Last time, we saw that Trigger identified the advanced aircraft that Illustrious and Unicorn had captured from the freighter as the ADF-01 Falken. We have seen the aftermath of the 180 that Trigger had pulled on the First Carrier Division as the fox sisters were split on dealing with the Ace.

While Kaga wanted him dead and made it her priority to kill Trigger, Akagi wanted Trigger alive because of her poetic means of believing that he 'shared his love' with her.

All the while, Prinz Eugen of the Iron Blood now knows why they talk about the Osean Ace. Even as she left, faint hearts had appeared in her eyes. As for Shokaku and Zuikaku, the white crane has been damaged by the Falken's laser weapon while her sister declared that she will get Three Strikes and the Grey Ghost.

Speaking of Grey Ghost, Enterprise was critically damaged and she had also violated a direct order by going out to fight with damaged rigging. It seems like Trigger would need to discipline the Pride of the Eagle Union for her suicidal stunt. But in the meantime, the Main Royal Navy ships are here and with the Royal Maids, it's good to have help.

A guest asked if I was going to continue the game's actual story. My answer is that most of the battle segments were in the Azur Lane Anime series, the first one.

Also kevinlee010601: The presence of the ADF-01 is to show that the Sirens have been jumping to and from Strangereal.

Now it's onto the chapter.

Javelin and Laffey had just docked and were making their way to the airfield as the former dragged her sleepy friend behind her. Any active kansen in the port were gathering at the airfield to witness their commander touch down and both factions were excited to see it.

The major leaders of the Royal Navy were upfront to see this, while flanked by the Royal Maids as well as Hornet and her group, including an embarrassed Hammann. As soon as Javelin and Laffey met up with Unicorn, she asked while still stabilizing her sleepy friend,

"How much time until he lands?"

Unicorn looked around and saw the manju preparing as well as Magic touching down as the E-3 taxied off the runway. She stated as she clenched U-Chan with excitement, "Not much longer."

Soon enough, the roars of a jet were heard as the ADF-01 soared past the airfield. The many ships gathered were amazed by the advanced aircraft as Javelin, Laffey, who was jolted awake by the jet noise and Unicorn recognized that aircraft as the one recovered from the Gründer Freighter. The plane was a sleek design with canards and forward swept wings with no visible cockpit, instead 16 cameras and sensors darted the cockpit. One other feature was the vertical stabilizer that jutted out from the bottom of the craft.

One Royal Navy ship, a short girl with a petite frame, has long curly blonde hair and blue eyes. She wears a black headband with red linings, white bows and a red & gold crown on top of her head. She wears a white frilled high-collar with a black choker and a blue ribbon with a royal brooch, a dark blue tight strapless shirt with frilled ends and yellow outlines, a white frilled skirt, whit thigh-high frilled socks with blue ribbons, red pumps, black arm sleeves with a bulky cuffs and white frilled gloves with blue ribbons, pointed out,

"Now how on Earth is he going to land with that thing in the way?"

Wales stated, "Your Majesty, he had taken off in that plane before. From what I have seen about planes - if it can take off, it can most certainly land."

The 'Queen' puffed her cheeks at this as her bodyguard, who was also short with a petite frame. She has long light-brown hair with two front locks tied by a blue band with white linings and a pair of animal ear-like hair on top of her head, and has purple eyes. She wears a dark purple military jacket with red & yellow epaulets, red & yellow cuffs and white frills over a gray crop top, a white & dark-purple yellow-buttoned tail-coated dress, a black side-tie bikini bottom, white folded socks, white rubber shoe with red ribbons and white gloves. She wears a long white scarf wrapped around her neck looked at Wales and asked,

"How are you certain that he will land?"

The battleship could only look up as the Falken's nose opened up once more as the laser cannon fired as that same blue beam used to damage Shokaku and wipe out the Siren Mass-Produced Ships shot out of the craft, creating quite the spectacle as the Queen's bodyguard asked,

"Is that…a laser?!"

Illustrious was amazed, "This was the weapon that he was wondering about when he inspected it."

Belfast was amused by the pilot, how he fought and how he was able to bring everyone back and how he coordinated his fleet. She knew that this is her Master and it's a maid's duty to serve her master. She stated, "That plane has impressive weaponry to be able to bring down a siren fleet, but a plane is only as good as the pilot."

"How are you certain, sister?"

That voice came from another maid, like Belfast. She was pretty tall, she had long light-purple hair with two braided locks and brooch-ribbon tied on the side of her head, and wore round glasses over her purple eyes. She wears a sleeveless thigh-length maid dress with ruffled ends and a white apron, she wears a black arm-sleeves with a white cuffs and wears a black gloves with two yellow bands, white high socks with two blue lines and a black lady's shoes. This was Light Cruiser Edinburgh, Belfast's older sister as the cruiser stated,

"No other pilot could ever have done what he did, no plane launched by any carrier of any faction could fight as he did. There's also an aura emanating from him, like he's the one shining light in a world of darkness. The other ships seem to believe that as long as he is with us - we will win this war."

Edinburgh was a bit curious, "A Beacon of Light?"

"Yes, I noticed how they act, how they cheer when they see his three-lined marking. He inspires both fear and admiration, although I have never seen him in person, he is a capable leader."

