I do not own Code Geass. I only own any original characters created by me.

~ ~ ~ AVE IMPERATOR ~ ~ ~

~ Chapter 2: Changes in the world ~

[Pendragon – 15th August 2018 a.t.b.]

The leader of the Holy Britannian Empire awoke from his sleep by slowly opening his eyes, yawning silently while scratching his head with one hand, ignoring his longer than usual hair. At his side, someone moved into the huge bed and from under the white silk covers appeared a mop of long green hair. A small smile formed on Lelouch's lips as he stroked C.C.'s head, making her purr like a cat.

'And now C.C. is just an old name to her.' he thought, thinking back to when, five days after his coronation, he had introduced to the whole empire his First Empress, Cera ci Britannia. It had taken several hours to convince her to choose a name other than 'C.C.', but in the end Lelouch had succeeded and now he and his witch were officially together.

In the following days, both he and C.C. had started a campaign to renew the empire and, first of all, Lelouch had abolished the Area System. All the states conquered by Britannia had regained their name, their uses and customs, and the local population had obtained rights equal to those of any Britannian, causing Lelouch to become well-liked by the citizens of his empire, and while he was busy chewing and ridiculing the most radicalist nobles who didn't want to support a brat like him, C.C. was committed to appearing at many public events (especially pizza tastings) to make herself better known to her new subjects and, like Lelouch, she too soon became loved by the lower social classes.

His plunge into the memories of the previous days was abruptly interrupted when his bedroom door was opened without any hesitation. A man in his sixties, but with a well-toned body and perfectly kept gray hair and beard, dressed in a black butler suit entered and after a few steps he bowed to Lelouch "Good morning, Your Majesty." then he approached the curtains and moved them away with a single movement of his arms, flooding the room with sunlight, earning a brief curse from the emperor "Today is a wonderful day, the sun is shining and there are no clouds. Breakfast is being prepared right now, so you have time for a refreshing shower. After breakfast you have several commitments that require your full attention."

"Thank you...Sebas..." groaned Lelouch looking at the ceiling with a blank expression.

"It is just my duty, Your Majesty." nodded Sebas before walking toward the door, only to stop at the last moment. Turning back to the bed, he bowed again "Again, good morning Your Majesty, and good morning to you too, Lady Cera." that said, he left the room, closing the door behind him.

"Tell me again why you chose him as your personal butler..."

Lelouch smiled "For various reasons, first of all he is loyal to duty and was also a strong opponent of my father in all areas. I didn't even have to use my Geass to convince him to serve me." he then looked down to see the half-glare of C.C. who was trying to be intimidating.

"I know...but I wish he were more...respectful of our privacy..."

"Afraid that he might notice your white lace underwear?" asked Lelouch with a small chuckle, making her blush a little "Don't worry, his dedication to duty prevents him from thinking about things other than our well-being, and then reminds me a lot of Sayoko...I'm sure they'd get along."

She looked at her husband "Is there any news about her?"

"Unfortunately no..." Lelouch sighed for a moment "She's still alive, I'm sure of it...but even having survived the damn bomb she certainly won't have come out with only a few scratches so it's likely she's in a hospital or hidden somewhere while she regains her strength. I have communicated to several agents in Tokyo to search in all the places that have welcomed wounded and displaced."

"Good idea...better to find it before the Black Knights. If I remember correctly, Kallen also saw her in action so she could raise the alarm if she saw Sayoko." hummed C.C. before asking "You never told me what you intend to do with them. After all, they know about your alter ego, Zero."

"Until they do nothing harmful, I will leave them alone, since I have many things to look after now, including tracking down and imprisoning Schneizel and all those who follow him." Lelouch shrugged before showing a little grin "Besides, I think that from now on they will have several things to think about if everything goes according to plan."

C.C. looked at him with a raised eyebrow "What are you plotting?"

"Well...let's say that one of the Britannian representatives in Tokyo was contacted about an agreement between the Black Knights and my brother, according to which, if they delivered Zero to him, the Prime Minister would 'liberate' Japan from Britannian rule, no strings attached." said Lelouch with the smirk still on his lips "So I decided to send a reliable person to conclude the negotiations."

The First Empress seemed to catch his thoughts and a grin very similar to his formed on her face "You're really evil, my warlock."

Lelouch kissed her briefly "I try, my witch. I try."

[Tokyo (Ikaruga) – 15th August 2018 a.t.b.]

A pleased sigh escaped from Kallen's lips as she lifted a leg in her bathtub, watching the soap bubbles pop upon contact with her skin. One of the advantages of being the ace pilot of the Black Knights was that her room was bigger than the others and, more importantly, she had a private bathroom with a bathtub.

'I still can't believe it...' thought Kallen while washing her arms 'Lelouch had created the Black Knights to defeat Britannia...and now he is the leader of that empire.'

