Code GATE: Apostles of Zero

Disclaimer: I don't own Code Geass or GATE: Thus The JSDF Fought Here

Summary: Takes place in an AU timeline where Zero's rebellion succeeded, liberating Japan and others from Britannia. Now, with the world momentarily at peace, Lelouch must deal with the newest issue of a mysterious gate opening up into Tokyo, leading to a fantasy world with weapons and technology far inferior to their own. Xover with GATE: Thus the JSDF Fought Here.

Regular Speak

Thoughts and Flashbacks

Demonic or Animalistic Speak

Demonic or Animalistic Thoughts

Beta-ed by Dragon_Wizard91

In the year 2017 a.t.b, the masked man known as Zero began his crusade against the Holy Empire of Britannia, establishing the Order of the Black Knights as a means to wage a rebellion against the vast enemy nation. Outnumbered and often under-armed, only the ingenious and miraculous leadership of Zero led to the most victories against Britannia any entity had achieved since the launch of the first Knightmares. And as Britannia's image of invincibility was shattered, so too did the hope of their enemies and conquered subjects rise.

As his rebellion grew, swallowing the whole of Area Eleven until the flags of Japan and the Black Knights flew from one end of the island to the other, the war against the Black Knights became as undeniable as the war with the European Union, with Japan lost and all of Britannia's Asian conquests at stake. And as the wars raged on, so too did the power of Zero and his Black Knights grow.

The War with the European Union already had their forces spread thin. With Zero usurping their territories on the other side of the world, and with the Chinese Federation and possibly even the neutral country of Australia watching on, the armies of Britannia realized just how alone they had made themselves in the world now. Cut off from the main source of fuel for the Knightmare Frames and faced with being the enemy of the entire world, the Britannian Emperor was forced to do something he hadn't done in his life. He had to give up; or call a ceasefire, to be exact.

The year is now 2020 a.t.b. Of course, that was just by the Britannian Imperial Calendar. The European Union's calendar read as Revolution Year 231 and the Chinese Federation read as 2186 Tongyi, but the Japanese now referred to the year as Rei 3 or R3, the third year of the Era of Zero...

Tokyo, Japan

Former Viceroy Palace

Current Shared Headquarters of Temporary Japanese Government and Order of the Black Knights:

Lord Zero of the Black Knights hadn't changed his iconic appearance much in the years. The helmet was a tad bigger, if anyone did a precise check between the two models, to make room for new features. The pants no longer covered his feet with built in shoes, and were instead covered by metal toed black boots, a habit he had picked up from a visit in the Philippines. His gloves were now a metallic silver color, but aside from that, his outfit was entirely the same. The only other difference to the image was that the man himself had filled out a bit more. Not from active training mind you, but from three years of near constant combat and traveling.

The man sat behind an oak wood desk, a leftover from the Britannian occupation, with his head resting against one hand and a document in the other, 'A request to accelerate the Restoration of Mount Fuji, eh?' He mused. One of the first things the Japanese wanted to do after kicking the Britannian Army out of their homeland was to remove the heavy mining systems from their most revered mountain, a sentiment Lelouch could understand.

He hummed as several documents pulled up onto the interior of his helmet. His mask, for the most part, wasn't a computer. Rather, it was a wireless monitor that hooked up to various systems, allowing him to get updates and do immediate research on virtually anything. All he needed were a few subtle gestures of the fingers and he could control it all with silent ease, pulling up progress reports and the research that went into planning on the Restoration Project. In most situations, he would have rejected the idea all together, until more peaceful times. However, the metal stripped from the mountain was being recycled for Knightmares, weapons, construction material, and more. In this case, this symbolic move had practical benefits.

'Just as I thought. While we have plenty of stockpiled Sakuradite and can lower the mining quotas to quicken the dismantling, the true issue is that if we act too hastily and speed up the deconstruction, we run the risk of causing some of the unmined Sakuradite to explode,' he mused to himself, already rejecting the proposition. 'Even though we still intend to mine out the mountain, people are eager to get rid of the obvious signs,' He thought in bitter humor. 'I guess the world as a whole wants to forget about their problems for a while rather than deal with them directly,' He mused, closing down the documents before pulling up a feed from one of the surveillance cameras from the top of the roof, giving him a view of the former settlement.

