The morning of June 6th dawned bright and clear to herald the end of the great conflict between the Union and Sakura forces. On the islands of Midway Atoll, however, the fine weather seemed almost mocking in its indifference. The survivors of the air raid tended to the dead and wounded, putting out fires and sifting through rubble. In their midst, an emergency meeting began on one of the sandy shores of the base. On one side stood Enterprise along with her commanding officers and those of her sister ships, Rear Admirals Spruance and Fletcher, as well as Captains Murray, Mitscher, and Buckmaster. Across from them was Commander Thorson, along with Colorado and her sisters, Ark Royal, and Cleveland. There were far too many Sakura prisoners floating around Thorson's fleet for such discussions to be held there. Unwilling to be left out, Pennsylvania joined them as well, delaying talks as she walked confidently but slowly over the sand after skating to shore from the Akashi. Thorson walked to her and offered his hand, but she brushed him away.
"Not in front of my former commanding officer, sir. It was getting stuffy in there," she explained. He nodded, returning and saluting his superior officers. They all, Spruance included, saluted back. No one spoke for several seconds.
"Commander Thorson, what losses did you sustain during the battle?" Admiral Fletcher eventually asked. The young officer straightened his shoulders.
"Nine ships wounded sir, only one severely, the Cassin. No other casualties." Beneath her collar, Colorado grinned triumphantly as her sisters engaged in equally superior yet subtle gestures with their bodies. Thorson shook his head lightly. "Will the three of you try not to look so smug? We wouldn't have made it if not for Ark Royal. And I suppose we need to discuss the current state of the Union's airpower, sir."
"Hmm hmm, you really came through in the clutch. Distinguished flying cross for sure!" Cleveland agreed, slapping Ark on the back. "So Enterprise, you going to join us yet? I'm really sorry about your sisters, but those foxes are still out there and we sure as heck could use another flattop with rigging."
"You're out of turn, Cleveland," Thorson warned her gently, following up as she fell silent. "But please don't look cross. I never said you were wrong."
"Oh alright, go ahead then," the light cruiser chuckled, her upbeat attitude finding itself a bit out of place given the dour looks on the rest of the faces around them. Thorson cleared his throat.
"Sir, given the state of affairs I feel the need to suggest that all Union carriers be equipped with rigging and trained in its use as a top priority in this theater. I don't have the full picture but if what Downes reported is true, I don't think we can handle another Midway. I'm very sorry for your loss, Enterprise. Our shrine is open to you, if you want to lay them to rest."
The Union carrier did her best to remain composed, her jaw clenched tightly as she touched the cubes that rested in the pockets of her long-tailed jacket. "That can… another time, please. I need power."
"Only took losing both her sisters, but looks like she's come around," Colorado pointed out. Thorson turned to her.
"You followed orders when you were assigned to me. Now's not the time," he scolded her. The battleship looked at him quietly.
"Yes sir. Let's offload the prisoners and get back to base. It's not over." He nodded, turning back to his superior officers.
"We also have a prisoner situation, sir. We haven't done a full tally but there are at least several dozen Sakura sailors on that hull we're towing and our facility doesn't have the manpower or infrastructure to house them. As things stand we have one Sakura ship prisoner under constant guard, and that number very likely just increased substantially. We hope you can assist us." The hull in question was easily distinguished, with uneasy looks passing between the Union officers.
"Commander Thorson, what happened to that ship?" Admiral Fletcher requested.
"One of my destroyers got angry, sir. She's usually quite docile," Thorson elaborated, bringing a smile to Cleveland's face with his description of Laffey. The Union brass was not smiling.
"The battlefield appears to have changed in ways I don't understand," Captain Mitscher opined. "I wonder if Hornet would still be here had she been assigned to you, Commander."
"I'm not particularly special, sir. At Coral Sea, Lexington was able to leverage her existing relationship with her commanding officer into rigging. All they needed were a few shards of a wisdom cube. And before anyone suggests it, I have several blank ones with my fleet. Those with Enterprise should be laid to rest."
