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Chapter Text

Enterprise sighed, the clicking of her keyboard bringing a noticeable twitch to her eye. The days had only been getting longer and longer recently, and her work had only been getting harder and harder. The war had devolved into a slugfest, and she had the sinking feeling they weren’t the ones winning.

A glance out the window told her everything she needed to know: things were running smoothly, the day was at least half over, and a gaggle of shipgirls were making way towards… somewhere. She took a second glance as a steady stream of brightly colored heads made their way past her office, curving around the waterfront and out of sight.

Watching for nearly a full minute, during which the flow never lessened, Enterprise turned back to her work with a shrug, her fingers clacking away to fill the room with noise. She was typing for far too long before someone burst down the door, the surprise nearly knocking her out of her chair.

“Enterprise! They found some! We’ve got it!”

Calming herself, Enterprise gave Cleveland a strained smile. The blonde was nearly bouncing on her feet, excitement making her face split in a massive grin.

“Enterprise, let’s go! The Task Force returned with some intact Sirens! C’mon, let’s go!”

Enterprise’s eyes widened, and she lost her ability to speak for a spell. This was good news. Beyond good news, really. This was war-changing, a chance to learn more about their opponents than anyone had been able to so far. This was something that came only once a century, give or take an extraterrestrial invasion.

“T-that’s… really, just…. wow. That’s actually some great news.”

Cleveland nodded sharply, her hair bouncing around before she was pushed aside by a strong arm. Prince of Wales entered, giving Cleveland a friendly smile as she performed a small bow before Enterprise. Straightening, her secretary smoothed her skirt absentmindedly as she spoke.

“I’ll assume that Cleveland has stolen the prestige from my announcement. It is as she says; Task Force 22 has returned with several intact Siren chassis, among other, admittedly less exciting, salvage. We would request your presence immediately.”

Enterprise was already standing, her hat set as she crossed the room to her blonde escorts.

“Of course. This is a tremendous breakthrough; I’d be a little nutty to not poke my head in.”

~~~~~~~~

Enterprise gave the burnt and scarred shells a glance. Laid out on several tables were the remains of the Sirens that had been brought back. While she was mighty curious, Enterprise curbed herself as the Major Engineer pulled her aside. The rest of the base had been trying to shove themselves inside to take fleeting glances of their fallen enemies; Enterprise found it somewhat humorous that, even though they’d all fought at least one of these Sirens at some point, everyone was eager to see them up close.

“Skipping over all the intricacies and politics, Commander, I would like to request an autopsy of the recovered Sirens. I’m sure you’d agree that any information we can gain about them would be useful.”

Enterprise had to tear her eyes away from the observation room and back to the Engineer. She tilted her head, mulling over his words as the man stood rigidly, his face set in a cool stare. Enterprise couldn’t imagine a reason to object, what with the importance of this event.

“Alright, do it. But I want a security detail in case anything goes wrong.”

The Engineer nodded, slipping past her as he went to issue his orders. Enterprise watched him go, her gaze being drawn back to the Sirens. She gave them a thorough look over: there were four of them, their bodies blackened and their clothes torn, lying lifeless on observation tables surrounded by bits of flotsam and other scrap. Something about it seemed a little off to Enterprise; the Sirens were always remarkably tough customers, and they had seemed to only take superficial damage. She’d seen some of her own destroyers take more than this and continue fighting.

And then, while she watched a group of engineers move into the room, escorted by several heavy cruisers and Wales, she mulled over the fact of their completeness. The fact that they were, well, still in one piece. Sirens had the nastiest habit of simply exploding or similarly disintegrating when they were ‘defeated,’ nothing remaining. So the fact that not one, but four, had been subdued and returned to base without being completely destroyed was a puzzling thing in and of itself.

She watched as the engineers set about with their tools, scalpels and bone-saws ready. A presence materialized next to her, and Enterprise had to curb her smile as it moved a little closer.

“We’ve returned, ma’am, and with a prize befitting only excellency. I hope this is satisfying beyond your standards.”

“Yes Monarch, you’ve done work well beyond what I could have hoped for. You’ve actually… well, this is a first across the world, far as I know.”

The redhead was silent, but the way she settled next to Enterprise told the carrier that she was pleased with her praise. Enterprise tried to keep the smile off her face as she tilted her head forwards, glancing at Monarch from the corner of her eye.

“But surely you noticed that this is abnormal. I mean, the Sirens have just the darnedest luck when it comes to losing. So us capturing four of them, in a single day, is a little hard for me to believe.”

Monarch nodded, her eyes hardening while she studied the engineers working.

“Yes, it is a bit too coincidental. With this in mind, I would like to replace Wales as the lead security detail.”

Enterprise let out a soft laugh, turning to face the tall battleship. Few others forced her to have to look up at them, but the King George-class was one of the glaring exceptions; Monarch and her sisters were simply taller than most anyone else.

“I’ll have you as joint head of security, since I’d rather we not be too carefree. And if it’ll make you feel better, you can answer only to me.”

Monarch huffed, her breath shifting her bangs across her face. She glanced down at Enterprise, the movement so fast one would miss it if they hadn’t been looking for it.

“F-fine. I’ll follow your orders, Commander.”

Enterprise nodded, giving Monarch’s shoulder a squeeze as she turned to leave. She was nearly at the door when Monarch spoke again, her words sending a chill through her.

“We’ll need a reactionary force, most likely, if Purifier starts to do anything. I could recommend some-”

Enterprise was back at the window in a flash, her face pressed uncomfortably against the glass as her eyes scanned the bodies again; she most likely looked somewhat crazy, and part of her was quietly appreciative that the only person with her was Monarch. The news that one of the Sirens locked in her observation room was Purifier was a terrifying thought.

Her heart sank as she saw it: the middle body, her clothes torn and blackened by ash, was undoubtedly Purifier. Undoubtedly one of the single most dangerous people Enterprise had ever seen. A whirlwind of destruction and insanity was laying before her, and Enterprise found no comfort in the fact that she was dead. The memories of her face-offs with the Siren were still very well alive in her head, and just the sight of her sent Enterprise into a small panic attack.

Her hand jammed down on the intercom, the amusement of the room collectively jumping lost in her own focus.

“Start with the middle body. Learn whatever you can, then destroy it. Wipe it out. And if anything starts to happen with it, blow the damn building up. I will not take chances with her.”

The Major Engineer gave her a look through the glass, only to be met by her own vicious stare. Shrugging, the man turned back to his staff before heading back out of the room. Enterprise was tapping her foot, arms crossed, when he arrived.

“With all due respect, ma’am, we can’t rush this kind of work. This is a new frontier: the Sirens may have new biological systems we don’t know about, or we may find some answers about their origin, or an inherent weakness we could find some way to exploit. To destroy such a valuable specimen would deprive us of possible years of research.”

Enterprise continued staring at him as he plead his case, her tapping incessant. When he was done, she shook her head, thrusting her chin in the direction of the working men.

“That Siren is beyond what we can study. Your concerns are valid, and you’ll have plenty of time to take apart the others. But that one is Purifier, a deranged, maniacal, and wholly deadly opponent. So I’d like to remove her as soon as possible.”

“Commander, they’re dead. Anyone can see that. I understand she’s a dangerous opponent, but with her in this state we don’t have to worry about it. And I don’t believe I have to remind you that this may very well be the first time any Siren has been captured intact, which makes this a war-changing event.”

Enterprise growled, her eyes hard as she glared at the man. He remained standing straight, even when Monarch took a step towards him.

“It was an order, Major. Seeing as this is a world’s first event, you’ll have some leeway, but we won’t be taking any chances. Purifier’s body is now scheduled for destruction by 1200 tomorrow. Monarch will remain stationed here to see that this happens. Am I understood?”

The Major’s eyes shifted, past Enterprise. She knew that look: the look a cadet or ensign had during basic, avoiding eye contact while keeping watch and remaining ready. He didn’t like it, but he’d follow her orders. She was sure of it, and Monarch as insurance was now simply a bonus.

“Yes, ma’am. I’ll inform my team.”

“Good,” turning to Monarch, Enterprise thumbed back at the examination room. “You have tactical command if anything happens. Don’t hesitate to ask for reinforcements if anything does happen.”

“Yes, ma’am. I’ll handle this with-”

“I’m being serious, Monarch. We’re taking no chances: something happens, report directly to me, and then hold off until we can deal with it. I’m not losing anyone else to her.”

Monarch’s eyes hardened as she glanced back at the crisped bodies.

“Yes, Commander. I’ll act as you command.”

Enterprise’s nod was swift, and she left the building just as quickly. The Major, silent through their little discussion, spun once, his boots clicking smartly as he marched back inside the room, shoulders set. Monarch remained stiff, her eyes following every movement in the room. For her Commander, she’d offer no less than excellent.

~~~

The observation room was hot, and the air reeked of ozone and burnt material. Monarch was leaning against the wall, her eyes dark as she watched the disgusting scene unfold before her.

“Lift your right arm above your head.”

“Ok~”

Her lips pulled back in a silent snarl as Purifier followed the doctor’s instructions. The Siren calmly lifted her arm, her scorched skin flexing as her body twisted. The doctor’s hand glided over the blackened surface, drawing a series of giggles from the mad woman.

“Hehe! Hey Doc, that tickles!”

“Yes, but please hold still. I need to check your wounds.”

“Oh-kay~”

Monarch growled, the deep noise drawing Purifier’s eyes. She just tilted her head, a disturbingly joyful smile plastered across a face that Monarch associated with insanity.

“Hey, Big Red, why’re you so grump~? You’ve been here all night, right? You can go take a nap if ya wanna.”

“No.”

“Suit yourself~”

The Siren shrugged, glancing back over at the other Sirens and giggling as the engineers fiddled with the circuitry of their arms and sides.

“When they wake up, I don’t think they’ll like that you’ve been taking them apart.”

A door slamming open drew the eyes of everyone in the room, save Monarch, who continued to glare daggers at Purifier. Enterprise stepped in, stopping for only a few shocked seconds as Purifier gave her a cheerful wave, before she marched over to the Major and dragged him back through the room, her eyes glued to Purifier’s. The Siren just watched, her head tilted as the doctor continued his inspection.

“What the hell is going on!? I told you to destroy her, so why is she up and moving?”

The Major, dark bags under his eyes, could hardly answer her; Enterprise felt a strong urge to smack him as his face broke into a wide smile despite repeated attempts to act professional.

“Sorry, ma’am. While we were working last night, something happened, because Purifier started moving again. After she’d woken, and after we had to beg the fleet to not annihilate her, we continued testing. Honestly, I’m more surprised that Monarch didn’t tell you as soon as it happened.”

Enterprise fumed silently, feeling her blood boil. She was furious, but the Major was simply doing his job. Besides, berating him wouldn’t change anything. The damage was done, and the psychopathic Siren was awake and, oddly enough, not obliterating everything. Enterprise glanced at Purifier’s back, the Siren trying to engage some of the cruisers in conversation, but they remained silently standing against the wall, awkwardly avoiding her gaze.

