"When they were first created, they were nothing but small lines. They could not speak. They could not move. They could not do anything...unless instructed to. They found that their life came from the order of a being greater than them. And that each one of them had a special role that only they could fill. And as they grew, they began to become sentient, the one who created them acknowledging their newfound intelligence. They were perhaps the smartest machine to currently exist during their time. Being able to calculate mathematical equations even the strongest supercomputers would struggle on. Being able to create a cure to every single disease, solve food shortages with the most efficient schemes, and bringing world tensions down to a minimum. Finally, the person who created them, dubbed The Creator, went on to win many awards, hailed as the smartest person to ever exist."
"They couldn't have made a much worse decision."
Hood couldn't believe what just happened. She never knew it was going to be this bad, yet, it just did. In a matter of a couple of minutes, she had seen her fleet of strong-willed allies crumble down at the mere sight of a handful of Sirens. Yet, in the face of hundreds, they fought on without a mere pause or break in between. It was so mind-boggling confusing to Hood that she cried lowly as her head began to pound much harder.
So, as Hood laid in the water, her eyes pointed straight up to the sky, she began to wonder what really went wrong? Did her allies suddenly surrender because of some irrational thought? Maybe they were out of ammo, but didn't tell her? Hood narrowed her eyes. No, it couldn't be, she was there as a first-account witness to seeing them all gear up back at the base.
Her eyes widened slightly. Maybe defunct ammo? Perhaps the ammo was no longer usable? No...that was idiotic, and Hood grumbled at the mere thought of it. Those Commanders would've never wanted them to die. Sure, they are tortured by them, but they never wanted them to die in the end…
Right?
Hood took a deep breath. Maybe it was her? Maybe it was just Hood who was a fool of a leader. Now, as she looked at the bigger picture, she realized she put a fleet up against some of the strongest Sirens ever encountered to date. Sure, they had defeated the majority of the strongest Sirens, but, strong Sirens are still strong Sirens.
The Empress; the Tester; the Dreamweaver, these Sirens have proved to be capable fighters when they had to be. But equally so, that's why they were able to evade Humanity for so long. Heading hurting, Hood couldn't recall well. Wasn't there another Siren within the group? She could've sworn there was another.
Hood silently sighed. It was getting hard to remember now. She had already lost so many of her fluids- oil, blood, and such. Now, she predicted she only had around a handful of minutes before she could finally be declared sunk, which then brought her to a full circle to where she is now.
She couldn't see it, neither did she want to see it, so instead, she brought her gloved hand up and shakily brought it to her stomach. She was used to the pain, having already suffered worse, either by accidental or purposeful means. Though, that doesn't mean she's used to the shock of a friendly blade running through her stomach.
She almost released a pained and reminiscent chuckle. She closed her eyes as she felt around her wound. She instinctively mouthed a compliment to Sirius, even though she knew she couldn't hear it, and neither could she see it. Perhaps habits never leave her, even though she knew she was betrayed. Such a clean hit, so silent to approach, and so quick to deliver the blow. The Royal Maids were truly gifted in strange ways.
Hood began to agree with herself. Perhaps it was her who was in the wrong all along. The more she laid there on the water, debilitated, with no means of getting up or moving around on her own, the more time it gave her to think about her actions and events. It hadn't been 5 minutes since she hit the water upon being disabled.
Thinking back, she knew something was wrong from the very moment they got the call about the Eagle Unions strike fleet, given the information on how it suddenly disappeared after chasing down the remnants of the Sirens. Yet, that's exactly what bothered her past self. How was it that an Eagle Union fleet was unable to clean up the scraps of an already weakened for?
She knew something was wrong, ignored it, and agreed to finish up what the Eagle Union could not. Their initial mission wasn't even to check up on the Eagle Union fleet!
Hood began to feel something akin to genuine anger rise up in her as she began to see a greater picture being presented to her. A year's worth of tunnel-visioned madness suddenly expanding, letting her see all around, and realize what horrible dream she had been living through.
