Chapter 43: Battle of Port Yokosuka

Having been in Area 11 for a while now, Marrybell hasn' had a chance to engage the Black Knights herself, until now as she gets to demonstrate that she won't be like Cornelia in style or action.

"I would suspect you would want that," Cornelia replied, as she wouldn’t just take this at face value.

Marrybell didn't dispute that, but her attention wasn't on these dregs. "I do, but I was sent here to handle the Black Knights, and I shall handle the Black Knights. You're more than capable of dealing with these JLF trash deluding themselves into fighting for a dead country."

Cornelia still felt like she was being played, but she could see that her sister was more focused on the bigger problem. “Very well, I’ll graciously accept this offer, Marrybell.”

“Excellent, then let’s send out the orders, when the fighting starts, we best be ready.” Marrybell smiled as she stood up and left.

Line Break

Marrybell walked out of the warehouse that they had taken to be their command centre for this operation, her faithful knight at her side as always. With her was the man who had given them the report. At present, both were looking at her like she had gone and grown a second head or, worse, decided to become a radical.

The two shared a look, wondering who should ask about it, but Oldrin ultimately turned it down, leaving it to the second, who let out a soft sigh. An oddity was that he was the largest of the three, a soldier's build with a scar running along his tanned left cheek down to his neck, and his grey hair cut short.

“Your highness…” Tink Lockhart started as they walked along the pier’s edge, out of sight of the target.

“You’re confused about my decision to leave command to my sister, despite how much I enjoy this and her track record with these rats?" Marrybell giggled as she guessed what was going through their heads.

"That was on our minds, yes. It just didn't seem like you." Oldrin stated that she had never seen her master and friend turn down the chase to slaughter terrorists. They would still be in charge of interrogation, but this compromise was confusing.

"Oh, come now. It's very much like me not to take needless risks," Marrybell replied. “There are some things about this that just don't sit right with me. Of course, it wouldn't be proper for us to do nothing, but nothing says it must be us."

The two blinked in surprise, and it took them a couple of moments to realize what their princess was saying.

Leaning in, Oldrin asked. “You think this is a trap?”

Marrybell shook her head. “I suspect it's not what it seems, but we can't know without a thorough investigation, which we don't have the evidence to analyse or the time to do so. Best case, I'm merely being paranoid, and my sister gets to execute Katase by the end of the week. Worst case…we'll be ready for that."

Oldrin found that response lacking, as Marrybell didn't just move on gut instincts. But before she could inquire about her reasons for this and why she didn't rely on this suspicion to the Viceroy, they reached their destination.

It wasn't anything special, as it was another warehouse close to the predicted operation area, only this one was filled with their personnel. Along with them were their knightmares. Most were the standard Sutherland and Gloucester variants operated by the Glinda Knights, but their latest additions models were also included.

Painted in their unit's red and gold accents, both units shared a heavy resemblance to the unit that Lloyd had coined his masterpiece, for these were units built in record time using data captured in combat. To the left, the unit was only slightly different in design and appearance from its older brother, down to its weaponry. To the right, the unit's head had a different helmet design, with more flourish on other armour pieces. The most unique thing was that it wasn't just equipped with 2 blades, but 12 of them, stored in the cape as if they would serve as wings.

“Your highness!” Of the technicians called out as she rushed over, stopping short to bow to the princess.

"Oh, are there any issues?" Marrybell asked, to which the woman shook her head.

"None, your highness. All units are ready for deployment, " she relayed, causing Marrybell's smile to grow.

“Excellent, once more, you and your people prove yourselves to be a cut above the rest, even when you’re given such punishing deadlines for these tasks.” She added a slight apology, as it was a rushed job to build their new units. Even with the massive increase in funds from Schneizel for it, there were only so many hours in the day.

“N-not at all, your highness,” the woman blushed. Oldrin rolled her eyes at how easily her friend could seduce. "Your work is important," she said.

“Our work,” Marrybell said, placing her hand on the mechanic's shoulder. The older woman let out a peep as her face grew redder. We are not a group made up of combat soldiers, but all of us play pivotal roles in ensuring that our empire is a safer place to live."

"Relay the change in orders to our forces, we're going to sit back and watch unless our real target rears their ugly heads," Marrybell ordered, her gaze shifting from the nervous mechanic to her knight of honour.

Oldrin bowed, hand on her chest. “At once, your highness.”

Line Break

Before long, the afternoon sun had fallen below the horizon, cloaking the port in darkness, which wasn't absolute thanks to the only glow of the lights of the Tokyo Settlement and the stars above. There hadn't been any moves from the authorities or the ship they were targeting, but that would change as Cornelia gave the order.

"Commence the operation," Cornelia ordered, and all the soldiers heard and obeyed. From where she stood, she watched as their Portmans, knightmares designed for maritime operations, were released from their clamps and dropped into the water.