When, eighteen days before, she and all the Black Knights gathered on the bridge of the Ikaruga had witnessed her usurpation of the throne, they had been shocked (and not a few of them completely terrified). Lelouch had then gained the support of the whole royal court, but those who were aware of his Geass knew that he had controlled them with his power. Many of the Black Knights, and even her for a few days, had thought that Lelouch would start a new campaign of conquest, instead he had acted in the opposite way, preferring to speak of peace, destroying monuments to war and punishing nobles who had tried in vain to oppose him.

The fact that now Japan had returned to being such, while remaining a Special Area of Britannia, had led many Japanese to support him even though Kallen was aware of some recruits who, acting secretly, tried to undermine the credibility of Lelouch, inventing stories about him and the entire royal family. Kallen personally thought they were fools and would report them to someone like Tohdoh and Xingke, but she didn't feel like talking to any of them now, not after they betrayed their leader. Obviously she had gone in the wrong when she left Lelouch, although it was under his request, and that had made the relationship between her and the other members somewhat unstable.

'Maybe I should have stayed by his side...at least I would have died with a clear conscience...'

"BANZAI!"

"Wha-?!" a sudden wave of soapy water almost risked drowning her and, while the red-haired girl stirred in the bathtub spitting soap and water, a second girl giggled at her side.

"You were daydreaming again, Kallen-nee-chan." said the newcomer with another giggle, earning a glare from the ace pilot.

"Benio...what are you doing here?"

Benio was a girl a little shorter and younger than Kallen, with long brown hair tied in two side pigtails and eyes of the same color and she was wearing the Black Knights uniform.

She was also Kallen's 'adopted' little sister.

"I tried to knock and call you, but you didn't answer so I decided to enter! The others sent me to call you from the bridge, apparently the Britannian ambassador is about to arrive to talk about the agreement made with Schneizel!" said Benio with a smile, dodging the sponge that Kallen had thrown at her.

Upon hearing her words, Kallen seemed to calm down but a frown was on her face "Do the others really hope they will get what Schneizel promised us?"

Benio tilted her head with a confused look "Are you not of the same idea?"

"Of course not. Whatever they may have discussed with that bastard, it was decided when he was still a prince of Britannia, but as you know, he, Cornelia and other members of the imperial family have been branded as traitors and are sought after all over the world." explain Kallen while grabbing a bathrobe, while Benio hastened to take her a clean uniform "So I doubt very much that they will get what was promised."

"I see..."

Seeing Benio's sad face, Kallen couldn't help but feel sorry for giving her that bad news, but a bad truth was always better than a good lie. Shaking her head, she put on her uniform before putting a hand on her shoulder "Hey maybe I'm wrong and they could actually respect the agreement, just...don't hope too much, okay?" when she saw Benio nod, she added "On another subject, how's your training going?"

The younger girl seemed to find the good mood with that question and showed a radiant smile "It's going good! Kagari is helping me a lot and now my sync rate with the Red Burai is 79%!"

Kallen smiled as she heard about Benio's progress. The Red Burai, so renamed by Benio, was none other than her old red Glasgow that had undergone improvements, turning it into a Burai with extra accessories. Kallen had entrusted it to Benio when she had decided to enlist in the Black Knights and had taken the new recruit under her wing to teach her all the tricks possible in piloting a Knightmare Frame.

"That's good to hear! Now, let's meet this negotiator and hope everything goes well." said Kallen before walking out of her room, only to find herself in front of two young girls with foreign traits. Both had black hair, but the first one wore a pair of glasses along with the Black Knights uniform, while the second wore Indian clothes under a white coat.

"Good morning, Kallen." said the one with the coat, showing a friendly smile "How are you?"

"Neha, good to see you." Kallen smiled back at one of the best engineers available to them "I'm going to the landing bay, seems like the negotiator from Britannia is about to arrive."

"Really? What for? It's not that they will give us back Japan, now that Schneizel is a criminal." grumbled the girl with the glasses while shaking her head.

Neha looked at her "You could at least be a little optimistic, Kagari."

"I will be optimistic when there is reason to be. Right now, the odds are too low for us." replied Kagari with a shrug before following the others toward the landing bay, where the rest of the Black Knights' core members had already gathered. Kallen went to sit on some nearby crates, not at all intending to talk to the others, along with Benio, while Kagari and Neha went near Rakshata, who was comfortably seated on a sofa. Sometimes Kallen wondered if there were actually dozens and dozens of sofas scattered around the Ikaruga just for her.

While they settled in waiting for the negotiator, the other members were intent on talking to each other, even if someone in particular was already on the verge of exasperation.

"Damn it, why is it taking so long?" whined Tamaki looking around "And why the hell do we have to talk to this guy? Schneizel promised us Japan, didn't he?"

