September 8, 2017 a.t.b.
Area 11, Train en route to Nambu, 9:10 am
The morning was rather clear, with but a small amount of cloud cover. Sophie, Rivalz, and Milly travelled on board a train headed for Yorihata Station, where they were set to drop off.
"Let's see, we have all our needed gear with us, everyone has eaten their breakfast, and we have some bear repellent. We should be ready," said Rivalz.
"I can see that this is going to be a great day. It's a shame Shirley and Nina could not come," said Milly as she looked over pamphlets in her hand. The pamphlets showed a map with hiking trails on and around Mt. Shinoi.
"We really needed this, didn't we?" said Sophie as she looked into her pamphlets about Mt. Shinoi as well. "And if the strange ruins Rivalz told us about are real, it would be quite a bonus."
"If so, this would be quite an adventure to remember for us," said Milly.
"Rivalz, did they say anything about a more exact location, somewhere we could pass by?" asked Sophie.
"Based on the rumours, the ruins should be around here," said Rivalz as he pointed at his map on an area close to the summit.
"Then we should go there to see for ourselves," said Milly.
"And even if they were fake, at least we'll be getting a good hike in the woods to get us going," said Sophie.
Special Administrative Zone, 9:33 am
Thousands upon thousands of people filled the seats of the stadium with more who were unable to get in having crowded outside. Many more tuned in to the event on television as it was broadcasted live. The masses of Japanese, along with some sympathiser Britannians, have come for the official opening of the SAZ.
On the podium sat the various figures central to the SAZ in their seats – the six leaders of the Kyoto House, Suzaku, General Andreas Darlton, and Euphemia herself, now in a lilac and white royal dress.
They have awaited the arrival of Zero, but the masked rebel was yet to appear. There were doubts in both the Britannian guards and the crowd on whether Zero would come. After a few minutes Darlton had to inform Euphemia that it was time to begin, that she would have to perform the ceremony without Zero.
However, just a few moments afterward the Gawain, Zero's knightmare frame, came into view in the sky above. This caught the attention of the crowd.
"It's Zero!"
"Zero's here!"
"I see you've accepted your defeat, Zero," thought Darlton.
The Gawain landed in a spot close to the podium. Several guards and frames surrounded Zero as he came down from the frame.
"If Zero makes any suspicious moves, your orders are to eliminate him at once," Darlton commanded.
"Yes, General," the soldiers acknowledged.
"Zero, welcome to the Special Administrative Zone!" Euphemia greeted.
"Greetings, Euphemia li Britannia!" replied Zero. "I wish to request an audience with you."
"Just with me?" asked Euphemia. "Just the two of us?"
"Yes, just the two of us alone," said Zero.
Britannian guards and inspectors moved in and scanned Zero for any weapons he might have hidden on his person. The detectors turned up negative.
"He's unarmed, it appears to be safe your highness," said Darlton.
"Princess Euphemia, this man is a known terrorist. Being alone with him is dangerous," Suzaku spoke up. "As your knight, I request for you to allow me to accompany you for safety."
"It's alright. Just trust me, okay?" said Euphemia. "Just be available to come whenever I need you."
"Yes, Princess Euphemia," said Suzaku in concession.
Euphemia and Zero made their way to the G1 mobile base docked with the stadium, to carry out their solo audience hidden away from prying eyes.
Nambu
Sophie, Milly, and Rivalz have arrived at Nambu and were on their way through the town to the Shinoi trailhead. It was roughly about 5 kilometres to the peak, and whatever rumoured ruins they might find close to it.
Sophie wore a light white shirt, teal shorts, a dark grey cap, a red bracelet, and a maroon backpack. Milly wore a green sleeveless shirt, brown shorts, and a grey backpack. Rivalz meanwhile wore a grey shirt, beige shorts, and a navy blue backpack.
"It should take us some two or three hours on this trail, including breaks and stops along the way," said Milly.
"Let's take our lunch when we reach the top, if possible," said Sophie.
"Sure thing," said Milly.
"I'm a bit excited to see if there are really any of those weird stuff up there," said Rivalz. "I mean, that would be so cool, right?"
"I suppose it would," said Sophie.
"You really always wanted to be part of something cool, don't you Rivalz?" asked Milly.
