Dragon Empery Sea
Three silhouetted figures stood poised upon the open sea, the waves beneath their feet a gentle, continuous motion. Though bearing the form of children, they were unmistakably not ordinary boys, their bodies were clad in sophisticated ship riggings that shimmered faintly, almost imperceptibly in the bright sunlight. Each possessed the different size, distinctive shape, and deck-mounted weaponry characteristic of Modern Frigates.
A palpable confusion was etched deeply into their expressions, like strangers meeting one another in a peculiar place.
One of them wore a jacket strikingly reminiscent of an 18th-century coat, complete with a cravat meticulously tied at his neck. His Rigging resembled that of a Constellation-class frigate, proudly featuring a single Mk-110 Naval Gun, 32 VLS cells, 16 NSM Box-Launchers, and a three Enterprise Air-Surveillance Radars with tripod mast.
( IMAGE )
The second figure possessed a single mast, a single mounted Oto Melara 76mm Autocannon, two conspicuously protruding RIM-116 RAM launchers, and bore a crisp German flag adorned with its national coat of arms. His attire consisted of a severe grey coat, echoing a military uniform, and he carried a profound MG-42 machinegun strapped across his chest. He was blond, with blue eyes.
( IMAGE )
The third wore a distinctive cap and a jacket that evoked the uniforms of a Philippine revolutionary war officer. Like the other two, he featured a single mast, a single Oto Melara 76mm autocannon, 8 VLS cells, and four BrahMos Missile Launchers.
( IMAGE )
In a scene that felt utterly out of the ordinary, almost as if plucked directly from an Isekai anime, the three figures stood in a precise triangle, each instinctively pointing at one another, as if one of them held the sole key to their bewildering questions.
Their eyes narrowed, darting swiftly from side to side, each carrying a profound sense of anxiety and palpable confusion. In the profound stillness of the air, broken only by the rhythmic movement of the waves and the distant screeching of seagulls soaring above, one of them finally broke the silence.
"Who are the both of you? And why do you look like a damn reject anime protagonist?!" A Filipino kid barked, his tone sharply tinged with the exasperated cadences of his mother tongue.
The other two blinked in surprise, clearly bewildered by his words. They recognized the language as Philippine, yet they were entirely unfamiliar with the specific phrase he had uttered.
"Do you... speak English?!" the other kid, resembling an American boy lost in a school role-play, spoke, his voice also laced with anxiety.
"I do... Speak, English," the German kid responded, his accent rough but still perfectly understandable. He raised a hand tentatively, much like a diligent student seeking permission to speak.
"Okay... English, that's our one-way communication then," the Filipino kid said, his pronunciation a bit rough, clearly under immense pressure.
"Alright..." the American kid began, his tone sounding inexplicably posh, for no reason other than his theatrical, stage-play-like attire. "Who are the two you?" he asked, a finger pointed directly at the other two.
The Filipino kid blinked in surprise, then retorted sharply, "No! You go first!"
"No, you go first, I asked you," the American kid retorted, sounding frustrated, yet his tone remained inexplicably polished.
As the two continued their squabbling over who would initiate the introductions, imperceptibly, the German kid spoke, once again, like a diligent school student raising a hand amidst the escalating voices of his boisterous classmates.
"Umm... The name is Braunschweig, of the German Navy, Deutsche Marine," the German kid said, raising his hand shakily, a hint of nervousness in his voice.
Both the American and Filipino kids abruptly ceased their squabbling and stared at the German kid, who appeared utterly innocent, almost too innocent to even carry that MG-42 Machinegun slung across his chest.
"How the hell do you pronounce that?!" the Filipino kid uttered, entirely unable to follow what he had just said. His understanding of German was already a challenge, compounded by the unfamiliar pronunciation.
The American kid didn't even try to pronounce it in his head; the word was like a swirling mesh of indecipherable syllables. Even his sophisticated brain couldn't quite comprehend it.
"That's my name," Braunschweig said simply, as if genuinely trying to initiate a friendly conversation.
*Sighs*
The American kid sighed, then adjusted his immaculate coat and cleared his throat with a deliberate sound. "Since you introduced yourself first, I shall introduce myself as well, as is common courtesy," he declared in his distinctively posh voice.
The Filipino kid was genuinely surprised by the American kid's sudden shift to a "switched personality." 'Why does he sound British?' he thought, trying desperately to figure out the unexpected accent.
