111Chapter Two
It is vain to find fault with those arts of deceiving wherein men find pleasure to be deceived.
John Locke
Aboard the Avalon, Area 11, May 2017
The OPERATION sign was still glowing; a grim shade of red in the sterile light of the infirmary.
It occurred to Lloyd Asplund that he had lost track of time. He couldn't remember exactly how long they had been there, waiting for that sign to wink out, and the surgeons to emerge.
He glanced down at the young man seated nearby, staring down at the floor. Suzaku Kururugi had barely spoken since they had arrived in the infirmary; indeed, since the medical shuttle had docked with the Avalon, and off-loaded the severely wounded Princess Euphemia and Andreas Darlton. The shuttle had then gone on to the Area HQ in Tokyo Settlement, carrying the three OSI agents who had been mysteriously rendered unconscious along with Suzaku.
Lloyd did not envy them. Heads were going to roll for this, and few were going to pay much thought to what had really happened, or who could reasonably be held responsible.
At least they had been given a medical checkup before being packed off; and he had managed to persuade CMO Darnley to include a full brain scan. The data had been…interesting to say the least, and might be the one thing that saved those three.
Not to mention Suzaku. Losing him would be damned inconvenient.
He glanced over at Sir Gilbert Guilford, who had stayed behind so as to report on Euphemia's condition. His face was its usual set; the thin-lipped mouth set into a grim scowl, those blue eyes behind the horn-rimmed spectacles; staring straight at a point directly ahead of him, at the featureless wall beyond. His stance was equally stiff, equally military; every inch the knight.
Finding little to interest him there, Lloyd glanced down at Suzaku again. That young man, little more than a boy really, with soft brown hair and green eyes. Though he stared down at the floor, Lloyd could see the look on his face. He could think of a half-dozen clichés for that look; like his soul had been sucked out, or the bottom had fallen out of his world.
In a very real sense, it was about to. Lloyd knew enough combat medic lingo to know what was going on, and how this day was going to end.
Cecile Croomy sat next to him, watching him attentively, her eyes full of sorrow and sympathy. She was good at her job, and Lloyd valued her more than he would ever stoop to admit, but if she had one weakness at all, it was that she had feelings. She actually felt things like compassion, and sympathy; especially when it came to Suzaku. Ever since they had found him, bleeding to death in Shinjuku Ghetto, she was the one who treated him like a human being; or maybe like a friend, or a younger brother.
Lloyd wasn't inclined to hold it against her. He found her attempts to civilize him far more irritating than her care for Suzaku. But all that feeling was going to hurt her, one day. Or perhaps it already had.
Lloyd had never been much good with feelings. He wasn't certain whether he was an actual sociopath; though he had been accused of it often enough. He just…didn't really feel anything when it came to other people, especially in situations like this. They were always putting on a show, emoting and chewing the scenery, weeping and wailing and screaming, and somehow expected him to join in, or to respond in a very specific way that only they knew, and that he wasn't allowed to know in advance. Getting it wrong could have a variety of responses, ranging from being called a heartless jerk, or a sociopath, through to door-slamming, or having things thrown at him.
If that's what emotionality was about, he was better off without it.
The light winked out, and the doors opened. Suzaku leapt to his feet, but Lloyd was already moving, striding towards CMO Darnley and his team, still clad in their surgical smocks, as they emerged from the surgery. Time to bite the bullet.
"Well, Richard?" Lloyd asked, though he already knew the answer. Darnley sighed a world-weary sigh.
"The bullet fragmented on the way in," he said. "We removed what we could, but some of it got into the bloodstream. Between that, the impact damage from the rest of the round, and all the blood she lost, it's a wonder she's held on so long."
"How long?" Lloyd pressed, ignoring Suzaku's gasp.
"Minutes, at most. If you want to see her, you best go in right now. I have to make my report."
"Very well. Thank you Richard."
CMO Richard Darnley made no reply as he strode off along the corridor. Without bothering to look at Suzaku or Cecile, Lloyd led the way into the surgery, Guilford falling in behind him.
Euphemia li Britannia lay on the surgical bed, her body covered by a white sheet. Her face was pale, but her eyes still twinkled as they saw Suzaku. Lloyd stood back with Cecile and Guilford as Suzaku stepped forward, and knelt by the bed. The only sound was the beep-beep of the heart monitor.
