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Indestructible Spirit (Kancolle AU)

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Huh, I do wonder though: I figure that Germany put all the Kriegsmarine vessels through a denazification program (which would include a thorough education about the holocaust) just in case, but did they also do that for the Kaiserliche vessels? I wonder how Seydlitz took it.
 
It was probably bad enough for the Kreigmarine girls, but in some ways it must have been even more horrifying for a lot of the Kaiserliche girls to discover what happened in the decades after their defeat/sinkings/scuttlings.

It was probably worse for some of the rare few who the Germans were allowed to keep/were actually kept around after WWI and survived up to WWII, and thus probably remembered a time before the Nazis.
 
I imagine that every German girl had to go through it. They would need to learn why the nation they serve is the way it is. Even if they were Imperial warships who sank or what have you, before the Nazis? Those girls would still need to know how Germany came to be the way it is.

Which would probably be very bad for everyone involved. Seydlitz...well, I can do a flashback for her at least.
 
Makes sense. It would certainly be gut wrenching for them to learn all those details, a very potent source of feels. Although I suppose the vessels that survived until '43, '44, or '45 wouldn't be quite as surprised per-say, since the camps and massacres were something of an open secret, they would still be very talen aback by the scale of it.

Hmm... When was Indy sunk again? If it was early enough it's possible that she didn't know about it.
 
Indy sank late '41 or early '42. Working out the exact date still, a lot of that era is fluctuating as I develop it.
 
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Omake: Past Mistakes Part 1: Germany
  • Threadmarks
    • And now, thanks to those posts...we have mood whiplash, considering the comedy of the last couple story posts. Sorry about that, but the idea won't let me go...so we have two omake series now.
    ​

    Omake: Past Mistakes Part 1: Germany​

    SMS Seydlitz frowned, as she walked into a large meeting room. Repurposed from an old barracks building in Kiel, it now served for briefing Germany's ship girls. A task it was currently in use for, though Seydlitz did not know why. Granted, she didn't know a lot of things...she had only recently returned. And she was still uncomfortable around her officers, the memory of her sinking fresh in mind. Luckily for her at least, there were only fellow ship girls in the room. And at that, only fellow capital ships. She could recognize the broad shouldered forms of Baden and Bayern here, and the lithe and athletic Derfflinger there. Nor was it only her fellow members of the Kaiserliche Marine. She could also see members of the Reichsmarine and Kriegsmarine as well.

    Such as Scharnhorst and her sister, Gneisenau. Seydlitz wasn't overly fond of either girl. They held a certain arrogance around them, as the 'first of a new generation of battleships'. In her mind, they were unworthy of the names they held...granted, her own bias was present. Seydlitz still remembered the old Scharnhorst and Gneisenau, warriors who went down swinging against superior foes. Shaking her head, the scarred battlecruiser instead looked at the two girls in the Kriegsmarine she respected. Bismarck and Tirpitz. The tall and elegant girls, blonde and brown haired respectively, were honorable and deserved all the respect they carried.

    "Seydlitz." Bismarck was the first to notice the battlecruiser, inclining her head respectfully.

    "Bismarck." Seydlitz nodded back, small smile crossing her face. "Do you know why we're all here?"

    "Unfortunately, no."

    "I, however, do."

    The voice, speaking in English-accented German, came from the doorway. Seydlitz turned around, a part of her hoping it was the girl she wanted to meet so badly.

    Indestructible?

    But as she finished her turn, the blonde slumped. She would recognize the red uniform and gaudy hat anywhere. HMS Hood.

    "Hood!" Where Seydlitz slumped, Bismarck perked up. The normally fairly stoic blonde actually grinned as she moved up to the British battlecruiser.

    Her older cousin just blinked, as Tirpitz sighed softly. The 'Lonely Queen of the North' was nothing like her sister, and looked faintly disapproving of the friendship between the battleship and battlecruiser. Seydlitz could understand that feeling, even if she didn't necessarily agree with. But, then, her own feelings in regards to HMS Indestructible were confusing at best.

    "Good to see you Bisko." Hood was saying, as she clasped Bismarck's arm, "Wish it were under better circumstances though."

    "What do you mean?" The tall blonde asked, confusion clear in her voice.

    Hood sighed, "That is...well, I believe your Admiral will explain. Are all your capital ships here?"

    A small frown crossed Bismarck's face as she nodded, "Yes. Seydlitz was the last to arrive."

    "Seydlitz?" Hood turned her soft smile on the scarred girl. "I know that name."

    For her part, the blonde German battlecruiser felt her face go red. This was the Pride of the Royal Navy singling her out. Stronger ship girls would have problems with that. To say the least.

    "Ja?" Voice admirably strong, Seydlitz looked up at the taller woman.

    All the British girl did was continue smiling, "No need to worry, Seydlitz. I just know your name. Admiral Smith told me what happened at Scapa Flow...big sister Indestructible tried to save you, correct?"

