"Lelouch"-Speech
'What'-Thoughts
"{Live}"-Geass Command
"Stop"-Loudspeaker
"Report"-Radio
Chapter 19: Raid at Kawasaki
September 12th, Viceroy Palace, 10:42 A.M.
Nonette
Nonette was currently in one of the private communications rooms. Due to her and Rai taking a room at one of the hotels, it didn't have a vid-comm for long distance communications. As such, she would have to return to the palace each time she needed to make one. One of the sacrifices she is willing to make for her lifestyle. Viceroy Pollux had practically ordered her to call for reinforcements. Despite the Emperor granting her authority equal to his own, she still allowed Pollux and Castor to run the show.
Right now, she was waiting for her call to come through. She had debated on which Knight of the Round to call. While, it may seem like overkill, something about Celaeno felt...wrong. It was almost like Nonette didn't want to fight Celaeno. At least, not to the death. She could easily call Dalton's sons, the Glaston Knights, however, that would leave Area 18 without a suppression force, and the terrorists would claim the land. What they needed...was another ace pilot. Which returns us to her initial debate.
Bismarck is the Knight of One, Charles' personal bodyguard, so there's no way he'd come. Bradley? No, just, no. Gino? He and Anya are almost inseparable. If one comes, the other might as well, and bringing two in may be too much. The others either don't have the experience, or wouldn't bother. That just leaves...Monica and Dorothea. Both have pros and cons. Monica would be easier to work with, and Nonette thinks Suzaku would find her quite attractive, but she digresses. Only downside is that she's less experienced than Dorothea. Lady Ernst is a veteran of dozens of battles during her time as a Knight, not counting the battles before that, and was a Knightmare Pilot during the initial invasion of Japan. Her Knightmare, the Palomides Frumgero, was also quite dangerous. A 6th Gen Knightmare specializing in heavy assault, it was almost the opposite to how Nonette fights.
The crux of the issue is her animosity towards anyone not Britannian. While discrimination isn't out of the ordinary, she take it to a degree. That stunt the Purebloods did, using Suzaku to try to throw all Honoraries back into the ghettos. Dorothea would've approved of it. She doubted that she and Suzaku would ever get along. Compatibility vs Experience. What would she choose?
Finally, the call answered, revealing Dorothea Ernst, looking annoyed.
"Lady Enneagram," Dorothea exclaimed boredly, "To what do I owe the pleasure."
"Dorothy," she replied, earning an eye twitch from her, "We're currently having some issues here in Area 11, and I'd like to ask for some assistance."
"Don't tell me a few Elevens are too much for you."
Nonette groaned, "Dorothea, just because our Knightmare pilots are of better quality, does not mean that our country is the only one that can produce expert pilots."
'Suzaku being the prime example.'
Dorothea scoffed, finding it ridiculous that anyone could produce warriors equal to Britannia.
"But, I digress. I'm here calling you on behalf of Viceroy Pollux. He's the one who requested reinforcements. Though, I'm guessing it was simply a knee-jerk reaction to his brother nearly getting killed, I can see the logic in containment."
"Containment? What do you mean?"
"Dorothea, what news have you received about our combat against Zero?"
"Very little." Dorothea's eyes narrowed, "Why are you keeping a tight lip on things"
Nonette pressed the 'Send' button. "I'm sending a file of one of the AARs. I'd suggest you take a look."
Dorothea turned her head, indicating she got the video. A smaller screen appeared in the bottom right, showing the Knightmare from Narita that was destroyed by the infantry.
"Nonette," she exclaimed, slightly shocked, "What did I just watch?"
"A squad of Knightmares being taken down by a squad of infantrymen...using only rifles. These Black Knights have infantry rifles that can harm Knightmares."
"That's ridiculous! Elevens aren't capable of this!"
"We believe that Zero and Celaeno are not Elevens, but actually former Britannian Nobles."
Dorothea cocked an eyebrow.
"Given the resources at their disposal, it's likely that whatever family they were used their wealth to build this resistance. For how long, we still don't know."
"Then they are traitors, less than Numbers."
"The point is, we can't allow information of these guns to get out."
"Nonette, I don't see the issue. So a small group of terrorists and traitors can harm our Knightmares. We outnumber them a million to one."
"You aren't seeing the bigger picture. Right now, the Black Knights are only focused in Area 11. However, if they keep growing, they'll attract the attention of other nations. If the Chinese Federation or, worse, Europa United, gets word of these weapons, they'll no doubt covertly supply them. And that's not considering the possibility that Zero may give the designs to them as a gift."
Dorothea's eyes widened, as she realized the implications.
"The only reason why the E.U. hasn't already declared war on us is because they know they can't win, and the only reason we haven't declared war on them is because it would be too costly. These guns would most likely make it into a stalemate. No city we take would truly be in our control, as rebels could simply use these weapons to destroy our Knightmares."
"*Sigh* Very well, Nonette. I will come to assist. I still have some business to attend to here in Pendragon, however, I should be there by tomorrow night, at the latest."
"Thank you, Dorothy." Dorothea moved to end the call, "But, there is one thing you should know."
"Of course, you'd leave important details out."
"Have you heard of the Lancelot?"
