Disclaimer: This is a non-profit work of fiction using characters from, but not limited to, the...
Kantai Collection: The Greatest Generation
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Prologue
Whiskey Golf
Being of Editing & Technical Assistance
- Location
- Chained to my desk
Disclaimer: This is a non-profit work of fiction using characters from, but not limited to, the Kantai Collection franchise, developed by Kadokawa Games and published by DMM.com. Please support the creators of the franchise.
Additional Note 1: Please be advised this work contains allusion to certain issues from the past to the present, namely those concerning war crimes during World War 2. This is a work of fiction meant for enjoyment, and no offense is meant. Also note that, as a fanfiction, many liberties were taken with Kantai Collection canon for the purposes of this story. That being said, please enjoy.
Additional Note 2: Please take note that this is a continuation of the story under the auspices from the original author, sasahara17. The content of the originally-published chapters will be preserved to the best ability of the KC:TGG committee made up of:
Additional Note 3: Please refrain from posting spoilers in this thread or posting that you have knowledge of aforementioned spoilers.
SV Table of Contents
Omake Thread Link
In addition to this, chapters can also be accessed from FF.net.
-=-
From the ocean depths, they came.
No one knew who they were or where they came from, but what is known is that the Abyssal fleet, mysterious powerful entities taking the form of young women, emerged one day without warning to force mankind from Earth's oceans. Appearing first in the Pacific, and then spreading across the seven seas like a black plague, mankind soon found itself under siege.
The world was thrown into chaos by this new threat. Shipping lanes were severed, global communications were disrupted and millions of lives were lost at sea.
Civilization itself was at stake.
Mankind tried fighting back against these enemies, but found that their most powerful ships could barely hold the line against an enemy that seemed numberless. Worse still, despite the bravery and courage of many brave souls, that line eventually broke.
With the destruction of Pearl Harbour and Norfolk, it had seemed that mankind's defenders had finally failed, and that fall of humanity was at hand… but then a miracle happened.
As if hearing the call of duty once more, protectors in the form of young girls, bearing the reincarnated souls of warships of ages past, took up arms.
First appearing in Japan, young women wielding powers that could fight against the darkness were found, trained and then sent into battle against the Abyssal fleet.
These heroines were dubbed 'Kanmusu'. The ship girls.
It has been one year since the first ship girl took to the battlefield. Since then, the Abyssal fleet has been pushed back, away from many of the world's most vulnerable port cities by the combined effort of the brave ship girls, giving mankind some much needed breathing room.
In the Pacific, the young women of the former Imperial Japanese Navy fight valiantly to rid East Asia of this menace. The Royal Navy, Marine Nationale and the Deutsche Marine work as one in an unrelenting war to keep the English Channel and the Atlantic convoys safe from the Abyssal raids. The Regia Marina, now flying the standard of the Marina Militare, have swept the Mediterranean clean of Abyssal presence and now turn to aid others. In the northern seas, the Red Fleet braves the harsh artic cold in a deadly game of cat and mouse against their quarry.
Around the world, warships from every nation have returned from the grave in a time of direst need to serve their countries once more….
Warships from every nation… save, it seems, those of the United States Navy.
-=-
Additional Note 1: Please be advised this work contains allusion to certain issues from the past to the present, namely those concerning war crimes during World War 2. This is a work of fiction meant for enjoyment, and no offense is meant. Also note that, as a fanfiction, many liberties were taken with Kantai Collection canon for the purposes of this story. That being said, please enjoy.
Additional Note 2: Please take note that this is a continuation of the story under the auspices from the original author, sasahara17. The content of the originally-published chapters will be preserved to the best ability of the KC:TGG committee made up of:
Additional Note 3: Please refrain from posting spoilers in this thread or posting that you have knowledge of aforementioned spoilers.
SV Table of Contents
Omake Thread Link
In addition to this, chapters can also be accessed from FF.net.
-=-
From the ocean depths, they came.
No one knew who they were or where they came from, but what is known is that the Abyssal fleet, mysterious powerful entities taking the form of young women, emerged one day without warning to force mankind from Earth's oceans. Appearing first in the Pacific, and then spreading across the seven seas like a black plague, mankind soon found itself under siege.
The world was thrown into chaos by this new threat. Shipping lanes were severed, global communications were disrupted and millions of lives were lost at sea.
Civilization itself was at stake.
Mankind tried fighting back against these enemies, but found that their most powerful ships could barely hold the line against an enemy that seemed numberless. Worse still, despite the bravery and courage of many brave souls, that line eventually broke.
With the destruction of Pearl Harbour and Norfolk, it had seemed that mankind's defenders had finally failed, and that fall of humanity was at hand… but then a miracle happened.
As if hearing the call of duty once more, protectors in the form of young girls, bearing the reincarnated souls of warships of ages past, took up arms.
First appearing in Japan, young women wielding powers that could fight against the darkness were found, trained and then sent into battle against the Abyssal fleet.
These heroines were dubbed 'Kanmusu'. The ship girls.
It has been one year since the first ship girl took to the battlefield. Since then, the Abyssal fleet has been pushed back, away from many of the world's most vulnerable port cities by the combined effort of the brave ship girls, giving mankind some much needed breathing room.
In the Pacific, the young women of the former Imperial Japanese Navy fight valiantly to rid East Asia of this menace. The Royal Navy, Marine Nationale and the Deutsche Marine work as one in an unrelenting war to keep the English Channel and the Atlantic convoys safe from the Abyssal raids. The Regia Marina, now flying the standard of the Marina Militare, have swept the Mediterranean clean of Abyssal presence and now turn to aid others. In the northern seas, the Red Fleet braves the harsh artic cold in a deadly game of cat and mouse against their quarry.
Around the world, warships from every nation have returned from the grave in a time of direst need to serve their countries once more….
Warships from every nation… save, it seems, those of the United States Navy.
-=-
Last edited:
Table of Contents
Whiskey Golf
Being of Editing & Technical Assistance
- Location
- Chained to my desk
Table of Contents
This post contains the official table of contents.
Main Story
Prologue
Part 1: Arrival at Yokosuka
Part 2: Pride of the Navy
Part 3: Brave and the Bold
Part 4: Spirit of Competition
Part 5: Doomed to Repeat
Part 6: The Grey Ghost
Part 7: They say there was a War...
Part 8: Admiral and Commander
Part 9: The Call of Duty
Part 10: An Auspicious Day
This post contains the official table of contents.
Main Story
Prologue
Part 1: Arrival at Yokosuka
Part 2: Pride of the Navy
Part 3: Brave and the Bold
Part 4: Spirit of Competition
Part 5: Doomed to Repeat
Part 6: The Grey Ghost
Part 7: They say there was a War...
Part 8: Admiral and Commander
Part 9: The Call of Duty
Part 10: An Auspicious Day
Last edited:
sasahara17
Just Another Random Author
- Location
- Brisbane City
Disclaimer: This is a non-profit work of fiction using characters from the Kantai Collection franchise, developed by Kadokawa Games and published by DMM.com. Please support the official release.
Additional Note 1: Please be advised this work contains allusion to certain contemporary issues, namely war crimes perpetrated by Imperial Japan in World War 2. This work is meant to be for enjoyment, and no offense is meant. Also note that, as a fanfiction, many liberties were taken with Kantai Collection canon for the purposes of this story. That being said, please enjoy.
Additional Note 2: Please refrain from posting spoilers in this thread or posting that you have knowledge of aforementioned spoilers.
Kantai Collection
The Greatest Generation
Table of Contents / Status Update
Prologue (Here)
Chapter 1 - Arrival at Yokosuka
Chapter 2 - Pride of the Navy
Chapter 3 - Brave and the Bold
Chapter 4 - Spirit of Competition
Chapter 5 - Doomed to Repeat
Chapter 6 - The Grey Ghost
Chapter 7 - They say there was a War
Chapter 8 - Admiral and Commander
Chapter 9 - The Call of Duty
Chapter 10 - est. Sept 30
Chapter 11 - est. Nov 15
Chapter 12 - est. Dec 30
Chapter 13 - (In Progress)
From the ocean depths, they came.
No one knew who they were or where they came from, but what is known is that the Abyssal fleet, powerful entities taking the form of young women, emerged one day without warning to force mankind from Earth's oceans. Appearing first in the Pacific, and then spreading across the seven seas like a black plague, mankind soon found itself under siege.
The world was thrown into chaos by this new threat. Shipping lanes were severed, global communications were disrupted and millions of lives were lost at sea.
Civilisation itself was at stake.
Mankind tried fighting back against these enemies, but found that their most powerful ships could barely hold the line against an enemy that seemed numberless. Worse still, despite the bravery and courage of many brave souls, that line eventually broke.
With the destruction of Pearl Harbour and Norfolk, it had seemed that mankind's defenders had finally failed, and that fall of humanity was at hand… but then a miracle happened.
As if hearing the call of duty once more, protectors in the form of young girls, bearing the reincarnated souls of warships of ages past, took up arms.
First appearing in Japan, young women wielding powers that could fight against the darkness were found, trained and then sent into battle against the Abyssal fleet.
These heroines were dubbed 'Kanmusu'.The ship girls.
It has been one year since the first ship girl took to the battlefield. Since then, the Abyssal fleet has been pushed back, away from many of the world's most vulnerable port cities by the combined effort of the brave ship girls and giving mankind some much needed breathing room.
In the Pacific, the young women of the former Imperial Japanese Navy fight valiantly to rid East Asia of this menace. The Royal Navy, Marine Nationale and the Deutsche Marine work as one in an unrelenting war to keep the English Channel and the Atlantic convoys safe from the Abyssal raids. The Regia Marina, now flying the standard of the Marina Militare, have swept the Mediterranean clean of Abyssal presence and now turn to aid others. In the northern seas, the Red Fleet braves the harsh artic cold in a deadly game of cat and mouse against their quarry.
Around the world, warships from every nation have returned from the grave in a time of direst need to serve their countries once more….
Warships from every nation… save, it seems, those of the United States Navy.
Additional Note 1: Please be advised this work contains allusion to certain contemporary issues, namely war crimes perpetrated by Imperial Japan in World War 2. This work is meant to be for enjoyment, and no offense is meant. Also note that, as a fanfiction, many liberties were taken with Kantai Collection canon for the purposes of this story. That being said, please enjoy.
Additional Note 2: Please refrain from posting spoilers in this thread or posting that you have knowledge of aforementioned spoilers.
Kantai Collection
The Greatest Generation
Table of Contents / Status Update
Prologue (Here)
Chapter 1 - Arrival at Yokosuka
Chapter 2 - Pride of the Navy
Chapter 3 - Brave and the Bold
Chapter 4 - Spirit of Competition
Chapter 5 - Doomed to Repeat
Chapter 6 - The Grey Ghost
Chapter 7 - They say there was a War
Chapter 8 - Admiral and Commander
Chapter 9 - The Call of Duty
Chapter 10 - est. Sept 30
Chapter 11 - est. Nov 15
Chapter 12 - est. Dec 30
Chapter 13 - (In Progress)
From the ocean depths, they came.
No one knew who they were or where they came from, but what is known is that the Abyssal fleet, powerful entities taking the form of young women, emerged one day without warning to force mankind from Earth's oceans. Appearing first in the Pacific, and then spreading across the seven seas like a black plague, mankind soon found itself under siege.
The world was thrown into chaos by this new threat. Shipping lanes were severed, global communications were disrupted and millions of lives were lost at sea.
Civilisation itself was at stake.
Mankind tried fighting back against these enemies, but found that their most powerful ships could barely hold the line against an enemy that seemed numberless. Worse still, despite the bravery and courage of many brave souls, that line eventually broke.
With the destruction of Pearl Harbour and Norfolk, it had seemed that mankind's defenders had finally failed, and that fall of humanity was at hand… but then a miracle happened.
As if hearing the call of duty once more, protectors in the form of young girls, bearing the reincarnated souls of warships of ages past, took up arms.
First appearing in Japan, young women wielding powers that could fight against the darkness were found, trained and then sent into battle against the Abyssal fleet.
These heroines were dubbed 'Kanmusu'.The ship girls.
It has been one year since the first ship girl took to the battlefield. Since then, the Abyssal fleet has been pushed back, away from many of the world's most vulnerable port cities by the combined effort of the brave ship girls and giving mankind some much needed breathing room.
In the Pacific, the young women of the former Imperial Japanese Navy fight valiantly to rid East Asia of this menace. The Royal Navy, Marine Nationale and the Deutsche Marine work as one in an unrelenting war to keep the English Channel and the Atlantic convoys safe from the Abyssal raids. The Regia Marina, now flying the standard of the Marina Militare, have swept the Mediterranean clean of Abyssal presence and now turn to aid others. In the northern seas, the Red Fleet braves the harsh artic cold in a deadly game of cat and mouse against their quarry.
Around the world, warships from every nation have returned from the grave in a time of direst need to serve their countries once more….
Warships from every nation… save, it seems, those of the United States Navy.
Last edited:
sasahara17
Just Another Random Author
- Location
- Brisbane City
Disclaimer: This is a non-profit work of fiction using characters from the Kantai Collection franchise, developed by Kadokawa Games and published by DMM.com. Please support the official release.
Additional note: Please be advised this work contains allusion to certain contemporary issues, namely war crimes perpetrated by Imperial Japan in World War 2. This work is meant to be for enjoyment, and no offense is meant. Also note that, as a fanfiction, many liberties were taken with Kantai Collection canon for the purposes of this story. That being said, please enjoy.
-=-
It was a memory that she would never forget.
Pearl Harbor was burning.
The sheer horror of what was before her was like nothing she had ever experienced.
Great plumes of smoke reached into the sky from the fires, a sound accompanied by the desperate screams of the dead and the dying. Indeed, the water itself was aflame from oil that coated it.
It truly was a scene out of hell.
Never in her career had she ever experienced anything like this.
She wasn't the only one who had trouble believing what she was seeing. Around her, thousands of sailors of the United States Navy looked on from the deck at the inferno before them. The bastion of America's military power in the Pacific, Pearl Harbor, was burning.
Impossible.
An attack as brazen and destructive as this should have been unthinkable, but it had happened. Now people were dying, her comrades, and she was powerless to do anything but look on. Thousands dying, and she had arrived too late to do anything.
The cold chill of the knowledge that, but for the whim of fate, she too could be in amongst the dead and dying was something she would never forget…
-=-
"Commander Swanson? Commander Swanson, are you alright?"
Yvonne Swanson gasped awake, the feeling of someone shaking her shoulder pulling her mind back from her dream. Cracking open her eyes, the young officer remembered she was still strapped into her seat on that stupid C-17. Beside her was the USAF airman had been sitting beside her, Master Sergeant Hammond, if memory served her correctly, who had shaken her awake.
The flight was fairly empty today, with barely a dozen or so men and women milling about, so there had been no one else to notice her discomfort.
"Goddamn, ma'am. That must have been some nightmare," the man said, his concern evident.
"No shit. Are we there yet?" Yvonne asked dourly, brushing her blonde locks out of her eyes.
The young officer wore Service Dress Blues of a commissioned officer of the United States Navy, and filled out the uniform smartly. She was very tall, in fact she was a few inches taller than the man addressing her. Her normally untamed sandy blonde hair was tucked neatly into a bun and covered by the white peaked cap resting nicely on her head.
She was the very picture of a model officer of the Navy, even if she was absurdly young to be wearing the rank of Commander… or she would be, had she not just woken from that accursed nightmare. Much to her displeasure, Yvonne brought her hand up and noticed it was still shaking, and she didn't need to look into a mirror to see how pale her face probably was.
"Last I checked, it's still another two hours before we land at Atsugi," Hammond supplied. "Are you okay? You were tossing and turning something fierce back there, Commander. Do you need me to get-"
"No need, it's just old memories," Yvonne replied dismissively. "And I thought I told you to not address me by my rank when we started this trip."
Not really one to stand on ceremony and wanting to avoid the any unnecessary awkwardness, Yvonne had asked Hammond, a career soldier of least two decades, to avoid addressing her by her rank. She was a slip of a girl who looked barely older than twenty, and he was a man well into his late forties. It felt awkward for a man clearly twice her age to keep addressing her as his better, especially since she didn't like being reminded of her rank.
It was one thing to have gone up in rank through experience, hard work and dedication. It was another to have been made a Commander because the battles against the Abyssal fleet had left so many vacancies that the Navy was promoting anyone they had left with any sort of experience who could even remotely fill the roles.
The old saying was true: promotions came fast in wartime. It wasn't pleasant to be reminded of that, and Yvonne knew she wasn't the only one in the Navy that felt that way.
"Sorry ma'am. You're an officer, and well, old habits die hard."
"Well, stop doing it. I'll make it an order if I have to," Yvonne sighed as she settled back into her seat, "and I'm fine. I just can't stand being on this plane any longer than I have to."
"If you say so, ma'am," Hammond said, although his tone of voice hinted that he wasn't convinced.
Although Yvonne was annoyed that he seemed to be treating her line some kind of porcelain doll, this was something she'd gotten used to. Hammond wouldn't be the first to treat her like this, or many other US Navy officers with more than three years under their belt for that matter.
The casualties the Navy had taken just trying to hold back the Abyssals in the early months of the war were mind boggling: no other armed service had lost so many men or material trying to hold the line. At the start of the war the USN was the largest most powerful blue water Navy to ever exist, responsible for keeping the peace and protecting the world's oceans.
When the Abyssals appeared, it fell to them to stop this new threat.
The men and women of the Navy did their duty, and died doing it. The majority of their surface fleet, including nine of their aircraft carriers, and the entirety of the submarine fleet… all gone. Their arsenals at Pearl Harbor and Norfolk razed to the ground. So many good men and women, dead, and people were still trying to figure out why.
Before the Abyssals had appeared, Yvonne had thought that December morning in 1941 was the darkest day in the US Navy's history.
Clearly she had been mistaken.
Great, now she was thinking about Pearl all over again.
"So, why are you going to Yokosuka anyway?" Yvonne asked, wanting to distract herself from those dark thoughts, "I can't imagine what an old Air Force guy like you will be doing over there."
"Well, since you asked, I'm a technician. Predators and Reapers," Hammond supplied. "Not sure what good we can do though, since I hear those carrier girls of theirs have pretty much got everything covered."
"Don't sell yourself short. Conventional weapons can kill an Abyssal just as good as a ship girl's can."
This wasn't just Yvonne trying to make Hammond feel better. The Navy had won plenty of engagements against the Abyssal fleet before the ship girls were finally implemented. The problem was just that every single one of those victories was won in blood.
The Abyssals were endless in number.
The US Navy, less so.
It was a simple matter of attrition, and it was one that the US Navy simply could not win.
"Yeah, but it costs a shitload of lot more money to shoot a dozen Hellfires at one Abyssal destroyer than it is for a ship girl to do the same job. She'll probably do it a hell of a lot better than we could do it too since she doesn't have to cross her fingers and hope something hits either," Hammond sighed. "Man, getting kids to fight this damned war for us. I know there's not much we can do but… It just ain't right, y'know?"
Yvonne, a girl that looked young enough to be Hammond's daughter, couldn't help but find humour about Hammond's statement, but decided to keep her mouth shut. This was the welcome distraction from her restlessness that she had been looking for after all.
"Well, every little bit helps. We all do our part, and trust that one day it will matter."
"Man, you sounded like the damn recruitment officers," Hammond said, his amusement finally overshadowing his earlier concern. "Bet you got sucked in with all those recruitment slogans, eh?"
"You know the one; America's Navy, a global force for good," Yvonne nodded with a faint smile.
"Jesus, look at you. I just got that Captain America vibe from you. They should be sticking you on the recruiting posters!" Hammond laughed, "So why are you heading down there? Going to tell how those Jap girls how awesome our ship girls are going to be when we finally get some?"
"Well no. I'm with the Office of Naval Intelligence, actually. I was sent by Admiral Briggs to find the origins of the Abyssal fleet."
Hammond stared.
"You're shitting me… Ma'am."
Yvonne looked at him dead in the eye.
"You're serious. Fuck. That's… wow… just… wow." Hammond leaned back into his seat, as if to steady himself. "That's a helluva responsibility they handed to you, kid."
"We're short on manpower. Somebody had to do it," Yvonne shrugged. "We know how to fight these things well enough, but we understand so little about them. I expressed by thoughts to my superiors, and the next thing I knew I was an O-5 with a plane ticket to Japan."
"Shit, good luck to you then," Hammond said.
"Thanks. I'm going to need all the luck I can get."
Finding the origins of the Abyssals was going to be a tall order. There was a reason nobody had been able to figure out what they were until now: they always shot first, they never surrendered and were never taken alive… or dead for that matter.
There was speculation about what they were of course, but no real definitive answers.
With luck, Yvonne was going to change that.
"Say, you're with ONI, right?" Hammond turned to face Yvonne with a hopeful expression. "Hey, if it won't get you into trouble or anything, do you know when we'll be getting ship girls of our own?"
Yvonne couldn't help but roll her eyes.
"Not this question again."
-=-
Kantai Collection: The Greatest Generation
Part 1: Arrival at Yokosuka
-=-
The dawn sun rose over the land of the rising sun just as the C-17 finally touched down at Atsugi, and it was for this reason that had the Yvonne's good fortune to be treated to the breath taking sight of the morning sun illuminating the bay.
While most of the USAF personnel were too busy offloading their own equipment to pay heed to the spectacle, Yvonne took a moment of her time to admire the view.
"Well, I hope this is a good sign."
"Commander Swanson?" Yvonne turned to find a young Japanese man standing behind her in the JMSDF service dress uniform. The young officer gave her a snappy salute. "Lieutenant Satoshi Matsuda. I have orders to take you to Yokosuka Naval Base."
"Pleasure to meet you, Satoshi-Ittō Kaii. Please don't stand on ceremony," Yvonne crisply returned the salute, while speaking in Japanese… only to notice the man's lips curl into a smile.
"Sorry Commander, looks like I was trying to be a little too smart for my own good," he said in perfect English. "My first name is Satoshi. I just thought I'd reverse the order since most people from the States are used to having it the other way 'round."
"Oh, well. Yeah," Yvonne grumbled. She'd spent all that hard work learning the language too! "Goddamn it, I could swear that's a New York accent."
"Bingo. I grew up in New York while I was still a kid. My Ma used to be on the UN delegation and I tagged along for about six years. Never quite lost the accent."
"You went with your mother to New York?"
"It was either that or live on a boat with the old man."
"Huh, well isn't that something." What were the odds that a JMSDF officer who grew up in New York would be the one to pick her up on her first day in Japan?
"I had my subordinate grab your bags to save you the trouble," Matsuda informed her, as he motioned Yvonne to a nearby jeep, clearly the one that they would be using for transport. Stowing what was clearly Yvonne's luggage into the back of the vehicle was a very conspicuous dark haired young woman in a dark blue uniform and an eyepatch.
Yvonne didn't have to be a genius to know what that girl was.
"Thanks for the help," Yvonne said graciously.
"Well, we'd best be on our way. The Admiral has been looking forward to your arrival for some time now," Matsuda agreed, "Still, it's nice to know you know Japanese. You might not need it with me, but trust me, you are going to havta to use it a lot where you're going."
-=-
Yokosuka Naval District had a long and storied history.
Originally a quaint little native fishing village, its strategic location would result in the district becoming home to some of the greatest concentrations of maritime power in history. It was the main arsenal of the Imperial Japanese Navy, and then later became a major centre of US Naval power as United States Fleet Activities Yokosuka.
In the light of the near total destruction of the Seventh Fleet against the Abyssals, Yokosuka had once again reverted to its original ownership. The US maintained a small section of the base for themselves since the USAF was now an active part of the war effort in the region, but otherwise the whole district was more or less back in Japanese hands.
This was very apparent to Yvonne as she watched her surroundings go by while the small jeep travelled towards its destination. Years ago, this was the home port of Carrier Strike Group Five, a fleet with enough military power to challenge entire countries.
Now, the only thing left that indicated that the USS Ronald Regan was ever here was the odd signpost in English that the JSDF hasn't taken down in the district's remodelling.
"You've been awfully quiet, there," Matsuda asked in Japanese from the driver's seat, "You okay?"
"Sorry, it's just… it's hard to take in how much we've lost," Yvonne replied in the language. "We used to be all over this place, but now it's like we were never here."
"Yeah, Carrier Group Five. Went down swinging against an Abyssal battlegroup thrice their size, when they refused to abandon a passenger ship full of refugees," Matsuda shook his head sadly.
Yvonne closed her eyes and grit her teeth, fighting back the anger she felt towards the Abyssal fleet for that massacre. Her anger was tempered with the feelings of pride at the bravery and courage of her countrymen, but this didn't change the fact that good people had died because of those monsters.
Yvonne's discomfort must have been apparent, as Matsuda quickly took it upon himself to change the subject.
"So, you're not going to ask about Tenryuu or what?" Matsuda inclined his head towards where the ship girl sat in the back seat. Tenryuu was leaning against the window with a bored expression, the kind that indicated just how little she cared about being there, "Most people get quite excited when they meet their first Kanmusu."
"No problem, just pretend I'm not here. I just carried your bags for you and all that," Tenryuu snarked grumpily, earning a reproachful look from Matsuda in the front seat.
"Oh, uh, sorry," Yvonne said abashedly.
She'd been so caught up in her own thoughts that she'd neglected to thank Tenryuu for helping her with her luggage, because she had been so focused on the base itself.
Now that she had realized this though, Yvonne was getting a distinctly uncomfortable feeling at allowing Tenryuu to be right behind her.
This was going to be a problem.
"Fufufu, ya scared?" Tenryuu chuckled upon noticing Yvonne's silence.
"Not really. Just kind of overwhelmed by everything that's all," Yvonne recovered smoothly. "Besides, no offense, but compared to Abyssals you look kind of… normal? Does that make any sense?"
"Che. Admiral, this is a waste of time. Why do we have to be the one to drag this Yankee over to the base anyway?" Tenryuu groused lazily. "There could be so many other important things we could be doing with our time. I mean c'mon, I could be training or something, not playing a bellhop."
"Tenryuu! She is a guest. Watch your tone."
"Yeah, yeah. I'll shut up. Going to take a nap, so wake me when we get there." Tenryuu leaned back, and within moments was out like a light.
"Bad subordinate?" Yvonne said to Matsuda in a hushed tone.
"Temperamental. Very good at her job though, and she's invaluable in keeping the kids in line," Matsuda explained with a sigh. "This was not what I expected to be doing when I received my commission."
"I can relate. So… Admiral, huh?" Yvonne quickly glanced at Matsuda's insignia and confirmed that the man she was with was indeed a mere O-3. There was probably a story behind that, hopefully one less morbid than how she had come into her own rank.
"Little cultural quick all our Kanmusu have. If you're their commanding officer, you're an Admiral to them regardless as to what rank you really are," Matsuda clarified. "It helps that most people that are in charge of them are really Admirals, but on occasion you get an officer like me who's put in command of a few Kanmusu because of efficiency or necessity."
"Yeah, so how did you wind up in charge of her then?"
"Expeditionary force: basically I'm in charge of logistics, and since I work with Destroyer Division Six, so much they ended up putting me in command of them to save me the run around, and it pretty much went from there. Now I have two light cruisers and four destroyers under my command. Well, one cruiser and four destroyers: Tatsuta's over in the United States at the moment as part of our detachment at San Diego. Normally I have her as my de-facto secretary ship, but since she's on the other side of the Pacific at the moment, well… we make do."
"Sounds like you lucked out."
"More or less. So, Commander, huh?"
Yvonne couldn't help but give an amused huff. This guy had a bit of snark of his own. The pair quieted as they had arrived outside at a large imposing building that was clearly the main headquarters of the base. Pulling into the driveway, Matsuda stopped to allow Yvonne to disembark.
"Thanks for the ride."
"Don't worry about your bags, we've already assigned a room to you so I'll have 'em sent there. Just go straight to the lobby and take the elevator to the Admiral's office on the top floor, you can't miss it." Matsuda helpfully directed her.
"Thanks for that."
"It's not a problem. Call me if you need anything, Commander," Matsuda said, before taking off.
-=-
"Commander Yvonne Swanson, reporting to Yokosuka Naval Base, as ordered."
Yvonne announced as she smartly saluted the man before her. The Admiral, seated behind his desk, simply nodded as he skimmed through her papers and acknowledged what was in them while she waited patiently for him to finish.
"So, a mission to discover the origin of the Abyssal Fleet? And you are all they sent?" The weathered old soldier looked up at Yvonne with curiosity.
"We are very shorthanded right now, sir."
"Shorthanded as the US Navy is, I am sure that they could have sent more given the significance of this mission," the Admiral noted manner of factly. "Sending a girl of your age alone to take care of a task of monumental as this either speaks of desperation, or of your ability. I wonder if it is the former, or the latter. How do you intend to succeed, where so many others have failed?"
"The outline of my mission, as well as its specifics, have been outlined in detail with the brief included with my transfer papers, sir."
"I am aware of that, but some parts of this briefing have been redacted."
"My methods are classified, sir. I have been instructed to keep them on a strict need to know basis. I can, however, assure you that I am confident in my success," Yvonne replied smoothly.
The Admiral raised a curious eyebrow, seemingly both intrigued and taken aback by the confidence and oddity of her reply. "That is an interesting reply, Commander."
"It's the only reply I am authorized to give, Admiral."
"Indeed. Military intelligence… always so vexing." The Admiral set her papers down. "Your orders come with the approval of the Chief of Naval Operations himself, so I see little reason to hold you for longer than I already have. I will call my assistant to show you to your quarters."
"Thank you, sir."
"Welcome to Yokosuka Naval Base, Commander Swanson."
-=-
When the Admiral's secretary showed up, Yvonne was quite surprised to find that the aide to the most senior officer on the base was, in fact, a ship girl.
"My name is the battleship Nagato, I am the Admiral's secretary ship." The long haired beauty gave a respectful bow to Yvonne, who had been waiting outside the Admiral's office for her escort. "I welcome you to Yokosuka Naval Base, Commander Swanson. It is an honour to have you in our base."
