In front of a mirror is none other than the reflection of a young woman with a snow white bob haircut paired with dazzling icy blue eyes. Tirpitz's default expression appears nearly stoic, but her expression is rather relaxed and calm. It's still the same reflection as before, but gently rubs her cheeks while leaning a bit closer to the mirror. She then lifts her head, observing her bare neck and chin. The tips of her fingers run on her smooth skin, somewhat bewildered at herself.
"..."
Tirpitz stops observing her body for a moment and concentrates solely on her current reflection. She stares at the mirror's reflection of her eyes, but she couldn't remove her thoughts forcing her to only see herself covered in blood.
"I am still Tirpitz. This face is still me..."
Tirpitz lightly tilts her head and gently smiles to calmly assure herself. She has recovered her strength, but her physical condition is of little concern for her.
"I'm still starving. Everyone is alert because of Beelzebub missing, so I can't eat the way I want. What happened left me in a state of constant hunger. I want to bite them - my comrades' wisdom cubes have a variety of meal"
Tirpitz lifts her hand and raises her index finger a bit, slightly licking the glove covering it. The "infection's" unchecked state has left her desperate to feed on and while regular food fills her, she's still unsatisfied.
"They said I was unfeeling and never desired anything, but ever since then...I desire so much more. For the the first time in my life, I want something! I can't get rid of the craving..."
Before Tirpitz's urges overwhelm her, she places her hand on her temple, somewhat regaining her rationality before desperation for a meal overwhelms her.
"No, no, no. Iron Blood is not a buffet, but my stomach...is empty. I've always been numb and empty all this time. Aaah...I want to know their flavor - what toppings their wisdom cubes can offer"
The hunger returns again, causing her to claw at her throat when she feels the dryness and itchiness distracting her. Tirpitz clicks her tongue when her sense of taste urges her to fill her mouth with all sorts of flavors and textures.
"I'm not...I'm not that beast. There's no way I can be like that monster. I'm still Tirpitz...and this hunger doesn't change it!"
Tirpitz growls at herself when she musters her willpower to control the temptation of plucking a part of their wisdom cube and drops it in her mouth. She bites the skin between her thumb and index finger, gnawing at her flesh and careful not to tear her own hand off or possibly chew her finger.
One hour later...
Now that Tirpitz is discharged and free to move outside again, except for sorties, she stretches her arms and inhales the morning breeze. Laboratory tests are scheduled later, so Tirpitz would rather stretch her mildly sore body from being forced to lie down by the resident doctor.
"Good morning, Lady Tirpitz! I'm glad you recovered!"
U-556, Bismarck's faithful U-boat, rushes to stop in front of Tirpitz and salutes while proudly puffing up her chest. Tirpitz stares at her for a few seconds, recalling the U-boat's connection to her.
"...Good morning. I haven't fully recovered since I'm not allowed to go out there and fight again"
"Of course! Lady Tirpitz was horribly injured and everyone thought you were dead on arrival"
"Bismarck dragged my mangled corpse while she was mangled herself. If it wasn't for her, I'd be included in the casualties"
"We lost some of our comrades and that hungry monster is missing!"
In the last operation to exterminate one of the seven Leviathans, Iron Blood lost five kansens. Beelzebub had grown stronger than last time which took Iron Blood by surprise, especially Bismarck, due its unique metabolism and absorption ability.
"The other nations lost some of their comrades too. I heard two from the Sakura Empire killed each other after pulling Akagi away from Satan's range" Tirpitz begins walking away
"It seems the Sirens are occupied with the likes of Belphegor if we're going by the Northern Parliament's Intel" U-556 faithfully follows her
"There's only seven of them but both sides are having problems. Perhaps we made things worse when we accidentally let them"
Tirpitz closes her eyes and takes a deep breath, pinpointing at a memory. The sky forms one straight crack then several spreads around it in mere seconds. Malice has been unleashed into the world where its foul stench spreads around, transforming the sky into a shade of scarlet red and black mists escapes the cracks.
(Back then...)
The same phenomenon spread throughout different nations, seven cracks in space appearing above their waters. Tirpitz is one of the several Iron Blood kansens who witness it up close. The smt shattered and breaks away when a large hand punches through it like foam. Its one arm clings to the sharp edges of the forcibly opened space and the other hand does the same.
(We set them free...)
