Code Geass: Alpha & Omega

Stage One

Alpha

"All things have a beginning, and this strange journey started with a bang. Six years of building an alliance with the Greeks had been no easy task. Their leadership made no excuses for their wanting near total control of our space forces during the initial negotiations. I must say that I was amazed by my sister's ability to debate and work these gods of Geass into treating us as equals. Her innate Esper powers worked to our advantage throughout the meetings with Athena and Aphrodite. Nevertheless, even with their vastly superior technology and sizeable space fleet, we were hard-pressed against an adversary that was all too familiar." —Excerpt from the personal journal of Lelouch vi Britannia, dated October 19th, 2034 a.t.b.

February 22nd, 2035 a.t.b.

"I don't care what Zeus thinks!" Athena barked at Aphrodite within the comfortable lounge of the command tower of Tartarus.

"He wants us to withdraw from here at once, Athena," Aphrodite said in a cool tone as the blue-white jewel of Earth filled the view through the grand window of the chamber.

"That's pure madness," Athena retorted from where she stood by the window. "We can't just let the Babylonians have Nibiru."

"I know that, my friend," Aphrodite picked up a cup of tea from a small end table and sipped it, "but we've already lingered here for too long. The other powers are getting suspicious of our intentions here."

Athena was mortified. "Don't they understand that if Marduk and his minions obtain Nibiru, he'll gain the power to crush them all?"

Aphrodite put down the cup and sighed. "The Babylonians are claiming that we instigated their invasion of this system. Hera suspects that when the Galactic Council meets next month, Marduk will push for sanctions against us."

"And what of the Commonwealth of Earth?" Athena inquired with a scowl. "Will the council deem them worthy of recognition, or will they do something drastic?"

Aphrodite turned away from Athena. "I fear the council will deem these people a threat to galactic security and conduct a purge."

"A purge!" Athena was horrified. "That's genocide."

"I know," Aphrodite replied with a sad look as she watched the slowly turning sphere of Earth, "but these mortals have the power of the gods, and they have knowledge of Nibiru. The council will not let them harness that power lest they become a threat."

Athena clenched her fists. "Do you think that these people will just lie down and die?"

"You and I both know the answer to that, Athena," Aphrodite said in a soft tone. "Nevertheless, their fleet is too small and their Automatos too primitive to be able to repel what will undoubtedly be a full-scale invasion by the Babylonians with the consent of the council."

Athena smiled wickedly, "And what if Enoch chooses to interfere? What then?"

Aphrodite contemplated her words for a moment before responding. "If the Enforcer chooses to protect this world and its people in a direct manner, then I would imagine that the council will authorize Marduk to seize Nibiru and use it to try and destroy Enoch."

"Hah!" Athena cackled. "You know his curse as well as I do, Aphrodite, so how do you destroy something that's indestructible?"

"I don't know, Athena," she stood up from her comfy chair, "but I do know this: the path before us leads to the beginning of something dark and foreboding. Whether we survive this will depend on what we do here and now."

Athena caught the meaning behind her words. "Then I guess it was wise of you to allow us to refit the Earth fleet with fold drives."

Aphrodite eyed her mischievously. "I thought it best considering rumor has it that Zeus has a new lover. Taking his long-held affinity for Ishtar into account, a woman he's never had, I decided to proceed under the assumption his decision making is being conducted in his private bedchambers rather than the halls of the senate."

Athena rolled her eyes in frustration. "Men. They're so easily led along by their loins."

"Indeed," Aphrodite tittered. "However, they do have their uses. Speaking of which, where is your champion as of late?"

"You mean Jason?" Athena smiled. "He's at Saturn repelling the latest Babylonian force. He took along a fleet of Earth ships with him."

"Oh?" The news surprised Aphrodite.

"Apparently, he feels they need actual battlefield practice," Athena replied with a smirk.

"That was noble of him," Aphrodite remarked as she watched the shiny, metallic dots in orbit around Earth. "I just hope he can train them fast enough."

"Fast enough?" Athena walked over by her side. "For what?"

Aphrodite smiled, "I'll not be led into action on the bedroom whims of Zeus' Babylonian whore."

"Then you're disobeying orders?" Athena gave her a wide smile.

"Don't look so victorious," Aphrodite cautioned her. "I'm not doing this haphazardly. I have a plan."

"Which is?" Athena queried her.

"Lend me an ear and I'll tell you," she answered with a sly grin.

"Akira, keep your wits about you!" Heracles barked over the comm. as he fired the Chaos beam of Helios into a Sargon-IV. The exploding Babylonian Automatos caused a small, bowl-shaped depression in the rings of Saturn that was gone in moments.

