KanColle X Devil May Cry: Devil Trigger Protocol

Devil May Cry Naval Base

The base was quiet no urgent tasks, no requests, no demons, no sea operations.

Dante napped in his office, as usual.

Kisaragi entered. "Hey, Admiral."

"…"

"Admiral!"

"…"

"I wanna go shopping!" she chirped.

"Go ahead," Dante mumbled.

"I want you to come."

"I'm busy napping. Take Satsuki and Fubuki—sister outing."

"No, I want you."

"Hey, Admiral! How about tea time?" Kongou burst in.

"Kongou, he's got a date with me," Kisaragi said.

"(Shopping, huh?)" Dante thought.

"Date!? No way! He's having tea with me!" Kongou protested.

"(News to me)," Dante thought.

"Admiral, who're you picking?" Kisaragi asked.

"Tea time with me, right?" Kongou pressed.

"(How'd this become a date?) Kongou's one thing, but Kisaragi, you're five years too young," Dante said.

"What was that?" Kisaragi snapped.

"How about this?" Dante pulled out a deck of cards. "We each draw. Highest number wins their wish."

"Fine!" Kisaragi agreed.

"Sounds good!" Kongou nodded.

"What about 'A'?" Kisaragi asked.

"Counts as one—lowest," Dante replied.

They drew.

"I got seven," Kongou said.

"Me too," Kisaragi said. "What happens in a tie?"

"Didn't plan for that," Kongou admitted.

"Hold on, it ain't over," Dante said, revealing a ten. "I win."

Houshou appeared, drawing a card. "My win," she said, showing a queen.

"…"

"Highest card's wish, right?" Houshou smiled. "Clean the office."

"(Bad feeling)," Dante thought. The office was a mess—barely walkable.

"Wait, I didn't make this mess—" Dante protested.

"Clean," Houshou repeated, her smile unwavering.

Dante ended up cleaning, with Kisaragi and Kongou somehow roped in. The office was littered with games the shipgirls played and left. Dante's mess was just pizza boxes and cans, but excuses didn't help.

Another Naval Base - Office

"She's gone?" the Admiral barked.

"We searched… she's nowhere," a shipgirl stammered, terrified.

"You didn't let her escape, did you?" he growled.

"N-no! Never!" she cried.

"Don't talk back, you useless thing!" He struck her repeatedly.

A girl staggered through the night streets, her appearance disheveled. She'd been wandering aimlessly for days.

"I can't go back… I won't," she whispered, looking skyward. "Kumano… what do I do?"

Her shadow flickered unnaturally, and she vanished into the night.

Days Later - Devil May Cry Naval Base, Mess Hall

Dante had sent Kisaragi and Kongou on patrol to the Southern Contact Sea to avoid their constant demands for dates and tea time. Now, he savored a strawberry sundae in peace.

Murakumo sat across from him.

"…"

"…"

"Staring's embarrassing," Dante said.

"Don't be weird. Seen the news?" Murakumo pointed at the TV.

"What?"

"Body parts blown apart, like by an explosion," she said.

"Gruesome," Dante remarked.

"Demon-related?" she asked.

"Maybe they pissed someone off," Dante shrugged.

"You're not investigating?"

"That's for the police."

"You're weird. You join fleet missions but ignore this," Murakumo said.

"If it's not demons, it's a waste of time. Besides, it's sundae time."

"Work a little. All you do is eat or sleep," she scoffed.

"I'll diet tonight then," Dante quipped.

That night, the wandering girl was cornered by a man trying to drag her away. She resisted. A cannon blast rang out, and the man's head exploded. She saw her attacker and froze in fear.

"Why… me… someone… help…" She stumbled away.

Behind her stood an identical girl.

At the same time, Dante patrolled the city, checking sites of similar deaths. "Nothing. Waste of time," he muttered.

A cannon-like sound echoed. He followed it, finding a headless body. An explosion hit where he'd stood moments before. A girl with rigging aimed her main guns at him.

"Pretty dangerous for a night stroll," Dante said.

The girl vanished into a black shadow. Confirming her presence gone, Dante returned to his car, finding a girl—identical to his attacker—collapsed nearby.

"Faint demon scent… more trouble," he muttered, taking her to the base.

Devil May Cry Naval Base

Dante brought the girl to the infirmary. Weak and frail, Akashi treated her while Dante and Ooyodo waited outside.

"She's a shipgirl," Ooyodo said.

"Yep, Suzuya, third of the Mogami-class," Dante confirmed.

"Why's a shipgirl collapsed in the city?" he asked.

"She's likely from another base," Ooyodo replied.

"Yokosuka? It's newly restored," Dante suggested.

"I'll check tomorrow," Ooyodo said.

"Talking to her would be faster," Dante noted.

Akashi emerged. "She's stabilized with an IV, but she's weak. Might not wake for a while."

"Let me know when she does. Got questions," Dante said.

"Understood," Akashi replied.