“I’ll need a full report from you. Then go get some rest. I need you in top shape to figure this out.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

~~~

Enterprise watched Purifier sit idly, her legs swinging under her chair as she hummed a mindless tune. The carrier’s eyes fell to Ajax, the light cruiser sitting across from the Siren and drumming her fingers on the table in mock boredom. Wales and Monarch flanked Purifier, leaning against the far wall, and Kii and Rodney were waiting in the hall outside.

“So, Purifier, what do you know about us?”

“Hmm. Well, Big Red back there doesn’t seem to like me very much, everyone you’ve had me meet has seemed either afraid or ready to tear my head off -not that that would do much, but y’know!- and that silver haired woman has been staring at me through that glass since we started.”

Enterprise felt her muscles tense, her hands gripping the edge of the table until she bent the metal. Purifier stared right at her, a smile still curling her lips, before Ajax shifted and drew her attention again.

“That wasn’t what I meant.”

“Oh, you mean what you’re all doing here? Nope, got no clue. I could make a guess, if I wanted, but I don’t really feel like it. I’m much more curious as to why everyone seems to hate my guts.”

She gasped, her hand shooting up to cover her mouth as genuine surprise slipped into her eyes.

“Have I done something wrong? Did I hurt someone?”

Ajax flicked a lock of hair behind her ear, taking the half second to glance back towards Enterprise. In a blink her eyes were refocused on Purifier, the shock plainly written across the Siren’s face making Ajax shift uncomfortably in her seat.

“Let’s pretend, then, that you had for a spell. How does that make you feel, and what would you do about that?”

“Oh god, I did, didn’t I? I’m so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, sorry! Where is she? I have to tell her to her face. I’ll even let her kill me if it’ll help.”

They all moved when Purifier attempted to get out of her seat, Monarch reaching her first and shoving her back down. Purifier glanced back, a look of hurt and understanding flashing through her eyes.

“Was it you, Red? Did I do something horrible to make you hate me?”

Monarch growled, twisting sharply when Wales placed her hand on her shoulder. She stalked back to the wall, shoving herself against it and pointedly looking away from Purifier. Ajax snapped her fingers to gain the Siren’s attention again.

“You’ve done nothing wrong yet,” the cruiser lied, settling back down in her seat. “It’s true that many on this base are nervous about you. But, for now, we simply wish to know what you’re doing here.”

Purifier glanced back at Monarch before locking eyes with Ajax, her shoulders slumping back. Her face slowly grew back into a smile as she relaxed.

“Ok. Well, then, that’s easy. I’m your prisoner, aren’t I?”

“Hmm. Well, not exactly. Your situation is a little more complicated than just ‘our prisoner.’ Let’s start with the basics: you’re Purifier, right? So, what do you know about us?”

She turned her head, her silver hair shimmering in the light. She closed her eyes, and Enterprise felt a surprising amount of the tension release from her now that those glowing yellow orbs were covered up. The Siren hummed for a short time, unknowingly making Monarch’s shoulders hunch.

“Well, I am Purifier, pretty sure. And I don’t know exactly what you guys are, but a few more minutes of searching would clear that up.”

Purifier chirped away, and Enterprise suddenly found her voice too annoying. Turning to Langley, who was diligently recording all conversation, she spoke in a hushed tone.

“Alert me if anything happens.”

“Yes ma’am.”

~~~

“So, tell me what you discovered.”

“Right. After you left, we started with standard procedure. While attempting to operate, we found our scalpels couldn’t cut beyond her skin. So, after the bone-saws failed to bring about any result, we switched to a welding torch. It took several minutes, but we managed to remove her arm.”

Enterprise sat back, her eyes glancing at the pictures as the Major continued talking.

“I can’t really say we were surprised to find her arm was packed with circuitry, but the complications of it were beyond what we could have imagined. She is packed with sensors and modules we’ve never seen before, and we’re still not entirely sure what they do. We have seve-”

“That’s all well and good, but I’d like to know how come she’s, well, alive again.”

“Right, Ma’am. As we were trying to remove more … paneling, we found that the Siren’s bodies released a relatively harmless form of radiation; Beta wave, in small amounts beyond harmless to an adult human, and seeming to have strange effects not seen in any radiation forms known. Regardless, we brought in some equipment, and after x-raying them-which yielded very little, seeing as they carry such heavy silicon influence-we needed to bring in equipment used on your maintenance.”

“Wait, you brought in rigging maintenance equipment? I know we’re… functionally similar, but are we that similar?”

“As it turns out, more or less, Ma’am. With the right equipment, we were able to see inside her, and what we found wasn’t entirely unexpected, especially at that point. A cuboidal shape in the region of her heart, and it at first glance seems identical to the Wisdom Cubes you possess.”

Enterprise nodded along dumbly, her mind racing with the knowledge that her opponents seemed to be identical to her in makeup. Sure, it seemed rather obvious in retrospect, but to actually face it was something else. It carried a hint of the same disgust and unsettling tingle that fighting the cloned versions of her friends, or of herself.

“Of course, simply because our scans showed a similar structure doesn’t mean it’s the same thing. Moving forward, we moved to begin an experiment. We set up to try to separate her from her rigging, and that’s when it happened. Suddenly, she was up and moving and talking. We learned quite a bit then as well: for instance, her arm was able to reattach itself and reseal without any scarring at all. Her healing abilities could be incredibly useful to replicate…”

The Major’s words faded into the background as Enterprise leafed through his notes, observing the pictures that came attached. It was an unnerving experience to see images of Purifier sitting up, fixing her clothing, holding conversations with scientists and engineers, and giving the cruisers a terrifyingly innocent smile. The look in her eyes, the clear sanity and the lack of blood-lust, sent a shiver down her spine.

“I must admit, it’s unsettling to see her acting so… normal. It’s something I don’t think I’d ever get used to.”

“Aww. You’re gonna hurt my feelings, Chief~”

Enterprise felt every pop in her neck as her head whipped around to the sight of Purifier strolling in, her eyes glowing over her full smile. Her light skip was followed by the heavy impacts of Monarch’s boots, the battleship following at a distance that would have been suffocating for most people, though Purifier seemed to pay it no mind. Ajax and a security detail followed behind the pair.

“Whatcha talking about in here? You keeping secrets from me already? What’s this, pictures of lil’ ol me?”

Enterprise went rigid as Purifier looked over her shoulder, the Siren’s small hand brushing against her. Monarch growled an aggressive undertone as she took a step forwards, ripping Purifier back. The Siren gave a disarming smile as she raised her hands in surrender.

“Easy, Red. I’m just curious, is all.”

“Curiosity has its place, not that a monster like you would be one to understand that anyway.”

Purifier cringed, genuine hurt circling through her.

“Jeez; I don’t know why you hate me so much, Red, but even I can be hurt, y’know?”

Monarch growled so low Enterprise almost felt it more than heard it. She took a step towards Purifier, so close the Siren had to crane her head back to keep their eyes locked.

“You wouldn’t be able to understand what ‘being hurt’ means. You’re Purifier, the most damnedest monster we’ve ever faced. You don’t get to be hurt. You deserve to be destroyed.”

Purifier pouted, her eyes glistening. Enterprise felt a strange mix of feelings swirl up inside her. The disturbing idea of Purifier crying conflicted with her deep anger for the woman and her instinctual desire to protect. In that split second before Purifier could respond, she made her decision.

“Stand down Monarch.”

Enterprise tried to keep her voice level as she stood, conscious of most eyes settling upon her. Monarch kept her eyes locked on Purifier, her gaze making the Siren shift uncomfortably as the battleship backed up.

“Purifier. I think… it’s time someone explains some things to you,” Enterprise sighed, rubbing the side of her head as she stepped closer to the Siren. The glow in Purifier’s eyes was making her feel nauseous.

Enterprise took a steadying breath, closing her eyes as she collected her thoughts. Time to try something new, then. She couldn’t stop the inner grin at how dumb what she was going to do was.

Opening her eyes, she held her hand out to the Siren, forcing a smile across her face.

“Hello Purifier. I’m Enterprise, Commander of the Azur Lane. I think we should have a nice, long chat. You want anything to drink?”

Chapter Text

Tropical sunshine always made the air feel so much hotter than anywhere else. The sun felt relentless, and the air was thick enough to choke on. Enterprise could feel sweat roll down her back, and she mulled over the fact that she’d need to speed up her laundry rotations.

Across from her, happily sipping a container of apple juice, Purifier watched her with that glowing gaze that put her on edge. Enterprise had to consciously keep her gaze steady, else she’d turn it away without thinking.

“So, Purifier. How’s your day been?”

The Siren cocked her head, a smile breaking past the straw between her lips. She pulled back, a pleased sigh escaping her as Purifier stretched her arms to the sky, noises of content slipping out.

“I’m good~ But you already know that, right? I mean, you’ve been watching me all day,” she sang, tossing Enterprise a reckless smile as she played with her empty juice box.

Enterprise blinked, mentally slapping herself. Of course she’d spent the entire day worrying over Purifier, and of course she’d notice. Asking how she was was beyond redundant. Shaking her head, Enterprise sat forwards somewhat, unable to stop the self-conscious smile that twitched her lips.

“R-right. That was a bit… well, whatever. Let’s do it like this: I’ve got some questions for you, but before that I’m sure you have some for me. Trade?”

Purifier cocked her head and hummed, eyes closed as she thought intensely. Enterprise watched, having to calm herself after Purifier’s eyes snapped open. The Siren, if she noticed, didn’t seem distracted by her response.

“Weeeell….” she drawled out, glancing around the base, before her eyes locked on Enterprise’s, the carrier had to force herself not to flinch.

“I guess my biggest question would be why does Big Red over there hate me so much? That purple haired girl was adamant that I hadn’t done anything, but I don’t think she believes that. So, I won’t believe it.”

Enterprise sighed, leaning back in her chair. A cloud passed overhead, drowning the courtyard in shadows; Enterprise couldn’t help but notice that Purifier’s eyes emitted enough light to make a noticeable difference. What that information meant she wasn’t sure.

“That’s… a tough one. I don’t know…” Enterprise mused, glancing around. How much should she tell her? Should she tell Purifier everything? Could she do something with that information? And what if telling her snapped her out of this amnesiatic, pacifistic, altogether preferable state she was in? The questions bouncing around in her skull meshed with the stickiness of the air to make Enterprise grumble under her breath.

“OK. Starting from the top, you- You don’t remember anything before waking up in the examination room?”

The Siren nodded sharply.

“OK. So, the start… You’re what we call a Siren…”

As Enterprise spoke she watched Purifier closely, noting her reactions. When she spoke of the Siren’s destruction and aggressive conquering of the seas, she was taken aback by Purifier’s actions. The Siren had tears in her eyes, and though they didn’t fall, they continued until Enterprise told her about their efforts to take back the world. Purifier nearly cheered when she told her about how successful they had been, bringing a smile to Enterprise’s face.

“YEAH! Show those no good monsters what for!”

Enterprise could feel the Siren’s excitement in the air, and she was surprised at how infectious it was. Several of the destroyers brave enough to be within sight of Purifier gave her weary glances and huddled closer together. Enterprise made sure to give them a kind smile before she turned back to Purifier.

“Yes, well, that’s what we were born to do. And I’m kinda glad to see you so… enthused about it. It’s a little weird, for sure, but it’s a nice turn of events.”

Purifier gave Enterprise a bright smile, fiddling with her juice box as she sat back down.

“Of course! It’s only natural that I’d want the good guys to win, and you are!”

“Heh, well, thanks. But, being perfectly honest, we are exactly winning right now. Things-”

“Wait!” Purifier gasped, hands flying up to cover her mouth. “I thought you guys had been winning?”

“W-well, we were. But things have kinda died down now; the Sirens have been fortifying their positions, and each stronghold is getting tougher and tougher. Our logistical abilities are being strained, and each time we sortie we spend more and more time undergoing repairs.”

“That’s horrible,” Purifier nearly whined, the light pouring from her eyes softening as she tried to give Enterprise some comfort. The carrier smiled at her, but she was sure Purifier could tell that the smile wasn’t genuine.

“That’s the way the cookie crumbles. We’re just trying to hold out until the situation back home can stabilize, and we can start receiving reinforcements and being resupplied.”

“Hmm…” Purifier hummed as she sat back, sucking hard on her long empty juice container. Enterprise found it amusing that she’d enjoy a destroyer’s drink, but she really didn’t feel like teasing the Siren now.

“What if… what if I can help? Yeah, that’s a good idea!”

Enterprise looked up into Purifier’s eyes, watching her mouth twist into another excitable smile.

“Yeah! I could go wake up the others, and I bet they’d be just as willing to help once we explained the situation! We could give you guys some insider tips, heh!”

Enterprise could only stare back at the Siren. Purifier was almost literally patting herself on the back, the enormity of what she’d offered unfazing her. She’d willingly go against her own comrades? She’d offer her support to the Azur Lane? Was this indicative of something deeper in the Siren hierarchy? Were they less united than they seemed? Or was this amnesiatic Purifier simply being kind for kindness's sake?

Enterprise’s head was swimming when Purifier spoke again.

“Woah, that girl’s fast!”

Enterprise had only a second to process what she’d said before she was almost bowled over while sitting by Le Triomphant.

“Oh, my apologies, Commander. But I was sent to tell you that the other Sirens are starting to wake. I- oh goodness, Purifier! My apologies, I didn’t see you there.”

Enterprise gave the Siren a glance, one eyebrow raised, as the destroyer bowed. Purifier blushed slightly under the attention, waving her hand and giving Le Triomphant a big smile.

“You’re all good, uh, whoever you are? Sorry, I don’t think we’ve met.”

