The battle raged on, the once-tranquil waters now churning with the fury of war. Ruby's Kamikaze group surged forward, their rapid advance a desperate gambit to exploit the gap in the enemy's defenses.
Aime let out a fierce battle cry as she led a charge of destroyers. Her purple hair whipped in the wind, eyes blazing with determination. Hisui flanked her right, while Mae covered their left.
The JMSDF ships loomed ahead, their modern weaponry a stark contrast to the otherworldly nature of the kanmusu. A wall of fire erupted from the human vessels, the air thick with the acrid smell of cordite. The cacophony of cannon fire and the sharp crack of mounted turrets blended into a symphony of chaos, each explosion a jolt that reverberated through the air like the crack of a whip. Plumes of smoke billowed upward from damaged ships, swirling into the sky like malevolent specters.
Flashes of orange and yellow pierced the gloom cast by the billowing smoke clouds, illuminating the haunted faces of kanmusu and abyssal alike. The deck of one such JS ship vibrated underfoot with the relentless recoil of the massive guns, a rhythmic pulse that matched the racing heartbeat of the battle.
The guns that were aimed at the heart of my forces.
Ruby's voice crackled over the comm. "Evasive maneuvers! Don't give them an easy target!"
The abyssal forces scattered, weaving intricate patterns across the waves. Several destroyers weren't quick enough, their hulls shredded by the barrage. The JDF responded with a barrage of guided missiles, blowing apart less fortunate abyssals like kindlings. The sea frothed black with oil and debris.
From somewhere down below a submarine launched a torpedo and annihilated a trio of abyssal destroyers instantly. Their terrified forms vanished in a plume of water that reached forty meters high.
Gneisenau's face contorted with frustration as she watched from her command position. "Mana! What's your status?"
Mana's reply came through, tinged with static and the sounds of ongoing combat. "We're holding, Admiral, but barely. These human ships pack quite a punch."
As if to emphasize her point, a massive explosion rocked Mana's position. When the smoke cleared, Morrigan was listing badly, her armor scorched and torn.
"Morrigan!" Nephthys cried out, her usual stoic demeanor cracking.
Corone was already moving, positioning herself to support her wounded sister. "We've got you," she muttered, her jade eyes flashing with grit.
As a silent spectator to this battle, I worried greatly for my children. Why wouldn't humans accept peace? I never wanted any of this!
Back at the tertiary battle line, Yamato rallied her forces. "Stand firm!" her voice boomed across the waves. "We are the shield of Japan. We will not falter!"
Kongou and Akatsuki flanked her, their rigging bristling with weaponry. Behind them, the remaining kanmusu formed up, a last line of defense before the shores of their homeland.
Gneisenau's lips curled into a snarl. "Kamikaze, press the attack! We need to break through before they can regroup!"
Ruby acknowledged the order, her usual bubbly demeanor replaced by grim resolve. She signaled to Aime, Hisui, and Mae, and as one, they surged forward.
The sea erupted around them as they closed the distance. JMSDF ships unleashed a torrent of missiles, their contrails crisscrossing the sky. Abyssal destroyers fell in droves, but still, Ruby's group pressed on.
A wave of fighters launched from a kanmusu aircraft carrier rained strafing fire upon them, their attack relentless. However, the fighters soon found themselves plummeting from the sky, torn apart by the ferocious barrage of flak turrets belonging to the abyssal forces.
Aime's voice wavered as she called out, "We're not going to make it!"
"We have to!" Mae shouted back, her eagerness now tinged with desperation.
Hisui remained silent, but her actions spoke volumes as she maneuvered to shield her comrades from the worst of the barrage.
Just as it seemed the attack would falter, a familiar voice cut through the chaos. "Need a hand?"
Wild Hunt emerged from a bank of smoke, battered but unbroken. Morrigan limped along, supported by her sisters, but their guns still blazed defiantly.
"Thought you could use some reinforcements," Mana quipped, a sly smirk playing across her lips despite the dire situation.
The combined force of the Kamikaze and Wild Hunt Battlegroup crashed into the JMSDF line like a tidal wave. For a moment, it seemed as though they might break through.
But then, from the sky, a new threat emerged. A squadron of fighter jets screamed overhead, their payload of cluster bombs finding their marks with terrifying power.
Gneisenau's eyes widened in shock. "All units, brace for impact!"
The world dissolved into fire and thunder as the bombs fell. When the smoke cleared, the abyssal advance had been shattered. Ruby's group and Mana's clique were scattered, struggling to regroup amidst the chaos.
As I surveyed the carnage, my expression hardened. The easy victory we had anticipated had turned into a grueling battle of attrition. But as I watched the enemy forces slowly begin to rally, I felt a flicker of determination spark in my gut.
"What is your plan?" I asked Gneisenau through the command link.
