The news of war rumbled across the oceans like distant thunder.

The Rose Kingdom, dominant power of a far-off continent that had once crumbled under Ulysses, has reformed. A period of instability ended with the last coup d'etat coming to a violent end at the sword of the new regime, one that valued military prowess and sought strength through any means.

Now, they have set their sights on their lesser neighboring states. Battle after battle, day after day, the Rose Kingdom advanced seizing one land after another.

Reeling from the onslaught and outmatched by their enemy, the various nations arrayed against the Kingdom have come together to raise a unified defense, dubbing it the Delta Coalition.

But this will not be enough. The Delta Coalition sits on the precipice of defeat. To make a stand against their Rose Kingdom adversaries and liberate their homelands, they must call upon help to turn the tide.

Amidst the blue seas, a link between past and future - of one world and another. The sheltering wings of both have been called upon in this hour...

The day was optimistically bright as always.

Wisps of white trailed the skies, their image reflecting off the open waves. Ridged coastline lined the horizon, splitting the realm of blue into two.

Even in an unfamiliar part of a world, the ocean's consistency was always welcoming.

It was hard for anyone to believe that war was raging in this part of the globe.

Kestrel reluctantly turned away, mind back to the task at hand. By her side yet again were her sisters Buzzard and Vulture with Andromeda trailing close behind them. An unusual configuration to have an unarmed intelligence vessel close alongside them, but this was no ordinary combat patrol.

"How much further to the rendezvous point?" a voice called out.

Trailing behind their formation were three more ships. The one who spoke was one of their new allies, clad in white with black highlights. Her ship rigging rivaled her in size with massive guns that spoke the unmistakable language of strength.

And its speaker was a stone-faced woman with sharp eyes.

Eagle Union Battleship
TENNESSEE

"About five more klicks ahead of us," Andromeda answered without taking her eyes off the digital tablet in her hands as she sailed.

"So anyone know what these Delta Coalition fellas are like?" Vulture asked. "'Cause if they're the type to bail at first sign of trouble I'm outta here."

Buzzard readjusted her glasses. "If they were such people, this war would've ended already. No, there is surely at least one among their ranks that is maintaining cohesion. The fact they are fighting a losing war even now indicates that."

Behind, Cleveland grinned. "Fighting against the odds? I like that!"

"Whatever you say, kid."

"Don't call me that!" To that, Vulture chuckled lightly. "Hey, just don't slow us down with those lumbering guns of yours!"

"You too, birdbrain!"

A glare was fired from Tennessee. "If you two would rather bicker than fight in this war, then turn tail and go home! I'll do both your jobs myself if I have to," she growled.

That seemed to do the trick, as the pair were left quietly grumbling to themselves. Neither Kestrel nor Buzzard expected the first joint SSF-Eagle Union sortie to begin on a frictional note. Then again, agreements only went as far as whether or not they'd intervene in global disturbances; only those upstairs chose who to deploy.

"Contacts detected!" a voice suddenly cried out. Kestrel turned to see it came from the last ship in their armada: a cruiser of the Eagle Union like Cleveland with comparable armament. Yet where Cleveland wrapped herself in bold colors of Eagle patriotism, this ship settled with more subdued hues of blue. A blue dove for the prince that sailed alongside her.

Eagle Union Light Cruiser
HELENA

Andromeda glanced up from her tablet to ask the blue-haired cruiser. "How many?"

"I count… two."

The intelligence vessel shrugged. "Then it's them alright…

"... our new friends."

A figure stood on the wide sea, its waters glimmering and shining like a mirror. In her faded blue military uniform, she seemingly blended with the sea and the skies, her incidental camouflage undone by rank stripes, embroidery, and affiliation patches.

She gazed skyward. As her beret did little to shade her eyes, her hand was raised as substitute.

Swirling overhead, a flock of seagulls circled against the backdrop of the noon sun. Then, suddenly, a dark shape zoomed past, the sound of roaring jet engines trespassing the tranquility of the scene. Wind followed in its wake, brushing back the figure's light brown hair and single long braid. The looping blue ribbons that tied her braid and accompanied her beret rustled in the breeze.

