"War means fighting. And Fighting means killing".

(Earl of Tennessee Nathan Bedford Forrest)

"Darlton, report your status. DARTLON REPORT"!.

Allowing her grip on her emotions to drop as she tried to re-establish communications with the man who had once been her teacher, Cornelia fought down the very real urge to scream as the younger of her most faithful subordinates alerted her to a more annoying, but no less pressing concern.

"Princess, I have enemy contacts rapidly approaching our position".

Regaining her composure with a speed that would impress even the most experienced military officer, the purple haired royal began to do one of the things that she did best.

Giving out orders.

"Take defensive positions and wait to fire on my command. Guilford, contact HQ and have them send most of our remaining reserves advance to our position. If the JLF is trying to capture us in a pincer movement, I want to ensure that this section of the attack is all but destroyed when their other section decides to give up destroying our other troops".

Expecting the bespectacled knight to simply obey her request, Cornelia was somewhat surprised when Guildford did something that only he, and a few other of her subordinates were permitted to do.

Seeking clarification.

"Understood your highness. Should I also tell the Engineering Corps to prep the Lancelot for launch"?

Frowning at the reminder that her forces still had an ace up of it's sleeve, albeit one whose loyalty was questionable considering the ethnicity of the foes they were currently facing, Cornelia shook her head.

"Negative. While I'm sure Earl Asplund would be eager to get his previous toy out into the field, my conscious is more soothed by having it remain where it is".

Receiving the standard 'Understood your highness', Cornelia focused her attention back to the upcoming battle.

She couldn't imagine how the JLF managed to scrape together enough knightmares to make a rather credible attempt of encircling her forces, severely reduced though they may be, but considering the fact that these soldiers turned terrorists had performed far better than anyone could have possibly predicted, she supposed that she shouldn't be too surprised.

"I got a visual on the enemy. And its….its not the JLF".

Frowning at the fact that such a report had been given over an open channel, the purple haired royal was prevented from chastising her subordinate thanks to the unmistakable evidence that her day just got a lot more irritating.

"Hello Cornelia".

…..

Rage.

That was all the disgraced officer could feel at this very moment as the voice of his tormentor came over the radio.

Yes it was technically against regulations to switch his secure communication channel to a more open one, but considering the way in which the battle had unfolded, what with a more determined/well equipped enemy and the harnessing of the forces of nature, Jeremiah Gottwald had decided that such a risk was necessary.

Of course when he had head General Darlton's position coming under attack by knightmares that were far superior to the usual refurbished Glasgow, he had gritted his teeth, waiting for an order to advance that everyone knew would never come.

For thanks to his still actions during his tenure as acting Viceroy, not to mention Kewell's unsuccessful attempt to 'clean house', the members of the Purist Faction were forced to endure the humiliating position of being left out of the battle, without even the minor honor of being assigned to guard anything of importance.

He had already endured Kewell's scathing comments about his mental stability when their squad had not been selected to reinforce the surviving units of the avalanche, and was preparing to endure yet another round of insults when he the voice of the cause for his disgrace came over the radio.

But as bad enough as that was, it was what Zero said that finally caused the former margrave to let his already tenuous grip on his self control vanish.

For it was one thing to tarnish his career and reputation. It was quite another to place a member of the Imperial in jeopardy.

And since he had already failed numerous times to keep any sort of harm from befalling those he had sworn to serve, though in case of 2 of them it was because the Emperor's office had denied his request to accompany them to this god forsaken country, he was damned if he was goanna let another royal die on his watch.

Luckily for him, his recent fall in rank had not completely made him bereft of allys.

For just as he glanced behind him, he could see that Villetta was following him with the remaining members of what had once been the most powerful faction in Area 11.

And as the sound of battle steadily grew louder the closer they got to Princess Cornelia's position, it was obvious that they would need every solider.

….

As expected of his war mongering sister, as soon as his forces were in sight, she was ordering her remaining troops to open fire with everything they had.