    "Big..." Seydlitz frowned.

    "Ah, right." Hood scratched her head, her hat moving with the gesture. "Indestructible, and her sisters, are the closest to sisters I ever had. I miss her, and wanted to know more. Anyway, I'm sure she'll want to meet you whenever she returns. I know I'm looking forward to that day."

    "As am I..."

    The British battlecruiser patted Seydlitz on the shoulder, before nodding at Bismarck. Her German friend nodded back, moving to the front of the room. Bismarck stopped at a podium, before sucking in a deep breath.

    "Attention!"

    When the largest European battleship shouted, you listened. Any conversation among the German girls came to a halt, as they all turned to look at their most famous member. Bismarck nodded in satisfaction, before moving to let Hood up to the podium. Sending a small nod at her friend, the British girl looked out at the Germans. Who, for their part, looked right back with no gossip. They were proud members of the German Navy, regardless of which German Navy they may have hailed from. And that meant they would be professional.

    Even if Seydlitz knew that each and every one of these girls were bursting with curiosity. She was, and it was hard to believe that the others were not.

    "Right then." Hood nodded down at her continental comrades. "I am here to help Admiral Schmidt, present to you historical information from the Second Great War. I won't lie to you...this is going to be uncomfortable. Please, remember that we are not lying to you when we show you this."

    While they still refused to gossip, the German girls began shifting uneasily and sending looks at each other. Seydlitz, for her part, frowned slightly. Second Great War. World War 2. Whatever one called it, she didn't know much of it. Her memories ended in betrayal at Scapa Flow. She hadn't been back long enough to know more about the Second War, than that Germany had once more lost. It was why Prussia was now Polish, and why famous Konigsberg was Russian. But beyond that? She didn't know anything.

    And that suddenly worried her.

    "Thank you Hood." A male voice gained the attention of the battlecruiser, as the sound of a man walking echoed through the room.

    Admiral Karl Schmidt, an aged man with thinning grey hair and broad shoulders, walked up to the podium. Sharp grey eyes looked out at the gathered ship girls, as Hood respectfully moved aside. Schmidt was a fair man, but his eyes held nothing now. No kindness, no anger, no disappointment. Nothing at all.

    "I will not lie to you all." The Admiral began softly. "This will not be comfortable to watch, as Hood said. However, you must know how Germany came to be the way she is. Especially those of you who served the Third Reich. I do not enjoy showing you this, nor does our government. But it must be done. All I ask, is that you do not leave. No matter how uncomfortable it may become, that is all I can ask."

    With his piece said, Admiral Schmidt stepped down, as a projector took his place. Seydlitz watched with a hint of worry, as old black and white footage came to life. An insignia appeared first, one she was unfamiliar with.

    "A swastika." Hood was by her side, apparently having taken an interest in the German girl.

    "Swastika?" Seydlitz asked back worriedly.

    "The symbol of the Nazi Party, and by extension, the Third Reich. Outlawed in modern Germany for..." Here, the British girl trailed off, nodding up at the projection.

    Seydlitz followed the movement...and immediately wished she hadn't. The swastika had been replaced. And where she had felt worry and unease at that symbol, she felt nothing but shock and horror now.

    For where once a symbol had been, there was now a fence. A fence with pale, bony men and women behind it. Pale, bony men and women who looked like they were barely alive. Haunted eyes stared out from sunken faces, of people who looked like death walking. Seydlitz brought a hand to her mouth, unable to look away. And equally unable to believe what she was seeing. These...these poor people. They looked skeletal, like they had been starved for months on end. Their prison garb didn't even register with her.

    And the battlecruiser did not have to turn her head, to see that her fellow ship girls were reacting the same way. Even arrogant Scharnhorst and Gneisenau had slumped down, horror written across their faces. Quiet Hindenburg, nothing like her namesake, had broken down into tears. Lutzow held her sister to her side, her own green eyes wet with unshed tears.

    Beside Seydlitz, Hood sighed softly.

    "Horrible, isn't it?"

    "What...what..." Seydlitz couldn't form words, as the projection switched to a barracks, filled with equally starved prisoners.

    "I had heard rumors..."

    That voice was soft-spoken Tirpitz. The brown-haired battleship rarely talked. She preferred the isolation she had experienced in life, only truly comfortable around her sister. But now, Tirpitz was looking at the horrible images, eyes narrowed. Not in sadness. But in anger, her hand clenched in the short skirt that further served to set her apart from her elder sister.

    "Rumors?" Bismarck turned to her sister, horror written all over her face. "Tirpitz, what do you...?"

    The younger battleship took a breath, turning away from the horrifying projections, "Concentration camps. Death camps. The Final Solution. I only heard these in passing, among members of the SS who stayed aboard my old hull on their way to collect Jews from Norway. At the time, I...I was focused on the danger of British attack. I had assumed these were overzealous men, zealots in the cause of our 'Glorious Fuhrer.'"

