Three days after arriving in Surabaya, Thorson sat on the deck of the Pennsylvania, leaning against one of her main batteries. The Java sun beat down on him, but his uniform shielded him from the worst of it. The gangway to the docks was in sight, leaving him to ensure that Ooshio and her sisters did not attempt a run for it, even without their rigging. The rest of his fleet was enjoying more shore leave and patronizing the local marketplaces, something he thought they richly deserved after their long journey and harrowing passage through the Makassar Strait. In his hand rested the final wisdom cube he had access to. He wasn't sure which of the four shrine kittens it belonged to. Possibilities tumbled through his mind, possibilities and realities. The reality was that any ship under his command without rigging was a liability. Zed and Shiratsuyu needed it. There was also the question of the four prisoners. They'd not made trouble for him and were eating and drinking, but Asashio, the eldest, showed no indication of warming up.
"And then there's Houston. Guess there's really only one choice in the end. But can I even do this?" Thorson wondered, staring down at the cube in his palm. He reached for it, the way he might reach for Cleveland or Penny during a link. There was nothing. With a frustrated grunt he closed his fingers around it and willed the cube to shatter. Domination proved more effective than collaboration as the cube shimmered and warped before breaking apart into a pile of shards in his hand. For the briefest of moments he thought he heard Arizona's voice in his head, but it was gone faster than a memory. "Well…I guess it worked," he murmured, seeing a familiar face come up onto deck. It didn't take Ooshio long to spy him and waddle on over, her short legs and thick thighs giving her a gait that would melt even the most frozen of hearts.
"Ah, good afternoon to ya, Shikikan! Do ya mind if I join ya?" She asked, bending at the waist as her twin braids spilled over her shoulders.
"No, go ahead," Thorson offered, gesturing to the ample deck space around him. Ooshio decided to sit right next to him on his left side.
"Don't want ya thinkin' I'll go fer your gun."
"Appreciate it."
"Ya don't much like havin' us, do ya?" Ooshio inquired, watching his face intently. He covered his forehead with his hand and dragged it down to his chin.
"It would be easier if you were all men, people who only looked at me with a desire to kill and who I could want to kill right back. You and your sisters are gentle things, even if you're also fine warriors. It makes this whole process very difficult for me. See, you're the enemy and all it takes is one look and your cute accent and I'm spilling my guts."
"Shikikan! Y-ya can't be sayin' such things!" Ooshio exclaimed with a fierce blush. He smirked, shaking his head at himself.
"Yeah, I know. But honesty has won me powerful and loyal friends in my fleet. As you know by now I hope you and your sisters will be among that number someday."
"But...ya fight for the Union. What would happen ta us if ya won?" Ooshio asked with legitimate concern in her voice.
"I know. I don't know what would happen if the Union conquered the Sakura Empire. I really don't. And I wouldn't be able to control that. All I know is that I was ordered to fight the sirens. I need every ship I can get my hands on. I'm not picky. Who knows, maybe in the fires of that war an alliance of former enemies will be forged?" Thorson laughed cynically, rendering his opinion on that likelihood.
"When ya put it that way it does sound a bit like wishful thinkin'," Ooshio admitted. "But yer gonna try?"
"I am."
Ooshio nodded approvingly. "No wonder nee-san is so conflicted. I'm glad I don' have ta think about such grand things."
"Ooshio."
"Hai, Shikikan?"
Thorson finally turned his head and met her bright, ruby eyes. "What would you do if I gave you your rigging back?"
"Shikikan?" She gasped. "I uh...I don' know."
"What about your ship? Would you turn to fight for Akagi and Kaga again? Or would you stay and fight with Fusou and Yamashiro?" He prompted.
"Ya mean fightin' for this fleet? With all them strong, solid Union gals?"
"That would be a part of it, yes."
"I don'...I don' know Shikikan."
