A/N: Here's chapter three for those of you who enjoy this fic, wherever you are...
Anyway, if you want to see a fourth chapter please give us some sort of feedback, because I'm debating giving up on this fic.
As always this is a cooperative fic with Goodalwayswins98, he writes the Canadian perspective, I write the American perspective, check him out. Blah, blah, blah,
ON WITH THE FIC
HMCS Rainbow, SS-75
2300 hours, September 21st
Status: Submerged at Periscope depth
Location: 24.7763, 141.2198
Carefully scrutinizing the horizon ahead of him, Al turned the Rainbow's periscope. Deep concentration was written over his face as he searched for anything unusual. The past hours had been well spent recuperating from the past day's events as well as aiding the Meredith's crew despite the Rainbow's much smaller pool of supplies. It was the least they could do… that and removing 5 torpedoes cleared up some room inside the cramped boat.
The quiet sweep was interrupted by a report from the sonar operator.
"Multiple high-speed screws! Bearing two-six-five!"
Al quickly turned the periscope towards the direction indicated by his colleague. Carefully scrutinizing the horizon, he picked up the outlines of large ships. They were cruising at the same speed towards the same heading.
"Kinh, we've got multiple contacts!" he shouted, "Heading two-six-five!"
The familiar of running was heard as the captain made his way to the control room. By now, Kinh had gotten a fresher set of clothes than he was wearing earlier though he still had the same dirty cap. He looked refreshed after a few hours of rest.
"Heading two-six-five right?" he asked as he made his way to the navigator's station where Thomas Ridgeway stood.
"Aye," answered the dark haired boy as he deduced their trajectory, "Judging by that heading, they must be the rescue force."
"Al, any sign of them changing their heading?"
The watch officer took another look through the periscope.
"Belay that! The smaller ships are turning our way and the bigger ones are maintaining their course northwards!"
Kinh's mind raced back to the earlier encounter he had with the Japanese destroyer. He briefly shuddered. That was not a pleasant experience.
"Any sign of them using sonar?" he shouted with a hint of fear towards the sonar room.
Al, eye still on the periscope gave his answer before the sonar operator could.
"At that speed, they're not gonna hear anything. This is the real thing."
Another answer came from the sonar room.
"Watch officer's right! No sonar pings at all either."
Kinh closed his eyes in relief and sighed.
"Take us to the surface!" he ordered with a smile, "Let's give them a hand!"
"Aye sir!" was the enthusiastic response.
USS Meredith DD-726
2300 hours, September 21st
Status: Cruising towards Iwo Jima with DD-557, DD-724, CL-60, CA-33, CA-133
Location: 24.7755, 141.1129
"Relay the order. Cruisers north at full speed to head off that heavy cruiser. Destroyers are beginning our charge to the island to pick up the survivors." I order in the dim red light that envelops the bridge.
"Aye." Allison responds, heading towards the intercom.
"Ahead full, twenty degrees, hard right rudder."
The EOT rings out and I can make out Samuel cranking the wheel around before the ship starts to turn sharply towards the island.
"General Quarters, prepare for rescue operations and possibly surface warfare."
Allison finishes relaying the orders to the radio room and relinquishes the intercom to Savannah, who pulls the Bosun's whistle out of her shirt pocket and holds it up to her mouth, blowing a low note followed immediately after by a high note. "General Quarters! General Quarters! All hands prepare for battle! Medical personnel prepare to receive survivors! This is not a drill!"
As soon as she's done with the intercom Savannah flips the switch for the general alarm, starting that loud klaxon throughout the ship. Everyone on the bridge starts donning protective gear -myself included- and down on deck I can barely make out people running to their stations.
"Laffey is accelerating ahead to begin laying smoke." Allison reports, looking out the starboard window as the other Allen M. Sumner-class destroyer sails past us.
Sure enough the Laffey starts belching black smoke from her smokestacks as she pulls out in front of us, and once they reach a designated distance from the beach they start moving the ship up and down the coastline, blanketing the area in smoke.
After roughly the second pass by the Laffey there's a sudden and outstanding thundering to the north as the cruisers open fire at Kumano, which was spotted by one of the floatplanes belonging to Toledo a couple hours ago before the Kingfisher had to beat a hasty retreat.
I'm just starting to wonder where the Rainbow is when the sub slowly rises out of the water off our starboard bow, already in the perfect position to start taking survivors.
"Get me a flashing signal aimed at the beach. Just say 'taxi'."
"On it." Savannah responds before going to work talking on the handheld radio. The message is relayed as we pull up parallel to the beach and hang cargo nets off the starboard side, and roughly a minute later I can make out the shape of people carrying life rafts down to the water. As soon as the inflatable boats are in the water more people run down to the water and pile in, some carrying people or helping others walk.
Three of the dozen or so boats head towards the Rainbow while the others take a split between us and the Johnston, with less boats coming towards us. I watch nervously as the boats are frantically rowed out to us, and when they finally reach us I hear what I was afraid would happen.
{Captain! They say there's more people waiting on the beach!}
"Goddamn it- Samuel! Get us in closer! Run this thing aground if you have to!" I yell, pointing at the island for emphasis.
"Aye Captain!"
While we start to get closer to the beach I can tell everyone's on edge. The air inside the wheelhouse is so tense you could almost cut it with a knife, until Savannah breaks it.
"Does this remind anyone of anything?"
Justin grunts in acknowledgement but doesn't say anything. Emily is the one to actually say something.
"Yeah, Dunkirk."
"Hush! We do not speak of that disaster! Especially not right now!" I yell, glaring at Emily.
"But-"
"No! If you jynx us so help me God!"
"She's got a point Em, just leave it." Serena backs me up, hopefully sharing my superstitions.
I cross the wheelhouse to the intercom and press in the selector for Sonar. "Sonar, Bridge. Get us the depth under our keel please."
{Roger that Bridge. One moment… Depth under keel is approximately two-five feet.}
"Thank you Sonar, Bridge out."
Another thirty seconds of creeping up on the beach and the hair on the back of my neck stands up.
"All stop."
"All stop, aye."
My plan works more or less how I planned it. Due to our slow speed when we run aground it's not very severe, and it allows us to take on passengers while giving them the shortest swim possible. However, the entire ship takes on a three degree list to starboard, making it slightly difficult to walk around.
