Code Geass - Lelouch of the Rebellion/Code Geass - Hangyaku no Lelouch: Lost Soldiers
by: Ominae
Rating: T
NOTE:
All characters of Code Geass are under the copyright of Goro Taniguchi, Sunrise, CLAMP and Bandai Entertainment. All other characters are under my jurisdiction.
Summary:
A mysterious challenge has been leaked out to the Lost Soldiers after detaining ex-BRBC producer Diethard Reid. Why did Darlton send out a challenge to the Lost Soldiers to the underground anti-Britannian community and what does he gain by doing so? Stay tune to this chapter to find out.
Chapter 16: Duel
Command Center, Lost Soldiers Base, Okuchichibu Mountains, somewhere near Tokyo Settlement, Area 11, Britannian Empire
A sleepy Marc went in the command center, feeling sleepy in the morning despite being urgently told by Rai to come see him.
"This better be good, Rai." Marc said to Rai, talking to the command center personnel assigned with Kyoto assistance after he yawned. It was stifled a bit thanks to his respirator and balaclava.
"We've managed to trace the message down." Rai told Marc, stretching his arms. "I had to do an all-nighter just to find out which underground forum boards was the news first reported..."
"I apologize then." Marc placed a sympathetic hand on the white-haired teen's left shoulder.
"Here." Rai pointed to Marc the forum post where the said message was found. "An anonymous board as always, but this is the said post that Kyoto intelligence had told us about."
"Let's see what it has to say for us..."
School Grounds, somewhere in Ashford Academy, Tokyo Settlement, Area 11, Britannian Empire
It was recess, the mid-morning break needed by most of the students in Ashford Academy for both its elementary, middle and high school students.
"Where is he?"
Especially for one particular high school student.
"I taught I saw Lelouch heading for the direction of the courtyard near the front gate of the academy."
Kallen had jogged from her classroom all the way down outside the high school building to check if Lelouch was around.
"Is something wrong, Kallen?"
Kallen turned around to see that it was Shirley who was behind her with a smile on her face.
"Ummm..." Kallen began to talk to her, displaying her usual frail self to her and to the rest of the student body as part of her legend in hiding her guerrilla identity. "You see, Shirley. I need to speak on Lelouch on a private matter."
"Private?" Shirley asked.
Kallen nodded.
"I think he went for the back." Shirley told her. "I mean the courtyard at the back."
"Thank you."
"Wait." Shirley called out Kallen. "Is it...something important?"
"Yes." Kallen told Shirley. "You remember that I was assigned to be his partner for the history project that we've been assigned for a while ago?"
"Oh yes." Shirley replied and laughed. "Silly me." For a minute, I thought it was something else...
"You seem to be quite happy, Shirley." Kallen commented on Shirley's mood.
"I am." Shirley told her classmate. "My father's alive and well despite what had happened back in Narita days ago."
It was Kallen's turn to place a sincere smile on her face. "I'm glad that your father's alive." She then began to walk towards the other courtyard. "Thank you."
"Your welcome, Kallen!" Shirley reciprocated Kallen's greeting as she went to the rear courtyard and see Lelouch.
Commander Center, Lost Soldiers Base, Okuchichibu Mountains, somewhere near Tokyo Settlement, Area 11, Britannian Empire
"Looks like this is the one."
Marc began to read on the main giant screen the particular forum board post found online.
"This is a challenge I wish to present to the Lost Soldiers, in particular to Number 33. Meet me at the Edogawa Stadium in the Edogawa Ghetto before noon; this is something I need to do in order to redeem myself."
- Darlton.
"What do you think?" Rai asked Marc after he had read the message onscreen.
Marc sighed and scratched his head. "I don't know. It sure sounds genuine that Darlton would do such a thing like that ever since back in Narita."
"But on the other hand," Rai had began to object to the authenticity of the post. "some of the comments posted after the threat here are divided. Some thinks it's a fake; others are looking forward to this little match between him and you."
"I know." Marc chuckled. "That's what makes it so interesting?"
"But wait." Rai felt confused. "What about telling the others? And what about telling them regarding the messages we got from Xingke and the RVA back in Britannia?"
"We'll just have to make sure the guys know about them." Marc sighed. "It seems Darlton wants to meet me so urgently that it's better to accept his invitation than not to at all."
Rear Courtyard, Ashford Academy, Tokyo Settlement, Area 11, Britannian Empire
"Lelouch!"
Kallen spotted Lelouch seated alone on a bench underneath a tree. reading up on something when he saw the red-haired girl approach him.
"You wish to see me, Kallen?" Lelouch greeted Kallen when she was in front of him.
"Yes, I do."
"Then, sit." Lelouch patted on the empty space on the bench next to him, a smile on his face.
I somehow find his smile a bit suspicious... Then again, he does try to make him pleasant to the other students. Kallen accepted Lelouch's invitation to sit down next to him.
"Now." Lelouch placed the closed book on his lap and faced Kallen. "Is there something you wish to ask me about?"
"Are you all right?!" Kallen blurted out all of a sudden.
"Hm?" Lelouch raised an eyebrow in suspicion to Kallen's query. "What are you talking about, Kallen?"
Kallen felt her cheeks red. "I have no choice."
"What?" Lelouch heard Kallen mumble. "Did you say something?"
Kallen didn't have a choice when Lelouch didn't understand what she had been talking about.
She placed her right hand on his chest.
"K-K-Kallen?"
Lelouch stuttered when he saw Kallen's hand on his chest, making him nervous. "People could be looking at us..."
"I'm talking about what happened back in the ghetto yesterday." Kallen glared and mumbled at him.
"The ghetto?"
"I saw you take a knightmare-size bullet straight from one of the Sutherland's machine pistols." Kallen frowned, remembering the said events.
"Oh, you mean that?" Lelouch smirked, now knowing what Kallen was talking about. "Well it's one of the fringe benefits of my power."
"Your power?"
Lelouch shrugged his shoulders. "I really don't know actually."
Kallen glared at him. "And here you are, being one of the smartest people in the class."
