"I hereby renounce my claim to the throne!" – Regular speaking
'How dare the Emperor abandon Nunnally!' – Regular thinking; Italics not in singular quotations are used for emphasis
"Q-1, strike the left flank now!" – Speaking as heard over radios and other communication devices
"Lelouch vi Britannia commands you, DIE!" Speech influenced by using Geass
Disclaimer: I don't own any franchise that is used in this story nor do I make any profit from it whatsoever.
I hope you enjoy the new chapter, despite how long it is.
Welcome, to the Battle of Narita where Britannia is forced to recognize the true might of the Black Knights.
Chapter 15: Baptized In Fire Part I
(Tokyo Settlement, Area Eleven – Ashford Academy – 2:08 am – October 12 – 2017 a.t.b.)
Lelouch knocked on Nunnally's door carefully after he got home from the raid on the Refrain cartel. He had changed into a black tank-top and a pair of dark blue pajama pants before he came to check on Nunnally, knowing she would want to know he got home safe. The door slid open automatically a few seconds after he knocked and he observed the scene inside with a small smile.
Moonlight was shining through her partially open curtains, bathing his younger sister in its light as she slept. Her wheelchair was right next to her bed, so that she could pull herself into it if absolutely necessary, and there was an empty cup on her nightstand next to a picture of her, him, Suzaku, and Kaguya in front of the place they had lived a little over seven years ago.
Lelouch walked in slowly, his bare steps silent as they could be. But when he heard Nunnally cry in fear, Lelouch ignored his sense of caution. He rushed over to Nunnally's side, his eyes scanning over her as he grabbed her hand to try and give her some comfort. She awakened immediately, diving towards his body and letting out gut wrenching sobs as she bawled into his chest.
"Onii-sama. Onii-sama." Nunnally cried out over and over as she held him as tightly as she could, her voice barely muffled as she blubbered deeply into his chest.
"I'm here for you, Nunna." Lelouch whispered, trying to avoid getting any of Nunnally's hair in his mouth as he held her close. "I'm here, I'll always be here for you." Lelouch rubbed Nunnally's back as comfortingly as he could. "Shh, just breathe in and out, in and out." He coached her along, slowly brushing his fingers through her hair and rubbing her back. Eventually, he shifted until he was on the bed, holding Nunnally on his lap as he leaned against the wall. "There, isn't that better?" He asked as he heard Nunnally's breathing even out, despite the occasional hiccup. "Now, tell me what's wrong." Nunnally stiffened in his arms and held onto him tighter than before.
"It's been eight years now." Nunnally mumbled, without even using the clock by her bedside to know for certain, she could sense what day it was in Britannia. "Eight years since mother was murdered right in front of us." She couldn't remember fine details, but she could recall the fear and the pain. And that was more than enough.
Lelouch looked over at her clock, seeing the time blink 2:13 am and allowed a sad smile to grace his face. "So it is." He whispered, holding Nunnally close as she hiccupped again. "So it is." He repeated, recognizing what had happened to Nunnally. "You had that dream again, didn't you?" He asked, already suspecting the answer. He nuzzled the top of Nunnally's head, knowing that the more she could feel from him the more secure she would be.
October eleventh, in Pendragon time, always resulted in Nunnally having one particular nightmare.
"Just a memory." A few tears escaped Nunnally's closed eyes despite her attempt to regain control over her emotions by repeating the mantra Lelouch had taught her whenever she dreamt of that night. "It was just a memory." Nunnally sniffled, her voice choked with sorrow as she was held tight by her Onii-sama.
He was the anchor she used to avoid falling into the depths of despair.
"Memories are the past, focus on the present. Just focus on me, ignore everything. Forget Mother, forget Father, forget the world." Lelouch murmured as he shifted to help Nunnally lie down, taking a place next to her to ensure she would be okay as she fell asleep. "Just focus on your Onii-sama, my beloved Nunnally." He whispered, kissing her softly on her forehead. Their arms were wrapped around one another, Lelouch brushing his fingers through Nunnally's hair and rubbing her back softly as the hiccups faded away. Nunnally's arms were wrapped tight around Lelouch's back, her face burrowed in his chest as her tears began to dry up.
"I love you so much, Onii-sama." Nunnally breathed out softly as she could feel her racing heart begin to slow down. "Please, just stay with me tonight." 'Like you used to seven years ago.' Nunnally finished in her mind, remembering when they had to sleep together for warmth in that drafty warehouse they had been forced to live in when they first arrived in Japan. She missed being able to be that close to him, she had never had any bad dreams when she slept beside her beloved brother.
"I will." Lelouch promised as he allowed his sister to trap him like a snake, her arms refusing to loosen their grip on him as she slowly started to fall asleep. Eventually, he managed to follow her lead, holding his sister close in comfort.
'Everything I do, I do for you.' Lelouch thought to himself before he finally succumbed to the darkness encroaching upon his vision.
He hoped he would never be a reason for Nunnally to have nightmares. He would hate himself if he ended up causing his dearest sister pain of any kind.
It was about eight when the pair awoke from their deep sleep. Lelouch stretched widely when he woke up, but as soon as his grip left Nunnally she awakened as well. Sitting next to him, Nunnally leaned into her brother's side. "Can we skip today?" She asked, still somewhat sleepy. "I don't want to go to class today." Her voice cracked slightly, revealing just how tired she was.
"Sure, let's get you some breakfast." Lelouch carefully picked Nunnally up and set her down in her chair. When her stomach grumbled, Nunnally blushed. A chuckle escaped his lips. "I guess someone is hungrier than I thought." He joked, shifting around to push her chair towards the kitchen.
He had sent Sayoko to Kaguya a few days ago so that she could do a little negotiating on Zero's behalf with a certain someone in the Militarized Zone of India, a military dictatorship that controlled the Indian subcontinent with an iron fist. So he was currently Nunnally's only caretaker and it brought back memories for the siblings. Lelouch believed Nunnally didn't know, having said Sayoko would be gone for a little while and not shared why, he was glad that she didn't ask for his sake, but what he didn't know was that, by speaking about the mission with C.C., Nemo, and Sayoko, Nunnally had become well aware of what Lelouch was attempting.
If all went according to plan with the negotiations, hopefully Kaguya had been able to give Sayoko some valuable information on the woman she would be negotiating with, Zero would be getting a new weapon that had originally been slated for the JLF. Sayoko was scheduled to return in the next few days, but he had asked her to not contact him until she returned because he didn't want to risk any international communications being intercepted.
Ignoring the plot he had concocted as Zero, Lelouch pushed Nunnally into the kitchen and set her up a the dining table with some construction paper so she could make some cranes or other origami pieces at her leisure.
While Lelouch went into the kitchen to cook, Nemo looked at Nunnally as she remained at attention by her side. "Are you sure you should skip class today?" She asked, mildly amused at the mundane nature of her question. "Won't your friends get suspicious?"
Nunnally smiled as she felt the edges of the paper she had decided to use in her next project. 'The only friend I have in my classes is Alice, and the members of the Student Council know we usually skip on this day.' They had skipped every year on this day, taking a day to mourn for the loss of their mother and their childhoods.
Dressed in a pink button-down shirt that was so short it revealed her navel, C.C. walked into the dining room with a yawn and a stretch, revealing the underside of her breasts for anyone who cared to look. Her matching pink pants, with ruffles on the ankles, were riding low on her hips. Stretching her arms above her head, C.C. looked at the two she could see in the room. She raised an eyebrow. "Shouldn't you be in class right now?" She could hear Lelouch messing about in the kitchen and so made herself comfortable in a seat across from Nunnally.
"It's the anniversary of Mother's death, Miss C.C." Nunnally intoned softly, eliciting a sharp breath from the Grey Witch across from her. "Onii-sama and I don't usually go to school today, but thank you for your concern." Nunnally gave the immortal woman a soft smile.
'I had forgotten.' C.C. thought to herself. 'These two don't realize their mother is still among the living, in a manner of speaking.' She wondered what it would be like, if Lelouch and Nunnally knew the truth. She wasn't certain what the reaction would be, but she wasn't willing to force the issue. She didn't think the two exiled Royals could take the truth and, despite her best efforts, she found herself caring too much about them to be willing to cause them such pain.
Choosing to focus more on the wonderful chocolate chip pancakes Lelouch put in front of her, C.C. pushed the thought from her mind. Slathering her plate in syrup, she looked at Lelouch who had sat down next to Nunnally after placing her plate in front of her. "What do you plan to do today?" She asked curiously, digging into his delicious cooking.
After he guided Nunnally's hands to where her food and utensils were, Lelouch looked to C.C. "I plan to rest and spend the day with Nunnally." He didn't plan on doing anything else, considering what day it was, back in the Homeland. "You'll just have to entertain yourself unless you want to join us?" He asked, somewhat expecting a denial.
C.C. chewed her tasty breakfast for a bit before gulping it down. It wasn't as good as pizza, but damn could her accomplice cook. "Sure, as long as I'm not at risk of being discovered by the military, I don't see why I can't." She raised an eyebrow at Lelouch's incredulous look. She shrugged in response. "I don't have anything better to do today, not really." She didn't understand why he looked so surprised. Her whims were fickle, he should really have expected that, if he offered, she'd likely accept.
If only for the chance to tease him mercilessly in front of Nunnally.
After breakfast was wrapped up, a series of truly odd events happened within the confines of Lelouch and Nunnally's home.
