Audacity Chapter 11
*In case you're interested I have a poll on my profile regarding the story, any input in that direction would be much obliged. On a side note I've noticed my voice is getting deeper despite the fact that I hit puberty a good while ago, this tends to make the Dragon NaturallySpeaking software bit more difficult to use because of my change in tone and pitch. Oh well whatever not many reviews to respond to this time around so I guess I'll be talking to myself for now…*
I could immediately tell that carrying around this large case containing both firearms I recently purchased would become a hassle, primarily because it weighed over 30 pounds. So I ended up Geassing a random bystander to carry it all the way over to Ashford Academy and wait for me by the main gate with the package in hand.
I made sure, of course, to put the Glock in my breast pocket along with three extra magazines in my lower breast pocket next to my cell phone.
Next on my agenda was finding a police officer or someone affiliated with the military. This was necessary because I needed to find out where they kept the Knightmares scheduled for use at tomorrow's 'event'. Sadly, however, I ended up getting distracted by a sandwich stall. Unable to ignore my intense hunger, I purchased two sandwiches: one with turkey and cheese and one with ham and cheese.
'I'm not just going to randomly find a police officer hanging around…' I thought as I tore into the ham sandwich first, devouring it eagerly. My best bet is probably to call the police and have them take me to where I can find someone in the military, then have the military personnel take me to the Knightmares.
I walked aimlessly for about 12 blocks until I found a suitable place to sit. The best seat happened to be a bench near the edge of a park.
I was well over halfway done with the sandwich, and at that point I realized that I would need an address for the police to locate me. I considered checking my phone for some GPS function of sorts, but just as I was pulling out the phone, I lucked out; somehow I had failed to notice a police cruiser parked near the corner of the sidewalk not 50 feet away.
Well that's convenient, but I feel kind of stupid for not seeing that earlier. I quickly finished the last of the sandwich and walked briskly up to the cruiser with confidence.
Inside the cruiser was a man in his early thirties fashioned in an officer's hat and a light blue shirt with padded shoulders and gold buttons. Overall, the man looked quite sharply dressed. I walked over to the driver's side and stopped next to the door.
"Excuse me? Could I have a moment please?" I asked politely. The officer rolled down the window and leaned his head out. Shortly after, he made the mistake of making eye contact with me. I flicked on my Geass and gave the command.
"{Obey me.}" The officer seized up briefly only to quickly respond to the command.
"{Yes sir.}" I quickly walked around to the other side of the vehicle, opened the door, and took my seat trying my best not to draw attention. Shutting the door firmly behind me, I gave the next set of instructions.
"Take me to the nearest military installation." The officer turned the key, causing the car to jump to life. He put it into gear and pulled onto the road. While he was doing this, I opened up the turkey and cheese sandwich that I had yet to even begin devouring. While eating, I inspected the inside of the cruiser. Nothing was incredibly outstanding; the radio had dozens of knobs and buttons that I didn't quite comprehend, but that didn't bother me considering I wouldn't have to use it.
I wonder what type of gun he carries? I turned to my left and inspected his hip. The holster was clearly present. The first thing I noticed was the fact that his gun was not magazine based, rather it was clearly a revolver. It took me only a brief moment to identify the model.
Smith & Wesson model 36. A cute little revolver… It only held five rounds of 38 special, but they whipped ass at close range. I had the urge to commandeer the firearm for my own personal use.
I can't keep collecting handguns like this, eventually I'm going to run out of room in my pockets.
I tried to look away and continue eating my sandwich. The latter was not so difficult, but I found it increasingly difficult to restrain myself from ordering the officer to hand over his firearm. I looked out the windshield to check my surroundings. What I saw was a large castle-like construction.
That's probably where I'm going… It wouldn't hurt to have more firepower. No, no dammit. That doesn't change the fact that I don't have room in my pockets for that thing.
I sat there for a moment, my left eye twitching in frustration while I finished up the last quarter of the sandwich. Finally my hunger was sedated for a brief period of time.
"Fuck it." I said as I gave in entirely. I turned to the officer once more and began another order.
"Surrender your firearm to me as well as its holster, also hand over any extra ammunition you have for it as well." It took the man several moments, but he managed to detach everything while using one hand and still driving.
I took a mental note that subjects appear to be less coordinated while under the effects of my Geass.
Perhaps the longer they're under its effects the more efficient they become with ordinary actions. I suppose I'll have to test that later.
