Co-Written with Demons Anarchy of Pride, the author of many great stories such as Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion R-eset, Code Geass: Miraculous Birthday, Code Geass: Lucian of the Paradox, Infinite Stratos: For Answer, Devil Survivor: Destiny Rewind, Code Geass: Suzaku of the Counterattack, RWBY's Reaper, TOKYO GHOUL: Requiem for a Demon, Tokyo Ghoul: Black Dove, Fractured Reality, Those that Defy Fate, Tokyo Ghoul DxD, Other Self Online, Code SURVIVOR, and many, many more!
I highly recommend all his stories!
I am truly grateful for his help in making this story possible! You are the best man!
And now…..we give you…The next chapter!
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Chapter 2: The Rise of Demons
The girl emerged from the capsule, her long lime-green hair flowing elegantly in all directions. Her features as fragile and graceful like a dolls. Her attired was a white straight jacket, part of reached to cover up her nose and mouth.
As the glow from the canister died, the bubble that contained the girl had popped, the liquid dribbling off her slender frame. She opened her eyes briefly, revealing them to be yellow like butter.
"That's..." Victor's eyes widened briefly, the gears in his head beginning to turn. This woman... she felt so familiar... but... why was that?
Once the light died down, the woman's eyes closed once more, her body becoming limp.
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"Kallen, you alright?"
"Yeah, I was able to escape in all of the confusion. I'm sorry, but I lost the communicator back in the truck."
"Well, don't worry about that, at least the Glasgow's circuits are usable."
"Yeah. Anyway, I think it's poison gas, like intel said."
"And Nagata?"
"I don't know. I think he escaped underground."
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"Hey, so tell me, Suzaku..." Lelouch said as he undid the bindings on the girl's outfit. "Poison gas? This girl?"
"I swear, I was just told what was in the briefing." Suzaku answered, just as confused as the rest of them as he undid the last of the bindings, releasing the zipper hold on the legs. "Victor-nii-san, how is he?"
"He'll need some blood, but other than that, he will be fine." Victor answered, tending to the man's injuries. "It looks like what hit him was a bullet, likely from a Knightmare rifle."
"You can tell?" the Eleven youth asked, surprised as he looked at the green-eyed older Lamperouge. Lelouch chuckled slightly at this. "I forgot, you don't know. Victor knows quite a bit about Knightmares, mostly because of mother."
"Darn right I do." Victor nodded with pride. "I really enjoyed the lessons she gave me. Knightmares are really interesting."
"Especially when you're fighting them, right?" Lelouch cracked a grin.
"You know me so well, little bro."
"Then, you know how to pilot one?" Suzaku asked him curiously. Victor nodded, smiling a bit. "I've only piloted a Glasgow, but I know my way around them."
Just then, the group was encased in light, forcing them to shield their eyes. "Stinking monkey!" Victor narrowed his eyes, seeing several figures in military outfits standing in front of them, all of them holding a gun. "Being an Honorary Britannian will not excuse you!"
"Um, but sir!" Suzaku ran up to his superior. "I was told this was poison gas..."
"How dare you question orders!" The blue haired commander barked angrily.
'This is bad...' Lelouch thought, his eyes shone of slight anxiety. '...poised in a situation...that would pose a threat to Suzaku's superiors if it's unleashed...'
'Dammit! Why did they have to find us...?' Victor mentally growled. He then looked to the Japanese man they were tending to, then to the girl. '...this is a hazardous situation.'
"However..." The commander continued. "...in light of your outstanding military achievements I'm going to be lenient." He brought out a gun from behind him and held it by the barrel out to Suzaku. "Private Kururugi, take this and execute the terrorist."
Victor and Lelouch's eyes widened in sync, while the man was beginning to stir awake. "S-sir, they're just civilians who were caught up in this!" Suzaku tried to reason with the man, looking over at the injured man. "They had no idea he was-"
"Kill them, that's an order." the commander demanded. Suzaku visibly grimaced, looking back at them.
"Nrgh..." the man groaned, blinking drowsily as he looked up at the scene. "...What is...?"
"...No, I can't." Suzaku finally said, much to the surprise of Victor and Lelouch. "I won't do it. I will not shoot a civilian. Besides, sir, you can't execute a criminal without giving them a fair trial. That's why..." the brown-haired youth smiled, looking at the two people he considered to be his best friends. "I can't follow your orders."
"...Very well."
Shock and horror were too weak of words to describe Lelouch and Victor when the commander pressed the muzze of the gun at the soldier's back and pulled the trigger, a bang echoing through the area.
"SUZAKU!" Lelouch and Victor cried out. The browned haired teen fell forward limply, the other soldiers behind the commander training their guns on the siblings. The blue haired man held a grin of pure arrogance the whole time.
"Well Britannian schoolboys, not a good day to cut class! Collect the girl, after you've secured her, kill those two!" He ordered.
"Yes, my lord!" The soldiers responded.
Lelouch's mind was still frozen from seeing his best friend getting killed right before his eyes, while Victor's mind was a raging storm, cursing the man who killed his surrogate younger brother.
As all this occurred, the girl slowly opened her eyes.
The wounded man growled as he slipped his hand into his pocket. 'They would gun down even their own kind to hide their mistakes...' he thought bitterly as he took out what looked like a switch. "Death to... Britannia..." he muttered weakly. "Long live... Japan...!"
As soon as he pressed the button, the entire front portion of the truck exploded.
The soldiers shielded themselves from the blast, which was seen throughout the Ghetto as a large plume of smoke had risen.
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Play: Nevereverland
Artist: Nano
[Long ago, inside a distant memory,]
Victor, standing by himself, gazes into the empty night sky.
[There is a voice that says]
A light glows behind him, which makes him turn to see. His eyes widened upon seeing his past memories.
[Do you believe a world of happy endings?]
He sees one scene was where he led his life as Ludger. But it shatters. He turns to his memory of meeting Lara. But it shatters. He turns to the memory of his daughter Elle, as a baby with Lara. But it shatters. He sees himself killing his friends. It shatters.
[Even when the road seems long,]
His memory of sending Elle to the Prime Dimension. It shatters. His memory of being killed by Ludger. It shatters.
[Every breath you take will lead you closer to]
His memory as Victor vi Britannia, the Black Knight of Britannia, shatters. As the fragments clear, Victor looks onward to see his siblings and friends waiting for him. He smiles and runs toward them
[A special place within]
Victor, smiling in response, runs over to them.
[Your Nevereverland]
The joyful scene cracks straight down the middle.
As the music begins to play, the crack grows, and within the untouched areas, shows Victor and Lelouch in their respective outfits, slipping on their masks as shadowy figures appear behind them. The screen finally shatters, and the title appears.
Fractured Existence
[I wake up]
A picture of the vi Britannia family sets ablaze, the flames spreading to the entire area.
[A siren keeps beating at my eardrums]
In the middle of the embers were two figures: Lelouch and Victor.
[I stifle this scream to death]
Their images become replaced by their second identities: Zero and Nemo respectively.
[Without knowing anything]
Standing behind them are the Black Knights, the core members all present while a few shadowed figures were amongst them.
[I hold on to only my heartbeat]
Both Zero and Nemo hold pictures of their true family: Nunnally, Lyoko, Sayoko, and Suzaku, but they were blown out of their hands.
[And fall into the trap of reality]
The scene shifts to Pendragon Imperial Palace. Shadowing it are Charles zi Britannia and four other figures, three male and one female.
[I won't regret]
The scene resumes with Lelouch, Victor, Lyoko, Nunnally, Suzaku, and a white haired boy having a cheerful time together eating dinner.
[I gaze at the piled up, torn apart picture of the future]
In a darkened room, a single ray of light shown down on a lone picture frame, a crack on the glass. A hand picks up the item. The image zooms out to show it to be Victor.
