Code Geass: The Demon and the Dragon
Disclaimer: I do not own Code Geass. If I did, then what you see below would be the show, instead of a fanfiction on the Internet.
Phase 6: The Orange Incident
-The Orange-
Jeremiah gazed up at his new Knightmare, a Mabinogi Arawn, one of the three most advanced frames in existence. It resembled the Sutherland it was based off of, if a bit bulkier and smoother, except for the head that was based off of the Lancelot's own head, and the shoulder-based Factspheres. The Sixth-Generation frame was a top-of-the-line design, developed by the same scientists who now worked on the Seventh-Generation prototypes, the Lancelot and the Bors.
At that, he felt a small, very slight twinge of guilt for using Kururugi as a scapegoat. Unlike Kewell, he had witnessed the Eleven's impressive performance in Shinjuku, and actually admired the soldier for it, despite his status as a member of the Purists. And yet, despite his respect for the Eleven, Jeremiah had to go through with this.
Remember what you're doing this for….. He commanded himself. For Empress Marianne, Lelouch, Learme, and Nunnally…none of whom would approve.
"Congratulations on your victory Jeremiah." The Margrave turned to see Villetta, his second-in-command standing behind him with Kewell. The three of them were the main players in the Purists, and were rather well known. Even more so, now that Jeremiah had stripped a former Mabinogian Knight of quite literally everything. It wasn't his fault his Sutherland's lance had deflected off of the shield into his cockpit…….
"It's good to see you advance." Kewell said, grinning. "Usually, we'd have to beg those upstarts for the use of one of their Arawns."
Indeed, it had, in the past, required much kissing of asses and licking of boots in order for the Purists to obtain the support of even a single one of the fifteen Mabinogion frames in Area Eleven, be it Hafgan, Arawn, or the fabled Mabon. Each and every one of those units were awarded to a veteran of the invasion, the literal best pilots, who, despite their skill and experience, still had lost one of their own to Jeremiah, a former infantrymen.
Jeremiah had challenged the man to a Knightmare duel, and solidly trounced the man. Then the idiot had charged him, and accidentally deflected Jeremiah's defensive attack into his cockpit. Thus had Jeremiah obtained his own slightly used (otherwise known as bloodstained) Arawn.
Currently, the Frame was being outfitted with a new cockpit and Jeremiah's personal selection from the Mabinogi's extensive armaments: two monomolecular-edged axes, with a back-up shotgun slung just below the cockpit. The mechanics were also replacing the former red-on-white color scheme with one of Jeremiah's personal design: A solid blue across the majority of the frame, with orange along the eyes and on the shoulders, as well as its hands.
"What's with the paint?" Kewell asked, inspecting the Arawn from head to Landspinner, both of which were also painted a vivid shade of orange.
"It's.....personal." Jeremiah said, eyeing the Purist in that very special way of his that said 'Shut Up'.
Needless to say, Kewell Soresi clammed up to the point that one would think he was crafting a pearl.
"Here's the schedule for the parade today." Villetta said, handing over a clipboard with a few documents attached to it. Jeremiah looked it over, nodding in approval of the route, and the Knightmares.
"I think we should add another Knightmare team, up in VTOLs." He suggested, to the nods of both his subordinates.
With this, I'll advance to the Rounds eventually....and avenge their deaths.
-The Fanatic-
Later, on the Highway
Diethard Ried lazily studied the video screens in the news van, watching as the procession moved along the spectator-lined highway. Despite the fact that it was an actual Prince that had been killed instead of a high-ranking official, the entire process was fairly stale. Some official or functionary got killed, the criminal escaped, and a scapegoat was selected from the fairly large pool of undesirables available.
Still, the reporter had to admit it looked impressive. It wasn't every day you saw a six-generation frame out of combat, and the orange-and-blue scheme really made Jeremiah's new Arawn stand out.
Note to self: Keep an eye on Jeremiah, future newsworthy stories possible. If there was anything Diethard was interested in, it was an exciting news story.
"Hey, look at that!" The reporter's head turned to look offhandedly at the technician. And he got very interested when he saw what was on the screen.
Is that....
-The Queen-
This is suicide! Kallen screamed in her mind, dressed up in a very form-fitting chauffeur's uniform. Barely three hours ago, she and Ohgi had met Draco and his superior in a junkyard of all places. And spent the time putting together the current pile of junk that they were now attempting to pass off as Clovis' personal car.
She wasn't very confidant of their chances, especially considering that Draco had disappeared halfway through assembling the car.
-The Demon-
Lelouch, on the other hand, was especially confidant.
How good to see how far he's advanced. He thought, considering the news of Jeremiah's acquisition of an Arawn a scant two hours before declaring Suzaku to be his scapegoat. A wicked grin spread under the Mephisto Armor's helmet as Lelouch considered the situation. If all goes well, we'll have set a Knight to join us in the future....
As he heard Jeremiah call out to the car, Lelouch stepped forward slightly, stepping on a panel. Instantly, the sheet of thermite-cellulose was ignited, causing it and the Britannian crest on it to instantly burn up, leaving nothing but black ash swept aside by the slight breeze. Still grinning, Lelouch lifted his head and stared at the Margrave.
