Start:Tamashii no Rufuran (Battle Orchestra)

Tamashii no rufuran

(The Title logo is shown)

アズールレーン
AZUR LANE
TRICOLORE OF THE STARS

A memory cube appears on-screen as Snow falls around on a blue-light blue background.

Dakishimeteta unmei (A picture of Alsace-class no3's layout appears on screen)

No Anata wa (Shows Norfolk and Fortune on a swing with snow around them in a winter-frozen playground)

Cuts to Azur lane's crosswave opening with its PPI Display and a DCS World map mixed in. Numerous Friendly and enemy icons being shown.

A Blue magical circle with a 7-pointed star. seven smaller circles with runes and a snake symbol

Kisetsu Ni Saku (Smiling Prinz eugen/Pinkie with two planes in the dusk background)

Vauquelin giving a double peace sign. holding a spear in her left hand

Maru de hakanai hana (Shows the silhouettes of two Rafales coming in from top/bottom to bottom/top as the background changes from a daytime ocean with islands into a calm sea with the moon in the background)

Saratoga and Lexington stand as flames surround them. Blood on Lexington's clothes as a city is seen in the background.

Kibou no Nioi wo (A RIM-66 missile launching from its mount which cuts to a MiG-29K taking off as it cuts to the Eagle Union flag)

WE FREE THE SEAS-TO VICTORY

The pictures of Bismarck. Kaga. Formidable are shown from top to bottom.

Mune Ni nokoshite (A glitching and distorted supply indicator stuck at 5:00:00. the words 'MAIN ENERGY SUPPLY SYSTEM and DANGER/EMERGENCY' being made out.)

Delta-winged and stretched variant of the X-15 flying in black and white color art colors.

Green PPI display with numerous buttons and indicators as well as blips.

Chiri isogu azayaka-na Sugata de (Shows a chart of the RIM-66 SM-2 Block III/IIIA/IIIB as it cuts to Hood with a happy Purin in her lap. Then Laffey, Javelin. Z23 departing from the beach with a heart symbol and shells in the sand. It cuts to Saratoga solo with three dive bombers flying out)

Watashi ni Kaeri Nasai (Prinz Eugen/Pinkie misses her punch at Norfolk/Laffeychan. Eyes flashing light purple as she swings a sword. flames covering the screen)

Umareru Mae Ni (As Flames fade away. It cuts to Vauquelin with a steeled expression taking a super-kansen jump back to Norfolk's rear as the Battleship throws away a arrow-shaped shield made of pure orange magic and she pulls out a knife. energy coating its blade as she looks with determination. Vauquelin going into a guarding pose)

Enterprise runs toward a flying Norfolk who has Black heart's wings behind her back as the carrier spins around once before striking with a thrust of her knife as Norfolk holds her hand out and a green arcane circle appears. Blocking enterprise's knife as both Norfolk and the Grey ghost shake and twitch.

SIRENS

Anata Ga Sugoshita (Shows Observer alpha firing some kind of energy blast from her palm with a displeased look at the camera as it then cuts to a Siren light cruiser firing a torpedo. Then a Baltimore-class praying. It cuts to a Essex-class carrier landing hard with a black cube in the background. Then cuts to two Atlanta-class cruisers dancing in-sync with each other)

Daichi E to (Shows a Siren Iowa-class spinning around to her back to reveal a pair of energy whips as a picture of TB is shown before it cuts to a Grinning tester saying "hey. Hey!" with Hayasaka's infamous expression.)

Eldridge jumps from the water. A Gunlance in her hand as she switches to a dual-handed grip and then swings the tip down onto the water hard. resulting in a explosion of smoke and rock.

Kono te (Shows a Lyrical Nanoha Midchildian circle and the Forerunner Symbol. A share crystal seen as a wireframe earth rotates)

Ni Kaeri Nasai (Enterprise and Norfolk lock hands against each other. struggling as Enterprise stares angrily and Norfolk narrows her eyes. A picture of Belfast and enterprise, then Norfolk. Vauquelin. Eldridge and Prinz eugen appearing from both sides like a duel)

FIRST RULE OF GREAT POWER RELATIONS

DON'T

BE NICE.

Meguriau Tame (Shows the red and black metallic cube from the Season 3 PR ships as it becomes a light-red tunnel of colors)

BAE SYSTEMS

DASSAULT AVIATION

MBDA MISSILE SYSTEMS

AIM-9M held in its display container. As it cuts to a smiling Prinz eugen/Pinkie who is firing her guns. Then vauquelin/'Ahoge queen day off' in bed with plushies and ice cream as it shows Zuikaku vs Enterprise.

