Disclaimer: I do not Own Code Geass in any shape or form. But I do own the originally ideas and characters present in this story.

August 9th, 2014 ATB

Nuremberg, Bavaria. Germany.

The small apartment was Spartan in it's décor. Peeling yellow paint dotted the walls and a permanent layer of dust gripped the wooden floors. The two bedrooms and one kitchen were the only places available for sitting. Two windows were the only source of ventilation and the only source of entertainment came in the form of an old twenty inch television seated on an overturned bucket. There was a single stove, a microwave, a refrigerator, one couch, and three beds.

Usually the current conditions would be just fine. The small group of mercenaries who went by the moniker Blackwatch, would rarely if ever stay in one place for more than a few weeks. As a result they had become rather used to living on the move and sharing cramped living conditions until the next assignment arose.

Today officially marked the second month.

Amaya Duvalle, codenamed Mercy, sighed in irritation as she tried in vain to fan herself with the magazine in hand. This had been a particularly trying time for her to say the least. The woman could confidently say that the time she had spent in one place for so long over the past decade could be counted on one hand. It had become her nature to consistently relocate. And despite the fact she knew logically that it was necessary for he to stay put she still didn't like it.

Using a pale hand to brush aside the fringe of her navy blue hair the woman of thirty-three moved her gaze towards her left. From her position at the kitchen table leaning back in one of the rickety wooden chairs she could clearly see the two other occupants of the small room. Her yellow eyes narrowed in on to the youngest member of their little unit. Seated on the edge of a nearby counter with a book textbook that she was certain would be too advanced for a normal thirteen year old to begin to comprehend was the ever composed and ever quiet Zero.

The young man was one giant mystery. And Mercy hated mysteries.

With a frown the woman shifted her gaze away from the strange pale skinned youth and towards the other man in the room. Rolando 'Ace' Drake was their leader and unofficial binding agent. The former Britannian soldier was also a maze of lies and truth. But Mercy had learned more than a few things about the man in her three years serving under him.

The most important thing she had figured out from her usually silent observation was the man's heritage. Due to her early years as a member of special forces in the French sector of the EU military she had developed several tricks that could be used to identify a person. The first being his general looks.

Tall and lean, firm square shoulder, a strong sharp jaw line, light blue eyes and dark brown hair flicked with speaks of gray. These factors combined with his manner of speaking and self confident gait led her to believe that if she bothered to look hard enough she could easily find a connection to the vaunted Britannian nobility.

The next thing she had taken note of was his gruff yet seemingly friendly demeanor. Ace was the kind of man who could charm a woman out of her knickers with the intention of giving them right back. He had a smile to fit every occasion and met everyone amicably. In truth it was something that had confused her when they had first met. The idea that the man smiling brightly at her was asking her if she wanted to abandon her home country and join his group of hired soldiers caught her completely off guard.

Then there was the part of the man that was dangerous. Ace was the type who's entire demeanor could change without his face moving a single muscle. There had been a number of times when his sudden shift in personality had thrown her for a loop. Like one instance where a man who had been attempting to shaft them in negotiations had been told under no uncertain terms that if he double crossed them the resulting action would leave even his family unable to recognize him.

Ace had said it all with that same smile in place.

That was about as far as she had gotten on that front. The only other things she had successfully learned about the man was that he boasted exceptional leadership skills and had the physical prowess to match. She had seen him disarm a group of three men holding him at gun point with as much efficiency as he could knock a man from his sentry perch with a high powered sniper rifle. There were times that he could disarm a situation and cause an enemy to fold with just a few choice words. And then there were the times when he could use a pistol to off as man people in the span of ten seconds as she could with an assault rifle.

Yes, Mercy was both annoyed and impressed by the man. Annoyed by the fact that he was so much better than her. And impressed by the fact he was that good to begin with.

She drew he attention back to the younger of the two males. Young Zero had been with Ace as long as she had known them. At first she had been under the assumption that perhaps the boy following after the man had been his son. That had quickly been put aside when the time to recruit her had come. After Ace's initial pitch had been met with some resistance he had walked away to give her some space. Or that's what she had thought at the time. In reality he was giving the floor to his younger and more serious counterpart.