"Well, yes. I've been getting tired of being the plain kid in class all the time," said Rivalz.
The three continued on their way through the town.
Special Administrative Zone, G1 interior
Euphemia and Zero were now alone in a dimly-lit room in the G1.
Zero had checked the room for anything that might threaten to expose his identity to the outside world. Anything in the G1's systems that might leak this meeting were turned off.
"Even though all the cameras are off, you're still being really careful, aren't you?" asked Euphemia.
Lelouch turned around to face Euphemia and took off his mask. "I've been hiding from a certain empire for a long time, I'm afraid."
"This gun is made from ceramic and bamboo," said Lelouch as he took out a white-coloured firearm and showed it to Euphemia, apparently pointed towards her. "Thus, metal detectors can't pick it up."
"Zero, you're not planning to shoot me, aren't you?" Euphemia asked in shock.
"No, I wouldn't do that. You'll be the one doing the shooting, Euphemia," said Lelouch.
"Huh?" Euphemia gasped.
"This ceremony is being broadcasted globally. The world is going to witness you, a Britannian princess, shoot Zero," said Lelouch. "What do you think happens next?"
"I imagine that riots would break out," said Euphemia.
"Exactly. Zero shall become a martyr, tricked into a trap, and your popularity will crash down to Earth," said Lelouch.
"Does he really think he'll just get me to shoot him so he can ruin me!?" Euphemia thought. "What nonsense are you saying? Why can't you just help me rebuild Japan?" she asked.
"If you force it from up high, then you're just as bad as Clovis was!" said Lelouch.
"All tasks at hand have been cleared. As he recovers from near death, Zero shall rise again in a miraculous recovery and be met with cheers," Lelouch continued on. "For people don't give a damn about reason, but they cannot resist miracles. Now, take the gun." He presented the weapon to Euphemia.
"Huh?" Euphemia uttered.
"There can only be one messiah, you understand," said Lelouch. "And when the people realise that you're a false one, then they'll—"
Lelouch was cut off as what felt like a searing pain shot through his left eye, which he clutched as he dropped down to the floor on his knees.
"Lelouch!" Euphemia cried out as she rushed to try to help Lelouch up. However, Lelouch didn't take all too well to it.
"Stop it!" Lelouch shot out, making Euphemia step back. "Stop giving me your pity! I don't want your charity!"
Lelouch activated his Geass and turned on Euphemia with a maddened look. "And so for that...I shall now stain your hands with blood, Euphemia li Britannia!"
The reddish glow of his eye pierced across the dim atmosphere, in direct eye contact with Euphemia.
"Shoot me at the stage for all to see, and the world will know you as a deceiver!" Lelouch commanded with his Geass.
As the command forced its way into Euphemia's mind, glowing red rims materialised around her irises.
"Lelouch…please don't make me do it…please don't," Euphemia pleaded as she tried to resist the invading command. She gripped herself tightly and dropped to the floor, shaking.
She looked at Lelouch with a look of utter betrayal across her features as she continued to struggle.
"I don't want to…I don't…want…to do it…why can't…you…just…help me," she spoke out in distress.
She struggled for around fifteen seconds, but eventually her mind lost ground.
"Why?" she asked in a shaky, distressed voice as tears streamed from her eyes. "Lelouch…why…"
The heartbreak was evident in her voice as she trailed off, before the command finally won over.
Mt. Shinoi
Sophie, Rivalz, and Milly have crossed the Shinoi trailhead and have started to ascend the slopes of the mountain.
As they walked along the trail, they took the time to admire the woods and scenery around them. The fresh mountain air helped invigorate the Ashford trio, motivating them further on the hike.
"This fresh, cool air, the weather, time away from the mess in the city, it feels great!" said Sophie, pleased.
"You sure got that right, Sophie!" said Milly in enthusiastic agreement.
"It's pumping me up!" said Rivalz cheerfully. "I feel like I'm ready for an epic adventure!"
"I'm sure you are," said Milly. "I like it when we're all motivated and full of energy! Onward, friends!"
The three continued to walk up the mountain trail with enthusiasm and gusto.
A few minutes later the trio took a stop as they came across a clearing in the tree canopy. They looked from the mountainside towards the direction of Mt. Fuji, prominent in the distance.