Thorson decided on a new approach, laying his free arm across her shoulders. Ooshio freaked out for a moment but when he made no move to hurt or assault her she looked at him with astonishment and reached for his side instead. She found it quite solid and leaned against it. "Ya feel quite manly, Shikikan. Why are ya huggin' me?" She managed to ask, her cubes all aflutter at being next to such a strong but seemingly gentle body. She whispered into her sleeves nervously. "This has mah heart goin' crazy."
"If there was no war, what would you be doing?" He wondered.
"Tending to ma shrine around Kyoto. It's a small, quaint little thing. Young women an' expectant mothers come ta it, prayin' fer health an' fertility. It's peaceful there, under the bamboo. They're all so beautiful in their own ways, them mothers. It makes me happy ta care for em and entreat tha gods on their behalf."
"It sounds like a good life," Thorson agreed sincerely. "I can't offer you that life. But I hope that when this is all over...that I can give you the ability to go home and live that life on your own without the sirens threatening us all."
"Did ya charm all yer other ships like this, Shikikan?" Ooshio asked cutely, wrapping her tail around the front of her body and laying the tip in his lap. He shook his head.
"Don't think so. They all have their reasons for fighting, very few of which have to do with me directly."
"I'll be doubtin' that, Shikikan. But I think yer quest is an honorable one. Ya don' think the Sakura are yer enemies?"
"You attacked us, killed many Union sailors, started a war in the Pacific...but I think the sirens pulled the strings. Defeating Akagi and Kaga is a means to an end. I have no desire to slaughter the rest of you. In the end, I would even spare them and the other carriers who attacked us if they'd fight for me. I don't think I could execute them without cause…"
"The dead aren't cause enough?" Ooshio wondered. Thorson frowned bitterly.
"The dead are with God. If Akagi and Kaga pledge to kill sirens...the almighty will judge them. I don't have that right. Doesn't mean I won't grind them into dust if they refuse."
"I think tha' destroyer o' yours is rubbin' off on ya. What's her name? The cutie with the ashen hair who's always workin' out with the tanned angel?"
"Downes and Tennessee? Are you drooling?" Thorson laughed loudly. "Pretty sure Downes would get a kick out of that."
"Yer so mean, Shikikan! It...it ain't looked at friendly, a girl like me likin' other girls' bodies. I just can't help it," Ooshio admitted with a despondent frown, saying to her enemy what she could never admit to sisters or allies. Thorson regarded her curiously but had nothing definitive to say.
"Like I said, the Almighty will judge us all. It's not my place to say if what you feel is wrong. I care whether or not you'll help me destroy the siren claws that have sunk deep into your navy." With those words Thorson opened his other hand, holding out the shards to her. A rough count gave him fourteen. Ooshio's eyes were sparkling, reflecting blue on red.
"Ya would trust me with this, Shikikan?"
"What is 'this' to you?" Thorson queried, wondering how the process would be seen from the perspective of someone whose shard had been removed by him. It was vital information for when Zed's time came.
"A couple o' them shards are just beggin' ta be eaten up," Ooshio confirmed, reporting similar sensations as the Union girls. Thorson made a mental note that most shipgirls seemed drawn to the idea of being a part of command structures.
"And if I give them to you, you'll be my ship," Thorson warned her. To his surprise Ooshio giggled like a schoolgirl, a simple, contagious laugh that reminded him of a home he'd never visited.
"Ya have a flair for tha dramatic, don't ya Shikikan?"
Thorson flushed red. "I don't…" He took a moment to consider that he certainly did. "Alright, maybe a little. It helps in making sense of all this."
"Sense o' fightin' with an' against cute gals?" Ooshio tittered. "Ya don' have ta make excuses for a simple gal like me, Shikikan. I think the way ya carry yerself is cute an' manly, gets my cubes all shakin' and makes me wanna just…" Ooshio's voice had gotten lower and lower throughout, and instead of finishing her sentence she showed Thorson what she wanted to do. With great care she turned towards him and laid herself across his chest. Her heart wanted to explode with how many conventions and codes she was breaking, but that was part of the thrill, that and the Union Commander seemed just as tentatively excited as she was. She felt his body stiffen and then relax. An arm circled her curvy midriff.
