Memory 2
Copycat Cavalry


On a night during a full moon, the skyscrapers of the Tokyo settlement would light up like pillars of gold on one side. It served as a beloved and beautiful spectacle for the Britannians, and even for some Elevens who didn't mind that the buildings were monuments to the loss of their home. It was a city of wealth for the conquerors, and a symbol of defeat for the conquered.

In one area of the city, the Rosenberg Institute stood tall, facing away from the grandeur of the lunar light. Across the street, a skyscraper gave view to the moon's reflection in its windows for those in the Institute's lobby, which was pristine and relatively empty compared to during the day. From this building, a young man peered from a window with a binoculars, closely watching the Institute's lobby down below.

"He's not out yet. I have a feeling that this is gonna take a while Zi," he said nonchalantly, speaking to the only other occupant in the unused office. "Well, what did you expect Oz? You know that according to intel, this guy is notorious for taking his time berating his employees. He'll be out soon, just be patient," Zi said, balancing while leaning back on a fold up metal chair, casually playing solitaire at a small table. From Oz's point of view, he seemed dangerously close to falling over, as well as losing the game.

As he continued to kneel before the sill, Oz thought back to when they first received the cryptic mission that they were currently handling. He wasn't one to complain, but it seemed off, and that was never a good sign. Their intermediary, a mysterious woman about his age who simply went by the moniker "Miss X", was given a mission by a rather shady client that withheld their identity. It was rare that Miss X would accept a mission from such a client. All she had supposedly heard was that a fellow agent had been captured a couple of days prior and was being held in the "Rosenberg Institute". They were most likely being tortured for information.

"Damn… if only these bastards knew the truth. Peace Mark just isn't organized the way they think it is… the agents are basically mercenaries with a common belief that Britannia is evil. We don't even know anything about the inner workings of our organization. Miss X might know a few things that we don't since she's an intermediary, but I'm sure it's nothing that could cripple us if it got out. The only thing that the two of us know is that Ganabati is a terrible cook, am I right?" Zi rambled off. Oz obviously wasn't listening, much to Zi's chagrin. "Right," Oz replied.

Zi frowned at his partner's deadpan response, but chose not to react. He pulled a stick of gum out of his military vest's pocket that covered his purple tunic. As soon as he threw it in his mouth, Oz exclaimed, "There he is!" enthusiastically.

All at once, Zi fell over, hit his head on the floor, kicked the table, sent the playing cards flying, and started to choke on his gum. Oz continued to stare through the binoculars with anticipation, oblivious to the fact that his friend was dying. "Alright, he's taking his time talking with the guards. As soon as he's gone, I need you to watch my back. Can you do that buddy? Hey, I asked if you could… Zi!"

Not a moment too late, Oz leapt to his friend and slapped Zi's back as hard as he could, dislodging the gum and launching it out of his throat. Zi stared up in annoyance and coughed. "Well, that was fast! Seriously Oz, good job watching out for your partner!" he yelled in an overtly sarcastic tone.

Oz attempted to keep a straight face, but a small chuckle escaped him, to which Zi snarled. "Yeah, I almost died, very funny Oz... Just go check on the big guy again, will ya?" he groaned with an exhausted tone. Oz quickly returned to the window with the binoculars and looked; General Bartley had in fact left the building. "Okay, now it's my turn," Oz murmured with a serious glare.

Once Oz stood back from the window, Zi fixed his triangle shaped glasses as he watched something that he still couldn't believe. After Oz's left eye glowed red with a symbol shaped like a bird, a miraculous event occurred. Within a split second, Oz, along with his blonde hair, steel pauldrons, and white and dark grey tunic, had completely transformed into General Bartley. It was a sight to see; a 17-year-old boy transforming into a 300-pound man in his late fifties.

"I'll never get over you doing that… Seriously, how do you do that? You look exactly like him!" Zi said as he put his hands up in awe of the illusion. Oz, now as Bartley, not only looked like him, but could act and sound like him as well. "Shut up! I have to get to the target! I only have about five minutes before this wears off!"

