A/N: Hello all, you probably thought I was dead or something, right? Nope! Just lazy and uninspired to write, but finally after like a month of working on this chapter, it's been completed, so you can stop yelling at me now!

Uhhh...what else...Right! I've got another sail coming up on my ship soon! 4 months leaving at the end of May for RIMPAC, and other stuff, like Los Angeles Fleet Week (so if you're in LA around Labour Day, I'll be there as well.) but I should be back mid-September-ish from that trip, and then with any luck, I'll be on course so that means no sailing, home 90% of the nights (except when I have duty at the base) and hopefully more writing.

Anyways, tried to keep it kinda dark for this chapter, so I hope you enjoy!

Chapter 14, let's roll!

Lelouch awoke, much in a dreamlike trance as he slowly trailed his hand down the body of his companion that spent the night.

Finally coming to rest on her waist, he rubbed his thumb on the soft skin, smiling at the small shivers her body gave off from merely his touch.

Golden eyes opened wide, watching him as he smirked, his own amethyst orbs focusing on her face.

"So, I take it that you enjoyed last night my dear?" he asked finally.

"It was everything I imagined and more" Villetta said quietly, her voice barely above a whisper.

"I'm glad you're pleased" Lelouch mused, continuing his ministrations.

"What's our next step?" she questioned after a minute of silence.

"Now that the purists have been dealt with, I can begin negotiations with all of the resistance groups. Mainly the JLF and the Six Houses of Kyoto" he replied after a moment of thinking "Once they're on board, the smaller groups will fall in with them and form a united front. Britannians and Japanese standing side by side to remove oppression from the world."

"A good sentiment, but it seems a little far fetched" Villetta mumbled, running her fingers through his hair, to which Lelouch gave the noise of approval.

"What do you suppose we do with Ms. Kozuki?" she then asked.

At the mere mention of that name, a dark shadow cast across his face, his eyes turning hard and a deep frown marring his features.

"That will be for me to decide" he said coldly, before leaving it at that "But I'll tell you one thing. I'll inflict pain that she only thought was possible in her wildest dreams and horrors that she can't even begin to fathom."

Villetta quickly realized that Lelouch had only used that tone of voice once before, and that was in Africa, dealing with the massacre perpetrated by Colonel Hartley.

This was the tone of voice she imagined he'd use if he wanted to slaughter a group of innocents, which, he'd never do, she reminded herself.

But she was very quickly coming to the conclusion that she hated the malicious and icy tone that he had adopted after she asked that.

"I'm sure she will, but let's talk about something else then" Villetta said quickly "I apologize if it brought up bad feelings."

The dour look on his face slowly slid into one of mostly indifference, but hinted slightly at the war raging within him, the anger and sadness eating away at his mind.

"Your apology is unnecessary." Lelouch replied, swinging his legs out of bed and heading for the shower "I trust you'll be prepared for the interrogation today."

"Of course, your highness. I'll begin the preparations at once for dealing with Ms. Kozuki." Villetta stated, her tone firm and businesslike "I will speak with you later sir."

Lelouch had closed the door once she finished speaking, and collapsed silently against the wooden barricade, hands beginning to shake uncontrollably as he sunk to the ground, his vision swimming.

He wanted to yell, to scream, to shout to the heavens and challenge god to a duel in an attempt to win back the life of his younger sister.

But most importantly, he wanted to apologize.

It had been eating away at him for hours now.

The anger at his actions, the regret for using a close friend, and the disgust of what he had actually done.

It was nearly enough to cause him to vomit the more he looked into it.

Pushing the nauseous feeling down, he stood on shuddering legs and turned on the shower.

He needed to look his best to put on the mask of a cold, calculating, uncaring torturer.

Even though inside, he felt turmoil bubbling up, his face formed a smirk of indifference as he stepped into the hot water.

Oh yes, today was going to be rough.

Half an hour later

Lelouch made his way to the basement of the building, and into an area that was known on official documents as the wing specializing in 'Counter-Intelligence from Enemy Agents.'

Or better known to all the guards, it was the interrogation wing.

Torture was the flavour of the day, and as he walked down the stone hallway, his knights in step behind him, he felt his emotions seal into a small box inside his body.

Lelouch became unfeeling, cold, and merciless.

Exactly what Charles zi Britannia had hoped for in a child.

