Chapter 25
xxx xxx xxx
September 17th, 2023 - Afternoon.
VR Training Room Number Three.
"Heehee~"
Tapping her staff on the virtual water's surface, the teasing schemer of a battleship was soon covered in a bright, crimson red light before aiming her main guns at a charging Taihou and Eldridge.
*BOOM! BOOM!*
"...Oh, my reload speed..," Flandre remarked, noticing that her rigging's guns had suddenly finished reloading. "Was this your doing?"
Clemenceau nodded. "Oui. Now then, if you would."
"I see. Well then," With a little nod of her own and guns fully loaded, the petite silverette proceeded to 'mark' the little zapper headed her way before firing her main guns.
*BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!*
"...!"
However, rather than evade or defend herself, Eldridge instead covered herself in a bio-electric field and increased her speed to immediately counterattack with a barrage of her own, effectively canceling out Flandre's barrage. Meanwhile, a giggling Taihou let loose a few squadrons of aircraft drones to harass Flandre and keep her distracted to give Eldridge a moment to make use of her increased speed while she covered her tessen with flames and aimed for Clemenceau.
"Ara, you two put up a surprisingly tough fight so far, but this is the end~!"
"Oh my~ I'm in a pinch now, aren't I?"
However, contrary to Taihou's expectations, Clemenceau didn't look the least bit worried. No, she was even... smiling.
'...Hm? Why is she-Ah! Shimatta!'
Too late to notice, Taihou suddenly found herself in the center of a magical three point 'confinement array'.
"You don't really think this will hold me for all that long, do you?" Taihou asked once the surprise wore off, striking the array's boundary with her flame covered tessen and noticing how fragile the barrier actually was.
"Hm? Well, non. But I don't need it too either, heehee~" Clemenceau replied as she once again tapped her staff down on the water's surface and once again aimed her main guns at Taihou. "At this range, it doesn't really matter, now does it~"
"...No, I suppose it doesn't." and, realizing that she wouldn't be able to escape, evade, or or counter in time, Taihou couldn't help but smile bitterly at her situation. 'Ah, she really got me, didn't she...'
- In the observation room -
"...Whoa!" exclaimed a genuinely surprised Liam. "That wasn't in any of the records! I mean, I know they have their unique personal skills, which are a kind of magic themselves, but that was a standard mid level, military grade barrier spell, right?"
"Ara, I'm surprised you knew that, Shikikan-sama~" said a very impressed Akagi sitting to his left after coming in the room just before Clemenceau, Flandre, Taihou, and Eldridge's mock battle began. Fortunately, she wasn't at all interested in Clemenceau's schemes and simply used it their little spat as an opening to have Liam all to herself, at least for a little while.
"Hai nya! Me, Belfast-san and the others have been making sure to cram as much knowledge into his head as we can!"
"...Ugh. Don't remind me..," Liam grumbled as he recalled the first few days of the hellish schedule he only recently has gotten used to. "I may be in better shape and all that now but it's been rough keeping up with such strict teachers though..."
"Nyhaha! But we make sure to keep you nice and relaxed though, right~?"
...
"...No comment."
"Nyahahaha~!"
"Hm? Why is dear Comrade blushing?" Tashkent innocently asked from her spot laying atop Liam's lap.
"...Um, er..."
"Ara, just check the archived files in the Network labeled 'Commander' when you get the chance," Azuma gently said. "And don't worry, we'll answer any questions you might have later."
"...Kay!"
"Now I'm curious, but what does Shikikan-sama's schedule look like?" Akagi asked.
"Wanna see nya? Here, take a look," Akashi said, sliding her tablet over and bringing up its holo-display for Akagi and the others to see.
"...Oh wow."
"Big Brother really is busy..."
"..Arara..."
"Poor dear comrade."
Needless to say, when the gathered shipgirls saw what was displayed, they couldn't help but feel for their Commander.
Liam however, just chuckled. "Nah, it's not all bad. And like, it's thanks to everyone's training that I made it through our first battles without making any major mistakes with my orders... And, yeah... everyone makes sure to um, keep me motivated..."
