The Sirens are relentless in their aggression, they keep appearing out of their portals, and some even spawned inside their defensive perimeter. That caused the ship girls to have to adjust their positioning and maneuver themselves to properly defend their objectives. Seriously, how many of those mass produced ships do these aliens have? Hood observed the ongoing fight, she then saw several of those ships going around their sides.
"Ms. Shoukaku, Ms. Zuikaku, one battle group bearing 275 trying to flank us. Please take care of them." Hood said to the two Sakura carriers on the radio.
"You got it! Let's go, Shoukaku nee!" Zuikaku said to Shoukaku on the radio.
…It's been more than fifteen minutes, and there's no communication from William, Hood believed that William is capable of handling himself in any combat situation, but since he's fighting the Sirens directly, she's quite worried…Hood thought that Takao and Sheffield are more than enough as combat specialists to accompany him, Takao specialized in close quarter combat while Sheffield is more proficient with ranged combat. He knew what he's doing when he selected the two of them. Hood should trust them that they could handle themselves out there…
"Ms. Hood! The destroyers are out of ammo, we'll need to resupply!" Z23 reported on the radio.
"I see. Ms. Nimi, oil rig number three is our resupply base, so head here and rearm!" Hood said to Z23 on the radio.
"Understood ma'am!" Z23 said to Hood on the radio.
"Ms. Belfast, I need you to cover for the destroyers while they're rearming! Spread out and make sure we covered enough water, so none of them could pass through!" Hood ordered Belfast on the radio.
"But Madam Hood, wouldn't that significantly reduce our overall firepower?" Belfast asked on the radio.
"We will make do with battleship barrages and fighter escorts; we will see which lasts longer…them or our ammunition." Hood said to Belfast on the radio.
"Yes madam." Belfast said on the radio.
The fight has gone on long enough that their destroyers started running out of ammo, Hood looked at the wristwatch on her left hand…They've been in the fight for forty minutes, Hood would need a way to end this fight, but since this is a defensive operation, she couldn't send too many ship girls out of their defensive line. The destroyers could perform a raid at the enemy fleet supported by battleships and carriers, withering their fleet before finishing them off with encirclement. Easier said than done…It didn't take long for the destroyers to arrive at the third oil rig that they converted into a field command center. The destroyers were in a sorry state as they took damage to their riggings and several parts of their clothes were torn. Hood greeted them with a smile, the destroyers approached Vestal as she began inspecting the destroyers for damage. The few who took only several grazing hits were immediately cleared by Vestal, Javelin approached Vestal with Laffey then said.
"Ms. Vestal, Laffey received a torpedo back there. Please inspect her." Javelin said to Vestal.
"Oh dear, Laffey, let me inspect your rigging." Vestal said to Javelin while she approached Laffey.
"Laffey is a-okay, Ms. Vestal." Laffey said to Vestal.
"You're a-okay if I say so!" Vestal said to Laffey with a stern smile on her face.
Hood smiled at the sight, she then looked at the destroyers as they're rearming themselves or being subject to field repair by Vestal. Hood then realized that there's two destroyers missing from the group, Ayanami and Carabiniere. Where did the two of them go? The other destroyers seemingly didn't notice that two of their comrades were gone.
"…Wait, Ms. Carabiniere and Ms. Ayanami are missing." Hood said out loud.
"Oh, both of them were requested by Herr Kommandant to help him. Apparently, they're fighting a Siren right now." Z23 said to Hood.
"A Siren? So, Ms. Eugen was right." Hood said with a hand on her chin.
William was on point too when he deduced that the Sirens would be there, but in the end, he had to request reinforcements to fight them…What did they fight there? If Hood had to guess, those that they faced would be Siren ship girls. Hood had quite the experience when it comes to those things, she's been in many fights against them and they're some powerful foe that could be her second end if she took them lightly. She clasped her fingers together; may they be alright and successfully fight the Sirens so they can return…hopefully unharmed.
"Incoming fighter jets!" Tirpitz said out loud on the radio.
"AA guns! Now!" Hood said on the radio.
Every ship girl who was present nearby immediately fired their AA guns; Siren jets made up of multiple squadrons in size swarmed in from the newly arrived mass produced carriers. Missiles and bullets all flew toward the ship girls who had to dodge while gunning at the jets. George gritted her teeth as her AA guns fired nonstop toward the jet swarm, she managed to down four out of remaining five jets that's heading her way, and she finished the last one with concentrated fire. The jet was damaged as it flies down with flames on its body before it maneuvered and slammed the third oil rig.
"They're ramming our oil rigs!?" George said out loud in a surprised tone on the radio.
"No! Attention everyone! Do not let the Siren jets get away! They're doing a suicidal attack on our facilities!" Hood said out loud to the ship girls on the radio.
"Sheesh! How many of those things do they have?!" Nevada asked on the radio as she fired her cannons.
"Yes, there's no end to them!" Kongou said on the radio while firing her AA guns.
"The more the merrier they said, but this is too much." Prinz said out loud on the radio.
Everyone's so busy fighting the jets that most of them lost their focus on the water borne threats, Brooklyn, St. Louis, and Helena were busy firing at the incoming ships. When the nearby ships were sunk because of their relentless fire, they saw that the large fleet had disappeared. The three of them cocked their eyebrows in confusion, how is that possible!? It makes sense if they used a smokescreen, but they didn't!
"Wait, they disappeared?" Brooklyn asked out loud.
"No, they're jumping inside our perimeter!" Helena said with her eyes widened.
"Oh, you've got to be kidding! That's cheating!" Cleveland said out loud in frustrated tone on the radio.
Helena could say that because there are portals opening inside their defensive perimeter, and Siren ships are pouring in while firing their weapons. Brooklyn, Helena, and St. Louis immediately turned around and started firing their cannons again. Cleveland gritted her teeth as she fired her AA guns while aiming her cannons toward the enemy ships at the same time, damn that takes some serious concentration! The cruiser group had to break their line because their enemies were now inside the perimeter, they turned tail as they started chasing after the enemy's main fleet.
"Everyone, defend yourselves! How are you ladies doing with your resupply?" Hood said out loud on the radio before she asked the destroyers.
"We'll need a few more minutes, ma'am!" Z23 said to Hood.
"Do it as fast as you can!" Hood said to Z23.
BANK!
Another Siren jet crashed on the rig; the jet further weakened the structure of the oil rig by hitting the support column that was previously hit. The platform shook and everyone grabbed on to something for stability, they certainly didn't want to be here when another jet hit this platform.
"Another hit!" Z23 said out loud.
"This platform won't hold on much longer! I suggest we evacuate soon, Ms. Hood!" Vestal said to Hood.
"Agreed!" Hood said to Vestal.
"…Wait, that's-" Warspite said on the radio.
"Torpedo salvo! Hood, get out of there!" George said to Hood on the radio.
Several Siren destroyers appeared near them and didn't waste any time launching their torpedoes, the torpedoes hit the struts of the oil rig and the entire platform shook heavily. The damage was catastrophic, the destroyers were just finished with their rearmament and immediately jumped off the oil rig. Hood and Vestal jumped off last, they landed on the water and immediately cleared the area alongside the other ship girls.
"Run! Get away from oil rig three!" Tirpitz said out loud on the radio.
"It's collapsing!" Vestal said out loud as she glided away as fast as she could.
"We lost an oil rig! Commander Johnson, one of the oil rigs has fallen. Be ready for immediate enemy contact!" Hood said to Johnson on the radio.
"Dammit! Alright, thanks for the update Ms. Hood!" Johnson said to Hood on the radio.
"Dear Manjuus, please return to our base and refill the helicopter cargo bay with ammunition…We will need a lot more if we hope to continue the fight." Hood said to the Manjuus on the radio.
