Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

"You're free to stay and watch me if you like." Essex happily says as she notches an arrow. It was then as if the world slowed down for my enjoyment. Three of her gloved fingers tenderly wrapped itself around the string, the nock of the arrow resting between her index and middle finger.

She then points the bow upwards before pulling down with all her might. From my place right behind her I could see her back stretch to bear the weight of the longbow's draw, her sweat covered shoulderblades exposing themselves as she pulls back, and it was at that point I curse and thank the gods above that she decided to wear nothing but a sports bra. I found myself subconciously licking my lips at the sight.

She leans forward, the action letting me get a good view of her butt behind those yoga pants she wore, before she levels the bow so that Essex could aim. I then watched as Essex take a deep breath, holding for a few moments before releasing the arrow, letting it loose. Her hands slingshot back behind to get out of the bowstring's way, her back relaxing and the breath she was holding coming out as the weight she was holding was suddenly let go.

She then straightens her posture and looks back at me with a smile.

God I wanna fucking kiss her right now.

The smile was short-lived however as Essex looked at me worriedly.

"A-are you ok Zui!? You look like you just came out of a sauna!" I put a shaky hand to a burning cheek and try to say something, yet only incoherent mumbling came forth.

"A-Ahm f-fwine nyeh..." I couldn't think, my mind was being assaulted by what I had just witnessed. Eventually it became too much, and everything went black.

Chapter Text

Gitchee Gitchee Goo Means That I Love You!

MiG-21 could not go a day without seeing F-4. Contrary to her name, F-4 Phantom loved to make herself known, and especially to MiG-21, much to the latters dismay.

Today was another such day. MiG-21, affectionately known as Balalaika, was simply walking down the ailses of the warehouse, taking inventory of all their spare parts, when she heard the familiar pitter-patter of boots behind her. 

The Northern Parliament plane sighed as she turns around and comes face to face with Phantom, who had a wide grin on her face, no doubt planning something mischieveous in that dvd screensaver she calls a brain.

"What is it this time Phantom?" Balalaika asks looking back down at her clipboard, finding the inventory of items much more interesting then the Navy Jet. She would then snap her head back towards Phantom however as the latter suddenly started singing…

" Bow, Chicka, Bow-Wow~!" Phantom started as Balalaika groans. 

'Not this again!' The MiG thinks to herself as her companion continues her song.

"That's what my baby says! Mow-mow-mow!

"Phantom I'm not doing this right now, I have work to do…"

"And my heart starts pumpin'~" the jet continues, pausing a bit to prompt her counterpart to sing along. And when no reply immediately came she continued once more, dancing along to the song as she comes closer.

"Chicka-Chicka, Choo Wap! Never gonna stop! Gitchee gitchee goo means that I love you~!" Phantom then gives an affectionate wink, pointing her two pointer fingers in the MiG's direction.

"I said a Bow, Chika, Bow-Wow-" Phantom stops once more but this time Balalaika sighs and relents to the prompting of her cheery partner.

"That's what my baby says…" MiG sings, lacking the energy the navy plane had. Nevertheless Phantom's grin widens as she sings with even more vigour.

"Mow-Mow-Mow!"

"And my heart start's pumpin'…"

"Chika-Chika Choo Wap!"

"Never gonna stop! Gitchee gitchee goo means that I love you!" Both jets finish in unison with Phantom laughing and cheering. Balalaika didn't realize it but she was smiling fondly at the cheering F-4.

Balalaika's girlfriend was increadibly dorky, sometimes gets on her nerves, and unbelievably dense at times, but she couldn't deny that Phantom knew how to have fun and cheer her up.

Then a clap was heard from besides them.

"Eh!? Midway! Since when did you get here!?"

"Since the very first verse~ I'm proud of you Phantom." Midway smiles as she takes a sip of her Oxy-cola.

"Ehhhhhh???????"

Chapter Text

Ever since arriving at port the Commander has truly proven himself capable of leading the girls. He was compassionate, cared for them, and was an outstanding battlefield tactician which has won them numerous battles against the enemy. He also possed looks any man would be envy about, a large build, strong jawline and a sexy voice to boot!

And because of these traits a lot of the girls started to take a liking to him, some even going so far as wanting to take him as their husband. Yet time and time again, he seems either ne wholly ignorant of their advances, straight up doesn't care or sometimes outright refused a declaration of love from one of them.

This puzzled the girls to no end as from the stories they heard from other comrades in other ports, their commander usually gave in by the second day. So why is he so different, the girls wondered.

This air of mystery seem to only attract more of the girls into a state of rabid infatuation. Something about the unobtainable perfect man before them seems to really make them want him more.

