PART V:
THE TOWER
"Rage—Goddess, sing the rage of Peleus' son Achilles, murderous, doomed, that cost the Achaeans countless losses, hurling down to the House of Death so many sturdy souls, great fighters' souls, but made their bodies carrion, feasts for the dogs and birds, and the will of Zeus moving towards its end. Begin, Muse, when the two first broke and clashed, Agamemnon the lord of men and brilliant Achilles."
-Homer.
…
…
It was the end of the second day over Aspern-Essling.
Bene, thought the Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte.
Clearly, the battle had already been lost. But no - not quite! The army can still pull out in an orderly retreat. But how? The pontoon bridge over the Danube leading back to the island of Lobau had been demolished by the Austrians for the second time now, who had been sending devastating boats laden with stone and burning debris down this bastard river.
Napoleon churned with rage and disappointment, though he did not allow himself to betray any significance of this towards his officers. Likewise, they were already accustomed to the Emperor's propensity to lay blame on others, despite the impossibility of his intentions. Napoleon's retinue followed him very closely as they trotted back to the tête-de-pont atop their horses.
It was getting dark. Marshal Davout and his III Corps never made it across the river. The Prince of Neuchâtel Major-General Berthier, damn the languorous dullard, said that it would require 48 hours to reestablish the lost bridge. Lannes and Massena did not get the reinforcements they so desperately needed. But what mattered the most was that they still held the two villages Aspern and Essling until tonight.
French engineers and marines were heard screaming and bellowing still across the river, working restlessly to restore the tethers of the pontoon over the raging black waters of the Danube. Napoleon made out the silhouettes of pontonniers heaving great blocks of driftwood in order to float them once more and ensure that his army could resume communications with the opposite bank. Already, several had died; drowned in the spate. Nobody stopped. They worked, they served, all of the men obeyed their Emperor without question.
The order to retreat would have to be given soon, Napoleon pondered, before his sight was assailed by a horrific discovery. The lane they were passing down was littered on the sides by broken carriages, empty caissons, riderless horses and wounded troopers trudging along. Most of these soldiers were bloodied, bruised, and wrapped in stained wraps, having come from the thickest of the carnage at Essling a few hours ago. When their emperor passed by them, they raised their wounded hands and limbs at him agonizingly, pleading for mercy to their savior, asking to be consoled and healed. Napoleon ignored them. What froze Napoleon was seeing the dirty cotton triage set up by their medical services in front of the massive stone manor just before the abutment of the destroyed pontoon.
The ominous triage was akin to an undertaker's parlour, where dead men were delivered to be embalmed and laid to rest in coffins. Just outside of it, a huddle of cuirassiers and grenadiers were weeping silently together with their officers. Napoleon recognized the unmistakable blue calfskin of a marshal's uniform inside the tent, and immediately leapt out of his saddle. Napoleon spotted three doctors in blood-smeared white aprons conversing intensely at the mouth of the facility, meanwhile the aide-de-camp Captain Marbot, looking fatigued, sat on the edge of a flimsy bed, and propped in his lap was the head of his master, the Duke of Montebello, Marshal Jean Lannes.
"You can barely feel his pulse anymore."
"We should've amputated the right too, General. It is of no more use to him."
"But the joint is still intact…"
"I know the marshal, and his constitution is strong enough to pull through this one without losing both."
"We know the marshal as well, Larrey. But look at his eyes."
"What's wrong with them?"
"They are sad. He's losing his will."
Within three strides Napoleon pushed through the three doctors and was kneeling by the marshal's side. The marshal's face was red, livid and gleaming with sweat, and Lannes' eyes stared hollowly.
"Lannes, my friend, do you recognize me?"
Napoleon clasped the marshal's hands as he knelt.
"The Marshal has been hit during the lull behind the village of Essling, Your Majesty. The wound is serious; the kneepan of his left leg is gone and we've had to amputate that limb above the joint. He has severed an artery, and his right leg is no longer viable."
The Surgeon General of the Grande Armee d'Allemagne, Baron Jean Dominique Larrey, spoke quietly.
Napoleon did not move.
"He has fallen very weak, Your Majesty," Baron Larrey advised the Emperor.
"But he recognizes me, doesn't he?"
"Yes, I recognize you."
The marshal finally gasped to everyone's relief. Napoleon drew very close to him instantly.
Lannes stared at Napoleon. Lannes' eyes were clear, neither swollen nor red, but the emptiness in Lannes' eyes terrified Napoleon.
"But very soon, you will have lost your best general…" Lannes whispered.
"Stupidita! We'll keep you going. Isn't that right, gentlemen?"
Napoleon smiled fretfully, glancing round.
"Yes sire," the Baron answered, followed by the retinue.
"Since Your Majesty wishes it," said another.
"See, Lannes?"
"I see…"
"Back in Vienna," Napoleon said, "there's a doctor who has designed an artificial leg for an Austrian general."
"That's true, sire," said the Baron.
"Do you hear that? The doctor will give you a new leg, Lannes, and we'll go hunting next week!"
The Emperor took the wounded marshal in his arms. Jean Lannes, wounded and suffering grievously, whispered in his ear so that no one else could hear.
