Green Sun, Black Shadows (CG/Exalted)

[Alexander89]

[X] Plan Be Thorough

You think about it. First and foremost, you need to know the general history of Creation, the Yozis, and everything else. "No, I want to hear the whole story before. I'll make my question at the end."

"Very well. Then there is one piece of info you need to know first. Us Anuhles?"

"Yes?"

"We're demons."

That, makes you pause. "Demons. Demons, as beings from hell?"

"The correct name is Malfeas, which is also one of the Yozi, but yeah."

You open and close your mouth a couple of times before you settle for just facepalming and fall down on the bed again. "I thought I was ready to even sell my soul to the devil for my ambitions, but I never expected it to be literal!"

"Nah Boss, you didn't sell your soul: those are the Akuma, and nowadays nobody is stupid enough to accept that bargain." Seyrun says. "And 'devil' isn't even a real being. In the old days you called a truly energetic, mischievous, daring, or clever person a 'devil', and that was a compliment."

You grumble. "Glad to know I struck the better deal."

"You totally did Boss. Where I was? Oh yeah, the beginning. In the beginning there was the Wyld, formless and chaotic…."

Spoiler: History of Creation

For Dummies
For 4chan lurkers

"...And then they finally managed to slay all Solars. After losing thousands of troops and destroying most of Meru trying to subdue 300 unarmed, drunk guys. Which say a lot about how outmatched they were, don't you think so?"

You gape. You haven't done anything else in the last half hour, listening to a creation myth that wouldn't have sounded out of place coming from a new-age movement. Except fuck science and fuck faith, because you now work for those who were there to see and make it happen. "The Big Bang is called Cytherea?"

"Dunno what a Big Bang is, except for the literal sense, but blessed Cytherea is the Mother of Creation, The Divine Ignition, she who woke up the other Primordials and made Creation out of the Wyld."

"And here I have been an agnostic most of my life." You cradle your head in your hands.

"Don't worry Boss, you will grow out of it quickly."

"Splendid." You sarcastically reply. You take a few minutes to put your thoughts in order. Once you're sufficiently calm you continue. "That's not the end of the story, isn't it?"

"Nope. The Sidereals managed to capture all 300 Solar Exaltations and seal them in a secret place, but they committed so many crimes that death penalty was a given...so they sought to conceal every proof of their involvement. They did some of their Fate mumbo-jumbo, but...things didn't go as planned. Creation partially broke. By the time the gods fixed it, the Sidereals got what they wanted...and more: it's called the Arcane Fate."

"What is it?"

"The source of the masquerade regarding magic. People tend to overlook most blatant uses of Essence and clearly supernatural beings, and once they aren't exposed to it anymore memories of it slip away, their minds rationalizing them with plausible but mundane alternative events unless they have very strong wills. Only beings incapable of using Essence are affected, but it has resulted in most of humanity forgetting about gods and magic. Which would have ended badly for most of them...except, it wasn't the end."

"It wasn't?"

"Nope. Then a super-plague killed 90% of all existing life in Creation."

You cringe.

"And then the Fair Folks invaded and destroyed 90% of Creation."

Your cringe deepens.

"Yeah, shit after shit after shit. Someone managed to activate an ancient superweapon and beat back the invading tides, but the damage was enormous. But then, something truly strange happened. With so many dead the Underworld was floored, but many more souls entered Lethe. I believe no one know how or why it happened, but what was initially just a mechanism to handle reincarnation gained a self-awareness of sort. A sort of hive mind of all the souls that enter Lethe and stay there before being reincarnated. Honestly, I have no idea how it works. And before everyone could react...well, that thing did something. I think nobody know exactly what. Some sort of change into reality. Fact is, Creation ceased to be flat and became a sphere, suspended in the void of space instead of the Wyld. The Wyld and the Raksha are still there, but there is a barrier, similar to what the Solars once made. Malfeas, Yu-shan and the Underworld are still there, but the rest...maybe the Yozi know, but if they do they aren't telling."

You try to wrap your head around so many facts, and only partially succeed. "When did this happen?"

"More than 5000 years ago. Since then history was mostly as you humans recorded it, with some editing here and there, and the various magical beings adapting to this new world. They even managed to seal the Underworld away, installing eight great magical foci around the world."

"And no more Solars."

"No more Solars. Until five years ago, when the servants of the Neverborn finally managed to open tiny cracks in the barrier sealing the Underworld, allowing for Shadowlands to appear again. Then the Yozi, who knew where the Exaltations were hidden, managed a deal with the Neverborn. The prison was found and cracked, but 150 of them flew away. Of the rest 100 went to the Neverborn and 50 to the Yozi, as per the pacts. And so were the Green Sun Princes, or Infernal Exalt, born. Got any questions?"

"Too many to count!" You shout, bolting up in a sitting position. "Do you realize you just destroyed my whole worldview?!"

"Would you have preferred to live in a lie?"

...He isn't wrong. Given a choice, you would still have picked up the same one. "Very well. First, I need some pertinent details about who I'm working for now. Since Oramus showed up during my Exaltation, is he my boss?"

"If he spoke with you, then yes. More accurately he's your Patron, meaning you can expect special support from the demons under him. But it's strange."

"What it is?"

"Oramus is...well, he hasn't made any signal of being interested in the Reclamation until now. What with being bound even worse than Malfeas."

"What can you tell me of him?"

"Oramus is the Eldest of the Primordials, existing even before Cytherea as a being of paradox and chaos. Not much else is know about him, save that his unusual harsh captivity is because the Exalts feared he was the only Yozi able to eventually escape Malfeas. I think that as his Chosen you're going to receive a lot of attention."

"Who else is important to note among the Yozis? Also, do they have any hierarchy among them or are they all more or less equal? You said I am a Peer, where do I fit in among the ranks?"

"Malfeas is the King, that's undeniable. But due to their nature most of the Yozi has always been more or less independent, focused on their own agenda. Losing the Primordial War exacerbated it."

Oh yeah, the whole multiple bodies and multiple souls. You aren't even going to guess how the mind of such a thing work.

"The founding architects of the Reclamation are: Malfeas, Cecelyne, She Who Live in Her Name, Adorjan and the Ebon Dragon, who proposed the idea first. They are to be considered first among equals, but you will do well to show all Third and Second Circle Demons the respect they deserve."

Considering you're talking of beings powerful enough to destroy armies by themselves and re-write reality, that sounds a magnificent idea.

"The position of Peer is unique among the hierarchy of the Demon City. You are not obligated to follow Cecelyne's laws, but you are still protected by them. Your status is considered to be equal with other citizens and Second Circle Demons, but the amount of respect you can expect or must show varies on who's stronger. All Third Circle Demons may give you orders, but you are considered first and foremost subordinate of your Yozi Patron and his Third Circle Demons, so you can defy orders if you have their backing. Actually you can defy any and all orders, but I don't think I need to tell you why that is a bad idea."

You nod. "I understand. It's similar to being a vassal under a king. There is a pact of mutual exchange."

"If you say so. Orders that don't advance the Reclamation's goals are to be considered secondary to goals that do, and the latter take precedence. For the minutiae, you need to go to Malfeas yourself."

"About the Reclamation. I know I'm expected to help the Yozis escape their prison and reclaim Creation. What does that entail? What is my specific role, how often can I expect my marching orders to be updated, and how will it be communicated? Also, what do the Yozis intend to do once they've won?"

"The answer is 'I don't know' for all of them."

"What?!"

"No Yozi has a specific plan, because nobody know what works. It is generally believed that you Green Sun Princes would do as all Exalts do and devise a method nobody else thought before, and made it works against impossible odds. Though I heard the demons under Malfeas think re-shaping Creation until it's a copy of Malfeas will work, but that's probably just Ligier being his usual narcissistic self."

So you're given an obstacle and being told to just find a solution, the only reason for it faith in the shard of super-divine essence in your soul to solve all problems?

That is so stupid.

"Your role and other info will be given to you once you reach Malfeas. I think you're going to receive a formal invitation soon. And, for what the Yozi will do once they're won...possibly, vengeance on the gods. Beyond that, what do I know?" You can imagine him shrugging. "The Yozi do what the Yozi are."

"What does that even mean?"

"You will see, you will see. Do you have other questions?"

"This isn't over." You warn him. "I have a Caste. You said it's called Fiend. And since the Yozi got 50 Exaltations, I suppose there are 49 other people gifted with the modified Solar Exaltations. What are the other castes, how many others like me are there, and will I be expected to work directly with them or is every agent independent? Also, do you know the identities of any other agents of the Reclamation in the area?"

"Yes, there are five different Caste: Slayer, Malefactor, Defiler, Scourge and Fiend."

"...Who is the dim-witted idiot that made up those names? It's like something a supervillains from a saturday morning cartoon would use!"

"No idea. A lot of demons find them cool. Anyway, there are 10 Exalt for every Caste. Slayers are warriors and generals, Malefactors are priests and leaders, Defilers are creators and sorcerers, Scourges are spies and assassins and, finally, Fiends are diplomats and administrators. That's just a rough representation through. Infernals are usually gathered into Covens, groups of five Infernals each with a different Caste, but those are made only when there is a goal that a single Exalt can't do alone, otherwise everyone is independent. And the only other agents of the Reclamation in the area I know of are the cultists that summoned me and my boys."

"...Cultists?"

"Yozi worshippers. You should go and meet them someday: as one of the Living Avatars of the Yozi I think you must give them a speech or something."

"...I have cultists?"

"You can ask to be included in their prayers, yes. It makes gaining spent Essence faster and gives other benefits, so I recommend it."

"Give me one moment." You pinch your nose's bridge. "I just never expected to become a religious figure. That is so outside my experience zone it's not even funny."

Luckily Seyrun shuts up. You shove more thoughts into the 'things to freak about later' mental list, and once you're ready resume your questions. "Next question: the Exalted. I know there are Solars, Lunars, Sidereals, Dragonblooded and now Infernals. I need a rundown of every type of Exalted, what kind of powers they have, if they also have their own castes, how many of each kind I can expect to exist, if the other types work for anyone in the same manner I do or have unified goals, what the conditions for receiving an Exaltation is and everything else you know."

"That's a lot Boss. Unfortunately I wasn't give much on the subject, but I will share what I have.

Solars are supposed to be good at everything, with various degrees. Their powers are all about succeeding and being perfect at what they do, from fighting to running an empire. They have five Caste, which fulfill more or less the same roles as the Infernal's. There are still 150 free Exaltations out there, and they generally choose people who have a great destiny but lack the power to reach it. I think their Chosens just receive their powers one day, without idea of what happened to them. Some may be contacted by a supernatural faction willing to assist the reborn Solars, but it's more probable they just do their own things alone.

