A/N: Today marks the one-year anniversary of when this story was first uploaded. To be honest, I never thought I would get this far. When I get interested in something, my interest is usually very strong but also very short-lived. I mainly used this site as an outlet for those interests, but as mentioned, I only needed that outlet for a short amount of time. If you look at my profile on here, you'll see a graveyard of stories with only a handful chapters that have just been forgotten because my interest died out.
However, this story has been the exception. I don't know why, but my interest in Kancolle has managed to last over a year, and it has pretty much remained at the same level of intensity. Maybe it's because of the fanworks/fanart surrounding the series, or my interest in war history, or maybe it's because of the gameplay, but whatever it is, it's allowed me to continue writing for all this time.
So it's been one year, and I've written thirty-one chapters. I don't know if that's considered a slow pace, a fast pace, or somewhere in the middle, but eh, it is what it is. I guess my chapters are fairly long (story is about 211k words), so at least there's that. Anyway, thank you to everyone who has reviewed/favorited/followed and read this story so far. I really do appreciate any sort of feedback even if it's just one or two words, and it's nice to know that there are others who are interested in the same things I am.
Either way, thanks again for reading, and hopefully the wind in my sails doesn't die out anytime soon.
"Reloading!" Bismarck called out as she watched her shells sail through the air and towards the Abyssal fleet in the distance.
Return fire from the enemy battleships filled the air with dull whistling noises, and the resounding bursts that followed the Abyssal shells sinking into the sea splashed Bismarck with water from time to time.
"Do you think our shells are hitting?" Prinz Eugen asked as she looked over the horizon with a worried expression.
"Who knows. We're too far away right now," Bismarck replied.
"But I guess that goes both ways. The Abyssals can't really hit us either," the destroyer Z3, also known as Max, said. She and Z1 were escorting the battleship fleet along with some other destroyers and light cruisers, but the two Germans decided to stick closer to their compatriots.
"Right. Though we'll be ordered to charge in soon enough," Bismarck told them before firing off another shot.
"Hm… It's taking longer than I expected, though," Z1, or Lebe, admitted with a frown.
"Yeah, I thought the admirals told us we'd only be shelling for a short period of time," Prinz agreed.
"So what are we waiting on?" Max asked. She then turned Bismarck. "Bismarck? Do you know?"
"Admiral Drake is supposed to defeat the enemy carriers and then send over air support," Bismarck informed them. "After that is when it will be safe to charge in."
"Oh. So no wonder it's taking so long. Sinking an entire fleet isn't exactly quick work," Max said.
Bismarck frowned. "Maybe, but our carriers were supposed to catch the enemy off-guard, and so theoretically it shouldn't take so long. We've been here for nearly forty-five minutes now…"
Though she didn't want to admit it, Bismarck did feel a bit worried. What if something had happened to Drake's fleet? Several of her fleetmates were part of that squadron, and Drake himself was her admiral. When she first arrived in Japan from Germany, she thought she would hate it there, but after a rocky start, everyone in the fleet had started treating her like a true teammate. Drake also went out of his way to make sure she was doing well, and so Bismarck didn't want anything bad to happen to them.
She was snapped out of her thoughts by a voice sounding in her small earpiece.
"Heavy Fleet! Prepare to charge!" Fleet Admiral Umi ordered. "Battleship Yamato will lead the charge! All ships, ready for battle!"
Some of the battleships cheered with excitement and anticipation, and Bismarck herself let of a small sigh of relief. The fact that they were being ordered to finally go through with the charge meant that Drake's air cover would be arriving soon.
"Fleet! Form up!" Yamato called out as she sailed to the head of the formation.
Bismarck fell in line with the other battleships and heavy cruisers as the escorting destroyers and light cruisers formed up around them. The heavy fleet took on a sort of arrowhead formation, and their goal was to penetrate into the center of the Abyssal fleet and cause a collapse of the enemy formation.
Yamato's tall, graceful figure sailed forwards, leading the rest of the fleet. Because they were prioritizing speed, the battleships and heavy cruisers didn't fire their guns as they sailed, and this allowed them to maneuver a bit more easily. The fleet stayed mostly in formation, only breaking slightly when one or two ships had to swerve to avoid a stray enemy shell.
The sound of airplanes then sounded in the ocean air, but it was different from the noise that Bismarck was used to. Looking up, she noticed that the planes flying overhead were the modern, human-piloted F-35s, not ship girl aircraft.