The next few minutes are more tense than a guitar string. Further to the north the cruisers can be seen duking it out, and the fire on the fantail of the Santa Fe makes it apparent that things aren't going entirely our way.
{Bridge, Lookout. We've finished receiving our complement of survivors.}
Allison walks over to the radio hanging on the wall and grabs it. "Excellent. Have non-essential personnel go belowdecks. Bridge out."
"Back Emergency, let's get out of here before something happens."
"Back Emergency, aye!"
{Bridge, Radio. The Rainbow has taken on their survivors and is leaving the area. They'll rendezvous with us at Yokosuka. The Johnston is loading the last of the injured students and they'll be escaping to the southwest.}
This time I take the intercom. "Copy that Radio. Can you get me a SITREP from the cruisers?"
{Affirmative Bridge. Wait one.}
…
{Bridge, Radio. The cruisers are having troubles. Santa Fe has a fire burning on their fantail. Toledo took a torpedo, but they've stopped the flooding and are still combat-capable. Portland had one of her eight-inch gun turrets knocked out. Additionally, there is a destroyer inbound from the direction of Japan. Range is thirty-four miles.}
"Copy that. Have Laffey go help them. Hail that destroyer too, we need to know if it's friendly."
{Wilco Bridge. Radio out.}
As the Laffey heads north to assist the cruisers with a smoke screen I start to feel nature's call, and approach Allison.
"Cover for me for a few minutes, I need to hit the head."
"Alright, but make it quick."
I give a quick nod and rush out the wheelhouse, nearly jumping down the entire staircase before my ribs start hurting, and I'm forced to slow down before I enter the ladies room at the base of the conning tower.
With business taken care of I make my way back up to the bridge, wary of my agitated ribs while I scale the stairwell.
The first thing I hear when I get back up to the bridge is the intercom.
{Bridge, Gun Director! There's a ship to our port side! It looks like it might be the Myōkō again!}
Due to their elevated position, as we start to clear the southern point of Ioto and come out from behind Mount Suribachi the people in the gun director manage to see the ship before any of us can.
"Ahead flank! Hard to starboard, twenty degrees!" I yell, slightly out of breath.
"Ahead flank, hard to starboard!" Samuel echoes while cranking the wheel over.
"Serena, I want our torpedoes fired at that cruiser!"
"Yes Ma'am!"
"Justin, let's try to take out their torpedo launchers!"
"On it!"
As the fore turrets turn to bear on what I can now see is indeed a heavy cruiser a mere two miles away from us I watch through my binoculars as the five turrets on the cruiser slowly turn to bear on us.
Then, a flash along the amidships brings my attention to yet another threat: Secondary guns.
{Incoming!} Someone yells over the handheld as the five-inch rounds shriek in.
The ship shudders as at least one shell strikes the ship, and after a small stumble I look to Serena. "Don't worry about precision, just get the damn fish in the water!" After receiving a nod from her I look to Savannah. "Damage report!"
"No flooding, no fire!"
{Gun mount three just took a direct hit! It's gone, but nobody was manning it!}
{The radio room is a mess but everyone is fine! They're moving to the emergency radio room!}
{Everything Fore of the smokestacks is fine!}
While the reports come in I breathe out a sigh of relief. Then, the cruiser's main guns get on us.
{Incoming! Main Battery!} The same person yells over the handheld as the broadside of Myōkō lights up in giant sheets of flame.
{All torpedoes away!}
The time between the guns of the cruiser firing and the impact is a matter of a few seconds. The entire ship is thrown violently to the starboard side as the shells impact, everyone in the bridge is thrown to the floor, and as we start to get up a call comes through the intercom.
{Bridge! Aft engine room! We've got flooding down here! I give it about five minutes before the pumps give out!}
{Fore engine room had a boiler take a direct hit, it's fucked!}
"Savannah, damage report!"
"Flooding in both engine rooms! The fresh water tank has been punctured, we're leaking fuel-oil, and there's a fire in the amidships storeroom!"
"Get damage control to the engine room and that fire!"
"On it!"
{Incoming!}
Just as Savannah grabs the handheld to start issuing orders the ship is shaken again, and a report comes in from a lookout.
{The Brooklyn is behind the Myōkō! The gun director took a direct hit!}
Allison's eyes widen at the news of a second cruiser, and I start out the starboard bulkhead, climbing the ladder up to the smoking gun director.
I manage to get the door open, and yell into the smoke-filled gun director. "Everyone okay!? Crawl towards my voice!"
One by one the four people emerge unscathed while pushing the inflated safety system out of the way, and I make sure they're all down the ladder before I descend, heading back into the bridge.
"Start laying smoke! Samuel get us a course straight away from those damn cru-"
{TORPEDO!}
The transmission barely ends before it feels like the entire ship just got drop-kicked by a giant. The bow is lifted up out of the water, and all of us in the bridge once again go flying. My feet fly out from underneath me and I land hard on my stomach, knocking the wind out of me.
While I try to breathe I haul myself shakily to my feet using the nearby Radar Repeater, and Savannah gasps when she gets up.
"The bow is gone!"
I suck in air repeatedly until I can safely stand and find the the bow forward from the gun has been completely sheared off.
"Captain we can't withstand this sort of punishment!" Allison yells.
{Bridge! Aft engine room! I was right, the pumps just flooded!}
'Can't get a break, and we just lost like half our speed… we'll be sitting ducks!'
"Alright. I didn't want to do this, but…" I take a deep breath the steady myself and look around at everyone. "All hands, abandon ship! This boat is going down without us!"
Allison seems to hesitate before grabbing the telephone for the PA system. "All hands, abandon ship! Abandon ship! Everyone over the starboard side and swim away from the hostile ships! Deploy lifeboats and abandon ship!"
Once she's done transmitting I look over everyone in the bridge and sigh. "Sorry everyone, guess I wasn't cut out to be a captain after all."
"Bullshit. You were a great captain. There wasn't much we could do in this situation." Allison argues, taking off her protective vest to replace it with a life jacket.
"...Thanks. Alright, everyone out. Get going."
"But what about you?" Samuels asks, dropping his protective vest on the floor.
"I'll be the last person off the ship. Give my life jacket to someone who needs it more. I'm good at treading water."
"Danielle don't be a fucking hero!" Justin yells, thrusting a life jacket in my direction.