"Calm down, Tamaki." Ohgi looked at him with a small smile "Even if he promised us, I don't think it's a thing that can be decided with a snap of the fingers. This meeting is just a simple formality, I'm sure of it."

Most of the others seemed to agree, however Kallen couldn't help but roll her eyes. Sometimes her friends were terribly blind and above all stupid. It almost seemed like they were trying in every way not to think about the fact that now the former White King was one of the most wanted persons in the world. Most likely they hadn't even thought of it when Britannia had contacted them to talk about this agreement and, at Kaguya's suggestion, they had invited the negotiator aboard the Ikaruga as a sign of good faith.

Their attention was soon drawn to the sound of some sirens announcing the opening of the bay and, within a few seconds, a Britannian shuttle landed nearby, immediately joined by ten Vincent Commander Model, all painted black with golden and white details (clear sign of their belonging to the royal guard of Lelouch) and the appearance of those Knightmare Frames made all Black Knights members stiffen. However, they relaxed when they saw the ten machines turn off their Float System and kneel on the metal floor. The shuttle's door opened with a loud hiss and more royal guards poured into the bay, arranging themselves in two rows to welcome the negotiator.

'If they are all members of Lelouch's royal guard...he must still have several at his side...it would make no sense to deprive himself of his bodyguards for such a meeting...' thought Kallen feeling a strange sensation of discomfort in the stomach. Something told her that the negotiator was not the classic political without a backbone, but someone much more dangerous.

She was proven correct when a figure stepped out of the shuttle, watching the small crowd with a smile that threatened to turn into a sneer at any moment.

Despite the general shock among the Black Knights, Kallen could distinctly hear a single word echoing in the air and, surprisingly, it was Villetta Nu who pronounced it.

"Jeremiah...?!"

In all honesty, Jeremiah Gottwald was fully satisfied with his life at that time. After all he had been through, from the death of Lady Marianne to the experiments he had undergone to become a cyborg, life had finally returned to smile at him. He had finally found the son of Lady Marianne, swearing eternal loyalty to him, and had remained by his side as he became Emperor.

The captain of Lelouch's royal guard couldn't have asked for better, now his life really made sense and he would serve his Emperor until the end of time. The fact that Lelouch had given him full control over his royal guard was a source of pride for Jeremiah, who had preferred to take only a small part of the guards with him for this mission that had been entrusted to him by Lelouch himself.

When he read the documents relating to this meeting with the Black Knights, Jeremiah had failed to control the evil laugh that had risen up his throat. If it hadn't been for the fact that the Vincents, despite their improvements, couldn't travel from the motherland to Japan at full speed without exhausting their energy filler, Jeremiah would have arrived two hours ago.

But now Jeremiah was there, aboard the Ikaruga, and from the height of his position, he could observe the shocked faces of the Black Knights smugly. Oh how he would have enjoyed that mission!

Calmly and gracefully descending the steps of the shuttle ramp, Jeremiah stopped a few meters from the small crowd, staring at Kaguya Sumeragi before making a slight bow with one hand on the chest "Greetings, Lady Sumeragi. I assume you will be conducting the negotiations on behalf of the Black Knights."

Recovering from surprise, Kaguya nodded before bowing out of respect "Your assumption is correct, Lord Gottwald. Would you like to wait a few minutes before starting negotiations?"

"Oh no, don't worry. We can start right away." said Jeremiah with a small smile "How would you like to proceed? Have you already prepared a room and any witnesses?"

"But of course. If you agree, most of the Black Knights' core members will attend. In your case your guards may be present." said Kaguya before gesturing toward a door "We have already prepared a room for the occasion."

"Very well. Lead the way then." nodded Jeremiah with the royal guards following him without removing their fingers from the rifle's triggers. Within minutes they were seated in a large conference room, with Jeremiah seated at a table and his guards sitting in a kind of tribune behind him, while Kallen and the others sat behind Kaguya.

"Now then..." Kaguya picked up a stack of sheets of paper "Shall we begin?" when Jeremiah nodded, she passed the papers to him "We took the liberty to put on paper the details of the agreement that had been proposed to us by the former Prime Minister of Britannia, Schneizel el Britannia. There are also my signature along with those of other leaders from U.F.N.'s member nations."

The captain of the Emperor's guards said nothing, calmly reading every single word written on those papers and, from the slight rumbling behind Kaguya, it was clear that his slowness was corroding the patience of some of the Black Knights. Personally, it wasn't something that concerned him. His job was to complete the negotiations and Lelouch had clearly told him how far he could go and what compromises they were willing to make.

After fifteen endless minutes, Jeremiah put the papers on the table and looked at Kaguya with an impassive gaze "I have to admit that you have covered every single detail, even the most insignificant ones, however..." that pause seemed to put everyone on the edge "...the agreement you made with the previous Prime Minister is null and void. It has no value, neither on paper nor by voice."

