Commander Alexander Nephalem

You are no stranger to the bizarre and shocking.

But the bizarre will always find its way back.

And it did, when it was needed the most.

You were built around when the war began, almost 5 years ago. You were built with a purpose. To fight those like you, alongside those like you. The Crimson Axis was the enemy across the sea and the Sirens were the aliens attacking from the sky in search of submerged treasure, enemies that the very reason of your existence was to defeat. And you were determined to do it. With the Iron Fortress at the center of it all, under your nation's control, you were a part of the unstoppable. The Azur Lane, a naval confederation proudly lead by the Eagle Union and the Royal Navy.

But it all changed with the assassination of your commander. He was a strong leader and did not steer you wrong, but the arrival of the KMS Bismarck, a battleship capable of overpowering even the Grey Ghost, USS Enterprise, and the usage of Siren technology somehow acquired by the Crimson Axis proved too much. The Iron Fortress was taken, and despair rang throughout. USS Yorktown, the de-facto lead shipgirl, tried to lead as best she could, but became bedridden after a single battle. You were stranded overseas with no backup, only a squad of fellow shipgirls without any resupply of ammunition. There, you were no weapon. You were just a person trying to survive.

But, within a month, hope arrived. Thrown to you and your colleages by a rescue team was a set of earpieces. "This is your commander speaking. Do as I say." Expertly led out of danger by a newly-recruited commander, you were returned to your home that you once took for granted: the New York Port, the base of operations for the Eagle Union.

You eventually met the new commander. His name was Alexander Nephalem, a retired veteran ruthlessly left to the streets until the chance to prove himself arose. The more religious folk said he emerged from the sea to defeat the demons from above. He was more assertive and detail-oriented than the previous, and his tactician expertise combined with his charisma and haughtiness brought you nothing but hope that victory could still be attained, even after a tragedy that left the Eagle Union as a power considered insignicant, with numbers and supplies drastically dwindled.

Commander Nephalem assembled a party of the strongest units of the Eagle Union. The White Nova, he called it. He supplied them with everything they needed for an expedition, and sent them out to scout the Iron Fortress previously lost. He swore to you all that you would eventually take it back. The White Nova captured and brought a prisoner of war, the IJN Kaga, the direct second to the lead shipgirl of the Sakura Empire (a heavy hitter of the Crimson Axis), which marked the first time you saw the commander perturbed. Kaga could, without a doubt, be tortured for inside info. Once the White Nova ventured back out overseas, they were mysteriously isolated and left with no contact to base. Finally, the commander showed...

...fear.

You, among the other shipgirls not included in the White Nova, watched as a Sakura Empire fleet fiercely surrounded the New York Port, demanding the prisoner taken, and the new commander confronted them with a cuffed Kaga, gun to her head. He had taken Kaga hostage, ruthlessly staring down the leader of the fleet, the IJN Akagi. Kaga's older sister.

Using Kaga's life as a barter, the fleet dispersed and returned to the Sakura Empire's mainland of Japan. The White Nova's members were found with a more discreet search party, and Commander Nephalem was given a silver medal by the United States. But he was never the same. You never saw him smile again.

Over the span of another year, the commander began to appear... younger. His hair was cut shorter and his facial hair was cleanly shaved. 34 already seemed like a very early age to retire, regardless of salary. But he doesn't look a day over 21 now. You only saw him walking, reading, and sitting alone in his office when not out at sea, recovering material and engaging in conflicts defensively (much, much more defensively than before).

But then, another sortie... gone wrong.

You were assigned to another party, containing USS Enterprise and USS Cleveland, which was assembled to tackle the vanguard of the Iron Fortress, now commanded by the Iron Blood, the other heavy hitter of the Crimson Axis, and hoisting a grotesque iron cross flag where the stars and stripes used to reign.

Bismarck was hidden among the vanguard. And she was just as terrifying and relentless as two year ago when they claimed the fortress.

Commander shouted through the earpieces for you to fall back. You complied, not as due to respect for the commander as due to the fear you felt amidst the Bismarck. But Enterprise and Cleveland did not. Cleveland used herself as a diversion while Enterprise went in for the kill. The Commander forbade Enterprise to continue, but she discarded her earpiece, tired of his unwillingness to take offensive action.

Bismarck took a wound to her abdomen from Enterprise's arrow.

Cleveland was declared killed in action.

Upon your return, the unthinkable happened. Commander Nephalem marched powerfully towards her, and slapped Enterprise across her face. Gasps rang out, as none of you had seen such an action from him, let alone a human physically engaging with a shipgirl and managing to harm her. The White Knight of the Eagle Union was never anything other than an angel of hope.

"I have no need for a soldier who cannot follow orders," he chastised her coldly. "I am relieving you of your duties until further notice."

He then left, just as abruptly as he came. A shocked Enterprise with a hand mark on her face in his wake. He sat in his office briefly before exiting the operations building, unzipping his coat and going for a walk around the New York Port.

You couldn't contain your curiosity at the bizarre events. You chased him down until you found him sat down on a bench, where he looked at you sympathetically. He almost looked as if he had been... crying. "You did well out there," he told you wearily. "I've seen her in person. I know she's terrifying. I once tried to strike her myself. I... I froze. Out there... don't try to be a hero. It isn't worth it. You're more than just a weapon. You deserve to laugh, to cry, to love, to feel. And I say this... because I am a weapon, too." He reached into his interior coat pocket before pulling out a lollipop and holding it out to you. It was a far cry from the rigorous diet you were on.

"You are a good soldier, but you are a good person first. Act like one."