X677

Lelouch vi Britannia, the 99th Emperor of Britannia, stared blearily up at the blue shade of the sky and drifting white of the clouds. Desperate cries of Nunnally echoing in his ears as a droplet dripped from his eyes.

He wondered if Hell really was so pleasant, or his eyes weren't working properly.

He lay flat on - wherever he might be and tried to slow his racing heart. As he closed his eyes, images began to flash again. He saw Zero's mask peering into him. He saw the cold steel embedded in his body, and the horror that etched on Nunnally's face.

The emotions that he was trying to suppress began to burst out, he could feel the tears forming on the edge of his eyes again. His body shook ever so slightly, and the vibrant green grass started to prick at his skin.

He felt alive.

No, he is supposed to be dead. All that he has worked so hard for, all that he has built, were to lead to that moment, his death.

Lelouch forced himself up, despite every part of his frail body screaming at him to lay down. Then, it was as if someone just drove a dagger through his eyes, the pain sent him stumbling back into the trunk of a tree. His vision was beginning to blur, as the heat in his eyes rose he couldn't help himself and screamed.

As he wrestles against the pain, his sense of direction was stripped from him. In his pained struggle, he lost his footing and found himself falling down the smooth slope, crashing violently to the ground. Minutes - or was it hours? He couldn't tell, passed by while he lay there helplessly all while conscious.

After those antagonizing moments, the pain faded into a numb, and again he forced himself to move. 'I cannot risk anyone laying their eyes on the Demon Emperor, a very alive one at that.' He reminded himself.

Clutching his pained eyes, he dragged himself onwards, the surroundings completely lost to him. Yet, as luck would have it, he found himself stumbled on to a river bank as the exhaustion forced his leg down. With great difficulties, he managed to crawl toward the water, and a frown settled on his delicate face.

Dried blood. His eyes were bleeding, and yet, the Geass entrenched in his left eye shone with such unnatural brightness. As if it was thriving in the environment it found itself in, despite his frail and weakening body.

In numbed silence, he heard sounds of rushed footsteps approaching from afar. Eyes widening, he threw himself into the nearby bush and slowed his breathing down.

"Again..." He heard someone sobbed.

A young man with black hair as dark as the midnight sky kneeled next to the water, wearing a high-collared black robe and a white toga draped around his body. His pale face etched with sadness and grief, tears prickling from the corner of his eyelids.

Lelouch found himself staring at the withering grass around the stranger, his blank countenance replaced by a shocked expression as he looked on and find death coming for every living entity near the proximity of the man. He ruthlessly removed the bubbling excitement within him and forced himself to continue to watch. Soon after, his expectations were met flawlessly, the aura of death continues to follow the young man. It robbed life from the withering grasses, and the fishes that ventured too close.

"W-who's there!?" The young man turned around with narrowed eyes.

Letting his unrestrained smile settling on to his face, Lelouch showed himself and approached the young man. Any attempt to keep himself hidden are meaningless, given how easily his location was pinpointed.

"Pardon me." He apologised sincerely, "I did not mean to pry."

"Keep away from me!" The young man warned, backing off from him. "You'll die..."

"Precisely what I seek. I do not wish to trouble you, but I would be very grateful if you could grant me my death." With a pained smile, he glanced at the spot where Suzaku drove a blade through him. "It doesn't seem like conventional weapons could kill me, and I find myself struggling to find a suitable tool to do so."

"W-what?" The young man asked bafflingly, "Why would you want to- "

"For the good of those I hold dear, and the good of many, I must die." Lelouch explained curtly, striding toward the young man before he could process the explanation.

To his disappointment, and the young man's surprise, the aura of death did nothing that they both expected. The darkness in the air treated him as if he does not exist, passing through him and viciously consume an unfortunate tree behind him instead.

Lelouch sighed, taking no heed to the incredulous stare he received and let his exhausted body collapsed down onto the ground.

"You were unharmed..." Came the disbelieving mutter.

"So it seems."

Silence reigned as they both pensively gazed at each other. One looking down with unconcealed interest, something akin to hope sparked in the black orbs, it seemed almost desperate. Whilst the other glanced up tiredly, his mind far too occupied to wonder about the feat he just - still is witnessing.

"May I know your name?" Lelouch asked at last.

The young man winced, then opened his mouth to speak, yet no word came out until he visibly forced himself. The uttered word seemingly left a foul taste in his mouth. "...Zeref."

"A pleasure." He offered his hand with a blank smile, "Lelouch vi Britannia."

Another moment of silent contemplation passed yet again, until he voiced out the conclusion they both came to.

"You were expecting me to recognize the name."

"I did, and so were you." Zeref admitted with a smile. "You do not care."

