It was a peaceful day in the home port, whistling breezes, the gentle shine of the sun that prompted many to bask in it's warmth; to top it all off the sea presented the port with a beautiful dance, it's waves gently rocking and swaying along the shore. Such a peaceful morning indeed.
Walking along the beach were two girls: a raven haired girl, named Deutschland, who was a heavy cruiser of the Ironblood faction; the girl beside her was a mostly ash haired girl apart from the large red strip of hair on the left side of her head, this was the third ship of the Deutschland class, Admiral Graf Spee; Spee for short.
Both were casually chatting amongst themselves when the ashen haired girl saw the familiar face of Bismarck walking up to them.
"Guten tag Bismarck," she greeted, her voice monotonous.
"Ah Deutschland, Spee," Bismarck replied surprised, it seemed as though her mind was elsewhere, so she didn't notice her fellow faction members.
Striking a conversation with their flagship the two heavy cruisers asked what the woman was doing, to which she explained that she was in the middle of thinking of a way to invite Emir to the Ironblood dorms for a tour, after it was suggested to her by Hood. While Spee was curious about Bismarck's conundrum, her sister's reaction was to only cackle loudly, even going as far as to clutch her stomach after it started to hurt from laughing so much.
"I forgot a new animal has replaced the previous one," Deutschland said, while wiping a tear off. "Just drag them to the dorms."
However that suggestion caused her younger sister Spee to look at her disapprovingly, forcing her to retract her statement. Changing her advice, Deutschland suggested that Bismarck should just go to the office and ask; after much pondering, the flagship decided to give it a try and headed to the office.
As they watched the blonde woman walk away Deutschland mentioned how Bismarck still seemed so distant to them despite all the years they spent together. With Spee nodding and humming in agreement.
At the office, Emir was signing off papers with Amazon while Warspite sat with a calculator, going over the budget after Akashi bought items for the repairs and other 'necessities'.
Everything was silent with only the scribbling of the pen or the sound of keys being pressed creating any noise. A gentle knock then broke the three off their work; turning to the door, Emir called the person. With a creak of the door, the flagship of the Ironblood faction, apologised for interrupting them, before requesting an audience with her commander. Seeing no problem in this, Emir allowed her to speak; the others didn't see a problem with this either, in fact they were grateful since they were getting worn out and a break was needed.
"I came to request that der Kommandant come to the Ironblood dorms for a tour," the woman bluntly requested.
What followed this was a series of blinks and glances, as the three people already in the office before processed the information; as a result, Bismarck became worried if her request was too sudden.
"Of course, it would be a pleasure Bismarck," the boy replied with glee. "When are you free?"
"I can give the tour tomorrow," the flagship informed.
"Tomorrow it is then," Emir then took out a small notebook and invited Bismarck to make plans with him at that moment.
Once their plan making was over, the three returned to their work. However it wasn't long until Warspite brought up how surprised she was that Bismarck was the one to invite Emir to a tour, a thought that Amazon also shared; thoroughly confused, Emir then asked the two if Bismarck wasn't a sociable person, to which the two revealed that she would only spend her time with her sister or Hood.
Amazon even added, "She's also quite distant to her fellow Ironblood members, that's what I've heard at least."
"But I have heard she is very caring as well, almost like a mother," Warspite interjected. "She is merely a quiet person by nature."
Emir watched amused as the two girls conversed amongst about the Ironblood's flagship; he was glad that despite their history as enemies, Warspite and Amazon could talk about Bismarck without any animosity.
Visiting the Ironblood dormitory was as nerve wracking as Emir thought, unlike the previous tours he's had: he was alone this time. Despite this the young commander pressed on, with Bismarck acting as his guide.
Walking around the dorms, Emir was given a thorough description of the dorm's choice in design: it's walls which appeared to be made of metal as opposed to plaster and stone meant to, the large windows with Ironblood banners hanging between each one; finally scattered all over the walls were several blueprints or old black and white photos. Which were people whom the members held dear according to Bismarck.
