Rise of the Monarch
Author: Tenno Hikari
Fandom: Code Geass R2 (Sort of crossover with the webtoon Solo Leveling and the Destiny video game).
Disclaimer: I own nothing
Synopsis: Like shattered pieces of a mosaic falling into place, Lelouch remembers his death during the Black Rebellion and the strange rebirth that followed after. Zero has revived his rebellion against Britannia; fighting on the front lines and armed with terrifying new powers in replacement of his lost Geass. If the strong must conquer the weak for the sake of peace… then so be it.
Chapter One
At that moment, he would have given anything to go back to that state of numbness as his body screamed in agony long after his vocal cords had given up. He was burning with fever, and his insides felt as if they were on fire. He could feel his limbs now, as they shook uncontrollably.
"Whoever said, 'In space, no one can hear you scream,' never met you."
For a moment, his pain was gotten in place of anger as he glared in the direction of a slender female figure, clothed in black, began to approach. As she steps closer, he takes in her pale face, shortly-cut raven black hair that faded into pink down to the ends. Her voice he immediately recognized, as well the sound of those high-heels clicking across the starlet 'floor' they were both grounded on. He grits his teeth in pain at her as she stares down at him nonchalantly.
"You dare mock me?!" he manages to choke out. He winced. His voices sounded shredded and he wondered if he had previously had swallowed shards of broken glass. It certainly felt that way.
Her purple eyes, the same shade as his, narrow but she's far from intimidated by the crumbled heap of bones and flesh before her.
"I was the one who put you back together," she casually informs him. "It was a rather daunting task. You were long dead before I could reconstruct your frail human body."
He stares up at her in disbelief. While he was missing most of his memories, the reanimation of a corpse would have been…
"Impossible," she concludes with an impish smile to his glare. "Indeed it would be for humans to return from the dead naturally. So I had to reconstruct you. I do apologize for the pain; your body is just starting up after the reawakening. It will fade away in a moment."
A second later, that is exactly what happened. The pain and the fever were gone in an instant. He slowly sat up and stared at his hands that for once weren't shaking. While taking a deep breath, he flexed his fingers, pleased as each one of them moved to his command.
Another pale hand moved into his line of sight, and he followed it back up to those violet irises.
"Come," she beckons. "It's time we return to the land of the living."
Hesitantly, he takes her hand and she grasps his hard enough to pull him up without effort. He stumbles for a moment, taking a moment to get used to standing on new legs. He's thankful at least that she is patient enough, as one would be with a toddler learning to walk for the first time.
"Slowly," she advises. "It will all become natural for you soon."
Sucking in a breath, he nods and focuses on the simple task of walking across that starlit landscape. His eyes can't help but wander to the moving constellations and the glowing planets in their solar system. He reached out, unthinkingly to touch a comet before it phased through his fingers.
Was this all an illusion?
When his guide doesn't respond, he finally speaks again and thankfully it does not cause pain to do so.
"Where are we? Right now" he asks, glad that his voice is steady. "None of this should be possible."
"You may not remember, but you have been here before. It was brief, but you left an impression. This space is known as C'S world. It exists separate from the world you came from."
The word 'impossible' enters his mind again, but he's much more on his mind that fails to reach his lips.
Who was he before he died and ended up here?
What did this strange woman want from him that she would bring him back from death?
How much longer did they have to keep walking?
Was there even an exit?
When was he going to get some clothes to wear?
She laughs in amusement, listening to his unspoken query.
"In a moment, we've reached a gate."
"Gate…?" he echoes in confusion. There was nothing by stars as far as the eye could see.
A tall white door suddenly appears before them, and with her free hand reaches out in its direction. He stops in his tracks for a moment, to stare with wide eyes. The doors open without any effort or contact, and he glances at his guide curiously as she smirks back, urging him onwards.
"Shall we?"