"It's… an honour to be here?" Yvonne said.
That feeling that uncomfortable feeling she had from Tenryuu returned, this time tenfold.
Yvonne knew how irrational the feeling was, but allowing one of the most powerful big gun warships ever built so close to her person, full in the knowledge that Nagato had enough firepower to level the entire building, if not the entire base, was a terrifying prospect.
She felt so naked alone without someone with her.
Good god, she'd only met two Japanese ship girls so far and already she felt like running to Dakota and O'Bannon for help.
Maybe they were right; this wasn't such a good idea after all.
"I am making you uncomfortable."
"Not… not a problem," Yvonne squelched down on her discomfort with her considerable force of will and successfully regained her composure. Get a hold of yourself woman, she chided herself. "Sorry, but this is all very new to me. I haven't met many Kanmusu before. My experience with this sort of thing has been mostly with the Abyssals until now."
Nagato seemed to study Yvonne with interest. It seemed that the battleship wasn't about to let the issue drop without one final push. Thankfully, Yvonne knew exactly what to say to that.
"…I was at Pearl."
"Oh. I see. You have my condolences, then." Nagato winced sympathetically.
"Could have been worse. I could have been at Norfolk," Yvonne grunted sourly as she recalled the horror stories. A good portion of the fleet had been docked in there for repairs when it had happened. Poor bastards hadn't even gotten the chance to prepare before the Abyssals stormed in and turned the whole place into a charnel house.
"Then do not worry, Commander. We are nothing like the Abyssals. You will have nothing to fear from any who serve. In fact, take comfort in our presence: each and every Kanmusu on this base would lay down their lives before allowing you to come to harm."
"Well hopefully that won't be necessary."
"Indeed. Shall we?"
With that the two women walked through the winding halls of Yokosuka's main HQ. Nagato proceeded to give Yvonne a brief tour of the building, pointing out where all the basic facilities were or anything that might be of interest to Yvonne, before showing the American to the guest quarters they had set up for her.
One thing that caught Yvonne's attention was just how empty the building was.
Unlike Naval Station Everett where she had been stationed previously, Yokosuka base seemed to be operating on a skeleton crew. There were people around of course, they encountered the odd officer here and there, on their tour, but it was far less than even what Yvonne had been used to. When asked about it, Nagato was all too willing to explain.
"The Admiralty prefers to keep us Kanmusu segregated from the regular troops, because it makes people uncomfortable to know that we are fighting in their place. As such this base is operating on essential support personnel for us Kanmusu only. Aside from the helicopter destroyer Izumo and the guided missile destroyer Mirai, which both are operating at a reduced crew on the south quarter of the base, the majority of our conventional fighting strength has been relocated to Maizuru."
"Wise choice," Yvonne agreed.
After the absolute bloodbaths that were Pearl Harbor and Norfolk, several navies had opted to relocate their conventional fighting strength to safer waters, away from large oceans where the Abyssals seemed be coming from. Sure, it meant that those ships would have to take a considerably longer route to get to the engagement zone, but the added safety was well worth the inconvenience. It wasn't as if conventional forces where that effective anymore, now that the ship girls were on the scene anyway.
If she remembered her geography correctly, Maizuru was facing away from the Pacific Ocean towards Russian waters, and thus would be less vulnerable to attacks from the Abyssals coming in from the south-east. Even if it were to be attacked, they would have at least some advance warning to prepare defences, or at worst case, evacuate.
"Can't imagine it was easy fitting all your ships in Maizuru though."
"Not much left to fit. We lost half our surface fleet before we Kanmusu were developed. Nowhere near what your Navy has lost, but still not an inconsiderable amount. Those Abyssasls will pay for that they have done," Nagato glowered darkly.
"Amen to that."
"Ohy, Nagato!" A cheery voice interrupted the pair mid tour. Both Yvonne and Nagato turned to regard an excitable brown haired young girl in a white shrine maiden's outfit, at least what Yvonne thought was a shrine maiden's outfit, that was bounding down the hallway towards them.
"Hey! This must be the American girl I've been hearing so much about! IT IS NI-CE TO MEET YOU. HOW ARE YOU DO-ING! WELCOME TO YOKOSUKA."
What.
"Kongo, I see you have returned from your mission. I trust it went well."
Jesus Christ, not another battleship.
"YES. I, Kongo, completely dominated the enemy with my BURNING LOVE for the Admiral. He was most PLEASED with my performance!" Kongo animatedly clenched her hand to display her unbridled passion, something that went directly over Yvonne and Nagato's heads. "But enough about me, this is the American who's come from abroad to help us? GOOD DAY MY NEW FRIEND! HUGS!"
Then Kongo scooped Yvonne up in a big bear hug, a true feat considering Yvonne was at least a head and a half taller than the Kongo, causing the American to go completely rigid in the excitable battleship's arms.
Yvonne had been already uncomfortable by just being near Nagato.
Getting hugged by Kongo was enough to make the Naval intelligence officer's every thought process come to a screeching halt.
"Eep," Yvonne squeaked.
Nagato, having buried her face into her hands, seemed to be on the verge of weeping, before she turned to Yvonne and gave a low sigh. "Kongo…"
"MY NAME IS KONGO, NAME SHIP OF THE KONGO CLASS. I COME FROM ENG-LAND. WHAT IS YO-UR NAME? WOULD YOU LIKE SOME TEA?"
"She can speak Japanese, Kongo."
"Please… let me have some personal space," Yvonne struggled out, wondering if it was just her imagination that her ribs felt like they was cracking under the crushing embrace of the fast battleship Kongo. Holy shit, this girl was strong. Thankfully for Yvonne's lungs, Kongo released her, allowing Yvonne to lean against a nearby wall to catch her breath.
"Ah, SORRY," Kongo said, cheerfully apologetic.
"Kongo, she is a foreign officer of the United States Navy and a guest. Please try not to embarrass us completely and show some tact," Nagato rebuked sternly. Kongo gave a nervous laugh having realized she may have been a little too excited about Yvonne's arrival.
"It's fine Nagato. I'm not hurt or anything,." Yvonne said as she caught herself. "It's nice to meet you Kongo. I did some research before coming here, and it is an honour to meet one of the more decorated members of the ship girl fleet."
"HA! Yes, so you have heard of me! GOOD JOB!" Kongo beamed happily at the praise. "Anyway, GREAT that America is finally joining the fight. So, which ship are you?"
Yvonne groaned.
"Oh, not this again."
"Kongo, please, we've been over this." Nagato sighed.
"Which ship? America has so many cool ships I, Kongo, can't even begin to guess who you are!" The brunette continued undeterred, "I'm sure they brought back their best. So? WHO ARE YOU? Are you the Iowa? Wait NO! She's still afloat as a museum ship… Missouri! Wait no, that's not it either. Houston? Hm, no REACTION. Pennsylvania? No. Arizona? Hm, not her either. AH, YES! With that flight deck chest as flat as yours, you must be-"
"Commander Yvonne Swanson, United States Navy, Office of Naval Intelligence," Yvonne said sharply. "I was sent here to discover the origins of the Abyssal fleet."
There was silence as Yvonne allowed this to sink into Kongo's brain. It almost made Yvonne guilty to see the disappointment fall over the excitable girl's features, as she understood the full ramifications of what Yvonne was saying.
"I'm sorry to disappoint you," she added
"You're not a Kanmusu?" Kongo said in a tone reminiscent of a kicked puppy.
"Would a ship girl be working for naval intelligence?"
"Kongo, we've been over this," Nagato cut in to spare Yvonne the trouble. "The American Navy was decimated by the Abyssals, trying to hold the line while we were being trained. At the moment they're still in the process of rebuilding their fighting strength. They can't help us just yet."
"You mean the official story is right? I thought that was just the American President telling fibs," Kongo sighed. "Man, SO DISSAPOINTING."
"If it helps, when we do eventually get some ship girls ready to help you out, Yokosuka is at the top of the list for places that are going to be reinforced," Yvonne placated her. "The JSDF has been kind enough to station a task group at San Diego. The least we could do is pay you back when we get the chance."
"Oh, SORRY. I didn't mean any offense. I was just so excited since I thought I was finally going to meet some new friends," Kongo hung her head apologetically. "I've been reading up on history and the US Navy had some of the most POWERFUL ships in the war. SO COOL! If we had them fighting with us, this war would be over in no time."
Yvonne couldn't help but agree with that.
-=-
"This is your room, Commander Swanson."
Yvonne's first impression of the room was that it was nice, if in a humble cosy sort of way. Certainly better than her old accommodations back in Everett, but then again back then she wasn't a Commander. It was modest room, sporting a single bed, a cupboard a desk and a chair, but the make of the furniture and the nice view afforded by the single window overlooking the base made it feel more like a hotel room than assigned quarters that apparently doubled as her personal office.
As promised by Matsuda, Yvonne noted that her effects had been left at the foot of the single bed in the corner of the room.
"Thanks for showing me around, Nagato," Yvonne said as she walked over to her duffel bags to begin the process of unpacking.
"The Admiral has nothing for you for the rest of the day. It has been decided to allow you a day to overcome your jet lag and get settled in," Nagato said from where she stood at the doorway, "He has advised me that from tomorrow onwards you will be assigned an aide to assist you in your duties as you see fit. While you are a foreign officer, please remember that this is a Japanese Naval facility and you are to adhere to all our rules and customs as required…"
And the lecture went on.
Wow, what a square.
Even so, as a representative of the US Navy, Yvonne did the honourable thing and listened to Nagato as she continued on about protocol and discipline for some time. Thankfully, the impromptu lecture was 'only' for about ten minutes or so, and soon the secretary ship turned to other matters.
"I will see to it that Kongo is reprimanded for her actions," Nagato noted once she had finished, "What she did was impolite, and an embarrassment to our Navy. I will see to it that the Admiral knows about this. On behalf of the Japanese Navy, I offer you our sincerest apologies over what inconvenience she may have caused you."
"Hey, I told you not to worry about it," Yvonne insisted, with a wave of her hand. "Look, there's no need to go bother the Admiral. It's actually nice to have met someone who was so friendly like Kongo. I was actually a little worried that my reception on the base would be a little, well, cold. I don't think it'll do me any favour making enemies on my first day here."
Nagato shifted on her feet awkwardly.
Oh, that wasn't a good sign.
"…Yes, it might be wise to remain on Kongo's good side. Very well, if that is your order, I will not tell the Admiral, just this once. Any other breach in protocol after this will be dealt with, however."
"I sense there is something else you want to say?"
"You will find that Kongo is a… minority on this base," Nagato stated carefully, with tactfully chosen words. "Many of our comrades are not as understanding of the current plight of the US Navy and feel affronted that you have not produced Kanmusu of your own yet. Some of your Navy's more vocal critics will not take your arrival to Yokosuka very well."
"I see." This was upsetting, but not something Yvonne hadn't foreseen before coming.
While the rest of the world's navies had solidly established their ship girl fleets, to the point where the Italians had already certified that the Mediterranean was Abyssal-free, the United States was lagging behind. It wasn't surprising that this was the case; a quarter million casualties, the destruction of the Atlantic and Pacific fleets and two of their largest installations wasn't something that the Navy could recover from quickly.
It was so bad that most of the Navy's operations for the last nine months were centred on trying to assess just how much they had lost and tallying the death toll. Reconstruction efforts had only just begun. Going from the most powerful blue water navy to what they were now was traumatizing to everyone wearing Yvonne's uniform.
Most, even those who had been formerly critical of the US Navy's power, understood. It had been the US Navy that had held the line while everyone else struggled to find a solution. After all they had been through, after all their blood, sweat and tears, the US Navy deserved some slack.
Unfortunately, there were always detractors who wanted to know why the exhausted remnants of the once proud United States Navy weren't doing more by throwing themselves back into the fray. Most of these detractors were politicians, civilian commentators… and ironically enough, many ship girls of foreign powers, who couldn't appreciate what the conventional forces had suffered holding out against the Abyssal threat.
"Many of our Kanmusu are young and don't fully understand how much this war as cost us, or more precisely has cost your nation," Nagato informed her. "As secretary ship, I do. However, most Kanmusu just live day by day and battle by battle. They don't see the bigger picture and can't understand why America hasn't joined in the fight yet. That, with the stresses from their battles, may mean you will find many = who will voice their displeasure to you."
"I understand. This was is hard on all of them, especially since they're the ones who have to fight it now. I won't fault them for it, " Yvonne replied.
"…Thank you for being so understanding. You are truly a credit to the uniform you wear," Nagato said with a hint of awe at Yvonne's equanimity, genuine respect in her eyes. "If that is all, I will leave you to unpack."
"Yeah, no problem."
"We will assign a permanent liaison to you. Until that time, I will attend to your needs. As a member of the Admiral's staff, I stay in a room further down the hall, next to the Admiral's office. It can be identified by the name plate. My sister, Mutsu, rooms with me. Do not hesitate to call upon Mutsu or myself if you require anything."
"Fine, thank you." Great. Two battleships. Just dandy.
"You can also go to the room next to yours if you wish. If she is in, Yamato would be happy to attend to you if you need anything, since her schedule normally leaves her available."
"Okay. Got it-wait, what? YAMATO?"
Jesus-fucking-Christ, where are all these battleships forming from?
-=-
"Yes Admiral, I see. Thank you. I'll do my best. Goodbye."
Given that she hadn't brought much in the way of personal effects with her, it didn't take Yvonne very long to unpack her effects and arrange the small room to her liking. After that, she'd slipped away to the former US section of the base.
Effectively abandoned by both the US and Japan, this gave her a bit more privacy to freely use some special ONI equipment she'd brought along… like the encrypted satellite phone she'd used to call Admiral Briggs and let him know that she was alright. It wasn't strictly necessary, since she'd already left a message with his secretary shortly before seeing the Japanese Admiral, but given how much he'd helped her out, she thought he'd appreciate the call.
As it turned out, he did.
"I can't believe he waited until 1 in the morning for me." She'd forgotten the time difference between Yokosuka and Washington D.C. and had been slightly embarrassed to discover that, especially when Briggs revealed that he had stayed up with worry just waiting for her to check in.
A four star admiral, worrying about lil' ol' her.
How embarrassing.
Well, she had one more call to make, and if her calculations weren't off it shouldn't be that late over in Seattle. Punching the number into the phone, Yvonne patiently waited for the operator to pick up.
"Naval Station Everett-"
"Naval Station Everett? This is Commander Swanson for Advanced Naval Weapons Research and Development. I wish to speak with Lieutenant Dakota Leigh Gatch."
"Oh, E-um, Commander Swanson! She's been waiting for your call all night. I'll put you through to them right away!"
It didn't take very long for the operator to transfer Yvonne's call to the newest and most secretive division. When the line next picked up it was the familiar voice of one of Yvonne's oldest friends.
"Calling over an unsecured line? You make for a lousy spook, Swanson."
"Oh put a sock in it, Dakota." Yvonne chuckled just picturing her bookish friend on the other end of the line. Knowing Lieutenant Dakota Leigh Gatch, she was probably multitasking at the moment, likely reading a book or watching the news while talking over the phone, all at the same time.
"So did I win the bet?"
"Oh, yeah. Yeah you did," Yvonne sighed as she ran a hand across her forehead, "I kid you not; they got me in the room right next to Yamato. So yes, I sure as hell wish I hadn't been so stubborn and let you come along. I could use you as a meat shield right about now."
There was a slight pause.
"…okay, now I'm thankful I didn't. Being in so close proximity to those eighteen inchers? I'd need a clean change of pants. Sucks to be you, my friend."
"I haven't met her yet, though, but I sure as hell am not looking forward to the experience," Yvonne grumbled, "You called it. I bit off more than I could chew by coming to Japan on my own."
If Yvonne's reactions to Nagato or Kongo were anything to go by, she was probably going to faint dead away at meeting the most powerful battleship ever built. Her friends, the people Yvonne normally leaned on for support, were an ocean away.
Without them, she felt exposed, vulnerable, especially now that she was a stranger in a strange land, surrounded by unfamiliar people.
But then again, maybe they'd be in the same boat: all of them fainting dead away one after another like a bunch of falling dominos.
Freaking Yamato.
Yeah, actually, that's probably what would happen. So much for the US Navy's best and brightest.
"So what's happening back over there? Anything to report?" Yvonne asked as she filed away that amusing thought for another day.
"You know the story. Same shit, different day. Politicians spinning their wheels, Navy planners going apeshit over the amount of things needing to be done and not enough stuff to actually do it… the works," Dakota complained gruffly.
"I thought you guys were working with DARPA?"
"Please. We have the toys, but can't play with them. Do you have any idea how boring that is?" Dakota sighed "The whole budget's been going into reactivating that old carrier they dug up."
"They greenlighted recommissioning the Kitty Hawk?"
Yvonne ran her free hand down the side of her face. The USS Kitty Hawk had been decommissioned for years and had been languishing as a museum in Pensacola, Florida. However, with the loss of nearly all their aircraft carriers Yvonne had been aware that there had been a movement in the Navy to find, overhaul and recommission any still seaworthy ship to replace their losses… even ones as old as the Kitty Hawk. She'd personally thought those guys were out of their minds, especially since the Navy should have been using their limited resources elsewhere, but apparently some guys on high really couldn't picture a US Navy without aircraft carriers.
"Oh, yeah. Sandy is over there helping out. Said something about not trusting anyone else with proper anti air, whatever that means, and then off she went. I don't think it was everything she expected though."
"She's not the only one. This wasn't what I expected to be doing when I got out of training." Yvonne grumbled.
"I don't think any of us expected this when we got out of training," Dakota laughed, "Well at least you're doing something. I spend most of my day brainstorming new ideas and staring at blueprints that we can't actually build. Navy Intelligence gets to do all the awesome shit, Sandy's working with that carrier, and I don't think O'Bannon's had a day off since she started with the Seabees."
Yvonne couldn't help but roll her eyes at Dakota's misconceptions about the Office of Naval Intelligence. The master of multitasking had clearly been watching too many tv shows and had gotten the wrong idea about what ONI actually did. "Any word on Tresh?"
"Probably gone off to work with getting the submarine fleet back up and running, but you know her. She's not exactly the social type," Dakota said jokingly. However what she said next took on a very different tone. "Hey, Yvonne. Are you sure you're over there alone? It's just you over there along with every Japanese ship in the war. You could always come back, you know?"
Yvonne stayed silent for a while as she contemplated how to reply. Dakota had disagreed with her rather vehemently over Yvonne's instance on going to Japan. She was alone, surrounded by ship girls and no friends in sight.
"I wouldn't have come halfway around the world if I wasn't serious, Dakota," Yvonne replied with a sigh. "I can't just sit around anymore and hope things get better. At least this way, I can be useful. I can do something worthwhile."
"Stubborn as a bull, as always," Dakota sighed. "Well, if that's the way you want to play it, go right ahead… but for god's sake, you call me if shit hits the fan, alright? The whole gang will be over there before you know it to bail your sorry ass out."
"Yeah, I got that. Thanks mom,"
-=-
With the only remaining obligations she had for the day done, Yvonne had just focused on getting readjusted to her new surroundings, the time difference between Yokosuka and Seattle was quite significant, and by late-afternoon when she finally returned back to the Japanese ship girl portion of the base, Yvonne was feeling very drowsy.
Still, the best advice she had been given about jetlag was to stay hydrated, keep herself active and adjust to her new schedule, so Yvonne did the only thing that came to mind – go for a drink.
For off-duty personnel at Yokosuka, Houshou's café was the place to be.
Owned and operated by a retired 'decommissioned' ship girl, a true rarity considering how new they were as a whole, the café catered almost exclusively to the Kanmusu of Yokosuka and what few support personnel they had on the base proper.
Nevertheless, its fame reached the ears of jealous USAF and USN personnel who had their access restricted from going anywhere near it given how touchy the Japanese were about their ship girls, something that the American brass had apparently agreed with. If the access to the base wasn't so heavily restricted, the place would probably be the next big tourist hotspot.
Given that Yvonne was apparently one of the few US Navy officers to whom the restrictions didn't apply to, she decided that, on behalf of the entire service, it was her sworn duty to go where no American had gone before and see what the fuss was about.
And so it was that Yvonne Swanson walked through the doors of the café. It was a modest establishment that couldn't play host to more than a dozen patrons, but its small size simply created an air of homeliness that Yvonnne found pleasant. The time of the day Yvonne had chosen to visit also meant the place was more or less empty.
Behind a kitchen counter was the owner herself, Houshou, the ship sometimes referred to as the 'mother of all aircraft carriers'.
"Oh! You must be the American that I heard would be coming!" Houshou, a matronly woman in a pink kimono, turned from where she had been washing some dishes to give Yvonne a warm smile. "Please take a seat, I'll be right with you."
"Don't mind if I do," Yvonne said as chose one at the counter. "With how famous this place is, I thought there would be more people here."
"You probably don't know this, but the Admiral suddenly called for a large meeting that all Kanmusu and support personnel had to attend." Houshou finished cleaning the dishes and dried her hands on a nearby towel. "He probably heard about you getting accosted by Kongo and decided that they needed another prep talk."
"Wait, what? I thought I told Nagato-"
"Don't worry. The Admiral found out about it from Kongo herself. I know you tried covering for her, but that child is honest as they come," Houshou laughed in the same way a proud mother would when recounting the mischief of her children to a friend, "Don't worry, she won't get angry. I think she was actually worried that she offended you or something and went to the Admiral for help."
Yvonne shook her head in disbelief. Fast battleship Kongo, one of the most famous warships of World War 2… it boggled the mind that the girl had ended up becoming such a klutz.
A loveable klutz, but a klutz nonetheless.
"It is so rare to get new patrons. May I know the name of the person I am speaking to?" Houshou produced a menu for Yvonne, who graciously accepted it.
"Commander Yvonne Swanson. United States Navy Office of Naval Intelligence," Yvonne introduced herself politely.
"I see. I am pleased to meet you, Commander," Houshou bowed politely from behind the counter. "My name is Houshou, light aircraft carrier and proprietor of this café. Retired, of course."
"If you don't mind me asking, what's the story behind that?"
Kanmusu were very new, having been only having actually been fighting for the past year or so due to training requirements, so coming across one that was retired was a surprise indeed. Houshou was also a carrier, a rare and expensive commodity, even despite her outdated technology compared to other Kanmusu. Her having retired to what was more or less civilian life was a puzzle that Yvonne couldn't pass up.
"Well, I was the first aircraft carrier Kanmusu," Houshou explained with a nostalgic smile. "While officially we Kanmusu did not actively begin operations against the Abyssals until a year ago, the JMSDF had actually started using small groups of us in limited numbers well before that.
"Really? That's news to me." Yvonne said with some surprise.
The public reveal of the Kanmusu by Japan was only about a year ago, and it had taken the world by storm. The remnants of the US fleet had been fleeing the burning inferno Pearl Harbour, their battered hulls packed full of refugees from Honolulu. With escape to the mainland United States deemed too dangerous, given that they had learned Norfolk had been attacked at around the same time, they had instead chosen to make best speed for an allied port in the Philippines, thinking it the safer option. It had been the wrong decision.
They had come under attack from Abyssals halfway there. Exhausted, demoralized and low on supplies and munitions, there wasn't a thing the convoy could do but look out at the approaching storm and wait for death. Then, just as things had seemed hopeless, their miraculous saviours had appeared - war goddesses riding the waves, slaying those demonic monsters and saving the lives of every man, woman and child in the flotilla.
Safe to say, it was generally agreed by the world's populace that ship girls were pretty hard to miss.
"Unfortunately most of what we did were sea trials and tests. We were new weapons and people were still trying to get an idea on how to use us, so there wasn't much we could do," Houshou admitted sadly. "Back then, there were just ten of us separated into two battlegroups: plenty of younger girls were in training, but only ten of us were actually seaworthy at the time."
"I see."
"I really wanted to help you know," she sighed forlornly a shadow of guilt cast over her features falling into memory, "It was tough waking up every morning to hear news reports of how your people were fighting and dying while being unable to do anything because we just weren't ready. When I heard about the Battle of the Bering-"
"Coffee."
"Excuse me?" Houshou blinked as she looked at Yvonne, who was now pointing at an item on the menu. "I'd like some coffee. Black. Strong as you can make it."
"Oh. Oh! I'll get right on it, Miss Swanson!"
Houshou quickly gathered herself and went about satisfying Yvonne's orders, not noting the understanding look of pity Yvonne was giving her as she did so.
-=-
"…so after that, with Akagi and Kaga ready for battle and with my injuries making it difficult to hold a bow, it was decided that that I should retire. Maintaining an obsolete carrier when resources are so thin isn't cheap. So after I was decommissioned and had my equipment scrapped, the Admiral was kind enough to offer me this building so I could say close to my girls and support them as best I could out of respect for my years of service. So, now here I am, proprietor of this café."
Houshou finished her tale just as Yvonne had finished her cup of coffee.
"That's quite an adventure you've had, Houshou. I had no idea that there had been so much fighting before you went public."
"Well, as I said, it was mostly small skirmishes as field tests. Nothing quite like the battles that are happening these days. We only picked fights we knew were in our favour and left most of the heavy lifting to the regulars," Houshou replied modestly.
To be honest Yvonne felt Houshou was selling herself short: the matronly woman before her was a pioneer that paved the way for every other ship girl that came after her. Maybe she was right in that she only fought in battles stacked in her favour, but she had also been doing so using untested equipment and tactics. In Yvonne's opinion, going into battle with that kind of the risk involved made Houshou even more courageous than many of the still serving girls.
"How did you manage to fly under the radar for so long anyway?" Yvonne asked with great interest, "You said you worked with researchers for years before announcing your existence. How'd you manage to blend with normal humans in so well?"
"Do we ship girls really stand out that much?" Houshou said.
"Well, from the few I've met so far, let's just say they stand out in a crowd. No offence, but you're the first one that I've met so far that could pass for a normal person."
Yvonne couldn't help wonder how Houshou had managed to remain secret for so long, especially after meeting Tenryuu, Nagato and Kongo. Every single one of those girls dressed flamboyantly and carried personalities to match. More than that, just being around them caused Yvonne to feel like there was an incredible weight to their very presence.
All this was missing from Houshou, who by all appearances seemed to be a normal woman. If Yvonne hadn't already known who Houshou was, she'd likely have just pegged the café owner as 'that nice lady who runs that shop' and left it at that. What was her secret?
"Well, the younger generation certainly like being as flamboyant as they can be!" Houshou giggled in that matronly way again. "Well to be honest, it's simple really. Take away the uniform, our rigging and equipment, and we're just ordinary human beings that just so happen to have the souls of warships in our bodies. Unless we're deliberately trying to make our presence felt as warships, it's quite easy to blend in if you don't try anything to outrageous."
"Really? That's it? I thought there would be more to it," Yvonne said, with some disappointment.
When the Japanese had unveiled their Kanmusu, their secret weapon that they had managed to develop while the US Navy was bust getting pounded, it was entirely to the surprise of the Office of Naval Intelligence: to this day it had been a sore point for them that they hadn't even caught of whiff of what the Japanese had been doing, and that this war winning development had happened entirely without their knowledge… let alone with actual sea trials dating back well before their most conservative estimates!
Granted ONI had their attention elsewhere at the time, but it still stung.
Maybe it was all in the past, the secret was out so there was no point in fussing over it now that there were more pressing matters to attend to, but many of the surviving members of ONI still felt that it was a blow to their professional pride. As such, Yvonne felt like she had to ask this, for her office's sake at very least.
"There really isn't. I do have some supernatural powers that allow people to feel that I am more than human, but as long as I don't do that well… I'm just little old Houshou that owns a café."
"Really? What about those little people you girls have?" Yvonne tried making an appropriate gesture with her hands. "What do you call them? Fairies? I heard Carriers like bringing lots of them everywhere they go. That has to be a bit conspicuous, don't you think?"
"Oh my, whatever gave you that idea?" Houshou giggled, "Why, I just left my fairies back at the base whenever I had to leave for outside business so I didn't stand out. Simple as that. Really, if you want any more proof, just look at me now!"
Well, Houshou did have a point there.
"Well darn, many of the boys back home are going to feel really silly when they hear about that. I was so sure you had some hocus pocus card trick up your sleeve," Yvonne grumbled.
"If it helps, the prototype Kanmusu all dressed much more conservatively than they do now." Houshou motioned down at what she was wearing. "I think most of the younger girls dress the way they do as a show of solidarity. At least… I hope so."
"Yeah, some of the stuff they're wearing is kind of… odd." Yvonne sighed.
"I could give you some tips on how to deal with being around the active duty Kanmusu," Houshou offered, "I know it can be a bit overwhelming to a first timer at being around them. We do bear the weight of history on our shoulders, and some people have trouble with dealing with that."
"Nah. Thanks for the offer, but I'm good." Yvonne said. Despite what had happened with her run ins with Tenryuu, Nagato and Kongo earlier, the problem wasn't so much that Yvonne was unused to ship girls. Rather, that Yvonne was alone and next to THOSE ship girls.
Light cruiser and two battleships. Freaking hell, why couldn't she have run into some destroyers or something?
"I'm very used to having friends with me. It's been that way for a while now," Yvonne informed the matronly woman before her, "They're my safety blanket so to speak. My armour. Without them, well to be perfectly frank, I feel exposed."
"…I'm not sure what to say about that." Honshu replied with a look of pity.
Houshou probably drew the conclusion that Yvonne was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, and had used being with others as a way to cope. It was a reasonable conclusion; practically everyone in the US Navy with more than two years' experience knew someone who had died, and that had left plenty of people suffering from PTSD from the horrors they had seen.
"If that's the cause, you shouldn't push yourself." Houshou said concernedly. "I can only guess what it must have been like for you, but…"
"Hey, it's fine. MO gave me a clean bill of health before I even left the base," Yvonne said. "But we're so short-handed I felt I was being a burden. They were needed elsewhere, and I figured Yokosuka was a friendly port, so I took this assignment to go cold turkey on my needy ways."
