Title: Code Geass: Lelouch, the Next Step

Author: SkyDragonKing

Genre: Sci-Fi, Drama, Tragedy, Action, Fantasy

Rating: M - Mature

Summary: After everything he's done, all of the regrets, the people he's hurt, Lelouch would leave it all behind in the Zero Requiem. Yet fate seems to have chosen a different path for the demon, as he is faced with demons of his own.

Chapter 3: Departure

Lelouch looked out the window and stared down at the underlying clouds. The sunset's orange rays painted the clouds and rendered them into different shapes in Lelouch's mind, faces looking up into the heavens.

Lelouch sighed as he sat in his cushioned seat on board the Duloc airship in his private quarters. If there was one thing Lelouch had gotten reacclimated to, it was the royal treatment that everyone gave him. However, the life of luxury wasn't putting the Eleventh Prince of the Empire at ease as he mentally paced around and around.

His mind wandered to the night before, during his conversation with Milly.

-X-

"It's...It's just that I don't think I'm ready for this." Lelouch admitted from the foot of his bed, Milly sat next to him. His expression exasperated after having been arguing with his fiancè.

"What do you mean? It's not like we haven't done this before." Milly said, a smirk having crept up on her face.

That promiscuous bit of information would forever be embedded into Lelouch's mind, he froze in place for a moment, eyes wide, until he regained composure.

"N-n-not that...I mean…" He said as he reached for Milly's left hand and held up, exposing the diamond ring fastened to it.

"This." A look of hurt suddenly came to Milly's typically cheerful face as she drew herself back, Lelouch's hand still holding hers.

"Oh." It came out of her so quietly, deflated it seemed. "So that's why."

"That doesn't mean I feel for you any differently, not at all." Lelouch elaborated, grabbing Milly's shoulders and pulled her closer.

"Then what, what does it mean, Lelouch? You told me earlier that I shouldn't have to worry about anything, or was that just a lie?" Milly fought back, regaining some of her spunk.

A lie?

"No!" He raised his voice, making Milly flinch. Lelouch caught himself and settled back down.

"It wasn't a lie. There's just so much going on now…!" He looked down, running his hands through his hair, grasping at a few dark strands. Granted, everything Lelouch had been through in the past couple of days had been trying to say the least.

Milly's angry face softened, seeing her fiancè in a moment of weakness like this didn't happen too often. She fidgeted with her hands briefly.

"Here." She held an open hand out at Lelouch. Looking up Lelouch saw a glimmer from her hand.

"Your ring?" He looked back up at her. Milly had a soft smile across her face, her eyes fixed on the bedazzled jewelry she held in her hand.

She gently shook her head. "I'm not ready to get married either. Yet, I was so excited when our engagement was announced, I just decided to embrace it so long as you were fine with it. Hearing how you feel now, it just confirms with me that we shouldn't do this."

"Milly…" Lelouch sat back up, his eyes fixed on her.

"My feelings haven't changed either." She said as she took one of Lelouch's hand and placed the ring in it.

"So, when all of this business you have as sub-viceroy is over, you give this back to me and we'll do this our own way." There was such assurance in her voice, Lelouch didn't know how to reply.

-X-

Lelouch looked into his hand at the ring that was returned to him. All he could see in the glittering diamond's sparkle was her smile.

To think that he had such strong connections with some people. It made him smile. Then, the door to his chambers slid open, and Lelouch heard a few footsteps that quickly ceased.

"Excuse me, Your Highness, you wanted to speak to me?" Spoke the newcomer. Lelouch turned in his seat and rose once he discovered who had entered, putting the ring back into his pocket.

"Oh yes, Lady Stadtfeld, if you'd please." He offered Kallen a seat across from him. She nodded before putting her firm stance at ease and walked over. Lelouch watched as her red hair and cape danced in her stride.

He waited for her before they sat opposite each other. Nothing in between them, knight and lord were face to face.

Lelouch went over this in interaction his head immediately after he discovered who would accompany him to Japan, and a thousand times after that. No matter how many times he had rehearsed in his head, he couldn't move past his last encounter with Kallen. The encounter that occurred in another lifetime; she had opened her heart to him, but Lelouch couldn't reciprocate. He wouldn't, for the guilt he felt over Shirley, and the ensuing Zero Requiem, prevented him from growing attached to anyone.

He was alone with her again. Given the circumstances, Lelouch should have felt free from the guilt, yet he was just as bound to it as ever. He hoped for a renewed friendship with Kallen as she now sat in front of him.

