Welcome back!

Last time, we saw Strider Squadron and the Azur Lane fleets defend the GHQ from the Red Axis, Crimson and Varcolac Squadrons. A saturation attack from the Battleship fleet and assistance from two AC-130s had decimated the siren fleet which led Tirpitz's fleet to surrender.

Tirpitz's surrender and her reason for that action was to defect to Azur Lane because of Bismarck's actions. The Lone Queen knew that if she sticks with Trigger, she will make it.

Musashi's detachment arrived in the middle of the battle to assist the defense forces and the Shooter Helicopter Squadron arrived because they were escorting a Royal Navy fleet.

Now that the recap is over, let's dive right in!

Azur Lane Airfield

The battle was over, Azur Lane GHQ is safe, although the base sustained damage, but the efforts of both air and sea forces prevented the destruction of the base. None of the shipyards took serious damage, the airfield is combat capable with only an empty hangar damaged, the Command Building and the Academy were able to escape unscathed.

As for Captain Pete Mitchell, TAC Name: Maverick, who was standing beside his SR-72 Darkstar, he watched as the three squadrons who were providing air support for the fleets landed back at the base. Maverick had to admit that it's been a long time since he flew in a battle and never thought he would have to tone down on the Darkstar's impressive speed just to ensure that Rodriguez's eyes were on him and not the plane with the three lines.

That was another thing - the plane that had the three lines was unlike any aircraft that he had ever seen. No visible cockpit, laser weaponry from pulse lasers to a full laser beam and deployable UAVs that are mounted on the wings - he found it impressive. But his eyes were drawn to an open hangar which had a similar aircraft, but his thoughts were interrupted when Bataan shouted,

"Hey Maverick!"

The pilot looked at the kansen running towards him, "Bataan, I heard what you did during the fight. Glad the jet aircraft retrofitted to your rigging paid off."

The light carrier said, "We needed to keep Weser off of us and destroy that Rook Battleship."

"But you took charge and led the carriers to buy time for reinforcements and I bet Independence is impressed."

She chuckled at him mentioning her sister, "Well she was surprised, I mean launching a jet from my rigging is not like a Hellcat."

The light carrier looked at the Darkstar and at Maverick and said, "I also heard that you pulled some maneuvers against Crimson 1 with the SR-72."

The veteran pilot explained, "It was a tough fight since I had to balance out my speed and maneuverability. It makes me miss my Tomcat - Air Combat Maneuvers isn't the Darkstar's strong suit since it's an experimental scramjet, not a fighter."

Bataan figured, "If Old Hammer were here, he'd chew you out about how reckless it was."

"That would've been when he was trying to shut the program down in favor of drones."

"A foolish gamble in my experience."

That third voice was what caught their attention as both pilot and kansen saw a man in a lab coat approaching with a datapad in hand. Maverick noticed,

"You don't look military."

The man stated, "I'm not, but the company I work for specializes in military contracts. I'm Dr. Schroeder, Gründer Industries and I suppose you witnessed the Raven in action, Captain?"

Mav asked as he pointed to the lead plane of Strider Squadron circling over the base, "That one?"

The doc nodded, "The ADF-11F Raven, advanced in its design and through its performance in both combat and exercise - it performed well under the control of the Commander."

Mav looked up at the Raven and was impressed by how well it performed as he said,

"A plane is only as good as its pilot and the pilot we heard about, Patrick Cross, is the Three Strikes."

The doc stated, "His TAC Name is Trigger and he's done a lot for the Shipgirls on the base. I'm also impressed by his performance in the Raven, a step above the drone models."

Bataan raised an eyebrow, "There were drone models of that plane?"

"Yes, but something went wrong with them and the Commander shot both of them down. Leaving the manned Raven as the only one of its kind."

Maverick asked, "Something went wrong?"

The doc cautiously answered, "I'd rather not discuss it now."

Mav decided to change the subject, "So doc, I noticed a similar looking aircraft in that hangar."

The scientist looked at the open hangar and back to the veteran pilot, "That's the ADF-01 Falken and it was recovered by Illustrious when she captured a freighter from a siren fleet that was escorting it and it was while she was en-route to this base before Red Axis declared war."

He showed the datapad as a hologram of the Falken was shown and Maverick was impressed by its design, forward swept wings like those SU-47s, no visible glass cockpit, ventral stabilizer that folds up during landing phase and what surprised him was when the Falken's nose opened up and fired its laser weapon.

Bataan saw this and realized, "Lasers…that uses lasers?"

Dr. Schroeder stated, "Technically, it utilizes a laser cannon in the nose as a secondary weapon. It uses the usual machine guns and standard missiles in its arsenal. But depending on the scenario, it can be equipped with FAEBs for ground attacks or 4AAMs for air combat."

Maverick figured, "That's cutting-edge technology for an airplane."

"There's more to it, but right now, I'm more curious about your scramjet." He eyed the Darkstar, "For a plane that could reach Mach 10, it could beat SR-71's record as the fastest plane in the world."

Maverick stated, "Well, we were actually hoping to reach Mach 7 since Mach 10 is our specified speed to reach until we were transferred here."

The scientist soon said, "But the downside of flying at such a speed would be that when pushed beyond that limit, I theorize that the plane itself would disintegrate which would be disastrous for the project. I have also seen it in combat, you sacrificed some of its speed to make it a bit maneuverable when in a dogfight, especially when your aircraft is unarmed."

Bataan spoke, "The Darkstar is just a prototype, it's made to be a test aircraft, not a fighter. The only reason Rodriguez went after it was because Maverick was in the cockpit."

The Doc understood, "It's true that he had a vendetta against the Captain which made him focus on him rather than the Commander. But seeing how you operated the jet in a dogfight against an SU-37 with no weapons and just using its speed while making sure that he focused on you is a good reason."

The Captain was curious, "For what?"

"To use the Darkstar - Its supersonic speed could make it a multipurpose aircraft and in the hands of a very experienced pilot."

Maverick suspiciously asked, "You're looking to convert the Darkstar into a fighter?!"

The belkan realized, "Perhaps I have overstepped my boundaries because ultimately the decision is up to the Commander and in agreement with the project crew."

Bataan agreed, "Can't convert the plane without everyone agreeing to it."

The captain agreed as well as they saw the four Apaches touch down at the helicopter pads, knowing that Shooter Squadron had landed. They also spotted the last SU-30 land on the runway as Dr. Schroeder soon said,

"Oh, Strider Squadron will be coming in soon."

The trio saw as the SU-30 left the runway, clearing the way for the ADF-11F, MiG-35D, F-2A, F/A-18E, Mirage-2000-5 and F-35C to do a formation landing as the shipgirls gathered by the hangars waiting for the planes to park.

As the six aircraft landed, the three watched as the Nuggets led the planes to their parking spots as the gathering shipgirls kept their distance while the engines were on. Maverick noticed that some of the helicopter pilots were in the crowd, especially their leader who he recognized as Captain Doug Robinson, famous for his role in the Trinity Crisis as being the leader of Shooter Squadron for operations against the Coup in the Northern Parliament. Although not as famous as Colonel Bishop, Captain Robinson is one of the many heroes of the crisis for many helicopter pilots. Mav even heard a rumor that Robinson shot down four Rebel Hinds during the course of the crisis starting from Africa up to the retaking of Moscow where he shot down two SU-25s with his guns on his road to retake the Kremlin.

As the six aircraft came to a stop, the cockpits of the MiG-35, F-2A, F-18, Mirage and the F-35C opened as the pilots left their planes - but the Raven remained closed for a bit. That's when a hatch opened up on top of the craft as the pilot climbed down the ladder as the other pilots gathered around him and cheered that they won the fight. He heard him say a few words to the gathered shipgirls as they dispersed and Maverick spotted the pilot with the three lined helmet. He would also notice,

"He's…he's young."

Dr. Schroeder estimates, "Most likely in his early twenties."

"I didn't think they would have pilots that young, much less be at the rank of Commander."

The scientist stated, "He may be young, but he's endured the many hardships thrown at him."

That got Maverick thinking since he was 23 when he attended Top Gun and when Goose died. He figured that there's more to this pilot than meets the eye because a pilot which he could guess was about a year younger than him when he was at Top Gun, could be in command of a fleet of shipgirls and still lead his fighter squadron is remarkable.

