"Byron," said an understandably annoyed Commander "just what do you think you're doing?"
"I am making sure that you don't overstep your bounds and reminding you about your place in this alliance," replied Byron.
"Fact of the matter is, those three are humans first and therefore they fall under the jurisdiction of the Human Resistance. You have no authority over them."
"Do you even know their names?" asked the Commander and Byron's brows furrowed in response.
"Aside from that, don't forget that they've got Siren technology on them. The only ones here who understand the tech are the members of my research group."
"You'd be surprised at how much our scientists have figured out since your arrival," countered Byron.
"You and I both know this has nothing to do with that," said the Commander "out with it: tell me why you just ordered your soldiers to point their guns at me."
"You have more than enough power than necessary," he replied "if you reverse engineer Siren technology there'd be no one to stop you."
"Damn it Byron your paranoias getting the better of you," interjected Alec "James isn't interested in power."
"No one's ever interested in power till you dangle it in front of them," said Byron, glaring at Alec then turning back to the Commander "James, tell your fleet to lower their weapons."
"And if I don't?"
"Then my soldiers fire," came the reply and the girls grew tense. They all glanced at each other and then to the soldiers.
"You're bluffing," countered the Commander.
"You think he's bluffing?" asked Alec who was shocked by the statement.
"You and I both know that all your noise and bluster is just that: noise," said the Commander "you know that if you make the wrong move, I can just as easily order my fleet to pack up and leave."
"You wouldn't dare," warned Byron
"Try me"
"James, back down now," said Byron.
"James," said Alec.
"Let's see which is faster, your bullets or my boots?"
"Damn it James," warned Byron.
"I call Executive Order," shouted Akagi, surprisingly everyone.
"What?" asked Alec and Byron, who were confused by the statement.
"Akagi, you wouldn't," said the Commander.
"You are pushing your luck too far damn it," countered Akagi "if I don't reign you in, no one else will."
"What is going on?" asked Byron to Alec, who shrugged. However, now was not the time to explain things.
"As you've heard, the Commander is about to go do something incredibly stupid," said Akagi. "Unlike other times, this one could put him in significant danger. Do we allow him to go through with this or kill the plan?"
"I vote no," she added.
"I also vote no," said Tirpitz.
"I vote no," said Queen Elizabeth on the communicator.
"I vote no," said Yorktown.
"I agree with Akagi on this," said Yat Sen "my answer is also no."
"I'm sorry Commander," said Rossiya, looking at him "but we can't let you go through with this. I vote no."
"It is a no from me," said Richelieu.
"Well there you have it Commander," said Akagi "a unanimous answer."
Alec and Byron watched as James let out a sigh and returned to normal.
"Alright then, I will agree with the decision made by the fleet leaders," he said.
To emphasize that point, he turned to Byron and said "you can go ahead and take them with you. I won't interfere."
"Finally, a voice of reason," said Byron as he turned to Akagi "at least someone here knows when to put their foot down and keep the child in place."
"Careful Byron," warned Akagi "or else you'll have to deal with me and unlike my husband, your bullets won't make a scratch on me."
"Alright everyone," declared Enterprise "let's all calm down and head back to base. We can point our guns at each other there."
"I think that's something we can all agree on," added the Commander "Ark, can you form your ship for us?"
Ark Royal instead glared at the many soldiers who were pointing their guns at the Commander. When Byron saw this, he gestured for them to lower their weapons. Ark then turned around and headed to the shore, where she formed an aircraft carrier.
One by one, the team got onto the ship and soon enough, they were heading back to base.
Throughout the journey, the team was separated into two groups. One team comprised of Byron and his solders, the other consisted of Alexis, Blake and Marie while the third was the Commander and the girls. Alec took it upon himself to continually check on the trio's state and was alternating between them and the Commander's group.
"Honey," said Akagi, looking apologetic "are you... mad at me?"
"I have no reason to be mad at you," he said, while Belfast lifted the back of his shirt to survey the damage.
"You were only using it for its intended purpose," he added then winced as Belfast applied some antiseptic on his back.
"Well I for one completely agree with Akagi's decision," added Belfast
"Really?" asked Roon
"Master, recently you've taken it upon yourself to try and get as injured as possible in each mission," she said "I have continually voiced my concerns yet you always ignore them. At least we have Akagi to pull you in."
"Agreed," said Enterprise, entering the conversation "out of everyone here, you should be the last one charging into the fray and protecting others from cannon fire."
"Yeah," he said, sighing "in hindsight, I should have thought things through a little longer."
