Chapter 11: Drill Sergeant
Alternate Chapter Title: Dance of Masks
Dear Nunnally.
How is school going? Is Allie adjusting well to school life? I'm a little bit worried about our elder cousin, and feeling a little guilty because she encouraged your dream, and maybe it isn't everything she imagined. Check in on her. We owe that much at least to our favorite relative.
It's been snowing a lot at the base, but the first week of training went well. You don't have to worry and while I'm not the fittest, I'm far from the worst. I know that Rick shared some horror stories regarding the Drill Sergeants, but he grotesquely exaggerated. The Drill Sergeant is strict, but there aren't any extreme punishments or such. Even the food isn't that bad although I'm missing the kitchen back home terribly.
I'm going to save up all the money I earn and use it to visit you in October for your birthday. I'll even cook for the two of us and it will be amazing. Are there any dishes you're thinking of? I'm hoping we can get some rice and spices. Drop an egg or two in that and it would be amazing. Ok. I'm missing food so much. But it will be fine because once we get a little bit further along in training, we can leave the base and go to the nearby town. My friends and I can pool together money and barbecue a nice piece of steak. My mouth is watering at the thought.
Mail day is sporadic from my understanding, so I'll write letters every week, but it may take some time for me to receive yours. Just a little warning. Also don't send me any food or personal items. I don't think the mailman is too careful if you catch my drift. And food, unfortunately, would be contraband.
Missing you dearly and sending his best wishes,
Your favorite brother,
Lelouch
*January 28, 2012: FLAGGED: Suspicious Activity.*
*Yellow Flag on Lelouch Lamperouge*
*STATUS: Monitor Communications, Report All Suspicious Activity*
-From OSI Logs
Fort Necessity, Pennsylvania
Lelouch, his head feeling strangely light after his buzzcut, observed the other recruits clutching rifles tightly in the packed waiting room. Some were talking in whispered tones or slowly pacing the room in boredom. They looked nothing like the Britannian army despite the new bluish grey uniforms and fresh short hair cut; they lacked a certain feeling of dignity. To Lelouch, they all looked like children playing dress up.
Another recruit entered the room and looked around, lost. His arm band was yellow, like Lelouch's, showing he was part of the Epsilon platoon. Not wanting to make conversation and his body humming with restless energy, Lelouch stood up to stretch his legs, making sure to grab his issued rifle, which he had been told was life.
A young girl waved at him and staring at her buzz cut Lelouch's mind suddenly wandered to his sister, Cornelia. She had also enlisted, the only one in his family to do so, but in the officer's school. Had they forced her to cut her hair to try and strip her of her identity? There were very few things Cornelia cared about. Sweet Euphemia was one. And as Lelouch had discovered when he was six and took a scissor to Cornelia's head while she was asleep, she loved her hair. Cornelia had been livid and it was the first time he could recall his mother grounding him. Surely, she would have objected, and perhaps, officer training was different. Nobles got special treatment after all.
Another recruit stumbled into the room, followed by seven soldiers wearing one of those strange brown cowboy hats common in Area 1. The wide brim hid their eyes with dark shadows and they stopped at attention by the wall. Lelouch paused and snapped to attention, other recruits mimicking him. The door swung shut behind the last soldier with a blue hat and his eyes scanned the room.
"When a drill sergeant enters the room, you will show us respect. Hold attention. Heels together," he barked. He paced the front of the room, back and forth as he continued. "I am Head Drill Sergeant Vincent Hendrickson. We are not friends. You will not address me as sir, Hencrickson, or god forbid, Vincent. When I order you to do something, you will say 'yes, Head Drill Sergeant.' Do you understand?"
"Yes Head Drill Sergeant," they chorused back, voices overlapping.
"Together. 'I understand Head Drill Sergeant,'"
"I understand Head Drill Sergeant." They were almost in unison this time.
The Head Drill Sergeant gestured to the men holding attention by the wall. "These are your Drill Sergeants. Each one of you will be assigned to a platoon according to the color on your armband. Any Drill Sergeant may give you an order and you will comply. I don't care if you are busy or if you had previous orders, we are in charge and you will obey us unconditionally.
"You are now part of the Britannian military. That means the army owns your body and soul for the next fifteen years. When I say jump, you will not ask how high, your feet will immediately leave the ground. Your job is not question orders, but to follow them to the letter."
Someone in the room snickered.
