Let's rewind a bit, shall we?

Mainz is her name.

That much she knew as her consciousness drifted in what can be described as a dark dreamscape. She had no history, no service, and no memories of her crew to help shape her very being.

No, that isn't entirely correct. This hull existed as a concept once...

The name 'Mainz' may or may not have been used, but her steel hull certainly could have existed at one point had history allowed it. Or perhaps, it did come to existence in another time, maybe even as an idea by individuals for use in war games during times of peace.

Yes, the idea was there. Therefore, Mainz exists.

In an effort not to provoke their rivals across the sea, her people thought to build a couple of heavy cruiser hulls with light cruiser armament, with plans to up-gun them later. The fighting had already started, however, rendering such deceptive methods as pointless, and so it was decided to keep the standard heavy cruiser armament. Despite being a mere concept, the configuration certainly existed in some form, even if only on paper.

She existed. Therefore, I exist.

Light blue eyes finally opened.

"Commander, we're getting a positive feedback on wisdom cube manifestation," Yuubari spoke with a hint of excitement. It always got her nerves wracking whenever a new kansen could arrive. Doubly so when it was one of the 'Prototype' ships.

"Excellent, keep me posted should anything happen. We want to make sure this goes off without a hitch," the Commander replied. "We need all the help we can get."

Currently, he was in the observation room of the Azur Lane research facility. With him were Yuubari, Akashi, Vestal, and several Iron Blood representatives. The latter were there to welcome their new kin, as the others have always done so in the past. Especially important there was a certain pair of sisters, the current personifications of the Admiral Hipper-class heavy cruisers.

"Aren't you excited, dear Hipper? We're going to have another sister." Prinz Eugen spoke in her usual teasing tone, although one could hear the slight undertones of glee in her voice.

"Just don't go about teasing her so much, understand?" Hipper replied back, also containing her excitement.

"Nonsense. If anything, I'll get her to join me in messing with you instead."

"Why, you-"

"Enough, the both of you," Bismarck commanded. It was only natural that the Iron Blood leader be present for this occasion. "You do not want to embarrass our faction in front of our new comrade, even moreso that she is your would-be sister."

"Everybody quiet, nya. We're getting pulse and heartbeat readings!" Akashi began to fiddle with certain instruments on the dashboard in front of her, Yuubari following suit.

That got everyone to shut up, as the singular pod in the center of the chamber below them began to emit a blue glow. The wisdom cubes, the blueprints, and all that hard work of collecting combat data were finally paying off as Azur Lane's newest member was being "born."

To help the process go smoother, it was suggested that Hipper and Eugen be the ones to collect most, if not all, the combat data. The theory is that their hulls would make the data transfer easier to imprint on to the hull of what would be known as Mainz. Both Leipzig and Z23, the ever kind and generous girls, occasionally assisted the sisters.

"This is getting boring, I'm about to lose my fu-" Prinz Eugen was once heard ranting after an especially long mission. Ironically, Hipper was the one who kept her head cool.

"I'm certain Hipper enjoyed seeing her sister whine and complain for once," commented Bismarck.

Back to the present, the crowd held their breath as a new ship-girl, a new kansen, manifested in the pod. The pod itself was big enough to contain a single person, complete with a small window to view the face of whoever was formed within. It also helped to preserve their modesty since clothes and outfits weren't part of the manifestation process.

The Commander remembered learning that the hard way when Saint Louis manifested almost a year ago. The templar knight shouted something in French that he didn't understand before slapping him. It was certainly a nice view, though.

"Conditions are," Yuubari checked several monitors, "all green. She's stable, so everything from here on out should be daijoubu."

"All right, good job." The Commander breathed a sigh of relief. "Well ladies, let's go down and greet your new sister-in-arms."

"Jawohl, mein Kommandant." Bismarck turned to the sister pair and nodded.

The group headed down from the observation room and into the chamber. As they made their way towards the pod, the Commander could make out a youthful face framed with pale blonde hair through the small window.

How many does that make now, he mused as he thought about Tirpitz, Prinz Eugen, Graf Spee, and several others, even those outside of Iron Blood.

"Would you do the honors, Kommandant?" Eugen said as the group stopped in front of the pod.

"Me? She's like your sister, so wouldn't one of you want to see her first?"

"True, but you've always been the first person the Prototypes have seen. You've done it with Saint Louis, with Georgia, with Ro-"

"I see, yes. You've made your point," the Commander interrupted. He looked towards Bismarck inquisitively, the flagship merely shrugging in response.

"It does not matter to me who she lays eyes upon first, for we all work towards the same goal." Bismarck placed a firm hand on the Commander's shoulder and smiled. "Do remember to keep your gaze above her neck, ja."

"Of course, of course," the Commander replied hastily. Being one of the few men in a base full of many attractive woman of war, he couldn't help but let his gaze linger sometimes. "Akashi, if you will."

"Understood, nya." The green kitty went to a nearby console besides the pod, fiddling with the buttons and keypads. "And here. We. Go."

Hiss.

The top part of the pod opened at the seams, swinging up on it's hinge to better reveal her face. The woman inside stirred as she was exposed to the outside air, her body getting used to this new environment.

Of course she looks pretty, because why not, the Commander thought to himself.

To his credit, he maintained his gaze and kept himself from looking below the woman's forehead. Nearby, he could hear Eugen snickering before grunting as Hipper elbowed her in the side.

"Shut it, you Dummkopf." Hipper whispered.

"Ahem." Bismarck cleared her throat, earning their silence once again.

After a while, the woman, Mainz, groaned lightly as she began to wake from her slumber. Her eyelids slowly opened, no doubt getting used to having a human body all of a sudden, before revealing light blue irises.

Mainz looked around inquisitively, her gaze roaming over the various individuals in front of her before setting her sight on the sole male figure.

The Commander made eye contact with Mainz, and gave a small smile.

"Ah, you're finally awake."

This would be the "real" chapter one. I read that April 3rd is the launch date for Mainz, although I guess technically it's her release date according to Wargaming's World of Warships. So I thought it'd be fitting to make an awakening chapter on this date (still April 3 where I'm at as of this moment), and I also oathed her earlier today with the free ring that's been sitting in my inventory for months.

Add to that, the 1/700 scale Tirpitz model I ordered arrived today as well, missing the Queen of the North's launch date by two days. It was actually sheer coincidence that I ordered it on March 29 before learning that April 1st was her launch date. It's quite strange that Bismarck's launch date is the same as Valentine's Day, and then Tirpitz is on the so-called "April Fool's" day.