"So under all tha' seriousness an' broodin' ya are a young man after all," Ooshio whispered, resting her head on his shoulder and committing every second of contact with his body to memory. Thorson, for his part, was trying to understand how something so small could also be so voluptuously fluffy. "I'm gonna let ya' in on a secret, Shikikan," Ooshio whispered as the hot sun beat down on them. She could smell his sweat. "When a simple gal like me wants somethin', an' she trusts a man, she doesn't hide it. I don' wanna be yer enemy no more. I'm ready ta serve ya an' Fusou-sama. Give it ta me, please." Even in the tropics, Thorson could feel her heat on him, the caress of her nervous breath. Underneath the giving flesh of her prodigious breasts he could feel her heart racing. He closed his eyes. The cube had responded to his command to shatter, so he gave its shards a new command, to provide him with the energy best suited for the gentle, nervous shrine kitten resting in his lap. He replaced them all in his pocket, plucked the two that responded to his request, and brought his hand to the back of Ooshio's neck.
"Try to relax," he encouraged her, feeling like he was about to make love to her instead of grant her power. "I hope this can be an example to your sisters and my own fleet." The skin at the base of her neck felt soft and smooth. He pressed firmly.
"Aaah...Shikikan," Ooshio whispered, gripping his shoulders tightly as the power of the shards suffused her body and compelled her to align herself with the commander underneath her. "It's...haaaaah!" The kanji for 'high' glowed brightly on her neck, the first of the sisters named for the tides to receive Thorson's blessing.
"Stand and prepare for battle," Thorson whispered, helping her to her feet and standing back so she could release the pent up energy. Over her shoulder he saw the other three sisters staring, horrified, from behind one of Penny's secondary batteries. "It'll get easier," he promised, watching as Ooshio brought her hands to her knees and panted with exertion, the process clearly a bit more difficult for her than his Union girls. In short order her rigging reappeared. It was a simple thing for a simple girl, quad torpedo launchers on each hip, an anchor hairpin, and a boiler on her back. Her wooden sandals changed shape slightly to resemble the bow of a destroyer, and a small twin 12.7 cm gun battery resolved in her hands. Thorson rubbed her ears in congratulations. Ooshio almost melted under the ministrations that he'd been working on with Yamashiro.
"I...ah tha feels...tha feels mighty fine," she whimpered before jumping to attention as Thorson raised his voice.
"You three! Get down here!" He commanded. Asashio and Arashio glared at him as though he'd murdered their sister, but Michishio was much more sanguine about the whole affair.
"Onee-san, you have your rigging again! It looks so…shiny!" The flaxen haired kitten commented in a voice that practically caressed Thorson's eardrums.
"Ooshio has chosen to fight for Fusou and her gods. She'll be watching over you all," Thorson informed them tactfully. The other three members of destroyer division 8 stared at their sister, dumbfounded. She in turn stared at Thorson with a similar look. "You'll get used to it with me. Have you all eaten?" They nodded. "Good. We're going across the port to visit Houston. Any complaints?" There were none. And so Thorson brought up the rear as Ooshio led her sisters off the Pennsylvania and onto the docks.
As one of the few Eagle Union ships in Surabaya and the only one without crew under Doorman's command, it wasn't hard for Thorson to find Houston. True to Doorman's words she possessed vibrant pink hair and neon green eyes, but she didn't seem airheaded to him, at least as he looked up at her from the docks. She was standing on the bow of her ship, her small chest and privates covered by white swimwear with a golden star each. The rest of her skin was bare and the look on her face was one of worry.
"She's got ears too?" Arashio questioned.
"Mechanical from the looks," Thorson agreed. "Let's go say hello."
"She's got more clothing on her legs and arms than her body," Asashio pointed out judgmentally, taking note of Houston's long red gloves and thigh high leggings.
"She seems nice," Michishio added diplomatically as the five of them ascended the gangway onto deck. To their surprise Houston was there to meet them. She stood only a couple inches shorter than Thorson.
