A/N: Heh.

—/—/—/—\—\—\—

The Italian Sun shone high in the sky above her, pushing on as it attempted to beat back at the potentially cloudy day that was trying to make itself known to them. She glanced up to it, shielding her eyes a moment before continuing on her way, passing bystanders here and there, all swept up in their own business or matters. They kept their heads down, bypassing any trouble they might find themselves if they looked too much. She watched them pass her by without as much as a thought, Italian, American, other alike. The same that weighed her down to Earth did not affect others the same it would seem.

The loss of New Jersey still hung over her like a cloud, reminding always of what was lost and what she failed to do. They were placed under her watch, put under her command, and yet when the smoke had settled, she was gone.

There were those that offered her only comforting words and passing phrases in support for the happening. And then there were those that offered her only silent glares and crossed luck when she came upon them. Luckily, and fortunately, most all of the Americans she had met or crossed paths with this far pressed their sympathies upon her or offered her quiet apologies. More of the vocal agitators in this case had been her fellow servicemen and women of her country or civilians that were in the know.

But that was also largely and almost entirely contained to the base. Here, walking down the street, heading back towards the hospital to continue her wait. A wait that she wasn't sure would ever had an end to it. Part of her wanted to see the Captain finally wake up, but that same part was already dreading the next part of that issue, the next stop if Captain Young were to awaken any time soon. They'd have to approach the subject of her brother, either she by bringing it up, or Captain Young herself broaching the subject.

If she was being honest with herself, there was almost an overwhelming part of herself that willed the woman to never wake up. To never have to go forth and face this new reality she found herself within. To never have to look at the faces around filled with every emotion under the sun and be able to face them.

To never have to worry about it.

She only came out of her stupor to step around someone just stepped onto the street in front of her, offering they and there's a small nod in passing before she rounded the corner, never to see them again. Valeria watched the daily lives of those around her continue, progress unhindered by her as she finally began to approach the Hospital.

Digging her phone out of her bag, she checked for any new messages. But the only messages were a mix of asking how she was doing and what were her plans in the near future from a multitude of people including friends, family, and most importantly her mother. She ignored them for the moment, shrugging them off for the most part as she slipped it back into her bag as she walked along. She made a mental note to respond to those at a later date, the older ones taking priority. But given that most if not all of them were from the last few days alone, priority was somewhat all over the place.

She watched a few people come and go from the hospital as she herself made her way inside, walking by families or others simply gathered together amongst the lobby and it's extending corridors. But when she went to stand before the elevator, hitting the button to call it to her, someone came to a stance next to her.

The woman didn't seem to notice her, or if she did, didn't comment or ask about her at first. When the elevator door opened, Valeria and the woman clearing the way for those inside to make their way out, Valeria offered the woman the first spot on which was accepted rather easily. At that, Valeria followed her in as the door closed behind her, enclosing the two of them together.

"Floor?" Asked the woman. Valeria seemed to snap out of whatever trance she'd been in as she looked to the woman, her question suddenly registering to her in that moment.

"8th please." Valeria responded, looking to the woman. The red headed woman nodded at that, but not reacting in any meaningful way. Questioning it, Valeria found her answer in the fact that the eighth floor button had already been hit. She paused somewhat before nodding, a comfortable silence settling between the two a moment longer again. Valeria pulled her phone free again as she scrolled it along for a few moments of quiet solace before she glanced up at the woman quietly. The redhead standing there next to the elevator console scrolling over her own phone didn't seem to pay her any mind. Hard to miss off of first looks though was the dark blue Navy shirt the woman wore as she crossed a hand across her stomach as she scrolled with her other. Paying it no mind for now, Valeria turned her attention back unto her phone.

The rest of the elevator ride went in silence, the next couple of moments passing quietly. Eventually, the door opened with a quiet chime on the eighth floor, where the two of them stepped out of the elevator only for it to be immediately taken by six people on their way out, the door closing behind them. Valeria meant to say goodbye to the woman walking away, but it wasn't to be given that the woman was walking in the same way she was going. Pausing a moment, offering a shrug more to herself than anything, she followed a few feet after her, wondering what brought her in today. She supposed it was possible she was coming to visit those that had been apart of the New Jersey incident, possibly even Young herself. While she had no family left, she'd met Young a couple times on occasion. While not exactly the life of the party, Young still had an air about her that drew those around her in.

And she seriously doubted that everyone Young knew in the world just so happened to be spread between two ships in the Mediterranean.

Valeria followed the woman more and more towards the room that had seen so much of Valeria's time in the last few days and the nurses's station further down the room. She watched as the woman dropped her stuff off in one of the chairs present, not to far off from her usual spot. In turn, Valeria picked up her usual seat and eased herself down, putting her own bag next to her on the floor. She watched as the woman made way for the Nurses standing there at the station, either speaking with one another or looking over computer screens.

Valeria couldn't watch though as she found her own attention being grabbed by a Nurse on approach to her. Valeria stood in turn, looking to the nurse expectantly.

"Her condition...?" Valeria asked in a clearly hopeful tone.

"She briefly regained consciousness for a few brief moments today, responded to stimuli before she fell unconscious again. It moves up our expectations and schedule of course, but with this, we're hopeful she'll actually awaken in the next few days." The nurse offered her. Valeria nodded at that in a brief moment of relief before she noticed the woman that she'd come up with approaching them, apparently having caught wind of their conversation.

"Excuse me, you weren't by chance talking about Kimberly Young were you?" She questioned. The nurse offered a cautious glance to Valeria before apparently deciding that there was no danger.

"We are. May I ask...?" The nurse trailed off, expecting the woman to answer her.

"A friend that heard she'd been in an incident, but that doesn't exactly do it justice I suppose." She told them. "I'm Marley Blayne?" She asked. The nurse nodded at that in understanding, apparently having recognized the name at the very least and offered Valeria a parting nod before turning away. The two watched them go a moment before Marley looked to the Admiral. "What did she say exactly? About Kim?"

"She regained consciousness for a short time. Didn't respond to anything or anyone, but she seemed to be at least a little alert. She then fell back into unconsciousness so there's that I suppose." Valeria answered. "I'm surprised. I didn't think she had family anywhere." She explained. Marley nodded at that somewhat as she brought her stuff over a moment.

"Not family. Just a friend or so." She answered in truth. "I'm sorry. You are...?"

"Rear Admiral Valeria Sonferi." Was her response, and judging by the reaction, the answer wasn't what Marley had been expecting. She opened her mouth, as if she were going to respond to the question, but Valeria beat her to it. "Well, actually given the circumstances in this current time, I suppose only my name is appropriate." She corrected.

"Rear Admiral?" Marley questioned.

"Correct." She told her. "Here within this hospital due to the same set of circumstances as the Captain. Though for obvious reasons, not quite the same to every end." She explained. Marley only paused further few seconds before slowly nodding at that somewhat.

"I take it then.. that you were in someway involved with the Attack in the Med?" She questioned.

"Jersey's Task Force was placed under my care and watch." She explained. Marley froze momentarily at that before exhaling a breath as she finally took a seat, Valeria taking that as sign to take her own.

"Shiiiiiitttttttt." Marley paused. "But it's hardly your fault right? I mean, didn't they run into some big fuck-ugly Abyssals? Their losses are awful, I know, but they're hardly your fault." She said. Valeria nodded at that.

"For the most part, your opinion mirrors most of those of your own Country- you are American right?" She questioned. When Marley nodded an affirmative, Valeria continued. "Mirrored most of your own country that I've met here and there or that they've heard of the situation. Some offered condolences and the like or some simply ignored. Most of the more vocal oppositions have been from my own Navy and the like, reason why I find myself sitting here next to you in a hospital looking after one of the few that survived." She told her.

