I mean you could argue that the Kongou that we all know and love would look vastly different to the Kongou that initially came out of Barrow-in-Furness. She did have two very extensive refits after all.
Well I've always assumed that Kongou looked British, with Hiei having some British looks due to some of her having been built in Britain, and then Haruna and Kirishima would look fully Japanese since they were both built fully in Japan.
Well I've always assumed that Kongou looked British, with Hiei having some British looks due to some of her having been built in Britain, and then Haruna and Kirishima would look fully Japanese since they were both built fully in Japan.
We thought about it, but ultimately decided that there's a lot of factors that go into a ship girl's looks. And every single one of them has Indy coming out lily white as it gets.
Is the name a factor at all? Because otherwise the UK and allies are having to deal with all the Tribal-class destroyers like HMS Maori, HMCS Iroquois, HMAS Arunta, etc., being white, which seems a bit awkward from a PR perspective.
God this brings back memories, so glad it's coming back. I was the one who tossed the original plot bunny out there in the planning thread, and I loved the first one too.
Walking through a Japanese naval base was something that HMS Indestructible had never once thought she would be doing. Well, walking at all was something she had never thought possible. There was a difference between moving on her old hull, where she could never be seen, and walking on dry land. On her hull, she could feel every movement. Every little dip and shift from the waves, as if a brush against her skin. On land?
It was a big adjustment to make all on its own. Solid ground beneath her feet without a wave in sight. No ability to feel what was around her.
"How do you do it," she wondered, under her breath where none could hear. Her violet eyes still shiftily stared at the Admiral, as a frown worked its way onto her face. "Getting distracted, Indestructible. Focus."
Now, add onto that the fact she was in Japan. Walking in the country that had abandoned her, so long ago. She saw nothing but men in unfamiliar uniforms...and girls, their hulls flashing before her eyes before their new bodies. Destroyers stalking along. Cruisers herding them along. Battleships moving along at their stately pace as they seemed above it all.
Their unique outfits only slightly drew her attention from that. These were Japanese ships, one and all. No matter how weird they looked in person.
I don't belong here. Not anymore.
At one time, these girls would have been her best friends. Now she could only see potential enemies. Where Kongou would have seen friends, Indestructible saw no reason to trust anyone here. The last she remembered, they had been enemies. Until and unless the Admiralty said otherwise, they remained such.
So why did it feel like a part of her cringed away when she thought that…?
"You know, you can relax," the Admiral by her side sent a glance at her. He still wore a damnable smile, in spite of everything. As if he were amused by the situation.
"No, I can't," Indestructible replied. No smile on her face. "No offense Admiral, but I don't trust any of you."
When those words left her lips, her violet eyes trailed over their surroundings. She could almost forget she was in Japan. There were none of the stereotypical cherry blossom trees. The buildings, if different to what she remembered, were still like a port. Dull concrete and slightly rusty metal cladding.
The women wandering around only slightly took away from that image, when she could also see severe faced Japanese men with odd black rifles in their arms, watching her every move. They weren't even bothering to hide. Most were in the open and the ones who weren't just stood in the shadows of doorways.
The Admiral, perhaps unsurprisingly, made no comment about them at all. He ignored them completely even though it was probably his orders that had them hanging around.
"Understandable," he nodded respectfully. "But you really don't need to worry. We are, and have been, allies. No one will hurt you, and if they did, they would be severely punished."
"Hm."
This was perhaps the longest the old battlecruiser had ever been this serious. Once upon a time, she was a cheerful girl. Always ready to joke around and play a prank alongside her sisters. She was not her old self anymore. Even if she were, there was a time and a place for jokes.
This was not it.
If the Admiral noticed that, he didn't show it. Instead, he just shook his head, a bemused look on his aged face now. It was only now that Indestructible noted just how old it was. This man had been worn down by more than just age.
I know the look. He reminds me of my Captains and Admirals during the Great War.Torn down and aged before their years by so much death and destruction. Indestructible fought down an instinctive rush of pity. Of care. But he isn't them, no matter how much I may wish it were so. Even if he is telling the truth of Japan being our ally once again…
"I won't tell you what to believe, or who to trust," he said softly, or at least as soft as his rough voice could go, "After all, my nation has given you, in particular, little reason to trust us...Indestructible."
