Alpha and Omega

by LieutenantRecon

A modern soldier feels like he lost his humanity, and is now stuck in the past, literally. A past different from what he learned as history. He encounters weapons made in human form that might help him regain his humanity and help him remember why he became a soldier. He thought his life was a failure, but maybe he is just about to find his true purpose.

7. Chapter 7

Alpha and Omega chapter 7

I do not own Azur Lane nor any affiliated works. Azur lane is owned by Manju and YoStar.

As soon as Winter arrived in the infirmary Vestal said. "Take off your shirt, and I will perform a checkup."

Winter complied with the demand and started to take off his shirt. Sheffield started to turn away to give him some privacy when scars caught her eye. Winter was covered in scars, most of them looked like they came from battle but what caught her attention were the ones that looked deliberately done.

It looked like someone had dissected Winter and put him back together.

Vestal noticed Sheffield looking at Winter.

"Something catch your eye there Sheffield?"

Vestal asked.

"Yes, those scars. They look professionally done, like someone did extensive surgery on Winter. I am curious as to what it was for."

Vestal sighed.

"I'm not too sure what was done either, as Winter has not answered my questions about them. However, they do not appear to affect him, so I am not too concerned about them."

Sheffield nodded in response.

Vestal continued her checkup.

"Hmm, everything seems fine. If I had not seen how bad you were injured at first, I would never have thought that you had broken any ribs."

Vestal frowned. "In fact you appear to be perfectly fine."

"Hmm, I wonder." She muttered. "Well, you are free to go. Just don't go do something stupid again."

"Would you like to go back to your room, Master?" Sheffield asked.

Winter nodded.

"Understood, follow me."

Winter followed Sheffield to his room. On the way they passed a few Kansen. Winter did not know their names, but they seemed to whisper to each other as he walked past them.

When they got to Winters room, Sheffield reached into her dress and produced a key and unlocked the door. Winter looked at Sheffield with a quizzical look on his face.

"Master, the maids have keys for these rooms as it is our duty to keep them clean, and to look after any guests we may have." She answered his unspoken question.

Winter entered his room with Sheffield following close behind.

"Is there anything you would like for me to do Master? Otherwise I will take my leave."

"I'm fine."

"Master, there are some extra clothes inside the wardrobe, and you have fresh bedding and towels. If you find you are lacking any necessities please do not hesitate to ask myself or any of the maids."

With that Sheffield gave a slight curtsy and left. Winter walked over to the wardrobe and looked inside and saw they had given him a few pairs of white t-shirts a few pairs of tan pants and one pair of white pants. There was also a white navy jacket with the Azur Lane emblem emblazoned on the shoulders on a hanger.

'A uniform? Why? I am not a part of this organization.'

Winter closed the wardrobe and noticed that the book on naval history was on the nightstand again, along with two other books. Winter picked up the two new books. "History of Naval Warfare in the Second World War: The Atlantic Theatre" Part 1, and "History of Naval Warfare in the Second World War: The Pacific Theatre" Part 2.

'Hmm interesting. They must have been put in here when they cleaned the room.'

Winter started reading the first book. He kept on reading until a name caught his eye.

"Bismarck." He whispered.

"May 24th 1941, the Royal Navy battleship HMS Prince of Whales and battle cruiser HMS Hood engaged the Iron Blood battleship Bismarck and heavy cruiser Prinz Eugen. The pride of the Royal Navy HMS Hood was sunk by Bismarck." Winter read from the book.

"On May 27th Royal Navy battleships HMS King George V, HMS Rodney along with heavy cruiser Norfolk, Dorsetshire, and four destroyers engaged and sunk the Iron Blood battleship Bismarck."

While Winter was reading this the words "Discipline is our Iron, and Glory is our Blood!" echoed in his head. Winter put the book down and tried to figure out the connection between what he was reading and his dream. Before Winter could come up with a logical explanation he heard a knock on the door.

"Master? May I come in?"

Winter did not respond. Another knock was heard.

"Master, I am coming in."

Sheffield sighed as she walked in, saying "I do not want to have to say things more than once master. And please try to keep better track of time."