"{Here you are sir.}" The officer ended up handing me the entire belt with the firearm in the holster. I saw no extra ammunition present, nor did I see him reaching for any form of surplus, so I didn't bother pressing the matter. Crumpling up the paper that my sandwich had come in and stuffing it in my pocket, I began to inspect the piece of leather more thoroughly.
The belt was thin and simple, with several notches to adjust the size accordingly. The holster attached to it was small in comparison to others I had seen and had nothing but a single leather strap that prevented the firearm from falling out due to ordinary movement. I pulled on the leather strap causing the button to snap out of place. Pulling the hammer back to its first cocking position, I slid the cylinders out to the left. Luckily all five cylinders were loaded.
"Well at least it's loaded." I said simply. As I returned everything to its place in the holster, I decided that it would be best for it to be located on the small of my back. It took several moments and some adjustments to get the belt and holster to sit directly with conjunction to the rest of my clothing. Nonetheless, it turned out quite nicely. I flexed to the left and right while turning my upper body as far as I could.
"It doesn't protrude too much… Nor do I notice it unless something puts pressure against it. Sweet, I think I'll keep this on me all the time."
I looked out the windshield once more only to notice that the enormous castle-like building I had sighted beforehand was less than 100 yards away. I prepared myself mentally for multiple scenarios, most of which involved me simply not being able to make my way into the installation. The officer stopped the cruiser outside of a large gate that was guarded by two personnel. One soldier began walking up to the cruiser.
Quickly turning to the officer, I ordered. "You'll never speak of me entering this vehicle or having any form of interaction with you. You'll also dispose of any and all evidence of me ever being in this vehicle."
The officer nodded, and I stepped out of the vehicle with his confirmation.
"You may go about your ordinary business now." I said just before I shut the door.
I stood at my full height and looked sharply at the guard who approached me. His uniform was similar to the police officers, though it had a significantly larger amount of unnecessary paraphernalia such as tassels and golden embroidery.
"Young man, state your business here." It was a simple question, but it was not one I was determined to answer in the slightest. Knowing that my Geass was still active, I gave my command.
"{Obey me.}" On an odd side note, I couldn't help but feel like that command was getting kind of old, and I briefly considered formulating a new one that would do the same thing while sounding cooler… However, I quickly put that offhand for now.
"Certainly Sir." Said the now obedient guard.
"Tell me, where can I find the Knightmares that will be used tomorrow during Suzaku Kururugi's escort to his 'trial'?" I made sure to place the word 'trial' with a large dose of sarcasm.
"{That would be in the hangar bay on subfloor GM-six.}" I smiled wickedly at this.
"Excellent, escort me there." The guard nodded and turned.
"{Right this way Sir.}" As he began to lead me towards the primary structure and through the gates, the other guard ran up to stop both of us.
"What's going on here?" I decided that a simple command would suffice for this one.
"{Ignore any and all suspicious activity for the rest of today.}" Not bothering to observe his actions further, I motioned for the guard to carry on as he escorted me into the compound.
We headed underground for a decent while. Down many hallways and a few staircases until we reached a large elevator that looked as if it could fit an entire semi with its vast size.
More than likely this was built to fit Knightmare frames. I supposed it wouldn't be a bad idea to learn how to pilot one of these things, preferably while keeping the knowledge this time around…
It was clear this elevator went down several hundred feet underground. A few more moments of traveling and we finally stopped. A large mechanical snap ringed as both doors opened, revealing an enormous line of Knightmares. I was unable to stop myself from gasping, for truly when in person, standing in front of a Knightmare made you feel small and feeble.
"Carry on about your ordinary duties; however ignore any and all abnormalities for today." I ordered as I exited the elevator and walked towards the machines.
To the left were several consoles. In front of these consoles, seated in several chairs sporadically placed, were what appeared to be technicians and/or mechanics. I honestly couldn't tell the difference.
And so it begins, time to see if I can use it on this many people at the same time.
"May I have your attention, everyone!" I shouted as I raised one hand. Not a single person failed to look up at me. I smirked as I continued speaking. "{Obey me.}"
*Several hours later*
I stepped out of my second taxicab of the day. I had already Geassed the driver to erase my trail and to pick up my tab. I walked towards the main entrance where I had instructed the chubby man to await my arrival. He was easy to spot since his brown suit stuck out easily amongst the high white walls of the front gate.
I simply leaned over and took the case from him, informing the man that he was to go home and forget all about the incident with me and anything related to it.
