Author's Note:….Seriously? Team Rocket? You thought that the soldiers were Team Rocket?! I confess to being disappointed that most people didn't automatically connect the dots here.
Credit to Francis456, EDK and animefan29 for correctly guessing who they were.
Anyway, here is the next chapter and there's a lemon here…or there would be if I weren't worried that the git who reported me last time wasn't still lurking around…look on Archive of our own under SeerKing if you wanna read it.
Now, I have a poll up for my Sekirei story…it closes in two days time, so please have a look at it.
I would ask that you all have a look at my other stories as well, especially my Campione! Story, Campione of the Raging Tides, as the two chapters I have up right now are interesting.
Read and Review!
Disclaimer: Code Geass isn't mine.
"Kallen"-Speech
'Lelouch'-Thought/mental communication
"{Die}"-Geass Command
"Halt!"-Loudspeaker
"Roger."-Radio/Walkie-Talkie
Chapter 17: Bond of Three
Command Centre, Japan Liberation Front Main Base, Narita Mountains
"Colonel Todoh! General Katase!" a runner yelled as he ran into the Command Centre of the JLF stronghold.
"Have some discipline!" Katase barked irritably. Tatewaki Katase was one of the few Generals left over from the Japanese Imperial Army and treated the JLF as if it were in fact still and army, rather than the largest resistance group left in Japan. He was a stern-looking man in his late-sixties, with short-cropped grey hair. He wore the dark-olive uniform of the JLF with pride.
"What is causing you to act so excitedly?" Todoh asked. The infamous Kiseki no Todoh was a man approaching his forties. His black hair and stern grey eyes were infamous during inspections. A sheathed katana was at his side and he too wore the uniform of the JLF, although he looked more imposing in it than his superior did.
"A report from the Yamato Alliance in Saitama, sir!" the runner said excitedly, "Cornelia attempted to wipe them out to lure Zero into the open!"
"Damn Britannian Princess." Katase grumbled, "And? How many did they lose?"
"Only a handful." the runner reported, "Zero appeared and led them to victory over the Britannians…including Cornelia!"
A mass of whispers fell across the Command Centre as the men on duty there discussed the report in amazement.
"Silence!" Katase barked, "You can gossip like fishmonger's wives when you are off duty, not a moment before! You, get me a detailed report on the battle, including Zero's involvement."
This last was to the runner, who saluted and ran off to follow his orders.
"I think we should bring Zero into the JLF." Katase said quietly to Todoh, "He's practically a folk hero now and his popularity will help us greatly."
"I'm…not so sure he will accept." Todoh replied equally as quietly as his superior, "Had he been angling to join us, I feel he would have done so after the Shinjuku Massacre. Instead, he takes over Naoto Kōzuki's old group and now he's saved the Yamato Alliance, for whatever reason. I get the feeling he isn't seeking the revival of Japan."
"Nevertheless, the offer will have to be made." Katase said firmly, "The gains if he agrees are too great to ignore."
"And what if he turns us down?" Todoh riposted.
"I can't say I see any possible negative outcomes." Katase said slowly.
"If we offer and he refuses, Kusakabe, among others, will become enraged at him spurning the 'honour' of joining us." Todoh said quietly, "Even the news that he has defeated the legendary Witch of Britannia, their previously undefeated Goddess of Victory, will make Kusakabe act rashly. He has far too much pride to act otherwise."
Katase nodded slowly. "I see what you mean. Still, in order to bring Japan back, we must try. Recruitment has dropped to an all-time low and Cornelia has stepped security up drastically since she became Viceroy. Several minor raids have gone wrong and what few TV frequencies we have access to for propaganda purposes are being jammed. If something isn't done soon, we will eventually bleed ourselves dry."
Todoh also nodded, although he also caught what the General wasn't saying, that if the public support of the JLF shifted to Zero's group, there was the chance of the Houses of Kyoto shifting their support to him instead.
"How should we contact him?" Todoh asked.
"Ordinarily, I would simply send a message, but Zero is no ordinary potential recruit." Katase said as he thought about what to do, "I also can't send anyone too highly ranked, otherwise it would make us look desperate. Hmmm…would any of your Shisei-ken (Four Holy Swords) be willing to undertake this mission?"
"They would all be willing to do it, if I ordered them to do so." Todoh replied, "As for who would be most suitable…Chiba isn't flexible enough, the same applying to Senba. Asahina is contemptuous of Zero's 'grandstanding', so he is unsuitable. That leaves Urabe. He will be more than up to this task, General."
"Hmm…Kōsetsu Urabe…very well then." Katase nodded, "Once we review the report from the Yamato Alliance, we will put a proper message to paper and then you can brief Urabe of what will be expected of him."
"Sir." Todoh nodded. This was a good move. As a captain in the JLF and a member of Todoh's personal guard, Urabe was highly ranked enough not to be an insult to Zero, whilst simultaneously being ranked low enough to not make the JLF appear desperate. If any mission to recruit Zero could succeed, it would be this one.
"Now where is that runner?" Katase muttered, "Feh. Probably having coffee and chatting with friends in the Rec Room!"
LLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL
Shortly Later
Meeting Room, Secret Base of the Six Houses of Kyoto, Unknown Location
The room was a traditional tatami-mat Japanese-style one, with wooden walls and pillars supporting the ceiling. In the centre was a traditional fire and kettle, with all of the accessories for proper Chadō (The Way of Tea).
Sitting around the fire in the seiza position were six figures arrayed in a rough circle. Five were men who were at least forty, the oldest being in his late-sixties. The only female was fifteen and very much the junior member of the group. For all that, she had a remarkable sense of presence as she elegantly performed the tea ceremony.
"Is this report accurate?" one asked as he gestured with the sheaf of paper he held in one hand, identical to the ones held by the other five members.
"Our worms inside the JLF mainframe duplicated the report and sent it to us as it was uploaded." another replied in a raspy voice, "I see no reason to doubt the validity of it."
"Yes, but this is a little hard to believe, isn't it?" another questioned, "That the Yamato Alliance, the bottom of the totem pole and prime example on how not to run a resistance group, would clash with the Goddess of Victory and not only emerge nigh-unscathed, but to defeat her on top of that!"
"They were led by Zero-sama." the girl said as she poured the matcha green tea into six cups and daintily presented them to each of her compatriots before returning to her place in the circle, "He achieved much the same result with the much-smaller Kōzuki Cell, did he not?"
"Indeed, Kaguya." another said, "But the Kōzuki Cell is far better trained than the Yamato Alliance. They have proper discipline thanks to their first leader, Naoto. It was a shame that he was killed. He could have done much for Japan otherwise."
"You should note who the Active Second in Command was during the battle." Kaguya Sumeragi pointed out, "Mamoru Takagahara, the former Second in Command of the Imperial Dragons Faction. He was noted by our observers to visit the Yamato Alliance more than once after the Tokyo Resistance Cells chastised them about their bandit-like behaviour. He has been whipping the Alliance Soldiers into shape for over eight months now."
