It was, for the most part, a calm day in Area 11 - true, a terror attack had occurred the previous day, but for the most part, things had died down.
Yet unknown to many, a clandestine war was about to public, all due to a truck driving down a highway, with several Britannian helicopters in pursuit.
"This is Alpha-3! Target is traveling from Delta-12 toward Delta-14, at a speed of 80 kph!"
"CCP to all mobile units. Declaring a Code 3 from floor 5 to floor 2. All units, take 2-8-8. I want the target intact!"
XXXXX
The nobleman listened to the news report for a moment, before deciding to turn it off - the sound was detracting from his chess game with the commoner in front of him. Poor sap, getting himself in over his head, all because he had refused to sell the baron a certain suit. Worse still for his opponent, the rules had just been changed - moves now had to be made every twenty seconds.
The baron felt that winning against such a poor opponent wouldn't be very sporting. Then again, a win was a win.
Then a pair of school-boys entered the room, one of whom claimed to be the poor tailor's substitute. Really, the old man was hiding behind a child? And said child thought he could win in under ten minutes? How amusing.
...So he was going to start with his king? Interesting.
XXXXX
Discarding his gloves, the Doctor watched as the news report went on, detailing who had died in yesterday's terrorist attack. Mentally, he grimaced as the reporter referred to all the Japanese casualties as 'others' - why did this world have the same problems as Terra?
Rhodes Island would normally not concern itself with the actions of other resistance groups (even if some most definitely counted as terrorists), as its campaign against Britannia needed to be kept clandestine for the moment. Especially after Closure had decided to go for the refuge in audacity approach - just...why had she thought it a good idea to make a video game about their conflict with Reunion? And how had everyone else thought it was a good idea, including Amiya? Even Kal'Tsit and W had agreed with him that said plan was stupid, which was an achievement, but oh well.
However, the most recent terror attack had piqued Rhodes Island's curiosity, and for good reason - the attack had occurred at an area officially licensed as a chemical production plant. Unofficially, RI was all but certain it was involved in the production of poison gas. Even if it was poison gas that the facility produced, RI would not get involved without lots of evidence to back them up - the facility was apparently owned by Viceroy Clovis la Britannia himself, and one did not fight royalty unless the cause was important.
This time, it was - apparently, the facility contained a large amount of something called Ore X. That set off alarm bells to Rhodes Island for a very simple reason: in this world, Ore X was the name they had given to Originium. And the only way to acquire it was via direct purchase from Rhodes Island. And as Clovis had not had any group under him make such a purpose, there was only one way to acquire it - stealing from RI.
While this solved the problem of where exactly the Originium samples and RI Delivery truck had gone, how exactly Clovis' forces has managed to steal the material was currently up in the air.
Still, time to get the retrieval team ready...also, Lelouch needed to be let in on the news. And they probably inform Merrow that Lelouch was going to get involved.
XXXXX
"Where's Lelouch?" asked Milly.
"He went somewhere with Rivalz," spoke the orange-haired Shirley Fenette, who alongside Milly, Rivalz Cardemonde, and Lelouch, was a member of the Ashford Academy student council.
"What! Maybe it's poker this time?" surmised Milly.
"They seem to forget that they're on the student council!" huffed Shirley. "And why is Lelouch still gambling now? Didn't one of the people he beat try to get back at him! It was on the news!"
"Weren't you there when that happened?" asked the spectacled student council treasurer, Nina Einstein. If one looked at her for a moment, they would notice that she was wearing a pair of dog ears, while Milly wore cat ears and Shirley had what looked like fleshy orange horns on her head.
Shirley blushed at that remark. "I don't want to talk about it. And besides, Lulu just started a job at Rhodes Island! He should know better than to go gambling!"
Milly smiled. "Oh, I wish my darling Lulu would be a serious young man! How adorable is that?"
Once again, Shirley blushed. "Please, madam president…"
XXXXX
Lelouch was still smirking as he and Rivalz returned to the latter's motorcycle. The noble hadn't even lasted nine minutes - according to Rivalz, he'd made a new record.
