Eight reviews in one chapter? Cool. I'm glad that you're liking this story and, while there are only minor changes at the moment, there will be many major changes in upcoming chapters, especially when we get near the end.
Thank you to Shadow-Shinobi666, Demons Anarchy of Pride, Yagami Kari Hikari, yuuram2fangirl, Can'tPickAName, Dragon Silhouette, northernlion196, and Shimmering-Sky for reviewing the first chapter. You guys are great.
I hope that you enjoy this chapter, even if it isn't much different from the actual episode. Reviews, as always, are much appreciated.
. . .
. . .
He hated sleepless nights.
The palace was quiet, silent like a tomb, and the only ones who were also awake were the guards but they were quiet and simply inclined their heads in greeting when he walked past them, cloak billowing about his feet.
He had managed to get some sleep but then the nightmares came, jerking him out of his peaceful rest and he has been unable to sleep since then.
Ever since Euphie's murder, he has always had a hard time sleeping. Every time he closed his eyes, he saw her murder flash before his eyes.
And he saw the person responsible for it.
Zero.
Lelouch vi Britannia, the current Demon Emperor of Britannia.
The Zero Requiem had begun and, when he thought about how the Zero Requiem would end, he had to steel himself. So he thought about Euphie and everyone else that had died because of Lelouch in the hope that it would help him fulfill his part of the final stage of the plan.
Because, despite his anger towards Lelouch, he couldn't find it in himself to hate his oldest and best friend anymore.
Especially now that he knew that Euphie's death had not been on purpose.
He was joined by the one he was thinking about.
"You're still up?"
"You are too."
"Couldn't sleep."
"Same here."
They fell silent, enjoying the tranquil night in the gardens that his feet had subconsciously brought him to.
He broke that silence.
"Will this plan work?"
"I'm sure it will."
"And if it doesn't?"
"It has to work. If all the world's hatred is focused on me, my death should put an end to that hatred."
"It won't last forever."
"But it will give the world and its people the chance to start rebuilding."
He hoped that the plan would work then, even if he didn't completely like the thought of killing his best friend. But if it was for the sake of peace and a chance to rebuild then he would do it.
. . .
Stage 02
Fall of a Prince
Lelouch vi Britannia twirled the black King chess piece in between his fingers as he watched the battle that was occurring throughout the Shinjuku Ghetto. Most of the fighting he couldn't see and only knew about due to the map on the screen of the stolen Sutherland he had taken refuge in. He had to admit that the terrorists he was working with were good, especially the girl in the one-armed Glasgow that he had nicknamed Q1. They were able to take out quite a large chunk of Clovis's forces, especially now that they were able to fight back on somewhat more even terms due to the Sutherlands that Lelouch had 'given' them.
He narrowed his eyes when he noticed movement around Clovis's command center. "He's breaking the encirclement around him. Clovis, Clovis, Clovis—that is by far the stupidest move you could have made." But it also gives me the perfect opportunity to get close to him, the Geass that odd green-haired woman gave me should take care of anything else that gets in my way, he thought.
He reached for the comm and flicked it on. "Q1, do you have an area map?" he asked.
"Yes. I have a map of the old town but it has none of the current landmarks," Q1 replied.
"It'll do," Lelouch said and then ordered the terrorists to head toward the subways and force the Britannians to follow them and they did. He then ordered the terrorists to fire their Slash Harkens at the ceiling in front of them, causing it to cave in, destroying all the Sutherlands that had been above.
"With this, I call check," Lelouch said with a grin, placing the King chess piece in front of him. "I can do it! With this power, I can destroy Britannia!" He chuckled.
That was, until, the newest piece to the board suddenly made its appearance. B1 was the one who reported it; a white-and-gold Knightmare Frame who had taken out all of the Sutherlands that had attacked it.
"And it's only one unit," B1 exclaimed.
"Impossible! How could one unit do this much damage?" Lelouch hissed, narrowing his eyes as he tried to figure out just what was happening. One Knightmare was taking out the majority of his current allies, forcing him to redo his plans.
He needed to get to the G1 mobile base where his half-brother was and stop this fight.
"This is Q1. I'm going to engage the new enemy," Q1's voice sounded over the comm.
"Be careful," the young man that Lelouch had nicknamed P1 said.
"I will," Q1 said and Lelouch watched, on the map of the area, as Q1 engaged the new enemy near the heart of the ghetto.
Using that as a distraction, Lelouch guided his stolen Sutherland closer to the command center and, powering it down, left it and immediately headed toward the mobile base, but not before stealing himself a uniform.
"Stop there!" the soldier said, lifting his weapon. "Your ID. This is Prince Clovis's personal transport."
