"The valiant Black Knights have launched a daring rescue mission of great importance in their struggle for freedom and liberty against the tyrannical oppression of the Greater German Reich occupying the continental USA. Days ago they have received terrible news of one of the resistance's best spies - a German defector who turned against the country's tyrannical ways has been exposed and captured. The spy was detained aboard a train leaving for a major base operated by the Nazi's ruthless SS organisation for interrogation to expose and destroy the spy network. The Black Knights have volunteered for the utmost task of rescuing the spy from the train to prevent the spy from being interrogated and saving the instrumental spy network of the US resistance instrumental from exposure. Thus the Black Knights launched a surprise attack upon the train divided into two teams where one would distract the defenders while the others boarded the train to extract the spy."
1980, June 15
Southeast USA
07:13 PM
Kallen ducked behind the crate as dozens of bullets soared through the area of space her head formerly occupied. She fired her M3 Grease SMG over her cover at her attackers, forcing some to take cover and killing those who were slow.
Joachim Gottwald popped from his own cover with a Ithaca 37 shotgun, blasting apart the remaining Germans with several shotgun pellets with deadly efficiency. Death cries and curses filled the train car while blood splattered across the wall or stained the floor.
"Clear." Joachim motioned to Kallen who popped out from her cover reloading her SMG.
"Zero, we're inside the train car. We'll make our way to the target car and get our VIP spy out." Kallen spoke through the radio, a sense of great nostalgia coming to her in calling this alternate Lelouch Zero.
"Good, we'll make sure to have the Krauts distracted as long as possible. Stay safe Queen." He finished.
Kallen's face was slightly flustered yet saddened at the same time. The 'Queen' code name reminded her of her old Q1 call sign, noting for her power and later closeness with Lelouch, and yet it was formerly used by her counterpart who died months before her arrival. Seeing Kallen Kozuki brought out a sense of joy yet hurt for the alternate Lelouch still burdened by being unable to save his love.
"He wasn't the same when Kallen Strassman died." The bearded man suddenly spoke with a German accented english, taking some grenades from the corpse of the German soldiers. "He lacked some of the spirit and strength he had when leading us everyday. He would even lock himself in his KMF for hours before coming out."
"What was my counterpart like?" Kallen Kozuki asked as the two entered the next cargo car. It was quite odd seeing the Jeremiah look-alike with a beard.
"Straussman, she was quite the shy and meek woman, and somewhat submissive to her boyfriend. She wasn't outspoken or someone you wouldn't imagine being a killing machine in a knightmare." The counterpart of Jeremiah Gottwald started off.
Kallen was then reminded of her stickly Stadtfeld persona and found herself wondering what it would be like if she directly met her. She internally chuckled at the image of her sickly self somehow bashing through an army of KMFs with the same ferocity while maintaining that shy face. She then refocused on the fight at hand gunning down a pair of German MG gunners.
"But she was the one with such a strong spirit, heart, and conviction that any I doubt even the best of the American resistance could rival her's." Gottwald then chuckled. "Course it was amusing from time to time Lelouch being quite the teasing gentlemen to her." He finished when he bashed with his shotgun at the head of a German officer exiting his room.
This drew an eye roll from Kallen as she tried imagining what a relationship with Lelouch would be like if her sticky Stadtfeld persona was her true self. The image of it drew a small chuckle from her because she would party like one if things went different.
She was then reminded back when she caught Lelouch Noire giving her occasional glances and staring at her for moments that were filled with longing and loss, something she mirrored when he looked at him too when he wasn't looking at her. It was bitterly ironic to know she lost her Lelouch and this Lelouch losing his Kallen, and how two people who lost their respective loves meeting their lover's counterpart. Similar yet different to the one they knew; but their heart still yearned for them as if drawn in by an eternal truth that dwelled in each other.
The two continued deeper into the train, shooting or stabbing the German soldiers they encountered standing between them and their VIP. All the while a more intense fighting happened outside where the Black Knights gave one hell of a distraction.
"Rivalz, can you keep the VTOL steady!" Owens callout in annoyance while firing the door gun of the V-15 Dover along his partner upon entrenched hostiles hiding behind cover on a flatbed car, as well as occasional Ritter IIs.
"Why don't you tell them not to fire on me unless you want us to crash and die." Rivalz Mendez yelled back with a latino-accented veering his VTOL to the side to evade some slash harkens and rockets. His co-pilot fired the Dover's chin-mounted dual 20mm chainguns at enemy helicopters or ground targets with Rivalz launching occasional rockets at speeding knightmares.
Owens reoriented the M60 MMG and sprayed a burst of 7.62mm at a German manning a MG turret and a rocket-yielding foe, the tracer and non-tracer rounds tearing through their bodies with one losing his leg. He then fired upon a bazooka-yielding Ritter II stationed on top of a flatbed car, the rounds ineffectively bounced against its armor though managing to damage its eye sensors. The loss of its eye sensors distracted it from firing upon Orpheus and Monica catching up with the train within their custom GAI-05 Jeffersons, who then gunned down the Ritter II as it fell off the train.
