25 Chapter 23: Ironblood SOS
Yuudachi and Shigure slept against each other on the sofa, like a pair of doggies cuddling with one another. They were helping me earlier until Shioi came along. Today is not as hot as the rest and it's the perfect weather for a nap. Meanwhile, Shioi and I are at the desk, sorting out two months worth of documents for archiving. So many things happened this past few months that it completely slipped our minds. Even Ooyodo forgot about it till now. We have a backlog of about three months to clear. Usually, I will have Zuihou help me with this but she reported sick and has been resting in her room for the past two days. I wanted to nurse her but Shouhou convinced me that she will take care of her in my stead. I'm concerned but if it's Shouhou then she is in good hands.
"Admiral, this report... is it under Ops or miscellaneous?" (Shioi)
"Let me see."
Shioi passed me the report regarding Zuihou's kidnapping.
"Definitely under Ops. This is supposed to be together with Zuihou's Rescue Op. Can't believe it's almost three months since then."
I passed it back to Shioi,
"Let's see... I think it's in here?" (Shioi)
There was a knock on the door and Ooyodo walked right in.
"Ooyodo, you are too loud poi~" (Yuudachi)
Yuudachi rubbed her eyes as she woke up.
"What's up?"
I turned my attention to the bespectacled lady,
"A group of unknown shipgirls have entered our waters and are asking for something." (Ooyodo)
Why do I feel like this is going to be troublesome?
"And what is it that they want?"
"That's the issue. We don't know. They are speaking German, it seems. Prinz Eugen is talking to them at the moment. She is requesting permission to let them onto shore. She says she will take full responsibility for anything that happens and promises that they will disarm and behave themselves. Tenryuu, Murasame and Souryuu are armed and on standby." (Ooyodo)
Unknown german shipgirls... I remember there are four main factions in Azur Lane. We already met three of them, so this must be the last faction.
The Ironblood.
"Permission granted. I will meet them at the port. Deactivate the sentry turrets to allow for safe passage. Tell the three of them to remain on high alert."
"Understood." (Ooyodo)
Ooyodo began relaying what I said to the four girls.
"Let's go."
"Yes." (Shigure)
"Poi!" (Yuudachi)
"Yeah!" (Shioi)
We made our way to the port. Suddenly, six large warships appeared and parked themselves at the pier. Yep. Definitely Azur Lane related. That largest one must be a battleship. The two smallest ones look like Destroyers.
The four of us reached the port and were greeted with a peculiar sight,
"Köstlich! Was ist das für ein Bier?" <Delicious! What kind of beer is this?> (Tall blonde woman in black naval uniform and cape)
"Asahi Super Dry Bier. Es wird aus Reis hergestellt." <Asahi Super Dry beer. It's made from rice.> (Prinz Eugen)
"We should try this with some Goulash." <Wir sollten das mit Gulasch probieren.> (Small girl in white double-breasted dress top and blue beret)
"I recommend drinking this with Bratkartoffeln. The taste is more prominent." <Ich empfehle, ihn mit Bratkartoffeln zu trinken. Der Geschmack ist stärker ausgeprägt.> (Prinz Eugen)
"Never would I have thought I would see a nicer version of my sister. Lady Bismarck, can we bring her with us?" <Ich hätte nie gedacht, dass ich eine schönere Version meiner Schwester sehen würde. Frau Bismarck, können wir sie mitnehmen?> (Blonde twintail girl in gray military uniform with black, white and red accents and McDonalds hat)
Prinz Eugen was talking and drinking with six shipgirls. Tenryuu and Murasame are bandaging two bleeding girls, a petite girl with short silver tied in a sidetails, wearing a white double-breasted buttoned dress top over a black sleeveless tailed coat with a sharp collar, a white ascot and a golden aiguillette, and a taller bespectacled one in maroon cropped long-sleeved military jacket with yellow lined black cuffs. A silver-haired girl with a scarf and in a black, gothic-style dress which shows her underboob is enjoying her can of beer like she hasn't drank in ages. Mamiya is there as well, with a carton of Asahi Beer at her feet.
"Ah. Admiral, you're here." (Prinz Eugen)
Prinz Eugen approached me,
"What's happening here?"
"Let me introduce you. This is Bismarck, Admiral Hipper, Admiral Graf Spee, Kolhn, Z23 and Z1. They are part of Ironblood and would like some help." (Prinz Eugen)
"Huh. I.. see."
This Bismarck is entirely different from the one in Brunei. And this group are in the same circumstance as Enterprise's fleet back then.
The tall blonde woman, Bismarck, approached me and doff her cap,
"On behalf of my fleet, I sincerely apologize for intruding. However, we are in dire need of assistance." <Im Namen meiner Flotte entschuldige ich mich aufrichtig für mein Eindringen. Aber wir brauchen dringend Unterstützung.> (Bismarck)
"What is she saying?"
