Euphemia sighed, her elbows on the desk as the screen stood still in front of her. No new updates or emails in the last hour. And she doubted she'd be getting anything anytime soon. What the princess had sent was another proposal for planning and development on the Special Zone to begin, and given the resistance they were putting up, it'd be a long time before she got an answer. Very few in the royal hierarchy were contesting the zone, and the royal council would eventually have to see things her way.

Which meant, of course, that they'd delay her for as long as possible. And seeing as there wasn't much other work at her table, this led to long, boring afternoons as she waited to get an answer from them and start things as soon as possible

Euphemia gazed out over the shining towers and buildings...And the broken/disrepaired half of the Tokyo settlement. "Their children and their children's-children won't have to live in filth. It's such a terrible thing.." But it would be done soon. Preferring not to fill her head with sad thoughts in the hours that awaited her, she looked over to Ashford academy. "I wonder how busy Suzaku is in his studies. He's so diligent about them."'

The stories she'd heard about Ashford sounded really fun, and often she wondered what it would be like to procure a uniform and sneak into the school herself. If they had a problem with it, she could talk to the principal to give her just one day to see how they lived. "Wouldn't it be wonderful...To be down in that student council and see all the fun they have?"

As if she'd tried to summon him, Euphemia heard her cell phone ring at the edge of her table. Only the royal family, her knight and close friends (the ones under contract not to give away her phone number) were able to call her. "This is Euphemia Li Britannia, princess of the Holy Empire of Britannia. May I ask who I'm speaking with?"

"Hey! It's Suzaku!" She heard some sifting, whooshing noises erupt in the air behind him. "Are you free today?"

"Well, I..." She glanced over to the table, seeing no new updates from the inbox on her laptop. "Y-yes. I should be free."

"Great! I'm already here!" Suddenly, the ceiling above her head shook the chandelier. "Can you get to the rooftop?" She pondered it, then remembered the door to the left of her office the moment you stepped out, where a flight of stairs could take someone there pretty quickly.

"See you soon!" She put the phone into her bag and took it along with her. Upon opening the door, the princess realized that she couldn't just waltz right up to the walkway and not be stopped by one of her guards. Their job was to ensure the safety of the princess, and letting her just run off wasn't going to go well with them. While gazing down the hall and noticing the pattern of her staff, a plan developed in her head.

Euphemia thrust her hand into her bag and pulled out a small candy. It was something that had been given to her by an old, kindly diplomat from a third-world nation she and her sister had visited to discuss military trade a few months back. Cornelia had demanded she threw away the candy, citing it as a "half-hearted attempt at kindness."

"But sister, he probably doesn't have much to offer us anyway. Their capital building was so modest and small.."

"Then they should have thought twice before bringing us to their halls then." Euphemia clutched her fingers around it. The man seemed like such a kind leader and was willing to let them sit in the most beautiful hand-made chairs in the entire building. It would be so rude to just toss his kindness away.

Cornelia sighed and shook her head. "Listen, do whatever you want, Euphy. Just remember that these people are assets for us. Nothing more." But they didn't have to be. Because right now, that man's kindness would at the very least, allow her some time with her knight. There was a hundred-year-old vase that was practically priceless at the end of the hall. It had been gifted to her by a noble and matched her colors of white and pink. Guesstimating the trajectory, Euphemia flung the piece of candy at the vase.

And watched as it exploded on the side, shattering into dozens of pieces as the guard jumped and turned toward the vase. Upon looking down the hallway, he would see a huge tuft of pink hair flying through the halls crying out in apology and despair. "Wow...The embassy really is haunted." The guard shook at the thought. All of those stories he had heard about the guy who hanged himself in the basement or the Knight of the Round that supposedly killed himself in his suite or the shadow people wandering the upper floors...

Carefully, he walked up to the door to the princess's suite and knocked. "Y-your majesty? I'm going to go get something to snack on real quick...You don't mind, do you?"

She didn't answer, and she was known to be rather nice and meek at times. Good enough for him. Ed, the guard, made his way to the embassy bar and had himself a Brandy Old Fashioned Sweet. Upon discovery of his absence, Ed would be fired and promptly leave the building claiming a pink-haired ghost was the cause of his unemployment.

The Lancelot blazed through the sky, joined by the laughter of the knight and his princess as she clutched him. "This is so much fun, Suzaku!" Euphemia squealed as they spun over the highways and roads beneath them. Her training in piloting Knightmare frames had been very limited compared to Suzaku's constant drilling, making this an absolutely astounding experience. The rush of the world as it shifted and turned around them, their weight moving with the horizon as it spun.

"You think that's great!? Check this out!" Suzaku thrust the frame forward, zooming through the air at top speed. Clinging to the controls while the princess clung to him, he laughed at the sheer joy of flying. For the first time in so long, he could enjoy a miracle humans had spent generations trying to achieve. Far too often he had to take lives in the name of justice and the empire but here, they were free.

"So where are we going-AAH!" Euphemia cried as they made a hard turn. "There's an ice cream vendor by the base and I wanted to share some with you. That's it, really."

"Ice cream..." The words seemed to linger on her tongue, and Suzaku slowed down for a moment to turn and face her.

"You've...Never had ice cream before?" Euphemia gave him a dumbfounded look, and she quietly shook her head.

"They always wanted the children to grow up healthy and strong, so of course we didn't really have a lot of sweets when we were kids.."

Suzaku turned back and focused on his flying. "I guess that means it'll be a new experience for you! Let's go!"

Euphemia stared up at the board, pondering the dozens of flavors in front of her. "Two chocolate scoops for me. What about you, Euphy?" The princess put a finger to her lips and thought a little harder.

"Hmmm, I like the idea of Cotton candy but.." As a child, Euphemia had heard so much about this enigmatic treat amongst commoner children that it'd always eluded her as some fantastical treat she'd never have. Now here she was, dozens of flavors in front of her and unable to decide which one would taste the best. This was her first time, and Euphemia wanted to make it as good as possible for her.

"Just pick out the flavors you think will taste best and it should be fine. You can do different flavors in a single bowl, you know."

"I can? Well, then I'll have the strawberry, cotton candy, and birthday cake!" The parlor nodded. An older, kindly gentleman with a smile on his face as he served a more pleasant member of the royal family on a little date like the ones he went with his wife in years gone by.

"Of course your majesty! Coming right up!" He was quick to bring the three scoops into the bowl and serve it with a smile, before stumbling as he realized he forgot the knight.

"Heh, that's fine, sir. I can wait." While the man hurried to give Suzaku his scoops, he watched the princess as she lifted the spoon to her lips. Euphemia briefly turned and smiled at him.

"Well, here goes nothing!" She took off a chunk out of the pink scoop and brought it into her mouth. Her eyes widened as she shivered for a moment, then swallowed.

"Cold huh?" The knight watched as his princess tasted the treat, letting the sensation run back and forth from her brain and tongue. Finally, she swallowed. "How was it?"

"That was delicious Suzaku!" She took another scoop, and once again cheerfully tasted it. Then another scoop, then another. "Woah, slow down there! You'll get a brain freeze!" Suzaku laughed. "Let's just settle down for a little bit and go for a walk." To avoid getting too many onlookers gawking at them, He led her down to the edge of the airfield and to a safe corner of the concrete. There, they reached a fence and were able to enjoy the flowers and trees swaying in the wind and small hills around them.

"Summer really is in full swing, isn't it? My Ice cream is almost melted..." Euphemia wouldn't have to worry, though. She'd managed to avoid a brain freeze and finish her treat in a few scoops. She'd only been carrying her bowl up to this point to keep from littering. "So is there a reason we're out here, Suzaku?"

He gulped, having taken note of her sister's stern demeanor. You never really know someone until you've been around them long enough. "Well, I uh...I just wanted to spend some time with you. That's all."

She glared at him and frowned. Then sputtered, then laughed. "Suzaku I'm only kidding! You caught me after the perfect time...Sort of..."

"Sort of?" Euphemia sighed, putting her bowl to the grass beside her as she waited on Suzaku to finish his.

"They're taking their time with me. If I don't get any confirmation, then I can't move forward with the plans for the special zone quite yet.." Suzaku nodded, twirling the last scoop of chocolate in a circle.

"Ouch...They're not responding right away?" She took a moment to explain their method of getting things done, and he simply shook his head. "And you can't expedite it?"

Euphemia shook her head. "They'll just ask me why I'm not satisfied that they're carrying out my will. Cornelia is too busy trying to find Zero and they're leaving me with a lot of the administration work."

