"Uncle Sam's Emissary? Never heard of that man's name." Mafia Boss Capo said, racking his mind to remember the name the woman had mentioned.
Denver-856, along with her entourage, didn't flinch at gunpoint as the Mafia Boss's Bodyguards raised their pistols at them.
"My... that's quite intimidating, a small little pistol," Denver-856 said as she eyed the bodyguards' handheld pistols. She just stared at them like it was nothing, sipping her glass of Champagne.
"Don't make me repeat myself. Who are you?" Mafia Boss Capo asked again for her real identity.
Denver-856 let out a chuckle. "Do I have to repeat myself too?" she said, mocking him.
"Don't you dare mock me in my own house, besides... I'm the one with the gun here," he said, pointing his handgun at her, not professionally, but in an expressive way.
(the Italian way)
"Yeah... you got the gun... But." She paused, sipping the last of the Champagne from her glass. "You don't have the size."
Mafia Boss Capo and the rest of his Bodyguards were all confused by her remark. Denver-856 pointed her index finger at the Mafia Boss's chest.
"What are you—"
Mafia Boss Capo looked down where she was pointing: five green dots were visible on his chest. After he saw the green dots, they slowly moved up to his forehead. He didn't know what the green dots meant, but he knew something was pointing a high-caliber Sniper Rifle at his forehead.
Sweat dripped from his forehead as he had never felt such dread before. These assassins from the shadows, whom he didn't know or had never heard of, were giving him a line he shouldn't cross.
"Boss???" His Right-Hand Man asked, as he and the others saw him sweating profusely.
"Lower your weapons," he said stutteringly.
His Right-Hand Man and Bodyguards were all confused as to why he gave the order to lower their weapons, but they all complied and hid their pistols back in their vests.
After getting the result she wanted, Denver-856 spoke in the tone of someone in control of the situation. "You see... I'm here offering a business deal."
"Yes, I can get your goods shipped from Cuba to Sardigna Empire, so what's in it for me? I'm not disrespecting your business proposal, but I need something to gain from this deal you're making."
"Simple... Azur Lane would turn a blind eye to your illegal shipping through the Atlantic. Remember, I know all the sea routes your illegal ships are using."
Mafia Boss Capo couldn't turn this deal down. The moment he did, those shipping lanes his illegal ships were using would be blockaded, and all the goods he traded, which were the source of all his wealth, would be seized.
But that wasn't the scary part, as the green dots were still visible on his forehead. He was literally at gunpoint in a deal he couldn't refuse, as his wealth and life depended on his decision.
He never thought or crossed his mind that someone would threaten him more than Il Duce himself, with the Imperial Army seizing his position and power.
"You know I could just report you to the authorities, right?" Mafia Boss Capo said, remembering that the party had some High Ranking Military Officials partying at his Mansion.
"I noticed that. What do you think they're all looking like... that?" Denver-856 asked.
Mafia Boss Capo noticed all the High Ranking Military Officials looking completely drunk, literally blabbering nonstop and intoxicated.
"What did you do to them?"
"A man's ego is uncontrollable in front of a young woman and alcohol, and with that, no one would notice what kind of additives are placed in a well-served beverage," Denver-856 said while looking at her fingernails, her hands spread.
Mafia Boss Capo then glanced at the two maids escorting her; he now realized that the two maids were from the Royal Navy Maid Corp.
Then one of the Cronies popped out and informed him about lost contact, as the telephone wasn't working anymore.
"Sir, our communication is cut off, telephones won't work. And even our Military Grade Radio."
"What??? That can't be," Mafia Boss Capo said in disbelief.
As the situation worsened for the Mafia Boss, another Crony came in, informing him about the missing Guards patrolling the rear area.
"Sir, our Guards are somehow mysteriously disappearing one by one without any trace or clue of their whereabouts."
Sweat dropped from his forehead again as he now grasped the true nature of this Woman he was making a deal with. She was serious about this deal coming to fruition, either through persuasion or gunpoint.
