Orbit around Planet Atlantea.
The beautiful blue planet, covered with thousands of islands, was the scenery of one the most fierce battles of this war. Adopting an intelligent deployment of their forty ships, Admiral Grierson formed a big circle of ships. The center and the outside were covered by the planetary defenses, hundreds of plasma guns fed by the planet power grid. Small areas had shields, but the planetary shield was still under construction.
So far, the fanatical machines had tried to attack the islands, but the population was too dispersed to be targeted effectively. That gave opportunities to the fleet to destroy several cubes and spheres, but they were accumulating too much damage.
The cubes had learned to keep their distance from the battleships: Arizona, Maryland, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania. The girls were following the old doctrine of the standard battle line, operating as a unit and focusing all their firepower on a single target each time. They were doing their best, but they were outnumbered. Without the concentrated fire from the ground defenses, they would have been dead a long time ago.
""They are regrouping again," the red-haired mental model from Arizona said to her captain, Alex Hutchinson. The man, already sporting an ugly gash on his forehead, nodded. He only said, "What are the guys on Forge waiting for? An invitation?"
Arizona only shrugged her shoulders. Another beam impacted her shield, already redlining. This time, her hull was breached. She redirected her nanomaterial stocks to seal the breach, but the damage was done, and dozens of sailors were lost to space. "Dammit, stop it," she said. Without expecting orders, she redirected all her main batteries against the offender cube, collapsing a shield grid and penetrating deeply inside the hull. "Yes..." she murmured.
The comms officer said, "Standby for incoming transmission!".
"Wait! We are coming. Don't shoot us!," the known voice of Yamato said. One hundred spheres of light appeared close to the Lagrange point of Atlantea. Arizona watched in amazement the four superbattleships. She already knew two of them, Yamato and Musashi, but the other two giants were new. She didn't care. They would give her the time to repair the hull.
"Perhaps we will survive," Hutchinson said with a big grin.
"Atlantea Fleet, this is Yamato. Be ready to intercept attacks on the planet, based on the enemy's behavioral pattern."
"Great," Arizona just said.
Superbattleship Yamato. Bridge.
Inside the well-protected bridge of the superbattleship, the two mental models, Yamato and Kotono, were assigning targets and dividing the ships into squadrons. They needed to be able to use all her armament when they needed it without obstacles. Kotono was observing the damage report from the defense fleet.
"Those ships are still afloat," Kotono admitted, impressed by their stubbornness. The damage list was extensive, and the crew losses were considerable.
"Archangel, sister," Yamato said, knowing they knew about her. One of the cubes had the wrong idea of testing her shield strength. She directed half of the bow batteries mounted on the upper hull and dedicated their full attention to the cube. The ship resisted the punishment for several seconds, losing shields and dying from a last broadside.
"They improved their weapons output. They were preparing for this war since Shinano fought them ten years ago," Kotono added. This time, the ship trembled when four cubes attacked her. Her considerable firepower, directed by her weapons specialist, rained down on the offending ships. Something vital was targeted on one cube, and the ship exploded. The other three tried to focus on the upper hull, but it was useless. A massive launch of missiles left the cubes' hulls cratered and losing power. The secondaries made short work of them.
Located at the tip of a big wedge, both H-44s were the focus of ten cubes that decided they were the big prize. Unfortunately, both new ships erupted as supernovae, their main batteries cutting pieces of the ships, and the secondaries killing the weakened ships. Both ships launched a colossal missile spread of hundreds of missiles. For thirty cubes, it was the last battle. Incinerated by so many Tsar bombs, the machine fleet lost cohesion and put distance among them and the new monsters.
Superbatteship H-44, "Luddendorff".
The mental model in the spacious bridge was silently contemplating how she and her sister, Hutten, had almost destroyed half of the enemy fleet. She observed the fast withdrawal of the enemy fleet. All her combat simulations suggested the same: having almost lost the orbital battle, they would try to kill as many on the surface as they could.
"Take the North Pole, Hutten. I will take the South Pole," Luddendorff said. She didn't wait for orders. They left their place in the formation fast and without any escorts. A lot of frantic calls flooded Yamato from the cruisers, not knowing what to do. Covering both poles, she and her sister could unleash all their armament on any cube firing on the surface.
Musashi Bridge.
"Imprudent children," Musashi said. "What are they thinking?" Her sister, Kyriko, replied while keeping her batteries locked on a pair of cubes, "They are too young, sister. They killed half of the enemy fleet. However, I concur with their tactical evaluation. They can intercept the enemy more efficiently from the poles."
The little mental model analyzed the tactical display. One cube was accelerating towards Hutten. "Hutten, a cube is moving fast towards your position. Probable collision course," Musashi warned the new ship.
Hutten Bridge.
"Aknowledged, Musashi," Hutten replied coldly. One-third of the main weapons pulverized the cube, which seemed like an illogical tactical maneuver.
"What are they thinking," said the mental model. She looked for a second opinion when the answer came abruptly as a cube, leaving warp almost on top of her. The cube, almost one kilometer on each side, impacted with enormous kinetic energy against the mass center. It was the first time Hutten had experienced something like a physical attack.
