Chapter Two: The Battle of Shinjuku
Revy's emptiness consumed her.
Although there was a search being undertaken for weapons of mass destruction, there were no WMD's. The capsule opened, and as the light faded, Revy saw only some green-haired chick in a straight jacket. She landed on the ground and gagged.
Suzaku, meanwhile, had thrown Lelouch to the ground and put a gas mask over his face. His own gas mask, actually. What a pussy.
"That's not poison gas," said Suzaku.
"No shit, Sherlock," said Revy. "Hey, Lelouch, think this bitch is worth a ransom?"
"At what point during this conversation did I become your partner?" asked Lelouch.
Revy pointed her gun at him. Lelouch did not respond and looked at the gun. Suzaku stood up.
"To answer your question," said Lelouch. "You'd be better off asking Suzaku."
"Please put the gun down," said Suzaku.
"Who the fuck is this bitch, and why is she in a poison gas capsule?" asked Revy.
"I don't know," said Suzaku. "I was told this was poison gas. If you put the gun down, I can promise you a chance to defend yourself in court."
"Yeah, like that's happening bitch," said Revy. "Lelouch, Suzaku, take this bitch down the ramp and see if you can get her untied. I'm going to see if I can find anything."
"We'd probably better make sure she isn't hurt," said Lelouch.
Suzaku and Lelouch grabbed the girl and brought the girl down the ramp. Meanwhile, Revy checked to ensure they weren't coming back, then shrugged. Checking the front, she found the front was rigged with explosives. It looked like you flipped a switch, and it would initiate an automatic timer.
Checking back, she saw a white labcoat lying a little ways up near a ladder at the back. Probably where the Knightmare had been. It was probably piloted by that Kozuki bitch Oghi used as his main agent. Whatever.
Moving over, she checked the lab coat.
"So uh, Lelouch, this Revy person, is she your girlfriend or-" began Suzaku.
"No," said Lelouch. "I was doing some chess gambling for high stakes. Then she kicked in the door and murdered my opponent. After that, she took me hostage and forced me to be her driver."
"Why?" asked Suzaku.
"Drinking money, I think," said Lelouch. "What about this girl?"
"I don't know any more than you," said Suzaku. "She doesn't seem to be physically injured in any way."
Revy found in the jacket a communicator. Probably used by the terrorists. Could she use this for something?
And then someone turned on a light. Revy looked up and saw a lot of men in uniform pointing guns at Lelouch and Suzaku. "Stinking monkey, being an Honorary Britannian will not excuse you."
"But sir, I was told this was poison gas," said Suzaku, running up to his Captain.
Revy walked over to the truck and flipped the switch before setting the timer. Considering the numbers, she set it to one minute. From the looks of things, the Britannian guards had not seen her.
"How dare you question orders," said the Captain. "Still, because of your excellent record, I will allow you to save yourself. Take this and execute the terrorist."
"But he's not a terrorist," said Suzaku. "He's a hostage they took.
"The real terrorist is-"
"How dare you," said the man. "Didn't you swear your loyalty to Britannian."
"But sir, this guy isn't a threat," said Suzaku. "There is an armed and dangerous terrorist in that truck right now! She was the one who opened the canister."
Why that fucking rat.
"Search it," said the Captain. "Get them out with the other."
Revy considered things, then returned to the driver's seat and lowered the window facing the wall. As the troops hurried onto the truck, she dove through the window and caught herself in her hands. Slipping around the back of the truck, she dodged into the shadows.
"Anything?" said the Captain.
"Nothing yet, sir," said a man. "Wait. The front is rigged with explosives! Get out! GET OUT OF-"
There was a flash, and the entire truck shook as the sound of thunder echoed through Revy's ears. Dust was thrown forward as Mr. Captain leaped back and covered his eyes. At that moment, Lelouch grabbed the green-haired girl and ran for it.
Unfortunately, her motorcycle was caught by a metal door and smashed. There went her getaway vehicle.
