Crossroads
Chapter 3
Disclaimer: Again, I don't own Code Geass nor even Lelouch or any of them. XD
Note: As i said in the summary, Lelouch will be Julius Kingsley. He will appeared as Julius in maybe another 2 or 3 more chapters. So, please be patient :)
Lelouch felt his head being super heavy. It was like tying his head to a rock. The raven hair lad woke up and realised everything seemed to be white in colour. A bright light shined right into his eyes as he head faint voices. His vision was blurred and he could rarely see what's around him. But he managed to see the faces of the people in front of him. They looked unfamiliar to him except for the surgical masks. Surgeons?
"Your Majesty, this will cause a slight pain. Don't worry." A reassuring voice said. Then, Lelouch felt something pricking on his skin and then his vision turned dark.
Kallen Kozuki leaned against the chair right in front of the Emergency Room. It had been hours since Lelouch had been admitted to the emergency room. The doctor had told them Lelouch's condition was pretty bad and he himself was not sure whether the Emperor will live. Kallen looked at the exhausted Zero and C.C sitting beside her. C.C had dozed off with the Cheese-kun in her arms while Zero...no Suzaku...well she was not sure whether he was sleeping as he was still in the mask. Near the window, gazing outside was Jeremiah who seemed to be more worried than she about Lelouch. Polices guarded the whole floor and no reporters or outsiders are allowed to be in.
Suzaku had ordered Milly to bring Nunnally to somewhere safe with Sayako while the other captives; the Black Knight are released and allowed to return home. She don't know who released Schneizel but Kallen guessed it was Nina who is very loyal to the UFN leaders had been released by a representative of their nations. The shootings had caused a chaos and had caused the reporters from around the globe to flock to the hospital. It seemed that news of The Demon Emperor assassination sells better than Zero's truce with the Emperor. Everyone loathed the Emperor and wanted Lelouch dead. After all who doesn't hate a demon?
Kallen sighed. No one knew the truth behind everything other than Kallen, Suzaku, C.C and Jeremiah. Everyone thought Lelouch was evil from the outside and also the inside. The saddest thing was his beloved sister, Nunnally thought the same after Lelouch forced her to give the Damocles key using Geass. Since then, Nunnally never forgive her brother nor even looked into his face. Kallen sometimes felt life had been harsh on Lelouch. He lost his mother, was exiled with his sister who was crippled, lost his title as a Prince, lived as a commoner in Japan, became Zero, the Emperor and finally...is this his end? Lelouch will die young?
Kallen checked her watch. It was almost 5 hours since Lelouch was shot by an unknown sniper. Jeremiah had ordered the police force to investigate the case and find the suspect but they couldn't find any evidence. The scope of the area was too wide and the number of people there is unknown. The police can't find any eye witness of the sniper nor the direction where the bullets came from. Some saw it from the east while some say it was from west. Who shot Lelouch? That's the second question that lingered in their minds now. Who? Does Lelouch had another enemy? Emperor Charles? Nah, he's dead. Schneizel? Impossible! He had been geassed!
"Who?" Kallen said to herself. Then, the door of the Emergency room opened. A doctor came out. "Which one of you is His Majesty family members?" The bespectacled doctor asked. Zero, C.C woke up from their sleep.
"Er...I'm afraid none of them are here, doctor" Kallen replied. Jeremiah came forward. "I am His Majesty's second knight beside the missing Knight of Zero." He said. Kallen looked at Suzaku in Zero suit. He shrugged. The doctor nodded. "Alright. Actually, His Majesty had lost much blood. We need someone to donate blood to him. His Majesty is of A blood type" the doctor said. Everyone looked at each other. Suzaku was of O blood but he can't reveal his identity as Suzaku in Zero's identity. C.C doesn't even know her blood type while Kallen was of B blood. The only person whom they can hope for was...Jeremiah. All eyes were on the blue hair knight.
"Jeremiah, what is your blood type?" Kallen asked. "A" he answered. The doctor nodded. "Good. Follow me, Margrave Gottwald" he said. Jeremiah followed the doctor leaving the three there. Another doctor, this time a surgeon appeared. Kallen and Suzaku jumped at him, almost scaring the surgeon off.
"Doctor! How is Lelouch?" Kallen asked. The surgeon by the name of Dr. Arbuckle hesitated. His face showed a bit fear. Suzaku and Kallen stared at the surgeon anxiously. C.C yawned.
"Well, we have removed six bullets from His Majesty's body. There is nothing severe. Most of the shots did not hit the main organs. But" he paused. Then he continued "I...the Emperor knocked his head pretty hard on the ground. And I am afraid there is a big blood clot in his head. We have our experts here to remove. However I cannot guarantee condition of the Emperor after the operation. There is a high possibility he might not be fit to be the Emperor anymore"
The three of the gasped. Lelouch...can't be an emperor anymore? Kallen looked at Suzaku. Suzaku was too shocked. He did not expect the incident to have cause more troubles to Lelouch's life. The supposedly Great King can no longer be a King? What the hell?
