Happy Holidays, Everyone! A few things before we get started.

A/N: I own nothing

A/N 2: This is going to be a shorter chapter than usual. I had a bit of trouble writing this one (more on that below), but I wanted to have something for you guys for this month.

A/N 3: I'm going to take a small break from this story. Writing this, I realized that I had hit the points in my outline that was a bit thin with what I wanted to accomplish. So, I'm going to take a few days and outline the rest of this story out so that I will at least have a game plan for the rest of the chapters to come. As always, I thank you endlessly for your patience.

Chapter 15 – Overture to a Storm (Part II)

I'd only believe in a god who could dance – Friedrich Nietzsche

A cold wind blew around as Suzaku stood on the balcony of the submarine entrance. He never liked being on the sea; the rocking and creaking always gave Suzaku an uneasy feeling. He never tried to explain it to anyone anymore; they all thought it was just sea-sickness. But to Suzaku, it wasn't any sort of motion sickness. It was the knowledge that there was no solid earth beneath his feet, that ground beneath him was continually shifting. When he on land, at least he was able to count on the ground staying steady beneath him.

Keep your feet firmly on the ground. It's the only way to live life. That had been a line from some old Yukio Mishima play, a favorite phrase of his father's. He had repeated it so often that Suzaku had grown to hate hearing him say it, often discreetly rolling his eyes whenever it was spoken. So the fact that this memory was dredging itself back was supremely annoying. Because Suzaku hated thinking about his father. Worse, he hated thinking about the man and realizing that he had been right about anything. For a while Suzaku still hated several aspects of his father's philosophy (particularly his nascent nationalism), he now had to concede that the man was right about a couple of things. For one, his father had been right that the Emperor would never listen to any peace terms. Suzaku had used to believe that perhaps the man could be at least reasoned with, but his memories from both timelines seem to disprove that notion. It also showed that any chance that this could've been done internally was non-existent. Suzaku now realized that his attempt to do so had let to him being subsumed into the Britannian ideologies and was thankful that Euphie hadn't been around to see what he had become. Suzaku now knew that Lelouch seemed to have been right all along.

Lelouch was coming out of the elevator now, moving into the night that was only illuminated by the stars and a blinking red light that was atop the submarine's portal. Wearing his mask, Lelouch still looked like the confident conqueror that the world believed him to be. But once he took it off, Suzaku could see how hard his old friend had been pushing himself. He looked tired and strained, most likely due to the intense effort he was exerting working in tandem with a lack of sleep. His eyes were most telling; Suzaku could that almost glazed as if he was thinking of something far away. But his voice was sharp as ever when he said "Sorry for taking so long. I had to take care of a few things before I got here."

"It's no problem" Suzaku replied. "I didn't exactly come here straightaway either."

"Fair enough. What did you want to talk about?"

Suzaku started to say something, but then stopped himself. After some thought, he asked curiously "What do you remember during the time that you were under the Emperor's Geass?"

Lelouch sighed and looked out on the water. "Honestly, not much. The memories have more or less melded into an odd blend of feelings that I can't really name. The clearest thing I remember is waking up in the Babel Tower. Why do you ask?"

"Well…before you were sent back to Ashford, your father…basically made you a new person. You were given the name Julius Kingsley, and you were sent to lead forces against the E.U in Eastern Europe."

Lelouch absorbed this new knowledge and leaned on the railing. "Anything that was particularly noteworthy of my strategy?"

"Not really. Mostly you used a giant airship to cause panic while you had their systems hacked, then launched a large counterattack."

"… Sounds like me. Anything else I should know?"

"Not at this moment. The only thing I could tell you is about some of the people who were fighting the Europeans."

"That might be useful later. It stands well to reason that Britannia might send in people who have experience fighting Europeans."

"Lelouch, what's wrong with you?" Suzaku asked, shifting gears suddenly. "Every time I see you out of that mask, you seem a bit distant and off. What's going on? What are you thinking about?"

Lelouch sighed and looked out into the stars. "It's everything that's been unfolding recently with the Geass Master. I'm used to playing my game of chess as the king, the person in control. And usually, I was confident that I was playing against an inferior or equal opponent. Now…? I have to get used to being a pawn in someone else's game."

"You're doing yourself a disservice as labeling yourself as a pawn" Suzaku responded. "The bishops, the rooks, even the queens and kings are all manipulated along by the hands above. Perhaps we've always been pieces on his board. It's only now that we've become aware of the situation."

Lelouch had to give a small smile at that. When his oldest friend didn't have his judgment warped by revenge or honor, he could show a very analytical side. "That's true. That's very true."

"Besides, you seemed to be ignoring a more question: If we're pieces in the Geass Master's game, who's controlling the pieces on the other side?"

"That…is a very good question" Lelouch said, looking back out to the stars. "I honestly don't know. And I'm not a hundred percent sure I want the answer."

"Well, we should let the Geass Master worry about his opponent, while we worry about ours."

"That's true enough. All we can do now is prepare for the storms ahead and cherish the time we have."

"Trust me, Lelouch," Suzaku said as he moved to the elevator, "if there's one thing I've learned from hanging around you, it's to treasure the time you get."

Lelouch sighed as Suzaku exited the balcony via the elevator. Then he turned towards the starboard side and said "And what are your thoughts on the time we have?"

Kallen stepped out from the shadows, miffed that Lelouch had been able to spot her. "Same as Suzaku's. And how were you able to spot me?"

"Nunnally has been forcing me to take some lessons on the side from Sayoko. Plus, you cast a distinctive silhouette."

Kallen sighed in acceptance as she moved to into the lighted section, moving next to Lelouch. "Sorry," she said, "But I was just worried about what might happen if… if Suzaku tried to ambush you again."