Roaming freely in the air above, a lone jet circled and looped, the bright sun unveiling to the world a blue-hulled white-bellied F-4 Phantom. After a swoop, it dove down back to the figure where a singular flight deck awaited its return. Retrieval complete, the deck whirred back into position by the figure's side, its size rivaling her stature.

An expectant smile was on her face as she looked to the horizons.

Delta Coalition Aircraft Carrier
FORT GRACE

Clear weather. Calm winds. A triumphant sun.

She could feel it. Today was the day that their fortunes would change.

Fort Grace stood attentive in anticipation of their new guests. But she was not alone in that regard.

"I hope you're looking forward to them as much as I," she began, eyes fixed to the horizon. "Enlisting the aid of the SSF will certainly bolster our forces - and our chances of victory."

Behind her, a maid in white and blue stood in dutiful silence. Her long blonde hair and frills rewarded her image with grace, the only incongruity being the thick eyebrows that rested above her round eyes. Her own rigging bore a pair of ship bows with gun turrets presented on literal silver platters integrated to the deck. Her own arsenal of missiles aligned her thighs along the ivory-white apron.

Delta Coalition Aegis Cruiser
TEA TIME

Tea Time brushed some errant strands back behind her ears, maintaining her dignified look. "Indeed I am, Your Grace. In addition, I look forward to these… visitors that we've heard of."

Fort Grace let herself smirk at the use of her nickname. "Ah, yes. Them..." She paused as her attention was attracted. Focusing on the horizon, Fort Grace smiled.

They have arrived.

The first trio of ships assembled in front of her. Both Delta ships instantly recognized them as the carrier fleet of the Silver Star Federation.

Fort Grace swiped her beret away, tucking it under one arm while offering with the other. "Good to see you make it. I am the Kitty Hawk-class aircraft carrier Fort Grace, acting commander of the Delta Coalition, at your service. My attendant is the cruiser Tea Time."

The white-haired carrier before her hesitated to return the gesture, but when she did it was warm. "Kestrel, of the Silver Star Federation. These are my sisters Buzzard and Vulture as well as our intelligence vessel Andromeda. Accompanying us are select ships of the Eagle Union. We have all arrived as per your aid request."

As Kestrel motioned towards the last three ships in the rear, Fort Grace studied them. The two in the formation's flanks held similar levels of armament as each other; yet they strangely lacked missiles or point-defense weaponry, seemingly favoring dull metal frames that spoke of more archaic construction methods and technology. One beheld a cheery disposition whereas the other possessed a somber expression.

But in the center stood one with an indisputable image of strength, be it thanks to her array of massive battleship turrets or her stoic look and piercing gaze.

Fort Grace stepped forward. "Your names, if I may?"

"I'm Cleveland!"
"My name is Helena."
"Tennessee, battleship."

The introductions concluded with a courteous nod from Fort Grace.

"If you would, please follow us. I will brief you along the way."

Location: port city of St. Ark

"... As you can guess, your arrival is impeccable," explained Fort Grace. "The Rose Kingdom has pushed us this far east. We're practically forced off the mainland and are frankly running out of places to fall back to."

As they all sailed along the coast, mountain ranges gave way to an open gulf, introducing the newly-arrived ships the sight of a promising city whose harbor was crammed with wide vessels, all sitting derelict to await arbitrary cargo. Above the city there flew a single flag, its emblem inscribed by a pyramid of triangles whose upward-facing brethren were emphasized.

Yet, it unfurled listlessly in the breeze.

The same emblem which Fort Grace wore on her sleeve patches. Ignoring it, she continued. "The Delta Coalition has been engaged in fighting withdraws for the past week. St. Ark is still in our hands but we are already underway in evacuating it to regroup at our GHQ elsewhere."

A concerned look filled Buzzard's face. "Where are the others?"

"Already engaged in other sectors. With our forces few in number and stretched thin, our position is a sitting duck. The defense of the St. Ark evacuation falls squarely on us."

Tennessee looked towards the city with a frown. "... It's that bad, huh."

Fort Grace nodded. "Like I said, your arrival is impeccable." Then, in a moment of seeming contrivance, air raid sirens blared.

