[Round Zero: part 1]

[utopiamods]

At noon on the rest day, every screen in the campus lights up. It's the girl from the introduction again! She's grinning fit to burst, and her voice is bright and excited.

"Good morning, everyone! Round Minus-One is now officially over, so we'd like you to all report to the lobby for a special announcement, immediately! It starts in ten minutes, so don't be late."

The screens all go blank, before simply displaying the flashing text ALL STUDENTS REPORT TO THE LOBBY FOR 12:10.

Reaching the lobby, you find it empty of the usual staff. However, the doors to the tramstation are blocked by a large stage, spanning the entire south wall. In the centre stands the girl, in the flesh and just as sickeningly cheerful as her broadcast.

"Hi, everyone!" She waves, tilting sideways as she does so, and then clasps her hands together. "Wow, it's really great to see you all in person at last! You've all tried a lot harder this week, and it shows! We're really, really impressed with everyone. Ah, even though there was a bit of cheating..." she pouts, and shakes her head lightly, "But that's okay. We forgive you! You all know better now.

"But what we've called you here to say is this! We've been working extra hard too, and we've gotten a lot done with your help. So much that we're nearly ready for Round One!

"However..."

She's still smiling. It's a little unnerving, "We have to do some maintenance first, okay? And I'm afraid it would be a problem if you were all alive for that... you could cause us a lot of problems. So we're going to get rid of you for a little while. Think of this as a final test!"

She snaps her fingers, and your shadows disappear. No, not disappear. That's the wrong word. It's more like... they're abandoning you. Nearly forty pools of darkness flow up onto the stage, and suddenly explode upwards in tendrils and globs of black. The girl laughs as they finish changing, as they take on your shapes. As they reach into themselves and pull out inky replicas of your own weapons. They all laugh with her, in the emotionless tones of the Voice from your dreams.

"You can all draw your own weapons now, okay? Fight hard!"

[mod notice: NOW EVERYONE NEEDS TO READ THIS OOC POST BEFORE THEY REPLY.]

Comments

[warpwhatsir]

"How original," he commented, and his voice was almost pleasant in its apathetic tone. "Am I right to state that my original self attempted to hide as well? You can see what purpose that served him, Kallen." He slowed to a casual walk, his foil at his side. "I'm sure you must feel quite guilty over all that. A gun versus a fencing foil? Hardly fair." His teeth flashed in a sadistic grin. "Are you going to kill me again, Kallen? Are you going to use that gun and blow my brains out, just like you did to me before?"

[queenscheckmate]

"I-- that wasn't me and you know that!" Kallen tried to keep her composure. She didn't help Sulu; she idly watched him died. And the shadow was right. Neither of the fights were fair. Kallen would win and her shadow proved that.

Okay... calm down... hiding wasn't going to do anything.

She walked out of her hiding spot, facing in the other's direction.

"I never thought I would have to fight against what I wanted to protect."

[warpwhatsir]

"How do you know?" he responded, eyes flashing. "How do you know that wasn't just some deep buried part of you?" He held the foil up, not even bothering with the usual starting stance. Instead, it seemed rather as if he couldn't care less. The foil was loose in his grip. "You couldn't protect anything."

[queenscheckmate]

"Because I wouldn't killed someone I admire," she said flatly. "He is exactly what I aspired to protect in my world. I wouldn't want to destroy that."

Kallen dropped her gun on the floor. "I may have not been able to protect him but I will protect what he stood for." She shifted into a fighting stance. "You want to destroy his memory? Then you're going to have to kill me." Confident, but not stupid. "You want a fair fight? you have it right in front of you."

[stopwatch]

After fighting for a long time, Rolo knocks his shadow down with a well-aimed kick. He wasn't good in hand to hand. His geass is what he relied on to deliver kills. The shadow had gotten him a few times, his uniform shirt sliced and arms roughed up, and he's sure that there's something else wrong with him; his breathing is laboured, he sweats profusely and on top of that he feels dizzy. Poison. Rolo can recognize the symptoms of poisoning, his childhood being as it was. And as if to further prove this, he remembers something about poison from the dream.