A Ritter II Scout Type and Ritter II Assault type charged at the two: the latter launching its shoulder-mounted triple missile rack and the other coming in with its claws ready to rip. The two Black Knights dodged through the missile and gunfire before intercepting the two hostile frames. Orpheus retracted out his bladed tonfa and narrowly ducked beneath the infamous claws of the Scout Type where he slashed its torso and its power core, sending it tumbling down to the ground before he fired a grenade as a finishing touch. As for Monica she launched her harkens at the Assault Type, who dashed to the side in time and continued on preparing its heat axe for a strike, which she parried the axe to the side before moving behind it and blasted the cockpit bloc apart.
"Looking good over their Mony." Orpheus Zachary complimented. "That's your 11th right?"
"Thank you Ozzy, and yes that is my 11th one. Few more ahead of you I'm afraid." Monica Kaczmarek teased.
The blond rolled his eyes over at the light teasing from his girlfriend and more or less unofficial wife. "I'm about to change that oh honey, since we have more coming in." He said as few more knightmares deployed from the train while the infantry aboard fired upon them using turrets or whatever weapons they had with them.
Yet Orpheus and Monica's respective knightmares - white for the former and light-green for the latter - continued on undaunted by the attack. They dodged and weaved through the fire while responding back with their own gunnery weapon, destroying some KMFs or weapon emplacements aboard the train. Their attack aided by their Dove VTOL lending in fire support upon the train and knightmares, all other hostile helicopters shot down.
A Ritter II Commander Type brought down its blade upon Monica's elbow-mounted bladed tonfas who barely managed to hold against the attack. She fired her harkens in response but the elite 5th-gen unit backed away and dodged the attack before counterattackings with its own harkens. The amber haired woman snarled when the harkens scratched her head and shredded her shoulder armor, pushing more power to the land spinners to slam against her foe but was forced to abort as two Ritter IIs charged at her firing 20mm rounds and 50mm grenades. Forcing the Black Knight to run and shoot while keeping close to the train.
Orpheus tried to run in and help his girlfriend, but his sensors suddenly beeped in warning as a new KMF deployed from the train and rolled at speeds beyond a 5th-gen machine. His eyes widened in horror when his camera screen displayed a monstrous knightmare charging at him, its light-grey colored armor quickly filling his screen. He could only narrowly move to the side just as the German knightmare swiped its MVS axe at the spot he was at seconds before. If his reflexes were slightly slower than he would've gotten a one way ticket to meeting God.
He turned to face the new enemy before him and gulped at the sight of the intimidating, bulky armoured beast before him colored in the standard colors of the Waffen-SS. Its spiked shoulder and shield pauldrons, a stahlhelm-like head housing a menacing red monoeye camera flashing in intimidation, and its armoured appearance gave the feeling he was facing a vicious Viking warrior. Orpheus cursed his luck in facing the premier 8th-generation KMF of the Greater German Reich, the EiR-8 Arngrim, a production model of the Beowulf. A monster of a knightmare they faced few times piloted by the best devicer of Nazi Germany.
"Oh you have to be kidding me!" Orpheus exclaimed in fear and shock at the advanced unit. "Monica, we have an Arngrim here!"
"We have a WHAT!?" Monica shouted rolling away from the three hostile KMFs showing more skill and teamwork than the normal soldiers.
If one was here then he was facing a possible ace in the machine while being inside a 5th-generation machine - albeit customized to have its performance increased - which wasn't good news. The blond man pulled his KMF back firing his rifle at the Arngrim, who put aside its axe and drew out its heat ray blaster before firing beams of energy fire at him which he dodged around. The Arngrim then launched its harkens at the Jefferson where it tore off its entire left arm, forcing Orpheus to roll away at full speed to gain some distance between him and the monster closing on him at high speed.
Meanwhile on top of the rear of the train, a black and yellow painted Minutemen was seen dueling with a pair of Ritter II Commander Type colored in the traditional SS color of black, white, and red, and yielding heat swords and as well as the Waffen-SS insignia painted on its shoulder armor.
"You may think of yourself as some elite but I fought grunts that fought better than this." Lelouch Noire grunted in his Zero mask, slashing down the wires of the slash harkens launched by a Ritter II Commander Type.
The two 5th-gen commander units tried to penetrate the 8th-gen unit's defense but the superior machine and its skilled devicer made it an incredibly difficult affair. Easily deflecting and evading their attacks with small attacks made in return as if Lelouch was toying with them.
As if getting bored with its opponents the 8th-gen custom Minutemen launched its slash harkens at one of them, tearing off the head of the Ritter II Commander Type, followed by him kicking it off the train as the cockpit ejected. The other hostile fired it's rifle and grenade launcher at the American KMF, but it's Luminous Reactive Plating absorbed the attack easily, and in response the Minutemen jumping over the Commander Type with the grace a 5th-gen couldn't achieve as it landed and spun around to deliver a final strike. But the German KMF brought out its blade in time to be locked with the Arc Sword of the US 8th-gen unit. Dual sensor eyes locked into the sensor eyes of the Ritter II Commander Type as the Arc blade slowly sliced through the heat blade.
