One... The Burning World

One year had passed since the end of Zero Requiem. In the time since Emperor Lelouch's death, Britannia almost collapsed in anarchy, and many other nations had nearly seen a similar fate. The United Federation of Nations moved quickly to stabilize the world economy. Also, the newly crowned Empress Nunnally vi Britannia soon abolished the last position of Royalty. In this action, she created a new parliamentary government and restored the majority of nations which had been absorbed by Britannia to their former positions. Most of these countries were quickly adopted into the United Federation of Nations.

After a year, Britannia's geographical area was reduced by more than half, as dozens of countries split off. Britannia had been accepted tenuously into the United Federation of Nations with a voting power proportional to three-quarters of its current population, due to its history. As a result, Britannia's pull on the world stage was only a third of what it had been in its height. In practical terms, Britannia's political power was next to nothing.

Sumeragi Kaguya maintained her position as the Prime Minister of the UFN. Much of the UFN hierarchy was maintained from the time of its ratification, including the position of the Black Knights as a unified, global army and peacekeeping force, as the political structure of the organization changed, however, Zero's title changed slightly to the Commander of the Black Knights, rather than CEO. To the great surprise of the entire organization, Zero accepted former Prime Minster Schneizel as Chief Tactical Officer. Many nations' military assets were absorbed into the Black Knights as the UFN spread through most of the world's civilized countries.

But even as world peace seemed an achievable dream, terrorist groups and rogue nations waited in the shadows for the opportune moment to strike...

"That's right... The celebration is next week." Nunnally's voice was uncharacteristically distant, detached from reality as if she had suddenly recalled a fading memory. "The celebration of my brother's death."

Zero stood behind her wheelchair, following her gaze to a poster on the wall. The very same poster was everywhere these days; an image of Chancellor Nunnally vi Britannia and Commander Zero, superimposed over the flags of every country in the United Federation of Nations. They were the heroes of the world; he who had slain the evil Emperor Lelouch, and she who had all but rebuilt the world from shambles.

"Lord Zero..." She spoke more formally, regaining her composure after a momentary lapse. "Do you think I chose a suitable location for the memorial?"

He looked around for a moment. They were in Shinjuku, where everything had started years ago. "I could not have named a more suitable place myself." His words rang with respect. "The monument will also mark the final step in Shinjuku's restoration."

At that moment, a cell phone rang, hidden somewhere deep within Zero's cape. "Schneizel? How are the security proceedings?" He asked as he answered the phone. The former Prime Minister of Britannia could be heard on the other end of the phone reporting the status of the ceremony's safety, but Nunnally wasn't particularly interested in such matters. "Good. Let me know of anything out of the ordinary." He said, hanging up before listening to any response.

"Is security really necessary?" Nunnally asked as soon as he had disconnected his call. "The world is much gentler than it once was."

"But as long as humanity is on this planet, there will be those who foolishly disagree with the world... or perhaps, those whom the world disagrees with." He answered with a twinge of regret. "It is for that reason that I exist."

"I suppose you're right. And if Schneizel says it's needed, then I won't disagree. But what type of security will be in place?"

"The Knight Police will be stationed at strategic points around the perimeter, and we will have two Black Knights operatives on the ground, in command of the operation. There will also be a number of unarmed personnel. It's a fairly simple setup, but Schneizel and I believe it will be more than sufficient."

"The Knight Police? Is it really necessary to use Knightmares?"

"I hope not..."

Ashford Academy remained more or less unchanged from how it always was. The biggest difference was that it now accepted Japanese students, but it was still a rather expensive and high-class private school. While Nunnally and Zero planned the memorial ceremony, students continued their mostly uneventful lives at school.

"It's tough having to deal with work and school..." Kouzuki Kallen, on her final year of High School, complained loudly as she sat on a courtyard bench. "I'm glad school's out early, but I still have to go straight to the base. I don't get any time for myself."

"It's your own fault, Kallen. Ever since the war ended, you've been pushing yourself too hard..."

"Rivalz, it's not my fault!" She growled. "It's all Zero's fault! He told me that I have to finish school if I want to stay in the Black Knights!" She frowned furiously. When she returned to school at Ashford some months ago, her past persona quickly disappeared. Instead, she acted like herself at school, a far cry from the days when she pretended to be the weak, timid Karen Stadtfeld.