"You're Houston?" He requested with a salute. She returned it properly, leaving Ooshio muttering about how the Union was full of people and ships that were all 'tall, fair, an' strong as Mt. Fuji'.
"Heya Commander!" The young woman spoke in a lively and upbeat voice. "Haven't seen you here before but yeah, I'm Houston, Northampton class cruiser! Are you here to chat with me? It's been a bit lonely since my crew was reassigned. Oh and who are these adorable little ones?" She asked, bending at the waist slightly to wave at the members of DESDIV8.
"I sunk one of your friends at Badung Strait," Arashio replied defiantly.
"But you've been captured now so...yeah!" Houston said without much concern, touching the golden star that hung from a black choker around her neck. "See, I've got cat ears too!"
"Ours are real," Asashio gloated. Instead of looking downtrodden, Houston's face lit up.
"Are the tails real too? Commander, are they under your protection? Can I pet them please?!"
"Heh, that's up to them. Ooshio has chosen to join my fleet so she's a free woman, so to speak. The rest are indeed under my protection. You'll have to ask though."
"Wait, we can just join you? Aren't you the guy with all the girls who have rigging? I'd like that a lot," Houston told him as Michishio stepped forward.
"You can pet my ears if you like. Can I feel your hair?" The Union cruiser seemed happy to accept that trade, giving Michishio plenty of tactile attention while the shrine maiden verified that Houston's wild, pink hair was indeed natural and soft.
"I don't understand any of this," Asashio muttered. Thorson glanced over at her.
"It's natural, from what I've seen. You girls all come from the same technology. You're all sisters in a way," he proposed as Michishio laughed like an angel and Ooshio broke down and joined in, providing Houston with an opportunity for a rare, genuine smile. "Houston, Admiral Doorman needs you but I've come with a gift."
"Oh? What's that?" She requested, patting both Michishio and Ooshio on the head and returning them to the Commander.
"Shards," he said simply, extending his hand to her. "Pick any you like."
"Hmm, really? Can I?"
"Don't see why not. I'm offering."
"Well then don't mind if I do! I think I like this one. Oh and this one too; it kind of looks like a star. So what happens now?" She asked, holding the faintly glowing pieces of ethereal material in her hand.
"Well...I actually don't know!" Thorson admitted with a laugh. "I've never tried this with a ship that wasn't under my direct authority."
"Should I hold onto them? They feel powerful," Houston described. Thorson nodded.
"I want you to listen carefully, Houston, because a misunderstanding of what I'm about to say world definitely be gross insubordination."
"I'm listening!" She promised, rendering another salute before slipping the shards into her top.
"If there comes a moment in battle when all hope seems lost, call on those shards and on me. If I'm not dead…"
"Hey, are you always this down?" Houston asked happily. "Things were tough up until now but with you here and these cuties I know we'll be fine! So chin up, Commander! Admiral Doorman is a good man who's been dealt a tough hand. We all really appreciate you coming and I'll do my best to pull my own weight, alright?"
"The tall lass has a point, Commander. Ya' think about death too much an' life too little," Ooshio added.
"See Commander? The cute one agrees with me! Well they're all cute, aren't they? Meow~!" Houston purred, miming a cat's paws with her hands. The Sakura seemed more confused than anything, but Houston's cheery demeanor was undeniably uplifting. "Oh look, aren't those your scout planes?" Houston asked, seeing a squadron of Fairey Fulmars returning from the north. "Isn't it just dandy having a carrier in the theater?"
"It is indeed. I should go speak with her. Please excuse my abrupt departure."
"Oh don't worry about it, Commander! I appreciate the visit. Will I be seeing you again?" Houston asked innocently.
"I hope so," Thorson told her, saluting once more. Houston copied him before waving to the Sakura ships with him.
"Then I'll see you soon. Bye kitties!"
"Goodbye Houston," Ooshio and Michishio replied as they turned and marched off. Thorson gave her a final nod before following after.
