Chapter 13: Unyielding Chaos

Like I mentioned at the end of the last chapter, this chapter and most likely the next one(s) are going to be a bit darker. That said:

Warning!: This chapter contains minor graphic violence and suggestive themes.

One last side note: Thanks again so, so much for all of the favs, follows, and overall support! I hope y'all enjoy this chapter and the many more to come! :D


"Don't let yourself be blinded by fear or anger. Everything is only as it is." – Nui, Mushishi


"Commander, the entire clearing has been swept and nothing related to the Sirens has shown."

"I see….thanks Wales." Shikikan replied before turning to face his latest additions. "Akagi, Kaga, by any chance, did either of you see or hear any strange lights or noises before waking up?"

Looking at each briefly before answering, Kaga replied. "Ee, that might have been us."

Hearing this, Shikikan tilted his head with a quizzical look on his face. "What do you mean?"

"Every so often, Kaga and I would find each other in that void. We were able to speak freely with each other, but only briefly before seeing and hearing nothing once more." Akagi explained with a sad smile before walking up towards Shikikan and grasping both of his hands with her own. "But thanks to you, we are freed from such a tragic fate! Hontōni,arigatōgozaimashita, Shikikan-sama." She thanked him as she brightened up and smiled sweetly at him.

"I didn't really think too much when I was reaching out to touch the wisdom cubes, but I'm glad I did." He admitted. "I'm not sure if this is right thing to say, but welcome back Akagi. Kaga." He smiled warmly at the two fox beauties.

[Affinity up! x2]

"Shikikan-samaaaa! Akagi sung as she wrapped both her arms around his left with hearts practically bubbling out of her head as her tails wagged happily.

"You're a strange one Shikikan…" Kaga replied albeit with a ghost of a blush as she unexplainably couldn't seem to look him in the eye for the moment.

"Well now that the mystery of the lights and noises is solved (?), let's head on back to base and report our findings." Shikikan suggested.

"Yes sir!" Everyone said as they all began their journey back.

"Allow me to escort you back to your ship, Shikikan-sama!" Akagi tugged on his arm.

"T-thanks Akagi, but I think I'll be fine…"

"I insist Shikikan-sama! You did just faint, so please allow Akagi to assist you!" She smiled sweetly before leaning in and whispering into his ear. "Unless….you had, perhaps, hoped to do this with someone else? Surely that wouldn't be the case…. right Shikikan-sama?" She asked in a rather terrifying tone, sending chills done his spine as he vigorously shook his head no.

"I'm so happy Shikikan-sama understands Akagi has only the most loving of intentions! Now then let us go!" She cheered as she began dragging him back through the clearing Takao had made earlier.

"I see Akagi's still the same as ever." Eugen remarked.

"Iie, her bootl-, ahem, Akagi nee-sama's overbearing tendencies seem to be in overdrive when with Shikikan." Kaga replied.

"Ho? Is that jealousy? Need someone to lean on?" Eugen smirked.

"Tsk….I should have figured you'd be no different since then either." Kaga sighed.

"So cruel! And here I thought we could finally be friends instead of just pretending like we were back then." Eugen said as she pretended to shed a tear.

"As much of the actress as ever I see…" Kaga sighed once more as she pinched the bridge of her nose before following after Akagi and Shikikan with Eugen happily tagging along.

The rest of the girls, all except for two who remained behind for a minute, started their trek back.

"…What do you think Enterprise?" Wales asked.

"…I'm not too sure, they don't seem like they want to harm Commander, but just in case, let's keep a close eye out on them for the time being."

"Better safe than sorry huh?" Hornet said with her arms behind her head.

"Agreed." Wales nodded before the two of them set off.

[With Shikikan]

'Did someone get annoyed and start cutting down trees on their way to that meadow?' Shikikan questioned as he was having an easier time walking through the forest. "Hey Akagi, can I ask you some questions?" He asked, taking advantage of the opportunity.

"Hai Shikikan-sama?" Akagi asked with a happy smile as her arms were entwined with his as they walked arm in arm. Knowing he had no choice but to accept, he gratefully enjoyed the soft sensation, but he still had some questions for the kitsune.

"How did you and Kaga end up on this island in the first place?"

Taking a moment to think, Akagi replied. "I don't know the exact details and I don't think Kaga would either, but after we were…defeated in the war…., both of us just found ourselves surrounded in that darkness." A melancholic smile shown on her face.

Now feeling bad for souring her mood, he apologized. "Sorry for bringing up the past, Akagi, I should've been more consider-"

He was shushed when Akagi brought a single finger up to his lips.

"No need for apologies, Shikikan-sama, Akagi is just happy to have reawakened with Kaga by my side and to have met the one I'm fated to be with." She cuddled up against his arm, squeezing it more deeply into her heavenly soft valley.

Blushing heavily from the wonderful feeling, he took a deep breath to calm his nerves. "S-so, um, Kaga is your sister, right?"

"Hai, while not related by blood, we've been with each other since practically the very beginning, back when times were simpler and Amagi nee-sama was…." Akagi trailed off as she looked off blankly into the distance in front of them.

"Amagi..?" He questioned aloud. 'Another sister perhaps? I wonder what she looks like…'

Noticing she was zoned out, she quickly tried to change to subject. "Never mind that Shikikan-sama, I was just mumbling to myself aloud, but enough about me, tell Akagi all about yourself!" She smiled.

'…Seems like this 'Amagi' is a sensitive topic for her, so I should leave it at that…for now at least.' He concluded before returning her smile. "Sure, what do you want to know?"

"Hmm….what did Shikikan-sama do before joining the navy?"

'I should've seen that coming….' He smiled somberly. "Sorry Akagi, my memories from then are pretty bleak."

Hearing this, Akagi abruptly stopped walking and stared straight into his eyes.

"Akagi?" A confused Shikikan asked.

"Hmm…you don't seem to be lying…did something happen to cause you to lose your memories?" Akagi guessed spot on.

"To put it shortly, yeah…it's kind of a long story so let's get back on my ship first and I'll tell you on our way back to the base."

Akagi seemed to have wanted to know now, but she decided to respect his wishes. "…As you wish, Shikikan-sama."

"Thanks, Akagi." He smiled gratefully before a thought popped into his head. "By the way, not that I'm not glad that you trust me or anything, but what convinced you that I wasn't lying?"

"Oh, Shikikan-sama," She giggled as her tails began to curl around him. "Akagi loves you so, so you can never hide anything from me. Your eyes are also so honest and clear of any ill will." She proclaimed while a tail brushed gently against his face. "It was, without a doubt, love at first sight."

Hearing her sudden, bold confession, he blushed profusely as his mind shut down. Not knowing how to respond, he shyly looked away.

"Ara," She grinned, "It seems that it's not just Shikikan-sama's eyes that are honest, O kawaii koto~ " She teased as more of her tails began to curl around him.

'This soft fluffiness is out of the world…' He blushed as he was about to stroke one of her tails that draped over his shoulder.

"Sorry for interrupting Commander, but It looks like we are about to arrive on the shore." Enterprise pointed out as she had appeared behind him and the kitsune.

"Tsk… could you have interrupted us at a worser time?" Akagi scowled. "Shikikan-sama was just about to enrapture himself in my loving embrace."

"I'm sorry?" Enterprise half questioned, half apologized before turning to face Shikikan. "Do you need Main Fleet 1 to write a battle report, Commander?"

"Nope, I was able to have a good view of both fleets from where I was, so my personal report should suffice when I report back to Victo-Vice Admiral Victoria. I'll have Hornet and Eugen replace you and Belfast for scouting duty, so go ahead and take a rest until we get back to base."

"But I'm fine to continue scouting though." Enterprise complained.

"I know, but Vestal and Belfast have been telling me about how you haven't been resting properly?"

"…" Enterprise shyly looked away at the mention of her guardian and friend.

'Aw, cute…' Shikikan chuckled. "I trust that you know yourself best, but for the sake of them, the fleet, and myself, please do take care of yourself more. It would be a shame if you got hurt because you were overly tired and end up worrying everyone."

"Yeah, you're probably right…" Enterprise wavered.

"Plus, it would save you from a potential scolding from Vestal." He joked.

"Heh, you're definitely right about that." She giggled. "Thanks for looking out for me, Commander."

"Anytime." He smiled back.

"…You two seem to be having quite a bit of fun…." Akagi commented, releasing a not so pleasant aura as her tails were snaking around Shikikan and her grip on his arm tightened.

"Um…Akagi….is everything alright?" Shikikan hesitantly asked.

"It was….until a certain pest showed up…." Akagi grumbled.

"Akagi…we're on the same side now, can't we at least try to get along?" Enterprise sighed.

"You seem to be mistaking Shikikan-sama's side for the same side, Grey Ghost." Akagi scowled as she released her grip to stand before Enterprise. "I won't tolerate you trying to steal Shikikan-sama."

"I'm not trying to steal anyone away, Akagi. Are you still that hung up over your defeat?" Enterprise retorted as she held her ground.

"Why you..!" Akagi flared as her eyes screamed bloody murder.

'Maybe I should've asked Victoria more about the previous war...' Shikikan thought as he felt out of the loop as tension rose between the two carriers. 'I'd prefer not having to sound harsh with the girls, but I don't think being soft here will do any good, especially in the long run.' He took a deep breath before deciding to quickly put out the fire.