"Filthy traitor!" roared the Captain.
Then he raised a pistol and shot Suzaku in the back. Suzaku fell forward and landed in a crash. Eh, personally, Revy thought he was kind of a third wheel anyway.
Time to kill the Britannian soldiers.
"Report," said a voice.
"The target escaped, sir. There was a suicide attack," said the Captain. "The blast was mostly directed upwards, but-"
"Damn it," said the voice. "Why the hell do you think I only told you people about this! Get back on it!"
"The plan has moved forward to the next level, Bartley," said a calm voice.
"Prince Clovis," said the voice on the other end. Bartley, Revy guessed.
"Destroy Shinjuku Ghetto! Leave no one alive!" said Clovis.
"Alright," said Revy. "Finally, some action. This is gonna be fun."
Then, leaping to the side of their closely packed formation, Revy opened fire on the Royal Guards. They turned, and just as they did, they were caught point blank. One fell, then another, then another, and Revy laughed as they died.
The submachine gun clicked empty about the time they were all dead and smoking. Tossing it to one side, Revy turned to hurry after Lelouch. She could hear his hurrying off. Had he heard that much? Well, there's no sense in getting separated.
Speeding along the broken remnants of the highway, Revy heard the sound of gunfire and bombs. The subway tunnels shook, and dust and small bits of mortar fell from above. Looking up, Revy felt her smile wide.
"Nice," said Revy. "We're gonna have one hell of a light show up there.
"It'll be like New Year's Fireworks."
"This chaos is all your fault, isn't it?" asked Lelouch's voice ahead.
Only he was sounding very freaked out. That was weird; he was usually pretty calm about these things. And he looked like he was talking to the green-haired bitch.
Going up to her, Revy stepped in. "Hey, Lelouch.
"Nice distraction. We killed, like, all of those guys."
"They killed Suzaku," said Lelouch.
"Eh, you barely knew the guy for five seconds," said Revy. "Besides, he spin kicked you in the face. He clearly was a fucking liability."
"Doesn't that apply to you, too?" asked Lelouch.
Revy felt annoyed.
So she pointed her gun at the nearest thing she could find. This happened to be the green-haired bitch. "Alright, bitch.
"I'm getting sick of this mysterious waif, crap. Start talking before I splatter your greenest brains all over this fucking subway."
"We can't deal with this right now," said Lelouch. "We have to keep moving."
Revy considered it and shrugged. "Fine, whatever. You're carrying the bitch, though."
Lelouch picked her up, and they began to hurry off through the streets. As they did, Revy turned on the communicator to listen.
"Kallen," said a voice, Oghi.
"Don't worry about me, Oghi," said another voice, Kallen. "Get the people out of here. I'll handle them." There was a sound of combat, and a voice came through the communicator.
"It's our Glasgow friend," said Jeremiah's voice.
"Huh," said Revy. "So I guess they're fucking done for.
"We're gonna have to get out of here. I don't have enough bullets to kill the entire Britannian army."
"Is there some way we can use that communicator," said Lelouch as they hurried up the steps. "Do you have contacts with them?"
"The hell I do," said Revy. "I just shot a member of their group. Why do you care?"
"Jeremiah Gottwald is in charge of military affairs," said Lelouch. "Right now, he is in the field hunting a lone pilot. That means Clovis or one of his staff officers, Bartley, oversees the military.
"So they aren't going to be doing any real tactics. Bartley might technically be sub-Viceroy, but he's assigned to scientific affairs. Research and stuff like that."
"So what?" said Revy.
"So," said Lelouch. "We have a terrorist communicator.
"If we can find out where they are located and put together a proper plan, we can win."
Win?
Win?!
"You're kidding me, right?" said Revy.
"We might at least be able to make enough of a distraction to slip out ourselves," said Lelouch. "No, no, we don't have the firepower.