Lunars are shapeshifters. They hunt animals and other creatures to drink their blood, which give them the ability to assume their shape. They only have three Castes and more general abilities. There are 300 Lunar Exaltations, and they choose survivors and people who make protecting something or someone their life missions. There is an organization of Elder Lunars called the Silver Pact to teach the newly Chosen, but they are divided into many factions with different agendas.

Sidereals are the Chosens of Fate, they make sure than the law of cause and effect is followed everywhere. They have five Caste based on the Five Maidens. They work for Heaven, but beside that they are divided into those against the Solars, those pro-Solars and those indifferent to both.

Dragonblooded embody the power of the five elements: Fire, Water, Air, Earth and Wood. They are weaker than the rest but have the ability to pass their powers to their children, increasing their numbers. Exalting for them occurs during puberty, but it may or may not happen depending on many factors. After Creation was changed the different lines scattered around the world. Currently, Britannia's nobility and royal family are the greatest concentration of Dragonblooded in the world."

"What?!" You jump up on your feet. "Britannia is-"

"Why do you think they are a superpower?" He interrupts you. "Every great empire in history had one or more Exalts behind it. This mean that, yes, you have Dragonblooded blood in you. It may have awakened in one or two years, and it may have not. You have a much better deal now, so it's a moot point. And the Dragon's blood have thinned with continuous interbreeding with mortals, so Exaltations are less common...even if I heard Britannia started some kind of genetic program to strengthen the bloodline, but not even the Yozi know much at this point."

"This..." You sit back."Did I even have a chance at my revenge?"

"No unless you Exalted too. Which you did. Don't worry about it, only people that Exalt themselves are told the truth."

"But this mean..." You look out of the window, at the school, eyes narrowed. "That every Britannia's noble is a possible Dragonblooded?"

"Yes."

"Then I must take precautions. You!" The Anuhles gather at your command. "Can you smell any Exalted types other than Dragonblooded?"

"Exalts, gods, demons, spirits. You name it, we can smell it." One spider boasts. "Unless they are using a power to mask their nature, like a transformed Lunar."

"Then I want two of you to discreetly scout the school to see if any of the students or staff are Exalted or other non-humans. Avoid interactions with them, just report back after slipping away if they're noticed."

"Yes Boss!" Two spiders vanish. Two more appear to take their place.

"Paranoid much? I approve."

"Yes, you told me already. So, you said. Shinjuku was halfway to being a Shadowland. That doesn't sound good. What does that mean? Also, are there any similar concepts I should be aware of?"

"Shadowlands are patches of land that stand on the border between Creation and the Underworld. When inside one during the day you're in Creation, but during the night you're in the Underworld, which like I said is a dark mirror of Creation where the ghosts of those who don't enter Lethe because they are still attached to their mortal lives linger. They are more likely to pop up in places where a lot of violent deaths happen, like a battlefield. Ghosts themselves are not a real problem, some even work in Malfeas, but those are only the majority. The rest is composed of hungry ghosts, mad ghost thirsting for the blood of the living; war ghosts, the spirits of dead soldiers that want to keep fighting; nemissaries, ghosts that can possess dead bodies; and nephwracks, who are even madder ghosts who want to feed everything to Oblivion. And then there are the Deathlords."

"Deathlords?"

"Supposedly, they are the ghosts of thirteen Solars who died during the Usurpation. They made some kind of deal with the Neverborn for power, and now they fight for control over the Underworld. Since they kept 100 Exaltations, it's the opinion of many demons that soon we will see a new type of Exalt appear, one at the service of death itself. It doesn't need to be said, but all of Hell is opposed to the end goals of the Neverborn. Every effort to destroy Creation must be stopped, even if it pushes back the Reclamation."

"Oh joy, more impossible enemies." You groan. "Is there a way to destroy a Shadowland?"

"That's high-end Sorcery, something you aren't capable yet." Seyrun tells you. "However Dragonblooded, Sidereals and Lunars hate them too, so it's likely they will do the work for us. Just keep an eye on them so you can spot any possible army of the dead coming out of them."

You groan again. "And now there is a danger of zombie apocalypse. What happened to my normal life?"

"...Boss, I don't think normal is a concept that fit into an Exalt's life. Power always has a price."

"Yes. Yes, it does." You frown. "I hope the other Infernals are competent, because I can't deal with all of this alone!"

"Don't worry Boss, you have the whole might of Hell supporting you. There are millions of demons ready for a great battle anytime! You just need to summon them, which is the real problem."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence." You deadpan, before remembering a certain detail. "Say, Seyrun. Clovis had a green tint to his hair, but I remember otherwise. Given everything else that's happened, an oddity like that shouldn't be ignored. Do you have any idea what that might signify?"

"Green hair, but not always so? Then it could be he is a Dragonblooded. Maybe Wood aspected, since green is their color."

"But shouldn't the Anuhles have smelled that if he was?"

"No if he was wearing an artifact to conceal his nature. Given his background, it's something he may possesses. It doesn't make him invincible, since you manipulated him quite easily."

You hum. "Even then, I must discover if he is Exalted at the first opportunity. Let's talk about the Anuhles. You said they're good at sewing. How strong is your silk?"

"Stronger than steel. Once inside a cocoon you don't get out, period."

"Can they make me bulletproof clothing that I can wear around normally?"

"Sure thing! If I can say so you also need something more formal, for your parade when you visit the City."

"A parade?!"

"Standard procedure for every new Infernal. No demon pass over the opportunity of making a party!"

"Party. Right. Wasn't Hell supposed to be a gloomy place?" You grumble. "So, do you have any needs you should be aware of? Do you have to eat often, and can you restrict yourselves to hunting things like rats? I don't want a bored demon deciding it wants to eat a human who isn't an enemy."

"Don't worry about that Boss. Demons don't need to sleep, eat or rest. Essence is all we need. Eating is just a method to replenish our reserves faster. Just order them and they will never disobey...just don't let them, or me, near a dog."

You blink. "A dog? Why?"

"For us Anuhles a dog's bark is the most repellent thing there is." He growls. "Blasted thing is like a rusted, vitriol-coated blade right between the eyes. If you get rid of all of those filthy beasts living nearby you will have my eternal gratitude."

"Denied." You say immediately. "I am not going to start killing every dog in Tokyo for your sake."

"Daaamn." The other spiders groan.

"Speaking of killing and eating people." You turn to them. "In the warehouse, while I was out, did you eat the corpse of the green haired girl?"

The spiders look at each other. They confabulate for a while before one of them shakes his head. "Nobody did Boss. Some of us remember her, but didn't touch it: they assumed others ate her first."

What? What could that possibly mea-

Someone taps at the window. It's one of the spiders you send in perlustration, the other behind him. Once the window is open they skitter inside and bow. "We're sorry Boss! We try to stop her, but she didn't listen."

That's when the door of your room slams open, a far-too-cheerful Milly Ashford rushing inside like the wind. "Lulu! It's true you're part of the gang too?" She asks with a huge grin and a blood red circle glowing on her forehead.

What.

What.

[] Mild freak out.
[] Strong freak out.
[] Eruption-level freak out!
[] Write-in (bonus if it's a form of freak out)

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Surprise!

 

[Enjou]

Talking about wonders from Hell, does anyone has any idea how to make chalcanth (the life force of a demon preserved in vitriol) something a little less evil? Since it's basically "we melt people into living materials", even if the people are demons and most are dumb enough to be mass produced clones of each other?

Click to shrink...

Ok, I have an idea I think will work. Don't completely remove that because Hell is still an alien place with a very different culture, but make alternatives...

1. Chalcanth is divided into three tiers in regards to First Circle demons. Living chalcanth, chalcanth, and lesser chalcanth. Living chalcanth is the stuff you need to make Hellforged Wonders, regular chalcanth is what you need to make three dot artifacts when made from First Circle demons, and lesser chalcanth is what you need for one or two dot artifacts when made by First Circle demons. If a serf were to ever get ahold of chalcanth to drink, they're likely to get the lesser kind.

2. How each tier is made...
- Living chalcanth is made by the canon method, except the demon is willingly volunteering and their soul is preserved in the process because they are not resisting. Very few demons volunteer for this, primarily because there are few people they would trust enough to not treat them as a high quality luxury beverage to be consumed or sold at a premium. That said, demons are alien in their mindset and they don't necessarily mind being turned into an item so long as it suits their motivations, so if someone they feel won't treat them like a beverage convinces them they'll agree to it so they can be made into a sentient item.

- Regular chalcanth is made in one of two methods.
-- The first is the canon method, and the demon in question is unwilling. However, anyone in Hell doing this outside of punishing a rebelling subordinate or an enemy who has done something to warrant it tends to get a reputation, ends up making a lot of enemies, and probably gets assassinated... unless they're a Second Circle Demon or an Infernal Exalt, in which case nobody can really do fuck all about it except another one of those, but even so any such person can expect to have far fewer vassals and serfs willing to serve them. If it's done to demons that are pretty much mindless animals, nobody really gives a fuck because it's like slaughtering cattle for meat.
-- The second method is something the neomah do. In exchange for their services as courtesans, neomah demand a price that their customer give them some piece of themselves (an eye, a finger, a limb, etc.). Canonically the only thing they do with this is sew them together to make a new, unique demon that they then abandon. However, here we can have them take an additional option - they take the part, throw it into a jar of vitriol, and sell it to a chalcanth brewer or use it to pay their taxes. Neomah might put out signs showing what kind of demon they want as a customer in this case (indicating a 'discount' of sorts) Other demons who provide goods and services will take this kind of payment as well. Once a chalcanth brewer has enough vitriol with essence saved up this way made from a single breed of demon, they can make it into regular chalcanth that represents the 'average' of that breed. You can make 'hybrid' chalcanth if you know what you're doing, but it's difficult. Demons do this voluntarily because they're bound to die sooner or later, and the neomah or some other high quality service normally out of their reach is often on their bucket list, though sometimes pieces like this can be taken as a punishment.

-Lesser chalcanth is made by a large number of demons of a particular type channeling Essence into vitriol. This takes a lot of time and a lot of Essence since nothing permanent is being sacrificed. This is a low paying job for serfs, really, or something you might do once a week if you can't pay taxes any other way.

3. For chalcanth made from Second and Third Circle demons, the above methods do work, but their tiers are living, greater, and regular because they refuse to be called lesser. Second Circle greater chalcanth comes from a Second Circle demon sacrificing a piece of itself and can make five dot artifacts that are not sapient, and regular comes from them investing motes over a long period of time and can make four dot artifacts. Third Circle greater chalcanth comes from sacrificing a piece of themselves and can make N/A artifacts that are not sapient, and regular can be used to make five dot artifacts. If you can get either a Second or Third Circle Demon to volunteer to fully be turned into living chalcanth, you can make four or five dot and N/A Hellforged Wonders respectively. The involuntary process will just get you a large amount of greater chalcanth, but good luck actually having the power to force it.

