And we're back!

Look I'm not going to even go into why this took so long for me to get this chapter finished. Between filling out law school applications, choosing a law school, job searching, starting my job, and all the tensions and emotions that come with them... It's been a couple of very trying months. Also, I fell into a bit of a rut during that time, which was generally marked by lethargic laziness. And when I tried to work on this story, it was beset with setbacks: I started planning out the rest of the story, lost my notes, started a new set of notes, found my old set of notes, and am currently trying to synthesize both sets with some new ideas into a complete framework.

I want to thank everyone here for their patience in waiting for this new chapter (especially for anyone who favorited/followed after the last chapter was posted). I am sorry to say the following chapter is yet another setup "filler" chapter, but I do believe that it is essential for the chapters to come. I promise that the next chapter will be very exciting with lots of fighting and explosions. All I ask is that you put up with one more chapter of buildup.

Enough of all that. On with the story!

Chapter 16 – Overture to a Storm: Gathering Winds

He whose ranks are united in purpose will be victorious – Sun Tzu

Lt. Colonel Shinji "Akinu" Takeyama began every day the same way. He would arise in the morning at 6:00 sharp, do a series of exercises to awaken his body and his mind. Then he would take a straight razor to shave whatever stubble covered his face. At the end of each session, he would take the razor and hold it up to the reflection of his neck in the mirror, before sliding it across the mirror as if he was slitting someone's throat. And each time he did it, he would smile, for it meant that he was prepared for what he needed to do.

He was prepared to liberate Japan from the mongrels that infested it.

Lt. Takeyama, in a way, was grateful for Zero. Oh, he still loathed the man. He was a weak-hearted, hypocritical scoundrel who seemed perfectly comfortable with accepting filth-blooded Britannians, the dregs of his own noble race, and the abominable hafus that those two produced. But Zero had been a signal that Britannia was weak, that they had grown complacent. If a bastard like Zero could take them on and win, then it wasn't difficult to imagine what a true-blooded Japanese man could do.

There was a knock at the door, and Takeyama looked to see his second in command, Lance Corporal Mishima, standing in the doorway. "Anything to report?" he asked in his gruff, authoritative voice.

"Yes, Akinu-san," Mishima responded. "We're getting intel that the Black Knights are sending troops into Hokkaido."

"Excellent" Takayama responded as he finished brushing the auburn hair that had earned him the nickname "Akinu" or "Red Dog." "I want you to muster all personnel and prepare to move to Hokkaido." Seeing a look of puzzlement on his subordinate's face, he proceeded to explain, "If we can beat the Brits, the E.U, and the Black Knights, it will truly demonstrate our strength. We will show all these diseased gaijin as the weaklings they are, and we will be able to rally the people."

"Very well, Lieutenant. Which base should we move your wife to?"

"Kumiko will be coming with us. It'll mean her brat Yuri will have come with us, but it is a small price to pay."

"Are you sure, sir?" Mishima asked, not bothering to tell his superior officer the apparent risks of taking a heavily pregnant woman with them into a warzone.

"Of course. A man should be present when his son is being born."

"How do you know it's a boy?" This was a somewhat valid question, as they didn't have an ultrasound amongst the medical equipment, nor had Akinu had let Kumiko see any doctor outside the Taiyo no Chi.

"Don't be stupid" Takayama said with a smug smile. "A man always knows."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"How are things looking?" Lt. General Rob Ellison asked his officers as they sat around the table. No one would blame his tired tone; it had been a rough week for them all.

In a matter of days, they had gone from being relatively isolated from the fighting to being caught up in the center of it. The Europa United had come seemingly out of nowhere and captured Sapporo with minimal effort. From that position, they had been able to isolate the southern half of the island. And there were now reports that both the Black Knights and the Taiyo no Chi were both coming to Hokkaido to get in on the fight. The only consolation was there were no alliances; at least if they were busy fighting each other, that might lessen the amount of damage that Ellison and his fighters had to bear. Britannia hadn't given them that much in ways of supplies, to begin with.