Of course since her forces had been rapidily reduced thanks to his little man made natural disaster, and he supposed the JLF's tougher than anticipated resistance, such a move was lacking its usual potency. Which meant that instead of losing half of its strength, the Black Knights only suffered the loss of one Burai.

"Come now Cornelia. I know that this situation isn't exactly familiar to you, but lets look at this logically. Your outnumbered, your remaining forces are being demolished by a rather impressive JLF counterattack, and you have no chance of escaping my men. I promise to treat you well if you surrender to me immediately".

Smirking as he pictured the less than pleased expression that was currently adorning his half sister's face, for he clearly remembered those few instances in his childhood when Cornelia had been placed in a position that was beyond her ability to control, Lelouch let out a mock sigh of resignation as the purple haired royal showed her defiance.

"If you think I'm going to debase myself for the man who murdered my brother, then your even more delusional than I thought Zero".

Having expected his sister to react like this, and having no desire to make this a drawn out battle, the exiled royal gave the order to his most promising subordinate.

"Q-1, it appears that the princess is being uncooperative. Kindly do something about it will you".

"Understood Zero".

Pleased at Kallen's lack of hesitation, not to mention the fact that he didn't have to precisely spell out what he wanted done to his half sister, Lelouch turned his focus to his less prodigal subordinates.

"Ohgi, have the rest of our troops concentrate their fire on the rest of the enemy's troops. While skilled, our ace still requires the time to develop before she can take on multiple targets at once".

Nodding his head as he heard the man acknowledge his orders, Lelouch allowed himself to relax ever so slightly as he watched the developing battle.

While possessing frames that were superior to the majority of his forces, their recent losses, as well as the manner in which they had lost them, ensured that the remaining Sutherlands were able to just barely hold their own against a foe that, while slightly superior in number, were nevertheless relying on machines that were a generation older than the ones they were piloting.

The sole exception of course was his half sister, and the only other surviving Gloucester.

While Kallen was doing an admirable job of keeping Cornelia from either fleeing or doing anything to support her steadily depleting troops, her skills were sadly underdeveloped when it came to fighting multiple opponents who, while piloting older frames, nevertheless possessed years of combat experience.

And while he hated to admit it, even his strategies, boosted by his ability to force people to follow his commands, was still somewhat susceptible to being dislodged by those who…

"ZERO"!

Cursing at the sudden interruption, for it indicated that his perfect plans were once again on the point of being thwarted, Zero turned his attention towards one of the more amusing steps to reaching his goals.

There was something rather satisfying at seeing a Britannian nobleman brought down to the level of a crazed dog. And while he wouldn't hesitate to kill Orange if the chance presented it self, Lelouch couldn't help but feel that his life would be missing something if the former leader of the Purist faction had been removed from it.

…..

Though he had long gotten used to having his loyalties questioned, something he was sure happened on a regular basis to every Honorary Britannian, the current situation was enough to make Suzaku question whether or not he had chosen wrongly all those years ago.

Not because his former countrymen were putting up a more effective resistance against the forces of the Empire.

Or because he suspected that the Britannian authorities would take their frustrations out on the innocent population.

No, it was because despite his obvious talents and track record, he was being denied the chance to further prove that he could be of use to the Empire.

He knew that he would probably end up as some sort of propaganda tool to convince the Numbers of Britannia to abandon their quest for independence, but to him that was a perfectly acceptable deal if it meant that he could prevent the evils of terrorism from continuing. And once the rest of Britannian society saw that the numbered were loyal and productive members of the empire, the restrictions would be loosened, and they would be able to better their lives.

However, in order for that goal to be reached, 3 key factors had to be addressed, preferably with him playing a major part in their removal.

The first and the one requiring the most long term planning was the removal of the Gross European Reich as a world power. Not just because of its ability to supply Britannia's enemies with the tools they needed to continue their hopeless crusade, but also because it served almost as a rebuke to his beliefs of accepting, and working within the system.