Once the laser died down, the nose closed as the Falken maneuvered towards the runway and at that moment, the ventral stabilizer folded up as the landing gear deployed. The aircraft lowered its altitude and reduced its speed as the nose slightly went up as the rear landing gear was close to the tarmac. It was only a few seconds until the gear hit the runway as the air brakes between the tail opened as the Falken slowed to a stop. Belfast smiled,

"That was a perfect landing."

Soon enough, the Falken taxied off the runway as a manju 'nugget' guided the advanced plane to where the shipgirls were waiting, eager to meet their commander. As soon as the nugget gave the signal that it was clear, the Falken had stopped with its side facing the Royal Navy leaders as the everything powered off and the manju moved a ladder right next to it. After a while, the cockpit hatch opened as the pilot climbed out and onto the steps. Upon getting down from the ladder, he turned towards the shipgirls, primarily the Queen,

"Queen Elizabeth, Lead Ship of the Queen Elizabeth Class Battleships and Leader of the Royal Navy, I presume?"

The Royal Navy Battleship stated, "Indeed I am, but in the future you will refer to me as 'Your Majesty' are we clear?"

The pilot nodded, "Crystal." The bodyguard asked, "I am Warspite, the Queen's Bodyguard, are you the Commander?"

The pilot unclipped his flight helmet and oxygen mask as he revealed his dark brown hair, blue eyes and handsome appearance,

"My TAC Name is Trigger and you are right, I am the Commander of Azur Lane HQ."

Warspite was surprised until she steadied herself, "I must admit, that was amazing flying. You were like a knight of the air."

The Queen silently huffed, "A knight? If he impresses me enough, maybe I will officially knight him. But from his appearance, the plane, those scratches and his drive, he does not seem to be a naval officer."

Trigger stated, "I had a good teacher going under the nickname 'The Grim Reaper' he taught me everything I needed to know."

Soon enough he turned to the rest of the Royal Navy, "I'll be the first to welcome the Main Royal Navy fleet to Azur Lane HQ. But as you all saw - The Sakura Empire and the Iron Blood have formed the Red Axis and are relying on Siren Technology to fight us. Those drone ships we saw were controlled by them, so we're going to stop them. As of now, we will need to plan out a long range operation to not only figure out what they're up to, but to put a stop to it. I'm sure we all want to take the fight to Red Axis, but in the meantime, we have a long road ahead of us and I'm sure that our friends from the Royal Navy had a long trip. So, go get some rest and relaxation before your next orders.

Dismissed!"

The shipgirls cheered as Trigger ended his speech, they were looking at a man who has all the qualifications of a leader. As the cheering died down and everyone was heading out, Trigger stood by his plane as the manju nuggets moved it into the hangar. He followed the little guys as they crossed the threshold into the hangar. As soon as the Falken was in the hangar, he heard a voice,

"Making sure that your plane was put away, Master?"

He turned and saw Belfast standing in the hangar as he said, "I know the manju work hard, but I just needed to be sure." He paused for a moment as he looked down in silence which the maid noticed,

"It's about Enterprise, isn't it?" Trigger nodded, "By all accounts, she had violated a direct order by going into battle with damaged rigging."

Belfast stated, "It is well known that Enterprise will go into battle despite the damage, but I fear that she may have pushed herself too far."

When she said that, Trigger immediately thought of Mihaly, the old Erusean Ace that pushed himself to his limit, subjecting his aging body to an immense amount of Gs. He assisted the Belkan Scientist, Dr. Schroeder in using his flight data to create Drone AI which moved like him which was the reason the Ravens were flying like him. He subjected himself to that much strain of Gs on his aging body, unleashed pure chaos just to keep his wings. The last time he heard of the old man was that he survived his crash over his homeland, but it left him crippled, grounded as his wings were clipped. But he was alive and able to be with his granddaughters since he was the only family they had left. The old man would miss his days in the open skies, but Trigger proved to be a worthy successor.

But this coincides with Enterprise pushing herself on a damaged rigging, her bow snapped and she would have never stood up against Zuikaku had Trigger and Belfast not intervened. He grew worried,

"How is Enterprise?"

Belfast sighed, "The battle had left her unconscious, the maids had put her to bed before you landed. I do advise that you let her rest until morning before you discuss her punishment, Master."

The Ace agreed, "She's been through a lot and I know that she disobeyed my order to help her sister, but she actually put herself in danger and the whole fleet at risk."

The Royal Maid took notice of the events that happened today and the yesterday, "I have heard that you embarrassed the First Carrier Division yesterday when they openly declared war. It seems as if Red Axis will be after you personally and with that look on your face, I would guess it wasn't the first time."

Trigger told the nutshell version, "There were two PMCs hired by a Brigadier General to assassinate me. We managed to shoot them down, expose the Brigadier General and have him arrested."

Belfast only sighed, "How typical."

"And right now I have that white fox, Kaga out for my head, but Zuikaku is not only out for me, but for Enterprise as well."

"They were rivals after all and you were just added to her list."