As he said, he only ever had about five minutes to use the ability. If he used it twice in a row, he'd have to wait about an hour until he could use it again. It was an annoying setback at times, but he appreciated that the transformation wasn't permanent. If he was stuck looking like General Bartley Asprius forever, he'd be pissed.

Zi pointed to the door and gestures to it with a nod. "Then what are you waiting for? You're on the clock! Chop chop!" he ordered as he proceeded to clap his hands in a hurried fashion. Oz, or "Bartley" as he was now, did as he was told, but on his own terms. Since Zi was a few years older, he always acted like he was his superior. Since Oz was so much more capable on the field, however, it was clear to both whom the true superior was in their partnership.

After slowly taking the elevator down to the lobby and crossing the street, passing by several citizens along the way who all gave him a patriotic salute, he finally entered the Institute. "Ah, General, you came back!" a stationed guard exclaimed as the large imposter came forward. "What of it?! Get back to your post, Soldier!" Oz replied in a hateful tone.

"Yes, my lord!" the guard nervously exclaimed before returning to their lookout for terrorists. The fool couldn't even tell that there was one standing right in front of him, but as far as Oz was concerned, a Britannian guard for a secret torture facility didn't deserve his pity. Oz would've blown up the building after extraction, but unfortunately that wasn't allowed on the mission, for what reason was not made clear in the briefing.

Now that the coast was clear, Oz spotted the elevator. According to their recon over the past 24 hours, it was the only elevator among several that the General made use of. He made his way over to it and looked down at the panel inside. It showed all kinds of numbers representing each floor, reaching all the way up to 37. The facility was primarily used for medical testing and treatment, but that was just a cover for the shadier ordeals.

Now was the question; he had to figure out which floor was the captive being kept on. He had no way of bypassing the security system that checked for vocal recognition; his illusion only affected people, not electronics. He was aware that the cameras could pick up on him, but he didn't need that much time before security caught on. As the general, he could probably request anyone within the area to do anything, without question. Just as he needed some help, he caught a familiar face from when they did recon.

"Hey, you! Get over here!" Oz yelled with a deep growl, catching the attention of the scientist. He was noted as a potential torturer, since he also used the General's elevator exclusively every day. "General Bartley! You're back so soon! Is there something you need?" he asked cautiously.

Oz stifled a laugh; it was just too easy. "Of course there's something I need! The damn system isn't working! Get me access to the project now!" he yelled, causing the scientist to cower. Oz took note of his ID badge: "Dr. Joseph Fenette". Joseph quickly entered the lift and swiped the screen down, revealing a hidden handprint scanner. He leaned over and said his name, causing the elevator to ascend.

Of course, there was elevator music. Even on the way to a secret, evil torture lair, the elevator had to have music. After going up for about a minute, the door opened to reveal a hallway. "Are you here to see the subject? Code-R is currently in testing for neural activity, but you already knew that though."

"Testing for neural activity? Code-R?" Oz asked aloud. This was new information; it was unusual to give such a strange codename to a prisoner. Testing for brain activity wasn't a standard form of torture either, or even torture at all for that matter. It was here that Oz realized that his suspicions were correct; something was off.

Joseph tilted his head in confusion. "Well, yes sir, that's the codename of the subject. Do you… not remember?" he asked, immediately regretting asking the question. "Are you questioning my memory Fenette?! Just give me a private audience with the captive!" Oz demanded, grabbing the scientist by his lapels.

"Uh, yes, of course! Right this way!" he said with a slightly high pitched voice. He led the rotund imposter to the room on the right, and as he opened the door, the sight was not as Oz expected. Two scientists were standing around a girl about his age; his real age, that is. She was barely conscious, sitting in a chair and leaning over with heavy lidded eyes. One scientist held a tablet and stylus, while the other sat at a computer. On it were multiple application windows, all showing information that he couldn't understand.

"Oh! General Bartley and Doctor Fenette! Is there something you need?" one scientist asked. Joseph stepped forward and said, "The general has requested to speak to Code-R. Privately," with a serious tone. The two scientists looked to each other, then started to move.