He said hername without the slightest of hesitation. She couldn't quite stop her eyes from widening, nor did she really try. The gentle smile he sent her way, when she stopped and stared at him, seemed so completely out of place. She shook her head a little, before continuing to walk. Even so, she appreciated his words.
"...you're not wrong. Not on this." Her cascade of brown hair fell into her face, hiding the old, never forgotten pain. I could never forget what it felt like to be abandoned for something that wasn't my fault.
The Admiral looked over at her, before allowing a wan smile to cross his lips. He looked up at the sky and sighed softly.
"There's probably nothing I can do to make up for that. That any of us can do." Still wearing that smile, Takeda shook his head. No, there wasn't anything he could do. "I still hope you may come to trust us as allies, if not friends."
His arm twitched, as if it wanted to reach out and pat Indestructible's arm.
She flinched away from it, like a scalded cat, and he sighed again. "One day, maybe. I can't claim to understand even half of what you went through."
"I—" Indestructible forced her emotions down and welded a shadow of her normal smile to her face. No need to antagonize the man, even if she still felt this was too good to be true. "No, it's fine. I don't blame you. You hardly had anything to do with it!"
Takeda opened his mouth to reply…
Only for a young female voice to cause him to clamp it shut. A young female voice asking, softly, "Teitoku?"
Indestructible turned from the Admiral, and instead saw a young- probably only barely into her teens -girl standing in front of them. She was a short little thing, dressed in an ill-fitting blue and white...something. It certainly wasn't a school uniform!
Not with the way the shirt rode up her stomach and how short the skirt was. What self-respecting school would ever let a girl that young wear something like that? She knew Japan wasn't Britain and she kind of understood it was a very long time since she had sunk.
But still! Not bloody likely, if you asked her.
"Who is she…?" Indestructible asked, though it was soft enough to qualify as talking to herself.
Takeda certainly didn't respond to it, instead looking down at the girl. He seemed to welcome the distraction, at least on some level.
"Ah. Hello there, Fubuki," the Admiral's smile morphed into something warmer, as he looked down on the girl. And answered Indestructible's question, if indirectly. "Did you need something? I thought you were training today, or am I wrong?"
Indestructible blinked and focused, really focused, on the ship behind the scandalously dressed slip of a girl, First of her class? Like me?
She knew the name. It was hard not to. Fubuki was the first 'modern' destroyer, in a lot of ways. Indestructible could remember the intelligence reports. Black and white images melded into the ship she could hazily see past the girl. The twin turrets and the absurd torpedoes…
For her part, Fubuki simply smiled up at the pair in front of her. Even if it was tinged with more than a little confusion.
"Hello sir!" the little destroyer snapped to attention, green gaze wandering over to Indestructible, instead of focusing on her Admiral. She bit her lip and quietly continued, "Ummm…."
Takeda returned the smile, leaning down to put himself more on the same level as the destroyer. His aged body fairly creaked with the effort. "I have a favor to ask you, Fubuki."
"Yes?" Fubuki just bounced on her heels, her gaze sweeping between the old man and the old battlecruiser.
Indestructible could feel more eyes on her than just Fubuki's. She resolutely ignored the stares and whispers of other warships that couldn't keep their attention off of her. Might as well get used to it.
Sending a comforting smile Indestructible's way, Takeda reached out to pat Fubuki on the arm. "Can you show Indestructible around the base? Make her feel at home. She's...had a rough time." Pulling back a little, the Admiral let his eyes drift over to Indestructible. "I need to find the time to contact the British."
"Hai!" Fubuki nodded eagerly, any attempts to be 'military precise' ruined by the look of awe on her face.
Indestructible shifted uneasily at that look. Does she know who I am?