It made him smile a bit; even from here, he could see the former ghettos, no longer decaying and rotting buildings, but cities being reborn from the ashes of defeat and rebellion, like a phoenix. It was little things like that that made Lelouch thankful he hadn't gotten caught up in how quickly his plans had originally accelerated, or he might have kept pushing himself and his organization to crush Britannia as quickly and completely as possible. While Britannia still had its numbers, they no longer were so dismissive of them, fearing rebellions- rebellions aided by the Black Knights.

Besides, a sight like this was what made him glad for the short reprieve. If nothing else, it gave everyone a breather, and something more to fight for. Japan was no longer just a dream. They were rebuilding it, and that made it a tangible thing to grasp onto, not just an ideal.

He straightened in his seat as a benign alert came over his helmet, informing him of a visitor. He smirked as he saw the name...

"Lord Zero," Captain Kallen Kozuki of the Zero Division saluted as she entered the room with the guest. The red-headed half-blood had grown out her hair a bit, but beyond filling out a bit more with age, she hadn't changed much physically beyond an added symbol to her shoulders- the symbol of the Black Knights inside an outline of Zero's helmet…the Symbol of the Zero Squad. "Lady Sumeragi is here to see you," She explained, flashing a slightly sympathetic smile at her leader. Mentally, she had matured and somewhat mellowed. While her temper still rose up, it was more controlled than ever, keeping it directed only at her opponents...and her more annoying friends. Her admiration and loyalty to her leader, however, were as absolute as ever.

The Acting Prime Minister smiled at the masked man, who smirked fondly beneath his mask, "You know, you really starting to neglect your wife, Master Zero," She informed with a smile. Kaguya Sumeragi had changed in height, beauty, and nothing else. She still sported her usual Japanese garbs, though, one for her current sizes. She was still the cheerful yet brilliant 'Goddess of Victory' that wanted nothing more than to be the loving wife of Zero.

"I can't neglect something I don't have, can I?" He retorted in kind as he waved for them both to have a seat, "What can I do for you, Prime Minister?" Zero asked curiously.

"Unfortunately, more documents and reports for you to look over," She said with a sigh, almost pouting…almost. "Being your Prime Minister is half-way between being a figure head and half being your secretary," She mused with feigned sadness. While most newly formed governments were eager to solidify infrastructure, poorly thought out or not, the government of Japan had a temporary setup with various Black Knight members filling many roles for the time being, until more qaulified individuals were found and deemed capable. As the Black Knights were mainly based here, they had become more integrated into the government than Zero had originally intended. While Kaguya was the Prime Minister, in the eyes of the people, from the poor to the rich and the noble to the corrupt, Zero was the final authority in the Land of the Rising Sun. Then again, Kaguya viewed it much the same way.

"I assure you, Milady, I had no intention of it being that way," Zero assured in amusement. Lelouch had not planned on the Black Knights becoming the Japanese Government, but removing their organization from the setup would only result in a confused mess. As such, Japan was free, but was technically under the military rule of the Order of the Black Knights. While some die hard patriots were not fond of this notion, especially with Zero still masked, most didn't see an issue with it. After all, Zero was the savior to the Japanese people, and to many other people around the world. Anyone who spoke ill of him in public was just asking to get attacked by one of his more zealous supporters.

Kaguya nodded in understanding as she pulled a small stack of papers out of her sleeve, handing them to the masked leader, "Ohgi is eager to get the educational system back up and running, I see," Zero mused as he looked over the request, noting all the pros and cons of Ohgi's request.

"For good reason," Kallen joined in, getting the attention of both leaders. "Many Japanese children and young adults didn't received much of a proper education during the occupation. While Ohgi certainly wants to get back to teaching one day, the fact is that the longer we wait, the bigger the challenge will be to get the current generations educated and able to contribute to rebuilding," She pointed out.

"I see guarding Master Zero has granted you some of his wisdom, Kallen," Kaguya noted with a bit of mischief, "It must be nice, being able to dedicate your life and body to him so completely. If only he'd give me the same honor," She said with a smile that was too genuine to be true.