As Oz waited, one of the scientists unhooked the equipment and followed the rest out of the room. Once he was alone with the captive, Oz locked the door and turned towards Code-R. "Alright, I'm here to get you out. My name is Oz, and I'm an agent of Peace Mark. I'm not actually General Bartley, I'm just in disguise," he said, quickly unstrapping the girl from her bondage. "Hah… so Marianne… sent a… teenage boy…"

As her words exited her mouth, Oz froze. He assumed that his ability wore off, but as he looked at his hand, he saw that he still looked like Bartley. If that was the case, there was no way she could guess that he was a teenager. The only possibility is that she heard of him from within the organization, but the chances of that were slim.

"Can you… see past my disguise? Also, who's Marianne?" he asked as he lifted her up in a princess carry. She appeared frail and fragile, as if the experiments done on her were much worse than just being tested in a chair. "The power… of Geass… doesn't… affect me… boy…" she weakly answered with a smirk. "If you're… the cavalry… then get me… out of here… I've grown tired… of the experiments…"

Oz's eyes widened. "Geass?! How do you know about that?! Damnit, we're going to talk about this later! In the meantime, we're getting out of here. Just you wait until I get you to Ganabati's truck, we'll take you far away from here and then you'll tell me everything you know!" he said in the gruff voice of the general. At least, that's the tone of voice that he heard, but the same couldn't be said for what "Code-R" heard. Somehow, she knew the truth.

"My name is… C.C., by the way…" she revealed in a whisper, to which Oz smiled lightly. "It's nice to meet you, Agent C.C.," he replied, eliciting a small laugh from the girl, though he couldn't understand why she would. After unlocking and leaving the room, the three scientists moved aside in the hallway and watched as the general, infamous for his angry demeanor, carried the captive girl like a princess.

"Fenette! I'm taking her to a new facility!" he bellowed with great authority. Joseph's eyes widened in disbelief of his orders, due to the fact that there was no reason for transfer, but he knew better than to question orders by now. "Very well sir! I'll lead the way!"

As the two men and one girl boarded the lift, Oz continued to ponder what he had heard. Geass; it was the name of his ability. He had been given the power when he was a young boy many years ago, and it had been a gift and a curse ever since. If this girl could see through it, then he definitely had a few questions for her. He had only ever known one other person who could see past it; the person that gave the power to him in the first place. His name was V.V., and he was the archenemy of Peace Mark. The fact that her name was so similar to his must've meant that there was a connection.

"Sir… if I may be so bold…" Joseph said, shaking as he stood at the door. "You're not actually General Bartley, are you?" he whispered. Oz began to sweat. "W-what do you mean?! Of course I am!" he exclaimed, to which C.C. tugged on his arm. "Don't worry… he's a friend… right, Joseph?" she said quietly. At that, Joseph held her hand. "That's right. C.C. has been saying that 'the cavalry's coming' since she came here, but I never expected it to be… well, you."

As the lift neared the lobby, he quickly handed Oz a flash drive. "Here, take this. It's a copy of all of our orders and research… I prepared it in the event that she was rescued. Perhaps it can assist you in some way in the future," he said, as if he was pleading for him to do something with it. Oz took it and held it tightly in his hand. "Thank you. I'm sure it'll help somehow," Oz answered with an unsightly grin. Joseph shuddered, but quickly calmed down with a sigh. "I'm just glad this is over… I did the right thing, right C.C.?" Joseph asked, to which C.C. nodded. "Yes… thank you… Joseph… and for… actually using… my name…"

After the short ride, the elevator dinged as it reached the lobby. Oz's com link sparked to life, just as the doors began to open. "Oz, you have to get out, now! Shit, he came back!" Zi screamed, but it was too late. Standing before them was none other than the real General Bartley. "Oh… you've got to be kidding…" C.C. gently murmured. The two Bartleys stared at one another, one of whom was much more confused than the other.

