Rescue Angels
Wanda: Bridging chapter, check. Next big event...Lake Hotel takeover.
Euphemia: You don't have to sound so eager...
Wanda: Relax. I have a plan.
Euphemia: (fatalistically) Good.
Disclaimer: I do not own Code Geass. If I had, R2 would have ended very differently.
Chapter 4: Charity Rebellion
"What do you mean, I can't review Project Code R?!" Cornelia demanded, staring at the screen that was connecting her to her father.
"Exactly what I said, Cornelia!" Emperor Charles zi Britannia said firmly. "I'm ordering you to silence all the details and inform the public that the project had been shut down five years ago. Clovis attempted to restart it against the wishes of the Empire."
"How am I supposed to protect our Empire when I don't know exactly what is at stake?!" Cornelia demanded hotly.
"It is none of your concern, Cornelia! You should be more worried about keeping everyone in line!" Her father rejoined just as fiercely. Even battle hardened Cornelia couldn't help but flinch under his biting scorn. "Have it announced that Clovis tried to reboot a project that had been halted in order to change his position in life."
"You want to sully your son's memory to placate these Elevens?!"
"There could be a lot more at stake here than Clovis's memory! That boy was a fool in life, he can look like a grasping fool in death. Do as I command!"
With that, the screen cut out. Cornelia swore and slammed her hand down on the desktop. "Damn it!" She spat. She couldn't believe her father was throwing one of his own sons under the bus to safeguard some project. What the hell could be so important? Cornelia was sorely tempted to send someone to get the files on 'Code R' anyway, damn the Emperor to hell, but no one defied her father and lived to tell the tale. She would have to find other means of discovering this truth.
A gentle knock on the door brought Cornelia out of her anger. "Sister? Can I come in?"
"Of course, Euphy." Cornelia said with a sigh, pushing her hair away from her face and straightening up. Hopefully she didn't look as angry and tired as she felt; she didn't want to worry her little sister.
The door slid open and Euphemia walked inside. Cornelia frowned slightly. Lately her sister had been forgoing royal dress to look more like a commoner. She insisted that sometimes she felt more comfortable that way, but Cornelia was wondering if Clovis's death had affected her sweet sister more than she was willing to let on.
"Was that father? You sound angry," Euphemia said, concern in her blue eyes.
Cornelia forced herself to take a cleansing breath and said, "Yes, it was. We were...disagreeing on how to handle the fallout of that Lady in White's video."
"Did Clovis really order those people's deaths?" Euphemia asked, her eyes glistening slightly at the reminder.
Cornelia sighed and put her hands on her sister's shoulders. "I reviewed the footage that...woman put on television. It seems to be authentic." It certainly makes things complicated for me. Damn you, whoever you are...
"But why...?" Euphemia asked timidly.
"Clovis must have thought the terrorists had stolen something critical from the project, whatever it was." Cornelia said, and fought the urge to groan when her sister's eyes grew wide with unshed tears. Euphemia always felt far too much. It was her best and worst quality. May she never have to rule, Cornelia prayed silently. "Oh Euphy...they were only Elevens."
Euphemia's shoulders went completely rigid.
Knowing she'd said the wrong thing, Cornelia attempted to redirect the conversation. "Well, it's certainly added a lot to my plate. I probably can't go to Saitama as I planned; I'm stuck up to my neck in blasted paperwork." She had always loathed paperwork.
"...Have there been riots?"
"Not yet." There had been several, but her little sister didn't need to know about them yet. She was distressed enough as it was... "But, one wrong word and this bloody powder keg will explode."
"I want to help." Euphemia said, clasping her hands together and surprising her older sister. The pink haired princess hadn't shown this sort of initiative before. "I have an idea that might start restoring bonds between us and Area 11."
"Oh? And what's that?" Cornelia asked warmly, though the gleam in her sister's eyes was slightly disconcerting.
"I want to throw a charity concert," Euphemia said with proud certainty. "The proceeds going to families at Shinjiku."
"What?! Euphy! We're above these people! We don't give them handouts!"
"But Cornelia – Viceroy – this could win the hearts of elevens who would otherwise turn against us. If we keep their loyalty and friendship, they may not support the terrorists that have been popping up. They'd be easier to find and stop! And you wouldn't have to send in one extra Knightmare." Euphemia said strongly.
