Author's Note: This will be a growing in escalation crossover fanfiction. Included in this chapter are characters, locations, and mentions to series that will in time appear in the story: Code Geass, One Piece, FullMetal Alchemist, Hunter X Hunter, Final Fantasy XV, Final Fantasy Type Zero, Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VIII, Tales of the Abyss, Toriko, Chrono Crusade, Trinity Blood, DGray-Man, Guilty Gear, Rave Master, and Tales of Berseria. For the purpose of this story, it will be as if all these series and their histories have shared the world from the onset. Many more series will be joining the story as it progresses. I don't own the rights to any of these works of fiction.
Grand Order: Kingdom Come
Chapter
I
Rebellions and Revolutions
The Xingese Federation of Kakin: An alliance of nations boasting the largest population on the planet. The symbol of this alliance is the Emperor and his Royal children, all of whom rule over the various nations within the Federation. The ruling class who rules in Princess Tianzi's court have grown exceedingly tyrannical, while poverty and starvation have sapped the life of her people. When the Black Knights fled Japan, they sought refuge in this neighboring Federation. The High Eunuchs, the most powerful people within Tianzi's court, lent the Japanese people the man made island of Horai, built for tidal power generation on the Jianzhu Provence off the coast of the Yellow Sea. Although this arrangement was worked out well in advance, all the political implications would not become apparent until a later time...
[Location: (Gaea) North Blue - Moebius]
(Horai Island: Off the Coast of the Xingese Federation)
"Master Zero! Please come to the Ikaruga, hurry! We've got trouble!" Lady Kaguya's small and soft voice could be heard over the intercom.
Zero, C.C., and Kallen hurried over to the Command Center aboard the Ikaruga. The Command Center was a four tiered room, the first tier, the observation deck, more length than width, large enough to hold a full audience of up to five hundred people, though it's current occupants were just Lady Kaguya and two of her royal escorts. On the second tier sat the three Operator's of the Ikaruga, three women who were selected by Chief Intelligence Commissioner Diethard during the exile from Japan.
On the third tier was the second entrance from which Zero, C.C. and Kallen entered, C.C. casually took a seat near the railing, next to Rakshata. At their stations on the third tier were two of the Black Knight's original members, Captain of the Second Special Forces, Tamaki and the General Secretary Ohgi. Kallen stood between the pair, while the Chief of Military Affairs, Tohdoh stood to the right of Ohgi. Zero took his seat at the Central Command Chair on the top and final tier, like a King upon his throne, with Diethard standing to his immediate right. Lady Kaguya then broke the news to all those in attendance.
"What!? A political marriage?" Zero shouted aloud, questioning Lady Kaguya.
"Yes" she replied, nodding her head. "I received an invitation to the wedding through the Sumeragi Conglomerate. The bride to be is the Fifteenth Princess, the icon of the Federation. I'm her good friend and she wants me to attend."
"And the groom to be is the First Prince of Britannia." Tohdoh said, his tone deep, reflecting the man formerly known as the leader of the Four Holy Swords, a veteran of countless battles.
Rakshata, interjected, "That one they call Odysseus."
Diethard spoke to Zero, "Its too soon to activate the plan we've set up. I didn't expect that the High Eunuchs would-"
"No, this is a Britannian plot." Zero cut him off.
Ohgi stood from his chair to face Zero, "What do we do under the circumstance?"
"The worst possible situation." Zero replied, though his own thoughts went further than his words. 'And I was going to move in and grab the empress before they had a chance to. I never imagined that mediocre man could act so quickly.' Beneath his mask, his face wrinkled in frustration.
Tamaki, stood up as well, his demeanor as naive as ever "Oh why worry about it, its not as if we're involved with Britannia anymore."
"What?" Kallen questioned him.
"We've been kicked out, have you forgotten?" Tamaki replied coolly.
The green eyed, purple haired Ikaruga Operator, the one named Ayame chimed in, "Um, but they haven't exonerated us of our crimes have they?"
"However a political marriage…" Hinata, the second Ikaruga Operator, a girl with brown hair tied to a pony tail, wearing glasses, started.
