Chapter 17
- In the area around the Liberty -
Liberty, port (left) side.
"Say, Kii?"
"Hmm? Eugen? What's up?".
"I know the middle of a battle isn't exactly the best time to ask, but... Why did you voluntarily decide not to participate in today's matches? I would have thought that getting to show off in front of so many people would've been right up your alley."
"Ah, well you aren't wrong but well, there were an odd number of us and I just happened to be one the odd one out. That and Shikikan personally asked me to be one of the referees since I had the better eye for that sort of thing. Well, that and to keep an eye on Archerfish-chan and the others."
"...Ah, I see." 'A good call on the Kommandant's part too.'
"Plus, I get a private dinner out of it when this is all over, so hey."
"Motivation is important, ja."
"Yup!" Kii agreed before cutting down the Oceana unit in front of her and moving on to the remaining mass production ships nearby. "That said, watching you all go at it really got my blood pumping, y'know? So yeah, I think I'm gonna take this chance to cut loose after holding back all day."
Eugen quietly chuckled as she watched how efficiently and brutally the long haired ravenette was disposing of the Sirens, even if they were a good deal more powerful than the ones they fought against yesterday. 'Still, this entire battle feels, like it's going a lot easier than it should. Suspicious. Very, very suspicious...'
xxx xxx xxx
[To detached Assault Fleet two: Encirclement of the designated operations site is 93% complete and can move on to the next phase within 300 or so seconds.]
[Assault Fleet two to Encirclement Fleet: Report received. Combat with Unknown fleet is proceeding as expected, though our forces have taken on more losses than initially predicted based on our last engagement's data. Fortunately, Assault Fleet one is now reinforcing us. Likewise, Target fleet is about 120 or so seconds from entering the battlefield themselves.]
[Encirclement Fleet to detached Assault Fleets one and two: Understood. Remember, while a certain level of inflicted damage against the test subject fleets is permitted, they are still not to be sunk... if at all possible. That said, collateral damage exceptions are permitted in the event of an unavoidable situation before the end of the data collection operation.]
xxx xxx xxx
Liberty's starboard(right) side, with Strasser's fleet-
"... Eeii!"
With a shout too cute and soft to possibly seem even remotely threatening Unicorn, who had switched spots with Laffey at some point earlier in the battle, launched a stream of antique fighter plane shaped attack attack drones to support her fleet sisters. Meanwhile, her stuffed unicorn-Uni-was hopping up and down in the water around her in circles as if to cheer her on. Incidentally, Uni also zapped any Siren who tried to get close to her (... not that it, he?, she? did very much damage though).
"...You know what, I'm just not even going to try and figure these things out anymore..," Strasser muttered to no one in particular as she quickly finished off another two mass production ships in an attempt to keep her mind off of futilely trying to ponder such absurdities... only to catch sight of Javelin and Ayanami double breaking through the group of Sirens trying to encircle them. 'Looks like they have things covered then. Good.'
...
"... Hmph."
"Hehehe~ Nice try!"
Snorting in utter contempt, or just outright teasing them, Ayanami and Javelin let loose a wave of ether that signaled the activation of their unique skills and intent to finish the Sirens surrounding them in one go.
"Okay, how about I show you real power of a 'Demon'!"
"... Aandd... Full Power~! Go, go~! "
With a burst of speed no mass production type Siren could ever hope to match, the pair of lively destroyers proceeded to tear apart the stunned and bewildered enemy at the seams.
Satisfied that she didn't need to assist them, Strasser then turned her attention back to her fellow aircraft carriers. 'If anything, it's those two I'm really worried about...'
The twintailed ravenette couldn't help but sigh as she watched the wicked vixen and phoenix in question in the middle of turning their corner of the battlefield into a true, if beautiful, vision of hell itself bathed in crimson flames and set to the backdrop of endless, soft giggling.
"That's right~! Burn, burn, and burn some more! Ufufufu~! "
"You know, seeing you like that... honestly makes me feel a little sorry for the Sirens..," Taihou remarked as she coolly observed the heavily damaged Bishops and Knights slowly getting devoured by the pair's hungry red flames.