Sheffield took a glance at the books that Winter was reading.

"Hmm. Odd." Sheffield commented.

Winter looked at her questioningly.

Sheffield thought to herself, 'I do not remember these books being in here when I refreshed the sheets and did some cleaning. Belfast must have put them in here.' To Winter she said "Now if you will follow me, we should have lunch now."

Sheffield turned around and Winter followed her. Sheffield waited for him to walk out of the room and then locked the door saying, "Normally the doors are not locked all the time, however since Roon has taken a liking to you. One can never be too careful."

As they were walking towards the canteen Winter, still thinking about the book, said "Sheffield?"

"Yes Master?"

"Who here is the best one to talk to about the Atlantic theatre?

"If you have any questions about the Royal Navy, I would suggest talking to either Lady George or Miss Belfast. If you want to know anything about the Iron Blood then ask Eugen."

"Thank you."

"Not a problem Master."

Winter followed Sheffield into the canteen. Sheffield quickly grabbed a tray and went down the chow line, enthusiastically heaping her plate with food. Hmmm, somebody likes to eat Winter mused. Winter followed with more modest portions, not really noticing that the food was of good variety and quality. It was all just fuel for the body to Winter.

"Pick a seat Master."

Winter found an empty table and sat down. Sheffield sat down across from him.

As Winter became aware someone was approaching the table, Sheffield said, "Lady George. How are you this afternoon?"

"I am doing well Sheffield. However I do have a few questions for Winter. May I sit?"

Winter nodded. Sheffield shifted over so KGV could sit across the table from Winter.

"Takao informed me you would be willing to teach her some hand to hand combat. I was wondering if I could join in as well?"

Winter paused for a second to mull it over, but before he could give George an answer, Prinz Eugen sat down beside Winter.

"Miss Eugen, why are you here?" George asked her.

"Who me? I heard a rumour that Winter here is offering to teach some very close range combat, including how to be good with your hands.", giving Winter a sly smile as she emphasized the words 'close' and 'hands'.

"Miss Eugen!" George admonished. "Please refrain from making your innuendo filled comments here!"

"Who? Little old me?" Eugen said innocently. "But truthfully, I feel like it would be useful to get new training."

George turned to look back at Winter. "So, where did you learn to sword fight?"

"Why?"

"I'm curious that's all. Soldiers are not normally taught how to fight with swords anymore." George took a deep breath. "I really am sorry about how rude I was to you before. I would like a chance to apologize to you formally."

"Ohh! A date? Sounds lovely! Remind me to bring my camera." Eugen said cheekily.

"You know, if someone doesn't watch their step, there might be a new block ship in the harbour." Sheffield commented.

"The Royal Navy needs to learn to loosen up, and not be so stiff all the time." Eugen said condescendingly.

"We have ruled the waves for over two hundred years, and yet we still remain. Unlike the Kriegsmarine." George responded.

"You may have had superior numbers, but we had better quality. How long did it take you to sink Bismarck again?" Eugen asked coldly.

"Lady George. Is that anyway for a lady of the Royal Navy to behave? And Miss Eugen, no need to antagonize Lady George." A new voice said from behind Winter.

"Miss Belfast, I, uh." George sighed and lowered her head. "No you are right, that is not proper behaviour for a lady." She turned to Winter. "I apologize for my behaviour, I should not have responded to Eugen's teasing."

"I should not be holding grudges against the Royal Navy either." Eugen sighed. "It is not your fault nor Lord Bismarck's fault that we ended up fighting each other. We can thank the politicians for that."

"NO!" Winter said suddenly. "Blame the Sirens! THEY are the ones who started this war!"

Eugen, George and Sheffield looked startled by Winter's outburst.

"Winter is correct, the Sirens are the real threat here. We should not do their work for them." Belfast responded.

"Lady George, the Commander would like to speak to you about the Royal Navy contingent." Belfast informed.

"Alright, I have already finished lunch. Shall I accompany you back to his office?"

"Of course." Belfast turned to Sheffield. "Please make sure to not let things progress next time."

"Yes Belfast. I apologize for letting my emotions get the better of me."

