The commission team returns to port and take some much needed rest. Mainz wants to help cheer up a couple of her comrades and Z23 offers a suggestion.
I'm still alive.
"Roon, fall back. Now!" Prinz Eugen called out.
Her orders went unheeded as Roon continued her slaughter of the Sirens in the area, mass-produced and humanoids alike. That or she didn't hear the senior heavy cruiser, too engrossed in the sound of gunfire and occasionally her own sadistic laughter.
"Roon!" Leipzig tried to get her 'sister' under control too. "That's enough already, you're chasing them too far!"
The prototype woman was getting separated from the rest of the battle group whether she knew it or not. It wasn't necessarily a bad thing; Roon was drawing most of the attention due being recognized as the most dangerous threat which left them open to pot shots from the other shipgirls.
"Come on, Valiant, stay with me." Warspite held on to her wounded sister. They were currently on the flight deck of Graf Zeppelin.
They were supposed to be pulling back so as to get some breathing room but Roon had decided to 'punish' the Sirens after one of her allies got wounded. Even though she may not have exactly cared about the Royal Navy or anyone else aside from the Commander, and possibly Leipzig and Nürnberg, she knew that the Commander would be sad if one of them were hurt. That was more than enough reason for her to go in guns blazing against the offending Sirens.
The rest of the group couldn't exactly leave her alone with the Sirens either, even if she could potentially hand herself. She was still a valuable and powerful ally, and losing her would be detrimental.
"Are...the Yankees here yet, sister?" Valiant asked weakly.
"Shh, save your breath. They're on the way." Warspite tried to reassure her. She'd gotten word that New Jersey's fleet was fighting their way through some scattered enemies to get to her and the other's location.
Graf Zeppelin kept an eye on them, her planes providing air cover for the battleship duo. Eugen and Leipzig were busy trying to bring back the wayward Roon into formation to little success.
Out of the corner of her eye Warspite saw it. A Peace Breaker humanoid, equal in strength to a battleship. It was damaged, five out of eight guns damaged beyond repair. Its remaining three guns were training on Graf Zeppelin, ignoring Roon in favor of an open target. The carrier herself noticed this as well.
"Scheiße!" She tried to turn her ship into an evasive maneuver. She couldn't exactly reform it into rigging form without dropping her two guests into the ocean, risking more potential harm to Valiant. "Brace for impact!"
The Peace Breaker's cannons glowed, charging its energy for a fatal shot, before finally-
BOOM!
Three shells hit their mark, striking the Peace Breaker nearly dead on. Two 16-inch shells pierced right through two of its cannons, causing them to implode catastrophically, before hitting the humanoid's right arm and left shoulder, effectively dismembering. The third shell punched right into the torso, sending the remaining gun off target as it discharged its shot to splash harmlessly into the water.
Before the Peace Breaker could reorient itself, another salvo struck. Bits and pieces of the Siren could be seen flying into the air and scattering into the ocean, the powerful guns of the indomitable Black Dragon making quick work of their target.
"We're here! You girls okay?" The worried voice of New Jersey came over the radio.
Helldivers and Dauntlesses swooped in, their engines roaring in the sky as they dropped their payloads on the remaining enemies. The cacophony of 5-inch, 6-inch, and 8-inch guns joined the fray as the rest of the Sirens were systematically mopped up. The Eagle Union fleet had arrived.
"Thank goodness, the Yanks are here." Warspite breathed out in relief. "Valiant, we're saved."
No answer.
Warspite's eyes widened in fear as she shook her unmoving sister. "Valiant? Oi, Valiant! Sister, wake up!"
The sounds of bombs and gunfire were muted to Warspite at the moment. Her only concern was on Valiant who wouldn't open her eyes. She didn't hear the shouts of concern from New Jersey or the Commander. She didn't feel Graf Zeppelin try to snap her out of it.
"Wake up. Please, wake up..."
~x~
" Warspite? Warspite, wake up."
The battleship groaned as she rubbed her eyes. She had taken a quick nap once they were within friendly waters, the toll of battle having caught up to her. Slapping herself awake Warspite stood up from her command chair and stretched her body before answering.
"Yes, what is it?" She replied.
"We're almost back at Kiel." Graf Zeppelin spoke in her usual stoic tone. "Thought you might want to get ready. It would be unsightly to arrive while asleep, right?"
Warspite snorted to herself. "You're absolutely right, Miss Zeppelin. Thank you for reminding me."
"Hmmph, think nothing of it. I was just letting you know." A moment passed before she spoke again. "You were dreaming of that time, weren't you?"
