A/N: Thank you all for who reviewed the last chapter and for those I could respond to through PMs.
I think it would be too early to say if such a pairing is possible since they haven't met yet, but I am doubtful I could pull off such a pairing through.
With that out of the way considering this chapter the "Zero Trailer" of shorts, although it might not be as exciting as the Black and Yellow trailers, but it will establish Zero among the people of Remnant and the Black Knights.
I'll save everything for the end of the chapter…enjoy.
Through destruction I shall erase the past and break the chains of the present to obtain my retribution.
Through creation I shall forge the future where I'll find my salvation.
Chapter 7
Zero
Lelouch was enjoying a relaxing day at Ashford Academy, although he still had much to accomplish it. However at Leodore's insistence he was taking the day off to mentally recover as well as physically. It had been three days since his meeting with Kyoto and everything has been going remarkably smooth. He had met with Kirihara yesterday at some of his company's storehouses to give him access to additional equipment Lelouch could make use of.
The two men were talking down the stairs together with Kirihara walking alongside Lelouch who wore more casual attire consisting of a white dress shirt with a black jacket with matching pants. He was smuggled to his current location to avoid suspicion. However the two men were being accompanied by Desmond who had been asked to tag along by Lelouch.
"So this leads to Kirihara Industries' old research and development storehouse?" Desmond asked as he was clearly very curious about what they will find.
"Aside from mining Sakuradite we began to expand and research different ways we could use it for both military and commercial use, but of course we the advancement of new weapons we too sought to development new weapons and military tools and equipment." Kirihara explained as the storehouse they were heading to contain primarily a majority of the military-related projects and prototypes that had been discontinued for a variety of reasons.
"I am impressed you managed to hide all of this?" Lelouch commented as Kirihara flipped a large switch at the bottom of the stairs to turn on the lights.
A sly smile graced the old man's lips. "It helped that most of the prototypes kept here were deemed no longer practical in warfare especially with the development of Knightmare Frames, but of course knowing who to pay off helped too."
"So everything here has been discontinued then?" Desmond inquired beginning to browse around the room, but much of the equipment and prototypes were being kept inside of large crates or metal cases that were piled on top of each other.
"Yes everything here was meant for military use, but with the fall of Japan they were all discounted. Everything here is what made it to the prototype stage either before Japan fell or after and were discontinued for different reasons with the common one being cost."
"So what do you have?"
In response Kirihara led Lelouch and Desmond to a stack of plastic square-shaped cases large enough to store a small child. The elderly industrialist opened it up revealing a set of black military field uniforms with a black and grey camouflage pattern. Under it was storage for a harasses with a belt containing a metallic clasp and matching pouches and containers including a holster on the back for some kind of gun that used long cylinder-shaped carriages instead of a traditional magazine associated with a handgun.
"This is Shinobi Military Combat Uniform designed for urban use and infiltration by commando units." Kirihara explained before proceeding to point at the belt and gun. "This belt is a utility harness made out of kevlar with magnetized impact-resistant pouches created from a durable lightweight metal, and canisters attached to the belt at ergonomic points for ease of reach."
"Then that is a grapple gun used for climbing?" Desmond asked realizing the purpose of the gun.
"You correct…this is a gas-powered magnetic grapple gun that uses a four-hundred pound test monofilament. It can be stored on the back of belt and the high-tensile wire can be reused unless you want to use it to ensnare enemies, but its more than strong enough for you to scale buildings or to swing through the air if you really wanted to play up the superhero part." Kirihara replied, but he had to resist laughing at the last part, but Lelouch took it all in good humor.
"What about the rest of the uniform?" The former prince began to ask, "I assume it is made out kevlar isn't it?"
"Part of it yes, but it has special fabric incorporated to minimize the infrared silhouette making them harder to view through night-vision equipment but using a modified version it can be used to identify friend from foe."
Desmond and Lelouch examined the rest of the case which had combat boots and armor padding for the forearms and a streamlined combat helmet that was similar to the helmets used by the Britannian ground troopers but thinner and more sleek in design to make it easier to move the user's head and to blend in better with their surroundings.
"Better to use at night? Were there any other camouflage colors designed?" Lelouch asked.
"Unfortunately efforts to create different camouflage patterns were cut short thanks to the invasion of Japan."
"How many were produced?"
"Twelve prototypes were created Dr. Brown."
"I think we can use this since we operate usually at night anyway." Lelouch said with a nod of approval.
"Better to see it used than to just gather dust down here." Kirihara said gesturing for them to follow him.
He led the two men to a long rectangle black case which the elderly Japanese man opened revealing a two piece suit. It was form fitting and it looked like a wet-suit at first chance, but it had padded armor and more solid armor pieces on the torso and thighs.
"Here it is the prototype from which we based the shinobi combat uniforms off of," Kirihara began as he lifted up the upper body portion of the body suit to show it to Lelouch using one hand. "This is a specialized survival suit originally designed for advanced infantry and infiltration. It is composed of three layers with the primary layer being made out of high-strength para-aramid fibers."
"No camouflage options for this?" Lelouch asked.