That sound workable?

 

[Alexander89]

[X] Nope. Nope nope. Not doing this. Enter closet, close closet, accept no visitors to your kingdom of nope.

"Wow. Maybe I should have talked with those cultists instead of just rushing where you were." Seyrun comments, but you aren't listening.

Milly has superpowers.

Milly has superpowers.

Someone put what is probably one of the most dangerous spiritual weapons ever created in the soul of Milly Ashford.

"Nope." You stand up and walk to your closet. "Not doing this." You open your closet, enter and close it.

This isn't happening. Nope. This is just a nightmare born from all of the crap you had to go through today and that visit to Oramus' mad realm.

"Ohohoh! Don't be silly Lulu. Come out, let's talk." The nightmare tries to open the door.

You pull back with all your strength. "Noooo!! Be gone! You're just an hallucination created by my mind! I will not be tempted!"

"Boss?! You're freaking out, and I don't like what it is doing to this place!"

"Fine. If you put it that way..." You breathe in relief as the nightmare relents.

Then your blood freezes when you hear what sounds suspiciously like clothes being removed. "Milly? What are you doing?"

"Getting naked of course." A part of your soul shrieks in terror. "Then I think I will take some selfies while leaning on your bed and post it on my profi-"

"STOP IT!!" You half-scream, half-plead as you storm outside, your mind conjuring horrible images of the upcoming social disaster.

And faceplant when you see Milly sitting on the bed with her clothes still on, a victorious grin on her lips and sheets crumpled from what was most likely her playing with it. "There. It wasn't so hard, was it?"

"Demon..." You whisper, forced to recognize the whole unbelievable situation as being, sadly, reality.

"No, no Lulu. They are demons." She pets one of the spiders, who just look confused, before raising on fist in the air. "I'm Green Sun Princess Milly Ashford of the Scourge Caste! What's yours?"

"...Fiend..." You reply dispassionately, dragging your sudden oh-so-tired self up and sit next to her.

"I knew it! Even if you don't quite fit the 'bad boy' type." She sizes you up and down with that look of her that didn't possess an ounce of shame ever since she hit puberty. "And am I seeing things or are you even more handsome than normal? The Exaltation did a very good job."

You glare at her.

She giggles before a bit of concern enters her expression. "But seriously Lelouch, what happened?"

It's best to go for truth or elaborate li-too troublesome. "Today I got caught up in a terrorist incident, drawn into a warzone, my best friend from childhood was killed for refusing an order to kill me and there was nothing I could do to stop it, I made a deal with the world-gods who created the universe in exchange for power, I've learned that everything I thought I knew about the universe is wrong and I've had to scrap my old plans for destroying Britannia..."

She blinks. "You were serious about those?"

You ignore the jab. "...and now I've learned you've got the same bullshit powers I do. It explains so much." You sigh. "I did think your parties got a little wilder in the last few months."

She preens. "Of course they were." Then she smiles sadly and put a hand over yours, squeezing it lightly. "I'm sorry to hear about your friend. But you're here and alive, so something good had happened today, right?"

"Well, I lead a cell of terrorists to a near victory over Britannia. I also convinced my brother Clovis that it was all the Pureblood's fault and that he needs to purge his government of 'traitors', so the Area Eleven government is going to be quite destabilized soon."

"...Your brother is that gullible?"

"It helped that he was drunk. Which was my doing." You roll your eyes. "I also created an alter-ego called 'Zero' to lead the terrorists."

Milly smiles widely. "Can I help design you a costume?"

"No, hell no, and absolutely no." You reply without hesitation. "I'd like to keep my dignity."

She pouts.

"But seriously Milly, how..." You gesture at her. "How did it happen? How did you become an Exalt?"

"Well, it happened two months ago-Oh! Let me present you someone." She claps her hands. "You can show yourself Zenész."

A figure materializes in the center of the room, and instantly your ears are assaulted by a haunting beautiful music. There are no words to it and yet it hit you on a deeply personal level, speaking of sorrow, lost innocence and self recrimination but also streaked through with subtle phrases that evoked a faint hope that the bad days would pass and fond memories of the good times in life.

The demon has the appearance of a stunningly beautiful woman wearing a black dress, long and flowing dark hair in a loose, messy style framing a shapely face with slightly too large green eyes. The defining feature are her hands, each with a dozen long many-jointed fingers constantly moving in time with the music, as though she is playing an invisible harp. She smiles softly before closing her eyes to concentrate on her music.

Seyrun hums contently, the other spiders imitating him. "Malfeas, I missed this music."

"She is an Angyalkae. Just like my Unwoven Coadjutor, Nassozra." She points at her head. "She's pleased to meet you."

'Unwoven Coadjutor?'

"The term used for the demon that fused with a Green Sun Prince. Oh, and it's an honor too."

You resist the urge to shake your head in exasperation. "They're Anuhles. I hadn't time to get their names yet." You gesture to the spiders. "My Unwoven Coadjutor is called Seyrun. He said it's an honor too."

"Where I was? Oh, yes." Her mood suddenly turns somber. She bends her legs close to her chest and hugs them. "Do you know how my parents are trying to make me marry some noble so the Ashford could rise in status?"

"I know." You roll your eyes. "I also know you managed to make any suitor back off through a combination of blackmail, gossip and who knows what else."

"Usually. But I couldn't with the one they found two months ago." You are startled to see real, pure rage in Milly's eyes. "Baron Ramsley didn't have any weak spot I could use, and he was too well known for my usual methods." She snarls. "He also kept checking me out every time we met. I doubt that pig even remember my face. At one point I decided to talk with my parents, to make them change their minds. That was the first we yelled at each other." Her gaze turns melancholic. "I told them I wanted to be my own person, to be free to make my own decisions. They called me ungrateful, that this was their only chance to regain the prestige that was rightful ours, and how dare I be selfish instead of thinking of the good of the whole family..."

"Milly." You interrupt her. You put your hand under her chin and gently tilt her head until she is looking at you. "I am going to punch your parents in the face the next time I see them. Don't try to stop me."

"I wouldn't even try." She smiles gently, through her eyes are lucid. But it isn't tears, not quite. "At this point you probably expect me to say I kept refusing...but I didn't. I don't know why, maybe I was shocked that they weren't even considering my opinion, like I wasn't their daughter but just a useful pawn. So I gave up and told them I would marry the Baron. After that I ran into my room, lock me inside and cried until I fell asleep."

You don't know when you hugged Milly, but you don't have any intention of changing position.

"I was woken up in the middle of the night by the same beautiful music." She smiles at Zenész, who smiles back and keep playing. "It was Nassozra. I suppose your own recruitment speech was also short and vague?"

You nod. "We were in the middle of a warzone, so yes it was."

"Well, I accepted. Even if I had known everything I learned later I would have still accepted. I just wanted to keep my freedom." Her lips curve upward as she puts a finger over them, her usual mischievousness back in her eyes. "Admittedly waking up naked and with a smashed brass cocoon in my room made the clean-up difficult, but it was worth it because otherwise I would have never met Lady Hegra!"

"Hegra? She is a Chosen of Hegra?" Seyrun mutters. He sounds more surprised that fearful however.

'What kind of Yozi is Hegra?'

"Hegra, the Typhoon of Nightmares. She collects the dreams of Creation and then rains them down on Malfeas. When it happens all demons pour into the streets to dance and bask in the psychedelic weather."

'...Are you saying-' You mentally gulp. 'That Milly was chosen by what is basically a rain made of drugs?!'

"...Yes?"

This is definitely the work of Hell. Only Hell would have allowed such an unholy union.

"Milly." Your tone is totally emotionless. "Please tell me you can't make drugs with your powers."

"Don't be silly Lulu." She giggles. Thank goodness, that was one bullet dod- "I can't do that yet." Aaand, why is the world so cruel to hope? "But I can shoot my emotions in the form of meteorological phenomenon. Do you want to see it?"

"There is no need." You use all your willpower to avoid pleading. "Hegra is your Patron Yozi?" She nods. "Alright, so you came out of the..."

"Chrysalis Grotesque."

"Chrysalis Grotesque." You repeat before realizing just what you said. 'Seriously, seriously? Have you ever heard of bad PR?'

"Nope. What's that? Do you eat it?"

You ignore him. "And then?"

"Like I said I cleaned up. It wasn't easy, but some of the old maids like me more than my parents and didn't ask questions. After that I talked with Nassozra about my new powers and came up with a plan of action. I waited for Ramsley's next public appearance and went there slowly working up all the hate and disgust I felt towards that filthy pig." She grins savagely. "And then when I saw him I shoved all of my emotions into him."

"What happened?" You ask, fascinated by the story.

"He started screaming and hitting the person he was talking with." She laughs. "Which was a duke."

You can't help but grin. "Stripped of his title?"

"Stripped of his title." She grins back. "I did the same a few more times, just to hammer down his new reputation, and then stopped."

"Good job." You hug her a little tightly before backing off. "Still, the ability to make other feel your same emotions is definitely use-!"

You stop, an horrendous suspicion crawling its way up from the back of your mind. "Milly?"

"Yes?"

"Did you use the same trick in your parties? Because I remember enjoying quite a few of them, even the one where we had to come to school in a swimsuit, and I couldn't understand why I was okay with that later..."

Her only answer is a coquettish smile.

"Y-You!" You point a finger full of indignation at her. "You raped my mind!"

"Don't be so melodramatic, I just inspired you and a few others. And even if I wanted to rape something, it definitely wouldn't be your mind." Her gaze slowly lowers.

For the sake of your sanity you ignore all possible implications and stubbornly stick to your point. "Do you have any idea how embarrassed I was? There were even photos of me circulating around!"

"I know: I made and sold them."

"WHAT?!"

"Oh come on Lulu. Relax. Look, I will even repay you." She grabs your hand-

And presses it on her left breast. "There. Pretty soft huh? Just say the word and I will remove all the pesky clothes between."

"§#@&%$£(!!"

"Lulu? Lulu I was joking don't jump out of the window please!"

{====}​

A few minutes later you manage to regain your bearings, if only barely. It's clear that Exalting upgraded her teasing skills too, because they have never been so effective before. "So, you managed to avoid another arranged marriage. And then? Did you go to Malfeas?"

She shakes her head. "But I wanted too, so I went to meet the people that summoned Nassozra."

"The cultists?"

"Don't say it as if it is a bad thing." She chides you. "They're very sweet people. It's a community of Elevens and Britannian commoners that live just outside the settlement. I know it sounds strange, but apparently they all got bad deals with the government in favor of the usual privileged, so they sort of banded together before they met an unbound demon." She hums. "Now they summon demons that can help them with their special abilities, and in exchange they offer prayers and sacrifices, mostly things that can be found only on Earth."

