To Thaw a Lost Heart

by Rei Usagi

After a failed mission, Bismarck had Tirpitz undergo untested surgery which caused her to no longer have a normal life and this result in Tirpitz being locked away. One year later, Tirpitz is forced to be back in action with Victorious and Alabama keeping an eye on her. Unfortunately, Bismarck forces Tirpitz to meet her again as she suspects Iron Blood is hiding something.

8. Taste of Despair

Are you willing to make the choice?

Shortly after Tirpitz is admitted to the emergency room after the failed mission, Bismarck is the first one informed that Tirpitz is in a critical condition that she doesn't have much time to live. Her fate is sealed as Tirpitz remains unconscious, unknowing that her body has reached its limit and is slowly dying.

"Tirpitz..."

Rather than remain in her office, Bismarck sits by the beach by herself and watches as the sun retreats and the sky slowly falls into the night. She stares at the glass cube with metallic frames concealing what appears to be a fragment of a wisdom cube floating inside. Unlike regular wisdom cubes, it's darker and emits cold air on every corner.

"Tirpitz's wisdom cube has been damaged. She won't live for more than twenty four hours"

A feminine figure concealed in an abstract glitch and mixed voice stands right behind Bismarck. It's no Siren, but her presence feels much different than a regular kansen.

"Bismarck, what you have in your hands is the only thing that could save Tirpitz"

The disguised kansen walks to Bismarck's side and gently reaches her fingers towards the transparent cube Bismarck is securely clutching.

"..." Bismarck stares at sealed fragment
"Why do you hesitate? Do you not want to save Tirpitz?"
"I know the risks...but I still sent Tirpitz to that mission. As a result of my decision, Tirpitz is about to die"
"Your guilt hangs on you. I, too, wish to save Tirpitz. That's why I appear before you and no one else"

The kansen takes one gentle step and her foot sinks centimeters below the sand, her weight contrasting with the pressure of her step. She stares into the horizon that welcomes the first hour of nightfall as if she empathizes with Bismarck's guilt.

"This is from a defeated META. There are risks if this is fused with Tirpitz" Bismarck remains hesitant
"Then are you willing to risk death than the only chance of keeping your younger sister alive?" The kansen looks back at Bismarck
"..." Bismarck stares at the cube in her hands
"Bismarck, that core is fit for Tirpitz. It would immediately synchronize with her wisdom cube and give her a new chance in life"
"Something like this is too good to be true. Besides, we tried to touch it and our fingers froze. What's the catch?" Bismarck is immediately suspicious
"Everything must pay a price and you know that very well. Of course, I won't hide the fact that it will certainly take something from Tirpitz"

Bismarck is already suspicious just seeing how the kansen refuses to reveal her true appearance and even voice. All Bismarck could see standing in front of her is humanoid form. She could sense that even with the glitch as her disguise, Bismarck could sense the dreadful gaze of the mixture between resentment and pity.

"If Tirpitz were to lose something-"
"That's a small price to pay compared to her life" The kansen cuts her off
"Tirpitz would survive but she would pay the price...if I decided to go through with it"
"You said it yourself. It's your fault Tirpitz is in this situation" The kansen slightly bends forward

"You sent your sister to her death. She's fighting for her life without knowing it. At this rate, she'll die while you don't do anything"
"You're toying with your words"

Bismarck shakes her head and refuses to quickly succumb to the pressure of someone who keeps herself in a disguise.

"No, I'm telling the truth. If you were to leave Tirpitz be, you're practically her murderer. You didn't do anything when you could have done something. Do you think your pride could live when the fault would lie to you?" The kansen appears to taunt Bismarck
"I dislike deception. I suggest you start being direct and honest before I strike you down" Bismarck takes a deep breath
"Do you think I have time to play these games, Bismarck?"

The kansen lightly stomps her right foot and the sand beneath them is quickly covered in sheets of ice and the cold air reflexively makes Bismarck stand up. The sudden gust of freezing air is enough to send her cap flying behind her.

"That power!" Bismarck prepares a defensive stance
"I don't have time to argue with you, Bismarck. Thinking about your sister made you hesitant and doubted yourself. You care about her, but you keep making mistakes that harm her. Now this is costing her life and you have time to think about it!"

Another stomp sends another wave of cold air that the rocks and sands around her transformed into the snowy ground. The cold begins to stick to Bismarck's skin that her breath is visibly white and her breathing is unsteady.

"There's no other way for Tirpitz to survive this...?" Bismarck takes a deep breath
"No. This is her only second chance in life"
"...Even if she survives this, she won't come out unscathed" Bismarck frowns at the silently contained core
"That's right. Your younger sister might emerge with lifetime damage"
"She either does the way she is or survives by paying a heavy price"

There are only two options for Bismarck, but it's as difficult as having several more options presented to her. In her hand is the only object that could possibly spare her sister's life, but she will have to make the choice for Tirpitz. It's one of the rare moments where Bismarck doubts herself and is clouded by anxiety. That's why the disguised kansen toyed with her doubt and fear.