She was of course initially appalled. The idea of a child soldier was one that didn't sit right with nearly anyone regardless of their personal feelings. There had been a dark rage that had filled her suddenly and the stirrings of what she would do to the man who had inducted an innocent child in to a dark profession...

And then Zero introduced himself formally.

Looking back on it Mercy was still a little put off by how creepy the boy had been. His tone was dead and his eyes were hollow. He was a beautiful child for the most part, large for his age and pretty to look at in a way that was clear for everyone in both races to see. In fact his size had originally led her to believe he was older than he actually was. But Mercy was quickly forced to realize that Zero was anything but a sweet innocent boy.

It was hours later when they had been alone that Ace had explained. The boy who he had picked up just a few months prior was an example of everything wrong with the world. The child had been scarred on a deep emotional level that would likely never heal. But Ace and a good friend of his were at least going to try and lessen the pain. Even if that meant helping the boy down a dark path.

"He told me Zero was the only one left alive from some horrible sort of experiment." It was the first time to this day that Ace did not actively wear a smile. Instead his rugged features were pulled in to a pained grimace. "Hundreds of children had died but this kid pulled through."

She could remember sitting across the table at the small bar she had pulled him in to. A cold beer in her hands as she listened to the story with intent. Even back then her curiosity had gotten the better of her. And so she sat and waited for the man to finish the haunting tale.

"It was, ironically, a Britannian experiment." The man had told her. "One that was set during the early occupation of what is now Area 11. They were snapping up children right off the street with no one to stop them. New orphans just trying to survive... Kids looking for a bite to eat. Even pulled them right from their parent's arms."

The disgust the man radiated was palpable. She had been quick to share in it.

"For what reason?" She had asked, her English slightly accented. "What were they doing to them?"

The man shook his head. "No clue. The freaks were long gone before my friend and his group had gotten there and had taken everything of value with them. They were sure that every kid was dead but he made them check every room just to be sure." His hand had tightened on the beer in his grasp. "It's a good thing they did too. Zero was a skinny little thing covered in cloth. Tons of puncture marks on his arms and a sort of wild look in his eyes. But he was still alive."

The man who had been smiling hours before now looked down balefully at the table between them.

"The kid has apparently had a lot of shit happen in his life. That was just the most recent of it. I didn't want to press but from what I did hear I could understand why I was stuck with him. There's a darkness in that boy. The kind born from pain that no man should have to go through let alone a child. My buddy attempted to help him get back on track. Eat healthy and exercise to get him fit again. But than the kid just asked for more. And my friend started to train him in an attempt to instill some sort of control and discipline."

A frown had filled her face. "Train him?"

"Martial arts and the like." Ace had replied. "Real serious stuff, like you see in the movies. He tried to give the kid the worst of it, something to preoccupy him while he could get some emotional control. The kind of stuff that's supposed to take near decades to gain some kind of proficiency in. Only problem is that the kid ran right through the it instead. So now he had an emotionally unstable brat who could also break the average man down with little to know effort."

The man had trained his blue eyes on to her own.

"And so he called me. And asked me to give him an outlet for all that pent up anger."

At the time Mercy didn't understand what the man was hoping to accomplish by teaching an already unstable child how to be even more dangerous. She was sure that whatever the man had planned would certainly backfire and that if she were to join him she too would be caught in the cross fire. However her curiosity had won the debate and several weeks later the three of them set off on to their first mission as a mercenary unit.

Three years and three additional members later and she was still unsure as to what the man was hoping to accomplish. But she could safely say that whatever it was seemed to be working somewhat. Zero had come a long way from the quiet and strange child. Although he still mostly kept to himself his interactions with other people seemed to have come quite a way.

Still he was far from a normal pre-teen.

But than again he'll never be normal. And from my understanding never really was.

She turned his gaze on to the floor with a pensive look. She didn't know what really had happened to the youngest member of their group. And a part of her was scared to find out what could scar a child so much. But at least now she was sure that one day the boy would be able to overcome his personal demons and hopefully make a normal life for himself. And until that day she would take it as a personal challenge to help him as best as she could.

