Submersible Witches Quest 07

http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive/19535331

Submersible Witches 7: The Wizards of Oz

	As an enlisted servicewoman in the USN, you've faced challenges. Dealing with training. Putting up with officers. Surviving Pearl Harbor. Living on a Submarine. Testing dangerous new equipment. Being captured and tortured. Though some might argue that a few are your own fault (enlisting, volunteering for testing, etc.), generally they were things thrust upon you by fate, consequences you couldn't possibly have foreseen.

	This one is your own damned stupid fault.

	"Fuck!" you curse, frustrated with yourself. What is it with these Martians and buttons? Everything's a god damned button. Each and everyone one could have done just about anything and you just had to go and push the big red one. Now your minisub with an open hatch is sinking fast, and you can't even move around well because those Strikers you barely know how to use have sucked your legs into hammerspace.
	With an awkward leap, you remove yourself from the control console and land underneath the entry hatch you dented on your way in. Taking a precious moment to examine the hatch's controls, you confirm your fears: more buttons. Luckily, there are only two major ones, and one is lit. Taking a chance, you mash the unlit one, trying not to get any salt water in your eyes as it splashes in. The hatch moves to cover the hole in the top of the sub, latching with what should have been a water-tight "ping!" After your solid punch, the edges of the circular hole aren't flush with the hatch. There's now an ever so slight gap in the seal. Water continues to wash over the top of the hatch, but now it's just a drip and not buckets spilling in.

	This isn't looking good. An alarm sounds as covers extend over the windows at the front and rear of the sub, protecting them from the pressure the sub is expected to deal with. The sub is now completely submerged and still diving. Your friends on the Yukikaze are still threatened by enemy commandos. You can't read any of the controls, Socks is playing dead, you're about a week out from Brisbane, and if you take any longer repelling the Martian intrusion they might get tired and just decide to destroy your flotilla instead of trying to recover their property.

	What do you do?

[x] Seal the hatch with magic.
[-] Yell at Socks until he listens.
[-] Try the red button again.
[ ] Try any OTHER button.
[ ] Other.

	As the sub dives deeper, the drip turns into a stream. If this keeps up, your sub is going to be real wet real fast. Gritting your teeth, you throw up a shield just below the hatch proper, replacing its part in the pressure seal with your own magical stopgap. It'll hold for awhile, thanks to your improved efficiency due to the Strikers, but you're still sinking. The control console's dazzling array of blinking buttons and displays is intimidating, but you know you're going to have to use it if you want to get out of here alive. That said, you aren't about ready to go pressing buttons again. Not without trying to talk to the only person that knows how to use this thing.

	[Socks!] you call out, trying to take hold of the now faint link between your minds. [Socks, I need your help!]

	He doesn't answer. In fact, you don't feel anything at all from the link. Under pressure, you decide you've little time to wait here, calling his name with your mind.

	"Maybe it's a toggle," you wonder aloud. Even as you say it, you get a sinking feeling in the pit of your stomach. "God, I have to be the most desperate idiot..." you mutter as you carefully head back to the console, keeping the shield up as you do. Wincing, you press the red button again.

	For a moment, you feel lighter. The sub is sinking even faster now.

	"Why me!?" you complain.

[ ] Socks better get his head out of the gutter and HELP.
[x] Frantically press buttons.
[ ] EJECT...how deep are you, anyway?
[x] Other. - Blue Button

	If your current desperation is even a fraction of what Yetta felt on the Tullibee, then the first thing you're going to do if (when, you tell yourself. When) you survive this is give her more hugs. Your adrenaline is pumping. If there's even a tiny chance that you can make this sub float again, it's your solemn duty to raise it and help win the war. Steeling yourself, you banish your panic from your mind and again examine the console. As far as you know, the Martians see something like normal colors. Red is obviously bad, so blue must be good, right?

	Hoping blue doesn't mean "Self Destruct" or anything wild, you push the little blue button. The internal lighting of the sub dims somewhat as a volumetric display comes to life. A realistic image of the globe with various markings (general positions of troops, you realize) sits in the middle of the display. Mystified, you watch as the display zooms in on your current location off the coast of New Guinea. A dot marks your current position, several red square mark the surface ships of the flotilla, and...oh wow.

	If this display is to scale, then the Harbinger is one hell of a beast. The display zooms in on your new point of interest, presumably following your eyes. Well off the coast of New Guinea, a giant model resembling a lumpy pointed triangle lingers near the surface. You think you can make out the roof of the hanger you escaped from. If you're right, that puts the thing at nearly 2km long and 500m wide at its base. This thing is massive, and the string of blue dots between it and your position tells you there's reinforcements on the way.

	A drop of water wakes you from your thoughts. You redouble your concentration, renewing the shield holding back the mighty ocean. That was interesting and all (and promising; somehow this sub is getting real-time troop movements), but you're still going to drown.