"It's perfectly alright. How did you manage to beat both of us here?"

"I asked both Euphemia and Chiba some questions that I knew only the two of you could answer, then made my way up. It wasn't too hard."

There was a brief pause as both of them tried to figure out what to say next. "Do you think you'll get used to it?" Kallen asked, breaking the silence.

"Used to what?"

"The idea that there's a higher power that is actively working around us? That we're not in complete control of our destiny?"

"…I don't know" Lelouch said, after giving the statement a little thought. "I'm not worried about what might happen to everyone else. Especially Nunnally…and you."

Kallen suddenly pulled him into a tight hug. "I…I get what you mean. But …try not to take everything on yourself. I don't know what we'd do if we lost you again. Just please promise me you won't leave us again."

Kallen began to quietly sob, holding her boyfriend and waiting for the words that she knew would put her mind instantly at ease. But Lelouch was speechless, only able to return the hug and look over the sea into the stars.

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The party in of itself was nothing spectacular; such revelries were a frequent occurrence at the Gypsy camp. The fire was roaring, the wine was flowing, and the people were drunkenly happy and happily drunk. They would celebrate for any particular reason: a birth, a death, a great boon, or really just anything. Tonight, they were reveling because of the commonly used reason: because they were alive, because they were free, and because they could. These were people accustomed to pain, hardship, and trials in everyday life. The ordinary pleasures that most of civilization enjoys had been denied to them for centuries, so they made do with what they had. Songs were sung, fiddles were played, and there was a great deal of dancing and tenderness. All was done expertly, not it mattered to anyone there. To them, the quality of the singers, the dancers, or the musicians was unimportant (save for extreme cases). What was important was that they were here and together. The caravan knew that in the harsh light of the morning that they'd have to face the realities of everyday life (which would no doubt be compounded by the hangover that many of them would suffer from tomorrow). But for now, they were happy and enjoying the party that this moment in life afforded them.

What made tonight different was there was a stranger had arrived in their midst. No one could tell where he came from, or why. When looking back on the night, many seemed to recall either his name or his face. What they do remember was that he had brought with him two casks of excellent wine. This had been enough to earn the goodwill of everyone there, and the stranger was allowed to join the campfire. The festivities soon reached new heights, and even the Great Granny came out of her tent to celebrate. The fire burned hotter, the dancers danced harder, and everyone partied harder than ever. Soon enough, the Great Granny joyously told the camp that she needed to have a few words with the newcomer, and the two of them left to the cheers and catcalls from the rest of them.

Only once they were alone in her tent did the Great Granny drop her cheery demeanor. "Why is it every time you come here, you whip everyone up into a frenzy?" she said in a harsh, annoyed voice. "You know that it will be only more difficult for them to get up in the morning."

The Geass Master chuckled as he sat down. "Maybe. But if anyone could recover from the riot happening outside, it'd be your children Anna. Besides, what's the point of partying if you're not going to party as hard as you can?"

"Enough of this pointless banter. What do you want?"

"Straight to it? You used to be such a polite host."

"I'm a bit miffed with you. Up until a few months ago, I envisioned a group of warriors coming here and learning peace, before settling down. Now, they seem to have been swept up in a cloud of blood and violence, and their fates seem undecided. And the magic surrounding this change indicates that you had something to do with it."

"And so what if I did? My actions were sanctioned. And we have bigger things we need to worry about."

The Great Granny sighed, a look of resignation passing over her face. "As I feared. Which begs the question: what do we all need to be worrying about?"

The Geass Master straightened up and adopted a voice of authority. "Our old enemy is marshaling his forces. He's not unleashed yet. But if his armies gather and start moving, we could be looking at a lot worse than things are now. You remember the last time they gathered forces."

The Great Granny nodded. "The Year of Blood."

"Right. So, I'm going to need the Emerald."

The Great Granny was not a woman who was scared easily. She had lived over eighty years at this point, and survived diseases, war, and far worse. Yet, at that request, she felt the blood flee her face, and the rest of her go cold. "Are you sure? Are things that dire?"

"I don't know. But this plan was given to me from above."

The old woman sighed and turned towards her bed to look for the box that she had been given by her mother, who had told her to guard it with everything she could. Meanwhile, the Geass Master pulled out the book that had been given to him and by the gods and flipped open to a page inscribed with a five-point star. One point was colored red, from the Ruby that he had held on to for so long. Another was colored blue, from the Sapphire that the Dimension Supervisor had been reluctant to give up. With the Emerald coming to him, he knew that the last two he would have to collect would be the Moonstone and the Onyx. He then looked up to see the Great Granny looking at him with a look of near horror. "Relax, Anna" he said, holding out his hand, "it's only a book."

"That's not any book" the Great Granny replied, handing over the Emerald. "That's the Blood Codex. If that shouldn't scare me, what should?"

"Be afraid that I have a reason to use it" the Geass Master said as he moved the Ruby to the proper location on the star, before letting the book absorb the gem, leaving the point colored a deep shade of green. "Be afraid of monsters in the night. And most of all, be afraid of time running out."

He suddenly closed the book and stood up, readying himself to leave. "You best be careful. Make sure you don't camp more than one night in any spot. Try to leave as little trace as possible. And live every day as if it's your last. It might very well be."

"Wait," the Great Granny said, stopping the Geass Master from exiting the tent. "Do you think we'll meet again?"

"I carry the Blood Codex," the Geass Master said sadly. "I think we both know the answer to that question."

And with that, he was gone, vanishing as silently into the night as he had appeared from it.

And on that note, I'll leave it there.

Again, I'll be taking some time to get everything set up for the next few chapters to come. I thank you all once again for your patience. Please be sure to leave a review with any comments, questions, requests, or insidious remarks. Have a Happy New Year everyone!