"Euphie…"
"Suzaku…" Her voice was hoarse, but somehow there was still life to it. "What…happened? I…can't remember anything."
"You went in to see Zero," Suzaku said, taking her hand in his. "Then you came running out, and someone shot you."
"But…why?" She looked confused. "Why did they do that? I…I never meant any harm."
"It's all right Euphie." Suzaku forced a cheerful smile onto his face. "It's all over now. You'll be better soon."
For a moment, Euphemia just stared up at him. And then her face – so pale against her pink hair, and the white of her pillow – softened in a gentle smile.
"Oh Suzaku, my love." Her voice was quavering, its strength fading. "I can't see…your face anymore."
"Euphie…hold on!" Tears ran down Suzaku's face as he clutched at Euphemia's pale hand. "Please hold on!"
"Please…keep going…to school…" Euphemia went on. "I wanted to…but I had to stop."
"We'll do it together!" pleaded Suzaku, still wearing that forced smile. "We'll go to Ashford Academy together! It's so much fun!"
Euphemia was still smiling. Even as the light faded from her eyes, and the beep-beep of the monitor gradually slowed.
"Tell Nunnally…and Lelouch…I'm sorry…"
"Euphie…"
"I wanted to be with you…Suzaku." Her voice was barely audible. "I love you…Suzaku…"
The light faded, and her eyes gently slid shut. Behind her, the slow beeping become a long, drawn-out tone, as her heart finally stopped beating.
Guilford closed his eyes, and lowered his head. Beside him, Lloyd heard Cecile gulp as she tried to control herself. Suzaku pressed Euphemia's pale, dead hand to his face, weeping softly into it.
All Lloyd Asplund felt was a strange, cold emptiness.
Special Autonomous Region
The sound.
To Kallen Kozuki, that was the worst part of it.
From her vantage point inside the meeting room at the top of the stadium's VIP tower, she could see the stadium and the tops of the surrounding buildings. She could see the crowd gathering on the grass below, heedless of the blood pooling around their feet. She could see her fellow Black Knights carrying away the last of the bodies away from the stands, and heaving them down to the makeshift mortuaries in the storage rooms. She had seen people carrying bodies away, but a part of her suspected that few would be claimed. Those who might be inclined to claim them were like as not down there in the storage rooms, or on the streets nearby.
But even those grim sights, and the thoughts that accompanied them, were as nothing compared to the sound. A terrible, undulating wail, hanging over the town like a dark cloud; the mingled voices of the bereaved, the desolated, their cries and wails blending into one horrid, soul-rending sound.
Kallen was no innocent. She had seen horrid things in the last seven years; things she would never entirely forget. She had seen people die; killed by the Britannians, or by fellow Japanese, or dying of sickness or starvation, or simple hopelessness. But this…this was like nothing else.
"This stinks."
She glanced around, surprised by the voice that broke the silence. It was Shinichiro Tamaki, sitting slouched in his seat at the central table, arms folded, face uncharacteristically grim.
"Tell us something we don't know," replied Yoshitaka Minami, Commander of the Special Forces Division. He glared sourly at Tamaki, and for a moment Kallen felt a twinge of disquiet. She had known them both for years, ever since her brother Naoto had finally given in and let her join his resistance cell. They had never gotten along all that well.
"Yeah, well it does!" Tamaki snapped back, rounding on Minami. "I mean…look at it!" He flapped his hand at the window, and the horror outside.
"I did," retorted Minami, a sudden edge to his tone. "I've been out there in the middle of it all day!"
"We all have," cut in Kaname Ogi, Zero's second in command, and Naoto's old right-hand-man. In those days he had generally played the peacemaker, bleeding off tension and containing arguments before they got out of hand. As Zero's second, his role had changed little in that respect.
"Who did it?" growled Kento Sugiyama, Minami's immediate subordinate and another veteran of Naoto's cell. "That's what I wanna know! Who's responsible for this!?"
Kallen didn't blame him for being angry. She was angry too, now that she thought about it. The terrible rage that had overwhelmed her during the battle had faded, but the anger was still there. She just didn't have any Britannians, any enemies, to direct it at.
"We won't know until Tohdoh gets back," replied Ogi. "And that's assuming he finds anything."
"Yeah," mused Tamaki. "I hear that stiff's a total mess. Took a 20mm burst full in the face. All over the walls."