"Hmm? Well now. I never thought I'd hear you, of all people, say something like that my dear Taihou-chan."
Taihou shrugged. "Even so, you can't deny how scary you can be when you get like that, ne Akagi-chan?" 'Well, not that I have any room to talk...'
"Hmph. I won't let you act like I'm the only one who can 'get a little too into it'! You're just as bad, if not worse, than I am!" Akagi pointed out with a faux pout.
Taihou halfheartedly scoffed before heading off, neither refuting or confirming Akagi's words. "I don't know what you're talking about...!"
The vixen just softly giggled before following after her dear best friend/rival.
Liberty's port side, with Prinz Eugen's fleet-
"Oh me, oh my. Today's just been one crazy thing after another hasn't it? Epic battles with my fellow sisters, meeting and sparring with another version of myself, and now... another riveting life or death struggle with a horde of lovely Sirens! Really now, what's a girl to do with so much stimulation?"
"Could you please take things a little more seriously? And, are you trying to jinx us?" Jean Bart grumbled next to the smiling, hard to read silverette as they dealt the finishing blow to a particularly stubborn pair of Oceana Executors and their escort Pawns.
"How rude! Really, you're no fun at all..," Eugen replied with a playful, faux pout.
"..."
"Hm? Is something the matter, my dear Frau Jean?"
"...Let's just, get going before I get an even bigger headache..," Jean Bart muttered with a sigh.
"Alright, alright. Anyway, I wonder where that blue haired me disappeared to..."
"Well, if I were her and heard about a Siren attack, I'd go off and fight them too, right?"
"So you think her Commander's nearby then?"
"Most likely, oui. Unfortunately, there's just too much network traffic and/or heavy jamming to properly communicate with anyone outside of the immediate area, much less get a proper read on anything else."
"Ja, which isn't helping our rigging's targeting systems either. Not that I mind fighting up close and personal... but, that also means we can't move too far from each other either."
Jean Bart nodded gravely. "Which is actually why I'm hoping double is getting some reinforcements. Then again, I get the sense that that's also what the Sirens are waiting for too..."
"You think so?" Eugen asked, eyebrow raised ever so slightly.
"Who knows, but it's better to be cautious and assume the worst when it comes to the Sirens."
"Ah, makes sense Alright then, let's put all that aside for now and deal with what's right in front of us, ja?"
"After you."
Liberty's bow, with Saratoga's fleet-
"...Ugh. This is no way to treat an idol, y'know...!" whined the petite pinkette aircraft carrier as she tried to catch her breath after firing off who knows how many volleys of support artillery fire and airstrikes while New Jersey and Alabama (who had also ended up swapping places with Black Prince at some point) kept the Siren forces that slipped past the vanguard from reaching her.
"Hahahaha! Idol, huh? Man, just how many titles do you need, huh?" New Jersey asked with her trademark, hearty laugh.
"Ugh! I don't wanna hear that from someone who calls herself the 'Black Dragon' and dresses like a freaking slutty, sci-fi playboy bunny so leave me alone, dammit!" protested the flustered pinkette.
"Hahahaha! Guess you got a point there, don'cha? But hey, I make one damn sexy bunny! You're just mad I have a great figure and can properly show it off! And we all know our dear Honey's a total ass man too!"
"...Uuu...!"
Saratoga couldn't refute any of that and, as if to add insult to injury, Alabama chose that exact moment to deal the final blow.
"I mean, you shoulda seen how hard he was tryin' to keep his boner under control when I was rubbin' up on him with my irresistible booty~! "
...
"... Seriously!? You actually did that with the Commander!? What. the. hell!?"
Alabama just nodded to New Jersey's question, a hint of total and supreme smugness reflected in her faint smile. "... Yup, sure did."
... And with that, the pinkette finally snapped.
