Code Geass: Knight of Revolution
Well, here we go again!
Chapter 36: The Set Up
Hugh Le Britannia sat listening to his commanding staff as they viewed the troop deployments. It basically set up choke points from southern Area 11 up to the capital on the eastern side of Japan. The mountain ranges to the west, pointed east into kill zones in scattered splotches. He'd also set up air defenses and howitzer support on the east coast, where the Black Knights were supposed to receive some sort of naval support.
"I'll use this to up my reputation as the man who brought down Zero. Then Father will have to acknowledge me. Plus it'll put Cornelia and Euphemia in my debt for saving them. Ha ha, this is perfect."
"C.C. I have to know, can you sense Hal at all?" Lelouch sat in his room at his computer. Morgen sat patiently off to the side as C.C. took another slice of pizza from the box. The Pizza Hut must've hired a new guy, because the pizza was outstanding.
"All I can say is that he's not in the country. It's extremely faint, but I can still feel his Geass, though something about it is odd now, like it's evolved beyond what I thought it could. Now before you go and guess anything, it isn't the same as being permanent, just different. I can't describe it."
"What about Guis?"
"He's still in the country, quite close in fact."
The phone rang and Lelouch looked at the number before answering.
"Hello?"
"How's the pizza?"
Lelouch drew away from the phone and looked at it as if it was possessed.
"What?"
"I asked how the pizza is, y'know me."
Lelouch couldn't believe this. Tossing the phone to C.C. he mentioned pizza and she immediately responded.
"It's great, who is this?"
"Not you too. C'mon, it's me!"
C.C.'s eyebrows shot up and she looked at the slice of food in her hand.
"You made this?"
"I took over the location downtown and reorganized it. You wouldn't believe the poor quality stuff they'd been using. I spent the past couple of days redoing the training and work schedules. Now its running like a pizza place should be."
"Guistizia, I love you."
"Huh?!"
Morgen and Lelouch gaped at the immortal woman as Kallen walked in. Seeing the green haired witch nuzzling the phone while holding a piece of pizza to the gaping jaws of Morgen and Lelouch, Kallen silently backed out of the door and shut it.
'That was creepy.'
Kallen proceeded to run down to the lab to check on Rakshata's progress and talk, if you could say that, with Amelia, that was back and running most of the tech in the underground HQ. Opening the doors to the hangars, she still couldn't quite get over the size of the Gawain. Off to the side was a glowing tube with a small window on the side. Warning labels were all over it.
Looking over to the Guren, the damages were repaired and Rakshata was doing some work on the terminal beside it. Approaching the engineer, she made her way up the steps.
"Ah, Kallen, I've adjusted the Guren a bit to match your abilities. You're piloting abilities exceeded by expectations over the past few times you've taken the Guren into battle. It has an increase to its responsiveness by eight percent without having to shave weight from the frame. You should be able to feel the difference with your level of performance."
"Thank you Rakshata. What about Amelia though?"
"She proposed an idea to me, though how effective it will be I haven't a clue."
Kallen nodded. She only hoped that everyone was prepared for the next battle. They'd come too far to fail despite the blows they'd taken recently. Down below Toudoh and the others were talking about the recent turn of events.
"Do you really think they would go so far as to kill Halbdunkel behind the scenes?"
Several of the original Knights protested. Kento and Yoshitaka spoke up.
"That's crazy, he was a Rounds. That kind of thing would gain a lot of publicity."
"I agree with Kento, I think Hugh pulling a fast one."
Inoue, Urabe, and Senba remained quiet there were many possibilities. Yet something just didn't fit right.
"It's unlikely, but it isn't a possibility to be ruled out."
The group stared at Asahina incredulously. Pushing his glasses up a bit, he motioned with his hands.
"I agree that he was a Rounds well known throughout all of Britannia and perhaps the world at large, but he still committed treason. It's an astounding offense from someone so well known. I think this kid who's taken over for Schneizel's just manipulating the words in a desperate attempt to rally the morale against us."
Toudoh had kept silent throughout the conversation. Tapping his sheathed sword loudly against the floor, he drew silence from the people around him.
"We can make all the conjectures we want until the end of our days. Until I see his body and the biological proof, I will count him as alive, yet captive, or on the run."
Ougi nodded, it was sound logic and very true, none of them knew what was really going on with the Britannians and Halbdunkel. Everyone was anxious, the final stages of the plan were coming to fruition. The white uniform clad Britannian troops were preparing to move out under the cover of darkness that night. The rapid footsteps of someone approaching brought their head around in time to spot a hard breathing youth.
"A message for Zero."
"I'm here, what is it?"
Lelouch came down the stairs to their left. C.C. was close behind followed by Morgen in her black and silver Rounds uniform. Her pistol with the Royal Seal stayed at her side.
"We have confirmed troop deployment from our forward scouts and Cornelia's inner worked spies."
Lelouch grinned wickedly; it was time to see which strike layout they'd employ over the area. The group filed in behind Lelouch as they made their way to the tactics room. Kallen rushed upstairs just as they began to go in. Inside, Cornelia sat at the table beside a topographical map of Japan's main island.
