Hood seethed at herself. She let her battle scars get the best of her. Right in front of the Commander at that. Looking at her ringed hand, she sighed. She knew that the Oath was little more than an acknowledgement of her service for Azur Lane, but to her it meant so much more. The Commander had chosen her over everyone else.
The kettle finished boiling as she recomposed herself, something she was always good at. A leader needs to keep up her image after all. She was the unofficial second in command of Azur Lane, keeping the place ship-shape while the Commander was out. Royal Navy ships in particular looked up to her, so she had to be calm and collected at any and all points of the day.
She poured a cup of tea and sighed. Bismarck was going to have to be dealt with in one way or another. And with the way she talked to the Commander, they'll get on pretty well. Even better. Fantastic. Fuck everything.
"My Lady, you seem troubled." A maid dressed shipgirl interrupted Hood's monologue to herself. It was none other than the loyal maid HMS Belfast, who despite her appearance was a deadly Light Cruiser when needed. Such as the time Enterprise was ambushed by some Sakura Empire assassin and how she managed to save her in the nick of time. When she wasn't in combat however, she was just like any other maid.
"Belfast, I told you that there's staff here to look after the ships here already. Take off that silly maid outfit." It was a habit at this point to start all conversations with her trying to get her to relax while around the base.
"Of course not, My Lady. Someone has to make sure this place is properly cleaned up between missions." Belfast did a curt bow, pinching the edges of her maid dress as she did so. "Regardless, it seems the new shipgirl has you troubled. May I ask why?"
Hood gave a look. "You treated my wounds for days after that battle. You know why."
Belfast poured herself a cup of tea. "Of course, My Lady. It is only polite to ask." She put a smidgen of milk into her own cup. "I feel that your problem is that you're unable to let go of the past. It has been a while since that battle."
Hood's gaze hardened. "It's not just that. She was the reason why we lost Prince of Wales. You can't just forgive someone for costing you a valued ally like that. The rivalry was mostly my own competitive spirit, but when you take out one of my trusted friends? That is when HMS Hood takes off her gloves, quite frankly." She stood her ground as she took a sip of tea.
Belfast tilted her head, her silver hair flopping lazily with her. "Not quite what I mean. Obviously her crimes against the Royal Navy and Azur Lane as a whole won't be forgotten, any Sakura Empire or Iron Blood ship knows that. But it sounds like Bismarck herself is willing to let this go, at least that's what I'm hearing."
Hood gripped the handle of her teacup with nearly enough force to shatter it. "Don't tell me you have one of your maids spying on them."
Belfast averted her eyes. "Of course not. Why would I have Edinburgh spying on her while the Commander and Bismarck are hanging out at the bar?"
Hood sighed, massaging her temple again. "I really wish you wouldn't try to use your entourage as a spy network. If nothing else, the maid outfits are extremely conspicuous."
"Commander? There's a maid staring at us." Bismarck remarked while tanking her upteempth beer, having gotten into a drinking contest with the infamously alcoholic leader of Azur Lane.
The Commander waved his hand drunkenly. "Don't worry about it. Just Belfast being weird with the newbies again, Come on, we're 4 for 4, Will of the Iron Blood. See how much beer I can get in that iron blood, eh?"
Hood finished off her tea with another sigh as she got up from the canteen's table, taking her used cup with her. Even with Belfast's support, she'd have to take care of the newest problem in her life. Thankfully the waters around Azur Lane had been calm lately, otherwise the stress might have gotten to her.
She was so engrossed in her thoughts that she bumped into a sleepy-looking lump, nearly knocking the brunette off her feet.
"Oof. Ghosts shouldn't be able to bump into people…" The ever-tired USS Long Island responded, rubbing her head with her long sleeve, lifting her coat slightly. While in the early days of Azur Lane she was a valued ally, the Commander moved her to escort duties once other aircraft carriers became available. Of course they had a bit of a fling, bonding over their shared love of gaming, but it wasn't meant to be. Why she was still here was a mystery, but Azur Lane's docks had more than enough room for her even if she was barely a presence around the base.