Everyone froze as the Head Drill Sergeant's head snapped to the side: pinpointing the guilty young teen. He strode forward and shouted into his face, "Do you think this is funny recruit? What is your name?"
"No Head Drill Sergeant. My name is Daniel Peterson," he squeaked.
"I can't hear you recruit! Did you say something?" shouted the Head Drill Sergeant, spittle flying from his mouth and his voice deafening. Lelouch grimaced in sympathy.
"No Head Drill Sergeant. My name is Daniel Peterson," he screamed back shrilly.
"If everyone here finds it so amusing," the Head Drill Sergeant turned away and glanced at the room, "drop to the ground and give me pushups."
Lelouch's arms quaked as he lowered his body and almost kissed the concrete floor with his forehead. Five push-ups were simple enough. Ten he could do. On the fifteenth, his arms began to buckle.
Two military boots stopped in peripheral vision. "What sort of lazy excuse of a push-up is that? Tuck in your elbows; they're not chicken wings!"
Lelouch complied and focusing on forcing his elbows to stay parallel to his body, he almost cried out at the increased difficulty. He stared at the floor, he couldn't get back up. The boots tapped, and Lelouch, leaning from side to side, forced himself to rise. His arms and stomach burned in agony.
Thankfully, the Head Drill Sergeant turned away, and Lelouch keeping the man in his line of sight, collapsed on the floor. He should have done more push-ups at home. This was pure torture.
"Attention!"
Muted groans followed as they struggled to their feet. "Yes Head Drill Sergeant."
"Not fast enough. And I can't hear you. Back down on the ground, and hold push-up position."
"Yes Head Drill Sergeant," they screamed. Quickly, they fell to the ground. Lelouch grimaced as his hand skid along the concrete floor and began to burn.
"Stand up."
This time, they didn't dally. Nobody wanted to push the Head Drill Sergeant. At least not yet. "Yes Head Drill Sergeant."
Already, Lelouch could feel his throat beginning to burn as the screaming took its toll. He had to remember to shout from his diaphragm if he didn't want to lose his voice within a day.
The Head Drill Sergeant gestured to the other Drill Sergeants. "You will wait for your platoon to be called and follow them to your barracks."
Lelouch waited as alpha, beta, gamma, and delta filtered out. Two female drill sergeants called kappa and phi. Finally, a slightly older man shouted, "Epsilon, follow me."
"Yes Drill Sergeant," Lelouch shouted obediently. He rushed after the man, who had already disappeared through the door. A maze of corridors later and the platoon finally arrived in the barracks marked with a large 'E.' Twenty something bunk beds in neat rows beckoned to Lelouch with the promise of sleep. Instead of succumbing to temptation, Lelouch lined up with the other recruits against the wall and held attention.
After the last soldier trickled in, the Drill Sergeant entered with the door shutting ominously behind him. "None of you are worthy to wear that uniform. You're slow, undisciplined, and stupid. It is my job to train you into something, but right now you are nothing. Do you understand you useless waste of space?"
"Yes Drill Sergeant."
He smiled and his eyes scanned the room and snagged a rifle out of a plump boy's hands. "This weapon is your life. You will clean it, cherish it, sleep with it. It will never leave your sight. Secondly, you will never walk alone anywhere, even to go to the bathroom. Two other waste of space will accompany you. Thirdly, you will not talk to each other. You have not earned that privilege yet."
The Drill Sergeant paused and smirked. "Lastly, I'm the absolute authority in this room. I am your Emperor now. You will show absolute loyalty to me, not your previous lord, me, and by extension, the rest of the military. You are now cogs in a greater machine."
The Drill Sergeant's eyes settled on a rifle leaning against the wall. Lelouch shivered as a small grotesque smile began to form. The head turned mechanically as he faced a young teen with a severe bout of acne. "Where is your rifle zit boy?"
Belligerent, the teen crossed his arms, causing his muscles to visibly flex and smirked, "By the wall sir."
A harsh strike whistled through the air, and the teen stumbled back, his cheek burning red. He raised his hands and brushed against his cheek in disbelief. "You discarded your weapon, discarded your life. All the rest of you pieces of trash, raise your rifles and hold it over your head."
"Yes Drill Sergeant."
The Drill Sergeant did not smile as he turned to the youth. "Now let's try this again Zit. You will call me Drill Sergeant and where should be your weapon be?"
"Against the wall," said the teen with a small smirk and Lelouch bit back a horrified groan as he cheekily added, "sir."