"No, because this suit was designed to be worn under any camouflaged combat dress as a form of universal compatibility and what we hoped would be a cost-effective method at the time."
"I assume just one of these suits was quite expensive then?" Dr. Brown suspected, which Kirihara confirmed with a nod. "Which I guess hindered attempts at mass production leading to the creation of the Shinobi Combat Suit instead."
"The suit has a heavy amount of padding centered around the chest area while placing some around the upper arms and thighs, but in these areas are ceramic plates integrated to increase protection. The innermost layer is made out of specialized rubber-like material, but could protect against a wide range of toxic substances while providing effective heat and moisture insulation. It is also insulated against electricity while being fire and waterproof."
"Naturally its bulletproof, but what can this suit withstand?" Lelouch inquired feeling the padded chest area.
"This can stop any bullet except for a straight shot."
"Is it tear-resistant?" Dr. Brown inquired.
"This will stop a knife." Kirihara replied with a hint of pride. "It has the same heat signature reduction proprieties as the shinobi uniforms we designed based off of this one. Making you harder to detect while it will cling to your body as much as possible to increase resilience, reduce injury and stamina loss for the wearer."
"You could wear this under your Zero outfit to provide you with an extra layer of protection." Desmond suggested as he bumped his right fist in an upturned hand. "Especially if you run out of aura during a fight, but extra protection from chemicals and flames would be helpful too I believe."
Lelouch considered this and he did note that while most Huntsmen and Huntresses wore their own choice of attire there were some who wore armor and taking into account that someone could use a poison blade against him he thought having protection from chemicals and poison blades would be more worthwhile.
"Alright I'll take it and I'll leave whatever necessary modifications that need to be made to you Desmond."
"Sure, but as I do I'll begin looking at ways we could one day create a improved version more tailored for your use once we have the resources," Desmond replied being the scientist who was not only seeing potential in the suit, but also ways it could be improved.
Returning to the present Lelouch was beginning to doze off when suddenly someone behind him cried out waking him up.
"LELOUCH!"
Lelouch was shocked, but he recovered his composure quickly but he knew who was behind him.
She was a year older than Lelouch was with blonde hair, blue eyes and a fair skin complexion wearing the female uniform of Ashford Academy. She had an impressive and well-developed figure wearing a beige jacket with gold trim and a white dress shirt underneath with a green tie and a black skirt.
"That was uncalled for!" The former prince grumbled angrily.
"You have been sleeping through most of your classes lately haven't you and let's not talk about the absences you have been racking up too." Milly Ashford said with her arms crossed under her bosom.
"Is everything alright?"
The student who asked him was the same age as he was, but was much more athletic. She was a member of the swim team and the gymnastics club as well as a member of the student council.
She had long orange hair and yellowish green wearing the same uniform as Milly the President of the Student Council.
"I mean you have been gone a lot and calling sick a lot too so is everything ok?" Shirley Fenette asked worryingly.
"Everything is fine. I am much better now." Lelouch said managing a convincing smile to ease their worries, which was something Lelouch took note of.
If I am going to be away from a time I'll need to make arrangements with the administration to avoid drawing attention to myself.
Of course he knew this would mean using his Geass would be necessary, but it was better than just simply skipping school all of the time. Lelouch was presently sitting down at a long table on the left hand side close to the door while Milly moved to the right with her back to the windows. Shirley and his friend Rivalz sat down next to him.
I'll need some kind of excuse, Lelouch as he began to think of some perfect covers, Perhaps I could fake a school internship for times when I'll be away for a couple days or more.
Before Lelouch could contemplate any possible methods and ideas he was interrupted when a familiar redhead girl entered the council meeting room.
Kallen?
Lelouch was surprised when Kallen entered the classroom wearing the same uniform as the other girls in the room, but her hair was comb down and Kallen seemed weak which was quite opposite of her usual self he had become familiar with as Zero.
"Oh good morning Kallen," Milly greeted with a smile before she realized something, "That's right I almost forgot to tell you since you had missed some days. You are familiar with Kallen Stadtfeld right? She is in the same class as you, Rivalz, Shirley and Nina?"
"I can't say that I have, but come to think of it I don't think I have seen her in class much since the semester started." The former prince replied causally, but he easily figured out why Kallen was out of school. At this time Lelouch recalled what had seemed so familiar about her when he saw her that day before the battle of Shinjuku.
"Well I guess that can be blamed on her poor health which has made it hard for her to attend school clubs and be involved in school activities and since we all know being in a club is mandatory at Ashford Academy." Milly explained before raising her hand with her right index figure extended in a ah-ha moment. "So we decided to invite her to the student council and my grandfather came to me asking if I could or not since there isn't much work involved except for planning school events and paperwork so it should work out."
"I see…well if her health is an issue then I agree the student council would be best for her." Lelouch said as he saw no reason to object, but he already realized her sickly and weak front she was putting up was likely to hide the real her from the rest of the school knowing she could be possibly exposed. "By the way I am Lelouch Lamperouge the Student Council Vice-President it's a pleasure to meet you."
Lelouch said standing up to greet Kallen properly offering his hand to shake it as a friendly gesture.