"I'm not being a hero! This is tradition! Now GO!" I yell back, pointing at the starboard bulkhead for emphasis.
I take off my helmet and place my cap atop my head. "I'm still captain of this ship, and I'm ordering you all to get the hell off."
They all hesitate before slowly filing out the bulkhead, leaving me alone in the red light of the wheelhouse. Outside the cruisers continue to bracket the ship, though since the chemical smoke generators have been activated their accuracy is somewhat diminished.
{Bridge, Both engine rooms have flooded! We've sealed them off and are heading topside to abandon ship. Godspeed!}
At the back of the bridge sits a small short-band radio for communicating with civilian vessels or for sending out distress calls. I walk back to it and turn it on before tuning it to the local VHF band length for school ships.
"Mayday, mayday, mayday. This is the USS Meredith DD-726 from Seattle naval academy. We are approximately eight miles to the southwest of Iwo Jima and we are sinking. Does anyone copy?"
I release the push-to-talk button and wait for a response. The silence from the radio is almost deafening, and just as I'm about to repeat the distress signal the radio speakers pop to life.
{This is Y-469 Harekaze from Yokosuka Girls High School. We are approaching from the northwest, and are coming to assist. We are currently twenty-five miles away making a speed of thirty-two knots. How severe is the damage?}
"Both of our engine rooms have flooded. We're leaking fuel-oil and our bow was blown off by a torpedo. We're dead in the water and can't stop the flooding. I've already given the order to abandon ship."
A moment of silence ensues, during which the ship shudders from the impact of another shell and the lights flicker.
{This is the USS Laffey. We are also en-route to assist! Santa Fe and Toledo have fled and are outbound for Japan!}
{USS Portland here! We are inbound at full speed to help distract the combatants!}
{Harekaze will pick up survivors in the water if Laffey will lay a smoke screen.}
I stand in awe and listen as the two other destroyers and the friendly cruiser quickly form a plan, but my gawking is quickly ended as another shell strikes the ship and the lights go out, plunging everything into darkness.
Frustrated, I leave the wheelhouse and start down the staircase, watching as people jump over the railing into the ink black water below. Some jump in tandem, helping the people whose injuries prevent them from swimming very well. Others round up the lifeboats and help the injured into them, tying the rigid rafts together with rope to form a circle. On the deck people hand out life jackets and survival rings in a spontaneous bout of teamwork between people who had only met a few minutes prior.
I remain standing on the staircase as the last of the people jump over the side, leaving me as the last person aboard.
"Sorry Meredith… I didn't do you justice. You were a good ship." I mutter while descending the steps to the deck.
Once on the deck I send a salute towards the flag on the mast and head to the railing, vaulting over and plunging into the water.
Upon surfacing I start to swim towards the nearest life raft, but the quick, forceful motions send jolts of pain racing through my ribs, and I'm forced to slow down my pace. Eventually a life ring is thrown my way from one of the life rafts, and the task of swimming is greatly simplified.
After we get everyone rounded up and start swimming away from the ship I resume my duties as captain.
"Role call! Departments sound off!"
"Gunnery all here!"
"Navigation all present!"
"Engineering all present!"
"Damage control has all members accounted for!"
"Galley crew here!"
"Medical all present!"
"Bridge crew all present!" Savannah yells from beside another life raft.
"All merchant mariners present and accounted for!"
Breathing a sigh of relief I pass the life ring to a person inside the life raft and grab onto the rope ringing the side. "Alright! We're going to swim to the north-west with the slowest raft setting the pace! Everybody make sure the person next to you is either holding onto or secured to a raft! Nobody separates from the rafts!"
A few acknowledgements ring out, and soon everyone capable enough is pushing the rafts along, trying our best to ignore the moaning, creaking, and groaning of the ship sinking behind us, though I'm sure all of us gave her a parting glance as she sank bow-first, the fantail ensign waving proudly before slipping beneath the water.
'Farewell, my friend…'
HMCS Rainbow, SS-75
2335 hours, September 21st
Status: Loading injured and survivors from the Independence
Location: 24.7546 141.2657
"Get everyone on board!" shouted Kinh from the top of the conning tower. On the front deck of the Rainbow, her crewmen were pulling in lifeboats from the USS Independence and helping their occupants aboard the sub. Next to him, Al, Chris and Frank were keeping watch over the horizon.
From the north, the thunder of gunfire echoed as the cruisers dueled the supremacy over the sea.
He heard the familiar squeal of the intercom coming to life.
"Oliver here sir! The Americans are holding back the Kumano."
"Understood!" Kinh barked, "How are they holding out?!"
A brief pause.
"They're somehow holding despite the damage they took!"
"Right!"
Kinh allowed himself a small smile. Maybe they could get everyone on board in time and get out before it was too late.
A shout came from one of the crewmen helping the Independence's crew.
"We got everyone aboard!"
Kinh and Al high-fived each other.
"Yeah bro!" the watch officer exclaimed.
"We fucking did it!"
"Ahem!"
The Rainbow's crewmembers that were on the conning tower turned to the source of the sound. A scowling brunette woman in naval uniform looked at them. The boys realized that this was Instructor Gleaves from the Independence.
"Oh calisse guys!" Kinh swore before saluting. The rest of his fellows followed suit.
"Don't celebrate just yet! Keep that for when we arrive in Yokosuka!" exclaimed the woman in annoyance before returning the salute.
"Right!" Kinh answered nervously before he grabbed the intercom phone. "Oliver, tell Olson we've secured the Independence's crew and set course for Yokosuka!. Ma'am, I suggest you get inside immediately, Ol- I mean Instructor Olson wants a word with you."
Before the First Mate's answer could be heard, the sound of gunfire and explosions resounded nearby.
"Quessé ça tabarnak?!" shouted Al as he tried to figure what just happened, "Ostie!" (What the fuck was that?! Dammit!")
"Starboard side!" called out Frank, "Meredith's been fucking hit!"
To their horror, the Rainbow's watchmen and Captain saw through their binoculars that the destroyer was missing part of her superstructure.
"What the hell?!" Junior shouted, "Did they break through the cruisers?!"
A puff of white smoke rose from the Meredith's torpedo launchers as she began changing course to turn away from the threat.
'Crap… there's something south of us… a fucking big thing.' Kinh guessed. 'Just what we fucking needed.'
He shook his head for a moment in disbelief before grabbing the intercom for yet another time that night.