"Any particular reason for that, Commander?" Spruance demanded.
"No sir, just seemed wrong."
"Agreed," Mitscher said. "But we've talked long enough. The silver-haired one is right. We need to prepare for the Sakura's counterattack."
"We will, Captain, but I think we have more time than you believe, time at least to equip Enterprise with rigging and train her in its use. Ark Royal?"
"Happy to serve, Knight Commander. Will she be joining us officially?" the Royal wondered.
"That's not up to us, but it's just you and Lexington right now. If Saratoga is nearby she should be given rigging as well if possible. But I'm getting ahead of myself. Admiral Fletcher, by my count and those of my kansen, the Sakura lost seventeen ships. We captured an additional eleven, including the entirety of the Sakura's second carrier division. I will defer to naval intelligence on the matter, but I believe we've given ourselves a window to strike back, on their territory."
At Thorson's news, Rear Admiral Spruance flagged down a nearby Marine and demanded to be taken to the nearest radio. "Admiral Nimitz must be notified at once," he insisted. "Twenty eight ships including two flattops? Lord be praised." Before leaving he faced Enterprise and cleared his throat. "This war is spiraling far beyond anything your pilots or I ever trained for. Find the power you need and be ready for whatever comes next."
"Y-Yes sir!" Enterprise saluted, caught flat footed by his orders and trying to figure out if he was implying she should sail on with Thorson. Fletcher took over the conversation.
"We'll handle your prisoners, Commander. If the order for a counterattack comes down the chain something tells me that will fall to you. We have the coordinates of your facility. I suspect Admiral Nimitz may wish to pay you a visit in person. I think we all need a moment to regroup and, lord willing, the losses inflicted on the enemy will allow us to hit back first. I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but given you engaged the enemy on your own we will need an after action report."
"Brooklyn is already on it, Rear Admiral. Before we depart, were there any other casualties among our kansen, our shipgirls?"
"So that's what that word means? No, Commander Thorson. There were not," Buckmaster said. "You seem very focused on that. Any reason?"
"Beyond the fact that my fleet is composed entirely of kansen, you mean?" Thorson asked, glancing at Maryland. She nodded curtly, and the others also seemed amenable enough to spending a bit more time in the sun. "There is a reason, yes, something I learned from the Sakura defectors that serve alongside us. Let's just say that if it's true that there is in fact a supernatural void that spawns sirens and consumes the souls of shipgirls that aren't properly laid to rest, I don't want to feed it."
Far beyond the northern horizon, one such siren tittered playfully, stroking one of her many tentacles. "I suppose a broken race is right twice in an eternity! Now, let's see what happens when Akagi's tails are against the wall."
"We have gone through this, Mr. Miles, I do not need food," Shiranui insisted without force, floating serenely at the top of the base, just outside Thorson's office. She had kept the vigil each morning since the fleet's departure.
"With respect ma'am, I keep getting empty plates back," the young cook replied, taking a moment to look over the oceans with her. "They'll come back."
"Yes, they will. Akagi would have already struck us if they'd failed," Shiranui agreed, lowering herself gently to pick up the mug of coffee he'd brought with her meal. "That does not mean everyone will come home, including your lover."
"I- I don't know-"
"Please, Mr. Miles," Shiranui scoffed. "You think the dead care about something as trivial as a dark skinned man laying with a pale skinned woman? She's not even human."
Fredrick frowned at the kansen's words. "I know," was all he could think of in reply. The Sakura destroyer spirit chuckled in a low tone.