"Even if Tirpitz ends up bearing a grudge against me, I can't stand here and allow her to die. My younger sister...doesn't deserve this kind of fate. She suffered enough in our past lives..." Bismarck closes her eyes and tightly clutches the glass container
"Then the operation will proceed as planned" The kansen turns her back on Bismarck
"I will have it performed as soon possible. Tirpitz has less than a day to live...and she might not survive to see the sun rise tomorrow"
"Are you prepared to bear the consequences of your actions? At the end of the day, the fault will lie to you - at least in Tirpitz's eyes"
"I'm prepared to be resented and distrusted by my sister. This is what it means to have the will to make the hardest choices"
"...and that makes you the leader of Iron Blood"

Even if the kansen is facing the quiet beach, Bismarck stares with a firm and solid resolve. She removes what doubt she has earlier and embraces the risk of Tirpitz disapproving of her decision.

...

...

Everything remains still and the complete silence in the room echoes the wall clock's ticking. When Bismarck opens her eyes, she finds the view of her desk and the rest of her office remains the same.

"..."

Bismarck squints her eyes and blinks several times to ease the headache of immediately waking up.

"Nngh. I feel asleep while working again..."

Bismarck lowers her gaze and remembers the unfinished documents neatly piled in front of her. The pen rolls on the right side, an inch from falling down to the floor.

"My back hurts again..."

When Bismarck moves her head from resting on her arm and straightens her back, she feels a sudden soreness on her entire back. She lifts both arms in the air and stretches her stiffened muscles and relieves a bit of the fatigue from her constant overwork.

"Back then, why couldn't I remember what that kansen looked like? I could've sworn I saw her face. Otherwise, I wouldn't trust someone like that..."

No matter how much Bismarck concentrates on her memory, the kansen who couldn't even introduce herself remains vague. What Bismarck could only remember is the human appearance clad in an abstract disguise and a voice impossible to distinguish from anyone she knows.

"Was it Neumark?"

The image in her head shifts to the repair ship regularly checks on Tirpitz. While there's doubt on the possibility, Bismarck's thoughts couldn't stop taking the unknown kansen's image as Neumark instead.

"No, Neumark can't possibly be that kansen?" Bismarck shakes her head

It's her knowledge doubting that one of her own sabotaged or tricked her. Mystery remains on whether there's a third party toying with them or not after all.

"My child~"

Friedrich der Grosse casually enters the room without even knocking, mildly jolting a spaced out Bismarck for a moment. Before she could notice, Bismarck straightens her position and sets aside her own doubt and curiosity, returning to the persona she always uses when working.

"You look happy?" Bismarck raises an eyebrow
"That little Victorious is willing to cooperate with us, remember?" Friedrich der Grosse stops right in front of the desk
"You said she wanted to speak with me first. That sounds like she still has her doubts about us"
"It seems that aircraft carrier can be rational. More importantly, the Royal navy might have more information on the META we're trying to track down" Friedrich der Grosse rubs her chin
"What do you mean?"
"Victorious didn't act surprised when I told her a META is after little Tirpitz, and she's well aware the core is from a defeated META"
"The core..."

Bismarck flips one document to another until she stops near the bottom where it's a file where a photo is clipped on the right side. It dates more than a year ago and the first paragraph summarizes about the properties of the core. In that photo, it's already within a container but still emits cold air around it.

"Our initial target is the Arbiter connected to this, but we should be focusing on the elusive META. A sample like that shouldn't be passed around easily seeing how it's fatal upon touch" Bismarck slides the file forward
"Tirpitz managed to withstand the sub-zero temperature, but she's not fully compatible with it. How should I say this? It's like she's rejecting it"
"That's a rather specific guess"
"I always carefully observe my children. Tirpitz always looks like she's still holding back herself even when she has restraints" Friedrich der Grosse looks to the side for a moment
"Tirpitz always did that. She always holds back, her potential is wasted"
"Don't rush your sister. She wants to progress in her own phase. Rushing only leads to rebellious behavior, no"
"Rebelling, huh. Like how she lashed out at me a year ago and covered the base in ice" Bismarck crosses her arms
"Oh, that incident! What really happened?"

Even if Friedrich der Grosse couldn't interfere in the scuffle back then, she remembered how ice and snow cloaked the base. Only Bismarck and Tirpitz remained while everyone else hurriedly evacuated as the ice caused frostbite upon touch.

"She was calm one moment but tried to kill me in the next minute. If you want me to describe it, it was like something possessed her. Like I fought a different person"

Bismarck couldn't properly describe the unusual emotion that stirred in Tirpitz's eyes. While emotions were present, Bismarck rubbed blinked when she briefly saw a silhouette of an unfamiliar person.

