Well, this chapter took a while to finish. I actually postponed it, to make up a few things in it. I've reached the conclusion that it would probably be best to start adding more characters after VII's story. As for Suzaku and Ultra Lelouch, i have plans for them :D. Don't worry guys neither of them will steal Lelouch's girls from him(From the hyper dimension at least), hope that reassures you. Anyway, let's get on with the story!
Chapter 37: Anger and its two faces
The CPUs were running for the city. When they arrived they could see the two members of the Seven Sages rampaging.
"Take that! I'll crush everything!" Arfoire destroyed everything that got in her sight.
"Well done, dear friend! I'll have to try even harder to keep up with you!" Encouraged her the robot next to her, as he was destroying stuff as well.
"Uuugggh." Arfoire leveled a small building next to her.
"Go, go! Ahh, doesn't it feel good to sweat in the company of friends?!" Yelled the giant robot, as Arfoire stopped in her tracks.
"Oh? Is something the matter, my dear friend Arfoire? You've stopped destroying." Copy-Paste was confused.
Arfoire had anger and irritation clearly written on her face.
"Because of you, you fool! Can't you stifle that disgusting new speech pattern you were given?!" Yelled Arfoire.
"Hahaha! I feel born anew! To think destroying things could be so refreshing, so… invigorating!" Replied the robot.
"Ahh, I'm so elated that I was given the opportunity to be born into the beautiful world of Gamindustri!" Exclaimed Copy-Paste, quite loudly.
"Dammit… it's that fool's fault…" Groaned Arfoire, cursing at Annonnydeath's tinkering.
"Like hell I'd be fine with this! He's become insufferable for an entirely different reason now!" complained Arfoire to no one in particular.
"Bwahaha! What's wrong, my treasured ally? Are you holding in some doom and gloom? Let it out!" continued to yell Copy-Paste. "Cast those negative emotions into something useful, like destroying! Come on, let's wreak havoc together!"
"Shut up! Shut up for all eternity!" Growled Arfoire.
The party of CPUs finally reached them.
"Whoa. This is quite a funky little situation." Said Neptune.
"They destroyed the city while putting on a nice comedy routine. In a way, that's very skilled." Remarked Blanc.
"I never imagined my city would fall under such absurd circumstances…" Vert was angry.
"Ah. They've arrived. Dammit, I think I actually felt relieved to see them. Better than being alone with this one." Arfoire mumbled to herself.
"Why, it's the little CPUs! Long time, no see, buddies!" Greeted them Copy-Paste, noticing two new faces among them.
"Oh! I believe I see new friends! That's wonderful! Friends should be treasured above all treasures!" Exclaimed the robot, causing Lelouch to get confused at the situation.
"Uh, didn't we blow this guy up? Not just that, but wasn't his personality a bit different before?" Asked Noire, who was also confused.
"I can experience the joy of facing you CPUs again, along with the excitement of global destruction!" Said happily the robot. "Ahhh, life is such a miracle!"
"Hoooray, life…!" Plutia was playing along, clapping to the robot.
"I told you to shut up! And don't you dare patronize him! *Pant, pant*" Arfoire yelled, having reached her limit.
"Ahem. We meet again, CPUs. I've been waiting for a chance to fight you all once more…!" Arfoire tried to do a proper introduction.
"Uh, about that, … I get that you wanna be taken seriously and all, but aren't you forcing it a bit?" Asked Neptune.
"Yes. Even I can tell it's a big waste of effort…" Added Nepgear.
"S-Silence! That is none of your concern!" Yelled Arfoire, angered at their remarks.
"Amazing, pal! You really know how to start things off with some cool and villainous dialogue!" Cheered for her Copy-Paste. "All right! I'll pull out my trump card, as well!"
"Shut up! Shut up! SHUT UP!" Arfoire made him quiet down.
She continued on with her efforts to make things into a proper conversation between enemies before a battle, while Lelouch stood on the side, feeling so disappointed that he might've attempted to kill himself on the spot.
"These are members of The Seven Sages? Hmph, what a joke." He sneered at them.
He gained the crowd's attention.
"I mean, you were made out to be a serious criminal organization, and yet here I stand, before two imbeciles who are causing chaos just because they feel like it. I'm really thinking over leaving this stupid fight." Lelouch continued his speech with an unamused expression.
