Against the Tide Imperial: The Struggle for Ceylon (The Usurper's War: An Alternative World War II B by James Young (story reading txt) 📕

Fujita shook his head.

"But look at how fast you are and how well they accelerate," he said, gesturing as Isoro's fighter was brought up on the center elevator followed by the final member of his chutai being brought up astern. "Even with temperamental engines, it is a major improvement over the Zero."

"Be careful talking about your lover that way," Isoro said, looking around in mock horror. "She'll abandon you when you least expect it."

Fujita rolled his eyes.

"My lover has a salty face when the only thing she can do is outturn enemy fighters," Fujita stated, then nodded his head at the plane handler gesturing towards Isoro. "But it appears your lover's manservant wishes to get the door."

"May neither of us score anymore today," Isoro solemnly, looking up at the partially cloudy sky.

"Indeed," Fujita said. "Hopefully the cruiser plane those lucky bastards from Hiryu shot down will allow us to get away."

With that, the two men bowed to one another. Isoro saw his wingmen, Warrant Officer Okamoto and Petty Officer Takahashi already going through their pre-flight routine. Moving at a rapid walk that was just short of a run, Isoro clambered up into this own Shiden. He quickly ran through an abbreviated preflight, then looked down Soryu's flight deck for the signal to launch. As the carrier's bow made the slight adjustment to port to come fully into the wind, Isoro considered the visibly patched portions of her deck.

They flew off what remained of the air group and several fighters have already landed and taken off today. Why am I sitting here nervous my fighter might fall through the planks?

Isoro glanced at the smoke plume wafting back from the carrier's bow to help the helm align fully into the wind. Seeing it align down the center of the deck, Isoro shook off his feeling of foreboding.

That's as good a wind as we're going to get.

The Shiden shook with the Soryu’s hull vibrations as the flattop increased her speed. Judging the wind over the flight deck to be sufficient, the carrier's air officer hoisted the white flag with a black ball. In a carefully choreographed dance, the flight crews removed the chock blocks beneath all three fighters. This was followed by the island hoisting a plain white flag that granted Isoro permission to launch.

At long last.

Isoro released his brakes and advanced his throttle to the limit.

Thank goodness for that strong wind out of the east. Otherwise this might be a very difficult launch given Soryu’s condition.

Even with the wind, Isoro could tell the heavy Shiden was going to use all of the Soryu’s flight deck. It was when he was three quarters of the way there that he saw activity out of the corner of his eye in the gun galleries, with men pointing upwards and barrels starting to elevate. He glanced upwards and nearly peed himself at the glint of sunlight off cockpit glass.

What in the…helldivers!

Wisely Isoro did not panic, continuing his normal take off even as the carrier began to change her helm over. He swore that the Shiden didn’t take off so much as Soryu's deck heeled over just beneath his fighter. With Isoro out of the way, the guns all along the flight deck began opening up in a ripple of fire as Soryu began turning to port.

Where did they come from?

Isoro again glanced upwards. He immediately regretted that decision, as it seemed like a long snake of SBDs was falling from a sky just darkening with flak. Concentrating on operating his landing gear switches, Isoro briefly sensed a shadow passing across his rear view mirror as first one, then two waterspouts erupted just off the Soryu's starboard side before a third bomb hit the carrier forward on her flight deck.

"Chikusho!" Isoro cursed as debris arced past this fighter. With his gear up and airspeed well above stalling, he slammed the Shiden into a turn. The maneuver saved his life as the fourth dive bomber turned and attempted to draw a bead on his Shiden as it pulled out of its dive. Behind the SBD, the American's 1,000-lb. bomb obliterated Okamoto's fighter in a brilliant orange fireball.

You son of a whore!

Isoro felt the Shiden's controls start to vibrate as he approached stall speed. The offending SBD, realizing that discretion was the better part of valor, turned away. Isoro leveled off as he headed south to clear the Agano's anti-aircraft fire, making continued glances upwards to see if any more Americans were diving on the Soryu.

Where in the Hell did they come from?

A quick glance around revealed smoke trails across the sky at altitude and a final section of Dauntlesses pulling out of their attacks. Behind them, the Soryu convulsed from at least two more blasts.

She's done for.

Isoro’s eyes burned with unshed tears of frustration, rage, and mourning. Gritting his teeth, he began a gentle turn around to the west.

Now to find that bastard who dared to attack a samurai.

Isoro's assessment was more or less correct. The American air strike, taking advantage of the scattered clouds over the Soryu and her escorts, had stalked to the carrier's north. Detaching from the dive bombers, the Bonhomme Richard's fighters had bounced six of the Zeroes on CAP to clear a path for the Yorktown's strike group. Due to those fighters notoriously finicky radios, the only warning the rest of the CAP had that Americans were about was the descending comets from the two dying chutai. Just like their American counterparts attempting to cover TF 25 earlier that day, the remaining three Zeroes and same number of Shiden were too busy fighting for their lives to either warn the surface vessels or interfere with the Dauntlesses.

The Soryu's late turn saved her from being hit by Red One or Red Two. The next ten dive bombers scored a total of five hits on the already damaged vessel. Being in the midst of flight operations but with empty hangars, the carrier at