Previous Chapter: Clash with the Imperial Navy 1
Navy Air Corps, 1st Advance Fleet, the skies above the waters south of the Rodenius continent
The sun had already set and the crimson red sky of dusk slowly gave way to the great, dark blue of the night. Kra Daciami of the Navy Air Corps’ 5th Squadron felt a little queasy. There was nothing to worry regarding the absolute beast that is the Antares carrier-based fighter, the empire’s proud air superiority fighter. Still…
“Shouldn’t we be heading back? It’s about to get dark…”
Arriving and departing at night is simply too dangerous. It would be nice if the carrier was illuminated, but it was simply too dangerous to give away one’s position in the midst of battle. Shining lights aboard the carrier is also forbidden. Everyone should have been aware of the risk they were taking by flying off at dusk but no one uttered any complaints.
“Let’s clean up shop and return before everything gets pitch-black.”
One of the pilots speaks up. Looking all around him, he sees a sizable formation of 51 of the Imperial Navy Air Corps’ proud Antares carrier-based fighters. The enemy attack unit numbered around 50 to 80. In the operation briefing before they left their home port, they received instructions that the enemy’s tech was likely to be more advanced than the empire.
“Hmph. They were probably just exaggerating.”
He remembers the events that happened right after the transfer.
During the operation briefing at the onset of hostilities, they were informed that the enemy operated an unknown number of dragons and since they were living creatures, they pointed out the possibility that the dragons possess extreme maneuverability and they were advised to take caution. By the time the empire clashed horns with Leifor, they were informed that the dragons they possessed were far faster and agile than the ones they had encountered up to that point and were advised to take even greater caution. When they went up against Mu, a globally recognized superpower, they were advised to take even greater caution as the enemy fighters may possess far more different capabilities than previously thought. In the fight against the Holy Mirishial Empire, the dominant superpower, they saw that their air superiority fighters didn’t employ any propellers. They were even ordered to be cautious as the possibility remained that their fighters may be surprisingly better than their own.
However, none of the enemies they faced proved better than their homegrown Antares fighters. The only ones they had to look out for were the floating ships of the heavens of the Holy Mirishial Empire, which used magic-driven propulsion in place of propellers. Still, even these floating ships of the heavens were eclipsed performance-wise by the empire’s Antares fighters. As battle-hardened veterans, they were confident by the rule of thumb that what awaited them was absolute victory.
In the briefing prior to their interception task, the information that the 2nd Advance Fleet had been annihilated was kept from them, with only a portion of the airmen who were above deck that witnessed the light signal message knowing the truth and even they were imposed upon a duty of confidentiality. With most of the airmen being kept from such information, the battlefield leaned towards tragedy.
“Hm?”
Kra Daciami felt something subtly off about his aircraft.
“The engine sounds funny…”
Clank!
“!!!”
The airframe shook violently as heavy smoke emerged from the engine. The black smoke being emitted by the engine trailed behind the aircraft as it flew. As the engine started to emit sounds, its output plummeted.
“A breakdown?! This isn’t funny! Not now!!!”
If he fails to make it back before darkness enveloped the seas, his life would be in danger. Contrary to what Daciami felt, he started to fall behind the rest of the squadron. As the output from the engine continued to plummet, he struggled to maintain speed as he started to completely drag behind.
“S5D1! Your engine’s on fire! Turn back this instant!”
Calling him by his designation, the squadron commander ordered him to turn back. I was confident in the upcoming battle. He wanted to fight for the empire and secure victory, but he would only be pulling back his squadron if he continued to do so. It was vexing, but he had no choice but to follow orders.
“Fuck! I bet he’s laughing his ass off right now!”
They were rivals who competed with each other for number of kills. He imagines the face of the bastard who always found fault with him whenever he got the chance. Still, it can’t be helped that this time his fighter broke down.
“Affirmative.”
He looks up to the formation of his squadron. There seems to already be a significant difference in altitude. Kra Daciami’s Antares fighter has started to show signs of exhaustion from countless fierce battles.
“I’ll be returning n-Huh?”
Just as he was about to radio them, one of their planes flying in front of the formation blew up into pieces. Within a surprisingly short amount of time, a total of 12 fighters had been blown up and shot out of the sky. White shockwaves radiate from the blast point as smoke and flames engulf the fighters.
“W-what the hell?! Where did that come from?!”
He didn’t know who said that but their screams were picked up by his radio. 12 more friendly fighters experienced the same fate. As the formation starts to scatter, tragedy befell them seconds later. The enemy attack ruthlessly found them without even sparing them the time to think as their formation was whittled down efficiently. In the span of mere 20 seconds, more than half of their squadron were reduced to burning, scrap metal left to fall out of the sky.
