Chapter 53: For What it's Worth
Twenty days into the Guadalcanal campaign, the IJN knew three things for certain. One, the Americans had air supremacy over Guadalcanal, thanks to the airfield. Two, the ferrying troops and supplies to the island with destroyer-transports was not working, and IJA elements on the island were heavily outmatched without further reinforcements. And three, there was a pair of bloody British Battleships contesting the waters around the island, who only seemed to appear in combat. And two of those could be solved by direct application of aircraft carriers to the problem. So, the stage was set for Kaga and Enterprise's second duel of the war.
OCTOBER 2 1942
D+23
1212 HOURS
"-ales? Wales! WALES!"
I jolted awake, heart pounding and lungs panting, my eyes zooming around the darkness in panic. I felt utterly terrified, adrenaline jolting me to full awareness.
But it was the same adrenaline that allowed me the clarity to see my little sister kneeling beside my bed, barely lit by a small lantern on the ground. "Wales? Are you okay?" She asked, worry written on her face.
"Howe? I…" I paused, my rapid panicked breaths slowing as my tired mind realized what was going on. "Was… Was I having a nightmare?"
She nodded, "Are you okay?"
I slowly got my breathing under control as my body calmed down, "Yeah. Yeah. I'm alright." I ran a hand down my face, "Sorry. Did I wake you?"
She nodded, concerned. "You were yelling in your sleep. What was your dream about?"
What had I been dreaming about? I glanced to the side, pulling at the strings of my memory. It felt so close, like I should know, but like so many dreams only fragments remained. Fragments of smoke, blood… And death.
"I don't remember…" I muttered. Perhaps it was better that way. I groaned, "Sorry for waking you, sis. You should get some sleep."
"But where are you going?" She asked, as I stood and began throwing my white uniform on.
"For a short walk to clear my head." I replied.
Somewhat to my annoyance, my little sister also stood and began getting changed. "Then I'm coming with you."
I sighed. "Fine."
I really hadn't spent much time during daylight on Guadalcanal, I mused as Howe and I walked along the beach near the bunker. It really was a beautiful place, with white sand beaches, and gorgeous turquoise waters. It really was a tropical paradise… Other than the heat. I still couldn't stand the heat.
It was such a shame we had to tarnish it with our stupid war. Even now as we walked, there was just the faintest hint of an oily sheen to the water, and a small dark line at the high tide mark. Fuel oil, from the over a dozen ships that had so far been sunk in Savo Sound.
I paused, my younger sibling mimicking me, and turned to gaze over the otherwise unremarkable patch of sea. How many men had already died aboard those that had gone down?
"What are you looking at, sis?" Howe asked.
"Just thinking, Howe." I replied. I gestured out at the sea, "There's going to be a lot of wrecks out there when we're done. I certainly hope we aren't among them."
Howe's face turned just as melancholic as mine, faced with the possibility of her death. It wasn't as if the thought was strange to either of us. We'd both sunk before, after all. "Well." She started, "There's a reason the sailors are calling it Iron Bottom Sound."
I blinked. That was a new one. "Which sailors?"
"The ones aboard the last supply run yesterday. At least, that's what Houston said." She replied, rubbing the back of her head.
"Huh." I muttered, turning back to the sea. A fitting name. I had no doubt a great many ships would rest on said seafloor by the time the war moved on. The only question was, how many? It was a good thing ours were able to get their second chance, in such an event.
"Wales?"
"Yes?" I replied, glancing back at Howe, who'd adopted a look of curiosity.
"What peace like? Before the war?" She asked.
I paused, surprised by the question. "When is your launch-day?"
"April ninth, nineteen-forty." She replied.
My face was aghast in sudden realization, "You've never known peace." My younger sibling nodded. I glanced away for a moment, trying to figure out what to say.
"Peace is… Well, it's a lot less stressful." I began, "You don't have any worries, if that makes sense. You don't have to fear the loss of your sisters or friends, nor for yourself. No concern that you may have to fight a battle, and kill or be killed." I sighed, mind going back to that first summer spent in Dido's quiet company. "Peace is a warm summer's afternoon spent under a tree's shade with the company of a friend and a good book…"
Howe adorably tilted her head to the side. "That sounds… nice."
"It is." I replied. So much nostalgia. "I was such a different person back then…" Mostly because my memories had been locked away. It reminded me of how I'd been in my teen years, actually. I'd been as if the clock had turned back fifteen years.