"There are a lot of things in the world that I haven't heard or seen yet, my dear Kallen..."
Lelouch suddenly stopped for some reason. "I have a bad feeling about this."
"Mr. Lamperouge." Lelouch turned around slowly to see who was calling him.
"Ms. Stanford." Kallen saw that the purple-haired history teacher had nearly shaken him out of his wits.
"Just what the heck do you think you two were doing?" Cornelia glared at Lelouch and Cornelia. "I saw it all. Are you two trying to..."
"No, you misunderstood us Ms. Stanford!" Kallen said quickly, trying to dissuade her. "I was trying to see if Lelouch was hurt or something..."
"She's right." Lelouch was quick to step in and fill in the rest of Kallen's explanation. "I nearly tripped on the way to school in the morning since the alarm clock didn't work so well..."
Holding Cells, Lost Soldiers Base, Okuchichibu Mountains, somewhere near Tokyo Settlement, Area 11, Britannian Empire
Marc took a detour to the base's holding cells, visiting the detained Diethard in one of the holding cells. The Britannian man still wore the same clothes that he had since the Lost Soldiers captured him yesterday when he showed up at their base.
"Quite brave of you to be here." Marc complimented Diethard's actions yesterday. "If it was any other group like the Japanese Red Army or the Japanese People's Liberation Army, you could've been killed after they detected you."
Diethard smirked, seated on his cot while facing him. "Perhaps you could be right. Nevertheless, I believe what I've done is the right thing."
"I'm quite curious." Marc leaned on the cell's bars from the side. "How did you come to this base? It's not like the Lost Soldier publicly advertises our location to the rest of the world."
"Let's just say that I had to poke around a lot to get the exact location." Diethard replied. "Well, it's not like the public knows of a ex-JGSDF base is used by the Lost Soldiers as their current hideout."
"I see." Marc then asked Diethard another question. "And why exactly are you here in this base of ours? Are you trying to accomplish something that couldn't be done back at the BRBC?"
"Perhaps." Diethard looked up at the ceiling. "I always wanted to have a chance in recording an event that could affect the course of human history." He raised his arms up high to emphasize his point.
Oh golly god. Marc sighed, wanting to slap Diethard silly. Another person with an itch to gain a glimpse of history freak.
"And what?" The leader of the Lost Soldiers said, waiting to Diethard to explain himself. "Is that all?"
"I yearn to see the day when Britannia's days are finally over." Diethard further explained. "After all, it's a finished product and I would rather see something new."
Have to be careful here. Marc carefully observed Diethard. He seems to be someone who hates Britannia with all of his heart. On the other hand, the man here's known to get into trouble with the law regarding the pro-republican extremist movement. If I don't be careful here, some of his actions could give us a bad name even though we have Britannia as one of our enemies next to Eden Vital.
"That sounds interesting." Marc spoke up after hearing Diethard explain himself. "You seem to be the intelligent man."
"I get that all the time." Diethard smirked. "So I'm used to it anyway."
"Which reminds me." Marc snapped the fingers on his left hand. "Since you were able to get in the base without alerting any of us, how would you like to work with the Lost Soldiers?"
"Really?" Diethard was excited when he heard the news.
"Yeah, you heard me right."
Outskirts of Ashford Academy High, Ashford Academy, Tokyo Settlement, Area 11, Britannian Empire
"Finally!" Lelouch stretched his arms after stepping out of the Ashford Academy High building. "Looks like the rest of the day's up to us students now."
The brown-haired student looked around to see most of the other students running out of the building or talking with their friends in the afternoon. Today was only half day as the school was celebrating its foundation day. As such, the entire academy was given a half day schedule for morning classes to be made mandatory.
"Lelouch!"
Lelouch turned around and saw Kallen was walking towards him at a semi-fast pace. It seems that her pacing's not drawing attention.
"What is it?" Lelouch asked the red-haired girl standing in front of him.
"We need to get the project started." Kallen said, clutching her school bag on her left hand.
Lelouch nodded. "All right."
"That quick?" Kallen was confused by what Lelouch had said. And I thought he'd do something first...
"Come." Lelouch motioned to the girl to follow him. "I'll show you where I live. It's just nearby."
Outskirts of Edogawa Stadium, Edogawa Ghetto, Area 11, Britannian Empire
Marc had covertly arrived inside the dilapidated Edogawa Stadium, being dropped off in the area by Ken's personal Sutherland before he whisked away at Marc's instructions.
"Are you sure you know what you're doing?" Marc was at the entrance, listening in on Rai's ranting on his earpiece. He had his assault vest and his Heckler and Koch G36 assault rifle slinged on his left shoulder, equipped with a 2-Round Burst Trigger Group. In addition, the German-made assault rifle also has a Heckler and Koch AG-C underbarrel grenade launcher attached.
"Of course I do." Marc sighed when he heard Rai objecting to him being alone in the ghetto. He gripped the trigger group's selector switch, which was initially set at semi-automatic before it was rest to two round burst mode. I'll save the use of full auto as a last result. "He did use my old COSMOS codename after all."
"Fine." Rai felt that he can't dissuade his CO's decision. "I have Ken on standby in case things happen, boss man."
"All right, mommy." Marc rolled his eyes. He took off the respirator and stored it on his vest and left his goggles and helmet on before he went inside.
Should I? At instinct, Marc drew out his Glock 20 pistol from the vest and aimed it at one of stadium's tunnels. Still good. The Eurasian kept his weaver grip on the weapon before he holstered it.
"Time to move in..." murmured the Lost Soldiers leader as he moved into the stadium, drawing out his G36 first.
Outside Clubhouse, Ashford Academy, Tokyo Settlement, Area 11, Britannian Empire
"Big brother! There you are."
Nunnally met Lelouch and Kallen outside the clubhouse, her wheelchair being pushed by Sayoko. The Eleven maid was in civilian clothes, wearing a brown windbreaker worn over her white blouse with jeans and sneakers.