'Why does it sound more like a business agreement than a matter of faith?'

"It works, does it not? A smart demon knows how to keep his cultists happy and willing, while those who don't aren't likely to stay in change for long. It's even more important for cults backed by a Second or Third Circle demon. You don't want to fail them."

"That's how I met Zenész." She gestures at the harpist. "She came bearing a message: it said that my presence wasn't required yet but to stay ready to answer when it is." She shrugs. "So with nothing else to do I continued to go to school while following my Urge."

"Ur...ge?"

"You don't know? It's a task we Infernals are given by our Patron through the connection with our Exaltation. It's the way we receive orders."

'Seyrun!'

"I was going to tell you about it!" He defends himself. "But then your friend pops up and-"

'Spare me and tell me what Oramus wants me to do. And from now on tell me immediately of any change.'

"Yes, yes understood. Blessed Oramus wants you...to create an empire."

'An...empire?'

"Yes, an empire. One that is greater and more unique than Britannia."

"An empire..." You repeat out loud, as if reaching an epiphany before chuckling. "Of course. Merely destroying Britannia would send the world into an even greater chaos. To avoid that, I must also create a government that fits my ideals."

You are really lucky to have such a wise Yozi as your patron.

"That fits you Lulu." Milly nods. "Lord Hegra instead wants me to disrupt the rigid hierarchy here in Area Eleven, to make people loosen up. I'm managing to do that, but I'm not making enough progress." She tilts her head, eyeing you, before breaking into a smile. "But if we join forces I am sure we can reach both of our goals way faster!"

"Milly...Are you sure? I am going to oppose the strongest superpower in the world, it will be dangero-"

She silences you by pressing a finger on your lips. "Lelouch vi Britannia." She says with utmost seriousness. "I may not have suffered as much as you, but I am too a victim of the callousness of Britannia. I held no love for my homeland. The only ones I care about is this school, its students, my freedom, my grandfather..." She grins. "And obviously my friends. Plus we're both Heroes of Hell now, we ought to play our parts."

You gape at her before chuckling. "And here I used to think it was me against the world. What a fool I was."

"You totally were Lulu." She smiles before hugging you. You return the hug. For once her hands don't wander around, and for that you are grateful.

Spoiler

Gained Intimacy:

Intimacy: Milly (Fond Friendship)

Ally (Milly Ashford): O

"What do you intend to do now?" Milly asks you afterward.

You think about it. It's too late to go to class now, and in a few hours Nunnally will return and Sayoko will prepare dinner.

[] Rest and wait for Nunnally.
[] Tell the Anuhles to resume searching for Dragonblooded and wait for their report.
[] Talk with Milly, exchange knowledge and info about your respective abilities.
[] Write-in.
====

I got better, so I finished the chapter. I hope I characterized Milly well

 

[Enjou]

Ok, wrote up an omake. It explains some things about the Exalted ability system for the uninitiated and has some comedy at the end.

Growing Pains​

Lelouch stared at his ceiling as he tried to get to sleep. To say the day of his Exaltation had been stressful was an understatement. Even if he felt bone tired his mind was still unable to stop thinking about everything and trying to adjust his plans. It would be a while before he could actually be asleep, so he figured he might as well be productive.

"Seyrun."

"Yeah, Boss?"

"The Exaltation allows for me to grow indefinitely, right? How exactly does that work?"

"Ah, right, let me get my notes... there they are. So, yeah, so try feeling deep in your gut and see if you can find some untapped potential."

"Untapped potential? What does that even..." as Lelouch questioned what he was being asked to find he managed to find it all the same. "Oh, there it is. I guess. Interesting. Feels like there's quite of bit of it."

"Really? Your Exaltation should have used everything you already had to round you out a bit. Then again it's been an eventful day, so I guess you may have gotten more from all that."

"Round me out? What do you mean by that?"

"Hmmm... ah, I know. Have you noticed if you're a little stronger or a little faster? Or maybe you've gotten a bit better at something?"

Lelouch thought about it for a moment, noting that the walk to Clovis's mobile command center hadn't really made him as tired as he'd normally get on such a long walk. He'd never been good at physical activities, often having to go to remedial gym classes in spite of him never really improving much. "Yes, I think so."

"Right, so Exalts aren't quite like normal mortals. They grow in leaps, going from one level to the next with no apparent inbetween. Are you following?"

"Yes, I think so. So my physical stamina was rounded up?"

"Yeah, exactly. I'd say you're probably around the level of a normal human right now in that category, Boss."

"That's quite convenient. Well then, how do I use this untapped potential I've got in me?"

"Right, well, you'll need to focus it in the direction you want to improve. Sometimes you can get the benefits pretty quickly, sometimes you have to train or perform special actions. You should be able to intuit which is which and how long it should take, but generally speaking improving your base capabilities will take some time and any abilities you don't have an intrinsic talent for will require training."

"Alright, I get it. So if I wanted to say, improve my skill with piloting Knightmares, I could do that?"

"Yes, you could do that. But that's rather specific knowledge. You could instead invest a bit more potential into your ability to drive anything that can be driven, and it would work similarly."

"Anything that can be driven? How the hell does that work?"

"Well, Boss, it's kind of complicated. I guess the best way to explain it is that every Exalt has a form of super intuition. Even if you had no training or experience with something, you'd probably do better than any mortal who was in the same boat by sheer virtue of being able to intuit the basics of the task at hand."

"That's..."

"Yeah, bullshit, I know. Anyways, all skills, knowledge, and the like can be put into twenty five different categories."

Lelouch's eyes widened. Every skill in all of existence fit into such a small number of categories? "What are those categories, then?"

"Right... they are Archery, Martial Arts, Melee, Thrown, War, Integrity, Performance, Presence, Resistance, Survival, Craft, Investigation, Lore, Medicine, Occult, Athletics, Awareness, Dodge, Larceny, Stealth, Bureacracy, Linguistics, Ride, Sail, and Socialize. Modern firearms fall under Archery and most small vehicles fall under Ride."

"Ok, so because I have this form of super intuition..."

"The things you were already good at before your Exaltation you're now better at in general. For example, you clearly studied how to wage war before you Exalted given how well you commanded those terrorists earlier today. Now that you're an Exalt, you could easily grasp how to command a military tactics are utterly unfamiliar to you, or play a strategy game that mimics war in some fashion that you've only just learned the rules of like you had been playing for years. Pretty neat, huh Boss?"

Lelouch was dumbfounded. This was just so... broken. Not that he was complaining, of course. Settling his thoughts, he decided on a plan of action.

"Well, Seyrun, as you said earlier I don't really have much in the way of combat skills, which could easily get us killed one day. I think we should rectify that."

"I approve very much of that idea, Boss. Not dying is always a good plan."

Lelouch grabbed some of his untapped potential, and began to shape it.

--- The Next Day, After School ---

"Lelouch-sama! I found you!"

Lelouch ran even as his legs burned from exertion. Lelouch dodged behind a tree, barely avoiding the shot. Lelouch returned fire.

"Ouch!" yelped the president of the Survival Game Club. "Hit! You're good at this for a newbie, Lelouch-sama. Are you sure you wouldn't like to join? We'll just have soooo much fun together!"

Lelouch had to refrain from visibly cringing. Ever since his Exaltation had apparently enhanced his looks the female population of Ashford Academy had become even more enamored of him than before. There was talk of an official Lelouch Fan Club forming... and Milly was considering giving it a budget.

"No, I'm fine. As I said, I'm just going to be doing surprise inspections on club activities at Milly's request. Once the week is over, I'll be going back to my regular duties." The girl pouted. "Well, I might come play occasionally." If only because this was a damnably good way to train up multiple abilities at once. At least he hadn't had to train his Knightmare piloting skills - once he had woken up, he just knew that with his current skills he could have been a more active participant in the battle at Shinjuku.

Before the girl could respond, other members of the club showed up. "Found you, pretty boy! Prepare to die!"

"Crap!" Before Lelouch could run or dodge the male members all shot him. Repeatedly. "Hit! Ouch! Hit! Hit dammit!"

 

[Alexander89]

[X] Talk with Milly, exchange knowledge and info about your respective abilities.
[X] Enjou's XP Expenditure Plan - Basic Combat Proficiency

"I think it's better we talk about what we know about our respective powers, so we can coordinate our efforts. What excuse did you use to skip class?" Even if you already suspect the answer.

"Council business." Thought so.

"Then we have time. Are you alright with talking?" She nods. Pleased with her answer you turn to the spiders. "Go back to search for possible Dragonblooded."

"I don't think they will find any Lelouch." Milly says. At your questioning look she continues. "When I learned Britannia's nobility is full of Dragonblooded I looked at the student's book for any anomaly, and found out there have been some students that were transferred to another school immediately after certain...strange incidents."

"Strange? Like what?"

"A small fire that was attributed to a faulty line, roots that mysteriously grew through the walls, this kind of things. Little oddities with many possible explanations, but after each of them at least one of the students involved would be recalled to the homeland or be transferred to another school."

"Ah, I see."

'See what?'

"Anima Flux. The Anima of Dragonblooded is made of their elemental aspect, and can be quite destructive compared to the Anima of other types of Exalt. When a Dragonblooded exalts it's common for the Anima to flare strongly, damaging their surroundings."

"Ah." You quickly put the pieces together. "Those students were Dragonblooded that exalted, and the incidents were caused by their out of control Anima. Their transfer was probably their family recalling them for training or to send them to a place to do so."

"Exactly what I thought." Milly nods. "I spied of the professors, but didn't found anything abnormal. Then again none of them are nobles, so the chances were slim to begin with."

"I see. Still do it anyway." You tell the spiders. "I want to be sure."

"Yes Boss." Two of them salute before dematerializing and leaving.

"So, so!" Milly says, excited like a kid in a candy store. "Tell me what kind of Charms do you have!"

'Charms?'

"Oh, by the sacred Azure..." Seyrun grumbles. "There are some people - degenerates the lot of them - that call any individual power that isn't Sorcery a 'Charm'. Which, if you ask me, is totally idiotic: who the hell would take you seriously if you say you're going to use your Charms on them?"

That...he isn't wrong. Even if they are greatly reduced you're using some of the powers that were once used to shape the entire world. Maybe 'Charm' was the correct term once, but to you it sounds demeaning.

Still, persuading Milly of your point of view is an exercise in futility. It's way easier to get along with it while in your mind you think otherwise.

"Well, I-"

"No wait!" She stops you with a raised palm. "First tell me who your Patron is! It's the Ebon Dragon? Please tell me it's not!" She tearfully pouts. "I don't want you to become a vampire!"