Leaving the shadow behind, he steps through the chaos, dodging the swipe of a sword here and the backstep of someone there, panic quickly rising like bile in his throat. He has to find Lelouch, and fast. He'd been tied up far too long. Lelouch wasn't good in combat-- he'd been told to trust Suzaku, and he was hoping that he did as he was expected: to protect him. But it wasn't a sure thing.

Amidst the crowd, the noise, Lelouch's voice suddenly rings loud and clear, and Rolo sees him. He approaches, wasting no time. "Broth--" And then, he sees Nunnally. He takes a satisfaction in her crumpled form, but it's lost among the worry he has for Lelouch. Losing Nunnally like this and seeing her dead… yes, Rolo would have done the job much cleaner. Then, the massacre princess, another sister. It's no wonder he is as he is, and Rolo nearly looks away.

But he can't fight. Surely Lelouch would be hurt if he were to fight.

"Brother, don't--...!"

[warpwhatsir]

He threw back his head and laughed. "Tough words," he said with a sneer. "Your delusions are remarkable. Your world was undoubtedly no better than ours. Ours was wrought with wars and death and revenge between thousands of planets and galaxies." He shrugged. "But so be it. If you think you can kill me again, go ahead."

The foil remained firmly in his hand.

[queenscheckmate]

"You've got it all wrong. I will kill you and it will be the first and last time." She remembered the male mentioning his sport of choice, fencing. But she knew that his counterpart would not play fair. It would be hard to win to this win this fight but Kallen knew that somehow she could.

Call it a gut feeling.

She charged him, making sure to dodge his foil.

[swordofzero]

Unfortunately for the shadow of Suzaku his momentum was going towards his real life double and so he couldn't dodge. He did however manage to grin at Kallen as he began to disparate, You got me! Again, dark laughter and he was gone.

[swordofzero]

Suzaku nodded grimly. He did indeed know exactly what she meant. Gripping his sword he dashed out of the way of the bullets coming towards him and ran forwards swinging his sword above his head to bring down at the shadow of Kallen.

[defender]

If not for the coloring, it would have been all too easy to believe that Shoujou was the monster, and his shadow the human.

Walking casually through the battlefield with a subdued smile on its lips and its pistol held loosely in its hand, the shadow had ignored Shoujou entirely from the very beginning of the battle, leaving the hunt for him to its brethren. The shadow was not interested in Shoujou; the shadow was quite sure it had bigger prey to be stalking. And – spotting one “Karin Asagiya” slip behind a pillar with a wounded Kuchinawa in tow – it decided that it wouldn’t even need to lay a trap.

This kill is mine. The shadow’s playful smile twisted into a predatory smirk.

It rounded the pillar quietly, stopping short some six feet from the two students, and raised its gun in a smooth gesture – aiming squarely for El’s chest. ”You know what I’ve always wondered?” it asked softly, its voice a perfect imitation of the real Shoujou’s.

Its smirk became a grotesque caricature of a grin. ”Can God die?”

The shadow fired.

”Oh. Looks like he can.”

[queenscheckmate]

That was easier than expected. The shadow went down as Suzaku came from hers. In case the shadow moved out the way, Kallen aimed her gun to have the shadow at gun point from behind. There was no way out of this.



"And to think... to have the traitor take me down." A bitter ,laugh came from her double as the sword went through her.

It was over... Kallen sighed and dropped her gun to the side of her, head placing itself against the floor below. That was definitely a rush and the adrenaline was gone and sucked the life out of her. Her breathing was heavy as she closed her eyes.

[themerryway]

Shadow Euphemia loads her gun, flipping the switch and aiming carefully, then firing. She's got a big smile on her face, blood splattered across her torn dress and face. And maybe the bullet she's just fired is headed in your direction!

[stopwatch]

Rolo stops dead in his tracks. Lelouch is supposed to-- no. It's not Lelouch; it's his shadow. It must be. He slowly approaches, knife in hand and an unsteadiness in his face. He doesn't say anything, just looks at the thing with his brother's face.

[swordofzero]

Then the shadows were gone, Suzaku stumbled the words of the shadow Kallen ringing in his ears; but then saw Kallen fall. He was at her side in a moment. "Kallen," he put his hand on his shoulder, she had to get up. There were still people... Lelouch was dead... Euphemia and Nunnally were dead... but there were others still alive. They had to protect them, even if it would be easier just to let themselves die.

