Chapter 32: Declaration of Love and War (Part 4)

"I can never breathe a word of what happens behind closed doors with these girls to anyone that isn't in this immediate circle of debauchery. Holy shit I'd be hunted down and lynched within an hour."

Alexander's thoughts were thus as he stared at the three beauties currently occupying his grasp, drowsy and content as they rested within a small sideroom of the Bakunawa that served as a washroom he'd never had any real reason to make use of, the ambient speakers and wall-mounted viewscreens doing an excellent job of making it seem like they were staring directly out at Azur Lane, rather than squirreled away deep within his ship.

"Mmm...a bit softer, perhaps…"

Vampire's slurred words coincided with the male Siren adjusting his right hand so that it was softly working out the kinks within the ruby-eyed woman's neck, a content sigh of bliss escaping the destroyer as she slipped further beneath the warm, steaming waters and into her lover's side.

She'd been making considerable use of that particular set of muscles, three guesses as to in which manner.

"That better?"

"Much. Thy grasp is quite gentle, a fine contrast to thy more...passionate embrace last night."

The words were lazily salacious, Alexander trying not to let himself get worked up in the process as his mind wandered back to the events and actions all four of them had participated in.

For all of her prim and proper speak, Vampire was - to put it rather bluntly - a blatant whore when it came to sex, nothing off the table no matter how debacherous or rough.

He let his eyes wander to the other two shipgirls, Warspite with her back to his left side - still embarrassed from last night, no doubt - as his hand gently massaged her thighs, emotions radiating nothing but mortification and a sort of childish shame at how much she'd enjoyed their acts performed upon her.

Kawakaze was perhaps the most content out of all of them, practically asleep against his chest and while it was hard to tell Alexander would swear on his life that she was outright purring, bright blue eyes drifted closed and tail languidly waving through the simmering liquid.

They'd all been a pretty gross mess upon waking up from their passions, after all.

"All right, big question...where does this go from here? Or is that too awkward a question to pop?"

Kawakaze merely rubbed her head against his pectorals, sleepily murmuring, "We shall continue to spend time with each other and enjoy what time may be allotted to us."

While surprised by the bold words he nonetheless let the statement stand, turning to Vampire and Warspite as both Royal Navy shipgirls offered their own thoughts on the matter.

"Oh? Does thou wish to be done and free from us already? A difficult request to honor, considering thy enthusiasm priorly~."

Resisting the urge to facepalm he merely sighed out, "You know that's not what I'm talking about."

Warspite let loose a low, keening moan as she hauntedly whispered, "I...I can never show myself in front of her majesty again, not after such a, a...debased showing!"

"...Right, setting aside the neophyte over here-"

"I am no such thing!"

"-what I'm talking about is, well...how does all of this work with the rest of your sisters and their thoughts on the matter? Is there going to be jealousy or hurt feelings?"

Inwardly wincing at the lame and almost childish words he wasn't particularly reassured when Vampire tittered, "But of course there shall be jealousy aplenty...especially when thy lovemaking prowess are regaled in exacting detail~!"

Giving a sharp but mostly playful pinch to the ruby-eyed woman's neck - not that she seemed to mind, squirming in delight as Alexander inwardly sighed - he said, "I'm being serious, Vampire. This could end up being a pretty serious problem if this turns out to inspire weird competition or something. And yes, I am fully aware that I delved headfirst into it and am a little late to be doubling down but-"

"You needn't worry about such a thing, my liege."

Warspite's sudden words caused their heads to turn, affixing the battleship with unblinking eyes as she explained, "We are fully capable of keeping potential unprofessionalism to ourselves, my liege...and in the coming campaigns it is highly likely we shall find ourselves split up into different groups and forces. Being able to individually spend time with you will be a boon none shall protest."

Kawakaze nodded in affirmation, quietly adding, "The future may be lonely...and none of us desire that. Not anymore."

It was the typically stoic and calm Sakura's words that did him in, Alexander pulling the trio just that much closer while lightly mumbling, "Alright...then if that's what you want I'll endeavor to meet it."

"As if that is any kind of great struggle, thou lustful man."

