A perfectly fitting, sophisticated, dark gray uniform, blending nearly perfectly with the surrounding mist. Slowly Nagato moved forward and immediately the girl appeared again. Ignoring the battleship, she ran just past her, giving her a chance to take a closer look and her attention was immediately caught by a black and silver cross hanging down the girl's neck.
"Schwester Bismarck!? Wo bist du?!", the girl shouted from somewhere behind the mist, in language which Nagato immediately recognized as German. "Sister! Where are you?!"
It took her a while to realize that she could actually understand what the young woman was yelling, only adding to her confusion.
"Sister?! I'm scared…", she started sobbing hysterically. "Sister Bismarck… Please, it's not funny…", the girl's sobbing soon turned into loud, desperate and uncontrollable crying of a lost child. Sister!. Sister Bismarck!. Calls of a scared child, full of panic were and but no answer was to be heard. As the crying filled the surroundings, it suddenly went quiet. Not even echo was left.
Nagato began to press on yet again, and yet again the flash of gold blinked in front of her face. She tried following it with her eyes, but to no avail. When the battleship faced forward, the German was there again. Gesticulating extatically she seemed to argue with somebody, but Nagato couldn't see anyone else.
"Sister Bismarck is the strongest in the world!", the girl shouted visibly excited, even from behind Nagato could tell the dreamy look in her eyes.
"She could sink any other battleship without breaking a sweat!", she continued her passionate monologue with a blind devotion to the German battleship. "This Nagato of yours would stand no chance against the might of the Kriegsmarine!", the battleship's mind went blank after hearing her own name.
Feeling her thoughts fading away, with the last of her will, Nagato slapped her own face and rubbed her eyes in an attempt to stay conscious and looked up, resolved to press on.
"She could sink any other battleship without breaking a sweat! This Nagato of yours would stand no chance against the might of the Kriegsmarine!", the young girl was reenacting her own imaginary argument.
Lost and confused, Nagato's mind fell into an endless and timeless abyss. Minutes, maybe hours, were passing completely unnoticed, as the battleship stood frozen on the brink of madness. Her thoughts mixing into a shapeless mass of memories, ideas and desires.
"Hmm, did you perhaps see my big sister? Her name's Bismarck and she's a battleship! The largest and strongest in the world! She can beat any enemy, but I can't seem to find her anywhere…", the girl suddenly appeared just in front of the battleship, but her empty eyes didn't see the girl anymore. She's become no more than a static noise in the chaotic storm of Nagato's melting mind.
"Are you lost too?", the girl asked closing in just few centimeters from the battleship's face. "I know! Why don't you become my new big sister? It's better to be lost together! What's your name?", she asked with a manic look on her face.
Bombarded with these questions, the tiniest spark of consciousness lit inside Nagato. She wanted to answer, but she couldn't open her mouth… No. She couldn't even remember her own name. Who am I? What is this place? she thought as the dim spark was quickly burning out. She stood there frozen in place, penetrated by the German's blue eyes.
Finally, from the amalgamated mass of what used to be thoughts, a mysterious silhouette came forward. Nagato's broken mind couldn't make out any details, but one thing that stood out. The smile. The warmest, most pure and loving smile she's ever seen. The smile of mother looking as her newborn baby for the first time. The smile bringing hope and life immediately returned Nagato back to her sense.
"Can you hear me? Hello? Can you help me find my sister?", the blonde girl was looking at the battleship with eyes filled with mad curiosity.
"I'm sorry, but I have somebody waiting for me.", Nagato gently moved the girl aside and rush forward, towards the light bearing a promise of salvation.
"How can you leave me here?!", a loud shriek filled the air before the battleship could walk more than several steps.
Instinctively she turned around, but instead of a smiling blonde in a perfectly made uniform, her eyes met a grotesque sight. The same girl who wanted to become her sister was now hanging by the neck on an invisible rope with a broken neck. Her body badly beaten and torn, barely holding together. German's skin was parched and pale, covered in black ashy spots, and her golden locks faded and burnt filled the area with a stink of burning sulfur.
"You will stay here forever!", as her shriek resounded again, as the dead, rotting face twisted in a wicked smile. Slowly, a nightmarish abomination revealed itself from the shadows. Muscular legs, each as wide as Nagato's shoulders, merged into a rod-like thing just above the waist from which the motionless body hanged.
Letting out yet another shriek the monstrosity started charging towards the battleship. As it moved the corpse attached to it dangled limply, the momentum quickly tearing it apart, each limb disappearing in a cloud of ash, until only the head was left. Instinctively Nagato braced for the impact, but just like before the monster disappeared in a cloud of thick black smoke.
Taught by experience and filled with a newfound resolve, Nagato decided to investigate the spot where the abomination evaporated. It didn't take long before she found a German Iron Cross. Inscription written in Latin alphabet read "Prinz Eugen, 1938". Not knowing why, she picked it up and put it in the pocket together with Independence's dog tag.
She turned to face the light again, but something was different. The light. It was much closer now than just a few moments before. Instinctively Nagato reached to her pocket to make sure that the insignia are still there. Filled with energy and hope she rushed forward through the darkness with all of her strength.