If only he had any idea how to start this conversation. It had already been a few seconds, a long few seconds, and Lelouch had to say something or else things would get awkward.

"I…!" They both started simultaneously before jockeying for the chance to speak first.

"Oh, I'm sorry." One apologized.

"N-no, you first." The other insisted.

"I was...going to say, you didn't look too thrilled at the Rounds Ball the other night when my mother introduced everyone." Lelouch started, perhaps a little rudely.

"Ah, well I was never really the partying type. Regardless of the situation." Kallen admitted with a small smile, but Lelouch knew how to read her well enough to know it was fake.

"You're not the only one." He gave a phony smile back while Kallen adjusted herself in her seat.

"Huh, imagine that." Kallen kept her polite smile intact, but enough for the pleasantries.

"Tell me Kallen–sorry, may I refer to you by name?" Lelouch stopped himself once he realized how casual he was being.

"Um, yeah sure, go ahead." She said perplexedly. Her face scrunched some, not quite sure where this was headed.

"Ok then, Kallen, you're the newest Rounds member, but tell me what did you do prior to this?" He asked her as he folded his fingers together. Kallen's confused look persisted, her brow furrowed for a brief moment before she answered.

"Uh well, I started in the army about eighteen months ago but a short while after that I was recruited for the Valkyrie Squadron-"

"Wow, not even two years in, and already a Knight of the Round! You must be very skilled!" Lelouch interrupted, complementing the Knight of Eleven.

"...Thank you, but like I was saying-"

"Kallen, how old are you?" He cut her off again.

"I'm sorry?" Kallen regained her confusion.

"How old are you? You and a few of the other Knights seem to be around my age." Lelouch elaborated. Kallen, like before, took a short moment before she answered.

"...I'm nineteen. As for the others I assume you're asking about: Gino is eighteen, Monica is twenty-one and Anya is seventeen." She explained. Lelouch gave a look of pleasant shock.

"Oh, we're the same age then, but I would hardly say that since my birthday is in December. Still, my age and already a Round? Very impressive!" Lelouch replied.

At the time of the Zero Requiem he was eighteen. Obviously time had passed, but why were events in terms of Britannia's conquest happening so much later? Given Kallen's, and by proxy, his age, the current year is 2019 a.t.b.

Where he comes from, Lelouch's father, Charles attempted the Ragnarok Connection in 2018 a.t.b, and died once it failed. Yet, Britannia is still engaged in conflicts worldwide, so what's the delay?

Perhaps he'll find his answer in Japan once he arrives, but right now, Lelouch had another question to answer.

"Yes, thank you..." Kallen replied. "Prince Lelouch, if I may, what exactly was the purpose of you calling me in here?"

"Hmm?"

"If this was all just for idle chit-chat, or your way of courtship, I think I'll be taking my leave!" Kallen stood up, looking down at the prince.

"I never recalled a Knight being so brash with her lord." Lelouch commented, meeting her gaze. From behind his folded hands, he smiled.

"Last time I checked, I serve His Majesty, not you. I'm only here to keep you safe and to deal with any rebels." Kallen said calmly, but Lelouch could hear the annoyance in her voice.

"Last time I checked, you were chosen by the other Knights and my father to work under me while in Japan." He argued, but that didn't keep the Knight of Eleven from turning on her heels and heading for the door.

"Where are you going? We're not finished yet." Lelouch asked as Kallen got to the door.

"My apologies, but it seems that we're not yet in Japan. Now if my prince would excuse me." Kallen said politely, taking a quick, sarcastic bow before exiting, leaving Lelouch alone yet again in his chambers.

The smile he had hid from Kallen grew before laughter escaped from behind it.

"The more things change." Lelouch mused as he pulled the ring from his pocket, looking on as the light glimmered off it before snatching it in his grip.

"The more they stay the same."

...

Kallen marched down the hallway, past some low ranked soldiers who all stopped to salute their superior as she passed by. She didn't stop for anything, nor would she until she returned to the main deck to finish planning defense formations with her peers. To think she was called away from her work to tell the prince how old she was! Outrageous!

Honestly, if Prince Lelouch wanted to know all of that, couldn't he just look through her file? As a prince, obtaining that information should be relatively easy.

She really detested those noble types. They had no sense for the common folk, or anyone beneath their social standing for that matter. Sure they come off as sophisticated and educated, but they have no consideration–

"Wait." Kallen did somehow stop herself while walking across one of the many bridges in the mighty airship, over the hangar where jets and knightmares were kept, including her Bedivere.

"He said 'Japan'!" She whispered as she looked back in the direction from where she came.