That wasn't until he noticed him approaching as the young man removed his flight helmet. The man approached the trio as he spoke,

"Captain Mitchell, Welcome to Azur Lane HQ."

He saluted, "Sir."

"Glad to have you on base, Captain."

The Ace noticed the scientist, "I see you have met Dr. Schroeder, he specializes with experimental aircraft like the Raven and is one of three people who specializes with aircraft in general."

Maverick asked, "There's three people who work on aircraft?"

Trigger stated, "The woman in the control tower is actually our chief mechanic."

The older pilot realized, "Well that's odd for a mechanic to be a controller."

"The tower needed an air traffic controller and we were about to be attacked. But in the meantime we need to get to the debriefing."

The three nodded as they followed the young pilot to the waiting cars to the command building.

Azur Lane Debriefing Room

1250 hrs

As everyone gathered in the room, it included the usual Azur Lane kansen as well as the air crews from the Osean, Erusean and Coalition forces, Shooter Squadron and the recently arrived Royal Navy forces. Trigger walked up to the front of the room as he turned to face the people in the room and started the debrief,

"We sustained damage, but our efforts prevented the destruction of the base. Thanks to the efforts of both air and sea, the shipyards and the airfield weren't affected by the attack. As for Pegasus Squadron, all three transports have landed safely and have already begun offloading equipment and staff from the Darkstar program, the Darkstar itself has arrived along with its pilot - Captain Pete Mitchell."

The Captain nodded as his name was mentioned as the Osean continued,

"This battle also came with a few surprises as Crimson and Varcolac Squadrons arrived, but we all stood strong in the face of danger as well as Captain Robinson's timely arrival with his helicopters."

D-Ray acknowledged this through a nod as Trigger continued,

"The end result of this fight had an unexpected turn as Battleship Tirpitz and her detachment had surrendered following the destruction of their mass produced ships."

The profiles of the three kansen were showed on the display,

"Heavy Cruiser Blücher and Light Carrier Weser are Admiral Hipper class ships respectively, even though Weser's design uses the hull of the heavy cruiser class. These two were with Tirpitz's detachment for this attempted raid, but I heard that Blücher gave some interesting information. Hipper, Eugen, I'd like you to explain for us."

The two sisters nodded as Hipper stated, "On the battlefield, Blücher was showing her flirtatious side as usual, she told us that she knows why we defected and that Tirpitz had questioned Bismarck's motives."

Eugen spoke next, "Tirpitz had begun to question the motives of her own sister, why she would go so far to hiring those two squadrons and even other kansen had these thoughts. Blücher had a hunch that Tirpitz was up to something and now we know what it was. Her intention is to use whatever siren ships she had, duel with the Black Dragon and surrender once her siren ships were destroyed. It also seems like Weser and Blücher were hoping for this outcome as well."

Húxiãn whispered, "Talk about an elaborate plan, but to duel with New Jersey?"

Count shrugged, "Must've been personal."

Trigger soon spoke, "In addition, with the arrival of the EW Aircraft, a detachment of allied Sakura ships were also with the reinforcements. This detached force is led by Battleship Musashi, a Yamato-Class."

Musashi's dossier appears on the display as well as the image of her ship.

"The arrival was unexpected, but she and her force had helped out greatly with dealing with the enemy fleet and she had contact with the two gunships that picked off any surviving vessels which is fine in my book."

Musashi stood up and spoke, "Ordinarily Admiral Williams should have informed you of our approach, but unfortunately with the raid, he was unable to reach you and was told of the presence of a raid fleet. As a result, we were informed that he gave the order to Kaneohe to scramble two AC-130s for support."

The Sakura Heavy Cruiser, Mikuma stated, "In a way for two Angels of Death raining down fire from the skies seems like overkill, but it worked out well in the end."

Skald mentioned, "Like the Demon of Razgriz?"

The cruiser was confused, "Excuse me?"

Trigger pointed out, "We'll explain it later, but in the meantime, the Royal Navy detachment had arrived after the battle was over. The fleet was led by the kansen, Indomitable, an Illustrious class aircraft carrier…"

The dark haired woman who was sitting next to her three sisters spoke,

"It's a relief we were able to arrive safely, the moment Admiral Williams contacted us about the attack, I had ordered Captain Robinson and his helicopters to assist in the base defense while our aircraft were on the defensive should we encounter siren ships in our path."

D-Ray stated, "That's affirmative ma'am, we also saved the Commander's life while he was refueling on the ground."

The carrier was surprised by this as Trigger confirmed,

"Daniel Oruma from Varcolac Squadron attempted to strafe me while I was on the ground and I wouldn't have made it without Shooter Squadron's support."

That actually made Indomitable realize that if she didn't send the helicopters…she shook the thoughts out of her head, but Jaeger noticed,

"I know what you're thinking, ma'am. Trigger would've been killed if the helicopters didn't show up in time. The base itself had various AA Guns and missiles for defense, I noticed a few bullets hit the A-10's fuselage and a SAM was going to fire until the attacker broke off due to the helicopter squadron's arrival."

Count pointed out, "But it was a good choice that you sent them ahead to protect the base."

Indomitable felt relieved that her decision was the right choice,

"Thank you and I am glad to know that we didn't let you down."

Trigger nodded and said, "Which I appreciate and in regards to Tirpitz's surrender, it would no doubt have a big impact on the war due to her status as a co-leader of the Iron Blood which would no doubt raise eyebrows from the other side. Red Axis had slipped up and gave us a High Valued Kansen which I could pretty much call a victory, though we are far from triumphant, this battle showed them that we would not be caught with our pants down."

Some of the kansen who had the hearts for him had fantasies of Trigger catching them with their pants down or skirts up, but in Hood's case - it's Trigger accidentally walking into her room while topless. They were snapped out of their fantasies as Trigger ended,

"We have a long way to go before any offensive operations take place. As for our new arrivals, get settled and have a good meal, no doubt that you will be hungry after the trip to Hawaii.

Dismissed."

Soon enough, everyone cleared out except for Trigger, Enterprise, Belfast, New Jersey, Shinano and Musashi. It was because there was something to discuss with the dark fox. As Trigger began,

"Your arrival was unexpected and we didn't hear from Williams of your arrival."

The Super Battleship explained, "From what I understand, we departed from Tokyo Bay in a hurry and Williams was not aware of our arrival. We didn't learn of the attack until after we were discovered by the EW Aircraft and heard reports of Siren and Iron Blood bombers being destroyed near the base."

Belfast spoke, "That was when AWACS Long Caster was airborne. Master and his squadron took on the bombers and destroyed them, buying time for Long Caster to take off."

"When we heard about this, I contacted Pearl Harbor to inform the Admiral that the base was under attack. It would be around the time that the EW Aircraft were ordered by the AWACS to assist the Azur Lane Fleet to do terminal guidance for the battleships like the elusive Black Dragon."

To Shinano, she wasn't surprised that her sister pointed out NJ's nickname as the rivalry between the two battleships was well-known to both her, Yamato and the other three Iowa-Class Battleships.

When New Jersey and Musashi were reborn as kansen, various exercises were conducted, even a joint military exercise between Sakura and Eagle Union were conducted and New Jersey had always eluded the Super Battleship hence why she was elusive. NJ said,

"I wasn't as elusive when Tirpitz took me head on and I know why she would do that."

Shinano guessed, "It's mostly due to you being Eagle Union's most decorated battleship due to your 19 Battle Stars and various awards for your service. In your historical life, neither a Bismarck nor a Yamato were able to duel with an Iowa as the Age of Battleships was ending as the Age of Aircraft Carriers was beginning."

"The historical Iowas still pressed on during the Cold War and weren't fully decommissioned until the historical Missouri's decommissioning in 1992, 7 years before the planetfall of Ulysses."

Those kansen who were in the room read the history of how Ulysses was discovered, its collision course with Earth, how various nations threw aside their rivalries for the greater good, building the STNs all across the world and establishing the defense system to protect the planet from meteors. It was all in a 9-year countdown for Ulysses to make planetfall which many survivors remember. But all history aside, Belfast stated,

"Aside from history, I am sure that Tirpitz had intended to have the duel that she had wanted against Lady New Jersey who is of course - an Iowa."

