#“c.c. code geass” and “c.c.” seem like the best

[perfectpurplevelvet]

i've been in the code geass fandom for a year now and i still haven't figured out how i should tag c.c.'s name here

#cc #cc code geass #c.c. #c.c. code geass THERE'S SO MANY OPTIONS AND I STILL HAVEN'T BEEN ABLE TO STABLISH ONE FOR ME TO USE UGHHHHHHH

[codegeassfacts]

C.C. x Lelouch Side Material and Statements post R2 //Canon

I'm making this article in order to have a full article about everything canon about C.C., because I found an article about them which was mixing canon release like character poem and profile and non canon ones like novels or editors article from magazines, which led a lot of people to be confused or mislead about C.C.. In this article you'll only find canon material, which means, no content from the magazines like Newtype, megami, Animage or Animedia, as those are text made up by editors or novelist, they don't come from the staff; unless of course, those are interviews, or staff release content (Like the Newtype booklet from 2008 which came with the Newtype but was filled with staff information/comments) Same for novels, for Code Geass, novels aren't canon, they are made up and more like headcanons and interpretation from the author who wrote thoseas as confirmed by Mamoru Isawa (Code Geass novels authors) and Goro Taniguchi (Code Geass anime director) in a discussion they had at tht end of one of the first novels.) Anything that's not from the staff is made up (that's why a lot of novels contradict each other and even canonical event from the show)

Those are canonical release that you can use to understand what C.C. was about in canon OG (and some elements about her relationship with Lelouch) Enjoy !

(I only added the during R2 and post R2 release, as they are those which holds most the answers about C.C.)

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So For C.C. We have her R2 character Song, Connect, which is a lovely song i'd advice anyone to listen :

CODE GEASS Lelouch of the Rebellion R2 Sound Episode 1 CONNECT / YUKANA

You can’t see ahead, you can’t read tomorrow Your face from the side looks distressed Searching for the answer, your heart is withering You hide your weakness, too It’s okay even if you cry softly Remove your mask of bravado Because on a night with only the two of us, I’ll accept you You’re not alone

I’m embracing you with my heart Spreading my wings that envelop you Even when the times are good, even when it’s not so I’m by your side Everything is cold to you And the dark night seems to be endless Nevertheless, because the beginning will take place, I’m always watching you

Because even when we’re able to understand or oppose each other I’m supporting you I’ll promise you, you may believe in me Our encounter was inevitable You softly and tenderly Wiped away my teardrops Because your clumsy fingers are warm

I’m not alone If you would overtake yesterday’s dream And stand still somewhere Then close your eyes and feel me I’m by your side

Because even if the season when the two of us Will be walking on separate paths comes someday I’ll become the wind connecting the remote starry sky It’s okay even if you cry softly Remove your mask of bravado Because on a night with only the two of us, I’ll accept you

You’re not alone I’m embracing you with my heart Spreading my wings that envelop you Even when the times are good, even when it’s not so I’m by your side

Everything is cold to you And the dark night seems to be endless Nevertheless, because the beginning will take place, I’m always watching you

Note : This song is lovely and filled with tenderness and care for Lelouch, I think it fits perfectly her feelings toward the end, where she was finally there to comfort him; She can see his suffering and wants to watch over him, it's a more positive view of what she feels when it comes to his pain that of her poem, which holds a certain darkness. I think Yukana's statement about C.C.'s feelings being akin to those of a goddess could fit, but seiyuu's views aren't canon material so it's up to interpretation (especially since we have no canon answer about her feelings)

****************************** C.C.'s regret message from the Code Geass Complete Best.

Waga Routashi Aku no Hana (My Beautifully Elegant Flower of Evil)

From the entire beginning, I should have warned you. That the power of the king would isolate you. You will lose your friends, become different from your childhood friend, and you will be betrayed by your subordinates.

Your parents will vanish from your sight, your siblings will disappear like dew.

Yes, it's terribly burdensome. And pitiful.

Now, your sole companion is solitude. There is nobody who will embrace you, who has been smeared in blood. Rocks have been pelted at you by many, and as retribution, you trampled over them. At that time, nobody noticed that the shriek that was secretly welling up inside your heart.

Yes, it's pitiful. Seeing that visage, my wounds often throbbed. Now, I think you to be dear because you are miserable. As the pain kept stabbing your tender heart, why does this feeling of solitude gradually heal?

The whole world is pelting rocks at you, showering you with insults. That is something the I have experienced from this world.

Without realizing, you have shared me in my solitude. Without knowing, you shouldered my sins.

It's as if you are a poisonous amaryllis blooming from the ground. Only I know of its elegence.

Note : C.C.'s character poem is actually quite dark, she talks about Lelouch's burden and explains how, while he was shouldering more and more pain, she was slowly healing, she even came to say that seeing him in pain had her growing more attached to him;

Not to say that C.C. Is some kind of sadistic, but we get the feeling that most of all, her solitude and her past trauma are what burdened C.C. the most, with Lelouch having to deal with the same misery, she was able to heal, as if he was taking this misery instead. I know some C.C. fans weren't happy about her poem and the undertones of it, it's more obvious in japanese but it implies strongly that C.C. used Lelouch to achieve happiness. I personally absolutely love this poem, because It's a very sad, and yet incredibly elegant poem, like C.C. and I think it fits her perfectly.

************************

Code Geass picture drama Turn 9.34

While Lelouch, C.C. and Kallen conduct a mission in China, and Lelouch gets fed up as ending up cross dressing as a woman, C.C. ends up showing a bit of envy at the thought of how fun the school crossdressing festival and activies looked, and Lelouch tell her when they get everything back, if she wants to be a student, she'll be able to experiment this life (The whole thing end up in classical Lelouch/C.C. banter with her planning to open a pizza club and having Lelouch as the vice president)

Note : While it echoes Turn 9 and Lelouch asking Kallen to get back to Ashford with him, it's still quite different, since Lelouch doesn't ask for C.C. to come but he notices she is interested and he reacts in telling her she'll be able to do those things she wants to do if she wants to. He basically shows he cares in a very Lelouch way, and we still get a nice banter between them so it definitely belonged there.

You can watch it here

Code Geass picture Drama Turn 22.05

You can watch it here

This picture drama happens right before Turn 22 and allows a talk between Cecile and C.C. where they talk about their aspirations, past and about their relationship with Lelouch and Suzaku ; It's actually pretty interesting for C.C. since Cecile actually asks her if she loves Lelouch and she doesn't seem to know (In Turn 24 she'll give a very similar answer to Kallen); It's very interesting to have this talk between those two older ladies who have been watching over the boys from their side during the show.

My own analysis : For C.C.s feelings I think it fits the major theme of her character, Lelouch made her feel human again through a contract which became a promise, so she certainly has an hard time figuring out what Lelouch is to her, even though he is special. We have to remember this woman lived for hundred of years and her views of feelings and love in general might very well different of the one of those who lived only for a few years compared to her.

******************************

NT Booklet : The only content of interest about C.C. and Lelouch is in the Turn 24 corner and about this picture drama, the staff talk about how they thought it would be nice to have C.C. in a long gown playing lyre; They also say that C.C.'s role was to watch over Lelouch till the end (The rest is about Schneizel, his world and Suzaku and C.C. believing in Lelouch's world)

**************************

And Last but not least, C.C.'s various official profile :

CC profile on Geass*net (Geassnet was a website available through cellphone only in japan it was run by the staff and had a fee of 300 yen/month to access to it) You can see those profile being refered in various forums, community, or in wikipedia (there were picture of the various profile but photobucket didn't kept them because this website really suck)

"Knowing that Lelouch does not hate her for giving him the Geass, she is now able to show her true feelings. With the realization of "Zero Requiem", her time with Lelouch, who was able to forgive and accept her, came to an end, but the memories created with him has, without doubt, saved her from eternal loneliness."

C.C. Profile on the Code Geass R2 Complete Official Guidebook :

"After she found the orphan child of Marianne, and because of what happened with Mao, C.C. chose to not give geass to the young Lelouch and to watch as he grows, but she was captured by Bartley. When C.C. found Lelouch in Shinjuku, she gave him Geass to save him from a dire situation. To Lelouch, who was devoted to fight for his desire and got intoxicated by the power of Geass, C.C. declared, "You and I are accomplices" ; It is a self-defense measure born from her experience with Mao. Surprisingly, Lelouch kept respecting the position of an accomplice.

While she is entrusted to be a body-double and negotiator, he never asked for her to be a mother-figure or a lover; It is thanks to Lelouch that C.C. was able to be considered an equal for the first time as a partner.

Lelouch, who promised to fulfill her wish despite the unfair conditions, became a special existence to C.C.; When C.C. was trying to protect him in exchange for her life, Lelouch hoped for her to live and repeatedly said “I will surely make you smile!”. To answer those feelings, C.C. sealed her code and resisted Charles. She chose to believe in Lelouch.

Her trust wasn't betrayed. Even when she lost her memory, Lelouch did not stop being kind [to her], and when he launched into battle resolved to kill his beloved sister if it came to it, he did not utter a single word of hatred.

This is probably why C.C. has found the resolve to live for a long time. "Hurry up and go. Then come back. You're going to make me smile, aren't you?" As C.C.'s words suggest, what she received from the partner she finally met after hundreds of years, was a powerful "promise"."

***Note: The major theme behind C.C.'s story appears to be the evolution of a contract between witch and human to a promise between two human beings. In another one of those Code Geass ironies, C.C. became human by choosing to keep her immortality.

** All the translations were made by Galvea, Lixiangxing, Blottyparchment, Koshimizu, Roon, Lie, i only double checked since I owned the material (Those translators are part of those who worked hard to translate most of the material which was available during and after the Anime airing; You can find a lot of discussion about those over the internet on Gamefaqs/Livejournal/Animesuki if you want to triple check.)

Main source

Note : I know some part of her profile launched some riot in 2ch back in the Geass airing days (a lof of side material did actually.) but I think it eventually fits the show, even though everything wasn't crystal clear, especially when it comes to C.C., who suffered a lack of screentime in R2 (especially compared to season 1) While I was first a Lelouch x C.C. shipper during my airing days watch, I found myself not shipping them much as a romance (I still very much enjoy their relationship, but I have a different view of it now) when I rewatched it years later, it just felt different from what I thought i had seen at first, so I can now say I understand those profile and informations better and am not really surprised. Above all relationship matter, the fact Lelouch forgave C.C. and never hold any grudge against her has probably saved her from her loneleliness, and to be treated as a human being again, with this powerful promise, has certainly done wonder to her.

I would have loved a sequel with C.C. wandering around the world and discovering more of her humanity. There were so many great things to do with such a character within the canon timeline, but sometimes I think they created a character way too complicated to write and that's why they never were able to actually use her to her full potential.

As a Bonus I'd like to add this short snippet of Yukana's blog (C.C.'s seiyuu) that she wrote after the end of R2.

It surprised me that so many would ask me what C.C.'s real name is. I'm happy that so many are interested to know. I'm sorry! Taniguchi has cast a geass upon me... C.C.'s name is... Au..Au.. (it's a cute sound she often write on her blog) Eh? What was it? My apologies! I've forgotten! >_< That's how it's become. I think I'll cherish this name until the day I (C.C.) meet someone who I really want him to call me by the real name

I thought that while the whole thing was incredibly cute (at the same time, Yukana is), the last line was even sweeter. That's about it for C.C., Hope her fans enjoyed.

[alicent-vi-britannia]

Hi! I just recently got back from your Kagino and Kalulu's analysis (a new Code Geass fan here, hello!) and can I just say that I agree too to your analysis? Especially, with how forced and (sudden?) the Kagino ship is. If I may ask for your opinion too regarding other pairing unrelated to Kallen or Lelouch (but if not, feel free to ignore this ask! it's a-no problem), do you think Schneizel x Kanon ship are canon in the series? or is it just a ship that the fans made up too due to Kanon's and Clovis' words regarding Schneizel in R2 picture drama?

The truth is that "forced" is the best term to describe the Kagino ship. I learned from a fan who was present at the R2 stream that Kagino was a ship that the media made up after they tried to push a Kallen x Xingke ship and it didn't work out. Kagino is a ship that only Suzalulu and CluClu fanboys cling to, why? Because Kallen stands between Lelouch and the target of their interest (i.e. C.C. and Suzaku).

What's funny about all this is that Kallen and Gino don't have a romantic relationship in the series (not even in the AU did the creators dare to pair them up, considering the AU is solely supported by fanservice), just as Lelouch and C.C. don't have one. Neither do Lelouch and Suzaku have a romantic relationship. The problem is that fans can't watch a boy and a girl interact without believing that they are romantically attracted to each other, just like fujoshis can't resist shipping the two male protagonists. All of that I'm telling you is a reflection of the fact that society thinks that men and women can't be friends, as well as that two men/boys can't have an emotional and affectionate connection without being a homosexual couple. It's crap.

By the way, I like that you talk about ships because I think we should differentiate ships from relationships. People can ship whatever characters they want, but they can't force their ships or the crazy ideas they have about them on canon. Kalulu, Kagino, CluClu and Suzalulu are ships, but only Kallen and Lelouch had a romantic relationship in the series among those here (that they didn't stay together and we don't know exactly if Lelouch reciprocated her feelings is another issue).

About Kanon and Schneizel, they don't say it explicitly in the series or in the Pictures Dramas, but there are enough clues that they are in a homosexual relationship (or that, at least, Schneizel is not straight). It's something that doesn't refute the canon. It should be a ship supported more by fans, especially fujoshis who are hungry for ships. They seem to have a healthy relationship and that's something hard to find in Code Geass.

[silver-wield]

I haven't watched it but as far as I have seen in yt videos it seems like there are multiple love interest? but at the end Mc ends up with Cc and everyone excepted it. I always have thought that those two are meant to be. What I'm curious is- was there also ship wars about the end game and canonicity between Lelouch and Cc? Was there even a debate just like we do on ff7. I hope in part 3 everything solve this ship drama and brings a little peace even tho I know there'll always be some

Took me a sec to realise you mean Code Geass. I stay out of the fandom. FFVII ruined all fandoms for me. I don't wanna argue over stupid shit and have people give me shit for the ship I like.

I ship Lelouche with C.C. I acknowledge Kallen has a thing for Zero, and the dead girl (can't remember her name and didn't like her anyway) preferred Lelouche, but C.C. knew and liked all sides of him, so that's why I like them best. They also have great chemistry together ❤️

Cloud and Tifa are canon. There's only people who accept canon and people who deny it. The ones who deny it are dumb as a bag of rocks.

[ye-local-simp]

Okay okay so I know this might seem confusing but can I request for a reader that's like C.C. from Code geass

Note : Ok, this wasn't a confusing request but I didn't know who you wanted it to be for so I just did two of the common ones which would be Dazai and Chuuya.

[When their S/o is like C.C]

[Dazai,Chuuya]

Dazai:

-Your personality clashes with his way too much.

-He is very affectionate whilst you are more sarcastic and don'tlike to admit your feelings.

- Despite this, Dazai understands your negativity because he also understands what it feels like to have traumatic experiences.

-Dazai understands that you have your secrets but will constantly try to make you tell him.

-You two think of ways to do double suicide,it's only taking long because you two want it to be the best double suicide possible.

-He is mostly happy for you if you are immortal but disheartened that if you two don't double suicide, he would have to leave you while you live a depressing life.

-Very kind and gentle with you, even if you are a bit stubborn but you later gain trust for him and he never failed.

-Glad to help you settle in society or if anything, settle with him rather than society.

- Later on, you do become genuinely positive due to his influence.

Chuuya:

- Due to the personality differences, you two use to argued a lot even if wasn't anything personal.

-When he finds out,you are immortal, he is amazed but he does realise the awful parts to this as well.

- He also understands you to the fullest as he has been betrayed by society just like you, is sarcastic just like you and is pretty cynical about life, just like you .

-At first, your relationship was pretty toxic but soon you two generally fell happy with each other, making it drastically less toxic.

-Over the course of the relationship, you do realise that you both are starting to argue less and less.

- You both love to go on dates despite the arguments which increasingly influenced you to feel more optimistic than always having a negative attitude even though you are just as sarcastic as you always were.

[sweet-evie]

geass enigma—4,5,7,11

😱 OMG Legit, wasn't expecting this xD Thank you for the interest~ 😁 I thought ya'll were going for the completed fics, but I ain't complaining if anyone wants to know more about the current WIP.

Sooo... 🤩

The Geass Enigma

4: What's your favorite line of dialogue? So far, none xD I don't have one yet. Because I haven't written the proceeding chapters yet, and we're not too far in the story. But if I did have to pick one for the current chapters we have, I guess it's:

"Why not? You seem to like it when Jeremiah or Sayoko call you 'Master' or 'Lord.' You didn't even correct Lloyd when he kept calling you 'Your Excellency.' Would you prefer I address you as Sayoko does, and say 'Sir'? Or maybe just 'Warlock' works for you."

~ C.C. to L.L.

5: What part was hardest to write?

All of it xD Am I allowed to say that this early on in the writing process? I think the part that will give me the most challenge is how to weave the romance with the actual plot. 😅 Because I constantly catch myself struggling between the romance and the adventure part. I don't even know if I'm doing it right, or if I'm forcing it in -- and of course, I sincerely hope for the former. But that all remains to be seen. 😆

7: Where did the title come from?

The Geass Enigma is going to be my fanfic attempt to flesh out the origin of the Code and the Geass. And since 'engima' means 'something that is mysterious, puzzling, or difficult to understand', I think it's perfect for what I hope this story will eventually cover.

11: What do you like best about this fic?

Aside from my blatant Lelouch/C.C. shipping? 😅 I like the outline I made for it so far. As far as this WIP goes, I've got the skeleton down -- I know where this story will go, I know the ending, I've got the middle parts, and the sequences lined up. Now, it just needs muscle, flesh, and breath -- all three of which will come from the writing. Easier said than done, but I would love to do it. 😁

The Geass Enigma is a mixed bag of I've been wanting to write since December 2020.

I've been wanting to write a Post-Re;surrection fic for C.C. and L.L. for the longest time, and a fanfic that explores the origins of Geass in a canon-like setting. The big question was always the type of plot it would revolve around... That and my other desire to write about a particular video game franchise x Code Geass.

Weeellll~ Thanks to the lore behind this video game franchise, I think we can weave a fanfic explanation for Code and Geass.

The concept of the combination of the three (Post Re;surrection fic + Code & Geass origin + semi-video game franchise crossover) is what I like best about this fic so far. 😁

And I hope for the best... That I can finish it, no matter how slow my writing process is, these days. 😭

[linkspooky]

Top 5 Code Geass characters? Not sure if you've watched it or take asks on it (feel free to ignore if you don't).

I’ve watched and rewatched Code Geass like seven times. I have no idea if I even like it at this point, but I have an almost religious dedication to the Code Geass Lore. Code Geass is a hot mess as a whole, but very sadly it’s a hot mess that I am emotionally invested in. 

I only have two faves from the series, but they’re both all time faves for me, as well as an All-Time OTP. I’ve always interpreted Code Geass as a series with a pair of villain protagonists who because of their specific emotional damage really cannot connect to other people and in the end ultimately see the people around them as pawns to be used. 

Lelouch and C.C. just don’t see anyone else in the world as equal to them and their needs. The only people they recognize as people as each other, and that’s because each is so manipulative, in very similiar ways, that they both kind of force the other to acknowledge them. C.C. is Lelouch’s only true equal in the story, if only because she’s as manipulative and self centered as he is. They’re both willing to use the world as a game board to fulfill their desires, and when the game stops being fun they’ll set the board on fire. It’s a connection between a Witch and a Demon where Lelouch is the only one who can truly humanize C.C. and C.C. is the only one who can truly humanize Lelouch because they’re both so warped, but in similiar ways. 

They’re both aware that each party is manipulating the other, Lelouch uses C.C. and C.C. uses Lelouch, but rather than get upset about the strings that bind them, C.C. and Lelouch decide to dance on each other’s strings instead. 

1. Lelouch Vi Lamperouge 

As I said I prefer the intrepretation where C.C. and Lelouch are both villain antagonist. Some part of Lelouch might want to bring justice to the people of Japan, may want to enjoy his school life and have friends, but he’s never presently there in the moment. Ultimately I think everything Lelouch does is to satisfy the hurt feelings he’s had in him since childhood. He does have a lot of feelings, and a lot of his anger is justified, but it’s always going to be about Lelouch’s feelings first, everything else is secondary. Even when it comes to Nunnally, he doesn’t really think about what makes her happy, just his own wish to keep her safe and out of harm’s way at the cost of her agency. 

Lelouch is compelling because he’s an active character. He chooses to go to war with the world over what is ultimately over his own personal grudges. He’s at his strongest when he seems to legitimately believe his god complex, that he’s the one that can destroy the world, that he can make it anew, all by his choices. That’s why Lelouch’s Geass is absolute submission and control. Even if Lelouch wants to have friends and feel loved, ultimately every single person is defined by their utilitarian use to him. Lelouch also defines himself in utilitarian ways because he only makes connections with others that depend on him. As zero he’s the center of a rebellion and the rebellion is so incompetent without him they practically need him to continue surviving. Even the one person that Lelouch unconditionally loves Nunally, is also as a person almost completely dependent on him, emotionally and physically. 

Lelouch doesn’t really take other people’s choices or free will into account, doesn’t really care at all, because ultimately they’re not a part of his world. Which is why C.C. also complements him so well, because she’s the only one who can truly make Lelouch feel like he’s just a tool in someone else’s scheme. Ultimately though Lelouch comes off to me as a child who’s too smart for his own good. 

Which is why its compelling when a lot of his bad decisions blow up in his face. He doesn’t act as strategically as he claims, because it’s always about Lelouch’s own emotions, and Lelouch’s desires first, so despite being a leader he has a tendency to make poor choices. 

Lelouch is just, so tired of being a helpless child passed around from uncaring person to uncaring person and so determiend to leave his mark on the world because of it. He’s always been in the rebellion for his own personal reasons, and there’s a constant conflict with him on whether or not Lelouch truly wants to leave a better world, or he just wants to be the one to hold the world in his hands because that’s the control he’s been longing for his entire life. It makes a unique character who is very conflicted even to the absolute end of the series. 

2. C.C. 

Just like Lelouch C.C. really only enters into other people’s lives in order to use them. Her geass reflects the way she sees other people the same way that Lelouch’s does. C.C. developed a geass that made people unconditionally give love to her without her having to give them anything in return. If Lelouch uses people, then C.C. drains people like a vampire and then throws them away. Her treatment of Mao while a short arc in the anime ultimately is the best example of how casually C.C. can enter into, and completely destroy someone’s life. She didn’t even have the courtesy to kill him, she just left him alone when he became too much of a hassle. I don’t think C.C. spared him out of some sort of sentiment towards Mao, I honestly think she kept him alive because she did not care enough to kill him. She only killed him when he threatened her enough to become a nuisance. 

C.C. like Lelouch is fundamentally unable to connect to others because she doesn’t see them as people separate from herself with their own thoughts and feelings. She too, has all of these unresolved feelings that drive her. It’s just that the two of them channel those feelings in opposite ways. Lelouch wants to destroy the world, and C.C. wants to destroy herself. 

The reason C.C. allows Lelouch to get close is unlike Mao, he didn’t even try to get attached to her to begin with. Lelouch made it clear he only intended to use her, and they both started the relationship using one another. And that’s what C.C. wants because she can get love from anybody without giving them anything in return so love at this point means absolutely nothing to her. 

In using each other, Lelouch and C.C. sort of force the other to acknowledge their personhood in a way that they’ve never had to before. One of the funniest things to me if you consider the movies to be canon (including revival of lelouch) is that C.C.’s wish to die was denied by Lelouch, because he personally, selfishly, did not want her to die and he forced her to keep living. Then C.C. did the same thing and denied Lelouch his desire to martyr himself for the sake of the world by forcing him to be revived. They’re both such control freaks they won’t even let the other die on them. 

If Lelouch wants to have the world in his hands then C.C. is the opposite. She wants to have nothing to do with the world around her. Lelouch embraces benig a demon because it means that he personally has the power to control others. C.C. embraces the identity of a witch because she’s so used to isolation at this point that she wants others to exclude her, she wants to be castgiated, to be thrown out. That way the world has nothing to do with her. That way nothing she sees in front of her eyes truly matters. Lelouch can cause atrocities, and C.C. can watch them happen without batting an eye. 

No matter how wicked both of them try to be however, in the end both of them are human when they are around each other. They bring out the longing for genuine connection that they’ve both spent their entire lives trying to hide. 

[naruwitch]

Code Geass: Paladins of Voltron Chapter 37: Battle for Home

The entire perimeter of the Tokyo Settlement had crumbled. All power shorted out throughout the entire city, including the areas that haven't been destroyed yet. Any Galran-Brittainian forces on the ground had been crushed or scattered. Even the Galra vessels in the sky had been thrown off-guard, especially after the Castleship's massive attack, flying around frantically like drunken bees.

It was a window of confusion that the Voltron Coalition didn't let go to waste.

"ATTACK!"

Lelouch's booming cry from the head of Voltron was all the fleet needed to surge forward. Like shooting stars, the Seishins, Lancelot, Gawain, and any other upgraded Knightmares they had at their disposal launched into the settlement. From the sky, the Castleship's particle barrier rose once more, but it didn't retreat up into the clouds. Practically making up an army on its own, lasers and blasts from the barrier raining down on the Galra ships, providing much needed cover for the Black Knights in combat.