Trigger agreed as Red Axis would be coming after him, considering how psychos like Mimic Squadron, Captain Torres and the Alicorn's air group were all determined to take him down, this was no different. The manju assured him that the plane was secure as Trigger turned to leave the hangar until he noticed something - a large tarp covering something as he approached it.

He gripped the cover and with a quick tug - the tarp was removed as it revealed what was underneath. It was a motorcycle, it was a more modern bike as it shown some features, but he recognized the type it was and realized,

"Whoa, a second generation KLR-650 Adventure Bike, these were discontinued last year."

The Maid asked, "You look at bikes too?"

Trigger inspected the bike, "I've seen some military members ride around airfields with these things, KLRs are no strangers to the military. But how did one get here?"

Belfast reached for a note on the bike, "I believe this has your answer."

She handed him the note as it read,

"Trigger,

Kawasaki was able to sneak this out of the Sakura Empire before the kansen started the war. Use it well.

Admiral Williams."

The pilot had a feeling it would be him, he patted down the bike as he turned back to the hangar door with Belfast following behind. She pointed out,

"Admiral Williams has also informed me that the Eagle Union is sending their best battleship to this base in response to the Red Axis. According to the calculations and her speed, she will be arriving tomorrow. There is also the matter of a secretary…"

Trigger asked, "Secretary?" Belfast answered, "The Command position is hard work, most of which involves paperwork, but you will need a secretary to alleviate the amount of paperwork and hassle of your job."

Trigger sighed as realized what Command Duty also meant, "Right, this is the other half of my job."

As they left, the hangar doors closed as they went to the waiting car as Belfast asked, "Is there anyone in particular that you have in mind for a secretary, Master?"

Unknown Location.

Water and Sky. It's the only thing that Enterprise saw as she stood there. She was currently in the middle of an unknown location as her reflection appeared in the water. All she could do now was look around as the endless seas and skies surrounded her. It wasn't until she heard a cheerful giggling sound as land started to form.

There were a few islands, one seemingly had an impact crater, but what got her attention was the island in the distance and noticed a large modern carrier docked at the harbor. She recognized it as a Nimitz Class aircraft carrier since she coordinated with one before Azur Lane mobilized. Soon enough, she heard that childish giggle which she sensed was near her. She noticed that her rigging was in perfect condition, considering the last battle and she turned to the source and saw what appeared to be - a little girl that looked exactly like her, she had the same white hair, purple eyes and officer's cap, but she wore a long sleeved shirt, black cover skirt, white socks and dress shoes. There was even a nugget of Grim near her as she smiled. The girl cried out,

"Mama!"

Enterprise's confusion turned to shock, this little girl called her 'Mama' but this couldn't be right. She stated,

"I can't be your Mama, I'm a warship, I was meant to destroy the enemy, not raise a family!"

The little Enterprise stated with a grin, "You may think that, but in time you would understand." She grabbed Enterprise by the arm, "Come on, Mama. Papa is waiting!"

Enterprise, having no choice, decided to go with her 'daughter' to see what's going on. As they approached the base, the harbor facilities and the carrier suddenly exploded as Enterprise watched in horror as the proud carrier sank in the harbor, even though it didn't fully sink, the carrier was out of action.

Little Enterprise pointed out, "This is where Papa was sent out after the Albatross was destroyed."

The name 'Albatross' confused Enterprise as she gazed at the burning carrier - The OFS Albatross and soon looked further up at the culprits responsible for the great ship's destruction - there were bombers attacking the base.

Due to her extensive knowledge of aviation, she recognized them as Tupolev TU-95 Bear Bombers, used by the Northern Parliament.

'Why are Northern Parliament aircraft attacking the base?'

But she heard Little Enterprise point out, "Mama, Papa has taken off!"

She turned to the airfield and saw a flight of F/A-18s, an F-16 and a plane she recognized as a McDonnell Douglas F-4E Phantom II, with a recognizable yellow Wolf Emblem carrying a gun.

She realized, 'That's Trigger…was this?'

That's when she heard the radio communication as Mage 1 stated,

"Trigger, I'm your wingman. Fly with me now, that's what it means to be in an element."

"Mage 2 copies, maintaining element."

Enterprise watched as the Phantom shot down the enemy bombers while also assisting the friendly squadron with the escorts and taking on a second pair of bombers. The third pair was soon shot down by the Phantom's Special Weapon, but when more bombers appeared, the Phantom took off after the bombers as she heard the leader of the F-18s say,

"Mage 2, maintain your element with Mage 1. Do not break off!" He contacted Mage 1, "Mage 1, make sure he doesn't do anything stupid."

The Falcon went, "Wilco."

"Golem 2, Let's maintain element."

A female voice spoke, "Copy that, Commander. I've got your six covered, sir."

Little Enterprise pointed out, "That lady's voice was a friend of Papa's…but what would happen would be one of his dark moments. Come on!"

The image soon changed from the islands to a river as an air battle was taking place above them. Enterprise summoned a Dauntless to see the battle as several aircraft were fighting against each other. One side had an emblem of 7 red stars inside a red aperture, there were a couple of F-16s and F-4Es bearing that emblem. The others had an emblem which was a circle with a star on the inside, but the left side was white while the first star was blue and the inner was white while the right side's colors were reversed, the aircraft with that emblem were F-14Ds, F-18s, F-16s and one F-4E with that familiar wolf insignia.