"We evidently overlooked that." Taizō Kirihara said with a nod. The leader of the Six Houses of Kyoto, he was the eldest member. Despite his age, his mind remained as sharp and intelligent as he was as a young man.
"What remains is what to do about the actions of General Katase." he continued, "He is sending one of the Four Holy Swords to invite Zero to join the JLF. Kaguya, you have made yourself the resident expert on this masked man. What do you think he shall do?"
"Zero-sama will refuse." the Sumeragi Princess replied instantly, "Oh, he'll be polite about it, but he will refuse. He strikes me as the type to prefer his own command rather than be subordinate to another."
"Which means that Katase and Todoh's fears about Kusakabe might come to pass." the first member to speak up said with a sigh, "Patriotism is all very well and good, but Lieutenant-Colonel Kusakabe is far too patriotic for his own good."
"True, but the JLF needs every man they can get." another member pointed out, "They are the last remnant of Japan other than ourselves."
Kaguya sipped her tea before she said, "Perhaps we should think about the future, rather than what we have lost. Granted, the JLF undoubtedly deserve credit for surviving seven years of Britannian rule, but Zero has, in the space of a week, accomplished more than they have in seven years."
"What are you suggesting, Kaguya?" one member asked suspiciously.
"I am telling you that we should give some support to Zero-sama." the teenager retorted, "He has delivered two crushing defeats to Britannia, assassinated the mastermind of the Shinjuku Massacre, rescued my errant cousin from execution and toppled the Britannian Goddess of Victory from her pedestal. The accomplishments of the JLF are rather…wanting…by comparison, wouldn't you agree?"
"She makes a good point." one man admitted reluctantly, "The momentum of the JLF is faltering at last after these long seven years. I am not suggesting we cease support to the JLF, merely that some support is given to Zero as thanks for saving innocent Japanese civilians."
"That…sounds reasonable." another conceded with a frown, "What support should be given? The report from the Yamato Alliance makes it clear they are not in need of Knightmares; including the Kōzuki Cell's ones, they have over forty Sutherlands."
"The Guren Nishiki." Kaguya said, "As well as a number of Burai. They may have Sutherlands, but Burai are more easily replaced than they are."
"You would give the first Japanese-built Knightmare to someone we have no idea as to his identity?!" one man gasped.
"If nothing else, you can all consider how he uses it a test." Kaguya said with a slight shrug, "I have no doubts as to his capabilities, but it appears that a few of you require some convincing of the same surety…despite the already overwhelming evidence in his favour."
"The Burais I agree with." Taizō said firmly, "But not the Guren, not yet. If he performs well one more time, then we will send him the Guren. Not before."
"Very well, Taizō-sama." Kaguya bowed her head slightly at him. This was as good as she would get…for the moment.
'Once Zero-sama proves himself to these old fogies, things will be much simpler.' Kaguya though to herself as she sipped her tea daintily, 'Taizō-sama is being properly cautious, but three of the other four are just trapped in the past. We should be focussing on what Japan can become, not what it once was. Zero-sama is a force for change, I can sense it. I admire that in a man.'
LLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL
The Same Time…
Meeting Room, Yamato Alliance Backup Base, Secret Location…
Lelouch shivered suddenly. It was as if someone was walking over his grave.
"Zero?" Kallen asked in concern.
"I think someone was just talking about me." he replied, "Probably Cornelia cursing me out."
"She has real reason to." Mamoru said with a tired smile. The old martial artist had been helping Zero, Kallen and Ohgi become familiar with the Charter of the Yamato Alliance since the meeting had been adjourned for a couple of hours to allow Zero time to have his wound properly treated and so the Alliance members could discuss the two sides of the argument.
Aegis, utterly infuriated with herself for allowing Zero to be hurt, had insisted on guarding him, joined by Augur. He had acquiesced, knowing that Sayoko and C.C. had been badly scared by his near-brush with the business end of a pistol.
Kallen had also been furious that she had been unable to do anything about the now deceased Tetsuya shooting her leader, but both Zero and Mamoru had told her off for such an attitude, citing that since Tetsuya had been such a poor shot, he had been lucky not to shoot himself in the foot. It had been sheer dumb luck that he had hit Zero with even the glancing shot that he had achieved.
"True." Lelouch acknowledged, "Now, regarding the charter…it is ridiculous. The entire thing is more suitable for one of the member-states of the Euro Universe, not a Resistance Cell! A war fought by committee is a war already lost!"
"The main reason the Charter has been maintained is because the Council would lose their power without it." Mamoru said with a shrug, "They may only have power over a hundred or so people, but power is power."
"What is most vital is that this group becomes a credible threat to Britannia." Lelouch said with a sigh, "Not who has bragging rights within the organisation! The rest of the Council do realise that I intend to forge an army from this organisation, correct?"
"They do." Mamoru sighed, "But the majority of them have become accustomed to following the Charter. 'When in doubt, follow the Charter' has become their catchphrase."
"If they vote for the merger, the Charter becomes defunct though." Kallen pointed out, "If they are that power-hungry, why would they vote in favour of the merger?"
"Ah, there's the flipside of the coin." Mamoru nodded, "Most of them realise, albeit subconsciously, that the way they work isn't working, and hasn't done for quite a while now. A fresh start under you, Zero, is a better hope than they had this morning and they will willingly take it, provided you are fair with them."
"By 'fair', what do they mean?" Ohgi asked.
"Not restricting command positions to your own group." Mamoru said flatly.
"A fair concern." Zero acknowledged, "But initially, at the very least my group will be in command, for all intents and purposes, until the members of the Alliance can have their basic skills assessed, so we know what level they are at."
And have you done this with your own group as well?" Mamoru probed.
"Indeed." Lelouch nodded, "Tamaki-san has a surprising grasp of mechanics for someone with no formal training. Kallen, as you know, has excellent skills in martial arts and as the pilot of a Knightmare. She also possesses very good skills with firearms.
Kaname here is a budding commander and, as a former school teacher, has a lot of patience to teach people who lack patience themselves…like Tamaki-san."
Kallen and Ohgi flushed at the praise given by Zero. Mamoru nodded at Zero's assessment.
"So once you've assessed their skills, you'll assign them positions based on what they can do and how well they do it?" Mamoru confirmed.
"My group is a meritocracy. Age, gender, wealth, religion, seniority…even race are irrelevant." Lelouch said firmly, "What matters is how well you perform, nothing more or less."
"The 'race' comment will initially make people think you're referring to Kallen-chan." Mamoru observed, "But I think that you are eventually going to us this to allow full-blood Britannians to join, aren't you?"
"Mamoru-san, you are truly perceptive." Lelouch inclined his helmeted head at the martial artist, "That is indeed my eventual goal."
"Why?!" Kallen asked, "No Britannian would join a resistance group anyway, but why would you want any Brits to join us?!"
"Do you recall what I said to Tamaki-san at Fūrinkan?" Lelouch turned to look at Kallen.
"That…the Britannian Monarchy and Nobility are the real enemy." the redhead sighed.
"Exactly." Zero nodded, "But that was just the basics of the basics for Tamaki-san's benefit. If I recall, you attend Ashford Academy, correct?"