"WHAT?!"

Kallen watched with vaguely surprised eyes as some of his companions were brought back to order by Tohdoh and Xingke after their outburst, while Kaguya remained motionless, showing no emotion on her young face.

"What do you mean that it's null and void?!" shouted Chiba with venom in her voice "We had a deal!"

"I would like to point out that this is an agreement that has never been finalized by both parties." the cyborg's voice was calm and emotionless, but Kaguya could pick up the hidden amusement in it "Furthermore there are two focal points that you missed: first of all, Schneizel el Britannia is considered a traitor by my Emperor, therefore all the agreements managed by him were considered null or put in a state of hold; second, it is likely that you do not know it, given how you have interpreted the entire agreement, but the Britannian Prime Minister does not have the decision-making power to be able to 'liberate' an entire nation under the rule of Britannia."

The look of horror and shock on their faces was a joy for his heart, and he still hadn't dropped the real bomb.

"There is only one person in the whole empire who can make such decisions and this person is the Emperor himself. Not even the Empresses can boast such political power."

In the minutes to come, Jeremiah observed with ill-concealed interest as the various more vocal members of the Black Knights swore at him and against Britannia, while the others tried to restore order in the room. There were also those who seemed foreign to everything that was happening, such as Kallen and Kaguya.

'They had probably already guessed that it would end like this.'

When the silence was finally restored, it was the Chairwoman of the U.F.N. who spoke first "So, Japan is still under Britannia's rule?"

"Yes." no reason to deny the obvious "Even with the introduction of the Special Areas, this territory is still under the jurisdiction of the Holy Britannian Empire." when he saw that, behind Kaguya, the Black Knights were about to protest again, the captain raised a hand "However, my Emperor is a fair and honest man, so he stipulated conditions for Japan's independence."

Kaguya heard someone mutter about how Lelouch was anything but fair and honest, but she preferred to ignore those words "And what would these conditions be, Lord Gottwald?"

With a smile that promised nothing good, Jeremiah put his hand in the jacket of the uniform and pulled out a sheet of paper folded in three. He opened it slowly and, although she couldn't read the contents, Kaguya saw through the paper a large seal in the lower right corner.

'Which means that Lelouch has already given his consent for these conditions...' thought the young girl before focusing back on Jeremiah who was about to speak.

"The conditions for the 'release' of Japan by Britannia are as follows: first, if the negotiations are successful, all Britannian citizens will have a year to leave Japan, so as to find new homes for them in the motherland or in other Special Areas."

Kaguya nodded almost immediately, it was a more than reasonable request given that there were several Britannian in Japan, even after the F.L.E.I.J.A. bomb was deployed.

"Second, if Britannian citizens did not want to leave Japan, they will not be forced to abandon the nation, but will be left in peace and will not be hindered in any way during their life on Japanese soil."

The young politician thought about it for a few seconds, but finally nodded. After all, there were also Britannian people who had created a new life in Japan, so it would have been cruel to drive them out without a valid reason.

"Third and final condition..." here, Jeremiah's smile widened and Kaguya prepared for the worst "The Black Knights must yield to the Holy Britannian Empire: the Ikaruga airship, the Guren S.E.I.T.E.N. Eight Elements, the Zangetsu, all the Akatsukis, Meigetsus the Akatsuki Command Models in their possession."

Despite her predictions, Kaguya hadn't prepared for the worst...

"What...?"

"YOU'RE JOKING, RIGHT?!" Tamaki almost leaped at him "In exchange for Japan, you want practically all our Knightmare Frames?!"

"In a few words? Yes." nodded Jeremiah without losing his smile.

"You fucking bas-GUH!" a quick and strong nudge from Villetta prevented him from finishing the sentence while Tohdoh stood up, staring at Jeremiah with suppressed fury.

"I hope you know that this request is extremely outrageous. If we gave all our machines to you, what would prevent your empire from conquering Japan again?"

"Nothing, but my Emperor just wants peace and has no plans of conquest in mind." said Jeremiah with a light shrug and basically everyone could hear the 'For now' omitted from the Britannian cyborg.

"Lord Gottwald." his attention returned to Kaguya "Is there any way to change these conditions? The first and the second are easily acceptable, but the third is really an unacceptable request."

"But of course." the former leader of the Purist Faction nodded with a smile "We can accept the Ikaruga and the Guren, and you can keep all the rest."

Kaguya grimaced a bit "That's still too much."

"I'm afraid that this is the limit of maneuver that has been granted to me, Lady Sumeragi." said the man with a calm voice "The number of units that would remain to you would still be quite high."

