The little ship that could.

[1275psi]

Herbiesan reads the minute carefully

"The Russian Goverment in general agrees to the Proposal given by the Japanese Goverment, and gives a tentative promise of territorial claims the Japanese goverment has , re the territories of Manchuria.
In return, the following political parties and organisations expect the appropiate support ..............

The communist party, Japan
The organisation of red patriots
the

And so on, and on............


They are bombing his oil now.
barsteds.............





From STAVKA
to
Eastern front Command

Offensive operations in Manchuria currently planned for mid 45, with successful completion of berlin offensive............

[1275psi]

Takeji holds his hands behind his back, grips his fingers.
Tension flows through him. Moving at a bare 6 knots, deep in the water, there is little for him to do.
At 6 knots, things happen very, very slowly

There are 16 destroyers surrounding Hiyo, a ridiculous number.
But there are 7 or 8 ss known in the waters between here and singapore.

Pontianak is still low on the horizon, when the first one strikes,

[ny59giants]

Here is a link...

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss? ... r+Anderson

[Lecivius]

"Pontianak is still low on the horizon, when the first one strikes, "

Oh, fer cryin out loud.... [X(]

[kaleun]

Really.

[Crackaces]

ORIGINAL: Lecivius

"Pontianak is still low on the horizon, when the first one strikes, "

Oh, fer cryin out loud.... [X(]

a pregnant pause of sorts for a dramatic effect [8D] "Will our superheroes survive?" "Tune in our next episode the Hiyo meets a Mk14 .."

[ny59giants]

Like a good Tom Clancy novel of times past, the classic double spaced paragraph break.

While the war rages on in Europe, the reader is sent over to the Pacific Ocean to follow the two trees tied to the top of a cargo ship headed for a temple in Japan.

[Crackaces]

ORIGINAL: ny59giants

Like a good Tom Clancy novel of times past, the classic double spaced paragraph break.

While the war rages on in Europe, the reader is sent over to the Pacific Ocean to follow the two trees tied to the top of a cargo ship headed for a temple in Japan.

Hmmm I think the style is more like the teasers seen with the local news .. "Some coke bottles may contain a deadly poison .. stay tuned for this story and more ...."

[1275psi]

In my defence:
The game did it.

Its a lot of work, is an AAR, it is, me want fun too............

I could not resist.

The game made me do it.[:)]


The periscope leaves a long trail in the calm waters here, visible for miles, the circling sally bomber picks it up easily. Worse, for the Submarine, the long dark shadow of it is visible even at 50 feet deep for the searching bomber.

Bombs fall, they miss.
But they alert three of the escorting destroyers, wakes curving, they race into the attack.

Takeji watches the action through his glasses.
Brave men these, operating in such crystal clear , shallow waters.

Charges fall, water erupts.
The destroyers circle, more distant bangs

Abruptly, the hated Buka bursts to the surface. Guns greet it, a maelstorm of water, crashing, boncing tracer, gunnery hammering, bow high, it slides under again.

Fifteen minutes from start to finish.
Takeji returns inside to his bridge, out of the baking sun. He takes his tea, sips it. Ever so gently, he notes, the contents are shimmering, reflecting the shake in his hand.
He clenches his fist.
The shaking, more a swift tremble, ceases.
He unclenches.

Damnation, the trembles have started again..............

[1275psi]

Combined fleet arrives safely, Tokyo bay


A decision must be made.
Difficult.
Decisive

But one that spells.........we remain confident of the future


The fleet goes into much needed refit, repair.
For anywhere between the next 30 to 60 days, japans battlefleet and nearly all her carriers will be tied to the docks.
The war will have to be carried by the destroyers.

[1275psi]

Ogowa, Diogowa are assigned reserve, they will go on leave

Ogowa, to his father, despite everything, family. He will settle with his father, if not............well, he has proven himself enough, yes?
Diogowa?
Are there bars and girls enough in this town?.
he will find out.............


Fuchida flies to canton. 22nd are headed again for Malaya.
In canton, he packs his cockpit with a great many things one would never expect to find .

A bag of rice, for a start

There are rumours, he hears, that the Army starves in malaya.

[kaleun]

Phew!

[1275psi]

8th of September
There are two more attempts on Hiyo this day, both distantly viewed events on the horizon, grey shapes weaving, towers of water erupting.
Successful counter attacks?. Unknown
Effects?

More grim looks deep in Hiyos bowels, as the bangs ring deeply on her side.
Grim looks, then return to the battle of keeping her afloat.

The sea, as we know, is relentless. It presses against the baulkheads, it seeps through the cable glands, dribbles endlessly through the hatch coamings despite the shorings, the screwed down hatch dogs, gurgles through a dozen small cracks.

The pumps struggle.

Such simple words. The pumps struggle.
In real words, the flexible hoses, dragged, fought, struggled with to the darkest corners ,, in the deepest compartments. Endless fishing for the blockages in the hoses, endless.
Even a barren warship, stripped to the absolute essentials, is filled with a million loose items.
Papers, gods, the papers that float now in the sloshing floods. Papers from shattered lockers, from a thousand books, from under a hundred mattresses.
Clothing, rags, pieces of lagging.

They all have to be removed. The pumps also need fuel. They need constant re priming with every blockage clearance

The literally miles of timber that strain against the pressure, a thousand wedges and chocks that have to be re hammered again and again, as Hiyo rolls uneasily across the swells.

the sea is relentless
And the pumps struggle

[1275psi]

The B-29s bomb Hosho's area again
More holes in the airfields, more supply dumps pounded

Few dead, this time.

But there is a deadly toll to pay, and to pay soon.
Supplies in this combat area?