When Nunnally asked what C.C. was wearing, Lelouch tripped on his way to the sink and dropped the dishes after he heard C.C.'s answer. C.C. lied and said she was wearing nothing because Lelouch preferred the full view she could offer him and, since he was letting her stay for free, which was actually true, she said she had no choice but to comply unless she wanted to take her chances with the Britannian military.
When she asked for proof, C.C. walked over and put Nunnally's palm on her bare stomach, prompting a response from Nunnally he didn't think C.C. expected.
Nunnally said she was feeling a little pudgy and asked if she was pregnant with Lelouch's child and pretended to get excited about becoming an Aunt. C.C.'s face developed an absolutely mortified expression Lelouch had never seen before and doubted he ever would again, as she stuttered. An honest to God, stutter escaped her lips as she denied it.
Vehemently.
Lelouch gave up the ghost and just started to laugh as he finished putting the miraculously unbroken dishes away in the dishwasher before getting in on the fun himself. "She's not pregnant Nunnally, she just eats a lot of pizza and, well." The exiled Prince shrugged, a playful grin tugging at his lips as he saw C.C. mouth don't you dare before he continued. "It's gotta go somewhere." C.C.'s death glare wasn't enough to curb his laughter as Nunnally's peals of delight reached his ears.
C.C. looked down at the little witch who had played her, feeling a mix of mortification and, for some reason beyond her comprehension, pride of all things. Nemo was on the floor, literally rolling on her sides beside Nunnally and sounds of Lelouch's genuine mirth escaped the kitchen, mixing with Nunnally's own peals of laughter. 'These two… are definitely her kids.' She thought to herself, a small grin tugging at her lips despite her best efforts.
She knew, that this hadn't been coordinated in the slightest, not like the time they had roped her into seeing a movie against her will. This was just pure spontaneity on the part of the vi Britannia siblings who had inherited Marianne's gift for driving her crazy sometimes. Unfortunately for them, she had suffered much worse embarrassment at the hands of their mother and so she wasn't going to back down without a fight.
"I'll prove to you that I am nothing less than pure perfection." She declared, grabbing Nunnally's handles and taking her into the living room. Lelouch following carefully behind them after hearing what C.C. had said. He was mildly concerned at how out of hand things could become if he left them alone together.
Things weren't always great around this day, but it was nice to see C.C. playing along with them so that Nunnally wouldn't slip into old, and all too painful, memories.
(Kyoto Settlement, Area Eleven – Conference Room – 7:07 am – October 12 – 2017 a.t.b.)
Kaguya yawned widely as she shuffled her way into her seat. She rubbed her eyes as she pouted cutely, glaring at the window with the open blinds, seeing the sun rise in the sky. "Why did you call for a meeting at this awful hour, Viceroy?" She mumbled as she plopped down in her chair and smacked her face down on the table. "It's too early to exist, why must you torture us so?" She whined plaintively as she barely managed to lift her head to stare at the purple-haired woman.
"We are members of the Numbers Administrative Council, Lady Kaguya." Tousai's aged voice sounded amused as he looked at his young ally from his seat, having arrived promptly at one minute before seven. "It is not our job to question the Viceroy, merely do our best to advise her in how our people will react to certain policies and assist her in developing peace here in Area Eleven." Suffice to say, the information given to the NAC also provided great benefits to the Six Houses of Kyoto, not that the Viceroy was aware of that.
They wouldn't have been alive to attend the meeting if she was. Cornelia was far more ruthless than Clovis in how she would deal with such "treason".
"Good answer, Mr. Munakata." Viceroy Cornelia had been pleased when she saw the head of the NAC had arrived on time. She didn't like him, but at least he knew who to respect. Kaguya on the other hand, she could use a little discipline to teach her better manners. "Ms. Sumeragi, while I can understand a young girl like you needs her beauty sleep, this meeting is important to the security of the Area and I will not have you act like a spoiled child, am I clear?" She didn't think being subtle would work very well with the teenager, so she decided to be a little heavy handed in her words. Cutting off any reply Kaguya could make was the sound of the doors opening to allow the other members to walk in. Cornelia narrowed her eyes as she observed the other three. "Why are you late, Mr. Kirihara?"
"My apologies, Viceroy." Kirihara sounded his age, unlike usual. "My old bones aren't what they used to be, they protest at being made to move so early." That was an out and out lie, but Cornelia bought it with a snort. The true head of the NAC and Six Houses smirked with a wry look in his eyes. "That, and the traffic was murder." With that, he and the other two members of the Six Houses sat at the table with the Viceroy, prepared to hear her out in their capacity as the Numbers Administrative Council.
The NAC was a system set in place amongst all of Britannia's colonial holdings to assist in the transition of power from local control to foreign rule. They were made up of influential figures prior to the establishment of the Areas, sometimes but not always made up of former government officials, and their length of service could vary. Some, like those in Area Seven, didn't last more than five years, while others like those in Area Eleven, were on track to last at least a decade if not more. The length of time the typical NAC in an Area was in existence depended on the level of stability present within the Area and the only one that could match Area Eleven in instability was the newly conquered Area Eighteen.
Once the members of the NAC were seated, Cornelia cleared her throat. "As you are no doubt aware, my late brother was rather lax in his duties when it comes to dealing with the threat of terrorism in this Area." Cornelia eyed the Honorary Britannians seated around the table, feeling secure in her knowledge that her guards, Guilford and Darlton, remained by her side. "I am nothing like Clovis in that regard. My next operation will take me into a local area that is not only heavily populated, but also a local source of research and development in new medical technologies." Cornelia paused and allowed her audience to absorb her words, even the immature Kaguya was sitting up straight as she stared at the Viceroy seriously. "I am, of course, speaking of Narita, where the JLF have chosen to make their headquarters." The Second Princess observed the reactions of the NAC, looking for any sign of discontent. "I will be using this intelligence to finally eliminate the longest standing terrorist group in Britannian history and I would like your input, honorable members of the Numbers Administrative Council, on what you believe would be the best ways to go about this without damaging the productivity that arises from Narita."
Kaguya waited to see if any of the elder members would reply before she tossed in her opinion. "Just evacuate the city and take them out if you know where they are, terrorists are not welcome in this land." She spoke coldly, surprising her allies, not that they showed it, but impressing Cornelia with her apparent ruthless disregard for the Japan Liberation Front. "If you evacuate the city, then the citizens will feel as if you are protecting them and when you invade wherever the JLF have locked themselves away it would help to avoid having to deal with high numbers of civilian casualties." With that, Kaguya crossed her arms and leaned back into her seat with a sigh. She closed her eyes and tuned out the rest of the meeting, wondering how she could use this knowledge to help her beloved husband.
Master Zero would need to know about Cornelia's plans as soon as possible and hopefully his servant, Sayoko if Kaguya recalled correctly, would return to Japan with the weapon soon. There was no way she was allowing the JLF to get their hands on her husband's weapon.
The Guren Mk-II belonged to Master Zero and his Black Knights as far as she was concerned.
(Tokyo Settlement, Area Eleven – Ashford Academy Courtyard – 3:37 pm – October 12 – 2017 a.t.b.)
Lelouch was sitting next to Nunnally under a tree in the Academy courtyard with a book in his lap and his sister leaning on his side as she sat beside him, out of her wheelchair. She had fallen asleep at some point, but he still read aloud for her so she could dream of her favorite story as he narrated it for her.
"Oh, you can't help that, said the cat, we're all mad here." Lelouch read aloud, with a small smile. "I'm mad, you're mad." Nunnally shifted slightly on his shoulder and he adjusted to make sure she didn't fall over. Laying his head over hers, he prepared to continue to read, but before he could he was interrupted.
"Is that an admission?" Suzaku asked as he walked up to the pair sitting beneath the tree. "I'd hate to have to take you to an asylum Lelouch." He snickered at the look his friend shot him before sitting beside Nunnally and making himself comfortable beside his two closest friends. "It's been years since I've heard you read that story to her." Suzaku whispered, mindful of Nunnally sleeping. He ignored the cherry red autumn leaves as they stuck to his clothes, either after falling from the tree or after he sat down on the ground.
Suzaku was dressed in a gold tank top covered by a white jacket that was only partially zipped with the sleeves rolled up. His grey-ish tan pants that were rolled up to his knees and muddy boots signified that he had just arrived from training in order to pick up the homework he had missed today since he had to skip classes.
Lelouch didn't answer Suzaku as he himself began to doze off, resting his head comfortably in his sister's hair. He was dressed in long-sleeved, black button-down shirt with top button or two undone and his collar turned outward and a pair of blue jeans, the book he had been reading to Nunnally lay open in his lap with his left hand holding a page while his right draped over his stomach to hold one of Nunnally's hands.
Nunnally grabbed one of Suzaku's hands in her sleep, and the young man smiled as he curled his fingers around her hand softly. Nunnally was wearing a pink dress outlined in white frills, a neat little black knot tied just beneath her small breasts, and a long-sleeved, small coat of the same colors to protect her from the autumn chill. Her feet were bare, as was her typical preference, so she could feel the leaves along with the earth and grass between her toes.
"Oh, this is just too precious!" Milly squealed as quietly as she could as she walked by the trio, before she whipped out her phone. "Suzaku." Milly whispered, with a finger over her lips to shush her friend. When the boy looked her way, she began snapping pictures as quickly as she could, determined to make this into some kind of poster after finding the best picture she ended up taking. His sheepish smile was adorable, but she wanted some with just the two siblings. Waving her hand to shoo Suzaku away, Milly began snapping more photos as snow slowly began to fall from the sky and frame Lelouch and Nunnally beautifully.
