Author's Note:
How's it going everyone! Tex here, and I have finally been able to publish a story I feel somewhat proud of and content with! Somewhat.
Originally I was planning on whipping up a story in the Arpeggio of Blue Steel fandom, but while I love the series, I just hit a massive roadblock in coming up with a new, original story that someone else hasn't written up yet. So, I switched to Azur Lane. While my intention originally was to come up with a grand masterpiece like before within the Arpeggio fandom, I hit the same roadblock. So, I decided to write something less demanding. Think of it as me, a new mountain climber, seeking to climb Mt. Everest on his first ever climb. It ain't happening. So instead, I turned my sights on a more manageable, maybe even more fun, mountain. Sure I'll trip up every now and then, but hey, it's a learning experience!
This is NOT the full first chapter, not by a long shot. This is a trial run for me to get some readers, maybe some reviews, and hopefully a couple followers. Dipping my toe in the water, so to speak, and seeing what I need to improve upon in my creative writing process. I have a rough idea where I want this little story to go, but I am more than open to any suggestions AND constructive criticism any readers might have. Just leave a review or send me a PM!
DISCLAIMER! I do not own Azur Lane nor do I claim to. Just an avid fan, nothing more. Please do not sue me, I have no money :( I DO have ownership of this fanfiction narrative. Please refrain from stealing it, claiming it as yours, etc etc. Thank you!
Now, I hope you enjoy the read! Tex, out!
Game Night! Battleships vs Carriers!
Chapter One
I groaned loudly and stretched in my chair, my back and joints popping audibly as they are rest back into their proper places after sitting so long. I looked up at the clock on the wall and sighed in relief at the fact that its 1700, quitting time. I heard three raps on my door over my personal music playlist that played inside my office, so I lowered the volume of the music to allow a conversation to take place without having to scream in each other's ear in order to be heard.
"Enter!" I called out to the person beyond the door, allowing them entry.
A woman with hair as white as freshly fallen snow and irises the color of the purest amethyst opened the large stained oak door and stepped inside. Clad in a rather risqué maid outfit, I immediately knew who she was. I stood up from my chair and walked to the front of my desk and bowed at the waist to her in good fun.
"Belfast, how may I serve you?"
She pouted slightly. "Master, do you realize it is MY duty to serve YOU?"
I straightened my posture and gave a her a shit-eating grin before replying, "I know, I know. Its just fun to beat you to the punch."
She huffed at me, crossing her arms under her large bust for a moment before rolling her eyes at me. She couldn't keep being fake mad at me for stealing her thunder for long though, as her pout melted away and smiled back at me. She strode over to the side of my desk and looked back at me. "It's the end of the work day Master. I came in to check on you to make sure you would keep your word that you'd join all of us at tonight's game night."
"Yeah, yeah, I remembered. Almost lost track of time, but good thing I glanced up at the clock when I did," I rested on the top of my desk, making sure I didn't accidentally plop my rear on a stack on important paperwork. "You're going too, right?"
"Yes, my shift ends just before dinner sir… What on Earth are you listening to?"
"Oh, this is The HU, a Mongolian metal band. Song is called "Wolf Totem" featuring Jacoby Shaddix from Papa Roach."
She raised an eyebrow at me. "You have a strange palette of music Master."
I shrugged. "Everyone has their tastes. I like a bit of everything, but rock and country are my most listened to genres. I have even stranger choices of music downloaded, but its not truly appropriate for the workplace."
"I see," Belfast responded, an underlying tone of judgement making itself known to me. "Well, let's get you ready for tonight Master. What would you like to eat for dinner?"
"I'll just go eat with the rest Bel, I hate being cooped up and isolated from the crew. You know what the galley is serving?" I stood up once more and stretched my limbs, more audible pops and cracks emanated from my body as a result. I was only in my early 30's, but my time as an enlisted mechanic prior to being commissioned as an officer sure did a number on my body. Not that regretted it, not at all. It was an experience that I wouldn't have traded for anything. I loved to work on things with my own two hands; to delve inside the inner workings of machinery, figure out what makes them tick, and bring them back to life. Still do. There were two reasons why I decided to become an officer. Well, three technically.
First, the pay, especially for "mustangs", or prior enlisted officers. I was only a lieutenant before my sudden promotion to commander, yet I was making more than a master chief did with twenty years of service. Secondly, to slow down the wear and tear on my body. Working from damn near 0500 to 2000, six days a week for ten years takes a toll. I'd still get my hands dirty, but only as a hobby or a quick buck on the side. Figured I'd use my talents to work on my own projects and not the Navy's. Last but not least, was the chance to work at the coveted Azur Lane base in the Pacific. It turned out that I have been blessed with the gift of leadership as well as mechanical proficiency. The top brass gave me a quick promotion to the rank of commander as both a reward and requirement to fill the billet as CO of Azur Lane, and then they shipped me off to the tiny island base, quick, fast, and in a hurry. At the time of this story, I only assumed command for about a month. I learned very quickly to just roll with the punches both the kansen and high command threw at me, or in other words, "stay flexible", as the Navy always liked to say. Not to say that it's all work and no play, no no. Azur Lane was, and still is, an island paradise with multiple ways to let off some steam. Every week, the MWR hosted a new event or activity that always attracted a good number of participants. I tried to make it to all of the events I could in order to connect with the girls more and to have fun in the process. Didn't want to make the impression that I was dull and boring, you know?
