Kinu and Ayanami fired a spray of bullets at the carriers, but their planes intercepted the attacks. The carriers in response let loose a barrage of missiles, forcing the pair to scatter. Suruga and Tirpitz tried aiming at the carriers only to have the enemy battleships fire at them and prevent the attack.
"Damn it," hissed Tirpitz as she noticed everyone was facing a similar issue on the battlefield "is it just me or are the more aggressive now?"
Up in the air, James and Alpha continually clashed swords, with neither side giving an inch.
"You like the improvements we made to our ships?" she asked "courtesy of Lady Omega."
"I'm touched your leader is that concerned about me," joked the Commander while Alpha moved back and fired an energy barrage at him.
The Commander ducked and weaved through the attack, but a few shots nicked him on his right side and cheek.
Wales and Javelin sailed across the water's surface like professional ice skaters. They dodged enemy fire while also clearing the path ahead. When they were close enough, Javelin flung her titular weapon at a cruiser. The weapon tore through the air with incredible speed and created a huge gap in the target.
The opening Javelin created allowed Wales to slip past the enemy defenses and draw closer to the carriers. She was about to fire when Alpha came from behind and landed a cut on her back. Wales bit back the pain and managed to fire at one of the carriers. Unfortunately, the several planes they had circling them intercepted the barrage, rending the attack null and void.
"Alec," said Rossiya as she, Illustrious and Richelieu tried firing at the enemy carriers only see the same results "do you have any plans?"
Alec, meanwhile analyzed the current scenario. The enemy had seven of each type and one special unit. Typically, this shouldn't be a cakewalk but there were two problems. Firstly, he noticed that the ships were attacking much more aggressively compared to before. In fact, some of them were even trying to ram the girls head on.
The second problem was that the cruisers, destroyers and battleships formed a defensive line around the new carriers. This formation allowed the carriers to create a shield of drones around them while also unleashing a steady missile barrage to keep the enemy off balance.
In essence, it was a water tight plan.
"Damn it," he hissed, trying to figure out a strategy and he had to figure one out fast.
"Think of something already," barked Byron "damn it Alec, you're supposed to be the strategist here."
"Quiet you," barked the Commander through the communicator "speak like that again and I'll turn you into a meat shield."
The Commander and Alpha clashed blades and this time the former managed to kick her in the stomach, sending her staggering back. Alpha recovered in time to see the Commander lunge at her with a straight thrust. Though she dodged the attack, her attacker quickly recovered by turning around, grabbing her hand and throwing her onto one of the enemy carriers.
Alpha rolled along the deck for a little then shot back up and fired an energy barrage at the Commander. He dodged and weaved through the barrage, getting close enough to strike Alpha with a left fist.
Alpha took a few steps back then came forward and landed a punch on the Commander's stomach. The attack sent him skidding back but the latter recovered quickly. He looked up and saw Alpha descending on him with a downward swing. Using his boots, the Commander quickly darted to the side, dodged the attack and returned with a kick to Alpha's chest.
It was in that moment that Alec and the Commander noticed something.
Alpha took to the skies and fired at the Commander, forcing the latter to chase after her. The two continued clashing blades in the air while the situation on the ground did not change.
"Alec," said the Commander "did you notice it?"
"Damn right."
"Do you think we can do it?"
"I should be asking you that," said Alec "can you?"
"You'll have to nail the timing but other than that, I can get it done."
"Deal. Alright all battleships, lock on James' position. Cruisers and destroyers, provide cover fire."
The girls were understandably confused by the order. Then, they remembered this wasn't the first time they were ordered to target the Commander.
Alec meanwhile watched as the Commander and Alpha continued fighting in the air. Soon enough, the Commander tossed Alpha onto another carrier. Alec noticed the same thing happening again, which confirmed his suspicions.
'They won't fire if a high-ranking Siren is on deck,' thought Alec, seeing how the carrier Alpha and the Commander were on was not firing the missile barrage like usual.
"Now fire," he yelled and the girls did as order. Alec watched as Tirpitz, Suruga, Richelieu, Rossiya and Prince of Wales fire their barrage. The Commander meanwhile flew off the deck, chasing down Alpha.
