The next morning, I was awoken by the sound of someone urgently knocking on my door, much to my displeasure. At first, I thought I had overslept, but the clock, the first thing my eyes focused on as I slowly sat up, showed it was thirty minutes before my alarm was supposed to go off. Needless to say, this further soured my mood, and I was somewhere between "cranky" and "irascible" by the time I shuffled over to the door and swung it wide open.

Carabiniere started at the speed it swung open and it took her a second to compose herself as she looked up at me. Stubble, bedhead, still blearily(and probably a little angrily) staring down at her as I waited to hear the reason she was rousing me out of bed so early.

"Sir!" she finally snapped to attention, saluting smartly. "Her Excellency requests your presence at once at Headquarters, sir!"

"Did she say why?" I grumbled, wondering what was so damn important it required her to send her aide hammering on my door.

"They got the data back from the labs, sir. On the…" the destroyer glanced around furtively, making sure we were alone in the hall before leaning in and whispering. "On...you know...the killer Siren planes."

That woke me up a bit more and eased my irritability, if only a little. "Right. Give me twenty minutes to get ready and I'll head down there."

"Aye, sir!" she saluted again and dashed off to the next door to begin pounding on it with equal fervor. I had to admire her plucky spirit as I closed the door and prepared to greet the day.

Showered, shaved, and dressed, I entered the headquarters of the Sardegnian Navy to find both Hood and Veneto waiting for me, much to my surprise.

"Good morning, Admiral," Vittorio greeted me with a smile and a curt nod. "My apologies for getting both of you up so early, but I thought you'd want to see this as soon as it came in."

"I do, thank you," I said quietly, still feeling rather fatigued. It must have also shown on my face as she gave me a sympathetic smile and handed me a teacup. I took it with a grateful smile, the unmistakable aroma of cappuccino reaching my nostrils. The first sip woke me up even further and put me in a somewhat better mood.

"Burning the midnight oil?" she asked, and I couldn't help but feel my cheeks flush at the memory of Littorio and I chatting well into the night.

"Little bit," I said with a slightly chagrined expression. "I wasn't expecting such an early wake-up call, so I was up a bit later than normal. I'm sure you've heard about it by now."

"Only in passing," she replied with a coy grin. "I'm sure I'll get the full report later this morning."

"Hopefully it will be to your satisfaction," I grinned back. " And give her my regards." She nodded once and I held the teacup up in grateful salute.

Hood quietly cleared her throat to get our attention. "If you're both quite finished with this...cryptic conversation, we could get on to the reason you've called us here, Lady Veneto."

I felt my cheeks burning hotter now and peered into my cappuccino as Veneto self-consciously cleared her throat. "Yes, well," the battleship started as she shuffled some papers around. "As I said, we've made a breakthrough in research and I thought it would be best if we had our head researcher, Torricelli, gave us the briefing in person." She turned and gestured to a figure standing in the corner, who slowly hopped off their seat and shuffled forward.

As they moved into the light, I could see it was a smaller kansen, likely a destroyer or a submarine. My money was on a submarine if the upside-down scuba goggles on her head were any sort of clue. She was also wearing a modified wetsuit, and she had an unruly head of hair that went all the way down to her knees. If anything, she looked more like some deep-sea gremlin than a scientist, but if this job taught me anything, it would be not to make judgments based solely on appearances.

Torricelli grabbed a chair and stood on it to give her equal height with the rest of us as she greeted us in shy, uncertain voice. "G-good morning, everyone. I've gone over the data and found some very interesting things on what I've decided to name the Siren-X." She thumbed a control in her hand, and the holomap in the middle of the room flared to life, showing a three-dimensional image of what appeared to be a slightly modified Siren fighter.

"As you c-can see," she continued as the image began to slowly rotate on its axis, "the Siren-X has a visual profile similar to a standard Siren attack craft. The biggest differences are the larger pods that have overtaken the usual weapon mounts and the dome assembly mounted under the nose. We b-believe the dome is the firing mechanism, hehehehe...while the pods or bulges on the fuselage are additional generators or batteries to hold enough charge for a full blast shot.

