Azur Heroes
Chapter 16
Sorry to say but Melissa and I Island won't be getting saved right away. For one, as Laughingman pointed out, they do not have the forces to take the island or really stage enough of an assault without leaving a number of other locations vulnerable. Also, someone has to realize that there is something wrong. Communications were cut off after all. And lastly, need to get some set up for Melissa herself. So on with the show.
(No POV)
Izuku was looking around the base the day after the gala with the politicians. Kotov caught up with the boy and asked what the problem was. "It's Kii. She's supposed to be on duty today. But I haven't seen her."
"Last I saw her she went to the brig to bring a peace offering to the little rabbit girl. Though that was last night." Nagara mentions as she was passing by. "And that was?" Kotov asked with suspicion. Kongo tittered next to the more motherly cruiser before saying, "some of her favorite bottles of sake. Perhaps she felt a kindred spirit within Laffey-chan."
The commanders shared a look before shrugging and going to check on the battleship. They salute Kirishima who was guarding the door to the brig. And what they found within was a sight that made both of them red-faced.
Kii was curled up on the ground of Laffey's cell. All the sake bottles around her clearly empty and she wasn't wearing a stich of clothing. With the destroyer girl letting out happy snores while resting her head upon Kii's bare bosom. And she wasn't wearing anything either.
"Abmm.. Haps… wal…. Who? What is going on?!" Izuku finally shouts before Kotov covers his eyes and tries to guide the boy away. "Nothing you need to really think about right now kid!" he announces before grabbing the keys to the cell.
Izuku's first summon though was awakened by him shouting and stood up with a yawn. Not caring at all that Izuku could see her massive rack on full display. "Oh commander! Or commanders. Why are you blushing?" she asked almost too innocently. Considering what she likely got up to the night before.
"Look down you idiot!" Kotov shouted while trying to unlock the cell. Kii did and realized what the problem was. "Oh! My bad. Hang on… where is it? There's my wrap and fundoshi. Sorry about that. Gotta say, the little rabbit is uh….. quite aggressive beneath the sheets."
Kotov grunts while Izuku's head practically explodes with steam. "TMI!" the elder commander shouts while the younger faints. They give the two ships a moment to dress and clean up the cell. Especially given the slightly spilled sake stains on the floor.
Kii rolls her neck before saying, "never thought I'd be matched in drinking by a destroyer. But you aren't an average destroyer I guess." Laffey yawns before saying, "big fox lady is nice and soft in the right places. Not like that mean rabbit from the other day."
"Okay moving on! Kii you have a patrol to do today. Laffey, you are cleared from the brig and have a mission. Now go." Kotov said while trying to wake up Izuku. Laffey just smiles a bit while Kii has a big hearty laugh at the American commander's reaction. Once they were gone, Izuku still needed a moment to gather himself. "Okay…. Didn't see that coming."
John gives his young colleague a strained laugh of his own before worrying about the state of affairs between the two fleets. Luckily though the duo don't seem to make much of the matter and it stays quiet, civil and less lewd. Well mostly.
Inko was shaking her head one morning while making breakfast. "You would not believe what Kii and that…. Violent destroyer girl were doing in the laundry room!" she said before passing a plate to Izuku and then Eri. "Mom! Not in front of Eri and not right now. Please!" Izuku said while fidgeting with the connections of his arm.
Eri looked between the two before Inko cleared her throat and apologized. "I just hope this doesn't go any further. It could be upsetting when they part," the green haired woman said with some side worry. Izuku sighed and noted that they should be leaving before long.
"Mikasa and the few others have been integrated into the fleet. And I'm actually standing and feeling good again. So, Commander Kotov or Commander Brawl should be leaving before long. Though I'm not complaining about him taking the morning monitor shift."
