...

Floating. calm and peace. damp.

Voices. The warm sun, The taste of salt. sea waves. who were they?

What is that warm light? It's bright. too bright...

...I couldn't do it. so you have to do it for yourself...

Unlike the previous sensation of drowning and my nightmare-haunted naps. It felt far more peaceful. I wasn't being bombed or shelled nor was my RWR going off and neither was my Core damaged.

'Near miss... damaged by torpedo detonation...U-boat...Unable to search for Gneisenau...'

I heard what may have been a memory of Norfolk's. Was it related to U-47?

Pushing that thought aside. My senses came back to me as I spotted what looked like... sparks of light. They were like twinkles in my vision and I could feel them with my sixth sense... Was that my passive ability in work? But it felt like I was sleeping in water.

Then that mean I had made it back home, safe and sound. Well. then that supposed I had underwent repairs at some point and was probably in the baths, considering the heavy amount of steam and fog in here complete with the fact I was soaked in a tub. And that I had no clothes in the tub whatsoever.

For whatever reason and despite being very experienced with the idea of female characters. especially back on deviantart, seeing myself with no clothes didn't really affect me. Likely I was still too tired and glad I made it out in one piece to care right now even if i looked cute.

There was noone around me, that I knew for sure from reaching out with my sixth sense. Whatever I felt were not inside this room. Well, beats having to see infants on the beach or witnessing parents undress their children's shirt just because they got it wrong and it was reversed. Ironically enough I was a loli myself according to Norfolk's design.

Looking up at the ceiling tiles. I didn't see anything else, There was no clock either above my head. so I had no idea how long i had been in here for now. Well, that meant I was going to have to get comfortable floating around in thus bath. wasn't i?

As time passed, I don't really know how long i spent testing my magical girl powers. first with flames and then forming a small iceberg in my tub that quickly melted. and finding whatever I could do in my head to pass the time. It must have went on for several minutes. because eventually boredom began to set in.

I was always one of these people that needed to stay alert from anything that looked out of place. be it mental, physical. video games or simply just looking at city design and listening to music. And with nothing other than the water and droplets as well as the sound of igniting arcane flames I was rapidly starting to go back to a state of being tired.

That almost made wish for some action with the Sirens, but I remembered that I had been placed in this tub for a good reason. And submarines from Norfolk's memory. And how expensive modern equipment was. And how dangerous it would have been to get outmatched 40 to 1. I rather not be put into more suicidal missions if I could help it!

But my boredom still remained. And I needed something to do to keep me awake before even the simple act of keeping the flame on my fingertips alive became too much for me.

I don't think people knew that I was awake until i got too restless. I wasn't getting out of this tub, that much was already obvious because of the possible risks. I might as well just sleep through it if things were taking this long.

And I remembered my unstable sleeping pattern and staying up late... I had to rely on watching videos of minecraft Disk 11 to get myself into a sleepy mood. but my new shipgirl nature meant things likely had changed, Last i checked. Having shipgirls eat highly explosive gasoline fumes and devouring entire casted pieces of steel like oversized chocolate and a topping of motor oil was lethal as a dose of turning into a witch. I am sure a cocktail of orange light. drugs and heavy magic exhaustion still was not going to be enough to make a dent in whatever i was capable of doing to my new body.

Before long. I felt someone approaching and I tensed up in anticipation. Was that...?

"You're awake!" A voice ahead of me said with a energetic tone. That was Kent!

"A-Ah..." I groaned out as i turned my head to give a stare. "Am... Am I hurt...? What happened? Why am i here...?"

Kent was silent for a bit as she looked back in return before going with:"Easy there... Norfie, You've been through a lot. don't strain yourself. You passed out when we returned to our port." Oh, I memorized what had happened before I blacked out. And wow she was trying to calm a possibly agitated fast battleship armed with missiles and the best Almaz-Antey and Northrop could offer.

"O-ohhh... I'm just... getting bored..." At least until whatever bureaucracy and anything they might have done to me like stealing my precious technology was done and I painfully had no idea of what they might have done.

"Bored." Kent said in slight disbelief. "You're bored?"