All the Admiral did was chuckle softly, before turning back to Indestructible, "Fubuki's a good girl. One of the best. I can promise that she won't lead you astray." He rose back to his full height, only slightly wincing as he did so. A thoughtful look crossed his face. "Hopefully I can get a meeting with London set up for tomorrow or the day after."
"That fast?" Indestructible blinked, slowly, and raised a hand. She was going to ask how he could possibly jump through diplomatic hoops that quickly...
"Modern technology," only for the Admiral to smile knowingly, before nodding at both girls and setting off to do his work.
Leaving Indestructible alone with a little destroyer girl, who seemed to be quite enamored with her.
While she wished she could do something about that, Indestructible could only sigh and shake her head. Well, nothing for it. She opened her mouth to say something, only for the destroyer to cut her off. Was…was that her thing? Interrupting people?
With a tug on the long sleeves of her Royal Navy blouse, Fubuki grinned up at her. Though... there was a certain hint of nervousness on the little face. Nervousness that might well be reflected on Indestructible's own. She...still wasn't sure how to use this new body. Not to mention that no battlecruiser would ever be comfortable this close to a destroyer.
Certainly not one with this many powerful torpedoes. When it had been Japanese torpedoes that ended her first life.
"Work through it...they're allies…" Indestructible muttered under her breath, before forcing a smile onto her face.
If she was ever going to work with the Japanese...if they really were allies now...she had to trust them on some level. If that meant working with an awed little destroyer, well, there were worse ways to gain trust.
There would always be part of her that felt they didn't deserve even that much.
"Do you mind showing me around?" Indestructible squared her shoulders and decided to at least make the effort. "I don't have a bloody clue where anything is, so…"
Fubuki blinked and grinned wider. Somehow. She tugged on Indestructible's sleeve again, while she began speaking so fast it was almost impossible to keep up.
"Of course! Where do you want to go first, Indestructible-san?"
That would have been a valid question, if a finely tuned…instinct? Clock? Hadn't chosen that very moment to tell Indestructible something very important.
"A kitchen." Her face was probably redder than her skirt, and her stomach growling did not help matters. Bloody hell, is this what it feels like to be hungry? How did my crew handle…oooooh…
She was fairly certain her crew was currently rioting. A panicked signal officer on her mental bridge was waving flags of surrender at her. Her captain was slumped over in his chair, tiredly shaking his head, while her long-suffering engineer cried next to her fluttering boilers.
Her marines seemed to be about ready to…jump overboard and raid Fubuki?
I will never get used to this feeling, damnit. Indestructible sent a sour expression at the ghosts of her crew, who just waved back a variety of vulgar gestures. Yup. Royal Navy sailors, to a fault.
"...okay?" Fubuki nodded slowly, before grinning. She probably knew what was going on, damn her. "I'll take you to Mamiya's then. She has the best food on the base."
Indestructible gave a short nod in response, smoothing down her own shorter-than-expected skirt. There was little to do but follow along. Like hell she knew where anything was.
Sometime later, Indestructible found herself sitting in a quaint little restaurant. Natural lighting was the go-word, each table situated right next to a large window. The tables were western style, but made of Japanese materials. Bamboo predominated. Moreover, the entire establishment smelled Eastern.
Probably the food. Or most of it, at least, considering the array of distinctly Western- if unfamiliar –dishes available. She assumed they were Western, anyway, with the preponderance of fried foods mixed with familiar dishes.
"Thank you," the old battlecruiser nodded politely, as a woman in a long dress- Mamiya, a resupply ship -served her special order. It was not Eastern in the slightest. "I'm sure it wasn't easy to do this on short notice-"
"It's my pleasure," Mamiya smiled widely. She waved a hand dismissively. "And it was no trouble at all! Though…" She tapped her chin thoughtfully, "I don't often have to make black tea. I think the only girl who ever orders it is Hiei. Then again, we don't have many British girls come through here."
With a small bow and a 'please enjoy', Mamiya set off to serve someone else. Leaving Indestructible sitting silently, as she looked down on the fish and black tea sitting in front of her. She didn't even reach for the sugar.
Her smile had turned brittle. Was it any wonder it had?
