The Power of the Kingby SigniaChaptersSetting the BoardMove OneMove TwoSetting the Board "Though there are worlds without end, there is but one being - in the past, in the future, and now. Only one." Emperor Charles vi Brittania “Behold. It’s begun,” said a lady in orange. “The Sword of Akasha is slaying god.” “Now, once our marks of Geass become one, the old world will cease and the new world shall spring forth,” said the king of the past to an immortal witch. “Lelouch,” began the betrayer. “What was your motivation for wanting to control the world?” The king of the future responded. “Don’t waste my time, Suzaku. You know it was Nunnally-” “Or are you just using her as your excuse,” interrupted the betrayer. The king of the future briefly chuckled. “Yes, you’re right. I am. I have fought to protect everything I thought I wanted to protect.” “If you’re going to achieve that,” the betrayer responded, “then you need to take action.” “Yes. The means to that end requires me to reject something.” “Which is?” “That I... I reject you,” began the king of the future towards the king of the past, “and I reject everything you believe. Why do people lie? It isn’t only because they struggle against each other. It’s also because there’s something that they’re seeking. You now want a world without change. How stagnant. You could hardly call it life. It’s the same as a world of memories, just a world that’s closed and completed. That’s a place I wouldn’t want to live in.” “But Lelouch,” began the lady in orange, “are you saying you’re rejecting me as well?” “That depends. Is your desire the same as His Majesty’s, mother?” “It will be so good to rejoin all of the people from whom we’ve been separated. You can be reunited with those who have died, even Euphemia!” the lady in orange explained. “As I expected. You both believe that this new world you envision will be best for all. But forcing your good intentions on others is no different from an evil act.” “In time, the people will come to accept it,” declared the king of the past. “That time will never come! One thing is undeniably certain. I understand now that what you did to Nunnally and me may have been done out of good intentions. But, the hard fact remains that you abandoned us in a foreign land!” “But we did that to protect you-” the lady in orange began to defend. “Then why didn’t you stop the war between Japan and Brittania?” The lady in orange was silent. “The plan was such a priority for you both that it didn’t matter to either of you if Nunally and I were alive or dead. That’s why you abandoned us. All you have left are self-serving excuses.” “Lelouch, you’re wrong-” the lady in orange attempted again. “You just told me! You said that the dead would rejoin the living. You don’t give a damn about the future!” “The future is the Ragnarok Connection,” the king of the past stated. “Once it’s finally done, the gentler existence that Nunnally spoke of will-” “Stop it!” the king of the future exclaimed. “The world you speak of will be kinder and gentler only for you! The world that my sister wished for… is one in which kindness is extended to everyone, even strangers!” “Let’s say it was true… what of it?” questioned the king of the past. “There’s nothing to be done about it. The Ragnarok Connection has begun.” “You think so,” began the king of the future. “I am Zero, the man who works miracles.” “Your Geass power will have no effect on me, nor will it on anyone else here-” “No. But there is someone else here, isn’t there?” The king of the past shuddered in realization. “C’s world is the will of mankind itself,” the king of the future continued, “and all men are not equal, remember those words? They’re your own. Because of that, I’m sure you realize that my power will work.” “You’re a fool, Lelouch! God cannot be defeated by the Power of the King-” “I don’t intend to defeat god, this is a request!” declared the king of the future. “Yes, now I know who I really am.” “God! Collective unconscious!” addressed the king of the future. All present could feel reality’s attention shift. “Don’t stop the march of time!” “Lelouch, you ungrateful child-” began the enraged lady in orange. “Nobody would have wanted this!” the betrayer interrupted. “No one, and especially not Euphie!” “And I saved you so that you could talk to Euphie again!” “Meaning you were going to force me to, right?” “You can’t do this, boy!” the king of the past exclaimed. “Not against god, nor all of humanity itself!” “Regardless, what I want...” commanded the king of the future. “Is tomorrow!” Reality ignored his request. All in C’s World were silent. “It can’t be…” uttered the king of the future, single cursed eye still blazing. “The Ragnarok Connection is complete,” began