Belfast nodded at Sheffield. "Miss Eugen, Winter, I shall take my leave."

Sheffield stood up and as she walked around the table asked, "Master are you finished? Or shall I get some more food or beverages for you?"

"I'm finished." Winter responded.

As Sheffield cleared the table she asked, "Is there anything that you would like to do Master?"

"A walk."

"Then I shall follow."

Winter exited the canteen and started walking towards the grove of trees.

Sheffield noticed where they were headed, and her expression softened slightly.

When they arrived, Winter noticed a stone had been erected at the grave.

It read "To those who gave the ultimate sacrifice. May they find peace."

Winter stopped, and looked at the gravestone. His expression unreadable.

"Master?" Sheffield asked, in a hushed tone.

"Do you a have knife on you?"

"Yes, why?"

Winter just held out his hand.

She sighed, "Fine." And handed over a switchblade.

Winter walked over to grave stone and carved some names into it. When he stepped back Sheffield could see two names.

"In honour of Lucy and John."

As Winter stepped over and gave the knife back to Sheffield, she produced a couple of flowers and walked up to the gravestone and placed them in front of it.

"Thank you." Winter said quietly.

"To honour a soldiers sacrifice, even the ones whose names we do not know, is important. Even those who are not from our world."

Winter nodded.

"Master, I know that losing people who are dear to you is hard. I too lost my sister in the war. But it is not good to dwell on it. If you need to talk, I myself, Miss Bremerton, Miss Belfast, and even Lady George would be willing to listen."

Sheffield waited for a response. When none was forthcoming she said, "Master if you are finished here, perhaps you would like to head back to your room? If you need to rest I understand, and will wake you for dinner if you so wish."

Winter once again not responding, walked towards the cliff edge and gazed over the azure blue ocean.

Sheffield moved to stand beside him.

"Master I would suggest heading back to your room. It is not good to dwell on these thoughts." Sheffield said, concerned about the proximity of Winter to the cliff edge.

"Lets head back then."

Winter followed Sheffield back to his room.

Sheffield kept glancing back at Winter trying to figure out what he was thinking, but could not read his attitude. 'Who was Winter? And what was he?' These are questions Sheffield could not find any clues to. To her Winter was an enigma, he doesn't interact with many people and seems to brush them aside. But yet, based on his actions regarding Cleveland, he was quite willing to risk his life for strangers. He seems cold and distant but according to Illustrious and Unicorn can be quite kind.

All in all, she could not quite get a grasp of who he was.

While Winter was following Sheffield his mind wandered into memories. Memories of past battles, friends and allies lost. Along with enemies killed. Before he knew it Sheffield had opened the door to his room and was waiting for him to enter.

"After you Master." Sheffield said while holding the door open for him.

Winter entered with Sheffield following. After entering Sheffield immediately went into the kitchenette

"Master, before you head to bed allow me to make you some tea to help you sleep." Sheffield said while preparing the tea.

"Nothing could help me sleep." Winter muttered.

Sheffield heard him and frowned slightly.

After a few minutes Sheffield came over and poured a cup of tea for Winter.

"Here is some hot chamomile tea for you Master, it should help you get to sleep easier."

Winter took a sip, "Not bad"

"I'm glad that you like it Master, is there anything else I can do for you? If not I will leave you be until I come wake you for dinner."

"Ill be fine."

"As you wish." Sheffield said with a slight bow. Just as she left and closed the door "Have a good nap Master." She whispered as she closed the door.

After drinking the tea, Winter felt more relaxed. And quite drowsy. 'Hmm odd.'

Winter quickly fell asleep, hoping to at least get some rest.

In his dream, Winter was standing in front of the main hall of the Azur Lane base, but it was in ruins, one wing had entirely collapsed and the other had huge holes in it. The flag that was once flying proudly from the roof, was now nothing more then a few threads moving in the wind.

Winter was shocked at what he saw, "How? What could possibly have done this with the Kansen here?"

Winter started to walk around the base, trying to figure out what had happened.

As Winter passed the gym he paused slightly as he saw the bodies of Bremerton and Baltimore lying side by side. It looked like they had tried to protect some of the younger destroyers, but had not been successful.