"... IRIS FUCKING DAMMIT! FINE! IF THAT'S HOW IT'S GONNA BE, THEN WHEN THIS ANNOYING AS SHIT BATTLE IS OVER, I'MMA SHOW THAT STUPID, ASS LOVING IDIOT OF A PERVERT COMMANDER WHAT A REAL BOOTY FEELS LIKE! UGH! DAMN YOU AND YOUR USELESS SACKS OF FAT! AAAARRRRGGGGHHHH! TIME TO SHOW EVERYONE WHY BIG(?) SISTERS THAT COME IN SMOL PACKAGES ARE THE BEST!"
*BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!*
Without another word, Saratoga sped off like a shipgirl possessed, destroying whatever poor Siren had the misfortune of being in her way. It was truly a sight to behold too. Fire, explosions, yelling, and the aura of utter wrath that only cute and petite big(?) sisters could unleash.
"...Oh, wow. She really lost it, huh?"
"Think I went too far?"
New Jersey shook her head. "Nah. But it doesn't really matter. Plenty of Sirens to take her frustrations out on so it's all good. If anything, I kinda feel bad for Honey though."
"Huh, why?"
"Because Little Sara's gonna be a real needy brat to deal with later and is definitely gonna go cry her brains out to Honey, that's why. Nice big, crocodile tears too."
"...Hehe!"
Meanwhile...
*BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!*
...Saratoga's rampage was only getting started
- Aboard the Liberty, bridge -
*deep shiver*
"...Commander? Is something the matter?" Metis began, quirking a curious, shapely digital eyebrow.
"... Oh, er, sorry. Just had this really bad feeling all of a sudden. Like my life might be in danger later?"
"Oh?" Metis observed. "Is this that 'sixth sense' thing you humans talk about getting sometimes?"
"I dunno, maybe? Either way, no denying that this 'sixth sense', or whatever it is, has saved my ass more than once so I've learned not to ignore it."
"...How curious. Perhaps it's a sort of passive magical or psychic ability then? Fascinating. Quite fascinating. I wonder if even an AI like myself could gain a similar such ability if I had a physical body of my own..."
Lima chuckled. "Who knows. But I mean, you are a super advanced AI so I wouldn't be surprised if you did."
"Well if so, that is quite the goal to work towards then," Metis said while showing Liam one of her rare, heartfelt and sincere smiles that really demonstrated just how little it really mattered whether she was an AI or not... before quickly shifting gears back into her usual 'serious adjutant mode'. "Anyway, as pleasant as that little chat was, we've got trouble."
"Huh? Trouble? What, more enemy reinforcements?"
"Worse." Metis replied as she brought up several more holoscreens. "Due to the heavy jamming and some unknown stealth field, we weren't able to pick any of this up until just now but, as you can see, the Sirens have successfully managed to surround us, likely in a wide area encirclement maneuver. Not only that, but another ship has been caught up in it too... and not just any ship either. It's another Hyperion class 'aerial combat support carrier', just like ours."
"...! What!? Seriously?"
On the center screen Metis brought up was, like she'd said, the image of a ship identical in design to the Liberty but painted in the colors of the modern Azur Lane Alliance. In front of and on either side of the unknown ship were also a number of smaller formations as well.
"Are those smaller groups what I think they are?"
"Other shipgirls? Yes, and most likely belonging to that other Eugen's Commander too."
"Damn. The Sirens got us good, didn't they? Getting us to gather all in one place like this I mean."
Metis nodded. "It certainly looks that was their plan, at any rate."
"And can we get in touch with the other Hyperion class ACSC?"
"The enemy's jamming isn't going to make it easy, but I think I should be able to open up a secure channel in a few minutes. Until then, however..."
"We just have to hold on, right?"
"Yes."
"Right then, fingers crossed and all that."
- With Javelin and Ayanami -
"... Eh!? Ah crap!" Javelin, narrowly dodging another Oceana's cannon fire almost by instinct at this point, jabbed her spear right into the Siren's torso before kicking it away and finishing it off with a barrage from her own guns. "Ugh! They just keep coming!"
"You okay, Javelin-chan?"
"Y, yeah. Just getting a little tired... Um, how about you Ayaya? You holding up okay?"