"You mean Prince Schniezel's pet project?"
"Yes. Prince Castor has taken a shining to the project."
"So, I'm expected to work alongside them?"
"That's correct."
"Fine. Lord Asplund is...unusual, but I'll bear with it."
"It's not Lloyd I'm referring to."
"Then who?"
"It's the pilot of the Lancelot, Suzaku Kururugi."
Dorothea's eyes narrowed. "You mean to tell me a Number is in possession of one of our most advanced Knightmares. Why haven't you taken it from him?"
"While you're here," Nonette continued, ignoring Dorothea's outburst, "I'm expecting you to not antagonize Suzaku. He's an excellent pilot, already one of the best pilots in Area 11, not counting myself. Not only that, but he has both prince Pollux and Castor's favor."
"How could members of the Imperial Family tolerate, let alone favor, tra~"
"Dorothea Ernst," Nonette interrupted, "I'm warning you. The Emperor has given me his authority while here in Area 11. An order from me is equivalent to orders from his majesty. I don't expect you to stand side by side during battle, but you will not antagonize him. Is that understood?"
"..."
"Knight of Five, is that understood!"
"Yes, Knight of Nine." Before Nonette could reply, the call ended. Nonette groaned.
"I'm already regretting my decision."
Her phone rang, prompting her to pick up. When she saw, she gave a sad grin, before answering it.
"Lord Valstar, to what do I owe the pleasure?"
"Please," a gruff voice replied, "Nonette, we don't need to be so formal."
"Just a habit then. I assume this isn't a social call."
"...How's Rai?"
The Nest
Celaeno
"So, you had spies within the JLF." Katase exclaimed as he and Celaeno were taking a tour of the Nest. Currently, they were nearing R&D.
"We had to make sure your plans didn't interfere with ours," Celaeno replied, "You were dead set on bringing back the old regime, a task Zero believed was impossible. Frankly, I do as well. You can be mad if you want, however, don't think that, if given the chance, you wouldn't have your own spies inside our group."
Katase sighed, "You're right about that. Especially after you explained that Kyoto had their own spies. I'm inclined to think that I would do the same thing."
The two entered R&D, heading for the Knightmare Section.
"I must incline, Celaeno, that this base is starting to get a bit crowded."
"Agreed. This base is meant to support up to two thousand people. However, with the influx of Japanese, as well as your people, , we're working with twenty-five hundred, and that number is rising. We'll be moving our more veteran people to secondary bases across Japan."
"Couldn't we just expand the base?"
"Not as easily as you think. It took years to build the Nest as it is without detection. The base is under a very frequently visited place, and too much construction work may end up causing people up there to hear it. The chance is small, but it's still a chance."
"Fair enough."
Celaeno saw Tolia, welding an image onto a panel held upright. The image appeared to be a cherry blossom tree.
"Tolia!"
The woman in question stopped, turned her head, and lifted up the welding mask.
"Yeah, boss?"
"Any updates?"
"Well, first off, we'll be getting scope for the Arcadons, so they'll be more viable in long range combat. We'll also be padding the stocks, as the recoil over time might be too much for shoulders."
"How about the WoS?"
"GAH! Everytime we fix one thing for that, it's like three new problems show up!"
"Aren't you supposed to be experts on Knightmares?" Katase inquired, earning a scowl from her.
"We're the top scientists here. That doesn't mean we're experts on Knightmares. You want me to build a tank that can race an F1, we can do that. Our speciality is more along the lines of conventional warfare. The Gorgon's KDS? Took over a year to get the science done. The Arcadons? Little over a month. However, when it comes to Knightmares, I do have some good news. First off, forgive me boss, but we've taken your Knightmare Rifle and AMS Rifle. We figured you're going to be engaging in either mid-to-short range combat more often, so we made a rifle that would be much more fitting." She handed Celaeno a datapad on a nearby storage container. Activating it, it showed her Knightmare Rifle and AMS Rifle, then the two merging into one gun. (StA101 Kameraad from Killzone:Shadow Fall, without the scope)
"Semi-Automatic, rapid reloading, forty round mag, it won't have the same omph as your AMS, don't expect to fire one round through three Knightmares, but it'll still pack a punch."
"Very well. How soon can my RBS be repaired?"
"Hmm, with all the other projects we have, I say ETA is...never."
"What? We don't have that many projects. Why can't we repair it."
Tolia simply smirked, looked left, then right, then back at Celaeno, before leaning back.
'There's something I'm missing here.'
It was then that Celaeno noticed something off about the panel with the cherry blossom tree engraving: It was attached to the thing Tolia was leaning on. She took a couple steps back, getting a bigger picture of it.
It was a giant katana.
"You reverse engineered the MVSs."
Tolia slammed her hands together, "Boom, baby! HaHA! Granted, while the majority of our forces will use the RBSs, the MVSs are just so much easier to customize. As such, we'll be having you and Zero's Knightmare use these."
At that moment, a crate, carried by a Knightmare Frame, was dropped on top of another crate, creating a deafening BOOM.
"Alright, Mizu," Talio exclaimed from across the area, "That'll be all."
The Frame parked itself on the walls, hooking to a Frame Support System, before opening up. Mizuka's eyes looked almost tired.