Kallen did not like that image. She had seen it too many times.
"Well, he'd better find something!" grumbled Sugiyama. "They're gonna want to know who did it, and…"
He trailed off, as Diethard Reid appeared in the doorway. In spite of everything, his black suit and blonde hair - complete with pony tail and a long curl hanging over his right eye – remained spotless.
"Is Zero here?" he asked. His Japanese had improved since Kallen had first met him, but still accented.
"What is it?" asked Ogi, now looking even more worried than before.
"This is for Zero's ears only."
Kallen felt the sudden tension around the table. Diethard had been involved with the Black Knights since the early days, but none of them trusted, or even particularly liked him; and it wasn't just because he was a Britannian. As Head of the Intelligence Division, he was in charge of espionage, propaganda, and public affairs; a job he did well, but which did not easily attract respect or liking. That he was a journalist by profession – and it showed – made it all the worse.
Nevertheless, Ogi gestured at the office door, and Diethard strode over to it.
"Zero," he said, as the intercom buzzed. "It's Diethard Reid. I have an important message."
The door clicked open, and Diethard stepped inside, the door sliding shut behind him. All present stared at the door as the minutes ticked down, waiting for what they all dreaded might be coming.
After what seemed like an eternity, Reid emerged. He stood in front in front of the door, waiting for it to slide shut.
"We've intercepted a message from the Avalon," he said. "She's gone."
The tension faded, replaced with a dark, heavy cloud, as the words sunk in.
"Oh great," groaned Tamaki. "Just…great."
"Poor kid," mused Minami bitterly. "She didn't deserve that."
"Trust the Britannians to kill their own princess," grumbled Sugiyama. "Talk about a twisted country."
"Seriously?" It took Kallen a moment to realise that she had spoken. "You think the Britannians did it?"
It was too much, too extreme, too bizarre even for them. She knew Britannia was capable of anything…but that?
"Well who else?" retorted Sugiyama, throwing up his hands. "You saw what was happening in the streets! None of them wanted the SAR!"
"He's right," added Naomi Inoue, head of the Logistics Division, speaking for the first time since she had entered the room. "Or at least we can't rule it out."
Kallen knew what they meant. She had seen the way some of the Britannian settlers had reacted to Euphemia's announcement. A few had been outright hostile, enough so as to randomly attack Japanese – or anyone who looked Japanese – in the streets. Most of the Ashford Academy students had been cynical about it, especially the girls for some reason. They all seemed to think she was doing it for Suzaku, and that they were lovers.
Her heart ached. Zero had told her about Kyushu, about what had passed between Suzaku and Euphemia that night. And when she had been stuck with him on that island, as his sort-of prisoner, she had seen a side of Suzaku Kururugi that she had neither expected – nor wanted – to see. Her own sense of justice had forced her to accept that he was not completely vile, and that for all her faults, Euphemia was not a worthless person either. They had helped each other, completed each other somehow.
It hurt.
"But…it doesn't make sense!" she pleaded, still unable to reconcile herself to what they were saying. "They liked her. You don't kill the princess people actually like! It's bad PR!"
"Captain Kozuki has a point," Reid cut in. "Euphemia was always one of the more popular members of the Imperial family. Killing her would be dangerous, especially over a relatively petty matter like this, and one to which Prince Schneizel had given his overt support."
"Oh yeah, him," mused Tamaki. "He's the Chancellor, right? I hear he basically does his dad's job for him."
"Pretty much, yes."
"But what do we actually know?" Ougi cut in. "Was there anything in the message? Anything about who might have done it?"
"Not much," replied Reid, apparently unperturbed by having so many questioning eyes upon him. "It was the official report from the Avalon's Chief Medical Officer. It mentions a rifle round of conventional size and weight, with no distinguishing marks, consisting with an assault rifle or sharpshooter rifle. The angle of entry was consistent with the shot being fired from the north-east corner of the stadium."
"We knew all that!" complained Tamaki.
"There was one other thing." Reid paused a moment, his countenance darkening just a little. "The report claimed that the bullet had partially fragmented shortly after impact."
"Damn."
Kallen blinked, taken by surprise. It was Minami, looking even grimmer than before.
"What?" asked a very nervous Tamaki.
