AN: Edits I made! I added a little thing at the start of the first chapter to spice things up a bit. I also bumped up the Kansens' initial pay to 10,000 USD, because why not. And I made a bunch of grammatical corrections in all the previous chapters too. That's why this chapter took so long.

More at the bottom, but this is it for now. I hope you guys enjoy!


It was quiet in the office for now, but not for long. Lieutenant Jeremiah Connolly yawned as he walked through the halls of Camp H.M. Smith. He'd barely gotten any sleep last night and now he was back to work. That's why he had a big cup of black coffee in his hand, something he hated but believed necessary for the task.

The ARGUS system was now active, but it still needed to be integrated into the current system. In the future, USNKC would likely have its own building and operations room similar to the Pacific Warfighting Center, but for now, the only screens that displayed it was his PC, the TV in the conference room down the hall, and another TV in COMPACFLT. So, on top of monitoring the scopes, the Lieutenant was also in charge of designing a better system for it.

And they say the 'Chair Force' doesn't do anything but sit around all day. That was true in a sense, but they were still going to break their kidneys with the amount of coffee they were consuming. That was further solidified when he entered his office and booted up his computer. The first thing to do was check the scopes, and when he did, he was greeted by multiple warnings and red dots. Some of which were in places America couldn't reach.

"Oh shit," Was all he could say before scrambling for the phone.


Date: 03/24/2016

Time: 0530 hours (GMT+12)

Location: 10° 22' 28.6" N, 167° 47' 45.5" E North Pacific Ocean

"KANCOM, this is Port Royal charlie oscar."

"This is KANCOM, I hear you, Port Royal."

"Uh, SPY's picking up a large group of surface contacts at 2-9-0 degrees and at approximately 150 nautical miles out. It's around a hundred-fifty miles southeast of the original target locations. And uh, there are no friendly units we know of in the area too," Ferguson told him.

"KANCOM, this is John Paul Jones charlie oscar, I concur. We're also seeing the same things on our own sensors. And it can't be civilian traffic because there are no shipping lanes over there and there's no reason for civvies to be sailing like that over there too," Cruz added.

"It's amazing that radar today can see that far," Enterprise remarked.

"AEGIS is the best radar system in the world. And it's even more impressive when you realize it's over forty years old. Simply put, it's hard to go wrong with it. But, I still want to be sure," Ryan said.

Ryan felt like hell. After getting boarded by Sirens only a few hours before and helping with the cleanup, he was only able to get two hours of sleep in before he had to get back to commanding the fleet. At least there was an abundance of coffee.

"We still need a positive ID of the target. That's the ROE," Ryan replied. "Fortunately, we'll get an ID in just a little bit. Hornet, how're thing's on your end?"

The blonde carrier stood on the top of her mast with her eyes closed she controlled a trio of Dauntlesses far over the horizon. She felt the cold early morning air flow across her body, causing her to shiver a bit. And although she was there, she could also see from the cockpit of one of her aircraft through the telepathic link.

"No, Commander, can't see nothin' from up here. I'm gonna need a couple more minutes," Hornet replied with a shake of her head as if she could be seen doing it.

Carrier ops at night sucked. Well, technically, it was early morning, but it was still really dark so the effect was the same. Especially now in the clouds, she spent a lot of time making sure her air group doesn't crash into one another in the darkness. Another one of a Kansen's abilities, specifically for carriers, is that her air group has an autopilot function so she doesn't have to be bothered controlling every single one of her aircraft in the sky.

But there's a catch, she still has to do some micromanaging to make sure her aircraft goes where she wants them to go. However, the more experienced an aircraft carrier is, the less she has to do it. The opposite was true for less experienced ones. Unfortunately for the Horny Maru, she is the opposite. Chalk it down to being in service for only a year before eating a bunch of torpedoes in Santa Cruz. Her dead body is still there by the way. She knows the exact location of it too.

Yorktown has some experience in night fighting, not the best but better than her. And Enterprise, aside from being Enterprise, has true night fighting capabilities. So that begs the question, why the hell was she asked to do this? And why the hell did she agree?

"Wait, I'm seeing somethin'. Hold on," She said as she moved her aircraft closer.

The three-ship flight descended just below the cloud layer to get a better view of the surface below. That's when she saw it. Moving on the ocean surface were dozens of silhouettes arranged in a neat formation. They were ships, they had to be. No lights on too, aside from a faint red glow on each of them. It was obvious what it was.

"Commander, I'm seein' about thirty or forty surface contacts. No lights, markings, or anything. It has to be Sirens," She reported before multiple burst explosions formed all around her, making her pull up back into the clouds. "Oh shit! They're shooting at me! Definitely Sirens."

"Well, we have an ID now. Weapons free," Ryan announced. "Let's get this turkey!"

"Eh?!" Zuikaku gasped.

"Not you, Miss Zuikaku," Ryan said, prompting a few to laugh at her misfortune.

"Do we start launching bombers?" Enterprise asked.

"No, we'll let the Jones and Royal deal with 'em first," He replied before picking up the radio. "Jones, Royal, you're both clear to launch TASMs at them. One missile per ship only, let's not waste money. Hornet, keep your scouts there for spotting and kill verifications."

"You got it, KANCOM," Ferguson replied.

"Got it. Preparing to shoot," Cruz replied.

"You got it, Commander!" Hornet replied.

"The rest of you just sit back, relax, and enjoy the show," He said as he sat back in his seat.

The Combat Information Centers of the two guided-missile ships became busier as personnel worked together to get a firing solution working. Once that was done, an alarm sounded on both ships, signaling their crews that a launch was imminent. Then their COs counted down until it was time to shoot!

"Fire!"

Twenty Mk 41 VLS cells on both ships opened on both ships before one-by-one pillars of fire and smoke shot out of them as a single missile launched from each one. The solid rocket booster (SRB) on each missile shot it out of its launch cell, raising it up to an altitude of about a hundred feet before the thrust vectoring of the SRB reoriented the weapon from a vertical to a horizontal angle of attack. The missile's wings and control surfaces unfolded as the SRB runs out of juice and jettisons away before its Williams International F107-WR-402 turbofan engine would light up and propelled it for the rest of the way to its target. The same was the story of the next thirty-nine missiles fired from the Mk 41s of both ships.