"What?"

"What?"

For once you and Seyrun are in complete synchrony.

"You know? Incapable of standing sunlight..." She trails off before her mouth morphs into a 'O'. "Is that what being a creature of darkness means? They're not tall, dark and broody princes of the night?"

"What it is...with this klutz?"

You massage your temples to ward off a headache. Trust Milly to be incredibly intelligent and perceptive at times, and a total airhead in others. "No Milly, I am a Fiend but Ebon Dragon is just the Patron of my Caste." A thought comes to you and you internally smirks. "My personal Patron is Oramus."

You watch as she stares, likely conversing with her Unwoven Coadjutor, until an expression of pure astonishment appears on her face.

*Flash*

You instantly snap a photo. As she blinks in surprise you send a copy to your computer just in case. "You shouldn't lower your guard so easily, Madam President." You tell her with a grin.

It falls when you see her grinning too, eyes sparkling with something you recognize very well.

She took up the challenge.

Gods damn it.

{====}​

Once you managed to calm down Milly's teasing instincts the two of you finally got down to talking. You learned that unlike you, who has more powers from Oramus than Ebon Dragon, Milly has her equally split between Hegra and Adorjan.

From Hegra she has the power to instill herself with any type of emotion and be more successful at any action which resonates with that emotion, to instill the same emotion in others and to reject any mind power that would make her deviate from that emotion. She also has another power to avoid any mental influence even when the first power isn't active. The last one from Hegra is, like she said, the power to shoot her emotions as weather phenomenon, like lightning os ice.

From Adorjan she has a series of powers that make her more agile and faster, from swimming to just completing work in less time.

The last one really got your attention.

"If you can do things faster, why is it that during reunions me and the others always end doing all the work?" You ask incredulously.

"Because you always complete it before the deadline and do a great job. It would be silly to use our phenomenal cosmic powers for something like that." She explains while smiling, totally ignoring the hypocrisy of her statement.

This lazy blonde!

In return you explain your gifts, through you have to put your foot down when she asks you to use your ability to change appearance to take her place during events she doesn't want to go.

"What do you intend to do now Lelouch?" Milly asks at the end.

"I need to contact the terrorists I commanded. Since I already proved myself to them, they're ideal candidates to start building my own army." You reply. "Even if most of them turn out to be talentless there was one among them who showed tremendous skills at piloting Knightmares. Just having that one would be satisfactory. Beyond that I really want to go to Malfeas to see exactly how much help I can request." You shrug. "Until that I need to build up my own base before committing to any long-term strategy, and work to undermine Britannia's efficiency."

"I can help with that!" Milly jumps up. "I don't really want to assassinate people, but I can be a spy and procure all kind of dirty secrets about nobles." She takes a dancer-like pose. "I'll be a modern Mata Hari!"

"That...would actually be helpful." You muse.

Any further reflection is cut short when you hear the doorbell rings. "Shoot! It's Nunnally! All of you dematerialize! Tell the others to stay hidden!" You order, and the Anuhles obey.

"It's time for us to go too Zenész." The Angyalkae vanishes too. "See you tomorrow Lulu." Milly says before opening the window and jumping outside. Panicking you ran to it, only to see the blonde running down the wall in blatant defiance of gravity, jump down on the ground and vanish without slowing down.

'Having some of that wouldn't be bad.'

"I want to make clear I am against you having anything to do with Adorjan."

'Yes, yes: murderous wind. I know, I was just saying.'

You quickly discard the military uniform and put on one of your spare school uniforms. Once everything is in order you call out. "Nunnally? Is that you?"

"Yes Big Brother." She replies back. "You're here early."

"I didn't have much to do after the lessons." It's the truth, since by the time school ended you were just talking to Milly. You walk down the stairs and see both Nunnally and Sayoko. "Nunnally, Sayoko: welcome back."

"Hello Big Brother." Nunnally smiles at you.

"It's good to see you-" Sayoko slightly bows before she looks up. And blinks. "My Lord?"

"Yes?" You ask, surprised at the fact she worded that like a question. "Is something wrong?"

She keeps staring for more than a dozen of seconds before bowing again. "It's nothing My Lord."

What was that?

"Yo Boss. This maidservant of yours, is she truly a maidservant? Because she gives off a very different feeling."

'What do you-'

"Who is there?" Nunnally suddenly asks, moving her head around even as her eyes remain closed. "Is someone else here?"

You mouth clamps shut. 'Don't say a word until we're alone!' You order. Seyrun doesn't reply. Good.

You force yourself to smile. "What are you saying Nunnally? You, myself and Sayoko are the only one there. Isn't that right Sayoko?"

"It's true Lady Nunnally."

"Oh, is that so?" Your sister says in slight confusion. "I thought I heard a voice, but maybe I was wrong..."

"Don't worry about it Nunnally. It must have been some random sound carried by the wind." You kneel down and put your hand on top of hers.

"If you say so bi-" By instinct she puts her other hand on top of yours, but when she does it she freezes. "...Big Brother?" She whispers, so faintly you almost doesn't hear her.

"Nunnally?" Concern laces your words, your treacherous mind conjuring dozens of possible reasons for her distress against your will.

"Are you really Lelouch, my Big Brother?"

Your heart nearly shatter at those words. "What are you saying Nunnally?! Of course I am! You know I would never lie to you. Ask Sayoko."

You expect the maid to confirm your words. Instead she walks behind you and begins to touch your face.

"It's true Lady Nunnally." She says before you can ask what she is doing. "He isn't wearing a mask. I can confirm he is Lord Lelouch."

A mask? She thought you were wearing a mask? What the hell?!

"Oh...Ah ah." Nunnally laughs, but you can still detect a hint of nervousness. "Sorry, I must be more tired than I thought. Or maybe I am just hungry?"

"Don't worry Nunnally, we will remedy immediately." You look at Sayoko, who bow and walk to the kitchen. Meanwhile you begin to push Nunnally's wheelchair towards the dining-room. "Warm food, a good night of sleep, and everything will be okay."

"...I hope so, Big Brother."

{====}​

"I have to say, that sister of you has good senses. I mean, I am just a voice in your head for Malfeas' sake!"

"What?" You abruptly turn around, coming face to face with the same demon that gave you your Exaltation. "Seyrun? How? Didn't you fuse with me?"

"Look around you." You follow his advice, and are shocked to discover you're not at Ashford Academy or your room, but in the gardens of Aries Villa. But that's impossible! "You're dreaming. We are in your dreams."

"My...dreams?" You hold your head with one hand. "Yes, I remember now...I had dinner with Nunnally. We talked a bit before I put her to bed and went to sleep myself." You look down and realize you are in the body of your ten years old self. "This must be a lucid dream."

"That's a term of you humans, I don't know it." He moves in front of you and sit down. "But I know this is the only way we can talk face to face." He takes out a cigar and begins to smoke. "Uuhm, memories of cigars long gone. It'll do, I suppose."

You frown. "You want to talk. Couldn't you have waited tomorrow?"

"Yes, but I wanted to try this feature." He blows out smoke. "And because this is the best place to do it. To sum it up, by the knowledge I was given our fusion turned out well."

"That's a good thing, right?"

"It is. But it also means that I can transfer part of my own knowledge in your mind, to use as you see fit. You only need to decide which one, because there is an upper limit that cannot be raised until you grow in power."

"That..." You stop and reflect. "Could be useful. What did you do before becoming my Unwoven Coadjutor?"

"I was a professional assassin. I killed people for money."

"Oh. Then the other Anuhles...?"

"My subordinates. Demands were high, you see?"

You see. And it's not a bad thing to have, your own personal group of hit men. You just don't think Seyrun's experience in that field would be useful in your hands. But maybe he can surprise you?

It takes a lot of discussing, but finally you and Seyrun on what knowledge you want.

[] You have 2 dots. Assign them.
(Your coadjutor provides a number of "free" speciality dots equal to your Essence, which must be appropriate to the coadjutor's species or personal capabilities. These dots do not count toward the maximum number of specialities a character can have in a single ability – nevertheless, you still cannot benefit from more than three dice from specialities on any given roll. If you learn actual specialities that would invalidate one of these "free" specialities, you may replace the useless specialities with new ones the next time you sleep.)

Spoiler: Seyrun

Seyrun, the Assassin Leader
Motivation: To create an organization of assassins feared all across the Demon City
Attributes: Strength 3, Dexterity 5, Stamina 3; Charisma 3, Manipulation 3, Appearance 1; Perception 5, Intelligence 4, Wits 3
Virtues: Compassion 1, Conviction 5, Temperance 2, Valor 3
Abilities: Athletics 3, Awareness 3, Craft (Wood) 2, (Weaving Webs +2), Dodge 3, Integrity 1, Investigation 1, Larceny 3, Martial Arts 4, Presence 2, Resistance 2, Stealth 5, Survival 1 (In Malfeas +1), Occult 1 (Demons +1), Lore 1, Bureaucracy 1

[] Choose 1 Demonic Intimacy.
(Your coadjutor provides you with a single intimacy, which counts toward your normal (Willpower + Compassion) limit. This intimacy is always appropriate to the demon realm and the coadjutor; a marotte coadjutor might provide a positive intimacy toward demonic craft, greasy hair, bezoars, Malfean architecture, human babies, Gumela, Jacint or Adorjan, or a negative intimacy toward idleness. This intimacy can be eroded as normal, but you effectively spend a scene renewing it whenever you regain Willpower from sleeping or increase a trait with the help of your coadjutor. Should the coadjutor's nature undergo a significant shift, so can this intimacy, though it must remain appropriate.)

 

[Enjou]

Ok, another omake. This one featuring a different character in our Coven who may be interested in our recent actions.

Goddess of the Liberation​

Kubouin Hidenobu watched the footage on the screen with rapt awe. It was truly terrifying what the new Britannian Knightmare was capable of. The fact that the pilot of the Sutherland that took the footage had managed to hold her own for so long was a testament to her skill. As the video continued, the mysterious 'Zero' showed up in his own Knightmare and coordinated an attack that result in damage to the new model, followed up by a suicide attack in which Zero ejected and allowed the pilot to escape. The video feed ended there.

"My, how bold!" exclaimed the young woman sitting on the opposite side of the table from him.

"Indeed, Kaguya-sama." Hidenobu readily agreed. Kaguya-sama's word was divine, after all. "Quite a brave act, taking such a risk to let Shinjuku group escape. Truly a miracle, given how the situation could have ended in tragedy."

"Yes. I honestly can't imagine what Kirihara was thinking when he gave the information about the poison gas to them." There was venom in her voice, Hidenobu noted. She was still angry with Taizo. Even now, after Hidenobu had realized the truth, Taizo just couldn't see it. He still treated Kaguya-sama, head of the Sumeragi family, as if she was a mere child. Hidenobu knew better. "Without Zero's intervention, all of Shinjuku would have been massacred."

