[SFW]
Midnight. When the Moon hung as far up in the sky as it possibly could, shining down on a single building that would’ve otherwise been unoccupied during this time. But tonight was a special night.
Because a certain red-headed Destroyer, part of the fleet assigned to the base Tokihana, was currently busy fiddling with things that she really shouldn’t, considering the firepower that she had at her disposal.
“I’ll teach her to look at me like that, to tell me that I’m hurting people with my recklessness…” Arashi, the Destroyer that had once been a man, muttered to herself as she put the soldering iron to the wires on her current project…
At her side stood a young man, barely keeping himself awake. He had been rushed out of bed thanks to the girl’s project, and because of his natural loyalty to her, he couldn’t say no. Even at the detriment of his own health.
“B-Boss, are you sure this is alright? I mean, what Shiranui said wasn’t wrong, I really would be hurt if you ended up getting hurt…” The youth, Ogasawara Kou, nervously spoke up as he struggled to keep all of the various gadgets in his arms. How come she needed this much anyway, wasn’t her guns enough?
Arashi shook her head as she grabbed another package of something suspicious on the top of the pile. “You really want her to be right?” She asked, keeping the piping-hot iron’s handle in between her teeth while she adjusted a few parts and the distribution of explosives. “Besides, she’s the one who’s into those lame robots that don’t grow all huge. Not like your Great Cygnus.” She grinned, trying to lighten the mood.
“T-That’s not the point, Boss! A-And please be careful with that, you might be more than human, but you can still get really hurt!” Kou said, doing his best to stay still so the pile of precarious materials didn’t topple over and cause trouble.
His ‘Boss’ waved him off like it wouldn’t be a problem, only for her to grab the wrong end of the iron and let out a screech of pain, dropping the entire thing on the floor as she staggered back. “D-Damnit!” She cried out, sticking the burning fingers into her mouth as she shut the entire thing off, steam fuming out of her ears as she slowly cooled them down with her reinforced mouth…
“Boss, I warned you…” The young man said as he slowly put the various tools, from wires to inert explosives and other rather violent objects like those, on the table. Before stacking them in a way that wouldn’t cause a greater accident. “I can go get some first aid, Boss-”
Arashi grabbed him by the wrist, fingers still in her mouth. “Focus, Kou. If we don’t, we won’t get anywhere.” She muttered, trying to look as serious as she could. Despite the absurdity of her current expression combined with her actions. “Besides, look.” She said, pulling the fingers out to reveal that the burn spot had healed completely, nary a scratch nor a sore remaining. “Just had to soften it all up, then it went away naturally.”
“T-That may be true, but Boss, this is why she said that…” Kou muttered, as he put his hand on hers. Cupping it, almost clenching down on it out of sheer worry. “You might be strong, Boss, and you might be really durable… But you’re still important to me, Boss! You can’t just go out and get yourself hurt like this over and over and over!”
His red-headed idol and superior blinked a couple of times, as a blush slowly covered her cheeks. She always did want him to show how much he cared for her, but why now of all times? “Kou, I’ll be fine. I’ve always been fine, remember? As long as you believe in me, I’ll come out on top. No matter what.”
“If you say so, Boss…” The youth said, blushing a little himself. He knew that things weren’t very different from normal, despite the fact that his Boss was now a much younger girl. She was a capable one. She could do anything, as long as she put her heart to it. Admittedly, that was part of why he admired her, especially back then.
But now that she was a girl, things were different. She wasn’t just one of the boys. And the way that she talked with the others made that all-too-clear. Especially when it concerned this youth, because that admiration was evolving into something much more, with every day that passed.
“Right. No need to worry about me. How’s the web looking?” Arashi asked, shaking her hand back and forth to make sure that it hadn’t gotten more hurt than she originally thought. She was durable, and a lot of common damage did heal quickly, but she’d rather avoid her body working poorly.
Kou walked over to a set of machines that were usually used to attach the rigging to the girls stationed at Tokihana, though at the moment they had been jerry rigged to do another task entirely. Namely, extend the wires that kept everything attached into a cape-like form, with very few pockets allowing air to get through. “Seems like it’s done, though I don’t understand what you’re going to accomplish by wearing this out at sea…”
“Didn’t I tell you to trust me, Kou?” The redhead said, grinning as she patted the webbing-like wires, wincing for a second. “...On second though, make sure it’s stretched out as far as possible. I don’t want stray bits of wire poking me in the back while I’m out at sea.”
Her subordinate nodded, quickly adjusting the machinery the best he could. A lot of trial and error, considering he only knew so much compared to his Boss, but he did what he could. Just to make sure she didn’t have to mess around with it as much.
“What about THAT, Kou? Is it ready, or do we still need to wait?” Arashi said as she headed towards the back of the building, towards the place where they put together new forms and molds for weapons that she and the others needed, should they be unable to receive new ones from the other bases.
Kou wiped his head a bit as he ran after her, tapping a few buttons on the nearby console that controlled the heating elements. “You really want to use this, Boss? Isn’t it going to be cumbersome?” He asked as the form broke apart, revealing the item within…
A wrench. Not just any wrench. A big wrench. Given the quality of steel going into its creation, it was made from spare tools that they had lying around. And the result? A single tool that was almost half the size of her body.
“Of course!” Arashi grinned as she picked it out of its form, wincing a little as it was still hot to the touch. “I can’t get a good lock on the Abyssals with my weapons, so why not skip the aiming and go straight for the good hits? Besides, that masked one didn’t like it when I smashed its face in. Might as well try and see if the others like it just as little as it.” She explained, spinning the wrench by the hole at the end of the ‘handle’.
Kou could feel the sweat running down his face. “Y-You’re really going to get hurt if you try to smash an Abyssal in melee combat, Boss.” He muttered. Oh, she was going to ignore his warnings and just go straight for it, wasn’t she…
“Nah! You should’ve seen me back during highschool, when Ren was still about to graduate.” The redheaded girl said, swinging the thing without breaking a sweat. “The seniors tried to pick on this one nerd who didn’t want to get involved with them, and I grabbed one of her spare wrenches and went to town on them. They couldn’t do a thing against me, ‘cuz it all just grazed by me!”