[I hold my breath]
Upon peering into the scene within the frame, Victor gasps in surprise.
[In my head]
A single tear cascades down his cheek.
[The hands of my rusted memories]
It shows Victor in a life already lost. One where he, Lara, Elle, Jude, Milla, Alvin, Leia, Rowen, Elize, Teepo, Gaius, and Muzet all stood together, smiles on their faces. However, the picture soon crumbles to dust.
[Turn]
Victor lets the sand slip through his fingers.
[Round and round]
He stands up, turns, and walks into the light shining behind him. In his shadow trailing behind him, was the outline of his fractured Chromatus form.
[As I close my eyes]
The scene transitions to a battlefield, with the Black Knights clashed with Britannian forces.
[There is no mark left behind, no noise spilling out, no destination]
The Guren Mk II, with Kallen piloting eradicates an opposing Knightmare with the Radiant Wave Surger. The Gekka Pre-porduction type, piloted by a boy with white hair, followed the same actions.
[I know that this is what I want, this is what I need]
Nemo, in his Knightmare, the Kresnik, cuts down two enemy Knightmares with its MVS dual blades before turning to shoot down another with its twin handguns.
[The afterimage that is repeating even now]
Suzaku, in the Lancelot, combats the opposing foes. Its swords clashing with those of the Kresnik's.
[We who have a wounded past]
The scene shifts to a split screen. Both Lamperouge brothers stood back to back, leaning against the wall that divided them. In Lelouch's hands is a Black pocket watch. In Victor's was a cracked Gold pocket watch.
[Are, without being healed]
Both brothers walked away, their shadows trailing behind them. They passed by mirrors, their reflections displaying their respective Revolutionary Personas. Behind those personas were Shadows that possessed some cog-like features.
[Already shutting away]
The two brothers met up once more with their precious siblings, Nunnally and Lyoko.
[Such uselessly revolving, unchanging days]
The four Lamperouge siblings, Suzaku, and a white haired teen were dragged by the Student Council for a group photo. Everyone was in the midst of playful banter, trying to stay still for their picture to be taken.
[So now]
Once everyone settled down, the timer on the camera fell to zero, creating a flash.
[This is what I desired]
The scene zoomed out, showing a picture-perfect memory screenshot of everyone smiling happily. Possessing no fear, no ill-will, just pure joy and peace.
[My Nevereverland]
The final scene shows the masks of Zero and Nemo lying on a desk. Next to Zero's mask is a cracked Black King Chess piece. Next to Nemo's mask is a gold pocket watch.
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Meanwhile in the G-1 Base...
"They got away?! And you call yourselves the Royal Guard?!" Bartley yelled into the communicator.
"Uh, forgive me my lord." The blue haired commander apologized from the other side. "The blast was mainly directed upwards but-"
"How the hell do you think I only told you people about this?!" Bartley interrupted.
"W-we'll continue the investigation." With that, the transmission ended.
"Hm...The plan has moved into the next phase..." Clovis mused from his throne.
"B-but you're Highness!" Bartley interjected, his eyes wide. As much as he disliked Elevens, he knew that something like that was just far too extreme. Human lives were valuable, after all. However, there was also another reason. If the Shinjuku Ghetto was destroyed beyond repair, then...!
"If anyone finds out about her, I'll be disinherited." Clovis said coldly as he stood up from his throne. "As Clovis la Britannia, third prince of the Empire, I command!" he swiped his arm in the air, his eyes blazing. "Destroy Shinjuku Gehtto! LEAVE NO ONE ALIVE!"
Upon this order, Several Sutherland Knightmares launched from the Royal Transport, with the sole purpose of carrying out their majesty's orders.
The people of the Ghettos screamed in terror as they fled from the oncoming threats. However, a man with a single leg was unable to react in time as a Sutherland appeared, immediately firing at any one in sight. The man didn't even have time to cry out as he was gunned down, his wooden crutch in splinters.
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"W-why are they doing this?!" An elderly man wondered in shock as he watched the helicopters fly by from the window of his home.
"Dear let's go!" His wife urged as she held their belongings in her arms. The husband immediately followed after her.
However, when they opened the door, they were greeted with gunfire, the walls, window, and table behind them were now splattered with blood.
"Okay, let's sweep the next floor." The soldier said to his companion as they finished the job.
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"The populace here are nothing but disgusting vermin who can't even become Honorary Britannians!" Bartley told the officers over the com-link. "Wipe out every last one of them!"
Among the soldiers piloting Knightmares was Jeremiah, who was overjoyed at the order, evident by the grin on his face. "Naturally..." he said, his golden eyes gleaming in pleasure.
"Supervisor Jeremiah, General Bartley requests that you handle Section 3..." one of the military advisers in the G-1 told him, only for Jeremiah to rebuke his statement, enjoying himself in the bloodshed.
"Bartley has staff officers!" the teal-haired man said arrogantly. "I haven't had this much fun on the front lines in ages!"
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Elsewhere, Lloyd groaned in disappointment. "Not there?" he whined, looking at a Knightmare painted white, hidden beneath a tarp. Cecile nodded, though she did not look as disappointed as her boss did. "It appears he's gone to the front lines."
"Ah, just our luck..." Lloyd sighed, twirling the Ignition Key of the Knightmare around his finger. "We steamrolled our way in, but we don't have a Devicer to use it."
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Back with the Lamperouge siblings, they were running through the Ghetto subway tunnels, the deafening sound of gunfire and explosions surrounding them. The girl ran along side them due to her free legs while Victor had the Japanese man's arm slung over his shoulder.
However, the girl tripped over a piece of rubble and fell. Victor tried to help her up but Lelouch remained.
"What the hell are you?!" He demanded. The girl opened her eyes to look at the boy, his hand pressed against his face, still unbelieving of what transpired. "This chaos is all your fault, isn't it?!...Not only that but Britannia has...Britannia killed Suzaku...!"
The girl did not react. Victor looked down in regret for not being able to help any of them. The Japanese man remained silent as he watched the Britannian boy.
Even though they reflected past events, they knew they should not remain for long. They continued their advance, Victor moving slowly so the man wouldn't resume bleeding again while Lelouch and the girl followed suit. They soon came across a stairway that led to the surface.
The younger Lamperouge sibling shot a look at his brother, who nodded. Victor carefully placed the man on the ground, propping him against the wall.
"Stay still, you shouldn't move a lot due to that wound." he told him.
"Why...is a Britannian like you helping me...? An Eleven Terrorist...?" The man questioned back.
"Would I need a reason to help someone in need? It doesn't matter if your an Eleven or whatever. You're human, just as much as we are."
"Also..." Victor said, looking the man straight in the eyes. "We of all people know... just what kind of Hell Britannia brings."
The man's eyes widened in shock. He had no reason to trust these people; after all they were Britannians, the same people who robbed him of his wife and daughter. However, he saw the same sort of sadness, the same sort of pain and anguish that everyone who suffered at the hands of Britannia had in his eyes.
"My name is Victor." the green-eyed Lamperouge said, introducing himself to the man. "This is my younger brother, Lelouch."
"...Nagata."
"Nagata," Victor asked, looking over at the woman. "Did you know that she was your cargo?"
"No, we didn't..." Nagata shook his head. "We thought... it was poison gas."
"Poison gas?" Lelouch frowned. "What were you going to do with it? Use it on the Britannians?"
Nagata chuckled mirthlessly before wincing in pain. "Oh, don't I wish... But, no... Our leader... Naoto... he said we should show the world what Britannia was really like... It was supposed to be an easy job..." Nagata visibly cringed, the grip on his arm tightening. "But... because of some idiot's screw up... Naoto..."
