and was currently patting his head.
"Are you okay Commander?"
"The head-patting helps." He joked. "I'm just a bit stressed is all. I kinda sound like a hypocrite now after that pep talk huh?"
"Not really." She shook her head. "Laffey overheard what Miss Victoria said and doesn't blame you. Laffey thinks Commander trying his best is very cool." She comforted him as she continued patting his head.
"Thanks, Laffey." He smiled slightly. "Did you come here to sleep?"
"Mhm yeah, Laffey is used to being alone, but I think I like it better when you're with me, Commander... Mmm... Zzzzzz..." She started before curling up onto his lap and instantly falling asleep.
'Guess I'm brainstorming from the floor while giving a destroyer a lap pillow.' He joked as he gently stroked the bunny girl's hair.
As he looked up at the ceiling, he ran scenario after scenario in his head, trying to come up with the best possible countermeasure that would yield the least number of casualties. Unknown to him, he had apparently been lost in thought for a little over two hours now, only to be brought back to reality when he felt someone poking his cheeks.
"Hmm? Laffey?
"Commander, we should go. Laffey thinks we will be there soon."
'Now or never huh?' He steeled himself as picked himself and Laffey up off the floor. "Let's go."
On the bow of the ship stood all of the Eagle Union girls, all staring straight ahead at their beloved homeland.
"You can see the smoke pillars from here…" Saratoga observed.
"Are the others okay?" Vestal worried.
"Girls." Shikikan called out. "You're assuming the worst again. For all we know, those smoke pillars could be the Siren ships your friends blew up."
"He's right! We gotta focus and get ready to lend a hand!" San Diego enthusiastically cheered.
"Yeah!" Everyone cheered.
"There's the Eagle Union energy I know." He cheered. "Alright so here's the plan. There are two things we have to do before we can start cleansing this area of Sirens. First is to establish an escape route for the rescue ships the Newport Harbor civilians are on. Second will be to clear out the Sirens guarding the island supply depot. Once secured, take the chance to resupply while we wait for your friends to meet up with us there."
"Yes sir!" They roared as they materialized their riggings.
"Looks like they've sent us a welcoming party, Commander!" Hornet yelled when she spotted multiple incoming planes.
"Commander! I'm getting an SOS transmission from the rescue ships holding the civilians up ahead!" Helena added.
"Alright I'll keep this short! Right now, we are extremely outnumbered, so we'll move as one large group. All cruisers and destroyers will advance to the ships and clear out the enemies around them. Enterprise and Hornet will prioritize gaining air control while Saratoga provides cover fire for everyone on the vanguard. Show the Sirens what it means to be an enemy of the Eagle Union!"
"Yes sir!" They all yelled before jumping off the ship and charging forth.
'Doesn't seem like they sent that many after the rescue ships, but regardless I need to stay sharp.' He resolved himself.
Turning on his radio, he started a transmission. "This is Azur Lane's Kansen Commander. Does anyone copy?"
"This is Ensign Weston of the Eagle Union. I'm in charge of leading the Newport civilians to safety and boy am I glad to hear we finally got some help!"
"Understood. I've had the Kansen head out and clear an escape path for you."
"Best new I've heard all night! You're a lifesaver!"
"Heh, thank the girls, not me. By the way, can you contact your superiors and let them know I'm on the scene?"
"Will do Commander! I'll patch you right over to Rear Admiral Torrez!" The man said before the call cut off. Barely ten seconds passed before he heard another much louder voice.
"Rear Admiral Torrez. Are you Azur Lane's additional backup!?" The voice yelled over the sound of explosions in the background.
"Yes, Azur Lane's Kansen Commander, reporting for duty."
"Don't got a name? Wait Kansen Commander? Oh! I've heard your story! Wait, never mind that! You're working with Weston to get the civilians to safety right now right?"
'Story?' Shikikan questioned before shaking his head. "Yes sir."
"Much appreciated. I don't have time, so I'll keep this simple. I'm the man in charge of guarding the two harbors here, but as you can tell, I failed miserably and lost one of them." The voice grieved. "It's taking everything and everyone I have to just maintain a defensive wall for NY City so I can't spare any help for you. I've given the Kansen we had here free rein to act on their own accord, but I've lost all contact with them. If you do happen to meet them, they'll surely be able to help you get to us in the harbor." He continued before another loud explosion roared through on Torrez's end.
"Rear Admiral Torrez! They've breached the south!" A far away sounding voice in the radio yelled.
"Argh, dammit!" He yelled. "I need to go, Commander! I hope the stories about you are true, cuz we really are going to need a miracle!" Torrez exclaimed before ending the call.
'No seriously, what was he going on about me and what exactly are they fighting?' He questioned before focusing back on the girls.
From his viewpoint, Enterprise, Vestal, and Hornet have successfully gotten control over the sky above the escape route and have moved to disable the Siren carriers from launching anymore drones at the rescue ships. Laffey and Eldridge were easily dodging barrage after barrage, getting their attention while Cleveland, Helena, San Diego, and Phoenix blasted right through the mass-produced Siren ships' hulls. And back near the rescue ships, Saratoga had her planes circling around them, shooting down any planes that got near.