"Trigger?" She thought as she saw the Phantom support his allies until several missiles were fired from an unknown source. That's when she saw it - appearing from the clouds was a large aircraft of a flying wing design, powered by two main and six sub propellers. It was enormous which intimidated the Yorktown-Class Carrier, but her 'daughter' remained calm as she said,

"That giant bird is called an Arsenal Bird, one of the most dangerous things which Papa had to face."

Before Enterprise could ask, the Arsenal Bird dropped several objects from the wings, she thought that they were bombs - until the wings quickly unfolded and started flying towards the allied aircraft. She soon realized what those were,

"Drones…it launches drones!"

Little Enterprise nodded, "Those are MQ-101s, used only by that bird. Papa was tasked to destroy the Arsenal Bird, but the drones and the Arsenal Bird itself proved too much."

Enterprise watched as the Phantom moved in to knock out the propellers while evading enemy fire. The other squadrons were trying to assist in destroying the massive aircraft, but the drones were sacrificing themselves to defend the mothership as a halo appeared from the bird. One by one, the allies were suffering either losses or damage from the drones or the Arsenal Bird's AA missiles. But soon enough, the halo grew to full strength and expanded around the Arsenal Bird as a huge bubble covered the vicinity of the craft. Any allied aircraft caught within the bubble were destroyed because of the Active Protection System,

But the Phantom escaped the range before the APS activated as Command ordered a withdrawal from the operation area. The AWACS Sky Keeper stated,

"Golem and Mage Squadron, give our Allies some time to escape."

Golem 1 stated, "Wilco, but Golem 2's hit, I have to send her back."

Mage 1 declared, "Let's get dirty, Trigger!"

Trigger said with enthusiasm. "Let's scrap some drones!"

Golem 2, Brownie was hit during the attack on the Arsenal Bird and Gargoyle 1 was tasked with escorting her back to base. Although she stated that she didn't need Trigger to cover for her, but on the insistence of her commander, she relented. Even Trigger stated,

"Brownie, we'll handle the drones. You have to focus on getting back to base safely."

Brownie sighed, "Wilco, I'll see you back at base, Trigger."

Enterprise had noticed, "They must have been friends with how they talk."

Little Enterprise felt sad, "But this is what hit Papa…"

As the F-14 and F-18 were about to exit the combat area, a new enemy emerged from the clouds. The escort went down immediately as a single fighter was now on the hornet's tail as Brownie pointed out,

"I'm against…an SU-30, Orange Wing-Tips!"

"Brownie, get away from the enemy!"

She tried to do that, but the Sukhoi kept on her tail, but she noticed that he wasn't firing which frightened her. Trigger called out,

"Mage 1, Golem 1, I'm going to help Brownie!"

Mage 1 reluctantly said, "Granted, we'll handle the remaining UAVs."

The Phantom took vector 360 north towards Brownie's location as he spotted her - as well as the SU-30. Once he got within range, he squeezed the trigger and let out a stream of hot lead as they hit the enemy plane. There was a gruff voice speaking on Osean channels,

"Huh? A wingman?"

Trigger soon got on the bandit's tail as he was taken for a ride. The SU-30 was more superior in maneuverability than the F-4E, but it also takes a good pilot as well. But this guy seemed to be on a whole different level than a regular pilot. If Enterprise knew Trigger, he would probably compare to how his mentor's rival moved during the Continental War.

But even as he managed to land a few shell hits until a few MQ-101s distracted Trigger as the SU-30 went after Brownie as that gruff voice spoke,

"Defending your friend was quite the amusement, but the show is over with this next shot. For a rookie, she wasn't a bad pilot."

Soon enough, a missile shot directly at Brownie as Trigger cried out,

"Brownie! Missile!"

Brownie heard her threat warning lights go off as she screamed in terror,

"Mage 2! Support! Somebody! Support!"

The missile struck her wing and her F-18 went tumbling out of the sky while Trigger screamed,

"BROWNIE NOOO!"

As the burning F-18 disappeared in the clouds, Trigger managed to splash the drones as the SU-30 and the F-4E circled each other as that gruff voice stated,

"I am a bit impressed, rookie, you were able to get a hit. I will look forward to facing you in a dogfight since you seem to be the better pilot out of everyone." The SU-30 turned away as Sky Keeper asked,

"Mage 2, what's the status of Golem 2?"

Trigger mournfully replied, "She's gone, Sky Keeper. That SU-30 took her out, he was toying with her, took me for a ride when I got on his tail until the drones covered him, so he could get a lock…she never stood a chance."

Golem 1 shared his sorrow as he stated, "She wasn't one to retreat. It's not in her DNA, I should have never let a fledgling like her out of my sight to begin with. I'm sorry Trigger, you did what you could. Link back up with Mage 1 and let's go home."

Trigger took one last look at where Brownie died and said, "Yes sir."

Enterprise watched as she felt the familiar pain of losing someone. She felt it with Yorktown, Wasp and Hornet before her rebirth and every pilot who flew off her deck and never returned. She saw now how Trigger mourned his friend's loss and how scared she was when that missile struck her. The carrier realizes now that Trigger wasn't so different from her as Little Enterprise pointed out,

"We still have time for Papa's darkest moment and it's something that you might want to see."

