A/N: Now that you've read the timeline and are caught up with everything you need to know (as you should have!), we can begin with the actual story. Before that, however, I want to address something important. A while back, we got news that there would be a new season of Code Geass. I wish to be frank about this now before I get asked: no, I will NOT take the events of that season into account (I think it's a bad idea to begin with and I will not entertain any possibility of using any material from it) in this fic or even in "Fate/Alpha" (my personal "Fate/Zero" fanfic in which Lelouch is also a character and, now that I am already in the middle of a shameless plug, please go check that fic out as well if you haven't already). Basically, in this fic, and in the other one with ties to Code Geass, that season never has and never will exist within the context of their respective stories and that is final.
Btw, to those who already read the timeline, know that I made quite a "few" changes/additions to it that you might want to check out just to avoid any issues. I thought you might want to know.
With that out of the way, ONTO THE STORY!
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto and/or Code Geass. They are the properties of Masashi Kishimoto and Sunrise Inc., respectively. The fact that we're getting a season 3 of Code Geass and that the Naruto Shippuden anime continued on well after it caught up to the events of the manga is proof of this sad fact.
Please fave, follow, and review this story.
-Introductory Narration by C.C.-
It has been almost four years since that fateful day, when HE came to our world, and, despite being a witness to the events of that day and everything that has come after, I can only stare back at what came before and after and wonder if everything before that day was all a dream... or a nightmare, depending on how you saw those times. Before then, the world was one of constant conflict, where the strong preyed on the week with few exceptions and with very few brave souls able and willing to fight back, one filled never-ending misery and despair; it was world were everyone wore a mask of lies, in some shape or form, just to blend in with those around them for survival, acceptance, or even to pursue some grand plan. As one who cannot die, it was the same cycle of tragedy and comedy I had known for centuries, one I thought would continue without end... and then he happened. Now, while the scars of that time are still not fully healed, the world has finally begun to come together and move forward, hope and truth lighting the way.
It is fitting then, in a sense, that the event that would change everything would be a mere freak accident that hit a small battlefield in Japan, which was then a conquered colony of the then-Holy Britannian Empire, known as Area 11. It had happened so suddenly and, despite how amazing it seemed at that moment, it seemed somewhat inconsequential compared to all that was going on that day, especially when only a few people actually knew the full story of what happened back then. Now it is a story known by all, even by those who never even noticed what was happening until they found themselves in a better world, the one he left behind. Perhaps that is the reason why everyone knows the tale...
...or perhaps it is because the person was something we never had before in a world of masks and lies: a truly honest soul, one with no mask to speak of. For while he was a person capable of cunning and deception when needed, that was only during matters of war, where such things are a matter of course; for all his faults, though, he was a person whose true self, including those faults of his, was all you saw... nothing more, nothing less. Perhaps it was because this person's true self could touch people in ways that none knew were possible, and allowed him to open the eyes of those around him and around the world, allowing them to see the truth and instilling in them the power to believe in something. He gave us the courage to get out of their despair and to move forward, both as individuals and as a people, no matter the obstacles that stand in our way.
He was a person this world didn't deserve... but one we needed because, as my new companion in love and eternity, the ex-prince and former rebel leader named Lelouch, once said, the right man in the wrong place can make all the difference in the world. For if a pebble thrown into the ocean can create ripples that become waves, HIS appearance in this world was like throwing entire mountains into that same ocean, created waves of massive and sudden change that would allow our world to finally wake up from its long slumber.
Finally, and perhaps just as surprisingly, perhaps he is now known through the world because managed to accomplish all this and more... in only a year's time.
This is the story of that year, from the day before that fateful arrival, to the end of his time here. From the conflicts that this boy directly shaped, to those far from his reach and control that were still shaped by his actions and words, from the eyes of those who saw and took part in these things firsthand, to the eyes, ears, and voices of those speaking for the billions of people whose voices must be heard. For it is here, in this time, that people, as individuals and as a whole, finally began to stand on their own two feet and move forward, to make their own futures that now have a potential as endless in number as the stars above...
It was that year wherein all this came to be, the year forever known as the Year of the Orange Fox... where one person brought to world together, creating a power great enough... to defy the Power of the Kings...
Parallel Uzumaki: The Power of the Kings
Prologue
- Partial Transcript of the Daily, Early Morning TV Broadcast of "Good Morning, Britannia!"
BBC Broadcast Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Sector, Homeland of the
Holy Britannian Empire
October 8th, 2017 CE
7:00 AM EST (Britannia)
and/or
October 9th 2017 CE
8:00 PM JST (Area 11/Japan)
xxxx Transcript Starts xxxx
After an image of nondescript local news network logo fades out, the screen flashes with image of a news set, an image of a sunrise over a picturesque coastline placed in the background of a news set. In front of the background, as seen from the camera and by extension, the screen in which the broadcast is shown, there stands a large news set desk consisting of a polished wooden base, a marble top, and three large capital letters either made of old or painted a golden color at placed on the front side of the desk's wooden base (as seen from the camera) that spell out "BBC." Situated behind the desk is a swivel desk chair with a leather seat and back, on which anchorman Tom Brokaw is seated as he stares at the camera.