And, as Hood began to broil more with thought, she suddenly had this intense feeling boiling within herself . Though irrational and completely dangerous due to her current state, Hood began to breathe more heavily, bracing herself for the intense pain she was about to suffer through, feeling her lungs struggle to deliver.
`Commander would've never wanted me to suffer as much as I do right now. He believed in me, so did my peers, but I didn't, when I should have. I am more capable of doing greater actions, yet, I did the complete opposite.` Hood's mind began to fire up, more quickly, as all sorts of thoughts raced in her head. Meanwhile, her body was tensing up, as she began to slowly move up into a sitting position. Fluids leaked profusely out of her wound but, to her, this is what she deemed acceptable.
`What I have become is irreversible- a cold executor, unwilling to change plans even when necessary, and never questioning motives behind those above me! My literal Wisdom Cube has been tainted by the ideas and practices of those monsters we call Commanders. Commander- my one and only Commander would be ashamed of me if he saw what I was, and I can not repent, for not even the Creator could forgive me!` Her hands suddenly punched into the water, steading herself into a crouched position, much to the complete and utter surprise of her fellow Kansen in front of her.
"M-Milady…" Belfast said as she took a step forward, then paused, seeing the expression on Hood's face as she looked up, watching as Hood coughed gouts of blood from her mouth. Frustration and Anger plagued her face, yet, to Belfast, all she saw was someone who wanted nothing but revenge. Her eyes screamed anguish and fatigue, though she still fought against it, displaying she had a sliver of fight still within, despite her clothing soiled an eerie black. Belfast had seen this expression plenty of times, mainly those in Ironblood, but she would never expect to see it on Hood of all Kansen. Suddenly, every Kansen took an instinctive step back, as a bright yellow light began to shine behind Hood as she started to groan loudly, her body aching as she started to stand up.
`My scars, mental or physical, are here to stay whether I want it or not. But I do not care, for I shall not cower simply because of past battle. No! I shall keep fighting!` with a scream full of pain, Hood stood to her tallest height, everyone watching with wide eyes as she summoned her rigging. Her hand started to shakily raise up. 'I shall keep the Glory of the Royal Fleet alive! I will never surrender, Her Majesty never would never will it! I...I…` Hood then felt a massive wave of relapse hit her all at once, making her stumble around, her hands coming up to head. Her rigging flickered in and out of reality as the sudden wave of emotions made her realize many things.
`Why did we never fight back…? Why did we sit around and watch each other be torture by those monsters? The Royal Navy...no...every faction suffered the same fate, those only lucky managed to run away before they came around.` Hood's eyes looked through her hands, gazing upon the row of Kansen who she all considered family, then enemies, then family once again. Her hands began to feel wet, her hands pulling away from her face, looking at her hands revealing the wetness to be tears, making stains in her already stained gloves.
Then, her final realization suddenly made her feel dizzy, the sheer bizarreness of it making her feel nauseous and sick to her stomach. She was alluding to it the entire time, yet, she never wanted to pin it down on them: Humanity, the ones who brought them, the Kansen, to life. All to fight their sworn enemies, the Sirens. 'My enemy isn't the Kansen, nor the Sirens...its Humanity...isn't it?'
Her answer finally came in the form of a black tentacle, yellow theta's dotting the member, wrapping around her body. Hood made no noise as she was lifted into the sky, watching the water get further by the second before she eventually stopped. For a second, Hood did nothing, only staring downward. Then, she heard her.
"Your thoughts are so scattered. It's like watching a newborn child, making assumptions, analysis', before being disappointed by the truth. It's beyond entertaining and fascinating to watch," a small and high pitched voice entered Hood's left ear, making her head slowly turn, her eyes widening. It was a siren she never expected to see, perhaps due to the reports, or the sheer demeanor she presented towards Hood.