It wasn't a slap. Instead, the Drill Sergeant punched the teen in the gut. Lelouch's stomach curled in dread as the teen looked up and spat at the Drill Sergeant. Lelouch's arms burned in pain as the rifle began to feel heavier and heavier. The Drill Sergeant grabbed the teen by the collar and pulled him into a choke hold. The rest of the platoon, watched in muted horror.
"Pipsqueak, I didn't say to lower the rifle. Zit here, still needs to learn a lesson," shouted the Drill Sergeant to a tiny boy, who looked barely older than twelve.
"Sorry Drill Sergeant." The boy straightened and repositioned the rifle above his head.
The teen, still caught in a choke hold, drew blood as he struggled to peel off the arm. Lelouch felt sick. If this was basic training, no wonder the troops had no moral qualms killing innocent civilians. It was a show to scare them into submission and beat out the last defiant streak within them after all their possessions had been taken away. The Drill Sergeant had said it himself, they were nothing, and this would continue until they believed him, and then the real training would start.
When the teen's struggles became sluggish, the Drill Sergeant finally released him. He looked utterly pathetic as he fell to the ground, gasping for air and massaging his throat. The Drill Sergeant leaned forward. "What do you say Zit?"
"I'm sorry Drill Sergeant. I can get my weapon now Drill Sergeant."
"Scram."
As the teen hurried to the wall to grab his weapon and return to the line, the Drill Sergeant began to pace the length of the room. "Respect me and we won't have any problems. I own you until the end of training. Remember, that I can kill any of you, should you fail to meet my expectations."
While the military did allow physical punishments, Lelouch knew that killing would not go unpunished. Three years ago, the Emperor had cast judgment on an officer who had abused his position and as a consequence of his actions, numerous privates died to unfortunate accidents. If killing through negligence resulted in a death sentence for a noble, then practically speaking, a lowly sergeant would not get away with murder. Of course, legally speaking, there was already a law that had been on the books since the creation of the Brittanian Army that forbid murder.
Something must have shown on his face for the Drill Sergeant stormed over to him. "You have something to say Toothpick?"
Perhaps he was too tired or maybe it was because he couldn't stand the abuse of authority, but it didn't matter what his reason was, for he opened his mouth and said, "Murder of any enlisted soldier or officer in the Britannian Army, is considered an act of treason against the Crown, regardless of position. Drill Sergeant."
Something undecipherable flashed through the man's eyes, before he turned around, and in a poor imitation of Lelouch's accent, said, "Looks like the toothpick here thinks he's smart. Everyone, get down on the ground, and give me some crunches."
"Yes Drill Sergeant!"
Lelouch moved to drop to the ground, when the Drill Sergeant barked, "Not you Toothpick. What is your name?"
Rick had definitely said something about not letting the Drill Sergeant learn his name if he wanted to survive. Lelouch was screwed, but he dutifully answered, "Lelouch Lamperouge, Drill Sergeant."
"So you think you're being funny?"
"No Drill Sergeant."
As everyone continued their assigned crunches while shooting glares at Lelouch, the Drill Sergeant towered over him. "So you think you know better than me?"
Yes. But Lelouch wasn't suicidal, nor did he want to land in the med bay because the Drill Sergeant decided to punish him. His mother, for some reason, agreed with his plan, but the second he proved himself incapable of defending himself or she thought his life was in danger, the facade would end. It was way too easy to imagine her storming into the base and tearing into the Drill Sergeant for endangering his life. For Nunnally's sake that could never happen.
"I am simply aware of the law as decreed by Emperor Michael li Britannia, Drill Sergeant."
The Drill Sergeant didn't reply immediately and Lelouch resisted the urge to fidget as his fellow recruits groaned in agony as they continued with their crunches. Finally the Drill Sergeant yelled into his ear, "Why did you join the army Toothpick if you wanted to become a lawyer instead?"
"To serve my country. Drill Sergeant." In a way it was true, the Emperor himself had told him to stand on his own feet. Nobody could disobey an order from the Emperor himself.
The slap struck him out of nowhere. "Don't lie to me Toothpick. You don't sell your soul for something meaningless like that." His gaze swept around the room and the other recruits flinched as he passed by them. "All of you attention! Never feed me such trash like joining the military out of a sense of duty. It insults my intelligence. Only spies say such bullshit. So Toothpick?"