Stepping out of the gate, a wave of familiarity ran through him as he took in the scenery of a vibrant city. His eyes were immediately drawn to the sunny blue sky that was reflected by several tall buildings made up of glass panes. The sound of people, of machines, filled his ears as he watches as many people passed him by without so much as a glance.
Quickly, he looked down at himself and was relieved to be wearing clothes.
"Can't have you getting arrested for streaking on your first day back now," his guide said with a grin. "Avoid contact with law enforcement at all costs. You're supposed to be dead after all."
What, had he been a notorious criminal in the past?
He couldn't help but wonder why anyone would bring him back to life if that had been the case. Letting go, he took a few steps forward on his own and was pleased with how easy it had become. His body remembered how to walk independently, and moved just as another pedestrian was about to run right into him.
Taking another step forward, his eyes immediately caught sight of his reflection from a glass window. A young man, tall with black hair, pale complexion, and purple eyes stared back at him. He was clean-shaven and probably not even in his twenties. He wears mostly black, save for a plain white t-shirt.
Was that really him? He couldn't help but wonder while tucking his hands into the pockets of the short-sleeved, long fitted black coat he wears. Across from, the boy in the mirror did the same. His doppelganger copied every motion perfectly; from drawing up his hood to crouching down to lace up his sneakers.
"It may not be your past self's style," his guide speaks up behind him, "but I think this looks suits you."
He glanced over his shoulder to stare at her, then his reflection, and back meeting her gaze once more as people continued to pass them by.
"They can't see us, can they?"
"Correction, they can't see me," she said while pointing a pink manicured nail towards her self. "They can see me only if I want them to, which I don't. Now, follow me, there's much I need to show you and I cannot stay in this world for too long."
He closed his mouth, realizing it would draw unwanted attention if people heard him talking out loud to himself, and followed her through the crowds. They walked in silence, not paying much attention to the crowds of people as if they to were part of the scenery.
It seemed so peaceful here, so different from the war-torn city that had occupied his dreams. Occasionally, his eyes would glance to the monitors behind glass windows, and giant television screens of the buildings they would pass. It was impossible not to hear the bits of news reports and bits and pieces of civilian conversation.
There was a war going on in the EU.
There was unrest in the Chinese Federation.
Missing terrorists at large and wanted dead or alive.
And those same… damn three words:
"All Hail Britannia!"
He seethed.
Were they almost there yet?
"So impatient," she murmured. "At least you aren't complaining about walking for three blocks straight."
He stared at the back of her head in confusion.
'Why would I complain about that?'
She paused in her tracks, before turning to smirk at him again.
"Oh, nevermind."
He rolled his eyes in annoyance.
'Where are we even going?'
"I brought you back for a reason," she began to explain, "but your current state isn't up for the task. So I'm taking you to a place to help you train. Your body is still pitifully weak. The Knight police of the city could easily take you down single-handedly."
'So you brought me back to fight?' the young man asked incredulously. 'Why not just resurrect a warrior and be done with it?'
He saw what he looked like in the other world. His body was not that of a fighter. He was tall, but skinny and lacked in muscle. In the past, he must have lacked stamina and endurance. His guide must have known all of this. So…
'Why me?'
"A mere warrior cannot occupy the role I need you for."
'And what role is that?' he pressed almost. Perhaps it would have been better to remain dead than live a life as a puppet.
"Not a puppet," she assured him quickly before coming to a stop.
He realized they were almost alone now in a less populated part of the city. Why here? Were they meeting someone?
"Over there."
She pointed towards a glowing blue door - that appeared out of nowhere – a few feet away. Judging by the lack of reaction from the few people present, only he and his guide could see it. Was that another door leading back into C's world?
"Not exactly," she answered his unspoken question. "Through that gate, your training will begin and lead you to some of the answers you seek."
'Or you could just tell me what I want to know and stop being so damn cryptic.'
"That… would be too easy."