"What if we offer to give the Britannians a terrorist communicator?"
"What?" said Revy. "Like, rat them out?"
"Clovis has just ordered a mass slaughter," said Lelouch. "Of defenseless civilians. There isn't any glory in that. So, a social climber will be after something other than killing. That's how they come to Clovis' attention.
"We can offer them the chance to monitor enemy communicators."
"Then we get them out of their Knightmare, blow their brains out, and jack the thing," said Revy. "Nice.
"Hang, don't you need a security code for that shit."
"Put a gun to their head and demand it," said Lelouch. "If we can just get access to Britannian troop movements...
"We'll have both their communications and the resistances.
"That could give us the edge to turn this around."
"Sounds fun," said Revy. "Let's get up somewhere we can get a view and see if we can find a mark."
Hurrying up the last steps, they entered what looked like a warehouse. There were several windows, and Revy saw a group of people huddling in terror. Smiling, she pulled out her pistols and hurried over to the window. Peering through it. She saw helicopters flying about while firing en masse into the streets.
Bodies were all over the place, and buildings were flaming. The sound of machine guns and explosives was music to Revy's ears. And she saw Kallen's Glasgow crush a tank.
You could see a Knightmare perched upward. Waiting and observing while firing halfheartedly.
"Lelouch," said Revy. "Welcome to Shinjuku.
"I think that bitch it'll work for us, don't you?"
"What makes you think she's a woman?" asked Lelouch.
"Eh, you can tell about these things," said Revy. "You want to make contact, or should I?"
"I'll do it," said Lelouch. "I'm the better actor."
"What the fuck do you mean by that?" asked Revy.
"Revy, you're not exactly the most diplomatic or subtle of individuals," Lelouch sighed. "I'm a trained actor. My name is a lie. My identity is a lie. My existence is a lie.
"I can pretend to be something I am not. Now give me the radio."
Revy rolled her eyes and passed it to him. Lelouch peered out at the Knightmare and set the radio to an open channel. "Excuse me, can anyone hear me!
"This is Alan Spacer on an open channel. My Father is a Duke; I need help."
Silence.
"Where are you?" asked a voice. A female voice. "What are you doing in a place like this?"
"I was taken hostage by terrorists, but I managed to slip away," said Lelouch. He was really selling the afraid and desperate look. "Are you with the military?
"Can I request your protection?"
"Stay where you are," said the voice. "My name is Lady Villetta Nu of the Purebloods. I'll come to you."
Lelouch nodded.
Then he walked away from Revy to stand by a wall in front of the door. He looked at the people and then spoke to them in Japanese. They nodded and hurried out down the steps of the subway tunnel.
What was he doing?
"Clearing the civilians out," said Lelouch. "No sense in them getting shot."
"Who gives a fuck?" asked Revy.
"I do," said Lelouch.
Revy paused. Finally, she sighed. "Whatever.
"So I guess I'll just wait here."
The door smashed open, and into the room came a Knightmare. It scanned the surrounding area but missed Revy entirely. She was already going behind one leg.
"Are you Alan Spacer," said the woman.
"Yes," said Lelouch. "My ID is in my breast pocket.
"Once you confirm who I am, I'll request your protection."
This guy lied like a champion.
He was really good at this stuff. Even Revy almost believed he was Alan Spacer. Come to think of it, she had only his word he was Lelouch.
The Knightmare hatch opened. Out of the cockpit came a silver-haired woman clad in a one-piece pilot outfit. It showed off her long, shapely legs and clung to ample breasts and a sensual rear. This bitch really could work on a pole if she wanted, especially with that silver hair, tied up in a braid. Revy could probably tie her down using her own hair.
"Stay where you are," said the woman. "I'll take out your ID."
She lowered herself down on a rope and stepped down. A moment later, Revy got behind her and put a gun to her head. "Surprise, bitch.
"Bet you never saw this coming."
The woman stiffened. "Who are you?"