Just beyond the ringed world were two lines of space warships. Brilliant discs of explosions littered the space between them as the two fleets clashed with one another.

"There are so many of them," Akira responded as he used the blade of Susano-O to slice through another of the enemy machines.

"Yes, which makes this combat all the more fun," Heracles chuckled as he let loose the adamantine shield of his machine. The discus tore through three Sargon-IVs before returning to the forearm of Helios.

"Too bad you don't have an area-effect weapon, Akira," Mika taunted him over the radio as she and Lena piloted the Kali. The metallic ring on the back of their KMF glowed with a pinkish-red radiance that erupted into a ball of energy that engulfed several of the Sargon-IVs, disintegrating the Babylonian machines as it did so.

"Yeah, yeah," Akira scoffed, "but I prefer to get up close and personal."

"Oh," Jason laughed as his Talos cut down two enemy mecha. "You don't seem to be having much luck with that, my friend."

"That's because he chose his old machine over the Cosmo-KnightMares," Gregor scolded Akira as his Type-21Z fired a hail of Kaon blasts into six Sargon-IVs. The beams cut down the enemy mecha in short order. A second Type-21Z flew up from behind Gregor's and unfolded the Kaon blade of its gunpod.

The Cosmo-KMF zipped down towards the bridge of one of the escort ships that guarded the massive Tiamat class Babylonian battleship at the core of the armada. The machine dodged, swirled, and spun past the volleys of Hades Cannon bolts that spewed out from the cannons of the cylindrical Babylonian warship before the Type-21Z plunged its blade deep down into the top of the bridge tower.

"Now that's how it's done," Heracles laughed heartily over the radio.

"Damn, Tetsuo, that was badass," Gregor said to his wingman.

"Uh…that wasn't me, Gregor," Tetsuo replied as his Type-21Z flew up to the left of Gregor's machine.

"Well, who was it then?" Gregor asked as the KMF chopped through the hull of the vessel.

"Anya," he replied sheepishly.

"Oh, yeah!" Mika yelled over the comm. "Go girl! Show these boys how it's done!"

The Cosmo-KMF unloaded a barrage of Kaon blasts through the hole it had made in the hull, causing the Babylonian escort to erupt in a ball of fire.

"That's one enemy ship down," Anya declared over the radio as she dodged a salvo of Hades blasts from an adjacent escort ship.

"Yamato no Orochi," Orpheus called over the general frequency.

"Yes, Orpheus?" Jason inquired as the new captain of the former Black Knight Special Forces squadron.

"We're in position," the Greek officer said with the emotionless discipline of a seasoned warrior.

"Excellent," Jason smiled. "Alright, people, let's withdraw and allow the Argos to finish off these dogs."

"Roger that, Captain," Akira said as he unleashed a hail of Hadron Cannon blasts into two pursuing Sargon-IVs.

The troop of seven mecha flew through the shower of energy bolts and detonations towards the flotilla of Greek and Commonwealth warships as the Argos moved out to the head of the formation.

From the sides of the mighty Grecian battlecruiser came forth eight torpedoes which flew at mind-numbing speed towards the Babylonian fleet. The eight blue-white stars zipped along to predetermined detonation points within the enemy armada. In the next moment, the eight missiles shone a brilliant pink-white as their FLEIJA warheads annihilated the spacecraft of the Babylonian forces.

"Whew wee," Tetsuo shouted, "that never gets old."

"It's a pity we have to rely on FLEIJA so much," Anya said solemnly.

"I agree," Heracles stated flatly. "It's only a matter of time before the Babylonians develop a countermeasure to your people's weapon."

"All right, that's enough gloom," Jason warned. "We should be happy that we are victorious," he said as he lined the Talos up to land on the Argos.

"Jason's right," Akira added as he followed in behind Talos. "We won, and we've pushed back the Babylonian main force. We should be happy about it."

Mika snickered, "Uh, Akira, we've been pushing back the main force for two years, you knucklehead. How many Tiamat battleships have we destroyed over that time? Fifteen? Twenty? I can't even keep track anymore."

"Your point?" Akira inquired sarcastically as the team landed on the interior hangar of the Argos.

"We can't keep doing this forever, Akira," Lena barked in defense of Mika as they moved the Kali into its gantry on the side of the hangar. "This is not how any of us envisioned our lives being."

Akira's tone became hard as he brought Susano-O to a stop within the scaffolding of its bay. "We don't determine the destination of our lives, Lena, only the course we take."

