AN: Greetings, my dear audience, I'm back, momentarily at least, with a new one-shot, well, more like a frankenstein's monster made out of the different parts of a Code Geass Split-SI Gamer fic I wrote out, not sure if I'll ever actually make this into a proper fic, but eh, here we go.


"This is Proto-Bradford, everything seems clear," A young man with fair features and a wild mane of auburn hair reported jovially, loving the view of the clear skies before him, the hum of the engines serving as the perfect soundtrack for the test-flight of the Prototype Seventh Generation Knightmare Frame, Bradford, and if he was being honest, he was an angry that he couldn't keep this beauty of a machine.

However, as he was about to close his radio, his factsphere picked up something below him, a Somerset unit, but oddly enough, it wasn't registered as a part of the military. Not that anyone should be anywhere near the airspace surrounding the research facility, considering the sensitive work they were doing.

"Home Base, I've spotted an unregistered Somerset unit, now moving to engage," he reported, checking that his Slash Harkens were operational, cursing that the technicians hadn't added any other weaponry to the machine. Seriously, even coil guns would've been more useful in the dogfight that was bound to occur, but nooo, those eggheads insisted on him taking the Proto-Bradford out for a test flight equipped with only the, in his modest opinion, grossly over-sized Slash Harkens.

«Copy that Mr. Steiner, happy hunting sir.» With that, Leonhardt closed his radio, maneuvering his Proto-Bradford behind the Somerset, he opened the unencrypted communication channel to address the pilot.

"Unregistered Somerset unit, identify yourself or I'll have no other choice but to take you down." Although he knew that the seventh generation prototype was more than a match for the 5th generation KMF, he still had proper protocol to follow, not to mention that attacking an opponent who didn't even retaliate would leave a sour taste in his mouth.

There was silence in the air, and just as Leonhardt was about to open fire on the rogue unit, the pilot of the Somerset replied a small black screen with green "Audio Only" appeared on the right corner of his main screen.

«Well, well, what do we have here, the experimental 7th generation Knightmare Frame Bradford?» The modulated words of the pilot gave the Steiner heir pause, a shocked expression on his face. The knowledge regarding a military project of such importance like the personal KMF of a Knight of the Rounds was on a strict need-to-know basis, so how the heck did this mystery pilot find out about it?

«Well, while competing against that little number would be interesting, we have other places to be at, sooooo, ADIOS!» the pilot's jubilant cry was accentuated by the frame taking a sudden ninety-degree turn to the left, Leonhardt following after him, the Proto-Bradford accelerating after the moss green Knightmare before firing its Slash Harkens at the Somerset, Leonhardt expecting the inferior frame to attempt avoiding his attack.

However, as the dark red blades neared the rear end of their intended target, the Harkens bounced backward, stopped by a small transparent barrier, the Somerset continuing on as if it hadn't just blocked an attack it had no business blocking, let alone surviving.

"What!?" Leonhardt had heard some of the scientists back at HQ talking about some kind of energy shielding, but how the hell did an obsolete scrap like a Somerset, carrying nothing that he hadn't seen on old museum models, replicate that?

«Whew, that was actually close, but sorry mate, no cigar~!» the frustrating snicker that followed the mocking words, motivated Leonhardt to accelerate, grunting as the G-Forces started getting to him, but he could still go on, and he'd get that bastard! There was no way in hell he was about to let a mere mass-production unit based on a snob's toy best the prototype unit made by his family, meant to be used by one of the Empire's best!

However, as he glared at the Somerset through his monitor, he blinked as the KMF started glowing, a blue shroud surrounding the entirety of its frame, the gap between them widening as a cone of air started forming around the front of the unit, before it just left his Proto-Bradford in the proverbial dust.

"…The bogey has escaped, Proto-Bradford returning to base…" a scornful frown was present on Leonhardt's face as he threw one last glare towards the direction the mysterious Somerset unit had flown off to.


[Within the Somerset's cockpit…]

"Well, didn't expect to see the Bradford this early, any thoughts?" Asked a young man wearing a dark green Britannian KMF Pilot suit with dark gray patches with golden accents, his short, red-tinted brown hair set in a short mane, a few strands of hair falling into his face.

"You were too reckless, showing off our abilities like that." Answered a young woman as she leaned her head out from behind the young man's seat, wearing an identical suit as the young man, although it was ill-fitting in a few places, namely the shoulders and hips, baggy in the former, and somewhat bulging in the latter.

The young man simply gave a lopsided grin to the young woman behind him, his green eyes momentarily looking away from the screens displaying the sky in front of them, and a navigational system. "Ah, it wasn't that bad, at most, they think we have a miniature Blaze Luminous." Which admittedly wasn't a completely incorrect assumption.

