Day of Infamy

In the middle of the night, under the cover of darkness, a small convoy of six merchant ships and one destroyer has been voyaging from Fuso and was heading towards Vladivostok, where their military along with the Orussians was currently engaging the Neuroi threat.

Captain Yasaburō Kozaku looked at his pocket watch – a gift from his grandfather – before focusing back on watching the surrounding of the convoy. It was quite unlikely that there would be any Neuroi in the vicinity. They seemed to be focusing their forces in the Ural region. Nevertheless, it was better to be safe than sorry.

Speaking about the Neuroi, his mind went towards the newspaper that he read several days ago. The main topic was about small engagements against the Neuroi in Hispania. He couldn't help but remember about the story that his father told him when he was young, of how the Great War started. It all started from small skirmish which then slowly developed into a total war.

He wondered if the same thing was happening right out; the possibility of a Second Great War emerging. If it was like during the 1910s, then the Neuroi main force would be in Europe with small detachment scattered around the world to divert the forces of humanity. There was the reason another name for the war was the World War.

He shook his head. It was not his duty to think about that. He was merely a captain of a small destroyer. Still, it was a good activity to pass time, he had to admit. For now, he should focus on escorting these ships so that the cargo could…

BOOM

Suddenly, the darkness of the night disappeared, replaced by a bright light created by the explosion that appeared out of nowhere on one of the merchant ships. It was then followed by another explosion, causing the ship to slowly sink. Witnessing the event, his hand immediately went towards the intercom.

"All man to the station! All man to the station!" He announced. "This is not a drill! Repeat, this is not a drill!"

Before he could finish it, an explosion occurred on another ship. He tried to figure out the attacker. At first, he thought that it was an aerial-type Neuroi before dismissing the idea; there was no red laser beam that was the hallmark of the alien's weaponry. He also didn't see any flashlight from afar that indicated a gun being fired. Which meant what attacked was likely from under the water.

"Submarine?" He asked himself. "Could the Neuroi even travel under the water?"

Before he could think further, his destroyer became the next target of the attack.

In the observation post of a merchant ship, a young sailor rubbed his hands to warm himself from the cold wind of the Atlantic Ocean. After a while, his hands went towards the binocular and put it on his eyes.

It has been a bad year for mankind. It was guaranteed that Ostmark, Karlsland, Gallia, and many other nations of Europe would fell to the hands of the Neuroi. They were simply unprepared for such a sudden invasion. Already the governments of the would-be-falling nations began to evacuate their citizens to safety, like the continent of Liberia.

It was believed by the Allied High Command that Britannia would be one of the frontlines of the war. Thus, manpower and materials have been transported towards the island nation, especially from the US and Faraway Land. The navies of the three nations were also guarding the Atlantic to prevent the Neuroi from attacking across the pond along with Fuso.

Speaking about the Atlantic, he had heard rumors about how some ships had gone missing, from a fishing boat to a warship. It might be simply because of an accident and the ships were unable to send a distress signal before sinking. Some signs indicated otherwise, though, like how some of them were warships and that the disappearance was becoming more common as time passed.

It was not all bad news. The Neuroi forces in Hispania and Fuso Sea had been neutralized, meaning that the Allies could focus on the more essential theaters. New technology had been developed, giving them a more effective way of fighting the invaders. With experience from the First Great War and the establishment of League of Nations almost two decades ago, the Allies already have the hierarchy of combined armed forces planned.

He was taken away from his thought when he noticed something in the distance. Looking through the binocular, it was unclear what he currently saw due to the darkness. He knew that it was big and that it was diving into the water. He decided that it was probably a whale, nothing important.

The next day, SS Gondola – along with four other merchant ships – were declared missing.

"Here you go, Miss. Fresh from the grill."

"Thank you. Keep the change."

Exiting from the diner, Jane S. Thach blew her still-hot grilled cheese sandwich as she headed towards her next destination. As she walked around, she saw several sailors performing a morning jog. On the bench, she found a sailor having a conversation with a nurse.

"Teacher!"

Thach looked at the one who called her and saw that it was one of her protégés, the Navy witch Katharine O'Hare. Upon seeing her running towards her, Thach smiled a bit as she waved her hand.

"O'Hare. Long time no see." She greeted her. "So, you're in Pearl as well?"

"Yep. Just recently finished a joint training with Fuso." She replied. "There seem to be a lot of that these days, don't you think?"