"It all seems so far away now," I sighed, turning back to my sister. "You'll get to see for yourself soon enough. We just have to win this war first."
Both our eyes turned back out to 'Ironbottom Sound'. As a SHIP, it was quite a morbid name. Unsaid was the fact that we'd have to head out there again and again, gambleing our lives each time we met the enemy.
"We're going to make it through this, right?" Howe asked, voice wobbling slightly.
I wanted to say yes, but I had no doubt my sister would see through that lie right away. She may have been somewhat innocent, almost seeming naive at times, but she'd sunk, same as I. Neither of us had any illusions of invincibility. "We do what we can." I muttered, mind flashing back to the previous night. Not all wounds were physical, it seemed.
"If it helps," I continued, "Us KGVs are bloody hard to sink. It was pure luck that did us both in. And now, if things go bad, we can always run ashore or put on a lifevest and drop our rigging."
My sister gave a small nod. "Right. Of course."
"We will survive, Howe. I promise." I reassured her.
"And what about you?" She asked. "You're having nightmares…"
I sighed. "It's normal. I had nightmares about Hood nightly after Denmark Strait. And more after I sank." I still occasionally did, I didn't say, though they were luckily far less common now.
"Oh." My sister paused with a sad look crossing her face. "I did too."
I blinked, "You did?"
She nodded, looking miserable, and continued in a small voice. "Most… Most of my crew were left behind. The U-boats…" A look of anger overcame her, "They sank Lance while she was trying to pick up my crew."
My eyes widened, I hadn't known that. "How many survived…?"
"Just over six hundred." My sister muttered, despondently.
Six hundred
survivors. Which meant over nine hundred dead. It made my lost three hundred seem platry, by comparison. So many good young men, dead. I pulled Howe into a hug. "I wish I could say it gets easier." I muttered, closing my eyes to hold back the tears, "But it doesn't."
Howe just hugged me tighter, "Thank you Wales."
I blinked, "What?"
"You're the best big sister I could ask for." She replied, a small smile on her face. "I love you."
My eyes widened, and a smile appeared on my face. "I love you too, sis."
OCTOBER 4 1942
D+25
0240 HOURS
The more nights we spent on Savo's beaches, the more the mountainous little island began to grow on me. On the nights the Japanese didn't show up for a fight, which was most of them, it was almost a paradise. The normally scorching heat dropped off in the dark, making things
almost comfortable, and it didn't rain too often.
Tonight was one of the rainy nights though. We'd rigged up a tarp between three trees at the edge of the treeline to give ourselves a dry spot. And, as was tradition, Boise had happily made a campfire under it which we'd gathered around. Hou was helping Sims cook a chicken over the fire, Andie was trying to teach Hammann to play guitar, Perth had joined the E's with some playing cards, and Boise and Howe were chatting and cooking marshmallows.
Jup had ended up cuddling up on my lap. "Wonderful weather we're having here, eh Wales?"
I glanced down at the destroyer to see her gazing out at the rain. "Quite. Though it has nicely cooled things off."
"It's almost peaceful. Being here, just listening to the rain pitter patter off the tarp," Jup said softly.
I nodded. "Aye... Though I'd hate to fight in it. Visibility will be near zero..."
"I bet the Japs wouldn't like it much more," the destroyer shrugged and shifted to look up at me. "We might just sail past them and never notice til someone starts shooting."
"Depends if our radars pick them up." I muttered, staring off into the darkness.
"That's a big if…" The destroyer pointed out.
"True." I replied, "To damn true…" I gave her head a pat, "And what about you Jup? How're you holding up?"
"I'm doing alright. Haven't gotten into trouble, unlike some people…" Jup trailed off and glanced across the fire to look at the three E's.
"Heh." I smiled, "Thank you for that."
"I figure it's only a matter of time before they get bored again and do something even more boneheaded than stealing Houston's plane," Jup returned her gaze to the rain just outside the tarp.
"I'd be more surprised if they didn't…" I muttered. "Do warn me, if you get wind of such?"
"I'll do my best!" She beamed.
"You getting along with the Sims'?" I asked.
"More or less, yeah." She nodded. "Hammann is a bit too excitable for me, but Sims and Andie are nice."
"That's good..." I replied before trailing off. A slight popping reached my ears. At first I passed it off as the fire crackling, but after a moment of listening I realized it wasn't. Rather it was distant artillery fire on Guadalcanal.
I tensed up. Adrenaline spiking. Blood. Dirt. Gun flashes in the darkness. Bodies.