Vampire's teasing words caused him to smile, feeling just that bit more reassured about everything.

"...Yeah, like Vampire said. As if I'm complaining about any of this."

"You ready to go, son?"

"About as ready as I'll ever be. Gotta say, it feels weird leaving my ship behind. Like I forgot my wallet but way worse."

A bit of mild amusement colored the Commander's lips as they strode towards the waiting fleet group, prepped and ready to make the journey to the Eagle Union along with Nagato and Elizabeth.

"The shipgirls always said something similar. Most of them got used to it, however, so I reckon you'll do just fine."

"Fingers crossed."

Paying careful attention to slow down his pace Alexander watched as most of the Azur Lane personnel watched him with wary or awestruck gazes, the armor he adorned not only adding to his considerable height but also turning him into a fairly imposing figure, one that looked ready to fight and win.

Or at least that's what Akashi kept telling him. Maybe he'd believe it when the armor was actually field tested against something.

"And I really hope that's not a thing we have to deal with."

Setting aside those disquieting thoughts about potential assassination and dying amidst a really unwanted blaze of glory Alexander instead gazed around the small fleet of ships they were going to be boarding, an ad-hoc collection of vessels that really drove home the point that - despite their recent victory of the millennium - they were undoubtedly the underdogs.

Nagato and Elizabeth's towering and enhanced battleships guarded the flanks while more contemporary vessels filled out the rest of the roster, all hailing from the Eagle Union.

Two destroyers, two cruisers and the aircraft carrier Matterhorn, built during the chaotic years of the Siren invasion and showing it in its design, being a jumbled mess of jury-rigged tech and more conventional engineering techniques.

Each and every single one of which showed significant battle damage, hastily welded plates or scuffed metal the most obvious signs while one of the Union destroyers was just a little off, slewing a bit as it took one of the rearguard positions.

"Not like we have a surplus of hardware to choose from, though. At least not yet."

While plans had been drawn up to significantly expand Azur Lane's manufacturing base the simple reality was their resources were finite, available manpower dangerously limited. While the Bakunawa's drones and even the Bulins were mechanical savants and could carry out complicated plans at an astonishing pace there were only so many of them, even the Bakunawa's memory banks at a loss as to how Azur Lane had created the spritely girls that wielded wrenches like they had been born with them in hand...and it wasn't like they could just pump out new repair and construction drones, that required raw materials and fine components that were at a dangerously low supply.

Sure, the waters around the island base were practically glutted with viable targets for recycling after the battle but the one, minor recycling factory they had on hand to process the stuff was several months out in terms of job completion and they'd barely even begun the cleanup to any significant degree. They'd begun construction of a much larger and more suitable building to handle the significant volume of material but aforementioned shortage of labor came into play and it wasn't like they could devote all resources to infrastructure alone, much of their military equipment and technology needed repairing or upgrading as well.

And just to add to their woes there was still the fact that much of the world had been promised non-military aid, such as food dispensers and water treatment devices, all of which had to be built from scratch from their own set of materials and quite frankly Alexander was beginning to worry that logistics would kill them before the Sirens could.

"Then again, that's part of the reason we're even having this summit to begin with. To make sure everyone understands and chips in with the things needed to get ourselves off the ground."

Right now Azur Lane was mostly acting on its own, regular shipments of food and other basic supplies from the mainland notwithstanding...if they were to truly become a dedicated source of power that could push back the Sirens they were going to need resources and willing workers from a lot of different nations, all of whom would be wondering what they were getting themselves into.

Hopefully this little dog and pony show he was getting dragged off to would be worth it.

"Welcome aboard, Commander, Specialist Curtis. We're ready to depart when you are."

Admiral Harrison snapped a crisp salute to the older man, offering a brief nod to the civilian that was returned as Alexander reflected that he should really start trying to comprehend and understand the military and all of its traditions rather than just standing around and taking it for what it was, seeing as he was going to be neck deep in it for the foreseeable future.

"At ease. And the sooner we get underway the better, the more time we leave the mainland to their devices the more headaches we're going to be treated to once we land stateside."