There were also ground Knightmares and additional troops on the ground, with Ohgi in the lead to take down any remaining straggling Britannian troops.

"Third Squad, take the media sector!" Tohdoh ordered as the map of the areas to secure appeared on his Knightmare's screen, "Sixth Squad, the harbor! Special Forces, suppress the lower levels! The rest of you, push in from the front! Leave the Galra forces to the Aerial troops! Focus on gathering intelligence on any remaining enemy ground forces! Quickly!"

"My soldiers! Hear me!" Cornelia shouted from within the Gawain, the Lancelot flanking her, "Push them back to the Britannian Government Bureau!"

"Yes, Princess!" her squadron answered as one, Guilford, Darlton, and Nonette's voices among them.

"Form sword!" Lelouch ordered. With a growl, Suzaku slammed his Bayard into the port and the weapon manifested. With a burst from its rockets, Voltron sped towards the closest Galra cruiser, the sword slicing through it like a hot knife through butter.

"Alright!" Rivalz exclaimed before pausing, Polaris's purr suddenly increasing, "What…?" the Blue Paladin suddenly gasped as the Bayard port slowly rose from the dashboard, "You sure?"

"What is it, Rivalz?" Lelouch questioned.

"Um, not sure, but Polaris wants to try something!"

"Let's do it then!" Milly exclaimed eagerly, similar feelings bouncing off the other Paladins as well.

"Here goes nothing then!" Rivalz shouted as he slammed his Bayard into the port.

Outside, the sword in Voltron's hand vanished, only for a blue outline to form on the robot's right shoulder. Grasping the cannon with both arms, a bright glow enveloped the muzzle before a flash exploded out, huge sonic waves escaping and racing towards another Galran vessel. The ship froze in mid-flight, the lights inside flickering dangerously before everything went dark, and the cruiser descended into the sea, humongous waves blasting away from the impact.

"Whoa! Nice!" Tamaki cheered from his Seishin as he and a few other Knightmares paused in flight to witness the display.

"That's a new one," Darlton muttered in awe, vaguely remembering the similar cannon that would appear on the Blue Lion's back from time to time. The knight would admit that while he hated having to fight the Paladins as enemies, as allies, they were incredible.

Nunnally barely noticed how her arms began to ache from squeezing them too hard as she stared down at her legs. She could vaguely hear the sounds of cannons and lasers flying outside as her brother, his friends, and other allies were fighting for the very fate of their home. And now, even after regaining her legs and sight, she still felt useless. She knew her brother had told her otherwise, but she couldn't stop the feeling of helplessness crawling through her body.

Why was it that every time she tried to help, to accomplish something good, it crumbled in her hands? At the zone, when her own father had raised guns at her and her family,  Lelouch had been the one to shield her, and she had just froze. Exactly like she had when-

"Nunnally, take a deep breath for me��" C.C.'s calm voice ordered softly, shaking her from what she now realized was a minor panic attack.

Still, she did her best to obey and took a shuddering breath in and out, slowly returning to herself.

"There, feeling better?" the immortal asked, her blunt voice laced with concern.

Nunnally swallowed but nodded slightly. Dragging her eyes from her legs, they landed on Euphemia, still unconscious in the pod behind her, but at least alive.

"...This is too much," Nunnally whispered, "Why did it come down to this? He… he tried to kill  Euphie. He tried to…"

Kill me… remained unsaid.

C.C. sighed, not in frustration but out of pure resignation and exhaustion. "There are simply people in this world who… aren't good, Nunnally. They won't accept anything unless it's for their benefit. I've met more than my fair share of those people in my long life."

Nunnally grit her teeth, tears prickling the corners of her eyes. "Yes, I know that… And I know big brother told me this isn't true, but I still feel useless! Brother and the others are all fighting, risking their lives, and I still can't do anything even with my sight and legs back!"

C.C. took a moment to gather her thoughts. This wasn't Lelouch, who she could be straightforward and factual with in her nearly emotionless tone. This was a scared, desperate young girl who had been thrown time and again into situations she shouldn't have to deal with.

"...Nunnally, just because you aren't out there fighting doesn't mean you're useless. Everyone has a role to play in war. Some find their roles right away like the Paladins did. Others discover their roles later, waiting and watching for the time to come. That act alone can be excruciating. And there are even those who don't realize until the conflict ends that they  did  play a role when they look back and realize that their smaller, seemingly unseen actions, helped bring victory."

C.C. paused as the young princess looked up.

"And sometimes, there are simply places that we need to be that aren't the battlefield. And right now, your sister needs someone to be here when she wakes up, and…" she paused, then placed a hand on Nunnally's shoulder, "You're not alone here, Nunnally. I promised your brother I'd be there for him, and I'll be here for you as well."

Nunnally felt her emotions boil over and couldn't stop herself from lunging at C.C. She felt like she had cried so much the last several days, both from sorrow and happiness, but these were most certainly tears of gratitude.

"Thank you…" she hiccuped, "Thank you for helping Lelouch. And Suzaku, and everyone! Thank you… thank you…"

C.C. froze for a moment in surprise at the sudden action, but slowly, her arms wrapped around the young girl as well.

"I will," she whispered back, "I'll be there for all of you…"

  'And you won't lay so much as a finger on them, Charles. Or you… Marianne.'

A beeping sound soon attracted the pair's attention, and in a burst of steam, the frame on Euphemia's pod dissolved. Her eyes shot open with a gasp as she slumped forward, C.C. catching her before she could hit the ground.

Chigusa shielded her eyes as a bright laser from the Castle's shields struck an oncoming Galra fighter, where it burst into flames and impacted the barrier itself. While the hexagonal pieces made it difficult to view the fight from a window, she caught glimpses of battle on the ground and air. People were fighting for their lives outside, fighting a seemingly impossible battle in hopes that they may be able to win and save their home.

She let out a shuddering breath, daring to wonder just how many had died now. The massacre that happened just hours prior had been devastating enough, and while she lent her assistance in treating the injured that were brought on board, so many more still succumbed to their injuries. And that nightmare wasn't over yet.

A jolt of pain suddenly pierced her skull. Chigusa groaned and clutched her head, any surrounding sounds and noise being drowned out from the buzzing in her skull.

The Gawain's hadron cannons unleashed a devastating attack against a group of nearly three dozen Galra fighters, melting the metal and exploding moments later.

"Die you alien scum!" Cornelia roared as she fired the Knightmare's slash harkens into two more she had missed.

A crash from behind her made her jump, and looking at her monitor, she spotted Guilford's Seishin lowering his maser sword and a fighter, cut cleanly in two, descending to the ground.

"Tch," she scoffed, "Coward, attacking from behind!"

"Are you alright, Princess?" Guilford asked.

"Yes, don't worry about me, Guilford. What's the status of the rest of the squad?"

"Our casualties are substantial, but the Glaston Knights and Darlton are holding a position just ahead of here, pushing towards the Bureau as you ordered. Nonette is providing back up where she can."

"Excellent! Continue at this pace. Our comrades' deaths won't be in vain! Lelouch, did you catch that?"

"Every word, Cornelia," Lelouch acknowledged as Voltron's sonic cannon disabled another cruiser, "Ohgi, status on ground troops?"

"Raiko cannons are at the ready!" Kaname responded, "Ground troops mostly consist of those sentry robots and Britannian infantry units!"

"Concentrate the Raikos on the Britannian forces. Use your own Knightmare weapons on the sentries. Aim for the heads and arms to disable them!"

"Understood!"

"Suzaku! We need the sword again," Lelouch exclaimed as the sonic cannon vanished.

To his surprise, though, the Purple Paladin didn't respond.

"Suzaku?!" Rai exclaimed.

From inside Yoru, Suzaku was frozen. Not in fear or shock, but it seemed like someone had pressed the pause button on a television. His eyes were wide and staring straight ahead, the left glowing bright with the Geass sigil. It wasn't until several seconds later that the Purple Paladin blinked and shook his head.

"What the…?" What had just happened? He saw a large object approaching Earth rapidly. What was-

"SUZAKU!" the rest of the team shouted in unison.

"Uh-sorry!" he scrambled to realign and sync his mind with the group once more.

"Keep your head in the game, Kururugui!" Kallen barked.

"Right… sorry!" he apologized, shaking his head, but couldn't shake the image of a familiar dark transport crashing onto the battlefield from his mind.

Focusing once more, he reinserted his Bayard, the sword manifesting once more.

"Lady Haggar,"  a head druid addressed on the ship's main bridge, "The latest weapons are now complete. Lord Zarkon has ordered their launch and will reach your destination within five dobashes."

"Good," Haggar acknowledged, "These humans are more resilient than we originally thought. But even with the assistance of the Altean princess, this world will fall by day's end."

"Haggar, if I may, I have an idea I'd like to propose," V.V. approached slowly as the call ended.

"Hm?" she turned to the immortal, eyes narrowing.

V.V. scowled at first before his features schooled themselves again, "Right now, the Paladins and Black Knights are focused on the battlefield, they likely have only left the bare minimum necessary on the Castle of Lions, in order to guard their families and the rescued civilians."

"I advise you get to the point," Haggar frowned deeply, eyes seeming to drill into V.V.

"I simply request you transport me on board the castle," V.V. explained, "I would do it myself with the help of the Thought Elevator, but unfortunately, that pesky Black Lion destroyed it on the island, making my range more limited, hence why I'm asking for assistance."

"And why would I assist with this?" she asked scathingly.

V.V. resisted the urge to growl at being talked down to so belligerently but continued, "It's simple. I will capture Princess Nunnally and C.C. as well. They are both on board and likely not being guarded too closely. This could be a prime opportunity to deal a more… personal blow to Zero."

Haggar wasn't the only one to glare suspiciously at the immortal at this proposal, as Charles eyed his brother cautiously as well. He could see where his brother's line of thinking was going. Above all else, Lelouch's first priority was, and always would be, Nunnally. If he heard she was in danger, he would likely drop everything, even abandon the battlefield to help her.

"It could work," Charles finally spoke, "So long as she remains safe, everything else comes second to Zero. If V.V. succeeds, we'll have a firm hold on Voltron, and the rest of Earth will have little to no resistance without a leader. And if that's not enough, my Geass can rewrite her memories. I could make her despise Zero, which would deal a further emotional blow to Zero and the Paladins as well."

"While that is true," Haggar admitted, "Why capture this C.C.? Your power will have no effect on her. She will be of little use as a pawn."

"Perhaps," V.V. agreed, "but it's best to keep someone like her, who holds to the ability as me to grant Geass, away from our enemies. You are more than welcome to do anything you want with her. With your forces on our side, she's outlived her usefulness."

Haggar continued to stare suspiciously at the two and didn't miss the way Charles's eyes flickered at the mention of this 'C.C.' It was clear they, or at least he was planning something with the girl. But, should she be in their hands, Haggar could have more control over her whereabouts and keep a closer eye on these two. Plus, if the smaller one's plan succeeded, it sounded like they would severely cripple Voltron, which would make it that much easier for her Lord to obtain the Lions.

"Very well," Haggar finally conceded, "I will go along with your plan… Under the condition that both of them are brought first to me. Should you do so otherwise, there will be… painful consequences. Am I clear?"

Both V.V. and Charles hesitated for a moment before they both nodded.

Before V.V. turned to leave, though, Haggar held out her hand, and to the bewilderment of the two, a small ball of energy formed in her palm before shrinking to about the size of a marble.

"Take this," she instructed, holding her hand out to V.V. The 'boy' hesitated before plucking the marble from her palm, "If you truly wish to succeed in this mission, have that make contact with the woman. It will render her powerless."

V.V. looked at the marble skeptically once more before smirking and stashing it in his pocket.

"You have my thanks…"

"Ha!" Kallen exclaimed as Voltron slammed its surger claw into the bow of another Galra cruiser. It lit up like a nightlight before the insides imploded, sending debris flying everywhere. "Alright! Who's next?!"

"Paladins!"  Coran suddenly exclaimed through the comms.

"Go on, Coran," Lelouch requested.

  "We believe we've identified the Galra's flagship. If it's destroyed, it will destabilize the Galras' communication! From there, it should be easy to push back any remaining Galra troops!"

At hearing this, Lelouch couldn't help but grin widely. The other Paladins shared similar sentiment through the link.

"Very good, then we-"

"Paladins, wait!" Allura's panicked voice suddenly interrupted.

"What's wrong, Allura?" Milly asked, immediately noticing her tone.

  "Something large is approaching Earth's atmosphere, and it's not another warship!"

"Something large…?" Rivalz asked.

Suzaku felt his blood grow cold. His mind flashed back to the… vision (?) he had just over fifteen dobashes prior. He had seen something large crash land on the battlefield. Could have…?

"All Black Knights, projectile incoming!" Lelouch warned as he spotted the object Allura mentioned rapidly approaching.

Several Seishins, both ground and air, scrambled to get out of the way as with a deafening crash, the object landed in front of Voltron.

An object with a certain coffin-like shape to it.

"Oh no…" Shirley whispered in horror, "Is that… what I think it is…?"

"Yeah," Kallen nodded, "Looks like we got another Ro-Beast!"

"Zero, what is that?!" Chiba demanded as most other forces, both with and against Voltron, stopped to stare at the newest threat.

"Bad news…" was all Lelouch could say before, with a resounding click, the device opened, clouds of steam emanating from inside. The front and sides of the structure tumbled to the ground, revealing the grotesque monster within.

The creature this time was colored almost completely white with only a few hints of red and purple, with a pointed head, long limbs, and even a hunched back. Much like the Drazil Ro-Beast, the creature's mouth was aligned with sharp, overlapping teeth.

"Black Knights! Evacuate the area! We'll deal with this!" Lelouch ordered.

"You're facing that thing on your own?!" Nonette's voice exclaimed.

"Nonette, we'll be fine. This isn't the first Ro-Beast we've fought!" Rai barked, "Just focus on your own fight!"

The beast's head then suddenly jerked up, and malicious red eyes flashed to life. A sound similar to a rumbling growl could be heard as it gazed around before finally landing on Voltron. Its eyes widened upon seeing them before it threw its head back and screamed.

On the ground and in the air, several Knightmares faltered as their pilots were forced to cover their ears. Even Cornelia, Nonette, and Guilford did, and they were the ones most used to being around bomb explosions and Knightmare engines.

The only ones unaffected were the Paladins themselves. And a good thing too, as seconds later, long, sharp claws shot out from the beast, aiming to pierce Voltron's chest.

"Rai, shield!" Lelouch shouted almost frantically.

The Green Lion's shield blocked the metallic claws in the knick of time, scraping across like nails on a chalkboard.

This action only seemed to enrage the Ro-Beast, as it shrieked again and charged at them, purple flaming jetpacks blazing behind it.

On instinct, Shirley and Rivalz fired Voltron's thrusters as well, and Voltron shot into the sky. To their shock, the Ro-Beast followed after them with barely any delay, almost like it knew they were going to dodge upward. It pulled a clawed hand back again.

"Okay, two can play at that game, bud!" Kallen exclaimed, plunging her Bayard into her port.

The wave surger claw manifested, and Kallen swung with a roar towards the Ro-Beast's head… only for the beast to catch the arm right under Aka's neck, effectively stopping the surger without injuring its hand or head.

"What?!" Kallen gasped.

"It stopped us?!" Milly added, just as shocked as the others.

The Ro-Beast didn't waste the opportunity as it head-butted Voltron and threw him downwards, impacting the ground hard.

Lelouch grunted in pain, Zen's cockpit still vibrating from the impact. "Okay…" he gritted out.

"Alright, this guy is asking for it!" Rivalz snarled, reinserting his own Bayard. The sonic cannon reappeared on Voltron's shoulder, blasting a bout of sonic waves at the Ro-Beast. Twisting like a fighter jet in a show, the Ro-Beast easily dodged every blast sent its way.

"Suzaku! Sword!" Lelouch shouted.

Suzaku's Bayard released the sword in the knick of time as the weapon blocked the beast's claws, scraping loudly, metal on metal, before managing to push it off of them and rocket into the sky again, kicking up a large cloud of dust in the process. The beast screeched as the cloud engulfed the area.

Seeing this as an opportunity, Lelouch narrowed his eyes, "Shirley! Arrows now!"

Seconds later, Voltron's bow appeared in his hands, and with his eyes to the back of the Ro-Beast, they let the arrow lose…

...Only for the Ro-Beast to duck like it was casually dodging a ball in a park.

"What?!" Kallen exclaimed.

"Tha-Does it have eyes on the back of its head or something?!" Rivalz exclaimed.

"Tch… what the hell's going on?!" Lelouch cursed before Voltron flew into the sky again, and this time the Ro-Beast followed with a roar after them.

"Lelouch!" Cornelia gasped, watching in horror as the enemy robot gave close chase to Voltron.

"Nelly!" Nonette exclaimed, the Lancelot spinning through the air to Cornelia's side. She seemed to be thinking the same thing, as both women attempted to follow, hoping to assist somehow.

Keyword 'attempted.'

A loud popping sound drew everyone's eyes to the coffin-like structure again, and this time, another machine, this one much smaller than the first, burst out, spinning vigorously and charging right towards the Gawain and the Lancelot.

Cornelia cursed as she barely maneuvered the Knightmare away from what she realized were spinning blades from the new weapon. While it was still much smaller than the Ro-Beast, it was at least three times bigger than even the Gawain.

"What is-"

"ALL HAIL BRITANNIA!" a voice Cornelia hadn't heard for months echoed from within the object. It appeared to be a black sphere with five large red spikes along its side, two on its upper sides, two on its lower sides, and one at the very bottom. There also, much to the women's horror, a human, or at least, it looked human, hooked into it as his face was shown from the open cockpit.

"What is this? Black Knights?! Dissenters?!" the cyborg asked eagerly, madness saturated in his tone, "Oh what luck, what fate! What fortune for me!"

"Who the hell is…?" Nonette questioned before Guilford and Darlton finally caught up to the two.

"It can't be…!" Guilford gasped, dread curling in his gut.

"Jeremiah Gottwald! Is that you in there?!" Darlton cried out.

"Gottwald?" David questioned, he and other Glaston Knights flying next to them, "You mean the one involved with the Orange thing?"

That word, the O-word, seemed to trigger something in the man's head as he gasped and began to shake in rage before finally clasping his hands together, "I beseech you…! I'm begging you, please die! Die at the hands of the Siegfried!"

The spikes on the machine suddenly began to spin rapidly as Jeremiah was lowered back inside, reminiscing a top, before it charged towards Cornelia and her guard.

"Scatter!" she ordered as the Siegfried machine cut through them, hitting Edgar's Knightmare in the process.

"No! Father-!" he cried out as the Seishin cut in two.

"Edgar!" Darlton shouted, staring in horror as the Knightmare's remains dropped to the Earth.

"Darlton, focus or we'll all die as well!" Nonette focused, the Lancelot's blade shrieking against the Seigfried's spinning spikes.

"DIE!" Jeremiah howled, driving the Lancelot back further, the Gawain and remainder of the Glaston knights racing after them.

"Dammit!" Kallen cursed as the Ro-Beast dodged yet another blast from Aka. Barely any of Voltron's attacks were landing, and when they did, it barely seemed to make a dent. And it was likely only due to the Voltron Lions' superior armor and unique alloy that they hadn't been torn apart as scrap metal already.

Lelouch grunted as they blocked yet another assault from the monster's claws. He couldn't understand why it was so hard to defeat this  Ro-Beast. This wasn't like with Myzak, where it was their first time fighting one of these creations, so how come none of their attacks were working?!

'We don't have time for this…' Lelouch thought. They had to take out that flagship. The sooner they did, the more time they could buy before possible Galran reinforcements arrived. But if Voltron couldn't get there, he could only think of one other squad that could do it.

"Tohdoh! Tohdoh, do you read me?" Lelouch exclaimed, hoping he didn't sound too desperate on his end.

"I read you, Zero. What is it?" came the reply.

Mentally sighing, Lelouch continued, "My team is still preoccupied with this monster! Your group will have to go after the flagship! Destroy it, and the battle will turn in our favor once more!"

  "Understood. Squad enroute now!"

Down on the battlefield, Lelouch could barely see six large Seishins making a beeline towards the Galra's flagship, no doubt Tohdoh, Sayoko in the Guren, and the rest of the Holy Swords.

"Thank you, Tohdoh…" he muttered under his breath, "Good luck…"

"Commander! We have six confirmed enemies, making a direct course towards us."

"Blow them out of the sky," Corza ordered calmly before scoffing, "Did they really think a direct attack wouldn't go unnoticed by us?"

"Sir! These machines are different! Whoever's piloting them are maneuvering them much more expertly!"

Corza raised an intrigued eyebrow. It took skill for any enemies to get close to a flagship like this. Normally, they would be shot down before they could get within ten yards of the vessel.

"Pull an image up," she requested with narrowed eyes.

In front of her, a camera of the carnage outside blinked into focus. Her eyebrows rose more at these machines' unique designs. The captain below wasn't wrong that they were being piloted differently, not to mention they looked different, especially the sleek red one with the silver claw.

"Hmm, a challenge it seems?" she queried before grinning, "Excellent! Concentrate fire on those ships. Blast them away!"

"Yes, commander!" the captain saluted as he and the droids typed into their stations.

Several more compartments opened up on the surface of the flagship, revealing cannons and other torrents, all aimed at the incoming enemies. To their surprise, though, in a coordinated counterattack, involving several fancy, advanced looking spins and maneuvers, slicing through several cannons with their swords and the red one's class blowing up many more with its silver claw.

Corza felt an emotion she hadn't in a while. Frustration. Sure, she got annoyed with stubborn enemies at times, but frustration was an emotion she had only last experienced back in her barricade days, apprenticing under Warlord Ranvag himself. But, she had learned to squash that weakness and push forward. Now she was one of his most trusted comrades and commanders of the empire, one whom he personally recommended to lead this attack. And she would not fail him. Not now!

"Sir!" the captain addressed again, "The large black one appears to be leading the group."

Finally, some intel she could work with! "Concentrate fire on that vessel! The others will be easy pickings with their cornerstone dead!"

"Vrepit sa!" the captain exclaimed, slamming a fist into the control pad.

"Target the engines next!" Tohdoh ordered, "Get this ship to the ground!"

"Yes, sir!" the five other Knightmares all replied in near unison. Then Chiba's voice cried out a split second later.

  "Colonel, look out!"

Almost like a combined attack, three cannons they had yet to destroy all fired at Tohdoh's Seishin at once. He managed to dodge two shots, but the third managed to hit one of his Knightmare's jets.

  "Colonel Tohdoh!"

  "Sir!"

"I'm alright!" Tohdoh barked as he struggled to regain control, "Focus on the engines!"

"And you, Colonel? " Senba queried hesitantly.

Tohdoh glared at the windows that he assumed likely led to the bridge of the ship, "I'm cutting off the head."

Without another word, Tohdoh zeroed in on the windows and made a beeline for them, slamming the Knightmare's rockets as hard as possible.

With a ripping crash, the Seishin barrelled through the bridge's window. The droids and the captain at the front didn't have time to take cover as the machine slammed into them, crushing them dead against the opposite wall. Anything that remained of the bridge's controls was nothing but sparking wires and scattered infinitesimal crystals.

With a snap, Tohdoh's own cockpit hatch popped open, and miraculously, minus a small cut above his left eye, he was unhurt, his armor and suit having protected him from most of the impact.

He glanced around and surveyed the damage, eyes narrowing on the Galra captain's corpse against the far wall, purple blood splattered from the impact, golden eyes wide and staring.

It was only the hairs on the back of his neck standing on end that warned him to draw his katana, just in time to catch the edge of another blade that had been aiming for his head. He grunted from the force of the blow, and his eyes narrowed at the surviving Galra towering above him.

"Gutsy move, pest," the Galran, female from her voice, commented, teeth bared and Tohdoh honestly couldn't tell if she was grinning or sneering, "I've seen very few in the universe brave enough to charge headfirst into the Snarflax den! Even fewer to survive it!"

Tohdoh said nothing, simply shoving back against his opponent's blade enough for him to roll out of the way and create some distance between them.

He held his katana steadily at the ready.

The Galra's lips curled, eyes shining with excitement. She had heard about the Champion's feats in the rings of Nilog. She had never been able to witness a match herself, but from what she'd seen on recorded footage, though inexperienced, the boy had spirit. Had they kept him longer, he would have made a formidable warrior.

But this human in front of her. This one was already a warrior. She could tell from the way he stood, the way his eyes took everything in, all while keeping an eye on her at the same time, the steady grip of the skinny blade in his hands. There was barely any tremble in the handle.

This was a human that was ready to fight her until one or the other remained standing.

Well, she licked her lips, this would be fun.

Voltron swerved to the right as they barely avoided the Ro-Beast's claws once more. Due to how few attacks were landing, they focused on taking the fight more into Earth's atmosphere, away from the main battle. The fewer people who got in the way, the better.

"What the heck is going on?!" Milly shouted, "It's like it knows what moves we'll make before  we  do!"

"Maybe it can see the future or something?" Rai suggested.

"Maybe its main function is learning? Like that one robot from that cartoon? The one with the family of superheroes?" Rivalz queried as they ducked under another clawed frontal assault.

"This isn't a movie, Rivalz!" Kallen exclaimed.

"What, it's a suggestion!" he yelped back.

