Not as much attention as I hoped this would get, but oh well... Anyway, here is the second chapter of Lost Colors: A New Translation! Oh, also, in response to a review sent by a Guest. I think you're confusing this story with Colorless Memories, that is property of another author. Unfortunately, it had been taken down a very long time ago. Shame, it was just getting good too! If anyone has found it on another site, like on a community or whatever, please let me know! The ideas I could get from that magnificent piece of artwork!

Also, an opening will be featured, as I want this to have a sort of 'anime-style' feel to it. And sorry for the late update, I have been busy, both with school and with life... and I am not joking.

Lost Colors: A New Translation

In the year 2010 of the Imperial Calendar, the neutral island nation of Japan came under attack at the hands of the world's only global superpower, the Holy Britannian Empire. Though the country held steadfast to it's neutrality, deep rooted diplomatic problems and strained relationships had left the island nation stranded. It was this battle, which came to be known as the Second Pacific War, that Britannia unveiled it's latest weapon: the Autonomous Armored Knight, codename Knightmare Frame.

In less than a month, Japan fell. Britannia had stripped the people of their rights, their history, their culture... even their name was taken. With the establishment of Japan reduced to a dominion of the Empire, the once proud people of Japan were renamed Elevens, and Japan, Area 11.

Seven years have passed since then. However, no one could have predicted the storm that had begun to build, slowly creeping up on it's borders. No one had any idea that a rebellion was beginning to stir... all at the hands of two young boys, who bear the souls of kings.


Opening Theme: "Let Me Hear" by Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas


[You guys do not notice that we are gifted just by being]

[Humans we are]

[Absolute]

[Predators we do not even]

The screen starts out as pure white, but slowly fades to reveal Rai in the Ashford Academy uniform, his eyes closed.

[Have any enemies]

[Maybe there are other animals watching us and]

[Thinking that someday "we will beat them down']

The background shifts into C's World, and Rai's eyes twitch. The camera zooms on his face as he opens his eyes, revealing both to carry the mark of Geass.

The Geass sequence begins to play, images of Lelouch, Rai, and Suzaku shown passing by before the title appears.

[Oh we have the brains to think hard]

[Wear out favorite]

[Clothes we are at no doubt]

[Humans being many mall lives]

The screen returns to normal, showing Kallen in the middle of a destroyed city, likely the Shinjuku Ghetto, kneeling over what looks like a small grave with the name "Naoto" on it. A tear falls from her face as she stands up, turning to the Resistance Cell behind her, all of them smiling in determination.

[They were born-]

[THEY WERE BORN!]

[-with the faith-]

[WITH THE FAITH!]

[-of dying for-]

[FOR SOMEONE A HUMAN BABY!]

[-someone]

[A human baby-]

[WHEN WILL THEY FIND OUT THE TRUE FACT YEAH!]

[-when will they find you]

The screen turns to Suzaku, wearing the military uniform at the Kururugi Shrine. He is shown praying at the front, his hands clasped together before he opens his eyes and turns to leave, Lloyd and Cecile shown waiting for him at the steps. As usual, Lloyd has an amused grin on his face, with Cecile looking on, worried.

[That at the point they were born, we are]

[WE ARE WINNERS!]

[Winners of Earth]

Lelouch is seen walking out of a building, holding a briefcase. When the screen shows his face, his left eye shifts into red with a bird-like symbol, and a grin forms on his face.

[Ah hitori naitei ta]

[Tonari no kimi ga toikakeru]

[Dakara bokura yorisoi ikiru kirameku made]

The screen shows various scenes. The first is Kallen emerging from a truck in a red Glasgow, ready to combat the enemy. As the camera moves behind her, the Lancelot dashes out, slashing a Burai in half and firing it's slash harkens at a helicopter. Emerging from the flames is the Guren MK-II, leaping forward and grabbing a Sutherland by the head and activating the Radiant Wave Surger. An explosion follows, leaving the Lancelot Club and the Gekka Pre-Production to take the stage, blasting the smoke away as their blades clash, both machines glaring at each other.

