Chapter 21
September 12th, 2023 - Late afternoon: Outer Heaven, a little before Liberty would make port.
Second floor of the shipgirls' shared dorms - King George V's room.
"...How. How did it come to this...!?"
"Hm? Come now, my dearest sister! Thou looks absolutely beautiful! Ah! Such an elegant and seductive maid you two make! And that naive hint of maidenly shyness that only emphasizes thy womanly charms! I'm sure His Excellency will be most pleased indeed to feast his eyes upon such ripe, tempting fruits on full display! Truly, a feast for the eyes I say!" Duke of York gushed with a hint of sisterly teasing in her voice. Prince of Wales, for her part, was still silently trying to process the reality unfolding before her even as she adjusted her all important maid's headband.
"...Uuuu...!"
"Oh come now! It's not as if you two will be alone! After all, despite having won our little bet, the little dears and I will be right there with you to greet His Excellency!" Duke of York reminded with a smile. "Well, we won't be serving him and the others as their exclusive maids but... such is the fate of the defeated, hahaha!"
"...Ugh. Why must you say one word too many, York?"
"Because, my dearest sister, the look of frustration and embarrassed shame on your otherwise dignified face is ever so pleasant to behold!"
"...You are one twisted sadist..."
"Hahaha! You and dear Wales just make it ever so easy! But, enough chit-chat. It's time to get going. The little dears have likely bought as much time as they could by now."
"...Ugh...!"
- Outer Heaven, dock -
"...Man it's good to be home!" Liam exclaimed as he stepped off the Liberty and took in the familiar sights and smells of the island he and the others now called home. 'Huh. Funny how that works out considering we haven't been here or known each other all that long. Guess that's what living through life and death battles does to you I guess?'
"Commander, happy to be home?" Eldridge asked while walking next to Liam and tightly holding onto his hand.
"Well there's that, but I think I'm more excited to see the others after so long. I mean, Akashi aside, I barely got to spend any time with Azuma and the others before we had to leave," Liam replied, patting Eldridge's head and eliciting a happy little hum from the little blonde. "Plus, there's that secret project Akashi and Metis have been working on too."
"Mmm~ Yes. Miss, Green Cat. Give her, hugs!"
"Heh! I'm sure she'll be happy to see you too."
"Mm! Yes!"
"Ja, it's definitely good to be home indeed!" Eugen agreed as she came up next to Liam and Eldridge. "By the way. What do you think little 400 and the others have planned for us?"
Liam shrugged. "Who knows. Maybe a welcome home party or something?"
"Hmm...~"
"...Hmm..." Once again, Eldridge's instincts kicked in as soft, blue sparks danced around her body while eyeing her taller, buxom and silver haired fleet sister.
"Oh? And whatever is the matter, meine liebe schwester?" asked a slightly amused Prinz Eugen.
"...Tease has, a scheming look in her eyes...!"
At the little blonde's answer, Prinz Eugen couldn't help but giggle. "Well, it's not as if I don't have any ideas, but..."
"... 'But'?"
"Oh, well. It's just that those three little submarines give off a similar vibe to you and little Akashi."
"...?" Eldridge could only tilt her head in confusion.
"...Oh, I think I get it..!" Liam cut in, as if a light bulb suddenly went off. "They have that, um... 'super playful but really hard to handle' (read: very troublesome) vibe to them, ri-"
*...ZAP!*
"-Ouch!"
"...Hmph!"
And while Eldridge was doling out 'righteous' punishment on her beloved but boneheaded Commander, the group of thirty-three shipgirls suddenly came to a stop when they they heard a chorus of very respectful, formal greetings from a trio of identical looking, white haired Sakura Empire submarines dressed in Europan style maid's uniforms.
"Okaerinasaimase, Shikikan-sama." (x3)
...
"... Whoa...!" Liam was left speechless.
"Ara~!" (x2) came much cooing courtesy of Taihou and Akagi
"...Wow." was all Enterprise could say.
"Indeed. They are in sync and carry themselves with the appropriate level of a maid's devotion. Don't you think, Sheffy?"
"Yes. I find no fault in their manner or conduct. What say you, Sirius?"
"..." Instead of answering, Sirius, in an unusually rare and out of character move, whipped out her own personal tablet and quickly opened up its camera function before pointing it at the three submarine triplets.
*Click!*
"Did, she just snap a photo of them?" Liam asked.