The sound of the collision, dispersed along the ship, was incredibly loud. The concussion effect made the ship shake as if it were a nine-degree earthquake. Some of the main batteries, fortunately, had fired on the suicide cube, weakening the structure and collapsing the shield. However, the cube crashed, and the shield was unable to stop it. The cube broke into pieces, but now a long gash was present, almost six hundred meters long, a trench carved on the external hull from bow to stern.
The internal shielding, mobile bulkheads, and hatches sealed the hull quickly, and miraculously, the crew survived. Hutten lost her orbital position, pushed by the impact, but she recovered it. Inside the bridge, and in fact along the immense hull, a mountain of wounded sailors with all kinds of cuts, broken bones, and concussions were overwhelming the medical personnel, who were also wounded. The inertial dampeners were incapable of softening the inertial change.
Hutten looked at her crew, and she understood that her rash behavior was the cause of this disaster. She can still fight, and the external hull was being repaired, but this kamikaze attack showed the fanaticism of these beings. Somehow, they didn't consider themselves as living beings, just a cog in an immense machine.
"Can you still fight, Sister?" Luddendorff asked. "Yes, but the capital ships must avoid static positions. Keep moving," Hutten suggested. "The cube tried to push you against the planet," Luddendorff affirmed.
"Are both of you done?" a voice asked. The owner of that voice, Musashi, was angry. "I understand that I made a mistake, Musashi. I trusted too much in my capabilities," Hutten said with regret.
"Be aware that your mistake cost human lives and cores, you fool!," Musashi replied angrily. The only thing Hutten could say was, "I'm sorry."
"Schamhorst and Indomitable will form with you to protect your wounded side," Yamato ordered.
"Understood, Yamato," Hutten replied humbly.
The battle, if it could still be considered as such, was in its final stages. The cubes were still trying to disengage, but the old jump disruptor from the Cylon War seemed to be effective, even if it was short-ranged.
More and more cubes were being eliminated, and only two cubes remained, using the warp drive to change positions wildly. Finally, a tractor beam from Luddendorff slowed one cube, and the fleet killed it quickly. The last cube tried to enter the atmosphere and crash into a city. A storm of cutting and plasma beams crushed the cube into pieces, which fell harmlessly into the atmosphere.
The Fleet, just in case, formed two big rings between the poles and the equator. Hutten will still need two hours to seal her hull. Just like a form of poetic justice, the hull fragments of the enemy fleet were being recycled by the forges inside the battleships. Tons of nanomaterial were created for the Atlantea Fleet, the most needed of that vital element.
On the planet, several islands were completely destroyed by orbital bombardment. Thousands of people were killed in minutes, although most of the population was under the shield on the biggest island. Medical transports from the battleships and dropships descended to initiate SAR maneuvers around the planet.
The surviving government, led by the leader of the legislative council, sent their thanks to the Fleet. They were lucky to be dispersed on hundreds of islands around the planet. The four battleships from Atlantea and their escorts had fought bravely, and they paid with blood for it. One thousand sailors had died onboard the fleet, and the price of this battle was three heavy cruisers and seven destroyers. Many ships, especially Arizona and Massachusetts, lost so many crewmen that they had to return to Alex.
Slowly, both ships left the formation. They were given an honorable military salute with the Fleet flashing her lights for their sacrifice and fighting will. They will fold when their systems are checked.
Yamato Bridge.
Yamato had always chosen to teach instead of punish. She still remembered when she changed Takao's hairstyle for switching sides with Gunzou. The ocean was so calm. She found herself missing it more and more.
However, right now, Kotono and she had two contrite superbattleship mental models as holograms in front of them. Musashi was there too, and the storm cloud on her head didn't presage anything good.
Before her sister said something harsh, she said, "Both of you really messed up in battle, girls." Ludendorff and Hutten wisely chose to keep their mouths shut. "We allowed your wish not to express a second mental model. But, there is a good reason for that. We made mistakes. Having two mental models is a way to control them. It's not infallible, but the results are much better. So, your core MUST create a second aspect. It's an order from me, the Supreme Flagship."
"Be aware that I would have demoted you and put a human captain in command," Musashi added.
Both girls nodded, "I understand, Supreme Flagship."
"Actually, it's not a bad idea. It's clear your mistakes were due to inexperience. We rushed you into combat, and that was my fault," Yamato said, thinking carefully. She approached the communications officer and asked, "Mr. O'Brien, please connect me with Arizona and Massachusetts." The officer nodded and replied, "Supreme Flagship, the battleships are online."
"Thanks." A holoscreen opened on the tactical table, displaying the exhausted faces of Captains Hutchinson and Ferris.
Both officers left the exhaustion behind and saluted their virtual fleet commander. Yamato nodded and said, "Captains, I know you want to take care of your girls, but, as you observed, two of mine would benefit greatly from your leadership and experience." Both captains opened their eyes in surprise, and Ferris asked, "Are we going to be transferred now?"
"Unfortunately, the answer is yes, Captain Ferris. I require two experienced officers to train two new and inexperienced superbattleships," Kotono explained. The captains looked at the two holograms. "Alright, I will take a shuttle from my new ship," Hutchinson said with resignation. Ferris merely nodded.
When the captains shut down the comms, both superbattleships looked sternly at the H-44s. Kotono, being the most emphatic of the trio, said, "Girls, this is a lesson to learn from. Work with your new captains and make a good team. Dismissed."
Sighing, Musashi only said, "You know it's our fault, right?"
"Yes."