Hiei...my sister. She drinks proper English tea? Is that because of me? I-I-
Setting her cup down, the British battlecruiser felt wetness on her cheeks. Raising a shaking hand, she rubbed at the wetness, only now realizing she was crying. She had cried before. When Invincible fell and when Hood was sunk. And, of course, when Tiger had stoically gone to the scrapyard. All of those times, her very soul had cried out in pain.
"I thought I didn't have any tears left." Indestructible whispered, even as her fingers tightened and clenched against her cheek. Her violet eyes were downcast, and unable to look at her food, in spite of how hungry she truly was. "She still…loved me. She never forgot me…"
Even her starving crew kept quiet, out of respect for her feelings. She thanked them, for that, if nothing else.
As for her companion? Fubuki was looking at her with a worried expression. Her green eyes scrunched up in concern, and her hand stopped midway between retracting under the table, and grabbing at Indestructible. She pulled it back with a sad expression crossing her face, now. She couldn't make the first move.
It might have been endearing, if the older ship were in any condition to feel that way.
"Are you okay, Indestructible-san?" Fubuki asked worriedly. Her own, frankly absurd, stack of ice-cream left untouched. You knew a destroyer was concerned when she willingly let her sweet nectar of the gods melt. Destroyer crews had always lived on the stuff.
"I-" Indestructible shook her head, brown hair flowing around with the movement, "No, not particularly. Do you really know who I am? Not just my name. Who I was?"
"Umm..." the destroyer frowned cutely, clearly deep in thought, "I know I recognize your name. Why are you-"
It would have been cute, in any other situation. How realization slowly dawned on the destroyer girl. Her eyes widening and her mouth dropping open enough that a passing fly could have flown in. Fubuki was quick, at least.
Indestructible just smiled weakly, "I see that you do realize. Who I was. Do you know what I lost?"
"Ha...hai! You're Hiei-san's older sister!" the brown-haired girl shook her head rapidly, clearly in shock. "Is that why you're crying?"
The smile fell from the battleship's face, as she looked at her reflection in her tea. Violet eyes, slightly red-rimmed, stared back at her. Tear streaked cheeks, framed by dark hair barely held back by the worn-out star-shaped broach her mother had given her. It was going to be a very long time before she truly got used to this, wasn't it?
"Yes," she answered Fubuki, her voice cracking more with every word. It was years of buried emotions coming to the surface. "Hearing her name...I don't know how to describe it. I gave up hope of ever meeting her a long time ago. Even before we went to war with each other."
Fubuki, still looking like she didn't know what to do, reached out. She put a hand on Indestructible's clenched fist. And a warm smile crossed her face as she looked up at the battlecruiser. No hesitation. Not this time.
It was enough to bring a faint smile to Indestructible. She couldn't hate this girl, at least.
"I know what you mean." Fubuki's words were simple and her voice filled with conviction in what she said. "I'm the first of my class too, you know! Big sisters unite!"
Indestructible snorted softly, "Believe me, I'm aware. At least I couldn't be called the 'mother of modern battlecruisers'."
Fubuki turned bright pink, and coughed softly. For that matter, she completely ignored that sentence. "You've never even met Hiei-san, have you?" That question, though, hurt Indestructible more than Fubuki probably realized. "She never talked about going to England, so…"
"No, I haven't. I had my sisters in Britain, Irresistible and Implacable. But I never met my...original sisters. I wanted to, so much, but I never did." Indestructible looked down again, a slightly wistful smile on her face. I would have given everything for Tiger, Irresistible and Implacable to meet my other sisters.
"And that's why it was so hard to hear her name?"
That...that was part of it. Fubuki was surprisingly insightful, all things being equal. Her appearance didn't lend much to the idea she could be insightful. Short ponytail, ill-fitting uniform, young age. Then again, that could be misleading. Indestructible knew that Fubuki was far older than she looked, just as she herself was.
Leaving aside that she had been human long enough to pick up on things like this. Who knew how 'old' Fubuki really was?
As such, Indestructible looked down at her tea again, "Part of it. I may be a British battlecruiser, through and through, but I know enough about Japan to know you all don't drink proper tea."
