Summary: Plans in motion, Lelouch oversees his grand design. His influence in the kingdom grows at an unheard rate, but new variables enter the game that will change things further.
7 months after initial arrival.
Construction cranes lifted high, dust bellowing like clouds in a sea of flickering lights; the faint hum of motors and the heavy grinding and twisting of metal drowned the landscape. Workers scurried along, welding metal plates and bolting panels in place, hastily but diligently repairing the large hole that had plagued Mantle's wall for months.
A pair of boots dangled over the edge of a nearby building, kicking their feet absentmindedly while waiting, hands behind their head. "Honestly, was this necessary?" Ruda grumbled, glancing to the right to catch sight of Lelouch in the corner of her eye.
"Sometimes it's the simple gestures that inspire the greatest things," Lelouch shrugged.
"Huh?" She wondered, looking at him directly. "I get what you mean... But, this hole was guarded 24/7, Atlas has made sure no Grimm just bust in." the drill user argued.
Sitting beside her on the ledge, Lelouch and her could simply observe from atop the rooftop, a steady watch being kept over the process, along with a platoon of his men who stood alert at the foot of the wall.
"For some, the image of this gaping, bleeding wound is a reminder of the constant struggle of their daily lives... Of the tragedy that is always waiting just outside the wall." Lelouch recounted thoughtfully.
Ruda craned her head up at the cloudless, early morning sky, before casting her gaze upon the wall before them, its' builders putting effort and resolve, doing everything they could. "So like, despite guards always being here... seeing this opening makes the citizens think that they're alone. They need to see it fixed so they feel protected and secure?" she suggested.
"That's how the human psyche is," his head tilted to face Ruda. "Humans always desire to live in a place that gives them security." He mused.
Ruda nodded at his wisdom, relaxing once she felt satisfied with that explanation.
A comfortable silence hung around them both while they continued their watch, an occasional few people looking up and waving a friendly hello or greeting, which the drill-wielding woman would always return, both with a casual salute from herself and a more subdued gesture of respect from the officer, giving a tilt of his helmet.
This wall was just one of several dozen or so repairs the young colonel had made sure to carry out, making significant improvements, rebuilding parts that had deteriorated due to a lack of Atlas' attention, and mending up the cracks in the broken infrastructure.
Places within the city saw many changes and had been rebuilt from the ground up, crime plummeted as police did a better job in patrolling the streets, and thanks in no small part to the new leadership of Colonel Lamperouge, who made sure he was seen working shoulder-to-shoulder with Mantle's citizens, mending and working to better the city.
"All this construction sure makes walking down the street fun," Ivy's sarcastic voice commented, her nose crinkled and her hands shoved in her pockets while she watched the small crews of workers run electrical cables or haul in the beams, steel frames, and various materials needed for their work.
"No one said the renovations were going to be fun," Lelouch quipped as he waved to a few citizens, giving him a short round of applause when he passed through the neighborhood, their expressions full of smiles and looks of hope.
Lelouch started this endeavor, finding the spots that could easily use repairs or modernization, but at the same time, his soldiers were helping clear up streets by patching holes, aiding civilians in tearing down abandoned structures or old shops and buildings, helping the homeless and building makeshift housing or tents to replace those who were lacking a place to call home.
The help may not have been enough but it was a start. A show to demonstrate his loyalty.
As a result, the hard work paid off, Mantle's general mood had improved, and the sense of isolation from Atlas was decreasing steadily. Now a genuine hope was starting to make its way into the hearts and souls of Mantle, something many had probably never had in a long time.
His consent presence was enough to persuade the people that there were efforts made, that life was improving, and most of all... there was someone here. Who gave a shit, and did everything he could for them.
Of course, Jacques made sure people knew his company's contribution to the restoration of Mantle. Every piece of equipment and worker's uniform bore the company insignia, and Jacques was eager to run TV, radio, and news interviews, declaring his role as a benefactor to the whole venture, the city's future was owed to the SDC, the news outlets happily echoing those exact words, trumpeting him for his efforts and willingness to help.
Many believed his lies. Others would ask why he hadn't done any of this before, and then there were the doubters, Robyn and her Happy Huntresses were some of the people who questioned and dared the wealthy, powerful Atlesian to prove his kindness, stating Mantle didn't have an appetite for being mislead or taken advantage of.
However, even if they were able to poke enough holes into Jacques' story, in the end, the reality of his actions mattered. And Mantle was changing for the better.
Continuing their stroll, Ivy trotted closer to Lelouch, turning her attention towards him, "Mantle really is feeling the weight of change." she gestured her head behind her to some construction going on, the former slum site being transformed to something more palatable, and more useful.