Gneisenau, fighting at the frontline, replied in a strained voice. "Keep pushing and break their wills!"
"I will reorganize the fleet then since I have a bird's eye view of the battlefield."
Gneisenau acknowledged me with a grunt and refocused on the fight as I swiftly floated away, not here, yet here all the same as far as I was concerned.
The battlefield churned with chaos as smoke and debris clouded the air. Gneisenau's voice crackled over the command link, her tone strained but firm with purpose. "Everyone, follow Fräulein Ciriel's lead."
A chorus of affirmatives followed suit, but I was already busy with surveying the scattered forces, my mind racing to formulate a new strategy. "Ruby, Mana, pull back and regroup. Form a defensive line to protect our damaged units in the rear."
Ruby's acknowledgment came through, her usually cheerful voice now grim. "Copy that. Aime, Hisui, Mae - fall back!"
"I'll get o-," Mana said, before cutting off as an explosion drowned out her voice.
As Ruby's group retreated, the JMSDF pressed their advantage. A volley of missiles arced through the sky, their contrails etching white lines against the smoke-filled horizon.
"Incoming!" Aime cried out, her eyes wide with fear.
The missiles found their mark, exploding in a devastating barrage. When the smoke cleared, Aime was gone, along with a dozen destroyers. Flaming oil slick puddles formed on the sea; all that was left of them.
"Aime!" Mae's anguished cry pierced the air. Hisui remained silent, but her eyes blazed with hatred. Ruby looked at the place where her younger sister died with widened eyes.
I gritted my teeth, pushing aside the sharp pain tearing a hole in my heart. "Mana, take your group and flank their left. The enemy is reforming their defensive perimeter. We need to act before those jets rip us to pieces."
Mana's lips curled into a predatory grin. "With pleasure, Princess." She signaled to her companions, and they peeled away from the main group, a pack of destroyers in their wake.
Up above, a terrible storm began brewing as my thoughts unraveled in a cycle of recrimination and guilt from my daughter's demise. It's all my fault.
If only I had done better. FUCK!
On the Japanese side, Yamato's face was a mask of grim resolve. "Hold the line!" she shouted, her voice carrying over the din of battle. "We cannot let them breach our defenses!"
A horrified voice came over the comms. "THEY'RE RIPPING US TO PIECES DEAD!"
"Calm down an-" Whatever Yamato was about to say was cut off as an explosion rang out from the other end, followed by static. A shadow fell over the Japanese battleship's face.
Hovering unseen above Yamato, tethered to a nearby 'rock', I felt a cold detachment. Her prideful superiors had already robbed me of a child. They could have chosen diplomacy over bloodshed. Yet here they were, willingly marching towards annihilation. A bitter taste filled my mouth as I watched the carnage unfold.
Fuck 'em.
My swarm of stealthy scout drones continued feeding me information, and I felt my gorge rise as I viewed the carnage take place.
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My own thoughts threatened to drown me, but I pushed them, and the tears falling from my face, aside to focus on the battle happening right now. The ones who live need me now. The dead can wait until this is finished. I will resurrect her, I swear it!
Kongou and Akatsuki moved to reinforce the weakening flank, their rigging blazing with continuous fire. The human ships behind them unleashed another salvo of missiles, forcing our forces to scatter.
I watched them even as my vision blurred with moisture. As the battle continued to rage on, I realized that brute force alone wouldn't win this fight. We needed a new approach, something unexpected. My eyes scanned the battlefield, searching for an opportunity, any weakness we could exploit.
Suddenly, a glimmer of an idea formed in my mind. It was risky, perhaps even desperate, but it might just turn the tide of this grueling battle.
The storm clouds overhead darkened, mirroring the grim atmosphere on the battlefield. The sky rumbled, illuminating the chaos below in stark flashes.
"Gneisenau," I called through the command link, my voice steady despite the turmoil in my heart. "I have a plan. It's risky, but it might be our only chance."
The admiral's eyes narrowed as she dodged an incoming shell, before returning fire at the dying kanmusu. "I'm listening, Fräulein."
"We need to create a diversion. Something to draw their attention while we maneuver into a more advantageous position."
As I outlined my strategy, Gneisenau's lips curled into a wolfish grin. "Clever, very clever. Ruby, Mana, did you catch that?"
Both commanders acknowledged, their faces set with determination. Ruby's usual cheerfulness had vanished, replaced by a solemn seriousness. Mana's eyes glinted with anticipation, her sly smirk never wavering.
"Execute on my mark," I ordered, watching the enemy's main battle line through multiple viewpoints. It had re-formed after the last round of airstrikes and now sought to press its advantage by pressing forward in an V formation.
The JMSDF elite ships loomed ahead, their modern weaponry a constant threat. Yamato stood at the forefront, her face etched with worry as she scanned the horizon.