And he was right. Several things had happened since Lelouch had been betrayed by the Black Knights, but the new Emperor still remembered, the offensive capacity of the group he created and, if they hadn't decided to sleep or waste time, they had already filled any holes with brand new machines.

Kaguya knew this well and, if Lelouch wanted to get rid of the Black Knights without unnecessary bloodshed, removing all their Knightmare Frames from the game was a good move. However, she couldn't consent to such a request, especially since the Black Knights were now the fulcrum of the U.F.N.'s army. Losing both the Ikaruga and the Guren was the last thing they could afford.

With a sigh, Kaguya shook her head "I'm sorry, Lord Gottwald, but I can't accept these conditions."

"If that's the case..." Jeremiah rose slowly, with the royal guards immediately behind him "I regret to inform you that the negotiations end here. I will return to Pendragon to warn my Emperor of what happened today."

Without waiting any longer, he left the room ignoring the scandalized screams of some Black Knights and headed for the hangar where his shuttle was waiting for him. Without even trying to hide it, he let a wide grin form on his face 'Everything went as you had planned, my Emperor. Now that they have been denied what they wanted, there is a high possibility that they will resort to extreme methods and that will be the perfect time to eliminate them without looking like bloodthirsty monsters and to make the world understand that your Britannia is completely different from that of the previous Emperor!'

While the faithful knight of Lelouch was heading towards his airship, the chaos had returned to reign in the conference room but one person in particular ignored everything.

'We betrayed Lelouch...for nothing...now we are at the starting point...but without a leader and with a huge crater in central Tokyo...' Kallen felt the urge to scream and vent her anger on the first unfortunate person next to her, but she restrained herself when she realized it wouldn't solve anything. With a sigh, she stood up and grabbed Benio's arm before dragging her toward the exit "Come on, let's go and train a little, I want to make sure your sync rate increases before tonight."

"Uh? What's wrong Kallen?" asked Benio following her surrogate sister with a confused look on her face.

"Nothing, it's just that...I have a vague feeling that your first real fight will take place sooner than you think...and I don't like it at all..."

[Toromo Agency's Base (Argentine) – 15th August 2018 a.t.b.]

"So Lelouch sent a negotiator to negotiate with the Black Knights? Surely he asked for something absurd in exchange for Japan, and I think that the negotiations did not go well, given that no major troop movements have been reported to Japan." said Schneizel looking at a small screen, where was shown one of his spies who had remained in Tokyo.

"We're still trying to find out, my Lord."

"It's not a problem. Whatever they have decided will not slow down our plans." the former prince smiled without a care in the world before cutting off the call. After that, he looked at the other occupants of the room "As you have heard, the situation between Britannia and the Black Knights does not seem to have changed. We can proceed with the preparations for our entry into the game."

"Damocles is not ready yet, brother. Wouldn't it be better to wait for some time before proceeding?" asked Cornelia with a raised eyebrow, but it was Diethard Ried, one of the latest additions to their group, who answered her question.

"Damocles is just a means to end all wars, Princess Cornelia. Thanks to the Toromo Agency's funds, we have access to a large amount of Knightmare Frames and we can proceed so as to force Lelouch on the defensive, giving us the time necessary to complete Damocles."

"I know that." she growled at him "What I want to know is how such a plan could force Lelouch to be on the defensive for so long. We all know what he is capable of. As Zero has managed to create chaos and disorder with just a group of rebels, I don't even want to think about what he could do now that he is the Emperor of Britannia!"

"Don't worry, sister. Everything will be explained shortly...indeed, I would say it's time to go. We have a conference to attend after all." said Schneizel without losing his charming smile before walking out of the room, followed by a confused group of knights, except his loyal subordinate Kanon who merely rolled his eyes.

The White King led them into a large room, usually used for large meetings, and sat down on a wooden throne, while Kanon went to talk to some technicians who were arranging some cameras.

"Brother, what are you-?"

"Sister, please, could you position yourself to my right?" asked Schneizel with the smile still on his face "While you, Sir Bismarck, on my left."

The two exchanged a confused look, but then did as requested, while Schneizel ordered the other Knights of the Round (now all considered criminals) to position themselves in a certain way and, in a few seconds, everything was ready with Cornelia, Nonette, Dorothea and Monica on his right, and Bismarck, Suzaku, Gino and Anya on his left, all wearing the uniform of Britannia.

"We're ready when you want, my Lord." said an operator raising his hand, while several lights were turned on and pointed at Schneizel, leaving the others in a shady area.

"I'm not so arrogant as to think I can face Lelouch and his Britannia with the soldiers we have now. You're right, sister, it would make more sense to wait for Damocles to complete if we had no other alternatives, but we have one." explained Schneizel looking at her "And now I'll show you how, in a few words, I'll be able to solve many of our problems."