Shinano then walked in with her usual dream like state and gait. Murmuring to herself as she saw dreams and visions. This time though, Izuku caught some of them. "Island lost in fog and smoke. A soul trapped, endlessly dreaming what they do not want to dream. Force beyond sea and land, needed to save the lambs," the lethargic carrier said between eating some bacon. Izuku looked at her funny and tried to piece together what she was talking about.
As Izuku was dealing with this, John was fighting off a bit of boredom and urge to sleep while looking over some of fuzzy images from the remaining satellites. "Well. Not much longer and I can get back to San Diego. Not to mention Yorktown, Cleveland, and the others. Wonder if Kate and Hornet have gone further."
"You mean like we have?" New Jersey says while sauntering up and wrapping her arms around Kotov's neck from behind. He sighs before admitting it wouldn't be easy to talk about the matter. "Oh c'mon. Dontcha just love it when we're together? I know you like these bunny buns of mine~. Not too mention, you certainly can tame the Black Dragon."
John raises an eyebrow at that but then he notices something on the screen. While most of the images over the Pacific were shaky, one stuck out. The area over I Island. 'Something's wrong… that's a loop!' he thought before calling in Reno and Akashi to check the feeds.
Akashi let out a cat like yawn before checking the connections. Reno though was totally focused on the task at hand. Helped that John had called her Cyber Brawl to get her motivated. "Uh…. Akashi? You seeing this?" Reno asked worryingly.
The mint haired girl rubbed the sleep out of her eyes before looking the section of code over. And her yellow eyes shot open so wide they overshadowed her face. "This feed has been off for over a week nya!" she shouted before rapidly cleaning up the data received with Reno.
New Jersey provided some extra processing power and speed to kick whatever was wrong out of the system. And they saw the new scary state of I Island. Sections of it looked like it had been blasted away or sunk. Others looked like a chaotic mix of Sakura and Siren designs. But one thing was abundantly clear; humanity was no longer in control. As Siren clones and fighters buzzed over the island.
"Son of a bitch." Kotov said quietly. No one else could disagree and a bit of panic was building. But John refocused before giving his orders. Including sending Jersey to get Izuku as fast as possible. "Get a line to Hawaii and Mara! Fodo too! We need all hands on deck for this."
When Jersey arrived with the green teen, he was dumbfounded to see what had happened to the research island. Before he could get lost in his shock, the boy slapped his cheeks. With one hurting more than the other. "Can we get any details? Any survivors?"
"I've sent the assault fleet out with some rescue ships Commander Midoriya. But we also have to focus on keeping the islands protected. They'll likely be targeting here before long." Rassmussen said while Miller noted that his defense fleet was on high alert. "We can't make any moves as is though. How the Hell did they take over I Island?" Miller asked while shaking his head.
Mikasa stepped up and noted the probable cause. "A number of Sakura ships had been summoned by the Sirens. Many of us possess unusual abilities that have been enhanced by the Sirens. They could have used that to get close and disrupt coms."
This makes all of the humans' blood run cold. Those stationed in Hawaii primarily. "Luckily we can advise you on what to look for and what to expect." Mikasa says before stepping forward to explain the Sakura tactics.
Izuku though was barely listening. 'What could they be after? And are we sure that all the people got out? If they didn't, then….. we may not have either the fire or manpower to save everyone,' he thought while looking down and then up at the image of I Island.
On I Island, a myriad of construction was happening. Half of the island was being allocated to the Sakura. While the other was where the Sirens were focused. And the few humans who were still alive and didn't get away were being used to build much of it.
"Finally. We will have a true Sanctuary of our own. And we will have plenty to offer to the Sakura trees once the roots take hold. Right Kaga." Akagi said with a twisted gleam in her red eyes.
Her white-haired sister sighed before reminding Akagi that they shouldn't be too hasty. "While I do look forward to our home here, I'm concerned about the matters with the Sirens. What could they possibly seek to gain from that cluster of machines?"
"It's something to do with their research Akagi-sama. They wanted the technology to make some better predictions for the future. And some other matter," the destroyer Nowaki said next to Akagi.