Cornelia exhaled, surprised at the practicality of that chain of logic. Barring her initial built in rejection of peaceful protest - they were Britannia, their force was all that was needed! - potentially gaining loyalty could result in the capture of several thrones in the Kingdom's side. Like Zero and that Lady in White. No, Cornelia couldn't deny the possibility, though it ran counter to what she would have done. Instead she said, "Euphy, it's too dangerous for you to go into Area 11. There are scores of terrorists who would love to kidnap you. Zero killed Clovis there!"
"Camelot Unit can follow close behind me and my guards with the trailer." Euphemia responded practically. Clearly she had been rehearsing this pitch for a while. "If things do go south, they'll be able to deploy Lancelot and protect me. Zero had no answer for it during the Shinjiku incident, am I right?"
Cornelia sat her jaw hard. She didn't like how attached her Euphy was getting to that Eleven who piloted the Lancelot. She was tempted to say no, to insist, but she couldn't deny the logic in the suggestion her little sister was making.
"I won't go anywhere without my guards." Euphemia promised. "Please, Cornelia, give me this. Let me try to do something for our great Empire. I want to help you keep it together."
The way she phrased it softened Cornelia's stance. "Alright." She said. "Under one condition – I'm going to send Guilford with you. Understood?"
Euphemia cheered and hugged Cornelia around the middle. Britannia's Witch of War let out a small laugh and patted her on the shoulder. Perhaps all this would be worth it, if it was making Euphy smile again.
**~At Ashford Academy~**
"I am the voice of those who have suffered at your hands." Lelouch paused the video, and examined the white clad image for the tenth time that afternoon. The brilliant, angelic looking figure gave nothing away in her posture, and her voice – while radiating sincerity and conviction – was distorted in a similar way to his when wearing his helmet. If he heard her speak without it, he wasn't sure he'd be able to recognize her.
Since she had given herself no name, the public had quickly taken to calling her 'the Lady in White'. Her video had certainly thrown the related areas into an uproar. There had been multiple skirmishes with the police around the Area.
Lelouch looked intently at the image. The visor hid the woman's eyes; he had a feeling if he could see them her emotions would be written plainly across them.
In a situation as tenuous as the one he was entering, he couldn't afford to have unknown variables running around. Britannia, the JLF, The Chinese Federation – he could at least guess what they wanted, given their history and what he knew about their dark secrets.
But this woman? Who was she, and what was her endgame? Why release sensitive project data, but not release all of it? Lelouch was certain she must know at least something about C.C. and the Geass, but had chosen not to reveal it. Was she protecting someone?
"Hey Lelouch, have you heard-?" He heard Shirley walk in only to come to a surprised stop right behind him. "Isn't that the Lady in White video?"
Lelouch closed the window and turned towards her. Shirley looked less tired than yesterday, but quite surprised to see what he was watching. Closing his laptop, he responded, "I was curious about it. What is it?"
Shirley blinked, and quickly clapped her hands together. "Oh, it was just on the news! Apparently Princess Euphemia, our new Sub Viceroy, is planning a charity concert for Shinjiku!"
"What?"
That didn't make any sense at all. 'Charity' wasn't a word accepted in the royal family lexicon. Sure, that sounded like something Euphemia might like to do – she was always the sweet, gentle one of the family – but was Cornelia really allowing it? 'Father' must be incredibly distracted, and Cornelia must have been on the receiving end of a lot of guilting, to let this go through!
"My dad got me tickets to take my friends to it." Shirley shifted, her cheeks flushing slightly as she twiddled her fingers. "I was wondering...would you and Nunnally like to come?"
"Sorry, I have catch up studying to do. I'll have to see it over the TV." Lelouch responded. There's a chance that I could be seen, and recognized, in the crowd. I can't afford that.
"Oh." Shirley nodded in understanding, her eyes slightly distant. Lelouch's brow furrowed ever so slightly. Was that disappointment, or something else? It wasn't like her to seem so distracted. "Too bad. Maybe next time. We'll tell you all about it next time!"
Lelouch watched her leave curiously. She wasn't on time to class, and she looked quite tired. Is it possible...? No; that's a long shot at the best of times. She and her family have too much to loose to rock the boat like that.
What or who in her life would be worth risking all life has to offer her?
~Line Break~
"How long did it take you to convince Princess Cornelia this was a good idea?"
"With plenty of pleading and puppy eyes on my part. My sister has always pandered to my adorable side!" Shirley laughed along with her friend as she walked down the road to the computer store where she planned to get more memory storage.
"How are ticket sales looking?"
"It's a visit from royalty! It's looking quite promising so far."
"That's great! What's the music choice?"
"A mix of classical and pop love tunes. I've been playing the violin since I was little, so I'll preform a few things and even play along with one of the pop songs. I chose them out some old movie selections; hopefully they'll be popular."