The RGM-109B Tomahawk Anti-Ship Missile (TASM) is a surface-launched, anti-shipping variant of the venerable Tomahawk Land Attack Missile (TLAM). It uses a modified version of the active radar homing seeker head found on the Harpoon anti-ship missile but features a longer range, higher speed, and a larger 1000 lbs warhead that the Tomahawk features. The TASM was originally withdrawn from service in 1994 and converted into Block IV TLAMs, but due to the threat posed by the sudden appearance of the Sirens, a number of missiles have been re-converted for use while newer systems are still in development. A variant of the Block IV features a passive radar seeker head for better target discrimination over long distances and the later Block V has more advanced systems, but they are still in development.

"Wow," Willie Dee whispered in awe, a sentiment shared by all the girls as they watched the missiles go.

"At this range, the missiles would take about fifteen minutes to reach their targets. So you girls just relax for now. Grab a coffee, use the washroom, whatever," Ferguson stated.

"How's the fuel on those birds, Hornet?" Ryan asked.

"They've got about an hour left before they need to turn back. I can keep this up," She replied.

"Good. I suggest you grab a coffee while you're at it too. You'll probably need it," He stated before putting the radio down and turning to Enterprise. "Can you get me a cup too, black, please?

She smiled a bit and nodded. "Of course. Give me a sec."

The missiles zoomed above the ocean surface at only 100 feet high and cruised at a subsonic 913 km/h. Their active-radar warheads scanned the horizon in front of them, looking for a target to slam into and sink. Minutes would pass with emissions having no returns until they passed the eight-minute mark when the seekers started getting reflections of emissions that had hit something. Were these the targets or were these something else? It doesn't matter, to the Tomahawk missile, everything is a potential target and everything will die to it. So, the seeker head locked on and plotted a collision course for it. The missile always knew where it was. And now, the missile knows where the target is too.

Whatever it is the Tomahawk had crashed into didn't even have time to react. Its metal body was violently mangled by the explosion of the 1000 lbs warhead and the kinetic energy of the missile body. Fires and secondary explosions would then ignite volatile materials packed within into a brilliant show of pyrotechnics. Multiple spectacles were seen throughout the surrounding area.

"Whoa!" Hornet exclaimed, having been startled by the sudden flashes of light from multiple explosions within the fleet below as dozens of missiles struck true. "Holy shit! U-Um, I'm seeing multiple direct hits on target, Commander! Lots of them look critical! Lots look like they're sinking too!"

"Alright! That's how it's done!" Ferguson exclaimed as he and his crew cheered.

"Hornet, can you identify how many of the ships were sunk?" Ryan requested.

"Give me a sec, Commander," She replied.

Her scouts descended below the cloud layer once again. She got closer to the enemy fleet as well, and interestingly enough, she wasn't shot at. That was the first indicator. Looking down, she saw the dozens of ships that comprised the fleet was now burning in at least one spot. There was more light now as dawn approached but identifying which ship was sinking was still a bit tricky due to all the smoke. Although, that can be the second indicator. After flying around for another minute, she finally spoke.

"Commander, I think they got all of 'em," She replied.

"Are you sure?"

"They all look dead to me. Hold on! There's one more– oh wait, never mind, it's just listing. Yup, they're all dead, Commander," She answered.

"We got the bastards! Yeah!" Cruz cheered along with his crew. "John Paul Jones, remember the deal, we're splitting the kills."

"Yeah, yeah. I know."

"So this is the power of the modern world?" Yorktown breathed.

"Even I can't do that," Enterprise mumbled.

"Oh please, Enty, I've seen you do just as much damage before," Hornet argued.

"Not as quickly though!"

"That's not even the full capability of the modern navy. Wait till you see the boomers and carriers," Ryan remarked.

"Well, that was anti-climactic," Best remarked, having only arrived at the bridge five minutes before. "What now, Mister Ryan?"

He shrugged. "I dunno. I guess let's just close in and collect the dropped Wisdom Cubes and do another sweep of the area before going home," He answered.

"Beware, Commander, the battle is not over yet," Salem cautioned.

"Obviously, it's never that easy," He muttered. "Okay, all ships maintain your present conditions for a little while longer. I'm not taking chances."

"Yes sir!"

More light now draped over them as dawn approached. It was still relatively dark, but it won't be like that for long now. Opening up the GUNKAN app on his iPad, he noted that all three task forces were now very close to the intercept point. Essex and Warspite had also sent a message that their missile-armed escorts had also detected and engaged Siren boats with TASMs, destroying them before the Kansens could even do anything. Ryan still told them to remain on alert because something just didn't feel right.

"I could totally kill for some pancakes right now," Best stated tiredly.

"You and me both, kiddo," Ryan said. "Hey, if nothing happens by the time 0600 rolls around, why don't you head down to the galley and grab us something to eat?"

"Yeah, sure thing, Mister Ryan."

"Anything on sensors, Enterprise?"

"Nothing I can see… Wait…" She paused, causing the heads of both men to snap toward her.

"What?" Ryan asked cautiously.

She didn't reply immediately as she focused on her radar. There was a blip on it. Just one blip, but it's still something. And the scary thing was she didn't what it was. Maybe it was just nothing. Maybe. But she couldn't take chances here.

"One second, Commander," She requested.

Squinting her eyes as if she was viewing a radar screen, she put a bit more focus on the blip. The antenna struck it once more and she waited until it looped back around. But once it did, the blip disappeared. Confused by this, she adjusted the radar to try and find it again when something else happened… She found the blip again, along with another one, and another one, and another… Yep! Definitely enemy!

"Commander, I'm picking up a large cluster of airborne contacts coming in from a bearing 1-3-0 degrees, approximately 50 nautical miles and closing in," She reported.

"My sensors show the same thing, Commander," Salem added.

"I've just lost contact with CAP I have over there too, Commander," Yorktown reported.

"KANCOM, yeah we concur with the reports. Our sensors see them too," Ferguson stated.

"We concur too," Cruz added.