"You misunderstand my meaning. Whatever passes between the two of you is as real as you wish to make it. The cubes are strange items. If they brought me back to unlife, who's to say they cannot grant you and that cruiser happiness? Seems a small ask, doesn't it? Assuming the fates of war are not cruel… that's Fusou's spire on the horizon. Mr. Miles-" Shiranui turned but he was already gone, taking the steps two at a time to deliver the news to the rest of the ships that had remained on base. By the time Thorson's fleet, weary but triumphant, had pulled into dock, an array of ships were waiting for them. The commander was on the Akashi with the prisoners of war. Aided by Tennessee and California, who'd volunteered to help her sister with the watch, he felt no qualms about ordering all of his kansen to go about post-battle operations as they saw fit. Cassin was the only of his own ships that still needed treatment. Downes, who had been at her side since returning from the rendezvous, squeezed her hand and left her bedside. She passed Tennessee first, giving her a hug that left the battleship spluttering uncomfortably.
"Hey, where's mine?" California requested, receiving one willingly and almost coughing from the force. "Holy moly, what do you and my sister get up to on your off days?"
"Sorry, just really happy we all made it back," Downes laughed, moving to stand before Thorson. "I'm going to her."
"I'll be here with Cassin. Get out of here, you fireball," he encouraged.
"Not just yet," she said softly, resting a hand on his chest and looping it around his neck as he lowered his head a few centimeters. "This is just the beginning, but I'm with you. We all are."
Thorson accepted Downes' promise with a kiss before sending her off, watching her vault over the side of the Akashi, shouting Ooshio's name at the top of her lungs. The Sakura prisoners who had been awake to watch the whole affair were speechless, but the Union forces laughed aplenty. On the dock, the pint-sized destroyer's face went beet red as her girlfriend called for her. She and her sisters were busy welcoming home Kasumi, who despite her frailty had survived Midway unscathed. Upon hearing that was due to the exemplary defensive performance of South Dakota, the Union battleship had been promptly brought into the group and invited to their next picnic, scheduled for later that afternoon. With a gentle push, Michishio encouraged Ooshio away from the celebrating group. She stood like a deer in the headlights as Downes walked up to her, taller by almost a foot following her retrofit. The Union destroyer caught something sparkling that dropped from Ooshio's eye.
"Save those for when I don't come home," she whispered. Ooshio promptly buried her face in Downes' modest bosom.
"And how was I supposed ta know if this was tha day or not? Oh gods forgive me, sittin' here like a blubberin' fool waitin' fer you an' the rest ta come home while I'm safe an' sound," Ooshio reflected, listening to Downes' heartbeat as her sisters looked on with smiles on their faces. Downes ran a hand through her hair, along the line of her jaw, and tilted her chin up.
"I never said the ones left behind have it any easier," she insisted, moving her hands to Ooshio's chubby waist. "But you… this… when the shells were flying I had my reason to survive. So thanks."
Kasumi gasped and clapped happily while Asashio shook her head, all watching as Ooshio locked lips with Downes and put on a display most inappropriate for a public space but entirely appropriate for reunited partners after a harrowing mission. Promises of stories and reports were exchanged, and when the emotions were no longer raw the two destroyers returned to their tasks. Downes' ship had repairs to be conducted and sadly, Ooshio's shrine was about to receive more souls of the departed. Just down the dock, Thorson stood at the base of the Akashi's gangway with Yukikaze and Shiranui. To his side was Arizona, who was shepherding along four of Yukikaze's sisters, taken prisoner in battle. The other two, gone to the next life, had been given to Shiranui by Thorson.
"I cannot right now, but I will pay my respects when I can. Arizona is in good shape, she can help you escort the new ones," he explained. Shiranui looked at the two cubes resting in her lap.
"How many ships did you lose, ensuring that only two of my sisters sunk, idiot Shikikan?" she asked. Isokaze, Tanikaze, Urakaze, and Hamakaze all looked to be on the verge of tears, with Yukikaze holding it in both as an older sister and to live up to the expectations of her partner, Arizona. Commander Thorson smiled thinly, finally able to deliver a bit of good news.
"The worst we suffered was Cassin taking a serious hit from a bomb amidships. She may not fight again, but she's alive and will probably be assigned to convoy duty after this. I'm just sorry we couldn't save them all."