By the time she was positive she got a good enough shot, a light dusting of snow covered the siblings and Nunnally began to shiver, curling into her brother to sap some of his warmth before she awoke with a sneeze. "Huh, snow?" She mumbled, waking Lelouch up by accident.
"Nunnally?" Lelouch woke up when he heard a sneeze right next to him. He blinked the dusting of snow that had accumulated on his eyelids and noticed Milly and Suzaku standing in front of him with twin looks of mischief on their faces. He felt a mild sense of dread, knowing nothing good ever came of that look when it was on Milly's face.
"Oh, you two are just so cute!" Milly squealed once the siblings woke up, her joy palpable. "I'm going to go blow this up and hang it right on the wall of the Student Council Room." Milly announced with glee as she sped off to the Art Club, the group on campus with the best color printer available to students.
Lelouch's sense of doom increased proportionally to his inability to hear Milly's maniacal giggling as it began to fade.
"What was she talking about?" Lelouch asked the question both he and Nunnally had as he looked at Suzaku with fear in his eyes.
"Milly took a bunch of pictures of the two of you as you took your little cat naps, she got some of me as well, but I think you two just might have made her month." Suzaku answered, enjoying the look of pitiful despair on Lelouch's face.
"And you didn't stop her, why?" Lelouch asked dryly, glaring at his friend with half-lidded eyes as he turned his collar to the cold and damp before picking up Nunnally so he could take her home so she wouldn't get sick.
"Hey, I'm trained to take on terrorists, not Milly Ashford." Suzaku answered with a laugh as he went to see his teachers to collect his homework while his two friends went home.
It was a good day today, even if he had ended up getting worn out by his Lancelot training simulation. Six hours of nonstop combat training. If he didn't think he would get full agreement from his boss he would have said Lloyd was completely insane.
Suzaku didn't want Lloyd confirming his suspicions regarding his sanity. There were some things that he was just better off not knowing.
Looking up at the sky, Suzaku smiled as he overheard Lelouch and Nunnally talking as they rushed home to get out of the snow. "Guess winter is coming earlier than I thought." He murmured to himself, before he zipped up his jacket and rushed inside to get his papers.
His attendance was waived due to his military obligations, but he still had to make up whatever homework he missed.
Suzaku didn't want to disappoint Euphie by getting kicked out because of poor grades.
As he walked inside the school building, he grunted and took a few steps back before blinking. "Alice?" Suzaku said, rubbing his stomach where Alice's head had collided with him. "Why're you in such a rush?" The fifteen-year-old was running out the door and crashed into Suzaku rather harshly, and her eyes were flickering about as she grabbed his hand before dragging him off. "Alice, hey, wait!" Suzaku tried to yank his hand out of Alice's surprisingly strong grip, but failed. "Where are we going? I have to get my homework." He panted as he got his feet beneath him well enough to avoid tripping as Alice dragged him somewhere surprisingly quickly.
"No time, you can get it later." Alice replied, taking a sharp left and almost taking Suzaku's arm out of his socket. "I just got a call from one of the Viceroy's Royal Guards, we're to be deployed to Narita ASAP. Both Camelot and the Irregulars are going to be given a crash course in mountain warfare." Alice stopped as a car skidded to a halt in front of them. When the door opened, Suzaku saw Dalque giving him a wide grin that made him feel like she was a wolf and he a rabbit as she held the side door open.
"Welcome Newbie, to accelerated boot camp. I'm your fellow student and all around extraordinary gal, Dalque." The Irregular with a penchant for nicknaming joked as Alice almost threw Suzaku into the back of the van. "We're gonna be suffering together so I hope we can be good friends." Dalque's grin was upside down as Suzaku had landed on his neck against the other door and as soon as Alice climbed in, the mischievous girl slammed the door shut with a finality that eerily reminded Suzaku of a guillotine.
For some reason, he had a feeling Narita was going to go to hell in a handbasket rather quickly.
A few hours later, Lelouch and Nunnally were snuggled together under a blanket in the living room of their home. Both of them were holding a small mug of hot chocolate, made by C.C. in a fit of kindness once she saw them come inside covered in snow, while they enjoyed a nice movie together. C.C. had decided against it, saying she had done her good deed for the day, and gone to Lelouch's room to leave them alone.
As Nunnally's breathing evened out while the credits began to roll, Lelouch took her empty cup and his own into the kitchen to put them in the sink. After rinsing them a little he quickly returned to Nunnally and picked her up carefully, her body was shivering slightly as he removed her from the comforts of the blanket. Lelouch gave her a soft smile as he carried his little sister to her room, the peaceful look on her face contrasting with the fear he had seen earlier that morning.
After tucking Nunnally in, Lelouch made his way back to his room with purpose. Today had been a day of rest and relaxation for Nunnally's sake, but now it was time for him to act as Zero. Opening his door, he caught sight of C.C. as she was removing a bathrobe as she changed her clothes with Nemo sitting at the foot of his bed with a slight blush across her cheeks. "Did I miss something?" Nemo's face had never been so much as flushed before, not even after a tense mission to kill members of the Refrain cartels. Her composure was almost always perfect, even under fire. Whatever had happened before he walked in, well, he was willing to bet it had something to do with something C.C. said to her.
"Nothing important." C.C. replied with a smirk as Nemo's blush intensified at the sight of Lelouch. "Just a little girl talk." The immortal was too pleased with herself for Lelouch's taste, but he decided to ignore whatever byplay had occurred without his presence.
Sometimes it was better that way.
Lelouch sat down at his desk and leaned back in his chair with his arms crossed behind his head, contemplating what he needed to do first. His options were limited until he knew when Cornelia would strike next, but– "Hm?" Lelouch found his musings cut off as his phone, the phone he used as Zero, began to ring. Flipping it open, he pressed it to his ear and motioned for C.C. and Nemo to remain quiet. "Who is this?" He asked, seeking confirmation from the other end before saying anything.
"Kay dash Oh dash Bee Zero One." Kaname Ohgi's broken English sounded over the phone line carefully. "Bishop speaking to Kay dash One." Satisfied by the response, Lelouch allowed a smirk to grace his face.
"What is it Ohgi? I told you that operations were to cease for now since we cleared out the dens that were within our area of activity." It was impossible to purge Refrain from Area Eleven until he had influence over more than just the fragmented areas of Honshu around the Tokyo Settlement, but he had managed to successfully purge said fragmented regions of all known Refrain dens.
It wasn't too difficult since his Black Knights currently numbered roughly five thousand soldiers strong, roughly four thousand combat personnel and roughly one thousand support personnel in the form of medical specialists, occasional spies, and other volunteers. They had grown after he had absorbed the groups that had survived Cornelia's methodical purge and fled to him, those that joined him outright and managed to avoid her purge almost entirely by joining, as well as the new volunteers who hadn't been part of other groups. But it still wasn't enough because if he started moving beyond what territory he had the numbers to hold he risked overextending.
Currently Honshu was split between the Black Knights and the JLF, whose influence also extended to Hokkaido, Kyushu, and Shikoku, with a few minor groups scuffling about trying to remain independent after Cornelia's purges had begun. And while the JLF's influence was far greater than the Black Knights currently, despite their status as the second largest group in Honshu, once the JLF collapsed things would change and the Black Knights would reign supreme.
If things went according to his plans at least.
"The shipment from the Militarized Zone of India has arrived." Ohgi paused for a moment. "Will you be coming down to inspect it, Zero?" Ohgi asked quietly, wondering if he would need to prepare for another meeting with the intimidating masked man.
Lelouch turned and caught sight of Nemo giving him a thumbs up, letting him know there was no issue in the near future he needed to be concerned about and brought his hand up to rest on his cheek. "I should be down within the hour if not two." With that, he clicked his phone shut and moved to reach under his bed. With a near silent grunt Lelouch pulled out the briefcase and rose up to his feet. "I'm going to change into my armor, if either of you want to come, just say so." Looking at C.C. as the woman laid back on his bed and Nemo who was sitting at the foot of it, he awaited their reply.
"I'm too tired." Nemo yawned as she answered him. "Those earlier raids really took a lot out of me." It was true, Nunnally was currently sleeping like the dead in part due to their shared exhaustion. Nemo was the only mind active in her body right now so the Mark Nemo was off limits to her, though nothing she had seen indicated it would be needed it was still better for her to catch up on her rest and not needlessly wear herself out by traveling late at night.
Lelouch did that enough for all three of them.
"Is there pizza in it for me?" C.C. asked dryly, looking at Lelouch as he began to change. Nemo's blush was adorable as she watched the young man strip down to his boxers before pulling on the armor.
Lelouch turned his head to give her a dead stare over his high collar before he replied. "No cheese crust or toppings." He began the bargaining.
"Three toppings, cheese stuffed crust, and soda." C.C. riposted, sitting up and placing her hands on her knees as she leaned forward. "I'll even share two slices with you." That was her being generous, she never shared.
"One topping, cheese crust, or no deal." Lelouch put his foot down as he turned and looked at Sayoko as she entered his room, here to report on her mission. It looked like he would have to get her report on the move, but first he waited for C.C.'s response.
Before Lelouch left the room with his maid/assassin, C.C. huffed as she crossed her arms beneath her bust, her loose fitting pajamas and lack of bra rather apparent. As she intended. "Fine, no deal." She really wanted that little cheese mascot and she needed one more purchase before she could get it, but she didn't want to have her last purchase be something so small.