"Ah, Long Island. Apologies." Hood stated simply, her patience worn thin by recent events. "I was lost in thought there and didn't see where I was going. Are you quite alright?"
The light aircraft carrier nodded shyly. "Y-Yes, miss Hood." Despite being around even longer than Hood, the early ships respected her without question, breaking out of their usual personalities in order to show respect to their superior.
"As you were, then." Hood walked off, leaving the ghost of Azur Lane to wander the canteen once more, looking for snacks and possibly a pair of pants too. With that incident out of the way, Hood had time to think about how to approach this situation. While she wasn't the smartest in Azur Lane, she knew how to position herself in a fight, so she had to approach the situation as if it was just another duel with Bismarck.
"But it sounds like Bismarck herself is willing to let this go." Belfast's words echoed in her mind as she remembered the genuine worry in the Iron Blood battleship's face after she had that flashback. Was it just because she'd have to work for Azur Lane or risk being deconstructed for spare parts? Or was it a genuine attempt at reconciliation?
Hood returned to her room, closing the door gently behind her. Belfast had opened the union jack covered curtains before, showering every inch of the regal room in sunlight. Medals of honor, snippets of newspaper detailing her many victories, even the Oath she had written for the Commander when they realized what they had together.
She smiled sadly as she approached one wall in particular. A group photo of every Royal Navy ship at the time, with… Deceased teammates crossed out. Norfolk, Repulse, Warspite, Ark Royal…
She stroked the cross over Prince of Wales' delicate face. She was dedicated to the end and was more loyal to the Royal Navy than even Hood herself. She aspired to defend the rest of her comrades with the conviction that legendary ship had. It probably hurt even more knowing what happened that day…
"My Lady, I insist on going on this mission. You're falling apart at the seams!" Prince of Wales demanded in the war room, having gotten intel on an unescorted cargo ship with Sakura Empire's markings. "You know I'll be able to escort it to Azur Lane's waters back safely, there's nobody else here more experienced at it!"
"I-It's fine." Hood shot the idea down, tired from a recent rush of attacks from Iron Blood, including another duel with Bismarck. "The Commander has faith in me, and as his beloved-"
"As his beloved you should take a freaking break! He's worried sick about you!" Prince of Wales slammed a gloved fist onto the briefing table. "I understand that your spat with Bismarck makes you think you're focusing too much on Iron Blood, and that's exactly why you need a day to cool off and relax. If I have to go AWOL and risk dishonorable discharge myself I will."
Hood sighed, massaging her temples. "Alright. I'll trust my fellow battleship on this one. Please stay safe."
Prince of Wales turned to leave the room, her braided her flinging from the force of her turn. "My Lady, you know I'm the best battleship in all of Azur Lane. This'll be a cinch."
She had gone through the day's events many times in her mind. It was an ambush set up by Iron Blood to lure her out, not Prince of Wales. It was said that Bismarck was so disgusted she blew up the cargo ship herself before storming back to Iron Blood's headquarters, leaving a Sakura Empire destroyer to finish her off.
"Typical Iron Blood cowardice." Hood spat. Few things in life made her more angry than dirty tactics. Royal Navy ships were raised on honor above all else, even if that meant losing a fight.
"Me." Then again, what she pulled on that day… was that dirty fighting in of itself? Was she no better than her former rival?
She sighed, realizing she was doing that a lot lately, though it wasn't surprising. Bismarck had cost her so much. She took the honor of slaughtering her comrades just to spite her and bait her into an uneven fight. She was lucky that the Iron Blood reinforcements were too focused on the loss of one of their own, otherwise Hood would have gone down with her.
A knocking came from the door. "Mein fraulein?" It was her. Even with her voice muffled, that Germanic accent was unmistakable. It had been burned into her mind after so many battles with her and Hood thought she'd never have to hear it again.