"There's way too much for them to come from a portal. They had to have launched from carriers that just came in," Enterprise added.

Although caught off guard by the sudden reports, Ryan could grasp and process all of them clearly. And once he did, the gears in his head turned to form a plan.

"All ships, prepare for anti-aircraft action immediately. Carriers, get your CAPs to intercept the incoming airborne contacts and launch additional fighters too. Send some scouts toward that bearing too and find those carriers. Jones and Royal, hold back for now and try not to stick out too much, save your missiles for later. And once they find those carriers, I want you two to thrust some TASMs in their assholes."

"Roger!"

All the ships maneuvered into anti-aircraft warfare positions with the two missile-armed ships staying well within the defensive AA net. Modern warships were significantly squishier than their legacy counterparts. It was best to stay safe.

Meanwhile, fighters from the carriers rushed to intercept the incoming swarm with more being launched. They tangled with the enemy aircraft, mercilessly ripping them apart, but despite that, some still got through. It would be up to ship-based AA to finish them off.

"Here they come. Let's give them a warm welcome. Shall we, Kongou-san?" Amagi grinned.

"I'm right behind you, Amagi-sama," The other battlecruiser replied with a light chuckle.

The turrets on their ships turned to point at the incoming swarm with 'beehive' shells being loaded. The Sanshikidan (Type 3 shell), also known as 'beehive' shells, were special-purpose main-battery shells to be used in anti-aircraft action. The shells featured a delay fuze that would detonate the shells in flight, releasing the contents of steel tubes that contained highly flammable material, like rubber thermite and phosphorous, into the surrounding area, preferably on the path of an enemy airplane to burn it out of the sky. It looked good on paper, but it didn't work nearly as well as expected in practice. The shells barely shot down any aircraft and were used only a couple of times to bombard stationary targets on land which worked kind of well, but they were barely used at all throughout the war and they also damage the rifling of the guns that fired them. However, these shells would now be used again by Kansens through Wisdom Cube technology and some gimmicks…

"Standby for maximum range… And… Ute!" Amagi exclaimed as she fired.

All ten of her 41 cm/45 3rd Year Type guns within her five twin turrets fired simultaneously. Kongou did the same thing a second later, her eight 36 cm/45 41st Year Type guns within her four twin turrets fired simultaneously as well. A total of eighteen beehive shells of 16.1 and 14 inches in caliber soared toward their targets at around 790-800 m/s, detonating on the path of clusters of aircraft and spreading their payload in a cone shape. The aircraft unlucky enough to fly through the spread caught the burning incendiary material which quickly melted through the lightweight airframe, destroying hydraulics and electronics, and subsequently bringing the whole airplane down. The same was the story of the next batch of aircraft that flew through the second and third salvos shot at them. A good portion of them was downed but still, a lot continued on. No worries, it was now up to the second layer of defense.

"Alright, just a little bit closer now," Cleveland breathed as she looked at her radar. Her four triple turrets housing 6"/47 caliber Mark 16 guns were turned, aimed, and loaded with Mk. 34 HE-VT fused shells. Variable timed means proximity fuzed; when it gets close to a target, it detonates without touching it. It was one of the inventions that won the war. Now, it will win this one. "Just a little bit more… and… FIRE!"

All twelve of her six-inch guns fired simultaneously, hurling the same amount of similar caliber shells toward the swarm. Variable timed means proximity fuzed; when it gets close to a target, it detonates without touching it. It was one of the inventions that won the war. Now, it will win this one as well, a fact further solidified when each 6-inch shell tore apart two to three planes within its detonation radius. That, plus the kills from the other shells, plus the kills from the salvos from Brooklyn, Helena, and Belfast who had similar armaments, multiplied by at least three more salvos from them, equated to another good chunk of the approaching enemy air power. But they still approached. No matter, time for the third layer of defense.

"Good morning everybody and welcome to the morning show! Sit back, relax, and don't push, there's plenty to see for everybody! Now, let's get this party started, and let me show you why I am number one! Yeah!"

She began her song by firing a volley of Mk. 31 HE-VT rounds from her twelve 5"/38 caliber guns housed in six twin turrets. Despite her looks and demeanor, San Diego is one vicious anti-aircraft cruiser, capable of fending off even the most brutal of carrier strikes. One of the few that can beat her is Enterprise, which makes sense since she is second to her in battle stars. She somehow always has energy to burn, especially when it's to compliment her pop-star persona. Well, if you can swat whole squadrons of aircraft out of the sky, then might as well show off, right?

While Sandy did her thing, the swarm had now also come in the range of the main battery of the destroyers and the secondary battery of the larger boat. Guns from 102 to 127 millimeters in caliber immediately opened up to further soften up the swarm. Enterprise's 5"/38 caliber guns also started to open up. And those that got really close were dealt with by small caliber AA. Machine guns and autocannons started to open up from 12.7 to 40 millimeters in caliber. At that last part, most of the aircraft had already been shredded, and those that did still manage to get through the wall of lead were so little in number that avoiding their ordnance was not much of a problem anymore.

"Lord God in Heaven," Ryan breathed as he looked through his binoculars.

"What is it, sir?" Best asked.

"The Japanese AA… it's… being useful," He replied in a shocked voice.

Enterprise chuckled a bit. "That's the power of Wisdom Cubes at work. I had the same reaction too before."

"Well, it's not like it's a bad thing. They're on our side now. Besides, we can't be choosy with the AA cover, even with our AEGIS-equipped escorts," Ryan said as he turned to the DDG.

"Vampire! Vampire! Vampire! Killing with sea-whiz!" The gunner's mate aboard the John Paul Jones announced before pulling the trigger.

Speaking of which, John Paul Jones and Port Royal were also helping out. Though they didn't use their missiles, they still pitched in by firing their 5"/54 caliber Mark 45 deck guns and 20mm Mk-15 Phalanx CIWS. Their computerized fire control systems made it easier for them to make more accurate shots. Although, they still had some problems.

"Grrr, goddamnit," An Operations Specialist aboard the Port Royal growled as he stared at the mess displayed on his screen. "Bridge, CIC, I can't get an accurate track on the airborne contacts. It's a mess on my screen."