The setting changed as both big and little Enterprise found themselves in a bay of water as an enormous tower stood above them. The tower was so tall, it was reaching up into the sky as cables sprouted out of the tower itself and into the sky. She asked in awe,

"What is that?" Little Enterprise replied, "That is an elevator to outer space, this was where Papa's life had changed."

Soon enough, there was an air battle above the Space Elevator as container-launched MQ-99s attempted to stop an assault on the elevator - only for a familiar Phantom to destroy both the drones and the containers. After a while, Enterprise had spotted a tilt-rotor taking off, she recognized it as an MV-22 Osprey. The allied planes were going to guard the copter and escort it out until several MQ-101s appeared.

Those drones made Enterprise realize that the Arsenal Bird was on its way. The Phantom began shooting down any drone that gets close to Osprey, Little Enterprise stated,

"Papa's job was to rescue an ex-president who was trapped in the elevator. He and an Air Force Colonel got in that copter and took off."

As soon as the copter was a good distance away, the signal was given to Gargoyle Squadron to Babel. The Tomcats fired a multitude of missiles at the Space Elevator itself - only for the drones to intercept them while only one hit the windbreak. Enterprise heard confusion over the radio as it was revealed that the rest were not told about this as it was revealed that the IUN has a problem coordinating between branches. All of a sudden, a drone shot a missile at the Osprey, the colonel in his dying breath, told the squadrons to get their VIP out of there. Until all of a sudden, the Osprey began turning back towards the Space Elevator.

"What is he doing?! Is the ex-president now flying it?" Little Enterprise only nodded as she saw the Phantom close in on the Osprey as she heard Trigger's voice,

"Mr. Harling, pull back! Please, pull back!" There were drones on the transport's tail as Trigger assessed it, "I can't use my missiles without risking the transport. Switching to Guns!"

Trigger angled the reticle right onto the drone and fired a few short bursts which destroyed the drone. He soon cried out,

"Mr. President, you need to leave the combat airspace. Immediately! Mother Goose One, Respond!"

Trigger's eyes turn to shock when he saw a missile fly past his plane and to the horror of both Trigger and Enterprise as Sky Keeper shouted,

"Mage 2!" The missile struck Mother Goose 1 as the copter trailed flames before exploding. Sky Keeper was horrified,

"Oh my god! Mother Goose One has been shot down!"

Trigger saw the horror as the others asked, "Where'd the missile come from?"

One decided to point fingers, "Mage 2 fired that!"

"It was Osean! A friendly missile hit him."

As Trigger's eyes widened, he saw something pass by his plane - It was an Osean F/A-18 Super Hornet with a missile missing from its pylon.

As the others were speculating while Sky Keeper was trying to verify the situation, even one noting,

"Looks like he tried to protect the elevator."

"Erusean Bastards! They just killed a hero!"

Trigger soon asked, "Golem 1, did you divert one of your own to assist Mage 1 and I?"

Mage 1 stated, "Trigger, you were the only one closest to the objective."

Golem 1 asked, "Why are you asking? Most of my squadron was taking out the UAVs."

Trigger stated, "There was a Super Hornet that passed by and I saw a single empty pylon."

"That's strange, but we better take this into account for the debriefing."

Soon enough, the familiar shape of a giant aircraft appeared, "Arsenal Bird is entering! All aircraft withdraw immediately!"

As all aircraft fled, Sky Keeper sternly stated, "Trigger, you can't fly for a while. You understand why."

The scene soon changed as both Enterprises were in the Fort Grays debriefing room as the officer stated that the mission to rescue Former President Harling failed and since the Osprey exploded in mid-air, it was most unlikely that he survived. The officer turned Trigger, who had his head down,

"Trigger, you have been suspected of assassinating a former president. There will be an inquiry, there will most likely be a court martial."

Trigger raised his head and stood up, "I would gladly stand before the court martial and discuss what happened at the Lighthouse."

Golem 2, Knocker spoke, "We looked over the communications, you used your guns to take out the drone closest to the transport."

Mage 1, Clown added, "You didn't want to risk hitting the transport with an off course missile. When the court martial does come, we'll be by your side to defend you."

The officer stated, "Let's hope that the IUPF's court martial understands the evidence of your defense, Trigger. If it's true, not only would you prove your innocence, but it would reveal that there was a spy in our ranks."

The scene shifted again, but this time to a depressed Trigger sitting in a cell at the 444 Base as Little Enterprise tearfully said,

"They didn't believe him, his squadron members were stonewalled and they used Papa as a scapegoat. They had him sent to the penal base in order to shut him up and hoped he dies in suicide missions."

Enterprise approached the bars as she saw her commander treated like a criminal for a crime he didn't commit, she feels sad of seeing him like this. As she gripped the bars, she saw him head down, back against the wall of his cell, looking depressed with a #15 on his flight suit. Little Enterprise said, "But Mama, this is where he redeems himself. Papa's life will change in the next dream! Until we meet again, Mama. Wake up!"

