Disclaimer: Code Geass is written and owned by Ichirō Ōkouchi and Gorō Taniguchi, and produced by Bandai Namco's Sunrise studio. I own no characters, locations, or elements from the Original Series, Manga (Yes, there IS a manga), or Movie Trilogy/Resurrection Timeline. I own only my OCs and their respective Knightmares.
With that said, Please Enjoy The Show!
Normal Speech: "Hello"
Radio/Comms: "Hello"
Thoughts: Hello
Geass: "{Hello}"
Knightmare/Loudspeakers: "Hello"
Chapter 4: Recovery
Shinjuku Ghetto, Tokyo Settlement
What little hope Naoto had for escaping Nagata's wrath had burned out by the time they arrived in Shinjuku. Not that the other man could do anything himself - everything about today had been energy-draining on all of them. And that wasn't even mentioning the whole thing at the dock. "Nagata." He greeted his comrade with a tired smile, brushing past.
"We need to talk," Nagata demanded, looking just as tired and even more pissed off.
He nodded. "And we will. But not now." He gestured behind to the rest of their allies. looking somber and drained. "We can talk tomorrow once we've gotten our bearings again."
"Naoto-"
"Nagata," Naoto repeated, this time his tone dropping to a warning. "If you wanna yell at me, you're gonna do it later. It's been a long day, and frankly, I don't have the energy for this. You can vent at me all you want tomorrow, but let's make sure our wounded are taken care of." He said, emphasizing his tired yet final tone.
The black-haired man looked like he had plenty more to say, but he stepped back with a deep breath. "Fine. But we ARE talking about this. Don't expect me to sit on the obvious problem in the room till it disappears." With that, the older man stalked away, leaving the redhead to rub his temples and sigh.
He's not wrong, but God. What a long night, Naoto stood for a bit alone, lost in his thoughts. While he knew heading home should be next on his long list of priorities, there was so much still to do here at base. And he could already imagine the look on his sister's face if he showed up now, or Kami forbid, his stepmother. She's gonna be upset I'm not back by morning. So will Mom.
"You gonna be okay?" Ohgi's voice made him look up, seeing the man come to his side. His response was a wary but reassuring look.
"You'll know by tomorrow, that's for sure." He jested, sighing. "Do me a favor - start getting our wounded to the Doc. I'll have Minami look over the supplies we came back with. We need to figure out what we can use for our next mission and what we'll need to replace."
"Got it. I'll grab some extra hands and have the trucks move around back." Good, that takes care of that. All that leaves is… Both rebels turned to MERLIN which, even crouching low, towered over them all and cast a case of small shadow within their makeshift base. And silent as hell compared to earlier, Naoto hummed.
"Don't worry. I'll check it over," Naoto assured his friend, watching the latter stalk away to talk to a few other rebels. With a heavy sigh, he made his way towards MERLIN.
As Naoto approached the blue machine, he was once again struck by the sheer unorthodox design of the Knightmare. The lighting at the docks and their flashlights did not do it justice as its appearance was far more detailed than he'd previously realized. Up close, he could see the rusted, dark blue metal and golden trimming, with bits and pieces of circuitry exposed in its unarmored limbs. The cockpit block was gone, instead built into the torso in a way Naoto had no clue how that worked. Its paneling had been chipped away and dented further, now sporting bullet marks. The Landspinners sat within those pronged supports around the feet and were in dire need of replacement, and that didn't include the fact the Knightmare itself was just… ancient compared to even the district ruins.
"Well, you're not exactly the prettiest girl on the dance floor, huh?" Naoto joked halfheartedly, stopping in front of it as a faint growl came from his new radio. "Still awake, huh? You plan to come out?"
"No." Came the reply.
"No?" Was it wrong that Naoto was just a bit happy with that?
"Tired…"
"Tired? You?"
"Tired… and. Free…"
That made some sense, so he simply rolled with it. "Fair enough, don't think your previous sleeping place was the most uh, comfortable," Naoto remarked, stifling a yawn. "Well uh, just try to rest and we'll see about getting you out of that tomorrow. Don't imagine it's much comfortable inside either." The radio fell silent again, leaving Naoto to shuffle away quietly.