'Why do I have a feeling it'll be a long night?'
"Oliver! General advisement on the radio! Unknown contact to the south engaging the Meredith!" he ordered, "After that, get me a sitrep from Meredith!"
The first mate's reply didn't fail to come quickly. Despite this, seconds felt like hours for the captain. What else would be thrown at him and his dwindling allies?
"Message got out but no response from the Meredith sir!"
That was bad news since power could have been cut out and if that were the case…
"Calisse de tabarnak!" shouted Al as a pair of blasts lit up the destroyer and columns of water sprung skyward around her. "They've been hit bad!"
"Merde!"
Kinh took a deep breath as he took his next decision.
"Maintain current course! Flank speed!" he ordered into the intercom, "I want to see what the hell's going on over there."
Maintaining its course, the Rainbow dashed forward through the dark waters, trying to get past Iwo Jima's southern tip. The deck crew kept scanning for whatever had attacked their comrades.
"Dammit!" Junior yelled, "There's a cruiser behind the Meredith."
The three men turned their binoculars towards the ships.
"Mer-"
KABOOM
A large blast had just engulfed the Meredith's bow, shearing a sizable piece off and sending a column of water skywards as the ship was momentarily lifted out of the water.
"-DE!" Kinh finished shouting.
The next moments passed in a haze. Another shell hit the stricken destroyer. Oliver reported that Meredith's crew was abandoning ship. The other surface forces hatching a plan to save said crew. A dazed Kinh could hear his heartbeat in his ears.
'We're just a bunch of schoolchildren… why is this happening to us…'
His confusion and horror froze him for a moment. The captain looked at his binoculars for a moment. Daring to raise his binoculars again, Kinh looked at the Meredith's escaping crews. His daze was soon replaced by red-hot fury. How many of them were badly injured or worse?
A snarl appeared on his face as he grabbed the intercom and set it for a general broadcast.
"Gentlemen of the HMCS Rainbow!" he snapped, "The USS Meredith has just been sunk and I intend to avenge her and her crew! Whoever just sank that destroyer is going to answer to the Rainbow's torpedoes. Mr. Olson and Mr. Chagnon! Prepare for live munitions usage! Ready all tubes for live munitions usage."
Below decks, the crew froze for a moment before resuming their duties. The stakes had just gotten higher. A determined Kinh slid down the conning tower ladder into the control room. Looking at Oliver, he ordered him to the top of the conning tower to acquire a target. There was no way that the responsibles would get away unscathed from this.
He then overheard Olson filling in Gleaves about the past 24 hours in the compartment forward of the control room.
"As you can see, Captain-Instructor Gleaves, the RATt infection seems to have reappeared."
Olson calmly explained.
"Indeed," replied the woman as she lowered her head to process the information, "What about the Monterey and her air wing? Where are they?"
"Safe in a Japanese Harbour." Olson answered flatly.
"What?! Whose decision was it to send her there?!" she asked. Anger and annoyance were clear on her face.
"I'm a submariner eh? We don't get to know why the carriers go where they go."
By now Kinh had arrived in the same compartment.
"Instructor Olson, I am enacting live munitions protocol." he stated grimly, "I judge the danger levels to be sufficient for protocol activation. Do I have the green light to proceed?"
Olson nodded before answering while Gleaves witnessed the scene unfurl.
"As instructor assigned to the HMCS Rainbow, I authorize you to enact live munitions protocol."
"Excellent."
The Canadians made their way forward through the cramped submarine. It had gotten worse with the additional people picked up earlier. After a few moments of careful movements, they had arrived at the torpedo room where Remi and the crew assigned were waiting for them. Going quickly through the verbal protocol, the three officers moved to special locations inside the torpedo room. Two red switches were located on the port and starboard sides while the third one lay in the center of the torpedo tubes. Remi was assigned to the port one while Olson was on the starboard. That left Kinh in the center. Taking a deep breath, he pulled a key from a chain around his neck before placing in the lock.
'Never thought it would come down to this,' Kinh mused as he and his fellows turned their keys. A simultaneous click was heard as plexiglas safety covers popped, revealing three arming switches that were then pulled down. A brief klaxon sounded indicating that the torpedoes were armed.
Grabbing the intercom, Kinh contacted Oliver.
"Mr. Archer and Mr. Gendreau… get us a target!"
"Yes sir!"
Silent Hunter 2 - Win
Play?
Scanning the horizon, Oliver tried furiously to find the hostile ships. He tried looking where he suspected the shots had been fired from. Sonar was useless as the noise from the sinking Meredith resonated through the water around her.
"Dammit," he muttered, "Where the fuck are those ships?"
Behind the starboard side of the Rainbow was the Meredith and her crew. Oliver didn't like leaving them to wait in the water but they were full with the survivors from the Independence. The least they could do was find the ship responsible and give it a piece of their mind.
Something suddenly stood out against the horizon. A structure followed by two smokestacks.
"Contact! Cruiser!" he shouted into the intercom. "Range one kilometer! Target bearing: One-Eight-Five!"
Next to him, Al was already on the sub's target bearing transmitter with a stopwatch in his hand, calculating the target's speed. After a minute. "Target speed… 20 knots!"
No sooner that the watch officer finished his statement, Oliver had already relayed the info to the torpedo room.
The information traveled through the intercom into the control room where Kinh was waiting.
"Excellent!" he exclaimed before giving his order to the torpedo room, "Remi! Get us a firing solution! I want her immobilized!"
In the torpedo room, Remi was calmly calculating the firing solution like it was child's play. After a minute, he was done.
"Firing solution acquired." he grumbled dully through the intercom as he worked on the torpedo tube consoles to set them.
He didn't have to wait long for his answer.
"Fire tube one!" ordered Kinh, "Ready to fire tube two if we miss!"
The "Aye sir" was followed by the sound of a torpedo being fired, along with a time estimate for the impact of 42 seconds. Kinh quickly switched places with Oliver on the top of the conning tower. He hoped they wouldn't miss otherwise they'd be in big trouble. With all the crew from the Independence on the Rainbow, it would be difficult for her crew to get her to dive quickly in case of trouble not to mention the shallow waters around them meant they didn't have much room either.
