Nagato, Kawakaze, and Amagi gawked in horror as the dark eclipse shone above their heads, bathing the Sanctuary in an ominous light.

"Nagato-nee, what should we do?" Mutsu's scared voice coming from her internal radio shook Nagato out of her shock-induced stupor.

"Y-you and Aoba stay there; we are coming!" She managed to stutter out a response before shutting off the comms and setting off for her sister's position with Amagi and Kawakaze in tow.

The situation had just taken a turn for the worse.

They were locked inside a Mirror Sea, with a virtually endless Siren armada at their door and no help on the way.

Up until that moment, they were operating with the prospect of reinforcements arriving eventually. But if Mutsu and Aoba didn't make it in time to send word before the Mirror Sea was cast, now, within the confines of the reality-altering cage, communications with the outside would be impossible.

Their only chance was to find the Siren that had cast it and neutralize it.

She turned to look at the imposing menace that was the enemy fleet, where the culprit was probably hiding.

Easier said than done.

She could only pray for her comrades in the middle of the fray to stay safe.

"This is bad…"

Haruna had her jaw slack and her eyes up, looking at the ominous eclipse above her head, her comrades and sisters around her doing the same. Nagato's intervention in the battle with the usage of the ASD system had given them some room to breathe, but that tiny sentiment of hope was quickly shut down.

"Haruna, watch out!" Kirishima lunged at her sister, pushing her out of the way. A geyser of water erupted right where Haruna had been standing as the two fell to the surface.

"This is no time for daydreaming; we need to stay focused," the masked shipgirl said as she helped her sister up.

"I-I know, but this... it's too much," Haruna grimaced, turning to look at the enemy fleet.

Shells and beams began falling around them once more. The mass-produced Siren vessels that had been affected by the ASD were slowly recovering while those further in the back kept advancing and getting in range.

"You two, get to cover!" Hiei's voice reached their ears, and the two battlecruisers followed their sister's instructions as a cacophony of explosions landed around them.

"Are you all right, you two?" Hiei asked them as they came to a stop beside her, behind the sinking remains of a Siren vessel.

"Yeah, we are…" Haruna tried to say, but her words died in her throat at the sight of her sister. The left half of her rigging was completely absent, and her arm was in really bad shape, with burns spreading all over it, marring her fair skin up to the shoulder.

"Hiei, what happened?!" Kirishima asked her with concern in her voice.

"Ah, this… It's just a scratch," Hiei said, glancing down at her arm to acknowledge her injury but downplaying its seriousness.

Her siblings, though, didn't miss the painful wince on her face as she spoke.

"Just a scratch?! Hiei, you could lose your arm!" Haruna shrilled in disbelief at her sister's dismissal.

"You are in no condition to keep fighting; we need to get you out of here!" Kirishima added, her tone admitting no objection.

Similar exchanges were happening among the rest of the Sakura Kansen around them. They were all taking cover behind the sinking wrecks of the vanguard ships as the bombardment kept going.

Mikasa was there with them, looking around with a frown on her face. She tried to offer some words of encouragement, but her voice died in her throat. She could only watch as the morale around her plummeted and her heart sank.

They knew that it was only a matter of time before the Sirens overwhelmed them and switched their fire on the Sanctuary and on their backline comrades, but with the Mirror Sea up, fleeing wasn't an option anymore. They were all trapped like rats in a sinking ship; they could only wait until fatigue caught up to them and the inevitable happened—that is, if a lucky shot didn't get them first.

Her train of thought was interrupted by a bundle of orange fur appearing in the corner of her eye. It was Kurama. The shipboy had disappeared inside the sinking vessel for a moment and had landed on the water beside her after having finished inspecting it.

Her attention was immediately drawn to his disheveled appearance. The feats he had accomplished—protecting the harbor and providing them an opening for counterattack—had taken a toll on him. He wasn't injured, but his ragged breath, pale skin, and sweaty brow were a clear sign of the strain he had put his Cube under.

"Kurama-kun, are you all right?" She asked him, not hiding the concern in her voice.

