"A revolution can be neither made nor stopped. The only thing that can be done is for one of several of its children to give it a direction by dint of victories."
- Napoleon Bonaparte
Luoyang Settlement, Duchy of Henan, Area 22 (China), Britannian Empire
August 1, 2025
It was all or nothing now, Hong knew. Either the CLA and the Black Knights won this battle and liberated China once and for all, or they lost and forever doomed the Motherland to Britannian oppression. Unlike at Xiaopei or so many other battles over the last seven years, there would be no retreat, no matter how bad the fight turned out, while it was completely certain that many of the men and women Hong fought alongside, perhaps even himself, would not return. The portly Chinese general only felt that much more anxious at the prospect, even as he charged forward against the enemy in front of him, a feeling that he was sure the rest of the CLA and the Black Knights, he supposed, felt as they rushed to meet the enemy head-on. Seven years of war and blood would be decided here and now, across the scape of the Motherland itself. No pressure.
Forcing back both those thoughts and whatever apprehension he had remaining, Hong, upon putting his Yaoguai to full speed, extended his knightmare's machine guns, as did the other knightmares around him. Though closing rapidly, there remained a fair amount of distance between the Chinese forces and the Britannians, who were also now charging at their respective machines' full speed toward the enemy. Zooming in on the enemy, Hong could depict several of the frontrunner Sutherlands and Gloucesters, all colored in the standard Britannian blue, thrusting themselves forward on their landspinners as the armored knight cavalry they emulated. Behind them, past the massive land battleships that were also moving forward, the outer boundary of the city of Luoyang could be seen alongside several of the taller skyscrapers and the gunnery towers that made up the Argus defense net.
Upon his eyes meeting the city in detail, Hong felt a pang of nostalgia enter him. It had been seven years since he had laid eyes upon the capital, seven years since he and the rest of General Li's contingent had been forced to flee the city after liberating Tianzi from her wedding to Prince Odysseus. It almost felt surreal to him, as Hong had nearly come to believe that he would never see the city again, that he would die upon another battleground before ever being able to set foot in Luoyang again. And now he was about to do precisely that: to force his way through the lines and enter the capital again, to finish what had started so long ago. Overall, Hong couldn't think of a more fitting place to lay down his life and the lives of those beside him for his nation.
With this blow... Hong thought as he switched back to the present, shifting his main camera away from the city and back to the enemy knightmare formation. After a moment, he targeted a lance-wielding Gloucester as his first kill. May history be forever changed.
And with the suddenness of a thunderclap, the knightmare forces finally reached the point of no return. In that, it was the Britannians that drew first blood, their bazooka armed units naturally having entered firing range first, launching several shots that took down a fair number of Yaoguai from the onset, but as had been the case at Xiaopei, the Chinese were far too numerous for the Britannians to hinder in that fashion seriously, and soon enough the front units entered into range for their cannons, taking down an equal number of Sutherlands on approach. Behind them, the Britannian landships also opened fire with their HV cannons, only to be countered by the Mao and her escorts as they fired their cannons in support. At the same time, the Izumo and the other Black Knight ships also began to exchange blows with their Britannian contemporaries. Win or lose, the battle for the fate and future of China was on.
Once they reached the appropriate range, Hong transmitted a certain signal, marking the first stage of their assault. Upon that transmission, the massive Yaoguai formation split into six smaller groups, from which they charged into the Britannian forces head-on. Now within machine gun range, Hong and the outermost Chinese knightmares let loose their weapons upon the Sutherlands and Gloucesters, who only responded in kind with their guns, damaging or destroying several more of the Chinese before the two armies clashed with the Britannians being forced to break formation lest they be overwhelmed by the six Yaoguai masses. From there, the Yaoguais charged through and engaged in melee, using their machine guns to keep the Britannian units from drawing close while they maneuvered in synchronized grace, the Chinese moving as one force and one will. And though several of their numbers continued to fall around them, the Chinese remained undeterred, sweeping through their enemies as six tempests of metal and fire, the Britannians being forced to encircle each one as they returned their fire.
Holding down both triggers, Hong rained his machine guns upon the passing enemies, taking down two Sutherlands from an initial barrage as his formation swept through. Through the melee, he caught sight of a Gloucester charging at the formation with its lance poised to strike, apparently attempting to bifurcate the formation down the middle. Hong wasted no time bringing his cannons to bear and dispatching the enemy knightmare before it got close. However, in its place, two more Sutherlands moved in, reversing on the landspinners as they fired into the mass, taking down several more Yaoguais around Hong as he and several others fired back with their machine guns. One Sutherland crumpled under the onslaught, while the second fired off a grenade, which barely avoided hitting Hong's unit but ended up detonating behind him, taking down additional Yaoguais in the resultant explosion. Cursing, Hong took that Sutherland down as well by tracing machine gun rounds across its torso, forcing the co*ckpit pod to eject before the frame exploded.
The enemy wasn't just attacking from the ground, however. Overhead, Viper gunships flitted about and strafed the Chinese lines, launching chaingun rounds and missiles into their ranks. Several of the Yaoguais within the center of the formation raised their gun arms upward, spraying death into the sky above, with several of the Britannian gunships falling to the earth below. However, even as allied Yamakaze and Sanzuwu gunships moved to provide fire support, taking down several more of the gunships with their AA weapons, the damage was wreaked upon the Chinese regardless, with more and more of their number perishing by the second, all the while Britannian knightmares took ruthless advantage on the ground. Once again, Hong, as he turned and fired back at another Sutherland, just managing to blow off its right arm as it passed, wished the CLA had held their own proper eighth-generation knightmares. Knightmares that would provide an even or superior ground against their enemies, with or without the need for mass warfare.
For the time being, however, he could only content himself with banging away with his machine guns and cannons, switching from ground targets to airborne threats as the formation continued across the landscape. Several more Yaoguais fell around him, but by some miracle, Hong's unit was still missing, and the formation was still moving. By now, it was turning back to the south while the others were altering into similar vectors, weaving through the Britannians and diminishing their numbers as they passed. Though Hong wanted to, they were not ready to make a run on Luoyang itself yet; to enter the city at that point would cause the present Britannians to turn inward on them, while those that remained in the city would also converge, effectively catching the Chinese ground forces in a pincer attack. And then there were the enemy landships that still had to be dealt with, which remained guarding the city boundaries. No, as Hong knew all too well, they needed to thin the Imperialist ranks more before they could stage a proper assault.
Of course, as Hong directed his machine guns against another Sutherland, this one attempting to break through with its silver lance, he reflected on another problem with that stratagem. Would they even be able to last that long? Especially with how fast their numbers were falling against the Britannian horde? As his bullets at last struck the Sutherland's legs, causing it to tumble across the ground, its co*ckpit pod ejecting somewhere within, Hong found himself holding doubts. Doubts only amplified as more gunships moved in from above, striking at more of the Yaoguais in well-performed dives. And this time, only a select few were caught in the resultant anti-air fire.
"Daoji One to Mao, we need fire support, dammit!" Hong hollered as he shot at flyers, just managing to clip a Viper but not heavily damage it. The VTOL gunship twisted around and returned fire with its machine gun as it ascended, raining bullets across the general's knightmare. Fortunately, its aim hadn't been that precise, and Hong's unit remained operational, though with a range of bullet holes across its front.
That's when his threat indicators again went off, to which Hong let out another curse. The enemy landships had launched a combined volley of missiles, with a fair portion of them veering after the Chinese formations. Knowing that to break formation would mean death, Hong instead signaled the Yaoguais units to go into evasive patterns and maneuver around the impact zones while whatever units in range attempted to shoot the missiles out of the air with their machine guns. The allied landships soon launched interceptor missiles of their own, taking out an additional number of the enemy's, but more than enough was breaking through despite their efforts. The interference of the airborne Britannians only hindered their efforts that much further, as it was for Hong's people.
Soon enough, the missiles fell to the Earth, explosions ripping across the Yaoguai lines and striking down additional numbers. Even within the metal confines of his unit, Hong could feel the shockwaves ripple across, almost throwing his knightmare off course. He kept it moving in formation only through sheer focus, as did the other pilots around him, with whatever holes punched into their line quickly being filled in by surviving units. The Chinese may have been hurt in that attack, but they remained far from beaten.
Again, Hong could only wonder how long that would last. He turned his attention to another Gloucester, moving at him with MVS drawn in either arm. Gritting his teeth at its approach, the CLA general twisted his Yaoguai's frame around and let loose his machine guns once more. As close as he was to the capital and liberation, he was not about to let down.
"Zero and Raiden Squadrons, advance and open a path to the city," Lelouch commanded as he had the Mordred charge into the fray. "Tengu and Kitsune Squadrons maintain support for the Chinese forces. All others engage at will."
He then zoomed in upon their objective through the enemy formations: the government bureau, proudly bearing the Britannian banner upon its side, looming in the distance. Lelouch smirked. "Once we seize the government bureau and wipe out all resistance, Luoyang will be ours…"
He then switched to his VARIS, his mask's HMDS lighting up with targets. "And with it, all of Area 22!"
Depressing his trigger, the Demon King let loose his VARIS in Burst Mode, obliterating several Sutherlands while the rest were forced to evade. A lance-wielding Gloucester charged through the smoke of one of the explosions, forcing Lelouch to raise his right arm and deploy his Blaze Luminous. As he expected, the lance shattered upon impact with his crimson shield, to which the Gloucester reversed direction to draw its MVS. However, Lelouch was faster, moving up close as he swapped his rifle for his sword and slashed it apart upon the draw, forcing the pilot to eject right before the frame detonated. The co*ckpit pod disappeared into the melee while the uncaring Lelouch turned away for other targets.
As he had commanded, the Black Knights were doing all in their power to assert battlefield supremacy, though with obvious mixed success. Now, with their backs against the proverbial wall, the Britannians were fighting with their all, charging on both the Black Knights and the Chinese to break their assault and any lingering chance of China being wrestled away from them once and for all. Such morale was only further extended by the presence of three Knights of the Round - including the Knight of Two himself - fighting alongside them, acting as the incarnate will of their Emperor. No, they would not back down; at least, not unless the battle took a serious turn, which Lelouch was very much intending.
Other than that, the battle was more or less standard in convention with what the Black Knights had faced, though much more spread out. As usual, the Britannians around Luoyang and elsewhere outnumbered the Black Knights fairly. Their ground and air forces easily dwarf their opposition's smaller groups. At the same time, the Black Knights retained their technological superiority with their eighth-generation knightmares and support craft. In that regard, as Lelouch watched the black Gekkas, as well as the crimson Gurens of Zero Squadron, combat their blue Britannian adversaries, he could see that both sides were roughly matched; the Britannian numbers and the Black Knights' better tech effectively overrode the other, such that the battle, or at least this stage of it, would be determined by the skill of the devicers. Meanwhile, the Chinese had neither numerical nor technological superiority over their enemies. Still, their skill in mass maneuvering more than made up for those inadequacies, also putting them roughly on par with their opposition.
Overall, it was a battle between two combined armies of equal standing. Lelouch supposed that was fitting; chess always began with an equal number of pieces on either side. Neither he nor Johann would have wanted it any other way despite their respective positions and obligations.
His sensors beeped in warning again, detecting a bazooka wielding Gloucester in the distance, aiming. Twisting the Mordred around, Lelouch launched a slash harken in response. Even so, the Gloucester was quick enough to go into evasion just as Lelouch was about to depress the trigger, surging upward and firing off a line of shells. Glowering behind his mask, Lelouch threw up his Blaze Luminous again, deflecting the initial shots and allowing him to go into evasion on his own, from which he attempted to close the distance and utilize his MVS. Unfortunately, the Gloucester devicer saw what he was about to do and launched himself back, firing more shells, just as a pair of Sutherlands swooped in with their machine guns blazing for support. Not bothering with his shield this time, Lelouch dodged their fire, snaring one of the Sutherlands with his slash harkens and drawing it in, bifurcating it with a well-placed MVS slash.
The other two were more cautious, firing a grenade at their target, forcing Lelouch to dodge to the left. He then countered by firing both of his arm harkens, but he only managed to take out one Sutherland that way, while the other launched back, continuing to rain machine gun fire down on top of him. At that, the former prince raised his left arm and used the mounted Blaze Luminous to deflect the fire while speeding upward after his opponent. As he moved closer, the Sutherland extended the stun gun mount in its left arm and lunged just as the black and gold knightmare met it, but Lelouch predicted the attack just in time, reforming the right arm Blaze Luminous around the Mordred's right hand to deflect it. The Sutherland then attempted to fire its machine gun at point-blank range, but Lelouch was once again faster, impaling the enemy knightmare on his left blade and then twisting around, flinging the corpse into the air. With the purposeful aim, the dead Sutherland careened into the back of a Gloucester, causing both knightmares to crumple across the ground.
With that matter taken care of, Lelouch turned the Mordred around and redrew his VARIS, engaging its Burst Mode again. The resulting shot swept into the distance, destroying a few more enemy knightmares for good measure but otherwise not holding any greater effect. Some enemy ships were also in range, but other than grazing over their armor, his attack would have had negligible impact. That didn't stop them from targeting him, and the next moment, Lelouch's threat indicators ignited, warning him that he was being targeted. Just as a spray of missiles and accompanying HV cannon fire erupted, he returned to the evasion.