As Rivalz and Shirley began introducing themselves to Kallen with prompted the other member of the Student Council Nina Einstein the council's inspiring scientist and its quietest member who typically sat at a computer in a corner of the room.
She was a little shorter than Shirley and a much more modest appearance wearing glasses over her indigo eyes and her dark green hair tied into two small braids hanging alongside her head over her shoulders.
I think I can make use of this convenient arrangement, The former prince thought as Kallen had no way of knowing her new leader was in the same room with her.
Lelouch decided against revealing his true identity to her, but nevertheless Lelouch saw possibilities with Kallen on the student council with him that could helpful in the future.
"After this meeting I have set up a party for Kallen to welcome her to the student council, but remember tomorrow we'll be doing swim suit day." Milly announced happily, which caused one of Lelouch's eyebrows to twitch.
Tomorrow I am going to Remnant.
Another blessing for being a growing revolutionary leader is that it gave Lelouch more opportunities to escape times of Milly's madness as she would create some very odd and unusual festivals and activities which she would force people to take part in.
As long as I can avoid attending the cross-dressing festival again I'll gladly go to that monster infested world or face down Britannia.
The following day Lelouch returned to Remnant to check in with Desmond as he spent yesterday modifying Lelouch's Zero outfit with the new body armor they had obtained from Kirihara along with some additional equipment which included small remote control drones useful for infiltrating buildings and other locations making it a useful reconnaissance tool. He wore his spare Zero costume and mask going in to keep the Japanese and those not part of the founding members of the Black Knights from knowing his identity.
He met with Desmond inside his own quarters and workshop where he had finished making the proper modifications to the suit and the mask allowing for seal to form between the mask and body suit. The mask now had built in flitters for smoke and toxins.
"It's all finished Lelouch the mask and suit has been modified and I'll begin work on updating your spare outfit accordingly." Desmond replied gesturing for Lelouch to check out the modified Zero suit which could be worn over the survival suit now.
"You know I never understood why people trained to fight dangerous monsters and other threats along the way never thought about using more proper armor and relying on their aura for protection." Lelouch mused as he began changing into the survival suit using a stall in the back for Lelouch to change privately. "I could understand wearing lighter armor or just ordinary clothing to avoid drawing attention or they didn't want to be weighed down by the weight."
"Part of the reason is that most of them their foes are Creatures of Grimm and there have been fewer instances of Huntsmen fighting one another or fighting more human opponents. Some times their aura is usually more than enough." Desmond answered, but he knew it was because of aura that no one thought that better armor technologies were needed for warriors trained to defend from monsters and not thinking opponents like other humans.
"The only ones who really use body armor are the soldiers of Atlas." Lelouch noted which he knew that Desmond took inspirations for his helmet internal workings from their headgear.
Most of the kingdoms were primary dependent on its local huntsmen and huntresses for defense against Grimm, although they each had their own military their use and importance has declined since the end of the Great War seeing very little need to maintain a sizable military.
Most of them except for Atlas who maintained a formidable military force while training huntsmen and huntresses as well as recruiting and training normal soldiers.
"Beyond them a huntsman might be in trouble if an enemy attacks with a knife or uses a blade that is poisoned when your aura is depleted?" Lelouch said as his mind was combining through hundreds of different possibilities. "Frankly I am not comfortable with depending on aura alone as my only defense given the fact sooner or later our organization will likely come into conflict with the White Fang."
It took Lelouch a few minutes, but once he was done he had his modified Zero outfit on with the survival suit being worn underneath along with the improved mask that granted him more protection that Lelouch could feel more comfortable with.
"Having more armor means nothing if you don't have the strength to fight back." Leodore said entering the room.
Lelouch was slightly annoyed as Leodore was clearly looking for a way to press him into more physical training, but this time he decided to dodge the question all together.
"I assume everything is going well?"
Leodore wasn't pleased Lelouch had dodged the question, but this wasn't the time for their usual disagreements on Lelouch need to develop more of a combat worthy physique.
"We have a problem in Vale."
"What happened?" Lelouch asked as Leodore gestured him to come closer to show him a news report being broadcast on his scroll.
"What is happening at the scene Cyril?" Lisa Lavender asked before the scene changed to a man in his early thirties with black hair and blue streaks in it wearing a gray business suit holding a microphone in one hand while behind him was a police barricade and in the distance sitting along the beach line was a hotel that was seven stories tall with a harbor built into the back of it.
"Well Lisa the entire area has been blocked off by the police department and I have learned from authorities on the scene that the group responsible for this take over is the Blue Cosmos group. A radical anti-Faunus organization whose followers have seized the Oceanic Hotel as it was hosting an annual meeting between various Faunus Civil Rights groups from across Remnant who had gathered to discuss various civil rights topics including the White Fang and their increasingly more radical actions."
"Have the Blue Cosmos organization offered any kind of demands so far?"
"No at least none that we have been made aware of at this time and I'll keep you updated as the situation develops." Cyril Ian replied before ending it with, "back to you Lisa."
Leodore turned off his scroll.
