Story: Tainted Cube: Black and White

Here we go, guys. This is one of the biggers ones, so be sure you have a fair bit of time to spend before getting into it.

And for those interested, I've just made a coin toss to determine what gets written up first. The answer is Ranma 1/2. Which means it's likely that I'll be taking something from Ranma 1/2 to have an effect on Urusei Yatsura.

Anyway, enjoy this and let me know what you think of it.

The idea of black being an evil colour is ingrained into our culture, our language and perhaps our very genetic code. What do I mean? Must examples be cited? Very well! How often has a villain been described as having a black heart or soul? What does it mean to describe someone as having a dark mood, or dark intention? Then, of course, in a more on-topic observation there is also the so-called black emperor that Lelouch would one day become… A nickname acquired through ruthless acts of tyranny designed to make the world hate him. Not particularly pleasant things, are they? Why is that? Why single out black at all as a colour of evil? By its very nature black is the absence of colour. Those items around us we see as black simply do not reflect visible light. That's part of the reason it's a bad idea to wear thick dark clothes on a particularly warm day, for those interested: That energy has to go <i>somewhere</i>, after all. But aside from a couple of uncomfortable days, that doesn't tell us why that idea is so ingrained into our thought process, even though rationally speaking black is just a colour. Like its counterpoint white - the reflection of all colours in the visible spectrum - black is simply nothing more than a physical property of an item's appearance. Nothing more, nothing less. It informs us in no way of the morality (or lack thereof) surrounding anyone involved with it.

As it happens the answer isn't complicated. Look at the night sky. What do you see? Mostly you'll see black with little points of white with the occasional other celestial body brightening things up. It's not black because there's something there, keep in mind. It's black because there is nothing there. At all. Now take a look out at your garden, or your street. Whatever is convenient. It's dark out there, yes? See those deep, deep shadows? See what's in those shadows? No. Of course you can't. Because our eyes are dependent on light to function. While the pupils can and will automatically (or more accurately reflexively) adjust to better accommodate different light levels given sufficient time to do so, this ability has its limit. If there is no light, you cannot see. That inky blackness, those deep shadows almost seem to come alive with their own sense of menace. Anything could be in there. Anything. Hiding in the dark. Waiting. Lurking. Ready to pounce. Or maybe not a predator. There could be a gaping hole right where there should be solid ground. Your mind starts to conjure up the terrible things lurking within the dark, an evolutionary instinct developed to keep us away from the dangerous places prompting us to run, run away from the dark and hide within the light lest the grues come to eat us!

And so it developed from there. The association was automatic. The shadows are dangerous therefore they are evil. The shadows are black. Black is evil. There's a strange kind of logic to it. When you get down to it, though? The only difference between black and white that remotely matters, the only single point that anyone should ever really care about is this. In chess, white goes first and black goes second.

Ah, but now you are thinking that this ties back to Lelouch. Yes? After all, it is his game of choice. So it is. But really now, chess is not only his game. Not by the longest stretch. Many play it. Many get rather good at it. Few excel quite like Lelouch, but there is someone quite close to him who happened to be just a few tiers down. The unfortunate part being that she cannot tell the difference between black and white, nor did she ever expect to be able to do so ever again.

Expectations don't always turn out to be as accurate as one may think. For good. For ill.

"I understand," Nunnally said, trying not to let her disappointment out. It wouldn't do to make Shirley feel guilty for merely passing on a message. "Thank you for passing that on. No, no, it's fine! Really! He wouldn't unless he has a good reason. Lelouch is not that kind of person. Alright? I'll speak to you tomorrow, goodbye."

She hung up the phone and rolled back over to the table with a weary sigh. "Brother…" she whispered. "I hope you've not gotten into trouble. I couldn't bear it if something happened to you."

But… She was simply talking to herself. Sayoko was away making the dinner Lelouch would now miss. It was such a shame, really. All the hard work Sayoko did for them. Nunnally truly did wish she could repay everyone for their kindness one day. She never admitted it to anyone lest it hurt their feelings or made them feel guilty, but she felt like such a tremendous burden…

"Found you!" a high-pitched voice excitedly shrieked, just moments before something small, soft and fuzzy hit Nunnally right in the chest. "Found you! Found you! Found! Yoooou!"

"Who- Who said that?" Nunnally asked. "What do you want? If you try to hurt me, I'll scream!"

"Hurt you?" the voice said, and to Nunnally's shock and amazement it seemed to be coming from the tiny thing moving about on her lap. "Why would I wanna hurt my playing piece? Oh! Right! You don't know nothing about that, do you?"

"Excuse me, but you just used a double negative," Nunnally said, giving the… creature a mild admonishment in an attempt to help it correct a commonly utilised linguistic error. "By that logic, it means that I know something about what you mean, when I'm afraid I really don't."

"Ha, I like you already!" the creature said. "Okay, so where do I start… Hrm. Maybe it'd be easier to just show you… You're my first piece, so I guess you get to pick the game. Just, think of it reeeeal hard, and I'll take care of the rest. Got it?"

Think of a game? Well, it was pretty obvious where her thoughts would go. She had been thinking about Lelouch, wondering why he might be late, listening to Shirley's speculations that he'd snuck off to make a bet again… What else would Nunnally even begin to think of except her brother's favourite game? In her mind's eye she could see it so easily. She may be blind now but she remembered what it looked like. An eight-by-eight grid of squares, alternating between black and white. On one side stood an army in arrangement, facing forwards against a foe similar in all regards save colouration. Mirror images of one another, warriors ready to engage in a battle of wits and will and cunning. It was not merely the first game to come to mind. It was the only one she could think of, and… For some reason, the board she was imagining seemed to be getting quite a lot larger. The pieces as well. They became more… humanlike. More distinct, with different faces that she did not recognise… And something in the middle of the board that should not be there at all. It was large. Bigger than the board itself, yet somehow contained within the middle of it. Surrounded by chains. Wrapped up in them like a gift. All Nunnally could see was a single red eye glowing, glowing out through the chains. The monster within snarled as though it had noticed her, and in her own imagination Nunnally turned to look to her left and to her right. She was standing on the board! On the back row of the white field, sandwiched between a Queen and a Bishop -

And the next thing she knew, Nunnally was taking in a deep, deep intake of breath and clutching at her face with her hands. Down below her was… A plush bear with a disappointed look on its face. "You humans," it said. "You're all the same. Think of a game, I say! Any game at all! But you gravitate to chess or poker like moths to a flame. Oh well, I doubt the wolf will mind too much. He likes the game more than you guys do, if you can believe that!"