"I want to personally ask her since we never spoke to each other after that incident"
"A good relationship requires communication. That's why you two lack, so it's no wonder it turned out this way" Friedrich der Grosse shakes her head

"There's still time to mend your sisterly bond"
"...So, what has Neumark been doing lately? Ever since Tirpitz got locked up, she's usually busy researching the core. Not to mention, she's been suspiciously sneaking off" Bismarck changes the topic
"According to her, the core has potential and its freezing ability shouldn't be active when we first snatched it from the Sirens. It's still uncertain why the core refused anyone to touch it"
"The METAs know the secret, but they're rather elusive and wouldn't reveal anything even if we ask them" Bismarck massages the left side of her head
"Not to mention, some of them are trying to stop us from finding out. I wonder if it would really be troublesome for them if we find out" Friedrich der Grosse curve a thrilled smile

It's tempting Friedrich der Grosse to pursue the METAs who have knowledge and uncover the reason why someone like Hunter META even ambushed them. To her, it's most likely driving her intrigue and a form of payback for the hindrance last time.

"Eugen is still with Mainz and Roon?" Bismarck clears her throat
"The three are still at the Black Sea. Meanwhile, Graf Zeppelin is at the North sea with Scharnhorst and Gneisenau"
"Iron Blood has been preoccupied recently. Like how I'm chasing an unknown META after Tirpitz. This is like a needle in a haystack" Bismarck rests her cheek on her arm
"When will you have a discussion with Victorious?"
"After her current mission at the Southern Atlantic. Hermit appeared again and sealed off a part of the sea before running off who knows where"

Bismarck takes the top file among the stack of papers and slides it towards Friedrich der Grosse. One clipped photo shows several humanoid and ship type Sirens with the Arbiter in the middle of it.

"If Tirpitz doesn't hurt herself this time, then everything will go smoothly. Victorious will cooperate with us and convince Tirpitz to come back to Iron Blood. Though I'm certain Tirpitz would still be on guard against us"
"In your personal opinion, do you believe, Tirpitz could return how she used to be? With that loud aircraft carrier in her life, she mellowed down and became a bit more motivated. Tirpitz used to not care about ambitions and growth"
"Fufufu~ You finally admitted Victorious is the best influence Tirpitz ever had. I'd agree too since little Tirpitz even smiled which made me tear up for the first time" Friedrich der Grosse sighs in relief in the moment she recalls a warm memory
"I want your honest opinion"
"I want to be optimistic and believe there's a way. Even if it's just the faintest emotions, I want little Tirpitz to smile at least"

When speaking sincerely, Friedrich der Grosse becomes soft-spoken and gentle. She sees herself as a mother figure, someone who actively tries to protect her "children" and nation.

"What has Neumark been up to? She worries about Tirpitz a lot, but she's been quiet after her imprisonment" Bismarck remembers someone else
"Although she still does her job as a repair ship, she hasn't given up on her research about the core"
"Still the same as ever..." Bismarck sighs in relief
"Once I nab one of those METAs, I'll make sure to make them talk. Depending on their attitude, I might go a little rough on them"

The situation between the two sisters further motivates Friedrich der Grosse. Despite knowing the META ships are stronger than regular ones, she looks past strength and only focuses on preventing any of them from having the upper hand and escaping.

Mediterranean base...

Victorious cheerfully swings her legs and tilts her head while Tirpitz observes the sparkling carefree and blissful smile. The two are going to be on a mission later and only relaxing now to save up energy for a fight against Sirens lurking in the South Atlantic.

"You look excited" Tirpitz comments
"I'm just really happy under a sunny day" Victorious pokes Tirpitz's cheek
"You're always happy at everything"
"How about you? Still don't feel like smiling" Victorious leans her head close to Tirpitz
"Not a thing. I still...can't feel happiness, sadness, or anger" Tirpitz lightly shakes her head
"Is that so...? It's tough to get back what's forcibly taken from you..."

Victorious drops her shoulders, genuinely disheartened at the lack of progress over the past couple of weeks. It's not that she's hurrying, but she has been hoping even for a fraction of change within Tirpitz.

"You never let yourself despair like this. Even when you do, you always find a reason to smile a minute later. It baffles me how you can be so hopeful everyday"
"What would feeling sorry for myself do? Do you think sulking up all day would solve anything"
"..." Tirpitz averts her gaze
"Besides, I'm happy right now because you're spending time with me. Popsicle or not, Tirpy is still Tirpy" Victorious wraps her arms on Tirpitz's right arm
"You're giving me weird nicknames again"
"What? You want icy blockhead and stubborn popsicle?"
"I'm not an ice cream..." Tirpitz pokes Victorious' forehead

When Tirpitz tries to pull herself away, Victorious quickly pulls her back. It's if her arms are tightly restricting her like a snake with prey in its grasp. Except Victorious is way too honest and clumsy to be a snake.

"Tirpitz, can I sleep in your room again tonight? It's kind of hate recently and being beside you is like free air-conditioning"
"First a refrigerator, now an air-conditioner. Not only you think I'm an ice cream but an appliance as well" Tirpitz shakes her head
"Hehehe, I might as well call you an ice cube dispenser or ice shaver"
"You're lucky I can restrain my body's coldness"

Tirpitz tries to pull her arm away from Victorious' grip, but the aircraft carrier is enjoying the chill Tirpitz emits that she completely locked the battleship in place.

"I won't give up. I'll find a way to cure you and not allow anyone to hurt you"
"Victorious?" Tirpitz notices the seriousness in her tone
"Don't you give up just yet because I'll never forgive myself if I lose you..."
"...Is there something you want to say?"