"Well, I think I can see that Special Zone from up here," said Milly.
"I just hope nothing goes wrong out there," said Sophie.
"Same here. Well, we have a whole day ahead of us, better get going," said Milly.
The trio resumed their trek. Just a few moments afterward Rivalz suddenly lost balance. Fortunately he was able to right himself with Milly's help.
"Thanks Milly," said Rivalz. He then looked down at what he had stumbled over.
It appeared to be a large curved, sickle-like claw. It was huge, with the base about the size of their palms. Rivalz picked the huge claw up.
"Woah," Rivalz breathed out in awe. "Didn't expect to find this."
Milly and Sophie moved in to get a closer look.
"It's so big and long," said Milly.
"I think this looks like…a raptor claw, like from Jurassic Park!" said Rivalz.
"Someone from the museum must have dropped it," said Sophie.
"We better keep this, it's so cool to find," said Rivalz as he placed the huge claw inside his backpack.
The three proceeded on the trail, still eager as ever.
Special Administrative Zone
With baited breath, the crowds on the stadium watched as Zero and Euphemia walked unto the podium. They awaited the official opening of the Zone.
However, the next course of events was one they never expected.
All of a sudden, the sound of a gunshot rang through the stadium as Euphemia shot Zero at his side.
Zero collapsed onto the floor as time seemed to slow down before their eyes.
The people were stunned for several moments, unable to utter a word. But then the thought clicked on them as one of them screamed out.
"Zero!" another screamed out in return.
"This zone is a trap!" yet another one cried out.
"Liar!"
"Backstabber!"
"The princess has tricked us!"
The crowd erupted into an uproar. Chaos ruled the stadium as a huge riot broke out in an around the structure.
The Britannians were forced to retaliate as the situation escalated, and soon enough resorted to gunning down masses of people. The Black Knights, enraged by the princess shooting their leader in an apparent death trap, as well as the Britannians shooting the Japanese civilians, came down from the nearby hills and engaged the Britannians in a fierce battle as the unrest began to spread out unto the rest of the SAZ.
Special Administrative Zone, 10:30 am
"No…no…it wasn't supposed to end like this…," Euphemia thought disconsolately as she was forced to flee from the enraged mobs, comprised of the very people she had tried to help.
She had attempted to call Suzaku, but to no avail, no response.
In the chaos of the riots and clashes an attempt to escape on foot was far too risky. Euphemia had made her way to the G1's hangar and boarded a Gloucester to escape. From there, as she activated the frame and sped away, the cries of the masses could still be heard.
"Fucking witch!"
"Damn you, Euphemia!"
"You're just the same as Cornelia!"
"How dare you trample on our hopes and dreams!"
"She really is Cornelia's sister! I hope that witch can burn!"
Each of the curses stabbed at her heart like daggers. She had only wanted to help those people peacefully, and now they saw her as an evil woman who had tricked and played them. While she had genuinely been trying to help them.
"No! I really wanted to help you!" Euphemia thought in response to the curses sent her way. "I never wanted to trick or trap anyone! Please stop!" she cried out through the speakers as she was pursued by the enraged Japanese, who refused to listen.
To make matters worse, one of the Black Knight Burais caught her in its sights, its rifle ready.
"Save it, wicked bitch! I knew you couldn't be trusted!" Shinichiro Tamaki cried out as he charged in at Euphemia with killing intent.
"Please, listen to me!" Euphemia pleaded. "I—"
"Shut it, Brit! Now die at the hands of Shinichiro Tamaki!" Tamaki cried out as he began firing.
Faced with little other choice, Euphemia manoeuvred her frame to evade the shots as she turned unto her attacker. She launched a couple of slash harkens at Tamaki's gun, knocking it off of his Burai's hands.
"We don't have to do this!" Euphemia cried out. "Please, just take a moment to—"
"Ugh, fuck you!" Tamaki shot back as he took his frame's stun tonfas and charged.
Euphemia used her frame's lance to parry Tamaki's attack and knock away its weapon arm. Before Tamaki could recover, she used the lance to impale and destroy the Burai's limbs, disabling it and forcing Tamaki to eject.