Until one day the Commander announced that a very important person is coming to the port today, and wanting to impress their beloved commander, each girl put on their best behaviours, not a single disrespectful movement from any of them.

That is until the guest arrived. A large man, though not as much as their commander, wearing Air force colors, a pilot no doubt. But what really confused the girls was when their Commander approached the man, gave him a tight hug before kissing him on the cheek!

"Girls! I would like you to meet my Husband, Edward. Edward these are my secretaries." 'Edward' then goes up and shakes their hands with a smile.

"It's nice to finally meet you girls! Gordon's told me a lot of good thing's about you!" The girls now realize why their commander never much responded to their feelings and now they felt so stupid in the face of it all. It all made sense now!

After Edward's visit the girls decided that an apology was in order and the commander for his part just laughed.

"Why didn't you tell after the fifth confession?"

"I dunno I just found it amusing to see you girls try so hard to please. I'm sorry if it felt like I lead you on but come on, you guys never even asked!"

~~~~~~~~~~~

The girls stared in disbelief at whats in front of them.

It was already quite a shock to find out about Commander Gordon's Husband so the girls were so sure that there wasn't anything else that would surprise them.

Oh how wrong they were...

When Gordon's Husband, Edward, came back to port to participate on the newly organized family day event being held at the base, with a little girl, no more than 10, on his shoulders no less, North Carolina and Ingraham couldnt help but gawk.

"Daddy are the pretty ladies the ones Papa always talks about?" The little girl on the Pilot's shoulders asked her father, who in turn, nods at his little girl.

"They are! The tall one is North Carolina, and the one with Brown hair is Ingraham. You remember them from Papa's letters, yeah? Carol, Ingraham I want you to meet Gordon and I's pride and joy, Serena" The little girl nods, offering a little wave.

Carolina smiles and waves back, marvelling at how adorable the little girl is. Ingraham meanwhile only manages a small wave.

"Oh! Now that you're here, let's get you to the Commander. I'm sure he'd want to know you two're here! Now why don't you two go ahead" Following Carolina's suggestion the two went on ahead of the two.

Ingraham turns to Carolina. Carolina turns to Ingraham.

"Commander Gordon has a Daughter!?"

Chapter Text

"Y'know, Essex knows her stuff. Yeah sure, greener than the amazon is, but hell the kid's got talent." Enterprise, Detective extraordinaire, says as she tips the bottle in her hands to take a drink, listening to the song Lexington was singing at the bar's far stage.

"Your new partner? The rookie that Chief forced upon ya?" Pennsylvania, Enty's current barmate, replied, turning to the white-haired detective with drink in hand.

"NJ forced no one into my hands, Penny. Took her under my wing m'self. Kid's got a real keen eye, real good attention to detail. damn thought I was lookin' in a mirror of me when I was younger. Though said attention's... very scattered. Could use to focus more at what's on hand yeah?" Enty laughed as she drank remembering how her subordinate figured out the crime scene last week, albeit a bit behind Enterprise herself. 

"Good huh? Big woop, bet'cha can do what she's doing faster and more efficient anyhow." Penny shrugged downing the rest of her drink and hollering at the tender for another one. At that Enty only smiled, and waited for the other woman to get her other drink.

"Yeah, I definitely could. I mean I'd be surprised if I didn't after... what? 20 years in the field? Besides her investigative tools are already a step or two ahead of yours, and she's only been here two months! With a bit if cultivation, she might well be my new replacement. God knows I should be thinking of retirement." Enty would laugh as she finished her own drink, sliding it over to the bartender who takes the bottle and puts it away.

"Touché, Ent. Touché. But is this kid really what you make her out to be?" Enterprise smiled again and nod.

"These eyes have solved their fair share of cases, and have seen all kinds of people. When I say this kid's got it, I mean that this kid's got it. And hey, to give her some credit, if anything she knows how to handle her guests. Invited me over to dinner once with her wife, lovely Jap woman, real wholesome couple, and it's probably the best service I've gotten in years." Enty places a generous tip down on the table before slinging her jacket over her shoulder and standing up.

"Hey, where you going? You only had a bottle. You not drinking tonight?" Penny would call out as Enterprise started walking towards the exit.

"Essex and I are gettin' real close to solving that Veneto case we were given a while back. I can practically smell it right there! And I need to be up early to stake out the place to confirm her deductions. Promise you I'll drink with you next time though." Enty, with a jolly three finger salute, gave the other woman a goodbye before exiting the establishment.