All but sneering at the attack, Lelouch banked to the left, evading the fire altogether. Through the explosions, however, more Sutherlands and at least two Gloucesters charged through, firing at him with their machine guns and bazookas, forcing him to duck behind his shield again. Lelouch had to admit, as he watched his present adversaries advance, that they were being more aggressive than even he had initially predicted; he would have thought his deeds at Pearl Harbor, as well as his dueling successfully against two Knights of the Round, to this point, would have dissuaded the average cannon fodder from attempting him. But then there was always the fact killing the great Zero would do honor to both his would-be slayer and, by extension, the rest of their family in Britannian tradition, so perhaps he should have expected as such.
Either way, he moved forward and began slashing about with his swords, cutting off the extended arm of the nearest Sutherland with one sword, the one holding the assault rifle, and then twisting around and beheading it with the opposite, forcing its devicer to eject. He then grabbed the lifeless frame and threw it in front of one of the Gloucesters, which ended up charging into it with its lance, to which he moved above and slashed into the co*ckpit block. From there, he grabbed that lifeless frame, whose lance was still intertwined with the first, and flung it to his side just in time to intercept a bazooka shot from another Sutherland. Through the resultant explosion, the Mordred charged through, ruby eyes lit with fury, from which it slashed the Sutherland's bazooka in half with one stroke and then slashed the Sutherland itself diagonally in the next. By that point, the second Gloucester made its presence known by moving in and throwing its lance at the Mordred's back, only for Lelouch to twist around, replacing his left blade in the process, and then grab the impromptu projectile with his left hand. He turned around fully and launched his right arm slash harken, the rocket anchor easily smashing into the enemy knightmare and forcing its pilot to eject.
Now, what do I do with you? Lelouch thought as he looked over the lance. The answer came when the last Sutherland of the group moved at his side, stun tonfas extended and ready to destroy the seventh-generation knightmare's co*ckpit. Letting out a short but no less amused laugh at his enemy's brazen attempt, Lelouch dodged the stroke, from which he proceeded to drive the lance straight through Sutherland's co*ckpit. He then grabbed the right shoulder and spun, the momentum of which caused the entire frame to go sailing into the distance, where it fell upon the Britannian rear lines. Lelouch couldn't see if it hit anything as he was on the move again, advancing deeper into the enemy ground.
"Where are you, Johann?" Lelouch let out as he fired his VARIS again, scoring three more enemy knightmares to his growing kill count, but by no means crushing the Britannians' initiative. Additional Sutherlands and Gloucesters charged forward from there, intent on finishing off the Demon King once and for all. "Don't tell me these pawns are all you have for me."
As if to emphasize the point, missile fire erupted from the Black Knight mobile ship line, sending hundreds if not thousands of projectiles screaming into the air. Now faced with a full barrage against them, the Britannian forces under target lock went into evasion, allowing the Black Knights, Lelouch among them, to charge into the resultant openings.
Streaking and maneuvering through the impromptu hailstorm with all the efficiency his knightmare could muster, Johann grit his teeth as he was forced to twist and turn at great velocity. Once he reached a relatively clear zone, he spun the Dinadan around, firing his hadron launcher into a sweeping arc. Several explosions erupted as he struck a number of the raining missiles, but enough got through all the same. The result only came moments later as holes were punched within the Britannian formation, and death cries erupted over the radio. This was followed by the voices of various sub-commanders ordering their respective units to plug those holes. Johann was quite pleased with the latter, for whatever inferiorities they had held under Calares' direction, the lower commands of the Area 22 garrison were as quick and assertive as any other Britannian unit.
"Continue defensive maneuvers," Johann swiftly commanded as he deployed the Dinadan's factsphere sensors, scanning the enemy formation before him. If any reply came to his order, Johann didn't hear it; instead, he focused his attention on the resultant data that flooded his co*ckpit monitors. The Black Knights' and CLA's combined strategy was straightforward enough to align with Tianzi's declaration. It was a near-perfect reenactment of the Black Rebellion. As the Black Knights provided support, the Chinese would break through the outside lines and enter their target cities, from which they would converge upon the Imperial command centers – in Luoyang's case, the Government Bureau – and then capture them. From there, the Imperial forces would lose their ability to coordinate effectively, allowing the Black Knights and Chinese to expel them quickly, laying the groundwork for Area 22's eventual reclamation.
A prudent strategy, Johann thought, but not one without its weaknesses. The central one, of course, was the overreliance on the CLA itself, not just because of its antiquated forces. Unless he wished to conquer Area 22 away with the Black Knights alone – which he was neither willing nor capable of doing – Zero had no choice but to rely on them. Not only did the Black Knights lack the necessary numbers to free the Area themselves, but any attempt on their part would go against their proclaimed modus operadi: that the Black Knights would aid the local Numbers in retaking their homelands so that any following administration would be, though supported by Zero and his entourage, legitimately be of the people's creation. Therefore, it had to be the CLA, for all of its weaknesses, that wrestled Luoyang and the other cities away from Britannia, not the Black Knights. Anything otherwise would appear as a transition from one dictator to the other.
Through this, Johann decided accordingly, with most of his forces concentrated on the Chinese. Though this left the other enemy force less opposed than it could have been, it was of little consequence; the reliance meant that the Black Knights would have no other option than to support their apparent allies, which they were already straining to do. As powerful as the Black Knights had become, even they could be tied back by allied forces that could not keep up with them, much less match their overall strength. Thus, they would be held down appropriately, while Johann's forces would fight completely unhindered, giving them an edge their enemies could not reciprocate.
After that, it all boiled down to accomplishing the core objectives: wiping out the CLA in its operational entirety and capturing Tianzi. Once those two objectives were met, the Black Knights, having lost the bulk of their manpower and claim to Area 22, would have no choice but to retreat to whatever haven they had established following the Devastation. And though Johann would have preferred to wipe them out as well at the opportunity, the fact was their defeat was just as strategically acceptable; with Zero's first attempt at liberating an Area failing, the world would lose faith in the Demon King and his rabble, and Britannia would be quick to take advantage of the despair. The Black Knights' destruction and Zero's demise could happen anytime after that.
A warning from his sensors snapped Johann back to the battle, alerting him to the incoming Gekkas jetting toward his direction. It had taken some effort, but through the destroyed remains of one such model from Xiaopei, Johann and the rest of Britannia, at last, knew the true names and accompanying data, to some degree, of the Black Knights' hardware, from their various knightmares to the battleship Izumo to their other warship and submarine classes. Tactically speaking, it meant very little, but for Johann, it provided some degree of reassurance; at last, they had something on their erstwhile enemies. With that in mind, he targeted the closest Gekka and fired his hadron launcher again, obliterating it before it could enter the range. This caused the bazooka-wielding units to return fire, at which Johann brought the Dinadan back into evasion before charging himself.
Two of the incoming Gekkas switched to their handguns upon his approach, but before they could fire, Johann was already upon them, taking out both of them with twin shots from his hadron rifle. He then arced up around and fired even more, finishing off those left in his wake just as effectively. However, another Black Knight unit charged through the melee and fired one of those curious radiation rockets at the Dinadan as it angled around. At that, Johann twisted his knightmare around and, reenacting Luciano Bradley's move from Pendragon, grasped onto the rocket's motor, crushing it within its grasp. From there, he put his little twist on the maneuver; moving faster than the enemy devicer could realize, he flung the rocket back into its host, which smashed into the black knightmare's chest plate. At that, the Black Knight unit bubbled as the rocket pumped radiation into its frame, detonating only a few seconds later.
Impressive… Johann thought as the glow of the explosion died away, his mind automatically recalling the data on Rakshata Chawla's principle weapon system, as Camelot had provided to the Rounds. But utterly impractical.
Despite his opinion and the previous display, two more rockets streaked at him, which Johann deftly maneuvered. From there, their originators moved in, chain swords drawn, clearly intent on a melee. Quickly stowing his hadron rifle, Johann was quick enough to pull his daggers and intercept both blades, their whirling edges grinding against the maser vibration blades. At that, Johann twisted the Dinadan's upper torso, cutting into one of the Gekkas with his right dagger, forcing the enemy devicer to eject. This left its comrade unsupported, allowing Johann to flip overhead and stab both daggers into the co*ckpit block. He then moved back and fired a single blast from his hadron launcher into the now-dead knightmare, completing its destruction before moving on to the nearest enemy units.
"Goddamn!" Johann heard a familiar voice over the radio, accompanied by the image of the Caius charging into a Black Knight formation, slashing at anything and everything with its broadswords. Another Gekka attempted to cut into the orange knightmare from behind. Still, Michael was faster, turning around and deflecting the intended blow with his Blaze Luminous before eviscerating the enemy unit with one well-diagonal swing. "This is exactly what I've been waiting for! A real battle for the ages!"
He then launched his right arm slash and harkened into one more, beheading it in one stroke. "Or at least the closest we can get to one in this godforsaken wasteland!" he called out as he charged at the headless unit and slashed it in half.
Before Johann could cut in and order his subordinate to keep the chatter down, the Safir appeared, flitting into the scene with its scythe extended. Several more Black Knight units were cut down, though a few managed to avoid fatal strikes, allowing them to counterattack with handguns. Nena merely responded by going into another dance-like spin, her scythe easily swatting the bullets out of the air before, at last, slashing into their originators.
"Enjoy it while you can, Paladin One!" Nena called out as she launched past two more Gekkas, leaving hot red lines in their torsos before they detonated simultaneously. Once we're done here, it's back to Eurasia and the weaklings therein!"
Again, Johann opened his mouth to command the pair to concentrate, and again, he was interrupted by new entries: another Gekka team gunning for his position. Shaking his head, he withdrew his daggers and returned his rifle online, firing a beam straight into the team leader. The other Gekka moved around the resultant explosions, firing their handguns as they passed and forcing Johann to evade. He then countered by firing his slash harkens, smashing into the chests of two of his attackers, their co*ckpit pods ejecting after that. Withdrawing the harkens, he let loose another spray of hadron fire that destroyed two more Gekkas, giving enough room to reverse back. At that, he circled and launched through the remainder, killing them one after the other.
At least they're focused. Johann thought as he swept his hadron launcher once more. This time, however, he aimed toward the Chinese formations, the crimson blast obliterating a line of Yaoguais and forcing the rest to break formation and scatter in the true fashion of conscripts. The nearby Sutherlands and Gloucesters were only too eager to take advantage, converging on the now broken Chinese lines and cutting into them; all the while, the other Yaoguais could do nothing to support them.
Johann would have also moved to engage the Chinese further, but his threat indicators quickly gave pause to that action. A second later, he was forced to evade another Gekka's chain sword slash, reversing his landspinners before the whirling blades could strike. From there, he twisted around and maneuvered behind the charging Black Knight, firing his hadron rifle at the enemy unit's exposed back.
Black Knight mobile battleship Izumo
Duchy of Henan, Area 22 (China), Britannian Empire
"All lines advancing," Ichijiku reported as she reviewed her sensor data. "The Chinese are taking heavy casualties."
As expected, "All ships maintain support fire," Ohgi commanded evenly."Concentrate missile fire on Sectors Lambda Three, Five, and Six. Continue engaging enemy landships with cannons."
"We should divert some fire to Lambdas Eight and Nine as well," Minami added from his post. "That will open up some holes in their rear lines."
"Not until we've dealt with those landships," Ohgi replied, gazing out over the distant warships, which loomed over the fighting knightmares like mobile mountains. Explosions visibly rained across them as the HV shells of the Izumo and the other allied landships continued to strike. Their Britannian opponents weathered the attacks, as did the Black Knight flagship, and the rest did theirs. If we could destroy at least two of them, we'd open up a wide enough hole to storm through.
Of course, that was more or less the key to the operation, of which even Ohgi was aware. Once they opened up a way for the Chinese to enter Luoyang – with several Black Knight units moving to support – the road to victory would generally be complete. Granted, there were still the surviving forces and those that had remained in the city to deal with, but the general wasn't particularly worried about them; they would be dealt with summarily when the time came, just like everything else. Overall, Operation Akatsuki, or as Tianzi had titled it, the "Red Rebellion," was proceeding accordingly.
And that was precisely what Ohgi was worried about. Things were going too smoothly from the onset despite the serious beating the Yaoguais were taking. If Calares had been in command of the Britannians, he could see the battle going exactly as was planned, but as he knew all too well, someone far more capable was in charge. Surely, the Owl of Britannia had more in store for them than what was out there now. If so, then why hadn't he deployed those little surprises already? Or was he biding his time, waiting for the Black Knights and the Chinese to reach a certain position before deploying his first trap?
Tilting his head a little, Ohgi resisted the urge to message his eyes. The battle had just begun, and he was getting anxious. Yes, it was all too likely that their progress would be impeded as they marched closer and closer to Luoyang, especially given the experience from Xiaopei. Still, there was no point in wringing his head over what may or may not happen. Any real general, as well as Zero himself, would retain his calm in such situations, and that's what Ohgi would do in this one. Regardless of how anticipating he was of the Owl's hammer strike.
Still, something isn't right. Ohgi thought as he gazed over the city in the distance, even as the Izumo rumbled from enemy weapons fire impacting her shields. He couldn't put his finger on it, but something about what he was seeing now didn't correspond to the enemy stratagem. What was it…?