"Plus hey, at least we now know that the «Rune Frame» works in combat." He grinned as he remembered how painstakingly hard it was for the two of them to cover the 20 Somersets in runes, especially trying to find a correct sequence to boost its capabilities and allow them to channel their skills through the machine.

His other half wasn't as jubilant as him though, her expression of discontent ever present on her face. "It was still an insufficient test, considering the duration of the encounter, not to mention that the Bradford wasn't equipped with its regular equipment." The Slash Harkens their barrier deflected were little more than big triangles, possibly hinting that it was a prototype of the machine that would fight against the Sutherland Ikaros.

"Hm, yeah, I get what you're thinking, although, you wonder who was piloting that Proto-Bradford? Definitely wasn't Kewell's sis, considering the voice of the pilot." Yeah, a funny thing they found out while having a meal in the pub that was near the factory they had appeared at, funeral announcements were broadcasted everywhere, or at least in the homeland and the Area the late royal had ruled over.

And boy howdy, that was a nice confirmation that they hadn't been thrown into an alternate Code Geass where Lelouch had instead escaped to E.U. But still, the presence of the Bradford, even as a Prototype was an indication that the other Glinda Knight units were a thing, but at least they could use the knowledge of said units as a safer bargaining tool with the sis-con prince…well, one that wouldn't result in them putting the strength of their «Gamer's Mind» to the test.

"Possibly Leonhardt, or some random schmuck working for them." The young woman replied. While the Manga did reveal Marika Soresi as the test pilot of the Bradford, she did remember that the wiki did list her as being a part of Cornelia's army, well, up until the shitstorm that was the R1's final battle for Japan, so it made sense that the current Pilot was someone else, someone brash, considering how the Proto-Bradford, at least at first glance, was equipped only with two over-sized Slash Harkens, and not the devastating Megiddo Harkens that combined to form the Hadron spear.

She would much rather have the defensive capabilities of their «Rune Frame» be tested by a weaker energy weapon, like the Lancelot's VARIS Rifle, rather than risk their lives against a Hadron weapon.

Even blocking that relatively close-range impact of the Slash Harkens had been rather costly, draining 70 MP, leaving her with 45/115, and well, she wasn't quite certain whether that cost was due to the power of the Harkens themselves, the emission of the barrier, or the frailty of the Somerset itself, but at least they'd have a lot of time to research that when they arrived in Japan.

Speaking of which…

"We're still a bit away from Area 11, so you focus on regaining your MP, I'll focus on getting us there." She nodded, heeding his advice. Their main plan of infiltration was criminally simple, casting «Camouflage» throughout the Runes covering the Somerset to avoid any visual spotters, and then landing in Area 11 before she ran out of MP to maintain it, as he was busy spending his MP to reduce the strain on their Energy Filler, as they couldn't exactly replace it while in flight.

And if that didn't work, well, then just gun the engines, and in a worst-case scenario, crash the Somerset, set the Runes to explode, and escape before any military came onto the scene.


[Two hours later, The airspace near Area 11…]

"Alright, Elle, get ready to activate the Stealth mode." The young man said, biting his lower lip in nervousness, the girl with untamed reddish brown hair opening her eyes, and laying a comforting hand on the young man's shoulder, her right hand lying flat against the right wall of the cockpit.

"Relax Eddie, we checked the Runes over and over again." She said, rubbing her hand on the shoulder of Edward as her other hand lit up with blue energy, the energy spreading out throughout the markings that were spread across the cockpit.

"Activating Stealth mode now." And with that, the blue glow spread out throughout the frame, as they started nearing the outskirts of Area 11's airspace. If they got detected, then the Military would send out their air force units, fighter jets, and the few lingering Somersets, if the data was correct.

«Stealth mode: online» The duo inside the cockpit sighed in relief as the blue glow surrounding the Somerset shifted, bending the light around its frame until the frame was gone, well, unless someone got a hair's breadth away from its hull, at which point, they'd see a small distortion of air.

With their cover in place, Edward pressed his foot down on the right pedal, accelerating the Somerset, hoping that his other half's MP would last until he managed to land them near Tokyo, or more preferably, a secluded area near it, as the two of them suddenly appearing out of bloomin' nowhere would draw too many question, ones that would force them to kill any witnesses, and well, that wouldn't look good on their resume when they'd attempt joining the Black Knights.

"So, how do you think we should integrate ourselves?" Edward asked Elle, knowing that she'd still be able to keep supplying the Stealth Mode with power, even if they engaged in throwing around some ideas.

The woman hummed, thinking for a while before answering. "We have a few options, although some are better than others." The most straightforward route would be to send a message to Lelouch via controlled animals, as there was no way in hell they were going to risk getting Geassed or stabbed by his Ninja Maid. They could also just join in with the grunts, although that would result in somebody attempting to find their non-existent past, and well, they were pretty sure that a terrorist/freedom fighter group wouldn't exactly be happy to take in people who were essentially ghosts in the system.