Half of the barrage was intercepted by the drones, but the other half hit the target. The result was a large explosion that caught Alpha by surprise. She watched in shock as the carrier had a hole punched in it's deck and sank to the waters.
"Excellent work master," commented Belfast.
"Well done Commander," said Illustrious.
"I must ask, is it necessary for us to put you in such a risky situation?" asked Prince of Wales.
"James is the only one who can keep pace with Alpha and has experience flying," replied Alec "which makes him the only one who can pull off this plan."
Roon meanwhile saw a cruiser rushing her with the intent of ramming into her. She had no time to dodge so instead retaliated by punching it head on. The force of her punch sent the ship flying back and gave Sirius enough time to cut the front section in two.
Kinu meanwhile sliced a torpedo in half while Belfast fired at one of the destroyers. Enterprise, Akagi and Essex made a concentrated attack on a destroyer with Enterprise moving in close and firing multiple arrows at the ship. Essex and Akagi created a group of dive bombers which covered the ships in multiple explosions.
Tirpitz and Wales ran circles around a battleship, attacking it from multiple sides while preventing it from attacking either of them. When they did enough damage, Wales charged forward and tore a hole in the ship with her rapier.
Belfast and Sirius saw the Commander descending like a rock and went to help him. As they neared, they were stopped by a barrage from Alpha who then came close enough, grabbed Sirius and flung her into Belfast.
Alpha turned her swords into guns and was ready to fire at the pair, only to have the Commander crash foot first into her sides. He grabbed her right after that and flew to a second carrier. He rammed Alpha into the ship and she responded by kicking him away. The Commander flew to the deck with Alpha in pursuit.
The Commander tried to leave the ship but Alpha grabbed his foot and flung him into the ground. She leapt up and attacked with a falling knee but he rolled away just in time. He rose to his feet and boosted forward with a straight thrust. Alpha moved to her right then came at him with a fist to the face.
The Commander was sent reeling from the force of the attack. As his head tilted and his mind was recovering, he then remembered that he was being marked by the battleships. Acting on instinct, he used his boots to fly away from the ship before the barrage hit. However, the Commander fast enough and was swallowed by the explosion just as he was about to escape.
Alec's eyes opened wide in horror at the realization. He wondered if he had to break the announcement to the others. Then, he noticed that the Commander was alive and that he was holding onto a piece of burning rubble. Alpha was also doing the same. The two then lunged at each other and traded blows. Alpha emerged the victor as she managed to kick the Commander into some debris with enough force it knocked the wind out of him.
He saw Alpha coming at him and quickly swung out his sword. Alpha dodged at the last minute and paid for it as the tip of the sword landed a slight cut on her chest. Momentarily caught off guard by the attack, Alpha looked ahead and saw the Commander lunge at her again. This time though, he grabbed her by the neck and landed multiple punches to her face. Then, he flew away before he was engulfed by the falling debris above.
The Commander landed a good distance away from the wreckage and took a moment to catch his breath. For a moment, he thought the fight was over. That changed when Alpha suddenly charged at him with a straight thrust. He dodged it at the last second, resulting in her blade landing a deep cut on his cheek.
The Commander then retaliated with an upward swing, the attack landing a deep cut on Alpha's body and sending a spray of blood shooting up. The Siren staggered back from the attack but the Commander was not done. He charged at her, quickly closing the distance but failed to capitalize as a Siren plane rammed into his side and sent him rolling away.
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"Shit, the Commander's injured," called out one of the soldiers "we have to go help him."
"Your orders are to defend this ship soldier," barked Byron "the Commander can take care of himself."
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Alpha meanwhile noticed a number of soldiers hunkered around a ship. That was enough to tell her that the ship was important. With that in mind, she flew towards her new target. The soldiers took note and fired at her, but the bullets simply bounced off her.
Alpha paid no attention to their attacks and fired an energy beam at the ship's hull. This attack resulted in one large explosion followed by numerous small ones taking place across the ship's body.
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"Alec," yelled Rossiya, watching in horror as the ship Alec and the others were on was engulfed in a giant fireball.
Incensed by the act, she found Alpha and fired a barrage at her. The latter blocked a few attacks but left her back open to the Commander who promptly ran his sword through her body.