Victor's expression softened, understanding of this man's loss of a friend. "Take it easy Nagata..."
He placed a hand on his shoulder. "We'll go get help. Lelouch."
"Right." Lelouch then faced the girl. "You stay here." Both he and Victor proceed to crawl up the stairs remaining low to avoid detection. However, when they reached the top, they ducked into hiding once more.
A man in a suit was running nearby the stairway before he was shot and killed by the soldiers. On the staircase, both Lamperouge teens faced their companions and gave them a gesture of silence, telling them someone was above them.
"Report..." The same blue haired commander ordered on the surface.
"We found only Elevens here sir." The soldier responded.
The commander scowled, his eyes scouring the entire warehouse. "And you're sure? This is the entrance to the subway system?" he asked, to which he received a nod. "Very well, let's go."
Lelouch breathed a silent sigh of relief, about to move upwards with his older brother when they both froze, the high-pitched wailing echoing around the warehouse. "They wouldn't..." Victor heard Nagata say, his eyes wide in horror. "They wouldn't dare...!"
The cries were silenced with bullets. Lelouch looked at the soldiers, absolutely horrified by what he saw, while Victor's eyes were shut closed, his fists curled tightly. "Dammit..." he cursed while Nagata sobbed, tears running down his face.
Then, to their horror, a familiar ring echoed. Lelouch's eyes went wide, immediately snaking his hand into his pocket, and turning off his cell.
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Back at Ashford, Shirley looked at her phone, scowling fiercely. "That jerk hung up on me!" she hissed angrily. "I can't believe it! The nerve of him!"
Lyoko, on the other hand, was frowning, crossing her arms over her chest with a hand at her chin. 'This is strange... They should be back by now...'
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"You couldn't turn off your cell?!" Victor whispered harshly to his brother. That single call just signed them off to their deaths.
"Hey, it wasn't deliberate! How was I to know someone would call at a time like this?!" Lelouch quietly argued back.
"At least put it on vibrate!" But both siblings and the girl, who was right next to them, were pulled up by Britannian soldiers. Nagata was fortunately hidden by the shadows in the lower floor so he wasn't seen, but held his breath to avoid detection. Although, he couldn't help but feel guilty to see Victor, the man who went as far to treat his wounds, be captured as well. On the ground floor, the girl was held back by two of the soldiers as the rest held the two males by gunpoint after shoving them against the wall.
"What an appropriate location for terrorists to meet their end." The commander sneered at the two.
"You scum...!" Lelouch growled.
"Well, you did well for students, but that's to be expected. You two are Britannian after all." He continued.
"You bastards...!" Victor snarled. He was getting sick and tired of people saying that just because they were Britannian, they were superior in every way. It grated his nerves, this very idea of racial superiority. It doesn't matter the ethnicity of a person, or where they're from, or who they are, they are still human like everyone else, dammit!
"Unfortunately, my clever young friends..." The man aimed his gun at them. "You have no future."
Just as the man pulled the trigger, the woman ran in front of Lelouch, her arms stretched out. "They mustn't die!" she cried out before the bullet found itself in her head. Victor and Lelouch's eyes went wide with horror as she fell to the ground as nothing more but a lifeless heap, blood leaking out from the hole in her head. "Y-you shot her!" the younger Lamperouge said, horrified as he kneeled down.
The soldier shrugged his shoulders, unaffected by the loss. "Our orders were to bring her alive, if at all possible. How about this? We'll give the following report to our superiors: we tracked down the terrorist's hideout and killed them all. Unfortunately, the hostage had already been tortured to death. What do you think, school boys?"
'How can this be happening...?' Lelouch thought, mortified by the events that were quickly transpiring. 'I haven't had a chance to do a single thing with my life... and now... it's gone in a heartbeat... first Suzaku was killed... then this girl... and now, I'm going to be killed... and so is Victor... Nunnally...!'
'It... it can't end like this...!' Victor scowled, his fists trembling. Anger began to fill his body, rage burning in his eyes. Memories were flashing by, but he ignored them. The images were like what you would see on an old TV, fuzzy and out of focus. 'Power... if only I had power...!' Victor thought, not realizing the faint glow from his pocket watch. 'Power so strong that it could let me do anything... I don't give a damn what the risks are... if power is everything, then is being powerless nothing but a sin?! Power... Give me power!' The glow became brighter, and an image, clear and sharp, flowed in his mind. It showed an older version of him with a woman he had never seen before, holding a girl, no older than two.
They're names were... They're names were... They're names were...!
'Give me the power to DESTROY THE WORLD!'
The moment the dead woman's hand coiled around Lelouch's wrist, the glow engulfed Victor's entire being.
"Do you want power?"
Victor's body suddenly went rigid, his pupils dilating. The whole world around him seemed to come to a startling halt, the soldiers no longer moving, and the expressions frozen in their smug faces. He could hear a woman's voice, the woman that had jumped in front of her brother to save his life.
...No, that wasn't accurate. She saved Lelouch vi Britannia... the brother he had in this new life.
Victor's head throbbed as memories washed themselves into his mind like a torrential flood. He received mental visions of himself in a past life. Where he traveled with, fought alongside with, and forming close bonds with what he came to know as his friends. However, he also recalled the pain these visions brought. He had stained his hands in blood; the blood of his enemies, father, brother, and friends. He had committed these atrocities in order to ensure the safety of his own daughter. But it was not meant to last. One particular memory remained within his head, how he fought with the Real him before killing himself. Out of all this, he was able to recall the names of the two females from his vision.
'I... remember it now...Lara...Elle...' he thought as the woman continued on, though he could tell that she was speaking to someone else. Her hand was coiled around Lelouch's wrist, and his eyes were slowly fading from purple to red, sparks dancing around in his irises. "You appear to have a reason... a reason to live. I propose a contract. If you accept this power, you accept its conditions, and will live unlike any other human."
He knew what she was referring to. He recalled the Great Spirit C's words about this power, the absolute power that rivaled the Kresnik family's curse, the power to bring an end to a world. "You will live in a different providence, a different time... a different live. Be warned, Lelouch vi Britannia, for if you accept this Geass, the power of the King will forever sentence you to a life of solitude."
"Are you prepared for this?"
'No...' Victor's body seemed to glow brightly, though it glowed the brightest in his pocket... where he watch sat in wait for its master to call upon it. 'I won't... let the past repeat itself!'
When time resumed, the soldier's cocked their guns, but were surprised when they saw Victor standing before them. "Allow me to ask you all something..." Victor said, removing his pocket watch from his trousers. "If you were given the power to change the world, would you become a god, or a demon?"
The leader of the soldiers gave a condescending grin, and aimed his gun at Victor. "Isn't it obvious?" he asked smugly. "I would rule this world as a God!"
Victor smiled, and lifted his arms up. Lelouch stood up before him, his hand covering his left eye. He knew why. It was where the mark resided, the power to compel all to obey him without question, without consequence. "Wrong answer." he told them, the devil's grin forming as he gripped the pocket watch with both hands.
And then, in the blink of an eye, the soldiers witnessed something unbelievable. A blast of light encompassed their vision for a few seconds, but when it died down, there was only the student, a dark smile forming on his face. It was then that the captain realized that his brother was gone, and looked around.
His eyes widened. "W-w-w-w-w-what in the hell?!"
His subordinates all lay on the ground dead, and in the center of it all was Victor, except with changes. His arms were covered by black armor, reaching up to the forearms with cog-like protrusions on the elbows, and red lines glowing along the sides. Two red marks were found on his face, one on either side, and the yellow rings in his emerald eyes were glowing. In his hand was a double-sided spear stained with blood. "W-what are you...?!" the captain shouted, firing his gun.