Her knight frowned. "Euphy, if I could, I'd be in that office all day with you." Slowly, her hands lifted themselves to the sides of his face.

Suzaku was so startled by this that he paused and stared into her bright blue eyes just as they grabbed his cheeks and tugged. "You have to graduate and carry out your military duties, Suzaku. Don't worry so much! I know I can trust you."

She pulled close to him, wrapping her arm into his and leaning on his shoulder. "Thanks for doing this. There's been so much work for both of us that I barely get to see you."

"It'll calm down once Zero and his rebellion are stopped. I promise. Then I'll get to that office and we'll make the special zone work. Though...I might need some help in that field.."

"We can learn together," Euphemia smiled. The pair got up after a while and dropped their trash off at a garbage can nearby.

While chatting and continuing to catch up on the news surrounding their respective fields, the princess caught a certain sound coming from the nearest warehouse. "Did you hear that?" Euphy quizzed, noticing a disturbance a few walls away. Suzaku took his hands out of his pockets and was ready for action.

"Where?.." He scanned the buildings around them, ears open and ready to pick up the nearest possible noise. A shout, and a cry for help. "Over there!" He dashed into the door at the corner of the warehouse so quickly and ready to defend, that Suzaku didn't account for Euphemia standing right behind him. She followed and the urgency of the situation kept him from telling her to stand by and wait.

The door flung open, and he saw one worker holding up what appeared to be a teenage boy not much younger than him, while the other delivered punches to his face. An eleven teenage boy. The worker with his hands-free sneered at Suzaku. And who the hell might you...?"

Red and white uniform with golden trimmings all around. A girl with pink hair made into a tall ponytail by the band on her head, a white bandage skirt, and a white, gold and pink top. "Ah shit...Jackson, they're-"

"My name is Euphemia Li Britannia, princess of the royal court and how dare you...you.." The blood and bruises on this young man's face had her shaking. For once, Suzaku saw her empty hands ball up into fists, and stern anger even stronger than what he'd seen back at the ghettos flared up in her eyes.

Meanwhile, the boy, free from the hands of the man propping him up, slipped out of the scene. Exhausted breaths escaped him as he ran. "Suzaku! Detain these men, at once!" They did not object. The men were most likely long-time employees that had a problem with the local elevens trying to attain some form of income, and took out their anger on the nearest one.

That afternoon, they would be dragged to their office at the whim of a princess and her knight. Them and likely the entire base would face repercussions for allowing royalty to witness something so unpleasant. Sadly, they would most likely play along until the news died down and things might go back to normal for that boy and others like him. It was the sad truth of things in the empire. For now, at least.

The light in Euphemia's eyes had died down a little during the ride back. Their previous energy had faded, replaced by the occasional sniff slipping from his princess's nose.

"Sorry, you had to see that. That kind of thing is still really common in the military. The guys back in basic training had me carrying all the equipment with the other Japanese."

"It's still not right, Suzaku. We talk as if we're uniting our nations in public, yet..." Her voice trailed off. Below them, a park district in the middle of the city branched off with multiple acres of green and trees on raised platforms with safety railing stood with very few people walking around. "There! There!" Suddenly, she got excited and pointed the furthermost platform with a single tree rising out of it. "We fly past here all the time and I've always wanted to go there!"

The change in mood was sudden, but not unwelcome. "If you say so," He sighed in relief. Not so much for her mood change, but the sheer fact that he was enjoying the afternoon with her in the midst of these ever-changing times. Suzaku lowered the Lancelot a fair distance from the tree. Together, he and the princess walked down to the railing and relaxed. Euphemia took this time to look out over the city and think back on what she had seen. And the men they'd caught at the edge of the ghettos not that long ago.

As the sun rested on the horizon, she could see the peak of Mt. Fuji. Red light hanging on half of the mountain while its shadow trailed behind it. Just below that mountain, miles away from its base was a stadium being prepared for its eventual use for the special zone. "Do you think that boy is going to be okay?" Euphemia breathed, watching as a pair of doves flew across the skyline.

"It's something that happens every day. We're going to start the special zone soon, and when that happens, things are going to be better. I know it."

Euphemia smiled. "Don't flatter me so much, Suzaku...I still have the rest of the royal family to deal with. They're not saying much now, but eventually, we'll have to fight to preserve peace." She slid her fingers between each other. "Sometimes, I wonder if Zero wants the same thing. His actions are reckless, yes, but do you think that's the reason he's fighting?"

"I'm not quite sure. But there are other ways than violence to make things right." Suzaku shifted over to her and put a hand on her shoulder. "People will understand years from now. They'll talk about how we changed things and perhaps even the Japanese people will revere you. People like Zero are extremists, but I do think there's some good in what he wants."

"Maybe I can meet him again. Maybe we can work something out, and then-"

"Your highness, forgive me, but aren't you worried?" He leaned into her view, concern wearing on his face. "Zero might try to use you as bait, and you could get hurt!"

"Suzaku, I wouldn't worry. You're my knight, and nothing is going to happen as long as I'm by your side." He nodded, shifting his shoulders.

"I just get worried about you No one really knows when Zero will strike...If anything were to happen I'd-" A nudge to his left suddenly alerted the Knight. Euphemia. leaning against him with her eyes shut and lost in a daydream.

"Someday...When things slow down, I'd like to buy a private house for us. Just somewhere in the hills or countryside. It's awfully beautiful during the summer."

"Heh, are you sure they'd approve?"

Euphemia gazed up at him and winked. "I can pull a few strings. Cornelia still owes me a couple favors here and there." Suzaku chuckled to himself, thinking of such a stern lady at an office desk doing the kind of work that would wear down those haughty shoulders of hers.

"That would be nice." Another pair of doves flew by, their wings swaying with the shifting of the wind.

"Suzaku...I'd be lying if I said I wasn't scared. This is going to cause quite a rift amongst the common folk, isn't it?"

"Yeah, but I suppose that comes with change. It wouldn't make much of a difference if it didn't wouldn't it?" She sighed again, gripping his arm a little tighter as another gust of wind went by. "You're not having second thoughts are you?"

"I'd never dream of it. I'm excited really...Everything is about to change, and you're going to have a front-row seat, Suzaku!" Euphemia pulled from him and looked into his eyes. "Just don't doddle too much or Cornelia might have your hide!"

His eyelids relaxed as he leaned in. "I'd rather watch the conductor than the orchestra, your majesty.." Euphy felt a warmth rush to her cheeks as her heart fluttered. "I-I'm sorry. That was really cheesy.."

She raised an eyebrow. "Cheesy? No, no, no I thought it was wonderful. L-like you.."

Warmth rushed to his own cheeks and a reminder in his head to work on their romantic dialogue. Both of them were very new to this, and it was still awkward to go beyond the official status and call each other "boyfriend" and "girlfriend."

Yet, here they were, undeniably wrapped in each other's arms. "Suzaku, I'm a little cold." The summer afternoon said otherwise, Still, he obliged and held her tightly. "Thanks...And I..I.." Euphemia looked at him again, trying to let the words out, but when their eyes met, she could stop herself from leaning forward. Her lips matched his, and they embraced each other's love in the fragrance of the afternoon.

The future and the many changes it had brought had come quickly indeed.

Suzaku wiped another layer of sweat from his brow as the Lancelot flew over the arid landscape below him. He would often wonder of the royal knights of old, and their deeds in trekking across landscapes like these to fulfill assignments much like his own. Sometimes, he'd think much higher of them, as they had the will to move forward while the hostile earth lashed at them through winter, heat, and jagged rocks. Then again, they never had to deal with aerial combat striking them from every possible direction.

A call pinged him, and his hands were free enough for him to open the transmission. Right before him, was a red-bearded man. Britannian, and with a smile wider than the reaches of this arid hellhole. "Aha! Mr. Kururugi! You've come earlier than expected!"

"The Emperor was rather intrigued with what you had to say, Mr. Hayes." He had the face of a friend, and the wrinkles and cheeks of a kindly fellow you'd see in church.

"It's funny you mention him. Did he provide you with a particular reason that he's not joining you?"

"The Emperor has priorities at hand that he would rather not disclose." Another laugh. As if he'd told the man a joke. Suzaku found himself secretly wishing Aaron Hayes (at least, that's what the letter had claimed him to be), would let him finish his journey without the extra commentary. "Well, I shall call my men and have them prepare a docking bay for your Lancelot. An excellent machine, I must say!"