the king of the past. “The dream that I, and Marianne, and my brother all shared will be seen to.” “But-” the king of the future despaired. “Lelouch, just stop already,” the immortal witch pleaded. “It was foolish of us to even attempt this.” The king of the future, the immortal witch, and the betrayer began to fade. “This isn’t a falsehood, my son,” stated the king of the past. “This is reality’s response.” “But Charles,” wondered the lady in orange, “why is C.C. disappearing as well? She supported our plan as much as we did.” “I’m sorry, but I’d already realized…” muttered the immortal witch. “The love you have is only for yourselves…” “No, that’s not true at all. We love our children very much.” stated the lady in orange. “Do you have any idea what the meaning is behind Nunnally's beautiful smile?” questioned the king of the future as he faded away. “Uh… the meaning?” “Why don’t you understand? Nunnally was blinded. My own sister was crippled! She knew… she knew that there were things in this world that she would never be able to do by herself. So her smile… Nunnally's smile… was her way of expressing gratitude!” “Lelouch, you’re laboring under a delusion-” began the king of the past. “I will not let you call that a lie!” The king of the future, the immortal witch, and the betrayer ceased to exist. All that remained in C’s World were a king, a lady, and an echo. “Over my dead body…” Move OneIt was cold. The air, while fresh, was notably thin. Also, his back hurt. These were the first things that the boy noticed as his consciousness returned to him. Looking around, the black-haired boy found nothing more than stone and sparse vegetation. No, there was also a nearby stream. He was on a mountain. With his knowledge and observational skills, he only took a few seconds to arrive at that conclusion. The next task to clear was to determine what particular mountain he was on. Briefly considering his options, he considered that many mountains have towns or settlements built at their bases. If this was such a mountain, he could analyze the architecture and style of the town to deduce what country he was in, at the very least. If no town was present, he would still be able to narrow down the list of potential mountains. He briefly critiqued his plan and determined that it was satisfactory. For now at least. Within thirty seconds of having regained consciousness, the boy had already formulated the first step of a greater plan, a plan to find out what the hell was going on. Such is the mind of young Lelouch, who had now made his first move. ‘Where the hell am I?’ Out of all the thoughts running through the boy’s mind, that one was the loudest. ‘Throughout all of my military training, I have never seen vegetation like this. The larger plants, like the trees and vines, give the impression of somewhere in the South American continent. However, most of the underbrush is exactly what grows in the Britannian homeland. Furthermore, I haven’t even seen some of these plants before.’ ‘On top of all of that, this place gives me a weird vibe. It’s like there’s some sort of faint presence. It sort of reminds me of… Kamine Island? I was too focused on keeping Kallen under supervision, so I never paid too much attention to it.’ That train of thought led his mind to how he got here in the first place. ‘Am I… am I dead? What happened in that… place… with the Emperor? Why did Lelouch fail? What happened to us, where did Lelouch go? If I’m dead, is he as well? But then, is C.C. dead as well? I thought she was immortal, like His Majesty.’ ‘... This isn’t the time or place to overthink things. Right, the first thing I need to do is get to high ground and look for any signs of civilization. I need to find a hill, a large tree, or… a tree on a hill over there.’ And thus, Suzaku made his first move. The girl was content to lay down on the roof of the building she had never seen. “So that’s what happened. If his Geass were more powerful, he could have succeeded.” A drop of water dripped from a gutter. “Even still, he managed to throw quite a wrench into your plans. It’s amazing to see how strong it has become ever since that day. Drip. “I’m sorry, but I don’t wish to participate in your plans any more. The things that Lelouch said weren’t wrong.” Drip. “True. That man is more hardheaded than Lelouch, but only sometimes. I can see where he gets it from. I don’t know what you see in him.” Drip. “Please, before our connection fades, hear me out. If you both continue to follow this path, Lelouch will continue to oppose you. Your goals are against everything he believes in, and I agree with him. I’ve known how wrong your plans were since the very beginning. I never opposed you because the plan meant that