"Suzaku! Kallen!" His head turned at the sound and saw Kotarou stood with Huashi and Oichi.

"Kallen!" Suzaku shook her, "There's Kotarou... he's still alive... come on!"

seki said Suzu could fail to protect Rolo as well :D

[swordofzero]

Suzaku was right behind Rolo; Rolo being the only thing Lelouch was fighting to protect left alive. Lelouch was dead... he had failed, Nunnally... Euphemia... Was Kallen even left alive? Suzaku had lost her after he had ran after the dark twisted shadow version of Mei.

Now... "Rolo be careful! That's not your brother..." Not that Lelouch was Rolo's brother anyways but sometimes family was more than blood. He started towards them sword in hand trying to convince himself of the same face. This was not Lelouch...

[queenscheckmate]

"How much longer do we have to do this?" There was no answer to question. She just wanted all of this to be over. She got up when Suzaku helped her to do so. The teenager willed herself to stand.

Instatly she grabbed her injured arm from her fight with Dark Sulu. The damn cut reopened and she was bleeding again.

[warpwhatsir]

He just bared his teeth again and leaned out of the way, back bending in a way that barely seemed possible, bringing the foil around in a sharp jab. "Kill me, huh?" he snarled. "Let's see how true you are to your word. Let's see if you can watch me die again."

[derpyglasses]

Akane here is always in the wrong place at the wrong time, isn't he. And this proves to be no different. It's more like sheer dumb luck than any sort of real skill on his part that he manages to lunge in time for one of those bullets to merely graze his shoulder. Shit. Please stop firing, thanks.

[queenscheckmate]

She ducked only slightly to have the hit graze over her shoulder. Ignoring the pain, she sent a fist directly to his face. "You mean for the first time. You don't need me to keep correcting you, do I?"

[allurprincess]

Luckily he's allied with someone who can generally be counted on to be in the right place at roughly the right time. Or just a little later than the right time.

Like now.

"Akane!" The yell is accompanied by the sound of ricocheting bullets, as Sora dives in front of him and uses her conveniently increased reflexes to swipe most of the next clip out of the air with a slash of her ~heroically shining blade~. "Are you hurt?!"

OASIS OF ALIVE: If you're alive and wanna be with other still alive people fight your way here!

[swordofzero]

Suzaku helped Kallen as they struggled the way through the room. So many dead... Suzaku's brain couldn't take it all in, they were all dead. This place had kidnapped them, forced them to play their sick and twisted games and now where just massacring them... He wanted to just... Stop; just let some shadow take him. He didn't deserve to live when he had failed so many.

But there were still people alive, innocent people who weren’t traitorous murders. Kallen was one, Kotarou and Huashi two others. Suzaku would do his best.

They were almost there... "Kotarou, Huashi, Oichi!"

[monkeystail]

"Ohh, that looks bad!" Huashi said and then turned to her left, moving what had seemed to be a resting Sasuke, but actually simply was his body propped up against the wall, to the side, making more room between the 'shield' Sasuke now served as, Huashi and Kotarou who was behind Oichi and Huashi.

"You can put her there!" There's blood on her clothes, but none of it is her own, except for a barely-there cut on her arm that's merely a crusted red line. It's all Sasuke's, from when she moved the body around to give them a bit more protection.

[swordofzero]

"Until we win, or die," he saw her blood and reached out to help her, to support her. His mind was working the same as Kallen. Why should he live when so many had died, so many had died who he had promised to protect had died. He did not deserve to live.

He deserved to die, probably brutally. He had deserved to die most of his life but today, today he had failed again.

But others... Kotarou, Huashi, they were innocent and did not deserve to die. They especially did not deserve to die like this, in this bloodbath of horror. Then he could die, after all what was the point in living in a world where everyone you loved was dead.

No... Kotarou, they had to get there and protect him.

<link=http://rakuen.dreamwidth.org/17302.html?thread=942486#cmt942486>here is where they are going

[warpwhatsir]

It connected solidly, but it didn't exactly look like he tried very hard to dodge her. He just came back up from where he'd hunched over, eyes still gleaming scarlet.

"Your shadow is you," he said primly, adjusting his shirt a little. "You just can't handle the truth."

[queenscheckmate]

Kallen backed up a little, placing some space between the both of them. "The truth? Want to share with me what that is exactly?"