'War is father of all, and king of all. He renders some gods, others men; he makes some slaves, others free.'
—Heraclitus
...
Holy Selene Empire Standard Calendar Year 1030. Expeditionary direction of the Second Astartes Legion, the Retributors. A certain technological world.
The Britannian Empire of the other world, Area 11.
BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM!
BANG BANG BANG BANG!
RUMBLE—!
Area 11 (Japan), conquered after Britannian Imperial Calendar Year 2010, was once again engulfed in the smoke of full-scale war after seven years.
The explosions from live-fire weapons, Honkai energy plasma weapons, and clustered energy weapons; the earth-shaking battle cries of Astartes warriors, Imperial Auxilia, and the Servitor Army; the wailing roar of Honkai-powered weapons slicing through the air; the rip of chainswords and chain axes starting up; the thunderous boom of boltgun fire...
Countless violent "instruments" that brought death and destruction together performed a surging "symphony" that resounded across heaven and earth.
This time, those who ignited the war were neither the rebels hiding in the shadows of Area 11, unwilling to accept enslavement, nor the old rival, the United Republic of Europia—but true visitors from beyond the stars.
More than half a year ago, they suddenly appeared and attacked Britannia's largest sea-air military base on the African front, causing Britannia's military forces there to be almost completely annihilated, suffering catastrophic losses.
What was rather strange was that, for reasons unknown, these extraterrestrial humans actually turned their guns toward the United Republic of Europia. Their primary theater of operations lay on the Afro-Eurasian landmass. Isolated from the American continents, Britannia was spared.
However, the Britannian Empire was not one to swallow losses quietly. Having been struck so brutally, they naturally would not let the matter rest. They mobilized large forces multiple times in attempts to strike back, but ideals were full, while reality was cruel...
Even after deploying the most advanced fifth-generation Knightmare Frames—Sutherlands—and their various improved models, the result was still the same—utter defeat.
The attacking forces suffered devastating losses. Even the Empire's blade, the Knights of the Round, could not escape unscathed, with several of them falling in battle against those gray-armored giants.
Though unwilling to accept it, the facts were the facts. The Britannian Empire could only retreat inward, licking the wounds of defeat.
After nearly half a year of clashes, they had also gathered considerable intelligence on this force that emerged from purple spacetime and likewise called itself an Empire.
The invaders were aliens, yet also human. Even if not human, they were at least ninety-nine percent humanoid.
Their individual combat power was terrifyingly strong. Even the auxiliary troops—whom those gray-armored giants referred to as mere mortals—were each capable of fighting ten men at once in close combat.
Tearing humans apart alive, cleaving bullets with blades, ripping down walls with bare hands, sprinting like cheetahs, fists howling like thunder...
This was truly a case of armor being thinner than the enemy's, weapons being smaller in caliber, and now even speed, agility, and battlefield maneuverability being inferior. How the hell were they supposed to fight like this?!
As for those gray-armored giants, they were even more outrageous. Each one was like a humanoid heavy tank, single-handedly tanking and flipping over Knightmare Frames as if it were commonplace. (PS: Knightmare Frames in the Code Geass world are generally only a little over four meters tall and weigh seven to eight tons.)
The caliber of their firearms was like cannon barrels. Every shot landed with auto-aim, head-locking precision, and their effective range was absurdly long.
Wherever those gray-armored giants stood, they were essentially mobile artillery platforms—shooting down aircraft above, mecha and tanks below, and occasionally gifting infantry with a few explosive rounds.
How was the Britannian Empire's army supposed to win? (PS: The Code Geass world has no nuclear weapons. The nuclear-equivalent "F.L.E.I.J.A."—the Field Limitary Effective Implosion Armament—has not yet been invented.)
And just as the Britannian Empire was anxiously debating how to respond to this extraterrestrial force, the faction calling itself the Holy Selene Empire abruptly abandoned its half-year of slow advance and began launching frenzied, rapid, indiscriminate attacks across the entire world.
According to Britannian speculation, it was highly likely that reinforcements had arrived; orders had come down from higher command; or a major figure of the Holy Selene Empire had already arrived—or was about to arrive.
That ferocious offensive, coupled with complete disregard for Servitor Army casualties, instantly led to the annihilation of the nearby United Republic of Europia, with the continents of Europe, Asia, and Africa rapidly falling one after another.
The dark clouds of war were swiftly pushed over the Britannian Empire's homeland and its major colonies.
...