"New sensor signatures detected!" Ichijiku reported just as a new smear of blue dots appeared on the main monitor. As the technical data appeared on the corner, the sensor operator elaborated. "Typhoons!"
Right, here come the strafing runs. Ohgi mused. In truth, the Typhoon multi-role fighter wasn't much of a threat against knightmares or at least the traditional kind; anything equipped with a gyroscopic landspinner could maneuver out of their missiles and cannon fire. The Yaoguais, on the other hand, did not have gyroscopic landspinners and fought in massed formations, making them ideal targets. It helped even less that said massed formations meant the Chinese had far less room to maneuver themselves. "Jinzu and Kurobe target with AA batteries," he commanded. "All available fighters move to intercept."
Moments later, an additional round of missiles lifted off from the designated Suzuka-class destroyers' VLS while Black Knight Taka aerospace fighters flew in from overhead, adding their payloads to the sky. Several of the oncoming Typhoons were immediately destroyed, but more than a few managed to evade in time, from which they proceeded on their attack runs and dropped their payloads on the Yaoguai formations. An additional Yaoguais were obliterated as a result, even as the Chinese formations began to move in more evasive patterns as well as retaliate by firing their machine guns into the air.
Inwardly sighing as the latest casualty figures came in, Ohgi could tip his cap a little. Yes, Akatsuki was proceeding smoothly, but the good guys were still taking a beating, and they hadn't even broken into the city yet. And as Ohgi knew well, the longer it took to break into Luoyang, the more the Black Knight and Chinese numbers dwindled, such that they wouldn't hold the necessary forces to occupy the city even if and when Zero's latest miracle was triggered. And that was all before the Owl's defense stratagem, which Ohgi could almost feel being out there, waiting to be unleashed. The experience at Xiaopei nearly assured him of it.
That all being considered, the General was not anxious enough not to realize that there was nothing he could do about it. Tilting his cap slightly – a habit that was slowly growing on him – as he watched the data through the main monitor, Ohgi could only settle back in his chair further, relaxing himself ever so slightly. There was no point in worrying now; the battle had only started after all, and the real fighting had yet to begin. He could only continue to perform his duties and ensure the rest of the Luoyang task force continued theirs. All of which would, slowly but surely, bring the Black Knights and the Chinese beyond the city gates and bring about the Dawn in full force.
Thus firmly resolved, Ohgi continued to gaze up at the main monitor as the battle data flowed in, giving the appropriate commands as they followed. His usual inferiorities toward his position failed to register with him throughout.
The missiles screamed through the air, falling across the Yaoguai formations like meteors, their detonations obliterating several more Chinese knightmares with each impact. Seeing this, Kallen and Alfred raised their surgers into the air. They fired twin beams, sweeping away several incoming missiles and at least one Typhoon, which crashed several kilometers from the battleground. However, their attempted defense was negligible at best, emphasized as the Typhoons started to come around again for another pass. Only allied fighters and support missile fire from the landships kept the Britannian aircraft from completely decimating the Chinese formations. However, one or two still managed to drop a warhead or two and a fair number of bullets upon their targets.
As she momentarily watched the aerial side of the battle, in which a Taka intercepted and blasted a Typhoon out of the air, Kallen once again found herself wishing that Rakshata and her Science Division had succeeded in reverse engineering and perfecting the float system. She could only imagine the kind of damage the Guren could inflict if it could fly like the Gawain and Lancelot had been able to eight years ago. Alas, she had no choice but to let the fighters play amongst themselves, instead concentrating on the ground with the rest of Zero Squadron. There were already plenty of enemies to deal with there anyway.
We're really in it now. Kallen thought grimly as she and Alfred waded through the chaos, progressing increasingly toward the city and opening up a path for the rest of the Black Knights to follow as Lelouch had ordered. At that, it wasn't long before another unit of Sutherlands impeded her and her wingman, their assault rifles and bazookas already blazing away upon their approach.
Sneering in response, Kallen pushed her knightmare forward. At the same time, Alfred followed after her, both Gurens zigzagging around the incoming fire with contemptuous ease, brandishing their fork knives as they drew in. Closing upon the first pair, both Kallen and Alfred slashed the two Sutherlands across the chests, destroying their Yggdrasil drives in one pass, before Alfred twisted around and launched a grenade into a third Sutherland, which had been attempting to shoot him from behind. Simultaneously, Kallen turned to her left and threw up her radiant wave shield as another Sutherland fired its bazooka, which exploded harmlessly against the crimson barrier. She then dispatched it with her slash harken and jumped to the side as its partner charged with its lance set to impale. A snapshot grenade took care of that Sutherland as well.
No sooner than when she landed did her threat indicator sound off; she was being targeted from the air. At that, she turned around to see a Viper loom overhead, firing off a spray of rockets from its wing pods at her. Smirking in response, Kallen switched her surger into its spray setting, then launched a crimson energy funnel into the air, the rockets falling into its range, detonating prematurely. That said, the Viper pilot was quick enough to gain altitude and evade Kallen's attack, from which it turned around to bring its chin gun upon her. Before it could fire a burst, however, Alfred's Guren launched its slash harken into its underbelly, latching on to pull the red knightmare upward and thereby allow it to slash the VTOL with its fork knife. By the time Alfred unlatched his harken and, rather stylishly, in Kallen's opinion, dropped back down to the earth, the Viper was falling from the air, eventually landing somewhere in the distance with a thunderous crash.
Both knightmares were moving again immediately after that as bullet and shell fire rained around them. More Sutherlands moved in from there, with the lance-equipped units charging while their assault rifle and bazooka-equipped brethren remained, firing support fire. Fortunately, their tactics weren't anything either ace had not dealt with before, as Kallen was quick to throw up her shield once more to deflect. At the same time, Alfred grasped onto his opponent's lance entirely with his surger, sending a small pulse of radiation into it to cause it to bubble and explode. The Sutherland managed to let go of the lance before the latter occurrence, but it didn't matter; by the time it reversed back to draw its assault rifle, Alfred charged at its left, then put his Guren into a spin with his fork knife outward, slashing its co*ckpit block.
Had she been able, Kallen would have mouthed a "Showoff" to her wingman, but instead, she was too concentrated on killing her own Sutherland. Following up, she banked her Guren to her opponent's right, dropping her shield in the process and thereby causing the Britannian knightmare to lurch forward, from which she continued behind it and planted her right foot into her target's co*ckpit block. The Sutherland tumbled over as a result, falling face-first into the ground, where Kallen finished it off with a single radiant wave blast. The process only lasted a few seconds, allowing her to catch up with Alfred and charge upon the other Sutherlands, who were reversing quickly while blazing away with their guns, desperately trying to keep either Guren from advancing.
"This is the Black Rebellion all over again, Lead," Alfred quipped as he banked around the bullets and rockets, returning fire with a rapid shot from his surger, which destroyed two retreating Sutherlands. A third attempted to flank him from the left, but Alfred was faster in blowing its head off with a grenade shot, which was enough to dissuade the devicer and cause him to eject the co*ckpit block. He frowned as he watched the pod disappear into the background, once again remembering how, eight years ago, he had fought alongside knightmares such as these while trying to kill Black Knights in defense of Area 11's Government Bureau.
Knowing what was going through her subordinate's mind then, Kallen quickly replied. "Stay focused, Two," she commanded as she leaped up and smashed her knee into the faceplate of another Sutherland, knocking it over, from which she landed on her surger's palm, then performed a handspring that flipped the Nishiki back onto its feet. Another radiant wave beam obliterated her target as it clamored back to its own feet, after which Kallen sped away as one of its allies threw a chaos mine toward her position. "Now's not the time to be distracted."
Subconsciously nodding as he continued his offensive, Alfred focused back as a Gloucester, colored in standard Britannian blue instead of the purple he was used to, came charging at him from a distance, golden lance set to impale. At first, Alfred thought it would drive the lance directly at him, but at the last second, the Gloucester devicer switched tactics; they engaged the lance's rocket motor and launched it out from the hilt. Though it was a capability he was well aware of, it had been years since Alfred had seen a Gloucester lance used in that manner, so he was initially caught off guard. Fortunately, his instincts made up for it as he threw his Guren to the left and neatly evaded the rocketing lance head.
As he evaded, the Gloucester moved against his left side, drawing an MVS. However, Alfred was just as fast, raising his fork knife to deflect the incoming blow. "Sorry," he commented as he held the knife against the Gloucester's sword, his opponent too focused on overcoming the Guren's strength to realize he was about to be beaten. "But you're not Gilbert!"
With that, he threw the blade aside and brought about his surger, grasping onto the Gloucester's chest. The Britannian knightmare attempted to move its sword around to cut the claw. Still, before the devicer could manage it, Alfred had already engaged his Guren's primary weapon, radiation flowing into his captured enemy, bubbling its frame in a few seconds.
"Much less Cornelia," Alfred commented disdainfully as he tossed the stricken machine away almost casually. The Gloucester's Yggdrasil drive went critical only a few moments later, obliterating the frame in midair, its remnants raining across the ground.
"Heh," Kallen couldn't help but smirk a little at her wingman's comment just as another Gloucester was moving on her. "And they sure as hell aren't Andreas Darlton!" she replied as she ducked the Gloucester's lance thrust and then performed a spinner-assisted sweep kick that knocked the enemy knightmare on its side. A single grenade as she leaped back was enough to finish the ace/commander exclusive unit for good.
Alfred was quick to reflect his commander's smirk. "Damn straight, Lead," he replied as he put his Guren back into full speed, falling back into formation. More enemy knightmares were moving against them now, as were additional enemy support craft. The two crimson knightmares charged forward, returning fire with their surgers as they maneuvered.
Sparks flying as her whirling chain blade met Sutherland's lance, Chigusa asserted the superior strength of her knightmare frame and threw back the enemy knightmare. From there, it was simply engaging her landspinners and slashing the enemy knightmare across the chest, causing it to fall back against the ground inactive. However, two more lance-wielding Sutherlands charged in no sooner than when it hit the ground, both set to impale. Detecting their approach, Chigusa reversed on her landspinners and evaded, then took down one of the enemy knightmares with a handgun spray. From there, she finished the second by charging forward and, narrowly avoiding its lance thrust, cutting it down with katen yaibatou as she had done with its earlier comrade.
Another day… Chigusa thought as she put more power into her landspinners, sending her Gekka forward at full speed while dodging the incoming fire, her wingman quickly following. Another glorious victory in the making.
The Sutherlands scattered upon the two Gekkas' approach, but not wide enough that Chigusa couldn't cut down one of the enemy knightmares from the onset, while her wingman also managed to impale another. At that, she twisted around and fired her handgun into the side of another of the enemy knightmares, which crumpled over from the bullet spray, while two more of its comrades brought their machine guns about and returned fire. By then, Chigusa was already on the moving and returning their fire, from which she was able to shoot down another Sutherland while its partner reversed and then fired a grenade. Only by a narrow dodge could Chigusa evade the explosive, which she countered by firing her slash harken into the enemy knightmare's head, crushing it. Their main sensor was destroyed while facing down a superior knightmare model. The enemy devicer had no choice but to eject, which was all well enough for the Black Knight. She had more enemies to choose from, after all.
"There's no end to them, Lead," Kyosha Two sounded as he beheaded another Sutherland, then spun around to impale the co*ckpit before speeding away. From the tone of his voice, the lieutenant colonel could tell her subordinate was more bemused by the enemy's superior numbers than anything else. The fact he seemed to have little issue in cutting down another Sutherland, then turning his handgun on a third, only lent additional credence to that assessment. "It's going to be Aka no Yugure by the time we're through."
"So long as we win Two," Chigusa replied as she evaded the bazooka shot of another Sutherland. Responding fast, she fired her slash harken, smashing the artillery weapon out of the enemy knightmare's hands, before charging forward with her katen yaibatou brought to bear. This time, however, the enemy was quick enough to raise his knightmare's left tonfa to deflect the initial strike and throw her back and counterattack with the right tonfa. However, Chigusa remained quicker, raising her left hand and catching the Sutherland's arm midswing, from which she proceeded to slash it through the waist. Again, the co*ckpit pod ejected.
However, before she could pursue the enemy further, the shrill noise of her threat indicator alerted her that she had just been locked on. And much more, a swarm of missiles was angling toward her and Kyosha Two from a distance. Gritting her teeth subconsciously, Chigusa and her wingman went into a dual evasive pattern, all the while turning their handguns onto the incoming missiles as they jetted at them, striking them down with one bullet apiece. It was obvious from the missiles' approach vector that they hadn't been fired from the air, and it was doubtful that the enemy landships and missile batteries had targeted her specifically. This only left one other possibility.
Sure enough, no more than a few seconds later, the Black Knights' sensors picked up another group of Sutherlands and accompanying Gloucesters, moving into attack. As Chigusa had expected, the telltale boxy forms of missile launchers were mounted on either side of their co*ckpit blocks, projectiles streaking out of their tubes with each passing second. And much worse, Chigusa noted that she and her wingman weren't the only ones being targeted; several of the missiles were flying after other Black Knight units and toward the nearest Yaoguai formation.