Zero.

[1275psi]

10 september 44

Hiyo settles onto the blocks, the comforting walls of Singapore dry dock around her.
There are large crowds of workers crowding the edges of the dock, drawn to the fascinating sight before them. Inch by inch the waters are lowering, the mighty pumps of the cassion drawing them from the dock, spewing them in multi coloured oil stained rainbows into the stinking waters of the harbour

Inch by inch, the flanks of Hiyo are being exposed.

It is not a pretty sight, from multiple places water streams out from strained plate seams, from sea inlets now being exposed.
A great cave is slowly being exposed in her side.
Lined, edged with plates twisted and tortured, the shattered remains of boiler rooms, of engine rooms are being revealed, a nightmare of dangling cabling, twisted pipes, displaced machinery.
And over it all, the black, black scum of oil and fuel.

Takeji watches too, the port master beside him.

He does not need to look at the old man beside him. The news of doom is painful enough

"A year, probably Captain........you may need to be finding another ship I would think"

[1275psi]

11 Sept

Long pig flies over the paddie fields of Thailand, his shadow swiftly fleeing over the patchwork of levees, small dykes, patches of forest, the endless rice

He banks the fighter bomber hard, merlins snarling, less than a 100 feet between him and the ground rushing below.
he is looking over his shoulder, the g's pressing him in, applying top rudder, top rudder, keeping her nose up, the world sliding past his nose, the sun swinging across, glittering of the screen, shadows across his instruments

"there Long pig.....those trees"
His co pilot points, Long pig nods, he sees them
Opposite rudder, stick over, levelling out, the mozzie responds delightfully.
He lines up upon the trees pointed out, lowers the nose ever so carefully

The trees close up quickly, a patch of green, now trunks, branches, a squat, grey shape nestled underneath, branches strewn across its back.........

The guns hammer, tracer, reaching out, fountains of dirt, sparks, explosions, men diving for cover, a tracer carreering wildly into the wild blue yonder, and stick back, zooming away, swinging her left, right, then back into the turn again, hard left, hard left, seeking the next tank, (not that there are that many left) to torment and kill


A hard turn left.


2 miles away, over in the next valley where a right turn would have gone, , the NK1's are running home, a fruitless sweep.

On such little things, it seems, fate can hang

[1275psi]

A simple report

"estimate of repair time for CV Hiyo"

Takeji stares at it.
They will never give him another command, not now. At fault, or not, 2 ships smashed under him.
Nimitz, he believes, once lost a estroyer, he, or one of the damn yankee Admirals as a Captain, now they command whole fleets.
The enemy commander, for gods sake, has lost entire fleets............

But not in the Empires Navy
There are no second chances here
None

"Estimate time of repair..............265 days"

265 days

The allied armies would be here before then, or the bombers at least.

Disconcertly he hands the report back to the engineer........"So thats it then engines?"

The Engineer looks up sharply.......'Eh?.sir, look again. Thats 265 days for full repairs.............if you want to try for Japan, we can at least patch her a bit, then, if you are willing, give it a shot"

A shot?.
Hope rises

"How long Engines?."
"Couple of weeks...........but I warn you, getting home to Japan will be a bloody adventure i would think"

Takeji smiles........."And you joined the Navy for a quiet life?...........'I am willing. Are you?

Engines grins........"this place stinks, why the truk not?"

[1275psi]

Waingapoe falls.
There is no general retreat, just a few stunned survivors.

The allied attack, almost two full divisions strong, has finally cracked the defences.
Well, killed them, anyway.

The allies must see the trend now...............japanese troops will, and do, fight to the last man, last bullet.


And God, its mid september 44, this place took 6 weeks to take, and Tokyo is so, so far away.............

[John 3rd]

BANZAI!

[1275psi]

12 September 44

Extract from Shattering the sword

..............and thus, with the carriers finally repaired, the allies planned their next offensives.

THE JAPANESE VIEWPOINT.

For nearly two months the japanese had been expecting a second drive, maybe up towards Biak, maybe a thrust at Siapan, or even, it was hoped, one further north.
But now, with Waingapoe fallen, a re swinging of focus would need to take place

The first two weeks of September had seen several minor DD on DD or patrol craft clashes arounf Biak, or in the waters between Biak and Palua.
All had been Japanese defeats, but none had prevented the complete evacuation of the 61st division. By months end, it would be headed west, reinforcements for the next battles south of Soerabaya

A second division, at Moriatia, also was moving west, to Siagon

The phillipines were well and truly garrisoned, as was Brunie, and Soerabaya would need a multi division attack to subdue.

Only in Thialand was there concern
The "cork in the bottle" to Malaya was secure, 6 divisions at Prachuap Khiri Khan
In Thialnd, three full divisions had been obliterated, yet, the army had successfully disengaged 5 more in good shape, bangkok would fall, but to reach Siagon would take a great battle and victory by the allies.

The great concern, of course, was thae oil fields. The B-29's had attacked, and initially gained surprise, inflicted damage . Now, every second odd day, they came, and were met by swarms of fighters.
The Japanes count 30 B-29s killed, for no extra damage.

japanes Plans were simple now, fight for every inch of the DEI, hold the bombers at bay for as long as possible.
Give up, with little resistance other than the endless manpower she possessed, anything else.

The fleet rested in The home islands, refitting. 9 battleships, 5 CVs, 3 CVL, 8 CA's would be available for the final battles.
15 AOs, full to the brim, would ensure fuel for them would be available

The war had turned against them, but there were many, a great many in her military, who still saw a chance for a peace on their terms. The allies would still be, at this rate, held clear of the home islands deep into 45.

Would the American public have the patience for another 18 months of war?