Chapter One: Lelouch Vi Britannia Command's You, World, Obey Me.
The cold stiffness was irritating, there was no other way to put it. mere minutes from his death and he was spending all his energy concentrating on the brisk chill against his bones and the stiff ache of his back that came with sitting as a king would. But then, pain was the only thing keeping his eyes glued to the front of the procession.
He as under no illusions about the strength of his resolve should his eyes meet the sapphire one's tied to the metal post below him. Which was why he chose to keep his eyes forward, with most of his mind concentrating desperately on the pain; the rest, both conscious and unconscious searched the street ahead. He supposed that in years to come there would be rumours that the Demon Emperor knew that a Knight of Justice would slay him in a few short minutes.
But it was inconsequential as long as they stayed as rumours. He was much more concerned with who would inherit the crown. Lelouch hoped it would be Nunnally, her actions on board the Domeques proved she would be ready for the challenge. If not his sister he hoped it would go to Cornelia, but it was far more likely Guinavere or one of his other many half brothers and sisters would weasel their way into the minds of the Nobles. But that was no matter, it was exactly why he had placed that particular command on Schneizal.
After his own death the worlds anger and hatred would become somewhat muted, and prejudice and pain would become numb in the freedom his death provided. During that lapse his command on Schneizal would ensure that the world was safeguarded, with it there would be a mind as astute and strategic as his still in the world. An agent that would not stray or linger away from the ideals of Zero; of himself.
Over time the command would lessen, like his command on Suzaku had, so that it would become a nagging voice in his head demanding his will. Building this world was a difficult task, and it was the punishment handed to those in front of him, building the world anew. He would not die unless he was absolutely sure that he could entrust the world them.
Come to think of it Lelouch wasn't even sure if he could die anymore, C.C. had been dangerously vague on what happened to his father's code after God, under his orders, killed his mother and father. But he could not think of that, he had to believe that a man could choose to die just as he could choose to fight.
A brief glint on the end of the road, a Black Knight on the eclipse of the hill stood tall and strong and every part the hero he was supposed to be.
The crowd stirred, restless as the presence of Zero swept through the crowd. He almost smirked as he heard Kallen shout out the hero's name, one last miracle Kallen. One last miracle before my curtain closes, and the act of Lelouch vi Britannia finally comes to a close.
Lelouch can almost here the chanting in the sudden silence in the crowd as the hero takes his first tentative steps down the hill. Such was the power of his symbol, and when he starts running the crowds suddenly cheering, that low ghostly chant he'd thought he'd heard had grown into a orchestrail symphony.
Kallen's voice penetrate the crowds, her sharp yet sweet voice a gentle reminder of his duty, "Guard's, seize him," but none of them move, Jeremiah Gottwald was the only one actually loyal to him in his parade. It was one of the many steps he had taken.
Zero jumps onto the parade float, past Nunnally, past the prisoner, moving swiftly up to him in the time it took him to shift his hand forward. But suddenly Zero's gone again, and a piercing pain has ruptured in his abdomen. He coughs once, twice, his hands finding the mask of his assailant.
"So then… your punishment will be," bloody dribbles from his mouth, why had no one every mentioned how irritated coughing up blood felt. "You will live on… always wearing a mask. You will become a knight of justice and truth and no longer live as Kururagi Suzaku. You will sacrifice all of the simple pleasures of your life, for the happiness of the world… forever."
"I accept… this Geass."
Smiling slightly, Lelouch allowed the blade to be pulled from his chest, Suzaku flicking the blood off the parade float as he did. falling to the stairs, he caught a brief glimpse of red before he toppled down the stairs; right into Nunnally's path.
His eyesight had blurred, coloured in inky red, the gentle "onii-sama," barely reaching his ears, "no, onii-sama, onii-sama… I can't… why did you have, onii-sama!"
"Nunnally," he coughed, "tell Kallen that I," his eyes fluttered shut, breathing brokenly, "that I love her."
And suddenly knew no more.
Regaining any sense of being took months, if not years, Lelouch didn't have any sense of time inside the collective consciousness. If he could describe it, death, being a part of God, it was like splitting yourself up into the facets of your personality, and then stripping him of his ability to act.
Lelouch had never taken kindly t inaction.
It reminded him to much of himself before Geass.
The idleness of death was in some ways more terrible than anything Lucifer could dream up. The devil would only inflict pain, and down below the Earth he would not be forced to watch as his carefully crafted Zero Requiem was split apart piece by piece.
He watched for what seemed like years as those he loved struggled and persevered until all of them but one was cursing his name. His comrades eventually all laid blame at his feet for the five year stringent of events, all starting back in Shinjuku.
