PROLOGUE
C.C. speaks…
One might say he made a critical error in those last days, one that would have tarnished his legacy had the public learned the truth. I like to think it would have redeemed him in some eyes, though logically speaking, it could have ruined everything. So few knew of the existence of the Zero Requiem, his final gift granted to an unsuspecting and suspicious world. Fewer still knew the harrowing and solitary journey he faced in his mission to destroy the world. Only I know the full scope of the tragedy that was Lelouch vi Britannia, the ninety-ninth emperor of the Holy Empire of Britannia.
I discovered his "blunder" as I prepared to flee during the events leading up to his final sacrifice. Perhaps it was an oversight on his part, or yet another carefully considered step along some mysterious, unseen path only Lelouch himself could tread. It's also possible he decided it simply didn't matter, that the truth was a trivial detail and would have little effect on the decisive role he had undertaken.
I'd like to think there was another reason behind it all, a simpler reason. I think it was a gift to those he left behind, those he considered to be his friends, and yes, for Nunnally as well. Lelouch was not afraid of death. He took up his rebellion against the empire that had shunned him with the pronouncement that "the only ones who should kill are those who are prepared to be killed." In the end he stood before the world he had destroyed and given his life, willingly, in order to create it anew. He had died, by Suzaku's hand, an enemy to the world.
His sacrifice was a noble one, though no one was ever meant to know. I think to some degree that he regretted what he was leaving behind, perhaps on a level so deep inside that even he did not realize it. None could escape that cold and calculating expression with which he scrutinized the world, but few ever saw his softer side, a bit of his true nature even I only seldom experienced. My discovery held evidence of who he was, beneath the surface, and for Lelouch's sake I was tempted to do exactly what he should have done: set fire to the evidence, burn it to ash, and leave his villainous legacy intact.
The truth is I am a sentimental fool. I refused to take such a sensible action. In part, I have Lelouch to thank for making me this way.
