The young woman stood in place, staring with a mix of awe and horror. She gazed forward, transfixed by the being she saw there. In part it looked to be a person. In part it looked to be anything but a human. A demon. The devil. That's what she felt herself say of the female form approaching her.
As if hellfire burned on the soles of her bare bestial feet, each step she took left an area five times its size scorched barren. Yet trailing her, almost as if giving chase, the footfalls four or five steps back held a burst of life, new plants and even a flower or two shooting up in that briefly barren spot, so lush as to put the most splendid of royal gardens to shame. One spot look to even hold a young sapling opening to soak in the sunlight filtering through dissolving clouds.
Her crimson and lavender and sapphire and gold wings softly bounced against the air, each buffet dropping a tiny dusting of red, appearing as embers discharged to do as they may. Yet nothing burned where the red fell, supposing then that these were the culprits instead for the bounty of flora. The light glistened off what looked to be horns, like a six-point buck who'd had its headgear sharpened into points.
The bizarre thing that could be likened to a tail undulated through the air around her like a vigilant guardian scoping out potential threats. Appearing more serpent than dragon, it would flare its cobra-like hood every now and then, as if trying to intimidate any observer. Its crystalline obsidian horns matched its host's in color, but not form, further raising the question of how the two could be a single creature – aside from the obvious issues with that prospect.
This chimera of human and beast had hands unlike anything in nature, fingers whose joints each looked to be longer than a normal person's hands, the tips each narrowing to points like straightened talons. It seared the mind to contemplate how a being seeming so enshrouded in fire as a part of their being, could then seem so cold in outstretching their hand towards you.
Just as the paralyzed woman seemed about to receive the otherworldly creature's touch, she sat up. She was in a cold sweat, the chill of the morning air bracing against her damp skin. She rolled over to glimpse a thin strip of sunlight filtering through the part in the curtains, just barely missing her eyes.
She took a second to slow her heart back down, her eyes scanning around lazily to assure herself she wasn't maybe in a hospital, or a grave. But it was truly where she remembered laying her head down the night before. The sand rubbed from her eyes, she pulled something over herself and started to make her way out of the tent. There were still the sounds of birds outside, meaning fall's chill hadn't yet scared them away. But there was also the familiar hum of the early risers milling about their regular business.
The nightmare was still fresh and visible in her mind. Leila wasn't exactly one to scare too easily, but that dream did terrify her. She didn't need to struggle too hard on why she likely had it. Still, it was little comfort to have the fears of the real world invading one's mind as they slept.
Leila looked around the camp, happy enough to see that it was a normal morning, relatively speaking. She wondered where Akito had gotten off to. He wasn't in the tent with her, so she assumed he'd gone to fetch water. It seemed to be very early still, so she had to assume he'd only left shortly before she herself woke up. She was anxious to ask him if she said anything in her sleep. She doubted it since he hadn't himself tried to wake her. But with how vivid her memories of the dream were, it ironically made her worried that she wasn't remembering some part of it.
In a few hours they'd be meeting up with the others and helping with the refugee camp nearby. They'd been doing so for the last week since their travelling group arrived in the area. She was already pretty familiar with most of the folks in the area – both the refugees and the regular residents. The mayor in the city even came out to thank Leila and her group for their help. It had been a trying time of it trying to manage the people fleeing from Spain and England, the strain it was placing on small places like his that were having enough trouble just keeping up with the normal problems of a small town. Having extra hands able and willing to do the small things like running food lines, simple medical care, was a godsend.
But it wasn't set to last. Leila and her gypsy family were nomads. It wouldn't be terribly long before they would move on. They had no choice. Not as brutal as some other locales, it still got cold in the winter around here, and you weren't likely to enjoy living out a tent in such conditions. They certainly could try to find lodging in that town if they wanted, but that would also defeat the purpose of all their help, adding to the burdens of this place in housing and feeding all its newfound residents.
Early as it was, Leila figured she would take a leisurely walk around. She had to wait for Akito to get back before they could start on breakfast anyway. Being able to wake up and taken in the natural beauty of the world was a significant part of why she chose this life after her role in the war was over.
She had to stop herself just a couple minutes into her stroll. Standing not too far away was an all too familiar head of green hair, waiting by a tree as if she had predicted she would see Leila there right at that moment. She started wondering if it was her fault she had that nightmare the last several nights now.