"Give me your Knightmare keys, now," said Revy. "Or I'll blow your fucking brains out all over the floor. You got me?"
She passed them over without complaint. Revy smirked. "Hey, 'Alan' get into that cockpit.
"Now you, bitch, tell us exactly what your code is. If it doesn't work, I will start putting lead in you."
Lelouch got onto the rope and hit the switch to rise up into it. Why was he still carrying the green-haired bitch? Revy, meanwhile, reached around to grab the bitches gun.
"Did I just get hijacked by a schoolboy?" muttered the woman, seemingly in shock.
"Pretty much," said Revy. "Give me the number."
The woman said a number combination, which Lelouch typed in. Revy realized that Lelouch now had an active Knightmare frame. So he might not need Revy anymore.
"Are you coming, or what?" asked Lelouch. "We're operational."
"Good," said Revy. "Thanks bitch."
Then she pistol-whipped her across the back of the neck. She fell to the ground unconscious, and Revy saw the hand of the Southerland lowered. Leaping onto it, she crawled up the arm. "So what do you think this bitch is worth, anyway?"
"The green-haired woman or the pilot?" asked Lelouch.
"Either," said Revy.
"I don't know," said Lelouch. "Based on the security associated with the green-haired girl, I'd call her priceless. Clovis obviously doesn't want news of her getting out." He drove the Knightmare out of the area and began fiddling with the controls.
"So-" Something began to ring. "Not now."
Revy saw him take out his phone and put it to one ear. "Yes?"
"Oh, uh, sorry I'm running late; things have been pretty hectic. I'm quite safe. Hey, can you tell me what it says on the news about Shinjuku?" Silence. "Thanks.
"You got me."
He hung up.
"Who was that?" asked Revy. "Mission control."
"A friend," said Lelouch. "They say that Shinjuku is undergoing emergency demolition. They've probably encircled this place. Once they finish killing everyone here, they'll make up whatever story they want."
"Typical Britannia," muttered Revy, feeling cramped in the cockpit. "So what's the plan."
"You are going to stay silent while I take care of the rest," said Lelouch. "Your gun is going to do us any good against knightmares.
"And I don't want anyone knowing about you or this girl. We've got to stay anonymous if we can. We really should have killed that woman. She's a loose end, and she's taken part in a genocide."
"We can go back," said Revy.
"There's no point," said Lelouch. "And no time.
"She might end up dead out here anyway. She's unconscious in the middle of hostile territory. If anyone finds her, she's liable to wish she was dead.
"Anyway, we've got more important things to handle.
"According to these readings, a train is inbound down the tracks. It's a heavy-duty kind, normally used to carry heavy equipment. Whatever is on it has a decent chance of being useful militarily.
"Not enough to buy loyalty.
But enough to cement it. Give me the communicator."
Revy passed it to Lelouch, who took it. Then, he observed the Glasgow hurrying along the street. "The West Entrance," said Lelouch.
"What?" said Kallen's voice.
"The West Entrance," said Lelouch. "If you want to win, then follow my orders."
"To win?" asked Kallen.
God, Revy hated that bitch.
She actually listened, hurrying off toward the train tracks. Meanwhile, Lelouch used his slash harkens to get to higher ground. Perched on a skyscraper with a view of the tracks, Revy saw the train coming. And there was the Glawgow, and there were two Southerlands following.
"What's the plan here?" asked Revy.
"Divide and conquer," said Lelouch. "She's taking a leap of faith out of desperation.
"Now we need to deliver." He brought the radio to his lips. "Since you trusted me, you're gonna win. Get on the tracks and leap onto the train."
Kallen did exactly that, followed swiftly behind by her enemies. The train was incoming, but she leaped on top of it and surged along.
"Now, if I'm right," said Lelouch. "One of them is going to stop the train.
"And the other is going to follow. That should divide them."
"Why stop it?" asked Revy.