"I am Alexander Hamilton, or casually known as Hamilton, etched on my hull is the hull number designation, FFG-66 of the Constellation-class frigate of the 'formidable' American Navy," he introduced himself with a formality typically associated with an elite, presenting himself with a theatrical flourish.
The Filipino kid's mental server had apparently lost connection during the American's excessively posh introduction; above him, a metaphorical loading screen appeared, diligently trying to decipher the refined undertone. He hadn't expected a literal, real-life Hamilton, straight out of a soap opera, to perform in front of him, free of tickets.
"I do believe you're next at the introductory phase," Hamilton said, gesturing politely towards him.
Braunschweig turned his attention to him, patiently waiting for the introduction to proceed.
"Huhh..." Luna sighed deeply. "Whatever, Ginoo," he grumbled, almost mockingly, using the Filipino honorific with a hint of exasperation.
He puffed his chest out slightly, as if preparing an important office presentation among distinguished staff members.
"I am Luna, Antonio Luna of the Jose Rizal-class of the Philippine Navy," he declared, attempting to match Hamilton's theatrical flair, though with a distinctly different energy.
"Too bland..." Hamilton criticized, pointing out the distinct lack of proper etiquette and flair in the delivery. "The delivery needs to be polished, and your tone needs refinement as well."
"What...?" Luna uttered, his tone dry, his face contorted into the typically annoyed expression of an anime character.
"I'm not here for English ethics and shit!—who are you to even judge me anyways?! You look more British than American at that point, what are you even looking all fancy about, at my comfort?!" Luna's anger boiled over, as if he were deliberately letting his inner Heneral Luna out, complete with all the unfiltered curses often associated with the historical figure.
"Brash... Far too brash," Hamilton retorted, unwavering.
Braunschweig watched the two exchange fiery words, seemingly forgetting why they were even there in the first place, or the bizarre circumstances of their arrival.
"Umm..." He raised a hand cautiously, like a timid cinnamon roll wanting to interrupt, though by now, they all knew he was more of a sturdy pretzel. "Are we going to discuss why we are here? – that's the whole point, right?"
Both Luna and Hamilton snapped to attention, abruptly ceasing their squabble. Now that they knew each other's names, the more pressing question of their whereabouts and the nature of their new forms resurfaced with renewed urgency.
Where exactly were they? And why were they human in the first place?
"For summary," Hamilton began, his voice taking on a lecturing tone, as if an imaginary white board surface had materialized behind him for a simple, pedagogical explanation. "We were in the South China Sea—"
"West Philippine Sea," Luna corrected sharply, annoyed by the mention, his nationalistic pride immediately surfacing.
"Right, Philippine Sea," Hamilton continued, smoothly ignoring the sudden, nationalistic intrusion. "We were in the West Philippine Sea, regularly conducting freedom of navigation operations, until suddenly... *snap* – this happened."
The three Frigates were indeed randomly conducting routine freedom of navigation operations through the contested waters between China and the Philippines. A report of missing Frigates in those politically sensitive waters wouldn't necessarily arouse immediate suspicion, but it held the potential to lead to grave misunderstandings and heightened tensions given the ongoing controversy surrounding the area.
Their collective experience mirrored what other Modern Warships had previously encountered. An unknown phenomenon occurred, all navigation equipment and radar went haywire, then everything pixelated. Sailors, crew, and officers shouted "Abandon Ship!" One thing led to another, and they all found themselves suddenly whisked away, awakening with human bodies, their metal hulls replaced by living skin.
"The three of us, now possessing human bodies, senses, and thoughts... it simply doesn't make sense, considering we were, fundamentally, Warships. Then there's this perplexing rigging thing."
Everyone turned their attention to their respective riggings, each one displaying a unique design that intricately reflected their ship's original form and function. Mounted weapons on deck, antennas, and radar systems were clearly operational.
"Our rigging represents our ships, it seems, but our human bodies don't quite fit the notion of us fundamentally being ships," Hamilton finished, a note of lingering confusion in his voice.
Braunschweig looked intently at his rigging; the conspicuously protruding RIM-116 RAM launchers and the Oto Melara Auto-Cannon were emblematic of him being a German Frigate. The cannon served as his primary offensive and defensive weapon, while the RIM-116 RAM launchers were his vital defense against aerial threats.