“All underwater units, hit the water! Dive, dive, dive!” As the Portmans hit the water with a hard splash, their engines were already active, and they could immediately start swimming towards the ship.

“Our unit will be covering them from the shore. Remember, they could be carrying volatile cargo, so watch your shots, " Suzaku said, listening to one of the commanders.

“Understood, my lord.” He replied that, as he wasn't with the Glinda Knights, they had been moved back so that Cornelia could have this chance for revenge. He just hoped the Viceroy didn't let her anger drive her to a bad place.

“Once the torpedo attack is confirmed, the Royal Marines will move in for boarding operations. All ground units will be moved to weapons free, I repeat, all ground units will be moved to weapons free.” The officers coordinating things relayed as the Portmans fired the first wave of torpedoes, not to destroy the vessel, but to cripple it and prevent it from leaving. Most of the fired torpedoes found their marks on the vessel's hull, blasting holes in it, allowing seawater to flow in by the ton.

Over a kilometer away from the fighting, in a well hidden concrete building, Ohgi had set up his observation post. Despite the distance, they could clearly make out the gunfire and explosions. At the same time, simple binoculars ensured that they could keep track of the ship and the Britannians on the shore attacking it.

“Looks like it's starting. Zero, should we move in?” Ohgi requested. As Zero wasn't present, the man was off with the combat team, which was much closer to the action than they were.

“We hold. Katase is counting on us to do our parts, and that part will come," came Zero's response. The man and C.C. were seated in his newly delivered replacement for the lost Nemesis, one that, from just its appearance, was a step above his creation.

As Zero waited, the Britannian attack continued, with the Portmans reporting they were successfully blasting holes in the ship. However, due to the nature of the cargo, they couldn't use heavier warheads. Thus, while damaging, the vessel wasn't assured to sink, not if she had an even halfway competent crew to manage flooding.

That was expected and planned for as the second part of the plan started.“Commence support fire. All units are restricted to micro-round ordnance only. I repeat, restricted to micro-round ordnance only. We don't want the target sinking with the target.”

As the officers relayed their orders, Sutherlands rolled into position on both sides of the vessel, weapons ready.

“Dammit, it’s the Britannians!” On the ship, crew in JLF uniforms burst onto the deck and immediately spotted the Portmans in the water, circling them like sharks awaiting a meal.

“Already? But we didn’t see any-” Someone yelled, but the highest-ranking man on the deck didn’t care.

“Just get ready to move! The general is counting on us!” he yelled to his men.

“Yes-!” One dropped, his head a bloody mess. Seeing it was horrifying, but they trained soldiers. Thus, it was only a moment before training and experience sent them all scrambling for cover or diving to the floor.

“Down, get down!” The commander yelled as he started crawling to where they had a heavy machine gun set up; its gun shield should offer him some protection as he returned fire.

On the shore, Suzaku hadn't fired a single shot, but it went unnoticed as the units around him kept peppering the ship. Bodies at times falling into the water, dead before they hit it. Others were knocked back onto the deck, which had to be blood-stained by now. Not even fire from a machine gun could make a difference.

It ranked the side of a Sutherland, doing nothing but drawing attention as the unit returned the flavour. Lancelot's advanced sensors and cameras meant Suzaku saw the man being shot with pieces along with his machine gun. “Battle? It’s nothing but wholesale slaughter.”

“Warrant Officer.” Suzaku glanced to the side, where Cecile's face was on his screen.

“Yes, Cecile?” He asked to which the kind, patient woman was blunt with him.

“I certainly think this must be hard for you, but you're a soldier, remember that.”

Suzaku remembered it and that he had been offered a means out, but he didn't take it. He couldn't help it. He loathed this senseless death, but it was the result of these terrorists’ actions. “Yes, my Lord. My apologies for my thoughtless words.”

Cecile’s expression shifted, almost like she was trying to be encouraging. Still, she couldn't quite manage it given the current situation. “There is no need, just stick to the mission directives. This shouldn’t take too long.”

Back with the Black Knights' observation post, Diethard stood to the side. He wore a Black Knight uniform, even had his own visor to mask his identity, but he wasn’t fooled. This was still just a trial run for him, and till things ended, his membership was in limbo.

It helped that he had 2 guns trained on him, just in case he tried something.

The man hardly cared for that. He was more focused on making a mental note to study Japanese, as the rest spoke exclusively in it. Without context, he missed most of what was being said. All he knew was that Zero and his fighters still hadn't made a move.

‘Why aren’t they moving? It seems clear that Zero is using the Japan Liberation Front as a sacrificial lamb, but wouldn't it make sense to strike with Cornelia and Marrybell focused on the ship? I can't see them personally boarding it, but still.' He narrowed his eyes, as he had been the one who provided the intelligence of the Britannians' movements. Still, it was clear that the Black Knights had already drawn up plans.