"Standard procedure when dealing with a possible enemy stronghold," said Lelouch. "This train should never have entered the battlefield. Keeping it moving only saves it a little time and potentially lets it get hijacked.
"If I were a terrorist leader, I'd be trying to use it to evacuate."
The front Sutherland grabbed the train by the front. Then he began to push against it, slowing it down, while the next leaped onto it. Lelouch then raised his gun and smiled, taking aim. Pulling the trigger, he opened fire on the one by the train, riddling it with armor-piercing rounds.
"Shot by friendly fire," said Jeremiah Gottwald's voice. "Who are you?
"We're after the one-armed-"
Lelouch opened fire on him, too, shooting out the legs.
"A terrorist!" said Jeremiah. "Terrorists have our military weaponry!"
And then he ejected.
The train had stopped.
"You saved me," said Kallen. "But how did you get a Southerland?"
"It doesn't matter," said Lelouch. "Get in contact with your resistance group. Tell them the contents of that train are tools for your victory."
"Right," said Kallen.
Lelouch leaned back and looked a bit tired. "Alright.
"So we're about to get some recruits."
"What are you gonna do if the train is stuffed with industrial-strength rubber ducks?" asked Revy.
"Then I'll pass it off as a demonstration of how futile further resistance is," said Lelouch. "Then I'll suggest they use the train to evacuate as many civilians as possible. Meanwhile, the Glasgow plays escort.
"That will give them a fighting chance at least, and they'll owe me a favor."
"So you have no fucking idea what is on that train, do you?" asked Revy.
"It really doesn't matter," said Lelouch. "The train is a prop. A means of emotional manipulation.
"First, I get the Glasgow to leap of faith out of desperation. Then, her faith is rewarded when I save her and take down two Southerlands. Then, I play the role of Santa Claus and demonstrate the resources I have at my disposal.
"So long as I can make them think I knew the train was coming and that I knew what was on it, I seem like a god. Given the complete fiasco, this has turned into. Our friends in the resistance are not happy with their leadership.
"It should be enough to get control."
"Kallen," said Oghi's voice over the communicator. "What's going on here? Did you hear the voice, too?"
"Are in command?" asked Lelouch.
"Yes," said Oghi.
"I present to you the contents of that truck," said Lelouch. "They are tools for your victory."
"Sutherlands," said someone. "How did he know these were coming?"
Lelouch did not answer.
"Can't you tell us who you are?" asked Oghi. "At least your name?"
"I can't," said Lelouch. "What if these communications are being intercepted?
"Get suited up.
"Woman in Glasgow, how much time does your energy filler have?"
"About fifteen minutes," said Kallen.
"Good," said Lelouch. "That should be more than enough.
"Do you have a map of the settlement?"
"Yes, but it has no current landmarks," said Kallen.
"Relay it to me," said Lelouch. "Then run interference.
"Keep the enemy off our backs. I'm going to hand out code names to each of you. You're Q1. Leader, you're B1. Each of you report in, and I'll assign you a title."
And just like that, Lelouch took over the resistance.
Revy stared as he assigned various ranks and gave orders to various guards at several points. As far as she could tell, he'd assigned Oghi a position as second in command to keep him from rocking the boat. Since Oghi was desperate, he couldn't win without them.
Still, now they were putting on their knightmares. So Oghi could use this chance to tell everyone to follow his orders instead of the mysterious voice.
"We need an extra incentive for loyalty," said Lelouch, thinking the same thing. "Which is where our map system is useful. We can see the Britannian Knightmares.
"Those machines aren't hooked up to the network.
"And here come four units through that wall." He smiled and opened a channel. "B1, is your crew ready?"
"Yeah, we've got everything we need," said Oghi.
"Good," said Lelouch. "Enemy units are heading for your location on the other side of that street. Shoot them through the wall."
Silence.
"Everyone, do what the voice says," said Oghi.