Suzaku cleared his throat again. "Yeah, uh thanks." Though the compliment would sooner be applied to Lloyd. He was the man who created the frame, while Suzaku just made it look good.

"See you soon!" Hayes gave a hearty salute, and (thank god) Suzaku was alone once again. "Of all the guys we could be dealing with, you sent me after him." Though he supposed this was more action than what he'd been seeing as of late. Since Lelouch and Shirley took the throne and Schneizel put on trial, the world had begun a new age of peace for the last two years.

An age of peace she would've loved… Suzaku stifled back a tear. To this day, he still saw people call her by the name of "Princess Massacre," to this day, he saw posters and news channels showing off the worst of what happened on that day. To this day, her name was sullied all because Lelouch had to go and-

Suzaku took a long breath and exhaled through his nose. The cockpit was hot enough without these thoughts poisoning him. "It's in the past," He whispered. "All in the past." Lelouch had taken the time to reconcile with him. There had been blows and harsh words exchanged, but the greater good had come about. All he could do now was to maintain that beautiful world she wanted back then. He'd forgiven his old friend and emperor, and they had both accepted the tragedy as an accident.

But still, he was haunted by it in his everyday life. There they were, the Emperor and his Empress, while the Knight of Zero was left to fulfill their every whim. Often he hated himself for thinking with such jealousy. If it hadn't been for Shirley, he probably would've been way less patient with the things Lelouch had done. Like it or not, he was now the highest-ranking knight in the empire thanks to him, and now he would do as he was ordered.

As soon as he reached the location, he knew where he had to go. The large mountain protruding out of the sea of sand stood out like a sore thumb. Once he'd reached the two-mile radius, it was as if a part of the mountainside had started to shift on the side of the hill. Suddenly, a cascade of sand and dirt fell thousands of miles below as the entire wall of the formation opened up to reveal a series of levels and garages where he could see the distant shapes of Knightmare frames docked.

"Man, they sure weren't kidding. This'll be an interesting trip." He lowered the Lancelot to the waypoint they must have sent to his sensors. Like a video game he'd played as a young teen, Suzaku followed an arrow that pointed to a pair of metal crab-like claws.

Upon hovering over them, they reached out and clamped around the Lancelot's legs as its wings disappeared into the air. As the frame was lowered onto a platform full of these claws side-by-side, Suzaku began to wonder if Lloyd had any contacts with these people. "He'd have a fit if he saw this stuff. He wouldn't want to leave."

He opened his cockpit, just as a group of men approached the Lancelot. Suzaku let a mental image of a fascinated Lloyd alongside him bring ease to his mind as the uncertainty of things crept into the scene. Once these men had made sure their guest was on the platform without falling and breaking his ankles on the protruding conduits, Suzaku walked up to the red-bearded man, appearing as some kind of tall dwarf in a fantasy story.

He even looked back with pride at his security team as he took the hand of the Knight of Zero. "So this is him. Suzaku Kururugi. The pride of the Britannian military...And then you weren't. And then you were, ha!"

Without warning, the man gave him a hearty slap on the back. Once Suzaku got his wind back, he grinned and nodded with the man. "Y-yeah that's me..."

"My boy, you look terrible!" Suddenly, this Aaron Hayes had the demeanor of a grandma fretting over a little dirt on a child's knees. "Any of you boys have some water to spare?" The men just looked at each other, reaching down to their belts and finding nothing. Hayes shook his head, mumbling something about proper pass-downs and the importance of hydration.

"Well, come, come! We are most excited to show you what our company has to offer!" And so, Suzaku found himself dragged into the clean, metallic labs and hangars of this semi-secret mountain base.

"Construction began in 1924. The Chinese Federation used this mountain as an outpost for traders and travelers to rest and restock supplies on their long treks through the desert. In 2001, your emperor's father purchased it after many negotiations and after reading a proposal from myself and my colleagues.." Aaron continued his speech about the history of this place, while he watched the silver skeletons of Knightmare frames be tweaked by human and robotic hands around them. "We believed in innovation, but the military research committee is a little, uh...Up-their-own-arse about things. Wouldn't you agree?"

Suzaku pondered this. "Lloyd certainly has to fight to get some of his projects off the grou-"

"Exactly! Which is why old Chuck, God rest his soul, would be so pleased if his son took up an offer for us to be integrated into the committee!"

He looked to his right, and saw a red laser melt through steel plating in a single flash, causing the team around the weapon to remove their goggles and rejoice at such an accomplishment. "I beg your pardon, Mr. Hayes, but you don't seem very fazed by the conditions surrounding my emperor..."

The man had pulled out a pipe and had already taken a puff. He coughed, wheezed a little, then waved off the single guard that was checking on him. "Oh, hold yer horses! I've got at least another thirty in me!"

Once he recovered, Hayes raised an eyebrow at his guest. "Whatever do you mean, Suzaku my boy? If you don't mind me calling you that."

"That's fine," Suzaku couldn't believe he didn't realize it right away. "I'm referring to his taking of the throne..." Hayes just kept staring, even coughing slightly. "Emperor Lelouch announced that he murdered Charles Vi Britannia, his father and the man that allowed you to conduct this research." For a moment, he cursed himself. Perhaps he was being a bit too forward with the facts and was overshooting things for himself.

The red-haired man's eyes lit up and he nodded. "Ahhhh yes, yes. Well, I know that Charles would want this work to continue, no matter who was backing it."

"You're not bothered by that at all?" Hayes kept walking forward, leading them along as he took another easy drag from his pipe. Suzaku began to wonder if anything really fazed him.

"Progress requires sacrifice. I'm sure you know a lot about that...If I'm not hitting any nerves, beg your pardon."

"...I see."

The man spun around and gave them all a cheerful smile. "WELLL everyone! I'm starving, how about you?"

The shrimp was a little stringy, but the spices, garlic, and butter had soaked it enough to give it a poignant taste. The small salad he'd saved on the side of his bowl were all freshly-grown, and the potatoes were like the best that Ashford's mess hall had to offer. "Would you like any wine, Mr. Kururugi? Or perhaps some damn good Gin? My favorite brand, Fish-For-A-Spin!"

Suzaku dismissed him. As kind as he'd been, this whole trip was leaving him with a need to burn some energy. Maybe he could burn off some calories in the quarters they'd provide him once they were done with the talks. "I'll just have some water if that's alright with you."

Hayes nodded. "Yes, yes that's right!" He slapped himself on his head. "Out there in such heat, a young man needs to keep his piss clear, am I right?" The guard sitting between him and Suzaku rolled his eyes.

The server came in with a nice, tall glass. Crystal clear, and as cool and refreshing as a splash in the pool. Once he was finished, Mr. Hayes would take him on another tour through their defense research station (some projects he knew Lloyd would either show interest in or complain about being ripped-off. Or both).

While Aaron was bragging about the best work of one of his youngest scientists, Suzaku glanced up at the upper rafters of the garage and noticed something. Suspended by cables and hidden in plain sight, was a Knightmare frame with wires and half-finished servos hanging out of it. Nothing too uncommon in the workshops and hangars of the Britannian military.

What caught his attention, was the boomerang-shaped crest on the forehead of the frame. He thought back to the royal hangar, where he'd seen the Vincent left there after the battle against Schneizel. "I've seen that somewhere be-"

"Kururugi! Yoohoo!" His eyes blinked to protect themselves as the ecstatic man in front of him tried to grab his attention.

"Y-yes, sir?"

"I asked you, what do you think?"

In front of him was a statue of a Knightmare with large metallic domes on its chest. No, not a Knightmare, but a small statue of one made of scrap. Come to think of it, those domes looked a lot like-"OH! Uhh...Wow."

"Very, very nice, eh?" Hayes thought it was hilarious. He, the guards, and the engineers all let out a hearty laugh. Suzaku smiled, doing his best to force it out. Once he thought about the commitment and work it would take to make something so ridiculous, it didn't take as much work.

"And at last...We have this." Suzaku squinted to see through the goggles they had handed out to him. They were in a room where the glass on the side curved around the border of a dome-shaped chamber. Inside, one could see the blue-hued shapes of engineers surrounding a large cylinder with glowing, red tubing contrasting the cool shade of this sector.

On top of the three-foot cylinder was a crystal-like ball. Small antennae with red dots at the end occasionally spat a bolt of lightning. "We call this 'The Ego Core.'"

A loud humming rose and fell as if to further drive home the power of this device. "Ego core. Nice name, Mr. Hayes."

