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As you open your mouth, so do the doors.

A large room reveals itself to you—no, less a room and more of an amphitheater. Its size seemed understated—from the outside, you wouldn’t have guessed a place like this would have been able to be fitted inside the building in the first place. There were wooden boards up around the walls, tables lined up in the style that reminded you of your days in college… a lecture theater, that’s what it was, with places arranged in several tiers—each and every one of them with several labels that designated what you could only discern to be an alphanumeric code with dashes and slashes. Up high above… was a hanging sculpture of what appeared to be The Admiralty’s logo, suspended by several wires and horizontal bars, rotating slowly and silently. You notice doors on the upper level, not as fancy as the one you’d used to enter, but still ornate, letting people in one by one. On a lower platform there were a set of large tables and chairs—three, to be exact, arranged with lamps and pads… and a circular metal table with several cables, wires and bulbs attached to it, and a clear surface that seemed to be made of a mix of water and glass—you recognize it as the same sort of apparatus that was on-base for your briefings.

‘Grand Lieutenant,’ a deep voice reaches your ears. You turn to see a tanned man in formal military wear—Admiralty wear—his thin, matured face regarding the Grand Lieutenant before briefly turning to you. ‘I’m surprised that you decided to follow through with this after all that’s happened. I hope you don’t think that throughout all the chaos, you think that that little slip’s going to pass the eyes of the Court so easily, are you?’

The Grand Lieutenant, for the first time you see… clenches his fists, his lips turning upward as a snarl escapes his lips. The man appears undeterred, however, puffing his chest and glaring down—well, up, since he was on a lower tier—at the Grand Lieutenant. There was an aura of familiarity that you could sense between the both of them

‘Admiral, if I had intended to deceive you at all, I wouldn’t have bothered to have bothered with this, would I?’

The tanned Admiral’s expression doesn’t change.

‘Sometimes I wonder if you’re the man who takes no for an answer or a challenge,’ he says out loud, his voice taking a dangerous edge as he nears the Grand Lieutenant, whose expression mirrors his. ‘It’s not an attitude to bring when we’re all sharing one endgame.’

‘I know all about endgames, Admiral,’ he answers dismissively, undeterred by the tanned Admiral’s words. ‘And don’t think I don’t see just what The Court’s been trying to maneuver behind my back.’

‘It was never hidden agenda in the first place, Grand Lieutenant.’

He casts his gaze to the tables below.

TBC

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‘You know as well as I do just what kind of corner you’ve driven us into—or have you forgotten just why we’re here in the first place?’

The Grand Lieutenant, to your surprise, backs down.

‘I know exactly how we arrived at this juncture,’ the Grand Lieutenant mutters, averting his gaze… before turning back towards the tanned Lieutenant. ‘I was there for it as much as anyone else, Admiral.’

The Admiral’s lips thin into a line as his cheeks take on a shade of purple.

‘No one has ever doubted your role in pushing us forward, Grand Lieutenant,’ his tone is reluctant as his admission leaves his lips. ‘But sooner rather than later, we want this to end… and distractions’—he glances, no, glares at you, quickly—‘of this ilk are only further enabling this terrible spiral. Your so-called solutions have done nothing but cost us more and more.

The both regard each other coolly; you can tell that there are more words that they longed to spit out, the language hardly prudent. The Admiral lets out a snort, stiffening his spine even further as he turns his attentions towards you.

‘Good luck, Division Commander.’

Your eye and his meet, briefly, before you look away and follow the Grand Lieutenant to one of the tables below. Despite having just met you, he didn’t seem to have a strong opinion of you either. The Grand Lieutenant draws a chair, setting his briefcase on the table and sitting down. You follow suit, taking inventory of the presently-noisy room, when suddenly you see a face you had not expected to see at all,

‘The Count of Tohno? What’s he—?’

The Grand Lieutenant kicks you under the table, a glare visible through those dark shades of his. The Count is without his usual entourage, you notice, instead flanked by two pale-haired women in white as he takes his seat on the top right corner of the room, sparing you not so much as a glance as he engaged in conversation with the middle-aged man from before. You keep your silence as an ambient hum sounds around the room, shifting uncomfortably—the chairs weren’t made for the mortal coil, really—as more and more people enter the Hall, taking their seats on the tiers as you waited for the meeting to begin. People petered in… and as they did, the Hall began to feel a lot smaller than it actually was. The Grand Lieutenant, next to you, was calm and collected as ever, his eyes focused on the contents inside his briefcase.

‘Commander,’ he begins, catching your attention.

He shuts his briefcase.

‘You get one question.’

>‘Is this meeting about me at all? Why bring me here?’ (Inquire about your role here)
>‘The Count of Tohno… why is he here?’ (Inquire about the Count’s presence)
>‘I thought you and The Court of Admirals were on the same page?’ (Inquire about the incident)
>‘If we still have Admirals, why aren’t they on the front line? That man was an Admiral, right?’
>Write-In

>>1337104

>‘Is this meeting about me at all? Why bring me here?’ (Inquire about your role here)

>>1337104
>‘Is this meeting about me at all? Why bring me here?’ (Inquire about your role here)

>>1337104
>>‘I thought you and The Court of Admirals were on the same page?’ (Inquire about the incident)

>>1337104
>>‘Is this meeting about me at all? Why bring me here?’ (Inquire about your role here)

>>1337104
>>‘If we still have Admirals, why aren’t they on the front line? That man was an Admiral, right?’

>>1337104
>>‘Is this meeting about me at all? Why bring me here?’ (Inquire about your role here)

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‘What am I here for, Grand Lieutenant?’

The Grand Lieutenant takes out several sheets of paper… and something that looked like a slide roll, placing them on the table.

‘Your evaluation, of course,’ he answers nonchalantly.

‘Why didn’t The Admiralty give me a formal call, then?’

‘Because I arranged for it to be that way, of course,’ he doesn’t look at you as he says it, taking out a folder and pen before setting his briefcase onto the carpeted floor. ‘Your evaluation was meant to be private; however… after I went through the records and found just how far-reaching your actions were across the spectrum, well,’ he looks towards the rapidly-filling seats, ‘I couldn’t help but notice that it was a setback that I could use to change into the proverbial advantage. The parties involved being in that tight space between transparency and the opaque, I decided to re-review your case in proposal… and here we are.’

Your brain tries to process every word of the Grand Lieutenant’s; the terminology was a little beyond your usual scope of comprehension, so you had to take the sentences in one bit at a time… and you reach a shocking summary.

‘You’re using the Haszad Incident as bait to push your own agenda forward,’ you utter, wondering if you could get away with breaking the man’s jaw. He was using you; just like he had done before, once again… you were merely his bait for the bigger fish.

‘Nothing as severe as that,’ he answers, his tone as stoic as ever. ‘But considering just how large your following has become since taking your position, Commander, it was an easy decision on my part to push your review and the rest of the minutes of this meeting into a single pot—after all, we both get what we want, don’t we?’

‘Oh?’ You snarl, gripping the table hard.

‘Of course—you get me to testify your competence and I get you to sit around let me address the audience that I wouldn’t have without you.’

He gets up from his seat—the room rises, prompting you to stumble, barely checking in your rage.

‘Simple, really.’

The room goes quiet.

‘We recognize the Second Grand Lieutenant,’ a strong old voice rumbles; at a table on a higher platform, you see its owner: a large man that looked like he could lift a car, his hair grey and his eyes glaring down at the both of you. ‘We recognize his testimony in confidence and in accordance with the rules.’

The large old man turns his gaze upon you.

‘Yokosuka First Operations Division Commander,’ he booms, dark beady eyes upon you. ‘You are here by insistence of the Court of Admirals and the Grand Lieutenant to address your role in the incident across Haszad’s borders. While we decided to let bygones be bygones initially… I am afraid upon further review we cannot allow this to go without…’

He looms, leaning over the table to get a better look at you.

‘You understanding the consequences.’

>>1337446
>‘I understand, sir.’ (Passive)
>‘Why am I the only one on trial?’ (Aggressive)
>‘I understand the consequences. I wouldn’t have agreed to such an action if I didn’t.’ (Professional)
>‘I thought I was already warned off… why the sudden turn?’ (Question)
>‘This is a waste of time. We should be gathering our forces instead of talking like this.’ (Annoyed)
>Keep silent
>Write-In

>>1337446
>>‘I understand, sir.’ (Passive)

>>1337472
>>‘I understand the consequences. I wouldn’t have agreed to such an action if I didn’t.’ (Professional)

>>1337446
>‘I thought I was already warned off… why the sudden turn?’ (Question)

>>1337472
>‘I understand the consequences. I wouldn’t have agreed to such an action if I didn’t.’ (Professional)

>>1337472
(Professional)

>>1337472
>>‘I understand the consequences. I wouldn’t have agreed to such an action if I didn’t.’ (Professional)

>>1337472
>>‘I understand the consequences. I wouldn’t have agreed to such an action if I didn’t.’ (Professional)

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Your first reaction is to defend yourself and your decision… but looking into the eyes of the Admiral before you, you can’t help but feel that any bravado that you could accumulate would get eaten up, chewed up and spat onto the gravel outside. You wouldn’t survive the humiliation or the fury—you could tell that the man before you, as wrinkled and steady as he was… was about a tick away from bashing your head in if you ever went out of line. Your chair groans as you push it back and get to your feet, your hands on the table as you regard him with as much honesty and conviction that you can muster.

It wasn’t a pragmatic decision on your part… but you did have to at least state where you would stood.

‘I understand the consequences, sir,’ you answer, standing up straight, ‘I wouldn’t have agreed to the course of action if I hadn’t.’

Whispers are heard around the Court—however, from the few words that you could catch, they weren’t commenting on your actions or your words at all… in fact, the bulk of them seemed keen on getting onto the next item at hand, whatever it was.

‘All present are privy, informed… to the information that is stated here; Counts and Vassals, before we begin, do we have any comment?’

The large man from before—the man you had seen talking with the Count of Tohno and prior to that, chatting with the dandy gentleman in the lobby—raises his hand. Someone on the bottom rung of the tiers announces something, but it’s too fast and too vague for you to make out; the lights as bright as they were, you could make out the stern expression he had on his faces, staring at you with the expression that you would have mixed together with that of a disappointed parent.

‘The independence that you and the parties acting through you have taken have done nothing but raise mayhem and mischief for your betters and superiors—I, Vassal of Aozaki, would like to point out that this is precisely why the autonomy of this organization cannot be allowed to continue if it is to go on with its practices on Taiyouga soil, regardless of its origins,’ he declares—his section of the room erupts in mumbles, but you see the Count of Tohno’s face as stoic as ever, ‘and to work together with us so it will not allow such an incident to repeat! It is not an unreasonable demand to put this forward for consideration!’

‘It is considered,’ the large Admiral booms, ‘if you would, Vassal?’

He sits down.

‘In this amalgamation of administrations, Commander, we had, as I have said, considered your position, but… we have yet to hear your reasons for the action. This is not a trial,’ he continues, ‘but as an involved party, we must know why the action of the retrieval of the assets Yamato and Musashi were undertaken when a prior decision was made.’

He folds his hands, leaning over.

‘In many other cases, this would be treason.’

