Screen Jumps with static:
R.R: Koga -sksh- shi you re -sksh- rd!
Kogarashi: Kukuku -sksh- maybe I -sksh- ld have -sksh- ed sma -sksh- ler ordinance...
R.R: YOU SH -SHKSH- LD HAVE US -SKSH- TRANQS!
Kogarashi: Calm y -sksh- rself. I can fix this...MAID GUY FIRST AID!
-CENSORED-
R.R: (Blinking as the world comes back into focus) I can't believe that worked.
Kyugan: Buh? Wha happened?
R.R: Headshot with an anti-aircraft gun.
Kyugan: Again? I haven't felt that in a while.
Kogarashi: You see? He's back, the world is restored, and with no side effects.
Lelouch: (voice slightly higher) Wha-WHY DO I HAVE BREASTS?!
Milly: (impressive tone) Hm...so this is what it feels like....
Shirley: (also tone) Ah! it feels weird!
Kallen: (deadpan) I look like my brother...
C.C: (female, due to the effects of code) Well...it's been a long time since I had one of THESE sleep overs...
Lulu: Eh? C.C you better not be thinking what I think you're-?! MILLY! WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?!
R.R: ... (deadpan stare at kogarashi)...
Kogarashi: ...SOME side effects.
Kyugan: (Sighs) I'll get my back-up files... (pulls out camcorder as Lulu's screams fill the air.) after I tape this...for scientific reasons of course.
R.R: I'm surrounded by idiots...
Chapter 10: Duel.
"No way!" Rivalz gaped, the blue haired student council member looking on in awe at the scene that was unfolding right before his eyes, albeit on the council's television screen "Zero actually showed! He really IS alive!"
"It could just be a guy in a costume." Shirley pointed out, though in al honesty, the orangette was a little biased on the matter, if rightfully so. After all, who would wish to see their father's murderer alive and well?
"I don't know…" Milly muttered, the Ashford heir holding her chin in thought "This ballsy, eye-catching approach just SCREAMS Zero." She gestured at the screen with a nod "I mean think about it, he shows up at the last minute, not only calm as can be, but walking towards them on foot?"
"There is that…" Rivalz muttered, the President's self-proclaimed fanboy nodding his head in agreement with his long time crush, as the camera zoomed in on Zero's helmet "But what's he going to do without a Knightmare Frame?"
Unknown to them, a similar thought was running through the head of Suzaku, who was standing to the rear of the group. The only difference being, that Suzaku had a sneaking suspicion of exactly WHAT the 'Zero' imposter might just have up his sleeve.
"Hey, where's Rollo?" Shirley wondered, the kind member of the swim team looking around for their newest member in confusion, her eyes landing on Suzaku as the knight snapped out of his daze "Wasn't he in today?"
"Oh, his guardian called him away for something." the Knight offered apologetically, smiling at the orangette that had once harbored a crush on Lelouch "Happens all the time, Rollo's got a lot of responsibilities for someone his age, I almost feel sorry for him."
"Zero?" Ohgi wondered, the second in command of the Black Knights gazing in shock at the figure that was walking towards them through the crowd, unable to believe his own eyes as the other prisoners, most notably a shocked Chiba, looked on in disbelief "Is it really him?"
"Course it's really him!" Tamaki cheered, looking at his friend with an excited grin, before turning back to cheer for their leader, struggling within his restraints, as if he were trying to punch the air for joy "ZERO! KNOCK HIS BLOCK OFF!"
"And how's he supposed to do that without a Knightmare?" Todoh asked, the grim faced samurai's comment causing Tamaki's mouth to hang open mid-cheer, as the redhead saw the sense in the former general's words.
"You don't think…" Ohgi muttered, his eyes widening in alarm as he watched their leader, or someone wearing his clothes and with a similar penchant for the theatrics draw closer through the awestruck crowd "He's here to surrender himself…for us?"
"You say you do not wish to slight me?" Guilford demanded, the Knight motioning for the gates to part, letting the masked man enter the blockade, aiming his lance at the vigilante threateningly "Then where is your Knightmare? Are you forfeiting this duel?"
"Hardly." Zero countered, coming to a halt scant millimeters before the tip of Guilford's lance, his hands hidden beneath his cloak "I merely had important business to attend to outside the walls of the consulate, challenging an empire is a very tedious business, wouldn't you agree?"
