An early update cause I had it ready.
Some people have been asking when Lulu's gonna get around to improiving the world's tech. He's gonna need credentials for that, and he needs to find a way to power it that doesn't relyon Sakuradite, which wile plentiful in HIS world, is probably nonexistent here.
So for the most part, he'll be dividing his time between hunting Daimon, looking for 'her', and trying to discover how to run 'his' tech off the equivalent of AA bateries.
Enjoy.
Outer Rider Concerto.
Inside the dressing room, one of the violinists that was to perform that evening was busy preparing himself, straightening his tie before the mirror, his back to his instrument, which rested within its open case.
So enamored was the musician with his task, that he failed to notice a small seed floating into the room through the door he'd left open in order to hear the call to go on stage. The seed, unnoticed by the man, drifted over to the violin, taking care to avoid being spotted in the mirror, slowly burying itself into the instrument, leaving no trace of it's presence in the polished wood.
"Hm?" violinist wondered, turning round slowly, having sworn he heard something behind him, only to sigh, shrugging offhandedly before turning back to his preparations, passing the whole thing off as a case of nerves.
After all, even pro musicians felt a little stage fright on the night of a big performance.
Concert hall...
"Hi." Michiru greeted, the aquamarine beauty smiling at her escort as Lelouch approached her in the foyer "You're looking pretty sharp tonight."
"Thank you." Lelouch offered, taking in the young woman's fetching yellow ball gown with an approving smile "You look radiant yourself, though Haruka-san will probably murder me for saying so."
"Haruka IS rather overprotective of me." Michiru chuckled, smiling at how jealous her lover could be at times, even going so far as to physically HURT anyone that tried to flirt with her. On the one hand it was flattering to know she was loved so much, but on the other, it sometimes made Michiru feel smothered, ESPECIALLY since Haruka saw now qualms in flirting with everything with a pretty face.
"I can see why." Lelouch admitted, smiling at his escort for the evening "Beauty and Talent in one pretty little package, you're like a work of art yourself, Michiru-san."
"Flatterer." Michiru smiled, flushing slightly at the compliment as she took the elder teen's arm in hers. She may be in a relationship with Haruka, but that didn't mean she couldn't accept a compliment from a man, and Lelouch certainly WAS a splendid example of the species.
'Black hair like silk, regal features, deep, emotional purple eyes.' She marveled, taking in the teen's appearance with approval 'He must be descended from some form of nobility, it shows in the way he carries himself.'
The two presented their tickets to the usher, who directed them to a private booth, which Michiru had obtained through her contacts with the theatre. Settling into the comfortable, and private balcony seats, the pair found themselves gazing down at the sea of people that had gathered to see the recital. "Quite the crowd." Lelouch noted, scanning the masses with a critical eye "It's good to see such appreciation for the arts."
"Do you enjoy classical music, Lamperouge-san?" Michiru asked, smiling at the elder teen inquisitively "That's a rarity in today's age."
"Please, call me Lelouch." The former Emperor offered, smiling encouragingly at the aquamarine beauty "And I DO enjoy classical music, in particular the piano. I find Mozart's Moonlight Sonata to be particularly moving."
"I love that song." Michiru admitted with a smile, a distant look on her face "I first heard it when I was a girl, it seemed so…beautiful, and yet so transient."
"Almost a Fantasy…" Lelouch agreed, glad to have someone to talk to that shared his tastes. Admittedly, he hadn't played the piano since childhood, there'd been hardly any chance once he'd been exiled with Nunnally, and when he came to Ashford, he'd only played whenever there was no-one around to hear, and then it was only to keep his skills up or to pass the time. 'Then again, the Shinkiro's system was rather like playing a piano.' He noted, smiling at the memory of his personal Knightmare.
"I see Usagi-chan and her friends made it." Michiru noted, peering down at the seats below through a pair of binoculars, which had been graciously provided by the auditorium staff "I assume the handsome fellow with her is her boyfriend?"
"Chiba Mamoru." Lelouch relayed, peering through his own set to espy the Senshi and Tuxedo Kamen, in their civilian forms of course, sitting below, Makoto, Rei and Minako frowning at Usagi, who was hugging Mamoru's arm, while Ami innocently read a book, waiting for the music to start.