Walking into the school, case in hand, I sighed inwardly feeling a sense of relief.
All the preparations are complete; all I needed to do was to pick up my mask and get some sleep.
With my free hand I reached inside my lower breast pocket to check the time. 6:02pm. I had been out and about for some time.
Once again I could feel the pangs of hunger beginning to gnaw at me. I took into account the words Gray Jack had spoken to me about my metabolism speeding up because of my gradually enhancing muscles... or something along those lines.
I figured I would just make myself something in the kitchen once I made it back to my dorm.
Opening the door to the clubhouse, I noticed that it was pleasantly quiet.
Finally, there are no student Council members hanging around here… I thought peacefully as I made my way down the hall. I was surprised to see the light on in the dining room area. I poked my head around to see what was going on. I saw was Nunnally being served dinner by Sayoko. The smell of food made me want to get in on the action.
"Hello!" I said trying to sound vibrant as I walked in and placed the case in the corner.
"Oh, hello big brother." Nunnally greeted.
"What are you guys eating?" I asked as I sat down in the chair next to her.
"I have made steak with baked potato and steamed vegetables, master Lelouch." I nodded feeling slightly off due to the title 'master' being added to my name.
"Is there enough for me as well?" I asked.
"Yes of course, I shall return shortly." As I waited patiently for Sayoko to return with the food, I couldn't help but wonder how a blind girl could eat without assistance. I figured if Sayoko wouldn't offer to help I would by default, otherwise I just feel plain bad.
While I was on that train of thought, it got me thinking how she had become blind in the first place.
As I recalled Milly said it was something along the lines of 'psychological trauma' that caused her blindness rather than a form of physical damage. If that's the case, would it be possible for me to reverse it with Geass?
Considering the fact that Geass affects the mind directly… theoretically it should work as long as the damage is purely mental.
I considered this both as a test, and as an act of kindness. I mean, I may be a bad guy, but I'm not a complete asshole. If I could help the blind to see, then dammit I would do so.
Although I had Sayoko under my Geass to obey me, I figured it would be better to attempt such in private.
"Lelouch, give me your hand." I smiled politely despite the fact she could not see it. Reaching out slowly and deliberately, I placed my hand in the middle of her much smaller and delicate one.
"So how was your day, brother? What have you been up to?" I considered my response for a brief moment then decided to be truthful… for the most part.
"My day has been very productive; tedious, yet productive. I've spent most of today out and about getting in all sorts of trouble." I said the last part teasingly.
"Nothing too dangerous, I hope?" She posed this as a question.
"Oh no, of course not. I'm saving that for when I take over the world." Nunnally giggled lightly.
"I'm glad you're so lighthearted about things. Earlier I was beginning to think there was something wrong." I raised an eyebrow.
"Really? What would lead you to believe that?" Nunnally shifted slightly, almost appearing to be uneasy.
"It's just… You been acting just a little strained recently, by what Milly and the rest of the student Council were saying."
"No I'm fine really, I might've been shook up a bit by Clovis's death, but I think I'm over it." Nunnally visibly became saddened at the late viceroys' mention.
"It really is sad about brother Clovis; he was such a kind and peaceful man. I don't understand why someone would do something like that." My visage darkened some at the thought of the genocide Clovis had committed. Although I couldn't recall it directly, I was very satisfied with the fact that I killed him myself.
And at the same time I was also sickened with the fact that someone else would be my scapegoat for what was more than likely some political stunt fueled by racism.
"Did you hear that they caught the murderer?" I asked wanting to hear another side of the story.
"When did this happen?" she asked in an obviously forced neutral tone.
"A day or two ago, apparently they are going to charge one Suzaku Kururugi for the crime." Nunnally gasped at the name, which caused me to raise my eyebrow even farther this time.
"What? Say it isn't true. Suzaku wouldn't do something like that… It isn't the same Suzaku, right?" she asked desperately. At this point, my mind began to race as I quickly put point A and point B together.
How could I have not realized that she would know Suzaku personally as well? Dammit… Now I guess I'll just have to calm her down.
"Hey hey, relax. That's why I have been out all day, I promise you it'll be just fine. I'll personally see to it." Nunnally had a quizzical look about her. Just at that moment, Sayoko came back in with the food I had asked for. Shortly afterward, she had placed it in front of me.