"Um, Commander," said Javelin, along with Kinu, Suruga and Wales "we've passed the thirty-minute mark."
At once, the Commander, Enterprise, and Akagi turned to the trio. To their surprise, they found that there was no change to their mood or behaviour at all. They remained the same.
"Hmm," said Enterprise "if I recall correctly, it was around this point you turned."
"Yeah," said the Commander "this is only making things more confusing."
"Still," said Akagi "it would be wise of us not to let our guard down at all."
"Agreed," said Enterprise and turned to Javelin, Nimi, Ayanami, Laffey and Z46 "keep an eye on those three. They so much as look at anyone the wrong way and all bets are off."
While the girls stared daggers into the trio, the Commander quietly analysed them. Alec did his best to try and make Alexis, Blake and Marie feel comfortable, but there was no denying the tense atmosphere on the way back.
Byron saw the trio as a weapon to rally the human resistance under. The Commander saw them as ticking time bombs. And the trio… what did they want?
That question ran through the Commander's mind as they reached the island. Once there, Byron hurriedly shuffled the trio away from the Commander before he could get a word in. Alec said that he'd go along and see what happens and the girls split up in different directions. Akagi accompanied the Commander to the hospital, mentally preparing himself for the talking down he would receive from Vestal and Yorktown.
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"What the hell do you mean you can't reverse engineer the tech?" barked Byron to the doctor after hearing some unwelcome news.
"I'm telling you exactly that," said the doctor "trying to even wrap my head around that technology is like trying to explain quantum mechanics to a clam."
"But you're a doctor," said Byron "surely you must have some knowledge on what to do."
At this question, the doctor shot a surprised look to Alec then turned to Byron.
"Just because I'm a doctor doesn't mean… for God's sake those three are a combination of biology and technology in a way that baffles, confuses and downright astounds the mind. You need a think tank of the world's greatest geniuses and months, no years of research to even figure out how this technology functions."
"So, what do we do then?" asked Ingrid "we can't let this opportunity go to waste. We have to use their powers to help humanity rise up and fight back."
"The only thing I can suggest is leaving those three in the hands of people who know and have dealt with Siren technology before," said the doctor.
"And who would that be?" asked Damien "I don't see anyone here that matches those qualifications."
"He's talking about James," said Alec "the Azur Sky has more knowledge about Siren technology than any of us do."
"No, we can't do that," said Byron "not after that incident."
"What incident?" asked Whitney.
"The one where Byron ordered his soldiers to point his guns at James," said Alec.
"What?" shouted Whitney, slamming her hands on the table. "Are you insane?"
"I couldn't let him take away our one chance at gaining an advantage over the enemy," said Byron.
"Well, whatever the situation is, we're in a tight spot," said Lakshmi, leaning back into her chair "I doubt he's going to help us after what you did."
"He will if Byron apologizes," said Alec and Byron stared daggers at him for even suggesting the idea.
"He's right," said Whitney, and the other agreed "right now, we need his help and an apology from you will go a long way to soothe relations."
"But…"
"Think about it like this," said Damien "we need James right now. In the event of a Siren attack, his fleet is the only force capable of repelling the enemy. However, after your piss take, what's to stop him from ending the alliance?"
"We shouldn't be focused on placating some wounded moron's ego damn it," said Byron "we need to focus our attention on using those three to their fullest capabilities and not rely on James' fleet to do so."
"And I'm telling you there's no way humans can figure out Siren technology before our enemies blow us to kingdom come," countered the doctor.
While the bigwigs continued arguing over what to do next, Alec decided he'd had enough. He took a few steps back, turned around and headed out. When he did, he was surprised to see what he found or, what he didn't find.
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"Can I just say that I am totally against this idea?" stated Marie "I mean, shouldn't we be waiting there like Byron told us to?"
"First of all," said Alexis "he didn't tell us anything, he ordered us. Secondly, you're free to turn around and go back if you want. But I for one have no intention of staying here and letting them dissect or chop me up like an animal."
"We don't know they might do that," suggested Blake.
"Think about it, really think about it for a second here," said Alexis "they don't know a thing about the enemy's technology and they're looking for anything they can do to change that. If they can get even the tiniest bit of information about how Siren tech works, they'll happily dice us up into little pieces to make that happen."
"That's why we're much safer if we go to the Commander."
As she said that and the trio entered the island, they were greeted by the sight of Sheffield, Akatsuki, Curacao, Kirishima, and Curlew all pointing their weapons at them.
"I knew this was a bad idea," said Marie and the trio immediately raised their hands up.