"Weston here, I'm going to resume our escape!"
"Copy t-" Shikikan tried to say but was thrown off balance when a nearby explosion rocked his ship. "What!?" Looking over, he discovered that more mass-produced Siren ships had appeared and were opening fire on him.
"H-hey, you alright!?"
"I'm fine, just get out of here while you can!" Shikikan yelled at Weston before quickly ending the call, only for another to instantly come in.
"Commander! Are you okay?" Enterprise yelled into her radio.
"Yeah! Prioritize getting the rescue ships out of here!" He yelled. "They've switched their focus to me, so I'm going to lead their fire away from the escape route!"
"That's too reckless Commander!" Enterprise argued.
"There's no other choice for me but to run! Just focus on getting the civilians to safety first!"
"..Understood. Stay safe Commander!" She relented before ending the call.
Making his way over to his ship's cannon control panel, he fired multiple smoke rounds ahead, creating a wide smokescreen-filled path in front of his ship.
"Alright, full speed ahead through the smoke!" He ordered as the Manjuus kicked the ship's speed into maximum overdrive.
Charging blindly through the smoke, the ship rocked violently from the seemingly endless volleys of cannon fire exploding into the smoke-filled ocean surface.
"Tsk, don't let up! We're done for if we stop!" He ordered as he aimed the cannon back at the massive fleet and started firing back.
'I don't have the firepower to sink them, but disabling their guns is another thing!' He reasoned as he trained the cannon and blasted away, managing to 'snipe' two battleships' main cannons and causing them to violently explode.
"Commander! A bombing squadron is coming in! None of us will make it!" Saratoga yelled into the radio.
"Seriously!?" He grunted as he saw the bombers closing in.
Chirp!
The Manjuus in charge of the AA gun did their best to shoot them all down, but a few managed to get through and began dropping their payloads.
'Damn it! Keep it going full speed and get ready for some evasive maneuvers!' He yelled as the Manjuus scurried to get the job done.
The ship's engines roared as it sped through the waters, doing its best to avoid getting caught in the carpet bomb run behind him.
"Fire the AA gun at the ones in the middle! Make a wide enough gap so that none of the bombs will directly drop on top us!" Shikikan yelled as the Manjuus shot down the three bombers in the center.
Unable to completely outrun the bombers, the ship shook left and right as the bombers still airborne continued dropping their payloads on the waters all around the ship.
Thrown onto the floor, the Shikikan struggled a bit to get back up. "You all alright?" He asked, receiving positive sounding chirps all around. Looking out, he noticed that the bombers were returning for round two.
"That's enough out of you!" Saratoga yelled as her planes easily shot down the bombers and soared around Shikikan's damaged ship.
Jumping on board, she called out to him. "Commander are you alright!?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. I'm used to a lot worse." He sighed.
"Phew, that's good to hear. Ship's not looking to good though. But anyway, some guy named Weston asked us to tell you he said thanks for getting him and the rescue ships out of here. They've met up with the Azur Lane reinforcements and are a safe distance away now." Saratoga informed.
"Alright, then that makes the first part of this mission a success. Could you let everyone know to clear out any nearby enemies before meeting up with us here?"
"Roger!"
'Barely half hour in and I almost get blown up. This is not going to be easy.' He complained before looking over to the completely devastated Newport Island in total flames.
'Damn warmongers…' He scowled.
Once the Eagle Union girls cleared out the remaining mass-produced Siren ships, they all hopped back on Shikikan's damaged ship.
"Yikes, your ship's looking worse for wear." Phoenix joked as she looked at the beating the ship took.
"Commander! The way you escaped those explosions behind you was like a real action movie!" San Diego said excitedly with stars in her eyes.
"W-we are in the middle of a battle Sandy…" Shikikan dead-panned. "And I'd rather never have to go through that again, so let's move on to the next mission: securing the island supply depot. Were any of you able to get in touch with your friends based here yet?"
"Not a word. They either have their hands full or their radios are being jammed." Helena replied.
"Urgh…., alright then it's up to just us to retake it." He sighed.
"Commander, I think it be for the best if one of us stays behind to safeguard your ship. It won't last another bomb run like that." Enterprise suggested.
"Leave it to me! As a knight of the sea, safeguarding Commander from threats in the sky is just up my alley!" Cleveland volunteered.
"Thanks, Cleve." He patted her head. "Let's go!"
"Yeah!"
[Unknown area]
"Outta my way!" A voice roared as she blasted a heavy barrage and sunk three Siren battleships. "Tsk, weaklings, the lot of them."
"Nice work Washy."
"Hey! Washy! Carolina!" A voice cried out.
"Long Island? What's up?" Washington asked.
"I'm seeing a bunch of explosions off the coast of Newport Island! I think someone's fighting Sirens over there!" The small light carrier pointed towards the far east.
"From that direction?" The blonde looked over. "Are they the additional Azur Lane reinforcements?"