>>1337995
>‘Am I allowed a lifeline?’ (Joke)
>‘I did because I thought it was the right thing to do, even though the risk was high.’ (Serious)
>‘I made a call that I thought would have given us a better position.’ (Pragmatic)
>‘What kind of monster would you be to consider that abandoning them would be the correct decision?’ (Accuse)
>Remain silent
>Write-In

>>1337995
>>‘I made a call that I thought would have given us a better position.’ (Pragmatic)
add in the fact that we can't summon any more shipgirls and to let two of the best shipgirls die like would be wasteful

>>1338029
>‘I did because I thought it was the right thing to do, even though the risk was high.’ (Serious)

>>1338029
Correction for PROMPT 2:
>‘I did because I thought it was the right thing to do, even though the risk was high.’ (Serious)

to:

>'It was because I thought it was the right thing to do, Admiral sir.'

>>1338029
>>‘I made a call that I thought would have given us a better position.’ (Pragmatic)
Yamato and Musashi are assets too valuable to lose, at least going by how everybody had been talking about them

>>1338040
>>1338046
You guys can re-vote if you'd like:

>>1338047
Has the correct Option 2.

>>1338029
>‘I made a call that I thought would have given us a better position.’ (Pragmatic)

>>1337995
>>‘I did because I thought it was the right thing to do, even though the risk was high.’ (Serious)

>>1338029
>>‘I made a call that I thought would have given us a better position.’ (Pragmatic)

>>1338056
Okay. Re-voting for the "right thing to do" option.

>>1338029
>>‘I made a call that I thought would have given us a better position.’ (Pragmatic)

>>1338029
>>‘I did because I thought it was the right thing to do, even though the risk was high.’ (Serious)

>>1338052
>>1338057
>>1338071
>>1338103
So many people here forgetting you did this for Nagato, not pragmatism.

Oh well, let the punishment roll.

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>>1338120
>So many people here forgetting you did this for Nagato, not pragmatism.
You know you can say one thing to a person, and say an entirely different thing to another person?

>>1338120
... I'm new, So I kinda hoped others new what this was about. I'll just avoid voting from now on.

>>1338129
Archive binge read mate, you'll understand how things work a couple threads in

>>1338124
It would, if I didn't warn you in this small sets of paragraphs that the best thing you could do was stick to your guns. Notice how he didn't explode in rage. I used Akainu because of the hint of temperament; I thought you guys would be able to read it instead of choosing the one line that you knew wasn't true and didn't have an 1d6 option to win.

>Your first reaction is to defend yourself and your decision… but looking into the eyes of the Admiral before you, you can’t help but feel that any bravado that you could accumulate would get eaten up, chewed up and spat onto the gravel outside. You wouldn’t survive the humiliation or the fury—you could tell that the man before you, as wrinkled and steady as he was… was about a tick away from bashing your head in if you ever went out of line. Your chair groans as you push it back and get to your feet, your hands on the table as you regard him with as much honesty and conviction that you can muster.

>It wasn’t a pragmatic decision on your part… but you did have to at least state where you would stood.

>‘I understand the consequences, sir,’ you answer, standing up straight, ‘I wouldn’t have agreed to the course of action if I hadn’t.’

>Whispers are heard around the Court—however, from the few words that you could catch, they weren’t commenting on your actions or your words at all… in fact, the bulk of them seemed keen on getting onto the next item at hand, whatever it was.

>‘All present are privy, informed… to the information that is stated here; Counts and Vassals, before we begin, do we have any comment?’

Just eat your punishment. Commencing write-up.

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>>1338129
>Jumping into a quest without reading the archives

>>1338147
>>1338134
I was reading it, Just caught the thread going for once so was gonna take part.

>>1338142
The best course of action I this quest is almost always to stick with our guns. I don't get how people haven't realized that dozens of threads in.

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You decide to appeal to the math of the situation. You had never attempted it before on such a scale, but the one thing on your mind was to defuse the situation as best as you could… The Court of Admirals valued gains and losses above all else, from what you heard; perhaps appealing to the pragmatic side of the mission would make it better? After all, Musashi and Yamato were valuable assets… the card of their ingrained worth was a shot worth taking, considering just how seemingly mechanical the Court seemed to be when approaching the subject of their KanMusu.

‘I thought it was the right call to make because I believed that in the retrieval of the abducted units would have placed the Admiralty and the effort in a better position compared to where it was at the time,’ you declare, meeting the narrowed eyes of the large Admiral. ‘It was a game of gains and losses, sir—the operation was carried out on pragmatic grounds.’

You hear the sound of a pencil drop… and the temperature of the room with it.

‘Damn it, Commander,’ the Grand Lieutenant hisses, rubbing his temples.

‘Commander, I am sixty-three years old,’ he begins, slowly, his voice raising with every word. To his left and right, you see the other Court members clutching their heads and gritting their teeth. ‘I have been through horrible reunion dinners and the false smiles of my obnoxious in-laws.’

His hands slam onto the table.

‘So, I am going to warn you, for the first and last time, Commander—to not try to bullshit me for one second that you thought that this was the most pragmatic decision on the table,’ he growls audibly—it almost echoes throughout the room. ‘If you were truly acting in our best interests, you would have talked with us instead of GALLIVANTING ON A BLACK OPERATION WITHOUT SO MUCH AS CONSULTING US, CAUSING AN INTERNATIONAL INCIDENT AND NEARLY CAUSING THE DISSOLUTION OF THE ADMIRALTY’S ALLIANCE WITH THE CONGREGATION!’

You knees quake.

‘NOT TO MENTION YOUR OWN ENDANGERMENT AS WELL AS YOUR VICE-ADMIRAL’S IN THE ENDEAVOR! WE COULD HAVE NOT LOST JUST YAMATO AND MUSASHI, BUT TWO OUT OF THE SIX REMAINING ACTIVE STREAM-FLUENT PERSONNEL THAT WE HAVE OUT OF THE THIRTY-ONE THAT WE LOST! DO THE MATHEMATICS SOUND RIGHT TO YOU, BOY?!’

He drops onto his seat.

‘The cards were played because that was our show of pragmatism. We made a gamble on a bet we should have folded on and paid the price—we decided to take our licks like cowards and live another day so we could keep the fight. Your willingness to risk yourself—a scarce resource in our toils—for the sake of two assets that we have all but blacked out in the name of pragmatism and our supposed gain would have made us less capable of getting to where we are in the event of your failure!’

His eyes are red with more than just simple fury.

‘SO?!’

>>1338318
>‘You’re right, sir, it wasn’t my decision to follow-through or to make.’ (Apologize)
>‘You say that, but at the end of the day, everything’s just numbers to you, anyway!’ (Antagonize)
>‘Leaving them wasn’t correct on any account!’ (Defend yourself)
>Stay Silent
>Write-In

>>1338318
>>‘You’re right, sir, it wasn’t my decision to follow-through or to make.’ (Apologize)
time to grovel

>>1338333
Nice trips.

>>1338328
>>‘Leaving them wasn’t correct on any account!’ (Defend yourself)

Fuck's sake, anons. Is it really that hard for all of you to read between the lines? And furthermore, what happened to trying to communicate before voting? This could've been avoided with just a little communication. I'll start:

It seems that this admiral prefers honesty, that much is honest. He also appears to be disgusted with pragmatism. Apologizing certainly doesn't seem like the right course of action, seeing as we should be sticking by our actions. However, I don't want to lock in a vote to defend ourselves just yet. What exactly does that vote entail? Are we defending our pragmatic stance, or the black operation itself?

>>1338354
Defending ourselves seems to be giving up on defending the op on pragmatic grounds, and more appealing to moral ones. The (Serious) option from before I think.

>>1338354
>It seems that this admiral prefers honesty, that much is honest.
*that much is obvious.

>>1338354
>>1338362
Mech also chose Akainu as a representation for this Admiral for a reason

>>1338354
I think the operation, unless I'm mistaken
I think we should defend ourselves cause just switching stances probably won't look good

>>1338354
In this decision, the third one, you're defending what you did was the right thing - in essence, contradicting yourself on the grounds of pragmatism because you have leapt from a "quantitative" argument to a "qualitative" one. You're essentially just trying to keep in the fight in that option.

Thank you for asking

>>1338371
well flipflopping would make him more mad of sorts

>>1338380
Either flipflopping will make him mad and we cause a scene, or we grovel and gets mad at us for having no spine. Or he backs down because we've been sufficiently cowed and aren't making a scene.

At least those are the possibilities I see.

>>1338371
What if we stay silent and take the lashing, we already fucked up and I don't want to make a meeting that essentially isn't about us ABOUT us

>>1338390
seems like keeping silent IS an option

>>1338397
Yeah I know just wanted to see if anyone considers it a choice

>>1338397
that actually is not a bad idea

>>1338371
Fair enough, thanks for the answer. As far as I can tell, the admiral would likely be more receptive to defending the black op. It's pretty obvious that he doesn't like bullshitting of any sort. While I think flipping our stance might make him mad, I doubt he wants to hear more pragmatism. Still, I don't think we should apologize either, the way I see it, that makes the entire operation look flimsy. And I honestly think staying silent would only piss him off even more. He's asking for an answer, so we should give him one. So far, it seems like defending the op is the least damaging course of action.

>>1338403
in for a penny and in for pound then?

>>1338403
>>1338397
>>1338390

Write-Ins are an option, you know, guys? My options are mostly knee-jerk to the situation. If you guys want to write-in how to handle the situation, I will accept it.

Except unless you already locked in your vote, of course.

>>1338424
still a tie, so if everyone else could choose the agreed upon choice, we can move one

>>1338424
I'm phone posting so I can't give a good write-in, but the guys saying to not stay quiet have a point, maybe just accept responsibility for the operation buy never say we regret doing it

>>1338424
Alrighty then, I'll do a write-in.

>"Admiral, the truth is that I went through with the op because it was the right thing to do. It wasn't pragmatic or safe, but it needed to be done, and we knew that if we didn't do it, nobody else would. After everything Yamato and Musashi had been put through, they deserved to come home. "
Probably best to not mention the promise to Nagato /just/ yet.

>>1338524
that seems ok, ill be going with this

>>1338524
more like not saying a damn word about the promise

>>1338524
this

>>1338524
Voting for this

>>1338524
>>1338535
Support.

>>1338524
oughta work

Something came up yesterday, so I had to cancel the follow-up session to my break. The session will be commencing in around 20 minutes. If you're going to be here, be here by then.

Toodles!

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Despite your rattled knees… you find yourself oddly calm, if a little disappointed in yourself. The holes in your explanation, your reasoning, were easy to pick out, and this case, tear apart. The fuming form of The Court Admiral sits before you, his hands on the table and his eyes burning with cold fury underneath the cap. His toughened, wrinkled face looks at you with a mix of disgust and expectation; another misstep would have you facing more than just a vocal, fiery tongue.

‘Yes, that’s right—pragmatism, it would be a lie in this case, wouldn’t it?’

The Court mumbles, whispers… the large Admiral, though, looks unimpressed, eyeing you with distaste. To your right, you manage to make out the calculating visage of the Count of Tohno, right up in the corner with his companions; you don’t dare stare directly at him—less for implication and more due to the fact that if you turned away from the man before you there would be Hell to pay. As the whisper dies down, he seems to take a moment to pause as he positions himself to follow up on your admission. Taking a deep breath, you prepare yourself for the tirade to come.

‘So you acknowledge to telling the Court a lie as to your intentions in carrying out this misconduct?’

You almost blink in confusion, wondering where the vitriol was.

‘Yes,’

Your wonder ceases almost immediately as you confirm the fact.

He raises himself to full height—and even some distance away from you, you realize you had a very poor estimation of his size and stature.