"...There is always the possibility that the Xingese Federation might attack us" finished, the third Ikaruga Operator, a girl with long plain hair named Minase.
"And what then?" Tamaki shouted, his voice and comportment now far more exacerbated. "The Black Knights are wrapped up and given as a wedding present?"
"Actually, that is an apt way to put it." Lady Kaguya replied.
C.C. joked at Tamaki dryly, "You're sure developing a useless ability there."
"We're in big trouble here! We're in no position to sit around and make jokes!" Tamaki retorted.
"Which is why…" Rakshata began.
"...We're discussing the matter at this moment." Ohgi finished. The room stood in silence for a brief moment.
"Zero, the one behind this…" Diethard whispered.
"Yes, there's another person, the one who overnight made this fiendish move in order to reverse their embittered relationship with the Xingese Federation." Zero's thoughts turned towards his older brother, the one man who he could never outmaneuver, Second Prince Schneizel el Britannia.
Suddenly, an innumerable murder of crows flew over the Ikaruga, the number of them so vast that they blotted out the brilliant sky, completely cascading it from view through the ceiling and frontal windshield's of the Command Center. Outside of the Ikaruga, the citizens on Horai Island ran for cover in fear. The crow's curtained the whole of the island, like a storm cloud, their cawing and the sound of their powerful wings thundered so loudly the vibrations could be felt throughout the entirety of the Island.
"What the hell is going on?!" Tamaki shouted.
"They're here" Lady Kaguya shouted as she jumped with joy and hurried over to the panel near the entrance, she pressed and held onto the large red button, allowing the windshields to open, a downward cluster of crows spiraled down, pouring onto the floor of the observation deck. All the crows surrounding the island seemed to consequently fly in through the opening created by Lady Kaguya, where they coalesced and fused together taking the shape of a bald man clad in black, wearing what seemed like an old Plague Doctor's mask.
Beside him were three others, a slim, curvaceous, well endowed woman, with a pronounced hourglass figure, short orange hair underneath a crimson newsboy cap accentuated by golden goggles, a pink long sleeved shirt with frilly collar, a maroon short skirt, and black thigh-high stockings with brown high heeled boots. A young muscular man, with a pronounced scar over his left eye, a long black jacket with a buckle on the left sleeve, with a blue shirt and vest, a frilled cravat, and a simple belt holding a pair of loose light-blue pants with black boots, his locks of blond hair could be seen pouring out from underneath his black top hat and goggles. Lastly was perhaps the most imposing figure amongst them, a tall muscular man, with long spiky black hair with a widows peak, wearing a long black cloak, veiling his body,with a dark red tattoo pattern over the left side of his face.
Lady Kaguya ran up to hug this ominous man, he knelt down to receive her like a doting father to his child.
"Kaguya" Zero's voice boomed. "Who are these people?" Zero seemed completely unnerved, while the Black Knights all seemed shaken by the seemingly preternatural event that had just unfolded before them, Tamaki and Ohgi had raised machine guns pointed at the strangers, Kallen herself holding up a pistol, while Tohdoh took a defensive stance, his hand at the hilt of his katana.
"These are…" Lady Kaguya started.
"...We are the leaders of the the Revolutionary Army." The blond haired, young man spoke. He stepped forward alongside the young woman, both of them getting into defensive stances themselves. His fingers contorted into the shape that would be recognizable to those familiar with the Dragon Style martial art of Ryusoken. While the girl, strangely adopted a stance which looked to be like Fishman Karate. "I'm going to have to ask you all to put down your weapons."
The man wearing the plague doctors mask seemed to mumble something that was inaudible.
"Karasu, your loudspeaker is off again" the young female Revolutionary said, never once dropping her guard or gaze from the Black Knights.
"Oh, sorry" Karasu replied.
The man with the face tattoo, motioned for his companions to ease their guard and Zero followed suit, commanding his Black Knights to release any hostilities.
The blond haired man spoke again. "My name is Sabo, I'm the second in command of the Revolutionary Army." He motioned towards the young woman, "This is Assistant Instructor Koala, and the big scary guy behind me is the Commander of the Revolutionary Army's Operations in North Blue, Karasu."