"Y-yes." Kallen replied, "Why…?"
"You are also on the Student Council, along with a fair few members of the nobility." Lelouch said neutrally, "Milly Ashford is the Heiress to the Ashford Family. Rivalz Cardemonde is the cousin of the Baron Del Cardemonde. Nin Einstein isn't of the Nobility, but her parents are affluent members of the Middle Class. Shirley Fenette is the same as Nina, but her father is a leading member of a Pharmaceutical company. Lelouch and Nunnally Lamperouge are old friends of Milly's from when she lived in Pendragon. Have any of those people acted as you would expect Nobility or stereotypical Britannians to act?"
Kallen's eyes widened at this recitation. How did Zero know about her schoolmates? "Ohgi, did you tell Zero about them?" she asked her brother's friend.
"A little, but nothing like that much information." Ohgi said defensively.
"When I discovered your Britannian name, I used some contacts of mine to gather information on the most powerful and influential students and staff at Ashford." Zero explained, "By fortunate happenstance, all of them were members of the Student Council."
"Oh." Kallen decided that it was a prudent decision and moves on to the question Zero asked her. "Well…Nina is xenophobic…really xenophobic. She practically wets herself whenever Kururugi comes near her, but the Vice-President had a word with her and she's been getting better. Other than that, they're…nice. They don't discriminate at all. Hell, the Vice President is fond of Sencha and his sister practices Origami!"
"You see? You cannot tar Britannians with the same brush." Lelouch said firmly, "It would be just as bad as if someone judged all Japanese people based on the actions of Tetsuya alone."
The looks of revulsion of the faces of the three Japanese people in the room made Lelouch, as well as Aegis and Augur, chuckle slightly. To be judged by the standard of a 'Frainer was abominable to them.
"Point taken." Mamoru said with a nod, "It will not be easy to convince them, but I will lend you my support."
"My thanks, Mamoru-san." Lelouch nodded his head, "Now then, we must discuss assignments of personnel following the amalgamation…"
LLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL
Colonel Todoh's Quarters, JLF Base, Secret Location, Former Inzai Prefecture
The rooms chosen by Todoh in the base were not the largest out of the officer suite constructed. They were large enough for a man of his rank and no more.
Similarly, the rooms were decorated fairly spartanly, with a decidedly aesthetic samurai tilt. Tatami mats were spread across the floor, and the walls were used to present katana and numerous wall scrolls of traditional Japanese sumi-ie (Ink-wash painting), each tastefully spaced out around the room, drawing the eye without being obvious about it.
Kyōshirou Todoh was sitting at a table in the seiza position, sipping a small sake dish as he considered the mission he had been given by General Katase, a mission he considered to be impossible or, at the very least, improbable to complete.
A knock on the door drove him from his musing. "Enter." he called.
A moment later and his personal guard, the Four Holy Swords, filed into the room. The only female, Nagisa Chiba, was the first to sit down, at his right-hand side. She was his most devoted follower and would quite willingly walk over coals if he asked her to.
Taking a seat opposite from her was Shōgo Asahina. He was a very intelligent man, but that intelligence sometimes led him to erroneous conclusions. His open dislike and contempt for Zero was known to all.
Next to him was Ryōga Senba, the eldest member of the Four Holy Swords at forty-two. He had served under Todoh in the Imperial Japanese Army and had fought alongside him at the Battle of Itsukushima. Wiser than Asahina, he didn't display any contempt for Zero, but had merely told Todoh that he didn't believe that the masked man would amount to much.
Rounding out the group was Kōsetsu Urabe. An unassuming man, he was far more open-minded about Zero than his three comrades were and had stated that he would judge Zero by his actions, not by his own sense of offended pride, which was the reason he was selected for this vital mission.
"Colonel." Senba nodded, "Care to tell us what all the secrecy is all about?"
"Princess Cornelia attempted to flush Zero out by orchestrating a re-enactment of the Shinjuku Massacre in the Saitama Ghetto." Todoh stated bluntly.
The outraged expressions on his subordinates' faces had echoed his own shock and anger when he had heard about it from the runner at JLF HQ.
"The resistance group in the area, the Yamato Alliance, would have been massacred along with the residents had Zero not shown up and taken command." the Miracle Bringer continued, "He led the Yamato Alliance to victory over the Britannian Forces…and toppled the Goddess of Victory from her throne."
A shocked silence filled the room as his four subordinates were struck speechless by this announcement. Todoh gave a small smirk as he took this in. It was a rare event that anything shook these four up.
"What…what were the casualties of the Yamato Alliance?" Chiba asked faintly.
"Two dozen with minor wounds, half a dozen with serious wounds and five deaths." Todoh recited, "The Britannian losses are unknown, but estimated to be considerably higher by a factor of about three."
"Three…?!" Asahina looked both flabbergasted and incredulous at this.
"I'll grant you, the vast majority of fatalities are from the VTOLs and conventional Battle Tanks, but it is still more than slightly impressive." Todoh said slowly, "Which is why General Katase has decided to issue Zero an invitation to join the Japan Liberation Front."
"You can't be serious, Colonel!" Asahina said aghast, "Zero's just an opportunist! If it wasn't for him, Cornelia wouldn't have gone after Saitama in the first place! Hell, we'd still have that spineless coward Clovis as Viceroy instead of Cornelia!"
"True enough." Todoh acknowledged, "However, it was only a matter of time before Clovis' incompetence as a Viceroy was exposed, in which case Cornelia would have been sent here to replace the popinjay anyway. All Zero did was move the timetable of the changeover.
Regardless of your opinions on the matter, his effectiveness cannot be denied. Other than handful of too-stubborn holdouts, the Saitama Ghetto was evacuated in its entirety, the Britannian forces were soundly defeated and the morale of those residents of the ghetto who hear this tale will skyrocket. We have to take advantage of Zero in order to make the JLF a credible threat once again, at least until Kyoto delivers the Burai Kai's that they have been developing. Then the Britannians will see that Japan is far from dead."
"Understood, Colonel." Urabe nodded. Senba looked in agreement as well. Chiba and Asahina looked unhappy though.
'You can't please everyone, so you shouldn't even try.' Todoh mused with a mental sigh.
"Anyway, General Katase asked me to assign one of you to act as a messenger to Zero." Todoh continued, "Urabe, the General and I agree that you are to meet with Zero."
"Sir." the man nodded seriously, "When do I depart?"
"First we'll have to arrange a meeting, which might take some time." Todoh sighed, "Once the meeting is set, you, and a small honour guard, will depart to meet with Zero and deliver the invitation, although I highly doubt he will accept."
"Why wouldn't he?" Chiba asked, insulted that this masked miscreant might snub the generous offer.
"Had he wished to indicate he wished to join us, I believe Zero would have approached us after Shinjuku." Todoh replied, "He instead took over the group belonging to Kaname Ohgi and made it his own. Even now, he is manoeuvring to take control of the Yamato Alliance, from all reports. These are not the actions of a man who wishes to be a part of an army; these are the actions of a man who wishes to lead an army."
"Why are we even bothering to send Urabe then?" Asahina asked.