"How are you, Shimura?" Celaeno inquired.
"Doing better, boss."
Celaeno looked downward.
"Your arm is shaking."
Mizuka lifted his left arm, and steadied it with his free hand.
"Yeah. Been like that for a while. Mentally, I'm raring to go. However, it seems my body is still recovering. I've been doing menial work to help pass the time."
"Well, get through it soon. Zero was injured last night. I would prefer if his Widow Guards are not all holed up here. And I don't think you'd want to stay behind while your siblings go into the field."
"Yes, ma'am." Mizuka began walking out of R&D.
"On a different note, has anyone seen Ohgi? He's supposed to be helping me plan our raid."
"He said he went back to Yokosuka," Talio exclaimed, "Making one more sweep in case we left anything."
"Raid?" Katase replied.
"Right,"Celaeno replied as the two left R&D, "Forgive me for not warning you. Britannia has a research group called Code R. We know very little, other than the fact they're responsible for the Shinjuku Ghetto massacre."
"What do you mean?"
"Simply put, Clovis was funding Code R, possibly even founded it. One of his projects got loose and ended up in the ghetto. Clovis didn't want anyone finding out, so he decided to kill every Japanese civilian in there."
"Damnedable prince."
"A while back, we received intel from a Britannian unwillingly working for Code R. Not only do we have several Code R project locations, but we've learned that they've gone to ground. Even the Britannian military hasn't been able to contact them."
"Why would they hide from their own military?"
"That's how black ops groups are. Whatever experiments Clovis was working on, he clearly didn't get approval from Emperor Charles. Now, anyone associated with the project will either be killed or forced to work for whatever Prince or Princess gets their hands on them. However, we'll be hitting this one first. Katase, I want you to pick five of your best foot soldiers. People who worked in any form of Special Operations forces."
"Yes, ma'am."
Katase left, leaving Celaeno alone. She entered the Central Zone, entering the elevator room back to Ashford. After taking off her helmet, she sat down rubbing her forehead.
'First Shirley discovered we're royalty, then she discovers that we're rebels. It seems I may have underestimated that girl's tenacity for the truth.'
She took off her outfit, putting on her Ashford Security uniform back on. It would be a while before they would have their talk with Diethard, and she needed to get back to her own investigation.
Upon returning to Ashford, she entered her office, and went into her locker, back into the hidden room that observed Ashford Academy. She went to the whiteboard hooked into the back wall. When she went to the side, there were three markers, blue, green, and red, and a button next to each one. After picking up the red marker, she pushed the button for it.
This caused red writing to appear on the whiteboard, the top writing saying 'C.C.'s Contact'. Ever since she first saw C.C. talking to her mysterious contact, she had been keeping a much closer eye on her. Over the weeks, she had discovered several pieces of intel about the contact.
-C.C. called her 'My Lady', indicating it's female.
-'My Lady' indicates that Contact might be nobility, however, not conclusive.
-C.C. has told Contact about Lelouch and Cornelia. Contact may not be a Britannian noble lady, as our family would be all over Ashford.
-Initial guess indicated the C.C. may be more loyal to Contact, hence the 'My Lady' comment, however, C.C. has not told Contact that we are Zero and Celaeno, along with the above note, this gives evidence to the contrary.
Along with other notes, Cornelia still hasn't had a clue as to who the Contact is. C.C. must be aware that she's being watched by the guards, and is playing it safe. Despite C.C 's stunt of revealing Lelouch's heritage to Rivalz, as retaliation for us not listening to her about Saitama, she hasn't shown any inclination to betray Lelouch. However, Cornelia can't help but feel that, whoever the Contact is, it's too critical to not investigate.
'I know I've seen her somewhere before. But where? Did we somehow meet during the years we were building the Nest? Or was it before that, while we stayed in Japan? Or, could it be even before that? Regardless, I can't tell Lelouch about this. He already has enough on his plate with Shirley.'
As she let her thoughts drift from her investigation, she started to think back on what Kirihara told her.
'He wasn't wrong. Given that we've beaten them once, and our last two engagements ended in technical victories, it does seem possible that we could win a few years down the road. But, would I have the stomach to pull the trigger on my own family? Nonette was my first friend that I chose. I wouldn't want to kill her. I can't even imagine pulling a gun on Marrybell or Odysseus. Guinevere and Carine,' Cornelia smirked, 'I wouldn't mind slapping some sense into those two. Schneizel...he's an enigma. I wouldn't want to hurt him. However, he's almost like Lelouch, if Lelouch and Nunnally were never banished. Or, hell, if Lady Marianne was never ki~'
CHOMP
She gasped in slight pain as something bit her left heel. Looking down, she saw it was Arthur.
"Goddamn cat!"
Viceroy Palace, 1:30 P.M.
Pollux
Pollux, Castor, Lord Jeremiah, Lady Enneagram, and Squire Valstar were all in a debriefing room, with a screen at one end. The door opened, revealing Dalton and Guilford.
"It seems," Dalton exclaimed, "That no one has been able to find Miss Nu."
Jeremiah looked sullen, expecting the worst.
"Viceroy," Rai inquired, "You still haven't explained to us what's going on."