"Well, Zero-sama and Miss Stadfteld, I am afraid I have to leave. You may visit the emperor now. Dr. Lawson's nurse had already transfer the blood to His Majesty." Dr. Arbuckle said and then left the scene. Jeremiah had returned back with a cotton wool placed on his hand. He frowned upon looking at their faces. They looked in great despair and had sour faces.
"Orange, His Majesty had huge blood clot in his head. And it might make him unfit to be the Emperor forever if the operation failed" Suzaku explained. Jeremiah face fall. He gasped and gaped. "Impossible!" He shouted.
(A week after the incident)
Somewhere in an unknown island, there was a knightmare hidden behind the thick forest. A bon fire had started and a man was sitting on a stack of wood. He toosed some firewood into the fire. The man had very light brown and quite long hair. He seemed to be like a hunter judging from his fur coated jacket and a cowboy hat and jeans. His boots were torn and dirty.
Kanon Maldini watched the fire danced. It had been months since he last saw his prince, Schneizel and he missed his life as Schneizel's assistant so much. Life was so mundane without helping the Second Prince with all his devious plan. Kanon sighed. He grabbed the
kalashnikov gun, a type of gun that can fire many bullets quickly from his by Mikhail Kalashnikov, a Russian who created the Kalashnikov gun, Kanon was first introduced to this gun by Schneizel himself when first worked for the Prince. The very gun in his hands now was given by Schneizel to Kanon on the 3rd year of his service to the Prince as a symbol of gratitude. Kanon felt very honoured to receive the gun and took really good care of it. Since then, he swore to kill every enemy of Prince Schneizel with this gun. The Kalashnikov gun had served him well, he managed to annihilate most of Schneizel's enemy.
Just as he reloaded the gun, Kanon heard footsteps coming towards him. The footsteps were soft and rhythmic. It was coming from his left. Kanon quickly aimed his gun at the direction. Who is it? "Did they sent them here? They knew it was me?" He whispered. Then, he gasped as he saw the intruder.
The Hospital
Lelouch opened his eyes. He realised himself in a white room. He tried to lift his arm and found an I.V drip connected to his arm. The scent of antibiotics filled the air and it made him dizzy. Lelouch got up from his sleeping position and leaned against the wall with a pillow behind.
The raven hair lad looked around. "Where am I? Hospital?" He glanced around for any signs that might indicate where he was. However there was nothing that could help him. Lelouch smacked his head. He tried to remember where and how did he reached here. Rubbing his forehead, he thought to himself. He saw flashes of blurred images in his mind and then blood. Then everything was pitch black. He remembered hearing gunshots and then screams. Lelouch hit himself again. Think! Remember!
Then a question hit him. What is his name? "My name? Wh-wait. Who am I?" He muttered. Lelouch's eyes wide opened. His mind was blank. Then the door opened. A man with a fancy black costume and wore a mask together with a fiery red hair girl and a tall blue haired man entered the room. Behind them was a brunette nurse and a blonde haired bespectacled doctor. They were shocked to see Lelouch had woke up.
"Lelouch! You are awake!" Kallen exclaimed. She rushed to his bed with a delight face. The doctor and the nurse rushed to him and checked his condition. Lelouch stared at them with puzzled face. Who are they? He backed behind and tried to push them away.
"Who are you guys? Why am I here?" He shouted. The visitors gasped. They shot him a quizzical look. "Your Majesty? What are you talking about?" Jeremiah asked. Lelouch frowned. He grabbed forehead. Your Majesty? What? I am an Emperor? He whispered. As he thought about it, he felt a sharp pain in his head.
Groaning, he shouted "I am not the goddamn Emperor you guys are talking about!" His voice echoed throughout the room. C.C felt her ear drums hurts. In anger, Lelouch threw the pillow at Suzaku. "Just get out! Out!"
C.C guffawed. She nudged Kallen's elbow. "Look, your Lelouch is telling us that he is a goddamn emperor!" She whispered. Kallen blushed when she heard the word 'your'. The doctor signalled the nurse to inject Lelouch so that he will calm down. Jeremiah and Suzaku held Lelouch while the nurse injected him. Soon, Lelouch had fallen asleep.
"Doctor Lawson, care to explain what is wrong?" Suzaku asked the doctor. Lelouch turned and sensed the voice was very familiar. Doctor Lawson adjusted his glasses. "His Majesty might have suffered some side effects after the surgery. In his case, it might be memory loss, Zero-sama" the doctor deduced.
"Me-Memory loss? That means he no longer remember anything?" Jeremiah blurted out. The doctor nodded. "I am not sure whether is it short term or long term. We shall examined his condition, Margrave Gottwald." Kallen looked at Lelouch in disbelief. Lelouch loss his memory? Everything gone? Then she heard soft chuckled from behind. She turned and saw C.C appearing from nowhere with her pizza again. She seemed not shocked by the news but instead, amused.