Kiseki Wa Okoru (Shows Norfolk slumping over as light gathers around her chest. before it fades to show a Transformed Norfolk holding Uni's rifle and aiming. the background blue and black)

Yo Nando demo (Numerous pictures flash by at 1 image per 2-3 frames. showing a ruined city with 3 B-2 bombers dropping bombs. The commander with Yorktown. Enterprise and cleveland along others. Shinano. Vauquelin imposed over a image of MBDA meteor. A happy enterprise with tears in her eyes. Norfolk saluting with a smile, her eyes being blood-red and lifeless)

Tamashii no RUFURAN (Norfolk fires as the title screen is shown. before the screen flashes red and the words are now a crimson shade of red. fading away into particles)

I don't think i should throw a fit yet about how quiet it's been ever since I threw off my pursuers. I am still keeping track of time here, I just know that the Shipgirl part of me was already starting to get impatient for some battles and I still didn't even know the true extent of my abilities yet. My EA-6s are reporting they are seeing something somewhere in the area they are in, So I suppose there could still be possible contacts.

Running some analysis indicates it may be submarines, And given they had to be surfaced for contacts to show up. I began thinking... On one hand, I was highly vulnerable as a lone battleship out here. On the other hand, it may be possible these are Azur lane submarines. However. If i knew one thing, There was a good chance they were going to dive now and I would lose them. even if they didn't see my Prowlers yet.

Making my decision, I diverted my prowlers toward the contact and to have them ready to engage with depth charges and aerial torpedos no matter what. Keeping them steady and on course, I watch for any possible further contact updates as their weapons were armed and ready to go.

But who am i to turn down free victims?

There it is. I am getting something, Checking my available options. My prowlers all have a mixed load of torpedos and depth charges. and i was going to use a couple of torpedoes and depth charges. Mark 44s were more advanced than FIDOs and combined with the approach speed of my jets. I was going to exploit the hell out of this if i can, A worried thought of mine also was that going with a... limited attack rather than using everything was so that if they turned out to be Azur lane shipgirls... Well... I was not going to destroy them. was i?

Don't hold back...

Okay. I'm starting to approach launch range. I just need final course corrections so the Mark 44s can acquire them and the prowlers can see their targets clearly if they had to fight.

Go!

Acquiring them in time I would have made a attack run if i wanted to, However i suddenly order my prowlers to turn around and get some distance instead. The jets doing so as the submarines seem unaware since they didn't do anything out of the typical. They are ready to launch a attack. but this would be a limited attack and they didn't seem like they were pursuing something.

I have my prowlers get some distance before going into a holding pattern. letting them cruise just like that, waiting to see if they did anything out of the normal.. Just like that, They kept cruising. Just... likely chatting to each other. It didn't seem like they would be a threat to me as if they were chasing me, they would likely be concentrated and moving at high speed.

Deciding to let them be, I order my prowlers to leave and return to me as I keep looking around. rubbing my jacket a bit as I still needed to find a home of somewhere safe. I would have to run a full-scale analysis on my systems later and explore my powers more to see just what I truly had.

Wandering like this has been boring today. Just grey and blue, more blue and more blue. The sky's blue. The ocean's blue, My hull's grey. everything's grey except some of my machinery. The battle thriller within me was already wanting to see combat again even though I had just broke off contact some time ago. I haven't had a good encounter other than the last one fleet I attacked and.. I think its starting to get to me, Either way I was starting to wonder If i should just act independently on my own rather than try to find Azur lane. Since there were many strategic options out there.

On good news. It seems my powers have finally began responding and are actually useful for once as I was able to use a basic skill. A simple Arcane bolt might not be much compared to some of the more crazier things I saw in anime. but it would be enough for my needs and it was not going to suddenly exhaust my reserves, which was vital If i needed to fire multiple bolts given I was still inexperienced.

Grabbing my red hood and pulling it back to again expose my head. I began to think once more about my possible strategic options. I did remember that Azur lane was the safest option, but there were some problems that would come with that. As much as most would want that, I was afraid Azur lane and the leaders behind the Shipgirl project would sooner of later find out about my Magical powers. If that happened, There was no telling that would happen.

