Chapter 11: Training Wheels
"Has Observer Zero lost sight of her core programming? Because 'observing' the results of her little experiment really seems to drive that point home."
Within the middle of the Antarctic wastelands convened a meeting of several different Sirens gathered before a large, metallic throne that overlooked a massive holographic emitter, the Azur Lane base displayed humming with activity that wasn't entirely human.
"Perhaps, but this particular timeline seems most promising, now doesn't it? Humanity had achieved a level of progress and defense more comprehensive than any other attempt even before they were gifted our technology. However she managed to achieve it, Observer Zero has created quite the intriguing set of circumstances."
"Of course you would feel that way, Alpha. You Observers like to stick together, after all."
"Oh? I wouldn't have expected such resistance against this turn of events from a Purifier...you brute types always seem to revel in destruction."
In a familiar sight Observer Alpha and The Purifier faced off against each other, Rigging humming in agitation as the rest of the lower ranked Sirens silently looked on-
"Enough."
-and one cold, silky voice cut them off before the argument could spiral further out of control.
The Empress III languidly rose from her throne, descending the steps as she announced, "Your squabbles are a waste of time and energy. Regardless of how she managed to accomplish it, Observer Zero's actions have provided us with a unique opportunity to test humanity in a way we have previously been unable to."
Regal and majestic in a dangerous way Empress III commanded the attention of the room as she stood before the towering image of Azur lane, continuing to state, "How many more times would we have been able to recreate this experiment...a few dozen? And none of you provided a workable solution. Yet here we stand, with a hitherto unknown scenario that may provide an answer because one of our brethren saw fit to think and act on a novel and varied line of thought."
The Siren's golden gaze swept around the room, only The Purifier and Observer Alpha brave enough to meet it.
"And all you do is squabble and argue, rather than take action to capitalize on such a rare opportunity. As always, it seems I will have to direct you all if anything of substance is to be done. Purifier? Begin preliminary strikes at targets near Azur Lane, draw out the shipgirls and our newest male brethren so that they may become acclimated to our power."
"And then?"
A cold smile split Empress III's stunning features.
"Take two-thirds of our total forces and sail for Azur Lane. Destroy it and then hunt down whatever is left of humanity...they will either display ingenuity and the strength to stand against your assault or fall in the process. Observer Alpha? Keep record of all that occurs and report back to me once per day. Begin immediately."
Grinning at the prospect of action The Purifier left without another word, Alpha offering a brief nod before she too departed, the meeting summarily drawing to a close.
Left alone in the silence of their main base Empress III stared at the image, now displaying one of the few images gleaned from observation drones of their newest addition to the fold, that of a towering male walking one of the passageways with a few mundane shipgirls in tow.
A pleasing warmth blossomed in the pit of her stomach, Empress III smiling widely at the sight as she whispered, "Do try and impress me, newest addition to the fold...I have longed for a change to the status quo and you are a most promising candidate…"
Kawakaze couldn't help but wonder if she had made the right choice in listening to her empress in this particular instance, as she was subjected to the horrific reality of experiencing the thoughts and feelings of both herself and her sisters, of not being able to set aside her emotions so the pain of loss and grief didn't cripple her, leave her tossing and turning restlessly while attempting to sleep.
Because as her fingers brushed over the sliver of Wisdom Cube implanted directly into her neck the shipgirl could sense the others, sense the slight blips and sparks of their thoughts and feelings as they walked through the halls of the Bakunawa - which been named thus after her suggestion, something that left the Sakura destroyer with an indescribable sense of...something - as if they were her own.
Telepathy and even empathy on an extrasensory level wasn't anything new to the shipgirls. By focusing on a particular sister, what they looked, sounded and smelled like a form of communication could be opened up between them, allowing communication over incredibly vast distances.
This was something entirely new, a bridge between minds that was always present regardless of whether they were focusing on each other or not, a gateway to things she would rather never again undergo always brushing against her privacy.
...Why couldn't it have been I-13 that underwent the process? Or perhaps Ayanami? The sub was a naturally emotional individual that would have only benefitted from such an operation while the destroyer was nothing if not composed and self-assured.
