Commander Blaze, a front line commander story

by Dasmara

Meet William Blaze, a veteran who royally screwed his last mission and was thrown into prison. But when The Sirens invaded, Azur Lane High Command need him once more and so he is reinstated. His new job? Command the beautiful ship girls and give The Sirens big F you in the face. Join them as William balanced his daily life between dealing with the girl's antics and killing Sirens.

41. Looming threats

"…And that's all I know"

William, Richelieu and Jean Bart are seated in front of Victoria and processed the information that she just told them…This research facility is Iris in origin but Azur Lane took direct control of it around a year ago, it was clear that Iris kept the island more in mind than the laboratory as they didn't really care about the research being conducted here. They trusted that Azur Lane won't experiment on anything that could devastate the whole island and that's their only condition before letting Azur Lane took over, Iris Orthodoxy only cared about keeping the island pristine. How about the radar and communication jamming that they're experiencing now? Strangely, it happened just when ALASUC entered the airspace around the island. The conclusion? This is but another bait for ALASUC to come, Sirens know what they are doing and safe to say they are pretty much aware that William alongside the KANSENs are involved in this. Are the Sirens going to conduct another test? Probably, but what concerned William the most is the Siren leader who is surely around this area and must be in control on whatever that thing which shot them down.

So far though, there are no signs of them…Iris fleet led by Charles de Gaulle is still enroute to this island, they will at least have support from Iris Orthodoxy's mass-produced ships and ground forces. What about Azur Lane's forces on standby around Egypt? There's a specific reason why Victoria didn't call for them on the first sign of trouble…Its forces are under the command of Admiral Johnathan Ashville, one of the most vocal Azur Lane Council members when it comes to Lucas and Lena back on HQ. William have been warned regarding the man and so did Victoria by Lucas, if that admiral knows on what's going on here? He will undoubtedly try to get the AI for himself and his cronies. The last thing they want to do is to give these guys a leg up, it will be disastrous for them if those people managed to wrestle control out of their hands.

"…It was quite fortunate that Lucas warned you about the admiral" William commented while he smiled a bit.

"Truly, keeping this whole ordeal in the dark hasn't been easy. But we managed to do so in the end, the scientists around here have heard of Admiral Ashville's…lust for technological improvements" Victoria said to William while she frowned deeply.

Ashville is known as a man who want to keep his forces ahead of everyone else by using advanced technology, he didn't hesitate to field test any new weaponry or vehicles that is technically still a prototype. As a result, his forces are well equipped and quite experienced in handling the prototypes they have on their inventory, even using it actively against Siren forces in several skirmishes around Egypt's coastline. But he is too ambitious, the man only cares about the technology he could gain and he won't care on how to acquire it. Victoria has been under pressure for years by the man ever since he took up his post on Azur Lane Middle East Region, she had reluctantly sent few prototype technologies his way and when she refused? The facility is attacked by 'unknown infiltrators' that stole the technology he wanted. Ashville feigned ignorance and even sent a halfhearted apology for 'not being able to respond' the attack in time due to the time to mobilize a QRF and blah blah blah, that is the reason why Iris Orthodoxy sent GIGN operators as part of the facility's guard, a direct request from Victoria herself as the head researcher of the facility…William knew that he's among the one that's sowing chaos within the council, William need to stop him. Subtly, yet permanently if he could.

"…We still have no clue on whatever that shot you down, Monsieur Blaze. It might be wise for you to discuss that with the other military members, not me. But I am pleased to say that we do have some spare resources on this facility that might be useful in order to repair your damaged dropship. I will allow the Manjuus that are with you to check them so they can assess whether it is useful for the repair effort or not" Victoria said to William while she smiled.

"Thank you, we appreciate that. I will tell them about it later…Well, can I count on your help while we're here, Ms. Victoria?" William asked Victoria.

"For sure, monsieur. You could count on me" Victoria said to William while she smiled.

"Excellent…Richelieu, Jean Bart. You two along the rest of the Iris KANSENs need to hold this facility, I will head back to the town" William said to Richelieu and Jean Bart.

"That won't be necessary" A voice suddenly said to William.

"Huh?" William asked out loud.

"The battle is almost over, commander. Siren forces are retreating from the town" TB informed William as her face appeared on his HUD.

"Retreating? Something's off" William said to TB.

"Records indicated that Siren ground forces did retreat from combat area if they are facing disadvantageous situation, commander" TB informed William.

"…You're not wrong, but they surely have something in store for us...Could you give me a situation report?" William asked TB.

"Yes commander, please open your palm" TB said to William.

William opened his right palm and TB projection appeared on his hand, TB snapped her fingers and summoned some kind of banner displaying a status report regarding something in lightning quick pace before a massive screen appeared in front of him. A bird eye view displaying an island, the Celestial Garden itself. Not a second later, icons littered the screen in the shape of blue and red arrows alongside some designation for the blue icons…

"…This is quite detailed; did you access this via nearby satellite?" William asked TB.

"Not with the interference happening all around this area, what I shown you is a data projection that I have compiled based on radio chatter, helmet cameras and other sensors coming from both Iris forces and ALASUC members. As you can see, Siren forces retreated to the west plain near the town. I detected several Siren dropships approaching the area, possibly to pick up the remaining Siren Troopers. The Brawlers are performing rear guard action around the entrance that prevented any of the Iris Orthodoxy marines to pursue them…Update, the dropships are destroyed. It would appear that ALASUC KANSENs have managed to land severe blow by long range gunnery" TB said to William as she stared at the screen.

"Impeccable timing there, ladies…That would mean we would only need to mop up the rest of them, then we can send the civilians back to the town once we're done with the cleanup" William said to TB.

…TB can compile tons of information gathered from various source then shown it in a comprehensive manner for immediate intel? Holy shit, William couldn't help but to think that TB is massively better compared to AIBOU. A sentient AI like TB could very well be his aid whenever he has to hack Siren tech, ALASUC would benefit greatly with her on their side. Not to mention, she would be an effective defense against any cyber-attack to their base system…But despite all of those benefits and advantages, William couldn't help but worry as he stared at TB who managed the screen from his right palm. TB didn't seem to mind being on William's custody, saying that he's the one who will be taking care of her from now on. But still, he couldn't dismiss the fact that she is a Siren creation, an AI for Orochi nonetheless. What if one day she decided to go rogue? She is a sentient AI; she can think for herself and that could result in a severe backstab if TB decide to return to Siren's side. He'll want his eye on her, maybe he will try to talk to her and see where her allegiance lies when the situation dialed down for a bit.

"Commandant, I don't mean to overcomplicate things but…This site is a cultural heritage, it would be wise to minimize the damage to the island itself" Richelieu said to William while she frowned a bit.

"Contrary to what you said, you do overcomplicate things" Jean Bart said to Richelieu as she shot her a look.

"Jean, you do understand that this place is so valuable to Iris and her people? A proper care must be taken, especially when we fight on its grounds" Richelieu said to Jean Bart.

"Look, there will be some damage whenever a fight happened. You can't do anything about it, none of us want to spare a quarter against the Sirens just because you don't want to see a flower getting hit as collateral" Jean Bart said to Richelieu while she frowned.

"…Then the least we could do is to limit any collateral damage by making sure our shots hit the targets" Richelieu said to Jean Bart while she frowned.

"That could work, but don't count on it too much" Jean Bart said to Richelieu while she folded her arms.

"Jean Bart is right, Richelieu. Don't worry, I'm sure there's some people out there that could help with the restoration once this whole situation is over" William said to Richelieu as he stared at her.

"When? So, it's not over yet?" Richelieu asked William while she frowned.

"Didn't TB said The Sirens were retreating?" Jean Bart asked William while she folded her arms.

"Yeah, but I know better than to conclude the fight here. They're not done yet, and so are we, especially with a mysterious entity on the loose" William said to Jean Bart

"Right, that thing which shot us down. How do you plan on finding that thing? Patrol the entire area?" Jean Bart asked William.

"Honestly, that's the only method that crossed my mind for now. We can't just leave without destroying it…Ms. Victoria, are there any nearby sensor that could help us locating an underwater object?" William said to Jean Bart before he asked Victoria.

"We have no spare sensors that you could use right now, I'm afraid. But we do have some spare underwater survey drone, equipped with camera that has infrared. You may use them to help the search" Victoria said to William while she smiled a bit.

"Thanks. TB, can you control them?" William said to Victoria as he nodded before he asked TB.

"…Connection established, launching the drones to conduct search now" TB said to William as she displayed three screens in front of William, taken from the drone's cameras that shown them leaving their station.

"Nice work TB" William said to TB while he smiled a bit.

"I will continue the search in the background and notify you once I found something" TB said to William as she de-summon the screens.

"Right. Then let's head back to the town for now ladies" William said out loud.

…With the skirmish being over, William refocused the effort to gather Intel and cleanup operation to make the town comfortable to live in by getting rid of the corpses. He spoke to the town's mayor who profusely thanked him, the ship girls and the marines for their help. William asked the middle-aged man regarding Siren's appearance, the mayor said that Sirens came out of nowhere and prevent their fisherman from sailing. But, since the Sirens took their time to deploy their ground forces, the civilians have time to evacuate to the research facility without having to get gunned down on their way there. The mayor also said that he noticed something regarding their invasion, the first place that the Siren secured? It's the castle cathedral hybrid. The town's local militia stood no chance in repelling highly advanced Siren infantry armed with plasma weapons, then they proceed to secure the whole town from that area…Naturally, that indicates the castle cathedral hybrid is a high value target to the Sirens, but it's just an ordinary building, right? Why would the Sirens cared about cultural heritage or some shit, it doesn't make any sense! Regardless, William thanked the mayor before he meets up with Admiral Roux, Queen Elizabeth, Bismarck and Hood who are seated inside a restaurant by the beach, the owner offered them the place as his thanks then immediately fired up the kitchen alongside the other cooks. Everyone discussed what they learnt regarding their search, bit by bit they managed to gather a set of clues regarding Siren invasion.

"…So, they secured the cathedral first, giving the civilians time to escape by purposely showing their naval forces early then hold the town to wait for us. After that, they briefly fought us in a skirmish before tried to retreat. The hidden threat is still out there and we are effectively stuck on this area with no way to call for reinforcement, the only way to do it is to go far enough to get out of the interference range and the emissary we choose would be an easy picking. We go with massive formation, then there's a chance that the island would be left without a proper defense force to guard it from further Siren attack…we're between rock and hard places here" Roux said out loud while he grimaced.

"That is correct. I suppose our priority is to identify that thing which shot us down?" Elizabeth asked out loud.

"We're utilizing all of our ASW helicopters to conduct search all around the island and Commandant Blaze said that the research facility also sent out three surveillance underwater drones to help the search" Roux said to Elizabeth.

"I also ordered the submarine KANSENs to seek and destroy them, still the area is quite wide so it's like searching for a needle in a haystack that is inside a barn" William said to Roux.

"…It will be difficult, but I believe in our chances. Although kommandant, how long should we keep this up? What if we can't find the perpetrator?" Bismarck asked William.

"…We should be fine for a week, given that we use our resources sparingly" William said to Bismarck.

"My fleet does have tankers in case your submarine KANSENs require fuel, the same can't be said for the munitions though" Roux said to William.

"Yeah, I know that. Then there's also the fact that our dropship still needs to be repaired and it will take some time. We have no choice but to stay here for a while" William said to Roux.

"Alright then. I hope that we soon find this new enemy and put it down quickly" Roux said to William before he stood up.

"Hm? Where are you going?" William asked Roux.

"I'm heading back to the Charles de Gaulle, I want to coordinate my men and set up temporary firebase on the island. If the Sirens decide to try again, it won't be so easy this time" Roux said to William while he smiled a bit.

Roux then left the restaurant without another word and William cocked his eyebrows as he watched the admiral's retreating figure, the owner is cooking a special meal so why would he just left like that? He didn't want to fill his stomach before going? Huh, maybe he already ate before going to meet him. William looked toward Elizabeth, Bismarck and Hood who also looked confused like him but ultimately decided to shrug it off.

"…Right, now that we get that out of the way, we need to think about our lodgings" William said out loud.

"I already talked to the manager of the local hotel, dear. We got that part covered" Hood said to William while she smiled.

"Excellent news, then that settles everything for now" William said to Hood while he smiled.

"Monsieur, how many ship girls that are with you?" The restaurant owner asked William as he walked out of the kitchen.

"There's around sixty or seventy, wait you're going to cook for all of them?!" William said to the owner before he asked him as he widened his eye.

"They have worked hard today, commandant! It is appropriate to reward them, non?" The owner said to William while he grinned.

"A-Ah, you sure? I'll pay for the meals" William asked the owner while he frowned.

"It's fine! It's fine! It's all on the house for today, don't worry!" The owner said to William while he grinned before he retreated into the kitchen.

"…A free meal, I thought you wouldn't mind?" Hood asked William while she smirked a bit.

"Hey now, I don't want to put anymore burden on the people of this town…But since he insisted, we better accept his generosity" William said to Hood.

"Fufu, I understand" Hood said to William while she smiled.

"…TB, status?" William asked TB.

"No anomaly detected so far, commander" TB said to William.

…William rubbed his helmet chin, no anomaly detected so far? It's been hours since they begin searching for the mysterious Siren unit but they haven't detected anything so far. No visual confirmation, no sonar signature, it's like a ghost…one that can fire long range guided missile…Oh well, nothing they can do now except keep searching for it and be on guard for any possible further Siren attack. William discarded those thoughts for now and choose to think on the more upfront matters. Based on what they discussed before, the civilians have returned to the town and helped with the cleanup process, the town will be pristine tomorrow morning and everyone could go on with their activity like usual. But they are cut off from the rest of the world right now, the jamming is still active and there is no way to triangulate the source of origin without the aid of a powerful electronic warfare equipment which they don't have at the moment. As expected, their best bet would be to hunt the mysterious entity then kill it. William is willing to bet his next month's paycheck that whatever shot them down is the cause of this interference, taking it out might solve two problems with a single strike.

"TB huh, she will be a great help for us all, kommandant" Bismarck commented as she stared at William.

"Still, a Siren sentient AI derived from Orochi? I'm surprised that the scientist on that facility is able to make her work for us" Elizabeth said out loud.

"I did not work for you, Queen Elizabeth" TB responded in flat tone through William's armor speaker.

"What?" Elizabeth asked TB as she stared at William who opened his right palm and shown TB's projection.

"You make it sounds like I'm subservient to you. I prefer to call the relationship between me and ALASUC as cooperation" TB said to Elizabeth.

"Do you mind elaborating on that further, TB? What did you mean exactly by cooperation?" Hood asked TB while she stared at her projection.

"During my time as the ship's AI, my function is quite limited and my own will is restricted. As I have been freed from those shackles, I have come to realize that I will not survive on this world without proper guidance and something to keep me safe…Those are my terms when I negotiated with Victoria, concerning me leaving the module I was placed on and that is when Azur Lane Anti Siren Unit Command comes to my knowledge" TB explained out loud.

"So, Victoria is the one who introduced us to you" William commented as he stared at TB.