Lelouch locked eyes with the soldier. "Lelouch vi Britannia commands you: do as I say," he declared and the red bird-like sigil around his pupil began glowing around his eye; the soldier froze and then saluted, a ring of red around his eyes.
"Yes, sir," he said.
"Let me pass and forget you ever saw me," Lelouch said.
"Yes, sir."
Lelouch entered the mobile base, using his Geass on anyone that spotted him so that they would forget ever seeing him. He made his way down the hallway and noticed that Clovis's general, Bartley, was standing guard. He lifted his weapon, only to freeze when Lelouch used his Geass on him and ordered him to leave.
He then strode into his half-brother's room, staying to the shadows as Clovis straightened up.
"What is this? I told you that I was not to be disturbed," he exclaimed.
Lelouch activated his Geass again and ordered everyone that was in the room to vacate the premises and forget they ever saw him. Before long, the entire room was empty, leaving Clovis who had gotten to his feet, shouting at his guards and demanding to know where they were going.
Scowling, the blonde Viceroy turned his attention to the still shadowed Lelouch. "What do you want?" he demanded.
"I want you to order a cease fire and have all causalities, whether they be Japanese or Britannian, to be treated without prejudice," Lelouch ordered.
"And what if I don't?" Clovis sneered, only to freeze when Lelouch clicked the safety off the gun that he had taken along with the uniform and pointed it at him. "Okay, okay. Just…turn on the communication system for me and I'll do it."
Lelouch, keeping his gun trained on Clovis and sticking to the shadows, moved over to the communications system and turned it on.
Clovis gave the order for the ceasefire before turning his attention back to Lelouch. "Are you satisfied?" he asked.
"Very. Well done," Lelouch said.
"And what shall we do now? Sing a few lively ballads? Or perhaps a nice game of chess?"
Lelouch chuckled. "That has a familiar ring," he said.
"Hmm?"
"Don't you recall? The two of us used to play chess together as boys. Of course, I would always win."
"What?" Clovis sounded confused.
"Remember? At the Aries Villa?" Lelouch moved forward.
"You…who are you?"
Lelouch removed his helmet and came to a stop in front of Clovis. "It's been a long time, big brother," he said and knelt down. "The eldest son of the late consort Marianne, eleventh prince, and seventeenth in line to the imperial throne, Lelouch vi Britannia, at your service."
"L…Lelouch?" Clovis exclaimed, eyes wide with shock. "But…But I thought…"
"That I was dead?" Lelouch asked, lifting his head to fix cool, penetrating eyes on his older half-brother. "You were wrong. I have returned, Your Highness, and I've come back to change everything."
Clovis stood up, eyes wide with shock and then faint happiness as Lelouch stood up. "I'm overjoyed, Lelouch. They said you died when Japan was brought into the fold. What a blessing to have you back. We should depart for the homeland immediately," he said and then froze when Lelouch, his face darkening with fury, aimed the gun at him again.
"So you can use me as a tool for diplomacy again? It seems you've forgotten why we were used as tools in the first place." A cool sneer crossed Lelouch's lips as he added, "That's right. It was because my mother was killed. Mother held the title of Knight of Honor but was a commoner by birth. No doubt the other Imperial consorts held her in contempt. Even though you made it look like the work of terrorists, I'm no fool. You people killed my mother!"
"It wasn't me! I swear to you it wasn't!" Clovis cried in panic.
Lelouch locked eyes with his panicking brother. "Tell me everything you know, truthfully!" He ordered and, like with all the others he had used his new Geass on, a red ring appeared around Clovis's eyes as he relaxed.
"Who killed my mother?" Lelouch asked.
"I don't know," Clovis said monotonously.
"Who does know?"
"The second prince Schneizel and the second princess Cornelia can tell you," Clovis said.
Lelouch pressed his lips together with a frown. So they're involved with this? He thought. He remembered that Cornelia had been the head of the Royal Guard that guarded his mother, and seem to idolize her, so he wasn't entirely sure if Cornelia really had anything to do with his mother's death. Schneizel, on the other hand, was someone that Lelouch did get along with, and was the only one that Lelouch could not beat at chess, but Lelouch couldn't figure out his motivation for killing Empress Marianne. He decided that he would think about it later.
"That's all you know, isn't it?" he murmured as he released Clovis from his control. The blonde Viceroy staggered back, looking confused before he glanced at Lelouch.
"I swear, it wasn't me! I had nothing to do with it," he said quickly.
So he doesn't remember being under the control of my Geass? Lelouch thought and filed the information away for later. "I believe you," he said and, as relief started to enter Clovis's eyes, he pointed his gun at his half-brother's forehead. "However…"
Terror crawled across Clovis's azure eyes. "Please, you can't!" he cried in panic. "We may have different mothers but you and I are still blood."