"That seems to be entirely outside our knowledge or expertise; having a human body seems to be a significant downgrade of some sort," Luna observed, as he crouched down to touch the water below. The ripple caused by his hand contact broke the strange notion that he wasn't standing on solid land.
"And how the hell are we even standing on our own feet without sinking into the waters—are we like ninjas in that particular anime?" he questioned bluntly, amused by the bizarre reality of floating effortlessly on the water's surface.
He also referenced a specific anime where the characters possessed the mystical ability to float on water without sinking.
Hamilton was decidedly not amused. "Quite a weird take coming from you. I would expect a more logical explanation, knowing you were named after a logical man, yet your excessive consumption of Japanese materials seems to hinder your critical thinking capabilities."
"Hahh...!" Luna sneered, making that same annoyed face again. "Are you deliberately trying to get on my nerves?! I'm just simply implying a basic, simple comparison!"
"And that's precisely where everything corroded into nonsense."
"Can we at least continue with the conversation without steering into another petty fight?" Braunschweig interrupted gently, raising a hand between the two, a peacemaker amidst their bickering.
"Right, my apologies, but we need solid evidence that we even have a slight commonality with the materials you were referring to," Hamilton conceded, his posh accent truly grinding on Luna's nerves.
"What do you need to even prove that I was right?" Luna challenged, his tone sounding more like a dare than a question.
"Right then, I do believe if just one of the words that came out of your mouth proves true to your source," Hamilton said, as if formally accepting the thrown gloves. "Then I will agree with you."
"Deal..." Luna said with a triumphant grin.
"Umm, are we going to find help or...?" Braunschweig interjected, cutting between the two once more, eager to get to a more productive line of thought.
"How are we going to do that?" Luna asked, genuinely wondering how they could possibly shout far enough for their voices to be heard. Surrounding them was seemingly an endless, vast ocean.
"Simple... We tap into our transponders and we wait patiently for any sign of help that might be able to heed our desperate call," Hamilton declared with a smug expression, as if everything was truly that effortlessly simple.
"That's only easy if we have satellites actively helping us. With only just a radio, I highly doubt we'll receive any messages from that far out," Luna countered, his practicality cutting through Hamilton's optimism.
Hamilton contemplated, holding back his immediate words. "Fair point, we might not receive an immediate response as quickly as we need. My radar and antennas haven't detected anything flying above us."
Hamilton said, his eyes squinting at the vast, empty blue sky. "Worse, nothing was floating there at all, not even a single commercial satellite."
Luna followed his gaze, making his own assumptions that he too would see some flying satellites. But none had passed, and the sky was utterly clear of any air traffic flights.
"Odd, my radar isn't picking up a thing either. No islands, no floating ships nearby, and absolutely no communications," Braunschweig said, a tremor of visible fear in his voice.
"It really felt like we were in another world, entirely," Hamilton admitted, as his logical surroundings had indeed told him.
"Alright, enough sobbing about not finding a signal, how are we going to... sail – I don't know the right word to say right now, because we have human bodies, heads, hands, and feet."
"How are we going to move then?" Braunschweig asked, looking at his new feet with confusion.
"I suggest we walk," Luna suggested. "I mean, we're literally standing above the surface like we're on land, right?"
"Walking might be excessive for us, who have only just recently learned to stand on our own feet, to speak, and to think in this new form. We were not accustomed to this kind of thing before," Hamilton stated, his practical nature surfacing.
"How are we going to move then, we sail?" Luna said, sounding less serious about the current problems they faced.
"Umm... If we are the embodiment of ships in human form, why not we access that part? Surely there are mechanisms that might propel us like we were still ships," Braunschweig suggested thoughtfully, clearly pondering their odd predicament as human-ships.
"Good suggestion." Hamilton and Luna said in unison, instinctively recognizing the logic.
...
Moments later.
The three Frigates were now sailing under their own power, their propellers on their boots propelling them forward like ships, albeit with feet.
Their journey was immediately faced with turbulent waves, as their newly acquired sea legs were not truly adapting to the capricious environment. The rough waves were also significantly hindering their ability to stabilize themselves. They were like toddlers learning to walk, but for a Kansen, it meant learning to sail with their own two feet, a truly awkward experience.
"Whoa... Ho... Hooo....!" Luna exclaimed, his arms flailing as he desperately balanced himself, his knees visibly trembling from the effort.