"I....am Zero!" The former prince announced, causing a wave of muttering and comments to spread amongst those watching, both along the highway and on the television.
Unfortunately, this still doesn't make us even with Suzaku. Feh.
"Whatever!" Jeremiah scoffed from the open cockpit of his Arawn. "Your little show ends here!" With that, the team of Sutherlands dropped down from their VTOL transports above, surrounding the false car. The displaced air blew about the heavy cape that surrounded Lelouch, revealing the Chobham-plated armor underneath, eliciting gasps from the crowd. Jeremiah paused for a second before regaining his resolve. "Now, take off that helmet!" Smirking, Lelouch raised a gauntlet-encased hand to the front of the Mephisto's helmet, almost as if to remove a simple mask. Then dropped the hand and tapped his foot. The rest of the car behind him and the driver's section fell apart, revealing the large spherical container from Shinjuku, with Learme in his Draconian armor crouching atop it.
-The Orange-
Jeremiah's trigger finger relaxed as his face contorted at the audacity and sheer ruthlessness of these apparent terrorists.
"What-!?" Behind him, Villetta scrambled out of her cockpit.
"Lord Jeremiah, thats-"
"The poison gas unit from Shinjuku." The terrorist crouching on the device finished, his dual-voice sending shivers down Jeremiah's spine. Then the man, if indeed that was what he was, leaped up, landing on the roof of the car next to Zero, a meter from his position on the container.
"Wait, thats-" The prisoner tried to speak, only for the collar he wore to shock him into silence. Which was just as well, cause Jeremiah didn't need any of his lies.
"He's taken everyone here hostage." Jeremiah growled under his breath, shaking. He aimed the pistol again, at the one calling himself 'Zero'. If he got rid of the leader...
"Go ahead and shoot." The armored man said. "You can't miss." And it quite probably wouldn't do anything. Jeremiah swore. The plates on the terrorists' body resembled those on the Main Battle Tanks, and could protect against even kinetic energy penetrators. Which meant a bullet would do crud against it.
"Fine, what do you want?" Jeremiah bit out, holstering his side-arm.
"A trade. This device for Suzaku Kururugi. You send him over to Draco," Zero said, gesturing to his subordinate. "And we'll just leave this here for you."
"Absolutely not! This man killed Prince Clovis! I cannot hand him over." Jeremiah shouted.
"Your wrong Jeremiah." The one in the coat, Draco said. "He didn't kill Clovis." Jeremiah noticed the reporter Diethard Ried run out towards the terrorists, a large camera on his shoulder.
"We did." The two said, in perfect stereo, staring into the camera.
"In return for a single Eleven," Zero carried on the speech, "You can save hundreds, if not thousands, of Britannians. I believe that's quite a bargain."
"You're insane!" Jeremiah shouted, sweating now. "I challenge your confession, you two who pervert his Highness's carriage!"
"Are you quite certain?" Draco now. "I'm certain those two wouldn't like this, 'Orange'."
-The Demon and the Dragon-
That's it. It's done. Learme thought, disgusted with himself. Before him, Jeremiah's face contorted into an expression combining shock, disbelief, horror, and hope into a twisted mess.
"H-h-h-how do you know that name!?" The Margrave practically roared, hands clenching on the top of his Arawn's cockpit. Behind him, Learme could see his subordinates look at him in confusion.
"Surely you know of those two who would know that name, 'Orange'." Lelouch taunted, causing Jeremiah's face to flush. "Would you risk their lives?" Lelouch didn't like this situation much more than Learme did. Jeremiah was visibly conflicted, torn between past and future.
The past won out.
"Let the prisoner go." He ordered, quietly compared to his earlier outburst.
"Bu-"
"Now." Jeremiah ordered harshly. The guards didn't argue. No one had heard a tone like that from Jeremiah, ever, and they wouldn't risk it. The guards unlocked Suzaku's handcuffs, and pushed him forward. The Honorary Britannian climbed down off of the prison vehicle and walked calmly by 'Orange's' Arawn, even as Lelouch and Learme did the same on their side, meeting him in the middle.
"Who-" Suzaku tried to ask, only for the collar to kick in again.
"Hm. I see they didn't want you to talk." Learme observed, fishing a remote out of one of his coat's many pocked, pointing it at the collar and pressing a button. The collar disengaged with a clank and dropped to the ground, much to the shook of the Brits. The collars were set to respond to a very specific series of codes known only to the prison officials.
Lelouch looked up at the stunned Jeremiah.
"I suppose you want to know more about those two." He stated. "But I'm afraid this is all the time I have today, and Draco only has a few minutes more. So, we'll have to converse another time." Lelouch concluded, lifting up his hand to reveal the trigger-like remote in his own hand. Pulling the trigger, Lelouch activated the gas, opening the container to let a large volume of dark purple smoke to rush out. Perfectly harmless, not that anyone knew. Lelouch grabbed Suzaku, wrapping his cape around him as he rushed towards the edge of the highway bridge, followed closely by Kallen.
