(A/N)

Hello and welcome to My Next Life as a Demon, a new side-side project that I've started alongside my main side project, Kallen of the Atonement (which I'm still working on, I swear it's true, I've written a few paragraphs lately, really, stop looking at me like that!). This is a Self Insert-ish Code Geass story with a real-world person roughly based on myself as inserted into the role of Lelouch. If you can guess where the initial inspiration comes from, good for you, have a cookie. I enjoyed it, but I'm afraid this fic won't have much in common with it beyond the basic premise. I have no idea where this is going, it'll probably devolve into an angsty mess at some point, but hey, it might be fun. I don't really know what else to say about it. Pairings undecided, probably none, and any suggestions will be summarily ignored. Spin-off material not present unless indicated otherwise. Unlike KotA, this story is un-beta-ed, mostly because beta-ing takes a lot of time and I want to be able to publish the chapters as soon as possible. That's about it, have fun if you can!

Oh, and special thanks to Ash the Aura Guardian, whose story Nunnally of the Rewind gave me the kick I needed to get back to writing for CG.

EDIT: this is a reupload. The original version got kind of ruined in the upload and was rendered unreadable. Unfortunately, I published it right before leaving for work, and couldn't fix it from my phone afterwards. A lesson for the future, I suppose.

MY NEXT LIFE AS A DEMON

"I hereby accept the terms of your contract!" As soon as I say those words, a sharp surge of pain assaults my head as a deluge of sounds and images pours into my mind, overwhelming my senses. I don't know where I am. I don't know who I am. I don't know what time it is, what day, what year. The only thing I know for certain is that I exist, and only because the unabating agony doesn't let me forget about it.

After what could have been seconds or centuries, but most definitely felt like the latter, the pain stops abruptly, and I once again become aware of my surroundings. I'm kneeling on concrete in what appears to be an abandoned warehouse, hunched over a corpse of a green-haired girl in a white straitjacket. I still don't know what's going on, though, as memories of two completely different lifetimes intertwine in my head.

Slowly, the memories start to sort themselves out, allowing me to start formulating questions. How did I get here? Did I die? I don't remember dying. In fact, there's a lot I don't remember from my previous life. It's all rather fuzzy, although some things are crystal clear in my mind. The memories of my current life are much sharper as they come back to me. I remember the truck, the girl (Kallen, a different part of my mind supplies), the capsule, the contract, and earlier, my past as Lelouch vi Britannia…

Ah, shit, this is Code Geass, isn't it? Figures. Why couldn't I have been reincarnated somewhere nice? Or as someone nice? Why couldn't I be, I don't know, Rivalz or something? Is this some sort of divine punishment? I may not have been the best person in my previous life, but this seems a little bit excessive, don't you think?

…Hold on. Have I been reincarnated? Or are these memories just a fabrication of a mind driven to insanity by fear? And if they are real, who am I? Am I Lelouch? Or am I…?

Panic stills my thoughts as I realize that I can't recall the name of my other identity. Or the names of my family, for that matter, or any of their faces. How am I supposed to know that I didn't just hallucinate everything?

"Too scared to get up, schoolboy? As a Britannian, you should at least have the courage to look death in the eye," a voice from somewhere behind me says.

"Sorry, I'm having a bit of an identity crisis right now, give me a minute, okay? Thanks," I reply without thinking. It takes me a few seconds to realize what I said, and a few more to realize that I haven't been shot yet. Apparently, I have a few more moments to spiral into existential angst. Let's make good use of them, shall we?

It only takes me a heartbeat to determine that the only memories I remember with any clarity are the ones relating to the animated TV show named Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion, which I was a fan of. Therefore, the easiest way to determine the truthfulness of those memories is to compare them to the ones from my life as Lelouch. So far, they seem to be matching, down to the lines said by people I met on the way here. It seems that for now, it's safer to proceed with the assumption of it being true.

That leaves one more question - who am I? Until now, I knew for sure that I was Lelouch vi Britannia, the former Eleventh Prince of the Holy Britannian Empire, abandoned and left for dead by his family. But these new memories suggest otherwise. They show that I was someone else before I was Lelouch. But am I still that person? He must have died, somehow, even though I don't remember dying. Did his - my - family suffer because of it?

Can I return to that life? If the person I used to be is dead, probably not. As far as I know I'm stuck with being Lelouch.

Either way, if I am Lelouch right now, and this is the situation I think it is, that would mean that as of now, I only have a little over a year left to live. That is less than ideal. I'm going to have to do something about it. I don't want to die again so soon.

"Time's up, schoolboy. Any last words?" the voice from before asks, reminding me that my remaining life may be shortened to seconds if I don't act fast. I get up and turn to face Clovis' Royal Guard.

"Yes, actually." I feel the Power of the King within my mind, a malevolent force wanting to be used. One box on the doom list already checked, I suppose. I curse the scriptwriters of Code Geass for putting me in this situation. If I want to get out of here alive, and I very much do, I have no choice. I take a second to regard the men before me; hardened killers all, with blood of women and children on their hands and zero hesitation to pull the trigger. Thoroughly wicked people. Still, they are people nevertheless. They probably have their own wives and children somewhere, although I can't fathom anything decent being spawned by scum like them. A thought strikes me - is evil hereditary? That would explain a lot, actually.