Schneizel then nodded to Kanon who made a gesture to some operators and the cameras were all turned on. The smile on the lips of the blond prince suddenly became sharp and cold.

'Here is my answer to your opening move, Lelouch. How will you react?'

[Berlin (Reichstag) – 15th August 2018 a.t.b.]

"Why don't you want to attack?! The moment is propitious! Now that Charles is dead and Schneizel has been considered a traitor along with the Knights of the Round, Britannia no longer has anyone able to stop us!" shouted a man with a strong French accent, slamming a fist on the big ring-shaped table, where he and many other people were sitting, all dressed formally.

"Just because they don't have those monsters on their side anymore doesn't mean we can deal with them! Britannia is superior to us both numerically and technologically!" replied a woman with a pointed glare.

"We can still attack them and kick them out of our main cities! Don't we have those new Knightmare Frames with us? Those so-called Alexander?" the Frenchman looked around and saw that some representatives of the few remaining nations of the E.U. agreed with him.

"We have too few to be able to attempt a full-scale confrontation. Furthermore they would not be enough to make us win, we need something more if we want to even hope to reject Britannia once and for all." answered an old man with a Spanish accent "The only thing we can do is watch carefully the new Emperor and see what he will do, since for now he has decided to stop any form of conflict against us."

His words led to silence, while the various representatives of the few remaining nations in the E.U. pondered how to act. When Lelouch ascended the throne, he had ordered the ceasefire on all fronts and had his troops withdrawn. Obviously he had not abandoned the conquered nations, but he had nevertheless put an end to a long series of conflicts that had been born under the dominion of Charles zi Britannia, then continued by his son Schneizel el Britannia. These decisions had influenced the civilian population that had therefore begun to support him, even though they were not part of Britannia. It was a situation in which the various representatives would never have wanted to find themselves, because attacking Britannia would have made them pass as the 'villains', but to stand and watch wouldn't have allowed them to reconquer their homes.

"Then what should we do?" asked the Italian representative with a tired look.

"I may have a solution for that."

All those present turned to the doors of the room that had just opened, where there was a man in military uniform, with grey eyes and dark green hair. The German representative observed him for a few seconds before asking "General Smilas, what would your solution be?"

The general showed a small smile, before approaching the huge table and stopping behind one of the few empty chairs "While some of you seem to oppose the idea of starting a new conflict with Britannia, I know that you all want to bring our people back home...and to do that we have to force out the invaders from our lands. Even with the change of Emperor, such an undertaking would be almost impossible...without the right means."

"Can I assume that you have these right means?" asked the representative from Italy with a raised eyebrow.

"More or less. I regret to admit it, but without external help we can never hope to win by ourselves." replied Smilas with a calm look before sitting down.

The French minister almost growled at him "You're not talking about the U.F.N. and the Black Knights, are you?"

"Oh no, of course not." Smilas smiled for a moment waving his hand "Those greenhorns may also have declared war on Britannia in the past, but they are still children compared to us and therefore we will not ask for their help, especially after many nations, once part of the E.U. have joined them."

His point of view seemed to calm many of the representatives, yet the words that followed had the opposite effect "And that's why I spent the last few days trying to contact someone who could give us an advantage over Emperor Lelouch, someone who fought against us for a long time."

At that moment, the big four screens in the conference room lit up and the various representatives were shocked to see the smiling face of "Schneizel?!"

"Greeting, representatives of the E.U." he bowed his head slightly "I present myself to you on this fateful day, not as an enemy, but as a possible ally."

"You?! An ally?!" the French representative glared at Smilas "He is your solution?!"

"I know that my words are not appreciated by many of you, but I would like to point out that right now we have an enemy in common...and if we decide to join forces, we can easily emerge victorious from a possible conflict." said Schneizel with the smile never fading from his face "I'm obviously talking about Lelouch, my little brother who killed my father."

"You are saying this only because now you are no longer a prince of Britannia and you fear for your life!"

"I fear for my life, yes, but I fear even more for the world. Do not doubt, my brother will not remain like this forever. Sooner or later, a new war will begin and then all your attempts at victory will be in vain." said the White King "What I propose is an alliance between you and me, so that we can defeat Lelouch and bring the world back to peace."

"Peace? Bah, you're just looking for excuses! What guarantees us that you will not try to betray us at the first opportunity?! Besides you are alone, how could you ever help in a war with Britannia?!" shouted a representative while Smilas looked at this with an amused smile.

"I have no way of promising you that I will not betray you, but I give you my word that, if you decide to help me, not only Europe, but also all of Africa will come back under your rule, while Britannia will never try to conquer your territories again. After all, that was an idea born of the mind of my father, the previous Emperor, and I was never a supporter of wars. Those who remember me will already know it." said Schneizel, forcing them to consider his words. After all, many nations of the E.U. had fallen before him but without losing a soldier thanks to his diplomatic skills.

