Chapter 38: Declaration of Love and War (Part 10)
"Bonjour, Jeanne~! Have you yet to-"
A pointed look from her fellow Iris Libre shipgirl caused Émile Bertin to quiet down, spotting both Le Malin and Tashkent sprawled atop of a map located in the corner of the room, both destroyers huddling together for warmth as Sovetskaya Rossiya dozed in a simple chair, shifting uncomfortably every now and again.
"Apologies, I didn't know they were still working."
Jeanne shook her head, rising from her seat as she crouched next to the destroyers before carefully tucking their hair behind their ears, pursing her lips at the dark bags that gathered beneath their eyes.
"No, they just finished. Admiral Kirill left not twenty minutes ago to begin implementing our next course."
The elegant cruiser glided forward on heeled footwear that somehow managed to remain silent despite the rather obvious fact that it shouldn't be as she gently and softly adjusted Sovetskaya's neck so that it was supported by her uniform's collar, avoiding any potential cramps from hanging low for however long she remained at rest.
And of course - no matter how skilled and graceful the Iris Libre cruiser was - the Northern parliament shipgirl snapped awake, body twitching as she prepared to fight...and narrowed her crimson eyes at Émile's apologetic smile.
"I would much rather rest and endure mild neck pain than operate at less than peak efficiency."
Clasping her hands before her and bowing in contriteness the blonde replied, "But you have such lovely facial features! It would be a great crime were your head to be so bowed that you were unable to display them!"
Sovetskaya gave Jeanne a perplexed look that she merely returned with a familiar shrug, the Parliament battleship rising to her feet without further complaint as her normally alert and poised demeanor only half-returned, a yawn escaping her as Émile inquired, "Regardless, we have a path forward, yes?"
Jeanne nodded, explaining, "Our current base is running short on supplies and the Siren patrols have started closing in, we'll depart in two days for the next set of potential resupply points. Thanks in particular to our resident experts on ice traversal."
Sovetskaya waved a hand, distractedly responding, "Yes yes, excellent work on being from the land of ice, snow and unfortunately scarce vodka."
She stiffened as Émile glomped her into an affectionate hug, the cruiser cheerfully commenting, "And your efforts are always appreciated thus~!"
"Er, yes...bear in mind the path is narrow and winding, we will have to take a single file approach to our next destination so it will be a tricky affair that Tashkent and I will have to have be properly rested and alert for."
She sent a reproachful look Émile's way that had the cruiser sheepishly blushing.
"Attention best achieved by sleep."
"I said I was sorry, you know."
The battleship relented as Jeanne asked, "So what brings you here, Émile?"
"Well partly I was curious what the status of our next move was but my lessons with the children for the day have also concluded."
She giggled, cheerfully stating, "They're quite enthusiastic to begin ballroom dancing after the rumors of a renewed offensive against the Sirens were heard over the radios during some of our travels~!"
Sovetskaya frowned, quietly remarking, "They should be performing basic military and emergency drills, not proper steps in some archaic form of leisure. Fractured and possibly faked radio transmissions to draw us out do not mean we should march off and declare victory."
Émile frowned, promptly retorting, "And raising children who have seen little else but war with the hope for something else in their futures is so wrong?"
An uncharacteristically bitter expression appeared on Émile's beautiful features.
"And since when have Sirens employed trickery, when they merely need to march forth and crush us underfoot?"
"Perhaps they did so to your divided and beaten lands but to us-"
Jeanne quickly stepped forward, placing a hand on each of their shoulders before motioning to the stirring forms of Tashkent and Le Malin, both shipgirls promptly simmering down before sending each other apologetic nods.
"Come, let's move this outside. And you may take your leave to rest whenever you wish, Sovetskaya."
"I think that may be for the best."
Inwardly sighing to herself Jeanne was at least thankful that - for all that they could quickly flare up - tempers were at least swift to cool. The stress and rigors of their constant life on the run would wear on even the most steely of nerves and they were no exception.