She punctuated her words by swinging it again, smashing the form into pieces and quickly causing her heart to sink in the process. “...And then I landed in detention for most of that semester.” She muttered, sweat running down her face. Ah. Good contrasted by the bad. A feeling she was way too intimate with.
“Just make sure you don’t break somebody near you then, Boss.” Kou said, trying to smile as he came closer. “That’s what you’d say, right? Do your best to do what you want while watching out for others, right?”
Arashi nodded as she put the wrench down, letting it hang by her belt. “You remember what I say better than I do, Kou. Keep that up.” The redhead chuckled a little as she went back towards the pile of explosives and such. “Now, back to these…”
“...Boss, I have an idea.” The youth said as he followed behind her, grabbing some of the explosives and the electronics packed underneath them. “You want to use these to place traps, right?”
She nodded, tapping the outline of a button that she hadn’t soldered on yet. “One click, and they register anything in the nearby proximity. Considering those damned Abyssals come from below, I thought that would catch them off guard.”
“What if you made them time based instead?” Kou said, grabbing a couple of parts as he aligned them on the explosive. “You just need to gauge a time you’d need, and then click the button. Then it’ll blow when they least expect it, and you can keep the advantage while making it harder for them to dodge it.”
Arashi rubbed her chin a little. “And how’re they going to not just avoid it regardless?” She replied, grabbing her existing prototype. “Wouldn’t the proxi…” She paused, as her eyes slowly widened. “...Kou. You make timed explosives, I make proximity explosives. I’ll swap between them, so they’re never going to know which ones they have to avoid and which ones they can swim right by if they’re fast enough.” With that idea in mind, she started grinning. “This is why I have you as my pupil, Kou. You know what I’m thinking.”
“I just follow your lead, Boss. You’re the one who does all the work.” The youth replied with a smile, as he grabbed the necessary parts from the pile. “Should I tell the Admiral about what we’re doing here, considering how many explosives it’ll take?”
The redhead shook her head, as she grabbed the soldering iron again. “I’ll talk with her, when it’s time. You don’t need to worry about it, just make sure we’ve got enough to handle the next time we’ll be attacked.”
“Are you sure? She’s understanding, but are you sure she’s going to allow you to use all of that like they’re bullets?” Kou replied, while carefully making sure that his Boss wouldn’t burn herself again. Better not repeat what happened at the start of their talk.
His Boss looked at him and started grinning. “You might be right, buuut… I happen to know somebody that knows somebody, that might just figure out how I can make these permanent.” She said, winking as she put the iron down to the machinery, attaching wire to board and so on.
Kou raised his eyebrow slightly, before nodding. He knew better than to question her when she had a plan in mind. The last time he tried, she proved that she knew what she was doing, even if only on some instinctive level. Sure, it resulted in their current predicament, but it gave some precedence.
“Quit staring, Kou.” Arashi said as she lightly elbowed him, grinning. “We can worry about what we need to do to make sure that Toki’s alright with us using all of it. Right now, we just need to make sure that they work.” She said, her mood as high up as it could possibly be.
The two mechanics, the Boss and her disciple, got to work. Letting the sparks fly throughout the entire night…
---
“Admiral, if I may…”
The afternoon sun slowly shone its way in through the window, the birds letting out their usual sounds as they perched on the roof outside. Lending background noise to the scene unfolding within the Admiral’s office.
“You may not, Oyashio.” The young-looking yet not-quite-spry Admiral, Tokinaga Rie, said as she slowly swiveled her chair around to face the girl standing on the other side of the desk. “You may be studying under me, but you are also stationed at this base. That means you have to follow certain regulations and follow orders when necessary. Even if they go against what you wish for.”
The girl standing on the other side of the desk, the Destroyer Oyashio, adjusted her decorative glasses as she remained in her composed posture. “Even if it means working alongside a reckless individual, who has previously shown that she might not be able to perform to the same standards that everyone else can?”
“Neither can you, if you’re using that tone.” Tokinaga replied, adjusting her hat ever slightly. Before briefly coughing into her elbow, her poor health acting up. “Listen. Both of you will learn from this exercise. Even if you’re not at the top of your form at the moment. That’s why I enlisted the two of you.”
Oyashio respectfully bowed her head. “T-That may be true, on both accounts. But I’ve been trying my best to learn how to aim my weapons properly. All she did was get into a feud with Shiranui, and now those two aren’t on speaking terms! I don’t know what erupted between them, but surely she can’t focus on the task at hand if she’s busy with that sort of anger!” She let her emotions get in the way of her judgment. Something that she usually didn’t, when she was still a man.
“...Have you been getting enough sleep, Oyashio?” The Admiral said as she leaned over her desk. “... You’ve been running yourself ragged to try and catch up to her performance. That explains how you’re acting…”
The black-haired Destroyer flinched as her Admiral saw right through her. “N-No! I haven’t been doing that, I’ve been training diligently! Ooi’s been a great help, teaching me where I’ve gone wrong and where I could improve, even if she uses such harsh language and blames me for this form, when it was really Tanaka’s fault in the first place…”
“Oyashio.” Tokinaga spoke again, as she got up from her chair and slowly walked around her desk. Letting every step take an agonizingly long time, just to prove a point. “I’ve known Ooi since before she joined this fleet. She’s always been tough. That doesn’t mean you should let yourself be caught up in how she thinks a person should be.”
The bespectacled girl bit her lip as she kept her head bowed. “But she’s my senior. She’s been at this for much longer than I have. Doesn’t that mean she has a better grasp on what needs to be done to be a successful shipgirl? Logic would dictate as such, after all.”
“Logic’s one thing. People are another.” The white-haired girl serving as her Admiral said, putting her sleeve-covered hand on top of her subordinate’s head. “You’re not her, Akira. No matter how hard she drills her instinct into you.”