"Ooyodo, have Houshou look after her," Dante instructed.

"Got it," Ooyodo said.

"Who was with Naka?" Dante asked.

"Kintsu, her sister. I told her to introduce herself tomorrow," Ooyodo said.

"Lookin' forward to it," Dante grinned.

Next Morning - Office

"I'm… Kintsu, light cruiser. Pleased to meet you…" Kintsu said shyly.

"Nice to meet ya. Naka, show her around," Dante said.

"Sure thing! Call me Naka-chan!" Naka chirped.

"…Naka-chan," Kintsu corrected.

"Let's go, Kintsu-chan!" Naka said.

"Excuse us," Kintsu bowed, leaving with Naka.

"What's the Admiral like?" Kintsu asked.

"Half-demon," Naka replied.

"…What?" Kintsu froze.

Dante and Ooyodo discussed Suzuya. "She's not from Yokosuka," Ooyodo reported.

"Another base then? Any nearby?" Dante asked.

"No, others are far from here or Yokosuka," Ooyodo said.

"Picked up a weird one," Dante muttered.

"Why'd you bring her?" Ooyodo asked.

"Faint demon scent. Plus, her doppelgänger attacked me. If they're connected, keeping her here's safer."

"Understood," Ooyodo said.

"(Where's that mimic hiding?)" Dante thought.

Next Day

"Admiral! Suzuya's awake!" Akashi reported.

Dante and Ooyodo rushed to the infirmary. Houshou was with Suzuya, who flinched at Dante's presence.

"Who…?" Suzuya whispered.

"This is our Admiral," Houshou said.

"No… don't hit me… stop!" Suzuya panicked, clutching her head.

"It's okay!" Houshou soothed.

"Lie down," Akashi urged, calming her.

Dante and Ooyodo returned to the office, realizing she wasn't ready to talk.

Houshou later reported, having spoken to Suzuya. "She's from Maizuru Naval Base. The shipgirls there faced daily violence and reckless fleet operations. One, Kumano, was sunk. Suzuya fled after that."

"Runaway, huh? How'd she get here?" Dante asked.

"Walked for days," Houshou said.

"Days to get here?" Dante asked.

"She was desperate to escape," Houshou explained.

"Food?"

"She's eating, slowly."

"Get her a bath. She's a mess," Dante said.

"Understood," Houshou replied.

Ooyodo spoke up. "Should we consult the Marshal?"

"Not yet. Demons are involved, and blabbing risks sending her back to that place," Dante said.

"Got it," Ooyodo said.

"We're not a shelter, but damn, this is tricky," Dante muttered.

Days later, Suzuya recovered enough to leave the infirmary. The shipgirls warmed to her, and she joined them in the mess hall.

"How's your health?" Haguro asked.

"Feeling better, thanks," Suzuya replied.

Dante entered, and Suzuya looked down, still wary of Admirals.

"Pizza and strawberry sundae," Dante ordered.

"Try something else for once," Mamiya said, smiling wryly.

Seeing Suzuya's gloom, the shipgirls tried to cheer her up.

"He's not bad. Eats sundaes daily," Tenryuu said.

"Childish taste," Tatsuta teased.

"Lazy, always skipping work. Houshou and Ooyodo scold him," Murakumo added.

Suzuya remained subdued. Kitakami devised a plan, whispering to the destroyers. Fubuki acted first.

"Hey, Admiral," Fubuki said.

"What?" Dante replied, eating pizza.

"I want your sundae," Fubuki said.

"Ask Mamiya," Dante said.

"Just a bite!"

"Me too!" Satsuki joined.

"Me three!" Kisaragi chimed.

"Hey! Don't steal it!" Dante protested.

"Miyuki wants some!" Miyuki grabbed pizza.

"…Hatsuyuki's serious!" Hatsuyuki joined.

"That's my pizza!" Dante yelled.

"I want some too!" Kongou jumped in.

"Kintsu-chan, let's go!" Naka urged.

"Sorry, Admiral," Kintsu said, joining.

"What a mess," Kitakami said, feigning innocence.

"That's my food!" Akagi shouted.

"I'm pissed," Kaga added.

The mess hall descended into chaos.

"Stop fighting!" Mamiya yelled, to no avail.

Ooyodo stormed in, holding a doodled document. "What's this graffiti?"

"The kids did it!" Dante said.

"You?" Ooyodo asked the destroyers.

They glanced at Dante, then pointed at him silently.

"What?" Dante gaped.

"Let's talk, Admiral," Ooyodo said.

"I wouldn't do something so childish!"

The shipgirls sat innocently, ignoring him. Abandoned, Dante was dragged off.

"He's not scary, right?" Tenryuu asked.

"Maybe not," Suzuya said, smiling slightly.

Unnoticed, Suzuya's shadow was missing under the mess hall's lights.

Maizuru Naval Base

The Admiral spoke with military police. "She's at that base," one reported.

"Bring her back, no matter what," the Admiral ordered.