[FOR WHAT HAVE I BEEN LIVING FOR?]

[WHEN WILL I FIND OUT THE ANSWER?]

[AN ANSWER THAT IS ONLY]

[WHAT WILL MY SELF AND (THE) FIRST!]

The two break apart, allowing a new scenery to be shown. Memories of Lelouch and Suzaku flash by, from their meeting to before the invasion to when it began and ending with their parting. The final scene shows Rai sitting atop a ruined Gawainn, dressed in the Ashford Academy uniform, and looking up at a cloudy gray sky before the camera zooms on his face, closing his eyes before opening them, and revealing Geass once more.


Ashford Academy.

It was a school built by the Ashford Family, a middle-class group of nobles that were the main reason responsible for the late Empress, Marianne "The Flash" vi Britannia to becoming the Knight of Two back during her days as a Knight of Honor before becoming a consort to the Emperor, Charles zi Britannia. The school was established sometime after Britannia had made Japan, christened as Area 11, for the purpose of educating the new residents of Area 11 once it became an official colony of the Empire.

On it's grounds, two students were walking out to the front, one boy and one girl. The girl had platinum blonde hair that came down to her shoulders, the ends curling upwards, and a pair of sapphire eyes. She wore the female variation of the uniform, a tanned blazer with gold trims, complete with a black skirt and buttoned shirt, and a black tie around the collar of the shirt. In her hand was a clipboard. The boy had ebony black hair that was swept to the left, his skin slightly pale, and bearing amethyst eyes, dressed in the male variation, a black jacket with the same gold trims, a buttoned shirt underneath, and complete with a pair of black slacks.

"Sorry for calling you out like this," the blonde haired woman, Milly Ashford, said with a Cheshire-like grin on her face. "But I figured you would enjoy it, seeing as how it gets you away from PE." At this, the boy sighed and shaked his head, slapping a palm to his forehead.

"Sometimes, you are just too much trouble, Madam President..." Lelouch Lamperouge muttered. "Very well then. What is it you would like me to do?"

"It's just something simple, really!" the blonde vixen assured him, though her smile made him doubt her. "I promise!"

"Whatever..." he sighed, shaking his head at her antics.

Lelouch was rather well known at school for his escapades, avoiding P.E. like the plague while somehow managing to maintain his grades, earning the credits needed to pass school and avoid getting into reprimands or in trouble from others. Of course, his biggest problem was that he occasionally skipped school with Rivalz to go gambling against a noble somewhere in the Settlement. Despite warnings and repeated attempts, Lelouch was still doing it.

It also did not help matters that he managed to beat the nobles... every single time.

"Well then!" Milly giggled heartedly as she was about to explain what she needed before something interrupted her. It was a small, muffled thud, but it was loud enough for them to hear. "Huh?" Looking over to the side, they saw someone lying on the ground.

"What in the?" Lelouch muttered as they walked over. Upon closer inspection, it was a young male, probably about sixteen years of age, wearing a worn white shirt that was in tatters, and blue jeans that were barely hanging on. His skin was slightly pale, but not too much, earning him that illustrious look that most people had, and his hair was white, messy and uncombed.

"What in the world happened to him...?" Milly wondered as she rolled him over on his back. He looked to be unconscious, unresponsive with a couple of groans being his only signs that he was alive. "He's practically ragged."

"Perhaps he's from the ghettos?" Lelouch offered, but earned a shake of the head.

"No, he looks far too healthy."

Now that Lelouch looked closer, the unconscious young man had a lanky build, arguably as thin as he was, but he looked pretty nourished and hydrated. People in the ghettos usually struggled to get by, and while his clothes would certainly give him that appearance, the rest of him contradicted it.

However, that did not answer how or why he was here on school grounds. "Where do you think he's from?" Lelouch asked, hoping to find some answers as Milly searched him for any clues to his identity. Sadly, however, they turned up nothing.

"He doesn't have anything on him..." Milly answered, probing his clothes for anything of use. "No wallet, no ID, no money, no photos, nothing."