'Let's hope they don't have any destroyers with full depth charge racks'
The captain shuddered at the thought as he looked at his watch. In the same hand, he held his intercom telephone, ready to issue his next order be it to dive or to fire again. Each second seemed to take a minute as they passed. So far, they hadn't been spotted… yet.
"Time's almost up dammit!" muttered Kinh as he mentally counted down the seconds. '43 seconds.'
He brought his binoculars to his eyes and looked at the cruiser that had been targeted. The rest of the Rainbow's watchmen stood beside him, waiting in anticipation. As he was about to order another shot, an explosion resonated and he saw through his binoculars a large plume of water engulfing the target's rear.
"Impact on target!" he shouted with happiness in his voice. There was no doubt that such a shot would have ripped off the propellers and rudder.
'That's for the Meredith!'
"Excellent work boys!" praised Kinh as he high-fived Al. Frank blew a sigh of relief while Junior leaned back on the railing with a smile. The two fist bumped each other.
"Oliver! Get us to Yokosuka!"
"Aye sir!" was the enthusiastic answer.
USS Meredith (abandoned)
September 22nd, 0114
Status: Lifeboats adrift, awaiting rescue.
Location: 24.7533, 141.1591
"Danielle you alright?" Allison asks me while I groan, gritting my teeth to work through the extreme pain in my ribs.
"Y-yeah, I'm fine. Where the hell is the Harekaze?"
"I don't know. We could maybe send up a flare?"
Through my pain-muddled thoughts I debate the risks of firing a flare into the sky. On one hand it would allow us to both see the surrounding area better, but on the other hand it would also expose our location to the two cruisers lurking around the point of the island.
Eventually I choose to throw caution to the wind. "Fire one off."
*POP!*
Under the red glow of the flare I can make out the shape of a destroyer heading our direction.
"The hell? Is that a Kuma-class cruiser?" I hear Savannah say from a raft nearby, her voice laced with surprise. "No, it can't be. It's too thin. But those guns aren't destroyer guns…"
"It's our ride. Who cares?" Someone from the raft I'm clinging to asks.
The ship slows to a stop beside us and a cargo net is thrown overboard before a few crew members gather at the rail.
"Alright! Let's get the injured aboard first!" I yell, each word sending spikes of pain ripping through my torso.
I grab hold of the bottom of the cargo net as the injured are helped up, and after they're all safe I have the more able people climb, leaving me as the last person in the water.
"Come on Danielle! It's your turn!" Allison calls over the railing. I start to climb, but the pain in my torso becomes too intense, so I stop.
"Don't stop, come on!" Justin joins in.
"I can't…"
"What do you mean you can't?! Come on!"
"My fuckin' ribs…!" I groan, on the verge of tears.
"Fuck… pull!" Justin yells before I feel the net being pulled up. The second I reach the rail several arms grab me and pull me over the railing, accidentally dumping me on the deck.
The pain in my ribs reaches a new all-time high the second I hit the wooden deck, and it's all I can do not to scream. I clench my fists so hard I can feel knuckles pop, and beat on the deck with one hand while trying not to writhe around, my eyes clenched shut in pain.
"She's hurting bad- someone grab a stretcher or something!" I hear our ship's doctor yell.
At this point every little breath feels like a red-hot poker in the side. Every movement no matter how small hurts, and I feel someone grab my hands.
Eventually there's a small clatter beside me and I'm quickly lifted before being set down again.
"Get her down to the sick bay immediately. Be careful not to jostle her too much."
"Allison." I groan, banging my palm on the side of the stretcher.
"Right here. Whatd'ya need?" She grabs the same hand and gives it a squeeze.
"H-head count." I huff out before taking an incredibly painful deep breath. "Make sure we're all here. I'll be waiting."
"Of course, right away." She gives my hand a squeeze before running off, and the stretcher that I'm laying on is gently lifted.
"Nice and easy people."
Though they try to be gentle every footstep sends pain racing through my torso, and the deeper into the ship we go the more Japanese I can hear being spoken by people passing by.
Eventually, I'm set down, and I can hear our medical officer conversing in Japanese with who I can only guess is the Harekaze's medical officer.
…
"Danielle, Miss Minami and I have decided that it would be best to put you to sleep for the rest of our voyage to Yokosuka. It would ease your suffering and decrease the chance of you making whatever internal injuries you have worse."
I try my best to nod and lift my head to look at her. "I want to speak… with the Harekaze's captain."
The short grey-haired girl nods and rolls her chair over to a speaking tube before saying something in Japanese. A reply comes a few seconds later, and she rolls back over to me.
"She will be down in a minute."
I nod and fight to keep my eyes from watering up, and after an agonizing few minutes the door is opened.
"Captain. All bodies present and accounted for." Allison huffs, kneeling down beside me as a girl with light brown hair enters.
"Excuse me. Who is the captain of the Meredith?" She asks in flawless english.
"I am. Danielle Schumer, in your care."
"My name is Akeno Misaki, captain of the Harekaze." She bows.
"Pleasure to meet you." I use every breath to the fullest, and take another searing gulp of air. "My crew is yours. If you need help," another painful gasp of air. "Just tell them what to do." I look to Allison and move my arm to pat her on the shoulder. "You make sure they listen."
Having said all I needed to say I give Ms. Minami a nod and close my eyes, lowering my head back down to the stretcher before I feel a needle get stuck in my arm.
Eventually I just can't stay awake any longer, and surrender myself to sleep, knowing that we all are in good hands.
USS Monterey CVL-26
September 26th, 1332 hours
Status: Anchored outside of Yokosuka harbor
Location: 33.9808, 139.4709
After sitting for hours on end by the radio room desperately listening for any news on my sister I finally give up and head down to my bunk. No sooner do I climb in and lay my head down does the PA system squeal to life.
{Flight 2F report to the ready room immediately. Flight 2F report to the ready room. That is all.}
I jump up and drop down off my bunk, almost landing on my wingman as she jogs towards the exit from the pilot quarters. Behind us are the other two pilots of my flight, and we all pick up the pace now that we're together.
"You think we've got CAP again?" My wingman asks, her long hazel hair bouncing with every step.
"I don't think so Alice. Four-Bravo just took off a little while ago."
"It might be a rogue ship, run faster!" Marco -my #3- huffs behind us.
"If it was a rogue ship they would've called everyone to the ready room, but he might be onto something. The sooner we get there the sooner we find out what's happening." Saige, Marco's wingman, pants.
