"He who wishes to be obeyed must know how to command."
- Niccolo Machiavelli

Chapter XLVIII: The Battle of the Volga

Imperial Army Headquarters Perm
Perm, Volga, Britannian Empire
November 25, 2025

The air was very cold within the recently established command center in the former Grand Hotel Perm, and not simply because of local weather conditions. From the lowest ranked to operator to Princess and General Marrybell herself, who remained seated upon her throne at the rear of the hall, General Blackman beside her, everyone could sense what would soon occur as Imperial forces approached the five designated cities on the monitor. Despite the fact that intelligence had long reported that Eurasian forces had retreated all the way back to Moscow, every man and woman in that room knew that their arguably most dangerous enemy was out there, and that today was the day it would strike. For today was the day that Britannia, for the first time in history, would cross the mighty Volga. The longest river in Europe and eighteenth longest river in the world.

With an established length of approximately three thousand, five hundred and thirty-one kilometers, a multitude of tributaries that included the Kama, Oka, Vetluga and Sura rivers and an overall system of five hundred twenty-one thousand, two hundred and thirty-eight square kilometers, the Volga was the biggest natural obstacle keeping Marrybell and her forces from reaching Moscow now that the Urals had been dealt with. It ran through forests, steppes and a multitude of settlements, including five of the largest cities in that part of the Eurasian continent. It had been the national river of Russia, and had served as one of its primary water sources and fisheries. And more relevantly, it had a varied width that spanned from four hundred and seventy five meters at its shortest to three point two kilometers at its widest, while its overall depth was over twenty-four meters. Crossing it would not be an easy task, not even with modern technology, but if Marrybell indeed wished to set foot into the Kremlin and bring about Eurasia's unconditional surrender in the East, then cross it she would.

Fortunately, there were multiple points across the river that were either bridged or could be, five of which were decisively marked on the monitor. The cities of Saratov, Samara, Simbirsk, Kazan and Nizhny Novgorod. Each one a sizeable staging ground for the eventual assault on Moscow, and each one placed well upon the eastern shoreline of the river. And with Zhukov's remaining forces withdrawn to defend Moscow in said coming assault – under great protest to Central Command, Marrybell suspected – it would have been all too easy to secure and occupy all five of those cities and then set to work bringing her armies across to the western shores. At least, had Zero and his Black Knights not still been out there, having waited for this precise opening.

Marrybell may not have known what man or demon lurked behind that black mask, but she knew the Demon King would be keen enough not to waste this opportunity. And just as likely, Zero would have figured out the five bridgeheads that she intended to use, and that Marrybell's forces would be all too vulnerable in establishing and eventually crossing them. A conventional battle alone would be potentially disastrous for her, especially if Zero really did have the capability of sending his own forces instantly from one point to another as he seemed to have done at Krasnoyarsk. Any attempt at defense would be easily bypassed, leading to direct battle against her army on five different fields, with the Black Knights obviously lacking in manpower but more than making up for it with technological superiority with their eighth generation knightmares and the like. Even with the Ceridwrens out there, it would be a difficult struggle session, and Marrybell still had to conquer Moscow proper yet.

The worst part however, the one that truly disturbed Marrybell, was her knowledge that Zero seldom fought conventionally. Some thought of his acts as "miracles", others claimed it to be "basic" subterfuge, and Marrybell herself had her own theories. The main problem was that, due to both his incursion at Krasnoyarsk and the near reversal at Yekaterinburg, Marrybell had been forced to reveal her ace in the hole, and though her Power of Absolute Submission had more than gone a long way to winning both sides of the battle – especially in the face of that Eurasian wonderweapon in Volgograd – Zero was now very much aware of it. Just as he would undoubtedly know its true nature, especially if he possessed a similar power to Marrybell. How would he go about countering that power?

That, more than anything else, bothered Marrybell, as her enemy knew her greatest weapon, but she did not know his. Sun Tzu once claimed such a dynamic meant for every victory gained, a similar defeat would follow. And Marrybell could see such a defeat taking place there, upon the Volga, following her previous victories.

Even so, there was no turning back now. Nor was there any way to circumvent the river, whose span had graced one of the largest nations to ever exist. No, one way or the other, it would be crossed. And it would be done so regardless of any parlor trick or countermove Zero would utilize against her. Marrybell swore that to herself, forcing back whatever fear of the unknown and anxiety toward shelf inside of herself in the process. The princess who had earned the monicker Bloody Marry for her ruthlessness and subjugation of the east would see her objectives met, no matter what man, woman or demon she would have to slaughter her way through in the process. Once more Euro Britannia, or whatever she chose to officially christen it, would be brought forth. As would all events thereafter.

With that assurance in mind, Marrybell concentrated on the present time, as her vanguard drew within a hairsbreadth of the five cities. No enemies or hindrances had been sighted yet, and Marrybell did not think there would be any. At least not until they were through those five gates.