"Likely due to experience during the Great War." The two witches walked together side-by-side. "The alliance back then was still in its infancy, what with two alliances created to oppose each other suddenly had to work together."

"Ah, the Entente and Central Powers. So, all of this is to tighten the bond between the different militaries, huh?"

"It appears to be the case." Thach took a bite of her food. "So, how long are you going to be here?"

"Meh, not even half a month before I would be assigned on Saratoga. What about you, Teach?"

"I'll be here for a while, training more witches. Anyway, considering how short your stay here, you should enjoy Hawaii to its fullest!"

"Any suggestion?"

"Well…"

At the Hawaiian waters, the Liberian destroyer USS Ward was patrolling the territory. Normally, such action was normal for it was the task bestowed upon her after being transferred to Pearl Harbor. However, those with enough experience would notice that the ship seemed to be moving faster than usual.

This was due to the news that she received from USS Condor.

The Commanding Officer of the ship, LCDR William W. Outerbridge, could only hope that the Condor simply gave a false alarm. He had checked with the base and confirmed that there was no submarine of the United States Navy performing training for this entire week, let alone today.

Which could only mean that there was a submarine of foreign navy approaching Pearl Harbor without wanting to be detected, a clear sign of hostile action; something that nobody needed at this particular time.

Submarines – despite the name – sailed faster above the water like other ships than under. Thus, there was no reason for one to travel underwater. Submarines only went under when they were about to perform an attack or hiding from detection; none of which bode well for him.

"Sir, sir!" The Lieutenant Commander was suddenly pulled from his thought. "Periscope! Behind Antares!"

He and others immediately focused their attention at the rear of the cargo ship. It took a while for them to see it themselves but – just as they had been told about – there was indeed a periscope following the ship.

"Man, to the battle station!" He gave out the order. "To battle station!"

As he went to his own station, Outerbridge couldn't help but feel a sense of dread enveloping his heart. He really wished that the submarine would answer to his call or else he had no choice but to use any means necessary to protect Liberian territory, which would likely involve sinking the ship.

That was an international incident in the making.

"Attention, unidentified submarine! You are currently entering…"

Before he could finish the warning, the periscope submerged into the water. He sighed at the action the crew of the submarine chose to take. There was only one option left.

"Open fire!"

One of the things that made Hawaii famous was its tropical climate. For many Americans and Europeans who used to live in a cold climate, places with such climate might as well be heavens on Earth. Thus, a clear, sunny day was always welcomed.

Unfortunately, today would not be the case.

In the sky, more than a hundred black aircraft entered the sky of Hawaii. If someone saw them, they would think that there was a large group of Neuroi approaching Pearl Harbor. However, two things made this impossible; the physical appearance and the location of Hawaii itself.

While the Neuroi indeed took the form of various types of machines, their black-and-red body with hexagon pattern meant that they could never pass themselves as mere machines. These aircraft, on the other hand, despite their all-black color, looked like something the humans would make, albeit they would also add windows and propellers.

Then there was the location. Surrounded by a large body of water, it would be impossible for the Neuroi to launch an attack on the island, unlike when the Neuroi tried to attack Fuso Home Island from mainland Asia and Britannia from mainland Europe. Yet for these aircraft, such a thing was not a problem.

Once the naval base was within sight, the aircrafts performed a dive towards it. Some flew towards the airfields while others approached the Battleship Row where – as the name indicated – the main battleships of the United States Navy were moored.

Before she could give O'Hare a suggestion, Thach noticed something in the sky. She turned her head upward to have a better look, which was followed by her fellow witch. Whatever they were, they were black, performing a diving move, and…

BOOM

The sound of the explosion shocked everyone who heard it, the two witches were no exception. It was at that moment that the instructor knew what exactly she had just seen. She was so shocked by the revelation that she dropped her bread.

"N-N-Neuroi…" She stuttered. "We're under attack by Neuroi!"

"What?!" O'Hare exclaimed, unable to believe what she had just heard. "Teacher, that's impossible! Hawaii is located in the middle of the Pacific! There's no way the Neuroi could reach here!"

"Well, how else could you explain the black aircraft and the fact that we're under attack?!" Thach shouted back. "Who else we're currently at war with?"

Their conversation was interrupted by another explosion. Both of them winced at it before recovering from their surprise.

