Seeing the repair drones hovering idly in the distance, Yuuki's eyes narrowed slightly—as if a new idea had just taken shape.
"JARVIS," he said, tilting his head just a little, "send two repair drones down here."
"Understood, sir."
From above, two units detached from the Archangel formation and descended smoothly, landing a few meters in front of them. Unlike the salvage drones, these were sleeker—white-plated, compact, with four articulated emitters instead of arms.
The moment they stabilized—
They turned.
And aimed.
Yorktown stiffened.
Laffey flinched slightly, instinctively stepping closer to her.
The emitters pointed directly at them.
"…Commander?" Yorktown asked cautiously.
Yuuki raised a hand casually.
"Relax. They're not armed."
He glanced at the drones, then back at the girls.
"Just diagnostic and repair systems."
That didn't immediately make it less intimidating.
Still—
They didn't fire.
They didn't move aggressively.
They simply hovered, awaiting command.
Yuuki shifted his attention fully to them.
"Let me ask you something," he said. "How do you repair yourselves when you're damaged?"
Yorktown exchanged a glance with Laffey before answering.
"When we're injured… our bodies react like humans," she explained. "Our clothes tear, we bleed… we feel pain."
Yuuki nodded slightly.
"But your riggings?" he prompted.
"That's where the real damage shows," she continued. "Our riggings reflect the condition of our 'ship.'"
Yuuki tilted his head.
"…Ship?"
"When we deploy them fully," Yorktown clarified, "we enter what you might call 'ship mode.'"
Her tone steadied as she explained.
"In that state, our durability increases significantly. Small arms fire won't harm us, and we can withstand aerial bombardment."
Yuuki let out a quiet whistle.
"Not bad."
"But…" she added, her expression dimming slightly, "if we deactivate that state… we're no different from human girls."
Her hand moved unconsciously to her cheek.
"The kick from that Siren earlier… it hurt because my rigging wasn't active."
Yuuki's expression shifted slightly.
"…Got it."
He folded his arms, thinking.
"So how do you recover from serious damage?"
Yorktown took a breath before answering.
"We use specialized facilities," she said. "At base, there are repair docks—and… bath systems."
Yuuki raised a brow.
"…Bath systems?"
"The Sakura Empire installed hot springs," she explained. "We immerse ourselves in them… and somehow, it accelerates recovery."
"…Somehow?" Yuuki echoed.
She shook her head slightly.
"We don't know how it works. We just… use it."
Laffey added quietly, "It works better for light damage…"
Yorktown nodded.
"For heavier injuries, we rely on repair ships and medical equipment. They use machines to restore us—but it takes time. Sometimes more than a day, depending on the damage."
Yuuki glanced briefly at the drones in front of him.
Then back at them.
"…Interesting."
He paced a step to the side, clearly processing.
"So let me get this straight—your recovery system is partly biological, partly mechanical… and partly… unknown."
"Yes," Yorktown replied.
"And the bath—whatever it is—interfaces with your rigging systems indirectly."
"…We think so."
Yuuki's eyes narrowed slightly.
"…And when you redeploy your riggings after that?"
"They're restored," Yorktown confirmed. "At least, if the damage wasn't too severe."
Yuuki nodded slowly.
Then spoke without looking at them.
"JARVIS."
"Yes, sir."
"Record all of that. Flag it under priority research."
"Already done."
Yuuki's expression remained thoughtful, but there was a sharper edge to his curiosity now.
"What happens… if you're sunk?"
The question hung in the air for a moment.
Yorktown answered quietly.
"If we're sunk… our submarines recover our bodies and send them back to headquarters."
She paused.
"They… had methods to revive us. But it was classified."
Yuuki's eyes narrowed slightly.
"Had?"
"They told us… as long as our Wisdom Cubes remain intact, we can be brought back."
That was enough.
Yuuki didn't speak immediately—but his mind was already moving.
So that's the core…
A system where the "body" is expendable—but the "self" is preserved in a contained medium.
Not cloning.
Not simple reconstruction.
Something closer to—
Encoded consciousness bound to a physical anchor.
His gaze sharpened slightly.
These cubes… they're not just power sources.
They're identity storage.
Memory. Personality. Soul… maybe even more.
If that was true—
Then these ship girls weren't just weapons.
They were… persistent entities.
Immortality—
With conditions.
Yuuki exhaled slowly.
"…Interesting."
But Yorktown's expression changed.
And then—
She broke again.
"But…" her voice trembled, "Azur Lane headquarters… is gone."
Her hands tightened slightly.
"It was destroyed… by a Siren bombing run."
Her eyes lowered.
"And an ambush fleet."
Silence.