"Bah, we all made a bet on who would get to name it on a coin toss. One of the boys down there won. I was hoping to dub it, 'THE DEFACTO,' or 'THE MIND MACHINE', but that's how things go, don't they?"

"What exactly does it do?" Hayes cleared his throat, teeth a bright blue in the light as another hum rolled its way through the walls.

"It's a modified version of the factisphere. A sort of uh, upgrade, from Mr. Asplund's work. You should really tell him to be more tight-lipped on his projects, you know."

"Well, he's sure not going to be happy about this.."

Hayes chuckled. "We're hoping to appeal to his curious side. The Ego Core is a generator 10x faster and less likely to fail than a built-in factisphere. Install one, connect it via a signal to any allied Knightmare frames within a forty-mile radius. A major advantage to any army of frames should a large battle arise."

"Sir, I'm just curious, but why do you think we would need a device like this in the times we're living in?" Hayes scratched his mustache and continued to watch the men at work while he responded.

"Well, Suzaku, as much as I'd like to believe in Lelouch's cooperation with other nations and Shirley's humanitarian work, do you really think that that's going to prevent someone who disagrees with them from blowing the palace to kingdom come!?"

"We have a legion of Knightmares and Knights of the Round with the highest piloting skill in history."

The man's goggles locked with his. Reflective and pitch-black just the same. "Yet, that brother of his came along with a floating palace to do just what I mentioned. In order to keep our peace, we must provide a deterrent! I hope to god the day this has to be used never comes, but if it should, then you'll be thanking me when this machine does twice the work the round ever could!"

Suzaku said nothing. Another hum from the machine, with a horrible screech ripping through the walls. "What was that!?"

Hayes slammed his finger down on the console in front of him."Lower the power of the amplifiers! I don't need this thing to burn up just because we want a good show!"

A few frantic minutes later, the workers flipped the right switches and made the right adjustments. The loud hums and screeching slowed down, and the occasional bolts of lightning eased down. Suzaku watched as the machine was swiftly turned into a pale imitation of the imposing device from before. "That's...Something we're trying to work out..."

Another minute or so of Hayes checking the consoles and making sure that that wouldn't happen again. Once the whole lab was given an all-clear, they went right back to work. Troubleshooting began just as Suzaku was lead out of this corner of the facility. "It's funny how that sometimes shows up on radars and Knightmare sensors, haha!" An endlessly amused grin crossed Hayes's face. "One time we had the Chinese Federation circling this area for weeks because they thought some massive convoy was rolling through the middle of their damn count-" He wheezed, then coughed once again.

"You know, Hayes..."

"Call me Aaron, my boy! I put you on a first-name basis, so it's only fair you do the same for me!"

He nodded. "Smoking is very bad for you, Aaron."

The man rubbed the sides of his beard, hair shifting as the fingers slid along them, before letting out another laugh. "Now you sound like my sister! 'Smoking is bad for you, watch your carbs, shave your face once in a while!'" He laughed once again. "I guess I brought on myself, eh?" They walked past a bin for dirty goggles to be placed. Once they tossed theirs into the pile, Aaron stood in front of the knight.

"So?... Do you think the Emperor will have an interest now?" There were quite a few questions about all of this. Where the funding had come from and just who exactly was in charge. None of these were brought into the conversation, aside from maybe Charles offering them funding back in the day.

"I'm sure our own engineers would be interested in collaborating with your people," He answered in the most pleasant tone he could muster.

"He would!?" The tall dwarfish-looking man rushed to this young knight, big hands slamming his back as the boy was pulled in for a hug. "Excellent Suzaku, excellent!"

"OOF! Y-yeah! I'll be contacting him first chance I get!" They toured a little more before the late afternoon finally took hold. The sheer size of this place astounded Suzaku. If he were correct, the caverns of this place could easily expand to nearly the same size as the interior of Pendragon.

"Well, then Suzaku. My men here will take you to your quarters! It's a nice-sized room. TV, a bed, a really clean bathroom. Top-of-the-line! Fit for a knight!"

"Thank you, Mr. Hayes." A fat finger thrust into his face.

"Aaron! That's Aaron for ye!"

"One hundred and two...One hundred and three...One hundred and four...One hundred and FIVE!" The Knight of Zero huffed, letting his feet fall to the floor. There was more to his room than he'd thought. A small room serving as a gym, a home spa, a bar, and a kitchen. This was practically an apartment, and if there really were rooms like this for every worker here, Suzaku was left thinking that the Pendragon comparison was pretty accurate.

He wiped a bit of sweat from his brow with a fresh towel from the pile provided on the rack next to him. Once he was done, he tossed it into the empty bin next to him.

"Not too bad. Though I could do more.." Suzaku shook his head. It was late, and he wanted to shower before carrying out the task Lelouch had given him.

He sighed, gazing over the black sneaking outfit that had been packed for him. Would he really need this? Everyone in the facility was so busy he could just walk around and act like he was lost while looking for "Aaron." Before doing anything, Suzaku sat down on the bed. It was soft, with a flowery scent lacing the covers.

Goddammit.

These thoughts again. He bit his thumb. No. No, he wasn't going to put himself through this. Not now, when there was a mission. He stood up from the bed. Every time he slept, he remembered her. His body resting against the sheets would coagulate into an allegory and a catalyst for his dreams to become ones of bygone days. That first day they had walked together at the Tokyo Settlement, every bite from Arthur that she giggled at.

The softness of her hair, her lips. Sometimes they would sit in her chambers, letting her soft covers warm their bodies in those spring evenings when the weather hadn't quite gotten too hot or too cold. On nights when her aid wasn't available, he'd sneak his way to her quarters and they would share the different experiences of their world. Even today, he wouldn't know everything royal women had to deal with in day-to-day life had he not spoken to her.

In turn, she was fascinated by his culture and the problems of being in the military. Long hours, sleepless nights, mediocre food. And they'd often dream of the kind of experiences they could share...Suzaku pounded the sheet with his fist and stood up. He would finish his assignment, then come back here undetected and think about this later. He'd given up on forgetting her. He couldn't and wouldn't, and god damn him for trying to. "She'd want this. Aaron wants to talk about keeping the peace..." Here he was, ready to see if the words behind that red mustache were as honest as he insisted.

A click.

Suzaku spun around, swearing he heard something and letting his hands hover along his sides, ready for action. He listened once more. A whirring noise.

A click.

His blood, freshly pumped by his pull-up session, picked up the pace again. They weren't exactly as sneaky as he'd thought, because that kind of noise could only be made by one thing... In the corner on the right side of his room, he saw a small device hidden just to the side of the fluorescent lighting. Resting on the very border of the light, He could make out a small set of lenses. "Camera.." He quickly averted his eyes from its gaze. Surely if he was being watched, they'd notice his...Suzaku jumped up and quickly began to put his uniform together. His pistol, and any magazines in them. The Lancelot would surely be guarded by now, and they weren't likely going to let him leave without a fight.

The Knight speed-walked to the door, just as it opened. Outside light-flooded open, and standing in the door frame was Hayes. "Mr. Kururugi, Are you alright?" His hands were outstretched. An uncle comforting his nephew. Before he could process that the door had been opened from the outside, Aaron's right hand moved faster than he'd ever seen for someone that age.

A needle in his chest. Suzaku stepped back and looked down. A silver, metal dart with a pink tuft was jutting out of him. "Now, don't worry Mr. Kururugi. We're not going to let anything happen to you..."

His words blurred, and Suzaku felt himself falling to the floor. Vision rapidly fading, he could see the small gun-like weapon in his hand. "I promise you, my boy...We have the perfect job for you..." Suzaku could only let out a small groan of objection before the darkness dragged him in and didn't let him go for a very long time.

"He's almost out of it. Slide him in, hurry!" Truth be told, he would not awaken for another hour. It'd be a little too soon for comfort, and the dosage was enough to keep him incapacitated during the entire procedure.

Hayes would watch from the side as his men worked tirelessly on the Knight before them. A chuckle escaped him as he thought back to all the complaints they had given him about the drills he conducted in anticipation of this. "And how do you know this is going to work, Mr. Hayes?" Next to him, one of the masked members of the order, a messenger, stood by.

"You're one to ask, dear sir. The council itself has compiled the research and the tests from the last two years. This will work wonders. I know it." The man said nothing. Of course, he did. Hidden behind their masks and shrouds, that's just the kind of people the inner circle adored. Stay quiet and talk to the council when the time was appropriate. Which was when he was never around.

