Long Live Ironblood: Wilting Rose

Parting Words

"Bismarck..." The commander says. "...I'm so sorry for what happened..."

"I forgive you..." Bismack replies. "You... You weren't yourself... Even though you killed everyone... That was not the commander I knew. The commander I know is standing before me right now..."

"If either of us were to let go... We'd die in a few seconds..." The commander chuckles weakly, coughing up blood.

"Sure seems like it..." Bismarck chuckles back, coughing up oil. "This sucks..."

"Fate doesn't care for that kind of thing..." The commander says. "At least we'll go out fighting..."

"Not just that... I never even got to say I love you..." Bismarck chuckles weakly.

"Maybe in the afterlife... We'll rekindle..." The commander chuckles. "What do you say we join our friends... At Davy Jones'?"

"We shall..." Bismarck says. "It's time to become one with the ocean again... I'll see you in the afterlife..."

"May I say the same, Bismarck." The commander replies as his jaws let go and Bismarck pulls out her spear. Bismarck is the first to collapse as she falls to her knees, still bleeding oil from her neck, and the commander is the next to fall, not caring to cover the large gaping wound in his chest. "Discipline is our iron..." He begins.

"And glory is our blood." Bismarck finishes. "At long last, we Ironblood are free to choose our own fate..."

"I can already see the light..." The commander says weakly.

"Tirpitz... Eugen... Wait for us..." Bismarck says weakly as she and the commander enter a tight embrace before they sink into the endless abyss. As the commander and the leader of the Ironblood vanish into the water, ships from the Sakura Empire emerge.

"What was all the commotion- OH MY GOD!" Atago says in shock as she and Takao stumble upon the carnage that was the commander's crazed frenzy, and the Ironblood's attempts to stop it. "What... What happened here?"

"Alright everyone, we'll press this attack hard and- BLOODY HELL!" Queen Elizabeth shouts as the Azur Lane also stumbles upon the battlefield.

"What in the world happened here?!" Enterprise asks in disbelief as they look to the Sakura Empire ships.

"We stumbled upon this around the same time you did. We have no idea what happened here!" Akagi says.

"Whatever happened must have been gruesome..." Takao mumbles. "Where's the commander?"

"And where's Bismarck?" Kaga asks.

"Wait..." Pennsylvania says. "All docks have a security system that records activity, including anything that happens just beyond the docks. Go give that a look and see if you can find out what happened."

"I'll do it." Akagi replies as she heads to the ruined Ironblood docks to find the footage. Once she finds it though, upon playing it Akagi witnesses the horrifying events repeat themselves: the commander going completely beserk, destroying most if not the entirety of the Ironblood fleet, and his final battle with Bismarck. "I... I don't believe it... Your majesty! Come quick!"

"What did you find?" Elizabeth asks as she and Enterprise meet up with Akagi as she replays the footage.

"Oh my god..." Enterprise says as she watches the commander ruthlessly murder his own allies.

"I think something drove him crazy..." Akagi says. "We had one of the Sirens visit us with a warning, a warning that we never took seriously..."

"The world will be shrouded in darkness if something isn't done." Were Purifier's exact words that she left behind.

"So... What do we do now?" Elizabeth asks. "A whole nation has suddenly been wiped off the map... In one fell swoop..."

"It'll be a while for everyone to process this... I'm not sure if we'll ever be able to get over this... Why don't we call a treaty?" Enterprise asks.

"At a time like this, it's what all of us need." Akagi replies.

"Hey guys! I found something!" Arizona says as she walks over to Akagi and company with a karabiner.

"That must have belonged to the commander." Akagi says. "Keep it. We'll also be keeping this footage too."