Kallen gave her a dry smile, knowing what the so called Goddess was imagining, "I doubt that we're talking about the same kind of dedication, Ma'am," She retorted politely, to Kaguya's amusement.

"Kallen is correct. Honestly, I've been planning to set such a thing into motion as well. Hmm, Kallen, do me a favor and pass a message onto Ohgi: Tell him to start looking into recruiting and finding any fellow teachers he can find over the winter. And assure him that while his plan isn't approved yet, I am looking into the issue," He ordered, the gears in his head moving. One of the more common issues in Japan was finding people qualified for certain positions.

Kallen just nodded dutifully, making a mental note of that as Zero turn the page...and sighed? "Sir?" She asked, surprised at the reaction.

"Lady Sumeragi, what is this?" Zero asked, his metallic voice confused and treading towards annoyed. Kaguya smiled mysteriously at that, offering no explanation.

"Zero?" Kallen asked again.

"It's a proposal in regard to the eventual reformation in government, offered and endorsed by several individuals and families of influence. Simply put, it suggests a restoring of the Japanese Imperial Throne, in a more Constitutional Monarchical fashion, granting a great but limited power to the throne," Zero summarized evenly.

Kallen blinked at that. It didn't sound too bad, honestly. Sure, Britannia had left a bad taste for monarchies in the mouths of many of their former subjects, but a government with a limited ruler wasn't necessarily a bad thing. Besides, to her knowledge, the Japanese royal family had still been a symbolic thing prior to their death after the original invasion, so it's not like it was too surprising that someone would want to revive Imperial Japan, 'Maybe Zero doesn't like the idea of a monarchy after so long of fighting the Empire?' Kallen mused, 'No, that doesn't sound like him...'

"The proposal goes on to suggest that the first Empress and Emperor should be Kaguya Sumeragi married to Lord Zero of the Black Knights, dispelling any issue of my linage without removing my mask," Zero explained.

'Ahhh, another proposal attempt, that's what the sigh was for,' Kallen realized, everything making sense now as she gave Kaguya a raised eyebrow.

"Well, you have to admit, Emperor Zero of New Imperial Japan doesn't sound bad. And they are already calling this the Rei Era," Kaguya reasoned with a smile, "The people have more or less named you Emperor in all but title, Master Zero."

Kallen fell silent at that as she looked at Zero's unreadable and iconic mask. If she were honest with herself, she could see him as an Emperor. People already talked about him like he was a god, and for good reason. While anyone could put on the mask and call themselves Zero, only the true Zero could bring about the type of miracles that they had witnessed. Victory itself had once been a miracle for them, one their leader was all too willing to deliver time and again. A man like that...if he didn't have the right to sit upon a throne, no one did, in Kallen's mind at least.

"A masked rebel, a masked commander, a masked politician, and now you're trying to make me into a masked emperor, Lady Kaguya?" Lelouch asked, cocking his head, not giving away if the idea annoyed or amused him, "Such a decision cannot be made by me alone. Claiming such a position would appear to many as a mere reach for power, both local and abroad," He retorted simply.

"I don't hear a refusal in there, Master Zero," Kaguya retorted wryly.

"If the people felt so inclined to push for such a motion, I'd merely be accepting the role," Zero answered smoothly, "Still, considering the reformation of the government will be a long and serious matter to discuss at another time," He reasoned, setting the proposal aside.

"Still not a no, Sir," Kallen pointed out in amusement.

Zero ignored the jab and merely looked at the next document, "So, the territories we liberated are actually considering being annexed into the New Japan," Zero mused, mostly to himself. "Not surprising, really. Britannia needed something of an infrastructure here to quickly start mining Sakuradite. In the Philippines and lands south of the federation, they had no such worry and more or less annihilated the local governments.

Kaguya nodded solemnly, "They're having a much harder time even forming temporary governments, with so many roles unfilled and trouble organizing themselves to gain public support. And with fear of Britannian Empire or the Chinese Federation forcibly annexing them, they would rather be considered a territory of Japan and working for the Black Knights than being conquered all over again."

