So, usually, this will be the area where I'll respond to reviews and comments and stuff, but since the first three chapters have been posted at once, you'll have to settle for questions I've come up with, heheh. (That's not an evil heheh, I promise. 'Course, if I was evil, that's exactly what I would say.)

First off, Lelouch's name- why he's Lelouch Gaspar instead of Lelouch Lamperouge. Story wise, it's because... erm, wait, that's a spoiler. Hahah, whoops. Okay. Well, there is a reason storyline wise. When it ceases to be a spoiler, I'll tell ya. But the story reason is mostly just an excuse. The real reason is so that you can refer to them as different characters. Instead of having to say "CG's Lelouch" and "AR's Lelouch", you can just say "Lamperouge" or "Gaspar." Makes OOC discussion easier.

Second, Gaspar's personality. For the most part, he's the same as Lamperouge, but he has some significant differences. It's a kind of butterfly effect thing- some of the events that take place before the start of the story happened slightly differently, and those changes have resulted in a rather different Lelouch. Some of them are spoilers (ain't they always?), but some of them aren't, and it would be a pleasure to explain them now.

He doesn't care who killed his mother. Well, scratch that- he doesn't care what specific individual did it. As far as he's concerned, the whole royal family is guilty because of their infighting, their treachery, their ruthlessness. So he pretty much wants them all dead for that. He's more angry than Lamperouge, but it's usually just a steady drive, propelling him to stride forward and claim his vengeance. It will spike from time to time, of course, and boy won't that be fun.

Gaspar also is slightly more physically able than Lamperouge. It was one of Lamperouge's major characteristics that he lacked physical aptitude- a thing that made him human, contrasted his astonishing intellect. Gaspar, however, has had things happen to him where he cursed his helplessness, where he was furious that his body was not able to do as he required, and has thus made some effort to stay in shape. He's gotten in a few fights (part of him being generally angrier than Lamperouge), and generally, he can handle himself.

He's no Suzaku, trust me- I'm not going to make him a magic kung fu wizard or any such shit. Also, his anger issues, and generally more unstable mental state- he would give a psychiatrist a hernia- will handicap him more than any lack of stamina ever did.

Alright, that's all we got time for this chapter. Maybe a little more than we got time for, actually, but eh. My fic, my rules! Give me your reviews, your comments, your questions, and I will give you back... words. What else did ya expect? =P


A rough ride, but things were starting to smooth out. Judging by the echo, we seemed to be in a tunnel of some sort... likely the old subway system. Or that's where these rebels would head if they had any intelligence, anyway. There was nothing for it at this point. I had two options- wait for things to go downhill for these resistance fighters, and play the innocent student, like I'd planned... or jack the truck. The cabin was small, it wouldn't fit more than three people. I'd only witnessed evidence of two- that woman, who had left in a Knightmare, and the individual currently driving. Is there a third, or... no, it doesn't matter. Even if there is, I will have the element of surprise. If there is another, I will grab them, and use them to force the driver to stop. If there isn't... things are even simpler.

I stood, and reached into my pocket. I'd been saving money for my eventual revenge against Britannia, and I'd considered buying a gun, but decided against it. If I'd been caught with one, there would be far too many questions, far too much trouble. I somewhat regretted that decision now... but I did have a knife, and I did know how to use it. I drew my butterfly knife, and opened it with a flick. I'd never done anything like this, but... here goes noth-

I flew forward as the truck slammed on its breaks. I caught myself on the door, and cursed. What now? Something blocking the road? The truck slowed to a complete stop, and I heard its tires squeal with effort. It was stuck. I flicked the knife shut, and tucked it back in my pocket. No need. I could just leave.

As if reading my mind, the side of the truck slowly slid back, opening mechanically. Too perfect. Now, I just have to duck out of sight, and wait until the terrorist passes, and then I can get the hell out of here! I crouched, and waited. ...And waited. Nothing? Perhaps the terrorist had been injured, or died, in the sudden stop. Whatever it was, nothing seemed to be coming. I stepped out of the truck, and then my instincts shouted an alarm, and I dropped to the ground.