I allowed our own frontline to break formation and spread out to the sides. Many abyssals slipped underneath the waves, using the oil-slicked water and roiling smoke as camouflage to disguise their approaches. The enemy kanmusu marched forward under covering fire from their human counterparts, unaware of the deception in play due to the heavy smoke clouds and the darkening sky obscuring visibility.
"Now!" I commanded.
Ruby's group surged forward, jumping out of the water and drawing enemy fire. Simultaneously, Wild Hunt slipped beneath the waves, using the chaos as cover.
The sea erupted with gunfire and explosions once more. Ruby weaved through the barrage, her destroyers scattering to present harder targets. Mae and Hisui flanked her, their eyes burning with vengeance for their fallen sister.
Kongou moved to intercept, her guns blazing. "You will not get past me, desu!" she roared, her voice carrying over the clamor of battle.
A friendly destroyer to Ruby's left disintegrated under Kongou's onslaught. Ruby grinded her teeth together, pressing forward despite the losses.
Suddenly, Mana's group erupted from the depths behind the enemy line. Caught off guard, the JMSDF ships struggled to respond to the threat at their rear.
"The trap is sprung," I murmured, watching as chaos engulfed the enemy formation.
The sky erupted with jagged forks of lightning, each electrifying bolt illuminating the battlefield in stark, blinding flashes. It was as if nature itself had joined the fray, its wrathful fury mirroring the chaos and turmoil unfolding below.
Mana's group, having burst from the depths, now tore through the enemy's rear lines like wolves among sheep. The JMSDF ships, caught in a vise between Ruby's frontal assault and Mana's surprise attack, struggled to maintain cohesion.
Yamato's voice rang out over the din, strained but resolute. "Kongou, hold that position. Akatsuki, fall back and shore up our stern! We can't let them break through!"
Kongou pivoted, her guns blazing as she tried to stem the tide of Mana's assault. Shells whistled through the air, finding their mark among the abyssal and kanmusu ships alike. Metal shrieked and twisted as explosions bloomed across the water's surface.
Mana ducked beneath a barrage, her green hair whipping in the wind. "Morrigan, Nephthys, Corone - split up and hit them from all sides!"
The dark-haired triplets nodded in unison, their movements fluid and practiced as they peeled away. Morrigan, still nursing her wounds from earlier, gritted her teeth as she pushed her battered body to its limits.
A dark-haired frigate tried to stop Morrigan's advance and paid for it by having her torso perforated by the abyssal's 5-inch guns.
On the other flank, Ruby led her group in a relentless push. Mae and Hisui flanked her, their eyes burning with a mixture of grief and anger. The loss of Aime had ignited a fierce hatred in them, driving them forward with reckless abandon.
Akatsuki moved to intercept, her small frame belying her formidable firepower. "I'll show you the power of a real lady!" she cried, unleashing a devastating volley.
The sea erupted around Ruby's group, forcing them to scatter. Two abyssal destroyers vanished in plumes of fire and twisted metal, their remains raining down in a grisly shower.
Ruby's emerald green eyes narrowed as she assessed the situation. "Mae, Hisui - flank her! We'll overwhelm her defenses!"
The trio surged forward, weaving through the barrage with practiced ease. Akatsuki's eyes widened as she realized the danger, but it was too late. Mae and Hisui closed in from either side, their guns roaring in unison.
Akatsuki fought bravely, her guns swiveling to track the multiple threats. But caught between three opponents, even her impressive skills weren't enough. A shell from Mae found its mark, tearing through Akatsuki's rigging. The small kanmusu stumbled, her defenses faltering.
Hisui, usually the silent one of Kamikaze, let out a rage-fueled battle cry as she pressed the advantage and lined up a shot. Akatsuki looked her killer in the eye with a resigned smile.
"Valhalla waits for me."
Akatsuki disappeared in a ball of fire and smoke.
When the smoke cleared, the shipgirl was gone, leaving only scattered debris floating on the churning waves.
Yamato's anguished cry echoed across the battlefield. "Akatsuki! No!"
The loss of their comrade seemed to galvanize the remaining kanmusu. They fought with renewed vigor, their movements becoming more desperate and unpredictable.
Kongou, still locked in combat with Mana's group, roared in defiance. "You'll pay for that, monsters!"
Her guns blazed, the barrage catching Nephthys off guard. The dark-haired abyssal cried out as shells tore through her defenses, sending her stumbling back.
Morrigan and Corone immediately moved to protect their sister, their own guns answering Kongo's challenge. The air filled with the screech of metal on metal as shells flew back and forth.
Gneisenau's voice crackled over the comm. "Press the advantage! We have them on the back foot!"
Ruby acknowledged, leading her group deeper into the enemy formation. The JMSDF ships, caught between multiple threats, struggled to coordinate their defense uniformly.