As she exits the bar, Enty couldn't help but leap behind a phonebooth once she saw what was at the other side of the road. There, inside an old Cadillac was Vittorio Veneto, just driving out of her parking space before speeding down westbound.

Well then, that was certainly unexpected. Now she has a call to make and a car to chase down. She half-regrets telling Essex to take the day off, but she'll just have to make it up to her another time.

Chapter Text

"Rain isn't usually a weather we like huh?" F7F Tigercat sighs as she looks out the hanger's doors into the empty airstrip.

"I actually like rain if I'm being honest. I just don't like the other stuff that comes with it." Panzer VI, better known as Tiger 1, hums back. Both Tiger and Tigercat had been caught out by the rain and took shelter in the empty hangar, not wanting to get themselves wet.

Forecast had said rain was imminent this afternoon but they didn't expect this much downpour.

"Really? Like what, exactly?" The fighter wondered out loud as the panzer joined her staring out the doors.

"Mostly the mud, you know how much I'm notorious for sinking in it. That and I really hate getting my clothes all muddy." The Panzer would shrug while her companion chuckled.

"You'd think a tank like you would be fine with that stuff? Weren't you guys made for that?" F7F comments as she looks at the ironblood, the latter rolling her eyes as she does so.

"Yeah I know. Mud's kinda like our whole thing to conquer but you gotta understand, we're still not immune to sinking." Tiger would then put a hand to the Aster's shoulder before beckoning her inside as the wind and rain started to pick up.

"I suppose that's true."

"Anyway looks like we'll be here a while... so wanna get to know eachother while we wait?"

"Well with an Ironblood beauty like you... How could I not. Grumman F7F Tigercat's the name, but you can call me Tiger."

"Pfft... well that's gonna be a problem then."

Chapter Text

 FIRE IN THE HOLE!

 Two pairs of tank tracks rolled along a dirt road in a liesure 25 km/h as the two figures riding atop the tanks, peeking out from their commanders cupola, scanned the treeline and the sky above them for any threats. 

 The youngest of the pair, Centurion Mk.1, was using binoculars any chance she could, feeling uneased by the quiet of their surroundings. Meanwhile, her senior and the veteran of the two, Sherman Firefly, was much more relaxed, trained eyes and ears finding no immediate threat to their two tank convoy.

 "Firefly, I don't like how quiet it is here, shouldn't you be a bit more alert?" Centurion hums worriedly as she scans the treeline for the upteenth time as Firefly snickers, making the former look up from her binoculars with exasperation.

 "Tsk tsk, Young Centurion!" Firefly says with a smirk and a sassy waggle of her finger, "Let me teach you rule number one of Siren infantry behaviour. That is, Siren infantry, due to their mechanical nature, are louder than an air raid alarm over London. As such nothing could possibly sneak up on us, and especially not with me, who God has given eyes sharper than an eagle and ears more attuned than those of a bat!" Firely finishes by turning behind her to look at her junior, emphasizing her point with a smile and a wink.

 Centurion sighs. Firefly has a point when she says nothing could sneak up on them, but at the same time she's had her fair share of ambush drills before being sent out on deployment and she can't help but be worried something of the sort would happen.

 Firefly was certainly eccentric, but Centurion still trusted her with her life. After all, Firefly, and by extension the rest of the Sherman sisters, were all veterans in their own right. 

 Suddenly a rumble was heard a kilometre away before a thunderous boom peirced through the air. The radios on both tanks then turned on and a voice from the other side spoke.

 "Alerting all nearby units, a Gamma rated Siren rift has opened 28.2 kilometres east of the shore, inside Sector 12. All AEGIS units in the vicinity, move to intercept. AERO units are being routed to provide CAS in T-minus 10 minutes."

 Firefly looks back at Centurion who gave the Sherman a nod before getting out of her tank and standing on top of the turret. Firefly then picks up her radio transciever and spoke.

 "This is Sherman Firefly and Centurion Mk.1. We're in the area, moving to intercept!" Firefly then hops out of her cupola, following Centurion's example of standing on top of her tank's turret.

 Both then breathed out as they focus their connections to the vehicles under them. Near instantly, the tanks below them then broke up into pieces of Wisdom energy, before circling around them and materializing into armour plates covering their bodies.

 Boots touch down on the ground as both AEGIS finish their transformation, optics calibrated and 17 pounders held in their arms with the rest of their rigging settling on their back and shoulders.

 "Copy that Firefly. Chaffee, Churchill Mk.III and Panzer IV are also on their way. CAS will be provided by Ju88 and Fw190 with aircraft support from Miss Illustrious as well. Godspeed girls!" Firefly then shuts off her radio and laughs heartily as she shoulders her 17 pounder.

 "This will certainly be a good time to teach you the strategies given to me by God himself! So witness me, young Centurion, and Marvel at the power of Sherman VC Firefly!"