Really, though, compared to Schneizel or the Doctor, that man had been a poor sport.
Lelouch briefly listened in when Rivalz suggested he challenge some Japanese opponents, though Lelouch mentally was already shooting that down...at least, if it was chess - he wanted to try out their game, Shogi. The difference in rules would certainly make things more interesting.
Soon, though, his attention was taken by Clovis' address, condemning the attacks from yesterday. Lelouch practically laughed at how false his half-brother's speech was - Clovis was an actor and a painter, not an orator. Though it was amusing to watch.
XXXXX
Diethard watched on in annoyance as Clovis ended his address and returned to mingling with the various partygoers. What a farce.
Also, why was a reporter allowed in here with bunny ears? Last time he checked, that wasn't exactly proper uniform anywhere.
Before he could ponder this further, he watched as a general approached Clovis and told the man something that immediately made him uncomfortable, seeing how the Viceroy immediately called for the deployment of his royal guard. Thus, Diethard failed to notice that the bunny-eared girl left almost as soon as Clovis finished speaking to the general, Bartley Apserius.
XXXXX
Sneaking out of the room, Amiya sent out a message to the Doctor - it appeared that they had found their target. Time to call in the hounds and reclaim what belonged to them.
Hopefully, they could beat out the royal guard. Defeating them in combat was a given. Getting to the truck in time, that was a different story.
XXXXX
Caught off guard by a ringing from his phone, Lelouch was further surprised to see that it was the Doctor who was calling him. "Hello?"
"See the news?"
"Yeah. So what?"
"I think we found our missing Originium."
"Wait, really?"
"Yeah. We think the terrorists stole it along with some poison gas. We're tracking their location right now, but the Royal Guard is after them - evidently this is an important project for Clovis."
"I see."
"Who're you talking to, buddy?" asked a confused Rivalz.
"My boss," answered Lelouch.
"Oh. Sorry."
"Can you keep me posted?" asked Lelouch, attention back on the phone call."
"Sending you a map right now."
Immediately, Lelouch saw a map appearing on his phone screen, displaying all the Rhodes Island operators nearby, as well as the location of the target truck...wait, why was it so close to him and Riv-
HONK!
"We're gonna die!"
Some brief swerving later, and Lelouch and Rivalz were parked against the edge of the road, while the truck had crashed inside some abandoned construction. Lelouch walked over to observe this, only to be shocked when he suddenly saw a faint glow of energy that reshaped itself into a humanoid form before vanishing. Confused, enraged at the bystanders who had gathered but were doing nothing, and aware that the Doctor would want this back (alongside the rest of Rhodes Island), the prince made his way up to the truck, trying to see if anyone had survived..
"Hey, are you alright?"
The answer he got was not what he was expecting. This might have had something to do with how it came from within his mind.
"It's you. I have finally found my-'
Before Lelouch could ponder this further, the driver recovered and pulled out of the construction site, causing Lelouch to fall into the truck. A moment later, the truck pulled away, taking Lelouch with it.
An observing Rivalz wondered if this counted as hit and run.
XXXXX
Groaning, Lelouch stood up within the truck, confused and annoyed at his predicament. IT didn't take him long, though, to notice the poison gas bomb next to time. For a moment, Lelouch panicked, before sighing - he'd seen this kind of bomb from an earlier op, and knew how to dispose of it. Carefully, he moved to deactivate it, only to freeze up when he saw someone heading toward the bomb compartment. Activating his Arts to slightly darken the room, he flattened himself up behind the bomb and waited for the girl to pass. Oddly, she looked familiar. He was briefly surprised when she entered a Knightmare, before deciding to put that aside and focus on the bomb.
Briefly, the truck shuttered from taking gunfire, but Lelouch paid that no mind, instead trying to disarm the explosive. Unfortunately, it was sealed too well, and Lelouch soon realized that he didn't have the tools on hand to disable it. Sighing, Lelouch reached into his schoolbag and put on his RI Security Team uniform - at least this way, he could disguise himself and afford some protection. Briefly, he considered using his Arts to try and disable the bomb, before deciding against it - best not to play with matches.