"It shouldn't have to end like this," Euphemia thought sadly as she continued to flee. "This was supposed to be a day of hope and peace, not all this bloodshed and violence. I can't talk them out of it, they don't want to even let me explain my side…"
She looked over the battle map as she tried to find a way to escape from the chaos, for a path with the least hostile presence. Most of the directions had high concentrations of hostile IFFs, which severely limited her options for safe routes.
"The way back to the Tokyo Settlement is far too risky. Looks like the safest way out is to the west," the pinkette thought as she sped towards said direction.
Mt. Shinoi, 10:40 am
Unaware of what transpired many kilometres away in the SAZ, the Ashford trio had decided to take a break and took out snacks.
"Hey, Sophie?" asked Milly before taking a bite out of a chocolate bar.
"What is it Milly?" replied the purple-haired lass.
"How's it going with Miya?" asked Milly.
"It…it didn't work out." Sophie shook her head.
"Why?" asked Milly. "It was really cute to see you crushing on her."
"Well…," Sophie began. "When I confessed my feelings to her…I…well…I learned that she…didn't swing that way. She was straight, she wasn't into girls. It…couldn't work out between us." Her expression fell slightly.
"That's too bad. It must hurt to finally muster the courage to confess, only to find that your crush was incompatible. I'm sorry Sophie," said Milly.
"It stung to be rejected, but I had to move on," said Sophie.
"Being rejected by someone you loved really is never a nice feeling," said Milly. "But let's move on, don't want our day to get all gloomy. Let's take some pictures here! The view from here's great!" she finished as she noted the scenery beyond the mountain's slopes.
"Sure!" replied Sophie.
Milly took out a selfie stick from her backpack and attached her phone unto it. She and Sophie then went to position themselves in front of the backdrop.
"Wait, let me just get this cool thing in!" said Rivalz as he went to take out the large claw from his backpack. He then rushed next to the two girls and held up the claw.
"Just right there," Milly thought as she extended the selfie stick such as to capture the three of them as well as the view of the landscape behind them. Once she got the shot she wanted, she took the photo.
"There! Pretty great, isn't it?" said Milly.
Milly then proceeded to take a few more pictures of herself, Sophie, and Rivalz, the latter showing off the 'cool raptor claw' as he put it.
A few minutes later at the end of their photo session, Milly proceeded to upload the pictures to her Facebook account.
'Went hiking at Mt. Shinoi with my friends, Sophie Wood and Rivalz Cardemonde. Quite some fun here!' she typed and posted online with the pictures.
"Well, I suppose we're ready. Let's get moving!" said Milly enthusiastically. The trio packed up their items and resumed their hike up the mountain.
Shishihara, Shizouka, 11:00 am
In her attempt to flee to safety, Euphemia had driven her frame into the forested hills beyond the borders of the recently-collapsed SAZ. Despite being the safest route, some Japanese light vehicles and a few Black Knight frames still pursued her.
"Ugh, damn it…I need to find a safe area quickly," she thought distressed as her situation grew worse, with a larger hostile force coming in from the direction of the Shizouka Ghetto.
Forced to take another route, she turned northwards – towards the general direction of Mt. Shinoi.
Mt. Shinoi, 11:20 am
The Ashford trio neared the summit.
They have come across and noticed some strange ruins there and there alongside the trail as they went on. Broken pedestals and fallen obelisks, seemingly etched with writing. Many of them were overgrown with plants, but they were picked out with careful eyes.
"Looks like at least some of those rumours are real after all," said Sophie.
"Oh man, I know I've said something like this before earlier today, but this is just so cool!" said Rivalz cheerfully.
"They sure are," said Sophie.
"Hey, check this out!" Milly called out as something caught her attention.
She pointed out to what looked like a paved path that went uphill unto the mountain away from the main trail and into the forest. It was weathered and grown over with plants, as well as littered with rocks and broken pieces of ruin, but it was still noticeable with a careful look.
Sophie and Rivalz moved in beside Milly and turned their eyes towards the path.
"There are more of those broken pieces with weird writings on them up ahead on that path," said Milly as her gaze scanned it along its visible route.
"Maybe it leads to more of those ruins! Let's follow it and explore!" said Rivalz.
"Well, I suppose we can go check it out," said Milly.
"It can't hurt to get a closer look, I'm in," said Sophie.