Victor didn't even move, and with nothing but a quick swipe of the lance, the bullets were knocked away. The captain took a step back fearfully, hearing Lelouch's voice from behind him in a condescending tone of his own. "He's your better, Britannian." The captain turned to see Lelouch, his hand gone from his face. In his left eye was the avian symbol Victor had seen before, and with it, a grin befitting that of a devil. "Now, I, Lelouch vi Britannia, command you... Die."
The bird removed itself from Lelouch's eye, and dived into the captain's orbs. Red rings formed around them, and a psychotic grin formed on his lips. "Happily, your Highness!" he shouted aiming the gun to his jugular, and pulling the trigger.
He fell to the ground, blood leaking from his neck.
The two brothers looked at each other, standing in silence, but then matching grins formed, and spoke in unison.
"Well then..."
On this day, two demons were born, one stained with blood, bearing the power to destroy worlds, and another with the power to make all bow before him.
Zero Hour has arrived.
Victor dispelled the power he had called upon, a power he had not felt in over twenty years, and the spear and armor vanished along with the lines. "Looks like I wasn't the only one to receive a gift." Lelouch noted before looking at the dead woman. "But... why would she...?"
"H-hey..." Victor looked over to see Nagata carefully walking up the steps, holding his arm. "Are you..." he trailed off when he saw the corpses of the royal guard, his eyes large as he looked at the two of them. "...Do I even want to know how you killed the Royal Guard?"
"Probably not." Victor answered as he stepped over the corpses and looked at the woman. He kneeled down, and looked her over. 'So... this is C.C...' he thought, recalling her from the past that the Great Spirit showed him. 'I wonder... how could my memories have been restored? And, how was I able to use my Chromatus again? Moreover...' he looked at his hand, still carrying his golden pocket watch. 'Why is it here?'
"Victor?" Lelouch's voice brought him out of his thoughts, bringing him back to reality. "Is something wrong?" Victor shook his head, standing back up. "No, it's nothing." he told his new younger brother before looking at the still shocked Nagata. "How's your arm?"
"...Been better." Nagata said sheepishly. "Anyway, I think we should get out of here. I don't know about you guys, but I really don't want to be caught by soldiers around these guys." he tapped his foot against one of the bodies. Victor nodded in agreement.
However, just then, something smashed through the wall, causing smoke to enter the warehouse. "Hide!" Victor hissed. Nagata, startled, nodded and quickly hid behind one of the crates.
As the smoke subsided, the culprit was revealed to be a Sutherland. Its face opened up, green rings moving outward from the red dot in the center. From within the cockpit, a silver haired woman surveyed the area through the monitor within the Knightmare. Appearing on screen were the corpses of the soldiers, then it moved up to show the Lamperouge siblings.
"H-How could all these Royal Guards be dead?!" The woman questioned herself. Her attention was focused on the two on screen. The Sutherland's face closed as she activated the speaker. "What happened here you two? And why are Britannian Students are here in a place like this?" She interrogated. After receiving no response, she continued. "Are you Deaf?! Answer me or I'll-!"
"Tch..." Lelouch clicked his tongue in annoyance. An act not unnoticed by his brother.
This led to the woman to fire, the bullets forming holes in the wall around the boys.
"Answer me!"
Lelouch scoffed as he turned to the Sutherland, his left eye bearing an avian symbol. "I order you to come out... at once!" he ordered. The woman was stunned for a moment, momentarily amazed by the audacity this boy possessed.
For a moment, she felt as if she were looking at someone who was born and raised with power, but that amazement quickly faded into anger. "And just who the hell are you to order me?!" she shouted back.
Lelouch blinked, the mark vanishing, his face befuddled with confusion for a moment before the gears clicked in his head. 'I see... it can only be used with direct eye contact.' he thought, filing away that important piece of information about his power before he held up his hands. "My name is Alan Spacer, my father is a duke!" he said loudly enough for the woman to hear. "This is my bodyguard, Sebastian! My ID is in my breast pocket! Once you confirm who I am, I request your immediate protection."
Victor silently applauded his brother as the cockpit opened. "Nobility?" the woman muttered aloud, wondering what someone from such standing was doing here? Then again, if the Royal Guard was dead and around them, it was likely that they were protecting the boy. That alone told her that the boy's father must possess a fair amount of wealth. Surely, if she acted out the role she was being handed right now, she could achieve a high position easily! Once she placed her foot on the stirrup, she took out her pistol and aimed it at the two. "Don't move." she ordered them. "I'll verify you're ID."
Victor smirked as Lelouch allowed his newfound power to surface again, this time his purple eyes locked with the woman's golden ones. "Now, hand over that Knightmare." he commanded. The woman didn't realize what was happening as the bird flew out of Lelouch's left eye and dived into her own eyes, red rings forming around the irises.
"Understood." the woman said emotionlessly as she tossed the gun to Victor, and handed the Ignition Key over to Lelouch. "The code is..."
"W-what in the world...?" Victor looked over to see Nagata walking out of his hiding place, completely confused and in awe of what had just transpired. "Did he just... hypnotize her?" he asked, as if doubting his eyes, but Victor nodded.
"Come on, we're getting out of here." the reborn Kresnik said, nudging his head towards the Knightmare. Nagata snapped out of his daze and nodded, following Victor as he and Lelouch made their way to the Knightmare. As he passed the woman, he delivered a solid chop to the back of her neck, effectively knocking her out.
Once they were inside the Knightmare, they noticed one thing...
"...It's too cramped in here." Nagata noted. Lelouch was at the controls while Victor and Nagata were behind the seat, pressed against the walls.
"It's to be expected..." Victor shifted a bit to try and stretch his legs. "These things were built for only one person."
"Well, we should be able to find another soon enough." Lelouch reasoned as he started up the Sutherland. "Now let's go."
"Wait, shouldn't I drive?" Victor asked as he had the most experience out of the three of them in regards to Knightmares.
"Eh?" Lelouch asked, confused for a moment before realizing that they had an experienced pilot with them, and moved over.
"Let's see here..." Victor mumbled as he hopped into the seat. Because Lelouch was skinnier and smaller, Nagata had a bit more room to move around, and could allow his arm to rest easily. "Not much different from a Glasgow... Should be easy enough."
"Er, Victor..." Lelouch said, slightly worried as a thought came to him. "Are you sure you can pilot this thing? I mean, the last time you piloted a Knightmare was when you were twelve."
Nagata's eyes widened at this, and looked at Victor in astonishment. "You were learning how to pilot Knightmares when you were that young?" he asked, receiving a nod. The man grinned slightly. "In that case, you should meet Kallen. You two would get along just fine."
Victor chuckled before he slipped his hands around the controls, and smiled darkly. "Hold on, you two..." he warned. They were confused at first, but they soon realized what he meant as the Knightmare took off with a burst of speed, nearly knocking the two off balance.
"Lelouch, you should call Shirley back at Ashford." Victor advised. "We don't want to worry everyone." Lelouch nodded, and took out his phone. "Nagata, do you have any way of contacting your friends?"
"No." Nagata shook his head. "I left my communicator back at the truck."
"Communicator...?" Lelouch frowned before a smile came to his face, taking out the communicator he found in the lab coat that the woman discarded. Nagata's eyes widened, recognizing it, and took it from the boy's hands.
"How did you get this?" Nagata asked in complete shock, staring at Lelouch. "Wait, don't tell me you guys were..."
"Well, we were trying to help you guys out." Victor said as he controlled the Sutherland. He managed to blend in well with the military, mostly because of the training he received from his mother. "That is, until you started it up and we fell inside."
"And then the military came..." Lelouch sighed as he dialed in a few numbers. "At any rate, best contact your friends." Nagata nodded, and immediately went to work while Lelouch waited for Shirley to pick up the phone. "Ah, Shirley? Yeah, sorry, me and Victor kind of got held up. Hey, are you near the TV?"