Brokaw: The SSDL gives it official response to the events surrounding the Blue Incident five days after the event, we look at the public reaction to the Blue Incident and the subsequent fallout, the Sioux Confederacy has agreed to host the largest protest concert ever planned, scheduled to occur this coming spring, within its lands in defiance of Imperial decrees, and I'll be holding a BBC-exclusive interview with the new Sub-Viceroy of Area 11, Princess Euphemia li Britannia, discussing the situation she and Viceroy Cornelia li Britannia are actually dealing with in the volatile Area 11.
The screen cuts to an intro, consisting of a montage of video clips of the sun rising over various Britannian cities being played to the sound of a news program intro, as a male voice is heard narrating the intro.
Narrator: From the BBC, this is "Good Morning, Britannia!" with Tom Brokaw.
The screen flashes back to the news set where Brokaw is still seated facing the camera, though the image shows only Tom's head and upper torso, with the anchorman positioned to the left side of the screen, and part of the background of the set behind Brokaw. On the upper right-hand corner of the screen, there is a box with an image of a yellow flag, with an image of a snake, and a banner on which the words "Don't Tread On Me!" is written, in the center of the flag, which is fluttering in the wind. Underneath the image box, the words "SSDL's Delayed Omen" can be seen.
Brokaw: Good morning, Britannia. This morning, the SSDL has, after an unusual delay, finally delivered their response to the Blue Incident, more than five days after the incident had occurred. The incident, which ended with the intervention and debut of the masked rebel known as Zero when they saved an Honorary Britannian from a rigged trial, occurred in the Tokyo Settlement when the Honorary Britannian, one Suzaku Kururugi, was being paraded through the streets as he was being escorted to the courthouse. Several classified documents, which were leaked to the BBC at the same time Zero intervened, revealed that the arrest and planned trial of Kururugi was part of a scheme by the Pureblood faction to try and discredit the Honorary Britannian system by framing Kururugi for the murder of Prince Clovis, who was killed during a battle with Japanese rebels on October 1st. This has raised even greater alarms among many people about what is going on within the military even as said military is already under scrutiny by the public for committing possible war crimes. The leadership of the SSDL, which has called for the return of Parliament and a curtailing of the power of the Imperial regime since their founding shortly after the overthrow of the Britannian Parliament in 1916, were in a long meeting with members of the Anglican priesthood in one of their more isolated compounds 50 miles west of the city of Buffalo, New York Sector, up until yesterday when they arrived in Buffalo and were unaware of the incident in Area 11 up until that point.
As Brokaw continues reporting, the image on the screen changes to an image of two men, with the screen split vertically down the middle. On the left side is Brokaw, the anchorman's image zoomed in to greater prominence. On the right is another man, roughly in his thirties, who seems to be standing outside in front of an unspecified building. As this new image appears on-screen, Brokaw continues speaking.
Brokaw: BBC correspondent Carl Stern, who is in front of City Hall in Buffalo, New York Sector, reports that the SSDL response, like that of many Britannians and Japanese, was one of great anger and indignation and paints blacks storm clouds on an already dark picture of where things might be going in Britannia. Carl.
The image on-screen changes, with the screen focused only on Carl Stern.
Carl: Tom, the leadership of the SSDL was absolutely enraged when they heard what had happened in Area 11, especially when they learned of the role of the Pureblood faction, the faction within the Britannian military that had been pushing for the expulsion of Honorary Britannians and Britannians outside the nobility from the military, in the whole debacle. The SSDL were quick to condemn the Purebloods for the scheming when the news first reached them but the isolated nature of the region, including the lack of any real internet access, meant that the news didn't reach them until they came to the city. At the time they finally learned of what happened, they were actually headed to City Hall, which is right behind me, for a large rally scheduled for that evening with SSDL Councilman Thaddeus Stevens appointed as the speaker for the event. The response, when it finally came, however, was one that didn't surprise anyone. Thaddeus Stevens was especially livid and made no attempt to hide it when he brought up the incident to the people at the rally this evening, an anger that has permeated throughout the Empire as a whole, as you will now see in this video and in the SSDL's official statement.
What appears to be a recording of a massive political rally appears on-screen. At the center of stage, which seems to be the focal point of the rally, there is a simple oak wood lectern, behind which stands an old man, with black curly hair. The old man, who is the aforementioned Thaddeus Stevens, is speaking to the crowd. The clip being shown on-screen is clearly just part of the video recording as we begin in the middle of Stevens' speech.
Stevens: ...those damned Purebloods, being the elitist pigs that they are, decided the military was too good for honest normal folk and tried to begin their plot to kick Honorary Britannians and Britannians not part of some ancient house of "nobility" out of the military.
The crowd begins booing at hearing the word Pureblood, with one unidentified male member of the rally yelling "Fuck them elitist inbred pigs!" After a few moments the crowd quiets down, allowing Stevens, who had stopped to allow the crowd to heckle the absent Purebloods, to continue speaking.
Stevens: To achieve their goal these elitist Purebloods, befitting the morally bankrupt black holes they have in place of anything resembling a heart, decided to stoop to new lows to get what their black hearts desired. They went and arrested some poor kid, a Japanese kid who is an Honorary Britannian, and a soldier willing to fight for those ingrates, and decided to make him the fall guy for Clovis' assassination, even though that snob had it coming.
The crowd roars in approval before they quiet down again.