"That means…"
She swallowed.
"…the ones who sank…"
"They're not coming back."
Laffey lowered her head.
"…Even if we find them…"
Yorktown continued, her voice barely steady.
"If their bodies aren't restored in time…"
"They dissolve."
Yuuki looked at her.
"…Into the cube?"
She nodded.
"Their body… and everything they are…"
"…becomes the Wisdom Cube."
A faint pause.
"If we protect the cube… they won't truly die."
Her voice cracked slightly.
"But…"
"They'll never have a body again."
That—
Hit differently.
Yuuki didn't interrupt.
Because this wasn't theory anymore.
This was loss.
Real loss.
"I assume…" he said carefully, "you have collected those cubes?"
Yorktown shook her head.
"No."
"The commander kept them."
Yuuki's eyes narrowed slightly.
"…Where?"
"No one knows."
Her gaze dropped.
"Every time a shipgirl was lost… he would take the cube himself."
Her voice softened.
"He said… it was safer that way."
A pause.
"The Sirens came for them."
Yuuki's expression hardened.
"They were targeting the cubes."
Yorktown nodded.
"They wanted our comrades."
Her fists clenched weakly.
"The commander refused."
"He hid them."
"…and died before telling anyone where."
Silence fell again.
Heavy.
Unresolved.
Yuuki looked out toward the cleared land, his thoughts aligning.
A hidden cache of Wisdom Cubes…
A destroyed headquarters…
An enemy actively hunting them…
This wasn't just a battlefield.
It was a resource war.
And those cubes—
Were the most valuable assets on the planet.
"…We'll find them," he said finally.
Not loudly.
Not dramatically.
Just… certain.
"There's always a trail."
He turned back to them.
"For now—we focus on survival."
A brief pause.
"And establishing a foothold."
He glanced toward the rapidly clearing zone.
"GDI doesn't even have a base here yet."
Then—
His tone shifted slightly.
More practical.
"Show me your riggings."
Both girls blinked.
"…What?"
"If you're ship girls," Yuuki continued, "then those are your primary systems."
He gestured toward the hovering repair drones.
"I want to try something."
Yorktown hesitated.
"…Commander… we're not machines like your drones. Repairing them would take days..."
Yuuki shook his head slightly.
"These drones use directed repair beams. For machines—it restores structural integrity."
A small pause.
"For humans—it accelerates recovery. Harmless."
He looked directly at her.
"I'm not trying to fix you."
His gaze shifted slightly.
"I'm fixing your riggings."
Another pause.
"You may not have your repair facilities anymore…"
"But I don't intend to leave you damaged either."
Laffey looked up slightly.
"…You can do that?"
Yuuki gave a small, confident shrug.
"Only one way to find out."
The repair drones hummed softly—
Awaiting instruction.
"Repair… using beams?" Yorktown asked, her voice still carrying a trace of disbelief.
Yuuki nodded, unfazed by her skepticism. "Nanotechnology. The beam is just the medium. It delivers millions of programmable nanomachines into your system. They analyze damage, reconstruct structures, and restore everything back to its original state."
He gestured toward the drones hovering in front of them. "Think of it as a two-way system. The nanomachines enter, repair what's broken, rebuild what's missing, and then return. Some of them remain behind temporarily if structural reconstruction is needed."
He gave a small shrug. "It's efficient."
Yorktown and Laffey exchanged a glance. There was hesitation—but also something else.
Hope.
"…We'll try," Yorktown said quietly.
With a soft shimmer, both girls summoned their riggings.
Yuuki's eyes narrowed slightly in interest.
Yorktown's rigging unfolded beside her—a damaged but unmistakable aircraft carrier deck suspended in midair. The runway extended from her side, cracked and chipped, its surface uneven and broken. The red structural supports around her waist strained visibly, barely holding the massive construct together.
Even in its ruined state—
It was imposing.
It was power.
"…That's… a runway," Yuuki muttered under his breath, clearly impressed. "You're literally carrying an airfield."
Beside her, Laffey's rigging was far smaller—but no less telling. Her funnel still emitted faint smoke, her torpedo launcher sat empty and worn, and the single gun mount at her side was twisted and barely functional.
Both of them bore the marks of prolonged damage.
Neglect.
Survival.
"Proceed," Yuuki said.
The drones moved forward.
They aligned themselves in front of the two ship girls, emitters adjusting with mechanical precision. Then, without warning—
They fired.
A soft yellow beam enveloped Yorktown and Laffey completely.
Both girls instinctively closed their eyes, bracing for pain.
But none came.
Instead—
There was warmth.
A gentle, soothing sensation that flowed through their bodies and riggings alike. It wasn't sharp or invasive. It felt… natural. Comforting, even.