"This is pretty extreme way of going cold turkey."
"Well, that's what it means. You don't do things in half measures, you know?" The pair shared one final laugh before Yvonne pushed herself off her seat, deposited the payment of yen down on the countertop. "Thanks for the coffee. It was great."
"It was my pleasure. Feel free to come again," Houshou said, but then paused as she considered something, "Commander Swanson. A question, if I may?
"Go right ahead. I'm not in a particular hurry to get anywhere."
"I know you probably get asked this a lot, but since you're with Naval Intelligence, do you know when the USN will be starting up their ship girl program?"
Upon noticing Yvonne's face darkening with irritation at having being asked that same question again on the same day, Houshou quickly amended her statement.
"I mean, I know the USN is in the process of rebuilding their forces so it might be some time until you will be able to, but I would like to know if there's an estimate you can give me," Houshou asked. "Also, if you can tell me, do you know which ships will the Navy try to bring back first?"
Okay this was slightly different. Houshou was clearly looking for something far more specific now instead of a general ballpark figure. "Why do you ask?"
"Well, as I told you earlier, I personally trained both Akagi and Kaga. I know they've physically not that much younger than I am, but I think of them as my daughters," Houshou explained, motherly concern apparent in her eyes. "They're very brave and I'm very proud of what they're doing, but I can't help but worry about them. They carry such a heavy burden, and I sometimes wish there was someone who can help them shoulder it."
A lump settled in Yvonne's stomach as she listened to Houshou's words. She could see where this was going.
"You are looking for someone," Yvonne surmised, fighting to keep her feelings in check. "You don't just want the US Navy to have ship girls… you want them to have a specific one."
"Yes I am," Houshou replied, "Please, Commander. Do you know when the US Navy plans to bring back the Enterprise?"
"You, light carrier Houshou, the one called the 'mother of all aircraft-carriers', are hoping that the USS Enterprise would take to the field as a ship girl," Yvonne stated bluntly with a frown. "Why?"
Houshou nodded and explained herself.
"Among us aircraft carriers, none have won more renown then the Enterprise. Even though we were on opposite sides of the war and even if some would not openly do so out of pride, I can tell you that many of us carriers regard her as the greatest of our number. Maybe there were others later in the war that were larger, more powerful or advanced… but none were braver, determined or more corageous. If she was with Akagi and Kaga, I would feel much better," Houshou said, the quiver in her voice at the fear for her daughters mixed with the reverence she had for the most decorated aircraft carrier, hell, most decorated US Navy warship, to ever exist.
"You speak of her as if she was a hero," Yvonne stated evenly.
"She is. One of the best," Houshou replied with lowered eyes. "I think you would agree that in times like these, heroes are what we need."
"…I see."
"Do you… know when she will come?"
Yvonne couldn't help but hide her clenched fist behind her back, venting her anguish and frustration in private, cursing herself all the while. She looked Houshou in the eye, and told the first lie she truly regretted making that day.
"I'm sorry, Houshou. But I don't."
-=-
Even though she had spent hours at Houshou's café, it was still light out by the time Yvonne returned to her room. Her previous good mood at having made a friend in the café owner had evaporated, and had been replaced with revulsion and self-loathing. Yvonne practically stormed all the way back from the café into her room, ingoing the few surprised looks from the few she had passed along the way, and securely locked the door behind her as she did so.
Yvonne wasn't really one to vent. She prided herself on her composure and professionalism as befitting of an officer and gentlewoman of the United States Navy.
But thinking back to Houshou's earnest pleading look and having to give that bald faced lie was too much for even her to take. Throwing herself down her bed and seizing her pillow, Yvonne proceeded to let out a muffled scream of rage and frustration into it.
Maybe this might cause a scene.
Maybe this was unbecoming of her.
Yvonne didn't care.
What the fuck was she doing? She was IN Yokosuka Naval Base, practically the front line of the war… and she couldn't give them the help they deserved.
She was surrounded by young women who were actively fighting in that said war, risking their very lives for emperor and country as was their sworn duty. They had asked for help from the US Navy, who once fielded the most powerful armada of ships the world had ever seen… and if history was anything to go by, had the potential to field the most powerful armada of ship girls out of all of humanity's potential defenders. They needed help.
Commander Yvonne Swanson, a mere intelligence officer who had been given her rank because there were so few people who could fill the empty shoes she now wore, couldn't give that.
She wished she could tell them the truth. That the Navy wasn't as bad off as everyone thought it was – the United States had four major branches after all, and while the Navy and Marines had been almost decimated, the Air Force and Army were still going strong. Even with all the re-organisation that was going on, it had been a simple matter to redirect resources from those the healthier services back to the Navy to jump start the crucial Ship Girl program.
The US Navy had been bloodied to be sure, but all their losses hadn't caused them to break. Rather it had steeled their resolve: even after all they had lost the Navy wanted see the fight through to the end as was their duty.
At least that was the plan.
The program had been a debacle. Attempts to bring back the spirits of ship girls were unsuccessful. No matter how much the USN tried to follow the tried and tested procedures as dictated by the JDSF, they were confronted with failure after failure.
No matter how much they tried, it seemed that the spirits of the departed United States vessels, from their greatest generation no less, had refused to answer the call to arms.
The German Deutsche Marine had seen the return of the legendary Bismark and nigh un-killable Prinz Eugen. The French Marine Nationale was heroically led into battle by Richelieu and the Georges Leygues. The Italian Marina Militare's Littorio sisters had successfully led a campaign to make the Mediterranean Sea Abyssal-free.
The UK's Royal Navy had been pleasantly surprised when an over-eager HMS Termeraire, the 98 gun second rate ship of the line, had enthusiastically reported for duty, only to discover she was an two centuries out of date in terms of equipment.
And Japan? Well, Yvonne was seeing firsthand just how well Japan's ships had responded.
Around the world, warships of ages past heard their nations' call, and had heeded it dutifully…. except for the ships of United States of America.
Yvonne lay in her bed staring at the ceiling as memories of anger at frustration played over and over in her mind from witnessing all those repeated failures to produce usable ship girls. Houston, Pennsylvania… Arizona. None of them responded to their nations call.
Not when America, and the girl named Yvonne Swanson, needed them most.
-=-
To be continued…
-=-
Additional note: Please be advised this work contains allusion to certain contemporary issues, namely war crimes perpetrated by Imperial Japan in World War 2. This work is meant to be for enjoyment, and no offense is meant. Also note that, as a fanfiction, many liberties were taken with Kantai Collection canon for the purposes of this story. That being said, please enjoy.
-=-
It was a memory that she would never forget.
Pearl Harbor was burning.
The sheer horror of what was before her was like nothing she had ever experienced.
Great plumes of smoke reached into the sky from the fires, a sound accompanied by the desperate screams of the dead and the dying. Indeed, the water itself was aflame from oil that coated it.
It truly was a scene out of hell.
Never in her career had she ever experienced anything like this.
She wasn't the only one who had trouble believing what she was seeing. Around her, thousands of sailors of the United States Navy looked on from the deck at the inferno before them. The bastion of America's military power in the Pacific, Pearl Harbor, was burning.
Impossible.
An attack as brazen and destructive as this should have been unthinkable, but it had happened. Now people were dying, her comrades, and she was powerless to do anything but look on. Thousands dying, and she had arrived too late to do anything.
The cold chill of the knowledge that, but for the whim of fate, she too could be in amongst the dead and dying was something she would never forget…
-=-
"Commander Swanson? Commander Swanson, are you alright?"
Yvonne Swanson gasped awake, the feeling of someone shaking her shoulder pulling her mind back from her dream. Cracking open her eyes, the young officer remembered she was still strapped into her seat on that stupid C-17. Beside her was the USAF airman had been sitting beside her, Master Sergeant Hammond, if memory served her correctly, who had shaken her awake.
The flight was fairly empty today, with barely a dozen or so men and women milling about, so there had been no one else to notice her discomfort.
"Goddamn, ma'am. That must have been some nightmare," the man said, his concern evident.
"No shit. Are we there yet?" Yvonne asked dourly, brushing her blonde locks out of her eyes.
The young officer wore Service Dress Blues of a commissioned officer of the United States Navy, and filled out the uniform smartly. She was very tall, in fact she was a few inches taller than the man addressing her. Her normally untamed sandy blonde hair was tucked neatly into a bun and covered by the white peaked cap resting nicely on her head.
She was the very picture of a model officer of the Navy, even if she was absurdly young to be wearing the rank of Commander… or she would be, had she not just woken from that accursed nightmare. Much to her displeasure, Yvonne brought her hand up and noticed it was still shaking, and she didn't need to look into a mirror to see how pale her face probably was.
"Last I checked, it's still another two hours before we land at Atsugi," Hammond supplied. "Are you okay? You were tossing and turning something fierce back there, Commander. Do you need me to get-"
"No need, it's just old memories," Yvonne replied dismissively. "And I thought I told you to not address me by my rank when we started this trip."
Not really one to stand on ceremony and wanting to avoid the any unnecessary awkwardness, Yvonne had asked Hammond, a career soldier of least two decades, to avoid addressing her by her rank. She was a slip of a girl who looked barely older than twenty, and he was a man well into his late forties. It felt awkward for a man clearly twice her age to keep addressing her as his better, especially since she didn't like being reminded of her rank.
It was one thing to have gone up in rank through experience, hard work and dedication. It was another to have been made a Commander because the battles against the Abyssal fleet had left so many vacancies that the Navy was promoting anyone they had left with any sort of experience who could even remotely fill the roles.
The old saying was true: promotions came fast in wartime. It wasn't pleasant to be reminded of that, and Yvonne knew she wasn't the only one in the Navy that felt that way.
"Sorry ma'am. You're an officer, and well, old habits die hard."
"Well, stop doing it. I'll make it an order if I have to," Yvonne sighed as she settled back into her seat, "and I'm fine. I just can't stand being on this plane any longer than I have to."
"If you say so, ma'am," Hammond said, although his tone of voice hinted that he wasn't convinced.
Although Yvonne was annoyed that he seemed to be treating her line some kind of porcelain doll, this was something she'd gotten used to. Hammond wouldn't be the first to treat her like this, or many other US Navy officers with more than three years under their belt for that matter.
The casualties the Navy had taken just trying to hold back the Abyssals in the early months of the war were mind boggling: no other armed service had lost so many men or material trying to hold the line. At the start of the war the USN was the largest most powerful blue water Navy to ever exist, responsible for keeping the peace and protecting the world's oceans.
When the Abyssals appeared, it fell to them to stop this new threat.
The men and women of the Navy did their duty, and died doing it. The majority of their surface fleet, including nine of their aircraft carriers, and the entirety of the submarine fleet… all gone. Their arsenals at Pearl Harbor and Norfolk razed to the ground. So many good men and women, dead, and people were still trying to figure out why.
Before the Abyssals had appeared, Yvonne had thought that December morning in 1941 was the darkest day in the US Navy's history.
Clearly she had been mistaken.
Great, now she was thinking about Pearl all over again.
"So, why are you going to Yokosuka anyway?" Yvonne asked, wanting to distract herself from those dark thoughts, "I can't imagine what an old Air Force guy like you will be doing over there."
"Well, since you asked, I'm a technician. Predators and Reapers," Hammond supplied. "Not sure what good we can do though, since I hear those carrier girls of theirs have pretty much got everything covered."
"Don't sell yourself short. Conventional weapons can kill an Abyssal just as good as a ship girl's can."
This wasn't just Yvonne trying to make Hammond feel better. The Navy had won plenty of engagements against the Abyssal fleet before the ship girls were finally implemented. The problem was just that every single one of those victories was won in blood.
The Abyssals were endless in number.
The US Navy, less so.
It was a simple matter of attrition, and it was one that the US Navy simply could not win.
"Yeah, but it costs a shitload of lot more money to shoot a dozen Hellfires at one Abyssal destroyer than it is for a ship girl to do the same job. She'll probably do it a hell of a lot better than we could do it too since she doesn't have to cross her fingers and hope something hits either," Hammond sighed. "Man, getting kids to fight this damned war for us. I know there's not much we can do but… It just ain't right, y'know?"
Yvonne, a girl that looked young enough to be Hammond's daughter, couldn't help but find humour about Hammond's statement, but decided to keep her mouth shut. This was the welcome distraction from her restlessness that she had been looking for after all.
"Well, every little bit helps. We all do our part, and trust that one day it will matter."
"Man, you sounded like the damn recruitment officers," Hammond said, his amusement finally overshadowing his earlier concern. "Bet you got sucked in with all those recruitment slogans, eh?"
"You know the one; America's Navy, a global force for good," Yvonne nodded with a faint smile.
"Jesus, look at you. I just got that Captain America vibe from you. They should be sticking you on the recruiting posters!" Hammond laughed, "So why are you heading down there? Going to tell how those Jap girls how awesome our ship girls are going to be when we finally get some?"
"Well no. I'm with the Office of Naval Intelligence, actually. I was sent by Admiral Briggs to find the origins of the Abyssal fleet."
Hammond stared.
"You're shitting me… Ma'am."
Yvonne looked at him dead in the eye.
"You're serious. Fuck. That's… wow… just… wow." Hammond leaned back into his seat, as if to steady himself. "That's a helluva responsibility they handed to you, kid."
"We're short on manpower. Somebody had to do it," Yvonne shrugged. "We know how to fight these things well enough, but we understand so little about them. I expressed by thoughts to my superiors, and the next thing I knew I was an O-5 with a plane ticket to Japan."
"Shit, good luck to you then," Hammond said.
"Thanks. I'm going to need all the luck I can get."
Finding the origins of the Abyssals was going to be a tall order. There was a reason nobody had been able to figure out what they were until now: they always shot first, they never surrendered and were never taken alive… or dead for that matter.
There was speculation about what they were of course, but no real definitive answers.
With luck, Yvonne was going to change that.
"Say, you're with ONI, right?" Hammond turned to face Yvonne with a hopeful expression. "Hey, if it won't get you into trouble or anything, do you know when we'll be getting ship girls of our own?"
Yvonne couldn't help but roll her eyes.
"Not this question again."
-=-
Kantai Collection: The Greatest Generation
Part 1: Arrival at Yokosuka
-=-
The dawn sun rose over the land of the rising sun just as the C-17 finally touched down at Atsugi, and it was for this reason that had the Yvonne's good fortune to be treated to the breath taking sight of the morning sun illuminating the bay.
While most of the USAF personnel were too busy offloading their own equipment to pay heed to the spectacle, Yvonne took a moment of her time to admire the view.
"Well, I hope this is a good sign."
"Commander Swanson?" Yvonne turned to find a young Japanese man standing behind her in the JMSDF service dress uniform. The young officer gave her a snappy salute. "Lieutenant Satoshi Matsuda. I have orders to take you to Yokosuka Naval Base."
"Pleasure to meet you, Satoshi-Ittō Kaii. Please don't stand on ceremony," Yvonne crisply returned the salute, while speaking in Japanese… only to notice the man's lips curl into a smile.
"Sorry Commander, looks like I was trying to be a little too smart for my own good," he said in perfect English. "My first name is Satoshi. I just thought I'd reverse the order since most people from the States are used to having it the other way 'round."
"Oh, well. Yeah," Yvonne grumbled. She'd spent all that hard work learning the language too! "Goddamn it, I could swear that's a New York accent."
"Bingo. I grew up in New York while I was still a kid. My Ma used to be on the UN delegation and I tagged along for about six years. Never quite lost the accent."
"You went with your mother to New York?"
"It was either that or live on a boat with the old man."
"Huh, well isn't that something." What were the odds that a JMSDF officer who grew up in New York would be the one to pick her up on her first day in Japan?
"I had my subordinate grab your bags to save you the trouble," Matsuda informed her, as he motioned Yvonne to a nearby jeep, clearly the one that they would be using for transport. Stowing what was clearly Yvonne's luggage into the back of the vehicle was a very conspicuous dark haired young woman in a dark blue uniform and an eyepatch.
Yvonne didn't have to be a genius to know what that girl was.
"Thanks for the help," Yvonne said graciously.
"Well, we'd best be on our way. The Admiral has been looking forward to your arrival for some time now," Matsuda agreed, "Still, it's nice to know you know Japanese. You might not need it with me, but trust me, you are going to havta to use it a lot where you're going."
-=-
Yokosuka Naval District had a long and storied history.
Originally a quaint little native fishing village, its strategic location would result in the district becoming home to some of the greatest concentrations of maritime power in history. It was the main arsenal of the Imperial Japanese Navy, and then later became a major centre of US Naval power as United States Fleet Activities Yokosuka.
In the light of the near total destruction of the Seventh Fleet against the Abyssals, Yokosuka had once again reverted to its original ownership. The US maintained a small section of the base for themselves since the USAF was now an active part of the war effort in the region, but otherwise the whole district was more or less back in Japanese hands.
This was very apparent to Yvonne as she watched her surroundings go by while the small jeep travelled towards its destination. Years ago, this was the home port of Carrier Strike Group Five, a fleet with enough military power to challenge entire countries.
Now, the only thing left that indicated that the USS Ronald Regan was ever here was the odd signpost in English that the JSDF hasn't taken down in the district's remodelling.
"You've been awfully quiet, there," Matsuda asked in Japanese from the driver's seat, "You okay?"
"Sorry, it's just… it's hard to take in how much we've lost," Yvonne replied in the language. "We used to be all over this place, but now it's like we were never here."
"Yeah, Carrier Group Five. Went down swinging against an Abyssal battlegroup thrice their size, when they refused to abandon a passenger ship full of refugees," Matsuda shook his head sadly.
Yvonne closed her eyes and grit her teeth, fighting back the anger she felt towards the Abyssal fleet for that massacre. Her anger was tempered with the feelings of pride at the bravery and courage of her countrymen, but this didn't change the fact that good people had died because of those monsters.
Yvonne's discomfort must have been apparent, as Matsuda quickly took it upon himself to change the subject.
"So, you're not going to ask about Tenryuu or what?" Matsuda inclined his head towards where the ship girl sat in the back seat. Tenryuu was leaning against the window with a bored expression, the kind that indicated just how little she cared about being there, "Most people get quite excited when they meet their first Kanmusu."
"No problem, just pretend I'm not here. I just carried your bags for you and all that," Tenryuu snarked grumpily, earning a reproachful look from Matsuda in the front seat.
"Oh, uh, sorry," Yvonne said abashedly.
She'd been so caught up in her own thoughts that she'd neglected to thank Tenryuu for helping her with her luggage, because she had been so focused on the base itself.
Now that she had realized this though, Yvonne was getting a distinctly uncomfortable feeling at allowing Tenryuu to be right behind her.
This was going to be a problem.
"Fufufu, ya scared?" Tenryuu chuckled upon noticing Yvonne's silence.
"Not really. Just kind of overwhelmed by everything that's all," Yvonne recovered smoothly. "Besides, no offense, but compared to Abyssals you look kind of… normal? Does that make any sense?"
"Che. Admiral, this is a waste of time. Why do we have to be the one to drag this Yankee over to the base anyway?" Tenryuu groused lazily. "There could be so many other important things we could be doing with our time. I mean c'mon, I could be training or something, not playing a bellhop."
"Tenryuu! She is a guest. Watch your tone."
"Yeah, yeah. I'll shut up. Going to take a nap, so wake me when we get there." Tenryuu leaned back, and within moments was out like a light.
"Bad subordinate?" Yvonne said to Matsuda in a hushed tone.
"Temperamental. Very good at her job though, and she's invaluable in keeping the kids in line," Matsuda explained with a sigh. "This was not what I expected to be doing when I received my commission."
"I can relate. So… Admiral, huh?" Yvonne quickly glanced at Matsuda's insignia and confirmed that the man she was with was indeed a mere O-3. There was probably a story behind that, hopefully one less morbid than how she had come into her own rank.
"Little cultural quick all our Kanmusu have. If you're their commanding officer, you're an Admiral to them regardless as to what rank you really are," Matsuda clarified. "It helps that most people that are in charge of them are really Admirals, but on occasion you get an officer like me who's put in command of a few Kanmusu because of efficiency or necessity."
"Yeah, so how did you wind up in charge of her then?"
"Expeditionary force: basically I'm in charge of logistics, and since I work with Destroyer Division Six, so much they ended up putting me in command of them to save me the run around, and it pretty much went from there. Now I have two light cruisers and four destroyers under my command. Well, one cruiser and four destroyers: Tatsuta's over in the United States at the moment as part of our detachment at San Diego. Normally I have her as my de-facto secretary ship, but since she's on the other side of the Pacific at the moment, well… we make do."
"Sounds like you lucked out."
"More or less. So, Commander, huh?"
Yvonne couldn't help but give an amused huff. This guy had a bit of snark of his own. The pair quieted as they had arrived outside at a large imposing building that was clearly the main headquarters of the base. Pulling into the driveway, Matsuda stopped to allow Yvonne to disembark.
"Thanks for the ride."
"Don't worry about your bags, we've already assigned a room to you so I'll have 'em sent there. Just go straight to the lobby and take the elevator to the Admiral's office on the top floor, you can't miss it." Matsuda helpfully directed her.
"Thanks for that."
"It's not a problem. Call me if you need anything, Commander," Matsuda said, before taking off.
-=-
"Commander Yvonne Swanson, reporting to Yokosuka Naval Base, as ordered."
Yvonne announced as she smartly saluted the man before her. The Admiral, seated behind his desk, simply nodded as he skimmed through her papers and acknowledged what was in them while she waited patiently for him to finish.
"So, a mission to discover the origin of the Abyssal Fleet? And you are all they sent?" The weathered old soldier looked up at Yvonne with curiosity.
"We are very shorthanded right now, sir."
"Shorthanded as the US Navy is, I am sure that they could have sent more given the significance of this mission," the Admiral noted manner of factly. "Sending a girl of your age alone to take care of a task of monumental as this either speaks of desperation, or of your ability. I wonder if it is the former, or the latter. How do you intend to succeed, where so many others have failed?"
"The outline of my mission, as well as its specifics, have been outlined in detail with the brief included with my transfer papers, sir."
"I am aware of that, but some parts of this briefing have been redacted."
"My methods are classified, sir. I have been instructed to keep them on a strict need to know basis. I can, however, assure you that I am confident in my success," Yvonne replied smoothly.
The Admiral raised a curious eyebrow, seemingly both intrigued and taken aback by the confidence and oddity of her reply. "That is an interesting reply, Commander."
"It's the only reply I am authorized to give, Admiral."
"Indeed. Military intelligence… always so vexing." The Admiral set her papers down. "Your orders come with the approval of the Chief of Naval Operations himself, so I see little reason to hold you for longer than I already have. I will call my assistant to show you to your quarters."
"Thank you, sir."
"Welcome to Yokosuka Naval Base, Commander Swanson."
-=-
When the Admiral's secretary showed up, Yvonne was quite surprised to find that the aide to the most senior officer on the base was, in fact, a ship girl.
"My name is the battleship Nagato, I am the Admiral's secretary ship." The long haired beauty gave a respectful bow to Yvonne, who had been waiting outside the Admiral's office for her escort. "I welcome you to Yokosuka Naval Base, Commander Swanson. It is an honour to have you in our base."
"It's… an honour to be here?" Yvonne said.
That feeling that uncomfortable feeling she had from Tenryuu returned, this time tenfold.
Yvonne knew how irrational the feeling was, but allowing one of the most powerful big gun warships ever built so close to her person, full in the knowledge that Nagato had enough firepower to level the entire building, if not the entire base, was a terrifying prospect.
She felt so naked alone without someone with her.
Good god, she'd only met two Japanese ship girls so far and already she felt like running to Dakota and O'Bannon for help.
Maybe they were right; this wasn't such a good idea after all.
"I am making you uncomfortable."
"Not… not a problem," Yvonne squelched down on her discomfort with her considerable force of will and successfully regained her composure. Get a hold of yourself woman, she chided herself. "Sorry, but this is all very new to me. I haven't met many Kanmusu before. My experience with this sort of thing has been mostly with the Abyssals until now."
Nagato seemed to study Yvonne with interest. It seemed that the battleship wasn't about to let the issue drop without one final push. Thankfully, Yvonne knew exactly what to say to that.
"…I was at Pearl."
"Oh. I see. You have my condolences, then." Nagato winced sympathetically.
"Could have been worse. I could have been at Norfolk," Yvonne grunted sourly as she recalled the horror stories. A good portion of the fleet had been docked in there for repairs when it had happened. Poor bastards hadn't even gotten the chance to prepare before the Abyssals stormed in and turned the whole place into a charnel house.
"Then do not worry, Commander. We are nothing like the Abyssals. You will have nothing to fear from any who serve. In fact, take comfort in our presence: each and every Kanmusu on this base would lay down their lives before allowing you to come to harm."
"Well hopefully that won't be necessary."
"Indeed. Shall we?"
With that the two women walked through the winding halls of Yokosuka's main HQ. Nagato proceeded to give Yvonne a brief tour of the building, pointing out where all the basic facilities were or anything that might be of interest to Yvonne, before showing the American to the guest quarters they had set up for her.
One thing that caught Yvonne's attention was just how empty the building was.
Unlike Naval Station Everett where she had been stationed previously, Yokosuka base seemed to be operating on a skeleton crew. There were people around of course, they encountered the odd officer here and there, on their tour, but it was far less than even what Yvonne had been used to. When asked about it, Nagato was all too willing to explain.
"The Admiralty prefers to keep us Kanmusu segregated from the regular troops, because it makes people uncomfortable to know that we are fighting in their place. As such this base is operating on essential support personnel for us Kanmusu only. Aside from the helicopter destroyer Izumo and the guided missile destroyer Mirai, which both are operating at a reduced crew on the south quarter of the base, the majority of our conventional fighting strength has been relocated to Maizuru."
"Wise choice," Yvonne agreed.
After the absolute bloodbaths that were Pearl Harbor and Norfolk, several navies had opted to relocate their conventional fighting strength to safer waters, away from large oceans where the Abyssals seemed be coming from. Sure, it meant that those ships would have to take a considerably longer route to get to the engagement zone, but the added safety was well worth the inconvenience. It wasn't as if conventional forces where that effective anymore, now that the ship girls were on the scene anyway.
If she remembered her geography correctly, Maizuru was facing away from the Pacific Ocean towards Russian waters, and thus would be less vulnerable to attacks from the Abyssals coming in from the south-east. Even if it were to be attacked, they would have at least some advance warning to prepare defences, or at worst case, evacuate.
"Can't imagine it was easy fitting all your ships in Maizuru though."
"Not much left to fit. We lost half our surface fleet before we Kanmusu were developed. Nowhere near what your Navy has lost, but still not an inconsiderable amount. Those Abyssasls will pay for that they have done," Nagato glowered darkly.
"Amen to that."
"Ohy, Nagato!" A cheery voice interrupted the pair mid tour. Both Yvonne and Nagato turned to regard an excitable brown haired young girl in a white shrine maiden's outfit, at least what Yvonne thought was a shrine maiden's outfit, that was bounding down the hallway towards them.
"Hey! This must be the American girl I've been hearing so much about! IT IS NI-CE TO MEET YOU. HOW ARE YOU DO-ING! WELCOME TO YOKOSUKA."
What.
"Kongo, I see you have returned from your mission. I trust it went well."
Jesus Christ, not another battleship.
"YES. I, Kongo, completely dominated the enemy with my BURNING LOVE for the Admiral. He was most PLEASED with my performance!" Kongo animatedly clenched her hand to display her unbridled passion, something that went directly over Yvonne and Nagato's heads. "But enough about me, this is the American who's come from abroad to help us? GOOD DAY MY NEW FRIEND! HUGS!"
Then Kongo scooped Yvonne up in a big bear hug, a true feat considering Yvonne was at least a head and a half taller than the Kongo, causing the American to go completely rigid in the excitable battleship's arms.
Yvonne had been already uncomfortable by just being near Nagato.
Getting hugged by Kongo was enough to make the Naval intelligence officer's every thought process come to a screeching halt.
"Eep," Yvonne squeaked.
Nagato, having buried her face into her hands, seemed to be on the verge of weeping, before she turned to Yvonne and gave a low sigh. "Kongo…"
"MY NAME IS KONGO, NAME SHIP OF THE KONGO CLASS. I COME FROM ENG-LAND. WHAT IS YO-UR NAME? WOULD YOU LIKE SOME TEA?"
"She can speak Japanese, Kongo."
"Please… let me have some personal space," Yvonne struggled out, wondering if it was just her imagination that her ribs felt like they was cracking under the crushing embrace of the fast battleship Kongo. Holy shit, this girl was strong. Thankfully for Yvonne's lungs, Kongo released her, allowing Yvonne to lean against a nearby wall to catch her breath.
"Ah, SORRY," Kongo said, cheerfully apologetic.
"Kongo, she is a foreign officer of the United States Navy and a guest. Please try not to embarrass us completely and show some tact," Nagato rebuked sternly. Kongo gave a nervous laugh having realized she may have been a little too excited about Yvonne's arrival.
"It's fine Nagato. I'm not hurt or anything,." Yvonne said as she caught herself. "It's nice to meet you Kongo. I did some research before coming here, and it is an honour to meet one of the more decorated members of the ship girl fleet."
"HA! Yes, so you have heard of me! GOOD JOB!" Kongo beamed happily at the praise. "Anyway, GREAT that America is finally joining the fight. So, which ship are you?"
Yvonne groaned.
"Oh, not this again."
"Kongo, please, we've been over this." Nagato sighed.
"Which ship? America has so many cool ships I, Kongo, can't even begin to guess who you are!" The brunette continued undeterred, "I'm sure they brought back their best. So? WHO ARE YOU? Are you the Iowa? Wait NO! She's still afloat as a museum ship… Missouri! Wait no, that's not it either. Houston? Hm, no REACTION. Pennsylvania? No. Arizona? Hm, not her either. AH, YES! With that flight deck chest as flat as yours, you must be-"
"Commander Yvonne Swanson, United States Navy, Office of Naval Intelligence," Yvonne said sharply. "I was sent here to discover the origins of the Abyssal fleet."