The Europeans had refused to surrender after it became apparent that they lacked the ability to keep the Empire from approaching its most valuable territory. And while this had resulted in greater civilian causalities, it had nevertheless provided them the time to gather enough resources for one last desperate attempt to change their fortunes.

By all means, Operation Citadel should have been a failure. The Europeans were outnumbered, were operating on shoe string lines of support, and possessed only limited numbers of high quality frames. But thanks to the efforts of their field officers, of whom the most successful now enjoyed the position of Chancellor, Europe was able to reverse the tide of war, and inspire other imperial enemies to keep fighting until they created their own miracle.

The second factor that had to be removed, and one that was thankfully more doable than toppling an entire superpower, was the man who was blatantly trying to reenergize Area 11's terrorist movements.

While Zero might profess that his actions were in the service of Japan, the son of the last Prime Minister of Japan suspected that the masked terrorist cared more about acquiring power than the well being of those who were unfortunate enough to be failed by the system.

The man's casual disregard for life was proof of this, which that even if he did manage to achieve his goals, it would be worthless due to the fact that the foundation for victory rested upon a sea of corpses.

Sadly however, removing the masked terrorist leader would have to be put for later since the removal of the first major barrier to peace in Area 11 was currently taking place before his very eyes.

"I get that your frustrated by your current lack of orders Kururugi. But I would ask you not to take out your anger on my poor Lancelot. I had to go through a lot of drafts before I settled on a cockpit design, and I would hate to have to replace any fist sized indents just because my devicer is feeling a tad underused".

Taking his fists off the dashboard, and doing his best not to appear affected by Lloyd's threatening tone, the Honorary Britannian fought the sudden urge to chuckle as his more likeable superior chastised the eccentric scientist.

"Now Lylod, what did I tell you about showing more concern for your toys than the soldiers responsible for piloting them"?

Allowing a small, but perfectly noticeable smile to spread across his features as he heard his superior mumble what was sure to be a half hearted apology, Suzaku decided to have mercy on the eccentric scientist by posing a question that even he couldn't ignore.

"Have we managed to re-establish contact with the forward units"?

His question earning a sigh from the bespectacled man, though Suzaku wasn't sure if it was aimed at him or the situation, the young knightmare pilot found his grip tightening as Llyod explain the situation.

"We have, and I'm afraid its not looking good. With the landslide wiping out a good portion of the army, the JLF has decided to go on the offensive with whatever resources they have left. Which sadly appears to be in greater number than intelligence predicted. However, for the moment it appears that the enemy is concentrating on General Darlton's positions, which means that her highness is for the moment safe and s.".

"WARRANT OFFICER KURURUGI"!

Surprised though he was at hearing the voice of the Sub Viceroy, who coincidentally was also one of the reasons why he continued to have faith that the Britannian system could one day be fixed, Suzaku quickly became focused as the pink haired princess gave him the order he had been waiting for the entire day.

"You and the Lancelot are to launch immediately, and advance to my sis…I mean the Viceroy's position. Troops are already being rushed to support her, but your knightmare is the only one that's able to get their fast enough before Zero manages to capture her. Or worse".

Gritting his teeth as he heard the name of the masked terrorist, though he suspected it had to do with the fear in Euphemia's voice as she was trying to prevent the memory of what Zero did to her half brother, and blocking out Lyod's whoops of joy for finally being able to get more field data, the Japanese born pilot of Britannia's most advanced frame responded in a manner that would do any imperial solider proud.

"Yes your Highness".

…..

Though she desperately wished she could temporarily abandon her duties, and transfer them to some unlucky subordinate, Princess Cornelia Li Britannia knew she had to fight against her desire to succumb to her exhaustion in order to understand the full scale of the day's events.

Something that her ever loyal knight managed to pick up on as he summarized their current understanding of just how badly they underestimated their enemies.