"Who… the hell… are you?! Guards, arrest this imposter at once! Fenette, you better explain this later!" the real Bartley yelled at the top of his lungs. Before the guards could show up, Oz sprinted towards the entrance with C.C. in his arms. "Orpheus… put me… down…" C.C. muttered, "You won't… make it…"

"No! I'm not leaving you! I need answers! Who are you?! Wait… that name… how do you know that name?!" he yelled, just as his body reverted to normal. Everyone around them gasped at his transformation, but the guards wouldn't stop. C.C. smirked, then with all of her remaining strength, she pushed herself from his arms and fell to the marble floor. "No! C.C.!" Oz screamed, but realized that any chance of escaping with her now was lost.

"Go… I'll be fine… go!" C.C. mustered the ability to yell out. Oz gritted his teeth, then ran as fast as he could, now unencumbered by C.C., occasionally pushing civilians and staff members out of the way. He knew better than to try and save her now. The mission was a failure, and retreat was his only option.

Once outside, Oz sprinted down the sidewalk and turned into a dark alleyway. He could hear the guards chasing after him, firing off the occasional gunshot when they thought they had him in their sights. As the guards turned into the alleyway, however, all they found was a homeless man lying on a piece of cardboard.

"Didn't you guys see him go this way?! Where is he?!" one of the guards yelled to the others, to which they all shook their heads. Little did they know that Oz was hiding in plain sight. The homeless man smirked under his battered jacket for a moment, then quickly returned to a frown. He had a chance at knowing what his ability really was, and he blew it. Not only that, but the girl knew his real name; she knew who he really was.

As soon as the guards ran off, he sat up and answered his com. "Are you kidding me Zi?! Why didn't you say anything sooner?!" he yelled in the raspy voice of a homeless man. "I did try to say something, but the connection cut out as soon as you went inside the elevator! We didn't account for there to be a dead zone leading up to and around the torture room. I'm sorry man, but it's really not my fault."

Oz pounded his fist on the cardboard he was sitting on. "It wasn't a torture room Zi. The person they captured… I don't think they're an actual agent. They were doing experiments on her for some reason, and she knows something about my ability, and my true identity! I had a feeling this mission was more complicated then we originally thought when the client was so shady," Oz complained as he pulled in his knees, trying to keep warm in the night.

"Well, I guess that's it then. I'm sure another team could handle this mission, but for now, it's a failure. I'm sorry man, it sounds like this was important to you," Zi said with a sympathetic tone. Oz stood up, filled with commitment and resolve. "You're wrong Zi. This mission has only just begun. I'm going to free C.C., one way or another."

The com went quiet for a moment, before Oz heard a heavy sigh. "Yeah, I figured you'd say that. The only question is, do we have a plan?" Zi asked, clearly not looking forward to future events. Oz scowled as he looked up at the moon, illuminating the civilians along the sidewalks and the modern vehicles cruising down the road. "No, not yet, but we have to think of something. Head over to Ganabati, it's late and I'm tired, so we should get some rest for tomorrow. Over and out," Oz replied.

Before Zi could respond, Oz took off his earpiece and put it in his pocket, along with the flash drive given by Joseph. He may have been able to change how he looks in the minds of others and himself, but he didn't actually transform; it was all an illusion. He always found it weird to put things in a pocket that wasn't visible because of his Geass. He got up and started walking away from the Institute, ignoring the dirty looks from the Britannian citizens that walked past him. They were truly despicable, looking down upon the less fortunate so easily.

The constant glares made the walk seem longer than it actually was, but not too long after, he finally reached his home: Ganabati's military transport truck. It was massive, big enough to store at least three Knightmares. It was currently carrying just one, his personal red Glasgow, and the rest of the truck posed as a living room for the three of them.

He knocked on the door a few times in a specific secret pattern, signaling that it was him. The door quickly opened, revealing a sturdy man of Indian descent. He wore a bright orange vest and a white turban on his head, and had a large black beard concealing his frown. "Well well, I heard from Zi. Too bad about what happened, but I believe that you can do it if you keep trying. I didn't haul this truck all the way out to Japan for nothing!"