It seems that the squadron commander had also been shot down as the radio was filled with screams of panic and confusion. He couldn’t discern who was saying what or what they were even saying.
“What the hell were those attacks?! Did anyone see them coming?! Where are the enemy fighters?!”
While his comrades were exposed to the intense barrage of enemy attacks, he was frustrated with his aircraft experiencing a breakdown. Kra Daciami frantically looked across the skies but found no trace of the enemy fighters.
“Are they attacking outside of our visual range?!”
The enemy possesses extremely terrifying weapons. If they were being attacked at a range where they could not even visually verify them, the empire’s proud Antares fighter, no matter how brilliant its performance is, was simply helpless.
“How the hell… Ah! Are those…?!”
In the sky behind him, he saw a faint glimpse of light. The plane which seemed like a dot momentarily closed the distance as something which trailed a tail of light was launched from its wingtips. These things of light, as if it possessed a will of its own, changed its heading mid-flight accordingly to face one of his comrades’ aircraft which tried to avoid it, colliding with it and unleashing its explosive power. In just a single hit, their fighter, which was equipped with bulletproof plating that can protect the pilot and the fuel tanks, exploded into pieces.
“What power!!!”
It surely didn’t feel like the attack was meant for anti-air purposes. Behind the arrowhead-shaped enemy fighter protruded two jets of flame. The thing climbed up into the sky at an overwhelming speed he had never seen before. His comrades likewise turned to try and give chase but its performance felt like it was on a different dimension, easily shaking off its pursuers. In the blink of an eye, he lost sight of the enemy fighter. However, the enemy seems to have already turned around. It suddenly showed up once more, releasing its arsenal of light, reducing his comrades to lumps of flames. As if trying to clean up the fighters that scattered to flee, their attacks continued mercilessly.
“What the hell are those things?!”
“They’re too fast!!! I can’t shake ‘em off!!!”
“Enemy attack on my tail!!! I can’t-bzzzzzzzzzzt”
The disparity in their maneuverability was overwhelming.
“H-how are we supposed to win against those things?!”
Kra Daciami felt a fear he had never experienced before. The glorious Imperial Navy Air Corps, in its hundreds of battles, was supposed to be undefeated. Even in Yggdra, their previous world, and in this New World, being outdone was simply out of the question. Then there were his comrades. They studied to death together in training school, rigorously training their bodies and conducting flight maneuvers. Just before they left port, one of his senior comrades talked to them.
“I heard that my daughter was born yesterday. Man. I really wanna go home and hug her in my arms.”
Their veteran pilots have also been looking forward to the end of hostilities.
“Once Japan has been subjugated, I’ll retire from the military and take everything slow, you know?”
Just as if these emotions have been crushed under some unyielding foot, their deaths at the hands of this efficient, routine-like attack make their power and feelings which they have so carefully accumulated look meaningless. From his perspective, it seemed like one of the scenes where their fighters one-sidedly picked off Mu biplanes. Skill didn’t matter. It was a disparity in technology which no level of skill could bridge.
“A-am I just going to die like this?!”
Fear ran across his entire body.
He turned the nose of his plane back to the direction of the fleet. A single line of smoke trailed across the blue sea.
51 fighters of the Imperial Navy Air Corps from the Gra Valkas Empire’s 1st Advance Fleet made contact with 12 F-15J fighters of the Japan Air Self Defense Force around 100km east of the fleet. Save for 1 fighter which broke down, the entire squadron was annihilated.
・・・
JASDF control center, Nahanath Kingdom
“The enemy interceptors have been eliminated. 50 of the 51 planes have been shot down. We suffered zero casualties.”
Commander Yagami was receiving a report from one of his subordinates.
“What happened to that 1 survivor?”
“Smoke was trailing out of its engine. They found that it was heading back to the fleet due to engine troubles, so they decided not to attack it as it posed no threat to the BP3-C attack unit.”
“I see. Carry on.”
“Within a few short moments, the enemy fleet will be within range of the BP3-C attack unit.”
“Okay. Once they’re within range, have the BP3-Cs commence their assault. After the attack, have them return to their respective bases and have them resupplied and ready for further attacks. Are the recon planes (RF-4E) in position?”
“Yes. They’re currently 100km behind the BP-3Cs.”
“Alright. Once they’ve verified the results of the attack, have them send every single bit of info back.”
“Yes, sir.”
The battlefield continues to develop.