It was the strangest thing to see it talk. Little stitched-on pieces of cloth moving around like real lips, even though you could see the stitches. It moved just like a person, scratching its head in concentration, fidgeting slightly… its chest was even rising and falling just like a real person. But once she was able to think clearly again, Nunnally realised the other strange thing about seeing it talk. Namely, that she was <i>seeing</i> it talk.

"I can see," she whispered, holding her hands out in front of her face in utter disbelief. She looked around the room. Seeing it for the first time. Mirror. There was a mirror on the wall. She scrambled towards it, and stopped after just three steps. Nunnally's toes curled up inside the shoes she was wearing, and she turned down to stare - <b>stare!</b> - at her legs. Her upright, functioning legs. "I can… I can walk!"

"'Course you can!" the bear creature said in confusion as Nunnally collapsed to her knees in shock. "You're making an awful lotta fuss over something every human I've ever met could do just fine!"

The rather inconsiderate, thoughtless remark sailed right over her head. She could see. She could walk. She could see, and - No! What was happening? Why was everything becoming so blurry?! The answer came when she felt something damp hit her knees. Tears. No, not just because she'd regained what she thought beyond her reach. Because now, Nunnally knew that she would no longer be a burden to those around her. No more would they have to be worried about transporting her everywhere, or telling her what was happening around her, or caring for her when she could not. She could help them. She could help others less fortunate than herself with her own two hands. That's just the kind of person she is.

But for now, she could permit herself a little bit of selfishness. What did she look like? How long had it been since she had seen her own face? Tears were wiped away, and she rose back onto her feet - a bit more unsteadily now that she was thinking about it too much, accursed millipede's dilemma - stood before the mirror and stared. And stared. And in spite herself liked - no, loved! - what she saw staring back. In fact, it was all she could do to simply twirl around in place, marvelling at how wonderful she looked and felt!

On top of her head there was a crown with a tiny cross sticking out of the top of it. Around her neck there was a sweeping cape, underneath which she had a regal jacket that was perhaps a little tighter than it needed to be, but not to the point where it was uncomfortable. There were gloves on her hand, trousers over her legs and all of it a splendid gleaming white.

"How strange," Nunnally said, adjusting the crown on her head. "I don't remember putting this on…"

"Well, of course you wouldn't!" the bear said. "In a sense, we both did. I take it you like your uniform, then? Oh? That's right! I ain't explained that one yet, have I? Yeah, well. You just seemed so happy, it seemed a shame to tell you 'bout it. You know?"

"It's alright, mister bear! You can tell me now!"

The bear hopped up onto the table, and pulled the chess set lying atop it closer towards the middle. Without fingers. It was probably best not to invest much thought into the logistics of that. "Tell me, what does chess represent?"

Nunnally stared at the board in interest. Well, the answer to that one was obvious wasn't it? "A battle," she said almost immediately.

The bear shook its head. "Really now? A battle where both sides are equally balanced, where the terrain and weather does not influence the outcome, where pieces move one at a time in orderly manner and the possibility for reinforcements is impossible? No. Chess is not a battle. It is a game. In a sense, a whole lotta all of this is a game too. You are the White King. Normally, ‘black’ is our enemy. Their ultimate goal is chaos and anarchy, while ours is peace and protection. Trouble is... There’s something else sitting in the middle of the pair of us, just waiting for the chance to sit up and wreck everything.”

"Do you believe in God? No. It doesn't matter if you do or not. I'm telling you right now, there is a God. There are several, actually. Most religions get it backwards, of course. They think God made man, when it's more like the other way around."

"Oh," Nunnally said. "You mean the way that people often attribute supernatural causation to natural events because they do not yet fully understand the natural event, therefore developing the idea that a supernatural entity with a given personality exists?"

"No!" the bear said a little forcefully, but then seemed to hesitate and shook his head. "Well, yeah, that does happen. I mean, that ain't what I mean. What I mean ain't that man makes up fictional gods, even though that does happen all the time. What I mean is more, like, God is an actual physical thing that you can kinda sorta meet if you work very, very hard at it for a long time. It's sorta like the collective unconscious of the whole human race, all flowing into each other and subtly influencing one another, that kinda thing. All inhabited worlds have something just like that, all throughout the multiverse. They're living things, Gods, and just like all living things there's something that preys upon them. Something that delights in getting hold of Angels and turning them into its own personal pawns. It came here a long time ago, tried eating this world's God, but it didn't expect to walk into a trap we'd set up just for that reason. Chained the wolf up, kept it locked away for all that time. But it's a canny thing, and patient, and powerful, and it's still got a couple Angels on team waiting for the time to start causing a little mayhem. If any of those Angels tracks down where the wolf's being held, it will herald the beginning of the end of the world. The death of God. So, you gotta fight and kill those Angels. You and the other pieces. You're the only ones who even <i>can</i>. 'Cause if you can't, something bigger and worse will get set free and ain't nothing on this planet can stop it."

Throughout all of this, the bear's gaze had been cast at the floor but now it was looking up at Nunnally. Right in the eyes, and she stared back. Right into its… buttons. "They call him Fenrir."

"What I can do?" Nunnally looked at her dress and wondered that same question with a slightly different context. What could she do? So many avenues opening up to her, so many skills she could learn, so much to see and do and -

“I’m getting there,” the bear said, waving aside her idle thoughts that surely could wait for a better time. “See, both sides, let’s call them White and Black to make things simpler, we both realised Fenrir was too great a threat to leave alone, and because of the war brewing up he was likely to start taking advantage of the situation. So, we made a couple agreements with one another. Normally we don’t empower pretty young things like yourself, but we made a couple of conditions. First condition was, the powers would be based on a game, whatever game the first one of us found thought of first. That’s a lot more common than you might think; great powers really like their games, see. But there was one loophole left in there that both sides can’t have missed.

“Namely, if either side could ‘win’ that game, assuming it was possible… They could gain access to all the power of the other. In other words, it’s kinda a shame you turned out to be the White King. Means that until we find the others, you’re at an awful risk if a Black piece figures you out. If they take you, Black will try to take down Fenrir by themselves, and if they do that chaos rules the world.”