Stevens: Not only did these bastards, yet again, spit on the face of Lady Justice with their vile schemes, the Purebloods would have gotten away with this bullshit too if it wasn't for a Japanese rebel having to rain on their parade and confess to being the assassin on live TV while he had the documents revealing the truth of this little plot delivered to the BBC. That a "terrorist," as the nobles in their ivory towers call him, has more moral decency than the entire lot of those Purebloods pretty much says it all, folks.
At this point the crowd erupts in roars of approval yet again before the image on-screen cuts away from the speech and begins to show a series of various images, one at a time, starting with mass protests in what seems to be many different cities, then to a gathering of people verbally assaulting a unspecified noble surrounding by armed guards, then to a video recording on a phone showing someone sending a letter through the mail, followed by another recording of another mass protest, before shifting to an image of a young girl in her late teens giving a speech in a different locale, and to a different crowd, from the one Thaddeus Stevens was located in. As the images come and go, the voice of Carl Stern can be heard, his words fitting with the images as he speaks.
Carl: Though unusually late, the SSDL's reaction to the "Blue Incident" was every bit as angry as that of their members and, indeed, that of almost every Britannian, whether from the Homeland or from Areas 2-9, as well as every "Number" from Areas 10-18. As seen time and time again in this nations, reactions ranged from verbal attacks, letters of condemnation written and sent to government officials, peaceful protests in the streets and, in some cases, violent riots. Unlike previous riots, however, these rioters seemed to be more organized and focused in their violence as they began to deliberately target people suspected of being Pureblood members or otherwise having connections to the groups, the organization being long despised by many people who finally decided to act on that anger, using the incident as a justification for their actions. Some people, however, stuck to issuing verbal attacks of varying hostility, including Kudelia Aina Bernstein from the Ohio Sector who, despite being only 18 years old, has proven to be a master orator and brilliant political organizer, allowing her to rise up the ranks of the organization until becoming the youngest person to ever become a member of the SSDL's National Council, being elected in 2015 at the age of 16. She is one of the more restrained voices in the council and was the one to write the SSDL's official reaction to the news of the Blue Incident, a few hours after Stevens' speech in Buffalo.
A new image appears on-screen, showing the aforementioned statement that reaches paragraph in length. As this happens Carl Stern reads the statement aloud.
Carl: The statement reads,
'We of the Second Sons and Daughters of Liberty condemn the actions of the Purebloods as well as the inaction of the Britannian military in keeping their men in line. This blatant scheme, born of perverted sciences and ideas, is a disturbing development that we hope is not a sign of worse things to come, though knowing the nature of the Imperial regime, that hope may be for naught. That a rebel who hides behind a mask showed more concern about the justice, truth, and the people than the people who are supposed to represent us proves, once again, that the Imperials and their supporters have become too enraptured with their own power and is becoming more destructive towards everyone around them. We ask members of the SSDL in the military to ask if the desire to serve our nation is worth the cost of your humanity and, if the answer is no as it should be, then you should hang up your arms and return home until you can pick up your arms for a nation you can be proud to serve before it is too late. Finally, to Suzaku Kururugi, the Japanese soldier who was persecuted so unjustly, and to the people of Japan and the rest of the nations of the Pacific, we apologize on behalf of the Britannian people and to please know that, when the day comes that the people of this land are the ones to choose their own fate, we will make sure that such injustices are never wrought again and that we will work with you as nations on equal ground.'
Despite the conciliatory message given in the statement, it was too late to prevent the wave of riots that broke out shortly after the news of the events in Japan, especially the Pureblood's machinations, were exposed to the public. From the Homeland to Area 18, the Blue Incident is seen as another injustice in a long string of injustices that, to many Britannians and Numbers, have come to symbolize everything wrong with the current regime in general, and the Social Darwinist principles running amok in the military and government specifically. Sadly, as is the pattern, the people's angered boiled over.
The screen shifts to a video of a city street, seemingly recorded a few floors above the street itself. This one, however is filled with overturned vehicles, various small fires, and a lot of loose debris. On said street, a crowd of people are confronting a group of what appear to be armored riot police standing opposite of the crowd, armed with riot shields and tear gas canister launchers. The police are being pelted by rocks, various other types of debris, tear gas canisters being thrown back at the police, crude fire bottles, and even by bullets fired from a few firearms wielded by unseen rioters scattered among the crowd, as a running battle of sorts engulfs the street. The image on-screen then changes showing, in chronological order: a few clips showing the destroyed remains of several buildings in an unspecified city, with the streets being eerily devoid of people, a few video clips that seem to showcase a military exercise, which is taking place in what seems to be a replica of an urban-type environment that was built in the middle of a rain-forest, which occurs during a massive downpour (the men and women taking part in the drill are all dressed in military combat attire with a woodland camouflage pattern, with each soldier carrying what seems to be a full combat loadout), a few video clips showing a man who seems to be in his early-70s in various political rallies and smaller meetings with various peoples, then a video of that man during what appears to be an interview of some sort, then an clip of that same man during a rally just as his bodyguards notice something suspicious and restrain a man just as he pulls out what seems to be a pistol, before the series of images end with another mass protest in a city.