"Ah! Big Brother's blushing again!" Natsuha observed, giggling.
"He certainly is. Ah, and by the way. Miss Akagi?" Joffre began, turning her attention over to the fox tailed aircraft carrier.
"Hm? What is it, Joffre-san?"
"Would you mind having a spar with me after they're done? Aside from today's earlier drill, I haven't really had many chances to show off what I can do. Not to mention, I'd also be able to see what fighting against a more experienced aircraft carrier would be like as well."
"Oh, that's not a bad idea," Akagi said, happily agreeing. "After all, it's a big sister's duty to help out her little sisters. Oh, but after dinner though. I'm sure Shikikan-sama would like a break and some time to decompress first, ne?"
Joffre nodded. "Of course. So, would you be alright with that, Commander? Watching over our own match that is."
Liam shrugged. "Sure, why not. Besides, we can also use the chance to show the new shipgirls just what their big sisters can do too. But yeah, after I get something to eat and unwind a bit first." Just then, a small alarm went off on his own tablet, signaling the end of the match's time limit. "Hm? Oh! Good timing." 'Still, I got so distracted by Akagi and Tashkent that I had a hard time actually paying attention to their match... Oh well. That's what review sessions are for, right?'
"Yay~ Lunch time!" Tashkent said, finally getting up and taking Liam by the hand. "Let's go, dear Comrade~!"
"Indeed. Come along, Shikikan-sama~" Akagi added, taking Liam's other hand.
Just then...
"Commander, back! Hug! ...Oh? ...Mmmph!"
...
'...Aw, dammit...!'
*Zzzaapp!*
- Shipgirl dorms, cafeteria -
"Um, are you alright, my Honorable Master?" asked a concerned Sirius as she noticed a slightly singed looking Liam as he happily ate his lunch while being crowded by several of the smaller shipgirls and dolls.
"Hm? Sirius? Yeah, I'm fine. Oh, you mean this?" Liam replied, gesturing to the little marks here and there. "Yeah well, nothing new around here, right?"
"...Hmph! My, lap!" Eldridge suddenly declared from atop Liam's lap as she popped a chicken tender into her mouth, humming in delight and making little heart shaped sparks float up harmlessly in the air.
Sirius giggled. "I see."
"Mm!"
"...You seriously need to learn to not be so greedy," Tashkent muttered from her left.
"Don't bother nya. She's just like Akagi and Taihou when it comes to Shikikan's lap," Akashi said from her right.
"Hmph! Green Cat, mean! Besides, everyone wants Commander... But, my lap!"
"Hai, hai."
And, sitting across from them.
"Still, I can't believe she ended the match by shocking all of us like that," Clemenceau said, honestly shocked and surprised that Eldridge would go so far as to shock her own teammate if it meant winning. As much as she loved schemes, plots and messing with people, even Clemenceau wouldn't intentionally put her allies in harm's way, training or not.
"That's just how deep her love is," Taihou remarked, elegantly sipping her tea. "Besides, she kept the output low enough to only stun us."
"...Maybe for you...," Flandre grumbled, showing a rare bit of emotion in the form of annoyance.
"Oh? She's gotten a lot better at choosing who she hits full force with her power, did she?" Akagi mused, recalling the few times she was on the receiving end of the little blonde menace during training matches. "And not only that, look."
Meanwhile, while all this was going on, Liam smiled to himself as he took a look around at the noisy cafeteria full of chattering shipgirls.
'... Sure it's tough and yeah I could end up dead with just one bad decision or bad luck, but I"m so glad I found this place and met these girls. Still though, Sirens are no joke. I mean, if it weren't Admiral Yang, I don't know if we would've made it out of that second battle... Yeah, we really gotta make sure we're at the top of our game for the next we run into them. Though, knowing my luck, it probably won't be all that long... Ugh.'
"Hm? You okay Big Brother?" Natsuha asked. "You look like something's on your mind."
"Hm? Ah, yeah. Sorry. Just thinking about how much I gotta work harder is all," Liam replied, gently patting the twintailed blonde's head.