And then, there was the option of them taking on personas of their own, making a bit of a reputation for themselves fighting against Britannian forces, and getting the attention of the Black Knights, or the Kyoto Group.

"Well, let's go with the one that'll give lots of EXP, and a big chance of great loot." Edward said, thinking of something along the lines of the two of them possibly becoming thieves or mercenaries in Area 11, with Quests like "enter X and steal Y and deliver it to Z", or to help out one of the lesser rebel factions win against some Britannian troops. Of course, if things started getting dicey, then they'd cut their losses and bail, possibly taking whatever they could.

If they did enough of that, while keeping their reputation spotless, word was bound to make its way through the grapevine to the Black Knights, or more importantly, Zero.

Elle nodded. "Third option it is then. How should we handle housing?" They couldn't exactly live in bums, what with their distinctly non-Japanese appearances, and while they could set up a small bounded field, it would be better for them to acquire a better apartment, one with an internet connection. And while Ashford Academy was an option, well, if they applied a few illusionary runes, as they were a couple of years above the 20 line, so they couldn't pass off as students.

Edward grinned at the question of his other half. "Oh, I'm sure that our local Purists won't mind a few pounds missing, the only question is; who shall have the honors of "sponsoring" our stay in Japan?"


Timeskip


A knock on the window caused Lelouch to turn towards the window, his Geass flaring and ready to fire. He couldn't afford anyone find out his identity as Zero, not only to save his own skin, but to make sure that Nunnally wouldn't be left alone or dragged back to That man.

However, all he saw was a black raven knocking its beak on the window. 'Oh, it was just a raven, that's a relief.' Lelouch sighed, closing the case that held his Zero suit. Perhaps he should look into those relaxing teas Sayoko suggested to him. After all, it wouldn't do him any good if he was constantly jumping at shadows.

«Greetings, Zero-sama.» Lelouch's eyes snapped open, staring squarely at the source of the voice, the raven, which seemed to be defying the physical limitations of its species by actually smirking.

«Please, please, don't bother checking whether or not this is a dream, it's not.» The bird opened its beak, a glow emanating from its mouth in sync with the words.

«Now, I believe your associates mentioned Wraith's little trick while we chatted, well, this is mine.» The bird(?) spread its wings wide, the crime against nature still on its beak as Lelouch nodded, the image of a knife that, if Tamaki's and Ohgi's words were to be believed, had a clean hole punched into it by a casual poke from the male mercenary.

"So, you two are Geass users?" Lelouch proposed, opening the window and allowing his surprise visitor to enter his room. The theory was sound, after all, if his Geass allowed him to control people with just eye contact and a few words, then it wasn't exactly out of the question for another's to have a different power, the only questions left were what are the mercenaries' powers, and when did they meet C.C, assuming that she was the only one who could grant these powers.

«Ah, so C.C has explained it to you, that's good.» the bir-no, Specter nodded, hopping into the room.

Lelouch nodded, closing the window. "So, why are you here?" he asked, wondering whether or not his Geass would work on her now.

The features of the bird shifted to a more natural one. «Well, both to fill in the holes that C.C might have left out in her explanation, and to reveal a few subjects related to our previous matter.»

«Well, I'm not going to dance around the subject, but you're not the only one who has Geass, I know of a few people who also have Geass, and they're mostly people who will stand against you.» Lelouch nodded, all too aware of that fact right now.

"Regardless, if you would be so kind as to list these people, and their Geass if you could." He motioned for Specter to continue. He'd rather know exactly what kind of people he'd have to worry about, and then plan out how to beat their Geass.

«Well, first off, we have Mao, C.C's previous contractor, lanky Chinese man with silver hair, Geass allows him to read minds, but his Geass has gone out of control, and so he wears tinted shades to prevent people from seeing his Geass, and headphones to try and block out the minds of other people.» A mind reader, eh? Well, if C.C's immunity to Geass extended to ones outside his own, then this Mao would be easily dealt with, the only question was how much pizza he'd need to bribe the green-haired witch with.

«Secondly we have a couple of Britannian black ops child soldiers, one girl and one boy, about the same age as the girl in a wheelchair I saw while flying here, the boy has a Geass that freezes people in an area around him, mimicking the effect of time being stopped, doesn't require eye contact, or really any other type of contact.» Hmm, a difficult one to deal with, although knock-out gas or a sniper would make short work of it.

«The girl's Geass, on the other hand, is easier to deal with, she can control people she's looking at by calling out their true name.» Rather simple, but effective, he'd just need to convince his organization to start adapting code-names, and possibly full-face masks and voice modulators, or at least to the key individuals of his organization.