Much as he wanted to just drag the guy out, not was not the time. So for now, the leader got back to work.
For a half-hour or so, the Japanese helped the few injured to their medical area. Some had it worse than others, so they had to be carried directly. As for the rest, they went their separate ways; some left for their families living nearby or their homes, and others remained if they lived in the base itself. It was hardly good living conditions, but they did make due by fixing the ruined mall and garage into a stable, safe environment. For Naoto, he waited until he knew everyone was resting or otherwise before heading for his 'office'.
It wasn't anything special; just an old room not destroyed entirely during the invasion. A desk sat on the far side with a laptop and a lamp, while a couch and an old cotton bed were against the back wall. In the center was a table littered with maps, reports, and other files on anything military-related. The only real notable piece was the radio system at the desk, their primary mode of long-distance communication unless Clovis announced anything worthwhile.
Naoto didn't bother removing anything from his person as he closed the door, snail-pacing over and dropping into the bed with a groan. The thing was worn out and old, but god it was the most comfortable thing in the world right now.
He knew there were beds more comforting than this. A bed, in a room, that was much more comfortable than this.
But returning to Stadtfeld would be such a hassle at that point, and he knew he'd have to explain why he wasn't home to his mother and sister. Again. It was late, and he hadn't called or messaged them since mid-afternoon. Ngh, fuck. Still have to call up that bastard informant too, He groaned before wriggling his jacket off and closing his eyes, letting his exhaustion overtake him.
So much to do. Leave that mess to Future Me…
Tokyo Administrative Palace, Tokyo Settlement
Things meanwhile had become quite tense within Tokyo's capital building, and it was General Bartley who had the great luxury of informing His Highness. The situation at the Port was a mess and luckily hadn't made public news yet, but even that would not spare the General of Clovis' wrath.
There was nothing left upon the recovery team's arrival; the two squad forces had been killed brutishly in a haze of gunfire, grenade use if the explosion marks were anything to go off, and the one thing Bartley feared was true:
Usage of the prototype Knightmare Frame.
An ancient beast for sure, and clearly the Prince's interest and efforts to restore it weren't as in vain as they believed. But regardless they now had 2 dozen soldiers to bury, 4 Knightmares destroyed, no leads as to who attacked the site, and missing high-risk technology, along with a very high-risk profile with knowledge of operating said technology.
That is to say if it's even still alive outside of containment. And it was now that Bartley realized, sitting before the rather large door to His Highness's chambers, he'd need to explain his blunder. Those damned fools knew better than to mitigate their forces around the Port perimeter! He thought angrily. And because of that idiot captain, I now have to clean this mess.
Oh what he would give to wrangle the man's neck, but the dead could hardly be throttled any further. So with a deep breath, the general stepped inside.
He moved briskly past the Honor Guards and down the hall, passing the paintings covering the walls. Some were worth tens if not hundreds of thousands of pounds, crafted in honor of His Majesty or crafted by Prince Clovis himself. Beautiful work, truly. But the general hardly noticed them. He had bigger concerns as he entered the throne room, coming before the Prince.
Clovis LA Britannia sat atop the Settlement's throne, surrounded by extravagant guests from his circle of high society business partners. The Prince himself was dressed finely in a purple royal suit with gold patterns, as well as a white handkerchief and matching long white gloves under long-cut sleeves. As always, he looked as regal and graceful, though Bartley knew better than to take his appearance as a sign of his mood after what he'd heard.
The prince sipped his wine, the glass held in his hand and held by the tips of his fingers. The Prince had a look of mild interest as he smiled politely, his other arm outstretched towards one of the ladies in his court. "..and of course, a few of the finest and most exotic pieces from the Homeland. They were a bit expensive, but as the old saying goes: beauty is priceless~"
Bartley waited patiently for the Prince to finish, though he was surprised when the Prince seemed to perk up at his appearance, stepping down from his throne to greet him. "At, Bartley! So glad you could join us; you're looking well!"