"I can't tell! There's too many Siren planes in the sky for me to be able to get any closer!"
"What's the plan North Carolina?" South Dakota asked.
"Want me to go help?" Another dark-skinned beauty lazily asked.
"We've been given free rein to act on our own, but our ammo might be an issue. Let's all meet up with the reinforcements and convince them to help us get some supplies." The blonde decided.
"Roger!" Long Island replied.
"Alright! Time to work out!" The silver haired battleship smirked rather evilly.
"You really need to work on your smile more, Washy." North Carolina sweat-dropped.
[Back with Shikikan]
"Incoming fighter planes from the east and west!"
"Cleveland! San Diego! Vestal! You're up!"
"Leave it to me!"
"I don't know what's going on, but okay!"
"Stay safe everyone! Come to me if you have an injury!"
"Eldridge! Laffey! Move on in with Helena and Phoenix! Saratoga! Give them some cover!"
"Roger!"
Currently Shikikan and his fleet were engaging in a full out assault on the island supply depot in hopes of being able to resupply before charging further into the invading Siren force closing in on NY Harbor.
"Commander! Incoming enemy reinforcements from the south!"
"We'll be flanked! Enterprise clear out the south! Hornet, go north and give us an emergency escape route just in case!"
"Yes sir!"
"How long have they been planning all this!?" Hornet grunted as she had to dive out of a widespread barrage.
"Enough to get build this massive force! Keep up with me Hornet!" Enterprise yelled before sending another squadron of fighters out.
"Relax. I have fast hands!" She grinned as returned fire with a Doolittle Airstrike.
"Commander, they've set up AA guns on the island!" Saratoga radioed in.
'Damn it, if only I-No! No excuses! Work with the cards you're given!' He scolded himself.
"Attention everyone!" He radioed everyone. "They've fortified the island, so we've got no choice but to consider it as partial collateral damage! We'll scavenge what we can once we make it ashore so don't worry about hitting the depot!"
"Yes sir!"
[With Laffey, Eldridge, Helena, Phoenix, and Saratoga]
"Watch out! Two Smasher classes up ahead!" Helena warned.
"I'll try my best!" Eldridge said before coating herself, Helena, and Laffey in her Operation Rainbow ability.
"Helena, Phoenix, and I will take the one on the right! You two get the left!" Saratoga commanded as she launched 2 squadrons of bombers.
Noticing the incoming threat, the Smasher focused her attention upwards and began firing relentlessly, failing to notice the blue and red blurs on her right.
"Radar scan complete! SG give me your strength! Phoenix aim right! I'll go left!" Helena cried out before she and Phoenix blasted away at the Smasher class's weak points.
Brought to a knee, the Siren turned her attention to her attacker.
"Where are you looking, I'm over here~" Saratoga mocked before having her bombers rain their loads onto the Siren and engulfing her in a massive explosion.
With Laffey and Eldridge, the Smasher they were blasting away at was getting annoyed at how no matter how many cannons she had trained on them, none of her shots were landing. Jumping backwards to gain some distance, the Siren was knocked right back as the second squadron of Saratoga's bombers blasted the Siren's rigging from behind.
"Go Laffey! Eldridge!" Saratoga yelled.
"Ok!" The two said before jumping right at the Siren from opposite sides. From point blank, the two destroyers launched their torpedoes, tearing the downed Siren apart and sinking deep into the sea as bits and pieces of her former self, literally.
"Good work everyone!" Helena cheered.
"Nice…job." Eldridge said as she and Laffey high fived each other.
"Okay!" Saratoga started. "I've gotten word from Commander to step back a bit. Hornet and Enterprise are about to bombard the entire island."
As soon as she finished, the whirring of planes roared throughout the area as countless bombers flew above them and over the island and its Siren defenders. Dropping their payloads, the explosions lit up the sky, obliterating all of the Siren defenses and mass-produced fleets surrounding the island.
"Ahaha! Feels great not having to hold back!" Hornet cheered.
"Is that all of them, Helena?" Enterprise asked.
"Yes, the islands clea-EH!?" Helena panicked. "Commander! Incoming Siren ships appearing from thin air behind you!"
Wide-eyed, he looked behind the ship to see four Peace Breakers, two Conductor classes, and one additional figure that triggered something rather unpleasant inside of him.
"Greetings Azur Lane and…'Shikikan' you call yourself now?"
'Oh great….' Shikikan scowled as he recognized the tall, wild haired Siren.
"What's the matter Shikikan? Not happy to see your beloved Tester Beta?" She smirked evilly.
"If I were to be honest, I'm more inclined to throw up after seeing so many gross looking things in front of me all at once." He coldly snapped back his expression anything but amused.
"C-commander?" Cleveland stuttered in surprise.
"Yikes, I didn't think I'd see this side of him twice in a day." Hornet frowned.
"Twice? Wait, is this what you meant when you were telling me how Commander was acting strange during that mission earlier today?" Vestal asked as she looked over towards Enterprise.
Silently nodding in reply, Enterprise jumped between the Shikikan and the Sirens, her trigger fingers itching to fire her arrows.