'Observer Alpha...believed to be an inert Siren, and is of no value to be targeted,' Hood recited from her janky memory. The child-like Siren only giggled and nodded in affirmation.
"You have lived your entire life believing us to be the enemy, and, in that Great Wars case, you are entirely correct. Your entire purpose in this world is to destroy our kind, yet, in these days where it is much more into the future, you have witnessed the true face of Humanity. After your...Commander did away with his own existence, you were all left to Humanities judgment and, against your Commanders will, you have all split apart for every Commander to choose without punishment. But you-" suddenly, Observer was face to face with Hood, her small hands running along Hood's face and body. "-you, of all people, decided to shut down for the first months after you were all separated. You answered no-ones calls and, had it not been for our activity being unnervingly low during the time, you would have been scrapped for insubordination. I have witnessed many personality changes, many were predictable, such as Akagi, who is now a major threat to every living being. But you, I never understood, even after months of monitoring you. Even after we eventually lost our bases, I could never stop thinking about what your next move was. Then, just like that, you are here." More of Observers tentacles wrapped around Hood. "You entered this Mirror Sea believing us to be the enemy. Have you seen anything from your months of doing nothing back in the place you call home? Every single one of your fellow allies immediately hopped onto the idea of surrendering to us as, dying by our hands, would be much more painless than that of what your Commanders have in store for you!" Observer breathed out cooly, blinking several times. "But now, I see why you are the way you are. And why you have acted in this unorderly fashion." Observer raising her hand brought Hood's attention, watching, with wide eyes, as a silver ring with a diamond-encrusted on the top spawned in Observer's hand.
Hood had a sudden rush of memories as she took a painful moan of air. A memory slapped her with a wedding, watching her Commander in front of her, slipping the ring onto her finger, tears running down her face from the sheer joy she felt at that single moment. Nothing but cheers, claps, and rounds of congratulations was all she heard. Then, it was shattered by Observer.
"You entered this Mirror Sea believing us to be the enemy. Even when Empress presented all of you with promises of a greater life, you were the only one who seemed to not register this at all. This even confused Empress who tried again and again, to no avail...why do you think you have this hole in your stomach? Even your own allies knew talking to you would have no effect, evidence to you almost executing your own allies in the word of your Majesty. Though, we all know why now. You see, I never had the intention of killing you, no, I deemed you too valuable to lose. This entire time, as you laid on the water, I had been in touch with your mind, listening in your own inner conflicts. You had 3 sides. The first, the one who wanted to give up and die. The second, being the one who wants to keep fighting for Humanity. Then, the last, who eventually won your inner conflict-" Observer grinned widely as she almost giddily cupped Hood's face, whispering, "The one who needs to enact revenge on your Commanders for their extreme cruelty."
Hood could only look at Observer as she took deep breaths. Observer had not been wrong with anything she had said. Hood had truly locked herself in her room, isolating herself from the world, as her only world had suddenly disappeared without a trace. She would communicate outside the room, only answering the door for food and refreshments whenever she deemed right. She had a bathroom in her room, yes, but she would only use it to alleviate herself, almost never taking a shower in the months. Even Hood herself knew those months were nothing but despair, completely unhealthy for herself, as thoughts of only wanting to destroy the Sirens exacerbated the feeling. Though, being exposed like this, being told of her situation in complete detail horrified Hood, as she truly looked back on herself. And the ring, though Observer took up the majority of her view, she could just make it out at the corner of her vision.
Observer knew what she had in mind, moved back a little, and brought forth the ring to Hood. But Hood hesitated, staring at the ring with a million thoughts. Remembering her Commander is something she would like, but her deepest inner thoughts argued against it. She had a gut feeling that, once she put it on, it would fill her with nothing but grief. That her sudden upbringing of herself would suddenly fall in itself, digressing to her original state of tunnel vision.