"I'll be fine; don't worry about me," he shrugged off her concern. "Mikasa-san, take everyone back to the harbor. If you make it to the innermost part of the Sanctuary, you should be safe for the time being," he added solemnly.

It took her a second to understand what he was telling her. "Kurama-kun, what are you saying? Why should we…?" She trailed off as her gaze fell on the item he was holding. It was the Cube of the Siren vessel. "What do you need that for?" She asked him in confusion.

Instead of replying, Kurama brought up the Cube in his hand before tightening his grip around it. His red eyes shone brightly for a second, and a few cracks appeared on its smooth surface before the contraption was crushed into pieces. An ominous purple cloud of smoke started spreading from its leftovers, enveloping his wrist and climbing up his arm to his chest.

Thanks to that, a bit of his energy was restored, and he let out a sigh of relief. "I'm going to buy some time for a certain someone. Take the opportunity to fall back."

"Buy some time..." Mikasa let off in confusion, then her eyes widened in disbelief as she realized what he was saying. "Absolutely not! I don't know what you are planning, but I won't just turn tails and run while you stay behind."

"I have a plan, Mikasa-san," he said before briefly explaining his idea to her. His words, though, didn't assuage the senior Kansen's concerns.

"Kurama-kun, this is insane," she objected.

"I know, it's a gamble, but we don't have another choice."

"At least let us stay here and help you; we can stave off some of the pressure…"

"No. You've seen what I'm capable of. You don't want to be nearby when I get started," he retorted sharply, then turned to gesture around to the other shipgirls. "And not in this state, you can't."

She moved her gaze to her subordinates, some of them holding each other up for support, others seemingly raring to go, and others fidgeting nervously.

"You could die," she told him, looking him in the eyes in a last attempt to persuade him.

He held her scrutinizing gaze with his own. "I'm not planning to."

Seeing the determination in his unwavering, red eyes, she let out a resigned breath.

"I'm not winning this argument, am I?" She mused, more to herself. In the end, she conceded. "Alright, do your best; just... please, don't throw your life away, you are not a stranger anymore, you are part of the Combined Fleet too. It's too soon for you to leave us." Her gloved hands came to rest on his shoulders as she spoke. Her soft, encouraging tone and her kind gaze took him off guard, and his heart felt lighter for some reason. Kaga had told him about it, but he never got to experience it before—the goodness of heart of the former flagship, everyone's granny, as they called her. It seemed his turn had finally come, in the end.

It wasn't bad, he had to admit.

Suddenly reinvigorated, the shipboy turned toward his comrades. "Everyone, I'm about to light this place up! If you don't want to get involved, then get out of here!"

Nagato, Kawakaze, and Amagi were hurrying toward the communication tower as quickly as possible, or at least as quickly as the sickly Kitsune's condition allowed her.

They looked to the side, down at the harbor, as more shells began raining down on the Sanctuary, forcing their comrades on the field to run for cover. Adding to that, more Siren drones were taking off from the enemy carriers, beginning to clash in the air with the allied aircraft; their numbers weren't as big as before, but they were still enough to pose a threat if left unchecked.

Shinano and the other carriers were doing a great job keeping them at bay and away from the tree, but one of them detached itself from its airwing and, avoiding detection, came straight toward them, strafing.

"Kawakaze!"

At Nagato's cry, the destroyer jumped out of the way as her flagship called out her rigging. The imposing wall of steel appeared behind her, and she used it to protect herself and Amagi from the attack as the drone passed over their heads and a rain of lead fell on them.

Kawakaze took advantage of the opening, summoning her own rigging, jumping atop one of the buildings to get a better aim, and nailing the offending craft with a single flurry of her guns.

As the drone was enveloped in a fireball and fell to the ground at a distance, she hurried to her liege and the sickly shipgirl to check on them.

"Nagato-sama, Amagi-san, are you all right?" She asked in concern, then let out a sigh of relief as Nagato's rigging unfurled. Their faces peeked out from behind it, completely unhurt, unlike the battleship's armor, which was now covered in scrapes and marks.