She heard chirps on the radio and the helicopter they rode broke off from their patrol route and headed straight back to base…They lost their ammo supply when oil rig three was destroyed, they won't be getting out of this battle intact if they have to fight without supplies. Now that the main fleet is inside the perimeter, this would be the decisive fight. Short and determined, it seems everyone knew the deal as Azur Lane ship girls surrounded the entire main fleet and attacked it from all sides.
"Look at those small black capsules like ships heading for the islands, what are those?" Warspite asked out loud on the radio.
"I don't know, but we shouldn't let them touch the beaches! Fire at those boats!" Tirpitz said to Warspite on the radio.
"…How chaotic." Hood commented as she glided toward the next oil rig.
"It's the battlefield, what do you expect Ms. Hood?" Vestal said to Hood with a bitter smile beside her.
"Right…Illustrious, what's your situation?" Hood asked Illustrious on the radio.
"Currently I'm heading back to your position, our rear line is secured." Illustrious said to Hood on the radio.
"Excellent-" Hood answered on the radio.
"Look at the fifth oil rig! It just exploded!" Cleveland said out loud on the radio.
All stares turned toward the fifth oil rig which suffered a massive explosion and started to crumble down toward the sea, Hood widened her eyes at the prospect of William alongside Takao and Sheffield being caught in the explosion. Hood frantically reached for her radio, she then contacted William, and the others who were involved on that fifth oil rig.
"What's going on!? Lord William, do you read me? Lord William!?" Hood asked out loud on the radio.
.
…He can't breathe, he can't see…William shook himself awake as he's submerged within the crashed Osprey, and he's got no time to lose. He pried open the rear hatch of the Osprey. He's submerged and desperately need oxygen, the hatch opened, and William quickly headed for the surface towards the bright orange light…Breaking the surface of the water, William took in the deepest breath he ever took on his life, damn it felt good to fill his lungs with air even though there's hint of smoke in it…When he looked around though, his eyes widened because around him there were a few ship girls and none of them from Azur Lane's side. He was about to dive in to escape were it not for something slithering around his throat, his eye widened as it constricted upon his neck and lifted him up. William was faced with the previous girl who came out of the portal, staring at him while smirking, and the tentacles on her rigging are making sure he's choked.
"…Hmm, a normal man but quite large. Muscles are well built, and there's signs of old and new injuries…At a glance, you look like the perfect human male specimen. Perhaps, turning you into one of our soldiers would be very beneficial." The girl said while she smiled menacingly.
William tried to free himself from the black tentacles' firm grasp. When he realized that his hands won't do enough, he grabbed his machete from his back, unsheathed it, and swung it down upon the tentacle. That failed however as another tentacle grabbed on his right hand, William didn't give up as he tried to use his left hand which was quickly grasped by another black tentacle.
"Oh, and persistent too. You will make a fine addition to our forces…But wait, did they call you Commander? Are you perhaps their leader in this timeline?" The girl asked William.
Grunting to free himself, William opted to start kicking the tentacles, but his feet were quickly bound by the remaining tentacles. Desperation could be seen in his azure colored right eye, his limbs were locked, and he's starved for air as his face started to redden and the veins on his face could be seen surfacing due to the intense pressure around his neck. Any second now and he could die due to asphyxiation, he's powerless against her.
"What's that? I can't hear you? Am I choking you too hard?" The girl said as she lightened the tentacle grasp on his neck.
William gasped for air, he coughed as his body tried to regulate itself to breathe normally. He felt himself breathing normally, so he looked at the girl, she's staring at him with clear amusement in her yellow eyes. William narrowed his eyes before he tried to budge his hands away to no avail, what the hell is this thing made of?!
CRACK!
"GRAAAAHHH!" William shouted loudly.
That tentacle just snapped his lower right arm by yanking and squeezing it tightly, the pain was unbearable, and William deduced that his bones were probably either cracked or splintered by now. The machete that he carried fell to the sea…Motherfucker that hurts a lot! William gritted his teeth while enduring the painful sensation, he needed to stay focused and quickly think of a way out…Or maybe, this is his chance…He got one of their leaders here, he should seek info while he could.
"I suppose that's better hmm? Could you say something now?" The girl asked William.
"Hah…Hah…Hah…Piss off!" William growled while saying that.
"Ah, the bold type. Even when he's choked, twisted and restrained, he is still able to talk in this manner…Interesting." The girl said while she smirked.
"…What do you want?!" William asked the girl.
"What do I want? I'm but simply an Observer, I watch things unfold…maybe add a little twist to it, to keep it interesting." The girl replied while she smiled.
…Observer? Is that some kind of rank? It's a position to be sure within whatever class system that the Sirens have, but what does it signify? She appeared to be the commander of these Siren ship girls, could she be in the same position as he is? No, although it's possible, the position of the observer could signify something else…Is she a scientist? Was her duty to observe how the war between the two of them goes? But if she mentioned her meddling to keep things interesting, does that mean she just wanted to be entertained?
"You're saying…all of this…is just for your entertainment?!" William asked the girl while he frowned.
"Oh dear, of course not. This is not for the sake of entertainment, it's for the sake of evolution." The girl answered William's question.
"Your evolution or our evolution!?" William asked further…he's been given a clue.
"It could go both ways to be honest." The girl replied while she shrugged.
"…You're forcing us to adapt to your threat! What do you aim to achieve with that? An evolution, with all this effort? You surely have bigger things planned!" William said to the girl in an accusing tone.
War and evolution, those two things in the same sentence don't sound good in the slightest…William could deduce with the fact that the Sirens wanted humanity to evolve more quickly than their natural progression allows them to, what's the greatest way to force one to adapt and evolve? Why yes, threaten to kill them of course. Look at their current world, look at what the higher ups planned on doing, the Sirens' plan is working, and there's nothing humanity could do to stop it…If they want to survive, they have no choice but to adapt. It's not that he isn't confident that humanity can't adapt, we've proven Mother Nature wrong for thousands of years despite several close calls. But if the instigator isn't Mother Nature, but another species which could be more intelligent and technologically advanced than them, safe to say their entire future is now a blank canvas…There are two painters for the picture of humanity's future, humanity and the Sirens. Who's the one who will be able to complete the painting? That remains to be seen. Will humanity let the Sirens control their future evolution or say fuck that we make our own road?
"…Hahahahahahaha, you're an interesting one! Long have we fought with you, countless of 'commanders' surfaced to meet us. But none of them were exactly like you, sure few are close enough…But you're the first one that I've sensed to be…different." Now what the hell is this load of bollocks!?
"You're not making any sense, stop talking in riddles! Guh!" William said before he grunted, the tentacle on his left leg was tightening.
"Now don't make me snap your leg…I'm sure to be their commander you must possess some degree of intellect…Answer my questions, your answer will determine your fate." The girl said while she smiled menacingly.
…He has no choice in this matter, does he? He couldn't do anything as long as he's under this girl's mercy, maybe he should play along for now and try to buy time for his ship girls to reach this place. William looked to his right side without moving his head, it seemed there's a battle raging over there between them…Damnit.
"War." The girl asked.
"…A form of negotiation." William answered.
"Rules." The girl asked.
"…An instrument for order." William answered.
"Children." The girl asked.
"…A hope for the future." William answered.
"Death." The girl asked.
"…An end of a journey." William answered.
"…Miracle." The girl asked.
"…Something impossible to happen." William answered.
"Yet, your people believed in miracles and look where that brought you, the cubes." The girl said to William.
"No…Those are no miracles; those are a field of knowledge…that we haven't properly mastered yet." William answered with a straight face.