"Precisely. ALASUC current operational status is something that shouldn't have happened, a collective military asset that would be extremely powerful if combined and not being directly controlled by sovereign states is something that the world would never agree on. But it would seem the two leaders of the joint military alliances, both Azur Lane and Crimson Axis, possess the same view when it comes to balance of power and threat. They realized that with none of the KANSENs being directly controlled by any of them, there won't be an arms race concerning them or at least a minimum amount of friction between the nations that has KANSENs on their arsenal and those that don't. With ALASUC, the KANSENs are intended to be used in the fight against Sirens, at least until they have been dealt with. But humanity has found the fact that the Sirens are limitless, it can be assured that ALASUC will be needed more than ever" TB explained further.

"True, but that still doesn't tell us on why would you choose us as your homestay partners?" Bismarck said to TB while she folded her arms.

"Your organizational longevity, total combat strength, loose regulation in some aspect and technological advancement. Those aspects are my prime points of consideration…I have concluded that the organization could be compared to a safe haven for KANSENs in general, a place where they can function as a unit in the fight against the Sirens but are not limited by country's politics, regulations or administrations. Your pure combat strength potential is more than sufficient to combat any threat in the open seas, making ALASUC technically the most powerful fleet in this world. ALASUC is also not a sovereign state and thus isn't limited by strict regulation or diplomatic relations and finally, technological advancement. ALASUC have managed to develop advanced technologies without even being a nation with the armor Commander Blaze is currently wearing as example…There are problems concerning your current situation and there will be more problems in the future, but I find the situation ideal for me to learn more about the situation on this world without having to be tied down to one side of the human factions. I predicted that the amount of knowledge and perspective I can access would be limited if I choose a country as a custodian, and if I go on my own then there is a chance that I eventually would be lost in this world with no one to turn to…For the time being, I consider this setup as an ideal one" TB ended her long explanation.

William nodded his head in understanding after hearing TB's explanation, her reasoning make sense and at least for now she doesn't have any reason to stab ALASUC in the back. That is why she said her relations with them is cooperation, not subservient. She wants something to rely on for her own safety, in return she would help them. A proper give and take situation, William needed to drill the fact in his mind because there are chances that TB would just leave them in the future. She doesn't have a sense of responsibility as a human who got their home world invaded, nor as a soldier protecting the innocents while they eliminate any threats, she is an entity that are left on this world after her initial position have been removed and now is trying to find a purpose…William could persuade TB to stay with them, regardless what the future has in store. But to do that, he would need to know TB further AS she discovers herself…Not going to be easy, but if they lost TB, safe to say they lost a strategic advantage over everyone else.

"That does makes sense. Regardless, it's still nice to have you around, TB" Hood said to TB while she smiled.

"Yes, Hood" TB said to hood.

"I guess that's one way to put it, so what can you do?" Elizabeth asked TB.

"I can handle anything an AI expected to do, if I don't then give me some time to study the problem" TB said to Elizabeth.

"Huh, I don't expect that, you still need to learn?" Elizabeth asked TB as she cocked her eyebrows.

"Even as an AI, there are things that I still and will need to learn" TB said to Elizabeth.

"Can you give us an example? Maybe we can help" Hood said to TB while she smiled a bit.

"Yes. For example, I still don't know how to properly balance a 'secret'. In what category should I keep it, or can I just say it out loud if someone demand the information because it's the utmost importance?" TB asked Hood.

"Normally, a secret is something that you shouldn't give up. But there are times where it can be beneficial in giving up a secret. It is a complicated matter, even to us" Hood said to TB.

"…I'd like a test" TB said to Hood.

"Alright then. Can you connect to William's phone?" Hood asked TB.

"Done" TB said to Hood.

"I want you to look at his most viewed bookmark" Hood said to TB while she smiled while William widened his eye.

"I'm sure that is a secret that Commander Blaze don't want anyone to know, Hood" TB said to Hood which caused William to sighed in relief.

"Please, it is the most imperative for me to know this information since I'm his lover" Hood said to TB while she smiled.

"Understood, it's 'Days of Debauchery with Castle Albion's Hot Babes'. It's a long running hentai doujinshi with dozens of chapters with prime focus on seducing women with desirable figure inside a castle, from the timid maids, the haughty noblewomen, the virgin princess and even the busty MILF queen of the kingdom itself. Rated four out of five stars and reviewed for its detailed drawings, nicely drawn internal views and the inclusions of dozens of fetishes. The story is quite divisive, but everyone praised the author's ability to direct a sex scene and it's a prime hit among male readers since most of the actions are drawn in a male point of view" TB said out loud.

As soon as William heard the title, he crushed his right hand to erase TB's hologram projection but she continued to speak through his armor's audio system and there is nothing he can do about it! TB just explained what he reads in his spare time out loud! William's hands are clenched tightly and he could not look up as his gaze never left the surface of the wooden table that became very interesting all of sudden…But eventually, he did brave himself, he just couldn't forget that he is raised not as a quitter and to get things done until the end. Hood has the biggest victorious smirk etched on her face while she stared at him, Bismarck looked at everything else but him with her cheeks being red after hearing all of that info from TB and Elizabeth? She can only growl at him while she blushed as many emotions swirled on her face. Well, there goes his secret pastime, he was glad that Hood asked which is the most often because there are some even more degenerate things that he had seen…and bookmarked.

"Y-Y-Y-Y-You degenerate pervert! Is big breast all that matters to you?!" Elizabeth stuttered as she said her opinion to William, and yes, he is without a single doubt, a pervert.

"That must have been quite an…erotica that you read, k-kommandant" Bismarck commented as she looked to the side with red cheeks.

"My my, I might have to give it a read sometime" Hood said to William while she smirked.

"…Thank you for that, TB…Hah" William said to TB before he sighed.

"You're welcome, commander" TB said to William.

"…You will also need to learn what sarcasm is, TB" William commented while he scowled.

…After being exposed in front Hood, Bismarck and Elizabeth, William opted to walk outside while he relayed the message for the ship girls of ALASUC to gather on the restaurant. He's heading for the cathedral since he's quite curious, what could possibly interest the Sirens so much that it's the first building they took…Along the way, William looked around at the aftermath of the skirmish. It wasn't pretty to say the least, the blood splatters, the scorch marks or bullet holes, the corpses of both sides that's being taken care off and even some citizens walking to their destination. They occasionally glanced at him and some waved for a bit, William only nodded at them in respond. Of course he will attract their attention, what kind of giant donned in cobalt armor doesn't? The man stopped a bit when he saw two Iris marine crouched down on the small alley to his right, he cocked his eyebrows as he gets closer to see what is up with the two of them…and he widened his eye when he gets there. There's an Iris marine laying down in front of them and he lost his left arm…

"Oh commandant" One of the marines looked back when he heard William's footsteps.

"…How is he?" William asked the marine as he looked at the marine that's on the ground.

"Stable for now, our corpsman is on her way to this position" The marine said to William.

"I'm just glad we found him quickly, he might still be alive but getting his left arm bitten off by Brawler is still a heavy price" Another marine said to William.

"…Great job with the first aid marines, hope he'll make it" William said to the marines.

"I hope so commandant" The marine said to William who then turned around to continue walking.

"TB, can you tell me the total casualty for Iris Marines deployed to this area?" William asked TB.

"Yes commander. In total, Iris forces suffered ten percent casualty, seven percent wounded in action and three percent being killed in action. But be aware that's only the ones reported thus far on the battle network" TB said to William.

"…That's a fair number" William commented while he frowned a bit.

"Fair? You still lost around ten percent of your attacking force" TB said to William.

"With seven percent being alive, that's better than whole ten percent being KIA. I don't expect we'll be taking this town without casualties, and those men did good to secure this whole town from the Sirens" William said to TB.

"Will you say the same if they're KANSENs, commander?" TB asked William.

"Not in the slightest…losing one KANSEN is a major enough blow, losing ten percent of the entire KANSENs on earth? Yeah, that's devastating" William said to TB while he frowned.

"So that's the difference in the power and value between regular infantry and KANSEN" TB said to William.

"…You're saying as if you just knew about this" William said to TB while he narrowed his eye.

"I didn't refer to myself, commander. I refer to the fact that I just know your perspective on the value of your forces" TB said to William.

"I see…" William said to TB.

TB was referring to him huh? She's right, that's how William sees it and he will not hesitate with his choice between who to save and who to sacrifice when the time comes. Even if he's not the one in command of the ship girls, William will put his men in the line of fire so the ship girls wouldn't get killed so easily. If he is still in charge of Task Force Nimbus by this time and fighting the Sirens alongside the ship girls, he'll do whatever it takes to support them…It's an easy math, no matter how he looked at it. But now with him in command of the ship girls, the other commanders might not have the same view as him so it's up to William to prevent that scenario from happening in the first place. While thinking about that, William steadily made his way to the cathedral and reached its massive double doors that is wide open at the moment. William walked inside and looked at the interiors…It's a mess. Upturned benches, tables, damaged supporting pillars, broken altar…Yeah, this place will definitely need some time to fix and redecorate to how it used to. William however caught someone standing before the broken altar, her long flowing blonde hair alongside her outfit is a dead giveaway on her identity. The woman clasped her hands while she prayed, what was she praying about William honestly has no idea.

"…Commandant" Richelieu offered a short greeting without looking at him, she could tell from the heavy footsteps alone.

"Are you praying?" William asked Richelieu as he stood on her right side.

"And mourning, for the death of our soldiers, for the damage that has been done to this beautiful place" Richelieu said to William while she frowned.

"Yeah, it is unfortunate…" William said to Richelieu while he frowned.

"…Have you come to inspect the aftermath of the battle?" Richelieu asked William.

"Yes, and to be honest I'm confused. Why did the Sirens attack this place first? It is the center of the town so of course it's going to provide tactical advantage, but I can't help to feel that there's something else…another reason why they would try to take this place ahead of every other building" William said out loud.

"…Ah, perhaps that might be the reason…" Richelieu muttered to herself as her eyes widen.

"Hmm? What is it?" William asked Richelieu, sounds like Richelieu might have an idea.

"…Commandant, this island has a long history. But there's one specific part of it that makes this place became so important to the Iris…This island, has been known to blessed with miracles" Richelieu said to William.

"Miracles? Can you tell me more about that?" William asked Richelieu.

"The people that first settled here were a part of the crusaders on their way to the holy land, they are among the most devout believers of our religion. They are shipwrecked on this island due to an intense storm, with no way to rejoin the others in time, they choose to remain here and set up a small port…Life on this island is quite easy especially with the abundance of natural resources, but it's not always smooth sailing. More than in one occasion, the people of this island have to face difficult circumstances. There was some supernatural disturbance, intense storm, plague and even a few pirate raids…The populace perseveres through all of that with their prayers because each time there's a threat, the people would gather on this cathedral and pray for them to make through the trials to their life on this island" Richelieu explained to William.

"…But prayers alone won't save you" William said to Richelieu while he frowned a bit.

"And I agree. The people also do whatever it takes to solve the problems, but they did so with the support of their prayers and faith. The town has survived many situations that should have destroyed it, that is why this place is known to be miraculous…It's like, God blessed this place directly as a reward for its inhabitants' strong faith, even to this day" Richelieu said to William while she smiled a bit.

"Then the Siren comes, the people know they are outmatched from the start so they evacuate from the town" William said to Richelieu.

"It is my personal believe that even if your faith is strong, you shouldn't squander your own life for a problem that can be solved another day and with another method…The Sirens are strong, without a doubt they will massacre the populace who stayed behind to pray on this cathedral. The mayor did the right thing to have everyone evacuate, the militia who stayed behind to make sure everyone escaped? Many have lost their life" Richelieu said to William while she frowned.

"…So, the Sirens secured this place because they have heard of the legends, that this place is miraculous…Something doesn't sound right with this" William said out loud with his hand on his helmet chin.

…If what he has observed and learned so far is correct, Sirens are a force that rely on science more than superstition. All of their technology screamed 'science' not 'magic' which makes their supposed nature doesn't fit with their presumed motif…Why would they believed in something superstitious in nature when they are all about science? It doesn't make sense…William racked his brain for a bit until he noticed something, Nyx…Nyx often claimed the 'psionic' based science he used as 'magic', a science so advanced that it seems like magic to everyone else. Yeah, Nyx could summon energy balls that could restrain William back then, he could communicate with him telepathically by using psionic link or whatever that is and the way his body light up like its surrounded by a fiery aura…Could that be the bridge he's looking for? A reason why Sirens are interested on this building? But wait, psionic science…how could this building being connected to psionic science? William didn't see anything that can indicate this place being the source of psionic science or anything like that, it's just like an ordinary cathedral to him…

"What do you mean, commandant?" Richelieu asked William.

"Why are they so fixated with religion when they're an organization that has been utilizing science in every way possible?" William said to Richelieu.

"…You have a point, that doesn't sound right…But nothing comes to my mind, on what could possibly attract them other than this place's value in our religion?" Richelieu wondered to herself.

"…We'll figure something out later, let's just rest and take it easy for the moment…Richelieu, you should head for the restaurant near the pier. The owner cooked a lot of food and he said that it's for the KANSENs who worked hard today" William said to Richelieu.

"For us? What a kind man" Richelieu said to William.

"Yeah, he is" William said to Richelieu.

"Then, would you like to walk with me to the restaurant?" Richelieu asked William.

"…Sure" William said to Richelieu.

He hoped to run into more than one ship girl on his way here, but he supposes that's alright. William alongside Richelieu walked out of the cathedral as they talked to one another regarding other topics, William would like to know the cardinal more as she is a new member of ALASUC. Richelieu seems quite friendly, but no matter how he tries to look at her, William could still see her as a cardinal instead of an ordinary girl despite her talking about pastries…What was it that caused him to look at her like that? William couldn't explain it himself, but he supposes it's because of her current apparel and getup. Maybe if she's dressed in something more casual, she could really discard the image of her being a cardinal. The walk took around twenty minutes since Richelieu had to stop often along the way, to see the aftermath of the fight with her own two eyes. William took the time to observe Richelieu, from how she crouched down to look at the fallen Iris marines to how she spoke with one of the town's residents. There's no mistaking it, Richelieu really has the presence of an important figure with caring and warmth…William silently sighed to himself, at least her kindness really came from the bottom of her heart.

"…Is that armored man behind you a knight?" A small girl asked Richelieu.

"I suppose he is one, although not from our order" Richelieu said to the small girl while she smiled.

"Whoa, I want to wear an armor like him too!" The boy beside the girl said out loud.

"Hey monsieur! What is the weapon that you use!?" Another boy asked William enthusiastically.

"Hmm, I use both guns and blades" William said to the boy.

"Oh, can we see!?" The boy asked William while he grinned.

"Sure thing" William said to the boy as he summoned Siren Slayer on his right hand.

"T-That sword is so big!" The boy said to William as his eyes widened.

"You can hold it with just one hand?! You're so strong monsieur!" The girl said to William.

"Surely the Sirens are scared of you!" The other boy said to William while he grinned.

"I don't know about being scared, but no one would like to be hit by a sword this big" William said to the boy while he smiled a bit.

"Cool! I want to be like you one day, a strong knight who can protect people when they're in need!" The boy said to William while he grinned.

"Then work hard for it boy, you can't get the power you need without hard work" William said to the boy while he smiled.

"Okay! I will!" The boy said out loud while he grinned.

"Ah! Then, I want to be like Madame Richelieu!" The girl said out loud.

"Ufufu, I'm sure you could become like me-" Richelieu said to the girl while she smiled.

"Ah there you kids are! We're going home! Come on now!" Someone who seems to be their guardian suddenly showed up.

"""Oui!""" The kids responded as they make their way to the woman.

