Crossover Shipgirls: Building a Dimensional Empire from Scratch

Chomp chomp chomp

The three Fortress Princesses sat on the bridge deck, stuffing their mouths with all kinds of carrier aircraft, naval guns, and even land-based artillery.

The equipment, when pulled from storage, still retained its compact rigging form.

But in the hands of the Abyssals, it looked just like snacks.

Each time they ate a carrier plane, a matching aircraft would appear on the rigging behind them.

Setsuna's inventory was filled with all sorts of odds and ends. Besides the latest models, he still had a variety of earlier planes left over from equipment upgrades.

Harbor Princess and Airfield Princess weren't picky—they devoured everything.

Northern-chan sat on the floor, fiddling with the newly acquired aircraft in her hands.

Like a child with a new toy~

Vrrrrrr

The toy plane flew around the bridge of the Eternal Snowfall. She had quickly grasped the operation of the advanced aircraft.

"So cute—"

Chen Hai, Shinano, and other Azur Lane shipgirls couldn't help but feel their maternal instincts flare up.

They crowded around her, patting her head and shaking her hands.

"Where did you come from? Do you fight using aircraft too?"

"How many planes can you control at once?!"

Northern-chan was younger than most destroyers, and the shipgirls couldn't resist teasing her.

"I come from the ocean..."

"Planes... can control..."

She started counting with her fingers.

"Two hundred... no, three hundred... five hundred! No..."

"Ah, I lost count... don't know..."

Her voice was flat and soft, like a kuudere loli, with a touch of innocent confusion.

"So moe!"

"A kid this small can control hundreds of carrier aircraft. No wonder she's a Fortress Princess."

Shinano held Northern-chan in her arms and patted her head.

"Ehh—"

Stuffed and satisfied, Northern-chan showed no hostility toward the shipgirls and curiously observed the spaceship's interior.

...

Nagato, Yamato, and other native shipgirls from the Kantai Collection world had complicated expressions.

They cautiously approached Northern-chan, afraid she might suddenly lash out.

After all, the navy had been fighting the Abyssals for years. It's hard to undo such deep-rooted impressions.

"?"

Northern-chan didn't recognize these shipgirls. She tilted her head and acted cute.

"Come to think of it, we've never seen her before."

"Probably because the homeport never explored this part of the sea."

Nagato pinched her cheek. Northern-chan bared her teeth at her in a mock-growl.

To reach the Abyssal core region by their own power would have been a pipe dream.

Only thanks to Setsuna could they travel here by ship.

"Zhh... Dir-Commander!"

Northern-chan, held by Shinano, kept trying to squirm free and crawl over to Setsuna.

But even her best efforts couldn't overcome the playful teasing of the Azur Lane shipgirls.

Formidable pulled out a silver-gray aircraft and waved it in front of Northern-chan.

"MK3 Space Mid-Range Fighter, equipped with a mini FTL engine, strike radius over 6 light-years. Want it?"

"Want!"

Northern-chan realized the carrier shipgirls had even more advanced gear than what Setsuna gave her.

She tiptoed and reached out for it.

But she was much shorter than Formidable. Even jumping, she couldn't reach it.

Whoosh

Formidable tossed the plane forward. It landed in Victorious' hands.

Northern-chan ran over to her.

"My, how adorable."

Victorious gave the plane a flick, and it was caught by Chen Hai.

Northern-chan chased after it, running between the carrier shipgirls.

"Are you training a puppy?!"

The native shipgirls had utterly baffled expressions.

They couldn't imagine how these otherworldly shipgirls could play with the ferocious Fortress Princesses like toys—and actually enjoy it.

Perhaps this was the composure of starship shipgirls as true powerhouses.

And this one only acted cute in front of Setsuna?

Guess it's true what they say—don't bite the hand that feeds you!

Chomp chomp chomp

After devouring gear for over ten minutes, the three Fortress Princesses had completely replaced the Abyssal aircraft in their rigging with planes produced by the Azur Lane ports.

However, the outer shell of the aircraft had been painted jet black, seemingly a result of being assimilated by Abyssal power.

"Tha... Thank."

Harbor Princess spat out the words toward Setsuna.

"Full now?"

Setsuna chuckled, sitting across from her.

"I have a few questions about the Abyssals. Do you mind?"

"Mhm."

Northern-chan's three sisters nodded.

"Why do you always attack us on sight poi?"

Yuudachi jumped in with the first question.

"Because... you... bullied her."

"This is... our... territory."

Airfield Princess pointed first at Ark Royal, then at Northern-chan.

"..."

Ark Royal looked a bit awkward—she swore it wasn't intentional.

Setsuna figured luring the three sisters over was ultimately a good thing. Saved him the trouble of hunting them down later. He didn't bother with who attacked first.

"Who's the current leader, or flagship, of the Abyssal fleet?"

"Ya...Yamato..."

Harbor Princess uttered a name Setsuna was very familiar with.

"So it really is Abyssal Yamato..."