"You are such an idiot Shikikan," Shiranui replied quietly, looking at her four sisters. "If any of you so much as put a toe out of line I will ensure you go without meals for two days. Now come, we will lay our sisters to rest and then the four of you will be given tasks to maintain this facility. This is your Sanctuary now, and only I get to call Shikikan Thorson an idiot. Understood?!" Shiranui's spirit fires flared suddenly and her voice cracked, a sign that even the undead were capable of love and mourning for their sisters. Arizona gave Thorson a sad look, a quick kiss, and a whisper in his ear that she would ensure the safety of the group of Kagerou class destroyers as they headed for the stairs leading away from the dock, up to the dorms and the shrine far beyond. Asashio and her sisters followed along, leaving Kasumi in the care of South Dakota.
"Do you wish to follow?" the dark-skinned battleship wondered.
"I do, but I would only slow them down. My respects to the dead can be paid- ooh?! Miss Dakota! This is quite unnecessary," Kasumi protested meekly as she was scooped up into a bridal carry. Her battleship 'escort' promptly made to follow the group headed for the shrine.
"You are as light as your hull is small compared to mine. It is nothing, and I wish to see your rituals for the dead myself. Minneapolis!" South Dakota called with unusual steel in her voice.
"Yo, what's the word?" the heavy cruiser asked, trotting over with billowing cape and head in her arm. Her ship was docked out to sea a ways with minimal battle damage. She knew the bulin crews would not need her to move it into dock for some time. "Need help carrying her?"
"Save your jokes for another time. The dead are to be laid to rest. We will call upon our spirits to guide them."
"Uh… is that alright?" Minneapolis wondered, matching South Dakota's stride and addressing her question to Kasumi. "Aren't your gods a bit different?"
"Mmm, yes," the arctic fox girl acknowledged. "But the dead understand honor. It will not hurt. I believe my sisters will agree."
"Ok, let's go then," Minnie said, replacing her head and throwing up her hood to ward off the rather oppressive summer Pacific sun. "If the Sakura are ok with it, I see no problem in making sure the dead know we hold no ill will. They should rest now."
"Yes, Miss Arizona is quite the anomaly, isn't she?" Kasumi suggested as they began climbing the stairs.
"How did you know I was thinking of her?" Minneapolis wondered. The little destroyer giggled.
"Because it's quite easy to see how different her aura is from all the others. If angels can fight, we should be ready for devils too, no?"
"What's she talking about, Dakota?"
The battleship took her time answering. "What you and I hear as whispers on the wind, she sees clear as a gale or hurricane. I will continue to protect her. The commander may not fully understand just yet."
"And you do?" Minnie demanded curiously. "Sounds like a lot of superstition and guesswork, even for us!"
"No, I do not," South Dakota acknowledged. "But we now serve a man who raised the dead. Who are we to say what is possible and what is not?"
"Do you think we'll go fox hunting after laying the dead to rest?" the cruiser wondered. Dakota furrowed her brow.
"As sure as the sun rises in the east, sister."
"Aah, Fredrick!" Houston shouted gleefully as the young man lifted her and spun her around twice before kissing her soundly on the lips. "Oh, you do know how to make a girl feel desired!"
"Beggin' your pardon, Miss Houston. I'm just rather happy to see you," he smiled shyly.
"Understatement, much?" she teased, circling his waist with her hands and kissing him again. Her body felt right as rain thanks to Akashi's care on the way home. "I'm happy to see you too, but we should continue this later tonight. We brought home more mouths to feed."
"Then I'd best be on my way," the cook declared, only to have her take him by the hand and lead him towards the mess hall.
"I'll help, let's go!" Houston insisted, marching him past the Akashi where a much more difficult conversation was underway. While Yukikaze's four pint-sized sisters were easy enough to allow off the ship and onto the base, supervised as they were, the remaining prisoners were far too competent and dangerous to allow free reign; and there were many of them. Thorson ran a hand through his hair.