"That's really shitty." Marley exclaimed. Valeria found herself pushing back a sudden laugh at the declaration, which simmered down to a light chuckle.

"So I've been told." She explained. "So, your  shirt. Any truth to it, or simply showing support?" She questioned, gesturing to the Navy shirt the woman was adorning. Marley blinked a moment as she glanced down to the article in question before nodding.

"Yeah. I mean, kinda? Used to say yes for sure, kind of complicated now though. Technically, yeah I'm in the Navy still. Situation's kind of weird though. If we weren't in the war we find ourselves in now, I probably wouldn't be." She explained. Valeria arched a brow.

"How does that work?" She questioned. In response, Marley began to hike up one of her pant legs in turn, not all the way, but just enough to show that the woman's right leg wasn't real. Arching a brow at that, Valeria looked to the woman for an explanation or at least a little bit of detail on how the story went. Marley nodded at that as she pulled it back down.

"Stationed aboard the Stennis originally. For the most part, it was your everyday average posting. And then, the next thing I know, I'm in a hospital missing right leg below the knee. Something hadn't been secured properly as the investigations were revealed. First thing I knew, I was headed for an Honorable discharge, and then suddenly I'm being pushed through Physical therapy to be given a desk job in London because I was suddenly a relic of the Stennis." She answered, leaning back in her chair. Valeria nodded at that.

"The Stennis was the... third, no?"

"Second." Marley corrected. "Only hours behind their opening on the Vinson." She said with a heavy sigh, rubbing her face. "Fuck. That was four years ago. It feels like fucking weeks." She examined. Valeria nodded at that as she sat there.

"It happens to the best of us." She told her. "Especially with this war in this day and age. We win one, we lose five. There's no even, no equal grounds to fight them on." She told her. "The world watched in shock and disbelief when those carriers went down and no one's really recovered." She told her as she stood, stretching her legs a moment. Taking a step, she crossed her arms. "So, Captain Young, you know her?" She questioned. Marley nodded.

"I do." She answered. "Met her and her brother first few months after Basic." She told her. "Well, I met him before her, but still stands."

"On ship?" She questioned.

"They were on leave when I happened across him first, her a few minutes later. Got to know them pretty quick after that." She told her.

"What drew you guys together?" Valeria pushed, ever so slightly, curious to know more.

"Lost our fathers to Cancer. Mine, to lung. Theirs, to throat cancer. Ironic though, neither of them smoked." She told her. "And now we're here. Me sitting here, one them critical and the other gone. What kind of fucking luck did we get to end up on this ride?" She demanded. Valeria didn't respond to that.

After all, she'd thought the same thing too many times to count.

—/—\—/—\—

She couldn't decide what looked better. The ice cream or the pie. She couldn't decide what she wanted more. The ever so tantalizing treat that so many of the American ship girls had become infatuated with or a desert that was so well versed in American holiday tradition, it felt almost a sin to pass up, especially with just who she was one half of an item with. Whoever said choice was good, whoever decided choice was okay was a fool. A damn-

"You know you can eat both right?" A voice broke her thoughts. Immediately, her gaze snapped to it's owner in a most undignified way as her eyes snapped wide, as if she were the prey staring down her predator. But perhaps that wasn't so incorrect given that she now held gazes with the woman her country knew as a ghost.

"What?"

"I can't believe I've never shown you this." Enterprise muttered to herself more than anyone before looking back to Akagi, the other girls present at their table watching the interaction curiously. "Actually, this is probably a mistake, but you can eat the ice cream on the pie." She explained to her, watching as Akagi's brain seemed to come to a screaming stop at this apparent godified information.

"I- what?" Akagi mouthed. Enterprise shook her head somewhat as she went into motion, securing a plate and immediately going for one of the bigger pieces of apple pie for the taking. A moment later, she went for a rather large scoop of vanilla ice cream and deposited it on top of the food stuffs. Grabbing a spoon as the last step, she presented the entire thing to Akagi as she placed it in front of her, the carrier looking down at the assembled confection in disbelief.

"The biggest glutton on base and even she's never thought to toss ice cream on other things." Hornet observed with some amusement, though her tone fell flat as she looked to Enterprise. Her sister only shrugged her shoulders as she waited, eying Akagi with some caution. She wasn't sure of the monster she was about to create, but she braced herself for the worst as she watched the carrier cut into the stuff with a spoon. She prepared for the fallout as she watched the carrier all but stuff the spoonful into her mouth.

"This is a mistake." Enterprise muttered to herself as she watched.

"It's your funeral." Her younger sister offered in response as the two of them watched Akagi's eyes grow wide. At this point, it was clear the carrier's tastebuds had fully made contact with the food in her mouth. And based off the stalking silence between the three of them, Enterprise was guessing it was going well with the Japanese carrier. Keeping an eye on her, she turned her attention back to Hornet.

"I thought you were supposed to be deployed tonight." She told her. Hornet shrugged at that.

"Wasp wanted it." Hornet told her. "And I said why not. Figured with you and Yorktown not deployed either, we could spend some time together." She reasoned. "Assuming of course you can bear to tear yourself away from Akagi." She reasoned, lazily glancing at the carrier in question. Said carrier didn't even bother looking up to regard either of them, already sucked well into her own sweet and sugary ecstasy, allowing them their own private conversation for the moment.

"Wasp? Really? Has she come that far in preparation for Night Operations?" Enterprise questioned. Hornet shrugged.

"Wolverine's confident in her abilities, and frankly I don't know her well enough to counter her opinion or thoughts on the matter." Hornet returned. "But she trained her own fair share of pilots way back when, so I can't really say she's in the wrong or not." She told her. Enterprise shrugged at that as she kept an eye on Akagi, making sure she didn't go into overload before turning back to her sister.

"'S not like we knew her way back when I can't say either. But some of our pilots knew her deck before they ever kissed ours. So whose to say." Enterprise answered her. Hornet nodded at that, taking a bite of her own dessert before taking a glance around the mess hall before quieting her voice somewhat.

"You hear what Wolverine's been drawing up?" She questioned. Enterprise arched a brow at that even though the shake of the head prefaced that gesture. "Heard she wants to get the Non-American/British carriers operating under an American doctrine of war. Specifically, our Night Operation Doctrine." She told her. Enterprise paused at that, now carefully keeping an eye on Akagi's reaction.

"That's not something she can just do. They'd have to agree, their pilots would have to agree, they'd need refits to make it work. That's a lot of resources all banking on the hope that we can maybe find a way to make refits less resource intensive. Which so far isn't a promising bet." She told her. "Have you seen any of the estimates about how much it would take to refit even a portion?" She questioned. Hornet shook her head, gesturing for E to continue. "The Repair ships were playing with estimations based off of what the JMSDF was able to do with Yuudachi. With the expanded needs, their test bed being a full theoretical Essex class, and things as they are? We could fully bankrupt the Ship Girl program out of resources just with ten Essex members."

"Shit." Hornet swore. "Can we knock that down or at least lessen the strain?" She questioned. Enterprise shrugged as she tried in vain not to smile at the subsonic squealing emanating from the Japanese carrier's over stuffed cheeks sitting next to her. Hornet only watched, a different set of emotions filling her before looking back to her older sister.

"Probably not." Enterprise answered her as she finally looked back to Hornet after tearing her gaze away from Akagi. "The real problem, and both the Repair ships and Yuubari's people-"

"By people do you mean Monitor and Merrimack?"