"Are there many like you in the Abyssal fleet—those who can communicate with outsiders?"

Setsuna stroked his chin.

"There... used to be. Not... anymore."

The Abyssals spoke slowly, each word dropping out one by one.

"Oh...?"

Setsuna pondered.

"Do you know where the Abyssals' resurrection ability comes from?"

The three Fortress Princesses shook their heads.

"Does Yamato have any special powers?"

"She... strong. Very strong."

They shook their heads again, unsure.

"If we defeat Abyssal Yamato, would that basically mean the fall of the entire Abyssal fleet?"

"..."

Harbor Princess was silent for a while, then slowly nodded.

"OK."

After a few more casual questions, Setsuna snapped his fingers and selected the previously detected anomalous energy location on the holographic map.

"That simplifies things."

"Come on, time to meet this world's final boss. Observer did ask me to capture some Abyssals for her to study, after all..."

"Take her out, and the Kantai Collection world should know peace."

...

Bzzzz

With the four Fortress Princesses subdued, the fleet continued at full speed.

As they ventured deeper into the Abyssals' core control zone, the once-blue sea turned pitch black, and shrieking sea winds whipped up wave after monstrous wave.

...

Massive black waves swept outward like tsunamis.

Looking closely, one could spot innumerable Abyssal ships hidden within them.

They resembled jellyfish, fish, and other aquatic creatures, all coated in metallic black sheen. Were it not for faint red markings, they'd be indistinguishable from the waves.

In the sky, storm clouds blanketed hundreds of kilometers, with thunder and lightning writhing through them, rumbling ominously.

If one were sailing on the sea, any normal person or native shipgirl would be scared stiff.

Fighting against endless Abyssal forces in such a hellish environment—there's nothing more terrifying.

—But none of that mattered to the starship.

The Eternal Snowfall cruised steadily through the stratosphere.

Outside the windows was a deep blue sky—no clouds, no vapor, no wind or turbulence. Within the planet's atmosphere, the stratosphere was the ideal cruising altitude.

Looking down, all one could see were thick clouds, flashing lightning, and booming thunder echoing below.

The Abyssal fleet was declaring its arrival to the world.

"Natives will be natives. Abyssals' territory magic only works within the troposphere?"

Richelieu looked completely unimpressed by the spectacle below.

Maybe she'd have been intimidated before her retrofit, but now? She only saw a bunch of overdramatic performers.

"Still, gotta say... the Abyssals showing up with built-in environmental effects and background music is pretty slick."

Yukikaze wiggled her ears and pulled out a few scrolls.

"Commander, should I cast a weather control spell nanoda?"

"We gotta make our entrance just as cool, right?"

The shipgirls squinted at the scrolls in her hands—spoils from the Overlord world, now studied by the Magic Academy.

"Huh?!..."

...

Far out at sea, away from land—

An immeasurable number of Abyssal fleets were advancing in formation.

At the front were the most common standard Abyssal warships: fish-like, humanoid, or outright ship-form destroyers and light cruisers.

Just behind them were groups of humanoid Abyssals: Destroyer Princesses, Heavy Cruiser Princesses, Anti-Air Princesses, and more.

Beneath the waves, nearly matching the number of surface ships, Abyssal submarines crept silently in the currents.

They moved like predators cloaked in darkness, lurking thousands of meters below, waiting to strike.

At the center of this massive formation was a battleship girl with ghostly pale skin and rigging several times larger than the others.

Surrounding her were various large Abyssals like Battleship Princesses, Anchorage Demons, Southern Demons, and even several Fortress Princesses.

There was no expression on Abyssal Yamato's face.

Escorted by the fleet, she steadily advanced toward the direction of the Naval Base.

Suddenly—

A semi-humanoid Abyssal emerged from below and quietly reported the frontline situation to Yamato.

"Area F-19 has been breached. Sixteen Princess-class units have gone '660' and are unaccounted for."

"Oh."

Yamato remembered that was the zone guarded by several Fortress Princesses.

"So those bastards have reached this far already? Tch."

From the continuous battle reports, she learned that shipgirls were launching full-scale assaults across various regions.

This time, they had split up—making their offensive progress unusually fast.

She couldn't understand it. Those shipgirls were nearly boxed in at the base—how did they even have the strength to strike back?

Even more bizarre, none of the Abyssals who had fought them on the frontlines had returned alive.

She only realized the regions were falling thanks to scout submarines detecting anomalies from afar.

Watching as territory hard-won by the Abyssals was quickly reclaimed, Yamato could no longer sit still.

She decided to personally investigate the situation.

"This round of losses... Battleship Water Demon, Carrier Princess..."

She closed her eyes and focused.

Touching the sea surface, a faint black energy seeped downward.

Buzz—

The ocean responded, condensing a massive sphere of dark energy beneath her feet.

It gradually took form and stabilized.

Ten minutes later—

A Battleship Water Demon, identical to the one previously defeated, surfaced from the waves.

Her rigging showed minor changes, but she stood there without emotion, like a machine obeying orders.

