Indomitable
Chapter Two: The Equality of Life
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Aries Villa; 2009 ATB
Lelouch held tightly to the young girl in his arms. He could feel her shaking slightly, trying to hold back tears that hadn't stopped even this late in the night. It was only earlier that day, when they had been forced to accept this new reality. That they had to come to realize their mother was dead. It hadn't been heard of in decades, not since the previous era his father grew up in, that a member of the royal family was assassinated. He wanted to shield her from it all, protect her from the truth of the cold world. They talked about terrorists, an attack from the numbers or possibly even the EU. But he knew better, that there was really only one answer. No matter who pulled the trigger, it was someone he called family that ordered her death.
It was hardly difficult to understand. He and Nunnally themselves received their fair share of scorn as well. They were hated by most all the royal family, he knew that. Nunnally however, hadn't seen that yet. She desired to love everyone, she refused to believe that her brothers and sisters hated her simply for who her mother was. And Lelouch didn't want her to give it up, no matter what the truth was. He didn't want her to hate. He hated enough for both of them. Even now, as Nunnally shook in anguish in his arms, Lelouch trembled in rage.
He hated them. Every one of them. He wanted to make them pay, he didn't care who it was, as far as he was concerned they were all guilty. His entire family could be blamed, it wasn't even impossible to say that many of them conspired together.
His beloved little sister was now vulnerable to the unadulterated truth of their empire. He wanted to protect her, to shield her from that pain; but he couldn't. He was too weak to save her from anything, or to do anything at all. For all the many times he heard their father speak of his ideals, this was the first time it truly sunk in. He was at the mercy of those above him. And there were a lot of them. Lelouch had always believed being a prince had made him strong; or at the least, placed him above others. Perhaps that was true from some perspective, it didn't mean a damn thing when he was compared to anyone. Just a small boy who happened to be somewhat bright. All that meant is he understood all too well what kind of fate awaited him. Worse still, what might become of Nunnally.
"Your highness."
He looked up at the man with his hand outstretched hesitantly, as if he was afraid to touch him. Nunnally remained where she was nuzzled in his arms, she'd fallen asleep it seemed. The man looked sympathetically at the dozing princess, his name was Jeremiah, Lelouch believed. One of the few guards that remained even less than twenty four hours following their mother's death. Two were killed along with mother, three utterly disappeared, and eight resigned. He didn't blame them; They were loyal to their mother, not to him. He did nothing to deserve them anyway.
"The emperor has summoned you." Jeremiah told him.
He tried his best not to tremble at that message. But he supposed it would be best to get this over with now rather than later. He couldn't imagine a great reason his father would wish to speak with him. That only left bad ones. He gently placed his sister down, rising silently. Making that man wait wouldn't make things any better.
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Pendragon Imperial Palace; 2009 ATB
Composing every bit of strength he could muster, a young Lelouch entered the throne room with his head held high. Despite the mutters and gestures surrounding him he continued down the extravagant path to the throne, pointedly ignoring the gathered nobles with their preying eyes watching his every step. The roaring silence reached its peak at his last step, coming to a stop before the man atop the throne. He knelt before his father, as was expected of him, his bowed head preventing him from meeting the sharp gaze of the emperor. No one said a word, Lelouch's barely controlled breathing the only sound in his ears before he realized it was he who was supposed to speak.
"Hail, your majesty." He spoke with whatever ounce of authority a near ten year old prince possessed. In a room such as this, it wasn't much.
Lelouch resisted the steadily growing urge to raise his head as the seconds of silence stretched on. But even without his eyes to see it he could feel the man watching him, making his skin crawl as though he could hide nothing. Which he very well knew he could not; not that there was anything for him to hide. Except perhaps the feeling he earlier experienced toward the rest of the man's consorts and their children. But really, when was that new to any of them? The mutual feeling existed long before such escalated actions took place.
"Leave us." The young prince nearly jumped at the sudden booming voice of his father, uttering a single command to the rest of the room's occupants.