"They who fight monsters should be wary of becoming monsters themselves," Zero paraphrased, interlocking his fingers on the desk and resting his head against them in deep thought, "We must tread cautiously, lest we set ourselves up to become no better than Britannia itself."

Kallen bit her lip to bite back a retort, to say that they would never be like them, that Zero himself would never become a tyrant like Charles zi Britannia. She knew Zero was always prepared for the absolute worst, even if the worst was unthinkable in her mind.

"With all due respect, Master Zero...do have a bit more faith in those that have faith in you," Kaguya requested with an unusually stern expression.

Zero looked at those intense green eyes and was reminded all too much of the White Knight of Britannia, "...Lady Kaguya, did you know that my original intention was to have Japan completely autonomous from the Black Knights, with its own government and army?" He asked evenly.

"...Allow me to rephrase that then. Do have a bit more faith in yourself, Zero," Kaguya requested with a small, knowing smile.

Zero made no comment, prompting Kallen to take up the role of icebreaker, "Honestly, Zero, I don't know much about the intricate parts of running a government but at this point, trying to separate the Black Knights from the governing body would probably cause more harm than good."

Zero nodded in agreement on that as he looked at the proposal, "Lady Kaguya, I shall leave this matter to you," he decided, to her surprise. "The people should know that you are more than just a figurehead and that you have my confidence to do what is best for Japan and those that we have liberated in the past," he explained smoothly as the young Prime Minister beamed at the praise.

"Thank you for your trust, Master Zero," She said with a small bow of the head.

"I don't think a bride is required to bow her head to her groom," Zero added on, making Kaguya blush just a tiny bit, Kallen smirking at the reaction as their masked leader casually skimmed through the rest of the documents, "The rest of these seem to be fairly simple in comparison. I regret to sound dismissive, Prime Minister, but I'm sure we both have busy schedules," he said with a small smile under his mask.

Kaguya regained her bright composure as she rose, "Good day to you, Master Zero," she said before turning to depart.

"...There are days when I think you're leading her on," CC said idly, making Kallen jump as the green-haired immortal appeared seemingly from nowhere, leaning against a corner of the room behind Zero's desk, wearing the white outfit that so heavily resembled Zero's.

"When did YOU get here?!" Kallen asked in shock, a bit embarrassed at that lapse of awareness.

CC smirked in amusement at that, "Fret not, our illustrious leader was more than aware of my arrival," She assured as she walked up to Zero's desk with her hands behind her back, "You really should consider that proposal. Not many women will give what she is offering so eagerly: To rule over a country that already loves you, her hand in marriage, and her permission to enjoy the pleasures of the flesh with others," She pointed out coyly.

"If I believed that the world could remain peaceful and no longer needed us to be on guard, I'd be more inclined and willing to accept her offer," Lelouch answered ominously. "I take it you have something important to discuss?" he asked knowingly.

"Sir?" Kallen asked, out of force of habit.

"You can stay, Kallen. You've more than earned our trust," Zero assured, CC nodding sagely. The two had often excluded Kallen from 'important' meetings in the earlier days of the Black Knights. While disheartened, she always obeyed the dismissal. After Japan had been freed, however, those orders came less and less until she was sure that the 'important' meetings were really just 'private' or 'personal' meetings. And while she had long come to terms for her infatuation with Zero, she learned long ago not to be jealous of the mysterious witch that was CC. It only made working with her worse.

"You'll be happy to know that most of Britannia's agents still in Japan, OSI or otherwise, have been identified. They are all either already captured or eliminated, or being monitored for more opportune moments, " She assured, getting a nod from Zero. CC, since the reclamation of Japan, had been granted the official title of Head of the Kiku Division. It was a mysterious group that Zero had set up as a department for intelligence and counterintelligence, among other things. And while the rumors of her being Zero's Mistress still ran rampant, no one denied that CC was a valued member of the Black Knights after all the spies and leaks she had discovered and dealt with.

"Good. The last thing I need is the Emperor putting eyes and ears where they don't belong," Zero said evenly, "I take it your operations in the other former areas are going smoothly?" he inquired.

CC smirked, "Who do you take me for, Lord Zero?" She asked, almost purring to Kallen's awkwardness. What happened to make her act so much more...alive in the past year or so, Kallen wasn't sure she wanted to know.

