A/N "GOOOOOD MORNING VIETNAM! (R.I.P Robin Williams, you will forever be missed. God Bless your soul.) Anyways, mourning aside, WELCOME everyone to the next Akame ga Kill story that I have pledged to write. Gonna go ahead and say this now, once again Tatsumi is older in this story, around 19 yrs old, just like the previous Akame ga Kill story, and Mine will be 17. I can already tell you there is no chance in HELL this one is gonna be as long as A Different Path, but I hope I can make it long enough to where it surpasses at least 100k words because A Different Path and it's over 420k words...holy shit...it took a lot out of me.

Leave a fav and review, and shout out to my bois Chaos_Omega and Neptune!

Prologue

As the war between the Revolutionary Army and the Empire raged on and neared its climax, across the Caeres Ocean its little talked about eastern neighbor only watched in utter silence at the brutality and carnage.

While not as old as the thousand-year old Empire, this nation known as the Holy Empire of Judecca has had its fair share of history, but has always lived in silence within the shadow of its neighbor. It's military was strong but not as large, the nation was also very healthy in size, but nowhere near the monstrous proportions of the Empire. Ever since the revolution had begun and even before that, Judecca had always been a practitioner of fierce isolationism, preferring to remain neutral in conflicts that could potentially bring harm to the nation.

At the very top was the ruler of Judecca, the Holy Emperor Karna Masta, and he ruled from the capital of Zion, Judecca's largest city and crown jewel. The people living there greatly enjoyed the freedoms and liberties Karna Masta provided for them, and peace resonated throughout the nation.
Unfortunately...nothing good ever lasts forever.

- Holy Palace, Zion, Capital of Judecca -

The aging Karna Masta sat upon his throne within Zion's Holy Palace, his various attendants, military officials, and family members there with him in that aging hall.

The Holy Emperor looked to his left and caught a glance from his Granddaughter, a young woman of eighteen years who was quite stunning and loved by many. She had fair, almost porcelain-like skin, and long silvery white hair that she kept in a off-center buntail and pinned it with a icicle shaped tiara. Her dress was fitting for a princess like her, a glittering masterpiece with a pale blue color, a sweetheart neckline, and a white, tulle petticoat. The skirt reached the floor and split to her thigh on one side, and over the outfit she wore a slightly sheer long-sleeved blue shrug fastened at the collar with a large sapphire brooch that had three pendants dangling from it.

"My dear Esdia, could you fetch me a glass of tea please? I'd very much appreciate it, since between you and me, this meeting is quite boring." he asked quietly, the Princess giggling and nodding.

"Of course Grandfather. Try not to fall asleep before I get back." replied Esdia before she walked around at the edge of the throne room and left through the heavy oak doors.

When she made a left away from the throne room and turned a corner at the end of the left hallway, a large group of people appeared down the opposite one that was to the right of the doors.

A majority, around twenty, of the group were these robed men with pitch-black shoulder pauldrons and matching helmets with red-tinted t-shaped visors, a golden crown, a purple colored mohawk and feathered wings on either side of it.

At the front of the group were two drastically different people. One was hunched over, its body covered entirely by a dark maroon cloak and hood that made it impossible to guess the figure's gender or appearance. Every step it took though made a heavy metallic clanking noise, a noise different from the sound the black knights and their boots made.

The other leader was a female, a very beautiful one at that, with long, white hair tied into a single tail that hung over her left shoulder, fair skin, and a gentle aura that radiated superiority from her uncanny yellow eyes.

She wore a form-fitting black, purple and gold dress that left her belly button and a majority of her cleavage exposed, matching arm sleeves, and a black cape that had a red fur collar.

The group arrived at the throne room and with utter disregard for formality the woman pushed them open and strided into the room with the hunched figure by her side. The twenty black knights entered aftewards and split into two equal lines of ten that lined each side of the room, facing its occupants and staring at them silently.

"What is the meaning of this?" demanded one of Karna Masta's generals, but the man was silenced when the Holy Emperor raised a hand and stared at the woman.

"Consul Maxwell...what are you doing here? I did not summon you."

"My apologies, your Highness." replied Maxwell in a silky smooth voice as she bowed. "I've come here of my own accord. To be brutally honest, I'm here to remove you from your throne."

The room went into an uproar, with the guards stationed taking a step forward with their swords drawn, but with the snap of her fingers Maxwell's soldiers relinquished their cloaks and unveiled armored muscular bodies. Each soldier held a short sword in each hand, and from a silver disk built into their armor's back piece sprouted glistening black angel wings made entirely out of metal.

"I would refrain from doing that. My Archangels are nigh-invincible soldiers, my personal guards that I augmented with weapons of my own design." stated Maxwell with a smirk, the Holy Emperor scowling at her while his wife, daughter and her husband watched in terror.

