Silent Jealousy Master Edition
Chapter 1: Reckless Heart
"Alright, everyone's here for the mission briefing. Z23, would you please do the debriefing? I have a quick matter I need to resolve. As for the rest of you, Z23 will be taking the captain's position for this mission, I expect you to treat her as you would me, understood?" the Commander asked, Z23 and the others giving him a salute of confirmation.
"With pleasure Commander. Handle your obligation with care," Z23 replied as the Commander left the debriefing room, Z23 coughing to clear her throat before laying out a battle map on the table. Z23's heart was pounding as her responsibilities finally set in, a determined expression blossoming on her face. Although she had been the Commander's personal secretary for some time now, he always left the flagship as the commanding officer so being designated captain regardless of being a frontline destroyer was a huge deal.
"Our scouts have spotted the Sakura Empire a few hundred meters away. They believe that the Sakura Empire will be approaching from the Eastern bend to try and attempt a direct frontal assault against our HQ," Z23 marked the spots on the map with icons that represented the corresponding military involved. Thinking for a moment, Atago began to ponder as to why now of all times would they try such an assault.
"With all of our most powerful ships currently docked, wouldn't it be suicide for them to try and assault us directly?" Atago pointed out, Z23 realising that she had a valid point.
"Excellent observation Atago. It would practically be suicide. That means that it's probably a red herring that will try and pull our attention away from the western and northern bends. That means that this skirmish may be too much for us to handle," Duke of York concurred, placing icons on possible blind spots they could exploit.
"Be that as it may, we are some of the most experienced members of the fleet, I'm sure we can handle this ourselves. I would normally consider reinforcements, but the majority of our forces have just returned and are resting," Z23 expressed her concerns brashly, which clearly bothered the majority of the battalion. Arc Royal held her chin with her fingers as she thought, wanting to respect her commanding officer's battle plan since she favored her precious Destroyer allies.
"If we plan to handle the assaults ourselves, I think stationing ourselves in the crease between the Eastern and Northern bends will put us in a solid position to react to any other incoming threat. If we split our forces into groups of three and stayed within relative proximity it shouldn't be too much of a stretch," Arc Royal explained, smiling and winking at Z23 as she showed the battalion the plan.
"I like this plan. Arc Royal, you will be accompanied by myself and Reno while Atago will assist both Duke of York and Hood. Are there any objections or suggestion against this plan?" Z23 called out as she looked at everyone, doubt still plastered on a few of their faces.
"If we spread ourselves out thin like that and either of our groups are routed, that is basically a guaranteed defeat for us. Are you SERIOUSLY willing to take that risk just to impress the Commander?" Duke of York interjected, slamming her hand on the table as a sign of irritation. Hood sighed softly, taking a look at the plan on paper instead of just in words.
"We can't afford to get heated before we even attempt a plan. I have complete faith in our Captain. If you haven't been keeping track, Z23 has a nearly spotless record when it comes to mission success, which is incredible since she's been on this base much longer than any of us," Hood chimed in, Duke of York sighing heavily to calm herself as Z23 shot a smile at Hood.
"Thank you Hood, but I'm not just a frontline unit this time, I'm the captain of our whole battalion. Can you still count on me considering I've never directly led before?" Z23 wanted to make sure that it was clear to everyone, especially those in favor of her decisions.
"I stand by my words Z23, I'm putting my life in your capable hands," Hood gave her a smile and a nod, Z23 sighing heavily to clear up her shaky nerves.
"Thank you. If there are no other objections, we need to head to the bay and prepare for the offensive, understood?" Z23 ordered, the others giving her salute before they all left the room and ran for the bay. The base was in a surprisingly lax state, with many ships destressing from challenging missions as well as recovering from major and minor injuries. Stepping into the bay docks, they all moved to where their gear was located, doing their routine check ups to make sure everything was in tip top shape for their incoming confrontation.
"I can't fail the Commander...I WON'T fail the Commander," Z23 repeated to herself as she went through a full system diagnostic to make completely sure she'd be at her best.
"This is Battalion Captain, testing communicators," Z23 spoke as she slid an earpiece.
"I read you Captain, Light Cruiser Reno hailing transmission," Reno replied, also making sure to run her diagnostics.
"This is Heavy Cruiser Atago, I hear you loud and clear cutie," Atago replied with a smirk, finishing up her checks.
"Battlecruiser Hood, I copy Captain," Hood's delightful voice rang like a church bell as she moved her gun turrets around to make sure they were properly oiled and repaired.
"Aircraft Carrier Ark Royal, I hear you clearly Captain," Arc Royal added. Duke of York still had her doubts as she finished her system checks, crossing her arms and breathing deeply to keep her cool.