The trio walked along the ancient path, guided by curiosity to explore where it leads…
A minute and a half later the trio ended up in front of a rectangular opening, three metres tall and two metres wide, cut unto a steep face. Foliage hung over it and grew over the weathered stone blocks that lined its ceiling and walls. Two weathered obelisks around 150 cm tall and overgrown with plants stood before the edges of the opening.
As they gazed into the opening, they saw that around a few metres in the shaft descended down at a shallow angle with a stone staircase into the underground depths.
"Hmm, who wants to go in?" asked Rivalz.
"I suppose it won't hurt to go in and look around. This isn't something we get to do every day after all," said Milly.
"Same." Sophie nodded in agreement.
The trio entered the opening and descended into the subterranean. They tread carefully over the ancient steps, unsure of what might be down there.
They soon reached the end of the steps, which then gave way into a level hallway.
They continued to walk on further and in a few moments they entered a cavernous chamber, square in form. The walls around them stood 15 metres high from floor to ceiling, and 30 metres across on each side.
A variety of strange glyphs and petroglyphs etched into the walls presented themselves into the awestruck eyes of the Ashford students as they looked around the vast chamber.
Before them on the middle of the chamber lay a huge circular metallic pedestal with an inner raised platform. Four obelisks each, covered in glyphs, bordered the outer and inner circles.
This was it. This was the very object of the sketch Rivalz showed on his phone to Sophie and Milly two days earlier.
The very same kind of device the Europians have tested on during recent times at Germany thousands of kilometres away.
"Wow. It is real…," Rivalz gasped in amazement as his mouth hung open, imitated by Sophie and Milly.
"We're sure of it now…," said Sophie.
"This…this is so cool!" Rivalz exclaimed. "Oh yeah!"
"Let's take a look around!" said Milly.
The Ashford students went around to explore the chamber.
Sophie went to take a closer look at the glyphs and imagery on the wall. She did not know what language or symbol system it was, but it was certainly not Japanese.
She also went over the petroglyphs. They were painted, and although the paint was faded and worn over the ages, probably several millennia, their colours were still obvious. They depicted various humans, but they seemed to have fantastic elements around them. There were also pale and fairy-like figures, green and burly humanoids with what appeared to be pig-like features, and there were even reptilian humanoids.
There were also images of fauna that were long extinct on Earth. One petroglyph showed one of the pale fairy-like figures accompanying what appeared to be a group of bulky, tusked, and beaked Placerias. Another showed an image of what appeared to be the long-necked sauropod Xinjiangtitan, and another had what looked like a Nordic warrior with an axe riding atop a Yutyrannus.
"Those people must have had some wild stories," Sophie thought.
"Man, these folks had dinosaurs, orcs, and lizardmen in their stories?" said Rivalz as he looked over the petroglyphs on another portion of the wall, taking photos with his phone.
"This would be quite the story to tell Shirley," Milly thought.
After some time, Rivalz turned his attention to a control panel next to the pedestal and walked up to the front of it.
"I wonder what this does," Rivalz thought, curious.
He couldn't decipher the glyphs on the panel, but he decided to test it using trial and error. He pressed several buttons but with no response…until he hit a particular button placed separately from the others.
To his surprise, a holographic screen with the same glyphs as the ones etched on the wall in place of where letters and numbers would have been, as well as what appeared to be visuals he did not understand, appeared over the panel.
A humming sound suddenly filled the room, catching the attention of Milly and Sophie. The glyphs on the metallic pedestal's obelisks glowed and arcs of electricity sparked between the obelisks, causing the three to step back a little.
"What's going on?" Milly asked in surprise.
"I just pressed a button here to see what this does," said Rivalz.
"That must be the controls for…whatever that thing is," said Sophie.
A gust of wind blew around them as the air in the middle of the pedestal was forcefully vacated. A speck of light materialised in that space, which grew within the span of ten seconds into a sphere 5 metres across. Unlike the tests in Europia, the sphere did not pulsate. Its surface looked to be a distorted view of a forest, and the view of the region around and behind the sphere was warped with a lensing effect.
The object had created, before their very eyes, a wormhole. Sophie, Rivalz, and Milly were stunned, their jaws dropped in sheer amazement.
"What in the world…," Sophie gasped out.