"So Blue Cosmos eh?" Lelouch said as he began going over some thoughts his mind beginning to form a plan which he knew was the reason Leodore had come to see him. "They are the opposite of the White Fang, but unlike them they are not as well supported and funded. There aren't a lot of humans who believe in their goal of wiping out the Faunus for a so-called blue and pure world. They are usually supported by those who had been hit hard by the White Fang through."
"Yes and I guess the various leaders and members of the more moderate Faunus Civil Rights groups meeting in one location from across Remnant was too tempting of a target for them." Leodore said in agreement while deducing the likely reason for the takeover. "So what do we do?"
"We're going to rescue them, but we need to do some recon since we can't simply charge in there." Lelouch said as he was contemplating different options and scenarios to not only rescue the hostages, but he was considering what was Blue Cosmos trying to achieve with a hostage take over. There wasn't much they could offer the hostages for, and as far as Lelouch knew no one of note had been imprisoned by authorities they could use the hostages as bargaining chips to get out.
I doubt they will hold them until the condition of Vale putting in new laws to see its Faunus population put down is a goal since even they must know it would be unrealistic.
With those possibilities in mind that narrowed it way down leaving only one.
This is likely all about getting attention, but to what end unless…
"Leodore we need to head to Vale now, we're working against the clock. Assemble fourteen of your best men for this one." Lelouch said as a troubling thought came to mind as he decided what their likely plan was. "I need you and the Black Knights to prepare to storm the hotel. Equip them with the new combat uniforms we got from Kirihara, but also make sure they bring some of that bomb disposal equipment along as well."
"Bomb disposal," Leodore asked who was briefly confused before coming to the same conclusion about Blue Cosmos's true aim with the hotel take over, "I understand and I assume you want to know if any of the buildings near the hotel has been host to any suspicious activity for the past several months."
"Yes, because if what you told me about the Blue Cosmos Organization they likely have an escape route planned which could be the same route they used to move a large amount of explosives through without drawing attention."
"They are going to blow up the whole hotel?!" Desmond asked in shock realizing what Leodore and Lelouch deduced.
"Yes, although could have brought some explosives in through a delivery truck or two," Lelouch said but considering what he knew about explosives and knowing what kind of explosion they want the blast would need to be much larger especially if they wanted to pretend to die as martyrs for their cause. "Their escape tunnel will likely be where they'll move in more explosives in order to demolish the entire hotel."
"What about you?" The lion Faunus asked.
"I am going to pay Junior a visit because they would've needed a lot of explosives and drilling equipment for their plan and they obviously couldn't buy it through commercial channels without drawing suspicion."
"Right and I'll contact you once I learn anything on my end, but as planned I'll bring our men to our secondary base inside Vale for preparations for tonight's operation." Leodore said before the men went to carry out their tasks.
By the time they arrived in Vale the sun was beginning to set, but time was growing short. Lelouch was inside a black vehicle with tinted windows while he was keeping himself up to date on events surrounding the hotel hijacking using his Scroll.
So far nothing has changed, but odd they haven't released anything on their demands.
Lelouch suspected either the Vale government wanted it covered up, which he suspected was due to the likely impossibility of fulfilling their demands or something else.
Regardless we'll proceed as planned. They'll likely drag this into the night to ensure not just all of Vale is watching, but the rest of Remnant as well.
Pulling into the back alley behind Junior's club a member of the Black Knights went out to let Junior know that Zero was waiting to speak to him since there was a lot of construction work underway to rebuild his night club. Most of which was paid for by the Black Knights thanks to their various business tractions they have been conducting between one another.
After another member ensured the area was clear Lelouch as Zero exited the vehicle to meet with Junior who came with the twins in tow.
"I am certain you know of what has been happening with the hotel jacking?"
"And it's a concern to me how?"
"I should ask if anyone had or know of anyone who sold drilling equipment and a lot of explosives?"
"Why?!"
"Because those men plan on blowing up the entire hotel to make a statement and their claims for wanting to negotiate a ransom is merely a smokescreen." Lelouch explained revealing that Blue Cosmos planned to publically execute the leader of the moderate Faunus civil rights groups by blowing up the entire hotel while it was televised across Remnant, but the members behind it would escape prior to the explosion which Lelouch is concerned they likely had a tunnel created connecting the hotel with another building.
Of course as an incentive to coax information out of Junior, Lelouch did offer a considerable amount of lien for the information.
"I am sure if what I am telling you is true then you should know if the police find out if their equipment came from you it could lead to a dangerous complication for being tied that."
The potential threat of being tied to a terrorist take over and mass execution of Faunus civil rights leaders alongside payment for the information was enough to convince the information broker.
"I think I know who brought the drills, but I know nothing about the explosives. It's inside an old restaurant near the hotel about a few blocks from it." Junior began accepting the briefcase before adding, "But if you don't mind I would like any evidence implicating me to this to be removed."
"Fair enough," Lelouch offered as Junior provided him with the address.
Around the same time in the forests below the mountain upon which the Black Knights have built their base and now their growing settlement a group of Sutherlands armed with lances with rifles holstered on the back of their waist with anti-personnel guns mounted under the chest was hunting Grimm to keep their numbers down.