“I see,” Nunnally slowly said. “In other words, White and Black hate each other, and are only cooperating because of a common adversary?”

“The enemy of my enemy is my friend,” the bear replied sarcastically. “Huh! Trick being, Fenrir is a greater enemy to either side, and - Aw, nuts! Looks like we’re outta time. Listen, when you need to change back, just say ‘White King Transform: May Light Prevail’, and it’ll change you. And if you need to change again, say the same thing. Got it?”

“I think so,” Nunnally said. “But what can I do? How am I supposed to fight these Angels you mentioned earlier?”

“Don’t panic, you'll work it out,” the bear said. “By the way, my name is Nemo. Nice to meet you.”
<hr>
"Memento mori" is a Latin phrase that (roughly) means "Remember you will die". It's true for everyone. Entropy will eventually catch up to everyone, systems decay, lives end, look on my works, ye mighty, and despair. That is the way of the world. Kallen knew that, and today… Today she’d been given constant reminders that she would die. Ever since about an hour and a half after waking up this morning, it had been almost constant. “If that guard sees me, I’ll have a bullet put through my head if I’m lucky.” “If we don’t escape this pursuit, they’ll execute us.” “Damn upgraded Knightmare frames.” “Oh no, they’ve found us!”

It had been pretty relentless, really. Remember death? Hh! She wished she could forget! But at least with Clovis’ pronouncement, it had seemed like the reminders would come to an end.

That had probably quite literally been the last thought to pass through her brain before all hell broke loose once again. Well, it was either that or “I wish my shoulder would stop itching,” and that’s hardly quite as dramatic. The first anyone knew of it was the sound of tearing. Not of paper, or anything with substance. More like it was a tear in the fabric of creation itself.

Then the screaming started. It lasted quite a long time, rarely with the same voices for more than a few seconds at a time before a new set joined the fray.

Survival instincts were punched in the face, tied up and tossed in a closet so that she could lift her legs and run towards the source of the disturbance. Upon seeing it from about three blocks away, well, that was more than enough encouragement for that same survival instinct to learn how to untie knots and gently remind Kallen that it was a metaphorical aspect of her own consciousness, therefore did not have a face to be punched and then went on to persuade her that the opposite direction was a very good place to be.

“What the hell is that thing?” she and several other people yelled. Not in unison, nor was the exact sentence said in the exact same way. That would have been deeply unsettling. What I mean is more that the sentiment was pretty widely expressed by the fleeing mass of people.

In a quite literal sense, it was a monster. Completely inhuman beyond the general shape of it. As in to say it had a torso with two arms and two legs attached, but that was probably the only thing in common at all. There wasn’t a head, exactly. More like a face protruding from near the top of the torso. Vaguely shaped like what Kallen imagined a bird’s skull might, with fanglike protrusions on either side. Below that was a red orb enclosed in something vaguely similar to a ribcage if you squinted at it while drunk. It had shoulder pads, some sort of spike sticking out of its elbows, and feathery formations around its hips. All of these peculiarities were a dazzling bright white, contrasting perfectly with the inky blackness. And it stood around about as tall as a Knightmare frame.

Kallen’s attention was taken from… whatever the hell that thing was supposed to be by a sight a little down the street. A boy. A very young boy with his foot caught in some rubble. A little ahead of him, the monster walked steadily forward, occasionally turning its head as if searching for something. The boy was terrified. Rightly so. Britannian soldiers had opened fire upon the beast, only for it to draw upon a forcefield of some type similar to that employed by that damned white Knightmare frame earlier! Ugh! Kallen was running back the way she came, back towards the monster against the sea of people flowing in the other direction. What choice had she? Leaving the kid there alone like that… She couldn’t do it!

“It’s okay,” she said. “I’ll get you out of there, just keep calm and run as soon as you can.”

The boy nodded his understanding and Kallen carefully leveraged his foot free, trying to ignore the shadow approaching in her peripheral vision until her work was done. She would not let him die here, dammit! She would not leave him there! They ran for what felt like miles, but no amount of distance felt safe enough. That thing! Just looking at it filled her heart with terror the likes of which she’d never imagined possible! What was it? What the hell was that thing?!

With the foot freed, the boy rose and stared behind Kallen. He screamed and ran, but didn’t get far before Kallen picked him up to move him away just that little bit faster. She rounded a corner, just in time to see an older woman running up to them with tears in her eyes. The boy struggled out of her grip and the two embraced tearfully. What manner of day had they had? How many people had they lost already even before this thing appeared? How many had the Britannians…

The thought trailed off as Kallen noticed something strange. It seemed impossible. Bizarre. Surreal, completely surreal. She collapsed heavily against some rubble tucked away in the corner, just in time to see the white Knightmare frame rushing past the street they were resting in. It was going to fight the beast. Alright. That might be enough. Good luck to the bastard. A strange thing to think, but given the circumstances…

Something pressed up against the back of her head. “Don’t move and don’t scream either. I just wanna talk for a bit, see, and neither of us needs the attention right now.”

It was a stick. She could feel the wood as plain as day. But sure. Why not. She’d humour him. For a little while. “What do you want?” she whispered, casually observing the strange events going on around her.

“To make you an offer,” the voice said. “I am a representative of Black. Now that you’ve seen that thing in action, how would you like to have the power to take it on in a fair fight?”

No, this was not the same voice as before. Today it seemed that people she couldn’t see were asking her to trust them with her life. Not so much this time. This time she wanted answers and she would damn well get them.

“That implies you know what that thing is,” Kallen said, still amazed at what she was seeing. “What is it?”

“It is an Angel. Agent of the great wolf Fenrir, and believe me, girl, this is nothing compared to what would happen if Sachiel finds its master. That’s kind of why I’m here, see. The situation is kinda complicated… See, it might be best to think of what’s going on a little like this. If you and Clovis were stuck in a room together, and there was a gun with a single bullet in there what would you do? Ah! Don’t answer yet! Does that answer change at all if there’s a slobbering giant rabid wolf in the room eyeing the pair of you up for dinner?”

Yes, as it happened. Kallen had to admit that yes, her answer would change given that alteration to the hypothetical situation. She’d shoot the wolf. Obviously she would.

