After a few demonstrations, we got on with the tests. The initial exercises weren't anything I hadn't learned from earlier: that the Type-II ships were incredibly powerful, and the Devil certainly was as powerful as any Arbiter I'd previously faced down. With the test data now successfully submitted back to Anzeel and Aoste for their review, we prepared for the real combat exercise: the shipgirls versus the Arbiter.

"Man, I thought we'd be here all day, but those drones made things a piece of cake!" Hornet grinned as everyone began to get into their assigned positions for the fight. "Despite your name, you're a real angel when it comes to buffing us up! Lemme tell you, if I ever find myself on the battlefield, I'd want you behind my back!"

"Sure thing. I don't mind having meatshields like you," Devil grinned, well…devilishly.

I caught sight of Yorktown as she moved to stand beside me, a worried expression on her face. "I just hope... it never comes to that. War never accomplishes anything in the end."

"Relax! It's just a bit of friendly banter," Hornet laughed with a dismissive wave of her hand.

But her words did little to assuage Yorktown's fears. "I understand you're just joking, but that is also our duty as shipgirls. If war truly were to break out, I would proudly carry out that duty."

She looked out at the sea, and I could see the look of resolve on her face, hear it in her voice. That familiar determination I so often saw on Yorktown's. Once more, I wondered, how much of the real Yorktown was in there.

Unfortunately, I didn't have the time. Everyone was in position. "Devil, are you ready to begin?"

She gave a winning smile and a thumbs up. "Ready whenever you are. Now, let's see how you fare in an actual battle against me. Let me remind you that I'm not a frontline fighter. Supporting from the backlines is what I do best.

"Having that said, my vessel is no slouch in a direct engagement. In addition to my arsenal of support drones and defensive weapons, I obviously have the mobility to get out of dangerous situations. Speaking of those drones, they will be used to strengthen the mass-produced ships to make your job harder. While I do not hit as hard as my peers on my own, you will find it difficult to approach me. My win condition is simple – I will isolate you, and pick you off one by one."

The way she looked at Yorktown, then at me, sent a shiver running down my spine. If I didn't know any better, I'd swear she knew what happened to the real Yorktown and was trying to unnerve me.

If Yorktown caught the glance, she gave no notice. "You oversee and coordinate the state of the battle then... Much like the Commander...but the difference is, you are already isolated to begin with. Once we take out your mass-produced ships, there's nothing to protect you."

"That's right!" Hamman piped up. " I bet I could take you out single-handedly!"

Devil seemed amused at the destroyer's pluck, raising an eyebrow in her direction. "Oh yeah? We'll see about that. Remember what I said about mass-produced weapons at the start? Well... Just take a look around you."

Suddenly, the radar lit up with dozens of new signals, none of them identifying as friendly. We peered out at them as they came into view. They looked similar to Devil, but as they got closer, I could see the lifeless stare in their eyes and I recognized them as Enforcers, albeit a type I hadn't seen before.

"Are these... also your drones? But, they look humanoid, just like your vessel…" Yorktown asked, her voice trailing off as she got a good look at them.

Devil shrugged. "They're technically both at once. Unlike me, however, they are not controlled by a mainframe."

"How did you manage to produce that many vessels in such a short period of time?"

"I didn't, actually," the Arbiter admitted. "My current vessel does not have the ability to mass-produce Enforcers, so I hid them beforehand. As for why you didn't notice their presence... It's because I hacked into all your electronics before we even began."

We all glanced at each other, trying to figure out how we were compromised. Hornet was the first to figure it out. "When did you... Oh, I bet it was when you transferred all that data to us!"

"No wonder her communicator acted up," Northampton said with a groan. "Here I thought she really had downloaded too many movies."

"Purge your communicators and switch to alternative encryption," I ordered, already putting my words into action.