‘You got some guts, newbie,’ he rumbles, narrowing his eyes at you. His tone, however, is back to where it had been before… if a little more on edge. ‘I have half a mind to do the job those pissants over couldn’t myself. Endangering yourself and the risking to compromise your position and the integrity of this organization in what name? You thought of nothing but yourself and whatever self-righteous crusade you seemed to believe yourself on without care or concern for the consequences that you would have reaped; every time your Division and Base comes up at the table I wonder what chaos you managed to sow… but nothing would have prepared me for the sheer inadequacy on our part… to have let you and your excuses take charge as the vanguard to our very survival!’

He raises a finger, pointing it right at you not in accusation, but condemnation.

‘Your base coerced a House into complying an executive decision, employing an entity entirely separate from us—one that resulted in the deaths of two brave men for the sake of satisfying your bravado! Was this some dare you and your Admiral set for yourselves, Division Commander? Thinking yourself as invincible and untouchable by the barest of restrictions just because you happened to be the only name on a roster that we didn’t have to bury and send letters of condolence?’

TBC

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You soak it all in, feeling your heart clench and your lungs seemingly burn at the words put forward. The rest of the Court doesn’t say a word, each of them eyeing you with a look of expectation, disdain or impatience. You shuffle your feet, wondering if it would be too late for you to up sticks and bolt out of the building, but… more than anything, you decide to face your outcomes—because even if you couldn’t win it all, that was the one thing you expected yourself to break through.

That, even if you went down… you would go down saying that you did it on your terms.

‘I admit to all those things, Admiral, sir,’ you answer calmly, letting out a breath as you faced the judging faces of all those present. ‘But… if I may be honest, I have nothing more to say than I believed in doing it as it was the right thing to do.’

You realize that it was no different from any other time growing up.

Being laughed at.

Being humiliated.

‘That is not your place to decide, Commander. I see that a month has hardly done a thing to harden you to our ways. I will make it clear for you, then… that this is the reality of a soldier—to live or die for their purpose, in this case, ours. It may escape your notice, but we’re in this to live. Not for petty gains; not to prove that we are right or we are wrong, but to live. For humanity’s survival and prosperity; those that take on this task, those that make up this Admiralty must be prepared to be at their most ruthless and their most pragmatic—to consider anything but the next step forward in this slog, on your part or any of ours, would cause us

Because at the end of the day, that didn’t matter.

‘I respectfully disagree, sir.’

You cast a gaze upon the whole room, taking a deep breath.

‘If humanity’s supposed to be worth saving, the simplest of things… considering another life to be just important as theirs—is that something that we’re just supposed ignore? I made a mistake—I made your lives harder with my actions and I understand that what I did was reckless and repugnant in your eyes, but it doesn’t change that it was the right thing to do.’

You feel his fury rising, but otherwise find yourself… calm.

‘KanMusu, human…can we even call ourselves a race worth saving if we’re willing to abandon those that would do the same for us without a moment’s hesitation? As Yamato and Musashi did without question?’

For a moment—and only a moment—you see something flash across his eyes.

‘The right thing to do would have been to have trusted our judgment,’ he affirms. ‘Grand Lieutenant, is this the attitude that you’re vouching for?’

The Grand Lieutenant gets to his feet.

‘You know my history, Admiral—such simplicity is well within my comprehension.’

You feel your eyebrow twitch.

>Glare at him
>Employ sarcasm
>Kick him under the table
>Keep quiet
>Write-In

>>1340685
>>Kick him under the table
fuck it

>>1340685
>>Kick him under the table

>>1340685
>Keep quiet

>>1340685
>>Keep quiet
now is the time for tact.

>>1340685
>>Keep quiet

>>1340685
>>Keep quiet
>>plot childish retribution

>>1340685
>>1340790
2nded. We will mix the whites in his laundry with colored ones!

>>1340685
>Kick him under the table
Bastard

>>1340685
>>Keep quiet
Save the return fire for later
>>1341492
HE WILL NEVER GET THOSE COLORS OUT

>>1340685
>Kick him under the table

>>1341589
He could... if he had a wife.

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Whatever it was… he was your superior. You decide to ignore that thinly-veiled jibe.

The Court Admiral folds his fingers, considering the both of you from his seat. Too nervous to sit down, your prosthetic grips the corner of your table, watching the Grand Lieutenant remove himself from his chair and take a step forward. His back to you, you look back up and observe the Court Admiral, whose gaze was now primarily turned upon you.

‘Commander,’ he address you again, his voice taking a tired… if slightly rougher tone compared to before. It didn’t make him seem any less intimidating, however—if anything, he looked more on edge compared to before. ‘Due to the circumstances, we are loathe to admit that we do not possess the luxury to relinquish you of your post… nor are we able to afford any other punishment that would have you away from the front lines. I’ll be the first one to admit that, considering all that has happened, there is nothing more that we would want—this organization was established on the principle of humanity’s defense; not petty politics and the veil of diplomacy.’

The Court’s eyes now all fall upon you—over a dozen uniformed, middle-aged people that had seen the worst of the world and here they were with their judging stares. The ones to either side of the Court’s tiers, however, had broken out into whispers. You can make out several words, even from all the way down here—none of them flattering or kind. The Count of Tohno’s expression, you notice from all the way up there, was somewhere between amusement—for whatever reason—and curiosity. The man seated directly below him, however… looked like he was about to explode.

The Court Admiral raises a thin file, audibly slapping it against the table as he regards you with a look you can only describe as defeated.

‘The review of your performance, which we are also loathe to admit, have been… commendable, considering the current situation that we face,’ his voice takes a tight quality, as though it was an accursed sentence in of itself, ‘therefore we have decided that we will consider your continued service to us—and to humanity—an adequate enough replacement.’

‘Inconceivable!’

Your eyes travel up to the source of the sound… it was the man seated directly below the Count of Tohno.

‘This is what we were called for? This farce?’ He snaps, making the other members of The Court stare at him, some with thinly-veiled annoyance and others in confusion. ‘The Congregation was promised accountability, and now you’re just letting him go?’

‘Count of Ryougi, you were informed in days past of the consideration that would take place. As it is, The Admiralty is not in possession of the luxury to deny ourselves the presence of an otherwise capable Commander,’ ‘The resources that we have accumulated are not enough to have us turn him away.’

TBC

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The Court Admiral affords you a quick glare, one that has your knees clattering against each other.

‘No matter how much we would like to.’

He makes an indescribable noise, before closing his eyes and turning his nose up to The Court of Admirals, his arms crossing over his chest.

‘So this is it, then?’ He accuses—and you have to admire his grit, if only for moment, as he continues, not missing a beat despite the intimidating presence of The Court Admiral. ‘The Senate of Haszad is bearing down on us and because of your lackadaisical practices, we’re up mounds upon mounds—do you realize just how close we are to war?’

‘We are already at war, Count,’ his large man snorts, turning away from you; his full attention was now on the man you recognized as a Count of Ryougi. ‘Or have you been living under a rock all this time?’

‘Be that as it may—then!’ he stumbles over his words, his fury and outrage more than apparent now. ‘The Commander may be under your organization, but he is still a citizen! The chaos that he and his superiors—and by extension, that you have sown has done irreparable damage to the integrity of the Lords, to say nothing of the act being seen as a provocation of a foreign entity that we have had nothing but positive diplomatic relations with for hundreds of years! All of you have seen the damage that this rogue action—by your words to us—has cost! This gathering, this trial’—you notice him snarl cruelly in your direction, if only for an instant—‘was meant to be the solidification of our relations: the culmination of us putting things aside, and the first thing you do is tell us that this matter means nothing?!’

‘That would be enough, Count.’

It was the Count of Tohno.

But his words seemed to have the opposite affect, as his face contorted cruelly to face him.

‘YOU OF ALL WOULD HAVE THE GALL TO—!’

He suddenly stops, closing his eyes again and seating himself.

‘I have spoken my piece,’ he finishes, looking deep in thought once more.

‘The Court recognizes your presence as it does the Congregation’s, in matters, Count; it’s what we agreed upon in this alliance,’ The Court Admiral declares.

The Count of Ryougi, the room’s attentions upon him now, speaks once more.

‘Haszad is sinking it’s claws into our dealings as we speak. They were already aware of our weakened position months ago—this incident has only strengthened their position against us. Grand Lieutenant,’ —at the mention, you turn towards the man in question—‘in accordance with the actions of the Commander, whom you have vouched for competence in the face of these accusation… you also propose a counter-offer to the proposal by Haszad.’

The Court Admiral rumbles once more.

‘This is the first time since our inception that we have opened the doors to these discussions to anyone but our own, Grand Lieutenant.'

>>1341645

‘I am well aware of that, Court Admiral.’

The Court Admiral nods, considering you.

‘Then for your sake, I hope this isn’t yet another waste of our time.’

>Snidely comment
>Inquire about the nature of this supposed supposition
>Ask of your role in this discussion
>Keep silent and listen
>Write-In

>>1341651
>>Keep silent and listen

>>1341651
>Keep silent and listen

>>1341651
Our part of being involved in this meeting is done. time to listen and gather info

>>1341651
>>Keep silent and listen

>>1341651
>>Keep silent and listen

We good for now

>>1341651
>>Keep silent and listen

>>1341651
>>Keep silent and listen

>>1341651
>Keep silent and listen

To make up for the last two days' I'll be going through today with a power session.

T-Minus 2 hours and 20 minutes.

>>1346091
TEST

>>1341651
>>1341656
>>1341658
2nded.

>>1346091
add another 2 hours lad, Mech's gotta go do something

Session delayed by two hours.
Mech's family stuff

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You decide not to cut in—it was one thing to make snide remarks and show reactions behind the scenes… but as a Commander, you couldn’t afford to give the present audience anymore reason to think that you were wholly inadequate for the job. As snide as the remarks were… they were just words at the end of the day—and they weren’t worth risking yourself for on any day, let alone this one. The Grand Lieutenant takes center stage, the eyes of the large Court Admiral upon him—his expression, though, is hard to place. His lips, even from this distance, you could see were thinned and his brows were furrowed. There was a strange sort of atmosphere in the air now—it eerily reminded you of your evaluation as a kitchen hand… only you couldn’t tell if it was the Grand Lieutenant who was being examined or if it was the Court itself.

The room, once so noisy, drops into complete silence—so much so that you can hear the ticking sound of the clock behind you.

The Grand Lieutenant produces a sheet—no, several sheets— of paper, striding parallel to the arrangement of booths that were set upon the tiers, his head turned up towards them and away from you through every step.

‘You know what this is,’ he announces, holding the paper up high. ‘You must know that despite all the promises that this piece of paper has given you, it is imperative for you to not agree to this decision. Regardless of the proposition, you must realize that the logic in you following through with this agreement is not sound.’

Thee whole room, Court and their guests, erupts into groans. You can’t tell what the Grand Lieutenant must look like right now, but you can see that the large Court Admiral had adopted a tired-looking expression—one that greatly reminded you of a teacher that had just heard the dozenth excuse from a student about his homework. Your gaze travels to the suddenly-worried visages of the Vassals and Counts in the corner… and you notice, briefly, an acknowledging smirk from the Count of Tohno before his attentions turn back towards the Grand Lieutenant.