"Go away." She stated simply. "I'm not in the mood to talk to anyone at the moment, much less Iron Blood scum like you."
The door opened anyway. "Vell, I don't feel comfortable talking to you so soon after you stormed off, but it's on the Commander's orders. He thinks it'll be awkward if we don't talk."
"It is awkward. You murdered my comrades in cold blood and now you want to be all sunshine and smiles with me. I think you know if I wasn't so honorbound I'd slug you in the face." Hood's rage had built up over the war, the target of her emotions standing right behind her. She unclenched her fist. "I thought it was over."
"The war won't be over until the Crimson Axis realize what the Siren's true intentions are." Bismarck admitted coldly. "They sent me out to die because I found out what they'll do once Azur Lane is wiped out."
Hood was still enraged, but wanted to give her a chance for honor's sake if nothing else. "And?"
"They'll wipe out the Crimson Axis too. They're using us as pawns. I was so stupid, so focused on this kuhscheiße rivalry between us that I lost sight of Iron Blood's goals. If I could apologise to my former comrades…"
"You've been drinking. You don't mean it." Hood didn't even turn around. "I can smell that disgusting beer on your breath from here and you just want to stab me in the back just like when you shot down Prince of Wales. I know your type."
"I… Aren't some of your comrades former Iron Blood? How could you say such things about them?"
Hood finally turned around as Bismarck took a step back. It was that look, the last thing she saw before being killed by that barrage. "Let me make this clear. You will never be my "comrade". You're here due to pure chance and if you don't watch your tone with me I'll make sure you go down in flames all over again. GET THE HELL OUT OF MY ROOM, YOU SKANKY DISGRACE OF A BATTLESHIP!" She pointed a gloved hand to the door as Bismarck walked out backwards, not looking her back in the eye before Hood slammed the door hard, nearly cracking the wood as she did so.
Bismarck didn't say anything, but stood outside of the room for a few moments, processing what just happened. Looking down at her boots, she started to head back to the bar. "I told him it'd be too soon…" She muttered dejectedly. Truthfully she was willing to let the past go at this point. She had lost to Hood finally and that was the only thing keeping her in the Crimson Axis.
Hood was going to flip when she found out the bad news, which was part of why she came to talk in the first place. She clutched a piece of paper in her hands. Namely, one about her imminent deployment as part of the main fleet.
"Now obviously Bissy, your reputation precedes you." The Commander explained, still mostly sober after the two shared a drink together.
"Stick to Bismarck, please." She politely turned down the nickname, taking a large drink herself. "And I am aware of my status as "The Hood of Crimson Axis". I must say I'm rather flattered by the comparison, but it's clear that I'm not HMS Hood. Not by a long shot."
"Nonsense. You're legendary for a reason. You lost the final duel by a hair! You know I love Hood, and having an equivalent to her that enjoys a little drink? Made my week."
"I see." She took a long drink of her beer. "Apologies if I seem distant, Commander. What she said to me in that room. I hurt her, didn't I?"
The Commander nodded solemnly. "She won't let go of her fallen comrades so easily. Royal Navy are nothing if not a family and Hood... She loved them like they were her own children."
Bismarck sighed into her drink. "I knew it wouldn't be so easy. I'm surprised you didn't have me executed on the spot."
He shook his head. "Nonsense. We need all the help we can get. You've probably seen some Sakura Empire and Iron Blood comrades here. This is war Bismarck. We can't let petty differences split us apart."
Bismarck nodded in understanding. "I see. I'll take the first deployment you can make for me then. I want to prove that I'm a changed woman."
The Commander blinked, pulling out his phone to check his scheduled deployments. "Well, the first one we have… Has Hood in the backlines as the flagship. Are you su-"
"Even better. If I'm unable to convince her with words, I'll prove my worth the same way I always have: On the battlefield." Bismarck steeled her resolve, knowing that she would have to deliver the news personally.