    Tirpitz clenched her fists once more, anger in every pore of her being.

    "They spoke of the end of the Jewish 'problem'. That when the war was over, Germany would be clean and rid of our problem people's. I did not understand at the time. But...seeing this..." The battleship looked away, shame mixed with the anger. "I was a fool. You...you are lucky, Bismarck. You sank before this truly began. You hold no blame for this."

    Seydlitz turned away, unable to look at the horrified expression on Bismarck and the shame on Tirpitz. Not that looking in other directions were better. Similar expression were mimicked on all of her fellow capital ships. Even Hood had pulled her hat down, blue eyes downcast. Admiral Schmidt looked even older than his already relatively advanced age, his shoulders slumped as he leaned against the podium. And behind him? A field of corpses, strewn every which way with not a care in the world.

    Civilians were forced to walk by these pits, men, women and children.

    The battlecruiser couldn't watch any more, when she saw children in the pits. Screwing her eyes shut, Seydlitz turned away, blindly groping for Hood. She was not Indestructible, who Seydlitz dearly wished was there. If the battlecruiser she so idolized were here, the German girl would be clutching her like a life raft. As it was, Hood allowed the shorter girl to dig into her side, wrapping a red-uniformed arm around Seydlitz's shaking shoulders.

    "Horrible...horrible." The scarred girl whimpered. "Why would they...how could we do something like this?"

    Hood sighed wearily, "Everyone who is not a Nazi has been asking that question for decades, Seydlitz. We're no closer to an answer now than we were then. Now you see, why it was so important you know this. Know that Germany has skeletons in her closet, but is working her best to put that in the past. The Germany you are serving now is not the same nation. Nor is it the same as the Empire you knew. But, perhaps, you can be proud to serve a nation that acknowledges her mistakes."

    The British girl looked up at the screen, before turning back to the battlecruiser attached to her side.

    "A nation that is working, so very hard, to make up for what was done in her name. Be proud Seydlitz. Proud that you serve a nation that can do that. Not many people can acknowledge such horrible mistakes and do their best to fix them."

    Seydlitz didn't reply to that, as she continued to cry into Hood's side. And in the background, the horrible images continued to play...marking the darkest period in the history of her beloved homeland.

    I am so sorry...
     
  • Threadmarks
    • Well... that was indeed a mood whiplash. And here I was expecting you to work it into the main story at some future point.
     
    obssesednuker said:
    Well... that was indeed a mood whiplash. And here I was expecting you to work it into the main story at some future point.
    Click to expand...
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    Painful but necessary... No wonder Seydlitz wants to see Indestructible so much, a ship from an era when both parts could look at their countries with pride even as they fought each other.
     
    Oh man, that was heavy. There is only one thing I can do to cope with the feels… prescribe more crack.

    -=-

    With the British representatives' mere days away from arriving in Japan, Admiral Takeda had called an emergency meeting between his most capable and sensible staff. This was a problem that needed to be addressed post haste, and he needed his most brilliant minds working on the problem if his career, not to mention his sanity, was to emerge from this fiasco intact.

    This was why a large number of the more senior ship girls and human staff, including Goto, were sitting around the conference table while Nagato, chairing the meeting at the front of the room. All hands on deck of this one, apparently. Admiral Takeda would have gladly chaired the meeting himself had four very excitable fast battleships not absconded with his person, ostensibly for 'afternoon teatime', leaving Nagato and the others no choice but to run the meeting without him.

    This was the committee tasked with welcoming the British battlecruisers HMS Irresistible and HMS Implacable to the Naval base in an amicable fashion… one that would not result in accusations of treachery and copious application of battleship graced firepower upon JMSDF property.

    This was the committee that was meant to explain to the Indestructible sisters how the powers that be had accidentally summoned Imperial Japanese Battleship Kongo, a warship proudly born in Britain but raised in Japan, instead of the most respected of the Royal Navy's battlecruiser line.

    Operation Ten-Go was going to be a cakewalk compared to this.

    "Okay, first thing is first," Nagato began as she finished writing the appropriate heading on the whiteboard at the front of the room. "We know that there is no way anyone in the Royal Navy is going to react well to this… but I think it would be best if we just addressed the worst case scenario first."

    "Are you sure that's such a good idea, Nagato-san?" Fubuki questioned worriedly.

    "Well, think about it this way, Fubuki-chan. Once we envision the absolute worst that can happen, anything is going to look tame in comparison," Goto pointed out.

    "Goto is right. Once we know and prepare for the worst possible scenario, everything else should be better," Nagato concurred with an approving nod. "So. Worst case scenario. Suggestions?"

    Kaga raised her hand.

    "Ro-500." Kaga said in a manner of fact tone.

    A terrified hush came over the room as the assembled committee absorbed what the aircraft carrier had just said. Memories of how the German Submarine Service, nay, the entire German Navy, had reacted upon seeing what had become of the submarine they had sent to over to Japan resurfaced in the minds of the committee members.