“It’s the same with them lot,” the voice said, obviously meaning the others milling around her. “Earlier those soldiers came in here looking to kill them some Elevens, like the good little death squads they are. Throw some inhuman terror from beyond their comprehension into the mix, and whaddya know! Here they are helping to evacuate the same people they were fixing to shoot not an hour past. A greater enemy makes strange bedfellows of us all. Which is why Black has agreed to work with White, and vice versa.”

“You mentioned you worked for Black before,” Kallen said. “Who are White and Black?”

“Higher beings. Or rather, two camps of them. White intends to impose ultimate order upon everything, while our own goal is simply freedom from tyranny. You can see why we’re enemies, and you can also see why we came to you.”

The conversation was interrupted when the white Knightmare frame flew backwards down the street it had come down in the first place, then shot off back, looking much more scuffed up this time than last.

“If you think he can beat it, best stop dreaming. Only those given powers by White or Black stand any kind of chance against its AT Field. Know what it stands for? You felt it a moment ago. Absolute Terror. Even with this power, you alone might not be enough… But if you were to capture the White King, the power of Black would increase, and it would mean we could stop them from imposing their tyranny over the whole world.”

Staring around her at the terrified faces still being helped by the soldiers, seeing some of the younger and fitter Japanese arming themselves with whatever spare equipment the soldiers had on them at the time, seeing that terror, seeing it, feeling it, knowing it… “I accept,” she said, and in that same instant her eyes turned a terrifying jet black and the shadows themselves almost seemed to melt into her, forming around her body into a wondrous regal dress….

<hr>
Suzaku was within the Lancelot frame, breathing heavily and staring down the monster with terror gripping his heart. Every single part of him was screaming “Run, you fool, run”. But Suzaku Kururugi was not the kind of person to run from mortal, supernatural terror. Not when the lives of others were on the line. No. If anything, that terror served as little more than a motivator for him to stay here. To fight. To protect. To save them all.

“Damn you!” he yelled, unleashing another volley of bullets towards the creature. No effect, once again. It had the same sort of field his own frame had… No, much more powerful. It was not only a defensive measure, as the creature was also using it offensively. Much like - the Lancelot spun in a carefully reckless manner, dodging an attack from the field that flattened a nearby building. Nothing he did could hurt it. Nothing he did even seemed to slow it down for long either. He was like a fly trying to wrestle a giant. But still, he fought on. If his sacrifice bought enough time for others to figure this thing out, figure out how to take it down…

“Suzaku, turn around,” Lloyd insisted over the communicator. “There’s nothing more you can do. Hmph! To think that my Lancelot could become obsolete during its very first battle!”

“What can you tell about this thing?” Suzaku insisted. “There must be some weakness, some way I can hurt it! I can’t just - No! Get away from there! That won’t work!”

He could see them. Soldiers, armed with a rocket launcher lining the street behind the… thing. They fired, and they seemed to pass clean through the force field somehow… Suzaku couldn’t see the damage at first, but the creature did stop in its tracks. Then it turned, and Suzaku gaped at what he was seeing. There was damage, if minor… But it was repairing itself. Very quickly.

“Regenerative capabilities…” Lloyd said, mostly to himself. “How interesting! I must obtain a sample of its tissue for analysis.”

The soldiers didn’t stand a chance. Suzaku dashed forward to smash its fist against the beast in a desperate act to gains its attention, but it was too little too late. He was sent flying backwards, and he could almost see the field approaching the now fleeing, terrified soldiers… There was a flash of light…

“In the name of light, I cannot let you pass this way!” a voice that sounded like it should have been much, much smaller than it was boomed out over the area. Suzaku stared, baffled at the sight of a young woman in regal gear with her arms outstretched in front of the cowering soldiers. “Get out of here,” she said, and the hint was rapidly picked up. They all scrambled to their feet and soon disappeared from view.

“I am the White King,” the young woman yelled. “I will allow no Angel of Fenrir to pass this way!”

“Hmm, an Angel, is it?” Lloyd said, obviously listening to what was happening. “How interesting! If you can, bring her in for questioning. Well. The more we know, the better, right? Just in case there are more, ha ha, Angels out there. I wonder what she thinks she can do to it?”

The… Angel of Fenrir let out an unearthly roar, as the White King lay her hands against the progressing force field and to Suzaku’s amazement it sort of… lit up. He could see it, and it was strangely beautiful just as much as it was terrifying… But it did not last long, for the White King was sent backwards before anything else could happen.

“In the name of shadow, this creature must perish!”

A new voice had joined the fray. Suzaku turned, and once again saw a young woman. This one wearing a flowing black dress that looked as though it had been crafted from the night’s sky. Much like the other, this one wore a crown upon her head, though this one was much smaller. Her expression was fierce, and her arms were crossed over her chest, which was probably for the best considering that bends-inducing plunging neckline.

“I am the Black Queen,” the new woman yelled. “And now, you will feel my power! Come, my shadows! Your Queen bids you give her aide!”

Alright, so, maybe a tally of the impossible things he’d seen today might be useful right about now. It might be useful evidence that he’d gone completely insane at some point. After all, the very shadows around them did seem to heed her call. They all seemed to melt away from whatever object was casting them and crawled towards her body at blinding speed. The woman rose her arms into the air, and as one the shadows united around her body, twisting, moulding into a shape that was familiar and amazing.

A Knightmare frame and not.

Its jet-black chassis appeared to be clothed in steel rather than constructed from it.  Armored shoulders, arms, legs, and feet while its torso, hips, and upper thighs appeared to be living darkness. A form exaggeratedly feminine to the point of anatomical impossibility for a flesh-and-blood woman and rather structurally unsound for a five-meter-tall bipedal robot. The effect was so fine that Suzaku felt his eyes distracted by the outrageous curve of the Knightmare’s simulated hips and quickly directed them to the lengthy black sword attached to its waist as if sheathed to a belt. By far the strangest part was the head, for it wasn’t the stylized armored mask over a mass of factospheres like his own.  Beneath a jagged crown of shadows was an actual woman’s face, one of terrible beauty and pitiless perfection wrought in the color of the void, the only light escaping that harsh visage were the eyes, twin points of glowing ruby. 

