The King's Court

A Code Geass Fanfiction

Gimmick Niche: Characters Watching their own Show / Pseudo-Novelization of Code Geass Anime Show and Spin-offs.

Opening Act - The Summoning

Time has moved on for liberated world of the living, It's march following its course as it is the wish of the masses since eons ago from existence, freed by the hands of one mortal king, a King that now had laid down his life freely, though no one would know it. Truly, the death of the so disdained Demon Emperor in the streets of Japan may have happened in course of seconds in tension, yet even then the memories of that vivid moment still shook the very foundations of humanity with shivers on the spine, shedding all manner of emotions for those that remembered it.

Surprise, confusion, shock, epiphany, relief, cheer, all crushing the few who were under despair and grief… Many feelings soared forth when the golden blade of the world hero Zero cast the Demon from his throne, slaying him on spot through the heart.

No one had expected it. No one had believed it. But it happened so, in the eyes of the whole world on camera...

They say it was divine punishment, a gift for the desperate citizens of the hegemony seeking retribution, hoping for salvation in a world they saw it dominated. Surely, there was nothing else to expect when someone so diabolical rose into such power. In fact, the incident itself just became naught but self-explanatory, for god himself has seen fit to give humanity a day to be celebrated in the coming years of the new age.

"Hail the hero of the world, hail the peace we have sought!" The crowds cheered.

This is what the masses believed. This is how the many would take it for granted. An evil has been vanquished and that's all that matters. No one would question or even ponder the strands behind everything, for the mystery in-between was to be forgotten. Indeed, no one would even care how it happened, or why did it happen and that's exactly how he wanted it to be...

Or at least, most of it… He, the Demon Emperor, was dead. That's all there is to it.

"(Hmph… But then, what comes next I wonder…?)"

When it comes to dying, Lelouch believed himself to be an professional. That is, if death is as hollow and cold as it feels now, shrouded by tension and paranoia in one's being. Point taken, the last time he considered himself to be dead it was out of a symbolic meaning, one born out of the threat of his father looming over him and the constant preoccupation of Nunnally's safety in life, to the point he could not think or live for anything else beside survival. Yes... Back then, he was a dead man walking, breathing but not living, thinking but not dreaming. It was a state where that was no self-worth, no self fulfilment, something that one might as well consider an state of death itself all things concerned.

Yet now, facing the reality of it here, Lelouch wasn't so sure of the deal anymore. What is making him so tense here? He had long expected the worst outcome to clutch him in a real death. Quite, with just his atrocities alone, punishment must be seriously grand, something supposedly beyond the notions of physical and mental imagination of torture. Is he going to join his parents? Is he going to vanish from existence like them? Or is it something else? Something worse? The implications of it ran wild in the former Emperor's mind as darkness long overcame his still thinking conscience in the void of his surroundings, the sensation of his dead body long forgotten.

On his twisted thoughts, Lelouch began to drift back on the possible outcomes of the Zero Requiem once more, namely, the ways it could fall. While it's safe to say that he was confident of its success at life, there is only so much one man can plan ahead in the future, even with a Empire or the World under his boots. On short term, the initial shock should be enough for the world to unite and recover in peace but, once that passes… Well, it is known that it only takes the will of a single man to set flames to all that is constructed. He himself being a now dead is a proof of that.

And if it comes to that, there was nothing he could do about it should it happen. After all, Schneizel still lives, controlled or not. If he ever gets free of his shackles…

"..."

Maybe this is what is making him paranoid. The fear of his greatest and latest miracle going wrong. Should Suzaku fail now on his demise, everything they waged for will be for naught...

"..."

Wait, could it be? Could it be that his punishment is-

"-They say a man never truly knows himself… Until his freedom is taken away…"

"!?"

Interrupted by a voice in the middle of the dark, Lelouch was startled into shock.