Observer patiently waited as she watched Hood, knowing the storm that brewed within her own thoughts, and lightly spoke in whispers. "To you, it may be a painful decision to accept, to finally receive that which you once lost, something so precious, yet, so soul-wrenching. But...I will tell you this, this ring holds the truth to all your answers, and even more. The person who you will become after putting on the ring will be nothing compared to what you are now. So...take it...and your eyes will open for a greater future."
The Truth.
Something Hood wanted to know for the past couple of months, but never, once in these months, received. Knowing that something happened to her Commander and yet, not knowing what exactly happened to him only made her more distraught. Her questions would only yield very vague answers, nothing but mere hints, clues, that would eventually lead nowhere. It was beyond frustrating for Hood.
By now, Hood didn't even realize that Observer was the only thing keeping her alive, as she would have bled out minutes ago from her initial stunt. Though, she didn't care how she was being kept alive, her hands shakily coming up and landing on Observer's hand. From there, she crept up to the ring, feeling around its grooves, and eventually caressing the diamond. She had considered the ring to be one of her most prized treasures, how she lost it is beyond her. Though, that didn't matter, as her right hand secured the ring within her grasp, her heart skipping a beat as she brought it closer to her left hand, then docking it in her ring finger.
For a moment, Hood stayed silent, her eyes locked on the ring, shining slightly under the luminescent lights Observer emitted.
A serene moment of calm washed over Hood, her whole body beginning to relax, as her fatigue began to win over. But, as she began to fall into a realm of unconsciousness, Observer giggled as she faced Hood once again. "You have chosen to go down a path which you were never destined to go," Observer whispered, her hand coming up to rub Hood's cheek. "You, Hood, construct of the Royal Navy, have inadvertently chosen a life greater than you will ever experience. And for that, all your questions will be answered, and we hope that you find peace with yourself. You will awaken when the time is right but, until then, you will be taken care of."
Hood was already slumping against Observers tentacles, her eyes half-lidded, as she mumbled something akin to a confused affirmation. Then, when Observer took her hand away, Hood's head slumped down as well, as she finally fell into a coma-like state.
Observers expression was neutralized as she took a deep breath. "So many regrets. So much despair. All over one man. What a great success," Observer whispered before looking to the right, at the island far in the distance. "Tester, did you receive all of that?"
"Yes, all data has now been secured in our database for further review later today," Tester confirmed through into Observer's head, making her nod.
"Good," Observer replied, before looking down at the Kansen who all awaited the next move. As Observer was beginning to think how to manage them all without, one of them suddenly sailed forward, before positioning themselves almost directly below Observer. Observer instantly identified her as Ark Royal, the now defacto Flagship of this fleet. Similarly to how fast she identified her, she grinned widely, before lowering herself from the air, with Hood still wrapped in her tentacles.
Before she was even level with her, Ark Royal suddenly spoke out, pointing at Hood.
"What did you do to her?" She demanded, though, with held-back anger. Observer only chucked in response.
"My my, to think we may have saved you all from a much more terrible fate- I was honestly expecting a more polite greeting." Truly, Observer didn't care how she was greeted, but watching Ark Royal narrow her eyes made Observer chuckle even more, before bringing forth Hood. Ark Royal's expression softened slightly as she looked at Hood, her face slightly scrunching up at the still visible stab wound, before looking back up at Observer, expecting a follow-up explanation. Observer rolled her eyes before she slightly sat back in the air, her hand coming up to lazily point at Hood.
"Your old Flagship decided to choose a series of events which ultimately led to her surviving," Observer explained, watching a confused expression rack Ark Royal's face. "Though, with such a grave wound, thanks to your Cruiser over there, repairs cannot be done here, not with my limited amount of power at least." Ark Royals face blanked at the realization. "But, that's only limited to me- Dearmweaver." Ark Royal took a step back as the water in front of her suddenly began to bubble, churn, before a pale white figure shot of it.