"Indeed she did," Sheffield replied. "And I think I'll do the same."
"...Should Eldridge wear that too?" Eldridge asked, eyes full of curious expectation.
"...Do, you want to wear something like that?" Liam asked back, not at all sure how to answer since he really didn't want to get shocked again.
"...Hmm... Um, maybe? Eldridge would look cute in one though, right?"
"Yeah, you would. Well, all of you would really. Hm. More shipgirl maids huh... A whole fleet of them even?"
Much to the many shipgirls' amusement, Liam was giving this way more thought than he probably should have. But, to the shipgirls in question, that was just another side they liked about him... or at least found funny. Regardless, they left him to his own devices as they went over to have a word with the I series submarine triplets turned maids.
"Hey, hey! Tell Sister Sara where you learned all that! I mean, all the real maids were gone and there's no real interwebs here, right? Was it your idea? Or someone else's? Oh, I know! I bet it was Duke of York! Yeah, that seems like something she'd do."
"Hahaha! You guys totally fried Honey's brain! Anyway, maids are nice, but I think a buncha triplet bunny girls would really get his engine goin', y'know?" New Jersey suggested.
"Excuse you? I'll have you know that maids are, as the humans say, 'peak culture'!" Sheffield protested in a rare and weirdly random moment of pride as a fire burned brightly in her eyes even as her outward expression hadn't changed in the slightest.
"...Hmm? Nuh uh...! Bunnies, for days... Zzzzz..," was the sleepy bunny's two cents before going back to her nap.
"...Um, did Laffey just wake up only to say that?" Jean Bart asked, wondering why in the world everyone was even bothering with this nonsense.
Black Prince just sighed and nodded. "Yes, yes she did. And that's just the way she is sometimes."
"What about magical girls? Where's the love for magical girls dammit!" suggested/shouted a very enthusiastic Saratoga.
"...Now Miss Sara's joined in..," Alabama noted as she watched the little pinkette try to plead her case on the charms of the magical girl.
"Well, what about you? Which outfit would you wear, hm?" Strasser asked the tanned, white haired beauty.
"Huh? Me? Where'd that come from?"
Strasser shrugged. "No reason really. Oh, but I think you'd look quite nice as a maid or bunny girl though?"
"..."
...
"What? Are you seriously thinking about it? I mean, I half expected this reaction, but..."
As for the three submarines who were quietly watching the chaos unfold from a little off to the side...
"...I, did not expect this," I-400 admitted as she watched her big sisters suddenly dividing up into camps on which outfit would look the best.
"...Bunny girl or magical girl... Hmm, I wonder which one Nii-sama would like better...?" I-401 muttered to herself as she seriously thought over the matter. Thankfully,and ever the reliable one among the three, I-402 was there to get things back on track as she stepped up and got everyone else's attention with an ether enhanced clap.
"As fun as all this has been to watch, and as much as I would love to see how this debate ends, I must ask you all to come along. After all, we have quite a pleasant surprise waiting for everyone. Now then, please follow us."
"...402-chan is awesome," I-401 whispered with admiration while I-400 just nodded in agreement as they watched their sister submarine at work.
- A little later, inside the shipgirl dorms' shared living room -
"Ah, Your Excellency! Dear sisters! Welcome home! I trust you enjoyed being greeted by such visions of nubile loveliness? I must confess I was quite surprised when the little ones suggested the idea and I think they really went above and beyond!" greeted one formally dressed Duke of York in her usual, theatrical and friendly way as she walked over to meet Liam and the others with Azuma and Algerie behind and on either side of her, smiling at their fleet sister's antics.
"...Good to be back!" Liam greeted back before giving York, Azuma, and Algerie a big 'I'm home' hug.
"Ohoh? Well, well, well! His Excellency really did miss us all terribly it seems!"
"Hey! We want our hugs too!" I-401 protested before she, I-400 and I-402 all came in and tackle hugged Liam from behind.
"...Oof!"
"Oh my!"
"Ara, ara!"
"Ah, and they were doing so well as maids too..."
"..." In lieu of saying anything herself like Algerie, Azuma, or Belfast, Eldridge let her sparks do it for her instead.
*...ZAP!*
"What the... Ouch!"
"Owie!"
"Hey!"
"... Hmph!"
"Ahahaha! This is awesome! We only just got home and it's like we never even left!" New Jersey said with a hearty belly laugh as she enjoyed the show.