"Partial fragmentation, no markings," Minami went on. "That means a homemade round, lightened to make it go further, with the fragmentation as a bonus." He gave them all a hard look. "A resistance round."
It took them a moment to process what he had said.
"No way!" protested Tamaki. "You're saying it was us?"
"It's a very real possibility," replied Reid firmly. Tamaki slumped in his seat, and the others all glanced at each other.
"This is bad, really bad." Minami was the first to speak. "We have to find out who did this, and fast!"
"Minami is right," added Reid. "The Britannians will almost certainly try to blame this on us."
"And they would be right."
All looked up. Standing in the doorway was Kyoshiroh Tohdoh, formerly a Lieutenant Colonel in the Japanese army, and now Zero's Chief of Staff. His narrow face was set in that emotionless mask it seemed to fall into naturally, but there was something cold and terrible in his eyes.
"Tohdoh…" Ougi stammered, taken aback. "What do you…?"
Tohdoh stepped up to the table, and threw something onto it. It took Kallen a moment to recognize it; a standard Britannian ID booklet, forced open to reveal the bio pages. The pages were stained with blood, but she could still make out the picture, and the data underneath.
And it made her blood run cold.
"Tenryo…" Yoshida snarled. "I should've known!"
"Wait, who is this?" demanded Tamaki, his face flickering between anger and confusion. "Don't tell me…"
"Kyosuke Tenryo," replied Tohdoh. "Special Forces Division. There isn't much left of him, but we found the ID, and the rifle. It was one of the Sazonovs we got last month."
The whole room seemed to deflate. Ougi slumped in his seat, his face sagging as the implication sunk in. Minami stared at the ID as if by doing so he could make it burst into flames, wiping away the shame its owner had piled upon him.
"This cannot get out!" Tamaki glanced from one to the other, near panic. "This absolutely positively cannot get out! If it does, we are totally screwed!"
"Why?" demanded Kallen. She was getting sick of the atmosphere, and the way it was getting to her. And this on top of everything! "He's just one guy!"
"You think they're gonna care about that?" Tamaki pointed an accusing finger out of the window. "You think they're believe the whole one bad apple routine? They want blood, Kallen! They want somebody to die in nasty ways! And if this gets out, it's gonna be us!"
Kallen opened her mouth to retort, to deny it, to scream that it wasn't true. But nothing would come out. It would not come, because she already knew he was right.
"But…why?" she bellowed, slamming her hand on the table. "Why did he do it? How could he go against Zero?"
"A lot of the rank-and-file weren't happy about Zero going along with the SAR," Minami spoke up. "I never expected Tenryo though."
"For the moment, it doesn't matter," Reid cut in. "We have a more immediate problem; namely the crowd outside."
Kallen glanced out of the window, and saw what he meant. A great sea of humanity was gathered in the stadium, heedless of the blood in which they trod. The cries of grief and pain had been replaced with a low, angry rumble.
"Holy cow!" Tamaki had joined her at the window, and was staring down. "There must be thousands of them!"
"And there's more outside," Diethard added. "And even more concentrating at the jumbotrons around the town."
"Well, where's Zero?" demanded Tamaki. "We need him to talk to them!"
"And so I shall."
All spun around. It was indeed Zero, standing just in front of the office door. So distracted had they been, that they had barely heard it slide open.
Standing just next to him was CC, the green-haired girl who was almost always at his side. In spite of everything, Kallen bristled at her presence. She was supposedly his personal assistant, but Kallen had rarely seen her actually do anything besides pilot the Gawain. Many of her fellow Black Knights, the men especially, were forever sniggering about what her actual role might be.
"Zero!" Tamaki rounded on him, panic-stricken. "Zero, it's bad!"
"More so than you know, Tamaki."
There was something…weary in his tone. Kallen had not heard it there since that night at Yokosuka, when they had blown up that sakuradite tanker, and what remained of the Japan Liberation Front. She had not seen his face, hidden as it was by shadow, but she had guessed what was going on, and what he had resigned himself to doing.
This time it was worse. Much worse.
"I take it you know the identity of the killer?" Zero asked.
"One of our own," replied Tohdoh, holding up the ID for Zero to see. "Kyosuke Tenryo, of the Special Forces Division."
"I see." A pause. "Who else knows of this?"