"Oh, spare us the philosophy, Sun Tzu," Mika guffawed as she helped Lena shut down the main systems of the Kali. "We all know why you can't stop fighting, Akira. You want revenge."

"What's wrong with that, Lady Mika?" Heracles asked as technicians flooded into the hangar and began the post-flight procedures. "A warrior has a right to revenge when someone has wronged them in the way all of you were wronged."

Mika opened the hatch of Kali and barked over to where Heracles was getting out of Helios, "But that doesn't mean he has to dedicate the rest of his life to it. We all want revenge on Hel, yah know."

"Hel is no ordinary opponent…" Akira shouted harshly as the pain of Gino's death and what Hel had done to them renewed his conviction to kill her. "Her power must be stopped," he said to Mika as he walked out onto the boarding ramp of his mecha.

"He's got a point, love," Gregor called out to Mika.

"Not true," Anya said as she climbed down onto the deck from her machine. "As far as we know, the Irregulars defeated Hel, or at the very least, destroyed her stolen warship when they hunted her and her minions down. She is effectively powerless and imprisoned on Nibiru."

"What about the Thought Elevators?" Tetsuo asked innocently. "She might be able to get out through those."

"Are you still on about that?" Anya asked him in an irritated tone. "Lelouch and the others sealed all of those gateways. There's no way for Hel to use them to transport herself to Earth. No, she's trapped on Nibiru."

"Unless other gateways exist…" Akira started to say before…

"AHEM!" Jason shouted with his hands on his hips amidst the curious looks of the hangar deck personnel. "Perhaps we should continue this conversation over some ale in the lounge?" Jason continued with a forced laugh and a glare at Heracles for encouraging the debate. "We wouldn't want to burden the flight crew with our troubles."

Heracles put his hand on the back of his head. "Yes, Captain."

The Yamato no Orochi disembarked from their mecha and made their way to the private officers' lounge on the top deck of the Argos.

"Do you really have to go?" Euphemia asked over the private monitor of her sister Cornelia's quarters.

"I'm afraid so," Cornelia said sadly to her younger sibling.

"It's just…the thought of you, Lelouch, and the others being so far away…" Euphie wrung her hands. "I wish I could come with you."

"I'm afraid I couldn't allow that, Mrs. Kururugi," Cornelia teased her. "My nephew needs his mom and dad right where they are."

"I know," Euphie said with a smile. "Young Clovis asks about you and his uncle Lelouch all the time. It makes me wonder sometimes. He is so much like Clovis."

"How old is he now?" Cornelia was embarrassed to ask.

"Four years," Euphie glared at her older sister with a smirk. "You'd know that if you weren't off fighting all the time."

"We're at war, Euphie," Cornelia said in a soft tone, "and I have only one more tour on the Kaminejima before she's passed on to a new captain."

"They've promoted you?" Euphie asked with excitement.

"Yes, they have," Cornelia replied with a warm smile. "I'm going to be transferring to the Renya in a few days as commodore."

"The Renya?" Euphie inquired. "What kind of name is that for a warship?"

"I dunno," Cornelia shook her head slightly. "Professor Asplund says that C2 christened the ship with the name for good luck."

"C2, huh?" Euphie giggled. "So how's our brother handling his harem?"

Cornelia let out a deep sigh. "He's an idiot when it comes to love, and especially the ways of women."

"C'mon, Cornelia, tell me all the juice," Euphie pressed her with keen interest.

"Kallen has had it with him and is moving into her own quarters on the Renya after this mission. For now she's still bunking with C2 and Shirley." Cornelia flipped a few stray curls out of her face as she sat back in her chair. "That's due to C2 and Shirley kicking Lelouch out of their cabin entirely. This has left our poor brother bunking with Enoch and Rai."

Euphie tried not to laugh. "Oh, my. So, Lulu is in the dog house right now?"

"More or less," Cornelia snickered. "Shirley and C2 are still seeing him now and then, but Kallen hasn't had anything to do with him outside of her duties in nearly eight months."

"Whoa, what'd he do?" Euphie was surprised at the news.

"I don't think it's Lelouch as much as it is Kallen." Cornelia twirled a lock of her hair as she continued, "She's starting to feel the motherly urge."

"And Lelouch can't perform?" Euphie inquired sheepishly.

"C2 says it's the price of having a Code." Cornelia frowned, "He has lost the capacity to reproduce."

"I guess that means the line of Britannia ends with him," Euphie said with a sad expression.

"It's probably for the best," Cornelia said with a forced smile. "Ours isn't a line suited to the independent individualism of the new world."

Euphemia didn't like the direction the conversation was taking and chose to change the subject. "So, why did Kallen get the urge all of a sudden?"