I'm sorry, this is all I can do for now.
The news from Ark's patrol was not favorable. Jintsuu was moving south, having consolidated her forces in Borneo after the fall of Makassar and Denpassar airfield. Her fleet consisted of fourteen destroyers, two light cruisers, and a heavy cruiser, all modernized and outfitted with torpedo armaments that could threaten even Thorson's fleet of battleships. Almost two dozen troop transports were with them, and their air support had prevented Ark from getting close. The conversation with Doorman was brief and the objective clear. The fleet would be met in open water. The battle of Java Sea was upon them.
Thanks to the system of rigging and communications among his ships, Thorson was underway soon after Ark's report. Doorman was behind, but with no battleships or carriers in his fleet, Thorson knew they would catch up quickly. Once they'd left the harbor and headed due north, Thorson radioed Javelin.
"Javelin, is Zed with you?" He demanded.
"Hello Knight Commander! Yes, she's here."
"Please bring her to the Pennsylvania. I intend to restore her rigging if she's willing. Did you manage to spend some time with your sister?"
"Of course, Knight Commander! She's a little sleepy as usual, but it was great to see her. I hope she'll be alright," Javelin worried.
"You have concerns about the Rear Admiral?" Thorson requested her feedback.
"No sir, Knight Commander. I just trust you and women like Warspite more. I'll bring Zed over right now before things get hot. See you soon!"
And so Thorson spent about an hour with the welcome distraction of restoring Shiratsuyu and Zed to partial warfighting capacity. Both were surprised at first, but happy for the ability to form rigging and traverse the ocean as they chose. Shiratsuyu's rigging mark took the shape of crossed chef's knives, while Zed's formed the Iron Cross of her homeland. Thorson addressed them both when it was over. "Are you two ready?"
"No, Kommandant. But I will do what must be done, for all of us," Zed promised on the bridge, earning her a one armed hug from Penny.
"You'll be fine, kid. They won't sink me. Just stay here in case we need a courier or something."
"They claimed Lord Bismarck could not be sunk," Zed replied sadly.
"I know, Z23. But she died alone. I have my sister, my Commander, and this fleet. Andrew, you intend to hold this formation?"
Thorson took his hand in hers, spirits bolstered by her conviction. "I do. We still don't have the escort ships and there's not been sufficient time for Admiral Doorman and myself to establish a joint command structure. God willing we'll meet them in open water and destroy them with gunfire before they can hit us too badly with their torpedoes."
"Fine by me, sir. Can't help but get excited," Pennsylvania admitted, getting the same vibes from many of Thorson's ships. The Commander nodded.
"Me too. Excited and terrified."
"This will be a real fight, sir. Stand up and drag down."
Thorson looked out over the waves. "...I know. My first fight."
"So it begins," Jintsuu murmured, sighting enemy ships on the southern horizon as the sun began to set. Her large, fluffy tail waved lazily behind her. "Steel yourselves, my sisters! Their hulls will break under our assault and we will show them how useless such lumbering battleships are against a nimble force! Remember, our primary objective is the defense of the transports. Spread out and form a kill zone! Haguro, send word to the bombers. We have a visual."
Across the sea, Thorson gave his own orders. "Battleships, can you strike them at that range?"
"This is nothing," Warspite promised, adjusting her main batteries. "Just give the order, Knight Commander. They will fall eventually."
"Focus on the destroyers and fire at will," Thorson ordered, feeling the Pennsylvania shudder beneath him as her guns let slip the first volleys. Tennessee was already on her bow, defiantly staring up at the approaching planes as shells leapt from her main batteries. "Cleveland, Ark!"
"Way ahead of you, Commander!" His light cruiser replied confidently, her main guns silent as she led Thorson's smaller vessels in a coordinated anti-aircraft effort as Ark took a knee aboard her deck and aimed her Fulmar squadrons with her rifle. In no time the air above the allied fleets was full of planes and flak, with an occasional bomb striking his ships' shields as long range fire from the Sakura cruisers fell around them.
