Perhaps one of the more mysterious numbers is that of the Knight of Twelve. Every sovereign since the founding of the Empire has appointed one to command the Loki Regiment, a unit whose purpose has never been publicly disclosed. This has given rise to the rumor that the Knight of Twelve served to handle those matters that his or her liege needed dealt with quietly. Some have even suggested that the Knight of Twelve serves as the Lord Inquisitor of one of the major Ordos of the Inquisitio. Neither have of course ever been confirmed by the government but speculation continues to this day.

During the reign of Charles II the Knight of Twelve was the Lady Monica Kruszewski, Duchess of Bedivere. The Lady Kruszewski was a relatively rare sight at court, constantly traveling across the world on missions from her sovereign. Almost all of her activities remain to this day classified, including those that she engaged in in Area 11 during the run-up to the Black Rebellion.

-Toward a New Dawn: The Rise of Euphemia I

Chapter 36: Incepto ne desistam

The room that Suzaku had been held in since yesterday was relatively Spartan but what enmities it did have were actually quite comfortable. The bed was way softer than the young man was used to, the TV was hooked up to all of the premium cable channels, and there was even a maid that came by to make the bed and take his dirty clothes to be washed. Whatever trouble he was in apparently did not warrant treating him like a common criminal. Whether that was a good or bad thing however remained to be seen. As such it was with some relief when the door finally opened to reveal one of the princess' guardsman.

The young man was led to a nondescript room with a large mirror that was pretty obviously a one-way window, at least right now. After he took a seat a light turned on in the other room to reveal the Princess Euphemia and her customary pair of armsmen. Suzaku immediately rose again and bowed.

"Your highness."

"Specialist," Euphie responded with a nod. "Be seated."

Suzaku obeyed and waited. The princess regarded him through the window silently for a minute or so, hands clasped before her. When she finally spoke it was in a calm but firm tone. It was also a tone that was supremely confident in the words she uttered.

"How long have you know that Kallen Stadtfeld was the Red Knight."

The boy's head seemed to spin as he processed those words. A sense of déjà vu hit him as the princess' question eerily mirrored Milly's not so long ago. This time however Suzaku could see that it was not a test, the princess was not seeking confirmation of her suspicions, she was seeking additional information.

"Since I first met her at Ashford your highness," Suzaku answered honestly. "I ran into her and, Cecilia, in the school office on the first day I attended. And, your highness, Cecilia was also the green haired girl in the capsule in Shinjuku."

If the additional disclosure at all moved the princess she gave no visible indication of it.

"Why did you not report this to your superiors or myself immediately?" Euphemia asked instead.

Suzaku took a deep breath. "I wanted to give her a chance to stop fighting the Empire. To effect change peacefully instead of with force."

Euphemia tilted her head slightly. "You entered Ashford several months ago, and since then Kallen has performed many acts of, if not violence, then defiance against Britannia. Yet you still did not report her."

While the princess' words could be interpreted as a statement the silence that followed suggested to Suzaku that he was being given the chance to explain himself.

"She saved your life, your highness," Suzaku said. "I believed that that indicated Kallen was coming around."

Euphemia continued regarding Suzaku silently before finally sighing. "Specialist. Whether Kallen Stadtfeld should have been permitted continued freedom of movement is a policy decision. Why do you believe it was appropriate for you to be the one to make that decision?"

Suzaku grimaced. "I, did what I thought was right, your highness. Nothing more, nothing less."

The princess' eyes narrowed. Again she spent several long moments simply looking at Suzaku in silence. It was abundantly obvious that from her perspective that was the entirely wrong answer.

"There is no denying that your withholding of this information represents a severe breach of trust, specialist," Euphemia stated. "In light of that breach, the military requires that you face a formal panel to determine your suitability to continue to serve."

Suzaku bowed his head in acceptance. He was not expecting to get a pass on something this important and he would face the court martial without hesitation. If there was any regret it was disappointing all of the people that had placed their faith in him, from Cécile and Lloyd to General Darlton and Claudio. Even the princess herself.

"I understand your highness," he said stoically.

Euphemia rose but before taking her leave she had a few last words for the young man.

"Reflect on why you committed this error in judgment, specialist. You placed greater priority in the satisfaction of your personal beliefs than that of your duty to the Empire. So long as you continue to do so you can never be trusted to bear arms in the Empire's name."