"Oh." Happy to oblige her sister's change in direction, Cornelia explained the situation as she saw it. "Colonel Kozuki took three months of leave last year to help Villetta with Ohgi and their children. As you may have heard, Ohgi has some brain damage due to the attempt on his life. The doctors did the best they could, but he is still somewhat slow and has spotted memory loss."

"Ah, so Kallen spent a lot of time with their five children."

"Yes," Cornelia pulled at her lock of hair, "and considering Kallen is nearly thirty-two years old, she's probably wishing she had a family."

"Poor thing," Euphie said with a frown. "I feel for her."

"I know what you mean," Cornelia replied in a distant tone.

"Did you want a family?" Euphemia questioned her with a curious smile.

"I thought about it years ago," Cornelia admitted, "but I highly doubt I would have made a good mother. It's not who I am."

"I understand," Euphie told her in a comforting tone. "Still, I would have liked some nieces and nephews."

"Hah," Cornelia laughed, "I'm sure you would have. You may still get them if I read Nunnally's attraction to Jason right."

"Isn't he a bit old for her?" Euphemia asked with a snobbish smirk. "I saw them dancing together at last year's Christmas gala. He looks young on the outside, but the man is, what…ten thousand years old?"

Both women laughed heartily.

"That's better than Enoch," Cornelia giggled.

"Still got the hots for him, huh?" Euphie teased her.

"No, not really, he's far too old for me." Cornelia paused for a moment. "Besides, the thought of being with an immortal is somewhat repulsive to me now. I want someone I can grow old with. Guilford is a wonderful man and a great husband."

"That's right, you're on your fifth anniversary this year, aren't you?"

"Yes," Cornelia replied with a look of recognition, "five years already."

"Goes by fast," Euphie tittered.

"Indeed it does," Cornelia said. "So how's my brother-in-law?"

"Suzaku is doing fine. He's now a general in the planetary guard of Earth and is currently assigned to the 8th Guard Unit out of Okinawa. We're happy here since I get to see him every day, although recent events have got me working quite a bit."

"Still working as a combat instructor?" Cornelia asked.

"For now." Euphie stuck her tongue out at her sister. "You military types aren't getting me full-time. I've got a child to think about."

Cornelia chortled, "I know. I was just thinking of how accomplished a KnightMare pilot you've become and how proud of you I am."

"Thank you, Cornelia," Euphie said. "It means a great deal to me to hear you say that."

A buzzer sounded over the speaker in Cornelia's room then Guilford's voice came over the speaker. "Captain Britannia, you are needed on the bridge immediately."

"Duty calls," Cornelia said to her sister.

"I'll talk to you later?" Euphie asked.

"As soon as I get my new command," Cornelia reassured her.

The sisters said their goodbyes then reluctantly broke communication.

"Look, Lelouch, this is what happens when you're an immortal. It's part of the curse of living forever," Enoch told him nonchalantly as he lay upon his bunk reading a book.

"I suppose it is a curse to some," Lelouch lamented whilst sitting at his small reading desk in their cabin.

"To some?" Enoch sat up and closed his book. "My friend, allow me to share what these past 500,000 years of life have taught me."

Lelouch grimaced, "I doubt we have the time for that, old man."

"Oh, so now you're a comedian." Enoch spun on his hind to sit on the edge of the bed. "In a nutshell, I've learned that it never gets easier."

"What do mean?" Lelouch inquired with genuine interest.

"I mean that even though the world around you changes constantly, you remain the same." Enoch sighed, "It's hell to watch all of your friends, loved ones, even the countries you serve from time to time wither and die right before your eyes. Yet you go on."

"You make it sound like punishment," Lelouch replied, a bit unnerved by Enoch's dark look.

"It is," the amber-eyed man said sadly.

"I guess that's what drove Kallen away," Lelouch said in a pitiful tone.

"Better to let her live while she still can," Enoch smiled at him. "If you really love her, you'll let her go."

"Is that why you cater to C2?" Lelouch asked.

"Yeah…I know what the Green Goddess of Gorgeous has gone through," Enoch told him softly. "I've been through it more times than I care to recount. I think she needs you as much as you need her, Lelouch."

"What about Shirley?" Lelouch wasn't sure where Enoch was leading the conversation.

"Let her go," Enoch stated flatly. "She will only get hurt by you in the long run."

"Now you sound like C2," Lelouch tittered.

"I suppose I do," Enoch said in a distant tone, "but where our paths are headed…it will too dangerous for her."

"What's with you lately," Lelouch grumbled. "Ever since the incident with Hel you've been so serious and moody."