"Wake me if there's an emergency, sisters. Otherwise I believe I'll be resting as much as possible."
Sovetskaya almost made it past them before Émile engulfed her in a brief but comforting hug, the Parliament shipgirl huffing out a breath before wryly commenting, "There's nothing to forgive, you know."
"All the same, you are only of cold demeanor, heart and attitude for the betterment of all."
"That sounds suspiciously like a backhanded comment."
The pair shared mutual smiles - Émile's obviously more radiant than Sovetskaya's - as the Parliament shipgirl departed for her quarters, Jeanne quietly remarking, "Are the people ready to make yet another trek?"
Her mood quickly shifted towards subdued, elegantly gloved finger worrying a flawless lip as Émile replied, "As ready as can be. Chao Ho and Ying Swei have been attempting to keep supplies running as smoothly as possible but food is scarce right now."
The cruiser paused, morbidly amused at her own words.
"Perhaps it would be more correct to say scarcer than usual. The expansion of the ice caps has allowed life to flourish - as much as it can in such harsh climes at any rate - but our time spent among these particular hideaways has either scared away the local wildlife or hunted it to scarcity."
Jeanne tiredly nodded, understanding where Émile was coming from. The Arctic - while it may have been an excellent and inspired place to hide - was no great repository of life. And while penguins, whales or even the odd sea lion or polar bear could be consumed each one hunted meant that there was likely no replacement for several kilometers around. Perhaps several dozen kilometers. And attempting to construct any sort of greenhouse aboard the various ships of their improvised flotilla was tricky at best.
Jeanne resisted the urge to tiredly rub her eyes, both she and Émile grabbing fur-lined coats that rested at the exit of the de facto leader's vessel before heading outside into the biting cold.
Even resilient and superhuman shipgirls had their limits and wandering a frozen wasteland in only their usual attire was pushing it.
A precaution that bore immediate fruit as a harsh gust of freezing air slashed across their skin, both women shivering for a moment as they descended past the various storage spaces and moderately successful attempts at crop growth that lined the interior of Jeanne's cruiser, the vessel of war now pulling triple duty or sometimes even quadrupel duty if the twenty-thousand souls they were guarding had to escape on a moment's notice and were unable to reach the usual ships.
"Has there been any further word or development in regards to the outer world?"
Émile shook her head, replying, "Not since we went radio silent a week ago. All we heard was that there was to be a summit after Azur Lane purportedly suffered a massive Siren assault but managed to beat it back, the Commander in attendance."
Both shipgirls fell silent at that, caught between a mixture of hope and worry. That their home had survived such a massive onslaught and still survived in any capacity - as well as the Commander continuing to lead it - was heartening to hear...but propaganda and distance was a facet of long-range communication they had to account for and perhaps the defense hadn't been as successful as it was made out to be. After all, casualties hadn't been listed.
Their walk took them across a gangway that lead into an engineered tunnel of ice, dirt and solid metal spiralling deep into the colossal iceberg they were currently using as a base, the air still frigid but at least breaking the winds that would have otherwise left them shivering with chill.
"You're about to slip."
"Wha-"
A yelp abruptly left Jeanne as her feet went out from underneath her, landing hard on her rump as freezing ice went to work on numbing the ache in her behind as Émile - elegant and light on her feet as always - deftly turned the slippery surface into an impromptu skating performance as she sent Jean Bart a reproachful glare.
"More warning would not have been remiss."
The Vichya battleship crossed her arms, eyes narrowing as she cocked a hip, adorned in the skin of a dead polar bear.
"I did warn you. You two were just so lost in thought that you didn't hear me."
Jeanne hurriedly rose to her feet, swiftly regaining her composure as she faced the terse and annoyed shipgirl.
"Our apologies, it won't happen again."
"...Whatever, forget it. Just watch your feet."