Pausing before he left, Lelouch held his helmet against his hip as he watched Nemo vanish in a blink and C.C. just stare at him with a pout while Sayoko waited silently behind him. Closing his eyes, he sighed. "Three toppings, cheese crust, soda of your choice, and you can have the whole pizza." He offered, but he held up his index finger to forestall her answer. "For the next mission, you go no higher, do we have a deal?" He opened his eyes to see C.C. giving him a small smirk of victory.
"Deal." The pizza deal she had just gotten out of Lelouch would taste even more delicious once she finally got her hands on a limited-edition Cheese-kun plushie. While she didn't like not being able to negotiate in the future at least she secured herself a decent pizza.
Zero put on his helmet and left the room, leaving her to her own devices as she waited for the next mission so she could exact her price from her dear accomplice.
'I wonder, what kind of toppings should I get?' C.C. thought to herself as she crawled into Lelouch's bed and dreamed of pizza.
Her options were limited so she'd have to choose carefully.
(Kanagawa Ghetto, Area Eleven – Yokohama Port – Black Knights Warehouse – 11:11 pm – October 12 – 2017 a.t.b.)
After the raid the previous night, Yokohama Port was under the full control of the Black Knights, providing a perfect landing area for the shipment from their foreign ally. It had taken roughly a half hour for Zero to arrive after Ohgi's call, but he was not disappointed as he found himself staring up at a red Knightmare that stood in contrast to the other darker Frames in the warehouse. A snowstorm was howling outside and the warehouse was without heat, but his armor kept him warm and the Black Knights he had put in charge of the port had dressed themselves in thicker clothing than their typical uniforms.
He would need to make some adjustments so the Black Knights wouldn't have to deal with sickness spreading through the ranks.
"Kyoto really gave this to us? To Zero?" Kallen's voice sounded from in front of the Knightmare and Zero walked out from its shadow to correct her assumption.
"Actually, my dear Ace, it's for you." The masked man tossed the redhead a key that had been handed to him by one of his soldiers after they directed him to the high priority cargo. "The Guren Mk-II, the Black Knights' own Seventh Generation Knightmare Frame, belongs to you." Kallen's face lit up with a blush of pride as he continued. "You are the best pilot out of the thousands we have, I could think of no one better to utilize our best weapon in battle."
"But, Sir." Kallen stammered, staring up at him with a blush. "Shouldn't you pilot the Guren if it's our best weapon?"
Zero chuckled, his cloak waving slightly as a gust blew through and he waved off Kallen's concerns. "I am the commander, the King Piece, I should not be wielding the strongest weapon." He held out his hand as if to cup the air. "That honor, my dear, belongs to the Queen." Kallen's blush could have lit the warehouse up on its own, but he was prevented from teasing her further by Ohgi's presence.
"Zero, Sir, please stop teasing her." Ohgi's voice sounded exasperated as he looked at Kallen's embarrassed face. "I promised her brother I would protect her, but if you make her die of embarrassment he'd kill me once I entered the afterlife." It was interesting to see, this oddly human side to his masked leader. Watching Zero mess with Kallen like that, for some reason it made Ohgi feel like the man behind the mask really was a man instead of a force of nature given form.
Zero directed his attention to what Ohgi was carrying, sparing only a second's thoughts to his words. "Did you have something for me, Ohgi?" Zero was curious at the letter the man was holding. Perhaps a missive from the one who built the Guren?
"It's a love letter Sir." Ohgi joked, feeling comfortable enough to be casual as he handed the letter over.
"From you?" Zero quipped as he accepted the letter and opened it. 'Huh, looks like he might've been more accurate than he thought.' He could recognize Kaguya's handwriting easily enough and the lip shaped marking of lipstick at the end pretty much sealed it. His darling "wife", as she liked to call herself, had just given him the opening he needed to ensure his army became the largest fighting force in Honshu if not the entirety of the Japanese Isles.
"From Kyoto, Sir." Ohgi grew more serious. "Their messenger was a man who disappeared almost immediately after dropping this off." He had vanished rather quickly after handing off the letter, telling the guards who received it to transmit it up the chain of command to Zero. Then there was the other thing. "We also got another piece of intel from a Britannian seeking to join us." Ohgi reached into his jacket and pulled out the folder that held the info, handing it over to his masked leader who was reading the letter absently while nodding along to his words.
"Interesting." Zero's attention was split between Ohgi's words and the information in the letter he was holding. As he skimmed over the folder Ohgi gave him it appeared that Diethard had proven his worth, choosing to alert Zero about movement within Cornelia's forces. To Narita. "It looks like we'll be going hiking on Saturday, have all of our Sutherlands that we have rechristened as our own and the Burai Kyoto have delivered to us prepared to be shipped. And have our forces be prepared to move out in the early morning once the weekend begins." The information provided by both Kaguya and Diethard was enough for him to take this seriously, and it was exactly the kind of opportunity he had been looking for to replace the JLF.
"A-All of them, Sir?" Ohgi gaped at the command, wondering just what kind of information was in those papers to prompt this decision from Zero. The Sutherlands that remained from the Shinjuku and Saitama incidents had been repainted and emblazoned with the Black Knights' emblem, but they were still fully functional Fifth Generation Knightmares, so it would be risky to lose them in battle since they would be difficult to replace.
"Yes, Ohgi. All of them, the Black Knights will be moving out Saturday morning." Considering the information Zero had, he no longer saw any need to keep the Sutherlands off of the battlefield to conserve resources. "In two days', on the morning of Saturday the Fourteenth, the Black Knights head for Narita." On that day, Cornelia's forces would invade, and the JLF would fall.
He could begin expanding his territory aggressively with Kyoto's blessing once the JLF fell at Narita, but he needed to ensure his forces were part of that decisive battle or he would have no standing to replace the JLF after their collapse. If his Black Knights didn't emerge from the battle as the clear replacement to those relics, petty squabbling and infighting would begin amongst the remaining forces vying for Kyoto's support.
On the other hand, if the Black Knights did emerge as the clear successors, then there would be no question to who Kyoto's support would go to which would mean the other groups would begin folding into the Black Knights like dominoes or die by Cornelia's blade.
Zero didn't care which, but if he was victorious at Narita in two days' time, then the Black Knights would grow exponentially in size and influence. And that opportunity was impossible to pass up.
(Tokyo Settlement, Area Eleven – Ashford Academy Underground Base – 12:07 pm – October 13 – 2017 a.t.b.)
"I'm curious, why do you not seem to care that I have become a terrorist?" Lelouch asked as he leaned back in a chair staring at the Ganymede while Ruben did a little work on his armor. Tomorrow he would be in probably the most decisive battle of his revolution yet so he thought it would be a good idea to get it checked out by his guardian and ally. Since it was lunch time it wouldn't be suspicious for him to be gone as most of those who cared would assume he was having lunch with Nunnally back home.
Ruben didn't look up from the armor he was examining on a small table near his supercomputer. "I've kept a number of your secrets, why is this any different to you?" 'Interesting, it seems that there was no Mini Filler inside the armor this entire time, that must mean it was fully charged before it activated.' Ruben chuckled as this realization. 'That must mean it's remained ready for use for over seven years, Sakuradite is truly amazing.'
The material's long-lasting features were truly unparalleled and were likely a major reason the world had advanced as far as it had, regardless of the nation that used the unique material.
"Being a Prince in exile who is supposedly dead is very distinct from being a terrorist, Ruben." Lelouch commented wryly, his eyes flickering over to the man as the inventor snickered over something. "No matter how many speeches I give about justice, what I am doing is still terrorism. Why are you so willing to accept that?" Lelouch had found himself curious at Ruben's motives, especially as the man had apparently been gathering information on his behalf in the event of his death to assist him in his war in the future.
It was truly odd, Lelouch had seen no hint at how much Ruben was willing to work against Britannia until the man himself had revealed his willingness to break into the military's information network to secure the schematics of Knightmare Frames and other future pieces of information that might be useful in going against the Empire.
"Because I know that Britannia is wrong." Ruben looked over his shoulder as he allowed the armor to rest on the table. "I know how much you hate our nation, and while I hate it less than you I'm sure, I still hate it. I know that if anyone can change it, whether by destroying it outright or presenting a threat so large it will force internal reforms, it's you. There is no one else I can think of who has more of a right to destroy Britannia than a Britannian Prince who was betrayed by his nation." Ruben stepped over to his computer and unplugged Zero's helmet as his scan of the device finished.
Lelouch laughed long and hard at Ruben's comment, his dark amusement apparent as the man who protected him revealed his darkest feelings towards the Homeland. "Ah, how intriguing." Lelouch chuckled as he got his laughter under control. "And here I thought you were just a mad inventor trying to run a school for your own amusement. I truly underestimated just how much there was to you Ruben." Lelouch tilted his head towards his guardian wryly. "I won't make the same mistake again."
"Thank you for the compliment milord." Ruben nodded his head, too engrossed in his examination of the connection between the armor and helmet to respond any further than that. "Your armor is unbelievable, I have no idea who crafted it, but it is genuinely sad that they passed before their time." This material, its indestructibility and the capabilities of the D.O.M. Hostia system were revolutionary for this day and age, seven years ago they would have sparked an arms race of enormous proportions if the knowledge of this armor's existence had been made public back then. "I would have loved to tinker with them in the lab until the stars fell from the sky." Ruben's rueful chuckle echoed in the deep basement beneath his academy. "They crafted a masterpiece." He whispered with reverence.
