May 8th, 1915. First use of ground-support airships by Germany.
May 31st, 1916. Battle of Jutland. First instance of airship-vs-airship combat.
June 6th, 1917. HMS Dauntless, the first anti-airship airship, is launched. Various nations follow suit.
October 11th, 1918. Germany begins construction of the KZ-IV, the most heavily armed airship in the world until 1925.
November 11th, 1918. The First World War ends.
December 7th, 1920. The Imperial Japanese Army and Navy compete to produce a next-generation airship.
February 4th, 1925. The Imperial Japanese Army completes the Suiten-maru, the first "battleship-type" airship with external hangers. Remains the world's most heavily armed airship until 1945.
September 18th, 1931. The Imperial Japanese Army invades Manchuria, demonstrating the firepower of the Suiten-maru against Chinese forces.
October 10th, 1936. Spanish Nationalist forces wipe out numerous Republican air and ground forces using KZ-X class airships (a modernized variant of the KZ-IV). First successful use of airships against modern fighter aircraft.
April 18th, 1940. The Imperial Japanese Navy begins construction of the Kibi-class airship using technology excavated from the arctic wreckages.
April 20th, 1945. Six out of ten Kibi-class airships completed.
June 6th, 1945. Construction of the Izanami-class carrier-type airship and Suiryu-class airborne assault aircraft begins.
October 10th, 1948. All ten Kibi-class airships and the Izanami are completed.
December 7th, 1949. The Suiryu is completed.
February 14th, 1950. A Kirov-class airship of the Chinese Communists shoots down a Nationalist Z-class airship. First airship-to-airship engagement since the Second World War.
May 31st, 1950. Admiral Tendo Uesugi, commander of the Arctic Fleet, announces the existence of the Arctic Fleet to other Imperial Japanese remnants. Imperial Japanese remnants leave the Philippines to join the Arctic Fleet.
June 18th, 1950. The USAF sends another Air Fleet to Alaska in order to locate the Arctic Fleet's base of operations.
Somewhere over the Sea of Okhotsk
1287 km from Vladivostok
June 20th, 1950
"Yorha! How long do you plan on sleeping!?"
"Ugh… Shut up Asagi… Just five more goddamn minutes…"
"You practically slept the entire day yesterday!"
"Five more minutes won't hurt…"
Asagi Tokumitsu was having a bad day.
Of course, it was not just because the lazy ace pilot in front of her refused to wake up. It was much more complex.
Yorha was sleeping in Asagi's bed.
"Why the hell are you in MY bed anyway!?" Asagi exclaimed in obvious annoyance.
"Why not…" Yorha replied.
Asagi sighed.
"If you don't wake up, I'll go and scratch up your Karyu," Asagi threatened, only to narrowly avoid a kick to her eyes.
Yorha jumped down from the bed, a scowl on her face.
"You wouldn't," said she. Asagi raised her hands in surrender.
"Of course I won't," she replied. "But the threat of it always makes you jump out of bed, though."
Yorha blinked.
"...tsk."
She folded the butterfly knife she was hiding behind her back ("Does she ALWAYS sleep with that knife!?" Asagi thought, a chill running down her spine.) and proceeded to put on her uniform. Yorha rubbed her eyes, still a little bit drowsy.
A knock on the door echoed throughout the room.
Asagi cautiously opened the door, revealing a boy dressed in an Arctic Fleet pilot's uniform.
"Um…" Warrant Officer Murata began. "Is Ensign Mizuchi here by any chance?"
A slight pause.
Asagi turned towards Yorha, a mischievous grin on her face. Yorha clicked her tongue in annoyance, obviously ticked off by Asagi's gesture.
"Well well," Asagi said. "Looks like your knight in shining armor has…"
"Asagi," Yorha said. "Shut up."
Asagi sighed.
"Yes ma'am," said she. She moved out of the way so that Yorha could walk out the door.
"Have fun you two," Asagi called, this time receiving a "Shut up" from both pilots as they walked away.
"Tsk, you guys are no fun."
"How's the 74?" Yorha asked, her footsteps and W.O. Murata's echoing through the hallway.
"Not bad," he replied. "I wish it is a little faster, though. Two radial engines, radar equipment, and four crew members is not the best idea."