"You and your machinations...you've gone mad! This is treason!"

"Silence." commanded Karna Masta, the man standing up from his throne after the man who spoke before became quiet.

"Maxwell, your minions may be more then a match for my guards, but you have underestimated me." he said before he shrugged off his robes, revealing the heavily toned and buff body of a warrior that greatly contrasted his grey and white hair. "I will put an end to your rebellion myself."

The Holy Emperor stepped down from his raised throne and stood across from Maxwell, his arms crossed over his chest.

It was at this time the hunched figure cleared his throat and asked in a deep, gravely voice that had a very heavy Scottish accent, "May I take care of this pest for for you…?"

"Yes you may, my loyal servant." said Maxwell, the cloaked figure shuffling forward until he stood in front of her facing Karna Masta.

At first he did nothing, but then he looked up and stared at the Holy Emperor from under his hood. Whatever face the man had, it was enough to physically affect Karna Masta and shake him slightly before he hid his surprise behind a cold- hard stare. Then the figure stood up, rising to a staggering seven and a half feet tall before he removed his cloak.

He was no man, but a mix of beast and machine with a body reminiscent of a horrifying skeleton with black limbs, bipedal legs, and clawed hands with four fingers. His shoulder joints were protected by large shoulder pauldrons, and his head consisted of a skull-like mask with four eye slots that allowed everyone to see the four red and green reptilian eyes that stared with a fiery hate at Karna Masta.
Adorning the left side of his cyborg body was a series of bright purple tattoos that added to his savage appearance, if the pitch black color scheme and almost glowing eyes didn't already make him look like one.

"My name is Warsaw, Maxwell's personal attendant. Tell me, Karna Masta...do you fear death?" spoke the nightmarish cyborg, his reptilian eyes narrowing.

"I will not stand idly by and watch as my nation falls to some band of extremists who wish to tear down all that my ancestors had worked to build!" shouted Karna Masta before he rushed the cyborg, the old man faster then what most expected, and threw a punch at the cyborg's face.

Warsaw reacted with lightning-fast reflexes, his clawed hand stopping the Holy Emperor's a foot away from his face. Then he began to push him back, his monstrous strength forcing Karna Masta's fist backwards and causing him to grunt in pain as the bones and connecting ligaments and tendons were strained to the breaking point.

Warsaw watched silently as he forced the mighty Holy Emperor to a knee, eventually towering over the ruler and showing his dominance without any effort whatsoever. Then he leaned down until his face was mere inches away from Karna Masta's and he stared right through him, all the way to his soul.

"I'll ask this again...do you fear death…?" he asked, his voice oozing with blood lust.

"Go rot in hell, you satanic creature." snarled Karna Masta, Warsaw chuckling evilly as he leaned back, his other hand balling up into a fist.

"Mistress...shall I make this man bleed?"

"As long as you don't kill him, my dear. We still need him for a short while longer…" replied Maxwell with a giggle, the cyborg pushing Karna Masta's wrist back even farther until he cried out when Warsaw broke it, a loud cracking noise echoing through the room.

As he doubled over in pain, clutching his broken and malformed wrist, he looked up and just barely saw past Maxwell the scared expression on his Granddaughter's face, her wide eyes bringing nothing but pain to his old heart. When no one was paying attention, her mouthed the word "RUN" to her several times to try and get to her to get away as fast as possible.

On the third time she gave one last look at him before she disappeared, the Holy Emperor closing his eyes and smiling softly as Warsaw walked around behind him, glaring at him.

"At least you will survive...my beloved Esdia…"

Maxwell nod her head and Warsaw planted both hands firmly on either side of Karna Masta's head, the Emperor grunting when he felt like his skull was getting crushed. Then, without a sound, Warsaw ripped his arms around in a circular motion and broke the Emperor's neck with such force it spun his head around almost 180 degrees. He gurgled as blood seeped through his pursed lips before he collapsed onto the ground, sputtering a few more times before he stopped twitching and ceased all movement.

"I apologize Mistress, I might have used too much force."

"It's alright Warsaw, we can still use his body." replied Maxwell with a smile as she looked at the Holy Emperor's family, who were staring at them and his body with horrified expressions.

"Now with that out of the way...kill them."

"Kill who, Mistress?" asked Warsaw with a glance at her.

"All of them. Any and all who were associated with the now removed Holy Emperor. And for his family...crucify them. I want it public."

Meanwhile, Esdia had already left the Holy Palace with a traveling cloak flung over her normal attire, her skin paler then usual from the terror coursing through her veins. She pulled up the large hood and just ran, hoping to get as far away from the palace as possible.