"This battle will go on forever like this," Pennsylvania informed Thorson about fifteen minutes into the conflict. His fleet had scored more hits than the Sakura, but none were decisive. Several of the enemy ships had shielding too, not to mention air power. Unlike Thorson's fortress formation the Sakura were spread wide like a net, frustrating his ability to focus fire as the enemy flowed like water, ships weaving in and out of formation just waiting for Jintsuu-sama to draw the enemy in. Between Cleveland, Thorson's other cruisers, and Ark Royal, the Sakura air advantage was eventually neutralized. The Sakura formation proved more than able to destroy the Royal carrier's swordfish bombers, the few escort Zeroes shredding the biplanes to bits as Ark bore the pain with grace and determination.
"Damn it," Thorson muttered after more than an hour of dancing and shell slinging. Ooshio and her sisters waited nervously at the back of the bridge while Penny and he were both getting impatient. "She's good. We sail into that net and we're dead."
"She's maneuvered us back towards Java. We are running out of time!" Doorman radioed. Thorson hung his head and pounded a hand into his fist. The Rear Admiral was right. If they retreated close enough to Java, the transports could make a break for it under the cover of torpedo screens and find shelter on the coast. The fall of Surabaya would mean the fall of the Malay barrier and the surrender of the entirety of the Dutch East Indies and their resources to the Sakura Empire. Frustration raked Thorson's nerves as he realized how much of his efforts might ultimately be in vain. "Young man, this trap must be sprung. Your battleships would never make it. I am counting on you to finish the job."
"Rear Admiral, say again?!" Thorson demanded, feeling his stomach drop out as Doorman's force of fourteen smaller ships broke formation and made a firing run on the western end of Jintsuu's fleet. Aboard her bridge, the Sakura tactician opened her fan and covered her lips as they formed a predatory smile. Her blue eyes glinted with the thrill of victory.
"Patience is a virtue, devil. May your deaths be swift. All ships load Type 93 torpedoes and high explosive shells. Send them to the bottom!" Jintsuu almost shrieked in surprise as a precision volley of massive 15" shells from Warspite struck home and detonated the ammunition stores of the Samidare. The ship exploded in a hellbourne fireball that sent ripples over the ocean and fear into her ship's hearts. She rallied them. "Stay strong, Naka and my other sisters of the Sakura. That is the fate of those not blessed by the Creator. Look, the enemy thinks the battle is won and they rush in their haste to strike the final blow. Be as bamboo in a blizzard. Bend and weather the storm! We shall stand proud when winter fades! Target the lead cruiser!"
Thorson watched from the Pennsylvania as the entire battle seemed to deteriorate into chaos in a matter of minutes. Just as Doorman's force began to move Warspite scored a signature long range kill on an enemy destroyer. The fireball drew cheers from his ships and the sailors of the fleet as they risked enemy torpedoes for the chance to strike at Jintsuu's transports. "Shit...all ships advance at full! Penny and Tennessee watch your shields. Everyone else sink those cruisers! Cut the head off this snake!" Thorson ordered, seeing the thin smile on Pennsylvania's face as he ordered her to battle. It faded quickly.
"We won't make it in time, sir. Our dispersion is still too great and we can't use all our turrets during an advance," Arizona radioed in, watching nervously from the flank as the Sakura ships stopped firing at Thorson's formation altogether and sent a hail of shells at Doorman's flagship. With the ABDA fire focused on the transports, the outcome was clear.
"Covering fire! All ships pour it on! Every hit is worth something!" Thorson commanded desperately.
"With pleasure, Commander!" Tennessee replied, firing barrage after barrage from her main guns. She was scoring the occasional hit on Naka's shields but none were definitive. "Damn, these girls aren't pushovers. That's one hell of a shield for a light cruiser. Oh shit...THORSON, ORDERS?!" Tennessee shouted on all channels as Jintsuu's trap was sprung. The main fleet watched in horror as Doorman's flagship, the De Ruyter, was struck by a torpedo and snapped in two. Zed and Shiratsuyu rushed to stand next to Thorson as the radio crackled, their knuckles white as they peered out the windows.