The Wisdom Cubes! Some (majority) people believed that the cubes are a miracle item, even some called it Pandora's Box with the unlimited potential these cubes had. The Sirens one way or another knew about this, could they be using the same technology? If William had to guess, they are. Also, those cubes' origins were unknown as William himself didn't know how they were produced except for High Command. Despite William's attempts to coax information from Lucas, the man reasoned that not even William should know about how and where the cubes came to this world…All he could get was the fact that High Command would give him cubes if he needs them…Sketchy, but he'll let that slide for now because that was a top secret that only people within the top military leadership alongside some scientists working in secret knew about…
"…I see now. Ah, to think this provocation yields a result different from our prediction! It seems, you could open many paths of outcomes…You're not a singularity by any means, but you have a potential to make different choices than your other selves…" The girl said out loud while she grinned.
"What are you talking about!?" William asked the girl.
"In due time, I'm sure you will understand…Now off you go. We will meet again, if you survive this one." The girl said to William.
Without any other warning, the girl folded her tentacles before throwing William off somewhere to the sea. He hit the water hard, his right arm and his left leg were unresponsive, so he strived hard to get to the surface. Something pulled him up by the collar of his clothes, and he saw the one who did. Takao was the one who pulled him up while Enterprise aimed her bow toward the ship girl.
"…Takao? Enterprise?" William asked out loud.
"To think the both of you are here…Ufufufufu, Code G and T would loathe this sight. Now, until we meet again, Commander~" The girl said out loud while she smiled meaningfully.
"Oh no you don't!" Enterprise declared.
Enterprise released her bow strings and the arrow blitzed through the air toward the girl who summoned a portal out of nowhere, she entered it, and the arrow missed. William realized that something warm was dripping on his left side of his face, he went and touched it to see blood…Oh, now he just realized that he might have banged his head during the crash…The other ship girls also joined, and they were frowning upon seeing his condition.
"Tch, I missed!" Enterprise said out loud while she frowned deeply.
"…It's one thing after another. So much information she dumped on me." William muttered to himself.
"They're not letting up shikikan-dono, we should retreat." Takao suggested to William.
"Alright, we'll retreat from this place for now…Ayanami, Carabiniere, you head back first and make sure our path is clear." William said to the two destroyers.
They saluted him and immediately glided back toward their defensive perimeter…This served as an important lesson for him, he can't face an enemy ship girl directly. He might need some method to combat them if he's forced to, but William now knows that he shouldn't engage them if he encountered one in the future for now, not that he can do it in the near future too seeing his dysfunctional left leg and his crippled right arm…
"…Could you please escort me back to the oil rigs?" William asked Takao.
"Sure, hold on to me." Takao said to William.
Takao tried to lift him up and William grunted in pain, Takao realized that he's hurt badly somewhere and decided to immediately inspect her commander. His right arm was bent on the odd direction and his left leg was flailing as if it's been unhinged…William sensed that Takao was staring at him then looked at her, she frowned and tried to position him better in her arms and decided that piggybacking him would do the best.
"Shikikan-dono, tell me if it hurts. We'll need to get you patched up." Takao said to William while she frowned.
"Don't worry it's nothing fatal, though you're right that I need a medical check-up...Enterprise, we need to go for now." William said to Enterprise.
"Yes commander! Takao, you go ahead of me, I will cover us with my bow!" Enterprise said to Takao.
They alongside Sheffield who remained quiet, gilded back toward their defensive line. Along the way William witnessed that Siren ships managed to get inside their defensive perimeter, how did that happen? But he scratched that thought for now because he had to hang on to Takao, she's gliding swiftly while evading several stray projectiles or pulse laser shots. William heard his radio producing static sounds before he heard someone's voice, it's Hood.
"Lord William! Are you alright!? We have tried contacting you for a while now, everyone near the fifth oil rig was disconnected from our radio channel!" Hood asked William on the radio.
"They probably used some kind of jammer, we're on our way back to you." William said to Hood on the radio.
"Then head toward oil rig two, oil rig three was destroyed by a close range torpedo salvo, there's nothing we could do." Hood said to William on the radio.
"I see…Johnson, you there?" William asked Johnson on the radio.
"Commander, you're alive! We lost contact with Romeo Six and Charlie Three! What happened!?" Johnson asked William on the radio.
"…We were shot down, I'm not sure if there's any survivors beside me…I'm sorry Johnson." William said with a hesitant tone on the radio.
"…Copy that, we'll send a Search and Rescue boat over there once the situation with these Sirens is resolved." Johnson said to William on the radio.
Arriving at oil rig number two, Enterprise remained on the water's surface while providing whatever assistance she could against the main Siren fleet alongside Sheffield who rejoined the fight. Takao stopped before setting her stance, she was making sure that William was secure so he wouldn't fall off of her when she jumped to the top platform.
"Shikikan-dono, hold on tight!" Takao said to William.
Takao propelled herself upwards, both her and William landed smoothly on top of the platform. Hood and Vestal smiled upon seeing them, that smile however turned into deep frown when both of them saw William's condition. Takao helped William walk while Hood also went forward and grabbed his left arm and shouldered him, Vestal went to a nearby desk and cleaned its top.
"Oh commander, look at you! Sit down over here!" Vestal said to William while she frowned.
"…I'm glad to see you return despite your injuries, milord." Hood said to William.
Glad? Maybe, but her expression said she knew this was going to happen, and that she's clearly dissatisfied with the outcome…Yeah, William's got no comeback for that. Seeing as Hood did warn him about this. Perhaps he should just…keep quiet and answer what's necessary? Sounds like a plan. William sat on the table as Vestal inspected his injuries, he stared at Hood while offering his most convincing smile…He's going to face a scolding, might as well try to disarm the one who will scold him.
"Yeah…good to be back Hood…how's the fight?" William said to Hood while he smiled.
"…Not doing so well. We lost two oil rigs already and the Sirens are not giving up-" Hood said to William.
CRACK!
"OUCH! Vestal, that hurt!" William said to Vestal while he scowled.
"There. Fixed it, next is your right shoulder. Hmm…this might hurt a bit" Vestal ignored William as she touched his right shoulder and-
GRUK!
"Argh! A bit, you said!?" William asked Vestal while gritting his teeth now.
"Now don't be such a child commander, you're in luck that your left leg is only dislocated! Your right arm was dislocated too, but your lower arm would need to be examined with a CT-scan! As for your head, you're lucky it's only a small wound! I will advise you to rest after this battle, you will need time to recover and working would only slow your recovery down! I will personally strap you to a bed if you ignore doctor's orders, commander." Vestal barraged him with her diagnoses.
And he could feel that Vestal wasn't joking about that threat in the end, William wasn't the one who'll let anyone threaten him but…Vestal was doing this for his own good, he himself knew and was told that working after this fiasco would only slow down his recovery, and he don't want to be confined to bed rest for possibly a week! He should be glad that among his subordinates there's people who genuinely cared for his wellbeing, even he assumed that Hood would side with Vestal no matter what…
"Right…Thanks Vestal." William said to Vestal while he smiled a bit.
"You're still going even though this is the possible outcome of you going to the frontline? You know you don't fight humans anymore, right?" Hood asked William with hands on her hips…
"Eh, job hazard. I know what I'm heading into." William gave her a wry smile.
