---
Even with jets soaring overhead, Reeve knew the backbone of his domain would always be the navy.
Airpower could project, surveil, and strike. But control? Control came from ships. Steel hulls. Blue-water fleets. And soon, the shadow of submarines.
The morning began in the Shipyard Operations Center. The digital interface flickered to life as Reeve reviewed newly unlocked options following HQ Level 5.
---
> SHIPYARD STATUS: ONLINE (Tier II)
New Build Classes Available:
1. Formidable-Class Frigate (Singapore Navy) Role: Multirole / Anti-Air / Stealth Displacement: 3,200 tons Armament:
1x 76mm OTO Melara Super Rapid Gun
8x RGM-84 Harpoon Missiles
32-cell Aster SAM VLS
2x Triple Torpedo Tubes (ASW)
Thales Herakles Radar System Features: Stealth Profile, ECM Suite, Helicopter Deck Build Time: 16 Hours Cost: 2,400 Steel | 1,600 Electronics | 300 Gold
[Queued: Formidable 01 - Callsign: "Lion"]
---
2. Type-212A Submarine (German Navy) Role: Diesel-Electric Attack Submarine Displacement: 1,800 tons (Submerged) Range: 15,000 km (AIP + Battery Systems) Armament:
6x 533mm Torpedo Tubes (DM2A4 or UGM-84 capability)
Mines (Optional Loadout)
Recon Buoy Deployment Module Stealth Rating: High Features: Air Independent Propulsion (AIP), Advanced Sonar Net Build Time: 18 Hours Cost: 2,800 Steel | 1,500 Electronics | 400 Gold
[Queued: U-01 – Callsign: "Shade"]
---
Reeve leaned back. Two warships. One for surface control. One for underwater superiority.
"Everything starts with these," he said.
Keira stood beside him, cross-referencing fuel projections. "Logistics can handle it. Convoys are ahead of quota. We're even surplus on electronics for once. We've got the steel—we just need the hours."
"Then we wait, arm, and plan."
---
> CURRENT NAVAL FORCE – FLEET ROSTER
Frigates:
Brandenburg (Lead – Heavy Missile Loadout, Sensor Suite Upgrade)
Mistral (Patrol – CIWS & AA Focus)
Hammerhead 01 (Corvette – Fast Intercept)
Hammerhead 02 (Corvette – Flank Skirmisher)
Formidable 01 "Lion" (Multirole – [Under Construction])
Support Vessels:
Atlas-Class Cargo x3
Swift-Class Light Freighter x1
Air Assets:
SU-30N "Spectre" (Multirole Jet)
NH90 ASW Helicopter (Modular Loadout)
Subsurface:
U-01 "Shade" (Type-212A Submarine – [Under Construction])
---
By late afternoon, the framework of the Formidable was already forming on Drydock Platform 3. The sleek, angular hull was painted matte gray with radar-absorbing coatings, while internal modules were slotting in via robotic arms.
Below the yard, in the flooded assembly trench, U-01's pressure hull was being sealed. AIP modules were installed by precision drones, while the sonar net began calibration through deep-ping loops.
> FORMIDABLE 01 – Completion ETA: 11 hours U-01 SHADE – Completion ETA: 13 hours
---
In parallel, the Sonar Command Node went live, synchronized with passive acoustic buoys and the Type-212's towed array. The base's underwater awareness expanded to 80 nautical miles.
Keira flagged a new signal off Sector Delta-3.
"Could be deep-dwelling wildlife. Could be something worse."
Reeve studied the waveform. "Mark it. U-01's first mission is recon sweep of that signal. No contact. Just observation."
> MISSION PREP: Submarine Patrol Route "Phantom Drift" Objective: Identify unknown contact Region: Delta-3 (Deep Thermal Layer) ROE: Observe Only – No Engagement Assets: U-01 (Post-Launch)
---
By the next dawn, Formidable 01 "Lion" slid into the water.
Her sensors came online. The Herakles radar bloomed into a 3D airspace map, capturing cloud-layer turbulence and potential cruise missile vectors.
> WEAPON SYSTEMS READY:
76mm SRG: Calibrated
Harpoon Batteries: Live
Aster VLS: Programmed
ASW Tubes: Loaded with DM2A4 Torpedoes
"She's a damn queen," Keira murmured.
"She's fleet command now," Reeve agreed. "Brandenburg gets moved to escort. 'Lion' takes point."
He assigned her as task force flagship for long-range interdiction missions.
---
Three hours later, U-01 "Shade" surfaced briefly at Dock Two. No ceremony. No flash. Just steel and silence.
Her black hull shimmered with condensation. The conning tower bore no markings. Inside, the AI system "KRIEG" initialized and ran through full spectrum diagnostics.
> U-01 STATUS: LAUNCHED Torpedoes: DM2A4 (6 Loaded) Range: 15,000 km Acoustic Signature: Extremely Low Mission Status: Assigned – Phantom Drift
Reeve gave the final order: "Deploy. Maintain comm silence. Surface only if compromised."
U-01 submerged.
The sea took her.
---
By midday, Fort Sentinel had a surface strike group, air recon, and a hunter-killer asset beneath the waves.
> STRATEGIC FORCE STATUS – DAY 11
Air: SU-30N (Sortie Ready), NH90 Surface: 5 Warships (1x Multirole Frigate, 1x Frigate, 2x Corvette, 1x Patrol) Subsurface: Type-212A
Next Objectives:
Build 2nd SU-30N (Pair Flight Operations)
Expand Sonar Net to Full Coastal Grid
Begin Drydock Upgrade (HQ 6 Prep for Destroyer-Class Ships)
Advance R&D for Aegis-Class Systems
Monitor Contact in Delta-3
Reeve stood on the Command Tower, watching the Lion cut the sea in a smooth arc.
It was only the beginning.
Air above. Teeth on the surface. Shadows below.
And soon?
Dominance.
---
[End of Chapter Thirteen]