Carl: The video you're watching now came from a person in the city of San Francisco who got a firsthand view of a clash between a group of violent protesters and the San Francisco Knightpolice Riot Control Unit during the riot that broke out in that city the day after the special report about the Pureblood's scheme aired on this station. This riot lasted three days and is projected to be one of the most devastating in terms of casualties and property damage, at least within Britannia itself, surpassed only by the ones in Boston and Caracas. By the time the last of the violence on the streets ended with the "pacification" of Boston just yesterday, hundreds of people were arrested, most of whom were released soon afterwards, an estimated 2,000 people on all sides were injured, though that number is projected to rise in the following few days, and at least 108 people have been confirmed dead at time of this report, many of them demonstrators and those attacked for their ties to the Purebloods. In addition, the cost of damages resulting from the riots has been projected by several experts to reach no less than 106 billion pounds, the most damage caused by riots since the 1970s; much of that price of fell upon the various noble families with ties to the Purebloods whose properties were a prime target the rioters alongside the families themselves. Due to the chaos and the destruction of any credible evidence, no charges have been filed against anyone involved.
This series of nationwide riots, while only the latest to rock Britannia since the 1916 Imperial coup, belies a growing tension between the Imperial regime headed by Emperor Charles zi Britannia and a increasingly hostile SSDL. While the SSDL has long been active in its opposition to the Imperial government for decades, even having a paramilitary force, the Continental Armed Forces, that has had confrontations with the Britannian military from time to time since it was formed in 1952, that opposition has ballooned in its transparency and hostility, in both rhetoric and action, in the past seven years. The current escalation of tensions began with the election of then-65 year-old Bernie Sanders, a longtime political activist from the New England Sector, to the position of Chairman of the SSDL's National Council, the effective leadership of the SSDL, in 2010, a position he currently holds after winning re-election in 2015. Mr. Sanders, who is seen as the most staunch opponent of the Imperial government to lead the SSDL to date, has, along with fellow leaders of the SSDL, both current and former, taken a much harder stance against the Imperial regime since he was first voted into power which, in turn, has led to far more incidents of violence between the Imperial government and the people, especially after a failed assassination attempt was made on Sanders' life in 2011. Though the people behind the attempt claim to have no ties to the Imperial government in Pendragon, the SSDL leadership, and indeed the majority of the populace, are convinced that the mastermind behind the attempt on Sanders' life was none other than Emperor Charles himself. Now, as the events of the past several days show, that distrust and hostility between the leaders of the Empire and its own subjects are beginning to manifest in what many people see as the beginnings of a civil war, a war within Britannia whose trigger, as the Blue Incident shows, might very well come from without.
The image on screen shifts back to the image of both Brokaw and Carl Stern first shown when Carl was introduced as he speaks.
Carl: I've spoken with quite a few people within the SSDL who came to the event and to people not directly affiliated with the group who still came to partake in the rally. All of them agree that the Blue Incident is a troubling revelation and that, if it points to crimes far worse committed by the military and the government, than they must act to finally bring them back under control and to punish those responsible. Even so, however, quite a few are worried about what acting might mean and say they see storm clouds ahead for Britannia. Between the setbacks in the war with the EU since the rise of the Progressive Party to power there in 2014, the rise of more dangerous rebels like Zero leading a more spirited resistance in Britannians territories in the Western Pacific, and a growing alarm over what many see as the abuses of power within the Britannian government and military, they see the events of the past few days are sign of things to come. At this point many of them believe this isn't like all the previous waves of riots and are bracing themselves for the worst-case scenario, a showdown between SSDL and the Imperial regime that many see as coming sooner or later and that will lead to tragedy no matter how it ends. Tom.
The image of the two men changes to just the image of Tom Brokaw at the news set right when he begins to speak again.
Brokaw: Thank you, Carl. Now, joining us from Montgomery, Gulf Coast Sector is SSDL Councilman Bill Baxley. Baxley, one of 50 people who represent the Homeland in the National Council, was at the meeting...
[This part of the broadcast's transcript is omitted. This excerpt from the transcript jumps forward to the aforementioned interview.]
7:46 AM EST (Britannia)
and/or
8:46 PM JST (Area 11/Japan)
After the screen fades to black after the end of a commercial break, it flashes with the image of Tom Brokaw similar to the one shown after the program intro at the beginning of the broadcast but with the box at the upper-hand corner containing a different image. Said image is that of a upper part of the side profile of a teenage girl with long pink hair. Said hair flows behind her as if blowing in the wind as, strangely enough, the ends of her hair gradually changes into flames which that take the form of the Japanese Home Islands as if they were made of fire. Underneath this image, the words "The Royal and the Rebellion" can be seen.
Brokaw: Area 11, or Japan as it is still known by most people, is considered by many to be the most dangerous place in the world. Between a seven year-long guerrilla war pitting the Britannian military against Japanese resistance fighters, a black market enterprise purportedly worth £300 billion, including a multi-billion pound illegal trade in the drug Refrain that fuels a nationwide drug epidemic, and the rampant corruption and allegations of human right violations during the disastrous seven-year reign of Prince Clovis la Britannia as Viceroy of the island nation, it is small wonder that many consider it the murder and terror capital of the world. Now, with the death of Clovis, the aftermath of the Blue Incident, the rise of the masked rebel known only as Zero, as well as rumors of the resistance to Britannian rule stiffening by the day, many experts fear the situation will only further deteriorate for the foreseeable future.