"I'm fine, thank you... cough, cough…" Amagi tried to reply with a smile, but a coughing fit suddenly sized her mid-sentence. Nagato rushed in to support her, helping her up after dismissing her rigging.

Kawakaze grimaced at the sight. Running around the place wasn't going to do them any good, especially with Amagi impeded by her condition. On the contrary, it was only giving more chances to the Sirens to take them out. And what were they going to do after regrouping with Aoba and Mutsu? Would it be their turn to take to the battlefield? Maybe it'd actually be better if she left Nagato and Amagi hidden somewhere and went to help their comrades, but would her intervention actually amount to something, or would it be better if she kept guarding her liege? Mikasa would certainly prefer that.

As Kawakaze's internal conflict tormented her mind, a loud explosion, accompanied by a bright, orange glow, lit up the confines of the Mirror Sea. Turning their gaze out to sea again, they were met with the sight of Kurama's giant fire pillars appearing out of nowhere for the second time in the middle of the Siren formation, blowing away the closest, more unfortunate vessels.

Then something caught their eye. Mikasa and the others were making their way toward the docks, their backs turned on the Sirens and the fiery explosion.

"What's happening? What are they doing?" Kawakaze asked aloud, baffled and worried.

"Could it be... that Kurama is trying to drive the Elite that cast the Mirror Sea out of their hiding spot?" Amagi said, her tone turning from confusion to alarm as realization struck her.

"He's going to get himself killed," Nagato didn't hide the panic in her voice. "Mikasa!"

"I read you, Nagato-sama…"

"Mikasa, please, you need to stop him!"

"I've tried, Nagato-sama, but I couldn't convince him," the former flagship said through the comms. "We can only hope that his plan works and that he comes out alive."

"What?! Has he lost his mind?" Kaga's voice interjected. "Oy, Kurama, what do you think you're... He just hung up on me!" Kaga exclaimed, her dismay evident as the shipboy signed off without a word.

As Nagato tried to bring order into the comms, Kawakaze's internal radio came to life, and a man's voice came in.

"Kawakaze…"

She perked up in surprise, quickly picking up. "Kurama? What the-"

"I'm using a private channel. You're the only one who can hear me."

Her eyes widening in understanding, Kawakaze continued in a hushed tone, "What the hell are you doing? Everyone's worried sick, and Kaga's pissed off; why aren't you answering them?!"

"I'll do it later. First, I need you to do something for me."

"What do you need?" She asked him in confusion.

"I want you to bring down this Mirror Sea."

"What?!"

"You heard me. Use your Wisdom Crafting to tear it apart; you said you could do it, right? I'm going to buy you some time."

"Are you crazy?! That was just a dumb idea, and I said it as a joke!" Kawakaze all but shouted her dismay.

"A dumb idea that has been lingering in the back of your mind like dough slowly taking form while you trained diligently every day. It's our only chance to come out of this alive."

"But this is-"

"I already told you how it works," he cut her off. "Trust me; you just need to envision it."

Kawakaze pursed her lips, unable to come up with a retort.

"Kurama… what if I don't make it?"

"Then I'll probably die for nothing, and you'll have to carry the weight of not being able to save us all for the rest of your life. If you survive, that is," he stated drily. "But I know you can make it happen; I wouldn't entrust you with my life if I wasn't sure."

With that said, the shipboy cut off the comms, leaving Kawakaze as stiff as a board and with a lot of contrasting emotions swirling in her mind.

She didn't know what to think. She couldn't believe he was betting everything on a simple afterthought comment she'd made during one of their training sessions.

They had been discussing how to engage the Original Sirens in case they ended up inside one of their Mirror Seas when she'd made a comment about how nice it'd be to have a way to easily erase one. With the ASD and the energy shields already being a thing, she'd wondered how no one had thought about it before—creating a device that could do it. Maybe it just wasn't feasible? Or they had tried and it didn't work out?

He had seemed to perk up at such a comment but hadn't said anything at the time. Had he anticipated that something like this would happen?

She shook her head vehemently. Whichever the case, a huge burden was just dropped on her shoulders, and she could already feel the pressure. Her hands began trembling, and her breath became ragged, but it took her only a few seconds to make her decision.