Shirley remained mostly silent through, a feeling of dread climbing up her gut and to her throat. She struggled not to vomit from the sheer stress of the situation alone. Every instinct in her being told her that she  knew  who this Ro-Beast was, or at least who it was based on.

"Mao…" Shirley whispered abruptly.

"What-Shirley, what did you say?!" Suzaku exclaimed, horror in his voice.

"I…  Guys, I think that's Mao!" Shirley finally blurts out, fearful tears in her eyes.

"What?!" Rai exclaimed, voicing everyone's thoughts, and Voltron faltered, their left side being side-swiped by the claws.

"Hold on, that can't be possible! Mao's dead… right?" Milly asked though she sounded unsure as well.

Narrowing her eyes, Kallen's eye flashed with Geass, and she glared at the Ro-Beast still trying to slice Voltron to ribbons.

She nearly choked from shocked terror at the dreadfully familiar energy she picked up from in the Ro-Beast.

"I don't believe it... she's right! That  IS  Mao!" Kallen confirmed, barely keeping the tremor out of her voice.

This time, the shock of the team distracted them enough for Mao's Ro-Beast to charge and grab them by the shoulders, flipping them over and throwing them hard through the sky, flipping around multiple times as they went.

Shirley and Rivalz eventually managed to regain control of the leg rockets, stopping their loopty loops, only for Rai to have to block another swipe as Mao had followed close behind.

"Okay, how many times do we have to kill this bastard?!" Kallen screamed, slamming Aka's controls, trying to shoot Mao out. Once again, though, he blocked the attack.

"I don't get it!" Rivalz shouted, "How is this even possible?! Shirley got him! We saw her shoot him!"

Had it been under normal circumstances, Rivalz would have received a hard head bonk from Milly for his insensitivity, but it was only because everyone was thinking the exact same thing that silenced any reprimand.

"Haggar must have done something! Remember, she turned Myzak into that first Ro-Beast we fought!" Rai said, "The other two must have been similar. She's somehow creating monsters from living things!"

"There's something else too," Suzaku said, "Remember when Mao broke into the Castleship that one time? His Geass was different, and he kept saying that someone had given him a gift or something, but he wouldn't tell us who. My guess is that Haggar's the one that gave Mao that Black Geass we saw, enhanced it and twisted it somehow. I mean, we all suspected that she gave Zarkon his, right?"

"And if she could enhance his Geass before, she's likely done so again with this monster as well," Lelouch deduced with narrowed eyes.

"So, what does that mean then?" Milly asked as Voltron spun out of the way in the nick of time to avoid a collision, but it didn't stop one of Mao's claws from scraping against Voltron's armored chest.

"Best guess? Mao's original Geass allowed him to read the minds and even subconsciousness of people if he concentrated on a particular target," Lelouch explained, "If Haggar managed to improve upon that, then it's likely he's not just reading minds now. Instead, since Voltron is all of our subconscious thoughts as one, he can likely read not only our minds but that subconscious as well. It's how he's been able to avoid most of our attacks up until now! He can analyze, predict and counter every move we throw at him!"

"Okay, but he can only read our minds if we're in close enough range, right?" Rivalz reminded, "So if we move out of it and shoot him from far away, we should get him, right?"

"Even if that's the case, Rivalz, you think Mao's going to even give us the chance to try that anyway?!" Kallen snapped in frustration.

"Still, he's right. The range is likely larger and stronger, but it may be our only chance!" Suzaku argued.

The question was, how?

Allura felt her blood run cold as she and Coran listened in terrified silence to the reveal of this latest Ro-Beast's identity. When she heard Mao's name, a haunting feeling of terror ran through the princess's body. Mao was likely the only other person in the universe that genuinely scared her, so to hear that he was alive, and as that monster, it made her, she was ashamed to admit, selfishly glad that she wasn't one of the ones fighting him in Voltron.

The shrill sound of alarms blaring on the bridge shook Allura from her stupor. She heard Coran gasp in confusion as the tone of the alarms indicated that there was an intruder in the castle. But that shouldn't be possible. All of the castle's shields were still up, despite suffering severe damage from the surrounding Galra forces. So how on Earth had someone…?

"Princess! Here!" Coran exclaimed, pulling up a screen, "He's heading for the cryo-bay!"

Allura narrowed her eyes at the unfamiliar figure. It didn't look like a Galra or one of Haggar's druid servants, so who was that?

But then hear thoughts screeched to a halt when she finally processed what Coran said.

The intruder was heading for the cryo-bay. Where Nunnally was!

"Coran, take charge of the bridge!" she ordered as she spun around and raced from the room, "I'll handle this myself!"

Euphemia stared blankly down at the small bowl of broth that had been placed in her lap. She felt completely, utterly lost, her mind still racing through the events that happened just over twenty-four Earth hours prior. The terror of hearing her Father's announcement, then feeling absolute agony in her chest before everything just snapped to black. She vaguely remembered Suzaku's cry of anguish and her sister screaming her name. Then when she next became coherent, she felt cold, then the feeling of falling before warm, if slightly scratchy blankets encompassed her naked body.

Those same blankets were still draped around her shoulders, with only a thin nightgown Nunnally had given her to cover her modesty. Her dress apparently had disintegrated while she had been asleep in that strange pod, but she honestly couldn't care less about that right now.

"Euphie…?" Nunnally asked hesitantly. Almost on instinct, Euphemia's eyes glanced up, meeting the soft lavender of her younger sister's. "You know what happened down there… it wasn't your fault, okay? You know that, right?"

Logically, Euphemia knew Nunnally was right, but she couldn't help the crushing guilt that still stirred in her.

"I can hear your thoughts from here," C.C. said from the other end of the room, "But last I checked, Princess, you weren't the one that gave the order to slaughter the Japanese attending the zone. I highly doubt even they will blame you for this. But you won't find out if you're too weak even to stand."

Euphie cringed a little, still a little put off by C.C.'s blunt tone, but she could sense the concern in it as well. Turning back to the bowl, she finally took a tentative sip. She didn't know what it was, but the taste was alright.

"Well… this is a surprise to see you alive, Euphemia."

She heard Nunnally gasp and practically the blur that was C.C. as she moved to stand between them and whoever had entered the room. Whoever it was, they sounded young, but… something felt off about his tone that made the hairs on Euphemia's neck stand on end.

"What…?! How are you standing, Nunnally?!" the person (boy?) demanded furiously, "The sight I can understand a little. Charles was always too soft using his Geass on anyone related to that  woman, but your legs should have had no hope of recovery!"

"V.V., how did you get here?!" C.C. demanded, and Nunnally gasped, staring at the small boy at the door.

V.V.?  That was her uncle? The one Lelouch had told her about?

"Oh, what's this?" V.V. raised an amused eyebrow, glancing between the two princesses and C.C., a hand in his pocket, "C.C., are you actually caring about someone for once? I must say, this is a first even for you."

"I won't let you touch them, Victor!" C.C. exclaimed, reaching behind her back for her gun.

"Too slow," V.V. smirked as he pulled a tiny object from his pocket and flicked it across the room.

C.C. grunted as the small marble-like object struck her in the forehead, then gasped before collapsing to the floor, eyes wide and body twitching like she was having a fit before going completely still.

"C.C.!" Nunnally cried in horror, Euphemia gasping as well, her hands flying to her mouth. The younger princess then glared up at her uncle, "What did you do?!"

"I don't have to tell you," V.V. sneered, then pulling out a gun of his own and pointing it at the two girls. "It's not like you'll live long enough to find out anyway. True, Charles wanted you alive, Nunnally, but I think ending you would be more effective. Your brother has thrown enough wrenches into our plans already, destroying years of work that we have to practically start all over again. But if his reason for fighting at all is long gone, well that should solve the problem itself."

Before V.V. could continue his gloating, the gun was suddenly smacked from his hand from behind, and the next thing he knew, V.V. found himself slammed against a wall, an arm pressed tightly to his throat.

"Who are you? How did you get in my castle?!" Allura demanded, her battle staff clutched tightly in her hands while pinning V.V. against the wall with the other, applying far more force than necessary with her Altean strength.

"Allura!" Nunnally gasped from behind, still kneeling by C.C.'s prone form.

"Nunnally, are you alright? Euphemia, I'm pleased to see you are recovered," Allura addressed the two with a sigh of relief.

"What's this…?" V.V. choked out a laugh, "More 'friends' come to save you, Nunnally, like always?"

"You be silent!" Allura growled, pushing her arm in further and the immortal choked. "Nunnally, do you know him?"

"Well… sort of? I heard brother and C.C. talk about him. He's our uncle, V.V." Nunnally answered shakily.

"What… uncle?" Euphemia gasped, staring at the small 'boy' in horrified confusion.

Allura, on the other hand, felt her temper flare as she turned back with a growl to the man, "The same V.V. of that vile man who started this attack?"

V.V. gagged out a laugh, "You call Charles vile? I'm not the filthy alien trying to destroy all our hard work! If you just stayed up in space and out of our way, we wouldn't be in this mess!"

"I'm not the one that sold his own people to a universal tyrant!" Allura spat back, "And to think, Voltron was willing to offer a truce even when you clearly didn't deserve one!"

"Oh, go back to your planet and cry your eyes out there!" V.V. barked through clenched teeth before smiling sadistically, "Oh wait, that's right. You don't have a planet anymore, do you? Zarkon blew it up with the rest of your people."

Allura's eyes went wide before becoming slits, "Don't you  dare  talk about Altea that way!"

V.V.'s hand suddenly seized Allura's wrist as he grinned madly. Much like C.C., Allura stiffened before screaming, losing her grip on V.V. and clutching her head. All around her, flames consumed Altea's surface. Galra crafts rained from the sky. Queen Melanor's head stood mounted on a pike as the royal palace was bathed in blood.

V.V. was too entranced with glee at Allura's pain that he didn't notice Nunnally lunge at him before he was already on the ground.

Allura gasped once more before her eyes rolled back to her head, and she fell back, Euphemia only able to just catch her before she could hit the ground.

Now V.V. was staring into a pair of eyes he had only seen in one other, and his blood boiled as Nunnally desperately attempted to pin him down.

"Damn you, Marianne! Damn you and your bitch of a spawn!" he screamed, rage driving his arms as they threw Nunnally off, "They don't deserve what Charles has planned for them! None of them do! They… they don't even deserve to live!"

Eyes mad with hatred, V.V. reached for the gun he dropped, aiming it Nunnally. He'd kill her first, then deal with the other three…

  *BANG*

Nunnally flinched, covering her face at the sound, but then slowly lowered them, eyes widening in horror at the bullet hole in the middle of V.V.'s head.

With a gurgle, the immortal collapsed, revealing his assailant at the door behind him, their own gun still smoking in their hands.

"Chigusa?!" Nunnally gasped in shock as Euphemia helped a shaky Allura to her feet, still clutching her head with one hand as she eyed the woman warily.

"Not quite," she responded in a clipped tone, "My name is Villetta Nu, and I'm a knight of Britannia."

At this declaration, Allura scrambled to regain her footing to defend Nunnally and Euphemia once more, as well as C.C., who still laid unconscious on the floor. But to their surprise, Villetta holstered her gun and dropped to one knee, head bowed.

"I'm on your side."

Meanwhile, the sky lit up red as Cornelia fired the Gawain's hydron cannons at the Siegfried, Nonette doing the same with the Lancelot's VARIS rifle. However, thanks to Haggar's constant experiments and modifications, Jeremiah's cyborg body could control the machine with ease while directly connected to the systems. The speed the Siegfried spun seemed to make almost a barrier, the spikes able to repel or block any Knightmare attack easily. Not to mention that he wasn't letting up on his own charge. With the demise of Edgar, the remaining Glaston Knights made avoiding the Seigfried's blades their top priority, but that also prevented them from attacking back as well.

"If I had doubts about this being alien tech before, I don't know!" David stated.

"I highly doubt even his Majesty's top scientists could have made something destructive without third-party assistance," Darlton commented as well.

"How can we bring down something like this?! It could completely wipe out the rest of our troops!" Guilford gasped.

Cornelia grit her teeth as he was right. This machine had a formidable offense, its spikes, and a nearly perfect defense. But she knew that all weapons had some weak point somewhere. The problem was whether or not they could hold it off long enough to figure it out.

The answer came when Lloyd, Cecile, and Rakshata contacted the Lancelot.

"Lady Enneagram, do you read us?"  Cecile exclaimed anxiously.

"I hear you. What is it?" Nonette said, tone demanding as she flipped over the Seigfried once more.

  "We've analyzed the structure of that machine on the castle's computers. And… I think we may know how you can defeat it."

Nonette nearly stopped midair in shock, "Well, what is it?"

"It's actually a rather simple flaw. So simple and obvious that many would overlook it at first glance,"  Lloyd explained cryptically.

"I don't have time for your riddles, Asplund!" Nonette growled, "Just tell me already!"

"What Pudding Boy is meaning to say,"  Rakshata interrupted before Lloyd could continue (this resulted in an exaggerated pout onboard the ship), "Is that the Seigfried's spikes can be stopped and held in place, that will easily disable its pesky defense… There is one small problem, though…"

"One of us, likely in a suicidal maneuver, will have to fly head-on into the machine and hold the spikes down manually," Nonette realized.

"Precisely, hence my previous statement, before  someone  interrupted me, about it being so obvious, yet one that most won't so much as consider," Lloyd added.

"Nelly, did you get all of that?" Nonette asked through her comm.

"I heard everything, Nonette," Cornelia responded, "I'll do it. This Knightmare is large enough to likely survive the impact-"

"Princess, no!" Guilford shouted almost instinctively, "I-Your people still need you! They need you to lead them!"

"And do you simply expect me to pointlessly sacrifice my own men, Guilford?!" Cornelia fired back, "Chawla and Asplund said so themselves; anyone else who tries would be suicidal!"

"...Not everyone," Nonette muttered before slamming down on the Lancelot's controls, barrelling towards the Siegfried.

"Nonette!" Cornelia screamed.

"Lady Enneagram!" Claude shouted.

The remainder of the squad could only watch in horror as the Lancelot slammed head-on into the middle of the Siegfried, its arms and legs spread eagle against the spikes, the Lancelot's shields fizzling at the strain of taking most of the damage.

Nonette grunted in pain as small electric sparks erupted from the systems, warning lights flashing wildly on the screens in front.

"What?!" Jeremiah exclaimed, also frozen in brief surprise at such a move.

"Nelly! Do it now!" Nonette screamed, using the last of the Lancelot's energy filter to twist around so the Seigfried faced the Gawain.

"Nonette…!" Cornelia gasped, horrified that her friend was about to commit this act.

"Just do it! I'll be fine!" Nonette shouted again, "But you have to do it now! You won't get another chance!"

Feeling tears in her eyes, Cornelia screamed as she slammed down on the hadron cannon's controls.

"What?! You little-"

Jeremiah never finished his sentence as the hadron cannons hit the Seigfried head on. The Seigrfried groaned and its outer shell cracked before it finally exploded, detaching from the Lancelot as it spiraled to the ground, crashing into the debris below.

Nonette exhaled in relief, a small stream of blood dripping from her nose. The Lancelot's energy filter lasted just long enough to block most of the Gawain's hadron cannon attack.

Unfortunately, with the energy depleted, the Lancelot could no longer remain airborne either and the white Knightmare soon followed the Seigfried to the ground, landing roughly by a demolished building.

"Nonette!" Cornelia screamed desperately, "Nonette, answer me, dammit!"

"...I'm okay, Nelly," she panted through the comm, "Sorry, I won't be much help anymore…"

Cornelia breathed a sigh of relief that at least her childhood friend was alive. She hadn't killed her.

"Just stay there for now, Nonette," Cornelia ordered, "We'll send someone to retrieve you soon!"

Tohdoh grunted as he was kicked back down the hall, catching himself as he backflipped to his feet, catching the edges of her double blades with his katana. So far, any Galra or sentries that they encountered were ordered away by Corza, always barking that he was her opponent, and if they held any respect for her, they would leave them be. He could see why she was so confident. She held the clear advantage in strength, so Tohdoh knew he had to be smart about where he landed his blows.

Throughout most of their duel, she had never lost the bloodthirsty, predatory grin on her face. The only time she lost it was when a lower-ranked Galra attempted to assist, trying to shoot Tohdoh down one of the halls. She had immediately beheaded him, calling him a disgrace. From that expression alone, Tohdoh saw the type of creature she was. She was one that took joy in beating down her opponents, took pleasure in hearing their screams of agony.

As a samurai, bound by the honor of his people and ancestors, nothing disgusted Tohdoh more. And if he had to die to put this monster down, so be it.

With a roar, he pushed the blades away, swinging the katana viciously at her midsection, but she expertly blocked it, making a swing of her own at his head, which he ducked under before using his left foot to kick one sword out of her hand, and it clattered down the hall.

Corza just laughed before whipping out a dagger she kept hidden in her armor. Tohdoh barely managed to jump back but still felt a sting across his cheek where the blade barely sliced his face. The Galran commander took advantage of his surprise to send a series of jabs towards Tohdoh, all of which he managed to dodge or block.

After taking one of the hits against his wrist, the armor of his suit absorbing the blow, he launched himself into the air, spinning midair before slicing downward. Corza grunted as the blow propelled her forward, but Tohdoh's eyes widened as her other sword managed to block the blow as well.

Tohdoh quickly used this moment to gain a little distance between the two, katana once more poised at the ready.

Corza slowly turned to face him again.

"Well, well, I'll admit you've got spirit, human," she smirked, "I may even spare you. You'd draw quite the crowd in the rings. Just surrender now, and I'll be sure you're taken good care of."

"Sorry, not interested," he replied in a clipped tone.

"Hmph, pity," she sighed in faux-sorrow before the grin returned, "But I wasn't exactly asking. I do enjoy my prey more when I have to draw the squealing out."

With that, their duel continued. Corza continued to push Tohdoh down the hall until they came to a cargo bay, several Galra fighters still stationary but ready to launch.

At one point, Corza managed to sweep Tohdoh's feet out from under him, pinning him down, foot firmly on his sternum.

"Concede, or die," she hissed, pressing down hard. The colonel felt his ribs cracking from the force, and he cried out in pain.

But the pain soon ceased when the ship suddenly shuddered and Corza's foot shifted off his chest. Despite the pain from what he knew were cracked and possibly broken ribs, he couldn't help the smirk that spread across his own face.

Outside the ship, the Guren shot away as the Radiant Surger's energy destroyed the last of the rear engines. The flagship was officially without any mobility and almost immediately began to lose altitude.

"The colonel's still inside!" Asahina exclaimed, "We need to help him!"

"I'm on it!" Chiba shouted, making a beeline for the open cargo bay, praying the colonel managed to make it there.

Tohdoh didn't waste the precious moment the distraction bought him. Without hesitation, he leaped back to his feet and plunged his katana into Corza's chest, the Galra still off-balanced from the attack outside, losing grip of her weapons. The commander only gasped as her eyes widened in disbelief but then shrieked in fury, her hand striking out. Tohdoh gasped in pain as Corza's sharp claws swiped across his left eye. Clutching it with one hand, Tohdoh stumbled backward, his katana still firmly in his other grip.

With barely a gurgle, Corza collapsed to her knees and sunk forward, falling forward, her face hitting the floor, dead. Only then did Tohdoh finally sag, catching himself on his katana, following to one knee in exhaustion.

"Colonel!" Chiba cried out, her Knightmare skidding to a stop in the bay, the ship still vibrating as it fell apart in its descent.

"Chiba…" Tohdoh whispered as she hauled one of his arms over her shoulder.

"Come on, this battle's not over yet!" she said, pulling him to his feet.

"Right…" he sighed but gratefully climbed into the Seishin with his subordinate. The Knightmare streaked out of the flagship only ticks before it crashed to the Earth.

No one missed the spectacle of the flagship's destruction. First, the engines went up in flames, and the fires quickly spread to the rest of the vessel. As Tohdoh's team flew away, their job done, the flagship began to nosedive before practically imploding as it hit the ground below.

Roars of victory could be heard from all units of the Black Knight's alliance. The Britannian-Galra alliance faltered as the rebels began to swarm in.

"Push them back!" Ohgi shouted from the ground, "Victory is nearly ours!"

"Yeah! Let's squash these guys!" Tamaki howled, firing a missile from his Knightmare at a group of scattered Britannian troops, "This is our planet! Not yours, you slimeballs!"

While the ground forces were experiencing the first taste of victory, Voltron's struggle was another story. The information of knowing it was Mao did little to help their situation. No matter what kind of attacks they threw at the Ro-Beast, he was able to either counter, block, or dodge every single one. Even when they attempted long-range attacks, they either weren't far enough, or the attacks were large enough that Mao could see them coming even without reading their thoughts. They had even briefly disbanded Voltron, thinking they could confuse Mao with separate thoughts instead of one, but Mao just started attacking them one by one. Suzaku, in particular, took some heavy hits when Yoru suddenly froze mid-flight again. The Paladins were barely able to rejoin once more after that disaster.

"This isn't working…" Lelouch hissed,  '...and I don't know what else to try!'  went unsaid.

"We can't just give up!" Rivalz shouted, "There's-there's got to be  something!"

Shirley suddenly gasped, Zinnia's purr breaking through the haze of the battle.

"What…?" she whispered.

"Shirley?!" Lelouch exclaimed, grunting as Voltron ducked another attack once more.

"Lelouch… we need to get away from Mao! As far away as we possibly can!"

"But haven't we been trying that already?" Kallen asked.

"Just trust me! I have a plan, or Zinnia does anyway!" the Orange Paladin insisted.

"...Alright, I'll trust you," Lelouch relented, "Rivalz, help her!"

"Um, right!" the Blue Paladin stuttered before slamming down on the rockets with Shirley.

Voltron suddenly shot off, leaving the battle at high speed, one that Mao couldn't keep up with.

"Paladins! Where are you going?!" Coran gasped, alarmed by the sudden change in direction.

"Honestly, Coran, we're not sure ourselves!" Milly admitted, "But Shirley said she had an idea to take out Mao! You're just going to have to trust us, here!"

"...Very well,"  Coran conceded,  "Good luck, Paladins, be careful!"

By the time Voltron stopped, they had made it fairly far out to sea, still high above Earth's surface.

"Okay, I think we're far enough!" Shirley said.

"It's certainly farther than any other distance we've tried," Rai reported, "According to C.C., Mao's original range was about five hundred meters. We're well over a thousand kilometers away now. We should be well out of range."

"Okay… okay," Shirley gasped before swallowing, "...I've got this…"

Though her heart was still hammering in her chest, Shirley took several deep breaths and, following Zinnia's directions, plugged her Bayard into its port. In the process of the bow appearing once more, Shirley's Geass appeared in her eye.

The others felt it just moments after Shirley did. Whatever was happening, whatever this new connection was that the Orange Lion and its Paladin were forging, they could feel it pulsing within the entire bond, with the two of them at the epicenter.

"Target… locked on," Shirley said calmly as Voltron drew the arrow back. Though it was not visible by the naked eye, Voltron's systems zeroed in on a far-off figure whose head was spinning frantically in every direction, having lost their target somewhere out in the sea.

'Before, I was just a normal girl, who was ignorant of everything that's been happening to this world…' Shirley thought as the arrow was pulled taut at its longest length, '...All the suffering... All the pain that so many people feel. And not just this world... but others as well. But I'm not going to cry anymore. I swear that I will protect all of you, even my friends. I know who I am... My name is Shirley Fenette, Paladin of the Orange Lion of Voltron! My aim is true! This time, I won't hesitate!'

Voltron set the arrow free.

Like a shooting star, the arrow soared across the ocean, too fast and too powerful that Mao didn't realize what was coming until it had struck deep into his chest. The Galran crystal helping to power the machine nearly shattered inside, and the Ro-Beast shrieked as its circuits shorted out and started to go haywire, limbs creaking and twisting into impossible angles.

"Go! Finish him off while he's down!" Shirley shouted.

"Suzaku, sword!" Lelouch ordered.

"Right!" the Purple Paladin exclaimed, his Bayard meeting the port once again.

With a unanimous battle cry, the Voltron Paladins raced back towards the Ro-Beast, sword poised to stab it head on.

Mao barely had time to look up, robotic eyes widening in shock before the sword met its target, piercing the same spot as the arrow and pushing back further, returning to the settlement.

Then, once on land again, with a twist of the blade, Voltron cut upward, severing the Ro-Beast's shoulder from the rest of the body. But that wasn't enough. Raising the sword over his head again, Voltron swung downward, slicing Mao cleanly in two.

The Ro-Beast's power flickered one final time before exploding, lighting up the evening sky and the battlefield.

"Yes!" Milly screamed.

"You're history!" Rai exclaimed with a triumphant grin.

"And this time, stay dead, asshole!" Kallen shouted.

"Shirley! That was awesome!" Rivalz cried, grinning madly from Polaris.

"That was definitely nuts, but it worked," Suzaku commented.

"Shirley… thank you…" Lelouch said, sagging in his seat from relief and fatigue.

Shirley just smiled, not really answering anyone, but the soothing purr Zinnia sent her way spoke all the volumes she needed. Yes, she did good. This was where she belonged, after all.

"...Coran, Cornelia, Ohgi, Tohdoh, battle report!" Lelouch finally ordered after a moment of silence.

One by one, each battle commander appeared on the screen. They all looked exhausted from the fight, a fight that they had very nearly one.

"The flagship and the fleet's commander are neutralized, Zero,"  Tohdoh reported first, Chiba next to him,  "The remaining Galra troops are scrambling to regroup. We can likely wipe out or capture the remaining ones with ease."