"What're you doing here, C.C.?" Leila asked, not hiding an ounce of grumpiness to see her old acquaintance.
"Leila!? I'm surprised. I thought you might've run off hot-headed to pick a fight you didn't have a hope of winning. I'm glad to see I was mistaken," C.C. teased.
"You're the same as ever, C.C." Leila replied back with an exasperated sigh.
"Girls my age don't change so easily," she continued to tease.
"There are no girls your age. It'd be extremely concerning if there were."
"In any case, I am very happy to see you. I'm pleased my efforts weren't in vain."
"I don't know why you'd assume I'd run off and do something foolish in the first place."
"You are more of the hot-blooded type. I was worried your soft-hearted nature would win out over your logic."
"Whatever. So, you were looking for me, right? Why?"
"Sad to say, but I need a few friends right now."
"Friends? I thought you were close with Empress Nunnally? What more friends could you need?" Leila asked. She thought about heading back to the tent to get away from whatever bad news C.C. was likely brining her way, but she was sure that wouldn't do anything to stop C.C. It was probably best to get her further away from the others, not lead her closer.
"Well, it seems Cornelia and Zero aren't so accepting of me. I won't bore you with the details, but let's say they've made it quite clear I'm not welcome in the Nunnally's company at the moment."
"And what's the empress got to say about that?"
"I don't know if she even knows just yet. She's likely still under the impression that I'm off on some lead or another and just haven't made it back to the capital. That's not entirely wrong, though. In any case, I don't know how long they'll be able to keep it secret thanks to the prison break last night."
"The world's literally burning, and you folks are having some internal squabble, is that it?"
"I can't totally blame them. From everything we know it seems that these Alters must be using Geass somehow. As the only surviving person capable of giving others Geass, even I have to admit how suspicious I appear."
"They must think you're hiding something. So, are you?"
"Yes. But not what they think."
"What're you hiding?"
"You presume I'd tell you when I hadn't told them?"
"You didn't tell them because it's related to Geass. And you only brought it up just now because you were planning on letting me know sooner or later anyway, otherwise you'd have denied it the same you likely did with them. So? What is it? Can it help with all this mess or not?"
"Not very likely."
"So? Why not tell them and get it over with?"
"Because if I told them, they'd be unable to resist the urge to use it even if it likely won't help. And once they start, it will be far too difficult to stop."
"I don't understand. Are we talking about something worse than… what'd you call them? The Alters?"
C.C. took a second to ponder it over before answering, "Nunnally has a Geass."
"Are you kidding?" Leila asked. She stopped in her tracks, looking back at C.C. incredulously.
"It's a unique and strong one too."
"That could definitely complicate things," Leila grimaced. "How far along is it? What's it do?"
"That's the scary part," C.C. signed. "It's not very developed yet. It has a ways to go in terms of potency and duration. But even now, it allows her to see everything."
"See everything? What's that supposed to mean?"
"If she can focus on any person or place, she can view that person or place at that moment. The same as if she were standing right beside them."
Leila stood in a bit of dumbfounded disbelief. Just thinking about it gave her goosebumps, as if she was being watched right that second. "Hold on, are you for real? Like, anyone? Anywhere?"
"Yes. Even I can't block it. Even someone like me who is supposed to be immune from the effects of all Geass can be spied on by her Geass, and all she has to do is think strongly enough that she really wants to see me."
"That would be the dream of any spy agency."
"The Chinese Federation branch of the Syndicate was very involved in trying to develop a Geass like that. I shouldn't have to explain the kind of advantage that sort of thing could give a country – knowing the plans of an adversarial nation or even parties within their own country."
"It'd be too easy to find a reason to justify using that power all the time. Unlike a spy drone or anything like that, you'd have virtually no chance of stopping it."
"Lelouch didn't sacrifice himself to see his little sister turned into a living wiretap, or worse yet a despot who drives themselves insane by spying on any and everyone at the slightest whim."
"Why didn't you take it from her?"
"To take her Geass I would have to give her my Code, which would make her immortal."
"Oh, right… so she's already used it once."
"I suspect she's had it since before her and Lelouch were banished to Japan."
"That long… do you know when she first used it?"
