Who bonked her? Abyssal?
Red October (Kancolle and From the Depths crossover)
- Thread starter Qihao56
- Start date
- Location
- Villa Straylight, Freeside, Earth Orbit
Did she just take a torpedo to the back of her head? That is going to be awkward for whoever is sitting at the launch console waiting to report a successful launch or not...
Also, I'm curious what class of boat she was just looking up the skirt of. While mystery bote does have the fairwater planes, the 22 launch tubes means its not an American Ohio class. As far as I remember no ballistic missile boat with fairwater planes has 22 launch tunes, this thing is sort of my jam so I am a little confused. Unless you meant to give mystery bote 24 tubes...
Also, I'm curious what class of boat she was just looking up the skirt of. While mystery bote does have the fairwater planes, the 22 launch tubes means its not an American Ohio class. As far as I remember no ballistic missile boat with fairwater planes has 22 launch tunes, this thing is sort of my jam so I am a little confused. Unless you meant to give mystery bote 24 tubes...
It is an American boat. Rather, a variant of one.
Chapter 7: Arming Distance
She slid out of the way of the submarine, rubbing the back of her dented head. The repair bots were already moving to fix the small problem, so it shouldn't affect her in a few moments.
She really needed that refit. Having her mast constantly get damaged wasn't a good thing.
A moment later, a screeching ping grated against her sensors, temporarily blinding her sonar. She held her head as the incredibly loud noise bounced around her hull, preventing her from sensing anything from her surroundings until it faded.
She glanced at the source: the submarine next to her.
Fortunately it didn't emit the deafening ping again. Instead, it slowly backed away from her, as if clearing space to avoid a collision. That torpedo did hit her by accident, after all.
Speaking of which, she glanced at the weapon that didn't detonate when it hit her. It had readjusted itself to continue the previous course towards the Abyssals in the distance despite its crushed nose. It was moving a bit erratically, but it kept a relatively straight line as it headed for its target. A wire was linking the launch tube and the torpedo.
She thought about it for a moment, before the realization came to her. The submarine was using its own sonar to guide the torpedo.
She moved aside, giving the submarine a clear line of sight towards the six Abyssals in the distance.
It wasn't a fantastic idea using the Abyssals as test subjects, but she was now interested in the performance of the torpedo with a crushed sonar. She could find more of them later, and she wasn't the one firing on them in the first place. And now, she knew where she could find them. She had enough data points to give an idea of their origin point.
Her sonar picked up the noise of the Abyssals again, the submarine's ping no longer affecting her. The white humanoids were moving erratically, probably having heard the loud ping from the submarine next to her. She waited as the torpedo closed in on the creatures, silently crawling ever closer. One of them seemed to realize it was in danger at the last moment as it desperately dove. Luckily for that Abyssal, she wasn't the target. The torpedo hit the one next to her, cracking its hull in half with a loud explosion.
She winced as her sonar picked up the groan of steel bending under stress. Whatever that wired torpedo was, it didn't care about crushed sensors, apparently.
She looked back at the regular submarine next to her, watching in fascination as it dove ten meters to clear its firing line. It pinged loudly once again, but since she wasn't right next to it this time, her sonar wasn't blinded by the noise. It fired two more torpedoes and began guiding them to the Abyssals.
She waited patiently for those to reach their targets, not wanting to be on the receiving end of those weapons. The Abyssals were scrambling now, moving in every direction to try to avoid the follow-up strike.
After a while, both weapons struck targets, cracking those in half too. She winced again.
The submarine beside her didn't wait for the Abyssals' response. It turned tail and dove sharply, slowly increasing its speed.
She stared at it running away, surpassing the 25 knots it did earlier. She probably wouldn't be able to follow it.
Probably.
She wouldn't try it. She had the Abyssals she wanted to speak to right in front of her.
She just needed to do it without one side ending up as wreckage. It happened the first time she tried to speak to a vessel because she was trying to talk to a metal fish. The second, it nearly happened, but only didn't because the torpedo didn't sink HMS Belfast.
Hopefully, this time she wouldn't need to fire a torpedo at all.
The Abyssal submarines had scattered in all directions, leaving each one isolated from one another. The one she was following hadn't noticed her for the last hour, too focused on 'running' at a pace of just below 10 knots. The engine signature was recorded long ago and she had slid next to the submarine, waiting to be noticed.
She finally poked the shoulder of the Abyssal after being ignored for so long. Her digit sunk into the elastic skin easily, bending it around the finger. It was the first time she touched a humanoid, and the little resistance was odd, but not unwelcome.
It was fascinating.
The Abyssal jerked as soon as her finger hit the oddly soft flesh. The submarine screeched in muffled horror the moment its yellow eyes landed on her, flailing around madly to try to get away via the surface. It launched two torpedoes from two little tubes with teeth slung under its shoulder, but those didn't detonate. They simply bounced off before she caught those and held them to examine later.
She watched silently, noting down the reaction for later.
She scrutinized the Abyssal's fleeing form, noticing its oddly shaped headpiece force away the water as it ran for the surface. It was less effective than her hull shape, or that of the steel submarine she was with earlier. She saw it create bubbles near its angled edges, evidence of a pressure difference disrupting water flow.
After a moment, she swiftly caught up with the Abyssal. It looked at her alarmingly, trying to bring its torpedo launchers to bear.
However, it hesitated. And after a moment, it put the weapons away.
The So-Class submarine reached the surface first, her head and shoulders emerging alongside the cannon on her back. The massive submarine followed her with terrifying swiftness, punching through the top of the water before landing with a massive splash that disturbed the otherwise calm weather. Its humanoid form stood imposingly on the water, the moonlight reflecting off her grey skin. The woman's glowing blue eyes bore into her, making her feel even smaller in comparison. Any feelings of rage and hatred against the humans and their servants had transformed itself into fear the moment the submarine had poked her in the shoulder, somehow having snuck up on her despite her massive frame.
She looked at the massive grey woman, feeling both terrified and awed. No submarine, Kanmusu or Abyssal, could compare to her in terms of size. The closest would be the estimated sizes of the steel-hulled submarines the humans still used, but those were still small in comparison.
"W-Who are you?" She stuttered in a raspy voice, coughing twice. Maybe this was the submarine that attacked them with guided torpedoes earlier. She struck them from near silence, with the only warning being the ping of an active sonar.
"I do not know. I wish to know how I began to exist, as I only have memories of waking up in the ocean, alone. I hoped to find Abyssals such as you for answers." It said in a diplomatic voice. As if it needed to be diplomatic, considering the sheer size and terrifying speed that the grey woman possessed. She could have just demanded she be taken to the princess. Maybe that was why she did not murder everyone. Survivors to tell her the location.
"M-miss Hime, not to presume, but could you -Um- meet our princess? I-I don't know anything about it. You're not one of t-those vile human machines or their servants, yet you're not o-one of us. You look like us, b-but you also look like the human's serv-" The Abyssal suddenly clamped her mouth shut with her hands, before trying to make herself as small as possible. She heard about 'rough' princesses before, and hoped she wouldn't be punished for her words.
"Where shall I meet her then?" She asked, seemingly completely ignoring her misstep. Maybe this submarine really wanted to meet the princess, and decided that getting their attention by killing a few would get the point across. But that would contradict with the tone of her voice. She didn't sound like she was demanding anything, but rather just a small favour someone would ask for.
The So-Class pondered for a moment, internally debating whether or not bringing it up would be a good idea. It was going to be bringing a very powerful and unknown submarine next to her princess, yet it could also make her princess happy. But if she didn't, the submarine might simply explosively disassemble her and find her sisters.
"I-I'll take you to her." She said shakily.
The massive submarine looked at the two torpedoes in its hands, the weapons she fired in her blind panic.
"May I keep these for research purposes?" The grey woman asked without a hint of emotion. "The submarine I was looking at earlier did not give me a chance to examine its wired torpedoes. It had quickly left after they hit your fellow Abyssals."
She took a breath of air, feeling her diesel generators relaxing slightly. The submarine in front of her wasn't the one who had sunk her So-class sisters, apparently. It was probably a human steel hull if it had wired torpedoes. If this submarine wasn't trying to kill them, her strength may be very helpful against the humans and their servants if her princess could convince it to their cause.
"If you wish." The So-Class said, some steadiness returning to her voice.
She would have to tell her sisters to cancel their mission when they surfaced to radio each other and regroup. They had a Very Important Person to escort to their princess.
Or rather, they would probably be the ones escorted back.
She really needed that refit. Having her mast constantly get damaged wasn't a good thing.
A moment later, a screeching ping grated against her sensors, temporarily blinding her sonar. She held her head as the incredibly loud noise bounced around her hull, preventing her from sensing anything from her surroundings until it faded.
She glanced at the source: the submarine next to her.
Fortunately it didn't emit the deafening ping again. Instead, it slowly backed away from her, as if clearing space to avoid a collision. That torpedo did hit her by accident, after all.
Speaking of which, she glanced at the weapon that didn't detonate when it hit her. It had readjusted itself to continue the previous course towards the Abyssals in the distance despite its crushed nose. It was moving a bit erratically, but it kept a relatively straight line as it headed for its target. A wire was linking the launch tube and the torpedo.
She thought about it for a moment, before the realization came to her. The submarine was using its own sonar to guide the torpedo.
She moved aside, giving the submarine a clear line of sight towards the six Abyssals in the distance.
It wasn't a fantastic idea using the Abyssals as test subjects, but she was now interested in the performance of the torpedo with a crushed sonar. She could find more of them later, and she wasn't the one firing on them in the first place. And now, she knew where she could find them. She had enough data points to give an idea of their origin point.
Her sonar picked up the noise of the Abyssals again, the submarine's ping no longer affecting her. The white humanoids were moving erratically, probably having heard the loud ping from the submarine next to her. She waited as the torpedo closed in on the creatures, silently crawling ever closer. One of them seemed to realize it was in danger at the last moment as it desperately dove. Luckily for that Abyssal, she wasn't the target. The torpedo hit the one next to her, cracking its hull in half with a loud explosion.
She winced as her sonar picked up the groan of steel bending under stress. Whatever that wired torpedo was, it didn't care about crushed sensors, apparently.
She looked back at the regular submarine next to her, watching in fascination as it dove ten meters to clear its firing line. It pinged loudly once again, but since she wasn't right next to it this time, her sonar wasn't blinded by the noise. It fired two more torpedoes and began guiding them to the Abyssals.
She waited patiently for those to reach their targets, not wanting to be on the receiving end of those weapons. The Abyssals were scrambling now, moving in every direction to try to avoid the follow-up strike.
After a while, both weapons struck targets, cracking those in half too. She winced again.
The submarine beside her didn't wait for the Abyssals' response. It turned tail and dove sharply, slowly increasing its speed.
She stared at it running away, surpassing the 25 knots it did earlier. She probably wouldn't be able to follow it.
Probably.
She wouldn't try it. She had the Abyssals she wanted to speak to right in front of her.
She just needed to do it without one side ending up as wreckage. It happened the first time she tried to speak to a vessel because she was trying to talk to a metal fish. The second, it nearly happened, but only didn't because the torpedo didn't sink HMS Belfast.
Hopefully, this time she wouldn't need to fire a torpedo at all.
o
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The Abyssal submarines had scattered in all directions, leaving each one isolated from one another. The one she was following hadn't noticed her for the last hour, too focused on 'running' at a pace of just below 10 knots. The engine signature was recorded long ago and she had slid next to the submarine, waiting to be noticed.
She finally poked the shoulder of the Abyssal after being ignored for so long. Her digit sunk into the elastic skin easily, bending it around the finger. It was the first time she touched a humanoid, and the little resistance was odd, but not unwelcome.
It was fascinating.