Kaga is curious about this and decides to investigate the matter. Though investigate in this case being walking into their section and asking Temperance and the others what they were doing. "Don't worry. We're just running some simulations through our newest advanced processor. Took a bit of extra work though." Observer says while smirking up at the tube before her.
And inside said tube was Melissa Shield. Her limbs had glowing lines running along them, as well as a number of scars adorning where the technology in her body had been implemented. Her once long blonde hair was gone. Shaved off and ports were implanted in her skull to feed her more data.
She had a scar over her right eye and when it opened, it was clear that a Siren tech eye had replaced the original. "Now then lets see… Oh not again. Tester, she's messing with some other systems or call for help. Do you mind?"
"No," the Siren calmly said before causing some shocks to fill Melissa's body. Shifting the focus back to what the Sirens wanted her to do. Kaga was disgusted by this but knew she couldn't go against the ones who summoned them. 'If she gave you that scar, you should respect her by finishing her off,' the snowy kitsune thought while glaring at Temperance.
Back in Japan, the commanders were discussing matters going forward to retake or destroy I Island. Or more accurately they were arguing between themselves. Mostly about the way to go about attacking the man-made station. Kotov and Rassmussen were both of the mind to use their carriers to get the job done.
But Mara, Miller, and Himori disagreed on outright destruction. "We don't know for sure that anyone is still alive there! So, what? We should just send them to the bottom of the ocean?! We don't know how much the Sirens have gained from the data stored there!"
Izuku has enough and turns his arm into an anti-air gun to fire off a rapid series of blanks. "Enough. We all have decent points, but the simple truth is we don't have enough ships to get the job done. So, we get more for the time being. Kotov and I both have six wisdom cubes. We'll try to summon some reinforcements to cover our homes and prepare for the attack."
The elder commanders cleared their throats before agreeing with the young man. Himori noted she had a few shards that could be formed into cubes as well. "But I don't think I should send my girls too far. We can't leave Japan vulnerable."
"She's right. Same for the US. Luckily, we have multiple fleets. We just need to add to them. That means you three as well." Kotov says with an approving nod towards Izuku. The boy returns it and asks that the Pearl Harbor commanders gather what info they can. "And find any survivors. Please," he said with a bow towards the men.
Both looked uncomfortable but acknowledged with a salute of their own. John let out a breath before saying, "go uh…. You should go summon who you can. I need to make a call back to my base." Izuku nodded and hurried to the depot to get the wisdom cubes that had been built up over a few weeks.
"I really wish we had more, but this is the best we've got right now," he said while looking down at the blue glowing objects. He sighs before picking one up and focusing on what they could use in the moment.
But his mind keeps shifting to a few darker thoughts. Not to mention how lucky he's been that he survived the last real fight with the shipgirls. 'Though survive is the best I could do in the moment. I wonder what else could happen and WHOA!'
Izuku's thoughts were interrupted by the cube in his hand lighting up and floating. But the light shifted to black and what seemed to be feathers filled the area. And standing before Izuku was a girl with a cruiser like rig behind her. Noted by the size of her guns and spread of them.
She had dark black hair, pale skin, piercing red eyes and wore a sailor uniform of all black and purple. In one hand was a tengu mask, and in the other was a small tanto blade. "Huh. Guess you're the Commander, huh... Wassup? I'm part of the team now or whatever. You just mind your own biz and I'll mind mine," she said in a flat tone.
The young commander's eye twitched before facepalming. And instantly regretting it because he facepalmed with his right and therefore robotic hand. "Ow. Okay. What's your name?" he asked while rubbing his nose.
The cruiser girl chuckled slightly before saying, "it's Haguro. I made a few things happen back in the day with some night battles. Though I got stuck with a nickname I don't like." Izuku noted this but didn't address the matter right away.