Ishikawa Akira. Oyashio’s previous identity. One that she thought they agreed on burying, at least for the time being. She was supposed to get more comfortable as a shipgirl, after all. Letting herself be attached to old memories would just cause trouble.
“Admiral Tokinaga…” The black-haired Destroyer said, slowly blushing as she felt that hand rubbing up against the back of her head. It was comforting. So much so that she could barely feel her legs… though that was probably from her lack of sleep, as she collapsed onto her knees.
Tokinaga sighed as she wrapped her arms around the kneeling girl, patting her on the back. “Seriously, you’re just going to make me worry more if you don’t take care of yourself, Akira.” She whispered into his ear, before pulling away. “Under no circumstances are you to stay up past 1900 hours, Oyashio. This is for your own mental well-being, more so than anything else.”
“Y-yes, Admiral…” Oyashio replied and saluted, slowly but surely getting back on her feet. “T-That being said…” She muttered, pushing her glasses up once more. Her nervous tic cropping up even despite this improved body of hers. “What about the mission? Are you sure that she’ll follow the same sort of orders, when you know how she acts when we don’t have a defined objective?”
The Admiral smiled slightly as she went back behind the desk, letting the answer drag along as she took her seat once more. “I have no idea.” She chimed, closing her eyes slightly. “I don’t claim to be psychic. I don’t know when either of you plan on doing something that might cause trouble for everyone around you. All I know is that you’ll do what you think is right. And I just have to steer you away from problems.”
“How insightful of you, Admiral…” The black-haired girl said, standing up as straight as she could, before noticing a book out of the corner of her eye, resting on the very edge of the Admiral’s desk. “...What is that?”
Tokinaga narrowed her eyes as she grabbed it and shoved it under the desk. “Trade secrets.” She said, winking as she maintained a positive outlook. Despite nearly revealing the secret to her ability to perceive any problem that her subordinates had.
“...Very well…” Oyashio muttered, as she slowly pushed her glasses up once more, covering her eyes thanks to the glare from the light outside…
Just as the two came to an agreement, they heard a lot of shuffling right outside the door, only for it to open and a certain redhead to make her not-so-grand entrance as she slammed it shut at the same time, sweat running down her face. All while a violent voice echoed from behind the door.
“You are not going out to sea like this, Arashi! Especially not with all the preparations you’ve made! What are you even thinking!?” The voice was easy to make out. It belonged to Shiranui, the redhead’s former partner when she was still a man. The way she vocalized her anger, however? That was a bit new, considering she preferred to keep things more sedated.
Oyashio felt the sweat running down the side of her head as she pushed her glasses up. “What did you do, Tanaka..?” She muttered, looking towards her commanding officer as she otherwise kept quiet.
The Admiral adjusted her cap as she stared towards the redhead. “Arashi. Glad of you to join us.” She said with the dryest sarcasm that she could manage. “What did you do to earn her ire, and what is she talking about?” She asked, while keeping her voice at a similar sarcastic and dry intonation…
“A-Aha, nothing special, Toki.” Arashi chimed, trembling as the door violently shook thanks to the heavy fist knocking against it. “Just a few adjustments to my equipment, so I won’t have trouble against the Abyssals! Nothing more than that!”
The door shook again, as Shiranui’s voice echoed out from behind it. “She crafted hand-made explosives to try and give herself an edge over them, when she knows the risks associated with using them! Admiral, I implore you, talk some sense into her!”
“...Explosives, Tanaka?” Oyashio pushed her glasses up slightly more, the light outside reflecting on the lenses of her accessory. “Are you clinically insane, or is this a byproduct of this transformation of ours?” She asked. She really couldn’t hold herself back from the semi-snarky comments.
Arashi shot a glance at the black-haired Destroyer, rolling her eyes slightly. “Look, it’ll work. You can keep me covered, and I can herd them into a spot where you can land all the shots you want. It’ll work, trust me. I’ve even tested it!” She chimed, still putting her back into the door so it wouldn’t break open from the force.
“That would explain why I couldn’t sleep last night.” Tokinaga dryly remarked, before clearing her throat. “Your request has been approved, Arashi. Oyashio will monitor the usage of your tools, and report back to me with the results. Should you end up damaging yourself with them more than the enemy, I will be forced to take action.”
A smile crossed the redhead’s lips, and the knocks on the door came to an end. With the Admiral’s approval, Shiranui had no grounds to stand on. Therefore, she took her leave. Silently placing her hopes that it would go wrong, just so that her former partner understood what she would be getting herself into.
“...Tanaka. You better understand that by doing this, you put several people at risk. Including our target.” Oyashio said, not entirely on board with this.
Arashi dismissed the thought with a wave, stretching slightly. “So, what’s the mission anyway? Surely it’s not actually going out to fight the Abyssals intentionally, that’d suck more than you could ever believe.” The girl asked, her hand twitching slightly. All while a bit of electricity coursed through it and between her fingertips… It’d go away soon, but it was a result of her thorough experimentation during the last few nights.
“We’re about to receive a transfer, courtesy of Fleet Admiral Otomo. Another troublemaker, Zuihou, will be joining us. You two are to escort her here, and make sure that she doesn’t receive any damages as she will be carrying additional supplies to make up for the service we’re performing. Are there any other questions, or do you both understand?”
Tokinaga finished her explanation, and Oyashio immediately threw her hand up in a salute. “Crystal clear instructions, ma’am!” She cried out, eyes shining through the lenses. A simple escort task wouldn’t cause any trouble. At least, that’s what she thought. What could the Abyssals possibly want with a single girl, anyway?
“Didn’t the last girl that ended up here get shuffled off to another base after a week? That… Ake-something girl?” Arashi said, scratching her chin slightly. “Is the Fleet Admiral just sending us troublemakers expecting us to handle all the busywork, or what?”
The Admiral shook her head. “If I knew, I’d tell you, Arashi. For now, we do what we’ve been ordered to. Nothing more, nothing less.” She said, as she pulled a couple of pictures out from underneath her desk, all of them depicting a ponytailed brunette wearing what could almost be compared to a shrine maiden’s garb. “This is what she looks like. And despite what appearances may imply, she’s bound to make an impression on the two of you, given the intel that I received regarding this transfer.”