Why did he say that? Why did it take her so long to realize it?

Kallen returned to the main deck which was decorated in computers and screens. While there were windows bordering the room, the operators were looking down at their scanners and radars. At the center of the room was the captain's chair, however there was more than one commander aboard the Avalon including Kallen, so it was first come first serve, and right now Jeremiah occupied the seat. Nonette and Gino stood at either side of him as they looked over a holographic chart projected by the table in front of them.

"Hey that was quick. So, how'd it go?" Gino was the first to spot the Knight of Eleven return to the deck. Without looking up at him Kallen answered.

"It was a waste of time. He just asked a couple of really simple questions. I don't get why he had to call me away for that!" She complained, openly questioning her interaction with Lelouch. Jeremiah suddenly began to laugh to himself.

"What's so funny?" Kallen glared at the Knight of Two.

"Y-you'll have to excuse Prince Lelouch. He's very meticulous by nature and has a knack for studying everyone around him, whether they like it or not." Jeremiah explained.

"Are you speaking from experience?" Nonette raised a brow and smirk at the turquoise haired knight.

"Well, I was in Lady Marianne's personal guard once upon time, so I was around the prince an awful lot during his childhood." Said Jeremiah.

"Oh yes, how could we forget your time in the Lady's guard. How the valiant Jeremiah saved Marianne from an assassination attempt all those years ago. Why, it feels like it was just yesterday...!" Nonette mused as she held the back of her hand against her head, feigning exasperation.

"Thank you, Nonette…!" Jeremiah said dismissively. Getting the others' attention, he continued.

"Although Kallen, another thing you should consider: the royal family isn't as pleasant as they seemed the other night. In reality, they're all ruthless and out to get each other in a free-for-all for the throne. They'll do anything to gain His Majesty's favor. Prince Lelouch is simply trying to take care." Jeremiah explained.

"...I'll try to remember that." Kallen said through a sigh.

"Did the prince say anything else?" Gino turned back to Kallen.

"The hell if I know. I got out of there before he wasted anymore of my time." She got the others' attention as soon as she said this.

"Really?" Nonette smirked again. Then a ringing was heard, an inter-phone mounted next to the captain's chair that required a secret code to call. Only a high-ranking officers knew the code, so it had to be an important matter that prompted this call.

"Yeah, it's not like we work for him, right?" Kallen said as she reached for the phone.

"Not until we get to Area Eleven, that is." Jeremiah muttered under his breath.

"Lady Stadtfeld speaking." She answered.

"Ah, Kallen! How nice it is to speak to you again!" It was Lelouch on the other end. Kallen rolled her eyes.

"What do you want?" She asked impatiently.

"Please send Lord Weinberg to my quarters." Lelouch said. Seriously, he used the reserved phone line for this? Alright, whatever, let Gino suffer.

"Fine, anything else?" Kallen huffed.

"I don't think so..." She heard him say, and motioned to hang up until he heard him speak up again. "Oh, wait I almost forgot!"

"Yes?" Kallen asked with polite sarcasm.

"Last time I checked, we've been in Japanese airspace for the past ten minutes. I do hope you enjoy your time working under me, Lady Stadtfeld; and please, watch your tone." Lelouch said before he hung up on the other end, leaving Kallen tightly gripping the phone on her side.

Slamming the phone back down into it's place, Kallen got everyone's attention yet again.

"Who was that?" Gino was the first to ask. Keeping her head down, Kallen responded.

"The prince. He wants to speak to you, Gino." Slowly she turned, revealing a fiery rage in her eyes.

"Right after I put him in the INFIRMARY!" Kallen shouted, making a quick turn to charge for Lelouch's room.

"Whoa, easy there kiddo, easy!" Nonette grinned as she held Kallen back, locking her arms under the younger knight's.

"Let me go, Nonette! I won't kill him, I'm just gonna kick his scrawny ass!" Kallen angrily pleaded as she tried to break free from Nonette.

"Gee, wonder what the prince said to her…!" Gino watched the scene unfold, wide eyed and with a slight blush.

"Gino, you're young, so for future reference, never make a woman angry under any circumstance." Jeremiah said, now standing next to the Knight of Three, watching with a surprised look as well, save for the blush.

"R-right...I should go now..." Gino concluded as he stepped away.

"That would be wise." Said Jeremiah as Kallen continued to struggle while a couple of more soldiers aided Nonette in keeping the red headed knight at bay.