‘Whatever Haszad has told you are unfounded… but if true, blatantly suicidal,’ he declares, his arms now at his sides. ‘This war has proven that, time and time again, the only deterrent that Taiyouga—that humanity—has against the Abyssal threat is the continued use of KanMusu; no working by the hands of science or magic alone in the mold of mortals is able to withstand the onslaught. As grave as it is, you cannot yield to this… fantasy’—he roughly lifts the papers again, for all to see—‘just because of a so-called claim. The ev—!’

‘The evidence is undeniable,’ a woman among the Vassals and the Counts interrupts, getting to her feet, ‘however, Grand Lieutenant, it is not the only reason we have considered this avenue.'

TBC

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‘You have fought this war for ten years,’ she practically sneers now, all semblance of respect gone from her tone. ‘You, your Court, your Admirals and Commanders—our so-called saviors—have only managed nothing more than ruin and filled graveyards to show for it.’

You wince internally.

As valid a point as it was… it was like a knee to the groin.

You can’t tell what expression the Grand Lieutenant was taking… but you can see that entire Court had their anger barely in check. The large Admiral, in particular, had the look of a man itching for a scrap. The Countess, encouraged, continues.

‘Do you take stock of the number of towns and cities that have been devastated by your incompetence, Grand Lieutenant? By the lack of progress made by your Court of Admirals and your peons?’ She declares, glaring right down at him. ‘We are grateful, Grand Lieutenant—we always have been—but we cannot ignore that the KanMusu’s supposed role as the solution to this crisis has shown no results! You kill waves and waves of them, and what then? The next day I read the news and I find out another oil rig has vanished; that another towns has been devastated and more families and lives are ruined by these monsters!’

‘You know as well as I do that the only thing that can kill an Abyssal is a KanMusu, Countess,’ the Grand Lieutenant takes a patient, if slightly patronizing, tone. ‘The option was put forward to enhance humans with KanMusu augmentations—outside of medical usage, the synchronization of magical components to mortal ones hasn’t been met by success outside of certain individuals. Prostheses and the like, but we’ve never been able to have it fashioned for conventional military use—and neither has any member nation of the League of Nations.’

‘That claim has been debunked,’ She announces haughtily. ‘It has already been—!’

‘Countess.’

The voice of the Count of Tohno echoes throughout the chamber.

The Countess’s face contorts… before she takes a deep breath—one audible throughout the whole room—before seating herself down.

‘It is not so much that it’s debunked… but Haszad has proposed a challenge to that claim,’ the Count of Tohno turns towards… you. ‘As one of the so-called perpetrators of this international incident well aware of the context of the situation… perhaps it would wise to consult the Commander?’

You stiffen as all eyes fall upon you again.

>‘I don’t think I’m the sort of person you should be asking, Grand Lieutenant, Count.’ (Don’t answer)
>‘If it helps with the effort, then… albeit reluctantly, I think they deserve a chance to go ahead.’ (Testify)
>‘It’s strange—this kind of advancement couldn’t have been possible. The Senator himself said that it was a long shot.’ (Debrief)
>‘Haszad put this forward with conditions, right? It can’t all be free, whatever it is they’re proposing.’
>Write-In

>>1347497
What's the difference between Debrief and Testify?

>>1347497

And whats the tone of that last one supposed to be?

>>1347514
guessing asking what Haszad's terms are

>>1347506
You testify that the Countess does have a point, being on the frontlines, you can see where she's coming from and can support her decision, as well as the Congregation's and the Court's, to take an alternative proposal, whether you like it or not.

>>1347514
I didn't know how to put it in words, but it's... well, you can call it antagonizing the issue at hand, effectively trying to take a wrench to it.

>>1347497
>>‘It’s strange—this kind of advancement couldn’t have been possible. The Senator himself said that it was a long shot.’ (Debrief)

>>1347497
>>‘It’s strange—this kind of advancement couldn’t have been possible. The Senator himself said that it was a long shot.’ (Debrief)

>>1347497
We should mention with the debrief that his kantai steel "enhancements" crumpled like a tin can and that haszad is nowhere near ready to roll that stuff out.

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>>1347497
>>‘It’s strange—this kind of advancement couldn’t have been possible. The Senator himself said that it was a long shot.’ (Debrief)
His gauntlets weren't that impressive once we crushed them like cardboard.

>>1347529
Does (Debrief) include an explanation of every way Haszad's tech is absolute shit?

>>1347497
>>‘It’s strange—this kind of advancement couldn’t have been possible. The Senator himself said that it was a long shot.’ (Debrief)

the countess is forgetting a fundamental flaw on Haszad's tech. Even if they can augment hundreds of dudes with it, how will they fight the abyssals on the sea? Kanmusu can do the whole skating on water trick but I don't think anyone has replicated that on a human.

Unless their whole plan involves letting the abysssals on land and fighting them there then you've fundamentally lost the main reason for getting their tech in the first place, bringing the fight TO them.

>>1347497
>‘It’s strange—this kind of advancement couldn’t have been possible. The Senator himself said that it was a long shot.’ (Debrief)
>Point out how inferior it is however to literally everything else and if things go wrong we lose our support amongst certain people.

>>1347497
>>1347555
>>1347553
2nding this. It's like taking a pipe dream and acting as if it's the real deal.

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You look to the Grand Lieutenant… who turns to you and nods stoically, giving you the floor with one swift step after.

Almost two months ago you were in front of a stove.

Now you were in front of an audience that couldn’t burn any hotter even if they tried.

You step forward, your chair and comfort zone left to rot behind you as you straighten your jacket and dust your pants, feeling the jitters come upon you as they had never done before. For some reason, you touch the metal panel of the apparatus in the middle of the room, as though it was some lucky charm or security blanket that could give you awesome speaking powers… only to have the words die in your throat just as they reach the back of your tongue. The Grand Lieutenant stares at you with an expression that you could only describe as fascination, his sheets of paper messily folded into his arms. You raise your hand—your prosthetic—getting everyone’s attentions on you like a lead singer trying to hype a crowd.

The only thing you were missing was the microphone.

‘The thing is, if their proposal to you was—by implication and assumption—legitimate, then it’s a whole lot of progress that they’ve made in the space of two weeks and change, that’s all.’

The large Admiral scrutinizes you, his nose scrunching so much that it resembled a wrinkled strawberry. The Countess herself eyes you with disbelief.

‘If you’re telling me that there is—or whoever is telling you—that they’ve taken that big a leap in progress over such a small amount of time, I’d take it with a grain of salt.’

The Court and its guests whisper to each other in hushed tones. Undeterred, you move to continue—you conclude that if you stopped to have a look-see or gather yourself, you would eventually lost the plot—with your mini-debriefing, hoping to paint a clearer picture of the occurrences. Despite your reluctance, you try to think back to your encounter in the chamber, Musashi and Yamato still held… and the Senator, a monstrous beast of a man bearing down on you with fists that would have probably torn a car door off its handle.

But had ultimately come short against your own arm’s exoskeleton.

Not that you hadn’t suffered, of course: vomiting Fata Aqueous and weeping in pain as your bones and muscles patched themselves together had been the trade that you had made in surviving that encounter… and even then, the fight wasn’t as one-sided as your arm had allowed. There was still the sensation of your bones straining against the force of each blow; how your knees almost exploded in keeping the faux-Steel enhancements of the Senator at bay—but the conclusion and the facts were clear: save for some minor repairs by Akashi, your single arm had obliterated the Senator’s so-called enhancements where even bullets had failed.

‘Commander.’

TBC

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You’re shaken from your reverie by the Court Admiral.

‘You can verify this?’

‘I was witness to it, sir,’ you raise your arm again, pulling back your sleeve for all of them to see. ‘My arm went up against the armaments—and the armaments were ineffective,’ the Court says nothing, but the Vassals and Count, in response, were chattering audibly. ‘If they’ve made an advance, personally, I’d put a big question mark. Even if they could reproduce it… it was a real bad variant, not to mention—!’

‘And how do you come to this conclusion, Commander?’ you’re interrupted by the Countess this time, raised from her seat an eyeing you with what you knew as contempt. ‘Or were you snooping around for more than just those two KanMusu you had gone to rescue?’

You don’t rise to it. There was no point in picking a fight with someone involved in the Congregation; the Admiralty may have, albeit reluctantly, allowed you to go about with your business so long as you brought back results, the Congregation would have been satisfied with the executioner letting the guillotine fall. Letting out a breath, you gather your thoughts again, moving to explain yourself further.

‘I encountered a Senator on-base,’ you begin. ‘And… the Senator in question had installed the technology on his person—facing no choice, I… engaged in direct combat with him.’

You can hear the Court Admiral counting down from ten up there.

The Count of Tohno, however, had a grim most smug.

‘Why?’ One of the Vassals or Counts on the bottom tier, gets to his feet, incredulous to your admission.

‘Because he wasn’t going to let us get out of there alive otherwise, sir.’

The Vassal—or Count—strokes his beard, humming as he nods, seemingly in understanding. Encouraged, you decide to go on.

‘Haszad extracted what they could from Yamato and Musashi to use on their soldiers—whatever happened there, it wasn’t very successful. There was a high… mortality rate according to the Senator; the implementation of this technology had their test subjects, by his words, dying on the table—all except for one: him.’

Another man raises his hand, peering at you curiously.

‘You’re telling us that a Senator of Haszad allowed himself to be used as a guinea pig for these…?’

‘I’m not sure about guinea pig, but he was the most successful case by his own words—and as far as I know, he was telling the truth,’ your voice falters a little. ‘He tried knocking against this and… well, it was like smacking a ladle against a pot, if you don’t mind me saying.’

Another person, a small, portly woman, stands up.

‘Are you telling us, Commander, that there is without a doubt that there could not have been… any sort of advancement that would give them enough confidence to put this forward as a showcase? At all?’

>‘There is the possibility, yes. But it’s unlikely.’ (Admit to the possibility)
>‘The question is if how they made that sort of progress if they did make that progress.’ (Question)
>‘One or two weeks? Doubt it.’ (Disagree with the possibility)
>‘I don’t know.’
>Write-In

>>1347818
>‘One or two weeks? Doubt it.’ (Disagree with the possibility)
If our prosthetic can't even scratch an Abyssal, theirs will never even come close to being viable.

unless they used abyssal tech, we never did knoww how it went down between musashi and the oni. if they have access to her corpse, who knows what happened or if the senator also has a abyssal in the head....or worse

>>1347811
>‘The question is if how they made that sort of progress if they did make that progress.’ (Question) We took musashi and yamato, and it's unlikely they have any further access to kantai steel and no way to continue the research since we busted up the senator and their prototype.

>>1347818
>‘One or two weeks? Doubt it.’ (Disagree with the possibility)
>point out there Metal was sub-par in the last encounter and ours just tickles the Abyssal, No way in only a few weeks did they suddenly catch up and surpassed.

Also this >>1347823

>>1347824
2nding this

>>1347823
this works

>>1347823
Also the lab was destroyed in an abyssal attack as soon we got tomato and sushi out.

>>1347811
>>1347824
3rding.
I have my suspicions that they've secretly been performing HERESY to get this far though.

>>1347824
voting this

Message from MECH:
>Can someone announce that I've already typed up but am having trouble posting?
>I'm stuck at 100 percent again.
>Been like this for 45 minutes.

>>1347811
Hiroshimoot is fucking over Mech again lads. hes been stuck at a 100% posting for 40 minutes now

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MOTHERFUCKING TEST

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‘In just one or two weeks? Without their research materials?’ you shake your head, thinking back to the day. ‘I doubt it.’

‘Why?’