Hidenobu tried to refrain from sighing. He could not do something so unsightly in her presence. "Yes, it would have been terrible. Taizo does what he thinks best, and he must have thought it worth the risk, but still..." He shrugged. Taking a brief moment to think while stroking his beard, he decided to see if he could lighten his lady's mood. "Well, at least it turned out well. Even if they didn't attain their original goal, Britannia suffered terrible losses and the Shinjuku group managed to keep five of the Sutherlands that Zero captured. I still have to wonder how he did that."

Kaguya-sama's frown turned into a bright smile, lighting up the room. "Yes! Such an amazing victory. I don't think the JLF has managed something that spectacular in years." His lady turned introspective for a moment. "Hmmm... I wonder. Yes, it seems likely, but... if he's one of ours... should we... I think... really? So then..."

"Kaguya-sama?" He hadn't quite heard what she had said. His lady would sometimes do that. She would seem to space out and quietly talk to herself. He knew the truth of it though. His lady was communing with the divine. He didn't know why he hadn't seen it before, but now he just knew.

"Oh! I'm sorry, Hidenobu-dono."

"Think nothing of it, Kaguya-sama. Nothing you could do could possibly offend me."

"Ara, you flatter me!" She giggled. "Now, who else has the information on what happened in Shinjuku?"

"Ah, yes. Taizo knows the very basics of it, but he has very little in the way of details as of yet. My agents are the ones who are in communication with the Shinjuku cell, after all. I had to tell him something, but I didn't want to let him know everything without your blessing."

Kaguya-sama nodded to him. "Ensure it stays that way. The footage we just watched is something we can use at just the right moment - the pilot who managed to stand against the new Britannian model is an ideal candidate for the Guren. We can use that to delay the decision to give it to the JLF until we've brought enough of the others to my side for the Kyoto House to change leaders."

"Of course, Kaguya-sama." The others would see it soon. They would know that Kaguya was the instrument of the kami, that her word was divine and should be followed. It was through her blessing that the liberation would come, not through the machinations of mere men such as himself or Taizo. The others would realize it. He was eager to tell them his beliefs, but his lady had counseled patience. They would come to understand in time.

"Keep me appraised of the activities of the Shinjuku group. If Zero contacts them again, I want to know as soon as possible." She stated quite firmly. "Oh! Before I forget..." she gestured to a nearby servant, who came bearing a wrapped box for him to take. "You'll be going to visit Tousai-dono in a few days, yes? A gift for him and his wife. Candied locusts."

"Oh! Munakata will be very pleased with this gift, Kaguya-sama. I don't know where you get these delicacies, but he's always had a taste for the exotic. They'll absolutely love them."

His goddess's radiant smile grew. It took all his will to resist the urge to bow down before her divine grace. "Yes, I'm sure they will."

 

[Alexander89]

[X] You have 2 dots. Assign them.
-[X] Awareness (Sensing Ambushes)
-[X] Craft (Poison)
[X] Choose 1 Demonic Intimacy.
-[X] Silk

Spoiler: Willpower Recovery

Sadly Invisible Castle is down so you will have to trust me. I rolled Lelouch's Conviction and had one success, meaning he recovers 1 point of temporary Willpower. Thinking of burning down Britannia keeps one going...

There are some people who have troubles waking up, needing to be constantly stimulated to shake off drowsiness. Others toss and turn during the night, waking up gasping as if reacting to a shock.

You are neither. One moment you are asleep - the next you are awake, eyes opening smoothly as they stare at the familiar ceiling of your room. Without missing a beat you rose to your feet and walk into the bathroom, stopping in front of the mirror above the sink.

A slight exertion of will, and a black disk so dark that it almost hurts to gaze upon appears above your brows.

'So it was real.'

"Did you really think it was a dream?" Seyrun asks you.

'I considered it a possibility, yes.' You reply as you start your daily morning ablutions. 'After all, it would be unbelievable without solid proof.'

"Paranoia is all well and good, but you need to relax every now and then. Or get an hobby."

'Like your cigars?'

"That's more like an addition, but let's not nitpick marottes."

You don't even ask what that last thing is, probably some more demon lore. After that is your uniform: you just finish putting it on that two Anuhles appear. "Reporting Boss!" They salute.

"What did you find?"

"There are no Dragonblooded on campus, nor any other suspicious thing. The only presences of note are the Princess and her cohort."

Very good to hear: it means the Academy is still a safe place for you and your sister.

"Actually, you could have tried recruiting a few. A Dragonblooded as a minion is way better than a mortal."

'Uhm, you aren't entirely wrong.' You reflect on Seyrun's words. 'But as the scions of noble Britannian houses it would be difficult to sway them into betraying their homeland...' You pause to contemplate a sudden thought. 'Unless, of course, there are families that bear Dragonblooded heritage outside of Britannia?'

"There should be. Sadly I wasn't given any data about that topic. My advice still stand: when you can, recruit Exalts."

You have to admit, it is sound advice. "Good work. You can go." The spiders nod and left.

There are no traces of the tension of yesterday at breakfast, Nunnally is back to her usual sweet self and everything is right in your life...the one restricted to school at least.

The problems begin when you leave to attend a planned reunion of the Student Council before classes start. As you walk through campus you can't help but notice that the stares from other students...are way more numerous than normal. Sure you have a discrete fame among the female population thanks to your good looks (despite your every attempt to appear as boring as possible at every occasion. What is it the deal with that?) but they never stopped what they are currently doing to just follow you with their eyes before.

And then you notice the male students are doing the same. You rub your lips and the skin around them, thinking there are traces of jam left from breakfast, but your hand come back clean. It's definitely not something on your face. 'What is happening?'

"Sorry Boss, I know nothing about human interaction with each others. You are on your own."

Not that you expect any help from a demonic spider. You barely understand the mentality of highschool students yourself.

Entering the Council room you find it empty, meaning you're the first today. With nothing better to do you begin preparing the paperwork for today's task, which is...inspection on the clubs' budget? With all the amount of work there is everyone should have started on it yesterday. 'I suppose there isn't a power to do paperwork faster?'

"That's more like up a Solar's alley."

You hum. 'But you also said that as a Fiend I can learn the power of other Exalts.'

"Not all of them and it takes more time, but yes. However, you need to see them in action first, and know enough about how Essence works to reverse-engineer the steps leading to them. Or you can go and consult the libraries of Orabilis in Malfeas, which contain a lot of lore accumulated since the First Age."

That sounds interesting. Definitely another stop to add to your tour of Malfeas.

The door opens and Rivalz, Shirley and Nina enter the room. Your partner in illegal betting greets you jovially. "Lelouch buddy! Finally fo..."

You frown as he trails off, hand still raised in the air as he stares at you. Even Nina, who normally has eyes only for the computer, and Shirley are doing the same. Uhm, how come Shirley's cheeks are red? You hope it isn't a cold, missing a member would mean more work. "Alright, now you tell me what is wrong. I've been stared since morning. Why?"

"Uh..." Rivalz stutters before couching. "Buddy, you look...different?"

"Is that a question?"

"...Maybe?"

"Then the answer is no." You scoff. "There is nothing different in me today, I am the same as I was yesterday."

One of the biggest lies of your life, but you don't want to involve the rest of the Council in your secret life.

Milly chooses that moment to enter the room, leaning between Shirley and Nina while her hands grope a breast of each young girl. "Morning my dear servants! Ready for another day of righteous work?"

"MADAM PRESIDENT!"

Finally, some normality.

"You call this normality?"

{====}​

'...Wait, it takes five days to cross Cecelyne, no matter which direction you take or how fast you go? How does that even work?'

"Endless Desert, that's how. Cecelyne represents infinity, If she wants she can trap someone for eternity...but the terms of surrender stated that any travel from Creation to Malfeas can't last more than Calibration, which is made of five days. There are ways to skip that, but they require high-ranked Ar-"

"Lelouch!" Your conversation is interrupted when Milly smacks you in the head with a rolled-up newspaper. "You were asleep just now, weren't you? Your hand stopped moving."

Your hand comes up and snatch the newspaper away. "I was just lost in thought. You don't need to hit me."

Rivalz grins. "Served you right for ditching me like that."

"That's right! What were you two doing yesterday?"

"Nothing worth mentioning." You reply absentmindedly before a title on the newspaper catches you attention. Opening it you begin to read.

"-when the initially announced urban renewal operation turned out to be a cover-up for a large scale military operation against terrorists armed with poison gas. However, it came as a shocking turn of events when in his first official appearance after the fact the Viceroy declared that the whole incident was orchestrated by traitors inside the Pureblood Faction. Ignoring numerous protests His Highness has announced that every member will be put under investigation for allegedly treason against the Crown, suspended from active service until final judgment and all their possessions frozen to allow better scruti-"

"Lelouch...?"

"Yes Rivalz?"

"I don't know what is making you so happy, but could you stop smiling? You're scaring me!"

"Oh, is that so?" You put away the newspaper and turn to look at your fellow Council members, who all look paler than usual. Except Milly, who is taking a deep breath...oh.

"GUTS!" She shouts.

While everyone else whimper at the volume you point the pen at her and glare. "Don't you dare."

"Whatever do you mean Lelouch?" She grins back.

"That 'Guts' spell again?"

'Oh Rivalz, you have no idea what she can make you do.' "Just tell us to work harder, will you?" You then realize it's the perfect moment to enact the plan you made after Seyrun explained how to increase your abilities. "Actually, I have a proposal."

Every eye turn to you. Milly gives a slight nod to indicate you can go on.

"I have no doubt we can get the club budgets balanced today, but how do we know they are spending them wisely? One of us should do surprise inspections on the various clubs during the following week, joining their activities to gauge first-hand."

"Ooh, an interesting proposal." Milly hums while Shirley and Rivalz offer comments in the background. "You realize that, as the one who came up with it, it's you who will do the inspections?"

"But of course." Your reply is so shocking that even Nina turns away from the computer to stare at you. "An entire week, during which I will be unable to help with paperwork? Sounds like a deal."

Shock is replaced by groans about the unfairness of life.

Just as planned.

{====}​

"Geez! I swear the President is an old man on the inside!" Shirley complains with a pout as you, Rivalz, Nina and her walk to class.

"Milly has always been like that." Nina defends the blonde bombshell.

'Whimsical like the wind? Yes. Her dirty jokes? That is all puberty's fault. And it's likely Exalting made it even worse.'

"Well we got the budget report done on time, so it's all good." Rivalz comments with a grin.

"So it's not because you share Milly's interest in Shirley's breasts?"

Your grin grows an inch longer as the two victims sputter and blush fiercely. Man, you're on a roll today. Since when do you enjoying teasing so much?