"So now you understand why my sister and I had to live nearby and not in the dormitories as one of the many ways of commuting to class?" Lelouch told Kallen after he previously explained to her about his situation.
"I see." Kallen replied. "Sorry to hear that."
"It's all right." Lelouch replied.
"Hi, Kallen." Nunnally greeted the red-haired girl.
"Hello, Nunnally." Kallen greeted Nunnally with a smile.
"Where are you going?" Lelouch asked his sister.
"Cornelia's going to take us out to the mall this afternoon." Nunnally replied, a smile on her face.
"Ms. Cornelia insisted that she take Ms. Nunnally out." Sayoko further explained the details. "She told me a while ago that she doesn't have anything to do today."
"Hold on here..." Kallen was confused. "What's your relationship with Ms. Stanford..."
"Ah, there you are!"
Lelouch and Kallen turned around to see Cornelia wearing casual clothing consisting of a white blouse, purple knee-length skirt and high heels that she wears most of the times when the woman teaches history at Ashford Academy High.
"I see that you're here, Miss Stadtfeld." Cornelia eyed Kallen and her half-brother.
"Hello, Miss Stanford." Kallen greeted the teacher. Why do I feel that something's not right?
"I hear that you two have a project to do, is that correct?" Cornelia asked the two students.
"Yes." Kallen nodded. "In particular, it's about the various Areas of Britannia."
"We've been assigned to do a presentation on Area 9, formerly the Philippines." Lelouch explained to Cornelia on their history assignment.
"I wonder if your teacher distributed you people carefully since Britannia currently has 18 colonies." Cornelia mused.
"Are we going?" Nunnally asked Cornelia, waiting for her.
"Miss." Sayoko called for the purple-haired woman's attention. "It's already time."
"Sorry." Cornelia smiled at the maid. "Well, I have to be going now."
"Yes?" Kallen suddenly chuckled, being under Cornelia's sudden glare.
"Let me give you two some warning." Cornelia informed the two students. "Since you two will be alone at least until we get back, you have to be sure that you're aware of what's going on around the campus. Especially after it starts to get dark..."
Lelouch and Kallen both nodded. Come on! Leave already...
"And one more thing," Cornelia said, placing her right index finger on her chin while trying to think. "I want you two to be on your best behavior."
"Wha..." Kallen was stunned, feeling confused by Cornelia's statement.
"I don't want you two to be doing...anything inappropriate." Cornelia shifted her gaze at Lelouch, seeing his cheeks go red. "That goes for you too, Lelouch. Since teenage hormones can make you do some things with the opposite sex..."
"Enough already!" Lelouch shouted, now glaring at his half-sister.
"Come on..." Nunnally giggled at the encounter. "We need to go."
"Ta, ta Lelouch." Cornelia grinned at Lelouch, blowing him a kiss before she departed with Nunnally and Sayoko.
"What was that about?" Kallen whispered to Lelouch, getting Cornelia's glare for the last time before she left the academy grounds.
"Trust me, Kallen. You don't want to know."
SDGSD Hangar, RBA Tokyo, Tokyo Settlement, Area 11, Britannian Empire
"Let's take a break, folks!" Lloyd yelled to the rest of the SDGSD team, returning back to active duty after taking time off to mourn the loss of Lenard Lubie after his assassination in the Tokyo Settlement. In their first order of business, they were upgrading Suzaku's Lancelot to the Lancelot Albion.
"Mariel, you alright?" Cécile asked Mariel, who wiped sweat off her forehead.
"Yeah." Mariel smiled, seeing the energy wing propulsion system already placed at the Lancelot's rear. "Looks like the energy wing propulsion system attachment's going well."
"I notice." Cécile went for the nearby vending machine, placed in their hangar courtesy of the army. "Are you holding up well?"
"Don't worry about me, I'll be fine." Mariel reassured Cécile, going with her to the vending machine too.
"By the way," Mariel said to Cécile, who was about to deposit some quarters into the machine. "I need to talk to you later when we're done."
"Is something up, Mariel?" Cécile asked.
Mariel nodded.
"There's something I need to show you, Cécile."
Governor-General's Office, Governor-General's Palace, Tokyo Settlement, Area 11, Britannian Empire
Euphie and Clovis were busy at work, delving into paperwork after the incident at Narita. She decided to help her half-brother, seeing that Clovis was dejected after his defeat at the hands of the JLF with help from the Black Knights and the Lost Soldiers.
"Are you all right?" Euphie asked Clovis, sighing with his gloved left hand on his head while reading over some documents placed on his table. "You seem to be bothered by something." She had been seated in front of Clovis' desk.
Clovis shook his head. "Not really. I'm just being forced to do all-nighters for the past few days." The blonde prince sighed. "It's just getting me a headache."
The young vice-governor replied. "You need to take it easy, Clovis. Maybe you have to relax when this is all over."
"Good idea, Euphie."
"Hmm..." Euphie took some documents nearby. "You asked him for some help regarding the insurgency in Area 11?"
"Yes," replied Clovis. "I asked our older brother Schneizel to have the Glaston Knights deployed here when their jobs are done in Areas 9 and 10 when possible."
"The Glaston Knights? I've heard about them. Darlton was said to be responsible for creating the unit, made up of orphans residing in the various Areas. Though I heard a rumor that one or two or them were from the mainland..."
"And so I heard..." Clovis shuffled some of the papers in his hands.
"Your Highness." Clovis' secretary called him on his intercom.
"Yes, what is it?"
"Princess Ambrosia has arrived. She wants to see you."
"Send her in, please."
"What does sister want to see you for?" Euphie turned around to see Ambrosia arriving with Guilford behind her.
"I guess we'll have to see." Clovis placed the papers down and stood up to greet Ambrosia.
Command Center, Eden Vital Base, somewhere in Area 11, Britannian Empire
Eden Vital's own command center, particularly its interior, was structured based from the Britannian military with the addition of Eden Vital's crest seen on the left and right walls of the room.
"Master!" V.V.'s attention was called for by one of the command center personnel, who were also dressed in black hooded cloaks. "You have a message from Colonel Madd of the Irregulars."