I heard a *whoosh* as a kick whistled over head. "I'm not going quietly-" I snarled, reaching up and grabbing the offending limb, '-you goddamn terrorist!" I swung my arms down, and threw my weight forward, and the man swung over my head, and slammed into the ground. If he was a pro, he wouldn't be down for long. I jumped back, and reached into my pocket. "I want nothing to do with your plans! Get out of my way, or I'll-"

I froze. A Britannian soldier. I'd just slammed a Britannian soldier into the ground. "You're... not a terrorist..." I managed, backing up against the wall of the truck. I raised my hands in surrender quickly. "Mistaken identity! Friendly fire! I'm on your side!"

"Sure you are. How many more must you people kill before-" he began, and then he froze. The soldier slowly removed his mouthpiece. "...Lelouch?" he asked.

"...Yes?" I hazarded. I didn't know any soldiers. I'm sure they trained the special forces to recognize a member of the royal family on sight, but Lelouch vi Britannia was officially dead! Surely, they wouldn't still teach them to recognize me... and their pictures would be outdated, too. But of course they could update them with programs that simulated aging. If this soldier knew who I really was, then-

"It's me!" The soldier reached up, and unbuckled the strap on his helmet. A head of brown hair, green eyes, and a smiling face... "It's Suzaku."

"Suzaku...?" I said... or was it asked? I didn't know. This didn't make any sense. Suzaku, a Britannian soldier? Suzaku, who walked with me through fields of corpses that the Britannians had left in their wake? Suzaku, son of the Japanese Prime Minister who pledged that Japan would fight to the very end? Suzaku... who stood next to me, seven years ago, when I swore an oath, that I would rend Britannia with my two hands? "You're... a Britannian soldier?"

He nodded. "And you..." He shook his head. "No, it can't be! What the hell are yo-"

"Long. Live. Japan!" roared a voice from the cabin, and suddenly the Big Spiky Doom Machine began to hum and emit beams of light.

"Lelouch! Get down, it's gas!" He tackled me, and shoved his mouthpiece into my mouth. What... the hell... is going on...? I marveled as the spike-like pistons hissed, and collapsed inward. The top of the sphere split into two halves, two quarters of the whole, and folded outward, opening, and revealing the bright, glowing center of the device. It was awe inspiring, and were it not for how certain I was that I was about to die, it would really be quite beautiful.

The light changed, and I realized that there was actually a human form rising up out of it. I stared hard into the bright light. It was a woman with long, light green hair, her hands bound and mouth covered in Britannian prisoner garb. Her hair swirled through the air as she fell backward, slowly, with what looked like tears trailing from her face.

I quickly shoved the astonished Suzaku aside, dashed forward, and caught the girl before she hit the ground. "It's not... poison gas...?" mumbled Suzaku, confused.

I helped the girl down. "Does she look like poison gas to you, Suzaku?" I asked scathingly. It was good to see him again, of course, but... a Britannian soldier? Had he forgotten the war, the massacre, the machinations and villainy of Britannia? Or maybe he was like the others... he knew it, but he just didn't care. Maybe he knew in his heart they were evil, but all of it was secondary to making a comfortable life for himself.

Cowardly. Cowardly. He runs from his heritage, from his past, from his obligations. Because he is scared. Because he wants safety, security. I narrowed my eyes. That wasn't the Suzaku Kururugi I remembered. The boy I remembered, the son of Prime Minister Kururugi, was tough, patriotic, and loyal. He wasn't this... dog, heeding the call of a master. He was his own man.

Suzaku helped me struggle with the bonds on the girl. "But the briefing definitely said-" began Suzaku, when we were cut off by a large light hit us.

It was, in fact, a pair of lights, positioned behind an assembled group of Britannian soldiers. Headlights to an APC, maybe? Didn't matter. The officer spoke. "Damn monkey," he spat angrily. "Even a genuine Britannian isn't allowed to touch that!" shouted the man, and then things began happening very quickly.