She grins while producing an emerald key out of thin air. The action no longer surprises him, though he wonders why this door would be locked in the first place. Sighing in defeat, he accepts her key and walks towards the gate.
'I hope I don't regret this,' he thinks while inserting the key, watching in interest as it dematerializes in his hands. The gate swings open and he looks at reality one more time before stepping inside.
The door slams shut from behind. Immediately he lunges at it, but his fingers end up clawing at a solid brick wall. Swallowing hard, he turns around to find himself, not in a quiet part of a city, but in a dimly lit room. The lights from the overhead panels flickered nosily, and the air smells of rust and mold. No other person in sight, and probably hasn't been around of years.
'Where am I?'
To his dismay, she doesn't answer.
But something else does…
Ping!
A blue screen suddenly appears before his eyes.
'Another illusion?!'
On it, white text appears and as he reads, he's immediately filled with dread.
[You have entered a Dungeon. To exit, you must slay the boss.]
He had to kill in order to leave?!
What was she thinking putting him in this kind of situation?!
He had only been revived barely an hour ago!
'Calm down, calm down, and think!' the youth ordered himself.
He had crossed through a gate and into what appeared to be another dimension.
What would he encounter in this place?
Humans? Monsters? Those metal leviathans from his dreams?
All that was certain, was that e would have to kill to gain his freedom from this place.
But his body was not that of a fighter's and he came here without supplies or weapons.
His guide had said she had reconstructed him – whatever that meant – but did that mean he could revive if he died again? Would he starve to death here?
"I need more information," he muttered to no one. "I need to know more about myself."
Ping!
Another blue screen with white text flashed before him.
[User name: Julius Kingsly (Must be level 10 to change)
Class: Hunter
Sub-Class: Arc [Skill Tree locked]
Level: 0 (Experience needed for rank up)
Experience: 0 (Gain Experience for each opponent defeated or quest completed)
HP: 50
MP: 50
Fatigue: 2 [You will not be able to move if Fatigue is 100]
Intelligence: 10
Strength: 1
Discipline: 1
Vitality: 1
Mobility: 1
Recovery: 1
Resilience: 1
Total Stats: 16
Title Equipped: None
Armor Equipped: Basic Cloak
Weapons Equipped: None ]
Was 'Julius Kingsly' him? The name didn't sound familiar at all.
What was a 'Hunter' class?
What was 'Arc' and how was he supposed to use it?
What was with those stats?!
Shouldn't they be more evenly distributed?!
He sighs in dismay and stares at the screen.
Level 0
'A novice's level…'
Before even facing the boss of his dungeon, he was going to have to raise his stats and find proper equipment… Julius Kingsly knew he wasn't going to achieve any of that while standing idly by. With a flourish, he swipes his hand over the screen and watches in fascination as they fade away. It was comforting to know that he had some small measure of control over the system that governed his existence.
As Julius takes his first few steps into the unknown, something warm, wet, and awful smelling drips down onto his shoulder. He flinches and quickly looks up. Terror seizes hold of him at four glowing blue eyes stare down at him from the raptors.
'Move!'
Immediately he leaps out of the way as a shadowy figure leaps down, stabbing a dagger into the floor where Julius once stood. All color drains from his face as the four-armed, blue-skinned monster stands up to his height, and bears its razor-sharp teeth at him in a sinister grin.
'Run! Run! Run!' he orders himself, but his body refuses to obey. Paralyzed by fear, his legs are rooted to the spot, and he trembles as if he had just reawakened again. He might have to be revived if he dies here and now. Or maybe his guide won't even bother to bring him back if he met his end to the first enemy encounter.
Julius pauses, forgetting his fear momentarily as he reads the white label that hovers over the monster's head
[ DREG ]
The definition of the name runs through his mind.
This monster was called a Dreg.
'The remains. The least valuable of anything.'
Perhaps the lowest and weakest enemy of this dungeon.
If this creature was on par with him, then he had nothing to worry about.
