Legends

Chapter 34~ Nacht der Langen Messer

The last thing Titanic expected to be doing was running through Long Island sound at 26 knots in the pre-morning hours. Every ounce of steam was direction into her engines. She had never pushed herself like this before and if she wasn't so terrified she might have actually enjoyed the sensation. But coming into Ambrose Channel and seeing the classic fog bank that preceded an Abyssal fleet was not on her top 10 list of favorite sites. Hence the running. Making an impossibly tight 180 degree turn, she raced back towards Lakehurst. She knew why the Abyssals were here but she hoped they would concentrate on New York first. The large city made for an irresistible target but she should have known better than to hope for any luck.

No one was surprised to see Titanic return. American radar was second to none and picked up on the approaching fleet not long after Titanic herself did. The liner leaped onto the dock, dispelling her rigging mid-air with practiced ease. After a hundred years of performing such maneuvers in secret, she did so now in plain sight easily. Olympia was waiting for her, relief written on every part of her face. Clearly she'd been worried about her Captain.

"I only caught a glimpse of them but it looks like Tosa's fleet." Titanic reported.

Now the fear in Olympia's eyes became more pronounced. With the main force away in England, the base lacked any significant defense. Olympia wouldn't hesitate to defend her homeland but she was outclassed on a level that would ensure she wouldn't survive two minutes. A delaying action at best. Titanic met her gaze and unspoken communication passed between them. A sacrifice willingly made from both ships.

Before either ship could reenter the water and confront the attackers, Becuna appeared. "Thank SecNav you made it out of there Captain. I have orders from Admiral Cartwright. You are to assist in the evacuation of civilians. Then make a run for Norfolk and regroup there." She said.

"Nonsense!! I can fight!" Olympia snarled.

"You wouldn't last two minutes and neither will I." Becuna replied. "Barb, Wahoo, and Tang are already trying to delay them."

As she spoke there was an explosion as one of the advancing destroyers went up in flames. Clearly the Mark 14 torpedoes were making their mark. Titanic took a step back as Olympia grasped Becuna's shoulder. "You don't have to do this. The base is lost. Come with us." She begged.

Becuna took that hand in one of her own, offering the inside of it a gentle kiss. "I will wait for you in the ice." She promised. Then she turned and leaped into the water, all but disappearing once she deployed her rigging.

Titanic tugged at Olympia's collar. "We have our orders." She said.

"I can't just leave-" Olympia rasped.

With her full strength restored, Titanic easily overpowered Olympia, forcing the cruiser along behind her. They got out of the main harbor and up one of the rivers, trusting that the freshwater would slow the Abyssals down at the very least given their dislike for it. United States had just beaten Tosa here and although low on fuel she didn't hesitate to do her due diligence, taking thousands of panicked people up her gangplanks. Titanic joined her while Olympia provided cover. The old cruiser would be useless if the Abyssal fleet came in now but she was good for fending off small straffing runs. Bluenose and Theabaud added their few peashooters to the mele as well.

Just as the last of the people got aboard and Titanic noted the lack of military personnel amongst them as the soldiers did their duty like the ships, a pair of explosions sounded. The first was against the headquarters building and as it went up in smoke Titanic knew no one could have survived. The second came from one of the closer ships in the Abyssal fleet, a large heavy cruiser who Titanic recognized from intelligence reports. She was one of Tosa's loyal ones, having been with the Princess since the very first sighting. With no warning she simply exploded. Her death had all the hallmarks of Tang's Mark 18s.

Tosa was furious at the loss of her most loyal subordinate and her escorts began dropping depth charges in earnest, forcing the submarines deep. To survive a depth charging, one had to be quick as well as lucky. Failing at one of those would result in a quick death. Clearly one of the submarines did fail as the distinctive mark of an oil slick appeared on the surface.

Titanic didn't need to wonder who's it was for long as Olympia collapsed into tears. She had always been connected to Becuna and now that connection screamed its loss. As United States prepared to leave, Titanic knelt beside her friend. She rested a hand over her shoulders. "Come on." She said softly. "There's nothing more we can do here."