"Huh?" Shirley asked on the other side, confused. "What for? ...Excuse me, can you change the channel?"
"The news."
"Let's see... Um... It says Shinjuku's being blocked off."
"Are they saying why?"
"Traffic restrictions."
"I see..."
"You're out gambling again, aren't you?" Shirley accused, much to Victor's amusement and Nagata raising an eyebrow, leaning over and whispering in the reborn Kresnik's ear. "What does she mean by gambling?"
"We were playing chess with a noble man, and when he refused to pay up..." Victor said, letting the information sink in. "I merely 'persuaded' him."
Nagata whistled. "Damn, remind me to never piss you off."
"Anyway, can you tell Lyoko and Nunnally we'll be home late tonight? Thanks." Lelouch said, not bothering to wait for an answer as he hung up, slipping the phone shut. "All set."
"You know...Shirley is just going to hound for an explanation Lelouch." Victor reminded as he made a sharp turn.
"I know that..." He sighed. "...But this is hardly the time for such conversation."
"So, you're both high school students?" Nagata asked.
Lelouch chuckled. "I am, but Victor isn't. He graduated last year, since he's two years older than me. I'm still a second year."
Victor gave off a sigh of relief. "At least I'm away from those damn fan girls. Milly made my life hell during my third year."
"I think it was her way of payback."
"For what?!" What did Victor do to deserve all of that?
Nagata couldn't help but smile. Seeing those two bicker and talk was like watching Naoto and Kallen mess around. He went back to work on the radio, and did a silent cheer as it cackled to life. "Yes! Kallen, you there?!"
"Nagata?! Is that you?!" the familiar voice of Kallen Kouzuki said in absolute shock. "Where are you?!"
"In a Sutherland! You wouldn't believe the crap I had to go through! Anyway, where are you?!"
"I've got two Sutherlands hounding my ass! One of them is the one from before!"
Lelouch frowned, his mind already in action as he leaned over and looked at the screen below the first one, showing all the IFF signals in Shinjuku. "Lelouch...?" Victor said, confused before he saw the look on Lelouch's face, and smiled as he continued driving.
"Nagata, tell your friend to head for the west entrance."
"What? Why?" He questioned, confused with the instruction.
"Just do it. I have a plan that will save your friends." Lelouch answered.
"You should trust him on this one, Nagata." Victor added, the Japanese man looked to him. "My brother is a tactical genius."
Seeing as there wasn't much of an option, Nagata nodded. He activated his communicator. "Kallen, head to the West Entrance."
"W-what? Why?" Kallen asked, confused until she felt her Glasgow shudder under bullet fire. "A-alright, fine! But, if this gets me killed...!" She sped up, ducking into the corner on the left and firing her slash harkens at the edge of the overpass, thus lifting the Glasgow up to the tracks. The land spinners were deployed, grinding against the rails. "Okay, now what?!"
"There's a train heading her way." Lelouch said, keeping his eyes on the screen. "Tell her to jump on it. Victor!"
"On it!" Victor nodded as he controlled the Sutherland, climbing up the building. Nagata's eyes widened when he saw a familiar red Knightmare making its way along the tracks, two Sutherlands with the same color scheme as the one they were in right now chasing after her. "Kallen, jump on the train, hurry!"
"Got it!" With a giant leap, the Glasgow jumped over the front car and unto the cargo holds. The first Sutherland stopped the train easily, the pilot smirking.
"Going that way, hm?" Jeremiah mused. "Well, if you insist..." he looked over his shoulder and at his comrade. "You there, go after the Glasgow!"
"Yes, my lord!" the soldier obeyed, about to leap after her.
Victor grinned as he fired the slash harkens, the anchors tearing off one of the arms and the head unit, causing the machine to go flying back and sliding off the tracks. "What the?!" Jeremiah gasped, eyes wide. "Shot by friendly fire?!" He looked over at the Sutherland, wondering if it confused the soldier for an enemy, but before he could utter a reply, the Sutherland opened fire. The storm of bullets took off one of the forearms, and destroyed a land spinner. "Oh my god... a terrorist?!"
Just as Jeremiah was about to fire back, he turned his head just in time to see the Glasgow charging straight at him. "Tch!" the teal-haired Margrave scowled as he ejected quickly, abandoning the Sutherland as the cockpit flew into the air and away from the battlefield.
Nagata breathed a sigh of relief. "Oh man, that was close..." he muttered before looking at the two. "I owe you guys. If I met Naoto on the other side early, he'd probably kill me for leaving Kallen out to dry."
"Don't mention it." Victor smiled as the Sutherland made its way down to the tracks, opening the cockpit. "Anyway, this is where we part ways. Tell your friends we'll contact them later. Oh, and take a look inside the train." the reborn Kresnik advised, grinning all the while. "Consider it a thank-you for trusting us."
"Yeah, got it." Nagata nodded, handing the communicator to Lelouch.
"Are you sure...?" Lelouch asked the man. Even though said he had a plan to help his friends, he didn't expect him to trust them so quickly.
"I am." Nagata nodded. "If what your brother said is true, then you will be able to help us. I may not have known you two for long, but your hatred from Britannia is true. I may be in over my head on this, but I'm trusting you guys in this one."
Lelouch stared at the communicator before voicing his answer. "...We won't let you down."
"Just be careful out there. You still need medical attention for that wound." Victor advised.
Nagata nodded as he exited the cockpit, allowing Victor to slide it closed. The man carefully made his way down the Knightmare before reaching ground level. It wasn't long before he met up with his friend. "Nagata!" Kallen said as the Glasgow kneeled and the cockpit opened. "Are you okay?!" she asked, leaping out of her Knightmare and running over to him. "Wait, were you the one piloting that Sutherland?!"
"No..." Nagata shook his head as he and Kallen watched Victor and Lelouch leap back into the building, diving further into the ghetto. "I met two Britannians who helped me out... They're an odd bunch, that's for sure." Despite himself, he smiled. "If it weren't for them, I'd be dead right now."
"Wait, let me get this straight...Two Britannians actually HELPED you?" She gawked. Never in her life she'd thought Britannians, of all people, to be the one to save her friend.
"I know...But I have to say, they're not like most Britannians. I saw it in their eyes." He looked at his friend directly in the eye. "I could see the flames of hate that they possessed for Britannia."
Kallen was shocked, her eyes wide. She never thought she would see the day when she would hear about britannians hating Britannia. Then again, she counted, if only by half.
"Kallen!" The two members of the Resistence turned to see a man wearing a brown jacket and the same red headband that Kallen had running up to them. "And Nagata! You're okay!" Kaname Ohgi breathed in relief.
"Yeah, thanks to the guys who saved Kallen." Nagata said, scratching the back of his head before wincing. "Gah... shit."
"Dude, the hell happened to you?!" a man with red hair and stubble along his chin asked, his eyes wide. "You look like hell!"
"Been better..." Nagata said, ignoring the pain before glaring at Tamaki. "And the only reason I'm like this is because of your screw up!"
"What was that?!" Tamaki shouted back indignantly, getting within the man's personal space.
"If it weren't for you, Naoto would be...!" Nagata seethed, ready to punch him until he felt a hand at his shoulder. Turning, he saw Kallen. "Nagata..." she said, a look of sadness in her eyes. That was when Nagata understood. Even if he took out his rage on Tamaki, it wouldn't bring Naoto back. Scowling, he looked away.
Ohgi, a bit off-put by the tension, coughed into the ball of his hand and looked at Nagata. "Well, you're okay, and that's all that matters. Anyway, what about that package?"
"That's the thing, Ohgi..." Nagata said, his face deadly serious. "...It wasn't poison gas."