"I guess nothing could change your mind about this?" Tread lightly William fucking Blaze, minefield ahead…
"…Because of this, now I understand more about these Sirens. Powerful, manipulative, and cunning…they're a foe who should not be trifled with. If a mere observer is that powerful, what would happen if their whole civilization invaded us…or even their leaders?" William asked Hood…come on, take the bait…
William admitted it, he's bad at mind games and especially when it involves a woman as his opponent. But this subtle psychological skirmish with Hood, he had to win it because he didn't want to get told off in front of Vestal and Takao, he preferred it if she did that back at base. Oh, why did William assume that Hood would tell him off about his blunder tonight? Well of course, she's his secretary, it's also her job to make sure he's doing his job well and after being with her for a while…William knew she's one tough lady who's not afraid to go against her commanding officer, even if she didn't look like one.
"…Considering if they have one…It could be our end." Hood said as she looked to the side…Oh, god still showed mercy on him.
"Precisely. We need to quickly research a better way to handle their threats…But for now, let's focus on this battle. This is Commander William Blaze, ladies, I'm assuming command back from Hood. Status report." William said to Hood then asked out loud on the radio.
"Destroyer group here kommandant, we are raiding the Sirens main fleet!" Z23 said to William on the radio.
"Cruiser group here master, we are heavily engaged with the Sirens' vanguard." Belfast reported on the radio.
"Battleship group here, we're still providing fire support!" Tirpitz said to William on the radio.
"Copy all…Shoukaku, Zuikaku, Illustrious, what's your status?" William asked the carriers.
"Zuikaku and I are currently making our way back to the defensive perimeter, shikikan-sama. We were previously engaged with one of those Siren ship girls." Shoukaku answered on the radio.
"Illustrious here, I've just arrived near your position milord. I'm going to assist the battleships now." Illustrious reported on the radio.
"Alright, everyone has checked in. Stand by for further orders." William said out loud on the radio.
…William sensed something was wrong. Yeah, his right temple was throbbing, he started to feel the pain on his lower right arm, and god he felt nauseous. That's what you get when you survive an airplane crash, molested by tentacles, then thrown into the ocean…That just sounded like a generic doujin plot, hell, William is sure that story exists somewhere within the internet.
"Vestal…Morphine please." William said to Vestal while he grimaced.
"Sure." Vestal said to William.
Vestal summoned a small syringe from a small bag she carried with her, she went to William's neck on the right side and injected morphine in him to numb the pain. Waiting for a bit to get the drug working, William then slowly felt that the pain eased up, and he could perform normally again. Though, he refrained from using his right hand because he knew something was wrong there, and he preferred not to damage it more than it already did.
"Ah…I feel better now. When my adrenaline burst was done, the pain was quite excruciating." William said to Vestal.
"What happened to you? How did you receive these wounds?" Vestal asked William.
"Oh, shikikan-dono was captured by a Siren leader. He was ensnared by her tentacles then thrown away to the sea…" Takao said that out loud.
…William stared at Takao before looking at Hood who was cocking her eyebrows at her testament, and Vestal who facepalmed. The man had no choice but to sigh with the fact that he didn't need a reminder of what happened to him, and he learned his lesson already. Maybe he should ask the science department if they have anything that could possibly combat these Sirens ship girls or leaders directly, if they didn't have one then they could always make one.
"…At least I'm alive, so please stop staring at me like that and let's put that under the bridge for now." William said out loud with half opened eye.
"…If you say so. Anyway, what should we do?" Hood asked William.
"Now we wait until the Sirens make their next move. We got our defenses set up, it's either them or us." William said to Hood as he stood up.
Staring at the battlefield in front of him, William noticed that they already thinned the numbers of Siren ships in their main fleet, but at a cost losing two oil rigs, and damn that will significantly impact the oil production this facility can do. William was contemplating when he heard his phone that he stored on the waterproof pocket ringing, the caller is Lena…Shit, William did tell her of what was going on, but didn't he say that he'll handle this? Maybe she just wants to check up on him. William pressed to answer her call and put his phone on his left ear.
"Hood, tell me if there's a situation that requires my attention…Lena, what is it?" William said to Hood before he answered the call.
"Will, I require a situational report on the battle." Lena said to William on the phone.
"Don't you have the entire Azur Lane Battle Network to do that?" William asked Lena on the phone.
"Well apparently the battle network's live situation projection couldn't show us everything, there's a limit to what we can see from satellite broadcasts. Details, I need it and fast." Lena said to William on the phone.
…Right, satellite positioning and the giant camera strapped on them would still have its drawbacks. For example, repositioning them would take a while, and safe to say after the war there's not many of them left around Earth's geosynchronous orbit. There's a reason why William didn't use any sort of holographic projector to see the real time overlay map of today's battle, the satellite in the area was currently inoperable, so their function is limited to communication relay only.
"Okay…For the opening, I think it's safe to say with the fact that these Sirens were led by someone that called herself Observer. But I think she's also under the command of something or someone else…" William said to Lena on the phone.
"How do you know that?" Lena asked while scrutinized eyes.
"…Close quarter face to face encounter under the romantic envelope of black tentacles?" William said to Lena on the phone while he grinned awkwardly.
"Hah…you were captured, why am I not surprised? This is not the first time you pulled this trick." Lena said to William after she sighed on the phone.
"In my defense, I didn't stage it this time…She's extremely powerful, even I assume that our ship girls would have a hard time if they have to fight her. Their ship girls also made their appearance through the same portals we've encountered, they're as powerful as ours too…More bad news, the Sirens possess a humanoid species that probably serve as their infantry. The image and brief video you've shown me indicate nothing of such other than brief flashes of energy projectiles, something which neither Azur Lane nor Crimson Axis has within our arsenal." William said to Lena on the phone.
That's exactly why, none of them could get any proof other than eyewitness accounts which are quite unreliable, since none of the reports stayed consistent. But William got to experience that directly and he survived the encounter without being traumatized, plus he's got more aces in the hole than a cheater in a game of black jack. William made sure that the small attachment the size of a pinky strapped in his combat goggles' left side was still there, it's a small combat camera that has enough memory to record for two days straight…This footage will go viral within Azur Lane soon.
"You faced them in close quarters, what's your take on it?" Lena asked William on the phone.
"Don't let any of our infantry get too close to it, their strength is abnormal and capable of cracking skulls and bones easily. Fortunately, our guns still work against them but…It'll take several bullets to down them even with headshots, I had to put six 7.62 rounds against one's head before it died." William said to Lena with serious tone on the phone.
"Well, a normal human would've died six times over. Dammit, giving our soldiers more ammo won't solve it in the long run, what do you suggest?" Lena asked William on the phone.
"Get a new and more powerful gun." William answered on the phone while he shrugged, heck it's obvious.
"Easier said than done…But, let's talk about that later. Anything else?" Lena asked William on the phone.
"Oh yeah, I found something that could correlate with the disappearance cases. Our civilians were…captured and cocooned by black biological vines, everyone who we found being attached to those black vines underwent changes such as snow white skin and uh, yellow reptilian eyes…Basic assumption? Either they're being used as a biological material source for the Sirens or they are being converted into something else…your pick?" William asked Lena on the phone while he frowned.
"I'll go with them being converted into something else, this sounds like something you would read in your spare time." Lena said to William in somber tone on the phone.
"Yeah, but seeing it directly is more disturbing, smells awful too…Unfortunately, we can't collect direct evidence as the fifth oil rig was now at the bottom of the sea." William said to Lena on the phone.
"I see…Thanks Will, at least now I got something to report. I need you to hand in any kind of evidence and report as soon as you can, if we have to act fast then those reports will have to reach us faster." Lena said to William on the phone.
"Right, I'll do that." William said to Lena on the phone while nodded his head.
"See you later Will, be careful out there." Lena said to William on the phone.