These were the people who wouldn't hesitate to use them in proxy or so-called liberation wars. of who would never trust living weapons that had the potential to replace them and who i knew usually tended to push their problems to someone else until it was too late and never trusted each other in the world of geopolitics... Use and then discard like trash, The chances I might simply disappear and make it look like a major accident was not impossible. Even my newfound status would not stop me from getting a spot on being dismantled.

I was not willing to take that risk... Going it independent and alone would allow me to establish a counterweight and potential militarized force but I had no experience with running regimes nor the possible risks and a cold war that might ensure. Going Opposing forces with the Sirens was dangerous but it could also allow me to see their perspective and why they had caused this war in the first place of what they even wanted in the first place. And joining up with a rival faction could still have the same problems as if I stayed with the Royal navy.

With my train of thoughts indicating I should go with being loyal to Azur lane-For now. I looked up at the sky as I wished some friends of mine were here right now as fellow shipgirls. I allowed my thoughts to drift off to my current status as Norfolk. Alsace-class multirole and Surface combat unit. It was strange, Alsace wasn't even built and only existed as paper so i should be entirely a different shipgirl as a Priority ship right? In fact, I should be the Kent. County Sub-class right now, But instead I ended up being a battleship that fit my needs of what I considered to be a good balance and who could disassemble bismarck relatively easily. Was it my mind that gave coherence of stabilized the idea of Norfolk being Alsace?

Was I Norfolk of Alsace? That was the question, And yet I feel like i am naturally myself... Even though I should be shivering in disgust at how I managed to end up being constructed as a paper ship yet my body was that of a established ship like Dorsetshire or Norfolk.

Sighing, I just pulled on my hood again to cover my head as I began reading though the manual for my management of the battlespace mentally... There were a lot of things I would have to learn if I wanted to maximize the effectiveness of my systems.

After cruising for this long. I finally began to sense a... Presence. Almost like pulses of light, It was likely my sixth sense in effect. Whatever it was, they seemed like they were in the midst of fighting something. RADARs were also receiving echoes. It couldn't be more sirens because there were other blobs and echoes that were running into each other, I began to interpret as to why...

If all of the echoes I have seen over the last hours have been nothing but sirens, But the other ones are charging into the echoes... That meant... Yes! It possibly had to be Azur lane unless there were other forces at play here! That meant a way out for me and finally a home to settle down and gather my thoughts. In addition, I was starting to get heavily bored while cruising like this and I didn't want the idea of being unaware to my surroundings and thus being caught by a Submarine or scout aircraft given i liked to keep my RADARs silent most of the time.

A home port...

"I-I have to hurry... I give it my most as long as I have assisting systems to compensate for my l-lack of experience..!" Going to full speed. I powered up all RADAR sets and other systems as I began preparing a few MiG-29SMs to check for enemy aircraft and if there were none, to provide some measure of airstrike capability with medium bombs. If there were enemy carriers, I would respond in full-force. If there weren't. I would only resort to bombers.

I knew I would be taking a risk with Azur lane, But unless they wanted to anger what accounted to a British-French battleship with some sort of carrier hammerspace capability and modern targeting systems and electronics. They likely wouldn't do much... I only hope to myself I can deal with Dorsetshire later.

Moving at maximum speed as I sailed forth, pulling back on my hood again to expose my head as I was alert and awake for any potential threats. Direct distance measurement indicated I was rapidly approaching and soon, I would enter combat range. "A-Ah! They are ready!" Rubbing my eyes. I summoned that familiar energy-hull of mine and sent a few Mikoyans flying as they began accelerating to build up speed before going into a climb as I had them go on a CAP pattern.

I soon arrived at what was likely a battle ongoing as I arrived. I squinted my eyes a bit as I relied on my shipgirl equipment. On one side were a bunch of Siren destroyers and cruisers which I was still busy in the process of identifying. The other shipgirls... were the Azur lane side, There! I had finally found friendly contacts on the empty seas!

Scanning the area around me. I don't find any enemy aircraft as I decide to continue identifying any possible Azur lane shipgirls and their classes. With some time I was able to make out... Z21. The tsundere destroyer. Comet... the green-haired idol. Craven... Concord. Hardy.. Kent... That indicated the Crimson axis was not hostile anytime soon, though politics could still be unpredictable...

With some measure of difficulty my equipment is able to identify my oppression as a Siren Fubuki-class. 3 Mahan-class destroyers. a Pensacola-type heavy cruiser and two supporting Omahas. As it stood, They had some measure of firepower and numerical superiority over the Azur lane side. Though that was soon going to change.