"Its inhabitants have started to rally together under our guidance... With time, hopefully, more and more people will believe in my brighter future." Lelouch offered. "This isn't going to happen overnight, though. Years of Atlas apathy have created this divide, this divide will take years to heal."
Ivy nodded at the assessment, a slight grin coming across her features as they made it a few more paces down the lane, hearing the distinct aggressiveness of an argument, not having gone far as it was already located directly to the right of the path, at a corner.
It didn't sound friendly, and it seemed like both parties were growing angrier and more aggressive with each passing moment; Lelouch's head slowly turned, eyes narrowing.
A fox Faunus shop owner stood at their front door, face reddened, shoulders hunched, and a finger was aggressively prodded in the direction of an older human man, who was looking quite outraged.
"We haven't sold any drugs! That's crazy talk and you're being disrespectful to our family!" the vixen woman hissed, arms crossed.
The customer fumed. "Your kind, it's all the same! You do nothing to contribute to society and deserve to be-" His enraged insult was interrupted suddenly as two large Atlesian soldiers grabbed the man's arms. "Wait-Hey?!" he squawked angrily.
"Sir, you're coming with us," the first one rumbled firmly before roughly escorting the confused, baffled human off.
"...Good to see our troops doing what they're meant to do," Ivy noted, "Still though, didn't we tell 'em not to let trouble start for this project? Seems like they could do their jobs better if you ask me..."
"It will work itself out. Let the patrol officers and soldiers handle their respective roles, they understand our plans for this city." Lelouch affirmed.
A group of civilians came up to the Fox Faunus and shook her hand, offering their condolences and thanking her for her work in the community and for taking care of many others. Another pair of soldiers questioned her and wrote down what had happened before politely taking her report, which they agreed to follow up on immediately.
Ivy chuckled under her breath as her superior stepped further past her, knowing she could trust him on the matter. Spotting a glaring huntress across the street and not looking too keen on trusting his work with the community.
May Marigold, one of Robyn's little companions, had been keeping her own close, personal eye on things happening here in Mantle, obviously not entirely buying the sudden display of interest to have a colonel spearhead a project to revitalize the whole of Mantle.
Stopping in the middle of the street, Lelouch glanced at the blue-haired woman, feeling her icy stare boring through his mask.
Keeping her eyes on him for a long few moments, May eventually moved, rotating around and walking off with hands in her pocket.
"I have a good feeling that we've still got work to do," Ivy said with a slight laugh. "Especially in winning them over..." she said, eyeing where May had left, keeping her gaze there even as she felt Lelouch nod in understanding.
"Indeed," he began with his own thoughtful exhale. Of course, winning people over with kindness wasn't the only option at his disposal... and indeed, that method was hardly ever enough to fully achieve what was wanted.
Mechanical arms drilled and screwed bolts as teams of engineers welded parts into a finished product, the giant mech was still mostly a frame, but given time, Lelouch was confident it and the rest of his Knightmare squadrons would become a reality.
Based on the fifth-generation Sutherland model and using the many spare Paladins and frames salvaged or repurposed, the production lines were moving day and night for assembly of the army's mecha forces.
A more advanced Knightmare generation would have been preferred, but resources were already spread thin with their ongoing operations and preparations, he'd had to compromise somewhere... and the fourth generations in service of the Mistral armies certainly weren't all that different from these new prototypes...
Stepping into the main workshop where the prototypes were housed, Lelouch, accompanied by Roane, examined the units under construction and maintenance.
Roane eyed one of the prototypes, her mellow voice inquiring curiously "The prototypes are basically reverse-engineering the Paladins, right?"
"To put it in layman's terms, yes. Adapting a previously known design rather than experimenting and developing new ideas would serve us better and be far less costly," he explained.
Lelouch traced a hand over the knee guard of one prototype unit. The machine's appearance, aside from lacking most of the armor and weaponry, was fairly close to the final Sutherland build.
A simple, lean, and streamlined machine. With a lightweight yet durable composite metal alloy frame, that would increase mobility without sacrificing power.
"Soon, any ol' civilian or Atlas soldier can hop in and perform like your average huntsmen," He remarked, strolling along the many machines, taking a mental note of the progress the various engineers and mechanics were making.
Walking alongside Lelouch, Roane listened with attention as he kept talking, a small smile adorning her features while hearing his explanations on the machine's, technical aspects.
"They'll be equipped with an impressive firepower. Dust-infused torso-mounted anti-personnel machine gun and a choice between a large assortment of equipment... Assault rifles, sniper rifles, shoulder-mounted variable-guided rocket launchers, and arm-mounted dual-barrel handguns.