"Hey kid, what you reading?"

March 15, 2017 ATB

Shinjuku Ghetto, Area 11

The Britannian prince stared at the display with wide eyes and a gaping mouth. His hands shook and his knees nearly crumbled under his own weight. A silent mantra of disbelief rang through his thoughts. He closed his mouth and tried to swallow the lump in his throat. It was no use. Beside him general Bartley had finally cracked under the pressure.

"What will we do now!" The large man wailed as he brought his hands up to his face. "We don't have any other forces to defend ourselves with!"

Despite his agreement the prince remained silent.

"The terrorist will come and get us! And than we'll be killed!"

Clovis leaned forward on to the display table as he struggled to control his breathing. There was nothing more that he could do. He had gambled with his remaining forces and paid dearly for it. Now he had nothing to use for defense. And to top it all off in the unlikely event that he did leave here the damage to his reputation would be impossible to overcome... Unless there was something he could do to salvage this day!

"They'll string us up in the streets and use our heads like toys!" The overweight general was practically crying. "I don't want to die-"

"Bartley, Shut the hell up!" The slender man snarled in rage. "I can't think with you talking!"

The prince bowed his head over the tactical display as he considered all of the options he had remaining. He would readily admit that his arrogance had led to his downfall on this day. If he had called for prior reinforcements than perhaps he could have continued to press his forces onward and simply overwhelm the rabble with his numbers. But that option was too far gone, the terrorist would be here long before any help could arrive.

Perhaps he could simply just leave? Take an armored car and keep the remaining soldiers as escorts? That would do enough to save his life but it would only serve to make the situation even worse. It was bad enough that he had lost on this day. But to lose and run like a coward? He had a brother who had done something like that once, leave his soldiers to die after a failed sortie. The key word being the one using past tense.

Was there something he could do with the forces he still had on hand? Perhaps he could use the mobile command center as a decoy? Then he could possibly use his remaining troops to circle around and attack from the rear? Not that he had enough remaining knightmares to challenge the entire terrorist group-

His hands stilled. Remaining knightmares.

Before he could even think about what he was about to do his right hand had reached out and slapped down on to a nearby button on the command table. A small icon appeared on the digital screen, a symbol to let him know the page request had been sent. He only had to wait twenty seconds before the face of a man he had dismissed only twenty minutes before reappeared on a nearby screen.

The leader of the prime minister's Camelot project slid on a grin before presenting the prince with a mocking bow. "You rang your highness?"

Clovis bit the inside of his lips to help stave off the rude reply that had jumped to the forefront. He took a deep breath and centered himself before he looked the man on the other side of the screen dead in the eyes. A steely glint became apparent as he opened his mouth to speak.

"Can it do it Lloyd?" He demanded of the eccentric noble. "Can your damn toy win us the day?"

The earl gave a slow and irritating chuckle before his features suddenly hardened. His own eyes showed something dangerous that Clovis knew quite well. Madness. It was the kind of madness that could only be harnessed or erased. His elder brother, the prime minister, had chosen to harness it. Clovis would soon see if it was the right call.

"Please your highness." The man's voice had lost the teasing tilt. It was now full of measured danger. "Be so kind as to call it The Lancelot."

Dust flittered about the air and pillars of smoke rose from various points amongst the destruction. Zero looked down, from his position on a leaning building, on to the crater that had been opened in the middle of the Shinjuku ghetto by his plan of action. His trap had worked extremely well, too well in fact. The area of destruction had been far greater than what he had been originally planning. It hadn't been his intention to knock down so many homes and damage the living conditions of those who had lived in the ghetto.

A grimace split his face as he looked on through his knightmare's camera. On the bright side instead of wiping out half of the Britanninan knightmares remaining he had nearly destroyed all of them. An unexpected side effect, but one that he could certainly live with. As it stood now the only thing Clovis had to play with were ground troops, a few armored vehicles, and a hand full of Sutherland's being used to guard the mobile command center. Not a force that he should feel overly threatened by.

His hand reached out to the radio. "Good work everyone. The plan proved more effective than expected, Clovis La Britannia has lot over three quarters of his remaining forces."