Euphemia stood beside her. Darlton stood on the opposite side with a pointer. As everyone surrounded the map, the scout was motioned to begin. The young man coughed to clear his throat and took the pointer. Inoue sat down at one end and took control of the operating grid.
"The majority of the enemy forces are built up in sectioned blockades along the eastern side of the island with Knightmare Frames and artillery support. Mobilized artillery and soldiers are ridged along the eastern side of the mountain ranges with their guns pointed east to create a crossfire kill zone at each blockade."
He tapped the pointer at sections of the map, to which Inoue placed red blips in accordance to unit types and numbers. He ran the device over the entirety of the eastern mountain range, lighting up multiple scattered blips. This indicated that they didn't have a confirmed number of forces throughout that area.
"Along the eastern sea border, several naval blockade ships have the harbors and waterways cut off. I wouldn't be surprised if there was a fleet of submarines deployed as well."
The waterways lit up with ships and sub markers. He drew a circle at three sectors along the beachheads.
"They've also deployed anti air artillery at these regional points. The range of the guns is enough to cover the whole eastern coastline with the exception of a couple of pocket areas. That being said, what ends up happening is . . . well, a continuous crossfire of roadblocks, with lots of open area and not many hiding places."
The map changed to a simulated fire solutions grid and the whole eastern side of Honshu in fire. The group looked at the areas grimly. This was the approach route for the capital. Toudoh bashed a fist on the table.
"This was leaked!"
"Yes it was Toudoh."
The group looked to a chuckling Lelouch with disbelief in their eyes. Cornelia chuckled right along with him. Asking for the pointer from the scout, Cornelia stood and circled a large area in the northern island of Hokkaido. Between the two islands, the marker representing the Umi-no-Hime appeared interspersed among trading vessels. Blue units dotted the northern Honshu shore and pushed south toward the capital.
"It's all a feint. We've already established an assault on the Britannia with this scenario in mind. It was partially luck that our arrogant younger half brother is now in charge and actually fell for this deception."
"All he ever sees is the weapon, never the tactics or strategy."
"Right, and that being said, the Umi-no-Hime's main batteries can strike how far?"
"Twenty-six miles full charge."
"Once the Umi-no-Hime and her fleet drops off the main group of Cornelia's forces, they will move down along the east coast providing fire support on the east coast the moment they're in range. During that time, Cornelia will lead her forces south in a silent run to the capital. We Black Knights will move without radio contact all along the forested west coast and strike from that side when the first three volleys from the Umi-no-Hime and her fleet laid on the beaches and blockades from the north. This will be a pincer move from extreme rang from the northeast and west. Cornelia will surround the capital and send a contingent force south to further hit them from behind. Hugh is no military mind, so this won't take long. It won't be pretty, but it won't be a drawn out slug fest either."
Blips popped up from the west and south representing the Black Knights. Toudoh saw the kill zone change dramatically.
"You're making them start off in a pocket, getting hit from every angle. But who is the southern unit?"
"That would be me and who ever wishes to join me. C.C. will be piloting the Gawain and I'll be at its fire controls."
How long is this going to take to move everyone into position?"
"Not as long as you may think. The underground subways aren't monitored, getting everyone along the west coast won't be a problem. There's a reason why I had our headquarters moved here."
Ashford Academy lit up on the map and the group blinked. Ashford was twenty miles south of the southern battleline. Tamaiki laughed out loud.
"Oh man, is this why you had everyone working on those damn subways the past few weeks?"
"It is. By the trains, the entire force should be at least three fourths of the way to the northern most section of the western skirmish line in two and a half hours at most. The forces that would have to travel the remaining distance would take forty additional minutes, so less than four hours at most."
Yoshida spoke up.
"What about scouts along the west coast?"
"They're my men who didn't join us after the Narita scheme."
"They'll literally never know we're coming. Hugh's a fool who I've always been at odds with. I guess now he gets his due."
V.V. stood before Rena, Kyrios, and Kain with a smile. He knew they were special, but to see his Serpent choose them as well as delightful. Rena and Kyrios had an ongoing rivalry and inspired each other to improve beyond their expectations. Kain was a frightening Geass wielder, his specific focuses in the alteration of physics were normally devastating and subtle. When he got in the destructive mood though, many of the members of the collective let him do as he pleased or risked gruesome ends.
"So he chose you three. Ha, I see we have similar tastes. Very well, you three are under my Serpent's direct command, unless he tells you otherwise or I override his authority, you are to answer to no one. I'll leave it to him to decide on how you will operate."
"You have our thanks Master V.V."
"Oh please, I'm looking forward to seeing your four do your thing. Keep in mind, this location is to be kept hidden no matter the cost."
The three saluted before taking their place behind the immortal's commander. Turning his attention to the man, he smiled easily.
"You are free to do as you wish, but give me a show. That's my only request."
The Serpent of Akasha bowed low.
"It will be as you command V.V.. This will be a spectacle unlike anything seen in quite some time."
Turning, the four individuals left. Taking up a wine glass, V.V. laughed lightly.
"Ah, my Secret Order of Light Deployment Intervention and Eradication Radicals are shaping up very nicely. Charles, you've met your match this time."
So it begins. Prepare for epicness next chapter! MWUHAHAHAhahahahaha!!!