It is into this quagmire that Cornelia li Britannia, 2nd Princess of the Imperial Family, 4th in line to ascend the Imperial Throne, and Chief General of the Imperial Army, is diving into as the new Viceroy of Area 11. Joining Cornelia is her younger sister and the Third Princess of the Imperial Family, now 5th in line to ascend the Imperial Throne with the death of Prince Clovis, Euphemia li Britannia, who has been assigned to the region as the new Sub-Viceroy of Area 11. Euphemia, who has publicly condemned Emperor Charles for his policies ever since her public career began a few years ago and has voiced her support for a restoration of the Britannian Parliament and for the limiting of the monarchy's power, is the only member of the Imperial Family with a positive public approval rating according to BBC opinion polls, with the latest poll showing her with a 86% approval rating among the general public in Britannia, compared to Schneizel el Britannia who polls at a distant second with a 43% approval rating or Emperor Charles who has a dismal 3% approval rating, the lowest of any member of the royal family. Euphemia is also the only member of royal family who has positive relations with the leadership of the SSDL, having meet with a few members of National Council, including Chairmen Sanders, on several occasions. Having just left the embattled region of Occupied Russia, she and her elder sister must now try to pacify an occupied Japan sliding further and further into chaos. Today, with the first few days on the job behind her, Princess Euphemia has agreed to hold this exclusive interview with the BBC on the state of affairs in this volatile region of the world. This is her third interview with the BBC and the first one to take place on Good Morning, Britannia!, the previous two interviews being conducted by Walter Cronkite on the BBC Evening News.
The image on-screen changes to an image of two people, with the screen once again split vertically down the middle. As was the case earlier in the program, Brokaw is on the left side of the screen, the anchorman's image again zoomed in to greater prominence. This time, however, the person on the right side of the screen is the pink-haired girl in the image box moments ago, wearing a pink and white dress, standing inside what appears to be a large and ornate conference room. After this new image appears on-screen, Brokaw begins speaking.
Brokaw: Now, joining us live from the Area 11 Administration Building in Tokyo to begin this interview, is Princess Euphemia li Britannia. Good morning to you, your highness; how are you today?
At this point, Euphemia speaks, beginning the interview proper.
Euphemia: Good morning to you as well, Mr. Brokaw, although I should be saying good evening since it's a quarter to 10:00 PM where I'm standing. I'm doing well, all things considered. What about you?
Brokaw: I'm well, thank you. Now, before we get into the issues in Japan, I wanted to ask you about the media blackout. For those unaware of what I'm talking about, there was a media blackout in Area 11 ordered by Princess Cornelia starting at night on October 4th, only hours after she officially became Viceroy. Because of this, there was almost no information on what was going on in Area 11 in the time the blackout was implemented. This was the same day as the one when we made our report on the leaked documents regarding the actions of the Pureblood faction right before the Blue Incident. That blackout, which left us without any idea of what was going on in Area 11, was only lifted just yesterday; could you explain what was going on?
Euphemia: Well, Mr. Brokaw, I can't really go into too much detail with what happened but I can give a basic summation. Aside from trying to keep the leadership transition process secretive, and hopefully keep things going as smooth as possible, you are correct about that report on your channel being a prime consideration. After the truth about the Pureblood's scheme was revealed, the reactions among the Japanese was, at first, about as bad as you could imagine, which is to say that is was even worse than it was in the homeland and, from what I saw in your report just now and from messages from family back home, it was bad enough in Britannia. My sister came very close to ordering a crackdown on the rioters until, just a day after the blackout was ordered, Zero was able to air a recorded message of his asking the people to calm down and, to the surprise of everyone, they did indeed calm down and the riots ended almost immediately. This surprise, thankfully, eliminated the need for a crackdown, though it was-
Brokaw interrupts Euphemia mid-sentence.
Brokaw: Hold on, your highness, I need to stop you right there; my apologies for that. You said Zero aired a message? How was he able to do so during the blackout? And was he that persuasive?
Euphemia, after stopping mid-sentence, speaks again.
Euphemia: Apology accepted. As for your questions, we know that Zero didn't use any official government channels to air his message and, in fact, hacked into Hi-TV's communication systems before we could implement the blackout, since it took a while to do so for reasons I am not allowed to disclose here. We were able to prevent the broadcast from leaving Area 11 but, by the time we fully shut down that broadcast, it had already aired across all of Japan. And, yes, it seems he is very charismatic, enough to stop a nation from tearing itself apart, though I suspect he did so partly out of suspicion of, or perhaps full knowledge of, the fact that Cornelia would act to quell the riots in her way. I'm not saying my sister would do anything remotely on the level of Clovis or, God forbid, our father but she would do what she felt was necessary.
Brokaw: Well, thankfully it seems such a tragedy was averted. Now, to those watching this, we will get to the topic of Zero in this interview soon enough but first, there have been some questions regarding the situation on the ground in Japan that a lot of people have also been asking throughout Britannia. On that note, Princess, you are undoubtedly aware of all the rumors regarding Clovis' administration have been floating around for several years, with many accusations of rampant corruption, atrocities, and other such horrors being committed during his reign as Viceroy of this so-called Area 11. Is that assumption correct?