Needless to say, she wouldn't—she couldn't—back out of such a difficult situation.

She took a few steps back, drawing the puzzled gazes of her comrades. She unsheathed her sword, settled into a stance, and took a deep breath.

Time to see if all that training paid off.

Kurama winced in pain as another round exploded right next to him.

He was advancing full speed ahead in the middle of the Siren armada, dodging or blocking volleys with his tails, jumping over torpedoes, and tearing down any drone that attempted a bombing run on him, all the while slamming his giant fire pillars into every single vessel he came across.

His goal was to make as much of a ruckus as he could, so as to draw the Sirens' attention to himself and to allow Mikasa and the others to retreat back to the Sanctuary.

He was doing a great job at it, but the Sirens were just too many. The fact that they had given up on holding back despite the risk of harming their allies in the front to get him was only making things more difficult.

He didn't know how long he had been at it, but he knew that if he let up, it'd be the end for him.

Before Mikasa and the others left, he had scoured every single vessel not yet completely sunk for their Cubes. It was the only way to replenish his energy and activate his Wisdom Crafting again. The catch was that his body would go completely limp after he exhausted the last ounce of energy he had left.

He knew it because it wouldn't be the first time it happened. How many times had he found himself in such a situation back in his world? By now, he had lost count of the times he was forced to go all out with his power and put his body at risk in turn. His brothers had always been by his side to get him out of danger before the worst happened, but this time, he wasn't sure it was going to go as well. Or maybe he'd be lucky to draw the Elite out of their hiding spot with his rampage before Kawakaze could even make up her mind.

He had to hold back a chuckle at that. That was a tall order alright.

Seeing that he had gotten in range of another enemy vessel, he jumped as high as he could, twisting himself sideways in the air. His tails followed behind him, inevitably slamming into the Siren and setting off a cacophony of explosions on its deck, sealing its fate.

Using his momentum and his tails as support, he threw himself over the wreck of the ship toward his second target with a forward somersault, the nine pillars of flame trailing behind him in the air. They ran over any drone careless enough to fly too low before slamming into the second vessel and dooming it to the same fiery demise.

Another pawn down, a plethora more to go. He grimaced as he realized that what he was doing was like pissing on a forest fire.

Maybe it was planned, maybe it was bad luck, or maybe it was fatigue finally catching up to him, but when he landed back on the water, he did so into a spread of torpedoes.

A round of explosions set off as geysers of water rose up in the air. He stumbled under the shockwaves, struggling to keep his balance. The enemy immediately took advantage of his faltering. Siren drones began diving on him, navigating through the flames to unleash their payload on him, and the closest vessels focused their fire on his position.

Kurama could do nothing except pull his tails around him, coiling the massive appendages to create a veritable dome of flames to protect himself.

The onslaught, though, was too much. His already tired body was feeling every single piece of ordnance thrown at him as they impacted his defense with a deafening cacophony, the shockwaves of the explosions forcing him down on his knee.

"Dammit, I can't move," he winced, cursing under his breath. He could feel the flames getting weaker by the second. If he tried to move, the enemy would be upon him, but if he didn't, his only defense would eventually crumble.

He felt something dripping down his face and brought his arm up to rub his nose with his sleeve. He grimaced at the sight of the red liquid staining the dirtied fabric.

How in the hell did he end up in this situation? Risking his life to protect a stupid tree. All because there was a small chance that he could talk with his Nagato again. He let out a self-deprecating chuckle. So much for that; if he died, he wouldn't be able to see him again anyway.

But that wasn't about his mentor and the tree anymore. His mind inevitably went to his brothers.

Before, the bond he had with them was the only thing allowing him to keep going after his mentor's "execution." Initially, they were all strangers, forced to work together on a mission assigned to them by their superiors for the good of the world. It took him a while to just come to tolerate them and even more to open up to them. Now, he was ready to die for them, and they were ready to do the same for him, no questions asked.