"Hey! Green tea is the superior tea, you know!" Fubuki looked and acted mock outraged, pulling her hands back as she jumped to her feet. Her free hands promptly placed on her hips, as she leaned forward and stared up at the battlecruiser. "Just because you English drink black tea doesn't make it proper! You should apologize to Mamiya and your sisters!"
That tore it.
Indestructible couldn't hold back soft giggles, as Fubuki continued to mock-glare at her. She was clearly doing this as a joke. It was highly unlikely that she cared that much about tea. But...it was enough.
"Duly noted," Indestructible smiled softly. Before she sighed, and looked back down at her black tea. "You know that Hiei only drinks black tea? It has to mean she's doing it because of me. I know that much."
"Because of you?" Fubuki tilted her head in obvious confusion, her faked indignation fading away. To be replaced with her old confusion. "I'm not sure I follow, Indestructible-san."
"Because of me," Indestructible nodded back. Her shoulders slumped down yet further. "I'm British and had I come here, I would have taught my sisters about that. I'm guessing that Hiei drinks our tea, because she knows I did."
"And she wants to be like you." Fubuki nodded along, understanding rushing back across her face.
The battlecruiser nodded again, once more surprised by how insightful Fubuki could be, "Yes. You're surprisingly good at this. I wouldn't have expected it based on how you look." Images of British destroyers, in their modest dresses, flashed before her eyes. Heh.
Fubuki blushed crimson, as she looked down at her ice cream, "Heh heh...not really. It's just, when you look at my sisters they all mimic me. People are getting us confused all the time. Well, other than Murakumo anyway...she's nothing like the rest of us!"
To be totally fair, her sisters...her British sisters...mimicked her as well. Indestructible could see the Fubuki sisters doing the same thing, though enough to get mixed up with their first of class...that was a bit harder to believe. No one would ever mistake Irresistible for Implacable or either of them for her.
But what did she know? Japan was strange. Maybe they grew the Fubuki sisters on a farm or something. Little…dumplings. Identical dumplings.
She really needed to feed her crew better, didn't she? The food metaphors were getting out of hand.
Quiet down in there, will you? I'm trying to have a serious conversation here.
Still-the last thing she wanted to think about was her sisters. And the distraction of her Captain flinging obscenities in her direction could only distract so much.
After all, her sisters were on the opposite side of the world. At least her British ones. She didn't know how meeting Hiei and the others would go...and she had no idea what had happened to Irresistible and Implacable. Had they survived the war? Had they returned like she had?
How much were they hurt by my death? Implacable had to rescue my crew...had to watch me sink?
She didn't know.
I want to meet them. All of them. I just don't know what I'll say. I-when I sank, I know that it hurt them both so much. And I wouldn't know the first thing to say to Hiei or the others here. God, what a right mess.
"How do you live like this?" She sighed softly, setting her now empty cup down. She sent a sidelong glance at the destroyer, for good measure.
"Huh?" Fubuki blinked her green eyes, looking more confused by the question than anything else. Not helped by the image of her spoon stopping halfway to her mouth, an obscene amount of frozen treat sitting atop it. Destroyers. All the same. All of them.
Indestructible just smiled and shook her head, "Nothing. Do you know where I'll be staying while your Admiral contacts London?"
The destroyer frowned cutely, "Actually, I don't know, Indestructible-san. The battleship dorms are full...well, they will be whenever Hiei-san and her sisters get back from patrol with..."
Fubuki trailed off at that, before a shy look crossed her face.
"Actually, they're patrolling with Yuudachi-chan, who normally stays with me. I don't think she would mind if you stayed in our room. If you want to, of course!"
The way that the destroyer girl waved her hands, a blush crossing her face, was...extremely cute. Indestructible smiled despite herself, resisting the urge to hug the flustered girl. It reminded her of when her sisters were younger. Always so easily embarrassed and cute about it.
"Thank you, Fubuki," the old battlecruiser nodded thoughtfully. Would it hurt anything? She wasn't entirely comfortable with the idea of sleeping with a bunch of destroyers. Yet, Fubuki was the only person she knew here.