"Same thing. Don't interrupt me." Enterprise told her in a playful way. Hornet put an over dramatic hand up in surrender, as if bowing to the almighty carrier, prompting a chuckle from E. "They say the real problem is the fact that the docks as they are the main factor holding us back. As it stands right now, the docks are fully for repairs. Yuubari is confident she could modify one to handle the process, but even one dock is a dock we're down for repairs. When it was just sixty? Or even up to your summoning on Christmas, it would've been fine."

"But the first two months of this year alone have brought well over 140 ship girls." Hornet nodded in agreement. "Not really a whole lot of space when you're trying to balance refits with repair slots considering we've got under forty docks." Hornet concluded. Enterprise nodded at the statement.

"Even refitting five of those to handle refits and other procedures would dent our capacity for repairs after sorties. Which is a serious issue with the way we're now handling this war. We have too many sorties coming and going at once to seriously consider any sort of change to it, let alone trying to half our capacity. We either need a full on upgrade on the facilities or an entirely new building made for this." Enterprise concluded. Hornet huffed at that.

"Don't suppose the Japanese government would be willing to shoulder that particular cost?" Hornet questioned. Enterprise scrunched up her nose at that.

"Why only them?" She questioned.

"Hey! I didn't say only them." Hornet defended. "Just.. mostly them."

"I... actually, you know what. I'm not gonna touch that subject." Enterprise returned with a shake of her head as she looked to Hornet. "Anywayssss, what're your plans for later? Because there's a few movies that I think you and York might like." She told her. "Or more like, you need to watch." She said. Hornet paused at that somewhat, as if considering it a moment before glancing back to her older sister.

"I suppose I could drag myself away from my oh so busy schedule." Hornet monotoned for a moment. "Oh but how shall my proud and overbearing older sister repay me for my time lost?" She questioned, narrowing her eyes at her sister in almost a snooty way.

"I don't tell the Admiral about that little scene me and Yorktown walked into a few days ago." Enterprise replied mindlessly, not even offering to glance at Hornet as she said it. Immediately, Hornet's mood switched from playful to disbelief, the carrier staring at her sister as if she'd grown another head.

"I-I was kidding E. There's no need to go that far, y'know?" Hornet suddenly replied. Putting a finger to her chin, Enterprise hummed in thought.

"I wonder who you're more afraid of. Having the Admiral suddenly act different around you because of an omission from your subconscious mind, or suddenly having yourself put smack dab in the middle of Mary's radar. Truthfully, she's only gotten into scuffles with Battleships and Heavy Cruisers. I would hate to see what a dreadnought like her could do to a carrier like you, hm?" Enterprise questioned with a slow glance in Hornet's direction, the smug smile on her lips impossible to hide and only served to add to Hornet's mounting doom. And then all at once, any sort of malevolent intentions that Enterprise held simply vanished at a moment, Hornet's older sister simply laughed more to herself than anyone. Breathing in quick relief at her sister's chance in expression, Hornet looked once again to E, this time somewhat guarded. And then after that, she looked to Akagi, watching the carrier now start to scarf down her second piece of pie. The Japanese carrier was so far gone down her own hole of sugary ecstasy, that Hornet doubted she'd be able to hold a conversation with the woman even if she'd wanted to in the first place.

"This is still weird." Hornet said absentmindedly, drawing Enterprise's gaze to her.

"What?" The carrier questioned.

"Everything really." Hornet answered her. "But for the most part-" She paused , gesturing to Akagi in a broad fashion. "All of this." She told her. "And not just the fact that my older sister is dating someone we all once despised, but the fact that we're just living amongst them. I mean, the fact that we are is proof and proof enough that we won, that our blood and sacrifice meant something in the end. But it's still... everything within me says it's unnatural." She told her.

"It is and it isn't." Enterprise told her. "It isn't like I didn't feel the same when I first crossed over you know? I just.... There was more incentive for me to accept where I was and what I was doing faster than the others. I was representing not just our carriers, Lex and I, but our Navy. But sometimes I wonder what my experience would be like if I hadn't crossed over in that first group, I find myself wondering where I'd be on the opinion side of things." She told her, her gaze finding Hornet's in a calm type of way. "Kind of bold of you to bring this up in front of Akagi, though. Or more so-" Enterprise corrected. "I wish you hadn't."

"I find myself the last person you need concern yourself with protecting." The carrier on E's other side offered in rebuttal. The two sisters turned to look at the dark headed woman, Akagi politely dabbing at the sides of her mouth with a napkin as if she hadn't just devoured three pieces of fresh Apple pie with ice cream to top it off. "And I respect the fact that you did bring it up in front of me, Hornet-San." She told her.

"Just Hornet." Hornet corrected her all to quickly. "Please."

Akagi opted a moment to respond to that in particular, but after a moment thought better of when she couldn't figure out if Hornet was asking out of politeness or desperation. Reorganizing her thoughts a moment as she held gazes with the younger Yorktown a moment, she began again. "Enterprise only wants to avoid unneeded conflict if possible, but this is something she and I have discussed at length." She told her. "It has not flown blind by us of just how hard this situation can be on you and yours, just how it is hard on some of us more than others." She told her.

"Mmmmm.." Hornet opted for her response, vocalizing none of the emotions within her, only keeping her gaze level with her sister's lover. Akagi watched her a moment, Enterprise looking between the two in an uneasy manner before Akagi simply bowed her head.

"You and Yorktown-s-" She stopped herself. "Yorktown for example." Akagi told her, carefully watching the way that both Hornet and Enterprise somewhat stiffened at the mention of their eldest's name. "It is not secret about how the two of you or Pennsylvania feel about your current whereabouts. But the three of you have been at the very least cordial enough to those of us under a different flag. And not just the three of you, but a majority of your fleet have done the same. And that's gone a long way into getting those of ours to do the same. There are.. vocal exceptions of course, in the cases of Saratoga and the likes of Agano-San and her sisters, Sakawa excluded."

"Yeah I know that." Hornet replied, all too hastily for Enterprise's own liking, and just a little bit of venom mixed in. But Akagi didn't seem to pay it any mind.

"And that there in is the problem." Akagi told her, finally breaking her gaze. "Everyone apart of the fleet has their own feelings on the matter. Some of the positive, others not so much. There are those that see this is a chance to expand their experiences and others that simply curse their time here, spent amongst the navies of the world, learning what the other side thought and thinks of this life. But no one vocalizes that, no one speaks on it." She told her. Hornet didn't say anything, only taking a moment to nod. "There's going to-"

Your people held an eternal horizon.

Akagi paused somewhat, her eyes widening a little bit at the sudden intrusion, her line of thought all but shattered.

"Akagi?" Enterprise asked, suddenly all too alert as she watched Akagi oh so closely. Even Hornet, previously uninterested in the conversation suddenly turned her full attention to the carrier.

Your people could see no end to their empire.

"No... end..." Akagi uttered to no one, her eyes going frantic. It took only a moment before she looked to Enterprise in desperation, almost as if she intended to reach out for her. "Ent-er...."

Japanese Carrier Akagi trailed off as her vision faded to black.

—/—\—/—\—

She couldn't stand it anymore. She couldn't spend any more time in there.

Dinner was still in full swing.

But she didn't care. She wasn't hungry.

She didn't care for food right now.

American aircraft carrier Yorktown stomped across base in a more than clearly aggravated fashion, anyone that may have come across her in that moment surrendering a wide berth to her, though few and far those may have come. But she didn't pay them any mind when they did, her own destination taking the priority in that moment. She needed to blow off steam before she blew up at someone else. That was the last thing she needed, ringing the alarm bell for the Admiral to come running to solve some problem that wasn't really there.