"-ales? Wales!?"
I snapped out of... Whatever that had been, body tense and heart racing. I took a couple deep breaths. Everyone was looking at me with concern. "Wales?" Jup asked, softer, "Are you alright?"
I tried to calm my speeding heart, taking deep breaths. "I... Yes, I'm... I'm alright."
Jup shifted in my lap, and reached up to place a gentle hand on my shoulder. "It's okay. Just focus on the rain."
I closed my eyes, and nodded, letting the pitter-patter of the rain drown out the distant artillery.
What the hell had that been? For a moment it'd felt as if I was back on the sandbar. Then, my mind went to my father. My first life's father. He'd never truly been a part of my life, always drunk and mostly absent. I'd hated him for that through my teen years. Until I'd learned why.
He'd been in the British army in the eighties. He'd met my mother that year, and they'd gotten married. She'd always told me tales of a dashing and courteous young man my father had once been. And then, the year I was born, he'd been deployed to Northern Ireland. To the Troubles.
When I'd learned of it in my mid-twenties, everything made sense. His mood swings, his drinking, the times he'd stare off into space or cry out in fear for no apparent reason. My father had PTSD.
And now, I had the sneaking suspicion I did too. Nightmares, flashbacks. I just hoped I wouldn't end up as much of a mess as he had.
So, I did as Jup instructed. I just focused on the sound of the rain. Slowly, the distant gunfire faded into the background, my breathing slowed, and I let myself calm down.
Finally, I opened my eyes to see Jup's concerned purple eyes. "Thank you, Jup. I needed that."
"It's no problem," Jup said, before pulling me into a tight hug.
She really was like another little sister to me. One that occasionally was the more mature of us, surprisingly. She was always wise beyond her years. After all, she was only four years old. God, I was so proud of her. Finally we separated, "I hate this war."
"I think we all do, at this point," Jup replied. She shifted again, and went back to cuddling up on my lap, watching the rain.
I wrapped my arms around her, and rested my chin on her head. We both sat in silence for a few moments before I spoke again, "When did you start drawing?"
"I picked it up while we were in the States. It's rather helpful for staving off boredom without dealing with the E's," Jup replied, pulling out her sketchpad. She flipped through the pages until she found what she wanted, and showed it to me. She'd drawn a OS2U Kingfisher, clearly in mid-flight. The same type that the E's had stolen from Hou.
I snorted a laugh, "Documenting their shenanigans too?"
The J-class beamed. "Their boredom is my profit!"
That got a proper chuckle out of me, "Yes, I suppose their antics do make for some interesting art pieces." I smiled, taking a better look at the art. "But really, Jup, you have talent. This is very good."
Her smile just got wider. "Thank you!"
"What are your plans for after the war? Other than our little cruise." I asked.
"I don't know," the destroyer replied as she stowed her sketchbook. "I haven't been able to experience enough peacetime stuff to really know yet."
"I guess we'll cross that bridge when we get to it." I replied.
"Yeah. Maybe I'll try a whole bunch of different things, and tell wild stories of stuff that I may or may not have done!" Jup joked, giggling to herself.
"Ah yes, an international woman of mystery." I chuckled, "And I suppose you will physically be an adult by then."
"Now that I think about it, that sounds more like something Electra would do than me…" Jup mused. "Not that I'll ever give her the idea."
"Give me what idea?" Electra asked, looking up from her cards at her name and interrupting our moment.
Jup stuck her tongue out at her fellow destroyer, "Not telling you!"
I chuckled, "Best you don't."
"Awww...." Electra pouted and went back to playing cards with her sisters and Perth.
"And I wouldn't have any of you any other way." I quietly muttered.
0815 HOURS
We'd just come ashore that morning, when I spotted Lieutenant Anderson waiting by the bunker. The American officer perked up as he spotted us. He gave me a nod of acknowledgment as we approached, "Captain."
"Leftenant," I nodded back, "Need something?"
He nodded again, "Aye, Ma'am. Commodore Leach wanted to speak with you."
"Ah." I replied, and turned back to the rest of my girls. "We're done anyway girls. Go get some food and a shower."
"Aye, ma'am." several voices choroused, and one by one the cruisers and destroyers began to descend into our temporary concrete home.
Turning back to Anderson, I gestured, "Lead the way."
We reached Johns dugout a few minutes later to find him tackling his bane: paperwork. Even on this damn island the 'i's had to be dotted, the 't's crossed, and the logistics paperwork signed. No wonder he seemed happy to see me, as we entered. "Captain. Leftenant."