The battered steel door opened in front of him and he was greeted with a sight that was most unnerving.

Lord Guilford, Cornelia's knight was holding a cattle prod inches away from the exposed stomach flesh of Kallen.

In an instant, Lelouch lashed out, his acidic tone hiding no feelings.

"Lord Guilford, you will cease harming my prisoner! She was captured by my hand; therefore, I have the right to interrogate her. Not you, and certainly not you Cornelia! Stand down."

"Sub-Viceroy, may I remind you that I'm your superior in rank. Not only that, but it was a member of my family she killed as well. I deserve some closure. Which will be whatever I can get about other resistance groups in Area 11." Cornelia growled, walking towards him from the shadows of the room.

"Stand down Cornelia. This is a fight you won't be able to win." Lelouch said, his voice low and dangerous.

The two continued to stare at each other, nose to nose before Cornelia muttered "Guilford, we're leaving."

That was all that was said before the other royal and her knight departed the dreary room, slamming the metal door behind them with a resounding crash that seemed to drive home the fact that Kallen was never going to get out of the building alive.

Lelouch turned the chair on the opposite side of the table from Kallen around, sat down, and crossed his arms on the backrest.

"Now you see, I have no desire for information from you." he smoothly stated, the tone of his voice like satin "No information, but I want one thing."

"That one thing, is to break you. To have your mind shattered in a thousand pieces so you're just an incoherent, rambling vegetable. A model number citizen if you will. I could torture you, you know, slash your cheeks, rip out your fingernails, cut off an ear, but where's the fun in that.

"Or I could canvass my troops for the ones who haven't been out for a night on the town in a long time and send them this way, to perform sexual acts with you at their disposal, to use and discard when they're finished with you, showing you just how low you've fallen in the world."

A wicked grin spread onto his face as he watched her shudder with the thought of being a sex slave for his men.

"But that might take a long time, and it could be messy. Somebody might loose their temper and accidently kill you, bringing about the mercy of death and the sweet release that it would bring you. So, we'll keep that as Plan B.

"While I don't have a weak stomach, I don't see the need in spending money on a doctor to keep you alive if we go for more traditional forms of torture, but that's still there as a Plan C.

"And that brings me to my final plan. I'm going to make the classic evil villain mistake and reveal my plan to you, simply because you have no hope of ever getting out of here either dead or reformed in my eyes.

"You'll be starved and dehydrated, but not enough to kill you. And you'll be left utterly alone. Alone with the thoughts that it was your direct actions which killed your mother, which ended your brother's life, and that sealed the fate for Kaname Ohgi, and all your other resistance friends.

"Such isolationism, with the thoughts of the death of everyone who you ever cared about, should be enough to drive you over the edge in my opinion, so while I won't torture you physically, the mental anguish that you'll be under should be more than enough. Goodbye Kallen."

Standing up, he turned to his knights.

"Jeremiah, Villetta, escort her to her cell and meet me in my office in half an hour. We have much to discuss."

"As you command your highness." Jeremiah said, going and dragging the prisoner from her chair and marching her out the door.

Villetta let her eyes linger on the prince for a moment, before following Jeremiah out the door.

"There's something he's not telling us." she thought, continuing down the hall.

He would tell them what was happening when the time was right.

Lelouch waited until he heard the heavy steel door close, signifying that his knights had left, and he headed out of the interrogation room himself, making all speed towards his office, feeling the beginnings of a headache taking hold.

Careening through his office door, he groped blindly for his desk, finding it finally after what felt like an eternity and began to scrabble through the drawers in search of a bottle of aspirin.

The headache which had begun after his interrogation had evolved into a full blown, mind crushing migraine.

Grabbing the bottle from the drawer and clutching it like it was the last water in a desert for hundreds of miles, he swallowed three of the pills and collapsed into his desk chair, waiting for the throbbing to subside.

These headaches had become commonplace after an interrogation and they ranged from a slight twinge to the feeling that his skull was going to split at the seams.

It usually was due to the length and hostility required in the interrogation, and that one he did, boy that was a doozy.

The drumroll in his skull was subsiding when Jeremiah and Villetta entered his office, one looking stoic, while the other had a flicker of worry on her face.

Another knock sounded at the door, and Cornelia walked inside, a rolled-up map under her arm.

