"Connecticut was summoned?" Louisiana's voice was foggy with shock and surprise, eyes beginning to mist with tears of happiness. "When? Where?"

  "I was informed a few days ago about her summoning," Admiral Jeffery spoke from behind his desk. "As it was during your retrofit, I decided to wait until after it was completed before informing you."

  A slight frown grew on my face. I could read enough between the lines. Louisiana couldn't be told, and he didn't want to bother me with even more stress. Which was, fair, as painful as it was to admit.

  "As for where," he paused for a moment as if about to chuckle. "Kathrine should be quite familiar with the base."

  Wait. What? I should be familiar? But I've only been on one other shipgirl base in my life! That would mean!

  "She's been summoned by Admiral Kenneth?" I struggled to keep from shouting out the words in shock as Admiral Jeffery nodded. "In Florida?"

  "Florida? She was summoned on the other side of the country? How are you planning on getting her here?" Louisiana voiced my questions out loud, beating me to the punch.

  "At the moment, we're still working on things. While an ocean route is possible, and the least time-consuming option given the Panama Canel, Admiral Kenneth doesn't have the numbers to provide a sufficient screening force without critically compromising his patrol duties," Admiral Jeffery frowned, and I understood his concern.

  While the Gulf of Mexico, alongside the Caribbean Sea, had been entirely purged of Abyssal's once the United States and Mexican Navy's had enough spare shipgirls to do so, it wasn't unheard of for a submarine, or even a small surface to slip in through the cracks. An old Predreadnaught would be an appealing target for an Abyssal submarine, even with a screen.

  Then there was the Panama Canel itself, which had been the focus of a large number of Abyssal's during the early days, even being overrun, but the people of Panama had extracted an extremely red toll against the Abyssal's for every inch of ground they took. The location remained a popular strike point for Abyssal's coming up from the Southern Atlantic, or in a few cases, the Pacific.

  So to nobody's surprise, both ends of the canal looked more like fortresses, with numerous shore batteries, anti-air emplacements, the whole nine yards. All in an attempt to make sure it didn't fall again. It was certainly important for the shipping of goods, but it was more for our allies, rather than for America overall. With trains and planes, hell, even cars, if the need was dire, we were able to transfer shipgirls from one coast to another in a fairly swift manner. Even supplies weren't as big of an issue as many other countries, as America was still abundant with resources.

  It also helped that our railroads and highways got a significant reworking as well, which was also nice for civilians.

  However, despite the United States and Mexico's best efforts, the Caribbean nations had not weathered the Abyssal attacks well. Sure, such a statement would be considered obvious, as even larger nations with bigger armies and navies had been considerable damaged in the assault. It was probably their proximity to the United States that stopped them from falling at the end of the day.

  Sadly, the same couldn't be said for many smaller islands in the Pacific. Many of those fell without so much as a warning, and well, it was with fortune, bravery, and luck, that Hawaii, as well as the much larger Philippines, alongside Australia, New Zealand, New Guinea, Tawana, and Indonesia, didn't fall to the Abyssal onslaught during those early days.

  Then there was Japan, an enemy from the Second World War now turned ally. Though without the Abyssal threat, I'd imagine the region would be even tenser than it already was, which was saying a bit. From what I understood, Japan has its fleet from that very same conflict back?

  Well, it was safe to say it had ruffled more than a fair share of feathers in the region. The scars from World War Two ran fairly deep for a lot of nations, creating a similar reaction among several nations in Europe that saw the arrival of German shipgirls from the same conflict with considerable concern.

  None had taken it worse than China did, however. It didn't help that the initial wave of attacks had crippled, if not sunk, most of their surface ships, but many of the ones that had under construction as well, though this was far from an isolated incident on the world stage. However, with their naval ambitions effectively strangled, and a shipgirl force that could be considered meager at the most generous of estimates had been a considerable egg on their face.

  It was pretty much the equivalent of flipping the board. Then Japan getting their World War Two navy back was another blow to their national pride. Relationships between the two nations had never been great, but this had soured them considerably.

  Honestly, given what Japan did during the war? I didn't exactly blame those looking toward them with shifty eyes. The last time Japan had been the primary power in the Western Pacific, things had not gone well for a lot of nations and a lot of people.

  However, it did seem like the lessons of the past had sunk in, at least to an extent, as far as I'd heard. I mean, if a shipgirl had visited that shrine, I doubt the Japanese Government would be able to keep it under wraps. That would be an international incident, and that was putting it kindly.

