The Catalina slowly made it's way out of the harbor to prepare to take off.
"Are the doors back there sealed?" Dawson asked.
"They are. Are you sure you can get this thing up? We are sitting pretty low in the water." North Carolina said.
"Carolina, you're used to standing about 45 feet above the oceans surface. Anything less and of course you'd feel like we're too low." Baltimore said as atago giggled a bit.
"Hey... I'm not always thinking about my vessel, Baltimore. That is rude of you to assume." North Carolina said.
"I'm sorry, Carolina. I meant no offense. Just trying to lighten the mood." Baltimore said as Odin looked back from the cockpit.
"All of you, shut it. We have two members of the fleet MIA. Our mission is to find them, assist them in obtaining the cubes, and get the hell out before we are spotted. You all know the risk. There is an enemy capable of killing any one of you outside in these mountains. Watch each others backs, and make sure you all make it to a flat area for pickup." Odin said as everyone looked among each other.
"Sorry to ask, but who exactly are you to give orders?" Baltimore asked.
"Vice Commander Odin of Ironblood. Hand picked by Kommandant Garner for the express purpose of being his voice when he is not present." Odin said.
"Is that why you get to kiss the Shikikan?" Atago asked as Odin blushed.
"No. I don't know what you are talking about." Odin said, trying to deflect.
"We all saw it, Vice Commander~" Baltimore said as North Carolina smiled.
"You must have been seeing things. It's time to focus." Odin said, her face bright red.
"You're the closest to him on a day to day basis. So of course you'd develop something." Atago said.
"Shut it, or I will have you all reported for insubordination to the Kommandant." Odin said, her embarrassment turning to annoyance.
"You Ironblood girls can be so uptight when it comes to letting people know how you feel~~~" Atago said as she stood and went towards Odin, who was unable to defend herself in the close confines of the aircraft.
"Atago, please sit back down. We are about to take off." Dawson said, coming to Odin's rescue.
"Aww... alright. I'll get you to open up later, Vice Commander." Atago said as a shiver went up Odin's spine.
"Just focus, damn it." Odin said as the red on her face persisted.
"Maybe if you open up, you might be able to go all the way with the Shikikan. It seems like he has a thing for you Ironblood types." Atago said, pressing the attack.
"Atago, can't you let the Vice Commander go? You said it yourself. Ironblood girls are always so uptight. If she is showing the Commander her affection, then surely he is getting the message. After all, it isn't every day that you get Ironblood girls to fall in love." Baltimore said as they plane began to move quicker across the waves.
"Okay Bal~ti~more~" Atago said as she gave Baltimore a kiss on the cheek, causing the Union cruiser to blush a bit.
"Not here with everyone watching." Baltimore whispered.
"Oh alright." Atago said as she rested her head on Baltimore's shoulder and fell asleep to the sound of the engines.
"I didn't know you two were so close." North Carolina said.
"I was with the General when we found her. The enemy had bombed a village further north from where these cubes are. We found her after the cries of children were heard from a collapsed building. We found her blacked out, using her back and her rigging to keep the roof of the building from collapsing on top of her and said children. The General had me and Bremerton blow apart the roof so we could remove it from her. She collapsed and the kids were on top of her in an instant, ready to defend her with rocks and sticks." Baltimore said.
"That's amazing. She is surely stronger than she looks." North Carolina said as the plane slowly lifted into the air.
"We occupied the village and helped with the evacuation back towards friendly lines. She awoke several hours later in an immense amount of pain, and I was the one to help with her injuries since Bremerton was further ahead dealing with the more seriously wounded." Baltimore said.
"So she sees you as her hero?" Odin asked, shocking everyone who was awake.
"Yes... in a way. She lost her sister sometime during the war. She seems to believe that her sister was taken to the Atlantic. So I decided to become her friend. After a few days, she came to me at lights out, complaining that she couldn't sleep. So I let her into my tent for the night." Baltimore said as a blush crossed her face.
"Say no more. I already know where this is going. Eagle and Nimi got into it with the Kommandand back in Fiji. Nobody will care what happens between you girls. As long as you two perfom, the Kommandant will allow it. I can at least see to that." Odin said.
"It was one time." Baltimore exclaimed.
"Baltimore... nobody is shaming you. Odin is saying that as long as it doesn't hinder your ability to fight, you and Atago can be together." North Carolina said.
"It makes this all seem a bit more manageable. But we had to hide it from the General. He doesn't like us... he treats us like mobile artillery, objects to be used and nothing more. He killed Indianapolis and Houston. He killed Prince of Wales and Repulse. We felt like our lives had become so minute that if he found out about what we did and what we were doing... we'd be next." Baltimore said.
"He killed them?" Odin asked, narrowing her eyes.
"He ordered them to take on a volume of fire that not even we could withstand. He was more worried about saving his own men as opposed to the force as a whole." Baltimore said softly.
"Now I understand." Odin said.
"Understand what?" Baltimore asked.
"Why the Kommandant reacted the way he did, and why he has begun putting a strict emphasis on making sure there are no losses, especially after Nimi." Odin said.
"Is this real?" Baltimore asked.
"Did you see him return to the port after Nimi was taken out?" Odin asked.
"Yeah..." Baltimore said, remembering the somber air that had flooded the port that day.
"That was his first loss. And that was how it affected him." Odin said.
"He hadn't lost anything?" Baltimore asked.
"He plays it safe for us. He puts himself in danger constantly to ensure that he can at least have a hand in the outcome. He faced off with Mikasa... alone." Odin said.
"He what?!" Atago cried as her eyes shot open.
