Disclaimer: I do not own CG(and sorry for my lack of disclaimers)

Lelouch wasted no time in pulling me aside to speak with me.

"This is bad." he said. I glared at him. "No shit, Sherlock." I tend to get snippy when I'm agitated. "We gotta do something to save Kururugi." Lelouch frowned at my suggestion. "In case you've forgotten, Suzaku's being held by the Empire of Britannia. Do you honestly think they'll let him go if we asked nicely?"

Actually, that was totally possible...

"Why are you so freaked about this guy in particular got shafted?" I asked. "Do you know this Suzaku guy?" Lelouch's expression turned dark.

"He was a childhood friend of Nunnally and I," explained Lelouch, "He was the son of Japan's prime minister before the occupation, and he took us in after the Emperor disowned us." I nodded solemnly. "I see...so why won't you try to save him?"

Lelouch shook his head in frustration. "I've got my reasons..." he muttered. I clenched my fists. "Are your reasons more important than the fact that you were the one that pulled the fucking trigger?" Every fiber in my body yearned to punch Lelouch in the face for his selfishness. Lelouch glowered at me. "Don't try to guilt me into helping you," he hissed, "I don't regret my decisions, I don't feel any guilt. The only regret I have is that I failed to kill Clovis. If you want to get yourself killed over saving Suzaku, go right ahead. But don't expect any help from me." Lelouch turned and stalked away. I grumbled and kicked the wall. There was an alternative, but it would take a hell of a lot of planning.

After using my power to get the necessary equipment ready, I headed out to my destination: Tokyo Tower. I had dropped off a prepaid phone at the lost and found for a certain red-haired girl to pick up. One mass brainwash later, I was sitting in a train car. I flipped open the other prepaid phone and rang up the phone for Kallen. Her voice responded:

"Hello?" I smirked. It was time for the uprising to begin...

"Get on the Line 5 outbound. Bring your friends."

I sat down and literally twiddled my thumbs for 10 minutes before I called her again. "Face forward, then turn to your right. Now, can you see it?" Kallen huffed indignantly. "The Britannian city? Obviously I can see it."

I laughed. "Well of course you can, I wasn't questioning your abilities of observation, what I mean is what do you, as an individual, see when you look at it?"

Kallen didn't even pause to think over her answer: "A city that was stolen from Japan and built upon our sacrifice." "Very good. And to your left, what do you see?" "Remnants of a desiccated city sucked dry by Britannia." I smirked. "Make your way to the front of the train."

I closed the phone and stood at the far end of the train car, tapping my foot as I waited. Eventually, I heard the door from the other car slide open behind me.

"Was that you in Shinjuku?" asked Kallen. "You are correct." I answered, my back turned to them- which seemed to anger the rebels Kallen was being accompanied by. "Hey. why don't you face us?" one of them demanded. I turned to face Kallen and her comrades, who were surprised when they saw me. I was quite a sight in this disguise: A white duster jacket that reached my ankles, white boots and gloves, a sheathed rapier at my right side, and a revolver holstered at my left side. Concealing my face was a mask/helmet portraying a white face with a sly, subtle smile, an upturned moustache, red cheeks and a thin, vertical pointed beard, and across the forehead was a modified version of the sigil in my eye, painted in gold. Topping it all off was a white fedora with a black band. "How did you like my tour of the settlement?" I asked. "I wanted you to remember how deep the divide between the Elevens and the Britannians is."

A curly haired rebel stepped forward. "We know. The difference is as harsh as it gets, that's why we resist them." I shook my head. "You're wrong. Britannia will not be swayed by mere terrorism. You need to know your enemy: it's not people, but the lies and doctrines and twisted beliefs of Britannia. This is a war that must be fought- but not upon the innocent, no, it must not be on those who have done no wrong. You must for equality!"

"Easy enough for you to say, hiding behind that mask like a coward!" shouted Kallen. "Why don't you show your face?" "I'm afraid I can't do that." I answered. "What I can do is give you a demonstration of my skill. If I can give you a miracle, will you trust me?" "What kind of miracle?" asked Kallen.

I smiled behind my mask. "I will save Suzaku Kururugi."

That got their attention.

"Yeah, right!" laughed a rebel. "That's not gonna happen!" "All I need is some help." I continued. "I cannot do this alone." Kallen and the curly-haired rebel looked at each other hesitantly. "How about you two?" I asked, pointing at them, who were both taken aback. "Are you out of your mind?!" shouted Kallen. I shrugged. "Eh, just a little- but that insanity is what lets me do what other would consider impossible."