"Kyosha Two, flank them!" Chigusa commanded as she re-angled her Gekka for the attack, then charged forward at full power, her wingman following her. The enemy knightmares noticed their approach and launched another volley of missiles to hinder them, to which the two Gekkas broke formation, Chigusa taking the right flank while Kyosha Two took a left. From there, both closed the distance quickly, moving in while returning fire with their handguns. A Sutherland and a Gloucester were both destroyed as a result, but their comrades were just as quick to fire back with their assault rifles, sending bullets and grenades at the two black knightmares as they charged in from opposite vectors.
Possessing the faster of the two models, Chigusa was naturally the one to draw first blood against this particular group of enemies with her blade, launching herself at another Sutherland and executing a diagonal cut as she passed, her revolving blade easily striking the Yggdrasil drive underneath. When the enemy frame detonated, a Gloucester came at her with its lance brought to bear, whose thrust she reversed to evade. After that, she got her sword down again, cutting the lance off the handle, before reangling to behead the Gloucester. The enemy frame responded by firing both of its slash harkens, which Chigusa again reversed and weaved around before following up with another swarm of missiles. At that, Chigusa charged forward again, narrowly evading the rockets as they looped downward at her, from which she executed yet another running slash that finished off the Gloucester as well.
Two more Sutherlands came charging in from there, firing more missiles as they approached, lances in hand. Again weaving through the missile fire, Chigusa closed the gap before the Sutherlands could properly angle their lances, allowing her to cut them down with well-placed slashes apiece. Another pair attempted to move on her as well, this time from her right, but Kyosha Two managed to spray one of them in the back with his handgun before re-engaging its running battle with a Gloucester. Briefly signaling her thanks, turned her attention to the remainder, rebrandishing her katen yaibatou and charging in as she had before, maneuvering around the bullets, grenades, and missiles as she approached. This time, however, the Sutherland extended its tonfas to deflect her initial slash and even counterattack with its own swipe. However, Chigusa, long familiar with such tactics, jumped back to evade the counter before lunging forward again to slash the Sutherland across the waist. Once jettisoning the missile launchers, the co*ckpit pod ejected there as well.
Checking her tactical data, Chigusa saw that Kyosha Two had just finished off its Gloucester opponent. At the same time, other Black Knight units had moved in and taken out the rest of the squad, effectively ending the missile threat. At least from that particular unit, as her threat indicator lit up again, another wave of Typhoons was making a strafing at the Yaoguais, air-to-ground missiles practically hailing from above. Cursing, Chigusa raised her handgun to take out whatever of the incoming projectiles that she could, but there were far too many, and most of them were out of her range anyway. As a result, more Chinese knightmares were obliterated, though, as usual, the remaining knightmares continued to "flow" around their brethren, regardless of the casualties.
"So long as we win," Chigusa repeated as she watched the Yaoguais press on, right before her threat indicator lit up again: another team of Sutherlands advancing on her position. Without another thought, she signaled Kyosha Two to renew their attack and charged.
Twisting the Zangetsu around, Tohdoh was quick enough to dodge the Sutherland's lance with the flat of his seidotou, the silver polearm striking almost harmlessly against the specially hardened golden blade's side. At that, the general pushed the lance away and then reoriented his sword to attack, from which he engaged the seidotou's rocket thrusters to accelerate the blade. One slash later, the Sutherland was bifurcated from the waist to which it fell against the ground. To Tohdoh's surprise, however, the co*ckpit pod didn't eject; that surprise nearly doubled over as he watched the top half of the knightmare attempt to launch its slash harkens into his own back. Without dropping his speed or present velocity, Tohdoh turned his frame around again and deflected both anchors before returning fire with his handgun. Its Yggdrasil drive struck, and the Sutherland half detonated as Tohdoh reoriented the Zangetsu and sped on.
More Sutherlands moved against him after that, weaving in and spraying assault rifle fire at his frame, attempting to hinder him at least. Despite the obvious threat, Tohdoh couldn't help but smirk. Either his opposition was carried away by the fact that he was alone—he had earlier deployed the Four Holy Swords forward to aid the Chinese advance—or they had recognized him as Kyoshiro Tohdoh and so, in Britannian tradition, were aiming to gain honor and glory for themselves and their families.
Regardless, they were nothing he hadn't dealt with before, so he banked the Zangetsu around their shots while firing his handgun and a radiant wave rocket, striking down two of the Sutherlands before closing in at melee range. From there, he executed a series of running slashes – each aimed at the torso or co*ckpit block – which cut down every one of the charging Sutherlands, their attempts to defend ultimately futile, as the black, red-haired knightmare moved forward. It was only the last of the group that managed to evade Tohdoh's attack, just banking out of the way at the right time, to which Tohdoh spun the Zangetsu around as he had before and launched his seidotou mounted harken, which smashed into the Sutherland's head and knocked it back whether that was enough to disable the frame and cause the devicer to eject or not Tohdoh didn't know as he righted the Zangetsu again and pressed on, additional enemies moving against him.
Though reluctant to admit it, Tohdoh felt a strange exhilaration as he launched his custom knightmare further into the field. Yes, the thrill of battle certainly couldn't be ignored, and there was always something pleasing about cutting down Imperials and other such adversaries. Still, neither was the source of the exhilaration. Rather, he realized, it was from the Chairwoman's earlier words and her christening of the battle they were now engaged in.
The Red Rebellion… Tohdoh thought as he dodged another attack, this time from an MVS-equipped Gloucester. He supposed he should have expected as much; eight years ago, he and the rest of the Black Knights had held their own specially colored rebellion to win Japan's freedom, but their impending victory was stolen away in the most horrific way possible. Now, they were fighting another uprising, this one of a different color, and for the freedom of another country, an old enemy of Japan's no less. Yet, strangely, this Red Rebellion would not only serve to be China's liberation but also a retribution for those who fought in the Black War, that the victory denied to them long ago would finally be fulfilled here and now. And much more, it would be the first in a full line, one that would culminate in Britannia's destruction and Japan's reemergence.
Thus, feeling his spirit surge at the prospect, Tohdoh drove forward, forcing down the enemy Gloucester. Knowing it could not defeat the superior eighth-generation knightmare in a contest of power, the Gloucester abandoned the blade lock. It reversed, switching over to its assault rifle to dissuade the Black Knight unit while attempting to flank it. Tohdoh, however, had no trouble evading the attack and charging forward himself, where he cleaved the Gloucester with a diagonal cut. The Britannian knightmare promptly detonated as its powerplant faltered, the Zangetsu driving on from there.
Soon enough, however, Tohdoh's sensors beeped in warning; multiple sources targeted him. Frowning, Tohdoh zoomed his main camera toward the designated vector, nearly widening his eyes at what he saw. In the distance, well out of his immediate range, a pakfront of bazooka-equipped Sutherlands had formed up and was taking a bead on him.
The world turned ablaze around Tohdoh as the enemy artillery units fired as one, forcing the Black Knight general to return to the mysterious. It was all he could do to reverse and skim around their shells, staying ahead of their aim as they rained High Explosive after High Explosive upon him. He would often try to advance, but the Sutherlands refused to give him any leeway, themselves moving about and encircling him, thereby concentrating their fire that much more. It helped even less that several outsider units were also moving in, firing their respective weapons as the Zangetsu danced across the field, barely remaining unscathed from the bullets, shells, and missiles.
If anything, however, Tohdoh was even more flattered by the assault. The Britannians considered him a viable threat; otherwise, they would not have focused so much firepower against a single knightmare.
And it would be a shame to disappoint them. Tohdoh thought maliciously as he at last found an opening. Twisting around after narrowly evading another barrage, he launched his seidotou mounted harken out and latched it onto a Sutherland that had inadvertently entered into range. Rather than draw the frame toward him, he engaged his landspinners while retracting the harken, substantially increasing his velocity. He leaped up, Rapidly approaching the frame and copying the maneuver of one of Zero Squadron's devicers, landed atop the enemy frame, and then jumped again, effectively using it as a springboard. This allowed him to reach the nearest edge of the pakfront, where he at last struck, firing another radiant wave rocket into one of the artillery units before landing.
Just as he predicted, the maneuver threw the pakfront into disarray. The bazooka-equipped Sutherlands scrambled to reform it while their comrades continued to spray fire and hold Tohdoh down long enough. Unfortunately for the Britannians, the Zangetsu was too fast for any of them to do as such. It was all too easy for Tohdoh to close in on the artillery units, one after the other, and destroy them with a killing slash apiece. The last of which did well to abandon its bazooka and draw for its assault rifle, managing to spray off a few shots before the Black Knight unit closed the distance and cut it down with the others. Once that was complete, Tohdoh twisted the Zangetsu around to face the other knightmares in the vicinity, firing off another handgun burst to dissuade them from pursuit, then turning around and speeding through the battlefield.
Or, more precisely, through the Rebellion…
With a great slash, Lelouch cleaved another Sutherland through the torso, causing both halves to scatter across the ground, the co*ckpit pod ejecting from the top half. From there, he leaped back just as another Sutherland sped in and slammed both of its tonfas against where he had previously been positioned, to which he banked to the left and launched his right arm slash harken. Unfortunately, the Sutherland pilot, apparently somewhat more skilled than most, saw it coming and so deflected the harken with its left tonfa before bringing out its machine gun again and firing a burst. To that end, Lelouch deployed Mordred's left Blaze Luminous to deflect the burst while putting power into his landspinners and closing the distance, MVS at the ready. And this time, the Sutherland was unable to deflect in time – not that it could properly defend itself against Maser Vibration Swords – leading to Lelouch executing a running slash that bifurcated the top third of the enemy knightmare from the rest of the body. Devicer and all.
More Sutherlands came charging in from there, firing their machine guns in tandem as they weaved on their landspinners. Plebeians. Lelouch thought in annoyance as he banked around their fire, using his Blaze Luminous to deflect the bullets he couldn't dodge completely. From there, he moved against the enemy knightmares and cut them down, one after the other, maneuvering around their poor attempts to defend or evade. One of them even tried to strike him with its stun gun – attempting to reenact the tactic that had been utilized at Xiaopei – to which Lelouch beheaded with his right arm slash harken, then finished off with a running slash. It didn't take him long to finish off that particular group.
However, Lelouch didn't have time to pause as his threat indicator soon sounded. This was enough for him to turn around and dodge the slash of an oncoming Gloucester, armed with an MVS of its own. T-visor glaring into the Mordred's dual eye cameras, followed by the overhead factsphere deploying, Lelouch grit his teeth as he forced the fifth generation machine back, following up with a counterslash. However, the enemy devicer was prepared for it and easily deflected the blow, then swept his opposite sword around for a thrust, only for Lelouch to deflect in turn with his Blaze Luminous. From there, Lelouch tried to surprise the enemy by firing his hip-mounted slash harkens at point blank, but the Britannian devicer also foresaw this and had his machine leap back to evade. At that, Lelouch took advantage of his knightmare's superior speed and charged, intercepting the Gloucester as it landed, only to have his attack again deflected.
Sneering at the upstart, Lelouch parried its following strike again with his Blaze Luminous, then forced it back before executing a thrust. This time, the Gloucester could not evade, though it managed to avoid the killing stroke by moving over to the left, thereby ensuring the Mordred's blade struck deeply into its right shoulder. At that, it ejected the limb, to which Lelouch flung off his blade before charging again, to which the fifth-generation knightmare raised its sword to intercept. Lelouch banked to his left to strike at the Gloucester's open right side at the last second before impact. Again, the enemy knightmare managed to keep up and parry his strike right before launching its slash harkens to dissuade Lelouch from further assault, forcing Lelouch to reverse and evade. However, when he moved to strike again, the Gloucester beat him to the draw, forcing Lelouch to cross his swords to hold his opponent's back.
Then Lelouch's threat indicator beeped in warning again, to which he instinctively knew what was about to happen. He put the Mordred into a full reverse at the precise second, causing the Gloucester to overcompensate and lunge forward. From there, a hadron blast launched into it – or more specifically, where the Mordred had originally been – obliterating the fifth-generation knightmare in a single surge. All the while, the surviving black and gold knightmare turned to face its long-awaited adversary.
Moving into view, heat emanating from the barrel of its hadron launcher, the Dinadan tracked its opponent in a mirror of its devicer's observance, factspheres deploying to gather additional data. Mirroring the motion, the Mordred deployed its factspheres, its ruby eyes locked upon its enemy's magenta. For a time, it seemed the two knights were content to look upon the other as the battle thundered around them, at least until Lelouch opened a comlink.
"So," Lelouch began evenly. "It all comes down to this, Sir Johann."
"Yes," Johann confirmed from his end. "Our long-awaited endgame has come at last, Zero."
Lelouch laughed in his usual villainous fashion. "Perhaps this is the end of our game, but not the one I'm playing against your Emperor."
He then slashed his MVS about, challengingly. "A game that only now will move past its Opening," he exclaimed. "And see its first White Rook vanquished from the board."
Johann narrowed his gaze. "Only if you claim checkmate in this game, Demon King," he pointed out as he had the Dinadan draw its daggers, which flashed red upon activation. "Something that will not come easily or assuredly, I promise you."
The Dinadan readied itself. "White Knight to c7."
The Mordred assumed its combat stance. "Black King to b7."
"Check!" both shouted simultaneously as their knightmares ground their landspinners and charged, blades locking instantly.