"So, you're Dragon the Revolutionary - the worlds most wanted man" Zero stated aloud. "I had heard that your base of operations was attacked by one of Four Emperors of the Sea, I assumed you were all wiped out" he directed his statement to their leader. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"
"That bastard never even touched us" Karasu exclaimed. "We had left long before those damned Black Beard Pirates arrived."
"By now, I'm sure Lady Kaguya has informed you of the marriage arrangements between First Prince Odysseus of Britannia and the Fifteenth Princess of the Xingese Federation, Tianzi" Dragon's face didn't betray a single feint expression other than that of the stern look that seemed perpetually etched on his face.
"Yes, I wish the two a long and healthy mar-"
"No need to put on airs with us, we already know you guys have every intention of crashing the party" Sabo cut Zero off, a pristine and friendly smile on his face all the while.
"Given the precariousness of your situation, we wouldn't believe it if you and the Black Knights didn't try to intervene in some way" Koala followed up.
Zero laughed at this. "That transparent are we? But still, it doesn't explain why the Revolutionary Army has come all this way here."
This time it was Dragon who spoke, "Given that Princess Tianzi invited Lady Kaguya personally as a friend, I'd assume that you would accompany Kaguya as her plus one, with your Black Knights stationed somewhere close, on standby in case you need to make a retreat. But it won't be that simple."
"Oh and you have a better strategy?" Zero replied.
"The invitation for the wedding, did it include the location?" Dragon looked down towards Lady Kaguya, his tone expressing that he already knew the answer to the question. Kaguya could only shake her head. A resounding "No".
"Let me guess, you and your army were able to get intel on the wedding arrangements and location?" Zero asked. "I have to say I'm impressed if you did, you and your army work fast. Now you plan to leverage the location to get us to collude with you"
"The location for the wedding, is none other than the nation of Amestris." Dragon answered dryly, the implications of this information took less than a moment for all those in attendance to contemplate the connotations of.
"Britannia, Xing, and Amestris have all held hostilities for years, skirmishes constantly occurring throughout the borders of each of them, why would they play host to a royal wedding?" Kallen exclaimed, sharing everyones thoughts aloud.
"The wedding is merely an opening ceremony to the Peace Summit that will occur directly following it. They are to sign a non-aggression pact, before their leaders are escorted by the Marines to attend the Reverie." Dragon responded. The room fell silent. "If that happens, then…"
"...Then we have no way of ratifying Horai Island as the capital for the United States of Japan." Zero finished. "Even with our relationship with the Xingese Federation, if the marriage happens and the treaty is signed, any attempt at legitimizing ourselves on the world stage, using the Federation as our proctor, would be condemned by Britannia and Amestris. The Federation wouldn't risk losing an alliance with them in order to back us."
"Good." Dragon replied. "You were able to piece it all together quickly." Dragon took a step forward. "You asked what I am doing here, I propose you and your Black Knights join with us and become a part of the Revolutionary Army" he said with finality.
"Leave us." Zero commanded. Ohgi, Tohdoh, Kaguya, Kallen, and the rest of the Black Knights slowly exited the Command Center after putting up a brief protest, Dragon motioned for Karasu and Koala to follow suit, leaving only Zero, C.C., Dragon, and Sabo in attendance.
"I followed the exploits of your Black Rebellion closely." Dragon started. "Your victories and your talent for strategy - even now with your ability to safely deliver a million Japanese into this, even if fleeting, safe haven… It was a stratagem worthy of your reputation." He paused. "'Zero the Man of Miracles' they call you in some circles. 'Miraculous…' I wonder, leader of the Black Knights, could you produce one of those miracles for the Revolution of this world?"
"The revolution of this world?" C.C. questioned. "It seems your hubris knows no limits, Dragon the Revolutionary."
