Chapter Three – The Meek and the Strong

The next week went by agonizingly slow. While they went on missions, Raki found himself frustrated, as he was not really learning anything new during such excursions, even becoming used to the strange battles that occurred daily. More resources arrived every day, and he found he had to request more stock rooms.

If there was something that staved his annoyance for even a moment, it was what he found when he returned to the construction docks. The workers moved at almost lightning speed, building what was obviously a ship. A very real, very much not living, ship. The chief explained that this was how it had to be done, that a soul would not return to a vessel that was different than their own. The idea of the numerous faults that could occur, which Hibiki had mentioned the day before, made much more sense. The fact that they could do something of this scale in a week was unbelievable. Every day, however, the ship took its form more and more. Not only were they building the outside, but the inside as well. In fact, after the first three days, Raki was not privy to the major changes that were occurring, as the entire outside had been completed.

However, finally, the day arrived. All Raki could do was wait, sitting at his desk.

After waiting an agonizing three hours of solitude, there was a quiet knock on the door. Raki quickly got up and said, "Come in."

Hibiki opened it with the usual calm serenity. Behind her was another girl. She was small, but the effect was only compounded when she moved towards the desk. Her head slightly bowed, one arm clutching the other nervously, made Raki feel an odd sense of guilt, as if it were his fault that she were there. Well, the truth was that it was, but she might as well have been a child awaiting punishment in the principal's office, for the way she acted.

"It's all right." Hibiki's calm voice seemed to push the girl forward. For a few seconds she just stood there. Just as Raki was about to open his mouth to speak, she bowed low.

"M-My name is Inazuma. Pleased to meet you!" Despite the slight hesitance in her voice, when she looked back up, she had a more neutral expression on her face, even if her mouth still had a bit of a downturn.

"It's, ah, nice to meet you, too, Inazuma." If there was a complete opposite to Hibiki's seeming indifference, it was this girl, whose emotions were as transparent as a glass wall. He was not sure what to make of her, however, as while Hibiki's personality was fit for battle, this one, Inazuma's seemed a counter to what her duties were.

"U-um," Inazuma tried to make out something else, but Hibiki stepped forward, almost as if in defense of her.

"Here are Inazuma's specifications, Commander." The abrupt change in topic not only surprised Raki, but Inazuma as well, who just looked with open-mouthed astonishment at Hibiki. The blunt tone was not out of character for Hibiki, however, so there was no need for any sort of rebuke. She pulled a small thin file from a larger folder.

"H-Hibiki," Inazuma tried speaking again. However, history was bound to repeat itself. Hibiki, ignoring Inazuma,

"Inazuma is one of my sister ships and therefore has the same specifications as I do. However, I would like to say that she seems to do well with torpedoes, and suggest that she is equipped with 61cm quad oxygen torpedoes," she paused slightly, as if waiting for Raki to respond. However, he simply just nodded to allow her to continue. "However, in terms of destructive power, we are still very heavily lacking. I would suggest our next construction be at least a Light Cruiser-class or higher."

"Haa… so, erm, is that different than making a destroyer?"

"The process is the same but it often takes ten times the resources or more." Ten times? Just a moment ago, Raki had assumed that the base was overflowing with resources, but if larger ships took so much, it would not be long before they ran out. "Also, in general, a stronger shipgirl is harder to construct."

"There is a higher chance of failure?" As Raki had only constructed once, and had no experience with failure, the effects of such an event were alien to him. "What happens if it fails?"

"A different shipgirl will be constructed." Hibiki considered a bit further. "In general, battleships and aircraft carriers are amongst the hardest to craft. … Submarines even more so."

"Which should we attempt to construct, then?" as Raki was still inexperienced, he did not trust himself to make that decision. However, Hibiki was having none of that.

"It is up to you, Commander." Hibiki said this in a flat little voice. She was simply the secretary, and while she had her own opinions, she wanted to hear what the Commander had to say.

"Right, I figured that."

"That being said, I would suggest a light cruiser. The chances of something heavier is much lower." Considering the amount of resources that they had at their disposal, it probably would be unwise to dedicate too much for a single ship at the current time. Not that he really understood how much was too much. The entire process was straight out of science fiction or fantasy, and since resources just kept flowing in every day, it almost felt like a game. However, the resources at hand were not simple ones and zeroes. He could only imagine that admiral's wrath if he learned Raki had squandered his assets so quickly.

"Is that so? Well, for now… I'm going for a walk."

"U-um!" A small, timid voice stopped Raki in his tracks. He had completely forgotten somehow that the new Ship Girl was there. Her presence was just too faint, he felt. Something like her wasn't meant to be on the battlefield. Despite what Hibiki said, Inazuma did not seem like she had a fighting bone in her body. Still, her innocent meekness was such a change from Hibiki's professionalism it made him smile.

"Inazuma, right? I look forward to working with you. Hibiki, can you get her briefed and everything? Show her around?"

"…" Like he had walked straight through cold water, Raki felt a slight chill. Hibiki was staring at him. Expressionless as ever, that only served to further his

"Er, is that not acceptable, Hibiki? Aren't you two... didn't you say you were sister ships?" Having done research, Raki did know the names of Hibiki's so-called sister ships, those in the Akatsuki-class. Akatsuki, Hibiki, Ikazuchi and Inazuma. Perhaps the ship girls went about things differently, but Raki would have thought Hibiki wanted to be with Inazuma. Yet, it was obvious that this was not the right course of action.

"You are going for a walk, correct, Commander?"

"Ah… yes, that's what I said?" For some reason, Raki felt like replying meekly.

"Then, why don't you show Inazuma around while doing so? That will accomplish both missions at the same time."

"Ah." While it should have been a fairly obvious choice, it had slipped between the cracks. This was most likely due to one single fact. Inazuma was trembling with nervousness. There was no doubt in Raki's mind that if they went out together, just the two of them, she would probably start crying. Perhaps the thought of having to be alone with the admiral only thirty minutes into her existence was a little bit more than she could handle. However…

"Inazuma." Hibiki chopped her brown-haired sister ship right on the head. A mile away, one could hear the ringing gong of this corporeal punishment. Or so Raki would like to think. Despite this, instead of the full burst of tears that Raki had expected, Inazuma simply rubbed her head unhappily. Hibiki continued. "The admiral will show you around the base."

"Haa…" Raki sighed deeply and nodded. There wasn't any reason to refuse, after all. "In that case, Hibiki, see about the new shipgirl's construction."

"Understood, sir." With a quick salute, Hibiki walked out of the room, leaving Inazuma close to tears once again. Raki noted this with an inward sigh. The two were completely different. Inazuma was not just meeker, but she was more than a bit of a crybaby. Would she really be okay? Despite Hibiki's assurances, he couldn't help but feel like she would only be a burden when the missions started. But it was not like he could just abandon her, either. Considering the cost each shipgirl incurred, he couldn't do anything but pray that she would prove to be more competent than he imagined. Everything would start with him. If he couldn't bring something but of her it would end up being his failure, after all.

"Well then, are you ready?"

"Hawawa… y-yes, sir." With trembling shoulders, the small shipgirl trudged slowly towards Raki. He smiled gently at her.

"Good. Let's go."