She wouldn't have minded if it were with, say, a bunch of Tribals. Was this really so different? Of course, the answer was 'yes'. She didn't trust the Japanese. And yet…
Oh fuck it.
"I think I will take you up on that offer."
She was still uncomfortable in this situation at best. However, Fubuki had been nothing but kind, and surprisingly insightful on her issues. Indestructible was thankful for that. It helped that she really needed time before she talked to her sisters. Time she wouldn't very well get, if she were to stay in their dorms.
"It's no problem Indestructible-san!" Fubuki just smiled at her, jumping to her feet. "Do you want to go now?"
Looking at her well-cleaned plate, Indestructible sighed. No point in tarrying, she supposed. Her energy was failing anyway. Was that because of this 'summoning' process? Or because she just didn't want to be awake in an unfamiliar and unwelcoming- to her mind, at least -land?
"I suppose we should," Indestructible nodded again. She smoothed out her skirt, as she stood up. No need to walk around like a lout. Someone has to dress properly around here. Might as well be me.
"Right. Follow me!"
Snorting again, Indestructible called out at the rapidly retreating destroyer. "You might want to remember your ice cream, Fubuki!"
"Ah! I totally forgot!"
Oh, destroyers. Such one track minds. Maybe this wasn't all that bad, after all?
-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-
"I know it's not much..."
A fidgeting destroyer girl stood at the center of a surprisingly large dorm. The beds were stuffed in the corner and looked uncomfortable, maybe, but the rest of the room was quite spacious. It was certainly bigger than even the Admiral's quarters on her old hull.
Not that it was saying much. She was never meant to be a flagship. At least, not in the Royal Navy.
"It's fine, Fubuki. Compared to my old hull, this is quite fancy." Indestructible wasn't even lying, though she was softening things a little. No need to upset the girl who had been nothing but kind to her.
A small giggle came from the destroyer, as she moved to sit on her bed. For her part, Indestructible looked around at the room. It was spacious, yet homely. Sparse, yet well loved. Filled with the little quirks that showed it was lived in. A table with scratches atop its varnished frame. Stuffed animals of every imaginable kind, littering the room, especially around the bed. Blankets haphazardly scattered all around.
And the dim light of a setting sun, shining through a surprisingly large window. The bright pink blinds did little to take away from how large it was.
Hmm. Acceptable. Indestructible nodded, sharply, and decided it was fine.
She could work with it.
Not that she couldn't have worked with sleeping in the hallway if it came down to that, but having an actual room was nice too.
"Umm..." the destroyer spoke up softly. Fubuki was sitting on one of the bunks against the wall, hugging a stuffed animal of some kind. "Are you...fine with a futon? I would let you use Yuudachi-chan's bed, but she can get kinda scary when someone messes with her things..."
Blinking slowly, Indestructible nodded just as slowly. How scary could this 'Yuudachi' really be? She admitted to not recognizing the name, but it had to be another destroyer. Yes? Still, no need to upset her host.
So, Indestructible just waved a hand, "I'm alright with that. If my crew can manage with hammocks, I'll live."
"Okay!" Fubuki grinned at her, turning to lay down on her own bed, "Good night, Indestructible-san."
"Goodnight."
With that, the destroyer girl turned on her side, soon to fall fast asleep.
Indestructible envied her that. For she simply lay on her futon, staring up at the ceiling. Sleep would not come easily to her, not at all.
For all that her thoughts on Fubuki acting like her sisters had amused her, it also brought up old memories. Of happier days, when she and her sisters sailed together. When Invincible or Hood or Tiger were still alive. Those were memories she hadn't thought of in a long, long time…
"Come on sis! Can your crew keep up?"
"Don't be hard on her, Irresistible, she is older."
Indestructible would have glared at Hood, if she could, "Old?"
"Well, it's the truth." Hood gave the impression of an unrepentant shrug. And a wide grin.
Indestructible crossed her arms and tilted her nose to the sky, "No tea time for you today, young lady!"