Lying in front of the canteen, Winter could see the broken forms of Cleveland, Prinz Eugen and Belfast.

"What happened here? Who did this?"

Winter continued exploring the base trying to find survivors. As Winter got closer to the harbour he heard a commotion. Winter ran towards the harbour, trying to find out what was going on.

As Winter came closer to the harbour, he could see a figure wearing a black cloak holding Unicorn by her throat, her eyes wide with fear.

The bodies of several Kansen were strewn around the figure. Winter could see the bodies of Enterprise, Takao, Illustrious, and even his own team. The sightless eyes of Alex, Sarah and Boris stared back at him.

"Why?" Unicorn whispered before her eyes went blank and she went limp in the figure's arms.

The figure did not respond.

Winter noticed a sword lying on the ground and went to pick it up, and as he picked it up noticed that it was KGV's sword, which meant that she too must have perished.

Winter charged the figure but the figure saw him coming and threw Unicorn's limp body at him, forcing Winter to dodge. Winter saw that the figure appeared to be around his own height, but couldn't see who it was because of a metal mask covering its face.

Winter swung the sword intending to chop off the figures head, but it jumped back evading the blow and drew its own sword, blocking Winter's next strike.

Winter and his opponent continued to exchange blows, neither one gaining an advantage.

'He fights so well! Its like he knows my move before I make it.'

Winter noticed an opening in his opponents defence and moved to strike the head, but only managed to glance off the mask, tearing it off his face. He turned to face him and Winter froze, for staring right back at him was, himself!

"What? How? WHO ARE YOU?" Winter shouted.

"I am what you fear. I am you, or at least what you could become if you continue to fight with hatred. You can call me Nightmare."

Winter could not believe this. He was in shock, how could he attack his own allies?

"Do you understand what I mean?"

"I do not care, I will kill you."

Winter charged him again, forgoing all restraint with only one thought on his mind, kill.

Nightmare dodged the first attack but got caught off guard by Winters fist that collided with the right side of his head, throwing him off balance. Nightmare quickly recovered and pushed Winter away.

"Hmmph, not bad. Looks like I will not be able to beat you this time. But no matter. The more often you fight me, the stronger I will get each time. And when I defeat you, as I eventually will, then this nightmare will become a reality." And with those words, the grey eyes of Nightmare turned into bright glowing yellow orbs, the same colour as a Siren's eye.

Winter attacked again, and managed to disarm Nightmare, but Nightmare managed to disarm Winter as well. They launched at each other in hand to hand combat. Neither side gaining an advantage, until with a cry of rage Winter grabbed Nightmare's hand, twisted it and broke his wrist. Nightmare did not even flinch. He just froze in position with a smile on his face.

Winter threw Nightmare against a container on the docks, denting it with the impact.

Nightmare slid down the side of the container, coughing, dazed. Without giving Nightmare time to recover, Winter pounced on him, grabbing Nightmare by the throat and stared into his bright yellow eyes.

"If you cannot let go of your hatred and anger." Nightmare choked out. "and cannot let go of your pain and guilt of the past, rage and anger will become your master." With those final words, Nightmare went limp, and the dream ended.

Waking, first thing Winter heard was a choked voice, "Master?", weakly from below him.

"Huh?"

With a start Winter realized that he had Sheffield pinned by her throat on his bed. He was staring at her bright golden eyes and they were full of fear, the same fear that was in Unicorn's eyes before she died in Nightmare's grip.

"Master?" Sheffield said weakly.

Winter immediately released Sheffield and jumped off the bed in confusion. The sound of coughing filled the room as Sheffield struggled to breathe.

As she managed to recover Sheffield started to reach for her pistol, but stopped when she saw the look on Winter's face.

His eyes showed nothing but pain and regret. She withdrew her hand and started to approach him but Winter shuffled back from her.

"Stay away from me!" Winter shouted panicked.

Sheffield could see fear in his eyes, fear of himself. She tried to approach him again.

"Leave me alone, I don't want to hurt you." Winter cried out his voice trembling with fear. A few tears fell down his face.

"I understand." Sheffield said with a bow.

