The group of Alec, Alexis, Blake and Marie continued their tour of the base, picking up from yesterday. They were led by the group of Javelin, Z23, Ayanami and Laffey. In truth though, Javelin and Z23 did most of the work while Ayanami carried a sleepy Laffey on her back.

"Wow," exclaimed Marie, looking at everything "there's so much to do around here."

"It's amazing how well organized the base is," added Blake.

"Everyone has their duties assigned to them the day before," said Javelin "we work in rotations so everyone's bound to get a task to complete sooner or later."

"And James assigns the tasks?" asked Alec.

"Yep, he does that at the end of the day when it's time to turn in," replied Javelin "usually he doesn't spend much time with the assignments, but lately he's gotten pretty busy."

"That's because he's also overseeing construction of the additional dorm rooms for our new members," added Z23 "I volunteered to help but he dismissed it, saying I should spend the night looking at tall stacks of paper."

As Javelin continued her explanation and the group listened, Alexis could feel a strange sensation on the back of her head.

'Do you desire power?' asked a voice, echoing in her mind.

Understandably scared, Alexis looked around to find the source but found no one. The others were listening to Javelin's explanation which meant that only she heard the voice.

'If you desire power, you must reach out and grab it,'

This time, Alexis found that the voice was not coming from all around but from a single location. She turned in the direction of it and saw a large building ahead of her. It was the research building where the fleet's best and brightest developed and tested new weapons for the girls.

"Hey Alexis," said Alec, snapping her out of her daze.

"Huh?" she asked, blinking a couple of times.

"What's wrong?" he asked, "you're sweating all over."

"Oh uh, sorry, I just remembered something scary."

"Are you okay?" asked Marie, putting a hand on her shoulder.

"No, no I'm fine," she said, looking away from the research building.

"Are you sure?" asked Javelin "we could always take you to the clinic and see Vestal."

"Don't worry about me," she said, waving her head "I'm totally fine now."

Javelin and Z23 decided to give her the benefit of the doubt and were ready to continue the tour. As Javelin turned around though, her face bumped into Eugen's chest, causing her to stumble back.

"Oh Javelin sorry about that," said Eugen, with Hipper next to her "I'll apologize in earnest later but right now I need to see Tirpitz and the other heads."

"Hmm? What's wrong?" asked Alec, and the two sisters stopped.

Eugen looked at Alec for a moment, wondering if she should reveal what she learned.

"He is a member of the fleet Eugen," said Hipper "we can tell him."

Nodding in agreement with her older sister, Eugen thought it best not to mince words and got right to the point. "We haven't received any message from the Commander for the past 24 hours."

While Javelin, Z23 and Ayanami grew concerned on hearing this, Alec seemed confused by the statement.

"You don't know?" asked Eugen, reading his expression.

"Don't know about what?" he asked, confirming her doubts.

"When we came here, James set a protocol in place to keep us aware of his status during long missions," said Z23 "like how regular soldiers update their command center at the end of the day, James would call us and provide an update."

"He's not the type to forget something that important," said Hipper.

"In the event that James fails to make an update, we're to assemble a search team and head to his last-known location," said Z23.

"Do you…" said Alec, scared to form the words "do you think something bad happened to him? Like he might have got caught?"

"Impossible," said Z23, dismissing the question outright "Belfast and those maids would die before letting anything happen to him."

"But it doesn't change the severity of the situation," said Eugen "that's why I'm heading to meet Tirpitz and get the others. Then, we can decide who's joining the search party."

"Then let Laffey help too," said Laffey, quickly getting off Ayanami's back "Yorktown and Hornet should be in the cafeteria right about now, I'll go get them."

"Then I'll go get Akagi," suggested Ayanami.

"Sorry Alec," said Javelin, bowing to him and his group "but it looks like we'll have to cut this tour short."

"No, no, I understand," said Alec "saving James takes priority over all else."