"Patch him through!" V.V. gave the order.
"Greetings." The bald Colonel addressed V.V. "Have you heard the name regarding Darlton?"
"You mean the subordinate of Princess Ambrosia?" V.V. asked. "What of it, Madd?"
"I heard he left the Tokyo Settlement a few hours ago early in the morning. No one has seen him ever since."
The news had interested V.V. all of a sudden.
"I've seen some of the best in COSMOS to track him down."
"Does he know of this?"
Madd shook his head.
"But I'm sure that it's something that would be of later interest." V.V. told Madd, the former smirking at the latter.
West Stadium Seating Area, Edogawa Stadium, Edogawa Ghetto, Area 11, Britannian Empire
"Strange. No one's here."
Marc carefully surveyed the empty seats of the Edogawa Stadium, confused that no one was around.
"And here I thought Darlton was here to greet me, so I went all out."
In a row of seats, a piece of folded white paper was seen nearby. Marc's curiosity made him approach the empty seat and take the paper.
Use the frequency listed here: 141.15
Strange. Marc was confused as to why a frequency channel was given out. Oh well, I better do what the note tells me. Maybe it'll lead me to him.
"Frequency change." Marc spoke on his earpiece, which was the main method of changing frequency channels. "141.15."
"Frequency change acknowledged." The A.I. system's voice acknowledged his commands. the Eurasian saw a long gun case nearby, laid flat on the concrete floor.
I'll be a bit helpless without our channel for a while, so I better humor the guy who did all this.
"Attention." Marc spoke on his earpiece, opening the guncase to reveal a Remington M24A2 bolt-action sniper rifle with a loaded 10-round 7.62 NATO magazine attached. The case held four more magazines, containing 10 7.62 NATO rounds each with a Britannian Marine Corp-issued M8541 Scout Sniper Day Scope with a detachable suppressor included. "Unknown channel users of this frequency, please acknowledge yourself."
"Ah, I'm glad that you were able to receive the note I gave you." Marc was startled after he attached the scope on the M24A2's upper picatinny receiver. He took out his respirator and kept it in a vacant pocket in his combat vest.
What the? The transmission startled Marc, who quickly secured the scope after placing it on the sniper rifle's receiver when he heard a cracking sound. Quick to react, Marc rolled to his left before a bullet struck one of the seats.
"That was close..." murmured Marc, trying to get a peek by exposing part of his head for him to a visual. He quickly ducked down again when he heard another shot, hitting the seat behind him.
"How does it feel to be the hunted instead of being the hunted eh? AHAHAHAHAHA..."
"Damn you Darlton." Marc hissed at his former COSMOS CO, feeling pinned down since he had two close calls of being shot in the head.
Lelouch's Room, Clubhouse, Ashford Academy, Tokyo Settlement, Area 11, Britannian Empire
"Are you sure it's okay?" Kallen asked Lelouch, working on the PC to type up their report while she rummaged over her school bag. "I mean, almost everyone's gone..." Both of the Ashford Academy students were now in their civilian clothes with Kallen having to return to the Stadtfeld mansion, which was conveniently near the academy.
Lelouch wore his black sleeveless shirt hidden under his brown windbreaker alongside his brown pants and black loafer shoes. Kallen, on the other hand, wore a white blouse as well with dark blue jeans and brown Venetian style shoes.
"At least C.C.'s not here, if that consoles you." Lelouch said while continuing with his work with a grin on his face.
"That's not what I was trying to talk about, Lelouch Lamperouge!" Kallen got furious when she saw Lelouch chuckle.
I didn't this much fun in years. Lelouch thought after seeing Kallen glared at him before she got their class' history textbook from her bag.
"Whatever."
Lelouch couldn't help but take a side glance at the window, checking to see if anyone was around.
I have this strange feeling that something's about to happen in a while.
On the walls of Ashford Academy, Tokyo Settlement, Area 11, Britannian Empire
Jeremiah was perched on the high walls of Ashford Academy once again, scouting the grounds of the school for any signs of roving guards or any school personnel wondering about.
They could impede my progress by alerting the Met Police when I'm spotted. I need to be extra careful.
"Hmm..." Jeremiah eyed the clubhouse after doing a quick scan of the academy grounds to see no roving guards around to the cyborg's relief. "Good. At least they won't disturb me..."
Leaping down the wall, the ex-Purist began to make his stealthy approach towards the clubhouse by using the trees as cover.
Grounds of Ashford Academy, Ashford Academy, Tokyo Settlement, Area 11, Britannian Empire
A roving private Ashford Academy security guard in his late 30s was making his afternoon rounds, among the places in his watch included the clubhouse located near the high school building.
"Wha..." The brown-haired mustached guard swore he saw someone dart to the nearby bushes located a few kilometers away from the clubhouse.
"What is that?" The guard adjusted his peaked cap, deciding to check out the bush.
I must be getting tired. Maybe I'll ask the Superintendent for a day off when I'm done with my shift today.
The guard drew closer and closer to the bush, placing his right hand on the nightstick that he drew out from its holder. He saw more movement coming from the bushes; the guard knew that something was not right.
"Either it's some stray cat that somehow got into the school's property or..."
The guard never finished theorizing who the culprit was for making such noisy movements in the bushes. A pair of gloved hands emerged from them, grabbing the guard by his temples before he was dragged into the bush before he was knocked out cold.
West Stadium Seating Area, Edogawa Stadium, Edogawa Ghetto, Area 11, Britannian Empire
Meanwhile, back at the Edogawa Stadium...
"Damn." Marc gritted his teeth when he tried to take a peek out from behind the folded seats, only to duck behind again as he sensed Darlton firing another shot at him from a still undetermined location.
"Where the goddamn hell is he?!" Marc yelled out loud after Darlton had fired at him, cursing at himself for not being able to take a shot at him due to his meta-human reflexes and senses.
Marc suddenly noticed that the earpiece was ringing very loudly when he heard it from the right earbud. "Who could it be at this time?" Fiddling around with his throat mic and the radio on his assault vest, Marc was able to home in on the frequency that tried to make contact with him after he depressed the PTT button on his vest.