Ever since "waking up" from death, he couldn't see, hear, or even perceive anything in any meaningful sense except for his thoughts in this floating perception. Only darkness, a impenetrable void, surrounded him, to the point that even his body was vacant and invisible on it, being part of the empty painted scenery. As far as he knew, this "world", if one could call it that, was silent and cold, a welcoming scene given his deeds, a form of purgatory for reflection before the worst.

Yet now this is happening, a voice toned from a girl or a woman invaded his very mind there...

"I wonder… How well do you know yourself?" It inquired just as light finally entered his non-existent-yet-turned-real eyes.

There, the first thing Lelouch perceives is the path before him, an bridge of ruins suspended in a garden of dark skies. Surprised, he now finds himself whole once more, his very being clad in his royal uniform of Imperial white, spotless and clean, with not an ounce of the bloody smear that once took place in on his heart. Beyond that, after an blink of eyes correcting itself in focus looking ahead, an pair of chairs materialized, both facing each other in opposition in a table. A curious inviting scene meant to him...

"What…?" Lelouch could barely react at sudden constructing presence of some individual taking shape of an girl before him. It's an young adult like him, her hair shoulder in length, toned with hues of black and purple. She vaguely reminded him of C.C, with an outfit featuring several instances of the Geass iconography all over the white robes clearly visible on their neck and on the top of the clothing.

It all stared at him thoroughly with overwhelming weight.

"Lelouch vi Britannia." She addresses his name, glaring deeply at his very eyes as if to read him, "Liar, Murderer, Tyrant… Today, for the geass you once possessed, you stand be judged." She declares, taking him out of stupor with a gesture to free chair before her, "Sit."

"..."

The former Emperor, caught off guard in the sudden declaration done against him, sought to recompose himself, planting a smug smile on his face even as sweat of tension slightly crawled out his face. This "woman" puts him on edge for some reason, her very unnatural eyes expressing intense pressure beneath it's soft appearance. On outside, she appears to simple and normal, if not exotic to look at, yet somehow Lelouch could tell he was face-to-face to something great than it looks, something fantastic and surreal, a norm rule when it comes to the wonders of the supernatural afterlife, much like geass or C.C.

"So, you are my tormentor, huh?" He flaunted with a blunt statement, taking his seat as "ordered", courteous yet arrogant, "Have you decided accordingly on what is my punishment? I assume it must be grand given my magnificent design."

However, shaking her head with grace, the unnamed woman denied, "No. Judgement requires certainty. Questions yet remain."

That made him blink. It was ludicrous to hear it, shocking even, "Questions? Questions!? How can that be? Shouldn't you already know what I've done? Aren't you the one God that sees all?" Retorted Lelouch indignated, hiding his surprise with scrutiny. He immediately wondered if he judged the thing wrong.

"We've seen the results of your actions, but not the scope of your reasoning. For the judgement be whole, no gaps must be left in your past line of thoughts. Such is the way of the King's Court." The being affirmed in her strange way of explaining, basking at his reaction with closed eyes.

"(The King's Court?)" Many things crossed Lelouch's mind as he processed this. His judgment, fit for kings... Huh. Maybe he was right, maybe he would face the same oblivion he father did… Still, there is one aspect that he found odd, "Wait, we? As in more than one person?" Of course, Lelouch already had some reasonable answer to his own question but he sought to confirm anyway.

"Yes, Accursed. We are many…

We, the entirety of the jury, the collective consciousness given form. Everyone you know, everyone you ever heard of, everyone you love or hate, every human being who ever was, everyone who ever lived and will live out their lives, every hunter and forager, every hero and coward, every creator and destroyer of civilization, every king and peasant, every young couple in love, every mother and father, every hopeful child, every inventor and explorer, every teacher of morals, every corrupt politician, every superstar, every supreme leader, every saint and sinner in the history of humanity…

That is us. That is who we are." Declared the thing in clamor, giving form to everything she spoke, "And we demand answers..."

And Lelouch, who still kept his strong persona mask intact even at face of his possible Deity, had his composure broken, his face grimacing into a deep frown what he saw.

