Dear readers, I'm sorry for the lack of update for my other story, Code Geass - Take two, but, I am somehow unable to come up for anything regarding that story. Well, I actually do have tons of ideas, but I seem to have tripped myself up by simply writing and not really paying any mind to the general direction in which the story was headed. That is why I am writing this, as it just doesn't seem to want to leave my mind. I have yet to decide whether I will even continue that story, as I'm really busy with exams and this one just wants to be written down no matter what. Anyway, I guess I could chalk that up to my inexperience as a writer, as that really was the first story I've ever written.

Warning: This story will be extremely AU and will possibly include things from other anime and/or manga.

That aside, I hope you enjoy this story in the meanwhile.

Chapter one: The Beginning

Prologue

It's...done.

He still couldn't believe it. It was done, Lelouch, the demon emperor, destroyed the world and created it anew. Zero Requiem was finally completed, and the plan went off better than he or Suzaku could've imagined.

The hate of the world was purely focused on him, and unbeknownst to the many people of the world, that hate for one person unified them.

Of course, the price that had to be paid was a dear one. But alas, the dark prince had been willing to pay it. Still, he supposed he did a good job, after all, many great men and women had attempted to break the cycle of hatred, only to give up or die in the process. A small smile played across his lips as he staggered forward on top of the dais, the only ones who should kill, are those prepared to be killed, right?

In the end, that really was true.

As his dying form fell and slid down the picture of the Britannian flag, one person whom he had given everything up for appeared in his waning vision.

Nunnally.

Said girl stared at him in disbelief, her brain not quite registering, or not wanting to register the fact that her beloved older brother was dying. She hesitantly grabbed his bloody hand, and gasped in surprise as images flooded her mind. In what seemed like a minutes, but only was a few seconds, the whole plan Lelouch and Suzaku had concocted played back in her mind.

"You mean...all this...you did for me?" Tears began to percolate in her eyes she buried her face in his slowly stilling chest, sobbing uncontrollably as the crowd began to cheer and shout, rushing to the convoy to free the prisoners along with Cornelia, who had used the chance to act.

The few that actually saw through or knew about Lelouch's plan shed tears for their fallen comrade. Even Suzaku, who Lelouch had taken Euphy from, couldn't hold back the tears that poured down his face. But he had to stand strong, to represent a torch of hope for the world; the messiah that killed Lelouch, the demon emperor.

"Oh big brother, I love you!"

At those few words, a smile tugged at the corner of Lelouch's lips. Finally, Nunnally would have that gentler world she always wished for, even though he wouldn't be there to share it with her.

"Nunnally..." He weakly raised one arm and placed his hand on her cheek, which she quickly pressed with her other hand that was stained with his blood.

"I...love you, too..." He could feel himself slowly drifting into wherever people went when they died, "I leave the rest...to you...and Suzaku..."

She looked up to 'Zero', who was standing there calmly, though she knew that was only on the outside. Looking down to her dying brother, she smiled weakly; she would atleast be strong for the man that had given up so much and rang in an era of peace, "Yes, Lelouch..."

The smile that graced the dark prince's features widened just a fraction before he felt a serene feeling wash over him, and after that, nothing.

...Geass, now that I think about it, is a deal with the devil, rather than a wish...

With a gasp, Lelouch's eyes shot open.

He quickly propped himself up and examined his surroundings. What happened? The last thing he saw was Nunnally, holding his hand and smiling weakly at him as he...died.

Was this death? It felt...wrong. All he could see was darkness, really. An endless void, which seemed to go on forever with no discernable ground or sky, yet he could still stand as he carefully got up. He could even see the inky blackness, as if some invisible light source hung in the sky, or rather lack there of. It was strange to say the least. If he recalled correctly, every human was assimilated into the collective unconscioussness once they passed away.

Though if not just assimilation into the 'gods', he would've atleast expected to wake up in C's world. But that was clearly not the case, seeing as this definitely wasn't C's world, or even his world for that matter.