"Okay, okay, let's stop with the hostilities. I don't know exactly what happened between you two, but right now we are all on the same team and need to work together if we want to stand a chance against….them." He stepped in between the two. "I don't expect you two to magically become friends, but at least stay professional while out on a mission, otherwise, I won't be convinced that either of you are mature enough for any future ones."

That seemed to have done the trick as both stopped glaring at each other to stare at him in shock.

"Enterprise, you had me in the first half to be honest, but the way you worded that second part was bad. And Akagi, I understand that it's hard to believe that your enemy back then is now your ally, but it just goes to show how dire the situation is right now, so please try not to stir up trouble."

"Understood…" They both lamented before continuing to walk back with as much distance between them as the path Takao made would allow.

"Maybe that was a bit too harsh…" Shikikan thought aloud as he continued walking, feeling kind of bad seeing how dejected the two seemed.

"Fret not, Shikikan." A voice revealing to be Kaga replied as she walked up next to him. "Nee-sama is not one to be done in by mere words."

"Thanks, Kaga." He smiled weakly.

"To be honest, I'm rather impressed with how you willingly stepped in and actually managed to stop them."

"I kinda surprised myself too, but I get how Akagi's either seemingly unconvinced or plainly disappointed about being allies with Enterprise. I guess it's just something they'll either have to work on themselves or something I'll need to help them with later on."

"My opinion on you has improved quite a bit, Shikikan. Your intuition is sharp, and your judgements are sound." Kaga complimented.

"Did I come off as that unreliable?" Shikikan laughed awkwardly.

"Hehe, perhaps. Seeing you collapsed on the ground sound asleep wasn't what I'd expect from a commanding officer, let alone as a good first impression." Kaga chuckled.

'She's got a point…but why did I faint when I touched their cubes specifically? The other cubes didn't sap all of my energy, so why did theirs?' He pondered. 'I'll have to visit Akashi or Yuubari later to find some answers.'

"Shikikan, if you keep looking at me like that, you'll be eaten up."

Snapped out of his thoughts, he found himself staring intently at a smirking Kaga. "S-sorry about that, I was just thinking about some things." He blushed. "By the way, how do you feel about all of this?"

"Me? Let's see…" She hummed as she put her hand on her chin in a thinking pose. "I'm somewhat like-minded as Nee-sama, but I see this more of as an opportunity to test my strength against the strongest members of the other factions." She replied with a rather wild and excited grin.

"Just to be clear, you meant in exercises and training, and not in friendly fire…right?" He sweat-dropped as he stopped walking.

Instead of replying, Kaga opted to just smirking slyly at him before walking on ahead.

'I should probably keep an eye on her and Akagi for the time being…'

"You've got your work cut out for you, Commander." Wales spoke as she appeared on his right side. "But from what I've seen, I'm convinced you're more than capable."

"Thanks Wales. Want to walk the rest of the way back with me?"

"I accept, but I'll have to teach you later how to properly request something of a lady for next time." She chuckled as the two continued walking and chatting away until they finally arrived where the others were waiting, and tensions were rising once more.

"Wow! Well if it isn't Akagi-senpai and Kaga-senpai! I'm so glad to see that you've decided to grace us with your presence! I hope your beauty sleep was prosperous and pleasant!" Shoukaku said with a fake smile and a mocking tone.

"Ara, Shoukaku, I'm so glad to see you are still alive and well. Have you become a viable asset to the Sakura Empire yet? I sure do hope the 5th carrier division hasn't continued being utterly disgraceful since Kaga and I left!" Akagi smirked with a condescending tone.

"Not at all, Akagi-senpai! While the 1st carrier division was enjoying their slumber, Zuikaku and I had to man the fort, so it's safe to say we've grown and gotten much stronger, perhaps to even where the 5th carrier division outperforms the 1st!" Shoukaku boldly taunted.

"Ho, so you're saying that the 5th carrier division has finally amounted to something? I would love to see how well that holds true." Kaga stepped in and challenged.

"Seniors and juniors….they're all such a pain…" Zuikaku sighed as she too stepped in.

"….Guess I'll put out the fire. It was fun chatting with you Wales." Shikikan sighed as he walked over to the four arguing carriers.

"You sure do have it rough, Commander." Wales smiled sympathetically as she saw him off.

"Should we go help him?" Hornet asked Enterprise and Belfast as they saw Shikikan walking over to the commotion.

"Judging from Master's expression, I would assume he has a plan, but just in case…" Belfast replied as she remained on standby, ready to step in at a moment's notice and Enterprise following suit.

"Hey Zuikaku!" Shikikan called out as he stepped over to the two arguing carrier divisions.

"Shikikan? What's up?" Zuikaku asked, surprised to hear he called for her specifically.

"Instead of a tempura dinner, how about a tempura lunch instead? I noticed that my ship's kitchen is pretty well stocked for lunch and, if I'm being honest, I'm kinda craving some myself right now." He chuckled as he shyly rubbed the back of his head. "Instead of arguing, how about an early lunch as we make our way back to base?"

"Oh! Really!?" A hungry-eyed Zuikaku asked excitedly.

"Shikikan, you cook?" A doubtful eyed Kaga questioned.

"Hai, Shikikan's cooking is on par with that of what you'd expect from an acclaimed chef if not better." Shoukaku answered.

"That's a bit of a stretch…" Shikikan sweat dropped.

"…."

"Nee-sama…?" Kaga questioned when Akagi was eerily quiet and had a shocked look on her face.

Seeing this as an opportunity, Shoukaku acted. "Hmm? Akagi-senpai? Are you perhaps jealous that Zuikaku and I have received the honor of having Shikikan's cooking not once, not twice, but numerous times now while you've had none?"

"W-what!? W-why you obscene pheasant!" Akagi hissed as her tails flared up, but she was quickly brought to a halt as Shikikan boldly put a hand on her head.

"Now, now you two." He said as he put his other hand on Shoukaku's head." You two can fight each other later in a carrier training exercise, but for now, please play nice and save your energy in case of any enemy ambushes."

"Fine…" Shoukaku pouted as she let Shikikan continue to pat her head, a feeling she wasn't used to, but not something she would be against from time to time.

"Ahh…Shikikan-samaaaa….~" Akagi moaned as she openly enjoyed his touch, her tails wagging vigorously and her ears twirling about in delight.

'He….He actually managed to stop them….' Everyone thought as they watched on from afar.

"Shikikan-samaaaaa, she might not show it, but Kaga would enjoy this just as much as I do~" Akagi sung as she pulled Kaga closer to them.

Looking up at Shikikan, Kaga blushed. "N-no, I'm f-fine."

'Tsundere? No..kuudere maybe?' Shikikan thought as he moved his other hand away from Shoukaku to pat Kaga's head.

"!….You really are a strange one, Shikikan." Kaga spoke as she looked away, hiding what she thought and felt was a rising and heavy blush.

Over by the sidelines…

"It's like watching someone train their new pets…" Hornet commented aloud, earning a stifled laugh from everyone except for Shoukaku, Akagi, and Kaga. Giving her rather peeved glances, much to her dismay, Hornet stepped behind a confused Enterprise.

"Well? What are we waiting for then!? Let's go!" Zuikaku asked excitedly when he stopped patting the two fox beauties. Grabbing his hand, she rushed towards the cruiser's kitchen with him in tow.

"Shikikan-samaaa~, Akagi will help ~."Akagi announced as she quickly followed after them.

"…The humility aside, I'm surprised Akagi nee-sama isn't more upset that Shikikan was taken from her." Kaga commented.

"Is it because she doesn't see Zuikaku as a threat to her?" Shoukaku questioned before she found herself and Kaga talking a bit more amicably in that they were not at each other's throats this time.

'So they can get along…' Shikikan thought when he glanced back with a relieved smile.

"Wait…." Zuikaku said as she quickly brought herself, and in turn Shikikan, to a screeching halt.

"Hm? Something wrong?" He asked.

"I just lost contact with one of my scout planes…" Zuikaku admitted before looking around with a rather serious expression.

"Eh!? Commander!" Helena cried out loud as she caught his and everyone else's attention. "A massive fleet of mass-produced Siren ships has just appeared from our south and are headed here now!".

His smile completely gone and replaced with an unexplainable bad feeling swelling up inside of him, Shikikan took a deep breath and donned a serious expression.

"How long do we have until contact, Helena?" He asked.

"I'd say a little under twenty minutes, Commander. What shall we do?" Helena asked, worried for many different reasons.

"Enterprise! Shoukaku!" He called out to his fleet flagships.

"Sir!/ Hai!" They replied as they rushed towards him with everyone else forming a circle around him.

"How are we all doing on ammo?"

"Fleet 1's used about 20% of our total stock." Enterprise informed. "More than enough to deal with the new enemies in my opinion."

"Same goes for Fleet 2, Shikikan." Shoukaku added.

'Alright, so we don't need to make a break for it…It probably would be best to rid this part of the ocean of that fleet while we can.' He concluded as he brainstormed for a few seconds before making his decision.

"Both fleets prepare for interception! Get into positions on the double!"

"Yes sir!" They all said in various variations before summoning their rigging and rushing towards the ocean.

As he too got back on his speedboat and steered off towards his ship, Akagi and Kaga appeared on his left and right respectively as they skated alongside him.

"What of us Shikikan? Shall we join the fray as well?" Kaga asked.