"Oh, you're as energetic as ever!" An upbeat voice echoed from the front of the school courtyard.

The redhead blinked. The voice was far too familiar for her tastes. "Eh, Gino?" She growled. A small amount of contempt could be heard in her words. "I thought you went back to Britannia."

Gino Weinberg cringed. "And in just as bad a mood as ever..." He was standing just inside the school's gates, wearing Ashford's school uniform. "We're going to be working together again, so be nice, okay?"

"Working together?"

"Yep!" He replied with enthusiasm. "Britannia's army was dissolved according to the charter of the UFN, but Chancellor Nunnally wanted to keep the Knights of Rounds instated. Zero and Sumeragi Kaguya decided to allow it, under certain conditions."

Rivalz looked confused. "Is that legal?"

"Only if the Knights of Rounds became a unit of the Black Knights." Kallen observed. "So, how's that gonna happen?"

"It's not official until next week, but I'm going to become Captain of Zero Unit."

"WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?!" The redhead screamed furiously. "I'm Captain of Zero Unit!" She continued to rail on at Zero himself, not even taking a second to care about who was watching.

"Maybe I said too much?" Gino chuckled and made a submissive gesture.

They were entering the Shinjuku Headquarters of the Black Knights when she first saw Zero and started her outrage. Several members of the Black Knights, as well as several civilians outside, instinctively took a step away from her in self-preservation.

"This could be troublesome..." The masked man groaned so quietly that only Nunnally heard it. "Gino..."

Britannia's Chancellor rolled forward in Zero's defense. "Maybe I should explain." Her voice came as a shock to Kallen, who hadn't taken notice of anyone other than her target.

"Nunnally!" She suddenly looked dumbfounded, an absolute shift from her previous attitude. "What needs to be explained?"

"You know that in order for Britannia to join the UFN, we had to dissolve our military into the Black Knights, right?" She asked with her usual warm smile. "Well, I wanted to keep the Knights of Rounds instituted, so I started talks with Zero and Miss Sumeragi. In the end, it turned out like this."

"What's 'this'?" Kallen looked even more confused than ever.

Zero stepped forward this time, after regaining his absolute composure. "The Knights of Rounds will become a unit of the Black Knights, stationed in Britannia. As diplomatic collateral, Knight of One, Gino Weinberg, was transferred to Japan to become Captain of Zero Unit. Kouzuki Kallen will be promoted to Chief of Staff, and Kyoshiro Toudoh is already in flight to Britannia, as the new Knight of One and the Black Knights' official military liaison to Britannia."

"A promotion?" Her expression betrayed her inner turmoil. She thought she would remain Zero's personal guard, even though Zero wasn't Lelouch anymore. "Will I still pilot a Knightmare?"

"You can keep your personal Red Akatsuki" He answered. "Gino will be piloting a Vincent Commander. Tristan, however, has been decommissioned with the rest of the Knights of Rounds' Eighth-generation Knightmare Frames. It's currently in Black Knights custody, and will eventually be stripped down to parts for repairing Vincent and other western-model Frames."

"I'm going to miss that Knightmare..." Gino looked sullen, an unfitting expression for him. "But this is a good thing; the world doesn't need a unit like Tristan anymore."

"Indeed..." A smooth, collected voice agreed. "Although, I have my doubts about whether it will remain that way. Ninety percent of the population of the earth are united under the United Federation. However, if you measure the world by the number of nations alone. only two thirds of the world are actually members of the UFN. There are several small nations with histories of genocide or terrorism which still remain independent." Schneizel stated as he joined the group, who were on their way to Zero's personal office on the second level of the complex.

"And there are some unsettling rumors..." Zero stopped as they entered his office, then closed the door once they were all inside. "There is word of a small group of what seem to be Geass users, although it is an unsubstantiated rumor, the fact of the matter is that very few people know of Geass' existence. This fact lends some credibility to the rumor."

"Geass?" Nunnally's large eyes widened a bit. "Now I see why you're using the Knight Police... Without direct eye contact, they won't be able to-"

"I'm afraid it's more complicated than that." Zero interrupted. He gestured toward the nearest wall, which became an electronic computer screen and displayed four pictures. "These people were all confirmed Geass Users."

