Our Bonds

The Bestial Abyssal Battleship Princess screamed as she disappeared below the water surface. That was the third Princess the combined fleet has encountered in a row.

"Coo~" (Hatotaurus)

Mio's pet let out a low noise. It's left shoulder was bleeding, having been bitten by the Bestial Abyssal. Any damage Hatotaurus received is being reflected on to its owner as well.

"Aren't they a little too many of them? Ge-ho ge-ho... Ugh..." (Ookami Mio)

Mio was clutching her left shoulder. Although she isn't bleeding, the damage is there.

"Mio-senpai, are you alright?" (Kasumi DOA)

"I'm okay. It just hurts a little. " (Ookami Mio)

"Commander-san, Prinz Eugen and Aquila has suffered heavy damages from that encounter." (Saratoga)

"Mio-san doesn't seem to be doing well either." (Elegant Kizuna Ai)

"Nekone-chan is barely standing up." (Suzuya)

"I'm... okay. We need... to complete the mission..." (Nekone)

"Commander, we should retreat for the time being. Everyone is tired and injured." (Saint Louis)

Louis is right. This is a good time to retreat and recuperate. In a single day, we have already taken down two of the six siren boss nodes we identified before hand. The first had an Chaser while the second had two Oceanas. There is a rather ridiculous number of Beast Abyssals around as well. They probably got lost in this bramble maze but there are so many. The Sirens were much of a trouble. It was these Beast Abyssals that dealt the most damage this time.

"All fleets, retreat. We will continue this tomorrow once everyone has recovered and fully rested."

"Roger!" (All)

"Remain vigilant till you are back at the base. I will contact you girls tomorrow morning. Signing out."

I cut the connection at my end. I watched as the the girls make their way back to base. There are no Abyssals or Sirens along the way, so they are safe for now.

"Good work, Master. Shall I prepare some tea?" (Belfast)

I turned to face the Head Maid,

"Thank you, Belfast. Bring it to my office. And bring me some snacks too."

"Understood." (Belfast)

Belfast bowed and left the Command Room. This is stressful. I didn't expect it to be this hard. Having three girls with the ability to burn their targets is a good idea, but the fire burns down the maze walls way too slowly. On top of that, there is a bunch of Siren sh.i.p.s and Beast Abyssals to deal with. I may need to rethink the strategy.

Huh? Since when did I arrive at my office? Did I... Never mind. I'm too tired to think.

I sat at my desk and looked through the intel and initial plans done up by the Royal Navy. The plans didn't take into account the horde of Beast Abyssals so that needs to be changed. Is it too late to send in another fleet? I'm sure the Neptunia girls wouldn't mind slashing up some Abyssals for me.

Alright, I will send in Purple Heart, Green Heart, Black Heart and White Heart as a Hunting Squadron . Solely for Beast Abyssals. They claimed they have experience in fighting giant monster's and such, so this is perfect for them. I also need to rethink our strategy of burning new pathways. I still think it's the easiest way to get us to the center, but the trade-off is a little too much to bear.

There was a knock on the door,

"Come in."

It was Belfast, with my tea and snacks. And possibly another stack of doc.u.ments. I watched as my maid set the table and served me my tea.

"Today's tea is Valerian Tea. This should help you relax and sleep well tonight." (Belfast)

As soon as I took a sip, I can feel my body relaxing and warming up.

"Master, I suggest you rest for the day. You have had quite the long day." (Belfast)

"Not yet. To be honest, the current strategy is flawed. Today's sortie showed us a lot of unforeseen circ.u.mstances."

How do I go about this? Is sending the four Neptunia girls enough?

"Rest assured Master. I just got a telegram from IJN Yokosuka that another fleet will be going over to assist. They will rendezvous with the combined fleet in the morning. I can guarantee their prowess." (Belfast)

A fourth fleet... So that brings the total to five. IJN is being pretty generous this round. Do they even have enough people for their own operation?

Hold on...

"Belfast, you met th-"

"That's why," (Belfast)

Before I can finish, I felt myself being pulled into something soft, warm and bouncy. Belfast was hugging my head against her chest!