“Eh? She’s more than just a pretty face?” The redhead said, grabbing one of the pictures as she looked very closely at it. “I don’t see it. She just looks like another girl to me.” She remarked, handing the picture off to her black-haired ‘partner’.
Oyashio adjusted her glasses slightly as she examined her features, narrowing her eyes slightly. “...The stance on this picture is slightly more feminine than the regular pictures taken for cataloguing purposes. If we were to compare it with Arashi’s, taken slightly after the transformation into a shipgirl finished, then the difference would be staggering.” She explained, before handing the picture back to the Admiral. “Compensating for something, perhaps?”
“Try ‘enjoying every moment of her new life.’” Tokinaga explained, clearing her throat a little. “I’m paraphrasing from her information. Those are her words, not mine.” She concluded, before putting all the pictures back into the drawer under the desk. “That being said, you both move out in two hours. Make your preparations, and head out to meet her. Before anything can go wrong.”
Both of them saluted their Admiral, with varying degrees of enthusiasm, as they let out a resounding cry.
“Ma’am yes ma’am!”
---
Traversing out at sea was… a lot harder than Oyashio originally imagined. Maybe it was because she had only been out that one time, and most of her training was focused on her ballistics, but…
“What’s the matter, four-eyes?” Arashi asked, skating along on the surface of the sea, despite the heavy cape attached to her shoulders. And the many explosives she had attached to her belt, alongside the almost phallic-like wrench hanging in the front.
The black-haired girl took a deep breath as she remained steady, gliding across the surface. “Please maintain a steady speed, Arashi. I will follow your lead, as long as you set the pace.” She said, trying to keep herself as professional as possible. Even when working with somebody that had landed her in this terrible situation in the first place.
“If I set the pace, we’d be at the rendezvous point before you even left the docks.” The redhead shot back, propelling herself forward while facing backwards. A sign that even if she didn’t have the best control over her weapons, she had mastered the art of movement. It helped that a lot of what she was wearing was giving her the same sort of weight as back when she was a man.
Oyashio shook her head. “Please don’t underestimate me or patronize me, Arashi. I’m a shipgirl, just like you. I can do whatever I set my mind to, should the opportunity arise.” She said, pushing her glasses up slightly to hide away her eyes. “As reckless and as incomprehensible as your preparations were, and I know most think of it as such due to the look on Ogasawara’s face as you geared up, you did them because you thought they would aid you. Please believe that I can do the same, with my own approach.”
“...Are you jealous?” Arashi asked, seeing through all of that formal speech as she tilted her head. “Do you want a couple modifications too? I think I could probably tune up your weapons, if I had the right tools.”
The black-haired girl blushed as her glasses grew crooked. “N-No! I’m not jealous of your abilities, Tanaka! I’m merely stating the facts and asking you to have some sort of faith in me too, because otherwise we’d be incompatible! You didn’t do this psychoanalysis when we were defending Tokihana, so why are you doing it now!?” She shouted, part of her formal mask cracking in the process.
“Ehhhh? Really?” The redhead shot back, stretching slightly as she turned on a dime and started sliding more peacefully along the sea, side by side with her partner. “I didn’t say anything about not having faith in you, Oyashio. Just that I thought you wanted your own things, because you were so focused on mine.” She explained, before elbowing the bespectacled girl in the side. “I’ve got 140% faith in you. 100 from me, and another 40 from Kou back at base. He trusts you a lot too, because of what you did back then.”
Oyashio could feel the sweat running down her face. “That’s not giving me any sort of confidence, Tanaka.” She muttered. How was she supposed to be cheered up by the fact that the pupil only had so much confidence in… well, actually, considering the way that she had been treating people before her transformation, it made sense. He wasn’t very exposed to her, so 40% did seem about right. Still didn’t sit right with her, but she understood why.
“Well I’m trying, can you blame me?” Arashi laughed as she patted the other girl on the back, stretching a little as they continued to dart across the sea. “How far until the rendezvous point anyway? Surely we should’ve seen her already, she kinda stood out amongst the rest of the people in those pictures.”
The black-haired girl shook her head. “By my calculations, helped by our Admiral and Ooi’s prior travels between Tokihana and the Fleet Admiral’s own base, we should be there within the next hour. Especially at this snail’s pace.” She explained, biting her lip.
“...Wanna try going faster, Oyashio?” The redhead asked, reaching her hand out to grab her fellow Destroyer’s. “Two should do better at the speed thing than one, right?”
Oyashio narrowed her eyes slightly. But she took that hand, without offering much resistance. “Just don’t rip my legs off, Tanaka.” She said, placing as much trust in her as she could muster.
“Can’t promise anything, Akira.” Arashi replied with a grin, while returning the respect that she showed by using her old name. Even after they had been transformed into these new forms, they hadn’t changed much from the men that they once were. And it was that unorthodox bond that kept them together, even now.
With one hand firmly grasping the black-haired girl’s, the redhead started to speed up. Slowly, so the former could adjust to the change in propulsion. To make sure she also understood how she should adjust herself while they steered themselves along the surface of the water, she started spinning around in circles, to ensure that she could steer right and left and brake in case of emergencies.
“Please don’t play around too much, Arashi.” Oyashio said, returning to her professional and formal way of adressing her partner as the two made donuts on the ocean. All while she didn’t offer much in terms of resistance as they slid across the water’s surface. Adding drag to what they were doing would just make things worse.
Arashi laughed a little as she straightened her course out, giving a thumbs up. “It’s not playing if it’s teaching you things, Oyashio!” She grinned as she sped up once again, keeping that hand tightly gripped onto her companion’s. “We’ll find that Zuihou girl before long. Just you wait and see!”
Their speeds kept on ramping up. The benefit of being armed with enough weaponry to take out several genuine warships, all carried on a single girl’s body, meant that they were able to reach speeds that normal naval vessels weren’t. And that effect was all the more pronounced as the wind tried to smash into them the faster they went.