"Though the data is still incomplete your highness, and will undoubtedly remain so until we cease our recovery operations in the Narita area, I regret to report that our total losses are substantial. In addition to the loss of General Darlton, 67 frames, 22 of them being Glouscters. have been completely destroyed, with 52 requiring heavy repairs to make them functional again, and 18 requiring only minor repairs. We've also lost nearly 4 dozen AFVs, and 36 pieces of artillery. In terms of manpower, we've suffered the death of 65 pilots, with at least 30 in critical condition to add to the 72 that sustained serious, but non life threatening injuries, 127 tankers, 90 artilleryman, and 7000 infantryman. In short your highness, we have lost over 50% of the force we started with".

Allowing a sigh to escape her lips as she came to terms with these figures, Cornelia's tone became sharper as she asked a question that was probably being debated amongst her surviving soldiers.

"And who bears the primary responsibility for our losses? The Japanese Liberation Front, or Zero"?

Allowing her subordinate a brief moment to consider the question, for she realized that her previous orders had been to determine the scale of their losses rather than the cause, the purple haired royal found herself less than pleased with Guilford's answer.

"Sadly your highness, it appears that both the Black Knights and the JLF share equal responsibility for the extent of our losses. While we did loose an unacceptable number of troops to the landslide, which has been determined to have been caused by that unusual frame of theirs, the Black Knights wouldn't have been as… successful in their endeavors if the JLF's resistance didn't require us to expend more forces than originally planned".

Eyes narrowing at this information, for it reminded her that she might have another source to blame for the day's events, Cornelia managed to keep her temper under control as she directed another question to her loyal knight.

"Yes, about that. I know that our recovery efforts are still ongoing, but tell me Guildford. Have we discovered any further examples of foreign equipment amongst the JLF? Cause I think its safe to say that without, the JLF wouldn't have been nearly as effective as it was. Which makes me wonder if perhaps we've finally managed to find concrete proof of the Reich's illegal activities".

Her words causing murmurs to spread across the room, for every Britannian officer relished the chance to twist the screws on the nation that served to remind the Empire that they were not invincible, the Second Princess of the Empire found herself grinning with savage delight as Guilford answered her question.

"From the initial reports your highness, it appears that way. While we were unable to capture any enemy knightmares intact, visual recordings confirm that the enemy was using modified Panzers and Vikings in their battle against us. Combined with the few captured examples of the Reich's latest anti-knightmare weaponry, we have more than enough proof to demand concessions".

Nodding her head in approval at this information, which would probably serve to brighten her half brother's day once she passed him the news, Cornelia allowed the room a moment to enjoy this prospect before refocusing their minds on more immediate issues.

"And do we have any update on the status of our enemies? I know Zero lost perhaps a 3rd of his command in his attempt to assassinate me, but what is less clear is the state of the JLF".

Receiving a nod from her bespectacled knight, the purple haired royal found some of her good mood vanishing as Guildford's answer was less than comforting.

"Sadly your highness, while they have indeed suffered heavy losses, they still possess enough strength to remain active, albeit in a much reduced capacity. Intelligence suggests that in addition to their leadership, the JLF managed to evacuate 200 soldiers, and 11 knightmares. Not enough to successfully stand against our troops in a direct confrontation, but significant enough to require substantial efforts to ensure their total destruction".

"Not to mention large enough to either make a good effort at rebuilding, or to significantly boost the performance of a terrorist group that is unfortunately still expanding".

Earning another round of murmurings from her officers, for it was clear that the Battle of Narita had failed to be the knock out blow that she had intended, Cornelia issued forth the final orders of the debriefing.

"Have our aerial and ground patrols increase their surveillance efforts. If they need extra manpower to do this, so be it. I don't want to give these terrorists a chance to regain their former strength. And I certaintly don't want them joining a man who until recently has satisfied himself with publicity stunts. Understood"?

Her orders being met with the standard 'Yes your highness', Cornelia waited until the rest of the officers had left the room before turning towards her trust knight.

"It will also probably be a prudent move to order our naval units to take up positions on the western coast. For it may be possible that the rats will try to flee to safety instead of risking themselves by remaining in Area 11".

Pleased to see Guilford nod his head in compliance to her orders, Cornelia fought the urge to yawn as she contemplated the last thing she had to do before finally catching a moments rest.