"She's got a point, pick up the pace people!" I shout, jumping through an open bulkhead.
We jog up to the ready room below the bridge to find the captain standing at the front of the room.
"All of you get ready to fly. I'll brief you as you get prepared."
Without so much as an acknowledgement we all run to our lockers and fling them open, changing out of our running shoes and into the flight suit and boots. I help Alice with her harness and parachute, and in return she helps me with mine. All the while the captain is talking.
"One of the bombers from Four-Bravo spotted four ships heading our way from the south. One of which has been identified as the USS Portland. They are in a battle column making roughly thirty knots. I want you four to go out and greet them. Get a better visual on the ships and see if you can identify them as friendly or hostile. Your planes have the tracking FFAR's loaded, so if they're hostile put a rocket into each and get the hell outta there. Any questions?"
"I've got one Captain, though it's unrelated to the mission." I state, adjusting my parachute harness so it doesn't crush the family jewels if I have to bail out.
"Fire away."
"Is there any word from the Meredith? Anything at all?"
She lowers her head and shakes it. "Nope. Sorry Jack, we haven't heard anything. If those ships are friendly though then they might know. Any other questions regarding the mission?"
We all shake our heads, and she motions towards the bulkhead leading to the flight deck. "Good. Dismissed."
Hacksaw Ridge OST 14 - A Miraculous Return
Play?
I grab my flight cap and goggles before slamming my locker shut and heading towards the bulkhead.
Outside our four F6F-5 Hellcat fighters sit at the aft end of the flight deck, their wings unfolded and three rockets sitting poised under each wing.
"Showtime peeps!" Marco yells, running across the deck to his plane.
"Last person started has to carry Pinky!" Saige yells, turning it into a race. Pinky is a bright pink parachute, and the biggest embarrassment in the squadron.
Facing complete embarrassment and humiliation in front of the entire squadron is enough motivation for Alice and I to break into a dead sprint towards our planes, doing a quick and easy pre-flight before climbing into the cockpit and beginning startup procedures.
Ironically, Saige is the last person to have her engine started, and once my radio is turned on I join in the merciless teasing of her while our engines warm up.
With the engine finally warm enough I give a thumbs-up to one of the flight crew and slide my canopy closed before he pulls a green flag out from behind his back. He looks across the deck, then up at the conning tower, and finally raises the flag high above his head before doing a side lunge and lowering the flag, giving me the signal that I'm clear to take off.
I glance at the controls one last time before sliding the throttle forward to almost full power. Given how the ship is anchored I'll need the help getting up to speed so I don't plunge into the water.
The powerful engine roars with might as I roll down the flight deck, quickly gaining speed before reaching the end of the deck and feeling that sickening drop that almost always gives me an adrenaline rush. Thankfully I've gained just barely enough speed to stay airborne, and the plane quickly starts clawing for altitude as the blue ocean beneath me gets further away.
I turn right and climb while raising my landing gear so I can watch the others take off and turn on the GoPro attached to my seat over my right shoulder.
{Two, rolling!} Alice calls out over the radio before she starts accelerating down the flight deck. She clears the end of the deck and drops just like I did before she starts climbing up and away, following my right turn.
{Three, rolling!} Marco reports as he too starts down the flight deck. He hardly drops at all at the end, but from my perch above the starboard side of the ship I can tell he has his flaps down.
{Four is rolling.} Saige calmly states while she accelerates, using the flaps on the plane like Marco did to get a little extra lift.
Now that everyone is airborne I turn South, setting up a decent climb rate with my trim before turning on the GoPro. Once the red light is flashing I face forward in my seat and turn on a small camera beside my gunsight which faces back into the cockpit, giving me good footage from over my shoulder and from in front of me. Both cameras are personal belongings, and once we're back in America I plan on uploading the footage to the internet.
{One, I'm coming up on your right wing.} Alice reports as I start to hear her engine from over my shoulder.
"Roger that. We're going to level out at ten thousand. Number Three and Four how far behind are you?"
{We're roughly a mile behind you. We should be caught up in no time.}
"Good. Keep your heads on a swivel people, we need to find these ships."
Roughly an hour into the search I look over the leading edge of my right wing and spot something white in the water.
"Contact, one o'clock low." I report, nosing forward into a dive. I try my best to not make it look like an attack run in case the ships are wary from air attack, and once we get lower I can see there is indeed four ships. One of which being a cruiser.
"Baseplate this is two-Foxtrot. We have the pitcher in sight, and are moving to check him out, over." I mutter into the radio, internally cringing at the terrible codenames.
{Baseplate copies, be safe. Over.}
"Always. Two-Foxtrot out."
I change my secondary radio channel over to the regional naval VHF channel for school ships while I continue to descend, and soon the authoritative voice of a guy comes through my headset loud and clear.
{Unidentified aircraft, you are about to enter the protective envelope of ships transporting shipwreck survivors. Identify yourself immediately or you will be fired upon.}
"This is flight officer Jack Schumer, Operating from the escort carrier USS Monterey. I must ask that you identify yourself and all ships currently with you, as well as state your destination."
{This is the USS Portland, accompanied by destroyers USS Laffey, USS Johnston, and Harekaze. We are en-route to Yokosuka to drop off injured students and instructors before conducting repairs.}
"Roger that Portland. If you all were expecting a red carpet, we're it. Wait one while I get instructions from Monterey."
I go into a loose orbit above the ships while I get in contact with the carrier. "Baseplate, Two-Foxtrot. Come in, over."
…
{Two-Foxtrot, this is Baseplate. Send it. Over.}
"Two-Foxtrot reporting home run. The pitcher threw the ball perfectly. Over."
{Roger that. Ask them how their arm is. Out.}
I roll my eyes and change the secondary channel back over. "Portland can you tell us how many injured your posse has, and how many of them are critical?"
{Of course, wait one.}
While I wait I continue circling them, and notice that Portland's superfiring eight-inch gun turret is charred and blackened, with the three bent guns aiming to the starboard side at various angles of elevation.
"Damn…" I mumble absentmindedly.
{Monterey aircraft, Portland. We have a grand total of eighteen wounded to the point where they require medical attention. Of those, two have possible life-threatening injuries.}
"Roger that. Do you have any whereabouts on the destroyer USS Meredith?" I ask, noting the distinct lack of my sister's ship.