Eventually, the truck came to a halt in a tunnel. Having a hunch as to why, Lelouch walked up to the cockpit and found the driver had passed out from his injuries. Hastily, Lelouch did what he could to save the man's life, but then the man flipped a switch, opening up the bomb compartment. Gazing outward, Lelouch saw a soldier staring at him.
Wordlessly, Lelouch extended a collapsible baton.
XXXXX
"All teams, head to Shinjuku Ghetto! Britannia is trying to recover the poison gas, and it is likely they will try to eliminate all civilians to cover this up!"
"YES, DOCTOR!"
XXXXX
Lelouch managed to repel the soldier for a time, but eventually he was outmatched and knocked over, his masked knocked off in the process.
"That's enough mindless murder!" shouted the soldier.
"Mindless murder?!" croaked Lelouch, dumbfounded at the claim.
"Planning to use poison gas? Don;t play dumb with me!"
"Get off me!" shouted the former prince, knocking his opponent off him. "You're hardly in the right here! This truck carries toxic metal that was stolen by Britannia from a medical company!"
"Huh?" asked the soldier. Then he got a good look at his opponent's face. "My god..."
"Mindless murder? Then why don't you just obliterate Britannia!"
Instantly, the soldier took off his helmet, revealing his face to Lelouch. "Lelouch, it's me, Suzaku."
The former prince stared in shock at the boy who's family had fostered him and Nunnally all those years ago. "You...became a Britannian soldier?"
"Yeah. But, wha about-"
"I work for the company Rhodes Island," said Lelouch. "This truck was stolen from us."
Suddenly, the bomb capsule began to move. Acting hastily, Lelouch tackled Suzaku, sure to force the latter's gas mask around his friend's face. Lelouch swiftly picked up his own discarded mask and put it back on, trying to shield himself from harm.
Yet what was exposed was not poison gas, but light, and after that faded, a green haired girl.
Both teens wondered what the hell they were looking at.
XXXXX
Outside, a group of Japanese receiving medicine watched as military personnel began making their way into Shinjuku. Unnoticed to them, the man in charge of the makeshift hospital sighed, then pulled out a communicator.
"This is Hellagur. Enemy forces are entering the area now. Preparing to take all patients to safety."
XXXXX
"Suzaku, what is all this?" asked Lelouch, who was trying to care for the girl.
"They just said it was poison gas in the briefing."
Suddenly, a group of soldiers appeared in front of the trio, guns trained upon them.
"Stinking monkey! Your status will not excuse you for this!" shouted the leader of the group, a commander of the Britannian Royal Guard.
"But sir, I was told this was poison gas!" protested Suzaku.
"How dare you question orders!" raged the commander, who actually slapped Suzaku for his outburst.
"However, in light of your excellent service record, I'll give you a chance to redeem yourself," spoke the Commander, who then handed Suzaku his pistol. "Private Kururugi, use this to execute the terrorist."
"But sir, he isn't a terrorist!"
"It's true!" added Lelouch. "I have the identification to prove it!"
"You insubordinate little...that's an order! Didn't you swear your life and loyalty to Britannia?!"
"Yes but...I won't do it! I won't shoot a civilian!"
Eyes widening, Lelouch moved to protect his friend, but was too late to stop the gunshot from hitting Suzaku. As Lelouch watched his friend fall to the floor, lifeless, the Commander turned his attention to his subordinates.
"Kill the school boy, retrieve the girl, then we leave."
Before this could happen, though, a gunshot filled the air - one of Rhodes Island's retrieval teams had arrived, and they had seen the whole thing.
"Get out of here, kid!"
Shaking himself out of his shock, Lelouch grabbed the girl and ran off. A moment later, a specialist broke into the car and retrieved the passed out driver, before retreating to give him medical aid.
XXXXX
Hearing new orders from Clovis to liquidate the ghetto, a trio of Sutherlands charged into battle, only for a flash of light to engulf them. A moment later, when the light clear, the trio were still there...but totally frozen solid.