"Not great" his second in command, Lt. Fred Jones, said as he shuffled around the reports. "Looks like the Black Knights and those Sun bastards are coming here for a fight. And the E.U is already here. The only question that really remains is who do we engage first?"

"Well then," Ellison said as he laid back in his chair tiredly, "Anyone have any suggestions?"

"I propose we go after the Sun first" Jones suggested. "They're the smallest of the four, and they have the least support. They'd be the easiest to take out."

"I say we go after the Black Knights first" Ground Force Auxiliary Chief Vickers Wilder said with a certain venom in his voice. "They're the reason that anyone is trying to fight is us in the place. We take them out, it puts us back on top."

"Who cares who we go after first?" said Foreign Legion Captain Charles Shaw. "The pack of them are all a lot of animals. What we need to do is move fast and show that the Britannian Empire is not to be scoffed at."

Ellison sighed. Shaw and Wilder were the 3rd and 4th in command here in Hokkaido, but they concerned him a lot. Wilder was only looking out for himself and his … financial interests, not showing much empathy. Ellison wanted to get rid of him as soon as he could, but he didn't have the evidence to implicate him yet. And Wilder was the one that merited less concern. At least his …side dealings made him somewhat predictable, and he wasn't so talented or connected that the higher-ups would be willing to defend him.

Shaw was a different case. He was the son of some noble somewhere and would be more challenging to get rid of, but that wasn't what was worrying Ellison. No, what bothered him was the disposition of the man, which was a toxic mix between brutal bloodlust, desperate masculinity, and hyper-nationalism. The man was thin-skinned, cruel, and as unstable as a bowl balanced on a traffic cone in an earthquake. He was also bizarrely confident, refusing to send his wife and children back to the Homeland. Ellison was worried that whatever actions Shaw had planned would cost an inordinate amount of bullets and men, and would no doubt anger whatever of the population survived so badly that governing the island would be practically impossible.

Ellison proceeded to weigh what options he had, and a plan started to form in his mind. All he needed was to confirm a few things. "What's in that outpost near Bear Mountain?"

"SH-173, codename: The Ski Lodge" Sgt. Jerold Henderson, chief communications officer, said as he pulled up the file on his tablet and read the specs. "It's located about 20 km south of Bear Mountain. What we got there are ten older Glouster Knightmares, about 100 personnel, 20 tanks with corresponding ammunition, ten panzer cannons with corresponding ammunition, and about 400 crates of bullets. It is currently about equidistant from the landing point of the Black Knights and the last reported position of an E.U Battalion. And the latest reports say that both of them are moving towards it."

"Alright. Issue the following orders: Evacuate all personnel to the nearest rally point in the north, as close to us as possible. Destroy all digital files, as well as much physical documentation as well. Try to remove as many Knightmares and heavy artillery as possible to the evacuation point or try to destroy them if they don't have the time or expertise. Knightmares have more of a priority than the other heavy weapons. And the main order is to get as many people alive to the rally point. No one is to try for any heroics."

"Sir" Shaw interjected, his voice outraged. "Those at the lodge should stay and fight it out with whoever is stupid enough to come there. They are Britannian soldiers, and they should take down as many of these invading mongrels as they can."

"No," Ellison said forcefully. "It's not in a strong enough location to fend off two approaching armies. And this is a matter of what we can replace. I'll have an easier time asking Command to send us more ammunition and more weapons than I will be asking them to send us more people. A loss of equipment is easier to explain than a loss of people. And if we're lucky, the E.U and The Black Knights might do enough damage to each other that it'll make our job easier. Until we have further developments."

As the group split up, Ellison started to move in the direction of his quarters and found himself accompanied by Jones. "Sir," he said as he maintained a steady pace two strides behind his boss, "I'm worried that Shaw and Wilder might try and do something on there own and mess everything up."

"I understand your concerns about Wilder, but I don't think that he'll do anything reckless. His primary concerns are his Refrain dealings."

"Oh. No wonder he's been so pissed off at the Black Knights."