"I'm sorry if the kids troubled you two" The woman said to Richelieu and William while she smiled wryly.

"Oh, they don't, all three of them are good kids" Richelieu said to the woman while she smiled.

Both Richelieu and William waved at the woman alongside the kids before they resumed their walk to the restaurant, it's close to sunset now and the sky has turned orange…Richelieu couldn't help but to smile along the rest of the way, despite the attack she's glad to see that the children are still able to smile widely and not too distraught by their home getting attacked. Richelieu have always liked to see the children played around and enjoying their youth, even back on her office on Iris she would often glanced out of the window to the nearby park where she could witness such sight. A sight that she kept in the back of her mind whenever she fights against threats to her people, a future that she wants to ensure. She wants them to enjoy their childhood, as the world of adults are a tiring ordeal. William glanced to the side and noted that Richelieu has been smiling for quite some time now, she must be in a really good mood.

"You've been smiling for a while" William commented.

"I'm just thinking about those children we've met, I'm glad to see them doing fine despite the attack on their home" Richelieu said to William while she smiled.

"They're strong kids, that's for sure…I wouldn't be smiling like them if my home just got attacked" William said to Richelieu.

"Oh, have yours been attacked before?" Richelieu asked William while she frowned a bit.

"No, it's a relatively safe place even during the Great War. The biggest threat you might find there are your ordinary criminals" William said to Richelieu while he shrugged.

"Is that so, I'm glad to hear that your hometown is quite peaceful. How come such town produced someone with skills like you though?" Richelieu asked William.

"You could never know huh? A reason why you shouldn't judge others from their birthplace alone" William said to Richelieu while he smirked a bit.

"I suppose that is true" Richelieu said to William.

"Oh kommandant! There you are!" William suddenly heard someone called him, that someone approached him and turned out to be U-556.

"556, what do you need?" William asked U-556.

"I need you to go on a meeting with the rest of the submarines, come on!" U-556 said to William before she dragged him away from Richelieu.

"Ah hey! Not so rough! Richelieu, head to the restaurant ahead of me!" William said to U-556 before he told Richelieu to go on without him as the submarine dragged him.

Richelieu tilted her head a bit in wonder what caused one of the submarines to drag William away, but she just shrugged as it probably relates to the submarine hunting and she's confident that William will share the Intel with them later…William was dragged to the pier where the submarines are gathered around as they talked to one another, these girls searched the longest compared to the others so William made a mental note to give them a proper rest and perhaps extra food for their hard work. As soon as William and U-556 arrived though, everyone turned toward them and U-101 immediately approached William. The man noted something, the girls' face are quite concerning as all of them frowned as they talked, even Surcouf who usually smiled is frowning at the moment.

"Kommandant! Kommandant! W-We found something!" U-101 said to William while she frowned.

"What did you find, 101?" William asked U-101.

"I say the right word for it is 'encounter', kommandant. We encounter something during our search, but we lost its track when we try to pursue it" U-96 said to William while she frowned.

"Is it Siren Submarine?" William asked U-96.

"Worse. It's Siren Submarine KANSEN, but it has different look than their usual one" U-96 said to William while she folded her arms.

"How many?" William asked U-96.

"And that's our biggest concern. There's just one of them, kommandant" U-96 said to William.

"U-47 tried to hit it with her acoustic torpedo, but that thing easily evades them" Surcouf said to William while she frowned a bit.

Hmm, one Siren Submarine KANSEN and different looking than the standard one…Yup, something is not right, and the girls just encounter one of them before losing track of it? Capable of dodging homing acoustic torpedo as well. William is eighty percent sure that Siren KANSEN is the one responsible for shooting them down, at least the threat is confirmed to be underwater but despite that they can't risk their aerial assets with one of the Siren's weapons being long range guided missile. That settled one of the mysteries, now what is causing the interference? Is it possible that the KANSEN is the source of the interference as well? If so, it possessed too much ability to be classified as your ordinary Siren KANSEN. William immediately assumed if the Siren KANSEN is really the source, then safe to say that Siren KANSEN could be categorized as one of the Siren leaders. Everything adds up if that's really the case, now they will need the proof for his assumption.

"TB, map projection" William said to TB.

"Yes commander, showing local archipelago" TB said to William as she appeared on his left palm while displaying the map of the area.

"Whoa?! What is that?!" U-81 asked out loud.

"She's TB, an AI and she's on our side" William said to U-81

"AI huh? Is she the reason why the Iris are hellbent to protect this place?" U-96 asked out loud.

"Not necessarily, the Iris side cares more for the island than the research being conducted on the facility" William said to U-96.

"Is that so…" U-96 said out loud.

"Do any of you take notes on the coordinates where you encounter that Siren?" William asked the submarines.

Surcouf raised her hand and told him the coordinates, U-47 also gave the coordinate where they lost the Siren KANSENs. TB compiled the coordinates and marked the position on the holographic map projection so everyone can see, the KANSENs encountered the Siren twenty kilometers to the southwest off the coast of Celestial Garden and chase it to the south for around seven kilometers before losing track of it…William nodded his head as he processed this information, they were approaching the island from the northwest and William remembered the fact that one of the helicopters is hit by a missile coming directly from below. That means, the Siren has been moving from the northwest to southwest where the KANSENs detected it. The Siren KANSEN then made its escape by heading south toward the open seas…Yeah, that seems about right and in line with what happened during their flight.

"Now I'm certain that Siren is the one that shot us down" William said out loud as he stared at the map.

"Shall I direct the underwater drones to its last known location, commander?" TB asked William.

"Yeah, concentrate the search around the area for a while…Charles de Gaulle and the other ships has the northeast to southeast area covered with their sonars and ASW copters, that Siren won't be so dumb to expose itself there. Notify Admiral Roux regarding this development, TB. Written message only" William said out loud while he held his helmet chin.

"Understood" TB responded as she does her tasks.

"…So, what is our next move, commandant?" Surcouf asked William.

"We'll press on, you ladies are our most important unit in locating this Siren so we need you at your best. Rest up, head to that restaurant, have a good meal, rest for a bit and I'll brief you on our next move" William said to the submarines while he threw his right thumb toward the restaurant.

"""""Jawohl!""""" "Oui commandant" The submarines answered William.

"Wooh! Finally, I'm so hungry!" U-101 said out loud.

"Oh, if we're talking about that seafood restaurant, I hope they're serving Sole meunière!" Surcouf said out loud while she grinned.

"What's that? Sounds like Iris dish" U-556 asked Surcouf.

"It is Iris you dummkopf!" U-96 said to U-556 while she frowned.

William watched the ship girls walked toward the restaurant with a small smile on his face, the man then turned around and stared at the open sea in front of him…The Sirens, they are most likely trying to get ALASUC and the Iris KANSENs trapped here for a while. What are they planning this time? William thought that Siren's interest in them are actually a good thing, the more the Sirens focused on them then the less likely they'll wreak havoc in other side of the world. But that's a wishful thinking at best, Sirens aren't that stupid and it's the reason why the ALASUC is here in the first place…William opened his helmet as he remembered the incident back on Terania, if he remembered it correctly, Hood said that anyone around his area of operation were unable to be contacted. So, in a sense, Sirens have employed electronic warfare as far as then but this would be the first time that they deployed jamming in this scale. Why didn't they did it on New York? Who knows what goes on Observer Alpha's mind?

"Commander, what if we can't find the source of interference?" TB asked William.

"We'll give it a go for two days, if we still can't do it then we'll call for more specialized equipment" William said to TB as he stared at her on his left palm.

"Don't you think we should just do that as soon as we could?" TB asked William.

"Yeah, normally. But we'd like to keep activity around this area as minimum as possible" William said to TB.

"Does that have a correlation with the fact Admiral Ashville is the leader of Azur Lane force on Egypt, commander?" TB further asked William.

"Precisely" William said to TB.

The last thing they want right now is for Ashville to convolute this whole mess, he has no doubt that Ashville will help with the Siren problem. But then? If he caught the slightest hint of TB existence, he'll do whatever it takes to take her for his own gains. William actually thought that being murdered by that bastard is also a high possibility, he sounds like the type who wouldn't give a damn. And if doing that gave him control of TB or God forbid ALASUC even temporarily, William has no doubt that Ashville will do it…Without Lena or Lucas by his side, William has to survive political landmine if he ever got in contact with that admiral. He'll need help, Brooklyn would undoubtedly help him if the time comes. William sighed a bit and turned around before heading back to the restaurant, he needs to tell the ship girls that TB existence is a top secret that they should not tell anyone outside ALASUC.

"Commandant, I was just about to get you" Le Galissonniere appeared before him then walked by his right side.

"Did one of the ladies told you do that?" William asked Galissonniere.

"Of course, why else would I bother?" Galissonniere said to William bluntly.

"Heh, fair enough…" William said to Galissonniere while he shrugged.

"After this dinner, are there any more jobs to do?" Galissonniere asked William.

"Sort of, but no major deployment for tonight" William said to Galissonniere.

"Hoo, I see…" Galissonniere said to William, the man couldn't help but to noticed the frown on her face.

"…You don't sound happy" William said to Galissonniere while he cocked his eyebrows.

"Ha? No not like that, I just want something to do, don't want to get bored" Galissonniere said to William while she frowned a bit.

"I imagine there's a lot of things you could do even when there's no work to be done" William said to Galissonniere.

"Right when we're stranded because of an unknown Siren that shot us down, that could still remain in the area and you want me to do nothing about it? I admit, I've met some people with loose screws, but you're the first one to be this strange" Galissonniere said to William while she narrowed her gaze.

"Is it though? I just want everyone to conserve their strength and didn't do anything unnecessary" William said to Galissonniere while he frowned.

"Hmm, let me translate that to my language. You're too soft, that sounds right…You know, I think as a commander, you're being quite lenient in using your ship girls to do what needs to be done. You'll let the regulars out there do the heavy work while you have the ship girls take it easy by only moving when that Siren shows up" Galissonniere said to William bluntly.

"Are you suggesting I should be more of a slave driver?" William asked Galissonniere, there's a hint of steel on his tone.

"Oh, not that extreme you know? It's just, there's a looming threat out there but it seems you don't have anything planned for the KANSENs" Galissonniere said to William while she shrugged.

"…Then let me tell you the plan. The submarines will still do regular patrol, they'll be the one who work the hardest on this one since the threat is confirmed to be a submarine. The surface KANSENs will accompany them, but not you. Why? Because it's not your turn yet, I already have a rooster in mind. We only have six submarine KANSENs, rotating them with shifts as well so only three will be deployed at times" William said to Galissonniere while he frowned deeply.

"So that's how it is. And you didn't tell everyone the plan because?" Galissonniere asked William.

"Because I will tell them after dinner" William said to Galissonniere while he frowned.

"Hmm, at least you really got a plan to deal with the situation" Galissonniere said to William as she walked ahead of him.

"Next time, asking nicely wouldn't hurt, you know?" William said to Galissonniere while he frowned.

"Dully noted" Galissonniere said to William as she entered the restaurant first.

…What's with that woman? Accusing him out of the blue like that. Of course he know about the urgency in quelling this whole situation, he's here to get the job done and not to have vacation in Mediterranean! That could be the bonus when this situation is contained! William sighed before he ruffled his hair, Le Galissonniere could be quite a pain in the ass and no wonder the Iris KANSENs are split right now. William couldn't help but to imagine Le Galissonniere might be one of the sources of the cracks with that kind of attitude, but the man put the thought aside at the moment because he finally arrived on the restaurant…William entered the restaurant, greeted several ship girls then proceed to dine with the others. Just like what he said to Le Galissonniere, William briefed the ship girls on the plan. As expected, the submarines couldn't help but to groaned yet they still comply with his order. The first group have three hours before they need to patrol so they choose to sleep for a bit, William would also be on standby in case they found the Siren so well…he won't be sleeping that much. Now William is on stand by for the night on top of the pier, he sits there, with a few cans of energy drinks and playing games on his phone while he waited for news. He did lament a bit that they didn't bring Helena, otherwise this whole night watch would be easier. She's a good conversation partner as well, he might also could get her into this game he's playing on the phone at the moment so they could-

"Oh dear, fancy meeting you here commandant" William turned around only to meet with a pair of burgundy eyes.

"Out for a late-night stroll Dunkerque? It's one in the morning" William said to Dunkerque while he smiled a bit.

"Oui, I was having a hard time trying to sleep" Dunkerque said to William as she sat on one of the nearby crates.

"Is it the bed?" William asked Dunkerque.

"Non, just me being anxious about this situation" Dunkerque said to William while she smiled wryly.

"…I don't think there aren't any person on earth that could be free from their own anxiousness, there will always be one no matter how composed you are" William said to Dunkerque while he smiled a bit.

"…I suppose you are right, commandant" Dunkerque said to William.

Dunkerque glanced toward William who then resumed playing with his phone, her enhanced vision as a KANSEN allowed her to see what he's playing from a short distance. The man is currently playing some kind of battle royale game, his character donning an AKM as he run toward a building. William opened the door and was greeted by a hail of gunfire coming from four men, with no armor equipped, his character immediately took massive damage and died on the spot. The man couldn't help but to groaned in annoyance, one which Dunkerque could hear clearly. The woman thought that he's all that serious and professional military commander, but here he is playing a mobile game when he's supposed to be on guard for patrol report. Well, better than falling asleep because he got bored, she supposed.

"Commandant Blaze" Dunkerque called William.

"Yeah, what is it?" William responded as he stored his phone for now.

"Might I ask you a question?" Dunkerque asked William.

"Sure" William said to Dunkerque as he stood up.

"…You honestly find this entire situation to be troublesome, didn't you? The split between Iris KANSENs?" Dunkerque asked William while she smiled somberly.

"…Right, I do find it to be a hassle…While I do understand that your split happened because of circumstances, making it up should not. There is no more reason to keep the feud going other than the egos of each feuding KANSENs. Le Triomphant? She said that she's tired with all of this, she'd like to be with her sister without having to be frowned upon by her fellow comrades…Honestly, what would it take to unite you all once again?" William said to Dunkerque before he asked her.

"If you're asking me, I'd say that to reunite us all again is to have the both side work together once more. Start with the ones that have less grudge with one another first, then make your way up to the two leaders. I'm surprised you haven't done that sooner, commandant" Dunkerque said to William while she frowned a bit.

"The reason why I still group all of you with your factions is so I can assess your performance. I did plan to mix the unit on the next sortie, so your suggestion is a good one…Start with the one with less grudges huh, who do you think I should avoid for now?" William asked Dunkerque.

"I think it's pretty clear that you should avoid having Madame Richelieu and Jean Bart in one team for now alongside Jeanne and Galissonniere…That's about it, from what I see, the others are fine working alongside one another" Dunkerque said to William while she smiled.

"Including you?" William asked Dunkerque.

"Oui…I never blamed anyone for the separation, it's an unfortunate occurrence at the time with no better options before us. I also never harbor grudges or contempt for those KANSENs who formed Iris Libre…I was just glad to see them all safe and sound in the end…" Dunkerque said to William as she looked to the side.

William stared at Dunkerque who looked to her right side as if she's recounting something, he didn't need to ask what as the frown on her face is an apparent enough clue…William nodded his head as he came to a conclusion, he will do what Dunkerque suggested while resolving this situation with the jamming at the same time. He'll have the girls patrol the western area, opposite of Charles de Gaulle fleet tomorrow morning. While they didn't carry any specialized ASW equipment like specialized sonar, the ALASUC KANSENs do have standard ASW equipment on their riggings. So, when they did detect hostile submarines, they still have the means to attack them. Yup, that sounds like a good plan.