Lelouch shook his head. "You can't change the world without getting your hands dirty," he said and pulled the trigger.
. . .
Suzaku returned to the barracks, exhausted and his side throbbing, his thoughts on his conversation with Lelouch in the Imperial Palace's gardens during that sleepless night they had both had one month before the final stage of the Zero Requiem in the old timeline. He pushed the memory out of his mind as he made his way through the almost completely empty barracks. Most, if not all, of the squad that had been sent on that mission hadn't returned.
His wound wasn't bleeding anymore, even if it still ached—he probably strained it while piloting the Lancelot—and he knew that he should see a medic again to make sure the wound hadn't gotten worse.
"Suzaku!" A shout sounded and Suzaku looked up, surprised when the familiar blue-haired form of Kenji walked toward him. He knew that Kenji had been one of the ones killed in the old timeline and he had to wonder what allowed Kenji to survive this time around. Then he saw that Kenji's arm was in a sling and he was limping.
Must have gotten hurt and they thought he was dead so they left him alone. At least, that's what I think, he thought.
"Kenji," he greeted his bunkmate. "What happened?"
"Got pinned beneath some debris," Kenji said with a grimace. "Did you know that the Royal Guard were all killed?"
"They were?" Suzaku feigned surprise, though he already knew that and had a sinking feeling who was responsible.
"Yup. That's what I heard anyway but I'm glad to see you. I thought I was the only one who got out of there alive," Kenji said sincerely.
"Private Kururugi!"
Kenji and Suzaku turned and stood at attention, saluting, as their commanding officer walked over to join them.
"Yes, sir?" Suzaku said.
"You're being transferred to the Advanced Special Envoy Engineering Corps. You were requested personally by Director Lloyd Asplund," the commanding officer stated.
"Yes, sir."
The commanding officer turned on his heel and walked away.
"Why are you being transferred to the A.S.E.E.C.?" Kenji asked confused as he and Suzaku relaxed and the latter turned his attention to his bunkmate.
"I don't know," Suzaku lied, deciding that it would be better, for now, if no one knew that a Number was piloting a Knightmare Frame.
"Well, good luck then, Suzaku." Kenji said, his voice even as he held out a hand.
"Thank you. You too," Suzaku said, taking Kenji's hand and shaking it before he began gathering his meager belongings and, once he had gotten everything, he went returned to the A.S.E.E.C.'s mobile base.
. . .
It was late by the time Lelouch got home. He didn't know just how to feel about killing Clovis. On one hand, Clovis had been behind the massacre that was committed at the Shinjuku Ghetto but, on the other, Lelouch could still remember how he and Clovis were when they were growing up. He remembered how Clovis used to love art and painting and how he had even taught Nunnally how to paint simple pictures before their exile.
Clovis was probably one of the few half-brothers out there that Lelouch actually liked at the time and yet the Clovis that Lelouch came into contact with today was different from the one he grew up with. He just couldn't see the Clovis he had known ordering a massacre of innocent people.
He pushed those thoughts out of his head. He had done the deed and there was no changing that now. He would just have to deal with the consequences of his actions later because he knew that there would be consequences. While no one knew Lelouch was the one who killed Clovis, that didn't mean that there wouldn't be a fallout.
Entering his home, he noticed that Sayoko was still up. The Japanese maid that had been working for Lelouch and Nunnally since they were taken in by the Ashfords seven years ago inclined her head in greeting. "Welcome home, Master Lelouch. Dinner is in the fridge. Mistress Nunnally tried to stay awake and wait for you but she was getting tired so I put her to bed."
"Thank you, Sayoko," Lelouch said and made his way into the kitchen. He wasn't feeling particularly hungry; his stomach churned at the thought of food, or perhaps that was just the feelings of guilt he felt.
He had actually murdered someone and that was not something that he could just walk away from without feeling something, especially since it had been his brother. He shoved all thoughts of that aside; if he wanted to destroy Britannia, he was going to have to deal with death and he needed to come to terms with death and killing others. War was coming and, in war, people were killed. That was just the way it was.
Lelouch forced himself to eat a little bit before he put the rest in the fridge and then went to check on Nunnally before he went to bed himself.
. . .
The following day, Lelouch, who had started dozing during the Student Council meeting, was startled out of his sleep by a hard smack to the head by an irate Milly. "Wake up, Lelouch! I know you were sleeping. Your hands stopped moving," she said firmly.
"Well, you don't have to beat me up over it, do you?" he asked, rubbing his head.
"Ha, serves you right for ditching me like that," Rivalz, said, leaning over the conference room table where they had been working on the budget for the council.
"That's right. What was up with you yesterday?" Shirley demanded.
"Um, well…" Lelouch trailed off, unsure of how to explain.