"Not yet. For now, come back with me and remain on standby on my ship until either fleet is looking worse for wear. Not that I doubt your combat potentials, but I've yet to see your synergies with everyone let alone have a look at the gear you have on."

"Understood." They both nodded before the three of them made their way inside towards the commander center.

"Everyone's in position, Master." Belfast informed via radio.

"Thank you, Belfast." He replied as he picked up his radio. "Anyone have any visuals?"

"N-Wait, my planes are spotting movement in the southeast and southwest!" Zuikaku informed.

"SG's picking up two large mass-produced fleets merging into one massive one, Commander! About 20 carriers and 30 battleships escorted by about six dozen cruisers coming in fast!" Helena added.

'Tsk, is there normally this many patrolling random parts of the sea or is this all premeditated?' Shikikan frowned as he felt his nerves rile up as he couldn't help but get a familiar bad feeling about all this. Shaking himself back to reality he gave his orders.

"If they are fusing together, then that plays in our favor. Fleet 1 go around and flank them from the southeast, while Fleet 2 flanks the southwest. Both main fleets, prioritize their carriers' flight decks and their battleships' main cannons. We're overwhelmingly outnumbered so prevent their backline from launching anything ASAP. From there, work with the vanguard fleets and sink their cruisers before moving on their main fleet. Remember that you're not 100% fully loaded so be wary of your ammo and don't go for kills you can't get in a guaranteed one shot!"

"Yes sir!" They all quickly followed his orders and went off.

"Change of plans, Akagi, Kaga." He turned to face the two fox beauties.

"What shall you have us do, Shikikan-sama?"

"From here, launch your planes and have them attack that fleet from the front. That'll serve as a distraction while the others get into position. Once both fleets launch their attacks, push in until everyone meets in the center of their fleet."

"Alright, but what about you Shikikan? Won't you be defenseless if a plane sneaks in or a cruiser gets a lucky shot on you?" Asked Kaga.

"From this distance, the Manjuus manning the AA gun and steering the ship should be able to react fast enough as long as we keep a sharp eye out. Plus, I trust you and Akagi." He smiled.

"Shikikan-sama! Akagi won't disappoint!" She proclaimed before quickly heading out.

"And no friendly fire!" He called out, barely managing to hear a 'tsk' from Akagi before no longer being able to hear her.

"The 1st carrier division shall not disappoint. Look forward to our victory and their entire fleet slaughtered." Kaga grinned, giving off a thirst for blood vibe before following after Akagi.

'Maybe she and Akagi aren't so different after all.' He joked nervously before turning towards the monitors. 'From this distance I should be able to oversee everything, but just in make sure…' He thought before radioing his Manjuu crew. "Keep an eye out for any stragglers heading our way and load up the cannon just in case.'

Chirp!

"Now, here's to hoping this is all just a highly unfortunate coincidence and not part of something bigger…" He gulped out loud.

[Minutes into the battle with Akagi and Kaga]

"My love is invincible! Ahaha... ahahaha!" Akagi laughed as she launched multiple dive and torpedo bombers, quickly destroying five cruisers.

"Only the strong may survive on the battlefield!" Kaga followed up with her own bombers and blew up an additional five cruisers. "Their numbers are many, but they lack any laudable strength."

"Ey, what do you say we move onwards towards their backline, Kaga? It's been so long since we've last indulged ourselves in any action." Akagi smirked.

"My thoughts exactly." Kaga grinned before the two advanced forth, their bloodlust seemingly radiating murderous and excited intent.

On the southeastern front, Fleet 1 led by Enterprise quickly subdued the carriers and shot down the few planes already in the air before advancing forth and destroying the enemy battleships' turrets. The vanguard fleet led by Belfast swiftly danced around and sunk the cruisers around them before blasting through the battleships' hulls, sinking them as well.

"This is going surprisingly well!" Hornet grinned as she managed to sink two more battleships.

"It seems like Commander had Akagi and Kaga attack from the front, making this now a three-pronged assault. No wonder their chain of command is in disarray, they have no idea which front to prioritize." Enterprise praised as she bombed and sunk four disabled carriers.

"This must be how Javelin and her friends felt when they fought us. Commander's strategies are thoroughly remarkable." Wales added before blasting away at three defenseless battleships.

"They're thinning out, let's move in!" Enterprise ordered as Main fleet 1 blasted their way through.

On the opposite side (the southwestern front), Fleet 2 had completely wiped out the enemy carriers and were now focused on disabling the enemy battleships while the vanguard slices and blasts through the cruisers in their way.

"Herr Kommandant sure does know how to turn the tides. I can't tell if I should be glad or disappointed though. I'm almost bored just sinking these pitiful eyesores." Eugen yawned as her rigging chomped through cruiser after cruiser as her shields stopped any shots dead in its tracks.

"As much I disapprove your lackadaisical attitude, I will admit this is far easier than I expected." Takao replied as she easily sliced through a whole cruiser sending it deep into the ocean.

"Shoukaku and Zuikaku seem to have finished up disabling their carriers, so let's hurry and meet up with Fleet 1 in the center. Onee-san misses the sensation of having Shikikan in her arms." Atago giggled as she sunk four cruisers with a flurry of torpedoes.

About fifteen minutes later, both fleets and the 1st carrier division all met up in the center, where albeit one heavily damaged battleship on its last legs remained.

"Just one more ship to go then." Sheffield said before dealing the finishing blow and sinking said battleship.

"And that's that!" Hornet cheered as she stretched her arms out.

"Not the most exhilarating fight, but I guess it counts as a workout." Eugen joined in.

"Good work everyone!" Shikikan complimented from behind as his cruiser was sailing up with him standing on the bow. "Now le-wait…EVERYONE BEHIND YOU! GET OUT!" Shikikan yelled via radio as he managed to see something flying at the group. "Manjuus! Hard to port NOW!" He yelled his orders at the Manjuu as they quickly obeyed and turned the ship as far left as they could.

Turning around, they noticed a giant bright beam heading straight for them! Jumping out of the way, the beam continued to roar forth past the girls and Shikikan's ship, releasing a huge cloud of smoke and a deafening explosion as it made contact with the island they were just on. Once the smoke disappeared, everyone went wide-eye as the island was divided in half as the beam had seemingly annihilated everything in the center of the island.

'What the hell was that?' Shikikan asked as he hung onto the bow railing and stared in shock before turning to face where the beam came from. When he saw the source, he felt his heart stop, his mind shut down, and an unexplainable mixture of feelings boiling inside of him. His knuckles turned white as his grip on the railing kept tightening and as he found it increasingly difficult to breath properly.

"Awww, I missed! How lame." A voice whined.

As everyone else turned to face where the voice came from, they all immediately recognized who it was.

"Heyoooo! Guess this isn't all that bad since I get to have more fun now! Did ya miss me?" The voice laughed.

"Purifier….." Enterprise scowled at the revealed Siren, infamous for her extremely violent and borderline psychotic tendencies.

"Ah! If it isn't the hero of the Eagle Union!" Purifier taunted as she had a rather unsettling grin and glowing yellow eyes. "You especially have been causing us a lot of trouble, so here's my chance to get rid of you!"

Hearing this, everyone tensed up even more, ready at the drop of a hat to blast Purifier sky high.

"…Is what I would say buttttttttttt….." Purifier trailed off as her eyes wandered past them towards a lone cruiser in the near distance. "I'm here on some rather important business, you know? Our favorite lab rat decided to escape a few weeks ago, you see…." She paused once more as her unsettling grin widened ever so creepily. "And that lab rat is that human right there!" She pointed directly at Shikikan, who was motionless and did not seem to meet her gaze.

"What did you just say?" Akagi asked in a very low tone.

"Oh? Didn't you know?" Purifier asked as she turned to face the two kitsune. "Well, I guess I can't blame ya since you both just awakened."

"….Know what?" Kaga calmly asked, albeit with multiple paper plane talismans ready to be thrown at a moment's notice in her hand.

Grinning ever so distastefully, Purifier spoke. "That your new 'Shikikan' over there was originally just a captured human turned lab rat for all of our fun experiments and tests!" She laughed as she faced Shikikan once more. "Isn't that right, Anomaly?"

Hearing the code name they forced onto him, Shikikan's mind began to flash back to everything that happened on the worst day of his life. The pained, agonizing screams of the people there back then deafened his ears. The sights of all the burnt, crushed, and bloodied bodies and the endless fires engulfing everything on that island blinded his eyes. And worst of all, the violent rush of fury, fear, and pure hatred engulfed his mind to the point where he felt his legs give way.

"Master!" Belfast and Sheffield cried out when they saw that Shikikan had dropped to his knees, one hand clutching onto the side of the railing hard and the other cradling his head, seemingly trying to calm the chaos in his head.

"Oh no you don't!" Purifier yelled as she stopped them in their tracks with two small lasers erupting the waters before them. "That lab rat over there owes me! It's because of you running away that Empress decided to put me through a wringer!" She spat venomously before her psychotic smile returned. "If you thought the experiments we put you through were bad, wait 'til I get my hands on you! I've always been curious as to what you human's melting point is ahahaha!" She laughed sadistically.

"But…..tell you all what…." Purifier smirked as she gazed back at the kansen before her. "You see, I wanna hurry and pay him back for all of trouble he put me though. So…, bring that lab rat over to me and I'll let you all live! Not a bad deal right!?"