"Battleship Duke of York, flagship of Battalion 1 confirming transmission, I'm ready for take off on your word Captain," Duke of York respectfully called back, everyone soon finishing their system checks and tests as Z23 changed over to the HQ channel on her communicator.
"This is Captain Z23, requesting that mission control opens the bay doors" Z23 asked, her heart now beating in her throat as her limbs began to shake nervously. She clenched her teeth tight, shaking her head vigorously to shake free of their grasp on her.
"This is mission control, request accepted. Be safe Captain, and may you bring victory to Azur Lane!" Mission control stated, Z23 taking one more hefty breath as she and the rest of the battalion completely activated their equipment, all of them hovering on the ocean's surface as they took off, shooting out of the gate rockets as they moved into formation. Once they cleared 10 meters, Z23 had finally tightened up as she changed her comm frequency back to the battalion.
"Everyone, move into dual formation, reach her patrol points and await visual confirmation of the enemy," Z23 ordered, everyone giving her a 'roger captain' as they split into the two groups of three they had planned, immediately jetting off to their designated points. Getting positioned, both halves of Battalion 1 awaited the oncoming enemies, only spotting any movement after a solid ten minutes of waiting.
"This is Atago, Sakura Empire ships incoming. It doesn't appear that any main fleet ships are amongst them however...permission to engage Captain?" Atago called out after checking a radar scanner on her rig, anxious for some action as began strafing side to side to loosen herself up since being heavy limited her mobility.
"Permission to engage, stay on your guard Atago and remember that Duke of York and Hood have your back," Z23 confirmed, a big grin curling on Atago's lips as she initiated her thrusters.
"Roger that!" Atago replied as she flew into the forces, Duke of York and Hood moving into a safe distance as a barrage of gunfire began flying through the air like fireworks. Atago began firing away without any more delay, her powerful rounds tearing the smaller cruisers and destroyers to shreds as she bobbed and weaved through the fleet. The low booming noises of the big guns from the battleships cracked the air, shells of pure destruction bombarding the enemy fleet, easily sinking 4 ships between them.
"Still no signs of their flagships, something doesn't feel right…" Atago called over the comms, taking evasive maneuvers as the fleet returned fire. Z23 decided to pull out a pair of binoculars, gazing out into the far expanse of the ocean. With much vigilance she spotted movement in the distance, the flag of the Iron Blood whipping with the wind.
"Iron Blood fleet incoming! 60 meters until they are in range!" Z23 shouted, Atago ready to knock out the seemingly weak scout fleet so they could join the real battle, however, just as they thought they had cleared it out, a massive barrage of gunfire began raining down upon Atago, who barely evaded by the skin of her teeth. Emerging from the wreckage of the scout fleet was Takao, Noshiro, and Yukikaze, all of them charging in with guns blazing as Taihou and Mikasa emerged from the fog of war.
"Sakura Empire flagships spotted! Retreating back to the control point!" Atago shouted, let out a loud grunt as several shells managed to catch her rear, only narrowly missing her main thrusters. She had to rely on her radar indicators for evasive maneuvers, only taking an occasional hit despite being a heavy unit.
"We need the rest of you to rendezvous with us or we're toast!" Duke of York tried to order over the comms, Z23 feeling her position become threatened. Taking a deep breath, she quickly assessed and got back on the comms.
"Arc Royal, Reno, meet up with the others immediately, I'll remain positioned here to continue assessing Iron Blood fleet's approach!" Z23 ordered, the two ships breaking off to join the others as Z23 looked back into her binoculars to continue assessing their distance.
"Sub thrusters hit! My mobility has declined to 75%, where's my backup?!" Atago shouted as she clenched her teeth to brace for another impact, Reno finally catching up with her to grant her some cover fire.
"I've got you Atago, don't worry!" Reno shouted, releasing a barrage of continuous fire and torpedoes.
"Thanks Reno, it was getting really dicey for me," Atago sighed, both of them backing into safe proximity of the rear guards, Duke of York and Hood unleashing more massive cannon shells. As Takao and Yukikaze caught up to them, Arc Royal was ready to unleash her aircraft barrage, the sheer amount of bombs and gunfire against them forcing them to take backward evasive maneuvers as they killed time for the rest of the fleet to join them.
"This is battalion captain, I need a status report!" Z23 shouted as she heard the roars of war erupt from their direction.
"Reporting in...all Flagship are at 100%, Reno is showing 95% while Atago is currently at 78% of her full power. What's the status of the Iron Blood fleet?" Duke of York filled Z23 in as Z23 kept her eyes glued on the approaching Iron Bloods, who suddenly picked up momentum.
"They've increased their speed to their maximum, they will come in range within the next few minutes...I'll take care of them myself! Your orders are to destroy the Sakura Empire forces!" Z23 shouted, her heart racing with pure adrenaline as she kept her Commander's trust tightly against it.