There was silence as Yvonne allowed this to sink into Kongo's brain. It almost made Yvonne guilty to see the disappointment fall over the excitable girl's features, as she understood the full ramifications of what Yvonne was saying.
"I'm sorry to disappoint you," she added
"You're not a Kanmusu?" Kongo said in a tone reminiscent of a kicked puppy.
"Would a ship girl be working for naval intelligence?"
"Kongo, we've been over this," Nagato cut in to spare Yvonne the trouble. "The American Navy was decimated by the Abyssals, trying to hold the line while we were being trained. At the moment they're still in the process of rebuilding their fighting strength. They can't help us just yet."
"You mean the official story is right? I thought that was just the American President telling fibs," Kongo sighed. "Man, SO DISSAPOINTING."
"If it helps, when we do eventually get some ship girls ready to help you out, Yokosuka is at the top of the list for places that are going to be reinforced," Yvonne placated her. "The JSDF has been kind enough to station a task group at San Diego. The least we could do is pay you back when we get the chance."
"Oh, SORRY. I didn't mean any offense. I was just so excited since I thought I was finally going to meet some new friends," Kongo hung her head apologetically. "I've been reading up on history and the US Navy had some of the most POWERFUL ships in the war. SO COOL! If we had them fighting with us, this war would be over in no time."
Yvonne couldn't help but agree with that.
-=-
"This is your room, Commander Swanson."
Yvonne's first impression of the room was that it was nice, if in a humble cosy sort of way. Certainly better than her old accommodations back in Everett, but then again back then she wasn't a Commander. It was modest room, sporting a single bed, a cupboard a desk and a chair, but the make of the furniture and the nice view afforded by the single window overlooking the base made it feel more like a hotel room than assigned quarters that apparently doubled as her personal office.
As promised by Matsuda, Yvonne noted that her effects had been left at the foot of the single bed in the corner of the room.
"Thanks for showing me around, Nagato," Yvonne said as she walked over to her duffel bags to begin the process of unpacking.
"The Admiral has nothing for you for the rest of the day. It has been decided to allow you a day to overcome your jet lag and get settled in," Nagato said from where she stood at the doorway, "He has advised me that from tomorrow onwards you will be assigned an aide to assist you in your duties as you see fit. While you are a foreign officer, please remember that this is a Japanese Naval facility and you are to adhere to all our rules and customs as required…"
And the lecture went on.
Wow, what a square.
Even so, as a representative of the US Navy, Yvonne did the honourable thing and listened to Nagato as she continued on about protocol and discipline for some time. Thankfully, the impromptu lecture was 'only' for about ten minutes or so, and soon the secretary ship turned to other matters.
"I will see to it that Kongo is reprimanded for her actions," Nagato noted once she had finished, "What she did was impolite, and an embarrassment to our Navy. I will see to it that the Admiral knows about this. On behalf of the Japanese Navy, I offer you our sincerest apologies over what inconvenience she may have caused you."
"Hey, I told you not to worry about it," Yvonne insisted, with a wave of her hand. "Look, there's no need to go bother the Admiral. It's actually nice to have met someone who was so friendly like Kongo. I was actually a little worried that my reception on the base would be a little, well, cold. I don't think it'll do me any favour making enemies on my first day here."
Nagato shifted on her feet awkwardly.
Oh, that wasn't a good sign.
"…Yes, it might be wise to remain on Kongo's good side. Very well, if that is your order, I will not tell the Admiral, just this once. Any other breach in protocol after this will be dealt with, however."
"I sense there is something else you want to say?"
"You will find that Kongo is a… minority on this base," Nagato stated carefully, with tactfully chosen words. "Many of our comrades are not as understanding of the current plight of the US Navy and feel affronted that you have not produced Kanmusu of your own yet. Some of your Navy's more vocal critics will not take your arrival to Yokosuka very well."
"I see." This was upsetting, but not something Yvonne hadn't foreseen before coming.
While the rest of the world's navies had solidly established their ship girl fleets, to the point where the Italians had already certified that the Mediterranean was Abyssal-free, the United States was lagging behind. It wasn't surprising that this was the case; a quarter million casualties, the destruction of the Atlantic and Pacific fleets and two of their largest installations wasn't something that the Navy could recover from quickly.
It was so bad that most of the Navy's operations for the last nine months were centred on trying to assess just how much they had lost and tallying the death toll. Reconstruction efforts had only just begun. Going from the most powerful blue water navy to what they were now was traumatizing to everyone wearing Yvonne's uniform.
Most, even those who had been formerly critical of the US Navy's power, understood. It had been the US Navy that had held the line while everyone else struggled to find a solution. After all they had been through, after all their blood, sweat and tears, the US Navy deserved some slack.
Unfortunately, there were always detractors who wanted to know why the exhausted remnants of the once proud United States Navy weren't doing more by throwing themselves back into the fray. Most of these detractors were politicians, civilian commentators… and ironically enough, many ship girls of foreign powers, who couldn't appreciate what the conventional forces had suffered holding out against the Abyssal threat.
"Many of our Kanmusu are young and don't fully understand how much this war as cost us, or more precisely has cost your nation," Nagato informed her. "As secretary ship, I do. However, most Kanmusu just live day by day and battle by battle. They don't see the bigger picture and can't understand why America hasn't joined in the fight yet. That, with the stresses from their battles, may mean you will find many = who will voice their displeasure to you."
"I understand. This was is hard on all of them, especially since they're the ones who have to fight it now. I won't fault them for it, " Yvonne replied.
"…Thank you for being so understanding. You are truly a credit to the uniform you wear," Nagato said with a hint of awe at Yvonne's equanimity, genuine respect in her eyes. "If that is all, I will leave you to unpack."
"Yeah, no problem."
"We will assign a permanent liaison to you. Until that time, I will attend to your needs. As a member of the Admiral's staff, I stay in a room further down the hall, next to the Admiral's office. It can be identified by the name plate. My sister, Mutsu, rooms with me. Do not hesitate to call upon Mutsu or myself if you require anything."
"Fine, thank you." Great. Two battleships. Just dandy.
"You can also go to the room next to yours if you wish. If she is in, Yamato would be happy to attend to you if you need anything, since her schedule normally leaves her available."
"Okay. Got it-wait, what? YAMATO?"
Jesus-fucking-Christ, where are all these battleships forming from?
-=-
"Yes Admiral, I see. Thank you. I'll do my best. Goodbye."
Given that she hadn't brought much in the way of personal effects with her, it didn't take Yvonne very long to unpack her effects and arrange the small room to her liking. After that, she'd slipped away to the former US section of the base.
Effectively abandoned by both the US and Japan, this gave her a bit more privacy to freely use some special ONI equipment she'd brought along… like the encrypted satellite phone she'd used to call Admiral Briggs and let him know that she was alright. It wasn't strictly necessary, since she'd already left a message with his secretary shortly before seeing the Japanese Admiral, but given how much he'd helped her out, she thought he'd appreciate the call.
As it turned out, he did.
"I can't believe he waited until 1 in the morning for me." She'd forgotten the time difference between Yokosuka and Washington D.C. and had been slightly embarrassed to discover that, especially when Briggs revealed that he had stayed up with worry just waiting for her to check in.
A four star admiral, worrying about lil' ol' her.
How embarrassing.
Well, she had one more call to make, and if her calculations weren't off it shouldn't be that late over in Seattle. Punching the number into the phone, Yvonne patiently waited for the operator to pick up.
"Naval Station Everett-"
"Naval Station Everett? This is Commander Swanson for Advanced Naval Weapons Research and Development. I wish to speak with Lieutenant Dakota Leigh Gatch."
"Oh, E-um, Commander Swanson! She's been waiting for your call all night. I'll put you through to them right away!"
It didn't take very long for the operator to transfer Yvonne's call to the newest and most secretive division. When the line next picked up it was the familiar voice of one of Yvonne's oldest friends.
"Calling over an unsecured line? You make for a lousy spook, Swanson."
"Oh put a sock in it, Dakota." Yvonne chuckled just picturing her bookish friend on the other end of the line. Knowing Lieutenant Dakota Leigh Gatch, she was probably multitasking at the moment, likely reading a book or watching the news while talking over the phone, all at the same time.
"So did I win the bet?"
"Oh, yeah. Yeah you did," Yvonne sighed as she ran a hand across her forehead, "I kid you not; they got me in the room right next to Yamato. So yes, I sure as hell wish I hadn't been so stubborn and let you come along. I could use you as a meat shield right about now."
There was a slight pause.
"…okay, now I'm thankful I didn't. Being in so close proximity to those eighteen inchers? I'd need a clean change of pants. Sucks to be you, my friend."
"I haven't met her yet, though, but I sure as hell am not looking forward to the experience," Yvonne grumbled, "You called it. I bit off more than I could chew by coming to Japan on my own."
If Yvonne's reactions to Nagato or Kongo were anything to go by, she was probably going to faint dead away at meeting the most powerful battleship ever built. Her friends, the people Yvonne normally leaned on for support, were an ocean away.
Without them, she felt exposed, vulnerable, especially now that she was a stranger in a strange land, surrounded by unfamiliar people.
But then again, maybe they'd be in the same boat: all of them fainting dead away one after another like a bunch of falling dominos.
Freaking Yamato.
Yeah, actually, that's probably what would happen. So much for the US Navy's best and brightest.
"So what's happening back over there? Anything to report?" Yvonne asked as she filed away that amusing thought for another day.
"You know the story. Same shit, different day. Politicians spinning their wheels, Navy planners going apeshit over the amount of things needing to be done and not enough stuff to actually do it… the works," Dakota complained gruffly.
"I thought you guys were working with DARPA?"
"Please. We have the toys, but can't play with them. Do you have any idea how boring that is?" Dakota sighed "The whole budget's been going into reactivating that old carrier they dug up."
"They greenlighted recommissioning the Kitty Hawk?"
Yvonne ran her free hand down the side of her face. The USS Kitty Hawk had been decommissioned for years and had been languishing as a museum in Pensacola, Florida. However, with the loss of nearly all their aircraft carriers Yvonne had been aware that there had been a movement in the Navy to find, overhaul and recommission any still seaworthy ship to replace their losses… even ones as old as the Kitty Hawk. She'd personally thought those guys were out of their minds, especially since the Navy should have been using their limited resources elsewhere, but apparently some guys on high really couldn't picture a US Navy without aircraft carriers.
"Oh, yeah. Sandy is over there helping out. Said something about not trusting anyone else with proper anti air, whatever that means, and then off she went. I don't think it was everything she expected though."
"She's not the only one. This wasn't what I expected to be doing when I got out of training." Yvonne grumbled.
"I don't think any of us expected this when we got out of training," Dakota laughed, "Well at least you're doing something. I spend most of my day brainstorming new ideas and staring at blueprints that we can't actually build. Navy Intelligence gets to do all the awesome shit, Sandy's working with that carrier, and I don't think O'Bannon's had a day off since she started with the Seabees."
Yvonne couldn't help but roll her eyes at Dakota's misconceptions about the Office of Naval Intelligence. The master of multitasking had clearly been watching too many tv shows and had gotten the wrong idea about what ONI actually did. "Any word on Tresh?"
"Probably gone off to work with getting the submarine fleet back up and running, but you know her. She's not exactly the social type," Dakota said jokingly. However what she said next took on a very different tone. "Hey, Yvonne. Are you sure you're over there alone? It's just you over there along with every Japanese ship in the war. You could always come back, you know?"
Yvonne stayed silent for a while as she contemplated how to reply. Dakota had disagreed with her rather vehemently over Yvonne's instance on going to Japan. She was alone, surrounded by ship girls and no friends in sight.
"I wouldn't have come halfway around the world if I wasn't serious, Dakota," Yvonne replied with a sigh. "I can't just sit around anymore and hope things get better. At least this way, I can be useful. I can do something worthwhile."
"Stubborn as a bull, as always," Dakota sighed. "Well, if that's the way you want to play it, go right ahead… but for god's sake, you call me if shit hits the fan, alright? The whole gang will be over there before you know it to bail your sorry ass out."
"Yeah, I got that. Thanks mom,"
-=-
With the only remaining obligations she had for the day done, Yvonne had just focused on getting readjusted to her new surroundings, the time difference between Yokosuka and Seattle was quite significant, and by late-afternoon when she finally returned back to the Japanese ship girl portion of the base, Yvonne was feeling very drowsy.
Still, the best advice she had been given about jetlag was to stay hydrated, keep herself active and adjust to her new schedule, so Yvonne did the only thing that came to mind – go for a drink.
For off-duty personnel at Yokosuka, Houshou's café was the place to be.
Owned and operated by a retired 'decommissioned' ship girl, a true rarity considering how new they were as a whole, the café catered almost exclusively to the Kanmusu of Yokosuka and what few support personnel they had on the base proper.
Nevertheless, its fame reached the ears of jealous USAF and USN personnel who had their access restricted from going anywhere near it given how touchy the Japanese were about their ship girls, something that the American brass had apparently agreed with. If the access to the base wasn't so heavily restricted, the place would probably be the next big tourist hotspot.
Given that Yvonne was apparently one of the few US Navy officers to whom the restrictions didn't apply to, she decided that, on behalf of the entire service, it was her sworn duty to go where no American had gone before and see what the fuss was about.
And so it was that Yvonne Swanson walked through the doors of the café. It was a modest establishment that couldn't play host to more than a dozen patrons, but its small size simply created an air of homeliness that Yvonnne found pleasant. The time of the day Yvonne had chosen to visit also meant the place was more or less empty.
Behind a kitchen counter was the owner herself, Houshou, the ship sometimes referred to as the 'mother of all aircraft carriers'.
"Oh! You must be the American that I heard would be coming!" Houshou, a matronly woman in a pink kimono, turned from where she had been washing some dishes to give Yvonne a warm smile. "Please take a seat, I'll be right with you."
"Don't mind if I do," Yvonne said as chose one at the counter. "With how famous this place is, I thought there would be more people here."
"You probably don't know this, but the Admiral suddenly called for a large meeting that all Kanmusu and support personnel had to attend." Houshou finished cleaning the dishes and dried her hands on a nearby towel. "He probably heard about you getting accosted by Kongo and decided that they needed another prep talk."
"Wait, what? I thought I told Nagato-"
"Don't worry. The Admiral found out about it from Kongo herself. I know you tried covering for her, but that child is honest as they come," Houshou laughed in the same way a proud mother would when recounting the mischief of her children to a friend, "Don't worry, she won't get angry. I think she was actually worried that she offended you or something and went to the Admiral for help."
Yvonne shook her head in disbelief. Fast battleship Kongo, one of the most famous warships of World War 2… it boggled the mind that the girl had ended up becoming such a klutz.
A loveable klutz, but a klutz nonetheless.
"It is so rare to get new patrons. May I know the name of the person I am speaking to?" Houshou produced a menu for Yvonne, who graciously accepted it.
"Commander Yvonne Swanson. United States Navy Office of Naval Intelligence," Yvonne introduced herself politely.
"I see. I am pleased to meet you, Commander," Houshou bowed politely from behind the counter. "My name is Houshou, light aircraft carrier and proprietor of this café. Retired, of course."
"If you don't mind me asking, what's the story behind that?"
Kanmusu were very new, having been only having actually been fighting for the past year or so due to training requirements, so coming across one that was retired was a surprise indeed. Houshou was also a carrier, a rare and expensive commodity, even despite her outdated technology compared to other Kanmusu. Her having retired to what was more or less civilian life was a puzzle that Yvonne couldn't pass up.
"Well, I was the first aircraft carrier Kanmusu," Houshou explained with a nostalgic smile. "While officially we Kanmusu did not actively begin operations against the Abyssals until a year ago, the JMSDF had actually started using small groups of us in limited numbers well before that.
"Really? That's news to me." Yvonne said with some surprise.
The public reveal of the Kanmusu by Japan was only about a year ago, and it had taken the world by storm. The remnants of the US fleet had been fleeing the burning inferno Pearl Harbour, their battered hulls packed full of refugees from Honolulu. With escape to the mainland United States deemed too dangerous, given that they had learned Norfolk had been attacked at around the same time, they had instead chosen to make best speed for an allied port in the Philippines, thinking it the safer option. It had been the wrong decision.
They had come under attack from Abyssals halfway there. Exhausted, demoralized and low on supplies and munitions, there wasn't a thing the convoy could do but look out at the approaching storm and wait for death. Then, just as things had seemed hopeless, their miraculous saviours had appeared - war goddesses riding the waves, slaying those demonic monsters and saving the lives of every man, woman and child in the flotilla.
Safe to say, it was generally agreed by the world's populace that ship girls were pretty hard to miss.
"Unfortunately most of what we did were sea trials and tests. We were new weapons and people were still trying to get an idea on how to use us, so there wasn't much we could do," Houshou admitted sadly. "Back then, there were just ten of us separated into two battlegroups: plenty of younger girls were in training, but only ten of us were actually seaworthy at the time."
"I see."
"I really wanted to help you know," she sighed forlornly a shadow of guilt cast over her features falling into memory, "It was tough waking up every morning to hear news reports of how your people were fighting and dying while being unable to do anything because we just weren't ready. When I heard about the Battle of the Bering-"
"Coffee."
"Excuse me?" Houshou blinked as she looked at Yvonne, who was now pointing at an item on the menu. "I'd like some coffee. Black. Strong as you can make it."
"Oh. Oh! I'll get right on it, Miss Swanson!"
Houshou quickly gathered herself and went about satisfying Yvonne's orders, not noting the understanding look of pity Yvonne was giving her as she did so.
-=-
"…so after that, with Akagi and Kaga ready for battle and with my injuries making it difficult to hold a bow, it was decided that that I should retire. Maintaining an obsolete carrier when resources are so thin isn't cheap. So after I was decommissioned and had my equipment scrapped, the Admiral was kind enough to offer me this building so I could say close to my girls and support them as best I could out of respect for my years of service. So, now here I am, proprietor of this café."
Houshou finished her tale just as Yvonne had finished her cup of coffee.
"That's quite an adventure you've had, Houshou. I had no idea that there had been so much fighting before you went public."
"Well, as I said, it was mostly small skirmishes as field tests. Nothing quite like the battles that are happening these days. We only picked fights we knew were in our favour and left most of the heavy lifting to the regulars," Houshou replied modestly.
To be honest Yvonne felt Houshou was selling herself short: the matronly woman before her was a pioneer that paved the way for every other ship girl that came after her. Maybe she was right in that she only fought in battles stacked in her favour, but she had also been doing so using untested equipment and tactics. In Yvonne's opinion, going into battle with that kind of the risk involved made Houshou even more courageous than many of the still serving girls.
"How did you manage to fly under the radar for so long anyway?" Yvonne asked with great interest, "You said you worked with researchers for years before announcing your existence. How'd you manage to blend with normal humans in so well?"
"Do we ship girls really stand out that much?" Houshou said.
"Well, from the few I've met so far, let's just say they stand out in a crowd. No offence, but you're the first one that I've met so far that could pass for a normal person."
Yvonne couldn't help wonder how Houshou had managed to remain secret for so long, especially after meeting Tenryuu, Nagato and Kongo. Every single one of those girls dressed flamboyantly and carried personalities to match. More than that, just being around them caused Yvonne to feel like there was an incredible weight to their very presence.
All this was missing from Houshou, who by all appearances seemed to be a normal woman. If Yvonne hadn't already known who Houshou was, she'd likely have just pegged the café owner as 'that nice lady who runs that shop' and left it at that. What was her secret?
"Well, the younger generation certainly like being as flamboyant as they can be!" Houshou giggled in that matronly way again. "Well to be honest, it's simple really. Take away the uniform, our rigging and equipment, and we're just ordinary human beings that just so happen to have the souls of warships in our bodies. Unless we're deliberately trying to make our presence felt as warships, it's quite easy to blend in if you don't try anything to outrageous."
"Really? That's it? I thought there would be more to it," Yvonne said, with some disappointment.
When the Japanese had unveiled their Kanmusu, their secret weapon that they had managed to develop while the US Navy was bust getting pounded, it was entirely to the surprise of the Office of Naval Intelligence: to this day it had been a sore point for them that they hadn't even caught of whiff of what the Japanese had been doing, and that this war winning development had happened entirely without their knowledge… let alone with actual sea trials dating back well before their most conservative estimates!
Granted ONI had their attention elsewhere at the time, but it still stung.
Maybe it was all in the past, the secret was out so there was no point in fussing over it now that there were more pressing matters to attend to, but many of the surviving members of ONI still felt that it was a blow to their professional pride. As such, Yvonne felt like she had to ask this, for her office's sake at very least.
"There really isn't. I do have some supernatural powers that allow people to feel that I am more than human, but as long as I don't do that well… I'm just little old Houshou that owns a café."
"Really? What about those little people you girls have?" Yvonne tried making an appropriate gesture with her hands. "What do you call them? Fairies? I heard Carriers like bringing lots of them everywhere they go. That has to be a bit conspicuous, don't you think?"
"Oh my, whatever gave you that idea?" Houshou giggled, "Why, I just left my fairies back at the base whenever I had to leave for outside business so I didn't stand out. Simple as that. Really, if you want any more proof, just look at me now!"
Well, Houshou did have a point there.
"Well darn, many of the boys back home are going to feel really silly when they hear about that. I was so sure you had some hocus pocus card trick up your sleeve," Yvonne grumbled.
"If it helps, the prototype Kanmusu all dressed much more conservatively than they do now." Houshou motioned down at what she was wearing. "I think most of the younger girls dress the way they do as a show of solidarity. At least… I hope so."
"Yeah, some of the stuff they're wearing is kind of… odd." Yvonne sighed.
"I could give you some tips on how to deal with being around the active duty Kanmusu," Houshou offered, "I know it can be a bit overwhelming to a first timer at being around them. We do bear the weight of history on our shoulders, and some people have trouble with dealing with that."
"Nah. Thanks for the offer, but I'm good." Yvonne said. Despite what had happened with her run ins with Tenryuu, Nagato and Kongo earlier, the problem wasn't so much that Yvonne was unused to ship girls. Rather, that Yvonne was alone and next to THOSE ship girls.
Light cruiser and two battleships. Freaking hell, why couldn't she have run into some destroyers or something?
"I'm very used to having friends with me. It's been that way for a while now," Yvonne informed the matronly woman before her, "They're my safety blanket so to speak. My armour. Without them, well to be perfectly frank, I feel exposed."
"…I'm not sure what to say about that." Honshu replied with a look of pity.
Houshou probably drew the conclusion that Yvonne was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, and had used being with others as a way to cope. It was a reasonable conclusion; practically everyone in the US Navy with more than two years' experience knew someone who had died, and that had left plenty of people suffering from PTSD from the horrors they had seen.
"If that's the cause, you shouldn't push yourself." Houshou said concernedly. "I can only guess what it must have been like for you, but…"
"Hey, it's fine. MO gave me a clean bill of health before I even left the base," Yvonne said. "But we're so short-handed I felt I was being a burden. They were needed elsewhere, and I figured Yokosuka was a friendly port, so I took this assignment to go cold turkey on my needy ways."
"This is pretty extreme way of going cold turkey."
"Well, that's what it means. You don't do things in half measures, you know?" The pair shared one final laugh before Yvonne pushed herself off her seat, deposited the payment of yen down on the countertop. "Thanks for the coffee. It was great."
"It was my pleasure. Feel free to come again," Houshou said, but then paused as she considered something, "Commander Swanson. A question, if I may?
"Go right ahead. I'm not in a particular hurry to get anywhere."
"I know you probably get asked this a lot, but since you're with Naval Intelligence, do you know when the USN will be starting up their ship girl program?"
Upon noticing Yvonne's face darkening with irritation at having being asked that same question again on the same day, Houshou quickly amended her statement.
"I mean, I know the USN is in the process of rebuilding their forces so it might be some time until you will be able to, but I would like to know if there's an estimate you can give me," Houshou asked. "Also, if you can tell me, do you know which ships will the Navy try to bring back first?"
Okay this was slightly different. Houshou was clearly looking for something far more specific now instead of a general ballpark figure. "Why do you ask?"
"Well, as I told you earlier, I personally trained both Akagi and Kaga. I know they've physically not that much younger than I am, but I think of them as my daughters," Houshou explained, motherly concern apparent in her eyes. "They're very brave and I'm very proud of what they're doing, but I can't help but worry about them. They carry such a heavy burden, and I sometimes wish there was someone who can help them shoulder it."
A lump settled in Yvonne's stomach as she listened to Houshou's words. She could see where this was going.
"You are looking for someone," Yvonne surmised, fighting to keep her feelings in check. "You don't just want the US Navy to have ship girls… you want them to have a specific one."
"Yes I am," Houshou replied, "Please, Commander. Do you know when the US Navy plans to bring back the Enterprise?"
"You, light carrier Houshou, the one called the 'mother of all aircraft-carriers', are hoping that the USS Enterprise would take to the field as a ship girl," Yvonne stated bluntly with a frown. "Why?"
Houshou nodded and explained herself.
"Among us aircraft carriers, none have won more renown then the Enterprise. Even though we were on opposite sides of the war and even if some would not openly do so out of pride, I can tell you that many of us carriers regard her as the greatest of our number. Maybe there were others later in the war that were larger, more powerful or advanced… but none were braver, determined or more corageous. If she was with Akagi and Kaga, I would feel much better," Houshou said, the quiver in her voice at the fear for her daughters mixed with the reverence she had for the most decorated aircraft carrier, hell, most decorated US Navy warship, to ever exist.
"You speak of her as if she was a hero," Yvonne stated evenly.
"She is. One of the best," Houshou replied with lowered eyes. "I think you would agree that in times like these, heroes are what we need."
"…I see."
"Do you… know when she will come?"
Yvonne couldn't help but hide her clenched fist behind her back, venting her anguish and frustration in private, cursing herself all the while. She looked Houshou in the eye, and told the first lie she truly regretted making that day.
"I'm sorry, Houshou. But I don't."
-=-
Even though she had spent hours at Houshou's café, it was still light out by the time Yvonne returned to her room. Her previous good mood at having made a friend in the café owner had evaporated, and had been replaced with revulsion and self-loathing. Yvonne practically stormed all the way back from the café into her room, ingoing the few surprised looks from the few she had passed along the way, and securely locked the door behind her as she did so.
Yvonne wasn't really one to vent. She prided herself on her composure and professionalism as befitting of an officer and gentlewoman of the United States Navy.
But thinking back to Houshou's earnest pleading look and having to give that bald faced lie was too much for even her to take. Throwing herself down her bed and seizing her pillow, Yvonne proceeded to let out a muffled scream of rage and frustration into it.
Maybe this might cause a scene.
Maybe this was unbecoming of her.
Yvonne didn't care.
What the fuck was she doing? She was IN Yokosuka Naval Base, practically the front line of the war… and she couldn't give them the help they deserved.
She was surrounded by young women who were actively fighting in that said war, risking their very lives for emperor and country as was their sworn duty. They had asked for help from the US Navy, who once fielded the most powerful armada of ships the world had ever seen… and if history was anything to go by, had the potential to field the most powerful armada of ship girls out of all of humanity's potential defenders. They needed help.
Commander Yvonne Swanson, a mere intelligence officer who had been given her rank because there were so few people who could fill the empty shoes she now wore, couldn't give that.
She wished she could tell them the truth. That the Navy wasn't as bad off as everyone thought it was – the United States had four major branches after all, and while the Navy and Marines had been almost decimated, the Air Force and Army were still going strong. Even with all the re-organisation that was going on, it had been a simple matter to redirect resources from those the healthier services back to the Navy to jump start the crucial Ship Girl program.
The US Navy had been bloodied to be sure, but all their losses hadn't caused them to break. Rather it had steeled their resolve: even after all they had lost the Navy wanted see the fight through to the end as was their duty.
At least that was the plan.
The program had been a debacle. Attempts to bring back the spirits of ship girls were unsuccessful. No matter how much the USN tried to follow the tried and tested procedures as dictated by the JDSF, they were confronted with failure after failure.
No matter how much they tried, it seemed that the spirits of the departed United States vessels, from their greatest generation no less, had refused to answer the call to arms.
The German Deutsche Marine had seen the return of the legendary Bismark and nigh un-killable Prinz Eugen. The French Marine Nationale was heroically led into battle by Richelieu and the Georges Leygues. The Italian Marina Militare's Littorio sisters had successfully led a campaign to make the Mediterranean Sea Abyssal-free.
The UK's Royal Navy had been pleasantly surprised when an over-eager HMS Termeraire, the 98 gun second rate ship of the line, had enthusiastically reported for duty, only to discover she was an two centuries out of date in terms of equipment.
And Japan? Well, Yvonne was seeing firsthand just how well Japan's ships had responded.
Around the world, warships of ages past heard their nations' call, and had heeded it dutifully…. except for the ships of United States of America.
Yvonne lay in her bed staring at the ceiling as memories of anger at frustration played over and over in her mind from witnessing all those repeated failures to produce usable ship girls. Houston, Pennsylvania… Arizona. None of them responded to their nations call.
Not when America, and the girl named Yvonne Swanson, needed them most.
-=-
To be continued…
-=-
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Sage_Of_Eyes
Waiting
Are the American Ships the Abyssals?
Looking at their number... how they're spread out, and the fact their logistics are just plain ridiculous... that might be the case.
Watched, and I hope you update soon!
Also Questions:
What is the key difference in modern navy and such vs kanmasu?
Are they simply faster, require less logistics, and such?
Looking at their number... how they're spread out, and the fact their logistics are just plain ridiculous... that might be the case.
Watched, and I hope you update soon!
Also Questions:
What is the key difference in modern navy and such vs kanmasu?
Are they simply faster, require less logistics, and such?
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Spectrum
Tell me a secret~
- Location
- Behind you~
Wow, big huge chapter.