The general coughed, his posture stiffening. "Y-Your Highness, please forgive my intrusion, but I-"
"Oh nonsense, your presence is always a welcome sight." He smiled, waving a hand. "We were just discussing some of the recent works being released from the homeland. It's such a shame the rest of our country seems to lack in appreciation for the arts."
"Yes, indeed. Very unfortunate, but-"
"I swear, one must be a genius or a madman to come up with the ideas behind our newest plays." The prince continued, a hand to his chest as he smiled at the crowd. "Oh well, I suppose there is always a method to one's madness."
"Forgive me for the intrusion my Lord, but I must speak with you in private." Bartley finally managed to get out, quick to add, "It's a rather… delicate matter that needs your attention and guidance, my prince. If I may have but a moment of your time."
The prince paused, giving him a curious look. A curious yet wary look which said enough. "I don't see why not. Please, guests!" Clovis spoke up, gathering the small crowd's attention. "Forgive me but I have but one of many matters to discuss. I will return soon, in the meantime, help yourself to anything you desire. Bartley, shall we?"
"Y-Yes my Lord." Bartley nodded, following after him into Clovis' private office. A simple and wide room, yet just as elegant compared to the rest of the palace chambers and office rooms. The prince had a taste for art and the finer things in life, and Bartley could hardly deny him.
"Now then," Clovis sighed, sitting on a fine leather chair. "I imagine it must be important if you've come all the way here."
"Y-Yes, Your Highness." Bartley bowed his head. "You see last night, we received an alert from our military presence at Yokosuka Harbor." And just like that, Clovis' expression began to shift. "It appears the facility was attacked, a-and the prototype frame stolen. The security footage we have available points to… Eleven terrorists."
Clovis' face blended between several expressions; shock, anger, a trace of fear, and finally a calm, eerie look.
"I-It appears they may have also gotten a hold of the-the tester pilot, My Lord and-"
"You'll have to forgive my bluntness Bartley, but I believe I can infer the rest for myself," Clovis interjected, standing from his seat and walking over to the window, overlooking the metallic city. "You assured me," He continued. "That Yokosuka was a safe zone for our cargo and equipment to remain in plain sight. I had good faith in your efforts to maintain our mutual project, so I agreed. And then I am reassured by you that nobody will step foot within the area, let alone enter the port. And now you tell me one of our most prominent projects is not only missing…"
That calm facade began to crack, shifting as the Prince's eyes birthed and turned to him with fury now. "But the subject has also only escaped, and is likely within terrorist control?!" He yelled.
Bartley flinched, feeling a wave of dread wash over him. He had been witness to His Highness's fury plenty of a time, seen it alongside the man while the rest of the Area sat contently never once knowing his wrath. The last thing the General wanted was to be on the receiving end, and he did his best to calm his nerves "I-I assure you we're doing our best to locate them, Your Highness," Bartley tried to assure him. "I have our forces monitoring the site extensively, as well as looking into anything and everything we can find. It will not be long until we catch those responsible."
"And yet you come before me with nothing but empty hands!" Clovis scowled, turning back to the window view. "And if I've only learned of this now, then our benefactor will surely want an explanation…" He breathed a heavy sigh, pinching his nose before coming back in his chair. His furious blue eyes would have burned Bartley alive if he could. "I want you and the Purist Faction on this; need-to-know basis and ONLY need-to-know. Use whatever methods necessary to retrieve it. And the specimen. Understood?"
"I-Yes my Lord." The general bowed, taking his leave. Far from what he feared would take place, but he was certainly to move as fast as possible before his head was brought to the chopping block later.
As for Clovis, the blonde man fell back into his seat the second the doors closed, the prince, running a gloved hand through his hair as a look of fear formed on his face. This was not supposed to happen. This project was meant to be so closely guarded, and if rumor got out, not even the results of Code-R would spare him from the wrath of the Emperor.
Or worse.