"Oh, well, don't worry! Natsuha and everyone will do their best too!"
"She's right nya!"
"... Mm!"
"Thanks girls. Anyway, are you all looking forward to going to the Sakura Empire?"
"Speaking of which. Master, have you figured out who you'll be taking with you?" Belfast asked after refilling his empty coffee mug. "I know you mentioned getting a couple more fleets' worth of shipgirls and submarines to leave behind for to guard the island, but we haven't finalized the deployment roster yet, right?"
...
"...Crap! I've been so busy with everything else that I haven't gotten around to that yet!"
For a moment, the whole cafeteria went deathly quiet as soon as those words left Liam's mouth... at least before all hell broke loose again until Jean Bart slammed her mug of ale down, gets everyone's attention, and then calmly suggests they simply do what shipgirls always do when such disputes come up... fight it out.
...
'...Well, I guess this works? On the bright side, this'll speed things along I guess.'
xxx xxx xxx
Northern Mirror Sea Front line Base.
"Well? How was it?" Tester asked, seeing Observer and Purifier returning from their latest scouting mission to the Sakura Empire mainland.
"With respect to the results of repeated and prolonged field testing of the prototype 'suppressor' plugins for our optical camouflage layers? Well within the margin of error, as long as we don't overexert ourselves and keep away from areas with high kansen concentration such as the country's Naval Districts and patrol routes," Observer reported before adding. "There's still much room for improvement, and we can't really use them for anything other than small excursions, but overall, we collected enough data to help with that. As for the situation surrounding the the kansen and their human allies, however..."
Seeing the normally cool, calm and collected Observer hesitate like this, Tester couldn't help but quirk an eyebrow. "What's wrong?"
"About that," Purifier cut in. "It seems like both the kansen and local military, along with some foreign troops from the Europan theater, have been engaging in joint training exercises and gathering supplies, almost as if they're preparing for an attack."
"... Oh? Does that mean they somehow found out about one our bases then?" Tester asked. "Odd, I haven't heard any reports to that effect."
Observer shook her head. "It doesn't appear that way, no. Still, I believe it would be dangerous to underestimate the Commander working out of the Sakura Empire as he seems to possess an unusually keen intellect and perceptiveness that has, so far, helped to keep the region safe. After all, his presence is one of the major reasons for our upcoming operation in the first place."
"But it's not just him," Purifier added. "While we weren't able to confirm it, word on the street is that the Royal Island's so-called 'Black Prince' is there as well. Now, he might not be a Commander himself, but his skills as both a politician and military tactician are why western Europa and the north eastern parts of the Eagle Union have managed to hold out as long as they have."
"...Wait, why would someone like the 'Black Prince' be out here halfway across the world?" Tester asked.
"Evidently, it's due to his duties as Second Prince of the Royal Islands. Rumor has it that he's engaged to one of the Sakura Empire's oldest noble houses," Purifier explained. "That's also likely the excuse as to why there's foreign troops present too."
"...And you're seriously telling me that all of this is 'nothing more than a series of coincidences'?" Tester asked.
Purifier just shrugged. "Who can say. There's just not enough information to say, so it may or may not be. Doesn't really change anything on our end though, right?"
There was a slight, but pregnant silence but eventually Tester slowly nodded, conceding her fellow Elite's point.
"...No, it doesn't."
"Oh, but there was one bit of somewhat classified information we managed to get our hands on though," Purifier suddenly added.
"Hm? What is it?"
"We also couldn't verify this either, given the circumstances, but Purifier and I heard a few off duty Imperial Navy officers talking about hosting a second Commander led kansen fleet that's supposed to arrive in a few weeks time. Most likely, it's the same one you and Purifier fought against," Observer replied.
"Ohoh? Well, Aside from the one operating out of the Sakura Islands I can't really imagine it being anyone else," Purifier said with a smirk, recalling the battle she and Tester had against that unknown Commander's shipgirls. "Well, unless one of those two weirdos from Europa decided to come this way for some reason that is..."
Tester shook her head. "No, and besides, it wouldn't make any sense for them to be so far from the Atlantic Theater... which begs the question..."