"I think it may be an effect of your recent Exaltation. The world-changing feeling of it is bound to last more than a few hours. You'll surely going back to normal once you're fully acclimatized with it."

It makes sense. In exchange for such power, a few days of highlighted emotional state is nothing.

When you reach your desk you notice a group of girls making a fuss around one of them. A girl with red hair, if you remember right she is often ab-

Your gaze lands on her face.

Your eyes widen as you recognize her as the pilot of the red Glasgow, who was also the redhead you gave the codename of Q-1.

"Boss, I think we found the way to contact the terrorists." Seyrun announces with smugness.

Oh yes, indeed.

[] Make direct contact when appropriate.
[] Contact her through phone, better to not expose yourself.
[] Continue observation, you want to know why a Britannian is helping Elevens.
[] Write-in.
====

Personal Essence: 13/13
Peripheral Essence: 32/32

Willpower: 7/7

Stunt Pool 2/4

Click to shrink...

====

The Second Breath doesn't change who you fundamentally are...but when you have the energy of a dozen nuclear bombs running in your veins, such power isn't so easily constrained. That, and Lelouch is a magnificent Fiend.

 

[Alexander89]

Would they properly remember the reveal of magic though? Seyrun said that Arcane Fate affects anyone who's incapable of using Essense and makes them forget the existence of the supernatural.

Click to shrink...

I don't think it's so absolute, otherwise the Yozi cult would never have been able to form. From the description, people just overlook it and come up with plausible mundane explanations. I think of someone explains it to them then they might actually remember. @Alexander89 could clarify on this, and Lelouch could get more info in the background.

Click to shrink...

Good questions. Allow me to answer: the Arcane Fate affects Sidereals as canon, since they were the targets when they did their Fate things. But in this AU Jupiter was just a teeny bit late in repairing the Mask. Good turn at the Game of Divinity, you see. This cause the Arcane Fate to partially, and I stress partially, affect the rest of Creation's magical existence.
Every Essence using being, beside Sidereals, receives those effects:

The Sidereal is easy to overlook, in person and in memory. People suffer a -3 internal penalty on any attempt to spot a Sidereal, even if the Vizier does not actively avoid notice.

Click to shrink...

At this point it keeps going saying that the Sidereal suffers a -3 internal penalty on any attempts to build relationships, trust or love with mortals. Only Sidereals have this penalty, meaning that any other magical being has a greatly easier time building up Acquaintances. Also, being part of any kind of Background counts as being Acquaintances, but only for non-Sidereals.

Finally, Creation readily forgets Sidereals—their personas or their actual selves. Arcane Fate makes it almost a certainty that people and objects governed by the Loom will let the Sidereal slip from their minds. This aspect of Arcane Fate is a Shaping effect that affects mortals, Exalted
and most gods equally. A character's Familiars and Acquaintances are immune, as are all Sidereals, all officials and functionaries of the Bureau of Destiny, all Celestial gods and any creatures outside of fate.
As long as the Sidereal remains present, anyone aware of her can remember her. Once she leaves, memories of her slip from the minds of anyone who met her. Only powerful wills can grip the memory strongly enough to resist this insidious destiny. When an affected character tries to remember the Sidereal, his player makes a (Wits + Integrity) roll for the struggle. The roll is at difficulty 1 but suffers a -3 internal penalty as a mind struggles against fate. The player rolls each time his character tries to remember until he has made (Sidereal's Essence) successful rolls or failed once. Failure on any roll indicates that the character forgets about the Sidereal and his interaction with her. If forced to think about what went on at that time, his mind creates a plausible substitute that edits out the Sidereal or replaces her with someone else. If any single roll turns up more successes than the Sidereal's Essence rating, that character can remember the event without any future rolls.

Click to shrink...

Again, Fate applies penalties only against Sidereals. Other magical creatures simply visits mortals enough times until they all made successful rolls. The more memories a person can successfully recall, the stronger the impression becomes, until the mortal is tied enough to the magical being's existence that all Essence using beings are revealed to them. A common trick is leaving them objects with magical effects, whose effects can stimulate memories.

If you want Lelouch to reveal magic to Kallen's groups, be prepared to provide proof a great number of times (Tamaki has no Integrity and Wits 1).

 

[Yzarc]

Roll to persuade Kallen:
I think I like rolz.org .To make her join the Council you will social attack her together with Milly, so it's safe to assume you succeed.

Click to shrink...

If you type the rolls as 12d10X7 it will auto count the sucesses and not just add all the dice.

Spoiler: instructions

• Count the number of successes: to see how many dice rolled equal to or greater than some number, use "E".
  Example: 4D6E4
  The default die of this roll type is d6, so 4e4 can be used as a shorthand for 4d6e4.
• Successes with additive re-roll: to see how many dice rolled equal to or greater than some number, use "R" if you want the individual die maximum to trigger a re-roll. This way, you can have target difficulties greater than the max number of the die. The system also gives you the number of ones rolled (if there were any) so you can judge whether an action resulted in a fumble.
  Example: 4D6R8
  The default die of this roll type is d6, so 4r8 can be used as a shorthand for 4d6r8.
• Successes minus failures: to see how many dice rolled equal to or greater than some number, and subtract the amount of ones rolled, use "F".
  Example: 4D6F4
  The default die of this roll type is d6, so 4f4 can be used as a shorthand for 4d6f4.
• Successes "plus": to see how many dice rolled equal to or greater than some number, and roll every max result again and see if it's another success, use "M".
  Example: 4D10M4
  The default die of this roll type is d10, so 4m4 can be used as a shorthand for 4d10m4.
• Successes with everything: to see how many dice rolled equal to or greater than some number, and roll every max result again, and subtract the amount of ones rolled, use "S". This is probably the one you want for most systems.
  Example: 4D10S4
  The default die of this roll type is d10, so 4s4 can be used as a shorthand for 4d10s4.
• Successes with multiple dice: Some systems use the cumulative result of two or more dice to determine successes, here the sum of several dice is compared to the difficulty rating. To emulate this, you can group dice like this:
  Example: 1D6:6S4 , meaning 2d6 will be rolled and 4(+) is a success.
  Example: 5D6:8S10 , here a d8 and a d6 will be rolled, a sum of 10(+) is a success, the entire check is rolled 5 times.
• Maximum possible die result counts as two successes: to see how many dice rolled equal to or greater than some number, use "X".
  Example: 4D6X4
  The default die of this roll type is d6, so 4x4 can be used as a shorthand for 4d6x4.

 

[Alexander89]

[X] You will contact her through phone as Zero, but also contact her in person as Lelouch to get a better read on her character.
-[X] Plan Skipping Gym

You decide it best to approach this from two different angles. She's a terrorist, and you don't know enough about her to expose any of your secrets - perhaps later, if she turns out to be trustworthy, but not before. Still, best to keep her close where you're able to observe. You also need to find out why an apparently Britannian student is working as a terrorist for an Eleven cell.

"Lelouch, what are you looking at? Perhaps you have a crush on her?" Rivalz, who hasn't forgotten the jab of before and is obviously intent on merciless revenge, playfully tells you from behind your back.

"I just think that's unusual to see her." You reply, unfazed. "If I am not mistaken, she hasn't been at school since the opening ceremony, has she?" You may not care much, but you do pay attention to who is in your class.

Your blue haired friend takes out a notebook and begins flipping the pages until he finds what he is looking for. "Kallen Stadtfeld. They say she's sick or something. She only showed up occasionally last year too. But her grades are top-notch. She's the only heir to the Stadtfeld family, which means she's well-bred and rolling in money. Man, you sure know how to pick 'em." He playfully elbows you.

You wave him off. "It's nothing like that."

"Denial, denial." He grins. "A bit too sheltered though if you ask me."

Right. If all sheltered young girls are as good with Knightmares at her, then you're going to recruit them en-masse. But now you have a name and some details: acting as a meek and weak person, good grades, doing dangerous activities in her free time with a 180° turn in personality...

You blink. Are you describing her, or yourself? That's a pretty amazing coincidence. This needs investigating.

As the lesson begins you open your cellphone under the desk and write a message.

"Milly, do you know a girl called Kallen Stadtfeld?"

"Lulu! I have lesson right now. You bad boy, you! But you're forgiven! Now tell me all about the girl that managed to impress our dear ice prince ♥ ♥ ♥!"

You resist the urge to facepalm.

"It's not like that. I recognized her as one of the terrorists I helped."

"Ah. Oh dear, I suppose it makes sense."

"What do you mean?"

"Grandfather told me about her. According to her middle school transcripts she is half-Japanese, born from Viscount Stadtfeld's previous marriage."

An half, uh? This explains a lot.

"Why did Ruben wanted to talk about her?"

"We talked about adding her to the Student Council. Officially because she can't join any other club due to her weak body (which I assume it's an act?). Unofficially, to help her keep her past hidden."

Ah Ruben, always thinking about the well-being of his students first. But that's also why you respect him.

"Let's do it. Adding her to the Council I mean. I will also need your help to set up an encounter with her group. Wait for me in the student council room."

"Okey dokey. Keep her safe Lelouch, even if a terrorist she's still a student her. Buh-bye :-* :-*"

You close your phone, put it away and raise your hand. "I'm sorry professor, can I go to the bathroom?"

"Make it quick Lamperouge, we're about to reach an important topic."

"Yes sir." You leave the classroom and enter the nearest bathroom. Once you make sure nobody else is there you raise two fingers. "I want two of you to follow the redheadgirl: gather information and ensure she doesn't harm any of the other students. If the latter happens attack to submit, not kill."

Then you raise one finger. "Another one will go in my room and open the third drawer to the right of my desk. Bring me the item inside."

{====}​

'Are they really afraid of a single bee? The poor insect is probably more afraid than them.' You deadpan in your mind as you see the girls Stadtfeld hang around with panic and flee.

By pure luck the redhead runs in your direction and hide behind the bushes, the bee following her. Once she thinks she is hidden she stands up calmly and look at the bee buzzing around. "I don't get it, why is it following me? I wonder if there is a beehive around here?" She mutters before smacking the bee out of the air, faster than a supposedly sickly girl should be able to.

"Good movements, but she lacks finesse." Seyrun comments. "That, and killing prey without eating it? Wasteful."

'Insects are not among the most common Britannian types of food.' You inform him while slowly walking towards her. 'Though I suppose it counts as an exotic specialty.'

"Geez, I hate this! I am sick of acting like a freaking invalid!" Kallen Stadtfeld mutters before biting into a sandwich. Then she looks over to see you standing there, clearly having witnessed her deft killing of the bee and breaking the false character she plays at school. Taking the sandwich from her mouth, she asks "I-is there something you want from me?"

