Azur Lane: Under Development

Chapter 14: Doubt

 The battalion sent to combat the newest contingent of Sirens noticed something amiss within the first few minutes. Orders from the commander usually came instantaneously after the enemy showed up on their radar. And with minimal risk, every last foreign invader would be summarily destroyed. That was his style. Past commanders had been happy with forcing the enemy to retreat.

Thankfully, Washington was more than happy to accommodate this. As far as she was concerned, they both had the same idea of how to wage war. While the cunning and planning which happened on the larger scale escaped her, she could appreciate the work behind the scenes. After all, hadn't every single past skirmish resulted in victory with only minor scratches? Washington had no qualms with being directed if it ensured the safety of her friends and sisters.

But when there was nothing but radio silence for thirty seconds, Washington could only wonder if there was an issue with her communications. The others could see that something was wrong. The Siren mass-produced ships haven't turned yet to engage first, but what was going on?

Cleveland looked over, confused, and touched her ear. Comms down?

Washington shook her head. Someone was definitely on the other side, listening in. He or she was just unresponsive.

But orders did eventually come through. And they did not spring to action like they usually did, but with hesitation. The combination of both made the following battle all the more painful. No up-and-close battles where you could feel the shells land on your target from point-blank range, but long range barrages which were closer to volleys which were impossible to land — even if they did land — and felt cheap and unearned The kind of fighting style that Washington detested. Since when did he play chicken?

But they did win. It was long and tedious, but they did not return until they saw to it that every last Siren was sent to the depths below. Some of the cruisers cheered to yet another victory, and Washington put on a smile. But inside, she thought about how she would have words with the commander. She'd never met the man yet, which was odd. But there was no time like the present to find out exactly who she was fighting for.

—

As much as the commander wished that time would have stopped, the world cared little about the inner longings of a single man, regardless if he was the commander of an international fleet. It hadn't been more than a day when Akagi delivered another file. When she came sashaying inside, he had an internal prayer to God that it wasn't what he feared. Otherwise, he was playing some sort of cruel joke to force him to return to that cursed room.

The commander didn't remember the last time he made that kind of desperate plea to the omniscient forces beyond the senses. But as Akagi placed the file in front of him, it felt like his organs were sinking deeper and deeper into his gut as reality set in. He didn't want to go. He didn't want to embarrass himself again.

"Shikikan-sama?"

But duty called. He wondered what would happen if he decided to just not go. Amagi could handle it, right? But he was already on his feet, moving. It was too much trouble to explain himself anyways.

It was a small mercy that Amagi was not there, waiting by the holographic table. It felt like he could breathe easily without her presence. Out of sight, out of mind. So there should be no pressure at all. The enemy had become smarter over the double-digit skirmishes he had, but still they were little challenge. There was no reason to fret. He had a wide margin of error to work with.

So why was it that he hesitated? He kept inputting commands but deleted them before sending them. The little blips of light, color-coded in easy red and blue, made it so easy for him to believe it was just another practice. He was reminded of the hours leading up to scrimmage, where he did nothing but send imaginary ships to their doom. There was a second where he entertained doing the same thing. Throw all precision to the wind, and just make it a grueling bloodbath. Then he wouldn't be responsible for any losses.