"So, basically, he's an unknown." Lelouch sighed. This was among the many things he hated, things he didn't know about. He hated not knowing about facts or details that were important, especially when such matters were related to things that could prove beneficial or dangerous to him. "Terrific."

"Oh, lighten up!" the blonde vixen told him as she hooked one of his arm's around her shoulder, lifting him up and grunting as she did so. "Now, help me carry him to the nurse's office!"

"Wait, what?" the raven-haired teen blinked, clearly not expecting that. "Milly, what are you saying?"

"Oh?" Milly re-formed her dangerous Cheshire-like grin, a mischievous glint gleaming in her cold blue eyes. "Then you DO want me to tell your P.E. teachers about your grades!"

Lelouch scowled, grudgingly taking the other arm and sharing the burden as they carried him to the health office. 'You owe me answers when you wake up...' he thought as he glared at the unconscious boy.

He had missed the slight murmur the boy released, which was barely even audible, though Lelouch just thought it to be a groan and nothing more. "Le...lou..."

LOST COLORS

It had been a dream from that day.

The room was Zero's private quarters, a place where their leader could find solace, where he could relax after times of stress. He had only been in this room once before, when Zero had informed him that he will be one of their aces, even informing him that he would pilot the Gekka Pre-Production Test Type. He had been ecstatic, fighting alongside Kallen in that blue demon that instilled fear into the hearts of Britannians.

The green-haired woman who had introduced him into the organization sat atop the desk, her hands behind her back to support her, and her legs swinging over the edge. Zero himself stood before him, his face hidden behind the steel black mask that had made many wonder who he was. His attire was as regal as ever, granting him the appearance of an illustrious noble, or perhaps even a king of sorts.

It was a rather good analogy, as the Black Knights were akin to chess pieces on the board, with him as one of the Knights as he liked to think himself as, Kallen as the Queen, and Zero as the King.

"How long has it been since you joined the Black Knights, Rai?" Zero asked him, his voice as smooth as bass, filtered by a metallic echo. In truth, he didn't know the answer. Time was all but meaningless to him, but there had been times when he cherished the most important moments in his life, his time with Nunnally and the others being among them.

"I don't really know," Rai answered truthfully. "Why do you ask?"

"It's nothing, really." Zero shook his head dismissively. "It is just... When you first joined the Black Knights, I had my doubts. You were an unknown. You had no memories. Even your name, Rai, is but a falsehood. Even the other members, all save for C.C.," he gestured his head to the green-haired woman. "And Kallen... they didn't trust you fully until you proved yourself. However, even then, I had doubts."

That had not surprised him. It was true that he didn't have a past, and that his name meant nothing. It's meaning was just the surface. "Lightning" was nothing but a front. If one were took closer, to look from another angle, his name would mean something rather fitting for him. A "liar".

"What changed your opinion?"

Zero's posture had never really changed whenever they spoke. Hell, he doubted it ever changed, all save for the times when he let emotions escape him. He was calm, calculated, and unbending. He was chaos given form, a symbol as Diethard put it to him once. He was the powder keg that didn't stop burning once lit, an explosion of change. Zero would always carry himself in a haughty manner, a dignified stance with a noble stride and a regal form.

And yet, that posture had changed to slight nervousness, and even hesitance.

It was quite unlike him.

"Time." He raised an eyebrow at that. "It had been time that made me think more about you. You're skills on the battlefield are equal to even that of the Knights of the Round, and your tactics are enough to match even someone like Schneizel, measure for measure. However, there is a difference between those factors and you: You take lives into account, and act upon those lives accordingly. If you deemed an action worthless, you would not act upon it. If you thought my orders to be mad at the cost of several lives, you would go against it."

That was a good description of himself, though that was hardly to be expected.

"I know myself how insane my orders would be." Zero confessed. "However, in war, there is no such thing as a war that is waged without a single life being taken. I cannot show weakness, otherwise I will fail and everything we have worked ourselves to become will all be for naught."