"I suppose I'm a bit too hopeful asking if any of you would like to sign up to fight for the splinter group?" he joked without humor. Hiei and Hiryuu were still asleep, recovering slowly, but the rest of the Sakura prisoners were looking at him with expressions ranging between loathing and confusion. "You'd be fighting alongside Yamashiro and Fusou if it makes you feel better?"
"I will." A young woman, rather nondescript by Sakura standards, stood from her bed. She was the only Sakura he'd yet seen with no visible animal-like traits, and to all appearances seemed a young, raven-haired woman with an ample bust and pleasing figure. "If you pledge to help me rescue my sisters, I will join you."
With Tennessee, California, and all three Colorado-class sisters overseeing the proceedings, no other Sakura rose to challenge the defector, who introduced herself politely as Choukai. Between her, Yamashiro, and Fusou, Thorson pieced together the story. Atago and Takao, two of the most powerful heavy cruisers in the Sakura navy, had been locked away in what sounded to him like conductive matrices, only operated and influenced by sirens. By Choukai's telling, they had been in stasis for months, and she was understandably concerned about their fate. Fusou's tale of what happened to her and Yamashiro had tipped the scales. From the back of the room, Soryuu looked on critically, her tall rabbit ears taking in every word as she watched and absorbed. Atago and Takao's fate had driven a rift between Maya and Choukai, and she was unsurprised that the cruiser caved so easily. Others looked between one another uneasily as Choukai accepted shards from Thorson and bound herself to his service, but no one uttered a word as she looked back at them sadly before getting a hug of welcome from Yamashiro.
"To those of you who were rescued with personal arms, swords and the like, your effects will be kept safe until such time as the war is over or you decide to fight against the sirens with us. Since it's almost noon, I'd like everyone who's able to proceed off the ship and to the mess hall. Colorado, Tennessee?" Thorson requested support.
"Not a problem, sir. That blue fox will finally have some company," Tennessee spat, still peeved at Jintsuu's childish resistance. "Let's go then you lot, anyone who can stand and doesn't want to starve, move it!"
"And anyone who cannot will be fed here," Thorson added, as much for his own ships' benefit as his prisoners. He watched quietly as the kansen around him complied. Some, like Kongou, looked directly in his eyes as they passed. Others, like Suzuya, looked at the floor. Soryuu did not budge. Thorson waved the rest of them on. "Go ahead, I'll bring her."
"I will not leave her side, enemy Shikikan," the rabbit woman insisted as he stood before her.
"I wasn't giving you a choice. Akashi will look after her and Hiei while you are in the mess hall, then you will be returned here while I figure out what to do with the rest of you siren loyalists."
"Is that what you think we are?" she wondered, a calculating look in her eyes that was unsettling to him. She radiated the image of someone smarter than you who knows it and intends to exploit it. He made a note to not give her weapons or shards, at least not until he'd taken her to bed. Even that was a dangerous proposal.
"I have yet to see anything to disprove my assertion, though I wonder just how much you know if you were able to remove your own shard after the battle. That's for another time. On your feet, now," he ordered. When she still refused he drew his sidearm.
"So quick to reach for lethal force," she mused.
"You gave me no choice. Disobeying orders isn't something I tolerate here." To his surprise, Soryuu smiled.
"Your battleship, the one with the green eyes and dark hair, I see where she gets it from. I suppose I didn't, did I?"
"No you didn't, so get going with Shikikan, nyaa!" Akashi interrupted, having recently rejoined them after sending her bulin crews to the mess hall. "Akashi is still of the Sakunyaa, she will take care of Hiryuu-san."
"I had always wondered where you'd scampered off to, little usurer."
"Excuse me; Akashi is not in the business of lending, nyaa! Although perhaps this should be explored? Tabs at the onsen, perhaps?"
"You intend to charge my fleet for the consumption of goods provided by the Union?" Thorson asked pointedly. Akashi waved her sleeves at him.
"No no no, nyaa! Akashi would never engage in such underhandedness! Go on now with Soryuu-san, go go! Akashi will ensure Hiei and Hiryuu are taken care of until your return," the minty kitty insisted. Thorson echoed the sentiments.