	[SOCKS!] you yell, forcing the dormant link open. [IF YOU DON'T WANT TO END UP AS DELICIOUS CALAMARI THE MOMENT YOU STEP BACK ONTO HUMAN SOIL, YOU WILL SAVE MY FUCKING LIFE!]

	[Kuykendall!?] comes a surprised response, faint but unmistakeable. [I- I cannot talk right no-]

	[ARE YOU KIDDING ME!? I'M DROWNING ON THIS STUPID SUB OF YOURS.]

	[These boarders are using suppression weapons, psionic noise generators designed to assault the mi- Did you say you're on the sub?] You feel a pang of pain through the connection as his mental defenses start to buckle under the noise. [Sorry, I...]

	Well, shit.

[x] Suck it up, sunshine. I need help.
[x] Maybe Miranda can help?
[ ] Other.

	[You're going to have to suck it uAAAAAAA] you scream mentally as his defenses buckle and a painfully-familiar sensation begins to surge through your head. You involuntarily cut the connection between your minds, freeing yourself from the blinding pain and bringing you back to your tiny sub. A horrific sound echos through it as you realize your shield has nearly disappeared, your concentration broken by the noise generators. You throw your magical weight behind it again, and the sub grows silent once more.

	<Miranda?> you ask cautiously, as if it might be possible for the pain to leak to you through her as well. <Are you there?>

	<Yes!? Cleo, what is going on? Socks is going crazy, he's grabbing at his head->

	<I know! I know. The commandos have psionic noise generators, he said. They're attacking his mind and I need him to talk to me if I'm going to get out of this intact. Can you help?>

	<I don't know, Cleo. I mean, how do these things work? If they planted them on the ship to force him out, then even repelling all these commandos won't help.>

	<Then do what they want. Get him off the ship!>

	<How, Cleo? I'm not- Oh no. No no no. I don't know how to use those things. I'm liable to crash us into the ocean and you can't swim with Strikers on!>

	<Then get someone else to do it! There's one, maybe two lives on the line here!>

	<...Who, then?>

[ ] You, Miranda
[ ] Yetta
[ ] Rae
[ ] Other

	You seriously don't have time for this. You've an ocean over your head and your magic is draining fast. <I don't know! Anyone! Rae! Get Rae to, she'll have a blast.>

	<Rae? One minute.> That's a minute you don't have.

	<Alright, she'll do it, Cleo. She's getting the Strikers on right now. Which pair did you take?>

	<The normal ones.>

	<...Oh boy. Well, she's heading out. I hope you know what you're doing...> she says worryingly.

	<So do I.>

	You sit still for a few agonizing seconds, not much to focus on but your probably-doomed sub and the shield that's just barely holding back the water. The volumetric display pulses as the blue dots get closer and closer to your flotilla, offering the only distraction from your situation. Concentrating, you can see that the blue dots are probably small aircraft, the ones you saw sitting in the hanger before you left. It'll be some time before they arrive, but the distance is steadily closing...

	[..yendall. Kuykendall. Kuykendall!] A reassuring (strange that a Martian could make you feel that way) mind contacts yours; Socks is finally out of range of the generators. [What did you tell them to do? This is insanity.]

	[I told them to get your Martian ass out of there so you could get to getting me to not die,] you sputter. [I kept hitting the big red button but it only made things worse!]

	You feel his disbelief. [...You pushed the big red button? Kuykendall, that is the emergency dive button!]

	[Yeah, I figured that part out. Thanks, Socks.]

	He lets out a mental groan. [Still, why is this a problem? The submarine is designed for very deep oceans, much deeper than here.]

	[I, uh...dented the hatch on my way in.]

	If he were in front of you, you have no doubt his face would be scrunched up in anger at your poor decisions.

	[Look, I need help piloting this thing!]

	[...Alright. Here, you should be able to now.]

	[What?] you begin, confused. [Oh.]

	The meaningless scratches and marks that indicate what each button does suddenly make sense to you. Things like "Depth Control," "Rudder," and "Speed" are marked clearly, and the text on the Big Red Button makes more sense. "Emergency Dive – Do Not Press" would have helped earlier. Taking the controls, you surface the sub, slowly.

	[Thanks, Socks! You have no idea how worried I was...] you sigh, glad to finally be free of that trap. You let down your shield and nothing but fading daylight comes through.

	[You are welcome. If I am to survive in a somewhat civilized manner once your authorities have me, I will need to have you by my side. I can hardly let you die.]

	Well, glad to know you're needed, you guess. You turn back to the volumetric display. The blue dots are nearly upon you...

[ ] Get everybody and the stuff together, it's time to blow this joint, and the sub is your ticket out.
[x] Get in the air. A witch is a witch, and magic can still fuck up some Martians.
[x] Other. - Alert the fleet

	They're getting very, very close, which is not good news at all. The flotilla needs to know.

