[X] Yes
It's too late to change the plan now. You'll just have to trust in your men to overcome any possible obstacles. You trained the Black Knights, gave them purpose and belief in your abilities to make their dreams a reality. Everyone has a role to play, you included, and failure is not an option.
Never again.
Your confidence receives a boost when you see the gate to the hotel open, the JLF soldiers making motions for the van to come inside. Whatever Kusakabe sees in you, an ally or an obstacle, he cannot resist the desire to meet you in person. That will be his downfall.
When the driver stops in front of the main entrance you smoothly hop down on the ground. An officer flanked by two armed soldiers approaches you. "Are you Zero, leader of the Black Knights? Lieutenant Colonel Kusakabe-sama wishes to meet you."
"What a coincidence: this is exactly the reason I am here." You perform a flourish with your hand as the driver leaves the van and stands respectfully behind you. "Lead the way."
"One moment." His gaze shifts to the van. "Is there someone else on the vehicle?"
You see his hand starting to rise, probably to give the order to check it. You will not allow it. "No, only us two were on it." You say those words as if they are the absolute truth. "It's just a van we appropriated from a couple of distracted journalists, surely taking me to Lieutenant Colonel Kusakabe is more important that checking an empty van?"
His hand stops and lowers. "Yes, you're right. Follow me, but only you."
"But of course."
You're rising in the elevator when you receive a transmission from the transmitter you installed into your mask. "
Zero, I'm Nathan. Do you copy?"
You discretely tap a section of your belt, where a device was hidden that allow you to send messages in Morse Code, and send a reply.
"You cannot speak. Got it, I'll be brief then. I managed to hack into Britannia's communications. I may be new at this but even I can tell the security is a joke. Anyway, there isn't much that wasn't on the news save for one thing: there is an underground tunnel below the hotel and Britannia tried to send Knightmare Frames to destroy the support foundations of the building. The plan was to use the distraction to rescue the hostages and let the JLF die in the collapse. It didn't work. The JLF has some kind of linear cannon down there, it tore all Frames sent against it with ease."
Kusakabe truly is going all out. Such a pity he's incompetent.
"However, Clovis just gave the order for the Lancelot to attack the tunnel again, alone. I think it's that Seventh Generation Knightmare Miss Rakshata talked about. It's possible it will succeed, so if you feel the building moving get out of there, quickly. There is a small boat anchored in the J-33 section and a storeroom full of auto-inflatable lifeboats. You can use them to escape."
So that's its name, Lancelot. How fitting for such a pest to have the name of the knight that caused the fall of Camelot.
You send another quick reply, telling Nathan to tell the same thing to the others before ending the communications.
====
Everything happens without a sound.
While the JLF soldiers are waiting in the lobby together with the driver the rear of the van opens and two figures wrapped in black slide out, using the vehicle's size to hide from cameras and open the doors to the lobby. The driver, who was instructed to initiate small talks to distract the soldiers, gives no sign of reacting.
Lian's fingers bury into the neck of two soldiers, the mouths that opened into them crushing and devouring the delicate cartilage inside.
The King Beggar of Nadir beheads the heads of the remaining two soldiers with a single move, mortal bones being no match for Soulsteel.
"News from Zero?" Far from being shaken from the grimsly display the driver poses the question with an even tone, raising his cap to reveal Akito's face.
"Only one: that we must hurry." Nadir hands out to the Slayer his bladed tonfas. "The Britannians are going to destroy the foundations and make the building sink, soon."
"Crude, too crude." Akito grins toothily as the rest of the Black Knights run inside the lobby. He takes out a pair of advanced goggles and put them on. "Where?"
Lian's delicate lips part as her dainty tongue licks the air, discerning through all scents until she finds fear and heavy stress. "This way."
They move with confidence, aided by the hotel's map provided by Nathan and Lian's extraordinary senses. All patrols are quickly and silently deal with, until they reach a door guarded by two guards.
"Is it clear?" Nadir whispers.
"No, there is one of
them right in front of the door." Akito replies cryptically. Good thing he always brings with him essence-seeing lens in case spirits are involved, they allow him to see the blue man standing in front of the door. "Distraction."
Nodding Nadir grabs a bullet, takes aim and flicks it so that it lands in the opposite direction. It lands with 'clink!', causing the heads of the guards and the dematerialized spirit to turn in that direction.