Fighter jets screamed overhead, their payloads raining down destruction. Abyssal and kanmusu alike scattered, seeking cover from the devastating airstrikes. The humans were now bombing their own side to kill the abyssals.
Mana, seeing an opportunity, signaled to her group. "Now's our chance! Push through while they're distracted!"
The abyssals surged forward, their guns blazing. JMSDF ships, their attention split between the air threat and the abyssal assault, began to falter.
Kongou, realizing the danger, moved to intercept. "You won't break through!" she cried, her guns roaring defiance.
Mana's lips curled into a foxy grin. "Watch us."
The two forces collided in a maelstrom of fire and steel. Kongou fought like a woman possessed, her guns never falling silent. But surrounded on all sides, even her impressive firepower couldn't stem the tide.
Mana darted in, her dark armor glinting in the flashes of gunfire. She unleashed a barrage from her port-side batteries, forcing Kongou to veer sharply to starboard. The kanmusu's rigging groaned under the strain, but she held firm.
"Is that all you've got, desu?" Kongou taunted, her eyes blazing with determination. She returned fire, her shells whistling past Mana's ear and exploding in the water beyond.
Morrigan and Nephthys seized the opening, flanking Kongou from both sides. Their synchronized assault peppered the kanmusu's armor, leaving scorch marks and dents in their wake. Kongou gritted her teeth, refusing to cry out despite the pain lancing through her body. And although she took plenty of punishment, she successfully avoided the volleys of V2 missiles from the trio.
I watched from over Mana's shoulder as Kongou somersaulted over a missile before landing on her toes and rolling to the side to evade a second one. All of this happened in the span of two seconds. A mix of respect and annoyance made me want to scream. Why can't you four kill one ship?!
It was after another unsuccessful barrage of missiles that the kanmusu made her move. A missile landed short, exploding in a huge spray of water and fire, denying vision of the kanmusu.
With a defiant roar, Kongou spun, her main guns swiveling to target Morrigan's last position. The wall of water dissipated and the abyssal's eyes widened as she realized the danger, but it was too late. Kongou's shells found their mark, tearing through Morrigan's defenses and sending her reeling backward.
Corone emerged from the smoke, her jade eyes flashing with anger at her sister's injury. She unleashed a torrent of fire, forcing Kongou to duck and weave. The sea around them churned, great plumes of water erupting where shells missed their mark.
Mana circled the embattled kanmusu, a predatory smirk playing across her lips. "You're outnumbered and outgunned, Kongou. Why not make this easy on yourself and surrender?"
Kongou's laugh rang out across the battlefield, tinged with both mirth and steel. "Surrender? The great Kongou never surrenders, desu!" She punctuated her declaration with another salvo, catching Nephthys off guard and scoring a glancing blow.
The triplets regrouped, forming a triangle around Kongou. They moved in perfect sync, their attacks coming from all angles. Kongou spun and dodged, her movements becoming increasingly desperate as she fought to keep all three in her sights.
Mana seized the opportunity, closing in while Kongou was distracted. Her guns roared to life, shells slamming into Kongou's flank. The kanmusu stumbled, her armor cracking under the assault.
But Kongou wasn't finished yet. With a cry that was equal parts pain and defiance, she unleashed everything she had. Her guns blazed, unleashing a bullet hell that forced Wild Hunt to scatter.
For a moment, it seemed as though Kongou might break free. But Mana had anticipated this. As Kongou surged forward, Mana was there to meet her, guns primed and ready.
The two ships collided with bone-jarring force. Kongou's eyes widened in shock as Mana's guns pressed against her chest, the barrels still smoking from their recent fire.
"It's over," Mana said, her voice low and tinged with respect for her opponent's tenacity.
Kongou met Mana's gaze, her own eyes filled with a mixture of pain and pride. "So it seems. But know this - Japan's spirit will never be broken."
Mana nodded solemnly, then pulled the trigger. The sound of the blast was deafening, drowning out even the chaos of the surrounding battle. Kongou's form staggered and fell, disappearing beneath the waves.
The members of Wild Hunt regrouped, their expressions a mix of triumph and solemn respect for their fallen foe. Morrigan nursed her wounds, while Nephthys and Corone scanned the horizon for new threats.
Mana took a moment to catch her breath, her usual smirk replaced by a look of grim satisfaction. "One down," she murmured, her eyes already seeking out their next target. "Now, let's finish this."
Yamato's anguished cry echoed across the battlefield. "Kongou! No!"
The loss of two of their strongest defenders sent shockwaves through the Japanese forces. Their lines began to waver, gaps appearing in their once-solid formation.
Ruby, seeing the opportunity, called out to her group. "This is our chance! Push through!"
As the abyssal forces surged forward, exploiting the gaps in the enemy's defenses, victory seemed within reach. But the battle was far from over. The remaining JMSDF ships and kanmusu rallied around Yamato, preparing for a last, desperate stand.