"I'm just going to strike that from the record, Commander…"

Thankfully both figures of authority returned their attention to him without further delay, the Commander stating, "Elizabeth is waiting for you aboard her ship, son. Might as well get going and get acquainted with your 'duties' as soon as possible."

The last bit was said with a fair bit of humor, the man undoubtedly knowing that he was in for a real treat as Alexander huffed out a sigh, replying, "Yeah, might as well bite the bullet. Send word if you need me, I might just appreciate the break from her majesty. Don't tell her I said that."

Smirking at his response the brass went their way while he went his, ascending the ramp that extended into the battleship's depths while doing his best to ignore the stares from the various sailors and other human staff that watched with unabashed curiosity and caution, his armored form not exactly a secret thanks to both rumor and continuous sighting but no doubt a major target of whispered conversation.

"Hey, isn't that…"

"I heard he's the one in charge of the Bakunawa-"

"-totally fucked up the Sirens during the battle-"

"-good idea to have it wandering around?"

"-heard he's fucking the two royalty, do you think it's-"

Quickly shutting off the suit's audio pickups as the hushed words and sentences got a little too close to home for his liking the man quickened his pace, arriving on the deck in record time.

"Ah, Alexander! How fortuitous it is to see you at this time."

The man blinked in surprise as none other than Nagato was located around the corner he'd turned, the Sakura empress seeming even smaller than she usually did thanks to the extra bulk the armor afforded, Curtis replying, "Good to see you too, what's the occasion? No complaints on my end but I was under the impression I was going to be meeting with just Elizabeth."

A playful smile adorned the battleship's lips, fox ears twitching slightly as she responded, "The whims of a sovereign cannot be so easily ignored, I am well within my rights to visit my fellow sisters...and you as well."

"...Okay?"

Seeming amused by his mildly bewildered response they set off for the vessel's bridge at a languid pace, the male Siren having to slow his pace considerably so that he didn't outstrip the smaller shipgirl and her tiny legs.

"While brief, Kawakaze insisted upon your skill and demeanor during the previous night's adventure."

Grateful that the armor covered his face - because the man was fairly certain that he had an expression suggesting he just shit himself - Alexander neutrally replied, "Should I be worried or concerned that you're all swapping tales of how I fuck?"

Nagato blinked, hesitantly asking, "Is that something that displeases you, Alexander?"

"If I was more self-conscious about myself and my technique maybe, to each their own. I was more wondering if all of you were weirded out by it. Swapping stories I mean."

He paused, trying to put the whole scenario he was feeling into words.

"I guess if it was me and a bunch of other guys vying for your attention and they were trading tales of how good you were in bed I would be insanely jealous. But all of you seem to thrive and enjoy hearing about that kind of thing, no hard feelings to be found, or at least buried so deep that I couldn't tell a thing."

All he could do was shrug.

"I guess I'm just worried - despite all the reassurances and such - that I'll end up doing something that will make you all unhappy by going along with this like a clueless pimp."

Nagato met his faceless gaze, Alexander hurriedly taking off his helmet now that they were out of sight of the rest of Azur Lane and gazed deep into her golden eyes, unsure if he was supposed to say or do something...and one of the cutest blushes ever colored her cheeks, head swiftly turning away as lithe arms laced themselves behind her back, ears flattening slightly as she mused, "O-oh. That's...that's true enough, arrangements such as this are not all that common in modern society, are they?"

Wondering where she was going with this - and fighting hard not to reach out and pet her ears - the man kept his silence, Nagato regaining some of her composure before elegantly coughing into her fist, stating, "My apologies, but perhaps I should have explained our thoughts on this matter a bit more in-depth...it's a hard thing to describe but when we are close or interacting with you or our sisters, in no small part thanks to the mental connection brought about by the retrofits, we feel a sense of contentment. Security. Purpose."

Another demure and mildly embarrassed shrug left the empress.

"Physical intimacy is just one more expression of that emotional connection, something to deepen it."

Alexander frowned, trying to figure out the source of her words and conclusion-

-and almost fell over as the answer was right in front of his thick, dumb skull the whole time.