Within the next five minutes, the girls assembled in the courtyard. Akagi, Tirpitz, Queen Elizabeth, Yorktown, Yat-Sen, Richelieu and Rossiya heard Eugen's report before reaching the same conclusion. Nearby was Alec's group along with Enterprise, Friedrich, Warspite, Saint Louis, Kaga, Prince of Wales and Illustrious.

"How soon can we assemble a team and move out?" asked Akagi.

"I'll volunteer myself for the team," said Tirpitz, raising her hand.

"I'm coming too," added Akagi.

"Then I am also joining this team," said Friedrich, stepping forward.

"No mom, not this time," objected Tirpitz "it would be wise for us to keep you, Warspite and San Diego in reserve."

"But.." said Warspite, about to object.

"I agree with Tirpitz on this," said Queen Elizabeth, cutting her off "we can't use our heaviest hitters all the time."

Both Warspite and Friedrich were against the idea, but the pair knew not to question the chain of command. Arguing only wasted everyone's time.

"James went with the maid squad," said Richelieu "I suggest that we only send out a team of battleships and carriers as support."

"Makes sense," said Akagi "they have a strong front line but have no long-range support."

"Alright then," said Tirpitz "Akagi and I are going, who else?"

"Count me in," said Enterprise stepping forward.

"Me too," said Prince of Wales.

"I shall join you on this mission," said Illustrious.

"I wish to join you on this mission," suggested Rossiya and the girls nodded in agreement.

"So do I," said Alec.

"So that's Akagi, Enterprise, Prince of Wales, Illustrious, Rossiya, Alec and myself," said Tirpitz "let's not waste any time and get going right away."

"Agreed," said Akagi and the girls headed towards the edge of the base.

"Wow," said Blake, watching them leave "I do not want to be an obstacle in their way right now.

00000000000000000000000000000

James took one look at the clouds rolling in and felt the wind pick up.

"Wind's howling," he muttered.

"Think it's going to rain?" asked Belfast.

He nodded then looked at one of the buildings. The head maid noticed a smile slowly form on her master's face and grew concerned. That smile only meant he had come up with something crazy. Brilliant, but crazy.

"Curacao, Curlew," he said, turning to the two girls in question "head to that building and grab me as many metal beams as you can."

The pair were understandably confused by the question but decided now was not the time to voice their doubts. They nodded to him and headed to the building in question.

Meanwhile, Sheffield pointed out to three large Siren ships coming towards them. They were too bulky to be destroyers or cruisers and didn't have enough guns on board to be a battleship. The group watched as the ship's underside opened up followed by a swarm of dots descending.

"Transport ships, that's new," said the Commander.

"That's quite a lot of them," said Suffolk, looking at the seemingly endless rain of hybrids coming out of the ships.

While the girls all mentally prepared themselves for the coming fight, the gears in the Commander's head started turning. They were covering the only access point to the city which meant that the Siren forces would have to go through the fleet before they reached the city.

The plan he concocted beforehand utilized their location and balanced the group into the right set of teams.

As they saw the hybrids coming towards them, the Commander felt a drop of rain on his head. Sensing the opportunity, he turned to Curacao and Curlew, who had gathered enough steel bars.

"Now, fling them at the hybrids," he shouted and the girls nodded. The sisters of the Ceres class along with Suffolk and Kent grabbed a steel bar in each hand and threw them like javelins at the oncoming hybrids.

Though their attacks did hit the mark, they did little to stem the oncoming forces.

"Master," said Belfast, growing concerned.

He felt the wind pick up once again and saw flashes of light in the sky. Knowing what came next, all he did was smile.

From up above, James and the maids saw four lightning bolts shoot down, guided towards the steel bars. The force of these lightning bolts not only vaporized the hybrids but also destroyed the ones nearby.

"He weaponized lightning?" asked Edinburgh, while adjusting her glasses.

As much as Belfast took pride in the fact that she knew what her master would do next, even she did not imagine he'd bring mother nature on his side.

"Keep it coming, two more volleys," shouted the Commander to the girls, snapping them out of their daze.

The girls let loose three volleys, all of which hit the hybrids and were followed by devastating attacks. As the remaining hybrids moved away from the steel bars, they unknowingly divided themselves into three attack groups.