The Abyssal jerked as soon as her finger hit the oddly soft flesh. The submarine screeched in muffled horror the moment its yellow eyes landed on her, flailing around madly to try to get away via the surface. It launched two torpedoes from two little tubes with teeth slung under its shoulder, but those didn't detonate. They simply bounced off before she caught those and held them to examine later.
She watched silently, noting down the reaction for later.
She scrutinized the Abyssal's fleeing form, noticing its oddly shaped headpiece force away the water as it ran for the surface. It was less effective than her hull shape, or that of the steel submarine she was with earlier. She saw it create bubbles near its angled edges, evidence of a pressure difference disrupting water flow.
After a moment, she swiftly caught up with the Abyssal. It looked at her alarmingly, trying to bring its torpedo launchers to bear.
However, it hesitated. And after a moment, it put the weapons away.
o
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The So-Class submarine reached the surface first, her head and shoulders emerging alongside the cannon on her back. The massive submarine followed her with terrifying swiftness, punching through the top of the water before landing with a massive splash that disturbed the otherwise calm weather. Its humanoid form stood imposingly on the water, the moonlight reflecting off her grey skin. The woman's glowing blue eyes bore into her, making her feel even smaller in comparison. Any feelings of rage and hatred against the humans and their servants had transformed itself into fear the moment the submarine had poked her in the shoulder, somehow having snuck up on her despite her massive frame.
She looked at the massive grey woman, feeling both terrified and awed. No submarine, Kanmusu or Abyssal, could compare to her in terms of size. The closest would be the estimated sizes of the steel-hulled submarines the humans still used, but those were still small in comparison.
"W-Who are you?" She stuttered in a raspy voice, coughing twice. Maybe this was the submarine that attacked them with guided torpedoes earlier. She struck them from near silence, with the only warning being the ping of an active sonar.
"I do not know. I wish to know how I began to exist, as I only have memories of waking up in the ocean, alone. I hoped to find Abyssals such as you for answers." It said in a diplomatic voice. As if it needed to be diplomatic, considering the sheer size and terrifying speed that the grey woman possessed. She could have just demanded she be taken to the princess. Maybe that was why she did not murder everyone. Survivors to tell her the location.
"M-miss Hime, not to presume, but could you -Um- meet our princess? I-I don't know anything about it. You're not one of t-those vile human machines or their servants, yet you're not o-one of us. You look like us, b-but you also look like the human's serv-" The Abyssal suddenly clamped her mouth shut with her hands, before trying to make herself as small as possible. She heard about 'rough' princesses before, and hoped she wouldn't be punished for her words.
"Where shall I meet her then?" She asked, seemingly completely ignoring her misstep. Maybe this submarine really wanted to meet the princess, and decided that getting their attention by killing a few would get the point across. But that would contradict with the tone of her voice. She didn't sound like she was demanding anything, but rather just a small favour someone would ask for.
The So-Class pondered for a moment, internally debating whether or not bringing it up would be a good idea. It was going to be bringing a very powerful and unknown submarine next to her princess, yet it could also make her princess happy. But if she didn't, the submarine might simply explosively disassemble her and find her sisters.
"I-I'll take you to her." She said shakily.
The massive submarine looked at the two torpedoes in its hands, the weapons she fired in her blind panic.
"May I keep these for research purposes?" The grey woman asked without a hint of emotion. "The submarine I was looking at earlier did not give me a chance to examine its wired torpedoes. It had quickly left after they hit your fellow Abyssals."
She took a breath of air, feeling her diesel generators relaxing slightly. The submarine in front of her wasn't the one who had sunk her So-class sisters, apparently. It was probably a human steel hull if it had wired torpedoes. If this submarine wasn't trying to kill them, her strength may be very helpful against the humans and their servants if her princess could convince it to their cause.
"If you wish." The So-Class said, some steadiness returning to her voice.
She would have to tell her sisters to cancel their mission when they surfaced to radio each other and regroup. They had a Very Important Person to escort to their princess.
Or rather, they would probably be the ones escorted back.
RavenWolffe77
The Marauder series is the best BattleMech.
- Location
- Deep Periphery, A Long Way From The Inner Sphere
Just binged the whole thing, and I'm loving it so far!
AFAIK this is the second FtD cross on SV/SB, and the other one was more a fusion-fic than an actual crossover. Well written, good pacing, and I really like the "fish out of water" (heh) effect of a ship having no idea what's going on, all the while having FtD super-durability and weapons.
Speaking of, I'm guessing her Mystery Missiles are large-size launchers loaded with O P T I M I S E D super-missiles.
AFAIK this is the second FtD cross on SV/SB, and the other one was more a fusion-fic than an actual crossover. Well written, good pacing, and I really like the "fish out of water" (heh) effect of a ship having no idea what's going on, all the while having FtD super-durability and weapons.
Speaking of, I'm guessing her Mystery Missiles are large-size launchers loaded with O P T I M I S E D super-missiles.
Appreciate the comment man, SV seems to have a void in terms of active KC or FtD content. It's a void that I'm happy to fill.
Those are... well they're SLBMs.
TortugaGreen
Constantly out of the loop
- Pronouns
- She/Her
so... well-optimized large missiles on a LUA controller to pull off a ballistic arc, or suicide nuke spawners? I mean, the latter would fit a ballistic missile more (assuming a nuclear payload, anyway) but the former would be considerably more compact and not that much less punchy. Easier to intercept in flight though, given sufficient masses of interceptors.
actually, on that, does she have any active defenses? In FTD active defenses are absolutely king compared to just meaty armor for protection/cost, so I'd expect any good ship, including subs, to have at least some. That said, she doesn't really need such defenses? FTD ships are unimaginably tanky compared to real ones, and nobody's going to be willing or (practically) able to put out the sheer levels of torpedo spam required to sink her.
Chapter 8: The Акула-Class
Belfast groaned as her consciousness came back, idly noting that she was in a bath. She groggily realized her dark chocolate hair was splayed around messily and her clothes were all absent. The warm water soothed her senses and kept her pain at bay, thankfully preventing her from having a rough wake-up.
The last few hours had been a blank for her as her fairies took everyone aboard to keep her afloat, taking even the command crew to do it. There were hundreds of patched-up cracks all over her body from her hull trying to collapse on itself.
It wasn't the first time she had her keel broken, but this time it felt far more violent. It wasn't a naval mine that did the damage, but rather a torpedo from directly under her. But, her hull had held up against the stress and prevented her from breaking in half like the automated freighter. Her refit had probably saved her from that experience. Although, if she remembered properly, that vessel had been cracked in half by stray shellfire, not by a torpedo.
She suddenly shivered when a memory emerged of the torpedo coming up from right under her skirt. Getting one's keel practically shattered was not a pleasant experience.
She hugged herself. The icy blue gaze of that grey woman reminded her of the earlier Abyssals. Over the years, their eyes had shifted from blue, to red, and finally to yellow. She didn't know if it had anything to do with their effective strength, or age, but she did know the early Abyssals relied far more on numbers, sending out massive swarms of ships that easily overran each Navy, with horrifying results.
The missiles used in modern ships were powerful and precise, but they didn't have nearly enough ships or even ammunition to stop them. They simply kept coming.
But now, most of the fighting was relegated to each nation's Kanmusu forces since they were far more efficient at dispatching Abyssals. Modern navies still had a place, but were mostly relegated to supporting roles.
She thought it was mildly odd that it was only WWI and WWII ships that were summoned on both sides of the conflict. Even 8 years later, they never succeeded at getting anything past 1945. The Abyssals never got access to any modern technology either, though, so the field was even.
How would she explain her pants-on-head moment to the admiral? She may have just botched the first encounter with a modern Kanmusu or Abyssal, and any chances of turning it to their side.
She didn't quite know what caused her to threaten the submarine. Maybe her years of fighting Abyssals had gotten to her head and made her think she was invincible, or maybe her suspicions about it being a new type of Abyssal, or maybe her internal panic at seeing such a huge submarine for the first time in her many years of fighting, or she just really wanted to shoot that thing because it was raiding a helpless freighter like the Germans did in the war…
She shook her head. She would think about it later. She still had a lot of mixed feelings.
Right now, she needed to inform the admiralty about the unknown woman. A submarine that large shouldn't escape their notice.
She eyed the button beside the bath that would summon a person to attend to her needs. She could get someone to fetch her phone so she could talk to her admiral. Perhaps Perseus already told him about it, but just in case she didn't, she would need to fill him in about the details.
In addition, she could probably ask for some food. She hadn't eaten since the last time she was in port.
Someone rapped their knuckles on the door before she could press the button. It was probably HMS Resource checking up on her. A shattered keel was considered a critical injury because it was the backbone for a ship. Especially with her refit and subsequent increase in… assets, problems may arise that are unique to her and not her sister-ships.
"Come in." Belfast said, wondering about whether her timing was a coincidence or if she monitored her state.
She blinked when two people showed up. The 5'2 figure of HMS Resource was expected, but it was the other, taller figure that surprised her. Perseus stepped in with a barely-concealed grimace, trying to look anywhere but at her.
"Oh Belfast, you're awake! That's great. Perseus wanted to talk to you when you woke up, so I'll leave you two alone after making sure your repairs are going well." Resource said, either not noticing or not caring about the carrier's discomfort. The kanmusu wearing brown worker overalls walked around behind Belfast, depositing a tray of food beside the light cruiser before moving behind her.
Belfast flushed as a hand went to her back, feeling her modesty slightly violated. Normally they'd have a bit more privacy in the repair baths, but she would pay the price if it meant that she wouldn't end up with a crooked back.
After a few more moments of embarrassment, the repair ship gave Belfast her swimwear and her phone. "Alright. Your keel is mending well; you're allowed to wear things now. But you're not allowed to leave the repair baths or do any straining activity until I do another checkup." The repair ship stepped away, satisfied with the examination. "Right. I'll leave you two to whatever you wanted to talk about, later lasses!"
"Err... Thanks Miss Resource!"
"Belfast, how many times do I have to say this, don't address me as Miss. It makes me sound old!" HMS Resource replied, her brown-black hair whipping around before the door closed, leaving the two ships alone in the bath.
A silence set in between Belfast and Perseus. The light cruiser began putting on the bikini, wincing a few times in the process.
Perseus bit her lip. She took a few steps forward, before backtracking quickly.
The injured cruiser struggled with the string behind her back, unable to really reach behind and attach her without eliciting a painful response.
The pink carrier took a deep breath, before finally sitting next to her. "Do you need any help, Belfast?"
"Please." Belfast said, holding the ends of her top behind her.
Perseus carefully tied them together, making sure she avoided touching the open hole on the cruiser's back. She slowly put the knot above the injury, placing it there so it wouldn't interfere with the repairs.
"Thanks for saving me."
The light carrier blinked owlishly. "I didn't do anything. I... only towed you until an Osprey picked you up. Towing you out of there didn't change anything."
Belfast kept her stare in front of her. She sighed. "No, you didn't. I probably would've died if I tried to go after the submarine. I was the one pointing my guns towards her in the first place. It was a dumb decision."
"You stepped in when I was frozen in place there. I should've tried to talk to it, but-"
"-but I was the one who threatened it. I made the mistake and I paid for it. You're a light carrier and I should be protecting you-"
"-Yes, risking one of the longest-fighting veterans is a brilliant fucking decision! " Perseus howled, finally making the light cruiser look at her, mouth agape. She cringed a moment later, doing her best to avoid eye contact. "I'm... sorry for yelling at you." She whispered, getting up to leave.
A wet hand stopped her.