Azur Lane HQ, Enterprise's Quarters. December 9, 2019.

As her eyes opened, she realized that she was in her room, wearing nothing more than her slightly unbuttoned shirt and black panties as she lay on her bed. She noticed the rays of sunlight peeking through the window, but more importantly was the man whose life she has been witnessing through her dream, sitting next to her bed as the maid from the battle accompanied him. He asked,

"Good Morning, Enterprise. How are you feeling?"

She stated, "A bit shaken up from yesterday and I saw that you were in a different plane."

Trigger figured that she would point it out, "It was a quick decision that I made. But if it wasn't for Belfast and I, you would have gone under. Which brings up the reason why we're here."

The carrier knew that this was coming as the commander stated,

"While your intention to save your sister was noble, you still set out without permission and with a damaged rigging. So, as of 0800 today, you will be suspended from going out on sorties until further notice."

A part of her wanted to fight that suspension order, but she knew that he was right. She violated a direct order and this was the result. She lowered her head in shame until he spoke,

"I'm not done yet. There is also a matter regarding my position as Commander. It came to my attention that besides leading this base, I also have paperwork and inspections to do. So I would need a secretary to assist me in these matters."

Enterprise's eyes went wide, "Are you…"

"Enterprise, you're going to be my secretary as part of your suspension."

She was taken aback by this, he wanted her as his secretary and considering everything she went through during that dream and seeing him sitting in that cell looking depressed, she couldn't help but wonder if those bars were also of her own insecurity regarding her own safety. She looked up at Trigger before catching a brief glimpse of a smiling Little Enterprise standing in the corner while saying,

"You're on your way, Mama."

The little girl vanished as the carrier accepted, "I will be your secretary, it is my suspension after all."

"I am glad you are finally taking responsibility for your reckless actions yesterday, Enterprise."

The three turned their attention to the door and standing in the doorway was a woman with a slender frame. She has long and wavy lavender hair with a single braid tied by a pink ribbon, and has blue eyes. She wears a black dress with a white high-collared bib, puffy shoulder, slit sleeves tied by blue ribbon laces and ruffled tailings with clover-leaf motifs, white thigh-high socks with garters, black slips shoes and a white nurse cap with black ruffles, clover-leaf logos and white lop ear-like garters. This was Vestal, the repair ship that Yorktown told Trigger about. The repair ship glares at Enterprise with her arms folded,

"It was finally time to see you get disciplined for your reckless behavior. A suspension from combat should be able to cool your head and respect orders."

Trigger stated, "Easy on the words, Vestal. Enterprise may be reckless, but there's no need to put her down even more."

"Of course and I also stand by your decision to suspend her from combat operations. Her rigging is a disaster considering the damage it sustained."

Enterprise knew that Vestal would chew her out due to her being the personal repair ship for the Yorktown Trinity. In the past, she would pull the old 'Reason for our existence is to fight' excuse, but with Trigger and that dream, she can't use that excuse now. She simply stated,

"I…I don't know what to think about anymore."

Belfast had noticed how the carrier acted, a powerful warrior with a reckless behavior, now behaving like a disgraced soldier who was dishonorably discharged. It seems like her slight change started when she and Trigger intervened in that battle. It was almost like a bond had appeared between the carrier and the ace. But there is also something else, the way she looked at Trigger was like she saw his life, but she doesn't know why. Soon enough, Trigger stated,

"Get dressed and walk with me, Enterprise." He gets up and leaves the room as Enterprise decides to follow his orders and gets dressed.

Azur Lane Beach

The beach is a good place to cool off and relax in the sun. The various kansen were in their swimsuits ready to have a beach party, but as for Hornet as she lounged around on her beach chair, she was enjoying herself after that battle yesterday. She was also thinking about her sister's rescuer,

"Never thought that a pilot would be our commander and that plane looks really advanced."

Hammann, who was a bit embarrassed to be exposed in her swimsuit, stated, "You've been fawning over that guy ever since he got here! I even sensed Big Sister Yorktown on him! Why?"

Hornet looked at the cat destroyer, "You heard of the attempted bombing raid at Point Mugu?"

At that time, Gridley, an Eagle Union destroyer who was constantly taking pictures pointed out as she was taking a picture of Hammann,"I heard about the bombing raid. Siren Bombers attempted to bomb the base until the Naval Air Force was able to push them back."

Hornet smiled, "Well, I heard from Yorktown, who is stationed at that base that the defense craft were being tied up by the escorts until a single F-22 Raptor appeared and had the escorts tied up, giving the defense a chance to knock out all bombers."

Gridley asked, "That Raptor had three strikes on the tail?" The carrier only nodded as the photographer was surprised,

"He's the guy from the bombing raid! He helped save Point Mugu from those bombers!"

Javelin and Laffey approached as the Royal Navy destroyer asked, "I've heard about the bombing. Is he really the Hero of Point Mugu?"

Hornet stated, "He is, but calling him the Hero of Point Mugu seems too much."

Laffey spoke, "The enemy called him Three Strikes of Azur Lane because he's our commander."

Saratoga, another Eagle Union carrier pointed out, "Isn't that him walking with Enterprise right now?"