"Miss Stadtfeld, I'm Lelouch Lamperouge, the Student Council Vice-President. Could you please come with me? The President would like to speak with you." You put on your best smile, and she actually blushes for a moment. "Oh, and don't worry, I'll keep your secret."

She tenses up, clearly worried. Still smiling, you put her at ease. "I'd do anything to get out of gym class, too."

The dumbfounded look on her face is priceless. "I-uh-what?" She coughs before smiling awkwardly. "Right, of course it's that! Oops? Could you...you know...please not tell anybody? It's embarrassing..."

"No problem. Now please come, the President doesn't like walking."

"O-Okay." She hesitates before starting to follow you. "What does the President want with me?"

"I don't know." You lie. "You will have to ask her yourself."

Milly is already there when you reach the Council room. "Kallen Stadtfeld? I'm Milly, the Student Council President. Nice to meet you!" Milly greets the redhead before shaking her hand vigorously.

"Nice to meet you too?" Kallen replies, evidently overwhelmed by Milly's personality.

"You aren't in any club, right?" Kallen shakes her head. "Then do you want to join the Student Council?"

"Eh?!"

"That's a great idea." You smile and nod sagely. "We really need another pair of hands. Was it your idea?"

"No, it was grandfather's. Since all students must join a club in their second year." She turns to the redhead with a smile. "What do you think?"

Kallen smiles weakly. "I really appreciate it, but I don't think..." She starts before Milly interrupts her.

"No need to be so stiff." She walks behind her and puts her hands on the redhead's shoulders. You were honestly expecting her to go lower. "Let me and Lelouch tells you all about how good of a job it is..."

You wonder if it is because it's you and Milly, or just two Exalts against a mortal, but it doesn't take long for Kallen to lose her reservations and agree. "Well, I guess it couldn't hurt to try it out."

"That's great!" The blonde hugs the redhead, eliciting a squeal from the latter. "Lelouch, gives Kallen a roundup of what she will needs to do. We will organize a proper welcoming party tomorrow at the clubhouse. Is that okay?"

"But of course Madam President." You reply before opening the door for her like a perfect gentleman.

When she walks past you hand her the tape recorder out of Kallen's sight.

"Actually I am going to do a series of surprise inspections on the other clubs starting today, so I will not be present much for the rest of the week." You tell Kallen as you take out the documents and arrange them neatly on the table. "I will cover as much as possible in the limited time we have. Please hold the fort until I'm back, okay?"

"Yes, thank you for the help. But surely it's not that hard?"

"It's not. The real hazard is Mi-" At that moment the phone rings. "Excuse me." You walk to the phone and answer the call. "Hello? This is the Ashford Academy Student Council."

"This is sooo exciting!" Milly squeals. "I am in the boy's bathroom, and about to engage in a secret operation!"

...Nope, not touching that. "Oh?" You feign surprise before handing the phone to Kallen. "It's for you."

"For me?" Kallen replies confused before taking it. "Hello?"

"Glad to see you're okay Q-1." Even if you can't hear it you know exactly what she is hearing, since you made the tape yourself. "The day after tomorrow at 1600 hours, come to the viewing platform at Tokyo Tower. You can bring your friends: it's time you and me finally meet."

"Wait! Tell me, are you the one from Shinjuku?!" She yells into the phone, but the registration has ended and so had the call.

"Shinjuku?" You ask her.

"Ah. Well you see-"

"Yesterday me and my friend passed near it. We didn't see anything, but it's better this way." You sit down and frown a little while sorting the documents. "We were too busy calming down after a truck almost run us over. It even crashed into a building yard and then run away before we could call the rescuers. Can you believe it?"

Her mouth clamps shut, pink spreading on her cheeks. "Yes, the type of people they give a license those days..." She laughs nervously.

{====}​

"Is this it?" You wonder aloud before reading the plate above the door. "Survival Game Club? I know we had a club like that, but..." You take note again of the blocky, simplistic building with cracked tiles, used human targets scattered around and- "Are those grenades?"

All in all it looks less like a highschool club and more like an illegal shooting range.

Still, you can't back down: you need the training. You walk to the door and knock.

No response. You knock again, and this time the door opens slowly. "Hello, I am here on the Co-"

The next few seconds are a confused blur. You remember something obscuring your vision before being trapped in something that feels suspiciously like a sack, being manhandled roughly and made to sit on a chair before being tied to it.

So of course when there is a cutting sound and your head is free your reaction is perfectly natural.

"What the fuck?!"

"Boss! Give the order to attack before they do Kimbery knows what to you!"

"Pretty bold for a spy." A girl walks into your field of vision, a group of other students standing nearby. "What manner of business do you have with our club?"

Spoiler

Your eyebrow starts twitching erratically. However, before you can respond another girl gasps and runs to whisper something into the violet haired girl's ear. The latter blinks. "You're the Student Council's Vice-President?"

"Lelouch Lamperouge. A pleasure to meet you." You smile your best fake smile. Your eyes widen minutely as you see the Anuhles hanging from the ceiling, ready to jump down and commit a massacre. You slightly shake your head and they dematerialize. "Now, can you please tell just what is happening?"

"My name is Caitlin Tiffany Glass. I am the Survival Game Club's president." She presents herself stylishly. "We thought you were a spy, so we reacted accordingly."

You gape. "I knocked on the door!"

"A clever spy."

"No, that is a stupid one."

After silently agreeing with Seyrun you glare at her. "Let's forget it. Now, can someone finally untie me?" It's less a request and more a demand.

Luckily they do it promptly, and soon you're free again. While you rub your sore wrists Glass addresses you again. "So, for what reason did the Student Council's Vice-President come here personally."

You concede yourself a few more seconds of irritation before switching to pure professionalism. "Surprise inspection."

Glass and the other members look at you in confusion.

"It was decided that, in order to verify the budget we provide to Ashford's clubs is well used, a member of the Council will perform surprise inspections and temporarily join the club activities in order to gauge first-hand."

There is silence.

And then Glass puts you in an one arm's chokehold that severely restrict your ability to breath. "YESSS!" She yells victoriously. "Welcome to the Survival Game Club new member! We will have so much fun together!"

'It's only for today!' "Uh holly gudai!"

"Now!" She puts a piece of paper and a pen under your nose. "Firm this document that relieve the club from any responsibility in case of injury, maiming, coma and other minutiae."

You call those minutiae?!?

{====}​

"Lord Lelouch? Are you alright?" Sayoko asks the moment you return home. You can't blame her, you must look like shit.

"Due to Council's affairs I participate to the Survival Game Club activities." You stoically tell her. "They're trigger happy."

Even if mostly it was the male members who seemed to have a fixation for you.

Sayoko mulls over your words for a bit before bowing. "I understand. If you like, I can take care of dinner by myself."

"Yes, that would be helpful. Sorry to burden you like this Sayoko." You grimace, but she just smiles and ask you to take a seat.

Dinner is a simple affair. During it Nunnally talks excitedly how Sayoko is teaching her to make origami, so much that she ends spilling some of the soup on her chin.

"You don't have to talk so quickly." You say tenderly while cleaning her with a napkin. "I am not going anywhere."

"Thank you Big Brother." Nunnally smiles. "I glad. Last night, you were a bit scary."

"Oh?" You quickly hide your surprise. "I'm sorry, but like I said don't worry about it. It's partially my fault too, I had a lot on my mind recently."

That, of course, is a severe euphemism.

"Hey." Nunnally shows you a pink crane made of paper. "They said that if you fold a thousand of those cranes, your wishes will be granted."

"That sound like a ritual to ask a God for a boon." Seyrun comments. "Even if I have my doubts about what the God of Origami can realistically do."

'A God...of Origami?'

"There is a God for everything Boss. Even the cutlery you are using each has a half aware least god, but those guys are mostly just energy who record the object's history. Higher ranked Gods are instead provided with a portfolio among those available from the Celestial Bureaucracy, but I heard that since the Great Contagion they are troubled by an overflow of jobless Gods and rampant corruption."

You resist the urge to raise your eyes to the sky. 'For being Heaven, it has surprisingly human-like problems.'

"It's you humans who imitate them, not the contrary."

"Is there anything you wish for?" Nunnally asks you.

'A lot, but I don't want to ask a crappy god for that. I prefer to work for them myself.' "No, no really. What about you?"

Nunnally thinks about it for a while before answering. "I wish for a kinder world."

You smile. That is just like your sister. "I'm sure that by the time you can see again, the world will be like that."

"Really?"

You put your hands over hers. "I promise."

Even if you have to crack Hell open and bring down Heaven for that.

"The world is broken."

It is.

"The cycle of betrayal and usurpation must be stopped."

It must be.

"It is said even an Exaltation can only grants its bearer the capacity to make a single choice and achieve it, never two or more conflicting ones at the same time. Are you prepared to bear all obstacles and consequences?"

'Have you ever read Paradise Lost of John Milton? My favorite part is this:

Here we may reign secure; and in my choice
To reign is worth ambition, though in hell:
Better to reign in hell than serve in heaven.'

"I didn't, but I like it. There is no power without ambition, that is one of the truths of Hell."

Then so be it.

You are put out of your internal monologue by Nunnally locking your pinky fingers. "I learned this recently. It's how Japanese people make promises." She begins to sing.

"Cross my heart,
hope to die,
eat a thousand needles
if I lie.
Pinky promise!"

You blink. For a moment you almost feel compelled to use your Anima power, but quickly suppress it. "That's scary. I may have to eat a thousand needles someday."

"Yup. So you shouldn't lie."

"Don't worry, I won't lie."

At least, not to her.

{====}​

After dinner to retire to your room. After making sure the door is closed you sit down, take out paper and a pencil and begin to draw. If the silk of the Anuhles is as strong as Seyrun said then you want not only a school uniform and casual clothes, but also an appropriate costume for when you will meet the terrorists. It will likely become your trademark or icon, so it has to be adequate for the task.

[] Canon Zero's Costume.
[] Canon Zero's Costume, with modifications.
-[] Which ones? (write-in)
[] Something different? (write-in)
[] Let the GM decide.

You also need to decide where you will meet the terrorists, and how you plan to persuade them.

[] Write-in.
[] Leave it to the GM's imagination.
====

Knightmare Frames (Drive): O -> OOO

Current: 35 Xp
Total acquired: 39 Xp

Click to shrink...

Enjou's XP Expenditure Plan - Basic Combat Proficiency

Dexterity 4 - 7 XP (29 days left)
Dodge 1 - 3 XP (5 days left)
Athletics 1 - 3 XP (5 days left)
Resistance 1 - 3 XP (5 days left)
Firearms 2 - 4 XP (5 days left)

Click to shrink...

====

I would like to suggest that in the future you use XP to learn Old Realm. You will need it in Malfeas.