"True," Yorha replied. "You had to make space for that radar anyway. No bombs, no guns, and no fifth crew member for the gun."
"I wish we could have kept that gun, ma'am," Murata said. "Things would be so much easier. We wouldn't be running away all the time."
Yorha smiled.
"You can drop the formalities now, Rei," Yorha said. "We're out of earshot now."
Warrant Officer Rei Murata sighed.
"Thanks, Yorha," he said. "Reminds me of when we were kids."
"You got that right," Yorha chuckled. "Before… you know… that happened…"
A heavy silence blanketed the two. Rei instinctively touched the scar on his neck; Yorha fiddled with her eyepatched.
"Hanger?" Rei finally said. Yorha nodded silently in return.
"You know," Yorha said, causing Rei to turn around. "When was the last time we flew together?"
"Hmm?" Rei hummed in confusion. "We just flew together two days ago."
At this, Yorha chuckled and shook her head.
"No no," she said. "Not like you manning a radar set in an airplane. Like, FLYING flying."
Rei sighed.
"I get what you mean," he said. "Yeah, we haven't done that in a long time."
The two stepped into the hanger, taking care to keep their professional demeanor.
"Right then," Yorha said. "I believe we will be seeing eachother again real soon, Warrant Officer?"
"Yes ma'am," Rei replied. He clicked his heels in a brief salute before walking away.
Yorha sighed, pulling at the collar of her uniform as she did so.
"All this professionalism is really exhausting," she muttered.
Yorha touched her eyepatch again before heading to her Karyu. She climbed into the plane, making sure her boots did not dirty the seat as she did so.
It was not the most comfortable seat in the world, but it did the job.
An alarm sounded, signaling the launch of externally stored aircraft.
Yorha rubbed her eyes as she fell asleep.
"Don't you dare die on me, damnit…"
"Denkou to Suiryu CIC, launch preparations complete."
"CIC to Denkou. Acknowledged. Proceed with launch sequence."
"Affirmative. Denkou, detaching."
A clacking noise echoed through the cabin of the Ki-74-R AWACS aircraft as it detached itself from the Suiryu.
The pilot sighed a breath of relief.
"Right then," said he. "Where are our bombers?"
Two more clacking noises echoed outside, followed by the screeching of jet engines. Five R2Y2 Keiun-kai jet bombers, along with a number of J9Y Kikka escorts, formed up below the Ki-74.
Rei adjusted his headset and adjusted the frequency of his radio.
"Denkou to all flights," said he. "Report in."
"Tenchuu bakugeki-tai, all accounted for."
"343rd kokutai, here."
"Denkou to Suiryu. All flights accounted for," Rei said. "Shall we proceed?"
"Suiryu to Denkou. You may proceed."
Rei gulped in nervousness.
"Sir," Rei began, turning to the pilot. "We have permission to proceed."
The pilot nodded.
"Right," said he. "To the Vilyuchinsk Naval Base we go."
The Ki-74 peeled off of the fleet, followed by the sound of jet aircraft screaming through the air.
Two hours later...
Vilyuchinsk, Russian Soviet Republic
Union of Soviet Socialist Republics
Soviet Naval Base
The wind blew across the freezing air, stinging the cheeks of a Soviet soldier. He closed the door to the bathroom behind him, and rubbed his hands together. The SKS-45 rifle slung over his shoulder nudged his side a few times as the soldier walked back to his post.
He pulled a cigarette out from his pocket, lighting it with his match. The cigarette's embers glowed a dull orange color, rings of smoke rising from its owner's mouth. He dropped the cigarette down before grinding it against the ground with the heel of his boot.
The soldier adjusted the rifle, slinging it in a more comfortable position.
Another patrol walked by. He gave a brief nod before returning to his post.
He first heard a high-pitched noise.
The soldier looked around, searching for the source of the annoyance.
"Comrade," a fellow soldier said. "Do you hear that?"
The first soldier nodded in response. He looked towards the source of the noise, noticing a few shadows against the setting sun in the west.
"What the…"
The high pitched noise grew louder, culminating into a piercing scream. Both soldiers, as well as soldiers around them, instinctively covered their ears in response.
Something on the nearby airfield exploded.
"We're under attack!"