my wish would be granted.” Drip. “Oh please, why do you always say things like that? I’m telling you, he and I are jus-” … “The connection has faded. I suppose I should go look for him before he gets into even more trouble.” And thus, C.C. made her first move. Working his way around the mountain, Lelouch looked around for civilization. He could see plenty of towns and cities in the distance, but they were too far away to make out the architecture. His eyes eventually came to rest on a city not at the base of the mountain, but built directly onto the mountain. Ignoring the uselessness of such a design, he analyzed the style. It was like some sort of childish parody of Britannian architecture, much like one would find in a child’s picture book. There were spires built on top of towers, which themselves sometimes branched off of other towers. He wondered what sort of skill it would take to make such a city stable. After all, it looked as if it would only take one earthquake or landslide to… “It’s even more destructive than I’d anticipated. We did succeed in isolating Cornelia’s unit, but we could have been a bit more accurate. Perhaps I should have consulted a physics teacher or asked Nina to tutor me in probability.” Snapping out of his flashback, he finally remembered how he arrived there in the first place and what he was doing before he regained consciousness. He remembered the Emperor and his plan to create a permanent past. And he was not happy. No, not in the least. In fact, one could say that Lelouch Vi Britannia - Eleventh Prince of the Holy Britannian Empire - was pissed. Move TwoLive. Suzaku continued to run through the forest that he would soon know as Everfree. After locating a nearby town from atop his hill-tree, he decided to make his way toward it. He hoped it was Britannian-controlled territory. His status as a Knight of the Round made him well known even in other countries. Live. He instinctively jumped over a log, narrowly avoiding a clumsy fall. Such a fall would mean death. He had to live. He wasn't even sure what planet he was on anymore. The flora he observed were certainly odd, but nothing compared to the newly-discovered fauna. The first beast he found was some sort of reptile from what he'd seen. He wasn't able to look at its head. He had to live after all. That beast was of no immediate danger to him. He knew that, instinctively. His current pursuer, however, was different. The manticore wanted to eat him. The manticore could sting him and eat him. He knew that, instinctively. So, he ran. He had to live. Live. He dodged to the side, narrowly escaping the manticore's stinger. Live. He dropped to the ground, allowing the manticore to pounce over him. He ran to the side, putting more distance between them. Live. Live. Live. He managed to escape the manticore. He couldn't fight it because he had to live. Fighting it would be death. Safe for now, he ran to where he knew the town was. He had to get out of this forest because he had to live. He had to because of that man. Because of that demon named Lelouch. That stain on the history of humanity. He used to be his best friend. Now, he despised him. He despised Lelouch and everything he believed. But right now, he had to figure out what was going on. Hatred would get him nowhere. He had to go to the town he had seen. That town turned out to be nothing more than a small settlement from the soldier's perspective. Still, it was his best chance. Suzaku, after entering the town, went straight from relief to confusion. Perhaps confusion isn't the correct phrase. His brain melted. "What do you think it is?" whispered a young mare. "I don't know," her friend responded, "but it just looked at Silver Wares and froze." "How long has it been standing there?" "Ten minutes," another pony responded, "and when you think about it, doesn't it look sort of like that dragon the princess has around all the time?" "No, it doesn't have any scales or spines. It's more like one of those Diamond Dogs that kidnapped Ms. Rarity a while back, if anything." "Maybe one lost all of its hair?" "I don't think so. Dogs don't have manes, especially ones so big and curly. No snout either." "Maybe a minotaur, like Mr. Iron Will?" "No snout." "Yeah, the flat face is a bit creepy." As this went on, a pony who had just been selling her wares in the market decided that enough was enough. It was time to take action. "Well howdy there partner," an orange mare greeted. "I'm Applejack. I take it ya'll are new to Ponyville. I don't think none of us have seen anypony... err, anybody like you before. If'n ya'll don't mind my asking, what are you?" Silence. "Er... Hello?" The thing was still staring into the distance. "Can you, uh, hear me?" Silence. "I... I'm gonna go get Twilight."