But now he had so much more, he thought as his mind moved to more recent events. To the Nagato of this world, to Kawakaze, to the other Sakura shipgirls, and finally to Kaga.

There was so much he had gained from this whole mess: new friends, a disciple, a lover... He had almost forgotten what it meant to open up to strangers and to let new people into his life. He didn't want to lose any of that, and most importantly, he wanted to be there with them as long as he could.

But what else could he do? The Sirens surrounding him weren't letting up; on the contrary, they seemed to have increased their effort to take him out.

"If I move a finger, I'm probably done for, but if I don't..."

He decided. He'd rather die fighting than wait for death on his knee. He just needed to do something first.

He mentally reached for his radio.

"Hey, Nagato…"

"Kurama!" The diminutive flagship called out his name, looking out to sea toward his position.

"Thank you for everything you've done for me, and sorry for scaring you that time," he said. "Also, don't let what other people say drag you down. You and everyone else gave me what my homeland couldn't. You made me rediscover my faith in the Sakura Empire—a faith that I've never had to begin with. You are already a great leader; you don't need to change just to fit others' expectations."

His words left Nagato speechless. A lump was forming in her throat, and tears were welling up in her eyes as she realized what he was saying and why. She tried to come up with something, but he didn't let her; instead, he addressed someone else.

"Hey, Kaga…"

The white-haired fox's voice immediately came in. "You reckless bastard! I take back what I said-"

"I love you."

...

"Wha-"

With that said, he shut off the comms again.

He took out the last Siren Cube he had retrieved from the wreckage and used it to recover a slight bit of stamina. Then he focused on his own Cube.

With one last burst of energy, the flames that had almost lost their vigor rekindled, his tails unfurling in a fiery display that allowed him to jump out of the way of the incoming attacks.

But before he could even charge at the enemy, another loud explosion caught his attention… because it was coming from behind him.

He turned in confusion and surprise to see a whirlwind of light-blue fire right in front of the docks. It only lasted a few seconds, after which he gawked in shock at what he saw.

In its place was a giant, four-legged creature, standing proudly amidst the dissipating flames. It resembled a fox with pure-white fur and multiple whisps of azure fire scattered around its form. Its nine tails, which resembled a lot his own when he activated his power, were made out of pure azure flames.

The creature that had seemingly appeared out of nowhere reared its head back and let out a powerful roar that spread over the entire battlefield, shaking his body to the core. As it did it, the flight decks hanging to its sides straightened, and a huge number of fighters and dive bombers appeared in a flash before taking off into the sky in an instant. Then it bolted, charging the Sirens head on, which had already shifted their attention to it.

Despite its size, the giant fox was incredibly agile. It easily navigated through the wrecks, jumping and skipping over the water surface while dodging the enemies' attacks. It was also tougher than it looked, as it tanked most of the hits that reached it. But then Kurama took a better look; the rounds and beams were sinking into its flesh, but no wounds were left. The thing wasn't organic; it was just a cluster of fox fire shaped like an animal, similar to the spiritual beings and the familiars of old folkloric stories.

It didn't take him long to realize where it came from. If the azure flames weren't already a dead giveaway, the carrier-shaped equipment on its back was identical to Kaga's.

Kurama sought her with his eyes. In the distance, he could see the shipgirl standing proudly atop the most forward of the port's breakwaters. Her rigging was out, and a bunch of her paper planes were floating around her as her blue eyes shone with an intense light and her tails burned with the same azure flames as her flight deck. Her expression was a mix of a focused frown and a disapproving scowl.

The shipboy let out the breath he was holding. His limbs lost all strength as he fell on his knees, and his heart was filled with elation.

"You did it, Kaga…"

"Damn right, you fool!" She bellowed in anger, looking straight at him from a distance. "Now stay still; I'm coming to get you!"

"So that's the true extent of your love, Kaga…" Akagi mused to herself, impressed by the display but also a bit conflicted.

To think that her sister had such hidden potential but was able to bring it out only because of that mutt...