With Tirpitz's words, Victorious finally loosens her grasp and pulls herself away from Tirpitz's arm.

"I want to say this after the mission is finished, but I can't stop feeling bad about it..." Victorious fidgets with her fingers
"What is it?"
"When I went to Truk, Friedrich der Grosse actually tracked me down which is kind of scary"
"She went after you as soon as I refused to go back to Iron Blood. I should have known..." Tirpitz quickly makes the connection
"Yeah, what you think is right. She wants you and Bismarck to talk, so asked me for help because Iron Blood thinks I'm the only one you would listen to" Victorious nervously reveals
"It's more that I trust you more than anyone. I completely lost faith in Iron Blood, so I'm not prepared to face Bismarck again"
"Friedrich der Grosse believes it's for the best you go back to Iron Blood because someone might try to take your core. If it gets taken, then you might die...and I don't want that to happen!" Victorious clenches her fists and closes her eyes
"If it's for my sake...then do you plan on lying and tricking me?"
"Of course not! I don't want to hurt you in any way. You already felt betrayed, so I don't want to back stab you"
"..."

Victorious flails both arms and couldn't restrain the frustration behind her usual cheerful attitude. This is her reflexive honesty, so Tirpitz doesn't question what she says right now and only listens with the same amount of sincerity.

"I mean, I don't want you to hate me! I hate myself just thinking about it" Victorious angrily shakes her head
"Good grief. You're too honest for your own good" Tirpitz lifts her hand and pats Victorious' head
"Mmm..." Victorious pouts and quietly accepts the comforting head pat
"Since you told me about Iron Blood, I have more reason not to go back there. Bismarck is probably focused on the core since I can't control it"
"M-maybe it's just a misunderstanding if you talk to Bismarck. It's been a year and the last time you saw each other was when you almost killed her"
"Bismarck did save me from death, but I paid the price for her decision. It's what I always think every night"
"Do you still hate her?"
"You've forgotten I lost the ability to distinguish hatred along with my other emotions. All there is to me is the instinct not to meet her and distrust over her selfishness"
(She doesn't trust Bismarck and Iron Blood. There's no way to convince Tirpitz to chat with Bismarck again) Victorious is losing hope
"Emotion is what makes us alive. After being stripped of it, I can't find any motivation to struggle for the future. No hopes, dreams, or even ambitions. It's our emotions that drives us to live..."
"That's why I'll always hold on to you if you stop and feel lost"

Victorious lift Tirpitz's hand, not fearing her touch, and even squeezes her hand between hers. Even with the glove and restraint, Victorious could sense the chill on her palms but it's not cold enough to sting and prickle her skin.

"Promise me you won't let go of my hand" Victorious pulls Tirpitz's hand closer to her chest
"Huh?"
"I don't want to wake up one day to see you gone once I turn around"
"It's not like I'm going to leave without saying anything..."
"Then promise me you won't let go just yet"
"...Alright. I promise I won't give up just yet"

Tirpitz isn't forced to agree, but she's less cautious even when Victorious is grabbing her hand. She's usually distant from others since her touch could freeze others, but her liability of an ability somehow doesn't harm Victorious while she's distracted at the latter's determined gaze.

"That's my Tirpy!" Victorious wraps her arms around Tirpitz without warning
"Cut it out with the nickname..."
"Nope!"
"..."

Since it's impossible to stop Victorious' whims as it would further drive her to keep with the nickname, Tirpitz accepts the new habit silently. She doesn't reject Victorious rubbing her cheek on her chest and squeezing her with a fight embrace.

Near Gough island...

Hunter META stays near the island's coast and double checks her equipped weapons. The small cannon is secured on her back just as the deadly sharp scissors are hanging by her waist.

"All weapons are accounted for, and my rifle is fully loaded"

While the sea remains quiet, Hunter META wants to decrease the chances of a failed hunt. She flips the rifle left and right then she inspects its pieces. The magazine is fully loaded with bullets strong enough to injure a battleship. Since her prey isn't within her range, she avoids cocking her gun. Accidentally pulling the trigger would alarm her target and remove the element of surprise, a hunter's primary advantage.

"They're coming to this island, but Tirpitz is with them too" Repulse META calls out to Hunter META
"I don't see the Ugly Sisters, so I doubt they'll show up" Renown META sighs in relief
"Tirpitz is troublesome since she'd stick close to Victorious" Hunter META clicks her tongue
"Let's go with the old tactic of drawing them away by showing up uninvited" Repulse META excitedly suggested
"The Siren is an obstacle unless we get to them before the Arbiter herself shows up"

As the two battlecruisers approach the already annoyed destroyer, Hunter META rests her rifle on her shoulder while she stares at the horizon.

"To do that, we need to attack them at the same time as the Sirens. This will cause confusion and ruin their formation" Renown META rubs her chin
"Yeah! No one is expecting a META in this sealed field, so we'd take them by surprise" Repulse META supports the idea
"Tirpitz wouldn't be able to slow us down since she can't risk hurting Victorious and everyone else"

Hunter META raises her rifle and gently places it on top of her other hand. Just like the two, she's confident but not relaxed with their chances.