Taking everything into account, Emir gained the impression that the Ironblood dorm was more or less a personal museum for the members; other dorms were less personal and appealed to just being places to live without the need to make it look patriotic, Ironblood was not that. This made it rather intimidating at first glance, that Emir was tense the entire time he walked side-by-side with his guide, however as he continued to look at the many blueprints he felt the uneasiness be lifted off his shoulder and instead it drove him to interact with Bismarck, inquiring about the blueprints.
Due to her little knowledge in engineering, apart from her own ship, Bismarck was only able to give basic answers about the ships. Luckily for her that was enough for Emir, who then began fawning over the detailed instructions on how to build some of the portrayed vehicles, though they didn't seem to be ships that were in operation, or even built in the first place.
"Oh elder sister," a voice chimed in, causing the two to turn their heads.
In front of them was a pale skinned woman with short snow white hair, who also wore a full white set of clothes that was reminiscent of Bismarck's outfit. Her very being shined against the light of the sun, yet for some reason she carried with her an air of loneliness that was as cold as winter.
"Little sister!" Bismarck replied in a somewhat surprised tone, though it was concealed underneath her usual monotonous voice.
Hearing her call out 'little sister' gave away to Emir who the girl in front of them was: Tirpitz, the second ship of the Bismarck class.
Stopping in front of the two Tirpitz eyed Emir before asking, "Is this the new commander?"
Nodding, Bismarck introduced the two to each other. "This Emir Regis the proxy of Kommandantin Azure- " she then turned to face Emir. "-Kommandant, this is my little sister Tirpitz."
"It's an honour to meet you Kommandant." Tirpitz greeted with a slow, polite bow.
"Likewise, I look forward to working with you." Emir replied, along with a bow of his own.
Bismarck then wondered what her sister was doing and inquired, to which the other ship explained that she was spending some time with the aircraft carrier, Victorious from the Royal Navy.
"Seems that these two have a knack for befriending Royal Navy residents, that's reassuring," Emir happily thought.
Tirpitz then gave her goodbye to the two before turning around to head to her room, however before she could take a single step Emir stopped her. Responding to his call, Tirpitz turned around to a wide eyed Emir with his mouth hanging slightly open, even he was surprised by what he just did.
"Yes? Is there something you need Kommandant?" Tirpitz asked.
Quickly composing himself, Emir wondered if the girl would have wanted to join them on the tour. He wasn't expecting much, but he noticed the slight change in Bismarck's mood and wanted to see that chipperness again from not too long ago. However he was also prepared for a rejection, after all the girl did come back from her own affairs, yet that rejection never came; instead, a long silence filled the atmosphere around the group.
Deciding to take a peek at Tirpitz, the young commander was stunned to see what was on the battleship's face, an expression. Normally this wouldn't be weird to Emir, but in the time he talked to her, she was basically iron faced; not a single emotion was on her face, yet after being invited to join the tour, her inner feelings were loud and clear for the world to see. Worried, Emir turned to Bismarck in hopes to find some advice, though upon laying his eyes on her, he saw that she also had the same shocked expression as her sister.
Now at his wit's end, Emir tried to play the whole thing off. "I mean if you're too tired from being with Victorious then you should head back to your room and get some rest."
"Oh no, I am alright and it would be an honour to escort you through the dorms along with my sister," she then glanced at Bismarck."Is that alright elder sister?"
The battleship in question was silent yet allowed a nod as a reply, which struck Emir as odd since he thought she would give a more gallant line.
As the tour continued Bismarck was visibly flustered, while she still managed to do the tour with little faults, Bismarck was visibly distracted. From her subtle glances at her sister, to the long stares that she would give Tirpitz whenever it was her turn to explain something to their commander.
While it was pretty much obvious (to Emir) that Bismarck was more into whatever her sister was thinking or doing, Tirpitz went on with the tour without any problems. She explained the areas with great detail that Emir had no openings where he could ask a question and because of this, the group managed to finish the tour earlier than expected.
With their tour done, Bismarck thought that it would be a good idea to treat Emir to some Ironblood cuisine. Unfortunately that feast was not exactly a feast; in fact, there was barely any food. What Bismarck wanted to treat Emir… was Ironblood's best alcohol!