As expected cheers and excited chatter surged from the terrorist cell as they shared in their mutual jubilation. Lelouch could not find it in himself to reprimand them. For all intents and purposes they had successfully done what no one in over half a decade had been able to do, bloody Britannia's nose.

But at what cost? He questioned with a shake of his head. I wanted to stop the destruction. Instead I only helped it.

He knew of course that the damage done to the infrastructure was acceptable. In his younger days he had been taught by his mentor Ace that things didn't always go the way a commander had originally planned. War could never be substituted for a board game and more often than not the greatest difference between winning and losing wasn't technology or numbers but rather the individual people who actually fought. Zero was sure that if the man who had helped to raise him would be there now he would tell him that the important thing was none of the innocents had been hurt.

"They can rebuild son. But they can't do that if they aren't living."

With that in mind Zero was almost comforted by his decision. At the very least his main goal of stopping the mindless slaughter of innocent people had been accomplished. And in addition he could take away the fact that he was still able to think on a tactical level that would have made the old man proud.

Still it'll all be for naught if I give Clovis the chance to regroup and call reinforcements. His hands tightened around the movement controls to the stolen purist Sutherland. I'll have to make a move for him and attempt to force a cease-fire.

With that in mind he reached for the radio again-

"Arrrgh!"

The teenager blinked with his hand hovering over the radio switch. What the hell was that?

"Holy crap! This is B-2 and we're under attack!"

Zero tensed at the sudden report. His eyes immediately shot down to the tactical display and sought out the location he knew the terrorist to be in. It was to the east, not far from the mobile command center. B-2 had been one of the units he was planning on taking with him if he needed to storm the place by force. He bit lightly in to his lower lip as he scanned the map. There was no Britannian IFF in the area.

His hand finished pressing down. "Status report B-2? I don't see an IFF!"

"It's a knightmare!" The man responded in obvious panic. "It's one damn knightmare! It already got the rest-"

It was as far as the transmission got before it was forcefully cut off. Without a second thought Lelouch launched his Sutherland in to gear and moved down down the slope of the leaning building towards the ground. His mind was beginning to race as he thought over what he had learned so far.

Is this Clovis' end game? He must have figured out I was using the IFF signal as a means to outmaneuver him. The Sutherland sprang free of the building and landed on the remaining road with a thud before continuing on with the land spinners. What are the chances he had a VTOL or transportation truck deliver additional units?

It became apparent to him that he could very well not be dealing with Clovis anymore. Desperation could force a man to do many things and Clovis would certainly be panicking by this point. Could he have so quickly relinquished his command over the battle to someone else? This new player could have turned the tables on Lelouch by tricking him in to pulling off the last maneuver. After all, the tunnels had been a major part of his strategy up to this point but now over half of them would be damaged by his own trap. That would take the insight of a commander that was surely above anything Clovis had in his cabinet.

Either way Zero needed more information before he came to a decision.

His response came in the form of a crackling radio. "This is P-5! You there Zero guy?!"

Violet eyes snapped to the radio as the Sutherland came to a halt behind a downed building. "Zero here! Tell me what you see P-5!"

The man, Tamaki if he remembered correctly, sounded just as out of sorts as the last one did.

"I see this damn thing! It's just one knightmare!"

"Describe it to me!" Zero barked. "I need to know what we're dealing with!"

"It's some kind of new frame! White with gold and stuff!" Lelouch could here the force the man was exerting. "It's really fast!"

"Anything else? Any idea on weapons or capabilities?" He had shifted the Sutherland back in to gear and was closing on the target location.

"Yeah! It's got four slash harkens! Two on the arms and-" The rattle of knightmare assault rifle fire could be heard. "My god! This damn thing has some kind of green energy shield!" There was a scream of surprise before the hiss of static. The radio went dead for a moment before it was filled with various voices panicking and asking for direction.

Zero himself frowned as he began to fit the pieces to the puzzle together.

A white and gold knightmare. Extremely fast so it can't be a Sutherland brand. Not likely a Gloucester either. Four slash harkens and an energy shield...