"My family, Drill Sergeant."
Apparently that was enough, for the Drill Sergeant turned away and began to pace the room again, as if the entire incident had never happened. "You have ten minutes until lights-out at twenty-o-clock. And since you wasted so much of my time, no dinner tonight. I expect all of you to be up at five, no exceptions." The Drill Sergeant paused and pointed to three recruits. "You three. Come with me. You're on fireguard tonight."
Zit and Lelouch looked down at the floor as the room glared at them. Fortunately, none of them dared to voice any complaints, even after the Drill Sergeant left. The man was terrifying. Lelouch slipped into bed, his body already sore. It wasn't a good start, but things could only get better. He shut his eyes and let sleep claim him.
Ashford Academy, Tokyo, Area 11
Nunnally heard her teacher's distinctive heels strike the ground and folded her brother's letter together. He had taken the time to punch holes in the paper to form the braille words and insure she could read it without help. The room quieted a couple of seconds afterwards, and the teacher walked briskly to the front of the class, stopping briefly to place a packet of papers on Nunnally's desk. As chalk scratched on the chalkboard, Nunnally let her fingers run across the algebra notes.
Reuben had insisted on accommodations to her delight. Some teachers, such as her math teacher Ms. Abequa, weren't thrilled and threw accusations of favoritism against her. After all, the real world wouldn't bend to assist her with her disability. It should be her own responsibility to take appropriate action, which felt wrong. She would work hard, but she just wanted the same chance to learn as everyone else. But blindness was too great of a weakness.
"Please pass up last night's homework," her teacher asked softly, almost too quiet to hear.
Bags rustled around her as numerous students begin to comply. The class had doubled in the past few months as more Britannians migrated to Tokyo and it was no longer just children that lived on the Ashford Estate. Last week, Sally Topaz, the daughter of baronet, had joined the class. It seemed that Reuben's dream was quite possible. At this rate, they would soon be split up into years.
Nunnally frowned and pulled her bag onto her desk. The bag smelled faintly of cherry blossoms, which soothed her nerves, as she dug into the bag again, hoping she had simply missed the paper. She was sure she had placed the homework there last evening. Turning to Allie, she asked, "Have you seen my homework?"
"You put it in your bag last night after dinner. Here, let me," Allie pulled the bag closer and began to ruffle through it. "That's strange. I could have sworn it was there."
Clacking heels approached and stopped before them. "Is there a problem misses?"
"I can't find my homework Ms. Abequa. Give me a minute," said Nunnally. She grabbed the bag from Allie again and checked the side pockets.
Her teacher humphed. "Instead of playing such a game Ms. Lamperouge, just admit that you're struggling with the course material."
Nunnally frowned. It had been difficult at first since Nunnally had to learn the Nemeth code from scratch to do her homework. She understood the material, yet the teacher treated her as if she was mentally impaired. Her homework had been perfect. Perhaps she had left it on the desk?
The class droned on with the teacher writing on the chalkboard and Nunnally flipping through sheets of papers, trying to find the corresponding braille passage, to the lecture. Ms. Abequa had a terrible habit of skipping back and forth. Occasionally, Allie would lean over and help her find the appropriate page. Her friend was slowly improving in her own skills with reading braille. Allie didn't pick it up as fast as Lelouch, who had gone from constantly pestering her and the tutor to translate, to reading her coursebooks over the weekend.
The chalk clattered against the metal ridge beneath the chalkboard. Ms. Abequa pitched her voice slightly higher and said, "That is all for today. You have odd problems three through eighty-one due tomorrow. The advanced group will also complete problems one hundred and two through one hundred and thirteen. I want to see actual graphs. Not some hurried sketch. Use a ruler. Class dismissed."
Chairs screeched as they passed over the floor and a loud rumble and slight breeze passed Nunnally, as students ran outside the classroom. Allie sighed and helped her pack her bags. "It isn't fair for Ms. Abequa to make you draw graphs Nunnally. You can't even see them."
Nunnally stood up and straightened her skirt. "I can make them on the computer. There's one in the library I can use and Lord Ashford made it so it reads out loud what is on the screen. I can even talk into it."
"Doesn't that program misunderstand you all the time? You know I'll help you. In turn, you can help me with the French homework. Still don't understand why we have to learn that."
Shrugging, she walked outside of the classroom. "The E.U. speaks French and a lot of business work internationally. We'd probably have to learn Mandarin too if China was more open to trade."