"If you're done speaking in such vague language, why don't you tell me what you found out?" Lelouch asked as he stood up from his seat and walked over to stare at the screen beside Ruben. "What has you in such an interesting mood, Ruben?"
Ruben pointed to a system of odd lines that circulated throughout the armor, or rather the schematics he had scanned into his computer. "This armor has its own little circulatory system, that's why it's able to increase your strength and here." Ruben shifted the image on the screen until they were looking at the back of the armor, without the cloak. He moved the cursor to a piece of armor on the back, a small square hole was in place in the center of the back of the armor. "This is where those odd Mini Fillers are supposed to go, but this armor hasn't been using that, the reason why is I suspect that whoever had this last fed Sakuradite directly into the pseudo-circulatory system directly, bypassing the need for the Mini Filler's functions as a battery." Left unsaid was the fact that the armor's output was less efficient without the Mini Filler controlling just how much of the Sakuradite in the system was used.
It was much like a Knightmare, without the Energy Filler controlling energy output to ensure optimal efficiency as well as serve as a fuel source the Knightmare wouldn't be able to serve in active combat for any more than a half an hour at best. Energy Fillers served as both fuel sources and regulators, it wasn't surprising that the Mini Fillers would do the same for the armor. And since there was no Mini Filler, as Ruben had called those small Energy Fillers he had taken with him from Shinjuku, in the armor it wasn't operating at maximum efficiency.
'Perhaps that's why it burned me.' Lelouch thought to himself, his right arm twinging slightly at the uncomfortable memory. "So, how should we go about implanting one of those Mini Fillers into the armor?" There was no way in hell he'd be going to Narita at anything less than maximum efficiency. This battle would decide whether his fighting force actually had a chance or if they would just fall. He needed to be at his best and that meant all of his equipment would need to be completely perfect.
Ruben frowned at the statement. "It shouldn't be too hard to implant, but as we have a limited supply you need to be careful to avoid using them up until I can craft some new ones." To do that Ruben would need at least one of the Mini Fillers to work off of in order to replicate them, especially if he wanted them to be compatible with the armor's systems.
"I doubt I'll need more than one for the foreseeable future." Lelouch waved off Ruben's concern. "Feel free to study them at your leisure as you attempt to replicate them. I have no doubt you will succeed." Lelouch turned to head up to grab some lunch. "Please alert me once you have finished the implantation, and take one of the Mini Fillers for your own personal study purposes." Lelouch turned to stare at his guardian with an enigmatic smile. "I have faith in your skills." With that, he made his way into the elevator and left the man alone to play in his lab.
Lelouch quickly found himself out in the courtyard as he quickly walked over to his home so he could enjoy some lunch with his sister, hopefully without C.C.'s caustic commentary, but once he was just outside his home… "Shirley, are you alright?" The orange-haired girl was panting as she stood in front of him, one hand out to forestall his actions, preventing him from entering the clubhouse porch.
"Lulu! Do you have any idea how hard you are to find?" Shirley pouted before she started to fidget in place. She reached into her purse and pulled out two tickets. "Even so, I would like to take you with me to the opera." Shirley's face lit up with a blush as she held out the tickets for him to take. "My dad works far away from the Settlement, but he always sends me stuff like this to let me know he's thinking of me. I was hoping I could take you since my mom's feeling kind of sick and would rather not go out on Sunday."
Lelouch plucked the tickets from Shirley's hand, staring at them in slight surprise. 'Is she… asking me on a date?' He blinked. Well, he didn't have any plans on Sunday, Black Knights or otherwise. "Um… sure. I guess it could be fun." He murmured and Shirley's grin would have lit the entire campus up were it not such a sunny day. With a cry of "It's a date then!" Shirley ran off, leaving Lelouch holding the tickets. Finding the situation odd, but not distasteful, he made his way into his home with a sense of confusion.
Before he knew it, he was in his room and found C.C. leaning against his window with an amused grin on her face. "What?" Lelouch narrowed his eyes at C.C.
Her expression was too wolfish and he felt mildly concerned.
"Who was that girl?" C.C.'s grin widened as she watched her accomplice's face become ever so slightly red. "Should I be worrying about my dear contractor being led astray by a beautiful young girl?" C.C. teased, enjoying Lelouch's heated glare.
"That girl." Lelouch said after long suffering sigh. "That girl is Shirley Fenette, she's a friend and member of the Student Council." He stared at the pair of tickets in his hand. "Though I had no idea she liked me." He wondered how come Shirley felt that way about him.
C.C.'s smile vanished at the name as she blinked. 'Fenette, why does that name sound familiar?' C.C. ignored Lelouch as he tossed the tickets onto his desk and left to have lunch with Nunnally, lost in thought as she tried to recall why that name seemed like something she should know.
"My son has a date!" Marianne's excited squeal pierced C.C.'s mind sharply. "Oh, I wish I could tease that poor girl so much right now." The deceased Empress snickered while C.C. turned to look out the window and observe the campus as it was bathed in light.
"I doubt the girl would survive your teasing." C.C. deadpanned, blinking in mild surprise when she saw Marianne's spirit form next to her. "Are you nearby? You've never manifested outside of my mind like this." C.C.'s question prompted the spirit beside her to look down and giggle.
"Hm, perhaps it's because Anya's asleep right now." Marianne guessed that not having to deal with another consciousness when trying to contact C.C. would allow her to manifest more fully than usual. Twirling with a laugh, she asked her friend an important question. "How do I look?" The Empress' spirit was clothed in the same dress she had been murdered in, but it lacked the bloodstains and holes that damaged the original far beyond repair.
"You look like a corpse." C.C. declared dryly, staring at her friend as she pouted at C.C.'s typical blunt statement.
"Now that's not very nice." Marianne wagged a finger at the immortal.
"I'm not nice." C.C. retorted, glaring a hole in Marianne's spiritual form. "And you're not the saint your children think you are."
Their conversation just went further downhill from there, though C.C. couldn't stop her lips from twitching at the old routine she and Marianne fell into, trading barbs with a practiced ease.
C.C. had missed such conversations with Marianne, they brought back memories of when they had first made their contract.
Of a time before V.V.'s betrayal.
(Narita Settlement, Area Eleven – Mt. Narita – Code R Facility – 6:16 am – October 14 – 2017 a.t.b.)
A young girl with an eyepatch over her left eye dressed in a small hospital gown screamed incoherently as she was strapped down to a gurney. Her visible eye was closed and she was sweating terribly as she continued to cry out in pain in spite of the straps holding her down. Her body was frantically trying to escape, her fists clenching and unclenching as she attempted to exert her strength to force herself free. Veins occasionally bulged, becoming visible through the girl's skin, before returning to normal, and the doctor who was gently cleaning the sweat from her forehead with a cool cloth knew that such reactions would continue.
The kind doctor sighed sadly, wishing he could do more to help the poor girl. Perhaps even free her, but he knew that he was the only one who felt that way and if it was discovered the test subject, the very thought of that term made him want to vomit in disgust, had disappeared his family wouldn't survive the week.
"How is subject Refrain doing?" The curt voice of the man who dragged him into this evil project sounded behind him.
'She has a name.' He growled quietly before replying. "The subject." He bit the inside of his cheek to prevent himself from spitting at the man behind him. "Will survive long enough to transport, but only if I can treat her now." He stared over his shoulder, his brown eye flaring with barely repressed rage. "So, leave me in peace if you still want her blood to help you refine that precious drug of yours." It was too early in the morning for him to want to deal with the project director's bullshit.
"Be careful, Doctor." The voice of General Bartley's assistant, an old friend from his days in medical school, warned snidely. "Wouldn't want you to get lost in memories now would we?" The man who had dragged him into this with the promise of enough money for his family to live comfortably for their entire lives, conveniently ignoring the numerous human rights violations that the job would require, left him alone with his charge. But not without one final comment. "This girl has the cells of that witch after all, and you know how many of us that immortal bitch killed during her attempts to escape."
"I know." He had conducted the autopsies himself, concluding with genuine shock that they had died from heart attacks induced by fear. Gently brushing the hair out of the distressed girl's eye, he frowned. "I know, all too well." He whispered softly, hoping that God would forgive him for everything he had done.
The containers that once held the Irregulars, that odd Doll, and the immortal who had cursed them with her cells were empty as they were stored around the room, but he could still recall the screams of those poor girls and he could still remember the death rattle of all those who had died on his bed because they weren't compatible enough with the witch's cells. He hoped that the young girl he was caring for right now wouldn't end up back in one of those containers when she was transported, but he had no faith in his fellows' sense of decency.
He had done all he could to ensure that the subjects were as comfortable as he could before and after the experiments that were done on them even if they wouldn't survive, as it was his duty as a Doctor to alleviate their pain any way he could. But he couldn't do the one thing he wanted to do most of all once he found out about the monstrosities of Code R.
All Joseph Fenette wanted was for those who had been subjected to this terrible project to be set free, both from their imprisonment and their curses.
(Narita Settlement, Area Eleven – Top of Mt. Narita – 11:03 – October 14 – 2017 a.t.b.)