"Hello, how's everybody doing?" a cheery, familiar voice spoke in Bismarck's earpiece. "This is Captain Brackett of the 29th USLAF Air Squadron speaking. We'll be your air cover for today… Oh, hey, it's Bisko! You remember me, Bisko?"
Bismarck blushed at being called out. "Yes, I remember! And what's with that name!"
Brackett only laughed in response.
"But anyway, why are you here? I thought our air cover was going to be from the ship girl fleet?" Bismarck then asked.
The other ship girls who had been listening with amused looks now wore serious expressions, also curious to know why they had deviated from the plan.
"They're a bit busy right now, but don't worry, they should be here soon enough!" Brackett assured her.
That feeling of worry again crept back into Bismarck's mind, but she had to ignore it for now. Overhead, she could see a few Abyssal planes flying towards them, which she assumed must have been launched from enemy aviation battleships.
"Oh, shit, looks like it's starting," Brackett realized. "Well, we'll do our best - that's honestly all I can promise. See ya on the other side, Bisko! Let's go, boys!"
The jets rushed off to intercept the Abyssal aircraft, endeavoring to keep them from reaching the charging battleships. Bismarck watched them with a bit of nervousness. Though Brackett didn't sound scared, she knew that human-piloted aircraft had a poor record when facing Abyssal planes. The F-35s seemed to outnumber the Abyssal jets for now, so she hoped that it would be enough.
The F-35s engaged the Abyssal fighters, opening fire with their Equalizer gatling guns. In the initial barrage, a couple Abyssal planes were shot down, exploding in a burst of fire after being hit with the F-35s' guns. However, the superior mobility of the Abyssal jets allowed them to quickly outmaneuver the F-35s and circle behind them. Bismarck watched in horror as the Abyssal planes began shooting and blew apart the larger F-35s, sending them spiraling down into the ocean or blasting them into flaming pieces. The burning, metallic wrecks of the F-35s flew through the air, scattering into the ocean below in a rather chaotic manner. The whole thing was over within two minutes.
The remainder of the Abyssal planes approached the battleships, but thanks to the effort of the recently-departed F-35 pilots, there were only about half of the Abyssal planes left, and the anti-air fire from the destroyers and light cruisers managed to bring them down.
Bismarck clenched her teeth in frustration, hiding her eyes under her cap. She felt so helpless watching that scene. She noticed Prinz Eugen glancing at her with worry, so she quickly tried to reform her neutral expression.
"Admiral, requesting further air support if possible. All friendly planes have been shot down," Yamato reported grimly from the front of the formation.
"Roger that, Yamato. We'll have carrier planes take off from IJN 47 Ronin if you need additional air cover," Umi replied.
Nagato didn't seem happy about that. "More human-piloted planes? They're flying right to their deaths…"
"They came into this fight with the full knowledge that they could die, Nagato," Umi reminded her. "You feel the same way, no?"
"Yes, but it's not the same. It feels unnecessary to waste their lives when we have ship girl planes that can do a much better job and do it more safely," Nagato argued.
"Well, that's the problem. We don't actually have those planes. It looks like our carrier fleet has run into some issues, so it's unlikely that you'll have their support, at least for the first part of this fight."
"Wait, what happened to them?" Kongou demanded to know.
"Like I said, they ran into some problems. Don't worry about that for now. Focus on your own orders."
Umi's tone made it clear that there was no room for argument, so although uneasy, the ship girls in the heavy fleet were forced to continue their charge. Soon enough, they were again joined by escorting planes, now from a Japanese carrier, but this time the ship girls were noticeably less excited to see them.
They were getting closer to the enemy fleet, and the Abyssal shells were becoming harder to dodge. Unlike traditional battleship warfare, Fleet Admiral Umi's plan for the ship girls was to attack and engage the enemy at close range. Up close, the ship girls could fire their heavy, devastating shells more accurately, and they could also use their great strength to engage the Abyssals in CQC if needed. Also, since the plan was to scatter and disorient the Abyssal fleet, this was much more easily achieved from a close-range, fast attack as opposed to a far away, distant, disconnected shelling barrage.
"Everyone, remember to stick to the formation!" Yamato called out. "If we maintain a cohesive structure, they won't be able to break us!"