Euphemia: Yes, I am sadly aware of many of the things said about brother Clovis. And, as much as it pains me to admit it, most of those accusations weren't completely off the mark. If anything, those accusations aren't as bad as the actual situation.
Brokaw: I see. Well, in spite of his many failures, Clovis was able to prevent any deep investigation into the inner workings of his administration for the most part, with much of what we can confirm being a result of a lucky leak to this channel or from a mistake on the part of officials in the area. While not wanting to force you to speak ill of your own brother, how much of what was going on in that administration can you tell us about?
Euphemia: I appreciate your consideration. That said, I do think everyone should know what was going on, so far as what I can tell. The problem is... well, it's hard to know where I'd start. Even with the limitations placed on me by the Viceroy on what I can say in this interview, the list of things he did is so long that we would be here all month if I listed everything, so I'll have to summarize quite a bit. I guess I can start with the corruption since that's what I've been working on the most for the past few days, if that's alright with you.
Brokaw: Whatever works for you, Your Highness.
Euphemia: Well, to give you an idea of what I'm dealing with in terms of the corruption alone, I have started compiling a list of those in Area 11 who have partaken in all forms of misdeeds, everything from bribery, to manufacturers supplies for the government and military on the cheap and to pathetic standards that violated both the contracts they made and any and all regulations on the quality of such goods, to pilfering money and material from the government's coffers, to extortion, to using falsified evidence to convict innocent people of crimes they didn't commit, just like in the Blue Incident, improper sentencing of convicted criminals, to even government officials, including members of the Knightpolice, participating in various criminal enterprises such as the various cartels dealing in Refrain, just to name only some of the things I've come across. The number of these various offenders on that list so far has reached over 100,000 people within the Greater Tokyo Area alone and even that list is incomplete since I have more than half of the government agencies with Greater Tokyo that I have to look over along with all private companies with heavy ties to the prior administration that I have not yet looked at, and the list of pending lawsuits that I'll soon be pressing is about twice as long as the list of criminal offenders and is about as incomplete as that first list. Needless to say, the jails in Area 11 will soon be overcrowded at the very best, once we clean out the prison system alongside everything else. Those people arrested in the meantime will have to be placed under guard by members of the Viceroy's personal forces since neither myself nor the Viceroy can trust the criminal justice system in Area 11 to do their jobs for now.
Brokaw: That is actually much more severe than I and a lot of other people were expecting. It sounds to me as though the administration is in a state of crisis.
Euphemia: You aren't wrong about that, Mr. Brokaw. The situation is pretty bad, the worst I've seen in fact, and it's safe to say the full scope of the mess will be even worse than what I have seen once I'm done with my investigations, if I can even reach that end at all. And this is without even mentioning the issue of the drug epidemic revolving around the drug Refrain that plagues this Area like the Black Death.
Brokaw: Indeed. Speaking of which, what can you tell us about what the Area 11 Administration is doing to deal with the problem?
Euphemia: Oh dear, where do I even begin with that nightmare? Well, to be honest, I presented a plan to deal with that crisis to the Viceroy and other government shortly before this interview. The plan I have put forth for dealing with that issue involves several changes starting with, among other things, tallying about the number of those addicted, the full scope of the black market for Refrain, shutting down and said markets, and cleaning up the drug-related corruption along with the other corrupt elements of the government and military I mentioned earlier. A lot of the hardliners who managed to avoid all the corruption who are still part of the administration opposed the part of the plan detailing how we will deal with those who have fallen into Refrain addiction from, which I intend to shift from incarceration to treatment, with punishment limited to only probation unless the person in question has committed a violent drug. A lot of the hardliners didn't like my more compassionate stance towards, in one of their words, "those yellow Eleven dogs" and how I would spend resources for their sake. Upon hearing this I managed to keep my swelling anger in check and managed to politely convince them otherwise, and my plan was approved in full despite concerns from the Viceroy who approved the plan regardless.
Brokaw: And how did you convince those hardliners?
Euphemia: Let's just say I reminded them of my connections to the SSDL and that some of their members have been, shall we say, unkind in dealing with supporters of my father and his regime for any transgression, even those that are far less severe than this, especially in places with an unusually stronger-than-normal SSDL presence, which is present everywhere to begin with...the same kind of places that are in constant need of new government officials due to high turnover of officials who either resign shortly thereafter or who meet untimely fates whenever the people in those areas get angry enough for a riot. For some reason, not only did these hardliners avoid raising any further objections to my proposal once the Viceroy gave it her official approval, but they stayed unusually quiet for the rest of the meeting after that warning. (in a tone of faux confusion) The strange thing is that I can't imagine why they did that...
Brokaw: I can't either, Your Highness. Anyways, going back to your plan for dealing with the Refrain epidemic, how is the implementation of that plan going?
Euphemia: It could be going better. Aside from the hardliners and the mountain's worth of corruption being very disruptive to the my efforts, we're going to have to take into account the fact that I'm not the only one going after these drug dealers. Of all the places targeted by the various groups of Japanese resistance fighters, Refrain dens and manufacturing centers are their most frequent and hated targets. I've seen the reports of what happens to Britannia Refrain producers and dealers captured by the rebel groups and what they describe are... graphic, to say the least, and I really don't want to recall the reports describing what these rebels do to any Japanese dealers and producers they capture. That is all I wish to say about that matter.