The Commander saw this opportunity and decided to take advantage of it. Unsheathing his sword, he darted forward and cut through two hybrids in a single swing. Seeing this, the girls also divided into three groups and attacked the hybrids.

Team one consisted of Sirius, Dido and Edinburgh. Sirius and Dido quickly came up alongside the Commander and used a combination of their swords and weapons to cut through the enemy ranks. Edinburgh meanwhile, remained in the rear and attacked any hybrid that managed to get past them. Additionally, she provided some form of long-range support.

Team two was Sheffield, Gloucester, Curacao and Curlew. They hit the left flank. Similar to team one, Sheffield, Gloucester, Curacao and Curlew attacked the enemy head-on, utilizing a combination of their melee and ranged weapons. The four of them were the only members of the Royal Navy who were extensively trained by Kirishima and Akatsuki as ninjas. This experience meant that they could use close-range and long-range combat to take out the enemy.

Team three comprised of Newcastle, Glasgow and Belfast in the front with Kent and Suffolk providing cover in the back. Glasgow and Newcastle did their best to support the head maid, who displayed her prowess by easily dispatching half a dozen hybrids. With a swift jab, she punched through a Hybrid's head then flung its body at a few others before unleashing a barrage on all three.

The Commander narrowly avoided several sword swings from the hybrids by stepping back. Sirius quickly covered the opening he created by moving forward and cutting through the hybrids with a single swipe of her sword.

Just then some rain managed to blur her vision, causing her to falter a little. One hybrid saw the opening and attacked with a downward strike. The Commander grabbed Sirius by her collar and pulled her back before deflecting the sword with his greaves. He then spun around and rammed his foot into the Hybrid's side before activating his jets and sending it crashing.

"Apologies master," said Sirius, while Dido checked to make sure she was okay.

"Always stay aware of your environment Sirius," said James, deflecting several strikes at once "that could have ended badly."

In that moment the Commander seemingly forgot that the girls were more durable than him and could take a few slashes from the hybrids. However, the sisters focused on how he was concerned for their safety during this hectic struggle.

Belfast let loose a barrage of fists against her opponents, sending them flying back. One Hybrid moved to the side and attacked her from the right. In response, the head maid grabbed the sword with one hand then flung the hybrid at four others. Before they could recover, she fired a barrage from her guns and took them down in a single strike.

Sirius and Dido were slowly cutting their way through the hybrids. James leapt over them and landed foot first on top of a Hybrid's head. Before it could react and knock him away, he jumped off and kicked it in the chest. The added power of his boots sent the robot staggering back and right into the range of Didio's sword.

In response, he smiled and nodded to the maid, who immediately grew flustered at her master suddenly praising her. Sirius meanwhile pointed to the Siren ships floating in the air. The Commander looked in that direction and understood what Sirius meant.

"Belfast," he called out and the head maid immediately turned to him.

"We're going to take out those ships," he said and she nodded.

"Dido, Sirius, give us some cover," he ordered and the sisters nodded. The two moved forward and switched from melee to their long-range weapons. The sisters then fired a steady barrage of bullets and missiles at the Hybrids, intent on holding them back.

Meanwhile, Belfast jumped into the Commander's arms and the two immediately took to the skies. Their target was the ship in the middle. If they could take that one down, it'd significantly reduce the number of Hybrids spawning.

"Master," asked Belfast as they drew closer "are you finding it difficult to carry me?"

"Huh?"

"Am I heavy?"

"What? Of course not," he said, replying almost immediately.

Content with the answer, Belfast remained silent till the two landed on the Siren transport ship. Once there, the Commander went ahead and started attacking the incoming Hybrids while Belfast blasted her way through to the ship's core. Wasting little time, she fired at the core then leapt up and alerted her master to what was going on.

The Commander and Belfast ran to the edge of the ship and leapt off the ship just as it exploded. To protect Belfast from the brunt of the blast, he quickly grabbed her in the air and positioned his body between her and the explosion.