Fine by him. The result of their hard work came rolling in on Asplund's (relatively) new toy. Suzaku would awaken to darkness, leading him to believe he was dreaming or hallucinating. They let him believe this for a few minutes before the silver polygon in front of them would occasionally shake. "He's up, huh?" Nobody answered him. Humorless asses, all of them. Weeks out in the desert and no one wants to crack one about the situation they were in. Whatever. "Alright, alright. Open up the comms. I want to talk to the lad."

Suzaku's world was spinning. It spun the moment that he was put under, it spun in his dreams and in spite of him feeling the gloved hands around him. He wouldn't wake, yet he knew of the cool, stagnant air around his skin. There was darkness, there was shouting, and it was coming from all around him. Echoing like loudspeakers floating in an endless space. It was then, that the world sunk in on itself for him. Like water rolling down a drain, Suzaku finally stopped shaking around once he realized the screaming was coming from his own mouth. "Mr. Kururugi. I'm so sorry it has to be this way...You understand right? Slam around the walls again for 'yes.'"

"H...H-hayes..." The word rasped out of his mouth. Whatever effect the drug had on him was resurging. He'd only had the energy to unleash himself in that brief moment of terror and confusion. Now he was sinking in water as the voices blurred in his ears. Even speaking felt like it lasted a decade.

"So Suzaku, I don't want you to freak out, but you're about to participate in the next revolution in military technology! Aren't you excited?" He could barely process the words. The whiplash from all of this was jarring. Even if he knew the multiple shades people tended to have, watching Lelouch turn from his smiling friend to his enemy briefly had happened over time. This man had just broken bread with him mere hours ago.

"It's not going to hurt that much, now. I'm your friend, Suzaku. You know that right? Aaron, your buddy!"

Suzaku shook his head, only to thump it against some surface. It was then he realized his head was being propped up with the rest of his body.

"So, here's the first trial. On three! One..." Suzaku then felt a loud vibration shake his entire core. He let out a cry, and nothing could be heard. When the shaking and head-splitting pain rippling through, in and out of his skull ceased, a throbbing followed, and he was forced to hang his head.

"Did that put some pep in your step? Haha! Don't worry. Here we go again. One, two, thr-" Another jolt and the same result. Vibration, pain through his mind and skull, then throbbing and a soft groan from his lips. Little did he realize that no one would hear him.

"Alright, alright. It's time for the real deal, Suzaku. No more bullshit. I promise you, where we're sending you is a place you've wanted to go for a very long time..." Nobody can really know what the Knight of Zero had expected when he stepped onto that platform just over twenty-one hours ago. Get in, take whatever evidence that may or may not exist, report back to Lelouch and they evaluate the scope of a possible threat against the empire. Pure and simple.

He'd taken the time to mentally and physically train himself. But this is merely preparations for the physical obstacles and torture that would cause stress as a simple result of the instinctive fear of pain.

Nothing could have prepared him to see the face of Euphemia Li Britannia sitting in front of him. Smiling and with a distinct red glow around her irises. They were both washed in a blood-red glow as the infrared lights lined their frames. Both of their limbs were strapped down, and they were both wrapped in a loose cloth with etchings of an ancient language the civilized world has yet to rediscover. "Suzaku! You're going to help me kill them, yes?"

He froze. This time, the feeling that all of reality melted away and flew off somewhere while he faced what was thought to be a long-gone menace stared him straight in the eyes. "The man wants us to kill them all, and that's alright with me!"

"E-euphy...Euphy...Euphy..."Hayes's voice chuckled over the intercom. Around him, he'd see the engineers glancing certain looks as he enjoyed the moment. Again, the order did act like a bunch of prudes sometimes, and of course, they'd regret not enjoying a historical moment like this. Ah well, more for him.

"I know you're a little shocked, but no, this isn't the drugs. Chuck gave us permission to have her after she 'expired' and that special power in her brain is an ample power source if used the right way."

The Knight felt the tears fall out of him and did nothing else. She was right here, smiling and as beautiful as she was that morning of that terrible day...Saying things that turned his stomach with that same smile. "He says you're going to help me, Suzaku! It took you so long to get over here.."

"You're...I..." Not even she heard these words. The motions of them barely formed across his mouth.

"With your willpower...You know, the one that makes you turn tail and save your hide from time to time, and her dedication, you two will make a perfect weapon that can serve us for...An indefinite amount of time."

"Hayes...Hayes you...YOU!" A brief resurgence of anger. The frame of the silver shape shook once more, then stopped once the muscle fatigue rapidly returned. "She's not. That's not her..."

"Suzaku, you can't fool me. We've done blood tests and I have witnesses that saw our employees take her body from that same transport. Videos of your emperor shooting her, you carrying her onboard, your touching moment, etc. It's all legit, Kururugi."

He sighed. "I figured since you've been unlucky enough so far, that you'd want some knowledge and closure before we hook you up. You understand, right?"

No. No, he didn't. By bringing her back like that, her mind perverted into that cruel imitation of her. "Euphemia...Please. Listen to me.."

She blinked. Her hair was also messy. Again, another thing to add to the ever-growing list that separated her from...Her. "Of course, Suzaku. What's wrong?"

"You...This... You don-" And then there was nothing. Hayes pulled the lever, and before the conversation could begin, the world melted away.

Suzaku watched her face melt into a series of black lines, a lollipop made of the image of her crimson-hued face swirling into the blackness that grew and grew. He found himself being sucked into it, a black hole pulling him until he flew, or fell, or ascended into the pit. He went on and on, going for what seemed like hours and yet also felt like mere seconds. Just when he thought he'd be confined to an eternity in the blackness of his mind until his thoughts were lost to madness... a faint white light began to form at the end of the tunnel.

Suzaku squinted at it, as it grew impossibly brighter. Then, without any transition or warning, he was in a park. A picnic cloth was laid out on the ground, and it was a bright, beautiful day with families and children out and about. "Suzaku?" A pair of fingers snapped in front of him. "Helloo, Earth to Suzaku!"

In front of him was Shirley. No empress outfit or anything. Just the same Ashford girl's uniform he'd seen so much so many times. "Wh-what?" The group around him laughed. Lelouch, Shirley, Milly, Rivalz, Nina, Nunnally sitting by the side of her brother and...

Euphemia.

"Suzaku why are you looking at me like that? You were talking about the troubles and stresses of being a knight, and suddenly you're out of words to say!" He cleared his throat, not quite sure what was going on. A moment ago she was, so different and now... No. That was right. They were able to revive her and she got to join the Ashford student council.

They had a good, civil talk with Lelouch about the things that had happened, and everything was fine. Everything was fine. Lelouch just laughed. "I guess he's had a brain-fart. It's okay, I get those too sometimes."

"Lelouch, come now!" Euphemia grinned. As if on cue, like an ending to a sitcom, they all laughed again. This laughing felt odd though. Hollow and without the same life and sincerity. As if a laugh track should've been phasing in and out between their jokes and fun.

"Hey guys, if you don't mind, I need to talk with Suzaku about something. Can you give us...?" Euphemia, so articulate with her interactions with the common students, moved her finger in a certain spinning gesture and Milly nodded.

"Alright, alright. Let's leave these two lovebirds alone for a minute. Wanna go feed the geese guys? I have some crumbs in this basket from all these sandwiches.."

"You said we'd need ten of them!"

Milly waved off Rivalz. "I know, I know. Hmm.." The conversation then gravitated away from them. The group moved away and Euphemia stood up. "Uh, Euphy. What did you want to talk about? I'm not in trouble, am I?"

She smiled and shook her head, sending her hair strands bouncing back and forth. "No, no, no...It's just...Thank you. You've been such a wonderful Knight. The people of Japan are happier than they've been in years and..."

Euphemia turned around. From below the curtain of pink hair, he could see that familiar lining of that white and pink dress. "And what?" He waited. Nothing. Suddenly all of the sound disappeared from the park. He couldn't even hear his own words. "Euphy what-"

She spun back around, carrying a Britannian-issued assault rifle and blowing the nearest eleven child and a small dog to ribbons. Somebody screamed, and he quickly realized it was Nina. Without warning, Euphemia threw him to the side and he could only watch as the student council succumbed to the hail of bullets flying at them.

One by one, they lied in a row like lengths of celery. He saw the blood trickling down from them, and fought the will to vomit. "EUPHEMIA! WHY ARE YOU!?" When he stood to face her, everything changed again. Suddenly his hands were wrapped around a sword. The same, violet-jeweled decorative sword that he'd slain Lelouch with...