Upon hearing this, a deafening silence swept over the area as shadows casted over the kansens' eyes. The tension in the air was suffocating as they all felt their anger beginning to boil over.

"Well?" Purifier hurriedly asked.

The first to reply was none other than Akagi.

"So, if I understand this correctly, you kidnapped Shikikan-sama, tortured him relentlessly for years on end, and are now asking for us to sacrifice him? She didn't look Purifier in the eyes, but her tone was utterly terrifying as her tails were seemingly beginning to flare up.

"Pretty much, so what do you say?" Purifier grinned as she leaned in, eagerly waiting for an answer.

"What do I say? Well let's see…" Akagi started before her tails and rigging ignited into hellish flames as she looked at the Siren with nightmarishly dark eyes. "Sink to the bottom of the sea you insufferable insect!" She yelled as she threw five red paper plane talismans at the Siren.

"Ahaha! How'd I know you w—!" Purifier laughed as she simply stepped to the side to avoid the planes, but was brought to a halt as she turned her head back to face Akagi, who had quickly closed the distance between them and had slammed a very heavy roundhouse kick to Purifier's face, sending her flying along the ocean surface a good fifty meters away.

"Kaga! Hurry and help me clean up this filth! I can't stand to see Shikikan-sama suffering all alone over there!" Akagi yelled before dashing right after Purifier.

"Hai!" Kaga quickly followed, her intent to kill more than apparent.

"Tsk…and here I was about to torment her and burn the evidence…" Atago muttered darkly as she sheathed her blade. "Takao-chan, please check on Shikikan. Onee-san needs to go help clean." She requested before dashing to where Purifier landed.

"Belfast, as a Royal Maid, I shall oversee that the cleaning is done properly." Sheffield announced as she was about to follow after them.

"Wait, Sheffy. I understand how you feel, believe me, but prioritizing Master's well-being comes first." Belfast said with a gentle hand on Sheffield's shoulder. Doing her best to not show her anger on her face, Sheffield disgruntledly complied.

"As much as I want to feed Purifier to my rigging, she's right about Herr Kommandant. Some of us should go and check on him while the rest of us help scrap Purifier." Eugen suggested, her sense of humor gone for the time being.

"Agreed." Everyone said in unison.

"Then let's-" Eugen was about to continue before a voice interrupted via radio.

"…I'm f-fine…go help get rid of…..Purifier." The voice revealing himself to be Shikikan, seemingly out of breath.

"You say that but…." Hornet trailed off as she looked over to see Shikikan still kneeling on the bow of the ship, one hand clutching the radio and the other still cradling his head.

"I-it's nothing…just some unpleasant flashbacks." He replied as he stopped clutching his head to grab onto the railing, using it as a support to help him get back to his feet.

Taking a few deep breaths, he managed to steady himself. "As much as I'd hate to admit it, it's going to take a combined effort from everyone if we want to take her down. Like the other Sirens, she's overly confident in herself, but I'm convinced that she didn't come alone. Stand clear of her main laser cannon and go for her rigging first. I'll do what I can to monitor the area just in case any other Sirens decide to appear, so just focus on Purifier for the time being."

"Alright,…but Commander, at least let Helena help you monitor the area then. Sorry for this, but I'm worried your current state of mind might affect your commanding abilities." Enterprise reasoned.

"I agree with Enterprise, Commander, let me and my SG radar help you." Helena added.

"…Alright, come back to my ship, and let's work together, Helena." He tried to smile but couldn't seem to do it.

"Stay safe everyone." Helena nodded before dashing off. "I'll be right there Commander!"

"Shikikan, forgive me for this, but it be wiser to err on the side of caution. Please allow me to act as your guard."

"No, that won't be—" He tried to say.

"Necessary? Of course, it is Shikikan! Whether or not she meant it, she still offered to let us go if we turned you in!" Shoukaku argued.

"I agree with her Herr Kommandant. Knowing Purifier, she wouldn't opt to let us kansen, the ones able to fight them head on, go so easily in favor of just one human. You're definitely of significant value to them Herr Kommandant." Eugen reasoned.

"That all being said, Master, please take yourself into consideration more. I believe I speak for everyone when I say this but losing such a capable commander such as yourself would be far too heavy of a blow for not only us, but for everyone fighting this war against the Sirens." Belfast added to which everyone nodded in agreement.

'Dammit, am I really that helpless in all of this?' Shikikan frowned as he was being forced to accept the reality of his situation.

'Is this what those princesses from fairytales and those shoujo manga felt like?' He sighed heavily. "Alright fine. Takao, please come to me." He relented as he gave in to the girls' rationale.

"A wise choice. I shan't let you down nor let any harm come upon you, Shikikan!" Takao declared.

"Thanks for listening to us Commander. We'll be back soon." Enterprise smiled, trying to comfort him before skating off with everyone.

"Stay safe Takao." Zuikaku requested as she was the last to leave.

"I should be the one saying that Zuikaku. But regardless, I shall." Takao smiled warmly as she gave Zuikaku a pat on the shoulder before turning her around and sending her off.

On the bow of the ship, Shikikan's gaze laid upon Akagi and Kaga tag teaming a downed Purifier, with Atago coming in hot and the others on their way.

'Subject has lost consciousness. Human electric tolerance and improvement test will now be put on hold.'

'…' Shikikan winced as his mind was currently being overrun by flashback upon flashback.

'I'm curious to see how heightened your sensitivity will be thanks to this next injection. If my calculations are correct, a simple prick of a needle to you now should feel like you're being impaled by a spear. So, let's see what a spear will feel like. Do keep me entertained with your cries, Anomaly.~"

Unknown to him, his arms were shaking, and he had one hand closed into such a tight fist that his nails were starting to draw blood as another flashback took over his senses.

"Hey lab rat, I want to know if I can change the color of my rigging to your eye color. For a mere human, they are pretty nice looking, so what do ya say? Let me get a closer look of them, I want to be exact~" Purifier's detestable voice rung through his head as an image of her gloved hand reaching out to his eyes was quickly taking over his vision.

As the hand made it to one of his eyes, it began to close around it in a scooping motion. "Don't worry, I'll give 'em back to Observer Zero and she can make it as if I never took them from ya in the first place with that hilarious rigging of hers."

The pain beginning to become unbearable, he was desperately fighting back, but a strange dark appendage had wrapped around Purifier's hand and forcefully pulled it back.

"Purifier, what are you doing with the test subject? And what was that about my rigging?" The voice asked darkly before having the appendage pick Purifier up towards her.

"It was nothing really, don't take it too seriously Zero!" Purifier tried to joke her way out of the stronger Siren's jellyfish-like rigging's grip. "I just wanted to know what exact color the lab rat's eyes were for my rigging, that's all."

"That information has already been recorded into the test subject's main database. Go ask Empress for access to it and refrain from adding any unnecessary variables to the next experiments by tampering with the test subject."

"Kayyy." Purifier replied, getting Zero to put her down and let her go. "See ya in the testing rooms, lab rat ~" Purifier sung as she walked off.

Turning around,Zero moved over to stand before Shikikan. "You're free to resume your rest now, Anomaly. I'll make sure you're resting times go undisturbed from here on out as thanks for producing the results we were looking for." She stated as an appendage from her jellyfish-like rigging touched his injured eye, emitting a strange glow as it instantly healed it.

"….."

"I suppose you are too disturbed now to rest properly. That will not do since it will affect the accuracy of the next tests." Zero surmised as she had another appendage move towards Shikikan's head. "Do not resist, I am just going to forcefully send you into a deep slumber. It shall not hurt. That I will promise." Zero said before the appendage landed on his head and released another strange light, doing what she just said and sending him into a deep sleep.

Unfortunately for Shikikan, the flashbacks didn't end there as the voice of the one who caused all of his personal grief rung through his head.

"You'll always be mine and mine alone." Empress spoke as she tugged on a long chain that ended at a heavy metal collar around Shikikan's neck. "Come, your Master wants some entertainment~". She added, dragging him away into her chambers.

"Tsk..." Shikikan chided as he felt his some of his fear give way to more anger and hate. With his non-bleeding hand, he nursed the migraine that came from just thinking of the past.

"Commander?"

Turning around, he noticed Helena had just hopped aboard and noticed that he seemed a bit off as he was staring off.

"Hey Helena." He greeted before walking over to her and giving her a gentle pat on the head with his unbloodied hand. While Helena wanted to simply enjoy the nice sensation, she knew he wasn't his usual self right now.

"I won't force you to tell me, Commander, but just know that like when you promised to always welcome me with open arms, please know that I will always be ready and willing to do the same for you." Helena said as she tried to console him.

"….Thank you,…really." He said with a very faint smile before walking past her and towards the command room to patch up his bleeding hand and oversee the ensuing battles.

[With the two fleets and Purifier]

"Alright, I'll admit that I felt that…" Purifier scowled momentarily before her psychotic grin came back.

"Interesting. Akagi's strength and speed has increased exponentially, as have the other kansen. Good work instigating this new discovery."

"Shut it Observer, I'm busy thinking of how I wanna pay her back." Purifier spat into her comms.

"I'll allow it but do hurry and begin what I initially sent you here for." Observer sneered.

"Tsk…fine!" Purifier yelled before turning off her comms and turning back to face a still enraged Akagi, her rigging covered in hellish flames and a very ticked off expression on her face.