The connection Observer had always harped on about, the submission and acquiescence to authority she'd always hinted at and that he'd done his best to ignore or pretend didn't exist? This was it. It was whatever weird, bizarre harem of mutual respect and positive enforcement he'd inadvertently created that now had him as some crazy focal point of raunchiness and strength.

"Fucking Siren cunt, she didn't say anything about THIS!"

But it made a twisted sort of sense, didn't it? The connection they now all shared wasn't some freaky mind domination or will enslavement gig, it was an enhancement of what was already there, making strong bonds and mutual attraction into fibers of unbroken steel that could provide comfort and reassurance no matter what came their way, a synchronization of minds that ensured they fought together all the better.

"And I bet she didn't even consider that this whole mind connection would help me as well, make certain that I didn't flip out and lose my cool due to altered circumstances and the stress of battle...or maybe the bitch did, I wouldn't hazard a guess."

Groaning to himself and digging his heels into his eye sockets the male Siren tried not to physically kick himself, for missing such an obvious tell for so long.

On the one hand he was grateful this was the end result Observer had been talking about, an intimate and powerful support group that could fight all the better for it and he would be a big fat fucking liar if he said that he felt uncomfortable about the idea of having the shipgirls as romantic partners if they were all for it.

...On the other there was still a small amount of disquiet with the whole arrangement, that there was some facet to this he was overlooking or that it might not have come about naturally, their closeness only due to outside meddling.

"But what choice do I have? Shit, I don't even know how to go about reversing everything in the first place."

"Alexander?"

Blinking himself out of his meandering thoughts he found Nagato staring at him with blatant concern, asking, "Your emotions and thoughts became quite jumbled there for a time, are you alright?"

Wryly grinning he pulled back from the close mental contact he'd inadvertently created with the lapse in concentration, responding, "Yeah, sorry. Just had a minor panic attack at this whole arrangement. I always considered myself lucky when I landed a date with a single girl at a time, having multiple women who just so happen to be the most beautiful and willful individuals I've seen in a while be interested in me fried my brain a little."

Another one of those cute little blushes adorned Nagato's fair skin, the shipgirl quickening her pace a bit as she nonetheless composedly stated, "You are quite free with flattery today, Alexander. But I suppose we shouldn't delay any longer, no doubt Elizabeth has been listening in and is quite cross that I am demanding your attention so early into the day."

A brief rumble traveled through the ship as if in confirmation of her assessment, the empress smiling beatifically as they made their way to the bridge without further delay...all the while Curtis feeling his eyes drift towards Nagato's short but womanly form, curved thighs and posterior hinted at by her short dress while a decent bust looked all the more appealing on her tiny body, those pointed and fluffy ears just begging to be teased and tickled-

WHAM!

Nagato yelped as the male slammed his head into the metal wall, internally grumbling, "Keep it in your damn pants, horndog. You just ate your way through an all you can fuck buffet and you're still hungry?"

"A-Alexander?!"

"Sorry, mechanical failure with the suit. I'm going to have to report it to Akashi."

He didn't offer her a chance to ask further questions, striding forward before entering the bridge of Elizabeth's vessel, eyes scanning the interior decoration with a keen eye as Nagato hurried to keep up.

It was honestly as grand as he thought it would be, the command chair replaced with a gilded throne as banners and flags from all the Royal Navy branches and participants hung from the ceiling, displays and screens trimmed with blue, white and red as instead of hard metal flooring there was soft, velvety carpet that was probably a bitch to keep clean.

Then again, if it was just Elizabeth on the ship maybe that wasn't such a big deal.

"Actually, hold the phone. When did she get the chance to install carpet? Was this already a part of the design or did she somehow get the drones to do something for her?"

The redesign and upgrading of most shipgirls had necessitated ripping out large parts of the bridge to make way for the upgraded electronics suite, some of the ornate stuff would have definitely been tossed aside.

Kicking aside those meandering thoughts even if he felt a sudden urge to explore all of the shipgirl's interior decorating - haha double entendre - and see their personal designs he turned his attention to the one responsible for the alterations herself, reclining on the throne with a raised eyebrow sent Nagato's way.

