Amelia and Ophelia: The Former Grand Duchess and Saintess.

Upon hearing the command of the Admiral, up and down the dockyard, the sailors scrambled to their duties. They climbed the riggings along the masts, checked the equipment aboard the ships, and even readied some of the magi-cannons for use, and after a few minutes, the sloops had begun to reel back up their anchor and were almost ready to set sail. Meanwhile, the duo monarchs and Admiral Ushana were on the HNS Ophelia, the maroon-colored deck swarming with activity as sailors set to work getting the massive ships ready to go, while the sister ship, the HNS Amelia was also about ready to set sail. 

"Are you sure you wish to stay here instead of your ship Amelia?" Ophelia asked her as they leaned on the railing near the helm being manned by Ushana herself 

"Yeah, I wish to stay by your side until we are fully underway" Amelia replied as she locked hands with her 

"All right then" Ophelia finished with a smile as they watched the things happening on deck. 

Their gazes watched as the crew of different species worked like clockwork around the ship, tying ropes and securing them to their designated places along the top deck, these were usually done by the humans and lamias on deck while on the masts, dwarves, and elves began activating the magic crystals that were placed in the masts, while the remaining crew unfurled all of the sails, with rectangular and square sails opening up and even triangular ones as well. 

"Propulsion Control! I want Half-Wind! Once we reach open waters you are to switch it up to full wind, understood?" Ushana ordered as she looked at a crystal intercom station next to the helm 

"Control acknowledges Admiral! Half-Wind until open waters!" The intercom spat back with a masculine voice, with Ushana nodding at the response 

"Communications! I want our screens to form a sphere around the larger ships, order the ships of the line to form a square around our two flagships! I also want our dragonkin to fly in the skies above us, I want them to act as spotters besides our screens!" Ushana ordered again as she turned a switch on the intercom 

"Communications acknowledges Admiral! Will send out the orders at once!" The intercom replied again with another masculine voice 

"Admiral! Anchors Away!" One of the sailors shouted as he saw the massive pair of cast iron anchors park back on the ship's bow 

"Understood! Propulsion! Half-Wind at once!" Ushana acknowledged with a nod before turning back to the intercom 

"Acknowledged Admiral, Half-Wind at once!" The control station acknowledged

A few moments after confirmation, the magic crystals in the masts began to glow and a rush of air filled all of the sails, the massive ship then began to move slowly as it began to leave port. Ushana turned the helm around to starboard to align the massive Man of War with the entrance to the port, she was following behind the Gaius Class ships of the line, and behind her, she was being followed by the HNS Amelia. 

"Oooo, this is exciting" Amelia remarked as she had a smile from ear to ear 

"I am glad you are enjoying it Amelia" Ophelia said as she looked at her, a smile also on her face 

Once they cleared the port and were now in open water, the fleet moved into formation, with the twelve sloops and eight brings forming a spherical screening formation around the larger ships in the center while the four frigates moved into a square formation while the two massive flagships were in a pair, with the HNS Amelia hanging slightly back and to the right of the HNS Ophelia. The fleet also began moving faster now as the ships were now at Full-Wind which was the fastest they could go, meaning they were moving around 18 knots. 

"Hmm, I wonder" Amelia mumbled as she and her lover walked along the railing of the top deck 

"Hmm? What is it Amelia?" Ophelia asked her as she heard her mumbling 

"Just watch" Amelia answered her as she looked out into the deep dark sea 

[I call upon three Leviathans] She thought as she closed her eyes and called out to the Leviathan Clan 

When she opened her eyes, she was waiting for a few moments, and just as she was about to let out a sigh of disappointment 

[We hear your call Princess] A trio of deep voices answered, causing Amelia's eyes to go wide and a smile to appear on her face 

{!}

"Admiral! One of our sloops, The HNS Spear is reporting something coming at us from the port side!" The intercom shouted 

"What?! All ships get-" 

"Wait, wait, wait! They aren't enemies!" Amelia shouted as she rushed towards the helm, with the admiral being cut off by her voice 

"Belay that order, order all ships to stand down" 

"Wait what?" The intercom asked with confusion 

"I said stand down, order the Spear not to do anything" Ushana restated 

"Understood Admiral" The voice in the intercom replied with a noticeable hesitation 

{!} 

Suddenly, the gasps of the sailors on the top deck filled the air as everyone's gaze turned to three massive creatures approaching them from the port side at high speed, with the duo monarchs looking less than worried as they saw the three massive things stop just before they struck the closest sloop in their way, diving deep below it and then disappearing from view completely. 