Black Knights mobile battleship Izumo
State of Moskva, Eurasian Union

It was a rather familiar setup to him, though that didn't Lelouch was entirely comfortable with it. His being seated in his command chair upon the Izumo's bridge, not directly engaged in battle and in fact quite far removed from the field itself. The main monitor, supported by the ship's Druid System, laid out in front of him and the rest of the bridge officers and crew, displaying the standard dots and lines on a digitized map that were moving in real time. It was all almost comparable to eight years ago, when and where he had led impromptu battles as Shinjuku and Saitama, except for his not being in a Sutherland or his old Burai, the battlefield data being projected directly into his mask's HMDS, and perhaps most glaringly evident, there was no chessboard beside him. The latter was perhaps the most bothersome to him, though Lelouch knew that it would be useless for this particular operation. After all, in order to properly reflect the battle that was about to occur, he would have needed five chessboards total.

Perhaps his most ambitious battle plan to date, even more so than the blitzkrieg attack on Krasnoyarsk had been, Operation Akigumo would no doubt also be among of the most critical engagements fought in the Great World War. The battle, or battles, that would determine whether the Britannians manage to reach Moscow, or suffer the gravest of defeats before. To say Lelouch, or those around him for that matter, felt no pressure would have been a lie; the fact he was not leading the charge himself in one of those five cities, and was instead about to direct the fighting from well behind the frontlines, alone showed the essentiality of the operation. He hated the mere idea of it, as it reminded him all too much of his weak, frail self from eight years ago – well before Bismarck had taken in him and molded him into a proper warrior – but this was not a battle that he could risk not being in overall control. Thus he remained behind, though well prepared to join the fight as necessary, as the Black Knights mobilized for Caer Sidi transfer into the five designated battlegrounds. Through which Marrybell's defeat would hopefully be assured.

As opposed to the fast surgical strike that Operation Akikaze had been, Operation Akigumo was more akin to a crowd control operation, meant for directing enemy movement and positioning. The central point of the operation was the line of Geass Canceller Arrays that had been transferred into the five cities, each placed within specific blocks and areas for maximum effectiveness. From that, the battle plan was quite obvious: corral the enemy forces within the designated areas of effect and activate the arrays, thereby cancelling Marrybell's Geass over her troops. The resultant confusion would leave them all too vulnerable to the Black Knights, and would result in not only Marrybell losing the bulk of her offensive forces, but also leave Perm vulnerable as well to direct attack. Bloody Marry would be vanquished well before she could ever hope of reaching Moscow, and an entire theater of the Great World War would be ended.

That being said, there were very specific hindrances to Akigumo, much as it irked Lelouch. The first and foremost was that the canceller arrays that had been sent across the Volga were not as powerful as the one Jeremiah had deployed in Alexandra Land. Their overall range was vastly limited in comparison, which was why the Black Knights would need to force Marrybell's forces into said ranges as opposed to simply having them activated once the Britannians were in the cities. That meant much in the way of fighting as well as combat direction, which was again why Lelouch was not leading from the front. He would need to coordinate all five battles simultaneously in order to ensure the enemy was placed exactly where he wanted them to be, something that very few commanders had been capable of throughout the span of history. Again, it would have been a lie to say he felt no pressure.

Another hindrance Lelouch had was the continued presence of Marrybell's Geass over her troops. Knowing his sister, Lelouch doubted she would trigger it at the onset – once more choosing to keep it in reserve until Moscow – but if she did in fact activate it, then the battle would effectively be over as the Britannians would lose any sense of self-preservation. Without that, it would be impossible to force them back, as had been found out at Yekaterinburg. That meant Lelouch had to force them into range before Marrybell could catch any hint of his plan, which again meant speed would be as much of a factor as force and positioning. That did not serve Lelouch well in the slightest, as combat direction was difficult enough without a time limit being attached, and there was always the possibility Marrybell would realize his scheme early on. Even so, Lelouch would have to proceed and act accordingly regardless, as the alternative was to leave Marry uncontested at this stage of the game. And allowing his blood crazed sister free reign was something Lelouch would never, ever do.

And finally, there was the third hindrance Lelouch faced – the Vampire of Britannia, whose presence within Marrybell's forces was confirmed. As venerable as the Ceridwren Knights were, Lelouch was far less daunted toward fighting them as opposed to Luciano Bradley. The Knight of Ten was just too much of an unpredictable element, and though Lelouch had dealt with him enough times during his tenure as the Black Prince of Britannia, the same could not be said of the Black Knights proper. The only time any of them had fought against the Vampire was at Pendragon, and Chiba, one of the Order's more capable devicers, had nearly lost her life in the struggle. In point of fact, it would likely take either Kallen or Tohdoh to keep Luciano at bay, and Lelouch was not at all enamored toward taking either of his best fighters away from the main engagement to do so. As though he didn't have enough to deal with in the latter part of the operation.