"How cruel of you. After all those gifts we showered you with, this is how you treat us." Tester mocked with crocodile tears.
"If that's what you call a gift then I owe Purifier an apology for calling her the dumb one." Shikikan spat.
'D-damn, Commander.' Hornet thought as she had a watchful eye on the enemies and a very attentive ear on Commander's clap backs.
"You're pushing your luck, test subject. You should be very well aware I could end you in an instant if I so choose to." Tester glared before a disturbing grin grew on her face. "Take for instance all those dead humans on that burning island back there. All it took was a few barrages, hehe. Quite pathetic, don't you agree?."
As soon as he heard that, Shikikan fell silent as shadows casted over his eyes, the unsettling feeling in him beginning to boil over.
"How are you girls doing on ammo?" He asked as he turned over to the Eagle Union girls.
"Enough to paint the sea red with the lot of them." An angered Phoenix replied as everyone nodded in agreement.
Before speaking, Enterprise glanced over to Helena, who had her hand to her SG radar, seemingly listening into something.
"Commander." Enterprise calmly called out. "Permission to engage and wipe out the enemy?"
Looking over to Helena as well, the bluenette gave him a brief affirmative nod.
"Permission granted." He replied without hesitation.
"I completely understand how you feel right now, but don't be too rash, Enterprise." Vestal frowned.
Nodding her head, Enterprise shouted. "Warriors of the Eagle Union! Engage!"
As soon as she did, everyone charged forth towards the awaiting Siren elites. As the Kansen were closing in, Tester spoke.
"How foolish of you to leave your 'king piece' unattended. Perhaps I'll claim checkmate with one of my testing 'pawns'." Tester smirked before a mechanical figure jumped out of the water near the Shikikan's ship and jumped on board, landing on the opposite side of the bow from him.
Shadows still casted over his eyes, he turned around to face the figure. It had a scarecrow-like build seemingly made out of a fusion of scrap metals connected together by exposed wires and cables. While not very tall or imposing, it had a single large robotic eye that glowed dark yellow for a face and had two long blades in its hands, giving it an overall rather eerie appearance. Realizing that it looked very familiar, he felt a sharp jolt of pain surging through his body as one of his memories he thought he had locked away came back with a vengeance.
"Remember these pawns, test subject?" Tester mocked.
[Flashback]
"Concluding test thirteen of Project Rebirth." Tester Beta stated as she stood in front of a massive square pit. In the center was a badly bloodied and battered Shikikan collapsed face first on the cold hard steel floor. All around him were scattered piles of broken-down scrap metal and a large group of the scarecrow-like figures standing around him.
"Test subject's body is still unable to withstand improvements made during the reconstruction processes in tests one through five. Further research is necessary for successful completion of Project Rebirth." She added before floating down to him and picking him up by the chain collar around his neck.
"Such a fragile species and yet they someone dominate their planet. How strange." She smirked. "You should be thankful to Empress. After all, she's the one who gave you this opportunity to transcend your pitiful race and s–"
[End of flashback]
Although Shikikan was dead silent and had a cold glare plastered on his face, inside him was an unholy rage and hatred that he was slowly beginning to lose control over.
With its glowing yellow eye, the mechanical being locked onto Shikikan and charged at him with both blades reared back, ready to slice him in two. Or at least, that's what it intended to do.
As soon as it was in range, Shikikan drew his own blade and stopped the droid dead in its tracks.
With a cold hate-filled glare, he shoved the droid back with the sword and charged forth, swiftly beheading the now lifeless scrap metal as it collapsed onto the floor.
Not even a second later, four more erupted out of the water and lunged at him.
Instead of moving out of the way, Shikikan quickly pulled out his desert eagle and shot the two in front of him right in their eyes, which seemed to be as effective as beheading them since they stopped moving completely. Following up, he turned around and dodged the four blades aimed for his head. Spinning around, he cleaved the head clean off the one on his right before charging forth and stabbing the other one right in its eye.
As he ripped the sword back out, the droid dropped dead on the deck at the same time the two he shot a few seconds earlier crashed into the ocean.
"Not bad, but still just as expected of you." Tester mocked.
"Still playing with garbage huh?"
"As if we need to actually use precious resources to deal with you weak humans." She waved him off.
"So not going to deny you play with said humans' garbage?"
"…Perhaps you need to be retrained and taught your place, again." She hissed before ten more erupted out of the ocean.
"Commander I'm on my way!" Cleveland said as she tried to make her way back to him, only to be stopped by a wall of explosions in front of her.
"What now!?" She grunted. Looking to her left, she saw that more Peace Breakers were incoming and about to fire again, this time at Shikikan.
"Commander look out!" Cleveland yelled as saw the Sirens' barrages descending upon his ship. Before Shikikan could give the order to the Manjuus to dive into the water, a tall dark-skinned figure stepped in between him and the barrage.
"This is your stop!" She yelled before she brought up a large and heavy looking shield and took the brunt of all the incoming cannon-fire meant for Shikikan's ship. Following up, she turned around and with her battleship rigging, blew up all of the newly emerged droids with one well aimed battery.