"Right. Villetta Nu was investigating a group of individuals that my brother was dealing with. Before she disappeared, she gave us intel on a dozen different locations they use. Sub-Viceroy Castor will be leading a ground assault to capture one of them."
The Nest
Celaeno
Celaeno and Katase entered one of the Briefing rooms, with thirty Black Knights either sitting or standing. She saw seven of them had JLF uniforms. The JLF remnants were still getting their bearings, so most of them hadn't switched to the new uniforms. AFter her meeting with Deithard to ensure he didn't squawk, Ohgi left, saying something important had come up, and that he wouldn't be able to come assist with the briefing.
'Strange. Questions for another day.'
"I thought I told you to get five."
"These seven were all part of the same Special Force Group. As such, rather than pick five random ones, I simply picked seven that already worked together as a team."
"A logical conclusion," she then turned her attention to the men, "Alright, everyone, take a seat so we can begin." The men began filing into the seats. "A few weeks ago, we learned the locations of several Britannian research stations. These stations are controlled by Code R, a black ops group funded by the late Prince Clovis."
"Ma'am," one of the JLF soldiers exclaimed, "When you first appeared, you broadcasted the message that Clovis was experimenting on a girl. Was she part of Code R?"
"Yes, and I'd prefer it if you keep any questions until after the briefing. Now, even though we were told the general area these stations were in, our informant couldn't give us their exact location, as even he wasn't aware of them. As such, we've been trying to pinpoint their locations. We believe we've located the nearest one, in the city of Kawasaki.
Pollux
"We believe the facility is located under the Tama River," Jeremiah exclaimed to the group, bringing up an aerial map of said area, "Though, we don't know the exact entrance."
"Then how do we know it's under the river?" Guilford countered.
"There's been an unusual energy signature under the river," Rai replied, "That doesn't match any known Britannian facilities in the area. Since we know there's a Code R facility in the city, we've guessed that it must be what's powering the facility.
"Correct. However, we do have a guess. There has been unusual activity near the Aklay Nursery (Todoroki Nursery). Upon closer inspection, we were able to confirm that several people listed as Code R personnel were seen in this area."
"Why are we trying to attack one of our science groups, might I ask?" Nonette inquired.
"Code R is a black ops group," Pollux interjected, "Controlled by Clovis. Based on what I've been able to find, it seems that he kept this not only from the military, but from the Emperor himself. In short, it seems he may have been planning for an eventual rebellion. These men know full well what that would mean for them. If their roles in this were minor, I could only give them life sentences. The majority would most likely be executed for treason. We're moving in before they decide to abandon the base."
Nonette nodded, feeling satisfied with the answer.
"This mission will have several of our Royal Guards, as they are the only ones that can be trusted to keep this raid quiet. Lady Enneagram, you and your Squire will lead the assault."
"And I'll be accompanying you." Castor exclaimed, catching him off guard.
"The Sub-Viceroy shouldn't take part in an infantry raid, much less a member of the Imperial Family."
"Brother, you know I can't resist a good fight. And, if I don't test this pistol on live targets, I may end up testing it on an enemy knightmare."
Pollux was about to retort, but Jeremiah beat him to it.
"My Lord, if it makes you feel any better, I'll personally guard him while on the mission."
Pollux thought for a moment, considering the possibilities, before sighing.
'He'll find a way to go anyway. Might as well cut out the middle man.'
"Very well, then. Margrave Jeremiah, you'll be accompanying Sub-Viceroy Castor during the duration of this mission."
Pollux noticed the slight scowl on Guilford's face, but chose not to comment.
"Alright, then, we'll be launching in a few hours. I want as much intel that you can acquire. Destroy the rest."
Celaeno
"MacNamara owns a repair shop in the northern part of the city. We'll gather there before launching our assault. Our entry point will be located near what used to be the Sanruki Transport station. We've confirmed that as one of the entrance
"The facility is underground," Katase continued, "However, we don't know how close to the river bed it is. So, no explosives."
"Details for your teams will be discussed upon arrival. Any questions."
"Why can't we use the arcadons?" One of the Black Knights exclaimed, "They have such a punch, we wouldn't have to worry about breaching doors."
"Arcadon rifles are meant for large-scale battles involving Knightmares. For small skirmishes such as this, we'll be using conventional weaponry. It's hard to take prisoners when a single shot could rip a limb off. And we want to take prisoners here. We don't know the locations of every Code R facility, and some of them may be more aware than our informant."
"Now," Katase, "Get to your assigned teams, and board the trucks. We're leaving now."
"Sir, yes, Sir!" The men began funnelling out of the room, with Celaeno and Katase following closely behind them.
"Ma'am," Katase inquired, "How does Robbinson own a repair shop?"
"Technically, he doesn't. Before the war, it was owned by him, his wife, as well as a group of local friends. Most were killed during the war, however, through some quick thinking, they were able to save it from being confiscated by the government. One of their friends is Britannian, and they changed the ownership of the place to be only him. As such, from the outside, it seems like it's a Britannia shop with Honoraries as workers. But, the real owners are him, his wife, and the Britannian friend."
"Impressive."