Ultimately however, his apprehension mattered little in the face of the Britannian signals closing in on those five cities, while the Black Knight and Peace Mark formations stood by, awaiting transference. Quietly exhaling through his nostrils, Lelouch prepared himself for the onslaught that was about to occur. All the while hoping that, despite the long validated words of Helmuth von Moltke, enough of his plan survived contact with the enemy to see his objectives through.

Game on, and may the best man win, sister, Lelouch thought to himself as he watched the Britannians draw ever closer to the point of contention, knowing that Marrybell was doing the same from her side. The princess as ready to direct her troops as Lelouch was with his. "Commence operation."

Immediately did the bridge move into activity as commands were given, received and carried out across the theater. All culminating in Caer Sidi once again being activated, the Black Knight vanguard transferring instantly eastward, as indicated on the bridge monitor. Simultaneously as the enemy had entered each of the five.

Kazan, Volga, Britannian Empire

Here we go, Oldrin thought as she led her formation into the waiting, and hopefully empty, city of Kazan. For what it was worth, no shots were fired as she and her fellow Ceridwens first entered the city, soon followed by the regular forces, who also came into town unmolested. If anything however, that placed Oldrin even more on edge as she brought the Urien further into the settlement, such that she found herself deploying her factsphere sensors for a deeper proximity scan. The Black Knights were out there, she had no doubt about that. The question was where were they, as well as where would they choose to strike from.

All around her and her comrades there were telltale signs that Kazan had been abandoned all too recently. There were only a few cars parked about in various spaces. The surrounding buildings, save for some level of graffiti, remained upright and undamaged, displaying absolutely no sign of looting. Moving across a nearby park, Oldrin saw an abandoned baby stroller and an equally abandoned stuffed doll lying nearby a barely swaying swing set. Additionally, she overheard comm chatter from Sokkia, who had apparently moved passed a café, that there was still food and beverages placed on the outside tables. It would have all been very eerie, as though the citizens had entirely disappeared outright, if there hadn't been a war on; no doubt Kazan's citizenry had fled across the Volga first and had likely vacated to Moscow or some other fortification in the west. She dared not consider any alternatives.

Coming upon what appeared to be a police station, Oldrin brought the Urien to a halt and again deployed her factspheres, attempting to find a sign, any sign, that the enemy really was near. Again she found nothing, which caused her stomach to clench that much more. The Black Knights were out there, she repeated to herself, and Zero was among them, to say nothing of the Red Dragoness, Blue Thunder God and Tohdoh of Miracles. They had to be; there was no way they were going to let the big bad Britannians cross the Volga without a fight. Her liege had foreseen as such, and so had Oldrin herself. So where the hell were they?

"This feels off Ceridwen One," Sokkia commented as her Exeter came up next to the Urien, her knightmare's shoulder mounted factspheres then deploying. "Am I the only one getting the creeps right now?"

"Maintain radio discipline, Ceridwen Two," Oldrin retorted with a turn of the Urien's head, then turning it the side and she swept her visual sensors about. Leonhardt's Preston and Tink's Kirkwall also came up, their own factspheres deploying as they scanned the immediate area. Nothing was found besides additional abandoned cars and buildings.

There should have been at least a sign by now, the Knight of Princess Marrybell thought to herself, looking over her sensor readout for any hint of a detected Yggdrasil drive signature. There really should have been; even with the cluster of buildings and obstacles, there was no way even the eighth generation Gekkas that the Black Knights employed could have shrouded themselves for so long. Not unless they were all outfitted with those invisibility cloaks that had been reported in Area 18 and former Area 22.

Then it hit Oldrin square in the center. When they had been forced to retreat from Krasnoyarsk, the Black Knights had literally vanished into thin air. Could they have…?

"All units evade!" Oldrin called out over the broadband, throwing the Urien into an instant dash, her wingmates quick to follow suit. That realization, and following action, would save her life as a radiant wave rocket soon shot by where she had been standing and ended up blasting into the police building behind her. Radiation soon flooded the precinct, causing it to immolate and then collapse under the extreme heat and stress.

Quick drawing a schroetter steel blade in either hand, Oldrin deployed her factspheres once more. And this time, multiple Black Knight signals were detected across the whole of eastern Kazan, with one enemy Gekka team already surging after her and her fellow Ceridwens, chainswords blazing.

Tohdoh could not keep himself from sneering as he looked upon the sheer number of enemy signals. Kazan might not have been the complete focal point of Marrybell's army, but that didn't change the fact a significant portion had been sent there, up to and including a fair number of Ceridwen Knights. As if Krasnoyarsk hadn't been enough of a slog. "All Black Knights, engage!"