‘There’s something I’m missing here.’ He concluded, opting to remain silent and keep on observing things

Back on the tanker, or more accurately, in it. The captain of the ship hadn't left his post since the attack, as it was the only place on the ship where the communications could be managed. “Is everything ready?” He asked over the line, and it took a moment before he got a response.

“They just finished. It's crude, but it'll work!” The man sighed, as things had been rigged far too quickly for his liking, but they weren't in a business that afforded ample time.

“It's better, else we're all screwed and the general's faith in us would have been squandered.” The barked back, only to duck as a stray shot pierced the glass and hit the ceiling. Down on the deck, more than half the fighters and crew were already dead, the rest fighting a losing battle.

“Dammit, can’t we do anything about those snipers?” One of them yelled, leaning out just enough to spray the shoreline with rifle fire.

“They're knightmares, sir. We don't have anything that can handle them!” another yelled as they reloaded a grenade launcher. While keeping behind cover, they aimed high and fired the shot with a thump. The grenade sailed high over the port but landed short, crashing into the water and exploding moments later.

The captain was about to make another call on the bridge when his communicator went off. It didn't say anything; it wasn't meant to. The fact that it received anything was the message designed to ensure only they would know what that was. “We got the signal, we’re good to go! Fire up the engines, we sail to our destiny!”

With his order, the vessel's engines, already active and secured despite the torpedo attacks, roared as they increased power. Beneath the waterline, the ship's giant twin propellers started to spin, churning the water white as the vessel slowly limped towards the port's entrance.

Cornelia was informed of this, but she wasn't worried. It showed they were desperate to leave, even if it meant taking to the open water in a ship riddled with holes.

'Elevens, maybe they're just suicidal fools by nature.' Cornelia pondered as she ordered to keep up the pressure and for their forces to shift forward to keep the target in their sights.

“The Britannians aren’t giving up, they’re giving chase," Ohgi commented, using English for Diethard’s benefit.

“I wouldn’t expect anything less from someone like Marrybell.” The journalist replied, though he had other thoughts on his mind. ‘Still..no, it can’t be. I’ve seen Zero stare death in the face twice now. Surely he wouldn’t be holding back out of fear of Marrybell.’

He just needs to believe that Zero would surprise him and his enemies before claiming another victory.

On the ship, the situation was growing dire, as the defenders who had taken to the main deck were a shell of their former numbers. Most were dead or dying around them, with the few survivors and those able to stand having worse to look forward to. From the water, slash harkens were fired out, all of which hooked onto the sides of the ship. “They’re boarding!”

“Fall back, fall bac-!” Someone yelled as they turned to run to the door, but was gunned down midstep.

“Kendo!” One of the others yelled, but he, too, would join his commander.

Scanning the deck, one of the first Portmans to board concluded that everyone present was dead or dying. “Enemy is fleeing into the ship, deck secured.” He relayed to his superiors, who were quick to respond.

“The Boarding team will be there in 20 seconds. Keep those Elevens' heads down, and this will be over in 30.” Some chuckled, and others let smiles form as they watched the show start to slow, believing that they had finally broken the stubborn will of the numbers aboard.

They had no clue that the vessel hadn't stopped because her crew couldn't go on. It stopped because it was right where it needed to be. This was not lost on the captain, who remained at his post on the bridge, along with his senior lieutenants. None had been sea dogs before, but they now became sea dogs. They had done their best; now all they needed to do was one last thing.

“Sir, the Britannians…”

The captain nodded. He didn't need to hear it; he didn't need to see it. The ship was lost. “I know, we’ve done our part.” But he could smile, as that had been the plan. Their comrades would live, and their general, whom they'd fought for, would continue the fight. And thanks to Zero, their deaths would ensure the damned Britannian invaders wouldn't forget them anytime soon.

So, he addressed his men with all his heart: "Men, it's been an honour.”

“The honour was ours, sir. If they have bars on the other side, first round’s on me.” One of them joked, only for another to smack his shoulder.

“Screw bars, I wouldn’t mind saying hello to my granny.” He laughed, as now…now he had no fears of his comrade’s making fun of him for being such a granny’s boy.

“We’ll have all the time on the other side, boys…all the time.” The captain turned to the console and raised his finger.  “Long live Japan!”

“Love live Japan!” With his battle cry echoed, he pressed the button, killing them all.

Line Break

As the ship’s captain pressed the button, it triggered the 2 tons of explosives onboard, tearing through the ship in what felt like the blink of an eye. As it reached the thousands of tons of liquid sakuradite carried, the blast grew hotter, larger, and deadlier.

The ship hadn’t just been rigged to blow in the last minute, it had always been intended to explode and thus, it had been turned into the biggest shrapnel grenade. Aboard was 2000 tons of loose metals from smaller things which could be found in IEDs like nails, bolts and scarp metal, to large steel tools, rebar and chunks of steel and tungsten the size of human head. It was carefully placed in the exterior passageways and outbound tanks, encasing the explosive trigger and liquid sakuradite charger.