Sheffield turned and exited the room locking the door behind her. She sighed and started to run towards Delta's office hoping to catch him before dinner.

Just as she arrived, she saw Belfast waiting for her.

"A maid doesn't run, she remains calm..." Belfast's voice trailed off when she saw Sheffield's dishevelled appearance, and red marks on her throat.

"I think we had better continue this discussion inside, Sheffield."

Belfast opened the door and led Sheffield inside.

Delta looked up from his desk. "Sheffield? What brings you here?" Then he noticed her distressed appearance. "What happened?"

At that question everyone in the room turned to look at Sheffield.

"Yes, please tell us as to why you look distressed Sheffield." King George asked her sternly.

"When I attempted to wake Master Winter for dinner, he grabbed me by the throat and pinned me to the bed." Before she could finish she got interrupted by several voices at once.

"He what?" Eugen cried out shocked.

"That is such a dishonourable thing to do." Takao exclaimed.

"He dares to lay a finger on a member of the Royal Navy? I will not stand for this." King George exclaimed angrily.

Sheffield sent a cold glare at everyone.

"If you could let me finish," she half shouted, "that would be appreciated. Master Winter seemed to be having a nightmare and was in great distress before I attempted to wake him, almost like he was fighting someone. It took him a few moments to realize what he was doing to me, and then he released me and fell to the floor. I was of course angry and was about to punish him myself when I looked into his eyes and I could see fear. Fear of himself, fear of what he could've done to me."

After Sheffield finished explaining, expressions of shame and confusion appeared on those who had jumped to conclusions.

"Sheffield I will be attending to Winter from now on. I will be reassigning you to Master Delta." Belfast said quietly.

"Miss Belfast, have I done something wrong? Did I fail you?" Sheffield asked while lowering her head dejectedly.

Belfast walked over to Sheffield, put her hand under her chin and lifted her head. "No Sheffield, it is I who has failed you. I underestimated the amount of support that Winter required." Belfast stepped back a few feet. and gave a slight bow "I apologize for making a mistake that hurt you. I ask for you to forgive me."

"Belfast, it is okay. I should have been more observant of Master Winter, it was my carelessness that led to this situation."

"Master Delta, are you in agreement with this decision?"

"Even if I was not, I couldn't stop you Belfast. But I do believe that this is the best course of action."

"I wonder what kind of nightmare he was having to cause Winter to react so violently." Enterprise said quietly.

"Drat, it would appear that I once again over reacted to something involving Winter." King George said. "I should not assume the worst every time."

"Maybe I should wake Winter, if he throws me onto the bed I could show him a great time." Eugen joked. Everyone glared at her. "Before everyone gets their panties in a twist, it was simply a jest." Eugen said with her hands up.

"I shall head out and take care of Master Winter. Sheffield, could you please inform Miss Bremerton that I would like to see her at Winter's room as soon as possible."

"Of course Belfast." Sheffield said with a bow.

"May I inquire as to what your plan is for Winter tonight?" Delta asked curiously.

"I am going to be making him dinner in his quarters. And hopefully he is willing to talk and I can draw out what is behind all this. He may not be consciously aware of it himself."

"A good plan Belfast, I wish you success."

"Thank you Master Delta." Belfast replied. "If that will be all, I shall get going."

Belfast stopped by the food storage room to chose some items to take with her, before walking to Winters room. As she walked she thought to herself, 'I hope Winter is willing to open up, and this is not a waste of time, or worse, that it works out badly.'

Just as she was going to knock on the door a voice behind her called out to her. "Belfast!"

Belfast turned to see Bremerton hurrying towards her.

"I came as soon as Sheffield told me you had asked for me. I figured timing was important when you sent Sheffield for me instead of asking me yourself. What's up?"

"Indeed, timing is important, and all will be explained, in time."

And with that Belfast knocked on the door.

"Winter? Its Belfast and Bremerton."

"Go away!" Winter yelled through the door.

"Are you sure that this is a good idea?" Bremerton asked Belfast.

"We have no choice if we want to help Master Winter."

Belfast took a deep breath steeling herself, and opened the door with her key.