“Are you sure we can handle speeds this fast, Arashi!?” Oyashio was starting to feel a little seasick. Or was the wind making her dizzy? Or was her legs unable to handle the pressure of continued dashing like this? Or was it her lack of sleep? She couldn’t tell, maybe it was a little bit of everything weighing down on her and making it harder to pick out one definitive issue compared to the rest.
Her companion was listening, despite the pressure making it harder to concentrate and the wind blowing away the girl’s words. She leaned down so that the two were dragging less against the wind, before giving her another thumbs up. Slowly but surely, they started to relax their pace. Coming to a dead stop in a matter of a few minutes, the two taking the breaths that they both needed.
“W-Why’d you… I said to slow down, if anything. Not stop outright.” The black-haired girl said as she adjusted her gl-
...Her glasses weren’t on her face. They had fallen off during their increased traversal. H-How was she… W-well she didn’t need them, but they were a gift. How would she return without them..?
Just as she thought she had lost them, a set of hands reached out and held them towards her face. “Excuse me, you dropped these.” A soft and gentle voice said, the soothing sensation rushing through the panicked black-haired girl’s head as she slowly took them from the kind soul that had managed to grab them.
“T-Thank you. Thank you so m-” Oyashio said as she put them back on, only to flinch as she noticed who had been the one to return them. “W-Wait, hold on, you were supposed to be here! Not behind us! ARASHI, WHAT DID YOU DO!?” She shouted, immediately pointing fingers at the new arrival.
Arashi laughed a little, stretching and holding her hands behind her head as she looked at the newcomer. “Zuihou, right? Didn’t notice you were tailing us, that’s really impressive.” The easily impressed redhead said, reaching out with one hand as she went to shake hers. “Arashi. Four-eyes over here is Oyashio.”
The girl that had managed to not only keep up with them, but also manage to return the black-haired girl’s glasses, was indeed the girl that they had been sent to escort. Dressed in an outfit that could easily be compared to a shrine maiden’s preferred dress, while also having her brown hair tied into a surprisingly neat ponytail complete with a heart pin keeping it all held together. “It’s a pleasure to meet you both, though I’m surprised to see you. Last I heard from my Admiral, Tokihana had three shipgirls station at their docks. Ooi, Kitakami and Shiranui. I thought the Arashi and Oyashio rigs hadn’t been paired with anybody.” She chimed, sounding surprisingly perceptive despite the cute touches to her attire.
“W-Well informed too. N-No wonder our Admiral mentioned that…” Oyashio muttered as she pushed her glasses up, clearing her throat. “We weren’t planned to be the ones that became paired with these rigs, but certain circumstances meant that we were forced to. We’re still trying to adjust as a result, but we hope to do our best to escort you back to our docks.”
Arashi nodded as she put her hand on the new girl’s shoulder, grinning from ear to ear. “Trust me, Zuihou. We’ll prevent a single hair from falling from your cute head. You can count on that.” She said, the warmth radiating off her face.
“W-Wow..!” The newcomer blushed a little as the redhead put her hand on her shoulder, turning her face away. “S-So forward, just like my novels…” She muttered, giggling a little. This transfer was turning out to be an excellent change of pace, and she had only just met the girls she’d be working alongside from this point forward…
Oyashio sighed. Great. She was one of those types. Not only that, but she was already gravitating towards the redhead’s natural charm. “Please refrain from causing problems, Arashi. We’ve already got a long trek back to Tokihana. And no, we’re not going to go at an increased pace-”
She flinched as she stopped monologuing, the redhead blinking a couple of times as she noticed the change in behavior. “Oi. Oyashio. What’s up?” She asked, as she let go of the newcomer and turned towards the direction that the bespectacled girl was facing.
Only to see what had caused her to grow so silent. Quite understandably so, something that brought a grin to Arashi’s face. “Well well! Looks like I’ll get to try out a couple of these things anyway! Didn’t think I’d get the chance, with how fast we got here!”
Sailing towards them in the distance were several smaller objects, all kept herded into a single formal formation thanks to a certain massive-armed Abyssal keeping an ‘eye’ on their positions.
It was instantly recognizable. The intelligent partner of the masked Abyssal that had struck at Tokihana twice now. And this time, it seemed like it was without its muscled partner, preferring to stick with common troops. As if it was planning on taking down Zuihou all by its own.
“Wow, Abyssals! What are we going to do now, Arashi? Oyashio?” The newcomer asked, looking expectantly at the two girls with bright stars in her eyes.
Arashi cracked her knuckles as she let her hand brush against her wire-like cape. “Oyashio. You keep them peppered from afar, and make sure that the big one stays away. I’ll lure the small-fry into a trap and make sure they don’t pose a threat!” She cried out, only to immediately dash away from the two with reckless abandon. Just like her pink-haired partner had warned her not to after everything that happened that night.
“D-Damnit, Arashi! Giving me orders like these and expecting me to follow them without a moment to breathe..!” Oyashio shouted as she primed her various weapons, all of them pointing in the same direction as she let the bullets fly forth, letting them weave their way around the girl trying to head straight for the enemy.
The Abyssals that had crowded far away were mostly made up of subs, as they had been planning to assassinate the Carrier before she made it to the docks of their usual enemy. But now that their previous enemies had made a sudden appearance, they were forced to change tactics.
“Chi.” The Tsu-class Cruiser that commanded their forces spoke across their communications, a ripple traversing across the water’s surface carrying its words down to the bottom of the ocean. “I am requesting backup. Make haste, the one that broke your mask is here.”
With that, its objective changed. Now that it didn’t have the means to properly assassinate its target, it needed to stall for time. If only to let the heavy lifting arrive so that it could take out their little enemy.
“All units. Focus on the red one. Let loose and sink it to the bottoms of the depths!” The commander of the makeshift Abyssal fleet cried out, and the subs started charging, each of them firing torpedos that were aligned in such a way that they propelled themselves out of the water in an attempt to nail the shipgirl skating along the surface.