"Commander Thorson…" Doorman's calm and reserved voice reached them. They all knew there would be no escape for him. Zed wanted to cry at the look on her Kommandant's face. "Fight well, young man."
"No!" Thorson punched the glass of Penny's bridge hard enough to bruise the bones beneath. His flagship rested a hand on his shoulder, establishing a strong link and allowing the rest of the fleet to understand what was happening aboard. He could faintly register them all individually, their worries and conviction. A sudden spike of terror shuddered through them, emanating from Javelin.
"Knight Commander!" She screamed, watching helplessly as Jintsuu's formation shrugged off increasing battleship and heavy cruiser fire to slay the remainder of Doorman's formation. The Exeter was crippled under a barrage of shells, forcing her to limp away under escort for Surabaya. Instead of chasing, Jintsuu shifted fire to the Houston and Jupiter, caught almost alone in no man's land. Javelin's younger sister shrieked in pain as her ship suffered the same fate as the De Ruyter, while Houston, already lacking one of her main batteries, tried desperately to hold the formation and keep fire on the transports.
"Knight Commander," Warspite called to him over the radio. "You must calm yourself. This is war and you are our leader. I know you are distressed, but we can defeat them. Victory depends on far more than statistics!" The seasoned Royal left out the fact that such a victory would necessitate loses among his ships, but the commitment had already been forced by the late Rear Admiral. "Javelin, hold your place in formation!"
"But Warspite, my sister! I can get to her!" The destroyer cried. Thorson recalled how she'd broken away to get to Zed. Such actions would seal her fate against a commander like Jintsuu if she took her ship with her.
"Warspite, Javelin, hold fast and continue to fire! I have an idea. Houston, Houston are you there?" Thorson shouted.
"Oh...heya, Commander…" she huffed, clearly in immense pain. "Is it...that time? I don't think I can sink them...all."
Thorson closed his eyes and made up his mind, recalling Houston's buoyant smile. He wanted to save her. I'm sorry, Rear Admiral. Surabaya was lost from the beginning. But I can try to give them the opportunity to fight another day. "Houston, your new orders are to hold your ground and provide covering fire in the vicinity of the Jupiter's wreck. Hold fast, we're coming!"
"Can I...can I use those, Commander?" Houston requested. The sound of a shell detonating on her deck reverberated over the radio. Thorson nodded, making sure every ship under his command could hear him. They were close to the maximum range of Jintsuu's torpedoes.
"Of course. Show them how the Union fights!"
Portland and Downes led the cheer as the Houston was enveloped in light, her assimilation of the shards complete. When the glow faded her full complement of guns was operational and she diverted her aim from the distant transports to the nearest enemy destroyer, the Minegumo.
"Alright you flower petal pansies, Commander wants you to taste my guns! Have some of this! From the brink of death suffer the wrath of the Ghost of Java Coast!" Houston cried, firing nine 203mm shells at the Sakura destroyer as her secondary batteries leapt to action as well. Aboard the Jintsuu, the Sakura commander frowned at the development as the Minegumo was consumed by flames.
"So...I face the enigmatic Knight of the Union? You have only postponed the inevitable. Yuudachi, Yukikaze, sink that heavy cruiser!"
"Seems more like a light cruiser, doesn't it?" Yuudachi wondered as she broke formation to make a torpedo run with her friend.
"Stay focused and sink her!"
"Don't worry, Jintsuu-sama. With the lucky Yukikaze on your side there's nothing to fear!"
"In battle there is only the skill of your blade against theirs. Luck is for those at the gambling parlor. Show no mercy!" Jintsuu demanded.