While the move did indeed work as intended, the force sent the pair crashing down before the Commander could activate his boots. Seeing this, Sheffield, Curacao and Curlew stopped their attacks and quickly went to the duo. When they reached, they saw Belfast slowly getting up and wiping the dust from her clothes.

"I'm fine," she said, stifling a few coughs "check on Master."

The trio nodded and just as they were about to help the Commander up, they saw him stand up on his own.

"I'm fine too," he said, turning to them, not noticing how wide their eyes became.

"Um, master," said Curacao, pointing to something near him.

Confused, the Commander looked in the direction she was pointing at and saw his right arm was dangling like a wet noodle. It didn't take long for him to figure out that the bone came out of its socket. He remedied the issue by literally punching his arm back into place. However, he used a bit too much force causing him to grimace in pain.

"Are you okay?" asked Sheffield and he shook his head in response.

"Take care of those hybrids," he said, biting back the pain "I'll be with you in a few minutes."

As much as they wanted to help him, they had their marching orders. Reluctantly, the four-headed back into the fight while the Commander started moving his right hand a little.

He did his best to fight through the pain as he opened and closed his fist. He thought about other times when he was worse off and still survived those encounters. Compared to that, this was nothing.

That was the sentence he kept repeating in his mind till it became the truth. He looked at his right hand, performed a few movements and decided it was enough. He then drew his sword out and headed back to support Sirius and Dido.

As he neared, he saw that the girls on the left side were struggling against the Hybrids. A few managed to get past the group and were headed to the town. He changed directions and went to meet those Hybrids. A Hybrid managed to dodge the girl's attacks and strike Sheffield, sending her barreling.

The Commander caught her and kept her from going any further. The pair had little time to recover as multiple Hybrids made their way past team one and were coming towards them. One caught the Commander off guard and landed a cut on his side while a second landed multiple blows on Sheffield.

The two went further back. Sheffield used her guns and started firing. This prevented the Hybrids from moving and gave the Commander enough time to move in close and cut through two of them. As for the other two, he grabbed one with his left arm and flung it into the other before skewering them both with his sword.

'This is bad,' he thought, looking at the girls slowly getting pushed back by the Hybrids. At this rate, the Hybrids were going to break through the lines and attack the town. Right then, he had to make a decision. On one hand, they could keep fighting and put the maids in danger. On the other hand, he could order them to retreat and put the town in danger.

"Master," called Belfast. In response, he turned to her. Belfast wordlessly communicated that none of the maids had any intent on retreating and that he had to figure out a plan where everyone survived.

'Damn it she knows me too well,' he thought, then started considering all options. Just as he was considering every plan, he noticed what looked a recon plane flying above them. It didn't take long for him to recognize the colour palette and put the pieces together.

"You look like you're in a spot of trouble Commander," said Wales, through the communicator "need a little help?"

"Always," he replied, "who else is with you?"

"Akagi, Illustrious, Enterprise, Rossiya and Tirpitz," replied Wales "Alec is also tagging along. We'll be reaching your location in a few minutes."

"Finally," said Suffolk "we need all the help we can get."

"Wait, hold on a second here," said Alec, interjecting himself into the conversation "instead of coming to your position, head behind the Siren ships."

"What?" asked everyone, sounding visibly surprised.

"We need them here with us," stated Sheffield "what's the point of putting them behind us?"

"It's counterintuitive," added Newcastle.

"Hold on," said the Commander, picking up on Alec's idea "Wales, do what Alec says and head behind them."

"Commander," shouted Enterprise "what's gotten int you?"

"Alec is about to use the most successful military tactic in history," he replied, "follow his orders all of you."

"Fine," said a slightly irritated Akagi "you better be right about this Alec."

"Master, does that mean we'll still have to face them on our own?" asked Sirius.

"Yep, but only for a few minutes more," replied the Commander.

Meanwhile, the second group made their way past the Hybrids, who were still engrossed in taking down James and the maids. Alec could tell from their expressions that they would rather be fighting side by side with their Commander.