"Hubris?" Dragon scoffed. "I remember early in the Black Rebellion, you managed to convince Prince Clovis to suspend all hostilities within the Shinjuku Provence, before you murdered him. Then, when Princess Cornelia took over Area 11 as viceroy, you seemed to target her specifically at Narita. Then came the massacre at the Special Administrative Zone, where yet again you gunned down another member of the Royal family, Princess Euphemia."
"I assume there is a point to this history lesson." Zero stated sharply.
"Tell me Zero, what was it that compelled you to action?" Dragon paused before continuing. "Rebellion's, revolutions, they all seem to start with one man and two voices. The first voice, is the one that addresses the grievance, the one that instigates a man to move against those that have taken something from him or have cast him down with injustice. The second voice, often to the initial surprise of the man himself, is his own voice. The one that galvanizes those around him and compels them too, to riot to action." Now Dragon was making direct eye contact with Zero. "But between these two voices, drowned by the sounds of war, exists a third, have you heard it?"
"Heard what?" Zero's mind was both cautious and yet curious. The man he had heard about, the dangerous and powerful Monkey D. Dragon; he had imagined in his mind a different person entirely, unlike the man that stood before him, an intellectual who, in the brief time since meeting him, seemed equal parts philosopher and idealist.
"The darkness." Dragon replied. "It's clear to me, that your rebellion, before turning into the inferno that it has become now, began as a dim but personal ember. That whatever wound the Royal Family has predicated upon you, this whole campaign has been a theatre to exact your own personal vengeance upon them. While it was the first voice which catapulted you to take retribution, it is that third voice, the voice which most sounds like sound reason, as often the darkness disguises itself as reason, which propelled you to continue moving - which moves you still."
The four of them stood there in silence, contemplating the true depths of Dragons words before he pressed forward, breaking the silence once more. "Suppose you are triumphant. Suppose you are able to fabricate for yourself as you have done so many times before, to conjure another miracle or series of miracles, as I hazard to guess would be what is required, for you to found you own country, a true United States of Japan. The victory would still stand hollow."
"And who are you to measure the worth of such a victory?" Zero replied.
"Britannia, Amestris, Xing, they have all been bitter enemies and rivals for generations. Even the other nations within Moebius: Lucis, Milites, Kimlasca, Malkuth, Illyria, they all have one thing in common. A single thread which binds them all together. They all dance to the tune of the World Government. The Five Elder Stars, the Celestial Dragons, they are the true proprietors who hold this world hostage." Dragon's voice became more impassioned, his voice finally breaking, betraying the fire that burns within his stone cold facade. "Only once we have toppled their regime can there be any true and lasting victory! Only once we have brought them to heel for the crimes they've committed against the citizens of this world can there be justice! That is what I am offering you!"
Zero contemplated Dragon's words for a moment, Sabo and C.C. had fallen silent to the atmosphere created in the room by the two men, before responding. "I've heard about your splinter groups in Moebius. The Forest Owls in Timber, the group that brought down the Shinra Corporation, Avalanche, even your assassination corps in Britannia's capital, Night Raid I believe they call themselves. While I appreciate your offer, I'm afraid I'll respectfully have to decline. If there are hurdles that require miracles to overcome, I will lead the Black Knights to surmount them. We will create our own country. We will take down Britannia! And should it come to it, I will personally lead them to victory against the World Government itself!"
"You'll never get the chance to." Dragon retorted coldly. "Do you know who it is that facilitates these peace talks between Amestris, Britannia, and Xing?" Dragon paused to let Zero's mind search for the answer, before bridging the thought with the solution to the question. "That's right, the Vatican itself will be partaking in the Peace Summit." Dragon continued. "Even you cannot hope to produce a miracle to surmount these odds. Your victories until now have all been in Japan, all in familiar terrain where you had knowledge of the field and could take advantage. Where you had the love and loyalty of the people. You will find no such vantage in Amestris, should your attempt to harass the summit end in anything less than a favorable outcome, there will be no escape route for you to make a stealthy exit."
"It wouldn't just be Britannia and the Knights of the Round that you'd have to contend with" Sabo interjected. "Amestris has its own powerful military, many of them being Alchemist's. I doubt the Black Knight's have ever had to face the type of warfare alchemy can produce." Sabo continued. "More than that, Xing has contracted the IGO and Hunter Organization to provide one of the Four Heavenly Kings and members of the Zodiac to act as personal bodyguards to their nobility."