“Of course. I am Le Triomphant, of the Le Fantasque-class of contre-torpilleur from the Iris Libre. Pleased to meet you.”

“Cool! I guess you know me al-”

“Wait, hold on,” Enterprise held her hand up, grabbing both other girls' attention when she started speaking again. “This introduction can wait; Purifier, did you already wake up the others?”

Purifier cocked her head, giving Enterprise an inquisitive stare.

“Well, yeah. Wasn’t I supposed to?”

“No, you shouldn’t hav-! I mean, I should ha-! You-! Ugh, just, no; you should have waited until I was there.”

“Oh…”

“Actually, whatever. C’mon, let’s go. Thank you, Triomphant.”

“Of course, Commander.”

~~~

When Enterprise arrived at the examination room, she was pleasantly surprised to see that the building had remained in one piece. Loyal though she was, Enterprise would be lying to herself if she said she didn’t worry over leaving Monarch to guard the bodies. Purifier moved behind her in a skip, lightly humming as her ponytail swished through the air.

“So, these other Sirens… Who are they, exactly?”

“Well, the first one I woke up is Lurker. She’s an undersea warfare specialist. Next would be Chaser: your standard light escort chassis. And the last one is Intruder, a special escort.”

“O-ok. Thanks for that heads up.”

“Yep~ No problem!”

The door was locked as she’d ordered it to be, and she gave out the signal to open. Purifier watched, fascinated, as Enterprise whistled the tune of ‘Olly Olly Oxen Free,’ and Enterprise tried to ignore how unnervingly close she was getting when Langley opened the door.

“Ah, Commander. Please, come in. I’m glad that Triomphant is still so quick. One of the Sirens has awoken, and is undergoing a preliminary exam from a technician.”

Enterprise nodded and slipped inside the room, Purifier stalking her shadow as she followed her in. She was stopped by Monarch, the battleship placing herself between Enterprise and a slim Siren who watched them with bored eyes from an exam table, her arm barely extended as a physician examined where her burns had been.

Enterprise nearly jumped when Purifier pressed up into her from behind, leaning around her shoulder to wave enthusiastically to the other Siren.

“Hey, Lurker! How ya doing?”

The small girl gave Purifier a lazy wave and a small smile, before her eyes rolled to look up at Monarch. Enterprise could feel the battleship stiffen, and she had to fight the urge to laugh. Even though this Lurker was a Siren, she was nowhere near as dangerous as Purifier, and she’d turned out to be harmless for the moment. So Enterprise couldn’t fully suppress the amusement of Monarch feeling threatened by this little waif.

“Hey Purifier. How’re you doing? And what’s up with this one, huh? She’s been making eyes at me all morning; you think she likes me?” A sharp smile spread itself across her delicate lips as her eyes fell back on Monarch. “That’s real flattering, Red, but I’m not so easy that I’d fall for someone just because they make goo goo eyes at me. You’ll have to win my heart ‘for I’ll love you, capish?”

Monarch shifted, and Enterprise could practically feel her bristle; placing a soothing hand on her friend's arm, she stepped past Monarch and towards Lurker. The Siren’s eyes followed her easily, and she wore a small smile as Enterprise approached, lowering her arm as the doctor stepped away.

“She’s fit as a fiddle, Commander.”

“Good. Thanks, Dudley.”

Dudley nodded once, giving Lurker a smile as he turned and left the room. The Siren waved at his back, stretching up towards the ceiling before she lent back on the table and rested her arms.

“He was pretty cute. Nice guy too. Think I can see more of him later, Miss Commander? Or is he already spoken for?”

Enterprise shook her head, her smile gaining a wry tilt to it.

“I don’t know about any of that, Lurker. Besides, I’m not sure if he’d want to…” She had been about to say ‘date a Siren,’ but something told her that that was a bad idea.

“Well, whatevs,” Lurker drawled out, stretching once more before she slid off the table; standing at her full height, she still had to almost crane her neck to look up at Enterprise. Purifier barely cleared her shoulders, and the top of this little Siren’s head didn’t even reach her collar. “He’s not someone I could see it working out with either, so no sweat. But you,” Lurker smiled, her small teeth gleaming in the bright exam lights. “You’re pretty beautiful, ‘Commander.’ Wanna show me around the base? I bet we could get to know each other rather well.”

Were it not for how strange it was to be propositioned by a Siren, Enterprise might have blushed. As it were, ignoring Monarch’s quiet noises of disgust, Enterprise merely narrowed her eyes.

“Eventually, we’ll show you around. But there will be room for nothing but business. Is that clear?”

Lurker’s smile didn’t falter, and the girl shrugged once more before folding her hands behind her head.

“Sure thing, Chief. Just askin’, anyways; not like I seriously care that much.”

Enterprise nodded once before turning smartly on her heels and moved to the next awoken Siren. The girl was sitting with her legs crossed, watching the doctor running over her examinations with a gaze full of contempt. Enterprise frowned, very familiar with this Siren, though she wasn’t sure she’d ever heard her name before.

“So… you’re Chaser.”

“Damn right,” the Siren shot back, her grin tilted as she tossed her short hair back and gave Enterprise what she probably thought was an intimidating stare. “Don’t bother with Lurker; small fry like her don’t have any real place in the oceans anyway.”

“Whatever,” Lurker called over her shoulder, attention elsewhere.

Purifier pouted audibly, and Enterprise nearly jumped when the battleship appeared next to her.

“C’mon Chaser. You don’t have to be mean about it, we’re all friends here.”

Chaser snorted, diverting her eyes from Purifier’s near blinding smile. She looked like she had more to say, but she must have thought better of it because she just sighed, deflating slightly as she mumbled out a small ‘sorry’ and turning her head away. Purifier made a noise of pure joy before racing over to encircle Chaser in her arms, the hug so strong the Enterprise winced in sympathy for Chaser.

“Yeah, yeah, alright! Get off me, you and your damned brutish strength! H-hey, I said I was sorry, so let go! Purifier!”

Enterprise turned as the physician approached her, her eyes tired as she drew close.

“Sorry Commander, but this one is a bit of a handful. She’s got quite a bark to her.”

A smooth chuckle left Enterprise, and she gave the woman’s shoulder a squeeze.

“Trust me, her bite isn’t far off. Go and get some rest, you’ve earned it.”

The woman bowed her head, shooting Enterprise a grateful glance as she slipped past Monarch and left the room. The battleship was leaning against the wall, face set in an unreadable expression. Many of the other escorts thankfully did not share her dark mood: most of the cruisers were chatting or otherwise keeping light watch over the Sirens, except for Seattle and Graf Spee. The light cruiser seemed to share Monarch’s apprehension, if not her vehemence, her usually cheery face full of tension as her eyes followed the movements of all the Sirens.

Graf Spee wasn’t talking with anyone else, simply hovering off by herself. Though, that wasn’t such an unusual thing from the cruiser. She was keeping close to the last Siren, a thin girl nearly Enterprise’s height, who was silently watching as her physician finished up his work. He noted a few things on a chart, undisturbed by the way the Siren was closely watching his every move, before he gave her a nod and bid her farewell. He handed his report to Monarch without a word and left the room.

Enterprise walked up to the Siren, stopping before her. She was surprised to see the Siren matched her gaze without hesitation, her blue eyes deeply alit with something Enterprise couldn’t identify.

“Greetings, Commander. I am Special Cruiser Intruder Mk. II, at your service. I look forward to working with you.”

Enterprise shifted back ever so slightly, taken off balance at the normality of the Siren’s self introduction. She watched as the woman shot a glance over at Graf Spee, who responded with the slightest tilt of her head. The short exchange was something she found deeply intriguing, and she was about to comment on it when Purifier strolled up, plopping herself down next to Intruder.

“What’s with the stiff intro, Intruder. You need to have more energy!”

Intruder just stared at Purifier, unmoved by the small show. A small flash of embarrassment shone in Intruder's gaze, before she blinked and it was gone. She gave Purifier a sheepish look and turned back to Enterprise.

“H-hello, Commander…! Uh, I-I’m special Cruiser Intruder Mk. II. I l-look forward to… to working with you! …?”

Enterprise gave her a small smile, and interrupted Purifier when she went to speak again.

“Nice to meet you, Intruder. It will be my pleasure as well.”

Intruder physically relaxed as Enterprise turned away, her posture further relaxing as Purifier followed after the carrier. Enterprise arrived at the door, turning to Monarch. The battleship gave her a glower look, though she refused to meet Enterprise’s gaze. Enterprise felt a weird mix of emotions, seeing her usually so confident friend emotionally distraught and unable to do anything about it.

“You good, Monarch? I know this isn’t easy for you, but you can talk to me about it.”

“No, Commander. I… am fine. It’s just… nothing,” Monarch’s voice was soft, but as she finished she stood tall again, her usual determination unwavering in her eyes. “If they’re your orders, I’ll follow. You can trust in that.”

Enterprise felt pride swell her heart at her friend's words, but then a rather smug voice tore through them.

“Aww, isn’t your devotion adorable, Red? Have you proposed yet?”

The sounds of Purifier shushing Lurker, rather forcefully, were a background noise as Monarch’s entire face flushed red in embarrassment and rage. Enterprise watched her violet eyes twitch as her will fought against her emotions, before her discipline won out. A small nod was all Enterprise gave her before she turned to Lurker, glaring even as the small girl wrestled with Purifier.

“Enough, both of you! Purifier, I don’t tolerate infighting, even though your heart was in the right place. And Lurker, show more respect to your superiors. Since you’ll both be joining us, I expect you both to work on that. Am I understood?”

“Yes, Ma’am!”

“Sure, yeah.”

“...”

“No, really! I get it! No more jokes about the boss banging Big Red. Crystal clear, and all that. Lips sealed Chief.”

Purifier was nearly visibly vibrating with excitement, but Enterprise was focused solely on Lurker. The small girl gave her an awkward smile, before she sighed and waved her hand.

“Yeah, yeah. Understood…” she grumbled, voice trailing off even as she wandered away. Enterprise nodded, giving Purifier a smile as the girl's eyes lit up with excitement.

“You said we’d be joining you? Like, you’ll let us fight and help and stuff?”

Enterprise took a second to collect her thoughts. She hadn’t consulted with her own ‘council’ on this matter, but she supposed that being commander allowed her some liberties. She gave Purifier another smile, the girl’s energy spreading to her.

“I guess you will. You don’t have a problem with that, do you?”

“Nuh-uh,” Purifier’s ponytail swished through the air as she shook her head.

“Good. Now listen up,” Enterprise spoke aloud, capturing the attention of everyone in the room, save Lurker. “Sussex, you and Furutaka show the girls to the auditorium’s waiting room. The rest of you, spread the word: fleet wide announcement, right now.”

A resounding chorus of ‘Yes Ma’am’s and ‘Yes Commander’s filled the room as the cruisers and battleships moved out. Purifier gave Enterprise another blazing smile before she followed after the other Sirens. Enterprise set her hands on her hips, confident in her decision, and then faced Monarch.

“Monarch, I need you to gather up my staff. We’ve got a decision to make.”

The battleship dipped her head, the faintest traces of her blush remaining as she left the room. Enterprise sighed again, standing taller as she breathed in. This was the right decision.

She left through the sliding doors and crossed to the oceanfront at a brisk pace, the cool breeze refreshing her. She’d need to collect her thoughts before her coming meeting; and, she smiled ruefully, before she had to face any of the Sirens again.

Chapter Text

Enterprise sat back, reviewing the documents she’d been presented with. Some of them, like their supply manifest, were things she checked multiple times a day; others, like her staff’s list of complaints, were completely novel.

“So, budgeting aside, all of you are worried about the possibility of betrayal from the Sirens?”

A collective murmur of agreement hit her, and Enterprise nodded automatically as she considered her words. Glancing around the room for any cracks in their fortitude, she studied the faces of her staff; all of them were veterans, many of them among the oldest girls in her fleet and all possessed a deep friendship with her born of blood and tested in combat.

“Hmm,” Enterprise sat back, drumming her fingers on the desk as she scanned the laid-out documents again.

“Noted. And quite understandable. However, this is an opportunity I’m not willing to pass up. Aside from Purifier and Intruder, there aren’t any outstanding threats among them. And we’ve dealt with worse than just Purifier before, as unsettling as those encounters can be. So the physical threat they pose is fairly minimal, I’d gauge. As for any type of information based damage…”

Enterprise shrugged, a somewhat rueful smile passing over her lips.

“If memory serves me correctly, they always seem a step ahead of us anyways. It’s a rare day when we manage to surprise them. I think if they wanted to know something, they’d already have the information.”

The table around her sat in silence, all watching her closely as she sat up straight in her seat. Yorktown had a gentle frown on her face, tossing a worried glance across the table to Illustrious. The Royal carrier had a serious look in her eyes, but she merely tilted her head to Enterprise.

“Well, Commander, while these are fairly valid points, we would still urge you towards caution and severity with the Sirens. It takes no small amount of guesswork to think they would make many of the fleet uncomfortable at the least, not to mention the effects they’d have on the destroyers especially.”

Yorktown nodded, turning her soft eyes back to her sister.

“Agreed. And I think I speak for us all when I say that we should always seek to mitigate any damage we can; we don’t want any more people getting hurt than is necessary, in everything we do.”
Enterprise hummed, rubbing her hands together as she shifted to gaze at the rest of her gathered staff.

“Any additional concerns? Because I’d like to hear what you all have to say before I finalize a decision.”

The former Axis fleet members gave her sharp glances, before Giulio Cesare sighed and spoke up, keeping her gaze level with Enterprise’s.

“I don’t think I need to tell you that we think this is a poor choice. But Sardegna will follow your will, Commander. Whatever your choice, you have our backing.”

Next to her, a bushel of white fur flashed as Kaga nodded her head.

“We agree to this as well. The Sakura Empire is devoted to you Commander. We will carry out whatever orders you deem necessary.”

Enterprise shook her head, giving the two women a small smile.

“That’s great news, but I want your opinions. I know the official stances, but I want to hear what you have to say, as friends as well as representatives.”

She turned her eyes back to the entire table, clearing her throat simply to buy some time. Her thoughts had been driving a wedge of anxiety through her since she’d sat down at the table, but she was set in her choice. She knew what the answers she’d receive would be, but she wanted to air it all out now before she told them her decision.

It was Z23 who spoke first, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear as she started.

“I think this is a bad idea. The Siren’s are unpredictable, Purifier especially, and I don’t like that we’re apparently allowing them to stay here. I think we should have them terminated.”

“Yorktown?”

“I… I’d agree. They are simply too dangerous, and too unknown to risk anything like this.”

“Illustrious?”

“I am of the same mind.”

“Kaga?”

“It is… ambitious, to try to tame Sirens when all our experience has proven that they are ruthless and dangerous. I would only add caution to whatever you plan to do, Enterprise.”

“Hmm. And you, Cesare?”

The Sardegnian slouched slightly, rolling her eyes as she gave everyone else a short glare.

“I was speaking for myself. You have proven to be reliable and competent in almost all matters and situations, Enterprise. You don’t need me to hold your hand through this decision: whatever you decide we should do, I’ll follow it.”

Enterprise shot Cesare a grateful grin, pleased at the battleship's bluntness. And she was pleased with her response, with it at least not being counter to her plans. Facing the rest of her staff, she folded her hands in a triangle before her on the table.

“This may not be surprising, but I have already come to a decision. And while I hate to go against such unanimous disagreement, I have chosen to integrate the Siren defectors into our fleet. It will be made official in a fleet announcement in twenty minutes or so. The biggest reason for bringing you all together,” Enterprise held her hand up to stop the short outburst Z23 was preparing,”the reason was to allow you all to have a heads up on what I was planning. Anyways, I do agree with what you’ve said regarding how dangerous they are.”

Enterprise sat back, a self satisfied smirk tugging at her lips.

“So we split them up: each faction takes one of the Sirens. We can cut their effective power and abilities through distance, and if the need arises we can easily crush them with numbers alone.”

She could count on one hand how many times she had gone against a course of action that had been agreed upon by her staff, but it had happened. And she was bursting with confidence that this was the right decision. The Sirens were simply too mysterious for an opportunity like this to pass them by. And as useful as an autopsy would be, studying and observing living Sirens would always trump other results.

“Are you sure about this, Enterprise?”

She met Yorktown’s gaze, and for a few seconds her mind was plagued with doubt. Would the Sirens cooperate? Would they remain this friendly and amnesiac, or would their memories return and see the Azur Lane burned for playing with fire? Could she be making the right decision, and was she strong enough to face the results of a wrong answer?

Enterprise kept this under lock and key, as well as she could, while she gave her older sister a confident smile.

“Absolutely. If I didn’t think this would give us the greatest edge, then I wouldn’t have us do this.”

A short murmur passed through the group, though any thoughts and dissenting comments were mercifully not spoken. Enterprise almost let out a sigh of relief, her shoulders slumping down as she relaxed.

“Now that we’ve decided that, on to the fun: splitting them up. I believe that they should be split up based off the abilities of the nation. That would mean Intruder is the responsibility of Iron Blood, with your expertise in large cruisers and pocket battleships.”

Z23 nodded her head, lips a thin white line as she started scribbling on a notepad. Z25 took a step next to her sister, whispering discussion in her ear. Enterprise turned her attention to Illustrious, the other carrier turning back to her as she finished conversing with Suffolk. The maid bowed to the table before slipping out of the room.

“And the Royal Navy can handle Lurker without issue, with your experience in ASW. I trust you can handle it, Illustrious?”

“Of course; we shall not disappoint,” Illustrious sighed as she slouched back into her chair, looking suddenly tired. “I really do wish you had taken our advice before forming your own plans, but I trust your judgment. All the same, Enterprise, let’s not make a habit out of adopting strays.”

Enterprise gave Illustrious a wry grin, dipping her head towards the carrier.

“Of course. And Kaga, I’ll leave Chaser to the Sakura Empire. I think that, even should the Sirens turn on us, you’ll have no troubles with her.”

Kaga nodded, her eyes gleaming as she sat back. Enterprise locked eyes with Cesare, the Sardegnian keeping her gaze solidly.

“And as for the Sardegna Empire, and the Iris Libre: you aren’t required to host a Siren. But I’ll expect assistance whenever asked, understood.”

Cesare nodded with a shrug, throwing a glance over at Zara who stood against the wall behind her. Gascogne, one of the only Iris ships under Enterprise’s command and who had remained silent throughout the discussion, nodded her head.

“Understood, Master. Gascogne is waiting in standby until assistance is required.”

The Iris battleship, though weird, was an incredibly effective unit on the battlefield, and Enterprise gave her a gentle smile. She, like Monarch and Seattle, held a special place in Enterprise’s heart as somewhere between cherished friends and something closer to children. Enterprise clapped her hands, rising from her seat. The rest of the group likewise stood, all of them meeting her eyes.

“And the Eagle Union will keep charge of Purifier. Alright, we’ve got that all sorted out. Next, I’ll announce it to the fleet, and from there we’ll apply the necessary adjustments. Understood?”

A general murmur of agreement met her, and Enterprise mentally shrugged as she filed out of the room, followed by the rest of the group. Monarch easily kept pace with her, eventually matching her stride as Enterprise left the Gray House. The courtyards and walkways were relatively empty, with only occasional auxiliary personnel moving around. Most of the people they passed barely spared them a glance, with the only exception being the active MPs, who saluted Enterprise before continuing their patrols.

Enterprise and Monarch approached the rear entrance to the auditorium, the battleship speeding up and holding the door for Enterprise.

“Thanks, Monarch.”

“Of course, Commander.”

“... how do you feel about the Sirens?”

Monarch remained silent as they navigated the rear access halls, slipping past crates and left over supplies. Enterprise squeezed past a particularly tight gap and waited on the other side, hands affixed to her hips. Monarch crossed the threshold, but she kept her eyes to the side as she stood before Enterprise.

“Monarch?”

“I… am not excited at the prospect,” Monarch sighed, “but I will act out your will, Commander. This I will prove without doubt.”

Enterprise grunted, holding her tongue until Monarch made eye contact with her. She gave her friend as bright a smile as she could, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder.

“I know you don’t like it, and I appreciate the fact that you’ll endure it for my sake. You’re a good friend, Monarch. I just don’t want you to go over your limit without letting me help.”

Monarch didn’t immediately crack into a smile, or slump her shoulders, or let out a sigh or any other nonverbal signal that she had relaxed. She simply nodded, setting her gaze behind Enterprise as she waited. Enterprise searched her eyes for a few more seconds, but those violet pools betrayed nothing.

The pair moved forwards in silence, approaching the rear of the stage. A gentle murmur began to fill the air, the sound of the fleet beyond the walls as the girls mingled and conversed with one another. Enterprise could feel a swell of emotion start to pick up within her, something that happened before each fleet announcement she gave. The fact that this one was so special was a sickly sweet icing on her cake of anxiety.

The Sirens were still corralled in the rear, Sussex and Furutaka keeping a close eye on the four girls. Purifier was the first to notice their arrival, giving Enterprise and Monarch a cheery smile before bouncing over. Monarch took a step back, her stoicism returning as she glared at Purifier and the other Sirens; the bubbly battleship ignored her, skidding to a halt in front of Enterprise.

A small shot of panic raced through the carrier, the sight of Purifier’s glowing eyes making her heart race and her fists clench. She tried to force herself to relax, to take solace in the presence of her friends, but the knowledge did little to help her natural reactions. She gave Purifier what felt like a stiff, robotic smile in return.

“Hey Chief! I’m so excited to get to join you guys! Thanks for this; we won’t let you down, promise!”

Enterprise chuckled, feeling a bit of her nerves melt away at the display of a non-psychotic Purifier.

“Yeah. I’m just going to announce it to the fleet, then we’ll go over the details with my staff and get you all settled in.”

By that point the other Sirens had gathered around, listening with mostly rapt attention as she spoke. Lurker grinned, stretching back and folding her hands behind her head.

“Seems easy enough. You guys lead a pretty cushy life here, eh? You sure you can provide the kind of excitement four growing girls need?”

“Agreed,” Chaser snorted, crossing her arms and thrusting her chin out. “You better be able to provide a challenge for me, otherwise I might just get bored. And then things start going boom, and even Red over there won’t be able to stop me.”

Monarch snorted, the closest she ever got to laughing, and folded her own arms. Enterprise held a hand out to both of the women, locking eyes with Chaser. The Sirens’ eyes bore down on her with their characteristic yellow light, but Enterprise’s history with Chaser was more one-sided in her favor; she didn’t flinch, keeping her voice calm as she spoke.

“Following our rules, you will have plenty of opportunities to hone your skills. And we have a plethora of powerful individuals here if you desire a sparring partner; all you have to do is ask. And we have ways of disciplining those who step out of line, of course.”

She doubted that her threat was what did it, but Chaser appeared mollified for the time being. The light cruiser settled back, her stance losing its edge as she averted her gaze. Enterprise held the group's collective gaze for a few more moments before she gestured for them to follow her. Heading for the stage, Enterprise halted the group.

“I’ll go out, do the intro stuff. When I call your name, you come up on stage. Don’t interact with the fleet yet -you’ll have plenty of time for that later- just stand up there and introduce yourselves when I give you the signal. Simple stuff.”

Enterprise stepped out onto the stage, giving her fleet a bright smile and several waves. The group naturally hushed as she approached the pulpit. Taking a deep breath, Enterprise chose to focus on her words for the moment.