"Several reasons." the Colonel replied, "First, there is the chance I might be wrong and that he is gathering forces to add to the JLF. Second, for the sake of intelligence and character assessment. We've seen Zero on television grandstanding, but we know nothing of what he is like among his men. Is he respected or feared? Is he merely a strategist and tactician, or is he a warrior as well? And, most importantly, is he honourable? When Urabe is there, he is to carefully observe Zero and try to answer all of these questions and more. Understood, Urabe?"
"Understood, Colonel." Urabe replied with a nod.
"The most important reason we are going through with this is that it is an order from the leader of the JLF." Todoh said firmly, "Regardless of our feelings on the matter, we will offer Zero the opportunity to join us and treat him as a comrade in arms should he accept."
"What if he refuses?" Senba asked neutrally.
"Then we respect his choice." the leader of the Four Holy Swords said firmly, "Not everyone is cut out to work as a subordinate in an organisation. Zero might be a genius-level leader, but he could also be a bad subordinate. He could refuse for a variety of reasons, not the least being that he prefers to lead his own group rather than leading a part of someone else's group in their name."
"A point." Senba nodded, "Very well Colonel. I shall be guided by you in this."
"As will I." Urabe nodded as well.
"I still think Zero is bad news." Asahina grumbled, "But I'll still follow your lead, Colonel."
Chiba merely sat straight and nodded firmly at Todoh in affirmation that she too was on board.
"Very well then." Todoh was relieved that Asahina wasn't sulking about being overridden. The Colonel didn't know what the glasses-wearing soldier had against Zero, but he hoped his subordinate could overcome that dislike should the masked man accept the offer.
And perhaps Britannia would disband the Area System while he was wishing for impossible things.
LLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL
One Hour Later
Student Council Room, Ashford Academy, Britannian Tokyo Settlement
"Hmm…should I…or shouldn't I?" Shirley mused aloud.
The orangette was sitting at her usual seat in the Student Council Room, gazing somewhat forlornly at where her raven-haired crush usually sat. Lelouch, along with Celesta, Kallen and Milly, were absent today and the young girl was not happy about this.
Kallen was a beautiful girl, with bigger boobs than she and a gentle demeanour that even Shirley envied. The redheaded Stadtfelt Heiress was lithe, beautiful, kind and basically, everything Shirley aspired to be.
The orangette knew, of course, that she had her own advantages. Shirley had been on the Student Council for far longer than Kallen and thus knew Lelouch far better. She also possessed an athletic body, thanks to her time in the Swim Team, and she knew she was highly attractive, having to shoot down at least one person a week, sometimes two, who asked her out.
'The only thing I don't have is the confidence to confess my feelings to Lulu.' Shirley bemoaned her cowardice to herself, 'Milly could do it easily! Ohhhhh…I don't even know if he's interested in Kallen or Celesta, but my woman's intuition is telling me that he's interested in someone and it isn't me.'
Thinking back to her First Year at Ashford, she recalled how she had actively disliked Lelouch because he never seemed to put any effort into anything. Then, he had diffused a very tense situation involving a car accident without so much as saying a word about it afterwards. Lelouch hadn't even sought recognition for it from anybody.
That had been the turning point. She had been invited onto the Student Council by Milly, who took the opportunity to leer and molest her at every available moment when Lelouch wasn't standing over the President with a metaphorical whip and making her behave.
By the end of her First Year, she was completely head-over-heels for one Lelouch Lamperouge, much to the disappointment of quite a few boys who had fancied their chances with her.
The problem was that every time she was alone and near him, she turned into a stammering, blushing pile of mush! It was embarrassing and mortifying, but it happened every single time!
With a small groan, Shirley buried her head in her hands. She had to get better at being close to her crush if she stood any chance of successfully asking Lelouch out, but how?
Her internal pondering was interrupted by her phone ringing and she instantly recognised the ringtone. It was the one she had assigned Lulu!
"Hello?" she answered the call on autopilot.
"Shirley? Sorry for calling you during school." Lelouch said apologetically.
"That's fine. Where are you?" Shirley asked, "You aren't out gambling again, are you?"
"No, I am completely innocent of that this time." he assured her, "I'm stuck at a meeting for one of my projects. One of my fellow investors got into some trouble and we're all stuck her until we've sorted it out."
"Oh no." Shirley knew how much Lelouch dislike listening to people argue, "What about Nuna?"
"I filed for two days off of school just to be safe, but at the rate this is going I'll be stuck here until the end of the week." Lelouch sighed down the phone, irritation plain in his voice, "I'm sorry to ask this of you, but could you and Milly look after Nunnally until I get back? A sleepover or something? I promise to be back as soon as I can."
"Sure." Shirley agreed. She loved Nunnally like a sister. The younger Lamperouge sibling was simply adorable and was a joy to be around, "What about Sayoko? Is she at the Clubhouse?"
"I called her to bring me some documents that I had left behind in my haste to get to the meeting." Lelouch replied apologetically, "She's elected to stay with me until tomorrow at least because of how…irritable some of the other investors are becoming, which is part of the reason I'm turning to you."
"Sounds like you're in good hands." Shirley said with a giggle. Sayoko's protectiveness of her master and mistress was well known in the Student Council. This extended to people snapping at them, like one boy had done to Lelouch after Shirley had turned him down. She had, quite literally, kicked him out of the door for 'daring to address Lelouch-sama in such a disrespectful manner'.
"The best." Lelouch agreed, "And it is why I have to leave Nunnally in your capable hands. Is Milly there?"
"No, she's absent due to family obligations." the orangette told him, "She didn't look happy when I saw her this morning though."
"I would imagine not. Her mother is trying to marry her off like a prize breeding mare." Lelouch replied dryly, "It seems I might have to do something about Melisande when I return. Would you text Milly about my situation and my request for you and her? I have to go back into the meeting right now and I'll be out of touch until further notice."
"Of course." Shirley said, "Be careful Lulu. I heard that Zero was involved in something in the Saitama Ghetto."
"Thank you for the concern, but I think that Zero has more than enough on his plate than to bother himself with a bored and frustrated schoolboy, Shirley." Lelouch said dryly, making Shirley giggle again, "See you later Shirley I'm being beckoned back in right now."
"Bye Lulu!" she said before she hung up., "Why can't I ever be calm like that when we're alone and in person?"
"Shirley?" Nina asked, "Was that the Vice-President?"
The girl had been quietly working on her research at the computer
"Yeah, Lulu's stuck at a meeting and he asked me to look after Nuna until he and Sayoko get back." Shirley replied, "Oh, I have to send Madame President a message as well. Lulu wanted her to help me."
"Milly has family business to take care of today." Nina pointed out, "Are you sure you should interrupt her?"
"If Lulu's guess on what that business is, she'll be glad to have something to distract her from it." the orangette replied absently as she tapped out a message to Milly on her phone, "And Lulu's guesses are usually right."
"True enough." Nina admitted. Lelouch may come off as lazy, but he was obviously a genius. The verdette, herself possessing a genius-level IQ, easily recognised the signs in the raven-haired boy. She just couldn't understand why he didn't channel his intellect into something productive. The idea of merely getting by in her academics was anathema to Nina and she was utterly unable to comprehend why someone would deliberately downplay their intelligence and be satisfied with mediocre scores.