"Well, I guess it's a good thing he's going to make it. Not that it'll matter in the end; the situation is still rather bleak…" she let out disinterestedly. She admitted that seeing the male Kansen risking so much for their home had moved her a little. Still, his passing would have left her unbothered, if she had to be honest. She knew, though, that it'd be a hard blow for Kaga; at least his survival spared her the trouble of having to console her sister later.

As Kaga added another variable to the battle, which took the Sirens' digital brains by surprise, the other carriers were supporting the retreat of their comrades, maneuvering their aircraft to slow down the mass-produced vessels, and keeping the hostile drones occupied.

As for Akagi, she had a good reason for not helping her comrades on the battlefield. She was standing in the middle of the courtyard of the central temple, right where the Sacred Sakura's massive trunk sank into the water of the central lagoon, her rigging and paper planes at the ready.

"Anyway, let's get back to business," she said, shifting her focus back to the intruder she was facing. "What are you doing here, Observer?"

Indeed, the Elite humanoid Siren with the octopus-like rigging was hovering there, between her and the tree, her tentacles wrapped around her form as usual, although this time she wasn't casually leaning over them. Her posture was a lot more rigid, her eyes were unfocused, and her usual mocking grin wasn't there, replaced by a hollow expression.

"I knew I felt a familiar presence. Now that I think about it, the controls of the energy shield have been compromised; it was you, wasn't it?" She said with a cocky smirk. "Don't tell me you're also the one who cast this Mirror Sea. I thought you said you wouldn't interfere while we dealt with the Original Sirens."

Behind her confident façade, Akagi was actually trying to figure out the reason behind the Siren's presence. What the hell was Observer doing helping the Original Sirens? Didn't that go against everything Zero and the rest of her kind believed in? No, it was more likely that the Elite was being controlled or coerced by her otherworldly counterparts.

"Look at you, how the mighty have fallen. You must really hate the sorry state you are in. Do you wish for me to put you out of your misery?" She tried to question the Elite, but only silence answered her.

If Akagi was right and Observer was actually being controlled, then it was more than likely that she was trying to get to the tree while the pawns acted as a diversion. The Sirens' intentions had already been ascertained, after all, so it was only natural that they'd try something like this.

"You know, your negotiation skills were a lot better when you were in full possession of your mental faculties," the Kitsune kept mocking her, trying to elicit a reaction from her. "I remember you liking the sound of your voice so much that you could barely keep your mouth shut."

The only answer she got this time was the multiple laser barrels on the Elite's rigging aiming at her simultaneously, prompting her to let out an annoyed sigh.

"Whatever… You've made the mistake of showing your face. Now I just need to take you out and see what happens."

There was no way to know if Observer was actually the one who had cast the Mirror Sea; the fact that she had come out in the open so easily was a giveaway, but it didn't hurt to try to neutralize her. Besides, Akagi was fairly sure that doing it would send a few of the pawns under her control into disarray.

At least that's what she hoped. With the mass-produced Siren vessels reprogrammed, there was no way to tell if defeating Observer would affect them in any way. She had to at least try.

"For pests like you, I'm more than enough," she declared as she began squaring off, but something in the back of her mind was telling her not to let her guard down. Something was wrong, she could feel it.

In any case, she had to hurry up. She prepared a handful of paper planes and engaged the humanoid Siren.

The Sakura shipgirls watched as the giant fox summoned by Kaga charged at the enemy fleet. It rushed the Sirens, swiping at the drones and the smaller vessels with its claws and tails, speeding toward Kurama's position.

The shipboy seemed to have heeded Kaga's words, his tails coiling around him again as he hid under his flaming shield, awaiting to be pulled out of his predicament, which managed to draw long breaths of relief from Nagato, Mikasa, and the other Sakura Kansen.

Their attention returned to the Sirens. Kaga's intervention would buy them some time, but even if she did manage to bring Kurama to safety, the situation wouldn't improve; on the contrary, the Sirens would have no one impeding their advance. The harbor had already received plenty of damage; their next goal would be the Sacred Sakura, and then, when the tree would be down for good, their turn would come next.

Nagato knew it.

The flagship let out a resigned but determined breath. If her fate was to mount one last brave stand with her comrades and to go out protecting their home, she was ready to accept it.