Something buzzed in the back of his mind and forced him to think even harder. He focused on the nagging feeling as he re-capped what he knew. It sounded vaguely familiar. The color scheme was unique enough for a Britannian frame. But the thing that caught his attention the most was the idea of an energy shielding system. It sounded a lot like what one of his contacts told him about-

The idea snapped in to place. This must be!

His hand reached out to the radio again. "All remaining forces be advised! The current enemy is likely a prototype knightmare frame. My previous intel suggest that it is a seventh generation type that focuses on close range combat and mobility. I advise all units to stay as far away as possible. I repeat, stay clear of a close range encounter!"

He knew that it was easier said than done. If this was the knightmare frame prototype created by the Camelot research project than it would be the first time a seventh generation frame had been deployed in to active combat. In addition it would mean that the pilot of said machine would need to be an ace level devicer due to the exceptional strain the machine reportedly put on to the body.

I wasn't expecting it to even be here because of that fact. There are only a few people in the world who should be able to move the damn thing let alone use it as well as reported. Lelouch reasoned as he rounded a corner with his Sutherland. They must have been waiting until the situation was dire enough to warrant the use. Knowing Clovis he would see using it as putting himself in debt to the prime minister.

Despite the rather troublesome situation Lelouch found a grin splitting his face. It had been years since he had been allowed to combat another knightmare frame in a life or death situation. And to do it against another high level pilot and an experimental knightmare?

This reminds me of the battle in Madang. His shoulders hunched over as he pushed the Sutherland even faster. Fighting against a superior force with only my own skills to count on. And I can finally get Ashford and Danilo off my ass about recon.

All things considered he could easily turn the upcoming confrontation in to a useful one.

"You'll be happy to know Prince Clovis that my Lancelot is doing a beautiful job of dealing with those pesky insurgents." The lead scientist said in a sing song voice.

Despite how annoying the man was Clovis couldn't help but feel impressed. Although he couldn't see the progress that Asplund's toy was making he was at least sure that the man's excited screams and exaggerated reports were indications of a change in the tide of battle. He had heard that the eccentric Earl was a genius researcher despite his strange antics and even stranger attitude but to actually have the man's work at hand?

I can see now why Schinezel put up with him in the first place.

"Did you hear that!" Bartley had turned to face the prince with a massive grin stretching his face. A far cry from the previously shown emotion. "We're going to win the battle against those damned elevens!"

Clovis shot the man a mocking half smile in response as his mind moved on to more important matters. If this new frame did succeed in getting rid of all the terrorist knightmares than he would have to move his remaining forces in to position as soon as possible. Perhaps even still call for the previously considered reinforcements. He couldn't allow for Schneizel's pet research team to take all the credit for turn in the battle. If he did he would owe a debt that would give the prime minister would have even more sway over his actions.

And I loathe to give that bastard anymore control than I already have to. He crossed his arms over his chest. Lord knows I'll pay for this bit of assistance through the nostrils.

"Oh!" The surprised shout drew the prince's attention back to the screen hanging on the wall. "It seems I may have some interesting news your highness!"

"What is it Lloyd?" The blond man demanded as he stepped around the display table and towards the screen. The strange man suddenly stepped back in to the lens of the camera and grinned brightly at the irritated prince.

"My pilot has encountered a rather interesting unit. A purist Sutherland." Stressing the key word in the sentence. "It just suddenly appeared to defend another terrorist unit."

Clovis blinked in visible surprise. "A purist factor member?"

His frown slid back in to place. What the hell was that all about? Why would someone who routinely spouted a rhetoric against commoners of all sorts go out of their way to help a number? It defied all logic. And what was the soldier doing working with the terrorist in the first place? Could he really have a traitor in such a high ranking area of his military power-

The explanation hit him in the face like a sledgehammer to a brick wall.

"The terrorist leader." His words had come out in a furious hiss that sounded more like it belonged to a wild animal. "He must have gotten a hold of that Sutherland early on in the conflict."

"My assumption as well." The earl practically purred. "And with an active IFF signal..."

"The bastard could successfully coordinate an assault." Clovis declared flatly as he finally pieced together what had happened. "This entire time we've been dealing with an enemy that has been privy to our battle plans. That's why changing the radio frequency didn't work for us. He was listening in the whole time."