‘For one… during the rescue, the base came under attack by an Abyssal Oni and its forces,’ you point out. The Court this time breaks out in whispers, some of them eyeing you suspiciously as they did so. Feeling the momentum to continue, you do. ‘I managed to activate Musashi and she must have somehow managed to fend them off, or I wouldn’t be standing here in front of you. I don’t know how they keep their records, but Abyssals turn pretty much everything they touch into desolation points—I don’t know who got in or out, but that place wouldn’t be a viable place for their research… and it’s not like you can just pop up a new secret research base out of nowhere.’

To your surprise, you see the Countess giving an agreeable—albeit, rather tight—nod.

‘The other thing is that they don’t have a Shaman or a KanMusu to reconstruct Kantai Steel at its purest—everyone knows that it’s some sort of magical, transmogrifiable material that needs more than just some science to work… I’m surprised they were able to pull that off for the Senator, but with Musashi and Yamato back under the Admiralty’s care, I doubt there’s ability to further it.’

‘So you’re saying that you think that it’s a bluff?’

You pause. It could be, but…

‘It could be,’ you bite your lip. It did seem like the cleanest answer. ‘But then again… I’m no politician, Counts and Countesses, there could be a grain of truth to it; but from my experience getting pummeled? I don’t think that it would’ve been possible for them to pull it off in such a short amount of time—considering that the Senator himself said that there were a bunch of test subjects prior to him and how he said the other Senators were reluctant to actually pull into the project itself, there’s a huge chasm between what they say they have and what I’ve seen from before.’

The Court Admiral calls for order, and your attention once again falls on him.

‘Only a Shaman or a KanMusu could fully utilize Kantai Steel—you know for yourselves, Counts and Countesses, Vassals, my fellow Court Admirals… and the ISSF wouldn’t be brazen enough to step foot into Haszad without so much as handkerchief from our part,’ he utters with the sort of arrogance you saw from boxing champions. ‘However, it does raise a certain curiosity on the claim—it wouldn’t have come with such brazen movements if they weren’t confident in saying that there was progress in Anti-Abyssal Warfare… so the consideration of a possibility of a legitimate stance would be—!’

‘It so, then it could be something else that they have in mind—something unrelated to armaments at all.’

You feel like you were… forgetting something.

>Remember (Roll a 1d6 each)

Rolled 6 (1d6)

>>1347925

Rolled 4 (1d6)

>>1347925

Rolled 3 (1d6)

>>1347925
dice gods pls

>>1347927
>>1347928
>>1347929
>tfw next two rolls are 1 and 1
Oh yes...

Rolled 5 (1d6)

>>1347930

Rolled 3 (1d6)

>>1347925

>>1347930
I'm sorry mech. Commander too stronk.

Rolled 5 (1d6)

>>1347925

>>1347927
>>1347928
>>1347929
>>1347931
>>1347932
Fuck all y'all.

I'm ending this Quest. Can't even get my inner sadist running.

>implying we won't get shit rolls during combat now

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IT HEALS ME AS MUCH AS YOU CAN HURT ME!

You remember the other fundamental difference between you and the Senator.

The fact that his armaments probably weren’t as conventional as you had assumed.

‘Grand Lieutenant, how does Fata Aqueous factor into the installation of a prosthetic?’

He turns to you, straightening his glasses.

‘Application’s the same as healing baths, as you would know—the substance is a physical liquid with many magical properties to it, most of them in direct violation of scientific principles. You could argue that it has a mind of its own; in your case, the Tears act as both a conduit and a sort of ease of access pathway, but your body’s acceptance of it is by itself an approximate one in four chance as well as a sort of healing salve that converts your body into a healing factory—but it cannot work with what’s not there or if something is too far gone for it to fix… that’s where Kantai Steel comes in for certain limbs or parts. The Steel is highly responsive to magic—synthesized in such a way it receives the new memory and function.’

Despite the fact that there were dozens of pairs of eyes upon you, you couldn’t help but press further.

‘Were there any combat applications for Fairy’s Tears, then?’

The Grand Lieutenant raises an eyebrow at you, before snorting and turning towards the seated Court and the Congregation’s representatives.

‘Hardly—even Stream-capable individuals need to take it at certain concentrations; we’re still of this mortal coil and without proper instruction, it could kill you in its most raw form—the fairies were kind enough to share their knowledge of it with us but we had to engineer our own methods for prac—!’

He stops, turning towards you.

‘What are you bringing this up for?’

‘Commanders and Admirals are wholly capable of being healed by Fairy’s Tears,’ you mention, to which the Grand Lieutenant—and the Court Admiral, in tandem—stare at you, bewildered at the declaration. It was a fact that everyone knew. ‘You said that there was about a 25 percent chance of individuals being healed by Fairy’s Tears—that certain configurations, bodies, people, whatever, are receptive of the treatment… so what if that’s what they’ve used as an amalgamation agent?’

‘Plausible,’ the Grand Lieutenant nods, ‘but we haven’t been able to lower the venomous properties to a level that even non-recipients could be saved from its exposure ourselves… Fairy’s Tears become deadly when rejected by the host; in many ways, its cons outweigh its benefits.’

The Grand Lieutenant clicks his tongue, looking away.

‘The most that you could look at it is as some kind of viral—!’

The both of you stare at each other.

Your stomach couldn’t do enough flips, you find, as the realization hits.

[END INTERLUDE]

>>1347970
What am i missing here.

>>1347988
MAGICAL bioweapon (zombie), in very short

>>1347990
That sounds super bad

>>1348148
yes and no
im pretty sure that is not really legal
also shipgirls wont have any problem in blasting zombies because they are corpses, not humans

on the bad side its a new unkown kind of WMD that is magical, and that measn that can do nothing or shit on existense itself

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You weren’t that far off the mark.

Chemical warfare wasn’t quite viral, but the parallels between the two were so thin right now that it didn’t matter.

It must have been three hours since the discussion had begun on the question of how Haszad had achieved a state of viability in a war they have yet to have dipped their toes in, but the words from the Court of Admirals and the Counts and Vassals, were fast and furious. To your surprise, the revelation that misuse of Fairy’s Tears in the speculation of Haszad’s maneuvering had been tolerated—if not outright welcomed—by the Congregation’s representatives. The clock had ticked by as the Court of Admirals took stock of all that laid before them… and locked horns like a pair of arguing beasts. The large Court Admiral kept peace as well as he could, so thankfully, things hadn’t broken the civil threshold just yet.

‘We cannot discount the possibility that they’ve heavily modified the Tears in order to weaponize themselves against the Abyssals,’ the Grand Lieutenant repeats, his tone one of urgency. ‘The Commander has already given his testimony on the nature of the weaponry—there couldn’t have been a developmental pace that has reached such a state without exploiting the technological and arcane repositories acquired in their capture of the Dreadnoughts. The tampering may cause more harm than it does good—it’s not a factor that can be just written off as an acceptable risk.’

One of the Counts leaves his seat, glaring down at him.

‘Be that as it may,’ he begins, ‘if it proves to be a suitable substitute, then there is no reason to wholly reject the proposal, Grand Lieutenant.’

The large Admiral commands attention once more.

‘Ethics has long left our criteria in this conflict, but we do have certain borders that we have set for ourselves. That much you should know, Count.’

‘The people are no longer flocking to your cause, Admiral,’ The Countess interjects. ‘You must have heard what’s been going on up north—we have lost more towns and rigs in the last month than we have the last year.’

‘I am aware of the status of our defensive lines, Madam,’ he replies coolly. ‘I don’t need reminding that we haven’t been able to hold up our end of the deal since the assault.’

‘And the people are to suffer?’ Another Count, a man in a dandy suit, questions. ‘The only reason that we’ve been able to survive has been thanks to Haszad agreeing to our deals—!’

‘And this is where you’ve arrived in dealing with them,’ the Grand Lieutenant replies roughly, yet patiently. ‘I would have thought that politicians such as yourselves would have realized that there wouldn’t be a time to pay the piper.’

Before the Count in question could get a word in, however… the Count of Tohno raises his hand.

‘Commander? If we could have your thoughts?’

>>1356848
>‘Actually, now that I think about it—and personally reasons aside—I really can’t see anything wrong in working together.’
>‘I’m no expert, but considering that we’re dealing in magic here… there’s a saying: exercise caution.’
>‘I’m against it on principle, so…’
>‘What do we stand to really gain here? If we’re saying that it’ll help end the war… do we have concrete statements that it’ll work?’
>‘Honestly? I’m not the guy you should be asking. I just do what I’m told.’
>Write-In

>>1356853
>>‘I’m no expert, but considering that we’re dealing in magic here… there’s a saying: exercise caution.’

>>1356853
>>‘I’m no expert, but considering that we’re dealing in magic here… there’s a saying: exercise caution.’

>>1356853
>>‘I’m no expert, but considering that we’re dealing in magic here… there’s a saying: exercise caution.’

File: Very Well.jpg (218 KB, 461x650)

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‘I think I’m the least qualified person here to have an opinion, but… back when I was a kitchen hand working in a restaurant, if something didn’t have a label on it, the guys and I decided we wouldn’t mess around with it until we knew for sure what it was,’ you begin, feeling a little uneasy at the fact that you were being called up as a consulting head. ‘I won’t discourage or encourage any course of action, Counts… Court, but if Haszad’s been dabbing in things that even we aren’t fully aware of, I say that keeping caution would be a viable course of action until we can understand what exactly it is that they’re proposing.’

They stare at you. You feel your throat itch as the weight builds… prompting you to get to your feet—the sooner you get this over and done with, the better for you. You already know what to say.

‘Anything that’ll help with the war is a great thing to have, but considering just what Haszad’s offer is and how they’re going to approach this war,’ you elaborate, sighing heavily. A heavy sense of deja vu seems to come upon you as you find yourself once again in front of a lecture stand giving your group project proposal. ‘We don’t exactly know what it is that they’re doing… and we only have a vague suspicion of how they’re bringing it about, at best.’

‘A suspicion that we know to be damning if it is true,’ The Grand Lieutenant adds, his face as stoic as ever.

You nod—the Grand Lieutenant

‘That might be the case, Grand Lieutenant, sir… but if there’s anything that I’ve learned as a Commander, is that I don’t like jumping in until I know just what it is that I’m dealing with,’ you sigh, shaking your head and biting the inside of your cheek as you ponder the last few hours worth of speculation. They had all, despite the concrete mettle, proven inconclusive. ‘Haszad’s intentions are easy to read—anyone’ll move forward if they think they can hold their advantage, but then again, following the benefit of the doubt, whatever their means were, there’s an off-chance that it might be…’

You clear your throat, staring back up towards your stone-faced audience.

‘Noble.’

There were about two snickers that were audible; you choose to ignore them.

‘Since we can’t discount either, as obvious as the pulls are… I can only say that we should hold our cards close to our chest while we try to find out what cards they have in their hands.’

The silence is deafening.

The Court Admiral rises from his seat.

‘Very well,’ he rumbles, before turning towards the Grand Lieutenant. ‘Grand Lieutenant… as the impasse has not yet been settled, we shall commence the review of your proposal as requested.’

The Grand Lieutenant says nothing.

‘Commander, you may leave,’ the Court Admiral declares. It’s not permission—it’s a command.

You find that, as the doors close, that you are the only one that does.