"Nobody's going to believe us when we tell about this…," Milly gasped.
"This…this is…I think I have no more words," Rivalz gasped.
After several seconds the three began to walk slowly towards the wormhole to try and get a closer look.
Lights on the sides of the control panel then began to emit a red glow, and what appeared to be a red sign written in glyphs appeared in the holographic screen. It appeared to be a warning sign of some sort, however of course none of them could decipher it.
"Hmm, I wonder what that's supposed to mean…," Milly wondered.
The sign on the holographic screen was suddenly replaced by another, still undecipherable one. Not even three seconds later the wormhole began to pulsate, and the three felt what seemed to be vibrations passing through them.
"What's…what's going on!?" Sophie exclaimed.
"I don't know, but I have a feeling it can't be good!" said Rivalz, unnerved.
"Whatever it is, let's run!" Milly cried out to her friends.
"Right!" Both Sophie and Rivalz concurred without hesitation.
The three attempted to run for it. They did not have the time to make much distance before they felt as if they were running up a slope that was getting steeper, and their weight shifted unto their backs. Loose dust began to fall unto the wormhole.
"Ack! This room is tilting!" Milly exclaimed.
"It's getting too steep!" Sophie exclaimed in panic. "I can't— aaah!"
"We're not gonna make it!" Rivalz screamed in panic.
The three were carried off the floor screaming by the intensifying gravitational pull as the wormhole glowed brightly, enveloping the entire room in a bath of light as the pull suddenly intensified in a brief moment before disappearing with the wormhole's collapse.
As the light faded, Sophie, Rivalz, and Milly were nowhere to be seen.
About a kilometre from the base of Mt. Shinoi, Euphemia continued to attempt her escape through the forested hills. However, the Japanese forces have caught up to her, taking advantage of the mountainous and forested terrain to set up a trap in three directions.
APCs and infantry opened fire on her frame while she tried to block the worst of the onslaught. Euphemia realised her options for escape have been severely limited. She opened up her frame's speakers and turned to face her pursuers for one last attempt to reason with them.
"Please, stop and listen for a moment! I'm not your enemy!" the pinkette cried out. "I never meant to—"
"Then why do you run!" the voice of a Japanese woman, an officer from the remnants of the JLF, shot back. "Keep firing!" she commanded to her subordinates.
"Please, we don't have to do this!" Euphemia pleaded, but it fell on deaf ears.
A moment later, Japanese tanks and Burais arrived and joined in to intensify the assault. She tried her best to evade the heavier shots, but a direct hit from a tank made her drop the lance and disabled the left arm.
"I don't have any more choices," Euphemia thought. She took her frame's assault rifle using the remaining arm and fired back in an attempt to disable the hostile frames and tanks and dissuade the attack force.
She successfully hit one of the tanks in the treads, stopping it. However as she had stopped blocking, her frame's body was left open to their hail of gunfire.
A tank shot nearly hit her and impacted a nearby tree, causing it to fall. As Euphemia continued to fire back she hit a Burai on the knee, crippling it.
Japanese infantry with rocket launchers fired a volley. One of the rockets hit her frame in the remaining arm, causing her to drop the rifle.
Euphemia groaned as she was shaken inside the cockpit. "I can't hold on for too long like this," she thought in distress.
She launched the slash harkens at a Burai's gun and disarmed it. But not even a moment later another rocket hit her frame, causing it to stumble back. A tank shell then impacted the Gloucester's right foot and severely damaged it.
A grenade launcher barrage then pummelled the damaged frame and forced it on its knees. And not even sparing a few seconds, a tank blew off the remaining arm.
Damaged, surrounded, and with all the weapons now disabled – the slash harkens have also been jammed by damage to the torso – Euphemia resorted to one last attempt to plea to them.
"Please, stop it! Please let me explain! I only wanted to help you!" the pinkette cried out.
Once again, the Japanese wouldn't have it and continued on their onslaught.
"This is for Zero! For Japan! Death to the witch!" the Japanese forces cried out.
As the frame went critical the auto-eject activated. Euphemia narrowly avoided being killed as her cockpit launched into the air just a moment before her frame finally fell apart.