"That's enough, you guys," Milly said and Lelouch felt grateful with her interruption. "Let's not get sidetracked here. If we don't come up with a fix for the club activities budget, there won't be money left for anything at all."
"And if it comes to that point…" Nina began quietly.
"The Equestrian Club will be pissed! We don't want 'em comin' in here on horseback," Rivalz said just as a guy on a horse rode past the window. Lelouch noticed but said nothing, his lips quirking slightly.
"Rivalz, can't you be a more serious student council member?" Milly huffed.
"You know, it would have been nice of you if you would have reminded us about this mess a day ago," Shirley said.
"I would have to say a day later. Then we would have given up," Rivalz said.
"We can still do that," Lelouch mused.
"Guts!" Milly shouted, causing her friends to jump and then glance at her.
"Are you trying that 'guts' spell again?" Rivalz asked dryly.
"Yeah, I want you people to start pulling your all into this," Milly said firmly.
"I really don't think that your magic's gonna do a whole lot," Lelouch admitted.
"Actually, it's got me going, Madam President," Shirley said.
Milly smirked. "Supple and willing, that's what I like," she said.
Shirley shrugged. "I train hard in the gymnastics club," she said.
"That's not what I was getting at. You're a ten."
"Huh?" Shirley looked bewildered.
"From what I've seen in the girls' bathroom anyway, you've been filling out in all the right places, huh?"
Rivalz leaned toward Shirley with a grin, eyeing her. "Heh, heh."
Shirley went red. "W…What? What are you talking about, you perv?!" She exclaimed, crossing her arms across her chest and glaring at Rivalz.
. . .
Walking into the classroom, Lelouch spotted a short-red-haired girl seated with a bunch of girls standing around her. She looked exactly like the girl that Lelouch had seen enter the Glasgow during the incident in the Shinjuku Ghetto.
So you're a student, huh? He thought, clearing his face of emotion as he walked past the girl, whom he heard was called Kallen, and took his seat.
"Are you all right? Sophie's been worried sick all this time," one of the girls asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine. I just have to go easy for a little while," Kallen said. "Anyway, if I stay home any longer, I'll never catch up."
Rivalz leaned toward Lelouch when he noticed that the black-haired young man was watching Kallen. "What's up, buddy? See something you like? You've got a thing for her, don't ya?"
Lelouch gave Rivalz an exasperated look. "I'm just thinking that this is a rare event. She hasn't been here at school since this term started," he said.
"Yup. Kallen Stadtfeld. They say she's sick or somethin', and she barely showed up at school last year either. Still, her grades are at the top of the class and she's a member of the Stadtfeld family, which means she's well-bred and rolling in money. Man, you sure know how to pick 'em."
Lelouch huffed. "It's not like that," he said.
"Ah, you don't have to hide it. A touch too sheltered though, if you ask me," Rivalz said.
Lelouch ignored that and went back to studying Kallen.
Later, at lunch, he watched from nearby as Kallen ate lunch with the rest of her friends, waiting for a moment to get her alone to figure out whether or not she was the same girl who had piloted that Glasgow, though he was almost sure she was. His chance came when a bee appeared and chased the rest of the girls away while Kallen, with an agile swipe of the hand, killed the bee.
"I don't get it, why is a bee after me? Hmm? I wonder if there's a hive nearby," Kallen said and then murmured, "God, I hate this! I'm sick of acting like a freakin' invalid." She then noticed Lelouch and swore under her breath.
There's no question it's her, Lelouch thought.
Kallen stood up and turned to face Lelouch. "Can I help you with something?" she asked.
Lelouch activated his Geass. "I want answers," he said as Kallen relaxed, her eyes glowing with the ring of red around the irises.
"Of course," she said monotonously.
"Where you the one piloting the Glasgow in Shinjuku?" Lelouch asked.
"Yes," Kallen said.
"Why terrorism?"
"Because I'm Japanese, though technically I'm half Britannian."
A half-breed? Lelouch broke eye contact with Kallen as he puzzled over the new information he had been given about Kallen. But why go so far?
"Um, did you want something?" Kallen asked confused.
"No, I got what I wanted here. Oh, wait, just to be sure,"—Lelouch locked eyes with Kallen—"Don't tell anyone about Shinjuku."
"What do you mean? About Shinjuku? Why would you say that?" Kallen demanded, looking startled.
It's not working? "Go back to class," Lelouch tried again.
"As soon as I get an answer to my question, I will," Kallen said, glaring at Lelouch stubbornly.
It's still not working? What's going on here? Lelouch thought puzzled.
"Hey, Lulu! Kallen! You know it's time to head over to the chem lab. You'd better get a move on," Shirley called, leaning out of a nearby window.
Lelouch used that as the perfect excuse to leave. "Damn, I was supposed to help set up for class. Gotta go," he said and darted off, still attempting to puzzle over why his Geass hadn't worked a second time on Kallen.