"Captain that's suicide! Grr...shit! Atago, back our Captain up, she's clearly lost it," Duke of York sneered over the radio, Atago replying with a 'roger' as she broke off formation. It was strange, Z23 never lost her cool or jumped head first into something so recklessly as she was doing now. It was these facts that began to bother Atago as she quickly approached a projected rendezvous point with Z23.
"I have to prove to the Commander that I'm the only one who can lead his fleets...I must not fail, not ever…!" Z23 coldly mumbled to herself as she stayed focused on the enemy flagship. Although strong, Z23 was nowhere near equipped to handle enemy carriers, much less their flagships, but in her blind state of thought she believed that she could win without fail. As she grew closer, several heavy gunships and destroyers moved to intercept, easily outnumbering her.
"Commencing combat!" Z23 shouted, already moving into an aggressive, evasive pattern of movement. Like fireworks on the 4th of July, the blazing screams of gunfire soon deafened the air, signalling an intense confrontation between their reckless Captain and the Iron Blood forces. It was the booming sounds of combat that caught the ears of the much slower Atago, whose eyes widened at the sight of the seemingly suicidal Z23. Surprised that Z23 engaged so quickly, she pushed her thrusters to the limit to catch.
"Oh dear...this is not good..." Atago sighed, charging at full speed to try and get into a supportive position. Z23's behavior began to eat at the Duke of York, who gave the fiercest growl ever heard amongst the fleet.
"What is that foolish girl thinking?! She's supposed to be the smart one...Arc Royal, please move to their position, we've weathered the Sakura Empire fleet enough that we can finish it off ourselves..." Duke of York groaned, shaking her head as Arc Royal gave her a salute and put her thrusters at full capacity to arrive at their aid as soon as she could.
Z23 zipped in and out between the enemy's onslaught of bullets and torpedoes, only occasionally being struck by stray bullets and shrapnel. Her eyes were filled with cold, murderous intent as she blew up ship after ship, nearly meeting her end over and over again as she narrowly avoided death.
"That's another two down...so there are only 5 heavy gunships and 5 destroyers left. Fighting with the destroyers will prove the most difficult...so I should...ACK!" Z23's train of thought was cut off as two torpedoes smashed into her rear engines. She cursed in barely understandable German out of pure anger as she saw smoke beginning to trail from her.
She felt sluggish as she narrowly avoided another barrage, forcing her to push herself and her rig to the absolute limit to survive. As she narrowly escaped a pair of torpedoes, she then came face to face with a heavy cannon pointed directly at her. Her heart stopped as she saw the sparks building in its chamber, visions of her dear Commander praising her for countless missions flashing before her eyes as she refused to accept her fate. Clenching her teeth tightly as she launched her torpedoes, she expected to be met with the hot gun fire of death but instead was met with an exploding barrel being destroyed by a hail of gunfire.
"Bad girl, making big sis worry like that," the familiar voice said with a giggle. Z23 looked over to see Atago plowing through the enemy line to finally catch up with her war starved Captain. Even with her thrusters misfiring Z23 continued her assault, escaping Atago's attempted grasp to stop her. Destroying another heavy gunship, Atago was finally able to butt in, grabbing her enraged Captain and forcing her from the fray with her strong thrusters.
"Atago! What is the meaning of this?! I ordered you to finish off the Sakura Empire fleet!" Z23 barked furiously, her mind still dead set on doing this all on her own. Atago sighed, unleashing a barrage of torpedoes to put space between them and the remainder of the Iron Blood sub fleet.
"The 'meaning' of this is to save your life Captain, check your system satus dear," Atago replied, taking a defensive position to cover Z23. Typing in her diagnostic commands, she quickly grew pale, a cold sweat trickling down her back as her readings filled the screen.
"Primary Guns: 89% Damaged; Secondary Guns: 91% Damaged; Torpedo Launchers: 96% Damaged; Structural Integrity: 65% Damaged; Overall Functionality: 24.65%. Retreat advised, retreat advised, retreat advised..." Z23 read the suggestion to retreat that was flashing in big, bold, red letters.
"What's wrong with you? You're usually so careful and level headed...what made you go berserk like that?" Atago inquired but was met with silence from Z23. The two lone ships began taking massive evasive maneuvers to stall time for Arc Royal to back them up. The hell fire coming from the enemy was nothing short of savage and plentiful as the two would occasionally return and began to work against the, however, as Atago withstood shell after shell of ammunition protecting Z23, Z23 began to beg for her to withdraw.