    To say that the German Navy had reacted badly would be a gross disservice to the unmitigated shitstorm that had ensured. There was no other way to describe a significant portion of the German fleet, including U-47, Bismarck and Tirpitz, sailing halfway across the world to Maizuru, braving the elements, enemy waters and exhaustion, just to make their displeasure known.

    Vehemently.

    "It… it won't be that bad, will it?" Akagi said to the other carrier with a nervous laugh. "I mean, everyone knows that what happened with Ro-chan was just an accident. That stereotype about us 'corrupting' foreign ship girls is totally wr-"

    "BURNING LOVE!" came the sudden, thunderous cry of a certain fast battleship from outside the room, so loud it reverberated across the entire base, followed by the familiar screams of their Admiral and, much to Ooyodo's chagrin, stuff breaking.

    "…that is going to put even more paperwork on my desk. I just know it."," the bespectacled cruiser bemoaned, her work load having tripled since Kongo's arrival to this world.

    "Well, I'd say given how utterly bongo Kongo is, accusations of us brainwashing her into a love-struck, Admiral obsessed genki girl are not beyond the realm of possibility," Ise pointed out. "I'd say that's probably either our worst case scenario, or close to it."

    "Agreed." Nagato proceeded to write that on the whiteboard under the heading.

    "Whose bright idea was it not to tell the British right up until they actually got here anyway?" Zuikaku noted with some annoyance. "They're going to be pissed as heck when they find out we've been holding this out on them for so long."

    "It wasn't anyone's fault," Ooyodo explained to the carrier. "Admiral Takeda wanted to tell them, but every time he was about to…"

    "Kongo would come in, yeah… I see what you mean." Zuikaku sighed. "This is messed up beyond repair."

    -=-

    A/N – All joking aside, Kongo appearing in place of Indestructible would have some serious implications for everyone involved. While Hiei, Haruna and Kirishima would be (naturally) overjoyed at getting their cool big sister, the Royal Navy would have lost one of their most beloved and respected battlecruisers to this wacko. Irresistible and Implacable would be devastated since Kongo doesn't even know them, there will be a pretty big shit-storm between the UK and the Japanese, god knows what the Admirals are going to do about all this… the implications are pretty interesting actually.
     
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    sasahara17 said:
    "Well, think about it this way, Fubuki-chan. Once we envision the absolute worst that can happen, anything is going to look tame in comparison," Goto pointed out.

    "Mutsu is right. Once we know and prepare for the worst possible scenario, everything else should be better," Nagato concurred with an approving nod. "So. Worst case scenario. Suggestions?"
    Click to expand...
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    Shouldn't "Goto pointed out" be "Mutsu pointed out", given the next words spoken by Nagato?
     
    sasahara17 said:
    Kaga raised her hand.

    "Ro-500." Kaga said in a manner of fact tone.

    A terrified hush came over the room as the assembled committee absorbed what the aircraft carrier had just said. Memories of how the German Submarine Service, nay, the entire German Navy, had reacted upon seeing what had become of the submarine they had sent to over to Japan resurfaced in the minds of the committee members.

    To say that the German Navy had reacted badly would be a gross disservice to the unmitigated shitstorm that had ensured. There was no other way to describe a significant portion of the German fleet, including U-47, Bismarck and Tirpitz, sailing halfway across the world to Maizuru, braving the elements, enemy waters and exhaustion, just to make their displeasure known.

    Vehemently.
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    Corruption is a glorious thing indeed.
     
    Its the Japanese secret weapon, even worse than the nukes...Japanisation. None will escape.
    :o
     
    obssesednuker said:
    Well... that was indeed a mood whiplash. And here I was expecting you to work it into the main story at some future point.
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...

    When my muse gets an idea, I need to write it down or it won't leave me alone. Thus, we have a second omake series (the part one is not for show).
    sasahara17 said:
    Oh man, that was heavy. There is only one thing I can do to cope with the feels… prescribe more crack.

    -=-

    With the British representatives' mere days away from arriving in Japan, Admiral Takeda had called an emergency meeting between his most capable and sensible staff. This was a problem that needed to be addressed post haste, and he needed his most brilliant minds working on the problem if his career, not to mention his sanity, was to emerge from this fiasco intact.

    This was why a large number of the more senior ship girls and human staff, including Goto, were sitting around the conference table while Nagato, chairing the meeting at the front of the room. All hands on deck of this one, apparently. Admiral Takeda would have gladly chaired the meeting himself had four very excitable fast battleships not absconded with his person, ostensibly for 'afternoon teatime', leaving Nagato and the others no choice but to run the meeting without him.

    This was the committee tasked with welcoming the British battlecruisers HMS Irresistible and HMS Implacable to the Naval base in an amicable fashion… one that would not result in accusations of treachery and copious application of battleship graced firepower upon JMSDF property.

