(A/N) : Hello, here's a random fact : Death is the first cause of mortality in the world.

Mers-el-Kébir, Crimson-Azur Alliance HQs, the evening after the return of the coalition fleet.

3rd P.O.V

After finishing eating, most of the people went to go to sleep, to prepare themselves for tomorrow with an intense training, knowing the end of the war is getting closer.

Well, except for five girls that were discussing in private. Those girls being Richelieu, Jean Bart, Littorio, Vittorio Veneto and Aquila.

The latter two might knew why they were called, but waited for the confirmation coming from the first two.

Aquila : So, what is going on ?

Jean Bart : We saw you looking at Charles, of course.

Vittorio Veneto : *glaring* Did you told them Littorio ?!

Littorio : What ?! No ! I kept silence, but I did warn you those two would notice quickly.

Vittorio Veneto : Oh right. My apologies, sister.

Richelieu : I'm gonna ask the question you are most likely waiting for : when did you started to have those feelings for Charles ?

Vittorio Veneto : Well, some times after Littorio got married, I don't know why but I started to feel jealous about the attention Littorio was getting.

Littorio was speechless but decided to continue listening.

Vittorio Veneto : And for some reason, I ended up imagining myself in her place, and I ended up having those feelings.

Littorio : ...Wow. I'm surprised by that, but I won't judge you.

Jean Bart : That answers for Veneto, but what about you Aquila ?

Aquila : Well, I already heard about his feats, which made me admire him. But meeting him for real is another thing. Despite looking cold because of that incident, he still have that caring side.

Littorio : Like that time he reassured you when your planes didn't worked in the labyrinth ?

Aquila : Yeah. And the fact that being near him makes me feel safe, like he somehow always watch over me. I think this is what made my feelings arise. And yet, I can feel he is suffering, and I want to help him fix those scars just like you.

Jean Bart : *looking down* Yeah... Those scars are still there hurting him... It will take a long time for those to heal...

Richelieu : ...Well, if those are your true feelings, then I can approve of you both.

Jean Bart : But you might hurry for confessing before he finds out first.

Vittorio Veneto and Aquila were surprised by the answer, but happy nonetheless that they still have a chance.

Vittorio Veneto : We will do that in a day or two. We just need a little bit of time to get ready.

Aquila : I agree. Especially because I'm not used to those feelings yet.

Littorio : Well, in any case, we should go to sleep, a long day is awaiting us tomorrow.

Vittorio Veneto : You're right. It's best to get as much sleep as possible.

Richelieu : In that case, good night.

Aquila : Good night to you too.

They split up in two groups, each one going where they are supposed to go, whether in Charles's bedroom or in the Sardegnian dorms.

(Timeskip given to you by Charles, Clémenceau  and Foch creating a boys band)

Unknown location :

Charles P.O.V

Zzzzzzzzzz...

Hmm... why does my bed feel hard ? Pretty sure Belfast changed the mattress for a better one.

I decided to wake up and open my eyes, expecting to be in my bed alongside my wives.

But instead, all I saw was fog around me. I was confused at what was happening. And I noticed that I wasn't on my bed, but rather on the floor. No wonder it was hard.

I decided to explore whatever place I was on. The layout of that place feels similar to a ship, but the design reminds me of a Sakuran mass-produced ship.

Either I'm still somehow dreaming or I've been teleported here. But I have no idea about which answer it is. That was at least until a voice I know all too well rang.

??? : You're finally up it seems.

I looked up to see none other than Aoste.

Charles : Wait, you are the one who brought me here ?!

Aoste : Of course. I told you I would test you strength. And here we are now, in a Mirror Sea that I designed myself for this purpose !

Charles : I don't know how you managed to get me here.

Aoste : It wasn't easy, especially because of that furball and that Siren. But I somehow succeeded.

Charles : It doesn't matter. If it is where it should end, so be it.

Aoste : Good to know we can agree on one thing. But we won't start now the battle, after all I still need to explain what it is about. And you still have breakfast to take.

Charles : ...What ? So breakfast is more important than that fight ?

Aoste : Don't get me wrong, I want to kill you, but I have standards. And a fight where you don't fight at your prime is a fight that is worthless. So, eat your breakfast. You have three hours before we start, so use that time wisely.

That was his last words before he teleported away. What a weird nemesis he is. But he's right. After all, breakfast is the most important meal of the day. So, I should get started.

Meanwhile in another unknown place :

3rd P.O.V

Two Shipgirls were walking towards a meeting point where the others were waiting. They were similar in appearance to some already existing Shipgirls but with darker clothes, showing they are part of the META.

The first one looked just like Yorktown with the same personality but black torn clothes. An eagle was also on her shoulder. It was none other than Yorktown META.

For the second one, she looked just like Helena but with a few differences : a darker shade of blue hair, red eyes instead of purple, and a much more confident personality. It was Helena META.

Helena META : So, what are we going to do ? Shouldn't I need to go to find Charles ?

Yorktown META : Yes, that is your part, but we still need to discuss the rest with the others.