He could hear the uneasy shifting behind him, as the nobles of the court realized it was them he was ordering. But despite how they felt about it they complied with all due haste. No one denied the emperor. In a matter of minutes, Lelouch was alone with the most powerful man in the world, not even the guards remained.
His father gradually rose from his throne, each step toward his kneeling son bringing inexplicable panic in the eleventh prince. Not daring to raise his head, Lelouch resolutely stared at the flawless marble floor covered with an immaculate crimson rug until the feet of the emperor replaced it in his vision.
"Rise, Lelouch." this time, the order was directed at him. And after taking a silent second to collect himself, he did as he was told.
The boy rose to his full height, barely half of the man towering over him. He summoned every bit of courage he had to look him in the eye. What he got in return was the gaze of his father silently judging everything Lelouch would amount to till the day he died.
"Your mother is now dead." The emperor declared in a cold tone. As if it had no effect on the man now that his favorite wife was murdered. "You understand what this means for you and your sister."
He swallowed his nervousness realizing he would have to respond. "Yes, your majesty."
"You are now without the protection afforded to you by the empress. It is to your benefit you come to truly understand what it means to be Britannian. 'All men are not created equal.' You are the son of Marianne the Flash, and a prince of Britannia. I see no reason why you cannot succeed. You can either stand strong on your own, or be consumed by those who seek to destroy you." His father stood above him with the same cold expressionless face he always wore as he gave Lelouch the strangest speech he had probably ever heard. He had a hard time deciding if this was the emperor's way of encouraging him or not. Or more so why he would do so in the first place. "I will not help you,nor should you rely on the aid of any other. It is by your own strength that you shall survive, and overcome. Only then will you be able to claim what you have lost."
Confusion momentarily crossed Lelouch's face as he wondered what it was he was supposed to reclaim. A second later however his father made it clear. "I am calling off the investigation into your mother's death." He revealed, shocking the prince. "If you wish to see justice through for the crime committed against her, you must bring it to light with your own hands."
With...my own hands?
"You are now on your own. That does not mean you are without a future. As my son, and the son of Marianne, I expect much from you. Do not disappoint me, Lelouch."
And that was the first, and only time his father would directly acknowledge him as his son. As far as Lelouch knew it was the only time he had ever made such an acknowledgement. He made a hasty bow, stunned by the outcome of his summons. "Thank you, your majesty. I will not fail."
I won't fail, not mother, or nunnally…
"Good." The emperor replied, turning to reclaim his throne. "You may now go."
Quickly doing as he was told, Lelouch left with his head spinning and his thoughts racing a thousand directions. He had thoroughly believed the man to discard him! But instead he was given the right to hunt down his mother's killer? Surely the emperor had to know who was responsible, there really wasn't many who could pull that off. Lelouch himself even came to that conclusion. And he was just given free reign to seek out the truth?
More so, his father believed Lelouch capable of even more than that. The emperor was not one to give encouragement. A more logical part of him wondered if he was being used to find his mother's assassin. Or perhaps he really did care for Lelouch's mother. Enough to care just a bit for her children?
Either way, Lelouch vi Britannia left the imperial throne room every bit a prince as he entered it.
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Charles watched the small boy leave his throne room slightly taller than he had entered. From that he gathered he had succeeded in his objective for the day.
Silently, a little pink-haired girl made herself known from the shadows behind his throne. "Well, look at you being a father." She teased with a mischievous grin. He spared his wife a glare, as her small body came to stand before him. Getting used to treating this girl as Marianne was...difficult, especially when she still acted just as she did in her original body. "The boy interests me to some degree." The emperor admitted. "I merely pushed him down that path. It is still up to him whether he chooses to follow it, and how far he is willing to go."
"Well, thank you regardless." Marianne told him from her new body. It had been by her demand that he do something about her children she worried over at not being able to protect them. And even without her old form, she was hard to deny. As she always had been. "He's a lot like you, you know. I'm sure my boy will satisfy your demands."
Charles nodded mutely, imagining just what he could make of his eleventh son.