"CIC, Bridge, are you being jammed?" The Captain asked.

"Negative, sir, there's just too much stuff in the air. Radar can't track them all," He replied.

The AN/SPY-1 is a 3D radar system developed by Lockheed Martin in 1973. It featured a passive electronically scanned array (PESA) system that provides 360-degree coverage of a ship. The system was developed as a key component of the Aegis Combat System for surface warships and is also a part of the Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense System. It's also the best radar system in the world which is why it's in service with multiple other countries with more interested in procuring the system in the future. The Russians and Chinese have also made their own versions of the system. Simply put, it's very capable and very reliable.

But of course, it still has its limits. The system aboard the Jones, the AN/SPY-1D, can only track about 100 targets at a time. That is a lot in modern warfare. But this is not modern warfare. Not only were there aircraft aloft but the various artillery shells in the air were also being tracked by the radar. And there were lots of them. Too many for the radar to track correctly.

"Just try not to track anything too small to be an airplane or anything not heading towards us. Can you do that?" Cruz demanded.

"Uh, I think I can clean it up, sir. But it'll still be difficult to do," The OS replied.

"Just do your best. Bridge out," Cruz said before dialing in a different channel. "KANCOM, this is Jones CO. SPY can't track targets effectively because there's too much shit in the air."

"This is Port Royal, yeah we've got the same problem," Ferguson added.

Ryan had heard it instantly and took it in. SPY can't track effectively? That's not good."

"Can't you clean up your screens?" He asked.

"We're doing our best, but the system's just not designed to see this much shit. We're gonna have to do some tweaks once we get back to Pearl," Ferguson explained.

"Roger that. What can we do?"

"I think y'all are gonna have to cease fire for a bit to clear up the screen. For friendly aircraft, since they don't have IFF transponders, they're gonna have to drop down or go up a thousand feet or so, otherwise, we might lock onto them by accident," Cruz answered.

"Got it. We're not using missiles for now anyways, so it's alright. But, I'll hold onto this. I think we'll need it later," Ryan replied. "But, I guess we're fine for now. The girls are holding the line it seems."

"C-Commander! I'm picking up multiple surface contacts at 3-1-0 degrees, approximately 30 miles out! I think they just came in too!" Helena reported.

"Oh goddamnit!" Ryan cursed. "Okay, let's not multitask here. All ships, turn to a heading of 1-8-0 degrees and maintain that at flank speed. Let's stay out of range of them for now and focus on the air attack."

"Affirmative!"

"Where are those carriers?!"

"We're still looking, Shikikan. It's quite difficult to get through this swarm," Shoukaku replied with a grunt as she tried to get a flight of Zeros through the swarm without being shredded. It wouldn't be for another couple of minutes does she find an opening and slip away.

Meanwhile, the battleship-type Sirens started opening fire even when they were outside of their effective firing range. It probably thought it could get lucky and decided to hurl some in their direction. Predictably, none hit but it was still quite worrying. Luck was a real factor on the battlefield. Ryan then looked out the window and saw the sky being just bright enough not to rely on flashlights anymore.

"Ah screw it. All carriers, launch bombers immediately and engage the second enemy fleet. But only a single squadron per type. Just give them something else to think about," He ordered.

"Affirmative!"

Squadrons immediately started launching off the decks of each carrier a moment later. Though only a single squadron per type, not committing all of their aircraft now just in case there were more surprises later. Devastators, Avengers, Dauntlesses, Suiseis, and Tenzans took to the skies, gaining altitude, and heading toward the enemy fleet to give them a taste of their own medicine. Each squadron was coordinated to be as effective as possible, attacking from multiple angles to negate the enemy's defenses. And although they were sent only to annoy the enemy, they still performed above that and detonated a few magazines.

"That should buy us some time," Ryan remarked, watching the tiny light flashes through his binoculars. He put them down and turned to look at the carnage outside. They were whittling away the swarm pretty well. They shouldn't be around for much longer. "Just a bit more."

"Commander, second and third enemy surface fleets detected! Bearing 1-0-0 degrees and 2-5-0 degrees respectively! Both are at a range of 18 miles!" Helena reported. "Going by the size of the returns, they're both pretty big!"

"Okay, it's a fight then" Ryan muttered. "The enemy's going all out so we will too. All ships, change heading to 1-2-0 degrees. Carriers, you've got the second fleet, while the big gun ships have the third fleet once they come within range."

"Affirmative!"

The fleet took about a few minutes to change their heading and reshuffle their formation a bit as they went on. Carriers also committed a full strike package to deal with the enemy with Hornet launching her B-25s too. The combined air force went ahead to deal with them while the rest of the fleet closed in on the surface group. Minutes passed rather quickly until the waves of aircraft began their attack runs while the surface group began calculating their firing solutions.

"I see them, Commander," Salem said as she stood within her bridge, facing out through the windows. Her eyes weren't open.

"Get a solution going and standby for my signal. Same for the rest of you," Ryan replied.

The heavy cruiser's eyes opened, revealing bright violet irises and glowing red pupils, as a smirk formed on her face.

"As you command."

Her three triple turrets housing three 8"/55 caliber Mark 16 guns began traversing while her fire control systems calculated the best firing solution. The rest of the fleet did the same.

"Time for some exercises then," Alaska grunted as stretched her body from within her bridge. Her nine 12"/50 caliber Mark 8 guns in three triple turrets traversed to face the enemy.

"Lemme have a piece of them first, honey!" New Jersey exclaimed as her turrets began turning too. Nine 16"/50 caliber guns, the largest artillery pieces to ever go into service with the United States Navy, in three triple turrets turned to face the enemy.

Calibers from 203 to 410 millimeters in caliber have been trained and firing solutions have been made. Multiple "guns ready" or similar phrases were uttered across the fleet. All that was left was an order.

3… 2… 1… Ryan counted down as he watched the small hand of his watch tick. And then…

"All ships, open fire," He ordered.