"We can't let Tirpitz stay idle for too long because we don't know how long the core will remain dormant. Our only choice is to take it before Iron Blood can" Hunter META gazes up at the sky
"Wait, so how is targeting Victorious going to help? Wouldn't that tick off the Lone queen of the North?" Repulse META raises her hand
"I'm not going to kill Victorious but to keep Tirpitz on protecting her rather than fighting back"
"I feel bad for using Victorious as a distraction" Repulse META shudders
"This doesn't please me the least, but I have a job to do and make sure we don't have another blizzard left unchecked"
"..." Renown META and Repulse META looks at each other
"It's time go. The battle has begun"

Hunter META wastes no time to idle and immediately sails before the two could look back at her.

"You really are the quiet type just as King George V said" Howe comments on Tirpitz on her right side
"I'm not used to starting conversations" Tirpitz looks at her for a second
"How about your trust issues with Iron Blood? I've been told your opinion towards them is negative, specially towards your sister"
"Did you already know about the incident that lead to my imprisonment?"
"Of course. It made such a ruckus since you attacked your own sister who is also the leader of Iron Blood. Your base turned into a freezing landscape, right?"
"A field of instant death to normal kansens. Luckily for them, their instincts are sharp enough to flee the moment steel and concrete were overwhelmed by ice"

Tirpitz briefly closes her eyes and relives the second ice begins to quickly spread on her surroundings and cover the ground up to the ceiling. Thick white ice transformed the landscape and cold air spread everywhere like an eerie warning.

"It baffled me why you attacked your sister since I don't believe you're the type to just attempt murder" Howe widens her eyes
"What makes you say that?"
"I mean, you're so gentle and passive when around Victorious"
"Not all sisters get along. Bismarck and I have different beliefs. While she pursues might and ideals, I simply wanted to have some peace and quiet" Tirpitz sighs
"Oh..."

Unknown to her, Tirpitz talked about Bismarck without bitterness from their strained relationship. Its one of the times where Tirpitz herself is unsure whether to speak about anyone or anything related to Iron Blood with disdain.

"Howe is here too..." Victorious groans
"Fufufu. I heard King George V is busy, so she asked her only free sister to keep an eye on Tirpitz" Illustrious whispers to her
"Is it because she might endanger others or herself?"
"Both. Tirpitz isn't accustomed to fighting while restraining herself and cooperating with us"
"I can keep her within the line" Victorious pouts
"You're too soft on her, Victorious"
"But..."
"Let the knights handle her. So long as she remains calm, Iron Blood has no ground to take her back" Illustrious reassures her
"I don't want Tirpitz to go back if she doesn't want to"

Victorious stares at Tirpitz who's still occupied answering each of Howe's curious questions.

"Even I am against dictating someone against their will. If they wish to remain, then I would respect that wish. Bismarck should understand that her younger sister isn't keen on Iron Blood's ideals on their pride and strength" Illustrious places her left hand on her chest when she sighs
"Bismarck is strict, but I don't think she's a bad person. I've spoken to her before, and I can tell she just didn't know how to talk to Tirpitz"
"Perhaps you can convince the two to reconcile. It saddens me how two sisters are broke apart by misunderstanding"
"You're right. That's why I'll try to make them talk after this mission"

Victorious lifts both fists and energizes herself with a new goal in mind. A smile runs across her face and appears as if she's on the brink of giggling with excitement.

"On your guard, Victorious! Enemy aircraft on the north!" Illustrious detects them from her fighter aircraft

Anti aircraft shots starts popping in the sky like fireworks as aircraft from Siren Strategists and ship type Sirens swarm the sky in several groups. Aside from Illustrious and Victorious, the aircraft carrier Essex also joins in the interception.

"...?"

A ringing sensation reverberates all over Tirpitz's body acting as some sort of signal. This causes her to turn her head to the left side before immediately snapping back in front of her due to shells flying in a large scale salvo.

"It felt as if someone's coming after me"

Tirpitz shakes her head and ignored her instinct warning her of an unknown and unseen danger. No one is there other than the Sirens, so she doesn't have enough time to process why her chest acted up without warning.

"They really don't want us to unseal the area!" Howe swings her sword
"Tell me about it!" Washington wipes off the dirt on her cheek
"Eek! They're really angry this time" Edinburgh panics dodging torpedoes

The three aircraft carriers are too occupied fending off the torpedo and dive bombers from targeting the vanguard fleet that no one could notice someone is sneaking within their range.

"There's Victorious. She's in the back line and Tirpitz is busy freezing the shells flying at her and Howe" Repulse META whistles as she squints her eyes
"The Mirror Sea won't activate until twenty minutes is up" Renown META clicks her tongue
"Oh, that's just enough time to beat your asses then" Another uninvited guests joins
"...!"

Armor piercing shells rain of them, forcing the two to immediately pull themselves back and immediately go on the defensive faster than they could turn around to look.