Yet at the same time provide Knightmare Frame combat training using the Creatures of Grimm as targets.
"Alright people these things are a lot more vicious than the Britannian soldiers you have faced, but if you can handle Grimm in Knightmare Frame then you can handle just about anything as long as the enemy pilot isn't better than you." A Faunus with fox ears said as he was among the more experienced pilots leading the training exercise.
It was a rule that a few experienced pilots who have hunted Grimm before using Knightmare Frames would accompany first timers to avoid damaging the machines, but also to prevent any loss of life on their end.
Among these trainees were Kallen, although her skills in her Glasgow suggested she hardly needed additional training, but she insisted on tagging along which to contribute to the organization more while seeking to sharpen her piloting skills.
Tamaki and Ohgi were also present as well with the latter wishing to help out more and to see some of these Creatures of Grimm first hand.
"Some of the creatures we encounter are usually small in size about the height of average person, but they travel in packs so they can become dangerous." Their Faunus overseer cautioned.
"What the hell!" Tamaki shouted as the proximity sensor alerted him to an approaching pack of Beowolves approaching from their flank consisting of twelve of them.
"Here they come and remember to watch your backs."
"Yes sir," Kallen replied before using a swipe of her lance to keep the ones that got too close to her at bay before beginning to mow them down using her machine's mounted anti-personnel gun. Ohgi backed away and used his Sutherland's anti-personnel gun to aid Kallen in quickly overwhelming the pack of Beowolves with machine gun fire.
"This is it…this is no problem at all," Tamaki said in a mocking manner before impaling a Beowolf that tried to flank him with his Sutherland's lance.
Either tempted by fate or as a result of Tamaki's words a Death Stalker suddenly came charging through the trees knocking Tamaki to the side using one of its claws during its charge.
"Tamaki get back!" Kallen shouted taking the initiative as she dodged one of the claws of the Death Stalker before reserving to avoid its tail followed up by batting its other claw side before stabbing it in head with its lance using both of the machine's hands to drive it through its armored head. It could withstand some high-caliber weapons and blades, but it wasn't invulnerable so its durability had its limits.
To ensure Kallen had put the creature down Ohgi quickly drew the Sutherland's assault rifle using its higher-caliber bullets to pierce the Death Stalker's body.
"That was some excellent team work! Well done both of you." Their overseer complimented.
"Thanks I did a little reading on some of the more commonly seen Grimm." Ohgi said while Kallen had done the same as well. Kallen and Ohgi knew that the average Death Stalker was resilient to bullets up to a fifty caliber and most blades wielded by Huntsmen, however the weapons of a Knightmare Frame with the exception of its anti-personnel gun was more capable.
"So did I, but I am just glad the lance on this thing was more than enough to impale it." Kallen added as she felt an adrenaline rush from attacking the Death Stalker.
"Good, but stay on your toes people. When out in the wilderness like this you must always be ready for an attack from anywhere especially when dealing with Creatures of Grimm."
An hour later across the City of Vale near the hotel with the area around it having been closed off by the police a disguised Lelouch wearing a purple suit with a dark blue dress shirt including a blonde wig atop his head began knocking on the door dressed like a building inspector. He even held a metal clipboard in one hand while knocking with the other to complete the illusion. The restaurant Lelouch had been told about was called Four Kingdoms Restaurant, which officially has been closed for renovation since the previous owner went bankrupt loosing the establishment to the bank until someone had brought it.
To make the illusion more convincing Lelouch had one of his followers dressed up as a Vale Police Department Officer, which he hoped the police being involved might help them to get in the door. Otherwise they could risk an unwanted complication in their plan at a critical stage.
At first glance at the restaurant nothing outwardly suspicious was taking place except it had been closed for renovation for eight months.
Even though it was a restaurant of a considerable large size consisting of two floors and even a rooftop dining area, but no sign of renovation was underway. However from what Leodore managed to find out checking with local contacts the place had a large basement used mostly for food storage and for keeping holiday and festival decorations which had an elevator for moving large amounts of it between the floors.
It was perfect for moving explosives and drilling equipment disguised as tools and materials for renovating the restaurant.
After persistent knocking and announcing he was a building inspector someone came to the door.
He was a large muscular man wearing a dirty white dress shirt with paint spatter on it including black jeans with boots and work gloves. He had slick black hair and a rugged tanned complexion.
"Greetings," Lelouch said in a welcoming business-like manner, "could I speak with the owner of this establishment? I am from the Vale City Hall to talk about your building permits that have expired. I should note we have complaints in relation to heavy equipment being brought in and used at night, so I must conduct a review of the premises."
Even through the man was worried he remained calm before responding, "Could you return tomorrow because this is not a good time?"
"I am afraid I must insist otherwise," Lelouch began activating his Geass, "I command that you will assist me and my associates in whatever we ask until we conclude our business here after our broadcast."
"Yes sir…" The man said enthralled by Lelouch's Geass.
"Tell how many of your men are here? Are you a member of Blue Cosmos?"
"Yes sir we are with Blue Cosmos." The man replied sharply without hesitation. "There are only three of us here including me; the other two are in the basement watching over the tunnel we dug to the hotel."