"... *sigh* ..." Jean Bart, on the other hand, could only shake her head and sigh in exasperation.
"By the way, where are Miss Hatsuzuki, Lady King George V and Lady Prince of Wales?" Belfast asked after she finished scanning the room but failing to spot the aforementioned shipgirls.
"Hm? Well, Dear Wales and George V are simply being fashionably late is all and I asked little Hatsuzuki to fetch them."
"...Ohoh? Why do I feel like there's more to this than you're letting on?" Prinz Eugen asked, sensing something akin to a kindred spirit in the vampire knight's eyes gleaming with a hint of mischief that was not unlike her own.
"And whatever do you mean, my dear Lady Eugen?"
"Oh, call it a sixth sense."
"I see. Well, All I'll say is that I have a very nice surprise for His Excellency that I'm sure he'll appreciate very much."
Just then.
"...Ugh. I, I can't believe we're really doing this..," grumbled a beet red long haired, blonde and crimson eyed knight for the umpteenth time. "...Damn you Yorkie...!"
"It's too late to back out now. All we can do is suck it up and hold up our end of the deal. After all, we did lose," said her fellow crimson eyed blonde.
"... I know, I know. It's just... -"
"-Ah, it seems they've arrived! Behold, Your Excellency! Ah, and your stunned silence is all the the gratitude I need!"
"...!" '...HOLY SHIT!' Poor Liam had no idea where to look or what to say but knew it too late to turn away and that him saying ANYTHING before being asked would likely end in him being shocked, again. Worst of all was that the poor bastard had to do his absolute best to keep his body from saying too much for him, which was... more than a little hard considering the soft and cute triplet maids still clinging to him even tighter after being zapped by a less than pleased little Eldridge. Fortunately for them, she was a little preoccupied.
"...Maids, everywhere...! Maids popular? Commander, likes maids? Should Eldridge become a maid?"
"... Oh my!" Sirius had no words and could only blush at the sight the bikini clad knights turned maids while Belfast, Eugen, and Saratoga were smirking and seemingly having a silent conversation on the matter.
"Oh wow! I love the contrast between sexy and embarrassed!" New Jersey noted, admiring the sight.
"But, how did they end up going from chivalrous and dignified knights to barely there bikini wearing, blushing maids though?" Alabama asked, legitimately thinking about wearing something like that herself after seeing how effective it seemed to be at getting Liam's attention.
"Wunderbar! Even I didn't expect you'd prepare something so bold! Well done!" Eugen praised.
"But, like Frau Alabama asked, how did they even end up like that?" Strasser asked.
"We beat them in a sparring match!" I-402 declared, now appearing next to a still blushing Prince of Wales and King George V alongside I-400 and I-401 who were now all also wearing swimsuits of their own.
"Cute!" Anchorage cooed. "Anchorage wants to wear one too!" And, with an innocent giggle and a flash of bright blue etheric light, the happy honey blonde heavy cruiser quickly swapped her clothes for a bikini of her own before running over to and hugging a very, very flustered and tongue-tied Liam. "Teach!Teach! Look, look! Pretty? Anchorage, pretty?"
*...ssqquuiisshh~! *
Liam audibly gulped and nodded. "Ye, yeah. Very pretty."
"Oh wow! Anchorage got the jump on all of us!" Saratoga exclaimed while exaggeratedly pointing at the shipgirl pileup as more and more shipgirls decided to join in on the fun. Meanwhile, the two shipgirls who had unwillingly started all this simply stood there with their mouths agape at the insanity unfolding in front of them.
"...Just, what in the world is happening...!?" quietly asked a slightly wide eyed King George V in utter disbelief at what she was seeing.
"...I, have no idea but... I feel like we've lost, somehow..," replied a strangely defeated sounding Prince of Wales.
Sadly for them, their odd sense of defeat and humiliation was only made that much worse by a laughing Duke of York and smirking Prinz Eugen, among others.
"Ahahahahaha! Oh, this is too much! I had high expectations, but this goes above and beyond anything I could've ever imagined!"
"What? You aren't going to join in, Eugen?" Jean Bart asked from the side, wisely deciding to stay out of the madness herself... at least for now anyway.
"Oh? And what about you? Aren't you going to show your stuff?" the Iron Blood silverette asked back.