I'm intrigued. For awhile I thought you were going to fake us out and Yvonne really was a secret American shipgirl somehow and they were playing coy about the whole thing and testing their infiltration submarine model or something.
I'm intrigued. For awhile I thought you were going to fake us out and Yvonne really was a secret American shipgirl somehow and they were playing coy about the whole thing and testing their infiltration submarine model or something.
pharaoh122
*Insert witty title here*
- Location
- Imperial Manila, Asian Mexico
Nice chapter. I've read the drafts on the Fic and Rec thread and i must say, i love it!
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- Location
- Quezon City, Philippines
I do recall my friend saying that the Abyssal Fleet acts as a stand in for the US Navy in the games. Can't recall the specifics, but based on the he told me, the events are based specific historical battles and that the player is re-enacting them from the Japanese point of view. I find it somewhat disturbing, but... it's nothing new.
I can't really say more, but I am eagerly awaiting the next update.
I can't really say more, but I am eagerly awaiting the next update.
That reminds me of a rather Dark Idea a friend of mine discussed with me a while back.
The Abyssal Fleet does represent the US Navy from the Japanese perspective.
And it is Japan's fault that they exist.
A Reality Warper raised on Japanese Nationalistic ideas who resented the US stripping Japan of it's armed forces following WW II is the one responsible for the entire situation. Her powers operate subconsciously and the "absence" of US Naval forces as well as the prominence of the Japanese Ship Girls feeds into her ego about her parents being "right" about Japanese Nationalism.
The Ship Girls find out and those of Japanese Nationality are utterly horrified at the truth. The rest of the world, especially most of Asia (who have plenty of issues with Japan already) are incredibly pissed off.
The Reality Warper dies in the ensuing shitstorm as her powers only operated Subconsciously not deliberately and any hope of resolving the situation dies with her.
Needless to say with the Abyssal Fleet "freed" from the unwitting control of the Ultra Nationalist Reality Warper the situation changes dramatically and the Japanese Ship Girls we are most familiar with are in a very bad spot as most of the world is angry at Japan once more.
I said it was a very dark idea!
Needless to say I was not really a fan as it was to dark for my tastes.
In all honesty I am more interested in where this story is headed then in my friends idea.
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Greek Fire
One of these days, I'll actually start writing.
- Location
- The Earth Sphere
Same here. I'm still expecting her to end up being a ship girl.
- Location
- America
She is.
She's enterprise. She was just given a regular name to go with her ship name because while a Japanese person with the name "Musashi" or "Kongou" would simply raise an eyebrow, an American with the name "Enterprise" would definitely turn heads.
She's enterprise. She was just given a regular name to go with her ship name because while a Japanese person with the name "Musashi" or "Kongou" would simply raise an eyebrow, an American with the name "Enterprise" would definitely turn heads.
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Spectrum
Tell me a secret~
- Location
- Behind you~
That wasn't what I asked. Ramble said that yes, she really is Enterprise. Well, her own narration says that American ships aren't responding and presumably Enterprise didn't sail over with her to Japan. So I ask again, how is one a ship girl without actually having a ship?
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Greek Fire
One of these days, I'll actually start writing.
- Location
- The Earth Sphere
A ship girl has the soul of the ship, they don't need the whole ship to be a ship girl. I think that the original hull of the ship becomes completely useless after its spirit becomes a ship girl. For all we know, the entire thing disintegrates.
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- Location
- America
The finished draft might be different but back during the working draft, She really was the Enterprise. She was the only one who responded and she was shunted to ONI because a single shipgirl would simply be slaughtered. They didn't need one shipgirl, they needed at least a flotilla or more intelligence officers.
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Well its now under a spoiler tag plus if Spectrum does want to know without digging, then I think its a valid discussion.
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CompassJimbo
Where’s Your North?
- Location
- The former Rubber Capital of the World
Helluva fic. I'm liking it so far.
This will be fun to watch.
On both forums.
Spectrum
Tell me a secret~
- Location
- Behind you~
It's more than a little late for that and they didn't even spoiler both posts. I am actually a hair annoyed given that supposed fact stands in direct contrivance with what is apparently deceptive narration, but whatever.
- Location
- Australia
Very good start, I like what you're doing here.
Edit: also, come on people, don't show off your spoilers inside the actual story thread, I mean what the hell :/
Edit: also, come on people, don't show off your spoilers inside the actual story thread, I mean what the hell :/
sasahara17
Just Another Random Author
- Location
- Brisbane City
Disclaimer: This is a non-profit work of fiction using characters from the Kantai Collection franchise, developed by Kadokawa Games and published by DMM.com. Please support the official release.
Additional note 1: Please be advised this work contains allusion to certain contemporary issues, namely war crimes perpetrated by Imperial Japan in World War 2. This work is meant to be for enjoyment, and no offense is meant. Also note that, as a fanfiction, many liberties were taken with Kantai Collection canon for the purposes of this story. That being said, please enjoy.
Additional note 2: Please be advised sections of this chapter were authored by Whiskey Golf from the Spacebattles form, who kindly allowed me to use his work as part of this fanfic.
-=-
While there were many ships that would be remembered by history for their significance, reputation or valour, there were a few that stood tall above all others. Ships with stories that elevated them beyond the mass of steel and oil of their physical forms, to the point where the mere mention of their names would trigger instant recognition. Such was their renown, they left a permanent mark on the nations they served and the nations they opposed.
The German battleship Bismarck might not have been the largest or most powerful battleship fielded in World War 2, but she forever engraved her place in history with the sinking of the battlecruiser HMS Hood and her subsequent last stand against the might of the Royal Navy. Such was her gallantry and courage in the face of certain defeat that her memory would endure in the dreams and imaginations of the British and Germans for generations.
Such was her fame that when she returned to battle as a ship girl of the Deutsche Marine, she became a rallying point for not just her own country, but for all of Europe.
Bismarck wasn't the only ship to leave such a cultural impact on mankind.
The return of these warships was more than just humanity levelling the playing field against the Abyssal fleet. It was a return of living legends… and Yvonne Swanson was well aware that in the Far East, there was one other battleship who rivalled Bismarck's fearsome reputation.
A battleship of such size, speed, and power, that she was considered an enduring symbol of Japanese military power even to this day. It was believed that as long as she existed and continued to fight, her country could never fall or surrender… and when she did fall, it was in a blaze of glory that none would ever forget.
That ship was the Japanese Battleship Yamato.
-=-
Kantai Collection: The Greatest Generation
Part 2: Pride of the Navy
-=-
Standing before the mirror in her quarters, Yvonne gave herself one last inspection, just to be sure she had everything right. The young woman in the mirror stared back at her, long blonde hair neatly tied in a bun. Shoulder bars, with the three stripes of a Commander and the star of a restricted line officer. On the right breast of her khaki blouse, her nametag rested. On her left breast, just a single "attagirl" award ribbon. Last, but not least, her collar devices: the silver oak leaves of a full Commander, and the crossed magnifying glass and quill of an intelligence specialist.
Yvonne sighed. She felt like a little girl playing dress up. The digicam Navy Working Uniform was a lot simpler. Back stateside, the NWUs had become the uniform of the day, a deliberate reinforcement of the fact that the Navy was at war. Even the Chief of Naval Operations wore NWUs in the Pentagon, only changing to his Service Dress Blues to report to the President or to brief Congress. The Service Khakis, formerly the day to day "office" uniform, had been quietly tucked away (if only for now).
Still, the Japanese Maritime Self Defense Force wasn't the United States Navy, and Yvonne had resolved to herself that she'd try and fit in as best as she could with her hosts – she was, afterall, a visitor in their house. That meant service khakis, and all the other assorted uniform regulations that entailed.
Still, she couldn't help but crack a small smile at her mirrored image. There was something special about the khakis – probably because in the American psyche, the classic image of a USN officer at war was wearing service khakis and a leather G-1 aviator's jacket.
It was a little irrational, but Yvonne felt a bit comforted at that though. Any little thing that could help her in her mission, she'd take. Though the jacket was probably pushing it.
She glanced at the jacket hanging in the closet, virtually unchanged from the first leather jackets worn by naval aviators in the Pacific War, collected her things, and settled her khaki combination cap on her head. She slipped her shoes on, and took a deep breath.
Then she exhaled, and Commander Yvonne Swanson, intelligence officer of the United States Navy, set out to execute her mission.
-=-
"Admiral, sir. Commander Swanson, reporting."
"Good morning, Commander. I trust you are well rested and settled in?" The Admiral returned the guesture. At his side was Nagato, waiting dutifully with a clipboard in hand for her Admiral's orders.
"Yes, sir. I wish to begin my investigation into as soon as possible," replied Yvonne, lowering her salute and remaining at attention.
Yvonne's orders were very peculiar, hence the need for her to come to Yokosuka Naval Base and work with the Japanese ship girls. Had it been a simple matter of analysis from third party reports and other action reports, she would not have needed to come to Japan, let alone Yokosuka. In fact, had her plan had not been so specific, she could still have stayed over in the US section of Yokosuka, or commute from Atsugi.
However, as it stood, Yvonne's ideas required her to work with the Japanese ship girls in a very intimate capacity, and the lack of available personnel to actually carry out the mission meant she, an able and capable volunteer with ideas of her own, had been sent.
"Very well. To begin with, I will be assigning you to work with Destroyer Division Six," the Admiral said with approval at her work ethic. "They are our top expeditionary specialists that have just returned from one of their mission this morning. Their temperaments should help you get a feel as to what working with Kanmusu would be like before you move on to some of our more… 'colourful' personalities."
Well, that was an understatement if Yvonne had ever heard one.
"I understand, sir," Yvonne agreed, maintaining her poker face.
"I also believe you are familiar with Lieutenant Matsuda. He can help you in your endeavours," The Admiral added. "Additionally, as the highest ranking non-JMSDF officer on the base, and to assist you in your mission, we have also assigned a Kanmusu as your aide. She will act as both your personal liaison with us, as well as your assistant. Please use her as you see fit."
The wisdom behind this measure was easily apparent. While having a normal human adjutant would be certainly serviceable for Yvonne's purposes, having a ship girl be her assistant had many useful benefits. Given that Yvonne would be interacting with the local Kanmusu a great deal, it was only natural that a Kanmusu aide would act as her go between.
There was also the fact that her 'assistant' would be able to monitor Yvonne's movements and report back any findings, but it was something that Yvonne had expected. If the situations were reversed, if she had American ship girls of her own to spare, she'd do the same thing.
She might be a guest, and goodwill to the US Navy was at its highest as it had been in years, but at the end of the day she was still an outsider, an outsider who was also an intelligence spook no less, poking around in places where she might not be wanted.
"Be aware we have selected one of our Kanmusu who is mostly idle due to resource constraints rather than one of our more active duty personnel, and as such she won't have much in the way of firsthand information about the Abyssal fleet you can use directly, or hard combat experience for that matter. She was only given the broad strokes of your mission before we assigned her to you, so you will have to brief her yourself. We have reserved a conference room for you to properly inform her on the specifics your mission."
"Thank you, sir. That's very kind of you."
If a little unnecessary. Booking an entire conference room for just two people? She knew the base had a lot of spare room, but still!
The Admiral turned to Nagato, sharing a silent look with her. The battleship gave her admiral a nod, and her eyes flicked to the name on the clipboard, the name she'd already known would be there, having written it herself.
"Yamato, please enter."
Wait Yamato what.
The side door to the Admiral's office opened, and a beautiful young woman entered the room. Her appearance was entirely too unique, an elaborate white red and black uniform that showed off too much skin and had a distinctively oriental flair. Her long auburn hair had been drawn into a ponytail, and it was perfectly accessorised by the blooming sakura flower that adorned it. The final, most noticeable piece of her ensemble, was the gorget bearing the emblem of the golden chrysanthemum.
Alarm bells starting going off in Yvonne's head.
There was no doubt in Yvonne's mind who this girl was.
The young woman quickly walked up to Yvonne's side and saluted the Admiral.
"Japanese Battleship Yamato, reporting for duty as ordered, sir! Thank you for choosing me for this assignment. I will do my best!"
Oh. Shit.
"Very good," the Admiral nodded before turning back to Yvonne with a satisfied smile, "Is this agreeable to you, Commander Swanson?"
Oh hell no!
Yvonne's poker face hid her inner turmoil at being between a rock and a hard place. As much as she wanted to say no, for that feeling of anxiety was back in force stronger than ever, to do so would be to turn down an incredible honour and insult her hosts.
Yamato was the ship that bore the hopes and dreams of the Japanese people, the vessel that most exemplified their warrior ideal. To say anything but 'yes' to having the Yamato be her liaison would be the gravest insult Yvonne could give.
She had no choice.
"Yes, sir!" Yvonne said, allowing her awe at Yamato to mask her fear. "To have the battleship Yamato herself escort me herself is an incredible honour!"
I am so boned.
-=-
It was irrational. Yvonne knew that the war was long over, and that she had nothing to fear from the young woman, Japanese Battleship Yamato, who walked exactly four paces behind her. In fact, Yvonne felt ashamed and embarrassed by her weakness.
Out of her five friends, she had been the one to be most vocal in espousing the idea of international cooperation between the ship girls of various nations. Yvonne had believed that, for the sake of the future, mankind needed to present a unified front against the Abyssal threat. Old grievances and rivalries couldn't be allowed to cloud their better judgement.
That was what she had told her comrades, at least.
But now that she was actually face to face with the Japanese ship girls, Yvonne was furious that she couldn't get over her uneasiness at their presence.
She had to keep fighting the urge to put distance between herself and Yamato. It made her feel like the biggest hypocrite to ever exist, especially so since Yamato, a person who had every reason to hate the United States, didn't seem to have any of the hang ups she did.
"May I ask where we are going, Commander Swanson?" Yamato queried.
"The admiral asked me to fill you in on what we're going to do, so I'm heading to the empty conference room the admiral booked earlier to do just that."
In hindsight, Yamato's importance probably was what made the Admiral decide on giving them an entire room. From what she'd read from the history books, for all of the battleship Yamato's capabilities she was treated like a porcelain doll by the Japanese Navy and hardly ever had to rough it out. It stood to reason that, as a ship girl, it seemed that this Yamato had more of the same.
It went without saying that Yvonne disapproved.
Alas, this was something the Admiral had done, and with how important Yamato was to the Japanese, Yvonne had to watch herself to avoid offending anyone.
Japanese Battleship Yamato… how the hell had THIS happened?
The pair had soon located the vacant room, and they settled in on opposite sides of a mahogany table. Having already anticipated the need to brief her new assistant, Yvonne had brought a copy of her orders and the supporting documentation with her.
"So how much did the Admiral tell you?" Yvonne asked, once she had provided the copy to Yamato, which the battleship promised to read on her own time after the briefing.
"Only the broad outline," Yamato replied, with her demure, shy voice. "I, Yamato, was informed that your plan involved interviewing our frontline Kanmusu about their experiences with the Abyssals."
Curiously, Yamato's tone and her use of 'frontline Kanmusu' seemed to indicate she didn't consider herself one of them. This combined, with the Admiral's earlier introduction, confirmed Yvonne's suspicions about that, like her historical counterpart, Yamato didn't get out very much.
"And that's all you know?" Yvonne said, keeping her thoughts to herself.
"Regretfully, I do not. Yamato was chosen for this position at the last minute."
"That's not a problem," Yvonne nodded. "I'll fill you in on the details then."
The mission's objective was simple: understand the nature of the Abyssal fleet, where they came from and, if possible, find insight on how they could be defeated.
This was easier said than done, of course: with how long the war had gone on, Yvonne would not be the first to try. However, she aimed to be the first to succeed.
Yvonne had gone through every known report, recording or documentation of the Abyssals. It was in these documents that she noticed a startling trend, a trend that she felt had been the reason that every single one of these prior attempts at understanding the Abyssals had failed before.
"Stage one will be to profile and interview each and every single Kanmusu on this base," Yvonne stated. "I've spent the better part of the last six months reading through everything about Abyssals, and, if I am being honest, half of them are complete bullshit and not worth the paper they're written on. I want first-hand accounts from the people who have physically seen and beaten these, things to help me verify what is accurate and what is not."
Indeed, part of the reason there hadn't been any progress in understanding the Abyssal fleet was that none of the experts could agree upon anything. Although there were plenty of 'armchair analysts who had weighed in on the matter, it wasn't entirely their fault.
The findings of any study were only as good as the evidence it was based on, and with the Abyssals it was hard to get such information.
Getting accurate data about the Abyssal fleet was difficult, thanks to the confusion of the early days of the war. With ships getting sunk left and right, people dying by the droves, rampant uncontrolled panic and hysteria, flotillas being destroyed before they even knew they were under attack, the whole refugee crisis… it was impossible to tell what was fact and what was the product of people in a blind panic.
By the time the ship girls had appeared and things had calmed down, the information repositories used by the intelligence services were so filled with reports of dubious accuracy that the entire process had simply ground to a stop while they got to actually organising things. All the crap would eventually be sorted out, verified and discarded, but that might take months, even years.
That wasn't good or soon enough. Yvonne had decided to cut out the middle man and get that information herself, from the best sources she could think of.
"I want to identify weaknesses and vulnerabilities. I want to identify the tactics they use and how we could use that to our advantage," Yvonne continued. "More than that, I want to know how coherent each type of Abyssal is, and if there is any semblance of intelligence in any of them or if they are just acting on some kind of instinct. I want to know if there are any individual commanders or leaders that remain at large, or if there are any of them that act differently from the rest."
"There are many Abyssals that seem to act as flagships for their fleets," Yamato noted.
"Maybe, but each and every one of those are often surrounded by escorts and are part of a battlegroup. I'm looking for something at a flotilla level," Yvonne said. "Next, I need to know the capabilities and prior combat records of each ship girl on this base in detail. I need to get a feel of their personalities. I want to know how each girl will react to danger and how well they can function under extreme pressure."
"Couldn't you just read a report? We have extensive physiological and psychological reports for you to follow," Yamato queried, her tone clearly showing she had asked this less to question Yvonne's judgement and more to understand the intelligence officer's reasoning.
It seemed like the battleship had caught on.
"Reports are one thing, but I'm looking for very specific people with very specific skillsets and mindsets. I need people who go looking for danger," Yvonne replied. "These interviews are to identify potential targets and candidates for the mission I came here to do."
"And that mission is?" Yamato asked. The battleship was leaning forward in her seat, her eyes intent. It was clear she'd already figured the answer. Yvonne was still happy to give her that confirmation.
"We figure out where they're going to be, then set up a trap to capture one of those Abyssal fuckers," Yvonne grinned. "Then we move onto stage two: interrogate the shit out of her."
-=-
Yvonne hadn't explained much after that. The following stages of her mission had been sensitive and classified by order of Admiral Briggs himself. It was on a strictly need to know basis, so there wasn't much else she could say to Yamato, especially about the part on how Yvonne was confident she'd be able to set a trap for her intended quarry.
Yvonne did open up for a short Q & A session to allow Yamato to ask anything else she was unsure of, but the shy young Japanese woman turned down the opportunity, insisting she was satisfied by the explanation given so far.
"Our first order of business will be to meet with Destroyer Division Six," Yvonne said later. "The Admiral informed me that they just returned from a mission, so their latest outing should be fresh in their minds."
"Ah, the Atatsuki sisters. I see. Interacting with them should give you some experience with dealing with us Kanmusu. The Admiral's insight is great as usual," Yamato nodded in agreement as she rose from her seat. "Very well, Commander Swanson. Shall I lead you to them?"
"Not just yet." Yvonne said, motioning for Yamato to sit back down.
"Commander Swanson?"
"Before we go, I have a few questions for you," Yvonne stated bluntly.
"I understand. As your assigned aide, I, Yamato, will attend to your needs as required. What do your require of me?" Yamato replied formally. It appeared that the battleship hadn't quite understood what Yvonne was getting at.
She decided to make things a little more clearly.
"Look. You misunderstand, Yamato. I mean I have questions for you." Yvonne could almost see the lightbulb going on over Yamato's head as she realized what Yvonne meant.
It was almost comical to see Yamato, the pride of the Japanese Navy, go beet red with embarrassment as she comprehended what Yvonne was getting at.
"I… I see. Very well. I, Yamato, will answer your questions to the best of my ability." Yamato fidgeted in place, wringing her hands nervously. Yvonne would have laughed at the sight if that persistent feeling, the feeling of knowing that a Japanese big gun battleship was right next to her, hadn't also been keeping her on edge.
That feeling was one of the reasons why Yvonne wanted to have this little chat.
"Look, you don't have to be so formal around me. We're going to be working together for the foreseeable future, so it's important we set some ground rules and get some stuff out of the way first," Yvonne spoke bluntly. Seeing Yamato nod in agreement, Yvonne continued, "I don't mean any offense so apologies in advance if I do, but my first question is pretty simple: are you okay with working with a foreign officer?"
"What? O-Of course I am!"
"I heard that there were some of you ship girls that weren't too happy with an American being on the base. I just want to make sure there won't be problems between the two of us down the line."
After all, with Yvonne having to wrestle with her own problems, if Yamato had more of the same there was a non-zero chance the two of them could be heading for some turbulent waters. If that happened, Yvonne knew their performance would be negatively affected.
"There won't! I, Yamato, will not dishonour the name of the Japanese Navy by being discourteous to an officer of a foreign Navy. You have my word," Yamato insisted.
"Good. I just wanted to get that out of the way." Yvonne couldn't be sure of the sincerity of Yamato's statement, but it seemed that was the best answer she was going to get for now. "Okay, the next order of business is something that I probably should have dealt with earlier: the chain of command."
"Chain of command? I'm not quite sure I follow," Yamato tilted her head in confusion. "I am to act as your assistant and liaison, won't I? That shouldn't be a problem then."
Well that did answer one of her major concerns, but there was more to it than that.
"Okay, that's one thing out of the way. Now, I'm actually concerned about how you and the other ship girls fit into it," Yvonne clarified, "Aside from Nagato who is the Admiral's secretary ship, I'm not sure on how your ship girls have organized yourselves in relation to the regular military. I just want to be sure I don't step on any toes I am not supposed to."
Yvonne felt that this was a pretty valid concern, especially since Yamato of all people had been assigned to her as an assistant.
To Yvonne's knowledge, the US Navy's policy was that in the event of a ship girl returning to active duty, she would be commissioned into the US Navy with actual rank. The Navy had intended this to be standard operational protocol with their ship girls, even to the point of preparing a truncated OCS program, before their whole project had been unexpectedly derailed.
It was more than just a courtesy rank; it would help members of the Navy, both ship girls and humans, understand where their positions were in the Navy proper, and make their positions in the chain of command clear to everyone involved.
In theory, under this policy, any US Navy ship girl would carry the same responsibilities and be afforded the same respect of any officer of that same rank.
Not everyone had adopted the same system, of course. The concept of ship girls was so unusual that there was no standardized system among mankind's navies for dealing with them.
Yvonne had heard Russians had adopted a similar approach to the Americans, albeit they promoted their ship girls based on skill and performance, both in battle and out of it, while the British, Germans and French had decided seniority among the ships was dictated by tonnage and size, with a few special exceptions.
She'd even heard that HMS Hood, leader of a quick reaction force that was quickly becoming analogous to a ship girl version of the SAS, even had a human secretary of her own.
Yvonne had thought the Japanese had adopted something along similar lines to the Europeans, and had been blindsided when Yamato had been assigned as her assistant… a 'mere' O-5 from a visiting service. Clearly she had been mistaken. Yvonne needed to know the lay of the land, and fast.
"I see. Do not worry, Commander. Kanmusu have been ordered to obey human personnel, so you won't have to worry about offending any superior officers: even Nagato would have to defer to you, as long as your orders don't conflict with her ability to carry out those set by the Admiral. As long as it is within reason, we will try to accommodate you as best we can," Yamato said dutifully.
"Well, that's good to know." Yvonne inwardly breathed a sigh of relief.
Now she didn't have to worry about accidentally being like that one idiot in Portsmouth who thought he could order Hood around while she was visiting. Yvonne had a good laugh at that when she'd heard about what happened to the poor bastard, but no way did she want to repeat that mistake.
"As for seniority amongst Kanmusu, in theory we are all equal with each other except for the 'flagship' of that specific unit, who is above them," Yamato concluded with a smile. "It is actually very simple compared to how some other nations have set up their own forces. You will not take long to familiarize yourself with it."
"I see. Thank you for clarifying that with me. Now, final question, and this one is just for my own curiosity. How did you end up with me anyway?" Yvonne asked. "I mean, you're the Yamato. You're the pride of the Japanese Navy. I'm a foreign officer, from the United States, and they made you my assistant. I'm sorry about being suspicious, but that feels a little weird since I'm not even an admiral. What happened?"
Yvonne wondered if this was too touchy, but she needed to know.
Yamato had thrown her for a loop. Yamato was the pinnacle of the military might of the Imperial Japanese Navy, one of the most prideful and controversial military forces to ever exist. The danger of having what should have been the flag bearer of the Japanese Navy take a job that could be so easily done by someone else less prominent was one Yvonne couldn't ignore.
While she was thankful that the battleship seemed willing to work with her, there was a potential political time bomb that had just been handed to Yvonne, and she wanted to know why.
Yamato had once again seemed to retreat back into herself, fidgeting in her seat as an internal war played out on her pretty features.
"I… I… I am sorry Commander. Regretfully, that is one question I, Yamato, do not wish to answer."
Damn, that was what Yvonne was afraid of.
"It's fine. I think that question was overstepping my bounds anyway." Yvonne sighed, her unease deepening. Chances were, something of note had happened. Something pretty bad, and likely career-ending, given she was looking at a battleship who'd been shitcanned and beached.
Brilliant.
Just what Yvonne needed to start her mission over in Yokosuka.
-=-
As Yamato promised, she led Yvonne towards where she would meet Destroyer Division Six. The pair had made their way out of the HQ building towards one of the main ship girl dormitories, as the Akatsuki sisters were on a break after having just finished their most recent expeditionary missions.
While Yamato admitted she was not certain that they were there, chances were that someone who was there would know where they had gone.
"The four of them are very close," Yamato explained on the way towards the dormitory, twirling the parasol she had collected from the front of the main office building on her shoulder. "They practically go everywhere with each other. If you find one, the others will not be far away."
"So you Kanmusu all live together in this building?" Yvonne asked, when they had arrived outside of the dormitory proper.
"Not all of us. There is a separate dormitory next to this one for the cruisers, and there are plans to build a third," Yamato supplied. "There are also similar facilities in our other operational bases like Sasebo and Kure for those Kanmusu stationed there."
"Hm, we might have to do a bit of travelling in the future then, if we can't find what we need here."
An entire building dedicated to housing ship girls. The thought of something like this existing blew Yvonne's mind. The Japanese had over a hundred and fifty of them, and almost all of them lived in buildings like these.
It represented what Yvonne hoped would eventually happen with the United States Navy, but at the same time caused her to feel anxiety, since she had never experienced something like this before.
"Well, shall we go in?" Yvonne said, taking the initiative to forcefully quench her own anxiety.
"Right this way, Commander Swanson."
Taking a deep breath to steady her nerves, Yvonne followed in after Yamato.
Hopefully there wouldn't be a problem.
-=-
"What is SHE doing here?"
There was a problem.
"Zuikaku, please. Commander Swanson is here on official business," Yamato said pleadingly towards the twin tailed spitfire that they had encountered in the main entrance to the dormitory. "She's here to see Ataksuki and her sisters."
"Why? They're off duty and resting after having that exhausting mission, and this American wants to bother them?" Zuikaku folded her arms stubbornly and glared at Yvonne. "Give me one good reason why I should let you see them. One. Reason."
The girl that had barred their way was the Shoukaku-class aircraft carrier Zuikaku, apparently a feisty young woman with a serious attitude problem. The grey haired girl was wearing what appeared to be a shortened miko uniform and was carrying a bow and arrow. Apparently, she had been on her way out of the dormitory for practice when Yvonne and Yamato had entered.
Zuikaku had immediately taken exception to Yvonne's presence, and had made that opinion known.
Loudly.
So much for that promise about Japanese ship girls bending over backwards to accommodate the foreign officer.
"Please, Zuikaku. You're embarrassing us." Yamato seemed fully aware of the situation as she shot guilty, apologetic looks towards Yvonne. The battleship had boasted to Yvonne that her comrades would be helpful just moments ago, and now Zuikaku was living proof that this was not the case. "Commander Swanson is here to help."
"Yeah? Help you say?" Zuikaku pushed past Yamato, something that Yvonne noted with interest, and walked right into Yvonne's face. "Hey you. You speak Japanese?"
"Not as fluent as I would have liked, but I do," Yvonne replied smoothly.
"Good. So you want to help? You can help by telling me where the hell are our reinforcements are!" Zuikaku demanded angrily, her eyes ablaze with righteous anger, "We've been fighting this entire war for months now, and you guys haven't lifted a finger to help. What, do the Japanese have to win back the entire Pacific on our own? What the hell are you people sitting on your asses for?"
"Zuikaku!"
"It's fine, Yamato. I'll handle this," Yvonne replied without breaking eye contact with the other carrier. "Go into the dormitory and find Destroyer Division Six. We're wasting time here."
"I… I will do so, Commander Swanson. My apologies." Yamato, awed by Yvonne's confidence at staring down an angry aircraft carrier, turned to leave and carry out what was asked of her.
"Pretty confident for a human, Yank," Zuikaku said.
"You don't know the half of it."
Yvonne would have chuckled and thanked the other girl if she could. Zuikaku had just made a critical mistake, and it had been to Yvonne's benefit.
Yvonne had been having the jitters up til now. Getting assigned Yamato as an assistant, entering a dormitory full of other ship girls when she was more used to being around humans, all of this had understandably caused Yvonne to become nervous because she was outside of her comfort zone. It had gotten to the point where Yvonne was beginning to worry that it might affect her performance.
Zuikaku didn't know it, but she'd helped immensely… because she'd pushed Yvonne right back into familiar waters.