To Kallen, Emperor Lelouch and Emperor Charles were the only familiar faces on the screen. The other two faces were Mao and Empress Marianne.

"Interesting..." Schneizel gazed at the pictures of Empress Marianne and Emperor Charles in what seemed like mild amusement. "I had always suspected at least my father..."

"Who is that?" Kallen asked, pointing at the woman's picture.

Nunnally was shocked. This information had never been revealed to her before. "My brother, my father... even my mother... They all used Geass."

Zero continued, but silently scolded himself for not thinking of Nunnally before. "Lelouch and Charles both had vaguely similar Geass. However, Mao could read the mind of anybody within a 500 meter radius. Marianne was able to transplant herself into the mind of other people and take control of their body at will. I also suspect that the former Knight of One, Bismark Waldstein, possessed a Geass similar in function to Mao's. This means that there is more than the type of Geass with which we are familiar. We can't let our guard down, that's why we're also placing Kallen and Gino on foot as undercover security."

"How can we be sure that the pilots, or even Gino and I, aren't already under the effects of Geass before it even starts?" Kallen made a good point. Any of the security personnel could be approached by an Absolute Obedience Geass user at any time before the ceremony.

Before anyone could answer her question, there was a loud knock on the door. With a disapproving look, Schneizel opened it and a new man walked in. His dark hair and light eyes contrasted, but that was his only notable feature. His height was average and with his sharp, bony face, he looked rather malnourished. "Sorry I'm late. I just had to finish making the test."

"Don't worry, I don't mind." Schneizel lied. "But you have good timing. Kallen," He turned back to the redhead pilot. "This man is a rather accomplished psychologist. He will be selecting the pilots for the Police Knightmares, as well as conducting a rigorous test with each one immediately before they mount their units."

The man smiled meekly as he looked around. "He praises me a bit too much, bit I did write my thesis on effects and symptoms of brainwash victims. I'm Shuuinchirou Itazuki, pleased to meet you."

Gino and Kallen were dismissed to survey the area and supervise the equipment setup. "Kouzuki Kallen, Chief of Staff, Second in Command of the Black Knights." Gino tested the sound of it. "It's long, but it actually has a nice ring. Better than my new title at least."

Kallen folded her arms behind her head. "Second in Command... I wonder if my pay will go up." She sighed. It had been a long day, so she decided to change the subject to something else, not really desiring to think about her new job responsibilities. "You were the last remaining Knight of Rounds from Charles' reign, weren't you? How many are there now?"

"There are actually twelve Knights of Rounds now." He answered. "In hindsight, I can see that while Emperor Charles bolstered the Knights in terms of political power and technology, he also weakened our ranks by choosing pilots almost on a whim. Nunnally has restored the Knights of Rounds to their former position as an elite unit for excellent soldiers. When I was promoted to Knight of One, I chose the others myself."

"If you were that important, why did they send you here to Japan? Did they really have to send the Knight of One?" Her curious question was almost to be expected. "I mean, they could have chosen any of the Knights."

Gino smiled brightly. "I actually volunteered. I wanted to get away from there for a while." His smile didn't change, but it suddenly had a bitter edge. "There are still people who think that Nunnally and Lelouch shouldn't have absolved the social ladder... my family included. I've been all but disowned for believing that the new Brita- Eh?! Anya!" He pointed across the street, toward a familiar pink-haired girl.

"And... Jeremiah?" Kallen raised an eyebrow; it didn't make any sense to see the two together. Before she could comment, though, Gino was already dodging traffic and calling Anya's name. "Eh? Gino, calm down!"

"Any~a." Gino was almost cooing. The excitement of seeing his old friend had quickly gone to his head. "You look like you haven't changed a bit. What are you doing lately?"

"Deliveries," She answered in one word, only acknowledging his presence with a passing glance.

While Kallen finally caught up, Gino laughed at the younger girl. "Cold shoulder, eh? Looks like that part of you hasn't changed either."