"It's so nice to be young." Michiru noted, smiling at how innocent and happy the pigtailed blonde was, without a care in the world.
"You really shouldn't talk like that, Michiru-san." Lelouch countered, his tone teasing as he eyed the young woman coyly "You'll wind up sounding like an old woman, which wouldn't suit your looks at all."
"Flatterer." Michiru teased, smiling at the elder teen, unable to help the guilty thrill that passed through her at the compliment, only to resume her seat as the lights dimmed, an applause starting up as the curtain rose to reveal the first performance, a male violinist and a female pianist.
The violinist bowed to the crowd, before taking a deep breath before beginning his song, Lelouch's eyes closing as the opening strings from Boccherini's 'Minuet from String' washed over him, the former Emperor losing himself in the beautiful soulful music that was slowly filling the hall.
It truly was a beautiful piece, one that anyone who listened to classical music, even in passing, could appreciate. It had a light, uplifting feel that could stir up all sorts of positive emotions.
'Euphemia loved this piece…' Lelouch recalled, his thoughts turning to his pink-haired Half-sibling, one of the kindest, gentlest women he'd ever had the fortune to meet 'Just hearing it again reminds me of how she used to practice for hours on end.'
Euphemia's death was one of the few that Lelouch well and truly regretted, mainly because it was entirely HIS fault. He couldn't blame C.C, she'd WARNED him that overuse of his Geass would cause it to run rampant, and yet he'd neglected to take proper precautions, refusing to believe that such a thing would happen to him, despite C.C having more experience with her contractors' abilities than anyone else, Mao being a prime example of how badly things could turn out.
'I wonder if Euphemia was part of C's world too?' he wondered idly, unable to recall much of anything of the time he'd spent as part of the collective, subconscious mind of mankind 'It would have been nice to see her again…to hear her voice…'
He was snapped out of his thoughts by a high-pitched and screeching, his eyes snapping open as he clapped his hands over his ears, teeth clenching from the agony.
'And I thought Usagi's playing was bad!' he swore, grimacing as he peered at the stage, wondering what on earth the violinist was thinking, only to scowl as he realized that while the violin was the source of the noised, the Violinist wasn't the one playing the strings.
On stage...
The violinist couldn't understand what was happening, one minute he'd been playing beautifully, the next his violin, which he'd tended to before coming on stage, started playing off-key. He'd stopped for a moment to see what was going on, but to his shock, the noise continued despite his not touching the strings.
Unable to bear the god-awful noise any longer, he'd released his grip on the instrument, clapping his hands over his ears. But rather than dropping to the floor, his violin had risen into the air, a bright light erupting from it, along with a sinister, yet at the same time operatic laughter that sounded like a diva testing her voice.
As the crowd looked on in horrified wonder, the violin's shape began to contort in time to the voice, changing into a female humanoid in a one piece outfit styled after a violin. In it's hand rested a violin bow, which it used to stroke the strings adorning the front of it's body.
"OCTAVE-!" it shrilled, unleashing a horrible, high-pitched shriek in time with the god-awful playing, the sound waves emanating from her mouth slamming into the audience, knocking almost the entire auditorium unconscious, including her former master.
Laughing operatically as she hovered over the unconscious violinist, Octave opened up her violin-style one-piece, revealing the trademark black-star tattoo over her naval "OCTAVE-!" she shrieked, sending the black beam of energy at the man, extracting his Pure Heart Crystal without much fuss, a cold smirk on her face as she turned to make her escape.
In the booth...
'Damn…' Lelouch muttered, the teen slumping against the balcony, his eyelids heavy as he struggled to remain awake 'And I thought Tamaki had a bad singing voice…'
"Lelouch-san?" Michiru called out, the young woman's concerned features hovering over his own as she checked him over, Lelouch noting with some interest that she didn't seem to be affected by the noise at all "Stay here! I'm going to get help!"
"Michiru-san…" he grunted, managing to lift one arm in an attempt to waylay her, as he REALLY didn't need a trip to the hospital leading to unwanted questions, only for the Michiru to race off before he could stop her "Dammit…of all the times…!"
"You look like you're having fun." A voice called out, Lelouch turning his head sluggishly to see C3 hovering up over the balcony, the golden Caucasus Zecter buzzing like sweet music to is ears "Were you planning to take her to dinner next?"
