"What... *are* you?!"
Observer's voice cracked with a mixture of synthetic dread and confusion. She stared ahead, her optical sensors locking onto Mecha Sonic Mk2 as he hovered seamlessly mere inches above the moving ocean water.
"My identity is of no concern to you," Mecha Sonic replied, his vocal processor echoing with cold, metallic indifference.
Without a shred of hesitation, he charged forward. Observer reacted instantly, unleashing a blinding barrage from her rigging's laser cannons. Beams of raw, destructive energy sliced through the air, but Mecha Sonic Mk2 slipped through the volley with terrifying ease, weaving through the light show like a ghost in the machine.
"I will crush you!" he boomed.
Before Observer could reorient her weapons, a metal claw clamped tightly around her head. With a brutal burst of thrusters, Mecha Sonic slammed her face-first into the ocean, dragging her violently across the grinding, high-velocity currents while maintaining his blistering flight speed. The water parted around them in a violent, foaming wake.
Desperate to break the hold, Observer forced one of her remaining laser cannons around, pressing it directly against Mecha Sonic's chassis.
*Zap—Boom!*
She fired at point-blank range. The concussive blast forced Mecha Sonic to release his grip, creating a brief pocket of distance between them.
Observer hovered heavily, her rigging smoking. "..."
She swallowed hard, staring into the dark. "I think I made it mad."
She didn't even see him move. In a flash of static, Mecha Sonic materialized directly behind her. A heavy metallic kick caught her square in the spine, sending her flying. Before she could recover, Mecha Sonic curled into a whirling sphere of sharp alloy—a devastating Spin Dash—tearing through the airspace to strike her again. He bounced off her chassis, uncurled in mid-air, and finished the sequence by unleashing a volley of tracking rockets from his chest compartment.
*BOOM!*
The sky lit up in a brilliant, fiery explosion.
Before the smoke could even clear, Tester lunged into the fray, opening fire with every weapon system at her disposal to avenge her comrade. But Mecha Sonic merely tilted his chassis, dodging the incoming fire effortlessly.
"Chaos Control!" he commanded.
In a flash of green light, he warped directly behind Tester. A brutal upward strike launched her high into the stratosphere. He didn't let up. Locking onto her coordinates, he unleashed another devastating barrage of micro-rockets.
*BOOM!*
"Agh...!" Tester screamed as the explosions tore through her rigging. As she began to freefall, Mecha Sonic appeared above her, driving a heavy metal heel straight into her head, sending her crashing down into the dark abyss below.
"Targets eliminated," Mecha Sonic stated coldly.
Turning his thrusters toward Nimi's coordinates, he flew back to assist her. However, the battlefield was already quiet. Purifier had already chosen to retreat, having intercepted the data feed confirming that both Tester and Observer had been thoroughly dismantled.
"Mecha?" Nimi called out, letting out a sigh of relief as the metallic figure hovered down toward her.
"I am not the first Mecha," the machine corrected, his optical sensors glowing. "I am the second unit, officially assigned to Daiwa as her personal bodyguard. Agnes Tachyon did not deem the Space Marine competent enough for the task... and looking at the data, she was correct." The machine's vocal processor carried a hint of distinct, artificial disgust.
"Alright... I guess I will just call you Mechu then," Nimi said, offering a small smile before turning her attention back toward Daiwa's ship. To say the aircraft carrier looked worse for wear was a massive understatement. Smokes and small fires rose from the flight deck.
"I don't think this thing can move anywhere under its own power," Daiwa said, wincing as a small secondary explosion rattled the hull beneath her feet. "And the Space Marine is... well, he needs some serious medical attention." She gestured over to where the massive, armored soldier lay completely unconscious.
"Hmph. Such a disgrace. Unable to protect Daiwa," Mechu scoffed, crossing his metal arms.
"Mechu, can you handle some of the minor structural repairs? I'll use my ship to try and tow the carrier," Nimi suggested, stepping toward her own rigging.
Daiwa blinked, looking between Nimi's destroyer hull and her own massive carrier. "I don't think your ship can tow mine, Nimi. It's significantly bigger than yours."