"I think she was passively using it all the time, not realizing it. Even though Charles used his Geass to make her believe she was blind, she had an unusually good ability to know her surroundings, who was entering or exiting a room, whenever she was focused enough."
"Even with her eyes closed she was seeing the world around her through the glimpses of an unconscious use of her Geass."
"But that's not the only problem. She knows a lot about Lelouch's life."
"What's wrong with that?"
"No, I mean things that she shouldn't know, things no one told her about. She said when Lelouch died, she saw flashes of things that happened to him all throughout his life – his battles, the things he did as Zero, all of it."
"You're saying her Geass lets her see the past too? Maybe she's just tapping into other's memories, the way mine works."
"I wouldn't be surprised if she could also see the future."
"Didn't the Knight of One have that Geass?"
"His was very limited. He could see a few seconds in the future. I think hers is much greater than that."
"Who else knows about this?" Leila asked, growing graver in tone.
"You, me, and Nunnally. Possibly Euphemia."
"Euphemia?"
"She was the one who suggested to me that Nunnally might have a Geass in the first place. I thought she was bluffing and trying to get to me, so I ignored it, until Nunnally showed me herself."
"You mean you didn't realize it yourself? How could you not know?"
"Would it make you feel better if I said I screwed up?" C.C. shrugged.
"I just mean that you're so close to her so many times, I would have thought you would've realized something a lot sooner."
"I don't really understand it myself. It likely has something to do with the reason her Geass works on me. Anyway, as interesting as all that might be, the point is that we can't let Nunnally feel backed into wanting to use that power. The way to do that is to first make sure we don't let too many people know anything about it. Second, to put an end to this crisis as soon as possible."
"Well, unlike other Geass powers, I doubt hers is going to reveal itself too easily, so as long as you and I don't say anything she should be okay for a while." Leila stopped began to walk slowly as she tried to think about it more. "The problem is that she doesn't have a heart of stone. If this all keeps dragging on, she's eventually gonna feel too much guilt over hiding a way that might be helpful to others, especially if you're not there to convince her not to."
"That's precisely right."
"Great. I still don't understand how my being involved helps anything."
"I don't know yet, but I don't have many people I can count on. It's better if you're nearby when I do figure this all out than having to go off to find you afterwards."
"It's a little scary when you're this serious. I mean, I know how bad this whole situation is, but you being so open with me makes it feel even more concerning."
"I guess even I'm feeling a little vulnerable right now. I can't even remember the last time I felt like this."
"You sound like you might be excited."
"No, not excited. It's just… I spent such a long time looking for a way to die. Giving you and Lelouch Geass was a selfish decision I made because I thought you would grow strong enough for me to transfer my Code to you."
"But Lelouch ended up convincing you to try a little more at living."
"I made a promise with Lelouch that I would protect this world that he gave everything for. I won't stop until I've tried everything I can think of."
"Well, I hope you can start thinking a lot harder. There's no point in me going anywhere unless you can figure out where you're actually going. And that's assuming I even agree to follow you."
"Who did you connect with earlier by the way. I'm kind of hoping your Geass will come in handy that way."
"Are you testing me?"
"No. I came looking for you. I could sense your Geass, so I was able to come right to you instead of looking around. Why?"
"How long have you been in France?'
"Is that really important?"
"Yes."
C.C. frowned. She'd normally argue, but she wanted to speed this along, "It's been six or seven hours I guess? I knew your family was usually around this area about this same time each year, so it wasn't hard to guess after that. But, like I said, I could sense you were using your Geass, so I could follow it directly to you. Was it maybe embarrassing?"
Leila hesitated. She'd almost forgotten how easily C.C. could taunt. She could sometimes be like that little child who didn't know any better but to say what was on their mind. But she had to admit it was something of importance. She hadn't thought about it that way, but C.C didn't seem liakely in this situation to be making it up. She likely did indeed sense Leila using her Geass. If that was the case, her nightmare wasn't just a nightmare.
Leila hadn't been thinking too much about where they were going, but she had ended up leading them towards the river. She was a little disappointed to not see Akito there, now wondering where'd he'd gone off to. She felt obligated now, however, to honestly answer C.C., C.C. having honestly answered the question about Nunnally earlier.