At this moment, it was exactly noon. The weather was gentle and sunny, with clear skies stretching for miles—perfect for an outing. Yet the Britannian Empire's colony—Area 11, the Tokyo Settlement—was engulfed in a heavy, oppressive atmosphere.
All airports were operating at full capacity.
At every exit of the settlement, countless Britannians inside the enclave were driving cars, families in tow, anxiously waiting on roads clogged so tightly there was not the slightest gap.
Beep!Beep-beep-beep—!
From time to time, cars impatiently honked their horns. Together with the roar of countless engines, the noise merged into an irritating cacophony.
The entire city seemed faintly shrouded in panic.
The war had truly arrived!
This was the feeling in every Britannian's heart. Since the government's war notice had been issued a few days ago, many people still had not truly felt the danger.
As more information arrived—especially the news of the United Republic of Europia's destruction—the Britannian government could no longer conceal the truth. Many television stations began reporting that all-out war was imminent.
Many Britannians realized that Area 11 might no longer be safe. Only the the homeland could give them a sense of security.
Yet just as people hurriedly packed their belongings and prepared to leave, the footsteps of war suddenly loomed right before them—far too fast! It had almost completely exceeded their expectations. There was not even enough time to evacuate many people before the Astartes Legions had already blocked their way.
Thus, the entire Tokyo Settlement descended into chaos, giving rise to the scene unfolding now.
"Hurry up!"
"Governor Clovis' orders! Reinforce the outer defensive line on the western side of Tokyo!"
Clatter—!
On the outskirts of the Tokyo Settlement's Governor District, the most elite forces of the Britannian Empire in Area 11 had gathered—the knightly orders belonging to the Britannian Royal Guard.
These individuals were the finest pilots in the entire Britannian Empire. Aside from defending the imperial capital, Pendragon, they were usually assigned to princes and princesses of the royal family as personal guards.
Their presence in Area 11 served one primary purpose: to protect the Area 11 Governor, the Britannian Empire's Third Prince—Clovis la Britannia.
And the fact that all of them had been dispatched spoke volumes about just how dire the situation in Area 11 had become.
"Your Highness, Osaka, Yokohama, and Nagoya have fallen..."
Inside the Area 11 Governor's Office, within a lofty and solemn hall, the blond, blue-eyed Clovis braced both hands against the table. His handsome face looked especially haggard.
"Is that so... In other words, throughout all of Area 11, only the Tokyo region remains under our control... and this is in less than two days."
As he spoke, Clovis retreated weakly, bumped into the chair behind him, and collapsed into it in a daze.
Through the real-time combat feeds transmitted from the Knightmare Frame systems, Clovis could clearly see that the once-dense urban forest west of the Tokyo Settlement had been almost completely burned to ashes by the fires of war.
The enemy was about to break into the city!
Knightmare Frame wreckage lay scattered across every corner of the battlefield. Every moment, people were dying.
"For Selene—!"
Among them, several gray-armored giants wielding Honkai-powered greatswords, boltguns, and chainswords had already breached the Tokyo Settlement's defensive walls and were rampaging through the Britannian battle lines.
And with their advance, countless tanks, titan mechs, Imperial Auxilia, and Astartes warriors surged in like a tide, forcibly punching straight through Britannia's defensive front.
Amid the scenery of raging flames and deafening explosions lay a land of utter devastation. Broken, mangled corpses were strewn everywhere—and in the next instant, under the trampling of countless soldiers, truly nothing remained.
"With the enemy's blood, we make blood sacrifice to Our Empress!!"
"Advance—!"
The next moment—BOOM!
Several fifth-generation Knightmare Sutherlands charged into the front lines. Through their head-mounted loudspeakers, they let out the furious roars of Britannian soldiers.
"You bastards—die!"
As a superpower that dominated the world through hegemony and militarism, the Britannian Empire was not lacking in warriors willing to fight to the death.
"AAAH—!"
As he shouted, the pilot raised the machine's custom Gatling gun. The indicator lights shifted from green to red, the barrels began to spin, and the ammunition feed linked to the rear magazine whirred at high speed.
Rat-tat-tat-tat...
Countless yellow-orange large-caliber shell casings were ejected and piled onto the ground, quickly carpeting the area beneath the machine's feet.
Pshh pshh...
A tidal wave of gunfire blasted forward. Amid the deafening roar of the heavy machine gun, the Astartes officer at the very front was instantly engulfed by a storm of sparks.
Large-caliber powder rounds scraped across the composite power armor shell forged from orichalcum. Though they failed to penetrate, vast swathes of paint were melted away, and precious-metal decorative reliefs were shattered.