When they entered they could see Winter sitting on the floor beside the bed, his knees pulled up to his chin, his face looking haggard as if he hadn't slept a week. He glanced up at them and tried to crawl away, the bed blocking him from going any further.

"I don't want to hurt you." Winter said, his eyes wild with fear.

Belfast approached him and knelt in front of him giving him a warm smile. Bremerton sat down on the bed, and gently put her hand on his left shoulder.

"Its okay Master, I know that you would never hurt me." Belfast said softly.

"I do not want to hurt anyone, but I almost killed Sheffield." Winter said while avoiding eye contact.

Belfast slowly reached for Winters hands and clasped them between her own, causing Winter to look at her.

"Master, I know that you would never hurt me or anyone in Azur Lane. No matter what you think, underneath your tough guy mask is a good young man who seeks help. But he doesn't know how to ask. You do not want to ask, because you fear to be a burden to others, and then act like nothing is going on."

"Winter, do not be afraid to ask for help. Asking for help isn't weakness, it takes courage and strength." Bremerton said quietly.

"Master, your fears are not a burden to me. Your duty is to protect your home, your team. Correct?"

"Yes."

"And you will fulfill your duty. Correct?"

Winter nodded.

"Then allow me to perform my duty, and that is to be here for you. A maid is more than a simple servant. We are to be our Master's trusted companions, their aides. We make sure they remain safe and healthy and will protect them with our lives if necessary. And the most important thing, we are to make sure that they can perform their duties to the best of their ability. Even if it means sacrificing our comfort and dignity."

Belfast paused for a second to let Winter absorb the information.

"And since you are my Master now, I will do what ever I can to help you."

"Same here Winter, though I am not your personal maid. I will do whatever I can to help you." Bremerton said softly.

"All I have ever brought is death and destruction. And yet you are still willing to help me? Why? Why are you doing this?"

"Because I want to. When I looked into your eyes and saw the amount of pain you carry, something inside me urged me to help you. Master, allow me to ease the pain."

"Winter, what I see is a soldier, one who cares for his team, a strong warrior. However, you have been strong for too long and have finally reached a point where you feel you cannot go on. I may not be able to carry your burdens for you, but I can help you lighten them." Bremerton said with a smile.

"But, the help that we can give will be limited by how much you are willing to be helped." Belfast stated.

In his mind the face of Nightmare appeared in front of Winter saying, "It has already started Winter, what you did to Sheffield is only the beginning unless you change something now."

'How do I stop this from happening?' Winter asked Nightmare in his mind.

'By seeking help.' Another voice from in front of him.

A faint image of Shinano appeared in his mind.

'Shinano?'

'Yes, you must ask for help. They can help you.' Shinano said. While hugging him and wrapping him with her tails.

"Help me please." Winter said to Belfast and Bremerton in a faint whisper.

"Master? I did not catch that could you please repeat that?"

"Help me. I cannot to this anymore, the nightmares won't end." Winter said his voice full of emotion.

Belfast sat down beside Winter, "Don't be afraid to let it out. We are here for you."

With those words Winter broke. He started crying, and as he did Bremerton slid off the bed and sat down on his left grabbing his hand and rubbing the back of it with her thumbs. "It's okay to cry. It just means that you have been strong for too long." Bremerton whispered in his ear.

Belfast put her arm around him and pulled his head onto her shoulder letting him cry. "Its okay Master, weep for as long as you need to."

After a few minutes Winter stopped crying.

Belfast let him go and asked "Feeling better?"

"Yes, uh thank you."

Belfast got up and offered a hand to Winter and helped him get to his feet.

"Now if you could excuse me, I will make us some dinner. Please sit at the table, and if you want to talk we will listen."

Winter nodded and sat at the table. Trying to figure out what to say and ask. Bremerton moved from the bed and sat across from him. After a few minutes of silence Bremerton decided to ask a question.

"So Winter, earlier you mentioned something about hurting us again, what did you mean by that?"

When Bremerton asked this question Winter got a flashback to his nightmare of the base being on fire, and Bremerton's body lying next to her sisters.

Sensing his distress Bremerton tried to apologize. But Winter cut her off.