"Aaaaieeeeeee." I yawned cutely. "I ammmm."

Then Kent decided to reply. "Norfie, You were in enemy territory before we discovered you! That has to count for something!"

"I-I am not going to a-actively wait another day for someone to say i'm h-healthy." I stuttered looking back up at the ceiling. "I'm...very energetic and I g-get restless if i have to wait this out without having a-anything to do." Was Norfolk's personality affecting me?

"Seriously?"

Shuddering. I tried my best to reply. "Yes...seriously."

"Well, Can we talk?" Kent... I forget I still didn't have clothes. All of a sudden I tried hard to not blush when I realized i might be looking at Kent's bulging chest the entire holy hell time. Or that she might be just staring at mine's 24/7 in return.

I could keep staring at the ceiling but with how naive i was in social skills. I reckon that might not be good if i refused to just stare at her. But then again, It was something i may have to do. I had done it before. Norfolk's mindset may get in the way though.

"S-Sure?" I said trying to move a arm... Only for it to seize and act up. What the hell? Were my magical girl abilities still refusing to work or...!? "G...Guuu...!"

Now when I decided to talk to people without becoming very tsun-tsun irritable. I had thought it would be usual small talk I didn't bother to listen to. Turns out I was wrong. "Yeah!" Kent began. "Now then, I'll damit I am curious as to what class of ship you are!"

Great, It just had to steer into that. Right... And I thought my tendency to start getting angry for no reason over small talk and friends gossiping was bad. "U...Uhh...?"

"Norfie... If it helps you calm down..." Of course Kent had to start closing the distance! It was taking everything i had to not blush still! I wanted to say it. But already could i feel the other side of me telling me not to and conflicting! Hell, I was starting to think about the possible effects of saying what exactly i am. even if i was scheduled to undergo analysis!

"A-Alsace?" I decided to give my answer, I didn't want to go on with so many theories to someone who was meant to be athletic. not a knowall like Z23 or one of the french shipgirls.

Actually, Now I was starting to wonder how different Norfolk might be compared to Kent. so I turned to look at her and wow. Her art was not kidding, Maybe I should have expected that getting to see Kent in-person instead of through a TV screen but damn. already was I starting to get flustered, I can't even say she looks any different from someone cosplaying Kent correctly. because the only thing missing might be these striking red eyes. She doesn't even have her headband on. Possibly something to do with having just got back.

I know it's strange to say, But it's so jarring when you get to see someone for real instead of seeing them on a phone screen and before someone says that it's technically equivalent... You should just go look at anime and compare them to skyirm models!

As for the rest of her though, I was far and tiny compared to her than she was. I suspect she was about the same height as a average girl. which is much. much shorter than me being a usual anime Loli. not to mention that she was fairly big-chested. but not overly so.

She was just bigger than me overall. And yes. even in that torpedo bulge department. though i suppose that if my armor was a composite sandwich of ceramic-steel against AP threats.. it would need to be streamlined.

Kent for her most part looked wide-eyed and surprised as we both just stared at each other. "Alsace? The french battleships that only existed on paper?" Then she suddenly got very close. at the same time forcing me to crawl away a bit to keep my distance from these torpedo bulges. "We need to see if that's true of not!" For hell sake! I still had no clothes on! What did i say about carrying around children with no clothes again!? It looks like as if you are carrying me off just to lewd me later with a 8-inch gun from your stern up my ammunition handling rooms!

Again, This had to be done in an hour. Check out Purple shift if you can! The OPFOR path became the basis for it later but without waking up and making the decision. note that a KMS Norfolk or as a independent third-party of OPFOR siren Norfolk can still happen later.

Weapons can still be changed. I may now instead have the Thales APAR of the Type 346C for a powerful. if dangerously unreliable search/Gun radar. Also. No2 or No3 are still options. The 406mm guns theirselves are 20% faster with Novel propellants (Why am i saying this now you may ask?) but so far are unconfirmed if they are ETC of not.

A steel-Alumina armor scheme is also a option as does Perforated armor.

I will consider an discord later. If you guys really want to see me suffering or get lewded by Bismarck of Howe for no reason other than french speed and pain at all in a request.