"I didn't eat breakfast and I don't enjoy repeating myself. Move, Sakura."
The carrier closed her eyes and nodded in agreement, casting a look over her shoulder and promising her sister that she would return. Though still suffering a limp, she walked out of the room with her back straight and head high, refusing to appear a prisoner even though she was one. The air on deck was sweltering in the sun, but the sea breeze helped significantly, its smell keeping the two of them company until they reached the mess and the odors and sounds of cooking overwhelmed the salt of the ocean. When they entered, the prisoner's table was easy enough to spot, featuring an eclectic combination of Sakura ships. He gestured towards it.
"Remain seated there. Your food will be brought to you."
"Very well," Soryuu acknowledged, earning more than a few looks from Union and Sakura alike as she took her seat. No love was lost between any survivors of Pearl Harbor and a member of the second carrier division, but the far greater effect could be seen among the Sakura. Seeing her next to Jintsuu, under guard of Union battleships, seemed to impress upon the other prisoners just how poorly the war was going behind the veil of victories claimed by Akagi and Kaga elsewhere.
"Oh, excuse us tono-sama!" Yamashiro asked, having arrived behind him along with Fusou, Shiranui, and the rest of the group that had gone to lay Kagerou and Nowaki to rest. He stepped aside and allowed them entry, taking a look at Yukikaze's four sisters. They were all her size or shorter and they all stuck close to one another, unsure of how they should conduct themselves or what would happen next. If Mutsuki and her sisters resembled eight year olds, the little Kagerous couldn't have been older than twelve.
"How were they?" Thorson requested as Yamashiro headed inside and placed a kiss on his cheek, perhaps as a demonstration for the newcomers. He didn't always understand her affections, but then he never fully understood cats either. That didn't mean he disliked them.
"They were well behaved, tono-sama. They were respectful of South Dakota and the others as well," Fusou reported, causing Thorson to address the four directly.
"Why don't you join your sister for lunch? If you remain on good behavior, we won't have any problems."
"Yeah, but try and sabotage us and I'll dump you into the sea myself, nanoda!" Yukikaze warned, hands on her hips and chest puffed out. "Come, sisters! The winds are united once again without any stupid foxies doing stupid fox things and it's time to eat! Oh, no offense Naka. You're a smart foxie!"
A few ships laughed as the destroyer corrected herself in front of the light cruiser before shepherding her shy sisters inside and seating them next to Yuudachi, Shigure, and the others. Shiranui's silent nod left Thorson sufficiently at ease to find his own seat, stopping on the way to receive hugs from the three smallest destroyers on base who had all immediately returned to the care of 'Auntie Ark' and were seated with her at the Union table. An uncustomary blush graced Ark's cheeks as they made silent eye contact and remembered words exchanged in the wake of battle, but nothing more needed to be said as a fleet of hungry kansen began clamoring for Shiratsuyu's cooking. Downes, Yuudachi, California, and other similarly bubbly or bombastic ships had no qualms cheering for Yuugure, Hatsuharu, and the others as they emerged from the galley with plates of food, and Thorson took a moment to give thanks that for all the trials of combat, his girls were still capable of enjoying a meal together.
Sadly, the buoyant mood did not last after lunch concluded. With repair teams going about their work and Brooklyn already back in her office working away at her typewriter, Thorson led Kongou, Suzuya, and Soryuu up the slope to the shrine. They were all drenched in sweat by the end, but none uttered a single complaint. Yamashiro, Fusou, and the other shrine maidens accompanied them, and under Thorson's watch the remaining kansen who had been sunk at his command were laid to rest. Soryuu observed with him, refusing to intrude upon Kongou or Suzuya as those who had lost sisters were given time to say their goodbyes, lighting incense and praying before the alcoves in which the cubes had been placed.
Only after the ceremony was complete did Thorson offer his own words, the same he had spoken for every kansen fallen before him or in his service. Soryuu declined to do so, explaining that she was not a shrine maiden and that her presence was purely inquisitive. She had questions for him on the way down, however. "Why do you allow such things?"