~~~

The Sirens were as close to public knowledge on the base as could be. No one was surprised to see them, after they’d been practically paraded around in some cases. But murmurs of surprise and anger and curiosity in varying amounts rippled through the crowd as each Siren was called up on stage. All in all though, as no riggings were summoned and no shells fired or planes launched, Enterprise would have called it a success.

That was until Purifier was called up. The silence that followed was as powerful as any blow Enterprise had experienced. The room seemed to chill as all eyes focused on the Siren as she waltzed up the stage to stand next to her friends. To her credit, she remained unaffected by the sudden dip in atmosphere even as she gave her introduction: still as chipper and energetic as she had been since awakening, she delivered her introduction to silence and hostility.

The entire event continued under this shroud until Enterprise dismissed the fleet and ushered the Sirens backstage. Once beyond the crowd’s line of sight, Purifier slouched, her pale lips broken into a pout.

“I really thought I could make more friends now, but this sucks! I hoped Big Red was the only one who hated me, but that was so scary!”

She broke into dry sobs, wrapping her arms around Lurker’s shoulders and leaning her weight against the smaller girl. Lurker’s face was a mask of unassuming endurance, and she patiently waited out Purifier’s antics. Purifier continued her self-pitying even as the leads of Enterprise’s staff arrived, all of them giving Purifier a wide berth and weird glances.