If there was one thing the Yvonne was very familiar with, it was how to respond when under attack by the enemy, and it helped that, as a carrier at such close range, Zuikaku wasn't nearly as intimidating as Nagato, Kongou or Yamato was. Suddenly that nervous feeling was gone, and all was right with the world.
"The United States Navy is in the process of recovering after our losses. As such, we are incapable of fielding ship girls of our own at present time," Yvonne stated clearly and slowly., "You know the story. It won't change just because you want it to."
"Bullshit!"
"Two hundred and fifty thousand funerals say otherwise," Yvonne stated bluntly.
While she didn't like hiding behind the deaths of her countrymen to keep up the grand lie, it was something that she had gotten used to if she was to uphold her standing orders.
It was also a tried and true method at deterring people from further questioning, since most decent people stopped there out of respect for the fallen.
"Yeah, so what? We Japanese lost people too, and we're still fighting."
And apparently Zuikaku wasn't most people.
"Okay, Yankee Doodle. It's been months. Why haven't you people gotten your shit together? Do you have any idea how big this damn ocean is?" Zuikaku growled as she moved right into Yvonne's face, "We've been busting out asses been protecting your convoys, your ships and your ports as well as our own. We're spread thin enough as it is, and you expect us to run across the Pacific to pick up your slack? What happened to the strongest navy on the planet, huh?"
Well excuse the United States Navy for not being able to fight after losing nine carriers, seventy surface fleet warships and damn near the entire submarine fleet. Of course, Yvonne didn't say that aloud, and used a bit more tact.
"The US military as a whole is still providing assistance in the form of logistical support and air cover provided by the US Air Force. Surely you have benefited from protection offered by our surface installations and use of drone strikes? We are doing everything we can."
One of the greatest advantages that allowed the United States to remain relevant in the war despite their Navy having been reduced to nothing was that they proved invaluable for the defence against Abyssals. Surface installations set up by the US located inland could strike at attacking Abyssals while mitigating the risk to themselves, and the Air Force still had plenty of fighters, bombers and drones, and was getting a crash course in antishipping missions from survivors of the Navy's strike and maritime patrol communities. It was only further out to sea, where merchant convoys important for international trade and commerce needed to venture, where these advantages were nullified.
The United States was still very much a relevant player in the war, just not their Navy, and Yvonne wanted to remind Zuikaku of that.
"Drone strikes are useful on the odd occasion, I'll give you that, but we need to win the war! We can't do that if we're on the defensive all the time," Zuikaku insisted. "I mean, damn it, just the other month Shoukaku-nee and I had to go all the way around the Pacific to your 'San Fansciso' because you don't have any girls of your own. We have a rotation for that. What the hell?"
Okay… it was a little ridiculous, but Yvonne couldn't actually say her opinion out loud either. Because the US Navy couldn't field their own ship girls, it had been agreed a single task group of Japanese ship girls would be stationed at Naval Base San Diego in case they were ever needed, a small goodwill force offered by the Japanese in exchange for America's continued support of sorts.
Of course, with the amount of anti-Abyssal weaponry the United States Army had set up lining the coast since the appearance of the ship girls, any Abyssal fleet wandering even close to the coast would be blown to kingdom come, long before those girls would be needed. Other than escorting convoys up north towards Canada and helping deter small Abyssal raids, the garrison there didn't actually get involved in the fierce fighting that characterized the East Asian campaign.
It did offer peace of mind to the population at having them there, especially after Norfolk and Pearl, so Yvonne had thought it was worth it: she just hadn't considered that the Japanese ship girls would be resentful over that, although it was obvious now in hindsight.
Although…
"You do realize that overseas assignments are part and parcel of being in a Navy right?" Yvonne couldn't help but say mischievously. "Sail the seven seas, see the world, meet interesting people... don't you guys have any of that on your recruitment posters?"
"I'm just fine with staying in Japan, thank you very much!"
"What, you don't what a yank boyfriend? I thought Japanese girls loved the stereotypical surfer dude: tall, blonde and musclebound, and well, you look like the type that would go for that."
Zuikaku had gone beet red, eye irises having shrunk into pin pricks and her whole body quivering with embarrassment. The ashen haired girl's mouth was moving, trying to form coherent sentences, but the only sound that came out was a high pitched whistling noise like a boiler.
"You mean you don't? Wow, you don't know to enjoy an overseas posting? Did you stay in your bunk all day or something? You did, didn't you?" Yvonne said with a mock gasp, trying to milk this for all it was worth, "Oh my god, you have no idea what you are missing out on! Listen girl, this is an order from a superior officer. I am going to take you out tonight for a pub crawl and we are going to pick up so many hot gu-"
Zuikaku lost it.
"P-P-P-P-PERVERT!" Zuikaku screeched, leaping backwards away from Yvonne and making for the exit as fast as her legs could carry her. "THE AMERICAN IS A DEVIANT! DEVIANT I SAY! DEVIANT!"
Yvonne watched the other girl run like the proverbial bat out of hell with the biggest shit eating grin she could muster.
Chances were, Yvonne was going to catch hell for this later, but right now?
So worth it.
-=-
"I, Yamato, offer my sincere apologies, Commander Swanson. I wasn't able to stop Zuikaku from her unseemly behaviour," Yamato apologized profusely, bowing all the while "Please forgive us being untoward you."
"It's fine, Yamato. I dealt with it," Yvonne replied.
She of course didn't add that she handled the problem by effectively teasing Zuikaku into full retreat, but knowing the military grapevine people were probably going to talk sooner or later.
Still, Yvonne wondered how the Admiral would approach this, since Yvonne had technically been the aggrieved party and Zuikaku the aggressor. They seemed really touchy about making the foreigner welcome for some reason, so maybe she would get away scot free. Briggs would have given Yvonne a right dressing down for pulling something like that!
SO worth it, though.
"Anyway, enough about that." Yvonne turned to address the people that Yamato had returned with. Given the informal environment that was the small common room they were now meeting in, Yvonne decided to forgo a salute and instead opted for a more informal handshake instead.
"It is a pleasure to meet you again, Lieutenant."
"The pleasure is mine, Commander." Lieutenant Satoshi Matsuda, now dressed in his own undress whites, took her hand with a strong confident handshake. Coincidentally, he had been with the Akatsuki sisters, congratulating them for a job well done when Yamato had found them, and had decided to tag along. "I see you didn't waste any time getting down to business."
"Time is precious," Yvonne replied before turning to the four young girls that were huddled together on the sofa across from her chair, "And these must be the Ataksuki sisters of Destroyer Division Six. My name is Commander Yvonne Swanson. It's nice to meet you."
When Yvonne had seen the four girls, all looking like they hadn't even reached their pre-teens, she had been very surprised at their youth.
She had no idea that ship girls could even be that young. These girls looked and acted like they were twelve. No wonder why many people were reluctant to send ship girls into battle: even Yvonne was feeling uncomfortable with the mere thought of sending these youngsters to fight a war!
This thought was thankfully balanced with that now annoying sensation she had again around unfamiliar ship girls. While Yvonne was still feeling on edge at being so close to a group of destroyers, the fact they were a bunch of kids, and the recent victory she had over Zuikaku, had allowed Yvonne to shunt those unwanted feelings to where they couldn't bother her.
"It is nice to meet you too, Miss Swanson," the girl with long dark hair and an adorable black cap on her head greeted formally. It seemed that she was the leader of their crew. "My name is Akatsuki, first of the special type-III destroyers Akatsuki-class."
"Hibiki, of the same class. Zdravstvuyte," the stoic faced white haired girl beside Akatsuki said. Russian? Hm, must be something she picked up after the war.
"Ikazuchi! Good t' meet 'cha!" The excitable one followed. "Not 'Kaminari'! Make sure you get my name right, 'kay?"
"I'm Inazuma. Pleased to meet you, nano-desu," the final member, who looked very similar to her sister Ikazuchi, gave a polite bow.
Yvonne wondered what that 'nano-desu' at the end of her sentence meant; her command of the language wasn't good enough to help her in that regard. She'd have to ask Yamato about it later. It didn't seem to be rude though…
"There's no need to be so formal. You girls are supposed to be on a break now," Yvonne said with a wave of her hand. "Thank you for taking the time to meet me."
"It was no trouble at all, Miss Swanson. We are 'ladies' of the Japanese Navy after all," Akatsuki insisted, puffing out her chest with childish pride.
"I'm sure you are," Yvonne smiled indulgently. What a cute kid!
"So you have questions for us? Ask away!" Akatsuki beamed, "We'll show you how good we are at doing 'adult lady' jobs for Admiral Matsuda here, even at night!"
Yvonne, Matsuda and Yamato all started choking while trying to hold down the sudden bout of laughter, or in Matsuda's case, sheer unbridled embarrassment. The other three Atakuski girls simply looked at their lead ship like she'd grown a second head.
"Akatsuki, I don't think that's a good way you're supposed you're supposed to phrase it, nano-desu!" Inazuma said tactfully.
"Sis, you do know that say'n things like that is going to make Admiral Masuda look like a criminal, ya'know?" Ikazuchi said un-tactfully. From where he was sitting, Lieutenant Matsuda looked like he was having an aneurysm and a heart attack at the same time.
Realizing her mistake, Atakuski tried back pedalling.
"I-It was a mistake. I meant that the four of us are perfect ladies that can do night battles! Like officers and gentle… gentle…"
"Gentlewomen, nanodesu."
"That's right! Gentlewomen! We are ladies and gentlewomen!" Akatsuki, now beet red in the face and radiating pure shame, jabbed a finger at Yvonne and tried looking as confident as she could, "So don't you worry,American! You have come to the right place, for there is no group more ref… refin… 'elephant' as Destroyer Division Six!"
Akatsuki's declaration was followed with a short period of silence as the other people around the table simply stared at her. Inazuma and Ikazuchi seemed frozen with their mouths hanging open. Matsuda seemed on the verge of dying. Yamato was standing shock still at the side of Yvonne's chair with eyes wide as saucers, clearly unsure how to react….
And Yvonne?
She held out for five seconds, and then couldn't take it anymore.
"…Bwa-ha-ha-ha-hahahahaha! Jesus, ha-ha-ha-ha-ha! Jesus Christ! Can't breathe, ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!" Yvonne roared, beating the arm rests of her chair while trying desperately to regain her composure. It was hopeless. Despite all of the Yvonne's discipline, there was absolutely no way anyone could hear that and still manage to keep a straight face.
"Bozhe moi…" Hibiki dropped her face into her hands and groaned.
Then Yvonne fell off the chair and kept laughing.
"Someone sink me now," Akatsuki muttered as she collapsed back down onto the sofa.
-=-
Having thoroughly humiliated themselves, it had been decided on the spot that the interview should be postponed until such time that Atatsuki felt like she could face Yvonne again.
Probably not anytime soon, that's for sure.
"I am very sorry about all this! This is so disgraceful to allow a member of a visiting Navy see such shameful acts!" Yamato kept bowing to Yvonne.
"Seriously, I told you to stop doing that. You didn't physically put Akatsuki's foot in her mouth." Yvonne told Yamato, wiping the tears out of her eyes.
It appeared that poor Yamato had taken the two incidents thus far as a personal failing on her part to leave a good impression of the Japanese Navy on their guest. The poor girl was practically beside herself with embarrassment, even more so than Matsuda who had recovered from his own brush with humiliation.
Yvonne hoped that she wasn't going to make a habit of embarrassing the Japanese like this. Zuikaku had it coming, but poor Akatsuki had practically sailed right into a minefield of her own making without Yvonne lifting a finger. If this kept happening, Yvonne's little trip was going to do wonders for future USN - JMSDF relations!
"Are those four always like this?" Yvonne asked Matsuda, once the four Atasuki sisters had filed out of the room, the others escorting a crying Atatsuki back to their room in what had to be the most diabetes inducing scene Yvonne had ever been witness to.
"You have no idea," Matsuda replied as he wiped the sweat off his face from the nasty shock with a handkerchief. "Those four are basically kindergarteners that I have to babysit on a daily basis. Well, Hibiki not so much, but the other three? Not the kinda thing I expected to be doing when I took my commission."
"No shit."
"I am so sorry, Admiral Matsuda, Commander Swanson. I have brought shame upon the Japanese Navy!" Yamato continued bowing. Yvonne rolled her eyes.
"Uh, I thought I told you…"
"Yamato, stop. That's an order," Matsuda said sharply at Yamato.
Yamato stopped. She was still sniffling, but otherwise she had ceased apologizing. Yvonne stared at Matsuda with wide, respectful eyes.
"There you go. Sometimes you have to be a little firm and put your foot down," Matsuda explained with a sigh. "I know it doesn't feel good to be an ass, but that's what being an officer is about: leading and discipline. You don't look like you're used to having subordinates, or went down a conventional command track."
"No, I didn't. I was an intelligence analyst that worked with a rear echelon team. The promotion was pretty unexpected, to put it mildly," Yvonne said. "I'm guessing you're a line officer?"
"Served on the Aegis destroyer Mirai for two months before they yanked me out for the Kanmusu program," Matsuda said with some regret. "Don't get me wrong, I know I'm doing good work in my new job, but it's always been my dream to be the Captain of a warship like my old man, y'know?"
"Oh yeah, you did mention something like that yesterday."
Yvonne knew of the guided missile destroyer Mirai, hull number DDG-182. She was the lead ship of the relatively new Mirai-class Aegis destroyers, developed off the American Flight IIIA Arleigh Burke-class and taking cues from the venerable Kongo and Atago-class destroyers. The Mirai had come into prominence shortly after the Abyssal fleet had appeared, as Japan's answer to the new threat.
Arguably the most powerful guided missile destroyer class still in service, especially now that the Flight II Zumwalts were languishing at the bottom of the ocean, she was specifically designed around technologies that were originally intended to counteract the Abyssal threat. However, Mirai was ultimately hampered by the inherent limitations of being a conventional ship fighting an unconventional adversary.
Nevertheless, as far as the modern Japanese Maritime Self-Defence Force went, she was the pride of their fleet. No wonder Matsuda had some residual regret at being pulled off. That was a dream posting if Yvonne ever saw one.
"She's part of the support flotilla assigned here right?" Yvonne recalled that Matsuda had mentioned that both the Izumo and the Mirai were assigned to Yokosuka as conventional support vessels for the Kanmusu fleet yesterday. "You probably get to see her very often."
"Yeah. The Admiral uses the Mirai as a mobile command post now. I rarely get to actually be on her anymore, though," Matsuda confirmed. "She's outfitted as a fleet flagship, has the best radar in the fleet, a turret mounted railgun that can punch through damn near anything, and enough modified Anti-Abyssal missiles to sink a small fleet on her own. It's a pity that she's so damned hard and expensive to rearm, or we would have had this war in the bag."
"I hear you. Our Zumwalts would have kicked some serious ass if the railguns didn't keep overheating in the middle of a fight," Yvonne agreed.
Killing the Abyssals wasn't a problem. It was killing them cost effectively and keeping up with the rate of attrition that was what eventually wore the US Navy down. A railgun could kill an Abyssal easily, but there was never only one Abyssal. Sure, the Navy had plenty of missiles, but firing a few ten million dollars' worth of missiles to kill a single Ro-Class destroyer was not how you won wars, and since the Abyssals had more bodies than the Navy had shells and missiles, well…
Stalin said it best: quantity had a quality of its own.
"Still, for something the public thinks of as obsolete, she'd doing a damned fine job at helping us out," Matsuda said nostalgically, with more than a little pride at his old ship. "Honestly, she might not be able to fight as well as we'd planned, but as a mobile command centre she's second to none. Saves the girls having to go out all the way to the mission area on their own, you know?"
"I agree. It would really suck to have to go out there in the rain," Yvonne noted thoughtfully.
Traveling in the comfort of another ship did have its advantages, especially if it helped to keep ship girls well rested and supplied before needing to fight. "Plenty of ways to make a conventional warship useful even though she's been overshadowed by the Kanmusu."
"Yep, Mirai's like our own mobile hotel. Hell, she can even dish it out if push really comes to shove. Would be nice to meet a Kanmusu version of her, don't you think? That girl won't let anything keep her down!" Matsuda laughed as he got up from his chair. "Anyway, I'd better go see to the girls. Akatsuki's probably bawling her eyes out over embarrassing herself that badly."
"Hey, no problem. Like I said, it's me who should be thanking you guys for coming. Tell her I won't hold it against her, alright?"
"Will do. Take care, Commander."
Matsuda and Yvonne's shook hands once more before the young man turned back to attend to his duties. "Well, that was an enlightening talk."
"…not a hotel."
"Hm? You said something, Yama…to?"
Yvonne turned to face her assistant and was shocked to see the battleship in dire straits. Yamato had been so quiet and reserved, Matsuda and Yvonne had completely forgotten about the battleship. Now that she was looking at her, Yvonne wondered how she'd manage to miss all this.
The poor girl seemed like on the verge of tears, her shoulders shaking and her hands around her parasol in a white knuckled grip. Something was terribly wrong.
"Yamato? What happened?"
"I… I apologize for my unseemly appearance, Commander." The pride of the Japanese Navy sniffled, clearly attempting to put on a brave face and failing spectacularly. "I, Yamato, will be alright in a moment. Just some dust in my eye, that's all. Where… where do you want to head to next?"
This time, the watery smile Yamato gave Yvonne teetered on the edge of despair.
…fuck it.
-=-
"Commander?" Yamato exclaimed as Yvonne bodily shoved both herself and the battleship into the vacant dormitory store room and locked the door behind her. "Commander, what are you doing?!"
"Getting answers," Yvonne said, rummaging around the shelves to find something she could use to sit on. She eventually found two spare folding chairs and moved them a relatively comfortable area in the room. Then she forcefully sat Yamato down on the chair across from her.
The lighting in the room wasn't very good, as Yvonne had opted to keep the ceiling light off and thus only had the small window at the far end of the room as a light source. However, Yvonne wasn't here to make a presentation. She was here to talk.
So talk she did.
"Okay, Yamato. You give me a straight answer, right here and right now." Yvonne said as she crossed her legs and folded her arms, staring down the battleship sternly. "There's clearly something bugging you, and I need to know what it is."
"There is nothing bothering me," Yamato insisted weakly, unable to meet Yvonne's eyes even in this dim lighting.
"And everything that has happened since we left the headquarters building has told me that you're lying to me right now," Yvonne challenged firmly. "If there is something that I have done that has offended you, I need to know what it is. Immediately."
"You? Offend? What, NO! C-C-Commander Swanson, it is my failing. Not yours! You are not at fault!" Yamato quickly said waving her arms about in a panicked manner.
"Really? Then what is your problem? Tell me here. Tell me now, sailor."
"I'd… I would rather not say."
"I'm making it an order. You tell me what it is or I'm going straight to the Admiral's office to ask for a new assistant, because clearly this is not working out."
"What? Why?" The horror and dismay on Yamato's face almost made Yvonne want to turn back and question just what she was doing.
Yvonne was going on an all-out verbal assault on the battleship Yamato. She was in a Japanese Naval base, surrounded by Japanese ship girls, many of whom didn't like her… and she was making the pride of their navy absolutely miserable.
If that wasn't a recipe for a lynch mob, Yvonne didn't know what would be!
However, if there was one thing Yvonne wasn't good at, it was backing down on an issue that needed to be forced, no matter the consequences.
This was an issue that most definitely needed to be forced.
"It's affecting your performance!" Yvonne jabbed a finger into Yamato's chest. "I've been with you for less than three hours, and you're a sobbing mess. Get a hold of yourself, woman! How am I supposed to work with you if you fall to pieces like this? I don't know what the hell's going on in that head of yours, but you're THE Yamato. You should be better than this!"
Yamato stared at Yvonne with wide eyes and an open mouth, so stunned speechless by Yvonne's rant, unable to even formulate a response.
"Start talking, or I start walking to the Admiral's office."
Yvonne delivered her final ultimatum, folding her arms back up and leaning back into her seat, as she waited for Yamato to come to a decision. Minutes passed as Yamato looked down at her hands, her face contorted with anguish as she wrestled with her own emotions. Anger, fear, hurt, shame, loathing, all played out on the young girl's features… but it seemed like she couldn't come to a decision.
If that was the case, Yvonne would make one for her.
"Okay. If that's the way you want it, I'm going," Yvonne declared as she rose from her seat and turned for the door… only to feel a tug on the sleeve of her uniform as she did so.
"Wait, commander. I'll tell you," Yamato said in a small quivering voice, her trembling arm outstretched. "Please, don't go. I'll talk."
Good enough.
Yvonne sat back down.
"Talk," she said.
Yamato was silent for a few more moments, so much so that Yvonne wondered if she was going back on her word, before she finally decided on where to begin.
"Commander Swanson. This… ties back in to the question you asked me earlier. The truth is… the truth is that I, Yamato, volunteered for this assignment. I wanted to be your assistant. Originally you were supposed to be attended to by the light cruiser Ooyodo, but I appealed to the Admiral, and was appointed in her stead."
Well, this was an unexpected development.
"And this is your problem? That you volunteered for it?" Yvonne leaned in, genuinely puzzled by what she was hearing. "I'm afraid I don't see the problem here. So you volunteered. Okay. But that doesn't explain why you cracked."
"The truth is that I volunteered because I wanted to be useful." Yamato wrung her hands nervously, her face growing paler by the moment, even as her words became more coherent.
Yvonne realized that the reserved and shy Yamato was airing out her innermost thoughts to her: whatever was bugging her had been doing so for some time. In that light, her breakdown was a symptom of something that had likely persisted for long before Yvonne had ever set foot in Yokosuka.
"Commander Swanson, do you know about the nickname 'Hotel Yamato'?" She asked cautiously.
"It was a derogatory name the IJN used to refer to the original battleship Yamato in World War Two," Yvonne recalled from her readings of the history books. "There was a perception amongst the rank and file that the ship was a white elephant. They served cold Ramune and free flow sake on that ship. She had carpeted floors and five-star accommodation, and the best food in the Imperial navy. Yamamoto gained twenty pounds living on her. Her maintenance and operating costs were astronomical. There was no practical way to use her, she was just too damned expensive to sail."
"Yes. That is certainly the case."
"Is?" Yvonne echoed, northing the present tense of the words.
"Indeed. I, Japanese Battleship Yamato… I am not able to take to the field because I put too much strain on our resources. I, Battleship Yamato, am a burden to this base."
It seemed just admitting this to someone else was nerve wracking, and it was taking every ounce of courage the poor girl had not to fall down crying now that she had said it. The look of frustration and helplessness in her eyes showed just how deep those feelings went.
Feelings that Yvonne had become all too familiar with, these past few months.
"I cannot even practice," Yamato said despondently, her hands clenching and unclenching again and again as she did so. "Even a simple practice session consumes an unacceptable amount of our resources. I haven't been able to take to the water on my own power in months."
"Jesus," Yvonne whispered as the pieces of the puzzle slowly came together.
She couldn't believe what she was hearing, but there answer was so obvious in hindsight. She'd been so distracted by the Yamato's power and reputation that she'd forgotten the girl that the legend was attached to.
It was like she was looking at herself, but worse.
At least in Yvonne's case she could blame an external source for her woes. Yamato on the other hand had no such scapegoat: she was blaming herself.
Wait, what happened with Matsuda…?
Oh hell, no.
"My conversation with Matsuda?"
"Yes," Yamato nodded her eyes once again beginning to water, "When you spoke of the Mirai, it wounded me deeply."
Great. Now Yvonne felt like an ass.
Thinking back to her conversation with Matsuda, Yvonne realized how much of what had been said between the two of them would be hard on Yamato. While the two officers had been thoughtlessly making small talk about Matsuda's old ship, barb after barb was being driven into the heart of the girl who was listening.
Mirai was a conventional ship, considered impractical against the Abyssal fleet, and had weapons that were far too expensive to use in a meaningful way. However, even though Mirai was a vessel whose weapons were ill suited to the task, she still was able to do her duty, by serving as a mobile headquarters. They'd even made that joke about the Mirai being a fucking hotel.
Akatsuki wasn't the only person putting their foot in her mouth today.
"When I found out about you coming to the base, I thought, this was my chance to be useful for once. I thought, as the pride of the Japanese Navy, I would be a fitting representative for our Kanmusu, to the first foreign officer to ever be assigned to our base." The pitch in Yamato's voice increased, her sadness and anger at herself reaching a crescendo. "I thought I could help impress the honour and courage of the Japanese Navy on our visitor and show them ho-how good we are… that we're committed to the defence of more than just the Japanese mainland. To make sure that the time you leave the base, you would only have good things to say about us and spread the word."
"Yamato… I don't know what to say."
"But look at this!" Yamato despaired, looking Yvonne in the eye. "I promised you that all of us would welcome you, but then you run into Zuikaku and my promise turns to ash right after I made it. I wanted you to think of us as capable professionals, but Akatsuki made you think we're children playing at war! And then… and then… now you're so disappointed in me you want to replace me with someone else! I-I-I don't know what I'm supposed to do!"
Yvonne was just barely able to catch Yamato as she fell out of her seat, sobbing and wailing all the while. The poor girl clung to her like she was a lifeline in the ocean, the battleship's tears dampening Yvonne's uniform, as months of repressed emotions came spilling out in one moment.
"Well this is a fine mess that I've stepped into," muttered Yvonne.
-=-
"Here. Towel."
"M-My thanks, Commander Swanson."
It was sometime later when Yamato had finally calmed down. The battleship had become a complete mess at that point; runny nose and reddened eyes had turned the Japanese beauty into an object of pity… one that could possibly enrage anyone who saw her and make them chase down the fiend responsible, in order to administer justice and the wrath of heaven.
Fortunately, it seemed that with most of the nearby Kanmusu out of the dormitory for practice, on missions, or otherwise distracted, nobody had noticed just yet.
Since Yvonne in no way wished to be beaten to a pulp, the pair had quickly made a beeline for the nearest bathroom for Yamato to freshen up. This was why Yamato was standing in front of a washroom basin and inspecting herself in the mirror, while Yvonne was leaning with her back to the wall, watching her.
"How long have you been holding that in?" Yvonne asked, once she was reasonably certain another question wouldn't set Yamato off again. She was now sailing in murky waters, and didn't want to take any chances.
"Months. You are the first person I've told," Yamato said as she turned off the water faucet and began drying her face with the towel Yvonne had given her. "Not even Musashi knows."
"Musashi?"
"My sister ship. She's the secretary ship for the Admiral down in Kure." Yamato gave a humourless laugh. "She makes herself much more useful over there than I do. I tried to be a secretary ship myself, but all the Admirals are either too used to their own personal aides to consider a replacement, or are too intimidated by me to accept it."
"Well that… sucks." Yvonne winced, wondering just how unlucky a person could get.
"If you… if you want to see the Admiral now, I, Yamato, understand," Yamato turned to face Yvonne and gave a deep respectful bow. "I apologize for my failure to live up to your expectations, and hope that m-my r-re-replacement will live up to your expectations."
Yvonne stayed silent for a few moments, in deep thought.
Outwardly, it might have seemed to the untrained eye that she was thinking about what to do. In truth, Yvonne had already made up her mind and was trying to figure out what was the best way of putting it to Yamato.
"No. I've changed my mind." Yamato's head shot up to stare at Yvonne, astonishment written all over her face, "Look, if I go back to the Admiral, what just happened is going to reflect badly on both of us over something that, quite frankly, isn't that bad yet. It's going to take some work, but I think we can make this assignment work out for both of us."
"What?" Yamato whispered in disbelief.
"Look, you're a good person, but you take everything far too personally," Yvonne explained with a shrug. "Okay so Zuikaku was a bitch. Big deal. We're in the military. There are plenty of assholes like her. And frankly? At least she was a bitch to me for something she believed in. I don't approve of what she did, but at least I can respect why she did it."
"I-I see." Yamato fidgeted awkwardly.
It seemed like the poor girl wasn't used to dealing with profanity. Tough. She was working with an American. Profanity was going to happen.
Yamato needed thinker skin anyway.
"Akatsuki's a kid. So maybe she made her squadron look stupid. Fine. Fix that tomorrow. Yes I know that first impressions are important and hard to fix if done wrong, but it's not like that can't be turned around with enough time and effort. That's something you have plenty of time to rectify. I just got here for fucks sake!"
Yvonne also didn't add that she actually found the Akatsuki sisters' antics endearing, but she knew that wasn't the kind of thing Yamato wanted to hear. By this point Yamato was rapt with attention, focusing entirely on Yvonne's words. It occurred to Yvonne that, somehow against all odds, she was giving Yamato a prep talk.
"Finally… I know what it's like to be sidelined," Yvonne admitted in a softer voice. Now this was the tricky bit. She needed to get her point across without disclosing classified information of the highest sort.
"You? Commander Swanson? That can't be right!" Yamato gasped in disbelief. "You're so strong and capable. You stared down Zuikaku like she was nothing. You came here alone on a mission of utmost importance. How could anyone have sidelined you before?"
Wow. From the look in her eyes, it was clear that Yamato, biggest goddamn battleship ever made and pride of the Japanese Navy, thought Yvonne was awesome.
Yamato thought Yvonne Swanson was awesome.
Nobody back home was going to believe this.
"You'd be surprised," Yvonne said without missing a beat, "Look, I understand how you feel, and believe it or not there are a lot of people in the US Navy who feel the same way."
"Really?"
"We used to be the most powerful navy on the planet. We had bases all around the globe. We had eleven aircraft carriers, each with enough planes to beat an entire air force. We had subs that could launch nukes that would wipe countries off the map. Our surface fleet fielded some of the most powerful cruisers and destroyers ever conceived. Now look at us." Yvonne gestured down at herself.
"It may be a surprise to you, but if the Abyssals hadn't happened I would still be a junior officer, not an O-5. They didn't send me here because I was capable. They sent me because they didn't have anyone else left to send and I was just the closest thing they had. The war wiped us out, Yamato. It broke us to the point where it's been a year since we stopped fighting to recover… and we're still picking up the pieces."
Yamato shook her head with a hand over her mouth.