"He has your eyes." she commented offhandedly.
"Indeed he does. The eyes of royalty." That much of himself he only saw in Lelouch. For all the court's bickering over his heredity it was ironic the boy was the most physically befitting of a true prince. He had to admit it, he was thoroughly eager to see what Lelouch was capable of. Thus far only two of his children had come to earn his interest, a third would prove most amusing as work toward Ragnarok stalled more recently. And even then, between Schneizel and Cornelia, neither truly fit was he sought for that future.
The eyes of a king. And in them, burned a fierce determination. Truly interesting indeed.
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Cornelia stared at her younger brother with a stern expression, trying to gauge just how committed he was to what he had just asked. " You...want to join the military?" She repeated aloud, frowning at the resolute boy returning her gaze.
"Yes." He simply replied, with a sharp nod.
" Lelouch, you should be focused on studies or something more fitting your age." The princess argued, shaking her head. "The military is hardly the place for a child!"
The young prince scowled. "I'm not a child anymore Nelly, I hardly have the luxury to act like one. You know what position I'm in right now, what stakes in facing. I can't afford to wait around."
"That may be true, but even for a member of the royal family the rules can only be bent so much. I was fifteen when I joined the academy and that was with heavy influence on your mother's part. I really can't see you getting in any earlier than that." she tried to convince him otherwise, already getting the idea it was a fruitless endeavor.
"Then I'll have to prepare for that. If I'm to join as early as possible it will have to be on my own merit. The only way I can accomplish that is obtaining as much experience and training as I can beforehand." Lelouch countered. "Whatever I can do now to further that, is more than doing nothing."
It was a little hard to argue with that. It would be much harder to get Lelouch into a desirable position than it was for Cornelia. But if he could prove his talent much sooner than that, and hone it for several years before joining he would have significantly better chances for success. She sighed, relenting his point. "I could recommend you a few generals to study under." She offered. "Many of them served your mother. I'm sure they would be honored to have you."
Lelouch gave a small smile. "Thank you, Cornelia. That's all I really want for now." truthfully, it might turn out to be frustrating for him to move out from his mother's shadow, especially studying with commanders who worked with her in the past. Even then, he would get to see some of the techniques his mother employed used beyond her passing. That much he would be eager to learn. Lelouch wanted to become a leader of his own. Mastering the techniques of the most successful knight in the previous era, his own mother no less; would be a great step in that direction.
Because what his father failed to mention, was the incredible fortune his mother had carefully hid away for his own inheritance. Already he had more than a few ideas for how such a fund could be used for his machinations. The Ganymede was the reason 'Marianne the Flash' was so rightfully feared, and the creator of that wonderful machine was still within his grasp. Clearly, the best way to employ that opportunity, as well as the best way to gain the power he needed to find his mother's killer, was to join the military.
"If you ever need someone to lean on, I hope you know that I'll be here for you, Lelouch." Cornelia offered him with as sincere a look as he's ever seen. He returned her a genuine smile, probably the first one since his mother died.
"Thank you, Nelly." The young prince replied gratefully. It was comforting to know not everyone in his family was out for his blood. Though his allies were still few in number. Cornelia was really the only one he could count on that held weight behind her words. He was sure Nunnally and Euphy would eagerly volunteer to assist, but there wasn't much they could do, unfortunately. Not that he'd want them to anyway. The emperor made it clear he had done all he was going to at this point, which wasn't actually much to begin with. Schneizel and Clovis were the only others he wouldn't immediately write off as dying to plant a dagger in his back.
So Lelouch supposed shadowing a few of his mother's old subordinates might earn him the faint beginnings of the bonds he would need to forge to build his own web of support. He would need all the help he could get, to both avenge what he had lost, and protect what he still had left.
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Aries Villa; 2010 ATB
Nunnally stared intently at the various diagrams displayed on the pages in front of her. While attempting to decipher the complex words and numbers that accompanied them. The technical manual for an RPI-11 Glasgow was hardly intended for a little girl to read, and she wasn't about to ask that a children's edition be published specifically for her.