"How very quaint." Guilford muttered, his lance still aimed directly at the vigilante's masked face, his own set in a cold frown "Still, I offered an honorable duel, it would be remiss of me not to offer you a Knightmare of your own."
The knight gestured with his frame and a reserve Sutherland was brought forward, the pilot disembarking, advancing on Zero with his hands held high to show he was unarmed, his identity key held in one hand.
"My gratitude." Zero offered, accepting the key from the stony faced Britannian, who stepped back out of reach "And here I thought that Britannia was a nature of cowardly backstabbers, it's strangely heartening to learn that there remain a few who value chivalry."
"Your flattery will get you nowhere." Guilford countered, bespectacled eyes narrowing as the revolutionary clambered aboard the Sutherland and entered the IFF signal, the Knight twirling his lance into a ready position "Shall we get started?"
"Before we begin this duel," Zero began, his masked features appearing before Guilford, who was shocked to see the man not in his helmet, but with a simple face mask pulled up over his nose. "Let's set some ground rules. First of all, this battle shall be one on one."
"Very well." Guilford agreed, the bespectacled Knight of Cornelia smiling in approval at the masked man's suggestion, in truth, this made it all seem more like a proper duel "No one else shall interfere with our combat."
"Will you swear on the name of your lady, Guilford?" Zero asked suddenly, startling the Knight "By your word as a Knight of Empire, will you give your word that NO-ONE shall intervene, no matter the outcome?"
"But of course." Guilford growled, as if insulted to his core that Zero would question his integrity "I, Gilbert G.P Guilford, swear on my lady, Princess Cornelia Li Britannia, that no-one shall interfere with our battle."
"Very well." Zero nodded, his mismatched eyes locking onto Guilford's own, the night feeling a hint of recollection at the sight of the man's purple eye "Then the second condition is that we each battle with one weapon."
"Agreed." Guilford nodded, the Knight promptly tossing his Gloucester's firearm aside, disengaging his harkens and other mounted weaponry as he twirled his spear overhead with a flourish, levelling it at Zero's Knightmare "I choose THIS as my weapon!"
"I see…" Zero noted, his features betraying no emotion other than absolute calm, his Knightmare suddenly pointing towards one of the armored, Riot-Police Kinghtmare Frames that were guarding the crowd "I shall borrow that shield."
'Going into battle with a riot shield?' Todoh wondered, the general's eyes narrowing in confusion, even as the rest of the Knights looked between themselves in confusion 'Could it be…is he planning to kill himself?'
"What're ya thinking Zero?!" Tamaki demanded, the spiky headed redhead struggling in his confines, his face a mask of exasperation as he yelled at their supposed savior "Go for a Machine gun! A Sword! Anything but a shield!"
"I have a question for you, Lord Guilford…" Zero called out, as he moved his Sutherland into a defensive position "What do you do when there is an evil you cannot defeat by just means? Do you stain your hands with evil to destroy evil? Or do you remain steadfast and just even if it means surrendering to evil?"
'Sounds like a paradox…' Ohgi muttered, the former school teacher's eyes narrowing as he read through the riddle, whilst the Knights, with the exception of a grim faced Todoh, looked at one another in confusion 'In either case, evil remains.'
"In the name of Cornelia!" Guilford declared, twirling his spear overhead, before charging straight at his opponent "I CHOOSE JUSTICE!"
The crowd watched with baited breath, looking to see what miracle would unfurl, the Black Knights actually leaning forwards in their restraints as Guilford charged Zero's Sutherland, the golden tip of his spear screaming towards Zero's Riot shield.
Suddenly, before the stunned eyes of the crowd, Zero's Knightmare stood straight, holding its arms out wide, Guilford eyes widening in shock as his spear was presented with an open target.
"NO!" Ohgi yelled, the former teacher staring in horror as the tip of Guilford's spear pierced through the back of Zero's Knightmare, the crowd screaming in shock.
"No way…" Rivalz muttered, the blue haired teen's eyes wide with shocked disbelief as he stared at the screen before him, literally hanging on the edge of his seat in surprise "He…Zero LET Lord Guilford spear him?"
"But why?" Shirley wondered, the orangette covering her mouth in shock at the sight of the rebel's apparent act of sacrifice, as she stood next to a surprisingly silent Milly "Why would he do something like that?"
'No way…' Suzaku whispered, green eyes widening as he gaped at the screen, his doubts as to the new Zero's identity once again rising to the forefront of his mind 'An imposter wouldn't go so far…could it actually be…Lelouch?'