The Dreg lunged at him. Julius caught the arm holding the dagger aimed for his neck, with his other hand curled into a fist, he threw a punch towards the enemy's throat. It chocked, all four eyes widened in surprise and pain. Quickly, he planted a foot into the monster's midsection and kicked it away. Julius' strength state may have been at 1, but it was enough to send his enemy staggering several steps and releasing hold of its weapon into his hand.
'Now's my chance!'
With a cry, he rushed forward. Not giving the Dreg the time to even stand up, he buried the blade of the dagger into its former owner's chest. Those eerie blue eyes bulged, black blood dribbled out of its mouth, before the monster fell heavily to the ground.
Ping!
[You've leveled up! Julius Kingsly is now Level 1!]
He breathed in heavily, recovering from the rush of adrenaline, staring at the crumpled body of his first kill.
"Profile," he whispered quietly.
His statistic screen appeared once more, and he couldn't believe how much he gained in such a short time. His stats, even though most were single digits, had doubled with just one kill. He didn't feel any different, but progress was still progress. His weapon had changed as the system recognized the dagger he still had in his hand.
[DREG'S HAND: ATK + 5, Durability: 14/15]
The item appeared as a white icon, and it looked like he could only use it fourteen more times. Well, at least he had a weapon now. He would have to find another one with higher attack power before fighting the boss and level a couple more times as well.
With his increase in confidence, Julius quickened his pace as proceeding down a dimly lit hallway, around the corner just in time to evade an ambush from another Dreg. His enemy quickly used its two left arms to correct its balance before lunging at him again, this time the dagger made contact. Julius hissed in as the blade scratched at his exposed left arm, drawing blood.
The pain was only a minor inconvenience; especially it caused his enemy to expose the back to him. With a growl, he twirled the dagger in hand and stabbed downwards. The dagger buried itself into the back of the Dreg's throat, causing it to gasp and wheeze painfully before it died.
'No level up?' he wondered while retrieving his dagger from the corpse.
Opening up his profile menu once more, Julius saw that his level and stats remained the same from the last kill. However, the experience bar was a quarter full. Which meant he had to kill at least three more Dregs in order to level up again? If that was the case, then the experience required to rank up would only increase every time he leveled.
He would have to keep killing in order to get stronger.
Just how strong was the boss at the end up the dungeon? He doubted it was going to be anything like these last few Dregs. Raising his weapon up to eye level, he wondered if it might be too much to kill the boss with just a simple dagger…
[DREG'S HAND: ATK + 5, Durability: 13/15]
Violet-eyes widened and he quickly crouched down to pry the second dagger out of the corpse's tightly clenched fist and held it in his free hand.
[DREG'S HAND: ATK + 5, Durability: 15/15]
If he could dual wield properly, then his attack power would increase. However, wielding a dagger was no simple task. It might increase his fatigue, which would be fatal if he couldn't move during combat.
'Perhaps I should stow the newer dagger and work on raising my recovery stat first.'
Ping!
Julius looked up as a new screen appeared that displayed some text and an empty grid.
[Inventory: Unlocked.
You may now store weapons, armor, other equipment, and consumables to be accessed at any time. Consumables will not expire.
Storage Space: 0/500]
'Well… that's certainly convenient!'
Julius hesitantly held up his newer weapon to the screen and watched transfixed as it dematerialized out of his hand. A new header appeared on-screen called 'Weapons' while a white dagger icon occupied an empty cell beneath it. The Dreg's Hand was now stored, but could it be retrieved just as easily?
He closed all his screens once more before taking a deep breath.
"Weapons."
At his command, the familiar interface flickered back into existence. Relieved that it was still present, he eagerly reached through the screen and felt his fingers close around the hilt of the dagger as he pulled it back into the real world.
"Incredible," Julius breathed in astonishment. He doubted this spatial magic could be used outside these dungeons. He was eager to test out its capability for food storage if he came across any. "Alright time to move on!"