After the flagship's words, the ship girl fleet collided with the Abyssals, almost literally. Yamato opened fire first, her huge guns sending shockwaves across the ocean. Bismarck watched the Japanese ship girl with a mesmerized look. Though the recoil from Yamato's guns must have been enormous, the flagship easily maintained her balance with her strong legs. Her shells struck true, one of them hitting a Ru-class in the torso and turning her into a mess of a cyan blood and gore. Another one missed but still managed to land next to a Ta-class, completely dazing the Abyssal in a burst of water. As the Ta-class wobbled about with a lost look in her eye, Bismarck took aim and fired, hitting the Ta-class in the neck. The shell didn't explode for some reason, but it definitely broke the Ta-class' neck, and the Abyssal slumped over and began sinking.
"Great shot, Bismarck!" Prinz Eugen cheered.
Bismarck smirked proudly, and she also felt a sense of deep satisfaction. After witnessing the scene earlier, she wouldn't hold back today.
The fleet continued to fight like that for some time, and sure enough, the Abyssals were being pushed back. However, when Bismarck was in the middle of reloading and preparing to fire again, she felt something grab her leg. Looking down with surprise, she saw a So-class submarine latching onto her calf, a dead, unsettling look in its only visible eye.
"You dare touch me!?" Bismarck raged as she desperately tried to free her leg. Unfortunately, her jerking only made her lose her balance, and the Abyssal pulled her down, causing her to inadvertently inhale a gulp of seawater.
The battleship's fall alerted Max and Lebe, who immediately turned back towards Bismarck. Thinking quickly, Max tossed a depth charge down below and nearby the Abyssal while Lebe rushed over to Bismarck and tried to pull her out. A second later, the depth charge exploded, pushing Bismarck and Lebe backwards but crippling the So-class. Cyan blood clouded the water for a moment as the So-class sunk out of view.
"Are you all right, Bismarck? Did the explosion hurt you?" Max asked, sailing over to the two.
"Ugh… I'm fine…" Bismarck gingerly stood up. Apart from being shaken up, she appeared to have no injuries.
"Submarines spotted!" Nagato then called out, evidently having seen one as well. "Escorts, shift your focus to hunting those subs!"
"God damn, these things are annoying!" Musashi complained as she reached down and simply plucked a Ka-class out of the water. She then proceeded to snap its neck like a twig and toss its corpse back into the ocean.
The destroyers and light cruisers soon took over the submarine slaughter, allowing the battleships and heavy cruisers to focus on shelling the enemy fleet. Even so, Bismarck occasionally had to sail away from a torpedo trailing through the water due to the sheer volume of submarines that the Abyssals were fielding. Still, the battle seemed to be going well, and even with the addition of enemy submarines, the ship girls had the upper hand.
However, that soon changed.
"Shit! Looks like an enemy air strike incoming!" Iowa called out.
Bismarck looked up at the sky, and sure enough, a large force of Abyssal planes were soaring towards their location. The Abyssal planes were being harassed by ship girl aircraft, but the ship girl planes were overwhelmingly outnumbered. The Japanese-piloted F-35s moved to assist, but again, they were destroyed in even less time than the previous air squadron was. A few F-35s actually just turned and flew away from the battlefield, but Bismarck could hardly blame them.
"What's with those planes? There's so few of them," Yamashiro asked as she glanced up at the ship girl aircraft that were trying (and failing) to stop the Abyssal planes.
"Admiral, there is a large enemy air force approaching our position. We don't have adequate air cover," Yamato cautioned Umi.
"Aren't there ship girl planes covering you?" Umi asked.
"Yes, but they're not nearly enough…"
"Figures… Those planes are from Fleet Admiral Miiro's light carrier force, so they won't be much help after all against an entire Abyssal carrier fleet."
"An entire carrier fleet?" Musashi repeated in disbelief. "What the hell are our standard carriers doing? Were they seriously defeated without damaging the enemy at all?!"
Bismarck felt her heart rate increase. No, that isn't possible. There's no way Admiral Drake would lose so easily!
"Actually, the standard carriers are engaged fighting two Princesses, and they lost almost all of their planes in their initial airstrike. That's why I said they won't be of much help to us now," Umi explained. "The cause of that was the deployment of Abyssal anti-air Princesses in locations we didn't expect. Anyway, those anti-air Princesses are now positioned in between the light carriers and you girls, so any planes that the light carriers send over have to run that gauntlet before they can even begin to take on the numerically-superior Abyssal carriers."
"So in other words, the enemy has overwhelming air superiority," Ise sighed.
"Unfortunately. But that doesn't mean we've lost! You girls are doing great so far! Just make sure to use your anti-air fire. Yamato, let me know if things get too bad. Otherwise, continue on."