Hood continued to stare at the group picture longingly, as if looking for long enough would bring them back. She knew that in her heart that they wouldn't come back. There was always the hope of the Wisdom Cubes, but any ship summoned by Azur Lane then destroyed hasn't come back...
More important was the thought rattling around in her head. One that while it went against everything she believed in, felt like the right one.
"Maybe... I should give her a chance." She murmured to herself as she turned away from the photo, tears in her eyes. She'd cost her so much in the past, but at the same time, she had sunk many an Iron Blood ship herself. Who's to say Bismarck didn't lose close friends because of her own actions?
All of this time, she saw her as a merciless warlord, yet she came to her room personally to explain herself and even if it was on the Commander's orders, she seemed genuinely sorry… Right?
Hood shook her head again. There was only one way to see her true intentions: On the battlefield. She'd schedule Bismarck to be part of the backline on her next deployment if she had to. Pulling her personal phone out of her pocket, she opened her contacts list… At least she would have if the phone wasn't ringing. It was the Commander, too.
"Hood, Bismarck wants to be on your next deployment with you. If you want, I'll keep Enterprise on the drydock and let her fight alongside you?" he sounded unsure about the arrangement. Also drunk.
"Do it." Was all she said, putting the phone down afterwards and sighing in relief. That could have gotten awkward, but it seemed that they were on the same page for once.
She took one last look at the group photo and smiled. It's what they would have wanted anyway. Who's to say that an Iron Blood and Royal Navy ship can't resolve their differences?
"Alright bullins, I got some orders from the top brass here, purin!" One of the few Trial Bullin Mk. II remaining announced, the unofficial leader of the group of engineering lolis announced. "Seems we have to fix up… KMS Bismarck's rigging, purin. Sounds a bit tricky but I know we can do it, purin."
"Bulli! Bulli! Bulli!" The group of universal ship engineers rushed around the dock, fixing up the destroyed remains of the salvaged KMS Bismarck to the best of their ability using whatever they could find around the dock. Iron Blood ships weren't really their forte (Mostly because they couldn't read the German instructions) but they were determined to do their duty, dropping any other projects around the drydock for the sake of the crumbling boat.
"So, Iron Blood forces have been spotted escorting some merchant ships?" Hood sipped at her strater-tea, going over the upcoming mission with the Commander and Bismarck.
"Seems to be the case." The Commander looked at the notes the scouts had gathered once more. "Looks to be innocent enough, but as this is Iron Blood we're on about, it could be those new cannons that they've sorely needed for a while. You've been… dead for the last few months, Bismarck so you might be out of the loop on this."
Bismarck shook her head. "Nein, I was insistent on having our cannons upgraded to Akagi mere days before I was… Shot down. Didn't have time to get the cannons imported and equipped onto my rigging before that battle, though. Seems they finally got onto that."
"They would have anyway. We've intercepted every cargo ship that has been carrying them and ahem acquired them for our own use." Hood explained, her face neutral.
Bismarck blinked. "Seems I'll get those upgrades then. It'll be weird to steal from my former allies, but I'll manage."
Hood's face remained neutral. "I was unsure of bringing you along due to your ties with them, but it seems you're more than prepared. Commander, when do we ship out?"
"I gave orders to the bullins to work on Bismarck's ship as their top priority." He turned to Bismarck. "You'll be ready to go within the hour, though I'd recommend at least trying out your new rigging before fighting anyone. Royal Navy's tech is a damn sight different from Iron Blood and Hood graciously lent you her old cannons. Obviously if you want to switch back to Iron Blood's tech you'll need to pull this off, so you know… Don't fuck it up."
Bismarck gave a grin. "Iron Blood doesn't fuck up. Well, except for that one time when we accidentally went to Hawaii rather than Alaska. I still refuse to believe it was an accident."
"Sounds like fun." Hood smiled warmly. "I still have my old swimsuit. Commander?"
He choked on his coffee. "We went to a beachside resort for our honeymoon. Ended up having to take her rigging to the beach to stop horny men from flirting with her. Speak softly and carry a twin 127mm Mark 12 cannon became a running joke between us after that."