{The Meredith sank three days ago during the rescue mission. All crew are aboard the Harekaze with the exception of one critically wounded, who is aboard the Portland.}
My heart sinks down into my stomach, and I hesitate to ask the big question.
"What is the status of the Meredith's captain?"
{...Captain Schumer is currently in a medically induced coma, and we are currently preparing to use one of our seaplanes to fly her to Yokosuka for immediate medical attention.}
My heart sinks even further, and I feel like I'm on the verge of breaking into tears.
"R-roger that. How soon will the plane be launched?" I ask, stuttering slightly.
{Five minutes. We're loading Captain Schumer right now and doing final preparations.}
"Good. My flight and I will escort the floatplane to Yokosuka. From there I suppose we'll see you when you show up in port."
{Sounds like a plan. What did you say your name was again?}
"Jack Schumer. Just ask for flight leader of two-foxtrot."
{Roger that. I'm First Mate Liam Hartmann of the USS Portland. I look forward to meeting you in person. Portland out.}
I hear the channel click off and change back over to the command frequency before explaining things to my flight.
"Alright, here's the plan. Portland is getting ready to medevac the captain of the Meredith to Yokosuka via floatplane. Our job is to make sure nothing happens to that plane. Once we're done doing that we'll land back on the Monterey, and I'll be taking some shore leave time."
{We'd love to, but while you were talking to the Portland we got another assignment. We've gotta go check out a sub further to the south.} Alice reports.
{Isn't your sister the captain of the Meredith?} Saige asks.
"Yeah. They've got her in a medical coma." I respond while loosening my orbit.
{How about this then. Saige and I can go check out the sub while you and Alice escort the floatplane. We'll all meet up at the Monterey.}
"Y'know Marco, that's the best idea you've had all week."
{I take it that's a 'yes' then. Be safe you two, and remember, only fools don't wrap their tools!}
{I have a sudden urge to shoot down Marco.} Alice grumbles as we reverse our orbit around the ships.
"Me too hun'. Me too."
While we continue to circle the ships my mind keeps going through the what-ifs, and eventually I hear the call I'm waiting for.
{Jack, the floatplane just launched.}
Looking over my left shoulder I easily find the Kingfisher floatplane as it climbs away from the heavy cruiser and roll in to form up on its right wing.
Once I get close enough to see the individuals inside I can see the pilot, looking over his shoulder at me.
Behind his seat in a capsule designed to detach should the plane crash is my sister, an oxygen mask over her face and straps holding her loosely to the stretcher underneath her.
I quickly wipe my eyes and pull up, climbing above the floatplane so I don't have to see Danielle in such a state. I level out five thousand feet above the floatplane and we coordinate our speed via the radio the entire way to Yokosuka so we don't overtake or leave each other in the dust.
Finally more than two hours later we reach Yokosuka, and in the distance I can see the infamous Musashi anchored at her mooring.
{Two-Foxtrot lead, you want me to pick you up and bring you to the hospital? I heard the captain is your sister.} The OS2U pilot asks via the radio, descending to land at the floating hospital near the Musashi.
"Would you please? I'd greatly appreciate it."
{No problem. I know how it is to have injured siblings. My sister broke her neck a few years ago and was stuck in the hospital. They damn near had to knock me out to get me away from her bedside.}
"Many thanks. I'll see you at the Monterey then." I respond as I break away, heading back towards the Monterey with Alice close on my wing. We fly in silence for a few minutes before she speaks.
{Your sister's a tough one. I'm sure she'll be fine. After all, she'd have to be tough to put up with you.}
"I know… I just feel like I've failed in my job as an older brother… I'm supposed to make sure she stays safe."
{There wasn't anything you could have done. It's probably just a broken rib or something, and she'll be fine in a few weeks. She didn't look burned or anything, so they probably put her under to make sure she doesn't hurt herself any worse than she already is.}
"I pray you're right and that's the only thing wrong." I mutter into my microphone before changing my secondary channel to talk to Marco and Saige.
"2-3, this is 2-1. We're RTB. How's things on your end?"
{We tried not to scare 'em. The HMCS Rainbow is carrying all the people from the Independence, and let me say that Gleaves is pissed.}
"Not at us I hope?"
{Negative. I'm pretty sure the captain isn't going to be a captain for much longer though.}
"As in, our captain?"
{Affirmative. We're RTB. Meet you there.}
"Roger that. Stay safe."
HMCS Rainbow, SS-75
1526 hours, September 26th
Status: En route to Yokosuka
Location: 33.0541, 137.2045
The rumbling of four diesel engines resonated through the Rainbow as she sped towards her next port. Inside the crew quarters, her sailors were finishing up patching up the injured from the Independence under the watchful eye of a medical cadet and his instructor. As for her command crew, nothing out of the ordinary had happened since the harrowing events of the past day.
'Thank God ostie' thought Kinh. He was grateful that nothing had happened to them since the Iwo Jima rescue incident. With all the extra people loaded aboard his boat, it would be extremely slow to dive as the crew couldn't rush forward. His watch officers and radio operator hadn't reported anything unusual.
Meanwhile, the instructors were discussing in the command center about the finer points of the impromptu operation at Iwo Jima and how it came to be.
"Essentially, after we survived our run-in with the rogue destroyer, we stumbled upon the Meredith." explained Olson, "They were busy patching themselves up so we took a chance and ended up talking with them on board their ship about the situation. That's where we got a clearer picture of the situation."
Kinh, who had been standing over the navigator's table, decided to add in his two cents.
"The captain of the Meredith was extremely sharp despite the situation."
Gleaves turned her attention to him.
""Despite the situation" Captain Huynh?" she asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Aye, she managed to somehow command her ship competently despite having slept four hours in three days," Kinh answered with a smile, "Not to mention that she also managed to hold a discussion and clear briefing about the situation with us before we got attacked by aircraft."
"Aircraft?"
Olson let out a grunt of annoyance upon hearing this.
"Apparently, some of the larger Japanese carriers went rogue along with their air wings and supply ships." he stated, "They attacked us shortly after we boarded the Meredith."
"Captain Schumer theorized that this was possibly an organized attack of some kind," Kinh added, "After I gave it some thought, it makes sense since all the ships affected were mainly capital ships. It's too much to be a coincidence if you ask me though we'd have to dig deeper."
The Canadian instructor shook his head.