"Hoh? I fail to recall inviting you aboard my most royal vessel, Empress Nagato."

"You didn't, I invited myself."

The shameless and friendly response caused the blonde to huff, shifting her gaze to Alexander before instantly gaining a wide smile, all cheer and imperious humor as she proclaimed, "Belfast tells me you have been instructed in the ways of caring and attending my most royal self for the duration of this journey, I look forward to seeing your efforts!"

A haughty sigh left the queen.

"Alas, the coming stages of the war necessitate her attention being placed elsewhere and thus it falls to you - a most trusted and respected retainer - to guard and assist this august body."

Belatedly remembering such an arrangement Alexander hurriedly nodded his head, thanking the fact that he had the small novel Belfast had provided full of instruction, Nagato shaking her head in bemusement at the whole arrangement.

"To think that you would use our greatest ally as your manservant...I would applaud such audacity if I didn't find it odd that you are so incapable of looking after yourself."

Elizabeth sniffed, turning up her nose before responding, "There exist no myriad of tasks and ventures that must be undertaken by my august mind, Nagato. I cannot be expected to expend both time and energy on tasks that may be handled perfectly well by others not burdened with my same level of responsibility."

"A grandiose and finely worded way of saying you are too lazy to brew your own tea."

"Hmph! Be glad there are larger enemies we must unify against, lest I would endeavor to put you in your place."

Alexander felt more than slightly awkward at the confrontational and slightly charged atmosphere between both leaders of their respective factions-

-and relaxed as he paid attention to the bond shared between them all, noting that there was no real animosity to be found, only a friendly sort of competitive banter.

"Alexander? Could I ask that you prepare us some tea while we converse over future matters? And make one for yourself, we shall have much to discuss that includes your presence as well."

"Right."

Inwardly kicking himself for the blunt and simple reply that had Nagato giggling and Elizabeth cocking her head in mild confusion he approached the refreshments station, the bolted down and magnetically attached cookware hiding his motions as he surreptitiously pulled out Belfast's tome of wisdom, flipping to the page on tea refreshment preparation as he prepared himself for a difficult and lengthy process-

-and blinked at how simple it actually was. Simple chamomile tea with a healthy amount of brandy mixed in, hot water poured over the supplied teabags and allowed to seep for six minutes.

"That's...surprisingly tame. Almost normal, even."

Shrugging to himself he went about prepping the drinks, a brief rumble accompanying the sight of their small fleet departing from Azur Lane, Alexander staring out the window as a small frown tilted his lips. While he may not have spent all that much time on the island itself it had become a constant in his relatively short time spent as whatever hybrid he now was, leaving it behind felt a bit...odd. Not quite as uncomfortable as leaving the Bakunawa but close.

Those thoughts were quickly punted aside as a bevy of emotional messages from the other shipgirls reached them, each of their remaining comrades wishing them well and a safe journey.

...The well wishes from Vampire, Kawakaze, Warspite and Prinz felt a little more intimate than a mere 'see you later' did but he decided to just take that in stride. He might as well start getting used to the idea of being the next Solomon because apparently that was a thing.

He was only snapped out of his musings as the tea chimed a ready tone, his large and armored hands deftly bringing over a trio of mugs before pouring the steaming liquid for each of them, Nagato preferring a simple and unremarkable blend of green tea over chamomile while he settled for whatever looked interesting. What with hampered trade in the wake of the Siren attacks many commodities like tea bags and coffee had to be transferred over land routes or other varieties of snail mail...Alexander was perfectly content with whatever looked unique.

Inhaling deeply Elizabeth sighed in contentment, remarking, "Most excellently done, Alexander. Not quite up to the level of Belfast but a most satisfactory effort nonetheless."

"Indeed, perhaps you should aid me as a tea brewer when I ideally open up my shop?"

Lips curling upwards as he remembered the conversation he and Nagato had held what seemed like a long time ago he settled for a shrug, responding, "I'd be amazed if I somehow managed to outdo Belfast, I'll settle for coming close and leave it at that. And if I joined you in that venture, Nagato, I'd do one of two things. Draw clientele from all corners of the world or drive them away."