Marianne just walked back into her chambers all pampered and refreshed. She decided that after all of the commotion from the past few days, with her arranging the Ball and all, she deserved a relaxing bath, hair scrub, and a back, foot and neck massage. Feeling revitalized, Marianne felt ready to have her thank you cards done.

"I wonder who should do that for me?" The Lady mused as she walked over, into her boudoir finding a plush armchair by a window and sitting in it. For a brief moment she took in the rare calmness that surrounded her.

"What are you doing here?" She sighed as soon as she opened her relaxed eyes, catching an infiltrator in her lair.

"I'm just trying to find out why I, of all people, was left out of your little party the other night." A shorter woman with long green hair emerged, her golden eyes gazing at Marianne with an arrogant gleam.

"Hmph, you come complaining to me about it now, C.C.? How bored are you?" Marianne folded her arms as she remained seated.

"Funny, you spend all day relaxing, yet you still stab your tongue at me, already in fighting form. Tell me, is this because you're worried over the first chick leaving the nest?" C.C. teased as she twirled a finger in her hair, walking over to the Imperial Consort.

"Whatever gave you the impression that I was worried, witch?" Marianne turned her gaze away from C.C. and out the window.

"A witch, am I? Well then, is 'worried' the word I should be using, my lady?" C.C. stood with her hands on her hips. Marianne didn't turn around, instead she continued to look out the window.

"Hmph." whined C.C. as the other woman ignored her, but that's when curiosity grabbed hold and led her to Marianne's position.

"Heh, they look so cute together." C.C. smirked as she leaned over Marianne's shoulder and found Nunnally sitting in the central gazebo with Anya, the Knight of Six, as they were surrounded by the ivy laden columns.

"You know, you have a lot of time on your hands, C.C." Marianne turned, eyes narrowed at the witch. Clearly C.C. had gotten through to the consort, in a negative way however. The smirk returned to the green haired woman's face.

Marianne rose from her seat, C.C. took a couple of steps back to get some space from her

"As do you. Planning parties and ordering servants around is all you seem to do lately." The witch commented, hands on her hips and head tilted to the side.

"Ugh, you're so petty!" The consort huffed

"Oh, how dignified-" C.C. rolled her eyes before Marianne stormed past her, bumping shoulders with the witch as she did so. "Hey, don't walk away from me!"

"Why, what will you do about it?" Marianne asked haughtily with an eyebrow raised.

"Who knows, I could wander off out of frustration and never return. How does that sound?" C.C. calmly threatened. Marianne was taken aback by her words, but only for a second.

"Oh, come now, like you would ever walk away from all of this?" Marianne scoffed as she held her arms out, gesturing to their surroundings, in her boudoir, in her bedroom, in her wing of her villa.

"Don't be so sure of that, my 'lady' because so far, I've been the only one holding up to our deal which you agreed to years ago!" C.C. pointed to the consort whose face scrunched up.

"Well pardon me if an opportunity never presented itself." Marianne crossed her arms, turning her snobby nose away.

"Perhaps that what I get for making dealings with 'Marianne the Flash'." C.C. mused. "I'm still not entirely sure of what it was you wanted all of those years ago." She continued. Marianne smirked and returned to the window to get a view of her daughter and her successor at the Knight of Six, Anya.

"You should know by now, C.C.; if I tell you what it is, then my wish won't come true." She kept her smirk as the witch could see her inspect herself in the window's reflection.

…

"..." Nunnally sighed as she dropped her chin into her hand as she leaned on the edge of the rail in the gazebo. The sprinklers hissed in the background as the Knight behind leaned on a column behind her.

"Are you still going on about your brother?" Anya asked impatiently as she shot the princess an annoyed look.

"...I don't know! I mean, you've heard about all of the attacks on Clovis-" Nunnally tried to make her statement until Anya interrupted.

"Of course I have! I've heard about it nonstop for days now!" Anya snapped. "Besides, if you ask me, your brother has almost too much protection."

Nunnally picked herself up, turning to her friend, the knight. "Are you so angry because Jeremiah left without saying anything? 'Cause if you are…" The princess teased.

"What Lord Gottwald does has no bearing on me, that I assure you." Anya said, her voice sounding calmer than it did a second ago. Nunnally, however, wasn't finished with her yet.

"Then why haven't you eaten that orange yet? Sentimental values, maybe?" Nunnally asked so innocently. Her wide eyes covered the devious intent behind her questioning. Anya gripped the citrus in her hand even tighter.

"You're so annoying…!" The Knight of Six grumbled, making Nunnally giggle. Anya decided to continue her point from earlier.