"Exactly!" The man on the other side of the screen exclaimed with a clap. "Still you have to give him credit. Even with the inside information you unknowingly provided him it would still take a keen mind to put together a battle plan so effective in so little time. And his last little surprised showed a level of tactical ability well above the normal."

Clovis merely grunted in agreement. Despite the way he had been successfully suckered in to helping his own demise he could still readily admit that to being impressed by the other man's ingenuity and skills. Still, that didn't mean he had to like it.

A surge of rage filled the Britannian prince. He would get that bastard back!

"Lloyd! Your pilot has left all the terrorist alive up to this point, correct?!"

The man gave him a vexing grin. "That's correct your highness."

"That stops now!" Clovis snarled with a visible spittle flying from his mouth. "Order your man to make sure the bastard suffers!"

The earl's grin faded away to reveal a stone serious expression. "Of course your highness."

The two warriors stayed silent. Two sentinels of war standing amongst the destruction brought about by their actions. One new and untested but wielding tremendous talent. The other experienced an experienced veteran. The two great titans eyed the other with an ocean of tension spanning the five meters that separated them.

Zero reached out and flicked the switch that activated his Sutherland's factsphere, an action the opposing pilot soon copied. The former mercenary noted the dual shoulder mounted placement design, a far cry from the singular face design that most Britannian frames sported.

The Z-01 prototype. He mused with a slight grin. That's another factor to add to the list. And I will certainly admit it looks the part.

"Hey! Are you that Zero guy?!" A voice shouted the question from the radio.

Zero knew without even turning his knightmare to look that there were two shell shocked terrorist standing behind him. The speaker he knew to be P-1, or Ohgi, the leader of the terrorist cell. The second unit was the one armed Glasgow that had been active since the start of this day. Belonging to a young woman named Kallen, temporarily given the designation Q-1. The possible diamond in the rough he had spotted earlier in the conflict.

Lelouch closed the factsphere and moved his hand over to the radio. "You can get out of here now. I'll handle things from here."

There was a slight pause before the man responded. "What? Are you sure?"

"Yes. Completely. "Zero immediately responded. "I'll hold this thing here personally."

"But what about you?" The Japanese man pressed. "How will you get away?"

"Don't worry about that." Lelouch ordered as he glanced over the data his factsphere had fed him. "You just need to rally the remaining forces behind you and use them to form a defensive perimeter around the residence of the ghetto. Remember our objective is to protect the people. You can still do that with what you have left."

"But you! You can't take that thing out on your own! It's a damn monster!"

Inside the Sutherland Lelouch shook his head. "That's my problem now, not yours. Now get going." His eyes latched on to the image of the white knightmare still standing across from him. It would be any minute now...

"Yeah but-"

"Go!" Zero barked as the prototype frame leaned forward in to a runner's stance in preparation for it's attack. The Japanese man on the other side of the radio jumped at the sudden shout before he finally set his own Sutherland in to motion.

"T-Thanks man!" He called as he and his companion turned to leave.

Zero didn't bother to respond, too busy with the advanced weapon barreling towards him. The prototype knightmare closed in with speed that defied what it's should have been able to manage given it's size. Lelouch grimaced as his newest enemy zigzagged toward him, his Sutherland's camera struggling to keep track.

"Damn." He hissed as he instinctively jerked his controls in to a counter.

The frame was much faster than he had originally anticipated but while the enemy had the overwhelming technological advantage he could boast the advantage in skill and experience. Which was why he had been able to deploy his Sutherland's right stun tonfa in time to use it as tool to block the high kicked aimed at his frame's head.

He grunted as the kinetic force expended caused his Sutherland to jolt in response. The right arm of his frame creaked and groaned under the power but still held strong. Lelouch gripped his controls even tighter as he struggled to hold the Sutherland steady.

If this had been a standard issue frame... Thankfully the purebloods could at least afford a few small mechanical enhancements.

Turning his two controls in opposite directions Zero forced his land spinners to pull him in reverse as he raised the rifle in his left hand to fire. The white knightmare responded by dropping it's leg and literally flipping backward out of the path of the bullets. Zero blinked at the sight before an even larger grin broke free.

