1 - Closure

It was worth it.

Lelouch Lamperouge—Lelouch vi Britannia—could think nothing else as he watched the light leave his father's eyes for the very last time. He smiled. God, how he smiled. All of the sacrifices, all the pawns that he'd lost…they didn't matter now. He had won. He had won.

He dropped down on one knee and closed his eyes. Breathe in, breathe out. He shook. He wasn't quite sure if he'd ever stop shaking. Not now. Bowing his head in mock reverence, he drew in a deep breath and addressed the Emperor's body.

"In the end, Father, you learned the truth. Ironic, isn't it? The ultimate truth—so-called 'honest' means will get you nowhere. And I proved it, didn't I? The Black Prince, the forgotten son. I've learned from your mistakes, your fallacies. To get anywhere, you never let your true face show. The best way to change the world…" He reached for his helmet, cradling it in his right palm.

"…is to wear a mask."

Lelouch threw back his head and laughed. He laughed and laughed and had to brace himself on the floor to keep from collapsing. The strangest feeling, the ultimate fulfillment of all his goals, weighed down on his shoulders, overwhelmed him.

It was then, right then, that Lelouch grew just a little more insane.

When the laughter subsided, he took his father's right hand in both of his own. The palm was blank, and surprisingly cool. "The truth about Mother won't leave this room," Lelouch vowed. "Believe me." He suppressed another laugh, one which would seal the promise, and stood, grinning madly at his father, who, unlike Lelouch, would not see another sunrise.

Replacing his mask, Zero turned on his heels and left the palace without looking back.

--

They recovered Suzaku's body from the wreckage of the Lancelot. He and Kallen, ever violently determined, ever hopelessly persistent, had refused to stop fighting until one of them was taken down, resulting in the virtual destruction of both the Lancelot Albion and the Guren Ganesha's Eight Extremeties-Type. As Lakshata, from a nearby ship, frowned at the mess and schemed up ways repair the damage, Kallen freed herself from the Guren's cockpit to survey the battlefield for herself.

The Imperial city of Pendragon might as well have been a ghost town, for all that was left of it. Most of the palace had been destroyed in the battle, half of the city lay in ruins, scattered across the valley. Survivors from both the United Federation and the Britannian Empire wandered aimlessly through the crumbling towers, salvaging what they could, tending to the wounded. Now the conflict was over. Now was the time for rebuilding.

Kallen smiled. This was sweet revenge. For her brother, for her country…the Britannians had had this coming to them for a long time, and she was glad.

"Something funny, Q1?"

She turned. Zero stood next to her. She hadn't even heard him approach, and yet, there he was, silhouetted in front of a spectacular sunrise. Best piece of symbolism she'd ever seen. Diethard Reid would be proud.

"I just…" She shrugged. "Closure."

"Yes, I understand." He looked directly at her, and for the briefest of moments she thought she could see Lelouch under the mask. "You've made it out alright, I see."

"I got lucky."

"Luck had nothing do to with it," Zero said, and she was proud to hear the admiration in his voice. "It took a skilled pilot to bring down the Lancelot. Only you could have done that. The ace of the Black Knights."

"Yeah." She choked out a laugh. "He's dead, the bastard. I killed him before he could use that monster that Nina made, that 'Freya.' He would have...he'd destroy everything, and I killed—"

"Are you sure?"

The severity of the question shocked her, and she looked at him quizzically. "Ye-yes. There's no way he could have…"

"I need to see this for myself," said Zero. "Closure." Without another word, he strode off towards the destroyed Knightmares, forever locked in battle, intending to leave Kallen on the ledge.

"Wait!" she cried. He didn't seem to have heard her, didn't even slow, and, somehow, Kallen knew that it was Lelouch, not Zero, who needed to confirm Suzaku's death. She ran after him.

When they reached the Lancelot, Kallen was surprised to see three or four medics clustered around the cockpit. One of them heard them coming and called over his shoulder, "Lord Zero, I—you need to—he's—"

Zero pushed them out of the way and knelt on the Knightmare's shoulders, looking into the damaged cockpit. Kallen stood next to him, peering over his shoulder. Surely there was no way…

"Impossible," she breathed.

Suzaku appeared to be unconscious, but largely unharmed. His body bore some scrapes and burns and bruises, but nothing too terrible, yet the cockpit was a blackened ruin around him, all smoking metal and melted plastic. There was no way…he couldn't have survived the blast, and yet the steady rise and fall of his chest proved otherwise. Kallen felt as if someone had punched her in the gut.

