Chapter 20: The Red and the Black

Inoue, much like the rest of the Black Knights, had to form some sort of resistance to the stunts that Zero pulled. She had been against him entering the cell along with the superpowered, crazy girls. She didn't want someone to misunderstand; she didn't see them as monsters or wish harm or any ill-will onto them; their hospital patient grab, which covered far too little for girls, combined with the type of place this was painted a picture of them having gone through more horror than people quadruple their age.

Still, the fact was that when she and Yoshida had nearly been killed by the quartet…well, 2 of them really, the speedster and the one with what seemed like the strength of 10 men at least. When they saw them, they had been near feral, screaming and hissing in barely understandable Britannian. It was a miracle that the fast-Alice was her name, hadn't gotten her knife as she had tried to, else she would have slashed her throat.

So yes, she felt for these girls—you'd need to be apathetic or a monster not to—but she also knew that they needed a plan and probably some means to transport the cell wholesale to get them out. And yet Zero disagreed. He had asked to enter by himself, and while she wasn't eager for round 2, she would have liked to go in with him.

Much to her relief, he hadn't been attacked as soon as he entered and managed to hold a conversation with them, which at least proved that they weren't too far gone. But then he decided that his life wasn't in enough danger as it was and ordered that she turn off the cameras and mics.

She had been expecting that if she turned them back on, she'd find him nothing more than a bloody mess. Still, instead, as if the entire day hadn't been enough of a confusing roller-coaster, she saw Zero seated against the wall, with all four girls holding onto him like he was the only real thing they had…maybe he was, as after whatever hell they had been put through, their masked leader must have been the closest thing to the safety of a parental embrace they’ve had.

Exiting, it was clear that Alice and Lucretia seemed especially clingy to him, so she signaled the rest not to question it. When they arrived, their captives, who had already been on edge, all went pale as ghosts, seeing their test subjects out of their cage. When the four girls saw their captive researchers, they each had a unique reaction. Lucretia buried her head into Zero's chest, Alice hid behind him, Dalque started hyperventilating, and lastly, Sancia looked like she would try and murder the researchers then and there.

“They can’t hurt you anymore." Inoue had no clue how Zero's voice could sound so inhuman yet convey such certainty and care. She also noticed that he spoke in Britannian, just like he had done when he had gone to speak with the four girls before.

Just that statement seemed to dull the girl's reaction, though it didn't help any of the assembled Black Knights with their rage. Not even clueless Tamaki could miss the signs of how badly they had to be treated to have such a negative response.

“We're leaving. Kallen's waiting in the stolen Portman. She'll act as our escort.” Zero directed them before his gaze fell on a random member of their captives. “You.” Like a switch had been flipped, the warmth in his voice, that care he conveyed to the four girls vanished, leaving something closer to the grinding jaws of death—unfeeling, uncaring…unescapable.

“y-Yes?” The woman asked, to which Zero pulled out his knife, the same some a few of them had seen him use to slash throats and gut anyone that got in their way.

“Stutter, and I'll slowly drive my knife into your pathetic, corrupt knee. Is there another boat?” He asked, the threat looming over all their captive's heads as they knew that if the first failed, Zero would randomly pick someone else.

“Yes!” The woman, close to wetting herself, rapidly nodded her head. She answered the follow-up questions about where it was and how many people he could hold without issue.

“Good, we'll use it to transport you all. K-3 will manage that boat. You have my permission to deal with any troublemakers as you see fit. Frankly, I don’t care if half of them never set foot on dry land.” Inoue nodded at her marching orders, as it would be a challenge to control some 30 people even if they had everyone on the same boat. Still, their captives thoroughly understood how little their lives meant right now and could see how little it would take for any of their captors to put one or more down like they did the rest.

“And you?” Yoshida asked.

“I’ll ride with B2. Let’s move.” It was just Tamaki who didn't pick up that Zero made the choice to keep the rescued girls away from their captives, both because it would be cruel to keep them close and because at least one of them was liable to try and murder a few of them without…recent provocation.

“Yes, sir!” With that, Inoue directed their captives and most of their people towards where that second, larger boat should be waiting for them, leaving Zero with just Q-2 at his side, who had remained largely silent when he appeared with the four.