"That is... You… Are you mocking me?" He demanded forthright feeling both insulted and intimidated. Such reaction is expected when witnessing the standing bodies of every single being he has ever known.

Indeed… From smiling face of his sister to the grimace of his best and worst traitor friend, to the sight of the four only women he ever loved and his friend from the Academy… This was but the first line of silhouettes he saw. It began with only faces, but each one grew their own bodies, materializing themselves into view. There was them and many more. Those who once held dear or who once were part of his life, including those that actually died, be it by his hand or otherwise. They were all right before his very eyes behind the face of this… Woman creature who calls herself god...

Truly, the rows of acquainted souls extend far further from this behind the shadow of his judge. There stood the members of the U.F.N; the leaders and generals of old Japan; Knights and princesses of the Britannia Empire; The rising child of China and her genius Bodyguard; The soldiers of his revolutionary order; and even the common roots of his not-so-innocent school council.

There were many familiar faces at once, all taking place in this garden of afterlife to face him, their expressions shifting into the same expression of his godly tormentor.

"We are all who we need to be Lelouch vi Britannia, and now your judgement begins..." They all declared in unison, voices intermingling together.

Now that tinge of dread rose the ice from his stomach. Lelouch tried to kept himself strong and preserved on his chair, but somehow he knew that for whatever awaited him now, he knew his mask wouldn't last. He had no pieces in hand, no trump cards to play, only his intellect, his guilt and memory to bear, all things that will be certainly be put to the test from here. Truly, a strange trial about to occur in this mythical garden of the night.

And it's here that his judgement beckons...

Elsewhere, within the fields of another flowery garden, an heavily clad masked man strode the renovated halls of the rebuilt Aries Villa. This man, clad in his black caped armor, didn't falter in his steps to reach the very entrance of what was once the vi Britannia's very home, carrying on himself the shadow of ominous wavering cape as he loomed over the front doors.

"L-Lord Zero! You're here!?" Gasped the elderly steward surprised to see the feared vigilante showing up so suddenly in his host's home, "Please forgive me but Her Majesty didn't warn me of any visit from yours, she's not present at moment."

"It matters not, I'm here for something else." Zero declared in his modulated voice, impatiently forcing his way inside.

Suzaku was unnerved. For the past two days, he experienced some of the strangest and familiar dreams ever envisioned, familiar in the sense of how real it felt, with that chilling and crushing presence of the incomprehensible weighing down on his very being, shaking him down to the core. The last time he ever felt something like that was when C.C did her geassy/magic macguffin to haunt his mind with his father's death… shock images, as she called it, from a incomplete contact/contract.

However, while it was indeed familiar, the things Suzaku saw was far from mere shock images. No, what the dreams actually entailed… well, It played with his emotions on degree far beyond he was ready for it.

It began with his senses forming the world as an temple soon after he went adrift in sleep. Suzaku found himself on a large room carved in white stone, old in architecture, ancient in appearance. The place was pristine, well decorated, with chairs lined up evenly and grand view of an stage set right in front of it, all very pretty and stylized in an preserved form of archeological/historical ruins.

...Except of course that these ruins floated in mid of nowhere above the clouds of a sunset sky…

"(This place…)" Suzaku blinked in the resemblance. He had saw this before, vaguely speaking. This kind of world style, the surreal expression of some greek/roman senate or even a ancient theater. Yep, it is familiar, and dreadful...

"Wow, what a view!"

Gaping startled, Suzaku finally had sensed the presences around his being right there, something that went deadly amiss seconds ago. He turned around to find himself before an unexpected individual.

"Lloyd?" He called recognizing that often dismantled short lavender hair anywhere. Indeed, the man was there, the creator of Lancelot, posing ever so carefree even in this bizarre place.

Seeing him, the smiling scientist in his traditional white coat leaned close and blinked, "Oho~ Zero eh? Where did you came from?"

"That is my question!"