Minutes later, his confidence was shot down as several pairs of quadruple eyes watched him from the shadows. He… he was such a fool, to now just realized that those two Dregs he had killed previously must have been scouts on patrol. When they had not returned, the others must have realized an intruder was now in their lair.
There was nothing he could do about it now, bring up the dagger in defense. Though his pose must have been seen as someone as a challenge to their many eyes. Two Dregs immediately abandoned their cover to come charging at him, both shouting in a language he couldn't understand.
They moved in unison. One would attack him head-on, while another dried to get behind. He could only evade so much, and the serrated blades still manage to wound him – not mortally, but enough to raise his fatigue and weaken his resilience with shallow bloody cuts.
He grunted as four pairs of arms encircled his waist and threw him against a hard concrete floor. Julius wheezed, feeling the breath knocked out of him, but opened his eyes just in time as the second drag brought its blade down above his head. Thankfully no paralyzing fear had immobilized him this time, as he raised his own dagger to block the fatal blow.
Gritting his teeth as the monsters bore down upon Julius, his free hand curled into a tight fist…
[Arc Melee Activated]
…Before he slammed it against the face of the Dreg pinning him.
CRACK!
He hadn't expected much, but those four arms fell slack around him, and the monster crumbled lifelessly to the side. One punch? Had he killed one of those creatures with just one punch?!
The other Dreg shared his astonishment as it immediately backed off, growling menacingly at him as he climbed back up to his feet. He curled his hand into a fist again, gaining some satisfaction as the monster tensed, but it was just a bluff. Whatever attack Julius had used, had a cool down he could feel and it would be sometime before he would be able to use it again.
The lone Dreg snarled, perhaps seeing through the bluff as it called out to its' allies.
'Dammit! Just how many are there?!'
Julius quickly counted at least a pack of twelve emerge from the shadows.
There was no way he could fight that many with just a dagger. Maybe one or two, at most; the rest would attack from his blind spots. He would have to weed their numbers down somehow…
'But how?!'
He held his dagger up against in a tight white-knuckled grip, while his other arm trembled at his side. His fingers clenched and unclenched, and he could suddenly feel something spark in the palm of his hand. Looking down, a flash of pale blue light quickly caught his attention, and the sparks were small bolts of – electricity? - gathered in a tight little ball.
Not knowing why Julius knew this ability was what he needed to weed his enemies down
[Arc bolt Grenade Activated]
'Grenade?!'
Probably not something he ought to hold onto for too long. With a growl he through the pulsing energy in their direction, and watched in amazement as bolts of lightning filled the corridor, chaining and electrocuting several Dregs at once.
Ping!
[XP Bonus for the multi-grenade kill! You've leveled up!]
Ping!
[You've leveled up!]
[Julius Kingsly is now Level 3! Skill tree now unlocked.]
[Hunter ability: Blade Dancer is now charged and unlocked. Activate?]
Six smoking corpses hit the ground and turned into piles of ash.
There were still seven left alive.
He smirked, stepping over the dead and watched his enemies flinch away in fear.
"Activate."
End Chapter One
Author's Notes:
So for those who have played or heard of Destiny, there is a Warlock class that I initially intended Lelouch/Julius to be. However, the Hunter class provided abilities I could picture him using in the actual Code Geass world, like stealth and assassination. Not throwing miniature Fleija-bombs and going all Palpatine-storm-caller on the Britannian armies. Whether or not these monsters from either Destiny or Solo Leveling appear outside the dungeons and into the CG remains to be unseen.
Review Responses:
Ghostly: I apologize for any trauma caused by my old kink meme Britannia-cest days. Don't worry there won't be any of that in this story. C.C. and Kallen are fine and hiding from the Britannian authorities just like they were before R2.
Ash: Thanks for your comment! Hopefully, this chapter doesn't disappoint.
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