"Well let's see if we can get something a bit brighter." Izuku mutters before trying again with a pair of cubes. And he does get something brighter. Though the that involves a pair of ships. "Heya! Third ship of the Akizuki-class, Suzutsuki, reporting in! I'll be the one to protect my comrades and you, Commander!"
"Good day I am Mutsu! Nagato's little sister! Err, are you the Commander? Why? How did you become a Commander? Are Commanders amazing? Tell me, tell me!" With their names given, Izuku's eye was twitching again. Especially because Mutsu wouldn't stop bouncing around and asking him questions. She was a bit shorter than her sister and more catlike in her miko attire.
Suzutsuki however was a different story. She was taller than Mutsu and seemed to carry herself almost like a hero. Though more ninja inspired. "Himori has her thing with fanservice ships, I seem to attract ninjas or heroes. Guess that tracks." Izuku thinks aloud while appraising the destroyer.
She had silver hair and had a sparrow or owl-like appearance to her hair, uniform, and fan. Her orange eyes seemed to be appraising Izuku. Noting his right arm before saying, "guess they got you good. Well don't worry shikikan! I'll have your back from now on!"
Izuku is a bit surprised by the statement but he feels something else while she is saying it. Pushing it aside though, he tries to summon a few more ships with the remaining cubes. The first is another heavy cruiser. A tall rabbit-like ship with a large sword, bust, and long legs.
But rather than be intimidating, she smiled gently down at Izuku before saying, "I am Chikuma. Pleasure to make your acquaintance." Her pitch was high, and yet Izuku couldn't help but feel Atago was going to be in competition with this new ship of his. Aided by the fact that she was currently patting his head.
"Um. Moving on. I need to try and summon a few others." Izuku said uneasily. He focuses on the cubes once more and his last two new ships arrived. That being a pair of destroyers. The first was a dark-haired girl with a MASSIVE sword next to her. Her uniform was crisp and proper, akin to that of Mikasa's or Kinu's uniforms.
"I am Kamikaze-class destroyer Oite, assuming my post starting today. I will perform my duties, and anything beyond that I will decide on a case-by-case basis. End of report," she said brusquely while adjusting the position of her sword in it's sheath. Izuku nodded slowly before taking stock of the other arrival.
That being a cute little white haired fox girl with a talisman over one blue eye. She tilted her head to the side while looking at Izuku. "I'm Kasumi. Commander, are you my friend?" Izuku was a bit taken aback by the statement but shook out of it to say he was.
Kasumi hummed before the hitodamas next to her swirled around Izuku. "Foo seems to like you. Oh but he also sees your hurt. Not just the physical. You were hurt and let down by others. Said you couldn't be what you dreamed of. Ah and even more of them helped build you up after you fell. Do you think we could be built up too?"
Izuku was surprised by the phrasing of the girl. 'It almost reminds me of…. Shinano.' Izuku thought and tried to recall what the carrier had said. "Island lost in fog and smoke. A soul trapped, endlessly dreaming what they do not want to dream. Force beyond sea and land, needed to save the lambs."
The young commander looked at Kasumi who had the hitodama swirling around her. "Foo was able to look in and see what you were forgetting commander," she said with a smile. He smiled before patting her on the head and thanking the young fox.
"Force beyond sea and land. Meaning…. Maybe we don't do this with just the fleets. Master is a hero after all. Maybe he and a few others are just what we need. I just hope they're willing to work with us." Izuku thought before looking towards the center of Mustafa. And the UA school building.
I know it's a bit much, but I'm kind of going off of the situation of Echo from the Bad Batch and what the Seperatists did to him for Melissa. Or if you know Predator: Concrete Jungle and the Alien series, she's basically MOTHER for the Sirens. And she's going to be fighting that going forward.
I have plans for the other ships for Izuku and Himori. As well as what Kotov and Rassmussen will eventually be summoning. But that won't be the biggest focus next chapter. That will be the talks with the HPSC and even UA. All in hopes of getting those who may be trapped out of the Hell the Sirens have them in. Please review!