A writhing and disfigured mass pushes its way out of the opening, revealing a grotesque chunk of flesh poorly integrated with its steel husk. Once a mighty entity of the depths, its husk is riddled with cancerous and parasitic flesh. Overgrown muscles throb and thorns protrude at the gaps between its steel plates.
"Lady Tirpitz?" U-556 waves her hand in front of Tirpitz
"I'm sorry. I just remembered when Beelzebub manifested for the first time. Back then, it was deformed but its appearance changed the more it ate"
"That's right! It just roared but the more it filled its belly, it soon learned to understand human words and speak!"
U-556 shudders remembering how a horrifying freak of nature creaks its jaws open. It lets out gurgles and groans when it first tries to speak.
Hungry...so hungry...cold and hungry...
Beelzebub's initial voice is a mixture of some voices and its breath only reeks of rotten flesh drenched in acid and heat.
"By the way, where are you going, Lady Tirpitz?" u-556 cheerfully walks beside her
"I'm going to check on my rigging. About sixty percent of it has been eaten by Beelzebub when I went to stop it from eating Bismarck. While it's mostly repaired, it's still impossible to use even for practice"
The monster itself towers between both her and Bismarck's rigging. A single snap crushed one of Geryon's heads and tore off its right wing. Tirpitz's rigging suffered the same fate, especially when it blocked the swipe when Tirpitz's mangled body collapsed to the ground.
"The Wolfpack helped with reassembling Geryon and Orthrus!" U-556's eyes sparkle
"You little ones are truly reliable"
They may be diligent in their duties, but Tirpitz already mentally guesses it's additional work for Neumark when Type Zwei riggings are much more complex than U-boat riggings and the two enormous steel beasts certainly have personalities.
"Oh..."
Upon arriving in the warehouse where her rigging Orthrus is being repaired, Tirpitz stops in her tracks and rubs her eyes in complete disbelief at the sight of an enormous two-winged beast. It's suspended a few inches off the ground by several thick steel chains. Some of its armor plates are still missing, leaving its chest and tail exposed.
"Grr..." The rigging stares at Tirpitz
"Strange. It doesn't look too happy to see you?" U-556 tilts her head
"Our best team had just finished repairing Geryon. Orthrus is a lot of work when some of its important components were either crushed or shredded" Odin appears from behind
"Bismarck assigned us to help with the maintenance" Ulritch von Hutten tags along
"Grr!"
The rigging's growl echoes throughout the warehouse and so does the rattling of the chains keeping it suspended. Its two heads snap its jaws as its restlessness is focused on Tirpitz, its owner. Normally, Orthrus is docile and barely makes any noise even when poked.
"Orthrus is acting like a dog meeting someone it doesn't like" Ulrich clicks her tongue
"Perhaps it got more damaged than we thought" Odin scratches her head
"It looks fine to me, but I'm not really good with this" U-556 circles around the rigging
"..."
Tirpitz is practically not bothered by her rigging disliking her and gazes up at the towering mechanical beast. She furrows her eyebrows, staring back at it without flinching or blinking.
"Hmm..." Tirpitz reflexively licks her thumb
"Why do you look like you're going to bite it?" Ulrich blinks in confusion
"Huh?" Tirpitz snaps back to her senses
"You were smiling strangely" Odin points at her
"Grr...rrrr!"
The rigging snaps its jaws loudly while it's not in the condition to independently move much. Its hostility to its master is more apparent and alarming, but Tirpitz lightly tilts her head out of curiosity.
"...!" Tirpitz takes a step back
For a moment, Tirpitz turns her gaze towards her fellow battleships, but the burning sensation of her conditions spreads all over her body again. Heat slithers on her torso first, namely her abdomen, before the rest of her body. At first it's merely heat then it's followed by sizzling and prickling on her skin. Due to her uniform barely showing any skin, no one can see the glowing marks on her upper body.
(I need to eat something...or someone, but I need to find out about this body first)
The hunger points her at her fellow kansens, clueless at her condition cursing her insatiable appetite. She remains silent even when her she imagines biting through her comrades and tearing the skin off their neck.
"Lady Tirpitz, you look pale" U-556 stands in front of her
Tirpitz clenches her fists to conceal her trembling hands, but cold sweat drops from her cheek.