Enterprise had a feeling that like her, the Iowas were legendary in Eagle Union Battleships, just as how Enterprise was legendary in Eagle Union Aircraft Carriers as she said,

"The Iowas were the most technologically advanced battleship class for their time and their long service proved their ability to react to different situations."

New Jersey stated, "Exactly, my sisters and I held the reputation for being the last battleships, but we also had our traits with Wisconsin's outburst."

She chuckled, "After my sister was hit by a shell from a siren ship - she single handedly pulverized the entire fleet."

Musashi sighed as she recalled, "It's sometimes the youngest who has the temper since crossing her would land you out of action for weeks. One example are Kongo and Kirishima - two battleships of the Kongo-class, they made the mistake of grazing Wisconsin with a stray shot during a joint-exercise and it's safe to say that Vestal and Akashi had to repair their riggings for weeks while Kongo and Kirishima had casts on their arms."

Trigger realized, "Remind me not to get on her bad side if I ever meet her."

NJ cooed, "Oh you won't, Honey. Wisky won't hurt you when I'm around."

The ace soon went over what happened during the battle,

"So Tirpitz's plan was to attack the base with siren aircraft and Stukas from Weser, but as soon as the bombers failed, she sent the siren fleets in to attack the base directly. But she also had Crimson Squadron as air support and to go after me…"

Enterprise asked, "And Varcolac Squadron?"

"They were sent to intercept me when I attempted to land and flew in low to dodge the radar."

Belfast was impressed, "Clever bastards."

New Jersey recognized this, "They were an advanced hit squad in case Crimson was tied up with the LRSSG and we saw that only Crimson 1 and his two trusted wingmen broke through our line."

The Ace stated, "While I was buying time for my wingmen, I heard that siren vanguard ships were in front while the capital ships were in the rear."

Belfast nodded and said, "The capital ships were calling airstrikes and shelling our positions. But the vanguards were all on the attack, we knew that we had to destroy the capital ships and it was there that we knew that we needed EW Aircraft to act as spotters for the battleships."

"It was good timing that both Wizard and Enchanter teams were on patrol."

The Head Maid smiled, "The odds were truly in our favor when reinforcements arrived and it is a great thing that you have survived your fight against Crimson and Varcolac."

That got Trigger thinking about something as he brought up, "Rodriguez almost shot me down while I was landing."

That made the kansen curious as Enterprise asked, "How?"

"He ignored my wingmen and went after me as I was landing, he had a radar lock and fired a missile at me. I thought it was it until something blocked the missile."

The carrier asked, "Blocked it? Was it from the drones?"

He shook his head as he brought up a datapad which showed an external camera footage facing the back of the plane. They saw the SU-37 in the distance as the missile flew towards the ADF-11F and right at the moment before impact - a blue paper crane flew into the missile's path. The crane blocked the missile as the SR-72 flew past the Terminator, throwing off the aggressor's aim. Trigger reversed the clip and held it at the point where the crane appeared.

The kansen had recognized the blue crane as it stood in the missile's path. Musashi stated,

"It seems that Akagi's sister may have gone off on her own."

Trigger stated, "I had…a feeling that it was her."

Shinano remembered, "When I saw her at the ruins, she intended to kill you, but it seems like her outlook on you has changed - that she would save your life."

Enterprise asked, "But what was Kaga doing here?"

"She was protecting me…because I have a feeling that she…"

Musashi guessed, "She wants to marry you?"

That caught the others by surprise as the Ace asked, "How are you sure?"

She smirked, "I know that you would only learn about her new motives…from Amagi."

That got his attention as he asked, "What do you mean?"

"Admiral Hisashi had my detachment deployed to search the waters of Yokosuka because of my sister's insight. We found exactly what we were looking for and our Commanding Officer, Admiral Mako asked about my sister's message from Amagi's spirit which I realized - Amagi's spirit lives in you."

Shinano and Enterprise weren't surprised by Musashi's assumption since Amagi herself revealed that she was bound to Trigger as the ace heard Amagi's voice speak to him,

"Clever and it seems that they found it."

Trigger took in what the spirit said and asked, "I assume that you were successful in finding it?"

The foxgirl nodded as she pulled out a dull blue cube as it sent very few pulses when it was near Trigger. The kansen knew what the object is since they were reborn from these very same objects as NJ said,

"That's a Wisdom Cube…" She soon corrected herself, "No…it's Amagi's Wisdom Cube - The Lost Cube of Kanto."

Musashi smiled and said, "The cube itself was not so hard to find due to my sister's dream butterfly, a different approach from previous attempts to find it."

Belfast realized, "With the cube in our hands, could we be able to bring Lady Amagi back?"

The Ace spoke, "Exactly and Musashi was also right - Amagi is bound to me."

Amagi's spirit was shown standing beside Trigger, surprising everyone in the room as NJ spoke,

"Whoa…I never thought this would happen."

The spirit stated, "It is a first, Black Dragon. But I am Amagi and it is obvious that I am bound to the Commander."

Musashi was amazed by the spirit since Amagi's cube was lost in the earthquake, but she never imagined that the lost battlecruiser would be like this. The Super Battleship stated,

"Now that we have your cube, we can bring you back."

Amagi had thought about this since this could be her chance to be whole again. But she shook her head,

"No…it's not time."

Trigger was confused as he asked, "What do you mean?"

"Red Axis is still too strong, the Siren influence on Akagi is still strong. If I return now, they will realize something is wrong and it will be a checkmate for Azur Lane."

Enterprise realized, "So we need to weaken the Sirens in order for their influence on Akagi to weaken."

The spirit nodded, "Red Axis has their occupation forces and research centers in the Philippines and they have strong defenses."

NJ figured, "We are going to take part in the upcoming campaign to liberate the Philippines since several factions are joining up for the assault."

Musashi was intrigued, "I have heard about this campaign, many of those who are participating in the operation are still gathering at the Marianas islands."

Trigger added, "There's still the fleet at Dutch Harbor that's going to make the Bering Sea crossing which we are assigned to support."

"Indeed, they make it to the Pacific and join up with the main forces which would help liberate the islands."

Enterprise said, "Liberate the islands and Kyoten will be in our sights."

Trigger realized, "Which would weaken the Siren influence."

Amagi nodded, "Exactly and when that day comes, I will stand beside you as we liberate Kyoten."

Azur Lane HQ

Detention Center

The Detention Center of the GHQ is mostly used for shipgirls who get out of line, mostly Ark Royal for her destroyer obsession until she had hearts for the Commander and now it's used to house POWs or potential defectors of Red Axis. Which is what brings us to the cell of the three Iron Blood kansen who surrendered to Azur Lane.

Weser was leaning against the door of their cell as Blücher was at the sink splashing cold water onto her face while saying,

"Well, that was surprising, but we knew that this was the outcome."

Weser sighed, "You're right, Blücher, the true mission was for us to defect to Azur Lane. It's an action that I truly support since I wanted no part in Red Axis."

The third kansen, sitting on the bed, stated, "Like me, we all followed my sister on the promise of defending humanity from the sirens. The Iron Blood had worked with the Royal Navy and modern detachments of the Eagle Union to drive off any off shore siren incursions from the European Coast. The Iris Orthodoxy worked with Sardegna stopping any siren fleets from entering the Adriatic and Mediterranean Seas with careful planning and the help from an STN in Croatia. But the minute my sister and Akagi formed the Red Axis, everything changed and we hoped for the better, but we were wrong due to us turning on former allies."

Weser added, "Because we attacked Azur Lane first and declared war on them."

"Ja, but the December 7th attack had revealed the beacon of light, the one who sparked hope for Azur Lane."

Blücher already knew that answer, "It was Trigger since he arrived while the First Division was attacking the port and he and the Grey Ghost drove them off."

The battleship added, "And sensing Zuikaku's presence and damaging her, making their retreat more urgent."