Zero was rather far from his soldiers as he entered a cabin with Sayoko by his side, but it was necessary if he was going to clear his army's campsite. A snort of disgust at the complacency of the JLF soldiers he found playing a game of Go escaped him before he gestured at them, not looking at Sayoko. "Kill them both." In an instant, the two guards were on their feet, but in that time, Sayoko had managed to stick a knife in one's throat and slice the wrist of the other so deep that he was forced to drop his gun. Before he could even let out a scream, he found Sayoko's palm over his mouth and the last thing he felt before he joined his friend was cold steel as it tore its way across his throat.
Zero shut the door as soon as Sayoko moved and admired his pet assassin's handiwork with a grin behind his mask. "Good job, Sayoko." He'd asked Nemo in private whether it would be worth it to attempt to take control of the JLF by describing just how outmatched they were by the forces Cornelia would be leading to Narita, and she mentioned there was so little a chance of swaying the JLF to his side while its leaders remained alive that there was no point in even trying. That, combined with the information Kaguya had given him in the past about what kind of individuals were in charge of the JLF, had led him to his current course of action.
Ensuring the deaths of all scouts and guards around the main camp of the Black Knights on this damned mountain.
"Clean up the mess, I'm going to get some air." Lelouch ordered his assassin turned maid as he left the cottage. "Bury their bodies if you like, I won't begrudge you ensuring your countrymen rest in peace Sayoko." With that, he shut the door and started to wander around the back of the small cottage so he could study without the scent of blood clogging his nose. He stopped on the edge of one of the small hills, staring down at the sight before him.
He hadn't expected C.C. to follow him, but he guessed that she wanted to get that deluxe pizza sooner than he had expected.
C.C. was standing on the cliff's edge, her hair blowing softly in the wind as snow swirled around her. The weather was getting much colder as autumn slowly began to transition into winter, but that didn't seem to bother C.C. as she remained dressed in the prisoner's uniform. Framed by the snow and wind, Lelouch couldn't help but think C.C. looked beautiful.
He removed his mask as he sat himself down to enjoy her ethereal appearance, feeling reminded of the first time he had seen her when she burst out of that capsule. He ignored the soft snow as it fell on his cheeks as he watched C.C. stare off into the distance.
"I've been wondering something, Lelouch." C.C. spoke softly, knowing they were far enough from the camp that his identity was not at risk. "Why are you Lelouch?" Her question was an odd one, but odd was what he had come to expect from his Grey Witch.
"Why the sudden interest in my identity?" Lelouch asked, curious about this philosophical bent to C.C.'s thoughts.
"You changed your surname to Lamperouge, but you kept your given name. Why?" C.C.'s question was… not what Lelouch had expected.
"Lamperouge is merely an alias I invented to protect Nunnally and myself." Lelouch answered, hoping, but not expecting, that it would satisfy his accomplice.
"Yet you retain your given name." C.C. replied, clearly unsatisfied with his response. "You can't let go of the past, sentimentality could get you killed." And that… well that was unacceptable to her.
"And C.C.'s not exactly a human name, now is it." Lelouch retorted, staring at C.C. as wind blew through her hair, the snow atop the mountain being carried by the gust. "Unless you wish to reveal your true name to me?" He still hadn't forgotten that she had told him he could call her C.C. beneath Shinjuku. She had never said that was her name.
The immortal turned to stare at him, snow melting down her cheeks. "Lelouch, do you know why snow is white?" She asked as Lelouch felt his eyes widen when he realized it wasn't snow tracking its way down her cheeks. Lelouch remained silent, waiting for C.C. to answer her own question. "Snow is white because it's forgotten what color it's supposed to be." Her smile was hollow as she stared up at him and he finally recognized the emotion she held in her eyes when she had first said his name in that Knightmare so long ago.
Emptiness. The curse of having to conceal her true self for so long had left C.C. feeling as though she didn't know what her real self was anymore.
"C.C." Lelouch murmured the name she gave him all that time ago softly.
"Milord, it's time." Sayoko's tone was respectful and quiet, but it drew Lelouch's attention away from C.C. for now.
Despite his desire to speak further with his witch, Lelouch was forced to transition back into Zero as he put his helmet back on once he heard Sayoko. Without a word, he turned around and his cloak flared in the swirling wind as he made his way back to his Knights.
He could converse with C.C. some other time, right now his soldiers needed him.
While Zero was eliminating the scouts and speaking with C.C. about conceptual identity, Nunnally was trying to warm herself up by rubbing her arms as she walked throughout the camp. As she tried and failed to prevent herself from sneezing, she sniffled. Groaning in slight pain as she caught sight of Kallen, the White Witch headed over to the redhead, making sure to approach as unthreateningly as possible in case she was armed. "What're you reading?" Her voice was a bit stuffy and she thought she might be coming down with a cold, but there was no way she was going to miss this battle. Her Onii-sama needed her on the battlefield and the battlefield was where she would be.
Kallen jumped in slight fear as Nemo's voice came from behind her unexpectedly. She almost dropped the manual she was reading as she turned and caught sight of the girl. "Nemo, what's going on?" There was no need not to be cordial with the girl, even if Kallen was jealous of the closeness she had with Zero.
The evacuation of the city had left Kallen mildly nervous as she had never seen a large city like the one at the base of the Narita mountains look so empty before. It had taken hours for the thousands of soldiers that made up the Black Knights main fighting force to settle at the top of the mountain where Cornelia's forces would be waging war on the JLF and the redheaded Ace was exhausted as she sat herself down at the foot of her Guren to rest and began reading the manual.
She still had a hard time believing that this amazing Frame was hers and hers alone. Kallen would have thought that such a thing would belong to her masked leader, but his argument that the best pilot should control the best Frame had left her red faced and pleased with his praise.
"I'm just curious about what you're reading." Nunnally scrunched her nose and managed to hold back a sneeze. "Also, your part in this battle will be very important, I want to make sure you're focused." From what she had seen, it was Kallen's Knightmare that would be integral if the Black Knights were to reign victorious today, but she and Nemo refused to leave it to chance.
As Nemo had once said, the future is never static and Nunnally would die before she allowed her Onii-sama to lose his life on the battlefield.
"You don't have to worry about that, I've done enough of that myself." Kallen said dryly, holding up the manual so Nemo could see the cover. "This is the Guren's manual, it's the most advanced Knightmare I've ever piloted so I'm a little nervous about all of this." While some of the controls were similar to her old Glasgow and the Burai she had used during the Refrain raids, there was so much more to the Guren than she first thought. Kallen wanted to be as familiar with it as possible before she used it.
Nunnally nodded in understanding as she allowed Kallen to continue talking, not really listening as she considered how oddly fortunate she was to have a Knightmare like the Mark Nemo.
That Knightmare was essentially an extension of her own body with how easily controlling it came to her. The only trick was to ensure she didn't summon it around anyone who could see it that didn't already know her capabilities. Nunnally didn't want to be responsible for revealing the existence of the supernatural. "Hm, what?" Kallen had asked her something, but she missed it. "Sorry, I was spacing out for a second." No need to let Kallen know that her worries meant little to her.
Despite the mask the redhead kept up as a Student Council Member, Nunnally counted her as a friend.
"I asked why you are so close to Zero." Kallen's face was slightly red as she looked away, embarrassed. "He says I'm his Ace, his Queen Piece." Kallen still blushed at that thought, imagining what it would be like to actually be Zero's Queen. "But you and his Shadow, and even that odd girl from Kawaguchi, you're all so much closer to him than I am. I was wondering why?" Kallen wanted to get closer to Zero, she didn't want to fall behind the others he was already close to.
Nunnally twitched slightly at Kallen's blush. 'Oh, come on! Onii-sama, why do you have to be so damn charming?!' Kallen's fixation on Zero was as clear as day to her, but… she supposed her beloved brother could do worse than this woman. Besides, it would be helpful if Kallen was truly in love with her brother. It would make her more likely to be willing to give her life to defend him after all. The only question was how to respond to it in order to prompt Kallen to start thinking like her.
To start believing that Zero, and the man beneath the mask, was worth giving up everything for if the situation called for it.
"I am close to Zero because I have sworn myself to him, mind, body, and soul." Nunnally answered, a smile coming to her face unconsciously at that thought while Kallen stared at her wide-eyed. "There is no order he could give me that I would not follow without hesitation." Her Onii-sama meant the world to her, and so she would follow him anywhere. To the ends of the Earth, to the highest place in the Heavens, and even to the deepest pits of Hell. If her Onii-sama declared his intent to conquer everything, she would help him with a smile on her face. "He knows he can trust me without reservation and that is why I am so close to him." Nunnally gave Kallen a look, her crimson eyes boring into the redhead's. "If you are willing to fight for him, to serve him, and to sacrifice for him, Zero will recognize you." She didn't use her Geass, not for something as trivial as convincing Kallen to obey her brother, Nunnally just went with her honest feelings. "Your efforts will be recognized by our King in due time, if you continue to serve with distinction."
'King.' Kallen heard every word Nemo said to her, the conviction in her heart as clear as the sky on a cloudless day, but that word stuck out to her. As Nemo walked off to do her own thing, Kallen stared down at the grass at her feet. 'Can I really serve Lord Zero like her?' Kallen blinked as she realized that she had thought of her leader as Lord Zero, even in her own mind. A small smile graced her face as she looked to the hill where he was standing as he observed his soldiers laying down the excavators as he ordered. She had sworn to serve him faithfully for as long as she lived, and that was what she would do.
Nemo said that her service would be recognized and she had faith in her… King that Nemo's words would ring true.