Helena META : Alright, but we cannot afford to waste too much time.

??? : She's right. We're starting to run out of time. Especially since we just found Souryuu META and she was going in the direction where Charles was previously seen.

They looked to see ten others Shipgirls who were wearing mostly black clothing.

Yorktown META : In that case, let's recap quickly what we are going to do, isn't that right, Elizabeth META ?

The woman who talked earlier was Queen Elizabeth META. The main difference compared to the normal one was that she was much taller and mature and some small parts of her clothes were torn. Also, she has boobs.

Queen Elizabeth META : Indeed. Me, Champagne, Fusou and Bismarck shall lead the fleet towards where the Mirror Sea is.

Bismarck META : That's right. While we wait for whatever reinforcements Crimson-Azur Alliance to come.

Champagne META : We mustn't let this world crumble. The final must be won here.

Fusou META : We already witnessed it once. We cannot let it happen again. We can only count on ourselves. The gods never cared about our world anyway. And they won't care either about this one.

Bismarck META has some differences with her other counterpart. Her hair has mostly turned grey except for a small part staying blonde. And her riggings were much more ferocious.

For Champagne META, not much as changed apart from her clothes being black, and the fact she won't hesitate to start a fight.

And for Fusou META, she isn't the smiling girl she was, but instead a more serious persona that won't hesitate to fight and a new hairstyle. Just like Amagi META and Richelieu META, she lost her faith into the gods.

Yorktown META : Meanwhile, I will give the aerial support alongside Kaga and Wasp. Are your planes ready ?

Kaga META : They're ready to turn the Sirens into ashes.

Wasp META : They are ready just like my bow.

Kaga META is different from the fact she has longer hair and black clothes but the same will to burn down her enemies.

Wasp META is much more serious than her normal counterpart. And her bow is much stronger.

Yorktown META : As for you Laffey, Ayanami and Z23, we will need you to protect our surroundings.

Laffey META : Laffey will... exterminate the enemies...

Ayanami META : I am ready to unleash the true demon on the Sirens.

Z23 META : You can count on us. We won't let them approach.

Laffey META is exactly the opposite of her counterpart in terms of personality. Rarely sleeping, she is always standing ready for whatever threat is coming.

Ayanami META, on the other side, became more ferocious while keeping her monotone voice.

As for Z23 META, she is even smarter than her counterpart, but her personality stayed the same.

Queen Elizabeth META : Everyone know their roles. That's good.

Bismarck META : Helena, it's time for you to start the plan. You know what to do.

Helena META : I'm going immediately to the objective point.

Not wasting time, Helena META went out towards where Charles is supposed to be. She was the one going to him for the reason she knows how to hack Mirror Seas, making her essential for finding Charles.

(A/N : Helena META, Yorktown META Fusou META and Souryuu META are the only META ships introduced in this chapter that are official at the moment of writing.

The other META ships introduced are hailing from fanarts that do not belong to me, but to their original artist. So credit to them.)

Meanwhile in Mers-el-Kébir :

3rd P.O.V

The situation going on in the Crimson-Azur Alliance can be described with only one word : chaos.

The reason is simple. Charles disappeared and no one knows where he is. It all started when his wives woke up to see that he wasn't there.

Normally, he would have left a word stating where he was and what he was doing, but this time, it wasn't the case, which worried them.

So, they woke up everyone to explain the situation. Seeing the gravity of the problem, they all got up and tried to find some leads about his whereabouts.

They are right now in the cafeteria.

Clémenceau : But how could he disappear without you could notice immediately ?

Akagi : That is weird. I'm pretty sure Amagi-nee-sama would have immediately noticed something wrong since she must know his scent by heart.

Enforcer III : Empress would have sensed something wrong as well.

Arbiter III : And yet, we didn't.

Foch : Have we tried to locate him with our radar ?

Arbiter XIV : That is worth a try.

Dreamweaver : I'm on it.

Everyone was thinking about what could have happened, except Shinano that was sleeping.
Dreamweaver tried her best but, somehow, she couldn't find anything.

Dreamweaver : What ? Impossible...

Observation : Something's wrong ?

Dreamweaver : I cannot find him with my radar.

Investigation : But your radar is so powerful that you can detect him in other Simulations or Mirror Seas. How can you not find him ?

Hope : Wait, is there a reason why your radar cannot detect it ?

Edition : This is a multiverse radar, which means it's supposed to work everywhere.

Salvation : What if he was in a Mirror Sea created by the Creator ?

Dreamweaver : Possible, but my radar would have... Wait, I just remembered something about a property specific to his Mirror Seas.

Arbiter III : What do you... Wait, the fact that you cannot detect anything with your radar if what we're looking for is in one of his Mirror Seas ?

Dreamweaver : Exactly. So, Salvation was right. He might be in a Mirror Sea made by the Creator.

Odin : Then, how can you explain he ended there ? There's no way he would have known about it.

Obliteration : What if the fucktard abducted him ? He could have teleported inside the base, and then teleported himself with Charles out of there ?