A Deafening boom was heard and a bright flash of light was seen for miles as dozens of naval artillery guns fired at the same time. Shells of different calibers and origins sailed across the sky before slamming onto their targets, tearing massive holes into them. Some magazines were even detonated. They weren't all sunk in the first salvo but that's okay. It's not very fun if the enemy were to all die so quickly. It would take a few more minutes but they will whittle them all down.

"More contacts at bearing 2-2-0 degrees, range 10 miles! Only a handful of them with two battleship class types!" Helena reported.

"All ships maintain flank speed and heading. CAs and BBs, keep pounding your current targets. CLs and DDs, please deal with the new batch. DDs, after making your torpedo runs, lay down smoke cover for the rest of us," He ordered.

"Roger!"

The fleet shuffled their positions again to better deal with the enemy with the CLs and DDs breaking off to engage the newest contenders. The light cruisers immediately opened fire when they got a solution while the destroyers kept approaching in order to make use of their torpedoes.

Laffey was zooming at flank speed while following the orders of Z23 who had been designated the leader of the small temporary force. They were sprinting toward a heading of 1-6-0 degrees. Though she still exhibited her normal sleepy demeanor from an outside perspective, she was actually very alert at the moment. And that was when she heard it.

She then walked to the room behind the bridge where the Soundman or the Sonar Technician would be at. The destroyer put on a pair of headphones, made some adjustments to the equipment, and then listened. And it was there. It was faint but she knows they were there. She then reached for her radio.

"Commander, Laffey detects multiple underwater contacts at bearing 1-4-0 degrees, range eight miles from your location," She reported.

"Ayanami detects them too, des," She added.

"Me too," Javelin and Z23 also added.

"Got it. Keep on your present objective, I'll have someone else deal with it," Ryan replied. "Jones, we could use some ASROCs over there."

"Got it."

After checking their own sonar systems to make sure it wasn't friendly and preparing a solution, eight VLS cells on the John Paul Jones opened with RUM-139s launching up into the air. The RUM-139 VL-ASROC is an anti-submarine missile designed by Goodyear Aerospace and then manufactured by Lockheed Martin before entering service in 1993. An evolution of the earlier RUR-5 ASROCs that were launched from a Mk 112 'Matchbox' launcher, the RUM-139 was designed to be able to launch from the Mk 41 VLS cells that were coming into widespread use. The latest variant in use was the RUM-139C which featured the Mark 54 Lightweight Torpedo, an advanced anti-submarine torpedo designed for modern warfare.

The ASROCs traveled in a ballistic path toward their targets. The rocket boosters died out rather quickly, and after correcting the weapon's trajectory, it separated from it. A parachute then popped out which slowed its descent to allow the torpedo to dive into the water without taking damage. The shot was perfect as the torpedoes landed right on top of their targets. Their propulsion systems fired up, propelling them forward, while their acoustic homing guidance systems started looking for targets. It took a minute, but the torpedoes detected the distinct noise of a screw and locked on to it. And sometime after that, there were multiple explosions followed by the crunching of metal.

"This Jones CO, we detect multiple explosions and crunching metal. We got 'em," Cruz reported.

"Got it. Thank you, John Paul Jones," Ryan said as he watched the battle go on.

The destroyers had closed in and launched a salvo of torpedoes toward their targets before laying down a smokescreen to conceal the rest of the fleet. Those same torpedoes would find their marks as shown by the multiple explosions in the distance.

"Yes! I finally get lucky!" Willie Dee cheered.

"Well done, girls. Especially you, Willie Dee. Now get back here, carrier aviation will deal with the stragglers," Ryan told them.

"Roger!"

"Okay, just keep it up," The Commander breathed as he watched the battle rage on.

"Shikikan, I found the enemy carriers!" Shoukaku announced as she flew her Zeroes on a steady path within the clouds that overlooked a whole enemy fleet with five flat tops within. "They're at a bearing of 1-3-0 degrees, range of 53 kilometers. They have a heading of around 0-2-0 degrees while cruising at a speed of 28 knots."

"We've got it," Cruz said.

"We've got 'em too," Ferguson added.

The CICs of both ships made the necessary preparations before slinging thirty TASMs in that direction. They took about three minutes to reach their targets, rendering them into flaming wrecks just as quickly. Shoukaku's squadron overflew them for a moment, examining each wreck through the telepathic link before radioing back.

"All targets confirmed destroyed, Shikikan," She reported.

"Alright, thanks, Miss Shoukaku. And thanks for the help too, Jones and Royal," Ryan replied as he heard the triumphant cheers of the crew of the two missile ships.

"We're almost out of TASMs though, KANCOM," Cruz added.

"We've still got quite a bit, but if this keeps up, they won't last long," Ferguson added.

"Got it. I'll have the carriers take care of the next batch of BVR targets," Ryan replied.

The surface action group continued to melt the enemy surface group for another few minutes before the whole of them was gone with the fleet ceasing fire shortly after. The battle, at best, had paused. They didn't risk lowering to X-ray conditions in case more contacts popped out, but it did give them room to catch their breath. Especially the carriers who started recovering their aircraft to refuel and rearm them for their next sorties. The significant decrease of stuff in the air also cleared up the SPY radar screens on both missile ships, so they now have their eyes back. Not to mention, it was much easier to see now since dawn was only a few minutes away.

Ryan was looking out with a pair of binoculars when he spotted multiple shining things on the ocean surface and instantly figured out what they were.

"Everybody, take this pause in the battle to collect the floating Wisdom Cubes. And make it quick," Ryan spoke through the radio.

"Affirmative!"

"Ah, now that was an exercise!" Enterprise remarked with a grunt as she stretched. It didn't look like she even broke a sweat.

"Glad you got your warmups. Time for the real thing," Ryan stated.

He then picked up his iPad and opened up the GUNKAN app to check the other fleets. TF B and TF C were also locked into combat but were holding their ground very well as stated by their flagships. No reason to doubt them. He also noted that TF B is now fairly close, so if they get caught in a pinch, he can ask for help and their carrier aircraft can come to their aid.

Meanwhile, various Kansen and Navy personnel moved to fish out the floating. The girls skated around with the rigging while the Navy launched their Seahawks and RHIBs for personnel with butterfly nets to grab the cubes.