"Don't worry about it. Tachyon gave my ship some rather extreme upgrades," Nimi replied confidently.
With a flash of light, Nimi summoned her vessel, expertly securing the heavy-duty link cables to Daiwa's carrier. The moment the lines tautened, Nimi's ship surged forward, pulling the massive carrier through the water with shocking ease.
Daiwa's jaw dropped slightly. "I guess I stands corrected... Your ship really *can* tow mine."
After several hours of tense sailing, Daiwa deployed a few of her remaining scout planes to scan the horizon, searching for a safe harbor or a place to scavenge resources. Finally, a blip appeared on her radar.
"Nimi! I found land!" Daiwa called out happily.
She ordered her scout plane to drop altitude for a closer look, but the moment it dipped below the clouds, the sky erupted. Bursts of heavy flak fire tore through the air, forcing the plane to weave violently to avoid being shot down.
"Nimi, I don't think they're friendly!" Daiwa yelled.
Right on cue, Nimi's radar picked up multiple signatures rapidly approaching their position. A fleet of shipgirls was closing in.
"Well... I don't think we have much of a choice but to surrender," Nimi said, assessing their low fuel and Daiwa's crippled carrier. "We can't escape in this condition."
"Ugh... fine," Daiwa groaned reluctantly.
"Mechu, grab the Space Marine and go hide," Nimi ordered quietly.
Mechu nodded, hauling the massive, unconscious armored warrior over his shoulder. "Chaos Control," he whispered, warping them both into a heavily concealed, shielded compartment deep within the structure of Z23's ship.
Moments later, a booming voice echoed across the water from the lead approaching vessel.
"Halt! This is Azur Lane-controlled waters! State your name and business!"
"We just need a safe harbor to rest and repair my friend's ship!" Nimi called back, raising her hands to show she wasn't weaponized. "We were ambushed by an enemy fleet."
The lead shipgirl frowned, her eyes narrowing. "The Sirens?"
"Yes... them," Nimi replied, keeping the explanation simple.
"Mhm... Stay exactly where you are. We are boarding," the leader commanded. "If you try any funny business, we won't hesitate to open fire."
Within minutes, a boarding party leaped onto the deck of Daiwa's carrier. The leader, a stern-looking woman, stepped forward. "State your business here."
"Can't you see that my friend's ship is on the verge of sinking? We need emergency repairs," Nimi said, gesturing to the smoking flight deck.
Before the leader could respond, a small shipgirl carrying a massive, ornate lance gasped, pushing her way to the front of the group. "Wait... Nimi?!"
Nimi blinked, utterly perplexed. "Yes? Who are you?"
"It's me, Javelin! Don't you remember me?!" the girl cried out, her eyes wide with shock.
"I don't believe we have ever met," Nimi said, her tone cautious and thoroughly confused. "I don't know you."
A third shipgirl stepped up, pointing at nimi. "Ranger-san! She's wearing an Iron Blood uniform! She's an Iron Blood ship!"
"Iron Blood, huh..." Ranger mused, tapping her chin. "Alright, you can come into the port, but only after we thoroughly inspect your vessels."
Ranger ordered a security detail to sweep both Nimi's destroyer and Daiwa's carrier. Finding no hidden weapons or hostile forces Mechu's cloaking having bypassed their standard scans completely they were finally cleared to dock.
Daiwa's carrier was immediately moved to the dry docks for extensive structural repairs, while Daiwa herself was escorted to the repair ship, Vestal, for a medical evaluation. Nimi stayed close by her side, though she was heavily monitored by Javelin and a very sleepy-looking Laffey, while Ark Royal kept a watchful eye from the high branches of a nearby tree.
"So... you really don't remember us?" Javelin asked softly, looking incredibly downcast as they walked through the courtyard.
"I am telling you, I have never seen you before in my life," Nimi insisted.
"Strange... We have definitely met you before," Laffey mumbled, her eyes half-closed. "Could it be... memory loss...?" Before she could finish her thought, she began to snore gently, perfectly balanced while standing completely upright.