	<Lt. Cmdr. Ito, are you listening?> you ask, probing the magical airwaves. There's a small pause before you get a response.

	<Yes. You sound like you're having fun, Chief Kuykendall,> comes an irritating voice.

	<...There are numerous enemies coming in, looks like aircraft. Please alert the relevant authorities.>

	<How do you know?>

	<Sub has some sort of troop movement display in it, they're coming in fast.>

	Ito is silent for a minute. You take this chance to open the windows of the sub and guide it back towards the fleet. <The other ships have been alerted and a patrol squadron diverted. We'll have some backup.>

	<Glad to hear it. Where do you want me to park this thing?>

	<The sub? Anywhere but the Yukikaze, these Martians are still hiding on board.>

	Well, you've got the pick of the litter.

[ ] The Jintsu. It's a Cruiser, and we did get an invitation from the Admiral...
[ ] The Mikazuki, a destroyer like the Yukikaze.
[ ] The Satsuki, a destroyer transport. It probably has enough troops aboard to prevent another recapture.
[ ] Other.

	<I'll take it to the Jintsu. Hopefully it'll be able to protect the sub from air attack better than the destroyers.>

	You direct the sub towards the light cruiser, flagship of the fleet. After some time, you manage to draw along side it. A nervous crew eyes the sub cautiously, not entirely convinced that this is a friendly vessel. When you pop your head out of the bothersome hatch, you keep yourself ready to project a shield in case any have a loose trigger finger.

	"Hello, cute Japanese boy! Can you help me?" you say in a bad imitation accent. Oh well. They didn't understand you anyway. You mime pulling on a rope and one of them gets it. They toss down several heavy ropes with metal hooks, nearly hitting you. Grumbling, you hook one to the hatch, another to the window covers, and another to the rear. Satisfied that it will ride high enough in the water to avoid sinking, you climb the now-sturdy ropes up and onto the deck of the Jintsu.

	"Hello, CPO Kuykendall. I hear you have bad news for us," greets the Admiral.

	"Heh, I guess now would be a bad time to get a tour of your quarters, sir?" you ask, chuckling. "There are several Martian aircraft headed this way, the sub showed them on some sort of troop display. They'll be here any moment."

	"So it is true. This submarine could tell us all we needed to know about Martian deployments! It's more important than ever to bring this back to a safe location," he exclaims, his eyes gleaming. "Ah, but first, we must survive this attack." He turns to the crew and orders them in Japanese. They go about, returning to duties interrupted by your arrival. "I will command the fleet from here. CPO Kuykendall, what will you do?"

[ ] Take to the skies
[ ] Man the guns
[x] Retake the Yukikaze
[x] Other -Get Socks and Rae safe

	"The Yukikaze's still got problems, and the rest of my group is back there. Watch the sub, Admiral. I'm going to help get rid of those commandos," you answer.

	"Of course. Good luck." He snaps a salute with a smile. You return it, then jump over the railing of the Jintsu. This time, you have more luck with the Strikers and take flight much higher up than before. Scanning the scattered ships of the flotilla, you spot the Yukikaze and head over. Above it, several hundred yards to the side, you spot a dot. As you approach, you realize it's Rae, still holding Socks.

	"CLEO, WHAT THE HELL AM I DOING OUT HERE!?" yells Rae.

	"SAVING MY LIFE YOU FLUNKY!" you yell back.

	"FLUNKY? I PASSED MY CLASSES!"

	"WHATEVER. THERE'S A BUNCH OF MARTIAN FIGHTERS HEADED THIS WAY, GET TO THE JINTSU. MAKE SURE NO ONE TRIES TO KILL SOCKS!"

	"FINE! ALSO, HOLY CRAP THESE STRIKERS ARE RIDICULOUS."

	You watch as Rae zooms off, a little more at home in the air than yourself. Carrying Socks in her arms, you can't help but imagine her as some sort of interspecies groom, carrying her Martian bride. You laugh. [Socks, stick close to Rae. We've got fighters coming in.]

	[As long as I am off that ship, I shall be fine.]

	[Good. I'm going to go help the Yukika-]

	The air in front of you seems to melt and twist. The heat causes you to instantly drop several meters, trying to avoid being cooked. Searching the skies, you figure out what just happened. The Martians have arrived.

	You zoom down to the Yukikaze, almost crashing onto the deck and smashing into a Martian that had just popped his head out. With little remorse, you slam him into a wall, making him drop his weapon. You notice that your headache has returned, probably the psionic noise generators Socks was talking about.

	"Cleo! Oh, you're alright!" says Miranda, cautiously popping her head out of a hatch nearby. "We needed to move, the Martians were searching the entire ship for us," she explains.