"Don't push yourself too hard, Tirpitz. We already lost five in the last battle. Don't be the sixth"
Ulrich von Hutten somewhat attempts to scare her into resting when she knows it's difoccilt to force a reaction from Tirpitz.
"Where...where does Iron Blood store all gathered information about Beelzebub. That thing nearly killed Bismarck and I yet I barely know anything about it"
"Where we store other reports in the archives. You'll find a special dossier about that thing" Odin quickly replies
"I browsed through it and there's still a lot of holes to be filled. Beelzebub is a mystery, especially why the Sirens are seemingly afraid of its kind" Ulrich sighs in dismay
"It's fine. I want to learn more about what we're dealing with"
"Let's hope Beelzebub is dead like the others think. There's no body but we hope it's gone for good"
"I see..."
"That thing better stays dead. I wished it was true that it might have eaten itself to death"
Tirpitz's left index finger twitch instinctively when Ulrich speaks about Beelzebub's uncertain status. Odin barely catches it, but she notices Tirpitz's minor change in tone and gesture when Beelzebub is the topic.
War Archives...
Iron Blood collects every trivial Intel their squadrons can gather. Some are from their comrades while the others are through shared contents with other nations. Koln used to organize the documents before Beelzebub appeared. She pushed Karlusche causing the voracious beast to chew and swallowed her in seconds. Now, Seydlitz and Weser voluntarily maintains the archives.
"Beelzebub the Voracious..."
Tirpitz spreads out several files or anything that remotely mentions the mysterious Leviathans. She finds a folder about "Mammon the Rapacious", but she pushes it back at the shelf for the time being.
"It's like a virus, huh..."
The first image clipped in the document is one of its initial forms is steel deep sea beast fused with writhing mass. Swollen muscles with pulsating veins erupts on its broad neck and extra folded arms right by its ribs. What appears to be intestines or tentacles wrap its torso and multiple mouths gasps on its abdomen. It's an unstable fusion of steel and flesh, but it's deadly even when starved.
"Nngh...!"
Tirpitz clutches her abdomen and wrinkles her uniform in the process. It's her physical need for nourishment, but it's far worse than what normal kansens experiences. Acid sizzles inside her and the excruciating pain is similar to thorns coiling in her insides.
"Hun...gry..."
Although she has eaten a full breakfast and even four times the amount of what a human can consume, her appetite is quick to need replenishment. It causes her strength to drain and her emotions to be filled with restlessness like an unreachable itch.
"...!"
A vision of Beelzebub's perspective flashes in her mind. During its initial appearance, it didn't hesitate to grab several humanoid Sirens in one swift swoop. It throws the mindless fodders in its mouth and chews through their scraps and junks, making crackling and screeching noises in its jaws.
"I'm not...I'm not...that thing...!" Tirpitz doesn't hesitate to punch the side of her head
Tirpitz shakes her head and takes several deep breaths to lose Beelzebub's perspective from her mind. It distorts her reality when she looks at a pair of humanoid hands, but the perspective has her look at steel claws with blood and scraps stuck on its gaps.
"It eats a lot, that's for certain. Iron Blood made a mistake by not acting sooner. It simply learned from each feast and changed..."
Tirpitz lines up images based on chronological order with its form riddled with cancer being the first and the least grotesque form being the last.
"Beelzebub was much weaker when deprived of food. Since Azur Lane kept trying to fight it, we only handed free food to that thing"
The reports state how Beelzebub consumes both organic and inorganic matter without care. It munches through steel ships and even swallows stored bombs. However, when it doesn't feed for a whole day, it becomes both sluggish and aggressive, eating through concrete just to regain a portion of its energy.
"I see. According to the Royal Navy, it can regenerate..."
Tirpitz flips through sequences of photos. The first is when Beelzebub is missing an arm, but sips energy from Siren battleships with a mere bite. Wires, cables, and pulsating flesh erupt from where the part has been severed. The missing limb quickly reassembled itself in five seconds.
"...!"
It suddenly reminds Tirpitz of her state before waking up, so she grabs her left shoulder. Neumark pointed out how her arm was eaten yet Bismarck found her with her body part intact.
"Even in death, it still tries to eat. That's one hell of a dedication..."
Somewhat annoyed at the beast, Tirpitz tightens the grip on her shoulder while her body is currently weakened due to the cursed hunger.