"I left guards on the body, but I alone saw the ID," Tohdoh replied. "In any case, the body is unrecognizable. If you want positive identification, it'll have to be a DNA test or dental records."
"Have Rakshata's team handle it as soon as they arrive." Zero turned to Minami. "Commander Minami, what explanation can you offer for this?"
Minami stood up, and bowed stiffly.
"I have no excuse, Zero," he said, his tone as stiff as his poise. "He gave no indication of political opinions beyond hatred of Britannia, nor did he express any particular opinion on the SAR. He was always a professional, if I may say so, a stone-cold killer. I had some concerns that some of my subordinates might take matters into their own hands, but I did not expect Tenryo. I accept full responsibility."
There was yet another long pause. Kallen wondered what Zero was thinking, and how he could be so calm about all this.
"I do not blame you for this, Commander Minami," he said eventually. "Diethard already told me that he had nothing on Tenryo either. It is clear that Tenryo acted on his own, and went to considerable lengths to conceal his intentions."
"Thank you for your understanding, Zero." Minami bowed again. Kallen felt a touch of relief. Minami had a funny reputation, but he was good at his job, and she couldn't bring herself to blame him for Tenryo's deed; even if, as his commander, Minami was technically responsible.
"Zero, we all agree on this," Ougi spoke up awkwardly. "But I don't know if the people will accept it."
"Yeah man!" added Tamaki. "It's like that actress and the car crash! People don't wanna believe that people like her can die because her driver was over the limit! They sure as hell won't believe that someone like Euphemia can just get shot by some guy with a rifle! It's not supposed to happen!"
"What would you have me do, gentlemen?" Zero's tone was mild, but Kallen shivered at an air of menace. "Would you have me lie to them? Shall I lie to these people, who have seen their hope cut down, and their loved ones slaughtered? Shall I tell them that I know what nobody knows?"
Kallen felt the air turn cold. They were afraid, she realised. Afraid, in a way they had never been before.
"I understand your concern, Zero," Reid cut in. "It would be bad for us to get caught in a lie, but…"
"Diethard!"
All except CC jumped at the barked command. Even Diethard, who loved the sound of his own voice, actually looked nervous. Kallen stared at the masked man standing there, his body tensing under that purple costume, wondering if this was really theirZero. She had never seen him like this.
"Be warned, all of you!" His voice was lower now, but there was power to it; the power that had inspired them all, and terrified their enemies. "As Emperor Lothar said, the seed a nation sows at its birth, it reaps until the day it dies. Would you have this new Japan be born tainted? Would you have it be born amid a lie?"
"Zero…" Ougi managed to reply. "Zero, what do you…?"
"Tell them, Diethard."
Diethard Reid took a moment to regain his composure.
"There are riots breaking out all across Japan," he said. "Every ghetto is in uproar. Every police division and settlement garrison are begging for help. Our Prefectural HQs report that multiple non-aligned cells are attacking the Britannians on their own initiative. Our allied groups await Zero's instructions."
He paused, letting the words sink in.
"Yes, everyone," Zero said. "It has happened, on a scale even I could not have imagined. One hundred and fifty million Japanese are rising as one, and the Britannians are run ragged."
"Then…then we're going, right?" Tamaki's fear was gone, replaced with a desperate, yearning joy. "It's on, right?"
The atmosphere had changed completely. The darkness was gone, replaced with a new hope; a hope few of them had felt before Zero had brought them together. It was like the sun emerging from an eclipse.
"It will have to be," Zero said mildly. "We will never get a chance like this again."
"Zero." Tohdoh cut in, his grim tone cutting through the mood. "We're not ready. We haven't acquired half of the equipment and supplies our original plan required."
He glanced at Naomi, who glanced down at her tablet.
"All prefectural cells have reached stage one preparation," she said. "The Kanto and Chubu cells, along with Fukushima, have reached stage two; since you ordered they be prioritized. Of the twelve armoured trains we had planned, only six are ready; four assault, two artillery. The Kyoto caches have enough heavy equipment ready for one regular corps, when the full plan required four at least."
The euphoria faded a little, blending with uncertainty. All eyes fell once again on Zero; like children pleading to be told that Santa was real after all.
"A few days ago, Commander Ougi met with representatives of the Chinese Federation, on my instructions," Zero said.
He looked expectantly at Ougi, who jumped when he realised he was the centre of attention.