Unfortunately she didn't see the person right in front of her and she collided with them, causing them both to fall to the ground in a jumbled mess that stirred up some dust on the ground.

"Oh, I'm so sorry!" apologized Esdia as she frantically tried to get up, her face meeting the strangers and shocking her when she recognized who it was. "U-Uncle Lazarus?"

"Esdia?" asked Lazarus as he was about to get up, but was stopped when she threw her arms around him and hugged him while shaking.

"Esdia, what's wrong?"

"T-They're gonna kill them...t-t-they're gonna kill them…" she stuttered, Lazarus carefully lifting her to her feet as he stood up, the exceptionally tall and lanky man kneeling down to be closer to her height.

"Talk to me Esdia, I can't understand you."

"G-Granddad...Mom...Dad...a-all of them...s-she's gonna kill them…"

Before Lazarus could respond he looked up and spotted two groups of robed figures dressed in black with black metallic wings take to the skies, as if they were searching for someone. He quickly pulled up Esdia's hood to hide her characteristic silvery white hair and had her get behind him when the cyborg Warsaw walked out of the palace and spotted them immediately.

"You, who are you?" he questioned as he approached them, Lazarus just barely topping him in height.

"My name is Lazarus, and I should be asking you the same question, sir."

The cyborg coughed and got himself in a more upright posture, "My name is Warsaw, personal attendant to the former Consul Maxwell."

"Former…?"

"Holy Emperor Karna Masta has been dethroned, and he and his family are set to be tried under orders from the new Holy Empress. We're currently looking for Princess Esdia…" Warsaw fixed his gaze on Lazarus and narrowed his eyes.
"Would you happen to know where she could have gone?"

Lazarus merely stared at him with an equally stone-cold look before he cleared his throat. "I have no idea where she could have gone. If you don't know, I am the acting Warden of the Megalith Prison, and this is the first time I've been to the Holy Capital in months, so I wouldn't know anything that has recently occurred."

Lazarus looked down fondly at Esdia and rubbed her shoulders gently, smiling as he did when she hid behind him even more. She was afraid, he could easily tell that, and from this he could deduce that this Warsaw character must have played a part in her family's abrupt downfall. He could smell deception in the air, and he hid his suspicions perfect behind a facade of fake emotions.

"It's my daughter's birthday, so I brought her to the Capital to find her a birthday present."

Warsaw glanced down at Esdia and bent over to try and catch a glimpse of her face, but she hid more behind Lazarus.

"Sorry, she's very shy around others." explained Lazarus with a chuckle to draw Warsaw's attention away from Esdia.

"Ah, I see. I apologize."

The cyborg returned to his full height and resumed his four-eyed stare at Lazarus, one eye glancing down and catching the button in his jacket collar that confirmed his statement about being the Megalith's Warden, the symbol of the prison being the button's design.

"Well, sorry to bother you and your daughter, Warden. You may continue on your way."

He stepped away from them and motioned with one of his clawed hands for them to move along, Lazarus bowing respectfully before he led Esdia away from the cyborg into the city. They didn't stop walking until they had left the city entirely and were a good distance away before Lazarus let go of Esdia and hugged her tightly, the young Princess finally breaking down into tears from sheer terror.

Lazarus remained silent as his niece poured all of the bottled up emotions she had kept since her departure from the Holy Palace, the Warden only being able to gently rub her back and hold on to her.

"Let it out...it's okay...Uncle Lazzy's here…" he whispered in a soft voice to help soothe Esdia.

A few minutes later and she had finally stopped crying, the young Princess wiping her eyes and removing herself from Lazarus. She nod her head to say that she was fine now and she waited to hear what he had to say.

"Esdia, did you see my brother before you ran?"

"H-He was the one who told me too…b-before...before...t-that thing..."

Lazarus closed his eyes and had to keep himself in check, the thing she was referring to easily being Warsaw, and when he figured that out his mind went wild with all of possible outcomes for the fate of his brother. A few seconds of calm breathing brought him back to reality and he kneeled before Esdia, putting a hand on her shoulder and staring at her.

"Then you must abide. That cyborg does not possess good intentions, and I can only assume that if they capture you, the same fate that awaits your family will happen for you, and I cannot allow that." He looked into her eyes with a dead serious facial expression. "Esdia, you must leave Judecca."

"No! I don't want to leave, I want to stay with you!" cried Esdia, Lazarus chuckling at her eagerness.

"As much as I would love that, a prison is no place for you. And since I'm your Uncle, they'll be keeping a close eye on me, so you being at the prison is an even greater risk. You're a big girl Esdia, you can take care of yourself, so I'm going to send you to the Empire." explained Lazarus, Esdia paling at the mentioning of the turmoil-infested nation that rested across from Judecca past the ocean.