Akito shoots forward, almost emulating those favored by Adorjan with pure leg strength alone. He pulls back his fist and growls "Be humbled." before swinging it at the spirit's back.
The hostages are startled when the building tremble, but have soon something else to worry about as masked men and women dressed in black rush into the room and start decimating the JLF.
"See, what did I tell you Shirley?" Milly says with a wide smile as she keeps massaging Nina's head on her lap, having been forced to calm her down when her fear of Elevens almost got her in troubles. "Heroes always arrives to save the fair maidens."
====
When you're ushered into the room Kusakabe is waiting inside seated on a couch, flanked by two soldiers and with his back against a flag of the old Japan put on the wall. How trite.
"So Zero, what is the reason of your presence here?" He asks as if trying to impose dominance and subservience on you, not realizing how outclassed he is.
Hidden by the mask your eyes flash green. '
Worthless, worthless and-oh, not totally worthless.' Kusakabe and the man on his right are mere mortals, but the essence of the one on the left burns brighter. But he's not an Exalt.
"An human sorcerer most likely. Must be the one who summoned the Elementals and negotiated with the minor gods. Back in the day all human settlements had someone trained to act as diplomat with supernatural creatures."
Mildly interesting but ultimately irrelevant. Even if Kusakabe really made a pact with a higher ranked god, the latter would obviously risk their neck by participating.
The buffoon has exhausted his usefulness to you.
"Kusakabe Josui, I have come to inform you that your actions today have dishonored yourself and your men." You intone, using your anger at your friends being taken hostage to add an edge to your voice. What you are about to deliver is a horrible truth that will bring despair and so it's supported by Ebon Dragon, but you want him to suffer. "Taking your men into almost certain death in an operation not approved of by your superior might be forgiven, but you have taken innocent women and children hostage, used them as your shields. This is cowardice unbefitting of a warrior of Japan! You have sullied the honor of not only the Japanese Liberation Front, but the very Japanese people who you claim your actions serve! That bastard Clovis will use this opportunity to destroy the JLF's reputation worldwide, to give them confirmation that the Japanese are the savage barbarians Britannia claims us to be, to justify their occupation and oppression!"
You reach into your mantle, and pull out an ordinary sheathed tanto, letting it fall on the table in front of you. "There is only one recourse to restore your honor, Kusakabe Josui."
He appears to be about to say something in retort, but his eyes go wide as he begins to see things that aren't there. "N-No! Father! Shinji-kun! What are you doing here? Why are you looking at me like that! Stop it! I did nothing wrong! Stop!"
He fearfully stands up and backs away even as his guards look at him in confusion. One of them, the one with a stronger Essence, abruptly turns back to stare at you with wide eyes.
You shoot him three times, two in the chest and one in the stomach, before doing the same with the other one. The guards who were stationed outside are dealt with in the same manner.
Kusakabe, obvious to the carnage, has taken out his sword and started to slash wildly at the air as he keeps repeating he did everything for the sake of Japan. Maybe you shouldn't be so surprised, to keep going so far his delusions must be strong indeed.
The whole building shakes once, twice before it begins to sink. "Damn it all! Already?"
"Zero!" Nadir rushes into the room. Seeing you're okay he smiles but doesn't relax. "We gotta go!" He tosses you the detonator.
"Thank you." You catch it with one hand before aiming your gun at Kusakabe. "I have no more time to waste with you."
You pull the trigger and nail him in the chest. The force is enough to send him stumbling backward and through the window door before he falls outside the hotel.
The thumb of your other hand presses the detonator's trigger.
====
With Nadir's help you quickly reach the escape point and board the boat, leaving the debris behind. The hostages were put on the lifeboats floating ahead, so that Britannia cannot attack you without doing the same with the hostages.
One Black Knight gives you the OK signal before leaving the camera mounted on the bow and returns to your side. In a few seconds you'll be on live.
After such a splendidly done operation, it's only fair you regale the whole Area Eleven with a grandiose speech by yours truly.
[] Write-in.
Stunt Pool: 5/6
Personal Essence: 8/16
Peripheral Essence: 16/39
Willpower: 10/10
====
Tomorrow I'm going on a vacation for 1-2 weeks, so sadly no further updates until I return. Have fun making up a suitable speech for the ever charismatic Zero.