"The information you requested Lelouch." she stated, placing the parchment down and unfurling it in front of them "The sizes and locations of all resistance groups in and around the Tokyo Settlement. My agents are very good at what they do."

He raised a hand to his temple and massaged it slightly.

"I never said your agents were garbage Cornelia, I just wanted you to make sure that none were OSI. They could throw a colossal monkey wrench in the plans if they were." Lelouch muttered, clasping his hands behind his back and looking down at the map.

"We can cross Shinjuku off the list. That cell has been permanently destroyed." Jeremiah mused, looking at the paper.

"Saitama is the Yamato Alliance faction. And Adachi has the Clan of the Rising Sun faction, both groups of around ten to fifteen members. The Blood of the Samurai is somewhere in Central Japan, but we're not exactly certain, and they have about three hundred members.

"The JLF are the big target though. The ace in the hole as it were. With over four thousand members of the surviving Japanese military, as well as Knightmares, and Tohdoh, with his Four Holy Swords. If we can turn them to our purpose, we'll have a well-trained fighting force on our hands."

Lelouch grinned as he listened to Villetta go over the highlights of the map, telling the others what he had been thinking all along.

Japan was ripe for the picking. A powder keg ready to ignite at any moment. All it needed was a spark.

A spark, and a good commander of course.

Later that evening

"This will never work and you know it." Cornelia growled, arms crossed as she sat across from Lelouch in his office "Zero. What kind of terrorist would believe that a man called Zero could make their wildest dreams come true."

"Cornelia, as I've said, they're pawns in the grand scheme. They're the 1% of the ground troops to incite this rebellion against Britannia and crush the Emperor." Lelouch mused, looking out the window at the setting sun.

The sky was ablaze with oranges, yellows and reds, highlighting the beauty of the area that they were in.

"Yes, but they're poorly trained and ill equipped, who says they'll even listen to you? Not to mention that your own personal guard is the 'Zero Squad.'" she shot back, annoyed at her brother's casualness about this.

"A cornered dog who is afraid and starving will do anything to get food. Even if that involves biting the hand of their master." he stated, looking back at her "All I need to do is perform a miracle or two for the Japanese and I'll have their trust in me. And about the guard, I highly doubt that the Japanese know the name of it."

It took him a moment to figure out her hesitance to all this, but when he did, a gentle smile crossed his features.

"I know you're scared for my safety." he said quietly, looking at her carefully "But as I've said before, you'll never loose me. That happened once thanks to my own stupidity and childishness after my mother died, but now everything has changed. I refuse to leave you alone again."

"Nobody is invincible Lelouch. I'm just looking out for you." Cornelia mumbled, her face heating with a blush.

"Nobody but that blasted witch it seems." Lelouch thought before chuckling lightly "I know I'm not. Just trust me on this. I'm certain that it could be relatively bloodless, especially if we make things better in the ghettos."

"Better how?" Cornelia asked, instantly guarded.

She didn't become a slayer of numbers by making things better for them.

"I'm glad you asked." he grinned "Jeremiah! Bring in my notebook!"

The door opened at once and the turquoise haired knight placed a black spiral wound notebook on the desk before exiting again quietly.

"Starting small, Zero will promise to deliver medical aide and food supplies to the ghettos. These promises will be made during a communication with the JLF listening in on the line, and then they'll jump at the chance to talk to me.

"Then it will be fairer labour laws for the Japanese, as well as infrastructure grants to help rebuild the ghettos. Though we'll mask that by pouring large amounts of funds into public works projects of our own such as museums and sports stadium repairs.

"That way the ministers won't be too put out that we're funding a rebellion right under their noses, and if we can get to Kyoto, then it'll be an even bigger boon, and the JLF will have no choice but to join us or have their supply lines dry up."

Cornelia was silent for a few minutes, letting all this information sink in.

"And when do you plan on telling your troops that there's going to be a revolution?" she questioned, causing his thoughts to come to a halt.

"Ah…damn. I thought I was forgetting something. I'm certain that I have their loyalty, but until I affirm that, we're basically at square one. We'll begin this plan of the carrot or the stick within the week, but that will take a little longer." Lelouch mused, stroking his chin.

"I had best be off to bed though. Lot's of preparation for my debut." he mused, standing up and walking around the desk.

A hand on his shoulder stopped him though.