"If you're done teasing me, perhaps you would like to know which of us Rounds were sent with your brother?" Anya asked as she began to peel the orange in her hand. Immediately, Nunnally's interest was peaked.

"Yes, please tell me!" Nunnally's curiosity was getting the better of her.

"I don't know...it's confidential information…" Anya was the one to do the teasing this time...or so she thought.

"If you don't tell me, I can always just call Lelouch and ask him." Nunnally pointed out, catching Anya off, causing the youngest knight to squeeze the orange too much. The fruit almost exploded, the edible bits landing on the floor. Anya grumbled again, seeing her snack at her feet.

The knight sighed. "...All right fine, I'll tell you. However, I was serious in telling you it's confidential information, so don't repeat this to anyone, got it?" Nunnally nodded, understanding the warning handed out to her.

"Okay, I may have hinted at it earlier, but four of the Rounds are currently with Prince Lelouch en route to Area 11. Before you say anything, Lord Gottwald is one of them. In fact he's leading the others who are there. The others being Nonette, Gino and Kallen." Anya explained.

"You know, I hardly know anything about those last two. Jeremiah of course; he was in mother's guard, so was Nonette, but…" Nunnally said.

"They're fine, don't worry. He may be a doofus, but Gino is highly capable. Same can be said of Kallen, despite her stand-offish personality. I wouldn't be so wrong in saying that those two are perhaps the best pilots amongst the Rounds." Anya answered the princess' concerns.

"Really? Better than Lord Waldstein and Lady Ernst?" Nunnally argued, a brow raised expressing her curiosity and skepticism.

"Hmm...alright, maybe they don't have the experience like Bismarck and Dorothea...and Guilford, and Nonnette...whatever! My point is, is that they're very strong and very good at what they do." Anya defended her point, as clumsily as she could.

"Better than you?" Nunnally leaned closer to the young Knight of Six, who knew the princess was trying to antagonize her.

"I'm going now." The pink haired knight said dryly as she turned on her heels.

"Come back, spoiled sport!" Nunnally called out as Anya was walking away from the gazebo. Turning on her heels again, Anya faced the slightly older princess (one day older in fact) with a smirk.

"As a Round, I don't have to listen to you, so…" Anya said in a bratty tone, accompanied by a bratty pose with the back of her hands on her hips. She walked away, leaving her friend behind.

"Don't 'so' me!" Nunnally shouted out as Anya left. Left to her own devices, the princess pouted over her abandonment. "We were supposed to go to lunch together..."

Once she was able to calm down, and once everyone was able to hold her back, Kallen retreated to her cabin aboard the grand airship. Sitting at her desk, Kallen had only the light of the lamp illuminating the small space in her vicinity. The rest of the room was dark, with the only other source of light being the small scraps of sunlight that peeked through the blinds. A few small rays of sunlight found Kallen's deceptively delicate face as she was busy doing maintenance on her sidearm.

It was the first thing that came to mind once Nonnette and the other soldiers let her go; usually a ritual before she began a mission was now being done for therapeutic purposes.

'WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!' Yelled a voice from deep within Kallen's memory as she began putting her gun back together.

A familiar male voice yelled at the young girl before a hand swiped the weapon away from her. She was startled to say the least as the source of the hand and the voice loomed over her. His long brown hair dangled in front of his face as blue eyes similar to hers glared down.

Kallen slowly put another piece into place as the ship's PA system chimed in.

"Attention: we will be landing in Area Eleven in ten minutes. Once again we'll-" The voice of the PA faded out of focus to the lady knight as she dove back into what was in front of her.

A click sounded her progressing in reassembling her sidearm.

'I'm, I'm s-sorry…!' The younger Kallen apologized, shaking in her little boots.

'You're just a kid, you shouldn't be playing with this, it's dangerous!' The young man said as he continued to look down at her. Kallen's frown only grew after being called a 'kid'. The young man seemed to stop himself for a second as he continued to look at her.

Kallen's brow furrowed as she popped the magazine in place.

'In fact, you should never have to use this.' The young man continued. Kallen turned her head of messy red hair up at him.

'Huh?' She said as a brow rose up in curiosity. The young man crouched down so he could get closer to her.

'Just try to forget you saw this, and keep it a secret, okay?' The gun was tucked away in the man's holster. 'Although, there is something I want you to do for me.' He said as he placed a hand on top of the girl's head and ruffled her hair. From under his outstretched hand, Kallen looked up at him again, meeting his gaze.

He spoke again, and Kallen's eyes grew wide with optimism as she heard his words, lighting her little face up. He stood up again and looked down at her with a smile.