“Behold, my Knightmare frame!” the Black Queen bellowed. And then Suzaku gasped as it simply passed right by him at a speed he couldn’t even keep up with! It had drawn a sword, and sent it against the Angel, only to collide with its field. There was an almighty explosion, and then she swung again and again. Explosions occurred each time, but neither Angel nor Black Queen seemed remotely phased. After the fifth such attempted strike, the Angel seemed to have had enough. It caught the sword in its long clawlike fingers, then swung its other hand up to catch the Black Queen across the head. At which point the spike protruding from that arm’s elbow slammed forward, crashing into the Black Queen and sending her backwards.

Damn this thing! If only they could get around its force field! Maybe then they could stand a chance against it!

<hr>
Stupid, stupid, stupid! It was that rush of power that did it. Not going to make that mistake again! The Black Queen pulled herself up to her feet, and size up her enemy with renewed concentration. The force field being used in that way was unexpected, but she’d be able to compensate for it in her next assault...

Behind the Angel was a small figure, and at first she was mistaken for a civilian. No. It was a member of the White Court, no question of it! The Black Queen hated the idea of having to cooperate with something like that, but what choice did she have? This thing would kill every human it could, be they Britannian or Japanese or from anywhere else on the planet. So long as it lived, it was a threat. The White piece dashed forward with blinding light forming around her hands, which she released just as the Black Queen yelled, “Abyss punch!” For some reason the monster’s field failed it, and her attack sailed through and sent it flying backwards. Over the White piece, who moved out of the way without even seeming to realise she’d done so. For a moment the Black Queen was jubilant that they’d dealt that blow unto their enemy, but it was not enough. Not nearly enough. The fist returned to its rightful place, and then the Angel stood back up unscathed. Alright, they’d just need to try something else then.

“Listen to me, both of you!” a voice yelled over a loudspeaker. “Tune your frequencies to 100.350.1432!”

That voice! It was the same one as before! Gritting her teeth as she did so, the instruction was obeyed.

“Who is this?” another voice said on the frequency. “Hey, who the hell are you?”

“Call me Zero,” that same voice from earlier said, just as calm and confident as before. “This is certainly an unexpected development. It would appear you need my assistance to take that thing down, yes? It’ll be quite a busy day, but I should be able to arrange something.”

“Wait… Don’t tell me you’re the same guy that was leading those terrorists before?!”

“Why does it matter if I was? This thing is as much your enemy as it is anyone else’s!” Zero said. “If we all join forces, we can overcome it. Trust in my strategies, and we shall prevail.”

“He’s right,” said a new voice on the frequency. “We have to trust one another and work together if we are to defeat this Angel. I, the White King, shall lend you any support I can.”

“You are the White King?” the Black Queen snarled, surprising herself with how much she hated this person. “I am the Black Queen! If I capture you, then our strength will increase! Then I could beat that thing by myself!”

“I don’t know what’s going on between the pair of you, nor do I particularly care!” Zero said. “After all, the pilot of that white Knightmare frame - “

“It’s called Lancelot,” that same pilot interrupted. “And I hate to say it, but we have no choice. I will not allow other people to die because we cannot cooperate!”

“That is much more like it. Black Queen, attack from the front. White Knight, to the rear. White King… How are you even in this call? I admit to some curiosity!”

“Oh, I think my crown has a communicator in it. What do you want me to do?”

“When I give the signal, use that same attack you used to make it drop its field. What are you waiting for? It appears to be trying to leave!”

Zero was quite correct, of course, and the attack began immediately. She was first in position, and brandished her sword with an agility that would have terrified her to see just hours before while the Lancelot moved into position behind it. This appeared to divide the Angel’s attention, but it merely extended its AT Field to repel them. Before long they were able to get into a rhythm, with the Lancelot striking first, then the Black Queen, and they’d alternate like that to try and keep the Angel disoriented. They kept it up for a full five minutes before Zero’s voice crackled back over their communicators.

“Good work,” their mysterious helper said. “But now, I need you to lead it down 10th Street. Don’t ask why, just get it down there and jump when I tell you to!”

She didn’t need telling twice. The Angel seemed to have given up on the idea of leaving without a fight, and instead was now deliberately seeking them out. This made it almost trivial to lure it down the side street, dodging the powerful force field assaults as they went. Before long the two oppositely coloured Knightmare frames were running side by side, with an Angel in hot pursuit until the very moment Zero yelled, “Jump! Both of you! Jump now!”

Which they did, sailing through the air over a seemingly innocuous section of pavement… that all of a sudden completely ceased to exist just as the Angel ran over it. A series of explosives. Just like in the battle against the Britannians. But that wouldn’t be enough, surely Zero must have known - And then a much larger explosion occurred out of that same hole in the ground, forcing the Black Queen to cover her eyes. Is this what Zero had been setting up while they were fighting it? Regardless, it didn’t seem to have worked. A jet-black hand gripped the side of the hole and the monster pulled itself up - Only for the White King to place a light-charged hand upon its claw, and to find itself staring up at the pointed tip of the Black Queen’s blade and the Lancelot’s gun.

Memento mori. Even Angels must remember death.

“Checkmate,” Zero said, moments before a third explosion, this time cross shaped, rocked the streets and left all three of them disoriented. By the time that the Black Queen was able to even think of looking around and capturing the White King, she had already gone.

<hr>
In the meantime, Lelouch allowed himself to exhale again. That had been unexpected to say the very least. An Angel, huh? And wasn’t that interesting? Supernatural powers revolving around chess, with Black and White allied to take down something else. He couldn’t help but laugh, even as he looked at the notes he’d taken from his observations of the skirmish.

White King: Cannot deliberately place herself in danger. If in danger, will automatically move out of it as soon as she becomes aware of it. Can nullify a force field, but has limited other offensive powers.

Black Queen: Overwhelming power, with versatile long- and close-range attacks. Cannot nullify a force field.

Were there other pieces? How did they acquire those powers? Oh, so many questions to answer… But that would have to wait for the time being. It had been a busy day. Two battles won, though the second… That second one might very well force him to rethink his plans slightly. Heh. If Britannia had a White Knight, and chess was apparently the theme for the day, then maybe he should consider obliging with a counterpoint? Ah, he’d think out such details tomorrow. After filling his belly and catching some sleep. There was nothing else he could do here, and besides which he really wanted to think through these strange events before things got really out of hand!

<hr>
“The short answer is… It’s impossible. I don’t like the word impossible. Or magic. Or supernatural. Or can’t be explained by science.”