"W-what...?!" This caused everyone else to be shocked. Nagata then explained what happened, that the capsule contained to be a girl rather then chemical weapons.
"If what we stole wasn't poison gas then..." Kallen's expression shifted to one of rage and lashed her fist against the Glasgow's leg. "...Just what were we even doing all this time?!"
Ohgi placed a hand on the girl's shoulders in a gesture to calm her down. It took some time, but Kallen finally settled down. "Nagata." He then faced the wounded man. "Something else happened down there, didn't it...?"
The man in question sighed. "Yeah...I was badly wounded from the incident. It was strange but...two Britannians saved my life. Even when we were hunted by the Royal Guard, we made it out alive...but..."
"Wait, the Royal Guard was there?!" a woman with long hair gasped, eyes wide. Her name was Inoue, another member of the Resistance. "Just why was that girl so important?!"
"Damned if I know..." Nagata shook his head. "When we got out of the subway..." his breathing starting to become heavy, and tear stung his eyes. "The Royal Guard... They..."
Ohgi understood what he was getting at, and held his shoulder, making him stop. "You already lost your wife and daughter..." he said in sadness. "No need to remember another massacre."
Nagata nodded shakily, taking a deep breath before continuing. "...After that, I don't know what happened. They found the Britannians and were about to kill them, but the girl... the one we thought was Poison Gas... she jumped in front of them. She was shot in the head." Nagata balled his fists angrily. "They said they didn't care... Hah, I bet they didn't care that they got themselves killed."
"Wait, what?" Ohgi frowned. "What do you mean?"
"One of the Britannians, Victor I think his name was..." Nagata smiled. "He took them down, but... here's the weird part."
"Wait...ya saying this Victor guy took down the ROYAL GUARD?!" Tamaki gawked.
"Yeah, and will you let me finish?!" Nagata spoke angrily at the idiot. Kallen kicked the red haired man in the shin to shut him up.
"Anyway...the weird part about it was...he cut them all down. Judging by the corpses, I think he did so with a bladed weapon as the soldiers were sliced to pieces or stabbed through the vitals. But I didn't see a weapon on the guy." Nagata recalled the massacre of Britannian soldiers. He was still surprised that it was Victor who had done the act.
"Maybe he had a pair of hidden blades?" a young man with light blue hair suggested. His name was Sugiyama, Inoue's younger brother.
Nagata shook his head. "No, he didn't have any on them. But, there was one guy that was left... and this part makes no sense at all."
"Huh?" Tamaki frowned. "How do you mean? What? He killed himself or something?" Tamaki laughed at his own joke... but Nagata, to their surprise, nodded.
"Yeah... he was laughing as he put the gun to his neck and pulled the trigger."
"You serious man?!" The red haired idiot repeated. Nagata nodded once more for affirmation.
"Did the guy just go crazy from the other soldiers being killed so easily?" Sugiyama suggested.
"No...I don't think so..." The wounded man replied. "...That's what's strange...It was as if he voluntarily did it. He even said, "Happily your highness!" It was just so...freaky...!"
"..." All of them remained silent, unable to completely process what this means. However, Ohgi brought them all to attention.
"Nagata, you said that two Britannians helped you, do you know where they are now?" The man with the afro asked.
Nagata shook his head. "They just took off a while ago. They said that they would contact us. Also..." he looked over at the train. "He said to take a look inside the freight car."
"The freight car?" A man with glasses and short rugged hair, Minami, frowned as he looked at the cars. He took a pair of pliers from his tool belt, as was his job for repairing small objects in need of fixing, and snapped the chain. He and Sugiyama opened up, and to their shock, they saw a familiar mecha inside, accompanied by others. They were purple with a black torso, and carried red shoulder units.
"These are all..." Ohgi breathed before he looked at the other cars. "Everyone, open them up!"
They were did as they were told, snapping the chains and opening the freight car doors. Inside each box car were three Sutherlands, all armed to the teeth. "There's more in here!" Minami shouted near the front car.
"Here too!" Tamaki replied back near the end. Sugiyama whistled, laughing cheerfully. "I don't know about you guys, but, ah, I'm thinking we should give these Britannians a chance!" he looked at Ohgi. "I mean, they saved Nagata, so they can't be that bad."
Ohgi nodded in agreement before he heard his radio cackling. "I take it you're the leader of Nagata's group?" a familiar voice.
"That's..." Nagata searched his memory. "Victor's brother, Lelouch, I think his name was."
"Yeah." Ohgi responded. "Thank you for saving Nagata. Personally, I don't care if you and your friend are Britannians, you saved a good friend of ours, and that's enough for me."
"That, and he looks like he's good with strategies." Kallen opted. "I'm guessing that was him, right" she asked, looking at Nagata for confirmation. The man nodded. "Yeah. It was bloody brilliant."
"I trust you've seen the contents of the train?" Lelouch asked. Ohgi replied back, "Yeah. How did you get this many?"
"The Sutherland we stole belongs to the Purists." another voice, likely Victor, answered instead of Lelouch. "Luckily for us, it receives any and all messages from the G-1 Base. If you guys are up for it... want a little payback?"
Tamaki took the words out of Ohgi's mouth. "Oh hell yes!"
"Good. Now, woman with the Glasgow..." Lelouch took over, alerting Kallen.
"Y-yes?" She responded. She thought the voice to be familiar...maybe she heard it in school?
"Stay where you are. You're unit's gonna run decoy, you got that?"
"U-understood." The red haired girl nodded at her assigned role.
"Energy filler status?" Victor asked. If she is going to be the decoy, they couldn't risk the Knightmare deactivating from a lack of power.
"About fifteen minutes worth."
"Then recharge it. We'll be contacting you all again in ten minutes for your next instructions."
"Understood!"
Back in the Sutherland, Victor turned the communicator off and sighed along with his brother.
"This is pretty tiring..." Lelouch sighed.
"Well, it's a helluva lot different than chess." Victor told his brother, who chuckled in response.
"Heh, you've got a point." However, as soon as he said that, his smile vanished. "Nevertheless, determination is what will persevere for us."
"Amen." Victor grinned. "Guess it's time we get some payback for getting dragged into their fight."
"Funny." Lelouch mused. "You were quite eager to help them out."
"And so were you." Victor retorted before going back to what he was doing. "The Sutherlands in the train aren't equipped with an IFF Signal, which is both an advantage for us as well as a disadvantage for the enemy."
"True. In a way, it's like a double-edged sword." Lelouch noted before he caught something of interest on the ruined ground below them. It was a chess board, similar to the one he had used earlier in his match against the nobleman. "Say, Victor, can you open up the hatch for a second?"
Victor raised an eyebrow, but nodded and opened up the cockpit. Lelouch stepped down the Sutherland, picking up the pieces and the board. Victor smiled slightly, shaking his head before looking out into the ghetto. 'From here, we have a good vantage point of the entire battlefield.' he thought, his smile becoming a smirk. 'We have to deal with the enemy before we even think of getting to Clovis. Besides...' he looked down at his pocket watch, clutching it tightly. '...we have to win this.'
XXXXXXXXXX
Back at the G-1 Base...
"The Terrorists are mixed among the Eleven populace and are mounting a minor resistance against us." Bartley said as he gazed upon the map of the battlefield. "But they pose little threat to our vastly superior army..."
"We know that." Clovis said, openly pleased with the results. "Moving on."
"Understood your highness." Bartley bowed. "The gas capsules will be-"
"What the public thinks." Clovis interrupted.
"Yes. We'll keep searching for her."
"Either way..." Clovis pressed his fingers to his temple. "...I want her captured dead or alive."
XXXXXXXXX
"So, are we having a bad day?"