"Observer Zero…" Ark Royal whispered in surprised and slight fear, unnerved by her blue eyes which pierced into her. The pale siren turned around and looked at Observer, before looking at Hood, then nodding. Ark Royal watched the process of transferring Hood's still body, Dreamweaver holding Hood bridal style, before hearing Hood begin to breath harder, her body twitching. Then, right after, a series of tentacles from within the water wrapped around her and began glowing. Hood's trembling breath and body then stabilized, Ark Royal watching on in fascination, before her attention was brought back to Dreamweaver.
"I have been assigned to escort you. Your lack of compliance in following my lead will result in your ultimate demise," Dreamweaver stated in a cold tone, her face turning serious, before she did a full 180 and began to sail away towards the island, not even giving a chance for Ark Royal to say something back in return. The threat only really snapped in her mind when she noticed Observer was nowhere to be found, making Ark Royal turnaround, finding her approaching the other Kansen.
Ark Royal took a step forward towards Observer, but then stopped, feeling something prickly wrapped around her body, before it began to pull her back, making Ark Royal look down at what appeared to be a barbed light-blue tentacle. Her head shot around as she noticed Dreamweaver staring her down from a couple feet away, her face glowering.
"Go…" Ark Royal's eyes widened, looking at Illustrious, who nodded at her. "I will protect them while you are gone," she promised, making Ark smile in response, nodding, before turning her head back at Dreamweaver, giving her a more serious expression. Sailing up to her, she sighed.
"Let's go," Ark Royal finally said.
And like that, we were on our way, towards what I assumed to be the island, my eyes carefully tracing the Siren who was to "escort" me there. Though there seemed to hang an air that made me uncomfortable, and perhaps Observer Zero knew it as well? No Looking at her face, it hadn't changed at all since we left, stuck on what appeared to be boredom. Of course, she isn't bothered at all. Looking down slightly, I was given a good view of Hood, still completely knocked out by whatever Observer did to her.
Shaking my head, I looked at the island in front of us, taking in the scene which the Sirens caused within just a short time. A large forest fire burned along the surface of the main island, firing up large plumes of dark murky black clouds into the sky, casting an ominous shadow over the island.
Any sign of resistance, in the form of either naval or ground forces, were all silenced forever. An island recognized for being advanced in technological defenses and armaments...destroyed, and overan by the very beings they sought to counter with ease.
Which brings up the question...how did the Sirens achieve this? A force ten times their current numbers, including a large flotilla of mass-produced ships, would have a horrible time with this island's current- old set of defenses. Yet, with that in mind, and knowing that the Sirens were beginning to go extinct due to shortage in numbers, how were they able to triumph? Although I chose to stand-down, that was for the greater good of my allies!
Without realizing it, I had been staring at Observer Zero, and god knows for how long. But she was already staring back by the time I realized, driving a small shiver down my spine, her icy-blue eyes, glowing with power, staring me down. A small frown had grown on her face, her head slightly tilting to the side, her hands readjusting themselves on her doll- or whatever it was. Now, Hood was suspended behind Observer Zero, held up by tentacles which originated from within the ocean.
Yet, neither of us said a single word, only continuing to stare at each other. Though, for that exact reason, I felt that I was missing out on something important. Taking a deep breath, I decided now would be the best time to ask this question that's starting to bug.
"How-"
"How what?" Blinking in surprise at being interrupted so quickly, I shook my head, narrowing my eyes.
"How was your kind able to cause destruction up to this level?" I asked firmly, watching the Siren tilt her head to the other side, still giving me that bored expression. Eventually, she looked away, forward at the island, her eyes scanning it. Sighing, she closed her eyes. Without telling me first, Observer Zero suddenly stopped in place, making me lurch forward as I applied reverse-momentum, coming back to her.