The command given, the Black Knight put more power into the Zangetsu's landspinners, putting his custom knightmare into a full on charge alongside the Four Holy Knights and their Gekkas. Naturally it didn't take the Britannians in proximity long to notice their approach, with more than one Sutherland turning its machine gun or bazooka about and firing. Bullets and shells launched after the five knightmares, forcing their Japanese devicers to weave around the warshots, while Tohdoh also took the opportunity to engage the seidotou's rocket boosters for extra speed as he targeted one of the aforementioned Sutherlands. The Britannian was dead before he ever realized he had been hit, the entire upper half of his knightmare cleaved in a single charge as the Zangetsu launched passed. By the time it exploded, Tohdoh had already felled another Sutherland, which had attempted to maneuver around him and strike at the Zangetsu's cockpit block, only to be easily overtaken by the superior Black Knight unit's speed and cut down as well. It too detonated from its ruptured Yggdrasil drive, the resultant flare making the Zangetsu appear all the more darkly.

Not to be beat by their commander, the Four Holy Swords followed suit and quickly joined in on the carnage, with Chiba and Asahina cutting two more Sutherlands down with their katen yaibatous while Senba and Urabe took their initial kills with their handguns. One of the better piloted Sutherlands managed to avoid death long enough to launch a grenade at Chiba's Gekka, but the ace easily banked around the shot and retaliated with her own radiant wave rocket. This time the Sutherland was struck head on, its armor bubbling and boiling out in a matter of seconds before its own drive system overheated and destructed. That particular obstruction dealt, Chiba wasted no time in rejoining her fellow Swords in the slaughter, decimating the remainder of the Britannian squadron in a matter of moments. Which was precisely when the next one, which included Gloucesters and at least one Exeter, came in for the attack.

Immediately raising his seidotou to deflect the Exeter's initial strike, Tohdoh forced the enemy eighth generation unit back with a rocket assisted push. His gut clenched as his eyes picked upon the resemblance between the Ceridwen machine and its Lancelot progenitor, though the general remained well aware that Suzaku was not piloting that particular knightmare. This was actually fortunate for Tohdoh of course, as the Exeter pilot was nowhere in the same league as the so-called White Knight, the red knightmare's maneuvering and sword attacks almost sluggish in comparison. Though it still took additional effort, Tohdoh ultimately bypassed the enemy's defense and struck it down as well, then firing his own handgun into the open cut to make sure it remained down. The explosion was no less spectacular than those previous, though Tohdoh had little time to regard it as a pair of Gloucesters soon charged upon him, their lances poised.

This really will be a long one, Tohdoh managed to think and momentarily grimace as he banked around the lances, then using the seidotou's hilt-mounted slash harken to behead one of the Gloucesters mid-maneuver. Again he took advantage of the Zangetsu's superior speed to move behind the two older generation knightmares, taking both down in quick handgun bursts into either cockpit block. This time the enemy machines simply fell over dead as opposed to exploding, but once more that was of little importance to Tohdoh as more of their brethren soon emerged in that part of the city. Ensuring that he and the rest of the Black Knights, within and without Kazan, would have their hands full fulfilling Operation Akigumo's objective.

Nizhny Novgorod, Volga, Britannian Empire

The Britannians opened fire as one, forcing Kallen and the rest of Zero Squadron to alternate between maneuvers and their radiant wave shields as they advanced. The rest of the Black Knights followed suit, returning fire with their handguns and radiant wave rockets as the Britannians raced out to meet them, Sutherlands and Gloucesters forming the opposite vanguard as usual. More than a few knightmares on either side were struck by bullets and shells, exploding or falling forward as their comrades rushed onward, eventually merging between the buildings and roadways into a proper melee. On that, Kallen would already tell that this was going to be a bloody affair, likely even more so than Krasnoyarsk had been, but that was something she and those around her would have to abide by. Zero had ordained that the Britannian advance would be ended that day, and as always, Zero Squadron would see to their liege's will.

Concentrating wholly on the battle now, Kallen put the Guren Nishiki into its full speed as Alfred's Isshiki fell in beside her. More bullets shot at her direction, forcing her and her wingmate into a standard weave pattern, the Gurens' superior mobility once more coming into play as the Sutherlands in front of them fired haplessly. To that end, both Black Knights brandished their fork knives and slashed the Sutherland team down as they passed, caring not if the Britannian pilots ejected from their struck frames or not. Another Sutherland attempted to flank Alfred as they passed, but the former Glaston easily shot that one down with a snap grenade shot, obliterating the enemy unit without breaking stride. No sooner than it fell did its wingman make its own appearance, this time attempting to impale Kallen with its lance. Also without breaking stride did the Red Dragoness dash around its thrust and latch her claw upon the exposed cockpit block, taking but a split-second to bubble and overheat the enemy frame before releasing it. It too detonated harmlessly as both crimson knightmares darted passed, again maneuvering and deflecting oncoming fire, which was now coming from virtually every direction.

Checking her sensor readout, Kallen could see that the Black Knight advance was already having some effect. The Britannian forces were beginning to falter and fall back to the canceller arrays' areas of influence, though obviously it would take much more time and energy to ensure the whole fell back into the waiting trap. The commander of Zero Squadron also kept in mind that, in order for Lelouch's plan to work, the arrays had to be triggered at the same exact time, as Marrybell would know thereafter. It was either all or nothing on this one, but again, by the will of their Demon King, Zero Squadron would succeed where others may fail. Anything less would not be tolerated.