Richelieu META : We might know what happened but it doesn't solve the question about how to find him.

??? : Seriously Richelieu, did you forgot about me ?

A new voice sprang, startling everyone. As they turned around they saw Helena, but she was looking different. But the META Shipgirls and Shinano, who just woke up, instantly recognized her.

Ash : Helena ? How did you got here ?

Helena META : You can thank Shinano for giving me the location of your base. And Yorktown META sent me here.

Yorktown : Wait, there is a META version of myself ?

Ash : I didn't know she was here.

Enterprise : I'm curious about that.

Shinano : So you found this one's and the others...

Sovetsky Soyuz : But how Shinano gave her the coordinates of our base when she was asleep the whole time ?

Edition : She has access to the Dreamworld.

Nagato : She must have been traveling there to find his whereabouts and managed to succeed.

Amagi : As expected from her.

Amagi META : This is really a powerful ability, albeit it makes her more vulnerable.

Helena META : That's great and all, but shouldn't we go to where Charles is ?

Harmony : She's right.

Foch : We need some people going there.

Helena META : And don't worry, I have some reinforcements on my side as well waiting to act.

Richelieu : Then, let's get going. Who knows what our husband is against.

Jean Bart : You're right. Let's hurry.

Anzeel : Watch out for whatever is going up in that Mirror Sea.

Back to Charles position, before Helena META's appearance :

Charles P.O.V

I just finished my breakfast but I still had two hours left before Aoste comes back. I used that time to explore the surroundings. Thankfully, I have my riggings with me, but I'm not sure if I can go somewhere, so I went to explore the ship I was on.

After five minutes, I finished touring the ship. It was a command ship, which was small. I couldn't really explore well because of the fog.

I also tired to see if I could contact anyone on the Crimson-Azur Alliance base, but it doesn't work. I only hear statics from the radio.

Unless something unexpected happens, there is no way I can leave that place by my own. The only thing that I could do was to wait for the return of the Creator.

Or that was what I thought as something unexpected actually happened as I got a signal on my radio.

I immediately turned it on and an hologram appeared, revealing to be Helena. But by looking more closely, she isn't the Helena I knew. By what I was seeing, I considered that it was the META version of Helena. She then talks.

Helena META : Hello, Charles. Do you remember who I am ?

What a strange question to ask. Especially since I'm meeting her for the first time.

Charles : You are Helena META, right ?

As I answered, her confident face turned into one of sadness and disappointment for some reason. But it lasted only for a second as she quickly regained her composure.

Helena META : Forget that. It was a strange question to ask.

Charles : So, how did you managed to contact me ? I tried but the only thing I hear are statics.

Helena META : Oh. I actually hacked into the data of the Mirror Sea. But I must admit it was hard considering it was the Creator who made it. Who knows how long until he will notice it ?

Charles : So, what do you need from me ?

Helena META : I need to know the location of your main base. Reinforcements are needed and I have to go there to guide them to the Mirror Sea.

??? : This one's can answer you that.

Another voice that I recognized was heard. We both looked to see Shinano appearing but as some kind of ghost.

Helena META : How did you got here ? And who are you ?

Shinano : This one's name is Shinano. As for how. I traveled between the dreams and I found you here.

Charles : I see. I might need to learn from both of you.

Shinano : This one would be happy to teach you this.

Helena META : I have no problem about teaching you the art of hacking.

Charles : That would be great. But let's save it for later.

Shinano : To answer your question, you can find our base in Mers-el-Kébir. I should await your arrival alongside the others.

Helena META : Alright, I'm coming. I'm afraid I have to stop our call here. The Creator might have noticed me. I'm coming to your location Shinano. Until then, goodbye.

Helena META's hologram disappeared, and I looked at Shinano that is becoming more transparent.

Shinano : I'm waking up, but I will bring the news. Stay strong, Charles. We are coming for you.

That was the last words she could pronounce before disappearing as well. At least, I'm not trapped for eternity here. But I still need to wait for that to happen.

Helena META P.O.V

The first part of the plan is a success. I managed to not only find Charles in a Mirror Sea in the Pacific, but also the location of Azur Lane, or the Crimson-Azur Alliance as they now call it.

I remember the question I asked him. Even though I expected that answer, why do I still feel empty and sad ? I know he is another version of the man I once knew, and yet...

I don't want to imagine how Lena will react to this. I promised her that I will find him and have the family life we should have. But can I really keep that promise ? I feel like I failed her.

No. That isn't what he would say. He would say to continue to move forward. For him, I must stay strong.

I should stop with this. I have more important matters right now. I have to go to Mers-el-Kébir to fetch reinforcements there, just like Yorktown told me.

Meanwhile with Aoste :

Aoste P.O.V

Hmm ? I swore I saw a report mentioning someone hacking the system. But when I looked at it, it was gone.

No matter, the environment is finally ready for the test. I looked to see that there is only fifteen minutes left before I was supposed to come back to Charles to explain the rules and then starting the fight.

Charles, I hope you have what it takes to win this game of strategy. I look forward to what you can do.