    This was the committee that was meant to explain to the Indestructible sisters how the powers that be had accidentally summoned Imperial Japanese Battleship Kongo, a warship proudly born in Britain but raised in Japan, instead of the most respected of the Royal Navy's battlecruiser line.

    Operation Ten-Go was going to be a cakewalk compared to this.

    "Okay, first thing is first," Nagato began as she finished writing the appropriate heading on the whiteboard at the front of the room. "We know that there is no way anyone in the Royal Navy is going to react well to this… but I think it would be best if we just addressed the worst case scenario first."

    "Are you sure that's such a good idea, Nagato-san?" Fubuki questioned worriedly.

    "Well, think about it this way, Fubuki-chan. Once we envision the absolute worst that can happen, anything is going to look tame in comparison," Goto pointed out.

    "Goto is right. Once we know and prepare for the worst possible scenario, everything else should be better," Nagato concurred with an approving nod. "So. Worst case scenario. Suggestions?"

    Kaga raised her hand.

    "Ro-500." Kaga said in a manner of fact tone.

    A terrified hush came over the room as the assembled committee absorbed what the aircraft carrier had just said. Memories of how the German Submarine Service, nay, the entire German Navy, had reacted upon seeing what had become of the submarine they had sent to over to Japan resurfaced in the minds of the committee members.

    To say that the German Navy had reacted badly would be a gross disservice to the unmitigated shitstorm that had ensured. There was no other way to describe a significant portion of the German fleet, including U-47, Bismarck and Tirpitz, sailing halfway across the world to Maizuru, braving the elements, enemy waters and exhaustion, just to make their displeasure known.

    Vehemently.

    "It… it won't be that bad, will it?" Akagi said to the other carrier with a nervous laugh. "I mean, everyone knows that what happened with Ro-chan was just an accident. That stereotype about us 'corrupting' foreign ship girls is totally wr-"

    "BURNING LOVE!" came the sudden, thunderous cry of a certain fast battleship from outside the room, so loud it reverberated across the entire base, followed by the familiar screams of their Admiral and, much to Ooyodo's chagrin, stuff breaking.

    "…that is going to put even more paperwork on my desk. I just know it."," the bespectacled cruiser bemoaned, her work load having tripled since Kongo's arrival to this world.

    "Well, I'd say given how utterly bongo Kongo is, accusations of us brainwashing her into a love-struck, Admiral obsessed genki girl are not beyond the realm of possibility," Ise pointed out. "I'd say that's probably either our worst case scenario, or close to it."

    "Agreed." Nagato proceeded to write that on the whiteboard under the heading.

    "Whose bright idea was it not to tell the British right up until they actually got here anyway?" Zuikaku noted with some annoyance. "They're going to be pissed as heck when they find out we've been holding this out on them for so long."

    "It wasn't anyone's fault," Ooyodo explained to the other light scusier. "Admiral Takeda wanted to tell them, but every time he was about to…"

    "Kongo would come in, yeah… I see what you mean." Zuikaku sighed. "This is messed up beyond repair."

    -=-

    A/N – All joking aside, Kongo appearing in place of Indestructible would have some serious implications for everyone involved. While Hiei, Haruna and Kirishima would be (naturally) overjoyed at getting their cool big sister, the Royal Navy would have lost one of their most beloved and respected battlecruisers to this wacko. Irresistible and Implacable would be devastated since Kongo doesn't even know them, there will be a pretty big shit-storm between the UK and the Japanese, god knows what the Admirals are going to do about all this… the implications are pretty interesting actually.
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    Heh. Needed that one, thanks Sasa.
     
    Funny, I always interpreted U-511/Ro-500 screwin' with everyone and puts up the Genki girl as an act.

    Or alternatively she was always a Genki girl was but never had the chance to unwind and coming to Japan has given her the opportunity to finally get that tan she always wanted.
     
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    MissingJimbo said:
    IJN subs didn't fare much better in the end.
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    Considering the IJN used those subs as scouts, unlike the US and Germany who used them as surgical weapons.

    I say the the Germans used their Subs to the fullest while Japan.... What the use of equiping those subs with torps if they're gonna be used mostly as scouts?
     
    Mega1987 said:
    Considering the IJN used those subs as scouts, unlike the US and Germany who used them as surgical weapons.

    I say the the Germans used their Subs to the fullest while Japan.... What the use of equiping those subs with torps if they're gonna be used mostly as scouts?
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    Technically we weren't that much better when the war started. The original plan called for the Subs to be used as scouts for the Battleships. Of course the attack on Pearl Harbor changed that plan and the Subs ended up doing the majority of the fighting for the first 6 months of the war while the States switched to a war economy and got started with building the Carriers and other ships that would go on to win the war. We also took the lessons we learned from fighting the U-boats in the Atlantic and put those lessons to good use in the pacific.
    Thors_Alumni threw 4 6-faced dice. Reason: fun Total: 16
    5 5 5 5 4 4 2 2
     
    I like to imagine Bismarck, Eugen, Z1, and Z3 being filled with existential dread after being sent to Japan for one reason or another.