Government Bureau
Luoyang Settlement, Duchy of Henan, Area 22 (China), Britannian Empire
"Sir Johann has engaged Zero," one of the operators announced, then brought up the central monitor's appropriate screen. Elicitations of awe erupted throughout the command center toward the resultant footage.
"Incredible!" Cheng Zhong exclaimed as he watched the Dinadan deflect a sword slash from the Mordred and counterattack with a slash harken. "So this is the power of the Knight of Two."
"Indeed," Xia Wang commented alongside, nodding in approval as the black and gold knightmare attempted to flank its opponent, only for the Dinadan to deflect that attack as well with its own Blaze Luminous. "Not only a skilled commander but also as much a warrior as the rest of his order. It's no wonder His Majesty knighted him as Britannia's Owl."
"I don't care what animal he's fancied as," Zhao Hao muttered, his arms folded as he watched the Dinadan with clear disdain. "So long as he wins this damned war already."
Calares barely resisted smirking at Zhao Hao over that. The fat, upright pig in a suit remained stung from his last encounter with the Knight of Two. Well, that suited the Viceroy just fine. If there was one thing the Duke of Henan needed a healthy injection of, it was humility. Not that Calares thought it would last, especially once this apparent Red Rebellion was over and done with.
Rather than watch Sir Johann's battle with the rest of the command center's occupants, much less listen in on the continued banter between the Eunuchs, Calares kept his gaze toward the various touchscreens and the rebellion at large, both at Luoyang proper and throughout the Area. It was all going to the Knight of Two's plan. The Black Knights and Chinese fought viciously around their targeted cities but had yet to break the defense lines and advance into any of them. The Chinese were bearing the worst of it, again per Sir Johann's orders, while the Black Knights were at least hindered in their approach, having yet to open a hole anywhere that the rest of their forces could break through. All the while, numbers – namely Chinese – dwindled throughout, which, in combination with the time allotted and the fighting remaining outside the respective cities, granted additional favor toward an Imperial victory. It is not an assured victory but a likely one.
This only caused Calares to frown, his frustration momentarily rising to the surface. Yes, Sir Johann's plan was undeniably effective; fighting the Black Knights and the Chinese in a battle of grinding attrition would surely win the day for Britannia, as there was no way either adversary could compete with the Imperial forces in the long run. The Chinese especially couldn't afford a prolonged battle, given that their only real advantage was their sheer numbers. This advantage would not last them, especially given the additional contingencies Sir Johann had put in place. As things were now, it would have been all too easy to outlast them, even with the Black Knights acting in their present support.
Rather, Calares' issue was with the plan's efficiency: why grind the enemy down when they could wipe them - including the Black Knights - out entirely and in one fell swoop? Argus had been designed specifically for that purpose, so even Sir Johann couldn't deny its power and effectiveness as a defensive weapon. Yet, instead of fulfilling that purpose, it remained inactive and out of use while His Imperial Majesty's Forces were fighting the present battle. An engagement that could have otherwise been avoided with the rain of missiles and the sweep of hadron cannons throughout the Area.
Even so, the Viceroy knew that was a battle he would not win. No matter his feelings, Sir Johann had made it clear that Argus was not to be activated, not even in the direst turn of events, for reasons that still escaped Calares. And even if he hadn't held his newfound respect for the Knight of Two, the Imperial Army General was duty-bound to obey such a command. Only a direct line from the Knight of One, or the Emperor himself, would have been able to overturn the Owl's directives.
And yet, the temptation to see Britannia's enemies wiped off the map remained with the Viceroy. Despite his best attempts to ignore that increasingly nagging feeling, much less force it back…
"Viceroy," one of the operators called out, snapping Calares back to the present. "Ballista Team is online and ready to deploy."
Blinking back to reality, Calares felt his lips turn into a smirk. While he did not entirely agree with Sir Johann's strategy, he could not deny that it would win them the day if it proceeded accordingly. And though it was nowhere near as spectacular as Argus would have been, he had to admit that some parts would come rather close.
"Have the Ballista Team deploy to Positions Alfa and Bravo," Calares replied, anticipation welling up with each word. Ugly those particular machines may have been, but once more, next to Argus, they were undoubtedly the most powerful offensive weapons the Imperial forces had in their present arsenal. "They may both fire when ready."
The temperature meter reached 3500+, and the Sutherland glowed and bubbled under the Guren grip. Only when it reached the bursting point did Kallen disengage from her victim and reverse, the frame detonating almost immediately after. From there, two more Sutherlands rushed at her, one wielding a lance while the other supported with its assault rifle, forcing Kallen to generate a radiant wave shield as the lance unit moved to flank her. Alfred intercepted the lance unit with his shield while Kallen unleashed a radiant wave beam into the machine gun unit, turning it to smoldering remains. Simultaneously, her wingmate dispatched the other enemy knightmare with a near point-blank grenade shot.
This is taking too long. Kallen thought as another Gloucester moved in, its lance poised to strike at her, while another pair of Sutherlands moved against Alfred. She quickly deflected the lance with her shield and then moved to take it out with a grenade shot. However, the enemy unit reversed at the last second, narrowly evading the explosive shot, to which it drew its assault rifle and fired off a burst, once more forcing Kallen behind her shield as she maneuvered herself. We should have broken into the city by now!
Circling, the Gloucester continued to rain bullets at her, which Kallen evaded by banking to her left, then firing another radiant wave stream to counterattack. However, the Gloucester pilot foresaw the shot and reversed their direction, narrowly dodging the stream and counterattacking with their grenade shot, forcing Kallen to leap away to dodge herself. Quickly capitalizing on its advantage, the Gloucester angled its lance and renewed its charge, poised to strike. To this, Kallen sidestepped the charging knightmare at the last second, allowing it to blaze past her without inflicting any damage. From there, with the enemy's back firmly exposed, the Guren fired another grenade into it, finishing it with a great explosion.
Before Kallen could move on, however, her sensors picked up another knightmare moving to intercept, one accompanied by an all-too-familiar, chiding voice. "Found you, little dragon!"
Gritting her teeth, Kallen reversed as her newest opponent moved in, slashing with its maser vibration scythe. The crimson blade tip sweeping over where the Guren had originally been, the Safir continued its charge, narrowly banking the responding radiant wave stream. All the while, Nena let out an ecstatic, blood-crazed laugh as she further pressed the attack.
"I hope you weren't thinking Xiaopei would be our only waltz!" the Knight of Eight called out as she slashed at the Guren again, which managed to deflect the first attack with its shield and then maneuver around the second. Responding quickly, the red knightmare fired another grenade, only to watch the Safir swat it out of the air before it could reach, let alone detonate. "Or that this Red Rebellion of yours is as good as won!"
"Far from it, Knight of Eight," Kallen retorted as she dodged both responding slashes and then counterattacked with her slash harken. Naturally, the Safir evaded this as well, but the attack forced it to abandon its charge and reverse, to which the Guren drove forward, fork knife bared to strike. "I had a feeling I would be taking you on again." Thereby keeping you tied down and away from the others…
She then slashed at her target, only for the maroon knightmare to throw up its Blaze Luminous to deflect. "As for the second, however, it is as good as winning!" Kallen declared as she banked at the Safir's right and extended her surger to grasp it. "You just haven't seen it yet!"
More laughter escaped her, and Nena dodged before the surger claw could snare her. "Whatever you say, Eleven!" she responded as she countered with another slash, causing the Guren to leap back before it could land. "I'll let Johann contend with that!"
She then had the Safir spin as it charged, scythe twirling about as the Guren banked away, firing another radiant wave stream to hinder. Unfortunately, the flails easily dissipated the stream before the custom Britannian knightmare righted itself, eye cameras flaring at its opponent. "You, on the other hand," she shouted as she dashed at the Guren, slashing at it simultaneously. "Are mine!"
"Fine by me!" Kallen shot back verbally and with another grenade at the Safir's left, only for the Britannian knightmare to slash it out of the air again. She followed up with two more grenades, both intercepted, before firing another stream, this time forcing the Safir to evade, slashing as it went. Naturally, the Red Dragoness also evaded this counterattack before circling around and again brandishing her fork knife. "Let's make this one to remember, Reaper of Britannia!"
"By all means, Red Dragoness!" Nena gleamed back as she deflected the fork knife with her Blaze Luminous, then knocked her back and slashed at her again. "Let's dance!"
Bullets and explosives flew around him, and Tohdoh maintained his charge, having the Zangetsu bank and evading as he went. Coming upon one of the attacking Sutherlands, the enemy knightmare attempted to force him away by firing its slash harkens. The general easily foresaw the attack and skated to the left, from which he easily bifurcated the knightmare as he passed. Another Sutherland, this one armed with a bazooka, fired a shell at him in the process. Tohdoh ducked the Zangetsu right before the rocket could contact, retaliating with the seidotou mounted slash harken. Unfortunately, his aim was a little off, so the harken "merely" knocked the bazooka out of the Sutherland's hands rather than strike the frame itself. Even so, it gave the devicer pause just long enough for Tohdoh to close the distance and cut it down, diagonally slashing its torso as he passed.
From there, a Gloucester came charging in with both maser vibration blades drawn, to which Tohdoh was forced to twist around and evade its attacks. As usual, the Gloucester pilot was more skilled than their Sutherland counterparts - who were now moving to entrap Tohdoh in a pincer attack – deflecting Tohdoh's counterattack and then reversing their frame right before the Black Knight could follow up. At that, Tohdoh fired off a handgun spray after the Gloucester, but it also banked wide left to evade these. Only then did the Sutherlands move in for the kill, firing a crisscross of bullets and rockets at the black knightmare, one that would have easily overwhelmed him had Tohdoh not reacted as fast as he did.
Pulling back hard on the control sticks, Tohdoh reversed the Zangetsu, barely escaping the intended kill box while returning fire with his handgun. A few of the Sutherlands fell as a result, just enough to break the concentration of fire, to which Tohdoh banked around the responding attacks and rebrandished his seidotou. He then went to work, cutting down Sutherland after Sutherland as he passed, all the while evading the responding bullet and harkening fire with relative ease. One of the more daring ones, apparently realizing there was no way it could land any projectiles on him, ditched its assault rifle and extended its tonfas, apparently set on taking out Tohdoh of Miracles up close and personal. It managed to get two solid swipes in, which the Zangetsu easily moved around before the Black Knight general finally cut it down.
The Gloucester made its prompt return right after, this time charging at Tohdoh's right, again with both MVS drawn to strike. Once more, Tohdoh parried the strike and the follow-up attack, firing his chest-mounted slash harken to counter, only for the Gloucester to reverse and evade. It then circled, firing its slash harkens in the process, which the general knocked aside while surging forward. Seidotou raised high to strike from overhead. Only then did the Gloucester make a fatal mistake, crossing its MVS to deflect. For whatever reason, the blades failed to withstand the force of the Zangetsu's rocket-assisted sword, both shattering upon impact with the hammer blow. As a result, the seidotou cut the Gloucester through the middle, co*ckpit, and all, with both halves falling to either side like split fruit. Grimacing to himself, Tohdoh did well not to stare at the contents of the co*ckpit, instead turning to progress further into the battle.
However, before he could do so, his sensors suddenly beeped in warning, to which he instinctively banked away. Just as a pair of slash harkens, which clearly did not belong to any Sutherland or Gloucester, he shot by where he had been.
"Ki-yo-shi-ro!" Michael sang as the Caius charged in, retracting its harkens as it moved against its target, broadswords brandished. Leaping up into the air upon approach, the Caius brought both blades down with a heavy slam, the Zangetsu reversing just before they could impact. Despite that, however, the Knight of Five quickly recovered, then drove his knightmare forward and brought both broadswords against the Black Knight's seidotou. "Glad you made it! Things were getting boring way too fast!"
The Caius' eyes cameras flashed viciously into the Zangetsu's mono-eye. "You can only stomp tadpoles until redundancy sets in!" Michael taunted as Tohdoh gritted his teeth, holding their respective blades in place. "To say nothing of Elevens and traitors!"
Tohdoh almost felt insulted by the obvious baiting. "I sympathize, Round," he shot back as he knocked both blades away. "Slaughtering your kind in droves can also become tedious."
He then made a rocket-powered slash at the Caius' head, only for the orange knightmare to narrowly evade. In turn, the Knight of Five attempted to blind his opponent with his flash cannon, but Tohdoh saw the attack and banked left just in time. "And besides," Tohdoh quipped with a smirk as he maneuvered away, then launched forward, seidotou rockets ablaze. "I'm still inclined to take your head."
Dodging the attack, Michael laughed as he fired his slash harkens at the Zangetsu again, knocking them away with the seidotou. "As am I, Ki-yo-shi-ro!" he howled, retracting the harkens before charging forward with his broadswords, bringing them down against the black knightmare's sword once more. "So let's see which of us gets the silver platter!"
"By all means," Tohdoh finished, his smirk now encompassing as he held the Caius' blades back and raised his handgun. "Have at you, Britannian!"
With that, the Zangetsu fired a spray directly into the Caius' face, the force of which was enough to knock the enemy knightmare off balance. Taking quick advantage, the general drove forward, knocking away its opponent's blades to circle to strike the co*ckpit. However, Michael recovered just as fast, deflecting the seidotou with his Blaze Luminous before bringing his swords about again, forcing Tohdoh to reverse and evade. The Caius then renewed its charge, both knightmares attacking and defending rapidly.