Jean Bart lightly scoffed. "Non, non. I'm not getting anywhere near that hot mess. Besides, I could ask the same of you. Why haven't you joined in?"
"Because watching my dear Kommandant helplessly flail about while trying to keep his composure under all that 'pressure' is just hilarious!"
"...You and Duke of York are really something else..."
And, it was around the height of this impromptu bikini/hugging contest that Akashi finally entered the room after waking up from her little cat nap, only to freeze in her tracks wondering just what in the hell was even going on.
"...Nyaa...? Why, why is it so noisy... Nyaa!? Ittai nani ga... What is going on here nyaa!? Why is everyone in bikinis!? Why is everyone piling on Shikikan-sama!? Actually, when did everyone get back!? Nya? Nyaa!? ... NNNNYYYAAAA!?" all but shrieked the now fully awake, petite cat-eared verdette.
"Oh! A, Akashi!" Liam, who was still in the midst of being smothered by hot, bikini clad, half naked shipgirls desperately called out to her, hoping she'd be able to save him. "Hey, could you... maybe...-"
"-Hm? Onii-sama? What's wrong? You don't like this?" asked a faux pouting I-401... who then preceded to get even closer and chip away even more at Liam's already paper thin defenses, the poor bastard.
*...rub, rub, rub~ *
"Yeah, yeah~! What's the matter, Nii-sama?" added the slightly more stoic looking, but no less playful I-402.
*... Rub, rub~ *
As for I-400? Well, as they say, actions speak louder than words.
"..."
*... Rub, rub, RRUUBBB~ *
"...Help, me...?"
While the other shipgirls either just laughed at or rolled their eyes at him... Eldridge was doing her level best to not shock the poor bastard.
"... 'Help', huh? Okay, let me 'help' you out then nya."
And, just as Liam felt his hopes and prayers would be answered, instead found himself staring down the barrel of a big water gun.
"...A, kashi... san...?"
"...Nya? Hai, nyanideshou, Shikikan-sama?"
"...Why are you smiling while pointing a big water gun at me?"
"Because you all need to cool off, nya!"
And not even a second later, Liam and the others were met with a blast of surprisingly super cold water.
"Ahahahaha! Oh, this is amazing! Your Excellency really is the best!"
"And you really 'didn't' plan for all of this?" asked a more than a little skeptical Jean Bart.
"Hm? No, not really. I only arranged for dear George V and Wales to wear skimpy bikinis if they lost a friendly spar, that's all. Hah! Look at how His Excellency can't take his eyes off them now that they're all soaking wet too! Wonderful!"
*SPLISH, SPLASH!*
"Fine! You wanna add some dripping wet action to this little reunion turned bikini show too then huh? Okay, challenge accepted!" I-401 declared before whipping out her own water gun, from somewhere before taking aim at the cat eared verdette.
"HHHIIIISSSSS! Bring it on nya!"
With that, Saratoga, Eugen, and everyone who hadn't been hit by one little petite and smol kitty cat's jealous rage also materialized their own water guns and started a full blown water gun battle and completely derailing Liam's homecoming once and for all.
- Later, after everyone FINALLY ran out of energy -
Evening, in the now much quieter shared dorm living room.
"...Nnyyyaaannnn...~ ...Zzzz...~ "
"... Zzzz... My, lap...~ "
A very tired and full of hickeys Liam was sitting in the center of a slightly crowded semicircular sectional couch with a certain familiar pair of best frenemies sharing one half of his lap.
"... Seriously. How in the fuck did things turn out like this?" Liam asked no one in particular.
"Now, now mon cher. Celebrations are meant to be chaotic affairs, non?" Algerie asked in a gentle voice as she set down a warm cup of tea for Liam.
"Okay sure. But seriously, I'm glad Akagi and Taihou's flames didn't do anything other than just dried us off... Still scared me the crap out of me when they used them though... Speaking of which, what are the others up to now?"
"Ah, well everyone's just catching up or getting dinner ready."
"What about you?"
"Madame Belfast asked me to look after you three while she and the other maids prepare dinner."
"Huh. Well, guess that means you can fill me in on what you and the others were up to while we were away. At least until these two wake up or whenever dinner is ready, whichever comes first."
"Ah, oui. I suppose now would be the best time, wouldn't it? How about this. You tell me a bit of what the mission was like from your perspective, and I'll share a bit of what we did while you and the others were away. Sound fair?" Algerie suggested.
