Ch. 8: Recruitment
6:57 PM, July 7th, 1918, Keijō, Chōsen
Standing inside a large, abandoned warehouse, was Lelouch and Kim Gu. Lelouch was still wearing the jacket he got from that Japanese passerby over his Ashford Academy uniform.
Looking up, Lelouch noticed that the warehouse was in real need of maintenance, for it had holes in its ceiling, which allowed rays of light to penetrate through.
Kim Gu then took out his pocket watch and looked at the time.
"They should be arriving very soon." said Kim Gu.
"Yes they should. I mean that's what the council told everyone right?" replied Lelouch.
"Yeah. Anyway, I was wondering, why did you tell the council about your special power that you call "geass"?" asked Kim Gu.
"The only reason I told them was because I needed to prove to them that I was worth working with. The fact that I use it to get the both of us out of jail is further proof that I am capable of doing the seemingly impossible." answered Lelouch.
"Hence is why you took the pen name "Zero, the man who makes miracles." Anyway do you trust the council will be able to keep geass a secret? I mean, someone might decide to tell the whole world about such a power." said Kim Gu.
"The council is putting everything on me and is going to see the results of what geass can accomplish. When we finish this mission, the council will know geass is behind it, which is why I'm sure they wouldn't want to share their knowledge of something that can turn the tables." replied Lelouch.
"Good point." Kim Gu replied.
Suddenly some loud knocks could be heard echoing throughout the empty, abandoned warehouse.
"You may enter!" said Lelouch.
The rusty, metal doors opposite Lelouch slowly swung open. Suddenly people could be seen entering the building. Lelouch then noticed that seven men entered. Four of them were wearing a ragged white shirt with long pants while the other three wore a dirty trench coat over Western-style suits.
"Ah, I see you got my message." said Lelouch.
"Yeah. I'm guessing you're Zero? We're the remnants of the Gyeonggi-branch of the Righteous Armies. The council told us that you could achieve the impossible if I'm not mistaken." said a man who appeared to have a scar down his cheek.
"Your are correct, for you see, I plan to do the impossible. Which is to destroy the Kawachi battleship, one of the Imperial Navy's many prized ships." replied Zero.
"What? Are you a complete moron? This mission is practically suicide. Do you know what kind of miracle we would need to carry out this mission?" angrily asked a light-bearded man wearing a worker's cap.
"Then that is why I am leading this mission, for I am Zero, the man who makes miracles." replied Zero.
"But how are you going to achieve such a miracle is the question. If you haven't heard, the Japanese authorities are brutally beating us without even a struggle. How do you expect an amateur militia such as us is going to stand up against the Imperial Navy along with its other forces?" asked the light-bearded man.
The room went silent and Kim Gu looked towards Zero before looking at the group of men in front of him.
"Gentlemen, I know this man can achieve success if we go through with this plan. If it wasn't for him, I would be still locked up in that horrific prison, being repeatedly beaten to death. My presence here right now is to me the proof that the man standing right besides me is one who can create miracles. The council calling you here also shows you that he has the council's trust as well." said Kim Gu. "You may reject this offer and leave, but if you believe in the future and freedom of our people and land, put your trust in the hands of Zero."
The seven men then looked at each other with utter silence before the one with the scarred cheek walked forward.
"Very well. We will gladly accept your leadership Zero. If you were able to get the trust of Kim Gu and the council on your side, then I trust you." said the scarred man.
"Thank you very much." replied Zero. "Anyway, what's your name again?"
"Oh, my apologies. I am Capt. Gang Chul-moo. As you can tell I am leader of whatever is left of the Gyeonggi-branch." answered the scarred man.
Zero then proceeded to walk up to each of the other six men present in the room.
"Seo Dong-Sun at your service." saluted the light-beared man wearing the worker's cap.
"Roh Mal-Chin at your service." saluted one of the men wearing a simple shirt and pants. He was also the burliest one out of them all.
"Myo Yong-sun at your service." saluted a mustached man wearing a dark trench coat.
"Park Man-Young at your service." saluted one of them. He was apparently the youngest of them all, and was only a few years older than Lelouch/Zero.
"Jeong Hak-Kun at your service." saluted the other man wearing a trench coat and suit.
"Yi Myung-Dae at your service." saluted the last soldier.
"So what exactly is this miracle that you plan to pull of?" asked Capt. Gang.
"As you know the battleship Kawachi will be anchored in Tokuyama Bay." explained Zero. "Routine inspections are believed to be scheduled for the 12th. We will use this opportunity to attack the Imperial Navy."
"But with what? If you haven't noticed, we don't even have a boat, let alone a battleship to take this thing on." said Myo Yong-sun.
"First let me ask you question. What weapons do you have in your possession right now?" asked Zero.
"Uhhh, well all we currently have are a few Japanese bolt-action rifles and handguns. We got them mainly by stealing them from Japanese soldiers." answered Myo Yong-sun.
"We also have three Madsen light-machine guns that we managed to smuggle from Russia, along with a few grenades and conventional explosives." added Seo Dong-Sun.
"Good. That's all we need to succeed in this mission." replied Zero.
"And how are we going to succeed?" asked Roh Mal-Chin with skepticism.
"By doing this." said Zero as he took out a folded map from his pocket. He then unfolded it, and laid it on the floor so everyone could see. The map was apparently a map of the port where the ship is supposed to be anchored. Zero then proceeded to explain his plan and what role each member would take.
Once he explained to his plans to the group, Zero told them to get to Busan on the 11th, one day before the ship's routine inspection and maintenance. With everything so far planned out, Zero to dismiss the men. Zero and Kim Gu then proceeded to exit the abandoned warehouse.
"Just to let you know, we're leaving for Busan tomorrow." said Zero.
"What? I thought you said we didn't need to reach Busan until the 11th." replied Kim Gu.
"They needed to be there by the 11th, not us. If you're wondering why, it's because I need to make a few "tweaks" down there before we can proceed with our plan." replied Zero. The both of them then continued to walk away from the warehouse.
"Now that I have some pieces with me, I can now commence with placing them on the board. All I need to do is to move my king before my other pieces. If the game goes according to the script, then checkmate is within my reach. Let the game begin." thought Lelouch.
Author's Note: I don't know if you have noticed, but some of the people and events in this story slightly mimic character's/events of the Code Geass world. Since Korea has the role of Area 11/Japan while Imperial Japan has the role of Britannia in this story, it would make sense if things from the Code Geass world would have some kind of "counterpart" which/who plays a similar role in this world.
Anyone want to guess on what's what and who's supposed to be who? Love to hear your theories and thoughts.