"But I was told it was poison gas!" answered Suzaku unhappily as he ran to meet his superior.

"You have no right to question us," snapped the officer, his eyes dark with anger. Fffffff- this is bad. She may not be gas, but this girl is certainly poisonous... were she to become public knowledge, she would be deadly to Suzaku's superiors, their behavior makes that clear. And she is poisonous to me as well... I will not be able to just walk away since I know of her existence. The officer nodded solemnly to Suzaku. "But I recognize your valor, and will give you another chance." His hand moved, but I couldn't make out what he was doing from here. "Private Kururugi, take this... and kill the terrorist."

"He's not!" exclaimed Suzaku, surprised. "He's just a civilian, just caught up in all of-"

"Suzaku," I said loudly. He blinked, and turned to face me. "You waste your breath. This isn't about terrorism. This is about the girl. This is about..." I sighed, closing my eyes, "...tidying up loose ends."

I heard the officer hmm approvingly. "Smart kid. A little too smart for his own good, it would seem. Private Kururugi. Shoot the terrorist. Redeem yourself."

Suzaku gritted his teeth, and then sighed. "I cannot do that. I... will not. I will not kill a civilian. I will not shoot him."

"Suzaku, you id-" I began hotly, but I was cut off by a gunshot. Suzaku's face contorted in surprise, and then he collapsed. Dead. Dead. He was dead. The majority of fatal gunshot wounds take one to two minutes to kill the target. Many wounds will cause significant nerve and tissue damage leading to swift incapacitation, as well as significant psychological effect. It was information I knew, that I'd learned in my studies, but confronted with the reality, I was struck by how... sanitized textbooks were. How little they had to do with reality.

The officer spoke again, but I didn't lift my gaze from Suzaku's body as he spoke. "You look like an ordinary Britannian student... bad luck for you." He glanced at the soldiers behind him. "Take the girl. Kill the boy."

Suzaku, dead because he didn't think things through. I wasn't going to make the same mistake. I reached into my pocket, and grabbed the knife that was there. I'm not proud of what I'm about to do... but whatever it takes, right? The troops began to move forward slowly, and I glanced at the girl, and said a silent apology for what I was about to do.

Then there was an explosion, and the ceiling fell in.


I ran down the crumbling tunnels of the old subway system, dragging the bound green haired girl behind me. The ground shook as another part of the tunnel collapsed, and I flinched. I'm underground, and the way in just collapsed. There is bound to be another exit, but the subway system is huge. Will I find it? Will it collapse too, under the stress? Will the whole place collapse, the tunnel coming down on my head?

In truth, I was lucky to have survived thus far. I was mere moments from holding the girl hostage when the truck exploded, bringing the roof down on us. I had bolted, the army grunts had retreated in the threat of Death By Falling Concrete, and at least for now, I was in no danger of being shot. There were plenty of other threats facing me now, and so I didn't feel especially grateful for this "respite."

All of this for this girl, I thought. What was she, a rebel leader? A criminal? No, that didn't make sense- Britannia would want her back, but they wouldn't kill anyone who saw her. And that weird device they had her caged in... like she were some monster, some being whose mere presence endangered those around her. I rounded another corner, and slammed my back against a wall, panting. The tunnel shook again as there was another impact- maybe a layer above collapsing- and kicked up a small cloud of dust.

I glanced at the green haired girl that I had dragged all this way. It had been instinctive, grabbing her arm and hauling her to safety, but now that we were not in immediate danger, I didn't know what to do with her. She slid slowly to the floor, and lowered her head. "What are you?" I snarled at the girl, taking my hand off of her arm. She glanced at me with melancholic eyes, and I fell silent. If I survive this, if I get away... then for me, it's over. Back there, it was low light, it was chaotic. They won't have an accurate enough description of me to really find me again. But for her... it will continue. It will continue for as long as she's alive.