  "So, what other options are available?" Louisiana frowned, crossing her fingers under her chin. Honestly, there probably weren't that many. I was hoping Connecticut didn't go out without actually being prepared. I'd learned from that mistake, but only because I lived long enough to do so. Having my sister make the same one was something I didn't want.

  "Right now, we seem to be caught in a catch twenty-two, if you would. Nobody wants to send her out without a retrofit, on the off chance they run into something, nor does Admiral Kenneth have the numbers necessary for a long-range convey mission. But at the same time, his base does not have the facilities for a full retrofit to be given," Admiral Jeffery shook his head. While the latter wasn't a big issue, as shipgirls could probably be drawn from a larger base, the former was concerning. No retrofit meant not being sent out, which meant she wasn't going anywhere unless no-ocean routes were considered.

  While such options did exist, there was still an issue. Weight.

  Could a plane or a train carry a ship of our displacement? A plane was unlikely, even the large cargo ones. I doubt they could accommodate the displacement of a torpedo boat, much less a pre-dreadnaught. That left trains, which was another option I doubted. Sure, trains could and often did carry considerable amounts of goods, but at the same time, that weight was spread out over dozens of cars, not condensed into one

  I scowled, quickly realizing where this was going. It was going to have to wait until Connecticut got her weight under control so that she could be moved safely from Florida to California. Which, if Louisania was any indication of how long it took for a normally summoned shipgirl to pick up the skill?

  Though, the fact she had just spent the past three weeks being retrofitted likely had done little to help matters, as she was not only out of practice, but also dealing with her new displacement. Still, the prospect of not getting to see my oldest sister in person for what amounted to several weeks, if not longer, was a bitter prospect.

  Understandable, yes. But that didn't change the annoyance of it all. But the Admiralty didn't want us on the ocean floor, and given our age, caution, no matter how much I didn't like it, was warranted.

  "Sadly, at the moment, our best, and most importantly, safest option, is to wait until Connecticut learns how to change her displacement to a human weight," Admiral Jeffery confirmed my exact thoughts, as my eyes flickered over to my sister. His choice to empathize safety was more than likely a smart one, without a doubt chosen on purpose.

  "I," Louisiana's mouth creased as if struggling to find the right words to say. "I understand Sir. I might not like it, but I do understand the reasoning behind it."

  The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.

  "Thank you," Admiral Jeffery nodded, before turning to me. "However, I don't think it should be too difficult to arrange for you three to meet and talk at some point, even if it isn't in person."

  Louisiana gave me a confused look, as my eyebrows rose in realization. Modern technology. I'd probably have to give South Dakota a call, just to make sure Connecticut had help on her end if she needed it.

  Though there was probably no if about it. I wasn't entirely sure how well Louisiana could handle a phone, and she'd been around the device longer than Connecticut would have. I'd showed her how to use it, and she'd gotten one for quickly being contacted as I had been, but I still needed to get her a personal one.

  I'd be waiting on that in particular for a bit more of a personal event, though that plan might change at this rate.

  Plus, Admiral Jeffery wasn't referencing phones, or at least, I didn't think he was. Video chat programs like Skype still existed, and, quite frankly, played a larger role in overseas communication, even if we weren't exactly able to put up as many satellites as we used to. One part is budget allocation, the other being that nobody wanted to dump rockets into the oceans where they could be picked up by Abyssal's.

  x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

  "This is?" Louisiana looked at the computer screen, with Skype opened up and a small camera perched atop. I hadn't toyed around with the computer in our shared dorm room. Mostly because my laptop, while not powerful, did everything I needed it to do, which left the computer sitting, gathering dust.

  "It's Skype. It's kind of like getting to see a picture of a person but in real-time," I frowned slightly into my phone as it ringed. If I had Connecticut's phone number, heck, even if she had a phone, I would have been able to get in touch with her directly, and hopefully, walk her through the steps.

  But I didn't. Quite frankly, I didn't have many of the other shipgirls phone numbers at Admiral Kenneth's base. I wasn't entirely sure if Pheonix bothered to keep hers charged half the time, much less answer, while I'd rather toss my phone off a bridge than store Denver's number.

  Which left South Dakota as my only real contact besides Admiral Kenneth himself, and after everything he already did for me, I didn't wish to bother him any further. Plus, there was no doubt in my mind he was busy doing Admiral things.

  "Hello?" finally, at what was likely the last ring before it went to voicemail, South Dakota answered. Or, at least, I thought it was South Dakota. There was a strain in her voice as if she was struggling with something while answering the phone.

  "Is this South Dakota?" I asked, keeping in mind proper phone etiquette, and making sure I had the right person. Plus, I wanted to set a good example of what to do in front of my older sister.