The result of this planning was that when it went up, it went up with a thunderous explosion that lit up the entire port and could be heard as far as the Tokyo settlement. Those close enough could see the blazing pink fireball clawing into the sky, painting the harbour in a bright, searing light. The blast wave flowered in an instant, crashing into the port. The simple warehouses stood no chance and were demolished as if made of paper. At the same time, the studier, heavier equipment like the cranes didn't fare much better, only lasting moments longer before they too were destroyed.

However, it wasn't the end of the danger, as if anything had managed to survive the initial blast wave, then the shrapnel would handle them. Moving faster than sound, molten hot pieces of metal were sent in every direction. Suzaku activated his Blaze luminous and put it to full power, as wide as possible, to protect himself and the 3 others. Still, he could only watch as others were knocked over or shredded, their pilots barely having time to scream before they were killed.

Out on the water, a towering column of spray surged outwards as the sea itself was driven back, sending massive waves into the port. The vibrations and pressure waves generated slammed into submerged Portmans, knocking them all over, as many ended up crashing or being struck by debris.

At last, the roar of the explosion faded into silence, leaving nothing but ruin in its wake.

Cornelia blinked. The woman was confused, as she could hear nothing but ringing, and her body felt like it had been hit hard.

“lia!”

Was…was that a voice? Who was it? And why did they sound so damn far away? Wasn't she with Guilford and Dalton just a moment ago?

“neliia!”

There it was again, but it was still distant.

“Princess Cornelia, are you all right?" Her hearing cleared just enough that she could make out Guilford's voice. Blinking, she managed to spot the man at her side, his uniform torn and dirty as smoke and ash filled the air.

“What happened?" Cornelia asked, though she could barely hear herself speak as Guilford and Dalton helped her to her feet. The larger veteran was just as dirty, if not more so, than she and Guilford.

"The tanker exploded." Dalton grimely reported, ignoring his wounds from the blast to focus on his princess.

"What?!" Cornelia yelled, breaking free of their hold and ignoring their warnings about her safety as she went to the entrance. As she did so, she looked around and saw that the warehouse was gone, its roof peeled back like a can, its walls crumbling. Bodies lay everywhere, with their knightmares either destroyed or under the debris.

Reaching the entrance, or what was left of it, she could only look out in stunned horror. The port, one of the busiest in Area 11 and handling 40% of Tokyo Settlement's maritime trade, was in shambles. For hundreds of meters in all directions, barely anything was still standing. Large cranes were little more than tipping wrecks of bent metal. Fires big and small raged across the place.

When she looked out to where the ship had been, she didn't see anything—not a single sign that a massive tanker had been there to begin with. In its place, there were only shattered remnants drifting through the angry water—no bodies, no Portmans, no nothing.

Line Break

“Holy…” Ohgi's jaw had dropped when the bomb had gone off, as he had known it would be big. Still, there was a difference in knowing it would be, and feeling their concrete structure around you shake and groan from the blast despite being over a kilometer away.

As he and others got up and looked at the destruction, they saw the port cloaked in smoke and flames. What remained of the Britannians seemed dazed, unable to comprehend what had just happened. Others rushed about, trying to re-establish order or find survivors. Though Ohgi doubted they'd find anyone alive in the water, a blast like that would have left nothing but ash.

“Ohgi, report.” Ohgi jumped when Zero's voice came over the radio.

“E-The plan worked, Zero! I’m seeing at least half the knightmares in the area down or damaged.” Ohgi reported, unseen by him or anyone else. Lelouch smiled at the news. He and the rest felt the blast and heard it as well, but now they had confirmation.

“Then we move on to the second part of our plan. We're going to rush Cornelia's position headlong. All forces, prepare for battle, don't let either princess escape!” Zero ordered, Ohgi confirming it as he had them start to pack up. They would need to get moving fast before reinforcements arrived and possibly found the.

All the while, Diethard had to work hard to keep his thoughts from spilling out of his lips; the man forced to keep his smile to a light one instead of the mad crackle he wished to unleash as it all fell together. ‘Now I see it, Zero, you craft bastard, you’ve done it again!’

'The JLF was just bait, no-not bait, they were living trap! You knew Cornelia and Marrybell would want them dead, so you let them get close, get confident as they walked into it, and when they got close enough, boom! Slaughtering all their Portmans, dozens of others, throwing the rest into confusion, and best of all, creating an opening you can exploit to strike at Cornelia!' He felt a pure sense of glee at the facts, at how Zero seemed to be far greater than any man, then any thing-he was a force of nature, destruction given form!

‘Just like Narita, more…show me more! There has to be more! Let your mastery of mayhem, your bloodlust engulf the world!’ This was just what he wished, and he knew it was only the beginning of the madness.