"An enemy attack?!"

"I've detected multiple aerial blips - this is an air attack!" Helena reported.

"Looks to be that way." Fort Grace turned to the three Federation carriers. "If we're to minimize damage, it is paramount that we establish air superiority."

"Agreed," Buzzard nodded.

"While we provide the first line of defense, the others will remain back to get stragglers," continued the Delta carrier. "Tea Time, accompany them."

"As you wish, Your Grace," Tea Time complied with a curtsy.

Across the sea of blue and among what few curtains of white, a flock of uniform shapes sailed high overhead. But their silhouettes elicited no peace, no intention of the natural order. These flocks of birds were made of metal and were migrating towards the city of St. Ark - towards war.

"Got eyes on 'em!" Vulture called out, her rigging primed and ready like a tightly-wound spring.

"Confirmed. Enemy bandits on vector 360," Fort Grace acknowledged as she brought her rigging to bear.

Scrutinizing the hostile shapes from both afar and from the eyes of her planes, Buzzard frowned. "IFF's showing them all as hostile aircraft but of unknown make. Are you certain it's them?"

"Who cares? IFF says they're hostile and they're definitely not from us! Vulture, engaging!" Like an excited rocket, F-15s were catapulted into the air in rapid succession.

"Ugh, fine… Buzzard, engaging!"

"Kestrel, aircraft launch!"

Finally, Fort Grace stepped forward, her singular flight deck brought to bear as it materialized a flight of Phantoms.

"Preparations complete, ready for battle!" Then, with the swipe of her hand, Fort Grace made her declaration.

"Phantoms, take off!"

A peculiar swarm of planes assembled in the air in a loose formation, organized only in affiliation. They filled the skies just as much as the enemy planes did - warbirds all the same but with different intentions.

Both sides closed in, weapons ready and tensions primed.

An assuring but confident smile appeared on Fort Grace's face. "Here we go. Let's shoot down all hostiles before they even have a chance to do real damage. Today's been rather lovely so far - a victory, however small, would certainly make my day."

Vulture laughed heartily. "Righto! One victory coming up!"

Kestrel's eyes were fixed on the enemy planes. True to her sister's word, the targeting reticles displayed them as unknown aircraft - all identical in make yet of a design she had never seen before. And as both sides drew closer, Buzzard's word rang louder.

But before she could hypothesize any further, the enemy jets swiftly broke off and fanned out.

"Heads up!"

By impulse, the allied fighters quickly rolled away in every direction before the missile salvo reached them. The jets zipped by one another, circling back to intermingle in a chaotic furball. Tomcats, Eagles, Hornets, and Phantoms played high-stakes games of chasing tail with their opposition, some of whom returned the favor. An air show of trailing smoke was made by the missiles being thrown back and forth.

Some of which, however, made their way towards the carriers. A warning cry was made but went ignored as all wordlessly took to evasion.

"Got a lock-on! Eat this!" A missile shot forth in pursuit of the offending bandit. It swerved and shook but was felled at the end of the futile chase. The others continued their flight, seemingly uncaring of their peer's demise.

By now, everyone was now a direct participant, firing into the sky. Where missiles, tracer fire, and shouts rose up, flaming wreckages fell to earth. Acumen and skill saw to many of the enemy warbirds falling to earth, their numbers thinning. Yet their numbers saw to it that their mission continued with emotionless drive.

Kestrel's eyes caught movement directly overhead.

"Watch out! Some of them made it through!"

"Some of them broke through and are headed this way!"

"Bandits entering city limits," Andromeda confirmed. "Ready for anti-air combat!"

Within the mouth of the harbor, the remaining ships - Cleveland, Helena, Tea Time, and Tennessee - braced for battle. Until now, the distant skies were filled with flak. Now they provided the backdrop for the incoming shapes darting towards them.

Unbeknownst to the ships of this world, the eyes of the Azur Lane went wide as they saw the invaders for themselves.

A loud bang betrayed the launch of a missile, streaking towards the arriving foes. An explosion punctuated the beginning of their role as cannonfire lit up the sky.