・・・
Flagship Valcer, 1st Advance Fleet, Gra Valkas Empire
A 215.8m long and 28.96m wide steel ship cruised through the waves. Its 80,000 horsepower engine allowed the massive chunk of metal to lightly plow through the waves, displacing a gigantic amount of seawater as it did so. Its 41cm guns, boasting chillingly immense firepower, mounted on 4 turrets, face proudly towards the horizon. There may not exist any ship in this world, save the battleships of the empire itself, that can remain afloat in the face of such grand firepower.
On the bridge of this behemoth was the empress Mirkenses, one of the empire’s Three Great Generals, staring at the ocean with an expression that cannot seem to be calmed.
“If you have something… even an inkling of info regarding the enemy, report all of it at once!”
Their interceptors should be making contact with the enemy attack unit soon. The makeup of the enemy attack unit is completely unknown and they also don’t know how many fighters are mixed in with the unit. To be completely frank, they know nothing about their actual number nor what they really are, so they sent an interceptor force that was highly skilled and battle-hardened.
“I bet some of them will get past.”
Staff officer Deluncia who was standing next to her speaks with an inkling of ease.
“Some… you say?”
“Yes. By the time we saw their attack force coming in through radar, we had basically already prevented half of their force. In comparison to fighters, attack aircraft and torpedo bombers are slow. This is a fact, no matter how much technology advances. Naturally, there will be fighters escorting them, but our interceptor force consists of all fighters which outnumber their escorts several times to one. No matter how superior their electronics get, I think that this ratio won’t change.”
“Logically, I agree. But…”
“But???”
Mirkenses then spoke to staff officer Deluncia, who she placed some faith in, in a whisper as to not let her other subordinates know.
“My instincts have been itching on me to run from this part of the ocean as fast as I could. It’s getting quite horrible, I say.”
“Oh? It’s certainly strange for… Lady Mirkenses to be saying something illogical. Could it be your intuition?”
“Something like that. No matter how I cut it, it’s a desperate hunch. It’s on the same page as me wanting to just drop my responsibilities and run away. Don’t you say this to anyone else, Deluncia.”
“Of course. I at least think that we’ll be able to drop a few of their attack aircraft in this interception. The Japanese army is an opponent we should be vigilant against, but the worst assumptions of HQ are simply just sci-fi to me. Those worst assumptions are just impossible.”
They suddenly picked up some semblance of a voice over the radio.
“Huh? I’m picking up something!!!”
Audible sounds were suddenly coming from the radio which until a while ago did not work.
“Connect it to the speakers!!!”
The comms officer connected the radio to the speakers across the bridge.
“…s is S5D1… our… ilated… peat!… All interc… s are anni… Enemy a… towards the flee… their… at least 1… bzzzzzt”
The slightly audible voice resounded across the bridge.
“Is this from…?!”
The captain says out loud, astonished.
“N-no way…”
Staff officer Deluncia says out loud, despairing.
Tension envelops the bridge. True to her nature, empress Mirkenses springs into action and promptly issues orders.
“It’s possible that the interceptors have been wiped out!!! The enemy is coming!!! Prepare for anti-air combat!!!”
“Prepare for anti-air combat!!!”
The buzzers ring out all across the interior of the ship as sailors hurriedly rush to their positions. They’ve already readied themselves for battle but now that they were actually expecting an enemy attack to arrive, the sailors’ anxiety worsened.
“Mr. Kandall, we are now expecting the enemy attack to come any time soon. I leave our last line of defence against the guided bombs to you.”
“Very well. Leave them to us!”
Kandall went on to personally contact and coordinate with every ship as the preparations for deploying the guided bomb deception apparatuses continued.
・・・
“Airwolf to Command! We spotted multiple objects flying low on the ocean surface just 30km east of the fleet! Moving in to intercept!!!”
A unit by the callsign Airwolf was patrolling low in the skies to the east of the fleet when one of their good-eyed pilots miraculously spotted the anti-ship guided missiles flying low from a higher altitude. Around 4 of them were cruising at ultra-high speeds as they looked like they crept on the ocean surface. Airwolf had 15 aircraft.
“They’re fast… but we’ll make it!”
Rocket-like flying objects closed in on the fleet at speeds that far surpass their own aircraft. They began to dive drastically. Pushing hard on the throttle, they lined up to where the rockets would soon pass through. The sound of the engine and the wind hitting their canopies uncomfortably resounded across the cabin. Setting their sights on where the rockets would soon be, they put in the most concentration they have mustered in their lives.
“Those things are fast!!! We only have one chance at bringing them down!!! Open fire!!!”