"So that's what you did, brought us another escort did you?" Ophelia remarked with a grin as she turned to her beloved 

"Hehehe, I wished to see if it would work and I am glad it did" Amelia replied as she then looked back at the ocean before her 

[Show yourselves] She ordered the Leviathans who had arrived 

[Understood Princess] The trio of voices answered 

Following her orders, the three massive Leviathans emerged from the water, one on either side and the third one in the front, with the three massive creatures swimming in the same direction as the fleet. the reaction from the crews was all the same, silent and stunned horror as they looked up at the Leviathans that towered over even their largest of vessels, the duo monarchs even saw Ushana turn ghastly white as she looked at the main Leviathan in front of the fleet. 

The duo monarchs also noticed that sirens were hanging onto the claws of the massive creature in the front, with some of them dropping from the claw and into the sea and swimming towards the main ship where the duo monarchs were on. Leaping from the water in grand displays that showered people in seawater and showed off their shimmering scales in the bright sunlight. 

"The 2nd Deap Sea Security Team greats Your Majesties" The lead siren stated with a bow, her flowing red locks defying the wind and continuing to flow as if it were still in water 

"Ahh, one of the H.I.S.S teams I take it? Apologies for taking you away from your operating area" Ophelia replied as she looked at them 

"No worries Your Majesty, the first team will take over our area for now, and since it was a call from Her Majesty, there was no way we could refuse" The siren leader stated with another bow 

"We thank you for your devotion then" Amelia chimed in as she smiled, with the siren leader nodding 

"We shall be escorting you from under the water, if you will excuse me Your Majesties" The siren leader added with a final bow before she and her comrades jumped off the ship and disappeared back into the depths along with the Leviathans 

"Well, that was something..." Ushana remarked as she walked over to her two monarchs 

"Indeed. Now we can conduct our exercises without much fear of anything watching us, I believe you sent out a dragonkin patrol earlier to keep us covered no?" Ophelia said as she turned to her 

"When do you wish to start Your Majesty?" The admiral asked with a small smirk 

"How about now" 

"Understood" 

Making their way back up to the helm, the duo monarchs stood next to the railing while Ushana took control of the helm from the helmsman and switched on the intercom to Communications. Taking a deep breath before facing the magic crystal, 

"Communications, order for the fleet. Form battlelines according to ship class, sloops and brigs in their own lines while order the Gaius, Olertin, Felice and Mary to fall behind the Amelia and our ship!" She commanded,

"Communications acknowledges Admiral! Sending out the orders!" The intercom replied 

"Stop your slacking you mongrels! All gun crews to their stations! I want the starboard side prepared for a full broadside! Get to it!" Ushana barked, with the sailors immediately scrambling to work 

The duo monarchs watched as the sailors scrambled to work, passing each other and yelling at one another. They pushed the magi-cannons out to their positions from the rails of the thing attached to their turn table, with some loading the gun and priming it for firing, others were busy getting more ammunition for the thing from the dumbwaiters connected to the storage in the bottom of the ship, the chorus of shouts and noises coming from the crews filling the air. 

Switching their gaze from the crew before them, both monarchs saw the screening ships on the port side quickly pick up speed. The sloops and the brigs then turned to starboard and crossed the line the HNS Ophelia was leading by a far margin as to ensure no collision, and they formed up with the rest of the screens on the other side, but they were still in a staggered line formation that was descending down to the main battle line of the frigates and the two Man o Wars, ensuring that the cannon fire drill would not result in friendly fire. 

"Mister Torch, take the helm and keep her steady as she goes" Ushana commanded as she turned to the wolf beastkin helmsman on standby behind her  

"Understood Admiral" Mister Torch replied as he took control of the helm 

"Your Majesties, you may want to have some ear protection, it's going to get loud" The admiral stated with a grin 

"Don't worry about us Ushana, we will be just fine" Ophelia replied as she coated herself and her lover in a barrier that would prevent the roar of the cannons from harming their ears 

"Status Report Austin!" Ushana called out as she stood on the steps leading down to the first gundeck 

"Starboard battery ready Admiral!" Austin called out from deeper below the ship 

"Alright, Communications! Mister Horrocks! Order the first two lines to open fire!" Ushana commanded as she hung onto the stairs and turned around, looking at the elven communications officer working the communication crystal 

"Acknowledged Admiral!" Mister Horrocks replied as he began speaking into the crystal 

Back on the top deck, the duo monarchs' gazes were eyeing the sloops and the brings of the first two lines as they heard the shouting from below. Both of them were excited to see the display of firepower that was to come. 