"Kinh, try to stay on topic. The air attack was broken up by a CAP from Monterey but before we left the Meredith and Captain Schumer, we already decided on plans she spearheaded to come and help you. You know the rest."
A smile appeared on Gleaves' face as she heard this.
"Captain Schumer seems to have taken the initiative quite a lot," she said with a hint of pride, "A few points away from a promotion to a cruiser."
The two Canadians looked at each other with small grins.
"Were it up to us Instructor Gleaves, she'd be captain of a battleship." boasted Kinh.
The American shook her head.
"Don't sell yourself short gentlemen. Your conduct in these past days have been remarkable," she praised. Both men thanked her. Suddenly, they were interrupted by a call over the intercom.
"Saïd here! I've got someone on the radio for you captain!" the radio man reported. Kinh had a confused look on his face as he picked up the intercom handset.
"Talk to me Saïd. The hell's going on?"
"I got a flight of Hellcats hailing us," he reported, "The leader wants to talk to you."
"Right, I'll be on my way," replied Kinh before turning to Oliver, "Take over for me alright?"
"Aye."
Kinh made his way to the radio room.
'Maybe we'll get some fighter cover…'
Sitting in front of him was the radio operator, Saïd Ali. He appeared to be completely engrossed in his work. He had headphones on him while his station had various codebooks and stacks of paper lying neatly on the desk.
"Saïd."
"Yeah, here you go my captain," the radioman answered with a smile as he handed a headset to Kinh, "That pilot really wanted to talk to you."
Taking the handset in his hand, the captain cleared his throat.
"This is Captain Kinh-Luyên Huynh of the HMCS Rainbow, who am I speaking to," he said formally.
{This is Sergeant Marco Rodriguez, flight two-foxtrot from the USS Monterey. Please state your intentions and destination.}
"Sgt. Rodriguez, we're currently carrying survivors we've rescued from the USS Independence to Yokosuka." Kinh replied.
{Roger that Captain. Would you be kind enough to put Instructor Gleaves on the horn if she's available?}
"Right, give me a few seconds."
Kinh then called for the instructor over the intercom. After a few moments, the woman appeared. The Rainbow's captain handed her a spare handset.
"Instructor Mara Gleaves here."
{Hello Mrs. Gleaves, I'm Foxtrot two-three from the USS Monterey, Marco Rodriguez. I've been told to inform you that as soon as you are able the board of instructors needs you to call them.}
"I will do so Mister Rodriguez. However, can you tell me where the Monterey has been these past few days?"
{Ma'am the Monterey has been anchored off the coast of Japan for the past two days. We escorted what was left of the convoy to Yokosuka, and then our captain told us we were ordered to anchor instead of returning.}
"Ordered by who?! I didn't give such an order!" Gleaves shrieked into the headset. Kinh took a step in surprise, not expecting her to blow up like that.
{Ma'am I'm afraid that's above my head! Don't shoot the messenger, I'm just telling you what I know!}
Gleaves took a deep breath and counted to five before continuing. "When we get to Yokosuka I expect your captain to meet me there."
{Roger that. Do you have any other questions before we sign off and return?}
"How many students were injured and how bad?"
{Eighteen injured, two critically. Captain Danielle Schumer of the USS Meredith is being flown to Yokosuka Naval Hospital as we speak.}
"And what of Jack Schumer? Where is he?"
{He's currently escorting the floatplane to Yokosuka with his wingman. I don't have the details on how serious his sister is but I can ask if you'd like.}
"Negative, that's fine. Send him my best wishes. Gleaves out."
The instructor left the radio room with a clear look of annoyance while Said looked at her sheepishly. However, the Rainbow's captain was still on the radio.
"Excuse me Sgt. Rodriguez but is it true that Danielle Schumer is badly injured and if so do you know how bad?"
{That's affirmative, they put her in a medical coma. I don't know how bad she is, but they should be arriving in Yokosuka shortly.}
"...Fuck"
Kinh made a mental note to ask his medical personnel about that.
{Yeah no kidding. Anyhow, we've gotta boogie outta here. We're running low on fuel.}
"Right! Think you can ask some of your pals to cover us eh?"
{I'll see what I can do but I don't have much say in the matter. I'm just a wingman.}
Kinh shook his head in annoyance as he put down his headset.
'So much for fighter cover…'
Jack Schumer,
September 26th, 1745 hours.
Status: Awaiting word of Danielle Schumer's condition following surgery.
Location: Yokosuka Naval Hospital
Upon arriving at the hospital I immediately identified myself to a doctor as family of my sister, and I was told she'd been moved straight into X-ray. The results back from that weren't good, and the doctor asked me for permission to move her into surgery to remove a bone shard that had broken off from one of her ribs, and was essentially moving freely throughout her abdomen.
"Of course! Please, whatever it takes." Was my response. I was shocked that he even needed to ask, and I tried my best to be polite with him. After all, I was still in my full flight gear, minus my cap and goggles, and I was easily identified by my identification patch on my left shoulder.
Shortly thereafter she was rushed to the ER, where I was told to wait outside of the surgery room. Minutes seem to pass as hours, and finally two hours later I see the red glow of the sign fade out.
The doctor comes out a few minutes later.
"I've got good news. The internal damage was minimal, and we only had to give her a couple stitches. The rib that broke has been secured with a metal plate, and I've got the X-rays right here so you can deliver them to your instructor." He hands a big envelope to me, and I shake his hand in thanks.
"When will I be able to see her?"
"As soon as they get her settled in. Normally we don't get these kind of injuries from school ships."
I lean in and so does he.
"There's one more who's inbound on a ship. I don't know what shape they're in, but the captain said it's possibly life-threatening."
He nods and pats me on the shoulder. "We'll be ready for them."
I sigh in relief, knowing that my classmates will be taken care of is a big weight off my shoulders, and knowing that my sister is safe is an even better feeling. "Thank you sir. I'll be in the lobby."
"Take care of yourself young man. I'll send word when she's able to take visitors." The doctor claps me on the shoulder again before he walks down the hall, grabbing a clipboard from behind the service desk while he talks to the nurse there.
I walk down the hall to the lobby, pulling my parachute off my harness so I can carry it over my shoulder like a satchel.
As I walk past I hear him say something to the nurse in a hushed tone.
"Call the research lab. We're going to need antidotes, and lots of them."