I then decided to teleport outside of my room to come back in my Mirror Sea.

Back to Charles :

Charles P.O.V

Some time after Helena META and Shinano left, I was waiting about what Aoste is going to do. At the same moment, a bright light appeared next to me. And it revealed to be Aoste.

Aoste : I hope you are ready for what I have prepared for this battle of strategy.

Charles : Bring it on !

Aoste smirked before snapping his fingers. The fog suddenly disappeared to reveal the sea all around me and an island with a military base. Some Siren ships as well as Shipgirls were present.

Aoste : This might be a dumb question, but do you know about Midway ?

Charles : Who hasn't ?

Aoste : That is good for two reasons. The first one because it saves me time. And the second one is because this Mirror Sea, and our arena, is supposed to be a Reenactment of the Battle of Midway.

Charles : So, how is it gonna work ?

Aoste : Well, first, you aren't allowed to fight. But I won't fight either. Those Shipgirls, well more like Siren Pawns, will do it for us.

I took note while trying to look around to get myself more familiar with the battlefield, and to plan an escape whenever it is possible.

Aoste : Well, you will play with the Sakura Empire Pawns while I take the Eagle Union ones.

And then, a flash appeared in the sky. It shows a timer with 5 minutes wrote on it.

Aoste : See this timer ? This is how much time is left before the fight officially starts. So, will you let history repeat itself ? Or will you challenge fate ? Entertain me, Charles !

He teleported away after that. And at the same time, the timer activated. I looked around to see the Siren Pawns that I can control.

Without guessing their names, I could see in the fleet 4 Aircraft Carriers, 2 Battleships, 2 Heavy Cruisers, 1 Light Cruiser and 8 Destroyers.

I also could see from the other side the fleet that Aoste possess. He has 3 Aircraft Carriers, 7 Heavy Cruisers, 1 Light Cruiser and 15 Destroyers.

It seems I have the advantage at first, but remember that the Americans won this battle, it won't be that easy. Looks like I gotta play carefully.

Not far from the Mirror Sea, in the Midway Atoll :

3rd P.O.V

In the Middle of the Pacific Ocean, in the Midway Atolls could be found a military base belonging to the Eagle Union.

Other than the occasional Siren attack, nothing much was going on around that zone. That was until the Shipgirls stationed there got a call from the Crimson-Azur Alliance HQs saying a team is coming to that island because of the Mirror Sea in which Charles can be found was the nearest.

The call was answered by a particular Shipgirl. Despite her easygoing attitude, her firepower was nothing to laugh about. Which is expected from her. This girl was none other than New Jersey, one of the members of the legendary Iowa-class Battleships.

She went to see the rest of the fleet who was present. The Brooklyn-class Cruisers and the Essex-class Aircraft Carriers were also in the same base as New Jersey.

New Jersey : Guess what ? Reinforcements are on their way to come here.

??? : Reinforcements ? But for what ?

New Jersey : Well, Boise, the faction leaders are coming here for an important mission. From what I've heard, there is a Mirror Sea where the Creator has trapped inside Charles and it is not far from our location.

Essex : Charles-senpai is in danger ?!

??? : Calm down, Essex. You don't want him or Enterprise seeing you in that state.

Essex : Oh right. Thanks, Ticonderoga.

Ticonderoga : You're welcome.

New Jersey : Even if I really want to meet him, we have an important mission. And we need to wait for the faction leaders to come.

Brooklyn : Well, let's meet them in the harbor. They should arrive very soon.

Brooklyn couldn't be more right as a portal appeared in front of the harbor. And just as expected, the leaders came from it.

Among those Shipgirls included, Richelieu, Jean Bart, the Clémenceau's brothers, Empress, as well as Hope and her Peacekeeper-class Sirens and all the META ships that joined the Crimson-Azur Alliance, including Helena META.

New Jersey : Hello everyone ! Welcome to Midway !

Enterprise : It's been a long time since we have seen each other.

Yat Sen : Wait, who are you ?

New Jersey : Oh right, some of you don't know me. I am New Jersey.

Clémenceau : Wait ! New Jersey from the famous Iowa-class Battleships ?!

Foch : Yeah, the Iowa-class. An answer against the Yamato-class after the Washington Treaty was broken.

Enterprise : Yes. Her firepower is no joke, she could be a worthy opponent for you, Jean Bart.

Jean Bart : Seems interesting, but let's keep that for later as our husband is our top priority.

Richelieu : Right. Helena ?

Helena/Helena META : Yes ?

Richelieu : Oh right. I meant Helena META. Could you lead us to where the Mirror Sea is supposed to be ?

Helena META : Yes. Follow me as we are gonna get the reinforcements from my side on our way.

Sovetsky Soyuz : Does this mean more META Shipgirls ?

Ash : Yes. And it should include Yorktown META.

Enterprise : I still can't believe that she is a META.

Richelieu META : Imagine the reaction of my other self when she met me.

Prinz Eugen META : How about we get going ?

Bismarck : We should advance now.

Everyone nodded before following Helena META.