Ratatatatatatatatatatatatat
15 Antares carrier-based fighters fired volley upon volley of machine-gun rounds down on the ocean surface. Bullets were fired in succession from over 15 aircraft at 750m/s (2700km/h) with the occasional tracer round painting the sky in their color and whirring up a phantom-like storm of metal and seawater. Boasting a rate of fire of 520 rounds per minute, the empire’s proud 20mm cannons roared to life.
In about 12 seconds, each aircraft fired 100 rounds, totalling to 200 when taking into account the presence of 2 20mm guns on the fighters. Airwolf fired a total of 3000 rounds into the face of the flying objects, tossing up a torrent of seawater as they hit the ocean surface.
・・・
Bridge of the flagship Valcer
Around 30km away from them, a patrol unit calling itself Airwolf launched an intense storm of bullets down into the ocean. The torrent of light was visible even from the bridge.
“So?! Did they finally get them?!”
They were suddenly beset upon by a guided bomb attack. Staff officer Deluncia felt dread at the enemy attack which has so far surpassed all their expectations.
“Transmission from allied aircraft!!! They got none of them!!!”
A horrible chill ran down their spines. The destroyers at the edge of the fleet had already begun raining down a hail of anti-aircraft gunfire towards the horizon. Soon, the rest of the fleet followed suit.
“Enemy rockets climbing!!!”
Every enemy ship that could see the rockets pointed their guns upward, sending their seemingly unending rain of bullets up into the sky.
“Why can’t we hit them?!”
Someone shouts out.
One of the rockets, which had climbed upwards into the sky and tracing a parabolic path unto its target, changed its course towards the cruiser Vernante as if latching onto its prey.
“Cruiser Vernante, launching chaffs and flares!!!”
Several bright lights emerged in the vicinity of the cruiser. In order to drag the missile targeting system away from the ship, they launched numerous sources of heat. At the same time, a mist of aluminium fragments obscured the ship from view. The bright lights of the flares reacted to the aluminium mist, enveloping the cruiser in its aura.
“Well?! How will you respond now?! This is the answer of our brightest, the Advanced Technologies Laboratory!!!”
Flares against a heat-seeking guidance system.
Chaffs against a radar guidance system.
Both cases should be effective. First class engineer Kandall of the Advanced Technologies Laboratory stared at the cruiser Vernante with absolute confidence.
However…
The imaging infrared system used for terminal guidance of the Type 93 air to ship guided missile launched from a BP3-C of the Japan Maritime Self Defense Force wasn’t fooled by the chaffs nor flares, hitting the cruiser Vernante without fail at 1150km/h. Had it been a 1st-generation guidance system, the empire’s deception apparatuses may have had an effect. However, the imaging infrared system used on more modern missiles were beyond the scope of the Gra Valkas Empire’s imaginations.
An intense fireball emerged on the dark ocean surface and illuminating the heavens above. The fireball was powerful enough to critically damage its target as the ear-piercing sound from the explosion reverberated across the area following a delay.
“Ah!”
“Cruiser Vernante, destroyer Barrister, and battleships Pitt and Recarter have been hit!!!”
A lifeless report resounds across the bridge. The enemy bombs had landed on their targets without being fooled by their countermeasures.
“H-how?! How did they still hit?! Could they actually be using magic?!”
The realm of magic is still understudied. Having reached the conclusion that Japan’s guided bombs may be using magic, Kandall lost strength and froze at the bewildering scene that had unfolded. Right in front of his eyes was a cruiser on fire.
“We’re currently confirming the damage but we couldn’t contact Vernante nor the Barrister.”
The smoke from the hits gradually cleared.
“Destroyer Barrister was sunk and cruiser Vernante has suffered critical damage and is no longer fit for combat.”
All they now understand was that they have no means of preventing the enemy attack. They were simply slow, massive targets left to be continuously hammered by an unyielding mallet. Not knowing what they should do next, the empress Mirkenses stood frozen in silence.
It was at that moment when they managed to get their radar back momentarily again. The observer caught a glimpse of countless dots of light which appeared all across the fleet’s vicinity.
“We got the radar back and we’re seeing several enemy rockets incoming!!! They’re 30km out and number more than 250!!!”
“What the hell…”
The enemy rockets now outnumber the 1st Advance Fleet Mirkenses commands. She hoped to challenge the Japanese military with overwhelming numbers. However, the enemy, who possessed ammunition which can single handedly render a cruiser unfit for combat and hit its target without fail, turned the tides on her by striking her fleet with an overwhelming number of those guided bombs.
A silent hopelessness lingered within the bridge.