"That second monster that came out of that vessel is also destroyed,"  Cornelia stated,  "Nonette and the Lancelot are down, but she's alive."

"Most of Britannia's ground forces are retreating too. Without air cover from their Galra buddies, they're losing ground fast,"  Ohgi reported with a confident smile.

"Yes, according to the castle's scans, most of the remaining Galra fighters are retreating!"  Coran exclaimed,  "It seems… it seems we've won Paladins!"

The very second Coran finished speaking, Voltron suddenly shuddered, freezing in midair. A sinister purple aura washed over the juggernaut, and a malevolent presence suddenly flooded the bond, nearly choking the Paladins with fear and panic.

Lelouch especially felt the crushing weight, gasping as he hunched over like something heavy had suddenly been thrust upon his back.

"Paladins!" they heard Coran gasp.

"Lelouch!"  Cornelia cried,  "Lelouch, what's wrong?!"

"What's going on with you guys?!" Ohgi exclaimed, eyes wide.

Several more voices joined the others, Nonette, Tohdoh, Guilford, and many others calling out, confused at what was happening to Voltron and afraid for the Paladins' sake.

"What…?" Rivalz gasped out.

"Something's… tearing us apart!" Rai realized.

"It's like what happened at…!" Shirley gasped, eyes widening.

"At the Galra base…" Kallen finished with a whisper, her mind drawing the same conclusion, and terror coursed down her spine.

"Then that means…" Suzaku bit out, eyes trailing to the sky, "Lelouch!"

Lelouch's eyes also were drawn to the sky, his blood running cold and body petrified as the familiarity of this presence finally became clear. Zen's own cries of terror only confirmed it further as a large, colossus shape practically materialized above the battlefield.

"Zarkon…!"

As the Galra's HQ exited its jump to hover above the surface of the planet, Zarkon reached out towards the ancient bond that he knew was there and would always be there no matter how his enemies tried to separate them. The druids' magic coursed through his being as his black Geass drilled black holes into his eyes.

The Black Lion would not get away this time.

"...What?!" Ohgi whispered from the ground as the massive alien ship, over a hundred times  bigger than the flagship they had originally destroyed, slowly descended through the clouds. Everything and everyone on the battlefield froze, Black Knights and Britannian defectors alike.

"...This isn't happening, this isn't happening, this is  not happening…" Tamaki chanted, nearly hysterical as he felt tears form in his eyes from the terror in his chest.

Then, much to their further horror, with screams of agony, the Voltron burst apart, the Lions all blasting away from one another, the Black Lion falling limp and landing with a heavy crash to the ground.

"LELOUCH!" both Kallen and Cornelia shouted in unison.

No response came as Lelouch lay unconscious in Zen's cockpit, the sheer force of Zarkon's twisted Geass too much for him to bear.

Then, like an angry cloud of hornets, hundreds of thousands of Galra fighters swarmed out of the Galra ship, descending on the weakened Voltron forces below.

"Damn!" Kallen screamed, regaining control of Aka and righting herself in the air again. "All Black Knights! Retreat! Get back to the castle  now!"

  "What?! But Kallen-"

"Now, Ohgi!" Kallen barked desperately, "Zarkon is  here! We can't fight him, he'll wipe us out!"

"Kallen, what about Lelouch?!" Rivalz exclaimed in utter panic.

The red streak of the Guren passing by, followed by the Gawain's black form, answered that question.

"He'll be fine. His sis and Sayoko have got him!" Kallen said, "Quick, we need to lay down covering fire!"

"Sh-she's right! Come on!" Shirley shouted, already turning Zinnia towards a group of defectors struggling to get through a Galran brigade.

Zarkon's face remained impassive as he stepped off his fortress's platform, descending towards the Earth, determined to end this once and for all.

The Black Lion would be his once again.

Landing on the planet's surface, it wasn't hard to find the Black Lion. It had landed in a clear area of the battlefield, lying on its side, eyes dark and unresponsive. It was very likely that her new 'Paladin' was still inside. He highly doubted the boy had fled, even if it would have spared him.

He had barely taken a step, though, when a surge of red energy ran across his path.

Narrowing his eyes, he looked up only to see the large black bi-pedal machine, along with the red one with the silver arm and several other smaller gray ones surrounding him.

"Not one step further!" a feminine voice ordered from the large black one, two large cannons aimed at him from its back. Similar weapons are also leveled at him from the others.

Zarkon nearly scoffed. Nothing more than another pesky obstacle.

"Stand aside."

The red machine's arm tensed back, "Never…" another woman's voice practically spat.

The two parties stood still for several moments.

Zarkon then drew his Bayard, a large violet blade materialized.

"Then die."

In the blink of an eye, Zarkon suddenly flickered from being in front of them to standing crouched behind Darlton's Seishin.

"Wha-" the knight couldn't even finish the word before the Knightmare split in two and exploded.

"Sir Darlton!" Guilford shouted before Zarkon turned around almost casually, Bayard poised to strike once again.

Unlike before, with only a single flagship and the original invading fleet to fight, the massive flood of reinforcements that rained down on the city began picking off the Black Knight forces little by little. Even with the remaining Paladins providing cover, many valiant men and women fell, shot down by the relentless Galra surge.

With Milly on her trail, Kallen headed immediately to Ohgi's location, knowing most of his troops consisted of ground fighters. Milly quickly shot a series of flash bombs at the Galra fighters above them, giving the girls barely enough time for Ohgi and his surviving squads to load onto the two Lions, leaving any other weapons behind.

Rivalz and Shirley found themselves in similar situations, the sky lighting up with explosions of fire as the two pushed the fighters away from their allies in the sky and on the ground.

Rai made a beeline for Nonette's downed Lancelot, the knight only having the strength to crawl from the wreckage and lay next to it, barely remaining conscious. Dried blood still stained her nose, and her left arm was bent at an awkward angle, but she was alive.

Suzaku felt his blood run cold as he saw a massive squadron heading straight for Tohdoh's team, and he propelled Yoru quickly to intercept.

"Out of the way!" he roared, blasting into the swarm, destroying twenty of them alone with a single blast. Yoru then leaped back, her jaw opening wide, her blackhole suction pulling against several more.

"Sensei! Go!" he shouted, straining from the effort of the attack.

Despite most of the fighters getting caught in the suction, several more still fought their way around or out of it, making a head charge towards the group.

"There's still too many!" Asahina gasped, his Seishin getting battered by a volley of lasers as he sliced through two with his sword.

"Stay focused!" Tohdoh ordered with Chiba firing her gun at several fighters.

Suzaku growled, quickly summoning the Lion's jawblade, and while the fighters were disoriented, sliced through several more.

Unfortunately, despite these efforts, more simply seemed to keep coming. Like a hydra when its head was severed, more simply replaced the ship that was downed.

And one soldier knew it was not time for his commanding officer to die just yet.

"Colonel…" Urabe said solemnly as he calmly typed a code into the Seishin's keypad, "It's been an honor to fight beside you. And Suzaku… be a good Paladin."

"What?" Suzaku's eyes widened, a vague image of a knightmare in this very position meeting its end, along with the pilot inside, "Urabe,  no!"

The Seishin charged forward, completely blowing a path through the fighters, before exploding in an inferno in the center of the swarm.

Suzaku looked on in horror, the reality of what he saw sinking in, the guilt of not being able to save someone again resurfacing.

"Suzaku!" Senba shouted, shaking him back to reality, "We got to go!"

"Urabe's sacrifice will be mourned, Suzaku," Tohdoh said, though only Chiba saw how stiff the Colonel's face became, "but it will mean nothing if we all die…"

"...Right," the Purple Paladin sighed before following after the three remaining Seishins, covering the rest of their retreat to the white castle in the sky.

David's scream of agony as his Knightmare was sliced apart filled the castle's launch bay, Rakshata, Lloyd, and Cecile watching in shocked horror as Zarkon picked off the Knightmares surrounding the Black Lion one after the other.

"He's not even in a Knightmare…" Cecile trembled, watching the footage through the Gawain's already battered systems, "And he's tearing them apart."

"At this point, it looks as though he's only toying with them," Rakshata pursed her lips, but her eyes were shaking, and she clutched her pipe tight enough her hands were turning white.

"What… What kind of monster are we even dealing with?!" Lloyd exclaimed, hands gripping his head, panicking for the first time in… he wasn't sure the last time he felt like this, and even with their own alien tech, there was likely little to nothing they could do to help in some way.

Slowly, Lelouch came back into focus as his eyes blinked open. Confused and body aching, he sat up looking around… only to stop cold at the scene he saw through his Lion's screen window.

Zarkon's Bayard, in its whip form, had grabbed a Seishin by its arm and swung it through the air before slamming it hard into a pile of debris several feet away, the Knightmare erupting into flames moments later.

"No…" he gasped, panic seizing his heart and hands shaking, "What... What are you...? Get away... You can't stop him... Just run…"

He only watched helplessly, though, as Zarkon drove his Bayard into the final Seishin's abdomen, the machine's form electrifying before the back end detached and flew away, just as this Knightmare also exploded. Zarkon then turned his attention to the larger Knightmares. The Guren's silver arm was gone, the Galra having ripped it off earlier in battle, but Zarkon shifted the Bayard to a cannon and fired at the red Knightmare, blasting it backward. Then with barely a shift in footing, changed it back into a spear and stabbed backward, catching the Gawain in the middle before swiping out, effectively cutting the Knightmare in two.

With the machines no longer threats, the Galran emperor turned his attention back to the Lion, approaching slowly like he was taking a stroll in a park.

Before Lelouch could move to try and rouse Zen again, another battle cry interrupted him. He gasped in horror as Sayoko herself charged Zarkon, leaping in front of him, kunai lashing.

Zarkon stepped back slightly but otherwise seemed unfazed. Bayard a sword again, he swung back, locking weapons with the kunoichi, but his strength easily one out, disarming her and kicking her in the air. Then the Bayard became a whip, wrapping around Sayoko's form before the ninja slammed with a shattering crash against the Earth.

"SAYOKO!" Lelouch screamed, tears in his eyes as his mother figure gasped against the ground, groaning as her hand flew to her stomach, blood quickly pooling from a slice across it.

Zarkon attempted to walk towards Zen again when a bullet suddenly bounced off the back of his armor. It didn't hurt him, but it annoyed him enough to turn to the culprit.

"Get the hell away from my brother!" Cornelia roared, her sword-rifle raised, and aimed to fire again.

Zarkon turned toward her, saying nothing as he just glared, almost daring her to challenge him.

Cornelia refused to back down and emptied the rest of her bullets against Zarkon's armor. Upon realizing she was out, she charged at him, sword held up to swing down.

She didn't see Bayard swing until her right armor was sent flying away.

Cornelia collapsed to the ground, shrieking in agony and clutching her stump as blood hemorrhaged from the severed appendage.

"NO!" Lelouch shouted, horror racing through his heart.

Cornelia grunted, shoulder still burning as Zarkon's foot smashed into her cheek.

"Pathetic…" he murmured, digging his heel against the princess's head.

Cornelia could do nothing but stare up at the monster… no, the demon that was bearing down on her, and there was nothing she could do about it. The last time she had felt so helpless was… Was when Empress Marianne had perished, and Lelouch and Nunnally were banished by their father's cruel decree.

'He tore apart our entire unit... with just a single weapon... even ripped apart Voltron... all on his own...! This... this... demon... he's not just powerful... he  IS  power...!' Cornelia thought as tears trickled down her face as a crushing sense of shame settled in her chest, 'Lelouch... is this really who you've been fighting? And I haven't done a damn thing to help you... You and your friends... have had to fight this monster all on your own... I'm so sorry…'

Lelouch, meanwhile, could only watch on, terrified and enraged all at once as he watched Zarkon torment his sister. Why? Why was he just watching? Was that all the good he could do? Why did everything seem to fall apart in his hands even when he came so close to setting things right? His body shook, unable to so much as stand, petrified of this villain and the terror he brought in his wake.

  No…

Lelouch gasped as a spark of warmth ignited in his chest, spreading outward, enveloping him like a blanket.

You are not helpless…  We  are not helpless. It is true we are no match when separate, but we are together. Let us stand, my Paladin, as one...

"What insect are you, to deny what is rightfully mine?" Zarkon intoned, pressing Cornelia's head further into the dirt, "Your nation of Britannia speaks of evolution, yet you can't even begin to understand such a concept. I have transcended the limits of space and even time, and I will do so as I shall bend this universe to my will. A bug like you can't stop me."

Zarkon however blinked in surprise as Cornelia's remaining hand grabbed hold of his ankle and tried, though in vain, to shove him off of her. Her eyes, though still red with tears, glared fiery daggers at Zarkon.

"Go... to hell... you damn monster...!" Cornelia growled, "That's my brother in there... For his sake... I'll keep fighting... I'll break myself if I have to...! Even if there's nothing left of me... I won't let you one inch further...! I'll destroy myself before I let you lay so much as a finger on him!"

Zarkon narrowed his eyes and opened his mouth to reply, only to hear something approaching rapidly. Turning around, he saw Lelouch, a purple knife pointed forward, practically flying toward Zarkon.

"GET AWAY FROM MY SISTER!" Lelouch roared, his Geass shining in not one but both of his eyes. The blade in his hand suddenly fizzled, growing in length as red energy traveled down the hilt, extending it into a long, curved sword.

Zarkon's surprised stupor cost him, as the next thing he registered was a sharp jab of pain piercing his side. The conqueror roared in agony as the blade was wrenched out, and the boy ducked under him to grab hold of his sister, gathering her in his arms.

"I'm sorry…" Lelouch whispered, pulling Cornelia's remaining arm over his shoulder. Looking up, he barely spotted an injured but alive Guilford picking Sayoko up in his own arms and making brief eye-contact, headed straight for Zen's form, still lying in the dirt, but eyes bright and clearly conscious.

Zarkon snarled as he watched his enemy scurry back into the Black Lion. Once all four were safely inside, the Black Lion roared in defiance at him before leaping into the sky.

The former Paladin raised his Bayard to shoot the Lion down again, only to be pelted from all sides by the remaining Lions, none of them giving him room to make a clear shot at the Black Lion.

"Keep him pinned down!" Kallen ordered, "Don't give a chance to fight back!"

"Paladins!"  Coran exclaimed, face appearing on the screen,  "All the survivors are on board! Get out of there now!"

Without another word, the Lions all turned and zoomed back into the sky, retreating to the castle as it disappeared into the clouds once more.

Zarkon said nothing as he glared at the spot that the Lions vanished into. Once again, they had escaped, but unlike last time, his forces gained much more than what they lost this time.

"Sire…" Haggar murmured, approaching her recovering emperor from behind, as her ship landed, "I sense they are still close. You can easily track them, and our troops can wipe them out now."

"There's no need for that," Zarkon addressed.

"Sire?" Haggar queried in surprise.

"Voltron will return soon," Zarkon clarified, "We have their planet hostage now. We have nothing but time until they come for it again. And one way or another, Voltron will fall to us then…"

From aboard the craft, Charles glared daggers into the backs of the two aliens on the ground. These two thought they were foolish enough to think that? While it was true their presence would make things… difficult, their actions would be of little consequence once their plan was complete.

'Soon, Marianne…' Charles thought, 'Soon, our dream will come to fruition, and this madness will end. No force in the universe will be strong enough to stop it.'

[mysticdragon3md3]

Trying to make sense of my OTP record from “badass pairs” to “moronsexual for this himbo”.  lol  

I was tagging a previous Tumblr post "#sassy akira is best akira".  I don't necessarily believe that.  I just like sassy Akira.  I don't know if he's the best version of Akira, but "[version] [character] is best [character]" is a common meme, and I wanted to use that shorthand as a tag.  

Sometimes I worry that "sassy Akira" wouldn't love Ryuji.  After all, my first big OTP was Zel/Lina, wherein I often cited that I preferred how their equally sharp minds played off and seamlessly complimented each other.  In contrast to Lina/Gourry which was moronsexuality.  Since then, I've always personally preferred couples who were equals.  Like IchiRuki, which was my next big OTP obsession after Zel/Lina.  I even preferred couples like in FAKE by Sanami Matoh, who were of equal height and age.  In contrast to most BL manga which often had troublesome age differences and went to great lengths to highly contrast the couple's character designs, in height, color schemes, hard vs soft lines, "masculine" vs "feminine", etc.  And I know that contrasting character designs for couples or any pair of characters who are often in the same composition together, is recommended design, but in BL it was starting to be unequal in extreme ways that I couldn't support with my romantic values.  And of course, I'm not going to read/watch a romance story that doesn't appeal to my personal ideals about romance.  So if I'm not into himbos, then why am I staunchly, jealously biased towards AkiRyu/Pegoryu, and not say, ShuAke?  

I was going to write about how tastes change.  "I used to be totally into the gutsy tomboys, but by the time of Code Geass, I had bewilderingly passed over the super cool Kallen for dead-inside Universal Mother Goddess archetypes like C.C.".  

But when I look back at my recorded OTP cycle, I've always liked himbos.  I just wouldn't admit they were himbos, because I didn't think they were stupid.  They were often oblivious to some social norms and overtly silly, but I remember getting mad when people would call Sanada Yukimura dumb. And I'd rant about "how dare people demean such rare and pure earnestness!  It takes great emotional strength---True Strength to be so emotionally honest! That’s wisdom!"  But even before my DateSana obsession, I was into USUK, and US was _definitely_ stupid.  That was part of his charm!  Hetalia was a comedy show, after all.  Maybe that's why it was easier for me to admit he was a dumb git.  Also, it was cute fanon whenever England teasingly called him a "git".  ^.^  Looking back made me realize that an affinity for himbos and moronsexuality wasn't really against my ideals and my AkiRyu obsession isn't even a sign of my tastes changing.  I've always loved the really earnest, sincere, silly, loud, emotionally-honest, pure-hearted Shonen Protagonist type.  Where their instances of “stupidity” became just signs of their pure innocence (at least in their ideals/values).  I guess Gourry Gabriev just didn't really quite breach that threshold for me, but Ryuji Sakamoto did.

So AkiRyu doesn't contradict my previous ideals and personal tastes.  Akechi just doesn't meet my requirement for OTP fodder.  I mean, even IchiRuki and Zel/Lina, though equals and both sharp and tough, were individually compassionate people on top of their impressive cleverness.  Vanilla Persona 5 introduced/portrayed Akechi as an unnecessarily malicious bully, and that is one of my highest pet peeves.  So of course, it doesn't matter if he can mentally spar with Akira and be his rival in battle.  I won't ship anyone with a jerk.  That's not my pastime, let alone a ship that I'd want to obsess over.  

The thing I like about the idea of "sassy Akira" choosing himbo Ryuji, is that as seemingly uncatchable, unphasable as Joker may seem, flipping and dodging entrapments with all the agility and confidence in the world, we've seen that's just his mask, his Jungian persona.  Akira was really hurt by his false arrest and no one believing in him.  He was ready to give in to the world, maybe even start believing he was wrong to help that woman (until Arsene questioned him about it during his Awakening).  The best story that I personally want to see (or the story that I need right now) is when that broken Disillusionment meets the Shonen Protagonist type, who still persists in believing in good, in justice and people, and foolishly continues to risk being kind and emotionally vulnerable, and all those things that the cynical, seemingly mature character has been scared off from risking again, like a frightened child, that they won't admit they’ve become.  Because, at least in my headcanon, my fanon's version of Akira doesn't need a sparring partner; he needs renewed hope in the world.  Ryuji would never be insincere, abandon Akira, be unsupportive, play mind games, or casually entrap anyone in daily life (I'm not talking about spying on the new track advisor, but everyday interactions that more clever people turn into endless mind games and playful teasing entrapments).  And then on top of that, he's also so positive and enthusiastic about pretty much everything.  Heck, even when he's negative about stuff, he's usually expressing the same emotion Akira is having in reaction to a situation, but is afraid to outwardly express; but Ryuji has no fear.  Yet, he'll turn around from barking guard dog, to instantly cuddly puppy.  He's a good boy.  ;u;  And then on top of *that*, Ryuji _proactively_ tries to protect people, constantly and regardless of how the world has hurt him.  I mean, he's a himbo, but goddamn, what a catch.  *o*

I shouldn't have to convince myself to stop feeling guilty over whatever OTP I'm having fun with.  But it sure is nice to re-live all the good reasons through the analysis.  ^-^  

[mononoke-no-ko]

Code Geass Gaiden: Lancelot & Guren -Kallen arc- Ep05 Part02

The cornered Black Knights is left with no choice but to hole up without any support. The battle formation that is quite hopeful that the resting place of previous emperors, Mausoleum of Eighty Eight Emperors, won’t be attacked indiscriminately, found itself about to collapse due to Chinese Federation’s decision to attack.

Zero: This means... they’ve abandoned Tianzi.

C.C.: In other words, the High Eunuchs want to get rid of Xing-ke at this place along with us.

Zero: Diethard, prepare the device.

Diethard: Here?

Black Knights vs Chinese Federation!

Lelouch: Isn’t this the best stage, with everything perfectly set in place?

Toudou: Our air force capability is limited! Attack with the strength of thousand warriors!

Asahina/Chiba: Roger!

Toudou: It’s you, Suzaku-kun...!

Gino: I heard you’re the one who captured Guren? I have a debt to settle here, with that KMF’s pilot...!

Anya: Die to all rebels.

Savitri: The number of machines that can be a match against Knight of Rounds’ exclusive KMFs is not many; Toudou’s machine, Chiba’s machine, Asahina’s machine, and C.C.’s machine... The main force should be preoccupied there, so your unit should handle the regular air force!    

Benio: I know!

Benio: I need to hold out... so that Zero’s plan succeeds..!

Benio: The large gap that’s been left by Kallen-san will be filled by everyone’s strength! 

Soldier: This..! There’s no data on this machine!?

Benio: I’ll crush you!!

Soldier: A machine other than Guren and Zangetsu with such combat power?! Call for aid!

Benio: 5... 

Benio: 6.. 7... 8...

Savitri: It’s okay, Benio! I’m only going to say this now but, I liked Kallen-san so I’ve been jealous of you! I’ve been observing your movements and innate maneuvering sense since the recruitment test! I made the final adjustment to Benihouzuki so that you can utilize your maximum ability! That’s why, there’s no way you’ll fail!

Benio: Even at the expense of our life, “we” will hold out Kallen-san’s place to return! 9...

Benio: I get it now. I will no longer ask forgiveness for killing people. Right now I’m an extension of justice. At the very least, I won’t look away.

Benio: I’m fine with being dirty. That’s why, please, let me help Kallen-san...! 

Benio: 23...! 24...!!

Tianzi: Please! Stop this fighting already! 

Xingke: Tianzi-sama!

Tianzi Kya...!

Benio: The Ikaruga!! Kallen-san’s place to return! Everyone... Savitri...!!

Xingke: Anyone.. anyone will do... Please save Tianzi-sama!!

Lelouch: Alright. I’ll grant your wish.

Benio: Shinkiro... Amazing! So this is Zero’s plan...

Savitri: Not quite. Look at this. There are uprisings in all of Chinese Federation’s areas. The communication record between Zero and the High Eunuchs was aired and revealed that they’ve abandoned Tianzi and the people. 

Benio: I see... We saved that village in preparation for this time too... So this is Zero’s fighting method...

Toudou: This is not a hole up without any reinforcement!

Tamaki: Push them back all at once!!

Savitri: With The High Eunuchs losing public support, Britannia Army will also withdraw their support for Chinese Federation...

Savitri: The battle situation... has been overturned...

--

Benio: Then, how about Kallen-san...?!

Savitri: ...it seems the High Eunuchs had handed her over to Knight of Rounds...

Benio: That’s...!

Zero: Benio, Savitri. I will definitely rescue Kallen. Definitely. That’s why, be my strength. To compensate for Kallen’s part as well.

Benio/Savitri: Understood!

Benio: As long as we follow Zero, this war will definitely come to an end... and Kallen-san will be saved...! Definitely...!

[altissiavibritannia]

Moolouch Xmas Special

This is a separate chapter from the official fanfic of my Moolouch fanfic. I decided to add some of my Moolouch fic on here, so here’s something that is Xmasy. I know Xmas was yesterday, but I was spending time with my mema at that time being. So here’s my late Xmas gift to y’all. Lelouch is a cowboy throughout Moolouch and Gaara is his old friend that he barely remembers. This is a Gaara x Suzaku x Lelouch moment.

“Morning Lelouch, want to help me make fresh eggnog?” he asked softly in his ear.

The black haired cowboy yawned and mooed in agreement. Rubbing the sleep out of his eyes as he stretched. Fixing his hair and fur, before polishing his black horns. Suzaku smiled as he left to go wake up the person responsible for Lelouch’s transformation.

Long purple lush hair flowed down to the floor. He looked like a male version of Rupunzel. Suzaku walked up to his bedside to tap his shoulder.

“What do you want?” he grumbled, still asleep.

“Just wake up Gaara...it’s Xmas morning. Besides we’ll be packed with guests for the Xmas party.” Suzaku sighed.

He opened his ruby red eyes and just glared at him. The White Knight just glared right back. Sighing in defeat as he did know that it was his turn to host the party. He started living here with them for half a year now and barely did his part. He usually was too busy keeping Geass Farms up and running.

“Fine...as host of the Xmas Party, I’ll get outfits ready first...I’m almost done with them.” Gaara groaned.