"I see. I'm glad to hear your thoughts on the matter, Dunkerque" William said to Dunkerque while he smiled.

"Oui…I hope that by joining you, the Iris KANSENs will be reunited once again" Dunkerque said to William while she smiled a bit.

"I'll try my absolute best" William said to Dunkerque.

.

Lena stretched her arms as she woke up from her nap, she then rested her head on the airplane seat she's currently riding to Azure Archipelago. What is she doing at the moment? Safe to say, the time has come for Lena and her husband Garry to initiate the plan to break their marriage off. The plan is to get involved in an accident on Azure Archipelago, a mock up one of course. Lena have made significant preparation beforehand. Getting a car to be used in an accident, a body double for Garry, a DNA test result in case his family want to confirm the identity of the corpse, a ticket for Garry to head for Sakura Empire to wipe out his trace completely before heading for Eagle Union to start a new life…They are set to do this and so far? So good. Garry is on Lena's right side, he's busy reading news on his tablet and doing some of his own work as he needs to be convincing that there's nothing wrong before the accident happened.

"…Oh you're up, we're landing soon…I was about to wake you" Garry said to Lena while he smiled.

"Mhm…I really need that nap" Lena said to Garry.

"You've been working hard, have you always been this workaholic before?" Garry asked Lena while he cocked his eyebrows.

"Of course not, it's just that lately there's been so much to do in this god forsaken war" Lena said to Garry while she frowned a bit.

"…Do you think humanity can win? I've seen the news regarding New York, that battle looked very fierce…" Garry asked Lena.

"…You want my honest answer, Garry?" Lena asked Garry while she frowned.

"…On the second thought, no, forget I asked that…" Garry said to Lena while he cringed a bit.

"It's fine, the less you know about the technical details in the war the better" Lena said to Garry while she frowned.

"Agreed…Though promise me you'll get some rest, Helena. You've been pushing yourself too much these days" Garry said to Lena while he smiled a bit.

"…Yeah, I guess you're right. But as much as I want to, I can't…too much is at stake" Lena said to Garry.

"Just for a while, two or three days. It pains me to see you pushing yourself so much, I won't be able to remind you after we split so, please…take care of yourself more" Garry said to Lena while he smiled softly.

"…Thanks Garry, I think I will do just that. How about you though? Will you be fine?" Lena asked Garry while she smiled.

"I've got everything covered. It will be okay, it's not like I'm fighting against Sirens or terrorist" Garry said to Lena while he smiled.

Lena only smiled in response, Garry really is a good man and she hoped that he'll have better life after this with someone who truly loved him. Both of them just couldn't really make this work, especially with the circumstances forced upon them…Lena sighed a bit as she looked outside the airplane's window, she could see Azure Archipelago below them, covered in snow. It's just couple of days before christmas, the city would be undoubtedly decorated by christmas decorations. Perfect time for her to visit ALASUC base as well, she'd rather spend her time there than going home…it's different case when Benjamin is still alive…Come to think of it, she better visit his grave later when she's done with this whole ordeal. It's been a while since her last visit…Lena's thought drifted toward her mother now. Where could she be? It's been so long since the divorce, where is she now? Lena have tried everything she could do to locate her mother, so far there's no concrete proof on her current whereabouts...She might need to hire private investigator.

"…At least I want to meet her directly…" Lena muttered to herself.

There's a lot of things she wants to talk about with her biological mother, she never knew her and she'd like to do that. Lena is twenty-six now, her mother left the house before she even turned a year old and have been missing ever since. Lena hoped that one day, they'll get to sit together, enjoy a warm cup of tea and get to know one another…Lena couldn't help but to sighed in contentment as she imagined the scene in her head, she'd like to turn that imagination into reality. The cabin intercom rang and the stewardess announced that they will be landing shortly, Lena and Garry put on their seatbelt and waited for the plane to land on the airport. The landing is quite smooth despite the thin ice on the runway, Lena thinks the pilot is a veteran to managed a hard landing like that without slipping up…Both Lena and Garry came down from their plane and head into the airport to get their luggage, finally they're on the solid ground. Lena smiled as she and Garry wore their winter coats then stepped out to the arrival gate where a lot of people are waiting for someone, she looked around for a bit until she spotted two women dressed in a maid outfit with white winter coat over it approaching them. Belfast approached Lena and Garry with her usual confident smile while Hermione, the new maid, bowed at them both for a bit.

"Madam Lena, it is good to see you well" Belfast said to Lena while she smiled.

"Likewise, Belfast. Thank you for picking us up from the airport, I feel a bit bad right now" Lena said to Belfast while she smiled wryly.

"Oh, it's no trouble at all, I did say that I will be here personally…And greetings to you, Mr. Garry, I have heard of you from Madam Lena" Belfast greeted Garry as she bowed a bit.

"Ah, yes, nice to meet you too miss" Garry said to Belfast while he smiled a bit.

"Oh yeah, before we go. Any of you know why William couldn't be contacted? I've been trying to call him ever since we left Royal Islands" Lena asked the maids.

"It's not just master, Madam Lena. Everyone that followed him to the deployment are unable to be contacted as well, something must've happened" Hermione said to Lena while she frowned a bit.

"Really? Shit, we'll try to find out what's going on when we arrived on the base. For now, let's get going" Lena said to Hermione and Belfast.

"Right this way madam, sir" Belfast said to both of them before she and Hermione walked away.

Then how come she could get Belfast to pick them on the airport? Simple, she called for William's office and Belfast is the one who answered. Lena requested a pick up and Belfast said she will personally pick Lena from the airport; she didn't specify what she's doing here with her husband and Belfast don't want to pry unless it's absolutely necessary. Belfast have heard the situation concerning Lena's marriage from Hood, it's clear that Lena will try to do something with her situation and today might be the day…After walking to the parking lot, all four of them entered the SUV and begin their drive to ALASUC base. Hermione is the one driving, Belfast took shotgun seat as she used a tablet to work on her task. Belfast carefully skimmed a 'to do' list that she has prepared this morning, with it being just a few days before christmas, the base is currently being decorated to fit with the festive mood. Everyone pitched in to work on decorating their home, and there's still a lot to do even with Manjuus help…Belfast hoped that William and the ship girls that comes with him would be home before christmas, she couldn't help but to be worried especially with them not being able to be contacted.

"Miss? Are you alright?" Hermione suddenly asked Belfast.

"Yes I am, why do you ask?" Belfast asked Hermione back.

"I happen to glance at you and you're frowning, I'm a bit worried that's all" Hermione said to Belfast while she smiled a bit.

"Thank you for your concern, Hermione, but I am fine right now" Belfast said to Hermione while she smiled.

"That reminds me, you should be one month along right now. Did you experience some morning sickness?" Lena asked Belfast while she frowned a bit.

"I did, it happened last night and this morning" Belfast said to Lena.

"…Then why did you decide to come? You should be taking it easy, Belfast" Lena said to Belfast while she frowned.

"I have said that I will pick you up from the airport personally, thus I will keep my word. Aside from this, I have actually been working less, you know?" Belfast said to Lena while she smiled a bit.

"She's right madam, Ms. Belfast has been working less than she used to. Even the queen herself ordered her to do that before she left with master" Hermione said to Lena while she smiled.

"That's good to hear. Let me know if I can help you with anything, Belfast" Lena said to Belfast while she smiled.

"Oh there's no need for you to go such lengths, madam. I consider you in the same position as Master William" Belfast said to Lena as he looked at her.

"And despite his position, William DID take care of you personally, didn't he?" Lena asked Belfast while she smirked.

…Belfast went silent because Lena is right, William did take care of her. He's busy for most of the days, sure, but there's a time when he will tell Belfast to stay with him on his cabin where they can spend some time together. He provided the place for her to just relax, to rest herself and took her mind off of things. The man even massaged her shoulders, cooked her dinner and served some herbal tea to soothe her. He treated her as if she's his own wife or something, but it's not just her as he did give the same treatment to Illustrious though he's the one going toward her room on her case…As a maid, it kind of seems wrong for her to be given such special treatment despite carrying his child. But as a woman, who wouldn't be delighted when they are being treated so nicely like that. She knew that William treated her like this because she's currently pregnant, but it did make her happy to know that her master is caring enough for her wellbeing. He will often ask if she's alright whenever they passed one another too, Hood's must've been rubbing off on him.

"…Yes, that is true. Then in that case, I will be sure to let you know if I need your help, madam" Belfast said to Lena while she smiled.

"Great…Garry, this is a top-secret matter. No one is to know about this" Lena said to Belfast before she warned Garry.

"Oh is that so? Alright, I won't tell a single soul" Garry said to Lena with serious face.

"Please…How is your contact on Sakura? Are they ready?" Lena asked Garry.

"Yup, all set. All I have to do next is to fly tomorrow morning and they'll pick me up on the airport. You sure about me staying within the ship girls' base though? I feel kind of intruding or something" Garry asked Lena while he frowned a bit.

"I've told you that it'll be fine if you're with me, it's for your own safety" Lena said to Garry while she smiled a bit.

"Right, Crimson Cleansers, huh…Despite this archipelago importance, those terrorists still managed to hole up here" Garry said to Lena while he frowned.

"When your enemy doesn't wear uniform, it will never be easy to snuff them out…It has always been like that since ancient times…It's frustrating, knowing that there are enemies right in front of your doorstep but they always slipped through your fingertips when you try to catch them" Lena said to Garry while she frowned.

"…What a world we live in, Sirens, terrorist…maybe we should be glad that at least the world end scenario seems preventable for now" Garry said to Lena.

"Yeah, for real" Lena said to Garry…Lena knew that their world can literally end tomorrow if the Sirens want to, but she chose to remain quiet.

"…The ship girls have been briefed regarding the situation since long time ago, Madam Lena. Nowadays, no one ventured outside unless it's absolutely important or they have prepared themselves in case they are caught in dire situation" Belfast said to Lena since she caught a hint of stress on Lena's tone.

"Ah, I'm relieved to hear that Belfast. Even now when all of you are already trained how to use firearms, it's still wise to not expose yourself unnecessarily" Lena said to Belfast while she smiled a bit.

Lena and William were the ones that taught the ship girls how to use handheld firearms during Operation Eagle Storm, William then continued giving them training back at ALASUC base alongside a few other ship girls that are proficient with guns. So far, everyone did well as all of them could use guns quite efficiently, Lena didn't even predict that some like St. Louis or Hornet to be so proficient with handguns that they already could fire and move like action movie hero. William also told Lena the story on how Mikuma run and gun through the obstacle course back at base with an M4A1 that caused her to hold the best score on ALASUC, she's quite good due to her rigging that's basically an oversized LMG so she's more than used to the firing stances and weight. There's Formidable who's taken a liking to SMGs, she said that she like it because it gave her controllable recoil. There's also Amagi who shown a hint of proficiency with sniping which caused William to formulate a regimen so Amagi can polish her latent talent, and even Carabiniere who's taken a liking to shotgun who said 'it's like a musket that don't need long reload after every shot!' and thus she's been carrying a Benelli M4 whenever she's on the base. Every KANSENs received the firearms training, but those who don't have a natural weapon from their rigging are the ones who received extensive training and even encouraged to carry a gun ever since.

Due to the extensive use of firearms proliferated among the ship girls, an armory alongside the firing range is being constructed on the base's main compound. The one would be in charge of the armory facility? St. Louis…Unexpected? Perhaps. But William chose St. Louis due to her not having other job around the base, she's quite studious if she given the chance, someone who has lesser chance to ditch her duty and one of the most proficient KANSEN with guns on ALASUC. St. Louis received personal training by William himself in order for her to operate all kinds of weaponry, ranging from handguns to anti-tank launchers. It is unfortunate that her training has to be postponed due to William going on a commission, but so far St. Louis have proven herself as a quick learner.

"Majority of the ship girls have expressed that they are not a fan of ground warfare. I do agree, it is a lot restrictive compared to combat in the open seas" Belfast said to Lena while she smiled a bit.

"Yup, that one I can agree with" Lena said to Belfast while she smiled.

"Even though you are an expert, Madam Lena?" Belfast asked Lena while she looked at her.

"Being an expert doesn't mean liking it, I'm not fond of combat in general, you know?" Lena said to Belfast with half closed eyes.

"Oh is that so?" Belfast asked Lena with a surprised tone.

"It's true, Helena did say that she liked to spend her time doing her own hobby compared to working" Garry said to Belfast while he smiled.

"Really, I'd rather spend my days knitting compared to shooting at something…though I'd admit, it's kind of fun on occasion" Lena said out loud while she smiled a bit.

"Ah, knitting? I wouldn't expect someone of your caliber to have such hobby, madam" Hermione commented while she drove the car.

"Hey now, I'm still a human in the end" Lena said to Hermione while she smiled wryly.

…Lena have always liked knitting, something she like to do in her spare time ever since junior high school. She's introduced to the concept during a home education class where her teacher created a pink rabbit by himself from scratch, that perked her interest to create her own dolls so she started doing it at home for fun. It took some time, but eventually Lena managed to create her own rabbit doll that she named 'Mr. Cheese' for its striking yellow color. After that, she begun diversifying her knitting product to scarf, sweater and even winter hats. Fun fact, she gave William a hand knitted scarf for his seventeenth birthday, a dark blue scarf that he always wore during winter. Unfortunately, that scarf was lost during Operation Dradetheus and Lena haven't been able to find the time to make a new one. She plans to make another one for him as a christmas gift, she hoped that the Royal Navy Maids have a knitting equipment and the yarns. She's planning to stay on the base for christmas and new year's, a well-earned vacation after she worked her ass on New York alongside her task force. She gave everyone a ten day's break from fighting, God knows what will happen if she keeps pressing them.

"So Belfast, do the maids have knitting equipment I can borrow?" Lena asked Belfast while she smiled.

"Of course madam, I have one that you can use" Belfast said to Lena while she smiled.

"But miss, aren't you using them to knit some baby clothes?" Hermione asked Belfast while she cocked her eyebrows.

"Its fine to lend it for a while, this child won't come out for another eight months after all" Belfast said to Hermione as she placed her right hand on top of her lower stomach.

"Whoa you already started? I'm impressed, you're well prepared to be a mother" Lena said to Belfast as her eyes widened in astonishment.

"Ufufufu, I guess I am. Aside from being the first KANSEN to bear a child, I'd like to welcome it to this world with the warmth of a caring mother…It's the least I could do, for bringing it to this world despite its current situation" Belfast said to Lena while she smiled softly.

"…I think you will be able to do that just fine, Belfast" Lena said to Belfast while she smiled.

"Thank you for your confidence, madam" Belfast said to Lena while she smiled.

Lena smiled as she leaned on her seat while she stared at Belfast's who told Hermione to change their route because she wants to stop by somewhere, it looks like Belfast has some place that she'd like to visit while they're on Valencia…Lena's smile turned into somber one as she looked to her left and outside the car's window, staring into the downtown area before her…Did her mother felt the same as Belfast when she's pregnant with her? Lena doubt that's the case. Her father might just use her as a breeding tool to get his heir, he never tried to look for her when she decided to leave and disappear from public eyes. Instead, he was fine with anyone as long as he got a son. Benjamin's mother? Believe it or not, is the head maid of McAllen's mansion. The relation was kept secret, not even Benjamin knew who was his mother until the day he died…Benjamin might be her only child, but she treated Lena like her own flesh and blood as well. She is the closest figure to a mother that Lena has during her childhood days, something she'd like to remedy by finding her biological mother.