"Identify yourself!" Marc challenged the unknown person who made contact with his frequency. I wonder if it's someone from the base who discovered my frequency. Unless it's from the war-time frequency I've been using...
"Greetings. I was wondering if you would respond to the frequency channel 140.90 after all." greeted the unknown man, who has a semi-clear voice due to static noise heard in the background.
"Identify yourself!" Marc shouted again, challenging the person who tried to make contact with him.
"Darlton's up on the stadium's abandoned control center." The mysterious person offered Marc some tactical advise. "Be on the lookout for possible mines. I heard they're planted on some areas of the stadium."
"Yeah? And how do I do that?" Marc asked the person. "I don't exactly have a thing called a mine detector to locate them and disarm them..."
"Don't tell me that you've already forgotten about synesthesia."
Synesthesia... Marc suddenly remembered when he noted that Ken was able to pick off the SAS squad sent to assassinate them at the Saitama ghetto a few days ago with precise head shots.
"Just on a second here." Marc took aim with the M24A2 at the stadium's control center. "First, who the heck are you and second, how the hell do you know all of these details huh?"
Aiming his M24A2's Scout Sniper scope at the control center after sensing a halt in gunfire against his position, Marc got to center his sights on Darlton. The scarred man, wearing Britannian infantry gear with the exception of a helmet, respirator and goggles, had a balclava in place to cover his entire head. He also had half of his body exposed, giving Marc the opportunity to take a shot at him.
"He he he..." Marc heard the person chuckle on his frequency.
"Answer me!"
Marc got the biggest shock of his life when he got the reply.
"I may be a fan of the Lost Soldiers, but I'm really one of your biggest fans."
The reply followed by Marc's right index finger pulling on the M24A2's trigger.
Lelouch's Room, Clubhouse, Ashford Academy, Tokyo Settlement, Area 11, Britannian Empire
"What's wrong?"
Kallen saw Lelouch saw out at the window for a long period of time when the two were discussing what to do with their history project.
"I thought I saw something." Lelouch sighed, standing up from the table he shared with Kallen. "Stay here."
"Where are you going?" Kallen asked, standing up from her chair.
Lelouch grinned at her. "Don't worry. I know this place like the back of my hand."
Outskirts of Clubhouse, Ashford Academy, Tokyo Settlement, Area 11, Britannian Empire
"That was close."
Jeremiah patted both of his gloved hands after he took care of the guard without using his blade.
"I see that someone's been prowling around these premises without showing himself!"
The Eden Vital cyborg saw someone was standing outside the clubhouse's door, using the shadow of the porch's roof to carefully obscure his face from Jeremiah's sight.
"Who are you?" Jeremiah challenged the unknown person, raising his fists to prepare for a fight.
"Who am I?" asked the person, who chuckled at Jeremiah's question. "It's really funny..."
What the? Jeremiah was shocked to see the person step out from the clubhouse's porch, witnessing some strange black cloth beginning to cover him starting from his feet.
"Surprised?" The person began to mock at Jeremiah. "It's not everyday that you see a person being transformed..."
"Is he?" Jeremiah murmured, preparing to retract the hidden blade on his right arm.
Next, the strange black cloth covered the man's chest and neck. "What's wrong? Aren't you going to fight me?"
"That suit..." The cyborg noticed that the man's chest, covered in black, was now in a suit that had a cape attached on the back. "IT CAN'T BE!"
"Now do you recognize me?" The figure now was standing in front of the clubhouse's porch, his head in the tulip-shaped helmet of a very familiar anti-Britannian radical terrorist.
"ZERO!"
Discovering who the mysterious person was after being intially confronted, Jeremiah drew out the hidden from his right arm. Its sharp tip was pointed down at the ground, being used at the ready for combat.
"Jeremiah Gottwald, ex-leader of the Purist faction." Zero greeted his opponent, raising his arms in to assume a fighting stance against the cyborg. "It seems that you're my opponent for today."
"ENOUGH TALK!" snarled Jeremiah, raising the blade above his head. "Today's the day when I defeat you and take your head as a trophy to commemorate your downfall against the Britannian Empire!"
Zero raised his left arm up and motioned to Jeremiah to come at him.
The cyborg had no plans to refuse his invitation when he rushed in to attack Zero.
Hailed as a terrorist to Britannia and her allies. A hero to the poor and defenseless.
Somewhere in the Tokyo Settlement, Area 11, Britannian Empire
"Do you think big brother will be okay?"
Nunnally asked Cornelia during one of their shopping strolls in the downtown area of the settlement, being assisted in her wheelchair by Sayoko as always.
Cornelia reassured her younger half-sister. "Don't worry, Nunna." The woman smiled at her. "I'm sure your big brother is fine." And for his sake, he better not be doing anything bad to Kallen Stadtfeld.
"I sure hope so." Nunnally sighed before she smiled at Cornelia. "I'm confident that big brother won't do anything to Kallen since he's a total gentleman."
Lelouch's Room, Clubhouse, Ashford Academy, Tokyo Settlement, Area 11, Britannian Empire
"What the heck's going on there?"
Kallen stayed hidden away from the main window in Lelouch's room, peeking out to see Zero engage the cyborg Jeremiah in a fistfight match.
"Who the hell is that?" Kallen was confused to see Jeremiah, not knowing who he is from a distance.
"Zero needs help, but what do I do?" Kallen murmured, seeing the shoulder bag that was placed on Lelouch's bed.
I wonder if I can bring the advantage for Zero's...
West Stadium Seating Area, Edogawa Stadium, Edogawa Ghetto, Area 11, Britannian Empire
"What?!"
Marc was frustrated to see his shot miss Darlton even though his scope's sights were centered on his forehead.
"Dammit!" Marc pulled the M24A2's bolt to eject the used 7.62 NATO round and rechamber another round. "I swore I got the sights on him!"