"Come now, friend! You should learn to be more cheerful, you get to fight with your friends to your heart's content, and there's nothing better than that!" Said Copy-Paste.
"Yeeeah, this is so much fun…" Added Plutia.
"And who exactly do you think you are to talk like that, brat?!" Growled Arfoire.
"Neither of you are worthy of hearing my name." Lelouch said, looking intently at the woman.
For some reason he could feel a good portion of disgust in his body, when he was talking to the woman.
"I hope all of you are done with this farce." Vert said, as she transformed.
"You will pay for the damage you've caused to my city!" Stated Green Heart.
"Heeey, should we transform as well…?" Asked Plutia.
"May as well. No need to hold back. We'll end this in an instant!" Said Noire, as she and the rest of the girls transformed.
Lelouch decided that he didn't want to fight, as he was still somewhat worried over his self-control issues from the earlier fight with Plutia in her HDD.
Iris Heart noticed that he had no intention of fighting.
"My lovely Lulu, why won't you grace us with your participation in this fight?" Asked Plutia, leaning closer to him.
Lelouch quickly tried to pull back.
"Y-You're too close!" He said trying to back away.
This seemed to make things worse.
"Do you want me to get closer? Is that what you meant?" Smiled Iris Heart, as she was now almost touching him, enjoying the embarrassed look on the boy's face.
"G-Go and deal with your enemies over there! I-I'm not your concern!" Lelouch tried to protest, his face bright red.
"Oooh, if you make that face, I don't think I'll be able to hold myself back from tormenting you." Plutia licked her lips.
"What do you two idiots think you are doing!? This is a fight, not a date!" Yelled Arfoire, angry that the atmosphere was ruined once more.
"Plutie, that's enough. Let's return to the battle at hand, and leave Lelouch alone." Said Purple Heart.
"Tch. Don't worry, my sweetie. When I'm done with those two pests, you and I will get to enjoy ourselves." Iris Heart winked at him, as she went over to the others.
"That woman… I don't like her attitude…" Lelouch thought, as he could feel a chill run down his spine.
"You'll pay for your crimes in blood!" Vert charged at the two villains with her spear.
Copy-Paste tanked the hit, while Arfoire moved off to the side and threw an attack with her lance.
Her attack struck down Vert in her tracks, leaving her open for Copy-Paste to sledgehammer her.
Just as he was about to, Neptune rushed in.
"Vert, watch out!" She said, as she parried the robot with her sword.
"Oh, very nice save!" Encouraged the robot.
"Stop cheering for them, you idiot!" Yelled Arfoire, failing to realize that she was surrounded by the rest of the CPUs.
"Ahahaha!" Plutia laughed maniacally, as she hit her with a strong strike from her whip blade, sending Arfoire flying.
"MPBL Fire!" Nepgear shot an energy blast from her gun blade.
Arfoire managed to negate it, but found herself flanked by Blanc and Noire.
"We've got you now, bitch!" Yelled White Heart, as she swung her axe at her and hit her head on, while Noire slashed her with her longsword from behind.
Arfoire was sent to the ground a few feet to the side. Meanwhile Copy-Paste was receiving an onslaught by Neptune, Vert and Plutia.
Lelouch stood on the side and watched with a frown. He was seriously disappointed from their so called enemies. From what he had heard from the Histoire of this dimension they were quite the troublesome group. He could deal with both of them without having to transform.
"Graah!" Arfoire growled from receiving another hit from Noire and Blanc's combined attacks.
"Oh no! My dear friend Arfoire, I shall come to your aide!" Copy-Paste brushed off the other CPUs attacking him and went over to help his 'friend'.
Then a note struck inside Lelouch. Arfoire. That woman had the same name, as the woman who raised him and Celina, the woman who he considered a mother.
"How dare you…" He said under his breath.
"How dare you use that name in front of me!" He said through gritted teeth, the red aura appearing around him.
"All of you out of my way!" He said to the other CPUs, as he vanished and reappeared in front of Copy-Paste, delivering a kick which sent him flying.
"Oh, what made him snap now?" Neptune groaned.
"Great, as if Plutia's change of personality wasn't enough, now we have to deal with this guy's temper running loose." Complained Noire.
"Did you say something just now, Noire?" Asked Plutia with a dangerous smile.
"N-Nope!" replied Black Heart.
Lelouch was standing in front of Arfoire, who was looking at him with confusion and anger.
"Get up." He said with a cold expression.
