Small Ship, Big War - The Voyages of the Hibiki

[SierraJuliet]

CF

you keep lifting the bar higher and higher. [&o][&o] Fantastic diversion and very amusing.   Surely the AE version of Hibiki and her world is anticipated just as much as the long awaited AE.

[bradfordkay]

I can see it now:

USS Cuttlefish
commander: w/o Yoshitake

[;)]

[BigDuke66]

This "behind-the-scenes look" was wonderful. [&o]

[greg_slith]

I knew it!! Something told me this wasn't real[8|]. Great story! Just don't end it like "St Elsewhere"[:D]

[Capt. Harlock]

“What’s a PBEM?” says Yoshitake.

“You know, Yoshitake,” says Riku, “if we do an AE version and it’s as realistic as they say I’ll bet you anything you’ll be an officer.”

Hilarious![:D]

"Final Phase", eh? It sounds like Okinawa has fallen faster than historically. And Wolffpack isn't waiting for nukes . . .

[Hornblower]

Outstanding

[rjopel]

Small Ship, Big War

So good you'll even read it while your in church.

Right?

[nashvillen]

Yup, busted... I run the sound board and have internet access...

edit: I am also worthless at work... up to page 97...

edit: I have now gotten to here... Thanks CF for ruining a week of my life [;)]

[Cuttlefish]

May 14, 1945

Location: Hakodate
Course: None
Attached to: TF 21
Mission: Surface combat
System Damage: 3
Float Damage: 0
Fires: 0
Fuel: 475

Orders: Await further orders

---

Lieutenant Sugiyura walks into the small officer’s wardroom. The only other occupant, Lieutenant Kuwaki, is seated at the table drinking tea and reading a manual on gunnery. Sugiyura joins him.

“No new orders,” he says. Kuwaki looks up.

“I am not surprised,” he says. “We need rest and opportunities like our last action will be hard to find now.” He returns to his manual. Sugiyura sits for a moment, his fingertips restlessly drumming on the table.

The ship’s two weapon’s officers are quite different. Kuwaki is on the short side, solidly built and stoic in temperament, while Sugiyura is lean and full of restless energy. The two are not close friends but have developed a good working relationship over the years, each appreciating the other’s competence.

“The Captain and Lieutenant Miharu were talking this morning,” Sugiyura says after a moment. Kuwaki once again looks up. “About what happens next. Miharu thought we would remain here ‘until the heat is off,’ as they say in the American gangster movies.” All Japanese men of their generation are familiar with American gangsters as portrayed by actors such as Edward G. Robinson. Most assume that such people are to be found on most street corners in a typical American city, carrying violin cases and leaning against street lamps while idly flipping a coin.

“Then we are in a good place,” says Kuwaki. “It never gets too hot here in Hokkaido.” Sugiyura is not sure if Kuwaki is being literal or making a joke. It is hard to tell with him, sometimes.

“He also said the Americans would stand off and try to bomb us until we surrendered,” Sugiyura continues. “The Captain disagreed. He said that he thinks they know that will never work and will try to invade. Miharu disagreed because he thought the Americans know how bloody and terrible such an invasion would be.”

“It is hard to read the enemy’s intentions from a dock here in Hakodate,” says Kuwaki. “But while Lieutenant Miharu knows the Americans well Captain Ishii has a warrior’s understanding of them after fighting them for so long. If he says they might try it then it is possible.”

“It would mean a final, glorious battle,” says Sugiyura. Kuwaki looks at him for a moment. Though a man of limited imagination he may be trying to picture such an invasion, its carnage and its terrible consequences.

“Hm,” is all he says, however. After a moment he returns to his manual. Sugiyura drums his fingers on the tabletop for a moment longer and then gets up to pour himself some tea.

[Capt. Harlock]

Kuwaki is on the short side, solidly built and stoic in temperament, while Sugiyura is lean and full of restless energy. The two are not close friends but have developed a good working relationship over the years, each appreciating the other’s competence.