"You never stopped fighting, so your resources were only going to get smaller and smaller. We only prepared to fight for nearly seven years. Don't be surprised when we start pulling out more tricks."
Dalton
The briefing ended, with only Prince Pollux remaining in the room, looking over the details. When the door slid shut, the six continued down the hall, coming up to an intersection that had a window overlooking Tokyo. It was at that moment that Castor spoke.
"Yeah, forget what my brother said, we're destroying all the data."
The group was not only surprised by his sudden demand, but also that it countered his brother's.
"I'm surprised that you disagree, your Highness." Rai replied.
"Simply put, this group is dealing with some crazy stuff. Many of which I can imagine the Prime Minister would be interested in. Before you ask, if it was military gear, that would be different. However, considering that this group was indirectly responsible for Clovis's death, and the fact that they most likely have done some torturous experiments there, I don't want to give Schneizel any...unique data."
'It's good that he doesn't want Schneizel to get it, but Pollux wanted the data for himself, to use against the Second Prince when Schneizel eventually rebelled. Oh well, take the hand you're dealt.'
"Very well, Prince Castor." Nonette replied. Castor, Nonette, and Rai all left the group, heading for their own respective rides.
"Margrave," Guilford venomously exclaimed, causing Jeremiah to turn towards him, "Despite my better judgement, you'll be guarding Castor. Dalton and I have other responsibilities, and will be unable to assist him for this raid."
"You shouldn't fear for his safety. I will keep him safe."
"Considering how you handled Prince Clovis, I'd beg to differ."
'Again with his anger towards him.'
"If you're referring to when Zero and Celaeno first appeared, I could not anticipate such an action."
"Oh? When you couldn't find the killer, you picked a scapegoat. Your men called in, warning of the truck, yet you let them through. When you learned that the device wasn't a threat, you didn't shoot them. When Zero ordered you to give them Suzaku, you didn't hesitate."
"Have you forgotten that he knows about Project Orange?"
"Of which you still haven't given us any details on!"
"Enough!" Dalton interjected, "Jeremiah, I don't want you bottling anger when on your mission. You should get to your ride and head to Kawasaki."
"Of course, General." Jeremiah replied respectfully before leaving.
"Gilbert, what's your animosity towards the margrave? Given how dangerous the Black Knights were even back then, I can hardly fault him for what happened."
"Even so, I cannot trust that man. He allowed Clovis's murderers to escape without punishment."
"You never did have a high opinion of his Highness. Why now, all of a sudden?"
"I don't. He wasted time with frivolous activities when he should have been working to make Area 11 better. Because he didn't, terrorists like Zero were able to thrive. And every day Zero lives is another day he desecrates her memory."
'Her? Wait,' "Ah, I see now."
Guilford seemed to understand that Dalton knew who he was talking about.
"They were casted out, and banished here. They died here. The least I can do to honor her memory is by making Area 11 as prosperous as it can be. Jeremiah had a chance to cut the head off the snake, but, because of his own personal fear, he escaped. Now we're dealing with another Seventh Gen. Knightmare, infantry that can stand up to Knightmares, and, now, the JLF are joining with them, swelling their numbers even more."
"I can understand your frustration, but I doubt Cornelia would approve of you taking your anger out on people who had little to no control of the situation. As Jeremiah said, Orange is apparently worse than Clovis torturing a girl. Whatever it was, it warranted keeping it quiet."
Guilford sighed, "Yeah, probably. However, I doubt I can simply let that go."
"And I'm not asking you to. Simply keep that anger off of the others."
"That I can do."
Kawasaki, 2:55 P.M.
Cornelia
Cornelia drove her wine red 2018 Chevrolet Camaro through the streets, heading for Robbie's shop. The thirty soldiers, divided groups of six, were each taking a separate route to the shop, and arriving at different times. She wore a black duster with a buckle strap, back slit zip up faux twinset coat, with a hood. Not her preferred choice of color, but she figured white would catch people's attention more easily, something she couldn't have right now. Sitting in the passenger seat was Inoue, wearing a purple jacket with a green t-shirt.
The car turned the corner, and Inoue's eyes widened. She had voiced earlier how the shop could easily hide all thirty men. Well, the front of the shop dashed her concerns away. With five different front entrances for cars, and one for semi-trucks or other large vehicles, it looked to be half the size of an (American) football field. Not to mention that it was two stories tall.
Cornelia smirked, "You want to ask that question again, Inoue?"
She turned the car into one of the entrances, and saw dozens of Japanese people running about, working hard on the cars and trucks already parked inside. There were also two more garage doors in the back, either for deliveries, or for much larger vehicles. After exiting the car, Inoue scooted over and exited through the driver's side.
They looked around, and saw a short man, about five foot, talking with a couple in a box office. The man noticed Cornelia, and stood up, telling the couple to 'wait a sec'. His light brown hair brushed by a small breeze, he took off his shades, revealing gray eyes.
"What seems to be the problem, ladies?"
Cornelia stepped to the side, revealing a large dent in the passenger door. A flash in her mind showed her taking a sledgehammer to it earlier. Bit excessive, yes, but it gave a legitimate reason to go to a repair shop.
"Motorbike got a little too confident at a turn."
"Watch it, WATCH IT!"