"No it's fine."

And with a deep breath Winter began to tell them about his dream about his dark counterpart Nightmare. Both of them were quiet throughout the whole story. When he was finished Winter looked at the table refusing to meet their eyes.

Bremerton grabbed Winters hands. "This does not change our willingness to help you."

"But I killed you. I almost killed Sheffield."

"It was only a dream. That Nightmare fellow is not you."

"But..."

"Winter, that is not who you are. Do not let your fears dictate to you and decide who you are."

"Master, if I may. I suggest talking to Miss Enterprise and Miss Takao about this. They too have encountered a different version of themselves in their dreams."

"Oh yeah, I remember that now." Bremerton said.

"What do you mean by a different version of themselves?"

"I cannot answer that question Master, you will have to ask them yourself."

"If you want Master, I could arrange a time to talk to them."

"I, uhh. Maybe"

After a few minutes of silence Belfast announced that dinner was ready.

"Wow Belfast, this looks and smells amazing!" Bremerton exclaimed.

"It is nothing more than a simple shepherds pie Miss Bremerton." Belfast responded with a curtsy.

Belfast served Winter his food. "Master, please enjoy."

"Now before we start, I think we should say a short prayer before we eat." Belfast said while serving the food.

"Yeah sure, sounds good Belfast."

"Bless us O'Lord, and this bounty that we are about to receive, through Jesus our Lord. Amen." Belfast prayed before eating.

"This is great Belfast, I had no idea that shepherds pie could taste so good." Bremerton said obviously enraptured by the food.

Winter took a bite and froze at the taste. It tasted familiar somehow, like something that he used to eat a long time ago. Winter had a memory surface of a much younger version of him sitting at a small round table, a girl that he recalled as his sister sitting to his right and a man and a woman sitting across from him. They seemed familiar but their faces were blurred, like he couldn't remember what they looked like. The man and woman said something but Winter couldn't understand it.

"Master?" A voice broke him out of his memories. He turned to see Belfast looking at him with concern. "Master, is everything okay?"

"I feel like I've done this before, the prayer, and the taste remind me of something, but I cannot remember what it reminds me of."

"Could it be that it reminds you of home Master?"

"I don't have a home."

"Master, it may not seem like it but this is your home now. Where your team is, where people care for you, that is home."

"Winter, to be honest we don't really have homes either. We are inanimate warships given a human form with human emotions. We do not have mothers or fathers. But I have my sister Baltimore, and as a whole all of the Eagle Union Kansen are my family. And where they are is home."

"Home is wherever you make it to be Master, my home is supposed to be the Royal Isles but I feel at home here."

"Hey Winter, I have a question for ya." Bremerton said.

Winter nodded at her to continue.

"How would you like to join my sister and I on our morning runs? It would be good to go out and get some exercise."

"I think that is a wonderful idea Master, a steady routine would be good for you, plus we can incorporate the combat training you agreed to with Miss Takao and Lady George." Belfast added.

"If it's that hand to hand combat that you used against Takao, I would like to join as well. As long as you are okay with that Winter."

"You do not have to answer right now Master, you can give your answer after we have finished dinner."

Dinner continued without much activity, Bremerton and Belfast talked a bit, but Winter did not hear them. He was thinking of the offer from Bremerton.

Winter had a flashback to his training. "Come on Winter get up. Get your lazy ass up soldier!" The instructor yelled at him after he had fallen off a ladder he was trying to climb.

Winter's response was a groan of pain.

Mendez walked over and stood over Winter. "I said. Get up."

Winter glared at him but still got up, hissing in pain as his back protested the movement.

"Good, now get going." Mendez said as he turned away to watch some others continue their training.

Winter continued the course, but was falling behind. The fifteen foot fall off the ladder had hurt him, but still he pushed on.

After it was over, Mendez approached Winter. "Your time was thirty four minutes and twenty five seconds. That is seven minutes slower than your last attempt."

Winter looked at the ground dejectedly. "I am sorry sir, it will not happen again."