Allie groaned and pulled her back as a pair of loud boys rushed by. "How can you always know so much?"
"Lelouch is smarter. He always learns faster than me," Nunanlly complained. It didn't matter how hard she worked, her brother would inevitably learn concepts faster. If he ever applied himself to one subject, instead of hopping to and fro like a rabbit coming out of its burrow for the first time, he could easily become an expert. The only thing she was ever better at was art and that was just because Lelouch had no interest.
"Older siblings are always smarter. But they get stupid first. Happened to Gwen too. Ma is always shouting at her for being lazy and forgetting to do the chores."
"I don't know Allie," she murmured. Lelouch was an insuperable mountain. He could never be defeated in a battle of wits... except Schneizel who she remembered always won in chess. They hadn't played against each other in years. She wondered who would win now.
Allie grabbed her hands. "You're super smart. I bet you'll have the best grades out of everyone. And then even Ms. Abequa would understand you're not bad at math. You help me with my homework all the time."
"As if," scoffed a new voice. Sally Topaz. Nunnally knew of her, but they had never personally interacted. "She's just a stupid blind peasant girl. And you're no better. Is it true that your sister writes for the gossip rag? I heard your parents shovel manure."
Allie didn't respond and Nunnally winced as Allie squeezed her hand tightly.
Stepping forward, Nunnally glared at where she had heard Sally speak. "Take that back! Gwen doesn't write for a gossip rag."
"But it's the truth. But what would you even know about it, you can't even read. Just a blind girl charity case. You're pathetic."
In the past, the confrontation would have continued as such: Nunnally would cry and run to Lelouch. Lelouch would say just the right things to comfort her and she would forget the entire incident happened. Lelouch would then go behind her back and take revenge. A little while later, the guilty party would crumble and apologize to Nunnally.
This had been the case for as long as she could remember, the only problem? Lelouch was halfway around the globe.
Sally walked forward and shoved into her. "Nothing to say? You must be a blight on your family."
Nunnally took a deep breath to calm herself. A very faint scent of cherry blossoms clung to Sally's otherwise, minty clothes. Nunnally had left her bag unattended, her homework had been missing. Anger surged within her and she pushed Sally back, her hands brushing past the girl's smooth hair, laden with product.
In disbelief, Nunnally shook her head. There was definitely the scent of cherry blossoms. Who knew perfume could be such a safeguard against theft. "You stole my homework."
"Get your filthy hands off of me." The girl smacked her hands away. "How dare you touch me? I should have you arrested for assault."
Nunnally could feel Allie moving closer, ready to back her up or pull her out of danger. But Sally had gone too far. She had first insulted her best friend, then Gwen and indirectly Lelouch, and had dared to steal her homework in order to humiliate her. "But I was not the one who resorted to petty theft. Is it a family skill? Thievery?"
"You dare!" Sally hissed. "My uniform is custom fitted, while yours hangs around you like a rag. I doubt you'll ever afford something as nice as this. Not that you can notice it of course."
The sleeve had felt too rough to be silk. Nunnally had worn nicer. It was pitiful how desperate Sally was. "Well I can understand why you stole my homework now. Jealous of the paper? It is a much tighter weave than the shirt of yours."
Allie tugged on her arm and hissed, "Lets go Nunnally."
Perhaps she was going too far? But Sally had called the newspaper a gossip rag. Her brother had helped write those articles. They weren't bad, even though they sounded rather dull. No. Such a slight could not be ignored, yet she had already won this skirmish. Retreating now would be a wise decision.
She smiled and, using the same tone her mother used when promising a slow and painful death, she said, "Thank you for volunteering to turn my homework in. I'm sure Ms. Abequa will be thrilled. Unfortunately, and I must express my sincere condolences, I have better things to do."
Before Sally had even time to comprehend, Nunnally hoisted her bag on her shoulder and walked briskly past her. Revenge was a dish best served cold. Lelouch had mastered the art, it was time she learned it and perfected it.
Allie shivered. "Never, ever, do that again. That was absolutely terrifying hearing you sound like a noble."
Right... She was supposed to blend in, but still, perhaps it was time to start Operation: "Make Allie comfortable Around Nobles (and Royalty)." She refused to lose her best friend again to some silly belief. Smiling, she teased, "I guess you don't want to know what I'm planning?"
Allie sighed. "By Napoleon's guillotine, I hate you. Of course I do."