. . .
Suzaku relaxed on his bed in his new quarters. Two days had gone by since the massacre at the Shinjuku Ghetto but it hadn't taken long for him to become accustomed again to his new surroundings. However, he knew that he was going to get arrested again soon, since he was positive that Gottwald will use him as a scapegoat again.
While they both served under Lelouch when he was Emperor, Suzaku and Gottwald got along pretty well but that was after Gottwald had been transformed into a cyborg and then given a Geass Canceller. Now, though, Gottwald was part of the Purist Faction.
Suzaku knew he would have to just go along with everything that happened in order to prevent the other Honorary Britannians from being unfairly persecuted, just as he had done last time. That meant that he was considering on rejecting Lelouch's offer to join him again, though not for the same reason as last time.
Even if he didn't quite approve of Lelouch's actions, he also knew that trying to change Britannia from within wouldn't work. He was no longer the naïve boy he was when this whole situation had started in the old timeline but that didn't mean he wanted to resort to terrorism. Even if Lelouch called it fighting for justice, Suzaku felt that, in some cases such as Narita, it amounted to the same thing.
I am supposed to be Lelouch's voice of reason. That's what the Divine said was my task. But just how am I supposed to do that? Am I supposed to join Lelouch or not? Suzaku wondered silently, his gaze fixed on the ceiling above his head. By joining Lelouch, he would be turning his back on Britannia but he would also be able to stay close to his old friend and, somehow, help him.
Sighing, Suzaku sat up and rubbed his head. Trying to figure out exactly what it was he was supposed to do was giving him a headache. He had thought his task was pretty straightforward but, when he finally actually sat down and thought about it, he realized it was much harder to explain than he had originally thought. Either that or it was obvious and he was just clueless.
He decided that he would think about that later and began thinking about the Geass that the Divine had given him. He had used it again on Cecile and Lloyd and had discovered that their numbers were different from that doctor's; Lloyd's was 7,750 and Cecile's was 565. But Suzaku still didn't know what those numbers were supposed to tell him. Just what did they represent?
He somehow knew that the power was called Absolute Fate and Suzaku had always associated fate with something that cannot be stopped, something that would happen no matter what. The only thing that Suzaku could think of that happened that no one could stop was death.
Suddenly, it hit him. Could that be what my Geass is telling me? Those number have something to do with death? Could it be showing me how long someone has left to live? The more Suzaku thought about it, the more it made sense. And, considering how high the numbers were, Suzaku figured that he could assume that it meant days rather than years or weeks.
He knew that his theory was just that, a theory, and that the only way he could prove whether it was correct or not is if someone with the number zero above their heads suddenly died but, so far, Suzaku hadn't found anyone who was about to die, not that he wanted to or was actively looking for someone like that.
I suppose it's as good a guess as any but, until I can prove it, that's all it is, even if it does kinda make sense, Suzaku mused. At the very least, at least he had an idea of what his Geass could be showing him.
But that left him with the other persistent thought that was on his mind and that was his task involving Lelouch. Voice of reason. It sounded so simple and yet Suzaku just didn't know if it was that simple or if it was more complicated than it seemed. It certainly felt like it was more complicated than it seemed.
Suzaku's head started hurting and he pushed those thoughts away before swinging his legs off the bed and walking out of his quarters. Lloyd had given him free reign to wander around the base so long as he didn't mess with any of the machinery. Over the past few days, Suzaku mostly spent his time in the engineering room, watching Lloyd and Cecile and the technicians that worked for them work on the Lancelot.
Even after only a few days, Suzaku was extremely comfortable with Lloyd and Cecile and it hadn't taken him quite as long because he knew what to expect. They did bicker a lot but that was also something that Suzaku was used to.
"Oh, Suzaku," Cecile greeted Suzaku as he entered the engineering room. He also had gotten used to Cecile and Lloyd no longer referring to him as Private ever since he got transferred."I made some muffins. Do you want to try one?" She held out a plate of muffins that had what looked like raisins in them.
Lloyd was standing behind Cecile, rapidly gesturing him to not take one, and Suzaku knew why. While she did try her best, Cecile wasn't that great of a cook. "No, thank you, Cecile," he said. "I'm not very hungry right now."
"Oh." Cecile looked disappointed.
"Maybe Tom will want one," Lloyd suggested.
Cecile brightened up. "I'll go offer him one," she said and walked off to find Tom, one of the technicians.
"I almost feel sorry for Tom," Lloyd mused after Cecile walked out of earshot.
Suzaku raised an eyebrow at Lloyd, not believing him for a second. The guy was a sociopath, and freely admitted to being one, who didn't care about anyone unless they were directly connected with his pet project, like Suzaku. And even then, he only saw Suzaku as a 'devicer', someone who could pilot the Lancelot.