The redheaded Destroyer grinned as she immediately turned around to try and let herself get chased. All while her cape slowly but surely extended into the water, adding drag to her speed to allow herself to slow down. All part of her strategy.
Meanwhile, Oyashio was peppering the air with bullets. Spraying and praying, just to provide a bullet curtain that would benefit her ally. But her eyes were completely focused on the thing in the back of the force, her teeth gritting slightly.
“How come that one has been plaguing us for so long?” She muttered, clenching her fists as she took off slightly. She needed to get closer. “Zuihou. Stay here, and make sure you don’t get involved!” She shouted at the newcomer, hoping she would follow orders unlike her fellow Destroyer.
Zuihou was a good girl, so she stayed put. Watching with awe-struck eyes as the two girls did everything that they could to protect her, just like a pair of princes..!
Tsu-class adjusted its position slightly as the bullets started heading towards it with a greater intensity, causing it to crack its neck and hold its arms forward, blocking most of the shots. “There’s been improvements since our last meeting, black one.” It said, as panels and holes started to shift on its arms.
Revealing a set of cannons, each of them aimed squarely at the nuisance trying to keep it from its troops. “Firing.” The single word left its lips before the cannons started to fire off in volleys, bigger and more powerful bullets returning the suppressive fire harder than Oyashio could ever hope to.
“D-damnit!” The black-haired girl cried out as she immediately engaged evasive maneuvers, barely able to dodge the bullets whizzing past her head. At least most of the subs were focused on her companion. “ARASHI! IT CAN THINK! DON’T GET HIT BY ITS BULLETS!”
Arashi heard her loud and clear, but she had sprung her trap. The subs didn’t realize it, but she had dropped a bomb just a few meters back, and when they thought that they could catch her off guard as she slowed down..!
*BANG*
The ocean rippled from the force of the makeshift explosive, causing the near-animalistic submarines to dash forward. Right into the net that the redhead had dropped, which was now keeping them stuck thanks to the adhesive that was used to keep a rig attached to a single shipgirl, leaving them open to whatever else the redhead had planned.
“Let’s give you guys something nice and special!” She shouted as she popped a couple of timed explosives off her belt, letting them drift into the water below as the submarines tried to wriggle free. All while she had time to dash away and focus on the leader, grabbing the wrench off her belt as another set of explosions echoed behind her.
Tsu winced as it felt the pain of its comrades getting hurt by the explosives, but there were still signals pinging their way into its brain. “Retreat. I will cover your escape.” It said, and the submarines that still functioned quickly grabbed ahold of their comrades before diving further into the sea, all while the thick-armed Abyssal focused on the one fast approaching from the front. The same that had been bested by Chi the last time they met…
“Where’s that big friend of yours, big arms!?” Arashi cried out as she slammed her wrench straight into those arms, no matter how close she got to those cannons. She grinned, loving the feedback of smashing that big piece of steel straight into the enemy’s defenses and seeing it dent the metallic parts of their bodies.
The Abyssal didn’t react to her taunts, merely adjusting its position slightly as it tried to take aim at her face. There was no obstacles in the way. Should this shot fire, there’d be no escape either. And so it started charging-
*BANG*
Tsu lost its footing as another explosive detonated, one deep underneath the water. It seemed as if the Destroyer had managed to let another one fall off the belt and explode at just the right time to disrupt its aim..!
“Well, look at that! When you can’t predict the battlefield, you start losing your control!” Arashi grinned as she pulled back, resting the wrench on top of her shoulder while grabbing a couple more explosives. “How about we up the ante then?” Her grin widened as she clicked the timer, tossing over the Abyssal to make it harder to run away.
Oyashio was frankly stunned at what she was seeing. Not only had the mad idiot dashed in close combat to the point where she was actively swinging a big blunt object into those massive arms… She was doing a good job at it. “Tanaka, you magnificent bastard…” She muttered, pushing her glasses up ever slightly.
“Aahhh! Arashiiii!” Zuihou gasped and squirmed. It was such a beautiful display! It was so amazing! She wished she could do things with that much gusto and flair, both with the big swinging wrench and with all the bombs!
Tsu adjusted its stance as it realized that there were still plenty of bombs on the enemy’s waist. Thus, it took aim down there, letting the shots loose before the bombs would blow up in its face.
Not that any of the shots made their mark, as the thick steel stood in the way of the bullets. “Not gonna happen, creep!” Arashi shouted as she slammed her wrench straight into one of the cannons, caving in the arm in the process. She was feeling the same adrenaline rush from before, when she was saving Shiranui. But this time, she was doing it her way..!
The bombs underneath the water were going off at a rapid pace. Some of them due to their times, some of them because the Abyssal was forced into their radius, serving to force it off balance further and further. It was looking like the redhead had the entire fight in the bag. Nothing could stop her from delivering a final blow.
Nothing except for the abyssal eye poking its way out of the surface of the water, one that had been hurrying towards these coordinates faster than it normally could. Evolving mid-trek, just so it could save its partner.
“TSU!” The Chi-class Torpedo Cruiser cried out, its violent cyan eye glowing as it surfaced from underneath the waves, both its arm cannon and the cannon on its lower half starting to glow and brim with power. It was going to stop this thing that was trying to hurt its commander..!
*BANG*
Just as it seemed that it had perfectly timed everything, Arashi grinned. And revealed a trigger, having been hidden in her pocket. She knew that the big one would come running if its commander was in danger, just like back during that fight…
And she had made one specific explosive, just for this occasion. A remote-detonated one, that would ensure she had just enough space to breathe. Leaving the Chi-Class Abyssal stunned and unable to fire off a shot, while the Tsu-Class remained just as open.
“..Chi! Retreat! NOW!” The usually composed Tsu cried out as it started sinking into the sea below. There was no reason to keep up the fight. It couldn’t land another blow against this redhead, not at its current level.
But Arashi wasn’t about to let the masked thing leave without another good blow. Not after the last time they met! The redhead spun around, letting the wrench spin around in her hands as she drew back her hands, accelerating to full speed…
Letting her slam the steel straight into that mask, shattering it completely and tossing Chi-Class across the surface of the water, until it landed right by Zuihou’s feet, seemingly left unconscious by the blow.
