Azure Lane: Arctic Command
Chapter 00 (Remastered): Prologue
A/N: I decided to rewrite 00 since it didn't really make a good starting point. If the fic gets more traction, I'll consider making an archive for old chapter drafts and such.
All seemed good in the city of Portsmouth. The sun was shining the birds were singing and all seemed good in the world. On this perfectly normal day, the ship-girls of North Atlantic Command went about their day. Some talked with their friends, others trained and many pursued their hobbies. Chapayev however was doing something different from all of them.
She was inside the office of Admiral Olivia McMillan, the famed admiral who was widely credited with the hunting down of Bismarck, and the head of North Atlantic Command. The two had struck up quite the friendship over the years, however she was not there for simple small talk.
She was there to discuss her potential reassignment to a new posting.
Olivia cleared her throat and pushed away some of her brown hair away from her eyes, the green locking with Chapayev's blue. After looking down at a piece of paper, she looked back up.
"Chapayev" she said "How are things going?" Are you ready for your trip tomorrow?"
"Things are going fine, Livia" she replied "But, I have to admit I am a bit worried."
"Well, it is a new place after all, and I dont think Arctic Command has the same facilities as North Atlantic Command, but I'm sure you'll feel at home" Olivia assured. "Besides, if you're worried about the base's Admiral, you have nothing to worry about. I've worked with Rayleigh on many occasions and I can tell you he is very skilled at his job"
"Really?" Chapayev mused
"Yes, he's a bit eccentric but he's calm and collected, an excellent logistician and and has an eye for talent. I think you might land yourself a high command position if he sees something in you" Olivia said with a smile
"I see, if he really is what he's cut out to be, then I have nothing to be worried about" Chapayev replied with a smile of her own. "I think I'll be taking my leave, Will you be attending my farewell party Admiral?"
"Of course I will" Olivia answered. "I'll be seeing you then. An officer from Arctic Command will come to pick you up tomorrow, so be late!"
Chapayev exited the Admiral's office with a smile on her face. Maybe things wouldn't be so bad after all.
Edmund Hillary Naval Outpost
The relatively small headquarters for the relatively small Arctic Command, the smallest of the several oceanic commands held by Azur Lane. The outpost is relatively bare bones, with only the bare essentials needed to monitor the Arctic Circle for potential Siren activity, which meant a communications array which connected with several radar stations, a small airfield for several supersonic light fighters and AEWACS aircraft and a dock capable of holding the several manned destroyers and fast attack craft that patrolled the Arctic Circle.
The base was understaffed and had very little of the latest technology, forced to rely on aging legacy systems which were starting to get harder and harder to maintain, and were incompatible with each other. Despite requests for reinforcements, Azur Lane would always prioritize commands closer to major population centers, which left Arctic Command with the scraps, despite Siren fleets starting to move further north.
Admiral Rayleigh Adams worked hard every single day to keep the base from falling into disarray and being vulnerable to attack. He drilled his men and made sure every system was as maintained as it could be, which wasn't saying much.
And as Rayleigh's stress levels built up, a fateful scroll through Juustagram would ruin his day.
"WHERE THE FUCK IS MY INDOOR SWIMMING POOL AZUR LANE!"
The scream reverberated through the Commander's office, being carried many meters through the cold Arctic air. Ace Montenegro knew what was going to happen, and so he braced himself for what was to come.
"Look at this Ace!" Rayleigh whined "North Atlantic Command has a indoor swimming pool! AN INDOOR SWIMMING POOL! What they going to do with it?"
"Its probably for training the ship-girls sir" Ace responded
"Good point" Rayleigh conceded "But you know what else they could have spent that money on? Giving us an actual complement of people! I'm tied of having to do paperwork in the morning, only to jog down to the tank depot to help cannibalize a thermal sight!"
"I have to agree with that actually." Ace said back "I swear, having to work on those engines is absolutely soul crushing"
As what could be expected, life hadn't been very good on the two men ever since Azur Lane stopped giving the command attention. SO, they decided to do a ritual which became concerningly common in the past few days.
"Do you want me to get the wine?" Ace offered
"Yeah, I could use some" Rayleigh replied. "After all, a glass of wine goes a long way".
A/N: I rewrote this because my idea for 01 didn't mesh well with the earlier iteration of 00. There's still another character which i want to introduce next chapter, and together they will try to do things i guess. I swear i have a rough plan for the series somewhere.