“Excuse me, but that is a phrase rather than a word.”

“Yes, yes, of course, of course,” Lloyd said, brushing the correction aside. “But my point still stands, yes? What that thing could do, what those girls could do… Impossible. Utterly impossible. But there it was, we saw it with our own eyes. It is rather fortunate that we were able to get a recovery team down there to find what few tissue samples we were able to get. Maybe now we can learn how it projected a force field without any kind of mechanical parts!”

“And upgrade the Lancelot?”

“To begin with… Yes, that doesn’t sound like such a bad idea at all, does it?”

<hr>
Those that knew of the incident in Shinjuku didn’t get particularly good sleep that night. It can’t be particularly surprising to learn that the news was hushed up. After all, there was so much to take in. A top secret supply of toxic gas being stolen by terrorists. A rebellion momentarily humiliating the clearly superior Britannian forces, forcing them to deploy a new weapon in response. Prince Clovis being assassinated by persons unknown after clearly being forced to surrender the day. And then there was the monster… Oh, yes. Those that lived after seeing that thing had nightmares that night. Terrible nightmares as their minds tried desperately to rationalise what it was they’d seen that day. None succeeding in comprehending save for two alone. Even Lelouch was not immune to this, for how could he see it as anything less than a harbinger of the things to come? A portent, a sign, a warning of the misery that would be necessary for him to make the world a better place.

Little could he have imagined that his sweet and kind-hearted little sister was having nightmares of her own. Somehow, whatever terror or reservations she might have had about entering battle had dissolved into nothing as soon as she laid eyes upon the monster. It was almost as though someone else had stepped in, made her feel such blinding hatred for it that whatever plans she might have tried to make about reasoning with it, freeing it from its wicked master were tossed aside in an instant. Was it the callous way it murdered civilians and soldiers alike?

And then there was the Black Queen. Such a powerful person, but still craving more. Nunnally could understand why it was that Nemo despised Black, if this was what they were like. But she did not hate them. Only pitied her for that lust for further power.

This was why her nightmare was different than the others. It was a street, much like the one she had seen in Shinjuku. Bodies lined it, survivors mourning the dead or cowering behind the rubble of what was probably once their homes. And in the middle of that street she could see a line of twelve girls in all, half in black and the other white standing over the body of another Angel. Staring at one another in such hatred. Such undying <i>hatred</i>, and then they charged at one another desperate to take the other’s King even as Nunnally yelled for them all to stop… At which point she looked across and recognised the Black Queen. How could she fail to? After all, she’d seen that same face earlier just after she’d become the White King. Staring back at her through a mirror…

“Miss Lamperouge!” a voice called, cutting through the darkness. A pair of hands were gently, if firmly, gripping her wrists and pinning them to her sides. “Please, wake up. You were having a nightmare.”

The street they were in vanished from her sight, and the ground she could feel so fervently dropped away, leaving nothing but the void before her eyes and her lower body. She was lying on something soft, with a cover over her and… And she was in bed. It took a moment to realise that, because her breathing was so laboured and her heart felt like it was screaming and her cheeks were so wet from the tears, and… And Sayoko was worried about her.

After a moment her breathing slowed down and she was released from the maid’s grip. “Thank you, Sayoko,” Nunnally said.

“Forgive my presumption, but would you perhaps like to discuss it?” Sayoko said. Sweet Sayoko, always willing to give a helping hand. Nunnally hesitated, unsure of how to explain it all. There was so much to it, and the maid would probably misunderstand, or worse yet perhaps tell Lelouch… Oh, she couldn’t bear keeping this a secret from them, but what alternative was there? They would surely think her mad! “I understand,” the maid said, interrupting Nunnally’s thoughts in the process. “If you would prefer not to talk about it, I will not pry. However, I do know of something that may help you relieve stress if you would like. I can show you later on, after school.”

“That would be wonderful, Miss Sayoko!” Nunnally said rather a bit more excitedly than intended. Ooh, that was strange. All of a sudden she was taken by a bit of a dizzy spell. She felt a hand press against her forehead, and -

“Hmm, I was worried you might be unwell,” Sayoko said, extracting her hand. “However, your temperature appears to be quite normal. Would you like me to help you out of bed?”

For some peculiar reason, that particular course of action sounded rather… delicious. Goodness. Now that she was aware of it, almost every nerve ending she could feel anything from appeared to be hyper aware, achieving a peculiar sensitivity that appeared to particularly favour human contact. Nunnally had no basis for comparison, but it did feel pretty good if she was quite honest with herself.

<hr>
So here she was. Back in school after an extremely trying day. It was the kind of day that changed a person’s life forever. After an ordeal like that, neither she nor the world may ever be the same again. Two wars were breaking out, and it seemed like she would be caught in the middle of both. Japanese independance. Saving the world. She scowled a little at the memory of what the damn bear told her last night upon returning home: “No using this gift to liberate Japan, now. You do that, you raise the stakes and White’ll bring out <i>their</i> big guns too, and that’s an arms race the human race won’t live through. Got it?”

But the weird thing was, that wasn’t the main thought on her mind at the moment. She’d been aware of it since waking up this morning, and it was getting worse each second she tried to fight her way through it.

“Oh, Kallen! It’s been so long!” one of the girls in her class remarked. “We’ve been worried about you. Are you feeling better?”

The polite smile she gave them was about as fake as it got, but it seemed to work on them. “Yeah, I just have to go easy for a little while. Besides, if I stay off school any longer I’ll never catch up!”

Kallen Stadfield was horny.

This was fairly uncommon for her. After all, she’d always had other concerns than seeking out boyfriends or looking pretty or any of that other girly nonsense. She put up a frail act (which she hated) to disguise her real passion: Freeing Japan from Britannian tyranny any way she could.

Maybe this was payback for ignoring boys for so long? No. The more rational response was that this was connected to the damned transformation somehow. She was certain that her breasts were a little swollen this morning too. So here she was. At school. Turned on, with a <b>goddamn bee that would not leave her alone!</b>

All of the mounting frustrations were taken out on a single insect that happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Stupid thing to do at school given she’s supposed to be pretending to be weak and helpless… Well, at least nobody was around to see her do that.