That was easier said than done. The battleships and heavy cruisers were already engaged in shelling and fighting the Abyssal surface fleet, and the destroyers and light cruisers were busy with the submarines. Coordinating a good anti-air attack was almost impossible in this scenario.
Nevertheless, the battle raged on. Things continued as usual with the ship girls winning until the enemy air strike arrived. Then, as the bombs began raining down on them, the ship girls were forced to maneuver away from them, but with the enemy surface force firing back in addition to the torpedo and dive bombers, it was extremely difficult to avoid being hit by something.
Bismarck tried to stick together with her German comrades, but Lebe and Max were off chasing submarines. Prinz Eugen stayed with her, but the two of them didn't have enough anti-air fire to put off enemy planes.
"Aaah!" Prinz Eugen screamed as a dive bomber caught her in the back as she was trying to swerve away from some torpedoes. She stumbled, almost faceplanting onto the surface of the ocean.
"Prinz!" Bismarck whirled around to help her up. The heavy cruiser's back was scorched, her clothing ripped and the raw, red skin peeling off. Her portside guns were also bent out of shape, rendering them useless.
"Hah… I'm all right," Prinz Eugen wheezed as she clutched Bismarck's arm for support.
"Can you stand?" Bismarck asked, trying to steady her.
"J-Ja, just give me a minute…"
"Watch out, you two!"
Bismarck didn't know who called out to her, but it was too late anyway. A shell was heading straight towards them, but neither one had been paying attention due to Prinz Eugen's injury. Bismarck clutched Prinz Eugen, trying to shield her already-damaged comrade from another direct hit.
"Ggh!" Bismarck grunted as she screwed her eyes shut in pain. The shell hit her squarely in the back, but luckily didn't explode. Still, the force of it almost knocked her over and definitely left a bruise.
"Bismarck! Are you all right?" Prinz yelled with worry, regaining some of her vigor after seeing Bismarck get hit with the shell.
"Yeah, this is nothing," Bismarck smiled. "Anyway, let's be more vigilant. This battlefield is only getting worse…"
As the heavy fleet tried to dodge the numerous aircraft and shells, they realized that the enemy surface force was slowly closing in and surrounding them. Though the ship girls had initially scattered the Abyssal formation, the enemy no longer appeared to be in a state of chaos.
"Heh. I see it now," Iowa, who had somehow ended up next to Bismarck and Prinz, said.
"See what?" Bismarck frowned, then did a double take when she saw that Iowa's right arm had been blown off from below the elbow. Dark blood slowly dripped from the gaping wound and into the water.
"Their plan, of course," Iowa continued with a bitter smile, apparently not too bothered by her missing forearm. "The Abyssals let us enter into the midst of their formation just so they could surround and trap us later. First they distracted us by making us think we were dispersing them and by introducing submarines, and then they added aircraft to the mix. We were so distracted by the subs and the airpower that we didn't realize that the Abyssal surface force was moving around to encircle us and trap us."
"So you're saying the Abyssals allowed us to cut through their line on purpose?" Bismarck summarized. "But that's reckless. We sunk so many of their ships."
"And? What does it matter if they just end up sinking all of us in the end anyway?" Iowa replied. "The Abyssals don't care about losses like we do. They allowed us to penetrate their formation even though they knew that their frontlines would essentially be offered up as sacrifices, and they also threw away a ton of their subs just to distract our destroyers and light cruisers from anti-air duty. The Abyssals don't care about their own losses as long as they can inflict more on their enemy."
"S-so then what do we do now?" Prinz Eugen asked, not liking the way things were going.
Iowa shrugged. "Who knows. Try not to die, I guess? Our best bet is to fight our way out and retreat. They're surrounding us, and they'll just encircle and exterminate us at this rate."
"How did they get us so easily…" Bismarck muttered angrily.
"If we had air cover, things would be different. But no use in complaining! Let's fight on, ya Nazis!" Iowa shot them a grin before charging back into the fray.
Soon afterwards, things only became even more frantic. Bismarck sailed through the congested waters as smoke, screaming, and the sound of explosions filled the air. The whistling of shells and the hum of Abyssal jets kept her on edge, and her blonde hair whipped in the wind as she desperately tried to keep track of her surroundings with all the dangers around her.
"Someone! Someone help my sister!" Bismarck heard Yamashiro scream in despair, and she briefly turned and glimpsed Yamashiro hugging Fusou's bloody form. The older sister's eyes were closed, and her body was limp as it dangled from Yamashiro's arms.