"We haven't seen you two since Ougi's wedding." Kallen greeted the pair once she caught up to Gino. She smiled coolly, but remained apprehensive underneath her calm face; Jeremiah had sided with Lelouch in the end, and Anya was almost entirely a mystery. "What are you up to these days, Jeremiah?"

"I've started cultivating oranges in Hokkaido." He said with a frighteningly pure smile. "Anya works on the farm."

The boyish blonde looked dumbfounded. "Wait, are you serious?" He asked. "You own an orange farm?"

"And the brand name is 'Orange-kun'." He stated cheerfully, pointing to a truck parked up the street. On the side of the trailer, there was a large, cartoonish image depicting an orange which greatly resembled Jeremiah's face, including the ornament covering his left eye.

"What a surprise..." Kallen could only stare.

"I'm on the other side." Anya stated plainly, then continued walking toward her destination. "Jeremiah, we're already late as it is." She stated flatly.

"Oh, yeah. Sorry." He grunted and chased after her, precariously balancing his stack of orange crates. Looking back at Kallen and Gino, he called. "We're in Shinjuku for a few days, so maybe we'll see you at the celebration."

"Ah, yeah." She nodded, then grabbed Gino by his sleeve, commanding, "We have to finish our walkthrough."

Jeremiah followed Anya into a nearby small grocery store. As they finished their errand, he looked out the glass window to make sure they weren't followed. "Interesting..."

"What is?" The younger girl asked as she handed the store clerk a delivery receipt.

He turned back to her and scratched his chin. "As I thought, the location is terrible from a security standpoint. There are too many streets that connect to this area, not to mention tall buildings and construction sites - someone could fit Knightmares in some of those incomplete structures. Schneizel is supposed to be in charge of the location and security though, and he wouldn't make a mistake like that." He looked back outside. From the grocery store, he could clearly see the stage setup. "That means he's expecting a different kind of attack."

"Geass..."

"Today is the day." Schneizel straightened the papers on his desk as he initiated the briefing. Present in the conference room were only the necessary people; Schneizel, Kallen, Gino and Shuuinchirou. Zero and Nunnally were preparing themselves for the show itself. "Shuuinchirou, you have finished picking pilots, and they have all mounted their frames. How accurate do you think your test is?"

"I can only speculate, since I've only been able to study one person who was known to be under its influence. However, I'm very confident. My studies have confirmed all of my beliefs about how the power affects the human brain and subconscious." His tone was very straight, and his posture rigid. Kallen could see that he knew how important his role was.

"There's nobody more qualified than you, so your confidence is enough. I'm counting on you to prepare the Knightmare pilots" Schneizel stated professionally, then turned to Kallen. "Miss Chief of Staff. Have you reviewed the documentation I provided?"

"Yeah..." Kallen flipped through her pamphlet, searching for a certain page. After a moment, she pulled out a map of the convention area. There were several red marks on various locations. "I've circled every spot that could be exploited in a security breach... The biggest problem is those construction zones. They could even fit a Knightmare in some of those unfinished buildings. I'm not sure what you're thinking, but it looks like you're inviting an attack."

"Actually, I'm inviting a counterattack." The blonde man gave her an unreadable grin. "Now that we've come this far, I can inform you of the rest of the plan."

"You were hiding information from us?" Gino's face clearly showed his disappointment.

Schneizel shot him an unappreciative glance. "I believe it was a necessary defense. The chances of a terrorist attach are high. I've taken into account the possibility of conventional attacks, or Geass attacks - at least the types of Geass that we are aware of. In the event that you encountered a mind-reading type, or an obedience type, they would be unable to take this information from you, seeing as you didn't possess it in the first place."

"So what's the plan?" Kallen grunted. She wasn't pleased with the turn of events either, but it wasn't anything that could be changed.

Schneizel pushed a button on his desk and a tactical screen slid down from the ceiling behind him, with a larger version of Kallen's map. Four large areas became illuminated in a red glow. "Your prediction was rather accurate, Kallen. There are Knightmares hidden inside these four structures, as well as these two." He said as two more areas, a bit further away from the others, glowed yellow. "Inside these four red structures, we have stationed four members of Zero Unit as an added defense. They should be able to handle any outside attack without too much difficulty, leaving the internal staging area to the Knight Police picked by Itazuki. The two yellow buildings have Kallen's Red Akatsuki and Gino's Vincent Commander, each equipped with Rakshata's new Automatic Retrieval system. Here are your new keys."