The Royal didn't answer for a while. "What makes you say that?"
"...Just a hunch. Get ready now, we'll be pulling into port." With that the Iron Blood carrier signed off, leaving Warspite to her thoughts.
"Oh well," she sighed, "time to return to base, I guess."
The Commander received a message that the commission team was returning to base so he finished as much work as he could so he could go to the docks and welcome them back. Apparently there had been some complications with an odd Siren ambush but he was reassured that everyone was fine and alive. He couldn't help but worry however, when Z23 told him that both Tallinn and Mainz sustained some injuries.
"It's nothing to worry about, Kommandant," Z23 said as the two walked down the hallway of the command building. "If she's anything like her sisters, Mainz is just as tough as they are and can take some hits."
"I know, Niimi." The Commander ran a hand through his hair; it was still short from the last time the destroyer cut his hair with the help of the aforementioned cruiser. "Still, it was her first real sortie and I didn't expect her to get damaged already."
Z23 paused in her tracks and held his arm gently. Despite their height difference she still exuded an air of wisdom that most regular humans couldn't. "Such is the way of war, Kommandant. You must accept that there will always be casualties."
He nodded at her words. "I know. Warspite told me something similar before they left, actually."
"She is one of the most experienced ones." Z23 shrugged and they continued walking. "I would know, some of my sisters fought her in the past life."
"And now here we are, united as one." He mused.
She smiled in return. "Yes, here we are."
No more words needed to be said as the duo walked down to the docks. As they approached the water they could see the ships on the horizon and sailing their way towards port. Another team of shipgirls sailed out to watch their backs, keeping watch for any surprises.
"This is Kiel base to returning shipgirls, welcome back. Make way to your assigned docking space, the Manjuu and Bulins will be there to relieve you. Incoming cargo ships, make your way to the supply depot, over."
"Copy that. You heard her, ladies, dock your ships and you can finally relax."
"It's good to be home."
The Commander and Z23 watched as the ships sailed into port. No matter how may times he saw them the Commander couldn't help but feel a sense of pride and awe at the sight of Azur Lane's warships. The imposing hulls and firepower provided a sense of security for people, a powerful force to fight back against the opposing Siren forces.
The returning shipgirls docked at their respective stations and a team of Manjuu and Bulins immediately headed out to receive them. Some of the ships suffered minor damage from gunfire. Only the Mainz looked like she took any real hits but it was mostly superficial damage on her hull and nothing too serious.
The Commander waved at them as they disembarked from their ships, his gaze lingering on Mainz herself as she stepped on to the dock. Her uniform had slight burns and tears, and according to the report he got most of the damage she took was while she was in her rigging form rather than her hull form.
As one, the Bulins got to work as soon as they saw the state of the light cruiser, needing no further instruction on what to do as they flocked into the ship. They scurried to and fro on the deck, some Manjuu and human dockworkers bringing in materials and equipment to help with repairs.
The shipgirl herself saw the Commander and waved at him, one that he quickly returned along with a smile. Both Hipper and Eugen were seen walking over to their prototype sister, eager to catch up on what happened. They didn't show it but anyone could tell they were a bit worried about Mainz's state and well-being.
"What in the world happened to you?"
"You look like hammered shit."
Mainz held her hands up as if to placate their concerns. "Ah, just a torpedo here and some gunfire there. I'm fine though, so there's nothing to worry about."
"Hah? Nothing to worry about?" Hipper made an exaggerated gesture with her arm towards the damaged cruiser in port. "Your ship looks like a mess!"
"It's not that bad," Eugen observed calmly. "The damage looks mostly superficial."
"See? Eugen is correct. I'm not even that injured. Tallinn is the one who took some flooding."
This only seemed to irritate Hipper further. "Was? Again? That girl keeps getting torpedoed, I swear she's going to..."
The rest of her tirade continued in angry German that the Commander didn't bother trying to translate in his mind. Z23 shared an amused look with him, the both of them familiar with Hipper's antics by now.
"Zeeed!" A shrill voice called out.
Z23 raised an eyebrow and turned to face her edgy sister who approached her from the docks. Z24 didn't look worse for wear aside from some scuff marks on her ship, but she certainly seemed upset. And judging by the way she almost whined her nickname, the younger destroyer was looking to her for comfort, even if she wouldn't admit it out loud.
"Ah, yes, Z24? What can I do for you?" The elder sister asked.
With a slight pout Z24 stopped in front of her and spared a quick glance to the Commander. "Hmmm..."