Laffey was the first to react.
"…It feels… nice…"
Yorktown slowly opened her eyes.
And what she saw—
Made her breath catch.
Her rigging was restoring itself.
The cracked runway began to mend, broken sections reforming seamlessly as if time itself had reversed. The damaged plating reassembled, edges smoothing, structure stabilizing. The weakened supports around her waist strengthened, locking back into perfect alignment.
It was happening—
Right in front of her.
"…That's impossible…" she whispered.
Beside her, Laffey's rigging underwent the same transformation. Her broken gun straightened and reformed, its barrel restoring to full integrity. The empty torpedo tubes refixed as their structure rebuilt itself. The faint smoke from her funnel faded until it was completely gone.
And then—
Their bodies.
The lingering pain.
The injuries they had carried for months—
Vanished.
Bruises faded.
Cuts sealed.
Weakness disappeared.
Yorktown pressed her hand against her side where pain had once lingered constantly.
There was nothing.
No ache.
No strain.
Just… normal.
"…Incredible…" she breathed.
Laffey flexed her fingers slightly, her expression soft but clear.
"…Big sister Yorktown…"
She looked up at her.
"…It doesn't hurt anymore."
The beam faded.
The drones powered down, returning to idle as if nothing extraordinary had just happened.
Less than a minute.
That was all it took.
Yuuki observed them quietly, arms crossed, satisfied with the result.
But Yorktown—
She stood still.
Unable to move.
Because for the first time in years—
She wasn't broken anymore.
Yuuki watched the results in silence, but his mind was already moving several steps ahead.
So the repair beams work on them too…
Not just externally.
Not just structurally.
Full restoration… biological and mechanical integration.
His eyes flicked briefly to their riggings, now fully stabilized.
Nanomachines are compatible with their bodies… which means their physiology can accept and cooperate with foreign repair systems.
That alone was significant.
He folded his arms slightly as the implications stacked.
If I integrate repair-beam emitters into a support-class unit—or even directly into a shipgirl's rigging…
A faint pause.
They could sustain themselves mid-combat.
He recalled the Mammoth Tanks back home.
Half an hour for full restoration under sustained repair.
And here—
Less than a minute.
That's a massive efficiency jump.
But then—
The limitation surfaced.
Ammo.
His expression shifted slightly.
Repairing doesn't replenish munitions.
No shells.
No aircraft payload.
No torpedoes.
That meant logistics still mattered.
I'll need to reverse-engineer their ammunition systems… or replicate them.
A faint exhale.
Maybe even clone them once I get proper samples.
His thoughts settled.
Still… this changes everything.
"Right," he said aloud, snapping back to the present. "Now that's—"
He didn't get to finish.
Both girls suddenly moved.
Fast.
Before he could react—
They collided into him.
And hugged him.
Tightly.
"…Whoa—hey—"
Yuuki stiffened slightly, caught off guard.
"Thank you… thank you… thank you…"
Yorktown's voice trembled, her grip tightening as if afraid he might disappear.
"For what?" he asked, genuinely confused.
"For fixing us…"
Her voice cracked.
"We don't even remember how long we've been living like that…"
Her hands clenched slightly against him.
"And you just… restored everything… like it was nothing…"
Beside her, Laffey held onto him just as tightly.
"Thank you for repairing Laffey…"
Her voice—
Clear.
Soft.
But no longer strained.
"Thank you, Commander… thank you very much…"
Yuuki blinked.
Then tilted his head slightly.
"…Your voice."
Yorktown pulled back just enough to look at him.
"Her vocal cords were damaged over a year ago," she explained. "She could barely speak without pain…"
Her expression softened.
"…You fixed that too."
Yuuki glanced down at Laffey.
"…Didn't even notice."
Laffey looked up at him, her usual sleepy expression now mixed with something warmer.
"Laffey owes the Commander her life…"
A small pause.
"I will follow you anywhere."
Yorktown straightened slightly, though she didn't fully let go.
"I owe you my life as well, Commander Yuuki."
Her gaze steadied.
"I am yours to command."
Yuuki looked at them both for a moment.
Then—
He raised his hands.
And gently rested them on their heads.
Not formal.
Not commanding.
Just…
Simple.
"Anytime," he said with a small smile.
"Sorry about your ammo, though," Yuuki said, scratching the back of his head slightly. "We'll figure that part out later."
Yorktown nodded, still adjusting to the feeling of being… whole again. Laffey, however, didn't move away.
Instead, she looked up at him.
"Commander…" she said softly, tilting her head just a little. "You smell quite nice… can Laffey hug you again?"
Yuuki froze.