"Right, anyway, glad you're here. I want you to go inside the Lancelot. There are some things I want to check out with the systems," Lloyd said.
"Yes, sir," Suzaku said and, pulling out the activation key from his pocket, made his way into the hangar where the Lancelot was parked. Once in the pilot seat and inside the Lancelot, he inserted the activation key and he and Lloyd went to work.
Later, Suzaku was sitting in the engineering room, deep in thought, while Lloyd was working with the computers to install some updates into the Lancelot's mainframe.
"You look like you have something on your mind," Cecile noted as she came to Suzaku's side.
"Just thinking," Suzaku said. "Was there something you needed, Miss Cecile?"
"Please, call me Cecile," Cecile said with a smile. "We're going to be working together from now on so we don't have to be so formal. And I was just wondering if you're all right."
"I'm fine, just have something on my mind that I can't quite figure out," Suzaku admitted.
Cecile pulled up a chair and sat down. "Want my opinion?" she asked.
Suzaku did value Cecile's opinion in the old timeline before he had officially joined Lelouch following the destruction of the Sword of Akasha. He decided that he might as well. "All right," he said. "I'm just wonder; what would you consider to be a voice of reason?"
"What do you mean?"
"If you were someone's voice of reason, what would that mean to you?"
Cecile looked thoughtful. "I'd say that I would be the one that acts as that someone's moral compass and help them understand what's right and what's wrong about a certain situation or the consequences of their actions. For example, if this someone is angry at someone else and wants to go beat them up, I would be the one who points out that he or she could get into trouble for doing that," she said.
Suzaku nodded, thinking as he realized that Cecile really did explain the matter rather well. It was rather simple and straightforward but Suzaku had thought it would be more complicated than it seemed. But then Suzaku hadn't really thought the task given to him by the Divine itself would be that simple.
Then again, even if the task was simple to explain, that didn't mean that it would be easy to accomplish.
"Does that help?" Cecile asked.
"Yeah, thank you, Miss…I mean Cecile," Suzaku said.
Cecile smiled. "Glad I could help," she said.
But while that does help me somewhat understand what I'm supposed to do, it doesn't help me figure out just how I'm going to do that, Suzaku thought.
"Oi, Suzaku, let's do another run. I want to see how well the upgrades I install work with the system," Lloyd called.
"Yes, sir," Suzaku called back and stood up before jogging over to where the Lancelot was stationed.
. . .
As class ended for the day, Kallen Stadtfeld gathered her stuff together, her thoughts on her conversation with Lelouch Lamperouge the day before and his mention of Shinjuku. She frowned to herself, wondering just how Lelouch knew about Shinjuku. Was it possible that he was the mysterious voice that had gotten her and her friends out of that skirmish alive? And could he know something about the ceasefire that Clovis called?
"Do you think you can spare a minute? I need to talk to you," a calm voice said.
Kallen glanced up at the violet-eyed Britannian that was standing by her, her face carefully impassive. "Sure. I was wondering when you were gonna ask," she said and stood up, keeping up the act of a sickly, feeble girl before the two of them left the room. A few of the girls muttered about how lucky Kallen was but she ignored them.
They walked out of the room and headed toward the Student Council Clubhouse. Kallen looked at it with surprise in her blue eyes. "I didn't even know this place existed," she said as Lelouch held the door open for her and then stepped into the clubhouse behind her.
"It's the clubhouse for the student council," Lelouch said and gestured to the ballroom they had just entered. "They built this ballroom for various special occasions."
"And we won't be disturbed here?" Kallen asked, turning to face Lelouch.
"Yes," Lelouch said.
He was proven wrong a moment later when a voice called out. "Here it is! I found it! Look! This is it, right?" An orange-haired girl then stood up, holding up something that Lelouch was too far away to see.
"What a relief that you found our lab data," a dark-green haired girl said softly as she also stood up.
"Good, my ass is killing me," a blue haired boy huffed, also getting to her feet.
The door opened again and a tall blonde walked in, pushing a cart filled with food. "Were you able to find it? I finished up on my end. Shall we dig in?" she said.
The blonde then turned to a confused Lelouch and Kallen.
"Um, what's all this?" Lelouch added.
"Lelouch, don't you know? I thought that's why you brought her," the blonde said, nodding to Kallen. "We're inducting Kallen into the student council. It was my grandfather's idea, actually."
"The principal's?"
"He thought it best, with her poor health, she'd have a harder time with regular club activities. Oh, I'm Milly, the president of the council. Pleasure to meet you," the blonde, Milly, said.
"Oh, thank you, the pleasure's all mind," Kallen said.