"Perseus," Belfast whispered, "I'm an old relic upgraded to try to keep up with everyone else. There's a reason why I'm normally relegated to training or to convoy escort. I just can't keep up with everyone else. I served both as a combat vessel and a museum ship for almost a century, and my age shows. My hull is suffering from metal fatigue because of combat stresses, and I don't know how long I can last until something breaks. Repair baths can't fix it and higher-ups don't want me to wear myself out, so I can't participate in normal operations."
Perseus stood stock still, taking in the information without meeting her eyes. She was now shaking ever so slightly.
"Perseus, look at me." She begrudgingly obliged, still occasionally glancing elsewhere. It was good enough for Belfast. "You're one of the late-war carriers, one of the best designed ships in the war. You have far more potential than I do. You should prioritize keeping yourself alive, not us older vessels. I've reached my limit, but you're far from yours. It's fine if you let me die. I might be a veteran, but I'm becoming old and frail. There's only so much I can do." Belfast paused, letting the information sink in. She swore she felt her eyes were wetter than before, but the light carrier needed to understand.
Perseus stayed there, suddenly looking far more frightened and depressed than before.
She sighed. "I'm going to be talking to the admiral about any details of the submarine I remember. If you want to join, go grab your swimsuit. I could use the company, if you would offer it."
After some time, the Perseus finally left with a nod and a promise to come back for her. Belfast watched the carrier's dress disappear around the corner before the door clicked shut.
She touched her face.
It came back wet.
Maybe the food could comfort her feelings. The truth wasn't always easy to swallow.
Perseus slid into the bath, depositing an extra tray of food. The dozen or so minutes had offered both some time to recollect themselves, allowing them to clear their heads enough to think straight.
Belfast cleared some space beside the bath so her phone could sit sideways on the case. She tapped on the screen and Naval Base Clyde's admiral appeared a few moments later, the videoconference allowing the two to see the man's frown. His combed back light brown hair looked more frayed than normally, and signs of age were beginning to appear on his face.
George Davion's blue eyes softened when he saw the state of the two ships. "While I didn't press for an official report yet, I'd like to know what happened. I heard about a massive submarine but I didn't get any more details than that."
Perseus cleared her throat, surprising both the admiral and the ship next to her. "It's hull is almost as long as mine, and just as wide. It looked extremely modern, and I doubt any Second World War submarine was nearly that big or that curved." She stated, waiting for the admiral to type something on his screen.
"Continue."
"The 'person' part was a grey woman, bigger than I am. She was wearing a one-piece swimsuit with a shade darker than her skin, and her rigging was completely black. Her eyes were glowing blue and she talked…" She trailed off, unable to find her words.
"She didn't quite behave like a normal person would. She had a fixation on salvaging the wrecked ship." Belfast completed for her, before suddenly remembering a detail she noticed. "I think I saw TK-210 marked on her shoulder."
"Big submarine… TK-210…" The admiral trailed off, hands flying across the keyboard. The clicking of keys echoed in the videoconference, an indirect sign to wait.
The admiral's eyes widened as he cursed something unintelligible. If the man had a drink, he probably would have spit it. He took his own phone and began typing furiously.
"Sir… Did you find any leads?" Perseus asked hopefully after the man was done.
The man took a deep breath to steady himself. "The submarine I think it is never existed. This TK-210 was never built. It would have been the seventh Typhoon-class ballistic missile nuclear submarine. A submarine that only exists in fiction, and one whose story I'm sure you're familiar with.
You two have done exceedingly well in identifying whom it may be. If this newcomer really did talk with you two, we might just have our ticket to ending this godforsaken war. Now, go find some rest, you deserve it after that battle and the encounter. I have a few calls to make."
The man's image blinked out, leaving the two ships alone in the bath.
"Fock. There's a weird kanmusu-abyssal submarine with nukes and every navy's now hunting it." Belfast cursed. "And I shot at it."
Perseus nervously nodded. "We… probably should have told him we might have shot the submarine..."
"We just came across the what?"
After crossing paths with the Typhoon-class submarine, he was on edge. His crew was, too. They nearly rammed into another submarine by accident and caused an international incident. Those things weren't supposed to be difficult to detect. And hearing that it was a supposedly fictional submarine was not helping his nerves, especially one with as legendary of a name as this one. And if the movie or books were correct...
"The Red October, captain. We already talked with the Russians for this one. They were insistent that they never built a seventh Typhoon-class, nor do they have the tech for it. We're actually not sure about it either, but it's the only possibility from what the witnesses told us."
"So now you want us to shadow a submarine that's practically invisible? We have no clue where it went afterwards."
"You are tasked with finding it and tracking it alongside other submarines who will be on mission alongside you. As you know, the Typhoon-class carries nuclear weapons, and they cannot be allowed to fire."
This was going to be a hard assignment. Maybe his last. "Understood, command. Over and out."
The last few hours had been a blank for her as her fairies took everyone aboard to keep her afloat, taking even the command crew to do it. There were hundreds of patched-up cracks all over her body from her hull trying to collapse on itself.
It wasn't the first time she had her keel broken, but this time it felt far more violent. It wasn't a naval mine that did the damage, but rather a torpedo from directly under her. But, her hull had held up against the stress and prevented her from breaking in half like the automated freighter. Her refit had probably saved her from that experience. Although, if she remembered properly, that vessel had been cracked in half by stray shellfire, not by a torpedo.
She suddenly shivered when a memory emerged of the torpedo coming up from right under her skirt. Getting one's keel practically shattered was not a pleasant experience.
She hugged herself. The icy blue gaze of that grey woman reminded her of the earlier Abyssals. Over the years, their eyes had shifted from blue, to red, and finally to yellow. She didn't know if it had anything to do with their effective strength, or age, but she did know the early Abyssals relied far more on numbers, sending out massive swarms of ships that easily overran each Navy, with horrifying results.
The missiles used in modern ships were powerful and precise, but they didn't have nearly enough ships or even ammunition to stop them. They simply kept coming.
But now, most of the fighting was relegated to each nation's Kanmusu forces since they were far more efficient at dispatching Abyssals. Modern navies still had a place, but were mostly relegated to supporting roles.
She thought it was mildly odd that it was only WWI and WWII ships that were summoned on both sides of the conflict. Even 8 years later, they never succeeded at getting anything past 1945. The Abyssals never got access to any modern technology either, though, so the field was even.
How would she explain her pants-on-head moment to the admiral? She may have just botched the first encounter with a modern Kanmusu or Abyssal, and any chances of turning it to their side.
She didn't quite know what caused her to threaten the submarine. Maybe her years of fighting Abyssals had gotten to her head and made her think she was invincible, or maybe her suspicions about it being a new type of Abyssal, or maybe her internal panic at seeing such a huge submarine for the first time in her many years of fighting, or she just really wanted to shoot that thing because it was raiding a helpless freighter like the Germans did in the war…
She shook her head. She would think about it later. She still had a lot of mixed feelings.
Right now, she needed to inform the admiralty about the unknown woman. A submarine that large shouldn't escape their notice.
She eyed the button beside the bath that would summon a person to attend to her needs. She could get someone to fetch her phone so she could talk to her admiral. Perhaps Perseus already told him about it, but just in case she didn't, she would need to fill him in about the details.
In addition, she could probably ask for some food. She hadn't eaten since the last time she was in port.
Someone rapped their knuckles on the door before she could press the button. It was probably HMS Resource checking up on her. A shattered keel was considered a critical injury because it was the backbone for a ship. Especially with her refit and subsequent increase in… assets, problems may arise that are unique to her and not her sister-ships.
"Come in." Belfast said, wondering about whether her timing was a coincidence or if she monitored her state.
She blinked when two people showed up. The 5'2 figure of HMS Resource was expected, but it was the other, taller figure that surprised her. Perseus stepped in with a barely-concealed grimace, trying to look anywhere but at her.
"Oh Belfast, you're awake! That's great. Perseus wanted to talk to you when you woke up, so I'll leave you two alone after making sure your repairs are going well." Resource said, either not noticing or not caring about the carrier's discomfort. The kanmusu wearing brown worker overalls walked around behind Belfast, depositing a tray of food beside the light cruiser before moving behind her.
Belfast flushed as a hand went to her back, feeling her modesty slightly violated. Normally they'd have a bit more privacy in the repair baths, but she would pay the price if it meant that she wouldn't end up with a crooked back.
After a few more moments of embarrassment, the repair ship gave Belfast her swimwear and her phone. "Alright. Your keel is mending well; you're allowed to wear things now. But you're not allowed to leave the repair baths or do any straining activity until I do another checkup." The repair ship stepped away, satisfied with the examination. "Right. I'll leave you two to whatever you wanted to talk about, later lasses!"
"Err... Thanks Miss Resource!"
"Belfast, how many times do I have to say this, don't address me as Miss. It makes me sound old!" HMS Resource replied, her brown-black hair whipping around before the door closed, leaving the two ships alone in the bath.
A silence set in between Belfast and Perseus. The light cruiser began putting on the bikini, wincing a few times in the process.
Perseus bit her lip. She took a few steps forward, before backtracking quickly.
The injured cruiser struggled with the string behind her back, unable to really reach behind and attach her without eliciting a painful response.
The pink carrier took a deep breath, before finally sitting next to her. "Do you need any help, Belfast?"
"Please." Belfast said, holding the ends of her top behind her.
Perseus carefully tied them together, making sure she avoided touching the open hole on the cruiser's back. She slowly put the knot above the injury, placing it there so it wouldn't interfere with the repairs.
"Thanks for saving me."
The light carrier blinked owlishly. "I didn't do anything. I... only towed you until an Osprey picked you up. Towing you out of there didn't change anything."
Belfast kept her stare in front of her. She sighed. "No, you didn't. I probably would've died if I tried to go after the submarine. I was the one pointing my guns towards her in the first place. It was a dumb decision."
"You stepped in when I was frozen in place there. I should've tried to talk to it, but-"
"-but I was the one who threatened it. I made the mistake and I paid for it. You're a light carrier and I should be protecting you-"
"-Yes, risking one of the longest-fighting veterans is a brilliant fucking decision! " Perseus howled, finally making the light cruiser look at her, mouth agape. She cringed a moment later, doing her best to avoid eye contact. "I'm... sorry for yelling at you." She whispered, getting up to leave.
A wet hand stopped her.
"Perseus," Belfast whispered, "I'm an old relic upgraded to try to keep up with everyone else. There's a reason why I'm normally relegated to training or to convoy escort. I just can't keep up with everyone else. I served both as a combat vessel and a museum ship for almost a century, and my age shows. My hull is suffering from metal fatigue because of combat stresses, and I don't know how long I can last until something breaks. Repair baths can't fix it and higher-ups don't want me to wear myself out, so I can't participate in normal operations."
Perseus stood stock still, taking in the information without meeting her eyes. She was now shaking ever so slightly.
"Perseus, look at me." She begrudgingly obliged, still occasionally glancing elsewhere. It was good enough for Belfast. "You're one of the late-war carriers, one of the best designed ships in the war. You have far more potential than I do. You should prioritize keeping yourself alive, not us older vessels. I've reached my limit, but you're far from yours. It's fine if you let me die. I might be a veteran, but I'm becoming old and frail. There's only so much I can do." Belfast paused, letting the information sink in. She swore she felt her eyes were wetter than before, but the light carrier needed to understand.
Perseus stayed there, suddenly looking far more frightened and depressed than before.
She sighed. "I'm going to be talking to the admiral about any details of the submarine I remember. If you want to join, go grab your swimsuit. I could use the company, if you would offer it."
After some time, the Perseus finally left with a nod and a promise to come back for her. Belfast watched the carrier's dress disappear around the corner before the door clicked shut.
She touched her face.
It came back wet.
Maybe the food could comfort her feelings. The truth wasn't always easy to swallow.
o
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Perseus slid into the bath, depositing an extra tray of food. The dozen or so minutes had offered both some time to recollect themselves, allowing them to clear their heads enough to think straight.