As we all reset our devices, Devil smugly grinned down at us. "Hmph, make sure you take this lesson in electronic warfare to heart. Whoever controls information also controls the flow of battle. Now, allow me to introduce my little helpers." Two of the Enforcers stepped forward, one with carrier rigging, and the other bearing the guns associated with a battleship or heavy cruiser. "Enforcer XV: Temptation. Aircraft carrier. Specialty: using aircraft to harass targets and support allies. Enforcer XV: Restriction. Battleship. Specialty: blowing targets to bits in head-on engagements. This is the Antiochus force you'll be fighting. It's our integrated combat systems versus you and your Commander's wits. Just so you know," she sneered, "this is probably not going to be a very fair fight."

"I know, dear, but you'll just have to play the bad hand you've been dealt," I smirked back at her. "I'm used to this kind of pressure, and I know what these girls are capable of. We'll overcome any challenge you throw at us.

"Well said, Commander. Let's give it our all." As ever, Yorktown was behind me.

"Thank you, Yorktown," I smiled over at her.

The Devil merely rolled her eyes. I wondered, did Aoste program in the dismissive sarcasm, or was that something they had learned on their own? "So, any final questions before we start?"

Hornet raised her hand. "I have one. Two, actually."

"As long as it won't affect the experiment results, shoot."

"Question one: your support drones can't buff us by mistake, can they?"

"Nope. They're calibrated to only empower Antiochus units."

A disappointed look crossed Hornet's features. "Figures. Question two: are we using live ammunition or blanks?"

That caught Devil off-guard, who fixed Hornet with an incredulous stare. "Do you want to use live ammunition?"

"Oh, absolutely not," Hornet emphatically denied with a smug grin. "Dr. Aoste would cry if I kicked your asses and left you full of holes."

"You'll be the one crying at the end of this, KAN-SEN," Devil snarled.

"Big girls don't cry, and I'm bigger than you in more ways than one. I'll show you why I'm worthy of inheriting the title of Grey Ghost!"

Devil let out a laugh as she began to depart. "Those are fighting words! This will be interesting!"


By the time Devil had gotten her fleets in position, the sun had begun to set, casting a blood-red hue over the water. I quietly hoped it wasn't an ill omen as I heard someone approaching. I turned to find Yorktown standing behind me, a familiar, expectant look on her face. "Hi, Commander."

I was so preoccupied with everything else, that I simply answered automatically. "Hey, Yorktown. You've got something to tell me, don't you?"

She giggled and nodded. "You read me like an open book. I wanted to thank you again for all you've done for me." There was a momentary pause, and she nervously glanced down at the deck, trying to find the courage to say what was on her mind. "For the longest time, sorrow formed a chain around my heart…" she began slowly, softly, and my heart skipped a beat. "Then you came into my life. Spending time together with you released my heart from the clutches of grief after so long."

Oh God.

It was her. It was really her. This was Yorktown, my Yorktown.

"But a while ago, I started getting anxious. I feared that the wonderful moments we shared would come to an end. You showed me the light. What would happen if I fell back into the darkness? My anxiety grew worse and worse. You are still just as kind and gentle as you have always been, but...something about you feels more distant...I can't exactly put my finger around it, but... It feels almost tragic."

I could feel the tears welling up in my eyes as I fought to keep my composure, to let her finish as she looked off into the distance. "I'm sorry, Commander. Please forget I brought this up...It might just be my own doubts and insecurities speaking. Thank you for always being so kind to me. Sometimes, I feel like that... is the true power behind the Type II rigging."

While I didn't know how the Commander of this…timeline, dimension, reality, whatever, felt, I knew, in my very soul that this was Yorktown, deep down, the same as the one back home. And she's shown me the blissful, happy smile my Yorktown was capable of. If for no other reason, she deserved to hear the truth.

"Y-Yorktown, I…"

Before I could finish, our communicators crackled to life and Hornet's voice echoed across the deck. "Hey, Yorktown, Commander, hate to interrupt, just wanted to say you really should give your present to the Commander after this!"