"It's hard to get a grip. I'm still getting lost sometimes..."
As soon as she loosens her hand on her shoulder, Tirpitz exhales deeply and her expression resumes to her default stoic and gentle version.
"Hmm...this feels like a dream"
Tirpitz massages the back of her neck and straightens her back, reorganizing her thoughts even while the hunger is bothering her.
"Good morning, Tirpitz - oh my. You're casting a different shadow today"
The light cruiser with a volatile mood, Emden, enters and immediately spots Tirpitz's distinctive white figure near a corner. She giggles as keenly observes Tirpitz's expression with her interest immediately piqued.
"A what?" Tirpitz furrows her eyebrows
"How should I put this? The look in your eyes is rather different today. Tirpitz's icy blue eyes are usually distant yet gentle. Right now, it's rather...primal and ominous"
Emden hurriedly walks to Tirpitz and leans her face closer to inspect her eyes more clearly. On the surface, her physical eyes haven't changed a bit, but Emden's gaze pierces through that. She faintly sees her reflection in Tirpitz's eyes, but the reflection briefly distorts to a beast's jaws biting her head off.
"You sprayed lavender perfume all over your body again...a bit of white rose" Tirpitz sniffs lightly
"Oh my~ Tirpitz has such a keen sense of smell" Emden claps a bit
"Victorious kept dragging me to her shopping and making me sniff all sorts of perfumes for my opinion on them" Tirpitz takes a step back
"Why are you wary of me, Tirpitz?" Emden catches the movement
"There are two of you despite possessing one body. Two existence sharing the same name..."
Tirpitz doesn't understand it full well, but in her perspective, the white Emden's figure briefly glitches to resemble the one in black dress with red rose eye patch. They are both dangerous, only the black one is more aggressive.
"What about it? Everyone knows Emden is one" Emden pokes her index finger on her cheek
"..." Tirpitz stares at her quietly
"Is everything alright, Tirpitz?"
"..."
In a trance state again, Tirpitz reflexively licks the side of her lips as everything else except for the light cruiser in front of her is distorted.
"You are looking at me rather strangely. Are you unwell?" Emden tilts her head
"More than that. I'm starving...and your unique existence will replenish a bit of my strength"
"...!"
Before Emden's instincts instruct her to immediately back away, Tirpitz swiftly secures her prey by grabbing both of her arms.
"I'll just take a bite...and I'd be full for a while" Tirpitz grunts
"I see. The look in your eyes earlier meant you saw me as a meal. On my~" The black Emden smiles
"Two flavors in one snack. I'm glad I will get to taste you..."
When Tirpitz parts her lips, her four canine teeth sharpen to resemble beastly fangs and the infection on her body becomes lightly visibly since her neck isn't covered.
"...!"
Right as Emden gasps when Tirpitz pulls her close, a sharp sensation buries past the skin of her neck. Much like the rose on her eye, her vision is painted in mild red until the shade gradually darkens and robs her of any sight. In her mind, her neck has been pierced to keep her from escaping, a tactic used by predators to eliminate prey with little damage.
Thoughts...Memories...Desires...Emotions...
Hand them over to me...
Fill my belly...
With every fiber of your being...
It's just a bite...
As promised, Tirpitz pulls herself away after two minutes. Tempted as she is to taste two existence in one body, she controls herself from wasting her food.
"She passed out..."
Tirpitz mildly sighs in both relief and dismay. Emden is somewhat unscathed, but her body has grown motionless. At the very least, if subdued Tirpitz's hunger for the time being. The gnawing, prickling, and sizzling pain in her stomach is gone and her body is rejuvenated until she experiences the pain again.
"If I bite more, her wisdom cube might have been severely damaged. She'll be a wasted meal...and I don't like to waste even scraps"
Emden's body is greatly exhausted and would feel sore when she regains consciousness, so Tirpitz cautiously scans her surroundings before gently settling her sleeping body down. Fortunately, there's a nearby chair she pulls closer with her foot. She positions Emden there as if she's resting.
...Thine flesh...mine whole meal...thine sentience...mine dessert...
"That's right. Back then..."
The tips of her fingers gently reach out to the side of her neck. Those words are engraved into her mind. The infection spread on her skin while her mangled body laid motionlessly on the ground.
Three hours later...
