Eren had always considered himself one of the best in regards to improvised speeches. His position as the sole admiral of their fleet's only remaining starship said as much. And yet, his wits didn't come without their flaws. As he stumbled into his quarters, where every single morsel was tucked nicely into place, the communicator on his wrist buzzed. It had received a message.

Whatever it is, it'll have to wait. Eren breathed out a wistful sigh, allowing his body to collapse onto the mattress. The soft cushioning gave way to his weight for a couple of inches, forming a rough imprint of his person on its surface. For once, it didn't bother him that nobody laid beside him.

The buzz on his wrist sounded once more, much to his annoyance. Come on, just give it a rest Marcus. He pressed the palms of his hands over his eyelids before tapping on the communicator's thumbnail-sized screen. His customized interface popped up. Sure enough, two messages from the same sender had been received. Let's see...

"meet me at my quarters ;)" the first text read. The admiral rolled his eyes. He had always pestered Marcus for being inept at sounding professional over instant messaging. It was as though the lieutenant went through the trouble of hiring somebody else to do that work for him.

"I'm busy. Please contact me later." He promptly clicked send, then closed his eyes, relieved. Moments later, the buzz came again. Then three more.

Eren opened the interface again — five new messages from the same sender. Wait, five? He could've sworn he had heard only four buzzes. He proceeded to open the latest text.

">:("

Huh? The admiral clicked "display all", bringing the rest of the messages all onto the interface at once.

"meet me at my quarters ;)"

Eren felt his heart drop upon realizing whom he had just responded to. Beneath the first message was an image, not of a report or some minor leakage in the bridge, but rather of Tara's voluptuous figure, sporting a rather risque lingerie. The princess stood posed beside a mirror with her index finger pressed over her lips, which were glossed with ruby lipstick.

Before the man could even fathom his next move, a fierce pounding echoed from his door. He leapt out of bed and rushed to answer it. "Tara, I'm so sorry," he blurted, flustered, as he threw open the hatch.

"For what, sir?" Marcus stood outside of the doorway at, tablet in hand. At his feet was a spilt can of energy drink. "I should apologize for knocking so loudly. I guess I let my frustration slip when I dropped my caffeine." The lieutenant paused and caught a glimpse of the admiral's displeased expression. "Oh, and I should also point out that my name isn't the same as that of the princess."

Eren let out a sigh. The best course of action moving forward was to simply pretend he hadn't said anything. "What is it, Marcus?"

"Speaking of the princess, she's needed in the bay area. Nobody knows where—"

"I think I know," Eren replied, interrupting the lieutenant as he bumped shoulders with him on the way out. "Tell Deeke not to worry about a thing." He didn't bother waiting for Marcus' reply. Instead, he rushed toward the west wing as fast as his feet would carry him.

~

"Tara? You in there?" Sweat lined Eren's brows as he rapped the door to the beat of her favorite melody. The intercom's automated voice stated that the room was vacant — a remark that the admiral didn't buy for a moment. He had taught the princess how to bypass the "Do Not Disturb" setting himself, so as to avoid drawing attention whenever certain opportunities lent themselves.

"I'm sorry, okay? Please, open the door." He stood still for a moment. No reply. "Tara?"

The sound of quick footsteps then answered his pleas, much to his relief. The door flew open, revealing the displeased princess standing at its threshold. She no longer wore the provocative attire, but was instead changed back into her Explorer undergarment — a one piece, skin tight suit worn as the innermost form of protection against foreign particles.

"Nice to know you take your work seriously," she muttered. Eren only sighed; he knew she didn't mean that as a compliment. Without saying another word, she turned away, traipsing toward the mirror as she attempted to wipe off the persistent eyeshadow with a cheap towelette.

"Look," he said, closing the hatch behind him, "I didn't realize it was you. Believe me when I say—" He paused to scoff at how silly it now sounded in hindsight. "Believe me when I say that I thought the message was from Marcus."

Tara, still struggling to wipe off the makeup, only rolled her eyes.

"Why do you think I would've rushed over here if I didn't care?"

"Figured you were having second thoughts, seeing as this'll be the last time we see each other for the foreseeable future," replied Tara, tossing the blackened towelette into the far corner of the room before turning to face him.

"What're you talking about? We'll keep in touch using your AI companion. That's what they're for!" he sputtered.

The frustration was clear in his voice. Tara stiffened, stunned at his sudden burst of emotion. Rather than reply, she simply tapped the implanted device behind her ear. A translucent interface with text reading "Operating system booting..." in bright green letters then appeared in front of her.

Eren looked upon the static screen curiously, keeping his eyes focused on it as he circled around Tara in order to see the view from her perspective. After a few more moments, he clicked his tongue. "That's nothing to worry about. A simple reboot should fix it."

All Tara could do was groan as she pressed the bridge of her nose with her thumb and index finger. "You just don't get it. I know it will. Whether or not it fixes itself isn't the problem."

The admiral only stared back at her with the blankest expression he could muster. The interface went dim after the period of inactivity.

"Chatting using this—" she said, motioning at the interface, "—will never be the same as our time spent together. Sure, we'll be able to see each other, but—" Tara struggled to spit out the words. Tears welled up in her eyes, then rolled down her cheeks, taking some of the makeup residue along with it. "But—"

Eren leaned in, sealing her lips with a kiss. "You don't need to say it," he whispered, "I'm sorry. I understand why you're upset now."

The two of them locked eyes. Their shared nights of passion had begun to chip away at the once celibate man's rather dense nature. Though he still had a long way to go, it was progress.

"Forgive me, princess dearest."

Before either of them could utter another word, a brief jingle resembling a low hymn sounded from his communicator — an urgent message had arrived from none other than the lieutenant.

Tara glanced down to see the red alert flashing on the tiny screen as she bit her lower lip in disappointment. "You may want to answer that."

"S-sorry." Eren's blood boiled as he turned away. Exhausted, he seated himself at the edge of the bed.

The message contained an image file accompanied by a text. Eren ran his hand through his rugged hair as he stared at the rendering image. Despite being unrecognizable beyond the few grainy pixels, it was clear to him what Marcus had sent.

"Is everything okay?" Tara asked, crawling up from behind. She wrapped her arms around his torso and interlocked her fingers. "Eren?"

It was then that the admiral realized he had begun to sweat profusely. Chuckling nervously, he answered, "We've got a bit of a situation back at the bridge. I'll be back before you know it."

The image had finished loading by the time he rushed out the door, displaying as clear as day the portrait of a teenage girl from the eastern region. The case study, picked at random by their onboard artificial intelligence system, had a tan complexion, hazelnut eyes, and pitch black hair. In other words, she looked identical to Tara.