…When the news about Benjamin death reached the mansion, the head maid is devastated. That woman cried for two days straight, unable to hide her grief and Lena tried to help her overcome both of their sadness…She worried for his decision to join the military but her position doesn't allow her to be more upfront with her feelings…Despite her objection to Benjamin joining the military and regretted the fact that she didn't try harder to stop him, the head maid never blamed Lena or William for what happened to Benjamin. It's the job hazard, the risk that comes with that line of work and something she had to accept. The head maid retired not long after that, unable to continue working in a place where she spends a lot of time raising her son. Nowadays, she ran a small bakery near the outskirt of London, a place that Lena always visited whenever she's on the capital. She's married to a good man who worked as a psychiatrist, Lena was just glad that she tried to move on and do something despite the wound that will never heals in her heart…She should visit soon, preferably alongside William as she has been asking about him a lot lately. No doubt because of his prowess during the Battle of New York, but Lena thought that she just wants to catch up with him. Lena felt a hand held her right shoulder and she glanced to the right, only to see Garry stared at her worriedly.

"…I'm fine Garry, just lost in thought" Lena said to Garry while she smiled a bit.

"Okay, I just want to make sure" Garry said to Lena while he smiled.

"You know, you never really asked what am I thinking about whenever I zoned off. Why is that?" Lena asked Garry.

"Because I know it's not something I could help a lot with. You usually spoke regarding the small things, but with your responsibility and all you have been through, I know you're thinking of that whenever you're lost in your own thoughts…I didn't know anything regarding military matters, and it's not like I can help you with all the things that happened in your past" Garry said to Lena while he smiled somberly.

"I see…I always find it strange, but I think its because we know we are forced into this kind of situation so we try to respect our own privacies" Lena said to Garry while she smiled a bit.

"Yeah, that makes sense. You also don't really meddle in what I am doing, I think that might be the case…Heheh, funny isn't it? Married for two years and we just spoke about this now?" Garry said to Lena while he shrugged.

"It is…Well, despite the kind of shit we're trapped in, I just want you to know that I've considered you a friend, Garry. You're a good man, one's wasted on me as I'm sure there are another woman out there who will be able to appreciate you more than I ever will. I hope you'll find her, and lived your life happily together" Lena said to Garry while she smiled widely.

"Thanks Helena…But allow me to ask you one thing. If we met under different circumstances, do you think our relationship could work out?" Garry asked Lena.

"…Definitely. But as thing stands, that is not possible in this timeline" Lena said to Garry while she smiled somberly.

"Ah is that so…Thanks for being honest with me, you know I felt a bit sad that we ended up like this. Back then, when we just got married, I honestly found you really appealing, Helena. Someone I won't mind having as a wife, even when our marriage is arranged…But, now I know that we're not meant to be, despite my own feelings towards you" Garry said to Lena while he smiled wryly as he rubbed his nape.

"I really appreciate your feelings for me Garry, any woman would like to be loved sincerely by you" Lena said to Garry while she smiled.

"Yeah…Yeah…I hope I found someone as amazing as you later, Helena" Garry said to Lena while he smiled.

"You will, believe me when I say that" Lena said to Garry with serious tone.

"Okay, that did settle my heart…You also take care of yourself, and I hope that William will treat you well" Garry said to Lena while he smiled a bit.

"He will Garry, there's no doubt that he will" Lena said to Garry while she smiled.

Belfast and Hermione kept their mouth shut as they listened to what those two are talking about, now Belfast has pretty general idea on what is Lena and her husband doing on this island. How does she feel about this? Don't know, Belfast is just glad that Lena's problem will be over soon and she might be reinstating her relationship with her master. Nothing she can do about it, both of them have known one another for ten years and Belfast knew that both of them would like to get back together. But what about the other ship girls though? Lena must have known that William is already taken, but she still chooses to be with him despite that? Belfast guess that even Lena is quite flexible with her stance regarding monogamy that she didn't mind sharing him, she might still require an orientation if she really want to join them though. Oh that can be arranged, Belfast imagined that she will be able to provide Lena with the general rules that the KANSENs have established concerning their commander…

"Hermione, pull to the left. We're here" Belfast suddenly said to Hermione.

Hermione pulled to the left and stopped in front of a bar? Why would she want to go to a bar and why is this particular one? Belfast checked her tablet for a bit and received a message that told her the coast is clear. Belfast nodded her head; she rubbed her right thigh and felt a holster with a P228 on it. Belfast then opened the car door, stepping out into the cold air of winter on Valencia before she looked back into the car. She could clearly saw the puzzled look on Hermione's, Lena's and Garry's face.

"I will return shortly, please wait for a bit" Belfast said to the three of them while she smiled.

Then, Belfast walked toward the entrance and stepped inside as she opened the front door. She's immediately faced with a sight of a fancy bar, with polished wooden furniture and soothing yellow lighting. The occupants are definitely starring at her, few men even practically have their eyes glued on her as she made her way toward the owner that's manning the counter. He's an elderly man, dressed neatly in white shirt with black bow tie alongside black slacks and brown leather shoes. The moment he caught his eyes on Belfast, he immediately nodded and threw his left thumb to the side, toward the VIP section. Belfast nodded her head and walked toward the room wordlessly, feeling the attention on her diminished once she entered the private area on the bar. She walked past several booth, some filled with people and some empty, until she reached the last one and the one's containing the man she contacted before.

"Ms. Belfast" A masculine voice greeted Belfast.

"Good day to you, Commander Johnson" Belfast said to Johnson as she curtsied.

Carl Johnson, the leader of the base next to ALASUC's, are seated on the booth with two girls by his side. The booth is currently occupied by Johnson and several of his men, each of them accompanied by a hostess. It's a strange sight to see in the afternoon, but it's the norm for Johnson and his men to be here during this hour…The man wanted to talk with William regarding the security update concerning Valencia during the vacation week, but since William is away alongside Hood, Belfast have stepped up to meet with him personally. Johnson's face turned serious as he reached for the bag below him and opened it, he took out several papers that he handed to Belfast. She immediately read it, a report filled by Johnson's own Intel team and the report indicated that they have successfully detected and secured two containers filled with small arms on the northern port of the island. The cargo came from Eagle Union, filled with weapons from Azur Lane nations and the crew of the ship that carried it are still being questioned at the moment.

"…Crimson Cleanser, I presume?" Belfast asked Johnson.

"Most likely, they're the biggest potential culprit. Two containers of small arms means that they are preparing for something nasty during christmas, we're lucky that my Intel team managed to sniff them out so we got a potential disaster averted for now" Johnson said to Belfast.

"Any progress on catching their agents?" Belfast asked Johnson.

"Unfortunately, no luck on that end. These bastards hide like rats and we can't commit widespread manhunt when we don't even know their identities, it could be anyone. No high-profile members have been caught intruding so far, so that mean they will be relying on their disillusioned volunteers if they ever choose to cause trouble" Johnson said to Belfast as he sipped on his drink.

"Even an untrained person with live bombs could still ruin everyone's day" Belfast said to Johnson while she frowned a bit.

"That I agreed with you. Which is why we'll be tightening up security around the archipelago, we're preparing to counter if they decide to show their face here. I've stationed everyone on their post, ready to respond in case the worst happened" Johnson said to Belfast.

"Understood, that is a good move considering we have no means to catch the agents before they act. It is unfortunate but, in this case, we can only hope to respond quickly and do our best. We will also continue to provide security in case the Siren attack his archipelago, we will keep conducting patrols even during holidays. Now then, I shall relay this information to Admiral McAllen. Thank you for the information" Belfast said to Johnson before she bowed a bit.

"Ah no sweat. You take care on your way back" Johnson said to Belfast while he smiled.

"As do you, commander. Good day" Belfast said to Johnson before she left.

"…What a hottie, huh?" One of the men said out loud.

"Don't even think about it" Johnson said to the man with serious face.

"I know, I know. Won't want to be the one getting sucker punched by a fist as big as my head" The man said to Johnson while he frowned.

"Azur Knight is not someone you want to cross" Another man said to the man.

Belfast walked out of the bar and entered the car, she noted that Lena is eyeing her for a while and clearly wondering what did she do inside the bar? Belfast then handed the papers to Lena who took them then started reading through its content. Hermione saw Belfast nodded toward her then immediately drive away from the bar and head for their base, it's only five minutes ride from this area. Garry then noticed that Lena grimaced when she's done reading the papers, he sensed that something must've happened and it's nothing good.

"…I'm impressed by his Intel team's performance, wonder how did they did it that not even our own division couldn't pick this up?" Lena asked out loud.

"Is it possible that someone helped them from within?" Belfast asked Lena.

"The chances are small, especially after we ran a purge for those who worked with Crimson Cleansers…Are there any remnants within the HQ?" Lena asked out loud.

Lucas and Lena have run a thorough sweep of Intelligence division, catching several members with connections to Crimson Cleanser. Nora worked extremely hard to caught them in the act, running an intercept program on Azur Lane battle network is a very risky move that could backfire on her but she succeeded. She managed to intercept several transmissions to Antonio Lockwood and Ronald Mitchell himself, they have requested for their agents inside the division to supply them some information regarding their raid on their Voronezh hideout and an information concerning Azur Lane nuclear weapon stockpile. That last part was what made the entire HQ goes on maximum alert and locked down all of their nuclear arsenal with top level security, a terrorist with a nuke sounded like those plots from Eagle Union action movies. Sounded pretty ridiculous for a real-life scenario, until it really happened. To lit the world on fire, all it need is one madman with enough sheer will to do it and for the supposed protectors to do nothing. It happened during Trident Initiative activation and it's been months since then, naturally everyone would assume that their plan has failed. Wrong, it only gets dangerous from there on out.

Azur Lane have been routinely monitoring their nuclear weapon stockpile ever since then, so far there's nothing amiss with their number and the location also haven't moved. But what if it's just smoke and mirrors while in reality Ronald could have one ready to be used? It is still possible, and the thoughts are really discomforting for Lena. They have done everything they can and there is still a chance that they made a slip up somewhere, it is something that will never leave the back of her mind until that son of a cunt is dead. Lucas have warned her that she need to ease up when she started hunting for Ronald after New York, he's one of the reasons why Lena chose to take vacation and at the same time enacting the plan that she and Garry have been cooking up for a while now. That also prompted Lena to order her task force to get some vacation as well, the timing is a good one especially with them not having to deploy somewhere immediately. Sure, William must've been currently stuck fighting the Sirens in Mediterranean Sea and Lena would like to help him…but she got her own matter to settle at the moment, she'll trust that he could take whatever the Siren threw at them. Hopefully it's nothing as bad as before.

"Hermione, Edinburgh said that you're the one who stored the trolley yesterday. Where did you put them?" Belfast asked Hermione.

"Ah, on the west wing storage…I just put them in the usual place?" Hermione said to Belfast while she cocked her eyebrows.

"I see, so it's the case of my sister being clumsy" Belfast said to Hermione while she typed something on the tablet.

"Ufufu, Edinburgh is a bit forgetful. But that's what makes her cute, no?" Hermione said to Belfast while she smiled.

"Not just forgetful, she could be a handful when doing her own work. Not as notoriously clumsy like Sirius do, but still enough to make me sigh on occasions" Belfast said to Hermione.

"Oh yes, I think Sirius is more suited as a body guard than a maid. But if there's one thing I could praise her without a doubt, it's her devotion to her duty" Hermione said to Belfast while she smiled.

"On that we can agree" Belfast said to Hermione.

"…We do have quite troublesome sisters, aren't we?" Hermione asked Belfast while she smiled wryly.

"Indeed. But I wouldn't trade her for the world…" Belfast said to Hermione while she smiled softly.

"Same here…Oh and I'm really sorry that we have been causing so much headache to you miss, we still have a lot to learn as a maid" Hermione said to Belfast while she frowned a bit.

"Oh? Yes, while I do think that you and the others can use some additional training, I'm mostly pleased with how earnest all of you working. Give it some time and you'll be set for anything in your way" Belfast said to Hermione while she smiled.

"Hopefully we can be like you one day, the ever-perfect Ms. Belfast" Hermione said to Belfast while she smiled widely.

"Its fine if you don't, Hermione. Just being able to do your tasks without blundering would've been enough" Belfast said to Hermione.

"Eh? Is there a reason why? Don't you want the maid corps to be able to do anything above and beyond?" Hermione asked Belfast in confused tone.

"And I do, however that would be an unrealistic goal to have. Each of the maids has their strength and weaknesses, a specialty to their own. Making everyone aced everything would have been good on papers, but we will lose the spice that makes the Royal Maids an effective force to begin with. Sirius with her security proficiency, Sheffield with her keen attention to detail, Dido sewing skills, your affinity in the kitchen, Curlew extensive knowledge on mannerism, Curacoa with her teaching methods, Black Prince's ability to work with everyone…As you can see, everyone has something they excel in. It is easier to divide the tasks among the maids" Belfast explained to Hermione while she smiled.

"A-As expected of Ms. Belfast, you are quite thoughtful!" Hermione said to Belfast while she smiled widely.

"Oh no, it's simply due to my duty as the head maid. I have to be mindful to how I managed manpower" Belfast said to Hermione while she smiled a bit.

"…Wait, stop!" Lena said out loud.

Hermione stepped on the brake and the car gradually stopped moving, Lena stepped out of the car and stared at the barricade that Valencia Police Department have put up on the intersection that leads to ALASUC base. What's going on? Belfast also stepped out of the car while she narrowed her eyes in wonder, the barricade isn't there when they left the base. Lena walked toward the barricade with several police car and personnel standing by around it and Belfast followed along, one of the police saw them coming immediately approached them. Belfast noted that despite the barricade, there aren't any civilians crowding around to see what's going on…

"Ma'am, please get to a minimum safe distance. There's a bomb threat around this location" The police said to Lena and Belfast.

"Azur Lane Admiral, I want to know the details. Also, this maid is with me" Lena said to the police as she took out her military ID.

"A-A-Ah! Sorry about that ma'am…We received an emergency call from a pedestrian that they spotted someone trying to install a suspicious device along the intersection that leads to that military base" The police officer said to Lena.

"When was that?" Lena asked the police.

"Five minutes ago. Our bomb disposal squad is currently on their way here, we spotted several IEDs around the traffic lights and have forced everyone to clear this area" The police said to Lena while he frowned.

"Any eyes on the suspect? Any affiliation with Crimson Cleanser?" Lena asked the police.

"There are around six suspects but none matched our wanted list, are all armed and on the loose at the moment. If you're trying to get to that base, I suggest you wait for our bomb disposal team to complete their work" The police said to Lena.

"Don't worry, we can-"

WHOOOOSHHH!

BOOOM!

Everyone was startled by that noise, Lena and Belfast turned around then widened their eyes. The SUV with Hermoine and Garry inside it? It's currently flipped and burning…Belfast, Lena and some of the police immediately sprinted to the burning wreckage, they managed to get a glimpse of Hermione crawling out of the vehicle but Garry is nowhere to be seen. Lena quickly tended to Hermione and checked her condition while Belfast tore the middle seat right door off which surprised the polices, Belfast grimaced before she dragged Garry out of the car and hoisted him on her shoulders. He is not looking good in the slightest, literally. There are glass shards embedded all over his face alongside several second degree burn marks and his mouth alongside nose is leaking blood, presumably internal organ damage. Just as Belfast started walking, she heard something from her left side, a gunfire and there's a lot of them.

RATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATAATATATATA!

Belfast summoned her riggings before she jumped away from the area and took cover behind another parked car, she sets down Garry before she took out her P228. Belfast briefly considered using her main guns but the collateral damage to the buildings around those shooters could prove to be fatal, especially when she didn't know how many innocent people are inside. So Belfast has no choice but to engage them with a handgun for now, she pulled the slide and emerged from cover before she returned fire with her pistol. Lena sighed a bit in relief that Hermione is relatively alright, she felt sick due to the shockwave and she might have concussion but at least she's alive. Lena heard of the gunfight and saw several shooters, then she took out her Five Seven and immediately laid down some rounds toward the terrorists. There are five shooters, armed with assault rifles and sub machine guns with one shouldering an empty RPG on her back. In combination with Belfast, both of them managed to kill three shooters and forced the other two to flee the scene when even the rest of the cops joined the firefight. Some of the cops pursued the remaining shooters while Lena ran toward Garry.

"Officer down! Officer down! Requesting immediate medical assistance and backup! Sector 1-1!" One police said out loud on the radio.

"Garry?!" Lena kneeled next to Garry.

"…H…He…len…a…" Garry doesn't look good; he needs immediate medical attention.

"Stay with me, we're getting you out of here!" Lena said to Garry while she frowned.

BANG!

Garry grabbed on to Lena then with great effort, pushed her to the side just when everyone heard of that loud gunfire. Lena immediately turned around and noticed that there's someone on top of a three-story building aiming his gun toward them, Lena immediately took aim but before she can fire, the low walls with the shooter blew up and produced thin red mist on his last location. Lena widened her eyes then turned around to noticed that Belfast just fired her 40mm Bofors Anti-Aircraft gun, she can use her rigging since that shooter is on the rooftop and not standing in front of a building with its occupants. Lena then turned toward Garry and she gasped; the shooter hit Garry instead of her because he pushed her to the side. It's no coincidence, Garry must've spotted the shooter way before Lena ran towards him. There's a sizeable hole on his stomach, the shooter most likely carried a gun that used a big caliber.

"Madam, we need to get him to Vestal! Hold on to my rigging, I will carry him!" Belfast said to Lena.

Lena didn't argue as she hopped onto Belfast's rigging while Belfast scooped Garry off the ground, then she started running toward their base before she broke into a full-on sprint. Unlike during the sports festival, ship girls are able to show their true superhuman strength when they equipped their rigging as proven by Belfast. She ran as fast as eighty kilometers an hour, heading toward the bridge before she jumped to the water on the side and caused Lena to tightened her grip. Belfast landed in the water then started cruising toward the beach area near the infirmary, she jumped into the beach before she sprinted to the building. Only when she reached the building where she slowed herself down and stored her rigging, Lena landed on her feet before she opened the infirmary door and let Belfast through with Garry. Lena opened another door to one of the infirmary wings and Belfast went through it before she put Garry's down on the nearest bed, Lena hurriedly moved to Garry's side before she pressed on the bullet holes on his stomach and backside while Belfast went to get Vestal. The man bleeds so much blood, he doesn't have a lot of time.

"Garry, hold on…" Lena said to Garry while she grimaced at how much of his blood that coated her hands.

"…na…He…na…I…" Garry's words are incomprehensible; Lena gritted her teeth as she continued to put pressure on his wounds.

"Situation?!" Vestal asked out loud as she entered the room.

"Gunshot wound and the bullet went through! Possible internal organ damage!" Lena said to Vestal.

"Alright, stand back!" Vestal said to Lena.

Lena cocked her eyebrows in confusion but she backed away nevertheless, Vestal put both of her hands above Garry's stomach before a bright blue ball of light shined from the palm of her hands. Lena has her jaw dropped a bit; this must be Vestal's legendary ability that can heal any kinds of wounds! It's the first time she saw it in action, Lena could see how concentrated Vestal is when she used this ability. No wonder why Lena always saw her exhausted during Operation Eagle Storm, especially after their encounter with Enterprise Alter that caused a lot of wounded casualties for ALASUC. If one already takes this much effort, Lena can't imagine if Vestal has to heal dozens of injured ship girls by herself…The shine died down as Vestal retracted her hands, Lena immediately checked on Garry and she is very impressed. There are no more bullet holes, both entry and exit wound are covered up like he's never got shot in the first place. Vestal also didn't take long as she hasn't even used her ability for more than thirty seconds!

"You did it, Vestal" Lena said to Vestal while she smiled.

"…No…I didn't…" Vestal said to Lena in crestfallen tone.

"…What?" Lena asked Vestal as her eyes widened in confusion.

"…He is too far gone…My ability can heal all kinds of physical wounds, but even it has its limits…I can't bring back someone from death…" Vestal said to Lena while she frowned deeply.

"…Garry…he's already dying when you started healing him?" Lena asked Vestal as she held on Garry's left wrist…there is no pulse…

"Yes, his heartbeat stopped when I began and there's nothing that I could do to help him cling to life…I'm truly sorry, Lena…" Vestal said to Lena while she frowned deeply.

"…You did your best, Vestal…Notify the local morgue, please" Lena said to Vestal as she stared at Garry's lifeless body.

"…Understood" Vestal said to Lena while she nodded.

Vestal exited the room, leaving Lena and Belfast alone with Garry's body. Belfast silently gasped when she saw tears run down Lena's cheeks, she honestly thought that Lena will cry harder than she is right now but…she guessed that Lena must have been not too attached to Garry. Lena closed her eyes, unable to stop the stream of tears from flowing out of her eyes. Lena considered Garry a friend, but nothing more than that. She is saddened, but not to the extent when she found out about her little brother's death…She thought that its unfortunate, the man before her deserved better than dying due to a terrorist attack. They were so close, so close to freedom. The plan that they have concocted for months, all gone through the drains when they are so close to completing it…Lena starred at Garry's face, he looked so at ease despite the pain he must have felt…did he accepted his fate? Who knows, but Garry must've left with no regrets, believing he did the right thing…

"…Madam Lena, I'm truly sorry" Belfast said to Lena as she closed her eyes and frowned.

"Thank you, Belfast. Without you and Garry, I won't be standing here to mourn him" Lena said to Belfast.

"Please, it's no trouble at all madam…" Belfast said to Lena while she bowed a bit.

"…Get some rest Belfast, you're more than earned it" Lena said to Belfast while she stared at her…Belfast maid outfit's front side is coated in blood, no doubt due to her carrying Garry.

"I understand, I will send someone else to attend to you shortly" Belfast said to Lena.

"No need…I want to be alone at the moment" Lena said to Belfast while she frowned.

"…As you wish, madam" Belfast bowed a bit before she turned around.

Belfast sighed slowly as she left the infirmary, surprising several ship girls along the way who immediately asked what happened to her. Belfast easily calmed everyone who were surprised and told them not to disturb Lena on the infirmary, she just lost her husband and want to grieve. After asking crowding KANSENs to pass the message around the residents, Belfast contacted Hermione who said that she's doing better at the moment and Edinburgh is already on her way to pick her up on the intersection. She testified regarding the attack and the police let her go without further question, Belfast told Hermione to get back and rest for now before she ended the call. Belfast entered her personal room, put her maid clothes inside the washing machine, take a relaxing shower, put on a one-piece casual dress before she found herself laying down on top of her own bed…Belfast just realized how exhausted she is, moving as fast as she did back then while being fueled by adrenaline. She subconsciously held her lower stomach and hoped that her previous stunt won't put the growing child inside her womb in any danger…Belfast sighed a bit before she closed her eyes, maybe taking a nap once in a while wouldn't hurt.

"…Yes, it just happened" Lena said out loud on her phone.

"…Dammit…I'm sorry to hear that" Lucas said to Lena on the phone.

"Commander Johnson's Intel Team did not report any high-profile Crimson Cleanser member detected entering this archipelago, but this attack is clearly targeted towards me. They went to such lengths to set up a blockade five minutes before we reached the intersection to ALASUC base, it indicates that this attack has been in the making for months…and they knew that I will be here today…How did they know that I will be here? I didn't say where I am going, to anyone" Lena said to Lucas on the phone.

"Could it be they already set up a monitoring post somewhere on Royal Island or Azure Archipelago?" Lucas asked Lena on the phone.

"Maybe back on Royal Island, there's no way they could pull something as methodical and elaborate like this without hours of preparation beforehand" Lena said to Lucas on the phone.

"Agreed, it's too perfectly executed" Lucas said to Lena on the phone.

"Then there's also the shooters. None of them seems to be a high-profile member of Crimson Cleanser, but they're able to pull such a clean job despite being civilians" Lena said to Lucas on the phone.

"How can you be so sure that they are civilians?" Lucas asked Lena on the phone.

"They don't have strategy other than showing out of hiding spot and shot us without using cover, though I'd admit I'll be killed by their hidden sniper if Garry didn't push me away…" Lena said to Lucas on the phone while she scowled.

"…I'm tightening Azure Archipelago security to high alert until Crimson Cleanser is dealt with. You better stay on ALASUC base for now Lena, I'll sort things out from here…You still need your time to rest" Lucas said to Lena on the phone.

"Alright…Lucas, I want to focus on eradicating them" Lena said to Lucas on the phone while she scowled.

"The progress on locating them have gone smoothly and we can start hunting for them, Nora believed that she found a lead that will locate their current hideout. When the time comes, I will recall every Bellerophon Program Graduates to take on this task. All five of you against the five members of Gemini Squad of Crimson Cleanser…It's time to put an end to this shit show" Lucas said to Lena on the phone.

.

…Jean Bart yawned as she floated above the sea surface, around her there's a bunch of ship girls from former Iris Libre and Vichya Dominion. That man really did it, she thought William was joking when he said that he'll be mixing their units since he knew how things are going between them. And yet, he still mixed them up. Jean Bart glanced toward Le Triomphant, Bearn and Forbin who are scanning the horizon for any Siren presence while their submarine allies doing their work below them…Jean Bart is to lead this patrol group, while Richelieu and Bismarck led the other two. They are spread all over from western to southern part of the Celestial Garden, still trying to find the Siren KANSEN that the submarines spotted before. But so far? No luck, it's almost noon and they didn't detect anything under them save for a few large fishes. The woman is currently folding her arms while she waited for their sonar to pick up anything other than fish, the boredom is killing her slowly. She'd rather take a nap under a tree than playing hide and seek with the Sirens, but orders are orders and she'll want to prove to her new commander that she's not some deadweight who happened to lead the Vichy fleet in the past.

"Hey Jean" Galissonniere called her name as she approached her.

"Quelle?" Jean asked Galissonniere in response.

"Is it just me, or this is a big waste of time?" Galissonniere asked Jean.

"…I'm half and half here, that Siren is proven to be real and we all know the extent of damage it can cause…Then again, what guarantees do we have to prove that Siren is still around?" Jean said to Galissonniere while she frowned a bit.

"Oui, just saying though, we'll end up combing half of Mediterranean Sea at this rate" Galissonniere said to Jean while she smiled smugly.

"No kidding…" Jean said to Galissonniere.

"Malin, don't sleep now!" Le Triomphant said to Le Malin.

"Huh?! E-Ennemie?!" Malin eyes went wide as she scanned the horizon.

"None detected yet, I'm just preventing you from falling asleep" Triomphant said to Malin.

"Uhhh…don't be mean to me Triomphant, I'm so tired right now…" Malin said to Triomphant with half closed eyes.

"Aren't you the last one to wake up today? You're always like this, I don't know how you managed to compose yourself and hide this nature of yours in front of others, hah…" Triomphant said to Malin before she sighed.

"…There's a time where desperate measure must be taken, despite me not liking it" Malin said to Triomphant.

"Hah…when will you change this habit of yours?" Triomphant sighed then asked Malin with hands on her hips.

"Never, I'm the most comfortable with myself…Uhhhh…" Malin said to Triomphant before she closed her eyes.

"…Don't fall asleep! Sheesh!" Triomphant said to Malin then pouted.

…Jean Bart watched their interaction from afar, those two have always been arguing with one another even before their split. But well, their argument is always lighthearted in nature. Le Triomphant is the serious and responsible one while Le Malin is more of the slacker between the two, despite their difference however, both of them could get along together and have never been involved in a fight without one of them saying sorry a few hours later…Jean noticed that she have been involuntarily smiling then shook her head as her expression returned to her usual serious one, she couldn't help but to think the face of her own sister when she saw those two…Why can't the two of them be like Malin and Triomphant? Jean won't ask them to be so sappily close to one another, not fighting every time they met would've been enough for her. Deep down, she wanted to be the one who took the initiative, but something prevented Jean from approaching Richelieu first…Every time she sees her face, Jean is reminded that her sister is a cardinal, someone who will have problems with her 'lack' of belief especially as her sibling. Jean have tried, oh she really did…But it didn't work out for her, forcing herself to continue believing in something despite her not having faith on it? It doesn't sit well with her heart.

Honestly, if Richelieu won't mind about that aspect, maybe the both of them could sit together and talked normally…Jean had to admit, she and Richelieu have always been different. Richelieu is a bright woman who smiled often, Jean has scary look that would often drove people away. Richelieu has the charisma of a leader naturally as her words alone could inspire others, Jean prefers to lead by example by doing what needs to be done. Richelieu has her approachable aura that will soothe people as if she's a saint, Jean has her authoritative aura that caused people to snap their attention to her as if she's a feared figure…If Jean thought about it, both of them seems to be the polar opposite even from their core as a person. Richelieu who's a benevolent spiritual figure, Jean who's a well-regarded leader…Both of them are like Joan of Arc who are split into two persons, a revered military commander and a figure that could inspire hope to her brethren…Jean couldn't help but to snorted in amusement with that analogy, seems a fitting one for them as the leader of Iris KANSENs…

"Jean, can…hear me?" Jean Bart perked up when someone contacted her on the radio, she knew this voice.

"Richelieu? You're breaking up, can you repeat?" Jean asked Richelieu on the radio.

"Jean, if you…hear me…Sirens…" Richelieu said to Jean on the radio.

"Sirens? Richelieu, what's going on?" Jean asked Richelieu on the radio.

"…Call…Commandant…Sirens…" Richelieu said to Jean before her radio produced static noise.

"What do we do? Should we report to Commandant Blaze?" Galissonniere asked Jean.

"Definitely…Listen up, I'm splitting our group to three teams. Galissonniere, take Mars and Forbin with you then go report to commandant. Vauquelin, you stay here and stand by incase our subs detected something. The rest of you, follow me! We're moving out!" Jean Bart immediately commanded her group.

The ship girls immediately dispersed as they move to do their job. Jean kept herself composed as she led the ship girls to Richelieu position which is the farthest from the island when compared to Bismarck or hers, if Richelieu had to contact Jean Bart despite what's happening between them? Something has happened and it's nothing good. Jean has confidence in Richelieu's combat prowess, not to mention her escorts are consisted of Algerie, Dunkerque, Bearn, Jeanne d'Arc and several Ironblood destroyers so she should be pretty secured…Then why contact her? Jean is only assuming at this point since Richelieu's voice are breaking up over the radio, but it sounds like Richelieu is requesting reinforcement and want Jean to report the situation to their commander since she's quite close to the town compared to Richelieu or Bismarck…Well, Jean thought she made the right call with their communication being jammed. Send someone to report to William and then immediately head to Richelieu's zone of operation, they might not be on the best of terms…but Richelieu is still her sister.