Line break

“Damned suicide loving monkeys…” One of the Sutherland pilots grumbled, his head feeling like it had been hit with a bat. He looked around, trying to spot if there was anyone they could save, only for his factsphere to activate and send a warning out. “Wait, what-!”

He wouldn't finish his sentence as from the water, 2 speedboats sped towards him as fast as they could, the vessels raised themselves in the water, acting more like planes then boats which only gave them greater speed as she flew off it, one of which crashed into his in it, killing him before they smashed into one of the few remaining walls in the area.

“E-enemy attack!”

“From where? The JLF just killed themselves!”

Suzaku was helping them pull out the few Portmans that had been lucky not to be wiped out in that suicide attack, and now they were getting reports of additional enemy forces? “Why would the general kill himself? There was no way that was just an accident, but he would never…”

He glanced at where the call came from and felt his heart stop as he saw it was right where Cornelia had been. Suddenly, it started making more sense.

“The main force? No, could they have used the tanker as a trap?” He asked himself.

With Cornelia, they heard the crash and radio chatter inside the warehouse ruins. Thus, as wounded as he was, Dalton rushed towards his Gloucester, one of the few still standing. “All pilots, find anything that can move and form a defensive perimeter, on the double!” He yelled as the rest scrambled to find units they could board. In contrast, other soldiers worked like their feet to the coals to dig out others, even if only enough for pilots to get into the cockpits.

“How did they know we were here?” Cornelia asked herself.

Finding her unit, she cursed as it was a wreck, its arm gone, and its cockpit smashed into by a piece of debris the size of her torso. Guilford close behind her. “Your Highness, you need to evacuate now!”

“In what?” she yelled, but she saw his unit. It had been parked next to hers, and while damaged, it still looked like it could fight. So, she grabbed him and ordered, "Guilford, you're piloting; my unit's down."

Guilford looked like he wished to argue, but thought otherwise just as fast. “Yes, your Highness.”

The 2 speedboats' covers retracted, revealing their complement of knightmares. The Guren was in front of the first, and to its rear sat the newly released monster, the successor to the Nemesis, which their Kyoto contact informed them was given the name Nemesis Kagero.

Lelouch shifted the controls, smiling as he felt its smoothness. Its parts were purpose-built and brand new, and the joints and slides were well-oiled and designed. Most importantly, its new systems were all running without issue.

He could admit that he looked forward to seeing what this could do. “The blast should have taken out a good chunk of their number, but don’t get cocky. Knock the rest into the sea before their pilots can mount them, Q-1, you’re me, we’re hunting down the royals.” He ordered as he pushed the controls, and without so much as a creek or a moan, the Nemesis leaped over the rest of their units and rushed ahead.

“Right!” Kallen was quick on his heel as they stormed the enemy's main lines, barely finding any position. What tried to stop them met a quick end from Guren’s radiant wave surger or was shot to pieces by C.C., the two pilots moving in perfect sync.

Inside, Guilford had just sat down and started to power up his Gloucester. "Your highness, I strongly advise we leave things to-!"

Cornelia cut him off when she sat on top of him. However, he could hardly take any embarrassment or joy in having his princess on his lap when the situation was so dire. "How often do you think I'll let them mock me?" Before he could respond, they spotted something in the smoke, and a moment later, it burst forth from it. It slammed into them, carrying their unit out of the warehouse ruins and into the open.

“What?” Guilford yelled, as he hadn’t even finished the power-up process.

Cornelia held on for dear life, or else she would knock her head into the side of the cockpit. But even as she did that, she could still keep an eye on their feed, and while it didn't look like it was built from scraps and hope, she could recognise its design. "Dammit, that unit type—it's him, isn't it, Zero?" she asked, her question broadcast out over the radio as Guilford fired his slash harken.

Zero only had to flick the controls for one of their front legs to smack the thing to the side, before it stomped down onto the cord, its landspinner locking it in place. “Indeed it is, Cornelia, and you won't be escaping this time."

“Princess Cornelia!” The rest of Cornelia's royal guard, those left capable of combat, had seen that happen. Dalton was the first to try to rush to her aid, only to be stopped when another new enemy model rushed him, its sword reminding him of what Guilford reported Todhoh and his Four Holy Swords had used.

Swinging his lance out, he caught the blade, keeping it back from his body but also keeping him in place. Urabe quickly disengaged from his blade lock and lifted his right arm, revealing its mounted gun. Dalton saw it and pulled back, dodging the gunfire. He grabbed a dropped gun of his own and tried to return the fire, but Urabe was much more mobile than him.

Urabe chuckled, as this wasn’t nearly as hard as it would have been otherwise. “This thing performs a hell of a lot better than a Burai. It's a shame we're not planning to stay long; I would have liked a good fight to get used to it.”

He followed his role as long as he kept this once busy, or better yet, killed him. Like the rest, who had already knocked over or disabled another 6 knightmares, their pilots were forced to flee or get trampled by the mechanical giants battling through the ruins of the port.