 "I'll be in your care then Ma'am! Let's punch through those Siren armour!" Centurion cheers as she and Firefly speed towards the direction of the rift.

Chapter Text

10:45 pm, Wilhelmshaven, Germany. 

Inside of a Volkswagen Golf, a Young man by the name of Schlimm Arbeit was driving down a busy road, towards a local bar.

On the surface, He was a simple carpool driver, simply going to pick up a customer, underneath that however, he was what the common people would call a Heretic, a Traitor or otherwise, a Siren Cultist.

He had just been requested to drive a high ranking Azur Lane official to her hotel, and though he didn't exactly know who she was, the fact that she was high ranking was enough for the brash young cultist to do what he was about to.

The young man would reach into a hidden compartment in his car, pulling out a P30, a gift from another cultist friend of his, just in case. 

He thumbed the pistol before holstering it in his pants, and though he'll be risking everything to do this, the bragging rights alone if he manage to pull it off, filled the man with malicious pride.

Pulling into the street where the bar was located, he would stop just in front of the establishment. Not long after, a woman with light purple hair wearing a beret and a red and white dress came to the car.

Rolling down the passenger-side window, the woman would look into the car. "Are you Mr. Arbeit?" She would ask, the man noting the recognizable accent of the Royal Isles.

"That would be me ma'am. I assume you're my passenger?" The woman would say no reply, simply opening the door to the back seat and getting in.

And so off they went, driving towards the hotel. Luckily for the cultist, the Hotel was on the outskirts of the city, so it wouldn't be too conspicuous when he drove towards the edge of town.

The woman seemed to not want to talk, as she was silent the entire ride. This only served to make the cultist's heart beat wildly in his chest, the anticipation fueling him with adrenaline.

Soon the woman would notice that she was far from the street which her hotel sat in, but it was too late. The cultist would halt the car in a dark part of the highway outside the city.

"What's the meaning of this? Where in the hell are we?" The woman would ask angrily, at which the man would pull his gun out, pointing it directly between the woman's eyes.

"Oh, come off it, I'm cancelling this ride-" The woman would say with disbelief, before being cut off by a pull of the trigger, burrying a bullet right in the middle of her forehead.

The cultist would cheer as the woman went limp in her seat, and though it was too dark to see, he can vividly remember the hole which the gun created. Working quickly, he would jump out and drag the body out of the car, throwing her into some bushes in the side of the road before getting back in and hightailing out of there.

The man was shaking in excitement, he did it! He killed an Azur Lane Official! He laughed, and immediately went to call the other members of his cult to tell them about the news.

But before he could tap on the dial button, a notification pops up on his phone, a new review was just posted to the carpool app he used. Curious, he would open the app and be horrified at what he saw.

Ajax Leander - Azur Lane Official: 1/5 stars
Horrendous service, absolutely ludicrous. He shot me in the face and threw me into a bush! Didn't even have the decency to do it in front of my hotel, in fact, he didn't even pass my hotel! 
Was absolutely NOT the Schlimm Arbeit with 5 stars I was expecting and if I could rate it lower I would do immediately. Would NOT recommend this lunatic as a driver.

The young cultist couldn't believe his eyes, halting his car to a stop immediately to read the review again. Did his victim just post a review from the dead!?

Making a U-turn he raced back to the spot which he dumped the body, and sure enough, there on the side of the road, dirtied up from being thrown into a ditch was the woman angrily on her phone as he pulled up in front of her.

Getting out of the car he stared at his victim, face completely devoid of any injury. 

"You have some nerve coming back here!" Ajax would say with a crossed face.

"You have some nerve being alive! I shot you in the face!" The cultist would retort, equally angry.

"Yes, and I gave you a terrible rating." Ajax replied before the same pistol that shot her was pointed once more in her face.

"How are you alive!?" The cultist screamed in frustration. Ajax would simply glare at him before a bright flash of light enveloped her, blinding the cultist.

As he came to, he stared down eight 6-inch guns pointed at him, a smug grin on the cruiser's face as the little boy realized who he was dealing with.

"Oh how I'm going to enjoy this." Ajax's smile deeply unsettled the young cultist.

The next morning, authorities would find him hanging by his wrists to a street light in the middle of the freeway, completely naked save for his underwear and a sign superglued into said underwear which let the authorities know who he was and how he got into that situation.

Ajax meanwhile would enjoy the show in the comfort of her hotel room with a bottle of Jäger and a some ibuprofen as the media very diligently jumped on the story of the streetlight cultist.