"Are you really reading that boring thing again?" Euphy observed with a frown as she found her sister's secluded reading spot in the villa. The pink haired princess had made a habit of spending as much time as possible with Nunnally in the months following Marianne's assassination. Whether to offer comfort to the motherless girl or for her own sake at losing who was almost more of a mother than her own. Cornelia had been given an important assignment in the invasion of Japan only a few weeks ago, and before that she was off conquering what was now Area Nine. More practically she could accredit her new pseudo home to that frequent absence.
"It might be boring, but it's still important to learn." The younger princess defended. Britannia's newest weapon was quickly proving to be absolutely dominating in the battlefields it was deployed. Learning how it worked, and how it was operated seemed vital to the girl's own plan. "Someday I'll join big brother, and Nelly. So I'll have to learn everything I can to help them." she declared.
"But Lulu is joining the army to protect you isn't he? That's what he said at least." Euphy huffed. Really, there were better things to do than read stuffy manuals all day.
"But who's going to protect him Euphy? I wanna protect big brother just as much as he protects me. We'll help each other and no one will ever be able to hurt us." Nunnally grinned passionately, very clearly having thought this through many times. "We'll be unstoppable!"
Though it might have been naivete on her part, she refused to believe otherwise. Either way, she wasn't about to stand by and do nothing when her brother was preparing to become a soldier. Life had left her very few options, but she would not allow it to decide for her.
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Philippines Campaign Center; 2010 ATB
Lelouch had quickly realized there was little to glean from the operations being conducted by general Walter. Despite being one of the most successful Britannian commanders in more recent years in was very apparent just where that success was derived from. Because what really mattered to the homeland was the conquering of an Area. Very little attention was paid to the cost of that victory. And following the deployment of knightmares in modern combat, such ruthless tactics and reckless abandon left little consequence on the lives of the knights who were able to flee from a disadvantageous engagement with a simple pull of a lever. Such was the knightmare built around.
Lelouch had already decided such methods were not how he wanted to lead as a commander. His desire to protect Nunnally had subconsciously evolved into a more conservative method of approach. Every time he saw the general lose a unit he couldn't help but imagine losing Nunnally. His mindset was easily justifiable however. A good leader should not have to risk the lives of his men to secure victory. The mark of a good strategy, a master commander, was total advantage with no risk of defeat. That was the kind of leader soldiers could put their trust in. What he aspired to be.
"This formation was used by Marianne to take Stanley and establish Area Eight." General Walter explained to him, and he had to feign interest in something he already knew inside and out. He had studied on his own every tactic and strategy his mother used as a knight of the round to conquer her three areas. "Of course, implementing Knightmares was my own design. Though I'm sure she would have done it the same way."
As if there was any other way of doing it.
"Although, it would be better to take a few units from the vanguard to the rear guard." Lelouch commented to himself, heard only by the man attending beside him. Jeremiah had volunteered immediately to watch over the prince since his first time observing battlefields some eight months ago, even swearing himself in the process, something Lelouch had not expected in the slightest. It was impossible to determine just where his enemies might be hiding, and who was waiting to plunge a knife into his back. He thoroughly believed it was a very real possibility, and gratefully accepted the man's offer. It became a habit of his to explain to Gottwald the flaws he saw in Britannia's strategies. Jeremiah found it rather impressive how quickly his prince was able to understand the flow of a battle, what strengths and weaknesses were presented with each situation.
"Granted, it isn't impossible to say such precautions are unnecessary in this particular instance. " Lelouch continued his analysis. "It would be tantamount to suicide for any forces the possess to attempt to flank a knightmare. With such a difference in firepower you can actually get away with such a committed assault. In the future however, I have no doubt Britannia's enemies will be able to stand on equal ground with knightmares. Any competent leader would see that weakness and exploit it in an instant."
