Azur Lane: Return of Davis

Chapter 28: New (Guinean) Threat

April 16, 1942

A while has passed since the last major Siren attack, and we've been busy.

Hornet and Ark Royal came back from the Doolittle Raid (I sent Ark away after Doolittle asked for another CV), and I just got some unnerving news. So, I called the heads, as usual, but I also called my staff. Things changed since I started the Advisory Board (Chapter 11), but here is the updated list (with fancy new names and new positions!):

- Commander (formerly Head of Operations): Myself

- Secretary (formerly Head Secretary): Belfast

- Secretary of Internal Affairs (formerly Second Secretary): Fusou (formerly Repulse)

- Secretary of Finance (formerly Head of the Treasury): Hood (formerly Nimi)

- Secretary of Health (formerly Head Doctor): Vestal

- Secretary of Internal Security (formerly Head of Security): Helena

- Chief of Commissions: Yorktown

- Secretary of Education (naval combat, STEM, first aid, etc.): Langley

- Chief R&D Officer: Ray

Key notes to make: Repulse didn't want the position after a while, so I swapped her with Fusou, who will keep tabs on internal affairs and the like. Nimi was very exhausted (and I admit, I was putting a lot on a kid/Destroyer like her), so I swapped her out with Hood, who was more consistent on longer workdays. Vestal won't be teaching first aid anymore; that job now goes to the Secretary of Education, Langley (who is qualified, mind you). With Ray now in the fray (nice), and by being the one who created the .38 SP round, he's the officer overlooking R&D. Since he is also an LC, when I need to dip for a while, he can take over for me.

Other than that, nothing really changed. It's still just a load of individuals who know a topic better than I do.

The office would be a bit crowded, so we're meeting up in the big Strategy Room I've yet to use now that I think about it...

I'll call a base-wide meeting here eventually, I'm sure...

"Ladies!" All the girls stop talking amongst each other and look up to me, who's at the podium.

...

"...and Ray." He looks up at me, a bored expression on his face.

"So, a few things. First, and likely the one you've heard of already, the entire 'King of England Kills Siren with American Custom Bullets' made the news. Annoying, but sure. I'm getting calls from defence contractors wanting the secrets to the bullet, confused investors who think this is a start-up and talking about 'equity,' and the US Government might soon hop on the gravy train."

Vestal: "So, what will we do?"

"Keep quiet about everything. The material, calibre(s), load, mass, yaw, velocity, appearance, dimensions, accuracy, effective range, everything! Any of that goes out, and we just got ourselves a little case of 'The Enemy is Coming for that Intel.' Don't even tell your sisters-in-arms. Them knowing SP kills Sirens is too much. Any more can, and most definitely will, be used against us."

A wave of confirmations echoes in the room.

"On the brighter side, the analysis has been complete, and we now have a solid grasp as to how humanoid Sirens operate. Ray, our resident R&D Officer, can tell you more, if you want, but to summarize what was told to me, if we eliminate the central system, like some magic ooga-booga whatever-the-fuck terminal or one of those Sirens like Alpha or Tester or Purifier, then they all shut down like some children's toy on a bad battery. We don't need to take out the entire fleet, which is good, since we'll need a lot of munitions for this next thing."