Reassuring, and chastising her sister.

For while she was grateful for Euphie's decision to order aid to be sent to her position, which had miraculously arrived just as Zero's red knightmare had finished disarming her own frame, the nature, or more importantly the nationality and identity of her rescuer left much to be desired.

She could not deny that Kururugi was an exceptional knightmare pilot. But as a number, Honorary Britannian though he was , and as the son of Japan's last political leader, he was far from her example of an ideal rescuer.

It would have been preferable if Euphie had ordered some of the reserves/her guard detail to come to her rescue, even if some of them belonged to the all but destroyed purist faction. But no, her baby sister had chosen to send their most elite unit.

Tactically it was the best move.

But symbolically it was not.

A Britannian princess, one who commanded the army no less, rescued by an 11 turn coat?

The press would have a field day.

Luckily however, the 11 pilot was wise enough to keep his mouth shut, and act like the whole thing didn't happen. But her sister?

Her precious, innocent, political naïve sister?

She would have to be talked to.

And to be frank, it was not a conversation she was looking forward to.

….

Despite the fact that the Empire was labelling the Battle of Narita as yet another deceive victory over the lingering remnants of what had once been the strongest power in the western Pacific, Atushi Sawazaki knew that the struggle for Japan's resurrection had merely been stalled, instead of shattered.

Yes the Britannian army had avenged the fate of one of their leaders by forcing the JLF to abandon their stronghold, in addition to heavily damaging their ability to perform large scale operations.

And yes it meant that he had to speed up his own plans for his return to his beloved homeland, plans which unfortunatly depended on the generosity of a regime that was even more corrupt than the old Europe.

But these factors were merely difficult to overcome, not impossible.

And it could be said that the defeat of the JLF made his plans for the new Japan even easier.

For if there was one thing the Sawazaki had learned during his exile, and his observation of the 3 superpowers, it was the lesson of keeping the military out of politics to ensure their total obedience to the government.

The Chinese were firm believers of this political philosophy, though the Japanese minister noted that such a system had stifled the creativity of the Chinese military. Still, he had to admit that the system worked, for how else could a system as inefficent as the one ruled by the Eunuch Council have managed to survive for as long as it did.

However, such was not the case with the world's remaining superpowers.

In the Britannian Empire, there were only 2 possible way to gain power in a government that was subject to the personal whims of a blood thirsty tyrant.

Familial connections, or military glory.

Of course, the upper echlons of power were denied to those who didn't have Charles Di Britannia as a father or bed warmer, but since the Empire enshrined the principle of survival of the fittest, it was no surprise that their society was dominated by those with a military record. And since these positions could only be maintained by their continued loyalty to the Imperial Family, if not the Emperor himself, the chance for a non familial coup was extremely limited

But while Sawazaki hated the Empire, he could at least respect the fact that its political structure had a degree of tradition that had been sadly lacking in Japan since it's decision to adopt a more democratic mindset.

It was the Gross Europa Reich that served as a firm indicator of what would happen to a DUELY electect government if it failed to keep the military out of politics.

But sadly, after winning a mircalous victory that saved Europe from becoming the latest Britannian conquest, thte European military, seized power from the democratically elected, though increasingly ineffective government, and cemented it's legitmacy amongst its citizens by forcing the Empire to the bargaining table.

Which was precisely the reason why the highest ranking survivor of the Kururugi government was less than displeased at the near destruction of the Japanese Liberation front.

For it had been allowed to remain independent of legitimate political oversight for too long. And now that it was damaged, it would be too weak to resist his efforts to institute the type of relationship that the land of his exile enjoyed.

Willing to die in the service of their country, but fully subjugated to the rule of the government.

…..

…..

Silently cursing his colleagues for putting him in this position, the downside of being both the youngest and newest member of the facility's security team, the frightened Unterscharführer nervously cleared his throat as he addressed his less than cheerful superior

"Umm…ex…excuse me Madame Director, but I, that is to say my team were reviewing the security footage, and we discovered something odd".