"You can't handle anymore, Atago! Don't lose your life on my behalf! Retreat! That's an order!" Z23 shouted, Atago clashing her ship against hers to buck her out of the way. Z23 stared in disbelief as a few bullets managed to breach Atago's defensive haul, planting themselves deeply into her side. Atago's scream shook Z23 to her core, quickly leaping at the chance to push her aside. Pulling Atago over to her, she began to try and tow her out of the battlefield. As a barrage was ready to blow the two heavily damaged comrades to death, the sounds of planes and jets roared through the air.
"Leave my comrades alone!" Arc Royal cried out, bombs and and missiles shredding the pursuing enemy to shreds, which finally gave the two ships a window to escape. Z23's eyes began to well up with tears as she found two more bullet holes in Atago, who was now breathing heavily with sweat drenching her body.
The remainder of the mission was a success; Duke of York and the others used Z23's reckless assault as a distraction to directly annihilate the enemy flagship after forcing the Sakura Empire into retreat. The moment they arrived back at base, there was a medical team waiting for them patiently so that they could take Atago into urgent care. Along the way, with Z23's tears shamefully drenching her face, she emptied out her heart to Atago; how she felt about the Commander, wanting to stay on top at all costs, and how she wanted nothing more than to make him proud of her.
"Don't worry...I don't blame you for what happened to me. I understand it all now...I think it's wonderful how far you will go to keep his praise, trust, and love in you. But remember, you aren't the only one out there. Learn from this OK?" Atago said with a warm smile, holding Z23's hand tightly. The moment they reached HQ, the medical team retrieved Atago, Reno accompanying her to the infirmary. It felt like a walk of shame as Z23 and the rest of her battalion walked to the Commander's office, ready to give their report.
"I'm not going to sugar coat your recklessness Z23, you aren't a child, you're a high commanding officer. Your conduct says otherwise and that's how it shall be reported," Duke of York scowled at Z23, who simply looked down at the floor in shame. Z23 had been with the fleet longer than anyone else, yet now here she stood, the reckless one that caused severe damage to a dear and caring ally.
The meeting went as expected. Duke of York did all of the talking, explaining every single detail from start to finish as Z23 found her whole being sinking into a shame filled void. As they were all about to leave, the Commander requested that Z23 remain, which made her grow incredibly pale. Now, with only the two of them remaining the Commander let out a heavy sigh of discomfort, placing his hat on his desk.
"Z23...we have worked with one another since the very beginning. Your brilliance and level-headedness are what made you not only who you are, but what has attracted me to you as a superior. You have proven to me, without fail, that you are loyal, strong and more than capable. So...Z23. Can you please explain the cause of your current brash behavior and disobeying direct orders so that I can understand your line of thinking?" The Commander's words pierced her heart like a bullet, causing her composure to waver ever so slightly. Clearing her throat, she locked her eyes with his.
"Commander...having been at the forefront of most of your plans and strategies has brought me more joy than words can explain. However...for the past 2 months you've only rarely confided in me for anything. As Commander I'm aware that your duties are very time constricted, so I didn't say anything. But...I had seen you praising some of the others for jobs well done that I have easily out performed on a mission to mission basis and have heard nothing. In short, Commander, I have let my personal feelings override my duties as a Captain. I wanted your praise and attention like before...so...I tried to outdo myself and try to show you that I am worth more than just an afterthought. That is why I have done what I have done," Z23 said, not breaking eye contact for a single moment. The Commander let out another sigh, rising to his feet. Circling around his desk, he then stood before her, his eyes now gazing into hers.
"It is true that I have been neglecting you, but it's because I knew I could rely on you. You don't need attention and praise to know how much you mean to me and this fleet. I...admittedly do see you as more than just a subordinate at times, but I never mix those feelings with my duties. So, Z23, as much as I hate to do this, I hereby declare that you are suspended from any further operations as of this instant. You are stripped of your title as Captain for the time being and must go through a mental evaluation with a doctor. I want you to see this as taking time off to evaluate yourself and to understand what you need to do to return to active duty, alright?" the commander stated firmly. Z23 stood still like a statue, unable to completely take in her new, harsh orders. As the commander left the room and proceeded down the hall, Z23 fell to her knees, tears forcing their way out of her eyes as her strong will finally broke.
"H-How...could I be...so stupid...?" Z23 sobbed loudly within the empty room as her sole purpose for existing was ripped from her heart. Her tears began to flow uncontrollably, blotting the carpet with the moisture that dripped from her face. She had finally come to terms that she loved him, but now those feelings would quite possibly, if not indefinitely, fall on def ears and hearts. Suddenly, she stopped everything; It was as if it had all finally become too much as she paused and stared lifelessly at the ground. Her tears soon dried as malice embedded itself within her eyes.
"I'll do whatever it takes to be his number one again...no matter the cost...and nothing...NOTHING...Will stop me..." Z23 said quietly as she rose up to her feet and edged quietly out the door.