Bismarck was forced away from the scene as a dive bomber narrowly missed her, and she soon lost the two Fusou-class battleships in the din of battle. She passed many more harrowing scenes, but for the most part, the battle was too chaotic and disorganized for her to cut through the vast number of enemies to help her comrades. She saw the normally-dignified Warspite scowling with bloodlust as she stomped on the head of a submarine, and Kongou was nearby coughing up blood as she leaned on Warspite's rigging and held a hand to her bleeding stomach.
"Fleet! Try and cut out an escape path behind you! All of you, concentrate your firepower in one position! Yamato, coordinate the attack!"
Despite Fleet Admiral Umi's order, Bismarck did not hear or see the massive IJN battleship executing it. Looking around her, she realized that many of the other ship girls were also too busy to mount a coordinated attack. Their initial goal had been to force the Abyssals into disarray, but it seemed that they were experiencing that themselves instead.
"Prinz, let's try and do as she says! Follow me!" Bismarck called out and turned around to try and retreat, but when she did, she did not see Prinz Eugen anywhere.
A brief sensation of cold horror gripped her as she thought Prinz Eugen had sunk without her noticing, but thankfully she heard Prinz's voice shortly after.
"Bismarck! Over here!" Prinz Eugen called out, waving her arm in the air.
She had somehow drifted a fair bit away from Bismarck, and now there was a wall of fire, wrecks, and fighting ship girls and Abyssals in between them, separating the two. Prinz was not alone, though: Iowa was there with her, and the American battleship was choking out a Ri-class with her one good arm, her bicep flexing as she grit her teeth and the Ri-class gasped for air. Max and Lebe were also with Prinz Eugen, and they faithfully guarded the injured heavy cruiser as they fired off their guns in quick succession at the many enemies that were around.
Bismarck decided to make her way back towards them. She fired her guns and blew off the head of a Ne-class that was in her way, but before she could sail through the opening, something zoomed past her head and dove into the water in front of her. A trail of blue energy had followed the object, and Bismarck blinked as she wondered what the hell that was. A second later, the object reemerged from the water and shot straight towards her face. Bismarck briefly glimpsed a shape which appeared to be black stingray, and as the thing flew towards her, she reached out and grabbed it before it could hit her in the face. The black metallic stingray thrashed in her hand and began glowing a cyan color, and Bismarck felt her hand begin to sting. Wincing in pain, she chucked the thing away and watched it fly behind her.
The German battleship turned to follow the flying stingray, and her blue eyes widened as she saw it return to its owner, who was a large Abyssal with white hair and sharp eyes who appeared to be riding some sort of water motorcycle. Another flying stingray floated around the Abyssal, and the two creatures circled around the Abyssal as her eyes shined with sinister cyan energy. Bismarck had seen rough sketches of this figure before during strategy meetings.
The European Princess…!
"Kaga! Are you all right?"
The aircraft carrier in question shifted her attention away from the approaching Princesses when she heard Houshou's voice sound in her ear. Each flagship and admiral had their own specific frequency on the communication devices where they could be privately contacted, but Kaga had not actually thought that she would put hers to any use. Nevertheless, it appeared Houshou was now speaking to her through that frequency.
"Houshou? What is it?" Kaga asked, taken a bit off-guard.
"My fleet is being deployed to attack the Abyssal carrier fleet because we heard that your fleet ran into some Princesses. What's happening?"
"It's nothing to worry about. We can defeat them," Kaga assured her in her usual calm tone.
"Kaga… Now is not the time to wear that stoic mask of yours," Houshou admonished. "We all know how powerful the Princesses are. Don't take this lightly."
Kaga's golden eyes darted back to the Princesses. "I know. I will be careful, but I don't want you worrying about us. You have your own battle to fight."
"Yes, but… You know I can't help but worry."
Even though the Princesses were still steadily approaching and a destructive battle was imminent, Houshou's words kindled a small feeling of warmth within Kaga. It was nice to have someone who cared, even if it got annoying sometimes.
"I am an aircraft carrier of the Imperial Japanese Navy, just like you are," Kaga said. "I will not fall here, and you won't either. Right?"
Houshou sighed. "Right, I suppose. Take care of everyone, Kaga."
The transmission then ended, which was good because the two Princesses were now well within striking range. However, neither Princess had launched any planes yet, and so the ship girls didn't sortie any either. Though the carriers, destroyers, and light cruisers far outnumbered the pair of Princesses, Kaga had a feeling that in terms of the firepower that each side could field, the Princesses definitely had the advantage.