"Rei Two, flank left!" Kallen commanded as she and Alfred entered a wider roadway, allowing the two knightmares to break formation and flank from different vectors upon the enemy. The Sutherlands and their Gloucester leader attempted to meet them head on, but once again could not match the sheer speed of the two Black Knight aces nor their seventh generation steeds. Thus for the first time in that particular battle, the two Gurens employed their surgers in a sweep, their radiant wave beams sheering and bubbling the enemy knightmares upon their respective passes. The Sutherlands almost detonated as one thereafter, their Yggdrasil drives overloaded and overheated from the dragons' breaths, but the Gloucester managed to maneuver around them. And as luck would have it, this particular Gloucester was equipped with maser vibration swords, one of which it drew as it launched itself after the Guren Nishiki.

Out of sheer reflex did Kallen switch her surger over to generate another shield, easily deflecting the MVS before it could hope to strike her frame. The Gloucester pilot was quick however, reversing his knightmare and coming around to strike at her left flank, but the Red Dragoness remained the quicker. Putting her knightmare into a spin, Kallen both maneuvered away from the intended slash while also bringing her fork knife back to bear, impaling it straight into the back of the cockpit block. From that, the Gloucester fell forward dead, while Kallen did well to ignore the blood that now encased her fork knife's tip and edge. She knew there would be much more of that shed before the day was through, especially as another enemy formation made its appearance.

Once again throwing up their shields to deflect the opening fire, the two Gurens rebrandished their respective weapons and charged forward again. More Sutherlands and Gloucesters falling or detonating as they moved passed.

Imperial Army Headquarters Perm
Perm, Volga, Britannian Empire

A strong opening to be sure, Marrybell inwardly complimented her opponent, actually finding herself more exhilarated toward the game than anything else. At Krasnoyarsk she had been so concentrated on the fighting at Yekaterinburg that she had not been able to appreciate Zero's assault and attempt to kill her then and there. Now, she was wholly focused on the Demon King and his black army, such that she could truly see the nuances of his tactics, the sheer artfulness of his maneuvering his pieces across the board to meet hers. She might have even considered beautiful had it not been a real time battle, one meant to thwart her westward advance permanently. The princess turned general did well to keep that in mind as she continued to give orders, positioning her forces accordingly to face the Black Knights.

One thing that Marrybell did already find concerning was that the Mordred had not been sighted on the field. Strange that, she thought to herself, since Zero had led the charge at Krasnoyarsk before, and by all accounts should have done the same in Kazan or Nizhny Novgorod at least. Granted it wasn't hard to guess that the Demon King was still commanding his forces as much as she was hers, albeit from the Black Battleship or some other command and control station well off the field, but the question remained why he was doing so. Was there something significant to his choice to remain away from the fighting? A possibility, though Marrybell could not understand how, considering that her opponent was already aware of her ace in the hole. Once again that bothered her more than anything else, especially in conjunction with her present ignorance toward his complete abilities, but it was what it was. For the time being, it meant that she couldn't remove the black king and win the game so easily.

In the meantime, there were plenty enough targets to eliminate before her objectives were achieved, and several of them were high profile ones even without the Demon King's presence. Tohdoh of Miracles, the Four Holy Swords, the Blue Thunder God and, of course, the Red Dragoness and Zero Squadron. Each one effectively an equal to Oldrin and the best that her Ceridwens could offer, both in skill and in the grade of their seventh and eighth generation knightmare frames. And that was not discounting the rest of the Black Knight forces, who were also so equipped with eighth generation units and helmed with devicers that, at the very least, had fought in the Red Rebellion. If she were to cross the mighty Volga, Marrybell would have to see them all removed from the board in one capacity or another.

Strange, Marrybell remarked to herself, suddenly feeling a very slight tinge of familiarity with this whole arrangement. Compared to her battles against Zhukov and the other Eurasian commanders in the Far East, there was something more elaborate about this battle. Something that did, in fact, feel like an actual chess game as opposed to an actual battle of humans fighting other humans. Was there something more to be gathered from that?

After a brief moment of consideration however, Marrybell forced the feeling back and concentrated on the present. Regardless of whether she was engaging in an actual war or a simple game with Lelouch, Schneizel or Clovis when he was alive, a battle was a battle, and all battles were meant to be won despite. To dwell on insignificant details, or feelings for that matter, was a wholly unnecessary distraction, and a potential weakness on her part to be exploited. And Marrybell wasn't about to let her opponent do just that, thus did she focus back as both her army and her enemy moved and maneuvered throughout the five cities, sending out commands as necessary.

And yet, as much as she kept her gaze upon the monitors and the information feeds, that semblance of familiarity, while presently ignored, yet remained within her.