Kallen and Gino received their new Startup keys from Schneizel, examining them closely.

"The button on top starts the sequence. After it beeps, press it two more times to trigger the Automatic Retrieval system, an autopilot program, which will cause your Knightmare to launch unmanned and travel to your current location. The key also has a biometrics system to prevent anyone other than yourself from piloting the unit."
"Another defense against Geass." Kallen realized immediately. "If we are commanded to hand over the unit, it still won't work."

"Precisely." Schneizel's expression showed his confidence in the plan. "We have done everything we can to ensure the safety of this ceremony and its participants. The rest is up to you, Shuuinchirou. Kallen, Gino, You are dismissed, please go to your determined posts."

The two left the conference room and quickly made way to their positions. They each clipped on small microphones and earpieces, then split up in the gathering crowd.

Almost immediately, Gino's voice echoed in Kallen's ear. "I can't stand that guy."

"Me too, but he's the only person who was able to fight Lelouch. The Black Knights probably wouldn't be here today if it wasn't for him, either." She responded quietly. "After all, today's Zero isn't the original Zero." She spoke knowing that their radio was secure, Rakshata's latest prototype communications system - although, it was a prototype which she had ceased development of. The voice signal was encoded and decoded in real time by the transceivers, and the encryption changed randomly every three-tenths of a second. In order to prevent someone from reverse-engineering the system, the main encryption controller was put inside a satellite in geosynchronous orbit, which used infrared laser signals to upload a new batch of encryption keys to the transceivers every second. Only two transceivers were made, which Gino and Kallen were using.

The satellite tracked the locations of the two transceivers using a low-bandwidth radio signal which delivered accurate GPS data from a separate unit. Once the location of the users was determined, a laser would be aimed at each one, sending a high-bandwidth, one-way downlink to the transceivers, this link carried the encryption keys used to protect the signal. In order to hack the system, a third person would have to have access to top secret, proprietary information and technology, including the optical receiver used to receive the laser signal, and would also have to be within five to ten feet of one of the original units because the satellite was only equipped with enough laser transmitters for two ground units, and the laser beams were focused to fifteen feet diameter at ground level, because of the inaccuracy of GPS systems.

"You knew Lelouch was Zero for a while, right?" Gino's intentions were obvious, so he didn't bother to hide them; "Who is the current Zero?"

"For a while, I thought it might have been C.C., but..."

Suddenly, a third person joined the conversation - someone who sounded far too familiar to Kallen. "I guess that's understandable."

"Th... that voice." She choked out. "C.C.! How did you-"

"I'm in Rakshata's lab - I accidentally opened a program on her computer that links to your communications." The woman's voice carried an intense sense of urgency.

Kallen silently cursed the Indian scientist for having a secret connection which could compromise an otherwise absolutely secure comm system. "What do you want?"

C.C. was silent for a few seconds before answering. "I've followed a Geass user to Shinjuku. He has the same power as Lelouch, and he plans to launch a terrorist attack against Nunnally and Zero. If you can cooperate with me, then we can stop him."

Gino spoke up before Kallen could respond. "How do we know this isn't a trick?" He asked calmly. His knowledge of C.C. was little, but he understood that this was Zero and Lelouch's accomplice from the very beginning, and that she had the power to bestow Geass upon others. "What if this guy is just another 'Lelouch'?"

"They have nothing to do with each other! It's true that with Lelouch, I worked for destruction. But now I've joined someone who wants to protect Nunnally's gentle world!" The mysterious woman countered fervently.

As they held their secret conversation, the ceremony officially began. Nunnally and Zero came forward on the large stage to present themselves to the masses. They stood in Shinjuku's new city park square, lined with tall buildings and decorated with all manner of festive banners and confetti. The innumerable crowd shouted uproariously from the streets and windows. After almost a full minute, Nunnally's soft voice echoed over their heads. "Today marks the anniversary of one of the greatest events of human history."

"It's too late to argue, Kallen." C.C.'s voice came back to life on the radio. "Shuuinchirou is much worse than Lelouch, he creates chaos for no reason."