“That’s the spirit. Me and Lelouch will be making the eggnog while we wait. Rolo has the cooking taken care of, he and Lelouch prepared it last night...well most of it.” Suzaku chirped with a blush on his cheeks.

“For his boyfriend and farmer, you tend to be even more lovey dovey than normal. Has my geass power gotten to you?” Gaara scuffedly asked.

“Well I guess all geass power isn’t that bad...still this is his punishment for all that he’s done after all~!” Suzaku singsonged.

“What about me?! Why am I a English Lop?! Who’s idea was this?!” Rolo complained, tripping over an ear.

Crashing sounds could be heard from the kitchen. Rolo was turned into a English Lop bunniboi half a month ago and he was still half asleep when Gaara used his geass on him. The mastermind behind that was Nunnally.

Pots and pans clanged against each other as they fell to the floor. Rolo was making such a big mess in the kitchen. Making Suzaku think. Was wasn’t he turned into a half animal like the rest? It didn’t make sense. Him, C.C., Gaara’s workers and Gaara himself wasn’t turned. Yet Geass wasn’t effective on C.C., but did some did? 

C.C. did after all keeps her distance away from Gaara as possible. Yet somehow Lelouch was able to give Gaara and a few others geass without forming contracts or having Code in general. Unless his geass got that powerful enough to allow him to do it.

“Here Rolo, let me help.” Lelouch offered, his Xmas themed cowbell rang.

“Thanks Big Brother, but what about your pectorals? Aren’t you full?” he asked, picking up a dirty frying pan.

“Yeah, well I’ve been through much worse. I may be full of milk like how I am every morning and evening, but I can handle the pain for a bit longer. Right now Suzaku is waking up Gaara.” Lelouch chuckled.

Gaara got out of bed as Suzaku walked to the kitchen to help. He had a lot of brushing to do. His hair was getting longer as time flies by, he then saw the male student outfit in his basket. Furrowing a brow as he held up the shirt. Frowning as he dropped it back into the basket, he put on his usual outfit. Gaara’s fashion looked like he jumped out of a pop singer poster.

Well he is a pop singer, but he quit his boy band once they used him for his geass. He removed their half animal traits once he found out why they wanted him as their lead singer. They wanted to be popular on looks alone and not anything else. Gaara was a great singer, but got driven into madness once he lost his best friend Lelouch when he was sent here. 

He’s been turning others into animals with his geass power ever since he’s received it when Lelouch used his on him to be a distraction to keep Suzaku at bay. That was how Haunted Badboyz transformed into Aniboyz. Aniboyz vanished once the band broke up. Now he’s in charge of Geass Farms. He turned the rest of Aniboyz into his livestock once they begged for him to come back.

Lelouch then found out after he and Suzaku ended up as new employees of Geass Farms. He then offered to become a pop singer for his new band if he was up to it. Lelouch has always wanted to be in one ever since childhood, before his mother’s death. Gaara liked this new Lelouch that he’s made, Lelouch loved his new self too. Helps him out on relaxing, even though he ends up horny at the same time.

“Ready Lulu? Or should I say Merrymoo?” Suzaku asked in a teasing manner.

Lelouch’s cheeks flushed and his black soft cow ears lowered. His black cow tail swayed in embarrassment. He was wearing his Santa cowboy costume that Gaara made for him last month. He got it for a birthday present. The red short turtle tank top outlined in white faux fur, to the red and white faux furred short shorts. It suited him, he was even wearing the matching gloves and thigh high socks. 

His bell was festive as well. Gold and silver bells with mistletoe themed bell. He wore a Santa hat and boots to make it look like he was the Santa of bovine. His horns shone in the sunlight as the sun was still rising. They poked through the fabric of his hat, well there was holes cut into it to make room for them. Rolo blushed as he looked so cute as a cowboy, he was jealous that he’s one and not like him, a bunniboi. 

Rolo grabbed a bucket from one of the cupboard near the fridge. This is the only thing he can’t drop without tripping over his knee-length rabbit ears. He then hands it to Suzaku, who places it before Lelouch on the counter. Sighing as he then grabbed a carton of eggs and heavy cream from the fridge. He then searched through the spices for the nutmeg and cinnamon and of course, sugar. 

They looked at each other and then at Rolo. Lelouch looked down at the empty bucket and then his milk filled pecs. Suzaku noticed how down in the dumps Rolo was now. It’s always has been him who got to milk Lelouch and nobody else. Now he saw the problem, everyone that knows of their love life and new jobs at Geass Farms were interested in learning something new. Lelouch then knew what Suzaku was thinking just by looking back at him.

“Go ahead Lulu, he’s never tried it before. He deserves to learn how in case I’m too busy.” Suzaku whispered.

Lelouch’s eyes full of love and understanding as he nodded.

“No that’s brown sugar...where is it?” Rolo sighed as he fiddled around in the pantry, searching for sugar.

Lelouch bumped his hip lightly against Rolo’s hip. His bells ringing as he did so, this caught Rolo off guard. He yelped as he tripped over his ears again and then, boofpt! Flour flew everywhere, making it look like it snowed indoors. Suzaku was laughing at how cute this was to see them together. A whirring sound could be heard. It was Nunnally, she had finally woken up.

“What’s all of the racket about Suzaku?” she asked.

“Well good morning Nunna, your brothers are goofing off is all. Also Merry Xmas Nunnally, want to help me or Gaara out, while these two make the eggnog?” Suzaku smiled softly.

“Sure thing, I need something to do anyways. Oh is the eggnog made with my brother’s milk again?” she asked with a cute mew. 

“Indeed it is, it’s nice to have fresh milk on hand without bothering to go grocery shopping.” The White Knight chuckled.

Lelouch’s cheeks flushed again as he heard their conversation. Rolo’s eyes widen as he spotted Lelouch’s stomach. It wasn’t flat and smooth like always anymore. It was a bit more lumpy than normal. Lelouch placed a finger over his lips and winked. Rolo started to tear up as he knew what was happening and why he hasn’t told anyone yet. He was four months pregnant. 

Nodding as he understood now why his older adoptive brother has been acting the way he has, it was due to him being pregnant.It also explains the extra milk over the past three months. It’s an unexpected Xmas present for everyone, including Suzaku. But what would his reaction about this all might be?

Lelouch winced in pain as his pectorals filled up more with milk. His shirt was getting even more tighter by the nanosecond. Even though the fabric was meant to withstand it after his pectorals got full, it wasn’t meant for leakage or with extra filled pecs. Rolo dusts the flour off of himself and then took his hand.

Lelouch pulled him up and dusts the flour off of himself as well. Now would be a good time for some relief or else Gaara might get pissed if he ended up with Mastitis or see his seamstership ruined. It took Gaara a week to get the outfit done, he loves to sew by hand. Once they were both done dusting the flour off themselves, Lelouch leaned over the bucket.

Rolo seemed nervous, because this’ll be his first time milking his older brother. Lelouch then carefully took off his bells and top. His nipples leaked a tiny bit of breast milk from the softest touch. He’s used to this by now, he then gently grabbed his tiny hands. He placed them onto his pectorals, shivered a bit from how it felt good.

“It’ll be ok Rolo, I’m here to help through the process. J-Just be gentle...alright? Ready?” he asked.

“B-But I don’t know t-the r-” he was cutoff by Gaara taking a snapshot of them.

They both blushed as they spotted him. “G-Gaara!!” they stuttered in perfect unison.

“Sorry, but this is what Milly wants. She’s coming by for the party after all.” The Emo Vampire Of Pop shrugged, holding the camera.

“Really? Even after what happened...?” Lelouch asked his ears perked.

“Yeah, of course she forgave you, Your Majesty.” Gaara chuckled as he liked how cute the 99th Emperor of Britannia was.

Lelouch blushed again as he forgot that he’s still the Emperor of Britannia. His older brother Schneizel gave him the throne after finding out why he was Zero and why he has murdered their father and remurdered his mother. He hasn’t been arrested again or anything, but he wanted to see how well he would do as the new Emperor. He didn’t want to have the throne like the rest of his siblings, yet someone had to be Emperor or else everything would go into ruins or chaotic.

He forgot that he even invited his family over to the party. Sighing as he knew that Zero Requiem would be no more, now that he’s busy fixing Britannia and trying to gain other nations trust while help fix their cities and such that was destroyed. He wanted the Zero Requiem, but this is fine too. Also he doesn’t want his unborn children to end up going down a dark path like how he has. 

Shaking his head to clear it as he then rubbed Rolo’s hands against his pectorals. Rolo caught on and started to message them. Moaning softly as he let him message his painfully full chest. Once he was done, he had to lean over the counter again. He taught his little brother how to milk him. Nodding again as he then grabbed his nipples to relieve him of his load.

“M-Mooooooooooooooo~!” Lelouch mooed in glee.

“W-Wow this is amazing! I’ve never knew how fun this could be!” Rolo laughed.

“Sounds like Rolo’s having a blast. I wonder if he wishes to change his animal or not. Yet I do love how cute and fluffy he can be the way he is.” Suzaku softly chuckled as he eavesdrops on them, speaking to himself.

Squishy, squish, thick, thack. Lelouch was swaying his tail in glee as Rolo got the hang of it within a matter of seconds. Milking him in a good rhythm and not rushing things. His milk sploshing into the bucket as he moaned in pleasure. Blushing per usual as he loved it. Mooing and moaning as this made Rolo blush. His moos were so cute that he wanted to hear them more often.

Once the bucket was full, Lelouch grabbed another one. They then looked back at the doorway to the kitchen as they heard a knock. It was Rivalz, he had a few tins of butter cookies with him. Seems like guests were arriving earlier than expecting. He then smiled with a blush on his cheeks as the scent of Lelouch’s milk drifted under his nostrils.

“Need help?” he asked, swaying his mouse tail.

“Yeah that’ll be great. Mind separating the yolks from the whites?” Lelouch pointed to the eggs.

“Sure thing Merrymoo. Oops...I mean Your Majesty.” Rivals apologized as he bowed.

“No worries, we’re friends after all. On top of that it’s Xmas, so no need to be sooooooooooooo formal!” Lelouch mooed.

Rolo shrugged with a sheepish smile. “S-Sorry...” he apologized.

“It’s fine. Just warn me when you’re going back to milking me. Scared the crap out of me.” he chuckled.

“You two are so adorable together, even though it’s milking time for Lelouch.” Rivalz complimented.

They both blush as Rolo’s hands continued in a steady pace. Rivalz chuckled as he then placed down the cookies to start cracking some eggs and placing the yolks into a glass bowl. Lelouch and Rolo sighed in unison as they then gone back about their business. They then filled the last bucket, so it can be used for the eggnog. Lelouch then sighed in relief as he had some left over in case he needed it for something else. 

“Well I’ll be back...I need to take a shower now.” he said, putting back on his top, hat and bells.

“Yeah sure, thanks for the milk Big Brother!” Rolo chirped.

“You’re welcome, did you like the experience?” he asked, glowing.

“Yeah...it was fun. Let’s do that again someday.” Rolo smiled.

“Somebody’s jealous~!” Suzaku singsonged.

Rolo blushed as Lelouch furrowed a brow. “S-Shut up! So what if I want to swap traits with my Big Brother someday for a day or two experience!” 

Lelouch’s eyes widened as he was shocked on how he felt all this time after being turned into an English Lop bunniboi. Blushing himself as he wondered what it’s like to swap animal traits for a bit for a break, for once. Gaara’s geass was capable of turn others into anything he’d like but objects and take it away at anytime he felt like it. Yet was he able to swap looks? This made everyone grin as the idea got the best of them.

Gaara was petting the Scottish Fold Nunnally. “Thank you for helping me out. The more help, the merrier.” 

“No problem. Do you have a family Gaara??” she asked, purring.

“Used to, I’m the last one of the Ootori family. They either died from illness or died during the Black Rebellion...even my baby sister Maggie died before she could ever enter kindergarten...” Gaara sniffled.

“I’m sorry...I didn’t know...is this another reason why you turned me the way you did...?” Lelouch asked, his tail wrapped around his legs and ears drooped.

He was out of his shower and was now wearing his cowboy version of his royal outfit. His royal rope draped from his shoulders like a cape or blanket. He had a cowbell made to match his outfit. He was used to his new look. He then sat down next to him, to help out on sewing the outfits. Gaara looked away as he stopped sewing.

“No...it’s not your fault Your Moojesty...terrorists that wasn’t part of the Black Knights took the advantage of the Black Rebellion...naming themselves as Black Knights, but their attire was different and didn’t match the real ones...they murdered everyone, but me. I pretended to be dead as they were killing everyone in sight at the family reunion...”

“Oh...I’m very sorry that happened to you. Were they part of your family or people who had a grudge against your family?”

“No to them both...they were stealing jewelry and expensive items that they could get their claws on...they attacked any rich family that they came in contact with...my family just happened to be on their list...”

“I see...are they still out there? I kind of forgot that the Ootori’s were a family of knights that served our family for generations...being sent during that year that day had made me forget...”

“It’s fine...I got my revenge sooner than I thought...Someone recognized me and then found out that I survived. One day I was surrounded by them and well...that’s when you came in that Sutherland...I ducked for cover when you fired...it’s more of a I hate you, forgive you, and thank you really.”

Ruby red to violet orbs. Lelouch didn’t know that he had saved him from death while shooting random people and such while running away from Suzaku again during a mission. Before his own Knightmare Frame was shipped along side the Guren. All he remembered was that he was trying escape and tear things up again like how they first met during the beginning of the Black Rebellion. Now that it’s over and that he’s Emperor, he has nothing else to do but to fix everything that he’s done.

Tears formed in Gaara’s ruby eyes and he then tackled the Emperor and started to sob. His purple and red coyote ears flopped over and tail tucked. Lelouch smiled warmly as he hugged him and starts to pet him, comforting him. As he cried, he felt his small baby bump and furrowed a brow. Yet he didn’t care at the moment, he felt lonesome for being the last member of his family.

“Merry Furmas Everybody~!” a cheerful voice announced.

Everyone turned their attention to the voice and knew right away that it was Milly. Rivalz ran out of the kitchen with waterfalls for tears as he tried to glomp her. She sidestepped as he missed and landed right onto the Spruce tree. Some of the decor on it was messed up from him landing into it. He groaned in pain as the needled leaves of it poked him. They laughed as they knew how silly these two were together. It was Two Out Of Three Stooges. All they needed was a third to make the collection complete.Yet either Suzaku or the Emperor himself could be the third one if they felt like it.

Rolo came walking in and dragged Rivalz back into the kitchen to help him finish making the eggnog. Rivalz just let him, tears still falling as he was being dragged by the tail. Milly then wagged her husky tail when they left for the kitchen. She then bowed before Lelouch, before holding out a present that she dug out of one of the many bags that were filled with them. She was the git go girl, she wore a pink Mrs. Clause outfit with four Santa bags full of presents. She loved to shower others with affection even if it was gifts.

He waved a hand at her as he then had her place the presents under the tree for now. Gaara then stood back up when he was done crying for his loss for his dear family. He was the second tallest out of them all. Yet Gino and Jeremiah had him beat by 4 inches in height. Yet he was still tall for his age.

“Anyone else coming Milly?” he asked.

“No, Your Majesty. Just us old student council and new, aside from the old and the new Knights of the Round.” she answered.

“Milly it’s Xmas, so no need for formalities. It’s annoying half the time...” Lelouch groaned, scrunching up his nose.

“Sorry, force of habit. Yet it’s quite catchy~!” she chirped.

“Sorry if I’m late Yo-”

“Shut up! He wants a break from hearing it!” they shouted in unison.

The teal haired general held out a finger with his mouth agape, but then nodded and closed it. Sighs as he then walked over to him. He then saw the champagne in his hands wrapped with a big golden bow. He directed him to the kitchen so it can be saved for later. The two chatted about making a treaty with Area 5, since they’re on the list to give back the name and rights list. It was simply the roll of the dice to figure out which countries or Areas that are capable to have everything returned to them without having a constant war with them. 

Soon enough Kallen showed up wearing her old Black Knights uniform and was followed in by Kaname Ohgi and his wife Villetta. Villetta was about 6 months pregnant when they arrived. Lelouch invited them as well. Only a few former Black Knights were invited, so only them came. He also wanted to congratulate them for their family that they were starting. Villetta saw his baby bump and smiled. She didn’t say a word.

She knew that he wanted to tell everyone himself once the party started. Ohgi helped her into a seat before walking into the kitchen to help. Villetta gasped as she felt the baby kick again. Chuckling as she let Nunnally feel for herself. The two chatted about how things in life were going and whatnot. Nothing but girl talk. Kallen sighed as she felt left out, yet was guilty of kissing the Emperor. They didn’t know that he was gay until he kissed Suzaku on national television once crowned Emperor.

Everyone was shocked at first and was disgusted, but as life and time went on, they got used to it. Soon there were transgender, lesbians, gays, genderfluid, and every other sexuality. His love for Suzaku has changed the way the world worked. He even made laws for everybody to feel equal in both Japan (after giving their name and right back) and Britannia. Soon everybody was happy, there was no more name calling on the Japanese and no more war between the two countries.

Lelouch has changed Britannia for the better. He even fixed the laws of Britannia by removing the ones that existed generations ago. Yet not everyone wanted to change after losing power and being claimed as an Area. Some of them were very excited about the new Emperor of Britannia. They praised his name and is now on a waiting list for negotiations for a war truce and to have everything returned to them. They accept this new world that he’s offering. They even allowed Gaara to use his geass on whomever wanted to be turned into something in his image.

They wanted to have a balance of everything now that the Black Rebellion has died down and the Black Knights are nevermore. Unless if he wanted the Black Knights to be still in his services to help out. Yet Suzaku had told him to make new Knights for the greater good instead of having his Zero Requiem pull through. Since they’re lovers it was the only reasonable thing to do after all. If the Zero Requiem ever did come into effect, it’ll break Suzaku’s heart to murder yet another person that he has feelings for and not in a friendship matter.

Lelouch is the only lover he’s ever had his first kiss with and everything. Since he killed Euphemia  out of pure jealousy aside from moving his plan forward for Nunnally’s sake. Then there’s Gaara, a loyal knight without anyone to love him. Yet they don’t know that he’s been crushing on His Majesty after finding out who he was throughout the whole thing. Suzaku may be an airhead as the Knight of Zero, but he knew something was up for three whole months. Yet still doesn’t even know what his reasons are for missing a bunch of meetings with Area 5. 

They waited a bit longer for the rest of what’s left of the old student council to Ashford Academy and the new. Same thing with what’s left of the old Knights of the Round with a few new members. It took Gino and Anya to get used to Emperor Lelouch. Even though he did end up murdering his family’s parents after all. But the past is the past and yet they’re shocked on how much better of an Emperor he could really be. Gaara was a new member to bother the student council and the Knights of the Round. 

Lelouch dubbed him as the Knight of Eight a few days ago. He was also the new president of the student council, since Rivalz was taking his position for granted. Nunnally was now in high school and was announced as the vice president of the student council. Rivalz was graduating a few months from now and wasn’t going to finish off the year. He’s following Milly’s footsteps, but instead as a baker. He gotten into baking after learning from Rolo and Lelouch (before he became the 99th Emperor of Britannia).

“ Luv are you coming out or not? For my baby sister and the new 10th seat of the Round, you’re such a scaredy cat.” Gino called at the doorway.

“Ngh...” was the answer from the doorway.  

“Wait, Gino you never told us that you have a baby sister. How is she the new seat of 10?” Suzaku asked.

“I’m the one who put her in the spot. After Luciano died during the Black Rebellion, her power as a soldier has brought her as far as to that of a Knight. She’s Nunnally’s Knight, though she’s very timid.” Lelouch chuckled.

“Luv is just a nickname that I’ve given here over the years. She’s at least 3 years younger than me. Her real name is Lovisia Weinberg.” Gino explained.

“He told me everything there is to know about her. She’s been hiding in the air force of the Britannian Forces, but moved her out once the Black Rebellion started. Since then she’s been training by herself in the Homeland. She surpassed everyone in her troop. So I had Nunna pick out her Knight. Lovisia came and yet she asked me to make her into a Knight of the Round. So I did, she chose to replace Luciano’s spot. So I approved it.” Lelouch shrugged.

“Lovisia it’s ok, no need to hide now. Nobody’s going to hurt you. Isn’t it your job to protect Her Highness?” Gino asked.

Light blond hair and icy blue eyes looked through the doorway. She was an exact image of her older brother, but with lighter and thinner traits. Yet there was a Kanji on the right side of her forehead that read ‘Hate’ in pink. Suzaku furrowed a brow on why that’s there. Gino held up his hand as he knew what he was thinking. He then walked over to her and pushed her out into view. Lovisia was growling as he did so, then it all became clear. Hate as in Demon that hates everyone. She didn’t have pupils of any kind. Her eyes were outlined with thick red mascara and eye shadow. 

She looked like a pissed off Tanuki. Yet Tanuki’s masks are black, not red. Something up was going on with her appearance alone. Then again Red Panda’s had a redish brown mask, but not a scarlet red. Gino sighed as he then looked at Lelouch. Lelouch knew what he wanted, her bottle. Nodding as he pointed at the painting of Nunnally and him during the time when they were kids. He walked over to the painting and moved it out of the way. There was a safe behind it, he dialed the password. A small click and the a creaking sound came from the safe. There inside was items so valuable that they were put in it, aside from cold hard cash.

There on top of the cash was a blue glass bottle. Looked like a liquor bottle. Suzaku was baffled by the safe behind the painting and the bottle itself. But on the big glass bottle was Aztec markings in gold. He couldn’t believe his eyes as Anya closed the safe and put the painting back in place, as Gino walked over with the bottle. He the popped the cork, allowing his baby sister to use her mystical powers. To his shock and the rest of the guests there saw the liquid rise out of the bottle without anything attached.

The liquid turned out to be blood. Everyone, but the ones who know of her powers covered their noses. It smelt rotten as if it sat in there for years without being thrown out in the trash. Lovisia had this power to control blood ever since birth. She had murdered their parents after being born, leaving them as orphans. Her eyes then stared at Suzaku intensely, forcing fear into his heart. The blood then slashed at his Knight of Zero uniform. Suzaku yelped as it cut through his skin a bit. Hot blood trinkled down, but didn’t hit the floor. But floated in the air, he then screamed in pain as he felt his own body float in the air.

Lelouch looked worried, but couldn’t move. The blood whip had gotten him to, but barely.She was a Deadman, a rare being who can control their blood and someone else’s as long as their blood is mixed in. This was her Branch of Sin. The Dragon was now awoken. She was known as the Dragon Reaper. Many other nicknames could define her without her real name. Emperor Lelouch calls her Death’s Pet Dragon. Gino then quickly closed the bottle once she drained Suzaku of a bit of blood to keep the blood in her bottle fresh.

Suzaku dropped at once and was panting. “Are you out of your mind for choosing her?! I could’ve died!”

“B-But...”  “Enough Suzaku, you weren’t man enough to protect my baby sister. So Lovisia is the best we’ve got!”

“....Fine...but don’t let that monster get near me...”

“That’s my sister buster, sure she’s a Deadman, but don’t blame her for the beast that lives in her very body! She’s got more blood than the average human being! It’s due to the Blood Beast, A Dragon that sleeps inside of her!”

Gino grabbed the bleeding Suzaku up off the ground, teeth bared. Lelouch groaned in pain and tears dropped to the floor. They stopped and looked at him. Suzaku brushed Gino off of him as he hurried over, despite the pain coming from his side. He then looked down where Lelouch’s hands were guarding. He was breathing heavily as he looked up at him. Villetta gasped as she was worried too. Gaara stopped her and shook his head. Rolo heard the commotion, he too had tears in his eyes. They fear for the worst for the pregnant Emperor.

“What’s going on?! Somebody say something! What’s wrong with my boy-” Suzaku was cutoff by Lelouch placing a hand onto his cheek.

“I was about to announce this to everyone, when they were here...and now that they’re all gathered...I-I’m pregnant...with your twin boys...” he smiled sadly.

“Step aside Sir Kururugi...if I don’t fix my mistake, I can’t forgive myself...” Lovisia spoke sternly.

“No! Not what you just did to us! Get out!” he hissed.

“Let her, His Majesty might end up dying and miscarry or die with them! She doesn’t just kill with her Branch of Sin, but revive or heal!” Gino corrected him.

“I’ll be alright Suza...” Lelouch coughed as his body started to feel cold.

Hot tears spilled from his eyes as he kissed his hand, before letting Lovisia do her job. Lovisia walked over and cut her hands with the pocket knife on her thigh. She then apologize to her Emperor before slicing him in the stomach. Blood poured everywhere, but floated in the air. Lelouch’s now lifeless body floated into the air. Gino reopened the bottle for the blood in it to join. He and Anya cut themselves to help out. Suzaku sighed as he shoved his fingers into his fresh wound, screaming. Tears still dropping from his cheeks from the pain in his heart. He didn’t want to lose another love of his life, not ever again.

Trusting a total stranger with a Branch of Sin that is rarely born into the world.Yet if she could save him and the future heirs to the Britannian Throne, then he had no choice, but to trust Gino’s words. Gaara smiled as he joined in on the action. Once there was enough blood in the air, Lovisia’s eyes glowed. Soon her body ripped into ribbons, allowing the dragon inside to escape her body. The dragon was scarlet red like the makeup around Lovisia’s eyes, but had blue and golden patterns of Aztec markings along her body.