Setting the Board "Though there are worlds without end, there is but one being - in the past, in the future, and now. Only one." Emperor Charles vi Brittania “Behold. It’s begun,” said a lady in orange. “The Sword of Akasha is slaying god.” “Now, once our marks of Geass become one, the old world will cease and the new world shall spring forth,” said the king of the past to an immortal witch. “Lelouch,” began the betrayer. “What was your motivation for wanting to control the world?” The king of the future responded. “Don’t waste my time, Suzaku. You know it was Nunnally-” “Or are you just using her as your excuse,” interrupted the betrayer. The king of the future briefly chuckled. “Yes, you’re right. I am. I have fought to protect everything I thought I wanted to protect.” “If you’re going to achieve that,” the betrayer responded, “then you need to take action.” “Yes. The means to that end requires me to reject something.” “Which is?” “That I... I reject you,” began the king of the future towards the king of the past, “and I reject everything you believe. Why do people lie? It isn’t only because they struggle against each other. It’s also because there’s something that they’re seeking. You now want a world without change. How stagnant. You could hardly call it life. It’s the same as a world of memories, just a world that’s closed and completed. That’s a place I wouldn’t want to live in.” “But Lelouch,” began the lady in orange, “are you saying you’re rejecting me as well?” “That depends. Is your desire the same as His Majesty’s, mother?” “It will be so good to rejoin all of the people from whom we’ve been separated. You can be reunited with those who have died, even Euphemia!” the lady in orange explained. “As I expected. You both believe that this new world you envision will be best for all. But forcing your good intentions on others is no different from an evil act.” “In time, the people will come to accept it,” declared the king of the past. “That time will never come! One thing is undeniably certain. I understand now that what you did to Nunnally and me may have been done out of good intentions. But, the hard fact remains that you abandoned us in a foreign land!” “But we did that to protect you-” the lady in orange began to defend. “Then why didn’t you stop the war between Japan and Brittania?” The lady in orange was silent. “The plan was such a priority for you both that it didn’t matter to either of you if Nunally and I were alive or dead. That’s why you abandoned us. All you have left are self-serving excuses.” “Lelouch, you’re wrong-” the lady in orange attempted again. “You just told me! You said that the dead would rejoin the living. You don’t give a damn about the future!” “The future is the Ragnarok Connection,” the king of the past stated. “Once it’s finally done, the gentler existence that Nunnally spoke of will-” “Stop it!” the king of the future exclaimed. “The world you speak of will be kinder and gentler only for you! The world that my sister wished for… is one in which kindness is extended to everyone, even strangers!” “Let’s say it was true… what of it?” questioned the king of the past. “There’s nothing to be done about it. The Ragnarok Connection has begun.” “You think so,” began the king of the future. “I am Zero, the man who works miracles.” “Your Geass power will have no effect on me, nor will it on anyone else here-” “No. But there is someone else here, isn’t there?” The king of the past shuddered in realization. “C’s world is the will of mankind itself,” the king of the future continued, “and all men are not equal, remember those words? They’re your own. Because of that, I’m sure you realize that my power will work.” “You’re a fool, Lelouch! God cannot be defeated by the Power of the King-” “I don’t intend to defeat god, this is a request!” declared the king of the future. “Yes, now I know who I really am.” “God! Collective unconscious!” addressed the king of the future. All present could feel reality’s attention shift. “Don’t stop the march of time!” “Lelouch, you ungrateful child-” began the enraged lady in orange. “Nobody would have wanted this!” the betrayer interrupted. “No one, and especially not Euphie!” “And I saved you so that you could talk to Euphie again!” “Meaning you were going to force me to, right?” “You can’t do this, boy!” the king of the past exclaimed. “Not against god, nor all of humanity itself!” “Regardless, what I want...” commanded the king of the future. “Is tomorrow!” Reality ignored his request. All in C’s World were silent. “It can’t be…” uttered the king of the future, single cursed eye still blazing. “The Ragnarok Connection is complete,” began the king of the past. “The dream