>>1357064
[You have quite a bit of time]

>Go to REC Room
>Go to the Main Hall
>Go to Taigei's Office/Intelligence Division Quarters
>Go to the ISSF Liaison's Office
>Go to Agency Offices/Grand Lieutenant Offices/Staff Offices
>Leave HQ
>Write-In

>>1357066
>>Go to REC Room
After the last few hours, the Commander NEEDS a little bit of recreation in his life.

>>1357070
>yfw rec room is kanmusu rec room

>>1357066
>>Go to REC Room

>>1357066
>Go to Taigei's Office/Intelligence Division Quarters

A little chat with the subs

File: ded.png (292 KB, 498x664)

292 KB PNG

>>1357077
As long as it's not the submarine rec room. that's fine with me.
>mfw it turns out to be the submarines' rec room after all

>>1357083
Thats why its clearly labelled. So any admiralty knows to STAY AWAY.

>>1357066
>>Go to REC Room

File: Bookmark.jpg (54 KB, 492x604)

54 KB JPG

Save for a few MPs in fancier clothing than you saw back in Yokosuka, the floors were surprisingly scarce.

The receptionist, engrossed in her work, doesn’t look up as you walk past her, your immediate focus on sampling the aforementioned rec room. As you hadn’t seen a glimpse of the old man in the welcoming area, you suspect that you had quite some time before you had to leave—not that you wanted to stay longer than you had to, of course, but after everything that had been brought up in the Tribunal Hall, you really couldn’t stand going back to another grind without treating yourself to a little break before going on your way.

Sign hanging from the large-framed doors, it’s a hard sight to miss.

Turning the knob, you step in onto carpeted floors.

The rec room wasn’t much to behold—by itself, it was only just slightly smaller than the common area of your barracks. It had a television set with wires all a-jumble behind its stand and a shelf of books that were lined up along the opposite the entrance. There was a table and plastic fruit, a dartboard hung on your right along with some chairs and novelty bean bags. There was a table in front of the television littered with things ranging from old magazines to worn-but-recent comic books to diagrams of what appeared to be arrows and letters on a piece of paper that you couldn’t quite make out. There was a radio playing besides a collection of two couches, where another table stood between them with what appeared to be a board game that had not been bothered to be put away.

On one of the couches, you notice, was what appeared to be an assortment of stacked blankets. Not feeling the need to turn on the television—or having the knowledge how to, as it utilized a knob and a frequency meter instead of the usual buttons—you decide to pick out a book.

You near the shelf, taking one of the books out in curiosity; it was, much to your surprise, a romance novel—a horribly-written, cliche-ridden romance novel with the picture of some dashing specimen with his shirt open out in front with an eager woman at his feet. Flipping the page, you notice what appeared to be a small dog-shaped bookmark that looked… a little worn. It was torn and missing an ear, with the metal ring in the middle of the paper tag threatening to just drop off the thing.

It must have been in there for quite some time, because there was a notable indentation left on the pages.

Curiously, you pick up the bookmark and see that it had a name—slightly faded, but there all the same—written in loopy handwriting.

ASHIGARA

‘Ashigara? Why does that sound… familiar?’

>Take the bookmark
>Leave it behind

>>1357312
>>Take the bookmark

>>1357312
>>Take the bookmark
inb4 Nachi beats us

>>1357312
>Take the bookmark

File: Spoiler Image (209 KB, 403x672)

209 KB PNG

You decide to take it; it was theft, of course, but considering that it had looked like it hadn’t seen the outside of the book for quite some time, you doubt that anyone would come looking for it. Setting the book back in its place, you decide to pull out another book on the higher shelves; they were all as worn as the one that you had just pulled out, which meant that this room had been frequented by ardent readers at one point… and probably still was. Most of the titles, however, you notice, were made for light reading—old romance novels, a few old mystery books; you even catch a young adult series about a talking dog and his human companions exploring a haunted house. To your disappointment, however, there wasn’t anything that caught your eye in particular; many of the books were those that you could have found in a bargain bin that a book store would have put out.

Nearing one of the lower tables, you pick up one of the magazines—a subscription on weaponry of the conventional kind: guns, knives, tactical vests and the like, several pictures circled and crossed. The magazine itself was a past issue, somewhere about three to four months old—it was a bi-weekly publication—and someone with a vested interest in it had taken the time to point out technical details that you yourself couldn’t make heads or tails of. Glancing towards the television once again, you wonder if you could afford to sit down and have a short viewing session of your own; it had been a while since you’d turned on a television or tuned in to the news outside of your occasional glimpse of a newspaper article.

Another glance at the knob and bar, however, discouraged you.

You would never be able to figure out why someone would be so sadistic as to think that a knob and a bar would be a marked improvement over the usual button and dial.

In the corner of the room—behind a makeshift counter made from several joined tables—you notice a small fridge; curiosity, more than your appetite, dictate the next course of action as you near the device and open it… only for it to reveal few bags of what appeared to be Tanaka Salt in its liquid form… and jell-o cups in a pack that had remained unopened and several cans of raspberry fizz.

You take one out and pop open the can, setting your bag onto the counter as you enjoy your first sip of the day.

‘Leave a tip, if you will.’

You practically shriek, jumping about a foot in the air in sheer surprise, before whirling around to see the pale features of a young girl in a pale blue set of clothing—clothing that reminded you of Navy officers, complete with the hat.

She was a KanMusu.

‘This place is for whoever wishes to use it, so… if you will, please leave a tip.’

She raises the tin up to your chin, her expression stiff.

>Leave a tip (Deposit 500 Yen)
>Refuse to leave a tip
>Write-In

>>1357408
>>Write-In
ask her name

>>1357408
>Leave a tip (Deposit 500 Yen)
>"Didn't expect to see a KanMusu manning the REC Room."

>>1357408
>>Leave a tip (Deposit 500 Yen)

>>1357408
>>Leave a tip (Deposit 500 Yen)

>>1357408
>leave a tip
>ask her name and thank her for informing him of the tip jar.

>>1357408
>>Leave a tip (Deposit 500 Yen)
>>Write-In
Ask her name

>>1357408
>>Leave a tip (Deposit 500 Yen)
>>Write-In
Ask her name
Resist urge to headpat, fail

>>1357449
this

>>1357408
>>Leave a tip (Deposit 500 Yen)
>>Write-In
Ask her name

>>1357408
>Leave a tip (Deposit 500 Yen)

>>1357408
>Leave a tip (Deposit 500 Yen)

File: I Yuu see that coming bec(...).jpg (259 KB, 700x872)

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Feeling that it was highly inappropriate to use the facilities without so much as a little goodwill from your end, you take out what little you could afford to give… and deposit 500 yen in the tin, its contents joyfully-jangling as your coin meets with its friends. The KanMusu stares up at you with blank eyes, piercing and innocent… before nodding in approval.

‘Thank you for your patronage,’ she chirps, turning away from you.

‘Excuse me,’ you try to catch her before she could leave… not that you were able to catch her when you’d first entered either; had she even been in the room when you’d walked through the door? ‘Are you… in charge of this room?’

Setting down the tin, she wordlessly turns towards you.

A part of you is reminded of Inazuma and Ikazuchi’s sister, Hibiki.

‘No,’ she shakes her head. ‘But… as it is for the use of anyone who wishes to make use of it, I see it as my responsibility to see that whoever utilizes the facilities doesn’t…’

She tilts her head, pondering her next words.

‘Make too much of a mess.’

You take a quick glance of the room—she hadn’t done a particular good job, by your opinion; the board game was out and the blankets were stacked quite messily… not to mention the jumbled up wires behind the television set and the magazines and books all over the table. The KanMusu before you, however, didn’t seem the least bit deterred by the paradox of disorder that stood contrary to her claims. You’re eerily reminded of your own living arrangements back in the days before you were awarded the position of a Commander… the mess that you’d constantly put up for the next day only to repeat the cycle until the place became nigh unlivable and you’d be forced to pick up a broom and a mop and just start cleaning.

‘The Hunter’s Lodge was just here.’

Shaken from your reverie, you look up to see that the girl had a slight pink on her cheeks; you grunt slightly before coughing into your fist, feeling the words dripping with a defensive nature that one could only get from a child being caught neglecting their responsibilities.

You decide not to pursue it.

‘All right,’ you nod, taking a sip from your can and leaning on the counter. ‘You don’t mind if I stay here for a bit, right? This is for anyone who wants to use it?’

‘So long as they… don’t make a mess.’

You nod again.

The KanMusu walks over to the magazines on the table, beginning to sort them out… before turning on her heel and hurriedly—and clumsily—saluting you.

‘Submarine U-511 of the Germ—I mean, the Romerian Branch, on loan by special request,’ she hurriedly bows. ‘You may call me Yuu-chan, Commander, sir.’

‘Ah, um,’ you set down your can. ‘Yokosuka First Operations Divisions Commander. an honor to meet your—!’

You stop in your tracks.

>>1359961
>'Wait, you're a Submarine?' (Apprehensive)
>'So you just clean up around here when you've got free time?'
>'Romerian Branch?' (Curious)
>'So, you work here under the Admiralty's direct supervision or do you ... ?' (Inquire)
>'Nice to meet you, I have to get going.' (Leave)
>'Who usually uses this room?'
>'I found this bookmark; does it belong to anyone who's posted here?'
>Write-In

>>1359962
>>'Romerian Branch?' (Curious)

>>1359962
>>'Romerian Branch?' (Curious)

>>1359961
>>'Romerian Branch?' (Curious)

I would like to put an apology forward. I was supposed to be running this an hour and a half ago, but... well, you never know where God takes you and I had the compulsion to pick up and read a few Surah from the Qur'an.

So, I'm sorry I didn't tell you guys that I went straight to the book after my prayers.

>>1359963
>>1359964
>>1359965

>>1359970
S'all good

>>1359962
>Romanian branch?
>do you want some help cleaning this up?

>>1359962
>>'I found this bookmark; does it belong to anyone who's posted here?'
we need more info on best myoko....even if she dead

File: Yuu the Sub.jpg (415 KB, 800x1200)

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‘Romerian Branch?’ You tilt your head, a little confused. ‘You’re not from around here?’

‘Battleship Unit Bismarck, Cruiser Unit Prinz Eugen, Destroyer Units Z1 and Z3 were all transfers from the Romerian Alliance’s Branch of the Admiralty by order of the Sanctius Mortina.’

You could have balked.

The Sanctius Mortina was the divine peacekeeping (for what value of it) arm of the Romerian Alliance; the divine military arm. Romeria wasn’t just one titanic bloc—the whole quarter-continent was a mix of cut-throat sovereigns with bad blood stretching back to before Taiyouga was even a thought. While Zuluva had been a realm of chaos, they did so a part of the culture—as vile as it was, the warfare was out in the open and a practice for them to see as part of their lives. The chaos was sown and—as disturbing as it was to you—willingly embraced; Zuluva didn’t ask for outside help that often nor did it expect the outside world to come knocking/

The Romerian Alliance, however, was a deck of cloak and dagger types where the cloak might as well have been made of daggers. The Alliance and its member states were seen as paragons of conduct and poise, but anyone with a history book and access to an international newspaper (those were rare these days, with the war going on) knew that there were more to the occurrences that meets the eye. While poisonous cups and executions behind sheds were as commonplace as an Abyssal Princess taking residence up in your head these days…

Hey!

The Romerian Alliance’s watchdog having a direct hand in intervening with Admiralty postings so brazenly—and the Admiralty Branch of Romeria being so compliant in return—didn’t ease your worries. Were they giving up on The Admiralty as well? Had they already given up?