Jean pointed upwards, Jeanne and Émile following her arm as they realized that the icy ceiling was dripping wet and leaving splatters of water across the metallic pathway, quickly freezing into patches of invisible ice due to the low temperatures.
"Heat buildup from all the bodies is causing trouble like this all over the place. You just had the bad luck to wander by before I could place these down."
The striking shipgirl hefted a crudely made but effective sign that had been carved out of solid metal, stating in several languages - alongside a rudimentary drawing - that the surface was slick and they needed to be careful.
"What had you so lost in thought anyway?"
Jean's words became decidedly terse.
"Still praying to an aloof and uncaring god?"
Jeanne tightly gripped the sword at her side, keeping her temper in check as this wasn't the first time she and her estranged sister had this particular spat.
"Has my faith caused us to be led astray yet?"
"Can't help but wonder how much better we would be doing if you held faith in people rather than some divine spirit that's knowingly consigned us to hell."
Émile worriedly glanced between the pair, wanting to intervene in the familiar disagreement but not knowing how, since any previous attempt hadn't yielded success.
The blonde cruiser merely released a tired sigh, giving Jean a dismissive glance before replying, "We're leaving this base soon, begin the usual preparations and spread the word, I will announce things shortly."
"...As you wish, oh mouthpiece."
The pair went their own way without further comment, Émile nervously following in Jeanne's wake and trying to think of a way to break the proverbial ice.
"I do not believe Sovetskaya and I argue that badly or often...do we?"
Then again Jeanne and Jean were almost polar opposites - no pun intended - in terms of mannerism and belief. Jeanne was composed, religious and polite when dealing with others, listening and giving credence to each and every opinion, no matter how silly or absurd. Jean was fiery, pragmatic and just as quick to espouse ideas or plans she believed rational or worthwhile as she was to shut the others down.
Add to that the fuel that was their homeland's divided state before it had to be abandoned, the constant losses and stress of their duty and Émile found it something of a minor miracle that the duo kept their arguments mostly constrained to just them and them alone.
"Émile, go and speak to Chao Ho and Ying Swei, ensure they're ready to begin proper distribution of supplies and resources when we depart."
"Of course, Jeanne."
Not about to argue with her sister when she was obviously still in a 'frosty' state of mind Émile just favored her fellow blonde with a quick hug before bouncing away. While Jeanne wasn't the type to lose her temper she merely had a different way of showing it, an aura of cool efficiency that was a far cry from her usual warmth and would probably have even the most stalwart of individuals steering clear.
Shaking her head the cruiser instead used the frozen stairwell to swiftly glide deep into the depths of their temporary refuge with perfect poise, a steadily growing chatter of voices and background noise greeting her ears alongside a gradual climb in temperature and humidity. Slewing to a halt and perfectly balanced atop of her bladed heels the shipgirl dropped her coat off at the makeshift counter designed exclusively for that purpose - offering a friendly wave to the blinking attendant at her sudden appearance - before she pranced further into the base, eyes roaming over the hive of activity with a familiar air.
Their refuge was one of several abandoned Siren bases that they had discovered scattered about the arctic, great metallic labyrinths with both docking bays and repair stations sized for several ships and even stocked with a modest amount of raw material. While the refugee fleets had obvious questions and reservations about using what was essentially enemy resources that could be tracked or discovered at any moment their options were slim and desperation significant.
It had been a pleasant - albeit unusual - surprise that for reasons still unknown the bases acted like titanic blindspots to the Sirens that regularly patrolled the waters, the various installations completely passed over by their mortal foes as if completely and utterly invisible. Which in turn begged the question of why these bases were so seemingly undetectable when they were built by the ones responsible for its creation in the first place.
Émile shook her head, willing those thoughts away and instead focusing on the more tangible benefits the construct offered, the shelter and meager warmth proffered to the throng of people that rested within like a colossal hive of activity and desperate survival.