“Excuse me,” a male voice said behind her. Crap. She turned around and made a quick appraisal. Black hair. Didn’t look particularly strong. A member of her class? If he’d seen her, she’d have to deal with him, and - All of a sudden he was staring at her very firmly in the eyes, and the next thing Kallen knew she had grabbed him by the collar and pulled the two of them into a nearby supply closet. Everything after that was kind of a blur, but hell. It was certainly a pleasant blur!

<hr>
Shirley glanced at her watch for the twentieth time in the last ten minutes. Where was he? Bad enough he didn’t show up for chemistry class, but now he was late for this student council meeting as well! Honestly, that boy would certainly fail at this rate if he kept on failing to arrive for his classes without good reason.

“The equestrian club will be pissed,” Rivalz said, bringing Shirley back to the topic of conversation with a resounding snap. “We don't want ’em comin’ in here on horse back.”

A ridiculous idea that was somehow legitimised by the sight of a student riding past the window on horseback just behind where Milly was standing, tapping her foot and seeming just a little bit irate.

“Rivalz,” their charming president said, “can't you be a more serious student council member?”

Well, it might be best if she tried to look like she wasn’t so distracted. Therefore: “You know, it would have been nice of you if you would have reminded us about this mess a day ago,” Shirley said.

“I would have to say a day later,” Rivalz shrugged. “Then we would have given up.”

Milly took a sharp intake of breath, doubtless about to try her “Guts!” spell again, but it did not come to pass. The sound of a door opening and closing filled the room, and all eyes fell upon the person who opened it. That person being their errant member Lelouch, who looked rather a great deal like someone had dropped him off in the middle of a desert with nothing to drink but hot sauce and alcohol. “I apologise for tardiness,” he said, staggering forward to his desk as though he could collapse at any moment while wiping enough sweat from his brow that it could probably be used to drown a man.

“Well, well!” Milly said, tapping her foot with a triumphant grin and folded arms. “Decided to spend some time getting better acquainted with a particular member of the female student body’s body? How positively naughty of you, Lelouch! The only way I can forgive you is if you tell all, right here and right now!”

“Madame president!” Shirley gasped. “P-Please don’t dirty the meeting with such dirty thoughts!”

“Now, now,” their president said, stroking Shirley’s cheek with a seductive grin. “It was not me that dirtied the meeting, was it? After all, what else am I supposed to think after he arrives looking like that? Hm? Or maybe you’re just a little jealous that he’s not going for your perfect-ten body? I have seen it in the showers, after all.”

Throughout this, Lelouch had been lazily leaning on his hand, observing the exchange with a detached amusement. It quite suddenly slipped, sending him careening face first (vapid smile and all) into the table, where he lay there for a few moments while the others all stared at him in shock.

“Um…” Nina said, reaching over to poke Lelouch’s shoulder. “Are you… Are you alright?”

“Picture of health,” Lelouch mumbled into the table. “Why do you ask?”

Alright, enough of this. Shirley slapped a hand to his forehead, and pulled it away moments later. “Yow! He’s burning up! Lelouch, you should have stayed in bed if you were feeling this unwell!”

“Hm… Come to think of it… Nunnally has been pretty unwell all day also,” Milly said. “Sayoko told me she was a bit out of sorts this morning… I suppose it’s possible you’ve both caught something nasty. How boring!”

“You know, now that you mention it, my sister did seem a little peculiar at dinner this morning,” Lelouch said thoughtfully. My goodness, his throat sounded so dry! Shirley filled the water pitcher and gave him both it and a glass to drink from. His response was to fill the glass, set it aside and gulp from the pitcher. “Such a shame,” he said between gulps. “I had been hoping to be of use during this meeting, but if you do insist that I am unwell, it would not do to risk infecting you all as well.”

“Nonsense, Shirley could use some old-fashioned infecting!” Milly said, prompting a bit of an angry glare from Shirley that, in a just universe, would have had the hair of that dirty old man in a young girl’s body catch fire.

“Um… Excuse me, but if Lelouch is leaving, that means he’ll miss out on the next bulletin point, and he should probably hear it,” Nina said, her voice as quiet as it usually was. The others turned towards them, with only Milly seeming to have the faintest clue of what she was talking about. “Well, it’s just that… You see, the thing is…”

“My grandfather has made a decision,” Milly said. “We may well have a brand new member of our lovely little student council. An invitation will be extended within the next few days, and after that it’s up to her.”

“I see,” Lelouch remarked, wearily bringing himself to his feet, this time reaching for the glass of water for a final sip before he left. “I am glad to hear that. We can always use another pair of hands… Which student is this, before I retire to a place I can recover in peace?”

“Kallen Stadfeld.”

At which point, Lelouch broke into a spluttering fit that made Shirley feel simply awful for all the terrible things she’d been thinking about him all day. Oh goodness! If she’d known he was this unwell….

<hr>
“And if you fold it here, like this, you can make a crane.”

Nunnally marvelled at such a simple piece of art. It required such skill, such nimble fingers, it was really quite remarkable. How could anyone not find this impressive? She tried again, fumbled it a little and tried once again. She would make a thousand cranes, and then she would wish for the Angels to go away. It seemed a bit naive to think it might work… But then again, she’d seen magic. She could use magic. Maybe it really would work.

“Now, are you feeling better after this morning?” Sayoko asked, once again placing her hand against Nunnally’s head and once again causing her to shudder. “How peculiar. Perhaps I should conduct a more thorough medical examination. If you will excuse my observation, Lady Nunnally, you seem a great deal more tense today than usual.”

“Whatever you think is best, Miss Sayoko.” Though she was probably right. It probably was just tension from the sudden responsibility thrust upon her. She would prevail in the end. She would meet up with the others. Nemo was even pursuing a lead right at this very moment! She would not have to face up to Black or the Angels on her own once again…

If only she could figure out why her sense of touch reacted so to the warmth of human contact. In all honesty, she was beginning to crave it more and more, and that observation was beginning to worry her.
<hr>
It was the next day before long. For anyone that knew Kallen, either in her real guise or her false one, the sight before them must have seemed a little peculiar. Leaning against a tree with a phone in one hand and the other twirling a stray strand of hair in her index finger. The smile on her face was much more genuine as well.

“Are you feeling alright?” asked Ohgi, the voice on the other end of the phone. “You seem to be a little strange today. I expected you to be a bit more annoyed at having to put up with going back to that place.”