Belfast cleared some space beside the bath so her phone could sit sideways on the case. She tapped on the screen and Naval Base Clyde's admiral appeared a few moments later, the videoconference allowing the two to see the man's frown. His combed back light brown hair looked more frayed than normally, and signs of age were beginning to appear on his face.
George Davion's blue eyes softened when he saw the state of the two ships. "While I didn't press for an official report yet, I'd like to know what happened. I heard about a massive submarine but I didn't get any more details than that."
Perseus cleared her throat, surprising both the admiral and the ship next to her. "It's hull is almost as long as mine, and just as wide. It looked extremely modern, and I doubt any Second World War submarine was nearly that big or that curved." She stated, waiting for the admiral to type something on his screen.
"Continue."
"The 'person' part was a grey woman, bigger than I am. She was wearing a one-piece swimsuit with a shade darker than her skin, and her rigging was completely black. Her eyes were glowing blue and she talked…" She trailed off, unable to find her words.
"She didn't quite behave like a normal person would. She had a fixation on salvaging the wrecked ship." Belfast completed for her, before suddenly remembering a detail she noticed. "I think I saw TK-210 marked on her shoulder."
"Big submarine… TK-210…" The admiral trailed off, hands flying across the keyboard. The clicking of keys echoed in the videoconference, an indirect sign to wait.
The admiral's eyes widened as he cursed something unintelligible. If the man had a drink, he probably would have spit it. He took his own phone and began typing furiously.
"Sir… Did you find any leads?" Perseus asked hopefully after the man was done.
The man took a deep breath to steady himself. "The submarine I think it is never existed. This TK-210 was never built. It would have been the seventh Typhoon-class ballistic missile nuclear submarine. A submarine that only exists in fiction, and one whose story I'm sure you're familiar with.
You two have done exceedingly well in identifying whom it may be. If this newcomer really did talk with you two, we might just have our ticket to ending this godforsaken war. Now, go find some rest, you deserve it after that battle and the encounter. I have a few calls to make."
The man's image blinked out, leaving the two ships alone in the bath.
"Fock. There's a weird kanmusu-abyssal submarine with nukes and every navy's now hunting it." Belfast cursed. "And I shot at it."
Perseus nervously nodded. "We… probably should have told him we might have shot the submarine..."
o
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"We just came across the what?"
After crossing paths with the Typhoon-class submarine, he was on edge. His crew was, too. They nearly rammed into another submarine by accident and caused an international incident. Those things weren't supposed to be difficult to detect. And hearing that it was a supposedly fictional submarine was not helping his nerves, especially one with as legendary of a name as this one. And if the movie or books were correct...
"The Red October, captain. We already talked with the Russians for this one. They were insistent that they never built a seventh Typhoon-class, nor do they have the tech for it. We're actually not sure about it either, but it's the only possibility from what the witnesses told us."
"So now you want us to shadow a submarine that's practically invisible? We have no clue where it went afterwards."
"You are tasked with finding it and tracking it alongside other submarines who will be on mission alongside you. As you know, the Typhoon-class carries nuclear weapons, and they cannot be allowed to fire."
This was going to be a hard assignment. Maybe his last. "Understood, command. Over and out."
- Location
- Villa Straylight, Freeside, Earth Orbit
Oh dear, this is going to be awkward for everyone involved, isn't it? Looks like it's back to playing cat and mouse for the bubbleheads!
Chapter 9: Frosty Fortress
The ocean's waves crashed against each other as balls of ice slammed into the water, creating the immensely loud background of a hailstorm. The turbulence rocked the So-classes dangerously but couldn't challenge the largest vessel in the formation. The formation crawled under the surface, avoiding the worst of the weather.
She glanced at the So-class submarines escorting her. The cacophony of the weather made hearing clearly a distant dream, so staying close enough to be able to see each other was the only choice those three decided upon. Technically, she wouldn't have much more trouble tracking them even with the noisy background, but apparently she was so silent the others entirely missed her existence until she pointed herself out.
The meeting nearly had the two other So-classes shoot her in panic. Apparently "no submarine is supposed to be that big."
She looked at herself. Her humanoid body wasn't that big. She was taller than the Kanmusu she met before, but couldn't have been that much taller. Her limbs and the two round things on her front which everyone seemed to have were definitely bigger, though. Perhaps that was the reason. She was just bigger overall for some reason.
She grabbed the two mounds on herself. Unlike her other parts, they seemed to offer no clear utility. Her head had good sensors she could rotate around and her arms and legs gave her the ability to grasp things and move when outside of water. The two… things, not so much.
One of the So-classes was staring at her with a blank expression.
She let go of them and stared back, wondering what message she wanted to transmit. The submarine looked away, the So's attention seemingly focused on something in the distance.
Her mind went back to herself. She could refit herself right now with the slow speed they were travelling at. The changes weren't too many and none of them impacted her exterior, which should mean that it would affect her performance minimally. There were things inside her that didn't react well to bullets, and the extra armor should protect them from harm. Perhaps the extra mass would slow her down, but she didn't think it was much of an increase from her current one..
She applied the retrofit.
Her repair bots sprung into action, each emerging from their boxes with materials in tow. They phased through her bulkheads as they flew to their destination, placing down metal blocks at the needed locations. The cubes fused soon afterwards, creating a single uniform object with any structural components they were installed on.
Refocusing on the outside world, she noticed some changes on her humanoid form: The fabric that was only really covering her central body now extended past her shoulders and her thighs. She pinched a small segment, testing it between her fingers. The material didn't feel as stretchy as before, but not enough to hinder her movements.
When the fabric stopped expanding, a message rang in her mind. It detailed the changes to her hull and logged the timing at which they were applied. She wasn't sure why it existed or where it originated from, but it came from either herself or from one of her repair bots. Perhaps it could be useful for the future, but she had no reason to dwell on the knowledge now. She stored the information for later.
Done tending to herself, she focused on her senses. The currents fruitlessly pushed against her hull as she continued on course as her mass was too much for the currents to budge. She smoothly glided through the water, the cool liquid sliding over her metallic skin.
She never really thought about her travels much, but she could finally place a word for the feeling she had: All the experiences of watching marine life, of recording the signatures of every ship she came across, of battle between Abyssal and Kanmusu, of discovering and understanding new concepts.
It felt… Liberating.
She never knew what she was created for, or if she even had a reason to be. Her experiences, few and many as they have been, have given her reason to exist.
Her train of thought went to the submarines beside her. They never seemed to be able to pass ten knots, much less maintain that speed. She could easily do double that. Perhaps if she transferred some of her power to the other vessels, they could go at a higher speed.
However, she didn't have any way to do that.
Her CPU searched within her memories, trying to find anything relevant to making things move faster. The sharp-nose fish was fast, but applying its shape to the other submarines would require physical modification. Examining the blueprint of the warship didn't give her any new ideas, either. She could somehow inject their engines with power, but she didn't have any means to do that she was aware of.
Her mind halted when she came back to the question of how the power transfer would work. She would need to somehow connect her reactor to their engines.
She looked at the torpedoes she acquired from the So-class. Those looked like the weapons she had, but a lot simpler. Her own weapons had more guidance, payload and a wire.
Perhaps that was what was required. She knew the wire could be used for guiding it towards a target, but maybe it could also double as a cord for supplying power to the torpedo. She wasn't quite sure of all its functions yet. The size difference could be compensated by increasing the thickness and length of the wire. That would require modifying her torpedo, but she could remove the explosives and the guidance system for the extra space needed.
Satisfied with her idea, she went to one of her launchers to modify the existing weapon. She focused on that tube, letting her mind bring up the technical information of the torpedo. A command was sent to change it to the new specifications.
The launcher obliged, somehow segmenting the sections containing the unneeded modules and building new extensions of the cable inside the weapon. She didn't see any repair bots active nor any special parts extend from the launcher. It simply absorbed the extra parts back into the gantry and sent the material into containers in other parts of the hull.
She blinked at the speed it swapped everything. She expected to have some trouble creating the torpedo, but apparently her launchers were able to modify them easily.
Something at the back of her mind told her to install a winch next to the tube, so she obliged. It had been helpful in her survival up until this point. Certainly safer than connecting it straight to the launcher, and she could control how far the cable went.
She shot the torpedo. A tiny trail of bubbles followed it as it shot straight ahead. She looped her hand around the wire emerging from her arm mounted launcher and yanked it back. The weapon resisted, but she was stronger. Her hand gripped the cylinder tightly, preventing it from an escape.
The So-classes beside her swiftly craned their heads towards her after the launch, eyes narrowed and turning towards her. However, they quickly returned to their formation afterwards, attention suddenly focused outwards.
She felt one of her eyelids raise involuntarily. She moved herself next to the So-class she first met and tapped her shoulder.
The submarine snapped her head towards her, eyes wide and body shaking. A couple of bubbles came out of her mouth when the wire torpedo was put in her hand.
She picked up speed to move away from the Abyssal submarine until she felt a tug on her wrist. The So-class was clinging onto the arm-long metal rod that linked the two submarines via thick wire. She didn't know if the Abyssal had understood that she needed to plug it to her engine...
She realized she had not connected the wire to her reactor, just the winch.
A glance at her speed and the unchanging length of the wire told her everything she needed to know. Instead of trying to link the winch to her power output, she simply increased her own speed and solidified her grip on the wire.
The So-class followed her to 20 knots as she turned to the other Abyssal submarines. She quickly modified two other tubes with a flick of her mind, hot-swapping the normal torpedoes to ones with only thick wire. Two repair bots scrambled to add the winches before two metal rods shot out from each of her arms.
Yanking on the wires of the new wired torpedoes, she brought them to her hands and matched her speed with the other Abyssals. They stared at her, wide-eyed. One of them hesitated when she presented the object, but quickly took it after a glance at the already tethered So-class.
When all three Abyssals had the rod firmly stuck within their arms, she returned to her speed of 20 knots. She felt three tugs on her arms as she accelerated. The modified torpedo seemed to work with little issue as she lugged the three submarines along at twice their maximum speed.
The So-classes were taking glances at each other with various shifting expressions of discomfort, seemingly engrossed in their own conversation that only used head movement.
She continued on course, ignoring her 'passengers' and the three open torpedo tubes.
Her senses were having some trouble with the rather noisy weather. Her CPU was processing the data but she could only do so much. One of the signatures she noticed earlier could have been another submarine, but it quickly disappeared milliseconds later.
A tug on her wrist pulled her out of her focus. She glanced back, noticing So-classes nodding upwards repeatedly.
She slowed down and angled herself upwards. The So-classes let go of the wire torpedoes, letting her pull them back into their respective tubes.
She broke the surface.
Her first observation was the weather. It was still the same storm as before, but the torrent of hail was replaced by a light drizzle. She also noticed that the waves were much shorter and currents far less violent.
The sky was still dark and cloudy, but the air felt cooler than before. She felt a light breeze wash over her, brushing off some of the water that clung to her skin.
One of the So-classes approached her as she experienced the weather. "Miss Hime, we've arrived at the Northern Ice Princess' fortress."
She finally saw what the Abyssal meant. A massive thing sat slightly above the waves, far bigger than even the massive container ships or sea creatures. The black foundation struck out on each side, jutting out in square formations ending in edges made out of blue and white. The largest part of the fortress was a long wall made out of different shades of a semi-transparent blue, the shade lighter the higher it was. The walls ended in towers with the same colour scheme. At the top, white objects of various sizes jutted out irregularly, almost like the teeth of some marine animals. On the entire structure, there were holes with small barrels pointing outwards, with far bigger cannons on top of the tower.
