The Demon's Child.
'My name is Bianca, and if Lelouch vi Britannia is the Demon Emperor, then I am the Demon's Child!'
AN: Hey, I'm back with a chapter of Divine Intervention ! Hope I didn't make you waiting too much, but hey, I'm not exactly in vacations.
So, I've imagined this chapter a while ago and it hadn't changed that much. So I'm going to present you Lelouch and Kallen's daughter, Bianca.
The Mary Sue, or rather the female Gary Stu, because she's so clever and strong and cool and all ... but hey! She's Lelouch's daughter, what did you expect?
At least Naoto is different. Oh yeah, because Lelouch and Kallen have two children. Bianca's 21 and Naoto's 15. And Naoto is anything but a Gary Stu, I can assure you.
Well, I don't reveal more ;)
To Angel-the-hedge: None taken. I can't really deny it, the characters of CG are awfully perfect. Even Nina. "Hey, I'm the average 17 teenage girl but I know how to create Uranium bombs, and oddly enough my fear of the Japs hadn't been a boost for my researches. Lol" But I'm digressing.
To Republic : Yeah, I've watched it too, but then again I expected it. That's what I'd do if I were Emperor Charlie. And *SPOILERS* when Lelouch says that he has no emotional attachements, he manages to struggle against the Geass cast on him. To me, it explains the existence of Rolo, because Love is stronger than Geass. Yeah :D
By the way, some of the scenes in the OVA 3 of Akito the Exiled are just hilarious. To my opinion at least.
I mean *SPOILERS*, to see Lelouch angsting and struggling against his Geass while everyone around him are kighting with Knightmares ... XD
And, oddly enough, there were a couple of scenes that reminded me of some of my ideas of Divine Intervention (who still didn't leave my head)
You'll understand in the following chapters anyway.
To Shadow Crusader : Yeah, the theory is interesting, but the technology in CG was advanced and they knew how to identify a body with its DNA. And they found its corpse with its DNA, or else they would have been suspicious. They aren't.
By the way, I was thinking of writing a Prequel of Code Geass.
You know, the times when Charles was a Prince of Britannia. Yeah, I kind of want to write his story with this style. But the thing is, I don't have much time for me now. So, what do you think about this idea ?
Have a good read, gentlemen :D
Meanwhile, in the second universe
June 30th 1987 AD (2042 a.t.b)
Phoenix was a city in the desert of Arizona. It was the new name of Pendragon, who had once been the capital of the Holy Britannian Empire. This country had been destroyed 23 years ago, in this time line at least, and nation his had reborn from its ashes by the name of United States Of America. The Imperial Palace, a huge building symbolizing the hegemony of the Britannian royal family had been destroyed and replaced by unpretentious buildings that, contrary to appearances, held important institutions. In Phoenix there was the siege of the United Federation of Nations, the alliance of countries that had defeated Britannia. The UFN was governing the World wisely with the supervision of the supreme chairman, the former President of Congo. The siege of the Central Intelligence Agency was there too; in another universe, this agency was serving the United States of America, but on this story, or rather, World, the CIA was stateless and was only serving the UFN and the Black Knights' interests. And lastly, one of the six sieges of the Black Knights was in Phoenix; the other ones being in Tokyo, LuoYang, Paris, Damascus and Kinshasa. The Black Knights was a group created by Zero, a mysterious masked man, or rather woman as this World knew it, in order to fight injustices around the World. The current leader was Euphemia Kururugi, a former Princess who directed the order of the Black Knights for 23 years. Thanks to her wise decisions, the World was at peace. But Euphemia wasn't the only one to have worked in order to ensure this peace. Her half-brother, Lelouch Lamperouge, one of the most listened lobbyists -he preferred the term 'consultant', because most of his foes were lobbyists- in the United Federation of Nations, who was more or less directing the CIA, had been using his incredible cleverness in order to make this World as just as possible. Lelouch had two children, Bianca and Naoto. The elder had just finished her law studies at the University of Phoenix, the former widely known Imperial University of Pendragon.