"W-wait! That's-!" Saratoga started, unable to control her smile.
"Oh!" Hornet excitedly yelled from afar. "You made it just in time! South Dakota!"
Briefly nodding her head to Hornet, she turned back to face Shikikan. "You must be the Commander. I am South Dakota. I shall become your shield and protect you from all cannon fire." She stated as she stood at eye level with him.
Shikikan stood at a respectable 5'11", so the fact that she was just as tall as he was and that she had battleship-class rigging behind her gave her an air of overwhelming strength, enough to bring Shikikan out of his previous silently enraged trance.
"Thank you." He started. "Would you be willing to help us out here some more?"
"We were all given the orders of acting on our own volition until you showed up. That said, your will is now my command, Commander" She stoically replied.
"We?" He asked.
[On the front lines vs. Tester]
"Tsk, it would seem I've miscalculated and underestimated the Kansen stationed here." Tester said with an annoyed frown.
"Hell yeah ya did!" Another voice roared before a devastating barrage of cannon-fire engulfed Tester and the Siren elites around her.
"Ha! That makes 18 for me! Hope you and your sister can keep up, Alabama!"
"Uh….you were keeping count, Washington?" Another dark-skinned beauty with white twin tails and tribal like markings on her cheeks and torso asked.
"Of course, I was! This is my chance to prove who's the strongest battleship in town!" Washington grinned.
"Washy, continue this later. Seems like that barrage didn't clear out all of them."
"Y-yikes, that's a lot of enemies…"
"South Carolina! Washington! Alabama! Long Island! You're all here too!" Cleveland grinned.
"Yo Cleve." Washington smirked. "Don't think you can have all this fun for yourselves."
"Don't forget about us Clevebro!" Another voice yelled, revealing herself to be a young girl with short silver hair tied in small pigtails.
"DON'T CALL ME—wait, that voice!" Cleveland asked before quickly looking over to her right. "Denver! Columbia! Montpelier!"
"Yo Big Sis! Long time no see!" One of them said before blowing a bubble with her bubblegum.
"Sucks how it had to be during an invasion though." The one with long silver hair and a similar cape to Cleveland deadpanned.
"Yeah, but never mind that, we need help clearing the Sirens out of this area so we can get to the supply depot!"
"Hoo-yah!" Her sisters cheered as they charged forth, clearing out the sky of any and all Siren planes in their path.
"Cleveland. This is South Dakota. Come in." She radioed.
"Hey Dakota! Nice timing getting here when you did!"
"I'll take over as Commander's shield, go with the rest of the knights and eliminate all the Sirens."
"You got it!" She agreed before chasing after her sisters.
In the distance where the smoke cloud caused by the Eagle Union battleships faded away, a very displeased Tester stood alone.
"Alright, I'll admit I almost felt that."
"Well I'm just warming up so tell me how you feel after I get serious." Alabama lazily replied as she pointed her giant scythe at her.
"Don't think you'll get away wreaking havoc on Eagle Union turf, Siren. You'll pay dearly for the damages." Washington smirked as she cracked her knuckles.
"Well aren't you Eagle Union girls full of yourself." Tester replied before snapping her fingers and forming several portals around her. From them came numerous Peace Breaker, Smasher, Strategist, Oceana, and Navigator class Sirens.
"I've no interest in the likes of you so I'll be taking my leave for now, have fun." Tester mocked before escaping into one portal.
"Tsk, damn coward." Washington scoffed before turning to Alabama. "But anyway, since you lost count, how about we restart with this lot?"
"Fine by me, these are the types of odds I can get behind." Alabama said with a blood thirsty smile as she spun her scythe in her hand.
"..I see. Understood. Thanks Helena." North Carolina said before ending her radio call. "Looks like you two are in luck. We've got orders from the Commander to go all out and clear out every Siren here before resupplying at the depot."
"I'm liking this Commander already! Now I really wish I went to that base!" Washington grinned wildly.
"We'll leave the air support to you then, Long Island." North Carolina smiled, stopping the light carrier from tip toeing away any further.
"…I just wanted to grind the new event in my game, why'd they have to invade here and now?" She complained with two comical rivers of tears running down her face. "But fine, this ghost will haunt these bad guys for ruining my all-night gaming marathon plans!"
[A few minutes earlier with Shikikan]
"Commander, are we still going with the original plan?" Helena radioed.
"Yeah, good work on breaking through the radio jamming waves and sending out that distress signal, Helena. Relay to the others to keep shelling and sinking every Sirens in sight."
"Will do Commander!"
"Commander, have you fought these…things before? You seemed to know how to defeat them." South Dakota asked as she literally kicked the droids off his ship.
"Long story short, yeah. They had me fight wave after wave of them until I fell unconscious, all while spouting about how it was all for the sake of gaining new knowledge and crap. Tsk, they even had the audacity to say it was for my own good." Shikikan scowled as he reminisced.
"I see. You've had it rough…sorry, I'm not good very good at consoling others."