Lelouch briefly wondered if his mother was aware of the flaws in what was apparently a formation she developed. If anything, the addition of knightmares compensated more for the weakness. Surely his mother understood this. He couldn't believe she would make such a mistake. His eyes widened in surprise when he saw just what he had missed. Very clever indeed, it seemed he still had a lot to learn.
"The formation was designed to be flanked." He spoke softly in realization, earning a confused look from Jeremiah. "To draw in such a force and then entrap it using the heavy vanguard. By spreading out the flanks to create the encirclement and replacing them with the forward facing forces. It would swallow any attacking group whole that tried to outmaneuver it, with little risk to the front line. Even if those measures are not needed it still benefits from an overwhelming offensive position, which is how the general is clearly using it." Somehow though, Lelouch knew Walter was completely unaware of the maneuver his position possessed.
"I see." Gottwald replied in an awed tone. "Lady Marianne truly was a magnificent soldier."
The prince nodded his agreement. Gifted in every aspect of warfare, she was everything Lelouch aspired to become. Maybe one day he would surpass her; he would have to if he wanted to avenge her. Only by being stronger could he confront the one who took her life, and overcome them.
He could see now just how much he had to work toward that.
"Sir, enemy aircraft are approaching our position from the north!" An officer called out, breaking Lelouch from his own musings.
"Aircraft?" He wondered just what they were trying to gain.
"What a pointless endeavor." Walter replied with a scoff. "Evasive maneuvers. Have the main force return anti-air fire once they pass."
As the orders were given, Lelouch saw several dots that represented the jets appear at their estimated location on the tactical map showing their own unit positions. He could even eventually make out the small shapes out in the distance make their approach. The Britannian knightmares fanned out to make themselves more difficult targets, their high mobility would make it extremely difficult to deal lasting damage to the imposing force. Lelouch suspected this was a last ditch effort on their part.
Except they passed right over the Britannian position. The jets were making a direct run toward the unprotected command center.
"Your highness!" Jeremiah reached out toward him. He must have realized it too, seconds before inescapable air to surface missiles were launched directly at the command center.
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Area Eleven Local Relief Center; 2010 ATB
Kallen stared numbley forward as the man clutching her tightly waved down one of the armed guards watching what looked like a hastily built hospital. Hardly inviting, but far more so than anything before it.
"Sir! Are you alright?" the Britannian soldier asked with a look of genuine worry, briefly checking over him and Kallen for any serious wounds. Her father had a bandage over a knife wound on his arm, but that was all he would see. "My name is Duke Anthony Stadtfeld." Her father frantically pulled out the tattered remains of his ID that proved his title.
The soldier pushed it away, instead ushering the two of them toward the building with a Britannian flag waving proudly above its entrance. "Quickly, we need to see you to a doctor."
"please, see to my daughter first." Her father insisted.
The man leading them nodded, sending a warm smile her way. "Of course." leading them inside, they were greeted by several Britannian medical officials who weren't looking at the few other patients present. The hospital was set up to provide aid to civilians that were in any way injured during the fighting in the cities. The courtesy was not extended to Elevens.
Kallen was still hardly aware of the small army of nurses checking her over, they wouldn't find anything of course. If she was injured at all, then her mother would probably still be alive.
She was attacked by some thug that broke into their home. He wasn't the only one though, a whole mob had come to take revenge on them for the simple reason that they were Britannian. Nevermind they had likely been neighbors for years, that Kallen probably went to school with many of their children. None of that mattered to them.
Her mother tried to defend her, and she was rewarded with a knife through her chest. Her father arrived a few seconds too late, barely managing to escape with Kallen as their house was overrun. Her mother was killed by Japanese; by her own people. Before that day she always felt the proper amount of pride at being half Japanese. She loved her home, her people.
Never had she felt so betrayed.
Before then, she was angry at Britannia for putting them in that danger, except she soon learned they were in fact warned. It was by their own choice to stay, believing their family's situation would protect them. Clearly they were wrong.
Her mother was dead, her brother might as well be. She had no idea what became of Naoto, only she and her father were safe. Safe thanks to Britannia. Not Japan.