"Goddamn it! This is way worse than surfboarding with waves!" He complained vehemently about the unpredicted, unsettling tides he was navigating.
"It's hard to move, ja, the ocean may be calm, but I'm not betting that it was no better than a turbulent storm," Braunschweig said, clearly struggling with his small frame tumbling precariously on the waves.
"Recon, recon...?"
Far forward, Hamilton kept muttering to himself, intently focused on how he would access the Recon Drones stowed inside his hangar. He was clearly new to the concept of him effortlessly accessing everything onboard his ship, now that he was in human form.
He kept muttering the word as if it were an incantation for a Drone to be summoned.
"Can you stop muttering to yourself like that, it's getting annoying?" Exclaimed Luna, his patience wearing thin.
"Can you not see I'm busy trying to summon a recon Drone for us? My radar can detect any object coming at us, but I can't put a visual picture of what it is. So I desperately need a visual via Drone," Hamilton explained, his tone sounding exasperated at the repeated failures of calling one out.
"Why not try paper planes? That would be far easier than summoning your recon Drone," Luna jokingly suggested, clearly trying to test Hamilton's patience.
"Fine," Hamilton said, his tone crisp, accepting the challenge. "You want it, you get it!"
Like attempting to fly a paper plane from his hand, Hamilton swung his arm forward as if effortlessly throwing a paper plane into the air.
Unbeknownst to him, that simple, almost whimsical gesture would be his true kick-start for launching Drones. A miniature V-BAT Drone suddenly materialized into existence at his fingertips. As he threw it, the V-BAT Drone flew. The moment it regained lift and momentum, it suddenly materialized into a much larger, full-sized version of itself.
Stunned silence was visibly apparent on their faces as the simple jest remarkably became the intuitive way of launching a Drone into the air.
"That works?" Hamilton said, genuine disbelief coloring his voice.
"It works!" Luna repeated, his voice joyful that his simple jest had worked perfectly.
"It really works!" Braunschweig repeated, his voice filled with happiness to see that they finally had a means to see farther than their limited radar could reach.
The V-Bat Drone flew higher and higher, stabilized, and locked into a steady orbit directly above them, its advanced lens quietly sweeping the vast, blue horizon.
~Several minutes passed in anticipation~
The bubble lens of the V-BAT Drone swiveled downward, its camera focusing intently as it caught a visual feed. Down below, at the glistening surface of the sea, two distinct white lines were being drawn in parallel.
Two shipgirls were speeding swiftly on their way, their trails leaving an elegant wake of white foam behind them.
They were Dragon Empery Shipgirls: Ning Hai and Ping Hai.
The sisters were both speeding towards the location of the distress signal they had simultaneously received moments ago. During their routine patrol, they had both picked up a distress signal, not in traditional Morse code, but as an encrypted series of codes.
The two were now actively on their way to investigate the distress signal and ascertain its precise cause. This particular part of the sea was strictly off-limits for Commercial Shipping, unless it was transiting Warships or authorized vessels.
"Ping Hai, we must hurry! The owner of this distress signal must be in grave danger," Ning Hai said, her voice sounding commanding and resolute.
"Right, sister," Ping Hai responded, as both sisters accelerated to the maximum speeds they could access, cutting swiftly through the water.
...
Back at the Frigates
The scorching sun felt like an open oven to them; they felt as though they were merely kindergarteners left alone in a park, left to bask under the sun for countless minutes, growing increasingly uncomfortable.
In the eerie, sun-drenched silence, Luna was the first to speak, breaking the quiet. "So... uh, do we have food onboard?"
"No." Hamilton answered instantly, his response crisp and definitive. "We're ships, not snack dispensers."
"I feel hungry, though," Luna grumbled, patting his stomach with a frown.
"You feel hungry?" Braunschweig echoed, looking genuinely concerned. "I think that confirms it—we're human in biology... but ship in structure."
"That's a pain in the ass," Luna muttered, clearly annoyed. "What's the point of being a warship if I still gotta eat microwaved food?"
"We have more concerning problems than skipping snacks, Luna," Hamilton cut off his complaining, his voice firm.
"I feel like a bootleg anime protagonist," Luna grunted, frustrated by the surreal situation. "This isn't even isekai anymore—it's shipsekai."
Hamilton let out a sharp, exasperated breath. "Well... at least we're all not alone. That's something, I suppose."