"My friend Pouzet is dead; I watched him die in front of my face. So is Espagne, Saint-Hilaire, Viry and many of our last colleagues. Stop this war as quickly as possible, Napoleon. That's what everyone wants. Don't listen to your entourage. They flatter you, they bow and scrape, but they don't love you. They will betray you. They are already betraying you as it is by always hiding the truth from you…"
Lannes' face crumpled, gazing up sadly, as if he was about to cry. Napoleon was beginning to shake as he held his friend.
The marshal's hands slid free from Napoleon's, and only then did the Emperor realize that Lannes had slipped a golden coin into his palm.
"Your Majesty, His Excellency the Duke of Montebello is exhausted. He must conserve his strength, he mustn't talk too much," Baron Larrey said.
It took a tremendous effort for Napoleon to tear himself away from the wounded marshal and stand up straight.
Napoleon spoke in a monotone voice.
"Let's cross back to Lobau. We must evacuate the marshal."
"Sire, the pontoon bridge is barely passable."
Napoleon did not immediately answer, as he was examining something in his hand.
"Su, presto, sbrigatevi! Hurry! Think of a solution!"
A long time ago, Emperor Napoleon had already abolished from all coinage the motto that was still engraved on the franc that his friend had given to him:
UNITÉ. INDIVISIBILITÉ DE LA RÉPUBLIQUE.
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I may have got the sequence of the recap incorrect, but it's pretty much the plot since the original, 2012-2014. Obviously, major spoilers ahead if you didn't read the original Emperor of Zero, but there are some changes.
A brief summary recap of the Emperor of Zero:
Napoleon at Fontainebleau, France, 11 April 1814; portal appears; he leaves, entering it - Louise summons Napoleon, they become partners - Napoleon meets Henrietta - omake; Dragon's Raiment happens to a French plane from 1954; Napoleon discovers and reads these - Tristanian General De Poitiers is Napoleon's first rival - The battle of La Rochelle - The battle of Tarbes - Albion debacle - Henrietta dies in Saxe-Gotha during the Silver Pentecostal - Napoleon's coup d'etat; he murders De Poitiers and takes over the Tristanian army - Oliver Cromwell dies - Napoleon's plan foiled by King Joseph; Gallia enters the war on Tristain's side without warning - Matilda (Foquet) becomes Louise's servant and ally; Tiffania rescued - Napoleon rescues the Prince of Wales - Napoleon exchanges the Music Box and the Wind Ruby ring (obtained from Wales) to Joseph - Louise is exiled by her mother - Crown of Tristain is contested by Grand Duchess Lady Karin de la Valliere - Napoleon becomes head of the Alliance - Guldenhorf, Kundera, Richemont, Noyon are some of the nobles in the Alliance - Marshal Gramont supports Lady Karin - Siesta goes rogue - preliminary moves by both factions; imminent civil war of Tristain - Guiche pledges loyalty to Napoleon - Louise fights Jean-Jacques de Wardes - Marshal Gramont sends off Guiche; Napoleon prepares for war; Grand Duchess Karin de la Valliere confronts Wardes the Elder - The Alliance Army marches out of Tristain to fight Marshal Gramont and the Valliere loyalist army.
Continuation begins; The Devil chapter 9 onwards to chapter 12 - Tristanian Civil War starts - Napoleon, Louise and the Alliance score quick victories against the loyalist armies - Karin discovers elder Wardes' sinister plots - Wardes the Elder holds Siesta - Marshal Gramont consolidates his position - Napoleon and Louise recapture the city of Tristania; war turns to their favour.
There are a few details that need to be straightened out: Louise has the Water Ruby - Henrietta gave it before the Albion war. Napoleon has just been in Halkeginia for not more than a year; having arrived in April, and given the Silver Pentecostal occurs likely around December-January, we can safely assume the Tristanian Civil War has broken out in what would be March already. Napoleon has been in Halkeginia for around 11 months now.
There may be more inconsistencies in the original story, but I'll only mention them if they are particularly relevant.
I won't spoil the rest of what happens in Part V: The Tower. Thankfully, Nietzchian has left sufficient context to allow me to try and write one more part, maybe 12-15 chapters long. If some readers have read the original EoZ from the Spacebattles forum, they might know the finale would be Part VI: The World. But that's another story.
I thank the reviewers who had read my unofficial continuation; you've been very helpful in continuing this great story! Emperor of Zero is by far one of the most interesting anime crossovers in my opinion.
Replying then to some of the reviewers:
the mysterious mr.E: thank you.
bruh45: noted; the character development of Louise is one thing that I wanted to preserve, and gently develop further. The downplaying remarks of the nobles towards Napoleon was intentional; them calling him 'commoner' or 'captain' was a subtle sign of how they never really recognized him at heart.
ndabdm: yes, after 8 long years, we'll be seeing Emperor of Zero done justice - hopefully! Thank you for the detailed review. I will keep in mind that there are still many climaxes and turning points that ought to all fall in place in time. There is so many things that can happen at this point, which partly could be what overwhelmed the original author in a way.
Havel the Hebel: I'm glad you're liking the story!
CMY187: I appreciate it. I am trying my best to make with what I have to work with, and remain faithful to the original story by Nietzchian, while also introducing fresh, new turns to the Emperor of Zero.
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