Lelouch then launched his harkens at the 5th-gen command unit, throwing it unbalanced away from him. He then took out his Arc blaster and fired a lightning-blue bolt of energy at it, obliterating through the knightmare in a small ball of blue-ish light and molten metal. He then jumped over the train to roll on the rails to intercept an SS-colored Assault Type Ritter II by bifurcating it across the torso with his Arc blade. Leaving both parts to fall down and tumble as the cockpit ejected away from the dead frame.
Not far from him Lelouch could make out Uther Croomy's maroon red Jefferson dealing with a persistent Ritter II Assault Type and a Rhino KMF raining heavy gatling fire on him. Both machines put out a large quantity of bullets on the lone unit trying to keep him as far away as possible as if the two enemy devicers were aware of Uther's skill. Yet that didn't stop Uther from rushing in close for CQC combat, weaving and spinning through enemy fire with two Arc blades ready.
The Ritter II charged forward to thrust its shotlance at Uther who at the last second reversed hard, causing the Nazi KMF to stumble forward. The Jefferson attempted to charge with a finishing blow, but the Ritter II launched its chest harkens at the maroon-red KMF to force it to stop its charge. The Nazi unit used this chance to launch the lance tip from its shotlance to skewer the US knightmare, only for Uther Croomy to force his steed to dodge at the last moment. Striking back with launching its harkens to rip the head off the enemy unit, all the while dodging the Rhino's fire, and following with slashing its arc blade from chest to cockpit bloc of the Ritter II. Hot plasma leaking from the molten slash marks of the machine.
Uther then locked onto his final target and moved to engage the Rhino firing its two twin-linked gatling cannons and missiles at him. The heavy knightmare backed away from Barry zig-zagging its machine to the absolute limit of its mobility to put much distance between itself and its target. However, the 5th-gen US KMF put more power to its landspinner and accelerated at top speed at the Rhino. The purple-haired 19-year old clenched his teeth in frustration as he pushed himself through the fire, his frame seemingly shaking from the intense firepower thrown at him.
When the gap between himself and the enemy unit was short enough for him to throw his attack. Uther launched one of its slash harkens at the enemy KMF's right landspinner causing it to nearly crash to the ground, temporarily stopping its firepower. The pause gave the red-maroon KMF the opportunity to jump towards the Rhino where Uther directed his knightmare frame to replicate his father's signature spin kick, brutally kicking off the Rhino's head. Then the Jefferson landed on top of the KMF, which buckled under the unexpected weight as Uther brought his arc blades down upon the cockpit bloc.
'How he does that spinning kick, I'll never know.' Noire mused to himself until he received a message from Monica.
"Hey Zero, need some backup over here. Got an enemy 8th-gen giving Orpheus and I one heck of a fight." Lelouch heard Monica's panicked yell through the comms.
"An 8th-gen here!? Damn it, I'll be there soon!" Lelouch responded as he saw several more SS Ritter II Assault and Command Types come in with shotlances or assault rifles and melee weapons trained on him. "Crap, crap, I should've known they'd have one here for extra security." He banged against the cockpit wall.
He then brought out his Arc blaster and nailed the first two KMFs with bolts of blue arc energy, forcing the rest of the hostiles to spread apart to reduce the chance of any more losses. One of the Assault Types got close where it fired its missiles at Noire, but he moved around the missile before launching his harkens at it. The rocket anchors disabled the KMF by tearing off its head and the cockpit bloc ejecting away to safety.
"I have no time for you people." He snarled as his right eye suddenly changed to red with a crane symbol replacing his iris. A power he rarely used due to how dangerous it was on both his friends and enemies.
The German KMF that was within his sphere of influence started to fray about, reflecting the smothering fear that suddenly erupted within their devicers. Crying out in fear and blabbering about in German of the unspoken terror crawling through their veins. Leaving them to be cut down as if an armoured knight went through a bunch of peasants armed with farming tools as weapons.
"Uther, take care of the rest." Lelouch ordered. "I'm going over to help Monica and Orpheus."
"Got it Zero." Uther acknowledged.
"Be careful out there Kallen…" Lelouch Noire muttered.
Joachim Gottwald fired a shotgun blast to the knee of a SS trooper who cried in pain as he fell down to the floor before a blast to the face finished his misery. He reloaded another pellet and struck down a charging soldier.
Kallen Kozuki slammed her SMG into the stomach of her foe and grappled her arms around his neck before throwing and slamming his body onto the ground. Followed up by finishing the soldier with a quick yet brutal twist to the neck bone.
The two found themselves fighting the infamous Waffen-SS after several cars deep within the train. Kallen wasn't familiar with such an elite group but from the stories she heard from the Black Knights of their atrocities and brutality, she thought that even the most racist and brutal of the Britannian Purist faction would find them going too far. Which was ironic now considering she's working with a counterpart of a former member of said faction - who was loyal to Lelouch till the end.
Her mind then went to the Black Knights of this world she fought and relaxed alongside with for nearly a month.
