Kirov III: Pacific Storm

that chart you displayed it will take a little more than a few missiles to dissuade him. And so, gentlemen, we will run. I have no intention of engaging this ship unless we are forced to do so. Soon we will have darkness on our side.”

“We will be entering the Arafura Sea now, sir, but ahead lies the Torres Strait.”

“Another bottleneck,” said Volsky. “Very well. Let’s get up around this cape and see if we can slip by this monster. Then it is into the Arafura Sea, and God only knows what lies ahead once we pass the Torres Strait.”

Part IV Thunder Gods

“Never had the gods of all the tribes
put upon the seas such monsters
as man now sends over them.
Their steel bowels, grinding and rumbling
below the splash of the sea,
are fed on quarried rock.
Their arteries are steel, their nerves copper,
their blood red and blue flames.
With the precedence of the supernatural
they peer into space.
Their voices scream through gales,
and they whisper together over 1000 miles of sea.
They reach out and destroy
that which the eye of man cannot perceive.”

~ Homer Lea, The Valor of Ignorance

Chapter 10

Captain Sanji Iwabuchi was growing impatient, and impatience in a man of his disposition became a real vice in short order. Kiyota’s cruisers had been badly overmatched. The loss of Haguro stung him like a whip lash on his face, and he was quick to pass the pain along to any man near him.

“A shameful display,” he said to his executive officer, Koro Ono. “Our forces were scattered. We had no chi in the attack. This ghost dancer appears from thin air, neh? What ship is this, Ono? Surely not an American battleship cruising alone in these waters.”

“It must be British, sir. They are trying to reinforce the Australians. It could have come out of the Indian Ocean while we were assembling for this operation north of Timor Island, and before our submarine picket lines were deployed. It might even have reached Darwin and is only now sent fleeing from its hole to avoid being sunk by Admiral Hara’s planes.”

“Yes, and we are supposed to be shelling that place at this very moment!” Iwabuchi’s dour face clearly indicated his displeasure.

“Kiyota has a good name for this one,” said Ono. “Mizuchi—the ancient sea dragon. He says it took the bow off Haguro with just one bite, and engaged them at well over 30,000 yards with secondary batteries.”

“That is nonsense!” Iwabuchi fumed. “We will see how this ship fights soon enough. In the meantime, what about Hara’s carriers? It would be best if we could coordinate a strike with this engagement. Signal him at once.”

Ono bowed, and was off to the radio room to send a coded message. When he returned his face was set, lips tight, and he saluted before he spoke. “Sir, Admiral Hara reports that his task force is now experiencing force 7 winds with worsening conditions and severe thunder storms. He has elected not to launch another strike wave under those conditions.”

Iwabuchi just looked at him, his jaw tightening, eyes narrowed and threatening. He had been known to kill the messenger on more than one occasion, but he composed himself, staring ahead at the relatively calm seas in front of them.

“Ship ahead! Thirty degrees south.” The call came down from the high pagoda mast. Three bridge officers raised binoculars, and one man was already working out an estimated range.

“About 30,000 yards,” he said and the Captain grunted.

“Sir,” Ono continued. “Admiral Hara suggests we shadow this ship and keep contact throughout the night. Our bombardment mission to Darwin is canceled and we are herewith detached to pursue this vessel.”

“Detached? What about the invasion?”

“Sir, Admiral Hara still has Tone and five destroyers. And he has Mutsu and Nagato with the second wave troops coming out of Amboina and Kendari as well.”

“Yes, I hear he haggled with Yamamoto for them, and was even trying to get his hands on Musashi!”

“The plan has changed, Captain,” Ono continued. “The first wave troops out of Kupang are also experiencing high seas. They will be delayed enough by this weather to make a rendezvous with the second wave troops more feasible. Hara now plans to land both waves at once, and use the ships he has for cover. We are detached to pursue this British battleship, but the Admiral plans to operate his carriers well east of Darwin tomorrow morning, where he can support both the landings there and our action in the Arafura Sea.”

“Then we are to chase this Mizuchi and hold on to his tail,” said Iwabuchi. “So be it.” He looked darkly at the bridge crew. “Range to target?”

“Sir, we estimate 28,000 yards, but they are turning to Starboard now, running just north of that cape. The range is opening. They appear to be very fast.”

Iwabuchi raised his field glasses, eyes puckered, and finally saw the distant enemy ship himself. Hara was probably correct not to launch now, he thought. It would be another hour before the planes got here, and then he would be faced with a recovery operation in high seas and gale force winds. All the better for me, he realized.

“So this ship is fast,” he said. “Then it is not one of their old fat battleships. It must be a battlecruiser—most likely the Renown. Or perhaps even one of their newest ships.”

“We still have Nachi and Myoko, sir,” said Ono. “They have taken five or six light caliber hits each, but only one gun has been put out of action on Myoko, and there is no flooding or damage to the engines on either ship. We have the speed to keep this ship in sight, sir, and we can run all night before the wind.”

Iwabuchi liked the sound of that, and allowed himself a taut smile. “Gunnery officer!” Commander Kimitake Koshino was quickly at his side, bowing respectfully. “Fire at that ship. Both forward batteries. We will let them know we are coming.”

~ ~ ~

The first salvo came in short by over 1000 meters, and well off their port quarter, but Volsky noted how tight the splash pattern was, and the odd blue color of the water when the shells landed.