"I met with one of the Grand Eunuchs, a man named Gao Hai," he said. "He said that they would support us, but only if we were able to capture the Tokyo Settlement HQ."
"Do you believe them, Zero?" Tohdoh asked, his eyes suspicious.
"No, not really," replied Zero plainly. "But we have no viable alternative. Even if the Chinese Federation does not come, our best hope of victory lies in preventing the Britannians from coordinating their forces here in Japan. It will take the Britannians at least two weeks to move substantial reinforcements from the homeland; we must assume that we have that much time at most."
"Zero," Tohdoh cut in again. "If we can only attack with the Kanto and Chubu forces, this will be all-or-nothing."
"You are right, Tohdoh." Zero paused, and Kallen could have sworn that he had sighed. "But we have no choice now. We can only follow this path, and make what we will of it."
He turned towards the door. Kallen darted past the others and fell in at his shoulder as he strode away along the corridor, the others falling in behind.
"Zero…" Kallen paused, wondering what on earth she was doing. "Zero…are you all right?"
For a long time they strode in silence, and Kallen felt a fool.
"Don't worry about me, Kallen," he said, after what felt like an eternity. "My path is set, and it has never been clearer."
Kallen wanted to feel comforted by his words. But they chilled her to the bone.
Aboard the Avalon
He was alone.
It was quiet in the small room, where they had laid Euphemia's body. It had taken threats to make him let go of her hand, but fortunately no violence. Then he had been forced to wait, for what felt like forever, while her body was examined, cleaned, and laid on that little bed, in that small dark room. When the proper arrangements had been made, she would be laid in state in one of the cargo bays, for her journey back to Britannia.
Seated on a small metal chair, Suzaku watched over her. Even in death she was still so very beautiful; her pale skin pristine, almost porcelain, her pink hair fanning over the pillow like a halo, the thick sheets pulled up tight to the base of her neck, concealing the wound that had killed her. Her eyes were closed now, her small mouth expressionless, peaceful.
But she was dead, that much Suzaku knew. There was nothing left of her now. Not that shine in her eyes, not her smile, or the innocent joy she seemed to find in the simplest, silliest things. Not the desperate hope she had carried in her heart, that she might make the world a better place in some small way.
The dream she had shared with him. The dream that had lifted him from the darkness, from the remorse and despair that had hung over him for so many years.
From the day he had killed his own father.
Yes, he was alone. Alone in spirit. As alone as he had been before that strange day a few months ago, when he ran into Lelouch again.
He had thought he would die that day. Indeed, he had been seeking it for many years, ever since he had become an Honourary Britannian, and joined the army. He had endured the abuse of the Britannian instructors, the sneering contempt of the officers, the casual cruelty of his fellow soldiers; men and women without hope or pride. He had accepted being sent into danger without a weapon; for only by such service could he prove his loyalty, and be granted the privilege of actually bearing arms.
All so that he could die, at the hands of one of his former countrymen; the countrymen whose leader he had murdered, whose betrayer he had turned into a martyr. They would never know, or understand, what had happened that day. But at least they would have justice, of a sort.
But he had lived. By some bizarre miracle he had lived, and ended up in the service of the Advanced Special Envoy Engineering Corps; a subsidiary of Camelot, Prince Schneizel's personal research and development unit. He had met Lloyd, and Cecile, and over time had come to think of them as friends…after a fashion. He had piloted the Lancelot, discovering a power he never knew he had.
And he had met Euphie.
He had met her, and come to know her, and she had come to know him. He had seen in her someone truly special, a storybook princess come to life, wanting nothing more than to bring a measure of happiness to a world drowning in misery. And she had seen something in him; something noble, something good, something worthy to live, and thrive.
He had wanted nothing more than to stand at her side. To help her, to protect her, to ensure that her dream became a reality. What better redemption, what better life, could someone like him have asked for?
Now she was dead. And all was lost.
Doubtless they would want a scapegoat; and he was the obvious choice. He didn't care if they executed him; shackled, blindfolded, and kneeling, his sword snapped in front of him, all honour and dignity stripped away. Now that it came to it, he didn't particularly mind.
But then again, this was the Avalon, this was an airship. Why go through all that, when he could just open a hatch and step out?
Yes, that would be much better. Why give Britannia the satisfaction of degrading and killing him? Even that crumb of comfort was more than they deserved.