"Jealousy ill suits you." Lelouch shot back sluggishly, managing a weak smirk as the Zecter huffed at being caught out "In any case, I don't think there's much I can do, my whole body feels like lead."
"It wasn't just a sound wave that hit you." C3 pointed out "It was a magical attack, most normal humans have no immunity against them. Quite frankly I'm surprised you're still conscious."
"I've heard worse." Lelouch muttered, snorting wryly at the memory of Rivalz singing in the men's shower after gym class. Poor guy couldn't hold a tune to save his life "Still doesn't do me any good if I can barely MOVE."
"Let Me worry about that." C3 assured him, the golden Zecter buzzing down to his wrist, pressing the "STANDBY!" button with her horn before attaching herself to the brace with a cry of "HENSHIN!"
Sure enough, the hexagonal plates spread from the brace to cover Lelouch's limp frame, the teen's eyes blinking open as the transformation finished, leaving him in his Masked Form.
"I told you before that Masked Form focuses more on Defense than Offense." C3 reminded the teen, her tone bemused "That includes a built-in incubation system that heals any damage to the Rider's body the longer he remains in Masked Mode."
"Clever…" Caucasus noted, getting to his feet and examining his hands, noting with approval that the leaden feeling was slowly fading away, only to look up as the sound of shattering glass sounded from outside "Looks like the Senshi just bumped into trouble."
"When don't they?" C3 noted, her tone amused even as Caucasus turned around and raced out of the booth, intent on getting a little payback on this newest Daimon.
With the Senshi...
"HOLD IT!" Sailor Moon called out, the gathered Senshi standing before the Daimon with their hands on their hips "You just wrecked my important Romantic Night!" she proclaimed angrily the group going through their respective poses as they glared at the Daimon "In the name of the Moon, We shall Punish You!"
Octave merely laughed operatically, before bringing her bow up to stroke the strings that made up the front of her suit "OCTAVE-!" she shrieked, sending a wall of sound at the Senshi, who froze in their tracks, unable to do anything but stare ahead.
"I…I can't move…!" Mars exclaimed, the group dropping limply to the floor as Octave's assault halted, the Daimon laughing operatically as it realized the perfect chance it had been given to finish off it's Masters' enemy.
Loosing another operatic cry, like a diva testing her voice, the Daimon began to play her strings, the tempo rising and falling rapidly as the sound waves from her mouth intensified, the rings converging into a single, focused beam of ultra-sound that actually drilled into the pavement.
Raising her head, causing the beam to travel upwards, the Daimon continued to scream, her eyes locked on the paralyzed Senshi, who could do little but look on in horror as the beam drew rapidly closer, carving up the pavement in it's path.
"OW~!" Octave cried, her scream cutting off scant inches before reaching Sailor Moon, the Daimon dropping her bow as she held her wounded hand in the air, a single red rose embedding itself in the ground next to her.
"Tuxedo Kamen-sama!" Sailor Moon exclaimed, looking up in relief to see her beloved perched atop a nearby streetlight.
"A serenade suits such a beautiful moonlit night." The Guardian of the Sailor Senshi called out, his tone composed and regal as always "Anything that would disrupt such harmony shall be stopped!"
"OCTAVE~!" the Daimon shrieked, picking up it's bow and launching a burst of sound at the tuxedo wearing warrior, who easily avoided it by leaping from his perch, the Daimon swiftly following his example to avoid being hit by Jupiter's Sparkling Wide Pressure, which slammed into the doors of the Auditorium instead, causing a small explosion that knocked down a section of wall.
"Be careful!" Mercury exclaimed, looking at her shocked comrade in alarm "There are still people in the concert hall!"
Octave, who knew that all to well, landed before the Senshi and smirked, tilting her head back while gesturing for them to try their luck with her bow, the stolen Heart Crystal held in her free hand.
"Argh! It's got a twisted personality!" Moon exclaimed, stamping her foot in annoyance, only to yelp as Octave launched another shock wave attack at them, forcing them to scatter.
"DEEP SUBMERGE!" a Voice called out, the Daimon looking up just in time to see a giant ball of water in the shape of a planet smash into her, sending her flying back into the lobby of the Concert hall.
"Gracefully guided by the new Era:" A familiar, at least to the two blonde senshi, called out, her Aquamarine hair shining in the light as she stood atop a nearby statue "Sailor Neptune!"