“Oh, I am!” Kallen sighed. “Livid. Can’t wait to leave this wretched place full of privileged people complaining about privileged, boring things. When can I get out of here?”

“Be patient. The army is on high alert, particularly in keeping things under wraps until they even know what the hell to tell people. I doubt they’ll be able to keep it quiet much longer, though. Anyway, my point is that you’re less likely to be noticed if you stay undercover for a bit.”

“And the voice on the radio?”

“Can’t track down a voice. If he shows up again, maybe we’ll be able to work something out. Until then… Keep low. I’ll be in touch.”

The phone line went dead and Kallen tucked it away. This wonderful feeling, whatever it was, she hoped it didn’t go away anytime soon. And it was all because of that boy. Lelouch. Oh, but she wouldn’t forget that any time soon, she knew that for certain. Cornering him in the supply closet, him asking her questions about… something or other, she hadn’t really been paying attention, she’d just answered truthfully and hoped he would shut up and get down to business. Which he did. At first reluctantly, but with rising enthusiasm as they went. The lust went, and she felt more normal if still extremely euphoric, but at least she wasn’t fighting every instinct in herself to do something stupid anymore.

Because she’d already done something stupid.

And… speaking of him, there he was now. Alright. Fine. She’d been meaning to have this conversation. Yesterday was a one-shot thing, and she had absolutely no desire to repeat. A boyfriend might help her cover a bit, but it would also mean he’d be at a greater risk of figuring out her secret. Which was another thing she needed to make sure of.

“There you are,” he said with a smile. “You think you could spare a minute? I need to talk to you.”

“Sure,” she replied. “I was wondering when you were gonna ask.”

So she followed him, just as he wanted. But she wasn’t quite in the mood today for anything like that, thank you very much. It was strange but she’d never been into this part of the school before. Completely unfamiliar territory, and she doubted many other students came this way either.

“I didn’t even know this room existed,” she remarked, annoyed at the typical showoff Britannian architecture.

“It’s the club house for the student council,” Lelouch explained. “They built it as a ballroom for various special occasions.”

“And we won't be disturbed inside here?” she asked, pretty certain of his intentions by this point.

“Be careful how you phrase such things,” Lelouch warned. “There are certain people that might overhear and take it to mean something quite different from what you intend.  Speaking of whom - Hello, madame president! Did you find the champagne after all?”

He… He brought an audience? Kallen knew that some boys were into some peculiar things, but to invite three girls and a boy to observe was a little beyond the pale!

“Congratulations are in order,” said one of the girls. “My grandfather has decided you are to join the student council, due to your poor health making it difficult for you to join any other club. We’d be glad to have you!”

… Oh. Oh! This must have been what he’d wanted to talk about yesterday! And there she went, seducing him, and -

“My, my! No need to be so shy!” the same girl said. “My name is Milly Ashford, and I’m the student council president. It’s positively lovely to meet such an innocent flower.”

“Take care or she’ll try corrupting you,” another girl playfully warned. “And what was that I heard about champagne?”

“Ah, relax a bit, Shirley! It’s just sparkling cider. No big deal.”

There was a whirlwind of introductions. Rizalz, Shirley, Nina, heck even Lelouch’s little sister showed up in a wheelchair to introduce herself. There was something oddly familiar about her… Familial resemblance? Yeah, that was probably it.

“Oh, no, you don’t!” Shirley suddenly yelled at Rivalz, trying to grab a bottle away from him. “No champagne! We’re supposed to set a good example for the other students, and getting plastered is not a good example!”

“Stop being such a stick in the mud!” Rivalz said, yanking it back out of her grip. A tug of war ensued, and Kallen could almost predict how it was going to end moments before that very event transpired. Before her eyes, the bottle sailed through the air, hit the ceiling near her, the cork popped out and very nearly struck her. If not for her reflexes it would have. The champagne, on the other hand…

“Sayoko! Be a dear, and get her some new clothes,” Milly said, stifling a rather obvious laugh. Though Kallen got the feeling it was more directed at the red-faced Rivalz and Shirley. “And Nina, show her where the shower is. I get the feeling she’ll want to take one in a moment.”

<hr>
So here he was, standing outside the shower with the fresh clothes prepared by Sayoko. Beyond those doors was the girl he’d lost his virginity to yesterday. Naked. Dripping wet. Immune to his Geass since he’d used it on her yesterday, and quite possibly suspecting he was the mystery voice.

This was not a situation he had imagined likely to occur. Nor did he expect the anticipation he would feel at the possible glimpse of her figure again. Damnable mating urge even made a fool out of him. Well. Nothing else for it but to get on with the plan, and be a bit more careful in future how he used this Geass ability. The plan started by knocking on the door.

“It’s Lelouch,” he said. “I have your change of clothes!”

He could almost hear the hesitation in her voice, and in the silence too while he was at it. “Alright,” she said reluctantly. “Come in. The curtain is drawn.”

“Sorry about them,” he said, trying very hard not to peer at the silhouette through the curtain. “They get a little energetic sometimes.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Kallen said. “Say, could you hand me that pouch? There’s something in there I wanted to show you.”

Bit of an obvious trap, all things considered. Sometimes one simply had to in order to progress one’s own agenda. After all, when one thinks their own trap is successful they don’t tend to spot the other one closing around their neck. He reached down, plucked the pouch, shyly looked away from the naked form of the girl he’d explored every square inch of the day before and passed it over… Presenting the perfect opportunity for her to snatch his wrist and give it a painful twist just <i>so</i>.

“Who are you really?” she asked. “What is it about you that made me want you when no other boy made me feel that way?”

“Could be my innate charm,” Lelouch said, struggling a little to add to the illusion. “I didn’t realise you were into this sort of thing - ah! Ah! A little too much!”

“Don’t get smart with me!” Kallen hissed. “Shinjuku… I’m sure you mentioned it yesterday, just as you were leaving. Why did you bring that up?”

“Why?” Lelouch innocently asked. “Is there anything wrong with -”

And then the phone rang, prompting Lelouch to smirk. Just in the nick of time, Sayoko. Do remember to pleasure yourself after this is done to break the Geass effect, it would be rather… awkward if he had to take care of that matter personally. Still, this Geass ability was turning out to be quite the handy little tool. Now he just had to set up his group. Now he just had to set up his alter ego. Now, he just had to topple Britannia, and in the process, reveal the existence of Angels to the public.