"Get him out," Zero snapped.

The medics obliged, lifting Suzaku up with the utmost care—Kallen almost wanted to scream at them to be rough with him, he was one of them, but she knew that wouldn't be fair, that everyone was being treated equally now. Somehow, that didn't matter. Hell, even if he did live, she wasn't about to forgive him, not with all he'd done. She didn't think she ever would. Bitterly, she hoped for grievous internal injuries.

As they started to carry him away to a stretcher, he began to stir. Well, good. He had some explaining to do. Kallen watched with her arms crossed as his head rocked back and forth, and his arms and legs thrashed aimlessly. He looked as if he were having a nightmare.

"No," he was saying, "I—I never—I didn't…didn't betray…not again, not—not now." He tried to turn over, but the medics' grips were too firm. "No, she's safe, Nunally's safe, I…I promised." Quieting down a little, he seemed to settle back down. "I promised you, Euphie. I…promised, Lelouch."

Silence.

"He's delirious," Zero said shortly. "Get him treatment, but make sure he's restrained. He's still a danger." He turned to her. "Q1, assist with the cleanup. I have…other matters to attend to."

"Yes, my Lord," the medics chorused, and Kallen nodded, still a little disheartened at Suzaku's apparent ability to survive. Glancing from the medics, retreating rapidly with Suzaku's form limp in their arms, to Zero, stalking off to the command center, she wondered if this wasn't the day that Lelouch Lamperouge died, and Zero took over.

Then she realized it didn't matter, and went to follow her orders.

--

In the light, he saw Euphemia.

Her hair fanned out behind her and down her shoulders, and she had angel's wings, white and feathery, spreading wide from her back. She wore a garland of flowers around her neck and a brilliant smile on her face. Her feet were bare. She might have been a saint in a stained glass window.

She was even more beautiful than he remembered.

Her blue eyes widened a little as he approached, and, smile unfaltering, she took a step back. "Hello, Suzaku."

"Euphie," he gasped. "I…I've waited so long, I…"

She held up a slim, pale finger. "Not now," she said. "It isn't time yet."

"What?" He looked down. He was still wearing his Lancelot uniform, but he appeared to be unharmed. He felt more alive than he had in recent memory. Strangest of all, it appeared that he was standing in open air. Surely that's what it was like in the afterlife? "No, I should be dead. I finally…Kallen killed me, didn't she?"

Euphemia sighed. "She should have. But there's still something inside of you, some kind of will to live." She laughed. "It's kept you alive, all of this time. It's still keeping you alive."

His fist clenched. "Lelouch."

"Don't blame my brother," Euphemia said with a small, forced smile. "He always…he meant well, through his own means, and now things will begin to go back to the way they're supposed to be. You need to make sure they do."

He turned his face away from her. She was too bright, too brilliant. "He won't listen to me," he said softly. "He thinks I betrayed him, but I didn't. I told him, I promised that I would protect Nunally."

"And you did."

"The only thing I've done right," he mused. "Euphie…"

She approached him then, finally. Her fingertips brushed his cheek, and she looked at him, sad and happy all at once. "You need to stay. Protect Lelouch. He's not in physical danger, not anymore, but he will lose himself if he continues…please. Help him. For everyone's sake."

"Don't leave," he begged. "Please, stay with me."

She kissed him on the forehead. "Trust your heart."

He closed his eyes and fell again.

--

A/N: Code Geass. Dear me. I love this anime so much right now it isn't even funny. I put Friendly Fire, the Death Note story, on hold for this, which wasn't really fair, but it's just where my mind happens to be at the moment. With all the action and relationship dyamics of Code Geass, can you blame me?

So…is this a speculative ending? Not really. In fact, the events in this story are probably won't reflect what will happen in the series (too many people are still alive), but playing around with the situations and characters is just too much fun to give up. I feel like I may be taking liberties in the initial setup of the series.

The real question – pairings? Well, I'd tell you if I knew. Surely this will be Suzaku and Lelouch centric, but I don't know if they "end up together" or what at this point. Also, Lelouch with someone else is not out of the question at all.

This chapter set up a lot of things I'd hope to follow up on. Hopefully, there's some interest. Reviews, especially critiques, are always greatly appreciated.

D