"You bastards evaded us long enough" Scharnhorst META cracks her knuckles
"Wha-! How did they know we're here?" Repulse META rubs her eyes in disbelief
"Tch! This isn't the time to deal with you" Renown META lifts her claymore
"Too bad we can't let you get to Tirpitz. We know you two want to extract the core which risks killing her" Gneisenau META moves forward

Rather than targeting the fleet, Renown META and Repulse META are forced to face the other two META battlecruisers who showed up announced. In their own way, both sides are merely crashing the battle but with different motives.

"I don't know why you want that core badly when it came from a dead battleship" Scharnhorst points at the two
"Hmph. You mean...Tirpitz META" Renown META tightens her grip on her sword
"Nothing remained but her core which contained all of her power" Repulse META puts her sword on her shoulder
"It's useless to any of us because the core would try to kill us out of rejection" Scharnhorst META reminds them
"We don't want its power. What we want is to retrieve it without letting anyone using it" Renown META shakes her head
"Besides, we know dead people shouldn't be disturbed. Bismarck shoved it in Tirpitz's wisdom cube to save her"
"You're still going to take it even if it kills her?!" Scharnhorst META grits her teeth
"..."

Renown META and Repulse META fall into silence and simultaneously glances at each other. They're well aware of the possible outcome, but they couldn't justify it as beneficiary for everyone else. Their goal is to simply retrieve it to prevent a possible danger.

"There's no telling how long Tirpitz would behave. Sooner or later, she would bare her fangs at her own allies" Renown META grunts
"Your group is the reason why Tirpitz META died in the first place!"

Scharnhorst META grows angrier with each exchange of words and in the heat of the moment, she opens fire another salvo at the two battlecruisers.

"Hmph!"

Renown META lifts the claymore nearly as tall as her. Heat seeps from the edge of the blade and with a heavy swing above her, the heat mixed with the air spreads into a crescent shaped blazing move. This causes the shells to explode mid air and scatters cloud of black dusts from gunpowder.

"Hey, while you two are busy yapping, one of us got close" Repulse META throws her thumb to the back

"There's no telling if you two would show up or not so we took the precaution of staying behind" Renown META smirks
"Shitbags!" Scharnhorst swings her right arm in the air
"Scharn, you have to go ahead. I'll block these two" Gneisenau META immediately suggests
"That won't be necessary"

As if the two Iron Blood battlecruisers aren't enough of a battle crasher, another one interrupts the moment.

"...?!"

Just as the two immediately turn around after hearing a familiar voice they both detest, aircraft above them make themselves visible to the naked eye. Due to the proximity and the dive bombers already nose diving, Scharnhorst META could only grit her teeth just one second before bombs explode right on top of them.

"..."

Three to four more explosions occur, preventing the "Ugly Sisters" from moving away or countering with their own bombardment. Meanwhile, Renown META and Repulse META relaxes and lowers their claymore, but stares with wariness in their eyes.

"Hmm? What just happened?"

Tirpitz blinks a few times and shakes her head to return her focus in front of her. Everything is unusually quiet due to both Sirens and kansens missing on the battlefield.

"Another fog?" Tirpitz

Not to long ago, Tirpitz already experienced a de ja Vu where she everyone else got isolated because of a sudden change in their surroundings.

"While you're busy shooting like an idiot, I laid out my trap to keep everyone apart. None of you can get out in this tweaked Mirror Sea" The Hermit's voice echoes everywhere

There's no specific direction Tirpitz could track where the Arbiter is, so it's no different from losing the advantage and being cornered. Not to mention, her environment has changed. There are half sunken buildings everywhere that are either damaged by nature or by the fight.

"I hate kansens, but that lazy Fool keeps dumping the tedious work to me!" Hermit complains
"Just show yourself and let's get this over with" Cold air begins to emit from Tirpitz's fingertips
"No can do. I'm just here because I got dragged here, and I don't remember agreeing to more unrelated work"

"This is the only part I agreed. The rest is up to those failures. If it wasn't for Fool pestering me, I wouldn't even agree to work with them"

Right after those words, Hermit's words fades away and everything else falls to silence once more. Not single sound from both Sirens and kansens could be heard all around Tirpitz, so she restrains the cold air on her hands to avoid friendly fire.

"...?"

A gunshot rings in the air. It echoes form a distance north to her, but Tirpitz couldn't see any silhouette of at least the muzzle fire from the gun.

"Kkh!"

Victorious slides a few meters back, touching the shallow wound on her left shoulder. Even as an aircraft carrier, her bombers are useless with little visibility. Not only because of her limited ammo but the fact she couldn't see any of her allies within her range. The worst part is somehow, the open sea is now surrounded with ruins from half sunken buildings.

"Oh, your reaction is rather swift, Victorious" Hunter META compliments while remaining unseen
"Are you a Siren or a kansen? Also, your voice is somehow familiar" Victorious looks left and right
"...That's just your imagination" Hunter META reluctantly denies

Another gunshot is heard in the air. As swift as the bullet pierces the fog concealing everyone, Victorious slide to the right, but the bullet manages to tear the skin on her right leg.