"What makes these attack craft much deadlier than their standard counterparts isn't just the strength of the laser, it's the explosive pulse it puts out."

"Pulse?" Hood asked, eyebrow raised.

"Let me sh-show you," Torricelli said and thumbed the control again, the Siren-X disappearing, replaced by a view of Littorio's bow. "This is Littorio, right before the first attack." I winced, feeling that familiar pang of guilt returning before I forced it to the back of my mind. "I've slowed the footage down a l-lot, so you'll be able to see what I'm talking about."

We all watched as a bright light lanced down from above, piercing the bow and burning a hole through deck after deck. After a few seconds of footage, there was a pulse, a burst of energy that traveled down the line of light and disappeared into the hole created by the beam. The image paused, then reversed so the pulse hung there in midair, a glowing ball of light suspended in time.

"There," Torricelli announced, "Is the reason for the extensive damage to Littorio and Warspite. Once the beam has tunneled through enough of the ship, it sends this pulse, which detonates like a bomb. In Littorio's case, she was lucky and it got the range wrong, detonating beneath the bow."

The thought of her cooped up in that hospital room, decidedly unhappy, immediately came to mind and I quipped, "She may disagree with you on how lucky she was."

The green-haired submarine chuckled nervously again and shifted uncomfortably. "Well, sh-she should. If it had detonated within the ship, it would have blown the bow clean off, probably set off the magazine, and sunk the ship. With you on it, I might add."

I held up a hand in surrender and nodded. "Fair enough," I conceded, not wanting to start an argument this early in the morning. "And I take it Warspite wasn't so lucky?"

"Yes and no…" Torricelli answered slowly. "Had both shots connected, she probably would have been sunk. But it seems like the rangefinding on these things isn't terribly accurate, although that may be a byproduct of distance more than anything else."

Hood nodded slowly as she processed the information. "And how long does it take one of these...Siren-Xs to fire?"

"A full blast? About two minutes."

"Are you suggesting it can vary the power output of the weapon?" I interjected.

She nodded and pulled up new footage, this one from a Wildcat's gun camera. "It doesn't need to use the energy pulse, instead simply using the laser as a powerful cutting weapon. T-take a look."

The footage sprang to life as the Siren-X tried to evade the half-dozen fighters hot on its tail, weaving and juking until it suddenly rolled up and over, presenting the underbelly and the laser slung underneath. The weapon fired, a blazing beam that obliterated one F4F, sheared another in half, and cut the wing off of a third, causing them all to tumble out of the sky. The image paused as the return fire from the remaining fighters shredded the Siren craft.

"S-see? It can use a lower-power version of the weapon against lighter craft, but it has to expose itself to do so. If it were to attack from a higher angle, however, it would have more success."

Vittorio spoke up. "But it can be defeated by mass air assault, correct?"

"Oh! Yes, easily. It doesn't seem to have any improved handling characteristics over other Siren attack craft. If anything, they seem to be a bit more sluggish, especially after firing."

"Good," I said as I put my now-empty cup down. "Then I think the current plan, as loosely defined as it is, will work. We'll use overwhelming air superiority to assert control over the skies and move in with surface units to blow the base to kingdom come."

Vittorio and Hood looked at each other, nodded, and then nodded to me in turn. "I think we're all in agreement, although the question of how to find their base remains," Hood replied.

"I have an idea on that front," I said, waiting to make sure I had everyone's attention before I continued. Well, everyone who was still there. Torricelli seemed to have taken advantage of the subject change to retreat to her corner once more. "Once Illustrious and Formidable get here, what I want to do is send out as many planes as possible, each in a straight line search pattern. They'll fly out their maximum distance, then head back along the exact same vector. Whatever planes don't come back, we'll be able to identify as an area of a potential Mirror Sea."

"And if there's multiple locations?"

"Send out the flights again. If they were ambushed by Siren fleets, there's a chance the fleets have moved on and the fighters will return safely. If it's a Mirror Sea, nothing we send in will ever return."