"It was fun aside from that." Hood clarified. "Ended up shooting fireworks out of those cannons, it was magical."
"Back to the matter at hand." The Commander quickly got the topic back on track before he could think more about his Oath'd ship in that swimsuit. "There shouldn't be any Aircraft Carriers launching planes around the cargo ship, but just in case you both should pack some anti-air ammo."
Bismarck nodded. "If Akagi learns that I'm now working for Azur Lane, she'll pull out all the stops to sink me again. Probably turn up herself."
"I'll check on my anti-air cannons before we head out. Good day, Commander. Bismarck." Hood finished her team and left the room, taking the cup and saucer with her.
An awkward silence fell between the two remaining people in the room. "I don't think she trusts me to cover her."
"Don't worry about her. When it comes to work, she puts it all on herself. It's pretty unhealthy." The Commander shook his head to dissuade the battleship's concern.
With a curt nod, she got up herself. "Well, might as well try out that new rigging before we head out. Good day, Commander. I'll keep in touch. "
He nodded back. "Same to you, Bismarck. Oh and before I forget." He held out a hand as she shook it back. "Welcome to Azur Lane."
"Good to be here. Better than being in a watery grave, at least." She let go of the Commander's hand before finally leaving the room, preparing for her first mission since her death.
"Commander Akagi. We have news from our mole in Azur Lane." The Demon, Ayanami walked into the main war room of the Crimson Axis, now located in the heart of the Sakura Empire.
"Excellent." She said simply. "Send her some catnip for being a good girl, but before that tell me the good news."
The destroyer-class ship opened the letter she had received. "It's not good news, Commander."
A rare surprised face formed on the foxgirl. "Oh?"
Ayanami stared her CO in the face without fear. "It's Bismarck. She's been spotted in the Azur Lane base and according to rumors, is going to be working with them from now on."
Akagi's look of surprise turned to one of disappointment. "A shame, but not entirely unexpected. Join Prinz Eugen on her next mission. Take her out before she becomes a threat to us again."
"Again?"
"You listen too much, rabbit." She made a shooing motion to her protege as she left.
"I'm a demon…" She muttered inaudibly as she left the leader of Crimson Axis, who sighed melodramatically as she pulled out a photo of her former comrade.
"Ara ara, Bissy. You knew too much of the Sakura Empire's intentions and were silenced before you could screw things up for me. Now you're working with them. You were undeserving to run Iron Blood, let alone the Crimson Axis."
She got up out of the chair she had been lying on, walking off to find her sister. "But I think this fox will have some bratwurst tonight."
Down at the testing range, Bismarck struggled to adjust to her new rigging, the unfamiliar weaponry missing the targets wildly as she grew increasingly frustrated. It wasn't entirely the technology's fault she was missing so much either, as these were Hood's old cannons, the shipgirl who famously shot down a fleet of Sakura Empire destroyers in a frenzied rampage after the loss of Ark Royal. She didn't even take any damage while she did so, her fury scaring them that much that their shots wildly missed…
Much like that cannon shot just did. Bismarck sighed again. Her insistence on being on the next deployment was biting her hard now and it was too late to try and get Enterprise to replace her, being assigned to a different task entirely after this deployment was finalized.
"Goddamn red tape." She muttered, trying out her other weaponry on the range, being significantly more accurate than her main guns. Smiling to herself, she felt her confidence return as she tried out her anti-air cannons, once again nailing several targets in a single burst of gunfire.
Nodding to herself, she headed back to shore, disengaging from her rigging, causing the Bismarck to return to its previous, ship-sized state as both floated in the crystal-clear waters around the naval base. Hopefully, Crimson Axis wouldn't send their best today, as her main guns needed some more getting used to. Hopping off her battleship, Bismarck headed back to the canteen for a coffee to sober herself up before deployment. This wasn't even the first time she had enjoyed some beer before a mission, but she needed to make a good first impression on her former rival.