Large mugs full of golden, bubbly liquid surrounded Emir, their strong smell ascending to his nostrils. From the scent alone, Emir already felt the tingling sensation of alcohol as it first entered his body, however in comparison to shipgirls he was pretty much a lightweight.
Unlike their commander, Tirpitz and Bismarck were chugging the mugs of beer down their systems like water; Bismarck especially, who not even 5 minutes since she started, had quaffed down up to 5 mugs.
Noticing their commander not joining their celebration, Bismarck asked if the beer wasn't to his liking, to which the boy explained he wasn't into drinking.
"Oh! I see, well we have other things that might suit your palette," Bismarck replied, before standing up to get something. A short while later, she returned with a can of Root Beer and a glass with ice in it.
Accepting the drink, Emir enjoyed some downtime with the two battleships, conversing with them in a more friendlier manner as opposed to their professional conversations during the tour.
Curious to his life prior to becoming commander, Tirpitz asked Emir what it was like living in the modern world. The boy explained it was a peaceful world, no one lived in fear or worry; everyone went on with their lives with a smile on their faces alongside their friends, lovers or family. Hearing that humans were living the best of their lives brought a smile to the two girls' lips.
"You two seem glad hearing that," the boy commented, after seeing their reactions.
Slightly taken aback about their own reactions, the sisters glanced at each other before letting the smiles return to their faces.
"Yes, hearing that humanity is prospering is great news to us," Bismarck admitted. "We of the Ironblood, only ever wished for humanity's safety, which was why we even went ahead and even made a deal with the Sirens."
Emir noticed the tinge of guilt as Bismarck went on to explain her reasoning. He knew very little, but the young commander did recall a time when his grandfather explained how Ironblood and the Sakura Empire were helping the Sirens before converting to join Azur Lane. It must've helped their conscience to know that humans thrived despite not needing the help of the Sirens.
Then suddenly storming in without notice, breaking the solemn atmosphere, was the raven haired Deutschland, roaring about how she was craving a good drink; not further behind was Spee who was telling her sister to quiet down. The two then spotted their flagship along with Emir and Tirpitz casually chatting amongst one another. With her mind eager to crash the group, Deutschland wasted no time in making her way to Emir and company before slamming a hand on the desk, then going on to stick her face close to her commander's with her signature toothy grin on display.
"So you're the new lowly animal," she said, amused.
"Um, you are?" Emir asked in a somewhat flustered manner from having a girl press her face so close to him.
"Deutschland!" she announced proudly, following it with a loud cackle.
"Sister please, your voice," Spee scolded. She then turned to Emir and introduced herself, "Hello, my name is Admiral Graf Spee. It's a pleasure to meet you Kommandant."
"Yeah, likewise," Emir replied.
Once their introductions were over, the two heavy cruisers then gave their goodbyes and left to get themselves some drinks, leaving the group to themselves once again.
When the pair was out of range, Emir then leaned towards Bismarck and asked her about Deutschland. He noticed while she had her face pressed up against his that her demeanour didn't match her gaze. Curious about what the boy was talking about, Bismarck requested that he explain his observation.
Emir explained that while Deutschland had a condescending tone when talking, she seemed to have a gaze that was full of fear, almost as if she was trying hard to hide something deep within her and her method of doing so was through a haughty personality.
After hearing this, the sisters glanced at each other in shock before returning their gazes at Emir, who now tilted his head in confusion due to their reaction.
"I am amazed at how perceptive you are Kommandant," Bismarck remarked, while Tirpitz lightly bobbed her head beside Bismarck, with her mouth hanging ever so slightly.
Thoroughly confused, Emir could only give a 'huh' as a response to the sudden compliment.
"What do you mean by 'perceptive'?"
Bismarck peeked at her side and saw that Deutschland was still preoccupied with her drink. Once she had established that, she returned to Emir where she began to explain to him Deutschland's origins.
"You see, during the time we were being brought to life through the Wisdom Cubes, the data that were used to bring her to life were muddled in confusion. Originally Deutschland was renamed to Lutzow, a ship of the Admiral Hipper class. However due to people's perception of her being Deutschland, it resulted in the current Deutschland to be part Lutzow as well.