Z23 and the Commander shared an uneasy look with each other. "You can trust Herr Kommandant, you know."
"I can leave if you want?" He proposed.
Z24 shook her head. "Nein, it's fine. It's just..." She bit her lip before closing her eyes and sighing, her haughty facade deflating before them. "We ran into Pawns again, Zed. And I saw her face again."
The Commander connected the dots and chose to keep quiet, especially when Z23 tensed a bit next to him. The destroyer muttered something in German under her breath before stepping forward to hug her sister.
"I'm sorry you had to see that. I wish I could say it gets easier over time but that's not really true, is it?" Z23 remembered her first encounter with Pawns. The Sirens seemed to test their resolve by mimicking the forms of fallen kansen and those among the living had varying reactions of disgust, horror, and livid. It was even worse when sister-ships were involved.
Everyone knew that Pawns weren't the real deal. Shipgirls who passed away were buried in specially designated areas, their bodies similar to humans despite their mysterious nature, and so far it was fortunate that none of them died in ways that made it impossible to recover their bodies. Since Azur Lane knew where their deceased were kept, it was concluded that the Pawns were another way of the Sirens screwing with their emotions.
It was at that moment Hipper and her sisters approached them. The Commander noticed and put a hand up, a wordless gesture for the trio to keep their distance for a while. To give the two Z series destroyers some time to themselves.
After composing herself a bit and murmuring at her sister, Z24 disengaged from the hug. Z23 still kept her hands on her shoulders a bit, offering a small smile and wiping some errant tears from Z24's face before letting her go.
"You good?" Z23 asked.
Z24 nodded with a small sniffle. "Ja. Danke schön."
"Do you want to get ice cream?" The Commander offered.
"Ah, perhaps next time."
Hipper, Eugen, and Mainz felt it was all right for them to approach now. The three cruiser sisters walked up to them, with Hipper and Mainz standing closer to the Commander while Eugen ruffled both destroyers' hair a bit.
"Eh?" "Hey!"
Z23 and Z24 exclaimed a bit in surprise at Eugen's gesture. They didn't really mind though, it was her way of showing affection to her comrades. It was far better than her old sardonic self.
Mainz quietly nudged the Commander in the side and whispered. "Sir, if it's no bother, I think we should find a way to cheer her up." She turned around and caught sight of a black uniform with a white cape. "And for Frau Zeppelin as well."
He hummed in thought. "Something happened?" He whispered back.
"One of the Pawns mimicked a Sakura carrier associate of hers."
"Ah, I see. That would be pretty rough, even for Zep."
"You know I'm right here and can hear everything you're whispering, right?" Hipper interjected from behind the pair.
Both the Commander and Mainz jumped a bit at her declaration. They were so engrossed in their conversation that they almost forgot the blonde was right next to them.
Hipper smirked at Mainz. "You know us heavy cruisers aren't known for subtlety."
"Technically, I'm a light cruiser," said Mainz with her arms crossed.
Hipper waved her hand dismissively. "Apples and oranges, Mainz."
The Commander grinned at their banter before speaking. "Well, I do agree with Mainz. Cheering up Z24 and Graf Zeppelin would be nice."
"Mmm, mmm. Fortunately, I have just the idea." Z23 nodded her head as she stood by the Commander's side.
"Mhm, see she has the right idea." Mainz paused before looking at the secretary ship. "Ah, you heard the whole thing, then?"
"Of course." Z23 pointed a thumb over her shoulder at Eugen still messing around with Z24. "It was an idea I had when Herr Kommandant fell asleep again."
"Again?" "Of course he did."
The Commander groaned at Mainz's and Hipper's reactions. Z23 continued on with her idea.
"See, my sister doesn't want ice cream at the moment but she still has a sweet tooth. And no one can resist those delicious pies from that one cafe." She pulled out a notepad. She had apparently taken some notes beforehand. "I had a feeling some of you might want some time off after such a mission. It's only natural and it has already been approved."
The Commander nodded at this. He wasn't one to work his people to death, after all. "You girls could use it."
"Will you be joining us?" Mainz asked a bit too quickly. Hipper noticed but chose not to say anything.
He shook his head. "I've still got some work to do. Sorry, maybe next time."
Hipper most certainly didn't miss the small sag in Mainz's shoulders at his answer. It would seem she wanted to spend some time with their Commander.
"So, what are you talking about?" Eugen sauntered over with Z24 in tow.
Z23 shifted her gaze before coming up with an answer. "Ah, we're going to Levi's Grand Cafe later. I figured we can relax with some coffee and pastries."