Suzaku gaped at the princess as she walked out of the other room, his jaw dangling open in an almost rude display. Nonetheless the young man could not quite get over the shock of Euphemia's words. They resonated, eerily so, with the same accusation that Kallen had levied at him so long ago on the school roof. Yet why would the princess repeat those words? How had he put himself before the Empire? By doing what he felt was right? Suzaku felt his stomach twist. That was an unpleasant notion, that in order to serve the Empire he needed to sacrifice his own morals. If that was the case, then perhaps there really was not a place for him within the military.

A flare of pain suddenly shot through Suzaku's head and he clutched the side. No, he needed to stay in the military. For, something. What was that something? Some duty. That was right, to make Japan a better place, to help the people, he needed to continue as Lancelot's pilot. Only if he did that could he achieve his goals. Only then could he see her smiling face again. Suzaku looked back up, the one-way window was opaque again and simply showed his own reflection. What he did not see in them was a slight red tint in his eyes.

A slight headache was throbbing in Euphie's head as she left the interrogation room. The specialist had shown much potential and promise before, but neither were guarantees that one would rise to fulfill them. Disappointing, and not just for the potential effect on morale of other Honorary Britannians if the specialist was found guilty and ejected from the military. But Euphie trusted Andreas to be able to manage that and so turned her own attention to other matters. There was plenty of other work to be done after all.

As Euphie turned the corner to her office she caught sight of Villetta and Monica heading in the opposite direction. Upon seeing the princess Villetta bowed whereas Monica simply nodded politely.

"Dame Nu, Dame Kruszewski," Euphie greeted with a practiced smile. "The investigation is progressing?"

While Monica's faced remained relatively impassive Villetta openly grimaced.

"We have encountered, some unexpected resistance, your highness," the knight said, eliciting a raised eyebrow from the princess. "It appears that the Baron Stadtfeld has arrived in Area 11 and when we attempted to discuss the matter of his daughter with him, he, well, dismissed us from his home."

Euphie stared at the two. "Dismissed you?"

Villetta gave the princess an apologetic look. "The, baron was very emphatic, your highness. And once his orders were issued none of the servants were willing to speak with us further."

"They refused to speak to a knight of the round?" Euphie said as her gaze shifted to Monica.

"I was as surprised your highness," Monica said. "And all indications were the silence of the servants were due to loyalty to their lord, not from fear of his wrath."

The princess frowned. "What exactly was the baron's response to learning his daughter was a possible insurgent?"

"We, never actually got the chance to raise the matter, your highness," Villetta admitted. "The moment I raised the possibility that she was a person of interest, without even expanding on why, the baron cut me off."

The young woman's frown deepened. That might well have been intentional on the baron's part, in not allowing Villetta to bring up the matter he would not have a need to go on record as denying it. That was however speculation as the baron's forceful reticence could be for any variety of reasons. Somehow Euphie doubted that any of the more probable reasons were innocent.

"There is, one thing your highness," Villetta said. "While the baron was indignant that his daughter was a person of interest in the investigation, the anger that he displayed seemed rooted in the fact that she was nearly killed in the Ashford attack. I believe that distinction to be of note."

"Yes," Euphie said slowly, "yes, I do as well." The princess nodded. "I will see about the baron, Dame Nu, Dame Kruszewski."

"Yes your highness," Villetta said immediately.

While Monica's expression remained otherwise neutral the flicker of her eyes indicated that she was not quite ready to let the princess handle further questioning of the baron. For now though there were other avenues to investigate. And if nothing else the princess was obviously competent and the leash on her should be sufficient to ensure that any pertinent developments eventually made their way to Monica. As satisfied as she could be Monica finally also nodded.

The last time Kallen visited the Sumeragi estate she had been in her Akakishi guise with dyed hair and colored contacts. With her cover effectively blown now the young woman had not bothered, instead sitting before the Sumeragi head as the red haired blue eyed half-Britannian she was. If this sudden change came as a shock to the young Kaguya Sumeragi she did not show it. In fact the girl seemed more bemused than anything else.

"So the red was more than just a coincidental motif," she said with a smile.