"And…there." Shirley said as she sent her message off to Milly, "Now I'd better go find Nuna to tell her about Lulu being away for longer than expected."
As she walked out the door, Shirley was happy. She was helping her crush and his cute sister all at once.
Life was good.
LLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL
With Lelouch
Yamato Alliance Backup Base, Secret Location
As he snapped his phone closed, Lelouch looked around the room he, C.C. and Sayoko were currently in. He had requested a room to confer with his two guards alone and the Yamato Alliance soldiers had led him to a room that had been a storage room of some sort.
After Sayoko checked the place over with a fine-toothed comb for hidden camera, microphones or the like, he had called Shirley to make sure Nunnally was looked after while he was away. Next, he had informed Jeremiah of the upshot of the battle and warned him and Villetta to keep their heads down until Cornelia had calmed down.
His final call had been to the old man who ran the costume business. Once he had confirmed that the man was alone, Lelouch remotely activate the Geass he had cast upon him and gave him a set of instructions to carry out before hanging up.
"All squared away then, Lord Zero?" C.C. teased. She had removed her helm once Sayoko had given them the all clear and allowed her long green hair to cascade out of the tight bun she used to keep it contained while she wore the headpiece.
"Witch." Lelouch replied without any rancour, "Yes. Nunnally is in good hands for the next couple of days, Jeremiah and Villetta thus far haven't been flayed alive by Cornelia and the mass-production of the uniforms is well at hand. All we need to do now is get the Yamato Alliance on board and we'll have a nice corps to build an army from."
"What will you do with the ten men who followed Tetsuya-teme?" Sayoko asked. She was leaning against the wall near the door, ready to block anyone who tried to enter without permission.
"That's a trick one." Lelouch admitted, "While they may have followed that idiot, they haven't done anything against me…yet. I'll give them a trial period. If they shape up inside of a decent timeframe, they can stay. If they don't, they're out with what they wear and any of their personal possessions they can carry, not including any weapons or uniforms."
"Lenient, but that will blend easily with the magnanimous persona of 'Zero'." Sayoko said before she turned her helmeted head towards him, "What about after they leave?"
Lelouch knew what she was referring to. The ten men, who might well possess Tetsuya's spiteful nature, knew far too much about the Yamato Alliance and its bases to let wander around willy-nilly where Britannians could pick them up. The best, and perhaps only, way to ensure their silence would be to silence them…permanently.
"That can be discussed at a later time, Sayoko." Lelouch sighed, "I will not condemn them to death at this point. Once we have judged them appropriately, in skills, temperament and willingness to learn from Tetsuya's hubris, then and only then will such a decision be made."
"Hai, Goshujin-sama." Sayoko nodded.
"Well, we'd better get back to it." the Exiled Prince sighed as he glanced at a clock on the wall, "It's almost time for the vote."
"Lelouch, will you help me put my hair up?" C.C. asked as she turned to present her back to him.
"Very well." Lelouch smiled. She didn't let anyone touch her hair, except for him and Sayoko. She said that 'only a man to whom a lady had given her heart to could touch a woman's pride and joy', so he supposed it was an honour.
The young man removed his gloves and stepped up to the immortal woman's back. He skilfully bound her hair into the wide, squat chignon bun that she had had it in before, held in place by a pair of long hairclips.
"There." he announced, "That alright Sayoko?"
"It looks good from here." his maid announced. Lelouch had to scoff to himself at that. An extra little trick to Sayoko's helm was the addition of several vision aids. Infrared, night vision, viewfinder…several of those were incorporated into it. One of the more basic was a magnification function to allow her to zoom in on something from where she stood.
Pulling his gloves back on, Lelouch then donned his helm once again, becoming the Masked Vigilante Zero. C.C., with a put upon sigh, donned her silver helm to become Augur once more.
"Aegis, lead the way." Lelouch said, getting back into the commanding presence of Zero, rather than his true persona, Lelouch vi Britannia, or that of the affable Student Council Vice President Lelouch Lamperouge. Although each was indeed him, all were subtly different.
Zero was a charismatic demagogue who was ruthless in battle and gracious in defeat. Lelouch Lamperouge was affable, kindly and mildly charismatic.
As for Lelouch vi Britannia? Even Lelouch himself was unsure who or what he was anymore. Hell, he might well not exist amid the numerous masks and personae he had created over the years. A small price to pay for keeping Nunnally alive, but it was still slightly galling to lose sight of who you truly are.
A short walk from the room, Kallen was waiting nervously. When the three masked figures approached, her face lit up. "Zero."
"Kallen. Is something the matter?" he greeted her.
"No…I was just worried in case the worm that set Tetsuya free had tricked us into thinking he had escaped and hidden himself within the base instead." Kallen said with a small frown, "I've sent teams to search every part of the base and stood guard here so that nobody could get to the room you were in while you were strategising."
"An excellent idea." Lelouch said approvingly, "I should have thought of that myself, but it slipped my mind. Thank you for covering my miss, and for standing guard."
"It was…just what I thought should be done." Kallen mumbled, not looking at Zero as she spoke, her face dusted with the light pink of a blush.
"How long until the vote is due to begin, Red Queen?" Aegis asked delicately.
Kallen's flush darkened slightly as she answered, "In about five minutes. I'll lead you to the hanger."
Aegis nodded and fell back to the rearguard position as they got underway again. Underneath his mask, Lelouch raised an eyebrow in surprise. Sayoko usually chose the point position, the most dangerous position in a situation like this; because she felt that she couldn't trust anyone else to guard him from that direction. The fact that she willingly allowed Kallen to take that position and take the (slightly) less dangerous position of rearguard meant that the kunoichi trusted Kallen to do what was necessary to protect him. That kind of trust from Sayoko was very, very hard to come by, but Lelouch knew she had made a correct decision.
Kallen had been supportive of Zero since the meeting at Tokyo Tower. Part of that obviously came from him giving her the opportunity to bury her beloved brother, but another part was hidden from his sight. What it could be, Lelouch couldn't begin to guess, but he supposed that was a mystery for another time as he saw the entrance to the hanger.
'Time for a command performance.' he thought with a twisted smile.
Mamoru's Perspective
Mamoru Takagahara was an old man for a resistance fighter, pushing sixty now. He had seen Japan rise as a world power, thanks to the discovery of the oh-so precious resource Sakuradite, and he had watched Japan fall because of that selfsame mineral.
He had taught the basics of his own personalised versions of Okinawan Kobudō and Karate to a young Kallen Kōzuki, as well as the now deceased Naoto Kōzuki, before vanishing into the newly created Ghettos that had been created in the wake of the Britannian invasion in 2010.
The aged martial artist had helped to found the Imperial Dragon's Faction and had spent a considerable amount of time building them up to be a worthy raiding force, constantly undermining the Britannians like the bites of a colony of ants, only to see all he had built destroyed not two days previously.