Weser soon had a thought, "There was also the skirmish that Prinz Eugen was a part of. They were attacking Hornet's detachment, Enterprise arrived to save her sister as she dueled with Zuikaku and due to the damage to her rigging, Zuikaku nearly had her until a beam of light nearly grazed her and struck Shokaku's ship."

Blücher knew what her carrier sister was talking about, "The advanced plane with the laser and the FAEBs, Eugen told us about that and said that she felt excited when she saw the three lines."

"But when Three Strikes arrived on the scene, Hornet and Enterprise's detachments began fighting better than before. It was like he was the deciding factor for the battle as the kansen believe that as long as he's with them, they will survive."

Tirpitz smiled and said, "Stick with Trigger and You'll Make It."

They all agreed until they heard the sound of a key turning from their cell door as it opened and to their surprise - Prinz Eugen was standing in the doorway as Tirpitz said,

"I was expecting the Kommandant to see us."

Eugen smiled as she said, "He wants to speak with you and has offered you lunch as well."

Weser was a bit suspicious and asked, "How do we know that this is not a trick?"

"You would not have surrendered earlier if it wasn't and placing you in the detention center was precautionary. You should also know that the Kommadant himself has no intention of being dishonest."

That's when Tirpitz stood up and said, "If he is offering us a meal and to speak with him regarding our allegiance, then we will accept his request."

The silver-haired heavy cruiser nodded as said, "Follow me, I will take you to the mess hall."

The three followed her out of the detention center.

Azur Lane Mess Hall

The Royal Maids have finished setting up as seven dishes were set up along with a variety of food depending on what they liked.

As for Trigger, who sat with Enterprise on his right and Shinano on his left. The lunch was set up and all they had to do was wait until Eugen arrived with Tirpitz and her detachment. While waiting, Belfast stood behind Trigger and asked,

"I am curious as to why you have not tasked any of the Royal Maids for this task."

He looked at her and said, "I had that idea, but you have to remember that Eugen's sisters are with Tirpitz and she insisted that she would go get them."

The Head Maid smiled as she remembered, "A family bonding moment for the Hipper-Class, although their fifth sister is not here."

The Ace asked, "A fifth sister?"

She gave him a datapad which showed the dossier of a kansen with similar hair to Eugen, even has the red streak. She wore a white short skirt, thigh high boots and an officer's cap. It showed her ship as it was an exact match to an Admiral Hipper Class Cruiser, but he read the name,

"SN Tallinn.

Faction: Northern Parliament.

Info: Historical ship of the Hipper Class Cruiser was laid down under the name, Lützow, by the old Nazi Regime, never completed and sold to the old Soviet Union in 1939. Upon rebirth, Tallinn retains memories of her former name and the name, Petropavlovsk before receiving her current name."

Belfast said, "She was sold before the start of the Second World War, the Iron Blood and Northern Parliament were under different names back then."

Trigger pointed out, "I read about how both leaders of the old regimes were dictators."

Enterprise heard about this and stated, "The Great Depression of the 1930s brought the rise of dictators and the totalitarianism of the Empire of Japan - it didn't become the Sakura Empire until after the Ulysses Disaster."

Shinano remembered, "Those were dark times under the office of Hideki Tojo as he presided over several war crimes which include the massacre and starvation of civilians and POWs and sexual enslavement of thousands of women and girls from Korea."

Trigger realized how inhumane this was and said, "That's something that would make it hard to sleep at night."

The Yamato carrier sighed, "Tojo was the Prime Minister, which meant that he had executive power. This one wonders how a man like him can sleep at night with all the atrocities he had committed."

She continued, "He and Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, Commander-In-Chief of the Combined Fleet also had strongly opposing viewpoints since Tojo was once in the Imperial Army while Yamamoto-San was Navy."

The Ace noticed that she put the 'San' honorific when mentioning the admiral and stated, "You seem to hold more respect for Yamamoto than Tojo."

"Admiral Yamamoto was realistic in knowing that they would not survive a prolonged conflict with the Union Navy with its industrial power. He innovated the uses of naval aviation and land-based aircraft, but he actually opposed the construction of the historical Yamato-Class as an unwise investment of resources. But regardless of his view on my ship class, my sisters and I respect him."

Trigger guessed, "Yamamoto was the man who planned the Pearl Harbor attack."

"That's right, it was a first strike strategy, the concept was similar to the Commander-In-Chief before him. He planned it as a means to knock out the Pacific Fleet at anchor; it was a partial success since the aircraft carriers were at sea. When returning home, Yamamoto-San had wrote, 'I fear that what we have done is to awaken a sleeping giant and fill him with a terrible resolve.'"

Enterprise knew this, "He was right, of course. After Pearl, he predicted that his navy would win victory after victory for six months, but he had no confidence in the second or third year. One year later - the Battle of Midway occurred, turning the tide of the Pacific War in favor of the allies; he was aboard the Battleship Yamato which served as his flagship during the battle. The sleeping giant has shown his terrible resolve all right."

The Grey Ghost chuckled, "I have to give Yamamoto credit, he was also one hell of a fortune teller."

Trigger became curious and asked, "He seems like a smart man, but was he around when the terms of surrender were signed?"

Both carriers sighed at this as Shinano stated, "Sadly, he didn't live long to see the end of the war."

"What happened?"

That's when they heard another voice as Musashi made her presence known,

"He was shot down during an inspection tour by P-38 Lightnings."

Trigger realized, "Musashi…how long were you there?"

The battleship exclaimed, "Long enough to know that you wish to know about the man who I had admired in historical life."

Enterprise stated, "He was curious about Yamamoto and we told him about his role in planning the attack, his realistic expectations of the Pacific War and the effectiveness of aircraft carriers."

Musashi took a seat as she said, "A smart man and a great strategist who knew that a prolonged war against a country with a better industrial power would be foolish. He didn't wish to go to war, but ano kuso yarō (that son of a bitch), Shushō (Prime Minister) Tojo decided on war."

Trigger knew that and asked, "You mentioned that he was shot down by P-38s."

The Battleship stated, "Yamamoto-San was doing an inspection tour to an airfield near the island of Bougainville in the Solomon Islands. There were two G4M bombers fitted as transports to carry him and his staff from their Solomon HQ at Rabaul to Bougainville for the tour."

Trigger guessed, "Unbeknownst to them, allied codebreakers intercepted and decrypted transmissions regarding Yamamoto's inspection tour, right?"

"That's right, the USN and Army Air Force knew of a golden opportunity since he was responsible for Pearl Harbor. So they sent 18 P-38 Lightnings to intercept the Admiral."

Enterprise realized, "These Lightnings were from the 339th Fighter Squadron, a component of the 347th Fighter Group and they were the only planes that were used for long range operations. They dodged enemy detection, ambushed the inspection tour and shot down Yamamoto's bomber as well as the bomber carrying his Chief of Staff."

Musashi recounted as she grasped the hilt of her katana, "They found Yamamoto-San's plane and found his body thrown completely from the G4M, white gloved hand grasping the hilt of his sword, sitting upright in his seat under a tree, head tilted down as if in deep thought."

She brought out a datapad as she showed a historical report, "When they did a post-mortem on the body - they found two bullet wounds, one from the shoulder and one from the lower jaw which exited above his right eye, the latter was the cause of death."

Trigger realized, "It must've been from one of the Lightnings."

The fox girl nodded and finished, "Afterwards, his body was cremated and my historical self brought his ashes home as he was given a state funeral."

"That's why you know so much about him since you were once his flagship."

The Super Battleship stated, "I was his last flagship before his death and it was an honor to have brought his remains home."

Enterprise said, "Yamamoto was a smart man who was respected by both sides as someone who knew the long-term risks, but was a great strategist who planned the historic attack and proved that carrier and land-based aircraft were more effective."

She even chuckled, "The 2001 movie 'Pearl Harbor' even had a beloved actor to portray him."

This was something that brought Trigger back to when he watched that movie when the Kido Butai were preparing to sail to Hawaii and the officers would speak with the Admiral. After watching that movie, he looked up the actor and discovered that he was once nominated for an award and was known for his role as a wise uncle in a cartoon show. But Trigger also heard that he died in 2006 from esophageal cancer and many people still remember him to this day.

But in any case, he figured, "A model officer to the end."