"As is mine!" Added another voice out of nowhere. Glancing aside, the gentle expression of a shocked assistant followed close by, another familiar face, clad in her classic orange uniform, "You two! What are you doing in my dream? I-I mean this is a dream right? You two look so… real." The woman questioned, completely disoriented as she joined them.

"What the… (From where did she came from!?)"

"Oh, Cecile! You as well? What a pleasant surprise~" Lloyd greets her with delightful expression, "I have to say yes, this is a dream indeed. Or at least it looks like one for me. Am I dreaming lucidly, or did my brain finally blew itself out again? Ugh… And just when I was getting starting my new knightmare project..." The scientist declared, arms crossed in a thoughtful manner.

"You mean the Lancelot Ascension? You're still working on that thing?" Cecile blinked as doubt took over her face. She looked wary when prodding this, dreamlike reality, "Have you actually managed to perfect the usage of the circuntry I designed for the energy wings?"

"Oh yes, you see..." And of course, when talking about his favorite subject, Lloyd just became the blabbermouth that he is, bringing shock to his partner who seem to understand it all, not a unusual thing considering both worked together since ever. At some point they seem to forget where they are, drawn into their own subject of talk despite all the weird environment around them...

Not that any of this mattered to Suzaku. Confusion and alertness still dominated his conscience in that archeological place. And considering he was dressed in his persona of Zero, he was about to question them further when he was interrupted. Indeed, in a sudden manner, before a whisper even left his mouth, more people sprout up with the merest of passage of a second. And they did so quite literally, on the most blunt meaning of the word…

One by one, at each blink of his eyes, they spontaneously materialized into existence. From those he knew the most, to the those he vaguely had knowledge about… They just… showed up...

"What the hell? You guys are here?"

"You tell me, what is this place!? Where am I!?"

"Wait, I'm sure I went to sleep just now..."

"Man, second day I'm already going nuts, never going to drink that much again..."

The chatter was mumbling mess. Suzaku tried to make sense of what he seeing (or more like, how he was seeing...) before he eventually realized that he knew every person that came to be in that place. Indeed, amidst the confusion, everyone was there. Everyone he ever knew. Acquaintances, opponents, friends... even those who once could be considered, family, all were present. It was a worrying prospect to contemplate.

The crowd itself though just seemed to be caught in the commotion. Everyone seemed to share the same surprise. It was all too vivid to be a mere dream. The manners, the behaviour, their very actions. It's all too detailed, too lucid, too clear, too real...

"Looks like we have all been caught in the same net." Spoke a voice, finally catching everyone's attention as voices turned down slightly. Glossing over with his flashy long hair, uncommon in a grown man, the visage of the chinese general stood strong as surveyed his peers. His mind was the first to immediately put a cog in this weird puzzle in a coherent fashion.

"Xingke… What's going on?" Close to him, the little form of Empress Tianzi looked afraid. Her eyes dancing between her own imperial dress and that of her guardian's royal red gait.

She wasn't the only one though. Kneeling down in a respectful bow, an clearly foreign woman addressed the two with royal respect, "Lord Xingke, My Empress, this is..." Her tone showed reluctance and concern at finding herself so unexpectedly before her superiors. She even hastily inspected her own war-like uniform, the same she wore during her time in the U.F.N moments of strife.

"A dream. Or at least, some shared form of it." Xingke explained in short notice, "Stand up Xianglin, no need for such formalities."

"An dream huh?" Added another soul with a sharp glint in his tone. Frowning in his hawkish features, Todoh looked unabated as he approached them, his arms crossed on top of his martial black kimono pondering the situation, "How odd… Could it be karma? Or perhaps..."

"But how can this be?" At his side, a similarly dressed woman stood, the last remaining member of the legendary Four Holy Swords of Japan's old JLF, "This place… Just where are we?"

"Geass! This madness is related to geass!" A bold voice answerer in bland indignation. With her pristine purple hair, and her regal warrior posture, Cornelia gave no quarter as she sprouted from the crowd, glowing in her caped outfit. It is the Witch of Britannia, the goddess of victory, the royal princess herself marching out into the open in rage, "My cursed brother must be haunting us with that power of his! The nerve of him to meddle with my mind, my dreams!"