"Don't worry about it. It's the thought that counts." He assured her. "But anyway, about the Kansen stationed here, is this all of you?"
"No. This is only about a third of us. The others went into NY Harbor to help the civilians evacuate and help defend the port." South Dakota informed.
'So, they seriously planned to take over this base. With an invasion force this large, you'd think someone on watch duty would've spotted them before they got this close. Sure, they have their portals but still, something's off here.' Shikikan skepticized.
"Hey South Dakota, did anything seem….strange before the Sirens started attacking?"
"Hmm…" She hummed. "Well now that I think about it, our radios were acting up and the patrols we had out should have spotted the Sirens well in advance, but for some reason they didn't."
"I've got a bad feeling about all this…but for now, let's focus on what's in front of us."
"Agreed." She nodded.
Overlooking the battlefield from the south, the Eagle Union girls were in a full out brawl.
In the east, he saw that Enterprise, Hornet, and Saratoga had finished sinking the mass-produced carriers and battleships and began to flank around to the newly emerged Siren elites.
In the west, Siren planes dropped by the dozen as San Diego, Vestal, Cleveland and three unknown figures to Shikikan darted around while Helena, Phoenix, Laffey, and Eldridge circled around and blasted away at the burning Strategist, Navigator, and Oceana class Sirens.
And in the north were four more unknown faces, three with battleship rigging and one shorter one with carrier-like rigging. Of the three battleships, two were in close quarters combat.
The one with silver hair had ducked under a Peace Breaker's cannon fire and landed a sharp right hook at its jaw. Following up, she threw a strong left hook, then another right, then another left, and so on as she bombarded the Siren with a flurry of heavy punches. With the Siren down on the ground, the Kansen grabbed onto both of the downed Siren's legs and began spinning around at a blinding speed.
"Really Washington? A giant swing throw?" South Dakota dead panned as she watched on.
'A what?' Shikikan questioned but didn't ask aloud as he was too busy watching the Kansen finally stop and throw the Peace Breaker at two unsuspecting Strategists, knocking them all down.
"Outta my sights! All of you!" She loudly yelled before adding the finishing touch and blowing all three of them up sky high with a courageous shelling.
Over by the other Kansen with a giant scythe in her hands, she charged head on at a Smasher that was desperately trying to land a hit via nonstop cannon fire. Unfortunately for her, the Kansen dodged with acrobatic-like ease before she closed the gap and sliced the Siren in half vertically.
Seemingly intimidated, two Oceana classes turned around and tried to gain some distance, but the Kansen had other plans as she chucked her scythe and impaled the back of the one of the left's head. Distracted by her ally dropping dead, the Oceana looked back up, only to see that the Kansen had jumped high up and smashed a brutal flying axe kick to her face.
Walking over to where her scythe was, the Kansen ripped it out of the dead Siren's head before walking back over to where the remaining Ocean laid. With a fearful expression, the remaining Oceana class laid helpless as the Kansen lifted her scythe up and reaped the Siren's head clean off.
"You two really need to work on your violent tendencies, but since we're a bit low on ammo, I'll look the other way this time." The blonde Kansen sighed before spinning around and landing a heel kick on a drone diving right for her, blowing it up on contact.
Seeing more coming in hot, she gracefully dodged bullet after bullet before taking the offensive and kicking down drone after drone. With each spinning heel kick, front kick, and round house kick, she slowly closed the distance to the Strategist launching the drones at her before blasting the last of her ammo right into the Siren's head and sending it crashing down backwards.
"S-sorry North Carolina! I didn't see that one!" The short carrier apologized.
"No harm done." The blonde patted her head. "Good work on dealing with the planes while we finished them off."
"Ehehe, it was nothing. I struggled more in impossible difficulty modes."
"….I should apologize to Sandy later for scolding her for saying this battle's like an action movie…" Shikikan commented as he watched on in awe.
"Apology accepted!" The cruiser in question cheered into her radio. "Oh, by the way, Cleveland said to tell you that the coast is clear!"
"And Tester?" He asked.
"Who's that?" The ditzy red head asked.
"North Carolina says she escaped into a portal, Commander." Helena stepped in.
"Tsk, sounds like something she'd do." He scoffed. "Alright, let's all dock at the depot and stock up!"
"Yes sir!"
'Once we resupply, it's going to be a matter of plowing our way into that harbor, meeting up with the other Kansen, and then initiating the final counterattack. It be great if I could see every last one of these Sirens sink, but I can't really count that as a priority right now can I?' He unwillingly rationalized as he looked on into the distance where NY Harbor was.
"Mind if I ask you something, Commander?" South Dakota asked, unknowingly interrupting his train of thought.
"What's up?"
"Be honest. Do you really think we have a chance of winning here?" She asked, her stoic eyes unwavering as she stared at him.
'Is this her way of testing me?'
"I can't make any promises on an assured victory, but I will say this," He paused to look straight into her eyes, "I refuse to let what happened five years ago happen here and I will do whatever it takes to see that through."