Back to Charles :

3rd P.O.V

The timer that was in the sky indicated that five seconds were remaining. As the timer hit zero, a flare was sent into the sky before exploding, meaning the fight has begun.

Charles : Akagi, Kaga, send a reconnaissance plane. We'll need to analyze their strategy.

Akagi (?)/Kaga (?) : Hai, Shikikan !

Both of them sent one reconnaissance plane that were going towards the enemy territory. Charles was waiting to see how Aoste will react to adapt his strategy according to his actions.

But he also kept a close eye on one of the Aircraft Carrier Pawns as he felt one of them... different from the rest.

But right now, he was waiting for the report of the reconnaissance planes, only to be seen shot by the enemy AA. But he expected it.

Jintsuu (?) : They just shot the reconnaissance planes. What are our next moves, Shikikan ?

Charles : Get ready for a defensive countermeasure. Prepare the AA, torpedoes, salvoes and aircraft, everyone !

Siren Pawns : Yes, Shikikan !

Aoste : Girls, let's take the upper hand ! Launch your planes !

Enterprise (?) / Hornet (?) / Yorktown (?) : Yes, Commander !

The Eagle Union Pawns launched at their turn some planes towards Charles's side. Which he expected.

Charles : Defend the others with the fighters !

Hiryuu (?) On it ! Leave it to us !

Souryuu (?) : ...Alright.

The 2nd Carrier Division launched their fighters to intercept the enemy planes to give time to the Light Cruisers to prepare their AA.

While the fighters managed to destroy most of the planes, a few ones managed to pass but only to end up taken down by the AA.

Charles : Good job. But it's only the beginning. Stand ready.

Aoste : What are you waiting for ?! Attack me !

Charles said nothing but snapped his fingers. The Destroyers reacted to the gesture and started moving forward while the Battleships were preparing their salvoes. Aoste saw this and decided to make the Destroyers do the same maneuver.

Both of their cruisers didn't moved as they kept them for later. The Destroyers from both sides started launching torpedoes against each other. They both evaded it, but Charles made his move.

Charles : FEU !!!

Nagato (?) / Mutsu (?) : Hai, Shikikan !

Both fired their salvoes on where the Destroyers were gonna move to try to avoid the torpedoes. They managed to dodge them, but noticed too late the HE shells descending towards them, resulting in sinking them.

A few torpedoes managed to go farther away, even managing to hit Yorktown (?), inflicting some damage.

Yorktown (?) : Crap.

Enterprise (?) : Sister, you're okay ?!

Yorktown (?) : I've been through worse.

Hornet (?) : Don't worry, we'll avenge you.

Both Enterprise (?) and Hornet (?) launched some bombers to get more damage on Charles's fleet.

Charles : Carriers, you know what to do.

Akagi (?)/ Kaga (?) : Of course, Shikikan ! / We'll reduce them to ashes.

Hiryuu (?) : Come on, sister, let's help them !

Souryuu (?) said nothing and simply launched some of her fighters and bombers like the rest.

The planes from both sides were starting to shoot each other, creating some explosions in the process. But of course, some planes from each side survived.

The planes from Aoste side managed to inflict some damage upon the four Aircraft Carriers, but Charles's side managed somehow to sink Yorktown (?), which of course made the two sisters mad.

Enterprise (?) : That's it. You're dead.

Hamman (?) : I'll make you suffer for this.

Aoste was pensive. Until now, he was observing each of Charles's moves. For now, he looks satisfied by what he sees, but he wants more results and data, so he continued.

Back to the coalition fleet :

3rd P.O.V

It has been thirty minutes since the fleet left the Midway Atolls. Helena META was leading them to the location of the Mirror Sea, and also at the same time, the rest of the META Shipgirls who came with them.

Helena META : Alright, everyone. We have arrived to the place where the Mirror Sea is hidden.

They looked around but they saw nothing.

New Jersey: Are you sure about this ? I see absolutely nothing !

Helena META : There is something. I simply need to hack it to open us a way inside. Although, it will take longer because of the fact the Mirror Sea was made by the Creator himself. It was a miracle that I managed to get in contact with Charles and Shinano.

Hope : Do you need help ?

Helena META : Maybe with you and your mother, the process should be easier.

Arbiter III : Let's get started.

(Timeskip given to you by Helena META and Bronya Zaychik having a hacking competition)

Helena META : Wow, we did it.

Hope : It was hard indeed.

They managed to find a weakness in the code and, in consequence, open up a portal.

Queen Elizabeth : That's great and all but where are your reinforcements ?! You said they were coming !

??? : But we came. You really should learn to be more mature and patient. This is an expected behavior from a Royal.

They turned around to see nine Shipgirls that looked like people they knew. Queen Elizabeth was surprised to see she has a META counterpart, and even jealous as she looks taller and mature, and also because of the bigger... well, you know what I'm talking about.

Bismarck was more shocked and in awe as she saw her META counterpart, just like Enterprise when she saw Yorktown META.

Wasp META : Hello everyone.

Prinz Eugen META : Nice to see you again, Bismarck.