"Fine. That's a deal... I will ship your goods in Cuba on one of my Merchant Ships under the cover of darkness. But," Mafia Boss Capo raised a finger to make his own proposition. "Don't harm my Daughter, she's everything to me," he said in a tone of begging.
Denver-856 leaned back against the balcony railing as she stared at the dark sky, which was only illuminated by the moon above. After a few moments of assessment, she gave her word.
"I won't harm your Daughter as an agreement."
Mafia Boss Capo sighed in relief, but it was abruptly cut short as she continued.
"But if you double-cross me... I will not just harm everyone you love, I will erase everything... even this clan's name."
"You wretched Bitch—"
"Let me remind you. I'm the one holding your life here." Denver-856 slowly walked closer towards him.
"Remember, I'm a woman of my word. Think of what just transpired here as one of your regular business meetings, and what occurred here, what has been said, didn't happen. Wouldn't you agree?" She said while extending a hand for a handshake.
Mafia Boss Capo let out a sigh as there was no other choice. "I'm a man of my word, I will ship your goods here."
"It's nice to have a business deal with you, Mr. Capo," Denver-856 said as both shook hands on the deal.
"Say, the people inside need your presence? Should the Man of the house entertain his guests?"
"I-I will soon, for now... have a great night Mistress Dian," he said before taking his leave along with his Bodyguards.
Denver-856 along with her two entourage were left alone on the balcony, the pressure changing from once hot from the deal to now chilly as a breeze swept by.
"You're quite scary there, Mistress," Maid Enterprise said as she and Scylla both felt the tension.
"Speak softly and carry a Big-Stick," she uttered the words of former United States 26th President Theodore Roosevelt.
"Sometimes you gotta bring a big stick into a conversation to gain a favor," she said.
...
Ballroom
At the Ballroom where all the Social Elite and Wealthy People mingled with one another, two figures visibly stuck out among the crowds of hierarchy.
Pola and Zara, with their sleeveless dresses that exposed a portion of their backs. These two were the standard when it came to Elite Partying.
"Oh, hey look. It's Mr. Capo," Zara said as she tugged Pola's dress.
"Huh?" Pola turned as she saw where Zara was pointing. She wasn't surprised at the man being surrounded by his Bodyguards, but what caught her eye was why he was sweating profusely and his face was filled with dread.
She glanced to where he came from. To her surprise, she saw a woman she never thought would appear in a place like this. This place was filled with Elites, so seeing her here wasn't surprising. But what made her curious and suspicious was why she was meeting with Mr. Capo.
"Dian??" she said aloud.
"What? Dian???" Zara was confused until she saw what Pola saw. "Why is she here?"
Questions arose, and the suspicions tensed.
"We need to inform Cmdr. Marco about this."
...
Norfolk Virginia, Eagle Union
Sep 29, 1942
Tuesday
8:00 AM
Norfolk Naval Base HQ
Lafayette and Friends were called into Norfolk Naval Base for their next mission. Their mission was simple: capture a U-Boat to gather intel about Iron Blood. And for the Iron Blood not to suspect one of their U-boats was captured, it was planned for the U-Boat to have sunk while engaging a Siren Ship.
"So... that's the plan?" Hammann asked, seemingly oblivious to how hard such a task would be.
"He means we have to find a single U-Boat in the entirety of the Atlantic Ocean. Think of it as fishing, a hundred times worse," Lafayette said.
"You can't be that serious!" Javelin, the conscious one, blurted out.
"Fishing sounds easy to me," Hammann said, being cocky.
"Yet you never catch a single fish," Laffey-459 bluntly stated.
"What did you say!!!!!!!"
Lafayette, the only man in the group, placed himself between the two to prevent another chaotic outburst, as they seemed to be at odds with one another. Laffey-459, ever bold with words, and Hammann, the annoying one who always assumed a fight.
"That's enough, you two, we're a team here," he said as he separated them.
"Humph!...," Hammann, ever the tsundere turn her head sharply.