I'm no fool. I know that sooner or later, I'll have to spill blood if I am to get out of here and stop Charles' plans. And if I'm going to be a killer anyway, sparing these particular soldiers would be the height of hypocrisy. They deserve death so much more than many others who will undoubtedly end up dead before this is over.

Whatever, I'm in a merciful mood.

"Drop your weapons, leave the ghetto in peace and never kill anyone again, okay? Can you do that for me?" I ask, activating my Geass. They comply without hesitation, leaving me alone with C.C., who hasn't revived yet.

It seems that my power is still Absolute Obedience. Which, while distasteful, is pretty convenient, seeing as, at the very least, I know what it can and cannot do. Now, where is she…?

Like clockwork, a Sutherland enters the warehouse. I already know who the pilot is before even hearing her speak. Villetta Nu. Now, that's a face I wouldn't mind never seeing again...

"You there! What happened here!?"

My eyes narrow as I consider my options. If I am to intervene in the situation, I need her knightmare. That means Geass. How irritating. Is there a way for me to avoid it? I guess as a Britannian, I could request protection. That way I could get out of here without fighting… No. That would inevitably lead to contact with authorities, and most likely being recognized by someone higher up. Best case scenario, it's Jeremiah and I get a loyal servant for life. Worst case scenario, it's not Jeremiah and I get a one-way ticket to Geasstown, free of charge, to be used as bait for C.C. and disposed of once I've served my purpose. Or even worse, ol' Chuck learns that I know of his little doomsday plot and just straight up kills me. I cannot take that risk. I could-

A volley of assault rifle fire rips into the wall behind me, interrupting my thoughts and causing me to flinch slightly, but I stand my ground. I won't allow myself to be intimidated like that. Thank Sunrise for Lelouch's fullmetal testicles.

Okay, I guess she won't be willing to wait for me to make a decision. If I'm not going to reveal myself, and have no weapon with which to kill her, Geass remains my only option. Oh well, let's stick with the tried and true approach for now. I already know that the Absolute Obedience won't work without eye contact, but she will come out if I make a good enough impression of a noble. Well, I suppose that technically, it won't be an impression. I am royalty, after all.

"I order you to come out at once!"

"Who the hell do you think you are to order me?"

"My name is Allen Spacer, my father is a duke. My ID card is in my breast pocket. After you confirm who I am, I'll request your protection."

"Keep your hands up in the air, I'll take out your ID."

The Sutherland's cockpit opens, revealing the annoying face of Villetta Nu. This one interaction already tells me a lot about her. I note her willingness to gun down an unarmed Britannian student and the initial caution that is quickly overruled by ambition when she realizes what she stands to gain by escorting me out, even against orders. All of that paints a picture of a selfish, ruthless opportunist looking for ways to advance in the ranks, which roughly matches what I know about her from the show. I idly marvel at the perceptiveness of Lelouch's mind compared to my previous life as I consider what to do with her. Come to think of it, she ended up happily married to Ohgi after completely ruining Lelouch's life, didn't she? I believe they even had a child or two…

…That settles it, she's gotta go.

I look her deep in the eyes, activating my Geass. "I'd like you to give me your knightmare and leave this place now. Tomorrow, submit your resignation from the military, leave the country and move to Australia. Can you do that for me?"

"Certainly," she replies, handing the activation key over to me. "The code number is XG21-G2D4."

"Thank you," I say, half-reflexively, snatching the key from her hand. I keep watching her while she exits the warehouse, glad to have the pest out of the picture for the foreseeable future. After that, I climb into the cockpit of the machine I have, uh, I've technically stolen, I guess? Dammit. Starting on the villainy early, eh, Lulu? Oh well.

What am I to do now? With a little trickery, I could probably slip out of the ghetto without getting into any trouble. The encirclement would be a bit of a challenge to bypass, but I'm fairly certain I could Geass my way through. A part of my mind, screams at me to do so. Getting involved will only get me killed faster. It's better to just return home, to Nunnally, and wait it out. But right now, innocent civilians are being slaughtered by the army. Would I be able to live with myself if I just stood by and let it happen, even if the alternative is fighting? And if I opt out here, who will stop Charles' pet apocalypse? Suzaku? As if.

…Stupid Code Geass.

With the decision made, I take a minute to familiarize myself with the controls and head out, trying my best not to think about the people who will die because of me today. I can let my conscience eat me alive later, right now I have a massacre to stop.

Really, though, it's fine. I'm fine. There's nothing to worry about. Nothing at all. I only need to prevent my own death, the deaths of my friends and those of my family members that don't suck, liberate Japan and save the world from Ragnarok.

Eeeeeasy.

(A/N)

Well, this is it for now. I don't think anything in this chapter requires any extra commentary or clarification. If you disagree, let me know, I'll try to address any questions in the next chapter. It should be up in a few years, maybe longer. :P As always, feedback helps, so reviews are appreciated. Next time, the battle of Shinjuku and confronting Clovis.

RanVor out.