Glenshire Woods, Near Fort Necessity, Pennsylvania
The first two weeks had passed in a painful blur for Lelouch. His head would barely touch the pillow, before the Drill Sergeant roused them again. He had blisters on hands and feet while his eyes itched from fatigue. To make matters worse, the Drill Sergeant continued to pick on him and Lelouch could feel the glares from the other platoon members whenever they were punished for his own inability to perform to expectations.
There were only two other people who seemed to have it worse: Zit and Pipsqueak. Pipsqueak was a whole two heads shorter than Lelouch and as Lelouch glanced at him sitting across the aisle in the bus, he had to wonder if the boy had also lied about his age. While he had a hard look in his eye and was always hyper aware of his surroundings, there was an air of vulnerability to him. Pipsqueak was perhaps the only other member in the platoon who didn't hate Lelouch despite having never exchanged a word.
The bus lurched to a stop and Lelouch glanced out at the fresh powder snow on tree tops reflecting the sunlight peeking over the hills. It was beautiful, but they didn't have time to admire the sight as the Drill Sergeant yelled and the platoon scrambled outside into the freezing morning air. The Drill Sergeant smiled and Lelouch's stomach tightened. He had a suspicion that he wouldn't like the upcoming drill.
"Welcome to land nav and wilderness survival rodents. As you may have noticed, we are a two hour and a half drive from base. Now you could follow the road back, but I doubt you'll get very far without the proper gear. You will split up into squads as stated in the briefing packet I handed out earlier. Every squad will have a flare gun for life threatening emergency. To pass, you must return to base with all your squad members."
The Drill Sergeant paused and looked at each one of them shivering in the cold as they held attention, before continuing, "Either return as a group or don't return at all. Understood?"
"Yes Drill Sergeant," they chorused.
Smiling, the Drill Sergeant turned around. "Search parties will be sent out if you haven't returned by the third day." He left.
Lelouch pulled out the beige envelope and his cold stiff fingers struggled to unseal it. Winters were dangerous and fresh powdered snow was even more so. While the snow had been cleared on the streets and packed down on the side, out in the forest they could quickly fall into small cavities as the snow melted around trees. It would be easy to die.
The envelope contained a simple piece of paper listing six names: Lelouch Lamperouge, Alex Doe, Roy Fadiman, Henry Sullivan, Frederick Elric, and Edgar Gray.
Lelouch looked up. He had no idea who they were. Feeling foolish, he shouted, "Alex Doe!"
Pipsqueak's head darted up and he rushed forward. "We're in'a group Toothpick?"
"Yes," Lelouch held out his hand. "I'm Lelouch."
The boy shook it after a slight hesitation. "Nice ta meet ya. Please tell me we got one of the strong ones. I don't wanna die."
"Roy Fadiman."
An older teen, who the Drill Sergeant called Shampoo for some unfathomable reason that Lelouch could not grasp, looked up and scowled: Roy stared at them as he stood tall, seemingly waiting for something. The seconds ticked by and Lelouch wondered if perhaps he should call out the name again because there had been a mistake.
Finally he lumbered over, clutching a thick envelope. He stopped and delivered an almost impressive glare. "Why didn't you come over? I'm the squad leader."
Alex shrugged. "We're already over here. Besides, who made ya the leader."
Roy growled and thrust the packet against Alex's chest. "This does," Roy turned to Lelouch and snatched the list out of his hand. "Give me this. Don't need an idiot like you messing things up."
Other people began to slowly shout names and Lelouch resisted the urge to sigh. With thirty-six people in the platoon, it would take forever to find their squad members now. And they were losing precious time, but Roy was bigger, stronger, and already called out the next name. "Henry Sullivan!"
Predictably no one responded. It was impossible to hear where anyone was shouting from. Annoyed, Lelouch grabbed Roy's packet, still held by a frozen Alex who stared at Roy in disbelief. Inside the packet he found a map with various locations marked. A subsequent paper listed the supplies at each location. It would be a detour to get them, but without the supplies, they would surely succumb to frostbite before returning to the base. A small pencil and compass rattled in the envelope.
Lelouch knelt down on the ground and spread out the map as Roy once again called out, "Henry Sullivan!"
Alex peered over his shoulder as Lelouch traced the road on the map and glanced around for any important landmarks. He barely knew anything about land navigation, but knowing where they were would probably be a good place to start.