Out of curiosity, Braunschweig, who had been perched silently at the rear, spoke up. "We should come up with a squad name, for our team, ja?"
With a wide grin, Luna turned to face him. "What about... 'Three Amigos'?" He offered, his hands parted as if presenting a rainbow.
"We're not Mexicans, for f*ck's sake!" Hamilton snapped, his composure momentarily breaking.
"Hah! You outright cursed, Hamilton. Not quite the etiquette of a gentleman – would you say?" Luna retorted, overtly mocking him.
"That sounds strange coming out of you, Hamilton, indeed," Braunschweig added, a hint of surprise in his voice.
Hamilton recomposed himself, consciously ignoring the taunting words Luna had spoken. Just then, he received a sudden, urgent transmission from his V-BAT Drone, which was far out, diligently conducting recon. On the feed, he saw two distinct white lines drawn on the ocean surface, and then, two figures strikingly matching their own, speeding swiftly towards them.
"Everyone!" he called out, instantly capturing their attention. "My Recon Drone has caught something speeding rapidly on the surface. And based on the speed and direction, it's heading directly on our way."
"A contact! We're having a first contact! Yay!" Braunschweig was overjoyed at the news, seemingly letting out his inner, squeaky German side.
"Let's hope they're not alien-looking, or more like fantasy creatures, from another dimension," Luna mused, a hint of unease in his voice.
Luna and Braunschweig both looked intently at their own onboard screens. The onboard screen was like a vivid vision being directly played through their eyes, showing the Drone's feed.
The camera zoomed in to get a clearer, more detailed look at the figures on the water's surface.
"They look like little girls to me," Hamilton said speculatively, a hint of confusion in his tone.
"Where are their guns, and other mounted weapons...? I only see a puny gun, punier than what mine has," Braunschweig commented, observing the limited armament.
Luna squinted, meticulously observing their kind of clothing. "Say... Those are not some fantasy clothing, are they...? Wait a minute! Are those Chinese clothing?!" He exclaimed in surprise and shock, suddenly figuring out their faction or nationality.
"And are those... Pandas?! Why are they having pandas onboard?!" He was utterly bewildered by the peculiar sight of a pandas accompanying them on their journey across the seas.
"Panda, you say?!" Braunschweig cut in, the main screen instantly shifting to show a full view of the pandas, his voice filled with delight.
"It really was a panda," Hamilton confirmed, a deadpan tone in his voice, still processing the bizarre image.
"Are we seriously being approached by Chinese girls with Panda Express?" Luna exclaimed, his brain visibly short-circuiting from the sudden cultural whiplash. "This feels like a fever dream."
"That clothing they wore is definitely of Chinese origin," Hamilton said calmly, analyzing the crest on their sleeves. "Their hull forms also match the Ning Hai class, though modified... perhaps post-revival upgrades?"
"Can't confirm. But those Pandas are absolutely adorable," Braunschweig added, clearly impressed by the unusual companions.
"Now I'm scared," Luna said, instinctively backing up a step. "Adorable means dangerous in anime rules. Have you ever seen someone not die after saying 'they're just little girls' – and then sudden kicks and punches were thrown in a flash?"
'Is that where your thought process is getting at?' Hamilton sighed, exasperated. "We need to make contact. Let me handle it first—formal, calm, diplomatic."
Braunschweig raised a hand again, acting as the diligent one. "What language are we going to use to conduct first contact?"
"Great observation, Braun. We might need to reconsider what language we need to use before we conduct first contact," Hamilton acknowledged.
"I'm not speaking Mandarin," Luna said decisively, crossing his arms.
"We go with English then," Hamilton concluded, his decision final.
...
Meeting Point
Far in the distance, the distinct silhouettes of the three Frigates protruded from the waves as the sun above glinted off their riggings.
Ning Hai and Ping Hai slowed their speeds after visually confirming the contact, their expressions shifting from patrol-ready to surprised curiosity.
The sisters were genuinely surprised to see Kansens in the middle of nowhere broadcasting distress signals, as if they were in actual peril or had been attacked by Sirens.
Their comms crackled suddenly as they were being hailed by one of the Kansens, a clear sign of impending contact.
Ning Hai answered the call, tapping the back of her right ear, her hand moving with practiced ease.