Belfast fell into step behind me as I made my way out of the office, listing off the options offered for that night's meal. "Tonight is sirloin and king crab, master. The side dishes include green beans, rice, peas, grilled squash, and potato wedges."
As we walked down the main corridor to the entrance of the Azur Lane HQ, we passed by Sirius and Dido, who're completing their daily chores, dusting the furnishings in the hallway. Sheffield stood on the opposite side of the passageway, supervising them and making sure they do a satisfactory job, as well as making certain they don't accidentally topple and break anything. Sheffield looked in my direction and bowed slightly in greeting, acknowledging my presence silently. "So, surf and turf," I confirm aloud. "Sheffield, Dido, Sirius, how are you today?"
"Good afternoon Master Shaw, I am well," Sheffield responded formally. Dido and Sirius stopped what they were doing and hurriedly bow to me, flustered that they were caught unawares. "G-Good afternoon Master! I am well. I apologize on myself and Sirius's behalf. We didn't notice your arrival until you spoke!" Dido spoke.
In her hurry to respond, she accidentally bumped her hip into the side of the table that held a fancy lamp, a small potted plant, and a picture frame containing a photo of the local scenery. Both Dido and Sirius gasped in horror as the lamp threatened to topple over, but I quickly steadied it with my right hand before it dived to the deck.
"Don't worry Dido, I'm sure you and Sirius were both focused on your tasks," I smiled at them warmly, taking my hand off the small light fixture and returning it to my side once more. I turned towards Sirius and asked her again politely. "Sirius, how are you today?"
"I am fine, Master. Thank you for asking!" Sirius bowed again, this time much lower to compensate for not responding the first time. Her assets jiggled subtly inside her royal maid uniform, and my eyes were drawn to the movement almost immediately before I steered them back to her face. Didn't want to be caught ogling my subordinates, that was just a sexual harassment case waiting to happen.
"At ease you two, I'm not THAT scary, am I?" I chuckled lightly as I rub the back of my neck, trying to ease their tensions.
Sheffield spoke up immediately, stating, "Master, please do not be so lenient towards them. They are required to show the proper respect towards our master and commanding officer. It is uncouth of them if they do not show the required discipline the Royal Maid Corp demands."
"While I understand that Sheffield, I also don't want to come off as a pompous asshole who has a stick up his ass. I want to have a simple, fun conversation with everyone, including the Maids, when I can. It helps with morale," I rebuked. "I'm not asking you to go against the doctrine the Royal Maid Corp has set, I'm just saying to loosen up a little. I can handle a little banter. That sound reasonable to y'all?" I addressed all of them, including the head maid herself, Belfast, as my Texan accent came out of hiding and entered my way of speaking just a tad.
Belfast smiled slightly and nods in agreement. "I find that is an acceptable compromise Master."
Sirius nodded as well. "Yes Master, Dido and I will work on that at once."
"W-We will keep that in mind Master," Dido chipped in, unsure whether to bow to me once more, shown by her performing said action and then hesitating halfway. Her embarrassed blush almost lit up the room.
"Sheffield?" I verbally prod her, looking for an answer.
"I will do as you say, Master," Sheffield dipped her head towards me.
"I'll take what I can get," I grinned at that, humor resonating in my words.
"Well ladies, I best be going. Hope to see y'all at game night! And make sure to get something to eat!" I ended the conversation with that, donned my cover, and stepped outside into the late afternoon light with Belfast in tow. The humidity and tropical heat greeted me immediately, enveloping me like a heavy blanket.
"Belfast, lets go get some grub."
"As you wish, my Master."
I arrived at the liberty center on base and step into the main foyer. Clad in a freshly laundered and pressed dark grey button up collared shirt with the sleeves rolled up to my forearms, dark blue jeans held up by a leather belt with a polished gold and silver plated belt buckle in the image of a longhorn bull, dark brown square-toed cowboy boots, a silver cross necklace hanging from my neck, and my grey Carhartt cap on my head, I looked like what anyone would expect a Texan would dress like, with the exception of my hat. I didn't want to wear my black felt cowboy hat because I'd feel just a tad overdressed, as well as it's harder to easily stow it away on my person. With my cap, I can just stick in between my jeans and my belt and always have it within reach and not accidentally forget it somewhere.