Oz smirked, appreciative of the sturdy man's commitment to the cause, as well as everyone else in the organization that helped to secretly transport the vehicle across the Pacific from their previous home in California. Ganabati was a good guy, and was damn good at fixing up just about anything; except food, that is. "Yeah, I hear you. I'll work on it tomorrow though… right now, I'm exhausted," Oz groaned as he stepped inside.

He hopped into the back of the truck, only to find Zi sitting down against the wall. "I'm sorry Oz. I really wish I could've done more," he spoke softly. Oz walked over and patted him on the shoulder. "You did fine Zi. Like you said, it wasn't your fault. We'll get her next time," he reassured his partner.

Without a reply, Oz sat down with a laptop they owned and plugged in the flash drive. If anything was going to help them, it was this. After perusing for a minute, he came across an interesting file. It showed pictures of C.C. being placed in a containment chamber of some kind, and below it were several paragraphs, explaining the functions of how it worked. It also listed a schedule for when C.C. would be contained.

At the end, a link was posted that read "Protocol Omega". After clicking on it, it showed a paragraph, this time in bold lettering. It read, "In the event of the subject's escape, the containment capsule must not be revealed for what it is to anyone outside of the research team or His Highness's personal guard. Instead, the containment chamber is to be referred to as-"

"Poison gas. Huh," Zi suddenly said right behind Oz's ear, who proceeded to jump out of his skin. "What the hell?! Zi, go to bed!" he whispered in an angered expression, making absolutely sure not to wake the sleeping Ganabati. Zi snickered, then sauntered back to his bed.

As Oz continued to read, he came across the page listing what the scientists had learned from the research. It read, "After bringing the subject back to the lab, we were surprised to find that she had not actually died from the fall. She had regenerated and came back to life after being dead for over an hour. We've concluded that Code-R is not only ageless, but incapable of death entirely."

Orpheus's eyes widened. This couldn't possibly be true; immortality was impossible. He closed the laptop and set it aside. Now that his research was concluded, Oz found his own sleeping bag next to the Glasgow and tried to sleep. After an hour went by, however, he couldn't stop thinking. He couldn't go in to the Institute himself, and he couldn't depend on Zi to go in to do the mission either. Since the Institute was probably on high alert for the foreseeable future, he and Zi were going to need a lot more help.

Oz couldn't rely on fellow operatives, so he needed an unorthodox source of assistance. He considered the Japanese Liberation Front, which was the main rebel force in Japan, but he knew that they wouldn't help. He would have to gain the trust of their top command and convince them to risk their lives for a person they knew nothing about. It was an idea he just couldn't pursue.

As he laid there thinking, it came to him. Japan's rebels weren't all part of the JLF; there were smaller factions, some more willing and ready to fight Britannia at every opportunity they had. If saving a damsel in distress wasn't enough for them, he didn't know what was. Now all he had to do was go into the ghettos and find a group that was willing enough to believe him.

With a plan in mind, he slept with ease, and just like usual, he woke up in the morning to pots and pans being slammed together, echoing through the vehicle. It was Ganabati's trademark way of saying "Wake up, get out and get to work". After Oz and Zi exited the vehicle, they both groaned as they saw the wide grin on the truck owner's face.

As Zi began to stretch his arms, Oz spoke. "So, I've got an idea. We're gonna head out to the nearby ghetto to recruit the Japanese," he said with an intonation of pride. Zi didn't react; instead, he continued to stretch. "Good idea pal… or how about we just shoot each other in the head? Same result at a fraction of the effort!" he suggested, mocking his partner's decision.

Oz sighed as he held his forehead in his hand. "I'm serious Zi, it's the best idea we have. We need help, because we can't do this alone. Now how else will we find the manpower to save C.C.?" he asked, to which Zi shrugged, making it clear that he didn't know. Without further protest on Zi's part, Oz started walking while Zi followed. They received strange looks from the Britannians due to their choice of clothing, but it didn't matter to them. Zi wore a style of clothing native to China, which was his home country. Oz wore the garments of the Hungarian village that was once his home. He the traditional clothes to remember what had happened, and the people that once lived there.