    Or instead, the rest of the German ship girls finding out what happened with Ro-500 only after Bismarck and the others already left. They have a "dear God what have we done" moment.
     
    sasahara17 said:
    "It wasn't anyone's fault," Ooyodo explained to the other light scusier. "Admiral Takeda wanted to tell them, but every time he was about to…"
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    Did you mean to use another shipgirl here? Because Zuikaku is most definitely not a light cruiser.

    She may have the body of a light cruiser, but that's not grounds to forget!
     
    Skywalker_T-65 said:
    "I was a fool. You...you are lucky, Bismarck. You sank before this truly began. You hold no blame for this."
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    Er, I have to object, here. While the Final Solution was when the Holocaust kickstarted into full-gear nightmare-mode, the atrocities had been going on for a while before that.

    Not to mention the fact that The Final Solution was not "okay, now let's start killing them", it was "okay, we want them all dead ASAP".

    If Tirpitz feels herself guilty, then by her own logic, Bismarck is just as guilty.

    Besides, the Kriegsmarine was the military branch that was most removed from Nazi ideology; Tirpitz admitting that she barely even knew any of what had happened on the ground is symptomatic of this.
     
    Chapter 9
  • Threadmarks
    • Chapter 9:
    ​
    Indestructible was a bundle of cold, righteous anger, as she walked through Yokosuka. Beside her, a worried Fubuki, casting glances between the battleship and her younger half-sister. Akatsuki, for her part, was in the front of the little formation. The tiny destroyer was ducking between other kanmusu and human soldiers alike, as she lead the group. Lead them to where Commander Goto supposedly waited, telling people that Kongou was back. That fact was the source of Indestructible's anger. Understandable anger, considering her situation and feelings on the matter.

    The British girl had forgiven her sisters for calling her by that name. Forgiven Akatsuki. For in both cases, it was a mistake born of ignorance.

    This...this was not the same. Deliberately calling her 'Kongou' and spreading that around? Either Goto was a nationalist who could not accept that she was British, or the man was blindingly stupid. Indestructible wasn't sure which was worse, or if it really mattered. He could take his reason, and shove it...

    Calm down. Anger will do no good here.

    Forcing a breath down, the British battleship continued to follow behind the young destroyer. It would do her no favors to go into this situation with her anger controlling her actions. The last time she had let her anger rule her, was Jutland. And while she had almost succeeded in sinking SMS Seydlitz to to that, she did not fondly remember the occasion. Indestructible had blanked out in her anger, and she did not want the same to happen here. She...it was selfish, she knew that. But Indestructible valued her friendship with Fubuki far too much to let her see that side of her.

    "Indestructible-san?"

    Speaking of which, the girl in question sent a worried look up at her. Indestructible just smiled weakly in return.

    "I'm fine, Fubuki."

    "No you aren't...you remind me of Murakumo."

    "...who?"

    Fubuki smiled softly, "My sister. She's got a temper worse than anyone I know. The way you look right now...it reminds me of her. You aren't going to...?"

    "Hurt anyone? Of course not." Indestructible sighed heavily. "That said, I will ensure that Commander Goto knows his place. I will not have anyone treating me like I am Japan's property. Bloody hell...I..."

    Clenching her fist in her skirt, the British girl shook her head.

    "Sorry. This is just...rather personal for me."

    "I know." Fubuki placed a hand on Indestructible's arm, as they entered a building behind Akatsuki.

    Sending her a small smile, Indestructible squared her shoulders and scanned the room. There were three girls Akatsuki's age in one corner, though only two looked like sisters. Both had short hair- well, one had her hair tied up -of similar shades. The other girl had hair of the same style as Akatsuki and wore the same cap, but her hair was snow-white. Next to them was a taller and...remarkably well stacked...light cruiser. That must have been Tenryuu, then. Which meant...

    There.

    Standing at the other end of the room, was a familiar face. Commander Goto, deep in conversation with a kanmusu. A girl wearing a white shirt, some form of armored chest piece, and a blue skirt. From that, Indestructible would not have recognized her. But she did recognize her silhouette. Kaga, second large carrier in the Imperial Japanese Navy.

    "Goto."

    Indestructible did not yell. She did not rage. However, her voice was colder than the fog of her home in Britain. The Japanese man looked up, his face expressionless. Kaga did as well, though her stoic features did shift ever so slightly before she moved aside.

    "Kongou." The Commander nodded back.

    "That is not my name, as you are well aware."

    "So you say."

    The other girls had moved aside by now, leaving Indestructible and Goto alone. Alone to stare each other down, brown eyes into black eyes. Neither made a move, nor said anything. It came down to who blinked first...and that was the Commander, Indestructible fully capable of keeping this up for as long as she needed to.

    "Why are you here, Kongou?" The Japanese man finally asked.