There was a young woman. An eleven. Dressed in the uniform of the Black Knights. She clutched the blade, looked at him, and a single tear rolled down her cheek. "Why?" She squeaked, before pulling the weapon from his hands via her torso.

She fell onto a black, shadowy ground that expanded forever. White mountains shaped like Knightmare frames were covered in droplets of crimson on the horizon, and somewhere, the screaming howled amongst the cold wind. There she was! "EUPHEMIA! WAIT!" Suzaku sprinted at that one trickle of pink hair. In the distance, he saw that same woman he loved, flying away from him. Her body was less like a person and more like a wooden chess piece with an extension of hair behind her.

He ran after it, his legs burning and his brow hot with sweat as he pursued her for days. Weeks. Years. No matter how fast he ran, he could never catch her. The chess-piece Euphemia would speed up, then stop for miles of progress, only to disappear when he was mere feet away, then pop up at the edge of the black horizon that never seemed to end.

"Please! I'd...I'd do anything! I didn't want any of it, but...But..." He fell to his knees. His legs shook and his breath rasped. Hoarse coughing choked out of his throat, and Suzaku shut his eyes. Secretly hoping that it would somehow drag her to him, that it would bring her back to-

He opened them once again. The royal throne of Pendragon. Virtually no one was there, except the royal family. Charles, Cornelia, Marianne, Nunnally, Schneizel. Even Clovis was amongst them, uniform with the rest of the twin groups as they stood at attention. They were standing in a line across from each other. Facing one another and leaving a path for him to the throne. Suzaku could feel his sanity fracturing at this point and turned around to leave this nightmare and walk out of the palace.

He turned, took a step and was facing the twin rows of royals once again.

He turned, took a step and was facing the twin rows of royals once again.

He turned, took a step and was facing the twin rows of royals once again.

He turned, took a

"HAIL! SUZAKU KURURUGI!" Cornelia's powerful voice rippled through the silent hall, and everyone bowed to one knee. The path was before him. And there was no escape. They were still as statues when he walked down the path. Not even the subtle movements of one's pulse or breath could be seen. Complete, utter stillness.

Suzaku sped up his pace, rushing to get to the throne in front of him and...Gaze upon the clothing sitting there. A black helmet with horns and a circular purple visor. A black and red cape, and the dark violet costume he hated. Another blink and he looked down. The outfit was on him now, helmet and everything. As if his body were compelled by some outside force, Suzaku stepped up and sat down.

They all rose simultaneously. Perfectly. Like a synced animation in a computer program, even turning and clapping hard, yet without any semblance of passion. "Hail to Zero!" They all shout. First in unison, then one by one. A minute's wait between each. Once Clovis finishes, he stands up, finding himself dressed in his Ashford uniform.

Suzaku is in the middle of the war-torn streets of Shinjuku. Gunfire and radio chatter from Knightmare pilots roars in his ears, even if it's happening far away, down the street or a mile away, he still hears every terrible deed done that day in an unbearable noise that rips at his eardrums.

Then it stops.

It stops just enough to hear her screaming his name. How wonderful, and how terrible it was for him to hear it again. He stepped forward, and it was then that the entire open space of blasted street and alleyways were filled with...Mannequins.

All of them, standing in his way and with many different looks. Some of them were in military uniform. Others, Ashford's. Some of them had blue hair, blonde hair, purple hair. Many of them, though, so many of them had the same raven black and long orange hair. "SUZAKU! PLEASE! I'M DROWNING!" Somewhere ahead, Euphemia's voice called for him, and this time, completely on his own whim, Suzaku grabbed the first row in front of him and threw them aside.

"OUT OF MY WAY! I'M NOT LOSING HER AGAIN!" They shattered into plastic pieces as the wigs and limbs flew across the dirty ground of the ghetto. He thrust out at the next row, and it was as if some invisible fountain beneath his feet just kept piling up more and more.

More clothes, more mannequins, and more plastic. Soon the ground disappeared beneath his feet, replaced by the mass of fake bodies surrounding his shins. "Suzaku! Suzak...Suzaku..." Her voice faded and warped as it grew further once again. Suzaku screamed her name, as the bodies began to crawl up around him. The ones he'd place himself in the middle of were continuing to rise above his waist. Then his chest, and then his collarbone. Soon, the sun disappeared, and the boy felt himself fall through them into a vast, empty space below.

He screamed, feeling empty air beneath him going on forever. Suzaku was in the clouds, then over the Tokyo settlement. Between his squinting and the freezing winds of the atmosphere, he could make out the faint layout of squares and rectangles, the spires and veins of concrete and steel. All he could do now was hope this wasn't some kind of dream, and that at the very least, his mind would be free upon hitting the ground.

His momentum gained, faster and faster. Suzaku braced himself, ready to let his body succumb to the explosion of force that rushed up to meet him. Instead, the next time he blinked, he was standing in a crater. Looking up, he could see pipes and buildings perfectly divided in the middle as if peering into the side of a dollhouse. Dirt and nothingness trickled down the rim until around 120 yards surrounding him.

Amidst all of the emptiness, the crater's center was filled with gravestones. Thousands of them, some even seeming to rise out of each other as if they were boxes stacked on without any room to place more. Suzaku felt his chest tighten. "Suzaku! STOP HIM! NOW!"

He thought back to that night. How he'd allied himself with Lelouch. Their reconciliation and their plan to stop the warhead should it be launched against the Black Knights. And the seconds before it happened. He'd seen a little girl turn on the lights in a nearby apartment. It was quick and only for a second, but it was too late. The Lancelot had zipped by the family as they watched their world be blinded in violet light.

"SUZAKU!"

The radio chatter roared in his ears, and just as he clawed the scalp around them, the gravestones were gone. Instead, there were flowers all around them and the smiling faces of friends and family from across his life.

Family members. School kids he hadn't seen in ages. His father, Kaguya, fellow division comrades, friends he made during basic training. Lelouch, Shirley, the rest of Ashford, and even Guilford and Cornelia.

"What..What is?.." All of them were well-dressed and seated in front of an altar where the love of his life stood. Euphemia, dressed in an angelic, flowing white dress. Like the ones he'd dreamt of when they would nap together on quiet afternoons. He knew to take a look at himself, and sure enough, he was better-dressed than he'd ever thought he could be. Truth be told, as nice as his knightly uniforms looked, nothing to him could ever compare to the joy of a day like this. All while the crater around them surrounded the scene.

"What's the matter, Suzaku! Go ahead!" Lelouch laughed, also dressed in a crisp, clean suit. Euphemia was there, in front of the priest ready to declare them as more than mere knight and princess. Yet, an anvil hung in his chest. As it pulled at him, as it felt like his innards would collapse from the weight, the gravestones returns, pushing dirt and flowers aside. The wedding guests didn't seem to mind as they were tipped over on their chairs or as flower vases were knocked over.

Not even a flinch from Euphemia as the priest and everyone around them turned to that ugly, perfect plastic, and fell over with hollow thumps in the dirt. This continued until the only thing left in this patch of green was a miniature cityscape of the dead. The sky, which had been bright and idyllic seconds before, turned to a dark grey.

Still, she stood there, white lace and cloth a beacon in the cold air. Suzaku walked to her, each step lasting a thousand years and every footfall a reminder of the lives that had been lost. The futures that had been taken. "Come on, Suzaku! You and I have been waiting for this!" As if on cue, Suzaku just stopped. It wasn't some invisible force or hallucination or anything. Just his sapped will, pulling him to earth.

"I don't...I don't deserve you...Just.." He looked up, feeling a presence come and go. In front of him, was another plastic statue. Crouched with pink hair, a white dress just the same. A faint smile on her face. But it wasn't her. The landscape had disappeared, and they were in a white space.

Suzaku's eyes studied the plastic sheen on her face. No signs of life or anything. It was at this moment that he felt utter emptiness in this space. The neverending white and the lack of temperature on his skin. A hellish sound could roar across his own reality, annihilating it in a blast of sound, yet not a whisper could reach him here. This space was far beyond the reaches of what he knew, and there was no going back.

Only this plastic model before him.

He sat there for hours. Completely still. The silence began to eat away at him, and Suzaku wondered if there would ever be a time that he'd be free from this other world. And so, without anything else to do, he spoke. "You know...When I first met you, I laughed. I really did." He rasped. "You were so...Alive, and happy. As if the wrong in the world was a million miles away."

The plastic statue kept staring back.