The ejected cockpit had landed on the slopes of Mt. Shinoi. Euphemia exited the cockpit and looked towards the direction of Mt. Fuji. Towards the direction of her former proposal of peace, now turned into chaos.
"It didn't have to…be like this," she thought in lament.
She took a moment to breathe deeply and to try to calm her nerves even a little bit. She had almost died, after all.
But she can't stop for too long. She had to keep moving. The possibility of them having noticed her ejection and of having been trailed in her cockpit as it flew, they felt all too real to her now paranoid mind.
And thus she went moving. She went off to walk uphill, to try and make some distance. She had to move quickly to a safe place, there can be no rest yet.
Euphemia walked up the mountain's slopes, not caring as her dress was being torn and tattered by low branches. Eventually, after some twenty minutes she came across a hiking trail – the same one Sophie, Milly, and Rivalz had followed earlier. Across it was an old, worn path littered with pieces of ancient rubble that led into the forest.
She crossed the trail and went through the ancient path. Soon she came across the rectangular opening cut into the mountainside.
She went down the shaft, down the steps, and into the ancient chamber, decorated with glyphs and housing the wormhole generator within.
The pinkette hoped that this was a safe refuge for the moment. And it was – who would know that she was hiding in an ancient underground chamber hidden inside a mountain, the entrance concealed by forest?
She did not understand the glyphs on the walls. But she knew what the writing and language of the Japanese looked like. And it was clear to her that they matched not.
This wasn't one of their landmarks, she had to be sure of it. Most likely they did not even know about this place.
Safe for now, Euphemia sat down on the ground and rested against the wall.
After being so mercilessly hunted down, a little reprieve might have done her some good. But it was only cold comfort.
Now that she had time to process it in this secluded area, it then began to really sink in.
She was alone. Lelouch, her first love, the one she had shed tears for, the one she had awaited seven years to reunite with, he had betrayed her.
He had stained her hands with blood against her will and ruined her. His words from only hours ago still rang in her mind, only hurting more and more as they came and went.
It sank deeper into her, the agonising shards of a broken heart wounding her ever more so from within. He had betrayed her all for his own ambitions. Because of his ego. Because he felt like he had to be the one messiah, because he felt that the achievement should have been his alone.
She had given him an olive branch, and he took a spear and drove it at her heart.
"Lelouch…I trusted and loved you…I thought I could…I believed in you," she thought, disconsolate as tears flowed from her eyes like rivers. She sobbed into her arms in sadness.
The betrayal, the heartbreak, it indeed did hurt like a sharp spear through her heart.
Then there was Suzaku, the knight and friend who she thought she could trust. She had trusted him to be there for her when she needed him.
"Suzaku…You swore an oath as a knight to protect me, you promised as a friend to help me, and when I needed you, when I almost died, where were you? Where were you!?" she thought as she continued to sob.
When she needed him the most, he had not been there for her. She had tried to call out for him, for his help, his protection, but the response was null. As far as she was concerned, Suzaku had abandoned her as well.
She was cold and deadened inside. Her heart has been shattered into dust. She sat and sobbed for some ten, nay, fifteen minutes straight.
She was alone. Her only company was a large field mouse that had wandered into the chamber.
The field mouse climbed atop the control panel to take a higher vantage point around. By dint of circumstance, the rodent ran across and pressed the activation.
The wormhole generator began to hum, startling the field mouse which quickly scurried away and exited the chamber.
Euphemia was brought out of her sadness-induced stupor as the humming sound filled the air.
After a few sniffles and wiping the tears from her eyes, she looked up to see the obelisks on the pedestal adorned with glowing glyphs and bridged by arcs of electricity.
"Huh?" she thought as she stood up.
A lensing effect akin to a black hole's appeared in the middle. A speck of light appeared in the central point, which then expanded into a wormhole.
Euphemia gasped silently as she gazed upon the strange phenomenon that took place before her.
"Wha-what in the world…," she thought in awe.
She walked slowly closer to the wormhole and unto the outer portion of the pedestal, captivated by the sight. It was really just about the only thing she had to do here. She couldn't go outside, and all that was in the room was her and the strangeness now taking place. And thus it was the only thing able to catch her attention.
"This is…this is just extraordinary," Euphemia thought.
A few seconds later the wormhole began to pulsate, and the pinkette was brought out of her focus by what felt like vibrations passing through her.