"Some familiar faces here, I see," the Airfield Princess grinned as she and her partner sailed up closer to the ship girl fleet.
"What, you didn't get enough of a beating last time?" Hiryuu smirked at her.
"Oh? Considering the situation you're in, you're sure talking big," the Abyssal shot back.
"What situation? Can't you see you're heavily outnumbered?"
"Hmph. These numbers don't matter. What truly makes a difference is the quality of our airstrikes," the Aircraft Carrier Princess decided to chime in, her red eyes still staring straight at Kaga.
"I suppose we shall see about that soon enough," Kaga replied. "But why have you come so close? You could have attacked us from afar." Though I guess ship girl aircraft carriers are more suited to short to medium range fighting than our warship selves were.
The Airfield Princess' grin grew wider. "Yes, but then you would have a better chance of escaping. Plus, we won't be able to witness the life fade from your eyes firsthand if we sunk you from too far away."
"Didn't you learn anything from your Submarine Princess? Overconfidence will get you killed," Akagi said.
"Overconfidence? Do you not realize how few planes you have left?" Aircraft Carrier Princess reminded them. "You face two aircraft carrier-type Abyssal Princesses. You would need your entire air fleet in order to stand a realistic chance against us."
"Shut the fuck up!" Zuikaku yelled, having had enough of the Abyssals' taunting. "Are you gonna keep talking shit, or are you actually going to fight? I'll send you idiots to the bottom where you belong!"
"Ahaha! As you wish, brat," Airfield Princess decided as the massive jaw attached to her rigging began to glow with red energy.
The Aircraft Carrier Princess carried around a similar large jaw on her rigging, but hers started burning with a slightly darker and rougher energy. Either way, it was clear that they were no longer in the mood for talking.
"Fleet, disperse! Avoid the trajectory of their jaws!" Kaga called out.
Luckily for the ship girls, the Abyssal Princesses appeared to be fairly immobile while they were charging up their jaws, and so they managed to get out of the way of the initial blasts. The Airfield Princess fired a large, rapid, clean laser of light red energy that the members of the Kido Butai had seen before, but the Aircraft Carrier Princess' energy beam was more akin to that of a flamethrower, and huge tendrils of fire emerged from her beast's jaw. Since she was expecting a concentrated beam rather than a wide flame spread, Kaga was almost hit by the Aircraft Carrier Princess' attack. The corner of her sleeve by her elbow caught fire momentarily, but she managed to put it out. Still, she needed to be careful now that she realized the differences in the Abyssals' energy attacks.
We need to split up and deal with them. We're too disorganized right now, Kaga quickly decided. In any sort of fleet battle, disorganization could easily lead to the downfall of the fleet.
"Admiral, we've engaged the Princesses in battle," Kaga informed Drake through her earpiece, making sure to use her fleet's main channel so that everyone there could hear. "How should we attack? Should we split up the fleet?"
"Yeah, that's probably best. If we can separate them and prevent them from working together, then we have a better chance of overwhelming them through physical numbers," Drake replied. "As for how the fleet should be split up… You and Shoukaku take on one of the Princesses, and bring all the escorts with you. Akagi, you're in charge of everybody else, and you fight the other Princess."
"W-wait, me?" Akagi said as she held up a finger to her earpiece in order to speak through it.
"Admiral, if it's just me and Kaga, then we'll only have two aircraft carriers," Shoukaku added on.
"Yeah, but you'll have all the anti-air power of the escort fleet. You two are also the most experienced and best carriers I have, and during training, you work really well together. There's a reason why the two of you are my flagships."
Kaga and Shoukaku glanced at each other, and they found that their admiral's words were true. Without even noticing it, they had gradually become accustomed to leading the fleet, and thanks to all the time they spent working together in training and in Drake's office doing paperwork, they managed to coordinate pretty well. Kaga recalled how she and Shoukaku had wordlessly managed to take down a numerically-superior Abyssal fighter force earlier today when they were escaping from the anti-air trap, which showcased that they really did work well together.
"Understood, sir. We won't fail," Shoukaku then agreed.
"All right. I'm kind of busy right now, so I've got to go. Let me know if anything comes up, though."
"But he didn't answer my question…" Akagi complained quietly.
Kaga remained on guard as she watched the Princesses recharge and pull back a bit after their failed first shots. She sailed over to Akagi.
"Akagi. The Admiral said he chose Shoukaku and me for a reason. Don't you think there is a reason he chose you too?"
"Yeah, but… I think you both are better suited for this. I'm not a flagship."