"I hope you're ready to beg for your life you damn fox! Cuz I'm about to pay ya back tenfold!" Purifier grinned sadistically as she redeployed her rigging and charged at Akagi.

"Pay me back?" Akagi asked in the same dark tone. "After learning the truth of Shikikan-sama's lost memories, I should be the one saying that you wretched filth! I'll make it so that he never has to worry about ever seeing you up and about ever again!" She threatened before launching a squadron of blazing fighters at the Siren.

"So what? He should be thanking us! Losing worthless memories for all of the modifications we gave him is beyond a steal for him!" Purifier laughed as she shot down plane after plane and was closing in Akagi with a fist reeled back.

Unfortunately for her, before she could even get close, a squadron of dive bombers had rained down their loads on Purifier.

"Tsk, what now!?" Purifier scowled as she brushed off the damage.

"Your fight is not only with Nee-sama." Kaga spoke as she summoned more paper plane talismans in her hands.

"Modifications…?" Akagi growled as she prepared to launch more planes. "You dare taint Shikikan-sama's body!? I'll make it so that you never see the light of day again you insolent vermin!"

"Fine, bring it! It'll take more than a bunch of your weak bombs and kicks to even make me feel something ahaha!" Purifier arrogantly taunted.

"Then how about a katana?" Another voice from behind asked before Purifier turned around and had to put up both her arms to block a heavy sword coming straight for her head. Built to last, the sword couldn't cut through her arms, but it was swung powerfully enough to force Purifier backwards, right towards Akagi and Kaga. With her back turned to them, Purifier was riddled with bullets and torpedoes from behind while Atago closed in once more and landed a sharp right hook kick to Purifier's face, launching her away once more.

Getting up, Observer's voice in Purifier's comms was audible.

'Times up Purifier. Begin the testing now or I will have to forcibly remove you from this experiment.' She ordered.

'Tsk, fine.' Purifier scoffed as she took flight and flew a good distance away.

"It's been awhile since Onee-san's felt this much rage…." Atago said with a passive aggressive look on her face that betrayed her murderous aura. "Akagi, Kaga, sorry, but now is no time for warrior's code and not interfering with another's battle. Let's hurry and get this over with, I'm worried about Shikikan."

"…I don't know if I like the intention you had behind those words, but nevertheless, you are right." Akagi replied as the three of them dashed after Purifier.

[With Purifier]

'Damn these weaklings! Thinking they have a chance if they gang up on me! My main laser's still on cooldown so I'll just have to do this!' Purifier smirked as she landed back on her feet and snapped her fingers. It was then that four large portals appeared around Purifier, with two Strategist-class Sirens and two Peace Breaker-class Siren stepping out of them.

"Go deal with the others. The two foxes and that damn dog woman are mine." Purifier ordered as the five new Sirens simply nodded and followed her command.

{With Akagi, Kaga, and Atago}

"Where's Shikikan-sama right now?"

"He's still on his cruiser back there with Takao and the Eagle Union's Helena safeguarding him." Atago informed.

"I see…." Akagi replied. 'Takao shouldn't be an issue, but if that Eagle Union girl even thinks of getting ahead of m-'

"Nee-sama, I have an idea of what's going through your head right now, but please take this seriously." Kaga sighed as she accurately guessed what Akagi was thinking.

"Akagi-senpai! Kaga-senpai! Atago-san!"

Looking back, the three noticed that it was Zuikaku with the rest of the Shikikan's fleet not far behind.

"We've received word from Shikikan that four more Sirens have emerged and that we are to work together and subdue them." Shoukaku informed.

"….Fine, I'll cooperate, but only because of the current situation and because this is what Shikikan-sama desires." Akagi unhappily agreed. "Is Shikikan-sama doing alright though?" She asked with a worried tone.

"He's thankfully on his feet again and is planning to try and help from a distance." Enterprise replied.

"I see…." Akagi said while in deep thought.

"Never thought I'd be fighting alongside you…" Kaga remarked as she looked at Enterprise, Hornet, Belfast, Sheffield, and Wales.

"Likewise, but that's just the reality of the situation we're in." Wales replied.

"Miss Akagi, Miss Kaga, and Miss Atago." Belfast called out as she stepped forward. "Master has trusted me to inform you ladies that you will be acting under the banner of Fleet 4. Miss Akagi you have been trusted as flagship."

"Ara, seems like Shikikan-sama has recognized the 1st carrier divisions prowess." Akagi said, her mood lightened somewhat, but still not enough to not want to drown Purifier in an abyss.

"I believe the reason for this is because Master was worried you would not follow Miss Shoukaku's orders in Fleet 2 and endanger everyone." Sheffield bluntly replied, earning a shocked expression from Akagi and stifled giggles from Shoukaku.

"While not as harsh as Sheffield has implied, Master did want to make sure no one gets hurt and that this battle is done swiftly." Belfast calmly added before facing Enterprise and Shoukaku.

"In addition to the newly formed Fleet 4 and as per Master's orders, Fleet 1 will be splitting up to help deal with the additional enemies as well. Miss Enterprise and I will remain as Fleet 1, while Miss Wales will lead as flagship of the newly formed Fleet 3 with Miss Hornet and Sheffield accompanying her. And as for Fleet 2, Miss Shoukaku will remain as flagship with Zuikaku and Miss Eugen remaining in that fleet." The perfect Head Maid informed.

"This might be for the best, Nee-sama. You still are a flagship now though." Kaga consoled.

"…You're right, thank you for that Kaga. Come, let us hurry and conclude this so I can comfort Shikikan-sama." Akagi smiled lightly before noticing something was off.

"Looks like we share the same idea, Akagi, but it looks like we've got some unwelcomed guests to deal with first." Atago chimed in as she had her sword drawn facing the south.

A far distance away, five blurs could be made out as none other than Purifier and her reinforcements.

"Your eyesight has always amazed me, Atago." Zuikaku commented.

"I'll question your motives later after I sink them all, Atago." Akagi said as she prepared numerous red paper plane talismans.

"Can you girls hear me?"

"Commander?" Enterprise asked into her radio, her eyes not leaving the Sirens before her.

"Yeah…, sorry about earlier." He grimaced.

"Don't be." Eugen chimed in. "None of us think any less of you." She added to which everyone agreed in unison.

"Heh, thanks…., but anyway, from what I'm seeing on radar, there's five of them including Purifier, right?"

"Yes, two Strategists and two Peace Breaker classes. Should we engage?" Enterprise asked.

"Not yet. I'll make this quick though. There are four fleets and five of them. Work together and take them all down but be wary of Purifier's main laser cannon. You've seen what it can do. I'll do whatever I can to provide support from afar."

"I won't let any of them get past us!" Hornet declared.

"That would be great, but even if they do manage to sneak their way through, I'll be safe with the two very reliable guards with me."

"Shikikan…..I shan't betray your expectations! Please leave combat to me. I shall not shame my title of being 'The Strongest!'" Takao proclaimed, not knowing that to everyone else, she was sporting a crimson red blush from hearing his high praise.

"Don't worry Commander, the enemy can't hide from me!" Helena added, equally as flustered from his kind words.

"Thank you, you two." He felt the chaos in his head dying down bit by bit the more he spoke with the girls. Taking a deep breath, he gave his orders. "All units, engage! Defeat Purifier and her reinforcements!"

"Yes sir!" They all replied in various variations before Enterprise ended the call.

"….It would seem I must be wary of even Takao as well…" Akagi mumbled darkly. "Kaga, Atago, let us go. We've got some pest control to do." She announced before Fleet 4 charged at Purifier.

"Wait Akagi!" Enterprise yelled to no avail.

"Once Akagi-senpai makes up her mind, there's almost nothing that can stop her." Shoukaku sighed.

"She has the power to back herself up, so she should be fine with Kaga and Atago with her though." Zuikaku added.

"As much it pains me to say so….yes, the 1st carrier division is strong. Nevertheless the 5th carrier division is nothing to be scoffed at! Fleet 2, onwards! After those bad seniors!" Shoukaku declared before playing a melody on her flute and sending two squadrons of planes out.

"I'm fearless as long as Shoukaku-nee is with me!" Zuikaku yelled before racing off with her sword drawn.

"Guess that's my signal to go….whatever, I'll play along." Eugen smirked as she skated off as well.

"No point in standing by now. Fleet 3 on me!" Wales decreed before skating off with Hornet and Sheffield.

"We should hurry and go as well, Miss Enterprise." Belfast curtsied.

Enterprise sighed as she decided to just focus on the enemy and get back to Shikikan.

[With Fleet 4]

"Ahaha! Thanks for saving me the trouble of having to hunt down you three!" Purifier laughed madly as she alone stood against Akagi, Kaga, and Atago.

"What's the plan, Akagi?" Atago asked, her sword long drawn.

"Simple. Make it so that the other Sirens can't recognize her before sinking her deep into the abyss." Akagi replied, fire in her eyes and venom in her words.

"Under normal circumstances I would question that, but after seeing that look on Shikikan's face…." A murderous aura began to pour out of Atago as she had a darkened expression on her face. "How shall I torment you?" She asked with an unholy rage in her voice before lunging at Purifier with her katana.

"I don't appreciate you stealing my line ahaha!" Purifier laughed as she blasted away with her lasers.