Fighter and repair bays played host to tents and makeshift hovels of metal and fabric, expanses of artificial walkways served as boulevards for food and medical distribution while smaller rooms that may have been storage or administrative centers - assuming that was something the Sirens even needed - were hospitals or similar aid nexi.
The refugees weren't much better looking themselves, being forced into lives of cold, stress and ever present hunger that was sometimes satiated, sometimes not. Iris, Vichya, Parliament, Empery, Sardegna...even a fair few from the Union, Ironblood, Royal Navy and Sakura that had made the journey alongside them were mixed and blended together in one melting pot of dogged tenacity that filled the shipgirl's heart with both hope and hurt at the same time. Hope because their survival was nothing short of a miracle in the face of total annihilation and she would always recognize that...hurt because children and young men and women shouldn't be forced into harshness such as the sights she passed on her way.
Groups of orphans and parentless who clung to what few adults could supervise and care for them, forced cheerfulness on their faces and a dull sense of unreality in their eyes. What should have been tender and awkward first romances between those who were just budding and flowering into the prime of their adulthood were rushed and desperate, afraid that if they didn't experience what life had to offer they wouldn't have the opportunity.
Émile sighed, upbeat demeanor fading slightly. With the lack of readily available protection or other contraceptives and general air of living each day as if it was their last pregnancies had abounded among many of the younger refugees, a drain on resources and labor that their ragtag fleet couldn't afford...abortions were often and not always clean.
"How far have we been pushed, that the wondrous act of creating life must be regulated if not stamped out entirely, just so that those that DO live may continue to?"
It was one of the reasons she disagreed with Sovetskaya so heavily about matters of leisure and relaxation. They should be cultivating every opportunity they had to bring a sense of normalcy to people, not regimenting it and turning it spartan shades of gray. The faces and expressions of the young boys and girls as they partnered up to dance had been like traveling back in time to Paris and the rest of the Iris Libre lands, of blushing faces, awkward motions and genuine love flowering between blossoming men and women.
What would replacing that with drills and training for the doomsday accomplish? She sympathized with her parliament sister's mindset but they lacked the weapons and resources to allow normal humans to fight to any meaningful degree, if battle came it would be down to them and them alone to protect their charges.
"It's not as if we can nurture life ourselves, our duty is to fight and ensure those that can are allowed the opportunity to do so."
Émile wistfully placed a hand over her abdomen, briefly wishing that her physiology didn't exclude the act of conception. She'd always entertained the thought of having a darling little daughter, teaching her how to dance and going on various vacations around the world. Or perhaps a handsome and dashing boy, who she could tease and embarrass relentlessly in front of his friends and crushes~!
Letting the brief fantasy fade Émile approached where her Empery sisters were playing the role of both authority and guard detail in the medical and food distribution area, putting on a brave and sunny demeanor that always seemed to brighten the moods of those around her.
Or at least one of them was. Chao Ho could be a bit prickly even at the best of times.
"Oh sisters~! I bring news~!"
No shortage of heads turned towards her as she skipped forward, answering the multitude of looks with a friendly and confident wave as brief nods, returned greetings or even worshipful stares followed her movements.
"Well we do hail from the Iris Libre and many of our sisters were deeply influenced by the faith. I suppose religious association and the such is inevitable."
She appreciated the thought but preferred to be known more through her kindness and arts than any sort of pious commonality.
"Is it good news or bad news? If it's bad news, save it."
Chao Ho's bitter words coincided with the pale and crimson-haired shipgirl going down a list of available supplies, deep purple eyes darting towards Émile as the Iris woman inwardly sighed at her consistent belligerence. While they had all gotten used to it and were perfectly aware it was just her manner of speaking it didn't make it any more tiring to interact with her fellow dancer.
"Honestly, if she could just be a little more open with her feelings things would be fine. Attempting to speak and trade notes about our mutual craft is like pulling teeth!"
She didn't let any of that show on her face, Ying Swei arriving a moment later with a swirl of white and violet as she chided her sister with, "Now now, no need to be so hostile to our fellow practitioner~!"