"Wow, Lelouch reset his brain? How interesting...he think this is a video game" she guffawed. Kallen glared at her. C.C ignored and continued making fun of Lelouch's condition. Suzaku ticked the two to get out from the room if they continued to be noisy. The two girls kept quiet and stood there like a child been sent to detention. Suzaku sighed. He asked the doctor.
"Is there any cure?" The doctor hesitated and then explained "Suffering from amnesia after knocking your head hardly is common. Typically the victim suffers two types of memory defect: retrograde amnesia, forgetting pretrauma events, and anterograde amnesia, not retaining what's happening now. The length of the period rendered inaccessible can range from minutes to years."
"So how many years would it take for His Majesty to recover?" Jeremiah asked.
"Depends"
Suzaku twitched. How can Lelouch ruled the Empire without his memory? He would have forgotten most of everything even the assassination of his mother and his fought against the empire as Zero. A blank Emperor on the throne is like having no Emperor at all. The other royal members will seized the chance to fight for the throne and chaos will ensued.
"Don't tell anyone about the Emperor's condition. Make sure the news doesn't spread. We can't afford for another chaos. Orange, sent the forces to hunt for the assassin. Kallen, C.C, I trust you to keep this secret ok? And also Doctor Lawson and the nurse" Suzaku ordered with a stern voice. They nodded.
"Kallen,C.C keep an eye on Lelouch. No cat fights ok?" Suzaku said and then followed Jeremiah, the doctor and the nurse out of the room. He spotted the reporters trying to sneak into the restricted corridors of Lelouch's room. Polices were trying their best to prevent any of them from sneaking in. Unfortunately to err is human. One of the reporters managed to slip through and jumped at Suzaku.
"Zero-sama! How is the Emperor's condition now? What do you think of this incident? Is this an assassination?"
Suzaku hesitated. What should he say? The Demon Emperor has lost his memory? He is in stable condition? Dead? Not sure? Suzaku sighed. He tried to scratched his head but he remembered he had a mask on. A policeman came and pulled the reporter away.
"Lelouch is destined to lead the world to peace. He must not die" Euphie's word ringed in his ears again. Suzaku nodded. He must make sure Lelouch's image as Demon Emperor is replaced with the Great Emperor. He must brain washed the citizens' mind. Suzaku looked at the reporter.
"His Majesty is safe. However he has not fully recovered yet. A good news to all citizens of Britannia. The Emperor had promised not to cause more misery to the people and will lead the Empire to a brighter future. That's all I can say" Suzaku walked away to another direction. The reporters bombarded more questions and sounded like bees humming. Cameras flashed non stop even though Suzaku was no longer there.
Suzaku headed to the main entrance of the hospital and saw a car waiting for him. The driver opened the door. Suzaku quickly entered the car to avoid seeing all those snobbish reporters. When the door closed, he heaved a sigh. "It's just only a day being Zero and i am exhausted!" He mumbled. Leaning against the seat, he instructed the driver to drive. But the driver did not move at all. He was staring at something beside Suzaku. Suzaku raised his eyebrow and turned to see what's had been bothering the driver.
"Zero-sama" a voice as proud and authoritative as Lelouch but more cunning said. Suzaku gasped. Beside him was Schneizel! The blonde prince chuckled at Suzaku's reaction. He sat there and signalled the driver to drive. The driver nodded. Schneizel sat criss crossed and watched the crowd outside. Suzaku swore he saw him smirking.
"What's the matter Schneizel? Appearing out from nowhere is not like you" Suzaku said with slight caution. Although Lelouch had already geassed Schneizel to obey all Zero's command, Suzaku was still sceptical to put his guard down. After all Schneizel and Lelouch shared the same blood. Lelouch can perform miracles so do Schneizel. Perhaps the geass failed to control Schneizel or perhaps-
Before Suzaku could finish thinking, Schneizel interrupted. "Zero, how is my brother?" He asked. Suzaku took a deep breath. "He's fine." He paused. Suzaku decided to test whether the geass still works. "Don't ask me anything, Schneizel"
Schneizel stared at him. Suzaku's heart pounded hard and fast. Did it work? It took a long time for Schneizel to react. "Yes,Zero" he said in a monotonous voice. Suzaku heaved a sigh of relief. Luckily...He turned away and looked at the scenery outside. Suzaku sensed Schneizel was still staring at him. He gave another command.
"Don't stare at me"
"Yes,Zero"
The whole journey was smooth except for one thing. Suzaku did not realise of the absence of red rings in Schneizel's eyes. Schneizel looked away and smirked. "You think I don't know who you are...Suzaku Kururugi" he whispered and smiled deviously.
Author's note
Yea! Another chapter of Crossroads! Please review! It motivates me to write better! :) And for those readers who are wondering how could I submit another chapter this fast, well...I am really free during this season. However the speed of my story update doesn't mean the quality of my story will worsen. I assure readers that each chapters are written with much soul and passion in it. Thanks for reading!