"This is FrostNova, enemy forces located. Beginning defensive actions."
XXXXX
Back in the tunnels below, Lelouch was busy guiding the girl toward safety. Internally, he was raging over how she had lead to Suzaku's death, but a part of him knew that this was simply due to bad luck.
Eventually, though, their own luck ran out when they reached a tunnel exit, albeit one already occupied by Britannian forces. Said forces proceeded to gun down a group of Japanese who were at the wrong place at the wrong time, before preparing to search for new targets...until they heard the sound of a ringing phone.
Lelouch's phone.
Swearing beneath his breath, Lelouch turned it off, mentally apologizing to whoever had called him, but Lelouch knew that the jig was up, and reluctantly exited cover with the girl.
Much to his surprise and anger, the same man who had shot Clovis was the commander here.
Desperately, Lelouch tried to find some way out, but no matter where he looked, he couldn't find an advantage to use. Even with his Arts powers, he couldn't kill them all before one shot him to death - he needed time to prepare an attack for that many targets, and time was not on his side here.
That being said, the Royal Guard Commander's speech was grating on his ears. "Can you just get this over with?"
"...Eh, fine. Sorry, but it seems you have no future."
"HE MUSN'T DIE!"
The girl shouted her plea in shock before throwing herself in front of Lelouch, taking the bullet to the head meant for him. As the royal guard watched her fall, Lelouch started charging up his Arts, preparing to fight back. He would not let this girl's sacrifice be in vain!
Just as he was about to attack, though, the girl's had grabbed his own, and then the world exploded in colors.
XXXXX
Lelouch stared around him - where once had been a building in the Shinjuku Ghetto, now there was a strange world of changing colors surrounding him.
"You appear to have a reason for living."
Lelouch recognized the voice as that of the green-haired girl. But how was she speaking to him? She was dead!
"If I grant you power, could you go on? I propose a deal. In exchange for this power you must agree to make my one wish come true. Accept this contract and you accept its conditions, while living in the world of humans, you will live unlike any other. A different providence, a different time, a different life."
Lelouch saw images taht he couldn't understand - two great spheres, children with strange bird sigils on their foreheads that Lelouch realized was also upon the girl's head, and other images he couldn't recognize.
"The power of the king will condemn you to a life of solitude. Are you prepared for this?"
Before Lelouch could say anything, a new voice filled his mind - that of his father, Emperor Charles zi Britannia.
"A convergence with the Ragnarok connection? So the myth is beginning once again?"
In that moment, Lelouch knew what his answer would be. Besides, it was always good to have more power, unless it corrupted your soul. "Yes! I hereby accept the terms of your contract!"
XXXXX
"Say…how should a Britannian who detests his own country live his life?"
The Royal Guard stared at the boy, who stood before them without an ounce of fear. "Are you some kind of radical?" asked the commander, trying to retrain his aim on the boy. Yet the new aura of confidence, strength, and darkness surrounding his opponent prevented the man from attacking.
"What's wrong? Your foe is merely a Britannian Schoolboy. Or have you finally realized that the only ones who should kill...are those willing to be killed!"
Suddenly, a bird-like sigil appeared in Lelouch's left eye. "Now, Lelouch vi Britannia commands you...DIE!"
The sigil flew into the gathered royal guards' eyes, and in an instant, their minds were overwritten. Seconds later, they pointed their guns to their heads. "Happily your highness!" exclaimed the Commander. "FIRE!"
As the sound of gunshots and falling corpses filled the room, Lelouch took a moment to observe the results of his new power. For a moment, he felt uneasy...but then he put that aside.
Now, it was time to step out of the shadows.
XXXXX
AN: I apologize for rehashing canon here, but I really do love the introduction of this series, and I take Lelouch as someone who would always like to have an advantage if at all possible. Hence, him still getting a Geass. that being said, he won't keep it a secret from Rhodes Island.
Next chapter will show off Rhodes Island fighting Clovis' forces, and trust me, it will be awesome. We'll also get a few more divergences from canon revealed.
Read and Review! This is Flameal15k, signing off!