Leaping back from the Dinadan's dagger slash, Lelouch countered by firing the Mordred's right arm slash harken, to which its dark grey adversary raised its Blaze Luminous to deflect. Despite that attack's nullification, it gave Lelouch enough time to dash his knightmare to the right, to which he moved to attack the Britannian unit's left side. However, Johann was just as fast, dashing to his right to evade the slash, then turning to bring the Dinadan's hadron launcher back to bear. From that, Lelouch was forced to leap away as a crimson and black lance erupted over where he had been, landing and speeding forward again to attack up close. The Knight of Two efficiently raised his Blaze Luminous to deflect the initial slash and parried the following one with his dagger. From there, Johann fired off his slash harken, forcing the Mordred to maneuver to its left to evade, during which Lelouch raised his shield to deflect the Dinadan's next dagger attack.
"I must admit you surprised me this time, Sir Johann," Lelouch commented as he continued to exchange blades with the Knight of Two, evading another dagger slash before moving to impale with his right MVS, which the Dinadan banked around. "From what I saw at Xiaopei, as well as assessed of your past tactics and strategies, you hardly fit the overly conventional type."
Knowing the Knight of Two would ask, Lelouch clarified that much faster. "While I'm aware you do not value overelaborate stratagems like Prince Schneizel and myself, I at least believed you would have had something special saved for the CLA in this battle, especially when it came to light that we were supporting them," he explained as the Dinadan again fired its slash harken, to which Lelouch knocked aside with his re-engaged Blaze Luminous and then drove forward, executing a cross slash that never bifurcated the grey knightmare's chest, only for it to reverse at the right moment. "Instead, this battle, and those others waging across Area 22, are all standard fare, with your armies on the strict defensive, mine on the complete offensive, and everything playing out accordingly."
"Your point, Zero?" Johann inquired as he slashed at the Mordred's head, only for the black and gold knightmare to deflect his slash with the flat of its sword. A near point-blank slash harken launch nearly overtook the Dinadan's head, but Johann banked away immediately. However, before he could retaliate and cut the harken's chord, his opponent retracted it and proceeded to counter-slash, which Johann intercepted with his dagger.
"My point, Sir Johann," Lelouch continued as he pressed his own offensive forward, executing a dual slash combo that caused the Dinadan to reverse while maneuvering its daggers to parry each blow. "Is that I expected more of you."
Then, in an attempt to catch his opponent off guard, Lelouch spun the Mordred around, moving to smash the hilt of his right MVS against the Dinadan's head. Johann managed to intercept this as well, but the centrifugal force was enough to throw the Britannian knightmare off balance, to which Lelouch then proceeded to slash at its torso. Only another timely reversal kept the Dinadan from being cleaved, though a fair-sized gash now appeared over its chest. Lelouch would have capitalized on the attack even more, but another slash harken launch prevented him from closing the distance.
" I'm rather disappointed," Lelouch continued as he fired both his hip-mounted slash harkens in response, the Dinadan dodging the first and then knocking the second away with its shield. It then retaliated by firing another blast from its launcher, but Lelouch could also bank around this, driving forward again to bring his swords against the Knight of Two's daggers. "After putting so much onto our endgame, I was expecting something more…effective, perhaps even awe-inspiring, than basic defensive maneuvers."
As he held his blades against the Dinadan's shield, Lelouch glanced toward Luoyang in the corner of his mask's HMD. There, he saw one of the still inactive hadron cannon towers loom over the city, standing silent. "Even though you have such means at your disposal."
Hearing that, Johann cast a corner glance toward the city. Though he obviously couldn't see his opponent's face, he knew exactly what Zero was referring to. "As you said, Zero, the tactics I value tend to be more straightforward," he explained as he again slashed at the Mordred, which deflected the dagger strike with its sword. "Artificial terrain effects and other such 'miracles' are undeniably 'effective' and 'awe-inspiring,' but utterly pointless when such objectives can be accomplished with the conventional."
The Knight of Two unleashed his hadron launcher again, forcing the Mordred to reverse and maneuver around its fire. "But then, unlike you, I do not have a cult of personality to maintain," he pointed out as his opponent banked to his left to evade the shots. "Much less a reputation as a Demon King."
"As opposed to Emperor Charles' pet owl?" Lelouch retorted as he moved to the Dinadan's left and charged again, nearly slashing the grey knightmare's arm away. Unfortunately, Johann foresaw the attack and leaped back as the Mordred slashed.
Then, Johann brought his daggers up to intercept the Mordred's next sword attacks, which occurred rapidly. "Unlike demons, owls do not need malevolent powers to accomplish their whims," he explained, firing another hadron at point blank, nearly blasting the black and gold knightmare's head off its body. "Simply their wings, talons, and superior intellect suffice them."
Lelouch opened his mouth to retort to that, but Johann continued to speak. "But do not worry," he continued, performing another pair of slashes that caused the Mordred to leap back, one a short distance and the second further away, where the Dinadan fired its slash harkens once more. "Though it would be a simple affair to let the battle play out as it is, thereby allowing basic attrition to decimate your armies…"
He then retracted the harkens and drove toward the Mordred with daggers ready. However, rather than drive back, the Lancelot twin continued to reverse before banking left to try to flank the Dinadan again. Johann responded by keeping his knightmare facing its adversary, causing the two units to circle one another. "I have retained a surprise or two for this game."
"Oh?" Lelouch commented as he fired his left-arm mounted harken. This one aimed to take out the Dinadan's hadron launcher, only for the grey knightmare to bank to the side before it could connect. Though he put on a front of bemusem*nt, Lelouch couldn't help but feel disturbed underneath. As conventional as his opponent presented himself, Johann was far from predictable. "Maneuvering your bishops behind your pawns and knights, Sir Johann?"
In response, the slightest of grins encompassed Johann's lips. "My rooks, actually," he answered before glancing at his side monitor again, where a tacwindow containing two specific signals was displayed. "And despite what you may think of my 'overly conventional' methods, I believe even you will be impressed Zero."
"Maintain advance!" Li commanded as he drove the Shenhu, the Tianshou moving in formation with him. With a flick of his knightmare's wrist, he launched one of his 'Sheng Biaos' out and struck another charging Sutherland, detonating the knightmare with a following electrical surge. After that, he deployed his second 'Sheng Biao' and spun it, deflecting the oncoming machine gun fire at his right. From there, the Shenwu moved in and cleaved the two attacking Sutherlands with its guan dao, all without diminishing its velocity. Yin and Bai were just as quick to dispatch the other surrounding Sutherlands. At the same time, Li engaged and fired a semi-charged shot – he dared not use the Shenhu's main weapon at full capacity in the present setting – from his baryon cannon, destroying several more enemy units before them.
More Britannian units filled the openings, but that was to be expected. Though the enemy remained concentrated on the Yaoguais and the other CLA units, more than enough of them were focused on keeping the Four Beasts at bay, if not attempting to capture or destroy the Chinese Tiger altogether. Li wasn't too worried about them; unless one of the Knights of the Round came after them, he and the Tianshou could handle Imperialist cannon fodder. Alongside, whatever enemy forces came after them meant fewer units were pursuing the Yaoguais and mounting an offensive against the Mao. However, the Britannians had yet to get that far altogether, allowing the CLA to endure much longer. Li only hoped they would last long enough to break into Luoyang and the other target cities properly, as well as whatever would occur afterward. Even if it hadn't been strategically necessary for the Chinese to retake their cities, there was no way they would let the Black Knights do it in their place.
For the moment, however, Li and his subordinates still had to deal with the Britannians in front of them. He focused forward, brandishing his jian as he put the Shenhu into a dash, barreling it toward the next Britannian formation. A Gloucester attempted to intercept him with its lance, but it was child's play for Li to bank to his left and then bifurcate the commander issue knightmare at the waist, the co*ckpit ejecting before the top half fell. He then redeployed his left harken and spun it to deflect a grenade shot from another Sutherland. Then, twisting around to launch his right 'Sheng Biao' into it, electrically destabilizing and detonating it redundantly. Another Gloucester attempted to flank him during this. MVS was drawn to strike, but Li was faster, retracting his harken to deflect the intended sword blow. He leaped back from the following slash before rushing forward again to impale the Britannian knightmare through the torso and into the co*ckpit. After that, he withdrew his blade fluidly before moving away, the now dead knightmare slumping to the ground as he gained distance.
More Sutherlands attempted to move on him from behind, but Li knew better than to turn around. Instead, he watched as the Shenlong moved in to cover him, hook swords brandished as it launched toward the Britannian knightmares with vicious glee. Though the Long Xin was inactive, Yin tore through the enemy regardless, slashing and hacking apart every knightmare she encountered. One enemy unit launched a grenade at her, but she easily banked around it and then countered by lashing out her own 'Sheng Biao.' Rather than send an electric surge into the Sutherland, however, she whipped her ensnared Sutherland around and smashed it into the side of a nearby Gloucester, toppling both frames over and causing their co*ckpits to eject nearly simultaneously. Not far from her, the Shenque also charged into the scene, cutting down two additional Gloucesters with its dadao before striking a Sutherland's head with its own harken, the resulting electric pulse causing the frame to detonate expectedly.
"How much longer is this going to take!?" Bai called out as he performed a flying kick into another Sutherland, which had been lining up a grenade shot toward his sister's knightmare. As he finished it by performing a running slash into its exposed co*ckpit block, Yin returned to favor by moving to his left, using her rotating 'Sheng Biao' to deflect the machine gun burst of another Sutherland. From there, Bai also banked the Shenque out and lashed at that blue knightmare. "We'll be here to winter if this keeps up!"
We should be so lucky, Li thought dryly, knowing that they wouldn't last the day, let alone the season, if things continued the way they were. However, knowing that this would only diminish morale, he replied more appropriately to his subordinate. "Stay focused, Tianshou Two," he answered as he cleaved another Sutherland at the shouldn't be much longer."
"As you say, Shangdi One," Yin answered for her brother as she moved up to another Sutherland, then brought the crooks of her swords against its head, tearing it apart. She then finished it by moving around and striking the co*ckpit block. Though we really should have at least breached the outer city by now…
A moment later, the Shenwu was back on the scene, slashing down another Gloucester with its guan dao and smashing the weapon's pole tip against the faceplate of another Sutherland, one that had moved against it from behind. One spin slash later, that enemy knightmare was dealt with as well, though more of its brethren were quick to move in its place. That said, Hei was just as fast to deploy a baryon shield to absorb their fire, then surge forward with it still deployed to tackle the formation head-on, smashing the Britannian units wholesale. Only two co*ckpits ejected from that.
Hei was about to set upon another target when his eye caught something in his right side monitor, which held Luoyang in the distance. Though he wasn't sure he saw it, he could have sworn a flash of light had occurred from within the city. And that was precisely when the world around him shuttered.
In the form of a thundercrack, a great and powerful explosion of light erupted across the battlefield, the force of which was enough to send shockwaves surging through the plains. Such was its power that several units within its vicinity toppled over while several more struggled to keep standing, let alone fighting. Only the Britannians seemed to have anticipated the detonation, as those in proximity managed to keep their knightmares grounded enough to withstand it, though even they had to pause amid combat.
However, none mattered to Li or the Tianshou so much as where the eruption had occurred, for it had struck well within one of the Yaoguai formations, wiping out dozens, if not hundreds, of frames at once, leaving a gaping hole within its ranks.
"What was that!?" Yin let out as she and her brothers gaped at the resultant destruction. Li himself was already demanding a report from the Mao Zedong.
Black Knight mobile battleship Izumo
Duchy of Henan, Area 22 (China), Britannian Empire
What was that!? Ohgi managed to think as he reflexively shielded his face from the flash. It was as if a second dawn had emerged, and much more rapidly, upon the Earth itself. And much more upon the present battleground. "Report!"
"Analyzing now," Ichijiku replied as the Izumo's Druid System operated, herself having to blink the glare out of her eyes. The resultant data was displayed on her console a moment later, causing a wave of cold shock to wash over the sensor operator. "General, you might want to see this yourself!"
At that point, the data was placed upon the bridge's main monitor, and the result was almost as immediate. As the rest of the bridge crew gazed over the readout, which covered everything from the estimated shot trajectory and origin point to the composition of the shell, a pure and all too familiar dread began to weigh in among the present Black Knights, namely, upon the latter data, which was quick to bring certain memories to mind.
"A sakuradite weapon!?" Minami gaped in horror, voicing the general reaction of the present crew. And potentially all others who had realized it as such.
Ohgi had to force back his own horror—and the associated memories of the Devastation—lest they overwhelm him. However, it was precisely at that moment when the second round fell, causing another dome of magenta-colored light to emerge as another formation of Yaoguais was wiped out. Again shielding himself from the glare, Ohgi shouted over the resultant boom: "Triangulate and identify! Standby for counter-barrage!"
Upon those commands, Ichijiku adjusted the Druid System and associated ELINT systems to focus on the origin points – the second had struck too fast for it to be fired by the same artillery – while Futuba factored in the data to the targeting computer. Both looked on expectedly as the Druid System identified their sought targets and calculated their positioning. They were promptly shocked once again when they realized a key fact: the targets were moving and moving rapidly.