"Why?" Guilford demanded, the Knight of Cornelia and 'spearhead of the empie' clenching his teeth as he glared at the damaged, sparking Sutherland before him "Why did you release your guard just as I struck?"
"I could ask you the same thing…Lord Guilford…" Zero pointed out, the masked man's voice startling the crowd, even as his Sutherland sparked dangerously "Why, at the last minute, did you divert your spear?"
"Do not insult me!" Guilford snapped, his eyes hard as stone as he glared at the fuzzy image of his opponent on the screen "As a Knight of Princess Cornelia, to accept victory in such a manner would be a slight to Milady's honor!"
"Your Princess must be quite a woman if she can command loyalty in men as steadfast as you." Zero spoke, his voice surprisingly soft to the stunned Knight "Perhaps there ARE some Britannian's worth sparing in this world."
"Shut up!" Guilford growled, pulling his lance back, revealing that it had gone through the Sutherland's shoulder unit, rather than the chest "At the very least, this duel is over, step out of your Knightmare and surrender."
"Not just yet, Lord Guilford." The revolutionary countered, his mismatched eyes smirking at the man through the grainy image of his damaged cockpit "This duel has yet to be concluded, I have still to make my attack."
"Attack?" Guilford repeated, the bespectacled Knight eyeing the masked revolutionary's image, wondering if the man had gone mad in his seclusion "With a damaged Sutherland and naught but a Riot shield?"
"I never said the weapon I chose was a shield, did I?" Zero pointed out, the Knight flinching as the man reached into his pocket "That was merely a test of your character…if you were truly the type of man that would kill a man for his own ends, then I'd have used it to tear you, and your soldiers limb from limb."
Guilford narrowed his eyes, the Glaston knights moving into a ready stance, even as Zero pulled something out of his pocket.
"However, out of respect for your chivalry," the vigilante offered "I shall let you and your men leave here with their lives…TEKK-SETTER!"
Guilford cursed as his monitor filled with blinding purple light, the Knight shielding his face with his arm, eyes widening as he espied the same purple light bursting through the seams of Zero's damaged Sutherland.
'A Suicide attack?!' he wondered, backing his Gloucester away from the frame, even as it exploded outwards, a burst of purple light flashing into the sky overhead "WHAT ON EARTH?!"
To the astonished eyes of all those who were watching, the purple light, which had taken on the appearance of a winged crystal, hovered in mid-air, casting a strange, ephemeral light over the crowd.
Within the light, shielded from view by the raw power of the transformation, Zero stood firm as his clothes, mask and all, were apparently vaporized, leaving the teen naked as the day he was born. Crystal spikes sprouted from beneath his ribcage on either flank, as a glowing red emblem, in the shape of his Tekka-Crystal, shone to life on his forehead.
Glowing red lines flowed from the symbol across his face and down his body, trailing the contours of his muscles and joints, front and back, as if creating a template for a wire-frame image, a glowing sphere appearing in the center of his chest.
In an instant, his fragile human body was became encased in impenetrable armor of alien origin, which fused directly with his flesh and bones. His strength, already far above that of a normal man, grew exponentially greater as the very energy of time and space poured into his veins, the armor on his form increasing by the second, augmented with quantum energy weapons.
With a flash of his purple eyes, the transformation ended, the now armored warrior shattering the crystal structure that confined him, clenching his fist as he summoned his Tekk-Lancer, the two halves of the spear materializing from the slots on his chest, the armored warrior bringing them together, twirling the weapon overhead, before bring it down, held in a battle pose
"TEKKAMAN ZERO!"
"HOLY SHIT!" Tamaki yelled, the redhead flailing wildly against his restraints as the flaming shrapnel from Zero's Sutherland flew towards them, the rest of the Black Knights bracing themselves for the inevitable impact, as the crowd looked on in horror.
A flash of purple intercepted the shrapnel, slicing it to ribbons and deflecting it away from the convoy, the stunned Knights looking up at their apparent savior in stunned awe that only grew as they looked on.
"W-what the heck…?" Tamaki stammered, the loudmouthed rebel's eyes wide and jaw gaping open as he stared at the two meter tall armored figure standing before them, a wicked looking double-headed lance in his hand "Ultraman?"
"My apologies for the inconvenience." The armored giant spoke, the Black Knight's eyes widening at the familiar, modulated voice of their rescuer, as he turned his armored face to look at them "Please wait here," he asked, one purple eye lighting up beneath his visor "this won't take but a moment."