…Lena got what she needed, the holographic screen that shown the status of her call disappeared from her desk…Lena sighed again, she had been quiet about it, but she clearly knew that William was injured during the engagement. How? He sounds down and exhausted. That man could fought for hours without showing fatigue in his voice, his tone become like that whenever he try to shrug off his injuries and Lena could pick that clue like its second nature…Deep down inside she's glad that he survived, but she's exasperated with the fact that he's being reckless about it, then she began rethink as they're the ones who gave him this task, and they leave the method to accomplish the task up to him, so of course this would be the end result…She massaged her left temple, this could get him killed one of these days…Lena reached for the office phone and dialed the numbers she wanted…She waited a bit, and the call went unanswered. She tried again and this time it was answered by the person on the other side of the phone, there's loud sounds of machinery as the person told Lena to wait for a bit so she could find a quieter place. Finally, the person talked to Lena after waiting for half a minute.
"Yes Lena?" It was Diana Blaze.
"Mrs. Diana, I might need your help." Lena said to Diana on the phone.
"Oh dear, is there a problem? How can I help?" Diana asked Lena with a concerned tone on the phone.
"I need something built, remember that thing you're prototyping for deployment within this decade?" Lena asked Diana on the phone.
"…Darling, that thing is still nothing but a blueprint. Even though that still needs a lot of configuration, it will take time. Month's perhaps, that's only to complete the blueprint." Diana said to Lena then sighed on the phone.
"Yes, I know that, that's why I'm relocating emergency funds from the Gremlin Initiative, you're going to need it for the resources and manpower." Lena said to Diana in a serious tone on the phone.
"Dear heavens, that's a lot of money! Why do you insist that this thing be built as soon as possible, Lena?" Diana asked Lena with a shocked tone on the phone.
"…I got a feeling I'm going to need it in the near future." Lena simply said to Diana while she grimaced on the phone.
…Back on Terania, William grimaced at the sight he's seeing. The battle still raged ahead of him, but with Siren ship girls in the fray. Azur Lane will not hold back against them, the ship girls' concentrated fire successfully withered the Siren ships' formation, one by one falling under their intense gunfire and torpedo salvos. Their carriers are having an easier time as they continuously bomb Siren ships who can't move an inch without losing one of them. William noted that those Sirens weren't trying to pull back…They're pushing up against them…Oil rig two was being rushed by those Siren ships.
"They're coming!" William said out loud.
"Hold on!" Takao said to William.
"We're getting off-" William didn't finish his sentence.
William was grabbed by Takao as they, alongside Hood and Vestal, jumped off the second oil rig. The place they were on was soon bombarded by pulse lasers and energy projectiles; William knew that they're aiming to cripple Azur Lane's base capabilities by trying to starve them for oil...So what to do next? Their only active rigs that are going last would be oil rigs one and four, splitting the defensive force to defend those rigs or focus on eliminating these ships as fast they could? Landing on the surface of the water, William had to rely on Takao who's giving him a piggyback. Hood was firing at the nearby ships while Vestal used her AA guns to prevent Siren jets from getting close to their position, currently there's not many of them left…But things could change anytime because the Sirens could just send another set of reinforcements from their portals, there's no telling how many ships they have prepared for this battle alone.
"Milord, should we go to rig one?" Hood asked William.
"Yeah, let's go there." William said to Hood.
"Blaze, this is Johnson. I've taken the liberty to call our second strike force, they're on route." Johnson said to William on the radio.
"Roger that Johnson, tell them to immediately attack those ships." William said to Johnson on the radio.
"Sure thing." Johnson said to William on the radio.
"Incoming!" Hood said out loud.
A Siren jet squadron found them and was diving toward them while firing their weapons, the missile barrages forced them to dodge and maneuver so quickly that William was having a tough time holding on just with his left hand. Then, a bomb dropped in front of Takao and the shockwave threw her back alongside William…The man fell into the sea once more, he swam to the water's surface and saw that the jets were focusing on them…Wait…William saw that oil rig two was still there, only the part where they were on was targeted…The Sirens are trying to kill him! Now William realized that those ships were following him, he was right as those ships were closing in on him in the distance…William started to rack his brains, how is he going to use this to his advantage? He needs a way…Ah, that's it…Someone pulled him out of the water once more, this time it's Hood who shouldered him on his left side.
"Milord, we best get going." Hood said to William.
"Those ships are trying to specifically kill me, Hood." William said to Hood.
"Are you certain about that?" Hood asked William while she slightly frowned.
"Positive. There's a small island over there, let's see if my theory is correct…If these ships are automated, then we could use that to our advantage." William said to Hood.
"Understood milord." Hood said to William as she started cruising toward the island.
"Attention all ship girls on this channel. Head to grid H7 on your tactical map, we're going to lure Siren ships over there. Circle them around and finish them off!" William said out loud on the radio.
"Kommandant, how are you going to do that?" Prinz asked William on the radio.
"I have a plan. Let's see if it works well." William simply replied on the radio.
"Understood master. Ladies, you've heard our commander!" Belfast said on the radio.
"Battleships, we got a target to rain with lead. Onwards!" Tirpitz said on the radio.
"Let's go, everyone!" Z23 said on the radio.
Cruising to the island while being rained on by shells was difficult to say the least, but eventually they succeeded in reaching a small island just a few hundred meters in diameter. Hood, Vestal, and Takao disengaged their riggings while William let go of himself from Hood, then they started running away from the beach as the ships behind them chased while firing their guns at them.
"This is like the beach assault on Normandy but being hit by friendly support fire by accident! That's why you recon the water's depth level before commencing shelling while deploying your troops!" William said out loud while running.
"That sounded awfully specific!" Takao commented beside William while running.
"Because I witnessed that happen back then!" William said to Takao while running.
The group entered a forested area, the shelling didn't stop as the Sirens kept firing in their general direction. After entering deep enough into the forest, William didn't hear any more projectiles or pulse lasers being fired at them…Finally, the group stopped to catch their breath. Hood suspected on why the Sirens stopped firing then decided to looked at the beach area, she gasped at what she's seeing…
"Milord…" Hood said in a low tone.
"Yeah, what is it Hood?" William asked Hood.
Hood didn't say anymore but she returned the binoculars to William, he took it and looked through it to the beach area and safe to say he froze upon what he saw. Dozens of those creatures he saw back on that oil rig were there, how they got here was a mystery, but he knew that those creatures were currently following their footsteps in the sands…Goddammit, William thought this would be over simply with the Siren's fleet being destroyed. William sighed as he noted that there are only two effective combatants in this group…
"We got no choice but to fight, we're taking the initiative…Hood, Takao, I want you two to obliterate anything within a forward ninety degree cone from our position." William said to both of them.
"We're going to fire blindly? Milord, that's reckless, we could hit our friends." Hood said to William.
"I know, keep your guns a little low from the horizon. That should prevent your shells from flying too high and perhaps hit those Siren ships on the beach." William said to Hood while he smiled a bit.
"I can take care of them shikikan, my blade is ready." Takao said to William as she unsheathed her katana.
"I can't risk that approach, there's too many of them. If we let them get too close, we're dead…Fire barrage for a minute, then we're relocating." William said to Takao.
"…Understood." "Yes milord." Takao and Hood said to William.
They summoned their riggings again, and this time they immediately unleashed bombardment toward the direction William told them to fire, the creatures were soon greeted by shells on their location. Sand flew upwards as the shells hit the beach, trees exploded or fell down due to intense shots, the creatures screeched as they were being decimated, and all the while Hood and Takao relentlessly fired their cannons blindly. When one minute has passed, what's left in front of them was a decimated forest with a deformed beach area and dead black creatures with yellow blood spilling out of them…
"It worked." Hood said out loud.
"Good effect on target, let's move." William said to the KANSENs before he walked away.
