New Jersey walked through the port towards where the raid fleet had dropped anchor. With Vittorio hot on her heels, she had only two goals. To ascertain the condition of the raid fleet and get the blueprints they had acquired.
"Amore… could you perhaps slow down just a bit? It's difficult to match your stride while in these shoes." Vittorio asked as New Jersey looked back.
"Alright… but only to not embarrass you by carrying you. Minnie has been making back and forth trips to Sicily, evading the drone fleet that has almost completely encircled the island. So, the sooner we get August and Agir built, the better." New Jersey asked.
"I understand, amore. Let's get these blueprints then. Washington and Ranger have already foiled an assassination attempt according to one of our spies on the inside." Vittorio said
"Already? What happened and why did I not hear of this?" NJ asked.
"A waitress at their favorite restaurant gave the three of them tonic water unlike any they had seen. Washington took one look and confiscated them before throwing them in an abandoned well. The crater that sits where that well once stood was enough to convince me that Sicily is in dire straits right now." Vittorio said.
"Then we need to send someone to back them up. I'm sending the order to Minnie. She's already quite capable of getting in unnoticed." NJ said as she held a hand to her ear.
"Minnie. Come in please." NJ said.
"Yo. What's up? Kinda busy at the moment." Minneapolis replied.
"Busy? Where are you?" NJ asked.
"Tracking a pair of suspicious people in Sicily. They were carrying crates towards the harbor." Minnie replied.
"Good. Keep up the good work. Your orders are to continue covert operations in Sicily until we can get the reinforcements, myself included, to Sicily to aid in its liberation. We might even be able to apprehend or eliminate Hermit and free the Mediterranean and make it a hub for resistance and a place for refugees to come once the Admiral assaults the Soviet Union and Europe." NJ said.
"Anything else, dragon?" Minnie asked.
"Meet up with Washington and Ranger. They also have a child. If anything looks out of place around them, you are authorized to deal with it." NJ said.
"Got it. Gotta go." Minnie said as she cut the line.
"So?" Vittorio asked.
"Minnie is already there and is dealing with things. We have 3 capable Union girls there right now so they should be capable of holding off the assault just long enough for us to get there." NJ said.
"If you're going. Then I will lend my guns as well. The mighty Eternal Flagship will remain silent no longer." Vittorio spoke, her eyes full of determination.
"We're going to need it, honey. This is Hermit we're dealing with. One of the Arbiters. This won't be an easy fight." NJ said as they arrived at the ramp to board the Yorktown.
"After you." NJ said as Vittorio headed up the ramp.
Yorktown, Cole and Brooklyn were sitting in the medical bay as Vittorio and New Jersey made their way in.
"Jersey!" Brooklyn said happily as she ran over and embraced the battleship.
"Welcome back, Brooklyn. Your mission was a success I heard. Well done." New Jersey said as she looked over to see a mangey Russian man, a Dutch woman who looked better for wear and another Dutch woman who seemed to be quite malnourished.
"Who are they?" NJ asked as Vittorio looked over.
"Pavel, Natalie and Van Kinsburgen. Pavel was a private in the Soviet 3rd Shock Army and was a POW. Natalie, we found on the beach of our invasion, and she was a massive help in ensuring our success and survival. Van Kinsburgen is a Netherland-born Kansen. We do not know her ship type, but we have blueprints to rebuild her hull." Cole spoke.
"I see. Any other POW's?" Vittorio asked as she looked around.
"Yes. Carina was with us in Germany. She was a friend of someone who… isn't here. Where is Lucia?" Cole asked as he looked at Yorktown.
"Not a clue. She didn't come aboard." Yorktown spoke.
"Radio Elbe and see if she's over there." Cole spoke frantically.
Yorktown did as ordered. After a few minutes, she returned.
"No. Elbe had thought she was here. We're conducting a sweep of all involved vessels to see if she came aboard." Yorktown spoke as she went about searching her own vessel.