"Again with that?" Lafayette uttered at Hamman's head sharp turn.
Adm. King stood there, watching the whole drama unfold in front of him. He hadn't asked for a front-row seat, but here he was, watching a typical group chaos as usual.
He was there to inform Lafayette's Group about their special, secretive mission that involved so much secrecy, and here he was, watching the team he was sending on that top-secret mission having a drama going on inside his Office.
He coughed to get their attention. The commotion died down as the Admiral's cough cut through.
"My apologies if I may interrupt your drama, but I want you all to listen here."
He said, raising the folder containing the U-Boat routes in the Southern Atlantic. "This portfolio contains the U-Boat sea routes. I want your team to capture one and bring it here to Naval Base Norfolk for inspection. We need the working enigma machine and Code Book."
Javelin, the curious one, raised a hand. "Umm Admiral, would it be easy for us to create our own machine to decipher the Enigma Codes?"
Adm. King pointed his finger at her. "That's a good question. Yes, we can, but the complexity of the code hinders some of the code breakers as the enigma codes change for the second time as somehow they found out that their underwater cables are being tapped."
"Why not ask William to make a Deciphering Machine to decipher the codes?" Lafayette asked.
"Yes, William can do that, but his attention and time are needed at a certain project regarding the Siren we captured. He can't spare the time to make one for us."
Unicorn spoke. "So you chose us to get an Enigma Machine along with its Code Book as the easiest option."
"Yes, Unicorn, it is the easiest amongst the options, yet the hardest one to achieve," he said in a grim undertone. "But..."
His optimism returned as he pointed at Lafayette. "Miss Enterprise has high hopes in you and your Team succeeding in this mission that seems easy on paper, but hard in actuality. Everyone here is anticipating your success." Adm. King said with full confidence in Lafayette's team to capture one of the U-Boats.
...
Atlantic Ocean, Cuba thousands of Kilometers away from Lafayette's ASW Division.
Several days had passed as they patrolled the recorded U-Boat routes. Lafayette's passive sonar was on high alert for any acoustic signature. Seahawks deployed their dipping Sonar from afar to maximize the searching area of their hunt.
Leading "Operation Drumbeat" was USS Lafayette, the Constellation Class Frigate. At the rear was HMS Unicorn launching Spitfires for Air-Cover.
Flanking both sides were USS Laffey-459, FNS Saint Louis (His Paladin), USS Hammann, USS Eldridge, HMS Javelin, USS Charles Ausburne, and the rest of the Beaver Squad.
They also brought USS Gridley, the Photographer of the Team. Pixar didn't exist yet.
This ASW Division was a 'Shark' in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. Their target was not just a 'Shark' in general, but one made of metal that had a length of 76.50m and a displacement of 1,178t submerged. They were all going 'Shark Hunting' with Depth Charges and Guided Torpedoes.
...
USS Hammann DD-412
Hammann was at the Bridge of her Ship, getting bored with the mission given to them. For the past few days, they still hadn't caught any acoustic signature lurking beneath. The few they got were just 'random' Siren Submarines, not their target.
Bored from not getting any action, pouting like a bored cat melting on the desk in total laziness, Hammann grabbed the radio and yelled, "Did you find anything, yet!"
Her voice boomed all over the network, as everyone was connected on one line: Lafayette's Link 16 Nato's member Data Link.
The Sonar Operators had their ears checked after her booming voice sounded through the CIC Room where everyone was deeply focused on their station.
Lafayette grabbed the nearest comms and responded while his ears rang. "No, we're not."
"We're sweeping the ocean for some damn days now!" her voice boomed again.
"You're not the only one dying here in boredom," Charles Ausburne's voice boomed from the other side of the comms.
Javelin's voice boomed following Charles' statement. "Come on guys... with a little bit of hope, we might be able to find one."
Laffey-459 on the radio. "Laffey is tired."
Saint Louis's radio, her monotone voice cutting through. "Sir Lafayette... the morale of the Fleet has sunk to the bottom each day passed. What should we do to continue such a task? We can't return empty-handed."