As her lover was keeping their foot on the Slash Harkens cable, Cornelia was forced to detach it, but it didn’t help her much as C.C. had their newly acquired main cannon locked on her, and the princess knew it. Still, they couldn’t capture her like this, so they had Kallen. “Q-1, take out her limbs, we’ll take the entire cockpit.”

“Understood.” Kallen moved to just that, Guilford sweating as he found himself cornered. They didn't even have a weapon, and they didn't have time to grab either a lance or a gun.

“I don’t think so!” Help could come from above, as a new knightmare leapt into the fray, its red and gold colours denoting its affiliation. Its pilots had already drawn one of their blades and were about to plunge it into the top of the surprised Nemesis, only for the blade to crash into a familiar green hard light shield.

For the rest, the arrival of the Lancelot Grail was a surprise. It was a surprise for Guilford and Cornelia, seeing Zero's knightmare display Britannian cutting-edge technology, and the Black Knights, who recognised the design and realized it had to be a Lancelot derivative.

“Wait, isn’t that?” Within the Lancelot Grial, Oldrin was having a surprise of her own.

“A Blaze Luminous? But how?” Cornelia asked when the Black Knights reverse-engineered this? Was it stolen? How would that annoying excuse for an Earl have made so much noise if they had?

Seeing she couldn't pierce its shields, Oldrin pulled back right as the Lancelot Prime arrived, along with Marrybell, piloting the Lancelot Trial. Kallen quickly closed the distance between her and Zero as they faced off against the 3 Lancelots.

Suzaku clenched at his controls, as he had seen Zero’s defence, and recognised it for what it was. Even if not, Lloyd and Cecile’s reaction to his feed of the battle would have clued him in.

He didn't give them much thought or attention, as, despite their numbers, Zero wasn't a run-of-the-mill terrorist. Even in a clearly inferior model, he put up a better fight than most, but in one that had his shields. If he wasn't wrong about its main gun's appearance, a variant of the V.A.R.I.S., then they couldn’t take this lightly.

“Zero, you keep gaining power, for what? Can’t you see your methods won’t work? All you're doing is spreading more destruction, more death! Was this not enough for you? Will you just keep killing till you're satisfied?" Suzaku asked, as he had seen it happen, from start to finish. He saw so many being killed, blown to pieces, or shredded by shrapnel, it was just like Narita when Zero buried people alive just to try and kill Cornelia.

Popping 2 of their advanced Facstphere sensors, Zero kept a good eye on the new threats, though he didn’t ignore Cornelia either. “Just our luck, just like Narita, when the princess is in danger, her knight in white comes to her aid. And he brings reinforcements, twin in crimson, which can only mean one thing.”

Kallen bit her lip, as Lelouch had been quite clear on the Glinda Knights and the danger they posed. It was why Tohdoh had agreed to the plan to blow up the tanker, as they had intended for their counterterrorism force to be caught in it, but it seems like that didn't happen.

More than that, they had no idea that Marrybell would enter the battle in a 7th gen knightmare, and if it was even half as good as its white brother, then this wouldn't be an easy fight.

Marrybell surveyed the field, her eyes jumping from each fighter, her lips softly pressed together even as her mind worked to break down everything before she spoke. "Guilford, get sister Cornelia out of here. There is no way you two can fight in that condition."

“You expect me to run?” Yes, she had expected that from her sister, so prideful at the worst of times.

“The JLF are dead and all matters relating to terrorists are my jurisdiction, so I’m not asking, I’m ordering you, sister,” Marrybell replied, before a wide smile formed on her face as she looked at her pray, at the masked man she had longed to kill ever since he announced he was why she was down another brother.

She drew one of her MVS blades and readied her V.A.R.I.S. "Get out of here before I shoot your legs out and have the Lancelot carry you out."

“At once, Princess Marrybell.” It wasn't her prideful sister who confirmed her order, but her dutiful knight. How nice, she had assumed Guilford was dead or unable to fight when she didn't spot him on the way here, as she had Dalton.

Cornelia looked at Guilford angrily within the Gloucester, but he could see hurt in her gaze. “Guilford.”

The man sighed, as he knew this wouldn’t end with this. “It’s the only smart play we have, your highness.”

“Zero, it’s the Glinda Knights, they’re coming out of the woodwork and attacking us. I’m holding them back, but we have little time!” Urabe yelled as he and Zero’s squad had been attacked out of nowhere by units of the Glinda Knights, the Holy Sword forced to play a dangerous game of tag with them as one of them, a hulking unit that looked like a bodybuilder variant of a knightmare, was trying to hit him with an insane energy cannon.

In that same engagement, Tink maneuvered the large, lumbering Zetland to keep the Black Knight machine in his sights, taking shots when he could with its experimental Mega Hadron Launcher. He could feel the jolt from each shot, even with all the padding and braces.