And it wasn't until Kallen Stadtfeld died at the age of twenty one, but her death was not inside a knightmare, she was far too good a pilot to be bested. No, her end was a slow acting narcotic administered by the former nobles of Britannia.
Watching her soul float up lazily to the collective consciousness was what finally gave him the strength to do something. As her soul split, and the many facets of her joined other snippets of personalities Lelouch mustered as much concentration into his one of his personalities as he could. Funnily enough the facet was lust, and with simple words Lelouch commanded the trillions of souls inside the collective consciousness.
"I, Lelouch vi Britannia,"
"I Lelouch Lamperouge,"
"As Zero,"
And the many other facets of himself shouted, "command you, all those who can hear me, give me Kallen Stadtfelt, re-piece both our souls."
Immediately he felt it, his many hundreds of opinions floating together, forming the largest soul in the consciousness. Nearby he felt Kallen too, if you could apply one of the five senses to what he was feeling, but the noise that her Kozuki facet combining with her Stadtfelt part was just too loud a struggle not to miss. Neither was the many complaints of the other smaller pro and anti Britannian parts of her made as they grouped together.
Like a large puddle forming from hundreds of smaller ones, both Lelouch's and Kallen's souls finally emerged whole and unbroken, their personalities set to what they had been before death.
What it felt like, right at the moment when Lelouch realised that he was whole again, and all the other opinions of his many facets quieting down into the one that had moved whole nations at his whim was euphoric. His non-existent breath hitched, and his fingers twitched, his mind focusing on the large blob of soul congregating not far from him.
Kallen, he decided, as he noticed the faint bloody red twinge the soul took, a striking to the turbulent black, blue and purple of his soul. Stretching his presence further, he gave the mental equivalent of a poke in the ribs, the resounding gasp reverberating the length of the consciousness as Kallen's presence nervously prodded out towards him.
"Who are you…"h
"What's happening… one moment I was having dinner with Nunna –"
"Who are you, where am I?"
"Tell us who you are right now…"
"I am the Knight of Zero I demand…"
Oh Kallen, he thought fondly, her many tones had the bam of familiarity that he had been lacking. Here where everyone and everything was a strange fusion of like-minded souls.
"Oh Kallen," he broadcasted, faintly amused, "I'm hurt, don't you recognise me."
A girlish squeal, blubbering silence, out-righteous anger and overwhelming relief met his ears.
"Lelouch…"
"Zero…"
"Britannian scum…"
"Demon…"
"Yes," Lelouch called, gliding his soul over to hers, encircling her in a warm embrace that left the both of them tingling. "It is me…"
"Lelouch…"
"Zero…"
"Your Emperor…"
"But how –"
"You don't really think I'd let God sentence me to hell did you Kallen," Lelouch said, engulfing her soul in his, "I'm not going to spend the rest of eternity in the same place as my father."
A shiver runs down his back, and he frowns as some of the personalities of Kallen begin to giggle and cling to him. Its faintly amusing how many different sides there are to her, just as one part of her is giggling and another is administering that part of her for acting like that. While yet another side is demanding his death and some other sides of her are squeezing their way around his metaphorical neck.
"Lelouch, I'm going to…"
"Kill him… kill that no good demon…"
"Oh Lelouch…"
"Zero-sama…"
"I think that's enough," Lelouch murmured, "it's time to go Kallen, there's more important things to do then rub yourself up against me, my Q-1."
"What –"
"I'm not…"
"Eee…"
"We got caught…"
"I'll kill you, how dare you insinuate…"
Chuckling lightly Lelouch turned his head away from the small gleeful bubble of Kallen that had been pushing up against his cheek.
"God, the collective unconsciousness," Lelouch yelled, wondering if his command would work for a third time, "I Lelouch vi Britannia…"
"Zero…"
"Lelouch Lamperouge…"
"Command you," he shouted, and all around the sphere he could here shouts and cries for mercy.
"Demon,"
"Monster,"
"You killed me…"
"Take me and Kallen Stadtfelt…" her annoyed voices swept over him, frantically trying to stop whatever he was doing.
"What…"
"Lelouch stop…"
"Lelouch don't…"
"Back to the beginning, before the start of my rebellion."
And suddenly, everything was dark, and then the starch white pierced his eyes.
"Oh Lelouch-sama," a voice off to the side said, the smell of disinfectant reached his ears. "you've awaken, his Majesty has been worried."
A nurse flowed into view, the royal house of Britannia engraved on her shoulder.
"Lelouch-sama," her tone turned worried when his face halted, stopped mid thought. This was not Ashford Academy, it was not even in Area 11.