"You?! How dare you look down on me!" Yelled Arfoire, as she charged at him with her lance.
Lelouch took out his sword from its sheath and activated the beam blade mode, cutting through Arfoire's weapon. The pieces flew off to the side, as Arfoire now stood unarmed before the boy.
He raised his sword to her neck.
"I'm giving you a choice. You will cease your rampaging and stop committing crimes, or you will die by my blade." He said with a serious expression, feeling some type of small will of good intention towards the woman before him.
"Ugh." Arfoire looked at him angrily, knowing full well that she was defeated.
"This is not over yet, my friend! Prepare yourself!" Said Copy-Paste, as he got back up, only to receive a killer glare from Lelouch, causing the robot to falter, as he felt something that machines rarely did, fear.
"My offer applies to both of you. I am willing to give you a second chance, you see." He said, his expression not loosening.
The girls were watching from the side. Neptune and Nepgear were happy that Lelouch hadn't gone straight to killing this time and was giving his enemy a chance. The others, of course, were puzzled by what was going on. Plutia, however, was somewhat displeased.
"No, this isn't like when we played earlier." Thought Iris Heart to herself in disappointment that the boy wasn't using his full power.
"I'm waiting for your answer. I don't have all day, you know." Lelouch said, thrusting his blade closer to Arfoire's neck.
Then it happened. An arrival that would shake up the situation and bring it to a whole new level.
"I finally found you." Came the voice of a young man, who appeared from nowhere.
He was looking at Arfoire and Copy-Paste with a displeased expression, but he frowned even more when he saw Lelouch holding them at swords length.
"Oh, crap, it's him! We got too caught up in this!" Said Arfoire realizing who the new arrival was.
"Oh, boy! I guess we are in for a real pummeling aren't we, my friend?" Asked Copy-Paste.
"Huh? Who's that?" the CPUs were shocked and confused to see the boy.
"I'd appreciate it if you lowered your weapon. I'll be taking things from here." Said the newly arrived boy to Lelouch.
This, of course, didn't exactly bring joy to Lelouch. He turned around to see who exactly had the guts to interrupt him.
The young man in front of him had curly brown hair and green eyes. He was dressed in a white and gold uniform and had two swords strapped on his back. He looked to be the same age as Lelouch.
"Sorry, I don't take orders from anyone." Replied Lelouch, as both clashed their gazes at each other.
"I'm going to say it only one more time. Back off." Said the boy, as one of his hands was slowly starting to reach for one of his swords.
"That was your last mistake." Said Lelouch, angry that he was interrupted.
He used his increased speed to catch the boy off guard and slashed at him. He was surprised when his opponent parried him with ease with one of his swords. Lelouch noticed that there was something strange about the sword. It was encased in a strange metal coating, which stood up to the energy beam of his own sword.
"What's your problem? Just go and find something else to do." Asked the brown haired young man, as both of them started to put more pressure into their attack.
"I could say the same thing to you." Replied Lelouch.
They exited the clash.
"This guy… He's no ordinary human…" both thought, as they tried to scale their opponent.
The CPUs were starting to grow weary from the confrontation. Both boys were emitting enough anger to make the air bitter to breathe.
"Hey, we must do something and stop those two." Said Noire.
"I agree. I do not know who that person is, but I believe it is for the best if we avoid a conflict right now." Said Neptune.
"Yes, if they fight now, they might cause more damage to the city than those two." Said Vert, looking at Arfoire and Copy-Paste.
Nepgear was really scared from the two boys, who were staring down each other, like two predators waiting for the first one to make a mistake.
Plutia was beaming for some reason. Her smile wouldn't leave her as she watched the two.
"Mmm… Oh, I just can't choose, which one's anger is more intoxicating to watch…" She was having some type of conflict with herself, when her sadistic smile returned.
"I'll simply have them both for myself." She grinned, causing Nepgear to shudder in fear.
The other three ignored her and were trying to think of a way to resolve the situation.
"We should get out of here, while we still can." Said Arfoire, as she looked at Copy-Paste who, strangely enough, nodded in silence.
"You're in my way. Stand aside." Said the brown haired boy, readying his sword.
"I'm really starting to get angry with your attitude." Replied Lelouch.
The two boys were done waiting, as they dashed again, clashing their swords once more, though this time the clash created a shockwave of wind. They then continued to exchange blows.