"What...?" Suddenly, belief surged inside Gino's heart. He quickly switched his transmitter to the security patrol's public frequency. "Schneizel!" They could see Schneizel sitting on the stage, in a back row of chairs with other important figureheads, but his expression remained absolutely still. "Schneizel, can you hear me?"

He nodded in response, just barely. He wasn't about to let any possibly trivial issue disrupt the show, not after it had come to this point.

"We're too late, Schneizel. Itazuki has Geass!" Gino was pulling himself away from the crowd as he shouted. "The same kind as Lelouch!"

"Listen closely..." Schneizel whispered, while somehow his face remained almost absolutely still. "Gino is at point F-7, far corner... good. Kallen, please go there too. There is a red mailbox near his current location, but far away from the crowd, which was placed as a prop for security purposes. Either one of your Knightmare keys will open it. There will be a sand-colored package with no postage; remove that and share its contents."

Kallen made her way to Gino as fast as she could get through the crowd. Part of her was suspicious of the situation; C.C.'s voice had vanished as soon as Gino panicked, and now she just found out Schneizel was hiding another secret from them.

She arrived at the mailbox to find Gino staring at the sand-colored package Schneizel had mentioned, with his eyes and mouth wide. Inside the package were two guns.

"Each of you will take a gun..." Schneizel said slowly and distinctly. "if either of you takes a single step away from the box... the other one will shoot. Only Zero and Nunnally can be trusted right now."

C.C. hovered over the computer console with a troubled expression. "Were we too late?"

"There's no time to worry about that." Jeremiah's easygoing atmosphere from before was gone now, and his face showed a resolute discipline. "We have the information we needed from here, it's time for the next phase of the mission; you and Anya need to meet up with the others in the hangar, Hayato and I will take out Itazuki."

A young man stood in the doorway. With messy brown hair and sharp green eyes, his young appearance and average height misrepresented his actual age. "It's time to go, Orange."

C.C. took Anya and entered an elevator. Jeremiah turned to his current partner, but caught a startling silhouette from the hallway. "Rakshata..." He clenched his teeth and tried to come up with a plan for this new turn of events.

The tall Indian woman, however, grinned knowingly. "Jeremiah... well isn't this interesting? What's a simpleton like you doing here?"

"Simpleton?" He grunted. Their time was running out, and he got the feeling that he was about to be drawn into a long confrontation here.

Rakshata chuckled and stepped into the room, revealing a box in her hands. "I understand now... Lelouch, Jeremiah, C.C... even you." She pushed the box into the young man's arms. "Hayato, was it? C.C. called me a week ago and asked me to prepare this... now I realize it was for you. Give it to Cecile, I'm sure she will be able to install it."

Hayato hesitantly took the box, leering it suspiciously . "What is it?"

"Something good." She said as she pulled a familiar tobacco pipe from her lab coat pocket. "Now get out of my lab - and don't worry; I don't have any reason to tell Zero about you two, at least for now."

Jeremiah began to make his way out of the room, but before he and his younger companion were out of line of sight, he turned back, trying to discern even one more tiny piece of information. How much does she know, and whose side is she on?

He didn't have any time to speculate; other matters were more pressing at the time. Hayato followed him as he ran down the hall toward the exit. "Alright, now we just need to track him down."

"How are we going to do that?"

"C.C. tracked and tagged a shipment of broadcasting equipment addressed to Itazuki Shuuinchirou. If he plans to use that as part of the attack, then it's a good place to start." Jeremiah explained while he dashed down the hall, both of them running at speeds which were barely within human limits. "Lloyd sent us a tracker. I placed it inside a red mailbox about a kilometer east of the monument, inside a dark brown package. We can use the mailbox to store that thing from Rakshata too."

They burst out the doors of the Black Knights' headquarters, intentionally attracting attention and making as much noise as they could. The more people thought someone had just escaped out the front door, the less they would think someone was trying to steal Knightmares from the hangar. They easily outran anybody who attempted pursuit on foot, but soon they heard the sound of small motors giving chase. Hayato looked back to see two motorcycles, each with the emblem of the Black Knights, swiftly catching up to them. "I think we've got a ride, Orange." He chuckled, put down his box and turned to face their pursuers.