He had thought about it. He had even decided to do it, several times since he had entered that room and sat down in that chair. But as he stood up, he faltered.
He couldn't go, not like that. He couldn't just leave Euphie like this, all alone. He didn't want to leave. He didn't want to leave her, to go away from her. He couldn't leave her alone.
Tears pricked at his red, weary eyes; tears he thought he had run out of. Tears of despair, and of shame. He had failed her utterly, ruined his one last chance at redemption. And he couldn't even find the courage to kill himself.
How much different would the world be if he had only managed to do that? How much better would the world have been if he had just knelt down and slit his belly open, as his ancestors would have done. If he had done that, he would never have become a soldier, never have met Euphie. She would have chosen another knight, a better knight, who would have saved her life.
"It's so sad, isn't it?"
Suzaku jumped. He was sure no one had entered the room.
He turned, and stared as what looked like a young boy walked past him, and stood by the bed, level with Euphemia's pillow. He stared down at her, his face curiously melancholy. He had very long blonde hair that billowed like Nunnally's, reaching right down to the floor. He was small and slight, maybe twelve years old if Suzaku was any judge, his body swathed in a thick cloak. Something in his face, in the shape of it, reminded him of Nunnally.
"Poor Euphie," he said, in a young boy's voice that somehow didn't fit. "Such a kind heart, such good feelings. Alas, Euphie. You didn't deserve this."
He touched the forefingers of his right hand to his lips, and laid them on Euphemia's pale forehead.
Suzaku opened his mouth to speak, to demand that this boy explain himself. Who was he? How could he just barge in here like this? Why hadn't the guards outside stopped him?
But he was too…bewildered to be properly angry.
"Who…are you?"
"Yes, you're probably wondering about that," the boy said, without looking up. "You can call me VV. I am, among other things, a personal agent of the Emperor."
Suzaku stared in hopeless bewilderment. At least that explained why the guards had let him in. But…seriously? This boy, an agent of the Emperor?
"And you are Suzaku Kururugi," the boy went on, turning to face him. "Formerly Private Suzaku Kururugi, 1st Auxiliary Garrison Regiment, second battalion, third company; later seconded to ASEEC, and then selected as Her Imperial Highness Princess Euphemia li Britannia's personal Knight of Honour. You were born in 2000 A.D., at the Kururugi Shrine, Yamanashi Prefecture, former state of Japan. Your parents were Genbu Kururugi and Kimiko Sumeragi."
"With all due respect," Suzaku replied, "all of that is public record."
"On August 28th, 2010, you killed your father at his command post on the Izu Peninsula," the boy continued. "You killed him with a sword belonging to a Colonel Kyoshiroh Tohdoh, who was then your martial arts instructor. He then conspired with Taizo Kirihara and Reuben Ashford to cover it up, releasing the official story that your father committed suicide rather than see his country fall, and ensured that Lelouch and Nunnally vi Britannia would live under the protection of the Ashford family."
Suzaku gaped, his weary mind overwhelmed.
"How…how could you…how could you know?"
"My associates and I make a point of knowing these things," VV replied mildly. "In this case, it was the only way to convince you of my sincerity."
Suzaku slumped back into the chair. He could bear no more of it.
"Why are you doing this?"
"Because I need your help with a certain matter," VV explained. "Also, because you deserve to know the truth."
"What truth?" Suzaku asked, unable to contain a sudden flash of curiosity.
"The truth of why Clovis is dead," VV replied. "The truth of why Jeremiah Gottwald seemingly lost his mind that night, and allowed Zero to rescue you. The truth of why, despite your best efforts, you have hitherto been unable to die. The truth of what really happened earlier today."
"Why?" Suzaku cursed himself for being so eager, for not containing his desperate yearning. But he couldn't help himself. He was beyond brinkmanship, or strategy of any kind. He just wanted to know!
"I will tell you a story that has shaped the world for millennia," VV went on. "I will tell you of a secret that has warped humanity's development, and overturned the course of history. I will tell you of a power that has been dictating your life since before you were born."
VV paused, and a shadow seemed to settle over him. The look in his eyes made Suzaku's blood run cold.
"I will tell you…of Geass."
Special Autonomous Region
The crowd roared as he emerged from the tunnel, their chants blending into a tidal wave of noise that buffeted him from all sides.