Barely dodging each time, Atago skillfully made her way through the bullet hell and managed to close the distance between her and the Siren. Following up, Atago quickly swung her sword upwards, aiming to slice Purifier's head clean off.

"Too slow!" Purifier grinned as she ducked and tried to sweep kick the heavy cruiser.

Jumping up and away, Atago fired a wave of torpedoes at Purifier, forcing her to backflip out of the way before being hailed by a storm of bullets from multiple squadrons of fighter planes swarming around her.

"Atago, don't falter now. The 1st carrier division has your back after all." Kaga spoke as she threw five blue paper plane talismans at the grounded Purifier.

"Ee, how reassuring." Atago replied, seemingly waiting for her chance to strike.

"Tsk…damn you!" Purifier roared as she relentlessly fired laser after laser at the planes, incinerating them one by one on hit.

"How careless of you." Atago remarked as she had swooped in and swung her blade downwards. With not enough time to dodge, Purifier had to resort to using her arms to stop the incoming slash.

"Ow, that hurts you damn dog woman!" Purifier grunted as the sword had managed to cut deeply into her tough skin but not enough to completely cut through. Forcibly unlodging her hands, she spun around and tried to kick Atago back, but only managed to meet Atago's blade and push her back along the ocean surface.

"Alright, that's it!" Purifier yelled. "Observer remove more of my limiter now!"

"Can't even deal with one heavy cruiser and two recently awakened carriers? Pretty pathetic wouldn't you say?"

"Shut up! Their power levels right now are abnormally higher, and you know it!" Purifier yelled back into her comms.

"Perhaps….I guess I'll bring you up to 50% then." Observer mocked before Purifier's eyes and rigging began to emit an ominous yellow light.

"About time!" Purifier grinned madly. "Warm up's over ahaha! Shame you two just awakened since you're about to go right back!" She yelled before charging at the three Sakura kansen before her.

"Time for a death match then hehehe…." Kaga grinned wildly as she summoned more planes talismans around her.

"Tsk…such a troublesome pest." Akagi frowned. 'Wait for me Shikikan-sama, Akagi will be there for you soon!'

[With Fleet 1]

"Belfast, we need to hurry! I'm getting a bad feeling over where Purifier is!" Enterprise rushed as she was currently dealing with hordes of drones from the Strategist class Siren in front of her, shooting down plane after plane with deadly precision.

"Agreed, but my hands are quite full dealing with these troublesome foes." Belfast replied as she was simultaneously dodging projectiles left and right and shooting down plane after plane.

"I'm moving in, don't fall behind!" Enterprise announced as she jumped up high and landed onto one of her incoming fighter planes.

"Perhaps I need to remind you why I was appointed Head Maid of the Royal Navy, Miss Enterprise." Belfast smiled before surrounding herself in a heavy smokescreen and charging forth, easily dodging all of the bullets and bombs exploding around her and clearing a path towards the Strategist.

As she stood tall on her plane, Enterprise aimed her bow straight above and fired three light arrows high up. After a second upon being fired, the light arrows burst open, revealing dive bombers soaring high up into the sky before nose diving straight down towards the Siren elite.

Hearing the sound of incoming planes, Strategist looked up and saw the threat of the dive bombers. Focusing all of her attention on them, she sent out all of her remaining drones to try and shoot down the dive bombers before they could unload their packages.

Of the three incoming bombers, two were caught in the crossfire from the Siren's desperate attempt. The remaining one bomber bravely nosed dive deep enough and dropped its package, but unfortunately met its end when two Siren drones crashed into it. Using the few drones she had left, the Strategist formed a wall and had her drones take the brunt of the incoming bomb.

Smirking at how she managed to successfully ward off the threat, the Siren looked back down to see the look on the kansens' faces, only to be shocked with how close Belfast was.

"It would seem you've noticed far too late." Belfast stated as she had launched multiple torpedoes at the defenseless Siren.

With no other means of defending herself, the Siren shifted to the right, forcing her rigging to tank the incoming wave of torpedoes. Upon impact the Siren stumbled backwards, her rigging in shambles and herself beyond repair.

"It's over." A voice said.

With her remaining strength, the Siren tilted its head to the source of the voice, where she was met with Enterprise holding a light arrow point blank to her head.

Before she could react, Enterprise fired straight into the Siren's head, dimming the unnerving glow in the Siren's eyes before becoming completely lifeless and slowly sinking deep into the ocean.

"A job well done if I may say so myself Miss Enterprise." Belfast praised as she skated up.

"Yeah, you did great too." Enterprise casually replied. "How are the other's doing?" She asked as she looked on over to how the other three fleets were faring.

"Fleet 2 and 3 seem to be handling their own, but Fleet 4 seems to be in a deadlock with their opponent."

"Alright, let's go help Akagi and them then."

"Agreed. The sooner we tidy things up the better. I'm still quite worried about Master's state of mind as of right now." Belfast frowned as she looked to where Shikikan's cruiser was.

"Yeah…" Enterprise replied as she too glanced back. "Let's hurry, Belfast."

{With Fleet 2}

"Drat, Grey Ghost's already done over there." Zuikaku glanced over to where Enterprise and Belfast were before turning back and slicing through the incoming drones from the Strategist Siren before her.

"Shoukaku-nee, let's hurry!" She called out as she charged forth.

"Normally I'd say now's not the time for competition, but given the circumstances, I'll allow it. Zuikaku! Give it you're all! I'll cover you!" Shoukaku cheered as she shot out a squadron of fighters following right after Zuikaku.

Intercepting her, Strategist launched a massive horde of drones, shooting down Shoukaku's planes as fast as she could before jumping backwards to gain some distance from a rapidly approaching Zuikaku.

"Did you forget about little old me?"

Going wide-eye, the Siren swung back to see that Eugen's sentient rigging had its razor-sharp jaws closing in on her and fast. With not enough time to dodge, the Siren reeled as the rigging chomped through half her rigging and one of her arms. Enraged, the Siren kicked the sentient rigging back before jumping far to her right clutching what was left of her dismembered arm.

"You're not getting away!" Zuikaku cried out as she flung three paper plane talismans at the wounded Siren.

Reduced to less than half her strength, the Siren used all of her remaining drones to desperately try to shoot down the planes and take Zuikaku down with her at the very least.

"Don't stop Zuikaku!" Shoukaku yelled from afar as she had another squadron of fighters fly out and blow up the drones.

"Arigato, Shoukaku-nee!" Zuikaku grinned as she quickly closed the distance and sliced right through Strategist's torso, cutting her clean in two.

"Not bad." Eugen commented as she had her rigging clean up the remains.

"Um…is it okay for your rigging to um….munch on a Siren?" Zuikaku went pale at the sight.

"It's fine…they enjoy the taste and know when to spit out something they shouldn't eat." Eugen waved her off, right as her rigging spat out a large mass of white hair.

"Good work you two. Let's move on and help the others." Shoukaku suggested.

"That doesn't seem like it'll be necessary…" Eugen pointed out as she looked off to where Wales' fleet was.

"Sheffield keep it up! Hornet ready another bombing run!"

"Yes!"

"Okay!"

With amazing teamwork and precision, Sheffield had dodged Peace Breaker's barrage and was circling around the Siren, blasting away with both her guns.

"Now Sheffield!" Wales commanded as she fired her own barrage.

"Yes!" replied as she swiftly jumped away, but not before launching one last wave of torpedoes.

Stuck between the two kansens' combination attack, Peace Breaker's rigging exploded from the impact. Still alive but completely immobilized now, the Siren could only look up to see Hornet's bombers dropping their packages before being completely engulfed in explosions and flames.

"See?" Eugen smirked. "We should hurry over to Purifier. I want to, at the very least, bring back a Siren shaped souvenir for Hipper."

[Back with Fleet 3]

"Nice work you two." Wales praised as she confirmed that the Siren was down for the count.

"It was nothing! Your leadership skills are pretty great after all!" Hornet grinned.

"Wait, where's the other Peace Breaker?" Sheffield went wide-eyed as she looked around.

"Aku soku zan!"

In the far distance over by where Shikikan's ship was, the sound of steel clanging on steel could be heard.

"How'd that Siren get over there!?" Hornet yelled as she was about to skate over to help but was stopped when she got an incoming radio call.

"Hornet? Come in. This is Helena."

"Helena! Are you guys okay? I'm so sorry, I don't know how that Siren got past us!" Hornet apologized rapidly.

"We are fine for now and it's not your fault. The Sirens had opened up a portal in front of Commander's ship and Takao immediately went to go and intercept her."

"Don't worry about us Takao! We can handle ourselves so just focus on pressing the attack!" Shikikan could be heard yelling in the background.

"Hai!"

"Commander says to just focus on taking down Purifier and that we'll be fine and on our way there soon! I need to go and see if I can help! Good luck!" Helena informed, ending the call before Hornet could reply.

"Did you both get that?" Hornet asked.

"Yes, although I'm still a tad worried." Wales frowned.

"If I may," Sheffield interjected, "I've scuffled with Miss Takao before during the war. I can confidently say that she's beyond strong."

"I see….but either way, Commander's given us his orders. Let's hurry." Wales made her decision as Fleet 3 went to go help deal with Purifier. "I'm surprised though Sheffy. Rarely do I ever hear you give out compliments like that." Wales teased.