"...Fine but, just a little tired too. Yes."
"... Uuu... I, I hope Laffey and the others are okay."
"I'm sure they're fine, yes!"
"...I hope so. Anyway, let's.. -wait, who's that?"
"Javelin-chan? What are you... nani?"
Some distance away from where they were fighting, scores of Sirens were suddenly being swept away by several unknown shipgirl fleets fighting ahead of a ship that looked very, very similar to the Liberty.
"Hey. Does, does that mean what I think it means?"
Javelin's eyes went wide with surprise at the sight, and not just her either. The sudden appearance of what looked like their own reinforcements was shocking enough to have everyone, shipgirl and Siren alike, stop what they were doing and turn to watch the newcomers in action. Well, almost everyone anyway.
"... The Sirens, they're wide open now! Yes!"
Without waiting or saying another word, sword in hand and a fire in her eyes, Ayanami charged forward and cut down the nearest distracted Executor and, satisfied seeing it silently sinking into the sea, she turned and called out to the still confused light purplette behind her.
"Oi, Javelin-chan! Snap out of it and help me out!"
"Hu, huh? Oh, yeah. O, okay!"
- With Prinz Eugen's fleet -
"Heh, looks like the cavalry came," Kii observed after wiping her shapely brow. "That other you didn't waste any time, huh?"
"So it seems. By the way, the little ones (submarines) have been awfully quiet, haven't they? You'd think they'd be making a real fuss by now, ja?"
"About that. Seems they were all busy covering our rear. Nobody noticed because of the jamming but a few Assassins and Lurkers apparently tried to ambush us," Jean Bart answered.
"Heh. They finally get some action and it's all behind the scenes huh," Eugen commented with a light chuckle. "So, about our new friends and the Sirens; do we go over and say hi, or..."
Kii just shrugged. "I mean, it doesn't really matter either way, right?"
"By the way, where are Frau Belfast and the others?"
"They uh... charged ahead the moment the other shipgirls were spotted," Kii said, pointing over at the shrinking figures of Vampire, Belfast, and Black Prince in the distance. "Seems Vampire got a little too impatient and, well, you know how Black Prince and Belfast are once they they get serious."
Sighing, Eugen lightly shook her head. "In any case, we can't leave the Liberty undefended so we'll just have to trust that they'll be okay on their own for the time being."
- Aboard the Liberty, bridge -
"Channel finally open. Adjusting data traffic filtering and signal boosters now," Enterprise reported.
"Security protocols A-001 through A-007, condition green. No errors," Sirius added.
"Connection established. Now bringing it up onscreen," Sheffield finished.
After a bit of screen flicker and false starts, Liam found himself staring face to face with one of the world's only other shipgirl Commanders, a real living legend who first made a name for himself as one of it the Azur Lane Alliance Navy's youngest admirals in history to come out of the final days of the Second Siren War.
[Greetings from aboard the ACSC Hyperion, I'm Admiral Yang Wen-li of the Azur Lane Alliance Navy's 13th Fleet.]
Finishing his polite but short introduction, the slightly shorter than average man with dark hair grey eyes saluted a slightly flustered Liam while offering him a friendly, slightly awkward but open smile. Honestly, outside of the uniform and reputation, the man staring back at Liam looked about as much of a soldier as Liam did... 'Still, you know what they say about not judging a book by its cover and all that.'
"Greetings to you too, Admiral. My name is Liam Archer, leader of the um, newly established 'Outer Heaven Mercenary Group' and Commander of the ACSC 'Liberty' and its attached shipgirl fleets."
[Hm? You look a bit nervous. Is everything alright, Mr. Archer?]
"Well if I'm being honest, it's not every day that a random nobody like me gets to meet a real war hero, y'know?"
[...A 'hero', huh... Really, I'm not all that big a deal you know. Just a wannabe historian who ended up a soldier, that's all. Anyway, Miss Eugen's told me a bit about your shipgirls and, from what I can see, they've been doing very well so far. Still, it's quite a predicament we've found ourselves, isn't it?]