"Seriously?" He muttered as he stopped firing and re-aimed.

He refocused the rifle and fired again only to gape as the frame hunched over and sprouted a green shield to deflected the bullets away. Zero gritted his teeth as he wheeled his Sutherland to the left in a strafing motion in an attempt to get around the defenses, a gesture that was made largely useless when the opposition simply barrel rolled in the in the opposite direction.

"We'll I'll be damned." Lelouch chuckled as he stopped his Sutherland and re-aimed the rifle. "Actually seeing that damn thing is something entirely different."

Any other solo conversation was put to the way side as the prototype frame engaged it's own land spinners and rocketed towards him. Lelouch narrowed his eyes at the image in preparation only to have to suddenly jerk his Sutherland in to a half spin to the right in order to avoid the arm mounted slash harken that raced towards him. A grimace split his face as the slash harken banked mid air and started right back on track.

Boosters on the end? For changing direction I assume. He thought as he expertly swung his knightmare back in to the opposite direction while lashing out with his stun tonfa at the left hip mounted harken that had tried to catch him off guard. Much like the viper system.

Lelouch spun his knightmare back to the right as he swung his rifle to fire again, banking on the close range to provide him a benefit. It proved utterly useless when the prototype frame ducked and flowed backward away from the gun fire while reeling in it's slash harkens. Still undaunted the former mercenary engaged his own land spinners with a squeal of rubber before he shot off towards his enemy.

"Your not the only one who can move these damn things far beyond the normal." He bit out as he fired the rifle again.

The prototype rose to full height and crossed it's arms in front of it's chest as it re-activated the shielding system. Lelouch didn't stop firing, instead barring down harder on the acceleration to close the gap. At about the three meter range he reached out and flicked his own slash harkens in to motion, shooting the metal anchors ahead of him. The white knightmare twitched before leaping backwards to put more distance between the two frame, perfectly fine for Zero.

"Your annoying." He muttered as he reeled the metal wires back in. "But still fun to play with."

The white knightmare dropped the energy shield before it moved in to a fighter stance with it's right arm held out in front at a right angle. Lelouch tilted his head as he moved the Sutherland's right leg back and transitioned the rifle in to his right hand to counter the motion.

"You don't have anything other than those slash harkens." He realized with a nod as he withdrew the stun tonfa. "Still too new, didn't even expect to be used here." Which meant that he didn't have to wait for any extra surprises.

I can't beat it outright. He rationalized as he thought over his next plan of action. But even just surviving now would be a positive outcome. So I can still count a draw of sorts a win.

The seventh generation frame bent at the knees before it launched it's self high in the air. Lelouch tracked the movement before shifting his Sutherland to the right in an evasive pattern. The fifth generation frame drifted from side to side to avoid the four metal anchors that rained down from the superior machine. The teenager cut his eyes to the top left corner of the screen before he forced his knightmare to crouch, avoiding the returning slash harken that had been used as a whip.

Shifting the machine's weight on to the left side Lelouch came to a decision before he stopped on a dime. Instead of retreating further he raised his rifle and began to spray the remaining bullets at the descending knightmare. The glancing shots bounced off the stronger machine like flies against a wall and only served to further irritate him. Still he had a plan to follow through with and the means to enact it.

He shifted directions and gunned his accelerator to the white knightmare as he continued to fire on. The advanced weapon dropped to the ground in a crouch before it rushed towards him while leaning out of the path of the gunfire. Lelouch snorted as his rifle went dry before he used his kightmare's hand to grab the grip tighter and moved to engage the other frame. The white knightmare invaded his space like a heavy weight boxer, throwing out a right hook as it's four slash harkens returned.

Zero swung the empty rifle at the approaching limb before he forced his own knightmare in to a crouch. He slammed his heavier frame in to the midsection of the newer model and gunned the acceleration as far down as it would go. The two frames struggled against each other for a moment before the Sutherland threw it's rifle aside in favor of wrapping both arms around the prototype weapon. Lelouch grunted as the newer knightmare brought both arms down in a hammer blow that nearly broke his Sutherland's shoulders at the joint.