"It's comforting for the Sakura who serve with us, and for me," he admitted, his heels crunching on the occasional loose stone. Though Yamashiro and Fusou had done an admirable job at making the trail accessible, he was still impressed at her ability to traverse it wearing clogs with at least four inch platforms.
"And why did you allow me to come with you? My sister yet lives," Soryuu continued.
"I think you know why, or am I overestimating you?" he countered. That line in particular earned him a sharp look.
"Do not think my service is so easy to buy, Union Shikikan."
"I haven't made you an offer. That's not how this works. If you still feel Akagi and Kaga are worth your loyalty, you and Jintsuu can keep each other company until the war ends. She will be moved to the medical room on the Akashi tonight so the two of you can spend plenty of time together. You'll have to pardon my rudeness, but it's simply impossible to keep six prisoners under guard in our typical accommodations."
Soryuu got a good look at the Sakura and Union dormitories as they passed on their way back to her 'prison'. The former was all too inviting, and the latter looked out of place but equally welcoming. The carrier shook her head as she took the first step back to the docks. "I never said anything about Akagi and Kaga. The events of the last several days have given me much to think about. That does not mean I intend to simply switch sides… although I will acknowledge that your unorthodox behavior is the only reason I have been offered any alternative. I doubt those sailors you turned over to your fellows will be given the treatment Choukai received today."
"No, they will not. But they will be kept alive and treated with decency until the end of the war. There are worse fates," Thorson insisted. Soryuu cocked her head to acknowledge that she'd heard him, but remained silent for the duration of their walk. He left her with the others before rounding up his battleships and cruisers to work out an updated watch rotation. Cassin, awake and alert but still weak, had been moved back to her room by Downes and would receive the rest of her care there. He could see the exhaustion in many of his kansen's eyes, but no one complained or questioned the need. Execution was not on anyone's short list of solutions to the prisoner problem.
The remainder of Thorson's day, following a quick shower, consisted of assisting Brooklyn with her after action report. They commiserated over coffee, shaking their heads as they read their own words on the paper. Towers of fire, shells that could mend metal, Tennessee charging the breach and shearing a carrier in twain. None of it would make any sense to officers who'd not been present, but they carried on until long after sundown. Tennessee, South Dakota, Ark Royal, Arizona, and many others deserved merits and citations for their conduct, and he had every intention of making sure his report was clear enough to explain why.
"I can take it from here, Commander. Please get some sleep," Brooklyn offered, stacking and fastening relevant documents to one another. "I will review the entire package tomorrow for errors once I've rested my eyes."
"I saw you only recommended yourself for a battle star," he replied, looking over her shoulder. She tilted her head and smiled at him.
"I did my part, sir. Besides, I would much prefer an engagement ring to a battle star. But that's not your concern, is it?"
Thorson could only chuckle as he prepared to head out into the night, finding Brooklyn to be a most captivating beauty in the yellow light and soft shadows of the radio room. Only a bit of tobacco smoke would have been needed to fully round out the image of a femme fatale, perhaps the brains behind some private investigator's practice. "No, I daresay that falls squarely of Captain Stevens' shoulders. Thank you, Brooklyn. Be sure you get some sleep yourself."
"I will, Commander. Goodnight."
Though Thorson hated to so quickly go back on his word, he knew there would be little sleep for him that night. Based on the amount of light coming from the dormitories, his kansen felt the same. Though he could not be with each of them, he hoped that they would care for each other, soothe some of the pain that went along with being the ones left standing after bloody conflict. He walked instead back to the docks, taking solace in the calm sloshing of the sea against the moorings of his base and the ships of his fleet. A few lights lit the Akashi and Pennsylvania, the latter taking her turn for repairs in dock, but he otherwise found his way by foot and by moonlight. Distracted by memories of smoke and fire, Thorson only came back to his senses when he found himself standing outside the entrance to the old school building. With Tennessee and Downes having moved their favorite punching bag up to the Union dorm, no one used the facility for anything other than shelter. Even so he entered, finding it unlocked and recalling a very different memory from Midway, one that could still be considered combat. His throat went tight when a pair of deep blue eyes gazed back at him from the darkness of the gym, lit only by a beam of moonlight from the rafters.
