A Bulldog's Legacy (USS Oregon in Azur Lane)

Chapter 20: A Legacy Everlasting

Years later...

The Azur Lane base was bigger than ever. With the Siren empress having been destroyed 6 years prior, the majority of the remnants were in hiding, no longer capable of doing much by themselves but yet still hoping for reinforcements.

A few of the last surviving elite humanoid Sirens realized the futility of their plight and wisely surrendered to the Azur Lane. To their surprise they were given a second chance and allowed to join the Azur Lane society.

"Has it really been 10 years since Oregon first remarked about how pretty this base was? It seems longer than that..." a melancholic Hornet mused.

"He was correct then, and he would be even more impressed now." Wales agreed.

They were right. The base had been expanded quite a bit since then, and was likely twice its former size, if not even more.

No longer was its culture and appearance drawn only from the Eagle Union, Royal Navy, and to a lesser extent the Iris Libre, Dragon Empery, and Northern Parliament.

Now it had access to all the factions of the world, and was truly a diverse city.

Each faction had their own dedicated area in the base that was made in their own specific styles, but the city center was where they all melded together to be experienced in one concise location.

Gone were the ever-present tensions of wartime. Peace had been achieved, and the founders intended for it to stay that way, particularly since they had paid dearly for it.

As Wales and Hornet strolled by the docks, they marveled at the countless different ships they saw.

Each faction had kept their own design style even outside of war, so that ended up with, for instance, the Iron Bloods looking as menacing as ever. No one really minded, though.

One ship was missing, however, and those who had known it missed their presence greatly, while the newcomers only knew of the ship as a legend.

A young girl ran up to Hornet and Wales, addressing the former. Her little riggings, composed of two comically large double-barreled turrets on one side and a small flight deck on the other, bounced and shook from her running.

"Mama, mama!" she happily cried.

Her hair was an even mixture of blond and a contrasting steel-brown that somehow managed to suit her. Her eyes were for the most part green, but the right bore a hint of orange from time to time, as did the left with blue.

Hornet scooped her into her arms. "I was looking for you, you little minx," she said as she ruffled her daughter's hair.

BBCV-38 giggled playfully. After all, she was only 5 years old in human years.

"We're going to visit someone special today. Want to see who it is?" Hornet asked.

"Yeah!" the little semicarrier replied.

Wales chuckled. "She's a handful, isn't she?"

"Yeah, she can be. But sometimes she can be surprisingly serious and mature for her age. Those moments never last long, though."

"I think we both know where she got that particular quirk from."

Hornet fell silent, remembering the person in question.

"He would be proud to see what you decided to do with his cube. I know it."

"I sure hope so. And after 6 years we're finally dedicating his memorial."

Indeed. It had taken way too long to find land and money sufficient to obtain an appropriate area to build the memorial for Oregon.

His ship, repaired since its final battle, would be placed whole and entire in the memorial, namely a long channel constructed from the ocean and filled both by it and a nearby river. The ship would rest in this channel, able to be moved in and out if necessary.