I remember Kuwaki wasn't so stoic when they took away the middle 5-inch turret. But apparently even he has recognized the value of AAA.[;)]

[Cuttlefish]

ORIGINAL: Capt. Harlock

Kuwaki is on the short side, solidly built and stoic in temperament, while Sugiyura is lean and full of restless energy. The two are not close friends but have developed a good working relationship over the years, each appreciating the other’s competence.

I remember Kuwaki wasn't so stoic when they took away the middle 5-inch turret. But apparently even he has recognized the value of AAA.[;)]

Well, yes. The man is stoic but he isn't made of stone. Who could remain unmoved by the end of such a relationship?

[Cuttlefish]

May 15, 1945

Location: Hakodate
Course: None
Attached to: TF 21
Mission: Surface combat
System Damage: 3
Float Damage: 0
Fires: 0
Fuel: 475

Orders: Await further orders

---

Hakodate is located on the Kameda Peninsula, which juts out into the Tsugaru Strait. The peninsula shelters a nice anchorage, which is where the twenty-one warships of Yamamoto’s task force find themselves anchored on a pleasant late spring day.

No one seems to be in a hurry to send them anywhere right away, so Lieutenant Miharu draws up a rotation of twenty-four hour leaves. Hokkaido, unlike much of Honshu, has not been bombed and it is possible to go ashore, have a drink or five, and almost forget about the war for a while.

Hakodate was one of the few treaty ports established following Perry’s visit and as a result there are some stately stone churches here, Anglican and Russian Orthodox among them. Those wandering further afield soon find evidence of the war once again, however, for no less than ten prisoner of war camps dot the area. Fortifications guard the tip of the peninsula and green and lumpy Mount Hakodate, which overlooks the city, houses radar and communications facilities.

The city is used to hosting men of the Imperial Japanese Navy. In consequence there is no lack of bars, brothels, geisha houses, gambling dens, and a variety of other places designed to quickly and efficiently relieve sailors of their accumulated back pay. With so many ships in port all these places are soon doing a booming business.

And so the men of Hibiki wait for whatever comes next. No one has any idea what that will be, as yet. The Allied fist is wrapping ever more tightly around Japan and the next move is up to them.

[Capt. Harlock]

No one seems to be in a hurry to send them anywhere right away, so Lieutenant Miharu draws up a rotation of twenty-four hour leaves. Hokkaido, unlike much of Honshu, has not been bombed and it is possible to go ashore, have a drink or five, and almost forget about the war for a while.

I hate to add a discouraging word, but there's something missing from this picture. News of the invasion of Okinawa will certainly have spread all over Japan by now, though likely the official version will be vastly different from reality. Riku and Shun will doubtless be sifting every rumor -- and dunning Captain Ishii -- for an accurate picture, and news of their women.

[Cuttlefish]

ORIGINAL: Capt. Harlock

I hate to add a discouraging word, but there's something missing from this picture. News of the invasion of Okinawa will certainly have spread all over Japan by now, though likely the official version will be vastly different from reality. Riku and Shun will doubtless be sifting every rumor -- and dunning Captain Ishii -- for an accurate picture, and news of their women.

Patience. I wanted to set the larger view before moving on to a few individual stories. The plot line you mentioned will be foremost among them and we might take a look in on Okinawa as well.

[kaleun]

I don't think the number of hits on this thread has been affected by AE.
BTW looking forward to Small Ship Big War 2, AE

[nashvillen]

OK, now that I have read all 158 pages of this amazing story, I want to say a repetitive thank you to CF for the great work of literature he has created. This has enthralled me to the point that all I have done with AE is download and just open it once to look at what Matrix has done. Getting back to the story has been more important! Now that I am caught up, I can concentrate on exploring AE in preparation for my first PBEM with rjopel in the near future!

I have played WitP since it was released as PW back in the early 90's, I was fascinated by the level a detail in the game then and am still amazed in the level of detail added in AE. It allows for such stories such as this.

[davidgillsol]

Long time lurker on this site. I too will add my appreciation to CF for this AAR- The story is fantastic and I cannot overstate how upset I was when I finally caught up to the present day and realised I would have to take my Hibiki doses day by day, rather than pages at a time!

[Durbik]

This has enthralled me to the point that all I have done with AE is download and just open it once to look at what Matrix has done. Getting back to the story has been more important!