She could see more buildings housed within the large structure jutting over the top slightly, where a white figure stood on the balcony of the tallest one. From the distance, she could recognise four main turrets and the hull of a warship. Perhaps it was the colourful standard in her hands, or the crowd of people around her that demarked her from the hundreds of humanoid Abyssals gathered on the fortress.
However, those weren't the parts most striking to her.
It was the small coat of white powder covering everything.
It felt familiar, yet her reactor tightened painfully.
She glanced at the So-class submarines escorting her. The cacophony of the weather made hearing clearly a distant dream, so staying close enough to be able to see each other was the only choice those three decided upon. Technically, she wouldn't have much more trouble tracking them even with the noisy background, but apparently she was so silent the others entirely missed her existence until she pointed herself out.
The meeting nearly had the two other So-classes shoot her in panic. Apparently "no submarine is supposed to be that big."
She looked at herself. Her humanoid body wasn't that big. She was taller than the Kanmusu she met before, but couldn't have been that much taller. Her limbs and the two round things on her front which everyone seemed to have were definitely bigger, though. Perhaps that was the reason. She was just bigger overall for some reason.
She grabbed the two mounds on herself. Unlike her other parts, they seemed to offer no clear utility. Her head had good sensors she could rotate around and her arms and legs gave her the ability to grasp things and move when outside of water. The two… things, not so much.
One of the So-classes was staring at her with a blank expression.
She let go of them and stared back, wondering what message she wanted to transmit. The submarine looked away, the So's attention seemingly focused on something in the distance.
Her mind went back to herself. She could refit herself right now with the slow speed they were travelling at. The changes weren't too many and none of them impacted her exterior, which should mean that it would affect her performance minimally. There were things inside her that didn't react well to bullets, and the extra armor should protect them from harm. Perhaps the extra mass would slow her down, but she didn't think it was much of an increase from her current one..
She applied the retrofit.
Her repair bots sprung into action, each emerging from their boxes with materials in tow. They phased through her bulkheads as they flew to their destination, placing down metal blocks at the needed locations. The cubes fused soon afterwards, creating a single uniform object with any structural components they were installed on.
Refocusing on the outside world, she noticed some changes on her humanoid form: The fabric that was only really covering her central body now extended past her shoulders and her thighs. She pinched a small segment, testing it between her fingers. The material didn't feel as stretchy as before, but not enough to hinder her movements.
When the fabric stopped expanding, a message rang in her mind. It detailed the changes to her hull and logged the timing at which they were applied. She wasn't sure why it existed or where it originated from, but it came from either herself or from one of her repair bots. Perhaps it could be useful for the future, but she had no reason to dwell on the knowledge now. She stored the information for later.
Done tending to herself, she focused on her senses. The currents fruitlessly pushed against her hull as she continued on course as her mass was too much for the currents to budge. She smoothly glided through the water, the cool liquid sliding over her metallic skin.
She never really thought about her travels much, but she could finally place a word for the feeling she had: All the experiences of watching marine life, of recording the signatures of every ship she came across, of battle between Abyssal and Kanmusu, of discovering and understanding new concepts.
It felt… Liberating.
She never knew what she was created for, or if she even had a reason to be. Her experiences, few and many as they have been, have given her reason to exist.
Her train of thought went to the submarines beside her. They never seemed to be able to pass ten knots, much less maintain that speed. She could easily do double that. Perhaps if she transferred some of her power to the other vessels, they could go at a higher speed.
However, she didn't have any way to do that.
Her CPU searched within her memories, trying to find anything relevant to making things move faster. The sharp-nose fish was fast, but applying its shape to the other submarines would require physical modification. Examining the blueprint of the warship didn't give her any new ideas, either. She could somehow inject their engines with power, but she didn't have any means to do that she was aware of.
Her mind halted when she came back to the question of how the power transfer would work. She would need to somehow connect her reactor to their engines.
She looked at the torpedoes she acquired from the So-class. Those looked like the weapons she had, but a lot simpler. Her own weapons had more guidance, payload and a wire.
Perhaps that was what was required. She knew the wire could be used for guiding it towards a target, but maybe it could also double as a cord for supplying power to the torpedo. She wasn't quite sure of all its functions yet. The size difference could be compensated by increasing the thickness and length of the wire. That would require modifying her torpedo, but she could remove the explosives and the guidance system for the extra space needed.
Satisfied with her idea, she went to one of her launchers to modify the existing weapon. She focused on that tube, letting her mind bring up the technical information of the torpedo. A command was sent to change it to the new specifications.
The launcher obliged, somehow segmenting the sections containing the unneeded modules and building new extensions of the cable inside the weapon. She didn't see any repair bots active nor any special parts extend from the launcher. It simply absorbed the extra parts back into the gantry and sent the material into containers in other parts of the hull.
She blinked at the speed it swapped everything. She expected to have some trouble creating the torpedo, but apparently her launchers were able to modify them easily.
Something at the back of her mind told her to install a winch next to the tube, so she obliged. It had been helpful in her survival up until this point. Certainly safer than connecting it straight to the launcher, and she could control how far the cable went.
She shot the torpedo. A tiny trail of bubbles followed it as it shot straight ahead. She looped her hand around the wire emerging from her arm mounted launcher and yanked it back. The weapon resisted, but she was stronger. Her hand gripped the cylinder tightly, preventing it from an escape.
The So-classes beside her swiftly craned their heads towards her after the launch, eyes narrowed and turning towards her. However, they quickly returned to their formation afterwards, attention suddenly focused outwards.
She felt one of her eyelids raise involuntarily. She moved herself next to the So-class she first met and tapped her shoulder.
The submarine snapped her head towards her, eyes wide and body shaking. A couple of bubbles came out of her mouth when the wire torpedo was put in her hand.
She picked up speed to move away from the Abyssal submarine until she felt a tug on her wrist. The So-class was clinging onto the arm-long metal rod that linked the two submarines via thick wire. She didn't know if the Abyssal had understood that she needed to plug it to her engine...
She realized she had not connected the wire to her reactor, just the winch.
A glance at her speed and the unchanging length of the wire told her everything she needed to know. Instead of trying to link the winch to her power output, she simply increased her own speed and solidified her grip on the wire.
The So-class followed her to 20 knots as she turned to the other Abyssal submarines. She quickly modified two other tubes with a flick of her mind, hot-swapping the normal torpedoes to ones with only thick wire. Two repair bots scrambled to add the winches before two metal rods shot out from each of her arms.
Yanking on the wires of the new wired torpedoes, she brought them to her hands and matched her speed with the other Abyssals. They stared at her, wide-eyed. One of them hesitated when she presented the object, but quickly took it after a glance at the already tethered So-class.
When all three Abyssals had the rod firmly stuck within their arms, she returned to her speed of 20 knots. She felt three tugs on her arms as she accelerated. The modified torpedo seemed to work with little issue as she lugged the three submarines along at twice their maximum speed.
The So-classes were taking glances at each other with various shifting expressions of discomfort, seemingly engrossed in their own conversation that only used head movement.
She continued on course, ignoring her 'passengers' and the three open torpedo tubes.
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Her senses were having some trouble with the rather noisy weather. Her CPU was processing the data but she could only do so much. One of the signatures she noticed earlier could have been another submarine, but it quickly disappeared milliseconds later.
A tug on her wrist pulled her out of her focus. She glanced back, noticing So-classes nodding upwards repeatedly.
She slowed down and angled herself upwards. The So-classes let go of the wire torpedoes, letting her pull them back into their respective tubes.
She broke the surface.
Her first observation was the weather. It was still the same storm as before, but the torrent of hail was replaced by a light drizzle. She also noticed that the waves were much shorter and currents far less violent.
The sky was still dark and cloudy, but the air felt cooler than before. She felt a light breeze wash over her, brushing off some of the water that clung to her skin.
One of the So-classes approached her as she experienced the weather. "Miss Hime, we've arrived at the Northern Ice Princess' fortress."
She finally saw what the Abyssal meant. A massive thing sat slightly above the waves, far bigger than even the massive container ships or sea creatures. The black foundation struck out on each side, jutting out in square formations ending in edges made out of blue and white. The largest part of the fortress was a long wall made out of different shades of a semi-transparent blue, the shade lighter the higher it was. The walls ended in towers with the same colour scheme. At the top, white objects of various sizes jutted out irregularly, almost like the teeth of some marine animals. On the entire structure, there were holes with small barrels pointing outwards, with far bigger cannons on top of the tower.
She could see more buildings housed within the large structure jutting over the top slightly, where a white figure stood on the balcony of the tallest one. From the distance, she could recognise four main turrets and the hull of a warship. Perhaps it was the colourful standard in her hands, or the crowd of people around her that demarked her from the hundreds of humanoid Abyssals gathered on the fortress.
However, those weren't the parts most striking to her.
It was the small coat of white powder covering everything.
It felt familiar, yet her reactor tightened painfully.
Chapter 10: Northern Ice Princess
The So-classes escorted her towards the fortress, speeding up a moderate 10 knots when they surfaced. Glancing at one of the escorts, she noticed the So had a hand to her ear. She logged the Abyssal's behavior before turning her attention back to their destination.
Upon closer inspection, she realized that a part of the fortress was underwater. A black upside-down cone extended from the center all the way to the seabed, far shorter than the above-water castle but larger by sheer height. The spire divided itself into segments, with a few entrances visible for a few floors. She couldn't actually 'see' the entrances, but the submarine traffic revealed their locations.
On the surface, there was an array of Abyssals milling around the fortress idly. They ranged from the fish-like creatures to humanoid abyssals almost as tall as her. She had to refrain from arming her torpedoes when her eyes landed on a pack of creatures similar to the one in her first encounter. The first time was too close, and a second may be her last.
When the pack began scurrying away, she felt her reactor relax. She would reach the fortress safely, where none of the non-humanoid Abyssals were present.
Her escorts guided her to one of the rectangular protrusions. The So-classes climbed up one by one, stopping in the middle to shake out the water. They disappeared behind the top of the black structure.
She grabbed the side of the ladder, feeling the rough surface of the black metal on her fingers. Her feet found purchase a few moments later, catching onto the bottom rung. A small wave crashed against her, lightly shoving her forward. She held onto the bars tighter to withstand it.
The metal groaned a moment before she fell back into the water. She reemerged a moment later, finding the lower half of the ladder suspiciously missing.
A few humanoid Abyssals peeked over the fortress' edge, yellow eyes widening when they laid their eyes on her. One with a sailor's top narrowed her eyes before whispering something to a similarly dressed Abyssal beside her.
She looked at the broken ladder before her, wondering how she would follow the So-classes up. Her eyes swept side to side as she tried to find another ladder, but none were in the immediate vicinity. There was a larger ladder closer to the center, but that would require her to take a large detour. Unless the So-classes were going to walk all the way over there to get her, she would need to find a way to get up without a ladder.
Her mind wandered back to how her wires pulled the Abyssals along. She hadn't changed the torpedoes back yet. The wire could work both ways.
She shot out a pair of torpedoes, one from each arm. The weapons splashed into the water harmlessly, disappearing under the waves until she picked them. She felt the gazes of the Abyssals as she took the rods in her hands, one scoffing as they watched her curiously. She quickly calculated the height of the fortress before she held an arm to throw.
The Abyssals quickly scattered when the torpedo sailed above the platform, anchoring itself on something she couldn't see. The second one landed soon afterwards, neither having any trouble reaching their destination.
She tested the strength with a simple tug. Satisfactory, her CPU concluded.
Her feet anchored themselves on the side of the fortress when her winches kicked in. She began climbing, using the winches to yank herself up along with using her legs to push herself up the structure. After a moment of slow climb to test the idea, she accelerated, feeling the torpedoes solidly anchored on something.