"Enterprise, get CAP up to cover–"

"Already on it," She cut him off as Hellcats started launching from her deck and forming a squadron to guard the immediate area.

"Huh, wow," Well, I couldn't have expected less, huh? "Thanks. I guess we just wait now."

"I'm gonna grab some more coffee, Mister Ryan," Best said as he turned.

"Get me some more too," Ryan requested.

"I'll help you, Lieutenant," Enterprise said as she followed along.

That left him on the bridge with not much to do. He decided to open up GUNKAN app again to check the larger battlefield. Bravo and Charlie seemed to be cleaning up the remnants of enemy forces they'd encountered. All good there. Then he decided to zoom out and immediately noticed something odd. About 150 miles south-southwest from their location and right next to Kwajalein Atoll was a storm. It didn't look like much and was tiny too, but it seemed to just come out of nowhere. There was nothing in the weather report about any storm. And it was at that moment he realized something which made him reach for the radio.

"Ryan to Amagi, do you copy, over?" He spoke.

"This is Amagi, Shikikan-sama. How may I help you?" She replied.

"During one of our meetings, you mentioned irregular weather anomalies wherever Sirens appeared right?" He asked.

"Hai. It's one of the signs we use when hunting them."

"Does a small storm popping out of nowhere count?"

"Yes, especially those."

"Okay. Shit!"

"What's wrong, Shikikan-sama?" She asked with a worried tone.

"Sirens had likely surfaced again. And in a bad place too," He answered. "All ships, stand-by for orders."

"Commander?" Enterprise said as he and Best returned with coffee.

"Ah, thank you," Ryan said as he gratefully took the mug full of hot coffee, taking a big sip to refill his energy.

"What's the matter?" She asked.

"Hold on," He said and picked up the radio. "All ships, set course to 1-7-5 degrees and accelerate to flank speed. Yorktowns, launch a strike package immediately and send them to the storm southwest of Kwajalein Atoll. There are possible Siren contacts there. 5th CarDiv, I'm keeping you here for fleet defense. We need to defend Kwajalein Atoll which contains an important US Military facility."

"Yes, Commander!"

"What's in Kwajalein?" Enterprise asked.

"The Ronald Reagan Ballistic Missile Defense Site is there. They're currently testing new missile defense systems that we'd use to defend against possible strikes from North Korea or anyone," Best answered. "The Sirens might try to steal some intel or just level the place. There are civilian settlements there too."

" I see. I'll speed up rearming then," Enterprise said as she left again.

That just left Ryan and Best with the latter moving to the side of the former as he made typed on the touchscreen keyboard of his iPad.

"Aren't you hungry yet, Mister Ryan?" The Lieutenant asked.

"I've forgotten my hunger for the moment, but I'll remember it later. We'll get pancakes in a bit. And since we're both busy, you're making 'em," The Commander replied.

Best rolled his eyes and sighed. "If those are your orders, sir."


Meanwhile, across the horizon, a storm thrashed the ocean surface. It wasn't overly intense but it was still unwise to sail through it. And yet, someone did…

Multiple hulls, both big and small maneuvered through the waves, looking for a way out through the storm. A humanoid figure standing atop the mast of one of the larger hulls looked onto the horizon before turning and gesturing to her comrades to follow. The fleet then turned in the pointed direction and sailed at best speed.

But then, multiple projectiles zoomed past and landed near them. Another fleet had appeared. This one had strange designs compared to the former. The first fleet moved to react, turning their weapons and firing back. And the two fleets exchanged shots for minutes before things took a turn and one of them was forced to divert their course.

The hull that diverted would later sail out of the storm, finding an island atoll later. Two fiery hazel eyes onboard looked on with curiosity as her lips curved into a smirk.

"Interessant…"


"We should make contact in ten minutes, Commander," Enterprise reported from beside him.

"Very good," Ryan replied.

An hour and a half had passed, the sun had now risen and nothing has happened. They were able to sail into the Marshall Islands and were continuing on with no issues. The alert status was lowered to allow them all to enjoy a quick breakfast within their ships (there was no gathering within Enterprise) but was still kept high enough so they can spring into action in an instant. TF B and TF C were also within the Marshalls and were conducting their own sweeps. But, as shown by the silence, there was nothing. Dead nothing. And that unnerved him.

"Something's wrong, it's too quiet," Ryan said in a low tone and turned to Enterprise. "What do you think is next?"

She took a second to think about the question before responding. "With a battle dragging out this long, I think the enemy will try to engage with their own Kansen, so we have to fight them up close too."

"Hmm, alright. If Siren Kansen does appear, you girls have the authority to engage them up close," He replied.

She nodded. "Aye, sir."

"Port Royal CO to KANCOM, over, " The radio spoke.

"This is KANCOM, Port Royal," Ryan replied.

"We're detecting large clusters of airborne contacts directly west of us at 2-7-0 degrees, 85 miles out. I think our friends are back," Ferguson reported with Cruz agreeing as well shortly after.

"Okay. Kansens will sit this one out for now, it's your turn to shine again. Blow them out of the sky please," He requested.

"'Kay, KANCOM. We'll get to it."

Again, the Mk 41 cells on both missile ships opened with multiple SM-2MR Block IIIB surface-to-air missiles launching out and heading to their target. The RIM-66 'Standard' is a semi-active radar homing, medium-range surface-to-air missile, with a secondary role as an anti-ship missile, designed and produced by Raytheon since 1967. It was made for use within US Navy vessels but has since found itself within the vessels of multiple countries. Because of its high reliability, it has found itself as one of the best naval anti-aircraft systems in the world. And now, it gets to prove itself once more against the Sirens.

During the pause in the battle, the CICs of both missile ships hastily drew up plans in combating swarm attacks like the one the fleet encountered earlier. They found an answer rather quickly because the solution already existed. NATO doctrine was geared to defend against Soviet saturation attacks where the attacker would wear down the defender with vicious walls of steel. Soviet ships and submarines would fire volleys of missiles and torpedoes at American carrier groups in hopes that few will get through to put the carrier out of action. That same doctrine was still in use today, especially against a potential threat like Iran which may use hundreds of small speed boats loaded with explosives accompanied by Chinese-made 'Silkworm' missiles against Carrier Strike Groups passing through the Strait of Hormuz.