But William forgot that there's Siren jets in the air, and they were still hunting him. When they fired at those creatures, they had revealed their position and with the forest gone, they are easy target. One jet dived toward the group, Vestal, Hood, and Takao noticed and immediately fired their AA guns. That successfully forced the jet to pull up and leave, but before they could cheer in relief, they saw something fall toward them. An unguided bomb, dropping down at full speed.
"SHITE! TAKE COVER!" William shouted as he dived to the ground.
BOOM!
.
…William groaned as he opened his eyes, his vision was blurry, so he couldn't make out anything he was seeing…He then listened for the sounds around him, he heard low humming of a machine…He tried to feel the air, it's cold enough…but he didn't smell anything other than a sterilized room, wait those things are only used in medical facilities. William fully opened his right eye and his vision was steadier than before, he looked at the white ceiling above him. He sat up despite the soreness of his body and inspected his surroundings, oh he got mixed feelings about what he saw. He's undoubtedly back at their base, within the infirmary no less. He was on the bed, dressed in a white shirt and black boxers, his left hand had an IV attached to it, and his right hand was in a sling with a cast on it…heh, guess it's broken in the end. He felt wrappings around his head, possibly bandaged for his head trauma. He touched his left eye with his left hand, he didn't feel his eye patch there…William tried to move his legs, they're still working so yeah…He managed to survive with light injuries, this much William would still call light…
"You're awake." He heard a voice from his left side.
"…Lena?" William asked out loud as he turned to the left.
Sat beside him was Lena, dressed in her uniform with a book in her hand. Lena smiled as she put the book down on the nightstand beside her…William sighed as he rested back on the bed, he felt at ease knowing that he's back at base, and Lena is here. Well, except if he dreamt any of this, and he's actually dead on that island with his limbs torn and a severed head…Shaking his head to clear those thoughts away, William looked at Lena once more.
"Don't worry, I'm no hallucination Will…How do you feel? Any pain?" Lena asked William, as if she read his mind.
"Should be, but I guess the painkiller is in overdrive or something…What happened? Did we win?" William asked Lena.
"I'm pleased to say, we did. Casualties among our forces were light, while we dealt a heavy blow to the Sirens' fleet, losing that many ships won't be good for them…We lost two oil rigs back on Terania though, that will slow down production but not to critical levels-" Lena said to William while she smiled.
"The ship girls, how are they?" William asked Lena without letting her finish.
"They're unharmed, save for minor cuts or bruises which have already healed by now thanks to Ms. Vestal." Lena said to William.
Sighing in relief, William felt his body at ease with the news that everyone is alright. Does that mean Hood, Takao, and Vestal survived the bomb better than him? Obviously…The ship girls could take more hits than just a bomb, they could even take cannon fire without being injured too much in the process whenever they got their riggings up. He looked at the window in front of him, he heard the faint commotion of girls doing their daily activity…
"You're quite worried about them." Lena noted to William.
"Of course I am…If they're happy and healthy, then that's good." William said out loud.
"…You were being reckless back there, Will." Lena said to William in low tone.
"Hood, you, why does everyone call that move reckless?" William asked Lena with cocked eyebrows.
"Because you chose to face the Sirens as infantry. I and by extension the girls, have no qualms when you fight humans but Sirens are another thing. You're one of the best we have that's for certain, but not even that is enough when facing them. You should've stayed in the helicopter like the previous engagement which was far better than facing them directly on the ground, in my opinion." Lena said to William in serious tone while she gazed at him.
"Why? Because I'm a normal human?" William asked Lena in a snarky tone.
"Precisely because you're a NORMAL human…You need to remember your position Will, by rank you're supposed to be commanding from the rear even on the frontline. You were given special privilege if you faced human combatants, not the Sirens…Please remember that, your life is even more invaluable now than your time back on Task Force Nimbus." Lena said to William while she frowned.
Yeah, frankly speaking Lena was right regarding that. William was supposed to stay within a vehicle or stay in the back commanding the girls when facing a Siren from now on, as long there's no such thing that could enhance his combat capabilities, then he should play it safe at the moment…It doesn't suit him, he worked best when commanding directly in the front…But yeah, he thought that he had to adapt with the situation because there's no way he'll let himself get killed anytime soon.
"Hah…Alright, I'll think it over." William said to Lena after he sighed.
"I know you'll understand…Look, the girls were worried about you. For the past three days they've been constantly checking up on you, heck, even they took turns staying here." Lena said to William while she smiled.
"Three days huh…" William muttered…He's been unconscious for that long.
"Hood already took care of all the paperwork for you, that woman is quite dedicated to her job…Oh, look to your right." Lena said to William.
He felt bad about leaving all the paperwork to Hood, maybe he should reward her later…William looked to his right and saw several wrappings in various sizes. There are various cards attached on them too with writings of 'Get Well Soon' on them, there's their names on the cards too…William smiled as he took one with his left hand, it's from Ayanami that wrote 'Get well soon shikikan, we miss you – Ayanami'…Aww, he's touched to say the least.
"Those get well soon gifts? They were from the girls who participated in the battle, they said that your strategy gave them the upper hand." Lena said to William while she smiled.
"Well, I didn't do much to be honest." William said to Lena with a bitter smile on his face.
"…If you say so, Will." Lena said to William while she smiled slightly.
They heard the door open, and both Lena and William turned their heads toward the only entrance to the room. There stood three girls talking, which stopped when they saw William looking back at them. William sat up as if to greet them, he then offered them his smile. He knew they were fine, but seeing it directly beats being told about it every time…
"Hood, Belfast, Enterprise." William said to them while he smiled.
"Milord, it is good to see you awake!" Hood said to William while she smiled widely.
"Good morning master, I'm pleased to see you regained your consciousness." Belfast said to William as she bowed while smiling.
"Commander, how do you feel?" Enterprise asked William while he smiled.
"I'm fine, don't worry. Good to see you ladies are fine." William said out loud as he straightened his posture.
"Mrs. Lena, I'm here with the food you requested." Belfast said to Lena.
"Ah, breakfast, finally." Lena said to Belfast as she clasped her hand.
Indeed, Belfast came in while carrying a tray with her. Lena took the plate from her as William put the gift back to stack on his right side, he heard Lena start to eat as she could be heard savoring the food in delight as if she hadn't eaten for days.
"Wait, how long have you been here?" William asked Lena without looking.
"Just arrived here at dawn, work kept me from visiting you for a bit, but here I am now." Lena said to William.
"Hmph, French toast for breakfast always gets you raring in the morning." William said without looking at Lena.
"You know me so well." Lena said in a soft tone.
"What can I say, we've spent ten years with each other." William said to Lena while he stared at her.
…But that piece of info put time on halt for the three other girls in the room, that's the first time they heard about this piece of information. If Lena and William have known each other for ten years, then that means they already know each other even before their time working together…If William is currently twenty six years old, then that means they have known each other since high school…
"…Ten years?" Hood asked Lena.
"Oh, I haven't told you? Will and I met for the first time back in high school." Lena said to Hood while she smirked confidently.
""Eh?!"" Hood, Belfast and Enterprise said out loud.
"…Damn, I'm getting hungry watching you eat. Smells good too." William said to Lena while he frowned.
"Why, you want this? Do you want me to feed you?" Lena asked William while she grinned and showing the piece of toast on her fork.
"Stop teasing me woman, and do share it if you want to!" William said to Lena while he scowled.
"Fufu, too bad!" Lena said to William then ate the toast on her fork.
"Aww, really? That's a low blow! I'm hungry!" William said to Lena while he frowned.
"Don't worry master, I already prepared another meal for you. I shall grab it from the pantry." Belfast said to William while she smiled.
"And that's why I didn't share it." Lena said to William while shrugged.