"I see then could you let me in before letting my associates waiting at the loading dock in as well. Then you can escort me to the basement below and my friends below."
As Lelouch secured the area and the terrorists primary means of escape from the hotel others around Vale were watching the news. Among those was Team RWBY who was watching the latest news developments on the terrorist takeover of the Oceanic Hotel.
"So it's going into the night with no resolution huh," Weiss observed before adding, "That is not a good sign."
"What do you mean?" Ruby asked with a look of concern on her face.
"It means that likely the authorities aren't giving them what they want and since no obviously effort has been made to rescue them the situation is going to become increasingly dangerous for the hostages." Blake answered with a matter of fact tone, but like Ruby she too was concerned however she knew what direction this situation would be heading in soon.
Yang decided to be the optimist of the group by offering, "I am sure the police got it."
Unfortunately Blake's worst fears became a reality as a news report suddenly came in.
"We have tragically received word that a hostage has been executed with the reason being that the police has not responded nor acted upon their demands. Our crew on the scene has observed an execution that took place on the roof of the hotel in view of authorities." Lisa Lavender reported while showing a still image of a Faunus standing on the roof with two members of Blue Cosmos standing behind him with their weapons.
Ruby and Yang were horrified while Blake was deeply saddened by what happened, but she knew it was going to come down to that.
Around the same time Lelouch, having changed back into his Zero attire, had just been made aware of what had happened through his Scroll which only angered the young man.
Leodore and fourteen members of the Black Knights were present in the basement along with the three members of Blue Cosmos who were enthralled under his Geass. Through them Lelouch had gained information on the total number of members present in the hotel and where the bombs had been planted, also furthered by the fact that Desmond sitting at a mobile computer station in one of the vans outside was now infiltrating their communications between a private wireless network they established within the hotel and at the restaurant.
"I finished setting up a ghost communication for each of their patrols and I believe I have their locations figured out." Desmond reported as Lelouch switched his scroll over to a floor map of the hotel showing points where the terrorists were located based on the signals from their own scrolls they were using to communicate with one another periodically. "As you take them out I'll play recordings of their check-in communications to keep them unaware of your presence as long as possible. I have hacked my way into the hotel's security system and I am preparing looped recordings to help you."
Even through using a private local area wireless network for communications between scrolls was a ideally a secured method to use, but if anyone gained access to it possessing the right equipment and having Desmond's skills and knowledge it wouldn't take much to deceive the users of the network. Using the hotel's own wireless network as base was both a good idea and a bad one at the same time since it made it possible for Desmond to hack the security cameras.
"Excellent," Lelouch said feeling pleased, "keep monitoring their communications. Also is our plan for a broadcast ready as well?"
"Yes, but I should remind you that it might not take long for the VNN to notice their camera and equipment is missing." The former Atlas scientist reminded before adding, "Furthermore make sure your men take the security room as quickly as possible since they might suspect something is wrong if they keep seeing the same looped video after awhile."
"It will do for now." The masked man said before turning to Leodore.
"The men are ready."
Gesturing for Leodore and his men to follow as the fourteen Black Knights were wearing the Shinobi Combat Suits with eight of them armed with Britannian-made sub-machine guns equipped with silencers as a primary weapon. All of them carried a silencer equipped side arm along with a hunting knife, but in order to deal with the bombs each member carried a coolant spray that sprayed an aerosol mist of liquid coolant particles. As for the remaining six members who for their choice of primary weapon were Special Forces issued sniper rifles equipped with silencers which they got through Black Market connections in Area 11 thanks to the Kyoto Group.
Using a rail-cart delivery system the Blue Cosmos men installed within the tunnel to move both men and the explosives along with the drills through the tunnels the Black Knights made their way to the hotel. However knowing the other end of the tunnel was being guarded two members of Lelouch's rescue party went on ahead on foot to clear the end of the tunnel of any hostiles.
By the time Lelouch, Leodore and the rest of their group reached the end of the tunnel two members of Blue Cosmos laid dead on the ground having been taken down without them realizing it until it was too late.
"Alright Leodore and two of you with me," Lelouch commanded before gesturing for the men with sniper rifles, "you six make your way to the second floor overlooking the auditorium where the hostages are being kept. The rest of you have your assignments to take out the Blue Cosmos members patrolling the hotel and disable their bombs using the coolant spray."
The Coolant Spray should disable the denotations by freezing them rendering them inoperable for twenty four hours at least.
It was at the recommendation of Leodore who expected at some points the Black Knights would need to deal with explosives in one form or another, but since they didn't have anyone trained in bomb disposal they sought alternatives by using a coolant spray solution to disable the bombs for a time. Obtaining the means to create the coolant spray was easier in Japan, but it was inspired by Leodore who had used a shot of ice dust to freeze a bomb rendering its detonator inoperable.
Such a trick would prove to be especially useful considering their group was going to become the heroic knights of justice.
But as a precaution we'll stop them before they can have a chance to detonate the bomb if for some reason it won't work.
Zero, Leodore and the men accompanying them would make their way to the Grand Reception Hall through the ground floor while taking out any Blue Cosmos members they happen upon. Their support would be the snipers who would take position on the balconies within the auditorium.