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The Commander yanked his sword out and kicked Alpha forward, straight to Rossiya who used an arm bar to ram her into the ground. The Commander then leapt up and charged down on Alpha with his sword. She managed to roll away only to see she was headed straight to Rossiya. The Northern Parliament leader wasted no time in swinging her foot at her face, but Alpha raised both her hands up to mitigate the damage.
The force of the attack sent Alpha flying into the air. Here, she recovered and fired an energy barrage at the pair. While the Commander dashed from side to side, Rossiya charged forward, tanking the attacks.
As the pair drew closer, the Commander grabbed Rossiya's hand with his left hand and flung her at Alpha. Seeing a battleship literally flying at you caught Alpha off guard, allowing Rossiya to deliver a barrage of shots directly at her followed by an axe kick that sent her crashing into the ground.
The Commander then looked like he was ready to attack but stopped when he heard something on the communicator.
"We… help," said the unmistakable voice of Alec.
At once, both Rossiya and the Commander turned towards the ship, allowing Alpha the time she needed to escape.
"Alec, where are you?" asked the Commander.
"I… I don't know, there's fire all around and… and, damn it, my foot's stuck on something."
"Wait James, don't come after me," he said, surprising the Commander.
"The cubes. I lost track of them."
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Her ears were ringing, her head was spinning and she was suffering from the mother of all headaches.
Alexis slowly and wearily opened her eyes to see flames all around her. It seemed like the ship they were on exploded and she somehow managed to survive. She saw a soldier screaming and yelling in pain as half his body was engulfed in fire.
Only now did she feel a shar pain in her legs. Alexis turned around and saw a piece of metal deeply embedded into her right foot. She now yelled in pain, calling for anyone to come help her.
"Alexis, Alexis," shouted a familiar voice. She looked ahead and saw Blake coming closer while carrying a weakened Marie over his shoulder. When he neared, he saw her injury, gently put Marie down and proceeded to take out the metal piece with his one hand.
"What, what do we do?" asked Marie.
"We have to find Alec or the Commander," replied Blake "they can get us somewhere safe."
"Can you walk?" he asked Marie.
"Yeah, I feel a little groggy but…"
Before she could complete that sentence, the trio saw a strange light coming from nearby. They turned in that direction and saw the three black cubes lying there untouched by the fire.
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The light of the cubes was like a beacon to everyone in the battlefield. Seeing this, all plans and actions went out the window and there was only one objective.
"Get the cube," yelled Alpha and the Commander.
To the former, it meant recovering an essential piece of technology and earning the good graces of her leader. To the latter, it meant destroying an essential technology and strike a damaging blow to the enemy's war machine.
Hearing these new orders, the girls and the Siren ships abandoned their attacks and made a mad dash to the cubes.
The Commander grabbed Alpha's foot and flung her away, Alpha recovered in the air and shot the Commander on his side. She flew towards him, grabbed him by the head and rammed him into the ground.
Alpha rose only to be put down by the combined attack of Essex and Enterprise.
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"Do you desire power?" asked the voice. Only this time, she was not standing in some strange world, she was in the real world.
Alexis watched as a white-haired being with yellow eyes asked her the question.
"Are you seeing this?" she asked and Blake nodded. However to Blake, he saw a black-haired being with yellow eyes asking him the same question.
"Power, what do you mean power?" asked Marie, addressing the ethereal beauty before her.
"Do you desire power?" asked the voice.
"If you desire power, then reach out and take it."
Alexis wanted to help in this war. Her father committed terrible acts and had to do something to counter all the bad he did. Blake wanted to be like the Commander, a brave hero who faced danger head on. Marie, who's life and body was destroyed by cancer wanted a second chance.
The answer was obvious. The trio wanted different things but the motivation was the same. Slowly the three of them reached out and 'took' the power. In response, their actions engulfed the battlefield in an ominous purple light.
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In an unknown part of the world, in the ruins of a monument, there existed a clock. The hour hand stood firmly on 12 while the minute hand stood firmly on 11.
For many years now the clock's position remained the same, five minutes eleven. It remained that way for many years now and showed no signs of moving forward or back.
Until now.
Tick, tock, tick, tock.
The sudden noise and movement of gears caused the minute hand to move forward ever so slightly. And in that moment, the Doomsday clock moved forward, an ominous sign of things to come.