The ex-child soldier's anger was felt in his actions that he didn't bother to think twice on his weapon when he missed his shot, despite having perfectly aligned sights on his opponent.
Better duck back! Marc ducked down while using the stadium seats for cover.
Shots didn't go through. Marc eyed the M8541 scope on top of his M24A2. Unless...
"You sure know what you're doing..."
Marc felt the need to strangle the unknown man that had contacted him once again.
"Two clicks of the elevation knob to the right and three clicks of the windage knob to the left."
"How do you know all this?" Marc grumbled, following the voice's instructions.
"Like I said, I'm one of your biggest fans."
Outskirts of Clubhouse, Ashford Academy, Tokyo Settlement, Area 11, Britannian Empire
"HAH! HA!"
Jeremiah began to slash the blade against Zero after drawing it out from his right arm. For Zero's part, he launch a flurry of fists after he teleported around Jeremiah in order to confuse him.
"Blast you!" Jeremiah was infuriated that Zero was teleporting all around him. "Why don't you stay still?!"
"I'm terribly sorry, my fine friend." Zero chuckled, appearing in front of him after teleporting from his rear. "But I don't want to."
"Ergh!" Jeremiah felt a punch on his chest, forcing him to step a few feet back. Dammit! Most of my body's been modified with cybernetic parts, so I shouldn't feel pain.
Jeremiah stared at Zero hard, using his eyepiece to make a quick scan of his body. So why did his punch make me feel pain?
"Surprised?" Zero cracked the knuckles of his hands. "I thought so.."
"Now I'm suddenly curious about you." Jeremiah pointed his blade arm at Zero. "Since you're the only one who's able to land a punch at me since I'm a cyborg now..."
"Then come and get me." Zero challenged Jeremiah, urging him on.
West Stadium Seating Area, Edogawa Stadium, Edogawa Ghetto, Area 11, Britannian Empire
Wonder if Darlton's still in the control room?
Marc quickly took aim at the room, already aiming his M24A2 at Darlton.
"Hey Darlton!" Marc yelled at Darlton on his radio, already connected back on the frequency used to make contact with him.
"You're going down, boy!" Darlton yelled back. Marc had duly noted that Darlton was also armed with the M24A2.
Will I be able to get him? Marc wondered, this time placing his sights on Darlton with the scarred man doing the same thing likewise.
Marc didn't have an answer for his question when he fired his M24A2 at Darlton.
Somewhere in RBA Tokyo, Tokyo Settlement, Area 11, Britannian Empire
"Thanks for waiting, Mariel."
Cécile met up with Mariel after Lloyd wrapped up their work back at the SDGSD Hangar. The two of them were in civilian clothes, being off-duty.
"It's not a problem, Cécile." Mariel smiled and shook her head. "Rather, I should be the one to thank you instead for taking some time off to talk to me."
"Now then..." Cécile spoke to Mariel, the two walking towards the entrance of RBA Tokyo. "You have something urgent that you want to show me..."
Mariel nodded. "I do."
Cécile eyed the folder carefully that Mariel showed her. "That symbol..."
"This was something my father left me after he was assassinated." Mariel began to explain the folder's significance to Cécile, showing the trident symbol as seen with Eden Vital.
"What about it, Mariel?" Cécile asked. What's with this...
"I'm not sure." Mariel shook her head, the two SDGSD personnel were now approaching the entrance to RBA Tokyo. "My father warned me that this symbol here belonged to an organization that happens to be very dangerous."
Two Britannian soldiers were seemingly conducting patrol duties in the interior of RBA Tokyo near its entrance. Their Colt M-13 assault rifles were slinged on their right shoulders, keeping them on the ready when they encountered Cécile and Mariel when they were on their way out of the base.
"Status report on Target Alpha." One of the soldier's hidden earpiece on his right ear received a secret transmission when he inspected their ID cards.
"Target Alpha appears to be fine." The soldier replied after allowing the women to leave. "Cannot determine if they know about you or the organization, Master V.V."
"I see."
"What shall we do, Master? Do we stop here or..."
"No." came the reply. "Continue to observe as much as you can from your posts."
"Do we have any new orders?"
Two minutes of silence were heard on the frequency before V.V. gave an eventual reply.
"Shadow them whenever they're in the base. And wait for further orders."
"Yes, master."
West Stadium Seating Area, Edogawa Stadium, Edogawa Ghetto, Area 11, Britannian Empire
Gotcha.
Marc gritted his teeth when he saw Darlton got hit on the left shoulder before he took a hit of his own on the right shoulder.
"Ergh!" grunted the Lost Soldiers leader. "Not good..."
"How's the battle going on?" Marc received a transmission from Diethard back at the Lost Soldiers back, seemingly worried.
"I'm fine." Marc gritted his teeth still after he drew out his combat knife. "Took a bullet on the right shoulder." Placing the M24A2 down next to him, Marc went to use a piece of rope he found nearby to apply pressure on the right arm. Damn it's times like these that I wish I had some help to tie this thing.
"Well you better hurry." advised the ex-BRBC journalist/producer. "Your fellow Lost Soldiers are getting some other transmission of other forces in the area aside from you and your friend."
Hmph... The soldier held the combat knife on his left arm in a reverse grip. I wonder who...
"Traitor's here! Get him!"
"Ahhh..." Marc sighed, placing his M24A2 down and having the G36's 2-Round Burst Trigger Group set on two round burst mode. "Thanks for letting me know about this, Diethard."
Outskirts of Clubhouse, Ashford Academy, Tokyo Settlement, Area 11, Britannian Empire
"What do you plan to accomplish..." Zero began to challenge Jeremiah, sending several punches straight at him. "by my defeat, Jeremiah Gottwald?"
"Do you plan to mock me, Zero?" Jeremiah executed a double back flip that set him several meters away from the caped man. "By defeating you," The man pointed his blade at Zero. "I would be able to take my rightful place within the military as the one responsible for killing you!"
"Hmph." Zero raised his fists up. "Do you really think you know the story, my dear Jeremiah?"
"What?" Jeremiah was shocked to hear what Zero had told him right now.