Yorktown balled her fists as she gritted her teeth. It wasn't fair, she knew that. The Admiral tried to the last wit that she had to make sure she- to make sure that they were cared for to the best of her ability. Going so far as to damn the consequences that came with it. But that didn't change the fact that it grated on the carrier's nerves to the worst extent, the woman putting herself where she wasn't wanted nor needed. They didn't need a helping hand in every single little issue that they came across involving every single little fucking that applied even remotely close to their humanity.

They weren't going to learn a damn thing with her hovering over them like some child needing to be lead by the fucking hand.

Yorktown would be the first one, gladly at that, to admit there was much in this new life that she didn't understand. And while there were many things that she didn't have a problem with that being the fact of the case, there were others that she really wanted a better fucking explanation as to why. Or what. Or how. Or fucking anything that made any sort of goddamn sense, any sort of line of logic that she could easily follow without someone claiming 'Oh it's the future' or 'Things have changed'.

And the first on that list is what the fuck her sister thought was a good reasoning to partner herself with who Yorktown could only see as a murderer.

She didn't care about the fact that it had been nearly a century since the war she remembered so well. She didn't care that they'd won and had their enemy paid in blood for every beach they'd defended, for every shot they'd fired. She didn't care that they'd broken them.

Being here made her sick in the deepest part of her being.

But secnav forbid she even remotely voice it to someone like her sister or the Admiral, what with the damn Japanese preaching forgiveness and alliances, focusing on cooperation and looking to the future, all but forsaking their oh so pleasant pasts.

Her nails dug deeply into her palms at the mere thought.

The oldest of the Yorktown class made her way across base in a quiet fury as she focused solely on her destination, that in question being that of the carrier range. She wanted- no, needed to blow off steam before some unfortunate soul crossed her path at exactly the wrong time. The last thing she needed was someone finding a situation they didn't understand and making assumptions she didn't need.

Luckily for her in that moment, things went her way as she managed to find her way there without anyone needlessly stopping her or getting in her way as she stepped up before the doorway to the range.

However, history showed that the eldest of the Yorktown class did not have the nigh endless pool of luck like her younger sister so easily employed.

She was not quiet with her entry, nor did she think she had reason to be. Sliding the door closed behind her, not bothering to ease off of her natural strength, she immediately turned for the wall of training bows and partnered quivers. She knew most of the carriers had one they favored over the others, ones that they would hold off on practice or training until they could get proper hold of them, but she didn't care for that right now, didn't bother in looking for purpose in the action. She just wanted to do something that wasn't sitting around and pretending like nothing was wrong.

She wanted to pretend like her current situation was nothing but a nightmare that she was going to wake up from any moment and everything was going to be normal.

Everything was going to be right.

Everything was going to be how it should be.

She made the first move of going for a quiver loaded with practice arrows instead of any sort of planes. Even if she wanted to use them, even if she wanted to feel the thrill of her planes and pilots taking to the skies even for a little bit, her fairies wouldn't allow it at the moment. They wouldn't take to any flights, they had told her, while she was the way she was.

They'd claimed their instruments weren't functioning.

Bullshit.

Quickly and precisely securing the quiver at her waist, she went to grab hold of a practice bow at the same time. Firmly within her grasp only a moment later, she felt like she could finally relax.

And then the sound of an arrow being released from it's hold and sent down range filtered through the air.

Yorktown paused at the sounded, as if she was trying to figure out if she'd heard it right. She was the only one here at the moment, everyone else was at dinner still. Or, for the most part they were. And had she really-

The sound of an arrow being plucked from a quiver, jostling those that sat next to it quickly followed the first.

Yorktown quickly made to cool her emotions at that, taking an extra moment to make sure she wasn't going to make a mistake somewhere along the line before turning away from the wall, looking to greet whoever it was that occupied the range alongside her.

Only for her first sign that things wouldn't be so simple was the infamous blue skirt.

Kaga.

She didn't even notice her mouth open on it's own for a moment, her mind moving faster than she realized. But before it could find her voice and apply it in some way that she'd currently or later regret possibly, she closed it. Taking a moment to steel herself at this new found challenge, she made no announcement, no indication that she was there. Sure, was it the smartest move in the world? No. But Kaga was, as begrudgingly as it was to admit, steadfast in both practice and posture. Catching Kaga off guard was not something Yorktown fancied or figured herself capable to pulling off. Plus, Kaga seemed to-

"Yorktown-San." The carrier offered in greeting, though as much of a greeting as it was as Kaga didn't bother to lower her aim or turn to address the carrier fully.

Yorktown gritted her teeth at the greeting, but she held it together as she quietly and calmly approached the firing line, putting herself a fair amount of distance away from the carrier. Kaga didn't seem to mind, and if she did, made no attempt to show or react to it. She simply let another arrow fly into the evening air, her aim proving true as it, like so many others, found it's target in the bullseye.

Yorktown pretended not to watch, made a show of not paying attention to what Kaga was doing, how her skill was so willfully on display that it made Yorktown burn with a new temper. But she kept her movements careful, concise. She'd give no quarter here, she'd hand nothing that the carrier could use against her or gain on her. She was here to blow off steam, to relax. And that's what she would do.

Kaga be damned.

If she was being honest, she'd rather be using one of the rifles. But the Admiral's instructions were clear, and this time she could not find fault with the Admiral's way of doing things, that being simple in the fact that she simply hadn't had the chance to teach the rest of them yet, or at least those who wished to learn. And so, she reached for her quiver, pulling an arrow between two fingers from it's holding.

Thwip.

Yorktown ignored the sound of Kaga releasing another arrow into the air, even further ignoring it when that arrow buried itself into the target nice and snugly right next to the first.

Yorktown ignored it.

She focused on her own motions, focused on her own rhythm, her own pace. Taking the arrow, she nocked it, nesting it back against the string as she pulled back on, doing just as she'd been instructed by the likes of Langley and her younger sister.

Thwip.

If she noticed the way the third arrow Kaga had released since she'd been here quite ever so simply buried itself in the bullseye once more, she don't say anything. She focused solely on her own motions.

She pulled the string tight, staring her target down as she steadied her mind, her being. She was calm.

Her two fingers released the bowstring.

And they immediately clamped up as her arrow she'd so carefully prepared for veered hard to the right, vanishing below the waves ever so quickly amongst the late evening. Yorktown only stared at the spot where her arrow had been only a moment before as her body tensed, almost as if she expected a response of some kind from Kaga. Surely the carrier had seen what had transpired, and Yorktown even offered a cautious glance in the woman's direction, unable to help herself. Her gaze landed on the Carrier.

Kaga didn't even spare the woman a second of her attention, instead electing to release another arrow.

It burrowed itself in the target, making it three for three.

"Tsk." The American answered before she realized. At that however, Kaga did pay her mind, those golden eyes meeting with Yorktown's own for the briefest of moments.

Yorktown gave way first, turning her attention back to her own target soon after as she already made to reach for another arrow. She refused to recognize the gaze she found herself under, she refused to relent to it's piercing-

General Quar-

No! She wouldn't give her the satisfaction! She wouldn't let it get to that! Not in her presence, not in front of-

Thwip.

The carrier's gaze shot back to Kaga's target, just where she'd buried a fourth arrow. This time , Yorktown gritted her teeth. Her body bristled a moment longer before she snapped her vision back to her own target, back to her own line of fire. She wouldn't let the damn Jap best her like this, wouldn't let her get the better of her. She wouldn't- couldn't allow it. Not while her sisters were around. And certainly not in the present of here and now. She quickly readjusted her stance, almost managing to mirror Kaga in that very moment as she pulled back on the bow once again, ready to sink it this time.