'Can you promise me that, Kallen?'

The question reverberated through the young woman's mind as she stared intently at the gun currently in her hand.

'-Kallen?'

"KALLEN!" A loud voice came with a few heavy knocks at her door. She jumped out of her seat, and her thoughts, clutching the gun. She took a breath to calm down once more.

"Come in…!" She said before the door slid open, revealing Gino on the other side.

"What are you doing in here?" He asked, looking around, seeing the evidence of her previous actions. She remained silent as Gino's eyes found the gun in her hand.

"Well, you better get moving. We're landing now, and Prince Clovis has this whole welcoming committee assembled." He said before he turned to leave. "Don't wanna be rude, after all."

Kallen took her gun, put the safety on before pulling up her shorts. A holster strapped to her thigh via a red band was unveiled as she put the gun in place. She pulled her shorts back down and slipped her long black boots back on. Kallen grabbed her red robe and left the room.

…

Prince Clovis stood at the end of the red carpet that had been rolled out for his incoming guests. Lined up along either side of the strip of fabric were his personal guard, as well as Knightmare frames readied behind them. General Bartley stood to Clovis' side, anxious, not that that comes as a surprise to anyone.

"S-sir, are you certain about this?" The bald man whispered to the prince adjacent.

"What do you mean, General? This wasn't my decision; Father deems it necessary that I be given aide." He stopped to glance over to his overweight general. "...And be given someone who's competent this time around, unlike last time. Aren't I right, Bartley?" The prince's eyes narrowed at the older man as those last words came out.

Bartley gulped as the loading doors to the Avalon opened.

"To think, he even had Schneizel grant him this ungodly eyesore…" Clovis muttered under his breath as the ramp descended from the opening of the ship, coming closer to the runway floor below.

Lelouch looked out from the opening of the airship as more and more of his surroundings were revealed to him. The guards, the machines, and eventually his half-brother came in to view. Once the ramp touched base with the ground his soldiers stepped out, stopping parallel to Clovis' guard.

Kallen walked opposite Jeremiah, as Gino and Nonnette walked behind Lelouch, creating a guard formation as they walked.

The surrounding soldiers gave a salute to their superiors and their prince as the small huddle made their way to Clovis. The Knights were the first to walk up to the elder prince, Gino and Kallen, Jeremiah and Nonnette lined up in that order with a space for Lelouch in between the middle two.

"Ah, you've arrived at last, brother! I must say I'm delighted that you're now here!" Clovis said as he gave a courtesy bow, theatrically removing the cap on his head and lowering his head ever so slightly.

Lelouch did his best not to roll his eyes at Clovis' antics. As he remembered from his youth, Lelouch always knew Clovis to have flowing mannerisms. Not the most masculine guy around, but that was simply Clovis' style, and it wasn't as if Lelouch could say he was a man's man either.

In response, Lelouch nodded his head before he picked himself up to meet his brother's gaze.

"Well, from what I've heard and read, I wish I could say the same, hence my escorts." Lelouch gestured to the Knights at either side of him before they all nodded in similar fashion as he just did.

"Yes, I see." Clovis said as he suddenly remembered the man standing to his right. "Oh! Where are my manners? Lelouch, this is General Bartley, Father sent him several months back to help bolster my forces. Your being here is a testament to how well that has worked out…"

The bald general gulped before he bowed. "My deepest apologies your highness."

"Well, there's no use wallowing. Come brother, I've much to discuss with you." Clovis said as he walked up to Lelouch, putting an arm around him. A comforting gesture that was received as well as any awkward interaction with a distant relative. The Knights were left behind as the two princes walked off.

"All right, Gino stay with me, we'll be on standby." Jeremiah turned to his compatriots. The younger man nodded before the second knight turned to the lady knights. "You two can begin to get settled, but keep your headsets ready, we'll contact you shortly."

Nonette dramatically gave a salute. "Yes sir!" Jeremiah rolled his eyes before signaling to Gino to follow him. Kallen reached into the interior pocket of her jacket, pulling out a red headset. Putting it on, Kallen clipped it on her ear and adjusted the other end to make sure the microphone was in-line. Nonette, as well as all of the other Knights had the same headsets only differing in color with her's being a light shade of purple to match her robe. The eccentric Knight pulled out her headset and walked away with Kallen.

"Yes Your Highness, understood." A man in a decorated uniform saluted.

"Very well, you're dismissed." Cornelia said sternly before the man turned and left.