Simbirsk, Volga, Britannian Empire

I'll say this much Zero, you really know how to make the fight interesting, Orpheus thought as he brought the Byakuen to its designated firing position, just west of the Volga and on the outskirts of that titular half of Simbirsk. Once he reached his operation point, he placed his white steed into a kneel, as well as the "suitcase" that its left arm was presently holding directly in front of the right arm. There, the former device gradually unfolded, revealing itself to be a massive rail cannon, or more specifically the Variable Super Electromagnetic Barrel Device component of the latter weapon. Shaking his head a little at Ganabati's title for the contraption, Orpheus nonetheless understood it to be an effective long-range weapon, and thus was very crucial to the present battle. From there, he slipped the right arm in, where it locked into place and more or less completed the cannon. The Byakuen was now ready to rain literal hell upon the Britannians across the river.

Switching his targeting computer over to its long-range setting, Orpheus immediately set to work designating targets. In this capacity, he was both a sniper and an artilleryman, in which he would fire pinpoint, hyper accelerated rounds into the opposite half of the city, all of which with the sheer damaging power of a howitzer shell. It was a rather difficult task – there were several glaring reasons why sniper designated knightmares were few and far between – but the Byakuen had been built for the ground up specifically to excel in multiple mission profiles, and Orpheus himself had a very good eye for that kind of warfare. As a result, it only took a little over a minute before he designated the more essential targets, a la knightmares that were either directly in the open or held telltale signs of being command units, from which he then locked onto the one most open.

From that, it all came down to timing and Orpheus' instincts. Only upon the latter driving him to do so did he press down on the trigger. Sending the first hyper-accelerated round across the river and into the distant battleground.

Jeremiah had just finished impaling a Sutherland straight through the torso and into the cockpit block when the first of the artillery strike, obliterating another Sutherland just a few meters away from the Akizuki. Clenching his teeth together as he felt the shockwave, he withdrew his blade and allowed the Sutherland he had just killed to fall flat, somehow managing not to detonate, before moving onto other targets. As much as Orpheus Zevon and the rest of the Peace Mark leftovers had shown their worth, from Alexandra Land well into the present, Jeremiah truly hoped that the terrorist's aim was that good. The last thing he wanted, especially after coming so far, was to end up a friendly fire casualty. "Kinsho One to Kyosha One, status."

"Still here Kinsho One," Chigusa responded as her Gekka moved close by to the Akizuki, the former knightmare firing its handgun toward a rather persistent team of Sutherlands and at least one Gloucester. The latter launched a grenade at Chigusa's frame, but Jeremiah was more than fast enough to move in front of her and engage his left arm Blaze Luminous to deflect the shot, and then respond in kind with his own assault rifle. Unfortunately the Gloucester pilot was just as fast and flanking the burst, from which two of his wingmates charged forward with their lances poised to strike. To that end, it was Chigusa's turn to evade the attack while Jeremiah expertly deflected the aforementioned strike and then took the opportunity to slash that Sutherland's cockpit block with his right Maser Vibration Blade. By the time the second Sutherland turned to avenge its comrade, Chigusa was well upon it with her katen yaibatou, slashing it down as well.

Even so, that Gloucester still remained existent and well intent on killing the two Black Knight units. Drawing one of its own MVS, it charged forward, moving to attack the "weaker" Gekka first, to which Chigusa quickly raised her chainsword while Jeremiah reextended both arm blades. It didn't make it far however, as the next Byakuen happened to strike the Gloucester from the left flank, obliterating the entire unit in a complete explosion, one that left but metal shavings of the Britannian unit.

That was rather anticlimactic, Chigusa managed to think to herself, but otherwise had little time to process as additional Sutherlands came rushing in soon after. Again Jeremiah intercepted two of the intended lance attacks while Chigusa maneuvered her black steed around the third, then firing her slash harken at point blank to smash the cockpit block. By the time the Sutherland toppled over, Jeremiah had dispatched its two other comrades with his own slash harken and then dual arm blade attacks respectively, thereby allowing Orange to move upon the next set with little hindrance. All the while more long-range warshots fell about Simbirsk, with at least one Britannian unit dying with each and every landing.

Saratov, Volga, Britannian Empire

More missiles from Britannian fire support rained down from above, forcing C.C. to put her distinctive pink Gekka into a full reverse alongside Hannya Two's unit. Already she could tell that this was going to be a very frustrating battle, even more so than it was usually. She had always hated "crowd control" fights, and even the advent of the knightmare frame would not make this one less difficult, especially when the Geass Canceller Arrays were fairly spread out across Saratov. Unfortunately however, this was Lelouch's grand plan, and as both his partner-in-crime and one of his knightmare squadron commanders, C.C., or Major Cera Cathcart, would still see to it that his orders were carried out. All the while taking down a fair amount of Britannians in the process.