If Uncle learns of this blunder, learns that THING is out there roaming free then-! No, NO! There is no need to panic! He snapped at himself, smoothing his appearance. Bartley has the situation handled. What Uncle does not know yet will not harm anyone. All I have to do is play this right. The sooner the subject and the project are recovered, the less I have to worry about. Just a minor hiccup. Nothing more, and certainly not something that will cause any damage to the overall goal. Everything will be fine.
Perhaps so long as he kept telling himself, the lie would become reality.
Naoto Resistance Base, Shinjuku Ghetto
Sleep was always hard for someone like Naoto. Had been when he was a child, expanded upon throughout the invasion, hiding with friends and then-alive family from marching Britannian soldiers and their metal giants. It became much harder when he became a resistance leader.
Leading friends, making new ones, going out, coming back the friends who saw their siblings or spouses return, and those who did not.
All they had left was their jackets and headbands.
They never took the bodies, try as some might. The grim truth was the dead were simply too much of a burden to bring back, and they had been stretched thin enough after that effort just to survive. It was one of those downsides to being a leader because cold logic said it was smart. Cautious. Everyone knew the score when it came to these missions, everyone knew the risks; Clovis was as merciless as he was ignorant and Naoto could not take the risk of them being tracked back home, not ever.
But still. Nothing could ever ease that feeling of guilt or shame from rising in his throat, as much as he forced it down to save face.
So no one was surprised to see him up by 5 or 6 in the morning, wandering by the base like some ghoul. He did his usual rounds, checked in on his people, and did his best to keep busy till Ohgi or Nagata was up. Or, knowing her, Kallen would make a surprise appearance only to tear him a new one for not coming home or reassuring her he wasn't dead. Whether he survived her wrath or Nagta's interrogation would be up for debate. As usual, the skeleton crew doing the night shift greeted him, and it wasn't till he did his second that he saw familiar faces up and active.
"Up early always, I see!" The redhead turned at his name and saw Ohgi coming down the hall looking well-rested again. "Did you get any rest?" He asked softly.
"Meh." He shrugged, ignoring the sigh of exasperation his friend gave as they walked towards the garage area.
A few of their other early morning members were scattered around, looking at the new addition or their old Glasglow. As Naoto expected, the Glasgow was in good condition since its last deployment (about a week or so ago), and the few repairs it needed were completed.
MERLIN, however, was a different story. The mechanics had no clue where to start because of how it worked. The Glasgow had a cockpit they could access, and parts that were (mostly) easy to scavenge and replace; the MERLIN had its built into the body, which was a pain in the ass to deal with finding access. Not only that, but the machine was so unorthodox that Naoto wasn't sure how the hell they'd even begin repairing the damn thing.
"Try looking around the top of the torso, around the head!" Naoto called when a few started working on the front. They gave the leader a skeptical look but moved where he continued, "I saw the pilot climb in through there; some sort of lever to get inside, maybe a hard."
"Seriously sir - what on Earth did you bring us?" One of the techs muttered, shaking their head as the others cautiously inspected the KMF.
"Oi! Cut the questions and look for the answers yourself!" Tamaki ordered from across the area, grumbling about something or other as he inspected the Glasgow. "Weldings good, but look here and…"
"So," Ohgi asked, drawing Naoto's attention. "Given the circumstances, I have to ask how exactly are we gonna repair this new Knightmare?
Naoto paused to think. "That… is a very good question!" He answered brightly, pausing to take a look at Ohgi's face. "Kidding, kidding! I'm sure if we ask our new friend, we can figure it out."
"You mean your new friend."
"Heh… yeah, ain't that right." The red-haired man nodded, folding his arms. Gods he had completely forgotten about that loyalty/vow-thing 'Lowriel' gave last night. He hoped the mummy wasn't just bull-shitting his way into the KMF; he knew first-hand how quickly people would make up or say things just to escape a problem. Thinking on it now, he also realized how much it was actively bothering him, among all the other red flags popping up in his head. "Speaking of friends, how are we doing?" He asked, changing the subject.
"Tamaki and the mechanic were up early, obviously, along with Yoshida and Inoue. Our new truck is sitting around back, and you've seen the Knightmare here." He paused for a moment, taking in Nagito's expression before adding, "We didn't lose anyone last night."