"You know what? Doesn't matter." The senior witch stated. "First thing first, defend Pearl!"

"There should be some strikers in the airfield. Let's go!"

They started to run towards their destination. Not even a minute of running though, they noticed that a jeep was being parked in front of a shop. Both of them embarked on the vehicle with Thach on the driver seat. As they moved on, O'Hare looked back and saw a marine yelling while running after them, likely the previous driver of the jeep.

Emergency took precedence.

As they approached the airfield, none of them could see exactly where the explosions occurred. From the smoke rising to the sky, however, they knew that the ships on the harbor were the targets of the attack.

When they arrived at Hickam Field, both Thach and O'Hare could only stare in shock at the sight before them.

"No…no…no!" Thach exclaimed as they disembarked from their jeep and ran towards the field.

The entire base was, for the lack of a better word, burning in flame. Most of the aircraft on the field was destroyed, the hangars were on fire, the runway was full of holes, and the survivors were busy dealing with the fire and injured.

Upon seeing a witch struggling to walk away from the burning hangar, the two witches went to her to give a hand.

"Damn," O'Hare commented. "Never thought the Neuroi could…"

"It's not the Neuroi!"

They turned their heads towards an airman, who was carrying a fire extinguisher. Both of them raised their eyebrows, confused by what he had just said.

"I-It's not those aliens, OK?" He explained. "There's no giant, red laser! Guns, bombs, those are what the attackers use. The cause of all this damage."

"W-What?!" O'Hare exclaimed. "How? Why?"

"Wait, wait, forget that at the moment!" Thach stated. "First thing first, we must repel these attackers. Then, we try to figure out who they are."

"Impossible." The airman told them. "Everything here has been destroyed. Planes, strikers, everything. We're sitting ducks."

"N-No…" The three of them looked at the wounded witch, the one who spoke. "There's…a…striker…in the hangar. Still fine."

"The burning hangar?" Thach asked, despite already knowing the answer. "Well, isn't that…"

"Incoming!"

The four of them looked upward due to the warning and saw three black aircrafts strafing the airfield. They immediately spread out – barely avoiding the machine gun fires – with Thach carrying the wounded witch on her back.

When she evaded the attack, O'Hare did so by running towards the burning hangar, where the airmen and firefighters were busy putting down the flame. Remembering how there was still a striker unit inside, the witch ran as fast as she could inside.

"Stop, stop!" A firefighter noticed her and gave a warning. "Don't go inside!"

She didn't heed it.

With her magic shield, O'Hare slowly went into the hangar, searching for the strikers. There were many of them inside, but all of them had been destroyed or in the process of one. When she reached the innermost part of the building, she finally found them; still attached to their stand.

Not wasting any more time, she quickly went towards the strikers, jumping right into them. As her feet adjusted themselves, her hands went towards a nearby weapon; an M2 Browning. Just when she was ready to take-off, the roof of the building collapsed.

For the sailors of USS Arizona, today would likely be remembered by them as one of – if not the – worst day in their lives. Their day was started by basically having the entire base being attacked by mysterious aircraft. Some of them suggested that it could be the Neuroi due to their black color. However, because they were attacking using bombs, torpedoes, and machine guns, many found this to be unlikely.

In any case, whoever these attackers were, they must be repelled.

"Someone manned the machine gun!"

"Why the hell are the turrets just standing around?!"

"Quickly! Our boys on the other side are already bombed!"

"Better than those on Oklahoma and West Virginia! A miracle that they still afloat!"

One of the good things about her position in the Battleship Row was that Arizona was protected from torpedo attacks, due to having Vestal acting as a shield. Judging from how the enemies were focused on big targets like the mentioned two battleships, it was quite unlikely they would waste torpedo trying to hit Arizona. Which also meant that Vestal was safe.

For now.

"Look! Look! A witch!"

Upon hearing that, some of the sailors glanced towards the sky, trying to find her. They managed to spot her, approaching their position while firing at enemy aircraft. As several of their planes shot down, some of the black aircraft diverted from their original targets to attack her instead.

She skillfully dodged the shots while firing her machine guns. The three planes got hit and fell to the sea. From her rear, two more aircraft joined in. She turned around while keep flying forward. Just like the previous three, both aircraft went down in flames.

"Yeah! That's how you do it!"

"Teach those bastards a lesson!"

"Keep going, girl! You can do it!"