Previous Chapter: Clash with the Imperial Navy 1
Navy Air Corps, 1st Advance Fleet, the skies above the waters south of the Rodenius continent
The sun had already set and the crimson red sky of dusk slowly gave way to the great, dark blue of the night. Kra Daciami of the Navy Air Corps’ 5th Squadron felt a little queasy. There was nothing to worry regarding the absolute beast that is the Antares carrier-based fighter, the empire’s proud air superiority fighter. Still…
“Shouldn’t we be heading back? It’s about to get dark…”
Arriving and departing at night is simply too dangerous. It would be nice if the carrier was illuminated, but it was simply too dangerous to give away one’s position in the midst of battle. Shining lights aboard the carrier is also forbidden. Everyone should have been aware of the risk they were taking by flying off at dusk but no one uttered any complaints.
“Let’s clean up shop and return before everything gets pitch-black.”
One of the pilots speaks up. Looking all around him, he sees a sizable formation of 51 of the Imperial Navy Air Corps’ proud Antares carrier-based fighters. The enemy attack unit numbered around 50 to 80. In the operation briefing before they left their home port, they received instructions that the enemy’s tech was likely to be more advanced than the empire.
“Hmph. They were probably just exaggerating.”
He remembers the events that happened right after the transfer.
During the operation briefing at the onset of hostilities, they were informed that the enemy operated an unknown number of dragons and since they were living creatures, they pointed out the possibility that the dragons possess extreme maneuverability and they were advised to take caution. By the time the empire clashed horns with Leifor, they were informed that the dragons they possessed were far faster and agile than the ones they had encountered up to that point and were advised to take even greater caution. When they went up against Mu, a globally recognized superpower, they were advised to take even greater caution as the enemy fighters may possess far more different capabilities than previously thought. In the fight against the Holy Mirishial Empire, the dominant superpower, they saw that their air superiority fighters didn’t employ any propellers. They were even ordered to be cautious as the possibility remained that their fighters may be surprisingly better than their own.
However, none of the enemies they faced proved better than their homegrown Antares fighters. The only ones they had to look out for were the floating ships of the heavens of the Holy Mirishial Empire, which used magic-driven propulsion in place of propellers. Still, even these floating ships of the heavens were eclipsed performance-wise by the empire’s Antares fighters. As battle-hardened veterans, they were confident by the rule of thumb that what awaited them was absolute victory.
In the briefing prior to their interception task, the information that the 2nd Advance Fleet had been annihilated was kept from them, with only a portion of the airmen who were above deck that witnessed the light signal message knowing the truth and even they were imposed upon a duty of confidentiality. With most of the airmen being kept from such information, the battlefield leaned towards tragedy.
“Hm?”
Kra Daciami felt something subtly off about his aircraft.
“The engine sounds funny…”
Clank!
“!!!”
The airframe shook violently as heavy smoke emerged from the engine. The black smoke being emitted by the engine trailed behind the aircraft as it flew. As the engine started to emit sounds, its output plummeted.
“A breakdown?! This isn’t funny! Not now!!!”
If he fails to make it back before darkness enveloped the seas, his life would be in danger. Contrary to what Daciami felt, he started to fall behind the rest of the squadron. As the output from the engine continued to plummet, he struggled to maintain speed as he started to completely drag behind.
“S5D1! Your engine’s on fire! Turn back this instant!”
Calling him by his designation, the squadron commander ordered him to turn back. I was confident in the upcoming battle. He wanted to fight for the empire and secure victory, but he would only be pulling back his squadron if he continued to do so. It was vexing, but he had no choice but to follow orders.
“Fuck! I bet he’s laughing his ass off right now!”
They were rivals who competed with each other for number of kills. He imagines the face of the bastard who always found fault with him whenever he got the chance. Still, it can’t be helped that this time his fighter broke down.
“Affirmative.”
He looks up to the formation of his squadron. There seems to already be a significant difference in altitude. Kra Daciami’s Antares fighter has started to show signs of exhaustion from countless fierce battles.
“I’ll be returning n-Huh?”
Just as he was about to radio them, one of their planes flying in front of the formation blew up into pieces. Within a surprisingly short amount of time, a total of 12 fighters had been blown up and shot out of the sky. White shockwaves radiate from the blast point as smoke and flames engulf the fighters.
“W-what the hell?! Where did that come from?!”
He didn’t know who said that but their screams were picked up by his radio. 12 more friendly fighters experienced the same fate. As the formation starts to scatter, tragedy befell them seconds later. The enemy attack ruthlessly found them without even sparing them the time to think as their formation was whittled down efficiently. In the span of mere 20 seconds, more than half of their squadron were reduced to burning, scrap metal left to fall out of the sky.