"She's not aiming for vital spots? Is it on purpose to target my limbs?" Victorious notices as bends on one knee
"You're not going to die here, Victorious. A hunter doesn't senselessly kill"

Hunter META, remains concealed by the fog, reloads her rifle. The used bullet falls into the surface water and a fresh bullet take its place.

"Stay still, so I don't want to accidentally shoot your vitals" Hunter META aims again
"Like I'd do that!" Victorious shakes her fist in the air
"You're making this difficult..."

This time, a bullet successfully shoots through her right shoulder in the one moment she's distracted. Victorious covers and presses her wounded shoulder as the reeling pain reflexively causes her to bend on one knee.

"I told you to stay still!"

Hunter META lowers her aim and carefully shoots her right leg. The second sound on her leg is just two inches apart from the first wound not too long ago.

"I'm not some target dummy you can just shoot like nothing!"

When Victorious drags herself to the left side, another bullet swiftly pierces the fog and shot through her right forearm. As much as possible, Hunter META avoids damaging her lungs and heart where it could mortally wound her.

"Aaagh-"

The growing pain from one bullet wound to another causes her to cry in pain but bites her lower lip and forces herself to bear with it. The combination from the stinging and burning pain fastens her heart beat and makes her break into a cold sweat.

"Hmm? The air is growing cold. Don't tell me..." Hunter META lowers her rifle

The cold air is mixed with the fog, so she couldn't detect it until it passed by her skin. Hunter META loads her rifle once again, but her gaze has become sharper and contains the killer intent because of the realization.

"Victorious..."

Tirpitz running to the fog and coursing through the buildings everywhere finally pays off when she stumbles on Victorious. Unfortunately, she couldn't reach in the time, so she finds her holding her bleeding shoulder and kneeling on the ground.

"What happened to you?" Tirpitz rushes to her side
"Some sneaky sniper keeps shooting my arms and legs. I don't know why, but she says she doesn't want to kill me. How sadistic can that be?!" Victorious' legs tremble due to the pain
"Don't push yourself. The wounds aren't serious, but you shouldn't be careless" Tirpitz grabs her arm and slowly raises her up

Blood spills on Victorious right shoulder and leg then blood drops from her fingertips due to the wound on her hand. The bullets indeed miss vital spots, but the several shots is making Victorious dizzy at restless from the pain.

"...!"

Just as Victorious manages to stand up straight, another gunshot rings in the air. This time, it didn't targeted Victorious but Tirpitz instead.

"Tirpitz!"

The bullet manages to hit Tirpitz's left arm when her reflexes moves herself to the side.

"There's no blood-"

Victorious rubs her eyes at the realization the bullet didn't even pierce Tirpitz's skin. Instead, Tirpitz manages to catch it a few centimeters from making contact and covers it in ice upon touch.

"You can shoot Victorious like nothing, but I'm no easy target"
"Hmm, you got a point" Hunter META reloads her rifle
"...?"

Rather than her rifle, Hunter META raises the barrel of her rigging. As she has the only one who has visibility, she squints her eyes and adjusts the angle of her main cannons.

"Try catching shells...for her"

Two rounds of a full salvo booms in the air and those words are enough for Tirpitz to realize the shells are flying towards Victorious not her.

"..."

Without even realizing it, Tirpitz rushes in front of Victorious and uses her own body to shield the wounded aircraft carrier from the explosions. She takes shell after shell as the second barrage is followed by the third and fourth one.

"A destroyer's shell. This is...nothing..." Tirpitz pants
"You're freezing the attacks to lessen the damage?!"

Just touching her shoulder, Victorious immediately pulls away her hand when Tirpitz's body temperature drastically dropped. Upon closer look, ice crawled from her neck to her cheek.

"Don't use your ability. You know you can't fully control it!" Victorious grabs Tirpitz's sleeve
"Just...be quiet and go...before you get hurt even more" Tirpitz has difficulty breathing
"Like I'd do that! I know you're going to die if you keep this up"
"I'm fine...I can still take a few shots"
"You're going to freeze to death before the shells can kill you"

Victorious refuses to leave and begins scolding Tirpitz for being reckless to the point of suicide. As she has yet to control the cold she emits, it possess more danger to her than benefit in battle.

"..."

Two simultaneous salvos pierces the fog again. Even when Tirpitz is having difficulty breathing, she grabs Victorious' left arm and tosses her to the right side. The aircraft carrier rolls a few meters away.

"Stop it already, Tirpitz!"

Just as Victorious tries to stand up, she helplessly watched as Tirpitz take an endless rain of high explosive shells. Freezing the air reduces the explosive power of the shells because the shells are slowly freezing before they could hit Tirpitz. However, this is freezing Tirpitz inside out.

"..."

With intervals per breath, Tirpitz is beginning to experience dizziness and numbness all over her body.

"I told you not to off yourself, remember?!"
"I...won't let you die here..." Tirpitz exhales cold air
"That's nice, but I'm getting tired wasting shells on you"

Smokes rises on the tip of Hunter META's barrels and the steel emits becomes yellow orange from the excessive heat produced per salvo.