The same shock swept through the bridge once more as the readings were again placed on the main monitor, the two designated blips moving through the gridded streets of virtual Luoyang at much faster rates than any conventional artillery units could hope.
Knightmares!? Ohgi thought as he looked on. They had to be – only landspinner-equipped units could hope to move that well.
A moment later, another round of data was placed on the bridge monitor. Again, the bridge occupants were surprised, but this time for a different reason. Specifically, Izumo's computer system was not only able to identify the units in question but also provide visual images and associated technical notes.
"What is that?" Minami murmured to Ohgi as his eyes looked upon the actual units—which indeed seemed to be knightmares, but not the kind he was expecting—alongside the projected gridline images and databoxes. "It looks like a Raikou…"
The general felt a similar inclination as he gazed over the units. From his perspective, they looked less like knightmares and more like ancient prehistoric beasts with massive bodies atop four towering legs. Of course, those legs were equipped with landspinners, which allowed the beasts in question to move through the streets of Luoyang faster and much more efficiently than if they had been walking. From there, while the beasts lacked 'heads' of any kind, they made up for it with massive cannons under their respective frames. A design in which energy cackled along the triangular barrel.
At that, the first unit stopped and fired another round, the telltale flash emanating from its gun barrel. A near-instant later, another dome of magenta light erupted, sending more Yaoguais and whatever Black Knight units were nearby into oblivion.
"Canterburys…" Lelouch exclaimed upon the newly emerged image, which was now prominently displayed in the corner of his HMD. However, he couldn't stare too long at it as the Dinadan surged at him once more, slashing its dagger at the Mordred's chest plate. The former prince naturally leaped back and again proceeded to launch his hip slash harkens, which were promptly deflected by Blaze Luminous. Biting back the sting of the attack, Lelouch was forced to admit to his opponent grudgingly. "Indeed, I am impressed, Sir Johann."
The Demon King then drove his knightmare forward, right blade set to impale, to which the Dinadan banked to evade. In response, he executed a spin slash that would have cleaved the grey knightmare at the waist, but again Johann was fast enough to move out of the way. "I was under the impression that the Imperial Army never adopted the Canterbury, as it was deemed 'too ugly,'" he commented as he raised his own Blaze Luminous to deflect the counter slash. "And yet you managed to procure them and equip them with sakuradite-tipped shells, which are ideal for wiping out mass formations. Such as those the CLA employs."
He then stepped back into the offensive, driving his swords at the Dinadan as he continued. "And much more, because the Canterburys are equipped with landspinners, counter-artillery has been rendered ineffective," he said as he slashed at the Dinadan's head. "By the time proper targeting coordinates have been inputted, the units will have moved onto their alternate firing positions," he then attempted to thrust his sword into the Britannian unit's torso. Johann merely smacked the blade away with a Blaze Luminous assisted swipe. "All the while, abundant AA throughout the city also nullifies air attacks."
He then slashed at the Dinadan's neck, only for the enemy knightmare to reverse before the blade could connect. "Yes, it is a most impressive move," Lelouch repeated. "Owl of Britannia."
Despite himself, Johann nodded at the compliment. "You are too kind, Zero," he answered before firing his right arm slash harken at the Mordred's head, forcing the black and gold knightmare to reverse and then back to its left. "Yet you do not seem to be overly alarmed."
Lelouch let out a villainous laugh at that, though mostly to cover his uncertainty. In truth, he was alarmed by the Knight of Two's unforeseen move – and the resultant consequences thereof - though, thanks to his mask, his opponent had no way of reading that. "And why should I be, Sir Johann?" Lelouch commented as a tacwindow appeared at the left upper corner of his HMDS, displaying the battlegrounds across Area 22. "From what I see, you could only employ two of them, and both are here at Luoyang."
As he spoke, Lelouch drove forward to smash his left Blaze Luminous against the Dinadan's side – a move Johann did not predict – and knock it off balance. From there, he attempted to bring his right MVS down to strike, but the Knight of Two was ready that time, bringing up his left arm to deflect the strike at the Mordred's elbow. This forced Lelouch to leap away before the Dinadan launched the slash harken on that arm. "Had all of your forts been equipped with them, I might have been worried," the former prince continued as he dodged his frame in reverse, the opposite knightmare pursuing just as quickly. "But not so much just one…"
"And yet Zero," Johann pointed out as he thrust his daggers at the Mordred's chest, which deflected the first with its shield and then banked out of the way of the second. "You and I know that 'one' makes all the difference."
Through their duel, Johann again looked upon the still-untouched city. "Whether under the Chinese Federation or Britannia, Luoyang is very much the heart of this land," he exclaimed as he deflected another sword slash with his dagger. "So long as it is under Imperial control, we will retain our foothold here, even if you could capture the other cities."
Dagger grinding against sword, the Dinadan came face to face with the Mordred. "Thus, unless you take this 'one' city with the rest of them, I will claim checkmate, Zero."
Behind his mask, Lelouch found himself gritting his teeth at the Knight of Two's declaration. As much as he wished it otherwise, it was as Johann said; Luoyang hadn't just been the administrative center of China, it had also been its symbolic capital, as much as Pendragon was to Britannia and Berlin was to Eurasia. For China to be liberated and the Federation reborn, the capital needed to be taken. Tianzi publically ascended to the Chairmanship in front of the Vermillion Forbidden Palace. They could not allow the enemy to retain it, even if it meant giving up the other cities.
By contrast, the Britannians held another advantage, which the Canterburys firmly exploited. With the Chinese placing so much weight on Luoyang, Tianzi, General Li, and other high-profile CLA commanders being present, the Imperials didn't need to repel every assault across the Area. Though it would not have been a complete victory, their decimating the advance on Luoyang would still win them the day, once more, even if the other cities fell. Even worse, it would open up a means for them to take Tianzi, thereby eviscerating the morale of the CLA and leaving them open to full destruction.
Another dome of light erupted across the battlefield as Lelouch continued to process this while still fighting the Knight of Two. Such only understated the true direness of Lelouch's side of the game.
"I suggest you make your countermove quickly," Johann went on, breaking the blade lock only then so he could execute another slash—one that Lelouch just narrowly evaded. "Otherwise, you will lose most of your pawns and potentially your bishops and knights here and now."
Lelouch was unable to respond, his mind already racing for the counterattack. In actuality, he did have a countermove in place, and he had designed it for such an advent. However, he was still hesitant to use it; besides the fact that it would only be able to deal with one Canterbury, it would also unveil a key part of his strategy to Johann. And yet, given the circ*mstances, Lelouch knew it was his only real choice.
As he continued to battle the Dinadan, the former prince discreetly transmitted a specific signal…
Goddammit! Hong inwardly cursed as the shockwaves struck his Yaoguai – despite it being in the middle of the present formation – threatening to send it toppling into another of its brethren. It was only by some miracle that the shockwave hadn't disrupted the formation; instead, it had swayed a bit, but Hong and the other devicers had managed to maintain composition and vector. Even so, the damage was done, as a fair chunk of the "river" had been obliterated, with many more to follow unless someone did something about that damned artillery.
"Continue assault!" Hong commanded as the Yaoguais went on their surge, their machine guns and cannons firing at anything and everything that possessed a factsphere sensor. Though discipline and cohesion were held throughout the Chinese ranks, the Britannians were still trying to capitalize on the situation, with more and more Sutherlands and Gloucesters charging at the increasingly diminished Yaoguais. In response, Hong signaled that the formations, which had remained together up to this point, would break into smaller groups, smaller "rivers" compared to the Yangtze surges they had been employing. Each one has less power than previously, but it would make them more mobile and spread out and, therefore, more difficult to target by either those damned self-propelled guns or the knightmares they were presently dealing with. And consequently, they would last that much longer.
Thus, twisting his Yaoguai around, he unleashed both machine guns into the incoming Sutherlands, managing to total one before they entered firing range. Several more Yaoguais fell around him, but Hong's unit remained untouched by some miracle, allowing him to return fire in earnest. Two more Sutherlands fell as a result, one to bullets and another to a cannon shot. In their place, a Gloucester moved in. It fired its machine gun at the Chinese General's Yaoguai. However, in an amazing display, given his tight quarters, Hong managed to crouch and maneuver his Yaoguai so that the bullets passed over and around. Unfortunately, this meant another Yaoguai in the formation was struck, the bullets ripping into its co*ckpit area, killing the devicer and causing the frame to topple over. Ignoring the pang of guilt in that, Hong also returned fire on that Gloucester. As usual, the devicer of that particular knightmare was better skilled than average, maneuvering around the general's shots while continuing fire, taking down two or three additional Yaoguais. Only another cannon shot from one of the remaining units ended that knightmare's terror.
Moments later, another of those sakuradite shells struck, destroying another Yaoguai formation. Squinting his eyes while keeping his own Yaoguai, Hong looked toward his tacwindow to see that one of the smaller groups had been killed all at once.
"Daoji One to Mao, we need cover, dammit! That artillery is wiping us out!" he called out loud enough that it drowned out the battleground chatter momentarily. There was no reply, though Hong didn't care as he was too preoccupied. That being said, he did note the fire from the Mao and her fellow landships had increased, a combination of her cannons and missile launchers firing over the Britannian landships and into Luoyang proper.
Unfortunately, Britannian anti-air was just as quick to engage, with a virtual wave of counter-gun and missile fire erupting from the city. Though there was initially no way of telling if the Chinese shells had reached their targets, the attacking missile wave was completely wiped out in seconds, the corresponding signals blipping out from Hong's sensors. And much worse, the answer to the former inquiry was soon ratified as another dome of light erupted, this time too close to Hong's position for comfort. Another substantial amount of Yaoguais was destroyed as a result, with those remaining scattering into even smaller formations, making them easier prey for the Britannian knightmares in proximity.
Teeth gritting almost painfully, Hong, having managed to ride out the shockwave again, strained himself to keep his knightmare in its formation, as did the other devicers around him. For his life, he didn't know how they would get out of this one. And they hadn't even set foot into Luoyang yet, much as it continued to grate against him.
And again, the Britannians were quick to capitalize, with Hong's sensors beeped in warning as more Sutherlands charged forward, their assault rifles blazing away. Several more Yaoguais in his formation were destroyed, but once more, Hong managed to escape the brunt of it. Thus, he continued firing back at the oncoming Britannians, hoping Zhao or Li had done something about those shells before they lost too much. Something that Hong feared they already had.
Chinese land cruiser Mao Zedong
Duchy of Henan, Area 22 (China), Britannian Empire
The situation was becoming grimmer by the minute and at a far greater rate than previously. Despite the continuing salvos from the CLA ships – the Black Knights were covering them from their Britannian counterparts – the two artillery units had yet to be touched, so much as neutralized. Missiles were constantly being shot out from the air via AA batteries spread around the city. At the same time, the units' and spinner-assisted mobility allowed them to evade the bigger guns' targeting systems. And Zhou knew better than to send Sanzuwus after them. Anti-aircraft batteries aside, VTOLs were notoriously vulnerable to spinner-equipped units, and she had a feeling these Canterburys, or so the Black Knights had identified them, were equipped with their anti-air systems. Naturally, that left fewer options and very little time to implement them.
If there was any consolation Zhou noted, it was that the explosive yield of their ammunition type, despite being sakuradite fueled, was not powerful enough to damage more heavily armored targets like landships. Though it had a large range and certainly made a large bang, its estimated explosive yield was only effective against conventional forms of armor, such as tanks and, as demonstrated, knightmares. Zhou took solace in that, not wanting to imagine what the Britannians would have done with a more powerful shell. Not that it made the present issue any easier, of course.
If only we had units inside the city…! Zhou gratingly thought as she looked over the displayed tacscreen, trying to find some way of reaching those two insipient blue signals. Both units were spread out in different areas of the city - conveniently areas around the west end - and both were constantly moving, switching from one firing position to another with a rate and precision that made the CLA Vice Commander nauseous. Their accuracy wasn't hindered in the least through all this; if Zhou had to guess, one of the enemy landships was providing the necessary targeting data. Above all else, they remained completely out of reach; air attacks were all but completely useless, and even if the Chinese could get their forces into Luoyang in the present, the Canterburys were on the other side of the city and, again, in constant flux.
Another erupting dome of light - though from Zhou's perspective, it only appeared as a great blue mass on the tacscreen - seemed to emphasize the direness much more. Yet again, a fair number of Yaoguais were designated "LOST" on that same screen. And again, Zhou grit her teeth at that. She - and it had been her, as Li was otherwise preoccupied - needed to devise a counterstrategy and fast before their forces became too diminished for an incursion.
"General!" one of the operators shouted, causing all attention to shift. "We're receiving a signal from the Izumo!"
Though she was tempted to glower, Zhou was too intent on neutralizing the present threat. And she already knew that's what General Ohgi or whoever contacted them on. "What is it?"
A moment later, the signal—apparently a word message—was displayed on the main monitor. It read as follows: WE HAVE TARGET YI DEAL WITH. TARGET LIANG IS LEFT TO YOU. The tacscreen was then updated, with Target Yi (One) and Target Liang (Two) designated.
Despite herself, Zhou founder herself marginally smirking at that. Well, that makes things easier. Though she didn't know how "Target Yi" was to be dealt with, she was at least assured that the Black Knights had it handled, which meant that the Chinese only had to deal with one target now instead of two. Of course, Zhou was still unsure how to deal with that, though a few more options were now available.