The plan was simple: track a number of targets, launch missiles at them, wait a bit, confirm they were destroyed, and then repeat until there were no targets left. That way, they would only deal with what they can while also making each of their shots count. Now the same idea would be used against the Sirens too.

Being guided by the AN/SPG-62 and SPY fire-control radars from both ships, the missiles zoomed toward their targets at Mach 3.5 and reached them in only two minutes. Sure enough, forty contacts dropped off the screen. So forty more missiles were launched, and those dropped too. And then twenty more until they were all gone.

"This is Port Royal, all targets are down," Ferguson reported.

"This is John Paul Jones, we concur," Cruz said.

"Nice. Thank you very much, Jones and Royal," Ryan replied.

"No problem, KANCOM. The plan works. But there's another problem, we're low on missiles now," Ferguson said.

"Aye. If this keeps up, we'll be out of shots in a flash," Cruz added.

"Uh-huh," Ryan breathed. It's just as he imagined. "Okay then, we'll work on this next time. But hold onto the rest of your missiles for the duration of the time. We'll just use 'em for emergency purposes."

"Alright, KANCOM."

"Roger, KANCOM."

"5th CarDiv, 2-7-0 degrees, find those bastards and sink 'em," Ryan ordered.

"Hai, Shikikan!"

"Commander, we see an enemy fleet. We're engaging," Enterprise said.

"Please."

The combined battle group then engaged the enemy force. Fighters were downed, torpedoes were launched, and bombs were dropped. The enemy fleet did the best it could to fend off the attack, but the opposing force's pilots were just too skilled to go down. And within minutes, the entire enemy fleet was decimated.

"Ouch, that must've hurt," Ryan remarked as he watched multiple bombers go for a single battleship type through his iPad. Earlier, they had a bright idea of taping a camera on a Hellcat and live-streaming the battle from far away. He whistled as he watched the ship explode when its magazine was ignited. "Nice one, Enterprise."

"Oh, those aren't mine. Those are Yorktown's," Enterprise corrected. "Mine's only just making their runs."

"Yorktown?" Ryan questioned as he continued to watch the bombers harass the fleet before shrugging. "It makes sense. Someone had to teach Enterprise how to shoot right?"

"Mhmm, Yorktown taught me how to become everything I am. I wouldn't be the Grey Ghost without her," Enterprise remarked with a fond smile.

People tend to forget that Yorktown had some of the best aviators in the Navy up till the day she sank. Characters such as John S. Thach and Stanley 'Swede' Vejtasa would develop the tactics that won the war and become naval icons. Those same aviators would later transfer to Enterprise where those same tactics would be refined and perfected.

"I wonder what else she can do?" Ryan wondered. Then, the satellite phone rang, prompting him to pick it up and bring it to his ear. "This is Ryan."

"Ryan, it's Admiral Fischer. Good morning, " CO USINDOPACOM greeted.

"Admiral, good morning to you too. How may I help you?" Ryan asked politely.

"There's a situation developing in Kwajalein Atoll. By the descriptions given to me, I've concluded it's something that concerns your department. So here, I'm throwing the problem at you. I hope you're not too busy at the moment," Fischer told him.

He looked at his iPad again to see the strike force turning around, leaving burning wrecks on the ocean surface before speaking again.

"We're cleaning up here, but I can't be sure how long the peace will last, Admiral. But, I'll do the best I can anyway," He replied.

"Excellent. It's not much, the base commander just wants to talk to you. But I apologize for having to bother you."

"Naw, it's just fine sir. I didn't sign up for the easy jobs, right?" Ryan chuckled.

Fischer chuckled too. "Right. I'm transferring this call now. Bye, for now, Commander Ryan. And good luck!"

"Thank you, sir," Ryan replied right before the line went dead and switched to another one.

"Hello, is this Commander Eric Halsey Ryan?" A voice asked in a midwestern accent.

"Yes, it is. Please identify yourself," Ryan replied.

"This is Colonel Arthur Schmidt. I'm the CO of the Army garrison here in Kwajalein. Morning, Commander, good to be talking to 'ya," He greeted.

"Morning to you as well, Colonel. How can I help you?"

"Um, well, it's kind of hard to explain. I was told you were busy, so I'll try not to take much of your time. But some weird shit is going on here."

"What kind of weird shit?"

"As I said, it's hard to explain. You will not believe what just docked here."

"Colonel, not to be rude, but going by all the strange ass things I've seen in only two weeks, I will believe you if you tell me it's the Second Coming of Christ over there. Whatever it is, it may be a part of a string of events happening across the world right now. I can't explain more myself because, one, it's classified by the order of the President, and two, it's too damn long," Ryan explained.

"Alrighty then. It's a warship that docked here. It's definitely World War 2-era because of all the guns. It's not massive like an Iowa, but it's not tiny like a destroyer either. It's in between. And it's not American, that's for damn sure. But the weirdest thing is that it doesn't have any crew, except for one woman that I have one of my subordinates questioning right now. I didn't get the name yet," Schmidt explained.

Yep, definitely a Kansen. But which one? There were no major naval battles in Kwajalein. No ships sunk there either. But what about post-war..? Wait…

"Hold on, Colonel, lemme get one of my subordinates," Ryan said before getting another person on the call.

"What is it, Herr Kommandant?" Admiral Hipper demanded.

"Miss Hipper, I need you to identify who this person is based on the following description," Ryan replied. "Colonel, please describe the woman there."

"Right, uh, she's got long sliver hair with two head ornament things and reddish-hazel eyes. She's wearing this red and grey long-sleeved top that's got the German cross on the collar and sleeves. And she's not wearing anything underneath too," Schmidt described.

"Hmm, does this person have an accent like mine? Does she also speak in an irritating voice? And does have an annoying look on her face too?" Hipper questioned.

"Um, yes, on all of those."

Hipper groaned. "Ja, I know exactly who she is, Herr Kommandant. That's mein liebe Schwester. You know her as the other German ship."

Called it!