It had been one hectic day for the Second Princess of the Empire as she was organizing her troops for deployment to partake in, and hopefully pacify the Middle Eastern conflict. It was exceedingly stressful to make sure everything was ready, and that any and all battle formations were memorized. Cornelia sighed before she turned on her heels and walked aboard the transport.

Immediately her intercom began to ring. Cornelia sighed as she sat herself down in front of the monitor. The ringing continued as the princess debated whether she should answer the call or not. Another sigh escaped Cornelia as she picked up a remote and clicked the monitor on.

"Oh, finally!" It was Cornelia's younger sister, Euphemia. "I thought I would never get through." That had the older sister thinking.

"How many times have you tried calling, Euphie?" She asked. Impatience was seeping through her voice, and it reached through the monitor, making Euphie shrink in her seat.

"Um...more than I would be willing to admit." Euphemia said nervously, fidgeting her fingers.

"You are aware that this is a private line meant for military officials and political representatives, CORRECT?!" Cornelia yelled at her younger sister who flinched at the harsh words.

"W-well, I am a political representative as princess, aren't I?" Euphie recoiled.

"..." Cornelia remained silent for a brief moment before slumping in her seat, rolling her eyes and taking another sigh. "What do you want?" She asked Euphie, with her hand covering her eyes.

"Some of your time, if it's not too much trouble?!" The younger sister said with her usual spunk back in her voice.

"Well, come on; I have many tasks at hand, and you're cutting into my scarce break time." Cornelia put the conversation forward.

"I know you're tired and everything, but you don't have to be so rude!" Euphemia retorted.

"Would you get to the point?" Cornelia snapped, but only to receive a glare from Euphemia. "...please." The older sister finished, folding her arms over her chest.

"Well, I was going to say how quiet it is in Pendragon now that you and Lelouch have left; and you know, since Schneizel is still away-" The younger princess began until the older princess interjected.

"No." Cornelia bluntly stated.

"No, what?" Euphie scrunched her brow, leaning closer to the monitor on her end, as she sat in her room back in their family estate, in Pendragon.

"No, you can't accompany me. It's way too dangerou-"

"You didn't even let me finish!" Euphemia protested.

"All right, what were you going to say then?" Cornelia reclined in her seat, crossing her legs. Euphie stared through the monitor at her sister. And stared.

"...You're mean." The pink haired girl sulked, head down in defeat.

"It is my job afterall." Cornelia smirked at her sister's response. There was a silence between the sisters following, although it only lasted a brief moment. "Euphie, look at me." She said softly. Euphemia picked herself up, pushing long strands of hair behind her ear.

"I don't know why you insist on sheltering me still." Euphemia said. Cornelia tilted her head in confusion.

"What do you mean?" Cornelia asked.

"Whatever responsibility you feel towards me, I'm grateful for it, but only to a certain point." Cornelia was taken back by Euphemia's words. "You know what you were doing at my age?" Euphemia asked, staring intently at Cornelia.

Cornelia obviously knew the answer to that question, but she also knew she'd be playing into Euphie's hands if she did. She had an idea where Euphie was going with this question. Cornelia pursed her lips into a frown and remained silent.

"Call me when you get the chance." Euphemia reached for the side of her monitor and switched it off on her end, cutting the conversation. Cornelia still said nothing, as she breathed deeply. The quiet she sought was not as relaxing as she had hoped, now that she had it. She sat more upright, digging her hand into the collar of her uniform until she wrapped her fingers around something. Pulling out a chain, Cornelia tugged a little more until three dog tags surfaced from her clothing. She dangled them around as they hung loosely from her hand and stared at them.

A couple of knocks echoed through her transport.

"Come in." She said without conscious thought. Dealing with her personnel all day long set her mind in a rut, and her conversation with Euphemia didn't pull her out of it. Cornelia heard the automatic door open.

"Princess, if you're available now, I have some forms that require your attention." It was Guilford in full uniform. He spotted one of the tags as Cornelia was putting it away, back inside of her collar.

Standing herself up, Cornelia fixed her uniform. "I'll take them Guilford, thank you." She said, but he pulled the folder back before she could grab them.

"Perhaps you should read these later, Princess." He suggested. Without hesitation, Cornelia reached for and snatched the folder from Guilford's hands.

"I'll rest when I'm done, Guilford. You should know that by now." She reminded the knight as she sat back down, examining the opened folder.

"...Right. My apologies, your highness." He said, giving a slight bow.

"How long has it been, Guilford? How long since the Academy?" The princess asked, not looking away from the forms in front of her. Guilford pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose before answering.