that I, and Marianne, and my brother all shared will be seen to.” “But-” the king of the future despaired. “Lelouch, just stop already,” the immortal witch pleaded. “It was foolish of us to even attempt this.” The king of the future, the immortal witch, and the betrayer began to fade. “This isn’t a falsehood, my son,” stated the king of the past. “This is reality’s response.” “But Charles,” wondered the lady in orange, “why is C.C. disappearing as well? She supported our plan as much as we did.” “I’m sorry, but I’d already realized…” muttered the immortal witch. “The love you have is only for yourselves…” “No, that’s not true at all. We love our children very much.” stated the lady in orange. “Do you have any idea what the meaning is behind Nunnally's beautiful smile?” questioned the king of the future as he faded away. “Uh… the meaning?” “Why don’t you understand? Nunnally was blinded. My own sister was crippled! She knew… she knew that there were things in this world that she would never be able to do by herself. So her smile… Nunnally's smile… was her way of expressing gratitude!” “Lelouch, you’re laboring under a delusion-” began the king of the past. “I will not let you call that a lie!” The king of the future, the immortal witch, and the betrayer ceased to exist. All that remained in C’s World were a king, a lady, and an echo. “Over my dead body…”
Move OneIt was cold. The air, while fresh, was notably thin. Also, his back hurt. These were the first things that the boy noticed as his consciousness returned to him. Looking around, the black-haired boy found nothing more than stone and sparse vegetation. No, there was also a nearby stream. He was on a mountain. With his knowledge and observational skills, he only took a few seconds to arrive at that conclusion. The next task to clear was to determine what particular mountain he was on. Briefly considering his options, he considered that many mountains have towns or settlements built at their bases. If this was such a mountain, he could analyze the architecture and style of the town to deduce what country he was in, at the very least. If no town was present, he would still be able to narrow down the list of potential mountains. He briefly critiqued his plan and determined that it was satisfactory. For now at least. Within thirty seconds of having regained consciousness, the boy had already formulated the first step of a greater plan, a plan to find out what the hell was going on. Such is the mind of young Lelouch, who had now made his first move. ‘Where the hell am I?’ Out of all the thoughts running through the boy’s mind, that one was the loudest. ‘Throughout all of my military training, I have never seen vegetation like this. The larger plants, like the trees and vines, give the impression of somewhere in the South American continent. However, most of the underbrush is exactly what grows in the Britannian homeland. Furthermore, I haven’t even seen some of these plants before.’ ‘On top of all of that, this place gives me a weird vibe. It’s like there’s some sort of faint presence. It sort of reminds me of… Kamine Island? I was too focused on keeping Kallen under supervision, so I never paid too much attention to it.’ That train of thought led his mind to how he got here in the first place. ‘Am I… am I dead? What happened in that… place… with the Emperor? Why did Lelouch fail? What happened to us, where did Lelouch go? If I’m dead, is he as well? But then, is C.C. dead as well? I thought she was immortal, like His Majesty.’ ‘... This isn’t the time or place to overthink things. Right, the first thing I need to do is get to high ground and look for any signs of civilization. I need to find a hill, a large tree, or… a tree on a hill over there.’ And thus, Suzaku made his first move. The girl was content to lay down on the roof of the building she had never seen. “So that’s what happened. If his Geass were more powerful, he could have succeeded.” A drop of water dripped from a gutter. “Even still, he managed to throw quite a wrench into your plans. It’s amazing to see how strong it has become ever since that day. Drip. “I’m sorry, but I don’t wish to participate in your plans any more. The things that Lelouch said weren’t wrong.” Drip. “True. That man is more hardheaded than Lelouch, but only sometimes. I can see where he gets it from. I don’t know what you see in him.” Drip. “Please, before our connection fades, hear me out. If you both continue to follow this path, Lelouch will continue to oppose you. Your goals are against everything he believes in, and I agree with him. I’ve known how wrong your plans were since the very beginning. I never opposed you because the plan meant that my wish would be granted.” Drip. “Oh