Slowing her breathing, she focused solely on the target before her as she-

Thwip.

Her concentration shattered almost immediately as her view shifted to Kaga's target, where a fifth arrow had struck home. But she herself hadn't been ready for it, nor for her to be distracted. Her grip loosened ever so slightly on her hold, it being enough for the string to slip from her grasp. Firing without any direction, the arrow she had had nocked flew low and into the water before them. Immediately, her gaze snapped back ahead registering briefly what had happened before she she paused.

And then she gave only an irritated sigh, her breath sharp on exhale as it polluted the silence of the range.

This marked the first time Kaga made any movement that was not involved with her shooting. And that was simply to turn her head to fully look to Yorktown, a motion that did not go unnoticed by the American carrier, much to the later's chagrin.

"What?" Yorktown all but demanded of the woman, finally turning to fully look at the carrier. Kaga, who hadn't yet lowered her bow from her previous position let it drop somewhat in posture as the always stoic carrier watched the American a moment. "Well? What is it?" Yorktown demanded again, her anger starting to swell within her chest. Kaga watched her a moment longer before fully letting her bow drop to her side.

"You're upset." Kaga finally spoke again.

Yorktown's anger flared.

"I'm upset? I'm upset!? Oh I'm so fucking glad that oh so prim and proper Kaga has decided to grace us with this information. I'm so glad the mighty Kaga has such wonderful observation skills." Yorktown snapped, her grip on her bow tightening as she stared the carrier down. "Tell me, is there anymore wisdom that the almighty oh so perfect Kaga would like to bestow? Words she would like recorded!?" She demanded.

Kaga's eyes narrowed venomously.

"Very well." Kaga spoke, her tone flat, promising hell incarnate. "Do you Americans ever tire of the Mediocrity that you pass for skill?"

Yorktown's fist clenched, the wood of the bow within her hand fracturing as it suddenly found itself under a new kind of assault as the American carrier focused entirely on Kaga. Restraint was forgotten as she fully centered herself to Kaga, the woman taking a forceful step towards the fleet carrier. But Kaga didn't flinch nor did she look away, standing in Yorktown's path, refusing to backdown.

"Watch your mouth." Yorktown hissed, the bow in her hand splintering some, the wood unable to penetrate her skin. Kaga showed no indifference to the demand, only watching her head on.

"Why? Are you afraid that what I say holds truth? That for all of this American bravado you and yours bring in droves, it amounts to little in the end? That all of your exploits amongst your Navy have been entirely luck?" The Japanese carrier questioned.

The bow in Yorktown's grasp finally snapped in half, one half shrugging to the floor as the other stayed half in her grip.

"You fuckin Jap." Yorktown growled as she made a move for the carrier, reaching out to grab a hold of her. But Kaga simply stepped away from her, out of range as she kept her ever so calm facial expression.

"Given your reaction, I surmise that something in my words ring true with you. That in some recess in your mind, you figure that something about your service is seen as underwhelming or undeserved." Kaga reasoned. "Perhaps not everything is as perfected as the Americans would have us believe.  Perhaps their bravery and courage is all but one elaborate illusion." She quietly jabbed.

Yorktown again reached for the carrier, her fingers grazing the neckline of the fleet carrier's neckline. But Kaga once again stepped away, largely evading the woman's grasp. She knew not what had stirred Yorktown's ire this night, but she would not sit silently while Yorktown played the role of aggressor.

Still, she'd no intentions of allowing the woman's hands upon her in any capacity.

Hostile or otherwise. Ever.

"I can't-"

Your people saw themselves as conquerers and gods.

Kaga paused momentarily, her vision suddenly going hazy as she put a hand on her face. Everything was suddenly unfocused, unclear.

The bow in her own grasp cracked into two.

Yorktown hesitated.

"Kaga?"

A generation that knew no equal.

Kaga's eyes widened momentarily as her vision faded.

Yorktown moved on instinct alone.

—/—/__\—\—

If someone had asked her if she'd squealed when the battleship following behind her had swept her up within her muscular arms from behind, sweeping her off of her feet in one movement far too fluid for her to try and think about it, she would've told them with perfect clear and calm conscience that no, she had not squealed.

She did not squeal after all.

Hiryuu would've told you that yes.

Souryuu squealed like a school girl.

The orange carrier outright cackled as she watched the Iowa class woman twirl around with the carrier in her arms, pecking at her neck while Souryuu's brain struggled with all it's might to recognize why the world was suddenly spinning. When the woman finally slowed down, whether it was because of her own mounting dizziness or another reason, she finally slowed to a stop. And in that time during her brief venture, she was now holding the carrier in her arms Princess style. Souryuu's head however, having not had her feet on the ground, groaned as the world continued to spin around them.

"As much as I appreciate the antics that you put her through, Missouri." Hiryuu offered. "She is a carrier, is liable to gorge herself during meals, and may not take kindly to being spun around at the speed of sound." She reasoned. But the Cheshire grin told the battleship that she really didn't mind it all that much. Missouri only grinned somewhat at that, but kept her words in mind. As much enjoyment Missouri herself got out of it, she would rather not ruin the atmosphere by way of stomach upheaval.

While not the same in the way of the glutton as the likes of Akagi or E, Souryuu could still pack away more than her fair share.

The life of a carrier she supposed.

That was okay though. It made them all the more huggable.

To prove her point to herself, she pulled Souryuu to herself tightly, pecking the woman on the neck again as Souryuu groaned lightly, her brain finally done rolling around within her skull at the motion.

"Mmmm...." The carrier groaned, her eyes eventually befalling the face of her grinning lover.

Souryuu couldn't help but grin back.

"Anonymity isn't really in your deck of cards, is it Missouri?" Hiryuu asked from the side, eyeing the two with a smug smile. Missouri only returned her question with sly eyes but a smile nonetheless, Souryuu looking all the more comfortable because of it.

"I respect her wish to keep things on the down low for the time being." Missouri told her in response as she continued to carry the carrier with her. "But that being said, the rest of the base finding out is hardly a deal breaker. Part of me believes that she requested that of us at the start simply because her nerves would not allow for it at the start." She reasoned as she held the carrier. "Eventually, someone will find out or we will make some telling mistake." She told her.

"Like twirling her around like a Princess?" Hiryuu asked, the snicker behind her words easy to hear. Missouri simply smiled at that too, the battleship's overall mood over the moon to be put lightly.

"Perhaps." She offered slyly.

"Have the two of you thought about how or when you're gonna tell anyone outside of the sisters anyways? I mean, gonna be honest, Souryuu running out of the mess hall the other day isn't the best secret. But still. And I don't think they do, but do any of the leadership know?" She questioned. At that, Missouri and the carrier in her arms traded a careful glance with one another, as if they were now in a silent discussion of whether or not it was a good idea.

"No..." Souryuu said slowly.

"We've yet to tell any of the Command staff as of yet." Missouri admitted. "As far as we are aware, no one knows of our partnership." She told the carrier.

The breeze that blew past them just ever so carefully covered the formless giggle that went with it.

"Perhaps you should?" Hiryuu questioned. "Like first and foremost, it isn't really my place to tell the two of you how you would run your relationship. But at the very least, I believe that the commanders should know. Just in case down the line, something big comes up or happens, then when you're explaining it to them, then you're not also dropping two bombs on them. And not only that, but I'm fairly sure you two are the most... active... couple on base." She reasoned more to them than herself. Of course she didn't know for sure, but the other public couples on base didn't seem to hold the same penchant for late night rendezvous as these two did.