«Then, we have Orpheus Zevon, a member of an organization called Peace Mark, his Geass allowing him to perfectly disguise himself as anyone he wishes, it works by tricking the brains of the people around him.» Lelouch nodded, making a note to try and possibly recruit this Peace Mark when his own organization grew big enough, as that kind of Geass would be perfect for infiltration missions.

«The Knight of One's Bismarck Waldstein's Geass allows him to see into the immediate future.» A troublesome man with an even more troublesome ability, but not an unbeatable one, he'd just need to set up a situation where seeing the future wouldn't change the outcome, like trapping the knight of one in a death trap.

«And finally, we come to the Britannian ruling family.» Lelouch furrowed his brow at the information. He hadn't expected any of his siblings to have made contact with C.C, but at least now he'd know which ones to be cautious of. He truly prayed that neither Cornelia or Schneizel had a Geass, considering that they'd be a threat even without one.

«Marybell mel Britannia, Absolute Obedience, the same as yours, although her power manifests in her left eye. Oh, and I almost forgot, she had one other chick around her, brown skinned, could erase memories with her Geass, although she needs to take off her glasses to activate it.» A useful tell for such a power. Although, he was somewhat surprised that Maybell would have the same Geass as him, as the two of them were nothing alike.

«The Rui Britannia twins, Castor's allows him to telepathically communicate with Pollux, who's Geass allows him to control people, although it's weaker than yours.» A troublesome pair of powers, but rather simple to deal with, just like the Black ops girls.

«And lastly, the big horny rabbit of Britannia himself, the Emperor.» Lelouch cursed his luck, but waited for Specter to tell what kind of power his genetic donor possessed. Although the nickname for him was somewhat amusing.

«His Geass allows him to manipulate memories, and well, he can block other people's Geass by making them forget that they have Geass in the first place.» Specter finished her explanation, noting that Lelouch was gripping his hands so hard that his knuckles were turning white.

'WHY! Out of all the possible powers, it was that bastard who had a Geass that powerful! With a Geass like that, attempting to sow discord into the palace was a moot point, as that bastard could just make his subjects fall in line like obedient puppets.' Lelouch thought angrily, trying his best to calm his nerves.

No, just because the Emperor had the power to rewrite the mental history, and thus, the person, it didn't make him unbeatable, he'd just have to take the words of any spies with a hint of salt, and treat any and all former Britannian spies as possible moles.

A hard task no doubt, but not something that would kill his ambitions.

"So, what other info do you have?" Lelouch asked, addressing the female mercenary before him.

To answer, the bird produced a USB stick from the fold of its wings, tape and a few stray feathers on it as the device was laid on his table by the avian messenger. «I feel like you need time to deal with the info I revealed, so here's a little notes version about the other info I have.» And with that, the bird flew up to the window and twisted the handle before flying off.


So, how was the one-shot, disregarding the fact that I just took parts from different chapters of the full fic, which I admittedly haven't written out, and mashing them together?

So, to explain exactly how much is missing, the first bit, from the brief scuffle with Leonhardt to the Somerset going stealth mode, is from the tail-end of Chapter 3, while the bit with Lelouch is from about Chapter 7.

And as for what you missed between the two bits, well, the tl;dr of it is as follows: The Es go on a small, controlled rampage on the Britannian military, until they stumble upon a certain Refrain lab, and then sit down with the Black Knights for a small chat.

...Right, I didn't mention that, did I? Well, yeah, the two SIs here, Edward, and Elle are essentially a single Edward split into two people, and one of them got TG'd, while Ed-Edward, or Wraith, as I'll refer to him from now on, kept his banana and coconuts, while Specter lost her banana, and the coconuts got relocated, and replaced by a softer fruit...something like oranges, or melons, IDK...

And about how their Gamer system works, well, Wraith's G-Mind is working at 50%, while his G-Body is working perfectly, and vice-versa with Specter, (Mind is strong, body is so-and-so.) and they share their EXP and Skills, but they do have separate stat sheets.

Oh, and about Quincy DxD, yeah, kinda having a brief Writer's block with that, but I do know that the next chapter will be quite light on the action, and more dialogue-heavy.

Also, currently working on a Boku no Hero Academia one-shot, since a lot of you guys seemed interested in that.


And now, for the Question of the Chapter!

Q1: If you could pick a single mass-produced grunt Mobile Suit, adapted into a Knightmare of course, both in terms of size, and where the cockpit is, and pilot it in Code Geass, which one would you pick? Personally, I'd take the GNX-609T GN-XIII, since hey, GN particle shots will tear through KMFs like a hot knife through butter, plus, it has Gun-lance!

Q2: Alright, and now for the main thing, relating to my BnHA One-Shot, which I'll try to make flow a bit more organically, at which point in the BnHA timeline do you guys want this version of Edward pop up at? I draw the line at that he has to appear before the end of Stain arc.