Elizabeth grinned, seemingly enjoying the interaction similar to what she had once held in the royal gardens with her fellows as she announced, "As much as I would rejoice in whiling away the hours with banter and chitchat...we have a topic of great import that needs discussing. Namely, that of our swift approaching goal of liberating Nagato's homeland from the Siren's foul clutches."

Alexander blinked, blinked again...and slowly set his cup down.

"Sorry, we're what?"

The Sakura empress nodded, calmly but resolutely stating, "We have discussed this at length with the Commander, he concurs that this is a worthwhile endeavor. For years now the Sakura have been separated from our ancestral home, only scattered pockets of resistance and mobile communities eking out whatever existence they can upon the mainland while the rest of us left in a mass exodus. The retaking of my kingdom carries with it two major benefits and one potential."

She steepled her fingers, eyes hardening and despite her small stature Alexander couldn't help but feel like the room was getting mighty crowded.

"The first and most tactical boon will be of once again securing a major naval base of operations outside of Azur Lane, one close to the Dragon Empery, Ironblood, Northern Parliament and various other nationalities, a staging ground where air assaults or naval forces can rest and restock before moving to engage our enemies. The more uncertain positive is that beneath Mt Fuji there was a research laboratory that - before we lost contact with much of the mainland - was conducting experiments with a Wisdom Cube upon a carrier's chassis, a Wisdom Cube that may still be there. The second is one of more...emotional catharsis."

Elizabeth took up the thread of the conversation, commenting, "Victories against the Sirens have occurred sporadically over the years and while our most recent success is without a doubt one of momentous implications, it is nonetheless what all other major victories have thus far been. Defensive."

Nagato nodded, concluding, "We have proven we can prevail against seemingly impossible odds and sieges. For the first time in the last decade we shall prove that we can work such miracles while on the offensive."

There was such a fire in both shipgirl's eyes that Alexander couldn't help but draw himself up straight, calmly asking, "And what's my role to play in all of this? Because I'll be honest…"

He felt his lips peel from his teeth.

"I like this plan."

"We had a feeling you would. But for now your role will be an impossibly difficult one. We require you to stand around and look pretty for the people of the world."

Alexander blinked, very much feeling like the wind was taken out of his sails as Elizabeth expanded upon Nagato's words with, "As of now we require for you to act as a catalyst for public support, to whip up the citizenry of the world that has a swiftly growing appetite for a miracle, for the chance of a victory that didn't seem conceivable for an entire decade."

The queen crossed her legs, fingers lacing themselves together as her commanding gaze landed on the male Siren.

"You've experienced it within the settlements, haven't you? The unshakeable feeling that humanity was never going to once again be the master of its fate, that we could only resist and fail to rise?"

Alexander grimly nodded. Morale had always been a scarce thing during the past couple years, as losses mounted and their seaborne defenders had fallen one after another, Siren forays into the mainland becoming more and more common as time wore on.

Sure, life had been busy and hectic enough to keep their minds off of the harsh reality facing them but that was simply a placebo, not a cure.

"Then this summit has the chance to finally turn things around for the better. News of our victory and your circumstances - a soldier gifted the power of the Sirens and their technology - will be the anvil upon which we strike the hammer of inspiration and forge a people that once again will wish to fight. To throw themselves into the herculean tasks of constructing great factories, weapons and fortifications that will ensure our dominance over this planet once more."

Curtis listened to Elizaebteh's impassioned speech, inwardly musing that this was the first time he'd been on the receiving end of her notoriously inspirational words and wow, he definitely felt ready to carry out her bidding without a second thought.

"While the Bakunawa will be a crucial element in our future campaigns for now it will be best served as a hub for innovation and fabrication, as all of our automated construction - to my knowledge, feel free to correct me if I'm mistaken - is several years behind on the work that needs doing."

Alexander slowly nodded at Nagato's comment, replying, "You're not wrong. While it wouldn't be my first choice of a labor force your average joe is going to be our most ready supply of help...better start drafting up instruction sheets that are as simple and idiot-proof as possible. And start with the food processors. And water purifiers. And the other hundred projects at hand."