Musashi said, "I am glad that you appreciate the history of a man who was well-respected by both sides and who I had the utmost admiration for."

As soon as the conversation ended, Prinz Eugen had entered the room with her sisters and Tirpitz in tow. The Super Battleship figured as she stood up,

"It seems your guests have arrived…"

Trigger said, "Musashi, I need you and NJ to be here as well."

That was surprising at first, but the kitsune figured that Trigger wanted the respected ships from Eagle Union and Sakura Empire for this lunch with Tirpitz.

Musashi agreed and sat next to Shinano as Trigger told Belfast to let New Jersey come join them.

Red Axis Base,

Kyoten

As the eight planes from Crimson Squadron touched down on the runway with the four planes from Varcolac Squadron following behind. While the planes landed, Iron Blood Battleships Gneisenau and Scharnhorst stood on the ramp with the Deutschland sisters and PR Cruiser Mainz as the planes parked as the pilots disembarked. As Rodriguez got out of his plane, Gneisenau approached him and asked,

"Herr Rodriguez, Lord Bismarck wants to know what happened and why had Tirpitz not returned?"

The pilot said, "We underestimated them and I almost had Three Strikes."

Scharnhorst asked, "You almost shot him down?"

He nodded and said, "But something blocked my missile, like some guardian angel who protected him from me. But also Maverick got me distracted from Three Strikes."

Graf Spee curiously asked, "Maverick? As in Captain Mitchell? He's back?"

Deutschland scoffed, "Unsurprising for a lowly animal like him to come back into combat."

Spee reminded her sister, "Maverick is a well-respected pilot and many carriers of all factions respect him, so watch what you say."

The pocket battleship shrugged as Mainz asked the pilot,

"But what happened to Tirpitz and her detachment?"

The peacekeeper sighed, "You really want to know? We'll talk about it, but during the debrief with Bismarck and she's not going to be happy about the outcome."

The Iron Blood ships accepted this as the two squadrons were led to the waiting cars as they left the ramp.

Iron Blood HQ

Kyoten

1300 hrs

As the two squadrons and the Iron Blood entourage assembled in the debriefing room where Bismarck stood, she noticed that Crimson and Varcolac Squadrons had returned, but not her sister. The battleship stated,

"I heard that the mission didn't go exactly as planned."

Rodriguez stated, "The initial air strike didn't go well since Azur Lane had their shipgirls posted on the water near the major facilities and even anti-aircraft tanks were positioned at the airfield. There was also a transport squadron coming into the base which one had landed as the bombers were approaching the base. Three Strikes and his squadron shot down the bombers as we made our way into the combat zone."

Bismarck listened to what he said and asked, "Then what went wrong?"

"Strider Squadron and a fleet of shipgirls were returning to the base as the air attack started. They were able to protect the major areas while the rest were getting on the water. When we arrived with Tirpitz's detachment, they were ready for us - but Strider Squadron turned tail and as expected for a cornered animal that's low on fuel, he was unpredictable especially in the plane he flew."

That got her attention, "What was he flying?"

He showed her various photos of the duel as it showed the ADF-11F Raven and its UAVs. One showed the Raven firing its built-in pulse laser while another showed the Raven pulling a cobra while a UAV fired a laser beam, intercepting a missile. But one photo caught her eye, it showed the back of the Raven as a missile streamed towards it - only for a blue paper crane to fly between the plane and the missile. She asked,

"You took this?"

Crimson 1 stated, "Yes and I almost had him until that crane took the missile. But I also suspect that one of our Sakura allies was there to protect him."

The Iron Blood leader had a hunch as to who it was, "You think that she was protecting Three Strikes?"

Crimson 1 nodded and said, "Who else can produce blue paper cranes? It also means that by saving Three Strikes and denying me my kill - that fox has betrayed Red Axis."

"Akagi is not going to be happy that her own sister has turned traitor since before the raid on the ruins, she wanted him dead more than anyone, now shes starting to have her personal feelings get in the way after he showed her mercy."

Crimson 1 added, "There is one more betrayal that you should know."

He brought out a recorder as he hit the 'Play' button as the voice of Tirpitz spoke,

"This is Battleship Tirpitz of the Iron Blood, we will surrender, the battle is over."

That caught her by surprise to hear her sister surrender to the enemy as the voice of an enemy pilot was heard,

"This is Fencer, Leader of the 122nd Tactical Fighter Squadron. How do we know that you're not faking your surrender?"

The recording of Tirpitz spoke, "I no longer follow my sister's ambitions, it became clear that the one we should be following is the Ace of Azur Lane - The Three Strikes. It also occurred to me that you have a phrase for him."

There was a slight pause until she said,

"Stick With Trigger And You'll Make It."

The Iron Blood kansen were a bit moved by this phrase as Gneisenau and Scharnhorst knew this phrase well as the rebels used this as a battle cry. Graf Spee and Deutschland were split on this while the dark haired cruiser scoffed at this, believing it to be the worship of a lowly animal while Spee saw it as inspirational since it showed that the belief in Three Strikes had bolstered the Coalition's spirits.

That was until they heard the voice of the familiar ace,

"This is Commander Cross of the 124th Tactical Fighter Squadron, the siren fleet has been destroyed and since you intend to surrender with a genuine reason. In all accordance with international law, you will be treated with respect."

That's when they heard the voices of the three kansen vouch for the surrender. As Tirpitz's surrender was accepted, Bismarck felt pain, confusion, shock and rage at Tirpitz's surrender and most likely betrayal. Her fists clenched as she tried to keep herself calm, but that didn't work as she said,

"My own sister…she turned her back on me…on Red Axis…in favor of Azur Lane."

"She…SHE BETRAYED ME!" She shouted as she swung her arm and smashed a nearby statue.

"After everything that we've done, everything we have built to form this alliance!! She turned her back on me because she didn't want anything to do with the plan! She would rather be against us than help us with our best chance to defeat the Sirens!"

Gneisenau quickly spoke, "Mein Lord Bismarck, calm down!"

Bismarck sighed, "Ja, the last time I was calm was when we had Azur Lane on the ropes, Ägir's Rebels on the run and our plans proceeded smoothly. But now the Dreizeiliger Teufel (Three Lined Devil) took that away and now he's taken my own sister from me."

She calmed down and said, "As of now, Tirpitz has joined the enemy. Should you see her in battle, recognize her as a Verräterin (traitor) and sink her. As for our Sakura traitor, find her and bring her to me for interfering in our operations!"

She soon dismissed them as they left the room as Bismarck leaned down towards the map that showed Hawaii with a picture of the F-22 with three scratches next to it.

She had also put down the other places that he was involved in such as the coordinates of the brief skirmish, the ruined islands, Wake Island and near New Guinea.

On a board next to her desk, she had the picture of Ägir as various other kansen were connected to her picture since they joined the rebel PR cruiser when she formed Red Axis. The Rebels have been causing trouble for her and while Tirpitz was in Hawaii, she went out with Light Cruiser Leipzig and Destroyer Z24 as they detected a Rebel Fleet in their territory.

They tracked the small fleet which had Aircraft Carrier Peter Strasser, Heavy Cruiser Prinz Adabert and Battleship Brünhilde along with submarines U-410 and U-73. It was a mixed bunch for the rebels, but with Peter Strasser, they had air support. Bismarck's detachment attacked the small fleet with her siren ships, but the rebel carrier's aircraft had struck the few vanguard ships that she brought with her while the two subs torpedoed her capital ships. She had her detachment attack the fleet directly, only for Brünhilde's guns to fire, which almost hit Leipzig while Z24 was using her speed to get out of Prinz Adabert's line of sight. In the end, Leipzig's rigging was damaged while Z24's rigging suffered a stray shot from Adabert's secondary guns. Bismarck herself took a beating from the aircraft and tried engaging in close combat with Peter Strasser, but the rebel kansen was able to get the best of the Beast of The Denmark Strait and used unconventional tactics against her, leaving the battleship open to additional air attacks. After that, the rebels departed the area as Bismarck remembered what Peter Strasser said,

"Stick With Trigger And You'll Make It!"

