Responses to Reviews:
RonaldM40196867: No, I don't. I think children are a lot smarter than they are sometimes given credit for, they can handle something like this.
Zigzagdoublezee: He did feel relieved, and he was doing it pretty much entirely for Asami.
As Always, Please Review!
Kuvira
The blast of purple light brought a general sense of relief through the bridge of the Colossus. When it cleared, the flying machine was simply gone. No trace of it remained.
It was a shame, Kuvira reflected. The pilot was clearly skilled and talented, and a daredevil to boot. None of the others had been anywhere near as willing to come that close. Hopefully, after that demonstration, none of the others would.
She leaned against the console and released a breath she hadn't known she'd been holding. It was alright, they were winning. The only damage the Allies had caused to her colossus was a slight dent where a shell had glanced off it, and in return their fleet was taking a mauling of epic proportions. Her decapitation strike should have gone off against their high command too, and her land forces had launched diversionary attacks. The United Republic was confused, off balance, disoriented, and its ability to respond to her moves practically gone; one sharp blow, and this war would be over.
Then the ship shook tremendously. Kuvira was knocked to the ground as one side of the ship was engulfed in a mighty waterspout. Warning lights blared.
"We've been hit!"
"Thanks for that," Kuvira responded sarcastically. "What's the damage?"
"It was a torpedo that hit us amidships," an officer supplied.
"Isn't that where the engine rooms are?" Kuvira asked Baatar. Her fiancée nodded gravely.
Just then an engineer burst in.
"Flooding in the engine rooms!"
"Have the guns cease firing," Baatar commanded. "And switch off the engines."
Kuvira frowned. She didn't like the idea of leaving them stationary and defenceless in the water, but if Baatar was the engineer she trusted him to have a good reason for it.
"Do as he says."
Baatar rushed out of the room. Kuvira delegated command to Admiral Fang, and then followed him.
"If I might ask, why are we stopping the guns?"
"If the engine rooms are flooded, then it could bring salt water into contact with the spirit vines. That will make them more unstable. Any more spirit vine instability on top of that runs the risk of destroying this ship. And we don't want that."
They took the stairs two at a time and descended into the depths of the Colossus. Sailors rushed past, many of them carrying toolboxes as the damage control parties readied themselves.
Already, Kuvira could hear the rush of water entering the hull and shouting coming from the engine room. Coming down another flight of stairs, she rushed onto a balcony that overlooked it and her heart dropped.
The Colossus was powered by four large spheres, set one behind the other, in a long room. Each one crackled with electricity, and filled the room with a soft purple glow from the spirit vines within. They were sat on circular mountings and were connected to the ceiling by large metal tubes which ran straight upwards to take the power generated to the ship's vital systems.
Oh, and the entire room was knee deep in water. Engineers splashed around, furiously trying to scrounge enough metal to cover the gash in the hill through which more dark seawater flooded. Kuvira frowned.
The armour of the ship above the waterline was made of platinum, taken from the protective domes of Zaofu, which could not be bended. Below the waterline though was a whole different story. She planted her feet, extended her arms, and reached out towards the hole. Breathing deeply, she felt the metal respond to commands as it contracted. She could see the hole getting smaller and the flowing water coming in slowing down. Finally, the edges of the gap touched, and the flow ceased entirely.
A moment later, a mechanical banging noise heralded the water pumps being turned on.
Kuvira turned to the engineers.
"Strengthen the breach!" She ordered. "Make sure it can't be reopened."
Baatar, meanwhile, had rushed down and was splashing through the water to the first engine.
"Oh what did they do to you?" He spoke to it almost lovingly, as if it were a pet, as he checked around it. He briefly touched it, but quickly pulled his hand back with a yelp. Then he consulted a panel next to it.
"The engine is stable," he reported. "It's not going to blow us up."
"Thank the Spirits for that," Kuvira muttered.
"But there is bad news," Baatar continued. "I'm afraid it is damaged."
"Damaged? What does that mean?"
"It means we just lost a few thousand ostrich-horsepower," Baatar groaned. "It can be fixed, but until we dry-dock her I'm afraid the top speed is going to be reduced."
"We haven't got time to dry-dock this thing!" Kuvira almost shouted. "Our plans depend on speed and surprise!"
"I know!" Baatar called back. "But we can still fire the guns again!"
That, at least, was good news.
Kuvira watched the water level. It was now noticeably lower, the pumps doing their job. Where it had been around Baatar's thighs when he had first jumped in, now it was below his knees, leaving his trouser legs noticeably darker than the rest of his uniform.
"So be it," Kuvira decreed. "We'll just give them a few extra hours to prepare, that's all. Based on current evidence that should not help them much. And then we sweep in anyway."
Satisfied that disaster had been averted, she turned to go.
"Until then, we've got a fleet to destroy."
The passage back to the bridge was a lot calmer than the journey from it. Kuvira even found time to briefly speak to a few sailors whose names she knew. It always increased morale when they felt they were being looked after.
Finally, she returned. The ship was stationary. Everyone looked at her.
"The crisis has been averted," she told them. "We are safe to move."
She raised an arm, and watched as the lever that controlled the ship's throttle moved forwards without being touched. The ship shook gently and began to move forwards once again.
"And we are also safe to fire."
"We have news from Republic City," one of the officers told her. "It has been a success. They got him."
That was good, Kuvira thought. Chao had done well to redeem himself for the failure at the Si Wong camp, and the Imperial Guard would be useful to her yet. As, indeed, would their prisoner. The success would remove the United Republic's ability to effectively coordinate a defence, and if she could convince her prisoner, President Raiko, to transmit an order to surrender over the radio when she arrived, then so much the better. And then the real work, of subjugating the Republic and stamping out any silly notions of political independence, could begin.
A few moments later, Baatar stumbled in, just as the front turrets began to swing around.
"We should be good," he said. "But be careful. Don't push it too much. We don't fully know how this ship will react when damaged."
"I will," Kuvira promised. "You too."
"I will," Baatar replied. "After all, isn't there a wedding I need to get to?"
He sighed.
"But first, I need to get to the laundry. My trousers are ruined."
Kuvira nodded happily, suppressing the urge to laugh at her fiancée because now really wasn't the time. For a moment, she could hear wedding bells. Then her instinct for duty kicked in and she turned back to where the gunners were making final preparations to fire again.
"Target the nearest enemy ship, if you please."
The ship shook again as a cannon fired and a distant explosion could be seen.
Everything, Kuvira reflected, was going exactly to plan.