While they walked, the sun was still low in the sky, hidden by the buildings around them, but it was still bright due to all of the reflective surfaces. The bustling of the streets was loud and obnoxious. They passed by multiple storefronts, all selling meaningless junk to the average Britannian consumer. There were students walking around aimlessly, enjoying a Sunday off from school, completely unaware of the darkness of the world around them.

As he stared at all of the happy faces, he suddenly heard something out of place; screaming. "Zi, do you hear that?" Oz asked. Zi shook his head, still tired from the night before. Oz grabbed his tunic and started pulling him towards the source of the yelling. They passed by a long alleyway, just wide enough for a car to pass through, and deep inside was a group of Britannians, all kicking a Japanese man who was crawling on the ground.

"You filthy, worthless piece of shit! This is our land now, you should be fucking dead!" the leader of the group yelled, clearly intoxicated, shoving the tip of his boot into the man's stomach. The man cried out in pain, desperately clawing for help. It was atrocious that the civilians of the city were relatively aware of this violence, and yet they did nothing, either for their own safety, or were too distracted to even care. Oz wasn't going to stand for this. He began to activate his Geass to become a policeman to chase them away, but Zi grabbed his shoulder. "Wait. Look."

Zi pointed down the alley, not at the gang, or the victim, but at a man at the other end. "What? Who's that?" Oz asked aloud, squinting to see the man's face. Just as he did so, one of the gang members also took notice of the stranger, and of the two of them as well. "Hey boss! We've got an audience!" he exclaimed drunkenly.

"Oh yeah? Well get them out of here! Shows over!" the leader yelled, before planting his foot on the man's face, throwing his empty liquor bottle on the ground. Seeing him stomp on the poor man's face was the last straw. "Oh, the shows just started, asshole! Zi, get the guy on the left!" Oz roared, before sprinting full speed at the man on the right. While the leader continued beating the victim, the fourth and final member went the other way towards the stranger.

The first gangster threw a punch, but Zi simply stepped aside. With excellent form, he thrust his palm upwards into the chin of the assailant, throwing him across the alley and onto the ground. Zi then proceeded to drive his heel into his crotch, eliciting a high-pitched squeal. "Yeah, squeal like the pig you are," Zi said with a smirk, before kicking him in the side of the head with full force, knocking the gangster out instantly.

Meanwhile, Oz was the first to attack his foe. He wound up for a punch, causing the man to block, but he instead swept his leg. As the man fell forward, Oz drove his knee straight into his nose with a loud crack. Once the gangster hit the ground, also knocked out cold, the two agents looked at each other with approval, but that wasn't the end.

The sight ahead of them blew their minds. The stranger was punching and kicking with such power and speed that they were sure the gangster was half broken, even while he remained standing. With a final punch to the gut, the man fell to his knees, only to receive a full-weighted knockout punch to the face.

As soon as the fight began, it was over. The leader of the gang stopped kicking, now looking back and forth at his downed friends. "What the fuck?! You bastards, look what you did!" he screamed, tripping over his own feet in fear. Oz and Zi merely stood by as the stranger slowly approached the man.

Without a single word, the stranger lifted the gangster up by his jacket lapel and started pummeling his face into a bloody mess. Oz was frozen in awe as the gangster was so quickly destroyed by a single fist within seconds. Zi, on the other hand, looked away from the brutality. After the pummeling had ceased, the gangster fell to the ground with his face lying in an expanding pool of blood.

"Shinjimae," the stranger said, and with that one word, Oz's eyes lit up; only a Japanese person would say that. He didn't understand Japanese in the slightest, but he could guess that it wasn't meant with kindness due to his dark and menacing tone. "That was… amazing. Who are you?" Oz asked the man.

The stranger picked up his head before brushing away his maroon colored hair from his face. His gray eyes were cold as ice, unfazed by the fact that he just nearly killed a man in broad daylight. He looked the two oddly dressed young men up and down, probably trying to decide if they were friendly. He stepped forward into clear view, and said, "My name is Naoto Kozuki. Who are you?"