Hood pondered the idea, taking a sip of her morning tea. "It could prove to be costly in terms of equipment, but it's certainly the quickest way. And time is of the essence. Miss Veneto, any objections?"

Veneto shook her head emphatically. "None whatsoever. I think we've got a good solid plan put together so far, now we just need a little more intelligence to fill in the details. With your permission, Admiral, I'd like to start putting together exercises over the next couple of days for our surface ships, make sure they're able to work together when the time comes."

"Of course. I'll also make sure we've got Enterprise offering air cover as well."

"Sounds like we've got our work cut out for us, then," Vittorio announced with a slight smile. "Let's get to it."

The sun was already setting by the time I managed to make it to Littorio's hospital room. As I entered, she smiled brightly, only to have that smile fade quickly, replaced by a sympathetic look of concern.

"That bad, huh?" I half-joked as she beckoned me over. We exchanged a brief kiss before she answered.

"Not bad, Comandante, just...tired. I heard you were up before dawn today."

"Yeah," I sighed as I collapsed into the chair next to her. "Made a breakthrough in the science department so we had an early morning, pre-breakfast strategy session. And then drafting up exercise schedules so that Sardegnian and Azur Lane ships can learn how to work together. And then reports, reports, reports…"

"Don't you have Enterprise to help you out?"

"Normally, yes, but since Warspite was attacked, she's been providing air cover with Aquila, just in case they decide to try again. And even if they weren't providing air cover, they'd still be working together to get ready for the operation."

"Sounds like you could someone to help out," she said with an enigmatic smile on her face.

"I could…" I said slowly, trying to figure out where she was going with this. "I take it you have a solution for this problem?"

Her smile turned into a proud grin as she answered. "Of course, Comandante! You're looking at her."

My train of thought came to a screeching halt at what she was suggesting. "I thought you'd been in the hospital for another day or two."

"I've been doing better than expected, and repairs have been actually going much faster than anticipated, so I'm going to be discharged tomorrow morning and returned to service two days after that! And since that leaves me with several free days and you in need of a secretary, not to mention a liaison, it would seem that our needs align perfectly."

"I-I couldn't ask-" I began to stammer.

"You didn't," Littorio cut me off with a smile. "I volunteered. Besides, it would give us more time together."

She made a good point, and more time with Littorio wouldn't be a bad thing at all. I just hoped we would be able to focus on our work instead of each other.

"Alright, alright," I relented. "You make a good case, and you're so damn hard to resist anyway. I'll let Veneto know in the morning."

"Oh, she already knows."

"What?! How?" I exclaimed, much to her amusement.

"This afternoon, when she stopped by to check in on me and tell me I would be cleared for light duty starting tomorrow." Her voice lowered and she reached out to take my hand in hers. "And thank you for the regards, Comandante."

"It was the least I could do," I smiled bashfully, giving her hand a squeeze.

"So modest," she sighed as she tugged on my hand. "Come here."

I got out of the seat with a quiet groan and let her pull me into bed with her. She shuffled over to one side as I laid on top of the covers beside her. Once we were relatively comfortable, she draped an arm across my chest, snuggling up to me as I wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

We laid there in silence for a while, simply content to be in each other's arms. "God, I've missed this," I whispered. "Just...being able to sit somewhere in silence, relax." A stray thought ran through my head and I chuckled to myself. "I think I know what I want to do when the war's over now."

"Oh?" Littorio lifted her head to look at me, and I turned to meet her gaze. "What's that?"

"This. Maybe not in a hospital," I elaborated, "but this. You in my arms, watching the sunset, leaving the world behind, even if it's just for a few moments."

A bright, warm smile crossed her face as she leaned in and kissed me tenderly, a gesture I was all too willing to return. When we broke, she ran her hand through my hair, sending a tingle down my spine. "You certainly have a way with words, Inigo," she smiled and rested her head on my shoulder again. "That sounds like a wonderful way to spend the rest of our days…"

"What about you? What do you want to do once the war is over?"

She hummed thoughtfully as she pondered the question for a moment. "Rebuild. See the world. The Mediterranean may be my garden, but that doesn't mean I don't want to see the rest of the flowers."