First off Joachim Gottwald, the counterpart of Jeremiah Gottwald. Somewhat similar to Jeremiah in that he later deflected from their former faction to the Black Knights, aside from the differing context and reason: Jeremiah joining the Black Knights out of his loyalty to Lelouch and the Vi Britannia family after his humiliation from Orange; Joachim deflecting after a personal moral crisis from what his country has committed against the world and what he is expected to become. From what she heard from others it took awhile for Joachim to be accepted among the resistance before he ended up working with the Black Knights as one of their most experienced KMF devicers. As well as one who was a near fanatic in taking down his former country Kallen mused upon seeing him brutally stab and slash or blast the obstacles out of his way.
Hearing the sounds of knightmare combat outside Kallen's mind went to Orpheus Zachary and Moncia Kaczmarek while spraying her SMG at a column of German soldiers. And while she wasn't too familiar with their counterparts from her world. The former's counterpart was apparently the twin brother of Oldrin Zevon, head of the Glinda Knights, and the latter the Knight of Twelve under the Holy Britannian Empire. She didn't know much of their counterpart to make a comparison but from her interaction with the two, they were a bit of a loose cannon in the group. Yet quite the fierce devicers who were well in sync with one another, the first ones in and last ones out in whatever battle. The two try to act as if they weren't already married but who were they fooling? Orpheus was a soft-spoken man compared to the more blunt totally-not-girlfriend/wife who was more willing to speak out whatever part of a plan or Zero's order she felt was stupid.
After gunning down a German soldier, her mind went to Rivalz Cardemonde's counterpart, Rivalz Mendez, who was both a familiar yet unfamiliar sight for the redhead woman. Aside from his love of machines particularly VTOLs and KMFs and the usual joyful Kallen was familiar with in her former classmate; he was more of an introverted individual preferring working on machines and spending time with people he was personally close with. So he wasn't much of a speaker outside of his own circle of friends unless the mattress required him to do so like piloting. Speaking of which, he was a decent VTOL pilot who provided much needed air support for the Black Knights and took risks to help his friends and comrades out of sticky situations.
Then there was Uther Croomy… The son of this world's Suzaku and the younger brother of Cecile Croomy's counterpart. When she first witnessed a maroon-red Jefferson spin kicking a Ritter II she assumed Suzaku's counterpart was behind the knightmare, only to find out to her shock that wasn't the case and that the purple-haired pilot claimed he learned from his father. Which she later discovered after some inquiring from Uther to be Suzaku Fukuyaba. She wasn't sure how to react and process the new information of meeting Suzaku's son, who was quite the friendly if a reserved individual. That as well as inheriting his father's physical skill from the sparring match they had with one another, and she had to admit his kick hurt a lot.
Course those were the notable people she was familiar with. There were many others who were in the Black Knights who served as KMF devicers, VTOL pilots, infantry, technicians and engineers, medical personnel, and etc to keep the Black Knight cell a well supplied fighting machine. She didn't find a familiar face among them but they were familiar with her, though were unsure how to react to her when she was technically supposed to be dead and not a dead woman walking. And like the Black Knight she was familiar with, they were a rag-tag band of misfits - and some who found themselves fighting under their banner for justice and freedom. Course the cell had military personnel assigned to them as technically this world's BKs were sorta a military unit loosely operating under a unified resistance command.
"If we're fighting the SS, we're nearly close to the VIP." Joachin observed.
"Are they always this fanatic?" Kallen questioned shooting a downed SS who tried to take out his pistol.
"They're the bloodhounds of the Reich, the military arm of the Nazi party. Fanaticism and brutality is a requirement in joining them." He answered. "And the forefront of many evil committed by my former country to the world." A depressed sigh escaped him, drawing a sympathetic expression from Kozuki.
Japan of this world was as equally evil as Britannia, something she never thought she'd see but a part she knew Japan was well capable of from her childhood years and the attitude of some number of her fellow countrymen. And to see it in the form of Imperial Japan was something that was a bit hard for her to accept even with the photos and reports of their crimes.
"How did they find us?" Standartenführer Amsel of the Allgemeine-SS questioned her subordinate calmly, too calmly for the situation at hand. "This journey was supposed to be only known to us and no one else."
"I don't know madam, we kept all records and plans of the prisoner transfer a secret!" The SS officer blabbered in fear. "The Black Knights must have another spy who alerted them to the exposure of the traitor!" He blabbered out in fear, knowing full well of the fate of those who fail her.
Amsel gave a creeping smile before replying. "Well I believe you, but I guess this is time out for you." The officer collapsed on the ground dead, his face stuck in eternal shock as Amsel held her smoking pistol.
The SS officers and soldiers near her made no reaction to the death of their colleague and superior, but some of them slightly winced at their Oberfuhrer executing him without a pause. But overall nobody protested as if his death meant little to them or the implication of such for their life and duty to the Reich. After all as the feared weapon of the Nazi Party, the SS had no tolerance for inferiority and failure.
"What are you standing around!? Get out there and kill the intruders before I shoot you myself!" Amsel suddenly shouted at them hysterically, waving her pistol out and blue eyes filled with intense anger. "I will not have the Black Knights and some subhuman filths ruin this pleasant evening!"
