The Eternal Emperor

The moon hung low over Naboo, casting its pale light upon the labyrinthine streets of Theed. The city was unusually quiet, the typical evening bustle muted as though the very air sensed the presence of something unnatural. In a shadowed alleyway, a young boy stood, surrounded by a group of men whose eyes were glazed and distant, like marionettes awaiting the pull of their master's strings. The boy couldn't have been more than seven years old. He was small and slender, his frame giving no hint of the power that coursed within him. His black hair fell just above his shoulders, framing a pale face that bore an expression far too mature for his age. Most striking of all were his eyes—deep, almost luminous, violet that seemed to pierce the soul of anyone who dared look into them. 

Lelouch vi Britannia stood in the center of the alley, his gaze locked onto the men surrounding him, not so much them as it was his own handywork he was studying. These were not the usual cutthroats and thieves one might expect to find lurking in the underbelly of Theed. No, these were men who had lived lives of cruelty and violence, their hearts hardened by years of bloodshed. Yet now, they stood still as statues, their weapons clutched in their hands, awaiting orders that would seal their fate. 

From the shadows at the alley's entrance, a figure observed this strange scene with keen interest. Cloaked in black, his hood obscuring his face, the observer's presence was almost undetectable, save for the faintest ripple in the Force. This was no ordinary man, but rather a dark lord who had mastered the shadows long ago—Darth Sidious, better known to the galaxy as Senator Palpatine. 

Sidious had felt the disturbance in the Force from afar, a tremor that had drawn him to this very place. As he watched the boy, he realized the source of that disturbance. It was the child. The potential Sidious sensed within him was beyond anything he had encountered before. There was darkness in the boy, a cold, calculating intelligence that belied his years, and a power in the Force that seemed to come as naturally to him as breathing. 

Stepping forward, Sidious let his presence be known. The boy's eyes flicked toward the cloaked figure, unafraid, as though he had anticipated this meeting. 

"Impressive," Sidious spoke, his voice smooth and calm, the embodiment of sinister confidence. "Such power in one so young. 

"Tell me, boy, what do they call you?" 

"Lelouch," the boy replied, his tone devoid of emotion. 

Sidious considered the name, the weight of it. "And what, Lelouch, do you intend to do with these… playthings of yours?" His gaze shifted to the men who stood motionless, oblivious to anything but the will of the child before them. 

Lelouch's eyes narrowed slightly, a flicker of something dark and knowing passing through them. "They serve me, for now," he said. 

"Is that so?" Sidious asked, his lips curling into a thin smile. "What if I were to offer you something greater? A chance to learn how to truly wield the power you possess?" 

The boy tilted his head, considering the offer. "That is a very tempting offer, though forgive me if I do not take your words at face value... Kill him." 

At his words, the men jumped to action, a feverish glee in their faces as some drew their blades and other lifted their blasters towards the dark lord of the Sith. 

It only lasted a moment though as Sidious raised his hand, blue arcs of lightning bursting forth in the narrow alley, connecting the men together as a chain of lightning, stopping merely a few steps away from Lelouch as he looked at the lightning with interest. 

Sidious watched as the lightning he released stopped the men in their tracks... however... the one closest to him gritted his teeth, still somehow standing up, arcs of electricity dancing on his clothes and face, burning here and there, but what draw Sidious attention was the look in the man's eyes. 

Unyielding, he could even feel it through the force, the man wouldn't stop, couldn't stop, and most importantly, didn't want to stop, so warped was his head that his singular purpose was to tear through the dark lord be it with his bare teeth if he had to. 

Sidious was no stranger to compulsion, a rather useful power of the force against the simple minded, but couldn't be taken further than misdirection in most cases... but never had he seen it taken so far. 

 As he increased the intensity of the lightning, the man didn't even let out a groan as an arc of lightning swept over one of his eyes, incinerating it there and then. 

The man was brought to his knees as his legs failed to match his will, still staring coldly at Sidious before grunting, dropping his knife together with his head. 

A normal person would have been fooled, but Sidious could feel the man's thoughts, and "failure" had no place in there. 

The man suddenly raised his head with a crazy gleam in his eyes and turned his hand to reveal a grenade held in it. 

Pushing through with the lightning, Sidious hurled the man back towards Lelouch, but as he flew through the air, his leg was grabbed by the first man behind him who suddenly pulled at him to stop him from going further back. 

The men furthest away grabbed Lelouch and covered him with their bodies as the ones in the middle either took their place between to buffer the explosion, simply threw their bodies at the grenade, or continued charging at the Dark Lord. 

*BOOM* 

A gore filled explosion took place, where limbs flew all over the place. The dark lord was unharmed and unperturbed as he watched the few intact man by Lelouch's side and the ones on the ground, dying and still crawling his way. 

"You will serve me," Sidious said, his tone leaving no room for negotiation. "You will be my apprentice, my adopted son in the eyes of the galaxy... and together we will bring this galaxy to its knees." It was no boastful claim, no wishful thinking, merely a fact that was going to happen one way or another. 

For a moment, there was silence. The boy's violet eyes seemed to pierce through the dark lord, as if weighing his very soul. Then, without a word, Lelouch nodded. It was a small gesture, but it carried with it the weight of his decision. 

Without hesitation, Lelouch turned to the men surrounding him. He raised a hand, and with a simple, almost careless wave, he issued his final command. 

"Die." 

The thugs, still waiting to pounce on the dark lord, suddenly sprang to life with a fury. Blades and blasters flashed in the dim light as they turned on one another, their faces contorted in primal rage. The alleyway became a maelstrom of violence, a brutal dance of death orchestrated by the will of a child. Lelouch watched with detached interest as the men who had served him so faithfully tore each other apart until, at last, only one remained. Bloodied and broken, the last man standing fell to his knees, gasping for breath as he stared up at the boy who had commanded this carnage. 

Lelouch, his expression unchanged, watched the men unperturbed, as if used to it. The man looked at his unresponsive remaining arm, nearly torn off. His duty was still unfinished. Leaning back slightly he brought his head to the cold street below him with an audible *THUD* and *CRACK*. 

Silence had finally returned to the alley. 

Sidious was pleased. Here was a child with the ruthlessness of a Sith. A perfect apprentice, molded by the shadows of the galaxy. 

"Come, my apprentice," Sidious said, placing a hand on Lelouch's shoulder. "There is much you must learn." 

Together, they disappeared into the night, leaving the blood-soaked alleyway behind.