Hornet lifted up her sunglasses and saw Trigger walking with Enterprise, the top portion of his flight suit was off, revealing a grey tank top with the osean star on the left side. When the blonde carrier first saw him, she did say he was cute, but seeing him now, made her realize that he was handsome and his drive of rescuing her and her sister brought a deep blush to the carrier as…faint hearts began to appear in her green eyes.

As Enterprise and Trigger stood near the beach, the carrier asked,

"That plane wasn't your F-22, it was something else. No other plane could produce laser weaponry besides the sirens. But what is it?"

Trigger stated, "That was the ADF-01 Falken, it's an experimental experimental aircraft, one of the many 'Super Jets' built by Gründer Industries. Illustrious and Unicorn found it in a captured freighter that was being escorted by a Siren fleet. The ship itself had plenty of planes to choose from and the Falken was among those planes. I also came to the conclusion that there were more of those freighters out there, so if a Gründer freighter comes up, we'll capture it."

The carrier figured that it would be so, since the technology of the Falken was impressive. But to Trigger, it would be dangerous for Belkan Technology to fall into the wrong hands since the Lighthouse War was evidence of it. Enterprise soon asked,

"Belfast told me you had a strategy regarding the Red Axis?"

"It's a long range strategy to hit the Main Sakura Base and put an end to this war. But in order to do that, we need to find out what they're up to. But I can discuss the long range strategy after today, it's a vacation for everyone after that battle and the arrival of the remaining Royal Navy fleet. If I continue acting like a commander, I would forget the reason why I was chosen to begin with."

He looks at her and says, "Such as your constant urge to fight, you are not a weapon and the ocean itself is not a source of conflict. You would forget your reason to fight and end up nothing more than a drone."

The carrier was silent, he was comparing her to a drone and sadly, he was right to call her that. That dream has changed a bit of her outlook, she silently states,

"If I am meant to be more than just a weapon, then I know where to start."

Trigger turned his gaze at Hornet, who was watching from her chair as the blonde carrier snapped her gaze away as a red blush appeared on her face, "To start, you need to show your human side to Hornet. You need to show that you are not the Pride of the Eagle Union, but you are her big sister."

The carrier asked as she saw her sister on the beach, "How?"

Trigger smirked as he patted a small insulated bag, "I did pack a couple of these for the day, so let's go introduce ourselves."

Trigger and Enterprise went to the beach as the other ships watched them approach. Javelin spoke,

"Commander, it's good to see you join. But I didn't expect Enterprise to join you."

Trigger stated, "Technically, she has been suspended from sorties until further notice and I also chose her as my secretary."

Hornet asked in shock, "Wait? You suspended her?"

Laffey spoke. "She did disobey his orders."

The blonde carrier sighed, "That's my sister, Eagle Union's Champion."

Gridley called out to Trigger, "Sir, I hope you didn't mind, but I took several pictures of you landing your plane yesterday!"

The destroyer handed him several pictures from the ADF-01 landing to Trigger climbing out of the plane in front of the gathered shipgirls. Gridley smiled,

"Our Commander the Ace Pilot!" Trigger chuckled, "That seems like the title for a photo album with these pictures."

Lexington approached with Saratoga following behind, "She constantly takes pictures that amuse her."

He took a look at the two sisters as he noticed the similarities as he figured, "Lexington and Saratoga?"

Lady Lex nodded, "We heard about you and you have quite the influence in battle."

Sister Sara went, "If we didn't know any better, you could practically turn the tide of this war by yourself"

Trigger stated, "My mentor had that same influence since his combat abilities rivaled that to an entire squadron which showed that he was that good."

As the Lexington Sisters talked with Trigger, Enterprise sighed as she sat on the beach as Hornet noticed, "Feeling down that you can't sortie with us? You can't be the suicidal Grey Ghost anymore?"

Enterprise looked at her blonde sister, "It's nothing like that. It's the Commander…"

Hornet smirked, "I know, he's really handsome, you know?"

The silver haired carrier blushed, "It's not like that, but I had a dream about seeing his life."

This intrigued her sister, "You saw his life in a dream?"

"I know it sounds crazy, but it seemed so real. Fighter jets crisscrossed through the skies, missiles blowing other planes out of the skies and in the middle of it was an F-4E Phantom with Trigger's emblem. I was also being guided through by a little girl who looked like me and even referred to me as Mama."

Hornet was a bit curious, "Enterprise as a mother? That's something to see."

Enterprise continued, "What I saw in that dream was his rise and subsequent betrayal after he was falsely accused of assassinating a former president. The court didn't seem to care about his defense, they just wanted him as a scapegoat."

Hornet was confused, "Isn't that illegal to falsely convict someone who didn't have a chance to defend himself?"

She nodded as she remembered that image of Trigger behind bars, looking depressed as tears streamed his eyes. Even as she talked about it with her youngest sister, she feels herself back in that prison trying to call out to him while reaching her arm through those bars to get to the pilot. It's when Hornet noticed something about her sister,

"Are those tears coming from your eyes?" Enterprise reached her hand to her eyes and realized - the thought of that prison made her cry. Hornet realized as she had a smug smile,

"Is my champion sister showing a soft spot because she dreams about the Commander?"

