7596. Fairy dock crews, when a work order doesn't make sense, ask Akashi, Momotori, or Mihara about it before performing it. Somehow, we don't think Ryujo needed an EMALS system.
7596a. "Sorry, I guess I was a little too tired when I set up the work orders last night." Akashi.
7596b. "Wait, wasn't I supposed to get Reppu-kai's?" Ryujo.
7596c. "What the heck is this?" Ranger, CV-61
Yokosuka.
Akashi was exhausted. She and her sisters had been up for the last thirty-one hours patching up the last supply convoy's escort with nothing but coffee and ramen to sustain them, and while she would give anything to curl up next Ooyodo and go comatose, she still had work to do. With Amagi and Aso stable, she finally had an opportunity to start the refits she'd been planning before the Abyssals sent more work her way, and both Ryujo and Ranger(CV-61) had been in the queue for weeks. Eyes straining, she confirmed the dock orders for tomorrow and shut her computer off, stumbling back to her room.
The next day...
^Are you sure these orders are right, boss?^ asked one of the dock fairies.
"^Akashi signed and confirmed them.^ said the foreman. ^Strange they may be, but Akashi's done a lot of strange things over the years that made no sense but somehow work. Let's get it done.^
The fairy looked as the crated aircraft and catapult parts went to their assigned Kanmusu, an uneasy feeling creeping up in the back of his mind.
While that happened, Ooyodo awoke at her normal time and noticed Akashi laying next to her. Smiling, she gave her a peck on the cheek and set her alarm to go off an hour later. With Aso and Taiho stabilized, the only thing going on in the docks was a pair of minor refits, nothing Akashi needed to wake-up early for.
The refits progressed through the day, with Mihara and later Akashi checking on Ryujo and Ranger, blissfully unaware of anything amiss.
"Hey, I know that Ryujo's getting Reppus, but what are we doing with Ranger?" asked Mihara.
"We're giving her an EMALS system." said Akashi. "Medusa figured out how to make Kanmusu versions of them, but she's backed up right now, so I volunteered to refit Ranger while she's stationed here."
"So, should I expect the rest of our carriers to come barging in demanding ones for themselves?" Mihara half-joked.
"Probably not. So far Medusa's only been able to fit them on Constellation and Coral Sea. It seems that it doesn't want to work with mid-war or pre-war classes, though she's hopeful about Oriskany."
"So it won't work for any of our girls?"
"Right now, I'd say no, though if EMALS works for Oriskany, I might try and see if it'll work for Shinano and Hakuryu."
"They'll be happy about that. Shinano's been asking if we can give her an angled flight deck like Midway."
"We'll see." said Akashi. "Oh, good, Ryujo's finished. Why don't you get her some food, and I'll tell the crews to start waking her up."
"Be back in a minute."
Ryujo's eyes fluttered open, adjusting to the infirmary's lights. Looking around her dock, she noticed Akashi and Mihara sitting next to her.
"Hello sleepy-head." said Akashi, grinning. "How do you feel?"
"Tired." said Ryujo groggily. "And hungry."
Mihara laughed. "She's a carrier alright."
As Ryujo climbed out of the docks and dried off, she noticed the cart of food behind them. "Wow."
"Hosho whipped something up a little while ago for you and Ranger." said Akashi. "You two eat up and get your strength back, then we'll go to the training pool."
"The dock crews said everything went perfectly, so barring anything complications, you both should be back home before dinner." added Mihara.
The repair ships guided their patients to the food and went to get the training pool ready, leaving Ryujo and Ranger alone.
"So, how was your refit?" asked Ranger.
"Honestly, kinda weird." said Ryujo. "I know that the Reppus are a lot bigger than the Model 21s I had, but I wasn't expecting them to feel that much heavier. What about you?"
"The opposite, actually." answered Ranger. I feel lighter than normal, but I did get an EMALS, so they probably just took out all of the old steam lines, and the new stuff's a lot lighter."
After the meal(and seconds) Ryujo and Ranger were at the training pool, while Akashi pointed a scanner at them.
"Okay you two," she said. "just summon your rigging like you would normally. The scanner will analyze the energy signatures and make sure you're both in Bristol fashion."
"Huh?"
"Old saying. Never mind."
Ranger summoned her rigging first, the typical flash lighting the room up, and then Ryujo summoned hers. When the flash subsided Ranger stood gracefully in the poll, while Ryujo toppled over.
"Ryujo!"
"What happened?"
"I don't know." stuttered Ryujo. "I summoned my rigging, and suddenly there was this huge weight on my flight deck."
Mihara looked at the scanner while Akashi and Ranger helped Ryujo up. "Uh, Ryujo, since when do you have a catapult?"
"Huh?"
"What?!"
"You got a catapult on your rigging." said Mihara as the scanner was pulled towards Ryujo's flight deck. "And by the looks of it, it's an EMALS."
"Wait, is she got EMALS, then what did I get?" asked Ranger.
All eyes turned towards the supercarrier as she readied her aircraft. Her steam catapult hurled an arrow out towards the pool and flashed, but instead of the F4 Phantoms or Crusaders, a pack of Reppus appeared, climbing to a hundred feet and circling the four Kanmusu.
"Well. this is new." muttered Akashi.
An hour later...
"Sorry girls, this one's on me." said Akashi dejectedly.
"No worries Akashi, we all make mistakes." said Ryujo, grinning. "Besides, with this catapult, I'm now officially the coolest light carrier on the planet."
'Yeah, and my steam cat works fine. The dock workers gave it a tune-up while they installed the planes."
"Speaking of the planes, can I have them now?" asked Ryujo. "I like the Zeros' as much as the next girl, but I could really use something less flammable."
"No problem. I'll just have the crews transfer them to Ryujo." said Mihara.
"And this time, there won't be any mix-ups, from any of us, right guys?" Akashi asked the assembled fairies.
All the fairies did was nod their heads in unison.
"Great, let's get to work."