A blow that had completely removed the mask, leaving its feminine, vulnerable and underdeveloped face exposed to the word. With that unclosing eye trembling as it started sinking back into the ocean…
“...C-Cute…” The brunette muttered, blushing at the face of an enemy being shown to her in such a violent fashion… “A-Ah… I can’t believe it, I got protected in such an amazing way…” She muttered, giggling.
Oyashio narrowed her eyes. “I wouldn’t call wasting explosives and getting so close to the enemy amazing. Especially not when that thing nearly showed up…” She muttered, rubbing her arm and grabbing it tightly. She was upset, just like usual.
“Do you have to complain, Oyashio?” Arashi said as she sped over, her wrench attached to her belt once more. She didn’t even care that Chi was currently sinking into the depths below, despite the fact she had more than enough bombs to deal with her should she try to drop a few down there. She had gotten what she wanted out of this engagement.
The black-haired girl crossed her arms, huffing. “It’s a waste of good equipment.” She said, before closing her eyes and adjusting her glasses slightly, putting on the best smile she could muster at the moment. “But, you managed to deal with them all. Well done, Tanaka.”
“Only because you got me covered with the bullet curtain, Akira.” The redhead chimed, stretching a little as she looked to the newcomer. “So, hopeless romantic. I don’t think we’re gonna make it back home in time, do you mind if we stop by a nearby island and set up camp?”
Zuihou shook her head. “Of course not! I’d be happy to keep you both company, for as long as it takes to get to Tokihana! I’m sure they’re happy to wait for us as well, since they sent their newest and greatest shipgirls out to fetch me!” She chimed and giggled, her heart pounding against her chest…
That comment made both of the recent convertees blush at the same time. They never received such praise, prompting both to turn away from her and huddle close together, letting the thought drift between them.
“Newest and greatest, huh? I like the sound of that, don’t you?” Arashi grinned a little. If Kou heard that, she was sure he’d climb atop her and tell her how much he loved his Boss. Ah, it was like a fantasy come true…
Oyashio muttered a couple of words to herself, quietly pushing her glasses up again. “I suppose we’re a combo with greater compatibility than I originally assumed…” She muttered. The idea that she was better than she thought she was… It was comforting, if she had to be honest.
With one little laugh from the newcomer, the three slowly departed for the nearest shore, the praise still lingering on their minds...
---
The moon hung overhead as the three shipgirls sat up their camp. It wasn’t easy, since the only supplies they had for the camp were the ones that Zuihou had on her, but they managed to make it work. Even if Arashi had to keep hammering in the stakes because she kept improperly setting up the tent.
“What kind of big, strong and amazing lady can’t set up a tent?” The newcomer giggled as she sat by their little campfire, having watched all of it unfold with her own two eyes. Not only was the redhead amazing, she was surprisingly inept! It made her so humanizing, so amazing…
The redhead in question scoffed a little as she crossed her arms. “Ren’s the one who set up our tents when we were out camping as kids, it’s been so long since I’ve done it myself.” She excused herself, blushing beyond belief. She didn’t need this teasing right now, not when she had managed to drive off Abyssals nearly by herself.
“You say that, but I’m pretty sure you’re the one who set up the camping trip a few months ago.” Oyashio dryly replied as she stood further away from the two, watching the sea as the breeze blew past her. “And you’re the one who ended up teaching Ogasawara how to do it.”
Arashi felt her vein popping as she glared over at the black-haired girl. “Can you at least look at me when you tease me, or are you going to be a pain in my ass until we get back?” She huffed and puffed. Man, she got no respect. Not from her, not from the newcomer, and not from...
“...Y’know, I’m glad you called us the best, Zuihou.” The redhead said as she slowly lost her energy, watching the flames flicker despite the cold. “Because I sure as hell didn’t feel like the best before we went on this mission.”
Zuihou tilted her head slightly as she spoke. “What do you mean? Is there somebody that doesn’t think you’re amazing? But you’ve done so much for me, just by showing up and beating those Abyssals!” She vehemently disagreed with whoever had been such a fiend…
“Shiranui thinks I’m reckless. Both for bonding with this rig, and for fighting like I do.” Arashi explained, sighing as she patted the oversized wrench she used as a clobbering weapon. “And I don’t blame her. Because I nearly ate it, the last time I faced off against that masked thing…”
The brown-haired newcomer slowly nodded, before putting a hand on her shoulder. “Well, she might’ve been right back then. But that doesn’t mean she’s right now, does it? Look at what you and Oyashio accomplished, together..! You managed to beat back two big bad Abyssals, without any trouble.”
“Please don’t imply I did much.” Oyashio spoke up, sighing as she watched the sea and its waves slowly billow towards the shore. “She, in all of her recklessness, did most of the work. I just gave her the opportunity to do what she wanted.” She explained, remaining steadfast in her role as lookout. Something that she used to distract herself…
Arashi sighed a little as she got up from her seat, smiling down towards her new friend for a second before walking over to the black-haired girl and patting her on the shoulder. “Akira. If you didn’t do what you did today, and what you did back when we first put these rigs on, we wouldn’t be here. You’re important. If not to me, then to Toki. You can’t tell me you don’t know how much she cares for you.”
“Please just leave me be, Tanaka. I don’t need your pity right now.” The black-haired girl didn’t even resist. She just let her empty words flow out of her mouth as she focused on her task.
The redhead shrugged her shoulders. “Suit yourself. Don’t say I didn’t try to help.” The hotblooded girl said as she took her seat besides the newcomer once more, stretching a little as she got comfortable in front of the fire. “So, as I was saying… Shiranui’s one tricky girl, honestly.”
“What’s she like, besides not trusting you with the duty of a shipgirl?” Zuihou asked, pulling her legs up and wrapping her arms around her knees. Letting her get a little more of that warmth from the fire in the process.