"Stay right where you are," warned Sheffield "any funny business, any at all and I end you."
"We're not here to cause anyone trouble," said Alexis taking a step forward but Akatsuki flung a kunai at the ground ahead of her. The action prompted her to immediately take a step back.
"Like I said we don't want to do anything to cause trouble. All we want is your help," said Alexis.
"Why would we help you?" asked Sheffield.
"Because we're friends remember?" she replied "before all this happened, the three of us came here practically every day."
"That was before you became a Siren," said Kirishima "we can't take any risks."
"Alright how about this," said Blake, sitting down and lowering his head "let Alexis speak to the Commander. In return, Marie and I will stay here."
Marie, Sheffield and the rest were caught off guard by the statement and they looked at Blake, wondering if he was joking or not. The fact that he remained rooted in his spot indicated that he meant what he said.
Sheffield was about to turn around when he saw a half-dressed James and Belfast coming towards them.
"Master," said Sheffield, immediately lowering her head to him, as did the rest "how did you know what was happening?"
"There are cameras all over the place Sheffield," replied James, buttoning his shirt "the moment they came in, Penny, Arizona, California and Tennessee told me what was going on and I came here."
Then, he turned his attention to the trio and said "let me guess, you're scared they're gonna cut you up and use you to study Siren tech, right?"
The fact that they said nothing only confirmed his doubts.
"Please James, we need your help to stay safe," said Alexis.
"Here's the problem with that," said James, crossing his arms "as much as I have my doubts, this isn't a unilateral decision I can make. A decision like this is sure to affect the tone and condition of my fleet."
"Belfast," he said, turning to his head maid "gather the faction leaders in the meeting room. Looks like we'll be doing a second Executive decision today."
Belfast nodded and headed back. James meanwhile turned to the maids and ninjas and said "please keep an eye on them till the meeting is over."
"I don't need to remind you the situation you're in," said James to Alexis, Blake and Marie "the girls don't trust you and are looking for a reason to end you. Don't give them one."
With that said, James headed back to the base. Seeing as they had no other option, Alexis and Marie also decided to sit with Blake.
It didn't take long for Alec, Byron, Whitney and the remaining heads to reach the island. When they arrived, the sight of Alexis, Marie and Blake sitting quietly while a group of maids and ninjas had them at gunpoint sent all the wrong signals.
"What is the meaning of this?" asked Whitney "why are you pointing your weapons at them like they're some threats?"
"Until James has returned with a decision, we will treat them as such," said Kirishima.
"This is insane," barked Ingrid "how dare you point your weapons at our own people?"
"As I recall," said Alexis "you had no problem putting us on the chopping block just a little while ago."
"That's…"
"You heard wrong," corrected Byron "we were simply exploring other options and alternatives."
"And did you ever think to ask what we wanted?" asked Blake, standing up and marching to them "the second you looked at us, all you saw were weapons, tools meant to use in the war. But James was different, he tried talking to us like we were people. Hell, he injured himself to protect us."
"Blake, stop," said Alec. Blake was about to dismiss Alec's warning when he remembered his situation. Realizing that any sudden outburst would be a terrible mistake, he took a breath, turned around and headed back to the group.
"So, what are you saying?" asked Damien "you're going to side with James? You're going to help him?"
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"Absolutely not," said Yorktown, standing up "I will not agree to having the enemy literally at our doorstep."
At his request, Belfast gathered the faction leaders for a meeting. There, he summarized what happened and informed them that the trio were looking for help. It went about as well as you'd expect.
"We cannot deny the tactical opportunity this gives us," said Tirpitz.
"Tactical?" repeated Queen Elizabeth "kindly elaborate."
"During the first and second war, we've only ever reacted to Omega's moves," she elaborated. "When she attacked, we retaliated and that was it. Omega had an absolute control over her fleet that we had no idea what her next plan was till it was too late."
"Think back to the closing moments of the second war," she continued "had we known that Omega had that monstrous dreadnought as a last resort, we could have planned ahead and created a counter plan. Instead…"
She didn't complete her sentence and instead, lowered her head.
"It is a tantalizing prospect," said Akagi "but if we do this, then what's to stop Omega from using them to gather information on us?"
As the groups voiced their thoughts, James noticed how Rossiya and Richelieu remained silent.
"And what about you two?" he asked, turning to them "what's your take on all this?"
"I don't think a sub faction leader can take part in conversations like these," said Richelieu.
"Nonsense," said Yat Sen "everyone's opinions here matter. That's why James called all of us."
"Exactly," said James "alright everyone, listen up. The only way to decide what to do next is to take a vote."