Arfoire and Copy-Paste used the chance and got away, while the two were fighting.
Neptune, along with Vert and Noire tried to break up the two, as they got in between them.
"Stop, that's enough!" Said Neptune, causing them to falter.
The newcomer looked around and noticed that his targets were gone.
"Damn it, I lost them thanks to you!" Cursed the boy, as he ran off in the direction that the two criminals had taken off into.
"Get back here! We're not done!" Lelouch said.
"I don't have the time to deal with you! I need to catch those two." Said the other boy, as he disappeared.
"Damn! Why is it, that always when I'm in the middle of something, someone decides to interrupt me?!" complained Lelouch, sheathing his blade, realizing that continuing things would be pointless.
He was angry at himself for not using his Geass and just make things go the way he wants them too.
"Aww, over already?" Iris Heart was disappointed.
Everyone turned back to normal.
"Lulu, what's wrong with you? You've been getting angry for quite some time now." Asked Neptune.
"Sorry, I just… seem to be not feeling so well." He apologized.
"I'll make tea, when we get back." Smiled Nepgear, relieved that Lelouch was no longer brimming with anger.
"Thanks." He smiled back.
"We lost those two idiots because of you and whoever that guy was." Said Noire.
"I guess it was alright, since I got to see something which normally only happens in books." Said Blanc, referring to the stand-off between Lelouch and the other boy.
"Well, in all honesty, I am glad that this is all over. I guess I owe you all for helping me." Smiled Vert.
"Yes, shower me in your gratitude." Joked Neptune.
"Why are you being so modest now?" asked Noire.
"It is basic etiquette to return kindness with equal kindness. I truly thank you." Said Vert.
"Hehehe… you're sooooo welcome…" Repliedd happily Plutia.
"Well that was anticlimactic. I thought you were going to start wailing about the rematch thing again." Blanc admitted.
"We will indeed have a rematch someday, though it will be without Lelouch being involved, but for now, I feel I must repay the debt I owe to you all first." Said Vert.
"Wow… Vert can look so gorgeous when she makes such a serious face." Said Nepgear.
Lelouch was really concerned about how this whole trip to another dimension was affecting him. He also felt bad about his lack of self-control. He bowed his head to all of the girls.
"I'm really sorry for acting like that in front of all of you." He said.
"Cheer up, no one's going to hold you blowing off some steam against ya. As long as I am not on the receiving end it's fine!" tried to reassure him Neptune with a joke.
"Well, considering the way you normally act, I guess it's natural for you to get angry so much. I mean, most of the time you are calm and collected, so one could guess how much you can take before the stress accumulates to a certain point that you can't take it anymore." Said Noire.
"Oooh, do you speak from experience, Noire?" Teased her Neptune.
"Thank you for being understanding with me." Lelouch smiled.
"Yeeeah, that's right… It's always better when someone smiles…" Said Plutia happily.
"Well, anyway, before I can repay my debt to all of you, I'll have to focus on my nation for a bit to fix the damages caused by the Seven Sages." Said Vert.
"I see you realized that you cannot defeat us with your current strength." Smirked Noire.
"I'm the type who prefers to be well-prepared for an assured victory." Calmly replied Vert.
"When next we fight, I'll have gained enough strength to beat you all with nothing than a toss of my hair." Smiled Vert.
"Talk is cheap." Replied cheerfully Blanc.
"Well, sounds to me like Vert's going to have her hands full for a while." Said Neptune.
"Goooodie! I'm so glad we all became friends…" added Plutia.
"This is sort of problematic… She's a bit too friendly with me…" Complained Nepgear.
"Yeah, I didn't know what to do, when you betrayed us out of the blue." Said Noire.
"Yeah, that was pretty bad Nep Jr. All that, after you said you loved me!" Neptune voiced her hurt feelings.
"Well, all's well that ends well, I guess." Said Lelouch.
"We're all heading back. Are you coming or not?" Smiled Blanc to Nepgear, as she and the others waved bye to Vert and were on their way.
"Things will not end like this. In the end, I shall hold victory in the palm of my hand!" Vert thought to herself.
After a few days, everything seemed to fly under the rug.
"So, you said some pretty cool stuff and all, but…" Neptune complained.
"Why do you come hang in Planeptune's Basilicom every day, Vert?" asked her Neptune.
"What other option do I have? Nepgear insists on living here, no matter what." Replied Vert with a weak smile.