Prinz Eugen begin interpreting Bismarck's words. Right now, they are lost, hungry, and exhausted. They have been wandering around aimlessly for a long time now, resting on islands whenever they can. Prior to coming here, they had engaged with an Azur Lane fleet, resulting to Koln and Z1 being injured, and were forced to retreat. I can't tell them we also have an alliance with their sworn enemy. The fleet that engaged them wasn't Enterprise's, rather it was led by one Ark Royal. Another familiar name who is in Yokosuka. They were almost out of steam before they discovered this base.
"I implore you. Please let us have some food and rest here for the time being. We will get out of your hair as soon as possible." <Ich flehe Sie an. Bitte lasst uns hier etwas zu essen bekommen und uns vorerst ausruhen. Wir werden Ihnen so schnell wie möglich aus dem Weg gehen.> (Bismarck)
"But..."
"Me too. Please allow them to rest her for a bit. I know I'm being selfish but I can't bear to leave my fellow countrymen in this state." (Prinz Eugen)
Prinz Eugen bowed deeply.
Ugh... I get where she is coming from but I am obligated to report this to Azur Lane and HQ. Hmmm... Screw it.
"This is a standing order. Whatever you see or hear is to be kept confidential until I say otherwise. They can stay here but not for long. We have some empty rooms in the Carrier dorm. They can sleep there for now. Once they are able to move, please leave."
Prinz Eugen smiled brightly,
"Danke, Danke!" (Prinz Eugen)
I pet her head,
"And you are not being selfish. It's good that you want to help your fellow countrymen but let's keep this under wraps."
"Yeah! Danke, Admiral!" (Prinz Eugen)
She translated what I said to Bismarck and the taller woman bowed deeply,
"Danke!" (Bismarck)
"Yuudachi, Shigure, help them to the docks and their dorms. Murasame and Tenryuu, you can rest for the day. Souryuu, send out a scout and see if they were being followed. Can't risk them discovering that we are helping their enemy."
"Roger poi" (Yuudachi)
"Roger." (Shigure)
Understood." (Souryuu)
"We are seriously helping our allies enemies? Wouldn't it be easier for us to turn them in?" (Tenryuu)
"I'm not that evil to send them to their graves when they come here seeking help. Besides, we can make them owe us a favor."
"Heh. That's what the Great me wants to hear." (Tenryuu)
She tapped my chest with her fist,
"Call me if there's trouble. I will be there to slash them for you." (Tenryuu)
"Let's hope there isn't a need for that."
While the others helped the Ironblood girls, Shioi and I returned to the office to continue our work.
"Are you sure it's fine to do this?" (Shioi)
"As long as everyone plays their part and keeps this a secret, we won't get into trouble. No one needs to know about this anyway. Worse comes to worst, I will just make a false report."
This is not my first time falsifying reports. I did it several times when I was a Lieutenant.
Shioi and I spent the rest of the day arranging the reports into their respective months and categories. Shigure came back to assist but she needed to leave just after dinner, since she had plans with Shiratsuyu. We took breaks in the middle. Shioi requested head-pats during our breaks and of course, I indulged her. We may have taken a bit too much breaks, since we were barely half-done by the time the moon made its appearance.
"There is so much more~" (Shioi)
"Oh well, we can continue this tomorrow. We have a few weeks to sort and file everything so time is defiantly not an issue."
I pet Shioi's head one last time for the day,
"Thank you for today, Shioi. You can head back to your room. I'll see you tomorrow."
Shioi hugged me,
"See you tomorrow, Admiral. Good night." (Shioi)
"Good night."
Shioi left and closed the door behind her. What a sweet girl.
I looked at the stack of never-ending documents on and around my desk. This is a depressing sight. Should I create a false report, saying that Ironblood forced their way in and demanded we hand over some resources? Plus the fact that they threatened to launch a bombardment on civilian areas if we do not comply with their demands. I can say that we prioritized the shipgirl's wellbeing, the base, and civilian areas over a couple of resources. Yeah, let's do that in case HQ or Azur Lane somehow caught wind of what we did.
I begin typing out the false report. I just need to make it sound believable and logical.
My phone notification noise rang out. I unlocked it to see that Shouhou had sent me a LINE message.
"I'm sorry...? Huh?"
I'm sorry? What is that supposed to mean?
"Admiral..." (Zuihou)
"Woah! You surprised me! When did you come in?"
Before I could reply and ask what Shouhou meant, Zuihou was standing in front of me. I didn't even hear her come in.
"Zuihou, are you feeling better?"
...
No answer...
"Zuihou? What's wrong?"
She was looking down.
"Zuihou. Talk to me."
"Admiral, please tell me it's not true." (Zuihou)
Her voice quivered,
"What are you talking about?"
"Please! Please tell me Shouhou is lying." (Zuihou)
"I don't understand. What are you saying?"
When she looked up, I could see tears streaming down her face,
"Was there... another me in the past? Was that grave... for me?" (Zuihou)
...
Eh? Oh shit...