Bianca Lamperouge was 21 years old; she was tall, had long and curled ebony hair and royal purple irises she inherited from her father. Except for the discreet Asian features she had around her eyes, Bianca resembled a lot to her grandmother, Marianne vi Britannia.
At the University, Bianca had been a member of the Karate, Chess and Shooting Club. Her hobbies, her strong personality and her father's influence had intimidated many pretenders, not like she cared about it. Bianca hadn't met someone more awesome than her father.
Bianca got out of the main building of the University with two of her friends: at her left there was a tall young man with short blond hair named Theo Diesbach, the son of a Swiss diplomat and at her right, a brown-haired young woman named Alexandra Ivanov, the daughter of a Colombian politician named Rudolf Ivanov.
"It's finally over!" Bianca exclaimed when they were walking on the campus. "Five years of learning thousands of laws that would be useful only once or twice in my life."
Theo chuckled. "You shouldn't have made law studies then, especially if you wanted to do politics in the first place. You should have done political studies."
"Besides, you wouldn't have any difficulties to learn the law books on your own." Alexandra pointed out. "You have a photographic memory."
Bianca shrugged. "What we learn in political studies I've learnt it by listening to my father. I wanted a prestigious degree because it's useful for looking good on society, that's all. Politicians would judge me badly if I went to their World with only my father's name."
Alexandra sighed. "People are judging me badly simply with my father's name. My mother and I received death threats before she divorced from my father."
Theo raised an eyebrow. "You're exaggerating. Those who don't hate your father have no reason to hate you." He said skeptically. "I mean, look at me. We're friends even though I reject what your father says."
Bianca rolled her eyes. "That's because you're Swiss. Swiss people are neutral."
"Be careful!" Alexandra shouted suddenly. "You're stigmatizing a group of people!"
Bianca laughed. "Oh yeah that's right." Then she bowed to Theo jokingly. "I'm sorry to have offended your community. Not all Swiss people are neutral."
Theo rolled his eyes. "Here we go. Go make fun of my opinions, but remember one thing: who stigmatizes people? The far-right. Alex's father and those who have the nostalgia of the Britannian Empire. And that's why it's bad."
"Here we go again." Bianca said, raising her eyes in the sky. "Everyone's stigmatizing everyone, that's how our mind works. And besides, the far-right isn't that dangerous."
"Their ideals are." Theo pointed out.
"Just like Zero's ideals were dangerous for Britannia." Alexandra added. "That's why my father thinks he's some kind of resistant."
They sat on the grass of the campus. The trio talked about casual things for a moment.
"So you're going to work this summer uh?" Alexandra asked to Bianca.
She nodded. "Yeah. I'm going to Mexico! I'll assist the director of the Economical Alliance of the Central American Countries, Diego Martinez."
Theo raised an eyebrow. "Weird. It's not your style to accept a job of assistant."
Bianca shrugged. "At least I'll be on the field, I'll gain experience by being on the core of the action. Martinez became what he is today while working for my father; he hadn't made any studies but he still worked hard in order to become a hero of the Black Revolution and became the Mexican President."
Suddenly, Alex received a message from her supersmartphone.
"It's my cousin Anna." She said. "I have to pick them at the airport."
Anna Sato was the 16 years old daughter of Takeshi and Katerina Sato. She had two brothers, Kenji and Dimitri, respectively 20 and 13 years old.
"Do you want me to drive you there?" Bianca asked casually. "We'll be at the airport in no time with my…"
Alex gave her a cold glare. "No thanks."
"…flying car." Bianca continued. "Oh, come on! Don't tell me you can't handle a bit of speed."
Alexandra rolled her eyes. "Whatever. I just don't want to enter your flying coffin."
Bianca tapped Theo's shoulder. "I'm sure he has the guts to try the Chawla F-2042 prototype I got for my birthday."
He nodded weakly. "Uhm… Yeah."
The three stood up. "So, it's time for the good byes." Alexandra said awkwardly.