Snow crunched down as a lanky teen approached and waved hesitantly. "You said Sullivan right? Nice to meet you, I'm Henry."
Roy puffed out his chest. "I'm the squad leader. Wait until I find everyone else."
Lelouch nodded at Henry who seemed nice enough, but he couldn't remember anything particular about him. Henry didn't seem very noteworthy so he turned back to the map. On the ride away, they had driven over a bridge, approximately twenty or so minutes out. He hadn't been able to tell how fast they were going, but assuming a maximum speed of sixty miles per hour, that severely restricted the area they could be along the road. His finger settled on the bridge victoriously.
"Frederick Elric!" Roy shouted.
Two boys approaching laughed and the taller one of them rubbed his head sheepishly, before saying. "I'm Frederick. Me and Edgar recognized Lelouch there from the first day. Figured we'd save you the trouble and come over ourselves."
Roy looked like he swallowed a lemon and turned around his eyes narrowing at Lelouch. "Who gave you permission to touch my stuff!"
Alex squeaked while Frederick held up his hands and said, "Chill man. I'm sure he's got a reason."
As if he ever would do something without one. Lelouch smiled politely. "I'm just trying to narrow down where we are." He gestured to the map and circled an area. "We drove over a bridge, so we must be somewhere in this vicinity."
Edgar leaned down and rotated the map, before setting the compass down and using a pencil to draw a thin line and repeated the action. "I'm surprised you remembered that. But there's an easier way. And you are right, but we are here."
His finger rested at the intersection victoriously.
"Fine," said Roy, still looking sour. He pointed at the closest marked supply point. "Let's go."
Lelouch shook his head and pointed to one in the opposite direction without any nearby points. It was an isolated supply station. "We need proper supplies. This one has snow shoes and sleeping bags. We're not going to get back before nightfall, so we will need them. And the snow shoes will increase our speed. None of the other supply stations have sleeping bags, I checked."
"How did you know that?"
Lelouch rolled his eyes and passed the supply sheet. "I read the list."
Roy humphed. "We're not going there. That one has food and we're not going to starve to get something as stupid as snowshoes."
Surprisingly, it was Alex who came to Lelouch's defense, despite visibly trembling in fear. "I agree with Toothpick, I mean Lelouch. We've eaten plenty of food at base. I'd rather be hungry than freeze to death. It gets real cold in the winter."
Edgar nodded and looked at the slowly rising sun. "Live further North, but those clouds look rather dark. Maybe it won't snow tonight, but I'd rather be safe than sorry. If we're going to be snowed in, we should at least have the sleeping bags."
Seeing Roy's angry look, Frederick held his hands up again. "What about a vote?"
"You some sort of French nitwit, voting?" said Roy. He glanced at the assembled group, and seeing only Henry seeming to agree with him, he growled, "Fine. We'll do a stupid bloody vote. Want to parleyvous next?"
Lelouch sighed and held up his hand. "Snow shoes and sleeping bags?"
Edgar and Alex raised their hands quickly and Frederick after a moment of hesitation joined them. Outnumbered and met with the possible threat of mutiny, Roy folded and passed the map to Edgar so he could lead the way. Lelouch too a moment to observe the other groups slowly getting ready to either follow the road despite the Drill Sergeant's warnings or head to the closest supply station.
There was another reason to head in the opposite direction and plot their own unique course from the crowd. Lelouch scanned the tree lines and caught sight of something metal reflecting the morning sun in the trees. A camera. Every action was being recorded and judged.
Up ahead, Alex took a step off the road and squeaked as the snow collapsed beneath his feet and the lower half of his legs disappeared. With a wary glance at the deceptively level surface of snow, Lelouch walked off the path and followed. Their arduous, cold, and wet journey began.
Worldbuilding Thoughts:
- Anya is apparently 15 in R2... How long did Marianne use her body? It's so creepy now that I'm thinking about it...
- There are two strange symbols that show up all the time on uniforms. One is generally on military uniforms and also on the Ashford Academy uniform. Don't know what it is, but I'm making it a symbol of Britannia. The other symbol I think if for police officers, but not sure.
- Britannians really hate the French, but that doesn't stop people from doing business.
Author's Note:
Thank you x1tears1X on FFN for your help with this chapter. If anyone else wants to beta, just ask? :)
Happy Holidays everyone!
Had a couple errors in the previous chapter which I fixed. Next chapter is on Sunday, for makeup update #2.