What did she bring to the table, a scared and cowardly destroyer that had decided to run from herself rather than be brave like all of her sisters?
"You were the right choice, Kawakaze. You don't need to be so worried over the future, or that I may have selected wrongly."
The destroyer jumped, completely missing the way Nagato had slowed her pace slightly so that she was now walking evenly with her.
"...I wasn't thinking any such thing, empress."
"No, you were. Or am I the only one with my sister's distant thoughts and emotions just a mere bit of focus away?"
Kawakaze winced, trying not to sound openly distressed as she replied, "I am not as distraught as you seem to think, empress."
"Kawakaze, your emotions are roiling far more chaotically and noticeably than any of our other sisters. I would reckon everyone can tell how upset you are."
"I am not upset. What would the point of feeling that even do for me?"
Instantly regretting her sharp words the destroyer bowed her head, apologizing with, "Forgive me, that was out of bounds-"
"And I would welcome such displays more than I would any apathetic submission, sister. I know why you cut yourself off, Kawakaze, but you don't need to do so. We all grieve for our lost sisters...but it pains us far more to see one of the alive ones withdraw in on themselves, give up on living when life is already so precious."
The silver-haired destroyer winced, quietly whispering, "Empress...every time I let myself feel I am back at the Hofu ports as my sisters fought to their last, as our people drowned and burned atop the sea...and only I am left to remember the sounds and then silence."
Empathy glittered in the battleship's golden orbs as she gently covered the destroyer's hand with her own, stating, "Then perhaps someone other than us will convince you that it is all right to live again."
A playful, happy little smile adorned Nagato's fragile features.
"After all, I hear that Alexander managed to convince both yourself and the head maid to rest properly not long ago, as well as accepting your recommendation for naming his vessel. Do you reckon he fancies you?"
The destroyer blinked, cocking her head at the midnight-haired Sakura...and the thought of Alexander caused her mind to instantly wander to his, the connection now existing between them allowing the shipgirl to sense that he was spending time with the other sisters, nothing but affection and deep seated concern underlaid by doubt and worry-
-Kawakaze tore herself away from the coursing stream of emotion, feeling an old, nostalgic swell of something cascade through her body.
"Oh hoh? Is the cold and unyielding steel of the Sakura finally melting before a fire hot enough to reforge it~?"
The teasing words of the battleship caused the destroyer to reach up, touch her cool skin...and blanche, realizing that she was actually blushing.
"T-that has nothing to do with this, empress!"
"If you say so, dear sister...if you say so."
Resisting the urge to scowl at the knowing tone of the battleship the silver-haired shipgirl felt her ears and tails stand straight in mortification, hurrying forward to walk with the rest of her fellow sisters.
She was not harboring any kind of affection, dammit!
"So is anyone feeling off or uncomfortable with the newest bunch of changes?"
The shipgirls examined their bodies as if any physical maladies would be revealed upon inspection, no one voicing any complaints until Laffey asked, "Normal, to hear voices and thoughts inside Laffey's head?"
Warspite nodded, wryly commenting, "Whatever connection is created during the retrofitting process seems to be permanent, neither myself nor sir Alexander have had much luck in turning it off...assuming an 'off' button exists."
The taller male nodded as they reconvened on the upper deck of the repair bay, all seated or sprawled - depending on personal preference - and currently in the process of swapping notes after the long day of surgeries had finally come to an end.
Most of the shipgirls repeatedly squirmed or picked at the Wisdom Cube shards, wincing and jumping as the occasional blip of emotion not their own passed through their minds.
"Unfortunately this whole process is something entirely new to even me. No Siren has ever tried to turn one of you before, let alone a human like I used to be. We're all in uncharted waters."
"Not exactly a comforting statement…"
Enterprise's mutter wasn't exactly reciprocated by the other shipgirls but they all seemed to share her sentiments on the matter, Belfast lightly pinching the carrier's ear and causing her to yelp as she said, "Do not be so dour, Enterprise. We shall face this new paradigm as we have always done. Together."