"Hel's power isn't Geass," Enoch said in a stern tone. "Her abilities reek of Klipot energy. She's an enhanced being who's no longer human, and vastly more dangerous."

"But we've defeated her thrice now," Lelouch smirked devilishly. "No matter what powers she may have gained from Nibiru, she's still Nina Einstein in mind. I can outwit her, of that you can be sure."

"I've no doubt of your ability to outmaneuver Nina, Lelouch," Enoch reassured him, "but Nibiru didn't just rebuild Nina, and I know Nina didn't have the skill or knowledge to acquire Klipot-enhanced powers on her own."

"You think it was the thing Nunnally told us about?" Lelouch already knew the answer to the question, but he felt it polite to ask.

"Yes," Enoch stated flatly. "That thing in the bowels of Nibiru may be a being I've crossed swords with before."

Lelouch was shocked. "You know this thing?"

Enoch eyed him cautiously. "There's a distinct possibility. Based on what Nunnally told us, I'd say that this Nemo character is my old nemesis. A being so evil he'd make the devil blush with embarrassment."

"Sounds like an interesting fellow," Lelouch said, intrigued. "Care to share the details?"

Enoch smiled wickedly, "Sure, provided you give me your word that this stays between us for now."

Lelouch nodded, "You have my word of honor, Sensei."

Rai stood alone in the main observation lounge of the Kaminejima as the ship cruised along around the slowly greening world of Mars far below.

He looked down at the myriad of dome cities that dotted the planet and breathed in deeply. "Oh, Kallen. If I could only tell you how I feel."

Rai put his head upon the cool glass of the large window as he activated his Geass. (Music emanated from his body as the air around it vibrated to the necessary tones.)

Saying I love you

Is not the words I want to hear from you

It's not that I want you

Not to say it, but if you only knew

How easy it would be to show me how you feel

More than words is all you have to do to make it real

Then you wouldn't have to say that you love me

'Cause I'd already know

What would you do if my heart was torn in two

More than words to show you feel

That your love for me is real

What would you say if I took those words away

Then you couldn't make things new

Just by saying I love you

More than words

Now I've tried to talk to you and make you understand

All you have to do is close your eyes

And just reach out your hands and touch me

Hold me close don't ever let me go

More than words is all I ever needed you to show

Then you wouldn't have to say that you love me

'Cause I'd already know

What would you do if my heart was torn in two

More than words to show you feel

That your love for me is real

What would you say if I took those words away

Then you couldn't make things new

Just by saying I love you

More than words

More than words

More than words

More than words, ooh

More than words

"Wow, that was beautiful, Rai," a woman said from behind him.

Rai spun on his heel and jumped a little. "KALLEN…um, Colonel Kozuki."

"What's with you?" Kallen put her hand on her hip.

"You just startled me," Rai recovered. "I didn't realize anybody was in here."

"Oh…uh, I just came in for a drink," Kallen stammered. "So who is she?"

"Who's who?" Rai asked in a befuddled tone.

"The woman who has your heart," Kallen said with a sly smile.

Rai turned beet red. "Uh…well, she's…she's a friend, but I don't know how to tell her."

"That song sounded like a pretty good start to me," Kallen said with a soft smile. "Maybe you should sing it to her some time."

"I can't," Rai said in a dejected tone.

"Why?" Kallen asked with a curious expression.

"Because she belongs to someone else." Rai hung his head. "It would be wrong of me to do that to either of them."

"Oh," Kallen replied as she walked up to him. She lifted his chin and looked deep into his eyes as she caressed his face softly. "You're a good friend, Rai. We've been through a lot together over these past six years."

"Yes…we have." Rai shook slightly under her caress as she leaned in towards him.

"I've grown up a great deal during that time, and my tastes have matured." Kallen closed her eyes as her lips moved towards his.

"I should be getting back," Rai said as he slipped out from her grasp. "Bye, Colonel, I'll see you later."

Kallen didn't pursue him; she just stood and watched him go. "Bye, Rai," she said softly. "Maybe you'll gain the courage next time." She had lied to him about not being in the room. Kallen heard all that he had said, and her heart hurt because of it.

Author's Notes:

Due to continued requests for me to post the entire chapters of Alpha and Omega here on I've finally decided to cave in.
I would still appreciate people checking out my website :)
I'll post new chapters here as soon as I'm able, however they will be up on my site sooner than here. Just FYI.

Next Chapter: Beta Centauri

SONG:

The song "More Than Words" was written by Gary Cherone and Nuno Bettencourt of the band Extreme. Great band BTW, hope some of you check out their music.