"Is that not good?" Souryuu questioned, titling her head as she glanced up at the battleship carrying her. Missouri simply shrugged her shoulders at that, blissfully unaware of why anyone would consider it a problem. Hiryuu only offered herself a resigned sigh before shaking her head.

"Back to the point. It isn't my place to tell you two how to venture down this path, but at the very least consider telling one of the command staff. Ideally either Admiral Ishigara or Admiral Johnson, but you could tell Admiral Herkunft or Captain King for all I care. Just as long as it's someone." She told the two of them. Souryuu glanced at Missouri again, who in turn glanced skywards as if she were giving it real and credible thought. Which, despite the way she presented it, she very much was. Because in fact, Hiryuu's line of thought had merits. None of the command staff would go behind them and announce them to the base, and perhaps it would be better for at least one of them to know.

"We shall consider it." Missouri answered the carrier, glancing to Hiryuu.

Hiryuu shrugged her shoulders. It was more progress than she thought she'd make at the very least.

"And it's not me trying to control anything, really." She insisted. "I just don't want anyone involved in this to come out any worse for wear just in case things don't go right." She quickly paused. "That's not me saying that things are gonna go wrong, but I mean-"

"You're okay Hiryuu." Missouri assured her. Souryuu however only grinned from her place in Missouri's arms.

"I just think she's afraid of losing her spot amongst the Iowa snuggle pile." She said, the green themed carrier all but radiating a choking aura of smug. Hiryuu immediately shot her sister a dirty look, even as Missouri took this information in stride.

"I told that to you in confidence!" She barked.

"And I've just told Missouri in confidence!" Souryuu cheekily replied. Missouri paused somewhat before she looked to Hiryuu.

"Are you a fan of my sisters, Hiryuu?" The battleship questioned, and much to the orange carrier's rising chagrin, the slow going grin upon the American's lips was far too apparent for her own good. "Do you-"

"No!" Hiryuu immediately shut her out. "I am... I mean, I like your sisters, yes. As friends and conversation partners for sure. But in a romantic sense, anything I hold for them is purely platonic. Not only would I find it so very odd to be dating one of your sisters, whether it be either of the younger two, or Jersey herself, I do not see myself wanting a partner of the same gender." She told her. Missouri nodded.

"As I thought was established." Missouri reasoned as she looked down to Souryuu. "What were you getting at then?" She questioned. Souryuu only grinned as she looked to Hiryuu, her eyes meeting that of the other's as she threatened to spill everything.

"Oh no, you see. It's not their feminine sides that have Hiryuu in tizzy anytime they're alone. It's-"

They took your will and shattered it.

Her vision became unfocused, her mind suddenly felt as if it was swimming through water. Her surroundings unclear as she, trouble with problems not there a moment ago, slowly looked to Missouri.

"Souryuu...?" Missouri asked. But it sounded distant, sounded empty. It was as if there was a wall of glass between she and her, even though she knew the battleship was in physical contact with her.

"M-Missouri...?" Hiryuu called from the side. Immediately, Missouri turned to regard the orange carrier while keeping a careful eye on Souryuu.

"Hiryuu, I don't-" Missouri began, but trailed off when she regarded the carrier before her.

Hiryuu was watching her with an empty gaze, emotionless and expression-stilled. The battleship could only stare a moment before she took note of the way the carrier stood on shaky legs.

They took your honor and burned it.

Immediately, readjusting Souryuu in her arms so that instead of holding her up, she was supporting the carrier with a hand in the small of her back as she reached for the carrier.

Just as Hiryuu started to fall backwards.

"Missouri...." The name that graced Hiryuu's lips sounded so foreign in that moment. Especially to the battleship.

Just as her hand slipped ever so slimly through Missouri's.

The carrier hit the ground with a thud.

"Fuck!" Missouri swore, moving Souryuu fully as she made her way over to the orange themed carrier. Putting Souryuu on the ground for the moment so that she wouldn't suffer the same fate as her sister, she went to check on Hiryuu.

Just as Souryuu began to slip fully from consciousness.

Her eyes sliding closed with a quiet climax.

They broke your peoples completely and mercilessly.

The ghost of a haze slipping by Missouri unnoticed.

—/—/—/—\—\—\—

The Cafe was quiet this night. Of course, Dinner was still in full swing for those that would make it, which for the last week no longer meant everyone. There were plenty of girls still out on the water and would be well into the next day, she knew. Just a sign of the changing times and what exactly that entailed. Their fleet was growing and their power was being flexed so to speak. At first, a sortie would've been 10-15 ships and that was the extent of it.

It was a different kind of feeling when one second, she and her destroyer cluster were sailing alone, and the next they being ordered to form a fleet on the water with whoever was near. In a way, it made all of this so much more exciting.

And at times, it made it so much more dreadful.

Shoukaku found herself not the hungriest of the night, so she'd settled in at the Cafe. She'd tide what remnants of her hunger surfaced later at Breakfast before sortie.

Shoukaku would never admit this in the presence of the other of the Kido Butai.

Especially not Zuikaku or Kaga.

But she quite adored working with those that they once knew as enemies.

And not even specially the Americans.

The French. The British. The Australians.

The eldest crane had a nagging penchant to visit Europe after the war, to experience all there was to experience.

Shoukaku desperately wanted this war to end.

She idly twirled the spoon around her parfait, swirling it's contents into one fruity mess. She watched it as she did so, it being the so apparent owner of her attention in that moment. She didn't even notice someone approach her table, not even when they were standing directly next to her.

"Shoukaku?" Mamiya questioned as she put a gentle hand on the woman's head. The carrier in turn looked up to the food ship, who was watching her with a gaze that didn't quite give itself away as to what the woman was thinking.

"Apologies Mamiya-San." Shoukaku offered with a bow of her head.

"No apologies needed, Shoukaku." Mamiya told her as she took the unoccupied seat across from the carrier. Sho's gaze returned to her parfait, away from the food ship that was now actively looking her over for a moment, the woman clearly focused on something. "Are you alright?" She asked. It took Sho a moment to recognize what had been asked, but eventually she looked back up to Mamiya, her brow furrowed somewhat.

"Pardon?" She asked somewhat unsure.

"Are you alright?" Came the question again. Her brow furrowed deeper.

She was? Wasn't she?

"I think?" She answered after a moment. Mamiya's gaze didn't change, but her lips pursed into a half smile, a brow arching in tandem.

"You think?" She questioned. Shoukaku simply shrugged her shoulders.

She didn't have an answer. Not one that she liked anyways.

Mamiya watched her a moment, as if trying to decide what the next course of action would be. What would be the most ideal. What would be best. In the end though, she couldn't come up with one that suited her or what she figured was going on.

"Talk to me Shoukaku." Mamiya eventually decided. "What's going on with you? You're one of the first returned carriers to our ranks. You're usually far more social than this." The food ship recalled. And being one of the first ones on base in general, Mamiya was in the right authority to say so. Shoukaku's shoulders slumped somewhat. "Wasn't aware we were entering the neighborhood of melancholic so soon." Mamiya offered as a joke.

The humorless gaze the eldest crane offered in return stilled Mamiya's light mood, the food ship now frowning somewhat in turn.

"Will it ever end?" Came the words finally, in a tone and whisper unfitting the white headed carrier. The whisper seemed to startle the Food ship a moment, though not physically. Mamiya made no outward signs that the words had broken through some wall of hers, known only to her. Instead, she simply put her arms before her, crossing them as she focused on the carrier. As little progress as it was, progress it was still.