"Are you sure you don't want any…company tonight?" Cornelia asked, her teeth softly biting her lower lip.

"I'm afraid not love." Lelouch replied, a tired smile on his face "I need some time to work out all the kinks alone here."

He didn't miss the disappointed look that flitted across her features as they stepped out of his office and parted ways.

She heard him dismiss both his knights, and glanced to see him walking alone, slightly relieved that he wasn't going to be spending the night with Colonel Nu again.

Halting her train of thought, she quickly decided that green was not a colour that flattered her too much.

It had been six days since that talk with Cornelia about what would happen in the future, and he put on a strong face when he went to work and dealt with his knights and his duties as Sub-Viceroy, but inside, Lelouch felt like he was dying.

Trapped in a downward spiral, he constantly felt sick, yet he knew he wasn't. It was a product of his mind closing in on itself.

One doesn't simply brush the death of a sibling off.

Especially if that sibling was your entire world. Your entire reason for living and for committing the atrocities that you had.

It had been getting worse, day by day, his mood dissolving into fits of rage when alone, not allowing his mask of calm and collectedness to fall before anyone.

"One quick swipe is all it would take." he thought, fingering the letter opener on his desk "A moment or two of pain, and then eternal bliss. Spending the rest of my days with Nunnally and mother."

Such thoughts were normally rare for a person of proper mental bounds, but they were becoming more and more common for Lelouch.

It was clear that he was going into a depression, even he knew what was happening with his mind, yet there was nothing he could think of to make it better.

He began taking meals in his office when he rarely did eat, not joining his sisters at the table, and his regiment of hygiene went by the wayside, showering when he remembered.

Sleep became fickle, rebuffing advances from both Cornelia and Villetta to spend the night, and when he did fall into a fitful rest, his dreams were plagued by the haunting image of Nunnally, crumpled on the ground, face serine, but blood and brain matter oozing out of a hole in her head.

Opening the drawer to his desk, he pulled out a brown cardboard box, innocent in every way except for the vile substance it contained.

Refrain.

The drug synonymous with the dropping work rates in Japan, as more and more of the captive populous turned to it in an attempt to help them make it through their disappointing lives.

More than once he has thought about taking a trip to see what it would be like, and to see if it would help ease the pain in his heart.

"Maybe someday, but not today." he thought, as the phone rang, causing him to put the box down on his desk and turn his attention to the caller.

"Sub-Viceroy Lelouch vi Britannia, state your business."

It was at that exact moment that things began to go horribly wrong.

Cornelia entered his office unannounced and without providing notice that she was coming by and plopping down in one of the chairs across from her brother, she waited for him to finish with his phone conversation with what sounded like the Minister of Internal Affairs.

Idly grabbing the box off his desk, she was surprised that there was the sound of glass against glass when she moved it.

Lelouch chose that moment to take notice of his sister being in the room, and watched in mute horror, the phone falling from his hand as she opened the box.

Confusion was on her face for a split second, before being overshadowed by another emotion.

Pure, white hot rage.

The box was flung across the room, slamming into the opposite wall.

Bottles smashed, the red liquid went everywhere, marking the wall as though someone had bled all over it.

Glass scattered, and the door crashed open revealing Jeremiah, pistol drawn looking on in confusion, expecting a terrorist, but only finding the two royals.

"OUT!" Cornelia shrieked, her voice even louder than when she was issuing orders to her troops in the middle of an artillery barrage, the sharpness in her tone able to cut through anything.

The door swung closed again, and Cornelia swiftly got up and locked it before stalking back to her brother, who had seeming stood up and shrunk in stature both at the same time.

"Cornelia I can..." he began, before her hand reared back and slapped him hard enough to send the prince sprawling.

"How dare you," she seethed, voice low and dangerous "How dare you even let the thought of Refrain cross your mind. Are you daft?"

"Now let's not do anything rash here…" Lelouch replied quickly, standing and putting his hands up in an attempt to placate her, even though he knew he had fucked up majorly.

"RASH?!" Cornelia screamed, hauling off and smacked him again "You mean to say, that that wasn't a box of a vile drug that you had hidden in your desk, that you were contemplating on using?"

"Well I…" Lelouch trailed off, a hand to his cheek, pain coursing through his face.

"That's what I thought." she growled "How long have you had that in there?"

"About a week." he replied quietly, eyes downcast in shame "But I never used it. It was still a complete set."