"I know, Zero."he told the leader of the Black Knights. "To be perfectly honest, I just don't know how you can handle all that expectation on your shoulders. I know I couldn't deal with that."

To his surprise, Zero actually laughed at his words. "On the contrary, Rai. I think you are more than capable of leading. Before I say anything else, I wish to know something. Have you always wondered who I am?"

Who hadn't wondered that? It was the million dollar question. Everyone wanted to know who Zero was. Everyone wanted to know the true face behind that mask of infamy. Everyone wanted to know the driving force behind the organization's leader. Everyone wanted to know the man behind the mask. He was no different in that regard.

"I have."

"I see." Zero said solemnly. "To be rather honest, I had thought you would deny such an accusation... yet I can see it is rather like you." To his credit, he didn't look surprised as he watched gloved hands reach towards the mask, the slender digits gracing the black steel. He also caught the look of surprise and shock on the green-haired woman's face. Zero noticed this as well. "Do you disapprove?"

"...No, not really." C.C. shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly. "I'm merely surprised he's earned your trust, especially to this extent."

He could only watch as Zero laughed at the remark, and witnessed the mask of infamy begin to retract. The prongs crinkled together, sliding to become a single piece, and allowing the mask to be removed.

His eyes widened in shock when Zero removed his mask, revealing his face at long last.

In retrospect... he truly should not have been surprised to see who was staring back at him with a smile on his face, a smile that betrayed the character he had usually displayed.

LOST COLORS

His eyes fluttered open as the darkness began to unravel, revealing a familiar room. It was heavily akin to one would see at a hospital, except with a more lavish and welcoming atmosphere, a curtain pulled back to reveal the room's barren brown wallpaper, and the dark wooden door leading into the room. Another door could be found beside it, except much closer to the wall, likely the bathroom. His body was covered by white sheets, his clothes light and loose.

For a moment, he wasn't sure where he was before recognition began to register, and looked to his side, the pillow underneath his head crumpling up due to the shift of his skull.

Milly Ashford looked as beautiful and dangerous as she ever was.

"Ah, you're awake!" the blonde vixen smiled as she closed the book in her hands, the pages clamped shut and the work of literature placed on the table beside her. A smile was on her heart-shaped face as she looked at the other occupants of the room. "Look's like he's okay, everyone."

His eyes scanned them. Nina was still shy, fidgeting under her gaze with her hands rubbing together. Rivalz looked relieved, a cheery grin that looked like it had been glued to his face present as he raised a hand in greeting. Shirley nodded back, a kind and warm-hearted smile on her face. He blushed slightly as he averted his eyes from her more 'pronounced' regions. Strangely, a certain brown-haired Asian teen was not among the group.

His eyes widened when he saw a familiar face, handsome and devious like a noble. His eyes were amethyst, a rich purple surpassing even the gems, and his hair like that of the crow's feathers, a dark shade that hid his forehead and the rims of his ears, reaching down to the collar of his blazer. His form was slender, little body fat found if at all on his frame, yet it only made him appear weak to some.

"You're face tells us you have no idea where you are," Lelouch vi Britannia said with an annoyed expression. It was just like him, and he couldn't have had it any other way. "But we're the ones that should be asking the questions here."

He received a nudge in the ribs from Shirley, causing him to wince in pain from the gesture. "Lulu, be nice!" the girl said to him, causing the man to sigh. All the attention had been turned away from him and unto Lelouch, as he suffered a few gazes and reprimands from the others.

Milly had been the only one to turn her attention back to him, and her eyes widened at what she saw. "Hey, are you okay?"

The group was surprised, and he hadn't blamed them. For one, his eyes never left Lelouch. Two, he was sitting upright, allowing the sheets to fall off of him and reveal a simple buttoned shirt, likely the same one used in the uniform by the men. However, most importantly, there were tears streaming down his face. Clear water fell from his eyes, creeping down his cheeks and stopping at his chin before they hanged there for a few seconds. Gravity had take it's hold upon then, and allowed the tears to drop to the sheets, forming small stains.

Reality was staring to set in for him.