Urabe tried to take advantage of the clear and vast speed difference between them, but Dalton, down to one arm, wasn't making it easy. Worse, others were joining in the fight or helping to dig out other units that pilots could rush into.

Zero glanced at his IFF and saw more of them arriving. “They must have been stationed quite a distance away to avoid being caught in the blast; that isn't something Cornelia would have done.”

“Perhaps they saw through your plan?” C.C. suggested, as this wasn’t ideal for them.

“Maybe, but we can ask her that when we capture her," Zero replied as Cornelia's unit turned and sped off. Soon, it vanished into the smoke.

“You didn’t give chase.” Marrybell blinked, mildly surprised the coward hadn’t tried to shoot her sister in the back.

With Cornelia gone, Zero could wheel his unit to fully face Marrybell, the woman having perched atop some shipping containers, some of the few not toppled or wrecked in the blast. “I can settle for one princess tonight.”

She felt a flash of hot, near-blinding levels of hatred at his response, but she clamped down on it. “Bold, we’ll see how bold when I have you in an interrogation room,”

“No surrender demand?” Oh, she hated how arrogant he sounded

“As if you would take it, you might be a cowardly terrorist rat, but you’re far too much of a fool to know when you surrender. So, I’ll just crush you first.” But it would make breaking him all the sweeter before she separated his head from his shoulders and delivered it to his majesty. The corpse could remain behind as a sign of what happened to terrorists.

Zero saw the red Lancelot twitch and immediately acted on it. “Q-1, Take out the princess!”

“Right!” Kallen rushed it, her radiant wave surger ready to kill Marrybell.

“I won’t let you-!” The White Lancelot tried to get in the way, but had to deploy its shield when the Nemesis fired, the V.A.R.I.S. shot, hitting a lot harder than its older tank rounds. The Nemesis, for its part, deployed its shields right as the second red Lancelot, which Zero mentally coined the Lancelot Dualist, tried to swing on it.

“So the one with multiple blades doesn’t have a ranged weapon?” Zero mused as he navigated the melee with the Lancelot Dualist, which, despite its inability to land a good blow, didn't slow. Lancelot's entering only added to the pressure as it deployed its own V.A.R.I.S. and his own MVS blades, rushing in and pulling back, each time trying to attack, deflect, and divert their attention.

“It still has its slash harkens, boyo.” C.C. reminded him that as the Lancelot fired them, the slash harkens seemingly heading straight for them, only for them to divert into completely different directions.

“I am aware,” Zero replied as he swung them around, avoiding the first slash harken while their shields blocked the second. A warning came just in time as the Lancelot Dualist charged, only for the unit to leap back, bouncing off a still upright shipping container as the Nemesis tried to tag her with its smaller, but still dangerous autocannons. But it’s not nearly as much of a threat as the other 2.”

Oldrin grunted as she saw them levelling their smaller, less powerful autocannons and firing. She didn't have a Blaze like her master or the main Lancelot, but she couldn't tell them. “Kururugi, back me up! We take him down, we take out the Black Knights!” She ordered, pulling out a second MVS blade.

“Yes, my Lord!” Suzaku was quick to fall in line as they upped the pressure.

On the other side of the container remains the Guren, who is battling with Marrybel and her Lancelot Trial. Kallen could immediately tell it wasn’t nearly as high spec as the white one they’ve been dealing with, or maybe the pilot wasn’t as good, but she wasn’t able to capitalise on that and just kill the bitch as she seemed to be the much more experienced fighter, and was keen at reading her moves.

Bringing up her Blaze right as hr foe slammed her claw into it, Marrybell felt its arm strain even as he protected it and her from the super concentrated radiation and heat that would otherwise kill her. “Yes, I can see how this unit has been such an issue for sister, but,” Seeing an opening, she tried to stab at the Guren, the unit pulling back, but not without getting a small cut across its chest.

Flicking her blade to the side, as if to remove her opponents’ blood, Marrybell smiled, her eyes hungry. “I'm not going to be easy for you to beat, rat.”

Kallen growled, as it would have been one thing if the white Lancelot damaged her, but she wouldn't let this princess, in a shittier version of it, claim that and not lose a limb for three. “Bring it on, your royal bitch! I beat Cornelia, I sure as hell can beat you!”

Kallen charged, rushing the Marrybell, who jumped back, putting distance between them as she took pot shots at her. Still, Kallen dodged them, swinging her unit in wide arcs, even slowing down to mess with the princess's aim. When she saw an opening, she took it and slammed into Marrybell. The princess kept calm to properly assess things even as her Blaze was overwhelmed, and she had to sacrifice a harm to keep in the fight.

Armed with just her V.A.R.I.S., she should be scared, but she didn't feel such a thing. Her blood was rushing through her veins, her heart was racing, and she could almost taste death looming close to her.