Turning her attention away from the unconscious form of her toothless captive, Karina ensured that her expression conveyed her already limited patience before regarding her understandably pale subordinate with a raised eyebrow.

"Have you? I trust that it was important enough to interrupt my…reflection period. Cause if it isn't, I'm sure that I can find ways to make you envy the prisoner's current state".

Doing his best to maintain his composure in the face of such a promise, the young ISD guard turned towards the thin tablet he had been carrying, and proceeded to summarize the basic points of his team's findings.

"As you can see, while the prisoner managed to fool the first 2 security checks, once he was inside the building, he simply walked by them like they didn't exist".

Glaring as she watched the video display that very occurrence, Karina made an unimpressed sigh as she glanced up at her fearful subordinate.

"I can see that. However what I'm not seeing is why he was allowed to get so far into the facility before he tried to kill me. And do keep in mind you are merely inches away from having wires attached to your own extremeinets".

Gulping as he imagined having to endure the pain and indignity of having an electrical current pass through his thankfully empty bladder, the fearful Unterscharführer managed to provide a reason that seemed to have caught his superior's interest.

"It's because at each internal checkpoint, the guards, not to mention whoever else was in the area, seem to freeze for a period of 10 seconds. Long enough for your prisoner to pass through the barrier and get out of sight. I also must mention that a similar occurrence happened right before the assassination attempt. You were walking down the hallway, but as soon as you saw him, you paused for a period of 10 seconds".

Humming in interest at this piece of information, Karina's glare lost some of its murderous intent as she asked a question that signified that the young guard wouldn't be strapped to a chair anytime soon.

"Interesting. Any idea as to the range of this…phenomenon"?

Nodding with more confidence than he had previously, the young ISD guard provided his answer.

"For the first security gate, the 'phenomenon' encompassed not only the immediate area, but also the sections that house the attached security squad and onsite cameras. For the second gate, which is as you know much smaller, the area affected was much more limited. Also, and I ensured I consulted with one of our on site medical staff, it appears that each time this happened, the prisoner was undergoing some sort of cardiac incident. Not enough to slow him down, or even be noticed by the untrained eye, but certainly enough to..".

"Be noticed by those with years, or even basic medical experience. Thank you Scharführer. You are dismissed".

Failing to conceal his surprise at his sudden promotion, the newly promoted guard gave a swift salute before leaving Karina to her thoughts.

Waiting until she was certain that she was alone, and having already developed an idea of how to ensure that this still unexplained 'phenomena' wasn't used to her prisoner's advantage, the blond haired leader of the ISD began to do what she did best.

Giving orders to her subordinates.

"Greta. I want a couple of things from you, and I want them done within the next 20 mins. First, I want to establish a secondary control switch for our battery, and I want you to set it up in a security room that exists on the other side of the facility. Next, contact Berlin and tell them to have some of our less squeamish medical practitioners ready to view the upcoming proceedings by video call. Make you use our most secure levels of encryption while your doing this. And lastly…have another set of cables ready. I have a feeling that we might need them".

Closing her phone after hearing her subordinate acknowledge her orders, Karina turned her attention back towards the still unconscious prisoner with a look of impatience.

For though she was certain that her subordinates would carry out her wishes in the timeframe she had given, the fact remained that they were still racing the clock.

Cause while they had removed any of the usual methods a prisoner might use to escape the less polite forms of interrogation, an assassin who may or may not possess the ability to give himself a heart attack was something that her subordinates had no experience in. And considering she had only managed to get 1 single piece of information out of the prisoner, whose name sounded more like a candy instead of a proper name, she was dammed if she was going to let this one go before she gathered every last piece of intel she could drag out of that purple eyed bastard.

…..

….

Though I am loath to share anything in common with those who tried to reduce my country to a series of slave states, I must confess that I whole heartedly agreed with the disappointment that was currently being displayed by the Britannian Empire at the outcome of the Battle of Narita.

Albeit for different reasons.