"I had wondered…" Tennessee said quietly as he approached her, stopping half a foot from where she sat on one of the benches against the wall. The proud kansen stood to face him, only an inch or two shorter. If she felt any embarrassment or self-consciousness about having been found 'waiting' for him, she didn't show it. If anything, her piercing gaze was judging him for seeking her out when so many other ships would willingly warm his bed.
"Tennessee-" Thorson was silenced by her lips on his, demanding he not speak.
"Shut up," she hissed between kisses that felt more like salvos, turning them and throwing him roughly against the wall. "I don't want to hear the poison honey you drip into those cats' ears, or anyone's! I want anything else!"
Though she cared not for his words, Tennessee's deep moans indicated she cared very much for his hands as they shot to her hips and back. For a brief moment between duels of lips and tongues, Thorson managed to catch his breath and push her back for just a moment. "Your conduct in battle was exemplary, Tennessee."
For several seconds only the sound of the island's nocturnal wildlife could be heard, distant and faint outside the walls and darkness that sheltered them from the consequences of their actions. She raised her chin and looked him dead in the eye. "Do you know how good it feels like to cut a ship in half?"
Instead of answering directly, Thorson grabbed her by the shoulders and reversed their positions, eliciting a surprised gasp from Tennessee's thin, pink lips as her shoulders hit the wall and he ripped her uniform open. She was only seconds behind him, removing his jacket and tearing his undershirt to shreds as her tanned skin, muscle, and black lingerie was bared to him. He ravaged her with his eyes, savored it, watched as a bead of sweat dripped from her neck to her clavicle.
"Well?" she demanded. Her answer came as Thorson spun her to face the wall, pulled the defenseless strip of lace aside, and entered her in one swift motion that had her pounding her fist against the drywall and slamming her hips back against his. Words, as Tennessee insisted, were useless. His hot breath on the back of her neck, the scraping of her fingernails against the old paint, the possessive grasping of her chest, hips, and ass by his rough hands; all were testament to the furious emotions that burned between the two of them, torn somewhere between lust, respect, and hatred. He was unrelenting and she matched him every step of the way.
Tennessee arched her back and closed her eyes tight as he stiffened behind her, the roar of blood in her ears accompanying a tightening of her chest so severe she thought she might cease to breathe. They panted heavily as he spent himself inside of her, her hair hanging around her face like a golden veil as waves of unknown weakness suddenly grasped her. In that moment he finally laid eyes on her rigging mark, a single rose in bloom. Silent they remained as they separated and faced one another, his hands resting on the wall to either side of her, pinning her there. She reached out and touched his chest.
"Thorson…" Again lips met but this time soft and tender, moans and grunts turning to keening breaths and pleas for warm, gentle touches. He responded in kind, exploring her body for what felt like the first time, running his lips from the shell of her jaw to the tender skin of her neck to the dip of her collarbone and beyond. He noted each spot that elicited that rarest and most delightful of feminine gasps from her. She did not rest idle, finding his own form to be equally curious and attractive as she learned the shape of the man who had demanded more from her than any commander in the Union. "Again?" she proposed.
Thorson was only too happy to comply, taking her left leg in hand and holding it high to ease his entry into her depths. Tennessee mewled and wrapped her arms around his neck, resting back against the wall. Supported by it on one side and her lover on the other, she simply enjoyed the ride, the two of them abandoning all pretenses in favor of the communion of souls only possible through physical union. Though he never said the words, nor did she, their actions spoke louder than her main batteries at Midway, testament to their unique commitment to one another, a commitment to weather war and slaughter together and to pick up the pieces in the aftermath. I love you.