Between Scylla and Charybdis

 

「How are Libya-sama and Outis doing? There’s a limit to how long we can endure.」

Even though the Aural had been born from the myth of a golden dragon and was based on an Antique Silhouette, giving him exceptional performance, he was being overwhelmed by the sheer quality and quantity of the enemy Teras.
When Mythology Weapons clashed, the battlefield bore less resemblance to a modern military operation and more to an ancient war.

「The enemy’s strong… It’s rough.」

The Fairy Leprechaun let out a weary sigh. They’d been locked in consecutive battles against chimera Teras far above their weight class. Several allies had already been shot down.

The Kryptos were severely outnumbered. Humanity’s forces were led primarily by the Trireme Fleet, and the local inhabitants had little real combat experience.
Were it not for the Eidolon reinforcements—Cú Sith and Cait Sìth—the frontline would have long since collapsed.

The number of colossal enemy Teras based on warships was greatly superior to their own colossal companions. Garuda and Seth were holding the line, and the crimson dragon-type Kryptos, Zulaig, had rushed to support them—but even that wasn’t enough. The other Kryptos born from lighter vessels, Sekiryuu and Kurikara, were currently tasked with guarding the last of the human settlements.

「Kou’s team has begun their incursion into the sealed zone where Echidna resides.」

Aimer reported in. From the beginning, the path to victory had been clear: merge Echidna with Libya.

「So they’ve already made it that far. But Morgan-dono, the enemy—」

「Yes, they’re finally moving. The core Teras forces are approaching from the sea. We’ve confirmed threats beyond just Hydra. Charybdis and Scylla have been spotted amid the enemy reinforcements.」

「This is literally the same as the saying…」

Kinukawa furrowed his brows at the names.

「The saying?」

Aimer tilted her head. Earth-origin traditions were worth keeping in mind.

「There is a saying in our country that reads like this: ‘being caught between a tiger at the gate and wolves at your back.’ In Europe, they say something similar but change the tiger and the wolves with Scylla and Charybdis. It’s a metaphor for being caught in a deadly pincer.」

「So, a crisis with no good options.」

「Exactly.」

Refocusing, Aimer gave swift orders to Astraea.

「Astraea. Prepare to surface.」

「Understood.」

Her tense voice echoed through the ship.

「Aki, bring the Silhouette squad back inside. Nyanta, prepare for anti-sub operations. As much as you can.」

「Roger that!」

「Anti-sub loadout in progress, nya. That freakish thing’s too much on its own already, nya.」

Aimer kept her eyes fixed on the screen.

「Echidna’s maritime forces were stronger than expected… Another colossal Teras based on a capital ship—Scylla. And now Charybdis has appeared behind the Hiyou and the Pericles. I’d heard the sea was relatively safe…」

「After the sealed zone was breached, Echidna appears to have committed all her forces to capture Realm before the infiltration squad reaches her. Scylla is, according to myth, an ancestral nemesis of mine.」

Morgan’s voice carried a tinge of bitterness. Scylla—the sea monster said to haunt the Strait of Messina, between Sicily and the Italian peninsula. Even Odysseus had suffered her wrath. Morgan, related to that same mirage-laden strait, could hardly avoid calling her a natural enemy.

「I can only think of you as the Lady of the Lake who ruined Britain.」

Astraea’s retort was merciless. Unlike her sister, she took pleasure in jabs like this.

「That doesn’t matter right now. We need a countermeasure for that one… and those crab-type Teras are a nuisance.」

Aimer had no time for identity squabbles. The sensors confirmed multiple crab-like Teras, each the size of a Silhouette, moving along the seafloor.

「Those are Karkinos. Hydra’s dearest friend. In the myth, it intervened in Hydra’s battle with Heracles, it later became the origin of the Cancer constellation.」

「Sounds strong.」

「Not really, Heracles crushed it without even noticing. Hera pitied its sacrifice and immortalized it in the stars.」

「…No comment.」

Being stepped on unintentionally—that was just tragic, Aimer thought.

「Hm?」

She detected a change in the atmosphere.

「A cry…?」

A sudden, loud meow echoed—Bastet’s voice, ringing out with unusual intensity. It was more than just a sound—it was a special comm-signal audible throughout the ship.

「Bastet’s calling out, nya. Telling someone to hurry? But who—?」

Myaa! Myaa!

She kept crying out.