‘The Sanctius Mortina?’ You continue your questions, taking a sip of your drink as you stare at her in confusion. ‘Why? Aren’t they worried about Abyssal attacks?’

‘The Sanctius Mortina told the Admiralty that it would not continue their support of them in the financial capacity that they had previously delegated,’ Yuu answers, tilting her head as she takes a tone not unlike Ooyodo’s. ‘The Romerian Branch of the Admiralty was established under the condition that the Romerian Alliance would have direct control over the conduct of operations.’

You could have grimaced if you had the capacity for that yourself. It figured that a whole establishment raised on the vestments of providential endowment wouldn’t let a body like The Admiralty run wild, no matter how much they would have benefited for it. But still…

‘The Court of Admirals agreed to that kind of dependency back then?’

‘The Court of Admirals did not have the resources or the power to properly outmaneuver the legislative precedent. It chose the pragmatic option over fighting a front it could not win.’

>>1359998
>>'I found this bookmark; does it belong to anyone who's posted here?'

>>1359998
>>'So, you work here under the Admiralty's direct supervision or do you ... ?' (Inquire)

>>1359996
>'So you just clean up around here when you've got free time?' (Small talk)
>'Are you here under the direct command of the Admiralty or do you have a Commander?' (Inquire)
>'You're a lot nicer than the other Submarines that I've met.' (Praise)
>'Who usually uses this room?' (Look into the mess)
>'I found this bookmark; does it belong to anyone who's posted here?' (Show the bookmark)
>'You know Bismarck?' (Talk about Bismarck)
>'Nice to meet you, I have to get going.' (Leave)
>Write-In

>>1360000
>>1360001
You guys can re-vote. Sorry.

>>1360003
>>'You know Bismarck?' (Talk about Bismarck)

>>1360003
>>'I found this bookmark; does it belong to anyone who's posted here?' (Show the bookmark)

Nachis b4 biskos

>>1360003
>>'You know Bismarck?' (Talk about Bismarck)

>>1360005
better start with bestko

File: [Literally] Child Bearing Hips.jpg (179 KB, 1920x1080)

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‘You mentioned Bismarck,’ you start, staring at the small Submarine. ‘How do you know her?’

‘She was my Sub-Commander in Romeria,’ Yuu replies, seating herself. ‘Although she isn’t in a current operational or commanding capacity, I still respect her as much.’

‘I’m not questioning her ability to do her job,’ you smile at her, leaning over the makeshift counter and taking another sip. ‘After seeing you girls in action, I don’t think that any one of us is able to.’

To your surprise, she turns a little… red.

‘You are a nice man.’

Now, it’s your turn to go pink in the cheeks.

The both of you share a look—a strange sort of connection that you can’t quite describe. Maybe it was just because you were so used to holding the conversation and expecting to get away with just throwing one or two facts out there and letting the conversation stew… the feeling of receiving that kind of warm reception from a stranger without the slightest bit of apprehension was a comforting change. Yuu’s shift in expression to a slightly troubled one, though, and you find the mood immediately shifting.

‘She hasn’t been quite herself lately… our Admiral—the First Admiral—has beached us for the last year, so we haven’t seen as much combat as we would have liked,’ Yuu reveals, her focus on her shifting feet. ‘I… I do not understand the purpose of keeping a weapon from its use, but she told us that it would be better for us to be away from the front lines for the time being—it is an interesting perspective from her part’—you snicker, feeling your mouth stretch just that tiny inch—‘but as it is, I cannot understand why the emphasis is on us being away from the battlefield… especially for Bismarck, considering her power.’

You don’t reply, letting the statement stew.

You knew exactly why such changes were made. Akashi had told you of Bismarck’s condition—how her biological makeup and overall structure was unexpected and different from the initial understanding of KanMusu… and the unique property of her being a fertile woman on top of being what was, effectively, a spiritual construct and purposeful revenant with the ability to decimate entire towns when unchecked. A small question bugged you, though—did the condition extend to the other ships under the First Admiral’s command? It was highly apparent that the Admiral had cast a sort of safety net around Bismarck, but seeing Yuu here—and lamenting over her inability to return to the thick of it, you couldn’t help but wonder if there was more to this…

‘Commander?’

‘Hm?’

‘What do you think?’

>‘I think you should listen to your Admiral.’ (Dismissive)
>‘Yuu, are you aware of anything strange concerning Bismarck?’ (Prod)
>‘I think we could definitely use more firepower up front.’ (Agree with her)
>‘If we need you, we’ll call for you—for now, Commanders are scarce.’ (Disagree)
>Write-In

>>1360024
>>‘Yuu, are you aware of anything strange concerning Bismarck?’ (Prod)
CHILD BEARING HIPS

>>1360024
>‘I think you should listen to your Admiral.’ (Dismissive)
i am not having a birds and bees talk with a submarine, no matter cute is she

>>1360024
>‘Yuu, are you aware of anything strange concerning Bismarck?’ (Prod)

Let's see if we can still deliver headpat after convo is over

>>1360024
>‘Yuu, are you aware of anything strange concerning Bismarck?’ (Prod)

>>1360024
>>Write-In
>>‘I think we could definitely use more firepower up front but I'm just a division commander. The admirals must have a good plan or reason why they have you sitting out for now. I'm sure you'll see the front once again sooner or later.' (sympathise but note the chains of command and that those on the ground frequently dont have all the info the higher ups have. Basically deflect.)

File: YU.jpg (151 KB, 850x1195)

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‘Wait,’ you start—as deplorable as it was, you think that this would be the best opportunity to have a few questions answered, ‘so you’re under the instruction of the First Admiral, right? Does that mean that you… live with her? And Bismarck?’

She looks thoughtful… before giving a tentative nod. She looked unsure.

‘I occasionally acquire transport to return to her lodgings, yes,’ she replied, to which you frown. The wording didn’t sound right. ‘However, as the distance between headquarters and the Admiral’s house is considerable, I only take it as much as I need to.’

‘Oh,’ you sigh, ‘so you don’t stay with them?’

‘I commute when able,’ she clarifies, before pushing herself up her seat, ‘but why do you ask, Commander?’

You shake your head… before stopping yourself. This was the perfect time to follow-up with your inquiry—perhaps there could be more insight into her situation.

However, considering how Akashi had practically sworn you into secrecy, you had to make sure that she was in on it, too.

No point blabbing something out that the other party was in the dark about.

‘You haven’t noticed anything strange about Bismarck, at all?’ You inquire further, ‘I don’t mean to insinuate anything, but… you haven’t noticed your Admiral being a little over-cautious over her… or anyone else under her care? Even you?’

You’re answered by a swift—and admittedly adorable—shake of her head, her white strands of hair whirling with her movement.

‘The Admiral’s methods are unorthodox and unable to be properly deciphered… as far as treatment goes, she is an oddity,’ she states, looking thoughtful, before continuing, ‘she does laundry and has us do house chores… Prinz Eugen is not around the lodgings often—she usually returns at night. Max and Lebe, however, tend to the garden and the produce along with the Admiral,’ ‘But as far as oddities go with Bismarck, she…’

Yuu pauses for a moment.

‘She doesn’t talk as often as she did before,’ she admits, frowning. ‘She is not an arrogant person, but the Sub-Commander I knew would be much more active in participation, regardless of her interests—ever since we have found her place under the First Admiral’s will, however, she has been more subdued compared to before.’

She didn’t know—and that meant that for now, your lips would remain sealed.

‘What’s your input on that, then?’

‘I am unable to reach a logical conclusion,’ she answers automatically. ‘I haven’t traveled back in two weeks.’

‘Two weeks?’ You furrow your brows. ‘So you’re staying with Taigei or something?’

‘I stay here.’ She purses her lips, hesitant to continue. ‘She allows me to use her personal bathroom, however… the Submarines and I have… we do not see… eye-to-eye,’ she quickly adds, ‘professionally.’

The sound of a sigh reaches your ears.

‘And personally.’

>>1360079
>'Then we have something in common.' (Joke)
>'I thought the Submarines were a tight-knit bunch. What's up with this?' (Further inquire)
>'Don't worry about that. You're all right, really.' (Reassure)
>'Do you want a ride back to the First Admiral's?' (Offer her a ride home)
>Leave
>Write-In

>>1360079
>'Then we have something in common.' (Joke)
and yu-chan becomes best sub

>>1360084
>>'Then we have something in common.' (Joke)

>>1360084
>'Then we have something in common.' (Joke)
then transition into
>'Do you want a ride back to the First Admiral's?' (Offer her a ride home)

The Commander's always been a bit sarcastic, but he's also always been the first to rush to assist the girls.

>>1360101
voting for this

File: She held this very book.jpg (407 KB, 900x900)

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MECH and everyone, about the bookmark... Could we place it on the book as it was, and take the book with us? If Yuu complains, we could explain why, she seems nice enough to let us.

Maybe giving Nachi the whole package would be better.

SEDUCE ALL THE KRAUT BOTES!!!

>>1360084
>>1360101
This is fine

>>1360166
im not sure if they would give it/sell it to us, might as well try though

on the though, its a book mark, i never been on a library that really cared on that, i doubt they would care of the book mark

>>1360084
>then we have that in common.
>don't worry about that. You're all right really.

>>1360084
>>'Do you want a ride back to the First Admiral's?' (Offer her a ride home)

>>1360101
Is this one possible, MECH?

>>'Do you want a ride back to the First Admiral's?' (Offer her a ride home)

>>1360084
>>1360101
4th/5th, have some fun then be helpful.

>>1360125
>>1360171
>>1360279
>>1360850
You are only able to select one option per prompt. You'll have to vote again after the prompt is decided not for the next one.

TESTO!

>>1360084
>>Write-In
"Poi~"

File: Notch Ten.jpg (64 KB, 850x850)

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‘Then we have something in common,’ you joke.

Her eyes widen—she honestly looks taken aback by the remark… but you don’t miss the small giggle, or half-giggle, that comes after. She had done a good job of not squeaking her laughter, but the happy chirp that escaped her lips was unmistakable. Yuu eyes you curiously, amusement glinting in her eyes even if her stoic demeanor said otherwise.

‘I had heard that there was a Commander who had a Submarine sent to them,’ she declares, dusting imaginary dust off her person. ‘There is no doubt in my mind that the Commander would be you, if I may say so.’

‘Oh?’

‘The Hunter’s Lodge cannot stand even the smallest amount of a lackadaisical attitude,’ Yuu reveals—not that it was much of a revelation, of course: your assigned Submarine had gone absolutely ballistic when you had gone on that mission. ‘You have it in abundance compared to may Vice-Admirals, Commanders and Admirals that I have been assigned to.’

‘I don’t know if that’s praise or a jab, to be honest with you,’ you snort, a half-smile making its way to your features.

‘It is merely an observation,’ she says, taking a neutral tone ‘But if you don’t mind me saying so… you also have the presence of someone with a great deal of fear.’

You shift uncomfortably—that wasn’t something that you’d expected.

‘Not insecurity, but there is a property within you that is afraid of taking the step forward,’ she points out, tilting her head. ‘It is a strange property to have for an Admiral… to have one but not the other. Being so sure of yourself, and yet… hesitating.’

‘Wow,’ you grimace, taking a small sip, ‘twenty minutes of talking and you’re already scrutinizing me.’

You pause.

It wasn’t that strange, honestly.

‘Weirdly enough, that’s not a record.’