"S-set radar to target tracking mode.. Engage a-all rangefinding measures.. correct for minor factors. S-shoot!" I force these words out as I try to restrain the Norfolk side of me. I issued commands to my fighters to target the Omahas for destruction as I aimed my guns at a single Mahan, In my previous battles I had major problems due to being unfamiliar and still trying to get used to being a shipgirl. But I had got the hang of it mostly and I was getting better at correcting for any errors, Doing final measurements. I fired.

Seeing some misses, Four to six shells still hit the destroyer. the combined explosions being enough to cause some serious damage as she began to slow down and I can see the Azur lane fleet looking around to see where the newest battleship had came from. At the same time my fighters began their attack dive as the Siren shipgirls frantically tried to see where my fire had just came from.

With my attack being fast and the advantage of not being seen, It had been enough so that the Sirens were still busy on deciding what to do let alone still trying to locate me as my Tactical fighters dropped their bombs on the Omahas, again inflicting alarmingly high levels of damage as they didn't do any better than the Mahan I had targeted. being disabled in the process as they got set on fire.

Seizing upon this moment, I began to open fire with my secondary guns as a dance of destroyer-caliber shells left me. already trying to track the lone Fubuki as I corrected for errors and I saw splashes on my modern RADAR displays and from what I was seeing, I still had more time before they found me.

With how many shells I was throwing per second. I was already seeing multiple hits as good hits came in one after another and they began to look toward my direction, What must have been a few tens of HE shells rained down around the Fubuki-class. Some of them missed but others hit as I saw her outer hull plating being torn open and one of her turrets being turned into a pincushion as she was soon rendered ineffective. My systems indicating medium to heavy BDA could be expected with the graphics being representations of explosions and splashes. Some of them from the neutral Azur lane shipgirls as well.

Finally they located me, However by that point Main guns had loaded their new shells as I targeted another Mahan for destruction. Gun blasts rocking my sensors as more Battleship-class shells flew toward the second Mahan destroyer. Now that all factors had been dealt with or corrected for and I had MTI measurement. My gun accuracy was high as I saw what looked like good hits, One shell crippling a turret and the others blasting open what was likely her engines and outer hull plating.

With a turret out, engines damaged and the risk of flooding imminent. She again tried to turn toward me as she aimed at me for a counter attack but she must have had figured she had more problems to deal with than me. because she was not shooting, I suppose it didn't matter in the end as my Fighters were in a holding pattern. their objectives already accomplished and in any case she would be soon dealt with. That still left the heavy cruiser, the lone destroyer as active threats. The rotating RADAR mounts continuing to spin on my machinery as my guns puffed out smoke in the beginning of loading new shells.

For a few seconds, I felt a sense of victory and accomplishment. However I reminded myself I still had to deal with the others as they began to frantically fire at me. Shells splashing around me inaccurately but still a threat as I sped ahead at maximum combat speed.

Ignoring the ongoing confusing among the neutral girls and my panicking targets who all had the defensive skills of garbage low-level grunts. I targeted the Pensacola. Surface search beams just able to give me a precise aim as I ended up finding myself the new target for a bunch of scared-to-hell Siren shipgirls... And it just so happens the burning Fubuki-class and the heavy cruiser counter-barraged me with their own guns.

"Uuaggguh...!" When that happened. I suddenly found myself filled with something. Something like... revulsion and complete hatred? But it was only there briefly and just as quickly It was gone leaving no signs, Whatever was causing my sudden hatred or just the desire to start rampaging. It wasn't important right now as dull pain had let me know my targets still needed to be eliminated-of worse.

Gritting my teeth in anger. I decided enough was enough and took aim again with my main guns, Any doubts I might have had about any strategic decisions or about this action gone with my newfound rage. A Mahan-class and a Pensacola plus a burning Omaha, Either I would do this quickly of I would end up disgracing my modern combination Pulse-doppler+digital rangefinding systems.

Bloody annoying motherfucker!

A growl built in me as secondaries sent down a storm of fire. My guns fired with thunderous blasts as a pair of P-15 termits left me set to target the Mahan. Naval combat was proving to be a test of skill and my own self-control as I shook with increasing anger amidst my FC RADARs tracking inbound shells and two outbound anti-ship missiles. Definitely wasn't helping with any possible tactical decisions. that was for sure.

A wave of glee came over me as my counterattack proved to hold true to my digitalized targeting systems, The impact actually made the Pensacola-class cruiser stagger back in pain as Termits acquired their designated targets and then collided point-blank. The combined burster with any leftover fuel shattering any vulnerable sub-systems and igniting objects as I smiled slightly at the resulting cloud of smoke and fire.