"The unknown fleet's identity, right?" Purifier asked, completing Tester's thought.
Tester nodded. "Yes."
"Well either way, rather than speeding up or needlessly adjusting our plans, I propose we simply act as if nothing has changed... with the sole exception of requesting more reserve forces and supplies, 'just in case'," Observer suggested.
"Alright then, we'll go with that plan. But for now, and seeing as my body has fully healed, I think I'll take a look around the mainland for a little bit, fresh air and all that. So, can I leave the rest to you until I get back?" Tester asked, getting up from her chair and causing it to disappear.
"No problem~! Have fun Testy~!"
"Alright, leave it to us," Observer said, summoning a few 'panels' and getting to work. "Oh, but to account for the extra forces and and supplies we'll need to push back the operation by another two weeks."
"Thanks, and that's fine. Anyway, I'll be off then."
xxx xxx xxx
September 20th, 2023 - Morning
Outer Heaven, Liam's personal office.
"..Ugh, finally! It's not perfect, but at least it's a start!" Liam muttered as he leaned back in his chair, rubbing his tired eyes after going over the latest round of new fleet composition proposals and reports on the status of preparations for their upcoming trip to the Sakura Empire. Thankfully, the chaos of three days ago quickly passed once the shipgirls used their tried and true methods of. fighting out their issues. Luckily, a general consensus was reached in the end, which left him stuck in his office trying to figure out the details ever since.
*BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!*
However, before Liam could let his mind unwind and actually relax, a notification notice on his tablet went off.
"...Huh? Oh. Looks like the latest group of shipgirls just woke up... Alright, with them and the new submarines here, we should have enough for seven full fleets now... sigh... still a ways to go before we hit the twelve full fleets I wanted, but... Guess that means we'll need to push our trip back a few days then. Oh, and that's not even counting the new Dolls Metis and Akashi plan to have come online either... Well, no point complaining about it. Right then, before I go meet the new shipgirls I better let Yang know and readjust our plans again."
- Metis and Akashi's lab -
"Alright nya! Thanks to you, Hibari-chan, Natsuha-chan and Fuu-chan, we've successfully compiled enough data to not only streamline the Doll creation process, we even managed to allow you access to the 'Joint Tactical Network' too nya!"
"Wait, what? But I thought the 'Joint Tactical Network' was a shipgirl exclusive ability though," Metis said, genuinely surprised to hear this.
"Ah, right," Akashi began with a nod before pulling up several screens displaying the bio nanomachines shipgirls possess on one screen and the Siren derived nanomachines Dolls possessed on another. "Remember when I mentioned how SNRI wanted to replicate the abilities our bio nanomachines granted could by using reverse engineered Siren derived ones? Well, who better to carry on that dream and make it happen than yours truly nya! Thanks to everything I've learned since starting this whole crazy project of ours, I've managed to successfully isolate both the quantum and magical frequencies that our fleet's 'Joint Tactical Network' operates on. It wasn't easy, but I did it nya! I'm totally a genius nya! Nyahahahaha!"
"...You really are, Miss Akashi...!" Metis said, completely agreeing. "But, will the other shipgirls be okay with this?"
"Hm, oh yeah. No worries nya. I'm sure you already heard this, but we consider you and the other Dolls our fellow 'fleet sisters', so everyone was more than happy to share this ability with you all nya! Besides, the network isn't restricted by location or distance, so it'll only help us out in the long run nya."
"That's true. So? How many Dolls are we going to 'wake up' next?"
"Well, I was thinking of going three at a time, like with shipgirls in the 'Construction Site'."
Metis nodded. "Sounds good. Then, I'll go ahead and begin prepping the incubation cylinders."
"Thanks nya! And I'll get started on prepping the wisdom cubes and modified nanomachines!"