Her walk turned into a run, and as she cleared the edge her accumulated speed threw her into the air. She felt her lips shift from an previously unrecorded emotion as she saw the saucer-wide eyes of the Abyssals. When the winch kept going and finally dislodged the torpedoes, the pull of the machine sent them flying past her. Her arms were dragged apart by the momentum of the weapons, drawing them taut as if she were swinging the rods around.
She landed with a knee on the ground and with her arms drawn out. After a small delay, the winches continued working and retracted the torpedoes into her tubes. The Abyssals backed off from her, warily pointing their weapons towards her. She stood up and checked herself, before dusting off a bit of black debris.
She noticed she was encircled and completely outgunned, but she didn't care. She estimated she could withstand their weapons and escape by diving. If the So-classes were not lying, they had no way to detect her there.
As she stared down the Abyssals, one of her escorts slowly approached her. The So shrunk on herself when her gaze landed on the smaller submarine. The ivory skinned sub gulped.
"Miss Hime, p-please follow me." The So stuttered, eyes quickly flitting between her now-closed tubes. "W-We will be leaving the pier to move to the castle, w-where our Princess awaits."
She obliged, sliding behind her escort. The other Abyssals slowly lowered their weapon when they passed by them, whispering things among themselves. She could hear their erratically pitched voices easily but couldn't make out what the intermixed words were. The various hull types scurried out of their way quickly, moving themselves to the sides of the pier.
As she examined the assortment of organic armaments her hosts had, she heard a gasp from her So-class guide. Her eyes went past the submarine and onto a tall figure clad in a strapless black dress. The hem was shorter on the right side, exposing her long legs and black stockings. As her eyes trailed up, the woman's long white hair failed to hide the massive organism crouched behind her which harboured four main gun batteries on its shoulders. The monstrously beefy humanoid had two bow-shaped heads with arrays of broad white teeth.
However, they weren't looking at her. The heads were looking at the other Abyssals beside her. The tall woman set her standard down; the red rectangle with a single blue cross over a white one fluttering as a loud thunk reverberated throughout the area.
All chatter beside her seemed to cease when the noise reverberated throughout the area. The whispering from before ceased to exist, replaced by the background of waves splashing against the fortress.
The supposed Northern Ice Princess scrutinized her, the Abyssal's glowing yellow eyes coldly roaming over her body before stopping at her eyes. She stared back at the warship, evaluating the size of her guns and the secondary armaments. That setup was eerily similar to the blueprint she held.
A cool breeze blew over them, fluttering the Princess' standard. She felt she knew what it was, yet no memory seemed to emerge.
Finally, the battleship broke the silence. "You made quite the entrance. I have never seen anyone scale up the side of the pier before." Her deep and rich voice echoed across the pier, the only other noise being the splashes of waves. She continued when no immediate reply came. "What has brought you here? You are no slave of mankind, yet you are not one of us."
Her gaze remained firmly locked on the Princess'. "I have come to acquire information."
The staredown continued for a moment, after which an eyebrow quirked on the battleship's face. The Abyssal looked at the others present. "Leave us at once."
At her command the crowd began dispersing silently, leaving in every direction. Chatter sprung up quickly afterwards. It was hushed and between clusters, but there was enough of it to be clearly audible. The large submarine heard a few mentions of a 'Princess'.
The Northern Ice Princess waited a few more moments before turning around. She pointed her flag towards a tall blue-white building. "Follow me. We shall continue this discussion elsewhere. Do you have a name that I may refer you as? I am known as the Northern Ice Princess, as my subordinates have no doubt told you."
She followed the Abyssal Princess, watching the myriad of different ice-themed buildings pass by. "No. I do not."
The battleship looked at her. "Do you have a hull number? Some of us are born with one."
"What is a hull number? And could you please elaborate on the 'born' part?" She immediately asked.
The Princess seemed to pause. "A series of numbers and letters inscribed on you. That you had when you first became conscious. And as for being born, I think it is best to show you."
As the Abyssal leader turned her attention back towards their destination, the unnamed submarine glanced at her shoulder. She noticed it before, but didn't think too much about it. It was barely noticeable, just a shade different than her dark grey skin.
TK-210
Perhaps it was something related to her past, a lost name that she held. A clue, but not the answer.
She would need to keep searching.
Upon closer inspection, she realized that a part of the fortress was underwater. A black upside-down cone extended from the center all the way to the seabed, far shorter than the above-water castle but larger by sheer height. The spire divided itself into segments, with a few entrances visible for a few floors. She couldn't actually 'see' the entrances, but the submarine traffic revealed their locations.
On the surface, there was an array of Abyssals milling around the fortress idly. They ranged from the fish-like creatures to humanoid abyssals almost as tall as her. She had to refrain from arming her torpedoes when her eyes landed on a pack of creatures similar to the one in her first encounter. The first time was too close, and a second may be her last.
When the pack began scurrying away, she felt her reactor relax. She would reach the fortress safely, where none of the non-humanoid Abyssals were present.
Her escorts guided her to one of the rectangular protrusions. The So-classes climbed up one by one, stopping in the middle to shake out the water. They disappeared behind the top of the black structure.
She grabbed the side of the ladder, feeling the rough surface of the black metal on her fingers. Her feet found purchase a few moments later, catching onto the bottom rung. A small wave crashed against her, lightly shoving her forward. She held onto the bars tighter to withstand it.
The metal groaned a moment before she fell back into the water. She reemerged a moment later, finding the lower half of the ladder suspiciously missing.
A few humanoid Abyssals peeked over the fortress' edge, yellow eyes widening when they laid their eyes on her. One with a sailor's top narrowed her eyes before whispering something to a similarly dressed Abyssal beside her.
She looked at the broken ladder before her, wondering how she would follow the So-classes up. Her eyes swept side to side as she tried to find another ladder, but none were in the immediate vicinity. There was a larger ladder closer to the center, but that would require her to take a large detour. Unless the So-classes were going to walk all the way over there to get her, she would need to find a way to get up without a ladder.
Her mind wandered back to how her wires pulled the Abyssals along. She hadn't changed the torpedoes back yet. The wire could work both ways.
She shot out a pair of torpedoes, one from each arm. The weapons splashed into the water harmlessly, disappearing under the waves until she picked them. She felt the gazes of the Abyssals as she took the rods in her hands, one scoffing as they watched her curiously. She quickly calculated the height of the fortress before she held an arm to throw.
The Abyssals quickly scattered when the torpedo sailed above the platform, anchoring itself on something she couldn't see. The second one landed soon afterwards, neither having any trouble reaching their destination.
She tested the strength with a simple tug. Satisfactory, her CPU concluded.
Her feet anchored themselves on the side of the fortress when her winches kicked in. She began climbing, using the winches to yank herself up along with using her legs to push herself up the structure. After a moment of slow climb to test the idea, she accelerated, feeling the torpedoes solidly anchored on something.
Her walk turned into a run, and as she cleared the edge her accumulated speed threw her into the air. She felt her lips shift from an previously unrecorded emotion as she saw the saucer-wide eyes of the Abyssals. When the winch kept going and finally dislodged the torpedoes, the pull of the machine sent them flying past her. Her arms were dragged apart by the momentum of the weapons, drawing them taut as if she were swinging the rods around.
She landed with a knee on the ground and with her arms drawn out. After a small delay, the winches continued working and retracted the torpedoes into her tubes. The Abyssals backed off from her, warily pointing their weapons towards her. She stood up and checked herself, before dusting off a bit of black debris.
She noticed she was encircled and completely outgunned, but she didn't care. She estimated she could withstand their weapons and escape by diving. If the So-classes were not lying, they had no way to detect her there.
As she stared down the Abyssals, one of her escorts slowly approached her. The So shrunk on herself when her gaze landed on the smaller submarine. The ivory skinned sub gulped.
"Miss Hime, p-please follow me." The So stuttered, eyes quickly flitting between her now-closed tubes. "W-We will be leaving the pier to move to the castle, w-where our Princess awaits."
She obliged, sliding behind her escort. The other Abyssals slowly lowered their weapon when they passed by them, whispering things among themselves. She could hear their erratically pitched voices easily but couldn't make out what the intermixed words were. The various hull types scurried out of their way quickly, moving themselves to the sides of the pier.
As she examined the assortment of organic armaments her hosts had, she heard a gasp from her So-class guide. Her eyes went past the submarine and onto a tall figure clad in a strapless black dress. The hem was shorter on the right side, exposing her long legs and black stockings. As her eyes trailed up, the woman's long white hair failed to hide the massive organism crouched behind her which harboured four main gun batteries on its shoulders. The monstrously beefy humanoid had two bow-shaped heads with arrays of broad white teeth.
However, they weren't looking at her. The heads were looking at the other Abyssals beside her. The tall woman set her standard down; the red rectangle with a single blue cross over a white one fluttering as a loud thunk reverberated throughout the area.
All chatter beside her seemed to cease when the noise reverberated throughout the area. The whispering from before ceased to exist, replaced by the background of waves splashing against the fortress.
The supposed Northern Ice Princess scrutinized her, the Abyssal's glowing yellow eyes coldly roaming over her body before stopping at her eyes. She stared back at the warship, evaluating the size of her guns and the secondary armaments. That setup was eerily similar to the blueprint she held.
A cool breeze blew over them, fluttering the Princess' standard. She felt she knew what it was, yet no memory seemed to emerge.
Finally, the battleship broke the silence. "You made quite the entrance. I have never seen anyone scale up the side of the pier before." Her deep and rich voice echoed across the pier, the only other noise being the splashes of waves. She continued when no immediate reply came. "What has brought you here? You are no slave of mankind, yet you are not one of us."
Her gaze remained firmly locked on the Princess'. "I have come to acquire information."
The staredown continued for a moment, after which an eyebrow quirked on the battleship's face. The Abyssal looked at the others present. "Leave us at once."
At her command the crowd began dispersing silently, leaving in every direction. Chatter sprung up quickly afterwards. It was hushed and between clusters, but there was enough of it to be clearly audible. The large submarine heard a few mentions of a 'Princess'.
The Northern Ice Princess waited a few more moments before turning around. She pointed her flag towards a tall blue-white building. "Follow me. We shall continue this discussion elsewhere. Do you have a name that I may refer you as? I am known as the Northern Ice Princess, as my subordinates have no doubt told you."
She followed the Abyssal Princess, watching the myriad of different ice-themed buildings pass by. "No. I do not."
The battleship looked at her. "Do you have a hull number? Some of us are born with one."
"What is a hull number? And could you please elaborate on the 'born' part?" She immediately asked.
The Princess seemed to pause. "A series of numbers and letters inscribed on you. That you had when you first became conscious. And as for being born, I think it is best to show you."
As the Abyssal leader turned her attention back towards their destination, the unnamed submarine glanced at her shoulder. She noticed it before, but didn't think too much about it. It was barely noticeable, just a shade different than her dark grey skin.
TK-210
Perhaps it was something related to her past, a lost name that she held. A clue, but not the answer.
She would need to keep searching.
Chapter 11: Pillars of Creation
She followed behind the hulking form of the vaguely humanoid creature down the curving stairway. The organic weapon bearer took up the entire width, but seemed to have little trouble with the irregular length of the stairs.
The inscriptions on her shoulder were still weighing on her mind, but her focus was the unknown room she was being taken to. The Princess didn't give her a direct answer, so she had little idea where she was being taken to. The escape by sea was no longer an option now, so she would need to fight her way outside if she was threatened. However, if they were low enough, it might be possible to blast a hole in a wall to escape.
She mentally tallied her tubes. Two of them were wire torpedoes while the rest were normal. There should be enough explosives to punch a hole in most structures.
The deep voice of the Princess took her out of her thoughts. "We are here."