"Mikasa, recall everyone. Tell them to retreat and have them form up in a line in front of the central temple. If the Sirens want to reach the Sacred Sakura, they'll have to get through us first."

Mikasa, who had come to the same conclusion, acknowledged her words. "As you wish, Nagato-sama."

Then, the short battleship turned to address the sickly battlecruiser beside her, but before she could even utter a word, the Kitsune spoke up.

"Nagato-sama, I know what you're about to say... If these are going to be our last moments, I'd like to be able to shoot my guns," Amagi said.

"Amagi…"

"I'm sure you can understand."

Nagato knew that there would be no persuading her friend this time around. She nodded her head solemnly, then turned toward her attendant and bodyguard.

Kawakaze was standing there, sword in hand, cursing under her breath. She'd been fruitlessly swinging her sword in the air, and by now, frustration was getting to her. Her liege looked at her with confusion and concern, unsure whether to address her or not as her expression switched from a focused frown to a teeth-gritting scowl.

The destroyer tried to ignore Nagato's lingering gaze, glancing down at the blade she was holding in her hands, the same one Kurama had given her as a present. Living up to the shipboy's expectations was proving to be as hard as she expected, if not harder, and she couldn't help resenting him a little for putting such a burden on her shoulders.

She thought back to their last conversation and all the time he had dedicated to her training. What had initially started as a disciplinary punishment had quickly become something she was doing of her own volition. The promise to become stronger under his wing was her main drive, but no one could have ever imagined the positive impact his influence would have on her. Of course, that went both ways. They both weren't the friendliest characters out there, so having someone to butt heads with was doing them really good. The rougher aspects of their personalities were rubbing off on one another, smoothing off their edges like jagged rocks being polished.

Before, Kawakaze would have had a hard time admitting it, but now, she had found a friend. Was she really going to disappoint him? And not just him—her liege, her comrades... Everyone's lives depended on her!

At that moment, she felt a flutter coming from her Cube and a small jolt of electricity running down her spine. She paused in surprise. For an instant, it felt like the blade in her hands had disappeared, as she couldn't even feel its weight.

It was the same feeling as when she had tried to unsheathe that very same sword from Kurama's rigging, when he had just started training her...

At that moment, she understood, her eyes widening in realization.

"Kawakaze?" Nagato's voice reached her ears, her concern only growing as she watched the destroyer come to an abrupt stop.

"Sorry for worrying you, Nagato-sama," Kawakaze said. "I've finally figured it out."

"What are you talking about?" Nagato inquired, her confusion only growing as the destroyer didn't answer, too caught up in the moment.

Kawakaze straightened her posture, took a deep breath, and brought her blade up in a high stance, focusing on her Cube.

Kurama had already kept his promise. He had given her all the tools she needed; now it was up to her to use them to save those she cared about.

"Wisdom Crafting."

Her eyes lit up with a silvery glow, the wind stopped blowing around her, and the noise of battle was muted as the only things she could feel were the sound of her heartbeat and the energy coursing through her body. It spread over her blade, enveloping it with a shimmering glow from handle to tip.

Then she brought it down. Her swing was faster than the speed of sound, so much so that the blade seemed to disappear for an instant, only to reappear in her hand at the end of it. The space around the edge of the blade bent on itself; cracks began forming in the air, spreading all over the place as the fabric of reality began distorting, and then, the world around her simply crashed like a broken mirror.

She opened her eyes, and her gaze met Nagato's and Amagi's awestruck expressions. Her heart swelled with pride and elation as she admired her own handiwork. Gone were the ominous eclipse and bloodied sunset; the azure of the afternoon sky and the light of the sun greeted the Sanctuary once again as the Mirror Sea was dispelled.

Before she could even open her mouth to speak, a sudden wave of overwhelming exhaustion struck her. The hilt of her blade slipped through her fingers, and a sudden dizziness took over her.

The last thing she remembered before losing consciousness was the arms that wrapped around her form as she fell, drifting off to sleep.