"Perhaps with a title then?" He offered, "Lelouch vi Britannia, the 99th Emperor of the Holy Britannian Empire."

"Zeref, the darkest and most evil Mage in the history of this world."

"This world…?" Cupping his chin thoughtfully, he searched for any traces of lie, yet he found none. "Don't you know of the Holy Britannian Empire?"

Zeref frowned, then shook his head.

"Europia United? The federal monarchy of Empress Tianzi?"

The answer remained the same, and he was rooted on the ground in shock.

"I-I see…" He whispered, voice trembling. "Please, enlighten me, where am I?"

"Earth Land," Zeref replied with a concerned frown, "Specifically, just inside the border of the Kingdom of Fiore. Although, you wouldn't know, would you?"

"I wouldn't." Lelouch replied evenly. The place doesn't ring a bell with him, and worse of all, Zeref doesn't seems to be lying, neither was the aura of death. He'd witnessed enough unnatural feats to know that they are a possibility, but god forbid if the answer is magic. He scoffed inwardly. Pointing to the withering grass, he shot another question at Zeref, "How did you managed to do that?"

"Magic."

"Show me."

Zeref nodded, bringing his hand up to his face, an unmoving butterfly lay still on the tip of his finger as he breathed into it. To his amazement, the little insect began to stir, but was ruthlessly vanquished by a wave of darkness before it could take to the sky. Zeref gazed sadly at the insect, a grief-stricken smile on his face. "You are not from this world."

"I am not." Lelouch nodded, eyes lingering on the dead form of the butterfly, "Nevertheless, I find myself wondering why you have failed to kill me."

"Because you are not from this world, dimension or universe. The only parallel universe of this world is Edolas, but you couldn't possibly come from there, as they are subjected to my power nonetheless." Zeref explained, a tint of excitement in his voice.

"And how would that factor in my immunity to your… power?"

"Magic is the physical embodiment of the spirit of all living entity. When the physical spirit connects with the spiritual flow of the nature around us, Magic will be created." Zeref continued with a ghost of a smile, "Your spirit, or soul, is not a creation of this universe, and therefore is not subjected to the spiritual flow, or even the passage of time. Even your body is a foreign entity to this universe. You cannot die or age... just like me."

The last part came out as no more than a whisper, but Lelouch heard it regardless.

"I'm glad." He smiled peacefully, letting his tense body relax, prompting a narrowed eye from the dark mage.

"Glad?" Zeref inhaled with an angry noise. "How could you be glad, doomed to this despicable fate!? Forever cursed-"

"Not that." He chuckled, waving his hand dismissively. "My presence is unwanted and a danger to the world which I hails from, and to those who I hold dear. I can rest knowing that I have been removed from it, far away where the only thing left of me is mere memories."

Zeref came to an abrupt halt, eyeing him with a look full of sympathy and understanding.

"Tell me, does your magic have consciousness?" He inquired with a tilt of his head, "The ability to recognize command and order?"

"Magic is a part of us, yes." Zeref confirmed, "It is affected by emotions, which could enhance or lessen the power of it. It is everchanging, a command to one part would not matter to another."

He shifted his left eye to the mage, the Geass symbol shining in a brilliant macabre crimson as he uttered a word. "Begone."

The wave of darkness surrounding Zeref screeched, tearing through the air like a great shard of glass, and dissipate into the air. The dark mage eyes widened, mouth opening and closing as he stared with unblinking eyes.

"I would advise reining it in at this opportune moment." Lelouch smiled, lips humming Pachelbel's Canon, "As you said, the command would not last for long, soon it will be replaced by another."

His advice pulled the mage out of the shock, and was followed by a bright, genuine smile. The thick energy in the air could be felt as Zeref retracts what's left of the remnant of the wave of power.

He was certain that Zeref hasn't been smiling for so long that he had difficulties trying to express his gratitude and happiness. Then again, with that kind of uncontrolled aura he could only imagine the devastation it could've caused. With ignorance and fear of the unknown from the mass, it is only a matter of time before Zeref is dubbed as monster, evil, dark and the sort.

He did introduce himself as the darkest and most evil Mage, the titles were already bestowed upon him.

"Thank you…" It came out as no more than a quite whisper, the Mage's voice was breaking, "…I-"

"Zeref-san, would you mind terribly if I accompany you?" He dismissed the struggled expression of gratitude with a question.

"A-aren't you afraid of me?" The Mage sputtered, visibly taken back. "I claimed countless lives with my power, committed unforgivable sins and a danger to every innocent entity in the world. Even the grass which I stepped upon-"

"I am not subjected to it aren't I?" Lelouch asked absently, "I could even assist you in reining it in should you lose grip of it with my… power."