"Understandable," I answered with a playful smirk. "It's a great big world out there, and it would be a shame if it went without at least being touched by the light of Littorio."

"Now you're getting it, Ammiraglio," she grinned back. We lapsed back into a comfortable silence until she spoke up again. "...Inigo?"

"Hmm?"

"Do you think this alliance will last?"

"I hope so," I sighed. "I'm not one for tragedies."

"Are you saying you wouldn't stay with me if you had to choose?"

I very carefully considered my next words. "I'm saying in the end, it doesn't matter who I pick because it will break my heart either way. If I pick Azur Lane, I'm abandoning you, the one person I've waited my whole life for. If I pick you, I'm abandoning the other kansen who've placed their trust in me." When I saw that she wasn't satisfied with that answer, I continued. "If I had to pick...assuming we still feel this way about each other...then it would be you."

To her credit, she didn't smile, celebrate, or gloat. She simply nodded slowly and gave me a look of shared understanding. "Grazie, Inigo. I hope it never comes to that, but thank you for putting your faith in me." She laid her head back down. "I'm surprised you didn't ask me the same thing."

"I couldn't ask you to do that. It's one thing to turn your back on an organization, no matter how much you believe in it, it's another to turn your back on your own family. I would never ask you to abandon your sister."

She simply nodded and cuddled up tighter with me, and I held her close as we watched the sun slip beneath the sea. The orange light of the setting sun faded into the violet twilight, before the sky was blanketed by a curtain of stars. We stayed there, content to simply be with each other. Surprisingly, Littorio was the first to drift off, her breathing becoming slower, deeper as her body relaxed. The sound of her sleeping comfortably relaxed me further, and it wasn't long before I felt my eyelids getting heavy and slipped into a deep sleep.

I slowly became aware of daylight pouring in through the window, my eyes slowly opening as I awoke and realized two things. First, if it was daylight outside, I'd spent the whole night in Littorio's room. And second, Littorio was no longer cuddled up with me. While I probably should have been more concerned that the two of us just spent the night together, it hurt more that she wasn't in my arms anymore…

"Ah, there you are, Comandante," Littorio's voice called out from beside me, and I turned my head to see her standing in front of the mirror, already in full uniform. "I was wondering when you would finally wake up."

"What time is it?" I muttered as I sat up, trying to rub the tired out of my eyes.

"Six in the morning. I would have woken you up in a few minutes anyway so you could go back to your quarters and grab a shower and a change of clothes before I took you to breakfast."

My mind, still waking up, tried to process everything she just said, although my stomach was probably most eager about breakfast. "Sure, sounds good. Did you have to go to another room to change?"

"No," she shook her head and smiled innocently.

"Kinda risky," I muttered, still not grasping the implications of what she was saying. "What if I woke up and just...looked over while you were getting dressed?"

Her smile broadened. "Then you would be having a better morning than you already are."

I couldn't help but grin back at her, although I could still feel my cheeks flush. "Aren't I the lucky one. Sort of." She giggled as I got out of bed and stretched. "Well, in any case, this definitely wasn't how I imagined our first night in bed together."

"Mmm, indeed," she nodded sagely as she wrapped her arms around my waist. "We'll simply have to make up for it by being extra passionate the next time."

"An excellent plan," I grinned and leaned in for a brief kiss. "Good morning, by the way."

"Good morning," she replied before slipping from my grasp. "I hate to kiss and run, but I have to get my discharge paperwork. In the meantime, you can change and get ready for the day and I will meet you at your quarters to begin working together."

While no less vital, the thought of her leaving so soon caused my smile to die. Littorio must have seen this because she grinned at me and declared, "Rejoice, Commander! For you have gained an indomitable ally in Littorio, but more importantly... let's put a smile on that cute face of yours." With that, she gave me a kiss on the cheek and swept out of the room with her usual grace and poise.

As she left, all I could do was watch her go, a silly smile on my lips as I played her last words back in my head.

"...cute?" I repeated slowly, the smile growing. "She thinks I'm cute."

A/N-Officially out of the hospital at last! Until next time, fair winds and following seas!