Arashi tapped her chin a couple of times as she counted on her fingers. “She’s stern. She’s strict. She barely emotes, she doesn’t like drinking, she’s a filthy Real apologist…” She rattled off a couple of qualities, before pausing. “...You don’t know about Mecha, do you Zuihou?”
“Can’t say I do. I wasn’t into it when I grew up.” The brunette said, chuckling a little. “I was always into girly and cute things. I had a lot of fun singing when I was young, just singing in the bath, singing in the living room, singing, singing, all day long…” She sighed, giggling a little as the warmer memories flooded forth.
The redhead chuckled as she let her head rest on her knees, pulling them up so she could get her fair share of warmth too. “So you wanted to be an idol, is that what I’m supposed to guess? Dance on stage, dressed up in all that frilly stuff?” She asked, and the newcomer nodded. “There were a couple of them in the shows I watch with Kou, so I don’t blame you for finding them inspiring.” She laughed, before clearing her throat. “Kou being my pupil, gotta remember that you’re not as familiar with everyone…”
“As long as you talk about them with such a nice tone, like you really care about them, I’ll understand what kind of people they are, Arashi.” Zuihou said, smiling from ear to ear. “Even Shiranui gets that kind of tone out of you. Even when you use mean words to describe her.”
Arashi blinked a couple of times, biting her lip a little. Did she care about Shiranui..? ...Yeah, she did, definitely. Otherwise she wouldn’t have gone out to help her in the first place. She just didn’t think about it too often. Because they always argued with one another, not unlike a married couple…
“Guess you’re right, Zuihou.” She said, stretching a little as she conceded her feelings. “Maybe the reason I’m so angry at her is because I want her to be happy. And knowing that I’m the one giving her trouble, in a more direct manner… Well, that kinda sucks, doesn’t it?”
Zuihou nodded as she patted the redhead on the back. “I’m sure she feels the same way. She wants to see you succeed, but she also doesn’t want to see you hurt. Because of everything the two of you have been through. So you just gotta keep up the good work, and prove you can handle it. Just keep doing what you did with Oyashio today, and she can’t possibly say you’re a failure!”
“Heh. You know what to say to make somebody happy.” Arashi chimed, ruffling the brunette’s hair. “Had a lot of time to think about these things, or are you just a genius at this kinda stuff?” She asked, half jokingly and half sincerely.
The brunette blushed a bit as she ran a hand through her hair once her new friend stopped ruffling it. “I’ve thought about a lot for a long time, Arashi. I’m just happy that I have a chance to act out those thoughts now.” She said, her smile growing a little somber. Just for a moment.
“Gotcha. So, I have one more question.” The redhead said, before looking straight into the brunette’s eyes. “How do you think the Abyssals found out about you in particular? You don’t seem to be a threat, so I can’t imagine you had fought them before.”
Zuihou tapped her chin a little, humming as she shuffled through her memories for an explanation. “Iiiii… Oh! I remember, I found this adorable stranded Abyssal just a few weeks ago!” She chimed, like nothing was off about it. “I ended up helping it back into the water, and it waved bye when it went back to the abyss! Maybe it told them where I was?”
“You really aren’t supposed to do that, you know?” Arashi felt the sweat running down the side of her head as she realized just how… peculiar, the girl was. Now she totally understood what Toki was talking about when she said she’d make an impression on the two of them…
The brunette giggled a little, before letting her head rest on her knees. “But it was all wriggly, and I felt so bad seeing it suffocate on the beach. It’s a life, after all. It’d be a shame if it was lost due to an accident.” She said, before pausing and looking over at the redhead. “Not that I’d be surprised if it ended up killing in combat, but at least it chose that. I wouldn’t want to see somebody die because they didn’t have a choice.”
“Yeah. I hope that little wriggling friend of yours is alright then.” The redhead said, patting the brunette on the back. Even if they were going to face more Abyssals, who knew what one little act of kindness could end up doing? Neither of them would be able to tell, for sure.
And neither would Oyashio, who kept looking out at sea, clenching her hand as she listened to them babble on and on about the things that they enjoyed. Or other nonsense events that mattered little in the grand scheme of things.
She was focused on something much more important… Her own lack of worth. Because unlike the girl that was currently busy being merry, she felt that she couldn’t do much. And today had been all the more proof of it, even if she had contributed.
That thing that commanded the Abyssals outmatched her, in one fell swoop. By having larger armaments, it would be able to outgun her. With the thick arms, all of her firepower would be pointless. And with its ability to command a fleet, not unlike how Zuihou would be able to command the small planes that rested on her body during combat, she would be outgunned by smaller targets before she’d manage to suppress them all.
And then there was Arashi. The reckless idiot that shouldn’t have gone on this trip in the first place. Not only had she managed to develop a fighting style that relied more heavily on her own knowledge, instead of getting used to the weaponry that mattered… She had shown that it worked. The fact they took out an entire fleet dedicated to taking down Zuihou had proven that.
But she had done nothing. She had just watched. Sure, she peppered a couple of bullets into those massive arms, but what did that do? Nothing! It did absolutely nothing! It just made her feel worse. Because she had trained so hard, she had tried to make up for her shortcomings, and she had tried to follow everything that Ooi taught her…
Nothing mattered in the heat of the moment. She just let all of that experience go to waste, because she couldn’t break through a single wall. And her fellow shipgirl, the one that had roped her into all of this, was now celebrating. Because she was actually good at it. Because she was coming to terms with her current state. She was coping with it all, without any problems.
Oyashio bit her lip, drawing a bit of blood from it, as she looked out at the endless sea. Watching the waves slowly wash ashore. Watching the moon reflected towards her. Watching her failure to improve, before her very eyes. She was stuck in a rut. And she needed something…
...She’d have to figure out what she needed. For now, she closed her eyes. Letting the night wash over her as she started sleeping, the campfire silently extinguishing behind her as her companions climbed into the tent.
Night would soon pass. But her worries wouldn’t be quelled. They’d continue spurring her on, from the moment she woke back up.
Both Oyashio and Arashi would be forced to face their problems head on soon enough, whether or not they had found an answer…