“Why are they still alive?” To Zero’s mild surprise, it wasn’t the confrontational and protective Sancia that asked such a callous question, but Alice, who shivered like a newborn calf against him.

Without thinking, he shifted her and Lucretia so that they were to his front, where he brought them close, his cape covering them like a security blanket. “Because I plan to extract every piece of intelligence I can from them. Then I’ll put them down.” Of course, it was proper to keep them alive, even scum like them, but at present, they lacked the proper facilities to house them. Sadly, he would need to correct that in the future, but that didn't mean he wasn't pleased to send some sinners down to hell.

Line Break

As their captive told them, they found a boat, more a yacht than anything else. Minami arrived right as they were loading up the captives and, upon seeing their masked leader with four girls in far too little clothing, decided it was best to ask questions later and silently wait for the 6 to board. Once on, they left behind the burning wreck of the research plant. Zero checked in with Ohgi and learned that while they found stiffer-than-expected resistance, they suffered only minor damage and were waiting at the rendezvous point.

The entire ride back, their boat was silent as C.C. watched as Lelouch effortlessly tended to their guests…no, not effortlessly; it was more than that. It was more like he just slid into this paternal role without thinking. She could feel how his mask shifted, how his gaze made sure to check up on them, tending to any that seemed to need it, even if it was as little as gently grasping their hand and squeezing it.

'How strange, a child of Charles to be so caring,' C.C. mused, but she didn't interrupt, as while she wished to act, she didn't quite know how…or maybe it was that she didn't feel like she had the right.

With the adrenaline of their rescue fading now that they finally seemed safe, Lucretia had dozed off in the hour it took for her to get back to shore. The team was forced to move slower as the larger yacht was much slower. Still, with Kallen acting as their escort and scout, they avoided detection from the Coast Guard, who was scrambling to get to the wreck they had left behind.

“Lucretia, wake up. We reached land.” Dalque pocked her friend and fellow test subject, the sleepy girl rising quickly, a little too quick for Zero’s liking.

“Okay.” She rubbed the sleep from her eyes.

“I promise you you'll get a chance to have a warm meal and a soft bed to sleep in later, but we need to get off the boat now; we've reached shore.” Zero told them. Ohgi met that at the waterline and, much like Minami, didn't question their quests.

The yacht and boat disposed of, and they retreated into the tunnels, the four girls riding back in the now empty trailer that the Nemesis was pulling along while their captives were marched through the tunnels for 2 straight hours; it was as they were about to collapse that they were given respite when Zero called a break.

After leaving three people watching over their captives and C.C. with the girls, he walked his commanders to a quiet place to discuss things.

“I don’t notice anyone missing.” Zero commented, looking over his assembled group.

“Like I said, we didn’t take any losses on our end," Ohgi confirmed, though he was just as happy to see everyone was alive from the boat and rig mission.

“If we were spotted, we would have been slaughtered or lost at sea.” Minami didn't mince his words, as being spotted out there without reason or just by a racist patrol could have been their end.

“Good. As for the mission, it was a resounding success. We not only hit Code-R but also managed to capture sensitive data and captives and free four of their victims. Remember this feeling.” Zero told them, to which Tamaki puffed out his chest.

“It was pretty satisfying to put down those sick bastards.” He boasted, angry about what he had seen. Yes, but he was just as pleased to have put a bloody stop to it.

“Not that, Tamaki, that,” Zero directed his and everyone's attention to the four girls, to who C.C. was giving some of the rations he packed into his Nemesis. It was dry and near tasteless, but they should hold them over till he could get them a proper meal and clothing. “We exist to avenge the deceased, honor their sacrifice, and protect the world and its people. If not for us, those four would still live through what I can only describe as hell.” Zero affirmed, which got some positive responses, such as fighting to protect, which most of them signed up for.

“We also put those who had suffered at the hands of Code-R to rest, allowing them eternal peace.” Zero’s reminder of what he had to do with the rest of the test subjects lowered the mood, but they could understand that it was the best of a bad situation.

However, they had people who very much created that bad situation, all looking drained, hungry, and fearful as their 3 people, including one in a knightmare, kept a close eye on them. “I'm not arguing that that was another big win, though I doubt that it would make as much news as Shinjuku, but what are we going to do with…all of them?” Ohgi asked.