Bismarck META : I could say the same.

Ash : Sister...

Yorktown META : Don't worry. I'm here and I'm staying.

Sovetsky Soyuz : Who are you all ?

Kaga META : We don't need to introduce ourselves. Our appearance is enough to recognize our identity.

Amagi META : I see you have grown up in terms of intelligence, Kaga.

Helena META : Now that everyone is here, let's open up the portal.

Just like she said, Helena META snapped her fingers, causing a rift to appear in front of them. Everyone could see the landscape on the other side, which looked chaotic with a red sky, flames everywhere, and some wrecks.

The place looked like it faced the apocalypse. But that was the place where Charles was stuck, so they didn't hesitate to enter the place to accomplish their mission.

Now on the other side, they were trying to look around for Charles.

Enterprise : Here we are, but where to look ?

Freyja : Maybe we can split up to cover more ground ?

Hope : Seems like the best choice right now. Peacekeepers, you're with me.

Layla : Alright.

Harley : But let's keep up our guard since I saw some Siren ships.

Dream : Wait, what is this flying towards us ?!

Everyone looked up to see something, or rather someone, flying towards the coalition, only to end up crashing in a Siren wreck next to them.

Everyone approached the said-Siren wreck, with their weapons ready in case of an enemy. Someone punched a hole through the hull of the wreck. They tensed until they saw a familiar person.

Charles : Tch. What a hard hitter, sending me through a few Siren wrecks...

Charles was seen getting out of the wreck with a bit of difficulty.

Everyone : CHARLES !!!

He turned around to see Richelieu, Jean Bart and the rest of the coalition fleet.

Charles : Fancy meeting you here. I guess Helena META managed to bring you here.

Helena META : Yes. And even the rest of the META are here.

New Jersey : That's Charles ? He looks cool !

Essex : Why do you think I call him Senpai ?

Charles : Wait, who are you ?

New Jersey : I'm New Jersey.

Charles : Wait, from the Iowa-class ?!

New Jersey : The one and only !

Charles : Wow ! I heard about you in my world ! But at my time, you became a museum ship.

Vittorio Veneto : Not wanting to interrupt the reunion, but what happened that made you crash in that wreck ?

Richelieu : I was gonna ask that.

Charles : A lot happened so quickly. One second, I was in the middle of the Reenactment of Midway, the next one, the Creator left saying as an excuse "he left instant noodles in the microwave". And the next thing I knew, I got punched in the gut by what looks like Souryuu META.

Clémenceau : ...What ? You were talking too fast.

Z23 META : Do you mind explaining the full story ?

Charles : So, this is what happened.

Flashback to Charles before he got punched by Souryuu META :

3rd P.O.V

The battle was raging, to the point everything around them was ablaze. Both sides took heavy damage.

From Charles's side, he lost the battleships and the heavy cruisers. The rest of the Siren Pawns were hurt but still standing.

Meanwhile in Aoste's side, the Yorktown-class Carriers sunk, leaving only the light cruisers and destroyers, although they were severely hurt as well.

From what can be seen, Charles is having the advantage. And despite Aoste is losing, his face said otherwise as he is satisfied with what he had witnessed.

With a change of strategy and careful maneuvers, Charles managed to turn the tide of the battle in his favor, despite the losses.

Aoste P.O.V

I have seen enough. I am satisfied.

He was leading that fleet in the real thing, the Sakura Empure could have won a big battle that might have increased their chances to win the war.

But I was interrupted by a notification on my board, signaling me that my Mirror Sea got hacked. Damn that Helena !

Oh well, I still have time to get away. After all, my trump card will help me. I think he noticed something wrong with one of the Siren Pawns I gave him. Let's see how he will react.

But because I'm generous, I will give him something useful.

Back to the 3rd P.O.V

Aoste : Well, I'm afraid I have to end this now, Charles !

Charles : You're gonna launch your final attack ?!

Aoste : I have to leave because I left my instant noodles in the microwave, so, bye !

Aoste teleported away, leaving Charles with a face of confusion.

Charles : ._. What just happened ?

He failed to notice that the Siren Pawn looking like Souryuu changed her clothes before looking in direction of Charles to attack him.

As he noticed the anomaly, it was too late as Souryuu's attack connected. He just had enough time to see her with black clothes and a collar around her neck before he got punched away, leading to the current events.

End of the flashback :

Yorktown META : She really was here after all.

Hiryuu META : Wait, my sister is here and alive ? Charles, where is she ?

Desire : Wait, I think that's her coming towards us.

They saw Souryuu META dashing towards them, her katana ready to strike. Charles immediately reacted by using his swords to part the hit.

Hiryuu META : Do you mind if I fight her myself ? As her sister, it's my duty to bring her back

Charles : Alright, but be careful, there's something wrong about her.

Hiryuu META : Got it.

Hiryuu META managed to bring her sister far from them.

Charles: Let's help her by fighting the remaining Sirens. Some of them are still active, including those Siren Pawns used for the Reenactment of Midway.

Laffey META : Laffey is ready...