That phrase was what signified the bane of their existence - the pilot with the three strikes. It puzzled Bismarck as to how a single pilot could strike fear and admiration into the hearts of Red Axis. She thought back to the Trinity Crisis since she took part in the rescue of the Prime Minister of the Northern Parliament in the Black Sea where her detachment was assigned to provide support for the Seals and Spetsnaz teams infiltrating the yacht. When she and her detachment made their move, she saw Warwolf Squadron destroy the Rebel Admiral Kuznetsov-class aircraft carrier, a Kara-class cruiser and a Kirov-class Battlecruiser while also assisting in defending the yacht from hostile ships. After monitoring the progress during the Moscow Liberation and the Trinity suppression over the Kremlin, she knew that Colonel Bishop was the best that the Union Air Force could offer. He even proved himself an Ace when Bismarck was at DC providing Anti-Air defense around the Eagle Union Capital when Bishop killed Markov and destroyed Trinity, ending the crisis.

The man was praised as a hero, but to Bismarck - William Bishop was still just a pilot. She was aware of the aces of this caliber such as the Crown of Sicario and the Scorpion of Martinez, both were aces, both were skilled in their respective fields and considered heroes of their organizations due to their involvement in repelling the Cordium-Armed Satellite during the Tokyo Incident, but they soon vanished like ghosts.

But then comes Three Strikes, a pilot who's particularly young to be as skilled as either Bishop, the Crown or the Scorpion, but on a whole other level. As she moved her hand over to the Aleutian Islands near Alaska, she eyed Dutch Harbor as she remembered trying to destroy the Allied Fleet stationed there with the Siren ships, but the Sakura Kansen allied with the MSDF stood in their way and protected both military and civilian ships in the harbor.

Bismarck had to find a way to stop the Allied Fleets from reaching Kyoten, so she picked up her phone and contacted her forces at the Philippines,

"Z1, I need you, Nürnberg and Prinz Heinrich to check on the progress at the research facility. I want to know if everything is going smoothly."

There was a response from Z1, "We'll get it done, Lord Bismarck."

She hung up her phone and dialed a new number as the person on the line answered as Bismarck asked,

"What's the status of the Mark 1?"

"The Mark 1 is proceeding smoothly and we'll be able to send a report on a viable test flight soon. We also have your test pilot on an experimental airframe that you have requested."

She curiously asked, "What is your test pilot's opinion on Three Strikes?"

The voice recalled, "She's very eager to face him since her original desire was to face the Crown until he disappeared after the Tokyo Incident. But she knows that you are offering a reward for downing Three Strikes and she wishes to see if he lives up to his legend."

"If there comes a chance, she will duel Three Strikes and hopefully drive back the Allied Forces."

As she hung up the phone, she looked out at her window as she glanced at a picture of her and her sister at a beach party sitting on the windowsill, seeing Tirpitz wearing that white bikini while she wore a black bikini, smiling for the camera with a drink in hand, Bismarck in the photo was happy, wasn't wearing her cap and was glad to be around her beloved sister. But now as she gazed at the picture, she saw the three scratches appear in her mind. She massaged her forehead as those scratches appeared in her mind, she knew what they represented and why she hated those scratches - because they caused her misery. She swore,

"You will pay for turning my sister against me, Three Strikes!"

Outside Iron Blood HQ

Gneisenau and Scharnhorst became concerned about Bismarck and about Kaga should she be brought to her - and both knew that their commander would not take kindly on treason. The two battleships waited until they were out of earshot of both squadrons as Gneisenau brought up her phone and started to send a text,

"Gneis: Kaga.

Blue Fox: Gneisenau? Do you do need something?

Gneis: Nein, but there is something you should know.

Blue Fox: What's going on?

Gneis: Bismarck knows you were at Azur Lane.

Blue Fox: Wait what?!

Gneis: Rodriguez had a picture of your crane saving Trigger.

Blue Fox: That means she will deem me a traitor!

Gneis: She already did. You need to leave the island, it's not safe for you now.

Blue Fox: Wait…Mutsuki and her sisters…I can't leave them.

Gneis: We'll buy you some time, but you need to leave the island as soon as possible.

Blue Fox: Thank you."

After she finished up, she gave a nod to Scharnhorst that their plan to get Kaga off the island was a go. The second battleship gave a phone call to a few friends who owe her a favor to take part in this plan. The battleship knew this group of fortune-hunting privateers since they were contracted by the Allied Forces in tracking down merchant ships escorted by a siren fleet or making things difficult for Red Axis. Scharnhorst even knew that the leader came from a line of pilots and charmers, but unfortunately for him, his charms weren't effective on kansen.

As she dialed the number, an automated voice spoke, "Caller please authenticate."

The battleship stated, "Access Code: Iron Cyclops. Requesting a secure line to Asset: FH-01."

The call went through as a voice spoke, "Scharnhorst, thanks for the tip on Siren Fleet Alpha earlier, they never saw us coming. You should also know that Uncle Sam doesn't like us talking to one another, especially when it comes between privateers and the enemy."

Scharnhorst sighed, "Tell him that he can appreciate the information that we're about to give you. There was a raid on Azur Lane this morning, involving Tirpitz's detachment which Crimson and Varcolac were there as well. But Kaga got involved by saving the life of Azur Lane's Ace when Crimson 1 tried shooting him down while landing and thanks to the Peacekeepers - Bismarck knows that Kaga was there. She has to get off this island and I need you to rendezvous with her halfway to Hawaii."

The voice realized, "Well I be damned - Aircraft Carrier Kaga, one of the Legendary Kido Butai betraying her alliance like that. What drove her to do that?"

"You know exactly the reason since I know you were keeping up with current events."

"Right, that pilot that's been making waves throughout the Allied Forces. He commands both the Azur Lane fleet and a fighter squadron at the same time, highly skilled and highly capable for multiple purposes. I also heard that he's got quite the fan club from shipgirls, that's something that I couldn't achieve. But I have to ask about the three scratches - what's the point with those?"

Scharnhorst stated, "Forget the scratches, what exactly are you and your crew doing now?"

FH-01 replied, "Well, you called us at a bad time since we tracked down a siren fleet escorting a captured merchant ship near Guam."

The battleship curiously asked, "Is it one of the ships that Allied HQ is after?"

"Not exactly, it doesn't possess that reported symbol, but our resident kansen from Tempesta spotted a flag waving over the ship from her spyglass - it's just a green flag with a horizontal red stripe going across the center."

Scharnhorst had a thought about it since the siren fleets were escorting captured Gründer ships from the other side of those portals, but a different flag could mean something as she said,

"It could be a different nation from the other side of the siren portals."

"A different nation? Now that's something, if we bag this ship and tow it back to Hawaii, Allied HQ can get a good look at what its cargo is even give us a share of the bounty."

The battleship asked, "Is your pirate kansen ready for this raid?"

"My crew is anxious, I'm looking forward to strapping into my FJ-4 and Royal Fortune is the most anxious to see some action."

"But after that, can you make the rendezvous with Kaga?"

"We can make the rendezvous and we have put the location near Midway."

She was relieved, "That is good to hear, we will let her know to meet you there."

"I better go, we're almost ready to launch. Take care of yourself, Scharnhorst."

The battleship ended with, "Viel Glück, Nathan."

As she ended the call, she and Gneisenau looked at each other as she told her glasses-wearing sister,

"This is definitely risky and Lord Bismarck will suspect that someone tipped Kaga off."

Gneisenau stated, "But like it or not, Red Axis is not what it was envisioned to be. We want to defeat the Sirens, but is it really necessary to use their technology against them?"

Scharnhorst knew this, "Bismarck wishes for new ways to fight the Sirens, but she's delving into something that she doesn't understand. The whole reason why this war began was because of that Superweapon that Akagi has been working on. If Azur Lane reaches Kyoten before it deploys, then the war will be over."

Gneisenau remembers one aspect of this war, "And that deployment is disrupted by the will and influence of a single pilot."

"Exactly, but now we have the issues with Crimson and Varcolac with the plans regarding their projects, especially 'that' weapon."

Gneisenau sighed, "Yes, that weapon that nearly destroyed Tokyo. It scares me to think that we could resort to using it in warfare of all things. In many cases, I would prefer a Ulysses Part 2 as opposed to a Cordium strike."