It seemed the battleship had suddenly realized just how bad the US Navy was having it at this point and had no idea what to say in response.
"The Abyssals killed us, Yamato. They killed a quarter million of my brothers and sisters in arms. Do you have any idea how frustrating it is to know the sons of bitches who did it are still out there? That they aren't only still out there, but we can't do a goddamned thing to hit back because we're in no shape to? I think you do. And that's why I want to work with you." Yvonne held out an open hand towards Yamato. "I volunteered for this assignment because I wanted to do something useful. You volunteered for it for the same reason. We have that in common, at least. There's going to be kinks we need to work out, but are you willing to tough it out with me until we start kicking fate in the nuts and get our goddamn due?"
"I… I… YES!"
Yamato seized Yvonne's hand and shook it enthusiastically, beaming with the most brilliant smile Yvonne had ever seen on the girl's face.
"I, Yamato, would be so happy to work with you, Admiral!"
"Um, that's 'Commander'. I skipped like three grades to get to Commander, so Admiral sounds really awkward to me," Yvonne said nervously.
"If that is what you would prefer, 'Commander'." Yamato gave her a radiant smile, one that left no doubt to what she actually meant.
It was clear that Yamato was only addressing Yvonne as 'Commander' to humour the other girl, and in fact had made up her mind on what the American was to her.
Oh Christ on a Cracker, I 'seduced' the Pride of the Japanese Navy. What the hell have I done?
"Well, then. If that's the case, we should be going," Yvonne said, imagining damage control fairies panicking at being suddenly face to face with a ticking bomb. "Destroyer Division Six is a bust for now, but there's other things that we could be doing in the meantime."
"Like what, 'Commander'?" Yamato said deferentially, though her smile was still radiant as ever.
"You haven't read the briefing yet, so I might as well help you work though that. I should show you what I've learned so far in my complied research to bring you fully up to speed. You might even be able to give some insight into anything I've missed."
"As you say so Admi-Commander!"
As the pair walked out of the dormitory bathroom back towards Yvonne's office, it was a mirror of their earlier arrival, with Yvonne leading and Yamato following exactly four paces behind her… except this time, Yamato had a visible spring to her step and a smile that wouldn't fade.
Yvonne gulped.
Admiral Briggs is so going to kill me.
-=-
To be continued…
-=-
Additional note 1: Please be advised this work contains allusion to certain contemporary issues, namely war crimes perpetrated by Imperial Japan in World War 2. This work is meant to be for enjoyment, and no offense is meant. Also note that, as a fanfiction, many liberties were taken with Kantai Collection canon for the purposes of this story. That being said, please enjoy.
Additional note 2: Please be advised sections of this chapter were authored by Whiskey Golf from the Spacebattles form, who kindly allowed me to use his work as part of this fanfic.
-=-
While there were many ships that would be remembered by history for their significance, reputation or valour, there were a few that stood tall above all others. Ships with stories that elevated them beyond the mass of steel and oil of their physical forms, to the point where the mere mention of their names would trigger instant recognition. Such was their renown, they left a permanent mark on the nations they served and the nations they opposed.
The German battleship Bismarck might not have been the largest or most powerful battleship fielded in World War 2, but she forever engraved her place in history with the sinking of the battlecruiser HMS Hood and her subsequent last stand against the might of the Royal Navy. Such was her gallantry and courage in the face of certain defeat that her memory would endure in the dreams and imaginations of the British and Germans for generations.
Such was her fame that when she returned to battle as a ship girl of the Deutsche Marine, she became a rallying point for not just her own country, but for all of Europe.
Bismarck wasn't the only ship to leave such a cultural impact on mankind.
The return of these warships was more than just humanity levelling the playing field against the Abyssal fleet. It was a return of living legends… and Yvonne Swanson was well aware that in the Far East, there was one other battleship who rivalled Bismarck's fearsome reputation.
A battleship of such size, speed, and power, that she was considered an enduring symbol of Japanese military power even to this day. It was believed that as long as she existed and continued to fight, her country could never fall or surrender… and when she did fall, it was in a blaze of glory that none would ever forget.
That ship was the Japanese Battleship Yamato.
-=-
Kantai Collection: The Greatest Generation
Part 2: Pride of the Navy
-=-
Standing before the mirror in her quarters, Yvonne gave herself one last inspection, just to be sure she had everything right. The young woman in the mirror stared back at her, long blonde hair neatly tied in a bun. Shoulder bars, with the three stripes of a Commander and the star of a restricted line officer. On the right breast of her khaki blouse, her nametag rested. On her left breast, just a single "attagirl" award ribbon. Last, but not least, her collar devices: the silver oak leaves of a full Commander, and the crossed magnifying glass and quill of an intelligence specialist.
Yvonne sighed. She felt like a little girl playing dress up. The digicam Navy Working Uniform was a lot simpler. Back stateside, the NWUs had become the uniform of the day, a deliberate reinforcement of the fact that the Navy was at war. Even the Chief of Naval Operations wore NWUs in the Pentagon, only changing to his Service Dress Blues to report to the President or to brief Congress. The Service Khakis, formerly the day to day "office" uniform, had been quietly tucked away (if only for now).
Still, the Japanese Maritime Self Defense Force wasn't the United States Navy, and Yvonne had resolved to herself that she'd try and fit in as best as she could with her hosts – she was, afterall, a visitor in their house. That meant service khakis, and all the other assorted uniform regulations that entailed.
Still, she couldn't help but crack a small smile at her mirrored image. There was something special about the khakis – probably because in the American psyche, the classic image of a USN officer at war was wearing service khakis and a leather G-1 aviator's jacket.
It was a little irrational, but Yvonne felt a bit comforted at that though. Any little thing that could help her in her mission, she'd take. Though the jacket was probably pushing it.
She glanced at the jacket hanging in the closet, virtually unchanged from the first leather jackets worn by naval aviators in the Pacific War, collected her things, and settled her khaki combination cap on her head. She slipped her shoes on, and took a deep breath.
Then she exhaled, and Commander Yvonne Swanson, intelligence officer of the United States Navy, set out to execute her mission.
-=-
"Admiral, sir. Commander Swanson, reporting."
"Good morning, Commander. I trust you are well rested and settled in?" The Admiral returned the guesture. At his side was Nagato, waiting dutifully with a clipboard in hand for her Admiral's orders.
"Yes, sir. I wish to begin my investigation into as soon as possible," replied Yvonne, lowering her salute and remaining at attention.
Yvonne's orders were very peculiar, hence the need for her to come to Yokosuka Naval Base and work with the Japanese ship girls. Had it been a simple matter of analysis from third party reports and other action reports, she would not have needed to come to Japan, let alone Yokosuka. In fact, had her plan had not been so specific, she could still have stayed over in the US section of Yokosuka, or commute from Atsugi.
However, as it stood, Yvonne's ideas required her to work with the Japanese ship girls in a very intimate capacity, and the lack of available personnel to actually carry out the mission meant she, an able and capable volunteer with ideas of her own, had been sent.
"Very well. To begin with, I will be assigning you to work with Destroyer Division Six," the Admiral said with approval at her work ethic. "They are our top expeditionary specialists that have just returned from one of their mission this morning. Their temperaments should help you get a feel as to what working with Kanmusu would be like before you move on to some of our more… 'colourful' personalities."
Well, that was an understatement if Yvonne had ever heard one.
"I understand, sir," Yvonne agreed, maintaining her poker face.
"I also believe you are familiar with Lieutenant Matsuda. He can help you in your endeavours," The Admiral added. "Additionally, as the highest ranking non-JMSDF officer on the base, and to assist you in your mission, we have also assigned a Kanmusu as your aide. She will act as both your personal liaison with us, as well as your assistant. Please use her as you see fit."
The wisdom behind this measure was easily apparent. While having a normal human adjutant would be certainly serviceable for Yvonne's purposes, having a ship girl be her assistant had many useful benefits. Given that Yvonne would be interacting with the local Kanmusu a great deal, it was only natural that a Kanmusu aide would act as her go between.
There was also the fact that her 'assistant' would be able to monitor Yvonne's movements and report back any findings, but it was something that Yvonne had expected. If the situations were reversed, if she had American ship girls of her own to spare, she'd do the same thing.
She might be a guest, and goodwill to the US Navy was at its highest as it had been in years, but at the end of the day she was still an outsider, an outsider who was also an intelligence spook no less, poking around in places where she might not be wanted.
"Be aware we have selected one of our Kanmusu who is mostly idle due to resource constraints rather than one of our more active duty personnel, and as such she won't have much in the way of firsthand information about the Abyssal fleet you can use directly, or hard combat experience for that matter. She was only given the broad strokes of your mission before we assigned her to you, so you will have to brief her yourself. We have reserved a conference room for you to properly inform her on the specifics your mission."
"Thank you, sir. That's very kind of you."
If a little unnecessary. Booking an entire conference room for just two people? She knew the base had a lot of spare room, but still!
The Admiral turned to Nagato, sharing a silent look with her. The battleship gave her admiral a nod, and her eyes flicked to the name on the clipboard, the name she'd already known would be there, having written it herself.
"Yamato, please enter."
Wait Yamato what.
The side door to the Admiral's office opened, and a beautiful young woman entered the room. Her appearance was entirely too unique, an elaborate white red and black uniform that showed off too much skin and had a distinctively oriental flair. Her long auburn hair had been drawn into a ponytail, and it was perfectly accessorised by the blooming sakura flower that adorned it. The final, most noticeable piece of her ensemble, was the gorget bearing the emblem of the golden chrysanthemum.
Alarm bells starting going off in Yvonne's head.
There was no doubt in Yvonne's mind who this girl was.
The young woman quickly walked up to Yvonne's side and saluted the Admiral.
"Japanese Battleship Yamato, reporting for duty as ordered, sir! Thank you for choosing me for this assignment. I will do my best!"
Oh. Shit.
"Very good," the Admiral nodded before turning back to Yvonne with a satisfied smile, "Is this agreeable to you, Commander Swanson?"
Oh hell no!
Yvonne's poker face hid her inner turmoil at being between a rock and a hard place. As much as she wanted to say no, for that feeling of anxiety was back in force stronger than ever, to do so would be to turn down an incredible honour and insult her hosts.
Yamato was the ship that bore the hopes and dreams of the Japanese people, the vessel that most exemplified their warrior ideal. To say anything but 'yes' to having the Yamato be her liaison would be the gravest insult Yvonne could give.
She had no choice.
"Yes, sir!" Yvonne said, allowing her awe at Yamato to mask her fear. "To have the battleship Yamato herself escort me herself is an incredible honour!"
I am so boned.
-=-
It was irrational. Yvonne knew that the war was long over, and that she had nothing to fear from the young woman, Japanese Battleship Yamato, who walked exactly four paces behind her. In fact, Yvonne felt ashamed and embarrassed by her weakness.
Out of her five friends, she had been the one to be most vocal in espousing the idea of international cooperation between the ship girls of various nations. Yvonne had believed that, for the sake of the future, mankind needed to present a unified front against the Abyssal threat. Old grievances and rivalries couldn't be allowed to cloud their better judgement.
That was what she had told her comrades, at least.
But now that she was actually face to face with the Japanese ship girls, Yvonne was furious that she couldn't get over her uneasiness at their presence.
She had to keep fighting the urge to put distance between herself and Yamato. It made her feel like the biggest hypocrite to ever exist, especially so since Yamato, a person who had every reason to hate the United States, didn't seem to have any of the hang ups she did.
"May I ask where we are going, Commander Swanson?" Yamato queried.
"The admiral asked me to fill you in on what we're going to do, so I'm heading to the empty conference room the admiral booked earlier to do just that."
In hindsight, Yamato's importance probably was what made the Admiral decide on giving them an entire room. From what she'd read from the history books, for all of the battleship Yamato's capabilities she was treated like a porcelain doll by the Japanese Navy and hardly ever had to rough it out. It stood to reason that, as a ship girl, it seemed that this Yamato had more of the same.
It went without saying that Yvonne disapproved.
Alas, this was something the Admiral had done, and with how important Yamato was to the Japanese, Yvonne had to watch herself to avoid offending anyone.
Japanese Battleship Yamato… how the hell had THIS happened?
The pair had soon located the vacant room, and they settled in on opposite sides of a mahogany table. Having already anticipated the need to brief her new assistant, Yvonne had brought a copy of her orders and the supporting documentation with her.
"So how much did the Admiral tell you?" Yvonne asked, once she had provided the copy to Yamato, which the battleship promised to read on her own time after the briefing.
"Only the broad outline," Yamato replied, with her demure, shy voice. "I, Yamato, was informed that your plan involved interviewing our frontline Kanmusu about their experiences with the Abyssals."
Curiously, Yamato's tone and her use of 'frontline Kanmusu' seemed to indicate she didn't consider herself one of them. This combined, with the Admiral's earlier introduction, confirmed Yvonne's suspicions about that, like her historical counterpart, Yamato didn't get out very much.
"And that's all you know?" Yvonne said, keeping her thoughts to herself.
"Regretfully, I do not. Yamato was chosen for this position at the last minute."
"That's not a problem," Yvonne nodded. "I'll fill you in on the details then."
The mission's objective was simple: understand the nature of the Abyssal fleet, where they came from and, if possible, find insight on how they could be defeated.
This was easier said than done, of course: with how long the war had gone on, Yvonne would not be the first to try. However, she aimed to be the first to succeed.
Yvonne had gone through every known report, recording or documentation of the Abyssals. It was in these documents that she noticed a startling trend, a trend that she felt had been the reason that every single one of these prior attempts at understanding the Abyssals had failed before.
"Stage one will be to profile and interview each and every single Kanmusu on this base," Yvonne stated. "I've spent the better part of the last six months reading through everything about Abyssals, and, if I am being honest, half of them are complete bullshit and not worth the paper they're written on. I want first-hand accounts from the people who have physically seen and beaten these, things to help me verify what is accurate and what is not."
Indeed, part of the reason there hadn't been any progress in understanding the Abyssal fleet was that none of the experts could agree upon anything. Although there were plenty of 'armchair analysts who had weighed in on the matter, it wasn't entirely their fault.
The findings of any study were only as good as the evidence it was based on, and with the Abyssals it was hard to get such information.
Getting accurate data about the Abyssal fleet was difficult, thanks to the confusion of the early days of the war. With ships getting sunk left and right, people dying by the droves, rampant uncontrolled panic and hysteria, flotillas being destroyed before they even knew they were under attack, the whole refugee crisis… it was impossible to tell what was fact and what was the product of people in a blind panic.
By the time the ship girls had appeared and things had calmed down, the information repositories used by the intelligence services were so filled with reports of dubious accuracy that the entire process had simply ground to a stop while they got to actually organising things. All the crap would eventually be sorted out, verified and discarded, but that might take months, even years.
That wasn't good or soon enough. Yvonne had decided to cut out the middle man and get that information herself, from the best sources she could think of.
"I want to identify weaknesses and vulnerabilities. I want to identify the tactics they use and how we could use that to our advantage," Yvonne continued. "More than that, I want to know how coherent each type of Abyssal is, and if there is any semblance of intelligence in any of them or if they are just acting on some kind of instinct. I want to know if there are any individual commanders or leaders that remain at large, or if there are any of them that act differently from the rest."
"There are many Abyssals that seem to act as flagships for their fleets," Yamato noted.
"Maybe, but each and every one of those are often surrounded by escorts and are part of a battlegroup. I'm looking for something at a flotilla level," Yvonne said. "Next, I need to know the capabilities and prior combat records of each ship girl on this base in detail. I need to get a feel of their personalities. I want to know how each girl will react to danger and how well they can function under extreme pressure."
"Couldn't you just read a report? We have extensive physiological and psychological reports for you to follow," Yamato queried, her tone clearly showing she had asked this less to question Yvonne's judgement and more to understand the intelligence officer's reasoning.
It seemed like the battleship had caught on.
"Reports are one thing, but I'm looking for very specific people with very specific skillsets and mindsets. I need people who go looking for danger," Yvonne replied. "These interviews are to identify potential targets and candidates for the mission I came here to do."
"And that mission is?" Yamato asked. The battleship was leaning forward in her seat, her eyes intent. It was clear she'd already figured the answer. Yvonne was still happy to give her that confirmation.
"We figure out where they're going to be, then set up a trap to capture one of those Abyssal fuckers," Yvonne grinned. "Then we move onto stage two: interrogate the shit out of her."
-=-
Yvonne hadn't explained much after that. The following stages of her mission had been sensitive and classified by order of Admiral Briggs himself. It was on a strictly need to know basis, so there wasn't much else she could say to Yamato, especially about the part on how Yvonne was confident she'd be able to set a trap for her intended quarry.
Yvonne did open up for a short Q & A session to allow Yamato to ask anything else she was unsure of, but the shy young Japanese woman turned down the opportunity, insisting she was satisfied by the explanation given so far.
"Our first order of business will be to meet with Destroyer Division Six," Yvonne said later. "The Admiral informed me that they just returned from a mission, so their latest outing should be fresh in their minds."
"Ah, the Atatsuki sisters. I see. Interacting with them should give you some experience with dealing with us Kanmusu. The Admiral's insight is great as usual," Yamato nodded in agreement as she rose from her seat. "Very well, Commander Swanson. Shall I lead you to them?"
"Not just yet." Yvonne said, motioning for Yamato to sit back down.
"Commander Swanson?"
"Before we go, I have a few questions for you," Yvonne stated bluntly.
"I understand. As your assigned aide, I, Yamato, will attend to your needs as required. What do your require of me?" Yamato replied formally. It appeared that the battleship hadn't quite understood what Yvonne was getting at.
She decided to make things a little more clearly.
"Look. You misunderstand, Yamato. I mean I have questions for you." Yvonne could almost see the lightbulb going on over Yamato's head as she realized what Yvonne meant.
It was almost comical to see Yamato, the pride of the Japanese Navy, go beet red with embarrassment as she comprehended what Yvonne was getting at.
"I… I see. Very well. I, Yamato, will answer your questions to the best of my ability." Yamato fidgeted in place, wringing her hands nervously. Yvonne would have laughed at the sight if that persistent feeling, the feeling of knowing that a Japanese big gun battleship was right next to her, hadn't also been keeping her on edge.
That feeling was one of the reasons why Yvonne wanted to have this little chat.
"Look, you don't have to be so formal around me. We're going to be working together for the foreseeable future, so it's important we set some ground rules and get some stuff out of the way first," Yvonne spoke bluntly. Seeing Yamato nod in agreement, Yvonne continued, "I don't mean any offense so apologies in advance if I do, but my first question is pretty simple: are you okay with working with a foreign officer?"
"What? O-Of course I am!"
"I heard that there were some of you ship girls that weren't too happy with an American being on the base. I just want to make sure there won't be problems between the two of us down the line."
After all, with Yvonne having to wrestle with her own problems, if Yamato had more of the same there was a non-zero chance the two of them could be heading for some turbulent waters. If that happened, Yvonne knew their performance would be negatively affected.
"There won't! I, Yamato, will not dishonour the name of the Japanese Navy by being discourteous to an officer of a foreign Navy. You have my word," Yamato insisted.
"Good. I just wanted to get that out of the way." Yvonne couldn't be sure of the sincerity of Yamato's statement, but it seemed that was the best answer she was going to get for now. "Okay, the next order of business is something that I probably should have dealt with earlier: the chain of command."
"Chain of command? I'm not quite sure I follow," Yamato tilted her head in confusion. "I am to act as your assistant and liaison, won't I? That shouldn't be a problem then."
Well that did answer one of her major concerns, but there was more to it than that.
"Okay, that's one thing out of the way. Now, I'm actually concerned about how you and the other ship girls fit into it," Yvonne clarified, "Aside from Nagato who is the Admiral's secretary ship, I'm not sure on how your ship girls have organized yourselves in relation to the regular military. I just want to be sure I don't step on any toes I am not supposed to."
Yvonne felt that this was a pretty valid concern, especially since Yamato of all people had been assigned to her as an assistant.
To Yvonne's knowledge, the US Navy's policy was that in the event of a ship girl returning to active duty, she would be commissioned into the US Navy with actual rank. The Navy had intended this to be standard operational protocol with their ship girls, even to the point of preparing a truncated OCS program, before their whole project had been unexpectedly derailed.
It was more than just a courtesy rank; it would help members of the Navy, both ship girls and humans, understand where their positions were in the Navy proper, and make their positions in the chain of command clear to everyone involved.
In theory, under this policy, any US Navy ship girl would carry the same responsibilities and be afforded the same respect of any officer of that same rank.
Not everyone had adopted the same system, of course. The concept of ship girls was so unusual that there was no standardized system among mankind's navies for dealing with them.
Yvonne had heard Russians had adopted a similar approach to the Americans, albeit they promoted their ship girls based on skill and performance, both in battle and out of it, while the British, Germans and French had decided seniority among the ships was dictated by tonnage and size, with a few special exceptions.
She'd even heard that HMS Hood, leader of a quick reaction force that was quickly becoming analogous to a ship girl version of the SAS, even had a human secretary of her own.
Yvonne had thought the Japanese had adopted something along similar lines to the Europeans, and had been blindsided when Yamato had been assigned as her assistant… a 'mere' O-5 from a visiting service. Clearly she had been mistaken. Yvonne needed to know the lay of the land, and fast.
"I see. Do not worry, Commander. Kanmusu have been ordered to obey human personnel, so you won't have to worry about offending any superior officers: even Nagato would have to defer to you, as long as your orders don't conflict with her ability to carry out those set by the Admiral. As long as it is within reason, we will try to accommodate you as best we can," Yamato said dutifully.
"Well, that's good to know." Yvonne inwardly breathed a sigh of relief.
Now she didn't have to worry about accidentally being like that one idiot in Portsmouth who thought he could order Hood around while she was visiting. Yvonne had a good laugh at that when she'd heard about what happened to the poor bastard, but no way did she want to repeat that mistake.
"As for seniority amongst Kanmusu, in theory we are all equal with each other except for the 'flagship' of that specific unit, who is above them," Yamato concluded with a smile. "It is actually very simple compared to how some other nations have set up their own forces. You will not take long to familiarize yourself with it."
"I see. Thank you for clarifying that with me. Now, final question, and this one is just for my own curiosity. How did you end up with me anyway?" Yvonne asked. "I mean, you're the Yamato. You're the pride of the Japanese Navy. I'm a foreign officer, from the United States, and they made you my assistant. I'm sorry about being suspicious, but that feels a little weird since I'm not even an admiral. What happened?"
Yvonne wondered if this was too touchy, but she needed to know.
Yamato had thrown her for a loop. Yamato was the pinnacle of the military might of the Imperial Japanese Navy, one of the most prideful and controversial military forces to ever exist. The danger of having what should have been the flag bearer of the Japanese Navy take a job that could be so easily done by someone else less prominent was one Yvonne couldn't ignore.
While she was thankful that the battleship seemed willing to work with her, there was a potential political time bomb that had just been handed to Yvonne, and she wanted to know why.
Yamato had once again seemed to retreat back into herself, fidgeting in her seat as an internal war played out on her pretty features.
"I… I… I am sorry Commander. Regretfully, that is one question I, Yamato, do not wish to answer."
Damn, that was what Yvonne was afraid of.
"It's fine. I think that question was overstepping my bounds anyway." Yvonne sighed, her unease deepening. Chances were, something of note had happened. Something pretty bad, and likely career-ending, given she was looking at a battleship who'd been shitcanned and beached.
Brilliant.
Just what Yvonne needed to start her mission over in Yokosuka.
-=-
As Yamato promised, she led Yvonne towards where she would meet Destroyer Division Six. The pair had made their way out of the HQ building towards one of the main ship girl dormitories, as the Akatsuki sisters were on a break after having just finished their most recent expeditionary missions.
While Yamato admitted she was not certain that they were there, chances were that someone who was there would know where they had gone.
"The four of them are very close," Yamato explained on the way towards the dormitory, twirling the parasol she had collected from the front of the main office building on her shoulder. "They practically go everywhere with each other. If you find one, the others will not be far away."
"So you Kanmusu all live together in this building?" Yvonne asked, when they had arrived outside of the dormitory proper.
"Not all of us. There is a separate dormitory next to this one for the cruisers, and there are plans to build a third," Yamato supplied. "There are also similar facilities in our other operational bases like Sasebo and Kure for those Kanmusu stationed there."
"Hm, we might have to do a bit of travelling in the future then, if we can't find what we need here."
An entire building dedicated to housing ship girls. The thought of something like this existing blew Yvonne's mind. The Japanese had over a hundred and fifty of them, and almost all of them lived in buildings like these.
It represented what Yvonne hoped would eventually happen with the United States Navy, but at the same time caused her to feel anxiety, since she had never experienced something like this before.
"Well, shall we go in?" Yvonne said, taking the initiative to forcefully quench her own anxiety.
"Right this way, Commander Swanson."
Taking a deep breath to steady her nerves, Yvonne followed in after Yamato.
Hopefully there wouldn't be a problem.
-=-
"What is SHE doing here?"
There was a problem.
"Zuikaku, please. Commander Swanson is here on official business," Yamato said pleadingly towards the twin tailed spitfire that they had encountered in the main entrance to the dormitory. "She's here to see Ataksuki and her sisters."
"Why? They're off duty and resting after having that exhausting mission, and this American wants to bother them?" Zuikaku folded her arms stubbornly and glared at Yvonne. "Give me one good reason why I should let you see them. One. Reason."
The girl that had barred their way was the Shoukaku-class aircraft carrier Zuikaku, apparently a feisty young woman with a serious attitude problem. The grey haired girl was wearing what appeared to be a shortened miko uniform and was carrying a bow and arrow. Apparently, she had been on her way out of the dormitory for practice when Yvonne and Yamato had entered.
Zuikaku had immediately taken exception to Yvonne's presence, and had made that opinion known.
Loudly.
So much for that promise about Japanese ship girls bending over backwards to accommodate the foreign officer.
"Please, Zuikaku. You're embarrassing us." Yamato seemed fully aware of the situation as she shot guilty, apologetic looks towards Yvonne. The battleship had boasted to Yvonne that her comrades would be helpful just moments ago, and now Zuikaku was living proof that this was not the case. "Commander Swanson is here to help."
"Yeah? Help you say?" Zuikaku pushed past Yamato, something that Yvonne noted with interest, and walked right into Yvonne's face. "Hey you. You speak Japanese?"
"Not as fluent as I would have liked, but I do," Yvonne replied smoothly.
"Good. So you want to help? You can help by telling me where the hell are our reinforcements are!" Zuikaku demanded angrily, her eyes ablaze with righteous anger, "We've been fighting this entire war for months now, and you guys haven't lifted a finger to help. What, do the Japanese have to win back the entire Pacific on our own? What the hell are you people sitting on your asses for?"
"Zuikaku!"
"It's fine, Yamato. I'll handle this," Yvonne replied without breaking eye contact with the other carrier. "Go into the dormitory and find Destroyer Division Six. We're wasting time here."
"I… I will do so, Commander Swanson. My apologies." Yamato, awed by Yvonne's confidence at staring down an angry aircraft carrier, turned to leave and carry out what was asked of her.
"Pretty confident for a human, Yank," Zuikaku said.
"You don't know the half of it."
Yvonne would have chuckled and thanked the other girl if she could. Zuikaku had just made a critical mistake, and it had been to Yvonne's benefit.
Yvonne had been having the jitters up til now. Getting assigned Yamato as an assistant, entering a dormitory full of other ship girls when she was more used to being around humans, all of this had understandably caused Yvonne to become nervous because she was outside of her comfort zone. It had gotten to the point where Yvonne was beginning to worry that it might affect her performance.
Zuikaku didn't know it, but she'd helped immensely… because she'd pushed Yvonne right back into familiar waters.
If there was one thing the Yvonne was very familiar with, it was how to respond when under attack by the enemy, and it helped that, as a carrier at such close range, Zuikaku wasn't nearly as intimidating as Nagato, Kongou or Yamato was. Suddenly that nervous feeling was gone, and all was right with the world.
"The United States Navy is in the process of recovering after our losses. As such, we are incapable of fielding ship girls of our own at present time," Yvonne stated clearly and slowly., "You know the story. It won't change just because you want it to."
"Bullshit!"
"Two hundred and fifty thousand funerals say otherwise," Yvonne stated bluntly.
While she didn't like hiding behind the deaths of her countrymen to keep up the grand lie, it was something that she had gotten used to if she was to uphold her standing orders.
It was also a tried and true method at deterring people from further questioning, since most decent people stopped there out of respect for the fallen.
"Yeah, so what? We Japanese lost people too, and we're still fighting."
And apparently Zuikaku wasn't most people.
"Okay, Yankee Doodle. It's been months. Why haven't you people gotten your shit together? Do you have any idea how big this damn ocean is?" Zuikaku growled as she moved right into Yvonne's face, "We've been busting out asses been protecting your convoys, your ships and your ports as well as our own. We're spread thin enough as it is, and you expect us to run across the Pacific to pick up your slack? What happened to the strongest navy on the planet, huh?"
Well excuse the United States Navy for not being able to fight after losing nine carriers, seventy surface fleet warships and damn near the entire submarine fleet. Of course, Yvonne didn't say that aloud, and used a bit more tact.
"The US military as a whole is still providing assistance in the form of logistical support and air cover provided by the US Air Force. Surely you have benefited from protection offered by our surface installations and use of drone strikes? We are doing everything we can."
One of the greatest advantages that allowed the United States to remain relevant in the war despite their Navy having been reduced to nothing was that they proved invaluable for the defence against Abyssals. Surface installations set up by the US located inland could strike at attacking Abyssals while mitigating the risk to themselves, and the Air Force still had plenty of fighters, bombers and drones, and was getting a crash course in antishipping missions from survivors of the Navy's strike and maritime patrol communities. It was only further out to sea, where merchant convoys important for international trade and commerce needed to venture, where these advantages were nullified.
The United States was still very much a relevant player in the war, just not their Navy, and Yvonne wanted to remind Zuikaku of that.
