A new front (halo x azure lane)

What now?

Mons had sat Bismarck in one of the chairs and began to fly away from the iron blood base. Bismarck stared out the open bay door and watched as what was once supposed to be his home and land grew smaller and smaller. Tears streamed from his face at the loss of something he had never been given a chance to rule or take part in, but his sadness gave way to rage. He vowed to take his rightful place as ruler and destroy the pretender, or he would die trying. Then, the emotional exhaustion finally got to him, and he slowly fell asleep.

Bismarck felt a slight nudge on his shoulder and opened his puffy eyes. His eyes focus on Mons' face, which is at level with his own. "We landed at the Azur Lane base," Mons spoke softly, his voice like silken cloth. "Do you need me to carry you out?". Bismarck meekly shook his head and proceeded to stand up. Mons nodded and stopped crouching. He walked down the ramp, and Bismarck followed him. Bismarck looked around at the base as he and Mons walked through it. Girls were running about, Manjuus working the various docking equipment and resupplying or repairing multiple ships in the docks. There were girls from all walks of life, and Bismarck found it deeply confusing.

Both of them stopped at the commander's office. "Stay here, I'll be back," Mons told Bismarck, his tone firm yet gentle. Bismarck could only Nod as he watched Mons walk into the building. Bismarck looked at the building and compared it to the one back home. This one seemed inviting and cozy, but the one back home seemed harsh and deterred many who went there. He moved to the steps, sat down, and gazed at the base.

His head was a whirl of emotions, but it was all interrupted when Hood walked towards and sat beside him. "Are you alright, sir?" she asked, her tone laced with concern and care. "y-yeah," he responded, his voice timid like a child without their parent.

"Who are you, if you don't mind me asking?"

"um...Otto, yeah, Otto."

"Well, Otto, my name is HMS Hood; it's nice to meet you."

"likewise"

"so why are you outside the commanders's building?"

"Waiting on a friend"

"Oh, who, if you don't mind me asking?"

"Olympus Mons"

"You know Mons?"

"yeah, you?"

"yes, he's quite an interesting man, but a very kind one."

Bismarck nodded, and silence befell the two before Hood stood up. "Well, I must be off, but my duties have been long enough. I'm back to work. You have a nice rest of your day, Otto." She smiled warmly before entering the building and leaving him alone again. He waited another 15 minutes before Mons stepped out of the doors and stood beside Bismarck. "Come on," Bismarck stood up and followed Mons.

As the two walked, they got further and further from the base to a small set of dorms on a small hill away from the base. "What is this place?" Bismarck questioned as Mons opened the door. "Your new home was given to me when I joined Azur Lane. Since I'm an independent faction, I needed my own set of dorms." Mons answered.
"wait, does that mean..."

"Yeah, you're part of my faction now. It was the only way I could get them to agree to let you stay. As of now, you are UNSC Bismarck."

Bismarck frowned slightly. "Otto, call me Otto from now on."

"you'd prefer UNSC Otto?"

"I'm not Bismarck anymore, not for now; I'll take back my name one day."

Mons looked at Otto with concern and wariness but shrugged it off as unresolved anger. As the pair walked in, dust clung to all surfaces, and Otto gave Mons a deadpan look. Sheepishly, he scratched the back of his neck and stated that he doesn't stay here, preferring his ship's quarters. Otto nodded in understanding as the two continued walking down the halls to a large set of doors. Opening them revealed a large, ornate bedroom. Shocked and confused, Otto looked at Mons, supremely grateful for the gesture. Mons smiled, said he'd leave Otto to get acclimated, and left the set of Dorms. Otto looked around as Mons left and smiled; he could get used to this.

As Mons left the dorms and made his way down the streets of the base, many of the girls still avoided him. This disheartened him but drove him to strive for acceptance. Stopping at his once more dry-docked ship, he watched as the freshly arrived materials were being used to repair his ship. Teleporting into his ship, he appeared near one of his navigation consoles on his bridge. On one of the A.I. pads, Dot's form flickered into existence. "Welcome back aboard, Mons," Dot greeted. "evening, Dot," he replied casually as he pulled her A.I. chip and put it in his Neuralink before leaving the bridge and heading to the Tram system. As the tram left its station, Dot and Mons talked casually about their time here in this world. Slowly, the tram stopped, and Mons walked into a large room covered in screens. Turning one on, an overview of the Iron Blood base was displayed. Mons stared intently at it as Patches jumped up and curled in his lap.

As the sun fell on the Iron Blood base, the Unknown figure clung to the side of one of the higher buildings. Their black armor helping them blend in with the darkening sky and darker tone of the Iron Blood aesthetic. They watched as Bismarck entered the building they were clinging on and so followed her to her office. Carefully and silently, they watched from the window as she filed through various papers. They were taking photos of each file as she looked at them. Unexpectedly, Friedrich der Große entered into Bismarck's office. The Figure froze at the sight of her and nearly fell from the wall. Unfortunately, she noticed the Figure and told Bismarck, and they both stormed to the window with their Rigging drawn. The Figure managed to Escape by hoping roof to roof, barely escaping the potshots the two took at them. As the Figure escaped their range, they gave each other confused looks