The girls remained silent and got behind the enemy ships. Alec nodded to Rossiya, who raised her sceptre up and pointed it at the ships. In response, Enterprise, Akagi and Illustrious sent out a squad of bombers while Wales, Tirpitz and Rossiya formed their cannons and fired at the Hybrids.

They watched as the barrage annihilated two rows of Hybrids while the bombers landed multiple shots on the transport ships.

"And just like that," said Alec, watching the scene unfold "we've got them in a pincer."

"God I love the classics," added the Commander.

Alec saw the Hybrids scramble to take on the new attackers only to have the Commander and the maids attack them from behind. Therein lay the beauty of the oldest military trick in the book. Attack the enemy on both sides and they'll struggle to decide who to attack first.

Enterprise shot arrow after arrow at one of the transport ships. The ship tried to turn around and attack them, but Akagi and Illustrious flanked it on both sides. The trio of carriers assaulted the transport ship from three angles and prevented the ship from mounting an offensive.

"I've got an idea," said Akagi as she darted towards Enterprise. Akagi proceeded to use a series of hand signals and wordlessly communicate an idea to Enterprise. The latter understood the message but wondered why she would try something so daring.

Akagi said nothing and instead took her position. Enterprise decided not to ask and also took her position. Before the transport ship could descend any further, the pair leapt up and rammed their fists into the side of the ship. The force of their combined strength caused the ship to crash into the last remaining transport ship.

Seeing this, Tirpitz, Rossiya and Wales launched a combined assault on the two ships and enveloped them in a brilliantly bombastic ball of fire.

After that, it didn't take long for them to wipe out the remaining Hybrids and meet up with the others.

"My word," commented Illustrious "I didn't think you'd try something so crazy Akagi."

"I guess being around James has had that effect on me," said Akagi.

"Be careful though Akagi," added Wales "from what I've seen, only our Commander is capable of doing insane stunts and walking away without a scratch."

"Speak of the devil," said Alec, as he smiled at a slightly tired James and Royal Maid Squad.

"Nice of you to come and save our asses," said James, coming forward and shaking Alec's hand "things were getting pretty dicey there."

"Honey are you okay?" asked Akagi, immediately coming forward and checking his face then looking at his clothes.

"Any injuries, wounds?" she asked, giving him the once over.

"Nothing to worry about Akagi," he replied.

"Master is once again downplaying his state," said Belfast, coming forward "Master had to punch his right arm back into the socket and I want to be sure it doesn't suddenly pop out again."

In response, Akagi and Alec turned to him with shocked expressions. Akagi was shocked because he downplayed what happened to him. Alec was shocked at how someone could forcibly reattach their limb.

Before they could say anything though, they heard a voice in the distance. Alec's group and James turned around and saw a portly man coming towards them. He had to pause now and then to catch his breath, which meant it took a while for him to reach them.

"I want you to arrest this bastard right now," barked Mr Smalls as he pointed at James.

James meanwhile, slightly shook his head and told the girls not to react to the comment.

"What for?" asked Alec.

"I welcomed James with open arms and gave him everything he needed to be comfortable," said Mr Smalls "and what do I get in response? He threatens to use me as a meat shield when the Sirens attack."

"I hate to break it to you but I can't do that?" said Alec.

"Well why the hell not?" asked Mr Smalls "you're the Commander aren't you? It's your job to discipline unruly soldiers."

"What exactly makes you think that I'm the leader here?" asked Alec.

"Well if not you then who? I demand that this bastard pay for his crimes."

Alec, in response, simply pointed towards the actual fleet leader. Mr Smalls turned in the direction that Alec was pointing at and his face grew pale.

"So," said James with a wicked grin "I'm a bastard huh? This is going to make for an interesting conversation later on."

As Akagi watched Mr Smalls stumble back and beg for forgiveness, she turned to Enterprise and recalled her promise. As Enterprise said, James, will willingly put himself in danger if it meant protecting them and then play it off like it was no big deal. Although she already agreed, Akagi nodded once again to reaffirm her commitment. Just as James would do everything he can to protect others, she would do everything to protect him.

(AN: Happy new year readers. Have a wonderful year ahead and thanks for sticking with this story)