"Thank Kami for that." Naoto breathed, feeling just a bit of the weight in his chest lifted. They already lost enough at the port, he did not want to see someone else flatline here. "Anything on the radio channel?"
"Some whispers about the Sword of The Samurai moving out of Kita for the old mountain forts, and some people have been saying the Yamato Alliance is gearing up for their own venture," Ohgi said, leading him down the halls. "What about your mystery pilot? Did you get anything from them last night?"
"Only that he was tired." He answered genuinely. "I imagine he's probably still knocked out since we haven't heard or seen anything since."
"So we know he's still in there," Ohgi said slowly.
"Yep."
"But we still don't know who he is."
"Also yep."
"Or how he managed to pilot that thing. Let alone tear those Sutherland's apart."
Ngh, don't remind me. Naoto had to hide a shiver at the memories of them passing by those KMF wrecks. Sutherlands were so new and so much more powerful compared to their measly Glasgow. To see two of them so utterly, brutally torn down was… incredible. It was terrifying, but goddamn it was incredible.
Now how to apply that to the rest of Britannia.
"True, but that doesn't mean we can't work around the problem either," Naoto replied. Ohgi gave him a look that was half curious as he added, "You saw the inside of that truck we brought back - that box was a damn coffin. It was carrying him inside. There's bound to be something in there that could point us in the right direction."
Ohgi nodded, mostly following along. While he would have rather gotten an answer directly from whoever was inside, this 'Lowriel', he also knew not to test his luck. Especially if the previous battle was anything to go by. "You better go meet up with Yoshida and Inoue then, I know they were combing over it for anything we didn't notice." He told Naoto. "I'll head back to the hangar to make sure Tamaki doesn't take his blowtorch to the Merlin."
Naoto finally chucked, heading off. "That'd be a good idea."
Meanwhile back in the garage, one of the younger mechanics had been scanning the MERLIN's torso, looking for any opening in the machine. At first, it looked like the frame was solid. The guy was a bit baffled, seeing the lack of a hatch. Then he finally saw it, a lever handle smooth again the side and above the left shoulder.
"There it is!"
With a sigh of relief, he reached up and grabbed it, pulling on it and grunting at the force.
"Come on…"
It took some effort to pry it out before the lever popped out, and the lever was pulled.
Okay, Naoto thought upon finding the truck. This is not what I was expecting.
The truck interior had been cleaned, with most of the science stuff tossed out. Naoto didn't expect much from the truck itself as its primary cargo had been that coffin. Cleared of junk, however, it was a lot easier to see the L-shaped counter making up the left area, as well as the variety of machinery Naoto was certain he hadn't seen before. There was a wide tilted monitor built into the countertop, as well as two smaller vehicle-mount monitors attached to the wall behind.
There were several drawers below too, as well as multiple journals and books laid out across the table.
"What the hell's all this?" He asked, looking between Yoshida and Inoue, who had been sitting by the terminal system with her laptop hooked in.
"This was all here!" Yoshida called from the cabin middle, going through a couple of cables they brought over. "Some kind of private computer system or something. It's built into the whole table."
"And a very tight-lipped one at that," Inoue grumbled with a frustrated exhale. "I haven't gotten far in gaining access, but it seems to be a data terminal hooked into that Knightmare we took. I doubt they intended to leave this at the port, whatever group it belongs to anyway."
"Anything noteworthy?" Naoto asked, leaning against the counter.
Inoue chuckled quietly, gesturing to the several books beside her. "Yes. Literally." She explained, handing one to him.
Naoto raised an eyebrow, looking between the books and Inoue. They looked old and worn out, and judging by the Britannian English on the covers, he didn't think they'd have much use in this day and age. Still, Naoto had a feeling they might be of some use. "From what little we skimmed through, these seem to be research logs and reports, most apparently on that Knightmare Frame." She added, turning to the screen and typing away. "There's probably some stuff on its pilot too, and that coffin machine in the back."