Something's wrong... Despite all his instincts screaming at him to just stay there, he slowly made his way into a random direction. There was nothing that would've even hinted at his current whereabouts. Wherever he looked, his gaze was met by more darkness. Still, staying there wouldn't help him either.

After what seemed like hours, but unbeknownst to the dark prince were only about five mintues of walking and getting nowhere, annoyance started to show on his features in form of a scowl. "Okay, okay," he called out to whatever deity or god or higher power was currently bored enough to listen to his poor soul, deciding to humour himself, "I know I did some bad things during my life, but it was for a good reason!"

Much to his surprise(yes, sarcasm), no-one, if anyone was actually listening, bothered to answer.

"Hey, the world is finally at peace now! Doesn't that account for anything?!"

This time however, a booming laughter rang through the dark nothingness he was trapped in, "You humans sure know how to entertain someone..."

The dark prince blinked, was this the deity that was lending him an ear? He had a hard time believing that, as the voice sounded...malicious. Hell, it sounded downright evil. And that laughter; Lelouch shuddered.

If there was ever a being that could be deemed evil and unpure just by its voice, this one took the cake.

"Yes, well, could you do something about this...darkness? That'd be much appreciated."

"Very well."

With that, a dark blue wave of light washed over the darkness, and drove it away in the process.

However, the unveiled surroundings of him were little more asthetically pleasing than the darkness that was there a second ago. The dark prince even preferred the latter, now that he actually saw where he was.

It was a barren and desolate wasteland. Dead trees the branches of which looked like limbs of viscious monsters were scattered across the land. Sparse patches of dead grass dotted the area, and by the looks of it, they would surely brittle away with the lightest breeze. Which brought him to something else that seemed off in...wherever he was. There was no wind. Literally; he couldn't feel the slightest breeze passing by.

What was really disturbing though, was the sky. Instead of the light blue one would usually associate with the sky, this one was a very dark blue, with flecks of black flashing here and there. The latter was most likely a phenomenon like the polar lights in his world, but weird nonetheless. Even the clouds were off; they were a dark grey, almost black colour, and floated around lazily. Though how they could do that without wind was beyond Lelouch.

Even though it wasn't raining, it seemed like a storm was raging across the wasteland; bolts of lightning struck the ground and set more than a few trees on fire. Far off in the distance, Lelouch could see a castle, over which the sky seemed to form what looked like a vortex.

His sightseeing was cut short though as he realized that he wasn't alone. Turning around, he noticed an eerily silent figure standing some ten feet across him in the small clearing they were currently in.

Not much could be said about them, other than the fact that the figure was a man, as the muscles beneath his black cloak betrayed. The cloak itself was a very dark shade of a mix between green and brown, and under that he wore a black tight-fitting jacket that showed even more of his muscled frame. Underneath the cloak, one could see the black combat boots he was wearing. The cloak seemed to swallow any light that came into contact with it, as Lelouch had a hard time discerning much from him other than the fact that he was male. What was easily visible though, were the two icy blue orbs with black slits as pupils that were fixed on him, observing him with a predatory gaze that sent chills down the demon emperors spine.

What was really worrying though, was the fact that the cloaked figure was radiating power like a beacon. Lelouch couldn't find any words to describe it, but it was a sense of dread; an almost oppressing feeling, as if a physical weight was pushing down on him.

What was also worrying, was that his Geass was activated and he could feel it flashing and burning wildly in his eyes, as if telling him to high-tail it in the other direction and get as far as physically possible away from the man. But something kept him rooted to the spot as he locked eyes with the figure before him.

"So, are you enjoying this world thus far?" The figure inquired with amusement.

Lelouch, much to his own surprise, couldn't answer. His mouth just wouldn't open.

"Ah, right, you're still human," the figure said more to himself than anyone else in a thoughtful tone, after which he somehow reigned in the oppressing feeling and Lelouch took in gulps of air as he found out that he had stopped breathing during the last minute.

He quickly recovered and answered the mysterious figures question, though he couldn't help but wonder what the meaning of the second sentence was. "Leaves a bit to be desired, as far as asthetics go." Now that he actually thought about it, only two worlds existed, one of which wasn't even a world by definition; the real world, and C's world, "Where am I anyway?"