Zero was silent for a moment before he replied with a question. “Do you have a place that can hold prisoners in the ghettos?”

“I mean, yeah, we have a few spots. It'll be cramped, though.” Ohgi glanced at Inoue and Minami, as they would know this sort of information, and neither refuted him.

“Define craft, Ohgi.”

“We have a couple of rooms in our base that lock from the outside, no windows or anything like that, but the biggest one can only hold 20 at best.” Ohgi wouldn't pretend to like any of them. He might not have seen what the others had, but considering what Clovis was willing to do to cover it up, he could come up with a few guesses.

Still, they couldn’t just pack them into an unventilated room like sardines; the place didn't even have a toilet as it was just a storage room. That was just asking to turn it into a breeding ground for a fifth disease.

“Any smaller ones?” Ohgi shook his head, Inoue adding that their other storage sites were repurposed from less secure buildings. I see, well, I'll wire you some funds through Kallen. You'll upgrade another spot to hold half of them. For now, they'll have to make sure with the cramped space.”

Hearing her name, Kallen blinked. That seemed…weird, but then again, she was the only one with the means to access Britannian banking services.

“And the girls?” Kallen brought up the other issue, though she had a good idea of how to handle it. “Pretty sure you don’t plan to lock them up as well, but they’ll stick out in the ghettos.”

Zero agreed with her, but he couldn't reveal his hand. “They don't seem to understand Japanese, so it would be much harder for them to blend. Besides, the ghettos are notorious for how vigilant and hostile their residents can be, especially after Shinjuku and now Saitama. I don't wish to put them in a stressful situation.”

Before he could spin some tale of an ally in the settlement who would help and wouldn’t ask too many questions, Kallen beat him to the punch. “Well…what about at my school?”

While that was his idea, it wasn't one the others would take to so easily and rightfully to set aside himself; Ashford was truly a unique school. “You’re serious?” Yoshida asked.

When she nodded, it was Sugiyama who asked the next sensible question. “How would you even manage them?”

“I can talk with the student council vice president; he's…not your typical Britannian,” Lelouch noticed that she turned her eyes toward him for a moment, and he got a feeling that it wasn't just because she was seeking Zero's approval. I have a feeling he wouldn’t be against helping me on this.” Was it…perhaps that she'd started suspecting him again? For what reason?

He'll have to look into that later, but he has other concerns right now.

“Are you sure about that?” Ohgi asked, knowing how little she liked school. Now that he thought about it, she wasn't complaining about it as much, so maybe there had been some positives there. They had to be if she thought she could ask something out of nowhere and extreme of this VP of hers.

Again, she nodded, so he backed off, trusting her judgment. “Well, it's worth a shot. Besides, if nothing else, the normalcy of a school might do them so good.”

Yoshida sighed in relief. “It's a weight off our shoulders, as we don't have enough people to handle all the tasks, take care of the prisoners, watch them, and build a DIY prison. We'll need to recruit some people for that last part.”

“We'll need to keep it vague. The last thing we need is for it to leak that we have them and Britannia returning to reclaim them," Inoue suggested, but that wasn’t enough for Zero.

“Then we'll recruit more. Today showed us that we must adapt and confront Britannia in battle and matters such as this. To do so, we'll become something greater than we are. A people, an army-a nation.” He declared that this was only the beginning. His quest to see Britannian burn and a new world rise from the ashes could not be done by just a rag-tag group of people; they'll need to start a movement, recruit hundreds-no, tens of thousands from fighters to logistics. Even more than that, as the people need to buy into this.

Finishing up some other things, Zero concluded their mission and instructed them to return. “Kallen, you're with us. We'll be heading the same way as you were before, and it would be prudent if you spent some time with the girls.”

Kallen looked towards them, finding that they were huddled together, both for warmth and probably security. Nodding towards Zero, she walked past him towards them, but not before adding, “Good, there’s something about my vice president we need to discuss anyway.”

“What about the Portman?” Ohgi, who hadn’t heard Kallen’s last line, asked as Kallen hadn’t ditched it like they had the boats.

“Q-2, could you pilot it back for us? I'd like to study it before so we can perhaps produce our own maritime models.” Zero requested, to which C.C. turned from watching over the girls and looked towards the naval-based war machine.

“Sure.” C.C. agreed as it would be better than the awkwardness of trying to connect with the irregulars.