"I wasn't being hostile!"
"Perhaps you weren't, but your words were."
Sensing the coming argument Émile quickly interjected with, "Jeanne wants us all to prepare for another move, the passageways are melting and available stocks are low, this location is no longer able to serve our needs."
Chao Ho scowled as a few of the surrounding refugees adopted resigned looks, grumbling, "Already? We've only been here for two weeks!"
"Miss Émile, isn't there anything we can do to extend our stay?"
"Yeah, my father needs to rest, not work!"
Other voices sounded out protests ranging from halfhearted and resigned to desperate or frustrated, the blonde feeling her chest ache with the usual pang of grief that accompanied having to force people who had already been through so much into even more hardship, preparing herself to handle the bevy of complaints and concerns-
-and Ying Swei clapped her hands, drawing attention to her and Chao Ho as the Empery shipgirl announced, "We're all aware of the process by now, anyone with medical or health concerns can direct those inquiries to us as we do run that particular facet of distribution."
"Precisely. So stop bothering the one who has other duties to take care of, alright?"
Chao Ho's more blunt response gathered a few of their human helpers to their sides, most leaping into action as they shouted, "Emergency supplies in line one, basic inoculations and other things in line two, three and four!"
Émile sent her fellow artists a grateful smile that Ying Swei predictably winked at, Chao Ho blushing before crossing her arms as the more friendly of the pair stated, "Émile, a scout party of ten went deep into a previously unexplored part of the Siren base, between corridors twelve and thirteen. We don't have radio signal, do you have the time to go after them?"
Ying Swei giggled, teasing, "After all, few of our sisters are as fleet of foot as you are~!"
"How can you be so cheerful right now…"
Émile ignored Chao Ho's mutter as she nodded in affirmation, replying, "Jeanne gave me no further responsibilities after ensuring you were warned of the approaching evacuation, I shall retrieve our wayward charges with utmost haste!"
She bounded off without further comment, spotting their nominated leader ascending a makeshift platform alongside Admiral Kirill - his weathered and drawn features as stoic as ever - as they prepared their announcement. She put the matter out of mind and instead descended deeper into the depths of their temporary refuge, doing her best to ignore the way the walls seemed to oppressively close in around her.
"I have doubts about this alteration. LOTS of doubts."
"But wouldn't we want to power all of our ships with nuclear reactors? If we doubled them up with our Wisdom Cubes we could be super powerful!"
Akashi rapidly scribbled down blueprints onto her ever present notepad, I-13's eyes sparkling with possibilities and mad scientific glee as Alexander resisted the urge to shiver at the way two tiny shipgirls that barely came up to his hip constantly made him feel like a parent that just handed their kid the keys to the car.
"I like these two. They're so crazy and adorable with such capacity for destruction~!"
"They seem to be flourishing under your guidance, Alexander. It's heartening to see my choice so consistently validated."
The male tried not to focus on the way his two Siren 'comrades' commented on the duo before him as he instead replied, "Yeah, it could. But the reality is a bit trickier than that."
He pointed to Akashi's sketch pad, stating, "Nuclear fission requires a great deal of materials and safety measures to ensure no leakage emanates from the thing. Now normally this wouldn't be too big of a deal, not a LOT of radiation would escape and we're a whole lot more durable than normal humans...but Wisdom Cubes react strangely to beta and gamma radiation."
He tapped his spine, at the shards embedded within its metallic sheath.
"Normally Wisdom Cubes are highly contained sources of raw energy and radiation. You could stand a centimeter away and not feel a thing but put your hand on it and you're basically just a walking ball of irradiated and fucked up cells."
Akashi grimly nodded, muttering, "Initial tests figured that out pretty quick, nya…"
Alexander nodded, continuing with, "The thing is, expose a Wisdom Cube and its neat little containment to traces of aforementioned radiation and it starts releasing spikes of that very same energy, except in much more dangerous concentrations, as if it swallowed and then regurgitated that initial interaction."