It seems that the squadron commander had also been shot down as the radio was filled with screams of panic and confusion. He couldn’t discern who was saying what or what they were even saying.
“What the hell were those attacks?! Did anyone see them coming?! Where are the enemy fighters?!”
While his comrades were exposed to the intense barrage of enemy attacks, he was frustrated with his aircraft experiencing a breakdown. Kra Daciami frantically looked across the skies but found no trace of the enemy fighters.
“Are they attacking outside of our visual range?!”
The enemy possesses extremely terrifying weapons. If they were being attacked at a range where they could not even visually verify them, the empire’s proud Antares fighter, no matter how brilliant its performance is, was simply helpless.
“How the hell… Ah! Are those…?!”
In the sky behind him, he saw a faint glimpse of light. The plane which seemed like a dot momentarily closed the distance as something which trailed a tail of light was launched from its wingtips. These things of light, as if it possessed a will of its own, changed its heading mid-flight accordingly to face one of his comrades’ aircraft which tried to avoid it, colliding with it and unleashing its explosive power. In just a single hit, their fighter, which was equipped with bulletproof plating that can protect the pilot and the fuel tanks, exploded into pieces.
“What power!!!”
It surely didn’t feel like the attack was meant for anti-air purposes. Behind the arrowhead-shaped enemy fighter protruded two jets of flame. The thing climbed up into the sky at an overwhelming speed he had never seen before. His comrades likewise turned to try and give chase but its performance felt like it was on a different dimension, easily shaking off its pursuers. In the blink of an eye, he lost sight of the enemy fighter. However, the enemy seems to have already turned around. It suddenly showed up once more, releasing its arsenal of light, reducing his comrades to lumps of flames. As if trying to clean up the fighters that scattered to flee, their attacks continued mercilessly.
“What the hell are those things?!”
“They’re too fast!!! I can’t shake ‘em off!!!”
“Enemy attack on my tail!!! I can’t-bzzzzzzzzzzt”
The disparity in their maneuverability was overwhelming.
“H-how are we supposed to win against those things?!”
Kra Daciami felt a fear he had never experienced before. The glorious Imperial Navy Air Corps, in its hundreds of battles, was supposed to be undefeated. Even in Yggdra, their previous world, and in this New World, being outdone was simply out of the question. Then there were his comrades. They studied to death together in training school, rigorously training their bodies and conducting flight maneuvers. Just before they left port, one of his senior comrades talked to them.
“I heard that my daughter was born yesterday. Man. I really wanna go home and hug her in my arms.”
Their veteran pilots have also been looking forward to the end of hostilities.
“Once Japan has been subjugated, I’ll retire from the military and take everything slow, you know?”
Just as if these emotions have been crushed under some unyielding foot, their deaths at the hands of this efficient, routine-like attack make their power and feelings which they have so carefully accumulated look meaningless. From his perspective, it seemed like one of the scenes where their fighters one-sidedly picked off Mu biplanes. Skill didn’t matter. It was a disparity in technology which no level of skill could bridge.
“A-am I just going to die like this?!”
Fear ran across his entire body.
He turned the nose of his plane back to the direction of the fleet. A single line of smoke trailed across the blue sea.
51 fighters of the Imperial Navy Air Corps from the Gra Valkas Empire’s 1st Advance Fleet made contact with 12 F-15J fighters of the Japan Air Self Defense Force around 100km east of the fleet. Save for 1 fighter which broke down, the entire squadron was annihilated.
・・・
JASDF control center, Nahanath Kingdom
“The enemy interceptors have been eliminated. 50 of the 51 planes have been shot down. We suffered zero casualties.”
Commander Yagami was receiving a report from one of his subordinates.
“What happened to that 1 survivor?”
“Smoke was trailing out of its engine. They found that it was heading back to the fleet due to engine troubles, so they decided not to attack it as it posed no threat to the BP3-C attack unit.”
“I see. Carry on.”
“Within a few short moments, the enemy fleet will be within range of the BP3-C attack unit.”
“Okay. Once they’re within range, have the BP3-Cs commence their assault. After the attack, have them return to their respective bases and have them resupplied and ready for further attacks. Are the recon planes (RF-4E) in position?”
“Yes. They’re currently 100km behind the BP-3Cs.”
“Alright. Once they’ve verified the results of the attack, have them send every single bit of info back.”
“Yes, sir.”
The battlefield continues to develop.