{!} 

And then it came, the duo saw the cannons aboard the sloops roar to life, with the flashes of the cannons being slightly visible to them. And in the distance where they fired, plumes of water erupted from the sea as the shells landed and detonated. Then the cannons of the brigs followed suit, the roar of their guns even louder and their flashes much more noticeable than that of the sloops, the shells they fired went much farther than that of the sloops and when they detonated after impacting with the water, the plumes of water were larger as well and once the roaring of their guns subsided, the calm of the sea returned, with the sounds of the ships gliding through the waves returning to fill the air. 

"That was really impressive" Amelia remarked as she turned to her beloved 

"It was, wasn't it? Now let's see the bigger ones have a crack at it" Ophelia added with a smirk 

Walking back up from the first gundeck, Ushana walked over to the railing and saw that everything was still ok, her gaze turning to the rear and seeing the frigates and the HNS Amelia following behind them as instructed, their guns at the ready for their turn to bark out in a display of power. 

"Mister Horrocks! Signal the frigates and the Amelia to be on the ready, I want my voice broadcasting onto their ships to synchronize the firing of the batteries!" She shouted as she walked back down to the first gundeck 

"Acknowledged Admiral! Crystal is broadcasting for the battle line!" Mister Horrocks replied 

"Thank you. Austin! Status update!" She added as she looked down the stairs to the lower decks 

"Starboard battery at the ready Ma'am!" Austin replied 

"Right! Starboard Batteries! Fire!" 

At her command, an eruption of tremendous cannon fire followed. The 42 and 36-pounders aboard the Man o Wars and the Gaius Class Frigates created a loud maelstrom of sound that filled the air, drowning out everything in its vicinity. The duo monarchs watched as the magi-cannons let loose their fearsome firepower, with flashes of the guns visible and much more prominent than the cannons of the screening ships, the roars of the guns being loud despite the barrier in place, the power of the guns even made the floorboards below them slightly shake from the vibrations given by the guns as they recoiled. While ordinarily in Ophelia's world, this would cause the ship to be covered in a lot of smoke, the design of the magi-cannons relying on magic and inscriptions alone made them practically smokeless but despite this, they still gave off a flash whenever fired. The duo then turned their gaze to the distance and after a few moments, hundreds of plumes of water burst forth from the sea, these plumes dwarfed even the ones made by the brigs and the sloops cannons combined. They were large enough to reach the height of the main mast aboard the HNS Ophelia and Amelia, leaving the duo monarchs very much stunned speechless, and impressed. 

"That was...an amazing display" Amelia remarked as she walked over to the railings on the starboard side of the ship 

"It was, if you wish, you can order another round of firing, but you may want to do that on your ship" Ophelia told her with a smirk, seeing her beloved's grin and a joyous attitude flash across her eyes 

Amelia then kissed her on the lips and then climbed the mizenmast before leaping from it to the bowsprit of the ship of her namesake with Ophelia smiling at the happiness her lover was experiencing. When Amelia landed, the crew immediately saluted and bowed their heads, with the captain of the vessel walking over to her and bowing her head. 

"Your Majesty, I am Captain Dorchets, the commander of this vessel" The blonde elven woman greeted 

"Hi there captain, I would like to ask for you and your crew to fire off another salvo please" Amelia replied as she stated her reason for coming 

"Oh! Of course Your Majesty, one moment please" Dorchets replied as she then turned to her crew 

"All guncrews to your stations! Reload the cannons at once! Her Majesty wants another salvo!" She barked as she looked at them, with the crew roaring in response as they set to work 

Amelia watched as they loaded the shells and poured magic into the crystal of the cannon on her way to the rear of the ship, standing by the helm in front of Dorchets who took to the helm. 

Not even a minute later, the crew were once again at the ready, with the cannons loaded and awaiting the order as the gun commanders turned their gazes to their captain and their monarch for the order to let loose another devastating salvo of magi-cannon might. 

"They are at the ready Your Majesty. Would you like to give the order?" Dorchets asked with a smile 

"I would love too" Amelia replied as she looked at the crew of the ship 

"Starboard Battery! Open Fire!" Amelia roared with a mighty grin 

At her command, the guns of the ship of her namesake roared like a mighty chorus of fire and destruction, the 42-pounder guns letting loose their deep BOOMS and growls as they spat fire from their mouths. The vibrations of the cannon fire slightly shook the ship with each gun firing away. And when the last gun had fired, Amelia had a very large grin on her face as she saw the large plumes of water erupt in the distance far away, the sounds of the shells detonating shortly following after. The crew themselves were cheering after another successful salvo and were in high spirits as their monarch herself cheered alongside them. 