This got all the SS troops to quickly vacate the train car they were in and all too eagerly throw themselves at the coming intruders. The gunfire of their enemy growing ever closer to the train car Amsel was in as she made her way towards one of the roomette housing a 'special' cargo.
She opened the roomette to reveal a tied up and gagged young woman dressed in white blouse and a black skirt shaking around in an attempt to free herself with a broken vase nearby, her face full of worry and fear at who was before her. The former secretary before her was a spy for the Black Knights and the greater US resistance groups, relaying major or minor information she obtained from the loose lips of incompetent officials as well as leaking high-level information. The female SS officer sneered at the traitor before her, this wretched whore who betrayed the destined superiority and pureness of the Aryan civilization the Founder Hitler envisioned for the German people. Committing treason against her fatherland in repayment for all it done for her in making her strong and prosperous?!
Those who backhanded the generosity of the Reich disgusted her the most and the ones she despised with her heart. And to think this woman who had a promising future and skill would waste them for some subhuman trash, and to think there were more traitors in the midst of the occupation force. She swore she would personally rat out every one of them and make sure their crimes are paid in full.
"Well, it looks like your fellow rats are coming for you." She sneered at the captive woman before her. "But they'll have to do better than that because you're coming with me." Amsel snarled as she dragged the woman out of the room close to her, her pistol aimed against the side of her head.
"Traitors and heretics like you disgust me, you were born with everything the Reich has given you need for life, while I had to claw my way here to earn my keep. Yet you throw everything Hitler has delivered upon us." She hissed at the struggling woman.
Amsel heard more gunfire and the dying screams of her forces getting closer to the train car.
"You're going to be my insurance in getting out, and once we arrive at our destination. I'm going to enjoy playing with you…" She whispered against her captive's ear, making her shudder in fear as Amsel's hand stroked her hips. "Well you do look quite beautiful compared to some of the ones I played with… But I do wonder how beautiful you'll scream and how long for you to break." She leered at her.
She could see her captive's eyes widen in panic in fear at what was waiting for traitors like her. This only brought a bigger smile on her face to see her very aware of her reputation as the Banshee of the Reich and how she greets and plays with her prisoners.
"This is the final room!" Kallen shouted, punching a SS officer in the stomach followed by a high kick that broke his neck. She then drew her M3 SMG and fired a shot against a SS trooper about to shoot her with his StG-66 assault rifle.
Gottwald viciously stabbed his dagger to the throat of a SS trooper few times before grabbing the dead trooper's Mauser C99 pistol and nailed down a SS trooper in the privates, who fell on his knees in agony before another 7.63x25mm round shot through his head.
The two soon finished the last of the SS personnel in the area, the train car they were in covered in the blood-strained bodies of over a dozen SS troopers and officers. Their infamous black uniforms ruined from bullets and daggers as well as stained with their blood.
For Kallen personally these guys weren't that tough compared to the regular army she faced some time ago. Then again from her experience, elite units half the time tended to be less of skill and more of political connections.
The redhead woman kicked down the door of the last train car and saw a female SS officer dragging a tied up woman down the car. Just as Kozuki was about to yell at the officer her breath hitched when her eyes laid upon the captive, a familiar face with long orange hair and green eyes. A face that only existed in memories and pictures since her untimely, tragic death.
"Shirley?" Kallen Kozuki muttered to herself in shock.
This drew the attention of the other Shirley who looked up in confusion and hope at seeing her rescuer. Yet Kallen's attention was also captured by the female SS officer before her who shared the same as her friend.
"Milly?" Kallen whispered out, shocked by seeing the presumed counterpart of Milly Ashford before her. But rather than the Ashford Academy female uniform or her reporter outfit, she was dressed in the notorious black uniform of the SS with a visage of rage and contempt that looked out of place for the older counterpart of her friend. She was holding Shirley in front of her, gagged and tied up, aiming her pistol at her or at her repeatedly.
"Guts!" Milly Ashford exclaimed, getting the Student Council surprised.
"Don't worry, your secret is safe with me."
She couldn't be this woman in front of her. She couldn't be a freaking Nazi let alone a SS officer!? That would be like her joining and becoming an ardent supporter of the Britannian Purist ideology.
"If it ain't the infamous Rot Ace of the Black Knights, Kallen Straussman, back from the dead." Kallen internally winced when hearing Milly's German-accented voice. "I am so honoured to be in your presence on this fine evening." She all but spat out in contempt, making Kallen nervous from the contradictory image before her.
"The Banshee of the Reich, Standartenfuher Millie Amsel. Top interrogation and information extraction officer of the SS." The Milly look-alike introduced herself to Kallen Kozuki with a dark smile that looked so wrong. "But you can call me the Queen of Torture…" She added in.
"Stop right there and release her to us." Kallen aimed her SMG at Millie Amsel, subtly shaking in disbelief and sweat pouring down her face.
"Or what? One wrong move from you and she's dead." Amsel taunted pointing the barrel of her mauser at Shirley's counterpart. "Besides, why would I leave my potential toy with you? I barely had time with her and so much stuff to know about her with that beauty of hers." She sneered while her hands uncomfortably touched and caressed the Shirley look-alike's body.