"Just as I thought. You don't know nearly everything from the assassination of Marianne vi Britannia years ago..."
"Is that Jeremiah Gottwald?!"
The Eden Vital secret agent turned his head to the side, seeing two familiar faces in civilian clothes and in the premises of the academy.
"Princess...Cornelia?" Jeremiah didn't know if he actually saw the supposedly deceased Princess Cornelia alongside her half-sister, Princess Nunnally.
"Madam!" Sayoko stepped in front of Cornelia and Nunnally, grabbing two kunais from the pockets of her windbreaker. "Stay back immediately! I'll take care of him!"
Jeremiah, for his defense, used his blade arm to shield his face when Sayoko tried to move in when she crouched in before she extended her right arm in order to take a stab at his face.
"Knave!" Jeremiah yelled out when he used the blade arm to give him and Sayoko some space between each other. This was later followed on by multiple blade slash attempts at the maid/kunoichi.
Somewhere in Edogawa Stadium, Edogawa Ghetto, Area 11, Britannian Empire
"There's that traitor! Kill him at once!"
A squad of 6 COSMOS soldiers, all armed with Heckler and Koch G36K assault carbines, charged in the dilapidated stadium with standard Britannian infantry uniform. Their main objective was for the elimination of Marc, programmed into the brainwashed child soldiers as a former COSMOS soldiers turned traitor after the end of the Second Pacific War.
"Dammit! Looks like I have to wipe out the next generation already..."
Marc, ignoring the bleeding wound on his right shoulder, charged to face the enemy. His G36's rifle sling was on his left shoulder.
"Prepare to...!" The 1st COSMOS soldier was caught off his guard when Marc kicked him by his crotch, forcing him to bend down.
"Gotcha." Marc smirked when he saw an opportunity for him to grab the soldier's neck after he had his right arm wrapped around it. Ensuring that his grip was secure, Marc broke the soldier's neck in an instant.
"Bastard! Get him!" The other five COSMOS soldiers rushed in after seeing their comrade killed when Marc discarded his body, neck bone already been snapped.
"It seems you people want more." Marc twirled around with his combat knife. "Fine with me!"
Dashing towards his adversaries, Marc had a somewhat tranquil look on his face when the G36K-armed COSMOS soldiers had fired at him.
Outskirts of Clubhouse, Ashford Academy, Tokyo Settlement, Area 11, Britannian Empire
"Why you little..."
Jeremiah had been on the defensive when Sayoko had tried to stab and slash him with her kunais.
However, Zero had been kept very busy himself when several black ninjas had arrived in the area after jumping down from the roofs of several buildings in the campus with their ninjatos drawn out and at the ready.
"Get back!" Zero had already seen to it that Cornelia and Nunnally were already safely inside when Sayoko assisted them in retreating inside the Clubhouse by hurling several of her shurikens at Jeremiah, who had deflected them away from him by using his blade to smack them away.
I need to ask Sayoko on how she's able to keep an arsenal of such weapons within her... Zero went for the offensive right away when he went for the nearest ninja, thrusting his right hand into his chest.
"URGHGHGGH!!!!" The ninja shouted when he felt Zero's hand grabbing his heart. Moments later, Zero did not say anything but to instantly crush the organ.
"What the hell?" One of the ninjas felt hesitant to approach Zero, holding his ninjato at the ready.
"Just because one of us goes down like that doesn't we have to chicken out!" Another of the ninjas tried to inspire his comrades to not easily give in due to Zero's actions.
"He's right!" A kusarigama-armed ninja yelled out as well. "We need to take Zero down or we can't face Master back at HQ!"
"A master eh?" Zero said, cracking the knuckles of his hands while ignoring Sayoko nearby, still fighting Jeremiah after helping Nunnally and Cornelia escape towards the Clubhouse. "Then you all better come get me!"
"Otherwise," He motioned to the ninjas to come at him. "you won't have the chance to see if you can take me down!"
Somewhere in Edogawa Stadium, Edogawa Ghetto, Area 11, Britannian Empire
"Hah!"
Already in front of the COSMOS force after he dashed and dodged to avoid being hit by gunfire, Marc grabbed the G36K's rifle barrel belonging to one of the five surviving soldiers and immediately slashed his throat with his combat knife.
"56!" shouted one of the soldiers, yelling his comrade's combat serial number. Marc allowed the dead soldier to fall down on the ground.
"Next..." Marc said casually, engaging another COSMOS soldiers in a fistfight. He used his blood-stained knife against the soldier's own clean knife when he drew it out from the sheath attached on his combat vest after he slinged his own G36K on his neck, placing the rifle behind his back.
Quite impressive. Marc clashed his knife with the soldier's, which gave the former an impression that his opponent was like reading his own mind to prevent him from obtaining a direct hit.
The others began to circle around the two, aiming their G36Ks at Marc in order to have the opportunity to shoot at him in case he was able to defeat one of their own eventually.
"Eyah!" Surprising everyone, Marc swiftly drew out another combat knife hidden somewhere on his body before holding it also in a reverse grip.
"Damn it! I oughta..." The knife-armed soldier was taken aback when he saw Marc, now being armed with dual knives, taking a step to the side on his left.
"Crap!" The soldier didn't have time to either counter Marc's movements or defend himself properly when Marc took a stab at his head with both of his knives.
"Get him!" One of the four surviving COSMOS soldiers was about to draw out his pistol when Marc glared at him. He reacted in an instant by hurling the combat knife held on his left hand at the soldier's neck.
"What do we do?" The other three COSMOS soldiers began to react defensively, moving a few feet away from him after they held their G36Ks again aimed at him once more.
Somewhere inside Clubhouse, Ashford Academy, Tokyo Settlement, Area 11, Britannian Empire
"What's happening outside?" A panicking Nunnally asked Cornelia, the two ex-Britannian princesses seeking refuge in the Clubhouse while Cornelia was searching for a room for them to hide until the fighting outside has been quelled.
"In here quickly!" A familiar green-haired girl with a straitjacket guided them towards a vacant room.
