Humanity has always been at odds with the sea. We prospered from its' riches but also cursed its nature, for it could be a cruel mistress. The ones who worked the vast waters understood this as she held no favorites, so they put all their hopes and dreams into the flimsy boats they built.

As ancient communities grew, they took to the waters to trade. And as great nations rose inevitably led to conflict. From boats made of reeds to wood to steel, humans have fought upon the waves, and the seas remember.

Kate Russo closed her eyes in silent prayer. The day on the water had started out beautifully, everything she and her husband had ever dreamed of, even though her family hadn't been pleased when she accepted the professorship at Endicott College. Too far away from Albany and too close to the ocean and the threat of an Endbringer attack.

"What would an ocean be without a monster lurking in the dark? It would be like sleep without dreams."

"What was that, honey?" She heard her husband call out from inside the boat. The sounds of him trying to fix the boat's engine had long since stopped.

"Nothing."

Why did they even borrow a boat from her department head? His wife always complained about it, but admittedly the thrill of a day on the ocean was alluring. Still, she didn't expect her dreams to turn into a nightmare.

"Get anyone on the radio?"

A loud bang from inside the cabin answered her question. Nothing seemed to work, including the only way to call for help.

"Mommy, I'm bored." Mandy, her six-year-old daughter, complained for about the millionth time.

"I'm sorry, sweetheart."

"And my tablet still doesn't work," she grumbled with a frown. "I wanna watch my shows."

Smiling, Kate ran her fingers through her child's long locks. "I think I spied some board games around here."

Contemplating for a minute, the young girl nodded. "OK, I'm thirsty too."

"All right, I'll see if we have any water left."

A few minutes later, after checking on her husband, she returned with an old copy of Candyland and one of the last water bottles. If they weren't in trouble before, Kate knew her family would be soon. Sea water wasn't drinkable, and it was a hot summer day. However, the view of her daughter leaning over the side and speaking to someone brought her up short.

Mandy wasn't prone to imaginary friends, so who in the world could it be? "Sweetheart, who are you speaking to?"

"A mermaid," her child replied with a happy laugh.

Frowning, Kate nervously approached the end of the boat until she heard a voice call out, "I'm a submarine, not a mermaid."

Leaning over the side, she found the so-called mermaid smiling up at her.

"Hi, so I hear that your boat is broken. Permission to come on board to take a look?"

Pulling herself onboard, revealed a tall, athletic-looking young woman wearing a two-color grey one-piece.

Kate worried their guest might be a parahuman, but the black lettering along the side of the bathing site askew her fears. "Are you with the Navy?"

With a wink, the young woman pulled her long white hair into a neat ponytail before pointing out, "See no tail."

When her daughter pouted and then giggled for the first time since the boat's engines failed, Kate felt hope.

Emily Piggot, Director of the Parahuman Response Team ENE, also known as the PRT, steel-grey eyes watched as the group of heroes entered the room for the Monday morning staff meeting. They mostly shuffled toward the coffee like zombies out of a George Ramero movie. Only the new Ward leader Triumph, quietly munching on a donut, seemed to be awake.

"All right, settle down; we have a few things to review this morning, but it shouldn't take too long. Armsmaster, if you would report on the results of last night's action between the E88 and the Merchants."

The armored hero nodded, then began., "At around twenty-two fifteen hundred hours, three vans filled will sixteen members of the E88 attacked a Merchant drug house on Old Adams and 8th Streets west of the docks. Initially, only BBPD were called after shots were fired."

He looked down at a table passed to him and then continued. "At twenty-two thirty-three, the PRT hotline was contacted as two members of the Merchants, Skidmark and Mush, arrived on the scene. Soon after, Stormtiger, Cricket, and Rune engaged them. BBPD then pulled back, cording off the area. At twenty-two-forty-eight, Miss Militia, Velocity, and the PRT rapid response team arrived, forcing Skidmark and Mush to retreat. Most of the non-powered E88 members and Merchants also retreated at that time. When I arrived with another PRT squad at twenty-three-zero-eight, those that remained retreated, leaving only their dead and wounded."

Each hero then added their own viewpoints and actions during the altercation in detail. Everyone knew some would be questioned again once the After-Action Reports were turned in and evaluated.

Piggot looked over at her computer, typed a couple of keys, then, with a frown, asked, "Updated casualty figures?"

"Eight dead Merchants, one dead E88 member. Three seriously wounded E88 members and nine Merchants are under guard at Brockton General. A tenth merchant who had OD died in transit. Damage to the buildings and infrastructure around the docks was minimal except for a dry cleaner and a convenience store across the street, which were destroyed by Mush."

"Skidmark took this one in the chin; he's not going to be happy about it," Assault added with a shrug.

"I don't expect much retaliation, but I will have Armsmaster update the patrol routes," Piggot replied.

The villainous drug-addled Archer's Bridge Merchants weren't a real problem compared to the other threats in the city. However, the large amount of money and drugs confiscated was a feather in the cap for those involved.

"Good work, everyone; I expect all of your AARs on my desk by 1300 hours." The PRT Director then looked at her computer screen again and said, "I also want to make you aware that late yesterday afternoon, the Coast Guard informed us that there was another encounter with a water-powered parahuman."

"Another Yūdachi incident?" Armsmaster asked.

"Not exactly; according to the report, a young woman named Archerfish rescued a stranded family northeast of Block Island. Unable to repair the boat herself, she requested a tow from the Coast Guard Station at Point Judith."

"Excuse me, ma'am, Yūdachi incident," Triumph interrupted by raising his hand.