"Neptune?" Tuxedo Kamen called out, the reincarnated Prince of Earth looking up at the elder Senshi in surprise, even as the rest of the Senshi eyed her with looks that were equal parts stunned and wary. They'd been told how the two new Senshi acted the last time by Minako, but were prepared to give them the benefit of the doubt for now "Why are you here? Did you come to help us? Where's Uranus?"
"Uranus is occupied elsewhere." Neptune replied calmly, her arms crossed before her as she gazed down at the group "And I ask that you don't look too far into this, my objective here is to search for the Talismans, that's all."
"OCTAVE~!" the Daimon called out suddenly, the group looking round in alarm to see the Violin monster had gotten o it's feet, and didn't look too pleased at being ambushed earlier, sending a focused burst of ultra-sound at the rogue Senshi.
"Look out!" Sailor Moon cried, looking on in alarm as the beam raced towards the startled Sailor Neptune, who hadn't been expecting the Daimon to SURVIVE the attack, only to blink as the elder senshi disappeared before the Attack could hit her, followed almost simultaneously by Octave being knocked ass over teakettle across the ground, away from the doors of the concert hall "Eh? What just happened?"
"CLOCK OVER!" a voice cried out, the Senshi whipping round, only to gape at the sight of Caucasus standing behind them, an equally stunned Neptune held in his arms bridal style.
With Caucasus...
"That was too close." Caucasus muttered, the Golden Rider glaring at the downed Daimon, having Cast Off his Masked Form's armor when he saw it launching it's attack, activating the Clock Up feature almost immediately afterwards, racing off to grab Neptune out of the way of the attack, giving Octave a passing kick to the midriff in passing.
"Y-You?" Neptune stammered, looking up at the Golden Rider in alarm, both stunned and confused at what had just happened.
"You okay?" Caucasus asked, looking down at the stunned Aquamarine Senshi in his arms, his tone laced with concern "You're not hurt are you?"
"N-No…" Neptune countered, caught off guard by the sudden, unexpected attack, and her even more unexpected rescuer "T-Thank you…you can put me down now."
"If you insist." Caucasus offered, setting the rogue Senshi down carefully leg first, allowing her to step away from him "Try to be more careful next time." he advised, stepping away from the Senshi and towards the downed Daimon "Always make sure the enemy is defeated before stopping to strike up a conversation."
"Why?" Neptune asked, still shaken by the experience, looking at the Kamen Rider with understandable confusion "Why did you save me?" she elaborated, which wasn't an odd question if you really thought about it. The last time she and Uranus had faced the Rider, he'd beaten them literally half to death, leaving them to drag themselves out of the trench before the authorities could show up to investigate the sound of gunfire and explosions "I thought we were enemies?"
"We're not enemies." Caucasus countered, his back to the Senshi as he continued to walk towards the downed Daimon "That being said we aren't allies either, we might have a similar objective, but your way of doing things isn't all that different from the Death Busters."
Neptune flinched, looking like she'd been slapped in the face as she lowered her gaze, conflicting emotions visible in her eyes.
"That being said…" Caucasus called out, snapping the Senshi out of her thoughts "I couldn't live with myself if I allowed a woman to come to harm." He looked at her over his shoulder, and for some reason, she felt as if he were smiling at her "Besides, your partner would be upset if anything happened to you, right?"
Neptune blinked, feeling a strange heat rise up in her stomach at the Riders words, only to snap out of it as Octave got to it's feet, the Villainous Violin's body cracked in several places from where Caucasus' armor had slammed into it. "OCTAVE-!" it screeched, scraping it's bow across the damaged strings, intent on punishing the Rider for his transgressions, only for Caucasus to roll out of the way, rising to his knees with a growl.
"Still a little sluggish." The Rider swore, getting to his feet with a grimace "Still better than I was earlier though."
Getting to his feet, the Rider glared at the Daimon as it launched another attack at him, only to calmly slap the side of his belt, disappearing from view once more with a cry of "CLOCK UP!"
With the Senshi...
"How does he keep doing that?" Mercury wondered, her visor out as she tried to track the Riders movements with her Mercury computer, the rest of the Senshi looking on in amazement as Octave was suddenly battered around as if she'd been stuck in a dry-cleaner, the Daimon's cries of pain interrupted by a sickening cracking noise "He isn't teleporting, there's no magical signature!"