"You mean the war?" She asked. As rhetorical as it was, she still asked it.

Shoukaku's nod was not rhetorical.

"You don't know that. And neither do I. Either of us asking is likely to receive no answer that anyone finds satisfactory." Mamiya told her. But Shoukaku didn't rise to the answer, didn't rise to give any indication that she'd even heard what had just been said. But neither did she look for Mamiya to repeat what she had said nor did she look for another answer. Instead, her eyes continued to watch as the parfait swirled around into some fruity, deep red mess.

She was exhausted.

Not physically though, not like she'd be had she just come off the water.

She was exhausted mentally and emotionally.

She was exhausted just by being here. Apart of the war. Apart of the monotonous cycle that enveloped all of their lives. That dictated what they would do the next day, the next week, the next month. And as long as the Abyssals continued to rise from their depths.

The next years.

She was defending her home.

But somewhere inside, deep inside her core, deep inside her soul.

Shoukaku wanted it all to stop.

She just.. she wanted it to stop.

Mamiya paused a moment before reaching over and picking up the parfait, Shoukaku's grasp hardly enough to keep it in place. It took a moment, but eventually the carrier looked to the food ship for an explanation. Mamiya held the former parfait in front of her, as if she was showing an example, the now blood red treat firmly in the food ship's grasp.

"I can get you another one, Shoukaku." The food ship told her. Shoukaku seemed to register that for a moment, her expression softening a moment before shaking her head, the carrier making to leave as she rose from the table. Mamiya watched as she got up, the carrier's expression returning to what it had been, what most knew it to be. Mamiya watched as an invisible facade slipped over Shoukaku's features in only seconds, leaving her to wonder how long the eldest crane had been wearing it. The carrier simply offered Mamiya a gentle smile before turning, just as the Cafe door opened.

Shoukaku hadn't been paying attention.

Amber eyes met those of sickly yellow.

"Sarato-"

AND YET THEY TURNED THEIR BACKS ON YOU!

Her vision seemed to splinter and crack, the carrier before her splitting into thousands of copies of herself. Shoukaku blinked, but it only worsened as the image of the aircraft carrier Saratoga became further distorted to her. It felt like water was flooding in around her, restricting her movement as it overcame her, overcame her senses, overcame her mind.

The tinge of ice kissed her cheeks as it flowed past her.

"Shoukaku?!" Someone called from... a direction she couldn't recall the name of.

Aircraft carrier Shoukaku's last conscious thought was simple.

A RELIC OF AN AGE BETTER THOUGHT LOST!

Why did Saratoga remind her so much of the rain?

—\/—\/—\/—

"They didn't need to die." She said in finality.

The woman next to her snorted with a kind of humor that would have infuriated her to no end.

Instead, Zuikaku simply scowled.

"I'm serious." The carrier said in a flat tone. The woman next to her nodded at that.

"You're preaching to the choir here, Z." The Captain offered in response, glancing to her. "But that's just how it goes." She told her.

"They could've done so much different though!" Zuikaku answered her. "They could've changed the way things went!" She insisted. Sofia nodded at that as she leaned back against the couch, their third filled popcorn bowl all but empty.

"They could've. But that would've been a different story being told." Sofia told her. "And the Emperor had the Jedi fooled-"

"Fuck the Emperor!" Zuikaku crowed as she threw her arms up in exasperation. "He wasn't even that well planned in some areas, the Jedi were just absolutely blind to anything because anything forbid that the Sith may have returned!" She seethed before flopping back onto the couch, her temper taking a moment to settle. That entire time though, Sofia was simply watching, her lips a battleground of barely contained mirth as she watched the carrier come to terms with what they'd just witnessed.

That being the end of the Clone Wars series.

It was the last scene that seemed to particularly grate on the carrier's nerves for reasons that Sofia could only somewhat guess on. But she stayed silent, listening as Zuikaku evened out her breathing where she could. The series had gotten to Zuikaku more than Sofia had expected, but that was fine. After all, this was her first time venturing through the media. Sofia had grown up watching the stuff where she could, wherever that might be or whenever she got the chance.

"Tell me what's his face-"

"Palpatine or Sidious. Take your pick." Was the simple response that the Captain offered. Zuikaku only huffed at that, offering no real response for a moment, instead only sinking back into the couch in silence. Sofia let her settle her thoughts a moment as she picked at what was left of their measly amount of popcorn. At the very least, she'd successfully converted Z onto what was the only socially acceptable way to enjoy Popcorn.

Absolutely drowning in butter.

"What's next?" The carrier eventually asked. Sofia smirked.

"Well. We have Rogue One next. And then after that, we have the first three movies to watch." Sofia offered as an explanation. But the carrier in turn crinkled her nose at that, her gaze turning to the Captain somewhat in a slightly confused manner.

"The first three? We already watched those." She told her with the utmost certainty.

"Sure, if you follow their numbers. But on release date, that was four, five, and six." She answered her with an open hand before picking another shred of popcorn from their bowl. "They released four, five, and six first in terms of date." She explained. Zuikaku only stared.

"Why?" She questioned.

"Because." Sofia answered, her lips betraying her smile.

Zuikaku scowled.

"That's not an answer and you-"

"SOFIA!?" A voice called- no demanded from the Lobby. It wasn't the voice that concerned her or them, it clearly belonging to one American Admiral. It was the tone, the ferocity of the voice that prompted Sofia's eyes to widen a little at the sound , Sofia already turning on the couch to look back at the doorway leading to the rest of the American HQ, Zuikaku habitually doing the same after following so much of Shoukaku-nee's lead for years.

"Anya?!" Sofia called back. It served her purpose though as immediately, almost frantic- multiple frantic footsteps made their way in their direction. It was a second later when Anya opened the door, almost in a flurry that Zuikaku hadn't seen of the woman before. Sofia seemed a little bit better natured when it came to approaching this new side of the American Admiral, but only by little. Zuikaku offered a cautious glance to the American Captain next to her before her own gaze returned to the doorway.

A moment later, the American Admiral entered the room, her face a mask of utmost focus. But the second she entered the room, her gaze did not immediately befall the Captain but instead Zuikaku herself. Admittedly, Zuikaku flinched just a bit under the gaze of Emerald that was normally so lax.

"She's in here!" Anya called to presumably whoever was following her. At that, Sofia stood as a procession of Admiral Ishigara, Nagato, Mutsu, Dionysus, and Akashi entered the room in a flurry. And immediately, their gazes all but glued themselves to the carrier in similar fashion the same way that Anya had done when she found Z. Sofia however was left bewildered somewhat at the sudden intrusion.

"Anya?" She tried again. Anya turned her attention as the two repair ships rounded on Z while the other three kept eyes on the whole situation as the American Admiral leaned into the woman.

"Akagi, Kaga, Hiryuu, Souryuu, and Shoukaku passed out over the last ten minutes. Souryuu and Shoukaku are already spotting fevers of over 109 degrees." She quietly informed her, one of her hands resting on Sofia's arm.

"What?" Sofia asked incredulously. "Why? And why just them?" She questioned, sneaking a glance at Z, who now had Akashi and Dionysus on either side.

"We don't know." Anya told her. "Akagi was with Enterprise at dinner. Yorktown was with Kaga when she went down in the range, oddly enough Yorktown adamant that she'd nothing to do with it. Missouri was with both Souryuu and Hiryuu and Saratoga and Mamiya watched as Shoukaku went down." She told her.

"But Zuikaku's perfectly fine." She told her in return.

"So were they." Anya replied calmly before turning her attention to the carrier on the couch, she herself looking just a bit bewildered as well.