"Drone strikes are useful on the odd occasion, I'll give you that, but we need to win the war! We can't do that if we're on the defensive all the time," Zuikaku insisted. "I mean, damn it, just the other month Shoukaku-nee and I had to go all the way around the Pacific to your 'San Fansciso' because you don't have any girls of your own. We have a rotation for that. What the hell?"
Okay… it was a little ridiculous, but Yvonne couldn't actually say her opinion out loud either. Because the US Navy couldn't field their own ship girls, it had been agreed a single task group of Japanese ship girls would be stationed at Naval Base San Diego in case they were ever needed, a small goodwill force offered by the Japanese in exchange for America's continued support of sorts.
Of course, with the amount of anti-Abyssal weaponry the United States Army had set up lining the coast since the appearance of the ship girls, any Abyssal fleet wandering even close to the coast would be blown to kingdom come, long before those girls would be needed. Other than escorting convoys up north towards Canada and helping deter small Abyssal raids, the garrison there didn't actually get involved in the fierce fighting that characterized the East Asian campaign.
It did offer peace of mind to the population at having them there, especially after Norfolk and Pearl, so Yvonne had thought it was worth it: she just hadn't considered that the Japanese ship girls would be resentful over that, although it was obvious now in hindsight.
Although…
"You do realize that overseas assignments are part and parcel of being in a Navy right?" Yvonne couldn't help but say mischievously. "Sail the seven seas, see the world, meet interesting people... don't you guys have any of that on your recruitment posters?"
"I'm just fine with staying in Japan, thank you very much!"
"What, you don't what a yank boyfriend? I thought Japanese girls loved the stereotypical surfer dude: tall, blonde and musclebound, and well, you look like the type that would go for that."
Zuikaku had gone beet red, eye irises having shrunk into pin pricks and her whole body quivering with embarrassment. The ashen haired girl's mouth was moving, trying to form coherent sentences, but the only sound that came out was a high pitched whistling noise like a boiler.
"You mean you don't? Wow, you don't know to enjoy an overseas posting? Did you stay in your bunk all day or something? You did, didn't you?" Yvonne said with a mock gasp, trying to milk this for all it was worth, "Oh my god, you have no idea what you are missing out on! Listen girl, this is an order from a superior officer. I am going to take you out tonight for a pub crawl and we are going to pick up so many hot gu-"
Zuikaku lost it.
"P-P-P-P-PERVERT!" Zuikaku screeched, leaping backwards away from Yvonne and making for the exit as fast as her legs could carry her. "THE AMERICAN IS A DEVIANT! DEVIANT I SAY! DEVIANT!"
Yvonne watched the other girl run like the proverbial bat out of hell with the biggest shit eating grin she could muster.
Chances were, Yvonne was going to catch hell for this later, but right now?
So worth it.
-=-
"I, Yamato, offer my sincere apologies, Commander Swanson. I wasn't able to stop Zuikaku from her unseemly behaviour," Yamato apologized profusely, bowing all the while "Please forgive us being untoward you."
"It's fine, Yamato. I dealt with it," Yvonne replied.
She of course didn't add that she handled the problem by effectively teasing Zuikaku into full retreat, but knowing the military grapevine people were probably going to talk sooner or later.
Still, Yvonne wondered how the Admiral would approach this, since Yvonne had technically been the aggrieved party and Zuikaku the aggressor. They seemed really touchy about making the foreigner welcome for some reason, so maybe she would get away scot free. Briggs would have given Yvonne a right dressing down for pulling something like that!
SO worth it, though.
"Anyway, enough about that." Yvonne turned to address the people that Yamato had returned with. Given the informal environment that was the small common room they were now meeting in, Yvonne decided to forgo a salute and instead opted for a more informal handshake instead.
"It is a pleasure to meet you again, Lieutenant."
"The pleasure is mine, Commander." Lieutenant Satoshi Matsuda, now dressed in his own undress whites, took her hand with a strong confident handshake. Coincidentally, he had been with the Akatsuki sisters, congratulating them for a job well done when Yamato had found them, and had decided to tag along. "I see you didn't waste any time getting down to business."
"Time is precious," Yvonne replied before turning to the four young girls that were huddled together on the sofa across from her chair, "And these must be the Ataksuki sisters of Destroyer Division Six. My name is Commander Yvonne Swanson. It's nice to meet you."
When Yvonne had seen the four girls, all looking like they hadn't even reached their pre-teens, she had been very surprised at their youth.
She had no idea that ship girls could even be that young. These girls looked and acted like they were twelve. No wonder why many people were reluctant to send ship girls into battle: even Yvonne was feeling uncomfortable with the mere thought of sending these youngsters to fight a war!
This thought was thankfully balanced with that now annoying sensation she had again around unfamiliar ship girls. While Yvonne was still feeling on edge at being so close to a group of destroyers, the fact they were a bunch of kids, and the recent victory she had over Zuikaku, had allowed Yvonne to shunt those unwanted feelings to where they couldn't bother her.
"It is nice to meet you too, Miss Swanson," the girl with long dark hair and an adorable black cap on her head greeted formally. It seemed that she was the leader of their crew. "My name is Akatsuki, first of the special type-III destroyers Akatsuki-class."
"Hibiki, of the same class. Zdravstvuyte," the stoic faced white haired girl beside Akatsuki said. Russian? Hm, must be something she picked up after the war.
"Ikazuchi! Good t' meet 'cha!" The excitable one followed. "Not 'Kaminari'! Make sure you get my name right, 'kay?"
"I'm Inazuma. Pleased to meet you, nano-desu," the final member, who looked very similar to her sister Ikazuchi, gave a polite bow.
Yvonne wondered what that 'nano-desu' at the end of her sentence meant; her command of the language wasn't good enough to help her in that regard. She'd have to ask Yamato about it later. It didn't seem to be rude though…
"There's no need to be so formal. You girls are supposed to be on a break now," Yvonne said with a wave of her hand. "Thank you for taking the time to meet me."
"It was no trouble at all, Miss Swanson. We are 'ladies' of the Japanese Navy after all," Akatsuki insisted, puffing out her chest with childish pride.
"I'm sure you are," Yvonne smiled indulgently. What a cute kid!
"So you have questions for us? Ask away!" Akatsuki beamed, "We'll show you how good we are at doing 'adult lady' jobs for Admiral Matsuda here, even at night!"
Yvonne, Matsuda and Yamato all started choking while trying to hold down the sudden bout of laughter, or in Matsuda's case, sheer unbridled embarrassment. The other three Atakuski girls simply looked at their lead ship like she'd grown a second head.
"Akatsuki, I don't think that's a good way you're supposed you're supposed to phrase it, nano-desu!" Inazuma said tactfully.
"Sis, you do know that say'n things like that is going to make Admiral Masuda look like a criminal, ya'know?" Ikazuchi said un-tactfully. From where he was sitting, Lieutenant Matsuda looked like he was having an aneurysm and a heart attack at the same time.
Realizing her mistake, Atakuski tried back pedalling.
"I-It was a mistake. I meant that the four of us are perfect ladies that can do night battles! Like officers and gentle… gentle…"
"Gentlewomen, nanodesu."
"That's right! Gentlewomen! We are ladies and gentlewomen!" Akatsuki, now beet red in the face and radiating pure shame, jabbed a finger at Yvonne and tried looking as confident as she could, "So don't you worry,American! You have come to the right place, for there is no group more ref… refin… 'elephant' as Destroyer Division Six!"
Akatsuki's declaration was followed with a short period of silence as the other people around the table simply stared at her. Inazuma and Ikazuchi seemed frozen with their mouths hanging open. Matsuda seemed on the verge of dying. Yamato was standing shock still at the side of Yvonne's chair with eyes wide as saucers, clearly unsure how to react….
And Yvonne?
She held out for five seconds, and then couldn't take it anymore.
"…Bwa-ha-ha-ha-hahahahaha! Jesus, ha-ha-ha-ha-ha! Jesus Christ! Can't breathe, ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!" Yvonne roared, beating the arm rests of her chair while trying desperately to regain her composure. It was hopeless. Despite all of the Yvonne's discipline, there was absolutely no way anyone could hear that and still manage to keep a straight face.
"Bozhe moi…" Hibiki dropped her face into her hands and groaned.
Then Yvonne fell off the chair and kept laughing.
"Someone sink me now," Akatsuki muttered as she collapsed back down onto the sofa.
-=-
Having thoroughly humiliated themselves, it had been decided on the spot that the interview should be postponed until such time that Atatsuki felt like she could face Yvonne again.
Probably not anytime soon, that's for sure.
"I am very sorry about all this! This is so disgraceful to allow a member of a visiting Navy see such shameful acts!" Yamato kept bowing to Yvonne.
"Seriously, I told you to stop doing that. You didn't physically put Akatsuki's foot in her mouth." Yvonne told Yamato, wiping the tears out of her eyes.
It appeared that poor Yamato had taken the two incidents thus far as a personal failing on her part to leave a good impression of the Japanese Navy on their guest. The poor girl was practically beside herself with embarrassment, even more so than Matsuda who had recovered from his own brush with humiliation.
Yvonne hoped that she wasn't going to make a habit of embarrassing the Japanese like this. Zuikaku had it coming, but poor Akatsuki had practically sailed right into a minefield of her own making without Yvonne lifting a finger. If this kept happening, Yvonne's little trip was going to do wonders for future USN - JMSDF relations!
"Are those four always like this?" Yvonne asked Matsuda, once the four Atasuki sisters had filed out of the room, the others escorting a crying Atatsuki back to their room in what had to be the most diabetes inducing scene Yvonne had ever been witness to.
"You have no idea," Matsuda replied as he wiped the sweat off his face from the nasty shock with a handkerchief. "Those four are basically kindergarteners that I have to babysit on a daily basis. Well, Hibiki not so much, but the other three? Not the kinda thing I expected to be doing when I took my commission."
"No shit."
"I am so sorry, Admiral Matsuda, Commander Swanson. I have brought shame upon the Japanese Navy!" Yamato continued bowing. Yvonne rolled her eyes.
"Uh, I thought I told you…"
"Yamato, stop. That's an order," Matsuda said sharply at Yamato.
Yamato stopped. She was still sniffling, but otherwise she had ceased apologizing. Yvonne stared at Matsuda with wide, respectful eyes.
"There you go. Sometimes you have to be a little firm and put your foot down," Matsuda explained with a sigh. "I know it doesn't feel good to be an ass, but that's what being an officer is about: leading and discipline. You don't look like you're used to having subordinates, or went down a conventional command track."
"No, I didn't. I was an intelligence analyst that worked with a rear echelon team. The promotion was pretty unexpected, to put it mildly," Yvonne said. "I'm guessing you're a line officer?"
"Served on the Aegis destroyer Mirai for two months before they yanked me out for the Kanmusu program," Matsuda said with some regret. "Don't get me wrong, I know I'm doing good work in my new job, but it's always been my dream to be the Captain of a warship like my old man, y'know?"
"Oh yeah, you did mention something like that yesterday."
Yvonne knew of the guided missile destroyer Mirai, hull number DDG-182. She was the lead ship of the relatively new Mirai-class Aegis destroyers, developed off the American Flight IIIA Arleigh Burke-class and taking cues from the venerable Kongo and Atago-class destroyers. The Mirai had come into prominence shortly after the Abyssal fleet had appeared, as Japan's answer to the new threat.
Arguably the most powerful guided missile destroyer class still in service, especially now that the Flight II Zumwalts were languishing at the bottom of the ocean, she was specifically designed around technologies that were originally intended to counteract the Abyssal threat. However, Mirai was ultimately hampered by the inherent limitations of being a conventional ship fighting an unconventional adversary.
Nevertheless, as far as the modern Japanese Maritime Self-Defence Force went, she was the pride of their fleet. No wonder Matsuda had some residual regret at being pulled off. That was a dream posting if Yvonne ever saw one.
"She's part of the support flotilla assigned here right?" Yvonne recalled that Matsuda had mentioned that both the Izumo and the Mirai were assigned to Yokosuka as conventional support vessels for the Kanmusu fleet yesterday. "You probably get to see her very often."
"Yeah. The Admiral uses the Mirai as a mobile command post now. I rarely get to actually be on her anymore, though," Matsuda confirmed. "She's outfitted as a fleet flagship, has the best radar in the fleet, a turret mounted railgun that can punch through damn near anything, and enough modified Anti-Abyssal missiles to sink a small fleet on her own. It's a pity that she's so damned hard and expensive to rearm, or we would have had this war in the bag."
"I hear you. Our Zumwalts would have kicked some serious ass if the railguns didn't keep overheating in the middle of a fight," Yvonne agreed.
Killing the Abyssals wasn't a problem. It was killing them cost effectively and keeping up with the rate of attrition that was what eventually wore the US Navy down. A railgun could kill an Abyssal easily, but there was never only one Abyssal. Sure, the Navy had plenty of missiles, but firing a few ten million dollars' worth of missiles to kill a single Ro-Class destroyer was not how you won wars, and since the Abyssals had more bodies than the Navy had shells and missiles, well…
Stalin said it best: quantity had a quality of its own.
"Still, for something the public thinks of as obsolete, she'd doing a damned fine job at helping us out," Matsuda said nostalgically, with more than a little pride at his old ship. "Honestly, she might not be able to fight as well as we'd planned, but as a mobile command centre she's second to none. Saves the girls having to go out all the way to the mission area on their own, you know?"
"I agree. It would really suck to have to go out there in the rain," Yvonne noted thoughtfully.
Traveling in the comfort of another ship did have its advantages, especially if it helped to keep ship girls well rested and supplied before needing to fight. "Plenty of ways to make a conventional warship useful even though she's been overshadowed by the Kanmusu."
"Yep, Mirai's like our own mobile hotel. Hell, she can even dish it out if push really comes to shove. Would be nice to meet a Kanmusu version of her, don't you think? That girl won't let anything keep her down!" Matsuda laughed as he got up from his chair. "Anyway, I'd better go see to the girls. Akatsuki's probably bawling her eyes out over embarrassing herself that badly."
"Hey, no problem. Like I said, it's me who should be thanking you guys for coming. Tell her I won't hold it against her, alright?"
"Will do. Take care, Commander."
Matsuda and Yvonne's shook hands once more before the young man turned back to attend to his duties. "Well, that was an enlightening talk."
"…not a hotel."
"Hm? You said something, Yama…to?"
Yvonne turned to face her assistant and was shocked to see the battleship in dire straits. Yamato had been so quiet and reserved, Matsuda and Yvonne had completely forgotten about the battleship. Now that she was looking at her, Yvonne wondered how she'd manage to miss all this.
The poor girl seemed like on the verge of tears, her shoulders shaking and her hands around her parasol in a white knuckled grip. Something was terribly wrong.
"Yamato? What happened?"
"I… I apologize for my unseemly appearance, Commander." The pride of the Japanese Navy sniffled, clearly attempting to put on a brave face and failing spectacularly. "I, Yamato, will be alright in a moment. Just some dust in my eye, that's all. Where… where do you want to head to next?"
This time, the watery smile Yamato gave Yvonne teetered on the edge of despair.
…fuck it.
-=-
"Commander?" Yamato exclaimed as Yvonne bodily shoved both herself and the battleship into the vacant dormitory store room and locked the door behind her. "Commander, what are you doing?!"
"Getting answers," Yvonne said, rummaging around the shelves to find something she could use to sit on. She eventually found two spare folding chairs and moved them a relatively comfortable area in the room. Then she forcefully sat Yamato down on the chair across from her.
The lighting in the room wasn't very good, as Yvonne had opted to keep the ceiling light off and thus only had the small window at the far end of the room as a light source. However, Yvonne wasn't here to make a presentation. She was here to talk.
So talk she did.
"Okay, Yamato. You give me a straight answer, right here and right now." Yvonne said as she crossed her legs and folded her arms, staring down the battleship sternly. "There's clearly something bugging you, and I need to know what it is."
"There is nothing bothering me," Yamato insisted weakly, unable to meet Yvonne's eyes even in this dim lighting.
"And everything that has happened since we left the headquarters building has told me that you're lying to me right now," Yvonne challenged firmly. "If there is something that I have done that has offended you, I need to know what it is. Immediately."
"You? Offend? What, NO! C-C-Commander Swanson, it is my failing. Not yours! You are not at fault!" Yamato quickly said waving her arms about in a panicked manner.
"Really? Then what is your problem? Tell me here. Tell me now, sailor."
"I'd… I would rather not say."
"I'm making it an order. You tell me what it is or I'm going straight to the Admiral's office to ask for a new assistant, because clearly this is not working out."
"What? Why?" The horror and dismay on Yamato's face almost made Yvonne want to turn back and question just what she was doing.
Yvonne was going on an all-out verbal assault on the battleship Yamato. She was in a Japanese Naval base, surrounded by Japanese ship girls, many of whom didn't like her… and she was making the pride of their navy absolutely miserable.
If that wasn't a recipe for a lynch mob, Yvonne didn't know what would be!
However, if there was one thing Yvonne wasn't good at, it was backing down on an issue that needed to be forced, no matter the consequences.
This was an issue that most definitely needed to be forced.
"It's affecting your performance!" Yvonne jabbed a finger into Yamato's chest. "I've been with you for less than three hours, and you're a sobbing mess. Get a hold of yourself, woman! How am I supposed to work with you if you fall to pieces like this? I don't know what the hell's going on in that head of yours, but you're THE Yamato. You should be better than this!"
Yamato stared at Yvonne with wide eyes and an open mouth, so stunned speechless by Yvonne's rant, unable to even formulate a response.
"Start talking, or I start walking to the Admiral's office."
Yvonne delivered her final ultimatum, folding her arms back up and leaning back into her seat, as she waited for Yamato to come to a decision. Minutes passed as Yamato looked down at her hands, her face contorted with anguish as she wrestled with her own emotions. Anger, fear, hurt, shame, loathing, all played out on the young girl's features… but it seemed like she couldn't come to a decision.
If that was the case, Yvonne would make one for her.
"Okay. If that's the way you want it, I'm going," Yvonne declared as she rose from her seat and turned for the door… only to feel a tug on the sleeve of her uniform as she did so.
"Wait, commander. I'll tell you," Yamato said in a small quivering voice, her trembling arm outstretched. "Please, don't go. I'll talk."
Good enough.
Yvonne sat back down.
"Talk," she said.
Yamato was silent for a few more moments, so much so that Yvonne wondered if she was going back on her word, before she finally decided on where to begin.
"Commander Swanson. This… ties back in to the question you asked me earlier. The truth is… the truth is that I, Yamato, volunteered for this assignment. I wanted to be your assistant. Originally you were supposed to be attended to by the light cruiser Ooyodo, but I appealed to the Admiral, and was appointed in her stead."
Well, this was an unexpected development.
"And this is your problem? That you volunteered for it?" Yvonne leaned in, genuinely puzzled by what she was hearing. "I'm afraid I don't see the problem here. So you volunteered. Okay. But that doesn't explain why you cracked."
"The truth is that I volunteered because I wanted to be useful." Yamato wrung her hands nervously, her face growing paler by the moment, even as her words became more coherent.
Yvonne realized that the reserved and shy Yamato was airing out her innermost thoughts to her: whatever was bugging her had been doing so for some time. In that light, her breakdown was a symptom of something that had likely persisted for long before Yvonne had ever set foot in Yokosuka.
"Commander Swanson, do you know about the nickname 'Hotel Yamato'?" She asked cautiously.
"It was a derogatory name the IJN used to refer to the original battleship Yamato in World War Two," Yvonne recalled from her readings of the history books. "There was a perception amongst the rank and file that the ship was a white elephant. They served cold Ramune and free flow sake on that ship. She had carpeted floors and five-star accommodation, and the best food in the Imperial navy. Yamamoto gained twenty pounds living on her. Her maintenance and operating costs were astronomical. There was no practical way to use her, she was just too damned expensive to sail."
"Yes. That is certainly the case."
"Is?" Yvonne echoed, northing the present tense of the words.
"Indeed. I, Japanese Battleship Yamato… I am not able to take to the field because I put too much strain on our resources. I, Battleship Yamato, am a burden to this base."
It seemed just admitting this to someone else was nerve wracking, and it was taking every ounce of courage the poor girl had not to fall down crying now that she had said it. The look of frustration and helplessness in her eyes showed just how deep those feelings went.
Feelings that Yvonne had become all too familiar with, these past few months.
"I cannot even practice," Yamato said despondently, her hands clenching and unclenching again and again as she did so. "Even a simple practice session consumes an unacceptable amount of our resources. I haven't been able to take to the water on my own power in months."
"Jesus," Yvonne whispered as the pieces of the puzzle slowly came together.
She couldn't believe what she was hearing, but there answer was so obvious in hindsight. She'd been so distracted by the Yamato's power and reputation that she'd forgotten the girl that the legend was attached to.
It was like she was looking at herself, but worse.
At least in Yvonne's case she could blame an external source for her woes. Yamato on the other hand had no such scapegoat: she was blaming herself.
Wait, what happened with Matsuda…?
Oh hell, no.
"My conversation with Matsuda?"
"Yes," Yamato nodded her eyes once again beginning to water, "When you spoke of the Mirai, it wounded me deeply."
Great. Now Yvonne felt like an ass.
Thinking back to her conversation with Matsuda, Yvonne realized how much of what had been said between the two of them would be hard on Yamato. While the two officers had been thoughtlessly making small talk about Matsuda's old ship, barb after barb was being driven into the heart of the girl who was listening.
Mirai was a conventional ship, considered impractical against the Abyssal fleet, and had weapons that were far too expensive to use in a meaningful way. However, even though Mirai was a vessel whose weapons were ill suited to the task, she still was able to do her duty, by serving as a mobile headquarters. They'd even made that joke about the Mirai being a fucking hotel.
Akatsuki wasn't the only person putting their foot in her mouth today.
"When I found out about you coming to the base, I thought, this was my chance to be useful for once. I thought, as the pride of the Japanese Navy, I would be a fitting representative for our Kanmusu, to the first foreign officer to ever be assigned to our base." The pitch in Yamato's voice increased, her sadness and anger at herself reaching a crescendo. "I thought I could help impress the honour and courage of the Japanese Navy on our visitor and show them ho-how good we are… that we're committed to the defence of more than just the Japanese mainland. To make sure that the time you leave the base, you would only have good things to say about us and spread the word."
"Yamato… I don't know what to say."
"But look at this!" Yamato despaired, looking Yvonne in the eye. "I promised you that all of us would welcome you, but then you run into Zuikaku and my promise turns to ash right after I made it. I wanted you to think of us as capable professionals, but Akatsuki made you think we're children playing at war! And then… and then… now you're so disappointed in me you want to replace me with someone else! I-I-I don't know what I'm supposed to do!"
Yvonne was just barely able to catch Yamato as she fell out of her seat, sobbing and wailing all the while. The poor girl clung to her like she was a lifeline in the ocean, the battleship's tears dampening Yvonne's uniform, as months of repressed emotions came spilling out in one moment.
"Well this is a fine mess that I've stepped into," muttered Yvonne.
-=-
"Here. Towel."
"M-My thanks, Commander Swanson."
It was sometime later when Yamato had finally calmed down. The battleship had become a complete mess at that point; runny nose and reddened eyes had turned the Japanese beauty into an object of pity… one that could possibly enrage anyone who saw her and make them chase down the fiend responsible, in order to administer justice and the wrath of heaven.
Fortunately, it seemed that with most of the nearby Kanmusu out of the dormitory for practice, on missions, or otherwise distracted, nobody had noticed just yet.
Since Yvonne in no way wished to be beaten to a pulp, the pair had quickly made a beeline for the nearest bathroom for Yamato to freshen up. This was why Yamato was standing in front of a washroom basin and inspecting herself in the mirror, while Yvonne was leaning with her back to the wall, watching her.
"How long have you been holding that in?" Yvonne asked, once she was reasonably certain another question wouldn't set Yamato off again. She was now sailing in murky waters, and didn't want to take any chances.
"Months. You are the first person I've told," Yamato said as she turned off the water faucet and began drying her face with the towel Yvonne had given her. "Not even Musashi knows."
"Musashi?"
"My sister ship. She's the secretary ship for the Admiral down in Kure." Yamato gave a humourless laugh. "She makes herself much more useful over there than I do. I tried to be a secretary ship myself, but all the Admirals are either too used to their own personal aides to consider a replacement, or are too intimidated by me to accept it."
"Well that… sucks." Yvonne winced, wondering just how unlucky a person could get.
"If you… if you want to see the Admiral now, I, Yamato, understand," Yamato turned to face Yvonne and gave a deep respectful bow. "I apologize for my failure to live up to your expectations, and hope that m-my r-re-replacement will live up to your expectations."
Yvonne stayed silent for a few moments, in deep thought.
Outwardly, it might have seemed to the untrained eye that she was thinking about what to do. In truth, Yvonne had already made up her mind and was trying to figure out what was the best way of putting it to Yamato.
"No. I've changed my mind." Yamato's head shot up to stare at Yvonne, astonishment written all over her face, "Look, if I go back to the Admiral, what just happened is going to reflect badly on both of us over something that, quite frankly, isn't that bad yet. It's going to take some work, but I think we can make this assignment work out for both of us."
"What?" Yamato whispered in disbelief.
"Look, you're a good person, but you take everything far too personally," Yvonne explained with a shrug. "Okay so Zuikaku was a bitch. Big deal. We're in the military. There are plenty of assholes like her. And frankly? At least she was a bitch to me for something she believed in. I don't approve of what she did, but at least I can respect why she did it."
"I-I see." Yamato fidgeted awkwardly.
It seemed like the poor girl wasn't used to dealing with profanity. Tough. She was working with an American. Profanity was going to happen.
Yamato needed thinker skin anyway.
"Akatsuki's a kid. So maybe she made her squadron look stupid. Fine. Fix that tomorrow. Yes I know that first impressions are important and hard to fix if done wrong, but it's not like that can't be turned around with enough time and effort. That's something you have plenty of time to rectify. I just got here for fucks sake!"
Yvonne also didn't add that she actually found the Akatsuki sisters' antics endearing, but she knew that wasn't the kind of thing Yamato wanted to hear. By this point Yamato was rapt with attention, focusing entirely on Yvonne's words. It occurred to Yvonne that, somehow against all odds, she was giving Yamato a prep talk.
"Finally… I know what it's like to be sidelined," Yvonne admitted in a softer voice. Now this was the tricky bit. She needed to get her point across without disclosing classified information of the highest sort.
"You? Commander Swanson? That can't be right!" Yamato gasped in disbelief. "You're so strong and capable. You stared down Zuikaku like she was nothing. You came here alone on a mission of utmost importance. How could anyone have sidelined you before?"
Wow. From the look in her eyes, it was clear that Yamato, biggest goddamn battleship ever made and pride of the Japanese Navy, thought Yvonne was awesome.
Yamato thought Yvonne Swanson was awesome.
Nobody back home was going to believe this.
"You'd be surprised," Yvonne said without missing a beat, "Look, I understand how you feel, and believe it or not there are a lot of people in the US Navy who feel the same way."
"Really?"
"We used to be the most powerful navy on the planet. We had bases all around the globe. We had eleven aircraft carriers, each with enough planes to beat an entire air force. We had subs that could launch nukes that would wipe countries off the map. Our surface fleet fielded some of the most powerful cruisers and destroyers ever conceived. Now look at us." Yvonne gestured down at herself.
"It may be a surprise to you, but if the Abyssals hadn't happened I would still be a junior officer, not an O-5. They didn't send me here because I was capable. They sent me because they didn't have anyone else left to send and I was just the closest thing they had. The war wiped us out, Yamato. It broke us to the point where it's been a year since we stopped fighting to recover… and we're still picking up the pieces."
Yamato shook her head with a hand over her mouth.
It seemed the battleship had suddenly realized just how bad the US Navy was having it at this point and had no idea what to say in response.
"The Abyssals killed us, Yamato. They killed a quarter million of my brothers and sisters in arms. Do you have any idea how frustrating it is to know the sons of bitches who did it are still out there? That they aren't only still out there, but we can't do a goddamned thing to hit back because we're in no shape to? I think you do. And that's why I want to work with you." Yvonne held out an open hand towards Yamato. "I volunteered for this assignment because I wanted to do something useful. You volunteered for it for the same reason. We have that in common, at least. There's going to be kinks we need to work out, but are you willing to tough it out with me until we start kicking fate in the nuts and get our goddamn due?"
"I… I… YES!"
Yamato seized Yvonne's hand and shook it enthusiastically, beaming with the most brilliant smile Yvonne had ever seen on the girl's face.
"I, Yamato, would be so happy to work with you, Admiral!"
"Um, that's 'Commander'. I skipped like three grades to get to Commander, so Admiral sounds really awkward to me," Yvonne said nervously.
"If that is what you would prefer, 'Commander'." Yamato gave her a radiant smile, one that left no doubt to what she actually meant.
It was clear that Yamato was only addressing Yvonne as 'Commander' to humour the other girl, and in fact had made up her mind on what the American was to her.
Oh Christ on a Cracker, I 'seduced' the Pride of the Japanese Navy. What the hell have I done?
"Well, then. If that's the case, we should be going," Yvonne said, imagining damage control fairies panicking at being suddenly face to face with a ticking bomb. "Destroyer Division Six is a bust for now, but there's other things that we could be doing in the meantime."
"Like what, 'Commander'?" Yamato said deferentially, though her smile was still radiant as ever.
"You haven't read the briefing yet, so I might as well help you work though that. I should show you what I've learned so far in my complied research to bring you fully up to speed. You might even be able to give some insight into anything I've missed."
"As you say so Admi-Commander!"
As the pair walked out of the dormitory bathroom back towards Yvonne's office, it was a mirror of their earlier arrival, with Yvonne leading and Yamato following exactly four paces behind her… except this time, Yamato had a visible spring to her step and a smile that wouldn't fade.
Yvonne gulped.
Admiral Briggs is so going to kill me.
-=-
To be continued…
-=-
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