My tears immediately dried up and I felt all of the blood leave my face as I realized she'd heard everything. Yorktown was still piecing things together, however. "H-Hornet? How did you...?" And then, horror crossed her face as it dawned on her and she gasped. "Oh no... I forgot to switch off my communicator!"

Hornet's wolf whistle carried through the communicator. "You sure as heck did!"

"Don't tell me you heard everything I said…"

"I sure as heck did!"

"Oh... my goodness…" Yorktown groaned and covered her face with her hands, looking as red as a tomato.

"So you gonna give him your present or not?"

"What present?" I asked, not sure what Hornet kept referring to.

"P-please ignore that!" Yorktown stammered with a shake of her head. "You know how she can be with her pranks sometimes...Hornet, you should know better than to say stuff like that before an important exercise!"

Suddenly, Memphis's voice cuts in, although she sounds different, a tremor in her tone that has nothing to do with the quality of the call. "Yorktown... What's done is done...Nobody else is here. Nobody else can see us. Nothing is going to change...So, let's just say what we need to say…"

The distress in her voice didn't slip by Yorktown, even in her distressed state. "Memphis...? Is something wrong? Your voice is shaking... Did I say something I shouldn't have?"

There was a sniffle on the other end before she responded. "Sorry, I'm a bit worn out. I've just been going through a lot lately…Once we're done here, I'm gonna get a good night's sleep. I'm sure everything will be fine when I wake up. Yes, everything... will go back to normal…"

I recognized the tone in her voice. It was the same tone I'd been hearing for the past few months. The tone of despair, buried just under a layer of false hope. The same tone I'd been using. This Memphis, whoever she was, knew this was just something created by the Reality Lens. But she still wasn't acting quite like the Memphis I knew…

"Ditto," Hornet chimed in, oblivious to what was going on. "After this is over, I'm taking more than a few days off! I'm gonna go to the beach, binge-watch movies, and go full Bunker Hill mode and turn my sleep schedule on its head!"

"...Right. That's why we have to finish the work in front of us first." I could hear Memphis sniffle a bit more before she composed herself, her voice flat and businesslike when she spoke again. "Commander, radio Devil and tell her we're in position."

I looked over at Yorktown, wanting to tell her everything, to explain what had been going on, but Memphis left me no choice. "Roger, standby." I took my finger off the communicator and reached out to take Yorktown's hand. She looked over at me, concern and hope in her eyes. "When this is over, I'll explain everything, I promise. But know that, I have never stopped caring for you, that my feelings for you are just as strong now as they were then. If anything, they've gotten stronger, seeing your smile after so long."

Yorktown rewarded me with that heavenly smile. "Thank you, Commander. Now, let's get going before Hornet begins catcalling us again."

I chuckle and nod, withdrawing my hand from hers as I thumb the communicator back on. "Commence the exercise."


The battle had been hellish so far, with the Enforcers putting up heavy resistance, but Yorktown and the others had managed to punch through them and attack Devil directly. Unfortunately, while she wasn't terribly combat effective, she was quite nimble, and managed to take to the sky somehow, dodging torpedoes and bombs with ease.

"How the hell is she so mobile when she's gotta haul that huge rigging around?!" Hornet shouted over the comms, "What kind of power source did Dr. Aoste put into these second-generation Antiochus?!"

"It's as if she's using her sheer volume of Energy Cubes to brute force her way into the air," Yorktown observed, frustration tinging her voice. "Our torpedoes can't hit her and our bombers can't lock on to her. That leaves us with only fighters…"

And that's when Langley cut in with an excellent suggestion. "Yorktown, I still have these jets with experimental anti-air missiles. Do you want to give them a try? If we can disable that pesky flight system, she'll be an easy target."

Yorktown turned to me. "Commander, I'd like to request an aerial feint attack to give me an opportunity to coordinate with the missile fighter jets to strike Devil's power system."