Kallen Kozuki herself had a hard time concentrating, her body subtly shaking at seeing the counterpart of her dear friend. Having trouble reconciling the contradiction between the memories of her friend and the implication of the woman's allegiance and profession in front of her.
'I can't shoot my friend!'
'That person isn't your friend but her counterpart! She's a monster working for an entity worse than Britannia!'
'B-but I can't simply shoot her!'
"Stupid girl, are you going to let Shirley die just like you did with Lelouch!?'
The internal conflict boiling with Kozuki distracted her enough that Millie Amsel aimed her pistol to shoot the redhead in the head. Only for her to feel a sudden pain in her thigh, causing her to scream in pain and let go of Shirley look-alike – holding a bloodied pottery shard – who threw herself on the ground. At the same time Amsel accidentally shot a bullet past Kallen's head which snapped out of her thought and forced her to take cover.
That was when Joachim Gottwald smashed through one of the train car's windows after taking a slight 'detour' outside of the train. Intending to create an avenue of ambush that Millie Amsel would not expect to see coming.
Springing back on his feet he rushed up to a stunned SS officer and smacked the blonde's face with his Ithaca 37, knocking out the infamous torture technician out cold.
"Mein Gott, the Banshee of the Reich on this train!? Must be our lucky day if we're snatching her too." Gottwald exclaimed before turning to face Kozuki going over Shirley. "You hesitated, if it weren't for me you would've been dead and me possibly having to kill our VIP."
Kallen snarled at the last sentence while the terrified Shirley looked at her with a confused stare. "Kill her!? She's our spy." She tore off the tape covering the counterpart of Shirley Fenette's mouth and cut the ropes binding her wrist with her pouch knife, allowing her to gasp out in relief and rub her wrists from the rope strain.
"And allow the Reich to interrogate her and risk the resistance's spy network? And killing her would be a mercy compared to what the Millie Amsel, Banshee of the Reich, would do to her. The countless pain she had inflicted upon men and women as well as other depravities she had with them." Joachim Gottwald shot back at her.
That was when the Shirley Fenette counterpart stood up and gasped out in a German-accented english. "Thank you so much. My name is Shirley Feldt and I'm your spy within the occupation government, I can only thank you two so much for saving me from her." She pointed at the unconscious body of Millie Amsel.
"Your welcome, Ms. Feldt. Come now, we don't have much time until enemy reinforcement arrives. Follow us to the extraction point." Joachim motioned Shirley Feldt to follow after him and Kallen, the latter slinging the unconscious blonde SS officer over her shoulder.
The three made their way out of the train cars to one of the flatbed cars for one of the V-15 Dover VTOL to pick them up. Meanwhile, the last of the remaining Nazi knightmares were being dealt with after Noire arrived and destroyed the 8th-generation unit causing much grief for Orpheus and Monica. Soon, the Black Knights fled from the scene and returned back to base upon seeing a wave of VTOLs and KMF carriers emerge from the horizon.
Over a Week Later
Kallen Kozuki, Lelouch Noire, Shirley Feldt, and several members of the Black Knights walked away from the screaming blonde SS officer tied to a pole where she was stripped of most of her clothes. All of them could hear her scream blood murder and curses of all kinds, as well as undercurrents of fear within her tone. Her fate left up to the criminal gang that lived nearby who weren't the most pleasant bunch, especially with a tempting prize near their lair.
Kozuki could hear Joachim and Monica discussing with Shirley Feldt on how to distribute the images of a near-naked Millie Amsel all over the country. Planning on the best way to humiliate the image of the SS to the public both here in the US and abroad. "I'm not sure I am comfortable with this." Shirley Feldt said with uncertainty, referring to Amsel's fate and distributing the photographs of her humiliated image.
"Don't worry about it, we only do that to the worst of the worst, and besides the PR damage this will do to the Reich will be worth it." Monica assured her.
Despite feeling a bit of pity for what would await Millie Amsel. Kallen was able to separate and acknowledge that the SS officer wasn't the same as Milly she was friends with, and that the monster tied up was someone who wore her face and sounded like her. Meeting her beforehand strengthened her resolve and erased all the doubts and confusion within her. She was now ready to face whatever this world would throw at her and the possible good and evil counterparts she might end up facing.
Flashback Starts
"Where is the prisoner being kept?"
"Uh, bottom floor in the interrogation room. Why?"
Kallen Kozuki waited inside the elevator that took her to the bottom levels of the Black Knight base - some abandoned military storage facility. She crossed her arms in frustration and contemplation with the sound of the elevator moving down as her sole company. Even after telling herself time and time again that woman. No that monster wasn't Milly Ashford of her world, she still found it hard to separate the fact they had the same face and voice.
Even when it came to other Black Knight counterparts like Joachim Gottwald, Rivalz Mendez, and especially Lelouch Noire; Kallen could still see similarities and shades of the people of her world in them. It made it easier with the fact they were all taking stand against tyranny of the Greater German Reich and the Empire of Japan.