He quickly flicked the switch and shot both slash harkens in to the ground at the prototype's feet before bending his own frame at the knees, sliding the grip down to the legs. Then with a grin he flicked one final switch before he pulled the ejection mechanism and rocketed his self to safety.

With his remaining camera feed he watched as the two chaos grenades on either side of the Sutherland ejected straight in to the air before his pod flew clear of a nearby building and out of sight. The white knightmare suddenly realizing it's position as it activated the shielding system to guard it's torso.

Take that fucker.

"What the hell do you mean lost him?!" The prince snarled at the new face in the screen.

The woman, a scientist who presented herself as one Cecile Croomy, grimaced as she glanced to the side in shame.

"Well sir..." She began before she trailed off. A deep breath and cleared throat later she continued. "The pilot was much better than we originally thought. Very talented even. He managed to hold off the Lancelot's assault and upon realizing that winning wasn't an option..." She trailed off again.

"What?" The man demanded with heat. "What did he do?"

"He grabbed a hold of the Lancelot and ejected both chaos grenades as he ejected his seat. Lloyd isn't here now because he's in mourning over the fact the Lancelot was injured in the confrontation. The legs and land spinners were hit and sustained some heavy damage."

Clovis stalled at the explanation. "Your telling me the man used the Sherman Maneuver?"

The woman blinked, obviously surprised that the royal knew the actual terminology. "Um... Yes your highness."

"That move takes advanced planning, exceptional reflexes, and all around skills that normal pilots just don't possess." The prince said sweetly as he stressed the three factors. "In fact it's something that only advanced knightmare operators are capable of. Are you trying to tell me the elevens have an ace caliber devicer on their side Ms. Croomy?"

"Of course not sir." The woman replied smoothly as she avoided the worded trap. "It was all just a matter of being lucky." She took careful note not to mention the fact that the Lancelot's pilot was of Japanese decent as well and that in order to even move the damn thing you had to be an elite level talent.

"Of course not." The man repeated with a smile and a nod before his face shifted back to a dead serious look. "And I of course should have known better than to count on you irregulars to do a complete job. Get out of my sight woman. And tell that damn Earl his toy is shit."

"Of course your highness." She replied through clenched teeth before her face disappeared.

Clovis sighed as he turned around and stalked back to the command chair. He ran a hand over his face as he ran over his current options. At least the threat of an outright counter attack had been largely blunted. If that pilot really was the leader of the rebels than he would be able to push his advantage with the man out of the way. And now the IFF signatures couldn't be used against him again.

"Bartley." The man began as he sat down in his chair with a huff. "Make that call for the reinforcements after all-"

He was cut off by the sound of a shout from somewhere outside the command center doors. Clovis scowled as a thud interrupted his planning further. He turned his attention to the fat general that shared the room before he gestured to the door with a nod of his head.

"Go and see what those fools are doing." He ordered as he sat back in the chair and made himself comfortable.

The round general bowed as best as he could before he calmly began to walk towards the door. He made it about half way before the entry way slid open with a hiss. The general stopped short and looked out in to the hallway before his face suddenly went pale. He turned quickly and looked to the man seated in the chair.

"My prince-" It was as far as he got before a single gun shot ripped through the air. The man pitched sideways with a grunt before a second shot found it's way in to his side. Clovis jumped up from his seat and watched as his general fell to the floor in a heap.

The blond prince turned his eyes filled with fear and shock to the figure that stalked in to the room, the dead body of another soldier, who's neck had been broken, being shoved to the ground in front of him. The hooded man looked back at the prince from the depths of his leather jacket. A dark gleam in his gaze going unseen.

"Prince Clovis." He greeted casually as he trained the gun on to the man. "I've been looking for you."

The blond royal could say nothing. Instead only swallowing in fear as he took a step back away from the approaching man. He continued to walk backwards until the back of his legs hit the edge of his chair and sent him spiraling over the side and on to the floor. The gunman calmly walked over and pointed the barrel right towards the Britannian prince's face.

"I'd like to talk about your policy on terrorism." A grim smile could just be seen. "But first, perhaps you'd like to call a cease-fire?"