"That's not the point Lelouch! The point is that you would even turn to drugs before talking to me about what the hell is the matter in your head." she spat, venom in her tone "The point is, that you don't even trust me enough to talk to me."

"That's not true!" he countered, hurt flashing in his eyes.

Cornelia hated to play on his emotions like this, but it had to be done.

"Obviously not," she snorted, pointing to the smear on the wall that was slowly dripping down, oozing like coagulating blood "That fucking stain of drugs on your wall says otherwise. What would Nunnally think if she knew you were doing this?"

She had wanted to goad a reaction from her brother, but she was unprepared for the result.

"Don't you even fucking dare, bring her into this Cornelia. Let the dead rest." he bristled, barely managing to keep his voice in check.

But Cornelia did not abate in her verbal assault.

"I will bring her into this! Nunnally loved you more than anything, and all you've done since she died is wallow in self pity, execute a terrorist, lock up another, and kill their mother. And then you turn to drugs in an attempt to ease your pain.

"That's weakness Lelouch. Drugs are a weakness, and you're obviously not fit to be a prince of Britannia, let alone a Major in my army. Might as well take your life now to spare yourself the ridicule of being ousted with a dishonorable discharge."

He was silent for a moment, fingers drumming on his desk.

"You know, I've thought a lot about doing just that." he said quietly, his voice a hoarse whisper "How easy it would be."

Fingering his letter opener once again, he lifted it and hefted the blade, deftly spinning it through the air and catching it in his hand.

"One quick swipe across the neck for the jugular, maybe under the arm for the brachial, or the leg for the femoral. All would cause a quick death, a moment of two or suffering before you bleed out."

Putting the opener back down on the desk, he reached into his jacket and pulled his revolver out, cocking the hammer and inspecting the polish on the outside.

"Or maybe a bullet, either in the heart, or right between the eyes. Both would be fairly instant, and ninety percent of gunshot wounds to the head are fatal, whereas if your heart is still beating by the time you get to the emergency room, there's an eighty percent survival rate if the damage is minor enough."

The calm, detached tone, much like if someone was discussing the weather, was beginning to startle Cornelia, sweat forming lightly on her brow.

"Lelouch?" she questioned quietly, as he decocked the weapon and placed it back inside his coat.

"Though there's something just so…mysterious and exciting about a poisoning at some point." he continued, chuckling slightly "You never know when it's going to happen, if it'll be fast or slow, and how painful it would be, depending on the substance.

"Possibly a firing squad, or maybe a hanging would be better though. A slightly more honorable way to go out, rather than be killed from the shadows or to die by your own hand."

Once again, Cornelia backhanded her brother, opening a small gash in the corner of his mouth.

"Lelouch stop talking like this." she ordered, furious at him "Killing yourself would do you no good other than to let everyone down, and to demolish what we're working on right now. Killing yourself won't bring Nunnally back."

"No but it will stop this hellish existence I'm living in." he snapped back, putting a tissue to his mouth to soak up the blood slowly seeping from the wound.

"Every day is torture for me Cornelia, every day I'm reminded of my failures by the person sitting down in the cells, shackled to the floor awaiting death that I won't grant her. I hate that this position got Nunnally killed, and me accepting it, means that I'm responsible for her death.

"She was my world Cornelia, my whole world! I fucking carried her through piles of corpses after the invasion. I looked out for her. I protected her for gods sake! For years! Years after we were cast out, I was protecting her, and it was shattered in an instant!

"How would you be reacting if it was Euphemia who died? Would our roles be reversed? Would I be the one attempting to comfort you? Hm?

"You have no idea what it was like. To have something like that torn from you. First it was my mother, and now Nunnally is dead too. So don't you dare try and lecture me. Don't you dare even try to relate to what is happening, because you don't know the first thing about the shit that's going on."

Cornelia's face got a hard look on it, her eyes glinting dangerously.

"Forget not Lelouch, I've had more of my men killed than you have in your regiment. I was at fault for the death of your mother as well, following her orders to withdraw the guard. You say I have no idea what it would feel like hm?

"I stood at Darlton's bedside for two weeks…four years ago it was, after he had been critically wounded by a sniper who had been shooting at me. They killed the sniper, but the man I saw as an actual father figure was nearly killed on my watch.