"B-Belfast?"

"Please rest for the day. I will help you relax tonight." (Belfast)

------------------------------------------------------

The next morning, the operation is back on schedule. The Neptunia girls are on their way and will rendezvous with the others by the evening. Another IJN fleet is supposed to show up now, but there is no sign of such fleet.

"Should we just go in first?" (Ryuuhou)

Time is of essence here. Based on our data, the maze could have changed its layout overnight. It's best of we continue,

"All sh.i.p.s, continue the operation. Let's aim for the fifth Siren Boss today."

"Roger!" (All)

...

What the heck happened here?

As soon as the camera passed through the perception-blocking field, an unusually horrifying scene was presented to us. The maze was on fire, there are broken Siren sh.i.p.s scattered around, dead beast Abyssals that are in the process of sinking and dissolving into dust... Something swept through here.

"Uwah. This is terrifying." (Shirakami Fubuki)

"I think our backup is already here." (IJN Saratoga)

"I concur. Is it hard to inform us that they have reached?." (Saint Louis)

"Talk about rude." (Suzuya)

"Whatever the case, they left us an entrance." (Hood)

The previous entrance, which the fleet used to enter yesterday, had been closed off. This means the maze changed its layout last night. However, as Hood said, our supposed allies have left us an new way to enter. There is a large hole, with parts of it still on fire, on the side of the wall that was previously unburnable, or took too long to burn.

"Let's go on through there. For now, let's find out who is our backup."

The three fleets entered the maze. Needless to say, our backup left a trail. More burning plants, more Siren debris, and more dead abyssals, and more fiery holes in the walls.

Not long after, we finally heard them, right round the corner,

"Come on! I will blast a hole in all of you!" (???)

"Burn! This is for hurting Onee-chan!" (???)

"Yamashiro, Shigure-chan, calm down! This is getting out of hand. We were only supposed to thin out the horde and create a entrance for Azur Lane." (???)

"You say that, but weren't you just as eager to kill them all?" (???)

"Yamshiro, come on. Don't hog them all to yourself!" (???)

There are same familiar voices, coming from the next corner. There was the sound of cannon fire, before an Abyssal flew into view. And I mean literally. The body of an Abyssal zoomed pass Saint Louis. The usually stoic Heavy Cruiser flinched,

"God! Oh. That scared me!" (Saint Louis)

There were more explosions, as what looks to be a flaming Abyssal aircraft begin a bombing run on the maze walls. I'm starting to realise who is our backup this time.

"Ah! The Maizuru girls!" (IJN Prinz Eugen)

Prinz Eugen called out to the six girls from Maizuru. All of them except Yamashiro turned to look. The Aviation Battleship was busy beating up a half-dead Abyssal, until it dissapated into dust. She didn't notice the other girls until Yahagi nudged her,

"Wha-? Oh. Hello." (IJN Yamashiro)

"Took you long enough." (Intrepid)

Our backup fleet was Yamashiro, Mogami, Yahagi, Shigure-chan, Zuihou-chan and Murasame.

"Belfast, why didn't tell me the backup fleet was from Maizuru?"

"I placed the telegram on your desk, Master. You are the one that didn't read it." (Belfast)

Anyway,

"Saint Louis, tell them the frequency we are using... What's going on?"

The girls are all in combat stance while Shigure-chan and Zuihou-chan set fire to a nearby maze wall. There is an enemy nearby.

"Commander, is there another boss on the other side of this wall?" (Saint Louis)

I tracked the map,

"There is nothing highlighted on my end. Assuming the entire layout changed, be careful."

"Our radars are going crazy. There is something big on the other side of this wall." (Ryuuhou)

"Be ready. The wall is about to be breached." (IJN Yahagi)

"How about I help you with that?" (???)

Blue lasers penetrated the wall, nearly missing the girls by a few centimeters. On the other side of the wall, an unexpected enemy made her appearance. Her body was pale in colour. She wore a black hoodie. Behind her was a large shark-like creature, with cannons at its sides.

"A dangerous person has appeared." (Hood)

The Omitter...