The dragon’s icy blue eyes looked at Lelouch’s freshly dead body along with the twins inside of him still. A mighty roar of sorrow and anger as she started to tear up herself. She was sorry for hurting a friend of her host. Soon the blood in the air formed the shape of a Peony flower. Suzaku was amazed on what this dragon can do, soon the flower glowed and then got shoved into Lelouch’s body at once! The blood from the people willing to help heal and revive the Emperor of Britannia alongside his unborn twins, has been cleansed and made to his blood type.

Once the glowing stopped, the dragon was gone. Lovisia was now lying in Gino’s arms. The bottle of blood was empty and laid on it’s side on the floor. Suzaku rushed over, his wound healed. He caught Lelouch’s unconscious body. He winced from being a bit weak. To everyone’s shock who didn’t part take in the blood to blood ritual with Lovisia, they saw a miracle happen. Lelouch’s stomach was now a lot bigger than what it was supposed to be. The dragon’s magic had made him close to labor than restoring him back to normal.

Suzaku blinked as he then yelped as he fell towards the ground. Rolo gasped as he then activated his geass, saving the both of them. Once five minutes was up, Lelouch was standing up and awake. Blinking as he felt the sudden weight in his stomach. Blushing on how fast the twins had grown in so little time, as if he was carrying unborn vampires. He then gave Lovisia a look as he then figured out what the cause behind it was from. He then grunts in pain again, Lovisia smiled in her sleep. She didn’t only speed up the development, but the deadline for the twins.

“Welp, His Majesty is in labor...” Jeremiah chuckled nervously.

“What did she do to me?! They weren’t due until somewhere in June!Argh!!!” Lelouch screamed in pain.

His water has broke, now that Lovisia has done her magic with her Branch of Sin. Suzaku laughed as he was starting to like Lovisia. Her and Lelouch planned this ahead of time, for their Xmas present to him. Sure he had planned the Zero Requiem with him, but changed once he got pregnant by him. So all in all that plan got out the window. It was now time for this new plan to take action. Zero’s Heirs is now the name of the plan. He carried his now Emperor in labor to his slumber chambers. Everyone went back to the party. Nunnally smiled as they didn’t need the Zero Requiem to begin with. Spilling a shit load of blood once again wouldn’t change the world, but make it worse.

Gaara then started to carve the ham and turkey in Suzaku’s place once the time for dinner rolled by. They enjoyed the feast as Suzaku and Sayako were helping Lelouch bring two new lives into the world. Rolo was happy to have two nephews into his life. He even got used to being Nunnally’s newest older brother when they met during the Black Rebellion. Everyone stopped partying once they saw Sayako walk in with a big smile on her face. The birth of two new princes was a success. Everyone was allowed to visit the new parents. 

“So...what do you think of my Xmas present to you dear?” he asked.

“It’s wonder, I love them!” The White Knight sniffled as tears dripped down once more, this time with joy.

“So what are you going to new the new princes?” Gaara asked.

Lelouch smiled and looked down at his two breastfeeding children and then back at them and the father. Suzaku then changed his expression on the spot. Since nobody, but a few knew about his secret pregnancy, he had no idea. Yet he ended up crying like a baffling idiot like always. He shrugged as he then looked back at Lelouch. Maybe he had an idea what to name their two newborn sons. They did both had a bit of brown in their luscious black locks. The one with more black in his hair was the oldest out of the two. Suzaku’s rabbit tail wagged, yet his antlers kind of shed off when he was being “attacked” by Lovisia.

Even though that was the distracting of their plan to shock Suzaku. Gaara was a part of it too. He then winked at them as he then popped the cork to the champagne bottle. The cork landed perfectly into a bowl in the kitchen. He then started pouring glasses for everyone who wanted to try it. Sure some of them were still minors, but he gave them juice or pop instead. Suzaku thanked them all and for Lelouch’s best Xmas gift ever.

“Since daddy doesn’t have names for them, I guess we’ll name the oldest; Maleficent. And the youngest either Lelouch Jr., Suzaku the Second, or possibly Shiba. What do you think?” Lelouch asked.

“Maleficent and Shiba sounds wonderful. We can name the next batch after us if you don’t mind.” Suzaku chuckled.

“To the birth of our newly born Prince Maleficent and Prince Shiba!” Jeremiah cheered.

“To the new royals of the New Britannia!” they all cheered.

“Well we need birth certificates for them though.” Suzaku whispered.

“I already got you covered. Maleficent Nyx Kururugi Britannia and Shiba Love Kururugi Britannia.” Sayako chuckled as she held out the certificates.

Suzaku blinked as he then saw the handwriting and then smiled. Seems like his Emperor had them covered all this time. He then felt Lelouch gently tap him on the shoulder. He asked Sayako to hand him his son Shiba. He looked down at Shiba with a smile, he looked into his purple and green orbs.

“Welcome to the world my wittle baby Shiba. Daddy loves you very much~!” he whispered before kissing his messy brown and black locks.

Shiba sneezed and then cooed.

“Awwwwwwwwwwwwwe~!” everyone said in unison.

“Let’s open up some presents! Plus...maybe have an unexpected baby shower for me, even though I’m not pregnant anymore!” Lelouch ordered with a giggle as he burps Maleficent.

“Does this still count?” he asked in secret to Villetta.

She nods as she congratulates him again. They then brought the party near their bedroom. Once they ate until stuffed, presents opened. Lelouch yawned. He was exhausted from this fast forwarded pregnancy and from very early child birth. Suzaku chuckled and smiled. He then kissed Gaara straight on the lips, catching him off guard. Gaara blushed as he then kissed him back and then they both kissed Lelouch on the forehead. Gaara took Maleficent from Lelouch, so he can rest. Everyone then went to their guestrooms in the palace. Nobody was driving home tonight from partying too hard. Suzaku followed Gaara and Sayako to the baby room that they’ve made ahead of time.

“Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!” Shiba fussed.

“Shhhhhh! Daddy’s here, so is Papa Gaara!” Suzaku cried out, rocking Shiba gently.

Maleficent was fussing too, but Gaara held a mirror to use his geass on himself again to swap his animal traits.

“I got them Suzaku. Just rest with Lulu. Also thanks for accepting me in this family.” Gaara smiled as he was now a cowboy like Lelouch and breastfed Maleficent again.

“You’re welcome, but how can you do it?” he asked.

The Animal Spirit Geass user looked at him with his left eye now engraved by his geass. His geass was now as powerful as Lelouch’s. His sky blue eyes with the upside-down geass marked eyes was filled with happiness. He then put back on his ruby eye contacts. He then burped Maleficent and changed his diaper. He then cleaned his hands before changing back into his usual coyote look. Holding Suzaku’s son again as he rocked him gently.

“Well you see...I’ve maxed out my geass while living here with you. I can swap traits with myself and others if I desire to, but every time I use my geass, I end up with a small headache. Plus Shiba needs his first diaper change.” he explained.

“Dang...” Suzaku sighed as he sniffed Shiba’s butt and then coughs.

“Dang boy, already?!” he exclaimed as he changed his poopy diaper.

“Suffer, Suffer, Scream in pain, Blood is spilling from your brain, Zombies gnaw you like a plumb, Piercing Cries and you will succumb, Suffer, Suffer, Scream in pain, You will never breathe again.” Gaara sang to Maleficent.

Maleficent giggled and sucked on his big toe.

“Why are you singing songs about death to him for?! What if it gets to his head once he grows up?! We don’t need another Zero!” Suzaku protested as he tries his best to avoid Shiba’s whiz. 

“Don’t worry he won’t end up like his mother. Besides his name just screams vampire to me. Suffer, Suffer, Scream in Pain, Shove your enemies guts down the drain, Werewolves howl like a bunch of cawing ravens, Ghouls gather around you like a sick haven, Suffer, Suffer, Scream in pain, You will never see the light of day again.”

“Wow...gee hopefully it doesn’t give them nightmares.” 

“They won’t, this is a lullaby that my mother used to sing to me.”

“Really? Please sing, they seem to like it.” he picked up the now clean Shiba off of the changing table, throwing the dirty diapers into the coffin shaped trashcan.

“Every well...Suffer, Suffer, Scream in pain, Witches will have your body burned by flame, Mummies beetles swarm and squirm, Imps will have you squashed by the feet of a pachyderm, Suffer, Suffer, Scream in pain, You will never move again.”

“Wait...why is this nothing but a song about death? Is it them that’s dying or other people or is it both?”

“Suffer, Suffer, Scream in pain, Your heart can’t take the strain, Lamias will constrict you into dust, Sirens caw until their lungs bust, Suffer, Suffer, Scream in pain, You will never hear again.”

“Hello?! Answer me! Why is this song about nothing but...death...?” Suzaku yawned himself, putting Shiba into the crib.

“Suffer, Suffer, Scream in pain, You won’t remember your name, Tombstones of grey, Yet here you lay, Suffer, Suffer, Scream in pain, You can never go insane.”  Gaara finished as he puts Maleficent next to Shiba.

He then smiles as he lifts the sleeping Suzaku off of the floor and carries him to their room. Hopping in bed next to him as he then kisses him and Lelouch on the forehead. ‘Goodnight my dears.’ he thought, before falling asleep himself.  

      A/N: I don’t own Hotel Transylvanian or the song Suffer, Suffer, Scream in Pain for the movie. But I do own this version of the song, since I figured it needed more added to it, so I did it for them. I also don’t own Deadman Wonderland, I just decided to add some reference from the anime/manga to make Lovisia Weinberg my oc little sister for Gino. I hope you like my two day late Snoggletog gift to y’all. Merry Two Day Late Snoggletog! Yes I’m a HTTYD fan, so what?! But anyways I hope you liked it as much as I have writing it! I might write more in the future for Code Geass! I’ll also be working on these ocs and the au for this fandom! So Maleficent and Shiba designs and such will be uploaded later on in the near future!  

[s-artsnstuff]

Troia’s How To: Cara Agar Tidak (Terlalu) Memproyeksikan Diri Kita Ke Dalam Karakter Cerita Yang Kita Tulis

Pada suatu siang yang cerah gue buka Goodreads dan lihat resensi Daniel tentang buku Antologi Rasa lewat sejenak di linimasa. Gue inget gue pernah baca resensi itu sekitar beberapa bulan lalu, dan di kolom komentar, Daniel kasih tautan tentang resensi dia pada perbandingan Antologi Rasa versi buku dan film. Resensi Daniel bener-bener rapi, bersih, dan teratur jadi gue suka banget bacain resensi dia. Dan dalam resensi Antologi Rasa itu, gue menyetujui poin-poin Daniel tentang Ika Natassa yang memproyeksikan dirinya ke dalam sosok Keara.

Those points are actually the main reasons on why I despise Ika Natassa’s writing so much. I couldn’t hate her as a person (because clearly, I don’t even know her personally). But unfortunately, many people think that if I hate a book, that means I also hate the author. Shame. If anything, my feeling towards Ika Natassa as a person is more like a pity than hate.

Resensi Daniel tentang Ika Natassa yang memproyeksikan mimpinya ke dalam tokoh-tokohnya ini jadi bahan diskusi gue dan temen gue. Kami sama-sama sepakat kalau hidup Keara terkesan seperti mimpi Ika Natassa yang tidak teraih: menjadi gadis cantik nan bertubuh sempurna yang ditaksir oleh tiga cowok tampan sukses dan berotot.

Lah ya gimana abis cerita dia cewek-ceweknya berfisik cantik sempurna yang sesuai standar masyarakat semua. Kalau selain bikin tokoh fisik cantik standar masyarakat, dia juga bikin cerita yang tokohnya gendut, atau bongsor, atau jerawatan, atau gimanalah yang menurut standar masyarakat dianggap ‘nggak cantik’, kemudian cewek-cewek ini berusaha accepting themselves sih gue nggak akan beranggapan dia sedang memproyeksikan mimpi sempurnanya ke dalam cerita-ceritanya. Tapi dia udah jadi penulis satu dekade lebih, dan semua tokoh utama cewek dia fisiknya sempurna sesuai standar masyarakat semua. Ketika satu penulis menulis cerita yang tokoh utamanya selalu berfisik sempurna sesuai standar masyarakat, prediksi gue itu si penulis mungkin memang berfisik sempurna sesuai standar masyarakat, dikelilingi oleh temen-temen yang berfisik cantik sesuai standar masyarakat juga, makanya dia gabisa nulis tokoh berfisik ‘jelek’ karena gak relate (karena dia cantik sesuai standar dan gak pernah ngerasain jadi cewek jelek yang emang dianggap orang-orang jelek karena dia gak sesuai standar masyarakat). Which is understandable. I mean, you’d rather write something that you know, right?

Tapi, ternyata Ika Natassa nggak kayak gitu. Jadi gue kaget pas lihat dia. Gue pikir dia emang cantik yang sesuai standar masyarakat makanya dia bikin tokoh utama ceweknya berfisik sempurna mulu.

But, no, I don’t say that she isn’t pretty. She is. I like her sense of fashion. Cuma untuk cantik standar masyarakat, dia nggak memenuhinya. Standar cantik masyarakat Indonesia (mayoritas) itu bisa dilihat di idol-idol JKT48: putih, mulus, mungil, langsing, keliatan innocent dan cantik natural; dan di artis-artis cewek Indonesia keturunan barat. Intinya: kulit putih, mulus, tubuh langsing. Tapi karena fisiknya nggak sesuai standar masyarakat kan gue jadi heran kenapa dia tokoh utamanya berfisik sempurna terus.

Dan, buku-buku dia itu cowok-cowoknya sering digambarkan dreamy (although some of them are more like a dick IMO). Tapi intinya framing untuk tokoh-tokoh cowoknya dreamy. Tokoh-tokoh cowoknya ala Gary Stu, dan tokoh-tokoh ceweknya Mary Sue parah. Mary Sue dan Gary Stu tuh maksudnya, mereka adalah tipe tokoh yang hidupnya itu nggak punya masalah selain—wait for iiitt—cinta….

Like, literally, kalau pun mereka punya masalah selain asmara, mereka tetap mudah mendapatkan apa yang mereka inginkan karena mereka kaya dan privileged. Kagak ada perjuangannya anjir. Ini tokoh-tokoh yang gue sebut adalah tokoh-tokoh sebelum The Architecture of Love. TAoL lebih humble daripada karya-karya Iknat sebelumnya. Tokoh Raia di TAoL itu digadang-gadang adalah Ika Natassa karena sesama penulis yang privileged LOL. Cuma gue nggak terlalu menganggap proyeksi diri dia ke Raia itu annoying sih, biasa aja karena proyeksinya lebih ke mimpi sebagai penulis best seller dengan adaptasi film yang penontonnya jutaan, menembus tujuh juta kalau gak salah(?), terus menemukan cinta di New York yang ternyata punya masalah senasib dirinya. Proyeksi kayak gitu menurut gue biasa aja sih. Yang annoying buat gue itu ekspektasi tokoh-tokoh love interes dalam novel yang nggak masuk akal, yang masalah hidupnya cuma cinta doang. Manusia kayak gitu palingan cuma elite 1%. Well, scratch that. Manusia kayak gitu paling cuma beberapa dari elite 1% Indonesia.

Gue tahu kok kalau nggak semua pembaca bakal nerima mentah-mentah konten cerita yang memberikan tokoh dreamy sempurna tanpa masalah hidup selain cinta. And that’s good! Gue malah seneng kalau kalian sadar bahwa novel yang kalian baca tuh cuma novel, fiksi doang, dan sadar bahwa tokoh-tokoh dreamy di novel itu highly-unlikely ada dalam realita. But dang, not eveyone could do this. Tahu nggak sih akar dari segala akar tentang perselingkuhan dan masalah rumah tangga (yang kemudian berefek pada anak) itu akarnya di mana?

Di ekspektasi manusia terhadap pasangannya.

Dan ekspektasi ini dibentuk oleh media. Salah satunya: novel.

 ***

 Gue pun berefleksi ke pengalaman sendiri ketika menulis tokoh-tokoh. Sebenernya sah-sah aja mau nulis cerita yang memproyeksikan fantasi kita tentang lelaki impian. Tapi, karena sebenernya poin dari kiriman ini adalah Troia’s How To, gue lebih memilih untuk tidak melakukan proyeksi ekspektasi ketinggian di dalam cerita.

Here’s a fun fact: beberapa orang pernah bilang kalau Varsha itu kayak jadi gambaran gue di masa depan. Well, I hope so, in case of mental tangguhnya Tante Sha. Tapi gue kagak nulis Varsha untuk jadi proyeksi gue di masa depan, atau sebagai ‘the best version of me’. No, Varsha is Varsha. Dan gue adalah gue. Every characters grow, and so am I. Cara gue untuk tidak memproyeksikan diri gue ke dalam tokoh adalah dengan tidak coba-coba bikin tokoh yang gue pikir itu adalah ‘diri gue versi terbaik/lebih baik’.

Dulu gue sempet berpikir bahwa diri gue yang ‘versi lebih baik’ di masa depan adalah gue yang jadi scholar, civitas akademik apalah, atau jadi peneliti. Turns out setelah kuliah gue memilih jalan lain. And I feel better after doing that. Karena gue nggak pernah tahu diri gue versi terbaik itu bakal kayak gimana. Bisa jadi diri gue yang ‘versi lebih baik’ di masa depan justru adalah gue yang pindah agama kemudian jadi pendekar Shaolin. Jadi karena gue nggak tahu, ya udah gue nggak usah sok tahu dengan nulis tokoh yang diproyeksikan sebagai ‘versi lebih baik’ diri gue. Let characters be themselves. Let them be human. And I also let myself be human although it’s so friggin hard.

Contoh lain adalah tokoh Riv di Rotasi dan Revolusi. Mind you, she and I have the same MBTI personality type. Kami sama-sama INTP. Tokoh fiksi yang tipe kepribadian MBTI-nya sama kayak kami itu L Lawliet dari Death Note, C.C. dari Code Geass, Hiccup dari How To Train Your Dragon, dan Bruce Banner (Hulk) dari Marvel Cinematic Universe. Tokoh di cerita gue yang sifatnya paling deket sama sifat gue memang Riv (dan Rendra, dia INTP juga). TAPIIII, sayangnya gue nggak sekeren Riv wkwkwkwk. Dan hanya karena MBTI kami sama, bukan berarti gue sedang memproyeksikan Riv sebagai ‘diri gue di masa depan’ atau ‘diri gue versi lebih baik’. Riv is an entirely different character than me. Riv is Riv, me is me. Kata temen gue, the stark contrast between Riv and me adalah Riv tuh ngemong sedangkan gue enggak (I don’t even like kids, altho some of them are cute). Riv itu di kehidupan pertamanya adalah Dewi Pengetahuan yang diciptakan satu dengan Arraf si Dewa Kekuasaan. She isn’t human, same with Arraf. Sehingga ya di balik ketidaksempurnaannya, dia sebenarnya tetap sempurna. Jadi aneh aja kalau gue berusaha menyama-nyamakan diri sama seorang ‘dewi’ seperti Riv.

Sementara untuk tokoh-tokoh cowok, gue nulis tokoh-tokoh cowok yang menurut gue menarik. Tapi meski menarik, kalau ditanya siapa di antara tokoh-tokoh cowok di cerita gue yang akan gue nikahin, gue jawab nggak ada. Karena gue nggak memproyeksikan lelaki impian gue ke dalam tokoh novel, gue cuma menulis tokoh yang buat gue menarik. Tentu ada beberapa traits berkualitas dari tokoh lelaki yang gue bikin, but it’s a part of what makes them human: punya kelebihan.

Banyak tokoh fiksi cowok yang memesona tapi nggak membuat gue berpikir bahwa mereka adalah idaman gue di dunia nyata. B aja sih. Kalau pun gue ngefans ya gue suka tokoh fiksi sebagai karakter dengan kepribadian dan hidup yang menarik aja, bukan ngefans karena gue berharap gue akan bertemu cowok yang kayak gitu di dunia nyata kemudian kami sama-sama jatuh cinta. Meski tokohnya bagai mimpi di siang bolong macam Remi di Rengat pun juga gue nggak berharap bisa bertemu dia sih. Karena gue sadar kalau pun ketemu ya gue nggak akan bisa relate atau nyambung sama dia. Sementara in case of nyari cowok, gue nyari yang nyambung dan asik diajak ngobrol.

Oke, itu adalah cara gue untuk nggak memproyeksikan diri ke dalam tokoh yang gue buat. I’m sorry if I sound like I roast Ika Natassa too hard. Di balik tokoh-tokoh Antologi Rasa yang pretensius, her writing skill is definitely something. Writing charm dia emang di gaya nulisnya yang luwes. Cuma ya, it seems like tulisan dia hanya lancar dan ngalir ketika dia menulis tentang mimpi indahnya (yang diproyeksikan dalam tokoh-tokoh dalam novel-novel sebelum TAOL). Karena di TAOL, novel Iknat yang paling humble, gaya nulis dia nggak sengalir gaya nulisnya di Critical Eleven dan Antologi Rasa.

[eachainn]

Author’s Note: I read @touchreceptors summary of the Re;serrection movie and got annoyed at what went on. So, without seeing the movie, I decided to revamp the explanation for what it happening and why Lelouch is like…that. Spoilers for the movie, obviously. And somewhat for Akito the Exiled. If they are going to bring in characters, they might as well use them. And, if they’re not I am.

TLDR: I’m annoyed at the writing from a second-hand perspective and this is how I deal.

They stepped into the room, the very act of it making them shudder and shake. This place was not theirs, it was adjacent. It had never felt like home, too solid and unchanging. Walls remained walls, the floor the floor. Things moved so slowly it was almost like they had forgotten how to move. The world was a wonder in itself, something to be watching and sometimes visited.

But it had never felt like this, like each step they took felt like they were being shattered and then remade. A scattering of memories and personalities that they had to then reach out and pull back together. What should have been effortless was now an effort. They could never experience mortality, but they felt that it would be something like this. Even now memories and thoughts were sloughing off of them, but they weren’t returning the way they should. They twisted and meandered.

It gave them time to reform, but also troubled them. Some of the memories and feelings were not those that they had used to make themselves solid, more than a single thought in this world. Some were leaking out. The opening between the worlds was wide open everywhere, along every fault and the worlds were bleeding into each other.

They had seen this before, when the worlds had gotten so close that things had twisted and merged. Time and place had started, stopped and looped back on each other.

They had thought that they were saving their worlds then and now they were sure that all of their work had been undone. It had taken years for them to coax one of their Codes into the right place, and then to hide themselves. They had waited among a train of girls, watching as the geass was given and then reaching out to lock it down without the Code knowing what was going on. Then it had taken part of that girl’s lifetime to set it right, to ready it for a threat that they had felt vibrating through the very core of their world.

A Code, escaped, ragged and barely living with a fragment of their former self. It was not enough for life, but more than enough for a passing on.

A Code could never die, but that did not preclude pain and suffering. That did not preclude disembowelment, nor the taking of limbs. Humans could gather anger so closely and hold onto it for so long, even when all mortal remains were gone. A skull was more then enough, held in the hands of a tangle of memory and offered to one child that burned with the same anger.

Still, that had been taken care of easily enough for them. The Geass had done her job, had held the boundary of the worlds long enough for the threat to be taken care of and the proper boundaries restored. They had thought that they would not have to do this again, but that was before they had encountered another Geass, burning with anger and hatred just as bright as the first. This one had gotten to the heart of them. This one had dared to look up at the shape of them and give a command.

He had called it a request, but his power had said otherwise. His power had demanded otherwise.

They gritted the memory of teeth, the emotions that came with it flowing slowly. They didn’t touch them deeply, but it was the best way to work through this. It kept the memories close and their form from shattering. If that happened, they didn’t know what they would do. It had taken this long for them to be able to push through the mess of the border, they didn’t know if they could do it again, not without them scattering to the winds. They didn’t know what would follow then. They feared that more than anything else.

They turned to focus on the table and casket on the other side of the room. They steeled themselves and began to walk.

Before they would have appeared right where they needed to be. Now, they had to move like a mortal, like they had been before, or might not have been. It didn’t matter. They had found their destination, and it wouldn’t take much more. Then they could let go of this form and wait, because they would be listened to. They would make sure of it. They knew humanity, and they knew their Codes.

They stepped up to the casket, looking down at the body inside of it. They recognized him from the glimpses they got through their Code and his haughty demands in their world.

They frowned down at him, reaching out a hand to hover over them. With the borders at odds, it was hard to tell exactly what was going on, but they could still feel the tug of the power. The traces of the Code, the power of his Geass. And, beneath all of that, more of something wrong.

They leaned closer, finding the edges of the boy’s clothes and pulling them open as his throat. The source of the wrongness was stronger there, pulsing and flaring. One minute it was dormant and the next it was close to coming to life. If left alone it would keep doing this, keep gaining strength until it managed to become active. And then the boy would suffer, locked in his box and buried deep under the ground.

The thought was almost enough to make them laugh. The boy deserved it for what he had done. The boy, their Code, the man, the woman, all of them. But that would not solve the problem, and they were not human. Anything they felt was the remains of everyone who had come before. Revenge wasn’t important, fixing the problem was.

They reached out, stroking their finger’s over the boy’s throat the feel the pulse of the Code. It was almost ready, it just needed the right push.

They close their fingers around the boy’s throat, squeezing hard even as they let themselves fracture a bit more.

It was too much, and they gasped with the phantom pain of it. The worlds were too close, which made things unpredictable. They almost shattered themselves, but they held on, watching as the boy twitched for a moment before jerking.