Zero observed his forces as they moved about the top of the mountain, those that fulfilled their orders already getting to know their brothers and sisters in arms. The sight of such cooperation brought a grin to the masked man's face while Ohgi walked up to his side to speak with him. Before he turned his attention to his second, he considered the makeup of the Black Knights.
The Black Knights had roughly three thousand Knightmares at their disposal, one thousand captured Sutherlands and around two thousand Burai as provided by Kyoto. Of course, as not every member was capable of being a pilot the combat capable forces were divided into a Knightmare Corps, for the pilots, and the Regular Corps, a catchall for those who were not part of the Knightmare Corps, but could still fight by other means. There was also the Medical Corps, for those who were capable of treating his soldiers when they were injured in battle or in training, and the Engineering Corps, for the engineers and mechanics. They were the only two that were present atop Narita that would not be expected to fight. There was also the Intelligence Corps, but the members of that particular group were not present, aside from Sayoko, since they wouldn't be very useful on the battlefield in open war.
Only those who had managed the best scores on the stolen Knightmare simulators were granted the honor of piloting one of the Knightmares, the rest of those capable of being soldiers were given anti-Knightmare weapons as a last resort, mainly to be used to escape from the Knightmares, and were expected to handle the ground troops together with the Knightmare Corps if they appeared. Medics traveled with the ground troops and were expected to ensure any ejected pilots got immediate medical attention. Any soldier who had the opportunity was also to recover the Knightmare if at all possible but the pilot's life was considered priority.
The combat capable members of the Black Knights were divided up into multiple categories for organizational purposes. There were two Regiments, each consisting of two Battalions for a total of four, which were further subdivided into ten Companies per Battalion and four Squads per Company. Rounding out the subcategories was the Unit of five soldiers, each Squad having five each. Each Battalion, and the subdivisions within the Battalion, was designated by a specific callsign.
B-Group, N-Group, R-Group, or P-Group, with proper designation depending on the Corps they were a member of.
Ohgi was Zero's direct subordinate, coordinating the efforts of B-Group and P-Group while Zero personally handled N-Group and R-Group, the entire forces of the roughly four thousand Black Knights that were ready for war answering to Zero either directly or indirectly. He wasn't entirely satisfied with their numbers, the total of five thousand being a drop in the bucket compared to the Empire's total force in the Area, but that wouldn't be an issue once the pending applications were fully checked out.
He fully expected their numbers to double in the coming days once he was able to officially welcome the many applicants to his Order. And then he'd need to start the entire process over again, but hopefully he would have more logistical support so it would be easier to ferret out spies and complete the recruitment process faster than the present system would realistically allow.
Ruben could only do so much with his computer and connections after all.
"Sir, are you really sure about this?" Ohgi's voice drew Zero from his musings as the two of them watched the excavators drill into the mountain in preparation for Zero's next miracle.
Lelouch's eyes shifted beneath his mask, narrowing them slightly as he sensed Ohgi's hesitance. "Commander Ohgi, are you doubting me?" He asked lightly, hiding his dangerous undertone. "Don't you believe in me anymore?"
Ohgi felt the stress on his title when Zero spoke, recognizing that he was speaking to his leader and not just another one of his friends. "Sir, I am not doubting you." Ohgi stood ramrod straight, refusing to look Zero in his intimidating mask, feeling as though he would lose his nerve if he did. "I am just merely concerned that we have not alerted the JLF to the impending assault on their base and worry that we may end up in each other's crossfire." That was one of a few concerns he had, but it was the one he felt was most defensible at the moment.
The others were purely personal concerns, namely about the potential loss of his friends.
"The JLF." Zero resisted the urge to growl at the thought of those fools. He hoped Kusakabe had enjoyed Cornelia's hospitality. Though it would have been better if the reckless Lieutenant-Colonel had managed to hold out a little while longer under Cornelia's tortures, at least that way his forces wouldn't number a measly five thousand. Even in death, and Zero had no doubt he was dead by now, that fool was useless. "Will be the least of our concerns. The one leading this charge will be Cornelia herself." Ohgi looked at him in shock before the sound of aircraft distracted him and drew the attention of every member of the Black Knights on the mountain.
Looking out, they could all see the VTOLs mobilizing. "It's begun." He noticed the Mark Nemo stepping out from the forest, Nemo presumably having summoned it with her odd powers in private as she had done during the raids.
"Soldiers of the Black Knights." Zero began, looking out over his followers. "Today is the day you shall all become true warriors. Cornelia has begun her purge of the JLF here at Narita, the JLF headquarters." People became indignant at his words, some shouting at him that he was going to get them all killed. One voice in particular stood out.
"What the hell?!" Tamaki's voice rang out furiously at his leader. "We can't stand up against Cornelia like this! Are you trying to get us all killed?!" He shifted to try and pull his gun on Zero, but he stopped immediately once he saw the gun in Zero's hands.
It was pointed directly at him.
Zero held out a gun, pointing it at the main voice of discontent, Shinichiro Tamaki. Before he flipped the gun around and pointed the barrel at himself, offering the handle to anyone brave enough or foolish enough to take it. "By joining the Black Knights, you made a deal with this Black Devil to fight in this revolution." He paused to ensure he had everyone's attention. "All escape routes have been cut off by the enemy, there is no turning back now. If anyone of you think yourself a better leader than I, take this Black Devil's life if you dare." Everyone remained frozen at his words before he continued. "Here, atop this mountain, you shall either live with me, or you shall die with me." Zero's cloak flared dramatically as the wind picked up speed. He pocketed the gun silently. "Have faith in me and I shall deliver a miracle to all of those who serve in the Black Knights and together we shall defeat Cornelia!" Zero declared, throwing his fist into the air dramatically. As he walked away, his soldiers cheered for him before returning to their duties with more fervor than before, prepared to make a miracle occur as their leader had declared.
'So long as you obey my commands.' Zero thought silently to himself as he walked off towards what would be his personal Knightmare.
"Great speech, My King." Nemo's voice rang out through the internal communicator he had given her since her Mark Nemo didn't have a compatible internal communication system. "What are my orders, Your Majesty?" Nemo's reverence was palpable, even over the communicator.
Lelouch removed his mask once he sat himself down comfortably in his Burai, differentiated by the ordinary ones by an aesthetic change around the Factsphere so that his Black Knights would know that he fought among them. Pressing his finger to the communicator he had attached to the side of his head, smaller than his phone, he gave Nemo her orders. "You will be following P-Group before breaking off to take out any Gloucester Frames you encounter, save for Cornelia's. Aside from the Guren you're the only one with clear superiority over those Frames and the Guren needs to remain with me so I can gauge its combat effectiveness." A mad grin split his face as he boiled his orders down to a simple statement for his dear witch. "Wreak havoc on the enemy, My White Witch."
Within the Mark Nemo, Nunnally allowed a grin that bore a great resemblance to her brother's to form on her lips. "Gladly, My Black King." Was her answer before she allowed the communicator to be set on standby, allowing her some modicum of privacy while still being able to transmit commands.
While Zero was transmitting his commands to Nemo, Kallen quickly walked back to her Knightmare, prepared to do her part to make this miracle a reality. For her Lord's sake.
Before the deployment of Cornelia's forces took place, a different scene was playing out at the bottom of the mountain as Suzaku was laying on his back on an empty crate, groaning painfully. His headache was killing him. "When you said crash course you weren't kidding." He complained to Dalque who was somewhere nearby with the rest of her unit. "I don't think I've ever had so much information crammed in my head before." He was resting outside of Camelot's transport, while the rest of the Irregulars were lounging about in their own.
It was probably the closest the Earl of Pudding and Colonel Madd had ever had their units stationed in the same place without something going wrong.
"Mountain warfare, especially when facing a force that has made its base the inside of a mountain, is very different from fighting on at least semi-level terrain." Cécile spoke softly as she approached the two Special Units. "It's why we've reoutfitted the Lancelot and your Knightmares." Lloyd's far saner assistant turned to the Irregulars as they sat comfortably on the back of their truck. "They have the Sand Panels, alternate versions of the traditional Landspinners that were developed during the conflict with the Middle Eastern Federation, which will allow you just as much mobility as the Landspinners regardless of the nature of the terrain."
"Thank you, Miss Cécile." Alice spoke up from her position sitting on the edge of the transport, Dalque's head laying in her lap as she held her head much like Suzaku. "I hope Earl Asplund didn't give you too much trouble about helping our unit." Considering what Suzaku had told her of his boss and her own experiences with the man during their joint training sessions, his oddities were numerous as they were insane and Alice just hoped that he didn't make things harder on his nice assistant.
Alice didn't want to think what Sancia would do to the Earl of Pudding if he had annoyed her new friend too much. Sancia and Cécile had bonded over their many complaints about their bosses and had struck up a sort of friendship despite their bosses' somewhat petty rivalry.
"Oh it was no trouble at all." Cécile giggled Lloyd hopped out the back of Camelot's transport, just barely stepping over Suzaku's prone form, before making a beeline for his assistant.
"How could you leave me alone with that insufferable man?" Lloyd complained as he pouted at his lovely assistant. He had been speaking with Madd while the Colonel remained in the Irregulars' transport because the two of them needed to coordinate, but neither one of them could stand to be in the same room as the other long enough to strategize. Hence the video chat they were using up until a few minutes ago despite the fact their units were next to each other. "Do you have any idea how awful it is to hear him go on and on about how his project is the best?" Lloyd sniffed in a very dignified way, turning his nose up to the sky. "As if his creations could compare to my Lancelot!" He looked over at the Irregulars and blinked, noticing their presence for the first time.