In that moment, Lelouch Lamperouge wanted nothing more than to not be there. To be anywhere, anyone else. He even wished he had not already Geassed himself, back when he was fighting Mao. That way, he could wipe his own memory and forget the whole thing.
But he could not. There was no escaping this. Not now.
He stopped, standing directly before the patch of blood that marked the centre of the dais. Euphemia's blood, the sacred ground. Not for them, nor anyone, would he lay his feet upon it.
"Friends!" he called out, his mask's amplifier projecting his voice out over the stadium. "Japanese!"
He paused a moment, letting them quiet down. Hundreds of thousands of people, crammed into the stadium that, a few hours ago, had been an abattoir. Hundreds of thousands of eyes, boring into him from all sides. Hundreds of thousands of ears waiting to hear him speak. Hundreds of thousands of hearts, yearning to be uplifted.
"I stand before you, in what was meant to be a place of hope!" he began. "I stand before you, on what was meant to be a day of rejoicing! I stand before you, a witness to your anguish, to your pain, to your betrayal!"
The crowd roared again, forcing him to pause.
"Long have I waited in the darkness, hoping for a new dawn!" he went on. "Long have I waited in the shadows, waiting for the one who would drive the shadows away! I hoped, as you did, that Princess Euphemia was the one to do it! I believed, as you did, that the promised one had finally come! I knew, as you did, that this was the day when Britannia would change its ways, and finally begin to turn from the path of destruction!"
No sound this time. He had gotten their attention.
"Instead of hope, we have despair! Instead of joy, we have bloodshed! Instead of happiness, we have grief beyond measure! Instead of new life, death!"
Now they roared, screaming their hatred and grief, their betrayal. His heart clenched, for he knew what was coming.
"Friends, Japanese, I must tell you…" He fell silent, forcing down the lump in his throat. He could hear a murmuring in the crowd. His pause was rattling them.
"I must tell you…" he forced out the words. "We have received word…that Princess Euphemia…is dead."
A terrible groan washed over the stadium like a cold, dark wave. Lelouch watched as children sobbed, women wailed, and men screamed at the sky. A great undulating wail, that same one he had heard before, rose up from the crowd as their grief mingled together. He could hear their voices, one or two amid the tumult.
"She can't be dead!"
"It's not fair!"
"Euphemia-sama!"
"Not like this!"
For a moment, Lelouch could not say more. He could not say it, though he knew he had to. He could not do it to them, not like this.
But what choice was there?
"Her precious blood lies upon this ground! And yet, how did Britannia mark her martyrdom? Did they have ears to hear her words? Or hearts to understand? No, friends! They stained this land with the blood of innocents! Today we have seen the true face of Britannia, a pack of robber-barons masquerading as a nation, daring to call itself the destined ruler of the world!"
The wails became a roar; a roar of blood-boiling hatred. Lelouch let it wash over him, let them scream out their fury, and their pain. Just a few minutes to let them come back to themselves.
"I hearby declare our independence from Britannia! But don't take this to be the return of the old Japan! We will not turn back the hands of time! Rather, let us create a new country in this land. A country that shall stand for justice, and honour, and peace! A country made not for any one nation or tribe, but for any and for all! This country shall have no need of an arrogant title! It shall simply be named Japan!"
The crowd began to cheer. Time to wrap it up.
"Friends, do not believe that Britannia is invincible! All across the world, oppressed peoples struggle and suffer to rid themselves of Britannian tyranny! And even now, the armies of the European Union fight on, sacrificing the flower of their youth to hold back the tide of darkness! Friends, let us march to their assistance! Japanese, let us raise a banner of hope!"
He spread his arms wide. Big finish.
"Will you help me, Japanese? Will you help me build a new country? Will you help me change the world?"
The cheers became a roar of approbation. The crowds screamed, flinging their arms into the air.
Zero! Zero! Zero! Zero! Zero! Zero! Zero! Zero! Zero! Zero! Zero! Zero! Zero! Zero! Zero! Zero! Zero! Zero! Zero! Zero! Zero! Zero! Zero! Zero! Zero! Zero! Zero! Zero! Zero! Zero!
On and on they chanted. But they could not see the tears running down his face.
"Euphie…forgive me, please forgive me."
And here we are! Sorry for the long delay with this one. Chapter 3 will be up shortly.