The stairway spilled into a dimly lit room surrounded by black walls. She noticed the large chamber was mostly empty, except for a few barrels and crates stacked in a corner, and the odd black circle in the middle. Upon closer inspection, the black circle on the floor seemed endless, as if she were peering into a void. It took up most of the room and had half a dozen Abyssals already assembled around it.
She stalked off to the side to get a better look. None of the others seemed to notice her approach as she approached the stack of materials, giving it a cursory glance before examining the circle. The barrels contained bunker oil and the crates steel and munitions. She turned towards the circle, stopping behind a pair of cruisers. Her eyes told her nothing except the black void that seemed to stretch on forever.
The Northern Ice Princess moved next to an Abyssal far smaller than the battleship, one that seemed to have cranes and crates instead of guns. "Supply Princess, how goes the creation?"
"Fine as usual. The Abyss should lend us some ships soon." The 'Supply Princess' answered offhandedly, not even glancing at the massive creature beside her. Clicking noises engulfed the silence of the room as she interacted with a rectangular object emitting light. "What has brought you here? You rarely ever visit this space without a reason."
The battleship looked at the circle. "It is not every day that a So-class gets scared." She commented enigmatically, peering somewhere into the void. The clicking stopped. When the smaller Princess raised an eyebrow at her, she continued. "We have a valuable guest today. One that wishes to know how most of the Abyss are born. She does not know her origins."
"Who would be this valued guest then? I've only heard you take in other princeeeeee….." The Supply Princess' words tapered off, eyes finally spotting the only submarine in the room. She gawked, her mouth flopping open wordlessly before she slowly turned to the Northern Ice Princess. "Who... What… is she?"
"She does not know herself. That is why she requested to visit." The battleship explained, putting a hand on the smaller Abyssal's shoulder.
The Supply Princess tried to move away, but the hand kept her pinned. Her eyes quickly fled back to her screen. "I-It should begin soon." She squeaked, seemingly withdrawing into a smaller form. She flipped the device closed and stored in one of her crates.
The submarine's eyes were drawn to the black circle.
Something moved within it. Indescribable noises suddenly wailed across the entire room, overpowering all other noises and muting any attempt at speech.
She instinctively covered the sides of her head. The sounds banged against her sonar arrays even through her hands, forcing her to cut off her connection lest the data overload her CPU.
A trio of translucent black tendrils emerged from the void. They solidified as they expanded upwards, reaching the roof soon afterwards. The tendrils somehow began thickening after they reached their height limit. They merged with each other at their base while their top-most parts began curving inwards. After the base formed rough walls, a line of white dots emerged on the inner top side of the tendrils. It was roughly the appearance of a tentacle. The translucence disappeared after a moment, hiding the inside of the organic-like structure.
Her breath caught when the top of a white sphere formed above the walls. It started on each tendril before connecting mid-way with the other ones. She stared at the white sphere slowly spinning on itself, a tendril occasionally dipping a bit before returning to its original position.
Nothing seemed to change afterwards. A tendril would occasionally dip but the white sphere continued spinning. After a few minutes, the Northern Ice Princess approached her, waving her standard to catch her attention. The Abyssal put an arm around her and gently pushed her towards the stairs.
Judging that she was far away enough, she reconnected herself to her sonar. The first thing she noticed was the eerie quiet of the room. Her steps rung mutedly over the varnished hardwood as she circled a set of leather couches circling a small wooden table. The white walls were different from the snow outside. It was paint.
As she stared at the jarring differences in style between the inside and outside of the room, she heard the footsteps of her guide.
The Northern Ice Princess put her standard in a stand next to the doorway, before moving to one of the couches. "It is inspired by human abodes. Some Abyssals prefer to hold conversation in these." When the submarine didn't find a place to sit, she motioned the couch opposite of her. "Please, take a seat."
The non-Abyssal sat on the leather couch and suddenly felt her limbs relax. She made a half-hearted attempt to stand up, but the furniture somehow only sucked her deeper into its grasp. She let out a sigh after a few seconds of a sensation that could only be described as soft embrace. Her voice devolved into a moan soon afterwards, a moment before her hand was over her mouth. She felt her cheeks suddenly heat up. Two breaths were all it took for the burning to subside.
The battleship opposite of her raised an eyebrow. "Curious. You come for my fortress, terrorizing all ships that you have come across, yet you have not made a single demand. However the moment you sit down on a couch, you leave your guard open in front of a battleship Princess in the middle of her fortress." She leaned forwards, causing the furniture to creak slightly under her weight. "No Princess would ever be so bold or so stupid. What are you, really? To waltz in and demand, not for ships or resources, but for information about yourself?"
The submarine stared back at her, visibly processing the words. "I am requesting any information available about my origins. The… visit was enlightening but I am not much closer to my objective." She paused. "Query: How do 'Princesses' behave? You are the first 'Princess' I have met."
The Abyssal's eyes widened a bit further before they suddenly sharpened. "I shall contact other Abyssals to request any information that may trace you back to your creation, but it shall come at a price. I would like to know what you would trade for such information. Additionally, I shall teach you what we are, as a token of trust."
"I… " She hesitated, her stare fixated on the top of the small table between them. "am not certain."
The battleship remained thoughtful for a moment. "Then I shall give you a simple task. It will not involve combat, if you do not wish to participate in it." The Princess stood up, her eyes briefly roaming over the submarine's hull. She moved to the entrance of the room, picking up her standard on the way. "Follow me, I shall give you the details."
The submarine did as asked, taking one last glance at the different room before a barely audible noise, a reminder of the birth process of Abyssals, hit her ears. Her thoughts shifted to the tentacles, and how they somehow created new ships. Her central processor began creating the schematics for a replica of her own that utilized the same basis for repair bots, a piece of information that emerged from her memory only with their recent uses. Perhaps she could create just as the 'Abyss' did, and create new concepts based on Abyssals for her own use.
She felt her lips quirk upwards.
The inscriptions on her shoulder were still weighing on her mind, but her focus was the unknown room she was being taken to. The Princess didn't give her a direct answer, so she had little idea where she was being taken to. The escape by sea was no longer an option now, so she would need to fight her way outside if she was threatened. However, if they were low enough, it might be possible to blast a hole in a wall to escape.
She mentally tallied her tubes. Two of them were wire torpedoes while the rest were normal. There should be enough explosives to punch a hole in most structures.
The deep voice of the Princess took her out of her thoughts. "We are here."
The stairway spilled into a dimly lit room surrounded by black walls. She noticed the large chamber was mostly empty, except for a few barrels and crates stacked in a corner, and the odd black circle in the middle. Upon closer inspection, the black circle on the floor seemed endless, as if she were peering into a void. It took up most of the room and had half a dozen Abyssals already assembled around it.
She stalked off to the side to get a better look. None of the others seemed to notice her approach as she approached the stack of materials, giving it a cursory glance before examining the circle. The barrels contained bunker oil and the crates steel and munitions. She turned towards the circle, stopping behind a pair of cruisers. Her eyes told her nothing except the black void that seemed to stretch on forever.
The Northern Ice Princess moved next to an Abyssal far smaller than the battleship, one that seemed to have cranes and crates instead of guns. "Supply Princess, how goes the creation?"
"Fine as usual. The Abyss should lend us some ships soon." The 'Supply Princess' answered offhandedly, not even glancing at the massive creature beside her. Clicking noises engulfed the silence of the room as she interacted with a rectangular object emitting light. "What has brought you here? You rarely ever visit this space without a reason."
The battleship looked at the circle. "It is not every day that a So-class gets scared." She commented enigmatically, peering somewhere into the void. The clicking stopped. When the smaller Princess raised an eyebrow at her, she continued. "We have a valuable guest today. One that wishes to know how most of the Abyss are born. She does not know her origins."
"Who would be this valued guest then? I've only heard you take in other princeeeeee….." The Supply Princess' words tapered off, eyes finally spotting the only submarine in the room. She gawked, her mouth flopping open wordlessly before she slowly turned to the Northern Ice Princess. "Who... What… is she?"
"She does not know herself. That is why she requested to visit." The battleship explained, putting a hand on the smaller Abyssal's shoulder.
The Supply Princess tried to move away, but the hand kept her pinned. Her eyes quickly fled back to her screen. "I-It should begin soon." She squeaked, seemingly withdrawing into a smaller form. She flipped the device closed and stored in one of her crates.
The submarine's eyes were drawn to the black circle.
Something moved within it. Indescribable noises suddenly wailed across the entire room, overpowering all other noises and muting any attempt at speech.
She instinctively covered the sides of her head. The sounds banged against her sonar arrays even through her hands, forcing her to cut off her connection lest the data overload her CPU.
A trio of translucent black tendrils emerged from the void. They solidified as they expanded upwards, reaching the roof soon afterwards. The tendrils somehow began thickening after they reached their height limit. They merged with each other at their base while their top-most parts began curving inwards. After the base formed rough walls, a line of white dots emerged on the inner top side of the tendrils. It was roughly the appearance of a tentacle. The translucence disappeared after a moment, hiding the inside of the organic-like structure.
Her breath caught when the top of a white sphere formed above the walls. It started on each tendril before connecting mid-way with the other ones. She stared at the white sphere slowly spinning on itself, a tendril occasionally dipping a bit before returning to its original position.
Nothing seemed to change afterwards. A tendril would occasionally dip but the white sphere continued spinning. After a few minutes, the Northern Ice Princess approached her, waving her standard to catch her attention. The Abyssal put an arm around her and gently pushed her towards the stairs.
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Judging that she was far away enough, she reconnected herself to her sonar. The first thing she noticed was the eerie quiet of the room. Her steps rung mutedly over the varnished hardwood as she circled a set of leather couches circling a small wooden table. The white walls were different from the snow outside. It was paint.
As she stared at the jarring differences in style between the inside and outside of the room, she heard the footsteps of her guide.
The Northern Ice Princess put her standard in a stand next to the doorway, before moving to one of the couches. "It is inspired by human abodes. Some Abyssals prefer to hold conversation in these." When the submarine didn't find a place to sit, she motioned the couch opposite of her. "Please, take a seat."
The non-Abyssal sat on the leather couch and suddenly felt her limbs relax. She made a half-hearted attempt to stand up, but the furniture somehow only sucked her deeper into its grasp. She let out a sigh after a few seconds of a sensation that could only be described as soft embrace. Her voice devolved into a moan soon afterwards, a moment before her hand was over her mouth. She felt her cheeks suddenly heat up. Two breaths were all it took for the burning to subside.
The battleship opposite of her raised an eyebrow. "Curious. You come for my fortress, terrorizing all ships that you have come across, yet you have not made a single demand. However the moment you sit down on a couch, you leave your guard open in front of a battleship Princess in the middle of her fortress." She leaned forwards, causing the furniture to creak slightly under her weight. "No Princess would ever be so bold or so stupid. What are you, really? To waltz in and demand, not for ships or resources, but for information about yourself?"
The submarine stared back at her, visibly processing the words. "I am requesting any information available about my origins. The… visit was enlightening but I am not much closer to my objective." She paused. "Query: How do 'Princesses' behave? You are the first 'Princess' I have met."
The Abyssal's eyes widened a bit further before they suddenly sharpened. "I shall contact other Abyssals to request any information that may trace you back to your creation, but it shall come at a price. I would like to know what you would trade for such information. Additionally, I shall teach you what we are, as a token of trust."
"I… " She hesitated, her stare fixated on the top of the small table between them. "am not certain."
The battleship remained thoughtful for a moment. "Then I shall give you a simple task. It will not involve combat, if you do not wish to participate in it." The Princess stood up, her eyes briefly roaming over the submarine's hull. She moved to the entrance of the room, picking up her standard on the way. "Follow me, I shall give you the details."