  "This is," the person on the other end didn't get a chance to finish, as she grunted, and a lot of angry shouting occurred near the other end. "She. Sorry, Kathrine, but you know how Denver can be, opening her mouth and inserting her foot."

  "Opening your mouth and inserting your foot is something I don't think generally applies when you're intentionally going for a reaction," I scowled, remembering Denver's antics well enough. There was no doubt in my mind that she did what she did on purpose. She didn't do what she did on accident.

  Basically, a troll. That's all Denver was really. No surprise that she and my brother got along so well. Two peas in a pod.

  "Fair enough," South Dakota let out another grunt, clearly dragging someone away as they shouted at Denver. I was only making out every third word or so, making it much more akin to screaming than anything else.

  This was a bit surprising, given how most of the people stationed at that base were likely used to Denver's shenanaginary.

  Wait a minute. Wait just a minute there.

  "Are you by chance, with Connecticut?" I asked, as the lightbulb finally flicked on in my head. It would make sense. If she was my sister, then she might find Denver's antics just as aggravating, as I did. Plus, this almost was similar to, that, incident. South Dakota let out a chuckle, despite the strain she was under.

  "I was wondering how long it would take you to put everything together," South Dakota's amusement could be felt on the other end. I was a bit surprised we were able to talk with all Connecticut's shouting on her side of the phone.

  "Yeah, I'm sorry this is a bit more of a business call," I rubbed the back of my head awkwardly.

  "It's fine. School should be keeping you busy and out of trouble, anyway, and I was already dragging your sister in that direction," South Dakota's voice came through a lot cleaner as the shouting suddenly ceased at around the mentioning of sister. Only for a new set of noises to start coming from the other end, as South Dakota seemed to be struggling with something completely different.

  "Text me the information of the computer you're at. I'll help Connecticut get her stuff set up as quickly as I can," there was a loud clacking sound in the background as the other end of the line went dead. It didn't take much to figure out what was going on.

  Connecticut heard sister, and likely immediately went for the phone. South Dakota, likely not wanting it broken in a struggle against a shipgirl who likely didn't know her strength yet, decided to end the call before it got shattered. Which was fair. Phones weren't exactly cheap, one way or another. Even if they were more like bricks compared to smartphones, they could still be broken.

  I quickly double-checked the information before sending out the text, sending the information hurtling across the country before placing my phone back in my pocket. It would probably take them a few minutes, which meant Louisiana and I had a little time to burn. Not much time, granted.

  "So," Louisiana looked at me, puzzled. Right, she'd only heard half the conversation.

  "South Dakota is getting Connecticut to a computer and will help her out getting everything working," I grinned. "It should only take a few minutes at most."

  Should was the operative term, but it really shouldn't take that long, regardless.

  "What exactly is South Dakota like?" My sister's question gave me pause. It wasn't what I had been expecting, nor was it one I could quite put into words. Not easily, at any rate.

  I mean, she saved my life. How exactly could that level of gratitude be put into simple words? It couldn't.

  "She's very compassionate and kind, but pretty strict," I bit on my tongue, preventing a few words from slipping out. Sisterly was probably not a word I wanted to use in this context. "She saved my life after my first sortie went wrong."

  My face flushed a bit, both out of embarrassment for how stupid I was acting back then, but also due to, other, reasons, that I didn't want to talk about. I'd shown her the videos of the event, or at least, what passed as such.

  "She sounds like quite the interesting battleship. I do recall the ship class they were working on that had been canceled by the Washington naval treaty. Is she the same one, or was there another class built with the same name?" Louisiana's eyebrow raised, though I understood her curiosity. She wasn't wrong, as a class of the same name had been canceled due to the treaty. I didn't know if any of them had been laid down, or ever summoned, however.

  "No, she's the lead ship of her class, but was laid down in 1939, following the North Carolina class," I grinned slightly.

  "So, she partook in the Second Great War?" Louisiana nodded her head, eyes faintly closed. "And saved your life as well? Then Connecticut should be in good hands, I'd imagine."

  Louisiana wasn't wrong. She saved my life in the middle of an intense firefight.

  Then there was a click, as the skype program began to ring. Excitedly, nearly stumbling into the chair, I immediately clicked on the answer button.

  The first thing I noticed was her eyes. Green, nearly jade in color, as if they could pierce me like a bullet. Then came her hair. It was grey, no silver, almost like snow, but merely a few shades darker. It was kept short, like mine was, with curls sprouting this way and that, much like my own.

  "Sister?"