"What's happening!?" she thought, unsettled. Euphemia backed away in a hurry, but she felt like she was trying to run up a slope that was getting steeper and steeper.
The pinkette yelped as she was carried off the ground by the wormhole's pull and fell unto it. With a bright bath of light that filled the chamber, both Euphemia and the wormhole had disappeared.
?
Euphemia awoke to find herself on the ground. She felt sore, clearly the way she ended up there wasn't the smoothest.
She groaned as she lifted herself up.
She shook the dust and leaves off her dress and turned to look around at the environment around her.
It appeared to be a light forest, chiefly comprised of conifer and araucaria trees. The undergrowth was comprised of grass, flowers, ferns, and horsetails. The weather was fairly sunny, with little cloud cover on azure skies. She was on a large pedestal similar to the one she saw back in the underground chamber, albeit overgrown with foliage.
"Where am I?" she thought.
In an attempt to find out, she walked out into the forest to look around more into the area.
A few minutes along her stroll, the forest began to thin out. Euphemia deduced that she must be nearing the edge of the forest.
She needed to find some landmarks here, something to indicate where she was.
Another minute later she found herself in a clearing. Now in the open, she turned around to look for any landmarks but found only trees around. Ahead of her was a shallow slope uphill.
As she continued on, an unfamiliar noise began to permeate the air.
"Huh? What's this?" Euphemia thought, perplexed.
She walked on, and as she did the sounds grew louder and clearer.
"What's making this strange sound?" the pink-haired woman thought.
There were low, deep, vaguely ursine-like growling and grumbling noises. And amongst them were more exotic cries of heightened pitch and tone, a sound unlike anything she had ever heard. If they had to be put to words, gwaw would be the closest one could get.
Curious to what made this unfamiliar soundscape, she continued walking up the slope and went up over the top of the hill.
Down beyond the hillside was an open plain with a large river to the right, set before a backdrop of snow-capped mountains.
And there, her question was answered…
Euphemia skipped a breath, as her jaw dropped, and her eyes widened, at the sight before her…
Stretched across the scene below was a huge herd of Iguanodon.
The bulky elephant-sized creatures were dull green with yellowish backs and beige undersides. Their faces, hands, and feet were dark in colour, and they bore dark spots around their necks which gave way to stripes over their backs and in turn to larger banded stripes around their tails. A row of small spines adorned the top of their necks. Their arms were built like oaks, with hefty hands that bore large spikes for thumbs.
The herd dominated over the plain, but they weren't alone. Armoured Polacanthus could easily be seen as they accompanied the Iguanodon. The spiky ankylosaurs were an earthy brown with a lighter underside.
And further in the distance, amongst scattered trees, roamed a few massive Apatosaurus. Each around the 30-metre region in length and two storeys tall at their backs, the sauropods bore a mottled light grey colour with faint darker spots around their bodies and whitish faces and undersides. Their bulky necks stood out bluish with darker stripes on the bottom and somewhat bolder spots than the main body. Their tails were striped with alternating dark and white bands. A row of iguana-like spikes stretched across the back of each from neck to tail, and tufts of filaments arose from the back of their heads.
Euphemia could not believe it. She couldn't believe what she was seeing…
Right before her eyes, still wide open and barely blinking from the sight, were living, breathing nonavian dinosaurs.
She had to be seeing things, she told herself.
She blinked her eyes rapidly for a couple seconds and rubbed them.
The dinosaurs didn't vanish.
She then shook her head.
No change.
Euphemia then gave herself a couple of slaps to her cheeks.
And lo…the dinosaurs were still there.
"Oh my…oh my…what in Darwin's name…what in the…," Euphemia thought as it really dawned on her. This was no hallucination. This was no dream.
This was real. There was no doubt about it, this strange place, the creatures she was looking at, it was the reality all around her.
"What…how can this…where really am I?"
Notes: And here we are, our pink-haired protagonist is now in an unfamiliar place. And in the next chapter we will find out what happened to Anna, Sophie, Milly, and Rivalz after they disappeared into the wormholes.
My concept art for the Iguanodon is available linked to the Ao3 version of the story. Their colours and patterns are inspired in part by Walking with Dinosaurs (1999).