"While regarding your second question..." the view seemed to widen and new lights came on next to Schneizel, showing Cornelia, and the various Knights of the Round who had sided with the former prince, to the various representatives "I'm not alone, I've several soldiers under my command and my brother, Pollux and Castor rui Britannia, are with me. We can help you, dear representatives. You just need to trust me."

The various politicians looked at each other before the representative of Germany asked for a few minutes to discuss it in private. When the screens were turned off, they started talking to each other, weighing the pros and cons in joining up with Schneizel and his Knights. Smilas remained silent during all the time, occasionally sending some messages with his cell phone, after all he already knew what they would decide. After about twenty minutes, the connection with Schneizel was reopened and his smile seemed to be sharper and colder than before but that little detail was ignored.

"We have discussed and reached a decision." declared the representative of Italy "What exactly do you propose?"

"As you may have noticed, Lelouch stopped any conflict and did it for one reason: being able to review his troops and re-deploy them according to his preferences." explained Schneizel with a calm voice "From personal experience, I can assure you that he is a genius among geniuses. Few are those who can stand up to him, such as my sister Cornelia and me, and it is better to act before it is too late."

"And how would you like to act, exactly?"

"It's simple. We must prevent him from playing according to his rules and his rhythms and to do so there is only one way."

His smile widened slightly, sending chills down the backs of the representatives.

"We need to attack first."

[Pendragon – 15th August 2018 a.t.b.]

"This won't do..." groaned Lelouch dropping a series of documents to the ground, to be precise the complete profile of one of the army commanders. The entire floor of his personal office was covered with sheets of paper, as was his desk, and there were two huge columns of documents by his side. On the couch to his left, C.C. was reading another series of files before throwing them to the ground with a sigh; same story for Sebas, who was sitting in one of the office chairs with a pair of small glasses on his nose.

"This is taking forever, Lelouch..."

"I know Cera, I know..." sighed Lelouch rubbing his eyes "But we have to examine all these documents, I'm sure there is someone suitable to become a Knight of the Round...and by now I have lost count of supposed geniuses that have been recommended by their families..."

"Perhaps you should change your approach, Your Majesty." said Sebas looking at him "Maybe looking for those who stood out in the last conflict with the E.U."

"Already done, and even if I found some possible candidates, they are not enough to cover all the places left empty by the previous Rounds." Lelouch then picked up another file and, after reading it, he raised an eyebrow "Well...this is interesting. Ash Collenor, heir of the Collenor family, graduated with honors from the Boston Academy but then never joined the army despite all possible recommendations."

"I wonder why..." said C.C. looking at him from the couch with half-interested eyes.

"From what is written in the medical report, it is because of his body. Among other things he had also requested to be tested by some of the previous Rounds, but my father refused because someone with such a weak body should not even think of becoming a Knight." said Lelouch with a frown.

"That sounds like Charles, no doubt about it."

"In that case, it seems fair to give him a chance. Also a break will do us good." Lelouch then looked at Sebas "I want this Ash to be contacted and invited to the Camelot Laboratories where his piloting skills will be tested."

"At once, Your Majesty." said Sebas before leaving the office.

"Are you sure about this, Lelouch?"

"Yes, my father was someone who thought that the weak should have no right but I am not him and I will give a chance even to those who have been rejected by him." explained the new Emperor with a firm voice.

"What about those guys who were recommended?"

"Those nobles never even grabbed a gun, Cera..."

The immortal witch giggled "Fair point, my love."

An hour later and the imperial couple was inside the Camelot Laboratories, the new playground of one Lloyd Asplund. He and his assistant, Cécile Croomy had arrived at Pendragon a few days after Lelouch's coronation and, much to his surprise, had reported that they would work for him. The young Emperor had been shocked by this news and had also thought that they could be two spies, but his wife had assured him that neither of them was lying, so he had decided to accept their services.

Lloyd was immediately put in charge of the scientific and technological division of Britannia, succeeding in a few days to devise new gadgets for the army and had also set to work on the personal machines of Lelouch and C.C.

"Ah Your Majesty! What do I owe the honor of your presence? If it's because of your personal Knightmare, unfortunately you will have to wait a few more days." said Lloyd with his usual smile.

"It's not about that, Lloyd. You have Knightmare simulators installed here, don't you?" asked the Emperor to which the Earl nodded happily.

"But of course! Sutherland, Gloucester, Vincent and even a simulator for my Lancelot! Do you need one of them, perhaps?"

Lelouch nodded "There is a guy who could be a possible Knight of the Round. I want to see what he is capable of."

"Oh how interesting!" Lloyd looked at his assistant "Cécile, prepare the Lancelot simulator! If he really is a possible Knight it is right to use the best stuff right away!"