- Third Sub-basement, 'Construction Site' -
"Mm? Oh, it looks like someone's stepping inside," said a tall, buxom shipgirl with long, wavy reddish brown hair and amber eyes as the characteristic fog cleared up. Next to her was a slightly shorter, shipgirl with long white and black hair, uniquely pointed ears, and red eyes dressed in a distinctly 'vampire' themed outfit who carried a reserved, but passionate air about her. Behind them, however, stood a shy and quite shipgirl with long, silver hair and heterochromatic red and blue eyes.
"Hey, you! Who are you?" haughtily asked the the pointy eared shipgirl, stepping forward.
This caught the dark grey haired man who entered off guard, causing him to stop in his tracks.
"Eh? Me?" the man asked, pointing at himself.
The confident, mostly white haired shipgirl nodded. "Da, you. Who else would I be talking to! Now, answer the question! Who are you?"
"..U, um... I think, I think that's our Kommandant...," quietly said the silver haired shipgirl, finally speaking up.
"...What, really?" the mostly white haired shipgirl replied with genuine surprise.
"Um, ja... He, he feels like our Kommandant... Can't, can't you feel it...?" the silver haired shipgirl asked back, equally as surprised by her fellow fleet sister's carelessness.
"...Eh..?" At first, the mostly white haired shipgirl wasn't sure what the shy silverette was talking about... before a myriad number of emotions flashed through her as realization set in after getting a better look at the newcomer. "...Oh, you're... you're right...! He is our Comrade Commander! How, How did I not notice that until now!?"
"Um, it, it's okay. I think, I think you were just so excited to meet the Kommandant, that you blocked everything else out... maybe..."
"But still, what a blunder!" lamented the mostly white aired shipgirl, head hung and all her dreams of making a good first impression dashed by her own over-eagerness.
"...There there," consoled the silver haired shipgirl, gently patting the other's head. "It's okay... I'm sure, I'm sure the Kommandant isn't mad."
Meanwhile, while that was going on, the taller, reddish brown haired and amber eyed shipgirl took this chance to come over and get a better look at the newcomer only for her innate, motherly instincts to kick in the instant she laid eyes on him.
"...Oh dear. You don't look so well... Are you alright? Hungry? Not getting enough sleep? Is it stress from overwork? Ah, oh how silly of me! Introductions, introductions. My name's Volga, Northern Union aircraft carrier~ Rad vstreche, Comrade~ "
"Oh, I'm, I'm Liam. Liam Archer. And yeah, sorry for not lookin' my best. It's, it's been really busy around here. Thanks for asking though, Miss Volga," Liam said, grateful for the motherly aircraft carrier's concern before turning his attention to the two now quiet shipgirls behind her staring at him. "..Um, and you two are?"
Quick to respond and make up for her earlier blunder, the mostly white haired shipgirl quietly cleared her throat and stepped forward to introduce herself, starting with an elegant and graceful curtsy.
"Greetings, dear Comrade. I am Northern Union Battleship Sevastopol. and it is my deepest pleasure to make your acquaintance."
"No, no. The pleasure's mine, Miss Sevastopol!"
Satisfied, the now named Sevastopol nodded, smiled and took a step back, gently nudging the shy, silver haired shipgirl to go next.
"...! Oh, oh... um..."
Fidgeting a bit, followed by a few failed starts and stops, the silver haired shipgirl closed her eyes and took a deep breath to center herself before trying one more time.
"..I'm, I'm Iron Blood light cruiser Elbing. I, I may not be as powerful or as well armored as other cruisers, but... but I'm confident in my evasion and range...! So, so I'm sure I'll be of help to you from now on too, Kommandant..!"
Seeing the fire behind Elbing's red and blue eyes, Liam couldn't help but smile as he gently pat her head.
"No worries, Miss Elbing. I'm new at this whole 'being a Commander' thing too so let's help each other out, yeah?"
He then turned to a smiling Volga and smirking Sevastopol.
"That includes you both too. Think you can help me out?"
"Hmph! But of course! That's why we're here after all, isn't it?" Sevastopol haughtily said, hands on her hips and proudly sticking out her chest.
"Mm~ You can totally count on me~ " Volga replied. "So let's do our best~ "
"Alright then, Let's go and introduce you three to the others then. Oh, and sorry in advance, but you're going to be super busy right after, so better enjoy this peace while you can."