Enterprise cleared her throat, which had no effect on the Sirens’ weeping. Enterprise moved forwards, placing a hand on Purifier’s shoulder and guiding her away from Lurker. The short Siren flicked her bushy ponytail, dusting herself down before folding her arms and pointedly ignoring Purifier. Enterprise could suppress no small amount of surprise to see that Purifier’s eyes had reddened, even though no tears had actually fallen. One more curiosity to satisfy while working with Sirens.

“Ok. Well, we’ve decided to split you all up for the time being. Intruder,” the special cruiser glanced over at Enterprise, her blue eyes reflecting the ceiling’s lights, “you’ll be staying with the Iron Blood for now. Z23,” a point as the destroyer stepped forwards, “will lead you there. I think you’ll find it rather to your liking.”

The Siren nodded, coming to stand next to Z23. Intruder dwarfed Z23, much as Enterprise and the battleships did, and the image was fairly entertaining on its own. With a nod, Enterprise dismissed the pair, and with a salute Z23 led Intruder off to the Iron Blood dorms.

“Chaser, you are assigned to the Sakura Empire. Kaga will show you to your quarters. And you’ll have no lack of eager and able sparring partners, so relax some.”

The cruiser huffed, watching with light disdain as Kaga locked eyes with her before spinning and leaving. Chaser followed after her, stiff legged. Enterprise sighed, turning to look at Lurker and Purifier. The latter had calmed down, and was simply watching with an unreadable expression in her eyes. The shift from her more open and bubbly personality, along with the still haunting glow of her eyes, made Enterprise shiver. She couldn’t hide that one, and she watched as confusion swirled in Purifier’s gaze before it rippled back into obscurity. Lurker, in contrast, was teasing Suffolk, laughing at the maid enough to turn her cheeks bright red.

“Lurker, I hope you enjoy messing with Suffolk, because you’ll be with the Royal Navy.”

“Fine by me. Hey Chief, you gotta listen to her accent! It’s a real kicker! Hey, c’mon, say something.”

Lurker nearly chased Suffolk out of the room, the poor girl flushed and nearing tears, and Enterprise just hoped they would make it safely to the correct destination. She tossed a glance to Monarch, and the battleship groaned as she shifted and followed after them. Facing only Purifier now, Enterprise took a deep breath.

“So where do I go?”

“You get to go with the Eagle Union. C’mon, I’ll show you around.”

Chapter Text

Monarch followed a few paces behind Lurker while the submarine chattered towards an obviously uncomfortable Suffolk. Many of the personnel they passed gave them a wide berth, and many of the destroyers they met paused only momentarily to watch or say something. Monarch’s face tightened in a frown at the lackadaisical attitude of so many towards a Siren being present.

They’d all been created to fight the Sirens, and the majority of them had faced Sirens in open combat before. Some among them had been out of action for months following a large movement either countering or moving against the Sirens, some even having fought Purifier or Chaser themselves; it vexed Monarch that they could turn that away simply to try to befriend the very enemy who was the reason for their existence.

Monarch grit her teeth, her stride stiffening as she followed Suffolk and Lurker around a corner, the garish colors of the Royal Navy dorms standing against the softer blue of the sky. Monarch snorted, rolling her eyes at the choice in design for the building. Lurker shot a glance back at her, never once ceasing in her speech, and Monarch’s hackles raised. Lurker pressed a grin onto her face before she turned back to Suffolk, unperturbed.

She was different. Even if all the others were willing to trust the Sirens, Monarch knew she never could. It was ingrained in who she was to hate and destroy the Sirens. It was almost a physical urging, like being hungry or tired. A nagging little buzz on the edge of her consciousness, one that would remain as long as the Sirens continued making war. She knew that no one save Seattle and Gascogne understood this, regardless of the differences in their personalities.

They entered the dorms, Suffolk holding the door and bowing out of habit, and Monarch crossed her arms and rested back against the wall as a now familiar event played out before her. Lurker froze in place, her eyes going round at the sight of the many maids of the Royal Navy lined up.

They all curtsied in unison, calling out with one voice, “Welcome to Her Majesty’s dorms, Miss Lurker. We hope you will enjoy your stay.”

Monarch felt a small burst of satisfaction at the bashful way Lurker was reacting to this. Her small improvement in attitude was terminated as Queen Elizabeth loudly pranced into the hall, Prince of Wales and Howe following a step behind her.

“Ahahaha! So, this is the Siren that has been lucky enough to fall under my rule?” Elizabeth crowed, giving Lurker a smug glance as she stopped. The maids curtsied, rising as one and folding their arms as Elizabeth gestured to Lurker.

“Welcome to my Royal Dormitory, Lurker! I hope you understand the weight of this honour!”

Elizabeth laughed as all the maids were dismissed, with the exceptions of Belfast and Sirius. They flanked their queen, the characteristic smile on Belfast’s face catching Monarch’s eye. Her gaze sharpened on the head maid, flicking to her sisters and Sirius in turn.

Part of Monarch relaxed as she realized that they all, perhaps with the exception of Her Eccentricities, were on edge around Lurker. She snorted, mollified to see that some common sense still resided within the fleet.

“Yeah, but like… uhmm, are you sure you’re the queen? Shouldn’t queens be like, regal and graceful and… not short?”

Monarch was never one to give Queen Elizabeth any praise (that was the job of kissass maids and diplomats,) and that wouldn’t change now. But Elizabeth took the hit rather well, going stock still as her face lit up bright red and her eyes narrowed on Lurker, instead of exploding in a tiring tirade that Monarch knew she didn’t have the patience to suffer through. Behind her, Belfast grimaced and Sirius covered her mouth to try to hide her gasp.

Wales rolled her eyes and nursed the bridge of her nose, her exasperation something Monarch could agree with. Howe, as the sister Monarch couldn’t bring herself to hate, simply endeared herself more as she tried valiantly to hold back a laugh. Monarch almost laughed herself as Wales shot a glance at Howe, which only made her shoulders shake harder. Shortly after that, the whole occurrence taking a scant few seconds, and Wales was the first to recover, stepping up and placing a hand on Elizabeth’s shoulder.

“While it will become obvious in time, Lurker, Her Majesty is beyond qualified to lead. Belfast, please lead her to the guest’s quarters.”

Lurker’s smile took on a bit of a sheepish tilt as she followed Belfast. Monarch pushed off the wall and strode after them down the hall. Lurker glanced back at her, her gaze slipping back as the sound of Elizabeth exploding with another of her inevitable tantrums echoed around them. Monarch shook her head, sighing down towards the floor.

“So I guess that’s a sore subject.”

“Yes,” Belfast was almost too quick to answer, and if Monarch bought into the Royal Maid propaganda she’d have believed that the head maid was incapable of the anger so obviously brewing within. Regardless, Belfast was nothing if not professional, and she moved with precise steps, leading them around the corner. “It would be in your best interest to keep such future comments to yourself, Miss Lurker.”

“It’s not like she spoke lies,” Monarch let out a short laugh beside herself, easily ignoring the glare Belfast shot at her. “Elizabeth has tendencies, and you do nothing but spoil her, Belfast.”

“Hmm,” the maid hummed, stopping before the guest room and throwing both doors open. “We will see what George has to say when she returns. Should I tell her, Miss Monarch?”

Monarch snorted, the sound aggressive even as her face lit up a bright pink and she avoided Belfast’s now glowing gaze.

“...no.”

“Of course,” Belfast smiled, turning her head to Lurker. “Excuse me, Miss Lurker. This is where you’ll be staying. If you have any questions, do not hesitate to ask me. The evening meal will begin in a short order, so please make sure you’re prepared. I’ll have another of the maids by with your evening dress and instructions. If you’ll both excuse me.”

“Instructions to eat, huh,” Lurker teased, getting no reaction from Belfast. She tossed her gaze to Monarch, and the redhead offered her nothing but a shrug. “I get the whole ‘royalty’ thing, but isn’t that a bit much? Will someone stand by and wipe my mouth clean too?”

“Only if you request it, Miss Lurker.”

“R-right,” Lurker blinked, slightly taken aback. Belfast just smiled at her, and Monarch huffed at the smirk hidden just behind her polite eyes.

“Now, please do relax. You’re our guest, after all.”

Lurker nodded again, looking around the rather large room with wide eyes. Monarch watched her for a few seconds, long enough for the submarine to notice and give her a small smile.

“You didn’t tell me you were so well off, Red. This is the guest room? You guys do it right.”

Monarch glanced around the room herself, the thick and rich colors beyond what she would want or could stand for her own room. She looked back at Lurker with a shrug.

“Her Majesty has her tastes. Not what I would have chosen, but it is her guest room.”

Lurker hummed in agreement, moving about the large room with ease before jumping on the bed, making the entire frame rock with the impact.

“Wow, it’s so soft-”

Her words were cut off as Monarch closed the heavy doors, a muffled ‘hey!’ from inside pulling a smile from her lips. She turned to Belfast, who had been waiting outside the door’s threshold patiently, and gave her a short nod.

“Make sure she has an escort and someone on standby outside her room,” Monarch said, glancing back at the door as a small wave of uneasiness passed through her. “Preferably not a destroyer.”

“Of course, Miss Monarch,” Belfast curtsied, her gentle features taking on a sharper edge as she glanced at the door.

“Good. I think I’ll go and see what’s being prepared in the kitchen.”

“Miss Monarch, I was serious when-”