He huffed out a sigh, Nagato and Elizabeth sending him amused looks as he was once again crushed under the cruel and merciless reality of logistics. Even once it was done with repairs and fully combat ready it would still be a better use of the Bakunawa's time and energy to serve as a mobile supply, research base and nexus of search flights than it would a military asset. Unless the Sirens assembled another armada of considerable size that would best be handled by the remaining shipgirls and whatever contemporary forces they had on hand.

"And aside from the Sakura homeland's liberation it is time to more urgently search for our sisters that were spotted in the northernmost reaches of the globe. You still have little success in this matter?"

Shaking his head in frustration Alexander responded, "Aside from a brief glimpse of the Le Malin, Jeanne d'Arc and Tashkent I haven't found a damn thing. Ever since the Sirens pulled off that weather alteration stunt things up north have been a mess and apparently it can even affect my drones. Certain parts of the ice caps and surrounding waters cut off my connection with them and while it's probably how they've been surviving for so long it also makes finding them a veritable nightmare."

Nagato nodded in understanding, nonetheless stating, "It would very much be a task the Northern Parliament was up to, hiding among the ice and snow. But given our reduced numbers any and all of our sisters that can be returned to the fold will be of incalculable value, both for morale reasons and military ones. Naturally you will be able to enhance them the same way you have done to us, yes?"

Alexander felt his eye twitch at the teasing words, catching on to the insinuation that he would be dealing with even more insanity and amorous interactions than he already was.

"Well, to an extent. I enhanced all of you with the leftover Wisdom Cubes I had on hand but right now I've only got fifteen left. Seven of those are being used to power the Bakunawa but I could ditch another three- the HELGA and shields don't need to be at full strength if the Bakunawa isn't going to be fighting - which leaves us with a total of eleven for whatever purposes we can think of."

He paused, frowning in contemplation before a wild thought occurred, the male excitedly asking, "Hey, since I have those Cubes on hand do you think we could, you know...bring your sisters back?"

The raw hope he'd held onto was quickly squashed as the two shipgirls traded uncertain glances, Elizabeth quietly and regretfully stating, "Perhaps. But most likely not. There is still so much we do not understand about the Wisdom Cubes and the way they operate. And even if we were to use them and bring back our sisters there is no guarantee they will be the sisters we once knew. Decades of combat experience and teamwork, all gone."

Nagato released a heavy breath, quietly stating, "It would be for the best that we save those available cubes for those we can rely on, those who have fought and who's conversions will be a thing of certainty, rather than the opposite."

Alexander tried not to let his bitterness show, nodding in agreement as he released a defeated sigh.

The Wisdom Cubes were physical manifestations of the sum knowledge and history of humanity, all contained in a perpetual energy reaction that was one of the most potent power sources on the planet...he might be able to make use of a Cube and bring forth the consciousness of the shipgirls who'd fallen by focusing on his memories of them but there was no guarantee that they would be the ones they'd fought with rather than a blank slate.

...They were right, again.

"If I may make a small deviation in the dialogue, how goes the retrieval of our sister's fragments?"

The towering male could only shrug, offering them an apologetic look as he replied, "Poorly. Your sisters who were sunk far out at sea will have had whatever Cube fragments they left behind carried by the currents to locations that'll take a long time to find. And that's assuming aforementioned Cubes survived at all and weren't just outright destroyed. Hell, we're still looking for Tirpitz's fragments and she wasn't that far outside of Azur Lane."

The conversation petered out, the trio falling into silence as they remembered the frantic and hard-fought battle still fresh in their minds as Elizabeth abruptly clapped her hands, commenting, "Enough of this dismal reminiscence, we currently plan for the future, not wallow in the past. Let us discuss more important matters, such as sleeping arrangements. Alexander? My bed has room enough for two and you shall be joining me, is that understood?"

Nagato pouted as the male blinked, intelligently replying, "Huh?"

Seriously, he was getting whiplash with these girls.

And we're now back to unironic plot! Yay for duality.