Surprised at both his bold declaration and at the intensity in his crystal-like eyes, the stoic beauty could feel her cheeks warming up for some unknown reason to her.
"Understood, allow me to once again offer you my shields, Commander. Sorry for testing you."
"It's fine, I'd feel uncomfortable risking my life under the command of someone I just met too."
"We're weapons though, Commander."
Instead of outright denying her statement, he calmly sighed before replying. "South Dakota, since it'll take a few more minutes to get to the depot, can I ask you a series of 'yes' or 'no' questions?"
Albeit a bit confused, she nodded her head in agreement.
"Are you able to think?"
"W-what?" She asked with a puzzled look.
"Are you able to think?" He casually repeated.
"Y-yes."
"Have you ever felt any emotions like happiness, anger, or sadness?"
"Yes."
"What about feeling things like hunger, tiredness, boredom, and excitement?"
"Yes."
"Do you have things you like and things you hate?"
"Yes."
"Do you know anyone you can consider as your family, friends, rivals, or enemies?"
"Yes."
"Second to last question. Place your hand where your heart is. Tell me, can you feel it beating?"
Following his request, she put a hand over her chest and did indeed felt her heartbeat, although a little faster than she was used to.
"Yes."
"Alright last question. Tell me, what kind of other 'weapon' do you know that is able to think, feel emotions, have things they like and hate, and are able to form social connections all at once?"
Unable to answer or maintain eye contact with his piercing gaze, she felt herself looking away, only to be shocked when she felt a warm hand on her cheek, gently trying to bring her face back to where his was.
"Because if you ask me, all the 'yes' answers you gave me prove that you are a living and breathing human being, and a very pretty one at that." He said, surprising even himself once he realized what he had just said to someone he just met.
[Affinity up!]
Wide-eyed and more embarrassed than she ever felt before, she broke away from his gaze and quickly turned her back to him. With both her hands cupping her face, she could feel her cheeks heating up and her words failing her as she was seemingly unable to speak.
'I really want to blame my lack of sleep and the Green Bull, but then that would just lead to a bunch of other misunderstandings.' He blushed.
"U-um Commander, y-you forgot to turn off your radio." Helena said.
"Wow, what a bold guy." He heard an unfamiliar voice whistle.
"What I'd give to see your face right now South Dakota." Another unknown voice teased.
'Alright, it's decided. This is all Akashi's fault.' He cringed at being overheard while a certain green haired cat could be seen sneezing loudly as she was for some reason painting purple boxes gold.
"I have no idea what you're talking about, Helena. Are you all at the depot yet?" He admittedly tried his best. Hearing snickers and suppressed laughter, he felt his cheeks flare up.
"Y-yeah we're all here just waiting for you two lov-you two." Hornet stuttered, desperately trying to hold back her laughter.
"A-alright, we'll be there soon, go ahead and start resupplying without us." He said before making sure to end his radio call this time. "S-sorry about that South Dakota."
"….I-it's fine. Y-you've given me a lot to think about, i-in a good way, and so umm…thank you?" She surprisingly stuttered, her cheeks still bright red and unable to look at him properly.
'Please let this day be over soon.' He begged.
Barely five minutes passed before he and South Dakota found themselves with everyone else in the gigantic island depot. Walking though the ten-inch steel doors, he was greeted with what seemed to be endless rows of military equipment, gear, and even vehicles ranging from armored trucks to supply ships.
'I'd love to explore, but there's literally no time to lose.' He sighed as he finally got himself back into serious mode.
"Go ahead and resupply, South Dakota. Meet me back here once you're done."
"Understood. I'll be quick." She replied before speed walking away.
Looking around, he noticed some holes and collapsed parts of the building scattered around the floor. 'Place held up pretty well even after all those bombs Enterprise, Hornet, and Saratoga dropped.' He remarked before losing himself deeper in thought.
'If they really are using those droid 'pawns', then we might have an issue. They aren't super powered mechs or anything, but since they're fairly easy for them to make, their numbers will definitely be a problem. Who knows how many there are? One well aimed barrage should wipe them out no sweat, but if they get into the city…' He worried. 'Let's just hope the Eagles are able to keep them out of the city until we get there.'
"Commander." He felt a hand tap him on the shoulder. Turning around, he noticed that it was Enterprise with everyone else behind her. "These are our friends based here." She waved behind her to the unfamiliar group of faces.
"I'm glad we can finally introduce ourselves. Thanks for coming and helping us out when you did." He started.
"So, you're the rumored cool-eyed, master chef Commander, huh?" The tall one with short silver hair asked.
"Cool-eyed, master chef?" He tilted his head in confusion.
"It's not like I lied, right guys?" Saratoga smugly replied from his side as everyone he already knew nodded their heads in agreement.
A bit embarrassed at being the center of attention, he decided to quickly move on. "Y-yeah I guess that's me?"
"I'm Washington. Feel free to let me work out some more." She snickered.
"You really haven't fixed that crooked smile of yours yet." The tall blonde sighed.
"I-t's not my fault Sis! You know that!" Washington complained.