"So even if she has a somewhat proud personality on the outside; deep down she's the opposite on the inside: she's actually a meek girl who's just afraid to become a pariah, so she acts in that manner to fit in with us I suppose."
After hearing this, Emir was contemplating whether he should talk to Deutschland about her past one day, but at the same time he knew that it must be hard for the girl to talk about her other self, so everyone playing along was only to give her confidence in herself. She was still mostly Deutschland after all.
"I hope one day she'll realise that she won't need such a mask. However seeing as I know very little of her, I'll leave it up to you Bismarck," the commander said, earning him a nod from Bismarck.
After his visit to the Ironblood dormitory, Emir returned to the office where Belfast was waiting for him patiently with a tea set and a small plate of cookies.
"Welcome back young master"- the maid greeted with a curtsy- "how was your visit to the Ironblood dormitories?"
"Oh you heard about that?" the boy asked, following it with a nervous chuckle. "Yeah it went well. What about you? Was your day off fun?"
Nodding in response, Belfast gave Emir a quick run down of her break: which was a day spent with the Royal Maids, teaching them new techniques and recipes to try for themselves.
"Why am I not surprised? She never was the type to relax during any day offs." Emir thought, recalling the times whenever she got a day off she would spend it reading magazines on how to better clean clothes, or cookbooks.
Sitting on the couch, Emir then took a cup of tea and allowed himself to partake in a little sip: as the warm liquid travelled down his throat, it's heat enveloped the walls around it, relaxing Emir's tense muscles and emptying his mind from the stress he had accumulated in the day. With a satisfied sigh, Emir placed his cup down before pinching one of the many different coloured cookies; the buttery scent travelled to Emir's nostrils, enticing his appetite.
Eating the cookies whole, Emir enjoyed it's sweet sugary taste, as it swirled in his mouth making him release an audible moan from the deliciousness. The boy then took yet another cookie but this time he pointed towards the maid, who had just been watching the entire time.
Normally Belfast would have refused the offer, however she knew better than to just reject her young master's requests regarding meals. Taking the cookies off the boy's hand, she then took a small bite, however seeing as she was the one who baked them, her opinion was indifferent in comparison to Emir's.
"Delicious as always Belfast," expressed a smiling Emir at his maid.
"Thank you, young master," the maid replied, trying hard to conceal her glee.
As the two spent their time in a comfortable silence, Emir suddenly remembered his meeting with Deutschland. Not thinking much about it, he decided to tell his longtime companion about his interactions, including what Bismarck had told him about Deutschland and this led to him saying:
"Hearing about how the Wisdom Cubes work makes me want to look into them a little bit more now."
Hearing that made Belfast's eyes widen for a moment. "You have become curious about our existence young master?"
"A little yeah, even though you've been by my side for all my life, I've never really understood how you came to be," Emir mentioned thoughtfully. "Being here can give me that opportunity to get to know you more in a biological sense. You're human, but not at the same time. That makes you all more special than any human."
As she listened to the boy speak, Belfast's fingers curled into small fists and bit her lower lip. She wanted to stop him from learning anymore than he should, but how would that look? Thus, rather than oppose him, the light cruiser made it her duty to protect him if he were to ever delve into something that would put him in grave danger.
Such was the duty as his maid.
To be honest I never expected it to be this long, I just seemed to get lost in whatever I'm doing so it ended longer than I expected; anyways hope you all enjoyed this chapter, only the Sakura Empire left then we're gonna get into the meat of this story, and from there it's all just plot: no daily life chapters, no major side stories, it's all forwards two chapters from now, if anything changes I'll tell you all in advance
Another thing is that I apologise if any foreign languages are inaccurate, since I am mostly using Google Translate and some online dictionaries that sometimes don't work as I expect them to so again I am sorry if certain words and phrases sound wrong or are wrong. I'll mostly use them as greetings or just how the commanders are called, apart from that it's all English.
Once again, as usual feel free to tell me all your thoughts about the chapter, positive and/or negative and thank you all so much for reading, I hope to see you all next chapter :D