‘I request your forgiveness in the case that my observations are seen as that of disrespect, Commander,’ she apologizes hastily, ‘I am not culturally or characteristically aware of the motions humans take outside out of my occasional measurement of them… your approach is hardly unique, but from my view, it is an anomaly.’

‘Being friendly with someone I just met is an anomaly?’ You furrow your brows, wondering what would have given her that idea.

‘You consider me as someone worthy to talk with?’

‘Well, yeah,’ you shrug, ‘of course—I wouldn’t be bothering to have this conversation with you otherwise.’

Yuu’s eyes widen… but she keeps silent, otherwise.

‘You’re a Sub that isn’t threatening to throw me in the brig within five seconds—that puts you on notch one.’

‘Interesting,’ she pauses briefly, a smile blooming across her face again, ‘this is on a scale of ten, yes?’

‘If you want to think so.’

She nods enthusiastically.

‘Then I shall strive to reach notch ten.’

>>1361761
>'Would you like me to give you a ride to the First Admiral's?' (Offer her a ride home)
>'Been nice chatting with you, but I have to jet.' (Leave)
>'Why don't you get along with the other Submarines?' (Inquire into her status)
>'I found this bookmark; does it belong to anyone who's posted here?' (Show the bookmark)
>'Who else frequents this place?'
>Write-In

>>1361781
>>'I found this bookmark; does it belong to anyone who's posted here?' (Show the bookmark)

>>1361761
>>'Would you like me to give you a ride to the First Admiral's?' (Offer her a ride home)

>>1361781
Mech are we supposed to stay in the building till later or are we free to return back to our base?

>>1361790
You can move around if you want. I'm trying to experiment with a free rein system a little here. See if it works instead of a time system.

>>1361781
>'Would you like me to give you a ride to the First Admiral's?' (Offer her a ride home)

>>1361781
>>'I found this bookmark; does it belong to anyone who's posted here?' (Show the bookmark)

I'd like to ask her this before we offer to send her back.

>>1361781
>>'Why don't you get along with the other Submarines?' (Inquire into her status)

>>1361781
>>'I found this bookmark; does it belong to anyone who's posted here?' (Show the bookmark)

>>1361781
>why don't you get along with the other subs?
>want me to take you home?

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>>1361954
>>want me to take you home?

>>1361963
I'm phone posting. Fuck off. Lol

>>1361781
>>'Would you like me to give you a ride to the First Admiral's?' (Offer her a ride home)

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‘Seeing as you haven’t been to the First Admiral’s in a while… would you like me to give you a ride back?’ You offer the Submarine, who whips her head around to face you. ‘I’m sure that it’s a better option than being in here on your downtime?’

‘The First Admiral’s lodgings are considerably superior to my current state,’ she admits; quickly, softly, but a little reluctant, ‘however, in the event of my departure, I would not be able to assist Taigei should she have need of me.’

‘I can respect that,’ you take a sip of your drink, licking your lips. You couldn’t stand being around Taigei for ten minutes… in fact you didn’t do well being around people you didn’t at least have a line of tolerance for. ‘I mean, if I ever got into some bad muck with my co-workers, I wouldn’t be interested in being around them as I would a bunch of hungry crocodiles.’

Yuu doesn’t smile.

‘No, it’s not like that at all,’ she takes a slight bow, as if in apology. ‘I respect Taigei-san… even if she doesn’t think much of anyone but herself.’

‘The First Admiral know that you’re holed up in a rec room in your time away from whatever desk you’re supposed to be working at?’

‘I do not believe that it’s her concern,’ she answers—if a little coldly. ‘Even though she may see differently, I am… content to be of use to the effort, even if it isn’t beside Eugen-san and the Sub-Commander.’

You’re not quite sure the First Admiral would be the type to not care for the state of her charge’s lodgings.

‘You don’t think that she’d be upset at you being treated like this?’

‘She is aware of my standing w—against the Hunter’s Lodge,’ Yuu declares. ‘However, she has also allowed me the discretion to decide my limits—we are not able to decide what we want with what we can, however… in times of great need, luxuries such as camaraderie are just that… unneeded above efficiency.’

‘That’s an idea, yeah,’ you acknowledge her words, taking her argument in stride. There were times that you wondered if subjectivity over production was a proper approach to the war effort. ‘Although… personally, I’d want to be around people that would glad to have me around, you know… I just don’t see sense in being miserable around people and telling yourself it’s for some higher purpose—it’s a selfish line of thinking, but… really, you keep at that and you’ll go mad.’

Yuu pauses, before tilting her head to one side, visibly confused.

‘Why are you arguing in favor of my departure?’

‘I’m not,’ you answer, admittedly, little defensively, ‘I’m just saying my part—it’s not good to be around a place that poisonous; it’s selfless, yeah, but… I don’t think I could do it for more than a month at most.’

She’s undeterred, however.

‘Then, arguing the point, then, from your view… how would you convince me?’

>Write-In

Reminds me of the reason some people decide to go back to their hometown, there are various reasons, but mostly to go back to their home and this makes the question, Yuu wants to go back because she wants to be with her family?

>>1362227
She probably wants to. Look how she whirled her head around when we raised bringing her back. She so obviously wants to go but is too german to ask for it.

>>1362227
also
>something something small break after working for a long periods of time helps productivity

>>1362191
>Write-In
Well, to say the least this is something you need to decide yourself, but everyone needs a break from time to time, it helps with productivity and calms the person. Think as this as a small break to visit the family.

>>1362191
>>1362245
I guess this should be fine but if she wants to persist as being selfless in the military, we should point out that units get rotated off duty and that no downtime would be bad for the unit's effectiveness overtime. So one could reason that it's part of her duty to make sure she takes breaks to be at a good efficiency.

>>1362254
Even a weapon that keeps being used without repair will break after few uses

>>1362245
id change family with friends but this
i vote for this

>>1362245
same, besides ships do need to spend time back in port for overhaul and maintenance

>>1362245
My vote to this.

>>1362191
>>1362245
>>1362254
Support, maybe a little break from the rest of the Hunter's Lounge will do her some good.

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‘I wouldn’t,’ you backpedal, if only slightly. You didn’t want to end up stepping on any personal landmines, having just met her. ‘if you think that you’re behind on work and that you have something important to do… go ahead and do it.’

Still, you felt like you owed her some earnest advice, as sudden as it was.

‘My advice to you, though, is, well…’

You hesitate.

For some reason… words failed you. Staring at the bag on the counter for some sort of answer, things, bad and good, come flooding; you remember the four walls of your old apartment—a telephone that never rang, a calendar that was never marked and a television set that you only turned on whenever you wanted to know how the war effort was going. Your holidays, such as they were, were miserable, droll affairs—it wasn’t that you had trouble socializing… it was more due to the fact that for some reason or other, you’d been refused that luxury; the distant laughter of your workmates would fade as they took their joy somewhere else—and always, for some reason, a distance away from you. There had been one or two friends that you would make, of course—a drinking friend that was some grizzled senior or some neurotic workman alongside you; both would inevitably move on with their lives and again, you would be in front of an empty television set that wasn’t yours, wondering if you could re-do your actions so you could be just that mite happier.

That had been before.

Yesterday, you had sat for a meal at a table, noisy and warm, joyful and plenty. Samidare and Shigure were arguing about boxing stances; Nagato and Musashi discussing some boy band; Kaga, Houshou and Nachi were doing their best impressions of food critics with your simple meals and the room had been loud, bright and everything short of festive.

It was a feeling that you had been unfamiliar with for a long, long time.

‘Commander?’

You offer Yuu an apologetic smile—you must have spaced out for quite some time for you not to notice her approaching you so closely.

Now, however, you definitely knew what to say.

‘Don’t forget that you have a family.’

She makes a small grunting sound, very likely surprised by your answer.

‘It’s a place to call home for you, right?’ You try to follow up, offering her a reassuring smile. ‘So, if you want to get to work or anything, that’s fine and… I won’t stop you—I think that whatever it is that you think you’re doing, if it’s making a difference, it wouldn’t be my place to stop you.’

You laugh nervously, scratching the back of your head.

‘But… don’t forget your family, right?’

She stays quiet, glancing across the room as you try to finish your fizz.

‘I have a few things to finish… so, may I, then? Hitch a ride?’

>‘I’ll wait for you to finish your business, then.’ (Depart HQ)
>‘I need to do a few things, but sure. Just wait for me in the lobby.’ (Wander)
>Write-In

>>1362728
>>‘I’ll wait for you to finish your business, then.’ (Depart HQ)

Apply headpats

>>1362728
>‘I’ll wait for you to finish your business, then.’ (Depart HQ)

>>1362728
>I’ll wait for you to finish your business, then.’ (Depart HQ)

>>1362728
>>‘I’ll wait for you to finish your business, then.’ (Depart HQ)
>Write-In (Pick up Ashigara's book)

>>1362728
>>‘I’ll wait for you to finish your business, then.’ (Depart HQ)

>>1362728
>‘I’ll wait for you to finish your business, then.’ (Depart HQ)

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‘I’ll be outside by the steps when you’re ready,’ you inform her, taking a glance around the place as you done your bag. ‘Do you need help clearing this place up?’

‘It is my responsibility, sir,’ she responds, bowing respectfully. You decide not to pursue the issue—she seemed adamant on getting things done on her own terms… and if there was anything you learned from Nagato and Yuubari, it was to not tread where you weren’t needed.

‘All right, then,’ you acknowledge, tossing your can into the nearby bin.

Leaving the room, you enter the marble corridor; through the windows, you’re able to make out the dark clouds just hovering over the mountains in the distance… rain would come soon, no doubt. Chatter echoes down the hall; you see a man and two women, office workers, clutching several files and what appeared to be a collection of thermoses and cups, striding purposefully as they argued about… you’re not quite sure what they were on about, really, but you know that it concerned the Court, somehow, if the colorful descriptions of the administration were anything to go by.

‘Are they still going at it?’ you wonder out loud, staring past the marching trio, who had paid you no heed as they rushed into the entrance hall.

You follow after them, finding the receptionist busy at her desk with several formally-dressed gentlemen as, on the upper floor, more young men and women carrying paper and scrolls disappeared into the large doors leading into the Tribunal.

Sparing the place one last glance, you exit the building… and come face-to-face with your driver, who was already on the steps and going through what appeared to be a pack of cigarettes.

‘Old man,’ you greet him with a casual wave of your hand, ‘been waiting long?’

‘Give or take an hour.’

You decide to inform him of Yuu’s

‘I was wondering if we could afford a detour—were there any standing instructions for me to get back as soon as possible?’

‘Not from my end, no,’ he shakes his head, before peering curiously from under his cap. ‘Where are we headed?

‘I managed to get a little hitch-hiker… thought we could drop her off at her place before we head back to Yokosuka,’

‘So long as it isn’t as far as Takenori, I don’t have a problem with it,’ he shrugs nonchalantly. ‘So where does she live?’

You pause—that had been a detail that you’d completely overlooked.

‘I forgot to ask,’ you grimace, a little embarrassed, ‘but it couldn’t be that far out of the way if it’s within transport distance, right?’

‘You’d be surprised.’

He takes out a stick, with a smack of the pack, before throwing a glance your way.

‘What? You want one?’

>‘No thanks, old man. I can still hear the jingle in my head.’ (Adverse)
>‘Put that part of me behind a long time ago.’ (Trying to quit)
>‘Yeah, why not?’ (Smoker)
>Write-In