"Last month, an unregistered cargo ship in Ipswich Bay was boarded by a young girl calling herself Yūdachi. According to the US Coast Guard, she heard screaming coming from the ship and went to investigate. After subduing thirteen heavily armed sailors, she rescued twenty-seven young women and preteen girls, and three preteen boys being held in the cargo hold."

"Oh, I read online something about a large human trafficking group being arrested, ma'am, but I wasn't aware that a parahuman was involved."

"It's still under investigation so that information has not been officially released," Armsmaster added.

"Doesn't help that the PRT is in a pissing contest with the Coasties over the whole thing," Assault said with a grin, then dodged his wife's hand.

"Well, it appears they aren't willing to share information over this incident with Archerfish either. Although cryptically, they added that the woman insisted that she wasn't a parahuman but a submarine."

"Lovely," Velocity murmured. "Another crazy one."

"Well, USN Archerfish was a submarine," Triumph added helpfully. "Pretty well known for sinking the Shinano."

"Shinano?" Miss Militia asked.

Triumph opened his mouth and then closed it when he realized the whole room was staring at him.

Piggot waved her hand. "Continue, please."

"Err, yes, ma'am. Shinano was an Imperial Japanese Navy aircraft carrier and the largest ship ever sunk by a submarine. She was a converted Yamato, I think."

"You seem to know a lot of these ships," Battery said approvingly.

"Yes, ma'am. My granddad served on the USS Canberra during the war, and my great-uncle worked at the Fore River Shipyard in Quincy, so it's a family thing."

"So, this new parahuman is named after a World War Two submarine," Armsmaster murmured, typing some information on his tablet.

"Well, Yūdachi's one too?"

"A submarine?" Miss Militia asked.

"Well, no, the Yūdachi was a Japanese destroyer or maybe a light cruiser," Triumph replied. "I'd have to look it up, but I think she was sunk in one of the Guadalcanal battles."

"So, we have these ship, parahuman girls running around rescuing people," Assault said cheerfully. "Can't see that as a bad thing."

Emily Piggot rubbed her eyes, then turned toward the Ward leader. "Thank you, Triumph. If you can think of anything else, let us know."

Annette Rose Herbet yawned. It had been a long day filled with planning meetings within her Department to get them ready for the new college semester. Closing the door to the new condo, she heard her daughter's laughter coming from the living room, then a long string of Japanese and more laughter.

"Hi, Mom," Taylor said with a grin, then spun around, showing off her new school uniform. "What do you think?"

"It's very cute on you," she replied, then turned to the older woman standing off to the side. "Thank you, Chizue, for taking care of this. I don't know what I would do without you."

"Oh, think nothing of it, Annette. With Masaru off to New York for another meeting this week, I wasn't looking forward to spending the day alone."

"I wish you would let me pay you."

"Absolutely not; in fact, I should be paying you, well, Taylor, that is," she motioned to the grinning girl. "She helped me with my lesson plans this afternoon. If I had my way, I'd hire her as my assistant in class. Her Japanese is very good."

The young girl in question wrapped her arm around her mother's waist. "I like languages, and it's fun to practice with you, Mrs. Nakamura."

The older woman was convinced to stay for dinner, then afterward left, leaving the two to clean up.

Passing a dirty plate to her daughter, Annette commented, "So, the Coast Guard made an official announcement about a Parahuman rescuing a family stranded on the ocean."

"Told them I was a submarine; guess they didn't believe me," Taylor smiled, then shook her head. "I'm just glad that I was in the area visiting one of my cousins; otherwise, the Russo's next stop would have been Europe. I mean, Coast Guard Safety Inspections are still a thing and free."

Annette sighed, running her fingers through her daughter's hair. It had changed again, becoming straighter. She had seen a bit of that change when her daughter returned from summer camp. It had only become more apparent as the weeks went on.

"I'm glad you were able to help, but I worry. I will say that both your dad and grandpa would be proud of you. Keeping with the highest traditions of the Navy and all that."

Taylor leaned her head on her mother's shoulder. "I miss him too."

Danny Hebert had been killed in a car accident at the end of the summer last year. He, along with Kurt, a co-worker and family friend, had been on their way back to the dockworkers association from lunch when someone ran a red light.

She and her daughter managed to live in their old house for a year, but too many memories and a need to start a new life made Annette look for a place closer to her work. With the insurance money and the proceeds from the house, she managed to buy a somewhat upscale condo. Besides the lack of commute, the schools in the area were much better.

Taylor gave her mother a look. "It's still not your fault."

"I know, sweetie, it's just the thought of losing you too. Then, of course, blaming myself for sending you off to summer camp."

"I will say again, still, not your fault. First of all, I wanted to go, which allowed you to move us to the condo without me being underfoot. Secondly, blame whoever was in charge of monitoring the beach. They should have known there would be riptides. Anyway, if I wasn't there, Sally would most likely have drowned."

Sally had been a new friend of her daughters made at camp. While spending the day at the beach, the two entered with water only to find themselves dragged off their feet and pulled underwater. Although Taylor insisted she wasn't a Parahuman, something did happen to her.

While underwater, she changed into an old-World War Two German submarine that took the form of a young girl named Yuu, or U-511. In that form, she managed to pull her new friend out of the water to safety, saving her life. Thankfully in the confusion, Taylor managed to slip away and change back.

"Still worried we're going to wake up one morning and find the PRT at the door."

Taylor snorted. "As I told you, I'm not a parahuman, plus I have no plans to sneak out late at night and punch criminals."

"Only human traffickers," Annette responded dryly.

Her daughter looked at her, tilted her head then said, "Poi?"

So, I am taking a dip into the wide ocean called Worm. Taylor has a different power set than cannon, being a ship girl. Of course, decided to also poke it a bit more and change a few more things around. I'll be adding more tags as the story progresses.