“If it bothers you that much, send Wales to stop me. I’m quite hungry, so I’ll be doing something about it,” Monarch tossed over her shoulder, taking the hall back the way they’d came. She smirked to herself at the huff of annoyance and grumbling Belfast let out before she was out of earshot.

~~~

Monarch sighed as she closed her chamber doors, her shoulders slumping as she relaxed against the heavy wood. Night had fallen, and she hadn’t seen Lurker since arriving: Belfast said she had the Siren monitored constantly, but Monarch couldn’t shake the uneasy feeling that she’d turned her back on a lion, with only the likes of Kent and Suffolk to guard her.

Tossing her head around and clearing it of her own doubts, Monarch crossed her room, laying her cloak across her bed as she moved to the bathroom. Her shoes and stockings followed in short order, her gloves and cap laying to rest beside them on her pristine sheets. She entered the room, a gentle curl of steam leaving through the open door as she unbuttoned and removed her uniform.

Suffolk stood quietly aside, accepting the uniform and Monarch’s underclothes without protest. She left shortly, returning just after Monarch had sunk into the warm bath water. She sat quietly and attended Monarch’s hair as she relaxed, letting the water help sooth her tired muscles.

“It’s nice to see you relaxing, Mistress Monarch. I suffer to see you under so much stress lately.”

Monarch hummed, giving a glance back as Suffolk huffed away at a knot in her hair.

“Do I really seem so stressed out, Suffolk?”

She could hear the bell she wore ring, and the image of Suffolk vigorously shaking her head popped into her mind, bringing a soft smile to Monarch’s lips.

“Yes Ma’am! You’ve been awfully dejected and on edge lately. It’s a nice change of pace to see you taking it easy.”

They sat in silence for a time, Monarch letting the water wash over her and cool as Suffolk continued brushing out her hair. It was a familiar enough setting for Monarch to begin to flutter off with exhaustion. She shook her head, willing herself to wake up again, and shifted back to sit up straighter in the tube. Suffolk resumed brushing her hair after she’d stopped moving, and Monarch took a few seconds to gather her thoughts before speaking.

“Tell me, Suffolk: what do you think of Lurker?”

“I think she’s a bit of a terror,” Suffolk coughed out, her eyes lighting up as she finally conquered a particularly ferocious knot. “She enjoys teasing me much too much for my taste.”

“You don’t have apprehension for her because she’s a Siren?” Monarch growled, more from confusion than anger. Suffolk, regardless, shrank away from her.

“Y-yes Ma’am. O-of course, her being a Siren doesn’t mean I’m ever relaxed around her.”

“Hmm,” Monarch grumbled, sinking up to her eyes in the water. Suffolk, with slightly shaky hands, resumed brushing her hair, now quiet. The silence continued until Monarch stood, sending Suffolk out to grab her sleepwear while she dried herself. Suffolk returned with her nightie, and Monarch couldn’t help the sigh as she slipped into the cool silk.

Dismissing Suffolk, who left with a nervous curtsy and almost fell in the process, Monarch wandered to her terrace and gazed out over the base. The distant flicker of the command buildings signified that there was plenty of work still happening, and she sighed at the thought of Enterprise working herself so hard again.

Soft padding next to her, merely a whisper in the night, was her only warning before a voice spoke up.

“You sigh an awful lot, Red. You feeling ok?”

Monarch’s fist tightened next to her, but she controlled herself and took her time turning. Lurker looked up at Monarch with an unreadable expression, the soft amber of her eyes lighting up the space between the two. Monarch went rigid, the hairs on the back to her neck standing stiff as she stared down at the submarine.

“And why, pray tell, are you in my chambers?”

“Well,” Lurker started, her voice surprisingly soft, “aside from being bored out of my mind, I wanted to see how you were doing.”

Monarch snorted, crossing her arms and crossing the room, turning as she lent back against the door. Lurker’s eyes followed her, steadily locked with her own, before she moved and sat down on the edge of her bed. She’d noticed the way Enterprise acted under Purifier’s glow, and while she couldn’t agree with the feeling fully (there was no unease, just anger,) she would admit to the atmosphere the glow of a Siren brought.

“Not only is ‘how I’m doing’ something you shouldn’t be bothered with, sneaking your way into my bedroom alone is enough to rouse my ire. So, I’ll ask again before I make you leave,” her voice dropped, and she took some satisfaction in the small flinch she got out of Lurker, “why are you here?”

Lurker dropped her gaze, tracing the engravings and patterns in the wood before she brought her eyes to rest on Monarch once more.

“The truth, Red? Well, I-”

“Monarch. Or Her Excellency.”

“Red. I’m tryna lay my heart out here a little, so could you, y’know, shut it,” Lurker shrugged, giving her a small, roguish smile. Monarch felt her cheeks heat up slightly, and she wanted nothing more than to berat this waif for her insolence, but she chooses her battles. Clenching her jaw, she inclined her head.

“OK, so, like, I woke up this morning. Like, I woke up for the first time in my life. I don’t know where I am, I barely know who I am; Chaser and Purifier are the only people I recognize, and everyone else is either out to get me,” she gestured with her hand towards Monarch, who chuffed but remained quiet, “or they’re scared shitless. And it’s not like I haven’t noticed, although you haven’t been the most discrete.”

“It comes with the territory, but continue.”

“Right. So, I’m basically all alone in hostile waters, staying with people who either wish I would disappear or wish to make me disappear. My only friends have been separated from me, and it doesn’t take a genius to figure out why. So is it so wrong that I would want to stay near a familiar face, even if the face apparently hates my guts?”

Monarch remained unmoved, even as Lurker finished. No sob story or crocodile tears could move her, and she reached deep inside herself to imbue her next words with as much venom as possible. She was startled from her thoughts, then, when she found the disgust and hatred wasn’t as potent as it had been.

“So, then, all you’re searching for is a friend? Because I’m sure Suffolk would love to talk with you more.”

Lurker’s laugh was short and bitter, catching Monarch off guard. She threw herself back on Monarch’s bed, arms spread out.

“Let’s not pretend she isn’t terrified of me. Of us, whatever that distinction holds now. Plus, I heard your conversation earlier. I think I’m the last person she’d want to see right now, after you.”

Monarch bristled, her patience and self control running out.

“You heard?! Tell me, how long have you been here?” Monarch’s demands didn’t even ruffle Lurker’s feathers, which really rustled her jimmies.

“Eh, I’m a submarine. It’s my job to be sneaky. Plus, the walls of this building aren’t as thick as you’d think. Just a little *ping* and I knew where you all were.”

As she spoke, Monarch felt it: a faint tickle across her front, like being briefly exposed to sunlight but without the warmth. A radar scan. Her anger doubled, and turned partly inwards. Of course a Siren would be able to track them, with apparent ease out of water and through walls.

“Well, enough about me. I got a question for my Most Gracious Host: who’s Geroge? And why did you get all scared when that big tittied maid brought her up?”

Monarch’s mouth went dry and she finally lost her patience. Crossing the room in several smooth steps, she picked Lurker up with ease and whirled on the ball of her foot.

“Wow, nerve touched. Whoever George is, she really gets your heart racing. Is she your lover? Your wife? Are you cheating on the Commander?”

Monarch’s face twisted with quiet rage even as Lurker’s face broke into a large grin, before the door was jammed open, fast enough to make its hinges squeal in protest, and Lurker was literally thrown into the hallway. Monarch slammed her door shut with enough force to rattle the entire wall, and she fummed at the muffled laughter from beyond.

She paced her room for some time, too worked up to sleep, and too angry to think clearly. In her head she could picture, and hear, George and Lurker standing over her, laughing at her loss of control and how pathetically she was acting. The sight made her clench her jaw until her ears popped.

Her pacing only ended when her door opened and a half dressed Suffolk came rushing in, offering her a glass of ice water and a poorly made sandwich. Monarch took the water and downed it in a single gulp, crunching ice under her teeth even as her grip on the glass tightened.

“Such arrogance! I see now why the Commander sent her here with us! She’ll fit right in with all the delusional idiots around here!”

“M-mistress Monarch, please sit down! I-it’s late, and…”

“And what, Suffolk!? This is an outrage, and I seem to be the only one concerned with it,” Monarch roared, the glass finally shattering under her grasp. She hurled the chunks that cut and dug into her hand across the room, several of the bloody shards embedding themselves in the wood.

“Monarch, please,” a tired voice called from the door, and Monarch locked her gaze on a half asleep Warspite, still garbed in her own sleepwear. “We’re all tired from today, and having you thundering up and down at such a late hour is wearing on me.”

Monarch found her tongue tied due to convention before a member of the royal family, even if she stood head and shoulders above them all. Suffolk gave a hurried curtsy, unable to ignore her training before royalty.

“S-sorry, Princess Warspite. Mistress Monarch has had a bad encounter, and-”

“Enough, Suffolk,” Warspite dismissed, her gaze sharpening at the use of the term ‘princess,’ “I believe Monarch can explain herself. Monarch?”

“Don’t silence my servant. She can speak for me as well as I can speak for myself,” Monarch said, barely containing the urge to spit in her anger. A few deep breaths later, and she had herself under control enough to hold a conversation. “Thank you, Suffolk. Please, return to your bed. I’ll have need of you in the morning.”

“O-of course. G’night, Mistress. Princess.”

Warspite shot another glare as Suffolk hurried past, but she held her tongue. Her dark purple eyes fixed on Monarch once more, before she jerked her thumb behind her.

“Let’s go. Training hall.”

Monarch almost responded, the words ripe on the tip of her tongue, before she caught herself and simply nodded, following Warspite with stiff legs. They wound their way across the dorms, only running into a rather flustered and peeved Gloucester, acting as Wales’ ears and eyes as usual. Monarch saw her off with a snarl, leaving the maid completely unfazed but giving her all the information she needed.

The training hall was lit, and Monarch wasn’t surprised to see Glasgow waiting for the two of them, training pads and clothes folded neatly in her arms. Warspite took one pair, slipping into the gear as Monarch fiddled with her own.

“Now I’ll get my nightgown all dirty, and for what? What a waste…”

“Enough muttering!” Warspite spat, fitting a padded plate snuggly around her chest. “If you gave a damn, you’d have controlled yourself! As it is now, we are going to duel, so you can work out this inappropriate anger; and, more urgently in my mind, so that I may beat some sense into you and return to my sleep.”

Monarch spat, growling and grumbling under her breath as she stalked to her corner of the ring. The small courtyard was bare, covered in loose sand to aid in traction and to cushion falls. Monarch felt it shift under her feet as she swiveled, raising her practice weapon as Warspite readied her own.

Annoyance, and no small part of regret, started to worm its way into Monarch’s head: Warspite was dangerous with a sword, and Monarch would even begrudgingly admit she was inferior to the pint-sized princess in this regard. She settled her mind as Warspite began to move, readying herself for a bruised morning.

~~
Monarch yawned, chasing her food around her plate without an appetite. She winced, her arm throbbing in pain as she stretched it too far. Various bruises covered her, as she’d predicted, and she hadn’t slept well after she’d returned to her room. Lying awake, her mind would inevitably return to George and Lurker, and she’d grow angry; closing her eyes would highlight the pain of her injuries, forcing her to relive her asswhooping from Warspite.

She sighed, wincing as her inward breath stretched her ribs painfully. Her reaction brought Suffolk scurrying, the maid bringing her a glass with some painkillers: Monarch just waved her off, stubbornly stuffing some egg into her mouth. Suffolk retreated to a respectful distance, and Monarch tried to ignore the look in the girl’s eyes.

That was made significantly easier when the sound of laughing announced the arrival of Wales and Lurker. She made it a point to send her sister a glare as the two seated themselves with her, Lurker’s smile wide and Wales’ cheeky.

“Good morning, Monarch. You caused quite a racket last night.”

“How the mighty have fallen, Wales. Not content with Eugen, Gloucester, or any other girl you can catch in your trap. But to fall for a Siren is truly sickening.”

Lurker pouted, giving Monarch her best impression of puppy dog eyes.

“C’mon Red. That hurts right here,” she patted her chest, “I know you don’t like me, but you don’t have to attack me and your sister.”

Wales laughed, accepting the plate that Belfast handed her. She flourished a fork, waving the tongs at Monarch as she winked at her sister.

“Always ready to fight, huh? And, I must admit, while I shared your fears of Lurker and her inevitable betrayal,” she was interrupted by an indignant Lurker, but with her mouth stuffed with food she was ignored, “after talking for some time, I’m willing to put a little more trust in her. I give it a year before she turns on us.”

“Really? That seems quite generous: I’d say a month, with two being the absolute limit.”

“I AM right here, y’know? You two don’t have to be asses about it,” Lurker huffed, swallowing half a glass of milk with the most modest annoyance possible. Monarch shook her head, pushing her plate away and moving to stand.

“Teasing aside, Monarch, I would like to speak with you. If you’d be so kind, of course.”

Monarch gave Wales a stare, unmoved by her bright smile or flippant eyebrows. She shook her head again, not at all trying to hide her disdain for the idea.

“We can talk later. I have a meeting with the Commander.”

“Hah!” Wales exclaimed, jumping from her seat and standing with one hand on Monarch’s shoulder faster than she would have liked. “Now I know that to be untrue. Monarch, I am Enterprise’s secretary: I set her meetings. Come, we have more important things to do than waste time here, and you have better things to do than ghost your own sister. Lurker.”

The Siren stood, swinging her arms cheerily as she led Wales and a resistant Monarch towards the exit. Monarch knew she should resist, but she was infuriatingly weak to Wales, among all her sisters. Excluding, possibly, York.

“Gloucester!”

The maid rushed over, her face lighting up briefly in a blush as Wales whispered in her ear, before she nodded vigorously and took off. Monarch watched as she raced across the room to the panicking Suffolk, scooping the maid into her arms and whisking her away, a faint ‘not again’ echoing behind them.