The taller man stopped as well. "Looks like you're right."

The riders quickly caught up to them. In a well-rehearsed motion, they passed their two targets, then skidded to a halt, drew their guns and ducked behind their bikes for cover. "Lay down on the ground with your hands on your head." One of the helmeted Black Knights yelled.

"I think not!" Jeremiah shouted and ran toward one of the bikes.

The two men quickly opened fire on him, but the small-caliber bullets bounced off his metal chest, leaving just scratches. Before they could get off a second volley, he had already overtaken one of the riders, and Hayato was almost on top of the other one. After another second, both Black Knights' pursuers were unconscious. Hayato ran back to pick up his box, then they mounted the bikes and sped off toward the convention grounds. A bout a mile away, they were stopped by a fat police officer standing at a barricade.

"Sorry, no vehicles beyond this point. You'll have to park those motorcycles somewhere." He said in a surprisingly uncaring, unprofessional tone. They parked the bikes off to the side of the road and walked past the officer, who didn't even glance at the box Hayato had. After running through a few more side roads, they finally reached the eastern side of Shinjuku Park Square and quickly spotted the red mailbox, as well as a familiar redhead.

Jeremiah decided on quick action, and started to run out to attack them, but Hayato grabbed his shoulder. "Follow my lead." The young man said with a grin. He quickly ran out, carrying his box on top of his head and wearing a big fake grin. "Haha!!" He laughed loudly to attract Kallen and Gino's attention, the yelled, "I've got your oranges!"

Kallen and Gino laughed awkwardly at the scene. To them, it looked like a teenage prankster had somehow managed to rip off a box of Jeremiah's oranges. The boyish character ran in a zigzag, followed by a very upset-looking green-haired orange farmer. "How the mighty have fallen..." Kallen appreciated the lighthearted moment, as it was a good distraction from the other things on her mind. While she laughed, Hayato managed to position himself close enough to enact his plan. He dropped the box and gasped, pointing at the stage directly behind Kallen and Gino, who fell for the trick hook line and sinker. Before anybody knew it, they were both out cold on the ground.

Jeremiah moved quickly to the mailbox and extended his hidden blade. He thrust the knife into the door hinge on the back and pried it open, then pulled out a black box. While opening the box, he motioned to drop the one from Rakshata in to the newly-opened door. Hayato did as ordered and watched as his senior pulled out some electronic equipment and turned it on.

A white dot flashed on an LCD screen for a few seconds while Jeremiah looked around. "Follow me." he grunted an order then took off running. They forced their way through a hotel's revolving door, dashed up the first escalator and left a very confused group of hotel employees in their wake. As they passed an elevator, Jeremiah weighed the advantages between that and the escalator they were currently running up on. "In a tall building like this, the Elevator will be faster."

Hayato shrugged and jumped on as well. As the doors closed and the elevator started ascending, the transparent back wall gave them a higher and higher view of the ceremony outside. They could vaguely hear the interchanging voices of Zero and Nunnally, but weren't quite able to make out words. Suddenly, and without any warning at all, a chill swept across Hayato's body. "Orange... I have a bad feeling. Something's wrong out there." He said as he stared through the glass. "It's like a faint echo in the distance..."

Nunnally and Zero, polar opposites in every aspect, presented themselves on stage for their combined purpose. Both were viewed as heroes of the world, with influence spreading past political bounds. And today, they had come together again for the sake of the world.

Zero spread his arms, continuing to captivate the audience with the dramatic gestures he only copied from the first Zero. "The sins of the past shall become the meaning of the future, let us not forget the price we have paid for what we have obtained!" He shouted with zeal, but inside he was shaking. Itazuki Shuuinchirou... we were fooled. Hidden by Zero's mask, Kururugi Suzaku ground his teeth. The comm system built into his helmet was set to a Black Knights frequency, used by Schneizel, Gino and Kallen, and it had been several minutes since he overheard the conversation between them. Schneizel... what are you doing?

Suddenly, he heard Schneizel's voice inside his helmet. "Kallen, Gino, I'll have to be satisfied with this..." The master strategist sounded calm as ever. "I've had you wait long enough... I need to trust you, even with the possibility of Geass. We need to find Itazuki before he can enact his plan. He's most likely hidden, but somewhere close enough to monitor the situation."