The being chuckled, a sound that sent yet another chill down the dark prince's spine, "You...are in the Realm of Shadows." As if on cue, more lightning bolts crashed down into the earth, though luckily not too close to the two figures in the clearing.

Lelouch nodded, and searched his memories for anything regarding this...world. In the end, he realized that he had never heard nor read about anything called the Realm of Shadows, and opted to ask the man before him instead, "So, what is this place, and why am I here?"

The figure before him scoffed, "Humans...inquiring so much yet knowing so little." Despite that, he elaborated, "How you ended up here is beyond me, but I know why are you are here."

From the sound of his voice, he could tell the man was grinning in that extremely annoying 'I-know-something-you-don't' fashion. Figuring that he wouldn't answer his question, Lelouch noticed that his Geass was still activated.

What surprised him was the fact that he couldn't deactivate it. It was seemingly content to stay active despite its masters orders, which was weird as the dark prince had long since overcome the affliction known as Runaway Geass.

"Don't bother, it won't respond."

The dark prince levelled the mysterious figure with a glare, which combined with his blazing eyes made for an intimidating sight. Still, the man before him didn't seem fazed in the slightest, on the contrary, he seemed amused if anything, "It is this world that is affecting your powers."

"Alright, will you finally explain to me why I am here?" The conversation was starting to go in circles.

"I can tell you part of reason why you're here." The figure grinned again, though it was hidden by the shadow that the hood cast over his face, barely revealing the outlines of his face, "Because of your...peculiar powers."

Peculiar powers? Did he mean Geass? If so, then it really wasn't anything peculiar; many people had contracts with Code bearers, granting them the Power of Kings. Hell, he could count down more than a dozen people with Geass.

"You are a special case," the hooded man regarded him with those piercing blue eyes that seemed to burn into ones very soul, "Not only do you possess a...fraction...of Naraka, but also the Power of Kings, Geass. Why is that?"

The last question flew right over Lelouch's head, as he couldn't help but wonder what the hell this man was talking about, "Naraka?"

The figure blinked at him before sighing, "Right, you humans call that a Code."

After searching his memories for a few moments, his eyes widened and he resisted the urge to slap his face; back in C's world, he had killed his father, albeit indirectly, who had V.V.'s code. And seeing as he did it with a fully evolved Geass, the Code must've been transferred to him. But there were quite a few flaws in that theory; for starters, why did he only have one fraction of it? Though if he really had it, it explained why he was still alive. That, however, brought up more question than answers. Why did he wake up here? Which, again, brought him to his current situation.

"I killed my father who had a Code, but as you said, I only gained a fraction of his Code."

A booming laughter once again resounded through the small clearing they were in, before slowly dying down, "You really are a special case." The figure smirked and waved his hand. At first, nothing happened, but a moment later, black dust was carried into the clearing by a non-existant breeze. The dust soon settled next to the cloaked man, and layered itself until it had the shape of a grown, lean man, who, lo and behold, stood there after the black dust had fully settled.

His attire was one that Lelouch would associate with the ninja, or Shinobi, he had read about in various history books. A black bandana was wrapped around his forehead, and a facemask covered the rest, hiding most of his face save for his eyes. He also wore dark blue trousers, which were fastened to the ankles, and a jacket of similar colour. Instead of wooden sandals that one would associate with most ninja's, he wore split-toed tabi boots, which were a deep black in colour, which in Lelouch's view made more sense than wooden sandals. After all, ninja operated in the shadows and needed to stay hidden from sight.

The man stood at attention, awaiting orders from the cloaked figure who was no doubt his superior.

"Kusari, you know what to do."

With a slight bow of his head, 'Kusari' turned to Lelouch, revealing his eyes to the dark prince.

Much like his own eyes, two Geass sigils, though blue ones, were burning in his eyes. Aside from the blue colour, that wasn't strange in the least as, as established before, many people had contracts with Code bearers.