As the young woman went off to prepare all the necessities, Sebas arrived at that moment, also announcing the guest. Lelouch, like the others, was slightly disappointed to see a young boy, slightly taller than him, with white hair and eyes as red as blood. He was using a walking stick and it was clear that he was very weak physically, yet his face showed no signs of weakness.

When he was in front of the Emperor, he knelt promptly "Your Majesty, I can't even begin to express how grateful I am for this opportunity. When I learned that you yourself had shown interest in me, I couldn't believe it."

"You're Ash Collenor, right?"

"Yes, Your Majesty."

"Then stand up, Ash." said Lelouch with an authoritative voice "As you well said, you are here because I decided to give you an opportunity to show me how much you are worth." he gestured toward Lloyd "He is my chief scientist, he designed the infamous Lancelot and all his weapons. He also owns a simulator of that Knightmare and you will use it for your test."

"I would be honored to be able to participate in such a test, Your Majesty." Ash looked at his Emperor with fiery eyes "When can I start?"

"Right away, my dear boy!" said Lloyd with a huge smile "It's time to collect some data!"

While the albino was taken to a locker room by the mad scientist, Lelouch went to sit next to his wife and sighed "Well I guess there's not much to expect from him. I'm sorry to say this, but he doesn't seem like an ideal candidate for a Knight."

"Said the one who had the stamina of a sleeping sloth." replied C.C. with a grin, making him glare at her, though without any hatred behind that look.

"Not anymore! I've been training!"

"Oh I know, our battles under the blankets showed it to me." said the witch, making him blush "At least you gave him a chance, didn't you? We just have to wait for the results."

"Yeah, you're right." nodded Lelouch 'Although I don't think he will surprise me...'

"I'm sorry...what?"

Lelouch was surprised. No, scratch that, he was downright shocked.

"It's like I said, Your Majesty." said Cécile with a nervous look "Ash has a 100% synchronization rate with the Lancelot. We have triple-checked the data and there is no doubt."

Lelouch looked at the form of Lloyd, currently bound and gagged to prevent him from jumping on the albino, and then back at his assistant "This is...incredible..."

"What about the bad news?" Lelouch looked at his wife who merely shrugged "What? There is always bad news."

"About that..." Cécile looked away for a moment "He can fight...for just a minute..."

"...what?" he was becoming repetitive, he was aware of it, but he couldn't help it "How can it be?"

"His body is too weak." explained the woman with a sad smile "If there is only need to move the Knightmare Frame, Ash can do so without any time limit, but as soon as a fight begins, he can hold out for only a minute before collapsing. It seems that his lungs and heart are extremely weak and therefore he has almost no stamina. Unfortunately, maneuvering a Knightmare also requires a lot of physical effort."

"I see...and there is no way to help him? With a surgical operation maybe."

Cécile shook her head "I'm sorry, but that's not a possibility. A heart and lungs transplant would be too much for his body and he would risk dying during the operation. With the current level of medical technology we could think of something else, but we certainly can't replace the internal organs."

'Damn it...fate really seems to be making fun of me. Ash turned out to be a great candidate, but his body wouldn't allow him to fulfill his duties...especially in battle.' Lelouch looked at said boy, who was sitting not far away, with an oxygen mask on his face.

And then, it struck him.

'Wait...medical technology...replace internal organs...' a huge grin slowly formed on his lips as he walked toward Lloyd, before removing the adhesive tape from his mouth.

"Your Majesty! He's perfect! A perfect rate sync!" shouted the scientist with bright eyes "I can't lose him! He's a perfect device!"

"I know Lloyd, I know...however his body is too weak to continue." said Lelouch before adding, with the grin still on his face "Tell me, how much do you know about bio-mechanics and mechanized prosthesis transplants?"

His words seemed to surprise the scientist who then showed a grin equal to that of the Emperor "I would say that I know enough, Your Majesty, and you have just teased my attention."

Unbeknownst to them, a cold shiver ran down Ash's back.

'I don't know why...but I have the impression that something will happen to me...even if I can't say what...'

~ Next Chapter: New pieces on the board ~

A.N.: Hi everyone, I hope you enjoyed this second chapter. We had the chance to see, briefly, one of the first OCs: Ash Collenor and in the next chapter we will see more of him along with other OCs who were sent to me! Speaking of new characters, I inform you that Neha, Kagari and Benio are NOT fictional characters, but actually exist in the Code Geass universe (even if in a spin off manga). Sebas, on the other hand, is based on Sebas from Overlord (I just love that butler!)

I would like to communicate to all those who have asked to participate, but who have not yet sent their characters, to send them anyway. If they turn out to be good OCs, I will think of something for them.

As I said, I hope you enjoyed this chapter and hope to read many reviews!

That's all for now, may your day be perfect.