"How did you know I would be awake today?" William asked Belfast with his eye widened.
"Just call it Maid's Intuition." Belfast said to William as she left the room.
"…She's scary sometimes." William muttered to himself.
Belfast came back around two minutes later carrying a tray with a bowl of hot chicken porridge, damn the smell alone already got William's mouth salivating, and his stomach growled as it demanded to be fed. William looked down then looked at Belfast who was smiling smugly while staring at him with half opened eyes when she heard his stomach growling…Man, that sadistic stare was-. No no no, stay focused! He was about to reach for the bowl when he realized…Yeah, his right hand busted, and he's not left-handed…
"So…who wants to feed him?" Lena suddenly asked out loud.
"I'm not some pet, Lena! Context!" William said to Lena while he frowned a bit.
"You're the one who makes it weird! Because I have to prepare for my presentation, I will have to sit this one out." Lena said to William as she put the empty plate on the nightstand.
"Presentation?" William cocked his eyebrows.
"You and Lucas talked about it already, I'm sure you know what I'm going to be presenting today don't you?" Lena asked William with hands on her hips.
…Oh yeah, that aspect about ship girl's biology. Guess Lucas finally told her that and asked her to be the one who will present this knowledge to the ship girls? If anyone asked why was she's the chosen one? First, she's a fellow woman. Second, she already knew several of the ship girls on this base, so she's a familiar face. Third, she did know a lot of things regarding biology, she basically aced her biology class back in high school.
"Ah…yeah, I just remembered that." William said to Lena.
"Next time, do give me a head's up, will you?" Lena said to William while she stared with half closed eyes.
"Next time for sure." William said to Lena while he cringed, he knows she's a bit mad regarding the secrecy.
"As his trusted leader of the first fleet, I'll be the one to feed him." Enterprise suddenly said out loud.
"As his maid who serves him, I believe it's my duty to see to my master's health." Belfast said out loud with a calm tone.
"As his personal secretary, nursing him back to health should be handled by me." Hood said out loud while she smiled.
"Great, it's on." Lena clapped her hands once as she stood up.
"You're doing this on purpose!" William said to Lena with an exasperated look.
"I am, consider it a little payback. Good luck Will~" Lena said to William as she waved then left the room.
"For what?! Oh you conniving-" The door was shut by Lena.
"Who are you going to choose milord? Belfast, Enterprise or me?" Hood asked William while she smiled.
"…Damn you Lena…Fine, if it comes to this then I choose-" William said out loud with a serious face.
…Lena exited the infirmary building while smiling amusedly at the carnage she just put William into, that's what he gets for making her worry. Lena walked away from the building before she stumbled upon a blonde wearing Ironblood clothes. That person she saw is Bismarck herself, and she's heading to the infirmary. She carried a bag with her which Lena deduced that must be some kind of get well soon gift to her commander, Lena approached Bismarck as she finally noticed her.
"Ah, Admiral Lena." Bismarck said to Lena.
"Ms. Bismarck." Lena greeted Bismarck while she smiled.
"I heard some commotion, is he awake?" Bismarck asked Lena.
"Yes he is, and he'll be fine." Lena said as she smiled at Bismarck.
"I see…that's relieving." Bismarck also smiled a bit upon hearing the news.
"Is there something you need with him?" Lena asked Bismarck.
"No, I just want to check on him, but if he's currently occupied then I could do so later." Bismarck said to Lena.
"Walk with me then, I could use the company." Lena said to Bismarck before she started walking.
Bismarck thought for a bit, and she surely don't want to interrupt her commander right now if he's busy, she opted to walk with Lena for a while…Bismarck had only talked to Lena once when they were having breakfast on her first visit to this base, Lena and her engaged in long talks about many things regarding Azur Lane and Crimson Axis…Bismarck found that Lena is a lot more relatable sometimes in her ways of warfare, she didn't expect that from someone within Azur Lane.
"…I heard that you're here to give us a presentation. I saw the list of attendees, why does it consist mostly of leaders and…ahem, mature ladies?" Bismarck asked Lena.
"Why do you think?" Lena asked back with a smile on her face.
"Does your presentation contain knowledge that the little girls shouldn't have?" Bismarck said her assumption.
"At the moment? Yes, you could say that…But spoiling it to you here wouldn't be good, so you have to attend that presentation if you're interested." Lena said to Bismarck.
"I'm planning to, Admiral." Bismarck said to Lena while she slightly smiled.
"Great, the more the merrier" Lena said to Bismarck while she smiled.
"The entire base was shocked when we learned that kommandant was the only one who was severely injured during the battle, most of us believed that he's strong enough to face the Sirens." Bismarck said out loud.
Yes, that's when the illusion was shattered. Back then, they witnessed that William is capable of fighting Zuikaku directly, but they didn't account that it's just training, and both of them were holding back from killing each other…Out there, the Sirens gave zero fucks about it, and that's how he got injured. Bismarck heard that he survived encounters against their infantry but succumbed to their ship girls' firepower…
"…He's a normal human Ms. Bismarck, there's nothing a normal human can do when he has to fight enemy ships or jets without any enhancement…He fought their infantry well, winning one on one duels with them easily. But that's as far as he could go against them, he would never be able to fight a ship or a jet like you girls do." Lena said with a little frown on her lips.
"I understand that…The previous battle showed us another example that there's a limit a normal human can do in this fight against them, it only strengthens our resolve to fight the Sirens…at least within the Ironbloods." Bismarck said to Lena.
"Is that so, then that's good…Plans are already being made to counteract these disadvantages but it'll take time, so you girls have to fight on a bit longer with little support." Lena said to Bismarck.
"Ja…It seems that would be the case." Bismarck said to Lena while she nodded her head.
The stroll they took brought them to Akashi's shop where the little green girl with cat ears could be seen manning the store. She looked bored, and her ears perked up when she saw Lena and Bismarck walking in front of the store. Lena herself stopped a bit when she saw Akashi, she got inside the shop, and looked around for a bit…Akashi herself got a prediction on what she wanted to buy, but better to ask it to confirm her suspicion.
"Oh, why if it isn't the Admiral? Looking for anything to buy nya?" Akashi asked Lena.
"Ms. Akashi, not at the moment…But just in case, do you have any gift wraps?" Lena asked Akashi.
"Of course I do nya, those were hot deals for two days seeing many girls want to give shikikan a get well soon gift. Do you also want to give one nya?" Akashi asked Lena, she was right.
"Later when he's not so occupied, I'll be here to buy that later in the afternoon." Lena said while she smiled a bit.
"Alright if you say so nya, I'll reserve one for you nya." Akashi said to Lena.
"Thanks…Oh, I left my phone back there. Let's grab it in a bit." Lena said to Bismarck.
"Sure. Later Akashi." Bismarck said to Akashi.
"Hai Bismarck-sama." Akashi said to Bismarck.
Lena and Bismarck headed back to the infirmary and opened the door, the sight was enough to leave the two of them stunned. There on the bed was William, who is currently bare chested, being wiped with a wet towel which was held by Belfast on his right side. Enterprise sat near his feet massaging it alternating between his thighs and lower legs, she massaged it with enough strength to even produce cracking sounds on some of his joints. Hood sat on his left side while holding a bowl of chicken porridge, she spoons fed him while smiling…the man himself looked as if he's in bliss, munching warm food while being cleaned and massaged all by three beautiful ladies…The sight was unexpected by Lena, she had thought that William would've been troubled to choose between the three of them. But the bastard managed to turn the tables on her as he chose the three of them to take care of him, an ingenious but dastardly maneuver that could only be pulled by men who weren't a bunch of beta male anime protagonists. Bismarck was left stunned and confused, is this what caused the ruckus she heard before?!