There was a large crash from across the shop, as they saw one of the cars, the front suspended by cables, dropped. The man put on an angry scowl.
"You bloody Elevens! How many times have I told you to lower it slowly?!"
"Sorry, boss," the man meekly exclaimed, "The wench was turning right."
"And you didn't bother to tell me BEFORE you decided to take matters into your own hands?! Repairing that wench and the extra damage to the car will come out of your paycheck!"
"Yes, sir."
The couple had now exited the office, seeing what the commotion was about.
"Forgive me, miss," the Britannian apologized, "But it seems a high paying customer will be needing my shop. What say we repair your SUV...tomorrow? I'll give a 10% discount for the inconvenience."
"Oh," the woman said, "That would be lovely. Thank you, Mister Romero." The couple entered a car, which started with a sputter, before exiting the building.
"ALRIGHT! Close up shop, now!"
In sync, everyone carefully dropped what they were doing and began closing the garage doors. Once all the doors were closed, the scowl on his face disappeared, and he walked over to the man who broke the wench, dropping the car.
"You alright." Romero said calmly.
"Yes, sir." The man replied, more confident than before.
"Get yourself checked for any injuries."
The man nodded, heading to some of his co-workers.
"Seems you've been doing well for yourself since last year." Cornelia exclaimed.
"Yeah," George replied, "Still hate having to talk them down in order to keep appearances. Half these guys are better than most experts I've seen, yet I have to treat them as if they were lower than dirt."
"That's just the way our world is right now," a third voice, coming from the stairs leading to the next floor, replied. Coming down,an elder woman, wearing a mechanic uniform, and her greyed hair shortened for her hard hat, approached. Taking off the industrial goggles, her blue eyes showed slight pity.
"Hona," Cornelia exclaimed, "Good to see that you're well."
"And you, My Lady. When's my husband gonna arrive?"
"Should be with the last truck." As she said that, Cornelia pulled out a metal face mask, which, when pulled close to her face, locked into place. When it did so, the hood, having special magnets along the edge, hooked onto the mask, and the trademark yellow visor of Celaeno appeared on the mask.
4:20 P.M.
The entire shop was abuzz with activity, though, not mechanics, but soldiers. The Black Knights were all preparing their pistols, shotguns, and the new submachine guns, courtesy of the Twins (LS21 Valk from Killzone: Shadow Fall). Celaeno grabbed her rifle (M55 Rumbler from Killzone: Shadow Fall). Robbinson didn't arrive. Turned out that something had come up, requiring his attention. While she was curious about what happened, she had to focus on the current objective. When the trucks arrived, only two remained, as it would look suspicious if five or six trucks all crowded in one alley.
"Alright, mount up."
Everyone started piling towards the trucks, splitting into two groups. Robbinson was originally going to provide comms, but now Hona would be filling that role instead.
The trucks left the alley, and began heading westward, towards the river entrance. As they drove down the street along the riverfront, they all rechecked their weapons.
"Alright," Hona exclaimed over the radio, "You'll have a thirty-two window once I jam the sensors before they realize something's wrong."
"Start the countdown."
The two trucks were coming up on an entrance ramp heading down. Another truck exited the ramp, and passed by them.
"Aaaaand...GO!"
Instantly, the first truck swerved down into the entrance, coming into a parking lot. Two guards were at the entrance, initially confused, but then checking their radios, finding them not working.
"Halt," one of the guards says, "This is a restricted~"
At this moment, Celaeno had exited the truck, pulled out her silenced rifle, and gunned the man down, with the second falling as Inoue exited the passenger seat.
"Where?"
"Around the corner of the wall adjacent to the door."
Celaeno moved, seeing a large panel, and proceeding to rip it off, revealing several buttons and levers.
"Next."
"Remove the bolts on each corner."
Celaeno motioned for a screwdriver, which one of them tossed to her. Upon removing the bolts, the front came off, showing dozens of wires.
20 seconds.
"You should see wires going all over the place, but they mainly converge in three areas."
"I see the spots."
"Place the device on the one with the smallest amount of wires."
13 seconds.
Celaeno placed the device on the correct spot.
"Alright, I'm in. Now, to make sure you're invisible for these cameras. And, done."
Celaeno stood up, now all the Black Knights out and awaiting orders.
"Alright, I want the JLF soldiers to remain here with the trucks. Code R doesn't know we're here, and I'd like to keep it that way until we're ready. We'll go in slow and~"
A large boom could be heard, shocking all of them.
"Report, now!"
"Checking through their cameras….We have a problem. The Britannians had the same idea, and are assaulting the front entrance."
"Damnit. Alright, change of plans. JLF is the same, everyone else, blitz through this. I want us out in fifthteen. Forget gathering data, just destroy it all. If anyone comes through this door that isn't us or wearing a lab coat, take them down. If they are wearing a lab coat, detain them until we leave."
"Yes, sir!"
Celaeno, alongside her men, busted down the door, and began making their way through the facility.
Castor
The Britannian Royal Guard stormed the entrance, not taking any prisoners. Though the scientists may be Britannians, they had betrayed their countrymen by refusing to turn themselves in. The group of fifty men had split into two groups, with Castor and Jeremiah leading one, and Nonette and Rai with the other.