"According to our intel, the Pope, Fon Master Ion will be attending the summit personally, and with him are his entourage of God General's led by Locrian General Van Grants himself." Dragon spoke this time. "Furthermore, Fon Master Ion has assigned members from three of the Vatican's cabinets to act as personal escorts to the V.I.P's for all three nations. The Magdalene Order to escort the Royal Family of Britannia, The Abbey to escort Amestris' Fuhrer, and The Black Order to escort the Xingese Princess and Prince, who will also be in attendance. And these would only be the start of your troubles, there are far more dangerous monsters lurking in the shadow of Amestris, monsters whom will soon take center stage and enter the light"
'Damn it, he's right.' Zero finally admitted to himself in frustration. 'As it stands now, we're completely unprepared for an operation of this scale. We don't have enough time to gather enough intelligence to make a move against the summit without taking losses we can't afford to make.'
"Complete command of my forces." Dragon announced. "I will give you complete command over my army in Amestris. For now, we can consider this a joint operation by the Revolutionary Army and the Black Knights."
"I see, a temporary Alliance." Zero replied. "And in return for this generous offer?"
"I wager that once you uncover the truth of it, once you see for yourself the real demons that lurk in the dark. You will want to join us in our campaign of your own volition." Dragon responded.
"Before I accept, I need more information. What exactly is going on in Amestris?" Zero asked.
Sabo spoke up this time. "Have you heard about the Ishvalan Massacre that took place in the Eastern territories of the country?"
C.C. replied, "Yes. The people of Ishval had clashed several times with the central government of Amestris in the past and had been annexed to a region in the southeast of the nation, near the Eastern Desert. Though religious and cultural tensions continued between Ishvalans and Amestrians, a relative peace had been achieved between the two until fourteen years ago an Amestrian soldier accidentally shot and killed an Ishvalan child. The area exploded in a storm of riots and protests until the situation had become an all out civil war, causing massive casualties on both sides."
"Though the Amestrian Military had the Ishvalans outnumbered by far, Ishvalan rebels were able to keep the conflict going due to a steady supply of munitions from the Xingese Federation, which aided the rebels in order to weaken Amestris' southern border for their own gains. The fighting continued to spread until the entire East Area of Amestris had become a war zone. A full seven years since the conflict had begun, Amestrian Führer King Bradley issued Order 3066, sending State Alchemists in to the front lines to act as human weapons. This decision decisively, and horrifically, ended the war with the territory of Ishval being occupied by Amestrian soldiers and the surviving Ishvalans spread throughout the country as refugees." C.C. finally finished.
"Holy crap, that was impressive" Sabo stated in amazement. "Twelve years ago, after the end of the Crusades, it was the Six ruling families that managed to bring prosperity back to Japan again, although ultimately they lost to Britannia eight years ago, the events that transpired since the end of the Crusades against Justice and even now with everything that's happened with the Black Rebellion and your Black Knights, you can kinda see how the events in Amestris are similar."
"So what you're saying is, is that there is a resistance faction within the government of Amestris itself, that wants to topple the ruling body from within, is that it?" Zero questioned back.
"Bingo" Sabo replied.
"If that's the case, why not just let them settle it amongst themselves. Why should we get involved and take the victory away from the countries own citizens?" Zero pressed.
"Two years ago, a woman named Nico Robin suddenly appeared within one our territories." Dragon stated. "She was the last remaining survivor of Ohara. Perhaps the only person in the world, outside The Vatican's top echelon, that can read the ancient hieroglyphics on the Poneglyphs."
C.C. glanced over at Zero, her face of worry would not have registered onto anyone else's mind, except for the strong bond that the two shared which made them transparent to one another.