The boy gasped for breath, the wound at his stomach bubbling blood for a moment, staining his clothes against before it stopped. Flesh started knitting back together with a sickening sound, almost completely covered by the way that the boy coughed and chocked. In his eyes, the Geass flared before dying out, his eyes going dull before sparking back to life.

They gritted their teeth and pushed more of themselves into it, feeling the Code flicker, on the edge of taking hold. They weren’t sure that it would, or even could, but it would coexist for as long as they needed it.

Their attention was jerked away as the boy reached up for their arms, his hands closing around their wrists. They looked at his face, his wide eyes and panicked look, and pressed harder.

He gasped with what little hair they allowed him, clawing at their arms and not seeming to notice that his fingers didn’t really make contact. “No…stop…please…”

They ignored him, even when the boy reached up for their face. “Please…”

They lifted their face away, tightening their grip when they heard the door open. They had a moment to recognize the thrum of a Code, a different Code to the one that they were manipulating before the Code spoke.

“What are you doing to him?”

They paused, lifting their hands away before turning. The Code was already crossing the room, looking livelier than the last time they had seen her, back in their world, trying to destroy it or wish it away. They studied her for a long moment before a name floated to them, borne on numerous memories. “C.C.”

She came to a stop, staring at them before she reached back behind her. C.C. pulled out a knife, leveling at them with a shaking hand. “What are you doing to him?”

“What must be done.” They cocked their head to the side. The knife wouldn’t harm them, it would just be annoying. It would take a long time for them to reform in this world again, so it was better to be safe. Besides, they could feel the thrum of the Code behind them, a weak and wrong thing compared to C.C’s, but it would work. That was all that mattered.

C.C. stared at them like she didn’t believe what they said, and all the while she inched towards the casket. They allowed her, carefully curling out of her range. It didn’t take much, especially when the boy in the casket flailed weakly. “H-help.”

The half-choked word was enough to make her drop her knife, C.C. coming to lean against the casket. “Lelouch?”

The boy wheezed in response. C.C. leaning over him for a moment before looking up at them. They tipped their head at the anger and sorrow on her face, surprised when it turned into action so quickly.

C.C. stepped around the casket, positioning herself between the boy in it and them. She didn’t have her knife, but there was a threat and danger in her voice as she glared at them. “What did you do to him?”

They lifted their chin. “What would have happened anyway. Things are out of place. The doors were left open so the worlds are spilling into each other. Things that never should have happened are. The Geass grows stronger for it, and out of control. And we will not have it.” They paused for a moment, watching as the boy tried to push himself upright, only to fall back into his coffin. They nodded back towards the casket. “He was the one who broke it. You were the one who broke it. So, the two of you will set it right.”

A hand flailed over the edge of the coffin before it managed to grab the edge. The boy followed slowly, using the edge of the coffin to claw himself upright.

They turned their attention to him, watching as the Code as the base of his throat pulsed and glowed. Sometimes it was a brilliant red, glowing with powers, other times, it was fading into a scar. The Geass in the boy’s eyes did the same, just another sign that things were not right.

The boy panted for breath for a moment, his voice cracking and breaking as he spoke. “That wasn’t us.”

“It doesn’t matter.”

“That was my father!”

“It does not matter.” They took a step closer to the boy, ignoring the way that C.C. tensed. She could do nothing to them that was anything damaging, at least more than she had done. Their focus was on the boy that continued to defy them. “You played your part in it.”

“I stopped it.”

They gave him a long look. “Then fix it.”

“Or what?”

They waved their hand lazily, interrupting the thrum of the Code.

The boy choked, gasping for air as he collapsed back into the coffin.

They stepped closer, annoyed by they way that C.C. seemed determined to herd them away from him. There was a scrape of metal against he floor, and then C.C. was kicking something up and catching it. The knife was back in her hand, leveled at them again.

They curled their lip, staring at her before relaxing, feeling the burst of a new Code activating again.

The choking and coughing from the coffin stopped, although the boy didn’t reappear. They could hear his wheezing breath, and that was enough.

They turned to look at C.C, looking her over before nodding. “This is your task. We cannot stay long here. We cannot fix things here. The two of you did this, so the two of you will fix it.”

C.C. narrowed her eyes. “How?”

“Close the doors.” They paused, looking her up and down. There was something there, some memory that was fragmenting away. They had stayed too long if that was happening. They met C.C’s gaze. “If you do this, we will give you what you want. An end.”

C.C. shifted, something in her gaze not matching what they had expected. They had a wealth of memories at their disposal, and all of them agreed. But, somehow, they were wrong. And that made them angry.

They lingered over the emotion for a moment longer before stepping away. “This is not a request. Close the doors.”

“Bastard.”

They raised an eyebrow at the rough word, looking back at the coffin. “He will suffer if you do not. The Code is stable, for now, but it will fail, and keep failing. As will yours.”

C.C. raised a shoulder in as shrug. “You said it yourself, you will reward me with an end. Why should I bother if it will just come on its own?”

“It will take months, years. You will suffer.” They paused, staring at C.C. There was a break somewhere, something that could be pushed on. Their gaze flickered back to where a hand had appeared on the edge of the coffin, although the boy didn’t make an appearance again. They watched it for a moment, watching as the fingers twitched. It was a thin grasp on life, but that was something. And C.C. had been crying…

They turned to look at her again, a memory drifting through, one of the boy’s before he had walked out to meet his death. Of him leaving and turning to watch as C.C. had slipped into the chapel, the first hint of tears in her eyes.

They took a step forward, not caring that the knife had started to press into their form. There was a bit of a waver there, but they held themselves together, the effort enough to give up on trying to appear as if they were speaking like a human. They let themselves be heard, all of themselves, the voices of the memories and personalities that they gathered to appear like this.

“Then he will die. First the body and then the soul. And it will happen again, and again. There will be no pattern, just endless death. And you care too much to allow that to happen.”

C.C. held her ground, but they could see her waver. They could feel it in the flick of the knife against their temporary body. More memories went spinning off, ones filled with her and affection. They shivered under the pressure, the feeling of cracking weighing down. They had expended too much, but at least it was working.

They smiled at her before releasing their hold, the moment of sundering painful. That was new, and unwelcome. But it was only for a moment, and then they were themselves again, through the torn and painful border of the mortal world and back in their own.

C.C. stared at the lingering remains of the guardian, her hands shaking. She had never met one from C’s World, although she had known about them. She had felt one moving sometime in the year that Lelouch had been gone, but it hadn’t been something that she had been focused on. Her goal had been finding a way to get at Lelouch and preserving what was left of the Black Knights, the handful that she had managed to save. Now, she wished she had.

She wished that she had done many things, but now was not the time for regrets. Now was the time for dealing with that ultimatum.

She jammed the dagger back into place, turning to look back at the coffin. It had been set up for Nunnally, a gesture to the empress of Britannia. She had visited her brother earlier, and C.C. was sure that funeral arrangements would be made quickly. Not everyone would be so happy to see the demon emperor resting in peace. It was why she had come to say her last goodbyes.

The corner of her mouth twitched up, C.C. shaking her head. She almost regretted that she had.

She stared at the door for a moment more before turning to grab onto Lelouch’s arm. She heard him gasp, but she ignored it in favor of hauling him out of the coffin. C.C. staggered under his full weight against her for a moment before guiding him to the floor. Then she started to move around the room, opening the doors and pulling out whatever she could out of the closets.

In deference to Nunnally they had put the open coffin on the first floor, tucked away in an antechamber that seemed to be have used for storage. There was enough to pile into the coffin to make up for Lelouch.

She dumped her first armload, glancing over at where Lelouch was sprawled on the floor, still gasping for breath. The mark of the Code looked like a gash across his throat, matching the bright red across his stomach. The latter didn’t look like it was still bleeding, but she wouldn’t take that for granted. A guardian of the Collective Unconscious had appeared to drag Lelouch back to life and demand something from them. There was every chance there was a catch or two that they hadn’t been told. The guardian had looked as close to wrathful as they could get, which was never a good sign.

Lelouch stirred when she was bringing the second load over, pushing himself onto his elbows but no further. “C.C…”

“Quiet. You’re dead, remember?”

“No.” His voice wavered on the verge of panic. “I don’t…I remember Nunnally and…” He choked on his next words, as the Code flickered, the mark disappearing entirely. Lelouch gasping and slouching back. The next moment it was back, although he stayed bent awkwardly back.

C.C. dumped what she had in the coffin and reached up to press her fingers against the side of his neck. His pulse was there, thready but getting stronger the longer she kept her fingers there.

She bit out a curse, standing up to haul the lid of the coffin back. C.C. threw her weight against the lid, hearing it snap in place. She ran her fingers over it, fixing the flowers that had been left behind to make it look like nothing had happened. She could only pray that no one opened the coffin.

C.C. leaned against it for a moment, closing her eyes. There was an easy choice here. She could run. That was her original plan. Run until she forgot Lelouch beyond the soft memories of their time together, until it didn’t hurt as much. The guardian wouldn’t come after her. It had been weak and they hated coming out of C’s World.

But that would leave Lelouch behind. They would wonder how he had gotten out of his coffin. C.C. knew that the practice of nailing bodies into coffins had been abandoned, but humanity was always riding that edge. Lelouch would be secured in place, buried and then wake up. C.C. wasn’t sure she could live with herself knowing that Lelouch was somewhere, trapped underground, nailed into a coffin, screaming and dying endlessly. She had dealt with enough dying to know that it wasn’t the worst thing. That pain was brief. It was the coming back that was the worst.

She bit her lip, looking back over at Lelouch as he slumped to the ground.

The second choice was to do what the guardian had said. To close the doors and drag Lelouch after her. She knew where the thought elevators were, it was just a matter of getting to them. It would keep her alive, give her the time to decide what her final wish really was. Of course, that wasn’t taking into account what Lelouch wanted, but he didn’t seem to be in any shape to make his own decisions. He was still gasping for breath on the ground, the Geass in his eyes flickering out. It would be a selfish thing to make the decision for him, especially when he had seemed ready to die before. Then again, she had lived her life being selfish, there was no reason to stop now.

C.C. crouched down to haul him upright, supporting him as Lelouch struggled to get his feet under him. She wrapped her arm around his chest, grunting with the effort of taking his dead weight. “Come on.”

“C.C?” He scrambled at her shoulder, managing to stand with a whimper. “What-”

“I’ll explain on the way.” C.C. looked at the door, tempted for a moment to shove Lelouch into a closet and run and get Suzaku. Another pair of hands would be useful, especially when they might have to rough it to get to the thought elevators. Suzaku had proven himself when they were making the run for Pendragon, but he was bound to be occupied now.

She bit her lip before shaking her head. It was better to get moving as soon as possible, Suzaku would bring complications and he was needed by Nunnally. For all of his dramatics, Lelouch was right. The world needed a symbol for a bit longer. Traveling with one dead man would be dangerous enough, two would be tempting fate.

C.C. pulled one of Lelouch’s arms over her shoulder, walking steadily towards the door. Lelouch’s feet dragged on the floor for a moment before he seemed to get the hang of walking again. Even then it was slow, hesitant, and seemed to take all of his concentration.

Lelouch was silent until they reached the door. “Where are we going?”

C.C. paused, remembering the map that had been laid out at the headquarters of the Geass Order. There were many gates scattered around, some that would be difficult to get to when the world was still in turmoil. It was better to start with the one within reach and see what happened.

She shifted her hold on Lelouch to ease the door open, staring into the dark hallway. She checked to make sure that there was no one there before hauling Lelouch out, making sure to keep her voice down as she spoke. “Kamine Island.”

Lelouch grunted, C.C. not sure if it was in surprise, pain, or understanding, and she didn’t dare linger long enough to look. She just got a better hold of him before guiding him out into the darkness of the hallway.

[codetrainwreck]