"Y-your Highness, calm yourself!" Flanking her, the former knight Guilford, lands a hand on her shoulder. The man seemed frail even within his formal dark red suit uniform, his eyes were covered in black glasses, an proof of his scars from the past.

"Big Brother did this?" Sitting wide eyed on her wheelchair, the petite and frail form of the 100th Empress of Britannia brought shock to all who found themselves there, "Is this… Something related to his power?"

No seemed to answer outright to her question, leaving the girl in grim silence in the next second...

"To involve even his sister in this… It seems likely that this might the case, specially if it comes from the Demon Emperor." Finally worded one japanese, shuffling in his formal, black trimmed kimono. It's Ohgi Kamane, the now Prime Minister of the United States of Japan, who grimaced at the implication of the mess they're in.

"Well, this is definitely unsettlingly. And we're just two months or so away from celebrating his very death after an year..." Commented a concerned soul, her worried green eyes and black hair sparkling visibly over her long stylized pink dress in red trims, "This can be no coincidence."

"Kaguya!" Calling her name out, the little girl Tianzi seemed relieved to see her.

"Hello Jiang, how do you do~"

"Hold on! But Lelouch is… He couldn't- He wouldn't ever do this…" All eyes turned to see Kallen storming into view, her face steadfast in dead Emperor's defense. Her school uniform was rather distinct from the warrior types around her, an abnormally considering her allegiances. But nevertheless of it, the ace of the black knights didn't falter in expressing herself, "(He wouldn't do this, not to his little sister or any of us!) There has to be another explanation!"

"Then this could only be C.C's doing." Another voice suggested, with quite the finally. Villetta looked prime in her matching kimono beside Ohgi. Her sharp expression showed that she didn't forget her knightly roots just yet, "As part of my previous occupation in chasing after her, It's very possible for that woman to have snared us into this…"

The crowd considered the words of the former OSI agent. It did made sense, that woman was the Emperor's Accomplice. However, looking around, C.C was unfortunatly not found among them…

"So that bitch is into this!? Where is she!? Reveal yourself!" Flared an annoyed rebellious tone, shrieking out loud. With his fiery toned hair and that branding bandana, Tamaki made himself as boisterous as he ever is with his festival-like attire. His cheeks were a bit red though, a sigh he was not quite of sober mind, given his dazing steps, "Stopping hiding from the shadows, you slothful little-"

"Calm down Tamaki!" , "Yeah, yelling won't help with anything!" Behind the hot-head, two other typically dressed men tried to hold and subdue Tamaki from his outbursts.

"Ah! Wait, Sugiyama, Yoshitaka, release me!"

"Shut up and keep it down you!" , "It's obvious she's not here!"

"Gah! You guys! Arg-" The drunk man was quickly dragged off to a corner.

"..."

"Hmm… Is this C.C's form of revenge then?" An sleazy voice inquired. Pumping smoke out of her dream-eske pipe, a laidback scientist also looked annoyed. Rakshata, as the brilliant scientist that she is, pouted softly, "If so, how does that involves me though? Was it because of my children squashing her lover's tools? They were quite the hassle for the former Emperor, weren't they?"

"(What!? Lovers!?)" Thought Kallen agasp. The nerve of her...

"Ha! As if those pieces of junk were a threat to begin with!" Lloyd snorted, challenging the Indian's implications. This earning him an angry glare in response, one that was swiftly ignored with smug smile, "The last Emperor and his… concubine, may have been with bit rough with their craziness but at least they were well guarded by my Lancelot."

"C.C is NOT Lelouch's concubine!" Kallen snapped at them, fuming out of sudden.

"Ahahaha! Is that so, Lloyd?" The noise even brought someone out from the corner, giggling at the word of it all. "Then would you know something about that huh, my dear husband? About Lelouch's plans that is~" Milly, certainly made herself present, well vested in her reporter attire as she intervened, wiking at both the angry redhead and the smirking scientist.