"Sayoko?" she looked directly at me. "Could you please give me and Nunnally some privacy, there is something I need to speak to her about." She said nothing; she simply bowed politely, and then exited the room.
I was unsure whether or not she was following the request due to my Geass, or because of her duties as a maid. I made a point to find out later.
"What do you mean Lelouch?" I turned back to Nunnally.
"What if I told you I had the power to make sure Suzaku was found innocent… not just because he is innocent. Regardless, what would you say?" Nunnally hesitated.
"I-I don't know, what do you mean Lelouch?" I paused for a moment as I considered how to best orchestrate this. I settled for the direct route.
"Nunnally," I said solemnly, "do you trust me?" The question was simple.
"Wh-… Yes of course, but what do you mean." I took a deep breath inward.
"I need you to trust me, no matter how crazy this might sound right now… I need to see if this works. If it doesn't, I'll explain it fully and entirely. Even if it does well, I'll still explain." I paused briefly.
"However, I need you to do something unusual. Okay? Will you do it for me?" Nunnally looked genuinely confused but nonetheless replied.
"Yes of course, I trust you Lelouch."
"This is going to sounding incredibly odd… I need you to hold your eyes open. Don't ask why… Just do it." Nunnally moved hesitantly at first but then nodded as she moved her soft frail hands up to her face and opened her eyes manually.
Her eyes were something that I didn't expect. They were a dull purple, they appeared to be lifeless and drained of vitality, as if someone had stolen the very soul of their existence.
I hope this works, or I'm going to look like a dumbass.
"{Lelouch Vi Britannia commands you: see the physical world around you, regain your ability of sight!}"
This was by far the most dangerous command I had given yet. I was afraid that it would go awry.
Nunnally seized up with the power of Geass for a brief moment. Then to my ultimate surprise the life in her eyes changed drastically from dull and opaque to bright, translucent and vibrant.
It appeared to work, I just hoped she doesn't go into sensory overload and have a seizure or something. That would be bad.
"Nunnally, you should be able to see now." I thought about it for a moment, then realized there might be some repercussions, primarily because the brain had not received any optical signals for such a long period of time.
It might strain the irises, the optic nerve, the occipital lobe, or possibly even the visual cortex. We should probably minimize her exposure to bright light as well as anything resembling an optical illusion for a good while.
"Nunnally?" I asked simply, expecting the worst yet praying for the best... What came next was far from what I expected as a man.
If it were me, I probably would've started screaming joyous obscenities. However, that just goes to show how little I know about the psyche of a little girl.
Tears began to stream from her now open eyes. She reached over slowly and carefully towards my face, cupping it with both hands. I smiled happily, content with my work.
"Lelouch… I- I can see, after such a long time... But how did you do this?" I reached up and held both her hands in mine.
"Look at my left eye. As you can see there is a birdlike symbol in it. This is called Geass, the power of the king's. I used it in order to return your sight to you." I paused for a response; when none was forthcoming I continued. "I don't know everything about it quite yet, but it was given to me by woman named CC. She's actually living in the dorm now. I'll have to introduce you to her sometime. But she gave me this power under the condition that I fulfill her wish, although I don't know what it is she wants me to fulfill."
"This is what you meant when you said you would have the power to save Suzaku?" I nodded in confirmation.
"My power allows me to force anybody to obey one order; it only works once per person and its application is limited to what that person is physically capable of doing. However when it comes to altering the person's mental state, I don't quite know its limits yet. Though it obviously managed to cure your blindness," I said with a smile.
"Thank you so much Lelouch!" she said vibrantly as she leaned over to embrace me tightly.
"It's only natural that I would do everything I could to help my sister." My thoughts weren't quite aligned with what I said, but I couldn't help but feel the situation was right.
The two of us spent the remainder dinner talking about whatever came to mind, including my new-found relationship with Shirley. I made sure to make her explicitly aware she should not strain her ability to see just yet, and avoid bright lights and the sort.
I also made sure to tell her that she should be in no rush to inform everyone else of her returned ability to see, nor was she permitted to tell anyone about my Geass.
Finally, after thoroughly devouring my dinner and tucking Nunnally into bed, I made my way back to my own room, but not before gathering the firearm's case. I stood before the door, feeling that I should be overly cautious when entering, just to be on the safe side.
I withdrew the Glock 17, and threw open the door fiercely. My mind raced which caused the world to seem as if it was slightly slower than usual as I cleared my room.
Clear left.
Clear center.