Thus once the enemy fire support units apparently ran out of missiles, C.C. rebrandished her katen yaibatou and charged forward again, right as another Sutherland team made its presence known. In place of the earlier projectiles, bullets and grenades were flung at her and her wingwoman, forcing the pink and black knightmares to enter standard zigzag maneuvering, their landspinners at full power. Naturally most of the enemy fire was concentrated on C.C.'s unit, but that was precisely one of the reasons why the immortal had painted her knightmare in "tasteless" – at least according to Rakshata – hot pink. The other reason soon became apparent as C.C. cut down the first Sutherland as she passed, and then flanked around the point-blank slash harken attack of the second, cleaving that one through the cockpit block as well. The third of the group managed to remain standing for a little while longer, reversing right as C.C. came close to slashing it across the front, to which it retaliated with another machine gun barrage. Unfortunately for the Britannian pilot however, the Code Bearer remained the faster, and easily banked right to allow Hannya Two to launch its own harken into the Sutherland's torso, knocking back. Thereby allowing C.C. to make up for her previous missed attack by slashing it across the left, the destabilized Yggdrasil drive exploding thereafter.

Suddenly, C.C.'s sensors lit up in warning, causing her long worn-in instincts to kick in and reverse her Gekka. A timely maneuver as a Gloucester soon landed from overhead, having apparently leaped off one of the nearby buildings, its lance striking deep into the ground. C.C. retaliated by firing her harken, but the Gloucester was naturally far more reactive than the previous Sutherlands, maneuvering around the rocket anchor as well as the following handgun burst from Hannya Two. Its cape rippling as it moved and dodged, the enemy devicer put his unit into an elaborate spin before launching both of his or her own slash harkens after the two Black Knights, causing them to break formation and evade as well. This in turn allowed the Gloucester to reclaim its lance and charge after C.C. again, at such speed even that the Code Bearer had no choice but to parry the intended blow with her katen yaibatou. From that, another point blank slash harken attack followed, causing the pink Gekka to vault to its left and relaunch its own slash harken, only for the Britannian to dodge as well.

A skilled pilot, C.C. admitted, but as she had made quite clear to V.V. not too long ago, this was not her first war, and she had fought far stronger opponents than this. Thus it only took a few more moments for her to find an opening to seize, to which she fired one of her radiant wave rockets straight into the Gloucester's right side, from which in turned red and bubbled over. The resultant explosion was even more spectacular than usual, especially when cast against the snow and ice covered landscape. Once the fire cleared away, C.C., deliberately making her Gekka "dust itself off" with a wave of its right arm, then nodded its head module to Hannya Two. Upon the latter repeating the motion, the two Black Knights put power back into their landspinners and charged forward, seeking further targets to take down and potentially corral.

Samara, Volga, Britannian Empire

Another barrage of bullets and grenades launched his way, forcing Rai to duck behind the Aoren's radiant wave shield again. Only when the barrage had died down just enough did he lower his shield and return to maneuvering, as well as firing his own rapid fire burst from his surger to quell the attackers. He managed to score at least two Sutherlands with that attack, from which he dodged and banked around the lance of a third before launching a point-blank grenade attack into its left flank. The Britannian unit obliterated thereafter, one more kill to the Blue Thunder God's increasing tally. A tally that would all too likely reach the higher numbers before the battle was won – and it would be won – Rai was quite assured at.

His sensors soon lit up, registering another missile spray closing from overhead. Sneering at the wide range attack, Rai again engaged his shield to deflect the next barrage, the warheads exploding almost harmlessly against the Aoren's primary defense weapon. Behind him, Raiden Two's Gekka, which very much lacked a radiant wave surger, could only reverse and maneuver around the raining missiles, doing well enough to keep ahead of the destructive force. By doing this however, Raiden Two was able to renew the offensive that much quicker than his commander when the last missile fell and the next wave of Britannian tungsten came charging after the two Black Knights. Fork knife and chainsword rebrandished, Rai and his wingman charged forth again, slashing their way through this new horde as they passed. Several of the enemy knightmares fell, while several more were "merely" wounded. The latter pressed the attack regardless, sending more bullets and shells after the Aoren and Gekka, who each retaliated with their own unique gunnery weapons. Even more Britannians died as a result, but this did very little to hinder the others, with at least one Sutherland team charging after the blue and black knightmares with their tonfas extended while their wingmen provided fire support. To that end, both Raiden units broke formation and moved into separate vectors, entering a high-speed pincer attack against their Imperial opponents.

Raising his fork knife to parry, Rai was able to block the stun tonfas of two Sutherlands, right before forcing them back with a snapshot from his grenade launcher and surger respectively. Unfortunately neither attack landed, but that was more than enough for the Blue Thunder God to move against one of the Sutherlands, easily grasping it with his surger claw. One split-second later, the surger went into full burn, reddening and bubbling the Britannian in its grasp and causing it to detonate in barely a few more seconds' time. Rai then spun the Aoren about and banked right to dodge its wingmate's own grenade shot, to which the Black Knight retaliated with its slash harken, beheading the Sutherland in a single strike. This in turn granted another opening, allowing Rai to launch against the Sutherland's left flank and impale his fork knife into the cockpit block. By the time that particular Britannian fell forward, its devicer obviously dead, Rai had moved onto rejoin Raiden Two in dispatching the rest.