"D-D-D-Dear Husband!?" This in turn cast desperation into another, a blue haired young waiter who gasped right from behind. Rivalz almost lost his footing listening to all of this, "What is this!? You guys are still together!?"

Blinking, the previous madam president went thoughtful, "Well… Not really, our marriage has been called off completely but we've settled on a deal of sorts, keeping contacts and such~" She replied, visibly teasing. In fact, so carefree was she with her words that she didn't even notice how Rivalz got as pale as a rock before continuing, "So, do you?"

"Meh, his Majesty was quite the distant person, dear. Obviously his plans never came to my notice, much less those of his mysterious company..." Concluded the egocentric scientist, "Then again, we don't know about everyone do we?" He answered suggestively, glancing around towards a certain green haired girl among the newly arrived Ashford students.

"Oh, Nina?" Milly called following his eyes.

The girl then looked flustered, her face shifting from thoughtful evaluation to crippling nervousness under the sudden attention, "I-I don't know… Lelou- I mean, his Majesty never did say anything about this..." The young scientist revealed, "It's like Earl Lloyd said, his Majesty's plans are his own..."

And with that affirmation, silence instilled itself on the room for a moment. It seemed no one knew a thing…

"Huh, ain't this curious." Alas, breaking the ice, an cheerful laidback blonde stepped up. He was casually adorned in your average city commoner, rather outlandish compared to the others but not at all resembling the britannian nobility that he once was, "Can't say I get anything that's happening now but If I'm guessing right, this is about old man Lelouch eh?"

"(Old man Lelouch?)" Everyone thought, confused.

"You only got that now?" Kallen asked, looking at him with a arched eyebrows.

"Well, yeah?" The guy replied.

Dumbfounded, the redhead just sweatdropped at his simple, if not obvious, answer, "Gino… You…"

"I mean, I just noticed that everyone here seems kinda close to the guy." He added, "Friends, allies, enemies... Isn't all of that strange? I get that I may do fit on that last description but still..."

"..."

His words revealed nothing, nothing that seem to answer the current conundrum that every soul here had found themselves into. If anything, more dialogues continued to be exchanged between the familiar faces. Each trying to draw their own conclusions but failing to come up with an explanation.

And remaining somehow unnoticed, Zero kept his silence, also seeking solutions of his own. Without any doubt, Suzaku was at loss too. Even he didn't knew what the fuck was happening. Why they were there in the C World? Rather, is this the C World to begin with? C.C was never open-minded when it came to this, and he didn't bother much to ask about it back when he was still "Alive". Then again, after dealing with the disgusting unknown for so long, he just put all that mess he saw and witnessed into the same fold of it being an "geass thing", never bothering to question it further.

As result, when he needs it the most, the lack of knowledge was now biting him big in the ass. Suzaku just didn't know what to do…

"Ufufufufu~"

Alas, as the debate continued, a mocking laugh echoed in the room. When everyone followed the sound of it, they all gasped on spot...

"S-Schneizel!?" Recognized Zero in shock.

Indeed, to see the form of the dreaded man who almost enslaved the world in fear among them was a little of a surprise to bear, especially given his overly gallant attire of old aristocracy. The blond prince was regal as ever, clothed in his heavenly white suit of old, pristine as gem, untouched be dirt as it stressed his true heritage. The smug in his face seemed to suggest that he knew more than anyone else in the room, an fact that angered many.

"Now, this is certainly interesting..." The dreaded man commented, "To see those who control the world today all together in my mind. I wonder if this something of his doing..."

Schneizel wasn't alone though. Beside him, three other souls cornered him from behind...

"Quiet you! One wrong move and my blade shall be swift!" He first received a spiteful threat, just as the half metal half flesh glare of Jeremiah Gottwald aimed with precision, escorting the same fallen prince in his very own knight suit of old Britannia. And as he mentioned, his left arm, the one he has been known to sprout an sharp edge, was raised high, primed at the prince's throat in a rather close range. If anything, aside from Zero, he was the most well armed man in that very ancient room.