Clear rig-
"Holy shit!" I screamed barely able to restrain myself from firing.
"What the hell! What are you doing in my bed, woman?" I paused briefly. "Better yet, do you have any idea how close you just came to getting shot?"
CC shifted in my bed causing the blanket to fall down to her waist. This revealed the fact that she was wearing nothing but one of my dress shirts which was conveniently left unbuttoned. My left eye twitched in irritation and forced restraint.
"It wouldn't matter much even if you did shoot me, but then again I might hold that against you later if you did." I returned the firearm to its designated pocket and sighed deeply. Closing the door behind me, I placed the case onto the desk.
"Okay… I have a few things to address as of right now. Number one, why the hell are you in my bed? Number two, why the hell do you have no shirt, I mean bra, I mean… have some modesty dammit."
I hesitated as she shifted once more revealing more of her cleavage.
"N-number three, why are you in my room… You have your own room designated for you."
Her eyes finally levelled with me.
"To answer things in order." She started in a matter-of-fact tone. "I'm here because it's lonely by myself; I'm wearing your shirt because it's more comfortable than the straitjacket I came to you in; the third one… That's about the same as the first."
"Not interested, get out." I said with the power of an ultimatum. She didn't even so much as flinch.
"What's a' matter, you afraid of a little female companionship? Or maybe you're not into that sort of thing." I grit my teeth in frustration. Despite my best efforts, her comments were getting to me.
Maybe I should just shoot her, be some great stress relief, that it would.
I walked over to the bed and placed one foot on the frame next to the mattress, trying to make myself appear as imposing as possible.
"You have your own room and your own bed, female companionship is not something I need to go to you for. But what I do need to go to you for is to requisition you that you get the hell out of my bed. Oh, did I mention that this requisition is mandatory?"
I let the question hang in the air with the equivalence of a threat. However, I couldn't help but get the distinct feeling I was going to lose this one.
We stared at each other for a few moments. I even went so far as to flick my Geass on and off in an attempt to show how impatient I was until finally...
"Very well, have it your way… But you don't know what you're missing. A few hundred years of experience teaches you quite a few tips and tricks, if you catch my drift." My mouth opened slightly as I fully comprehend her words. But before I could retort with anything she stood, revealing the fact that she had nothing covering her legs or ass. I was unable to stop myself from watching as she walked out of the room unnecessarily swaying her hips.
The door finally shut and she was gone.
Well… logically, I won that one, however I can't help but feel like I just lost. Sad face.
I shook these thoughts from my head as I dressed into the pajamas I had stowed away in the bottom drawer. I made sure to leave the model 36 in the holster on the small of my back despite my sleepwear clad state. I readied myself to lay down, but just as I was about to roll onto the mattress and find sleep, a single thought hit me.
"I should probably call Shirley." I thought out loud as I fumbled around in my clothes I had discarded on the floor. It took no more than a moment for me to produce my cell phone from the disheveled heap of fabric. Not bothering to check the time, I opened the device and scrolled through the contacts list until I landed upon her name. Pressing the call button, I lifted the phone's receiver to my ear and waited through the dial tones.
On the third ring, she picked up.
"Oh hey Lulu, what's up?" I smiled softly as I fell into the groove of casual conversation.
"Well nothing really, I have some stuff that you need to come see in person tomorrow, but you're going to want to talk Nunnally about that. And before you ask, I can't tell you because it's a secret for now. But I guarantee tomorrow you'll enjoy it."
"Well that was cryptic." She stated while giggling.
"Yeah… But trust me it will be worth the small wait."
"Okay." She agreed.
"But what was up with that thing you said earlier today before you ran off? It made no sense to me." She said with a suspicious tone.
"Just like I said, I went to the city to illegally buy firearms." I paused to hear her reaction. When there was none forthcoming, I realized she was more than likely speechless. "Like I said, I'm not going to lie to you about that."
"That's sweet and all… but you can't go doing things like that. What will you do if you get caught; just think what Nunnally would go through knowing her brother was put in jail or something." I frowned slightly at the thought, but ultimately waved it off.
"Trust me, I'm more than good enough not to get caught, probably because I'm a ninja, dubbed with courtesy of Rivalz, of course." That got her laughing again, which in turn caused me to smile more. The conversation continued on for another 45 minutes until Shirley declared it to be bedtime and said good night.
There was much to be done tomorrow, but for now, I fell asleep with a content smile.
[To be continued soon, next chapter.]