"...Oh."
He nodded at I-13's bland statement, concluding, "It's a good idea but it would take a LOT of refitting and testing before we could figure out a proper means of containment so that the Wisdom Cubes aren't just exploding with nasty side effects that I don't think any of us want to mess with, enhanced bodies or not."
"Aww, that was going to be such a good idea, nya!"
"It still is, just not one we can implement right away."
Mind flashing to future advancements and such he thoughtfully posed, "Since we currently have a shortage of Wisdom Cubes the nuclear reactors and such would be a huge godsend for our more conventional allies."
He paused before rubbing his head and groaning.
"Except we would have to build the facilities required to make the reactors and it's not like we're booked several decades out or anything on infrastructure. End me."
"Would thou perhaps like a happy ending instead~?"
The sultry words coincided with Vampire hopping into his lap, purposefully grinding her behind into his abdomen as the Aloadae hid his swiftly rising arousal with a monotone inquiry of, "Don't tell me, let me guess. You lost again?"
The silverette switched from saucy to sulky as she glared at a slightly smiling Kawakaze, the Sakura sitting before a chess board with her pieces the clear winners.
"For such a meek and silent fox our sister possesses a wit most incensing!"
A slow tail wag joined the slight smile, Alexander grinning as he nonetheless wrapped his arms around Vampire as the destroyer eagerly accepted the embrace, cuddling into his broader form as her lithe body provided a pleasant bit of warmth that just so happened to smell very nice and be very feminine.
He also took a bit of petty joy in the way Akashi and I-13 jealously glared at the Royal Navy shipgirl, idly reflecting that he was really starting to get into the whole harem aspect of things. Funny, considering how terrified of the ordeal he'd been not long ago.
"Kawakaze's cheating inclinations aside-"
"How do you cheat in chess, nya?"
"-have thy technical machinations ceased? We shall be approaching the borders of Siren territory most swiftly and will have need of our wits and entire breadth of focus."
I-13 lazily waved a hand, stating, "There's nothing to worry about, my planes are scouting ahead and the storm will keep most of our movements hidden. We'll only have to be careful once we enter the ice caps themselves, no telling what's hiding in there."
Vampire didn't seem all that convinced until Kawakaze padded over, seating herself by Alexander's side as he immediately got to work in stroking her head and ears, earning a pleased tail wag in kind.
"Be at ease, Vampire. There will be battle and uncertainty ahead, just not at this moment."
"Hmph! Tis a strange day when I am the sole voice of caution and diligence."
Despite her words Vampire relaxed into her lover's body, Kawakaze calmly enjoying the petting session while Akashi and I-13 once more got absorbed in the idea of outfitting standard ships with nuclear powered systems...as well as the prospect of a long-range Shinsei.
He tried not to let the fact that they were already drawing up plans for ICBMs worry him as he glanced out the bridge of Kawakaze's destroyer, the sky dark and stormy aside from the brief snarl of lightning that illuminated rough seas and cresting waves.
Nothing like the hurricane they had fought the Siren armada in but enough of a storm that he'd had a few scares along the way. Not that the shipgirls had been worried - they'd even seemed amused by his skittishness - so he'd eventually decided to have faith in the fact that they certainly knew more than he did about ocean navigation.
"And have you performed any of the exercises we recommended to you?"
Cue a less enthusiastic mood as Observer Zero barged into his thoughts, rudely demanding his attention as Alexander mentally growled, "Yes, with less than zero success. I don't even know what I'm supposed to be looking for or feeling, how the hell is this supposed to work?"
"By trial and error, duh. What, gonna give up on a nigh-unbeatable power just because of a few roadblocks? Guess you might as well go ahead and snap that pretty little thing in your lap's neck right now, save it the trouble of dying later."