And she loved it. This thrill, this moment, she could never live without it, for what was death when you weren't dancing with death? And what greater wine was there then to engage with a rat like this red beast and put her down.

So, she didn't retreat, she didn't pause; she happily threw herself right back into the fight. “Well then? I'm right here, rat. Try and best me!”

Line Break

“Zero, we have an issue?” Urabe came on over the radio.

“More of them?” Zero asked, his attention split between the Lancelot and Lancelot Dualist, as they kept him from aiding Kallen in defeating Marrybell and capturing her. Honestly, even with C.C. as his co-pilot, it was a challenge just to keep in the fight themselves, as shields or no, it wasn't as if they created a perfect dome, nor was it energy cheap to constantly use them.

“Partly, yeah, but one of them is flying-crap!” Urabe cursed, and C.C. was surprised that Britannian had a flying one now. At the same time, Zero took precious few seconds to scan his IFF screens,. He confirmed, one enemy was moving far too fast to be a ground unit, certainly when the terrain was filled with holes, cracks, and debris.

'So they completed a working Float Unit then?' He could only conclude. Urabe managed to get back on the radio, seemingly fine if a little winded by the intense fight. “Damn thing is acting like an old dive bomber but with a cannon that would make a tank Jealous, it’s already taken out 6 of our people.”

C.C. frowned. They hadn't brought too many people, so those weren't losses they could ignore, but there was also the slow one, which seemed to have been fitted with a stronger version of the V.A.R.I.S. Urabe didn't have shields; a single hit could take him out.

"Should we try to take it out?" She asked, as their Nemesis didn’t just have new weapons.

Swinging their unit, Zero evaded a stab from the Dualist, only to get kicked in the face by the Lancelot, the masked man activating their shields just before the Lancelot could fire its V.A.R.I.S. and cripple them.

He considered C.C.'s words, but glanced again at the I.F.F. screens and then towards their energy filler before he made his choice. “…No, it would do more harm than good.”

Line Break

With Kallen, she kept the pressure on Marrybell, the woman managing to grab onto her remaining MVS and fire the RWS. Marrybell tossed the weapon at the Guren, trying to get one last use out of it, but Kallen flicked it aside with her knife, the sword blowing up to the side as she closed the gap.

Going in for another attack, she aimed not to kill but to do just enough damage to pry the cockpit loose and make a break for it. Such plans hit a brick wall when the Marrybell pushed her unit to kick the Guren.

Kallen felt it, but wondered what the princess was doing as that blow didn't have enough power behind it. That was something Marrybell knew, but it was just a means to create an opening, as with her off hand, she pulled it back to its side to draw her second blade, slamming through its protocol programs beforehand so that it powered up while in its sheath, damaging it.

She did more damage as she didn't so much pull it out as she cut it out, all to perform a quick, underhanded slash at the Guren, aiming at the Right arm and eliminating its biggest threat. Kallen had seen the attack coming and again pulled back. Still, she wasn't fast enough and instead, pushed her Guren’s right side into the attack, allowing the MVS to cut deep into its chest, disabling her lone slash harken.

“Shit!” Kallen swore as she backed up.

Marrybell's laughter was getting on her nerves. The woman was down an army, her rifle, and only one sword, a sword she knew Kallen could destroy. “Come on, rat. You must have more in the rank. Don't you want me dead?”

Before Kallen could snap back, Zero's voice came over her radio, transmitted to all their forces. “All Black Knights, retreat. I repeat, retreat! We gain nothing by continuing this battle. Make your way to the secondary evac points, deploy chaff to cover your tracks!”

Kallen so badly wanted to ignore that and keep fighting, but if the rest were pulling out, it was only a matter of time before the princess's shining knights showed up, and she was overwhelmed. “Another day, your royal bitch.” Kallen ground out as she backed away, firing off her chaff as she vanished into the smoke.

"I don't think so-!" Marrybell moved to follow, a ravenous smile on her face

“All forces, don’t pursue! The priority is the Viceroy and Princess Marrybell. Secure their positions!”

“Dalton…” Marrybell stopped, and for a moment or 3, contemplated killing the scarred man for getting in her way. But she calmed, thought about it, and couldn't disagree with him rationally. “Glinda Knights, this is Marybell…you heard the general. Don’t chase them.”

As she looked her unit over, almost as an afterthought, she made another call on a Glinda Knight exclusive line. “And Leonhardt? Locate where my dear sister vanished before she gets it in her head she can try to kill Zero as he and his false knights flee."

Line Break

After an impromptu week-long delay, we're back with chapter 43. I must admit that I wanted to get this done last week, but I could hardly use my laptop. By the time I got it fixed, I started work on other projects, as it would have been too late to bother.

However, that isn't the case now, and I have so many ideas for this. For now, we're going to focus on this coming battle, the first one between Marrybell and Lelouch, Glinda Knights vs. Black Knights. Both sides have some surprises and good firepower.