"Status report." Jeremiah called over the radio.
"Things are getting tight here," Nonette replied, "Hope you're doing better."
"I'd say so," Castor replied, pressing the button to a door, which slid upward, "This place is not gonna be easy."
He entered the room, seeing large containers of water, most likely holding containers for test subjects. Then, the door slammed down behind him cutting him off from his men. At the same time, the opposite door opened, revealing four guards, who charged him. Luckily, it seemed that they only had either knives or batons. Though, since physical combat wasn't his specialty, that didn't help.
The first guard lunged at him with a baton. Castor grabbed the man's arm, but a second guard clubbed his head, while a third slashed as his arm. Tumbling backwards, he smashed into one of the containers, causing water to cascade down his body.
"GET THIS DOOR OPEN NOW!" He heard Jeremiah roared, though the intensity made him think he was using a megaphone.
He raised his cut arm, and everything slowed down. Blood was flowing down his arm.
His blood.
Memories came to him. Of his first time in knightmare combat. His knightmare blowing up, leaving the lower half of his body crushed. Even still, he was able to kill three more terrorists footmen before his brother arrived.
The feeling of the edge.
The edge of death.
Castor smiled demonicly. "It's only at the edge, that we truly live."
"What?" One of the guards asked, before getting a hard kicked to the groin.
Castor quickly got up, grabbing the falling knife and chucking it at a second guard. With the other two in a perfect line, he pulled out his sniper pistol, and fired. The bullet pierced through the third and the fourth guys' heads, slamming into the steel wall. The second guard got back up and slashed at his side. Castor's hip was slashed, though he grabbed the man's throat, and put another round through his skull.
The door finally opened, with Jeremiah and a Magma guard raising their weapons. The first guard was starting to lean up, but Jeremiah put a bullet in his head.
"Your Highness." Jeremiah exclaimed, rushing to him. Castor limply looked down, as his still bleeding arm.
"...I'd like to ask you not to mention this to Suzaku. Wouldn't want to tarnish my image to him."
"Um, yes, your Highness. Men, get his Highness out of here, now!"
Castor didn't bother arguing, as he understood that he needed to leave, having been injured.
Celaeno
"Celaeno," Hona exclaimed, "You need to leave. The place is becoming chaos itself."
"Yeah, I'm not surprised," Celaeno replied, getting ready to breach another door with Inoue and another BK, "No one knows who's on who's side. I'll finish this room, then leave. Status report."
"We've lost two men so far. Apparently, there's someone with a crossbow."
'What?'
"Exit team seems to be fine so far."
"Roger that. Keep me updated." Using the keycard she took from the guard's corpse, she opened the door, revealing a small room. Three scientists, two males and a female, were cowering in the back.
"Don't shoot! We're unarmed!" All three said variations of the same thing. Cornelia noticed that, unlike most of the rooms, this didn't have either torture tools or subject containers.
"What were you doing here?"
The woman cautiously stepped forward, "We were attempting to decipher the russian message for the past few months." She pointed to the computers, labelled 'Tsar Taigun no'.
'Interesting.' "Why couldn't you figure it out?"
"It seems the message has a firewall, and we haven't been able to break the encryption."
'Makes sense. But the interesting thing is the name. Tsar Taigun no. Tsar is obviously russian for King, but Taigun no is Japanese, meaning 'of the horde'. Meaning the project is called 'King of the horde'. Why would the Russians use Japanese words for their project? Might be worth looking into.'
Celaeno copied the files before placing it in her pocket, and zipping the pocket up.
"Let's go."
"Wait," one of the scientists exclaimed, "You're not going to kill us?"
"I see no point. We only came to collect data, however, the Britannians stopped that plan, so we came to destroy data. I see no benefit in killing you. I'd suggest you start running, though. The Britannians seem to be purging this place, so running to them won't help. Be warned running to the side entrance. Our men are waiting there, and they will detain you until my forces are done."
Not waiting for a response, the three left, and began making their way towards the rally point. After dodging a firefight between the guards and Britannian soldiers, they decided to cut through one of the labs to reach the rally point.
"Any idea what's on that file?" Inoue inquired.
"No, but, if the russians and japanese were working together one something, I'd like to know what it~" The door slid open.
"Well," Nonette said, aiming a shotgun right at her, "Hi."
Instantly, three things happened. 1, Nonette fired her shotgun at only. 2, the BK soldier pushed Celaeno to the side. And, 3, the BK was blasted backwards, dead before he hit the wall.
Acting on instinct, Celaeno lunged into the lab before Nonette could get another shot off, not even realizing she dropped her rifle. She gripped the gun, Nonette firing again, this time hitting the panel for the door, causing it to slam shut, leaving only the two in there.
Celaeno slammed the shotgun down, kicking it away. Nonette pulled out her sword, prompting her to grab her dagger, immediately changing it to spear form. The two quickly parried each other's attacks, before giving a brief calm.
Nonette narrowed her eyes, before they widened, a grin forming on her face. "Celaeno! I thought you only wore white."
"This was meant to be a stealth op before you arrived."
"How awkward this must be, then."