Okay, when did this schoolboy become fucking amazing? Oghi knew he stood a chance right now with the Southerlands. So he could break away from Zero's control using his status as leader. But his chances were still slim. Now that Lelouch had inside information, he knew he'd be much more likely to survive under him. Especially since his leadership was currently under question.
In the meantime, Kallen had taken down three Southerlands on the rooftops.
Oghi and the assembled Southerlands opened fire. An entire squad of Britannian troops were mowed down. They disappeared off the map like stars winking out in the night sky.
"Q1, refill and continue skirmishing," said Lelouch. "The rest of you, follow my orders."
And that was how it began.
A squad of Britannian Knightmare frames came down toward them. But Lelouch would outmaneuver them using map information. Then his squad would get them from the side and massacre them. Rinse and repeat, while the Britannian just kept using the same damn technique.
Because Jeremiah Gottwald was out of the battle and out of contact. So Bartley was in command, and he was a fucking civvie. Clovis couldn't take command without taking personal responsibility. So pretty soon, the entire ghetto was being filled up with wrecked Southerlands. Their ruined machines were joining the bloodied corpses of civilian women and children.
What a badass.
"You're turning this place into a fucking graveyard for man and machine," said Revy. "This is badass."
"I can do this," said Lelouch. "I can destroy Britannia." And he laughed. Laughed and laughed while scanning through the maps. "Now, depending on what happens next, there are several moves Clovis can make here.
"About now, he should be figuring out he's losing."
"So what are the options?" asked Revy.
"Well, he can keep doing what he is doing," said Lelouch. "And hope his knightmares win by sheer numbers. He can change his codes. But that won't work because we're linked directly into the system.
"Alternatively, he could withdraw his troops. Then, bring in artillery or airstrikes to level the place. The problem is that it will draw a lot of attention that can't be covered up as easily.
"Another option is to scrap the genocide plan, seal the area off, and take a defensive position. Lock things down and bring up more troops while starving us out. That could take time, but it gives him time to make a new strategy. Not to mention get somebody competent in charge.
"Or he could bring in elite outside troops better qualified to handle this situation. Knightmares are not actually designed for urban warfare. They can do it, but their primary advantage is going on any terrain and being mobile. These narrow streets are exactly the kind of place you don't want to fight with knightmares."
"The fucker could also cede ground," noted Revy. "Pretend to be retreating and then catch the terrorists while they pursue."
"That too," said Lelouch. "Most of the other options are variants of those.
"He could also negotiate with the terrorist leader. Offer humanitarian assistance and mercy in exchange for his surrender. Or something along those lines. Clovis has total superiority in this conflict. Our victory is based on him making mistakes.
"I'm lucky I caught Gottwald before he could do any commanding. He led the attack on Area 11's shores, you know. He won the Medal of Honor and was appointed Head of the Purebloods over Luciano Bradley."
"Change the codes again," said Bartley's voice over the com. "Send in that squad. I mean, Glasgow Squad."
"Any other options?" asked Revy, finding this interesting. Lelouch understood a lot about this stuff. He'd obviously done his homework.
"Last of all, he can go all in," said Lelouch. "Throw everything he has at us from all sides and hope to clean us up by sheer numbers.
"Now, right now, Clovis is defaulting to Option 1. He is not making any decisions. Bartley does seem to feel comfortable making big decisions in front of Clovis. So Bartley is just throwing more and more troops into the meatgrinder."
And so it continued.
Squad after squad was sent in. Soon, Bartley started in multiple squads from different directions. But they all had a long way to go, and the terrorists knew the ground much better than the Britannians. So Lelouch sent out his troops to get one from the side, then backtracked to massacre the other from behind.
"Doubtless you've heard the quote, 'Wars are won by the man who makes the fewest mistakes?'" asked Lelouch. "Clovis gives the phrase an entirely new subtext."
Laughter came over the radio.
Revy laughed, too. She really wanted things to work out for this guy. "So what now?