"I can't even drink tea!" The younger battlecruiser shot back, along with a pouty, "And you're only a few years older than me, y'know."
"It's the principle of the matter, my dear little sister. Both the tea and your age." Indestructible fought her smile, she really did. It was a losing battle. A delaying action against the inevitable, as she continued, "Now, let's get back to it, shall we? Training is important!"
If nothing else, the giggles from her younger sister had Indestructible feeling better about the situation. Sure, Hood had just called her old. Most would be insulted by that, ship or not.
If her sister was happy, though, it didn't matter. The younger battlecruiser had a hell of a mischievous streak. But if it were harmless fun, there wasn't anything wrong with it. And she could give as good as she got!
After all, not only had she been fire-forged by her own elder cousins- and Tiger, of course -she also had to deal with Repulse on a daily basis sometimes. And Repulse was far better at this game than Hood would ever be. Hood's little jokes were like the water rolling past her flanks, nothing to be concerned about, as they just washed right off of her.
"You're just jealous that you needed a refit to keep up with me," Hood continued, sending the distinct impression of a smug look.
Oh now it was personal. 'You don't want to make this personal, Hood, I know all your dirty little secrets.'
"Speed isn't everything, Hood," Indestructible shot back with a little titter. Her hand came up to her mouth, as she whispered conspiratorially. "My crew can outshoot yours any day. Always have and always will."
"My guns are better." Hood was quick to counter, though there was no real bite to her words. "Bigger, faster, stronger. I can sink something before you even hit it!"
The older ship snorted, "Ah, but that isn't true. Bigger isn't better, either."
Implacable, trailing in the formation, sighed softly, "You two always act like this..."
The youngest of the Indestructible class, not that much older than Hood, was the 'responsible' sibling. The soft-spoken one who did her level best to keep her more energetic sisters in line. It was often a losing battle when the merry duo of Indestructible and Irresistible really got into it.
Toss Hood in and it was a recipe for giving the poor girl a pounding headache.
"It's fun!" Indestructible replied, allowing herself a pouty tone. Bloody hell, was everyone ganging up on her today?
"What she said," Hood agreed, shockingly enough. "In any case, I do respect my esteemed elders."
At the understandably skeptical snort from Indestructible, Hood continued, "Really! There's a lot I can still learn, even if you are old. And even if I am better in every way."
"That you can. Can't have you losing in your first combat mission." Indestructible agreed, and if she could, she would have flicked Hood's forehead. She still managed to give the impression of it. "And I'm not old, you little hooligan."
Hood snorted, "Like I would ever lose in my first mission. Have some faith in your dear sister, Indy!"
Even as they all shared a laugh, Indestructible couldn't shake the feeling that something was going to go wrong. She didn't know what. But the feeling refused to leave.
Losing in your first combat mission...
AN: STILL CHUGGING ALONG ON THIS
...technically.
Admittedly, it went on the backburner a bit while we were trying to focus on the Destiny and Purple Phoenix novels. Then we came upon news that put those on the backburner instead. For those who actually care:
Evidently, there's a trend going around about treating Amazon as a library. Abusing the fact they give you a week to return a book and don't have any limits on how much you read it. So you have a bunch of people 'STICKING IT TO THE MAN' by reading full books, returning them, and getting their money back.
This does not hurt Amazon.
This hurts authors.
Authors have to pay back the return fee. This is leading to some authors ending up owing Amazon money, as in, they lose so much that they're in the red. Since Amazon is the only real way to self-publish and make any decent money- and traditional publishing is a swing and miss game of 'probably spend years and who even knows how much money trying'...well. Yeah. Focusing on other stuff for now.
Because of this, back to focusing more on fanfics. You can see this in the relatively faster updates on the online versions of the above. It will also be the case here. Again, we're pretty deep into the meat of the story, just trying to make sure there's a lot of material so that things don't...well. Die.
The first chapters will remain pretty similar, depending on exactly which chapter it is. Salvaged material and all that. But at the same time, expanded and fleshed out. Even with the rougher parts cut out, this chapter still has over 1k more words than the old version. Years of improvement in writing style, there.