What was strange though, was his left eye. The wings of the bird-shaped sigil seemed to stretch out in the sclera of his eye, and what seemed like veins sprouted from the wings and weaved intracate patterns over the man's eye, all in that blue colour his Geass had.

For a moment, the two just locked eyes, observing each other's individual ocular powers, before the man known as Kusari narrowed his right and widened his left eye at him, presumably activating whatever power his Geass granted him. After a moment of nothing, the ninja turned to his master, and with another quick bow, dissipated into that odd, black dust, which was carried away by another non-existant breeze.

The dark prince just looked at the spot that was occupied by the man not five seconds ago, and turned to the other figure, "What did he do?"

"He will find the other fraction of Naraka."

Lelouch nodded slowly, trying to figure out just how he would do that. In the end though, he chalked it up as a power that his peculiar Geass granted him. He resorted to find out more about where he was, and with whom he was, "Just who are you?"

The figure smirked again and waved his arm. Time seemed to stop for a moment, after which it quickly continued. But instead of the clearing he was just in, Lelouch found himself infront of a large castle, presumably the one that he had seen from afar; it looked much larger from so close up than from so far away.

The cloaked man appeared next to him and made his way up the stairs that led to the huge, gate-like door. With a glance back, he said, "Walk with me." The tone was commanding, and Lelouch didn't dare disobey. Somehow he just knew that would the man not need or like him, he would've been a red stain on the ground long ago. Then again, why did he care? He had died once anyway, and it wasn't like he had anything left to continue living for. Regardless, he followed the man up the stairs and the two entered the castle.

As they entered, Lelouch couldn't help but gape at the huge hall that the foyer was. The walls were made out of dark grey, and combined with the torches that burned with a blue fire seemed to turn dark blue. Two huge chandeliers hung down the ceiling on either side of the hall, the candles also burning with a blue flame.

The staircase that led up into the higher levels of the castle split off in the middle, twisting up on either side of the foyer with a large fountain in the middle. The fountain itself seemed to greatly help underline the eerie and creepy atmosphere of the castle. Instead of water, a dark, red liquid was being circulated through it; Lelouch hoped that it was colored water, but something told him that that wasn't the case.

A huge statue towered over the fountain, a statue of a man with a cloak that seemed to billow in an invisble wind. A hood covered his head, throwing a shadow over his face. His arms were stretched out over the fountain, and made it seem like he was casting a spell.

The rest of the foyer was fairly standard, with lavish looking cupboards and drawers at the walls. They seemed to have been constucted from the black, dead trees out in that wasteland, but as they were polished to a shine, they actually looked very appealing.

Lelouch noticed that the cloaked figure was already making his way up the stairs, and quickly caught up to him, "I assume you have a few...questions?" 'Few' was an understatement; if it weren't for the man's intimidating presence that clearly conveyed certain death if you were to somehow piss him off, Lelouch would've long since asked the many questions currently bothering him.

Just as Lelouch wanted to voice one of those many questions, the figure raised a hand, silencing the dark prince, "Actually, before I answer your questions, we need to...remove those shackles of yours."

The demon emperor was visibly confused, "Shackles?"

A laugh rang through the corridor they were currently walking through, "Yes," he looked at Lelouch over his shoulder, "Clearly, you must have realized?" The implication in that sentence was clear to Lelouch.

Truth was, he had realized it as soon as he had seen the man. Something felt off about him from the moment he saw him; the eyes, the clothes, hell, the mere presence the man exuded was enough to prevent the dark prince from breathing and felt like a physical weight.

"You're not human."

The figure chuckled, "Yes, but neither are you."

The dark prince stopped and looked at the man in confusion, a frown marring his features "What do you mean?"

"Your title, it fits you more than you think."

The cogs slowly began to turn in Lelouch's head, the demon emperor...

"Yes, you are a demon, just as I am." The figure frowned, which was hidden by his hood, "Though, you're not a demon just yet."

Lelouch stood in silence for a moment, processing the revelation that had just been made. Strangely enough, it didn't bother him as much as it should have.

He was a demon.