Quietly moving out from the basement of the hotel the first group of Black Knights spotted a member of Blue Cosmos patrolling the boiler room next to the storage room where the tunnel was located. Using their silenced machine gun they quickly took out the hostile before realizing the danger he was in. He silently gestured for his fellows to follow.
"According to the floor plans the security room should be in an office behind the reception desk." Lelouch said quietly through the communicator built into his mask. "Secure it before the enemy notices anything amiss."
The group made their way quietly up the stairs with the forward group using small dental mirrors to peak out from a crack in the door before using them to carefully check around corners looking for signs of Blue Cosmos guards.
Lelouch was pleased with how the operation was proceeding as the men with him were hardened veterans of Leodore's group who had seen plenty of action in their service to the former division leader of the White Fang since siding with him upon his departure from the organization. Still he did not allow his success to cloud his better judgment as they were not yet close to securing the hostages.
One wrong move and this could end very badly for us.
Despite his concerns the operation continued to proceed smoothly one of the pairs of armed Black Knights made their way to the security room where they had arrived just in time when the men posted there on behalf of Blue Cosmos had noticed some oddities about the looped video footage were about to contact their leader.
It was a close one, but one that was just narrowly avoided.
With the security room under their control the rest of the infiltration team spread out and began taking down the rest of the Blue Cosmos members quietly while the support team made their way to the second floor to scout out the auditorium while preparing to provide fire support. The auditorium was in the heart of the hotel itself with a large spacious room with balconies on the second floor and enough seating to fit at least over a hundred people with spaces for chairs and a stage at the end.
On the stage were the hostages with the leader of the Blue Cosmos there while four of his followers guarded the hostages.
"Balcony Support Team; are you in position yet?"
The masked former prince felt nervous when he didn't get a reply, but a moment later.
"We're ready sir with eyes on the targets."
"Once I open the door take them out and deal with the leader as planned."
Looking to Leodore and the men accompanying him looking for any indication they were not ready, but when Lelouch saw none he boldly opened the main door catching the Blue Cosmos members off guard. Once they realized it was Zero and his men entering they began to react, but they were too slow as four of the five were swiftly picked off by the snipers hiding on the balconies overlooking the stage. Zero and his escort continued walking towards the stage.
"WHAT THE HELL?!" The Blue Cosmos leader roared in both shock and anger.
He was a middle aged man with graying blonde hair and blue eyes wearing a black suit with a red tie holding a gun in one hand while in the other was the remote used to set off the bombs. Leodore rushed the stage giving the leader named Bruno little time to react, but before he could push the remote one of the sniper's shot it out of his hands with Leodore leaping onto the bridge and ripping the gun from his hands.
"You traitorous bastards are siding with humanity's enemy!" Bruno snapped angrily possessing a slightly crazed look in his eyes.
"My organization welcomes both Humans and Faunus, so I will not tolerate fools like you." Zero declared as he approached the stage with Leodore restraining him. "As much as I would like to appropriately punish you for your actions I believe these people here will have the honors of delivering you to the police."
The former prince came to a stop before his prey after stepping onto the stage. Looking straight at Bruno the slide on Lelouch's mask opened revealing his Geass eye.
"There you will confess to every crime you have done and speak only the truth for the rest of your life!"
Once it was done Leodore used a pair of handcuffs to restrain Bruno while the sniper teams came down to the first floor to assist in undoing the bonds of the hostages while ensuring none of them had been harmed in anyway. Picking up Bruno's discarded gun he looked for the leader of the Faunus Civil Rights groups among the hostages.
Lelouch narrowed him down as he turned to a woman with koala-like ears that were gray matching with her long hair wearing a formal business suit with a gray skirt and suit to match her hair while possessing green eyes.
"Are you the one in charge?"
"Yes I am Mrs. Misha." The Faunus said before Lelouch handed her the handgun Bruno had.
"Then I'll leave you with their leader to turn into the proper authorities." The masked man told her before explaining, "We have dealt with the rest of Blue Cosmos in the hotel, but once we have cleared out the last of them run for the police with your prisoner in tow. Inform them they had planted bombs around the hotel."
"WHAT?!"
"They were planning on executing all of you as a statement to the entire world once enough people across Remnant were watching. Everything they did was to merely stall for time," Lelouch said before beginning to leave as he stepped off the stage. "I'll leave the rest to you and stick to the plan."
"Wait…who are you Zero?"
Lelouch stopped half way across the room, although he hesitated for a moment he spoke, "It's not who or what I am underneath, but let my actions be what defines me."
With that Lelouch left the hostages in the car of Leodore as he quickly returned to the basement to hurry back to the basement of the restaurant.
"Desmond is everything ready?"
"We're ready Zero."
Minutes later in their room Team RWBY was beginning to believe the situation for the hostages at the Oceanic Hotel was looking even darker than before, but suddenly the program they were watching was interrupted before the face of Zero appeared on their screen causing those watching to stop what they were doing.
"It's Zero!" Ruby Rose said in shock having not expected an appearance of Vale's mysterious valiantly.