Or that is, if you count men only of course…

Flanking on the other side, the silent and seemly innocent maid that accompanied them kept her composure, appearing as seemly irrelevant to her peers. But to those who knew her true skills, it was clear that she presented quite the threat to the escorted prince. Sayoko didn't show it but she was as tense and confused as everyone else when dragged into this absurd "reality" of a dream. Nothing she thought or contemplated had any logic or reason at moment, so she could only her on her instincts to see things through.

"Oh, everyone is here..." And amidst the sharp and serious trio, an small girl in purple dress smiled softly from behind. She seemed out of touch compared to the rest of the crowd, her strands of light pink hair revealing her Britannian origins without abandon. Anya didn't look concerned. She just followed the trio on, settling to stay beside Jeremiah with her usual stoic posture.

"Jeremiah, Anya, Sayoko… What is meaning of this?" Zero demanded from them all, "And you, Schneizel! Have you broken out of your shackles?"

Taken aback by both vigilante's and prince's presence, the crowd just observed the confront…

And to everyone's surprise, Schneizel seemed to actually lose the smile there, "Not quite..." He first affirmed, pointing at his eyes as it began to glow red, "As you can see, I'm still under your control, [compelled to serve truthfully to my dear master Zero]…" He went on, sarcastically making a "respectful" bow to the masked hero, "Not a great condition to be really, although I have to admit it's better than having my consciousness robbed completely. But that said, I still have to [obey, anything which you ask of me of course.]"

"Hn." Met with this answer, Suzaku relaxed ever so slightly...

"Zero, you- Wait... Your Majesty! You have been snared as well!?" Boasted the former knight cyborg frowning in anger at sight of Nunnally in this dream place, "That cursed woman! She will pay for this!"

"We've come up here as well. It seems we have been kidnapped, Zero." Sayoko summarized.

"Kidnapped? By who?" Suzaku frowned as the same question flew into everyone's mind.

Jeremiah's face expression seemed to twitch into form, his mechanical eye sparkling wide as the orange knight attempt to hold it down, "I don't know her. She looked like the former Majesty's Mistress but a different hair and attire. She came right under the guise of the night out of nowhere and seemly used some strange power to trap me, us, in this place!"

That short revelation then sent everyone into overdrive. A woman like C.C? Strange powers? The conclusions were varied but their all neared on the same line of thought. None but Jeremiah may have seen who he mentioned but if what he says is true then…

"Thinking about this is a moot point." Schneizel spoke, interrupting everyone, "As much as each of you will likely try wrap your head around who this enlightening individual is. I would consider working on what's ahead of us here than anything else."

Grumbling, the crowd seemed distrustful of the prince, going as far to gloat their displeasure but Xingke however nodded in agreement, "He is correct. Since we're all here, then we can only conclude this was but a planned act..."

"But planned for what?" Todoh concluded, leaving the question to linger…

"..."

"...Welcome."

"...!"

And as if to take the opportunity to answer them, a voice from nowhere greeted the crowd in whole, it's echo foreboding and mystical, coming from the very open center before them.

Folding reality around the stage of the ruins, a woman took physical form, her appearance and visages assumed the very vaguely similar description of what Jeremiah expressed. She looked ominous, mysterious in expression, dreaded in attire as the sigil of geass was so vemenengly exposed for all to see.

"Welcome to the King's Court..." She declared, giving this vacant stare that threatened to look right into everyone's soul, "The tribune of the fallen, the seat of the jury, and the chronicler of time. Do you wish to learn the truth? Do you see the faults of the past and seek understand the seeds of the future? If so, make your declaration..." She invited, extending her arms open as her voice fills the room entirely.

"..." The Shock and Awe was immediate.

"The King's… Court?" Nunnally whispered first, the same words replayed out to the many others, not quite understanding it.