"Sis?" He asked.
"Yes." The blonde beauty smiled as she introduced herself. "North Carolina here, awaiting your dispatch. Although I may seem to have a bland personality compared to my sisters. But as the saying goes, no personality is still a personality, hehe. Anyways, awaiting your orders, sir."
Going with the flow the remaining five began introducing themselves as well.
"Hehehe, I am Long Island. Eagle Union's first escort carrier! Hello, Commander~."
"I'm Alabama, fourth ship of the South Dakota-class, also known as Lucky A... What else? Uhh..."
"Don't hurt yourself thinking too hard Alabama." Washington mocked before getting her ear pulled by North Carolina. "Ow, ow! Sorry! Let go Sis!"
Continuing on, the three shorter cruisers began introducing themselves.
"Cleveland-class light cruiser number 2, Columbia! That's me~!"
"Hello! I'm Denver, 4th Cleveland-class cruiser and Knight of the sea!"
"You're a commander? You don't... look reliable. But my big sis works for you... I've no choice, then. Montpelier, reporting for duty. I don't really care whether you give me orders or not."
"Oi! Monty!" Cleveland yelled.
Putting the pieces together, he couldn't help but chuckle a bit.
"Heh, it's fine Cleve." He replied, seemingly unfazed by the cruiser's cold words. "Hope I can prove myself worthy of commanding your awesome big sis, Montpelier."
"Yep, that's Montpelier for ya. Superprotective and loving of Big Sis Cleve to the point of it being kinda scary." Columbia teased as she wrapped an arm around Montpelier's shoulders.
"Hmph." She coldly crossed her arms and looked away.
'She's so a tsundere.' He surmised.
"Commander, my planes are spotting a lot of Sirens in the distance." Enterprise reported.
"SG's also picking up other signals near them as well. I think they might be the others!" Helena added.
"Alright back to business." He took a deep breath before returning into serious Commander mode.
"As of this moment I shall be taking full command of you eight as well." He stated, the aforementioned Kansen nodded in agreement.
"Enterprise, how long do you think we have until they get here?"
"Half-hour tops, Commander."
"And Helena, can you pinpoint where exactly the friendly signals you're picking are?"
"Yes, I can't tell exactly who they all are since there's still jamming waves everywhere, but I'm positive that they're our friends. As for where they are, they're clustered together a little further than halfway between here and NY Harbor itself."
"Alright that works out then since we won't have to deviate from our advance straight into the harbor. That said, they're probably like you girls and are running low on supplies, so let's help them out by bringing them some. Everyone! Grab as many Kansen related supplies as you can in the next twenty minutes and load them onto the bulkiest looking supply ship you can find in here!"
"Yes sir!"
As he and the Kansen ran around at top speed, they managed to find a large, heavily armored naval supply ship and hastily loaded as many supplies as they could on board before quickly departing for the harbor.
Thirty minutes passed in a blink of an eye as the Kansen were now at sea once more, this time fully loaded and healed thanks to Vestal's quick work.
As they neared the outer edge of the harbor, Shikikan gave his orders.
"Alright Long Island, Vestal, Eldridge, I want you three to stay back as our rearguard to watch our backs and safeguard the supply ship."
"Stay safe everyone!" Vestal warned.
"As for everyone else, I'm going to split you into three groups. First will be Washington, Alabama, Hornet, Laffey, and Phoenix. I want you five to act as our vanguard fleet and to sink as many ships in front of you as you can as you plow your way through into the harbor. Washington, I want you acting as flagship.
"Now we're talking!" Washington grinned while pounding a fist into her open palm.
The second group will be Enterprise, North Carolina, Helena, Cleveland, and Montpelier. Your job will be to clear up any ships that the vanguard fleet missed or didn't fully sink and to watch over flanks. Enterprise, you're in charge.
"I won't let you down, Commander." Enterprise nodded.
And for the third fleet, South Dakota, Saratoga, Columbia, Denver, and San Diego, you'll all be acting on standby between the supply ship and my ship. I'll be moving you around from the rear guard all the way to the vanguard, so be ready to move fast. South Dakota, I'll be in your care."
"Leave it to me, Commander." South Dakota declared.
"Alright, now, take back the harbor and show them what happens when they mess with the Eagle Union!"
"For Freedom!" Everyone roared as they charged through the ensuing fire and flames that will illuminate the dark night sky for hours on end and forever brand this battle into the pages of history as one to remember.
And done with part 1 of this arc!
As for why it took me so long with this chapter, I've recently begun graduate school so all of my free time no longer exists, but I will do what I can whenever I can scrounge up some free time to keep writing because I really do enjoy writing this and seeing all of the support for this fic.
I'm also thinking of keeping an update log under u/Lord_Azian on Reddit so that I can post updates as to where I am with the next chapters every so often. Let me know if this interests you in the comments!
Also for this chapter, would you say it needs to be changed to an 'M' rating? Let me know!
Once again, thank you so, so much for your continued support for this fanfic and patience with me! I'll see you all in Chapter 15: Dawn Will Come Again.