The submarine did as asked, taking one last glance at the different room before a barely audible noise, a reminder of the birth process of Abyssals, hit her ears. Her thoughts shifted to the tentacles, and how they somehow created new ships. Her central processor began creating the schematics for a replica of her own that utilized the same basis for repair bots, a piece of information that emerged from her memory only with their recent uses. Perhaps she could create just as the 'Abyss' did, and create new concepts based on Abyssals for her own use.
She felt her lips quirk upwards.
Chapter 12: Recovery and Mysteries
Belfast carefully closed the door to her room and flopped down on the office chair. Her spine still hurt, but not nearly much as the past few days. Her back rested against the soft surface, bringing a sigh to her lips. The ongoing rehabilitation was slowly correcting the minor shake from the trauma of her keel being broken. However, she had yet to be cleared for sorties. Most of the base was empty today, so she had a bit of peace and quiet for herself.
She flipped open the laptop on her desk. The screen came to life, and a few seconds later, her hands were flying over the keyboard. She quickly opened the search engine and typed in the name on her mind.
It yielded nothing about recent appearances of 'grey women', massive submarines, or anything else that could be related to the Red October. There were plenty of forums, articles, and stories about the modified Typhoon-class submarine, but none were her targets.
A deeper search only brought more of the same, especially from the sites she visited. As usual, there were discussions about ships. The theories about Kanmusu and Abyssals, the deliberation of how to summon post-war ships and the eternal debates between the Iowa and the Yamato. Although recently, that had been taken over by rumors of the two dating, or Yamato dating someone, or Iowa dating someone, or…
She paused. There was something niggling at her from the back of her mind. She couldn't tell what it was, even after a quick discussion with her fairies.
A knock interrupted further investigation. She swung her chair around.
"Come in."
A pink-haired woman entered her view, quickly walking into the room before shutting the door. Perseus looked around sheepishly before her eyes settled on the cruiser.
"You can sit on my bed, it's fine," Belfast said, motioning towards the double-sized mattress.
The visitor carefully lowered herself onto the bed, eliciting only a slight creak from the wooden frame, "thanks."
"No need to. So, what brings you here?"
"Oh, um… I just wanted to visit you personally. Just to make sure you don't have any problems."
"That's nice of you, but I'm fine. My back's recovering."
She opened her mouth, but after a few seconds, nothing came out. She winced. Her eyes turned elsewhere, avoiding her stare. The room remained silent besides the near-imperceptible whir of the laptop's fan.
Belfast blinked. She rolled up next to the carrier and put a hand on her shoulder. "The admiral sent you to check, didn't he?"
Perseus finally returned her gaze towards the former museum ship. "Yes... He did. I wasn't sure if I would disturb you, but he insisted."
The cruiser remained thoughtful for a few moments before retracting her hand. "Do you have anything you need to do after?"
"No, my day's free."
"Okay. Then how about you help me do some research." She suggested, nodding towards her open computer.
The carrier glanced around. She bit her lip. "Sure."
Belfast took her laptop and set it down on her bed. She laid herself down before grabbing a pillow and tucking it under herself. When Perseus didn't follow, she scooted over and gestured to the spot next to her. The carrier followed after a few seconds of clear hesitation.
When an old film began playing, Perseus stared at the woman beside her. Belfast shrugged and motioned to keep watching.
Perseus carefully turned the page, trying her best to avoid damaging the old paper. She leaned back on the couch more, drinking in the written text. The rest of the fleet was still out on sortie, so she only had a few hours of silence to pour over the novel. The movie Belfast showed her yesterday had piqued her interest, and she now somehow found herself deep in a book, something she never expected to happen.
She heard light taps on the wooden floor but decided to ignore them. Instead, her focus remained firmly on the ink of the page. She kept her eyes on the book for three more minutes before a pair of sneakers manifested behind the pages.
She lowered her book. A pair of tired blue eyes met her gaze, the man looking far worse for wear than the last time she saw him. He was wearing a plain navy shirt and instead of his uniform.
"Sir-"
"No need to salute," George Davion said, putting up a hand. "I'm off duty."
Perseus nodded, settling back down on her couch.
The naval base commander took one opposite, sighing when he sank into the cushions. George leaned forward, taking a quick glance at the book in her hands. "You were really concentrated on your book. You didn't even hear me coming."
She slid a bookmark on the page before closing it. "I did. I just decided to ignore it."
"I didn't expect you to take such an interest in it so suddenly."
She shrugged before her eyes glinted sharply and her voice gained an edge to it. "Once you've been at the mercy of a massive nuclear submarine, your interests tend to change."
"It went that badly?"
"Well I wonder why Belfast had her keel shattered." She remarked sarcastically.
He grimaced. "Perseus… Do you need some help? I know something's weighing on your mind."
She bit her lip. After a moment of consideration, she closed her eyes and sighed. "It's not really my place to tell, but… in the incident, Belfast shot the submarine the moment it tried to dive. It shrugged off her six inchers, half of which bounced, and then it fired back. That's how she got torpedoed."
He made no motion to speak. Simply watching calmly as he waited for her to continue.
She took a breath. "I know she's taken multiple of those from Abyssals and kept on fighting, but it only took that single torpedo to basically break Belfast. Even I can tell she hasn't been doing as well recently, and the rest of the base all noticed too." The edges of her eyes felt misty. She looked down, her eyes landing on her own pink shoes. "And I've just recently found out that it was the Red October, and she had nukes. She could have simply ended the lives of millions after she was hit, but she didn't. She didn't even try to sink me when I was towing Belfast away. Even after we shot her for god's sake..."
George put a hand to his chin, rubbing it idly for a moment. "that sounds like self-defence."
"Maybe."
"I'll think about it. I'll tell you what," the admiral put a hand on her shoulder. "Don't fret too much over it. It's already happened, and no one has died from the Red October yet. We'll find a solution to her."
She bit her lip. "Yet."
A musical ringtone stopped George from replying. He cursed and quickly took the offending object out of his trouser pocket, walking away to another corner of the room. "Yes, Admiral Davion here… A pack of Abyssal subs slipped through the net?... They've been wrecking convoys for the last few days and still have ammunition?... Alright got it. I'll send ships to reinforce." As the call ended, his expression darkened.
"Sir?" Perseus asked tentatively as she stood suddenly.
His expression darkened. "Grab ASW gear and wait at the airstrip. I'll get the other ships and brief you there."
She flipped open the laptop on her desk. The screen came to life, and a few seconds later, her hands were flying over the keyboard. She quickly opened the search engine and typed in the name on her mind.
It yielded nothing about recent appearances of 'grey women', massive submarines, or anything else that could be related to the Red October. There were plenty of forums, articles, and stories about the modified Typhoon-class submarine, but none were her targets.
A deeper search only brought more of the same, especially from the sites she visited. As usual, there were discussions about ships. The theories about Kanmusu and Abyssals, the deliberation of how to summon post-war ships and the eternal debates between the Iowa and the Yamato. Although recently, that had been taken over by rumors of the two dating, or Yamato dating someone, or Iowa dating someone, or…
She paused. There was something niggling at her from the back of her mind. She couldn't tell what it was, even after a quick discussion with her fairies.
A knock interrupted further investigation. She swung her chair around.
"Come in."
A pink-haired woman entered her view, quickly walking into the room before shutting the door. Perseus looked around sheepishly before her eyes settled on the cruiser.
"You can sit on my bed, it's fine," Belfast said, motioning towards the double-sized mattress.
The visitor carefully lowered herself onto the bed, eliciting only a slight creak from the wooden frame, "thanks."
"No need to. So, what brings you here?"
"Oh, um… I just wanted to visit you personally. Just to make sure you don't have any problems."
"That's nice of you, but I'm fine. My back's recovering."
She opened her mouth, but after a few seconds, nothing came out. She winced. Her eyes turned elsewhere, avoiding her stare. The room remained silent besides the near-imperceptible whir of the laptop's fan.
Belfast blinked. She rolled up next to the carrier and put a hand on her shoulder. "The admiral sent you to check, didn't he?"
Perseus finally returned her gaze towards the former museum ship. "Yes... He did. I wasn't sure if I would disturb you, but he insisted."
The cruiser remained thoughtful for a few moments before retracting her hand. "Do you have anything you need to do after?"
"No, my day's free."
"Okay. Then how about you help me do some research." She suggested, nodding towards her open computer.
The carrier glanced around. She bit her lip. "Sure."
Belfast took her laptop and set it down on her bed. She laid herself down before grabbing a pillow and tucking it under herself. When Perseus didn't follow, she scooted over and gestured to the spot next to her. The carrier followed after a few seconds of clear hesitation.
When an old film began playing, Perseus stared at the woman beside her. Belfast shrugged and motioned to keep watching.
o
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Perseus carefully turned the page, trying her best to avoid damaging the old paper. She leaned back on the couch more, drinking in the written text. The rest of the fleet was still out on sortie, so she only had a few hours of silence to pour over the novel. The movie Belfast showed her yesterday had piqued her interest, and she now somehow found herself deep in a book, something she never expected to happen.
She heard light taps on the wooden floor but decided to ignore them. Instead, her focus remained firmly on the ink of the page. She kept her eyes on the book for three more minutes before a pair of sneakers manifested behind the pages.
She lowered her book. A pair of tired blue eyes met her gaze, the man looking far worse for wear than the last time she saw him. He was wearing a plain navy shirt and instead of his uniform.
"Sir-"
"No need to salute," George Davion said, putting up a hand. "I'm off duty."
Perseus nodded, settling back down on her couch.
The naval base commander took one opposite, sighing when he sank into the cushions. George leaned forward, taking a quick glance at the book in her hands. "You were really concentrated on your book. You didn't even hear me coming."
She slid a bookmark on the page before closing it. "I did. I just decided to ignore it."
"I didn't expect you to take such an interest in it so suddenly."
She shrugged before her eyes glinted sharply and her voice gained an edge to it. "Once you've been at the mercy of a massive nuclear submarine, your interests tend to change."
"It went that badly?"
"Well I wonder why Belfast had her keel shattered." She remarked sarcastically.
He grimaced. "Perseus… Do you need some help? I know something's weighing on your mind."
She bit her lip. After a moment of consideration, she closed her eyes and sighed. "It's not really my place to tell, but… in the incident, Belfast shot the submarine the moment it tried to dive. It shrugged off her six inchers, half of which bounced, and then it fired back. That's how she got torpedoed."
He made no motion to speak. Simply watching calmly as he waited for her to continue.
She took a breath. "I know she's taken multiple of those from Abyssals and kept on fighting, but it only took that single torpedo to basically break Belfast. Even I can tell she hasn't been doing as well recently, and the rest of the base all noticed too." The edges of her eyes felt misty. She looked down, her eyes landing on her own pink shoes. "And I've just recently found out that it was the Red October, and she had nukes. She could have simply ended the lives of millions after she was hit, but she didn't. She didn't even try to sink me when I was towing Belfast away. Even after we shot her for god's sake..."
George put a hand to his chin, rubbing it idly for a moment. "that sounds like self-defence."
"Maybe."
"I'll think about it. I'll tell you what," the admiral put a hand on her shoulder. "Don't fret too much over it. It's already happened, and no one has died from the Red October yet. We'll find a solution to her."
She bit her lip. "Yet."
A musical ringtone stopped George from replying. He cursed and quickly took the offending object out of his trouser pocket, walking away to another corner of the room. "Yes, Admiral Davion here… A pack of Abyssal subs slipped through the net?... They've been wrecking convoys for the last few days and still have ammunition?... Alright got it. I'll send ships to reinforce." As the call ended, his expression darkened.
"Sir?" Perseus asked tentatively as she stood suddenly.
His expression darkened. "Grab ASW gear and wait at the airstrip. I'll get the other ships and brief you there."