For while they might be disappointed in their failure to completely destroy the last remnants of the Japanese military, my reasons for disappointment stem from the undeniable proof that I have wasted my time trying to prop up an organization that was set on dying.

Yes the JLF had managed to inflict greater casualties on imperial forces, more than I could have suspected from those who until recently had clung to a more independent mindset. But even though they managed to escape total destruction, the fact remained that the organization had been reduced to 200 infantry, and 13 knightmares, of which only 3 of them were European machines.

Which meant that if I wanted them to continue serving the interests of the Reich, I would have to either ship them enough material to once again make them a credible thorn in Britannia's side, or evacuate the leadership to serve as some sort of army in exile.

Both options of course carry great risk, albeit for different reasons.

The first one stems from the fact that while the Reich is capable of supplying them with the nessesary resources to rebuild, shipping large quanitites of material is risky since it increases the chances of the Empire finding undeniable proof that Europe is in fact funding various resistance organizations.

The Foreign Ministry already knows what to say if the Empire every discovered European weaponry on their territory, something which they will probably be using in the next few days due to their presence at Narita, but said excuse remains plausible only if the numbers are relatively small.

The second option of course is equally distasteful, though more due to the disruption it would cause with the presence of an independent, albeit allied organizatin on European soil.

For I doubt that the remnants of Japan's military would accept Japanese soldiers in any other uniform then their own. And while I do possess the option of purging the surviving JLF leadership of those who can't accept reality, I run the risk of tarnishing the Reich's carefully crafted image of coming to the aid of those who stand against the Empire.

Of course there is still 1 other option I could explore, though it would set back the Reich's interests in Area 11 by at least a year. But even that wouldn't guarantee the objective which I desire due to the growth of a resistance movement that has yet to lose the respect of the people.

Though perhaps I'm being too cynical.

Even if the JLF was to be destroyed, whether through the death of its leaders or through the process of being absorbed by the Black Knights, Zero would still need resources to remain one step ahead of the Empire. And since Kyoto cannot hope to match the production levels enjoyed by Japan before the invasion, let alone those possessed by both Britannia and the Reich, it stands to reason that Zero can be, if not completely controlled, then at least influenced to undertake certain actions that would create a mutually beneficial outcome.

Cause after all, even the most charismatic of revolutionaries will fail if they lack the bullets to fight to the last zealot.

And Area 11, like other areas that enjoy the privilege of being clandestine clients of the Reich, is filled with zealots who prefer to go down in a blaze of glory.

…..

And yet another chapter done XD.

Apologies if I seemed to cut the battle sequence short, but since I had intended to keep the final result more or less cannon, decided I could get away with 'After action' reports lol.

That being said however, while the JLF has lost the battle, as it did in canon, its strength isn't as diminished as it was. Which was my intention as I have future plans for the JLF. Or at least some of its members XD.

Will expand upon Dartlon's fate in next chapter since I am still debating which option I could go for.

FINALLY had Orange make an appearance in this story XD. Tried to play his personality as close to canon as possible, without having him seem as pathethic as he was before season 2 revealed his connection to the Vi Britannia XD.

And FINALLY managed to reveal Suzaku's thoughts about the Reich. I confess that it was inspired in part from that scene in season 2 where he basically tells the Europeans, who are managing to hold off a Britannian invasion, to surrender. Choosing to work within a system that glorifies social Darwinism is one thing. But to tell an independent nation to give up fighting for their freedom against an aggressor nation….that is quite another. Am sooooo looking forward to the moment when Krueger meets him face to face.

Also believe Cornelia's reaction to the battle, both losses and who she survived as completely plausible. Not to mention her reaction to the discovery of 'undeniable' Reich support for the JLF. Did this to set up more plot points for a future date. But I think you can see the implications for the Reich, Empire, and perhaps Kyoto as well.

ANNNND….continued on with Rolo's interrogation. Think its safe to say at this time that before this…the Reich was UNAWARE of the existence. But are now on the trail of becoming aware of it.

Will expand on this in the future.