"So, don't throw your own god damn pity party. Get up and fucking do something about it. Channel your anger into the project we're working on. You're not the only one who has had someone close to you shot out from under you."

Her voice dropped in timbre as she clenched her fist.

"Lord knows that I've caused so many loved ones to be killed, leaving people without parents, siblings, or children, but that's how war is. And it will never change. Loved ones will always need to die until we shape the world how we want it."

Silence reigned between the siblings for awhile, as both stood staring each other down, before a small, tired smile appeared on Lelouch's face.

"You're right." he finally stated, his voice sounding like he had aged thirty years "You're absolutely right Cornelia. It's just…so hard to try and move on, y'know? I know I'm spiraling downward, but I don't know how to stop it."

"You can start by talking to me about anything. No matter how small you think it is. And I want to never find any more of that vile substance in your possession. Understood?" she said, before opening her arms and beckoning him forward for a hug.

Lelouch gratefully accepted, melting into her arms with a small sigh.

"You know what else would help that downward spiral?" Cornelia asked, moving away slightly.

"What?" he replied, a curious look on his face.

"A shower!" she chuckled, pushing him away "God Lelouch you bloody stink. I'm sure Gottwald can smell you out in the hall."

His cheeks flushing a deep red from embarrassment, he made for the door, but before he walked through, Cornelia heard a quiet "Thank you sister."

The door closed behind him, and Cornelia felt a faint smile tug on her lips.

Lelouch had finally started the healing process, and she would be there to catch him in case he ever stumbled.

A few hours later

Feeling much more refreshed and renewed after his chat with Cornelia, then a long. hot shower, followed by a filling meal in the dining hall, Lelouch knew that things had finally started to look up.

"You seem to be in better spirits now my prince." Jeremiah observed as he and Villetta trailed behind him.

"So it would appear. Talking with Cornelia helped quite a bit in that respect." Lelouch chuckled, as the trio headed to his office.

Stepping in, he saw that the mess on the wall from the Refrain had been cleaned up as best as could be without repainting the spot, and he sat down in the chair behind his desk, motioning his subordinates to sit across from him.

"I think that the time has come, before we get too deeply invested with the resistance groups of Japan, to let the 5th Ontario in on this. As well as the Zero Squad. We'll need the support of both of my units if we're to have any hope of success in the future operations." Lelouch stated after a moment of silence.

"Your highness, are you sure that's a good idea?" Villetta questioned, clearly nervous at the prospect "If they refuse, then you've got one hell of a revolt on your hands."

"That's why I'm insisting on telling the squad first, because they are by far the most loyal. And if anyone does decide to get out of line, I've still got my geass so they can forget all about the speech I'll give and the orders." he stated, leaning back and oozing an aura of self confidence.

"Shall I get the Zero squad then sir?" Jeremiah asked, standing up.

"Please do. I expect them here in ten minutes." Lelouch said, standing up and looking out the large windows offering a panoramic view of the settlement.

Truthfully, his gut was roiling at the prospects of what was happening, and what he was about to tell these members of his guard.

He just hoped that they trusted him enough for this to happen.

"Prince Lelouch, I've brought the required people." Jeremiah stated, ushering in the

"Warrant Officer Kururugi, reporting!"

"Warrant Officer Kessler, reporting!"

"Warrant Officer Masuki, reporting!"

"Gentlemen, sit down please." Lelouch replied, a wan smile on his face as the three pilots sat down, Jeremiah and Villetta staying out of the way, but in actuality, they were guarding the door so there was no easy route of escape if this were to go sideways.

"Your highness, are we being deployed?" Franz questioned, looking around the office.

"Afraid not lads. There's another matter that I need help with, and I wanted to inform you about it before I told the regiment." Lelouch chuckled, as the trio frowned slightly.

"Well spill it!" Teito said after a few seconds "Whatever it is, we can handle it, right Suzaku?"

"Er…right." Suzaku muttered, surprised at their attitude.

"Wonderful. So, how's everyone feel about staging a coup d'état?" Lelouch asked the assembled men.

Crickets.

Save for one person.

"Great joke sir! But seriously why are we here?" Teito asked, laughing boisterously and slapping his knee.

"I'm not sure I understand Warrant Officer Masuki. I don't think I told a joke." Lelouch mused, bringing a hand to his chin in thought.