Lafayette, at his Ship's CIS, scratched his head in a frantic stroke as he too lost morale on the empty expanse of catching a WW2 Submarine by any chance. For the past few days, he never left his Ship's CIC in order to catch an acoustic signature of a U-Boat.
"I don't know... but we just have to push through. This mission was given to us." He lowered his head, a few inches from the comms' mic.
"More like a punishment," he muttered to himself. Then he returned to the comms. "Everyone on your positions... we can't just take this mission willy-nilly; this operation is crucial for future operations."
"Understood," Saint Louis's voice sounded on the comms before it was cut off.
Lafayette then returned to the task at hand without further delaying their mission to capture one U-Boat to get valuable intel about the new Enigma Codes that had been issued for the third time. As he returned his attention inside the CIC Room, all the Meowfficers and Manjuus were looking at him, his face looking sleep-deprived.
"At your stations... not on me. We can't let a single noise a U-Boat was making slide," he ordered them to return their attentions to their work stations.
Manjuus and Meowfficers returned their attentions to the various screens and monitors. The work was silent, yet some noise leaked from the command and operators relaying information at their stations.
The dim blue light of the CIC and the flickering monitors lit their focused faces, not blinking at the info fed on the screen. The eerie silence was profound until someone shouted about a finding at their station.
"Periscope detected, 20 mikes," the Aegis Radar Operator announced, catching the attention of everyone.
Lafayette hurriedly rushed to the station of the Radar Operator. "Location?" he urgently asked.
The Radar Operator quickly responded. "Northeast of our location, bearing 32.18688 clicks. I think it is submerging, Sir."
Then communication from Unicorn arrived as one of her Scout Planes spotted a submerging U-Boat. The Scout Plane was not attacked as it loitered above the submerging U-Boat.
"Send a Seahawk there, now!"
He grabbed the comms at the Communication Operator and contacted the Beaver Squad. "Beaver Squad, this is Lafayette. Target spotted: location Northeast, bearing 32.18688 km. This is our only chance, don't let it escape."
"Roger that."
The Beaver Squad, led by Charles Ausburne, went into action immediately for a one-time opportunity to catch a U-Boat.
Boilers were all lit up as the smoke stacks above the deck puffed dark smoke as the 5 Fletcher Class Destroyers steamed towards the location of the fleeing U-Boat.
He then contacted the whole Division. "All Ships turn to starboard."
And at that order given, the whole Division turned to starboard to follow the dispatched Beaver Squad.
...
~U-Boats Location~
A Blond-Hair Girl with a tight One-Piece Swimsuit, U-505, the Shipgirl of the U-Boat. Currently, she was in a hurry to submerge her Submarine from the hovering Spitfire above. It was truly bad luck for her as she was still charging her batteries before submerging.
From the start, she had called this War Patrol a misfortune, even though she disagreed with the High-Command of her position.
"Darn it! I shouldn't have taken that stupid! Stupid! Stupid! Commission!"
She vented all of her anger and frustration as she peeked through the periscope of her Submarine. The periscope swiveled from right to left as she searched for the upcoming Submarine Hunters dispatched to finish her off.
"Where are you..." She said to herself as she looked for the dispatched Ship or Shipgirl.
To her surprise, she didn't see any Shipgirls or Ships being deployed, but a peculiar shaped Aircraft with rotors rotating on top. She squinted her gaze at the approaching Aircraft; it didn't take long to recognize that approaching death machine from the previous U-Boats that had encountered it.
It was indoctrinated to them that if they saw this Aircraft coming at them, it meant they were the target, and there was nothing they could do to hide as the Aircraft knew where they were. Some proposed shooting it down with an AA-Gun and Deck-Gun before it unleashed its deadly payload.
She was now stuck in a situation where she needed to think fast if she wanted to survive the rest of her service life.
And with all the spite she harbored for this disastrous War Patrol, she recomposed herself and gathered some courage to face the flying death machine that terrorized the rest of the U-Boats.