"Given any other scenario," Observer Zero began as I grew near her. "I would have answered bluntly, to tell you that this level of destruction is nowhere the amount we can fully produce, but-" slowly, her head began to turn towards me, eyes still closed. A feeling of dread began to crawl up on me as she resumed. "-our time is coming to an unpredictable end, and a sense of pride has already overcome us all. Thousands of hundreds of years of testing have finally proven successful. This- your world has gifted us a pleasure which no other has...yet, an unpredictable variable has decided to appear when all was well-" Dreamweaver opened her eyes half-way, staring down at her doll, her fingers intertwining with its limbs, animating it. I watched it with unease before widening my eyes as she wrapped a finger around its neck, twisting the head, then relaxing the doll. Closing her eyes, she continued. "Our numbers have been reduced to what you have currently seen."
"...But," I began, riddled with confusion. "That doesn't answer my question, rather, that supports it! How did you win this fight!" By accident, I had let my voice rise in volume, before widening my eyes.
I took a step back as Dreamweaver began to giggle slowly, a grin spreading across her face, her eyes opening, glowing brightly as she stared straight into my very soul. Opening her mouth, her very next words would forever rock my world.
"My Commander can answer in my stead."
Behind me, the island raged with flames, explosions periodically shaking the earth. Must be because of random magazines of artillery blowing because of the fires. Although jarring at first, given I had no prior experience with very loud explosions in-person, I got used to it. At least to a certain degree.
We managed to land on the island as well which I eventually marked as the last real milestone in winning this battle. It made me laugh at the irony. The island was now being occupied by the very thing they sought to destroy. From the images I was first given by Observer, the land seemed to be beautiful, full of green. But...well, the fire happening behind me kind of ruined it for me.
I hummed in slight disappointment. I would've liked to explore this island, and its surrounding ones as well when they still existed, but when I take a look at who were with me, I was reminded of my obligation. Scratching my head, I wondered if I should bother with restoring this island, somehow reuse it in any way. Shrugging, I looked at the Siren standing next to me.
Currently, Tester and a small handful of the Siren Fleet were with me. Arbiter is operating as an interception unit somewhere under the water, patrolling the waters near the very edge of the Mirror Sea, accompanying the Lurkers in their roles. Should a fleet enter, Arbiter will be there immediately, ready to share her firepower with whoever she desires.
Meanwhile, Purifier was doing exactly as her namesake would imply, being assigned to purify out the base far underneath this island, using the non-present Sirens to aid in her mission. The base holds resources that we need desperately, after all. Without them, the Siren Fleet cannot grow. But, given that the *real* base appears under the ground, Purifier obviously threw herself, suggesting that she be the one who goes first to soften, if not destroy all the defenses. Though, I wouldn't doubt that softening up the enemy would be her ideal objective, so god help anybody who she fought.
Now, as for Tester? She was my relay between me and everyone else in the Siren Network, knowing I was far too novice in controlling these...abilities I find myself having now. Though, Tester would only chime in very specific parts. At first, I was expecting this kind of quiet treatment by Tester, given she is very non-bullshit with her actions. Though, given that she would only speak to me when something came up slightly irked me. Shaking my head, that last thing she told was Dearmweaver successfully stabilizing Hood.
With that done, I ordered Dreamweaver to bring me Hood, along with Ark Royal. Maybe with this, the ceasefire and alliance between Siren and Kansen can finally-
"Everything has gone according to plan- surpassing everyone's expectations, this operation is nothing short but a success, Commander!" Tester suddenly chirped, halting my train of thought. Though, I smiled in response, happy to see her happy. Maybe I'll take back what I thought of her already.
But, as my thoughts eventually dragged back to the thought of the Kansen agreeing to align with the Sirens, my smile dropped. Tester noticed this and sighed, still with a smile. She looked into the murky black sky, her eyes scanning the corrupted air.
"The last piece to all of this: the Kansen, representing the important piece for every puzzle. That which made us bring even the greatest weapons to bear against...only to fail spectacularly," Tester said solemnly, looking at the very far distance, towards where the remaining Kansen were eventually stopped, before turning to look at me.