"I didn't use my Geass, at least not deliberately. For the past few days I've been having the same nightmare every night. I'm standing in the middle of this large, lush, field. There's a mountain range off in the distance, and sky is cloudy with just a little sunshine filtering through. In front of me is… a thing. It looks like Euphemia li Britannia. But it's not.
"Whatever it is looks like a Euphemia, but it has these six long and pointed horns curling up from its forehead, huge wings with a rainbow of feathers, bare feet like some giant lizard, hands like enormous, straight, claws, and a long blue tail that ends in a serpent head with blunted horns like a deer.
"In my dream she walks towards me, flames burning up the ground with each step so that there's a large area around her that's just barren. But then I start to notice that where she stood several steps behind her, there's immediately new vegetation growing – new grass, new flowers, even tree saplings. I'm frozen in fear and amazement. When she gets close, she raises her hand as if to touch my face, but I wake up before it happens."
"Normally I'd think that was just a terrible dream brought about by your own fears. But, if its your Geass showing you such a dream, it must mean something."
"I was concerned even without knowing my Geass was involved. It's not like I was particularly familiar with Princess Euphemia; I had a real Princess Massacre over here to think about. I'd sooner worry about her haunting my nightmares than Euphemia."
"I was only teasing you earlier, but I do wonder why you haven't run off to fight Marrybell. I'm extremely pleased you didn't, but that is your personality."
"I thought about it," Leila admitted, kicking a stone into the water. "Maybe it's fear? I may not have been a pilot with skills like Akito, but I was on the battlefield alongside the soldiers who worked for me. Seeing what this Alter is doing, a part of me is aching to rush out in a Knightmare. But there's another part of me that is terrified. I'm not in the military anymore. I don't have a unit of soldiers under me, or even a Knightmare to pilot even if I wanted to. It's as though something is threatening to eat away at me. It's honestly a pathetic feeling, leaving it to someone else to take care of like it's not my problem."
"That's why you're all here helping with refugees."
"I can't drag my family into a war we can't hope to win on our own, but we can at least lend a hand to ease the burden."
"I won't promise you it's going to be safe, but I don't plan on having us go out there to fight them or their dragons."
"Is that part true?" she asked, starting towards a path that cut through the tree line. Her and Akito sometimes used it as a way back to the camp.
"I met one."
"You make it seem like you don't know what's really going on, but knowing you, I have a hard time believing you're completely in the dark."
"That's what most people seem to think, but I honestly don't have any real idea. I can only chase after clues."
"And what clue are you proposing I help you with?"
"Well, first we have to go back to Britannia. I don't know who it is, but someone in Britannia is helping Euphemia Alter."
"What makes you say that?"
"Zero and Cornelia had me locked away for two weeks. In that time Euphemia Alter's actions were the same as usual, until yesterday when she broke me out of an unused, unimportant, decommissioned military base. From everything I can tell, she didn't need to search to find me, which means she knew where I was already."
"And so you have to assume the only way that would happen is if she had someone who was willing to tell her."
"I want to see Nunnally again. And I want to warn them about the spy. I hate to admit it, but that Alter did make one good point; I can't really rely on Britannia for this. It will put Nunnally in a very bad spot if I try to just return to her side like nothing happened. She needs her sister, and Zero, more than she needs me. But I can still protect her even if she can't see me."
"So you figure a former military officer with nothing better to do would just sign up on your adventure."
"No, I thought that an old friend would be willing to lend me a hand."
"Friend is a little bit of a stretch, don't you think?"
"There's no need to be shy. I won't embarrass you," C.C. teased. "We can get a drink and catch up."
"It's barely seven in the morning."
"Run some whiskey, chase it with a few beers, it'll be like old times," C.C. laughed.
"What old times are you talking about? Have you gone senile, you old witch?"
"Let's see what Akito has to say,"
They'd caught up with Akito. He was carrying two buckets of water, one in either hand. Leila jogged ahead to help him, taking one of the buckets. He seemed to have been a little surprised to see her as they started chatting.
C.C watched with a forlorn expression. Seeing them together brought back some memories that made her melancholic. She felt a little guilt showing up out of nowhere and looking to uproot these two. But she quashed that guilt fairly quickly. Her mission was more important than that, she rationalized. It was for their sake too, she thought, that she had to make sure to see this through. Failure was not an option.