"I am not going to be your prey for today!"
She boldly declared with a follow-up war-cry. Her Submarine dematerialized and condensed into a rigging form for her to ride on.
...
MH-60 Seahawk
The Pilot and its Co. Pilot radioed back to Lafayette as they reached the location of the said U-Boat. The Sonar Operator onboard pushed a button to lower the Dipping Sonar.
"Oiseau-1, we've reached the interception of the target U-Boat, over."
"Copy that, Oiseau-1, maintain your distance and keep your ears on the target."
"Roger that."
As the Seahawk deployed its dipping sonar to listen to the acoustic signature of the fleeing U-Boat, the cavitation and rise of air-bubbles was unexpected for the Sonar Operator, confusing the sonar readings.
U-505 broke through the surface of the ocean, guns raised, ranging from 10.5 cm (4.1 in) SK C/32 and 3.7 cm (1.5 in) SK C/30 AA all lit up.
"You'll never take me alive!" U-505 let out a war-cry as she opened fire with the lone Seahawk conducting ASW mission.
The Pilot noticed the surprise attack and immediately pulled the stick to its sides to avoid the hail of AA-fire coming from the U-Boat that boldly showed itself by attacking its hunter.
AA-Rounds punctured the Air-Frame of the Seahawk and destroyed various Electrical Equipment onboard, even the Sonar Equipment.
The Pilot radioed back. "This is Oiseau-1, we received heavy fire from a U-Boat's AA-Fire. I repeat we received a hea----"
"Tail Rotor is out. We're losing control!"
The Co. Pilot said, as the sudden shudder from the Air-Frame was caused by the Tail-Rotor being hit by Air-Burst Shells.
"Mayday, mayday, mayday we received a hit, Tail-Rotor is out. I repeat, Tail-Rotor is out."
The Pilot urgently radioed about the situation as the Seahawk lost control and spun around uncontrollably before plunging into the ocean. The rotors broke apart as it turned over.
"At last!...." U-505 celebrated her unexpected victory against an aerial opponent. "I did it, I defeated one of those flying demons!" she boldly stated with a raised fist in the air.
"I did it, U-556, I did it, I downed one with my own guns." She said as tears fell down from her cheeks as she and the others remembered how U-556 fell in one of these flying demons.
U-556 was the first of the U-Boats that had been defeated by Lafayette's Seahawks conducting ASW, when the Carrier Strike was ambushed by a pack of U-Boats. Before that could happen, Lafayette eliminated U-556 to break the U-Boats' morale of pursuing their mission.
And now U-505 was commemorating her victory at U-556's behalf, as she had downed one of the Seahawks. But her celebration was too early, as another chopping sound resonated further away than her eyes could reach.
As she turned to the location of the sound, her eyes widened as she saw a projectile being shot at her. The only thing she saw was one of the other hovering Aircraft and a projectile firing some sort of rocket at her. Then the projectile hit the rear of her Submarine Rigging.
She was blown out of the water as the explosion and follow-up shockwave threw her several meters away, knocking her out cold in the waters.
Her Submarine Rigging turned into an actual Submarine as the damage ruptured some components. Rear Ballast-Tanks were destroyed and submerged below the waves; the Front Ballast-Tanks were not damaged, and it was the only thing keeping the whole Submarine floating as the front bow was lifted up.
...
2nd Seahawk POV
"Mayday, mayday, mayday we received a hit, Tail-Rotor is out. I repeat, Tail-Rotor is out."
The comms boomed as Oiseau-1 took a direct hit at its Tail-Rotor and lost control, now spinning uncontrollably before plunging into the ocean.
"Copy, Oiseau-1, this is Oiseau-2, we're on our way to your location." The Pilot radioed at the distress call from one of the Seahawks.
"Target position?"
The Co. Pilot pushed some buttons and fiddled with the LCD Screen. The chin-mounted FLIR (Forward Looking Infrared) Range Finder focused its High-Resolution Optic Camera at the Shipgirl below.