He was finally back... he was back with his friends, the people he could call his family.

"You're crying." Milly stated the obvious as he tried to wipe away the tears, though to no avail. The tears would not cease. "Is something the matter? If it's about the stupid remark Lulu made, just ignore it!"

That was not the issue... at least, not fully. Lelouch did have a part of it, but the remark was not what was causing him to cry. It was that his friend's presence was here, right next to him like he wanted.

"It..." Rai hiccupped, his arms over his cold blue eyes. "It isn't that... I just... I'm happy... And I... I don't know why..."

Again, words that related to the true meaning of his name... yet it was the only words he could give them at this point in time.

He was finally home.

-Stage 1...END-


Closing Theme: "D-Tecnolife" by UVERworld


[Ienai itami kanashimi de]

[Kizutsuita kimi yo]

[Kise nai kako]

[mo seoi atte ikou]

[Ikiru koto wo]

[nagedasa nai de!]

The scene shows a brick wall with graffiti plastered all over it, the most prominent being the black ink reading CODE GEASS. Once the music picks up, Suzaku, Lelouch, and Rai appear over it. Lelouch has a hand lifted over his left eye, standing off to the left, and Rai on the left clutches his right eye. Suzaku stands in the middle, an arm over both of his eyes.

[Tsunai da kimi no te wo]

The scene shifts to an array of images, involving the three in their normal life in Ashford.

[Itsuka ushinatte shmau no ka na]

[Usuerete yuku egao to]

[kimi wo mamoritai kara]

A transition occurs, a flash of white showing Rai standing by himself on the beach, his bangs hiding his eyes while the crashing waves sweep up against his feet. Over time, more character begin to appear. Lelouch is seen sitting atop a piece of driftwood, holding a familiar mask in his hands. Suzaku appears behind him, his back facing his friend while looking down at something in his hand.

[Hibiku]

Kallen is shown crouching next to Rai, her arms on her knees as she watches the sea.

[Boku wo yobu koe sae kare]

[Toki ni sou kaze nikaki kisaretatte]

Rivalz stands next to Lelouch, an arm on his friend's shoulder while his hand makes gestures in the air, as if conversing with him. Shirley and Milly are seen near the sea wall, silently observing the two while Shirley has a tinge of red in her cheeks.

[Kimi wo mitsuke dasu!]

Nina sits atop the sea wall, her legs over the edge and a computer sitting atop her lap, her eyes solely focused on the screen as she types furiously. Nunnally is beside her, smiling peacefully as the breezes kicks up and blows away at her hair.

[Ienai itami kanashimi de]

[Kizu tsuita kimi]

[Mou warae nai nante]

[Hito kirai nante]

[Kotoba sou iwa nai de]

[Mie nai mirai ni]

[okoru koto]

[Subete ni imi ga aru kara]

[Ima wa sono mama de ii]

[Kitto kizukeru]

[toki ga kuru darou]

The screen returns back to the brick wall, except the graffiti, all sans the title, has been cleared, and more characters appear alongside the three. Shirley and Rivalz appear on Lelouch's side, the girl smiling and the boy grinning. Milly and Nina are on the other side with Suzaku, the blonde smirking deviously at the camera with her arms crossed underneath her breasts while the glasses-wearing girl appears nervously, her shoulders slumped, and her hands clasped together at her waist. Rai, Lelouch, and Suzaku no longer cover their eyes.

[Hizunda kioku no you na]

[Toki no naka de]

[itsuka wakari]

[aeru kara!]

The final scene shows a picture on a desk, revealing the full Ashford Academy cast, all of them sporting bright smiles on their faces. The picture represent the happy times that exist alongside their chaotic ones.

The screen cuts to black, revealing the mark of the Black Knights.


Well, that's it for now. The opening theme is used in Parasyte: The Maxim, a completely and utterly insane anime that just outright defines character development alongside Tokyo Ghoul, while the ending song is used in Bleach, set during the Soul Society Arc.

I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Hopefully, the next one won't take me so damn long to write...