The one-eyed battleship looked up at the skies, knowing that there were still fragments of the asteroid in orbit and one of these days - those fragments could enter the atmosphere and crash into the Earth - causing an unknown number of casualties. She stated,

"That's what worries me - the idea that we may see a part 2 of Ulysses."

Azur Lane HQ

Cafeteria

1310 hrs

The lunch was very enlightening since we had Trigger, Enterprise, New Jersey, Shinano and Musashi dining with Tirpitz, Weser and Blücher alongside Prinz Eugen. This lunch was a means of starting the act of negotiating since Tirpitz had surrendered to Azur Lane during the battle with the clear intention to defect. As Tirpitz finished, she figured,

"I must say that the food is good since the Schnitzel reminds me of home. But I have to confess, you offered us lunch after we surrendered with the intention to defect to your side and I don't know what to say about it."

Trigger stated, "Considering the time of day and you all fought hard to work up an appetite, I figured that I would treat you all to having lunch with me, my secretary and the legendary classes. Besides, bringing a tray to the Detention Center makes a bad first impression."

"Oh, I see. It is a starting point for a negotiation."

The Ace shrugged, "Was it that obvious? The news of your defection will no doubt reach Kyoten and Red Axis will take notice. But of course…"

Tirpitz knew what he meant, "Bismarck…she insists on creating WMDs to stamp out Azur Lane even though the Sirens are the real threat."

Enterprise asked, "What do you mean that she's building WMDs?"

"My sister is looking to build the very weapon that almost destroyed Tokyo."

The Yamato sisters were surprised as Musashi asked,

"Is it true that she's doing this?"

Tirpitz nodded and said, "It's true."

Shinano sighed and said, "I don't know what is happening with your sister, but to create that weapon could bring devastating results."

New Jersey chimed in, "I know Bismarck, she's well-respected by the Iron Blood, but she would never resort to using WMDs."

Tirpitz pointed out, "Bismarck went to see me off and we argued about the methods that she is taking, as well as the price of innocent civilians caught in the crossfire. She stated that she would do whatever it takes to stop the Sirens, whatever the cost. She is mad, New Jersey."

"Mad enough to betray Azur Lane, hire war criminals to act as her Air Force and destroy Azur Lane."

The Queen of the North looked at the Ace and said, "We would rather fight to stop my sister and Red Axis rather than further her plans."

Trigger realized, "You're asking to join us?"

Tirpitz reminded him, "We now oppose my sister, we oppose the philosophies of Red Axis. Three Strikes is the Ace of Azur Lane - a Beacon of Light atop a Tower of Strength known as the Grey Ghost and also opposes Red Axis."

Blücher stated, "As for Weser and I, we also want to help since our sisters vouch for you."

Weser stated, "Wherever you go, we will be beside you in this war."

Trigger knew this as he said, "A war we intend to end quickly…"

Tirpitz guessed, "Before Project Orochi is deployed."

Enterprise realized, "You know about it?"

"It's been Akagi's reason for starting this pointless war, but even immobilized - that vessel remains a serious threat."

The Ace stated, "I know, but should we lose the Mental Cube to Red Axis and they plan to deploy it…" That's when his mind clicked, "Is it possible to damage the vessel when immobilized?"

Tirpitz remembered seeing the Orochi drydock as she said, "The vessel lies in a concealed drydock covered by a rock face near one of the pagodas, but there are some holes in the bedrock…"

"Large enough for a bomb or missile?"

Enterprise noticed what the Ace was saying, "Trigger…are you suggesting?"

He nodded, "Conduct a raid on Kyoten and damage the Orochi ship, so its launch will be delayed for repairs, should they get the cube back."

Tirpitz noticed, "An interesting idea, but the island is a fortress and a fleet of kansen won't be able to get near it and an assault using modern ships would be pointless."

Shinano figured, "Maybe we should not use modern ships for the raid, but rather conduct a sneak attack on the Orochi itself using aircraft. I can have my ship move into position to launch a single fighter to infiltrate the base, hit the drydock and leave before someone notices, it may be risky, but I can have a squadron on standby should the need arise."

Enterprise stated, "I can do it too, in theory - any carrier can."

Tirpitz figured, "A sneak attack on the Orochi drydock would delay its launch, but it would also frighten Red Axis of the possibility of direct raids on the island."

Trigger said, "It's possible since Ridgeback 1 was able to sneak past the radar and launch a diversion attack on Kyoten to buy the infiltration team time to escape. But we still have some things to sort out and get a green light from Williams."

He looked at the Iron Blood Battleship, "But in the meantime, it's good to know that you're on our side now."

Tirpitz nodded and said, "After hearing about you, I'm glad to know that I'm with you."

That's when Trigger held his hand out as Tirpitz realized this as she did the same as their hands connected and shook.

The Osean Ace stated, "I have to guess that things are all coming together."

As Trigger said it, Tirpitz began to feel a bit comfortable around him as she thought,

"He is different, but he's trustworthy and from previous reports, he cares about his charges whether they are his wingmen or his fleet. But he's also very caring to shipgirls…"

The Queen of the North saw him as a trustworthy man, a great and caring leader and a calculating man. But deep down, there was that aura of safety that surrounds him, knowing that as long as she's with him - she'll make it. But to Tirpitz, it was even more than just a simple cooperation as she realized,

"I…I feel like I'm now drawn to him…but I don't mind being with him."

It was at that moment when Tirpitz, the Iron Blood's Lone Queen of the North had hearts in her eyes for Osea's Ace Pilot as an eagle-eyed Head Maid caught this and discreetly wrote down the battleship's name in her list.

Azur Lane Airfield

1330 hrs

After lunch, some of the pilots would spend time at the airfield, either assisting Avril and her nugget crew with the planes or showing some of the kansen the wonders of the modern aircraft.

But for the Starter Ships along with Unicorn, they were lead into the hangar where Avril herself was working on an old aircraft as she asked,

"Liking the dragster, girls?"

Javelin asked, "Dragster?"

The Chief Mechanic of the LRSSG had ran maintenance on the plane as she said,

"This F-104 Starfighter which I call the Dragster since it's similar to my old F-104."

Nimi asked, "You used to be a pilot?"

She sighed, knowing that she's going to have to tell her story, "Not in the military, but it's mostly a hobby, but I'll start from the beginning."

She got up and leaned against the plane as she began, "Okay, I'm the latest in a family of pilots stemming back four generations. My Dad and my Grandfather were in the Osean Air Defense Force and my dad died during the Circum-Pacific War of 2010 also known as the Belkan Conflict. My Granddad, a lieutenant general, lost faith in the OADF and kept me from joining the military. Naturally, I blamed Vincent Harling, who was the President of Osea, for my dad's death."

Ayanami asked, "Was it necessary to blame him for his death?"

"Honestly, I never wanted anyone to tell me otherwise and didn't know the full story, but Harling with the help of four brave pilots ended that war."

The mechanic thought back, "But I was so damn angry at the time and blaming Harling for my dad's death seemed easier than looking into the war's history. After Trigger arrived at the 444 Base and learned that he was convicted for murdering Harling, I wanted to thank him for killing him, but I decided not to, even disregarded his claims of being innocent."

The Sakura destroyer figured, "You made a good choice not to praise him for a crime he did not commit."

She chuckled, "Yeah, I would've felt like the dumbass if I thanked Trigger for killing Harling only for the Vice Chairman to reveal that he was innocent."

Laffey asked, "How did you end up in the Penal Unit?"

Avril recalled that moment, "I was doing a test flight of an F-104 similar to this one, my granddad, his war buddies and I worked on it at a scrapyard which we were granted full-access because he was close friends with the superintendent of the yard. That Starfighter was what kept me going since he and his buddies died. By some damn coincidence, the day of the test flight was also the day that Erusea had their drones attack Osean Territory."

Unicorn asked, "You flew in the middle of an air battle?"

"I did and like an idiot, I forgot to add a radio and an IFF Transponder to mark me as friendly to the OADF F-15Cs that were pursuing the drone and as a result - I was shot down and I crash landed into a nearby base. The military arrested me for breaking 'wartime aviation laws,' tried me, convicted me and instead of sending me to a civilian prison - they sent me to AFB 444 in Zapland because of my expertise in fixing and restoring broken down planes."