"Heh, okay, so what would you like to hear first?"
Gently pressing a slender finger to her chin, Algerie closed her eyes and gave it a little thought for moment before nodding to herself and asking. "What was it like, engaging in actual battle with the Sirens I mean."
...
"...Y'know. that's kinda hard to really explain... I mean, on the one hand, I only really saw the Sirens from behind a screen on the Liberty while providing support from the rear so I guess I was as safe as could be, all tings considered. On the other hand, we were usually heavily outnumbered and outgunned so... it was still tense as hell. Honestly, I'd be lying if I said that a small part wasn't constantly worrying about whether we'd actually make out in one piece or not. What scared me the most though, was whether I was giving out the right orders to everyone and making the right maneuvers in battle or not."
"...I see."
"Yeah. But more than all that was the realization that, despite the fancy flying battleship and advanced weapons, I was still powerless to do anything to actually help but stay out of the way while everyone else fought on the front lines. Really, the only comfort I felt was seeing that I didn't screw up any of the orders I gave out... and that was still really all only after the fighting ended and I could finally breathe again."
"But, it was still all thanks to your commands and support that everyone made it out of each battle in one piece though, non?"
Liam smiled and shook his head. "Not really. It was mostly thanks to you shipgirls being so badass. I just played everything by ear, that's all. Or, that's what the tiny but more pessimistic side of me thinks anyway."
"..."
'... Shikikan...'
'...Commander, dummy...!'
"I know I'm just overthinking things or whatever, but after meeting and working with Admiral Yang, I couldn't help but wonder things like what he would've done in my place or if this is how all Commanders felt during their first battles. I guess, I was just hit with another dose of 'yeah, this is reality now, like for real', y'know?" Liam clumsily tried to explain. "As for the rest of what was going on in my head? Well, it was a weird mix of pride, excitement, and awe all wrapped up in this crazy haze of battle calm... or something like that."
"Oh?" Algerie, who was sharing their conversation with the others over the fleet's 'Joint Tactical Network', couldn't help but curiously raise a slender eyebrow at Liam's words.
Liam chuckled, fully aware of how little sense he must be making. "Yeah. I mean, you shipgirls were so awesome! Still, even though you shipgirls were no joke, neither were those Siren Elites. Hell, we even had them outnumbered in both battles. And the second one even had them against NINE WHOLE FLEETS of shipgirls against just the two of them, not counting the fodder units."
"According to my sisters, you and Admiral Yang's ACSCs even managed to successfully catch the two Siren Elites in a surprise pincer attack."
"Heh, yeah. The whole plan hinged on whether or not the others could keep them in one place or not, but in the end, they pulled it off!" Liam proudly confirmed. "Seriously. If even one thing went wrong, or if we were one second off then it would've missed, or worse...! My heart was pounding a mile a minute the whole time!"
"Oui. According to the others, it was quite the sight seeing the high output ether cannons striking the Siren Elites from either side," Algerie commented as her sisters recounted and confirmed Liam's story.
"But then, out of nowhere and just as the Siren Elites were about to retreat, they were suddenly blasted by some crazy red lightning!" Liam added as he recalled the sight from aboard the Liberty. "Actually, for some reason, it kind of reminded me of Eldridge, though I can't say for sure why or how..."
'...!'
Though very much surprised by Liam's words, but not wanting to interrupt him, Eldridge did her very best to keep still even as she also realized that something about that mystery attack did indeed seem familiar... or in her case, exactly the same.
"Anyway, I think it's about time you shared something now, yeah?"
"Hm? Ah, oui. I suppose that's true... though I can't help but wonder who or what it was that interfered at the end...?"
Liam shrugged and shook his head. "Who knows, but maybe we'll learn something after Metis and the others finish analyzing the battle's combat data. Hopefully, anyway."
"So, what sort of story would you like to hear, mon cher?"
"...Well, for starters... How about how it was that King George V and Prince of Wales lost, for one. Oh, and how was Akashi? She didn't overwork herself too much again, did she?"
Algerie gently giggled. "That's two things but, oh well. Now then. I'll start with the second. Oui, Madame York made sure to keep a close eye on her. Well, she did pull one last all nighter the day you all left and the night before you returned though. Something about making sure to get everything ready for a big project she and Madame Metis are working on. Ah, but they've been pretty hush hush about the details."