・・・
Flagship Valcer, 1st Advance Fleet, Gra Valkas Empire
A 215.8m long and 28.96m wide steel ship cruised through the waves. Its 80,000 horsepower engine allowed the massive chunk of metal to lightly plow through the waves, displacing a gigantic amount of seawater as it did so. Its 41cm guns, boasting chillingly immense firepower, mounted on 4 turrets, face proudly towards the horizon. There may not exist any ship in this world, save the battleships of the empire itself, that can remain afloat in the face of such grand firepower.
On the bridge of this behemoth was the empress Mirkenses, one of the empire’s Three Great Generals, staring at the ocean with an expression that cannot seem to be calmed.
“If you have something… even an inkling of info regarding the enemy, report all of it at once!”
Their interceptors should be making contact with the enemy attack unit soon. The makeup of the enemy attack unit is completely unknown and they also don’t know how many fighters are mixed in with the unit. To be completely frank, they know nothing about their actual number nor what they really are, so they sent an interceptor force that was highly skilled and battle-hardened.
“I bet some of them will get past.”
Staff officer Deluncia who was standing next to her speaks with an inkling of ease.
“Some… you say?”
“Yes. By the time we saw their attack force coming in through radar, we had basically already prevented half of their force. In comparison to fighters, attack aircraft and torpedo bombers are slow. This is a fact, no matter how much technology advances. Naturally, there will be fighters escorting them, but our interceptor force consists of all fighters which outnumber their escorts several times to one. No matter how superior their electronics get, I think that this ratio won’t change.”
“Logically, I agree. But…”
“But???”
Mirkenses then spoke to staff officer Deluncia, who she placed some faith in, in a whisper as to not let her other subordinates know.
“My instincts have been itching on me to run from this part of the ocean as fast as I could. It’s getting quite horrible, I say.”
“Oh? It’s certainly strange for… Lady Mirkenses to be saying something illogical. Could it be your intuition?”
“Something like that. No matter how I cut it, it’s a desperate hunch. It’s on the same page as me wanting to just drop my responsibilities and run away. Don’t you say this to anyone else, Deluncia.”
“Of course. I at least think that we’ll be able to drop a few of their attack aircraft in this interception. The Japanese army is an opponent we should be vigilant against, but the worst assumptions of HQ are simply just sci-fi to me. Those worst assumptions are just impossible.”
They suddenly picked up some semblance of a voice over the radio.
“Huh? I’m picking up something!!!”
Audible sounds were suddenly coming from the radio which until a while ago did not work.
“Connect it to the speakers!!!”
The comms officer connected the radio to the speakers across the bridge.
“…s is S5D1… our… ilated… peat!… All interc… s are anni… Enemy a… towards the flee… their… at least 1… bzzzzzt”
The slightly audible voice resounded across the bridge.
“Is this from…?!”
The captain says out loud, astonished.
“N-no way…”
Staff officer Deluncia says out loud, despairing.
Tension envelops the bridge. True to her nature, empress Mirkenses springs into action and promptly issues orders.
“It’s possible that the interceptors have been wiped out!!! The enemy is coming!!! Prepare for anti-air combat!!!”
“Prepare for anti-air combat!!!”
The buzzers ring out all across the interior of the ship as sailors hurriedly rush to their positions. They’ve already readied themselves for battle but now that they were actually expecting an enemy attack to arrive, the sailors’ anxiety worsened.
“Mr. Kandall, we are now expecting the enemy attack to come any time soon. I leave our last line of defence against the guided bombs to you.”
“Very well. Leave them to us!”
Kandall went on to personally contact and coordinate with every ship as the preparations for deploying the guided bomb deception apparatuses continued.
・・・
“Airwolf to Command! We spotted multiple objects flying low on the ocean surface just 30km east of the fleet! Moving in to intercept!!!”
A unit by the callsign Airwolf was patrolling low in the skies to the east of the fleet when one of their good-eyed pilots miraculously spotted the anti-ship guided missiles flying low from a higher altitude. Around 4 of them were cruising at ultra-high speeds as they looked like they crept on the ocean surface. Airwolf had 15 aircraft.
“They’re fast… but we’ll make it!”
Rocket-like flying objects closed in on the fleet at speeds that far surpass their own aircraft. They began to dive drastically. Pushing hard on the throttle, they lined up to where the rockets would soon pass through. The sound of the engine and the wind hitting their canopies uncomfortably resounded across the cabin. Setting their sights on where the rockets would soon be, they put in the most concentration they have mustered in their lives.
“Those things are fast!!! We only have one chance at bringing them down!!! Open fire!!!”