Brokaw: Understood, Your Highness. Moving on, then, what can you tell us about the new administration's efforts against the resistance movement in Area 11?
Euphemia: I don't mean to offend you, Mr Brokaw, but you should already know the answer to that question. You have seen my two previous interviews with Mr. Cronkite, have you not?
Brokaw: No offense taken, Your Highness. And I have seen those interviews plenty of times. Regardless, I'm certain you know that as a journalist for the BBC, I am obligated to ask you regardless. Asking the questions the people want and need answered and getting those answers is why people trust us to give them the news, after all.
Euphemia: Point taken, Mr. Brokaw. I understand your position but, given that anything I say can put the lives of soldiers at risk if any Japanese rebel hears me, and since the Viceroy is the one who deals with military matters and made her thoughts very clear on the matter, I have to stay silent on any matters concerning military operations.
Brokaw: Very well. Can you say whether or not you are informed on the Viceroy's military operations?
Euphemia: I can, in fact. After the tragedy at Vladivostok in April of last year, where I and many people back home discovered how my sister dealt with similar crisis to those we're dealing with here, I had a very long very serious conversation with her about keeping such operations a secret from me. Little sister or not, I was the Sub Viceroy for Occupied Russia and, as is the case here, I have to be informed of all military operations not classified above Level 5, or those meant only for people ranked Viceroy or above to know, which she failed to do. I made it very clear that I would not tolerate this anymore and I managed to make her see things my way. So yes, I am informed of any and all military operation below Level 5, though I am not at liberty to discuss them.
Brokaw: Understood, Your Highness. Can you at least discuss the issue of the terrorist known as Zero? That topic is the last one we'll be discussing in this interview, and the one that many people, including our viewers, are most interested in learning more about.
Euphemia: I can... for what little any discussion of Zero is worth.
Brokaw: What do mean by that, Your Highness?
Euphemia: Well, to be perfectly honest, there's really not much I can say beyond what has been said on this channel and elsewhere. We know he made his public debut during the Blue Incident and is responsible for the rescue of Suz- I mean, Warrant Officer Kururugi and that, through an unknown follower of his, he provided your channel the documents exposing the Pureblood's abhorrent scheme which, by the way, they will definitely by held accountable for. We also know he's recently been coordinating a series of attacks by other resistance cells in Japan since that incident, that he seems to be in command of his own rebel cell, though I can't go into details on it due to matters of security, and that he managed to have that recorded message I mentioned earlier in this interview broadcasted to the people of Japan.
Brokaw: Alright... and what of his confession to the murder of your brother Clovis?
Euphemia: That's a bit complicated. As of this right now, Zero is our primary suspect ONLY on the basis of his confession, as it seems there is no concrete evidence tying him to the crime, and the fact that we have no other possible suspects at this time. We did have a small list of suspects prior to the Blue Incident but it was made by the Purebloods and, given all that was revealed in the past few days, it's safe to say the Purebloods didn't add names on that list that didn't advance their agenda. Of course, we checked those individuals and, suffice it to say, they were clearly not involved in Clovis' at all. As such, Zero is the only person of interest in the murder at this point, flimsy as the case against him actually is.
Brokaw: Alright then. Now for my final question for this interview, is there anything you've uncovered since your arrival to Japan that might point to the true identity of Zero himself?
Euphemia lets out a deep sigh before she responds.
Euphemia: If I actually had that kind of information, you and the rest of the world would've known about it by now regardless of security, and you and I both know this, Mr. Brokaw. Such as it is, we have nothing to suggest's what Zero's true identity might be. As it stands, he's just someone in a mask who we have to deal with; as for who is behind the mask... well... your guess is as good as anyone else's at this point in time. All I can say is that we can only hope the truth comes to light in good time.
Brokaw: We can only hope, indeed. Well, that's about all we had for this interview. Thank you for your time, Your Highness, and good luck with your new job.
Euphemia bows gracefully before speaking.
Euphemia: The pleasure is all mine, Mr. Brokaw, and thank you. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a mountain of godforsaken paperwork I have to work through. Until next time.
The image onscreen, once again, changes to just the image of Tom Brokaw at the news set right when he begins to speak again.
Brokaw: Ladies and gentlemen, that was Euphemia li Britannia, live in Tokyo, giving us her account on the situation in Japan. Stay tuned here on Good Morning, Britannia for, after the break, several of our analysts and outside experts in military and security affairs will join me to discuss their initial thoughts on everything we learned from the interview with the Princess.
The fades to black once more before flashing into the aforementioned commercial break...
[This final part of the broadcast's transcript is omitted.]
xxxx Transcript Ends xxxx
- Entry From Lelouch Lamperouge's/Lelouch vi Britannia's/Zero's Secret Journal
(Side Note: From this point on, I plan to just use Lelouch's first name on this heading whenever I write a journal entry from Lelouch)
Dated October 9th 2017 CE
xxxx Journal Entry Starts xxxx
Ashford Academy, Tokyo Settlement, Japan/Area 11
9:00 PM JST
After this journal entry, I am leaving the academy for a while and, given what is about to happen, there won't be another entry into this journal for a few days if all goes according to plan. Thankfully, Milly and Shirley agreed to stay with Nunnally. With Sayoko staying behind to watch over them, Nunnally is safe and she has friends to keep her company in my absence so I can leave the academy for a while without too much concern while attending to "personal business," as I called it. It isn't completely false, though, as I have a family reunion of sorts coming soon.