    Eyes narrowing, Indestructible glared at Goto, "That is why. You are more than aware my name is Indestructible. Admiral Takeda corrected you on that the moment I was summoned."

    "Ah, that. So he did." Goto's voice remained annoyingly impassive. "Nonetheless, your name was Kongou. You only hold that British name, as a fluke."

    "A..." Indestructible felt her temper rising, her face heating up in anger. "A fluke?"

    "Precisely. We should never have sold you, that I admit." The Commander continued. "However, that does not change the fact you are Japanese. Look in a mirror, and deny that point."

    Even Fubuki gasped at that statement, moving towards Indestructible. For her part, the British girl took a deep breath, and waved her friend down. Brown eyes hardened, as she turned her strongest glare on the Japanese Commander.

    "Funny. I was not aware that merely looking like someone made me the same." Indestructible's voice was cold enough to freeze Antarctica. "Were that the case, would that mean that Hiei is Scottish? You have seen her skirt, I would assume."

    Goto frowned, "Of course not. Her skirt is not..."

    "Not the same? Oh, but if my features make me Japanese, then Hiei's skirt should make her Scottish. After all, outward appearance is apparently enough to judge someone." Despite her words, there was no mocking tone in Indestructible's voice. Instead, she merely raised an eyebrow at Goto. "More appropriately, I dare you to tell a Japanese-American they are not American. I doubt you would do that, yet you dare to say I am not British, merely because of how I look?"

    "You are a Japanese de..."

    Indestructible raised an eyebrow, "And George Owens-Thurston is Japanese too. Is everyone Japanese?"

    Honestly, the British girl didn't even know what to think about what Goto was saying now. She didn't know if the man was that blind, or what it was. Yes, she had Japanese features. Indestructible still felt awkward about how Japanese she looked, and how to reconcile that with her British heritage. But it did not do a thing to change the fact she was British at heart. Goto, seemed unable to understand that. Was he blinded by what she may have been? Focused too much on the hope that she would prefer to be Kongou, than Indestructible? Or just a bigot who thought she should serve her 'homeland' first and foremost?

    She didn't know the answer to that question.

    And honestly, she didn't care. Indestructible could care less what Goto's motives or thoughts were. If the man would continue to insist she was Kongou despite everything to the contrary, he didn't deserve her care. He deserved nothing from her. Indestructible would merely ignore Goto, and let him do whatever he pleased. Admiral Takeda was on her side, and that was more than enough. If need be, she would have the Admiral tell the kanmusu who she really was. See Goto deal with that! Bloody wanker.

    "I honestly don't care why you think I want that name." Indestructible continued. "I gave up on that name, when Japan tossed me aside. You have no loyalty from me. The only loyalty I have to this nation, is to my sisters and new friends. You? You have nothing. Continue to refer to me by that name instead of my proper name, Indestructible, and you will make me an enemy. You do not want me as an enemy, as that would mean you are also the enemy of my sisters."

    A small smirk crossed the British girl's lips.

    "All my sisters."

    And considering that every battlecruiser in the Royal Navy newer than her was like a younger sister to her? Goto did not know what he was walking into. If the man realize that or not, was hard to say. All the Commander did was pull his cap down, shaking his head.

    "I see you are going to be difficult about this. Very well, Kongou."

    Nothing more was said, as Goto left the room. Silence followed him, until Tenryuu of all girls broke down laughing.

    "Damn, that was somethin." The eyepatch-wearing cruiser turned to Indestructible with a fierce smirk on her face. "I like ya, Indestructible. Stop by the barracks some time, I owe ya a drink for that one."

    Smirk not leaving her face, Tenryuu corralled her charges and left the room herself. That left Indestructible alone with Fubuki, and the silent Kaga. The former looked like she wanted to say something, but Indestructible held up her hand. Her attention was on Kaga, and the same could be said for the aircraft carrier. Both warships stared the other down, equally brown eyes observing the other. Neither broke the silence, despite an increasingly uncomfortable Fubuki looking like she wanted to tug Indestructible from the room.

    The silence would continue, until one of them made a move. And Indestructible was unsure which of them it should be. Both of these girls had good reason to talk to the other. The same reason, in point of fact. Tosa. Indestructible had come back in place of that incomplete battleship, for some reason. A reason she was still unsure of, to say the least. And Kaga...perhaps more than anyone, this girl had reason to question that. Tosa was her sister. How could she possibly feel abou...

    "Come with me."

    Kaga finally spoke, her voice as emotionless as her expression. She nodded at a side room, sending a significant look at Fubuki.

    Indestructible nodded, smiling at her worried friend, "Understood."

    -0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-​

    A smile that went away, the moment she entered into the side room. Kaga stood by a table, face inscrutable. Brown eyes followed Indestructible, as the battleship took position by the door.

    "I assume this is about my summoning?" Indestructible asked warily.

    Kaga inclined her head, "Indeed."

    "How much do you know?"