I didn't even have to give it a second thought. "Do it."

Yorktown nodded and signaled to Langley. Her Avengers and Helldivers dove in on Devil, forcing her to redirect her defenses as she maneuvered directly into the path of the Langley's fighters. Multiple contrails filled the sky as they unleashed a pair of missiles each toward the Arbiter. While she tried to dodge, she wasn't fast enough, and multiple explosions blossomed along her rigging, wreathing her in smoke.

"A direct hit!" Yorktown cheered. "Commander, six of our missiles landed! That should be enough to…" Her voice trailed off as Devil burst through the smoke, looking angrier than ever. "Wait, it still didn't work…"

"She's still in the air!" Hornet helpfully observed. "If anything, she's moving even faster now!"

She shook her head and double-checked the readouts as I did the same. "That doesn't make any sense. The module should've automatically shut down after the dummy warheads hit... Is something wrong with my sensors?"

I was reading the same thing on my board, six impacts directly to her power sources. She should be forced down to sea level by now. In fact, it was flashing on my board as if it was disabled. And yet, she was very clearly airborne. And enraged.

Northampton's voice cut through the chatter with an urgent warning. "Commander, Enforcer aircraft incoming! I think those missiles pissed them off!"

"Hammann, don't let them hit Yorktown," I barked, and the plucky destroyer leapt into action.

"On it! I'll shoot every last one of them down!" Almost as soon as she got moving, she disappeared in a cloud of smoke as she was targeted by an Enforcer's volley. "Ow! Oww! Wait, no! Those are NOT blanks! Commander, Yorktown, they're using live ammunition!"

Yorktown gasped as I called out to the destroyer. "Hammann, are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, just stings a little," she groused. "Stupid Antiochus, breaking the rules once they start losing…"

"Langley, can you confirm they're using live rounds?" Yorktown asked.

The reply that came back was not what I wanted to hear. "They are. I sent out planes to intercept theirs, and they went up in smoke. That couldn't happen if they shot blanks!"

I took a look at the image of Devil on the monitor, and even over the video feed, I could feel the malice pouring off of her. This was a Siren Arbiter at full power, I realized, as a chill ran down my spine.

I looked up to see Yorktown staring expectantly at me. "Commander, what should we do now?"

"Switch to live ammo and regroup around the command ship while we work on our next course of action," I said as I glanced down at the image of Devil. "She seems content to stay where she is, for now, just defending herself. It's possible this is a malfunction in her programming."

She nodded emphatically and began barking orders. "Understood! Everyone, group up!"

"The exercise can't go on like this. Should I call it off, Commander?" Memphis suggested.

In all honesty, I had momentarily forgotten that this was an exercise we could just end. "Good idea. Tell her to stand down, and then patch me through to Aoste and Anzeel, I want to know why she switched to live ammo. "

"Roger." Memphis switched to the open frequency. "Devil, you've violated the rules of the exercise! I order you to immediately disarm and return to the surface." Nothing happened. "...She's not responding? Why isn't my override working?" Another pause, followed by a sudden cry of despair and alarm. "What?! My hacking attempt failed! How? The Arbiters here can't have developed countermeasures already…"

Then everything clicked. This was the Memphis from reality. Somehow she'd hacked her way into the Reality Lens. And if she was able to get in, then so could…

That wasn't a simulacrum of an Arbiter. That was the real Devil from our world. Somehow she'd gotten in here as well, and now she didn't need to pretend anymore. We were all in mortal danger against a foe who could possibly alter the very reality of this world against us.

"Everyone, regroup on me and get ready to head back to Samos Island, on the double," I ordered, trying to keep the fear from my voice.

As we turned to flee, the words of Shakespeare's Tempest sprung to my mind, unbidden. "Hell is empty and all the devils are here."

A/N-Uh oh. Until next time, fair winds and following seas!