"Yup." Bianca declared solemnly. "We're now departing for the adults' World."
The other two stared at each other with a look of nostalgia.
"These 4 years have been cool with you two." Alexandra said.
"Yeah, it was cool." Bianca added with a nod. "But we can't loaf around in the campus anymore; the World needs us."
"I'm going to become a good lawyer." Theo swore, raising his hand at the level of his face. "I won't use the privileges of my profession for my personal gain because it is bad and I'm not a bad person."
Alexandra raised her hand too. "I'm going to become a good magistrate and I'll give the bad guys the punishment they deserve."
Bianca raised her hand too. "And me, I'm going to become ..."
In 21 years, Bianca had listened a lot to her father, Lelouch Lamperouge a.k.a the man who had both refused to rule the World and to become Emperor. When she had been 6, Bianca had wanted to become an Empress but her father wasn't very pleased. When she had been 9, she had wanted to become like her aunt Euphemia, the ruler of the Black Knights. But while she grew up, she started to understand how the World really worked and she started to take her father as a model. At 12, Bianca decided that she would become a CIA agent, in order to protect the World from the bad guys who had a ton of lawyers covering them. It was logical, since her father was the founder of the CIA and her mother an instructor in the Black Knights Special Forces. But then her father had said to her:
'You can't be a secret agent: Our family is the most famous in the World and the bad guys will recognize you instantly.'
Bianca hadn't really given up on that dream to become a secret agent, but she had found another vocation. She decided to be way more ambitious than that.
"I'm going to become a good politician." Bianca said. "And when I say 'good', I mean efficient, not gentle and respectful of the morals. Not like I won't become gentle and respectful of morals." She added quickly, witnessing the stern look of her two former classmates. "I'm not a bad person, I swear!"
Alex rolled her eyes. "Whatever."
She stared at her watch. "I'm going to be late. Bye bye, and don't forget to give me a call sometimes you two."
Then Alexandra ran for the exit, leaving her two friends alone.
"It's a shame you'll be working this summer." Theo said in order to break the silence. "I would have invited you in my family home in Gstaad."
Bianca raised an eyebrow. "You have a brother in Gstaad?"
Theo replied in the affirmative. "Yeah."
She snickered. "Can I ask you what is so funny?" Theo asked sternly, staring at the amused face of his friend.
"Not much." Bianca replied, grinning. "I remembered a funny quote from a movie."
Suddenly Bianca recognized a familiar face coming from the main building of the University.
"Hey, it's my uncle William!" She exclaimed.
William of Winchester was a brown-haired 32 years old man. He had been once the twenty-seventh Prince of Britannia, and had become the 101st Emperor during the Third World War, when he was only 8 years old. The real ruler of the Empire, Duke Benjamin Henderson, had used him as a puppet ruler so Britannia wouldn't have lost his complete legitimacy. After the war, William had been adopted by his half-brother Manfred, a former member of the Imperial Family who had decided to join the Black Revolution, and received a proper education. Unfortunately, Manfred died two years before due to a heart failure. William was now working at the United Federation of Nations as the chief of the International Office Against Corruption.
William grinned. "I've seen your results. Congratulations!"
Bianca shook his hand politely. "Thank you, Uncle William."
"It's too bad Cornelia is in South America right now." William said. "She would've come too."
Theo stared at the man who was known as the last Britannian Emperor. Even though he hadn't participated to the war and was now working actively for the UFN it felt strange to see him in person.
William extended his hand to Theo's direction, and the young man took it.
"It is an honor to meet you." He said to the man who was supposed to be the 101st Emperor. "My name is Theo Diesbach; I am, or rather I was one of Bianca's classmates at the law faculty."
"Likewise." William replied diplomatically.
"I heard a lot about you." Theo continued. "Your work against corporations' corruption is admirable." Then he frowned and took a more stern tone. "It is a noble task, contrary to what your half-brother Lelouch is doing…"
But Theo was interrupted by someone's voice coming from behind him.
"And what am I doing of so reprehensible?"
Theo stiffened in surprise.