"Yeah yeah, just made sure there's meat for us back at port!" Yuudachi shot back, releasing torpedoes and peppering the Houston's hull with shells while Yukikaze gracefully dodged fire from the Union ship. The cruiser seemed to shrug off the fire with unnatural defenses, but two torpedoes impacted her and flooded her hull. Bruised and bleeding, forced to a knee on her bridge, Houston made what she thought might be her last radio transmission. She could just see Jupiter's pale blue hair floating listlessly in the water next to a wisdom cube. She had at least drawn their fire.
"Commander...thanks so much for the chance to fight like them," she whispered. "Rigging is really...really something else. I just hope it was enough." Aboard the Pennsylvania Thorson could barely take it, feeling his heart strangled by the duties of command and sacrifice of others. But his lover was at his side and those who trusted in him were ready to act. He gave the order. "You stay alive Houston, do you hear me?! We're coming! Leander, now!"
"Focusing all power on smoke launchers, taking aim...smoke screen deployed!" The Scottish lass confirmed, Thorson's strategy forcing her to do something she'd never tried before, launching her smoke canisters into the no man's land of a battle using her main guns. As the distraction began to billow right around the sinking Houston, Thorson looked down at Shiratsuyu. She had been staring through his binoculars the whole time, unable to hold her tears back.
"You're sure it's them?" He demanded.
"It is!" She sobbed.
Thorson initiated the second part of his plan. "Fusou, patch her through onto all Sakura channels. Shiratsuyu, call to them."
The young woman needed no encouragement, her tail wagging desperately as she shouted into Penny's radio. "Yuudachi! Yukikaze! It's me, Shiratsuyu! I'm alive, I'm here! Please, get out of here before you're destroyed!"
A determined grin formed on Penny's face again as she watched the Sakura momentarily halt fire in confusion, the smoke slowly bisecting the battlefield as Yuudachi and Yukikaze were left to wonder if a ghost had just called out to them. Thorson gave his final orders. "Warspite, Penny, Fusou, Arizona, Tennessee, I need every ounce of covering fire you've got. Destroyers, I want a torpedo wave on either side of Houston's last known position. Javelin, Indianapolis, set your hulls as defensively as possible, get in the water, and secure Jupiter and Houston."
"I'm ready, Commander. I won't fail her," the calm heavy cruiser promised, deactivating her guns, setting the Pandora shield, and leaping into the waves as Javelin sped ahead, racing against time to reach her sister.
"Indy! Remember I love you!" Portland called, but she held formation. Thorson gave her the order she wanted.
"All ships, OPEN FIRE!"
"You know, you might end up trapped in there like the others. No one leaves the Hall of Sculptures until the Creator deems them worthy," Tester tittered with laughter as Kaga beheld the unconscious faces of Atago, Takao, Ayanami, and the pride of the Sanctuary's research divisions, the large cruiser who had named herself Azuma.
"Cram it, you disgusting figment of fiction. Which are you, exactly? Scylla? Charybdis? The Kraken? Some silly devil fish? Had fun scaring humans hundreds of years ago?"
"I think you should be more worried about what happens if you get lost in there right now. The contract with the Creator shouldn't be taken lightly," Tester warned with every indication that she very much wanted Kaga to try anyway. Her dangerous, lance-like rigging bore the brunt of Kaga's spirit fire, unleashed in a moment of fury. "Ow ow ow! You darn foxy!"
"You and Akagi think yourselves the powerful ones here? You always watching and muttering while she gallantly leads the charge against the pathetic remnants of the Royal Navy left in India? No. With the Creator as my witness I will show you all true strength, in honor of my elder sister and senpai, Amagi. This reality shall be my playground, and that Knight shall finally be brought to heel." With that promise, the kimono and armor clad kitsune stepped into the chamber before her and closed her eyes. Through sheer force of will she called upon every ounce of strength garnered over a lifetime of combat and informed the universe where she needed to be, opening her eyes to behold a grand battle in the Sea of Java. Her eyes narrowed into slits as the huntress within took over and fire blazed at the tips of her eight tails.
"Zero, Aichi, and Nakajima squadrons...launch! Let us see how our pupil Jintsuu commands her forces."