"They're tricky bastards for sure, yeah."
Admiral Yang nodded.
[Honestly, there really wasn't much either of us could have done regardless. With things as they were, we probably still would've ended up surrounded no matter what happened. While I'd like to try taking them on, it'd be best if we could regroup and fight them on our terms, all we can really do right now is clear out as many Sirens as we can while we focus on breaking through their encirclement.]
"So, do you have a plan for that? Y'know, being the more experienced Commander here and all that."
[... About that. With the forces we currently have, and the time we have to act, I think...]
...
With their minds made up and no time on their side, the Unbeatable Magician shared jsut what he had in mind with Liam, making sure to get his and Metis's input since this would be their first time working together and wouldn't succeed without working together. Needless to say, while observing him as they spoke, Yang was fairly impressed with Liam's ability to quickly adapt to his circumstances under pressure. While it was true that he didn't think or act like a soldier, he still definitely recognized a fellow crafty bastard when he saw one.
- With some of the 13th Fleet's shipgirls -
"Hey, Enty?"
"Hm? What's the matter, Yorktown?"
"What did Commander Yang say?"
"That we'll be moving out in a wide crane wing formation and surround the Sirens from the outside while that other Commander's forces continue to handle them from the inside and crush them from both sides. Once that's done, we'll be reorganizing into a series of smaller wedge formations and punch through a single spot in the enemy's encirclement. Afterwards, we'll work on breaking the Sirens up into smaller, more manageable chunks. Ideally, we'd want to get rid of them all in one go while they're still in disarray, but who knows how things will go. That's the the overall strategic goal we have for the time being, anyway."
"Those are gonna be some pretty complicated maneuvers to be pulling off with a bunch of shipgirls we've only literally just met y'know," Hornet commented as she doubled checked her rigging's guns.
"True, but it's not the first time we've had to do it. Besides, I don't think they'll be half as troublesome to work and deal with as that fleet back in Europa," Enterprise replied with a slight shudder as she recalled a certain, overly flirtatious, egocentric green haired Sardegnan battleship with a very 'loud', slightly obnoxious personality. 'Seriously, as long as none of them act like her, I'll be happy.'
"...Psst! ... Hey, Yorktown," Hornet motioning over to her sister in a hushed voice.
"Hm?"
"Was Miss Littorio really that bad?"
"...You have no idea. Well, to be fair, she didn't really bother me but Enty and Bremerton on the other hand...? Yeah, let's just say that she didn't leave a very good first impression on us because of those little encounters. Now, it was just her being a bit too friendly with them but well, you know how Enty and Bremerton are about stuff like that."
"... I can imagine. Yeah. Glad I wasn't there and was off her radar at the time."
"Well, dressed the way you are, yeah..."
Cue a round of shuddering by all three shipgirls.
"... Hey. If you two are done whispering about 'she who shall not be named'," cut in a frosty Enterprise raring to put unpleasant memories out of her mind and focus on the present. "everyone else is ready so let's get moving already."
"Coming!" (x2)
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With most of Liam's forces doing their best to finish off the Sirens in front of them, Yang's forces simultaneously rushed in from the other side with Enterprise and Essex's fleets in the center, Queen Elizabeth and Harbin's fleets on the left wing, while Bismarck and Unzen's took the right with the Hyperion, covered by their own submarine forces, bringing up the rear and providing artillery support whenever it found an opening.
"Alright girls! Light 'em up!"
With those loud and direct words from the ever boisterous and ready to fight Harbin, the whole sky quickly filled up with artillery shells and combat drones raining down on the Sirens like divine punishment from the heavens above, the first and opening move in a a risky all or nothing gamble of a counteroffensive.
- Right wing -
"... Und Feuer."
*RRRROOOOOAAARRRR*
With a roar, Geryon, Bismarck's dragon-like semi-autonomous named rigging's main guns blasted the still bewildered and disoriented Siren lines as they struggled to figure out which side to deal with first now that they were boxed in. Meanwhile Odin, who was to her left, silently nodded and activated her 'Rolling Thunder' skill which, against Sirens, was especially effective while Graf Zeppelin released wings of ether to both protect her fellow Iron Blood fleet sisters' defenses and increase her own attack drones' offensive power. Likewise, their vanguard were just as impressive, if a little more carefree... even managing to casually chat while in the middle of fighting. All in all, it was the perfect combat formation in action.