Chimeras nearby took notice and began to attack, but the Type-0s and the Fairies moved in to block them.

「Whoa there. No way I’m letting anyone hurt a cat on my watch!」

「We’ll protect Bastet—yeah!」

Fairy Leprechaun and Fairy Puck launched into an intercept. The Type-0s used their speed; the Fairies leveraged their agility to flank the chimeras and strike.

「Myaa!」

Bastet’s cry turned into a near-scream. And as if summoned by her voice… the sea split open.

◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆

From beyond the horizon, a towering geyser of seawater erupted.

「Astraea! Flank speed! All ships, break off—now!」

「Understood. Pericles turning. Full flank, hard to port. Hiyou turning. Full flank, hard to starboard!」

Eri barked commands to the fleet. The Pericles and the Hiyou moved into a V-shaped formation, accelerating away.

Aimer watched intently.

「If it lands in the water… the coastline’ll be in danger. Is there anything we—」

「That altitude, that distance, that speed—everything’s been calculated. It’s under control mid-air. The tsunami won’t reach land.」

「Really…? If Bastet called it, maybe it’s an ally?」

「Most likely.」

Aural soared upward to verify. From his vantage point sent the image recorded by his optical sensors. In the image, only a colossal head could be seen—it had a distinctive cheek-guard shaped like whiskers.

Aimer blinked.

「…A catfish?」

It had a dopey, almost comical face. But it was undeniably a Mythology Weapon.

「Unknown.」

「Aimer-dono, Astraea-dono. That is Bahamut. He is revered as the Guardian of the Sea of Planet Libya.」

A monstrous shadow hovered in the air—absurdly huge.

「Just how massive is it…?」

「If it truly draws from the world-fish Bahamut legend, it ought to be a whale.」

Astraea sounded irked. She clearly disapproved of how these Mythology Weapons were created with little consistency towards their myths.

「World-fish? Not a dragon?」

「In a medieval Persian cosmology text, Bahamut was portrayed as the sea beast counterpart to the land’s Behemoth and Leviathan. There was confusion—Bahamut was mixed with Kūyaṭar. Its true name is Lūtayyā.」

「It’s too big for the Astraea’s cameras to completely catch it, huh.」

「It is said to be a being so large it cannot fully fit within human vision. However, we did capture the moment it breached. Displaying now.」

「Still… why a catfish?」

「I’ve heard a theory—where Outis comes from, catfish were believed to cause earthquakes. That belief might’ve been influenced by Bahamut lore. Conversely, this Bahamut may have taken on catfish traits due to Japanese influence.」

「Who told you that?」

Aimer couldn’t help but ask.

「A Kryptos of Japanese origin.」

「There are others besides Kasha? That’s valuable info. I’d love to know their name.」

「Of course. Their name is—」

「No time. Bahamut is about to make contact with the sea surface.」

Bahamut plunged into the sea. A tremendous column of spray shot skyward—not quite on the scale of the crustal tsunami created by the Star, but still a tidal wall.

Beneath the splashdown zone was Scylla.

The slow descent of Bahamut appeared languid—but only due to its size. In truth, it struck with incredible speed.

Crashing into the seafloor, Bahamut crushed Scylla beneath him. Though Scylla was originally a formidable starship, the disparity in mass was undeniable.

「Scylla’s destruction confirmed. Just how massive is it…?」

「Bahamut is the orbital fortress-carrier Sophoi-class Chiron reborn as an Eidolon.」

Morgan answered quietly.

「Wait—wasn’t that a sister ship of the Enterprise? It had a diameter of nearly four kilometers, didn’t it?」

「Indeed. It’s likely on our side. Though I never imagined it would join the battle to protect us.」

「You underestimate the situation, Morgan-dono. We now serve Libya-sama.」

「That’s true. We are now vassals of Libya-sama. And she pilots Arthur! This is the new Britain…!」

The last part was whispered, but still clearly picked up within Astraea’s bridge.

「Is it really okay to turn Planet Libya and Mount Etna into Britain…? What’s going on, Astraea?」

Aimer noticed Astraea was unusually silent. When an AI fell into deep thought, it usually meant something serious.

「The legend of Morgan as Queen of the Sea… Her goal might be tied to Mongibello—that is, Mount Etna. There’s a tradition that Avalon lay hidden there. Could she be trying to recreate Greater Britain in this region…? No… surely not…」

Astraea’s words sounded less like an answer and more like she was trying to convince herself.