Suzaku's eyes snapped open, the voice bringing him awake back from his slumber. "Looks like you missed your chance to go to heaven, private Kururugi." Said Eleven looked to his side, seeing a young man wearing a white lab coat with a green arm band, a pair of thin-rimmed glasses sitting atop the bridge of his nose. Behind him was a young woman with chin-length dark blue hair, dressed in the casual tan colored military uniform, a similar armband around her bicep.
"W-where am I?" he asked, sitting up before wincing, looking down at himself. His shirt was gone, and had strips of cloth wrapped around his torso tightly.
The man grinned. "Still in the Shinjuku Ghetto, I'm afraid." he said. The woman stepped forward, holding something in a handkerchief. "We're right next to the G-1 Base." she informed him as she handed him the object in the cloth. "Right now, being near Prince Clovis is the safest place you could be. This is what saved your life, mister Kururugi."
Suzaku's eyes widened in shock when he recognized the object, being a pocket watch without a lid, the surface cracked. It was the same watch that was once owned by his father, which he inherited after his death. "You were lucky this was underneath your protective suit." the woman told him kindly as he took it. "Is it important to you?"
'No, it isn't.'
"Yes, very." he said as he gently took the watch from her, gazing into it. How ironic that it was a memento of his father that saved someone like him. Perhaps this was Genbu's way of torturing him from beyond the grave?
"You Elevens have a belief that gods exist in everything, right?" the man asked, chuckling. "I suppose this one-"
"Is Victor-nii-san and Lelou-"
Suzaku stopped himself. If the military learned that they were alive, what would happen? Would they be taken back to the palace? It was clear from Lelouch's anger that he did not want anything to do with Britannia. Truly, it saddened him to see his friend in such a state. Victor wasn't as harsh or unforgiving, if his looks were anything, in fact, he was one of the few people Suzaku had met that didn't care much for nationality or race or religion. He believed that there was no such thing as 'inequality'.
A Black Knight indeed.
"...What's the situation?" Suzaku rephrased his question.
"It looks like the poison gas was released." the man, Lloyd explained evenly. "Massive Eleven casualties have been reported." If only they knew the truth, that the reason behind those casualties was by the hand of the Britannian military. Suzaku already knew something was up as the capsule was not poison gas, but he kept silent.
"They haven't caught the perpetrators," the woman, Cecile added.
"They haven't, huh? Not yet-?"
"Private Kururugi..." Lloyd cut him off, catching him by surprise. "How much experience do you have in piloting a Knightmare Frame?"
"Wh-wha? But there's no way an Eleven would be made a Knight." Suzaku argued, but the eccentric scientist kept his grin on his face as he held up a key.
"Well...let's suppose if you could."
"W-well..." Suzaku scratched the back of his head nervously. "I had a little training in the simulator, but..."
"Really?" Cecile, asked curiously, tilting her head. "I've read your file. According to the reports, you had the top score out of everyone in your class."
His eyes widened. When the hell did she-
"CONGRATULATIONS!" Lloyd cheered loudly, causing the Eleven to jump back a bit. "You, my friend, have the luck of piloting the only Knightmare of its kind!" He practically tossed the key to Suzaku, who fumbled a bit with it before breathing a sigh, having managed to catch it perfectly as it jumped around in his hands. "Once you get inside that big beauty, everything will change, both you and your world!"
"Whether you want it too or not." Cecile added with a smile.
'Wait...was I even given a choice...?' Suzaku sweatdropped. But still, he couldn't help but to stare at the key he was given, the possibility of changing the world was in his hands.
XXXXXXXXXX
"Hey, you sure about this?"
Back at the ghetto, everyone was gearing up for battle. "I mean, they've all had their IFF's removed. What if this is a trap?" Tamaki asked worriedly. As much as he wanted to trust those two Britannians, he couldn't help but feel a little suspicious of them.
"The other side has total advantage in this war!" Nagata reminded as Inoue dressed his wounds. "They don't need to set any traps."
"Well yeah but..." Tamaki was still a bit uneasy.
"Tamaki...those two Britannians saved my life. They saved Kallen's as well. We may not know too much about them, but I'm willing to trust them on this."
"On that, we agree." Ohgi nodded. "Alright everyone, get into your assigned positions!"
Just then, the radio sparked. "Ohgi, you there?" Victor asked. "The Sutherlands should more or less perform the same as the Glasgows."
"Don't worry about that." Ohgi chuckled. "Naoto made sure to teach us the basics about the Knightmares!"
"Good." Victor smiled from the cockpit. He left Lelouch alone to his own devices inside the first Sutherland he stole while he operated another one separately. "Though, just in case these signals are being monitored, we'll refer to each other by code names. Ohgi will be K-1, and Kallen will be Q-1."
"Wait, aren't these chess positions?" Kallen wondered aloud before grinning to herself. "Guess that means that I'm the queen!"
"Tamaki will be P-5."
"Eh? P is..." Tamaki frowned before scowling. "I ain't no pawn dammit!"
"So, what will be calling you and your partner?" Ohgi asked curiously.
Victor paused for a bit. Lelouch had already provided them with codenames themselves, though he was a bit confused by their meaning. "My partner and I will be acting separately, so he will be the one leading the operation. I will be called Nemo, and he, Zero."
"Zero?" Nagata raised an eyebrow. "Nemo? Like, what, no one and nothing?"
"That's right." Lelouch took over. "Our code names represent how we shall fight with you. We will be the shadows that guide you all to victory while being part of the battle."
"Yes. We will be at your sides, fighting alongside you in combat, while being known as nothing to our enemies." Victor continued.
"Well said." Lelouch interrupted with a grin. "Now, the first mission starts."
"A-already?!" Tamaki fumbled around. Nagata sighed. 'Why did Naoto let this idiot join in the first place?' he wondered, but understood that, despite how a person acted, he accepted anyone that wanted to fight.
"Yes. Q-1, you will head to the designated point. Approximately thirty seconds afterwards, two enemy Sutherlands will approach. Shoot them through the wall."
"Right!" Ohgi nodded. "Everyone, double check your weapons! Get in position!"
"Roger!" Everyone complied, even Tamaki.
Kallen in her Glasgow stopped at the assigned point, letting the enemy spot her.
"Enemy spotted at point F-31!" A Soldier relayed the news.
XXXXXXXXXX
From the G-1 base, Clovis watched the positioning on the large screen with a calm smirk on his face. "A feint eh? How pedestrian."
XXXXXXXXXX
"Wait for it..." Ohgi breathed, sweat rolling down his hands. "Three... Two... One... NOW!"
Ohgi, Minami, Tamaki, Inoue, and Sugimiya pulled the triggers from their Knightmare frames, the bullets impacted the wall and cleared through the other side, hitting the enemy frames.
"Wh-what?!" The soldier cried as bullets rained down on him and his partner. Their Knightmares fell apart, each piece being blown off until they were no longer standing.
It wasn't much longer until both mechs exploded, neither soldier having the chance to eject.
XXXXXXXXXX
In the G-1 base, the loss of the units did not go unheeded. "W-what?" Clovis spluttered, shocked. "An ambush?"
He thought it was a fluke at first. Surely, Eleven trash wouldn't be able to stand against Britannia, especially when they were led by him, a member of the true elite. He was the third prince of Britannia, second to that of Schneizel. He was a brilliant painter, and while he didn't know much about war, he knew a thing or two about strategies.
And yet... the enemy did not stop advancing. If he countered with a tank, it would be blown apart by a cannon. If he placed snipers, they would be gunned down. If he planned an ambush, they would be torn to shreds by a Chaos Mine. Even the advancing forces were being obliterated.
And to make matters worse, there was a single Knightmare destroying his personal forces! "Could it be...?" he asked, almost frightened to hear the answer. "Have they gained access to our weaponry?!"