"Oi, Eugen!"
"Hm. Hipper? What is it, my dear sweet sister?"
"... Okay, first. Could you not say things like that!? Seriously! And two. What was it like, meeting another you?"
"Well, she seemed confident and pleasant enough I suppose, and quite strong as well. Oh, and she had a very charming smile and seemed just as well endowed as I am."
"...What the hell!? I wasn't asking about whether or not she has pointlessly big tits like you! Why did you even bring that up!? I hate you!"
"You know, dear sister, I would only be considered a bit bigger than average," Eugen pointed out, while demonstrating with her arms under her ample bosom... much to her beloved sister's annoyance.
"...Okay, screw you. Seriously, go die. Anyway! Seriously, what was she like?" Admiral Hipper asked again, genuinely curious and wanting to just change the subject already. 'Ugh! And it's not my damn fault I came out so freakin' small! Dammit! Damn freaking cows and their useless sacks of fat!'
"Hm. Well, everything else I already mentioned aside she was, honestly incredibly difficult to read so I can't really answer that. At the very least, she's much more guarded than I am but otherwise we're very similar."
"... Great, just great. One of you is already bad enough, but two!? ..Ugh!"
"Well, if there was one other major difference between us, it'd be that she's much more fond of teasing people than I am."
"Says you! You mess with me all the fucking time, you sadist! Bully! Big tiddied cow!" Hipper loudly protested.
"Ja, but you are my dear, sweet little sister though~! It's my duty to mess with you!"
...
"...I really hate you."
"Ah, but I adore you oh so much!"
*BBBOOOOMMMM!*
"...I'm amazed you two can just chat away without a care in the world with so many enemies around us...," cut in a sincerely amazed, mildly impressed, and overall exasperated Z23 as she sunk another Pawn. "Really, can't you two take things more seriously?"
"We could but, other than their large numbers, there's really not much reason to sweat it, right?" Hipper countered before effortlessly dodging a charging pair of Oceana that she and Eugen then quickly cut down in one well timed, simultaneous and synchronized movement. "See?"
"Okay, but they aren't the ones we need to worry about. It's the ones surrounding us that are the real problem here. After all, we only have so long before they decide to act."
"Oh, about that, according to little U-556, she and the other submarines have been busy keeping them from fully completing their encirclement," Eugen said.
"Huh? But I thought they were going to guard the Kommandant?"
"Well that was the idea, ja, but with it was decided to have them go and distract the Sirens and buy us as much time as possible to finish things on our end."
"Speaking of which," Hipper began, pointing out how empty their section of the battlefield had become.
"Huh? What happened? Where did all the Sirens go? Did we really finish them all off?"
"Frau Unzen's team took care of the stragglers while we were talking, and it looks like 'Her Majesty's' side should be wrapping things up soon too."
"...Oh. I guess, there really wasn't any reason to worry, huh?" 'Still, it's not like we can totally relax yet either. After all, encirclement aside, no Elites have shown up yet... Which, knowing them and past experiences, can only mean one thing...'
...
[Attention, this is Metis of the Liberty. Two high energy signatures have been detected at the western edge of the combat zone. Likewise, the enemy formation surrounding us is also beginning to move. I repeat, two high...]
'... I knew it...' All Z23 could do was sigh and mentally grumble as she and the others began to quickly reorganize themselves before hurrying to carry out the next phase of the operation.
xxx xxx xxx
*BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!*
The Liberty jostled a bit from the impact of a stray shell being deflected by its ether shields.
"Master, all of the enemy Sirens within range of the Liberty and Hyperion have finally been eliminated and the temporary joint fleet is now commencing the second phase of the operation. Admiral Yang is sending over updated battlefield data along with an outline on what his Rosenritter forces will be doing in the meantime so that we can better coordinate our movements," Sheffield reported.