So focused the sailors were on dealing with the torpedo bombers and now celebrating the small victory, none of them realized the high-level bombers above them.

KABOOM

O'Hare could only watch in horror as a cataclysmic explosion tore apart the Arizona. A large ball of flame engulfed the ship, spreading everywhere, even into the water. She was so focused on the destruction of the battleship that she didn't notice the arrival of more black aircraft, coming towards her.

When she heard a gunshot, she immediately turned around, machine gun ready in her hand…except that it wasn't necessary.

She witnessed the arrival of reinforcement; a single Curtiss P-40 Warhawk. It approached the enemy aircraft from their exposed flank. When it fired its machine guns, one of the enemy aircraft got hit and went down, forcing others to disperse.

"What the hell are you doing?!" A shout came from the Warhawk. "I told you that if you freeze, you will be signed your death warrant!"

"T-Teacher?!" The witch said, recognizing the pilot. "What? How?"

"I am a pilot as well," Thach explained as she chased an enemy aircraft. "As for the plane, this one luckily survived the attack."

"I see." O'Hare followed her. "Well, in any case, now that we're here, and more of the base is being alerted, it's only a matter of time until…"

"Above!"

The witch with strikers looked up and her eyes widened; above them, partially hidden by the cloud, was a large group of enemy aircraft. Thach, without warning, immediately went up, causing O'Hare to follow her as well.

Attacking the planes from below, the pair managed to shoot several planes from the angle where they couldn't be attacked in return. Despite the casualties, none of the black aircraft did anything, simply continue to fly towards their destination, whatever it was.

It was only when they reached the same altitude as the airplanes and approaching them from their rear, that Thach finally figured out their target, causing her face to become pale.

"The…the oil…" She said quietly before shouting. "They're targeting the oil tanks!"

"Oil tanks?!" O'Hare exclaimed. "You mean the oil tanks that contain the fuel of the Pacific Fleet?!"

"What else, dummy?! If we lost the tanks, then the fleet is as good as useless!"

"Then…"

Their conversation was suddenly interrupted when bullets started to fly towards their position. Knowing that there were enemy fighters behind, the two of them split up in the opposite direction.

As O'Hare fired at the chasing enemy aircraft, she wondered how her teacher would deal with the ones that chased after her. It was only when the Warhawk turned around, flying towards her position, that she realized what Thach was planning.

A move that was called "Beam Defense Position," created by none other than the witch instructor herself.

O'Hare immediately flew towards her teacher. When they were aligned, she created a shield and dived under Thach. The witch in the airplane fired on the aircraft that followed the witch in the strikers while the latter did the same for the former. Soon, the black fighters were falling from the sky.

"Yahoo!" O'Hare excitedly screamed. "Thach Weave successfully executed in combat for the first time!"

"It's…" Thach was about to say something when she remembered her previous targets. "The bombers!"

As if it was not bad enough, there was a sound coming from the cockpit. The pilot looked at the dashboard, gritting her teeth when she found out that it was a certain type of alarm.

"Fuel…" She commented under her breath, but her wingman managed to hear it.

"You should return then," O'Hare told her. "Don't worry. I can handle it myself."

"No, O'Hare. We need to stick together. If we…"

"Thach!" She surprised her by calling her name. "Look around! Pearl Harbor is already in ruin. The ships of the Pacific Fleet are destroyed. We already suffered too much damage. Don't make it even worse."

Thach was about to retort. However, she knew that O'Hare was right. At this point, it was not about preventing damage; it was preserving whatever remained. While she didn't say anything, the fact that she flew her airplane towards the nearby airfield indicated her choice.

As she approached the runaway, the witch couldn't help but wonder. She was not the type that looks a gift horse in the mouth, but it was something worth questioning.

Why was there no giant explosion at the oil tanks?

"Why did you order us to pull back? If we hit the oil tanks, if we hit the drydocks, then…"

"The Pacific Fleet of the United States Navy will be crippled for months to come. Perhaps even reaching a year. Which is more reason to not hit them."

"Pardon, Observer. But I do not understand this pattern of thought."

"It is very easy to understand. Necessity is the mother of invention. Crippling an enemy, while showing an understanding in tactic, will also weaken the enemy to the point of being able to defeat them with eyes closed. That will be against our goal, won't it?"

"I suppose that makes sense. Won't the humans be suspicious, though? For us not to attack the obvious targets?"