Afternoon strikes and Tirpitz heads to the laboratory as scheduled by Neumark. She's physically fit for more physical tests and scans. While not thrilled out of worry for her condition being detected, Tirpitz chooses to head there to avoid further suspicion.
"Sorry I was a bit late. I had to take care of Emden when she was rushed to the infirmary" Neumark scratches her cheeks
"What happened?"
"Nimi found her unconscious when she went to retrieve a report. She was pale and had a slow heartbeat"
"Is she...alright?" Tirpitz's hands tense
"Her wisdom cube was drained and she suffered minor amnesia. Both Emden couldn't remember everything starting earlier morning"
"I see..."
Tirpitz relaxes her stiffened muscles when it's fortunate she hasn't consumed much of Emden's wisdom cube, but it still affected her.
"Black Emden was weaker than usual. She could barely manifest, and she described something tried to bite her" Neumark shrugs
"..." Tirpitz averts her gaze
"A-anyhow, Your body appears normal" Neumark clears her throat
Neumark starts with examining Tirpitz's physical body, especially the left arm she supposedly lost. It's no artificial replacement, but an actual arm connected to the rest of her body.
"Vitals are normal and physique is also normal. There doesn't seem to be abnormalities - physically speaking that is" Neumark mutters while rapidly writing down her findings
"..."
"Now lie down, so we can begin with the scan" Neumark points at the large machine
"What else does it detect other than wisdom cube? Can it detect illness or anything foreign in the body"
"I suppose it can detect if there's toxin circulating in your bloodstream, but volatile organisms like viruses is still being perfected. However, it can detect skittering creatures like parasites"
"I see..." Tirpitz swallows her breath
"Don't worry too much about it. We improved our medical technology, so we'd discover if you're sick at first glance"
Neumark gives her an optimistic thumbs up, mistaking Tirpitz's question as her worrying for herself. In reality, she's internally panicking that traces of Beelzebub will be detected in her.
"I'm just going to examine your wisdom cube to examine if it had been damaged. You recovered rather quickly, so I'm curious if the Zwei retrofit improved your physical body. Bismarck stood up as soon as she woke up and only Friedrich der Grosse managed to stop her"
Neumark shudders and shakes her head recalling Bismarck removing the needle on her arm and immediately leaving her bed just one minute after regaining consciousness. Her injuries are still fresh, so the excruciating pain of exerting her open wounds is enough to knock someone down, but her willpower is far too great.
"She was concerned on how many survived, especially if you're still alive. Bismarck passed out as soon as we managed to stabilize your vitals. Hahahaha! As strict and intimidating she is, Bismarck is an incredible older sister"
Neumark goes on to tell more about the incident while Tirpitz lies on the machine resembling a CT scan but with extra monitors and other machinery nearby.
"Hmm. Fortunately enough, there's no crack or hole in your wisdom cube"
Although in the screen, Tirpitz's wisdom cube is much like the others, but Neumark squints her eyes as she adjusts the screen.
(Something's different...somehow)
The structure itself is intact with no visible damage, but Neumark's focus is on the wavelength and pattern the monitor is displaying. It fluctutates and doesn't match with the scans on other kansens.
(Tirpitz is stable and healthy, but her wisdom cube...changed? Ugh...it's hard to describe what in the world is going on now)
Neumark taps on the screen and scrambles with the options, completely baffled at the different energy mixed within the wisdom cube.
(Something is fused with Tirpitz. It's nothing like the Sirens emit, but...but it can't possibly be the Leviathans. They're like cancer to humanity and kills everyone it sees)
"..." Tirpitz quietly waits for the scan to finish
(Right now, my theory is that Beelzebub's death affected Tirpitz who tried to buy time. Like a form of energy latching to Tirpitz which may explain her increased appetite recently)
Some kansens have already noticed by breakfast how Tirpitz can chow down a full plate without complaint of restraint. She even chews a type of mushroom she dislikes and swallows it without hesitation.
(If it's only change of metabolism, I can probably find a way to stabilize it. Hopefully it's the only side effect of being within Beelzebub's range upon its death)
Neumark takes a deep breath when the machine only detects what seems to be Beelzebub's energy faintly latching on to Tirpitz's wisdom cube like a desperate parasite. About ninety percent of Tirpitz's wisdom cube is stable while the rest is the side effect from Beelzebub.
I'm still here...