"This is the United States Navy. I ask you to open an open communication relay. Failure to comply will result in us considering you as hostile entities." the comms from the other side broadcasted, the voice firm and authoritative.
"This is Ping Hai of the Dragon Empery faction. These waters are our area of patrol. We heeded your distress call as we were on our way to investigate."
On the other side of the line, it sounded like muffled garbles as the three Kansens talked amongst one another, questioning the unfamiliar "faction Dragon Empery" and desperately trying to confirm for themselves that they had heard her correctly.
Then there was the language debate. They didn't have to speak Mandarin to even understand them, as English was clearly their common ground. And based on the tone of their voices, they were all undoubtedly boys.
"May I ask? What exactly do you mean by Dragon Empery faction?" the same voice asked again, a hint of genuine confusion.
Ping Hai and Ning Hai tilted their heads in unison, confused by the question, but then suddenly remembered: perhaps these Kansens were the famous Modern Kansens from another world and thus unaware of their faction's existence.
"Umm... We're part of the Azur Lane Alliance," she responded, hoping to spark some recognition in them.
None.
On the other side of the comms was another round of muffled chatter, this time a louder one, as if a heated debate was actively happening.
One of them explained that "another world" meant "another name for a country," which made total sense to them, as they weren't expecting any cultural similarity back on Earth.
The dialogue on the comms continued. "Azur Lane, you say? Mind if you kindly explain this Azur Lane?"
"Umm... It's a faction specifically made to defeat the Sirens," Ning Hai explained patiently, almost like a lecture. The comms went silent, as if disconnected from the server, but in truth, on the other side, they were all silent, taking in the momentous information about this new world. Then it clicked for them that there were other Kansens like them, being displaced in a world like this, facing similar threats.
~Later~
Hamilton, Luna, and Braunschweig were now face to face with the Dragon Empery Girls. The resemblance to Chinese culture was profound, from the intricately tied buns of their hair, to their traditional clothes, and the astonishing presence of the adorable, clumsily clinging pandas.
Ping Hai and Ning Hai were both initially confused by the intense gazes they were being given; their attention wasn't focused on their faces, but rather intently on the Riggings they wore.
In comparison to them, the Frigates' rigging was profoundly protruding, making them look almost like light cruisers at first glance, due to their sheer bulk and visible weaponry.
At the start of the introductions, Ning Hai introduced herself along with her sister, Ping Hai, their voices clear and friendly.
Hamilton, Luna, and Braunschweig introduced themselves next, their accents noticeably differing according to their country of origin. Hamilton maintained his posh voice, Luna was a bit rough on key words and pronunciations, and Braunschweig had a literal, thick German accent.
"So... you two are Dragon Empery Shipgirls? And what exactly is a Shipgirl thing?" Hamilton asked, pointing his fingers directly at them, still trying to grasp the fundamental concept.
Ning Hai silently muttered to the wind, a slight exasperation escaping her lips, "I'm not a scholar to all of this..."
"Well..." she began, her tone friendly and casual, trying to simplify. "Shipgirls are the human manifestation of a ship. A Wisdom Cube helps to give life to such ships, and it's called Kansenization, hence the Shipgirls were born." She explained with the limited knowledge she had, hoping it sufficed.
"I think that would be enough explanation. I can see that you're having a hard time explaining to us the basics of this world. My humble apologies for repeated inquiries," Hamilton said, sounding deeply apologetic for seemingly asking such basic, fundamental questions.
Braunschweig raised a hand tentatively, still visibly shy in the presence of the two girls. "Is there any land we can dock with?" he asked politely.
"Yes, there is!" Ning Hai exclaimed, genuinely pumped at meeting a modern Kansen for the very first time.
She then pointed distinctly east. "There's a port land there, near Shanghai, perfectly equipped to accommodate your ships."
"Hell no!" Luna shouted, his voice startling, visibly startling the two girls who were simply giving helpful directions.
"I'm not going there, nope—nope!" he declared, hands raised in an emphatic gesture of refusal.
Hamilton cut in quickly to explain the misunderstanding. "My apologies, his nation and China—your country's name back in our world—had a bit of a diplomatic problem, hence he can't tolerate going to such ports," he said, his tone genuinely apologetic for Luna's outburst.
"Is there any other country or faction we can safely dock nearby?" he asked again, his tone gentle and understanding.