"I take you for a witch," Zero shot back simply, doing nothing to dampen CC's demeanor.

"Everything is going fine," She answered pleasantly. "And the Chinese spies in Japan are all being monitored, to keep them from knowing too much without letting on that we know where and who they are," she explained as she walked around to the front of the desk, facing away from Zero.

"If everything was going perfectly fine, you probably would have waited until your pizza ran out to tell me so," Zero mused pointedly.

CC paused at that before sighing to turn around with a frown, "There is something," she answered grimly, Kallen's eyes sharpening as Zero's posture remained unphased. "There is an energy anomaly in one of the districts of Tokyo. We don't know what it is and can't find the source of it. As far as we can tell, it's non-lethal and has no obvious effects on anything. If weren't picking it up on Rakshata's new scanners, we wouldn't know it's there at all," She explained, her eyes narrowed in suspicion.

"There's something else, isn't there?" Kallen asked, learning to pick up on the Witch's moods and expression.

"When I went there, my code felt...agitated," CC explained vaguely.

"...Your Code can feel?" Kallen asked with a raised eyebrow.

"More than you might think," CC said mysteriously.

"Where is it, exactly?" Zero asked calculatedly.

"The Ginza district," CC answered instantly, Zero pausing to check about the specific area via his helmet.

"...With its proximity to the shore, it's possible that it could be just about anything, smuggled in through our security," Zero realized, stroking the chin of his mask. "Especially given that the reconstruction efforts hasn't reached there yet, meaning most people still living there are criminals, homeless, and addicts. All unlikely to report suspicious activity."

"Ginza...that's close to Shinjuku...," Kallen commented dryly, "Sir, I know you plan ahead more than most of us could ever hope to grasp...but to avoid the cosmic irony of you dying at or near where you began all of this, please do stay out of the area until it's been cleared that it's not something explosive, or otherwise a threat to you," She requested bluntly.

"While I'm normally not one for such superstitions, I am somewhat in agreement with you, Q1," Zero answered with a nod, "CC, I know this presence must not be pleasant on you-" He started, only for CC to hold up her hand.

"Say no more, Lord Zero. I'll report back to you if and when it's been determined what the source of this phenomenon is," CC assured dutifully as she turned to leave. "If I die again, I expect a bonus for my troubles, in the form of Pizza if you please," She added on playfully before leaving.

"The Witch of Zero never changes," Kallen muttered before looking back to her leader. "Was it ever weird for you, her being Immortal?" she asked curiously.

"Only the first time or two," He answered with a shrug, "Was it ever weird for you being one of the rumored Mistresses of Zero?" He asked.

"...You swore never to bring that up." She said pointedly.

"I figured I should, since the rumor is back," Lelouch answered as he reclined in his chair, enjoying Kallen's reaction as she blushed in disbelief.

"Again!? Did Kaguya and CC bribe Deitard to Photoshop pictures of us again?!" She asked, blushing scarlet, wanting to punch someone.

"No, this one is all on us," Zero assured, hiding his amused voice.

"...Meaning?" Kallen asked blankly, wondering what they had done, exactly, to cause this wave of rumors.

"Deitard showed some footage from our battles, in the other former Britannia Areas in the south, to some new and refunded movie companies," He answered evenly.

"Movie companies?...The Black Knights are getting a movie?" Kallen asked, blinking, not sure how to respond to that.

"Movies, most likely. Along with various documentaries," Lelouch elaborated. "Anyway, someone leaked onto the web a clip showing that time on Palawan when I, quote, "single handedly pulled Kallen Kozuki out of a wrecked Gurren", end quote, and carried you to the medics," he finished, 'Thank the World of C that I had already build up enough muscle and energy to do that or that clip would have been a lot more embarrassing, for Kallen and I both,' he added in his head.

"Oh...THAT," Kallen realized with a sigh. "Rakshata was absolutely furious with the 'near death of her child.'"

"If the Gurren ever becomes damaged beyond repair, remind me to give it a proper burial, if only to appease the 'mother'," Zero requested, his dry tone pouring through his voice modifier.