"Uhh... what?" Kallen groaned over the radio. "Oh no!"

"What is it?" Suddenly, there was a drop of urgency in his voice.

"We were knocked out." She responded. "Gino wake up... Gino! Dammit, stop sleeping in such a stupid position!" Her voice rang across the channel, followed by Gino's groaning.

"Is it possible? I seem to have fallen into my own trap and put myself in check." Schneizel laughed at the irony of the situation. "Well, well... in Chess, when put in check, you are required to make a move, so now it seems to be my turn." He stood up smoothly, wishing to make as little of a disruption as possible. "Zero... Do you remember what I said you should do if I moved during the ceremony? Well... I'll leave that choice up to you." He said as he started to slowly walk to the microphone. "I'm going to call him out."

Nunnally, unaware of the situation, had continued on while they held their secret conversation. Her soft voice was a strong contrast to Zero's commanding tone, and was supposed to keep the crowd on their toes. "The time has come..."

Suzaku recognized his cue. It was time for him to give his last line of the speech, which would be followed by a video presentation and the unveiling of the Shinjuku Memorial. "The time has come to mark the true beginning of this new era!" Then, he and Nunnally turned around to view the presentation with the rest of the congregation. What they saw, however, was the last thing he could have wanted.

"Indeed...." Itazuki Shuuinchirou's face dominated the giant screen on the back of the podium. "How poetic... but the new era that is beginning now will not be yours, Zero. The next great era of our planet will belong only to the chosen ones!" He began to laugh happily. "Behold; my Geass, the power to make anybody obey my commands -- Knight Police... kill them! Destroy their symbol of peace!" The tone of his voice gradually shifted, and you could soon see that he had gone mad with bliss. "... for such a monument is unnecessary in the world I shall create!"

"Lord Schneizel, we can't cut the broadcast!" A voice carried across the security radio channel. "It's going worldwide!"

"Kallen! Gino!" Schneizel's calmness was completely gone now. "Call your Knightmares now!"

The five Police Knightmares jumped at Shuuinchirou's command, drawing their weapons and opening fire into the crowd. After one volley of bullets, they stopped for a moment, and there was absolute silence. Most of the people still hadn't comprehended the reality of the situation, not until a tiny noise pierced the quiet like an arrow; a baby's cry. His mother had been sitting in the front row, but now her blood was sprayed across people sitting two rows behind her.

In an instant, the crowd erupted into chaos. What was once a peaceful gathering was now a mob. The Knightmare Frames began firing again and moved into the throng, tearing through the pack of innocents to reach the shrouded monument in the center of the square. As the world watched helplessly, one of the mechas transformed into a giant fireball as its Sakuradite power cell exploded, immediately ending the lives of twenty civilians and injuring even more. Two others simultaneously blew up a few seconds later, taking even more people with them.

The last remaining Frames made it all the way to the center of the crowd and continued mercilessly slaughtering the civilians until they both exploded, destroying the still covered Shinjuki Memorial, forever erasing the symbol from existence before anyone had ever seen it.

"And now I declare unto all nations!" The face of the madman who had enacted this plot was full of glee. "This is the power which we hold... the power which will destroy and recreate the world!" With that, the broadcast stopped, replaced by white noise to drown out the screams of innocent civilians.

A few seconds later, that very same man fell screaming, sixteen stories, with a knife in his back. His assassins stared out the open window into the scene that had been played out. "We... were too late." Jeremiah muttered and smashed his fist into the wall.

Kallen and Gino stared over the massacre from above. The Automatic Retrieval System had gotten their Knightmares to them fast, but not fast enough. Now they could only hover over the wreckage below.

Flames whipped the remnants of the brass monument, rising from the rubble to taint the very symbol of hope that Nunnally and Zero had worked so hard for. "I see it..." Nunnally knelt, helpless, as she could only watch in horror. What she saw became forever burned into her memory, the vision of chaos that only one power could create. "Because of Geass... My gentle world...

is burning..."

Infinite Requiem

Brought to you by AoR (DarthMonkey) and violinmana