With intent drilled into them, Cleveland and Helena charged ahead while Tennessee brought her rigging's arsenal to bear. Although her mighty cannons were ill suited for the task at hand, her battery of secondaries threw out a metal storm.

The sky above St. Ark became filled with bright angry hornets, rupturing whatever enemy aircraft they stung. The planes maneuvered, but the wall of lead forced them in a treacherous maze.

Those that managed to pass this perilous obstacle course often found themselves victim of missiles courtesy of Tea Time. She hopped side to side, dodging fire and retaliating with her own, a mix of customary missiles and ordinary rapid cannonfire.

Cleveland spared a glance to see their new ally go to work, smirking at the sight. 'I guess not even the alternate world business stops maids from being the same.'

However, the smile vanished just as she caught something in her periphery.

"Helena, on your left!"

The cruiser turned to see dark shapes, having slipped through the barrage, take their chance to dive straight towards her. Helena whirled her cannons around and fired, but with impulse guiding her shots only one fell to earth from the barrage.

She had no time for a second.

The enemy planes closed in, their ordnance ready.

But just before they could strike, they unexpectedly exploded in midair. An astonished Helena was greeted to the echoing rumble of jet engines as more flew overhead. But their blue color assuaged her fears.

Helena waved at the planes who answered by wiggling their wings.

From afar, this was already a small victory that made Fort Grace's day.

"... We still got bandits, 11 'o clock high!"

"Hang back. I got this."

Buzzard conducted her planes in pursuit of a pair of enemy planes. Engines screamed as they chased after their quarry, their determination rewarded with lock-ons.

The successful hunt signified the end of the skirmish.

"Buzzard. The last of the bandits have been splashed."

Kestrel nodded. "Yes. I saw. No additional contacts in my area."

"St. Ark reporting clear. No significant damage done," reported Fort Grace.

"All right! Let's head on home!"

Spirits high, the carriers sailed back to the city harbor. Even after the battle, the skies remained pure and clean, almost as if the day was in celebration. Yet, as they saw the cargo ships lining the dock they were reminded that there victory, however earned, was not for the city. A temporary triumph for future battles to come.

As much as the reminder dampened their spirits, that paled to the odd sight of their Azur Lane allies. Rather than thrilled in victory, their faces were dotted with wariness and fear.

They conversed privately with each other, almost as if conspiring.

Fort Grace frowned. "... What's wrong?"

"I am not sure," reported Tea Time. "Though the battle concluded with minimal damage, something has sparked great concern among them."

The two turned to see Helena approached Andromeda, her expression as confused as the others. Though they could no longer hear what had conspired between their allies, the carriers heard these words uttered from the blue-haired ship.

"Please contact Azur Lane headquarters. Tell them that..."

"You!" All carriers turned towards the battleship advancing on Fort Grace. Her gaze seemingly glared at her. "You said you've been fighting the Rose Kingdom, right?"

"Why yes," the carrier confirmed. "What brought this on?"

Tennessee's frown grew into a scowl. "... You weren't. At least, not them directly."

Baffled looks spread among the Federation and Coalition ships. "... I beg your pardon?"

"We've been through many things and even out here, I know what I saw," continued Tennessee. "We all saw what they looked like...

"... Those were Siren jets."

The carriers remained silent, unsure of what to make of the revelation. Kestrel, Buzzard, and Vulture had heard of their off-world allies mention them before yet…

The battleship crossed her arms, her tone ever more grim than before.

"If you've been fighting Siren units the whole time, then this means they're part of the Rose Kingdom war machine. And that can only mean one thing…

"... the Sirens are here, and the Rose Kingdom's allied with them."

AUTHOR'S NOTES:

HistoricHippos:

In case anyone is wondering, there is apparently a Usean Aegis cruiser called the Tea Time (even has its own page on the Ace Combat wiki).

And speaking of Usea, the Delta Coalition will be different from the other nations in that they're a combination of all Usean factions, from ISAF, Usean Allied Forces, Usean Rebel Forces, and everything in between as opposed to a single Strangereal nation. The Delta Coalition was originally meant to be an ISAF-based faction but there weren't enough named ships so I decided to bulk up their ranks by making them an all-encompassing Usea faction.