"Sir, saying such things could be hazardous to your heath." Franz warned, looking around more in fear than curiosity "The walls have ears you know, and the OSI doesn't look kindly when the word treason is thrown around. And I don't think Princess Cornelia would go down lightly."

"Cornelia?" Lelouch asked, smiling slightly "I was talking about taking down Britannia as a whole. Cornelia is already on my side when it comes to this."

"I'm in." Teito stated, once he figured out that this wasn't actually a joke.

"You're kidding!" Franz exclaimed, looking fit to smack his brother in arms upside the head "Do you have any idea what will happen if you get caught?"

"You won't get caught." Lelouch assured "I've been planning this since the days in Oran. Jeremiah and Villetta have been in on it since then as well. Cornelia was brought into the fold a month ago, and General Darlton and Lord Guilford will be brought in within the next week.

"I need to bring you all in, just like I need to bring the 5th Ontario in. Are you all prepared to fight for a world free of terror? Free of the indignancy of Britannia? Free from the scheme of nobility and being looked down upon and scorned?

"If so, then take up arms with me, and we shall remove Britannia first from Japan, push them kicking and screaming in the Pacific Ocean and protect the shores, and then we will take the fight to the Britannian Homeland, to Pendragon, hell, to the Imperial Chambers as well!"

"Britannia stripped me of everything." Teito said, his voice sombre and quiet "My older brother joined a resistance group in Osaka, my father was killed in the occupation, and my mother lives in the Shinjuku ghetto. I have no reason not to fight the people who did this to my family.

"I joined the military cause that was all I could get, and I had to help my mother survive, but now with a chance to strike back, I want in."

"Very well Warrant Officer." Lelouch grinned, marking down something on the paper in front of him "Franz? Suzaku? How about you?"

"Ehhh, gonna die anyways. Might as well do something for the good of the world. So long as we aren't going to Europe, and if we are, I'll gladly stay behind." Franz finally said, shrugging his shoulders.

"Two of three. Just gotta get Suzaku." he thought, looking at the final member of his squad.

Having not said anything for a majority of the meeting, Suzaku regarded Lelouch like he was an idiot.

"Violence is not the answer. I joined the military to stop people from dying, not to kill more."

That made everyone in the room stop and look at the Japanese youth like he had seven heads.

"Suzaku, the dictionary definition of army is 'an organized military force equipped for fighting on land.' You joined an organization which specializes in killing people to not kill people." Lelouch stated "Are you daft?! That's one hell of an oxymoron that you just stated.

"Violence isn't the answer? Stop people from dying? Fresh blood must be shed in order to remove the shackles of the oppressor. If your goal was to get to the Knight of One, take Area 11 for yourself, and free it, then you're naiver than I remember."

"And you're more brutish than I remember! The Lelouch that I met all those years ago wouldn't even be dreaming about this!" Suzaku exploded, surprised that his plan had been picked apart so easily.

"If you had forgotten, after the invasion before we went our separate ways, I said, quote 'I will obliterate Britannia!' end quote." Lelouch responded calmly "My way or the highway. There's no way in hell that a number such as yourself could ever rise to the Knight of One. Unless you had an in.

"Such as…maybe someone who had the right ear of the ruling monarch at the time…not that I'm implying anything of course, but if I was, and we were successful in taking Britannia, I think all of you would be fit to be a Knight of the Round, especially with such impressive scores in the simulators."

Suzaku was silent for a long time, his face set in hard contemplation.

"Alright." he wearily said after tense minutes "I'm in. Just as long as Japan gets to be free."

"On my honor, as an Imperial Prince of Britannia, I promise you, that Japan will be a free nation once we are finished with this revolt." Lelouch pledged to his friend, getting up and shaking their hands.

"Jeremiah, Villetta, take them to see Princess Cornelia to be briefed on what our plans are. I will be along momentarily." he stated, allowing his knights to lead the small procession out of his office and down the hall.

Exhaling, Lelouch thanked his lucky stars that he had managed to convince them without too much of a fuss.

Hopefully getting an entire regiment to agree with him would be just as easy.

Heading out the door, he walked down the hallway to Cornelia's office, smiling slightly that things were finally starting to go to plan.

"Britannia will burn before I'm finished. Father, I'm coming for you." Lelouch thought with finality, as he entered the office, leaving the hallway empty and silent.