"Hey dad!" Bianca cheered.
Physically, Lelouch Lamperouge hadn't changed much in 25 years; his features had changed, matching the ones of a middle-aged man and his silhouette had thickened a bit, but except for that there were no drastic changes in his look.
Lelouch was staring intensely at Theo, with his scary look, the one who stroke fear in many politicians and businessmen across the years. Needless to say, Theo wasn't comfortable.
"I saw your results, Bianca." He said to his daughter, still staring to her classmate. "Congrats for passing with honors, but why didn't you have the highest ranks?"
Bianca grinned. "That's because you told me that we had to hide our full potential in order to surprise our foes."
Lelouch chuckled, his face forgetting this so serious expression he had earlier.
"But I was talking about chess." Lelouch replied lightly. "Besides, in politics it isn't useful to hide your insane skills of having an academic knowledge the law, because, well, that's pretty much what they expect of anyone."
Bianca shrugged. "Hey, I was just training for later."
Lelouch kept on staring at Theo with his frightening look. "So, you were about to criticize me."
Theo maintained the eye contact, and managed to talk thanks to a great effort in mind.
"The CIA is spying on the people, and you constantly rely to their information." He said. "You are using it as a tool to destabilize country's politics if they aren't in the political line of the UFN. What message does it shows to the enemies of democracy? It shows them that they are in their right to struggle against the system."
Lelouch had abandoned the scary stare. Instead he showed him a rather bored look.
"I understand your point of view." Lelouch said finally. "You don't have any experience and you have difficulties grasping the realities of the World. They say that the CIA is useless because there isn't any terrorism, or that countries like Congo have managed to develop by themselves, but the CIA isn't known for publicizing its achievements either." He smiled condescendingly. "I forgive you. At least you aren't like the other politicians who keep that kind of speech. They know the realities but deny them because it's more suitable for their electorate. You, however, seem to be an honest young man."
Theo stared Bianca's father in disbelief while Lelouch shook his hand.
"You must be Theo Diesbach." Lelouch said, grinning. "You're the son of the former Swiss ambassador in America if I'm not mistaken. Bianca told me about you."
He didn't know how it happened but Bianca's father seemed to have Theo under his pocket. Lelouch Lamperouge was nicknamed The Demon's Child by his detractors because most of his actions showed that he was indeed the heir of Charles zi Britannia, the 98th Emperor and the most hated ruler in history. And by looking at Bianca's father, Theo wondered that it was her who should be called The Demon's Child. With the charisma he showed, Lelouch could do whatever he wanted to, like conquering the World and destroying his father's Empire. Which he did. But then again, Bianca had constantly told Theo that her parents had been doing all this for her sake, her brother Naoto and whoever who would come next.
"Yes, I'm one of Bianca's friends." Theo said finally, smiling as well.
"That's cool." Lelouch replied neutrally, and then turned to his daughter. "I bring you back home?" He asked. "Suzaku and Euphemia are going to dine with us. Your three cousins will be there too."
Bianca shook her head. "Nah. I'll come this evening." She turned to her uncle. "Uncle William, will you be there?"
He gave her an apologetic smile. "Sorry, but I can't. Your father gave me orders; I have a reception to attend with financial big shots."
Then, William and Lelouch left the university. Lelouch was heading to Aries Villa, the Lamperouge family home at the periphery of Phoenix, where many green areas had been planted in this arid desert of Arizona.
"Do you want to take a ride on my new flying car?" Bianca asked suddenly to Theo.
He winced. "Well…"
"Oh, come on! It'll be fun!" She exclaimed, and then took out a device from her pocket. It wasn't bigger than a lighter. Bianca pushed a button. Her car would drive, or rather pilot, by itself and come to its owner position. And yes, a car moving without a driver was completely common on this timeline.
"Don't tell me you haven't been on a flying car." She said in disbelief.
"I did!" Theo snapped. "But the driver was respecting the rules."