Kaga turned to her. "When the Admiral first came to our base and appointed me flagship, I didn't know why I had been chosen, or how to even be a competent leader. Do you know who I used for inspiration? It was you. You were the first ever flagship of Japan's first ever carrier battle group. If it weren't for you, I doubt I would be half as good of a flagship."
Akagi blinked. She knew that she had been a flagship before, but now, that felt like a lifetime ago. She had just become so used to Kaga and Shoukaku leading the fleet that she didn't really see herself in that role anymore.
"And besides… We have always fought together in the First Carrier Division. There's no one I trust more than you, Akagi," Kaga continued, giving the red carrier a small but reassuring smile.
Akagi smiled as well. "Hm… I guess if both you and the Admiral are putting your faith in me, then I'll definitely win! Let's see who sinks her opponent first, okay?"
"Even if you're my partner, don't expect that I'm going to lose to you," Kaga smirked. "You take the Airfield Princess, then. We'll finish this Aircraft Carrier Princess."
The two carriers nodded to each other, then formed up their separate fleets. Kaga and Shoukaku gathered the escorts around them just in time to be fired at by the Aircraft Carrier Princess' flamethrower again. This time, however, the fleet was more prepared for the attack, and so they scattered out of its relatively short range before forming up again.
The Aircraft Carrier Princess frowned. "This is the first time I am using my Trident beam in live combat against ship girls… It appears it does not work very well unless you are distracted beforehand."
With that, the Aircraft Carrier Princess finally released her planes. They flew out of the same jaw that fired the flamethrower, and they were white, circular things with mouths lined with jagged teeth that almost seemed alive. Nevertheless, they flew through the sky like regular planes, and they certainly didn't appear any less dangerous.
"Escorts, concentrate anti-air fire on those planes," Kaga ordered. However, even as she said this, more white Abyssal aircraft spilled forth from the large black maw, almost completely blotting out the sun.
"So many…" Shoukaku observed nervously.
That's right, she wasn't there when we fought the Airfield Princess. Kaga realized that the sight of so many aircraft launching from a single ship could be jarring to Shoukaku, so she quickly tried to think of a battle plan that would reassure her partner and her escorts.
"Shoukaku, launch all remaining planes except for your fighters," Kaga said. "Fly them at low altitude, like this."
Rapidly drawing an arrow and firing it, Kaga shot forward a flurry of planes. Instead of climbing to a cruising altitude, the planes simply stayed at the level they were first launched from, and they flew in circles around the two carriers.
"Um… But then our bombers won't be able to hit the enemy, and if we don't launch any fighters, then we'll just be leaving our planes defenseless and giving the Princess free reign of the skies," Shoukaku pointed out.
"Our fighters don't need to face hers. We're severely outnumbered in that regard anyway, and so it would be pointless for us to send them up there just to have them destroyed," Kaga countered. "Also, our torpedo bombers can actually still attack from this altitude, and as for our dive bombers, we will just have them utilize kamikaze tactics."
Shoukaku thought about it briefly before her eyes lit up. "Ah, I see. By keeping our bombers in low altitude, we can force the enemy's fighters to fly down to our level. And if the enemy's planes are lower in the sky, our anti-air fire will be more accurate."
Kaga gave her a nod. "Yes. Normally we rely on our fighters to shoot down the enemy's planes, but given our situation, we are outnumbered in terms of fighter power. What we do still hold an advantage in is anti-air power, and this tactic basically makes anti-air power more important than fighter power because all the planes will be flying in low altitude."
"And then when we get the Princess to send her fighters down, we'll finally launch our own fighters and send them up to deal with the now-defenseless Abyssal bombers," Shoukaku added. "Okay, let's do it!"
The two flagships launched all their bombers, which didn't take them too long since they didn't have that many left. Either way, their remaining bombers were now soaring around the battlefield at a low altitude, most of them heading straight towards the Aircraft Carrier Princess.
"What…" the Aircraft Carrier Princess was caught off-guard by the sudden and unexpected appearance of low-flying planes.
The first couple ship girl aircraft dropped their torpedoes in the water, but the Princess managed to evade them just in time. However, the evasive maneuver put her right in the path of the next set of aircraft, which again surprised her by flying straight into her. With a cry of shock, the Aircraft Carrier Princess stumbled as the planes exploded and stung her with shrapnel. Such blows weren't enough to kill her, but the attacks nevertheless left burn marks and long, red scrapes on her exposed pale skin.