"As her doting older sister, I'm simply granting her wish." She added, hugging Nepgear tightly.
"No, no… I'm already Neptune's little sister, so… Ooogh… Please don't squeeze me like this!" Nepgear tried to break free.
"I cannot grant that wish. I will not let you go for a single moment." Smiled Vert.
"Hey! If you can't let her go, then I'll have to get in on this hugging action!" retorted Neptune, as she too hugged Nepgear.
"Owww! Th-The pain… Please, it hurts, so stop… please…." Nepgear was desperately trying to break free.
From the side the other three girls were talking about something while Lelouch was looking after the kids.
He gave a quick glance towards Nepgear and let out a sigh.
"This routine is really becoming annoying." He said.
The babies seemed to enjoy Nepgear's suffering, as they all went to squeeze her as well.
"Urrgh… I can't breathe…" Nepgear was going to suffocate.
"Neppy Jr. is soooo popular… That's nice…" Said happily Plutia.
"Don't look so jealous. After all, you… Y'know…" Noire was embarrassed to voice her thoughts.
"'After all, you have me, Plutia.'?" guessed Vert.
"Ack! Don't steal my…" Noire stopped herself.
"Steal your what? What were you going to say?" Asked Blanc, enjoying teasing the tsundere.
"Grrr! Why, you…!" Noire was embarrassed.
"Heeey, stop fighting all the time…" Plutia tried to break them up.
Histoire came in the room, wanting to join the conversation.
"Pardon me, Vert." Said the oracle.
"My records say nothing about two girls becoming sisters if they use CPU Memories from the same Memory Core." Explained Histoire.
"Thought so." Lelouch said.
"Oh, is that so? But it's a rule that my nation has accepted for many years." Said Vert, happily.
"A lie is still a lie, no?" sighed Histoire.
"Well, there are a lot of ways to look at it, but yes, in this case I second your opinion." Added Lelouch.
"Hmhmhm. The truth is in the eye of the beholder, I say." Stated Vert proudly.
"I see. However…" Histoire looked at Nepgear, who was being hugged by Vert.
"Vert, really now, let me go… Ugh, but they're so soft and it's starting to feel warm and cozy…" Nepgear was slowly stopping her protests.
"Neptune's acted so cold and leaves me behind all the time, so maybe I can let Vert be my new sister…" Said Nepgear, allowing herself to be spoiled by Vert.
"NO! Pull yourself together! No fair, Vert! Don't use those two flesh pillows to tempt my sister!" Protested Neptune.
On the side, Noire was beginning to yell.
"Try fixing your lousy personality! Ugh! I'm not going to put up with it anymore!" Said Noire, her argument with Blanc continuing.
"Who wants to hear that from the girl with a twisted, contrary personality?!" Sneered at her Blanc.
"Ummm, if you two don't stop…" Plutia was starting to get angry.
"Huh? Oh, no! I'm sorry, really!" Noire apologized frantically, noticing where things were going.
"I'm sorry! I was out of line!" Blanc apologized as well.
Lelouch and Histoire were watching the girls' daily routine.
"It is nice that things are so lively. This has become a real gathering place for the CPUs…" Said Histoire.
"Are you sure? This way none of them will spend time to do their work." Said Lelouch, crossing his arms.
"*Sigh* You're probably right." Said Histoire, somewhat disappointed.
Lelouch, however, had something more important on his mind. He was thinking about his recent lack of self-control and the encounter with the strange boy.
"He seemed to be chasing after the Seven Sages, but… Who is he? He was certainly way above the average human in terms of skill and physical prowess." Lelouch thought.
"And what about you? Do you find all of this amusing? Are you enjoying yourself, Zero?!" the dark haired boy thought, angered, though he didn't receive an answer.
Things became a little too hectic in this chapter, i guess. I was having mixed opinions about making Lelouch have some personal grudges with the Seven Sages, but i guess i reached a consensus on my part. After all, I'm going to be using the Seven Sages as a way of confronting Lelouch and the person targeting the sages(Seriously, if you don't know who he is by now, i don't know what to say XD). You may have noticed that i've pushed Plutia's character a little too much(that's all for a future arc i'm planning to make after Rebirth3's story), though if you think that i shouldn't have done so or have some other ideas i'd be glad to hear them. Anyway, i guess this is all i had to get off my chest. Thank you for reading and i hope you have a great day :D!