She put a hand to her chest and faked indignation in a theatrical manner. "Oh, why do you have to be so cruel?" Bianca shouted. "You're telling me that I don't respect the rules?"
"Are you telling me that you drive like an old guy?" Theo retorted.
"I don't drive like an old guy!" She shouted back. "It would be a waste with my new baby!"
At this precise moment, Bianca's flying car appeared.
It was a red and black colored convertible; its four wheels had been put in the horizontal in the flying mode just like in Back to the Future, and four floating devices had been installed on this car. It used the same technologies as the floating Knightmare Frames the BK and Britannia had used during the War.
"Let me present you the Chawla F-2042." Bianca said, flashing a smile of pride as her car landed softly in front of them. "It's a prototype, of course. Rakshata offered it to me for my 21st birthday."
Theo whistled in amazement.
"The armoring is of military quality." Bianca declared. "The autonomy of this baby is around 10000 km. Tokyo-Paris. And its max speed is around Mach 1."
Theo gulped. "Mach … 1?"
Bianca had an unhealthy smirk on her face. "I've heard that we could break the sound barrier."
Then she jumped on the driver's seat.
"Are you coming?" Bianca asked, flashing a now apparently innocent smile on her face. "We can be on the beaches of California within an hour."
In the original timeline.
The scene was taking place in a bar next to the Los Angeles Imperial University. The majority of the customers were students, obviously, and it was also held by young people. The inside had a rather vintage style, contrasting with the modernity of the equipments. On the wall there was a flat screen, used for broadcasting TV or WebTV channels. The two women who held the bar were arguing about whether they should put a certain channel.
"Please, don't do this. I don't want to see his face." The first woman said with a jaded tone. She was a busty blonde woman with blue eyes. She had short straight hair with a fringe. Her name was Sonia Weinberg. After finishing high school she had decided to enter the military academy in Los Angeles in order to make her father proud, but she never managed to pass the first year. After that, Sonia had tried to make some studies in engineering science but then realized that it wasn't for her. So she took this job as a bartender near the LA University.
The other woman had the remote control on her hand. She was three years older than Sonia; she had long silver hair, a dark skin and some Asian features on her face betrayed her Japanese origins. Her name was Chigusa Ohgi. Chigusa's father had been the Prime Minister after the independence but refused to make a second mandate because Villetta, Chigusa's mother, had been given the chance to work at the OSI. Chigusa decided that her parents' World weren't for her after witnessing what had happened to Sonia's parents, who divorced because of the distance. Like her, Chigusa had grown up between Los Angeles and Tokyo and that was probably the reason they were so close. Ohgi's daughter had worked in Tamaki's bistro in Tokyo before opening her own bar in Los Angeles. It was a simple life, compared to what her parents had lived, but Chigusa didn't regret it.
"I just want to hear what he has to say." Chigusa replied simply, and turned the TV on.
The TV showed a stage in the crowded central plaza of Bogota, the capital of the Autonomous Republic of Colombia. Colombia had once been called Area 6, and was administrating such regions like the Isthmus of Panama, the Venezuelan coast and the Bolivian mountains. Therefore, it was the sixth largest country in the World, even if Colombia wasn't exactly independent from Britannia.
South Britannia TV was a channel that broadcasted mostly in the South American continent, and didn't hide its support to the regime of the 'Britannian Alternative' in Brazil and to the Britannian Secessionists parties. It was a part of a conglomerate named 'N&I Media Center', I and N being the initials of their two founders, Andrej Novak and Rudolf Ivanov.