Blake, Weiss and Yang began watching as Zero spoke addressing not just the Kingdom of Vale, but through the media feed they had hijacked thanks to both the news coverage the hostage situation was receiving and using the equipment and cameras they stole from the Vale News Network earlier.
"People of Vale," Zero began with a black flag displayed behind him, "have no fear...for all of the hostages at the Oceanic Hotel are safe and sound. I Zero return them to you unharmed."
The visage of Zero was minimized to a corner of the screen to show live footage of the hostages leaving the hotel as the footage they were seeing was provided through the hotel's security cameras ensuring credit would be given where it was due. They exited the hotel to make a run towards the police officers with a prisoner in tow to deliver into their custody as per Zero's instructions.
"He did it! Oh thank goodness they were saved." Ruby said with a look of relief.
"But how did he pull it off?" Weiss said as she was just as curious as her friend Blake who seemed baffled by how Zero pulled off a rescue when the authorities could not.
"I don't think he just waltzed inside that hotel to get them out." Yang said in agreement ignoring Ruby being overjoyed that the hostages were rescued.
The footage from the hotel was shrunk down allowing Zero to appear on the screen again, but this time the camera panned out before a series of lights came on revealing Black Knight members standing alongside him in full uniform wearing a black face makes that were black on one side and transparent on the other. There were some obvious humans among them, but for the Faunus members there were ones possessing deer antlers and reddish brown rabbit ears to signify that their group has both human and Faunus members.
"People! Fear us, or rally behind us as you see fit! We are the Black Knights!"
"Black Knights?" Blake said softly as she was surprised to see that Zero's organization had members from both sides of the spectrum.
"We of the Black Knights stand with all those who have no weapons to wield…regardless of whether they be Human or Faunus!" Lelouch as Zero declared before he continued his proclamation. "Blue Cosmos cowardly took innocent civilians hostage, and not mercilessly executed them! But they were planning to murder all of them before a world-wide audience just to make a statement!"
Lelouch held back no anger with his last statement as he wanted to share his disgust with their plan to gain attention and support for their cause.
"It was a wanton and meaningless act; therefore, they have been punished just as former Warden Samuel Norton abused his position for his own benefit. Including Mr. Winchester who abused and mistreated his own Faunus workers including subjecting those same victims to heavy doses of drugs to silence them. We cannot stand by and allow such cruelty to be carried out, and so we made them pay for their actions."
The rest of Team RWBY along with anyone else watching waited for Zero to finish his declaration.
"I will challenge anyone who abuse and mistreat their power leaving people to suffer, but most of all I will not tolerate acts of pure evil such as Blue Cosmos attempted to do my slaughtering innocent civilians. The only ones who should kill are those who are prepared to be killed! Wherever oppressors abuse their power by attacking those who are powerless, we shall appear again, no matter how mighty or formidable our foe may be!"
Blake Belladonna was speechless, but Zero knowing his time was short decided to wrap up his public reveal of the Black Knights to Remnant.
"Those of you with power...FEAR US!" Zero declared unfolding his arms in a dramatic fashion while outstretching his right arm, "Those of you without it, rally behind us!" Lelouch extended his left arm out as he spoke.
Then he brought his public address to a close with some parting words.
"We, the Black Knights, shall be the ones who stand in judgment of this world!"
Watching the broadcast inside his office within Beacon Tower in one of the highest points of Beacon Academy was a man who appeared to be in his late or early forties with grey hair wearing black sunglasses-style specials, a green suit sitting at a desk having just watched Zero's broadcast.
Professor Ozpin turned off the broadcast before leaning back in his chair in quiet contemplation. He wasn't sure what to make of the Black Knights and whatever their true goals might be, but he felt this was not the last time he would hear about the Black Knights which made the Headmaster of Beacon Academy felt concerned for the future.
A/N: Not overly spectacular I'll admit, but best for the quick and silent approach since if anything alerted the police outside to something going on it could have ended badly for Lelouch. But the fact he managed to infiltrate a hotel that had been taken over by violent anti-Faunus extremists taking down most of them without alerting them until the very end. Then he rescues the hostages and saved them, which was something the police were incapable of doing.
Having said that Lelouch is being mindful not to show off too much of what the Black Knights are capable of as that could push certain parties to pursue him more aggressively and I am not talking about the White Fang mind you.
Still despite its flaws I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter, and as we get further into the story.
As a last note I drew inspiration for Lelouch's body armor he is wearing under his Zero outfit from the Sneaking Suits of the Metal Gear franchise (more specifically the materials used) while taking some from the Batman series. And yes much later in the story its possible Lelouch could get an upgrade of the suit especially since he will gradually improve as a fighter but that is a long way off. I will admit I had some trouble designing some elements before deciding to stick to Earth-based materials because I wasn't sure what Remnant's materials for body armor are. Not to mention Lelouch is pragmatic enough to not solely rely on his Aura for protection if Qrow's fight with Tyrian has shown the potential risks.
I thank you all in advance for your reviews, see you all next chapter where the rest of Remnant will be reacting to the announcement of the Black Knights including a certain group.