Code Geass Season 1 Interview Collection

All of these interviews were translated/summarized by Celiss @ GameFAQs

CLAMP Summary of the Newtype Ookawa Nanase x Taniguchi Gorou interview. Note that the early designs on that page are by Ookawa Nanase, but the finalized CLAMP original art (not to be confused with the finalized KimuTaka character designs) were done by Mokona, a different CLAMP member. All info listed are from Ookawa and Taniguchi themselves; dialogue in ""s means those are the parts I didn't rephrase at all. - Suzaku originally had a "sharper" look to him. Ookawa -- "Originally I imagined him as having Chinese-like, sharp, single-eyelid eyes." Taniguchi -- "In order to have Lelouch stand out more, I had this design changed to a softer, rounder image." - On the early design for Lelouch (white hair) Ookawa -- "I imagined Lelouch as someone everyone will find to be "cool"; a beauty, to put it simply." Taniguchi -- "We talked about Tackey & Tsubasa as well as early Kinki Kids." (Popular Johnny's idols in Japan) - Ookawa attended the Episode 1 sneak preview / test screening; according to her a large number of reporters and other mass media-related personnel showed up as well because of the pre-show hype. When the 1st episode ended, the room went dead silent. With the fast-moving plot and the episode ending with Lelouch going "Die, all of you" as he Geasses the soldiers into killing themselves, everyone was left speechless. However, the momentary silence was later broken by tremendous applause. Taniguchi himself wasn't at the screening, but he heard about what happened as well. - How did CLAMP come to be part of the Code Geass project? Producer Kawaguchi was the one who wrote to them first. That was the first time CLAMP heard from him, and also the first time they received a request to design characters for an anime. The members only met the director more than a year later; they were already on board the project when the characters and world view were nothing more than a vague concept. CLAMP offered some "interesting ideas" and these helped shape the world of Code Geass. - The character illustrations shown on the page are preliminary designs; when these were first drawn Code Geass wasn't about a war with an Empire but something different. Taniguchi said "We're making a hit show", and wanted to create a show which appealed to everyone. They ended up using the Johnny's artistes (Tackey & Tsubasa; early Kinki Kids) as a sort of model for the characters (probably Lelouch; those Johnny's artistes are usually thought of as "Prince" types, especially early Domoto Kouichi of Kinki Kids) - The character "Zero" was decided from early on, and is one of the characters left unchanged even when they adjusted the story. CLAMP members call Zero's mask "Tulip" (because of it's appearance) They wanted to create a mask never seen before in previous Sunrise shows. They were told to create a mask showing only one eye, and there were two possibilities for that, the other being the masks used in palaces (...which kind of palace? Asian or Western?) Taniguchi -- "When I saw Zero's mask, my thought processes all came to a halt (laugh) It was extremely simple yet had impact." The biggest merit of having CLAMP do the designs is that, according to Taniguchi, they can come up with things normal animator-turned-designers can't. The clothes, for example, may seem impossible (*coughZeroandC.C.'scostumescough*), but CLAMP still went ahead with them anyway with the simple reasoning that "These are better!" - How did the designing process work? CLAMP members drew a certain number of illustrations, handed them to Taniguchi and Taniguchi would later return it to them with his own comments. The designs would be changed according to his wishes and the cycle repeated. The comments ranged from "I want you to redraw just this part" to "I want you to add this part of the character with this part of that character and come up with a new character." Taniguchi pretty much gave CLAMP free reign over the designs, telling them not to worry about what the CG world was like, and because of that they came up with all kinds of variations, from SF to Classical, for things like the military uniforms. There were altogether some 40 ~ 50 designs; C.C. also had traditional Japanese clothes as well as Western Barbie-style clothes. (Now we know why C.C. cosplays so much. Taniguchi probably included them because he thought it would be a waste not to...) - Ookawa -- "Taniguchi doesn't like girls with big breasts." (This is true; Taniguchi is famous for being anti-fanservice. He supposedly hates "jiggling chests" the most, but it seems that since GunxSword he's had to compromise on this area because frankly, sex sells) Ookawa - "Even though I drew all kinds of female figures and body shapes, only the flat-chested designs were returned." (The unreturned designs = No Good) Taniguchi: "It's not that those aren't allowed (laugh) It's just that when you transfer them on to the screen it usually ends up even more exaggerated, so I wanted to keep the original designs under control, at least." - Taniguchi also likes having characters who have something different on one side of their bodies (the "unbalanced" balance) Lelouch has one red eye, for example; Villetta's and Jeremiah's hairstyles also fall under this category. Taniguchi -- "I like it. It's sexy, don't you think?" Ookawa -- "You like characters with sex appeal, huh." Taniguchi -- "Sex appeal is important. CLAMP's characters are all sexy. That's another reason why we decided to request designs from you." - Before doing the character designs, KimuTaka spent every day copying CLAMP's art from their artbooks and manga. After analyzing CLAMP's art to his best ability, he then started on the character designs. He did his best to design them in a way so that the other animators would be able to draw them without deviating from CLAMP's original artstyle. - According to Ookawa, Schneizel was designed with "Lelouch's arch nemesis" in mind. The most time was spent on his design. Taniguchi wanted someone who could appear either good or bad and had a large sense of scale (2 meters... okay so he probably wasn't referring to height, but still) - Lloyd is the professor-type CLAMP is good at (Ookawa's own confession), but originally he wasn't supposed to be that much of a mad scientist. It happened mostly because of Shiratori Tetsu's acting (In the audio commentary for episode 1 Taniguchi mentions that he gave Shiratori free reign over Lloyd's character) Ookawa was surprised when Lloyd turned out the way he did. - Which characters do the CLAMP members like? Mokona (she did the final character original art) liked Clovis, so when she saw that he was offed after only 2 episodes she was really depressed. According to Ookawa, Clovis was killed off a lot earlier than originally planned. Taniguchi apologizes for this, and then remarks that Jeremiah, on the other hand, has survived longer than originally planned. (The power of 2ch, indeed) - Taniguchi: "If you rewatch the first half of the show after watching episode 23, you might discover new things you didn't see before." He refuses to say what these things are, saying that this is an enjoyment exclusive to viewers who noticed themselves. - Okouchi was the one who insisted that a mask was necessary in order for it to be a Sunrise anime. - Ookawa -- "Director Taniguchi is someone who makes it clear what his likes and dislikes are, and this really helped our work. I like Cornelia, and I hope she can be happy." (I'm sure she'll get along well with Fu-kuyama, that crazy Cornelia fan) - Ookawa seems to be a Lelouch fan. She says that she worries whenever Lelouch does something stupid or uses the Geass in a wasteful manner. - CLAMP will still be doing the designs for the sequel, or perhaps have already done them. --- Animedia Q. Is it true that the Emperor is invading countries because he is looking for (Geass) "ruins"? A. In episode 19, General Bartley said "The Emperor decides which country to invade going by the location of the ruins" (I'm not sure how gg translated this). It is unclear whether this is truly the motive behind the invasions, but as the General has been investigating this for a long time, his statement that there are other such ruins, at least, must be true. Since a gigantic Geass mark surfaced on the Kaminejima ruins, it appears that it is somehow connected with the Geass. (Well duh) Q. What exactly is the "Mental Elevator" (Intellevator) the Emperor mentioned? A. This is still very much a mystery. However, because this is something coming from the Emperor, it may have to do with the mystery of the ruins he is said to be searching for. (...Double duh) Q. What is the 2nd Imperial Prince Schneizel looking for? A. Bartley and co. are picking up where Clovis left off with his investigations, which is why they went to Kaminejima. It seems that they have a vague suspicion on what the Emperor's objectives are, and intend to get a jump on him. At this stage this is all we are able to infer. It is probable that there is a certain something the Britannian royalty all wish to obtain. (...? Immortality? Pizza? And Schneizel vs Emperor, go! If Schneizel isn't a bad guy, or had nothing to do with Marianne's assassination, Lelouch should just team up with him already >__> With Suzaku, the Emperor would be dead in a day) Q. After episode 23, what will become of Britannia's "Area 11"? A. As we have just reached the part where the next step of the battle would be to destroy the Britannian government office (the palace-like building with flags), the answer to this question will have to depend on the outcome. Should the Black Knights triumph, Japan may have its rights restored while the Britannians may be forced into a vulnerable position this time around. (Take away all their cellphones! That'll teach 'em!) However, both the Chinese Federation and the EU, names which have repeatedly come up in the show, are both keeping an eye on the situation. How these two forces will act is something to look out for in the future. Q. What happened to "Good Morning'd" Orange? A. I too am surprised. Even though it's amazing that he's made a reappearance in the show, it's "Good Morning'd" after all. (Meaning the line destroyed the serious, cool mood of the scene XD) It seems that after the Narita battle, he was picked up (in the same sense you pick up rubbish / abandoned animals), turned into a subject for experiments and then modified. I'm sure many viewers have already realized what happened because his silhouette is in the OP. The resurrected Orange can't be beat! (Literal translation = "is the strongest") Q. What happened to Shirley's "memories" erased by the Geass? A. Basically, those memories will not return. The Geass works only once. Having seen the memo with her own handwriting, Shirley made her own inferences and somehow managed to grasp the truth of the situation. Although there was a subtle scene in episode 23 where she reacted to the name "Lulu", with the situation becoming increasingly hectic, her chances of meeting Lelouch again will diminish. (What does this mean? She's not going to get her chance to confront Lelouch about the truth after running away from it in episode 22?) Q. Will Kallen's real identity never be revealed to her friends in school? A. Although Suzaku already knows about it, he didn't say a thing about it in school, so as long as Suzaku and Kallen herself keep quiet no one will know. However, in episodes 24 and 25 Kallen, along with Zero, may storm the government office. What will become of the school when the settlement becomes a battlefield...!? (Are they hinting that the school will be in danger --> Black Knights come to the rescue --> Kallen's identity is finally revealed?) *The caption for Nunnally's picture: Sayoko's position itself has become somewhat ambiguous. There isn't a single person left who is protecting her... (I noted this because this sounds bad. Protect her, Arthur!) *The caption for Milly's picture: Having given up on Lelouch, she plunged headlong into the engagement with Lloyd. However... (However...? JUST JOIN THE BLACK KNIGHTS ALREADY!) Q. If the settlement is attacked, what will become of Nunnally and Arthur? A. In episode 23, it appears that the school is still somewhat safe and peaceful. Although Nunnally was frightened, she still has "the mysterious" Sayoko-san with her. Sayoko was told by Diethard to "Stay as you are and wait for further orders." (Episode 21) Things should be alright. Is Arthur with them!? (No, he's obviously outside taking down mechs left and right) However, should Japan achieve independence, Britannian schools would be in danger. *The text below (not in the blue boxes) written by the magazine writers (not the CG staff) says that if Lelouch doesn't go back to Ashford, Nunnally's safety will be "a candle in the wind". However, since this is his beloved sister we're talking about, it makes sense to think that he will definitely return in episodes 24 and 25...!? (...did they really need to end the sentence with an interrobang?) Q. Will "Chigusa"-san join the Black Knights? A. Chigusa-san = Villetta. She's currently cohabiting with Ougi and living a life reminiscent of the Showa period (...loving couple, wife waiting at home etc?) The octopus wieners she made for Ougi's bentou truly had a lot of impact. However, because her memories disappeared not because of the Geass, they will return someday. With that the two of them will become mutual enemies, which will make things difficult. *The lower text says "There is no way a Britannian female Knight will pass all her days living a lovey-dovey life in secret. But don't cry, Ougi!!" (I... want to see him cry >__>) Q. When will C.C. give the OK to Lelouch the Geass user? (This is the literal translation of the question; it seems that what the question is trying to ask is: Exactly what does Lelouch need to do in order to fulfil the terms of the contract?) A. This is far from clear. It seems that C.C. sealed the contract with Lelouch with a certain objective in mind. This contract is valid until that goal is reached. (Does this mean that once her wish is fulfilled, she can / will take Lelouch's Geass away from him?) For Lelouch, his goals are to defeat Britannia and the Emperor and also to create a happy world for Nunnally... However, what C.C. stands to gain from these goals of his remains a mystery. Q. Is Wall h4x Suzaku's (okay, so it actually says wall-runner Suzaku) physical prowess that of a normal human being's? A. Yes, he's a normal human being. It's just that he possesses extraodinary physical capabilites. It seems that his excellent Knightmare piloting skills has to do with him being unexpectedly compatible with Lancelot, and nothing more than that. Lloyd of the Special Dispatch was quick to notice this. (...? What about Fake Okouchi and Real Okouchi's previous hints about there being a secret behind his abnormal physical strength? Unless this answer is supposed to be a red herring?) Q. With Euphie dead, is Suzaku's mental state alright? A. He can't be alright, can he? That's not the usual him. If you listen carefully he said "Ore" (? He was still Boku-Suzaku during the phone conversation though, but I might have missed him saying "Ore" in episode 23), even though he had been using "boku". However, it seems that that is Suzaku's original personality. Up till now he's been faking his personality because of what happened with his father. He can no longer continue his facade now that he's snapped. Rather than saying that he will be somewhat like a beast from here on, it would be more appropriate to say we will be able to see Suzaku's real personality. Q. Why is it that up until the very end, Suzaku still doesn't have a "cellphone"? A. It's because there is a clear rule regarding this; Elevens and Honorary Britannians are not allowed to have one. It's a Britannian rule. This was probably decided in order to nip any possible insurrection in the bud. Also explains why Cecile-san had to personally come and get Suzaku (in episode 17) Q. After episode 23, what will Suzaku's next move be? A. To take revenge? For Euphie. Against Zero! Perhaps he isn't thinking about the future at all. Although he's fighting as a Honorary Britannian, it seems that he's just rushing headlong into the battle with personal grudges to settle. However, he pretty much cannot die due to the "Live!" Geass on him. A rather painful future may be awaiting him. Q. Who is more amazing? Suzaku vs Lelouch 10-point showdown! 1. Knightmare piloting skills: Suzaku 2. Hunting ability: Suzaku 3. Game skills: Lelouch 4. How they treat Nunnally: Lelouch 5. Popularity with the girls: Tie 6. Popularity with the guys: Suzaku 7. Studies (Science/Maths): Lelouch 8. Studies (Humanities/Arts): Lelouch 9. Independence (Cooking): Suzaku 10. Independence (Money concept): Lelouch (Lelouch wins 5-4. Lelouch is actually pretty good at cooking (It's part of his official character profile, IIRC; Sayoko also mentions this in her Diary section for DVD vol 2's booklet) Some of the reasonings behind the Lelouch vs Suzaku results are pretty nonsensical, actually. For example: 9. Independence (Cooking skill): Suzaku Lulu has been feeding Nunnally ever since their childhood days. His cooking skills are absolutely perfect. Suzaku received a strange Onigiri (Cecile's) Therefore... ...What does that have to do with cooking skills? >__> If anything that only proves Suzaku isn't human. As for Popularity with Girls, it's a tie because while Lelouch may have a hidden fanclub at school (I forgot who said this... FO?), Suzaku is popular with older women. This is also part of his official character profile; Suzaku admits it himself in the booklet for DVD vol. 03. However, he denies being attracted to them, but considering his first love (a house maid) happened when he was 3 years old... >__> Suzaku wins in the Popularity with Guys section because Lelouch doesn't really mix around with other students, only with his fellow Student Council members. This isn't really fair considering Suzaku probably has a hard time getting along with other classmates as well, but I guess that all changed after Euphemia knighted him. Though I think if it had been Zero vs Suzaku Zero would have won hands down. Zero has Diethard (Obsessed stalker), Tamaki (Tsundere) and Orange (also a stalker when you think about it >__>) --- Taniguchi Some interesting stuff from the Taniguchi interview: - Taniguchi appears to be hinting that Suzaku will have more scenes in the 2nd season. He mentioned that for viewers who want to watch this show thinking of Lelouch and Suzaku as double protagonists (Like Kazuma and Ryuhou in S.cry.ed; however, officially, Lelouch is the only protagonist in this show; everyone else is a supporting character), this motif will come up from here on. (He probably means that the difference between Suzaku and Lelouch will be made even more obvious in the future) - We'll be seeing more of Lelouch romantic relationships (probably in the 2nd season) According to him they decided not to put too much focus on those in the first 23 episodes because it would only complicate matters. It was necessary to show what Lelouch's primary focus is (Destroy Britannia; happy world for Nunnally) - V.V. will be a key person in the 2nd season; same goes for the mysterious long-haired Chinese guy (? Girl?) shown in episode 23. - By episode 26 (Taniguchi probably means 1st episode of the 2nd season; it seems that he's thinking of Code Geass as one whole continuous season) viewers will be able to see what Lelouch currently has in mind and what he intends to do next. - In case the sequel wasn't greenlighted (they already received the OK for it back in December last year, at least), they had an alternative route prepared for the story to take, one which would have ended the story in episode 23. It would have been a non-conclusive ending though; according to Taniguchi it was more of a "psychological" ending for Lelouch (think EVA ending) - By Taniguchi's own admission, the real story has only just begun. --- Kawaguchi The Kawaguchi interview itself is quite strange. It feels as though Director Taniguchi, Scriptwriter Okouchi and Producer Kawaguchi all have different interpretations regarding the show. On the subject of the phone conversation at the end of episode 23, Kawaguchi says that Okouchi originally wrote the scene intending to dramatize the mistaken nature of Lelouch and Suzaku's friendship (lit. trans: how it continually "passes each other by"), but Taniguchi said "If you need to confirm it, then you're not really friends" (The "After all, we're friends, aren't we?" line) and had the meaning of the scene changed. So... are they truly friends or not? I suppose they're "friends" in the sense that they truly care about each other, yet at the same time they can't be "true friends" because they're still hiding all sorts of secrets from each other. Kawaguchi, at least, is adamant that Lelouch and Suzaku cannot be considered friends. I'd like to see an Okouchi-only interview next to hear what he has to say on this matter XD Also, Kawaguchi referred to Lelouch as "Lulu" twice in the interview. Kawaguchi is a big fan of Lulu Quality, indeed. --- The infamous phone call in 23. Producer Kawaguchi actually offered an explanation in his interview on why Lelouch has Euphie's number. We know that he definitely has her number saved because "Euphemia" showed up on his cellphone; we also know that calls from unknown people show up on his phone as "No Number" (episode 13 -- assumed to be a call from Ougi and episode 15 -- Mao) Basically the (lame) explanation is: "They must have exchanged numbers on the deserted island (laugh)" I wonder what name Euphemia saved Lelouch's number under though. She can't possibly have saved it under "Lelouch"... she's not that much of an airhead... right? >__> Though "Zero" is a lot worse, but not as much as "My First Love, Eheh <3" --- Fake Okouchi questions from 2chan 1. (Did Suzaku know that Zero = Lelouch at the end of episode 23? If so, did Lelouch realize it as well?) No comment. 2. (When exactly will episodes 24 and 25 be aired during the summer? Will they not be aired first via Biglobe's internet streaming?) I don't think so . We weren't able to secure the slots in time. It's a little thick-skinned of me to say this, but to make up for it the animation and the directing etc. will be impressive. 3. (It seems to me that Suzaku is more important to Lelouch than Lelouch is to Suzaku. What exactly does Suzaku think of LuluNana?) To Suzaku, Lelouch is more of an old friend. As for Nunnally, rather than her being just the sister of a friend, it appears that he thinks of her as an important person. 4. (Will Lulu and C.C.'s line "Bestow upon me the mark of destruction! Consecrate it!" used in the pre-airing CMs appear in the show? A word about this line please.) I don't think the line will appear in the show. The lines said in the CMs are more like "catch copies" <"catch phrases" in English> 5. (Did Suzaku see V.V. or C.C. in episode 22? What was the reason behind it?) <-- The light silhouette in front of the Gawain It was C.C. It's somewhat like the mirage(?) of C.C. only Lelouch could see in episode 1. He saw it because he has the Geass potential. 6. (C.C. talked to Marianne in episode 23. Is Marianne in the World of C?) No comment. 7. (How does C.C. go about choosing Geass users? As long as they have potential everything's fine? For what reason did she choose Mao and Lelouch?) It's a secret, but the main criteria involved in the choosing is related to the bloodline as well as where and how the person grew up. 8. (In episode 7, C.C. said "The blood does not rebel" (Children take after their parents) Whose blood was she referring to? The Emperor's or Marianne's?) Both, I suppose. C.C. was teased *by Marianne* a lot, so I think she just wanted to get her back for it *by claiming that Lelouch takes after her?* 9. (Who's stronger: V.V. or C.C.?) It depends on what you mean by "strong", but if you were to make them fight each other mano-a-mano I think C.C. would be declared the victor. 10. (Will the "Lelouch being good at household chores" character setting be used in the future? Is it true that he made Zero's costume himself? Will such hidden character settings appear in the drama CDs etc?) I think the scenes that were cut from the show *such as the kiss with Kallen?* as well as the character settings that have yet to be shown will be included in the drama CDs and such. *He didn't actually state a specific media* 11. (What's the meaning behind the OP shot in which Lelouch rides a horse? What about the mugshots? Whose hand is it in the scene showing someone trying to grab hold of the person floating with the Geass mark?) Horse-riding is a sort of reference to piloting a Knightmare *they're "mares", after all* It implies that his (Lelouch's) main role isn't to pilot a Knightmare *he's more of a commander*, unlike Suzaku. Also, his elegant way of spurring a horse onward shows his prince-like quality / nature. This is further supported by the background, which was drawn with the Britannia homeland in mind. As for the mugshots, I think that those show the key characters whose actions help move the story forward, but I fear that only the director knows the truth of it. As for the hand, I think it's probably Nunnally's. (Actually I don't know either, but the skin-tone is the same as Nunnally's) 12. (What is the debt from 7 years ago? Will it be revealed in the 1st season?) The "Debt" doesn't only refer to one specific thing. One of it has to do with the Kururugi family forcing LuluNana into confinement *in a storage shed, no less* 13. (Will the Emperor's past cronies and Knight appear in the show?) That would depend on the 2nd season. 14. (Why is it that even though Nunnally calls Marianne "Okaa-sama" (polite), Lulu calls her "Kaa-san" (informal)? It's rather strange for royalty to do that.) I think perhaps it's a sort of code showing how he respected, trusted and in a way depended on his mother. The same goes for Suzaku calling himself "Ore". *Meaning it's a sort of clue about what goes on in their heads* 15. (How much time has passed in the show between episodes 1 ~ 25?) The actual length of time is made ambiguous, but I suppose it's quite close to the broadcast length in real life. *About 6 months?* 16. (The difference between a Knight and an Elected Knight (Suzaku, Guilford) please.) Originally, the term "Knight" is a general one referring to all Knightmare pilots. Elected Knights such as Guilford and Suzaku are those chosen by the royalty as personal protectors. It's just that for the convenience of the conversation there are times where the term "Knight" actually refers to "Elected Knight". 17. (A hidden character setting, please. Anything is fine.) In the early planning stages, Rivalz was named Radner *? Katakana = "radona"; I have no idea whether this is a name or whether he's referring to another famous person or what* and had a much bigger role. In a way, he had an evil side to him, more so than Lelouch, and was truly "bad company". However, if he was to be made into someone who had too much in common with Lelouch, Suzaku's existence would have less of an impact and thus changes were made. 18. (Will the period in which LuluNana lived by themselves be shown in the show? Or will these be covered by the Picture Dramas and Drama CDs?) Unknown. 19. (Was the Marianne shown in episode 22 part of C.C.'s memories? Why did Suzaku faint?) Rather than say that was C.C.'s memories, it would be more appropriate to say that was a scene showing her "vision". *That's exactly what he says in katakana* Suzaku collapsed because of C.C.'s shock attack. 20. (Villetta once said "Britannia is scary" when she was still Chigusa. Were those her real feelings?) That was her reacting to having been seriously wounded and having lost her memories. Besides that, she felt peaceful during her time with Ougi and was also influenced by his way of thinking. 21. (What are the requirements for the reactivation of Suzaku's "Live!" Geass? How will it affect him, exactly? Make him go berserk?) He will return to his original way of living and become more and more honest. *His "boku" personality is a false one used to protect himself* 22. (Are there plans to use the cut Zero / Kallen kiss scene (Source: Megami Magazine) in the future?) It is true that that scene was cut. A lot of adjustments were made around episode 20. The kiss event was to give Kallen courage after she lost her nerve to continue to act as a member of the Black Knights. Originally there was supposed to be a sequence of scenes showing her remembering the kiss, shaking off her hesitations and fighting whenever she was about to be discouraged. 23. (A word about the Emperor and Marianne, please.) No comment. 24. (What is the relation between V.V., Suzaku and Nunnally?) For Suzaku and Nunnally, it's just as I said in the answer for the 3rd question. As for V.V. and Suzaku, no comment. At the moment V.V. and Nunnally are not connected. 25. (A word about the future of the Ashford Academy Student Council members.) The school will become a part of the battlefield due to various calculations *? from which side? Nina...?* 26. (A hint about love relationships. Also, a word on why Euphie fell in love with Suzaku. Is Suzaku no longer a virgin?) No comment. *Yeah, 2chers like asking which characters are virgins. See: Virginity Theory* 27. (Kaguya called herself The Goddess of Victory. Did something happen before this to support her claim?) Unknown. --- Ura de Net Geass! Participants: Tanaka Kazunari (Tamaki VA) Yoshino Hiroyuki (Secondary scriptwriter / series composition) Kawaguchi Yoshitaka (Producer) Morotomi Youshi (Producer, MBS TV station side) - An 8 hour meeting was held to determine C.C.'s name and real identity. Supposedly none of the participants ate or drank throughout the whole thing (Okouchi: "Give me something to eat!") According to Yoshino, whenever he thought the meeting was about to come to an end, someone would start up again and the meeting would continue with no end in sight. XD - The title "Code Geass" was a fairly last-minute decision (the tentative title was "Lelouch of the Rebellion") The production team were in a panic over the lack of a proper title; "We need a title to design the title logo!" etc. - Yoshino: "A strange scriptwriter joined around episode 12." (referring to himself) According to him, for episodes 1 ~ 11 all he did was comment on Okouchi's scripts: "Oh, I like this. I don't like this. This is cool." etc. Okouchi got annoyed and told him "Why don't you write the scripts then?" (Yoshino wrote the scripts for episodes 12, 13 and 19) Dark Okouchi >__> - Mao's repetitive clapping didn't exist in the scripting stages; Taniguchi was the one who later added it to make him "more annoying". Also, according to the producers, the Mao arc had the highest ratings o__O - Originally, Toudou was supposed to join Lelouch's side much earlier. They talk about the Diethard and Toudou shot in the ED. All are baffled by it; conclusion: "Only Taniguchi knows." - Okouchi wrote the script for episode 18; according to Yoshino, Okouchi told him: "Isn't it exciting, leaving viewers wondering whether Lelouch Geass'd Suzaku?" Yoshino: "So how are you going to wrap this up?" Dark Okouchi: "I'll think about it later!" XD Each time Yoshino asked him if he's thought of it yet, Okouchi would reply: "Not yet." Seems like Okouchi is a fairly laidback character XD - Yoshino ended up writing the script for episode 19; supposedly he requested to do it, saying "Oh well, if (Okouchi) wants me to write a script, I might as well do the island arc." (he's more or less the fanservice supervisor for this show) According to him (and the Newtype Taniguchi + Fu-kuyama interview), this was how Lelouch's trap was supposed to work: Lelouch successfully digs a proper hole --> However, a boar appears behind him --> Lelouch tries to Geass it: "Lelouch Vi Britannia orders you to SIT!" --> Geass doesn't work on animals --> Lulu Quality Tragedy (Wait, isn't this just like that one fancomic? o__O) However, Taniguchi changed it all, telling Yoshino: "Well, in the first place, Lelouch isn't capable of digging such a hole..." - The reason why the writers made Kallen stand on Gawain's shoulder instead of getting into the two-seater cockpit with Lelouch in episode 19: "There's no way Kallen will hand over the 2nd-pilot position to anyone else once she's in there." Good point. - Will we see Gawain engaging in electronic warfare? Maybe, maybe not. However, officially Gawain is equipped for it (Druid System) The producers and Tanaka all agree that Gawain is pretty much a h4x mecha in this show. - According to Tanaka, right after the airing of episode 22, 3 of his friends rang him up asking "What the hell was that? I need to know what happens next!" etc. According to Kawaguchi, "some of the viewers may have been satisfied with the handshake in episode 22, but actually, a lot more people would have been upset..." - After episode 23, the production team received letters from fans saying "Okouchi is so evil", "Dark Okouchi" etc. According to the 4 of them, Okouchi doesn't like that. Realizing Okouchi may be listening to this, they start sucking up to him, saying things like "Okouchi is a wonderful person!" "He's an... *long pause* honest person!" Tanaka: "I love Okouchi!... okay, moving on..." XD XD XD - Tanaka says he isn't allowed to talk about episode 24, but he dropped some hints, like: "I had no idea that part in episode 23 was a foreshadowing" and "So that was what that person was doing". Okay...

[zephyrthejester]

Code Geass Deadblog: Episode 47

Only one episode covered this time, for a specific reason... Long story short, I’ve changed my mind and I’ll give episodes 48 and 49 the full liveblog treatment, in addition to the finale! More info at the bottom.

To no one's surprise, Lelouch's first action as Emperor of Britannia was to destroy Britannia. Tore down the mausoleum housing Emperors and Empresses past, up-heaved and dismantled all manner of noble cliques and stations... And who was to oppose him? Essentially every important political figure had just fallen under his supreme command in one fell swoop. Everything seemed to be going well, and the rest of the world looked upon Lelouch's actions with favorable eyes. The Black Knights, the sole people who knew Lelouch was once Zero, were caught in a rock and a hard place and didn't really know what the hell to do.

Aaaaaand then Lulu went full tyrant. Squashing out all possible resistance from other nations, and Commanding entire rooms full of soldiers to become his "slaves." His words, not mine! Yeah, I suppose that Lelouch no longer has any reason to make a world for Nunnaly, right? At this point, I guess Lulu decided to kick up his feet, have some fun, and make a world just for himself. Oh, and then he prepared to "spill an ocean of blood" in order to make Euphemia's massacre all but forgotten. Clearing her name, in a very very very twisted, fucked up way.

It was at this point I started sweating nervously. Perhaps the most distressing aspect of this plot was Suzaku, who was totally onboard. It's like... Dude! I know you gave in and decided that ends do justify means, but HOLY SHIT, THESE MEANS ARE HARDCORE, MY DUDE!

Almost to prove that point, Suzaku next proceeded to kick the asses of four former Knights of the Round, who flew in to attack the Imperial Palace, citing their loyalty to the late Charles. Man. This felt like watching the apocalyptic bad ending to a video game. Indeed, the Lancelot Albion, a 9th Generation KnightMare Frame, broke the Knights of the Round like they were toys. Two nameless Knights died in seconds, while Gino was spared (but sent hurtling to the ground below). Suzaku found actual challenge in facing Bismarck, whose Geass power let him... See the future! Wow, a Geass power that actually doesn't do anything to other people? That's a first!

And man, I gotta say, it was supremely cool how Suzaku managed to defeat him. Suzaku gave himself over to Lelouch's command to Live. Suzaku's geass-controlled auto-pilot, therefore, broke the rules. Bismarck couldn't see Suzaku's future because him doing so would make Suzaku die, but... Suzaku couldn't die! In fact, I wonder if Bismarck simply misunderstood how his own Geass works. He said he's only ever used it once before (against Marianne, as a matter of fact). Perhaps it was the case that he didn't so much as see the future, but saw people's intentions. That would definitely make it a bit easier to understand.

Regardless, Suzaku killed him in style and Lelouch took the opportunity to broadcast it to the world... Then followed it up by announcing that Britannia was immediately joining the United Federation of Nations. Therefore, the world would truly be united under one banner. What a baller! The sweet, sweet cherry on top was Lelouch's declaration of where the negotiations would be held... On a certain neutral ground, not controlled by either side... Japan. Specifically, Ashford Academy. BECAUSE OF-FREAKING-COURSE.

Once I saw the massive crowd of people around the Academy, and saw Lelouch's suspicious plan to go there alone with naught but C.C. and a few guards by his side, I recalled Lelouch's promise to spill an ocean of blood. It was at this point I started sweating uncontrollably, flooding my apartment with ankle-deep water. Before a slaughter, though, a little heartbreak: Kallen received Lelouch, and per his will, they took a detour and managed to speak alone. Kallen managed to ask every question she could have wanted to ask. Asked what she is to him. Asked why he told her that she needed to live. Even surprised him with a kiss on the lips... But Lelouch's stone-faced silence was an answer that rang clear. "You mean nothing to me." With finality, they both left with the knowledge they'd never speak to each other like that again.

The negotiations took me by surprise. Kaguya, Tohdoh, and Ohgi spoke to Lelouch with conviction, stating that due to how votes for laws and other such matters were made based on the percentage of population in a nation works, Britannia joining them would mean Lelouch would control the majority of the world's votes-- and therefore, all of it. Lelouch was given a choice between two disadvantageous outcomes to help balance that, but instead, Lelouch posed a whimsical question. What is the most important trait of a ruler? Destruction, he said. The will to destroy everything... even oneself. Uh... Uh-oh.

Naturally, Lelouch promptly declared war on the entire world. Because of course he would. The Lancelot rocketed into the room and held the world's leaders at gunpoint, and Lelouch kindly asked them to begin the democratic voting. What a stand-up guy! Elsewhere, his main forces began moving in on Japan, and Nina, carrying some manner of technology with her, was apprehended by some Geassed citizens. That's PROBABLY for the best. Seriously, has Nina done one good thing this entire show? Stop her before anything starts!

The episode ended with what had to be the most "this show is such ridiculous bullshit, and I love the fuck out of it" moment it has ever had. Schneizel made a move of his own... The flying fortress, the Damocles, three kilometers in size, nuked the Imperial City/Palace with a massively powerful FLEIJA. Not a single trace of the city remained. But you know what the utterly absurd, ridiculous, amazing, and stupid, and stupidly amazing, amazingly stupid cherry on top was? Schneizel paged through to Lelouch and revealed that he had someone with him who he wanted to make the true ruler. Nunnaly. Nunnaly, who promptly declared herself Lelouch and Suzaku's enemy.

I knew exactly who it freaking was the moment Schneizel made the slightest hint that he was talking about someone other than himself. And I immediately launched into a mad cackle, because I knew that the show WOULD be willing to ascend to such levels of cheesy bullshit... Boy. This show really is the best kind of stupid. It really is.

It's so twisted and perfect, it really is. Lelouch had no morals to cling to, did his thing, then went off the point of no return in a grand scheme. Then, the MOMENT he did so, Schneizel pulled the rug out from under him and revealed that-- oh, hey-- Lelouch's moral compass and reason for living is, in fact, still alive. And she just got every reason to freaking loathe him and become his enemy.

What a trip. In fact, the show has become such a trip, I think I’m going to change my plans! Due to the meaty content of the last few episodes, and the inspired turn of events here, I think I want to give the final three episodes the full Liveblog treatment! So I hope you’ll join me for that!

Other Notes:

There was a bit where the show lingered on a three-story staircase in Nina's lab room, and Rivalz arrived at the top with pizza, and then with a camera cut he apparently walked down all those stairs in a flash. Was kinda funny.

Lelouch got himself a snazzy hat. I'm so proud of him.

Tamaki remains MVP. I loved his flip-flopping on Lelouch, between undying buddy to hate. I also loved how he shut up someone who also complained about him; Only Tamaki gets to insult his worst nemesis-buddy!

Schneizel openly stated to Lulu that every single FLEIJA warhead is stocked on the Damocles. Therefore, that is clearly not true.

Gino's fate was left unanswered. Might he swoop in as an unexpected ally later? Suzaku's words did have him questioning his own motives and loyalties, swaying to the side of Lelouch and Britannia... Meanwhile, Anya was spotted chillin' with Schneizel and Cornelia, casually updating her digital diary, so I guess she's her old self still.

[runawaytheatre]

[Rant] Code Geass: Fukkatsu no Lelouch

It’s been a while since I visited anichart and what a surprise I got wkwk

I really liked this anime, even to this day I still think code geass is one of the best anime ever created. And for me myself there is no other show, be it drama, movie, or other animation that could compete with how code geass amaze me.

Yes, there are some things that could be improved but how the story ends make it all seem unnecessary. Almost everyone who watched this anime will agree with how great the ending was. It also show how ‘everyone’ doing shortly after the big event. But, like in this trailer says, how is the world after?

Here I will rant a little bit about this sequel of code geass. Beware of spoiler and bad english wkwk

So , I heard that this sequel will be airing on february next year. Well in the first announcement or so this anime should be airing this year, but it’s not a problem as quality is more important than how fast the release will be.

Code geass itself is one of my favorite anime. The first time I watched this was 4 or 5 years ago? And it was awesome! When I rewatched this anime again this year, I realized how this anime have the same naivety with almost every single Japanese show... and yes it’s fun. If you are one who enjoy movie, dorama, manga, anime from japan and had been in this for quite awhile you will see how it have different feels from other country. How to put this... the hope, the positivity, the friendship, the feelings, the conflict in there... it just different. And this anime, Code Geass also have all that but they warp it up nicely. I don’t know if this is just my bias as the ending really hit me hard wkwk

As everyone who watched this anime knows that in the ending Lelouch, the main character, is dead and it’s one of the best ending that ever happened in anime. Although it was sad and painful (for me), I still think it was the best solution to reach Lelouch’s goal (well, the anime didn’t explicitly tell us what Lelouch and Suzaku try to achieve, but more or less I think it is a world that Euphimia wants and where Nunnaly can live). Although it is a lie if I say I never want Lelouch to somehow still be alive, but I just don’t want to see Lelouch suffer more (like Kaneki T_T) and with how the things are in the end so I think it’s best if he dies and rest in peace.

With this sequel announcement of course the fans will not just stay silent and be happy about it. From what I have read, many fans, including myself, is kinda happy but also worried about this sequel. For me and some of the fans it’s better if there is no sequel rather than to watch a failed attempt on resurrecting one of the legendary anime. But, let’s be positive here and pray that this sequel will be as great as the prequel or maybe more.

Also I’ve read that this sequel is placed in an alternative universe that have different ending or storyline or something...? Well, but in the video above C.C.’s voice confirm that Lelouch is death as she asked question about how the world is doing after the death of Lelouch vi Britannia... but again I’m not sure about how the story will going, so... But, I think geass is become known in this sequel and it change how the world is in this universe, so maybe the story will revolve around the origin of geass more?

I’m not expecting anything really, but I want to see Lelouch once again and if he really does live in this sequel, I hope he is in his twenties lol. But, from what I saw looks like there is not much change in their age or appearance as Suzaku is still the same as always lol.

This is just my random thought and I don’t really do research on this but is it actually confirmed that Lelouch will be alive in this sequel? Although the title say resurrection of Lelouch, how is it if it’s not what we think it is? Like, maybe it’s not Lelouch in person that was resurrected but the action, the tragedy that he made?

HAIL LELOUCH!!