More enemy units fell to the two Black Knights, and yet so many more remained to attack and defend against. This was made quite clear as another enemy squadron, consisting of eight Sutherlands and four Gloucesters, entered the scene with the latter charging straight in with their lances while the former fired off additional bullets, grenades and bazooka shells. In turn, another overhead missiles was soon detected, forcing Rai and his wingmate to again take defensive measures, the Aoren yet again redeploying its radiant wave shield while the latter could only "dance" the old fashioned way. The sheer, relentless nature of the onslaught would have been overpowering to most devicers, and while Rai himself could definitely feel the strain, it would yet take far more than this to so much as slow him and his wingman down. Rai Sumeragi had not earned the epithet "Blue Thunder God" for being so easily laid low after all.

Thus when the next opening presented itself did Rai reach out and grasp onto the attacking Gloucester's lance, boiling it over in but a single moment. And though the enemy devicer was fast enough to release the weapon before the radiation surge reached his knightmare, it still left him open to Raiden Two's katen yaibatou, which slashed it down through the waist upon the Gekka's charge. The cockpit ejected not long after, but neither Rai nor Raiden Two paid it any heed. Not when there were still so many targets in front of them, to which the Black Knights set about to dispatch.

Black Knights mobile battleship Izumo
State of Moskva, Eurasian Union

Lelouch had to admit, it was all a rather grand spectacle. As much as he wished he were out there, leading from the front as per his philosophy, it was still quite the show to watch from the rear. It would have actually been symphonic to him, like a grand orchestra playing an equally grand composition, with himself as conductor, had he failed to remember that human lives were being snuffed out. Each disappearing dot on his mask's HMD indicating that one piece, or more perhaps one player, had been taken out of this grand symphony, possibly never to return. A sobering thought admittedly, yet at the same time Lelouch could not deny the sheer exhilaration of it all. More than anything else, this was his element.

More importantly however, was the fact that progress was already being made toward fulfilling Operation Akigumo's objectives. Though it would be some time yet before the Black Knights and their Peace Mark allies forced the Britannians wholly into the range of the Geass Cancellers, Lelouch could already see signs of accomplishment in the making. Already the Britannians were being hard-pressed in forcing their enemies out of the five cities, their superior numbers accounting for little in the face of superior Black Knight devicers and their seventh and eighth generation knightmare frames. Even the vaunted Ceridwen Knights, which had given no shortage of hindrance at Krasnoyarsk, were struggling to hold the line, especially as their primary forces were in Kazan singularly. In point of fact, Tohdoh was already fighting against Dame Oldrin while the Four Holy Swords went against the other primary Ceridwens, effectively removing them from the main fighting for the time being. By contrast in Nizhny Novgorod, Kallen and Zero Squadron were all but unopposed as they swept through the city like a great red tempest, the Britannians there barely putting up a resistance. And though that accounted for Lelouch's more elite forces, the units Simbirsk, Saratov and Samara were already having their own successes. All merging together into the most harmonic of melodies, such that Lelouch could almost hear actual music in the background.

Indeed, the game had just begun, and yet the coming victory was moving well within Lelouch's direction. At least, it was for the moment anyway, he did well to keep in mind. Marrybell may not have been in league with Schneizel or Johann, but she was still an accomplished strategist and tactician in her own right, more than enough to reverse the game should Lelouch let down his guard. Just as Lelouch knew his sister was already working on a proper counterattack, a means to rout the Black Knights and Peace Mark before too much of her forces were lost, whether through conventional battle or through the more supernatural means that Lelouch had yet in store. Fortunately she had not engaged her Geass yet. Again knowing her, Lelouch suspected she intended to preserve it for Moscow itself, though that didn't mean she would deploy it should the game move too far from her control. She had already shown her willingness to use it at Krasnoyarsk, and if Lelouch pushed too hard, she would indeed use it there. At which point the game would effectively be lost.

In the meantime however, the strides were being made, and the trap remained ever ready to snap closed. And seeing how the battle was progressing, Lelouch was very much correct in his initial assessments. Marrybell remained wholly ignorant of the Geass Cancellers within the wake of her forces, and though she may have at least suspected Zero to have some sort of Geass power and understanding, there was no way for her to actually validate such suspicions. Much like as it had been in Japan, and more recently in China, his opponent's ignorance of his Geass was the cornerstone for Lelouch's strategy, the very vulnerability that he had repeatedly exploited. The precise weakness to which he would end Bloody Marry's reign of destruction, before it could ever reach Western Eurasia.

All he need do was continue the course, and his endgame, his great allegro, would prove exactly that.