He had been teaching the youngsters of the Yamato Alliance how to find their purpose once again, how to act as honourable men and women again, when one of them attempts, not once, but twice, to assassinate the man who created a plan to counterattack the Britannians seeking to murder every man, woman and child in the Saitama Ghetto.
Constant successes and constant failures soon afterwards…he was a cursed man. The years bore heavily on him, each and every new one feeling like a ton of lead. When Zero had proposed the merger…Mamoru had been relieved. Here was someone who was young and vigorous, who moved with the self-assurance and deadly grace of a trained martial artist.
Here was someone he could, at long last, hand the reigns of leadership in the Greater Tokyo Area over to.
The most critical factor, he knew, hadn't been any of the actions Zero had accomplished on the Yamato Alliance's behalf. Nor was it the actions that he had undertaken on the behalf of the citizens of the Saitama Ghetto. Those had contributed greatly to his decision, yes, but they had not been the deciding factor.
No, the deciding factor had been the action that his old student Kallen had told him of while they had waited for the Alliance Council to stop arguing before the Battle of Saitama. Zero had retrieved the body of her brother from the Britannians and hidden it for her, so she could bury him and finally have some degree of closure from his death.
Such an act had obviously been aimed to ingrain Zero to the Cell, which had been compounded by his ability to rescue one Suzaku Kururugi from almost certain execution at the hands of the Pureblood Faction. Nevertheless, Kallen had confided in him that Zero had witnessed his own mother slain before him. He had known the pain of losing a family member and Kallen had recognised that in him. No one was that good at acting, and Mamoru trusted his former student's ability to read people.
To liberate Japan would not only take idealism and youthful vigour, it would also take a willingness to do what it takes in order to achieve victory. Zero had displayed a ruthlessness at manipulation that Mamoru knew would be needed if the country stood any chance at being free.
In his heart of hearts, Mamoru had known that the Britannians wouldn't be ousted, despite the heavy resistance by the Japanese people. The Sakuradite-heavy country of Japan was far too important for Britannia to write off.
But…Zero…he fought as if victory were not only possible, but as if it were assured. Such self-confidence was rare in these days and Mamoru had watched as the Britannians has fallen during the battle as that confidence had been very much justified. Whoever had been commanding the Britannians hadn't been bad, but they had stood little chance against Zero.
Even Cornelia, when she had made her entrance, had been manhandled like a child throwing a tantrum. The plan Zero had developed hadn't even needed the masked man's oversight thankfully, as that incompetent fool Tetsuya had attacked him just before the critical point of the plan. This left it all in Mamoru's hands to choose the opportune moment to detonate the explosives dotted at key structural weak points designed to collapse the vast majority of the building atop Cornelia's Knightmare.
Zero's ability to predict the movements of Cornelia had been almost scary in their accuracy and the plan had worked exactly as designed, with two of Cornelia's Royal Guard sacrificing themselves to save her. This would make the Witch of Britannia less eager to charge in where angels feared to tread if she knew Zero was in and about the battlefield, as well as making the woman doubt herself and her abilities by letting two of her subordinates die in her own place.
To sum things up, the Yamato Alliance needed Zero, just as Japan needed him. He had defeated the Britannians twice and had done it with the absolute lowest casualties he had ever heard of. Mamoru didn't know if Zero and his masked aides Augur and Aegis could actually throw Britannia out of Japan, but if the Battle of Saitama had shown any indication, he would at least make the Brits flinch more than once before they went down fighting.
As Zero's command officers, minus Ohgi, stepped through the door of the hanger, Mamoru took in the atmosphere of the hanger and gave a tired, but confident, smile.
'Zero, looks like you've won them over.' he thought, 'Now it just has to be made official.'
Kallen's Perspective
Leading the group into the hanger was not good for her heart; Kallen came to conclude quite swiftly. Every eye was on her first as she strode into the hanger, followed by Zero and Augur, with Aegis bringing up the rear.
She was convinced that she was going to trip up on something and disgrace herself in front of what had to be the entirety of the Yamato Alliance, but that didn't happen. She just calmly led Zero and his two bodyguards to the seats that were set apart for their use and let them sit down first before being seated herself next to Ohgi, who was looking at her in mild awe.
She didn't know that, as opposed to a nervous wreck, her appearance and grace had been serene and regal, almost like the queen that Aegis and Augur had nicknamed her to be. Add in to that the fact that Zero, Aegis and Augur had subtly matched their steps to her own just before they entered the hanger, making the four of them look like a single unit moving as one rather than just a group walking together.
A subtle difference, but a difference nevertheless.
Kallen tuned out all of the last-minute speeches by Mamoru-sensei and various other members of the Alliance Council (the entire Alliance Council, in matter of fact) speaking out in support of the merger. She woke up when Zero took to the stand.
"Members of the Yamato Alliance." he announced, "My apologies for my previous speech being cut rather short. Evidently, Tetsuya-san had taken umbrage with my taking him prisoner. Aegis showed him the error of his way and I trust that anyone else that feels the need to act like Tetsuya-san can be assured that Aegis will be more than happy to discuss the matter with you in a similar manner to how she discussed it with Tetsuya-san."
A snort of laughter had rustled across the gather troops at that and Kallen swore she heard one man say, "Yeah, sure. Whenever I want to feel particularly holey, that's what I'll do, get a fricking kodachi shoved through my lung!"
Zero ignored the man as he continued his speech. "I do not pretend to be all knowing. Nor do I pretend to be a mind reader. I proposed this merger because I believe it to be what is needed, not just for the sake of both of our groups, but for the people of Japan in general. If it is truly the will of this group that this merger fails, so be it. I am not Britannia, who constantly and consistently ignores the will of those they are stronger than, even their own people.
All I ask is that you please not shoot me to express your opinion on the matter. A voting slip will more than suffice, if you please. Before you vote however, I have four points to put to you."
He looked around the room with that faceless mask for a moment before he continued. "Point Number One: In Shinjuku, with the aid of the Cell created by Naoto Kōzuki, I decimated the better part of a Mobile Battalion and followed it up with the assassination of the murderous dictator behind the Shinjuku Massacre, Third Prince Clovis.
Point Number Two: With only the assistance of Kallen Kōzuki and Kaname Ohgi, I freed the expatriate Suzaku Kururugi before an entire company of the so-called Purebloods.
Point Number Three: Today, with the combined aid of you all and my own group, we have brought low the Goddess of Victory, she who had previously never been defeated on the field of battle, the infamous Witch of Britannia herself.
Finally, Point Number Four: If we accomplished this much together, when we haven't trained as a full and proper unit, imagine what we could accomplish if we remain as a unit? I say that we would make Cornelia rue the day she set foot in Japan. What say you all?"
A roar of approval erupted from the entire crowd as Zero finished and stepped away from the makeshift lectern, returning to his seat amid the cheers and applause. Kallen could practically feel the confidence and charisma rolling off Zero in waves as he sat down and calmly crossed his legs.
The halfblood Britannian/Japanese girl wondered at his confidence as voting slips were passed out among the Yamato Alliance members. They were very, very simple ones with two boxes on them, one with 'Yea' above it and one with 'Nay' above it.