Fortunately, it didn't take long for Zhou to pick one, although it was not one she would have preferred. "Engage main cannons," she commanded, causing more than a few eyes to light up. "Set targeting coordinates on Target Liang."
"Ma'am!?" Colonel Tao gaped in near incredulousness, the implications of that already setting in.
"You heard my order," Zhou gravely responded, though she didn't blame Tao's reaction in the least. Mao Zedong's main guns were the largest conventional weapons ever made. Dual shells from those would not only destroy the target but also a fair amount of Luoyang in the process. However, they were the single weapon Zhou knew the Canterbury would not be able to outrun, outmaneuver, or defend against. "It's our only choice."
For further verification, Zhou turned toward Tianzi, from which she received a solemn nod. "The city can be rebuilt," the Chairwoman stated with finality.
Though Tao wondered about the people within, he bit back that thought and turned back to his crew. "Engage main cannons!" he commanded to the gunnery officer. "Fire when ready!"
Johann had just deflected another slash harken attack when his eye caught motion in his right monitor: that being the Mao Zedong positioning itself, the giant-sized cannons in its center adjusting. Eyes widening – albeit only slightly – in uncharacteristic shock, he could only watch as the massive weapons each fired once, the resultant 'booms' surging across the field in a way that, despite being in the confines of a co*ckpit, the Knight of Two felt against his skin. It wasn't hard to guess what the Chinese battleship was firing on.
An instant later, the dual shells, having been accelerated to several times the speed of sound, fell upon their preset coordinates, only several meters away from its intended victim and escorts. For their part, neither the Canterbury crew nor their escorts realized that they had been hit; they had been setting up for another salvo when the mighty landship had fired. That being said, the effect was immediate as the shells landed in the middle of a street crossing, causing a combined explosion far greater than anything the Canterburys could hope to fire, which obliterated the knightmares in proximity alongside whole buildings and streets. This was only emphasized by the aftermath of the attack. In contrast, the Britannians had elicited white domes of light; the Chinese had generated two full-on mushroom clouds, each rising well into the sky and casting a great shadow upon the rest of the city.
"Well, that was rather excessive," Johann commented toward the cloud as he again deflected a sword slash from the Mordred with his Blaze Luminous. He then turned back to face Zero, or at least the visage of his knightmare. "Though I suppose it was their only real counterattack."
"Apparently," Lelouch commented with some minor distaste. In spite of its effectiveness, it remained a rather sloppy move —not unlike his opening move at Narita long ago—with quite abundant collateral damage. However, knowing the opponent in front of him, he wasn't too afraid of the latter. I trust you evacuated the civilians beforehand?"
"But, of course," Johann replied as if it were an obvious fact. "There's no need for them to be caught up in this," he said as he threw back the Mordred's sword and slashed back with his daggers. The Mordred took a minor jump back to evade both, then engaged its own Blaze Luminous when the Dinadan drove forward, deflecting the follow-up attack. "Anyway, you may have taken out one rook, but I obviously retain the other."
Once again, the Knight of Two drove his knightmare forward to "gaze" into its opponent's camera eyes. "And despite the effect of that last attack, I can assure you that it will not work again," he proclaimed before reversing as the Mordred performed a sword thrust with its opposite MVS, which would have impaled the Dinadan through its Yggdrasil drive. "Thus, it remains your move, Zero."
Once again, whether through his mask or they were communicating sound only, Lelouch was glad his opponent couldn't see his face. Namely because it, despite Johann's points of fact, now held his ubiquitous, all-encompassing grin.
"Ballista One, now arriving at Fire Point Hotel," the Canterbury pilot reported over the commlink to headquarters as his unit and the escorting Sutherlands came upon the designated cross street. For obvious reasons, he and his gunner remained quite shaken by the turn of events; no one had predicted the Chinese would retaliate as they had, obliterating a whole chunk of Luoyang to get at Ballista Two. The mushroom cloud was still quite visible in the sky, though much to the devicers' benefit, it was largely obscured by the surrounding buildings. Or the ones that were still intact anyway.
Despite their emotions, however, the battle was ongoing, and they remained Britannian soldiers. As such, once the pilot brought the Canterbury to a stable position, the gunner bit back his emotions and began filtering in the targeting data. And as much as he would have liked to knock out the Chinese battleship with the oversized gun – despite knowing the Canterbury's payload would not even be able to dent it – he retained his orders and targeted the next Yaoguai formation. All the while, the Sutherlands stood watch around them.
As such, they were all completely unprepared for the next turn of events. Without apparent cause or warning, the lead Sutherland recoiled as if struck, a large gash appearing in its torso as it fell. Before anyone could react, a second Sutherland soon fell as well. Its co*ckpit cleaved through. At that, as did the Canterbury, the remainder began to train their weapons, but it didn't matter. Swiftly and efficiently, they were struck and cut down one by one before any proper retaliation. In such ways that there was no explosion or excess of sound.
"What the hell!?" the pilot let out as he suddenly reversed the Canterbury, the gunner acting just as quickly in firing the mounted machine gun. Bullets sprayed across the street, but none seemed to hit their intended targets. Not that the gunner had any way of tracking such enemies; even the Canterbury's outer cameras failed to detect them visually.
That is, until the last possible second. As suddenly as the Sutherlands had fallen, the Canterbury's rear left landspinner was destroyed – as if struck by a slash harken – causing the giant artillery knightmare to nearly topple as the pilot fought to control it. After a moment, it managed to remain standing, struggling like a wounded beast on its four legs, but it didn't matter once more. That single pause in movement was enough for the enemy to make its move.
Thus, directly before the struggling Canterbury's main camera, two magenta-colored "eyes" appeared from thin air, gazing vehemently toward the crippled artillery vehicle and the devicers within. After that, it took only a single hadron shot to finish the Britannian machine and its controllers.
Black Knight mobile battleship Izumo
Duchy of Henan, Area 22 (China), Britannian Empire
"Target Yi destroyed," Ichijiku reported as the designated blue blip faded from existence, a "LOST" indicator flashing in its place.
Letting out a breath that he didn't know he was holding, Ohgi's eyes remained on the tacscreen for a moment longer, where the last Canterbury had been. It was gone, but he felt the price had been too high for some reason, perhaps even more so than the Chinese employing their most powerful weapon to take out the other. He again wondered what sort of arrangement Zero had with Iga to get them to cooperate like that and, much more, what it would cost them in the future.
However, that was something to be considered later. The enemy's special artillery had been neutralized for the time being, but they still had yet to break into Luoyang. Again, the more time they spent fighting on the outside, the less time they would have for the incursion. And it didn't help in the least that, largely thanks to those damned Canterburys, the CLA had lost over thirty percent of its Yaoguais already.
We need a breakthrough, and now, Ohgi thought as he studied the tacscreen, all the while trying to come up with an applicable tactic in Zero and Tohdoh's place. It was at that point that his standard inferiorities tried to push their way back onto him, making him realize yet again that he held a position and role that he was not adequate for, but he forced those back. Too much was on the line for him to think that way now, no matter how true they might have been.
Then, he saw one of the signals on the tacscreen—one corresponding to a Formidable-class battleship—begin to flicker as the Izumo's Druid System took in a new reading. Taking his eyes off that screen and toward his monitor, Ohgi zoomed in on the designated battleship, which, even from a distance, looked like it had taken quite a beating—enough that its main drive system was fluctuating from the stress. "Status on enemy battleship?"
Hearing that, Ichijiku read over the scan. "Enemy battleship crippled. Sakuradite reactor is in runaway state."
That's it! Something in the back of Ohgi's mind shouted as his idea was ratified. He might not have been an engineer more than a military commander. Yet even he knew how unstable sakuradite became when utter continuous assault - after all, the Devastation wouldn't have occurred if the opposite were the case. And with the battleship's current position…
He quickly looked over to Mutsuki. "Open a channel to Shangdi One!"
Amid his attack on another Sutherland, which he had impaled with his jian, Li had listened to the Black Knight Vice Commander's plan and was now in an uncharacteristic, though minor, state of shock. Not only was the plan tactically valid, but it would simultaneously take care of all their present hindrances. He might have expected something from Zero, but not the former terrorist Kaname Ohgi.
"Confirm Shangdi One," Ohgi called out, suddenly unsure if the Chinese general had even heard his plan. Or if it had turned out to be so poor that the Chinese Tiger was trying hard not to overreact to it in the middle of combat.
"Confirmed," Li replied, again amid his fighting. Whatever the case, he knew he wouldn't have much time to implement it. "Send me the targeting data."
A moment later, the Shenhu's computer was updated with data from the Izumo's Druid System. Li now had his target. "Tianshou Team, cover me!" he commanded as he engaged his baryon cannon, which began charging. "I'm making the run now!"
Government Bureau
Luoyang Settlement, Duchy of Henan, Area 22 (China), Britannian Empire
"Vector change on the Shenhu!" one of the operators alerted those watching. "Now moving at two-seven-zero! Speed eighty km/h and rising!"
Hearing that, Calares turned back to one of the tacscreens. Indeed, the Shenhu's designated signal was speeding up, now charging deep into the Britannian lines while the Tianshou knightmares struggled to keep up. There appeared to be an energy buildup, indicating that its baryon cannon was energizing.
"What's Li doing?" Zhao Hao commented from the side, visibly dumbfounded at the Tiger's sudden charge. The other Eunuchs didn't seem to understand either, not that anyone cared.
However, it wasn't long before Calares saw. With the force of lightning, the viceroy realized where the enemy knighmare's new vector would take it. And much to his horror, what would happen once its attack was enacted. No!
Quickly, he turned to the comm station. "All knightmares move to intercept! Now!" he commanded, not even bothering to hide his alarm. Such was its power that even Zhao Hao and the rest jumped in response. "Stop the Shenhu!"
Putting all his power into his landspinners, Li charged, with the other three Beasts following him. By now, the Britannians had seemingly figured out his intentions and detected the charge up in the Shenhu's baryon cannon, and so they were now moving to intercept him en masse. However, Li knew he couldn't be hindered—lest he be forced to break off his attack—and so concentrated on closing the distance, allowing the Tianshou to fight in his stead.
However, he didn't ignore the enemy so much that they couldn't benefit him. Upon the last segment of his charge, he watched as a Sutherland, whose devicer was either more daring or stupid than average, moved in front of him to aim with its assault rifle. At that, Li, smirking at his newfound benefactor, jumped over the resulting bullet spray, from which he landed on top of the enemy knightmare. Then, right as the Sutherland began to fall forward from the Shenhu's weight, he power leaped again, gaining considerable altitude.
Upon doing so, Li had a clear shot at the stricken Britannian battleship, and his baryon cannon was at full charge. "TIANCHAO WAN SUI!"
With that cry, the golden surge erupted from the Shenhu's chest and shot straight into the Formidable, easily burning its way deep into the landship's hull. As Li saw from his targeting computer, his aim was true. The beam had pierced the sakuradite reactor, and the final result was imminent.
In a manner not unlike the Canterbury attack before, the enemy land battleship disappeared under an expanding dome of light, which expanded well past its origin and into its surroundings, taking much of the Britannian rear guard and at least one of the other landships, within its maw. But that was of little concern compared to the area that Li and the others were counting on it to destroy. In that same instant, the dome reached out. It encompassed a sizeable portion of Luoyang's boundary wall – which the enemy battleship captain had been so considerate in parking his landship a fair distance in front of – obliterating it wholesale. From this, an equally sizeable breach had been erected. One that was not protected by Britannian knightmares.
"We have a breach!" Li called out upon landing. He and the Tianshou were already speeding toward their new entry point. "Commence incursion!"
How unexpected. Lelouch thought, despite the gleaming expression behind his mask. He almost thought he would have to devise a plan to breach the outer wall, but it seemed to have been handled anyway. From this, he glanced over to his tacwindow to see both Black Knight and Chinese signals converging on the breach while the Britannians scrambled – and ultimately failed – to close it.
"The gate has fallen, Sir Johann," Lelouch commented as he reversed away from the Dinadan, making a run toward the breach as well. Even so, the Knight of Two quickly followed, firing another shot from his hadron launcher, which Lelouch neatly evaded. "My pawns and knights have reached your territory."
Despite the obvious setback, Johann nodded at his opponent's assessment. "So they have Zero," he acknowledged while driving his daggers at the Mordred, their blade fight turning into a running battle. "But the endgame continues."
Again, as he brought his daggers against the Mordred's MVS, the barest semblance of a grin entered Johann's face. "And you remain far from claiming it."
As he dodged the dagger attacks and slashed back, Lelouch couldn't help but feel a certain hauntedness behind the Knight of Two's words. Yes, he didn't expect the game to be completely turned upon the breach. Yet it disturbed him how Johann seemed unaffected – even with his natural inscrutability accounted for – by the enemy entering his territory. Lelouch had a sinking feeling that he had anticipated the breakthrough and had made his plans accordingly.
Regardless, however, the game had reached its second phase. As Lelouch saw from another tacwindow within his HMD, additional breakthroughs had been made among the other target cities, while those that hadn't were well on their way toward. Thus, the Red Rebellion would no longer be fought on the outside but within the next battleground—the very core of China itself.
With that in mind, he and Johann continued their battle, even as they passed into Luoyang with the rest of their respective forces.