When I arrived, it was about 1800, and it was already bustling with activity. All sorts of kansen were seated on plush couches around multitudes of tables with their friends and colleagues in the main lounge area. The whole building, inside and out, was in tip-top condition and decked out with anything you would ever want in order to relax. Wanna play the latest FPS game? There was a Game Room with multiple next-gen consoles and PCs. Hell, there's even space designated for users to play in VR! Wanna sit in a comfy chair and read the next installment of your favorite novel in peace and quiet? There was a complete library filled to the brim with all the books in all of the genres you can think of in both paper and digital form. Wanna watch the latest rom-com in 3D? Well, look no further than the mini-theater in the back! It even had beds inside the theater, as well as a fully stocked snack bar! The only thing missing inside this heavenly construct is a REAL bar, but that wasn't really the point of the place.
As I transitioned from the foyer to the lounge area with all the couches and tables, my path was cut off by a line of Sakura destroyer kansen making a beeline from the snack bar to the ball-pit room, all hyped up on sugar and sweets with no supervision whatsoever. One of them stopped and waved at me excitedly before being plowed over by the rest of others that were following her, all toppling over each other in a big messy dogpile. I laughed briefly at their antics and walked around them after making sure they were okay and not bruised up or anything. I would have been concerned that they were unsupervised, but since they were indoors, around so many others, and weren't doing anything particularly hazardous while transiting to the ball-pit room (which did have a "lifeguard" on watch just in case a poor destroyer somehow couldn't maneuver through a two-foot-deep pit filled with child-friendly plastic balls), I wasn't worried about them.
I grabbed a bottle of soda from the nearest vending machine and settled into one of the couches, taking a sip from it while I got comfortable. Just moments later, a mature, feminine voice called out to me from behind.
"My my, don't you look dashing tonight."
Before I could turn around and see who that was, my curiosity was sated when the owner of said voice stepped into view and sat on the couch next to me, crossing her leg over the other as she settled in.
"Thank you, Freya. You look even more stunning than the last time I saw you," I greeted her with a polite smile and a small nod of my head in her direction.
Freya, or Frederich der Grobe, was a new addition to Azur Lane. She was a design of the H-class battleships created by the Ironblood that was meant to surpass the mighty Bismarck and her sister, Tirpitz, before kansen were discovered and before World War Two ended. She boasted fearsome firepower which commanded respect from both her allies and enemies. A sense of elegance and motherly maturity washed over you whenever you conversed with her in conversation, which offset her appearance. In between her straight, raven hair that reached down to the small of her back, crimson horns made of battleship-grade steel poked through the top of her crown. Add in her piercing yellow eyes, her impressive rigging, and her foreboding ship form, and you'd think that she was some sort of mechanized demoness of the sea. That night she was dressed in a form fitting black dress that ended just at mid-thigh with red, silver, and gold accents and black leggings that drew attention to her long, shapely legs.
"Oh, aren't you just the smooth talker," she returned the smile, her yellow irises never blinking nor breaking eye contact with my pair of steely grey. "It's a real shame that other commanders don't have a sense for fashion. I really do enjoy the modern cowboy look; it fits you quite nicely."
"Who's the smooth talker now? You're buttering me up like a warm biscuit," I chuckled. "Thank you for your kind words. How you been?"
As we were chatting about how we were doing, a few of the others came to join us at the table. Javelin, Laffey, and Z-23 were the first to join us as Javelin towed an ever-lethargic Laffey along behind her with Z-23 bringing up the rear. I immediately took Laffey's bottle of booze from her, a half empty bottle of spiced rum this time, corked it, and set it in between my legs.
Laffey pouted at me fiercely. "Commander, please let Laffey have her bottle back."
I shook my head in response. "Laffey, you know that this building has a no-alcohol policy. I will return it once you leave, sound fair?"
"Laffey begrudgingly accepts…" she relented, her pout disappearing.
"Does anyone know when the game is supposed to start?" Z-23 questioned aloud, sitting down on one of the couches surrounding the table.
"I think it starts at 1900. Does anyone know what tonight's game is supposed to be?" Javelin piped up with an answer and another question.
Just as Javelin spoke, a few more newcomers sat down and joined the group.
"Rumor has it that it's the board game called Battleship."
Turning around, I caught sight of basically the entire Eagle Union's battleship roster, ranging from South Carolina, the first of the Union's dreadnoughts, to the experimental designs of Georgia and even the mighty Montana. Special mentions include the SoDak sisters, the New York class, Colorado and her siblings, North Carolina and Washington, and the Iowa's. An extremely impressive and equally terrifying sight, seeing them all in one spot.
Freya tittered quietly to herself as I said, "We're gonna need a bigger couch…" under my breath.