"Let me guess, you're about to say, "No offense of course." Am I correct?" Sancia asked dryly, ignoring the twitch developing in her cheek as she suppressed her annoyance.
"Oh absolutely not!" Lloyd exclaimed with a grin, throwing Sancia off balance. "That would be a terrible lie, no I was just going to say nice to see you." He suddenly began to whimper as it felt like his ear would be torn from his head. "Cécile, what is it this time?" He whined as the twist on his ear increased. "I can't listen to you as well if you rip off one of my ears." He tried to persuade her to let him go, only to feel one last twist before she released him with a suffering sigh.
"I can't have that, you barely listen to me as it is." Cécile frowned and turned her attention away from her occasionally insane boss to look to the sky as she saw a number of VTOLs take off, carrying Knightmares to their designated starting points.
It appeared her suspicions had been accurate, they were going to be held in reserve until absolutely needed. Cornelia, despite her meritocratic attitude, still had disdain for Numbers and Honorary Britannians, though it was slightly less in the case of the latter. Her racism would be forcing Camelot and the Irregulars off the front lines of this battle unless deployed by either her command or Princess Euphemia's since the Third Princess had been rather insistent on following her sister, even if she was relegated to the G-1 for the duration of the battle as part of logistical support.
Regardless, despite both Camelot and the Irregulars feeling somewhat bitter about their lack of action, the truth of the matter was clear to them all.
It was time for Britannia's Goddess of Victory to bring down the JLF.
Explosions rang out below where the Black Knights were stationed, causing a good number of the available troops to begin sweating as they heard the Britannians steadily make their way up the mountain. Nunnally did her best to calm in her Knightmare, her nude form glowing a light blue as she remained in position behind Kallen's Guren. She could feel her hands shaking inside the odd pilot seat she had before she shook her head to dispel her nerves.
'If all goes well, Onii-sama's victory is assured.' Nunnally thought to herself as she felt some sweat drip down chin. 'Still, I can't help but worry.' Her Geass was currently inactive as she wanted to save it for when it may be needed to save her life, Nunnally couldn't afford to have a headache from overusing it in the middle of a battle. But she had used it a little bit before the battle started and she had seen a number of possibilities.
But she knew how much the future could change, even from one little action, and so she was still nervous despite her powers.
"Stay sharp, Nunnally." Nemo spoke within their mind. "It's about to begin."
Taking a deep breath, Nunnally closed her eyes and let it out. 'Right.' The Mark Nemo's fingers flexed as she shifted her hands and prepared to fight. As soon as Kallen's Knightmare blew the canister and, a moment later, a massive landslide poured down the mountainside, a bloodthirsty grin came across her face. "Let's go." A twisted giggle at the thought of slaying her Onii-sama's enemies escaped her lips as they peeled into a sadistic grin.
Unbeknownst to her, the bloodlust shining in her eyes bore a great resemblance to her mother's from her days during the Emblem of Blood Incident.
The Knightmares were the first ones to begin the charge down the mountain, the land troops would follow soon after, once things were more stable further down the mountain and they avoided the risk of getting caught within their own miracle.
The Mark Nemo had no Landspinners, but her control over it was equivalent to a one hundred percent synchronicity rate. Something that was thought to be impossible, but so was being able to summon a Knightmare out of a quantum field. The trees blew past her as she lead the charge, a large number of the Black Knights following her, the Guren, and Zero's own Burai as they all poured forth down the mountain to strike down the enemy.
Once they encountered said enemy she leaped into the fray without hesitation. "These are mine! Continue your advance!" She ordered the Knightmares that followed her as she charged forward to slay the enemies of her brother without mercy, without fear. One Knightmare fell almost immediately to her ferocious attack as she split it in half vertically, but there were more to kill, more to fight.
Turning her attention to another enemy, Nunnally ruthlessly shoved the Mark Nemo's blade through the cockpit after gracefully dodging the Slash Harkens sent her way. She forced her Frame to jump back quickly, firing her Blonde Knives to redirect the Slash Harkens another Knightmare had shot at her after she killed the other pilot.
Five Knightmares she had come across and two had been taken out in an instant. A grin split the exiled Princess' face as the Blonde Knives retracted. "Time for all of you to die!" A maniacal laugh her brother would be proud of burst from her lips as she charged head on into the fray, her bloodthirst refusing to be sated as she slew those who would dare stand against her brother.
"Damn you, terrorist scum!" One of the pilots cried out, attempting to shoot her with his Knightmare's weapon. A frown came across Nunnally's face as she whipped out one of her Blonde Knives, shredding the gun in an instant.
'I hate guns.' Nunnally thought, feeling a flash of pure malice as she sent out the other five odd whips to eliminate the two other Gloucester's guns. "I thought only the best were supposed to pilot the Gloucesters?!" She taunted through her external speakers, weaving through the wild strikes of their Slash Harkens with disturbing grace. Nunnally hadn't even needed to use her Geass yet to deal with these pilots. "You're all so weak!" A laugh sounded out from her speakers, infuriating her enemies even further.
"We are the Glaston Knights, the Sons of Andreas Darlton!" One of the pilots declared dramatically as he charged forward with a lance after he lost his gun. "And we will not lose to the likes of you!"
Shifting its blade, the Mark Nemo deflected the Gloucester's desperate stab while the other two Knights attempted to engage her in a pincer movement, weaving through her Blonde Knives. Though not without some damage as she managed to chip off parts of the two Gloucester Frames during their charge. Nunnally hissed through her teeth as she was forced to jump back and disengage, backflipping through the air, a move that sent her Blonde Knives in a wild spin, doing just a bit more damage than they would have otherwise if she had just jumped back.
The three on one battle came to a standstill as an explosion echoed nearby and Nunnally caught sight of a cockpit ejecting over the top of the forest. 'I can't be held down here, I need to move!' She felt her hatred burn, her forehead glowing unbeknownst to her as Nemo spoke from within her mind.
"Remember Nunnally, the Mark Nemo is fueled by your darkest emotions." The former Doll felt the darkness in Nunnally's heart increase the power of the Mark Nemo as the girl allowed the twisted nature of the battlefield to seep into her soul. "Don't allow it to consume you, but let your darkness guide you." Nemo was nude, same as Nunnally, in the darkness of the girl's mind as she clasped her hands together as if in prayer, the symbol upon her own head glowing.
The other three Gloucesters were unaware of the things running through Nunnally's mind, but as she allowed her hatred to grow, directed at the three enemies before her, a serene smile came across her face. "Time for them to die." She whispered, a happy giggle escaping her lips as the Mark Nemo shot forward, blade in hand.
They were so slow to react. That was the thought in Nunnally's mind as she slashed the lead Gloucester in half vertically, immediately shifting her attention to her second target as she shot all six of her Blonde Knives into it, leaving no doubt that she had killed the pilot. The two Gloucesters exploded, leaving only one remaining.
Turning slowly, framed by the flames of his fallen brothers, the Mark Nemo prepared to strike her final enemy down. As she prepared to charge, to end the life of the final member of the Glaston Knights, the pilot did something she didn't expect.
He ejected, directing his cockpit to travel far down the mountain as he launched himself out of his Knightmare, abandoning it. Nunnally blinked, coming down from her high for a moment before she pouted. "Oh, come on! That's not fair!" Why couldn't that fool just die like a good little corpse?
And now the enemy would have more information about how she fought with the Mark Nemo. Great.
'Oh well.' Nunnally thought to herself, her pout remaining. 'I guess I'll just have to find someone else to kill.' With that thought, a smirk graced her face as she dove into the forest once more, determined to find even more enemies to kill for her beloved brother's sake.
Narita was burning, but such concerns meant nothing to her as she made her way down the mountain, hunting for her next enemy to kill.
All the while, neither Nunnally nor Nemo noticed the symbol upon their forehead glowing a bloody shade of red beneath their currently blonde hair.
I originally intended to finish the entirety of the Battle of Narita with this chapter, but I decided it might be better to split it between two chapters, like I did with Saitama. I'd rather not make the same mistake I did when I first wrote the Battle of Shinjuku, that chapter was over thirty thousand words. Far too long for my tastes.
This one is roughly fifteen thousand words, something far more manageable for everyone I think.
Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed how I portrayed Nunnally in battle. Marianne always struck me as the bloodthirsty type so I thought it might be fun to have Nunnally inherit that fun trait from her mother.
Besides, there are so many parallels between Lelouch and Charles, I figured it might be appropriate to have some between Nunnally and Marianne.
Narita will be wrapped up in "Baptized In Fire Part II" next chapter, but I hope you all enjoyed this one. Unfortunately, that chapter may take a while be completed since I will be studying for the most stressful test of my life, again.
I'm taking the LSAT again in September, in order to get a better score so I can get into the law school I want, so I need to study and that means my next chapter may not come out till late September or early October. I apologize in advance, but I will do my best to ensure that it's an update with multiple chapters, and not just for this story either. I do have another one up, a crossover between Code Geass and Gate: Thus the JSDF Fought There, which is a rather good anime in my opinion. I'm just playing a little with it, but feel free to check it out. It's certainly not going to be part of my main focus, but I thought it would be fun to experiment.
Please, review if you enjoyed reading the new chapter.
Happy Independence Day for all of my fellow American readers!
King Draconias Over and Out.