"How can he be doing all that without magic?" Jupiter countered, looking on in awe as Octave was smashed face first into the ground, only to be kicked into the air almost in the same instant by whatever was attacking her.
The Daimon, who by now had several cracks adorning her once pristine wooden body, crashed into the ground with a wail, just as Caucasus reappeared with a cry of "CLOCK OVER!"
"Ah…" the Rider sighed, rotating his shoulders as if too loosen up "That's better, nothing like a little high-octane adrenalin to kick-start the body." He glanced over his shoulder at the Daimon, which was struggling back to it's feet "Stubborn one aren't you?" he muttered, sounding torn between annoyance and boredom as he turned to face Sailor Moon "What do you say we give her a final curtain call?"
"A what?" the blonde Senshi wondered, blinking in confusion, only to yelp as Mars smacked her loved fist into her leader's head "OW!"
"BAKA!" the Senshi of Fire snapped, looking embarrassed at her 'fearless leader's lack of advanced vocabulary "He's saying he wants you to finish it off!"
"I was thinking of finishing it off together actually." Caucasus admitted, earning looks of shock from the Senshi, even as he turned to Neptune, who'd been standing off to the side, looking at the exchange in confusion "Care to make it a Trio, Neptune?"
The Aquamarine senshi blinked, looking at the Rider uncertainly, only to smile, nodding her head as she raised her hands above her head, summoning a sphere of water "DEEP SUBMERGE!"
"MOON SPIRAL…!" Sailor Moon called out, twirling the Spiral Heart Rod before striking a pose "HEART ATTACK!"
"OCTAVE!" the Daimon yelled, looking on in alarm as it tried to stagger out of the path, only to freeze as a cry of "CLOCK OVER!" sounded behind it.
"RIDER BEAT!" the Caucasus Zecter declared, the Golden Rider's horns charged with electricity as he delivered a punishing snap kick to the Daimon's back, sending it flying straight into the combined attacks of the Senshi.
"LOVELY!" it screamed in it's operatic voice, it's form contorting painfully, only to revert to it's original form, a battered Violin with it's strings snapped landing on the ground before them, the Daimon Seed expelled from it's body releasing a fearful wail as it died, the heart crystal hovering in the air above it, only to drift towards Caucasus' outstretched palm.
"Gotcha." Caucasus muttered, only to look up as Neptune stepped forwards, the rogue Senshi looking uncertain but determined "It doesn't appear to have a Talisman." He informed her, holding it out to her as he spoke "You can check for yourself if you don't believe me."
Neptune blinked, clearly surprised by the offer, only to smile, shaking her head as she stepped away from the crystal, much to the surprise of the other Senshi. "Please return the crystal, the heart of an artist such as this is very fragile."
"What's with the change of heart?" Caucasus asked, his tone intrigued as he eyed the rogue senshi through his visor "I thought you and your partner would do whatever it takes to find the Talismans."
"Consider it a thank you for earlier." Neptune replied, smiling at the Rider as she turned around to walk away "Take care, Kamen Rider-san."
So saying, she leapt into the air, heedless of the other Senshi's cries for her to wait.
Later...
"Well it looks like everyone made it out okay." Lelouch noted, the former emperor leaning on a bridge rail as he watched the girls demand Mamoru, treat them to dinner.
"I'm sorry I left you there, Lamperouge-san." Michiru offered, looking concerned, the two of them having met up afterwards "Are you sure you're feeling alright?"
"I'm fine." Lelouch assured her "I'm just sorry we couldn't see the rest of the concert." He smiled at her encouragingly "maybe we can get together again sometime?"
"I'd like that." Michiru admitted, smiling at the older teen as they turned to smile at the scene below, as an enraged Usagi tried to pry her friends off her boyfriend for mooching.
And we'll leave off there.
C.C: Okay, what's with the little thing at the end there?
Kyugan: What?
C.C: They wee flirting, why?
Kyugan: Why not?
C.C: Michiru's a lesbian, Haruka too.
Kyugan: Lelouch is just that good.
Lelouch: Good at what?
Kyugan: See, he doesn't even know it!
C.C: You're an idiot.