"The Kommandant went head to head with Mikasa when the Sirens had her under their control. Nimi told me after that he ordered her to stay hidden until it was safe to escape. He didn't order her to fight, he ordered her to run. It was at that moment that I and the rest of us realized that we had someone special on our hands. From that day, Friedrich and I have personally been ensuring that one of us is always there to support him, even if his antics are a bit unorthodox." Odin said.
"How did he survive?" Atago asked, now 100% invested.
"From what Taka and the others said, he goaded her into a fist fight." Odin said.
"She is the one that teaches everyone in the Sakura how to fight hand to hand. And he took her on alone?!" Atago cried as the plane rose to 2000 feet.
"He did. She was about to turn him into swiss cheese before Mainz stepped in." Odin said.
"Mainz? I've never heard of an Ironblood ship with that name." Atago said.
"Friedrich, Mainz and I are all ships that were never build by Germany. The Kommandant acquired our blueprints and ordered us built." Odin said.
"That is amazing. The cubes surely work in mysterious ways." North Carolina said.
"That they do." Odin said as she faced forward.
"Odin come in." Akagi's voice was heard over the radio.
"I'm here." Odin replied.
"You are 5 miles out from where Laffey and I-13 are. Please get ready, you'll be there in 2 minutes." Akagi said.
"Understood." Odin said as she made her way back to the door.
"Everyone ready?" Odin asked.
"Yes, Vice Commander." Everyone replied.
"Baltimore, The pack and harnesses drop with you. Be ready for anything." Odin said.
"Understood." Baltimore said.
"You all have chutes?" Odin asked, making sure to check all of them.
"Yes, Vice Commander." Everyone replied as they all stood as tall as they could, watching as Odin undid the latch for the door and ripped the panel away, sending a rush of chilled air through the fuselage.
"You got the green light. Please hurry, I can see movement in the trees." Dawson said as the air around them filled with plasma bolts.
"Go! Go! Go!" Odin yelled as the three Kansen jumped from the plane, immediately pulling their chutes and dropping feet first into a forested hell. Odin summoned her rigging in the newly vacated space and strapped the winch around her waist, hanging her top half out the open door.
"Dawson! fly a few circles around if able. I'm gonna try to give them some cover!" Odin yelled as she fired her guns down into the trees.
"EEP!" 13 cried as the trees above her erupted into a swarm of fire. She and Laffey ran over to a fallen tree and hid in a small bush. Several seconds before, the air had been as quiet as a graveyard.
"What is happening?" 13 asked.
"Laffey thinks she had been discovered." The Narcoleptic destroyer said.
"How? There is no way we could have been followed. We were being really careful." 13 said softly.
"13?" North Carolina's voice came over the sound of the gunfire as high explosive shells shook the trees.
"Carolina?!" 13 asked as the blonde battleship ran over to them.
"Are you two hurt?" North Carolina asked.
"No. We aren't hurt. Where did you come from?" 13 asked as Laffey looked like she was ready to fall asleep.
"Commander has sent us to come and get you. You two are classified as AWOL back at port." Baltimore said as she and Atago ran forward to join them as they watched the Catalina leave the airspace.
"AWOL?!" 13 cried. Everyone nodded before Carolina spoke up.
"What did you expect?! You two ran off without orders. Nobody knew what happened to you!" North Carolina said.
"We just thought that if we got the cubes, it could help us. Isaac seemed pretty upset about the whole thing." 13 said.
"That's why we're here. We are going to assist you, but we need to get out of here now. Which way to the cubes?" North Carolina asked.
"We are close by, but we have no way of advancing. The fire is too heavy." Atago said.
Everyone looked at each other. Seconds later, the fire shifted again as the sounds of Machine guns filled the air.
"Get moving everyone. I have them pinned for these next few minutes." Intrepid's voice came over Baltimore's radio.
"Move now!" Baltimore yelled as she heard the mechanical clicking of hardpoints releasing bombs into the trees.
The group ran forward as the bombs exploded in the tree tops, showering the area in splinters and black liquid from the Explorers that had been following 13 and Laffey.
Baltimore picked up Laffey and Atago picked up 13 as they ran into the area that Baltimore and Atago knew too well.
"Carolina, cubes, now!" Baltimore said as she and Atago summoned their rigging, firing their guns into the trees to provide cover.
"On it!" North Carolina yelled as she set about picking up the softly glowing blue cubes.
Several minutes of intense fighting later, North Carolina returned to the group with all 8 cubes.
"Is that all of them?" Carolina asked. The forest around them opened up again, spilling plasma fire into the area around the small retrival group.
"Yes. All of them are here. We need to get to a clearing. That is our only way out of here." Baltimore said as she helped 13 and Laffey into their harnesses. Static came over the radio for a few seconds before Intrepid's voice came through again.
"I'm making another pass. Move quickly please. My planes are being shredded up here. Please be advised, Oceana has been spotted in the area. I repeat, Friedrich's group has been spotted chasing down Oceana. Exercise extreme caution." Intrepid said as her planes fired their machine guns, shredding the upper levels of the trees and giving Baltimore and the others a chance to move.
"Oceana?!" Atago cried as she looked at 13 and Laffey. A look of fear crossed the faces of the smaller members of the group.
"We need to get them out of here. We might be able to take her, but those two will be killed on the spot." Atago said. Baltimore nodded with that assessment.
"Well, run and plan please. We can't stay here or we are ALL dead." North Carolina said as she scooped up 13 and Laffey and began running through the dense vegetation.
Authors Note: Please note that the next chapter will be occurring in the same time frame as this chapter, not after. So you may see some things crossing over into the next chapter. Do not worry, this is all in preparation for chapter 100.