Ryan let out a content sigh as he stretched on his chair in his office. He'd never guess that he'd miss paperwork, of all things, but after the crazy experience in the Original Timeline and everything that came out of it, he was glad to be back to his usual routine.

It hadn't even been a week since he had returned, and during those few days, he'd had his hands full. First of all, he'd had to bring the representatives up to speed with the latest development, but that was fairly easy, especially after what it took to convince Shoukaku to forgive him.

Of course, the news of having the creator of the Kansen hanging around the place didn't fail to draw plenty of amazement from the senior Kansen, so he had to ask them not to make too much of a fuss about it, if only not to impede the doctor's work with the Reality Lens.

Speaking of which, as soon as both Anzeel and Aoste were settled, they immediately got to work, and as expected, the first to go under the knife—or lens, more accurately—was Yorktown.

Apparently, Anzeel had retrofitted plenty of shipgirls with Type II rigging in the Original Timeline, so that was a walk in the park for her. The hardest part was disconnecting Yorktown's old rigging from her Cube since it was so corrupted, but even that, with Aoste, TB, Vestal, and even Akashi helping her, turned out to be a success.

He wasn't in the room during the procedure, but from the explanation he got, Yorktown was put to sleep with her rigging out as Anzeel used the Reality Lens to dive into her Cube and permanently cut her connection to the compromised flight deck.

And a few hours later, the operation turned out to be a success. The corruption was no more, and Yorktown was out of danger for good. Her mood made a 180-degree turn after that, and as soon as she went back on her feet, she dove straight into training.

If he turned to the window, he could see her new and improved Wildcats soaring in the distance. She was probably exercising with the other carriers, impatient to get accustomed to the new rigging. Neither Ryan nor Enterprise had the heart to tell her to take it easy; the radiant smile that seemed to have become a constant on her face was too powerful even for them, and her excitement was too contagious.

It wasn't just Yorktown, though. Ryan had gathered all the concerned individuals and explained the situation to them. After all, before the Metamorphosis came into play, the goal was to fix damaged or defective Cubes. Of course, those were Hood, Dunkerque, and Sparviero.

When he told them, Freedom was also there, wanting to give the good news to his brother. To say that the three of them were happy would be an understatement. Hood tried to hide it behind her usual poised and elegant countenance, but in the end, especially when the Commander offered her a hug, she couldn't help the sniffles of emotion.

Dunkerque was very much the same; the smile of relief adorning her face was worth more than a bag of gold. While Hood had had more time than the Vichya shipgirl to come to terms with her condition, Dunkerque was still in the middle of working things out. Both of them, though, were sick and tired of feeling like dead weight.

And for that reason, Sparviero, as the good soul he was, had decided to give up his turn to the two shipgirls. After all, the blind shipboy was born with that condition and had no qualms waiting a few more days, especially after "seeing" how eager the two battlecruisers had seemed at the prospect of taking to the sea again.

Last but not least, the METAs. Queen Elizabeth had taken up the role of their leader, so whenever something regarding them came up, she was the one he'd refer to. Much to his relief, the META queen's attitude was a lot more subdued than her less traumatized counterpart, and he had no issue conferring with her.

But he hadn't told them about it yet.

Apparently, the Reality Lens wasn't going to be enough to save the METAs. According to Anzeel, the full procedure required more avant-garde technology—stuff they didn't have at their disposal on base… yet.

All things considered, everything was going smoothly. The only thing that could ruin the day was the Sirens launching another attack.

"Commander!"

Ryan jumped as Cleveland barged into the room, a distressed expression on her face.

"Cleve, can you please stop barging into my office?"

"Sorry, but this is urgent," the light cruiser said, walking up to his desk. At that moment, Ryan realized that she wasn't alone; Freedom was accompanying her.

"What is it?" He asked with concern creeping in his voice.

"The Sirens are attacking the Sanctuary!"

"Goddammit."

AN: Kawakaze means "river wind," and Kurama is the name of the mountain which the IJN Kurama was named after, which means something like "saddle horse."

And about Kaga's giant fox, I said I'd do it!

Next Chapter: Turning Tides