"Okay, thank you, Miss Hipper," Ryan replied. "She's with us, Colonel, don't worry. We'll get her when we can. Just be nice to her for now, I guess."

"Alright– Oh, hey, she's coming here now. Do you want to talk to her, Commander?"

"Yeah, sure."

"Okay, I'm handing over the phone now."

He heard shuffling and some muffled voices before hearing the sounds of breathing.

"Hallo. Who is this?" A feminine voice with a thick German accent asked.

"This is Commander Eric Halsey Ryan of the United States Navy. To whom am I speaking?" He asked while already knowing who it is.

"A Kommandant? How interesting," The person on the other end spoke with a sensual tone and a giggle. "I am schwerer Kreuzer Prinz Eugen of the Admiral Hipper-class. It's nice to be talking to you, Kommandant Ryan."

"Eugen! Why are you here?!" Hipper demanded.

"That voice. It only comes from a certain washboard cruiser," Prinz Eugen giggled. "Schwester? Is that really you? My, you've dropped off the face of the world so suddenly. We were all so worried."

"I'm fine. My fleet was tracking Sirens before we got thrown here. What about you?" Hipper replied.

"More or less the same from you. But a more detailed explanation will have to wait until we meet again. Don't you agree, Kommandant?" Eugen said.

Even through the phone, Ryan could detect traces of relief and gladness in her voice while still sounding playful. Well, they are family. Families are weird like that.

"Yeah. We need to keep this short because we're still busy here. How are you though?" He asked.

"I'm okay. The men here have been nice enough. I did receive a few guns pointed at me when I arrived, but overall, everything is fine," She replied.

"Okay, good to hear. Just sit tight over there and we'll come to get you. But if you see Sirens, please engage them immediately and keep that area safe," He requested.

"If you say so, Kommandant. I'm happy to guard my final resting place too."

He gulped. "Uh, yeah. Sorry about that. We'll talk more later, Miss Prinz Eugen."

"I'm looking forward to it, Herr Kommandant," She giggled before handing the phone back.

"Shit, is she always like that?" Ryan wondered.

"You'll get used to it," Hipper sighed.

"Well, that was something," Schmidt remarked.

"That was rather tame, actually," Ryan sighed. "Anyway, I'm en route to Kwajalein right now, Colonel. I'll clean it up once I get there. And oh yeah, you've got hostile contacts headed your way. 'Best get your flyswatters up. The ship woman, her name is Prinz Eugen. She'll help you out with defense. Just ask her what to do. Take care now, Colonel Schmidt."

"Uh yeah, you too, Commander Ryan," Schmidt replied before the line went dead.

"What was that, Commander?" Enterprise asked.

"A Kansen just strolled up to Kwajalein and parked there. It's Prinz Eugen, which is funny because her original hull is still there after it capsized and sank," He answered before grabbing the radio. "All ships, set a course for Kwajalein and move at best speed. We got a friend there waiting for us."

"Affirmative!"

"Eugen, huh? 'Wonder how she got here?" Enterprise mused.

"We'll learn in a little bit. Let's focus on right now first."

"Aye, sir."

"Let's just hope that things stay calm until then," Ryan stated as he relaxed.

"Commander! Multiple portals opening five miles out, dead ahead!" Helena reported.

"I just had to say something, didn't I?" Ryan grumbled as he sat back up. "Everybody, buckle up. We sail into the fire."

It wasn't even lunchtime, and yet the day was already long. And it was just going to be longer.


AN: Shit, this was a tough one to put out. But here it is! This was supposed to be longer, but again, it got too long, so I decided to cut it. I also edited the previous chapters a bit too, that's also why this took kinda long.

At that point where they were ambushed, well, I spent a day and a half thinking of how to bridge it but kept coming up empty until I thought of that and decided to roll with it to continue.

Nothing much to say, really. It goes without saying, but modern weaponry is just significantly better than WW2-era ones. Until you run out of ammo. But in most cases, modern systems give you a better ability to run away in case you do run out of ammo. And running out of ammo is the biggest threat actually. And that is the dilemma I'm facing, and by extension, the commanders too. How the hell do I mash together modern and legacy systems into an effective and efficient fighting force?

And it was recently the 1st year anniversary of the War in Ukraine. I'm not Ukrainian, but I remember waking up a year ago, going into Reddit, and seeing fucking missiles slamming into Kyiv. At the time, all I could think was 'holy fucking shit!' I could not believe that was actually happening. I've been following the situation in Ukraine for a while now and analyzing everything since the Annexation of Crimea, and I thought that Putin wasn't gonna invade because the cost would be too much, and lots of people thought the same too. Unfortunately, I and a lot of people stupidly underestimated the unpredictability of tyrants, and now a lot of innocent lives were lost.

There was originally something more lighthearted in this AN, but given the date, I thought that this should come first. It's also another reason I cut this chapter. The truth is, I really like Russia. I also really like Ukraine and the Slavic side of the world in general. So, this whole thing makes me sad. None of this should have happened.

Russia will lose eventually though. History has taught me that recently those that start a war are usually the ones that lose it. And Putin will eventually face the music and pay for his crimes, and even if he evades all that, history will still remember him as a tyrant murderer instead of a renowned figure like Peter the Great as he likes to believe. I hope Russia loses, honestly. China has been staring at Taiwan and my country, the Phillippines, like how a wolf stares at a piece of meat. Russia losing will hopefully discourage the CCP from trying anything funny.

Ukraine will win eventually. But they will need help which, fortunately, the free world is willing to provide. Now to you, the reader, I urge you to donate to Ukrainian charities. Give away at least 5 USD, it's enough to pay for one whole meal or more there. People need help, and this is where you can make a difference no matter how small it is.

And I pray for both countries. As I've said, the war never should have happened. Ukraine has and always will prevail. Good will always prevail. And Russia still has potential for greatness, but only after Putin, his cronies, and anyone like him are thrown out. Look at Germany and Japan, and where they are right now.

But most importantly, I wish for peace. For security. And for the well-being of every innocent man, woman, and child that has been affected or will be affected by one of the worst tragedies of the modern world.

Slava Ukrain!

Heroyam Slava!

Ukraine is not yet lost! Nor is her glory or freedom!