"Perhaps it was fate or happenstance, but she happened to escort one of our recon missions in the Eastern desert outside of Amestris' borders, to the capital of the ancient fallen nation of Xerxes. What we managed to discover there, directly ties to what's happening in Amestris, and what I suspect intrinsically ties to the two of you." Dragon turned to look away, his gaze now focused towards the sky, a solemn expression upon his face. "Amestris right now, is under siege by an immortal creature, calling himself 'Father'. This creature, this Homunculus, was the one responsible for seemingly overnight destroying the entire nation of Xerxes, an act which he now intends to repeat in Amestris."
"Father has other Homunculi that work for him, the resistance faction in Amestris were able to uncover his plans." Sabo stated. "The Homunculi have managed to create a country wide transmutation circle and they plan to activate it and sacrifice everyone in the country on 'The Promised Day'"
"The Promised Day?" C.C. asked.
"The day of the summit." Sabo replied. C.C. and Zero's expressions were filled with horror. "That's why we've got to do everything in our power to stop it. That's why we need your help."
Dragon turned back and fixed his gaze on C.C. "Girl, what is your name?"
"You may call me C.C." she replied.
"When Robin translated the ruins in Xerxes, we noted a unique marking, called 'The Code of Immortality', the same mark that you bear upon your forehead." Dragon stated, finally forcing Zero off his chair and pointing a pistol aimed directly a Dragon's head, the two locking glares. "Which means, you have the power of Geass. Though according to the ruins translation, the Geass powers all manifest in a way that is entirely unique to the individual. I have to admit, I am curious as to what power yours grants you."
"Whoa whoa, relax" Sabo said, his arms in the air as he stood in front of Dragon, getting between the two men. "We had already deduced as much from out intel. We have no intention revealing your secret, in fact it could very well be our ace in the hole that we'll need in the future against the World Government, so keeping it a secret benefits us as well."
"What more did the ruins say?" C.C. asked Dragon, genuinely curious to learn more about the mystery surrounding the Code of Immortality and its origins.
"Unfortunately the ruins were too badly damaged for us to recover any more information, however, I suspect that your Code and the Geass might have some connection to the Philosopher's Stone." Dragon replied.
"The Philosopher's Stone is real?" Zero asked finally relenting his aim at Dragon.
"Apparently so" Sabo replied. "Which just adds more problems for us in Amestris. Apparently, a group of professional thieves called the Phantom Troupe have heard about it's power and are looking to steal it for themselves."
"Great, so on top of everything else, we have to look out for the people who terrorized York New City a year ago" Zero scoffed. "Any other variables we should worry about?"
"Well given the very specific cabinets that the Vatican deployed to escort each of the three nations Ambassadors, there's a chance that Akuma's could be present somewhere within the country or that the Methuselah's from Byzantium might try to intervene. Also there are a band of escaped prisoners from the island prison of Titania, who have banded together with the Aifread Pirates, and have been targeting members of The Abbey directly."
"And here we thought it was going to be easy." C.C. remarked sarcastically.
Zero laughed sardonically "Next, you're going to tell me the Vinsmokes will be involved."
"Actually our reports state that they headed to the Grand Line, to make an alliance with one of the Four Emperor's, Big Mom." Sabo informed.
"Whatever the case, I suggest you seek out one of Ametris' State Alchemist, who's colluding with us in our operation in Amestris. He's known as one of the premier Alchemists with knowledge on the Philosopher's Stone." Dragon stated.
"And according to our intel, he's personally fought Father and the other Homunculi a number of times" Sabo added.
"Oh really? What's his name?" Zero asked.
"The FullMetal Alchemist, Edward Elric." Dragon responded. "I'll be leaving Karasu here, to assist you in coordinating the strategy for Amestris."
"You won't be joining us?" C.C. asked.
"No, it would seem that while the World Government plans on holding it's Reverie in two weeks, while you will all be busy in Amestris, in two days time another gathering will be occurring elsewhere in the world. An event being called the Dark Rendezvous, where all the world's most evil organizations will be gathering."
"And here I am without an invitation" Zero laughed. "You want me to do the impossible and to have it done in two days...Well then, let's get started shall we, let's see if I still have another miracle up my sleeve, let's start with Operation: Liberate Amestris!"