"Still, it'll prevent him from doing anything reckless, lest he loses even more money. Shaw's the one I'm worried about. The man seems to become more unhinged with each passing week."

"With the fighting getting this close, you'd think he'd send his wife and kids back to the mainland."

"I talked to her about that. She's as stubborn as him, saying that they have nothing to fear. Do me a favor and keep an eye on the both of them, will you Jones?"

"That I will, sir." And with that, Jones turned left into a different hallway while Ellison when straight towards his own quarters.

When he walked in, a woman around his age and a look of stress and overwork was busy cleaning the commander's apartment. She looked up startled when Ellison came in and looked flustered. "I'm sorry commander," she said hurriedly, "but I was just tidying up and – "

Ellison silenced her by walking up to her and embracing her while giving her a kiss. "It's okay Komastu," he said in fluent Japanese. "The rooms here are secure; no one will hear us."

With those words, Komatsu relaxed slightly. "Really? Are you sure?"

"They soundproof and secure these rooms so that the commanders can conduct 'any major' business without worry about it leaking."

"To whom?"

"They say it's to foreign spies, but its more likely to avoid things being gossiped about at court. Sit down, and I'll make some tea."

Komatsu listened and sat down at the table while Ellison went over to kettle to prepare some tea. "How is Ichigo?" he asked.

"He's doing well, being as boisterous and curious as all boys that age are. He is asking to see his father, though. And not just when he inspects the barracks."

"I know, but we're in a tight position here. Any mistake from either of us could spell trouble for all of us, and a ten-year-old has no place in the middle of any crossfire."

Soon enough, the tea was ready and served. Ellison then asked about how things were in the servant's quarters.

"It's conflicted," Komatsu replied. "Some are hopeful about the Black Knights, some lean towards the E.U. But everyone's cautious about it as they've been burned by optimism before.

They sat there for a little bit, letting their tea cool. Eventually, Komatsu said, "Everyone thinks you should surrender."

"What do you think I should do?"

"I think that you should join with the Black Knights."

"Honestly, I would love to declare Hokkaido for the USJ. I can't right now. There isn't enough support, especially with Shaw whipping up the loyalist and Purist fervor as hard as he can. If I declare now, either two things will happen: Either this place descends into civil war, or everyone bands together and puts our heads on a platter."

"So there's no good way out?"

"Yes. And quite frankly, it's too risky to try for a bad one." Ellison then held Komatsu's hand in his own. "I will find a way out of this for all of us. I swear."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Well, that was quite the trip!" Gino said with a yawn as he stepped into the hangar where they had just landed. And he had loved every minute of it. He was actually loving his time in the Black Knights, something he wouldn't have thought to be the case. In the Britannian army, it had to be a bit too stiff. People were always focused on their business and just that. Plus, they all tended to get overly formal whenever he stepped into the room. Here in the Black Knights, it was different. Sure, there was still a sense of discipline and formality, as they wouldn't have been able to take on the Empire for this long and survive. But there was also an air of excitement and freedom that wasn't in the Imperial army. The people here hadn't joined because they had been forced to, or because they were angling for a knighthood or a bigger title. People were here because they wanted to be here, and that led to a collective sense of comradery and purpose, a general belief that they were here to make the world a better place. And that attitude was infectious; Gino hadn't felt this driven for the longest time.

"The way you said that Gino, it makes it sound like you haven't been a plane before," a smirking voice behind him said. He turned around to see Yukia Shiroki walking behind him. His comrade in the Zero Squad was a slender Japanese girl about his own age with a military haircut, toned skin, surprisingly sharp eyes, and knack of getting under Gino's skin. From what Gino had heard, Yuikia's tanned skin was due to the fact that she had initially come from Osaka, where she had made a name for herself with her skill with her Knightmare and her fighting ferocity. Right now, however, there was no ferocity in her eyes; just the sort of mischievous mirth that Gino had always come to associate with Milly Ashford.

"I was just talking about how exciting the flight was," Gino said with a defensive grin. "I don't think I've ever seen that much turbulence on a plane before."