Well, all things considered, he was a demon even before coming here. But then again, he wasn't a demon 'just yet'. Again, he was surprised that he didn't feel any relief at that; was it acceptance? Or just the fact that he didn't care anymore? He was actually dead, after all.

Pushing all those thoughts aside, Lelouch regarded the hooded demon infront of him as another piece of the puzzle all this was clicked into place, "...I take it that makes you my ancestor."

The demon laughed again, "I wouldn't have expected anything else from my descendant. Though whether you live up to that title or not has yet to be found out." With that, the man turned on his heel and continued down the corridor, leaving Lelouch to stand there for a moment before joining him, let's see where this goes...

Later...

The demon and the dark prince had just entered what looked like an arena. It was huge, and seemed to be a whole other structure than the castle itself. It was built in the style one would associate with roman colosseums, if the large pillars and tiered seats for possible spectators were anything to go by.

On the far side of the arena, Lelouch could see a closed of area that was filled with all types of weapons and armour, the former mounted on the wall while the latter was donned by mannequins. Some of the equipment looked like it had never seen the battlefield, while other looked like it had been to hell and back...twice.

Something else that caught the dark prince's eye were the many statues on either side of the arena, just below that walls that enclosed the whole space. Regardless, the two continued on into the middle of the arena.

As they reached the middle, his ancestor turned to him, "Now, are you ready to awaken? To embrace the side of you that has been dormant for so long?"

"Anything I should know beforehand?" At this point, the dark prince had resigned himself to whatever fate had in store for him. It wasn't like he could return back to where he came from. Hell, he didn't even know if that was possible, but even if it had been possible, returning to his world would've just destroyed everything he, Suzaku, and many others had worked for...

"Big brother, welcome back!" Nunnally exclaimed cheerfully, followed by the much more calmer and politer greeting of the ninja-maid, Sayoko, "Welcome home, master." How he loved his little sisters smile. For him, it meant the world that Nunnally was happy. That is why he was determined to create a future where she could always smile.

"GUTS!" Milly shouted at the collective student council members, still having faith in her magical spell. Still, Rivalz, Shirley, and Nina smiled at her. "You know that'll never work, right, Milly?" Rivalz. "Hey, it's got me going!" Shirley pumped her fist in the air. The silent girl next to them just continued typing away at her computer with a slight smile.

"Zero! What are your orders?" Ohgi shouted over his comm-unit, firing his Knightmare's rifle at the Britannian soldiers, along with the rest of the members. Kallen had just finished off a dozen enemy Knightmares in mere seconds, a testament to her skills as a Knightmare pilot. He could see the victorious smirk on the red-heads face as she jumped back into the fray.

"Lelouch, I need your credit card." The immortal witch's smooth, cynical voice grated on his nerves. At the same time though, it was so soothing. Perhaps he simply got used to it? They spent more than a year together after all. She would always encourage him when he doubted himself, help him out when he was in a tight spot. The time when she had him at gunpoint, or when she emptied his bank account to sate her addiction of pizza.

"Big brother, are you ready?" Rolo asked as he sat on the driver's seat of his motorbike, waiting for Lelouch to take the passenger's seat. But that wasn't the only side to the young teen. "Remember the time limit," he said, holding his hand up and counting down the seconds left for his ward to deactivate, and thus allowing the dark prince to talk with his sister he had thought dead.

"LELOUCH!" Suzaku shouted, infuriated as he aimed his gun at his first friend. Likewise, Lelouch trained his gun at his friend and enemy, "SUZAKU!" But even through that, the two managed to stay friends to the very end. Suzaku didn't even attempt to hold back the tears now rolling down his face as he pierced Lelouch's heart with his sword. He solemnly accepted the task his friend had left him with, and silently wept for the demon; the demon that had destroyed the world, and created it anew.

"Know this," the demon grinned, a mad and dangerous glint in his eyes as he regarded his descendant, "I won't hold back..."

"What do yo-" The dark prince's eyes widened as the cloaked figure disappeared, only to appear before him in a burst of speed with his fist cocked back, "Now, prove to me that you are indeed a descendant of Kurozaku!"