"I know this won't easily kill you with his resilient you are, but you've reach your limit...Tirpitz"

Hunter META raises her gun and the tip is aiming right at a significantly weakened Tirpitz. While Tirpitz has enough strength to keep on fighting, she's vulnerable due to her insides being frozen from her condition's recoil on her.

"Go ahead, you frigid revenant. Let's see how much you can protect her"

The relentless hunter slowly pulls the trigger as soon as she's certain her aim is completely steady and there's little wind around her. A single click is all it takes for the bullet to slide out of the barrel and resists piercing through the cold air.

"..."

Tirpitz's reflexes have her briefly ignore her labored breathing and attempts to reach Victorious.

"Don't die yet, Tirpitz" Victorious tells her with a furrowed pained expression

Rather than allow Tirpitz to take the direct hit for her seeing how she's drastically weakened, Victorious rejects it and pushes her away instead. It's the only thing she could say to her with the spur of the moment and reaction without any self-preservation.

"What-" Hunter META nearly drops her rifle

The bullet hits Victorious in the chest rather than her arm due to her unexpectedly pushing Tirpitz away. Hunter META expected for Tirpitz to shield in a split second only for Victorious to foil that attempt. The bullet pierces the one target she reminded herself not to release a fatal shot.

"..."

Tirpitz stands speechless after just a few seconds ago, Victorious stretches both of her arms and pushes the suicidal battleship from taking the bullet for her. It's such an impulsive thought that she couldn't expect it. No sane person would stop anyone from helping, but she couldn't rebuke it as she tried to protect Victorious without thinking.

"..."

She couldn't immediately process the situation since she could only blankly stare at the aircraft carrier lying on her back, motionless and with blood on her chest. Her right hand on top of her abdomen while her left hand is stretched out on the side. Still, Victorious' eyes shut close right before she collapsed to the surface.

"Victorious..."

Tirpitz has no emotions, but she couldn't begin to think what to do next other than slowly approach the motionless Victorious. Even when she calls he out, Victorious remains completely silent and still like the water around them. Tirpitz wants to say her name once more, but she knows that her voice is pointless at this point. There wouldn't be any answer

"Why can't I... understand what's going on...?"

Tirpitz slowly bends on one knee on Victorious side, but the aircraft carrier still wouldn't respond with her words. She isn't moving an inch other than the blood flowing from her chest. The sight is too foreign for her that her emotionless perspective couldn't comprehend why she couldn't react or blacks out once every few seconds.

"My mind...it's going blank. I...can't comprehend this..."

Tirpitz's hands are nearly frozen due to her recklessness earlier, but she still reaches out to the motionless Victorious. Her right hand gently pressed her chest, but her frostbitten hands couldn't sense any pulse from her. The thought her cold hands couldn't sense life stops her thought process for a five seconds.

"You...died right in front of my eyes...but you told me I shouldn't die yet..."

Tirpitz stands back up as soon as she pulls her hands away from the presumedly dead Victorious. She looks at her right hand, seeing only the blood of her friend stain the palm of her gloves. The blood freezes on her hand but somehow preserves it bright red color.

"It's as if...I came to a dead end..."

When those words fade away, Tirpitz relaxes her right hand on her side and gazes at the dark sky. Her gaze is conflicted and no voice would come out. Tirpitz just quietly stands in front of a lifeless Victorious with her eyes stuck staring at the sky.

[Why couldn't you...leave me be...you, who betrayed me?] A voice echoes from within Tirpitz

The temperature around the altered battlefield drastically lowers until the sealed off field created by a Siren is added by a blizzard entrapping the kansens inside. It breaks off the initial barrier as the shredding barrier filled with ice fragments keeps anyone from escaping or interfering.

"...Nnghh..." Victorious forces her eyes to open

"...Tirpitz...?"

Victorious' voice is far too weak for Tirpitz to hear and drown out by the howling wind of ice and snow. She believes it's Tirpitz, but her attire is different than what looked earlier. It's a rather darkened and and rugged clothing worn out and charred from conflict.

"Damn it, damn it, damn it! This wasn't supposed to happen!"

Hunter META realizes the reason behind the sudden blizzard without thinking much about it as it's far too obvious.

"Gghk!"

Surrounded by violent wind made difficult by the snow, a hand appears out of nowhere and tightly grips Hunter META's neck. Its tight grip is close to easily snapping her neck like a twig, but the figure behind the blizzard lifts her off the ground.

"For calling me out again, this battlefield shall be your frozen grave, Hunter" Tirpitz reveals herself
"Agh! It's...you again..."
"I will bury you and everyone else here...with me"

Hunter META could only flail her legs and grab Tirpitz's arm, but her grip is locked just as her fate is sealed. The hunting ground set up earlier is transformed into a hail of ice and snow where a frigid revenant has been unintentionally called out.

[Location: 20km from Gough island]
[Weather: Blizzard on the South Atlantic]

...

...

[Wavelength: Drastic Increase]
[Override Dominance: 70%]
[Base Host: Inactive]
[Estimated Resistance: 5%]
[Metamorphosis: Successfully...Revived]

This snowstorm means someone woke her up. I have to stop her again...