The train stopped and I made my way to where I had arranged a planning meeting with the curly haired rebel (Ohgi) and Kallen. The plan involved a mock-up of Clovis' personal transport and the pod that had held that green-haired girl. All the cards were on the table. It was time for the game to begin.

That night, the car drove down the main road, approaching the bridge that Kururugi would cross en route to his trial. I smiled behind my mask, barely able to contain the combination of nerves and exhilaration. "It's show time." I whispered.

The car stopped and I could hear Jeremiah addressing me via megaphone. "You dare desecrate the name of Prince Clovis? Who the hell are you? Show yourself!"

The Britannian flag I was standing behind fell, revealing me to the crowd. "Feast your eyes!" I bellowed, addressing the crowd of spectators lined along the sidewalks. "You see before you, the face of a humble fellow, fixed into the form of both friend AND foe by the fickle finger of Fate. This face is no facetious facade, it would be folly to say so. Instead, it is a fragment of a forgotten friend of the masses now fallen from the forefront of the minds of the public. I am a face of freedom, which is lacking at the moment present. Fortunately, this fine chap you see before you is fired up by the will to free fury upon fiendish felons who flay the fallen for farce!"

I drew my rapier, pointing it at Jeremiah. My voice lowered and grinned wickedly behind my mask.

"The only fate is a fearsome reckoning, a retribution, not formed in foolishness, but for the fortunes of the forsaken and the forgotten..."

I laughed.

"For sure, this flamboyant introduction must feel too flashy...you may call me 'Fawkes'..."

"I'm not impressed by your speech, Fawkes!" shouted Jeremiah. "It's time to pull the plug on your little show. Now take off that damned mask..."

I tapped my foot three times: Kallen's cue to unveil our little ruse. The trunk behind me opened, revealing the metal pod. Jeremiah's eyes widened. "You bastard..." he growled. Jeremiah leveled his gun at me. "I'm not going to take this sitting down!" I laughed. "You plan to shoot me, how quaint! Look, Jer, we can avoid hundreds of casualties if you just fulfill my demands..."

Jeremiah glared at me. "What demands?" he asked. "As if you didn't already know..." I sighed. "Give me Kururugi."

Jeremiah clenched his fist and slammed it against the rail of his platform. "Absolutely not! Suzaku Kururugi has been charged for the attempted assassination of Prince Clovis!"

I laughed again. "It seems you've got the wrong guy...you see, it was me who attacked Clovis!"

The crowd went into a frenzy. Jeremiah's jaw dropped as he stared at me in shock. "So here's my offer," I continued, pacing back and forth on the roof of the truck's cab. "A single Eleven for, oh, about a thousand or so Britannians? I dunno about you, but I would take that deal in a heartbeat." Jeremiah snarled. "You're nothing but a madman! You'll pay for mocking Britannia!"

The Sutherlands trained their guns on me. Fuck, this was getting a bit too hot to handle. But, once again, a crazy idea sprang to my mind. I waggled my finger at Jeremiah like a parent chastising an unruly child. "Now, now, Jeremiah, let's reconsider. I just told you that I'm guilty. However, you insist on keeping Kururugi in custody. It would be in your best interest..."

I reached up to my button and hit a button, causing a segment in front of my right eye to retract. My eye went red as I finished my sentence: "...if you let us, as well as Kururugi, leave here unharmed, no matter what it takes."

Jeremiah was silent for a moment as my power took hold of him. Then, he spoke: "Let the prisoner go!"

The Britannians weren't exactly thrilled with this turn of events. They tried to reason with Jeremiah, but he wasn't going to listen. Suzaku was let go and walked towards me in silence. I smiled and reached into my coat pocket, hitting a button on the remote that operated a smoke machine hidden inside of the metal pod. Ohgi deployed a safety net under the bridge, and I grabbed Suzaku. As we jumped off the bridge to make our escape, I could hear Jeremiah struggling with the other soldiers.

Kallen drove us back to the hideout, where I decided to talk to Suzaku.

"So now that you've seen just how nasty the Britannian Empire can get, Private Kururugi. It's nothing more than a cesspool of hate and bigotry. With your help, we can change it for the better."

Suzaku's eyes narrowed. "I agree with your goals, but not with your methods." He turned away from me and began walking away. "You're putting innocent lives at stake to further your agenda...progress made through unjust means is progress not worth making."

"Where do you think you're going?!" I shouted.

"I've got a court marshall in an hour." answered Suzaku. I gritted my teeth. "Are you an idiot?! It's just a mock trial!"

"Rules are rules," countered Suzaku. "If I don't go, every Eleven and Honorary Britannian will suffer..."

"You'll be executed!"

"It's for the best."

I clenched my fists. There was no reasoning with him. He saved my life, but I couldn't save his.

It wasn't fair...