Abyssals are born of the resentment of sunken ships—dark beings that rise in defiance of humanity.

As long as the Abyssal fleet held sway over the oceans, these creatures could be revived again and again to continue the war.

Using her memories, Yamato even strengthened the revived Abyssals.

Unfortunately, the enhancements seemed to have little effect—these newly modified Abyssals still couldn't overcome the current invaders.

One after another, she revived Princesses and Demons, slowly regrowing her fleet.

"Heh—"

"Let's see how long your ammo and weapons last."

Around her stood several pale-skinned comrades.

Their rigging bore a resemblance to famous shipgirls like Missouri, Enterprise, and Iowa.

These were also high-ranking leaders of the Abyssal fleet.

"Against an endless Abyssal force, resistance is meaningless."

Abyssal Yamato's eyes glimmered with pity.

To her, this war was already lost for the Naval Base.

The Abyssals' strength came from the sea itself. Fighting them meant fighting the entire ocean.

No shipgirl could stand against that. No human nation could either.

"If they're looking for us, then let them witness the true power of the Abyssal Fleet."

Yamato commanded the fleet to advance.

"Head for the Naval Base. They'll surely try to intercept us halfway."

"And if they don't come?"

An Abyssal ship asked.

"Then we'll raze the base to the ground and drive them out of the ocean once and for all."

Yamato's reply was cold and unwavering.

Swish—Swish—

The Abyssal fleet surged forward, wrapped in thunderclouds and storms.

Yet, along the way, they saw none of the massive fleets they had expected.

Based on Yamato's expectations, any fleet capable of annihilating elite Abyssals in such a short time should be made up of high-speed battlecruisers and battleships.

But the sea was eerily empty, save for wreckage from the previous Abyssal battles.

"Strange. Did they retreat that quickly?"

"Could it be a destroyer fleet? No... destroyers couldn't possibly defeat a Carrier Princess and Battleship Water Demon..."

Just as she puzzled over the situation—

BOOM—

A massive hole tore open in the storm clouds above, pierced by a starship.

Sunlight streamed down through the gap.

Many Abyssals instinctively shielded their eyes from the sudden glare.

Looking up, they saw the Eternal Snowfall and dozens of escort starships break through the cloud cover.

The plasma exhaust from the starships vaporized the surrounding storm clouds, as if divine beings had descended to illuminate the dark seas below.

And then—

"6th-Tier Magic: Weather Control—nanoda!!!"

Yukikaze activated a scroll. A beam of intense light burst forth from the Eternal Snowfall, sweeping away the lightning and clouds.

The sky turned clear, the sea calm. A rainbow arched across the horizon.

Abyssal Yamato: "???"

She stared blankly upward, unable to comprehend what had just happened.

Come on. The Abyssal Fleet is supposed to bring doom, disaster, and hate with them...

You're making me look like a fool here.

Like the final boss of a horror game showing up with cheerful background music!

"Who wants to go? I need one of them alive."

Setsuna glanced down at the Abyssal fleet. They looked like tutorial-level enemies—no need for him to act personally. He turned to the shipgirls.

"Me me me!"

They all raised their hands eagerly.

"Commander, please allow me to fight in the name of Yamato."

Arpeggio Yamato stepped forward and bowed solemnly.

"Only the strongest battleship is worthy of the name Yamato. That Abyssal monster in their fleet disgraces it. Let me settle this."

"...Fine."

Setsuna nodded. Arpeggio Fleet hadn't had many sorties—he approved the request.

Clank—

Among the hovering starships, a silver-white vessel adorned with elegant golden carvings slowly descended to the sea.

Since returning to Earth with the Commander, Yamato had undergone multiple upgrades, now equipped with the fleet's most advanced weapons.

"The sea... such a familiar feeling."

The black-haired girl gently touched her control panel, smiling as she looked toward the distant Abyssal fleet.

"Even the old Fleet of Fog wouldn't be a match for me now—much less you."

"?"

The Abyssals were confused—why would a flying starship descend to sea level?

If it had stayed in the sky, they would've had no way to hit it. Their main cannons didn't have the elevation.

"Open fire!"

Just as the Abyssals issued the command—

Clank—

Yamato's gleaming silver hull opened at the midsection, revealing a massive super-graviton cannon.

BOOM—

A golden torrent of energy erupted, instantly obliterating the Abyssal front line.

Back in the Arpeggio world, the Fleet of Fog's favorite tactic against large human fleets was sweeping the sea with constant super-graviton fire.

Anything in its path was reduced to nothing.

WOOO—

Yamato's hull and cannon swept in an arc, leaving a glowing fan of devastation hundreds of kilometers wide across the ocean.

BOOM—BOOM—BOOM!!

The Abyssals touched by the beam didn't even have time to react before they were vaporized.

In a single strike, countless Abyssals were wiped out, leaving only a few Princesses struggling to survive.

Hiss—

Aboard the Eternal Snowfall, the native Yamato stood frozen.

Oh no. Out of the three Yamatos, I'm the weakest...

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