Javelin figured, "You were a civilian who was in the wrong place at the wrong time and yet, you being sent to a penal base is almost as if your military had conscripted you."

Avril had that thought, "You make a good point since Tabloid pointed out my presence at the base as a civilian who was arrested for being in the wrong place at the wrong time at the start of a war with a knack for fixing up planes - my conviction was more of a conscription into the military, so the con-pilots can have functioning planes restored from scrap."

Laffey realized, "That's why they call you 'Scrap Queen."

The mechanic nodded and said, "Exactly, I became the unofficial mechanic of Spare Squadron until the announcement came that the 444 was now legit and I received an official pardon. The squadron was being transferred to Tyler Island while the Base Commander was being sent to a different post. Tabloid and I went to Tyler Island and we went through hell on that island. Even when Osean forces were retreating, I warned the LRSSG of Erusean tanks trying to kill us and a group of refugees, but Cossette ran out with a smoke canister to direct Trigger to attack."

Javelin asked, "Cossette?"

"Rosa Cossette D'Elise, the Princess of Erusea. She was on Tyler Island when everything went to hell and we found her in the wreckage of her downed aircraft. This was when Erusea collapsed into civil war, the Radical faction dependent on using drones to continue the war while the Conservatives wished to negotiate with Osea to end the war and shut down the drone program. Cossette had also shut down the Space Elevator back at the end of the war in order for the Osean-Erusean Coalition to destroy the last Arsenal Bird. After that, we found our way to the Andersen and this Scrap Queen became Chief Mechanic."

"It must have been chaos to see the Erusean Army fight each other."

Avril stated, "Trust me, if you have seen the horrors of both sides that I have witnessed, you would not want to fight. Innocent civilians were caught in this due to their association with people who used technology from Belka which was used for the drones."

Nimi remembered, "Like those planes from the Sudentor?"

"Exactly, those were advanced super planes, but the Raven once had a drone version which you probably heard from the Doc."

Hangar #3

Elsewhere outside one of the hangars, Prez was standing in the open doorway of the hangar looking at the three advanced planes from the Sudentor. She was amazed with the amount of research and development that went through to building these planes and how the ADA-01B had the COFFIN System like the Falken and Raven. But aside from the Raven being a new aircraft, the merc flight officer walked into the hangar and approached the X-02S that sat on the left side when facing the hangar.

As she looked it over and thought about what Dr. Schroeder had said, it meant that this was an advanced stealth fighter built for the aging ace that Trigger had fought. But since it's a two-seater, the idea of her and Trigger going up in it made her think back to an old friend of hers. Their missions against the sirens in their F-15S/MTD, destroying siren ships while helping disrupt their activities in various areas. She remembered Sicario getting contracted along with Martinez Security to stop a rise in terrorist activity around the Sakura Islands…

"Prez?"

That snapped her out of her thoughts as she turned around and saw Trigger standing in the doorway. She noticed that he was by himself which was strange since either Enterprise or Belfast would be with him. She asked,

"Oh, Trigger. What brings you here?"

"I could ask you the same question."

The merc stated, "I just wanted to get a closer look at this aircraft. After what the Doc said, this plane is an improved variation of the original X-02 as it was called."

Trigger looked at the plane, "That's right, when I shot it down in the war, Jaeger said that it was an improved version of the X-02 Wyvern from the last continental war. It was a tough battle for me since I was up against the King of the Skies as Mihaly was called."

Prez realized, "They…called him King?"

"They did, but he prefers not to be called that. Although the castle I shot him down over belonged to his family and I learned later that he was once the heir of the Grand Duchy of Shilage, only for his family to lose their status due to revolution. After Erusea annexed Shilage, he was was offered to retain his status and noble standing which would exempt him from military service - but he refused and accepted the draft like an Erusean citizen."

Prez was surprised by this statement as she had learned more about the aging Ace who flew one of those planes,

"He must've preferred life in the military rather than ruling his nation and found a new kingdom in the skies."

"Exactly, he was widely believed to be the best, a flying wizard as Count would put it. During the war, he was the leader of Sol Squadron as Sol 1, but the LRSSG dub him as 'Mister X' due to his squadron being an Experimental Unit."

Prez expressed her concern about the aging Ace, "But if he was flying during the war in your world, that much Gs on an aging body is not healthy, especially the stress when it comes to combat."

The Osean stated, "My thoughts exactly, but he flew because he wanted to keep his wings and leaned on his wingmen as well as his own granddaughters for support, even his oldest, Ionela expressed her concern for her grandfather's safety. But when I shot him down over the castle, he expressed his regret for wanting to fly in exchange for flight providing data for the drone production."

Prez was curious and asked, "They were using flight data provided by him to make drones that mimicked his own moves?"

He nodded, "They were and the drone I encountered during an escort mission as were as his moves being similar to the drone was proof. However, he regretted that it was due to his ego, unleashing pure chaos just to keep his wings and before his comm cut out, he requested that I not only put a stop to the drone production, but to save his grandchildren."

Prez could spot the look of sadness in his voice as she asked, "You did save his grandchildren, right?"

The Ace replied, "Avril found them, but I made sure that they were able to escape. After the war ended, they volunteered to help the refugees and as for Mihaly, that tough old geezer survived our duel, but the injuries he sustained had left him disabled - unable to ever fly again."

That made the officer sad, that old ace went through so much and ended up losing his wings after being bested. That was when she noticed Trigger say something that she never thought she would hear,

"Speaking of Kings, Iceman said you know about an Ace Pilot known as 'The Crown' since you were once his WSO when you flew."

Prez had a look of realization when her old friend was mentioned, sure many people would mention the Crown, but no one knew more about him than Prez. She was a flight officer and was mostly just there for the ride, but to hear the Osean ask about the Crown was surprising as she said,

"The Crown…the Ace of the Bering Straits, some pilots would mention him from time to time, but it's been two years since he flew in battle. But why bring this up?"

"It's just that with Crimson and Varcolac being with Red Axis, I need to know about one of the pilots that faced them and survived. After hearing about the Tokyo Incident, it was obvious that you were there when they destroyed the satellite and drove them away."

Prez had a feeling that this would eventually come up, so she sighed and said,

"What I'm about to tell you is not only about the Crown, but the Scorpion as well."

The Ace asked, "How do they tie together?"

Prez dropped the bomb, "The Crown - Monarch and the Scorpion - Antares are brothers."

A/N: And that's a wrap. This has been a long chapter, but now let's summarize what happened.

Tirpitz's defection had definitely shaken Bismarck which made her reflect on a picture of her and her sister at a beach party. She compared Trigger to that of Colonel Bishop, the Crown and the Scorpion, but unlike those three aces - Trigger was different and she blamed him for taking her sister from her. She is now aware of Kaga's involvement which would, in her eyes, mark the white fox as a traitor.

It also seems that Bismarck has some outside help in regards to Mark 1 along with a test pilot eager to face Three Strikes.

It also seems that Gneisenau and Scharnhorst are working as double agents as they have contacts with a group of Privateers working for the Allied Forces as they plan to help Kaga escape and rendezvous with these rogues.

Meanwhile Trigger treated Tirpitz and her detachment with lunch as the battleship made it clear that she wishes to join him, which he accepted.

(Also I put in that historical account of Isoroku Yamamoto because he was a very respected man for both sides of the war and Musashi was his last flagship, so she would have memories of Yamamoto.)

Afterwards we see that Unicorn and the Starter Ships were talking with Avril about how she ended up with the LRSSG. The mechanic told about how she saw the horrors of the war after transferring to Tyler Island and when the civil war began. She talked about the Princess and how her actions saved the lives of several refugees and allowed the Coalition to destroy the Arsenal Bird.

But now we have Prez and Trigger and we knew that this was coming since Ice mentioned Prez knowing the Crown Ace of the Berings.

But she revealed that the Crown and the Scorpion were related. So now the cliffhanger…

Now it was mentioned of converting the Darkstar into its in-game counterpart, but that's going to need approval from both the Project Team and the Commander.

But I've dragged this on long enough.

Nighthawk Out!