"Zero?" Ohgi breathed, hardly daring to believe, even as the giant dropped to the ground and charged Guilford at a dead run, his lance held at his side.
"!!!!" Zero roared, the tekkaman's eyes glowing an ominours purple as he charged the startled Guilford's Gloucester, his Tekk-Lancer at his side, held at the ready.
"What the devil is this?!" Guilford demanded, the bespectacled Knight backing his Gloucester away from the two meter tall figure in armor instinctively, only to gape as it leapt, drawing gasps from the crowd as it came level with the Gloucester's visor. The Knight cursed at the sight, bringing own his spear up too late, his Knightmare's left arm dropping to the floor, severed off at the elbow, followed by his right leg.
"LORD GUILFORD!" the Glaston Knights called out, Andreas Darlton's adoptive sons breaking formation as the man's Gloucester fell, charging towards their leader out of concern "You bastard!"
"NO!" Guilford barked, the bespecticaled Knight whipping round to command his friend's adoptive sons, his hair in disarray inside as he gripped he tried to keep his frame upright "Stay back! I gave my word that no one would interfere!"
"TOO LATE FOR THAT!" Zero called out, his thrusters firing as he launched himself at the nearest Knightmare, lashing out with a diagonal slice that severed the frame at the waist, cutting its spear in half in the process "HYAAAAAAAAAAH!"
"BART!" Edgar yelled, the grey haired Knight cursing as his brother was defeated so easily, before rounding the tekkaman, charging him with his own lance held out to impale, like one of the Knights of old "WHY YOU-!"
"TOO SLOW!" Zero countered, dodging the thrust of the Knight's lance to deliver a savage, thrust powered knee strike to the Knightmare's face, smashing the visor in, before splitting his lance in half, leaping behind the blinded Knightmare and lopping off the arms with an acrobatic twirl "HRAAH!"
"Edgar!" Alfred and Claudio called out, the blonde and brunet brothers Dalton charging towards their enemy, lances at the ready, preparing to double team this new enemy that was making a mockery of them.
"PREDICTABLE!" Zero snarled, the Tekkaman charging in low with his Lancer still divided, deliberately dragging the jagged tips of the weapon against the ground, eliciting a trail of sparks in his wake, before leaping into the air hurling them at the oncoming Knightmare frames like spears, only for them to swerve out of the way at the last minute.
"HA! You'll have to do better than that!" Claudio scoffed, the brunet bringing his Knightmare around for another pass, only to blink as Zero crossed his arms before him, as if tugging on wires, the Knight's proximity alarm going off a second too late as one of the Tekk-Lancers spun back, slicing through his Knightmare diagonally at the hip, forcing him to eject.
Alfred, who had managed to escape at the cost of his Knightmare's arm, could only look on in horror as Zero reeled in the halves of his weapon, bringing the hilts together to reform the double headed lance.
"What…is he…?!" the blonde Dalton sibling stammered, staring at the armored warrior in horror from behind his visor, his knuckles white as he gripped the controls of his Knightmare as if his life depended on it "What in God's name is he?!"
"Only one left." Zero noted calmly, the Tekkaman standing up, twirling his lancer idly between his fingers as his eyes glowed an ominous purple. With a yell he charged towards Bart's damaged Knightmare, his lancer held at the ready as the Glaston Knight backed away out of fear, the distance between them growing narrower by the second.
A gunshot forced the Tekkaman to leap back, his purple eyes narrowing as he followed the trajectory of the shot to the far sided of the enclosure "A sniper?" he noted, tone laced with disdain "Not very chivalrous for a Knight are you-?!"
Something heavy crashed into his back, the Tekkaman sprawling across the street, rolling with it to land in a crouch, his eyes narrowing at the gold, silver and red Knightmare that appeared before him.
'A new enemy?' he wondered, taking in the Frame's appearance with a scowl 'Looks a lot like that white Knightmare Kururugi piloted…' he muttered, snorting in disdain and sudden understanding 'must be a new, mass production model based on the original.'
The Golden Knightmare drew twin swords from under its arms, the blades lighting up a dull crimson, just like the Lancelot's had, right before it vanished into thin air.
Zero blinked, only to bite off a curse as one of the Knightmare's' blades bit into his armor, his Tekk-Lancer managing to fend off the worst of the blow as it bore down on him.