“Wales,” Monarch groaned, blinking as she was led out into the morning sunlight, glare cutting directly into her face. “Last time Gloucester took care of Suffolk, she refused to sleep in her own bed for a month.”

Wales smiled, patting Monarch on the back. The pain almost took her breath away.

“That’s what you get for being such a big softie with her. Come, we have an actual meeting to attend: Enterprise wants to examine all of the Siren’s abilities and armaments at the firing range. We have the honor of escorting Lurker there.”

“Wales, I really don’t see why I should be here.”

“And I spoke with York earlier. Whichever among the two of you has the worst attitude by the end, or otherwise negatively catches my attention, will be sharing her bed tonight.”

Monarch gulped. She couldn’t help it. Shoulders slumped, she followed Wales and Lurker to the training range, dragging her feet and scuffing her shoes the entire way.

Chapter Text

The Iron Blood dorms were like all the others: a massive triplet of concrete buildings, their faces harsh in the sunlight. Intruder’s eyes adjusted as she glanced up, following in Z23’s footsteps as she led her across the base.

Doubt and fear weren’t feelings that Intruder processed, but a certain caution crept its way into her step as she approached the Iron Blood dorms. The building itself, while functional, wasn’t appealing in any sense, and its harsh edges and lack of décor or life made for an uninviting, if not hostile, visage.

Z23 walked through the heavy oak doors, disappearing inside without a glance back to see if Intruder was following her. The special cruiser pushed aside the door, entering into a room lit under bright, sunken white lights that filled the room with a sense of abandonment. Z23 was at a desk at the far wall, folding a group of papers together before speaking.

“Your room is on Subfloor 1. You’ll be taken there in a few minutes.”

Intruder nodded, watching as Z23 slid the papers into a drawer and grabbed a line phone.

“Scharnhorst und Gneisenau zum die Hauptlobby.”

Setting the phone down Z23 continued fiddling and making noise behind the desk, her eyes never lifting to meet Intruder’s again. The lack of any sort of acceptance or friendliness wasn’t unexpected for Intruder, but the borderline neglect and abandonment Z23 was giving her was also unexpected.

While she dwelled absently on this, Intruder’s long range radar picked up the approach of two large frames, moving in sync. A combination of the room's thickness and her unfamiliarity of the layout made it impossible for her to determine where exactly they were, but she could tell they were drawing closer. After a few seconds, both of the radar shadows resolved themselves into a pair of women who rounded the corner and came to a halt at the door’s threshold.

Intruder could feel the heat from both of their gazes, her skin crawling and peeling under the almost painful stares. She wasn’t used to such feelings, and the speed with which these two seemed to deem her worthy of contempt set off alarm bells in her social subroutines.

Authority dripped from both of them, and the single eye of the slightly taller woman unleashed an almost palpable anger every second Intruder found herself pinned under it. It was uncomfortable to remain within her gaze and it left Intruder with the sense that trying to leave would be a dangerous endeavor.

“Welcome.”

One of the two, the one adorned with a pair of red glasses, spoke, her voice surprisingly disinterested for how menacing her stance was. Intruder’s assessment was proven correct when she froze her under her gaze with a simple step forwards.

“I’m Gneisenau, and with Scharnhorst I run the Iron Blood,” her voice was almost a sigh, and she waved a bored hand at her partner. “We’ll be going over your stay here with us in a short time. For now, follow us to your room.”

Gneisenau turned and moved off down the hallway. Scharnhorst turned to the side, crossing her arms as barely held back fury rolled off her in waves. Walking past her into the hall, trying to ignore the strangely irrational thought that moving closer was a death sentence, Intruder followed Gneisenau.

The path was straightforward, a single walkway into the depths of the building. The size and emptiness of the halls swallowed all sound save the click of Intruder’s heels on the floor, echoed by the strong strike of Scharnhorst’s shoes.

Setting her active radar on the trailing battlecruiser, Intruder followed the only path down the hallway. Though it was a straight shot, the lights made it difficult to see Gneisenau as an almost artificial miasma clouded the air and obscured the battleship. Only the sound of her footsteps (and Intruder’s radar) gave away the fact she was moving.

“You’ve probably noticed that the walls here are thicker than anywhere else on the base.”

The air seemed to swallow Gneisenau’s words and spit them back out, her tone and inflections completely flat and lifeless. Even the sharp sounds of heels meeting concrete seemed damp the further they went.

“Unlike all our more delusional factions, the Iron Blood has no illusions about what you Sirens can do. And our barracks are built accordingly. Even where a bomb to go off in a bedroom, all but the adjacent spaces would survive unscathed.”

Gneisenau’s form apparated through the haze, her arms folded while she waited before a door. As Intruder drew closer Gneisenau reached out and placed a hand on the door, and with a deep hiss it rolled open and slid into the wall.

Inside was as bare and spartan as the rest of the building: a short metal table with a wooden chair were accompanied by a bed with thick gray sheets and a flat pillow. Intruder glanced around, with a light inset in the roof and a neighboring air vent, and was impressed by its emptiness above all else.

“This will be your room, Unit 124. The walls are half a meter thick with a 10cm door. Steel and lead. A 250kg bomb won’t break it down.”

Intruder’s gaze met Gneisenau’s, noting the dullness they seemed to contain. Something about that stuck in her mind, something about how inappropriate that look seemed on her face. Before she could properly deal or dwell on it, a hand on her back gave her a shove. Two steps forwards and she was in the room, turning to find Scharnhorst sneering down her nose at her.

Gneinesau’s eyes flickered to her sister and she gave a slight shake of her head.

“Really,” she mumbled, her hand resting on her forehead before her eyes snapped back to Intruder. “Get comfortable. We’ll be back for you in about an hour, after which we’ll go over your ‘orientation’ and your expected duties.”

Almost before she’d finished speaking the door slid out of the wall and sunk into the closed position with a solid ring. She had half a second to see surprise crack through Gneisenau’s expression and the smugness set deep in Scharnhorst’s eye before cold iron blocked her view.

Faint whispers of voices penetrated the room, but otherwise she had no indication of the happenings of the outside world. Walking to the bed was about all she could do, and all it revealed to her was that the bed was hardly more welcoming than it seemed. The sheets were rather itchy, while the pillow was indeed flat.

Sitting on the edge of the frame, Intruder looked around the room once more, her eyes drawn to the clock she hadn’t noticed from the door. Otherwise, with nothing new to occupy herself, all she could do was turn inwards.

Even though the man who’d studied her upon waking had been thorough, Intruder still felt better leaving it up to her internal diagnostics. A quick system scan would hopefully help clear up why the four of them had been so beat up, and why her memory didn’t extend beyond when her eyes had opened.

After a few seconds her system checked off all green. That drew a frown onto her normally soft features, her eyes flickering to the door at a slight noise before she turned back to her mind. A delving into the checks showed that the scan hadn’t been incorrect: all her functions were nominal, and not a circuit or motor was out of place.

A second scan turned up nothing, and a third followed like the others. Retracing her steps to her user log, she was astonished to see it was completely blank before the timestamp of her awakening. No data was recorded before she’d found herself on the table.

That was scary. She didn’t know anything before she woke up. That wasn’t right. Nothing about that was right, and it spoke of something different and dangerous going on either around her or within her.

Intruder tried to execute a system search for time signatures an hour or more before she’d awoken. With every empty return a small pit of dread wormed its way into her stomach. A cold tingled along the undersides of her arms as she sent a request to… somewhere. The fact she didn’t remember where was frightening, since apparently it was hard baked into her code to do so in emergencies.

The signal died halfway through sending it. Growing slightly frustrated, a welcome emotion to any sense of helplessness, Intruder put out several scans of the room and was nonplussed to see every one of them returned to her by the concrete walls. Her deep-penetrating sonar had more success, piercing several rooms out before returning to her in a muddled heap of values.

A grunt left her as her frustration reached its limit. This building, built to withstand bombs and shells, was an armored fortress and a digital nightmare, all archaic hardware without so much as a window. And, with a sinking feeling, Intruder realized she was stuck in the middle of it. A bundle of electrified needles in a building-sized Krupp and Portland haystack.

Her sonar scan did at least warn her of the approach of one of the sisters to collect her, though which one she couldn’t tell. It was some small comfort that she wasn’t as blind as she thought she was, compared to the gaping abyss of information she was missing.

A pair of knocks and the door sliding open brought her back outside herself, and Scharnhorst entering the room brought her to her feet. The woman’s single eye seemed to contain a whole world, all of it pointed in near-active anger at her. She had to look up to the battlecruiser, and it only emphasized the disadvantages she had.

“All’s ready. Let’s go. And whatever kinda radar you just used: knock that shit off. Gives me a fucking headache.”

Intruder nodded, moving past Scharnhorst when the latter simply crossed her arms and glared at her. Intruder could feel her tense when she passed her. She waited as Scharnhorst followed her out and closed the door once the both of them had left, crossing her arms again until Intruder started down the slightly eerie hallway.

Thankfully it's straightforward nature made it a simple matter to follow back to the lobby. Just as the threshold came into view, Scharnhorst’s bark cut through the air.

“Hey, you two! Knock that shit off!”

A pair of gasps choked their way through the air before two girls came out from behind one of the early branches to the hallway. One was Z23, the blonde’s cheeks already red and bordering on cherry as she stood there. The other was a purple haired girl, nearly matching Z23 in height while maintaining a more svelte build. Her cheeks weren’t as red, and the smile still lingering on her lips grew a bit as she glanced at Scharnhorst.

“Uh, h-hey, Scharnhorst! We were, um…”

“Don’t need to hear it,” the battlecruiser pinched the bridge of her nose. When her eye opened Intruder was surprised to see it had softened into an exasperated affection, though her voice maintained its iron bite. “Just… don’t be like that in public. For her sake.”

Both girls nodded, Z23 doing so fast enough to make Intruder’s neck ache in sympathy, before they rushed past the two of them and disappeared into the gloom, the other girl's voice slightly breaking through as a series of giggles.

Scharnhorst, recovered from her improved mood, drove Intruder down a branch and pushed her into a room. Adorned with a massive steel eagle over the far wall, whose sharp eyes seemed to pierce the entire room from under its heavy crown, and an ornamental and stout wooden table, the room was the most lively Intruder had seen.

“Sit.”

Intruder didn’t question her and sat down in a chair, sitting rigid under the piercing gazes of Scharnhorst and the wall eagle. The battlecruiser sat across from her, laying one arm across the table and tapping her fingers on the hardwood. She locked her eye on Intruder and simply watched her, her gaze hard and tacked on.

They sat in silence, and as her internal clock rolled further Intruder couldn’t help but ponder on her current situation. Scharnhorst shifted, her eye slipping past Intruder to glance at the door before it snapped back, fixing on Intruder once more. The reasons for Scharnhorst’s almost open hostility weren’t very clear from her perspective, and with her limited memories she didn’t think she’d be able to think her way to clarity.

Passive radar scans picked up a fast approaching mass, which Intruder quickly matched to Gneisenau. The battlecruiser’s steady steps brought her to the door, and Intruder turned her head to watch as she entered the room. A small stack of papers, clamped in her hands, was all she had with her. She crossed the room, setting the papers before Scharnhorst and taking a seat beside her sister.

“Now that we’ve had some time, we’ll go over what you need to know about the Iron Blood, as well as some standard record keeping.”

Intruder watched as Gneisenau handed Scharnhorst a pen. She glanced down at it before sliding all but one paper over to Gneisenau, picking up her pen and returning her attention to Intruder. Gneisenau fiddled with the papers before she settled them down. Her gaze was as flat as it had been earlier, and when she spoke her voice was as flat as her eyes.

“First: your name and designation, as well as weapons capability, secondary electronic abilities, countermeasures, basic dimensions, total combat appraisal, and biological mimetic capacities.”

“Mk. II Special Cruiser, Intruder model. Type 9 guided torpedo, Type 13 heavy torpedo, Mk. 3 spectral cannon and Mk. 6 ion cannon. Full spectrum radar and sonar, deep jammers, emergency neutrino and chrono scans, and emergency mass production remote control.”

Intruder answered mechanically, without reservation. Scharnhorst’s pen scribbled across the page, pasting her words to paper. Gneisenau watched and remained silent, resting her head on her hands with her eyes half closed behind her glasses.

“Full tonnage is 7,300 at combat load, classified as a light reconnaissance platform with subclassification as a local combat information distribution node.”

She hesitated for the first time, stumbling over the last information that Gneisenau had asked for. Biological mimetic capacities? She didn’t mirror biological life, she was biological life. At least as much as the women across from her. How was she supposed to answer that?

Deep scans of herself along with system inquiries returned nothing, which didn’t surprise her but did leave her worried. She didn’t have an answer for that. She couldn’t respond to this answer with any data she had at present, and her system was setting off several flags at her searches.

“And?”

She refocused her eyes on Gneisenau, watching as a sharpness entered her previously flat gaze. Scharnhorst was still glaring at her, pen still as she and her sister pressed forwards somewhat. The silence that had lasted for little more than a second hadn’t gone unnoticed, which didn’t surprise her, and she decided to answer as simply as she could.

“Beyond what you see of me, I have no knowledge of my biological abilities. Any system searches return nothing beyond derived human ability, and a deeper search is not possible at this time. As far as I am aware, I am no more biologically outstanding than you both.”

