Commander's Rounds Volume 1

Entry 131: Heal Thyself

The commander paused as he looked at the pledge that had been given to him, and then across the desk at the person who had given it to him. "...You're serious about this?"

Tirpitz nodded. "...I don't think any of us could be any more serious about it. Bismarck asked me to give this to you, and the other leaders have agreed that it's never too early for us to assert ourselves as human beings. Konig, Implacable and the leaders in the Atlantic are working on something similar, just to be sure that there is some degree of solidarity. Even if we Kansen to have wildly different dispositions, there is at least one matter in which we believe we should be completely unified.

The commander took the page and read through it from top to bottom. The actual single author of the piece was unknown, but there were signatures from those in the highest level of each factional command. Not just those in his inner circle, but also Friedrich, Musashi, New Jersey, Saratoga, Queen Elizabeth, Jean Bart, Roma, and more besides.

It didn't take him long to understand the contents, as it was written in very stern and vehement language- It was a mutual pledge of allegiance to each other, with varying terms about what they may and may not be asked to do by their home nations after the war was over. But what raised his eyebrows was the section on what they were willing to fight for after everything was done.

The commander slowly put the pledge back down on the table. "This is... I don't think I've seen something like this in a long time. It's a strong statement of principle."

"It's more than a statement of principle... It's a notice of intent, commander." Tirpitz replied.

The commander nodded. "...And all of you have agreed to this?"

"We have." Tirpitz replied.

The Kansen had pledged to dodge conscription and to only fight in defense of internationally recognized territorial integrity, and a group of other things that ensured that they would never again be used to enforce imperial ambitions abroad.

The commander put his hands on the desk. "I'm going to keep this copy- something like this is going to be useful for all of us to have on hand. The fact of the matter is that this is only something that we can do something with once the war is done with- When the Sirens have been cleaned up, I'm told that we'll be in a very strong position to start making these kinds of commands."

"Bismarck believed that you would understand." She said. "As do the others, I think, otherwise I wouldn't have been allowed to give this to you. After so many years of being the tools of others, we want to seize control of for whom and what we fight."

The commander quickly locked the pledge in the drawer. "This is entirely understandable, and thank you for bringing this to my attention. I will, after all, be one of the people speaking on your behalf after all of this is over. Not the only one, but one of them."

Tirpitz nodded. "...Commander, you have been considerate to me ever since I arrived here... I accepted this duty because I believed that such favor should be returned."

"Thank you." He said. "...Is there anything else you'd like to bring to my attention?"

"Not at this moment..." She said. "...Besides, I have to go see to something." She blushed a bit. "...Miss Victorious has been more understanding of my disposition of late, so I have an... Outing with her I'd like to see to."

"All right, I won't keep you. Dismissed."

The commander sat back, still just a little bit surprised. He had guessed that the Kansen had made some quiet agreements like this with each other, but being willing to put something like this in writing was another step altogether. As he thought about the various principles of conduct, he also realized they were carefully crafted to avoid one thing-