The man named Rudolf Ivanov entered the scene and approached the lectern. When he was 18, Rudolf had been put under arrest because his father had rebelled against The Demon Emperor, but after his release, Rudolf had suddenly become a billionaire by making incredibly beneficial investments. The attention had been focused on him, and Rudolf profited of the occasion to create his political party, the Britannian National Front. The BNF was, and he was quite proud of it, present in most of the countries that had a strong Britannian presence in politics. South Africa and Brazil were openly in favor of this party and New Zealand, a Britannian protectorate governed by local aristocrats, was a strong support of the BNF. Their main asset was that they promised everyone, not only members of the nobility, who would help their new Britannia, to have these privileges the Britannian youth was so willing to have since a certain masked messiah had denied their right to dominate the others…
"Ladies and gentlemen! It's an honor to be making this speech in front of you all, here in Bogota!" Ivanov exclaimed triumphantly. At 44 years old, the leader of the far-right in the Colombian Parliament showed the face of a man sure to win. Most of the core members of his organization, the White Knights, were getting old, and thus weak. There were very few members that could actually use him. "However…" He continued, faking sadness caused by indignation. "I am aghast to note that those who govern us are still taking us for utter fools!"
Ivanov paused, allowing the crowd to jeer.
"I already understood their little project 25 years before." He continued when the people calmed down a little. "When Zero, instead of placing Schneizel or Cornelia on the throne, decided to put the easily influenced Empress Nunnally, who accepted without blinking the diktat of the UFN!"
He made another pause, in which the crowd applauded.
"But I know what they're going to tell you." Ivanov continued, his ego boosted by assurance. "The Medias under Zero's command will tell you that I am another Lelouch, another demon! They usually throw this petty argument when they don't have anything else to retort!"
Another pause, another ovation.
"But long before the UFN made any move, my father had already given his life upon trying to arrest the Demon!" Rudolf roared, making big gestures. "My sister has given her life to protect the Britannian nation, and they will tell you that I walk in 'that man's' footsteps?! Lelouch has initiated the destruction of our country's culture, and Zero is going to achieve this horrendous project!"
The crowd, completely devoted to his cause, clapped their hands frenetically.
"What of the Black Knights, supposed to protect the weak?" Ivanov asked rhetorically. He made the questions and the answers; such was the White Knights' modus operandi. "The only things they protect are their masters' interests! What of the Medias under Zero's pocket, who want to make us believe that importing delinquents from Africa to Britannia is necessary for us to become more 'tolerant'? They are adorning the process of our people's destruction, both ethnically and ideologically. What of the United Federation of Nations, whose official goal was to maintain World Peace? We have seen their perception of 'World Peace' when they tried to assassinate the Brazilian Prime Minister."
Ivanov made another pause. He was going to talk about the real subject of this speech.
"Colombia, Patagonia, Brazil, Mexico and New Zealand." He said with a solemn tone, and then everyone quieted down. "There were four autonomous Republics in Britannia, and one protectorate. Because Zero didn't trust the Britannian people, he decided that half of its population wouldn't be represented on the United Federation of Nation's politics. But in the meantime, the Isthmus of Panama, supposedly under the jurisdiction of Colombia, is owned by the UFN. We have proofs that the Black Knights stationed in Medellin have been cooperating with the cocaine cartels. And the delinquency is growing under the governance of Prime Minister Jimenez; the streets aren't safe anymore, because of the coca fields, because of the corruption of the local administration who receive their orders directly from the UFN's headquarters. But they keep on saying that the evil ones are us, and are too stubborn to admit that they have failed in producing a real justice in this country."
That was it; Ivanov was about to reveal his next step.
"We don't want to use violence to assert our ideals." He said suddenly. "And if the actual Britannia cannot change, if the UFN cannot change, then we may as well leave it. In a week I shall put forth a vote of no confidence in the Parliament, and if I succeed then the electors will decide of Colombia's independence from Britannia, because …"
"I don't care about his freaking reasons!" Sonia snapped before turning off the TV.
There was a second of silence in the bar, broken by the protests of a group of students.
"Hey, we wanted to watch!" One of them shouted.
Sonia gave them a cold glare. "Why? Are you one of Ivanov's fan boys?"
The students approached the bar, trying to threaten her. Chigusa was away, serving the clients. Upon hearing it she walked in their direction.
"More than that: we're the friends of his son, Alexander Ivanov." Another student declared with a smug smirk on his face while presenting Ivanov's son. Alexander was the young man in the middle; he resembled a lot to his father, with his dark hair and green eyes. However, he didn't seem to be at ease with this situation.