	"Glad to see you're still in one piece. Is that Yetta back there?" You think you see her still inside, probably covering their six.

	"Yes. Lt. Cmdr. Ito has the crew split up into groups of 4, trying to cleanse the ship. They haven't had much luck, though there are probably 3 or 4 less commandos if the gunshots are anything to go by."

	You nod. "Well, the Martians finally got some fighters in the air. They nearly scorched me. We need to get the Yukikaze clean and these AA guns up and running-"

	BOOM! An explosion rips one of the Yukikaze's main guns from her deck, ruining her armor and exposing ammunition to fire. A Martian fighter screams overhead, the sound of it rushing past almost deafening. That seems odd to you.

	"We need to get away from the gun! If that ammunition cooks off, it won't be pleasant!" you yell.

	"We've got the last pair of Strikers right here," Yetta says, pointing to her back. "I don't think the  Yukikaze will be doing much more than some damage control..."

	Another explosion rattles the ship as some ammunition cooks off. Miraculously, the entire pile doesn't detonate and the Yukikaze keeps steaming on.

	"I think you're right. We need to get off." Some of the crew break off the hunt to fight the fires, but many are worried about the ammunition. Faced with little choice, though, they join in after a few moments pause.

[x] Join the fight against the fire
[ ] Carry them to the Jintsu, one at a time
[ ] Other

	The sight of the crew desperately fighting the flames gets you. You can't just abandon ship while others still have hope...though the two Martians leaping past you and into the ocean seem to have no qualms about leaving.

	"...Dammit. Yetta, Miranda, we have to help," you say. "We can use our shields to smother the flames."

	"That's...an interesting idea, actually," Miranda says. "If we can cut off the oxygen supply, whatever's left will burn up and the fire should go out. We've got to make sure we block it off entirely, though..."

	"Um...actually, we could just smother the flames enough for Damage Control to take over," adds Yetta. "If we contain the flames, they should be able to put them out before more ammunition goes off."

	"Brilliant. Let's do it." You carefully float forward, following the other two as they run towards the blaze. Crew members have begun fighting the fire in earnest while the sky is filled with flak. Hoses are pointed at the fire, sea water being sprayed onto the ship. The deck gun, while not as large as a Battleship's, is still an impressive thing to see laying on its side, mangled. Nodding, you all get as close as you can, projecting overlapping shields over the fire.

	"I sure hope these don't cook off while we're here..." says Miranda.

	"Don't worry. If they do, we've got shields in front of us," Yetta says through gritted teeth.

	You just focus on blocking the flames. The water from the hoses begins to gather in your concave shields, worrying some of the Japanese crew members. Intimidated by you witches, however, they keep their distance and merely continue spraying.

	"I think it's working. Look, the flames don't seem nearly as large," you comment. Indeed, they seem much less worrisome, though the wreckage you can now see a little more clearly is littered with shells and twisted metal. "I think we can let the water drop now."

	With a quick count to three, you all release your shields at the same time, dumping hundreds of gathered gallons on top of the pile at once. The flames are washed away as sea water rushes over the ruined deck.

	"We did it!" Yetta exlaims, celebrating. Behind her, you see a trio of Martian fighters forming up for another hit on the Yukikaze.

	"WATCH OUT!" you yell.

[ ] Hit the deck
[ ] Take flight
[ ] Other

	You look around the deck for something, anything. Your M1911 isn't exactly the best AA weapon and you need to take these guys out before they hit the Yukikaze again. Your eyes come to a round of ammunition, still smoldering on top of the rubble. In an instant you close the distance, picking up the burning hot round. It would normally burn your skin, but the ever-useful magic shield protects you.

	"Cleo, what are you doing!? You can't possibly be thinking of throwing that at them!" yells Miranda.

	"I'm a qualified marksman," you reply. You put your arm back, winding up for the pitch, and...you thrust it forward with magically-enhanced strength. The round spins in the air like a football, staying true. It whistles like a demon bat from hell, and in a split second it impacts the lead fighter. The chunk of metal slams through the cockpit and the fighter dips down into the ocean in a magnificent crash. You'd take a moment to gloat, but the two other fighters are still coming in.

	No time left for another lucky throw, you raise your arms, projecting a massive but weak shield in an attempt to blunt their attack. They hurtle closer and closer...

	Suddenly the repetitious pounding of aircraft guns fills the air. The Martian fighters are battered from the side and erupt into flames as a pair of planes sweep across your vision. The Human fighters break off, coming around for another pass at the Martians but there's no need. Their craft crash into the ocean on either side of the damaged Yukikaze. A witch circles the ship, scanning the skies before landing.

	"Never fear!" she says. "The Wizards of Oz are here!"

NEXT TIME ON SUBMERSIBLE WITCHES: THE LAND OF OZ – MONDAY 9PM EST 8PM CST
SEE YOU THEN