Ayanami META : They will face the power of the devil, yes.

Hope : Count on us.

Foch : Let's show them our power.

Everyone got ready to fight the Sirens.

Back to Hiryuu META :

3rd P.O.V

Both of them were fighting silently but brutally as the katanas made contact. They were more powerful than her normal counterparts, and yet, they were at a stalemate.

Hiryuu META was holding back because she didn't want to kill her sister, but however, her sister doesn't look so keen to give mercy.

Hiryuu META decided to back down to gain distance to launch her planes against her sister. However, she saw this coming and decided to do the same thing.

Even with the planes, they were still at a stalemate, but Hiryuu META noticed something on her neck. A collar.

Remembering what happened with the Enforcer and some of the Arbiter-class Sirens, she ended up calling Charles to help her deal with that collar.

Back to Charles's fleet :

Charles P.O.V

We were quite busy with the Siren ships as they were more numerous than we thought, but they aren't that much of a problem, especially when the fleet is composed of more than half of META ships, myself included.

I was with my Richelieu, Jean Bart, Empress, Yat Sen and Hope and her Peacekeeper-class Sirens. Since we had the back of each other as well as our radars, we could  focus entirely on destroying the incoming Sirens.

While I was on the middle of destroying a Siren Battleship, my comms got a signal. I looked to see it was Hiryuu META. Looks like she got a problem.

Charles : Charles here. Do you have a problem ?

Hiryuu META : Yeah, I saw a collar around my sister's neck. And I think it's the same one that the Enforcer-class Sirens had when they were controlled.

Charles : And you need me to distract her, so you can get rid of the collar ?

Hiryuu META : Actually, you will be the one doing that.

Charles : I see, I'm coming quickly. Over.

I ended the call before turning to Richelieu.

Charles : Richelieu ?

Richelieu/Richelieu META : Yes ?

Charles : I'm gonna go help Hiryuu META. I'm counting on you to finish this.

Richelieu : Go ahead, mon amour. We can do this.

Richelieu META : Bring Souryuu META back to us, please.

Charles : It will be done.

I then teleported not far from Hiryuu META's current location. After all, I need Souryuu META to be distracted, so I can do a sneak attack to get rid of the collar. So, I waited for the perfect opportunity after I've sent a message to Hiryuu META saying I'm ready to act.

Hiryuu META P.O.V

I was busy keeping my sister at bay, waiting for the perfect moment for Charles to act. But she keeps trying to hit me with her katana. That collar sure is dangerous.

Hiryuu META : Cone on, sister ! Snap out of it ! You're better than that !

Souryuu META : ...

As expected, she doesn't answer. But at least she is focusing solely on me. I have to make sure of that for the plan to work. I prepared for a strike, and it looks like she did the same.

Hiryuu META : HYAAAAA !!!

Souryuu META : ... !!!

Both strikes collided, creating a small shockwave. None of us backed down but what I was waiting for final happened : an opening. So I did what was necessary : whistle.

3rd P.O.V

Hiryuu META whistled, getting her sister's attention. She looked around to see Fusou META using her spear towards Souryuu META. She managed to block the blow, but realized too late it was a ruse.

As she turned around, she saw Charles ready to strike her with his swords. She closed her eyes and accepted defeat as she couldn't counterattack in time.

*KLINK*

She indeed heard a sound but not the one she expected. She opened her eyes to look around and find the collar at her feet, broken.

Hiryuu META : Sister ? Are you okay ?

Souryuu META : Hiryuu... is that you...? What happened ?

Hiryuu META said nothing and instead ran towards her sister to hug her while crying, happy to finally getting back her sister.

Hiryuu META : *crying* I'm so glad... to finally... have you back...

Souryuu META just hugged her back while reassuring her.

Souryuu META : I'm here now and I won't leave you again...

They stayed in that position for several minutes until they separated. Hiryuu META calmed down while her sister smiled before turning back to Charles.

Souryuu META : Charles, was it ? I thank for taking care of my sister and bringing me back to her.

Hiryuu META : *embarasseed* Come on ! I'm not a child !

Charles : You're welcome. As fellow META members, it was only right.

Souryuu META : Well, let's get back to the others, shall we ?

Hiryuu META : Yeah. We have to bring the good news.

The three of them went back to the rest of the fleet, but not before Charles saw something on one of the wrecks. He went to check and found several blueprints with a note on it.

And for some reason, there was "For Charles" written on it, as if it was supposed to be found by him. How convenient. He took it before leaving.

(Small timeskip given to you by the readers celebrating the fact that North Carolina obtained the bunny skin)

3rd P.O.V

Charles and the Second Carrier Division joined back the coalition fleet. Seeing Souryuu META free from the collar, they considered this mission a victory.

Charles was looking at the blueprints. It showed five ships that were never built. He concluded that it was blueprints for Priority Ships.

He was about to read the note until he got interrupted.

Jean Bart : What do you have here, mon amour ?

Charles : What looks like blueprints for more Priority Ships. Something I'm gonna look more in detail with Anzeel.