She was hurt, far more emotionally than physically. And she doubted there was anything these doctors could do to help with that. Still, they made more of an effort then the people she previously put her faith in. Her father held her close, whispering reassurances to the small girl. He promised to take her back to the homeland, where it was safe.
All the while, her anguish slowly morphed into smoldering hatred. These people were far worse than anything Britannia was accused of. All men are not created equal. She found herself thinking. They deserved what they got.
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Lelouch snapped to focus with a hacking cough, dust settling over everything in site.
"My prince! Are you alright?!" Jeremiah was already checking over him for any wounds. He was fine of course, thanks to Jeremiah shielding him at the last second.
"I'm fine, what's going on now?" He asked, trying to get a grasp of the disorganized situation. Officers ran around aimlessly, and it became quite clear that something was very wrong. "The general?"
"He's dead, your highness." Jeremiah revealed just what kind of state the command was in. "As are the majority of the command structure."
Lelouch cursed under his breath. What was a desperate gambit turned out to be a frustratingly effective tactic. Of course the command center wasn't properly outfitting to defend against such an attack. 'It is an impossibility that we could ever be in danger.' he could gear Walter saying. Obviously he put too much faith in their unstoppable knightmares. Or too little caution against their enemy. Either way, he paid the price for his arrogance.
"Get me in contact with the captain down there." Lelouch ordered.
Jeremiah frowned. "Your highness? We need to get you-"
"I can't imagine it looks any better there than it does here." Lelouch justified his choice, already rising despite several protesting limbs. "They didn't launch an attack like that on the command center without being able to follow up on it."
"Ah…very well." Jeremiah relented, flagging down someone who could fulfill his request.
Lelouch waited the few agonising minutes as connection to the ground forces was reestablished, worrying over what kind of condition they were left in. Eventually, a headset was given to him, and he snatched it up in a heartbeat. "Hello? Is anyone still down there?!" He called over the army's open channel. Anyone would be able to respond, he just hoped someone would.
A startled response came almost immediately, flooding Lelouch with relief. "This is Captain Odair! What's the situation at command?"
"My name is Lelouch vi Britannia." He began, forcing himself to appear calm. "General Walter, along with most of the support staff were killed. I was observing the battle earlier, please, tell me what's going on?"
"Ah-your highness we…" the man he was speaking to collected himself, likely surprised by who he was speaking to. "We were ambushed shortly after the missiles hit, a group of tanks are pushing at our rear flank, we're having a difficult time repressing them and dealing with the forward forces your highness."
He had to hide the faint grin that appeared hearing that, eternally grateful he understand his mother's genius. "listen very carefully captain," he began. "You need to press the rear guard in toward the front line, let the enemy close in. Expand the flanks to surround them. You can use your vanguard to reinforce the flank!"
It was the shortest way to describe it. He was sure with proper training and more detailed knowledge of the pieces on the board there was more to it than that. But he had to run off what he could remember of the map before it was destroyed. "Eliminate the ambushing force as soon as possible, then move to a reinforced front line formation!"
"Yes sir!" he could only imagine the ensuing chaos, blindly listening to the shouts between pilots as the moved in a desperate attempt to stay alive. All he could do was pray there was enough strength left to pull off the maneuver.
Seconds passed, and he watched intently through the holes created by the missiles as the tiny dots moved around several miles away.
"Shit. Your highness!" Lelouch heard the captain explain and he instantly feared the worst. "The jets are coming back around again. They're going to hit the command center!"
Damn it. With the Britannian forces working with some semblance of cohesion of course they would return to finish the job. "Keep pressing on the encirclement! Don't let up!" he ordered in response.
"You highness, you're in danger!" Odair responded. "We're going to try to shoot them down, we should be able to take them all out before they reach you."
"No!" Lelouch cried out. "If you focus on the aircraft you'll be obliterated! You have to take care of the flanking force first."