"C.C.!" Nunnally shouted, recognizing the voice.
"Why are you helping us?" Cornelia questioned the girl after she and Nunnally were safe in the room.
"Because I wish to help him." C.C. explained her girl.
"You mean Zero?" Cornelia questioned C.C. after hearing her reason.
C.C. nodded.
"Just what is going on out here?" Cornelia grabbed C.C. by the straitjacket collar and slammed her onto the wall. "We've been living in peace now with Lelouch after the occupation of Japan by Britannia and now we're getting this mess out there." The purple-haired woman glared at the young girl. "There's something fishy going on around here and I want to explain to me and Nunnally just what's the meaning of this right now."
Cornelia then glared at C.C. even further before she added a warning.
"And don't leave a single detail out. Or else..."
Rooftop, Clubhouse, Ashford Academy, Tokyo Settlement, Area 11, Britannian Empire
Kallen was alone on the Clubhouse's rooftop, not seen by C.C. nor by Nunnally and Cornelia when she made her way to the said area. The red-haired girl was still clad in her civilian clothes, carrying a sort of small suitcase with her.
"It's a good thing that the weapon's compact." Kallen murmured to herself when she placed the suitcase down. "Don't know why I brought it in the place, but it never hurts to be ready sometimes."
Opening the case, she took out what appears to be a wooden skeleton buttstock, a Russian PSO-1-1 day sniper scope, a silenced barrel casing with the receiver and a 10-round Russian 9x39 Russia subsonic magazine.
"I better get to his aid at once." Kallen furiously began to work at attaching the receiver on the buttstock, getting the silenced barrel casing on the barrel before she got the PSO-1-1 placed on top of the rifle's receiver.
Got the VSS Vintorez ready. Inserting the said 10-round magazine onto the Tula VSS Vinterez suppressed sniper rifle, Kallen took aim at some of the ninjas engaging Zero. So far, she took head count of three of them dead, one of them still holding his kusarigama.
Kallen took a deep breath after she placed the end of the VSS' buttstock on her right shoulder. "Here goes nothing..." whispered the girl as she placed her right index finger on the weapon's trigger.
Somewhere in Edogawa Stadium, Edogawa Ghetto, Area 11, Britannian Empire
"Rai!"
Marc was ecstatic to hear his friend and second-in-command of the Lost Soldiers on his radio when he was engaging the three remaining COSMOS soldiers with his G36, using it in semi-automatic mode. "I'm glad to hear your voice again."
"How are you holding up?" Marc leapt from cover, which was several piles of broken concrete, and fired the G36's ZF 3x4° dual optical sight when he used its 3x magnification telescope sight to take a bead at a COSMOS soldier when he had unknowingly exposed a section of his neck and right arm in order to get a good sight with his G36K.
"So far, so good." Being able to get a good shot, Marc took aim with the telescopic sight and fired his G36 at the soldier's neck. When the soldier staggered a bit back, Marc took the chance to fling his other combat knife on his right hand to strike his enemy at his chest. "There. Got a few more remaining, mate."
"I'm coming in with some interesting reinforcements for you, Marc. Hang in there."
"That's nice to hear, Rai." Marc got a M67 frag grenade from his vest, removed its safety pin and hurled it towards the last two standing COSMOS soldiers. "But you better hurry."
A booming sound was soon heard followed by the yells of the two soldiers, dead by the multiple shrapnel wounds inflicted on them from the weapon. Later on, rifle shots were heard from a distance.
"'Cause if you don't, someone familiar will gladly take my head for the taking."
"Don't worry..." Rai tried to reassure Marc. "We'll get there."
Yeah! I hope so too, Rai. Taking cover behind the concrete pile again, Marc took out another M67 and removed its safety pin. He tried to hurl it towards the central control room where Darlton had taken refuge, using it as a sniper post.
The M67 had almost left his hand, already giving it a good hurl when Darlton took aim at him with his M24A2. No time to take a look at my wound. He purposely missed Marc, allowing the 7.62 NATO bullet to zip past above his head in order to let Marc mess up the delivery of the M67.
"Dangit!" Marc went back to cover when the M67 rolled down the stairs when it exploded after reaching the bottom of the staircase.
Chapter 16 END
PS - I never got to thank Solid Shark's "Birds of a Feather" story for the latter inspiration as I wrote "Lost Soldiers". Sure our stories consist of a squad of soldiers that have later tried to undermine their leaders, but Solid's consist of volunteer soldiers who later fought against Patrick. The Lost Soldiers are merely kidnapped children who were indoctrinated to become soldiers for the Britannian military. See the big difference there mates?
I had some blast doing some Cornelia/Lelouch tensions here. It's not meant to be the main part of this chapter, but I feel like I had to show the relationship between the two. After all, I do dig Cornelia/Lelouch aside from Kallen/Lelouch. Besides, there needs to be some sort of tension between Kallen and Cornelia, despite what the pairing says for this story. I think I may have some ideas on how to firmly close the Lelouch/Kallen, but it could be cliche to some of you guys/gals. :D
I too added some semi-bloody scenes here too with Zero and all. Wonder if you readers enjoyed it too?
As usual, I look forward to whatever reviews/comments/corrections/thoughts you guys have to offer regarding this chapter. Especially to the ones who don't hang out to read the story and put the story of their alerts, I'd like to know what you make of this chapter. (Although having the story on the alert lists are appreciated too. :D)
As of upload, I received news that ex-president Cory Aquino died after battling with colon cancer. As a supporter of hers due to her actions in the EDSA Revolutions, my thoughts are with her family during that period of mourning. Though I can't say much about me bro, who happens to be pro-Marcos.
Sorry I was a bit late in updating this chapter. Parents were in the house for a visit, which means I need to have their attention to them (And no, they're still in their 50s...). I also recently had some seizure episodes aside from their visit... Hope I didn't keep you guys waiting. In case you guys think I'm dragging out too long after this update, let me know after you guys review this chapter or any chapter here in the story yeah? Especially since the story's about to come to an end.