Nonette lunged at Celaeno. Though she parried her attacks, Nonette was relentless. Celaeno parried a thrust downward, then slammed the bottom end into Nonette's head.
"Okay," Nonette groaned, "I'm done."
Nonette performed the same thrust, and Celaeno parried it downward again. However, when she went to hit her again, Nonette grabbed the spear. She spun around Celaeno, slashing her back in the process. Celaeno gasped in pain, but pushed through it, continuing the fight. She saw the door lift upward slightly, as well as hearing her men trying to pry it open.
They continued their dance, however, Nonette was much more precise this time, eventually slashing the spear away from her. Thinking fast, Celaeno choke held Nonette and, using all the strength she had, flipped Nonette over her, intending to slam her to the ground. However, as Nonette began falling down, she gripped Celaeno's shoulder, landing on her feet. Nonette proceeded to fall backward, using all her strength to send Celaeno flying instead, crashing through a container, and into some console, causing them to spark and fizzle.
"I must admit," Nonette groaned as she stood up, cracking her back, "You're much better than I ever expected. But this match is mine."
Celaeno slowly limped up, going around the container, facing Nonette.
"Don't thi~" Celaeno quickly stopped, realizing her voice modulator was broken, slowly returning to her normal voice.
'Damnit, this smaller mask isn't waterproof, and I just got a dose of it.'
"Oh, voice box isn't working. Well, I'll now be able to hear your lovely voice." Celaeno saw the door slide farther up, enough for her to go under. She charged at Nonette, who swung wide, which Celaeno dove over. She quickly grabbed her spear, converting it back to dagger, before using the momentum to slide under the door. Her men quickly pulled her up.
"Run! RUN!" The group began running, with Celaeno in the back. As they reached a corner, she felt what could equate to a bull hitting her, slamming her to the wall. Looking back, she saw Nonette, crawling under the door, firing her shotgun at them. Celaeno kept running, but made a note to check for wounds while in the truck.
They returned to the trucks, seeing two groups of scientists. Seven on one side, five on the other. Of the group of five, she saw the three scientists from earlier.
"What's happening?"
"These fives wish to join us." One of the JLF soldiers replied.
"So do we!" One of the seven scientists said. Celaeno looked at the JLF soldier.
"Trust me, sir."
"We don't have time. Put the five in the trucks, now."
"You can't leave us!"
However, they simply ignored them, getting on board and turning around. As they went up the ramp, Celaeno saw Britannian soldiers coming from the door they left, and gunshots could be heard.
Once they were a safe distance from the place, she got on the radio. "Why were those five special."
"Apparently," the JLF soldier replied, "Those five worked on experiments that didn't use human beings. Even if they wanted to join, I wasn't going to let people who were using living tests subjects join us."
"A wise move. Control, the Britannians are swarming the place. We'll have to simply head back to the Nest instead of regrouping with you."
"Very well," Hona replied, "Good luck. Control, out."
Celaeno put the radio down, before groaning. Inoue, who was in the middle of the truck, with a JLF soldier driving, instantly noticed.
"Injuries?"
"I think the kevlar blocked the shogun, but her sword may have gotten through."
"Let me check." Celaeno took off her duster and shirt, leaning forward to show her back.
"It seems a small slash across your upper back, as well as two shotgun pellets pierced the skin, but that's all they did. I can easily treat them."
"Do what you can on the road. We'll deal with the rest when we get back."
As the trucks continued down, and Inoue started treating the wounds, Celaeno thought her brother must be having an easier time dealing with Shirley.
Jeremiah
The raid was a success. The base was all but destroyed, almost all the scientists were dead, and all the data was purged. It seems the Black Knights were here, however, and did escape with a few of the scientists.
'Damn them.' Jeremiah thought as he entered a ruined lab. It seems this room was used for something called 'Project Brynhild'. He saw a scientist, bleeding, crawling away from him.
'Seems we missed one.' He was about to shoot him, when he noticed a subject container. The container itself was gone, but the base, as well as the subject's name was left there.
Subject 214, Soresi, Kewell.
'He's alive? He's alive...and they've been experimenting on him.' Rage boiled onto his face as Jeremiah lifted the man by his hair, before dragging him over to the container.
"WHERE IS HE!?"
"Please, please don't kill me."
Jeremiah slammed his head into the base.
"The only chance you have of living is if you answer."
The scientist looked at the name shown to him.
"The subject was transported out just before your attack."
"WHERE!?"
"I don't know where! The truck he was taken in was the only one who knew where he was going! Please, spare me!"
Two royal guards came in at that moment.
"Take him!" Jeremiah ordered, despite not actually being about them in rank, "He has information we need."
"But I told you all I know!"
Jeremiah ignored his screaming as the royal guards dragged him away. He simply looked at the name. With Villetta gone missing, most likely dead, he thought he was the only Pureblood left.
'Kewell. What are they doing to you?'
Author's Notes: Next chapter, we'll be dealing with the fallout of Mao's initial attack, and the arrival of a second Knight.
Until then, leave a review, follow/favorite, and I'll see you next time.
But, before you leave, I'd like to announce my second story, Spears of Remnant, has officially begun. If you're interested in either RWBY, or Star Wars, now you have another story to look forward to.