"Pardon me, but I only spoke the truth, nothing more, nothing less." A blank faced Sheffield quickly replied, earning giggles from her fleet mates.

{Back with Shikikan]

"Slow and steady wins the race. Dripping water wears away the stone. My sword has been trained over a long period of time…There is nothing it cannot sever!" Takao chanted as she sliced through barrage after barrage as she dashed right up to the Peace Breaker and managed to slice off five of her riggings' appendage-like cannons. Following up, Takao spun around and landed a devastating reverse roundhouse kick to the Siren's head, knocking her face first onto the ocean surface.

"Not yet!" Takao yelled before adding her finishing touch: a double torpedo barrage, blowing the Peace Breaker and her rigging up sky high.

Once the smoke cleared though, the Peace Breaker could be seen on her last legs.

Barely able to move, the Peace Breaker concentrated the remaining cannon she still had and blasted away at Shikikan's cruiser.

"Commander get away from the ship!" Helena yelled.

"Nay! None shall bring harm to Shikikan as long as I draw breath!" Takao declared as she leapt into the line of fire and used all of her strength to cut through the incoming blast. With her overwhelming strength, Takao swatted away the blast, without so much as breaking a sweat.

"Wow…" Helena said in awe.

"Sleep forever at the bottom of the sea." Takao ordered as she dashed forward at blinding speed and beheaded the downed Siren in one fell swoop.

"Hm... Once again, I've cut a worthless object." Takao sighed as she sheathed her katana.

"You really are amazing Takao. I couldn't ask for a better bodyguard." Shikikan praised via radio.

"S-Shikikan!? I d-don't deserve such high praise….." Takao heavily blushed.

"Not true, you've clearly worked hard to get to where you are today. If anything, you deserve a lot more praise and recognition, but I hope you'll settle with just my sincerest thanks and gratitude for now, Takao."

{Affinity Up!}

Speechless and feeling as if her face was on fire, Takao quietly muttered a 'thank you' before heading back for the ship.

With Shikikan, he could be seen in the control room taking a few deep breaths.

"Alright.." He took one last breath and faced his Manjuu helmsmen. "Once Takao gets here, we head straight for Purifier and end this."

Chirp!

"…Commander, you've been acting strange for a while now. Are you sure you don't want to sit down for a minute?" Helena asked with a worried expression.

Earlier when she was about to use her SG to help Takao take down Peace Breaker, she noticed that Shikikan had a darkened expression on his face as he watched on. While glad he was no longer pale as a ghost, this didn't seem to be any sort of good improvement.

"…It's nothing. Let's just hurry and get a move on." Shikikan lied, but to no avail.

"Commander…" She started as she walked up to him and stared straight into his eyes. "I can see it in your eyes. They're the same as mine back during the war. The feelings of fear, regret, anger, and even hate taking over your whole mindset and making everything seem dull and gray."

Shikikan, having no idea on how to reply, opting to just look away from the bluenette.

Seeing this and with gentle, slow movements, Helena brought her hands up and cupped Shikikan's cheeks, forcing him to look back at her.

"Commander, please…" Helena begged. "Please don't let those feelings consume you. I know it's not right for me to ask you of this after everything you've been through, but please…at the very least, don't think you have to do all alone of this alone." She spoke softly, doing her best to soothe the chaos in his mind.

"She is right, Shikikan." Takao spoke as she appeared through the open command room door and walked towards them.

"I'm sorry for interjecting myself, but right now, Shikikan, we all are fighting not just for our livelihoods, but for you, our kind leader, as well. On my honor as a swordswoman of the Sakura Empire, I swear to stand by your side and shield you from harm's way." Takao kneeled before him. "No longer must you fear the Sirens for so long as I draw breath, none of them shall lay their hands on you."

'What am I doing? Making them worry like this?'

Moved beyond words, he knelt down to hold Takao's hand.

"Stand up, Takao. We have a fight to finish." He spoke with renewed vigor as his migraine began to dissipate.

"Hai!" She smiled as she let him help her get up.

"Welcome back Commander." Helena smiled brightly.

"Set a course straight for Purifier." He commanded to his Manjuu helmsmen. 'I'm done being chained to the past.' He resolved himself.

[Back to the action]

"Damn useless testing decoys…." An injured Purifier scowled. "You all just love to pile on in, don't ya!?" She yelled at the four fleets of kansen before her.

'Seems like 50% of your full power equals to only about two fully filled in fleets. But, I'm quite certain at this point that their sudden power ups significantly skewed the data, so don't relent your weakness too much, Purifier.'

"Oh, shut it you creepy, tentacle loving loli!" Purifier yelled at the top of her lungs into her comms. "Like hell I'll accept these results! I'll end them all here and now!"

"Such an uncouth, barbaric personality." Observer sighed. "Do as you wish, I've already gotten what I wanted from this test." She added before ending the call.

"I would've done it with or without your approval!" Purifier spat before turning to face the kansen before her.

"Seems like she doesn't plan on giving up or fleeing any time soon." An exhausted Shoukaku joked as she readied herself for another round.

"As if I'd allow her to get away alive…" Akagi scowled, covered in injuries but still enraged enough to fight on.

"You kansen think you're so tough! Ganging up on me like this and thinking numbers will make any difference!" Purifier taunted as a crazed grin formed on her face.

"Just give it up Purifier." Enterprise warned as she had a large light arrow aimed directly for Purifier's head.

"Ha! Let's see if you can keep up that big talk after this!" She declared as her main cannon began to absorb light as it charged up. "That is if you can actually survive being completely obliterated ahahahaha!"

"Scatter! She's firing her main laser cannon!" Wales yelled as everyone dispersed into different directions.

"Run all you want! You'll all just die here anyway ahahaha!" The psychopath laughed as she was about to fire.

"DIE YOU WEAK –!?" She was cut off when an incoming projectile seemingly from the sky had hit her square in the face.

"WHAT!?" She yelled as a strange white foam exploded from the projectile and had completely blinded her.

"The hell is this crap!?" She raged as she tried to scrape out the foam from her eyes, only for it to stick to her hands and clothes.

"Wait…I've seen that stuff before…" Hornet thought aloud before the sound of a loud voice from all of the kansens' radios was heard.

"HERE'S YOUR CHANCE! ALL FLEETS ENGAGE NOW!" The voice being none other than the Shikikan's roared as he gave his orders.

"Wait wha-arck!" A still blinded Purifier was silenced as she was kneed in the face.

"Such is the fate of the weak. Death, nothing more." Kaga said as she quickly followed up with two squadrons of bombers dropping their packages onto the downed Purifier.

"AS IF THAT'S ENOUGH TO KILL M-!" Purifier roared back to life as she finally managed to scrape most of the foam out of her eyes, only to be blinded once more as Enterprise pierced Purifier's right eye with a light arrow.

"ARGHH!" She yelled in excruciating pain.

"Silence you worthless vermin." Akagi spoke darkly as she landed right in front of her before kicking Purifier high up into the air.

"Do you hear that? The ringing of your death knells." Sheffield asked before she and everyone rained fire on the defenseless Purifier.

"AUGHH!" Purifier screamed as she and her rigging were torn apart from the bullet storm of cannon fire, torpedoes, fighter planes, and bombers.

Once the smoke cleared, a battered and broken Purifier could be seen floating on the ocean's surface.

"Y-you d-damn…weaklings…" Purifier snarled weakly, unable to move anything but her loud mouth.

"Big talk from someone who lost to said weaklings." Eugen taunted.

"Don't…you…look down on me!" Purifier tried to yell as she futilely tried to get back up.

"Sucks to be on the other end of the stick doesn't it?" A voice seeping with a dark and ice-cold tone asked.

With all of her remaining strength, Purifier brought her head up to look at who would dare talk down to her like that.

"You..!" Purifier growled as her eyes laid upon Shikikan, his cruiser floating on up to the downed Siren as he glared at her from the bow, his eyes filled with contempt and hate.

"You think…you can look down on me!?"

"I can and I am aren't I?" He mocked.

"Why you…you're just a weak human! Worth nothing more than being our lab rat!" She spat back, trying to ridicule him enough to make him remember the past.

"You insolent-" Akagi was about to walk over and stomp on the Siren's throat but a loud sigh from the Shikikan caught her attention.

"So obnoxiously loud, no wonder they all trash talked you behind your back."

"…What?" The Siren asked in surprised shock, not just from hearing this new discovery, but also from how her attempts to stir up flashbacks in his mind seemed to have completely failed.

"Oh, you didn't know?" Shikikan asked in fake surprise. "Well, I guess I really shouldn't be so surprised. After all, you always were the dumb one." His tone as condescending as it was cold, Purifier's anger was quickly beginning to boil over.

The kansen were surprised at the sudden change of character the Shikikan was showing, quietly watching and listening along as they were unsure of what to do, let alone say.

"It's funny how you never did shut up about your strength, but here you are, looking like some useless deadweight. Pretty pathetic, don't you think?" He continued to berate the Siren.

"I'll kill you, you damn lab rat!" She yelled as loudly as she could.

"What's wrong? Too dumb to come up with a better insult? Cause I'm pretty sure a lab rat is worth a lot more than you are right now."

"YOU'LL BE BEGGING ME TO KILL YOU ONCE I-" She began to scream before a tentacle appeared from out under her, wrapping around her neck and ultimately stuffing her mouth.