The blue-haired boy—Rivalz—the orange-haired girl—Shirley—and the dark-green haired girl—Nina—then introduced themselves as well before the door slide open and Kallen watched, with some sympathy, as a brown-haired girl in a wheelchair came into the room, holding a tray of food. "Shirley, I'm sorry, but do you think you can set these on the table for me?" she asked.
"Oh sure, thanks Nunna," Shirley said and picked up the platter of food before placing it on the table.
"Nunnally, what are you doing here?" Lelouch asked as he moved to the girl, Nunnally's, side.
"That's Nunnally, Lelouch's sister," Milly explained.
"I'm still in the middle school group, so I can't be on the council yet," Nunnally said.
"That's alright. You're an honorary member in our book," Rivalz said.
"Hello there. It's a pleasure to meet you, Kallen," Nunnally said.
"Thank you, you as well," Kallen said. She seems pretty nice, for a Britannian, she thought.
The induction of Kallen into the student council probably would have been better had it not been for Rivalz and a bottle of champagne that ended up drenching Kallen. It took all of Kallen's self-control to not punch both Lelouch and Rivalz in the face.
Later, as she was taking a shower, she muttered to herself, "This is why I hate Britannians." She sighed as she let the warm water wash away the champagne from her hair just as a knock sounded on the door.
"It's Lelouch. I've brought you a change of clothes," Lelouch called from outside.
"You can come in. I've drawn the curtain already," Kallen called back.
The door opened and Kallen saw Lelouch's shadow as he made his way into the bathroom. "Sorry about all this. I know they can be a little over the top," the Britannian said.
"That's okay. Nothing wrong with cutting loose every once in a while, y'know?"
Lelouch nodded. "These are some of my clothes, by the way. Hope that's okay," he said.
"That's fine. That was fast. You went all the way to the boy's dorm?" Kallen asked.
She saw Lelouch move, probably to put the clothes down. "Actually, I live here," he explained. "It'd be pretty hard for my sister to live in the dorms so the principal lets us stay here as a favor."
"I see…" Kallen could actually understand that. It would be hard for Nunnally to get around in a wheelchair. It was rather kind of the principal to let them stay where it would be easier for Nunnally to get around. She may not like Britannians but she had to admit that there were some good ones out there, not many that she's met so far but some.
"Anyway, I'll leave you now," Lelouch said sand started toward the door.
Kallen had to act quickly if she was going to get an answer to her question. "Hey, can you get that pouch for me?" she asked.
"Um, okay, I guess," Lelouch said and handed the pouch to her past the curtain. She grabbed it and then his arm.
"Was there something you needed?" Lelouch asked, sounding confused.
"Were you that voice in Shinjuku?" Kallen demanded.
"I don't know what you're talking about."
Kallen unsheathed the small knife in her pouch, letting it hover above Lelouch's wrist. "Don't play dumb with me," she snapped.
Just then, the phone rang.
"I should get that," Lelouch said, reaching for the phone and pressing it against his ear. "Yes? Oh, yeah, she's here. It's for you." He held out the receiver to Kallen.
Frowning, she took it and pressed it against her ear. "Hello?" she said.
"Glad you're still alive, Q1," that familiar voice sounded over the phone.
Was I wrong? Kallen thought, glancing at Lelouch who was simply gazing the other way.
"1600, the day after tomorrow. The observation deck at the old Tokyo Tower. Come alone," the voice said.
"Who are you? How did you arrange that cease fire order?" Kallen demanded. There was a click that prompted her to exclaim, "Hey, don't hang up!" but it was too late.
"Did you say cease fire? Sounds like you keep dangerous company," Lelouch mused, glancing at her.
"Uh, um, that was…" Kallen trailed off, unsure of how to explain the matter as she handed the phone back to Lelouch, accidentally pulling the curtain back as she did so.
"You're talking about a game, aren't you? Something online?"
"Yeah, you got me 'cause, y'know, I've been shut in my house for so long," Kallen agreed quickly, mentally thanking Lelouch for giving her the perfect excuse.
"That's what I was warning you about when I told you not to bring up Shinjuku before. Seriously, some guys will try to show you footage of what happened that day and it's pretty grim." Lelouch then raised an eyebrow, an amused smirk on his face. "By the way, you know I can see you, right?"
"Gah!" Kallen quickly pulled the curtain to hide her naked form, blushing in embarrassment. Just great. He better not be staring, she thought.
. . .
Suzaku was busy familiarizing himself with the systems of the Lancelot, at least that was what Lloyd and Cecile thought he was doing but Suzaku knew the systems so well that he didn't need to. He was really spending his time thinking about how to respond to Lelouch's request this time around. He had an idea that he felt could work but it would be difficult to accomplish. But it could help Lelouch and might give him an excuse for knowing some things that he wouldn't otherwise know.