I stared at her, at her body, at her face... at her eyes. I looked deep into those eyes, and felt as though I'd dove into the ocean. There was sadness there, there was pain, and there was more- her eyes were a portal to a whole world, a world of memories, of pain, of betrayal, love and loss, and so much more. She was physically older than me, but emotionally, mentally... she was ancient. I don't know what she'd been through, what her life was like, but I knew that I wouldn't even be able to imagine it. I can yell at her for how shitty she's making my life... but by tomorrow, I'll be well out of it, and she'll still be dealing with this same hell for the rest of her life.

I bent down, and offered her my hand. She blinked at me, and raised her bound hands to meet mine. I took them, and pulled her to her feet. "...Let's go." Not that I know where to go- I began, and then stopped. Directly in front of me, on the wall, was a sign- "Shinjuku Station Exit." There was an arrow.

That's right. This used to be a transportation hub, of course it's clearly labeled. I smiled. A light at the end of the tunnel, so to speak. I began to walk, gently pulling the girl behind me. We pushed through an old revolving gate, and started up the stairs. Near the top, I stopped, and dropped to a crouch, motioning for her to do the same. "Listen, you have to wait here. I'll check to see if the exit's clear." She nodded.

I had barely poked my head out when there was a burst of gunfire. I closed my eyes, and hoped that it wouldn't hurt too bad... and felt nothing. I opened my eyes, and saw an Elev- a Japanese man collapse, blood pouring off of him. What...? Is the government purging the whole area? Just for this girl?

"How is it?" The voice was familiar, and after a moment I realized it was the officer from before- the officer that had cornered me, the officer that shot Suzaku. The officer that wanted to shoot me. I must say, I'd rather hoped he'd be buried alive down, but no such luck, of course.

"Looks like there are only Elevens, sir," answered one of the soldiers.

The officer stepped into view, frowning. "Is this the only exit?"

"Yes, according to the most recent maps." Fuck. Thank god I'm in the shadows, for the moment. Even if it wasn't, they'd just post more troops to cover the other exits, though.

I frowned. Okay, delicate situation. How do we get out of this... there aren't any other exits to the subway, according to them, and there don't seem to be any other exits to this building, either. Posing as an innocent won't work, for many reasons... I can't wait them out, that would go badly... maybe if I-

*Riiiiiing! Riiiing!* I panicked. My phone, shit shit shit! I hung up quickly, but, of course, it was too late. When I looked up again, there was a gun in my face.

The soldiers hauled me away from the stairs, and threw me against a wall. The girl, they merely pushed to one side. Restrained as she was, I suppose she wasn't much of a threat.

"This is a fitting end for a terrorist," declared the officer with a grin. I glanced up at him with irritation. "No need to look like that. For a student, you did quite well. That's the mark of a Britannian. But this is the end of the line."

"Erasing anything and everything that leads back to the girl, eh?" I narrowed my eyes. "How long do you think until your superiors make the same decision? Decide to get rid of you?"

The officer laughed. "Sowing the seeds of distrust? An admirable effort, but we aren't that foolish. We can hold our silence, and our superiors know this. Still, that was quick thinking on your part. In return, we'll grant you a swift death." The man raised his pistol, and I stared back defiantly.

"Don't kill him!"shouted the girl, leaping in front of me, throwing her arms out protectively. Her voice was slightly familiar... and then there was a bang, and she fell.

I started forward, but the soldiers motioned with their guns threateningly. I froze, and cast my eyes downward. "I would have liked to keep her alive," drawled the officer nonchalantly. "Report to our superiors- Group CA has found the terrorists' base and eliminated them. However, the hostage was dead by the time we arrived. What do you think, student?"

I raised my head slowly, my hands shaking with anger. "What do I think?" I hissed, and he recoiled at the anger in my voice. "I think that you had better kill me here and now, you rat. I think that if I were to survive this somehow, I would recover. I would arm myself. I would join the Britannian military, and with my intelligence and skill, I would work my way up through the ranks until I met you. And when I found you, I would bring upon you such a mighty vengeance that the Emperor himself would quake in fear at your fate." I rose to my feet, and the soldiers, as if mesmerized by my voice, merely watched.