Pleased to see that this story is still generating interest. Thoughtful reviews, and questions. And to those who comment on my political plot lines…your ideas help tremendously.

Anyways, now to answer some of the questions/opinions you have had.

Fuhrer of Europe

Question1: Do the Black Knights get to face any repercussions for what they did to the JLF?

Answer: It was my intention that their actions provoke more…discussions amongst those who would supply them. i.e. having the Pro Reich members of Kyoto argue against supplying Zero, JLF/Todoh maybe being a tad more distrusting. That sort of thing.

Question 2: Can the charges the JLF planted to start their own landslide STILL cause their own landslide?

Answer: My opinion was that it would serve little purpose/ wouldn't be as effective due to less 'natural resources' to cause the landslide.

Fortitude501

Question : When will Europe start developing composite armour for their Knightmare's and other armoured units?

The material that is used in Canon for Knightmare armour is Tungsten, which is a terrible idea. While Tungsten has the highest tensile strength, it is easily brittle and can be shatter on impact. In fact when you think about it, Britannia's knightmare doctrine in Canon solely focus on mobility and firepower. Never on the defensive. Which is why they sacrifice more armour for more speed.

Answer: Will be going into more detail about the differences between European and Britannian Frames in a later chapter. But don't worry, it will be addressed.

Chancellor ZVE

Question 1: So, regardless of how much information Karina does utlimately retrieve from Rolo after her tor-*ahem*-interrogations, and assuming IF Rolo is still alive (somehow), you aren't going to make Karina make Rolo mentally broken and lick her feet like a dog and a certain unfortunate prince from another anime are you? I mean, I don't like Rolo, but even I think that's too much and is just adding insult to injury. Can you just imagine if V.V. is able to see through Rolo's eyes and see the horrifying aftermath of failing to kill Karina?

Answer: There will be no feet licking. Pleading for mercy/for death yes. But having Rolo act like that unfortunate prince from Akame Ga Kill, no. Yes I've created a world where the tyranny of a total monarch competes with what is in essence a Fascist Military Dictatorship, but I draw the line at Rolo licking feet XD

Question 2: A couple of chapters ago, you said that you have a plan that addresses the fact that Britannia will see the JLF using Reich Knightmares during the Battle of Narita, yet still will be unable to sufficiently accuse Europe of supplying Britannia's enemies and risk sparking a "Great War II". How can the Reich possibly deny ANYTHING regarding this after the battle is over? Even if the JLF remnants do manage to escape with their surviving Knightmare forces, there is still the fact that there is the potential for Knightmare casualties among the Reich variants as well as the fact that there will be eye-witness accounts and recordings from surviving Britannian Knightmares. Like I said in that earlier chapter, Britannians may be arrogant to the point of STUPID, but the Britannians are not THAT stupid to miss a Panzer shooting at you or a Viking trying to slice you up.

Answer: I've got an answer to that, and believe I gave SOME hints in this chapter.

Question 3: Another question about Rolo's fate. During Rolo's interrogation... you know what, let's just say it as it is and call it torture, are the scenes going to be graphic enough to warrant a warning and a "Skip Ahead to After Torture" section or are they SO graphic that you will just skip over the scene entirely? Electrifying a man's 'juniors' is seriously disturbing itself, but knowing who Karina is based off of, it CAN get worse.

Answer: For certain characters, certain acts of violence will be listed, but apart from initial 'methods', will probably just summarize in another scene. But considering Rolo's crimes/personality….my take is that he had it coming XD.

Undead 3

Comment : ummm you do realize that rolo can still just off himself? so they can't do anything unless he wants to stay alive and betray his mission, his geass stops his heart. Also that's the second gut shot Rolo's ever made...well first since Shirley hasn't yet happened.

Response: You made an excellent point. And thus helped me to figure out ways in which I could ensure Rolo remains, for the moment, in the land of the living.

Anyways that's it for now. Hope you all enjoyed this.

Reviews are always welcome (no flames).

Til next time.

Heil Europa.