Ratatatatatatatatatatatatat
15 Antares carrier-based fighters fired volley upon volley of machine-gun rounds down on the ocean surface. Bullets were fired in succession from over 15 aircraft at 750m/s (2700km/h) with the occasional tracer round painting the sky in their color and whirring up a phantom-like storm of metal and seawater. Boasting a rate of fire of 520 rounds per minute, the empire’s proud 20mm cannons roared to life.
In about 12 seconds, each aircraft fired 100 rounds, totalling to 200 when taking into account the presence of 2 20mm guns on the fighters. Airwolf fired a total of 3000 rounds into the face of the flying objects, tossing up a torrent of seawater as they hit the ocean surface.
・・・
Bridge of the flagship Valcer
Around 30km away from them, a patrol unit calling itself Airwolf launched an intense storm of bullets down into the ocean. The torrent of light was visible even from the bridge.
“So?! Did they finally get them?!”
They were suddenly beset upon by a guided bomb attack. Staff officer Deluncia felt dread at the enemy attack which has so far surpassed all their expectations.
“Transmission from allied aircraft!!! They got none of them!!!”
A horrible chill ran down their spines. The destroyers at the edge of the fleet had already begun raining down a hail of anti-aircraft gunfire towards the horizon. Soon, the rest of the fleet followed suit.
“Enemy rockets climbing!!!”
Every enemy ship that could see the rockets pointed their guns upward, sending their seemingly unending rain of bullets up into the sky.
“Why can’t we hit them?!”
Someone shouts out.
One of the rockets, which had climbed upwards into the sky and tracing a parabolic path unto its target, changed its course towards the cruiser Vernante as if latching onto its prey.
“Cruiser Vernante, launching chaffs and flares!!!”
Several bright lights emerged in the vicinity of the cruiser. In order to drag the missile targeting system away from the ship, they launched numerous sources of heat. At the same time, a mist of aluminium fragments obscured the ship from view. The bright lights of the flares reacted to the aluminium mist, enveloping the cruiser in its aura.
“Well?! How will you respond now?! This is the answer of our brightest, the Advanced Technologies Laboratory!!!”
Flares against a heat-seeking guidance system.
Chaffs against a radar guidance system.
Both cases should be effective. First class engineer Kandall of the Advanced Technologies Laboratory stared at the cruiser Vernante with absolute confidence.
However…
The imaging infrared system used for terminal guidance of the Type 93 air to ship guided missile launched from a BP3-C of the Japan Maritime Self Defense Force wasn’t fooled by the chaffs nor flares, hitting the cruiser Vernante without fail at 1150km/h. Had it been a 1st-generation guidance system, the empire’s deception apparatuses may have had an effect. However, the imaging infrared system used on more modern missiles were beyond the scope of the Gra Valkas Empire’s imaginations.
An intense fireball emerged on the dark ocean surface and illuminating the heavens above. The fireball was powerful enough to critically damage its target as the ear-piercing sound from the explosion reverberated across the area following a delay.
“Ah!”
“Cruiser Vernante, destroyer Barrister, and battleships Pitt and Recarter have been hit!!!”
A lifeless report resounds across the bridge. The enemy bombs had landed on their targets without being fooled by their countermeasures.
“H-how?! How did they still hit?! Could they actually be using magic?!”
The realm of magic is still understudied. Having reached the conclusion that Japan’s guided bombs may be using magic, Kandall lost strength and froze at the bewildering scene that had unfolded. Right in front of his eyes was a cruiser on fire.
“We’re currently confirming the damage but we couldn’t contact Vernante nor the Barrister.”
The smoke from the hits gradually cleared.
“Destroyer Barrister was sunk and cruiser Vernante has suffered critical damage and is no longer fit for combat.”
All they now understand was that they have no means of preventing the enemy attack. They were simply slow, massive targets left to be continuously hammered by an unyielding mallet. Not knowing what they should do next, the empress Mirkenses stood frozen in silence.
It was at that moment when they managed to get their radar back momentarily again. The observer caught a glimpse of countless dots of light which appeared all across the fleet’s vicinity.
“We got the radar back and we’re seeing several enemy rockets incoming!!! They’re 30km out and number more than 250!!!”
“What the hell…”
The enemy rockets now outnumber the 1st Advance Fleet Mirkenses commands. She hoped to challenge the Japanese military with overwhelming numbers. However, the enemy, who possessed ammunition which can single handedly render a cruiser unfit for combat and hit its target without fail, turned the tides on her by striking her fleet with an overwhelming number of those guided bombs.
A silent hopelessness lingered within the bridge.