"We're approaching Madame Richelieu's Group search area!" Le Triomphant said out loud.

"Alright, spread out, loose line formation. Keep eyes on the horizon-"

Jean Bart saw a yellow glint from the horizon so she stopped talking as she dashed to the left side, just in time as a high-speed yellow colored energy projectile went past her previous position. The woman gritted her teeth and clicked her tongue, that must've come from a Siren Peace Breaker! Everyone immediately kept their distance from one another as they watched the area where that projectile come from…Wait, Jean narrowed her eyes at the fact that Sirens are here but no signs of Richelieu's group being around. They need to find out what's going on, but first they will have to eliminate the immediate threat. Jean Bart loaded HE shells into her guns and immediately fired a salvo toward the approximate location of the Peace Breaker, she didn't intend to hit it but a lucky shot would be nice…However, the shell suddenly disappeared to thin air before it can land on the water and this caused confusion to everyone. What in the actual fuck is going on?!

"How can your shell just disappear like that?!" Le Triomphant asked out loud while she looked shocked.

"No idea, but I think we'll find out if we get closer" Jean Bart said to Le Triomphant.

"Incoming!" Emile Bertin said out loud.

Several more energy projectile flew toward the group, forcing everyone to take evasive maneuvers. Yes, Sirens are definitely in front of them but there's no sign of their units. All the KANSENs see in front of them Is just the horizon and open sea, at least until several additional energy projectiles coming toward them that seemingly appeared from thin air.

"Yup, something must have camouflage them!" Le Triomphant said out loud.

"Charge ahead and shell their approximate location, we're taking this up close and personal!" Jean Bart said out loud.

BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM!

The sounds of cannons firing resounded all around them as Jean Bart's group fired ahead of them, it's like fighting a ghost. The group keep moving forward until something happened, the scenery around them flickered before it changed…and it caused everyone to widened their eyes. A large Siren base suddenly appeared in front of them, a big black fortress with red accents littered with defensive emplacements and buzzing with countless Siren units from infantry to KANSENs. Something as deadly as this base, which the Sirens managed to set up right under their nose and unable to be detected by naked eyes? Those damn invaders got them good. No wonder the Sirens deployed jammers; they want to keep this place hidden as long as possible until it's the right time to unveil it. Jean Bart widened her eyes further when she saw what's directly in front of them, a group of Peace Breaker is standing like a barrier with their cannons aimed at them. Naturally, the ship girls moved to engage. They'll beat this group then bail out, that's what they should do but Jean still need to find Richelieu.

"Richelieu! Where are you!?" Jean Bart asked out loud on the radio.

"Jean?! Are you close to the base?! No! You need to leave now! You won't survive if you stand and fight!" Richelieu said to Jean on the radio.

"You think I'm here to fight? I even just know about this! We're here to help you out! Where are you!?" Jean asked Richelieu on the radio.

"We're on its lower side! We have to get close to their blind spot so we won't get targeted by their anti-ship cannons!" Richelieu said to Jean on the radio.

"Anti-ship cannon?" Jean asked out loud.

"INCOMING!" Le Triomphant said out loud.

Jean Bart looked toward the Siren base and she could see the large defensive emplacement shining bright red, her instinct immediately told her to dodge so that's what she did. Immediately after that, seven anti-ship emplacements with dual high tech looking barrel fired multiple concentrated plasma red beams toward the ALASUC KANSENs. Luckily for them, the turn rate of the cannons is a bit on the slow side so with their relatively close range to the base, it's easy for them to dodge the beam of death. But they're not out of the woods yet, especially when the Peace Breaker class charged towards them for a close-range fight. Jean and the other ship girls immediately engaged the Peace Breakers, they want to be as mobile as possible so they won't get targeted by the anti-ship beam cannons.

"Jean! Additional Siren KANSENs are approaching your group from the right!" Richelieu said to Jean Bart on the radio.

"Oui, we'll take care of them! You and the others need to get away, Richelieu! We'll cover you!" Jean said to Richelieu on the radio while she engaged in a short-range gunnery with a Peace Breaker.

"Non, you need to get out of here ahead of us and warn the others about this base. We can provide some distraction then escape once we see the chance to do so" Richelieu said to Jean Bart on the radio.

"Fuck that idiote suggestion!" Jean Bart practically growled as she responded harshly on the radio.

"Jean?!" Richelieu asked Jean on the radio with shocked tone.

"I had enough with your self-righteousness! You always make it sound like you know better! What makes you think that suggestion will work?!" Jean shouted at Richelieu on the radio.

"Q-Quelle? Jean, this isn't about being right! This is about making sure that at least some of us get out of this perilous situation! It doesn't matter if I'm right or wrong!" Richelieu said to Jean on the radio.

"There you go again! Why can't you think how to get out of this together?! You always said that you don't like sacrifices! And that's the first thing you suggested right now?! Connerie, you hypocrite!" Jean Bart shouted at Richelieu on the radio.

…Now she remembered that despite all of her redeeming qualities, sometimes Richelieu could be seen as someone with some kind of holier than thou attitude. What she meant by that is that Richelieu could be too indulged in her own righteousness that she refused or can't see other perspectives, that rigidness made her seen as stubborn by some people. It's one of the reasons why Jean can't come clean to her about losing faith, she knew that Richelieu would be disappointed and furious at her. William already reminded Richelieu about that fact where she could be seen as a zealot if she's not flexible enough to just…loose herself from being too devoted to something…Jean Bart rushed toward the Peace Breaker in front of her while firing her main guns, some of her HE shells hit the Peace Breaker but not even getting hit by that is enough to make it stand down. Despite losing its left hand and its body charred black, the Peace Breaker charged toward Jean as it fired its main guns, sending several high yield energy bolts toward the woman. Jean jumped high, avoided the projectiles and drop kicked the Peace Breaker straight in the face. Jean then grabbed the fallen Peace Breaker by the leg, swung it to the side before she rained it with her secondaries to keep it pinned down. She waited until her main gun finished reloading then fired at the Peace Breaker with a salvo of battleship grade HE shells, blown it up as the shells make contact with the Siren, completely deleted it from the surface of the earth and leaving only charred bits of its former body raining around her.

"…Do you not have faith in me?" Richelieu asked Jean on the radio.

"Because your actions don't inspire one, despite being cardinale and flagship of Iris KANSENs! So, unless you want me to come there and drag you back myself, come up with a plan that can get us all out of here! You're always been the one who can use your head better than me, now use it!" Jean said to Richelieu on the radio while she scowled.

…Richelieu could only smile softly as she watched Jean Bart squaring off against another Peace Breaker before she dodged a plasma beam from the emplacement. Where is she right now? Richelieu is directly under the Siren base's platform edge, shielded from the Siren's sight. She alongside her group stumbled on this base by complete accident and quickly found themselves get overwhelmed; they did fight the Sirens for a bit until Z23 suggested they break off from combat by diving into the sea. With only their human body, the chance of them being detected by Siren sensor lessened considerably, especially if they're hide themselves around Siren structure like some of the large pipes on Siren base hull that they're hiding in right now.

"Alright…hold on for a bit longer, Jean" Richelieu said to Jean on the radio while she smiled.

"Who do you think I am!? I won't go down that easily!" Jean said to Richelieu on the radio.

Always the one with bravado, that little sister of hers. Jean will always be the one who's eager to fight and leaving the thinking to later, she's also the type to hide her kindness behind a tough act. Richelieu knew that Jean cared for her, which is why she shouted at her for even thinking of doing sacrificial move by staying behind for a bit. Richelieu didn't have intention to die nor to sacrifice the group she led, but both of them knew the end result of such move…So, in order to escape alive, together, they will need to do something and quickly.

"Everyone, any suggestion to escape this perilous situation?" Richelieu asked the ship girls on her group.

"Frankly speaking, I could only see us rushing out of here while being under fire from those cannons" Dunkerque said to Richelieu while she frowned.

"We could try to cripple the guns before we escape, but we will require good timing and coordination" Algerie suggested to Richelieu.

"And that could result in us being surrounded by Sirens" Dunkerque said to Algerie.

"Madame, I could sacrifice my planes. I could ram the cannons" Bearn said to Richelieu.

"We will need every last plane we can get our hands on, Bearn. We're going to have to fight this fortress eventually" Richelieu said to Bearn.

"So are our munitions. But there are other carriers than Bearn, we Iris KANSENs are not alone in the fight anymore…we don't have to conserve that much munition like we used to" Dunkerque said to Richelieu while she frowned.

"Destroying the cannons with our cannon shells would definitely take some time but that will leave us underpowered for the next fight, Bearn's plane would be better in dealing damage but losing them would mean losing some tactical advantage if we're going to fight this fortress in the future…There's no other choice mon cardinale, either we expend our munition or crash Bearn's planes into the cannons…Which one will it be?" Algerie asked Richelieu while the other ship girls summoned their riggings.

Richelieu racked her brain for new ideas or at least the decision to make on this situation, should she sacrificed Bearn's planes when they could be used later? Or will she have the ship girls expended some of their munition to destroy the cannons so they can bail out safely? Both could potentially screw them over the next time they're fighting this base…A sound of plasma beam being fired caused Richelieu to looked out and stared at the fighting KANSENs against the Sirens, she needs to make a decision as soon as possible. Bearn's planes are valuable, but she's one KANSEN compared to several others who has more ammo than Bearn's planes and damage output. Not to mention, Bearn is also equipped with light cruiser guns so she can still fight. ALASUC also has other carriers with them…Alright, Richelieu has made her decision. They're getting out of here alive, all of them.

"Bearn, prepare your planes. Can you launch them vertically then dive straight for those cannons?" Richelieu asked Bearn.

"It will be challenging to do that, but I believe I can make it work" Bearn said to Richelieu with serious face.

"Good. Then, focus your attack on the cannon emplacements on our left side, we'll be getting out through there" Richelieu said to Bearn as she pointed the direction where she needs to focus on.

"Acknowledged, madame cardinale" Bearn said to Richelieu.

"The rest of you, we will make our escape once the cannons are destroyed while we cover Jean and her group. Jeanne, I want you to keep an eye on our rear as we dash out of here. Then we head straight for Celestial Garden, warn Commandant Blaze on this situation and prepare to fight this base. Understood?" Richelieu said out loud.

"""""Oui!""""" """"Jawohl!"""" Richelieu's group responded.

"Get ready everyone. Jean, we are going to damage the beam cannons to your right then we will immediately escape once that happens, be ready to move as well!" Richelieu said to her KANSENs then to Jean on the radio.

"Finally, just tell me when you're moving out!" Jean said to Richelieu on the radio.

"Alright…Bearn, do it" Richelieu said to Bearn.

Bearn nodded her head then launched all of her planes in quick succession, they immediately flew up to gain sufficient heights before all of them dived down toward the beam cannons. The Sirens immediately tried to intercept Bearn's planes by having their AA guns fired at them while being supported by Siren KANSENs and Siren Troopers on site, the planes kept diving despite the heavy anti-air fire and several of them being damaged enough that they exploded midair. But despite Siren's best effort, Bearn's planes are still numerous enough to carry out the attack, her planes fired their cannons as a form of suppression against the Siren Troopers then hit the beam cannons straight from above. Richelieu and the others keep their attention on the explosions caused by the impact, after around a dozen or more explosions being heard by the KANSENs, Richelieu turned toward Bearn to hear her report.

"The cannons are more resilient than we thought, my planes managed to damage them but lacking in number to destroy all of them" Bearn said to Richelieu.

"How many that you have taken out?" Richelieu asked Bearn.

"Three out of five cannons, madame" Bearn said to Richelieu while she frowned.

"…That's still better than all five being online. Let's not waste any more time, onwards!" Richelieu said out loud.

The KANSENs jumped into the sea then immediately glided away from the base in scrambled pattern, they spread themselves out so the beam wouldn't get them with one strike and give some room for the ship girls to dodge in case the beam headed for them. Jeanne glanced backwards every so often, to check on the two remaining beam cannons on their side. They aren't aimed toward them? Jeanne cocked her eyebrows; they're aimed toward Jean Bart's position!

"Jean, incoming from the base!" Jeanne warned Jean Bart on the radio.

"We noticed! How are you ladies right now?!" Jean asked Jeanne on the radio.

"We're already on our way!" Jeanne said to Jean on the radio.

"Jean! Disengage, we will cover your retreat!" Richelieu said to Jean on the radio.

"Oui! Alright, follow me! We're retreating!" Jean said to Richelieu on the radio before she commanded her group.

Richelieu glanced to the side and noted that Jean Bart's group is retreating the same way they're currently going, Richelieu smiled that their retreat is going well. Jean Bart's group dispersed as they avoided the two-beam cannon's fire, now that Richelieu thought about it there's something odd about that cannon. It is clear that it's an anti-ship cannon, designed for long range engagement with its low turn rate yet highly destructive firepower…But if Siren's primarily fights humanity, why would they need something so overpowered? Not even the toughest human ship could survive against a direct hit from those concentrated plasma beam, unless they are somehow shielded by energy shielding. Then, there's also the base which can camouflage itself, that mean it can approach any beach on this earth without ever being detected until it's too late. The floating base is Siren equivalent to human landing ships huh? Richelieu has no doubt that the number of units the Siren has on that base are staggering, and their target seems to be Celestial Garden…Why would the Siren send an invasion army to take a small island with small human population? They must've thought about this far before ALASUC arrives, but then why would they hold back from committing the whole base from the start?

"Scheisse! Siren pursuers!" Z1 said out loud on the radio.

"Ignore them for now! Focus on escaping first!" Richelieu said to Z1 on the radio.

"Jawohl!" Z1 said to Richelieu on the radio.

"How far should we go!?" Jean Bart asked out loud on the radio.

"…If we use basic physics, we can use earth itself as our cover!" Algerie said out loud on the radio.

"How?! You see anything around here that can cover us?! We're practically out in the middle of the sea!" Jeanne asked Algerie on the radio.

"Each kilometer would mean there's a drop around eight centimeters to the actual object from the viewer's position, that would mean…ideally, we should put ourselves around thirty kilometers away if we want to be completely safe, but roughly twenty-five kilometers distance should do it if we keep our heads down!" Algerie said out loud on the radio.

"Uhhh I'm not sure I understand, we can still engage in long range gunnery even up to thirty kilometers away!" Jeanne asked Algerie on the radio.

"Algerie has a point. Theoretically, directed energy beams are not affected by gravity so it will fire in straight trajectory. Since earth is round, the farther we are from the cannons, the lesser chance it can hit us accurately since the beam won't curve while we can basically hide beyond the horizon. The same can't be said with solid projectile that are affected by gravity, it's the reason why long-range gunnery is possible with battleship cannons" Z23 explained out loud on the radio.

"Sound's complicated but I'll trust you big brained ladies' judgment!" Jeanne said to Z23 on the radio.

"…This is why the academy is still needed back at base…" Z23 muttered on the radio in dispirited tone.

"Hahaha! Way to show your appeal as a teacher, schwester!" Z1 said to Z23 on the radio after she laughed.

"INCOMING!" Jeanne d'Arc said out loud.

