Aftermath

January 22nd, 2003 - Waters off of South Point - Diego Garcia

"Admiral, are you sure that we should just let them go?"

Lützow, Tirpitz's second-in-command, was standing on the deck of a small Schnellboot, a fast torpedo boat, designated S-85. Lützow. Tirpitz, Bull, and almost a dozen commandos were on board, sailing away from their former headquarters and heading out towards their fleet. A half-dozen more Schnellboots were sailing alongside them, carrying equipment and commandos from the island. 

As Tirpitz's executive officer, Lützow was responsible for managing the details of most of their operations. She had spent dozens of hours planning each step of their ambush of the Free Fleet, only to let them leave. The whole operation had been a nightmare. Lützow had never even heard of the Free Fleet before this operation, and neither had anyone else. Despite that, they had designed a trap for an unknown fleet with no idea of its course or position, and had successfully trapped them inside the bay. Now, she was being told to let them escape.

"Why are you letting them escape?" Lützow demanded, anger creeping into her voice, "we've put too much into this ambush to let them go!"

Tirpitz turned her head to look back at the island of Diego Garcia, where the Free Fleet was still docked. 

"We have achieved one of our strategic objectives here," she said, in her cold, matter-of-fact voice. "We have no reason to stay here any longer."

"But wouldn't it be best for our goal if we killed the Builder here?" responded Lützow, confused. "If we let him live, won't it work against us?"

Tirpitz smiled, and the sight sent chills down Lützow's back. It was a predatory expression, like the face of an animal that had found its prey. 

"The Builder is too weak to be dangerous. I believe we can use him to help further our goals."

That didn't make sense to Lützow. But it was too late to start doubting Tirpitz now. She had already betrayed her country. She would be a loyal soldier for the rest of her life to atone for it.

***

Really, little battleship? 

...

You are even weaker than you seem.

Weren't you supposed to be the strongest?

Look at yourself.

...

You couldn't even protect your precious Admiral.

...

I suppose we played a part in that.

After all, your brain can hardly function when we make our consciousnesses apparent within yours.

...What do you mean?

The three of us who you killed in Yokosuka had our consciousnesses imprinted within yours. This limits your cognitive abilities severely. 

Who are you, exactly?

I am Hyūga, and my consciousness, along with those of my older sister, Ise, and my commander, Kongō, have been stored within yours since you killed us in Yokosuka.

Your physical brain does not posses the amount of neurons required to sustain four independent minds at once. As such, even when only one of us makes our consciousness apparent, you become unable to function properly. 

So you made me lose to that woman?

In part, yes. We did make our consciousnesses apparent when you fought her.

Why? Are you trying to get me killed? Is this your revenge?

We may have been killed by you, but that is not our goal.

What do you want then?

Your 'Admiral' is capable of recreating our souls in new hulls, allowing us to effectively return from death.

What!? How!?

I am not entirely sure, but I know that it is a possibility. 

If you got new bodies, your consciousnesses would disappear from mine, right?

Yes, they would.

Why haven't you ever mentioned this earlier?

We did not know of this until you arrived at this island. When you first set foot here, an immense quantity of information was placed into our consciousnesses, which was what force you to return to your hull. When you realised that the Builder was in danger, the three of us, having learned that he could bring us back to life, completely suppressed our consciousnesses so that you could save him unhindered.

Then why did your voices come back when I was fighting?

That was our mistake. If the Builder was safe, that was all that mattered to us then, and we got distracted by that fact.

How were your consciousnesses imprinted on my brain, anyways?

It has something to do with the fact that you were created by a Builder. That difference gives you special abilities that no shipgirl born of the Singularity could ever have. 

How did you learn all of this?

This island is... a graveyard.

A graveyard?

The island is built on the souls of the billions of our sisters. It stretches across time and space. When you set foot here, we saw another world, Terra, the world of the Builders. The island of Diego Garcia is where Oceanus and Terra meet, and is where the souls of sunken ships and shipgirls come to rest from both worlds. 

That's... that's impossible...

It may be so. But that is what we saw, and what we were told, by a destroyer, Hoel. 

What do you expect me to do with this information?

Protect your 'Admiral' , and convince him to return us to the material world. If he does, we will be eternally loyal.

Why would I?

Because we can help you keep him safe.

Do you really think that I would trust you?

Not immediately, no. Which is why we will prove our worth. We will help you improve yourself, so that you can protect him better next time something like this happens. 

How will you help me? Whenever you make yourself apparent, I can't do anything.

You have been getting better at resisting the effects. We will keep making ourselves apparent until you become fully immune to the symptoms. 

...Alright.

***

"...Fuji..."

"Fuji...Fuji!"

Fuji opened her eyes, and her vision was filled with the bright light of a lamp. She blinked a few times as her eyes slowly adjusted to the light, and her eyes focused on Salem's face looking down at her. 

She was lying on her back on a flat operating table in the middle of a ship's infirmary, probably Salem's. Salem was standing above her, their faces inches apart, her expression relieved. 

"I'm so glad you're alright!"

Salem's words were loud and happy, and Fuji could hear the underlying worry behind them. Sweat was beading down Salem's cheeks, and she had dark circles under her bloodshot eyes. Several empty paper cups sat on the table next to her, and Fuji could smell the strong aroma of coffee.

"What... what happened?" 

Fuji felt weird saying the words, as if she didn't fully know how to talk. Her jaw felt sore, and she struggled to ask the question.

Salem paused, staring awkwardly off to the side. 

"I- I'm not sure. You had no major injuries of any kind, but your organs were barely functioning. Whatever it was, it was something inside your brain."

Fuji thought back to her discussion with Hyūga just earlier, and what she had said about the strain on her brain caused by the multiple consciousnesses.

"How long has it been?"

"Five days. You've been out for a while."

"Is the Admiral okay?"

"Yeah, he was just sedated. He was fine after a few hours. Myōkō was really in a bad state though."

"What happened to her? Wasn't she with the Admiral?"

"They got attacked. Myōkō was split up from the Admiral, and then they sedated her, too. But they used way too much, and she almost died from a complete heart failure. We're lucky we found her when we did."

"Who did this?"

Fuji wanted to know for only one reason. It wasn't anything logical, and didn't have anything to do with what their next move would be, or where in the world was still safe for them now. It was so that she knew who she was going to get her revenge on.