Chapter 1: Prologue: A prelude to an end
Lelouch of the Empire
Prologue
Lelouch looked down at Nunnally in shock. Her eyes were closed as she was simply asleep; the only sign that the rest she now entertained was eternal was the black knife hilt sticking out of her thin fragile chest. Nunally's blood soaked Lelouch's front as he held her still warm body in his arms.
"Nunnally?" asked Lelouch his voice quivering; his mind still unable to fully comprehend the scene before him.
The raven haired boy gently shook her trying to wake her. He pulled his hand back and looked at his shaking hands. They were covered in her blood. He seemed unaware that all around them Prime Minister Kurirugi's house was a blaze, and was slowly falling in upon itself. If Lelouch had been in his right mind he'd off noted how fast the fire had spread suggesting that what had started the fire hadn't been natural; however such thoughts were nowhere near his mind.
Lelouch's eyes began to water, and his lower lip began to quiver. Lelouch pulled his little sister close to him and sobbed into her bleeding bosom. His whole body began to shake with his sobs of grief. He pulled her closer as if trying to stop her from dying. As he held her close he felt the last dregs of her natural warmth leave her body, causing him to clutch her to him harder in a vain childish home she'd stay in this world if he did so. Even through the putrid smell of ash and burning bodies that lay in rooms nearby, the smell of flowers was still discernible on his sister.
Lelouch reared his head to the ceiling, wailing his pain and sadness to the heavens. Then through all the smoke and flames, he noticed a small hole in the ceiling. The hole it's self was barely large enough for a small child to fit through, and had formed where a piece of the burning ceiling had broken off and fallen to the ground. But despite all the smoke and death around him the hole allotted him just enough sight that he could just barely make out the sky through the hole.
The sky was a gentle blue, reminding him of happier, warmer days when he and Nunnally, along with Suzaku, played for hours in the sunflower fields around the Kurirugi's home, and of Aries villa with Euphy his favorite sister and his first love. He remembered how they use to lay under the vast blue sky above them. Usually awhile they looked at the sky his mother would always be nearby either having tea and reading a book, or discussing something with someone from the court or a noble who sponsored them. On peculiar occasions she'd be with their father. This would happen maybe twice a month. Lelouch's mothe had always been his father's favorite. His father would just sit with his mother and watch his children passively while he talked to his wife. This was of course before Nunnally had lost her sight… and her ability to walk in the successful assassination of their mother.
A bird flew across the small patch of sky that he could see. Lelouch recognized the bird to be a raven. He reached out to it longingly.
"Go from this place bird, there is only death here," his words less than a whisper were lost in the fire.
The bird circled once more, and cried out once with one long "caw" then, as if the bird had heard his plea, the bird left.
Lelouch smiled to himself; at least… at least he'd been able to save one life on this cursed day. He leaned forward and kissed his dear sisters forehead. It was the last time he would ever to be able to again. At that moment the ceiling above him caved in; it gave one last groan of defiance before it fell in on itself. Lelouch was ready to die, there was no more reason's to keep on living. First his mother was killed leaving his sister crippled and blind; then his father the man he had aspired to be turned his back on him and his sister sending them to die in this foreign country. Now his precious sister, the one who's smile was more beautiful and angelic than heaven. His whole reason to live was dead. He closed his eye's accepting his coming demise, but before his death could come into being a lone cry broke through the roar of the fire.
"Lelouch!" said the voice breaking through the sound of the fire and chaos.
Lelouch felt someone tackle him out of the way of the falling debris. Lelouch's hands were so tightly wrapped around Nunnally clothes it tore a small section of the orange dress she wore. The hands that had just saved him now held him down trying to protect him. Lelouch opened his eyes and looked up into his saviors eyes. He looked up into Suzuku's face, the son of Prime Minister Kurirugi, and Lelouch's friend. Lelouch's cold eyes looked into Suzaku's; his violet eye's stared into Suzaku's emerald green eyes. All of the defiance and spark was gone from his eyes.
"Let me go Suzaku," said Lelouch struggling against Suzaku's strong arms.
"Snap out of it Lelouch," Said Suzaku, yelling at Lelouch trying to break him out of this spell of self-pity.
Suzaku's face was covered in ash and soot, only two tear streaks broke the mask of black.
"Let me die Suzaku," said Lelouch weakly, "I can't go on without her Suzaku."
"No Lelouch you can go on; don't say that. You're stronger than that!", said Suzaku smacking Lelouch across the face.
The slap seemed to break him free of self-loathing for a moment.
"I've just lost my very reason for living and you want to tell me to move on! When have you ever had to give up something in your perfect life," yelled Lelouch his anger brimming over, and all of it focusing on Suzaku, 'How can he understand? He could never, every day in the royal family was a day you lost something and if you weren't careful you'd be killed.'
Suzaku's head lowered, he was silent for a moment. Lelouch felt something wet hitting his face. He realized what was hitting him were tears. Lelouch was shocked into silence.
'Why was he crying,' wondered Lelouch.
Then Suzaku spoke.
"Lelouch I… I just killed my father… I… I… killed him to stop the war I was tired of the war, I didn't want to see the fighting anymore, I didn't want to see the piles of dead every time I went into town, I just wanted it to end" his body shoke with tears.
Suzaku couldn't continue anymore. Suzaku leaned back covering his face not wanting Lelouch to see him cry. Lelouch pulled out from under him. Lelouch and Suzaku were in complete shock. Lelouch looked back at the sky the only sign of hope left.
Lelouch spoke finally over the blaze.
"We can't allow the people lost here today to of died in vain Suzaku we can't…,"said Lelouch silently, but clearly. Suzaku heard his every word even through the fire.
"I will not allow Nunnally to die in vain I'll kill all those who want to promote war I'll kill them all Suzaku and I'll start with..," his face twisting as if he tasted something biter, "Britannia, and my father."
"Suzaku you must join me in this," he said.
Suzaku was silent for a moment. Then Suzaku stood up and held his hand out to Lelouch helping him up. Suzaku turned from Lelouch and quickly wiped his face. Lelouch looked at the pile of burning wood where Nunnally's body lay burning, "sorry Nunna I'll see you when I've made everything right," he whispered to her.
Then he and Suzaku looked at each other there resolve sealed they left that place together.
Lelouch looked at the burning Kurirugi shrine, as the temple collapsed in upon itself. Then finally with a shower of sparks the house completely collapsed in upon itself, and with that their last fortress of childhood fell. No more pretending to be naive to the adult world. There could be no more simple games; they couldn't go back to those days ever again. They were forced to truely grown up in more than one way on this day. Suzaku and Lelouch turned away from their last fortress of childhood naivety and left.
War could only breed hate and death can, that's what I'm told. However on that day, war created something completely unlike it. It had created the very weapon of its demise.
The sword it had forged in its own fires was slowly being raised; its blade aimed at the very iron upon which it had been forged upon. The blade is heavy and almost unbearable for most. The sword wavers until a second pair of hands covers the first, the act sealing the fate of war, but by this act they've sealed their lives to one's of sacrifice and hate. Will they be able to bear the toll of their just desires, or will they fall to hell because of their just desires? Will they be able to bear the pain this road comes with, the pain of lost comrades and lost lovers?
The only thing they can do is fight and prevail… or be destroyed by their choices.
Only I can tell you so read on.