'I still will never get used to that.' Kallen thought over this version of Japan being an imperialistic force that almost made Brittania look tame by comparison.
She regained her thoughts when it came to what she was having trouble with. At least with those three - especially Lelouch Noire - she mentioned she could still find solace over they are on the same side; but the thought of Milly Ashford's counterpart being a Nazi, and one with such an infamous reputation for sadism and cruelty was still hard to stomach.
Bing
The elevator had stopped on the bottom level, opening up as Kallen stepped out of the elevator to the dimly lit hallway. Kallen then turned her head to the right, noticing a pair of guards on both the right and left side of the door armed each with an M14 rifle, wearing the traditional Black Knights jacket. The two guards turned her way as she walked towards them.
"Commander Straussman!" The two guards immediately acknowledged and saluted her. Kallen Kozuki returned the salute rather halfheartedly.
Majority of the Black Knights resistance still of course believed she was her deceased counterpart, Kallen Straussman, the Crimson Tiger of the Black Knights. Lelouch Noire and few others felt it would be best for her to assume the identity of her dead counterpart due to the fact many would find it hard to believe that she was from an alternate world, with a drastically different history. She probably be put into the nuthouse if she even tried to explain a-
"Commander!"
Kallen immediately looked up at the guard who interrupted her thoughts, noticing the look of concern on the man's face.
"Sorry, I'm lost in thought. How is the prisoner?" Kallen asked, gesturing towards the steel door that the guards were stationed at.
"Oh the Nazi bitch?" The guard on the right inquired. The one of the left who snorted at the insult, which Kallen suspected was in agreement to what his comrade said.
'Not that I blame them for thinking.' She thought despite her misgivings and struggles with disassociating herself with said prisoner, from what she witnessed on the train and heard about hearsay wise, Nazi bitch was pretty damn accurate term for the prisoner. Especially those of the SS whose membership would make the Purist look half-hearted in commitment.
"Yeah the Nazi bitch." she said despite her inner conflict. "How has she been doing?"
"You mean besides the screams from the torture, threats of all we will pay for this, and etc. Pretty damn fine all things considered." The guard on the left replied.
"She started to struggle a bit about a few hours ago, but then calmed down after that. Think it's really starting to home to her that she's stuck here." The guard on the right gave her own input. "Why do you ask?"
Kallen closed her eyes for a brief moment, she could walk away from this, she didn't have to do this. But if she didn't she might hesitate like she did on the train. No, she was going to confront this, no turning back!
She opened her eyes to stare right at the two guards in the eye. "I've got a few questions of my own for the prisoner."
"Oh, of course. Does Zero know about this?" The guard inquired with her eyebrow raised.
"No he doesn't, but if she says anything worth I will let him know." Kallen replied bluntly. She wondered if Noire would approve of this or not? But she felt this had to be done in order for her move past this.
"Alright then." The guard on the right began to open the steel door. "Do you need one of us in there with you, Commander Straussman?" He inquired.
Kallen couldn't help notice the dark gleam in both guard's eyes at the question. Do they suspect she wanted to personally beat the prisoner and wish to take part in it? While that was not why she was here, she wondered what she would've done in their situation if the captive had been a Brittanian Purist. Would she be just as eager to beat down someone who had caused so much harm? And how long before said prisoner ends up being a Japanese officer?
"No, that won't be necessary, I can handle her if she tries to escape or gets loose." Kallen replied as she opened and walked through the steel door. It slammed shut behind her as she stared at the second steel door and then taking a deep breath, she opened the hatchet to it.
'Here goes nothing.' As she walked through the second door and closed it behind her.
The room was of a decent size, made of granite with walls surrounding it into a neat square. The lights were somewhat dim, which Kallen imagined was done on purpose in order to keep the psychological strain on prisoners and the like.
At the center of the room was the occupant of the room. The prisoner was seated in a steel chair, with her hands put tightly behind her back with what Kallen suspected were handcuffs. Her black leather boots were tied separately on each leg of the chair, forcing the prisoners legs to spread into upside down v shape.
Clothing wise the prisoner wore a pair of tight black slacks which had a few tears in them, along with a white dress shirt with the collar unbuttoned, exposing a beat of the prisoners rather large cleavage. Kallened noticed some bruises in the neck and tear on the right shoulder, along with some red spots on certain parts on the dress shirt, which she suspected were dried blood stains. Most notable is that the prisoner's face was obscured by a black hood, no doubt meant to add further discomfort for her.
Sensory deprivation and isolation was an effective method of wearing down a prisoner from what Kallen heard. She still personally remembered her early days as a POW when she was captured by the Brittanians in China, the time she spent in the prison straightjacket barely able to move.
Her thoughts were interrupted as the prisoner began to shift in her chair, perhaps sensing that someone else was in the room with her. Kallen stared hard at the prisoner, preparing herself for what she came to do as she walked towards the prisoner. She put her hand over the hood ready to take it off and then she ripped the hood off.
"Oh, I'm Milly Ashford, the president of the Student Council. Pleasure to meet you!"