It was a secret ballot and all members, once they ticked one of the boxes, folded the slip in half and went to one of the battered wooden boxes set up at either end of the hanger and slipped the paper through the opening at the top.
"This is nerve-wracking." Kallen muttered quietly. Evidently, Zero had excellent hearing despite that helmet because he placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Have faith, Kallen." Zero said calmly, "Excluding the ten that are currently locked up, we have the support of almost the entire Alliance. If more than ten vote against the merger, I will be very much surprised."
"How can you be so calm?" she asked, "This isn't like on the battlefield where you can alter the strategy with a well-placed ambush. Here, we have no say in what they do."
"You dislike politics, I assume?" Zero asked in slight amusement. At her cautious nod of agreement, he chuckled, "An understandable position. I take this point of view however: War is merely politics by another method, and vice versa. In a populist vote such as this, the opinion of the voters is crucial; we already have the good opinion of the Alliance thanks to saving them from Cornelia.
As to strategies and ambushes…a well placed speech can be just as devastating as an ambush and, in a proper long term vote as used in the Euro Universe, the strategy would be to convince the voters that you can fulfil most of your promises and demonstrate that your opponents cannot."
"That's…much better than any explanation I've ever heard in Political Science Class at Ashford." Kallen managed.
"A result of poor teachers, I would assume." Zero remarked, "Ah. Looks like the voting is almost finished. Now we'll see if my assumptions were correct."
A few minutes later, every single regular member of the Yamato Alliance had voted, barring those on the Alliance Council, who weren't allowed to vote in the first round due to their role in the second vote, should it get that far, and the five people chosen to be impartial and count the votes.
The minutes ticked by as the boxes containing all one-hundred and sixty-two vote slips were carefully taken to a small room off from the hanger in order to counted without the counters being under the eyes of the voters.
The minutes ticked by and Kallen's nervousness began to spike. What if the motion was defeated? What would happen?
Inhaling and exhaling slowly, she used a breathing exercise that Mamoru-sensei had taught her at the start of her training to banish her anxiety. Zero had done everything he could to ensure victory in this vote. She should have more confidence in him than this!
That settled, she relaxed in her chair, the picture of patience.
A moment later, one of the judges emerged from the room with a single sheet of paper held in his hands that presumably held the results of the vote. Every eye in the hanger was on the man as he strode across the room and solemnly handed it to Mamoru.
"Ahem." Mamoru cleared his throat as he stepped up to the lectern, "These are the results of the vote and I am informed that the results were checked three times to confirm their veracity."
He looked around the hanger for a moment before continuing, "The results are: Yea - 160, Nay - 2. The motion passes!"
Kallen was struck dumb as cheers once more echoed throughout the hanger. A hundred and sixty? That was ninety-eight percent of those that voted!
"As the motion has passed, the Alliance Council will now vote." Mamoru said, "I remind you all that the Council must vote the motion by general acclimation in order for it to pass. For those of you who don't know what general acclamation means, it means that the vote must be unanimous. A single vote against and the motion will be denied. Now, let us begin. Merely say 'Yea' in favour or 'Nay' against. I vote 'Yea'."
One by one, the Council stood and voted Yea. The last person hesitated for one long moment before smirking and voting 'Yea'.
"The merger between the Yamato Alliance and Zero's group is passed by a 98% successful vote of the members and by general acclamation of the Council." Mamoru announced. Turning to Zero, the Council bowed as one.
"Zero-sama, the former Yamato Alliance is yours to command."
Zero stood up graceful and inclined his head to them. "Please, raise your heads, gentlemen. We have much to get done."
Striding over to the lectern again, Zero began to speak. "Ladies and gentlemen, you have accepted me as your leader and for that, I thank you all. I do swear now to do my utmost to defeat Britannia and drive them from the shores of Japan!"
He let them cheer for a moment before gesturing for silence. "Thank you. Now, I realise that the constant leadership struggles have left you all lacking decisive leadership for a while. This stops now. I am in command and that is an immutable fact. I will not be slain on the battlefield and I would appreciate it if Aegis doesn't have to guard my back around my own troops.
We will not be a resistance group; we will be an army. A group dedicated to righting the wrong inflicted on the Japanese people by the Britannians. The Empire cloaks itself in the façade that might makes right. The strong oppresses the weak, because that is the way of Social Darwinism. We will show them that to persecute the weak is to invite our wrath."
Zero looked around at the faces of his new subordinates. "The Britannians are oh-so proud of their Monarchy and Nobility, and their Knights as well. Their Knights are nothing but arrogant bullies who put on the façade of Knights for Justice. Let us show them what real Knights for Justice can do. I have, at last, decided on a name for our group.
We are…the Order of Black Knights. And we shall bring the Britannians to Justice for their trespasses against not only the Japanese People, but the world itself!"
The roar of approval was almost deafening this time.
LLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL
Two Hours Later
Lelouch's Room, Lamperouge Section, Ashford Academy
"The Order of Black Knights…" C.C. mused. The green-haired immortal, clad in only one of Lelouch's dress shirts, was lounging on the bed and regarding her lover as he typed away furiously at his computer, "Are you trying to piss off your father?"
"A useful side benefit only, I assure you." Lelouch replied, "The people I'm trying to piss off are the Nobility that makes up the majority of the Empire's general staff, as well as the Knights that make up the majority of the Knightmare forces."
"By making every one of your soldiers a Knight, you take away the Imperial Knights' moral advantage." Sayoko guessed. She was serving tea as she spoke, "In addition to that, your group's popularity will grow with every 'act of justice' that they carry out, as well as increasing their confidence in their skills and your leadership."
"Correct, Sayoko." Lelouch praised her, "The initial targets are going to be those scum who steal from the Japanese people, as well as the cartels that are creating and selling Refrain."
"What about the actual battlefield?" C.C. asked, "These costumes are all very well for the moment, but if we're dismounted from a Knightmare, they make us a target."
"That's why I'm currently engaged in a bit of design theft at the moment." Lelouch said as he tapped away on the keyboard, "A scientist about three years ago made a presentation to the Britannian command of personal powered armour of some kind. It enhanced the user's strength and speed, gave protection from small-arms fire and shrapnel and could have built in weapons systems."
"Sounds like something that the Britannian High Command would have jumped at." C.C. remarked, "They turned it down due to cost, I assume."
"Partially." Lelouch said, "The cost of each individual Armoured Suit was high, but not so high as to preclude limited scale manufacture for Spec-Ops and assault teams to use. No, what pulled the plug on the armour was the fact that they only had an active duration of ten minutes before the built in battery ran out."
"Ten minutes? Seriously?" The immortal asked incredulously, "The design team couldn't extend it for any longer than that?"
"Nope." Lelouch replied as the pace of his typing increased fractionally, "They didn't use an Yggdrasil Drive or Core Luminous as it was deemed impractical to miniaturise it to such an extent. Moreover, they couldn't really accomplish such an engineering feat with the technology available two years ago. Now, however? I think so."
"What happened to the designers?" Sayoko asked.