"Will do," Kallen agreed, looking at him curiously, "Anything else, Sir?" She asked professionally.

"Don't you have a mother of your own to get home to?" Zero pointed out in a prompting yet kind tone.

Kallen smiled at the unofficial dismissal, before saluting him, "Thank you, Sir. See you tomorrow," She said before leaving.

"It's good that she's learned to relax around you, instead of always trying to impress you, Master," Sayoko said with a smile as she appeared, kneeling beside her Master's side.

"You and CC both do realize that your stealth no longer works on me, right?" Lelouch asked, curious and unphased.

"While a good maid is one that goes unnoticed, a good kunoichi would never intend to surprise her master, in a negative way at least," Sayoko answered submissively, and maybe a bit mischievously.

"I take it that CC's report is accurate?" He inquired.

"As they have been for the past seven months, Master," Sayoko confirmed, "It is not my place to judge or question your orders, Master..." Zero said nothing, but gestured her to continue as she had, "I firmly believe that Lady CC's days of having her own agenda are long gone. She's been much more lively, and much more dedicated, ever since The Incident," She theorized, knowing to never mention anything specific about said Incident, "I don't think that woman has any more plans than to be an asset to you..."

"Besides amusing herself and acquiring Pizza," Lelouch corrected in amusement.

"Do you still not trust her?" Sayoko asked curiously.

"I never stopped trusting her. I trust her not to endanger myself, and therefore my plans. The fact that she had her own plans and desires involving me never bothered me in and of itself. However, someone like that I'd rather not be an enemy of, so I'd want to know if she has her own agenda, if only to avoid it, if not assist with it," He elaborated, 'Unless it ran counter to mine own, of course.'

"Ohhh, I see. You want to repay Lady CC for all she's done without directly asking her," Sayoko deduced with a smile, "What a kind, if shy Master you are."

"Sayoko, don't make me assign you to spy on Tamaki again," Zero warned in annoyance, making her pale quickly.

"A thousand apologizes, Master!" She said quickly. Watching over Tamaki was one of the most annoying and mind-numbing assignments she had ever been given. It was only after giving a handwritten report to her Master that she realized the entire assignment was just a covert punishment to display his displeasure with her.

"Still, I'm sure CC is getting annoyed with her having people spying on her," Zero commented idly.

Sayoko blinked at that, wondering if she heard right, "You believe she knows she's being watched?" she asked in surprise.

"I would be surprised if she didn't," Zero answered simply, "Besides, I'm sure you'd like a little more time as a maid than as a kunoichi," he teased lightly.

"I am what my master needs me to be," She retorted with a smile.

"And I need you at home more than I need you spying on CC," the former prince answered firmly.

"...You do recall that Lady CC does live with you still, Master? Or has all the long nights made that fact forgettable?" Sayoko asked with a smirk.

"How about spying on Tamaki while undercover as a new subordinate for him?" Lelouch suggested pointedly.

"Master, your cruelty knows no bounds," she said emotionlessly before disappearing without a trace.

"If I, and the original Black Knights, can put up with him for extended times, I'm sure a great ninja could as well," He added on, knowing she hadn't left hearing range just yet.

Meanwhile

"Hmm, Sayoko is gone, and there is no replacement. Maybe he finally got tired of hearing the same reports twice," CC mused to herself as she sat on a large piece of rubble that had long fallen off one of the deteriorating buildings. It wasn't comfortable, but it gave her a nice little perch to look down the streets as the Kiku division got to work.

The Kiku division was a group of currently less than five hundred men and women, handpicked by herself and Lelouch to work on the secretive missions and plans of the Black Knights. The identity of every member was a complete secret. No digital file existed with their true names. If a hard file existed, CC herself didn't know of it either, as she knew the real name to every codename by heart.

To keep their identity secret, they all wore black caps over their respective hairs, with the green kanji for Kiku on them. If their hair was too long, it was put up in a bun. Attached to the caps were dark purple visors to hide the upper part of their faces, a keepsake from the original Black Knight uniforms. Their uniforms otherwise all looked standard issue beyond that, with a standard handgun equipped to everyone for this task. Which was the point; at any time, they could get out of sight, remove those caps and visors, and appear to be just another soldier. The only one in the group that didn't wear such a disguise was CC herself, not needing one for obvious if mysterious reasons.