Anyway...yeah. There's this for anyone who wants to stick around. Or who stuck around.
(and while in the intervening years, the whole 'Kongou and Fubuki' thing is old hat now, it's still fun to reverse one of the better aspects of the anime here)
Authors have to pay back the return fee. This is leading to some authors ending up owing Amazon money, as in, they lose so much that they're in the red.
Violently British Dessbote is back and now with less Angst and Angry Japanese nationalists fueling said angst...a good choice. I do wonder how you will handle the reunion also I really need my fill of Hood being down bad for her "Big Sister" Totally-Not-Bongo.
@Skywalker_T-65 : Question about ITTL HMS Indestructible : what are the main guns ?
OTL Kongo was armed with the Vickers 14" export gun, a gun that the Royal Navy wouldn't normally accept (OTL, the only ship in the Royal Navy to ever be armed with that gun was HMS Canada, but it was only because the guns were already installed when the Brits acquired the ship at the declaration of WW1)
ITTL, there is little reason for the Royal Navy to accept a non-standard gun.
If the ship is commissioned about as the same times as OTL, in mid-1913, or more than a year before the start of WW1, they have a lot of time to replace the guns.
So, is ITTL "HMS Indestructible" armed with the standard 13.5" ? as were the "Splendid cats"
In addition, if Indestructible is armed with the 13.5", is ITTL HMS Tiger actually a sister ship of HMS Indestructible ?
as OTL HMS Tiger is a slightly modified version of Kongo (but armed with 13.5" standard guns instead of the Vickers 14")
Just spitballing for the sake of fun, naturally, but, depending on how extensive the delays in construction were for the poor girl, a certain First Sea Lord might've made the executive decision to install the then-new BL 15" Mark I guns; the barbette and housing would be narrower and more-cramped compared to a QE or R-class, and the gun itself 14 tons heavier, but taking on an extra 500 pounds of mass per shell for slightly reduced maximum range and similar rate of fire would be an appealing consideration due to the extreme weather conditions in the Atlantic that Indestructible would have to wrangle.
Might not be able to reach as far, but applies the thumb of god that much harder.
Tiger is not a modified Kongou. They're two broadly similar designs, but Tiger is from a completely different designer and design origin. The only thing they outright share is a bit of the armor scheme.
Anyway, we'll be going into the specifics of Indy at later points in the story. A lot of the details relate to her service and the like and thus fall into spoiler zones.
Any more at least. A handful of Americans were scattered in Japan, lead by one of their battlecruisers. They fought harder than anyone for their brave allies, but they weren't enough. Never enough.
I reread the two chapters you have and I noticed this. Did the US Navy actually built Battlecruisers in this AU. Or was this the Japanese Admiral thinking of an Alaska class as a Battlecruiser (which they totally were at that. I mean: 12 inch guns is above cruiser grade)
I reread the two chapters you have and I noticed this. Did the US Navy actually built Battlecruisers in this AU. Or was this the Japanese Admiral thinking of an Alaska class as a Battlecruiser (which they totally were at that. I mean: 12 inch guns is above cruiser grade)
The Alaskas are not battlecruisers. Repeat after me: they are not battlecruisers. They were described by the US Navy as heavy cruisers for most of their development, they share common features with ships like the Baltimores, and they're simply not powerful enough to stand up to actual battlecruisers, the WW1 relics included, let alone actual battleships as battlecruisers were expected to do on occasion.
Large cruiser is a good description of them in terms of role and lineage.
I reread the two chapters you have and I noticed this. Did the US Navy actually built Battlecruisers in this AU. Or was this the Japanese Admiral thinking of an Alaska class as a Battlecruiser (which they totally were at that. I mean: 12 inch guns is above cruiser grade)
Don't base your definition of something on a singular or two points. That's how you end up with the Hood-Iowa discussion.
They have a cruiser armor scheme, secondary layout, doctrinal use. I mean, they look like a Baltimore (Which is not what I'm driving at, they used a cruiser hull sooooo).
Also, the USN classified them as CB's, so there you go