"Sir." We both replied.
"I'll get right to business." John started, stepping from his desk over to the map table.
"This about those carriers, Sir?" I asked, peering down at the map.
"It is." He nodded. "They'll likely be in range to hit us today or tomorrow. If a surface force doesn't follow up the strike, I'll eat my hat."
I nodded. That would make sense. Hit and knock out the airfield to clear the way for a surface force to hit us, and allow reinforcements to land on the island. It was what I would do in their position.
John continued, "The brass think so too. There's a cruiser force that will be arriving just after dark to reinforce us. You'll be under the command of a Rear Admiral Callaghan."
I bit my lip. It'd been a while since I'd had to follow someone else's orders in combat. Hopefully this American was a good commander. "Do we have any carrier support of our own?" I asked.
He nodded. "Wasp and Enterprise have been committed."
"Where are they?"
John shrugged. "Don't know. They didn't tell us nearly that much. It doesn't matter anyway. All we need to do is keep the Japs from landing more troops. The carriers have their job, and we have ours. Just keep your girls in the bunker, we don't need to lose any of you to an air raid."
"Understood, I'll-" I was suddenly cut off by the horrid wail of an air raid siren.
"Fuck!" Lieutenant Anderson cursed, "We need to get to the bunker!"
"Agreed" John nodded, and with surprising speed for a man of nearly fifty, bolted for the dugout's entrance. Tom Anderson and I shared a surprised look, and took off after him.
As we jogged to keep up with John, the roar of aero engines began to become audible. I feared the worst for just a moment, before a F4F Wildcat buzzed past overhead, gear still coming up as it scrambled into the air. It seemed the Marine aviators had gotten ample warming from the air search radar we'd placed on Savo. It was good to see the Japs wouldn't get a free run at us.
After a mere two minute run the three of us reached the bunker. I entered last, closing the heavy armoured steel door behind us. Descending into the living space, we found the rest of my girls, minus Hammann, lounging about. It seemed they'd be just as surprised as us by the siren, with Howe, Jup and Ennie already in their pajamas, hair still a bit wet from their before-bed showers.
Hou was the first to speak as we entered. "Jap carrier planes?"
I shrugged, already settling on one of our chairs, "Most likely. We'll just stay down here and ride it out."
"Right." My second agreed, before everyone fell into a nervous silence.
A minute passed. Two. The silence became stifling. Luckily, it seemed Andie agreed, as a moment later the American destroyer began picking away at her guitar.
Some of the tension seemed to bleed out of the room, as the soft sounds of guitar strings filled the room. After a moment, she switched the chord progression. I recognized the song instantly as one from the collection of records I'd given her.
A song from another time, and another equally brutal war… It'd been one of my Mother's favorites.
Then she began to sing.
"
Theres something happening here~
What it is, ain't exactly clear
There's a man with a gun over there~
Tellin' me, I got to beware"
I joined in for the chorus.
"
Think it's time we stop! Children, what's that sound, everybody look what's goin' downnnnn~"
Andie gave me a nod, and let me sing the second verse.
"
There's battlelines bein' drawn~
Nobody's right, if everybody wrong~
Young people speakin' their minds~
Gettin' so much resistance, from beeehind~"
Andie joined again in the chorus.
"
Think it's time we stop! Hey! What's that sound, everybody look what's goin' downnnnn~"
And so, as explosions began to sound, and our haven began to shake from the detonating bombs, we sang.
AN: A chapter on a weekday? Why? Simple: Wow. Two years. Its been two years since I posted the first chapter of PoW. Wow. I really dunno what to put here. Before this story, my longest writing project was a mere 25k words written over three months. And here we are, two years and 230k words later. I never thought I'd find a concept that so enthralled me as to write this much, nor characters I love to write. Nor, of course, that any more than a handful of people would ever read my crazy story. So thank you, to each and every one of you reading this. You're a big part of why my motivation is still going like hell (To the point that I can bull through chapters like this one that don't want to be written). And thank you to everyone who's gotten involved and written Omakes.
And huge thanks to all my friends who've proofed, edited, or otherwise helped with the story. Especially @vren55 and @Lady Darkhound. I always run to you two when I get stuck or need proofing, or just need help, and you always deliver.
So, here we are, about halfway through the story now, and I just got through the last chapter before a set of ten that I've had planned for literally years... Buckle up. This is about to get interesting.