"I could get used to something like this" Amelia remarked as she leaned on the railing near the helm 

"I am glad you enjoyed it" Ophelia said as she materialized behind her beloved and slung her arms over her 

"Thank you Ophie, truly....Thank you" Amelia said as she held onto the arms and looked at her 

"You are most welcome my dear" Ophie replied as the two kissed

After a few moments of love, the duo monarchs parted lips and Ophelia turned to Captain Dorchets with a smile resting on her lips 

"Captain, signal to Ushana we head back to port for now, the demonstration of the ships has satisfied us" She stated as she held Amelia close by her side 

"Understood Your Majesty. It will be done" The elven captain nodded as she walked down to the communications station 

.........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

Inside the opulent personal pleasure chamber of Crown Prince Victor Amma, heir to the throne of the Kingdom of Amma, sat on his couch surrounded by his many concubines and pleasure maids. A smile on his lips as he kissed one while groping another, his gaze was locked onto the woman sitting across from him who had a slightly annoyed gaze as she stared him down. 

"Aww, don't look at me like that Toria! Give your big brother a smile!" Victor stated with an amused tone 

"I will give you one when you take this seriously Victor" Toria replied with an annoyed tone 

"Aww, my little sister is worried about me, but you really shouldn't. I can take care of this on my own" Victor stated with a smirk as he gestured his women to leave the chamber 

"I find that highly unlikely brother, considering that Father wants you to marry the Empress of another nation we know nothing about, I want you to be prepared for when she arrives and to not fuck up around her!" Toria shot back 

"Oh please, the information that our spies gave us paints their Empress and nation as something that...that is so...below us" Victor stated, with the last portion dripping mockery 

"Are you really going to believe the shit them over me? The female demonkin asked with an annoyed expression 

"Yes because they saw the place and you didn't, they have facts and all you have is just gut feelings" The red-skinned crown prince shot back as he took a swig of wine from a bottle on the table  

"Fine then, whatever. You go do whatever you want, bye" Toria rolled her eyes as she stood up and stormed out of her brother's room 

But when the door closed, a smile appeared on Toria's face as she shifted her eyes 

"Just as predicted, I love you Victor but you are so predictable" She mumbled as she made her way back to her portion of the castle 

The castle of their family was very opulent as it was made with shiny white marble that made up most of the place, with some being made of cobblestone due to the marble mine running dry, she made her way towards the interior garden in her corner of the castle. Rounding a corner near the gazebo of the garden, an elven lady dressed as a maid stood there, acting as if she was tending to the flowers and the shrubbery around her. Toria approached the gazebo and sat on the chair directly behind the elven maid, heaving a sigh of relief as she scanned her surroundings and saw no one had followed her. 

"So, how is he?" The elven maid asked 

"Well, he still dismisses your nation and empress, I could hear the mockery in his voice as he spoke of them" Toria replied as she brought tout a book hidden in her dress pocket 

"Alright. So he is still being played as a fool then?" The maid added 

"Yes, he and Father have misjudged everything so far, I am sure this will make things much easier down the line won't it?" Toria asked with a raised eyebrow 

"Yes, it will. Just continue making sure they underestimate us and do your best to win over the nobles to your side, my beloved monarchs will be here soon and it would be best for everyone that we have everything ready to be handed over once the fighting starts" The elven maid stated, enthusiasm in her voice 

"Will I be given what I was promised when all is said and done?" Toria asked with a hint of worry 

"Of course, my empresses do not go back on their words, once things settle down, you shall be granted your wish" The elven maid answered 

"Thank you. Glory to the Empire, Glory to the Empress" Toria mumbled under her breath 

"Glory to the Empress" The maid mumbled in reply before walking away from her, bowing before she left 

Once Toria saw the maid disappear, she let out a sigh as she leaned into the chair, pinching her forehead and trying her best to relax. 

"sigh...This is for the best....this is for the best...Sorry, Victor...Sorry, Father..." She muttered as she stood back up and dusted herself off, before proceeding back to her room 

A/N: And here we go! Demonstrating the firepower of the mighty Halkare Navy and even some politicking as the days go on, I wonder what Toria has in store? Hehehe, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter as much as I had fun writing it, if you got comments or reactions, leave em down below for me to read! And as always, Stay Safe and Enjoy Your Day!