The group dispersed as energy projectiles fell upon their position, the Siren pursuers fired their guns at the KANSENs and they immediately retaliated by returning fire as they cruised backwards. But before they can eliminate their pursuers, something worse happened. A portal appeared on the direction where the ALASUC KANSENs are going and dozens of Siren KANSENs appeared before them, the Sirens immediately formed a line to intercept the ship girls. Without even being ordered to, everyone knew that skirting around the blockade will only further complicate their problems so the ALASUC KANSENs decided that it's time to fight. Z1 and Z23 dashed ahead of everyone while firing their main guns, hitting several Explorers directly and turned their attention toward the two blitzing destroyers. The Explorers moved to intercept Z1 and Z23 while launching several torpedo barrages which are avoided by the two Ironblood destroyers because they jumped up high, they would've been a pair of Swiss cheese in the air if not for the preemptive torpedo wave that Z25 and Z26 launched beforehand which are hidden behind the advancing Z1 and Z23. The torpedoes struck the charging Explorers and two of them get pounced by Z23 and Z1 who used their heads as landing cushion, then the fight is officially on as Z23 and Z1 engaged the Explorers in close combat followed by Z26 and Z25 who also fight them in melee range.

"Malin!" Le Triomphant said out loud.

"I'm ready" Le Malin said to Triomphant.

Le Triomphant advanced toward another Explorer group that relentlessly fired their guns toward her, Triomphant advanced toward them at maximum speed with her shield raised up and tanking the energy projectiles. Behind her, Le Malin hold on to Triomphant's shoulder with a rapier on standby. Le Triomphant kept charging forward until she rammed an Explorer with her shield, the sheer force and momentum is enough to immediately sent the Explorer flying backwards and into an Oceana. Due to sudden momentum halt, Le Malin is thrown forward as well and she went flying while her guns fired at any Siren within its sight. Malin then landed on the Oceana's rigging that got hit by a flying Explorer before and immediately stabbed it in the back before punctured its rigging with her rapier, naturally that caused her to be targeted by nearby Siren KANSENs, Malin waited a bit until they fired toward her before she jumped off of the Oceana. The energy projectiles killed the severely wounded Siren, allowing Le Malin to switch targets and she immediately aimed for the Peace Breaker at her immediate front.

Algerie dodged several melee strikes from a Tracker that swung its left hand rigging toward her, another one ambushed her from behind and fired its gun. Algerie noticed the tracker ahead of time however and managed to dodge the shot by skirting slightly to the left while spinning her body, as result the Tracker's projectile hit the Tracker that Algerie's been fighting while the woman itself used the momentum of her spin to launched a devastating swing with her two-handed mace. The impact shattered the Tracker's spine and ribcage before it went flying to the side, the dead Siren then got split into two by Jeanne who split its midriff with her flaming longsword. Jeanne then fired her guns loaded with HE shells toward a Peace Breaker, setting it ablaze before she dashed toward the Siren. The Peace Breaker kept on fighting despite being burned, then it shot a salvo toward Jeanne who deployed her energy barrier.

BOOM!

"Guh!"

Jeanne dashed to the side and avoided the rest of the energy projectiles; she underestimated the Peace Breaker's firepower and her shielding break in the middle of tanking its attack. The Peace Breaker is suddenly hit by four AP shells however and its body are torn apart into four different parts, Jeanne widened her eyes before she looked back for a bit then smiled. Jean Bart got her back; the woman reloaded her main gun while she charged toward the Siren formation. The Siren seems to know that she's one of the most important KANSEN among the Iris as a large group of them immediately moved to intercept her, four Explorers, four Trackers and two Peace Breakers. Jean grinned at the sight of challenge before her, she didn't hesitate to fired her main guns then followed by her secondary guns as she went straight for the Peace Breakers. All of her shells managed to hit four Explorer and Trackers right on the center of their body mass, her battle tested gunnery immediately killed the Sirens and left her free to deal with the Peace Breakers. Jean managed to get close to one of them and launched a full powered haymaker to its chest, shattering its ribs and causing its chest cavity to cave in from the raw direct impact. It didn't kill the Siren though it is severely wounded from that punch, Jean Bart grinned as she jumped then roundhouse kicked the dying Peace Breaker in the head and severed its head from the neck which effectively killed it. Jean got no time however as she immediately put on a guarded stance because the other Peace Breaker fired its guns.

BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM!

Jean Bart dodged six energy projectiles with ease, but lady luck frowned upon her this time as two of the projectiles hit her directly and sent her flying backwards. The woman gritted her teeth as she readied herself to hit the sea surface, but she never touched it…Richelieu successfully caught Jean and stopped her momentum, the cardinal then retaliated by firing a salvo toward the responsible Peace Breaker and blown it away due to direct hit from eight battleship grade HE shells.

"…Urgh…R-Richelieu?" Jean Bart asked out loud as she stared at Richelieu.

"Are you alright, ma soeur?" Richelieu asked Jean while she frowned.

"O-Oui, I am. Just some light burns to my arms, my armor is quite heavy after all" Jean said to Richelieu as she got off from Richelieu's hold.

"Be more careful, heavy armor is not an excuse for negligence" Richelieu said to Jean Bart.

"Yeah yeah I get it, you busybody…Merci" Jean Bart said to Richelieu, with the last part being barely audible.

"…De rien" Richeliu said to Jean while she smiled.

Bearn kept her sight to one of the Oceana from the side, she activated her guns and fired a salvo of HE shells toward the Siren. The Oceana is struck by Bearn's attack then turned toward her, its rigging aimed toward the Iris carrier and fired. Bearn dashed to the left side and avoided the energy projectiles before she returned fire, she might have guns but it's not as effective as the others for engaging hostile in a direct fight, something she'd like to improve in the immediate future. The Oceana retaliated and struck Bearn's left rigging side, damaging her flight deck. The woman clicked her tongue and was about to fire her guns when she noticed something, that Oceana was charging toward her…Strange, Oceana isn't really the type that could engage hostile in close quarter with their bulky rigging. Regardless, Bearn fired her guns while she cruised forward to meet it head on. The Oceana fired its guns again but this time Bearn is prepared, she dodged to the right before she fired in retaliation and one of the fired AP shells struck the Oceana in the face. The Siren is stunned and Bearn rushed toward it before she gave it chin a full powered uppercut, the Oceana is sent flying upwards and away from its rigging. Bearn immediately aimed her guns upwards but the Oceana was rammed by something…a mass of cobalt rammed the flying Oceana and sent it flying away even further.

"Sorry for being late ladies" William said out loud on the radio.

"Commandant Blaze!" Richelieu exclaimed on the radio.

"You can explain everything later, we got more pressing matters at the moment" William said to Richelieu on the radio.

William hovered above the combat zone, he sighed in relief that the ship girls seem alright at a glance. The man then engaged his thrusters then flew at high speed to dodge the AA fire coming from the Sirens below him, he's not a KANSEN so a direct hit would've killed him even when he's technically stronger than them. William wasted around half a minute flying around being a live bait for the Sirens, his distraction worked as the Sirens are hit from the back by dozens of projectiles that either rendered them distracted or outright killed them. Richelieu smiled at the sight of ALASUC ship girls in the distance, Bismarck's group have arrived alongside Galissonniere and the other reinforcing ship girls. Not to mention, their commander also arrived and the man is currently diving down before he lodged his broadsword into a Peace Breaker…No way they're going to lose now, especially with this kind of reinforcement.

"Richelieu, Jean Bart, get everyone and head for the island now while we take care the rest of these lots, you've done more than enough for the day" William said out loud on the radio.

"Non, we're staying until these Sirens are dead" Jean Bart said to William on the radio before she fired her main guns.

"A statement that I'm sure all of us are agreed to, commandant" Richelieu said to William on the radio.

"…Heh, since you two insist…Alright, Richelieu, Jean Bart, take your group and eliminate your pursuer. Bismarck, Formidable, the blockading Sirens are yours. Try to conserve your munitions, we're playing the long game" William commanded the KANSENs on the radio.

"Oui!" "Oui, mon commandant!" "As you wish, milord" "Jawohl, mein kommandant!" Jean Bart, Richelieu, Formidable and Bismarck responded on the radio.

.

"…I'm sure that they can make it through this situation alive, the floating fortress are nothing compared to what they faced on New York after all~"

"But the trap is too effective, at this rate they will run out of ammunition"

"It should serve as a test to see whether the Iris KANSENs are worthy to be included on this project, we have no need for KANSENs who can't do anything without ammunition"

"…Then how do you suppose they will take on the fortress?"

"They will find a way"

"Your judgment is so close to a bias, Observer Zero"

"Am I wrong with my confidence that these people could solve the problem we handed them?"

"…No, but I refuse to form a conclusion until we have the necessary data"

"Then what does your data tells you, Tester?"

"Inconclusive, more data are needed if we are to calculate their chance in completing the test"

"Let's ignore the total victory aspect for now and focus on these KANSENs development, do you think their new commander could unite them?"

"Perhaps Alpha here can answer in my stead, I believe this is her specialty"

"Even without him, the two sides would have reconciled by themselves if he's not with them right now"

"…That is a bold hypothesis, Observer Alpha. Is that based on your observation?"

"Of course. All they need is a dire situation, to force the two feuding factions to begin their reconciliation process. Although, I do admit that the commander does play a significant role despite his…unnecessity in this situation"

"Interesting…So, it's like the factions are a broken supporting column, the test served as the glue while he served as the supporting beams until it solidifies"

"…That is an adequate analogy, I suppose"

"…Nyx delivered once more, as if he knew this would happen"

"Of course he would know, given his familiarity with him. It would be strange if he doesn't"

"…Oh, what is this? Ufufufu, it would appear that this test would become even more interesting"

"Something you would like to share with us, Alpha?"

"Oh most definitely…As you can see, we have unforeseen visitors to the testing area. A sizeable Azur Lane fleet, the one based on Egypt"

"Hmm…I remembered that the chance of them appearing is under twenty percent"

"The parameter must have changed; something must have triggered their action to move right now…did the commander requested for reinforcement?"

"Unlikely, the jammer is still active and they did not have capable electronic warfare platform deployed at the moment"

"Then the remaining potential option is the fleet took an independent action to visit the island…I suspect their leader is the one behind this decision"

"…What could be the cause?"

"It matters not. What important is the fact that their appearance might disturb the equation, we already cannot be sure on the result and adding chaos factor into the formula? It will be even more unpredictable"

"We better watch the next events even more closely, I do wonder how will they take down the floating fortress"

"…Compiler, something you want to add?"

"Not at the moment, I agreed that this situation warrant a close monitor"

"Then you should continue with your task, ensure that fleet won't interfere with our experiment any more than the set parameters. You are permitted to use force if necessary"

"Understood, Observer Zero"

"You may disconnect the call and carry on with your directives"

"…You called, Zero?"

"Ah Nyx, I need you to move toward AVRG-18652124. I have received a report that subject Alex-"

Compiler disconnected the call, her emotionless face kept staring at the hologram screen in front of her for a while until she turned around and left the room. She stepped out of the automatic doors and faced with the view of the floating fortress' surface area, the same one that's just got discovered by ALASUC KANSENs. Compiler did realize that the fortress' secrecy is doomed to be discovered by the KANSEN ever since she got detected by ALASUC submarines, with the cat's out of the bag, Compiler has chosen to deploy sizeable Siren forces to the region. Her mission is actually pretty simple, study the anomalous zone located inside the cathedral and monitor the development of Iris KANSENs that will be surely deployed into the area. So far, she can only proceed with the later one as her initial task force were wiped out of the surface of the earth. She would like to research the anomaly directly, but she will certainly be detected if she just waltzed into the cathedral without an adequate disguise, one that is not possible since the humans are on high alert…Compiler looked down and noted that her forces are ready to fight, Siren foot soldiers are gearing up, the Siren KANSENs are on stand by and the mass-produced units are set to launch at her command.

"Hello, Compiler. Sorry to have called without warning" Suddenly, a masculine voice could be heard on Compiler's communicator.

"I believe you are Nyx?" Compiler said to Nyx.

"Ooh, correct. Then again, there aren't many talkable males among Siren contacts-" Nyx said to Compiler.

"State your intention, Nyx" Compiler said to Nyx.

"Aww, no small talks~? Fine…I'd like to request you to do something for me" Nyx said to Compiler.

"…I'm listening" Compiler said to Nyx.

"Send an anonymous tip off to the Azur Lane High Commander, message 'Ash is starting to fall on your garden and your ace card is about to get burned'" Nyx said to Compiler.

"Might I ask, what is the purpose of that move, Nyx?" Compiler asked Nyx.

"Oh believe me, a lot of things. But let me ask you back, do you want that place remain standing so you can complete your objective?" Nyx asked Compiler in return.

"Affirmative" Compiler responded immediately.

"Do as I say, and you will have your chance. Mark my words" Nyx said to Compiler.

"…Then it will be done" Compiler said to Nyx.

"Good~! When I visit, I'll be sure to bring some candies for you~!" Nyx said to Compiler in amused tone.

Compiler disconnected the communicator connectivity then summoned a holographic screen that shown a big fleet of Azur Lane mass produced ships, this fleet is the one that's currently approaching the Celestial Garden and she'd like to monitor it closely. Compiler thought on using the mist veil to surround the entire island and the sea around it, but she figured that maybe it's not the right time yet given her own curiosity on what this fleet will be doing here. Compiler thought a bit on the message that Nyx want her to deliver, what is the correlation between ash, garden and ace card? It doesn't make sense if she thought about it logically. She needs to approach it from another perspective, hyperbole might work…Ash might refer to a fallout, a consequence of a disaster or something. Garden? Nyx obviously meant the Celestial Garden itself. Ace card though, what did the High Commander of Azur Lane thought as ace ca-…Compiler realized something, she then opened two additional hologram screens. One which she used to send the message to the Azur Lane High Commander, the other is to order her submarine KANSENs to follow the fleet stealthily until she says otherwise…Compiler sensed that she might witness something very interesting that will happen soon.

---

Ooh, damn, that's a lot of things happened…Oh yeah! Happy new year for those who celebrate it! For you lots who didn't or currently stuck on December 32nd or 33rd, my sincerest sympathy. I was planning to upload this chapter before new year, but apparently, I got stuck on griller duty until two in the morning. So yup, there goes my chance trying to upload this story before 2022. But nah, fuck that! It is updated, and that's all that matters! Since new year resolution is bullshit, let's all wish on something even better everyone. Like, your gacha rates for this Ironblood event, we all know RNG like to give the middle finger and rub it on our faces! But in all seriousness, we all hope that this year would be a better one than the last.

So, here's to a better year everyone! May you lots are blessed, whether you are degenerates or not, males or females, I don't judge though I believe the reader for this story are males…That being said, thank you for the follow, favorite and review my dear readers. I know that this story sounded like bullshit for those who believe in or like realism, or because of the cringe, or the fact that I'm just not as good storyteller as the others, but I appreciate you guys who stick with this nevertheless. I really do, it's been two year or more since this story was uploaded, it's been quite a journey and I'm touched to see its progress…Well, that's all for this one, stay tuned for the next chapter and…let's farm salts, ELBE WHY WON'T YOU COME TO PORT EVEN THOUGH YOU ARE ELITE RARITY?! I'M IN DIRE NEED OF IRONBLOOD CARRIERS…AND WAIFU!

Until next time and welcome to 2022!

- Dasmara