"I will torture you mind, body, and soul. I will carve such an agonizing revenge on your body that after days of torment you will die, and I will bring you back. You will not die, you will not die until you have cursed everything you have ever loved, you will not die until the last bit of hope has turned to absolute despair. You will beg me to kill you and I will deny you that. Kill me now, you son of a bitch, kill me in my powerlessness, my helplessness, my vulnerability, or you will regret it for the rest of long life."

The officer staggered backward, his eyes staring at me like I was insane, like I was a madman... perhaps I was. That didn't matter to me now. All I could feel was the hatred. It wasn't even that he made me that made, he'd... broken a dam, and all my anger at Britannia, at the royal family, was pouring forth.

But it wasn't. After a moment, the spell was broken. Once again, I was just a powerless student, standing in front of a Britannian firing squad. I faltered, and the officer shook his head. "You are one crazy son of a bitch," he grunted, still eyeing me warily.

And so it ends. So quickly, without knowing why, without knowing the reason for all of this. No power to stop it, no power to help it. No power. For anything. I gritted my teeth. Live like a fool, die like a dog.

Suddenly, a hand seized my wrist. The world dissolved into black, and tendrils of blue lightning wrapped around my limbs as I fell into the black. (You don't want this to end, do you?) It was a voice, a voice echoing in my head. The girl! The black world turned white, and began to... shift.

What... is this? I thought bewilderedly. This wasn't reality. This wasn't real. But what was it?

(It seems you have a reason to live.) Images swirled through my head, and suddenly I was soaring down a cable through a swirling vortex. (If you had strength, you could live. This is our contract. In return for my gift of power, you must grant one wish of mine.) Her voice was echoing in my head... as though it came from everywhere, from the very fiber of my being. (If you enter into this contract, you will live as a human, but as one completely different. Different rules, different time, a different life... the power of the king will make you lonely indeed. If you are prepared for that, then...)

There was no hesitation. "Of course! I hereby enter into this contract, and embrace all it entails, blessings and curses alike!"

I stood. I was back in the real world. The girl was dead. But the power... the power was there. I could feel it. It was like a warmth, a calming presence. There was no fear. I had the power. I glanced up at my would-be killers. "Hey... I thought about it, officer, and I've changed my mind. You won't suffer that much for what you've done."

The officer quirked an eyebrow, and grinned. "Are you joking? I'll sleep well tonight, knowing the girl and you are dead."

"After all," I continued, as though he hadn't spoken, "you were only following orders. Isn't that right?" He blinked, and I grinned. "Then here is another order for you to follow. -[Lelouch vi Britannia commands you, and you will heed his words!]-" I shouted, and the power surged forth. It was... indescribable. It was a certainty, it was a confidence, it was feeling the ultimate truth of your words in the minds of another.

Geass. That was its power. I knew, from the contract I had entered into with the girl. The power of the unresistable command. Any order I give... they must follow. That is my power. "-[Soldiers, rank and file troopers... you will kill yourselves.]-"

"-{Yes, Your Majesty!}-" the soldiers roared back with a salute, and then they put their assault rifles up to their heads, and fired. The officer did not even flinch as the blood splattered him, he merely stood perfectly still, his eyes glowing faintly red. Awaiting his orders. I grinned.

"-[And officer, I have a very special command for you, so listen closely...]-"


And so it begins. Lelouch Gaspar's rebellion, and the path to Japan's independence.

You'll note I do the Geass a touch different from the anime. In the anime, the glow on the eyes was mostly just to clue the audience in, as no one in the universe ever seemed to notice it. In my fic, it will be really hard to notice, very subtle, but if you know what to look for, you will see it. Of course, it only shows when the Geass is taking an effect, so even if you know the symptom, you won't be able to spot sleeper agents until they start acting up. In future chapters, you'll also see Gaspar's experiments with the Geass, and you'll learn its limitations better.

And one final note for this chapter... those of you that play DnD 4th Edition? Yeah, Gaspar is Avenger class, and he just demonstrated his Oath of Enmity. Just wait 'til you see him really rage.

Told you he was more angry than Lamperouge.