"Laffey, don't sleep right now!" Javelin yelled, shaking her friend awake.
A door clicked open behind them, and Daiwa stepped out of Vestal's clinic, looking fully refreshed. Seeing Nimi surrounded by the two starter ships, Daiwa squealed, "Aw, cute~!"
Nimi flinched, her face turning bright red. "Daiwa!" She lunged forward, playfully punching Daiwa in the arm to shut her up.
"Ahem!"
A sharp cough interrupted them. A stern shipgirl stepped out from the shadows of the corridor. Nimi quickly scrambled away from Daiwa, while Daiwa hurriedly tried to fix her messy hair.
"The Commander is waiting for both of you in his office," the shipgirl stated flatly.
Nimi and Daiwa exchanged a nervous glance, falling into step behind her as they were led through the grand hallways of the Azur Lane headquarters.
When they entered the office, Nimi's eyes immediately locked onto a tall, commanding blonde woman standing beside the Commander's desk. The blonde woman's eyes widened to the size of saucers the moment Nimi walked through the door.
"Z23?!" the blonde woman gasped.
"Yeah? Who are you supposed to be?" Nimi asked, her brow furrowing.
"Why are you here? Aren't you supposed to be stationed at the Iron Blood Headquarters?" the woman pressed, her voice dripping with authority and confusion.
"Look, I don't know you, and I'd really like to know how everyone here seems to know my name," Nimi snapped, crossing her arms defensively.
Daiwa leaned down, whispering loudly, "Nimi, do you know this woman?"
"No, I don't," Nimi muttered back.
The blonde woman stared at her for a long, silent moment before turning to the man sitting behind the desk. "...I am Bismarck, and this situation makes very little sense."
"Let's all take a seat first," the Commander said calmly, gesturing to the open chairs in front of his desk. Daiwa and Nimi sat down, the tension in the room palpable.
"Ranger reported that she found... Z23, and a completely unknown vessel sailing toward our perimeter," the Commander began, looking over his files. "Z23 stated they needed sanctuary and repairs. That's the extent of what we know."
He leaned forward, locking his gaze onto Daiwa. "So, let's start from the beginning. What is your name?"
"I am Daiwa Scarlet! Th—" Daiwa started proudly, but before she could finish her grand introduction, Nimi brought her heel down hard onto Daiwa's foot.
Nimi flashed an incredibly innocent, terrifying smile at the Commander. "That's it. Just Daiwa Scarlet."
The Commander raised an eyebrow but decided not to press the matter just yet. "Mhm... And what class is your ship?"
"It's... a Wasp-class!" Daiwa blurted out, rubbing her sore foot.
"Another Wasp-class? Unusual..." The Commander tapped his pen against the desk. "And what country do you belong to?"
"Country?" Daiwa tilted her head, thinking it over. "I guess... none."
"A shipgirl without a faction allegiance... mhm," the Commander muttered, deep in thought. He looked between the two of them. "Would you be open to joining Azur Lane?"
"Well... I'll have to think about it," Daiwa replied, glancing sideways at Nimi for guidance.
Bismarck crossed her arms, her sharp eyes never leaving Nimi. "Commander, do you truly believe it's possible for there to be *two* instances of Z23?"
"It shouldn't be, but given what we've seen from Siren mirror seas, anything is possible," the Commander replied. "Bismarck, send an urgent message to the Iron Blood HQ. Have their Z23 travel here immediately."
"Understood," Bismarck said, giving a curt nod before turning on her heel and exiting the office.
"You two must be exhausted," the Commander said, his expression softening slightly. "Hood will show you to your temporary quarters for the night."
As Daiwa and Nimi followed the elegant battlecruiser out of the office and toward the residential docks, miles away, across the vast ocean waters at the true Iron Blood Headquarters...
"Achoo!"
The real Z23 rubbed her nose, putting down her pen. She blinked, looking around her quiet office room. "Ugh... I suddenly feel like someone is talking about me. Like there's another me out there somewhere... Nah, that's just crazy."
Shaking her head, she picked her pen back up and went right back to her paperwork.