"It blew my mind to see you out there, saving Jeremiah. Somebody so kind and so brave. Up until then, I thought the Britannian royalty were all so high-browed and uncaring. When I joined the military, my plan was to get as far as I could and see if I could start a revolution. I wanted to do something to change the way the empire worked." His fingers gripped the cold hand of the mannequin. Suzaku carefully reached out and stroked it's pink hair, remembering how hers looked in those peaceful days.

"Euphemia...You really are a strange girl, aren't you? It's crazy when you think about it. The odds that I'd end up meeting you were really impossible weren't they?" A pain arose in his chest, then his throat. He sniffed as the painfully soft hair slid past his fingertips.

"I never should have...Then maybe..." A choke. "Maybe you wouldn't.." His fist slammed against the white floor. Its surface was of a strange texture. His fist bounced back like he'd punched rubber. Suzaku kept hitting it, feeling the rush of tears boil down his face.

"There's nothing I wouldn't give...To see you again. As you were back then, not...Not like...Not.." Suzaku swallowed. If the geass effect truly was still active, he knew it was likely that he'd never hear her sweet voice speaking about anything than defiling her true self. This realization began to crush him further, and it was here that the knight began to whisper.

"They're right...I was an idiot. Trying to stop all of this death and violence when my own actions condone them...It worked out in the end, yeah, but...It didn't have to be like that. And ever since we thought it was all over, I've been jealous. That everyone gets to move on and live and I'm stuck wearing the mask of a man who.." Suzaku gasped, realizing that his knuckles were white.

"The real you wouldn't have stayed angry, though...I know. I'm sorry. You loved Lelouch. And he loved you the same. He hated pulling that trigger but it's all he knew...Euphemia, had I known this was happening I would have saved you years ago...You can hear me, right?" Her face stared up at him, just as lifeless as that day when she'd closed her eyes for seemingly the last time.

"Euphemia!...EUPHY!: In the depths of those black, glass pupils, Suzaku noticed a red glow expanding from the center until a red ring had lined her irises. "No...No, stop!"

The doll's eyes glowed redder, heated by Suzaku's growing outrage. Every day he'd have to listen to the documentaries tallying up kills confirmed to be committed by the princess herself, or hear the former nobles whispering about her terrible deeds. The fact that all of this was discarded by Charles in exchange for his mad foray into the unknown world of cosmic unity.

Suzaku punched the mannequin. It cracked. He punched it again, and again, its face caving in as those fiery irises faded from view. He screamed, wanting his fist to transcend reality and shatter himself into another life where Lelouch never made such a stupid joke. And at long last, the mannequin, struck down so many times by his own fist, crumbled into dust. At last, Suzaku was alone in this space. No sound, no touch, no taste or hearing. Only the empty smell of winter.

"Euphy...I don't regret it. The pain is all too real. But that's what comes with life, isn't it? Even the craziest things can come along at any moment and topple everything we work towards. Yet, we have to stride forward. You can't ever forget the pain, but I guess the fact that we can hurt and suffer is what makes us strong enough to face tomorrow."

"I watched you witness how ugly your own empire could be to the elevens. Many royals would've just stood by and listened to their father or played the game to keep the hierarchy happy. But now I can see just how you and Lelouch are related. You're a leader. A rebel just the same."

"I remember that afternoon you and I shared. Your first time trying ice cream. I remember how happy I was to share that with you. We saw those men beating that eleven kid, and afterward, you asked me if he was going to be okay. You didn't know him, and neither of us met him. And yet, you were concerned about him by instinct. "

"It's easier to forget about the people below you when you're dealing with national politics. I've seen enough to know that, but that never lost sight of you. With us together, we'd conquer the empire and defy the wrongs that came before. You were naive but so brave to take on the world like that."

The thought versus his reality stabbed and twisted his chest. "It's frustrating. I can't hate him because he didn't mean it, and it brought us victory in the end. But I want to. It was right in front of us! It...It didn't have to..."

"They still hate you. Even though you cared and even if you worked for their futures, they still hate you. Every time I go into the city, there's not a single alleyway or train car I don't see with graffiti about you. Calling you a 'monster' or a 'bitch.'

"What hurts me the most is that they'll never know the girl I knew. And after all this time I wanted to see you again, it's like this. That's my punishment, though. I'm just as guilty as Lelouch. We both sought justice for the world, and yet, so many people died..."

'At least...At least I go to see you one more...one more..." He floated there for eons. Thousands of years. His mind lost to the white void as memories of his life played out like a film reel. Not always in order and often overlapping each other. Millennia after his confession, the images of Euphy began to pile up. Slides covering each other until at last, they formed a crystal clear picture. Not a picture. Euphemia was standing here. Crystal blue eyes twinkling with tears. She looked just like she had that morning. Dressed in white. Not a drop of blood on her. No red irises. "Suzaku!"

This mirage, image or hallucination ran at him, and he expected a cruel twist. No, no her weight slammed into his hunched over body. She fell onto him, tears flowing down her cheeks. "Eu..phy..."

"I'm..I'm so glad you're...OH SUZAKU!" Her lips pressed into his, that same warmth rushing through him and turning his heart into a blazing beacon amongst the emptiness. A smile broke through the tears shimmering down her face. This, this was the reunion he'd seen in his dreams. The one that would disappear at every dawn since that day.

"I knew you'd come, Suzaku...I knew it.."

"Euphy...I'm not dreaming!"

She laughed. "You're not!" Her hands gripped his sleeves, and she lifted him to dance around like a teddy bear waltzing with a little girl. "It took me so long to find you!"

"How...How did you-?"

Her face showed exasperated joy. "I don't know! I've been looking for you since I heard your voice, but those men kept me away. Then all of a sudden, I just...I found you!" She jumped onto him, showering him with kisses. They laughed and kissed in the whiteness. Without each other, this place was purgatory, yet in each other's company, it was paradise just the same.

Euphemia finally calmed down enough to look him in the eye. "Suzaku...You said Lelouch is well?"

"He is.." Suzaku swallowed, still taking this miracle in. "But...Japan.."

"What's the matter?" His gaze suddenly turned from hers, and he avoided it. It wasn't until her hand stroked his cheek did he realign it.

"Japan is free. Britannia is such a better place...But.."

Tears rolled down her cheeks again. "I heard you. I know.." A choke from her. "Life can truly be cruel can't it?" She forced a smile, even when the tears were still streaming. He felt a pang ripple in his chest as he remembered the lie he had told her before she was thought to be lost.

"You're not angry...Are you?" She raised an eyebrow, not quite sure what he meant. He sighed and reiterated. "That I lied to you that day Euphy...The special zone.."

"Yes...Yes I know," She looked away, as if knowing something but not wanting to put it to words. She then reached up and put a hand to his face. "But I thought I lost you too. That I'd fade and never see you again. Even if you lied, you did it out of love."

She gazed up at him and saw a tear running down his cheek. Euphemia lifted her face and kissed it away. We're together again, and so long as the world is at peace, we can enjoy it...But Suzaku...I don't really know how to get out of here. I've tried so many times, and have seen...Terrible things." Her fingers curled as she shook. Suzaku pulled her to his chest and stroked her hair.

"Euphemia. I don't know if this is a dream or how long we're going to be like this. For all we know, this could be our prison until the end of time."

A pang ripped through him. Thinking of all the friends and family that he'd be leaving. If Hayes was right, they were to be used as a weapon against the empire. He could only hope that Lelouch would be clever enough to overcome the odds yet again. "That's awful...But, we're together, aren't we?"

He gazed down at her, feeling his heart flutter into the heavens. If heaven wasn't already here, that is. "We are...This place is filled with our memories Euphemia. So why not revisit some? We have all the time in the world!" Euphemia wiped her tears, knowing that the outside world had come and gone for her. They were both a part of this horrible machine, but so long as they could feel each other, heaven was right here.

"That sounds wonderful." For another few eons, they walked amongst the memories of Ashford, fabricated their own scenarios and lived as they had wanted to. Even if millennia felt like it had past, each day was new and exciting, melding together in a single length of endless paradise.

And then, as they passed the white field, it happened. "Suzaku...Suzaku what's wrong!?" His shape had become ethereal, and his left side began to stretch. During all of this, he couldn't move a single muscle.

"Euphy...Euphy I'm going away!"

"S-SUZAKU!" She pulled on his hand, and let go. She too had frozen in place, and an invisible force from an infinite distance yanked them from this place.