"Target position: acquired. Waiting further orders," the Co. Pilot said.
The Pilot and its Co. Pilot waited for the response back from USS Lafayette; they both waited for the confirmation to open fire at the now hostile target.
"Fire."
"Target: Confirmed. Authorization: Confirmed." The Pilot said, following protocols for engaging hostile targets.
"Weapons free, open fire."
"Roger that, weapons free, open fire." The Co. Pilot confirmed before launching its AGM-114 Hellfire Missile at the clueless target below.
At the Missile racks, the solid rocket fuel behind the missile ignited and propelled the AGM-114 Hellfire Missile to its intended target.
"Target confirmed. Target is taken out of action and now floating unconscious. Orders?" the Pilot asked for further instruction.
"How's Oiseau-1?" Lafayette on the line, asked for the crew of the shot-down Seahawk.
"Oiseau-1 Crew evacuated in time, life rafts are currently being deployed. Orders?" the Pilot asked for further orders.
"Rescue Oiseau-1 Crew and the U-Boat's Shipgirl."
"Roger that."
...
CIC, USS Lafayette
Lafayette walked back and forth behind the Communication Operator's station as he anticipated some good news regarding what seemed to be a failed mission to capture their objective: a working Enigma Machine along with its Code Book.
That thing was now a pipe dream as the U-Boat they were currently engaging sustained proportional damage to its Rear Ballast-Tanks and was now sinking.
The Beaver Squad was currently towing the sinking U-Boat from its rear. They were all careful with their speed; they didn't want that thing to sink to the bottom with all the needed contents still inside the U-Boat.
And half of his Damage Repair Team were inside the U-Boat as they tried to revive its engine and other components to pump out the waters from the Rear Ballast-Tanks and engine compartment.
Unlike their counterparts back in the 1940s, who went inside the sinking Submarine with Balls of Steel, this time they brought Portable Water Pumps for pumping out waters from the Crew Compartment and Engine Compartment.
"Submarine is stable... systems are all online. Sinking is prevented and now it can sail on its own power," the Communication Operator said after receiving the confirmation of the U-Boat's status.
Lafayette let out a deep sigh as it gave him time to breathe with all the tension he'd been feeling. If the mission had gone south, they would have lost the U-Boat along with its functioning Enigma Machine and Code Book.
"Thank god... it worked," he said to himself.
"Sir, mission success. We managed to capture an intact U-Boat along with its working Enigma Machine and Code Book inside. The bonus part is the Shipgirl we captured along didn't received substantial damage only knocked out," the CO (Meowfficer) said.
Lafayette looked at the gathering Manjuus and Meowfficers as they waited for him to announce the successful Mission and that they could all return to port for RnR.
"They are waiting for your announcement, sir," the CO said as it handed him the Radio Comms.
Lafayette had a bitter taste saying the word "Mission Accomplish" as he saw in the footage how that Shipgirl got obliterated by a single AGM-114 Hellfire Missile. He needed to announce it to them, as for the conclusion of their mission, the Girls and the Crew waited for this, and he needed to give it to them.
"For the past few days, we endured here inside this room, listening for a glimmer of hope of finding our target to accomplish one mission. We worked hard, we operated as one like a well-oiled machine. Today... I announce the success of the mission of capturing one U-Boat, and the objective we needed inside."
He paused to look at his crew's reaction to his speech; they all had the same patriotic look.
"Mission Accomplished, everyone, let's all go home."
The CIC Room was filled with clapping paws and wings from the Manjuus and Meowfficers; some just whistled in celebration. The room that was usually filled with professionalism and efficiency was now loud and booming with all the cheering and applause.
It was a mission accomplished for everyone, but for him, the action he took would leave a scar. He couldn't hurt someone his age, but nonetheless, a girl.
He hung his head low, the cheering muted in the background as it reminded him of the U-Boats he first encountered, how he was forced to use force on them in order to save the others. The trailing cries still lingered inside his head.