"…What the hell?!" Lena said out loud.
"Oh, hi Lena. You left something?" William asked Lena as if nothing happened.
"My phone and how did it come to this?!" Lena asked William while she folded her arms.
"You didn't specify that they could only feed me, I'm using all the resources given to provide myself with comfort…as it turns out, they agreed with me. See? A good commander must prevent infighting between his subordinates, just like you said once~" William said to Lena while he grinned smugly.
And he used her own words against her, for fuck sake Will. Lena remembered that during the early days when Task Force Nimbus was operational. There's often disagreements or even rowdy fights between them, because they're basically an elite task force that were joined together from multiple branches and nations, of course it'll result in that. Lena, who at the time still held the rank of Rear Admiral, advised William who are just promoted into Major with those words he just used against her, technically that could also be applied to this situation…William just realized that he transferred branch into the navy from marines, not that it matters much since within Azur Lane itself transfer between branch is common to happen when necessary…It just happened so seamlessly that William kind of just realized it now.
"…Well played you greedy motherfucker." Lena said to William while she scowled.
"Ooh, Lena, you cuss like a sailor!" William said to Lena while he looked shocked.
"Basic training did wonders to me, Will." Lena said to William while she grinned.
"Sometimes I forget that you're no longer that innocent, shy girl carrying a laptop everywhere during high school, how time flies." William said to Lena while he grinned.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah, and you are no longer that geek I found hidden in the deepest corner of the library with those dorky fake glasses on you, how time flies~" Lena said back after rolling her eyes and smiled at William.
"Touché." William said to Lena while he smiled wryly.
"You two are like an old married couple." Bismarck commented from behind.
"Ah Ms. Bismarck, good morning. Taking a stroll with the admiral?" William asked Bismarck.
"She wanted to come here, but seeing you're busy she opted to wait." Lena said to William, Bismarck nodded in affirmation.
"I see…Well in any case, how's the preparation?" William asked Lena.
"Yeah, I'm ready now, I'll be waiting for my time in the auditorium." Lena said as she took her phone on the nightstand.
"Good, break a leg." William said while nodding his head.
"Breaking my leg then. Later~" Lena said while waving then exited the room.
The atmosphere was tense for a few seconds after Bismarck said those words, Hood, Enterprise, and Belfast knew that the topic was something neither William nor Lena wanted to talk about, and Bismarck who doesn't know about it made that remark. All four of them noticed that when Bismarck said that, both William and Lena flinched at the same time which must've had some impact on them…Regardless of that, the two of them purposely avoided the topic with William asking Bismarck that question and Lena following along, both of them are in sync even without communicating directly with each other.
"Kommandant. Are you fine with Ironblood's beer as your get well soon gift?" Bismarck asked William while showing the bag on her hand.
"You know, Ironblood's beer is the kicker you need when you got to cut loose. But I'm not sure Vestal would appreciate her patient drinking." William said to Bismarck while he cringed at the thought.
"I think it's fine." Enterprise said to them.
"Oh yeah, she's your caretaker Enterprise, so you would know her the best-" William said to Enterprise.
"As long she doesn't find out" Enterprise said out loud while looking to the side uncertainly…
"…I take that back. But oh well, what is life without risk eh? Belfast, could you please grab several glasses? Let's drink it together." William said out loud then asked Belfast.
"Understood master." Belfast said as she finished wiping him with a wet towel.
"Milord, this is the last one. Open wide~" Hood said to William while she smiled.
William opened his mouth and Hood fed him the last bit of the chicken porridge; ah this is bliss. His body is clean, his legs feel better, and his stomach is full, so it's all right in the world currently. Never he had thought that he would end up like this in the past, guess he'll have to appreciate what happened to him despite the headache and bodily harm the past events gave him…Bismarck thought of him as a hardened veteran who got the best and the worst out of the previous war, seeing him capable acting like a teenager, such as now, bewildered her to be honest.
"There, now your tummy has something in it..." Hood said to William as she put the bowl down on the nightstand.
"Thanks Hood." William said to Hood while he smiled.
"…I see you like being pampered like this, kommandant." Bismarck said, unsure what to make of the sight.
"What can I say? There's no straight man who dislikes being pampered by three beautiful girls, Ms. Bismarck." William said while smiling.
"…I guess that might be the case." Bismarck said while shrugging.
.
…Back at Azur Lane Central Headquarters, Fleet Admiral Lucas Carville, otherwise known as the Azur Lane High Commander, was seated in a relaxed position in his office chair with his feet on top of his desk. Listening to Sabaton, he was enjoying the music while drinking a bottle of Jack Daniels. Ah, now that he didn't have paperwork duty for the first time in weeks, he could finally relax a bit before having to go meet the Crimson Axis Chairman who planned to visit their headquarters at noon. That was, until his phone rang, and he knew it meant trouble.
"Ye-" Lucas didn't get a chance to say hello.
"Lucas! I agreed with the fact to be the one presenting this to the girls, but are you seriously going to put this material as one of the things I have to tell them?!" Lena was livid at him to say the least.
"It's the truth Lena, that's the main point of doing all of this in the first place!" Lucas said as he put his feet down.
"But you can't be serious about this plan, aren't you? This is unheard of before!" Lena was half shouting by this time.
"I've talked with William about the possibility, he doesn't seem to mind." Lucas said to Lena in an easy going manner.
"…He didn't?" Lena was taken aback by the news.
"He didn't. He's a visionaire, he knows we're going with this route sooner or later. But to do that, it will take time and the necessary effort. Doing this would cement the relationships between him and the girls." Lucas reasoned with Lena.
"…I know this will happen somewhat, but isn't this too early? What if it fails?" Lena asked Lucas.
"Hah…If you felt so, then feel free to omit that part from the rest of your presentation today." Lucas said to Lena after he sighed.
"Huh, you're giving me the liberty to do that?" Lena asked Lucas in a confused tone on the phone.
"It's your presentation, you're free to do so…But take heed Lena, if this experiment succeeds, then you'll have no choice but to explain that part to them too." Lucas said to Lena as he looked to the ceiling.
"…I understand. But seeing the situation as it is now, I won't talk about this." Lena said to Lucas in a firm tone on the phone.
"Very well then…You're the one directly responsible with the base's development alongside William, I'll let you two handle it. But I hope my directive is clear?" Lucas asked Lena also in a firm tone on the phone.
"Crystal." Lena simply said to Lucas on the phone.
"Good. Now do your best." Lucas said to Lena while on the phone he smiled a bit.
"Thank you, sir." Lena said to Lucas on the phone.
Lucas ended the call, he huffed in exasperation at the difficulty in managing international armed forces, especially the special division filled with ship girls…Seeing that he won't accomplish anything, and the fact that his tranquility was disturbed by that phone call, Lucas stood up from his seat as he looked outside to admire the fortress known as Azur Lane Central Headquarters. Lucas hardened his gaze as he looked back to his phone and saw a message come from the Research and Development division, alongside the message was an attached blueprint which he immediately opened…
"…They work fast huh? I guess this means a green light for phase one of Plan Bellator Luminis." Lucas said out loud while he smiled in satisfaction.
Updated: 03-11-2021 (Beta Readed by Culture-Hunt3r)
Boi, that's a wrap for now. Thank you for the follows, favorites, and review dear readers. I never get bored saying that since that means a lot to me…Anyway, that's a wrap for the battle, a bit shorter than the previous one, but oh well, I have to cut it short due to several reasons. Want to let everyone know as well that I don't have schedule, so uploads could be either happened next week since chapter release or…well…months since then. Hopefully, it won't reach years eh? But still, stay tuned for the next one!
Until next time
- Dasmara