Nodding at the maid's words Elizabeth added, "Well spoken, Belfast. And on that note...perchance you two could impart your own experiences on the matter, seeing as how you've experienced such a connection for the longest stretch of time?"
Warspite and Alexander shared a slightly awkward glance, both well aware the mental connection could feel fairly...intimate.
Never mind the fact that neither of them had really taken a moment to sit down with the other and figure out just what, exactly, they felt about the utterly alien and bewildering circumstances they found themselves in.
"It's...interesting? On my end I can get general impressions of your emotional state and surface thoughts. As if single words were being used to describe the entirety of your feelings on a matter. Strangely enough it's not hard to distinguish all of you from one another, despite the fact that there's now nine separate minds within my own."
He motioned towards Kawakaze and Enterprise.
"Kawakaze's mind is...calm. Like an even plane of grasslands being gently ruffled by a breeze, a fragile but beautiful soul. Enterprise is like a mountain of steel, unyielding and unbreakable but nonetheless majestic, ringed by stormclouds and distant thunder."
Silence filled the corner of the repair bay they had commandeered, Alexander blanching as he realized just what it was he said, Enterprise's silver-grey eyes rapidly blinking in surprise while the slightest dustings of pink colored the Sakura's cheeks.
"Oh. Uhh...shit. That probably didn't make them feel at ease one bit, waxing so poetic about their personalities like that."
Opening his mouth to quickly backtrack and reassure the shipgirls that he wasn't some kind of creep the male Siren drew in a breath-
"Oh my...I would not have imagined you to be such a romanticist, Herr Dichter~!"
"Indeed, thou has a surprisingly eloquent manner of speaking about us. I...I would not mind if thou was to speak of my own self in such a way!"
Blinking at Eugen and Vampire's respective comments the male was even more dismayed to find the rest of the group nodding along, Aurora clapping her hands as she brightly stated, "This connection sounds quite lovely when you describe it as such, Alexander."
Hipper averted her emerald eyes, grumbling, "It wasn't that impressive…" as Tirpitz and Nagato smiled with regal majesty, clearly approving of the statement while Laffey just looked on with mild interest from where she was sitting next to Essex and I-13, the engineering duo playing with a remote control apparatus for one of the drones while trying not to be obvious in their eavesdropping.
Warspite merely looked as if she had swallowed a lemon, quickly interjecting, "And as for my experience on the matter…"
The battleship trailed off, the group looking expectantly at her as she quickly found her voice, stating, "It is much like sir Alexander describes it, a bridge between minds in which thoughts, decisions and feelings are exchanged. However, when he and I came to your rescue, your majesty, we made use of an...unconventional method. Although I'm merely assuming it's unconventional, given how little we know of the actual practice."
Eugen smirked, trilling, "Was a little maidenly liebe shared between the two of you?"
"T-there was no such thing! All it entailed was me sitting close to him and physical contact being made between my shard of Wisdom Cube and his skin!"
"Oh hoh, so there was skinship involved-"
SMACK!
"-that was quite unnecessary, Tirpitz."
Rubbing the back of her head with an exaggerated pout Eugen gave her fellow sister a playful glare, the more austere Ironblood sending her sister a stern look.
"Play later, business now."
"I can do two things at once."
Despite her snark the silver-haired woman did indeed leave some of her attitude by the wayside, Alexander sighing as he explained, "During our connection Warspite and I were far more in tune with each other's thoughts and actions, enough so that it felt like there was no need to even speak, my knowledge and understanding of Siren technology perfectly complementing her ability and experience in using them."
The shipgirls looked intrigued at the words...and then gained visible question marks as they noticed both Alexander and Warspite remaining conspicuously silent and awkward, avoiding each other's gazes as if nothing was more important than that.
"Well isn't that interesting…"
"Alexander? Have you done something untoward against Warspite?"
The male grimaced while the Royal Navy battleship yelped, swiftly responding, "It was nothing of that nature, your majesty! It's just, well…"
The male Siren wordlessly gesticulated, stating, "It's a very intense connection. Several times more powerful than the one you're feeling now, in fact. If you have any desire for privacy or memories left untouched then using this might not be the best of ideas."