'FAST!' he swore, purple eyes narrowing as he pushed against the blade 'I couldn't even see it move…couldn't react in time to block.' He grit his teeth beneath his armor, his eyes flashing a murderous purple 'But that being said…it's still only a Britannian wind-up doll!'
With a roar, the Tekkaman shoved the taller Knightmare back, the golden machine stumbling, caught off balance, giving Zero time to launch his grapple at its face, the length of wire wrapping around the Frames' neck, allowing the Tekkaman to pull himself towards it with a snarl, Lancer aimed to impale.
The frame vanished again, but Zero was tugged along with it this time, the Tekkaman smirking beneath his helmet as he landed on the Knightmare's face, the machine pulling up short, as if caught by surprise.
"Speedy little bastard aren't you?" the Tekkaman snarled, claws digging into the frame's armor as he gripped the Knightmare by its faceplate "Let's see what you insides look like!"
The Tekk-lancer came down, jabbing into the frames face, eliciting a series of sparks as Blade dragged the weapon down, splitting it in half and using the two blades to pry the face open like a surgeon clearing the wound.
A sniper round slammed into his flank, knocking the Tekkaman clear, one of his lancers remaining stuck in the Knightmare's face as it backed off, disappearing from sight once again.
"Blast it." Zero hissed, the Tekkaman pulling himself to his knees with a snarl as he glared in the direction the shot had come, even as military Sutherlands raced towards him "No more kid gloves you bastard!"
Whirling towards the Snipers position, Zero leapt into the air, only to come to a halt, his body doubling over in mid-air, arms crossed before him as his shoulder panels opened, revealing several crystal-like components inside, which began to glow ominously.
"VOL…TEKKAAAAAAAA!" the Tekkaman growled, uncrossing his arms, bringing them to his sides as he launched a beam of purple energy at the sniper, David's horrified screams cutting off as the Quantum energy vaporized him on the spot.
"Don't think I've forgotten about YOU!" the Tekkaman snarled, rounding on the remaining Sutherlands, his thrusters igniting as he charged, even as his armor became more streamlined, panels covering his joints and the exposed sections of his arms, a purple light emanating from his body as he leapt into the air, his aura taking on the appearance of fiery wings.
"Crash…INTRUDE!" the Tekkaman howled, flying straight at the nearest Sutherland, smashing through it and heading for the next, the Knightmare's going up in bursts of purple light as the Tekkaman darted between them like a firefly from hell, sending armored limbs and smoking carapaces flying in all directions, the Frames exploding scant seconds later.
The winged apparition flew overhead, as if doing a victory lap, before descending towards one of the marble pillars that adorned the area, the glow fading away to reveal the armored figure in all his glory, standing with his head turned away from the crowd.
His head turned, as if looking towards the camera, one of his purple eyes lighting up, as if gazing out at the stunned onlookers.
"Intriguing…" Li Xingke muttered, the swordsman looking on in wonderment as Zero's battle with the Britannian military drew to a close "To think the Black Knights had something like THIS up their sleeves."
The Chinese Federation would be MOST interested in this latest development…in fact, Li suspected that almost EVERYONE would want a piece of this miraculous new power once the word got out.
"A miracle worker indeed." He noted, smirking to himself as he watched Zero land atop the pillar, like a conquering hero from the old tales overseeing the battlefield below "It seems we can use you after all…Zero."
R.R: Eeesh...you really don't hold anything back do you?
Kyugan: Hey, it was Zero's debut! He needs to let Britannian know who's gunning for them.
R.R: Well they do now...of course you DO know Rakshata's going to wanna 'examine' him.
Kyugan: And that's bad...how?
R.R: Which means Lloyd's going to be trying to get his claws on theor too.
Kyugan: (shudders at the image of Lloyd holding up a power drill) eesh...
R.R: BTW...weren't you going to change them back?
Kyugan: I will...
Lulu: (from the bedroom) Ah! No! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!
Kyugan: Once the tapes done recording.
Kogarashi: (Monitoring the video progress) Kukuku...master's friend is surprisingly flexible in BOTH forms.
Fubuki: Poor Lelouch-sama... *blushes as she eyes Male-Milly and Kallen* ara-ara...
Sayoko: (Sighs) otou-sama...Oka-sama...this isn't right.
Fubuki: You're right Sayoko-chan, we really need to have popcorn.
Sayoko: (smiles, holds up a massive tub)
Kogarashi: (pats her head) Kukuku, that's my girl.
R.R: Good grief...Read and reivew for another update!