please, why do you always say things like that? I’m telling you, he and I are jus-” … “The connection has faded. I suppose I should go look for him before he gets into even more trouble.” And thus, C.C. made her first move. Working his way around the mountain, Lelouch looked around for civilization. He could see plenty of towns and cities in the distance, but they were too far away to make out the architecture. His eyes eventually came to rest on a city not at the base of the mountain, but built directly onto the mountain. Ignoring the uselessness of such a design, he analyzed the style. It was like some sort of childish parody of Britannian architecture, much like one would find in a child’s picture book. There were spires built on top of towers, which themselves sometimes branched off of other towers. He wondered what sort of skill it would take to make such a city stable. After all, it looked as if it would only take one earthquake or landslide to… “It’s even more destructive than I’d anticipated. We did succeed in isolating Cornelia’s unit, but we could have been a bit more accurate. Perhaps I should have consulted a physics teacher or asked Nina to tutor me in probability.” Snapping out of his flashback, he finally remembered how he arrived there in the first place and what he was doing before he regained consciousness. He remembered the Emperor and his plan to create a permanent past. And he was not happy. No, not in the least. In fact, one could say that Lelouch Vi Britannia - Eleventh Prince of the Holy Britannian Empire - was pissed.
Move TwoLive. Suzaku continued to run through the forest that he would soon know as Everfree. After locating a nearby town from atop his hill-tree, he decided to make his way toward it. He hoped it was Britannian-controlled territory. His status as a Knight of the Round made him well known even in other countries. Live. He instinctively jumped over a log, narrowly avoiding a clumsy fall. Such a fall would mean death. He had to live. He wasn't even sure what planet he was on anymore. The flora he observed were certainly odd, but nothing compared to the newly-discovered fauna. The first beast he found was some sort of reptile from what he'd seen. He wasn't able to look at its head. He had to live after all. That beast was of no immediate danger to him. He knew that, instinctively. His current pursuer, however, was different. The manticore wanted to eat him. The manticore could sting him and eat him. He knew that, instinctively. So, he ran. He had to live. Live. He dodged to the side, narrowly escaping the manticore's stinger. Live. He dropped to the ground, allowing the manticore to pounce over him. He ran to the side, putting more distance between them. Live. Live. Live. He managed to escape the manticore. He couldn't fight it because he had to live. Fighting it would be death. Safe for now, he ran to where he knew the town was. He had to get out of this forest because he had to live. He had to because of that man. Because of that demon named Lelouch. That stain on the history of humanity. He used to be his best friend. Now, he despised him. He despised Lelouch and everything he believed. But right now, he had to figure out what was going on. Hatred would get him nowhere. He had to go to the town he had seen. That town turned out to be nothing more than a small settlement from the soldier's perspective. Still, it was his best chance. Suzaku, after entering the town, went straight from relief to confusion. Perhaps confusion isn't the correct phrase. His brain melted. "What do you think it is?" whispered a young mare. "I don't know," her friend responded, "but it just looked at Silver Wares and froze." "How long has it been standing there?" "Ten minutes," another pony responded, "and when you think about it, doesn't it look sort of like that dragon the princess has around all the time?" "No, it doesn't have any scales or spines. It's more like one of those Diamond Dogs that kidnapped Ms. Rarity a while back, if anything." "Maybe one lost all of its hair?" "I don't think so. Dogs don't have manes, especially ones so big and curly. No snout either." "Maybe a minotaur, like Mr. Iron Will?" "No snout." "Yeah, the flat face is a bit creepy." As this went on, a pony who had just been selling her wares in the market decided that enough was enough. It was time to take action. "Well howdy there partner," an orange mare greeted. "I'm Applejack. I take it ya'll are new to Ponyville. I don't think none of us have seen anypony... err, anybody like you before. If'n ya'll don't mind my asking, what are you?" Silence. "Er... Hello?" The thing was still staring into the distance. "Can you, uh, hear me?" Silence. "I... I'm gonna go get Twilight."