"Sounds like fun! Do you have a protective detail?"
"Cornelia wouldn't let me preform without Sir Guilford there to look out for me. That, and Suzaku and the Lancelot won't be far away. I'm as safe as I can be anywhere with them."
"Sounds about right. How's data hunting for the 'assassination' going?"
"Slow. With all this chaos, I haven't been able to sneak into any of the sensitive computers yet. I think we'll have to wait it out for a little."
"(sigh) Well, we probably should have expected as much. We'll have to wait for them to get distracted again."
"Speaking of which..." Euphemia sounded nervous. "the next big incident I remember since Cornelia isn't going to Saitama, was Lake Kawaguchi. ...Are you still planning to go?"
"Yes." Shirley said, biting her lip. "I see no reason not to. We'll just have to be careful...and trust in our Contracts. Are you worried?"
"A bit. I have a feeling that things there may be different this time after we released that footage."
Shirley shifted her hand on the phone as she turned the corner, causing her to face the store sign. "Then it's important that we be there, to face it." That was only fair. "I'm at the shop, so I guess that's it for now. I'll see you at the stage tomorrow."
"Yes. See you."
Shirley clicked her secret phone off and pocketed it. Then she walked into the store.
**~The Next Day~**
Euphemia glanced out the window and resisted the urge to laugh in amazement. People had indeed flocked to the concert; the road and the auditorium were packed pretty much to capacity. Poor Shirley had to arrive nearly three hours early to get her seat near the front.
"This is wonderful," She said with a smile. "If this doesn't cover the costs of shipping medical and food supplies to Shinjiku, I don't know what will."
"I'm glad to see you're so pleased, Princess," Guilford said mildly, his eyes tracking the crowd for any sign of suspicious individuals.
"Mm." Euphemia turned towards him. "Sir Guilford, my sister believed that this might be a mistake – that raising morale and money for those who have lost so much would make us come across as soft. Do you agree?"
Guilford started, and shook his head hastily. "I wouldn't say that, milady, no. This shows the better side of you and your family, and I see how that could be beneficial. I'm merely concerned about potential attacks."
"It will be okay, Sir. I trust you to keep me safe." Euphemia said warmly. Guilford smiled back, and started speaking into his communicator, arranging orders for the soldiers controlling the rows and at the front of the stage. Leaning over, she carefully took her well loved violin out and checked it's tuning, just as the band on stage started the opening announcement.
She walked up to the door, where Suzaku was standing waiting for her. The young man smiled shyly; Euphemia took his hand and stepped out of the car. The crowd started calling her name as she walked up to the stage. Suzaku stopped at the edge and stood aside, the key to Lancelot in his pocket.
The band leader bowed to her and offered her the microphone. Euphemia took it in her free hand, and turned to face the crowd. Shirley and her school friends – including Nina, the princess noted – were sitting in the third row from the front.
"Hello everyone," She called, quieting the raving crowd. "Thank you all so much for coming tonight. It is my hope that this event will bring some peace and hope to those displaced by the tragic events at Shinjiku." Loud cheers burst out across the crowd, calling out to her and praising her. "Let the night begin!" She handed the mike over to the band leader and walked up to her stand, where some of the night's music was waiting for her.
Euphemia shouldered her violin and raised her bow, eyes closed. She imagined her songs somehow healing those who had been hurt, and a thrill of power rushed through her. She started to play, slow and delicate – Nessun Dorma had been her favourite piece to listen to as a little girl. Now she could play it without having to see the notation.
~Line Break~
"She's pretty good!" It was a testament to how much the crowd was enjoying itself that Milly had to shriek for Shirley to hear her, even though they were only a few seats apart.
The band was shredding away now, having switched from classical to pop a few songs ago. However, Euphemia was still playing along with them, a music reader in front of her translating the rock tunes into notes she could play. There were a couple times Shirley heard her stumble, but she was actually doing remarkably well.
It was a unique and eclectic mix of musical sound, which was quite appropriate for the only (not thought dead) Britannia Princess who cared enough about her people to put on a show like this.
Shirley felt something part way through the performance inside herself – a warm, growing power. When she looked up at Euphemia, she noticed a soft golden sheen surrounding the young woman – something that could easily be mistaken as strobe lights to anyone who wasn't looking for it. Once again, Shirley felt her currently incorporeal wings shift, and a sense of pride within her.
End Chapter
Cornelia's "they were only Elevens" line was inspired by Dreamworks movie "The Prince of Egypt". I thought it would make a nice touch.
Read and Review please!