Mainz perked up. "Coffee? Oh, I'm definitely coming then."
"Obviously," Hipper said with a snicker. "Will you be joining, Eugen?"
She thought for a moment. "Hmm, afraid not. I'll have decline because I made some other arrangements beforehand."
"Ah, I see. Well, we can always catch up later." Mainz gestured towards Graf Zeppelin's direction. "Any idea how to get her to come along, though?"
"Oh, that's easy," Z23 said with a shrug. "Just leave it to Kommandant."
The Commander rolled his eyes. "You ladies just go on ahead. I'll see to our gloomy carrier." He cast a glance at Mainz's uniform. "Err, you might want to get a change of clothes first. Clean up a bit."
Mainz blushed a bit. "Oh, right. Of course."
With a smile and wave the Commander and Z23 left them to find Graf Zeppelin. That left Mainz, Hipper, Eugen, and Z24 for now.
"Well, come on then. I know the way." Hipper started walking off.
"I'll see you later." Eugen went another way.
"All right. Come on, Z24. Let's go to that cafe they mentioned." Mainz gently guided the shorter girl by the shoulder.
Z24 didn't protest but pretended not to look forward to some sweets and coffee. "Fine, whatever."
The three Iron Blood girls arrived at the cafe's location after getting a change of clothes. Their normal uniforms were swapped out for something more casual, both out of comfort and so as not to stand out too much. Even if civilian humans knew about the existence of kansen they still didn't want to draw unwanted attention to themselves.
Hipper wore a simple black turtleneck with long sleeves and a black skirt that reached to her knees. Mainz wore a less ornate black version of her regular jacket along with her usual skirt and white thigh high stockings. Z24 wore a black school uniform-esque outfit and black pantyhose. She also tied her hair up into a ponytail. Together the three of them simply looked like regular students hanging out together. They just simply wore a bit too much black but no one really minded.
"So this is Levi's Grand Cafe," Mainz said as she scrutinized the plain looking place. "It doesn't look like much."
"Ah, but I hear it's one of the best places to go for pastries and coffee." Hipper held the door open for them with a jingle of the bell. "It's also a nice place to go and relax, do some reading, work on a draft, and just hanging out with people."
"I see, why haven't I heard of this place before then?" Z24 noted as she stepped in. It was fairly spacious enough but not too crowded with people. There were tables all around, some booths along the wall, and even a bar counter.
Mainz nodded along with her. "I didn't know about this place either."
The elder heavy cruiser just shrugged. "Eh, must not have crossed our minds. We are kind of busy fighting a war, you know." She picked out a booth for them to sit at. "Besides, the two of you are sort of newcomers to begin with."
Mainz conceded to that. She was literally just 'born' a little over a month ago. Z24 just hummed in thought. The destroyer herself may have manifested earlier than the prototype cruiser but she had transferred to Kiel from Wilhelmshaven only about three months ago. She was also the type who rarely stepped outside in the first place.
They didn't have to wait long for the rest of their comrades to join as the door bell jingled again. Z23 and Graf Zeppelin were at the door as expected. What wasn't expected was the appearance of both Cleveland and Enterprise as well.
Z23 wore a black dress with a red ribbon on her collar. She also had a black jacket worn over it and unlike her sister her legs were bare of any pantyhose. Graf Zeppelin also wore a simple black dress with some red frills in the skirt portion. Despite her gloomy nature it actually fit her and made her look lovelier than usual.
The two Eagle Union shipgirls who joined them did not wear much black in comparison. Enterprise wore a white off-the-shoulder shirt with the words 'USN' in red and 'The Big E' in black on it. A big yellow number '6' was also printed on it. Black straps could be seen under her white shirt and she also wore black shorts. She looked fairly normal and would have looked even more like a tourist had she kept the black hat on her head or the yellow jacket tied around her waist, but she chose to forego them this time.
Cleveland wore an oversized blue shirt that reached to her thighs. Her black skirt could peeked out a bit under her shirt and a black thigh high adorned her left leg. Just like Enterprise, she chose not to wear her white jacket or the white visor.
"Hey, how you girls doing?" Cleveland was the first to greet them as they approached the booth.
Hipper smiled at her fellow blonde and bandmate. "We're fine, just relaxing. Didn't expect to see you here."
"Well, figured we could also use the RnR before heading back out to the Pacific." Enterprise spoke as she took a seat with Cleveland.