"Yes, there is," Ning Hai answered readily. She then pointed north. "Up north, you'll find the Land of Sakura, or well known as Sakura Empire."
"Sakura Empire?" the three Frigates echoed in bewildered unison at the unfamiliar name.
"Land of Sakura, is that another worldly translation for Japan?" Luna exclaimed, a flash of recognition in his eyes.
"Sounds about right. Cherry Blossoms do inhabit Japan, so maybe the similarities are there," Hamilton said, confident that the explanation fit, connecting the cultural dots.
"We can escort you guys if you want," Ping Hai offered, with a slight, welcoming gesture.
"Yes, please."
Hamilton readily took the offer, as they were utterly clueless at the moment as to where they were heading. Some of their navigation went haywire as there were no satellites feeding them real-time navigation, and their spawn point was completely unknown. Also, they weren't sure if Earth's chart map would even work in this world.
"Great, brace yourselves then," Ning Hai declared. Then, she glowed with a bright, ethereal blue light. As the trio instinctively closed their eyes, they were utterly shocked to find themselves standing firmly on a ship's deck, made entirely of wood and all its intricate details.
Currently, they were standing on Ning Hai's Ship—a Ning Hai-class ship, fully materialized.
The frigates were all profoundly bewildered that what they were standing on was an actual, physical ship, summoned from thin air.
"What the!—When did this?!" uttered Luna, genuinely surprised by the ship's sudden transformation and materialization.
Ping Hai had a lot of explaining to do after that astonishing stunt she pulled. With that new information, the Frigates now understood that they too could summon their ships. As for vigilance, they agreed to stay in their rigging form for emergencies or surprise attacks, ready for immediate action.
.....
On the way to the Sakura Empire, the Frigates were about to experience a turbulent storm under a high, merciless sun—an unexpected and uninvited storm.
On the wooden deck, Hamilton gazed out at the crystal-clear ocean, the surface gleaming intensely under the tropical sun.
As he gazed over the distant horizon, he noticed some unusual white trails heading swiftly towards them. He didn't pay any immediate mind to them, initially thinking it was just other worldy creature swimming rapidly in the vast ocean.
But his gut instinct was trying to tell him something vital: it was something else entirely, and it carried an unmistakable sense of danger along with it.
Luna noticed Hamilton's intensely focused gaze. He moved closer and looked at what Hamilton was staring at. Like Hamilton, he too came to the same unsettling conclusion.
"Say, that Fish sure swims fast?" Luna commented, a hint of unease in his voice.
Hamilton nodded slowly. "I know, quite odd to swim as fast as—"
"TORPEDO!!!"
Ping Hai, being keenly on watch, suddenly shouted a desperate warning, her voice cutting through the air to inform them of the incoming doom.
Ning Hai's ship turned hard to starboard in a desperate attempt to avoid a direct hit, but the sheer speed and the inherently slow turn radius of the large ship meant it was destined to hit them directly below the waterline.
Both Hamilton and Luna snapped into immediate attention and quickly threw out countermeasures to intercept the speeding torpedo in the water.
Hamilton deployed a decoy from his rigging with a practiced flick, and Luna simultaneously fired off his Oto Melara 76mm autocannon at the incoming torpedo, a rapid barrage.
It was a resounding success; the torpedo detonated prematurely, and a massive splash of water rose dramatically into the air, then came crashing down heavily on the deck, drenching everything.
Everyone on their rigging quickly jumped into the water. Ping Hai swiftly summoned her rigging as her materialized ship dematerialized back into thin air.
Now in the water, the three Frigates were on high alert, their sonars actively pinging for any lurking assailant hiding beneath the waves.
"Why are we being under attack?! And a submarine at that!" Hamilton exclaimed, his tone suddenly serious and urgent.
"Whoever it is, surely wanted that ship sunk. That explosion was strong enough to send one to the bottom of the sea," Luna said, his tone mirroring Hamilton's grave concern.
"A surprise attack, right now?!" Braunschweig was utterly surprised, his German precision struggling with the chaos. He had only known a sudden warning of an incoming torpedo, then—explosion.
"Siren!" Ping Hai shouted, her voice laced with recognition and urgency.
"We're being ambushed by Sirens," Ning Hai added, confirming the threat.
Then the sisters moved swiftly into their distinct battle stance, adopting their signature Kung Fu fighting posture, ready for combat.