It didn't stop there; another Knightmare joined the charge, this one decimating enemy frames left and right. It's movement swift, its attack precise and deadly. In less than a minute, approximate a dozen knightmares were reduced to exploding metal. This caused everyone in the command room to be speechless.
"H-how..." Clovis stammered nervously. "How could a single Terrorist do so much damage?!"
XXXXXXXXXX
"Man...It's been so long since I fought like this." Victor grinned broadly. He fired off a slash harken at another enemy soldier, going straight through the main body.
"Damn, you seeing this?!" Tamaki shouted, unable to believe what he was seeing from his end. "That guy's tearing them up like they're freaking sand paper!"
'Oh, wow...' Kallen thought, standing in awe as she watched Victor, or Nemo as he was called for the time being, continue his advance.
Two Sutherlands tried to gun him down, but he evaded them with incredible ease, evading each storm of bullets with refine skills. "Shame it doesn't have any twin blades or a sledgehammer..." Victor pouted, sighing as he leaped over the two and knocked them off balance with his Stun Tonfas before ending them with his rifle. "Oh well."
'He's... incredible!' the red-haired half-breed thought in amazement, watching him with a look of reverence. "Zero, how long has Nemo been piloting?"
"Almost all of his life." Lelouch answered with a grin, practically giddy as he watched his older brother utterly annihilate Britannia like the scum that they were. "Ever since he was young, Nemo has been taught how to pilot Knightmares."
"Almost all of his life...?" Ohgi whispered, shocked before a thought came to him. 'Wait... I think I might have heard about this guy before...! There was talk about a Britannian prince who defied his country, right in front of the Emperor himself! They said he was already skilled enough to have defeated two of the Emperor's personal guards. Is that him? Is Nemo... the Black Knight of Britannia?'
"Ohgi!" Victor voiced.
"Y-yeah?!"
"You okay? You seemed to have spaced out." The elder Lamperouge rammed his stun tonfa into another enemy mech's head.
"Y-yeah. I'm fine. But Victor...can I ask you something?"
"Yeah?"
"Are you..." Ohgi started, but found himself unable to ask the question, resulting him in shaking his head. "No, it's nothing. Never mind."
"O...kay then...? If you say so..." Victor shrugged as he spun and dealt a spinning back kick to another enemy frame's body, causing the chest plate to crumple.
"Alright, Nemo, Q-1, continue your advancement up until the designated point then fan out. P-5, P-6, K-1, you are to back them up." Lelouch spoke into the communicator.
XXXXXXXXX
"Dammit all, change our codes!" Bartley growled in anger. "They're intercepting them!"
"W-we already have!" another commander aboard said, sweating profusely at the amount of damage that had already been done. "Four times already!"
"Well, do it again!"
Clovis gritted his teeth in absolute anger as he shot up from his throne. "This is unacceptable!" he shouted at them. Honestly, couldn't these dullards do anything right?! They should be performing better than this! After all, he chose them personally! Surely, they should have been able to handle these pests!
At that moment, the screen lit up, revealing the LAST person Bartley wanted to see right now. "Good morning everyone!" Lloyd said jovially. "Are we having a bad day?!"
"WHAT IS IT?!" Bartley screamed out of frustration and anger. "WE'RE IN THE MIDDLE OF SOMETHING HERE!"
"Oh, I can see that." Lloyd shrugged, his grin never fading as he pushed up his glasses. "Though, I do believe it's time to deploy the ASEEC's special weapon!"
"Why you..."
"Enough of this!" Clovis shouted as he stepped down from his throne. "Bring up Quincy Squad!"
"B-but my lord!" Bartley gasped in shock. Was his highness serious about this?! "That will break the encirclement!"
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"R-2, fire anchor." Lelouch instructed.
A slash harken tore through an enemy aircraft, causing it to explode.
"P-7, use UN Ordinates."
A Knightmare fired its rifle, destroying an enemy tank.
"N group you will continue your advance."
The N group charged in battle cries, decimating the opposing group.
"Filthy Eleven!" But it was too late as said soldier was gunned down.
"Dammit!" A fleeing soldier panicked. "Just what are they?!" However, when he turned to look ahead, he was too late. A Knightmare was already closing it with its Stun Tonfa brandished. In a flash, it tore the Soldier's mech in two with a powerful swing.
"Heh," Victor grinned. "I don't even need my Chromatus for this!"
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Back with Clovis...
"Reinforce the breach with some of units guarding me! All we know for certain is that enemy forces are here." Clovis ordered as he formed his strategy.
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The Knightmares of Clovis' guard followed his instructions. From nearby, Jeremiah looked on from behind a piece of rubble.
"Who told them to break formation...?" He wondered. But the better question was...who was piloting that Knightmare that was eradicating the Viceroy's forces? Jeremiah hadn't seen anything like it since...The Black Knight of Britannia...
'Is it possible...?' Jeremiah thought, hope beginning to embrace him. 'Could Lady Marianne's children be...?!'
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"Gather up all our forces!" Clovis barked his orders, tapping his finger at the center of the battlefield. "The enemy's base is that center dot! Finish them off!" he said, smirking. Now, at last, victory was assured.
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However, he didn't know that Lelouch was grinning like the devil himself. "Oh, that's a far more stupid move than I thought he'd do..." he muttered before he issued his next order. "Q-1, this will be the third mission. Do you have a map of the city?" he asked Kallen, though he received a slightly panicked response.
"Y-yeah, but it doesn't have any landmarks, since it's before the-"
"It will do." Lelouch told her. "Head to this point with P-5 and P-3. This will finish off all of Clovis' forces in one final sweep."
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Just as Clovis saw two of his units close on the glowing dot on the map, it disappeared.
"What?! Where's the enemy?!"
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In the battlefield, the Knightmares of the Kouzuki Resistance traveled underground in the Ghetto Subway tunnels.
"With this...I call check." Lelouch placed his Black King on the Chess Board.
Once they were in deep enough, Kallen in her Glasgow turned around and fired a slash harken at the concrete wall. In just mere moments, the foundation collapsed, along with it the units of Clovis' forces who happened to be standing on top of it.
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Within the G-1 Base, Clovis turned speechless as all of his units on the map became 'Lost'.
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"Heheheheheheheh..." Lelouch threw back his head. "Hahahahahaha! I can do it! We can actually fight back! We can defeat Britannia!" The boy said, laughing like a madman. Elsewhere, Victor smiled confidently. "Britannia doesn't stand a chance now... I think it's time to show them who's REALLY superior here!" he announced as he and a few others made their way towards the G-1. Any opposition that stood against them would be obliterated.
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In the G-1, Clovis was mortified, down to the point where he just stared at the screen with wide eyes. "Who..." he thought in complete and utter horror. 'Who in the hell am I up against? First that lone terrorist... and now this?' That was when a horrifying thought came to him. 'Wait... what if he's better than Tohdoh?!' Kyoshiro Tohdoh, otherwise known as the Miracle Worker. He was an Eleven with a brilliant mind. Back during the invasion and the assault on Itsukushima, he effortlessly deflected their advances, and without the use of any Knightmares. To see someone, who could possibly be better than someone like Tohdoh, quite frankly, terrified him.
As much as he hated to do this... what other choice did he have? "Lloyd!"
"Yes, you're Highness?" the madman asked, his grin becoming a triumphant smirk.
Clovis scowled. "Can it win...?" he asked, almost desperately. "Can my brother's toy beat them?"
Lloyd simply smiled as he pushed up his glasses. "My lord," he said, pleased with his decision. "Please... do call it Lancelot."
To Be Continued…
Preview:
"That Knightmare...is it a Seventh Generation?" "Please! Don't do this! We may have different mothers but we still share the same blood!" "Goodbye...Clovis..."