"I don't understand what's going on? Why are you lookin at me like this?" Zuikaku questioned, her tone borderline demanding as she looked between the two repair ships. It was Akashi who attempted to placate the carrier.

"We're just checking up on you." Akashi offered the carrier as some of her fairies jumped ship, already making their way aboard Zuikaku. The carrier frowned somewhat at that a moment before looking to the two of them, unsure of it a moment.

"Where's Shoukaku-nee? Figured she'd be here if you're giving me a look over at the very least." She told the two of them. When Dionysus and Akashi traded a glance, Zuikaku snapped onto that little motion almost immediately. "Where is she?" She suddenly demanded as she made to get up, much to Dionysus and Akashi's disapproval.

"Zuikaku." Nagato sternly added.

"Where is she?" Zuikaku demanded as she looked to the battleship, and then to her Admiral, and then to Anya. "Where is my sister?" She questioned, her tone rising to a point that told most that she was going to become combative.

"Zuikaku, let us explain-" Mutsu tried.

"Where is she?" The carrier demanded as she made way for the door, Nagato and Mutsu already moving to intercept her. "Where is Shou-"

THEY WOULD SEE YOU ABANDONED! THEY WOULD SEE YOU FORGOTTEN AND BURIED!

A howling wind filled her ears as any other sound was suddenly pushed away and out as her eyes tried to focus back in, but they failed, leaving her vision a blurry and unclear mess. Those she knew before her, names that slipped her mind turned into unfamiliar forms.

Dressed in dazzling white.

She rubbed her face in a way unbecoming as she tried to clear her vision as the howling winds grew louder and louder as her fingertips began to cool, already painful.

"I....."

But not I.

"I... I don't..."

One of the forms reached for her as her vision rapidly darkened.

"C-Capta-"

Zuikaku dropped.

Come to me.

—/—/—/__\—\—\—

It was the wild chill of the wind that awoke her who knows how long later, the whistling of the cold whipping around her and biting her face. Her eyes flashed open, looking around wildly, before she took in her surroundings.

She was on the open ocean, the frigid seas alive and thunderous as waves already threatened to topple the woman. She adjusted accordingly as she got up to speed, the howling winds and the snow unwilling to bend for anyone or anything that dared test it's waters. But she had a mission, she had a purpose. She was here to hunt and hunt she would.

A moment later, out of the frigid winds and gray skies appeared the form of her sister, her white hair blending in with their surroundings, the red of her ensemble standing out amongst the stark white of their area. She only traded a nod with the woman, her sister's pale tone further hiding her from prying eyes. They fell into formation with one another as they continued what they assumed to be North, what they assumed to be the direction of their destination. They'd no way of knowing for sure though, no way to confirm it.

They were trusting what they knew.

It was a few moments later when the form of green and orange appeared to them in the distance, Souryuu and Hiryuu falling in formation rather simply. Not a word traded between the four of them, they continued, purpose alight in their eyes as they forded into unknown waters under the slate gray skies. The wind increased as the snow fell in droves. But they were undeterred, unrelenting as they pushed on.

In time, Akagi and Kaga fell in formation behind them, the six of them now charting their unknown waters together.

And then it appeared.

A palace made of gold that shimmered in the light, standing on the water and against the gray sky, shielding whoever within from the snow and the cold, the frigid waves knocked against it's walls as it demanded to be let in. But the walls, the structure as daunting as it was, refused to relent to the elements, refused to let the outside world in.

Except for the front door.

From where they could see, the winds howling and the snow biting at their faces, they almost couldn't make it out, that form. But they did.

There was something there.

Someone.

Standing in the door, atop the water's surface.

A pale hand outstretched into the cold and winds, as if waiting for them to take it.

Orbs of Emerald watching them as they approached.

But as the daunting form of the palace, it's shadow rising out to meet them, the doors ahead of them slammed shut, the waves now rebounding against them as they demanded to be once again let within. But the doors remained stubbornly shut.

Until they approached in full.

In which they slowly began to open once again, letting the frigid waters within once again.

They sailed in without a second thought.

Pillars of gold and silver stretched as far as the eye could see on either side of them, surrounded by still sitting water, the lights within the structure reflecting onto their surfaces. They stretched high to the ceiling as the six continued their way inside, past rows of pillars, dozens of them left in their wake.

It wasn't until they reached the center did they find another living soul.

The room they entered now was rounded, pillars this time thinner as they decorated the outer edges of the room.

And before them stood three golden thrones, seated upon stacks of gold bars and coins. Jewels and artifacts mixed with them to create stacks of valuables than any man or woman would kill for.

And on those thrones, sat three women, gleefully downing wine by the goblet.

And then the middle of them noticed the six of them, narrowing an eye as she lowered her goblet, her lips pulling into a thin line.

"Barbarians!? In our halls of wealth!?" She demanded as the other two focused in on them as well. The middle of the three of them stood, she herself decorated in furs and robes that no one alive today had seen in centuries. The circlet that sat upon her head moved with her, shining in the light as she put her goblet to the side. "How dare you! Dutchman! Away with them!" She ordered.

Immediately, the waters under them darkened as they turned a stormy black. Rising before the three thrones came a figure wrapped in a darkened cloth, her hood obstructing her face. Her only motion was to raise one decayed hand, a mix of flesh and bone as she finally looked up at them.

Eyes sunken into nothing but empty space as pointed a finger in their direction.

"What you seek is forfeit! What you want is mine!" The one of the middle throne shrieked.

And then the cloaked figure pointed up.

Gravity lost it's hold on the six.

The roof of the Palace all but vanished as the six were sent soaring well into the sky, Into the frigid winds and snows at their nastiest. They were sent spiraling into a seemingly abyss of nothing but ice and suffering.

Zuikaku almost missed those Emerald eyes watching from the pool the Dutchman stood upon.

They lost sight of the Palace as they continued to ascend, past the cloud line and into the unknown.

And then Gravity found it's hold on them once more.

It pulled at them, pulling them through what felt the other side of the clouds. The wind vanished the snow subsided as they fell, towards what, they didn't know.

And then they broke through the clouds.

Below them laid a massive lake of crystal clear, calm as could be. Around it stood an imposing mountain range, standing taller and wider than any humanity knew, more than any Humanity had ever seen. They watched as they grew closer, as if the mountains themselves were threatening to come alive and swallow them whole.

The lake went black as they slammed into it.

The darkness consumed her as she sank into it's depths, the surface of the lake and it's light fleeting like a forgotten dream, she only being able to watch as it vanished oh so quickly above her.

It wasn't until she collided with a solid surface did she finally lose consciousness .

—/—\—/—\—

She awoke to the sounds of the open water and the waves cresting against her form, her fingers stretching experimentally before her eyes followed suit, opening as she did so. She looked around a moment, her head still laying on whatever surface she had found herself on.

She brought her head up.

A moment later, she found her way to her feet.

She was on a flight deck.

And as she looked off to her right or left, there she found the other five. Shoukaku off to her right and Akagi to her left, both of them aboard their own hulls.

That told the carrier everything she needed to know.

She was aboard her.

Herself.

Her hull.

Raised from the depths.

By a force that she did not-

Footsteps approached her from behind, the carrier turning ever so carefully as she did so.

"Explain yourself." The form, backlit by the sun, demanded of the carrier. Zuikaku watched her a moment, watching her before she nodded. She knew her duty, she knew her place. She knew why she was here.

She kneeled, head bowed, as the orange haze at her eyes fired away.

"My Queen." Were the only words she needed.

The figure stared for a moment.

And then she laughed.

"Fair enough." Pacific laughed. "Come then. We've work to do."