"Come November, I would say twelve years." Guilford said.

"How different things were back then." Cornelia said.

"Indeed" Said the knight.

Cornelia continued. "We were all so wide eyed, and like we could do no wrong. It was like the world revolved around us."

"Well, at least one of us still feels that way." Guilford added. This actually caused Cornelia to chuckle.

"Heh, you're right, Guilford. As always." Cornelia said as she scribbled her signature at the marked spots on the forms.

"May I ask what has brought up the past, Princess?" Guilford stood firm, hands behind his back as he questioned the violet haired princess.

"Nothing but my wandering mind, Guilford." Cornelia said as she pressed the folder shut and held it up, smiling up at the knight.

"Get some rest, Princess." Guilford said, returning the gesture before he turned to leave. Cornelia watched him admirably as he went, before the door slid shut in between them.

Once he was finally able to free himself of Clovis' ramblings, Lelouch made himself comfortable in General Bartley's office despite the bumbling officer's chagrin. Lelouch supposed that he did have Clovis to thank for his solitude, ironically enough, with his half-brother's insistence that Bartley lend his military data collection over to him for research purposes.

As for that research, Lelouch was looking more into the matter of the 'Seven Swords' that was introduced to him at the meeting in Charles' war room the other day. He had pulled up the same list Jeremiah had shown everyone via a flash drive lent to him by the Second Knight.

Lelouch looked at the names again. Asahina, Senba, Chiba, Urabe, even Ohgi's name found its way on that intel list, but Lelouch was thinking about something else. Was it that Britannian intelligence only knew of five of the seven, or were the other two killed or captured?

That question spurred Lelouch to search Area Eleven prison records and found no name that looked familiar to him. The prince then referred back to the reports about the Kishin. Perhaps whoever this figure really was was also a part of the Seven. Intel just acknowledged that this person exists, so not much was known, but Lelouch could make his own deductions based on what information he had.

Looking into what was reported about this Kishin figure: the mask, the all-black garb, it reminded him of Zero. Unable to hold it back, Lelouch chuckled to himself at the thought that the Kishin was this place's answer to Zero. Collecting himself, a new thought hit Lelouch with force before he turned back to the computer and typed frantically.

Suzaku Kururugi. That was the name he ran through the database's search engine. It was a hunch, but the name of his old friend had not come up once since he found himself in this bizarre situation. When the results were processed, they left Lelouch stunned as every result read: "Britannian Knight of Two, Japan PM, General die in temple fire".

He clicked on the top result and began to read the article. Lelouch noticed the date: March 2012 a.t.b. It matched the time frame that Cornelia referenced during the meeting; it was when Britannia invaded Japan. Lelouch continued reading the article and found that at a meeting at the Kururugi Shrine, a fire broke out that killed the then Knight of Two, Michele Manfredi, Genbu Kururugi, Suzaku's father, Kyoshiro Tohdoh, the grizzled war veteran that Lelouch remembered, and then what was most shocking of all.

"Amongst the casualties was the son of the Japanese Prime Minister, Suzaku Kururugi, 11."

Suzaku was dead? Lelouch went back and looked at a handful of other articles that were stored in the database, and they all said the same thing. Manfredi, Tohdoh, and the Kururugis were all dead, along with a couple of Britannian military officers who accompanied Manfredi. No other information about the event was available, if there was any more to be had.

That eliminated any possibility that the Kishin was Suzaku, or Tohdoh for that matter. However, that wasn't what had occupied Lelouch's mind at the moment.

"He's dead…" Lelouch whispered to himself, head in his hands as he looked down. Lelouch experienced more than his fair share of surprises upon encountering this bizarre place he somehow stumbled into. The news of Suzaku's passing was perhaps the hardest to take. Well, perhaps Nunnally's health was more stunning, but not as devastating.

Lelouch picked his head up, letting his hands run down his face as he did so before he stared up into space, looking at the dark ceiling above as he whispered to himself.

"What am I doing here?"

OKAY! Finally, it's here! I'm so sorry it took so long, but I went through a bunch of real life stuff and never had time for this. Honestly, I had thought of abandoning this project althogether, but your support made me get back into it. Granted there are more scenes I would have liked to include, I felt that I had kept you all waiting too long and wanted to put this out.

Before you all say anything, I KNOW! A THIRD SEASON IS COMING OUT which reduces this whole thing's possibility of being cannon to nothing! Thanks for crushing my dreams, Sunrise!

With all of that, I hope you enjoy this new chapter and leave a review letting me know what you think.

Until next time,

SDK!