"EUPHY! HOLD ON!" Suzaku strained, he sputtered and fought as hard as he could to move, but to no avail. By the time he looked back, she was miles away, a pink dot in the nothingness. "NOO! EUPHEMIAA!" Feeling his hope die once again, the knight cried out something he wished he'd said on that day. He knew it to be true in his heart. "Euphemia..I, I LOVE YOU!" He thought he heard something from yonder. But he couldn't confirm. She'd disappeared, and all traces of her were gone the moment he was pulled faster and faster, moving at an ungodly speed before being launched into the ever-growing red light.

"GODAMMIT! REROUTE THE POWER! NOW!" The lab was a mess of alarms, rumbling and engineers rushing to the closest console to troubleshoot whatever the hell was happening.

Aaron Hayes, bloodied, bruised and pistol-in-hand, watched as these useless fucking people tried "their best" to fix the Ego Core. If they were as good as they claimed, he wouldn't have had the top of his ear blown off.

"SIR! WE DON'T KNOW WHAT'S HAPPENING! WE'RE INPUTTING COMMANDS, BUT THE CONDUCTORS AREN'T RESPONDING!"

"Damn! DAMN!" He hit the butt of the pistol at the top of the console in front of him, leaving a small dent. "Prepare the core for immediate evacuation! Put it on tram line 7-E and send it to extraction site 551! They're taking this thing from my cold, dead hands!"

Hayes thought back to the warnings he'd received from the council. This technology was experimental, and the connection between the mind and machine was more nuanced than previously thought. He had joked to Suzaku days ago about being reunited with that girl. He really should've shut his stupid mouth.

"We're heading to tram line 8-C and moving all forces out through the southern tunnel!" He breathed. Truth be told, the future was very uncertain. Hayes felt a hot wave roll down his neck as he knew that should they make it out of this, the council would be most displeased.

"I want that thing on a tram, NOW!" The final word in that sentence was shouted, as a few rooms away, walls began to tear apart. The enemy they'd feared was at their doorstep, and Hayes knew it in the back of his mind that he'd brought the hounds to them. After checking that goddamn machine, Asplund had hidden the tracking device in a spot they never would've guessed. It'd been active for two full days before it was found and destroyed. 48 hours to bury his fate.

Just as the cables were rushed out onto the floor, something happened that made Hayes jump. "Hey, Albaad?"

"Y-Yes, sir?" One of the workers sputtered. His shock combined with the confusion

"Grab me whatever's in that drawer there. I'm gonna need it." He held out a key for the boy. Albaad paused, before snatching them and opening Aaron's private Brandy locker. He waved off the lad to do his duties as he took a sip and watched the silver dome split open slowly. Below, the workers stared like a bunch of idiots. Of course, they did. They weren't there when they popped the little royal gem into that damn thing and he really couldn't blame them with all the chaos going on. The rest of their force was out there, trying to buy time. Everyone else in here was too damn slow to get this shit done.

Hayes realized what he'd have to do. Hopefully, the lovebirds were still tipsy. He leaned over and pressed down on the intercom, waiting for the alcohol to roll down his throat completely. "All right! Ladies and gentlemen. It's been an honor and a privilege! Now get your arses out of here before we lose all we've got left!" There was no hesitation. Yellow-bellied, prepaid contractors. This is why they'd fallen so far. At least Chuck kept this shit together.

"Well, then. I'll be seeing you at the extraction point, Albaad. Get a move on!" The boy did as he was told. Good kid. Perhaps more like him could further the plan for a better world someday. "As for me, I've got a fairy tale to ruin." The Knight and his Princess emerged from their respective doors. The bindings pulled away from them and they both collapsed, meager cloth hiding their privates. He would be their dragon, and even had the delicious amber fire to keep him warm!

He pulled a pistol from his side, check to make sure it was loaded and crawled down the ladder. Somewhere, a large machine gun fired away, only to be cut off by massive blades tearing through metal. This was a losing battle indeed. Making his way down, Hayes grabbed the Knight of Zero by the hair. The boy, still waking from what was supposed to be a much longer sleep, clutched at his hand. The man snarled and dragged him to the other side where his princess must be.

He threw the lad by her and pulled the gun on them both. Their eyes squinted as the bright lights of the facility came into view. "Now. I've tried to be nice, Kururugi. But I'm going to have to ask you to walk down that damn tunnel!" Suzaku decided to be brave, bless his soul. He stood up, but then reality must have fully flooded in on him the moment the Colt 1911 in his hand faded into sight. "There won't be any heroics. Just...Go along and sing a happy song. I'll do it for you if you like. Queen, Journey. Just name one and I'll do my best."

"Wh-what?" The pink-haired brat murmured. Hayes gave up. The noise on the other side of the walls was getting louder and he didn't have time to crack jokes to his hostages. Maybe next time. The conversations were always a little interesting. It's amazing what you can learn when someone has a gun pointed at them.

"Wh-who is he Suzaku?"

"Let's. Go." They started to make their way down the open passageway. If memory served Hayes correctly, it would take them to one of the tram lines and they could travel with the rest of the evacuees.

Euphemia lifted herself up, holding onto Suzaku's arm as the two began to walk. Perhaps it was their addled minds or the gun pointed at them from a fair distance, but they knew that Hayes was in control. It wasn't the escape that began to bother him as they reached the edge of this lab, but rather the look in the princess's eyes. The red was gone. Just...Gone. Maybe it was a malfunction in the machine or the power of love or whatever the hell, but he knew for a fact they'd have to run her through the red seagull again. Even worse, the Knight didn't seem to go in a frenzy once his life was at risk...

Hayes sighed, taking another swig, and then spitting it out as the wall exploded. He didn't even see a man lurking in the shadows as said man's fist planted itself into the side of his head. "Mr. Kururugi! I advise you to come with me!"

Euphemia hid behind Suzaku. He stood tall, and a brief surge of fear rapidly turned into relief. "Jeremiah!"

"They're putting up a good fight! I'd brief you on what's happening, but right now, I need you two to get to safety! Follow me!" He took both of them by the arms, and guided them down the passageway, and to their freedom.

The battle had lasted two hours, and in that time, much of the Geass Order's remaining assets were crippled. As it turned out, Lloyd had indeed planted a tracking device deep inside the Lancelot. It was disguised as a memory feed for its flight systems, and thus, went unnoticed until Lelouch could send a special task force to deal with the issue.

Suzaku and Euphemia sat in the cabin, letting the wind rock the seats. "So...That's it?"

Suzaku nodded. "Yeah...It's been a crazy couple of years without you."

Euphemia smiled, gazed up at the orange lights around them. They were being watched by a team of Britannian soldiers until they reached Britannian airspace, where a connecting flight would take them to Pendragon. "it's terrible though, isn't it?" Tears spilled down her face. Suzaku used the blanket given to them to wipe them.

"Sometimes terrible things happen, Euphemia. But we'll work it out. I promise." She turned around to him. They were dirty and shaken, but those green eyes were like looking into a window. The past played out before her, showing all the times he'd stood by her without restraint. Nothing had changed.

Her arms slid around his torso, and she pressed against his chest. The Knight leaned forward and pressed against her, while the soldiers nearby did their best to hide their fascination and embarrassment.

They hated her at the moment. It might be years or perhaps never again that she could be revealed to the public. But at the very least, her family could see her again. Suzaku smiled at the thought of Nunnally looking upon her sister and sharing tea with her as they did before.

"It's strange, isn't it? I spent a few minutes thinking thoughts that weren't mine...And I find out I've been gone for years."

His fingers ran between her strands of hair, and his chest pounded. The air around them smelled fresher than it ever had before. "You never left me, Euphemia...I allied with Lelouch," He sighed, taking in the fact that he really was here telling this to her in the now. "Because I knew that he'd bring the future you wanted."

She smiled, staring down at his chest, thinking of their happy moments, and realizing that they were reborn this day. Another life for them lied ahead.

"Euphemia...You're not welcome out there, but the royal family knows you for who you are. Lelouch and his empress...Our friends. Nunnally and Cornelia don't even know yet...But I know they'll be the happiest people on earth when they see you. Hell, I can hardly breathe," He laughed, his eyes settling into hers. "I love you, Euphy. And I'll never leave you, even if the world curses us."

Her eyes shimmered. They twinkled and mixed with the orange light to make a soft brown. She did nothing to stop his lips from meeting hers. As they had promised that evening, even if it had to be in secret, they'd make the world better with the Britannian throne at their side. They would have their turn in a small home out in the countryside for those times they wanted to be alone.

And despite the now-defunct commands in their minds, Suzaku could still hear that one word ringing in his ears.

"Live."

And together, in love, the Knight and his Princess did just that.