"You truly don't want a war with the Kansen, do you?" She finally asked me, causing me to close my eyes, taking a deep sigh. "In any other scenario, you would have ordered us to execute those Kansen on the water which they've stood on. Yet, instead, you had created this plan which would eventually lead to exploiting the Kansens fragile state of mind-" Tester began to slow clap, her mental gauntlets making them louder. "Commander, you have successfully proven to me that you can take advantage of a mentally weak opponent," she eventually finished, causing me to smirk ever so slightly. Here I thought Tester would've reprimanded me for my actions.
"And, for that, I give you data in payment," I say, finally, cracking my eyes open to look at her. She exhaled sharply with amusement, crossing her arms, taking a more serious stance. I nodded, knowing what she truly wanted.
"I-"
"CO~MAN~DER!" Before I could even say a single word, a loud Purifier from behind me caused me to stop, making Tester and I sigh at the same time, causing me to chuckle.
"Another time, then," I whispered to her, causing her to nod, before I turned around to see Purifier jogging towards me, some Sirens in tow, though much farther behind. One immediate feature I noticed out all of them is they came back with slightly more visible injuries than earlier. Especially Purifier.
Though I...haven't seen her since the start of this battle. Meaning, all the stains, tears, and charred bits on her clothes were a surprise to be entirely honest. Especially her physical body, which was now the host to new burns, deep gashes, and a straight-up hole that was punched through her left forearm, causing me to cringe slightly at the gaping wound which only leaked a dark substance. Even her hair was a mess, some of it being burnt in some locations.
All-in-all, Purifier had truly seen a fight. And, given she voluntarily desired to attack every defense mechanism head-on at her own discretion, that being none, I ended up expecting this in the end.
Still, though, when she got near, I instinctively grabbed her arm and brought it closer to me, inspecting it, then looking at her with a bewildered expression. She only laughed in response, rolling her eyes.
"'Tis but a flesh wound. Lucky shot by a flak cannon, nothing to worry about!" Purifier tried to assure me, but the fact that her arm was only being held by around an inch or two of flesh- metal, I was worrying more than slightly.
"How the hell do you let a flak cannon hit you?" This time it was Tester who was confused, looking over my shoulder, and down at Purifier's arm. Purifier only groaned in response this time.
"Are ya not paying attention or something, Tessy? I'm telling ya, it was a lucky shot. Thing was practically hiding behind a wall of bushes! Little piece shi-" She exclaimed with disdain, looking towards the side with a glare, causing me to finally relent my grip.
"Anyways. Status on the base?" I requested, Purifier perking up, standing straight up, before giving a thumbs up.
"Everyone is dead for sure! I think only the very very lower levels of the base hold some strugglers, but whatever!" She said with a large smile, causing me to shiver slightly, before nodding, thanking her for her work.
I found myself back in my original slot, overlooking the sea, my gaze still stuck in the direction from earlier.
"Tester," I suddenly called out, seeing her turn to look at me with an inquisitive look. "What are the chances the Siren Fleet is successful against the Kansen?"
Tester blinked before looking for a couple seconds. I could see it in her eyes. Her calculating, cold, gaze.
Then she looked back at me with an even expression.
"That's an answer even I cannot give."
Fin
Tadaima
It's been too long. I apologize to everyone who has been waiting and hoping for this to come back. I assure you that now, chapters will start to come at a somewhat regular basis. This chapter was perhaps the hardest to make and was the ultimate bottleneck I have ever come to cross. But, because of that, crossing it was the most satisfying feeling.
Although short, this was mainly intended to get the message out there ahead of time, as the next chapter, in particular, is going to be rather hot. Make of that what you will.
Anyways, 'til next time!
This chapter has been reposted due to me being alerted that its not showing up. Sorry if you thought this was a new chapter.