"Feh! Bring it on I say!" Sevastopol declared, scoffing at the thought of not being able to meet and surpass any and all challenges that dared to stand in her way.
"...Um, Ja! Bring, bring it on...!"
"There you go! You tell him!" Sevastopol said, hugging the shy Elbing as they followed after a chuckling Liam while Volga, for her part, just giggled at the pair's cute antics.
- Shipgirl dorms, later that night -
Sevastopol's first diary entry...
"...Ugh. So, so very tired...! I'm so tired that I can barely taste my wine... Truly, what a waste...!
...
But, I suppose that is the price I must pay to show my big sisters just how truly skilled I am!
And, the way dear Comrade smiled proudly at my performance...! I must confess, it made my wisdom cube beat so much more than I thought it would...
Ah, but to think I'd find a kindred spirit in Comrade Vampire. Actually, I think I'd like to invite her to share a glass of wine with me the next chance I get. I'd make the same offer to drink with Comrade Eugen and little Laffey... but, nyet. Those two love their beer too much... There's no way I could keep up with them and not come out looking like a fool... Hm, I wonder if dear Comrade would mind sharing a glass of wine with me though... Maybe if I continue to do well in training, or when we go to the Sakura Empire... Well, things to think about later I suppose..."
Volga's first diary entry.
"All the little ones were so cute~! Little Laffey, Little Eldridge, Little Sara. Even Anchorage was absolutely adorable~! Oh, and petting Little Akashi and seeing her actually purr~! I'm so glad I took pictures!
And all of the other sisters were so much fun to talk to as well~ Though, I admit I find Akagi and Taihou to be a bit... intense, oh but Saratoga, or Sister Sara as she prefers to be called, is such a reliable big sister~! Comrades Amagi and Shinano too~! Oh, I can see us getting along very well~ But, the best part? The part that made enduring the surprise training so worth it? ... The tails~ There were fluffy tails everywhere! Akagi, Kaga, Amaig, and Shinano all had such big and fluffy tails! Oh, and Murmansk had some too, though they were magical accessories and weren't anywhere as big. but were still very fluffy themselves.
Oh, I almost forgot~ I got to give Comrade a lap pillow and Head Maid Belfast said she'd teach me how to cook too~
One thing I found hard to believe though, was how much Sovetsky Soyuz fawned over the little ones herself. That soft smile of hers was quite, charming~ Maybe she has a fondness for cute things?
All in all, and tough training aside, today was a very, very good day~!"
Elbing's first diary entry.
"...Everyone, was so nice to me... It was strange. Strange, but pleasant. Oh, and der Kommandant held my hand while I introduced myself to everyone too. It, it really helped calm me down as I spoke though I couldn't help but feel my wisdom cube pounding in my chest though.
It, it was still hard talking to anyone, but nobody rushed me... Actually, a lot of the big sisters kept patting me on the head. though I couldn't help but giggle when Eldridge and Laffey patted my head. I know they're my big sisters too, but they were so small and cute!
... I, didn't say anything though. I saw her show off her zapping... and it was scary.
Training was hard, and very sudden.
I, I don't think I slowed anyone down though. Nein, I actually felt really good even! Frau Belfast even gave me the first slice of cake when the drill was over too, though Sevastopol had a funny pouty look when it happened, heehee~
Anyway, will have more training... and with der Kommandant and the rest of the fleet I'll be assigned to and I can't wait!
Still, I really hope today wasn't a fluke and tomorrow will just as nice... Please let that be the case...!"
xxx xxx xxx
A/N:
And, DONE!
It took a bit longer to get this done than I'd have liked, but I've been much busier than I thought I'd be...
Well, all that aside, things are moving along and the next chapter 'should' finish up the group's preparations and be heading out to the Sakura Empire.
Well, that's the plan anyway, but we'll see.
I was happy to add in more 'exclusive faction' shipgirls along with hinting at the floof! I'll be sure to give the many floofs some screen time! Because I love the floof!
Anyway, I hoped you enjoyed and see you next update!