Now, THAT'S a compliment!

[Cuttlefish]

ORIGINAL: Lord Sunderland

Long time lurker on this site. I too will add my appreciation to CF for this AAR- The story is fantastic and I cannot overstate how upset I was when I finally caught up to the present day and realised I would have to take my Hibiki doses day by day, rather than pages at a time!

ORIGINAL: nashvillen

OK, now that I have read all 158 pages of this amazing story, I want to say a repetitive thank you to CF for the great work of literature he has created. This has enthralled me to the point that all I have done with AE is download and just open it once to look at what Matrix has done. Getting back to the story has been more important! Now that I am caught up, I can concentrate on exploring AE in preparation for my first PBEM with rjopel in the near future!

I have played WitP since it was released as PW back in the early 90's, I was fascinated by the level a detail in the game then and am still amazed in the level of detail added in AE. It allows for such stories such as this.

Wow, still picking up new readers after all this time. Thanks for the compliments and I'm glad you gentlemen enjoyed the read.

Part of the, well, "art" (for lack of a better word) to writing this has been to take combat results from the game and turn them into a cohesive narrative. The level of additional detail that AE provides will make this a lot easier. I had been wavering about whether or not to attempt another AAR in this style for AE but after looking at AE I don't think I can resist. It won't happen until this one is done, though.

[Cuttlefish]

May 16, 1945

Location: Hakodate
Course: None
Attached to: TF 21
Mission: Surface combat
System Damage: 3
Float Damage: 0
Fires: 0
Fuel: 475

Orders: Await further orders

---

Despite being virtually under siege Japan still controls a vast empire. In the Pacific the Gilberts and the Marshalls, with the lone exception of Eniwetok, are all still under Japanese rule. Truk, the Solomons, and Rabaul are all Japanese. The Rising Sun still flies over the Philippine archipelago and the whole of the Dutch East Indies. Manchukuo and large stretches of China are Japanese, and the Japanese still control Singapore, Indochina, and portions of Burma and Malaya.

The war news released by the Japanese government is careful to emphasize this. What news there is, anyway. By the time Hibiki and her crew reach Hakodate radio broadcasts are no longer regular and newspapers have been reduced to a single sheet. Most “news” consists of exhortations to the Japanese people to make sacrifices, to face the enemy with dauntless courage, and to avoid defeatism. Sometimes there will be a report of a small Japanese success, such as the recent sinking of the American tanker convoy, usually greatly exaggerated.

It is enough to make someone desperate for real news absolutely frantic, and this term can be appropriately applied to Seaman First Class Riku Ariga. All that has been admitted officially is that the island of Okinawa, where his wife lives, has been invaded. The Japanese people are assured that the American invaders have been butchered like cattle and that soon the campaign will end in glorious, inevitable Japanese victory.

Riku is in fact frantic enough to begin demanding answers. This is a dangerous thing to do in Japan in 1945. He is brought up short by a hand on his shoulder. The hand grips like a vise and belongs to Chief Petty Officer Shun. Shun speaks briefly with Riku in a low, quiet voice and by the time he is done Riku looks more calm, outwardly at least. The two men then set about learning what they can.

Both men are very good at gathering information. Riku has many contacts and a gift for talking to people, while Shun is…well, Shun. Their officers are also sympathetic and willing to help.

It takes some time but in the end the two men think they have a fairly complete picture of what is happening on Okinawa. The Allies control the northern three-quarters of the island. Japan still holds out in the far south, including Naga, and the enemy does not seem inclined to press the issue. There are a lot of Japanese troops there in very good defensive terrain and the enemy attitude seems to be that they are not going anywhere.

The odds that Rin Shun and Nanami Ariga are behind Japanese lines, however, seems remote. The Shun cottage was located well north of the invasion zone and Japanese resistance in that area ended quickly. Little about the campaign can be learned. There are dark rumors of Americans massacring Okinawan civilians. There are darker rumors of Japanese troops doing the same thing.

In the end the two men know little more than when they started. If the two women survived the chaos of the invasion then they are under American occupation. Either way it is certain that nothing further will be learned until the war is over.

That is going to be a hard thing to live with.