Lelouch couldn't bring himself to use the word Magic, it sounded horribly wrong if it ever managed to come out in the form of his aristocrat voice.

"Besides, I can neither die nor age, it would be terribly taxing and daunting to do it alone. I may lose my sanity if it were to be left unchecked. And this world shouldn't suffer the Demon that is Lelouch vi Britannia." Lelouch let the visage of the Demon Emperor slipped for but a moment, yet it was enough to send Zeref a step back into a guarded stance instinctively. "I wonder how long it has been since your torment began…"

"Above four centuries." Zeref smiled sadly, "I would appreciate a companion."

He scoffed inwardly at the understatement, how ragged and miserable the Mage look surprised him, the bags under his eyes alone indicate countless nights of restless sleep, and the tear on his eyelids were yet to dry.

"But I am not so naïve that I would believe you will do it out of pity."

"Indeed." Lelouch nodded, turning fully to Zeref, "My eyes."

Zeref eyes moved to the violet and crimson orb, taking a step back from the eerie crimson and the fresh blood. "Ah…"

"It is the source of my power." Lelouch said, "I felt something latching on that I could not see moments ago."

"A-allow me." Zeref approached him slowly, kneeling next to him with a frown. Lelouch could see his hand glowing green as it come closing in on his eyes. Zeref eyes widened yet again, peering into the symbol with studious interest.

"It seems that-" The Mage began, stopped for a moment as the green glow dimmed, then continue, "-your physical spirit was deprived of the original elements from where you came from that sustained it. It forced itself into the spiritual flow of nature in this world, yet… it is not subjected to spiritual flow of nature."

"It was rejected then?"

"No." Zeref shook his head, "Nature cannot deny any soul from accessing it, but she cannot access what is not subjected to her. You do not belong in the circle of life in this universe. You may draw energy from her, but she could not do the same to you."

"I'm afraid you have me at a loss." Lelouch frowned, "I understand that it is necessary for my power to sustain itself by forcing its way in to the flow of nature, but, why would nature's access to my spirit important?"

"Stability. Magic are born from the joining of the spirit and nature, if you deny nature a way into your spirit, your magic would be volatile, as it is not subjected to any limitations by severing the nature's half of the two-way connection. It would be too powerful for one to control."

Lelouch smirked, wearing an expression that indicate he knew something others do not. "I fail to see the problem at hand."

Zeref was about to reply, until his eyes passed over the shade of crimson in Lelouch's orb. The memory of the screeching curse of Ankhseram bowing to the strange power fresh in his mind.

"I see." Zeref muttered.

"Do you?" Lelouch smiled, "With that being said, you wouldn't mind teaching me… magic, would you?"

Zeref gave him a cautious gaze, "My magic is dark and evil, I do not think it is wise to dabble in it."

Lelouch returned the gaze with a blank stare, face devoid of emotion as he propped himself up. "Watch." He said.

Pulling out the silenced pistol from the blood-stained robe of his, the robe he is still wearing from that damnable ceremony when Suzaku's blade impaled him. He took a quick aim at one of the two wolves from the opposite bank of the river and pulled the trigger. The shot hit just as intended, bringing one of the predators down with a heavy thud.

"What did I just do?" He questioned.

"You killed." Zeref answered with a scowl.

Lelouch nodded, turning the pistol to another and pulled the trigger. "What did I just do?" He asked again.

"You kil…" The Mage trailed off as he set his sight on a whimpering fox kit. "…you saved it."

"No, I killed." Lelouch cut off the impending question, "What is the difference?"

Zeref tilt his head in confusion, but realisation dawned upon him soon enough, "Intent."

"Yes." He nodded, gesturing at the pistol, "This is a weapon, a tool to kill, nothing more. I used it to kill one with nothing in mind, that, is immoral. Then I killed another, and this time I meant to protect. There are no evil nor goodness in power, power is power. It is the intent that separates the two."

The Mage stared at him with no visible emotion, yet it was as if something heavy was removed from his shoulder. A ghost of a smile on his face. "I will teach you to control and use magic, Lelouch."

"By the gods, it sounded horribly childish when you put it that way." He remarked with a smile.

"Perhaps you should learn my language then."

"Your language?" Lelouch inquired with a raised brow, "We're conversing with each other are we not?"

"Magic." Zeref grinned, "I used it to translate what you were speaking, and my own tongue to yours, a rare ability many other do not have."

Sighing, he turned to the blood-stained robe with a frown, "You wouldn't happen to know a spell to cleanse clothing, would you?"

"…I don't."

"Something to summon a cup of tea then?"

Zeref looked away, "…I don't."

"We both have a lot to learn then."