"Denkou to all flights," Rei said. "Breaking radio silence. We will now commence the operation. Proceed to your targets immediately."
The Ki-74 climbed a little further.
"All weapons free."
The Kikkas pounced on the almost undefended aircraft on the ground. Soviet Yak-9 and MiG-9 fighters found themselves riddled with 30mm shells, exploding as the fuel tanks caught fire.
The Keiuns zoomed over the harbor, some minor anti-aircraft fire blocking their way. 30mm shells tore apart the anti-aircraft guns, shredding their crews to pieces.
One of the Keiuns spotted a number of ships docked in the harbor. He dived on the ships, releasing the two wing-mounted 500kg bombs just above the ship, and pulled back up. A massive explosion rocked the hull of the Chapayev-class cruiser, detonating its magazines and sending it straight to the bottom of the harbor. The Keiun dropped its remaining 800kg bomb on a building, which exploded like a firework show.
More buildings exploded.
More ships sank.
Soldiers ran for cover, trying to escape the cannon shells and bombs.
A bomb fell on one of the ammunition depots, detonating the supplies and producing a brilliant fireworks show.
Rei tapped on the radar screen. He signed.
"New contact. South. Three. Fighters, take them out."
"Affirmative."
Two of the Kikkas screamed in the direction Rei indicated. A number of Lavochkin La-7 fighters flew up to meet them, only to be torn to pieces.
"Right," Rei said. "Next."
A Soviet soldier, his shoulder burnt and his legs bleeding, stared in horror at the aircraft destroying the harbor.
His breathing became ragged. He could feel the blood beginning to clog up his lungs.
"It can't… be…" he stammered. "We are fighting… shadows… ghosts of the… past… war…"
The poor soldier received no reply; he received 30mm shells instead.
Chapter 3: Zen-taisen no Bourei
前大戦の亡霊
END
Tachikawa Ki-74-R
General characteristics
Crew: 4
Capacity: 9,200 kg (20,300 lb)
Length: 17.65 m (57 ft 11 in)
Wingspan: 18.6 m (61 ft 0 in)
Height: 5.1 m (16 ft 9 in)
Wing area: 80 m2 (860 sq ft)
Empty weight: 10,200 kg (22,487 lb)
Gross weight: 19,400 kg (42,770 lb)
Powerplant: 2 × Mitsubishi Ha104 Ru turbo-supercharged 18-cylinder air-cooled radial piston engines, 1,500 kW (2,000 hp) each
Performance
Maximum speed: 570 km/h (354 mph; 308 kn)
Cruise speed: 400 km/h (249 mph; 216 kn)
Range: 8,000 km (4,971 mi; 4,320 nmi)
Service ceiling: 12,000 m (39,000 ft)
Wing loading: 242.5 kg/m2 (49.7 lb/sq ft)
Power/mass: 0.154 kW/kg (0.093 hp/lb; 0.206 hp/kg)
Armament
Guns: none
Bombs: none
Other: Type FM-1 Air/Surface search radar and Type 3 Electronic jamming apparatus
Yokosuka R2Y2 Keiun-kai (Arctic Fleet use type)
General characteristics
Crew: 2
Length: 13.05 m (42 ft 10 in)
Wingspan: 14.00 m (45 ft 11 in)
Height: 4.24 m (13 ft 9 in)
Wing area: 34.0 m² (366 ft²)
Empty weight: 6,015 kg (13,261 lb)
Loaded weight: 8,100 kg (17,857 lb)
Max. takeoff weight: 9,400 kg (20,723 lb)
Powerplant: 2 × Mitsubishi Ne-330 Turbojet engines
Performance
Maximum speed: 770 km/h (416 kn, 480 mph)
Range: 3,610 km (1,949 nmi, 2,251 mi)
Service ceiling: 12,700 m (38,376 ft)
Rate of climb: 1100 m/min (3609 ft/min)
Wing loading: 238 kg/m² (49 lb/ft²)
Power/mass: 31 W/kg (0.19 hp/lb)
Armament
Guns: 3 x 30mm Type 5 cannon
Bombs: 2 x 500 kg bombs and 1 x 800 kg bomb
Author's notes: Hello everyone. Karl the Arty here. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Constructive criticism is appreciated. See you in the next one :)