After all my preparations, it seems the time to confront my dear sister Cornelia is now at hand. Based on all the new intel I've received from my contacts within the Area 11's government and military, it would seem Cornelia is indeed preparing to attack and eliminate the Yamato Alliance, based in the Saitama Ghetto, in an attempt to lure out Zero. Furthermore, the intel from my sources on her battle plan seems to confirm the reports I received a few days ago: Cornelia assumes that I, as Zero, will try to go after her the same way I went after Clovis in Shinjuku and is seemingly setting up her trap to lure me in accordingly, minus the near-massacre part as she (thankfully) went out of her own to try and make sure that the civilians in Saitama had plenty of time to evacuate Saitama before going in (though I suspect that Euphie had a hand in that decision as well, if what happened during and after that incident in Vladivostok last year is any indication). She even went so far as to include an "unguarded convoy" of Knightmares rigged to blow up once we take them so as to create chaos among our forces. That she's made sure the Knightmares in that convoy are all Gloucesters, with weapons, ammo, and spare parts to match, is further proof, for if that wasn't meant to lure me into that trap, I would think this to be an act of criminal negligence I would've expected from Clovis.
Frankly, I'm rather insulted by the fact that Cornelia assumes that I'm arrogant enough to try the same trick twice, especially against a foe like her. Even though she possesses the same level of arrogance as my dear brother(not!) Clovis passed down from the Emperor, that is the only shared trait between the two, as even a deaf-blindmute could tell that she is one of the most brilliant commanders in Britannia, surpassed only by Schneizel (and barring any of the commanders in the CAF as I know next to nothing about them). To assume that a trick that worked on Clovis would also work on my dear sister is indeed arrogance bordering on suicidal stupidity, of which I am obviously neither. Thankfully, a trap that the intended prey knows about in advance is no trap at all but is instead an opportunity for the prey to turn the tables on the hunter, turning them into the hunted, a lesson my dear sister will soon learn the hard way once I'm done with her.
Before returning to Ashford for the day, I managed to complete the final preparations for the coming battle after some coordination between the members of my rebel cell and the Yamato Alliance, who are performing much better than I initially expected thus far. From what intel I had gathered before my first meeting with them, they had been little more than a large group of glorified thugs, barely a step above organized bandits, since the loss of their first leader shortly after the group's formation had led to constant bloody leadership changes, though I had no intel on any such changes in the past two years. Thankfully, however, I arrived at Saitama a couple days ago to find a rather orderly group, albeit one that had less actual combat experience than I would have liked. It turns out that the few people with such experience in the group were among those in charge of the Yamato Alliance, including the head of their elected council, and effective leader of the Yamato Alliance, one Itami Youji, a now-28 year-old former captain of the Imperial Japanese Special Forces Group (IJSFG) who became a founding member of the Yamato Alliance (I'm curious as to why a man of his talents and position didn't join the JLF though that is, in his own words when I broached him on the subject, a story for another time). Apparently, in spite of his skills, he didn't bother to try taking charge of the group for the first five years, despite his skillset, even when he had been a member of its council of leaders all that time. Apparently a combination of his own very laid-back attitude and the hope that someone else would succeed in fixing the group meant he refused to take charge until, eventually, his patience had finally worn out and finally took charge of the group, winning the election to become head of their leading council two years ago. After another year of successfully putting down several plots to overthrow him by more unscrupulous members of the Alliance, forcefully expelling the remaining unscrupulous members of the Alliance not executed after those failed plots, and managing to add a couple of members from his own faction in the Alliance, consisting of members of the IJSFG unit he commanded before the fall of Japan, not only with the Alliance while elevating two of them to positions within their council, he had managed to secure his position as leader of the Yamato Alliance. He then spent the last year recruiting and training the Yamato Alliance to make them a real fighting force, keeping them off the grid so to speak (hence the lack of recent intel on the group) and, seeing how much progress he's made in time, he'd have made an effective fighting force out of them soon enough once he improved their cohesion and allowed them to gain enough combat experience.
Such as it is, though, they'll do well enough for what I have in mind for the approaching battle. Once that fight is over, and Cornelia finally tastes the bitter pill of defeat, I'm sure the more skeptical members of the Yamato Alliance (of which there are several, even among Itami's faction within the group) will finally be convinced to join me and the members of Ohgi's former cell to form a new army to fight against the Britannians, after which there will be plenty of time to finish the work Captain Youji started...
For now, though, I must rest for a little while. For tomorrow, all the conditions will be met for the next step in my plan for Britannia's destruction and the new world I will create. And then, I will make sure the Emperor pays for what he did to my, Nunnally, and to the world... in due time...
- Lelouch vi Britannia, October 9, 2017 CE
xxxx Journal Entry Ends xxxx
Next Time - Stage 1: A Falling Fox
A/N: Assuming that I manage to upload this before Hurricane Irma hits (I live in South Florida and it's coming very soon) I ask for your thoughts and prayers for me and the rest of the people in the area as this new calamity approaches. While I'm sure we'll make it through ok, I'll more than likely be out of touch for a while given the circumstances so, until then, this is Rocker1600, signing out.