Line break

Getting through the last security point, Zero steered the Nemesis into its slot. It was a shame he had to leave the Bull, but he had confirmed its self-destruct went off, so it would be little more than a scarp when it was found. “Just what is this place?” Kallen asked, looking around the place and seeing how it had to have been a subway station, but now it was something completely different.

“It’s the Null base.” C.C. volunteered, to which Zero groaned.

“Please don’t call it that, I’ve never had a name for it.” Zero reminded her, but it seemed like a lost cause as Alice was already mumbling the name, no doubt memorizing it. Helping the irregulars out of the trailer before heading to the closest. Opening it, he found that it had clothing, but as it all had been bought second hand at dirt cheap, they had been in poor condition when he got them.

Still, it was his best, so he grabbed whatever he thought would fit them and returned to the girls.

“Apologies, but I moved out most of the clothing a while ago. You'll need to make do with this.” Zero told them, but the four quickly grabbed them, eager to finally get into something that wasn’t so humiliatingly bare.

“It’s fine,” Sancia told him, looking over the old, worn red shirt. It had a hole in it, but it wasn’t too bad. However, there was a slight issue as she blushed and looked around. “Do…do you have somewhere we can change?”

“Right this way,” Zero led them to the wash space, which didn't have a door or walls but curtains that he had installed, pulling on them; Dalque noted that they could pull the entire way, acting as a door and wall in one. We’ll wait for you to join us.” Stepping back, he left them to get dressed in peace. As he walked over to his computer and sat, he released a slight sigh of exhaustion after their taxing day.

Kallen seemed to have been waiting for him, and when he sat, she didn’t mince her words. “You’re Lelouch.”

Zero didn't flinch, twitch, or act in any way that could imply he had any connection to that name. However, she seemed confident if she had switched to Britannian over her preferred Japanese. “Any why, pray tell, you would assume that’s my name?”

Kallen glared at him. "Shirley mentioned the truck accident and how it just so happened to end up close to Shinjuku," She revealed, which made him frown as he could see where she was doing. "It might fool them, but not me."

“You got careless.” C.C. decided it wasn't worth pretending and just came out with it.

“How was I supposed to know a terrorist knightmare pilot would be in my homeroom?” Zero started as he reached for his mask, released the clamps, and pulled it off, setting it on the table. "I worked with what I had then to create a convincing lie, especially one that explains the scar on my face."

Kallen, seeing his face, immediately reached for her gun, only to feel someone push her forward, and a moment later, she felt the barrel of her gun digging into her back. “What the-!”

“Alice,” Lelouch stopped the girl, the other irregulars having also appeared. While he had questions about just how Alice could move that fast, that would come after he ensured she didn't kill his best pilot. "I would like if you didn't harm her."

Alice didn't seem to share how calm he was, glaring at the girl she was threatening. “She was reaching for a gun.”

"She wouldn't have wished to speak with me if she wanted me dead," Lelouch replied, though he kept it to himself that he had already drawn his gun under the table and could have fired before Kallen did. Alice seemed unconvinced but ultimately decided to trust his judgment of the girl, though she kept the gun.

“Watch it, lady.” She shoved off Kallen, who stood straight, recovering despite having been caught off guard by a kid.

“Sorry about that, force of habit.” She apologized, to which C.C. raised an eyebrow.

"I would get that under control; a habit that could lead to homicide isn't healthy." She taunted, to which Kallen’s brow twitched, but she kept in her retort and focused on the elephant in the room. That being that the man she followed, the man who fashioned himself as Britannia’s greatest enemy and sought to see the empire burn…was her classmate.

"You confuse me. Why would a Britannian fight the empire? Then I remember what I've seen," Kallen started, looking him in the eye. “You’re doing all this for Nunnally, aren’t you?”

There, right there, she saw the twitch. He might try to hide it, but he couldn't hide how much he cared for Nunnally. Same as with her brother.

Knowing that it was easy to piece together a reason why someone that Shirley called a slacker who barely applied himself would do all this. "The emperor couldn't even bring himself to mourn his own kid. Instead, he called him weak because you killed him. In such a world, Nunnally wouldn't have it easy, would she?"