"You have denied our right to have an army!" One of the BNF's 'small arms' spat to the bartender.
"Me?" Sonia asked, looking puzzled. "I haven't done anything. Yet."
"Your parents." One of Ivanov's boot lickers corrected. "Weinberg is 'eternally attached to Japan', as he had said it, and in any sane country he would be depicted as a traitor."
Sonia gave him a cold glare. "If you think that you would affect me while insulting my father, you're wrong. But I suggest you choose your words wisely, because in two days I'll be officially a Black Knight. So if you guys ever oppress a minority, I'll be authorized to arrest you."
"The Black Knights are merely the Japanese Army." He retorted. "I quote it from Zero, so you can't deny it. The Black Knights are occupying the Britannian lands, so Britannia is de facto a Japanese colony. You are the oppressors, don't twist the roles!"
Sonia clapped her hands. "Bravo, I'm impressed by your rhetorical skills, but you forgot a couple of things right here." Her face expression darkened. "Shinjuku, Saitama, the Special zone, Medellin and every other cruelty your nation has done to humanity. Compare this to what the Black Knights are doing and you'll understand why my father will never side with you."
The atmosphere was electric on the bar when Chigusa approached the group of troublemakers.
"I give you the choice." She said with her usual calm tone. "Either you calm down or you leave. I won't let you disrupt my bar."
"Oh yeah?" One of them asked smugly to the brown-skinned woman. "And what are you going to do? Call the cops? The Black Knights? Your mom?"
A couple of the extremist students burst out laughing.
Chigusa didn't pay attention to his taunt. "Speaking of my mother, she was once the head of the OSI, and taught me how to defend myself from the assaults of people like you." She said in a defying tone.
Sonia grinned. "Me too. I have a question for you: Does being a Britannian supremacist makes you a real man?"
The student gritted his teeth. "We won't do anything. The established power is at your side anyway."
"Sure, keep saying that to reassure yourself." Sonia retorted lightly.
The group of extremists went back to their table, except for Ivanov's son, Alexander, who sat down next to the bar.
"What are you doing here?" Sonia asked coldly, staring at Alexander with disdain.
He lowered his eyes.
"Pitiful." She scoffed. "You aren't even able to maintain the gaze with a woman, and it keeps on pretending that it wants to make war? In the end that bullshit is just talk."
"I'm not like them." He replied quietly.
Sonia widened her eyes.
"It's the truth." Alexander continued bitterly. "My father is deranged; he is anything but a hero for the Britannian people. He is a murderer."
She leaned closer to him.
"What do you mean?" Sonia asked in a low tone.
Alexander took a deep breath. "He ... He..." He closed his eyes. "He killed my mother."
Then he stared at Sonia, who was shocked from hearing the morbid news. "I have no proofs, but I know."
She looked at him with a comprehensive look. "I'm sorry about your mom. The least you can do to her is to put your father in jail by testifying against him."
Alexander shook his head. "You don't understand. He's too powerful." There was unhidden fear in the tone of his voice. "They're too powerful. If my father ever finds out that I..."
"Be a man!" Sonia snapped. "Do you want to avenge your mother or not? There's no turning back. You've decided to talk to me so you'd better do it right."
Alexander clenched his fists but said nothing for a moment. After a minute of reflection, he finally spoke. "No, you're right. I decided to talk to you because I have some information to transmit to your father, Empress Nunnally's most trusted collaborator."
Sonia raised an eyebrow. "Go on."
Alexander sighed to evacuate the stress. "Just after Lelouch's death, some people who were either incredibly lucky or gifted with business managed to make a fortune by investing at the right times and places."
Sonia nodded. "Yes, I've heard about it. Your father is one of them."
"Some of them," Alexander continued, "my father included, forged a sort of alliance in South America. At first, they wanted nothing but to gain profit without having to be disturbed by the system, but they come from old aristocrat families, so they were also supremacists."
"So you're telling me that Ivanov is backed by a sort of oligarchy?" Sonia asked rhetorically. "It makes sense, but I'm sure my father knows it."