"The Team Leader committed suicide as he had bet all of his prestige on the armour." Lelouch said, "The rest of the team went their separate ways. Some are with Camelot and some are with various other domestic military firms. The actual designs are a matter of public record, albeit only for the Nobility to view."
"So how are you getting your hands on them?" his green-haired lover asked.
"Simple; I'm bribing the hell out of the network administrator to send the entire file, including research and development notes, to one of my remote addresses." Lelouch said nonchalantly, "That is the advantage of Britannia; a bit of graft in the right places to the right people gets you a long, long way. I'm also inserting a worm into the system to destroy any remnants of the blueprints once the administrator finally stops being greedy and sends me what I want…ah-ha! There it is. Greedy bastard wanted five-thousand pounds."
"How much did you get him to lower it to?" the kunoichi asked as she passed a cup of Earl Grey to C.C.
"Three-thousand, five hundred pounds." Lelouch stated, "I could have made him lower it a bit more, but he probably would have spiked the file with a worm if I tried that. Not that I couldn't have dealt with one in the first place, but the quicker we can make these armoured suits, the better."
"The raw materials would take quite a bit of gathering." C.C. remarked, "Not to mention the specialised equipment to construct the armour in the first place."
"That is why I called our faithful costume maker." Lelouch smiled evilly, "I've been meaning to have these built for since we decided to rebel, but there was the whole Suzaku situation, then Saitama. I decided to have the man who made these costumes use his connections with various nobles to get his hands on the original lab that designed the suits in the first place, then arrange to have the equipment shipped here, where we can have it reassembled in Theta Base."
"Clever." C.C. admitted, "But will it still be in one piece? It has been two years after all."
"The lab complex was in Area Five's Sydney Settlement." Lelouch said, "The Company that financed the development has maintained the lab in the hopes that someone would be willing to continue the research. My…associate…will be purchasing the lab and its contents on my behalf…including any and all research that was being conducted in the lab before it was shut down."
"Do you think they'll sell?" Sayoko asked curiously.
"Oh, they'll sell alright." Lelouch smirked, "They are very much close to bankruptcy and desperately need the cash. It should only set the Nobles that I'm stealing money from back about a million pounds all told."
"A million…?!" the girls gasped.
"I'm lacing trails leading to some of the bigger cartels to indicate who is responsible." Lelouch said smugly, "The money I've stolen from them is being put into a newly created account in Area 5 under the name R. S Possible."
"Responsible. Oi." C.C. shook her head.
"Sometimes I feel the need to taunt the so-called intellectual elite." Lelouch shrugged as he finished typing, "There. The blueprints are mine and I can analyse them to my hearts content later."
He fished out his phone and rang the costume shop owner. "It's me. Do it now."
"Yes Milord." the costume maker replied, still under the effect of his Geass.
"Well, that's that." Lelouch sighed as he hung up, "What a day it's been!"
"Hmmm…I'd agree." C.C. stretched like a cat, "I'm so damn tense from wearing that getup for so long!"
"You're doing better than the people in the new Black Knights are going to be." Lelouch pointed out, "From everything Kallen told me about him, Mamoru is one hell of a strict teacher."
"The former members of the Yamato Alliance need a firm hand." Sayoko pointed out not unkindly, which Lelouch was forced to agree about.
Before leaving the base in the capable hands of the joint Second in Command team of Ohgi and Mamoru, he had issued orders to have the base cleaned up and for the troops to be brought up to standard in regards to fitness and firearms. He had placed Kallen in charge of the firearms training and Mamoru in charge of physical fitness, with additional orders to teach those who wished to learn some basic martial arts.
The look on Mamoru's face had reminded Lelouch greatly of Sayoko when she had started to train him. Oh, the pain…
Moving away from the painful and embarrassing memories of Sayoko's initial training, Lelouch stood up and headed for the bed, where C.C. and Sayoko were sitting looking as if they were about to play a prank on him.
"Alright ladies, why do you both look like the cat that got the cream?" he asked with raised eyebrows.
"Well, Sayoko and I had a discussion while we were on the way back." C.C. purred, "She won a bet that we had, which meant she would ordinarily be with you tonight."
"I don't want to know what you were betting about, do I?" Lelouch asked rhetorically.
"You'll find out eventually, lover boy." C.C. said with a grin.
"To return to the matter at hand." Sayoko blushed as she spoke, "I do not feel worthy to bed with you tonight, Goshujin-sama, as I allowed you to become injured. C.C.-sama was most…understanding and persuaded me to instead share your bed with her as well tonight."
Lelouch blinked at this. "Both of you? At once? Are you trying to kill me?"
"What? Don't you think you can handle us both at the same time?" C.C. teased, "You've taken the day off tomorrow as well, so you don't need to worry about waking up early for school. You can enjoy us…all…night…long."
Lelouch flushed at this, as did Sayoko. "Wouldn't it count as Sayoko interfering in your relationship with me?" he asked.
"Nope." the verdette grinned, "She's forming a relationship with me at the same time, so it's all good."
"Bi-curious?" Lelouch asked with a raised eyebrow.
"I did tell you that you were the only man I intended to seduce." C.C. pointed out with a slight blush, "I never said anything about other women."
"Fair enough." Lelouch chuckled as he looked at Sayoko, "Are you sure you're alright with this?"
"Hai." Sayoko flushed as C.C. reached over and started undoing her maid outfit, "If you wish it, Goshujin-sama, there is little I would say no to."
"How terrible. I'm being forced to make love to two gorgeous women at once." Lelouch deadpanned, "Oh, the tragedy. I'm not going to get any sleep tonight, am I?"
"That's the plan." C.C. leered.
"Ah well." Lelouch started to remove his own shirt as the green-haired immortal began to rapidly strip Sayoko, "I suppose we deserve a treat after defeating Cornelia."
"To the victor go the spoils, Goshujin-sama." Sayoko breathed out.
"And we did win." C.C. said before she started nibbling at the kunoichi's neck, "So let's celebrate, ne?"
"Indeed." Lelouch said before he climbed onto the bed with his two lovers and kissed Sayoko on the mouth.
*****Warning! Lemon is on Archive of Our Own under my penname! Look for it there!*****
As the two girls settled in, Lelouch dropped right off to sleep.
"Awww! I wanted to have a go of him myself!" C.C. pouted.
"Goshujin-sama was under a lot of stress today and he was injured." Sayoko admonished C.C. softly, "It isn't surprising that he fell asleep so quickly once he lost all that tension when we…relaxed him."
"Rode his bones until he passed out you mean." the verdette smirked, "I really enjoyed that Sayoko. How about you?"
"I…yes…it was nice." the kunoichi's face looked like a rising sun as she said that.
"So…some one-on-one time wouldn't be out of the question…?" the immortal asked hesitantly.
"If…that is what you wish, C.C.-sama." Sayoko blushed again.
"It is." the immortal witch smirked. She loved it when a plan came together.
LLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL
Next Chapter: Visitor from the Rising Sun
LLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL
Author's Note: No, the suits Lelouch is talking about isn't the Lancelot suit from Suzaku of the counterattack, nor is it the ceramite Power Armour from Warhammer 40,000.