"Do not worry. Those above us, while not stupid, are also not the brightest bulbs. They will just chalk it up as the usual incompetence of their enemies."

"I see. I suppose that makes sense."

"As expected, you still have much to learn. Say, why don't you take a stroll at the Far East? I heard the fish is good, this time of the year."

When the President of the United States, Franklin D. Roosevelt, heard about the attack on Guam and the Philippines, he admitted that a part of him was not surprised at all by the news. The attack on Pearl Harbor had been deduced to be done by the enemy to cripple the Pacific Fleet so that they could launch attacks on the Pacific and Asia.

Bad news after bad news. That was the only thing that he heard after the "date which will live in infamy," as he had dubbed December 7, 1941. Not only the territories of Liberia, but the enemy also invaded Cathay, Indochina, and Malaya. His military advisors told him that if they proceed as predicted, then the enemy was also heading towards Britannian Raj and Commonwealth of Australis.

Speaking of the enemy, he agreed with some who believed that the enemy was not the Neuroi. Sure, the Neuroi participated in the attacks on Asia, but the report from General Douglas MacArthur of how he had to deal with naval bombardment indicated something else. Then there were the airstrikes that – like in Pearl Harbor – used guns and bombs.

The technology was too different. Why used guns and bombs when you have a laser? The latter was more destructive than anything that the humans had. The damage on Pearl and the Pacific Fleet indicated that the bombs and torpedoes used were no more destructive than their own bombs and torpedoes.

No, theses enemies – the ones that possess aircraft and ships – were not Neuroi. They might be like them, aliens, not something from Earth itself. But the differences between them were simply too striking. And it was something possible.

After all, if nations of the world can ally with each other, why not civilizations across the stars?

Anyway, as of now, the US Navy would have to divert their resources and ships. The majority of their best ships were at the Atlantic with most of the ships on the Pacific being old ones, with some even on their way of being scrapped. It would cause quite a bit of chaos, but…

"Mr. President?" His thought was interrupted when an aide approached him with a paper in hand.

He already knew that it was yet another bad news.

He was proven to be right when the aide told him about an attack on the Panama Canal.

When he received the news, Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto of the Fuso Imperial Navy wondered if this was a nightmare and that he was actually still sleeping. He knew that there was no point in denying reality, so he decided to just accept the news as it was.

Silently, he picked up the paper that contained the list of the ships that were part of the Fusoan European Expeditionary Fleet. He then picked another one, containing the list of ships that Fusoan navy possessed. With a pen, he scratched the names of the ship that were in both papers. Once he was done, the old admiral couldn't help but cringe upon seeing the names that were not scratched.

For the lack of a better word, there was simply not enough ship to completely protect the Home Islands from attack. Which was already proven by the news of Okinawa receiving naval bombardments and airstrikes.

Most important, however, was the news of the South Seas Island being under attack. It was the most important overseas territory of Fuso, providing it with much-needed resources. If it fell, then to say that the Empire would be screwed six ways from Sunday – as the Liberians would put it – was not even enough to describe the sheer disaster of such an event.

He sighed, standing up from his seat and walked towards the window. From his room, he could saw the ships of the Fuso Imperial Navy. They were here to help their comrades in Europe and North Africa who were fighting against the Neuroi. Since there was no threat back home, for both moral and pragmatic reasons, the Empire decided to send a contingent of its military as support.

They had just arrived in Casablanca a few days ago and Yamamoto knew that today, they would receive the order to sail back home. It didn't sit well for him and likely others would feel the same. It was as if they were abandoning their comrades to the Neuroi.

He knew they couldn't just ignore this new threat, however. The Allies were already struggling to deal with the refugees from European nations that had fallen to the Neuroi. If Asia and Australis fall as well…he simply didn't want to think about it.

Sighing, the old admiral picked up his hat and exited the room. He had only taken several steps away from the door when an ensign arrived, carrying a paper. The young man bowed as he presented it to him. When he accepted the paper and read the content, it crumpled due to the sheer pressure of his hands.

There were naval attacks on the Cape of Good Hope and the Bab-el-Mandeb.

And the prologue is done.

For those wondering, "Cathay" is the name that I used to call "China" in this Strike Witches story, where the nations have different names.

*look at New Zeeland, Greece, South Africa, Egypt, etc.*

Well, some of them at least.

If you have a question or suggestion, feel free to tell me.

Review, please!