"Suzaku, could you come down? There are some men here to speak to you," Cecile's voice echoed over the headset.
"On my way, Cecile," Suzaku replied before powering down the Lancelot and removing the activation key. Once he was back on the ground, he walked over to join Cecile and Lloyd, the latter of whom looked irritated. In front of them were Jeremiah Gottwald, Kewell Soresi, and Villetta Nu, all of them with impassive expressions.
"Um, is something the matter?" Suzaku asked to keep up appearances.
"Suzaku Kururugi?" Gottwald asked.
"Yes, sir," Suzaku said.
"You are under arrest for the murder of Prince Clovis la Britannia," Gottwald declared.
. . .
"The council doesn't require much actual work, I guess," Lelouch said as he led Kallen, who had finished taking a shower and gotten changed, back toward the conference room. "Beyond occasional paperwork, we'll sometimes plan school events."
Kallen looked thoughtful. "So like that cultural festival?" she asked.
"Yep, like that, along with the cross-dressers' ball, the absolute silence party, and swim suit day."
"What's up with that?"
Lelouch looked exasperated. "Blame our She-Devil President. You'll be spending a lot of time with her. Hope you're ready," he said and led the way into the conference room.
"Lelouch, it's awful," Nunnally said, turning her head toward Lelouch as everyone gathered in front of the small television.
"What is?" Lelouch asked, moving to his sister's side.
"Prince Clovis has been found dead," Milly explained.
"They're saying he was killed," Rivalz said.
It took them this long to broadcast it? Lelouch thought while Kallen looked shocked.
"Prince Clovis has been taken from us," Jeremiah Gottwald, the captain of the Purist Faction in Area 11, stated on the television screen that the student council were watching. "He fought for peace and justice against all of the Elevens. He died a martyr. We must all bury our sorrow and carry on his will." The broadcast was interrupted and then another voice spoke.
"We interrupt the broadcast with breaking news. The man suspected of murdering Prince Clovis la Britannia has been captured. According to this report, the suspect is an honorary Britannian. Private Suzaku Kururugi, a former Eleven and Honorary Britannian. I repeat, Suzaku Kururugi has been arrested for murder."
Lelouch froze, shock coursing through his veins at the mention of his oldest friend's name. He's alive but he's being blamed for Clovis's murder? Lelouch thought and then narrowed his eyes. Jeremiah Gottwald is using Suzaku as a scapegoat. I won't let that happen.
He decided that now was the time to begin his fight against Britannia.
And he knew exactly where he was going to start.
. . .
A/n what do you think?
Blaze: and that was Stage 02
Yami: you have some more warnings to add, don't you?
Blaze: not so much warnings as information. One is a note while the other is a disclaimer that I should have included in the first chapter.
Suzaku: I'll do the disclaimer. The idea for my Geass in this story is not Blaze's. She borrowed it (with permission) from its original creator, Shimmering-Sky.
Lelouch: I'll do the Note then
Bakura: yes!
Blaze: if Lelouch does the Note, you have to end the chapter
Bakura: give me that damn Note (snatches paper from Lelouch) ahem, Blaze would like to inform you that the events of the short spinoff series Akito the Exiled as well as the events of the mangas and the games will not be included in this story. Therefore, characters like Wyvern Squadron, Julius Kingsley (SPOILER! What happens to Lelouch in canon between R1 and R2 will go very differently in this story. END SPOILER), Rai, Alice, Oz, and all the other characters will not be included. This is done primarily because she doesn't want to completely fuck up those characters.
Blaze: that wasn't in the note
Bakura: it's a genuine concern though
Blaze: (thinks about it for a moment) eh, true
Euphemia: you did not have to be so vulgar about it, though
Bakura: get used to it, Princess (walks off)
Suzaku: where are you going now?
Bakura: (pulls out bow and quiver of acid-tipped arrows) oh Charles!
Charles: (eyes Bakura and takes off running)
Bakura: (grins and chases after Charles)
Lelouch: wait! I want to join you! Blaze will update, hopefully, sometime next week but she makes no promises but, as always, reviews are much appreciated. Therefore (activates Geass) I, Lelouch vi Britannia, command you to review! (Accepts the flaming machete Blaze handed him and takes off after Bakura)
Suzaku: (turns to Blaze) you actually parted with your flaming machete?
Blaze: (red ring around her irises fades away) hmm? Wait, where's my damn flaming machete?
Suzaku: Lelouch has it
Blaze: damn it! I thought I was immune to his Geass power (stalks off grumbling to herself)
Suzaku: Note to self: stop Lelouch from using his Geass on the new reviewers next chapter. Well, I guess we'll see you all in the next stage. Hope you enjoyed this one and thank you for reading.