The welcoming words of Milly Ashford immediately echoed in Kallen's head as she stared hard at the woman who had the same face as her former Council President and friend.
What greeted her was a beautiful face despite the bruise over the eye and light cuts on the cheek. Her blue eyes were cold as ice as her blond hair moved from the motion of the removal of the hood. The woman's eyes were glaring death and pure primal hatred at Kallen.
She then noticed that the blonde woman's mouth cleaved gagged with what she suspected was once the woman's necktie, with a small piece of what Kallen suspected was a handkerchief.
Kallen then moved her towards the gag with intention of removing it, something the blonde prisoner noticed as her blue eyes narrowed at her hand touching the gag.
"I'm going to remove the gag. Scream or hurl any insults and it goes back, understood?" Kallen said to the blonde woman.
The blonde prisoner narrowed her eyes at the red haired Half Blood, almost contemplating what her next course of action would be. The woman then nodded in agreement.
Kallen then lowered the cleave gag from her mouth and removed the handkerchief from the prisoner's mouth. She noticed the blonde woman started to move from her handcuffs that keeped her hands and arms behind her. No doubt testing if the cuffs still were as tight as they were before.
'She is already trying to look for a way to escape'. The red haired woman thought as she keeped her guard up. She reminded herself the prisoner was still an SS officer and no doubt she would look for any way to turn this to her advantage.
The blonde prisoner then stopped the checking of her cuffed hands and then looked up at Kallen, her eyes still icy cold and then her scowl turned into an almost welcoming smile despite her predicament.
"Gut, gut, gut, if it isn't The Rot Ace herself ! Kallen Straussman. What do I owe to this reunion of unsere?" The blonde prisoner said in a German accent that once again sounded exactly like Milly Ashford's voice.
"I have some questions of my own…" Kallen Kozuki answered with a narrowing eyes.
Flashback Ends
Suddenly she felt Lelouch Noire's hand gently grab her hand and lightly clasp it. Kallen's face blushed at the moment, glancing at Noire who briefly glanced at her before looking away. She could make out a slight blush and sense of longing within his eyes; the same kind of eyes she found herself having whenever she looked into the mirror.
She was not the Kallen Straussman he desired nor him the Lelouch Vi Britannia she wanted. Yet the hole within their heart told them otherwise. But until then she would stay by Lelouch's side to the very end, no matter if this was his counterpart or not.
She would not abandon the man behind Zero, never again.
Till death do us apart.
Notes:
Thanks to 00virtuezero from Spacebattles and here for helping me with major portions of the idea. Also a statement from 00virturezero below.
00virtuezero : " This is 00virtuezero, and I'm arguably the "creator" of Milly Ashford's Wolfstein counterpart Millie Amsel. As you noticed there was moment in this chapter where Millie Amsel behaves rather predatory towards Shirley Feldt (Shirley Fenette's counterpart). First off I meant no insult of disrespect to any readers who are LGBT to or otherwise, Millie Amsel's character is meant to be a far darker reflect of Milly Ashfords more inappropriate behavior towards Shirley in CG. Given the character is basically an evil counterpart to Milly, thematically I thought it would be fitting and disturbing to see that inapproate behavior of CG Milly taken to a more darker extreme and implications. Amsel is behavior is show she is a predator and sadist desire to cause harm and violate , which she has done with both men and women as Joachim Gottwald has implied. Also meant to show the rather Real Life sexual violent crimes the Reich committed against their captives and prisoners. However if anyone takes understandable issue with this, then PM me shows your grievances. This was my suggestion and I should bare the blunt of answer criticism over it, not Pkd. "
I feel it would be best this comes from me, since I suggested this and say keep implication there. Any issue or criticism I feel should go to me.
Also another potential note- " If any of you are familiar with WW2 films, specifically the older ones, the Train Rescue was loosely inspired by the Frank Sinatra film : Von Ryan's Express (1965)."
5th-gen EiR-2 Ritter II = Based on the XM-02 Den'an Zon. Colored in light grey. SS units colored in their black, white, and red scheme.
5th-gen Ritter II Scout Type = Based on XM-03 Ebirhu-S. Colored in light grey. SS units colored in their black, white, and red scheme.
5th-gen Ritter II Assault Type = Based on XM-02 Den'an Gei. Colored in light grey. SS units colored in their black, white, and red scheme.
5th-gen Ritter II Commander Type = Based on XM-04 Berga Dalas. Colored in light grey for standard units. SS units colored in their black, white, and red scheme.
5th-gen EiR-3 Rhino = Basically the Ahuramazda KMF but with the asethetics of the Den'an Zon. Colored in light grey
5th-gen GAI-05 Jeffersons = Based on M6 Bushnell from Full Metal Panic. Colored in army green. Uther's colored in maroon-red
8th-gen GAI-16 Minutemen = Based on M9 Gernsback from Full Metal Panic. Colored in army green. Lelouch's model colored in black and gold.
8th-gen EiR-8 Arngrim = based on the AMS-119 Geara Doga. Colored in light grey. SS units colored in their black, white, and red scheme.
V-15 Dover VTOL = U/AV-17 Hawk VTOL from Resistance game series