"I wasn't finished soldier, do not interrupt me again. As I was saying you were slower then your last time. However, you kept going even after falling you got back up. You were injured and yet you still did not give up." Mendez paused for a second to gauge Winter's reaction.

"Look kid all I'm trying to say is, you did good. Your mind will give up before the body will. However, a well disciplined mind can take the body to beyond its limits. Do not give up, no matter what happens, as soon as you give up you have already lost. Do you understand me?"

"Yes sir, I do."

"Good, now why don't you head to the infirmary for a checkup and see if you got yourself any serious damage." Mendez ordered.

"Yes sir."

Winter now had his answer.

"Master are you finished?" asked Belfast.

"Huh?"

"Miss Bremerton and I have finished eating, so I was asking if I may take your plate and clean the table and the dishes Master."

"Yes I am."

"Excellent Master." Belfast said, taking his plate over to the sink.

"Winter have you thought about the question that I asked you earlier?"

The voice of Mendez came back to him. "Come on Winter get up. Get your lazy ass up soldier!"

"Yes, yes I will join you." Winter replied.

"Really? Thank you." Bremerton said with a bright smile.

"Then I shall make a schedule for you Master."

As soon as Belfast finished cleaning she turned towards Winter. "Master it is getting late, might I suggest going to bed? You have had a long and tiring day, so please get some rest. I will be back in a few minutes, I will just see Miss Bremerton back to her room."

"Thank you for dinner Belfast, it was delicious as always." Bremerton said as she got up from the table. "And remember Winter, if you ever need to talk, just let me know okay? Have a good night Winter, you as well Belfast."

"Good night Bremerton." Winter said quietly.

Belfast opened the door for Bremerton and followed her outside, closing the door behind her.

"Belfast?" Bremerton asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Miss Bremerton I wanted to ask you some questions, while I walk you to your room."

"Alright, sounds good."

"Did you notice anything odd with Winters behaviour when we arrived?"

"Besides the fact that he looked like a cornered animal?"

"Yes."

"I did not expect him to cry like that, it just seemed odd. I would have expected him to become more withdrawn. In fact it seemed more like he was acting like a young scared child." Bremerton admitted.

"Indeed, it did seem like a small child crying in fear." Belfast agreed.

"But what would cause that? Was losing his family that traumatic for him?" Bremerton asked.

"I do not think that it was the loss of his family that caused this." Belfast said slowly.

"Then what do you think Belfast?"

Belfast sighed. "I'm afraid I do not have an answer at this point Miss Bremerton, only theories." Belfast said sadly.

"Are you aware of this computer chip that Alex and Winter both have in their heads that help them control their emotions?" Belfast asked Bremerton.

"I've heard of it, but could not figure out how it would work." Bremerton answered.

"I am wondering, if they can control emotions, why not memories?"

Bremerton froze. "You mean that they could control what he remembers?" She whispered in disbelief.

"Not just that they control memories Miss Bremerton, but perhaps erase them or implant false ones."

"That should be impossible." Bremerton said in shock.

"Maybe Master Winter lost his family at a lot younger age than he thinks, and they blocked him from remembering it. Then that would be why he looked like a young child, because at that time he was."

"This is a lot to process." Bremerton said with a heavy voice.

"It is just a theory Miss Bremerton, and I need you to keep this a secret from everyone."

"Everyone?"

"Everyone, including Miss Enterprise, Winter's team, and even Master Delta." Belfast stated firmly.

"Understood. But Belfast, why did you tell me?"

"Because Miss Bremerton, I trust you, and so does Master Winter."

"But the first one that Winter talked to was Enterprise, so why not ask her?"

"As strong as Miss Enterprise is, she is not good with emotions. Plus, how does one traumatized soul comfort another?"

"I guess that makes sense."

"However I must get going now, as Master Winter will need me tonight."

"Your staying in his room tonight?" Bremerton asked curiously.

"Yes."

"Then I wish you a good night Belfast."

"I wish a good night to you also Miss Bremerton."

AN Finally managed to get this out. It took me forever to get this done. I had actually many different version written but none of them seemed to express the emotions that I wanted it to.

If anyone can find any references in this story, please DM me. You can pick a Kansen to join Winters Eventual harem.