"But your highness, you could be-"
"I won't allow you to sacrifice yourselves for me!" Lelouch Stubbornly persisted, shocking the captain to silence. For a brief moment he recalled what the emperor told him. 'All men are not created equal.' He was supposed to be worth more than that of a common soldier, but was his life really worth that of a hundred knights? To Odair and the rest of the pilots it was what they were taught all their lives. To suddenly have it turned upside down the moment it was time to make that call…
""You have to make it out alive! You have to-" He wasn't able to finish. The jets made launched their second volley before he was able to.
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Pendragon Royal Hospital; 2010 ATB
The next time Lelouch awoke, it was to the sterile environment of a hospital bed. He was keenly aware of how much everything hurt, but counted himself lucky that he could feel that pain. From every part of his body he knew was still there. With a great effort, he attempted to sit up, suddenly feeling a hand pressing down on his shoulder. "You're in no condition to be moving now, my prince."
Through blurred vision, he could somewhat make out the owner of the hand, more so their voice. "Jeremiah?"
"I am glad to see you are alright." The man said with a look of relief. But from what Lelouch could see, he should probably be in a bed as well.
"Where am I?" Lelouch asked, rubbing his eyes to see clearly. "Wait, what happened? Did they survive?!" He began to panic slightly, recalling the last few moments of consciousness he had.
"I believe i can answer that for you, your highness." Lelouch turned to see another person he hasn't first noticed in the room. A man several years older than Jeremiah, with shorter red hair and sporting a military uniform. "I'm captain Michael Odair, your highness."
"Oh, then you made it safely." Lelouch quickly confirmed the man wasn't in a terrible state like Jeremiah was, he likely made it through just fine. "I'm glad."
"It's all thanks to you, prince Lelouch. Your plan worked flawlessly, we were able to repel the ambush and continue to crush the resisting army shortly after." The captain explained to him. "Since the jets were focused on the command center we were able to properly position out forces before they has an opportunity to distract us from main body. You saved our lives, your highness."
"Well I...couldn't just stand around and do nothing." Lelouch replied, looking away. He was hardly used to such praise.
"No, what you should have done was flee at the first sign of danger, especially for a ten year old." that was something Odair did not expect when he came to see Prince Lelouch. "But you didn't."
Taking a deep breath, The older man gave him a smile. "I've served a lot of commanders in the few years I've been a soldier. Most of them nobles who care only for victories, not the men who wim them. General Walter did not even know my name the last time I spoke with him. You are something completely different your highness, someone special." In an unexpected gesture, Michael Odair sank to one knee before the prince. "I owe you my life. And I will offer it to you, if you would accept it."
His mouth hung open slightly, gaping in shock. This man...would swear himself to him? He needed allies, he needed power, and before now he has no idea how to obtain it for himself. Now he did. It was as simple as being himself, a prince who radiates the aura of one who leads. Do that and others were bound to follow.
"I accept." He said, returning the man's smile.
"Thank you, my prince." Odair replied, rising to stand tall. "Now, there are a little more than a dozen men in the lobby who would like to make you the same offer. But they would only allow one person to wait in the room."
With bulging eyes, Lelouch swallowed in disbelief. "...How many?"
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The Marianne; 2018 ATB
Lelouch looked out the window at the approaching land with a wistful smile. It was really hard to believe at times how far he had come since then. He was right after all, the best way to gain allies was to be as true to one's self as possible. He had far more than he could have asked for.
"My prince, we'll be arriving at Port Elizabeth soon." A man dressed in the regal wear of his royal guard told him from the ajar doorway.
"Thank you Odair, We should make preparations to unload the Equis' then." He replied, turning to him briefly.
"Of course, I'll pass that along." He observed the face of his prince for a moment as he stared out at the sea. "Is something the matter, your highness?"
Lelouch snapped from his thoughts again with a surprised look. "Oh, no. I was simply reminiscing."
"Ah, I'll leave you to it then." With a nod, the captain of his royal guard closed the door behind him.
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Finally chapter 2 is done. Took me way to long, but that's because I was planning the next few chapters as well. Luckily though I have a good chunk of the story fleshed out, so it shouldn't be this long of a wait again.