"Well," said Lelouch, reading the map. "Bartley has already sent in most of his reserves.
"By this point, we've wrecked practically everyone. So, he can only continue this by sending in troops from his reserves. If I were him, I'd accept that the game was up and settle for flipping the board. Unleash airstrikes fire artillery bombardments. Just reduce the entire ghettos to nothingness and then kill everyone who's left.
"Just accept that there is no way to make this look good, and take the victory while you can. His priority should no longer be a coverup. But making sure this situation doesn't spiral any further out of control. Which means everybody here has to die.
"But, knowing Clovis, he's not going to do that. He'll probably just call in reinforcements, and we'll have to continue this for a bit. We'd better start planning to slip out of here once our luck runs out." Jesus, he was talking like a major badass. Like he'd thought all this through. Revy swore he got off on all this. "Q1, I have a mission for you.
"I'm sending you some coordinates in the old subway tunnels. Go to them and wait for my signal. I want you to destroy all the support in that area when I send it.
"A good defense against earthquakes has weaknesses of their own."
"Why?" said Q1.
"Just follow my orders," said Lelouch. "I don't have time to explain the details."
"Right," said Q1.
And she headed off.
Lelouch clasped his hands. "Now Clovis probably has a general idea of where our forces are. So, if you tried to flush us out, you'd want to send one large line forward to wreck everything in its path.
"Once you do that, other forces stand by to intercept fleeing enemies. You flush out the beast and then kill it by ambush."
Clovis' forces began to move.
And they attacked from all directions. They headed straight toward the same general location.
"B1," said Lelouch. "Scatter and hide in the masonry. I want you to let the enemy line pass you by. And make sure you're not near the center of the Ghetto. If you can, get as many civilians to move out of there as possible."
"It doesn't look like there are many people left alive, but we'll do what we can," said Oghi.
Lelouch checked the video feed. "That is a much stupider move than I expected.
"Even if his troops pinned down our forces, they'd be firing in a circular firing squad. In an RTS, encircling your opponent completely might work. But the real battle is different, isn't it? If they did catch us, they'd have to risk shooting eachother, so we could attack in any direction.
"And by not wrecking the masonry in his way, Clovis is allowing his battle line to become disrupted by it. If he was going to genocide the ghetto, he should just level it. He has no incentive to hold back here, and neither do we.
"Of course, we'd still lose at a high cost to him.
"Fortunately, we don't have to take that kind of war of attrition. Q1, now."
There was a tremor.
Revy looked out and saw smoke rise from the center of the ghetto. Their knightmares were crawling over the building like beetles. Then, suddenly, the entire center began to cave like a ripple in water. The ground collapsed. The knightmares fell under as a wave of destruction went through the ghettos.
A wave of red passed across the screen like a weapon of mass destruction. Entire companies of knightmares, each one worth billions, were consumed. How many pilots with months of training and years of experience were consumed? How many people with families, friends, hopes, and dreams were devoured in one fell swoop?
So many.
In one move, the entire army was eradicated.
Clovis was defenseless.
Lelouch's forces were all alive.
"What the fuck..." said Revy.
How should she feel about this kind of carnage? This kind of destruction was what she had wanted. And she'd gotten it with flying colors.
How do you react to this kind of stuff?
"All units," said Lelouch. "Form your group and prepare to push on the enemy command post. Engage the remaining enemy forces and draw them off.
"I'll take care of the rest."
Wait, he was going after royalty?
"Uh, Lelouch," said Revy. "You're not supposed to go after royals.
"It really ticks Britannia off."
"I want payback for being dragged into his fight," said Lelouch. "And I can't afford to have any witnesses. His remaining units should be able to chew up the terrorists in Southerlands. If all goes as planned, We don't need them for this part.
"Carry the girl. We won't need guns or terrorists for this next part."
Okay.
Revy wasn't sure whether to be amazed.
Or fucking terrified out of her life.