"I personally thought it was a bit too rocky," a new voice said meekly. With that, two more members of the Zero squad entered the hangar. The one who had spoken was a newer recruit who had clearly come from Britannia, a fifteen-year-old with copper blonde hair and bright blue eyes that complimented her pale skin. She gave her name as Dani California when she joined, but it was generally agreed that this was a fake name, probably to distance herself from whatever family she had. It was also clear that she was a natural at piloting, her Knightmare simulation score rivaling some of the Black Knight's aces. Next to her was a woman with long black hair, piercing eyes, and a demeanor as mysterious as the Hokkaido mountains she called home. The only name she was known by was Okamihime, or "Wolf Princess," and she was something of a legend in the revolutionary circles. A young girl during the invasion, she had supposedly killed the soldiers who had come into her house with a knife and made her way to Kurokuma, where she quickly became his ace. Gino didn't know much else, though he once tried to talk to her, before getting a withering glare.

"Well, you better get used to the feeling, because it is going to get worse from here on out." The voice that gave that announcement also pronounced that Kallen had entered the hangar, walking in with a rolled up map. Behind her was the last member of the Zero Squad, a silvered haired Britannian-Japanese teenager with the name Rai. He had come in from the Ikebukuro cell, having demonstrated himself as a skilled pilot. Beyond that, no one knew much about him, not even Rai himself. Apparently, he had been found two years ago by the Ikebukuro cell amid a bunch of rubble and with the larger majority of his memories missing. The only clue to his name was a badly damaged name tag that was found his coat pocket. Beyond that, no one really knew anything about him, since records in Japan since the invasion tended to be scant and sketchy at best (not much survived, and Clovis's government hadn't bothered to set up any system to either verify old materials or create new accurate ones). Besides all that, Gino actually found himself liking the guy. He was kind, smart, and overall just fun to be around.

"We have a new mission, simple but tricky" Kallen was saying, her words bringing Gino back to the present situation. "We have received intelligence that the Britannian army is about to evacuate this base," she said as she pointed to a dot on the map "SH-137. It's got a couple of Knightmares and tanks stowed away, but they don't have the manpower to hold us off. Our main goal is to get the base. No over-the-top heroics. If we're able to pick up anything else along the way, that's a bonus. But make sure you get out alive. You're the best we have, and replacing you will be painful and a pain. Any questions?"

"Just one," Yukia said. "Where is our fearless leader?"

"He's with the special forces," Kallen said, "giving them the same talk with more … clarity"

That was definitely needed in Gino's opinion. The Black Knight's Special Forces tended to be like their leader Tamaki: loud, loyal, brash, and inclined to run into a situation without thinking it through too much. It would make sense that Lelouch would want to talk to himself. But that did raise another question. "Why are we going with the special forces to take this base?" he asked.

"Because the E.U is also sending troops to try and take this base," Kallen answered. "This is the first engagement that we're going to have with them. It's especially important since they're sending a special unit with the code name W-9. We don't know much about them, but these guys have already seen heavy action in Eastern Europe. We don't know much else about them, so we need to be careful. That's why Zero's sending in us along with the special forces and a handful of Knightmares from the two companies that came with us so that we can get a better sense of how they fight, before we start throwing our regular divisions at them. Is that clear?"

The group nodded in unison, as there weren't any questions left.

"Excellent. Everybody get to your knightmares" Kallen ordered as she collected her maps. "Zero will dole out specific instructions when we start moving in. Get ready to fight!"

Gino couldn't help smiling as he moved to his Knightmare. This was going to be his first serious fight in some time. He couldn't help but feel excited.

And that's where we'll leave things for now.

As I was preparing this chapter for publication, I realized that I've been working on this story for over three years. So once again, I would really like to thank each and every one of you for your patience. I promise that from here on out that I'll try to be a bit more prompt with new releases (or at least work on a more consistent schedule). I'm working on the next chapter as you read this, and I promise it will be out soon.

Thank you all so much once again. I'll see you again soon.