In addition, all Knightmares will have a vast array of melee weapons at the ready in the case the soldier becomes a bit reckless or is faced with a disadvantage," He elaborated further while pointing at each location where a weapon system would reside.
"Are you sure this is a good idea, making sure every regular soldier, every foot-solider, has the means to put down a pack of Grimm single-handedly?" The crimson-haired woman asked.
Shrugging casually, he faced her, gesturing as he spoke. "With a world full of threats both Grimm and otherwise, I simply intend on giving the people of Remnant every available advantage. Remnant current way of life is to always be on the defensive; I aim to break that cycle." He reasoned, crossing his arms behind his back.
Roane quirked an eyebrow up but hummed thoughtfully. "Guess you've got a point, Lelouch. Our way of life has been around for so long we've forgotten how to get to the front of the line and have some control... You're gonna change all that... with or without these things, aren't you?"
"Yes. Change comes inevitably, it is our greatest constant in all of this. Nothing stays the same, Roane,"
He halted mid-step, both his head and body facing his huntress, his masked countenance gazing deep into her soul as he concluded, "And there will always be those who resist change... who fear what it holds."
Out in the middle of the cold, harsh wilds of Solitas. A small metal orb emits an orange glow. Floating freely over a field of white snow as dozens of Grimm snarled, staring at the tiny light of the orb with rabid curiosity, pulled by whatever malevolent force existed within the small metal device, a tugging urge to follow the glowing little light.
More and more of the black, monstrous creatures arrived, congregating, growling amongst each other, and continuing their watch of the thing that now held their attention, becoming enthralled.
A whistle carried upon the winds and rang in the ears of Grimm, piercing the once-silent atmosphere of the Solitas wastes.
All heads snapped, their instincts heightened, their claws scraping against the cold hard ground of the snowy expanse of Solitas, preparing to bolt away.
At least that was the intention.
However, an artillery round came in hot, arcing in the sky above and slamming directly into the large collection of Grimm in a deafening eruption of shrapnel and fire.
Viewed from the safety of an armored troop transport, Lelouch, Bianca, and a group of scientists all had a good view of their first experiment.
"An excellent display!" Lelouch watched on as more explosions struck the horde of Grimm with impeccable accuracy.
"Certainly exceeded our expectations!" another of the scientists said happily, observing through a binocular device as a dozen more explosions shredded the horde to pieces.
"The Negative Orb works as intended, bringing Grimm in from miles and miles to congregate in one central location" Dr. Ferric added, a smug grin on his face as the targets were continuously ravaged.
"Remarkable, the number of creatures called seems to correlate with the size, distance, and strength of the negative signal!" a lab coat-wearing young scientist exclaimed, observing readings on a hand-held device and tracking the multitude of signal readouts.
"Ha, I'd love to see anyone disregard our brilliance after these results." Dr. Ferric commented snarkily.
Crossing her arms, Bianca shot Lelouch a look. "Well, that makes things easier than trying to scout out Grimm dens." She was pleased about that fact.
Lelouch tilted his head in affirmation. It also opened a whole host of tactical options if this testing showed everything could work as planned.
"The tides have begun to shift, but we shouldn't grow complacent; Grimm ate not something to be taken lightly," Lelouch warned, knowing full well how things could go horribly wrong if proper steps weren't taken in testing their new strategy.
"Of course." Dr. Ferric began to argue, shifting his attention to the colonel. "Everything's proceeding as expected. Now we need to focus on the actual point, using this as a long-range remote Grimm Trap,"
As the researchers went about their tests, they observed, cheered, took notes, charted, and documented everything they could. Bianca wandered closer to Lelouch. "What now Lelouch? Mantle is undergoing huge changes; your Knightmares are slowly coming together, and the Negative orbs have tested successfully. Have you any plans for what's to come other than securing a seat for yourself on the council?"
The masked leader's helmet slowly rotated towards his huntress, and friend, the aura surrounding the man and the tone of his words practically dripping confidence, and satisfaction "Preparations will continue, there are so many possibilities, it will be quite the future for Atlas,"
Bianca scoffed a chuckle as if she didn't expect him to say otherwise, "I feel that'll be the understatement of a lifetime, colonel,"
"Of that, my dear Bianca," Lelouch leaned against his chair, the orange and white palette that painted the horizon and the empty barren white, flat landscape, giving an almost hallow but inviting touch to the man, making him a faceless, towering figure, "I am counting on it,"
.
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.
.
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Off the coast of Solitas, a stolen Manta dropship swayed back and forth slightly in the chilling breeze. New players were approaching the chessboard of the world, their move about to change everything for everyone else.
Author's Notes: When I say anyone in a Knightmare can perform like an average huntsmen and huntresses, I mean like background huntsmen who get brutally murdered throughout the series.