"Rosenritter?"
"One of the Azur Lane Alliance Military's most elite marine corps special operations units. They were founded by defectors of the old Crimson Axis. Their current and thirteenth generation leader is one Captain Walter von Schonkopf, a man who is intensely loyal to Admiral Yang himself rather than the Azur Lane Alliance itself. Or at least, that's what the data I managed to find on him suggests," Metis explained.
"So, not only does Admiral Yang have his own fleet of shipgirls, but a whole group of elite, veteran marines too?"
"The Rosenritter also have the distinction of being one of the few non-Shipgirl based military units that have fought off the Sirens with any level of success throughout the Second Siren War even if it was just against mass production ships. So far, the only other force that's pulled that off are the Order of the Black Knights under the command of the Britannian Royal Islands' 2nd Prince, Lelouch vi Britannia."
"Oh, that's the skinny looking, dark haired, guy who always has that smug look on his face, right? The one everyone calls 'The Black Prince' and who's supposed to be a genius tactician or whatever?"
Metis nodded. "The very same. At any rate, we're getting off topic. Have you finished looking over the files Admiral Yang sent over?"
"Huh? Oh, yeah. Looks like we're gonna be doing some serious heavy lifting this time around with the Liberty and the Hyperion to keep the encirclement from reforming once it's been broken through for as long as possible with our main bow mounted ether cannons while the Rosenritter and our submarines protect us."
"And how are they supposed to do that, exactly?"
"They have custom made wanzers."
"Wait, they have bipedal combat mecha units!?"
"They do, though they're really only powerful enough to take on Rooks, Pawns and Knights and only if they take them on with groups of three or more."
"I see," Metis replied.
Just then, an alarm went off as Sirius called out to Liam and Metis.
"Honorable Master, Lady Metis! Two high energy signatures rapidly closing in! ETA, one-hundred and fifty seconds and counting!"
"Siren reinforcements!?" Metis asked.
Sirius nodded her head. "Yes, and one of the energy patterns matches the unit we fought yesterday, the one called Tester. The other is unknown, but based on its power output and proximity to Tester..."
"...Another Elite, right?" Liam finished with a hard expression.
"... Most likely, yes."
"Dammit!" 'We knew that Tester would probably show up sooner or later, but two Siren Elites!?' "Alright, Enterprise, tell Eugen and Strasser's fleets to engage Tester while Saratoga keeps chipping away at the other Sirens. I'll get in touch with Admiral Yang and have him divert some of his forces to deal with the other Elite while the rest stick to the original plan. Sure, Elites might have shown up now but our overall strategic goal hasn't changed."
"Understood!"
xxx xxx xxx
At the western edge of the Siren forces' encirclement.
"...Hey, you sure you wanted me along? I mean, I might go a little overboard once we start fighting, y'know?" asked the long, light blue/lavender haired and golden eyed Siren Elite riding what looked like some kind of hammerhead shark mecha... with lots of guns and flanked by two attack drones.
"Both the Unknown and Target fleets' forces being present changes things, that's why," Tester replied. "Besides, while it's true that you might be a stupid battle junkie, you still aren't one to forget our true mission objectives either."
"...Hmph. That's some awfully high praise, Testy. Still, you do know why I'm called 'Purifier' though, right? I 'purify' things, and usually with extreme violence."
"And isn't that why you temporarily transferred your limiter control codes to me before coming?" Tester reminded.
"Okay, fair enough, but I can still rough 'em up a bit, right?"
"That's fine. Oh, and just ignore the two flying ships in the rear. They aren't much of a threat even if they fire their main ether cannons at us."
"Heh, alrighty then! I'll be going on ahdead then~!"
Watching her fellow Elite playfully wave and speed off, Tester could only sigh and shake her head before following after, ready to engage Liam's shipgirls once again. 'It might be us just killing time and all, but this is still a good chance for a rematch. Hopefully, those little submarine brats won't get in the way this time.'
xxx xxx xxx