Not at it mattered to a certain knight, "You! You're the one! The kidnapper!" Accused Jeremiah, "I know this is no mere play of the mind. My left eye twitches uncontrollably from the cursed power you bear! Who are you and what is this place!?" He demanded, his expression so crazed that he almost seemed strained into a state of frenzy given his sparkling eye canceller reacting violently on its own.

"We are the judge of those that stepped too far, they who held the power of the king in life. This place is the stage of the jury, where all past transgressions are revealed. In the days that are to come, an Tyrant of your acquaintance shall stand up trial." The woman answered. On her words, the visage of an certain cursed prince came to be, casting a gasp in everyone's face.

Lelouch's very being was revealed in his royal uniform, fit for an Emperor, just like how he stood in life. He just showed up, materialized right beside, shimmering like a ghost as he sat into what appears to be a elegant chair...

"Accept the invitation and you'll be part of the jury, a witness of the many injustices that were struck, be it to you or to your beloved. You will see the very history written in blood, for the king's past is a relic to be uncovered, carrying the keys that will unveil the truth."

From what can be seen, Lelouch didn't seem to notice or react to the crowd however. There was shock making his face, but his reaction seems directed to the strange woman rather than them. Even as the angle and eyes met between on side to the other, the demon's perception seems lost. It is as if he doesn't quite see anyone there...

"Family, friends, allies and enemies, those who accept the invitation shall join the process. You may or may not hold the king dear, but what you will learn from this moment and beyond may forever change your feelings about him…

So, do you wish to join the King's Court?"

The invitation was handed over, leaving only silence through the stage. The weight of the choice presented seemed to carry through the crowd, who now realized in some unconscious form, the severity of the offer that stands before them.

If refused, the opportunity is lost and the truth will be left at interpretation of others, with your memory, mind and soul preserved in integrity. If taken, the truth will be exposed, with all its glory and all its horror manifested to the one who will witness it, something that may shake them to the core... Without doubt, what is presented here is a danger to everything one may or may not believe from the accursed, everything from what they know of Lelouch and his crimes, and the consequences of it all...

"..." The mere realization of this, puts everyone, including the most skeptical and honor-bound individuals into wonder, their curiosity and doubts highlighted to the extreme...

The mysterious woman awaited their answer, leaving them to think it through. Yet, in all reality, as the caretaker of spacetime, such offering is a futile exercise in is entirety. The choice itself is an illusion, a ruse thrown in the crowd's way. In fact, for all that was granted to the souls brought here, it didn't matter what they felt or wanted. Every emotion, every thought, every conceived idea or reasoning was planned by her hand, the infinite knowledge of humanity extended beyond life and death working for this one purpose of gathering them on this very spot, on this very day, on this very dream.

She knew that they wouldn't refuse, the very point of them being chosen is solely for that reason. Her offer was a gift, a closure to the wounded, an answer to their worries and doubts, as well as a clarification to the complexities and riddles left unsolved. This is the task she was charged with, to give an unusual resolution the mere dead soul who now lies beside her.

This one king has done many things, bringing chaos to the world within, yet settling order with his paved intentions. He's supposed to be no different than many others before him… And yet, for his actions in life and the resolution he earned, an special retribution must be given, a gift from the One Above All...

"So begins the King's Court..."

To be continued...

Author Notes: Well, I'm back... Kinda. Alive and all, but not with the same inspiration as I ever had before. I had been wanting to write something like this for a long time now, something that is not quite original but still fun to imagine. There is plenty of story like this but none that wrote the way I truly like. There was always something missing... So, after much deliberation, and constant writting on the background, here my idea of it.

I have other 2 chapters already written, with the scope of the fic written in a different fashion, a more "complete" one if you will. This will not only cover the anime alone no, it will cover everything: The picture dramas, the audio dramas, the animes, parts of the in-the-middle OVAs where Lelouch is involved and etc... All categorized in a well defined chronological order where our fellow jury characters will learning the entire story of Lelouch's overly dramatic adventure.

Let's see if it will work...