"Ma'am," A female Kiku officer asked as she looked up at her commanding officer's sitting position.

"Yes, Hawthorne?" CC asked patiently to the orange haired officer.

"We've checked this area of the District, but we still can't find an epicenter or even a denser area of the unknown energy," Hawthorne answered, sounding confused. "It's like a bomb went off already and we're detecting some kind of residue displaced over the area."

"No matter how sleazy this part of Tokyo is, someone would have reported an explosion of any kind," CC commented to shoot down that theory, partially. "Have you checked the sewers and old subways?"

"The team we sent down there is finishing up, but they haven't even detected the anomaly down there," Hawthorne answered.

"...Now that is odd." CC commented, narrowing her gaze in thought. "Not only does that mean that the energy wasn't displaced from down there originally, it also means it's not sinking."

"We sent an agent to one of the taller buildings, to see how high it is," Hawthorne added in.

"I like the initiative," CC praised with a smirk, "How did that pan out?"

"If it's rising, it's slowly Ma'am. The readings died off somewhere between the fourth and fifth story," Hawthorne explained.

"So, it only reaches about forty to fifty feet high," CC deduced curiously, "Hawthorne, walk with me," She ordered as she gracefully jumped off the rubble and started walking.

"Ma'am?" Hawthorne asked curiously as she ran a bit to catch up.

"I'm going to see if I can find the epicenter of this myself, and I need you to come with me as a link to the rest of the group," She answered simply, heading down the damaged and unmaintained streets with a steady and even gait.

"Don't you have a communicator, Ma'am?" Hawthorne asked in confusion.

"Yes, but I've learned to have a backup. Something Lord Zero taught me," CC answered with a smirk as the two drifted into silence. Hawthorne, walking behind CC, didn't see the Code become visible on the head of CC. Said immortal's senses stretched outward, becoming more agitated by the odd presence in the area. Instead of suppressing it, CC latched onto it, trying to use it as a way of tracking this unknown thing she was trying to identify.

Hawthorne, meanwhile, dutifully walked in silence as she allowed her Division Head's sixth sense to do its thing and hopefully find the source of whatever had brought them to this still-ruined district of Tokyo. She honestly wasn't sure how long they wandered around Ginza, passing by other operatives as the seedier members of the district hid away from the Black Knight operatives and the (in)famous Witch of Zero. Every now and then, CC would hum, grunt, or hiss before changing direction; as if correcting her course.

"Hawthorne, come in Hawthorne," A male voice came in over the handheld radio, "This is Butterfly. Over."

"Keep it down, Butterfly. I'm with Miss CC, and she might be close to finding the source of this energy," Hawthorne warned in a quiet tone, "Over."

"Roger that, no need to be snippy. The other teams all finished trying to find any kind of trail or source. No luck, so if the director doesn't find anything...well, I'll be stumped as to what the next move would be," Butterfly answered, "Over."

"We'll cross that road when we get to it. Over and out," Hawthorne said, resisting the urge to sigh.

"Annoyed, Hawthorne?" CC asked idly.

"No, Ma'am. Well, not with the assignment, but more with the prospect of not knowing what we're looking for or how to track it." She answered with a grimace, "Especially with how close it is to the government building."

"It's under ten miles from here, so I understand your concern," CC admitted with a scowl before coming to a halt.

"What is it?" Hawthorne asked, hand on her side arm.

"I believe this is the center of it, or close to it." CC answered, narrowing her eyes as she scanned the area.

"Nothing looks amiss...," Hawthorne noted as she looked around as well, before blinking as she looked through the broken windows of a building at the end of the street, "Ma'am, the next street on your right. I think I saw something," Hawthorne warned, CC nodding as they quietly headed forward and Hawthorne grabbed her radio, "This is Hawthorne with Madam CC. We have a possible visual. All agents, converge on the intersection of 'National Route 15' and 'Prefectual Route 304'. Proceed with caution. Over," Hawthorne called over the radio.