Learme, on the other hand, charged out of the cloud of smoke at the Sutherland of the officer named Kewell Soresi. Smirking now, Learme leaped up to the head of the Knightmare, much to Kewell's shock, before clambering around the head to knock the devicer out of his cockpit and take his place. Inside it, Learme quickly took control, swerving the Sutherland around the prison vehicle to trip up Villetta Nu's frame before swinging around to face Jeremiah's Arawn.
Or, more precisely, the Arawn's monomolecular-bladed axe.
Even as this happened, Lelouch and Kallen had already leaped off of the bridge and into a bit of cloth strung between two Slash Harken lines, connected to a civilian MR-1 Frame over a train. The cloth ripped and dropped them into an open train car, unable to support the weight of three teenagers, especially one dressed up in a suit of heavy powered armor.
Back on the bridge, Learme dodged the flying axe, which embedded itself in the road, before he unfolded the Sutherland's Tonfas, one blocking the other axe while the other smashed into the Arawn's face. The blocking Tonfa was cut through, along with the arm, the monomolecular Boron Nitride edge of the axe quite easily slicing through the metal and towards the Sutherland's chest.
Again, Learme swerved the Sutherland, the Frame's left Landspinner smashing into the Arawn's feet and sending the Mabinogi frame crashing to the ground. With that done, the prince-cum-terrorist bent the Sutherland's waist at a very precise angle, and triggered the eject system. The precise reason why Learme had stolen Kewell's frame was apparent then, as the jets vomited blood-red flames, sending the cockpit block out farther and faster than before. Learme had snuck into the Britannian base, picked out Kewell's Sutherland, and replaced the standard rocket fuel with his own special Sakuradite-based blend. And he'd also disabled the parachutes.
With a mad rictus of an adrenaline-enhanced grin on his face, Learme checked his figures, before deciding to open up the cockpit and 'hop out'. If he'd been in nothing but his clothes, Learme would've heard a whistling and felt the wind slap at his face as he fell. In his Draconian armor though, he only felt his own giddy fear and heard his laughter. Which was also heard by everyone and everything in a 500 meter radius, distorted and evil-sounding.
Learme didn't jump out of a flying Knightmare cockpit to die though. Even as his insane cackle echoed through the Settlement, he over-pressurized the kinetic gel in his armor and overcharged it's pseudo-musculature, even as he fell like a rock for some train tracks. A few moments before he smashed through the tracks, a train swept along them, a specific cargo car intercepting him. The landing wasn't easy. He slammed into the car's floor with a crash, creating an enormous dent.
-The Knight-
Suzaku stared at the insane terrorist, as he got up into a crouching position before looking up. The serpentine skull of his helmet caused Suzaku and the chauffeur of Clovis' car to shudder. And that was before a rush of air ejected from it, breathing out blood-red sparks that seemed all too much like flames.
Later
The four had disembarked from the train, the terrorists leading Suzaku into the Shinjuku Ghetto, to a building that was once either a college classroom or some kind of government building, judging by its circular construction and the number of chairs in it. There, they had rendezvoused with other terrorists, who stared at the armored duo with expressions of awe, suspicion, and even fear. Then, Zero and Draco had led him into another room for a private discussion.
"I see they haven't treated you well." Zero said, standing atop a block of rubble while his subordinate leaned on it. "You've seen how corrupt Britannia is. Join us, and change the world! Britannia isn't worthy of your service!"
"I know, Suzaku replied simply. "That's why I want to change it from the inside. To make it worthy. And, quite simply, I think I prefer serving Britannia. You see, I don't believe in a victory brought about by dishonest means."
"You know, what some call dishonest, other would call good tactical and strategic planning." Draco spoke up, looking at the Honorary Brit.
"Maybe so. But I won't stand for it." Suzaku said, turning and walking towards an enormous hole in the wall.
"Wait! Where are you going?" Zero shouted, waving his armored arm about.
"To my court-martial. It begins in an hour."
"Heh, it could work out." Draco said before Zero could respond. "With our confession, even the Britannian Courts will have to acknowledge his innocence." Zero hesitated, before shaking his head and staring as Suzaku walked towards the rising sun.
-The Author-
I think I did alright with this. I especially like all the little hints I dropped, both plot and technical.
Replies:
Kojiro Kun: Learme's quite suited for 'wet work', so to speak.
Jaksio: Sort of. Originally, my intent was just to elaborate on them.
Regarding your OCs, Qilin's definitely making it in. Not enough Heavy Weapons people.
Infinite Freedom: It's gonna be kept Teen, just so you know. as for the 'ripping through Brits in a 7-gen frame,' I have to keep myself from skipping right to Narita just to get to writing that.
Alex Yamato: Thank you. As for Alex the OC, i'll find a way to get him in there, if just for laughs (Learme is going for Kallen as well, remember)
aznblackhowling: Thank you.
Haavu: Thanks. I think Learme will like Eris (professionally speaking.)
00virtuezero: Thanks, I wanted him to still have the whole 'mysterious factor' while still having his own (brutal) style. In that case, Kiryu will probably like the Reikoku for a number of reasons.
SharinganUserX: Thank you. Ahem. Rated: TEEN
Also, the first Code Geass technical chapter should be up soon, probably even before any of you finish reading this Chapter!