As my secondaries dealt with the burning Fubuki-class destroyer shortly after. I calmed down. My battlespace display showing nothing other than immobilized of crippled siren shipgirls as I cruised over shortly to my intended group in mind.

That reminded me... Norfolk wasn't great when it came to socializing. At the same time I wasn't great at it either as I never had interacted with anyone for a time and I did most of that on the internet. I sounded like a more confident but stuttering Norfolk right now and I wasn't made for diplomacy. that was for sure!

Well, I suppose I should worry about that later. They have to hold off on the France surrendering jokes of how I even managed to end up as a paper ship with even more strange and weird modern equipment.

"T-This is... This is... Norfolk... opening communications..." With my EW systems offline but my RADARs still activated. I could do anything to this fleet if i had a sudden change of mind right now.

Kent seemed fine. The others? Most of them were busy trying to understand what of who this new and neutral but friendly battleship was doing out there.

"Yes. This is kent... And you are... Norfolk? Are you... her?"

"U-Um... Yes... I am Norfolk. The third group of the county-class heavy cruisers. Uh..."

I was met with silence as the hum of my RADARs and the sound of my engines were there to stop me from sleeping. She was a inviting target for even my low caliber secondaries.

"Are you... Oh... You are Norfolk! We had heard on the radio that there was suddenly a new shipgirl around here but... I didn't imagine it would be you!" Kent answered back in.

I nodded slightly as I tried to pull my red hood over to hide my expression

"I.. I am not sure I remember... I don't know my history... Its like its blank..." I gave out a half-truth. Technically I was norfolk but I was a Alsace-class. So I had Norfolk's history yet I didn't as the heavy cruiser went silent ebfore speaking up.

"Not even-...oh...Oooohh... So you don't remember... I'm sorry." Goddamn it, this radio talk was opening a box I had tried to lock for some time because I remember that I really wished to find my online friends and THIS was not hte time of place to suffer a break-down in tears. Stay alive. Norfolk.. Fight.

Despite tearing up on the inside. I stretched my hands and flexed them as I tried to smile shyly. "D-don't worry about it.. I am sure I will remember and things will be fine at some point... You have sisters too and you worry about them. You help me remember too. Now come on... W-We should get going desu. I don't like it here!"

She looked unsure. "You think? You sure you can... Okay... We should return to our base and get you checked. Something like a shipgirl appearing out of nowhere hasn't happened before!" The heavy cruiser had made the connection that I wasn't created in a summoning lab? She was good, that was for sure.

I was relieved to finally have somewhere safe to be able to give a damn. I know I would have to worry about Dorestshire of Akashi later, But that can wait. Besides. If i didn't want them trying to make my technology, I could always just refuse to provide the plans given they weren't even capable of handling early cold war equipment. So why assume they could with Semi-modern and modern equipment?

A home port...

Still... I can't help but feel something is missing here. If this happened to me, Did my friends also end up here? My friend who was trying to create something and was playing a ship game I didn't bother to name? Someone who i was interested in and who also liked to play lolis? Pinkie. The one skilled at being Prinz eugen? Were they here or still waiting to wake up? Would they have the same equipment as I had or just their historical ones? Was there the chance they would end up as hypothetical ships like I was?

I worry about that later... For now... I want to go home... After cruising and napping on the seas.. I finally had a home port.

It took longer than I expected in part because my friend is still hesitating and my stamina got wacky over the last several days of so. But now there's more! LOL

There's still multiple paths from staying loyal. Going with a rival faction. staying independent to going Opposing forces and joining the sirens. In addition my friend is set to be Vauquelin, but they wanted to be submarines as that's their spirit animal even though it doesn't fit very well within the story (remember that Vauquelin was to be the AA girl and would have been armed with a RIM-66/Lark SAM launcher while I was the multirole battleship and someone else was supposed to be the ASW destroyer, and another one the reserve cruiser) and there's Des Moines of Minotaur as well.

Also. I am considering finalizing my weapon sets. I am considering placing the Zhuk RADAR on my MiG-29s instead of the Topaz even though previously i considered them too broken, and I am thinking about upgrading my RADARs or a simple sandwich composite armor layout.

Will I be the only Norfolk of was there another Norfolk already? Will Vauquelin (Or as Des Moines/Minotaur) and the others appear next chapter of later? Leave it in the reviews!