"The E-Empire..?"

"Yes. Currently it's embroiled in a revolution that's close to succeeding. You can easily slip through and find somewhere out of the way to lay low and hide."

"B-But...Uncle…"

Lazarus shushed her and brought her into another loving embrace. "You have to be brave little one, I promise that I will come for you. When the time is right, I will come for you, and we can both find somewhere far away from the reach of this place, a place where you will be safe."

Esdia's lower lip trembled and she slowly nod her head, Lazarus gently bringing her into an embrace and holding her close for a minute.

"Okay...let's go."

He held her hand as he stood up, hunching over a tad bit to compensate for her height, and walked with her away from Zion all the way to the port city of Corinths, the Warden taking her to the docks in order to find someone suitable and trustworthy to take her across the water. It took them a few, and with time of the essence Lazarus felt rushed, but in the end he was able to find a shipping captain who was just about to leave that with a little explanation and a little lying, Esdia was able to secure a spot on the ship.

"Esdia, listen to me now." said Lazarus as he kneeled before his niece, pulling up her hood when he did. "You're going to the Southern Territories...once there, you head north toward the Empire. Find a village away from the Revolution and the fighting and hide there among the populace. Don't let anyone know who you are."

"Y-Yes, Uncle." said Esdia with a nod, the young Princess trying hard not to cry.
"Stay there, little one...and like I said earlier, I promise that once I find an opportunity, I will come for you. And when I do, we can both run away from the world together."

He smiled softly at her and embraced her for probably the last time, Esdia's guard finally breaking down as she hugged her Uncle and cried into his shoulder. They stayed like that for a few minutes before Esdia was the one to pull away and smile at Lazarus and walk toward the waiting ship captain, the bearded and season naval captain smiling at her and holding her hand as he walked her to his ship.

A few minutes later Lazarus was waving off Esdia as the ship departed from port out onto the water, her image slowly getting farther and farther away until he couldn't see her anymore. When she was gone he lowered his hand and smiled a little, happy that in the very least she would survive whatever fate the rest of her family would suffer through.

"Smart, casting her as your daughter in order to avoid her being apprehended."

Lazarus whirled around and swore under his breath when Warsaw appeared from behind a large pile of stacked crates with three Archangels, the elite soldiers each holding two short swords and staring silently at him. Warsaw had a grey cape cast over his shoulders and he walked up to Lazarus, glaring at him with his four reptilian eyes for a few moments.

"I won't allow Esdia to be hurt by brutes like you. Whatever you plan on doing to her family, she will at least survive to one day return here with an army to free this place from your clutches." spat Lazarus, the cyborg taking the verbal punishment and chuckling.

"An Army? From where, exactly?"

"The Empire."

Warsaw blinked and then laughed, his strained, grizzled laugh making Lazarus even more angry. The cyborg warrior suddenly stopped laughed and rammed a fist deep into his gut, knocking the wind out of him and dropping the prison warden to his knees.

"The Empire? They're indisposed right now, being caught up in a Revolution. There's no way they'll be able to muster up an army to take on Judecca once it all comes to an end and both sides are left weary and beaten." he said with a vile tongue, Lazarus looking up at him as he writhed and grinning.

"I've heard stories of a group of fighters over there...ones that are powerful. Even you won't be able to stop them."

"Don't you think we've prepared for that possibility?"

The Archangels suddenly shed their black robes and unfurled their black metal wings, the sunlight glistening off their finished and polished feathers, each one sharpened to a point.

"These wings are a less powerful version of Abbadon, the first of a series of weapons that my mistress dubbed "Arma". They're similar in strength to the Empire's "Teigu"...so even though we may not have as big of a military as the Empire, we can sure match them in strength." replied Warsaw, Lazarus imagining the cyborg would be sneering at him if he had a mouth.

Warsaw then leaned down and grasped Lazarus by the throat, lifting him off the feet into the air and staring him down with the harsh, cold glare of a ruthless and brilliant tactician and killer.

"I would break your neck right now, Lazarus Masta...but you're too important to kill. Consider yourself lucky that you're the Warden of that damned prison." snarled Warsaw before he brought Lazarus in close, his face inches away. "But...that doesn't mean I can't punish you."

"Do your worst, you bastard...I can endure any pain in order to ensure my family is safe." said Lazarus with a determined look.

"We shall see…oh, and about your Niece? Once we stabilize Judecca...we'll go after her. I know that boat is going to the Southern Territories, and I assume you must have told her to hide somewhere in the Empire." said Warsaw, Lazarus' expression morphing to fear. "She can run, she can hide, but we will find her. And you, my dear Warden...have a front row seat to her crucifixion. I guarantee it."

- Akame ga Kill! - Judecca Rising -