"Heh. I'm looking forward to seeing what they plan to show off," Liam said as he gently stroked the sleeping(?) Akashi's head, smiling as he noted the slight twitching of her cat like ears. "But still, I wish she wouldn't overdo things..."
"Still, to think she and Madame Metis have gotten as much done as they have in so short a time though, is quite impressive to say the least..!"
Liam nodded. "Right!? I mean, I know they're both super geniuses and all, but still...! Anyway, putting Akashi's surprise aside for now. What about the fight that lead to our two knightly shipgirls wearing bikinis."
"Ah, right. Well, all of that can be traced back to both Madame York wanting to do something fun overlapping with the little ones' desire to vent.. physically. Things just, happened to line up and the two lost after learning the stakes," Algerie explained. "Oh, and they'll be everyone's exclusive maids for a full day... starting tomorrow."
...
"Wait, what!? Like, they have to do whatever I want dressed like that, for the whole day!?"
Algerie nodded, smiling at the silly, stupid look on her dear Commander's face. "Oui."
... Unfortunately, that look was the last straw for the not-sleeping Akashi and Eldridge.
"... Shi...Ki... Kan... NO BAKA NYAA!"
"...Dummy...!"
...
"...Eh...?" '...Ah, shit...!'
...
*ZZZAAAPPPP!*
"...Oh my~! "
- The next day, Akashi's lab -
September 13th, 2023 - Early morning, after breakfast.
*Tap, tap, tap, tap, tap...*
"Okay! Initial system checks, cleared. Error checks, cleared! Unit incubation cylinder checks, cleared! Alright, everything's good to go nya~! "
The assembled crowd of Liam and the other shipgirls watched in awe and fascination as Akashi furiously typed away on her terminal at lightning speed with countless screens popping in and out in front of her as she prepared to begin the first scheduled activation test of her and Metis' grand, secret project.
"She's really in the zone, huh?" Saratoga quietly remarked with wide, sparkling eyes.
"Indeed, but what do you think are in those cylinders?" Akagi asked as she curiously eyed the four large, slightly taller than they were objects lined up next to each other and connected to the island's 'Construction Site' servers.
"Well, I suppose it won't be long before we find out, non?" Jean Bart replied in her usual cool and collected tone.
"Don't you worry nya! Give me just another minute and you'll all get to see the fruits of our hard work nya!" proudly declared an equally excited Akashi as she finished the last few keystrokes on her terminal.
"By the way, where's Metis?" Liam asked, wondering where his adjutant/super AI assistant was. "I figured she'd wanna be here almost more than the rest of us considering what this project's about."
"Oh, no need to worry about her nya. Metis-chan's busy behind the scenes and will be making her appearance up in just a bit. I promise nya."
And with those words and a few more keystrokes, the first of the four cylinders, the last one on the right, began to glow as the screen showing the large magic circle in the construction site began to glow as well.
"Alright nya! So far so good! Soon, the first of the 'Dolls' we've poured our hearts and souls into making will wake up nya!"
"... Dolls?" Belfast repeated.
"Hai nya, 'Dolls'! Well, to put it as simply as I can, Dolls are basically 'artificial Sirens' we made by combining nano-machine modified combat androids with pre-primed wisdom cubes which, in place of the normal information body catalysts used to create shipgirls, instead will be loaded with artificial egos based on Metis-chan's base personality layer adaptive code and logic algorithms. As you may recall Metis, along with the nano-machines used to modify the androids, were both derived from reverse engineered Siren technology," Akashi explained before tapping one last key on her terminal. "And, there nya! All systems are go and no errors detected nya, so it should just be a moment before the first Doll comes online and wakes up nya! And this one is gonna be quite the surprise, I promise!"
"Ooh!" (x6) came the chorus of submarine triplets, a blonde zapper, a sleepy bunny, and Anchorage.
"While I can't say I don't have any mixed feelings hearing the words 'artificial Siren', I can't say that I'm not curious either," New Jersey admitted.
"True, but still, that same technology is how we were able to jam the Sirens' communication network ja?" Strasser agreed before pointing out that they've already been working with someone who is basically an artificial Siren already herself.
And then a moment later, it happened. As the smoke cleared away and the cylinder finished opening up, a very familiar voice greeted everyone, freezing them all where they stood.
...
"Ah, good morning everyone."
xxx xxx xxx