[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

[veepofchess]

Lelouch's shadow was on the prowl. His real self was dead, and he had nothing but the freedom to mess with everyone that weakling cared about. Destroy everything he cared about. It's a shame someone else got to Nunnally first.

"Rolo~~" he called out. "My dear Rolo~~ Where are you?" The fake sibling would do just fine. Wouldn't be as fun as Suzaku, though.

[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.

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...

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

[veepofchess]

"And the traitor still lives. I suppose it's more fun that way," he sneered at Suzaku. His smile was cruel and mocking.

"Rolo! My dear brother, Rolo! It's good to see you alive again after so long. If I do have one regret, it's that I hadn't been able to kill you myself! But it was so satisfying to know that I had lured you into sacrificing yourself for me. Even after all of those horrible but true things I'd said about you."

He raised his sword toward Rolo. "It's time for me to finish what I'd started."

[stopwatch]

Rolo looks away.

He doesn't understand what he's referring to-- Rolo didn't die, he's sure of it-- but it hurts. What he's implying hurts. Having something he'd wondered about so many times before this practically confirmed out loud hurts.

No, he tells himself. This isn't his brother. He's toying with him. Lelouch would never--

He takes a step back. A sword against a switchblade; it's obvious who would win.

"I know he isn't," Rolo says quietly to Suzaku, trying to convince himself he isn't.

[swordofzero]

There was nothing these shadows could say to Suzaku that was worse than anything Suzaku said to himself on a regular basis. But hearing the words he tortured himself with coming from the mouths of shadows wearing the faces of his friends; Suzaku could not cope with it.

"Rolo don't listen to him," they had to get out of there, sadly Suzaku knew that a lot of what the shadow said was true, but he was not going to tell Rolo that. After all he was having serious doubts that either of them would be alive very much longer and so he would let Rolo die without knowing the painful truth.

He held his sword ready, ready to protect Rolo's life with his own.