Kaga and Shoukaku looked at the scene with satisfaction. Once again, the two had coordinated perfectly, with Kaga's torpedo bombers providing the initial distraction while Shoukaku's dive bombers came in from another angle. They also saw that the Princess had begun ordering many of her fighters down to the level of the ship girl planes, which meant that their plan was working.
Sure enough, the escorts caught on to the plan as well, and they took advantage of the low-flying enemy planes, shooting them down with ease. Kaga and Shoukaku now put into action the second part of their plan, and they fired their arrows at an upward angle so that their fighters could get a good head start. The ship girl Zeroes soared up into the sky and tore apart many of the white Abyssal bombers from underneath them, and continued to cut further into their ranks as they climbed in altitude.
The Aircraft Carrier Princess was visibly frustrated at this turn of events. Though she had overwhelming air superiority, she had underestimated the ship girls' ability to coordinate themselves. Though she had a lot of planes, the ship girls still technically outnumbered her in terms of ships present on the battlefield, and that was actually making a difference now.
Her red eyes began glowing with ferocity. "You… You worthless shits!"
Flames erupted from her beast's jaw, engulfing the air around her and completely incinerating a couple ship girl bombers that were just about to drop their torpedoes in front of her. The Aircraft Carrier Princess sailed forward, charging straight at the ship girl fleet. The destroyers and light cruisers, who were in the vanguard, were busy with anti-air duty, so they were surprised to see the Princess suddenly come rushing at them.
"Oh shit, she's coming!" Murasame warned the rest of the fleet.
Amatsukaze grit her teeth as she swung around to face the Princess. "Damn it! Let's get some suppressing fire over here!"
She and Murasame switched from anti-air fire to their main cannons, and they fired into the path of the oncoming Aircraft Carrier Princess. Their shells hit and exploded upon the Princess, but to their disbelief, the Abyssal emerged from the smoke unhurt and apparently unimpeded.
"We need more firepower! Hurry!" Amatsukaze called out the rest of the escorts.
"We'll see how she likes this!" Yahagi said, throwing her arm towards the Abyssal as her bigger caliber guns fired in perfect unison. Unfortunately, she was met with the same result as the destroyers.
"Fuck! This isn't working!" Amatsukaze cursed. "We need to coordinate a synchronized volley, or else -"
The silver-haired destroyer did not get to finish her sentence. One of the circular white Abyssal planes dove down towards her at amazing speed and impacted into her back, exploding in a burst of red and orange energy. The direct hit completely destroyed Amatsukaze's rigging and knocked her unconscious. She fell face-first onto the water and began sinking, but Murasame quickly pulled her out and propped her up.
"What the hell?! Where'd that come from!" the Shiratsuyu-class destroyer yelled frustratedly as she slung Amatsukaze's arm around her shoulder.
Meanwhile, more and more escorts were trying to fire at the encroaching Princess, who kept on dodging or tanking their shots.
Yahagi looked up at the sky with a grim countenance. "It appears that the cessation of our anti-air fire has allowed the enemy fighters to return to the skies and protect their bombers, which in turn has allowed the Abyssal bombers to make their runs."
Kaga, who was closely observing things from the backlines, saw that the situation was beginning to deteriorate. She had come up with her battle plan in only a few minutes, so it wasn't surprising that she forgot something. In this case, it was the entry of the Aircraft Carrier Princess herself into the fight. Though the Princess was an aircraft carrier, she could still pose a serious threat in close combat, especially with that flamethrower of hers. There was really only one weapon left in Kaga's arsenal that could deal with this new threat.
"All escorts! Keep your focus on anti-air fire! Ignore the Princess!" Kaga yelled over the sounds of battle. She then turned to Shoukaku. "Let's go. We need to stop the Princess ourselves."
Shoukaku understood what she meant, and the two carriers exited the backlines and began sailing forward and past their escorts. The destroyers and light cruisers glanced at them as they sailed by, also figuring out that Kaga and Shoukaku meant to engage the Princess in CQC.
The Aircraft Carrier Princess noticed the two ship girls sailing towards her, and she stopped her charge towards the escorts to shift her focus on the carriers.
"So, you've come to face me yourselves?" the Abyssal smiled.
Kaga and Shoukaku stopped as well as they sized up their opponent. All three combatants were multitasking; though they were about to start throwing punches, they also had to keep track of and direct their aircraft. The winner of this fight would be the ones who could best take advantage of the three-dimensional nature of the battle.
"Well, then," the Aircraft Carrier Princess began, her beast's jaw burning with fire, "let's see who kisses the seafloor first."