He fought back a snarl as Purifier joined the conversation, keeping his temper in check as he stated, "Focusing on the shards in my back feels like SOMETHING, yes. But I don't have any idea what I'm supposed to be sensing, you gave me a sixth sense and are expecting that I can use it like I've always had it."
There was a snort from Purifier while Observer calmly stated, "Yes. And much like your helpless newborns you will learn by flailing, kicking and trying over and over again, not crying out for others to help. We are not any more informed of how your body functions than you are, discovering its limits and possibilities is your responsibility."
Scowling in frustration Alexander cut the link...before doing as suggested and using the time of quiet and comfort to turn his attention yet again to the Wisdom Cube shards embedded along his spine. He hadn't been lying when he said there was something strange about the shards socketed into his body, an odd kind of resonance whenever he focused on them that reminded the male of touching a low voltage wire or something along those lines, a strange fuzziness to the sensation alongside a sense of great...emptiness?
Untapped use?
He honestly had no idea what he was trying to do with the things aside from just trying to decide if there was anything useful that could be done. Sure, the Sirens had hinted that he could potentially control time and reality in a local area if he got used to the things but he had no idea how a general impression of confusion and uncertainty was going to translate to literal fucking time manipulation.
"Alexander?"
Blinking at Vampire's quiet tones the man belatedly realized he'd been zoned out for almost two entire hours, completely absorbed in whatever it was he was trying to accomplish.
Apparently it had been long enough for Akashi and I-13 to pass out from their combined efforts, both Sakura sprawled out on the floor atop of the blueprints they had been sketching with a blanket tossed atop of them.
"Sorry, how badly was I out of it?"
"Very badly. Vampire kissed you and you didn't even react."
Kawakaze's blunt words had the man panicking as he hurriedly apologized with, "Sorry, I didn't mean to completely blow you off like that. And I definitely don't think your kisses are boring."
Vampire's pouty stare had the man anticipating a night spent on the proverbial couch-
-and instead received only a sharp nip on the neck as the destroyer sultrily stated, "Perhaps thou can convince me of thy sincerity through embracing this poor, sad lady tonight?"
Ruby eyes glittered with wanton lust as Alexander felt himself predictably react.
"The storm rages and an innocent, frightened little girl will be purged of her fears if her pussy is fucked by thy magnificent cock~."
"So brazen…"
Kawakaze's muttered complaint didn't exactly match with her action of embracing the Aloadae from behind, nuzzling into his neck as Curtis mused, "You know, we are going to be pretty busy for the foreseeable future and likely won't have too many chances to be intimate-"
"Alexander? Cease thy stalling and take us here and now."
Faltering for just the briefest moments the man doubtfully asked, "Right in front of Akashi and I-13? Isn't that a little, you know…"
Kawakaze only hugged him tighter, Vampire crawling up onto his lap so that she faced him directly, eyes dancing with impure intentions as she throatily whispered, "Perchance they will also join in? Just imagine, oh beloved of mine...all these tight, greedy cunts just begging to be ravaged by thy fat cock as we sisters serve your every desire~!"
"You make a convincing argument, Vampire."
Finding the image very much to his liking as Kawakaze shivered with forbidden delight the male let his hand drift down to Vampire's swaying, soft ass-
-and they all jumped as I-13 abruptly sat upright with a startled gasp, eyes wide and darting as through their bond they could only identify a confused jumble of emotions...but hope and wary caution seemed to be the predominant ones.
"I-13? What did you-"
"Shh!"
Blinking as the sub held up a hand in a harsh gesture for silence she slowly scanned back-and-forth across the stormy skies, distant outlines of frozen peaks just appearing over the horizons as the rest of the group shared uncertain looks, completely in the dark as to just what was happening.
They found out as I-13 promptly let loose a shriek of excitement, dragging her sisters into a group hug as she danced around the bridge in unfettered excitement, staring at a bewildered Alexander as she cried out, "They're alive! Sisters I-25 and I-26 are alive~!"