Completely.
For a second, he didn't even know how to respond.
…What?
His brain lagged behind the situation.
These girls—
Had absolutely no sense of boundaries.
Or rather…
They trusted him that much already.
Before he could even form a reply, Yorktown murmured quietly from the side—
"…and warm as well…"
Then immediately stiffened.
Her face turned red almost instantly as she realized what she had just said.
Laffey could be excused.
She was childlike.
Innocent.
But Yorktown?
That was different.
What am I even saying…? she panicked internally.
Yuuki opened his mouth—
Then—
A familiar voice cut in.
"Someone scored girls on his first day."
Yuuki's expression went flat.
"…You've got to be kidding me."
He didn't even need to ask who it was.
"Damn you, Verg… you were watching again?"
"Of course I was," Vergil replied casually. "You forgot your drones and suit all have cameras?"
Yuuki sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose.
"Unbelievable…"
"Anyway," Vergil continued, clearly amused, "nice work down there."
Yuuki ignored the jab from the standby suit.
"Eva," he said instead, shifting back into command mode, "status on the crawlers and MCV?"
"They're ready for deployment, sir," Eva replied smoothly. "Commander Vergil also suggested keeping the drop pods planetside for now."
"Good call," Yuuki nodded. "We've got samples—live Siren, dead ones, and ship fragments. I'll send everything up for analysis."
"Understood. I'll prepare the research teams."
A faint chuckle came through the comms.
"Those eggheads are going to have a field day."
"Yeah," Yuuki muttered. "No kidding."
Then—
"Sir," JARVIS interjected, "the designated construction zone has been cleared."
Yuuki glanced toward the flattened pavement below.
Perfectly leveled.
Ready.
"Perfect," he said.
Then, looking up—
"Eva. Send it down."
"Command acknowledged."
Moments later—
The sky shifted again.
Not with clouds this time—
But with light.
Multiple drop pods pierced through the atmosphere, descending rapidly before slamming into the cleared zone with controlled impact.
BOOM.
BOOM.
BOOM.
The ground trembled slightly with each landing.
Yorktown and Laffey instinctively turned toward the scene, their eyes widening once more.
The pods opened.
And from within—
Massive constructs began to deploy.
The first to emerge was the MCV—Mobile Construction Vehicle. Its enormous frame unfolded as it anchored itself firmly into the ground, stabilizing with a deep mechanical hum. Unlike older versions from the Third Tiberium War, this was no ordinary MCV. It was a gargantuan armored unit, only slightly smaller than a MARV, and far more advanced.
As it deployed, its structure expanded into a fully integrated base. Barracks, a command tower with radar systems, a war factory, powerful arc reactors, and even a localized space uplink—all built into a single platform. It was no longer just a construction unit; it was an all-in-one forward operating base.
Traditionally, MCVs required additional structures to become fully functional, but this version eliminated that delay entirely. It could still pack up and move if needed, but in its deployed state, it served as a complete temporary headquarters. For Yuuki, it was exactly what he needed—a foothold.
Still, this was only temporary.
The island, once fully cleared and stabilized, would become something far greater. He already had plans for a massive fortress—one that would require far more space and preparation. Once the drones finished flattening the terrain, he intended to deploy the nanocore and begin construction.
Then came the crawlers.
Three units. Three distinct roles.
The Support Crawler hovered slightly above the ground, utilizing reverse-engineered Scrin technology. Its purpose was not direct combat, but enhancement. It amplified allied forces, disrupted enemies, and provided battlefield control through advanced electronic systems. It was the backbone of coordination and support.
The Defense Crawler was the closest relative to traditional MCV designs. Unlike the others, it specialized in construction. It could rapidly deploy defensive structures, forming fortified zones in a short amount of time. With upgrades, it could become a mobile fortress itself—equipped with shields, repair systems, and heavy artillery. It could also deploy Zone infantry to secure areas beyond its defenses.
The Offense Crawler, on the other hand, was built for war. Its role was simple—project force wherever needed. Whether escorting units, engaging enemies, or assaulting bases, it served as a mobile spearhead. It could also produce additional combat units, allowing it to sustain offensive operations without relying on static bases.
Together, these systems formed the foundation of GDI's presence on the island.
Not just survival—
But expansion.
Each one deploying with mechanical precision, systems activating one by one as they came online.
To the two ship girls—
It was overwhelming.
This wasn't just technology.
This was—
Infrastructure.
A full base.
Dropping from the sky.
"Deployment successful, sir," Eva confirmed.
Yuuki crossed his arms, a faint smile returning.
"Alright…"
He looked at the newly deployed units.
Then back at the girls.
"Let's build ourselves a home."