The two crept in silence after that, CC allowing her code to vanish as they moved closer and closer to the corner, Hawthorne's hand on her handgun and CC ready to draw her own if needed. They were prepared to see almost anything, but not this.

Both of their eyes went wide in shock as they gazed up something that was insanely out of place. It was a giant door, or gate rather, modeled after Greco-Roman architecture. But what most disturbed them was that, while there was clearly nothing behind the gate when looking around it, inside was a pitch blackness that appeared to go on for an eternity.

"How...how did something like this get here?" Hawthorne asked in shock.

CC just stared for the longest time, her mind just short of hyperventilating, 'Could this be connected to the World of C? The style is certain the same, and it would explain why my Code was affected,' She wondered in confusion before blinking, 'Wait, my Code...nothing is bothering it anymore,' She realized before shaking her head and pulling Hawthorne back around the corner. "Standing in front of a mysterious doorway is never a good idea," She commented off handedly to Hawthorne, before pulling out a cellphone, her personal and secure emergency line to Zero, "Zero, we have a situation...I'm honestly not sure what it is exactly, but I'd recommend sending in something a bit heavier equipped than us before we start investigating...Understood, I'm pulling my people out. The location is National Route 15 and Prefectual Route 304...Agreed," She said before turning to Hawthorne. "Zero is locking down Ginza and is going to have it evacuated. We should hurry."

"Why, Ma'am? It's not like Lord Zero is going to destroy the entire ghetto." Hawthorne asked curiously.

CC almost chuckled at those words, finding them humorous as destroying a ghetto was the origin of Zero, in a manner, "No, but if someone creates a gate, it's often to let something through," CC answered cautiously, her muscles tense as she and Hawthorne made their retreat.

Hawthorne blinked in concern when CC suddenly stopped, her body going rigid, "Ma'am?" Hawthorne asked curiously. CC said nothing, slowly turning around with a look of deep concentration on her face, her brow narrowed in thought and her eyes glassed over for a second, as if in memory. Then she felt it, the small rumbling against her feet. She glanced downward and saw that the pebbles on the ground were rattling and moving against the ground, "Earthquake?" She asked, a bit worried, given the area they were in.

"No, Captain," CC said gravely as Hawthorne looked gaze with the witch's grim amber eyes, "Battle formations," She corrected, as the air was filled with the cries of battle and the roar of beasts...

End of Chapter

Here it is, one of the first crossovers, and fics in general, for GATE: Thus the JSDF Fought Here!

For those of you that don't know, GATE is a manga, and anime, involving a gate way opening up in Ginza, Tokyo. Through it, a medieval fantasy army comes through, complete with goblins, knights, orcs, and even dragon...and they all massacred by modern military. It's actually a very good read and the anime isn't half bad from what I've seen of the first two episodes. I'd recommend it to anyone. If you need a site to read it, its on batoto.

For those that do know: Seriously, people, why aren't more author doing this? Imagine the fantasy world of the GATE manga/anime opening a portal to almost any other series: Code Geass, Avatar, Teen Titans, Harry Potter, Fullmetal Alcehmist, or even Naruto! Be interesting to see how other worlds deal with the situation.

Still, back to this story. Yes, I made this an AU, for various reasons. Part of the mystery of this fic is how much has changed from canon. Obviously, Lelouch has leveled out some and settled for bringing Brittainia to heel, for now. CC has become...more lively, as Kallen said, and is now incharge of the spy divison- and she's apparently been watching 300, lol. And Kaguya still wants to have Zero's baby. The Black Knights have freed Japan and, unintentionally, have more or less become the acting government- obviosuly making Lelouch/Zero the one in charge.

Also, for the record? Those streets in Ginza are real, I actually looked it up via Google Maps for an ideal place for it. Be warned, I'm not sure how accurate the tranlation is. 'Route' could be line or highway, and the translations came out like 'National Route 15 National'. So, I did best guess for how its suppose to be real.

Fair warning, the story isn't going to focus just on the world beyond the Gate. Lelouch, obviously, has bigger concerns than a mideval empire that he'll have to try to NOT out right annihilate due to the difference in technology and power.

Lastly, I left many hints in here of how things that were never outright stated, some subtle and others not. Hope you all have fun figuring those out! Read and Review!