Alexander shook his head. "That's not all. These people have called their organization the White Knights, and made a lot of actions against the Black Knights and the UFN these last two decades."
"What did they do?" Sonia asked impatiently.
Alex turned his head to see if he wasn't listened. Once he made sure that no one was around, he spoke again. "I don't know everything, but what I can tell you is that: The Black Knights never made any business with the Colombian cartels. Most of the WK member's concurrents in South America had been victims of false accusations and made-up scandals, same goes for my father and Henderson's political foes. The assassination attempt was him was a fake, by the way. Most of their actions consisted in tarnishing the BK's reputation while giving credit to Nationalism and the nostalgia of Charles' rule for example. The mastermind of these destabilizations process is a European named Andrej Novak. I'm pretty sure that all these campaigns against Intelligence services had been orchestrated by him. Because of his actions, they've cut the budget accorded to the Special Services, the people considering them as useless except for spying on them. And that's not all..."
Alexander Ivanov had spoken a bit quickly so he made a pause in order to retake his breath.
Sonia's attention was entirely focused on him. "What's happening?"
"There are three higher-ups in Britannia who are members of the White Knights." He confessed. "Or rather, at least three."
He gave another glance at the table where his self-proclaimed friends were seated. Alexander sighed out of relief; they were completely oblivious of the situation.
"Who are they?" Sonia asked.
"There is the Minister of Internal Affairs, Lord Cornelius Bornstein." Alex whispered. "The leader of the OSI is part of this, too."
"Shit!" Sonia cursed. "This is bad."
He nodded. "Yeah. That's why the WK were so good in hitting their reputation."
"Chigusa's mother has been forced to resign after the independence of Brazil." Sonia said pensively. "After that, I don't remember hearing any big scandal about the OSI. It's frightening how your words make sense. Who's the last one?"
Alexander lowered his eyes. "Prince William de Britannia."
In the second universe. (And also the first at some point)
Bianca and Theo were walking on a desert beach in California. The ride was bearable, especially when Bianca decided to put the top of the car back. Even if Bianca's car seemed to be a flying coffin, especially with her driving style, the security was also one of the greatest qualities on this machine. With the radiant wave shielding, the obstacles were the ones to be destroyed.
"There's something that had always bothered me." Theo said suddenly. "You once said that your father fought so you and your brother could stand away from political intrigues. Do you want to enter in politics because you admire your father?"
Bianca stopped dead on her tracks. "It has nothing to do with this. I took this path on my own accord."
Not so far away, but on another universe, Alexander Ivanov and Sonia Weinberg were discussing on Chigusa's bar.
"Now you know what caused this shambles in this World." Alexander said finally, after revealing what to Sonia what he knew concerning the White Knights.
Sonia's face darkened. "It's as foolish as saying that Lelouch's death erased all the World's problems."
"Truth is." Bianca continued. "The World isn't as wonderful as it seems."
"Because of the new technologies, people tends to forget how human interactions work." Sonia continued. "People are isolating themselves, because everything they need is literally within reach."
"Don't be mistaken." Bianca said bitterly. "Those who take profit of the consumer society don't give a damn about principles. These fuckers who come from financial studies just want to be on top of the pyramid."
"People only care about their ego." Sonia continued. "But when they take conscience of it, they make the wrong choices because their perception of good and evil are distorted."
"If my father and my aunt weren't there they would succeed and the corporations would take over." Bianca declared cynically.
"No wonder why your father's so popular." Sonia said bitterly. "Those who govern us have forgotten their combative spirit because they were afraid of war, and now the people have realized that Zero's not exactly a Miracle Worker. But it isn't his fault."
"Because any human society is bound to be tested by the Worst of mankind..."
"I will keep on believe to what my mother fought for." Sonia declared proudly. "I will become a Black Knights because I believe in this system."
"...I shall become the leader of this World."
AN: So, liked it, loved it ? Please share your thoughts on the review section. Peace :D