    "Enough."

    While the single word responses were a bit frustrating, Indestructible couldn't blame the carrier for them. She could only imagine how she would react, were Tosa summoned in the place of Invincible. And the elder battlecruiser was not even, truly, her sister. How could Kaga feel? Seeing the girl summoned in place of her sister, right in front of her?

    "I...apologize." The British battleship sighed softly. "I know it's not much, but I am sorry that..."

    "Stop." Kaga's voice was the same, even as her face twisted ever so slightly. "Don't apologize, Indestructible-san. You are not at fault here."

    That brought the British girl up short, "Pardon?"

    "As I said." The carrier continued. "You are not at fault for the circumstances of your summoning, nor do I blame you."

    Indestructible frowned, "But I came back in place of your sister."

    "So you did. However..."

    Still, there was no outward change in either voice or expression from Kaga. But Indestructible...she was nothing if not observant. Her sisterly instincts were in full force as well, as she looked into the brown eyes opposite her. There was pain in those eyes, even if Kaga refused to show or acknowledge it. How long had...had she been dealing with this pain? And had anyone else even noticed? It wasn't like it was with her. Indestructible had, when she returned to Britain, people she could go to. Invincible. Her sisters. Who did Kaga have? Houshou, perhaps. Or Akagi. But no...

    No siblings.

    I can't even imagine what it must feel like to not have sisters. How does Kaga deal with that?

    "I learned to accept, long ago, that Tosa-neesan was not likely to come back." Kaga continued, voice changing tone ever so slightly.

    "How can you be..." Indestructible began, only to be cut off once more.

    "It is impossible to be certain. However, the odds are slim enough that I...do not hope for what is likely impossible."

    Indestructible didn't know what to think about that, "How can you not hope that your only sister will return?"

    "Because she was never completed, I am aware it is highly unlikely." Kaga finally sighed, very softly. So softly it was almost silent. "Indestructible-san, I did not ask you to follow me to pity me."

    "Then why?" Indestructible replied. "Why did you bring me in here?"

    Kaga's eyes narrowed, "To ask why you are so loyal to Britain."

    Understandably, Indestructible's equally brown eyes narrowed as well, "Bloody hell...don't tell me you're like Goto."

    "Not at all, and you will find few of us are." The other girl replied. "However, this has nothing to do with Admiral Goto. This is my own curiosity. I am a loyal carrier of the Japanese Navy, and the Japanese people. I will fight for my nation, bleed for my nation, and if need be...die for my nation. That is what all kanmusu should strive towards."

    The carrier gestured at Indestructible's uniform.

    "I am merely curious, what Britain has done to earn your loyalty."

    That was an easy, and yet difficult, question to answer. Indestructible knew that she was loyal to her adoptive home, to the death. What Kaga had said for Japan, could be reversed and said for Britain by the battleship. But the answer wasn't that simple either was it? Indestructible doubted Kaga would accept such a simple answer at any rate. Especially after what she had told Goto. Not one of those words would be taken back, but the fact remained, it showed just how loyal she was to her homeland. To her sisters, cousins, and leaders. Britain was...

    It was home.

    Hm. Perhaps, that is the only answer I need.

    "Britain is my home." Indestructible turned to face Kaga better. "The only home I've ever known. I may not have been built for them, designed for them, or ever intended to serve in the Royal Navy. But where Japan threw me away, Britain saved me and gave me sisters. Despite the fact they didn't need to, they did. Is it any wonder I am so loyal to them?"

    Kaga sighed almost imperceptibly again, "No, it is not. Perhaps, I understand that better than you imagine."

    "Tosa..." Indestructible whispered.

    The carrier smiled humorlessly, "Tosa-neesan. I lost her in the way you were nearly lost, Indestructible-san. I am glad to see you understand that...there are very few I feel who do. I would enjoy talking with you further."

    Even as she said that, Kaga began to move to the door.

    "For now, I am being deployed with Akagi-san. I am thankful for your time."

    "Kaga. Wait." Indestructible moved to block the door.

    "Yes?"

    The battleship moved forward, pulling the shocked carrier into a hug. Kaga went stiff in Indestructible's grip, clearly unable to understand what was happening. For her part, Indestructible just...did as she always did. Perhaps it was Invincible's influence. Perhaps it was her own personality. But she hated to see others in pain. If she could do something about it, she would. And somehow, she doubted Kaga had ever had anyone to help her like this. The girl was younger than Indestructible as well, however much she didn't show it.

    "If you ever need someone to talk to, I will be here." Indestructible whispered. "So long as I am in Japan, at least. And while I am here...I will talk to Admiral Takeda. I still don't know how I was summoned instead of Tosa. But if it is in my power, I will do what I can to get you your sister. No one...no one should have to go through life without their sister."

    And Indestructible would do anything and everything she could to help. She firmly believed in the importance of having a sister there to help you. And she would do what she could to make sure Kaga had her sister.
     
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