Hope : And what about that note ?

Charles : I was about to read it.

He started to read the note which said the following :

"Dear Charles,

If you're reading this, this means you have found the conveniently placed note. Because I am satisfied with the data you gave me, I decided to give those blueprints that will be certainly useful.

You better be grateful for that as I am in a good mood."

Dream : Is he a psychopath tsundere ?

Foch : I'd rather not question it.

"Also, I will be waiting for our final fight where both me and you will fight to death. You will find me in that huge sphere in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean, you surely remember it.

Until then, farewell,

The Creator"

After reading this, everyone knew that the war will end very soon. Only one big fight was left to achieve peace. They knew that the training regiment they were preparing was coming in handy.

Charles : So, we're getting at the end of that war ?

Champagne META : This long chapter has finally got to the last pages. We have to write them up to finally get to the epilogue.

Yorktown META : This is it. The final part of the Siren War is starting.

Enterprise : We will be ready for this.

Fusou META : Indeed.

Helena META : Wait, the letter isn't finished.

Charles looked to see there was indeed a small paragraph at the end of the note.

"P.S : This Mirror Sea will destroy itself in 5 minutes after finishing reading this letter."

Charles : Crap, we need to get out of here immediately !

Everyone hurried up to the rift to get out of the Mirror Sea. Thankfully, it was still open so they could escape without any problem. Helena META closes the rift as she was the last person to get out.

It was just in time as the Mirror Sea disappeared from the radar. Which means that the Mirror Sea was destroyed.

Charles : Well, let's get back home, shall we ?

Yat Sen : Yes, everyone is quite worried about you.

Clémenceau : That was quite the chaos you caused at the HQs, even though it wasn't your fault.

Charles : I know. Please don't make me feel more guilty than I already am.

(Timeskip given to you by Helena META stalking Charles with her SG)

Mers-el-Kébir, Crimson-Azur Alliance HQs :

3rd P.O.V

Charles and his fleet finally got back to their base. As he got inside the buildings, he saw the rest of his wives noticing his presence and rushed towards him to hug him.

Charles : Don't worry, I am prepared.

He wasn't prepared as he got squashed by most of the girls. He would be happy to hug them back if it wasn't for the fact he was starting to gasps for air.

Charles : Can't... breath...

Belfast : While I don't mind hugging him, we should back down a bit as he is starting to suffocate.

The girls immediately backed down to let him breath.

Charles : Thank you, Belfast.

Belfast : You're welcome, dear.

Then, they noticed that Charles had something in his hands.

Le Terrible : Charles, what is that ?

Charles : Oh, those are some blueprints for new Priority ships. I have to see with Anzeel about that.

Anzeel : New Priority Ships ? Well, looks like we're gonna get busy bringing them to life.

Charles : Indeed. We will start working on them tomorrow.

Algérie : Could you tell us about their identity ?

Charles : Well, nope, because I want to surprise everyone. But since I'm generous, I can at least reveal the factions they're hailing from.

Sovetskaya Rossiya : Where are they from then ?

Charles : Two are from Ironblood, one is from the Eagle Union, another one from the Sakura Empire, and finally one from the Sardegnia Empire.

Littorio : Wait, the Sardegnia Empire ?

Vittorio Veneto : Does this mean...

Charles : Yea. Congratulations, the Sardegnia Empire is getting their very first Priority Ship. You will meet her and the rest when they will be built.

Aquila : Well, I'm looking forward to meet them.

Tirpitz : I agree.

Anzeel : But this needs to wait as we still need the ressources necessary for that. It might take us several days to build all of them.

Charles : Yeah. But we will see that tomorrow.

Everyone went to the cafeteria. When everyone saw Charles coming back, they were glad to see he was alright.

It was also an opportunity for the rest to meet the other META Shipgirls. And of course, everyone got surprised by some of them, mainly for the fact that they never expected those girls to become part of the Ashes.

But in the end, they got accepted before going to eat while listening to their adventures.

(A/N) : And that's it for chapter 46. I hope you have enjoyed it. Feel free to leave your feedback and opinion in the comments.

So yeah, you must have seen the AL stream for the 3rd anniversary right ?

For those who didn't watched it, here's a briefing of what's going to happen :

Microlayer Medley rerun a.k.a Bremerton's event (Veterans remember the BIG maintenance)

New bunny girls skins (including the long-awaited North Carolina skin but not the Washington one)

Fusou META as our next unlockable META ship starting in September

And much more (including Hornet secretary story, Wishing Well, free Oath Ring, reset of the Double Gems bonuses, etc...)

Well, that's it for this chapter. Thanks for reading it. And see you in the next one.

TheBreizhOne out !
________________________________

New characters that have appeared in this chapter :

Yorktown META :

Helena META :

Bismarck META :

Queen Elizabeth META :

Wasp META :

Z23 META :

Laffey META :

Ayanami META :

Champagne META :

Kaga META :

Fusou META :

Souryuu META :

New Jersey :

Boise :

Ticonderoga :

Of course, none of those images belong to me. So, credit to their original artist.