She admitted, "Yes, I am." She pulled out two packs and unwrapped them - revealing two familiar blue frozen treats as Hornet recognized it,

"Sea-Salt Ice Cream!?"

Enterprise had smiled as she held one of them to her sister, "He actually made it for today."

Hornet looked at the commander, her big sister and the stick of ice cream in her hand as she smiled while accepting the frozen treat, "He's really full of surprises."

The two sisters soon took a few licks as Hornet remembered, "Salty…" Enterprise finished, "Yet sweet." It was at this moment that Enterprise's humanity had shown as she spent time with her sister as Trigger saw this and gave a slight grin,

"Family is an important thing, I'm glad it's happened for you two."

Soon enough, their attention was drawn towards the water as they called out to San Diego, who was in the water as one of the kansen spotted something,

"San Diego, look out!"

The cruiser soon saw a dorsal fin speeding towards her as she realized what this was as she swam as fast as she could while crying out,

"A SHARK!?"

She continued swimming towards shore as the shark caught up to her as the predator breached in an attempt to devour its prey until something impacted near them as a jet of water blew the shark away as the predator crashed back down into the water while the shockwave from the impact sent San Diego flying through the air as she was screaming towards the shore.

As if on instinct, Trigger sprung into action as he dropped his bag and ran towards the falling cruiser. Once he managed to reach the predicted impact zone, he leapt into the air as San Diego hit him as he used his body to shield her from the impact of the beach as he skidded across the sandy ground. This action caused everyone to gather around them as Cygnet, a silver haired Royal Navy C-Class Destroyer, asked,

"Commander, are you all right?!"

Trigger replied, "Don't worry about me, I'm more worried about her since she was nearly attacked by a shark."

Lexington asked, "San Diego, are you okay?"

The cruiser sat up, albeit a bit stirred by the event and asked, "I'm fine."

Sara had a smug grin and asked, "Already getting acquainted with your rescuer, I see?"

San Diego was confused until she looked down to realize that she was straddling Trigger as her face went beet red while quickly moving off of the pilot,

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, Commander! I didn't realize that I was still on top of you!"

Trigger managed to sit up, "Don't be, I made the choice of catching you and it's my job to take care of you, all of you."

The Lexington Sisters, the Yorktown Sisters, the C-Class Sisters as well as Javelin and Laffey share that sentiment as Gridley took a picture of the shipgirls gathered around him. Soon enough, he turned his attention back to the ocean,

"There's also that impact, it looked like the impact of a shell and it seemed very accurate enough to have it land near where the shark was chasing San Diego."

Enterprise pointed out, "It's the work of a 16 inch shell, fired from a Mark 7 Triple Turret and only one battleship class I know has this kind of turret."

Their attention soon drew towards a pair of parting clouds as the distinct features of a battleship appeared with faint smoke coming from one of the barrels of the number 1 turret. This battleship was similar to a ship which Trigger would constantly remember it's captain, but this one had the technological appearance of any of the other ships in the Azur Lane Fleet and there was a large number 62 painted near the bow of the ship. Enterprise was shocked when she saw this,

"I should've known it would be her."

Trigger asked, "Friend of yours?"

The carrier nodded as the manju tugs began pulling the battleship into port as something soon jumped from the ship and landed on the beach.

It was a woman with a slender frame, dark blue hair and blue eyes. She wears what seems to be wearing mostly a black stocking suit from her legs and chest. She wears a silvery blue skirt and silver sleeve on her arms as what looks like an officer's coat hangs over her shoulders like a cape. On top of her head, there was a headpiece with two prongs jutting up as the bottom was in a V-shaped with a jewel in the middle as well as silver heeled slippers. She gazes at Trigger and said,

"Not only did I stop a shark attack, but I got to see the Commander in action on the ground. Don'tcha just love getting two birds with one 16 - inch shell?"

Trigger just stared at this kansen and asked, "And you are?"

The kansen realized, "I forgot that we never met! I am what many call the Indomitable Black Dragon of the Eagle Union, one of the most technologically advanced battleships of our era, I am the second of the Iowa-Class Battleships - I am Battleship New Jersey!"

A/N: And that's a wrap, I end this chapter with an alternate take on the shark attack and the introduction of my favorite battleship.

Now to touch up on what was shown in the chapter, Trigger is now planning a long range strategy to stamp out Red Axis. It's also revealed that Trigger also has a fascination with motorcycles as well as planes when he found the KLR in the Falken hangar.

As for Enterprise's dream sequence, it was for her to see the critical points in Trigger's life and my own take on Brownie's death and the aftermath of Harling's death which Enterprise feels a sense of sorrow seeing Trigger in that cell. As for Little Enterprise guiding Enterprise through the dream, it was based on an image by u/OriginalDCD on Reddit.

So yes, Enterprise is suspended from any operations and is now Trigger's secretary. This will be important since it will be lifted later on and also have Enterprise connect with others, not as a weapon, but a human being.

As promised, the heart count of shipgirls that Trigger had attracted, more will be added as the story progresses.

Sakura Empire: Akagi.

Eagle Union: Hornet.

Iron Blood: Prinz Eugen.

More will be coming soon.

Nighthawk Out!