"We left her in fucking Germany?!" Cole yelled angrily.
"We had to get out quick, Cole. Purifier was on our ass the whole way into the English Channel. If we had stayed, she would have slaughtered us." Brooklyn spoke.
"But we just left her behind! We got the army boys out, but we left her behind in the process! God damn it!" Cole yelled as he knocked a chair off its legs, sending it crashing into the wall.
"Pull yourself together, Soldier. We have more pressing concerns at the moment. If you want to live long enough to save that poor woman, then you better get your goddamn head in the game.
Hermit made her move while you were all gone. She has begun a silent occupation of Sicily ahead of a full-scale invasion. Washington and Ranger are there holding down the fort, but it is clear they will be overrun. I want you to get whatever troops we can scrounge up and get ready to redeploy to Sicily to help." New Jersey ordered.
"Right… Fine. But we are going back for her." Cole spoke.
"So be it. I'll be there with you to destroy any opposition. But until we can manage to stave off Hermit, you need to get your ducks in a row and unfuck yourself." New Jersey spat, in an uncharacteristic display of authority.
"Amore. We may be facing down Hermit, but this man has brought us allies. He is concerned, as anyone would be. Cut him some slack. For me if you must." Vittorio spoke as she walked to Cole.
"You did well, soldier. Rest for a day or two while we build the blueprints you acquired for us." Vittorio spoke.
"We also found Scharnhorst. She cannot hear due to the torture she endured. Can… we fix her?" Cole asked.
"I will see our cube reserves opened for her and Van Kinsburgen. We can use all the help we can get." Vittorio said with a soft smile.
"Gneisenau will be happy to hear that." Cole said with a smile.
"If you come along, we're going to debrief you and get you ready to depart for Sicily." Vittorio said as Pavel spoke up.
"We want to attend as well. Natalie and I." Pavel spoke in a heavy Slavic accent.
"You two will need to get cleaned up before you enter the operations center. It's improper and honestly you two look awful. Covered in mud, blood and soot. That just won't do. I'll send London and Duca to come collect you. For now, Cole and Brooklyn are going to join us by the dry docks to begin the construction of the new vessels." Vittorio spoke as the four left the room, leaving Natalie and Pavel in their room.
On the way out to the flight deck, Cole and the other Kansens ran into Nimitz who was preparing to depart the vessel.
"Admiral. Well done on another successful mission." NJ spoke happily.
"Thank you, New Jersey. I can say it feels like the war never ended." Nimitz said as he remembered his time fighting Japan in the Pacific.
"Well, hopefully we can end it sooner rather than later. Will you be joining us for the defense of Sicily?" Vittorio asked.
"Of course. Wouldn't do for me to let the girls take all the credit." Nimitz said jokingly.
"I shall prepare my quarters for your stay then, Admiral." New Jersey said.
"A familiar ship. I like that idea. We'll go with it. When do we depart?" Nimitz asked as he grabbed his bag.
"We'll depart with August and Agir when they are constructed. Minneapolis is already in Sicily and will be fighting guerilla style with Washington and Ranger until we can scramble what ships we have in the region to help force back the invasion." Vittorio explained.
"Washington and Ranger have a child with them, no? Is there anything in place to protect the child? If something were to happen… Washington would not take it very well." Nimitz warned.
"I met the kid, but I didn't think she was super attached. She defended him from Massachusetts's jokes but is it really that intense?" New Jersey asked.
"Yes. Washington told me some of the things that happened on the way across the Atlantic. She loves that boy like her own son. If you can, find a way to get that kid to safety unless you want Sicily to be a burning wreck upon our arrival." Nimitz warned again.
"Got it. I'll update Minnie to prioritize the child's safety above all else. We don't want to soil Azur Lane's name by letting a North Carolina class battleship run wild." New Jersey said as she, Cole, Nimitz, Brooklyn and Vittorio all headed off the flight deck of the Yorktown and towards the dry docks.