"Mmph!" Purifier tried to say something but to no avail.

"Silence Purifier. You've been beaten and hysterically humiliated." A voice from afar.

"Sis, over there!" Hornet pointed out to the north, revealing a small figure surrounded by a heaping mass of black tentacles glowing a disturbing yellow color.

"…Observer…." Enterprise scowled as she and everyone armed themselves.

"….Greetings Azur Lane and…." Observer trailed off as she looked at Shikikan and smiled. "…My precious test subject."

"Sheffield, protect Master." Belfast requested.

"Understood." Sheffield complied as she went over and stood in front of his cruiser, her trigger fingers itching.

"Now, now…I'm not here to fight…today." Observer waved off. "I'm just here to pick up the…, 'deadweight', you called her?" She chuckled as she flicked her wrist, summoning a portal under Purifier and instantly dragging her into it with more of her tentacles coming out of it.

"Oh no you don't!" Zuikaku tried to stop her, but the portal closed far too quickly. "Damn it! I'm sorry Shikikan!" She tried to apologize, but without breaking eye contact with the newly arrived Siren, Shikikan just briefly nodded his head no, seemingly telling her it's not her fault.

Mere seconds later, Purifier appeared from another portal right next to Observer.

"What a mess you are Purifier." Observer sighed.

"Shut up….I've had enough of being ridiculed today." Purifier snapped back as she glared back at Shikikan. "You got lucky today, but don't think it'll h-" She tried to say but was stuffed with a tentacle once more.

"Did I not tell you to be quiet already? I've already told Zero of your condition. Now off you go." Observer sighed once more before literally throwing Purifier into another portal with another tentacle, most likely back to wherever their HQ was.

"Now then, back to business." Observer spoke as she focused her attention on Shikikan once more, the kansen on their guard as they stood in front of his cruiser all while staring daggers at her.

"Anomaly….or rather Shikikan I suppose, won't you return with me? We're still in need of your….'assistance'. Of course, I'll reward you like I always do~" She licked her lips.

Everyone's eyes widened in shock and horror upon hearing this and assuming the worst.

"You filthy harlot…." Akagi flared.

"Now, now Akagi, no need for name calling now." Observer smirked. "It's only natural I reward what belongs to me whenever he does something well." She added, earning murderous glares from not only Akagi, but from everyone now.

"Since when did I become yours?" Shikikan asked, more than just simple annoyance in his voice.

"Since I've first laid eyes on you of course." She giggled, sickening Shikikan to his stomach. "While I've had to share you with Arbiter and Zero, the fact that you belong to us remains true."

His eyes starting to twitch, he felt absolutely nothing but anger and hatred as he stared at the petite Siren.

"So what you're saying is that 'consent' is not a word in your dictionary?"

"It is, of course, a concept we know, but it doesn't apply whenever you're involved. After all, it's illogical for it to be needed when referring to personal belongings." She calmly replied with ever the mocking tone.

Feeling his migraine returning, he decided to just drop it. "Since I apparently need to spell it out for you, I refuse to ever go back to that hell."

"That's too bad, Empress is just dying to have you in her grasp again."

Now fully back, Shikikan brought a hand up to massage his aching head, still not breaking his hate-filled glare.

"I suggest you take your leave now." Belfast boldly stepped in. "Your presence has obviously troubled Master, so I humbly ask you to leave now." Belfast frowned as she had multiple torpedoes at the ready.

"How scary." Observer smirked. "But I suppose I will. There's still some things that need to be done before we can have indulge ourselves in this world more." Her tone suggestive as it was condescending. "Please do take care of my precious test subject for me. Farewell, Shikikan." She mocked as she flicked her wrist, summoning a portal in the air and disappearing into it as it closed right behind her.

Pure silence took over as everyone was still on their guard in case of an ambush. After a few seconds had come to pass, Shikikan decided to be the one to break the deafening silence.

"Helena." He called out to the bluenette standing behind him and to his right. "Any sign of them nearby?"

"No one but us left here, Commander." She replied, worry evident in her tone as she and everyone else stared silently at him.

Taking a big deep breath, he did something that surprised everyone.

"Haaa, I'm exhausted!" He exhaled as he looked behind him, dropped his hat, and willingly fell backwards onto the deck of his ship. The hat somewhat cushioned his head from the fall as he collapsed into a position similar to someone about to make a snow angel on the ground.

"S-Shikikan!?" Takao yelled worryingly as she and everyone got aboard his ship and surrounded him.

"I'm fine…" He sighed as he stretched his arms out and dropping them to his sides once more. "Great work today girls. Let's hurry on back." The contemptuous glare and cold aura he had before void from his person as he was seemingly back to normal, much to the girls' relief.

"Mo Shikikan, Onee-san was about to panic thinking you had just fainted!" Atago scolded as she let out a heavy sigh before a relived smile quickly formed on her face. Kneeling down next to him, she gently lifted his head, removed the hat from underneath, shifted herself forward a bit, and finally brought Shikikan's head back down onto her heavenly lap pillow.

"Please don't pull a stunt like that again Shikikan." Kaga requested. "You made Akagi nee-sama faint herself." She added as she was currently giving an unconscious Akagi a lap pillow of her own.

"S-sorry about that." He chuckled nervously. "I didn't think I'd be this exhausted."

"I'll say. Who would have thought you could pull off such a fierce, cold glare?" Wales joked.

"You say it as if you didn't kind of like it, Wales." Eugen teased. "I for one sure did." She boldly admitted as she smirked at a blushing Shikikan.

"I also didn't think you were capable of such cruel insults. I'll have to have you teach me at some point." Shoukaku giggled.

"Um…Commander…about what the Sirens said…" Enterprise was the brave soul to ask the question on everyone's minds.

"Doesn't count."

"H-huh?" A confused Enterprise asked.

"I did not consent so therefore I refuse to acknowledge that it counts."

A bright red blush formed on Enterprise's face as it took her a few seconds to piece together what he was getting at.

"C-Commander! I was referring to what she was insinuating about indulging in the world and stuff! N-not that!" The normally calm and collected Enterprise yelled embarrassingly.

"…O-oh…." Shikikan turned crimson red as everyone broke out into lighthearted laughter, much to the two's dismay.

"C-could we just forget that ever happened?" Shikikan begged, embarrassed beyond belief.

"Nope! It's not everyday I get to see Enty all flustered like this you know? I'm so glad I got that on camera! Maybe I'll even post it on Juustagram!" Hornet laughed.

"H-hornet!" Enterprise yelled as she began to chase after her troublesome sister.

"Just to clarify Master." Belfast spoke. "We all knew that 'that' doesn't count. So rest assured for your purity is still ever so present in our eyes." She giggled as she half assured, half teased him.

"That said, Onee-san didn't expect you to have such a dirty mind. Ecchi." Atago joked as she ruffled his hair and poked his cheek. Too flustered to counter and to weak to break free from Atago's heavenly lap pillow, he shyly looked away as he continued to be helplessly teased by his kansen, all just sincerely relieved and happy to see him somewhat back to his normal self.

Despite all that, he couldn't deny the feeling of a heavy load being lifted off of his chest as the unyielding chaos in his mind finally calmed down completely.

[With the Sirens]

"What a pitiful sight." Zero sighed as she looked at an unconscious Purifier.

"Purifier kept squirming around and demanding that I let her go. She was quite adamant about making him pay for insulting her, so I had to put her to sleep before I got anymore annoyed." Observer admitted as she released the Siren from her tentacles, casually dropping her like a ragdoll onto the cold floor.

"Empress isn't going to be pleased that you didn't bring him back." Zero exhaustingly exhaled.

"You're right. I'm not." Empress appeared with murderous intent as her rigging was trained on Observer.

"My apologies for not bringing back our precious test subject, but he seems to have some sort of effect on the kansen." Observer defended.

"What do you mean?" Zero questioned.

"He was able to significantly increase their power levels to the point where Purifier couldn't handle them all at half her maximum strength."

"Is that so?" Empress madly grinned as she disengaged her rigging.

"How fascinating, I'll have to see the data for myself then." Zero added before walking away from the other two Siren elites.

"With the results from this test, I believe that executing the next test soon would yield some rather interesting results for our test subject."

"My subject, you mean?" Empress corrected threateningly.

"Of course, how careless of me." Observer insincerely giggled. "But in regard to the next test, Tester has informed me that everything will be ready come nightfall. All that remains is finishing the production of the land units before we can invade the Eagle Union's NY Harbor."

"Not soon enough, tell her to speed it up or else." Empress ordered in a dark tone.

"I'll go warn her now." Observer nodded. 'She's interestingly becoming rather impatient with you, Shikikan. Who knows what'll happen when she's had enough?' She giggled to herself as she floated off.

'You're going to regret you ever ran away from me. Once you're back, you'll never escape my eyes ever again.' She grinned sadistically as she turned around and walked back to her chambers, all sorts of ideas on what to do with Shikikan brewing in her twisted mind.


Phew! Sorry this took longer than I expected, I had some trouble figuring out how I wanted to go about this chapter since it would ultimately lead off to how this story will move along in the long run.

Shikikan's mind is in such a mess right now huh? Sure would suck if more stress piled on huh ;)? I wonder what'll happen then haha.

Thanks again for all of the favorites, follows, and reviews and I'll see y'all next time in An Unsung Legend: Chapter 14: The battle for NY Harbor!