Scharnhorst pulled her lip back, a silent snarl rolling off her, while Gneisenau sat back in her chair. She remained silent and folded her hands in her lap, her eyebrows shifting down a fraction of an inch. They both remained silent for a good time, their general behavior remaining unchanged throughout.

A few more seconds of silence was followed by Gneisenau sitting straight up again, sliding her hand over and taking the page from Scharnhorst. She scribbled down on the paper, not looking at Intruder as she spoke.

“We will return to this later. As for your duties… We demand a strict schedule here, and you will follow it as we all do. You will be awake by 0430, breakfast will be at 0700. Between then is morning exercises and rigging maintenance. After will be assigned missions, exercises, classes, and sparring opportunities. At 1430 you’ll return to the dorms for your evening meal and our diagnostics. Then you’ll return to your room for lights out and await morning.”

Intruder nodded, inscribing the times on a notepad.

“Next, we’ll move to our physical tests. Follow us.”

Gneisenau stood, pushing herself away from the table and moving to the door. Scharnhorst folded the papers into a stack and stood as well, holding them as her glare continued unabated. Intruder followed suit and passed through the doorway, catching a glimpse of movement as she did so.

Gneisenau led her down the hall, further into the building’s depths. Her pedometer helped her keep track of the distance she traveled, but her unfamiliarity with the building in general led to a general feeling of confusion as the walls and halls all blended together.

They walked for several seconds and only 54 steps; Intruder could feel a light breeze of relief pass through her before she entered the new room and another shadow filled her. The room was packed with machinery, which hummed and led to an almost blistering heat in the air.

“Don’t touch anything,” Gneisenau said, moving to one of the corners and patting her hand on the back of a concrete chair. “Sit.”

Intruder ran her hand along an arm of the chair before she sat. It was as stiff and uncomfortable as she’d thought it would be, but she suffered its cool embrace without arguing. Scharnhorst stood in the doorway as Gneisenau worked along several keyboards with a flurry of typing.

“This machine will be used to help us get an idea of your inner functionings.”

For the first time since meeting her, Intruder heard a spark of emotion slip into Gneisenau’s speech. She twisted to watch the battlecruiser as she entered several more keys before stepping away and pulling two diodes from sockets in the machine.

“Hold these and remain still.”

Intruder took the offered cones. They were smooth to the touch, cool on her skin and reflective enough to show her a distorted image of herself. She glanced back at Gneisenau.

“Just remain still,” she said, her back already turned and her hands flying across the keyboard once more.

She hit a key with finality and with a soft whirl the machine started to hum. Intruder couldn’t feel any difference from the diodes in her hands even as they lit up with a bright enough light that even at maximum polarization her eyes had trouble keeping contact.

Scharnhorst grunted, shielding her eyes from the light. Her colors had faded out completely from the brightness and Intruder had to rely on her memory packet to fill them in.

“That’s fucking bright. How’s it look?”

“High, but not unprecedented,” Gneisenau said, looking at a screen and blocking the light from it with her body. Intruder could almost see the bones in her fingers as she held up her hand. “Thankfully it’s within the projected capacity, otherwise… Well…”

She glanced back at Intruder before turning to the machine.

“I get it. Well, we gonna keep this up much longer, cause I’ll go fucking blind if we do.”

A glance over at Scharnhorst found a small smile on her lips. She had a feeling that if Scharnhorst didn’t think she was blinded -a fairly reasonable assumption, since she almost was- she’d never see it.

“I’d like to not overwork poor Vestal if we can help it.”

“Hmm.”

The machine’s humming died as Gneisenau sent another volley of typing through the room. She hummed to herself as data scrolled along the screen before it coalesced into several charts and graphs.

Intruder snapped a mental image of the screen, her eyes magnifying the image, before Scharnhorst grabbed her by the shoulder and dragged her to her feet.

She was pushed to the door and down the hall, Scharnhorst following a few steps behind her. Intruder moved back down the hall, turning from the light of the main lobby as she returned to her room. The journey back was quick, the general miasma of the air not muddling her enough as her mind focused on what she’d seen in the room.

“Dinner is in 3 hours. Be ready.”

Scharnhorst’s growl was almost cut off as the door closed between them. Intruder glanced back at the smooth wall, the sound of clicking heels already faint and fading. She preferred being alone right now; aside from the obvious hatred Scharnhorst was showing her, and the cold indifference Gneisenau put out, she could use the time to sort her thoughts and try to apply what she’d seen and make sense of it all.

The photo she had taken of the data tables was first on her mind. Pulling them up showed her a series of increasingly dramatic graphs, whose maximum value appeared to be approaching 100,000 of something. The legend to the side, as well as the graph labels, were written in that unfamiliar language that the Iron Blood spoke. In fact, the only thing on the screens she could read were the numbers; and without a reference for the data the numbers didn’t have any meaning or scale for her.

She watched the graphs for a few more minutes, running projections for the graphs with cross referenced data for whatever she thought could fit. As her system ran its models she turned her mind towards the attitude of her hosts. Gneisenau and Scharnhorst obviously held her at arms length at best, in contempt and almost open hostility at worst; Z23 seemed to find her upsetting to deal with, if her reluctance for any interaction beyond the purely professional.

Her thoughts turned to when she’d awoken. Most of the present people had avoided her gaze and attention, though they’d done the same to other Sirens. The only ones who’d even looked at her were the doctor, the tall blonde battleship, and Graf Spee. The doctor hadn’t spoken much to her as he’d worked. The battleships hadn’t paid much attention to her either: the redheaded one had had eyes only for Lurker, who’d been making a nuisance of herself as normal, while the blonde hadn’t given her more attention than she’d given any of the others.

Graf Spee, though, had been an anomaly. She’d seemed quiet in a way that the others hadn’t, like she existed as a silent existence instead of the uncomfortable blanket that’d covered the others in the Sirens’ presence. And in that silence Intruder hadn’t found a judgmental gaze or hostile air like she had with Scharnhorst and Gneisenau. Intruder thought that that might be her chance for some answers.

The question of why she was hated wasn’t unknown to her. It was easy to guess that, with her identity as a member of the enemies these girls had been born to fight, they would be eager to do just that. Maybe, like herself, it was a part of their programming to fight her. If so then she couldn’t really judge them for it. Fighting against her nature was an exercise in futility, even when she could see her own base code behind her eyelids. It spoke to her about how insurmountable it was with every line, so she felt some aches of sympathy for her hosts.

Still, being the brunt of their ire was a tiresome venture when it didn’t present a hazard to herself. So, with Spee being a way past this bias if she could find an opportunity to speak with her, Intruder returned her mind to the data she’d collected. The graphs still didn’t amount to much in terms of what it meant, and without an understanding of the Iron Blood tongue she wasn’t sure she’d figure it out.

She threw her hands out, stretching her arms, before she laid back on the bed and stared at the ceiling. She had over an hour before she was allowed to leave again, and she was out of things to do. Boredom wasn’t something she’d faced much of before, and her short time spent in it now made a strong case that she wasn’t a fan.

Entering hibernation mode with a timer for T-minus 5 minutes would give her time to get herself ready. Not that there was much she really could do. Settling into her mattress, letting her head rest on the stiff pillow as much as it could, she let her consciousness fade so time could pass her by.

Hibernation mode wasn’t like sleep. She remained conscious through it, but her system maintained itself instead of applying any available updates and realigning her code with her library matrix. Time passed just as quickly as if she’d slept, but she remained awake and aware of the world around her.

Her alarm came soon, and with it she prepared herself. Which amounted to smoothing out her hair and pressing out the creases in her clothes. She’d more than finished when a knock at her door matched the timer for what she’d been told. Her door slid open and Z23 stood before her, flanked on her left by another destroyer. Her smile, while cocky and tightening around the corners, was more real than any other Intruder had seen since she’d arrived.

“It’s time for dinner. Come.”

Intruder nodded and stood, leaving her room and following Z23 back down the hall. The other destroyer closed the door behind her and then took her spot as last in line. Intruder glanced back at her, and when their eyes met she was disturbed to see excitement and fury flow through the shorter girl's gaze.

“Ya see something ya like? Or ya wanna go a few rounds?”

Intruder raised an eyebrow, turning back to Z23 as she moved down the hall.

“Yeah, that’s right! Ain’t no match for my greatness!”

Z23 shook her head, sighing to herself. They passed through the hall without incident beyond that, turning down the opposite hallway she’d taken to the meeting room. Scents drifted down through the air, filling her mind with images of fish and boiled vegetables. Her stomach remained silent, even as Z23’ and the other destroyer’s growled as they sniffed the air.

They entered another square room that followed the same pattern as the others; the biggest difference was the cutout in the wall with a torso-high window and the rows of benches and tables that occupied the center of the room. Most of the tables were full, a gentle murmur filling the room as the girls conversed with one another.

The noise dropped noticeably when Intruder entered, many of the girls going silent as they stared at her. She crossed the room, still sandwiched between her escorts, and tried to match as many faces to names as she could. That number was unsurprisingly low as she passed her gaze over the attentive faces scattered around.

The only faces she recognized were Gneisenau, who was sitting at one of the furthest tables from the entrance, looking over several documents as she ate her food. A small blonde head wearing a hat almost too large for her pushed up along Gneisenau’s side, and Intruder was surprised to see the battlecruiser not only tolerate the little intruder but reach over and pat her head.

Moving along, Intruder spotted the only other person in the room she recognized, and the only other one she hoped to see. Graf Spee was sitting close to the window, her back to the door and, consequently, to Intruder. She was listening as another girl across from her, her dark hair highlighted with a bright red zigzag through it, who was speaking with a loud voice and boisterous movements of her arms.

The destroyers led her into the line for food. Several normal humans were working behind the window, and the scent of fire and food floated heavily through the window to fill the room. A plate was thrust at her until she took it and she simply followed Z23’s lead: hold the plate out, take the food, then take some utensils and sit down. As she sat, keeping an eye on Graf Spee and waiting for an opportunity to speak to her, Z23 and the other destroyer hemmed her in at the table.

She ate her food without any gusto or hurry, mostly since she really had no appetite. Z23 ate her food slowly as well, her eyes fixed pointedly on anywhere that wasn’t Intruder. The other girl wolfed her food down and tried to hold a conversation with Z23, which was an admirable feat considering she managed to not choke on her food through her entire meal.

When Intruder had finished her meal the two destroyers stood with her, leading her to the cleaning station before turning her back to the hallway. Intruder glanced back at Spee, assessed the risk with trying to force her way down a path that her escorts obviously didn’t think she needed to go, and decided that it was better to avoid a scene then to use brute force.

She was led away from the mess hall, and along the way decided to try to find out what she could from her two escorts.

“So… am I expected to just head back to my room and wait until morning?”

“Yes.”

“Am I allowed visitors?”

“No.”

“Besides, it’s not like anyone would want to visit you! Any questions they have will be answered at tomorrow's arms demonstration anyways.”

“Arms demonstration?”

The other destroyer shrugged when Intruder turned to look at her. She placed her hands behind her head, giving Intruder a smirk as she spoke.

“Enterprise has ordered all you Sirens to the training range tomorrow, so we can see your combat abilities in action. Who knows: we might get lucky enough to spar with one another.”

Her voice and smirk had turned viscous, her teeth flashing in the light. She glanced over at Z23 and the tips of her lips quirked up in such a way to give her grin a sardonic twist.

“Hey, Reuter, you think you and your little fuckbuddy could give ‘ol Gloweyes here a run for her money?”

Z23 said nothing, ignoring her fellow destroyer with burning pink cheeks. They’d arrived at her room, and after the door slid closed behind her Intruder was left alone once again. Barely audible yelling wafted through the door, Z23’s voice shrill in its hysterical mania, along with laughter from the other destroyer as they moved back down the hall. A soft click sounded from the door, and while she wasn’t sure, it seemed a safe bet to think that the door was locked.

Laying back in her bed, Intruder prepared herself to sleep. Setting a wake up time was easy, and a quick system check told her that she’d be 100% operational afterwards. That didn’t give her the normal feeling of relief it should have.

She sighed. Even if she was fully capable, she hadn’t had a chance to speak to Spee. What she’d learned from her escorts wasn’t useless, but it also answered no questions she had and brought her no real sense of relief. She was certain she wouldn’t get that until she spoke to someone who would talk back to her, without vitriol and contempt. And she couldn’t imagine anyone here who’d that be other than Spee.

Intruder closed her eyes and set her wake up for 0430, as she’d been instructed, and prepared herself for sleep. As she started to drift off, an option flashed through her mind that gave her pause. An option to dream.

She couldn’t remember if she’d ever dreamed before. She didn’t know if she could. But she also didn’t know if she couldn’t, or if she wouldn’t like it.

Intruder shook her head and denied the option. Whatever her truth had been, she wasn’t in the mood for dreaming.