Yes! This. This could work! Naoto thought with relief. He was already distressed at the idea of having a KMF that could fall apart at a moment's notice and not understanding how to fix it, but this was a gold mine of info. If he could find out what needed fixing, and how to get the damn thing working fully, they could turn this around in their favor. Inoue, Yoshida - you two are lifesavers! Lifesavers!
"I'll look around the rest of the truck, see if there's anything else important," Yoshida suggested, pausing when the sound of some rushing over could be heard.
The three looked and were surprised to see Nagata burst in, looking like he had run a mile. "Where are-?! There you are!" He exclaimed, looking at Naoto. "I need you back in the garage, NOW!"
Naoto blinked. What could possibly-?
"Now, NOW!" Nagata yelled, dragging him back by his wrist. "Your damn pilot-thing just climbed out the Knightmare!"
"WHAT?!" Naoto and the others were quick to follow the frantic man, all racing back to the garage area. Upon their arrival, the whole area was in an uproar-mixed panic. People were spread out, others shouting or trying to keep the peace, and some of them were armed with tools or looked ready to defend themselves.
And then he saw Lowriel.
And Lowriel saw him.
He was standing atop the MERLIN's torso, his tall slender form almost seeming to be floating above the ground. And with the light coming out of the cockpit interior, he seemed almost demonic or monstrous; just standing above them all, watching or studying them like an animal does to prey. "Alright, alright! Enough! The lot of you!" Naoto yelled, somewhat surprised that the others fell silent. His voice carried loud enough to grab Lowriel's attention too, but he ignored it. "Will someone please help explain to me what the hell is going on in here?!"
"That fucking zombie climbed outta his Knightmare!" Tamaki was quick to yell, pointing the large wrench in his hand at Lowriel. "And now he's just standing over there like some kind of fucking demon!"
"I-I was trying to open the cockpit hatch and found that stupid lever!" One of the mechanics tried explaining. "And then it opened up and-and-"
"Na…ao…to…" The dry, hoarse voice of Lowriel rasped, fading into the silence while sending everyone's attention toward the young rebel leader. Naoto felt himself freeze in place. He could feel Lowriel's eyes on him even under those bandage wraps.
Okay... I guess we're doing this now.
Taking a deep breath, Naoto turned slowly around and approached the MERLIN, feeling the attentive gaze of his comrades close behind. His steps were slow, and deliberate even as he felt their eyes and the very intense, almost unyielding stare of the man above. It seriously did not help that the 'collar-device' was also still glowing; those red, burning extensions almost bathed the upper half of Lowriel in an almost eldrich horror display.
"Lowriel." Naoto nodded, stopping a few feet before the Knightmare.
Lowriel said nothing, simply staring.
Naoto waited.
Lowriel stared.
Someone coughed awkwardly.
"I'm glad to see you're awake! And that you finally came out, got sort of worried about you." He chuckled weakly.
"…"
He wasn't sure whether to laugh or cringe at the silence. "You... How are you... How are you doing? How are you feeling?"
Nothing. It was honestly eerie as hell and made Naoto couldn't help thinking that maybe he wasn't all there mentally. Thankfully Lowriel made no sudden move to climb down or attack him. He didn't move a muscle. Just staring down at him.
Finally in the lowest, most strained voice possible, yet somehow the most genuine felt tone Naoto heard, he answered:
"Free."
And then he fell.
A/N: Hey guys! Sorry for the delay, I have another set of exams coming up this week and have been really in and out of finishing this chapter. I had it almost ready yesterday, but my phone decided not to save the last half of this chapter so I had to work on that last night and today. Womp-Womp. But on the plus side I have started the layout for chapter 5, so expect that in the next week or so. Don't worry, we're almost out of the Prologue stuff, so we'll see more familiar faces soon. Hopefully, my coursework will slow down a bit leading up to December.
Or it won't, and I'll crash and burn in a coffee rage-induced madness. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Anyway, I'm gonna some rest and study my butt off tomorrow. Let me know what you think in the Reviews!
With that said, This is the KnightOfZ3R0 signing off!