The Imperial Servitor Army, however, did not have such protection. The Servitor troops that rushed into the blasted breach were blown to pieces outright—the one at the front did not even retain a complete form before being torn into countless fragments by the metallic torrent.
Even Imperial Auxilia equipped with light armor fared no better when swept by the fire. Strong as they were, they were still flesh and blood.
After all, even if Captain America were hit directly in the torso by a heavy machine gun, if he did not die, he would be crippled.
In the blink of an eye, over a hundred men were cut down, and with every breath, the number continued to rise.
"Deal with them!"
With a furious roar, the iron-gray Astartes officer charged straight through the metal storm, bending his knees and leaping upward as the disintegration field on his Honkai-powered greatsword unfolded.
CLANG!
In an instant, the Knightmare Frame's head—used to mount cameras and collect battlefield data—was severed. As the escape pod activated, the Astartes officer thrust out his hand, embedding his palm into the metal control compartment and focused his strength, yanking hard.
Riiip!
The cockpit was torn open by brute force, revealing the Britannian knight inside, clad in a tight pilot suit.
"Aaah! Die!" Bang bang!
As a soldier, he showed no fear. Even knowing death was certain, he still raised the small pistol on his person and fired repeatedly at the Astartes officer.
"..."
In response, the Astartes officer silently and swiftly drew the bolt pistol magnetically attached at his waist.
BOOM!
After the large-caliber standard bolt round entered the body and detonated a second time, the entire cockpit exploded, throwing up a rain of blood.
Blood sprayed everywhere—severed limbs, remnants of bodies, chunks of flesh, and organs were scattered in all directions.
After the officer finished off the leading enemy pilot, the Knightmare Frames that had followed him in a desperate charge were likewise blasted apart. Their pilots were dragged out and cut cleanly in half at the waist beneath the teeth of chainswords.
Seeing this, the Astartes officer raised his Honkai-powered greatsword high and shouted loudly:
"Advance! For Selene—!"
"ROOOOAAAR!!"
Unfazed by casualties, the Imperial Auxilia and Servitor Army mixed among the Astartes warriors immediately erupted into frenzied, terrifying roars, like the howls of bloodthirsty beasts.
"For the Empire! For the great God-Empress! For Selene—!!!"
Their speed was horrifying. In the blink of an eye, they surged into the Britannian inner defensive line, which had fallen into a brief lull in fire.
"For Britannia!"
Facing a front on the verge of collapse, some Britannian soldiers strapped high-explosive charges across their bodies and charged into Selene's Imperial Servitor Army, detonating themselves in bursts of blood-misted flame.
Seizing the moment while the Astartes warriors were distracted by the Knightmare Frames, the soldiers of the two empires collided. Firearms, daggers, and fists all became weapons as lives were extinguished without pause.
Within the ever-growing pile of corpses, you were in me, and I was in you.
After a dozen breaths had passed, the Knightmare Frames and tank vehicles in this sector were completely destroyed. As the Astartes warriors shifted their attention to the struggle of mere mortals, a one-sided slaughter began.
The scales of war tilted instantly.
"No, no, no—I don't want to die... I want to go home!"
Soon, cries and wails rang out from the Britannian positions. One soldier threw down his weapon, suffered a mental breakdown, and clutched his head as he sobbed, running toward the interior of the settlement.
A gun pointed at the fleeing soldier, an officer shouted furiously:
"Damn it, you disgraceful honorary Britannian!"
"I said come back—come back immediately!"
"If you don't come back, I'll—"
BOOM!
Before the officer could finish, the distinctive thunder of a boltgun rang out. The fleeing soldier felt the world spin violently. His abdomen felt strangely soft and warm, and his hands felt sticky.
As his vision dropped, he saw a lower half of a body wrapped in organs and shredded flesh.
"That's my... body?"
Thud!
The mangled corpse hit the ground.
The officer's pupils contracted. A veteran's instinct told him the enemy had already locked onto them.
"Bastards, everyone get down imme—"
BOOM!Rat-tat-tat—!
After taking a standard bolt round to the head, the officer was immediately riddled by a barrage of solid projectiles, his remaining body turned into a bleeding honeycomb.
Standing within the enemy frontline command post, an Astartes officer said in a low voice:
"Inform the battalion commander—the northern district defenses have been secured. Advancing toward the inner district."
...
Ashford Academy.
"Hey, Lulu, what should we do?"