"So I want all of you to close your eyes. We're doing a blind vote."
"Are you sure?" asked Queen Elizabeth "seems a little outdated."
"It's the only way we'll reach an answer," he replied "and if I'm not wrong, I'm sure either Alec or one of the resistance leaders are about to barge in and raise all kinds of hell. Before that happens, we need to come to a decision."
With that said, the girls closed their eyes.
"Raise your hand if you want to send them back to the Resistance."
He noted the answer then went with his next question.
"Raise your hand if you want to help them hone their powers."
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With the vote cast, the group dispersed and James headed back to the trio. He was not surprised to see Alec and the rest also there when he arrived. Byron was the first to notice him and immediately started barking about the audacity of James' moves and that he's been manipulating Alexis, Blake and Marie to side with him.
James ignored the finer details of the rant and casually went past him.
The remaining leaders looked at him and waited for his response.
"As of now and until deemed otherwise," he began "the group of Alexis, Blake and Marie are a part of the Azur Lane. I will personally train them to hone their skills and my research team will deconstruct the Siren technology, without causing any harm to the user."
"He can't do that," shouted Byron to Whitney
"Who gives you the right to do that?" shouted Ingrid to James.
"You are overstepping your bounds James," warned Lakshmi.
"Additionally," he said, ignoring their words "any information and updates with regards to Siren technology will be shared with the Human Resistance through Alec or other go-betweens."
On hearing this, everyone was understandably taken aback.
"You can use those developments to improve the army," he said and turned to the trio.
"I… I can't believe he just did that," said Byron.
"Can he, can he really just do what he wants like that?" asked Damien.
"Even if he can't, I doubt anyone here's going to stop him," chimed in Alec.
"James," said Alexis, quickly getting up and bowing to him "I can't thank you enough for going out of your way to help us."
"You have my eternal gratitude too," said Blake, bowing his head "from now on, I'll help you with whatever you want. Anything at all, just say and I'll do."
"Thank you, James," said Marie "for everything."
"I wouldn't be so quick with heaping that praise if I were you," said James.
"As I said before, I'll be personally training you to hone your powers and well, you'll be singing a very different song once I put you through your paces," he added while cracking the knuckles in his metal hand.
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Later, when the day was over and the sun was setting, Alec was asked to come to the meeting room. There, he saw James sitting in his usual spot with a complicated expression. It would seem as though there was something else weighing heavily on the Commander's mind and he required another's opinion.
On noticing another person's presence, James' expression changed and returned to normal. Alec closed the door behind him and took a seat at one of the many chairs dotted around the table.
"Thank you for deciding to train the three of them," said Alec "between the humans being scared and the leaders wanting to use them as a weapon, I wasn't sure which one was worse."
However, James said nothing. There was no expression on his face. The intent sent the message that Alec shouldn't have to beat around the bush.
"I checked the logs," he said, finally bringing up the topic James was no doubt pondering.
"And? What did you find?" asked James, finally breaking the silence.
"You and I both know what I found or else we wouldn't be having this meeting," stated Alec, but James didn't react. Instead, he leaned back on his chair and waited for him to continue.
"It makes no sense," said Alec, "according to the logs and satellite images, we were leaking that radiation ever since we took the cubes out. The Sirens had our location from the get-go and they could have hit us anywhere during transit."
"Instead, they attacked us right at our destination," he said "and based on what you saw, it sounded like they were waiting for us to get there."
"I've run the scenario in my head enough times now," said James "Alpha had too many ships with her to be an escort and the volcano was nowhere near any established Siren patrol route. Additionally, I even suspected that they were using the location to test out a new weapon and we coincidentally happened to come there at the wrong place."
"Yeah," said Alec with a scoff "there's no way something as neat and tidy like that could happen."
"Occam's razor," said James, and Alec nodded in agreement. The two could spot hundreds of what-if scenarios they wanted, but at the end of the day, they had to face facts.
There were only a handful of people who knew the plan. Alec, James, the faction leaders and the resistance leaders. The soldiers and girls that accompanied them were briefed on the mission after they were in transit.
The only way for Alpha to have known their location was if someone leaked it to her before they set off on the mission. Alec, James and the girls were immediately eliminated from the pool of suspects for obvious reasons.
Through the process of elimination, Alec and James were left with an uncomfortable truth on their hands. The pair exchanged troubled looks as they both reached the same conclusion.
They were dealing with a traitor.
(AN: sorry for a late update. I shifted houses last week and we're busy settling up. Also, next chapter might be shorter than usual.)