He and Warspite met gazes briefly before once again averting them.
"It was a bit of a surprise for the both of us."
Elizabeth nodded in affirmation, musing, "That it would certainly be."
Nagato tapped her lower lip with a dainty finger, clarifying, "But that is when you stymied the Siren fleet from several dozen kilometers away, is it not?"
"It is."
Smiling at the male's response the Sakura leader stated, "Then surely a bit of closeness wouldn't be so bad of a trade to make for such impressive combat efficiency, would it?"
Shifting at the shipgirl's sensible tone Alexander slowly replied, "I myself don't have too much of an issue with it - I can't in good conscience refuse when a lot is riding on my shoulders - but that's a lot to ask from all of you."
Laffey cocked her head, curiously asking, "It is?"
"Err, well...wouldn't that be kinda rough on all of you? To share your inner thoughts with a stranger?"
Enterprise crossed her arms, archly asking, "Do you think us so mentally unstable that contact with another's mind would cause us to go insane?"
"That's not what I was implying."
"Then cease your worrying. We are capable of making our own decisions, Alexander."
"Laffey wouldn't mind if it was with Alexander."
A wry expression dominated the male's features as Vampire bashfully added, "I-indeed. To decry thou as untrustworthy after all this time or unworthy of our presence would be folly and disgracious!"
Heaving out a sigh the young man jerked his head towards the retrofitted destroyers just about to go under their startup phases, Wisdom Cubes being lowered into the reactor housings.
"We'll go over this later. Hold on, Vampire, Kawakaze. You're about to feel the full brunt of your alterations."
"Eh? W-will such a process cause pain?"
The male Siren and Warspite shared a glance, the blonde answering for the taller individual with, "It will be...intense, would be my preferred way of putting it."
Warspite settled for a grimace as the destroyer's main hulls pulsed with ethereal light, humming to life as the electronics and gun mountings whirred into action-
-and both Kawakaze alongside Vampire collapsed to the floor, noises that brought to mind no shortage of lewd situations escaping their lithe frames - something that definitely sounded strange coming from the typically reserved Sakura - as Alexander didn't waste time, shouting, "Vampire model #103, Kawakaze model #288, prepare to receive orders!"
As if some kind of switch had been flipped the shipgirls immediately rose to their feet, backs straight and rigging materializing in a flare of light, naught but steely determination visible on their features as the rest of the group stared at them in awe.
While their equipment both sported clear signs of Siren influence it was Kawakaze's blades that drew the eye, keen metal tempered to a wire-thin edge and glowing with killing light as the moment stretched...and both shipgirls lost their composure almost immediately, the Royal Navy destroyer covering her face with her hands while the Sakura blushed fiercely.
"T-thou neglected to mention such a shameful display would be the result of this change!"
"...That was most unpleasant."
The distressed and reproachful tone of each destroyer caused Alexander to sigh, wryly commenting, "Sorry, but what was I supposed to say in that situation? And it's not like anybody else spoke up either, you know."
Warspite pointedly looked away, Belfast just demurely smiling as Vampire mumbled, "I shall look forward to thine own episodes of fitful alteration…" before retaking her place at Elizabeth's side.
"Oh now that looks like fun~!"
The awkward air was instantly dispelled by Prinz Eugen's teasing words, Alexander pinching the bridge of his nose as the rest of the group shared their own opinions on the matter, Vampire and Kawakaze's vessels already being ferried out the back of the Bakunawa as Enterprise's carrier prepared to come in next.
"It's going to take a number of days - screw that, it's going to take weeks - before all of the Azur Lane shipgirls are properly upgraded. In the meantime we need to practice and get acclimated to these new abilities...except the Bakunawa won't be able to do much since it has to move slow or risk damaging the ships it's attempting to enhance. I'm worried that the Sirens have barely made a peep since we rescued Elizabeth, Nagato and the rest."
Briefly entertaining the prospect of asking Observer Zero if she knew anything he quickly discarded such a thought, unsure of where her loyalties lied and whether imparting any kind of information would come back to bite them in the ass.
"Well, one way or another we're in for a busy time ahead of us…"