The two of them sat on one side of the booth while Hipper, Mainz, and Z24 sat on the other. Z23 chose to scoot in along with her sister, leaving Graf Zeppelin to sit by Enterprise. She didn't mind the other carrier's presence, she just wasn't that outgoing. However, she did learn quite a bit from the Eagle Union's top carrier so they were already somewhat acquainted.
"Besides, Akagi was a friend of ours too," Cleveland added.
"Right." Enterprise nodded. "We're gonna be visiting Kaga in the Sakura Empire soon as well."
Graf Zeppelin hummed a bit. "Hmm, give her my regards."
"And mines too," added Hipper.
"Of course. Now, what's good over here?" Cleveland eyed the menu curiously.
"I was told they make good coffee." Mainz didn't even look up from her own menu as she fist bumped Enterprise at the mention of their favored drink. "What else, though?"
Z23 chimed in pointing at a specific item on the menu. "Their pies. You simply must try their cream pies."
Hipper, Cleveland, and Enterprise snorted and coughed at that. It certainly caught them by surprise, especially with how enthusiastic Z23 sounded.
"What?" The destroyer didn't know what garnered such a reaction.
"Oh, nothing." Hipper waved off her concern. "Just a cold."
"Hmmph, very suspicious," muttered Graf Zeppelin. "But it's not my concern. I think I shall order one of those cream pies then."
Enterprise clapped Cleveland hard on the back as the latter coughed a bit too loudly. "You all right, Cleve?"
"Yeah, yeah," the blonde covered her mouth with a fist as she coughed into it.
"You girls are acting weird." Z24 eyed them warily. "Whatever, if Zed says their cream pies are worthy of my dark tastes, then so be it."
"Hmm, I guess we'll all order these cream pies then?" Mainz looked up from the menu.
"Of course!" Z23 waved down a waitress to get their orders.
A young girl with long blonde hair tied into a braided ponytail arrived at their booth with a tray of water glasses and a bright smile. Her eyes were a nice shade of blue, almost purple like Enterprise's. "Hello, what can I get you folks?"
Around the table she took their orders one by one. Several times Cleveland had to pause and take a sip of water at the mention of cream pies. Apparently they were served in different flavors as well, such as strawberry, banana, coconut, or chocolate. Even Hipper looked like she wanted to laugh but held it in better. Enterprise remained the most calm but she still looked a bit red in the face. Mainz and Z23 just looked at them curiously while Graf Zeppelin and Z24 didn't really care.
"So, what can you tell me about these pies?" Mainz asked Z23.
"Well," the destroyer started, "they're apparently quite famous around the world. Not exactly big like those food chains but well-known enough to be something like a cult classic? I'm not sure that's the correct wording."
"Hmm, you know what? I think I may have eaten some during my tour around the Iris Orthodoxy." Hipper sipped on the latte she ordered. "I heard from Jean Bart that the owner is some degenerate from the Royal Isles, and he makes a living with his own pie recipes."
"That's not what I heard." Z23 interjected. "Rumor has it the owner is actually from the Iris and that they're a woman. She's supposedly quite saintly yet perverted at the same time."
"Oh? And who told you that?"
"Miss Vampire. I've sortied with her several times."
"Why is there such a mystery concerning the origin of these famous cream pies?" Graf Zeppelin wondered out loud. "No matter. At the end of the day, as long as it's delicious then we shouldn't really bother trying to figure out the owner's identity."
"True, but now you've got me curious who this person really is." Z24 stirred her chocolate milkshake around with her straw. "Any leads, sister?"
"Don't ask me, I really don't know. All I hear are rumors."
"Ah, well. It's just like Zeppelin said. If the pies are good it doesn't really matter, does it?" Enterprise spoke up.
"Speaking of pies, here they come." Mainz set her coffee down as the waitress arrived with their treats. "Hopefully, it doesn't disappoint."
Safe to say the pies didn't and Levi's Grand Cafe gained new fans on that day. Including a certain stoic carrier.
I used these images as inspiration for some of the Iron Blood casual clothes.
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Enterprise and Cleveland are wearing their Anniversary Ride and Road Trip skins, respectively, excluding some accessories.
Now, I plan on having the story leave the setting of Kiel and move more into the Pacific Ocean, like Sakura and Eagle waters. The Commander and Mainz are definitely in the lineup, but who else do you think should I include? Bismarck and FdG are excluded, along with the Scharnhorst sisters, because they have to take command of the place.
My headcanon is that shipgirls can manage themselves autonomously without a commander all the time, especially since said commander has to somehow command all these different factions to work together. My guy basically goes to the various ports and bases, stay for a bit, then leave to somewhere else.