The Frigates wondered how the two sisters even managed to effectively fight off a foe that hides underwater, as they apparently lacked any sophisticated ASW detection and defense systems readily visible.
"Luna, anything on your sonar?" Hamilton asked, his voice sharp with command.
"My AW Wildcat is on its way to where the torpedo had come from," Luna reported, confirming his ASW Helicopter deployment.
"Found it."
His AW Wildcat promptly dropped a lightweight torpedo to handle the lurking Siren Submarine. It didn't take long at all, as the subsequent explosion confirmed its swift destruction beneath the waves.
"We got it; it is now terminated," Luna announced, the mission accomplished.
"Stay vigilant; it's not only one, there might be another one lurking," Hamilton cautioned, his experience speaking.
*Ping*
Another Siren submarine sounded clearly on their sonars, confirming Hamilton's warning.
"Not on my watch!" Braunschweig dashed forward, launching a torpedo to counter the second submarine that pinged distinctly on his sonar.
In mere minutes, the submerged threat was neutralized with surprising efficiency, stunning the Dragon Empery sisters with the quick, decisive execution.
For them, taking out even one submarine was a tremendous effort; they typically had to weave off the attack by zig-zagging wildly on the surface, and if it was a surface threat, they had to resort to Kung Fu and use their mounted guns like extensions of their fighting stance.
"Amazing..." The sisters were stunned into silence, truly impressed by the modern warships' capabilities.
"That's it?" Luna questioned, his voice laced with disbelief, as if eliminating the submerged threat had been far too easy.
"Yes... too easy. My senses tell me this isn't just a single ambush," Hamilton said, his vigilance unwavering, anticipating another attack.
"My gut tells me differently," Braunschweig added, clutching his slung MG-42 Machinegun tighter.
The expectation of a second attack loomed over them. This wasn't just a one-time ambush or a passing Siren seizing an opportunity. There had to be a bigger threat surfacing afterward.
The sisters watched the Frigates, who stood motionless, their heightened detection systems sensing through the eerie silence. Like them, the girls prepared for what was about to come.
"Sister, why are they staying so still?" Ping Hai whispered.
"I don't know... but I have a feeling they're sensing something," Ning Hai answered, her own instincts on high alert.
Out of the stillness that permeated the air, a huge splash of water broke the surface, as if something massive ascended from the deeps and launched itself into the air.
The Frigates were all stunned to see a towering woman with pale skin and jet-black rigging pulsing with violet, rune-like lights. Based on the shape of the protruding flight deck, it was clearly a Carrier.
Following suit, another Humanoid Siren emerged, but this one featured prominent Plasma Cannons, pulsing menacingly with raw energy.
Strategist Mk-III and Breaker Mk-III.
...
Code-G Dimension
In her own dimension, Code-G was intently watching her holographic screen, where the three Frigates were clearly displayed. These Frigates were notably absent from her list of summoned Kansens, as she was solely responsible for bringing them into this world.
These three Frigates were a stark contrast. Somehow, Ashen Helena had devised her own plan to summon her own Kansens to fight in a war against the Siren invasion. The problem? No one knew exactly when the invasion would commence. It was purely coincidental that her summoned Kansens arrived at the same time the Sirens launched their third major invasion of this world.
Ashen Helena, however, had completely missed the main battle, and her summoned Kansens had arrived late by a significant margin. And now, Code-G was completely unaware that these three Frigates even existed in this world.
Ashen Helena attempted to explain her botched summoning, and by the furrow of Code-G's brows, it was clear Enterprise-80 would demand an extensive explanation from her. After all, Ashen Helena had just essentially abducted these Frigates without their consent.
Ashen Helena was deeply ashamed that her attempt had been a failure, and that the Frigates were late to the battle. She was either sulking or thoroughly discouraged. She just crouched in the corner, facing the wall, like a child in timeout.
"Any plans for them?" Code-X asked, breaking the profound silence within the dimension.
Code-G didn't have the energy or time to vent her frustration. She simply closed her eyes and sighed deeply. "I'll leave that to her care. For now, let's just watch if these Frigates can prove themselves against the odds."
"They're fighting a humanoid Siren – and two of them at that. Wouldn't that concern you?" Code-X pressed.
Code-G didn't respond. She simply eyed the holographic screen, watching closely, her gaze unblinking, eager to see what the Frigates would do when facing such formidable opponents. This will be their trail.