“To put it mildly," Lelouch didn't confirm it, but he didn't deny it either, which, combined with how he emphasized it mildly just now, made it clear what his stance was. Though it's only part of why I do what I do, for now, you don't need to hear the rest of my motivations. However, rest assured that my drive to see our cause succeed is real."

She didn't like that, but she supposed she could grant him that much, at least for now.

“And is she Claude? The woman who stole the heart of Ashford’s most wanted bachelor?” Kallen asked, wondering where they met. She doubted that Lelouch would just invite people. She came to live with him around the time of Shinjuku. Did he call her in or something?

“Why did people start calling me that?” Lelouch muttered as he swore, Milly made one comment about it, and it caught on like wildfire. “Yes, this is her, though as you can guess, that’s a false name.” To which C.C. didn’t even wave.

"Now, with that out of the way, you're four. I promised you better conditions and intend to deliver on them." Lelouch turned to the irregulars.

“Here?” Lucretia, dressed in old sweats and a button-up, asked.

Lelouch shook his head. "No, Kallen here will bring you to me at Ashford and request that I help her get you settled as students. You'll be given food and board, and if you like, I could get you the same room so you won't be apart."

"We would like that," Sancia stated, as she felt uneasy if she wasn’t close to her sisters.

“Wait, why me?” Kallen asked, which got a snort from C.C.

“Are you saying you won’t help with this?” The woman asked, removing the contacts and wig as she did so.

Lelouch raised his hand to stop the argument before it could start. "Relax, you won't be asked to do anything of ill taste. However, as I've already brought in Claude under the guise of her being a lover I met through gambling, I can't do the same with all of them."

"But then how would we get in with…Kallen help?" Alice asked, looking the girl over with a suspicious eye.

To that, Lelouch cracked a smile. "Coincidentally, she has claimed to be an avid gamer because of her chronic sickness, which often causes her to miss classes. It wouldn't be impossible to claim she met all of you through such, and you all need a place to stay because your noble families no longer want their illegitimate children."

“Wait, parents just throw their children away?” Dalque asked, as that seemed incredibly messed up.

"Throughout history, Britannia is no exception. In fact, it acts as a good cover as it will explain why you don't have last names of note; plenty of bastards are denied that. Though, it will take a couple of days for me to organize something, so until then, try not to speak of your pasts." Lelouch advised that he could get started now, but it would take time to get something concrete.

Sancia's face twisted into something ugly at that. “If there’s one thing we don’t want to discuss with complete strangers, it’s our past.”

“This school,” Lucretia stated. “It’s a Britannian one, isn’t it?”

To which both Kallen and Lelouch's gazes soften as yes, that could be an issue. "Yeah, and the students can be…well, a lot," Kallen recalled how Suzaku was treated when he arrived. And all these girls, well, they could pass for Britannians, had features closer to Europeans.

"As with Suzaku, you'll be under my protection. If anyone tries to make you feel unwelcomed, come to me, and I'll handle it." Lelouch declared, leaning back into his chair. “Of course, after the idiots that challenged my authority when Suzaku came to school, I doubt anyone would be foolhardy enough to make a second pass.”

“They won’t be in the high school division where you can keep a closer eye on things.” Kallen reminded him.

He gave her an amused look. “Who said I don’t have eyes and ears in the junior division? Either way, we’re talking nonsense as this all rides on if they want to attend.” He shifted his gaze back to the irregulars.

“But isn’t this the easiest place for us?” Alice asked, to which Lelouch frowned.

“I will not force you to do anything. It must be your choice if you wish to trust in my judgment. If you wish to flee Area 11, I shall help you." They could see he was sincere when he approached them on the rig. Which was another reminder that this would be like before.

“Well…” Sancia looked between the group, all of whom looked undecided, apprehensive, defensive, but also hopeful. Taking that, she turned back to him. “When do we leave?”

Line Break

Okay, this chapter was started late as I was working on Golden Ending. Still, I got something of a miracle in that previously mentioned change. This chapter came out shorter, with Saitama having been put to the side in exchange for a raid on one of Code-R's facilities. Still, considering what it focused on, that's a good thing as I would have felt...disrespectful to what came before if I just moved on. But because of that change, I was able to add in some more human elements to our characters, which is something I’ve been doing with Lelouch, case in point, his fear of becoming a monster, and with C.C. the fact that she’s not as apathetic as she presents.