Kallen exchanged a brief look with Inoue before shrugging. "The Britannian media gave it to me, I decided to run with it."

Kaguya nodded. "But you still took care to hide your identity, even from us. Wise. But ultimately it seems your measures were insufficient."

"Apparently so," Kallen said. "But at least this way I won't have to bother living a lie and can dedicate more of my time to the liberation movement."

"Your dedication is without question," Kaguya replied. "Ultimately however in light of your mixed heritage, we must ascertain whether the cause to which you are dedicated is the same as ours."

The young woman stared at the head of the Sumeragi family flatly.

"I think the better question here is whether the cause of the Six Houses matches that of the rest of us," Kallen stated. "You once told me that the ultimate goal of the Six Houses is the restoration of Japan's sovereignty. We fight for equality, fairness, and ultimately dignity as people. These two goals, while not mutually exclusive, are also not the same thing."

Ichijo, seated left of Kaguya, shifted uneasily. The girl herself however continued looking at Kallen intently.

"Previous to the invasion by Britannia the Sumeragi family was one of the most prominent in the country," Kallen continued. "Three of the last six prime ministers were Sumeragis while two other were related, either by blood or marriage. The last prime minister was a Kururugi, of a similarly distinguished line and also connected by blood to your family. Thus before the Empire seized control of Japan, the country was effectively under your rule, even if indirectly."

Kaguya allowed herself a slight smile. "And you suspect that the real motive of the Six Houses is to see restore us and the other such families to our previous ranks of power, despite the relative comfort and wealth we enjoy even with the Empire occupying Japan."

"Consider it this way Sumeragi-dono," Kallen responded. "Are you capable of sacrificing any claim to power by your family if that was what it took to liberate Japan?"

"To have the Sumeragi family simply withdraw from matters of state would be disastrous for a newly liberated Japan," Ichijo spoke up. "A newly freed nation needs leadership, both political and technical, to ensure that it does not fall into chaos."

Kallen scowled. "You are asserting that the Sumeragi are somehow integral to Japan's prosperity, even its existence. How is that any different than what the Britannias do to justify their hold on power in the Empire?"

"You cannot seriously think to compare Kyoto House to the-" Ichijo began.

"That is enough," Kaguya cut him off.

The man gaped at his young mistress but clamped his mouth shut. Kallen went back to regarding Kaguya and found the girl returning her gaze unflinchingly.

"Your concern has merit, Akakishi-san," Kaguya said calmly. "Not just abstractly, but also because the views you bring are a reflection, I think, of those resistance movements that are unaffiliated with Kyoto House. To them we are traitors, collaborators that sold out our fellow Japanese to retain our wealth. That we have supported segments of the resistance will not wipe away all of the bitterness from those whom have suffered deprivation while we resided in comfort in our estates."

Kallen tilted her head slightly. It seemed the young head of the Sumeragi family did possess a degree of foresight after all.

"Deeds will ultimately lend more weight than words," Kaguya went on, "but I believe that in at least one aspect our two respective goals share a commonality. To have a say in our own fate, that is at the root of what we both fight for. Is that not so, Akakishi-san?"

"Abstractly, yes," Kallen acknowledged. "But abstract theory is only worth its first test against reality."

Kaguya smiled in amusement. "That is so." And then her expression became solemn. "Which is why we must ensure that this test be a success."

Kallen regarded the girl quizzically. "What?"

"What do you know of the Japanese Liberation Front?" Kaguya responded with a question of her own.

Kallen blinked at the non sequitur but answered nonetheless. "They are the largest of the resistance groups, composed mostly of former Japanese army personnel that refused to stand down when the government surrendered. Supposedly well-equipped and disciplined, they're the only ones that are considered to have a shot at taking Britannian in a standup fight."

"A chance they have," Kaguya agreed with a nod. "But would you consider it a good chance?"

"Not really," Kallen said with a shrug. "Britannia just has too much of a material advantage, especially with their air support."

"That has also been the opinion of Kyoto House," Kaguya said. "Which is why the plan for utilization of the JLF has always hinged on leveraging support from the Chinese Federation or the European Union to offset Britannia's material advantage."

Kallen scowled at that. "Asking for help from either of them will just see us beholden to them."

"Agreed," Kaguya said, "but depending on when we ask for that support we may be able to preserve a significant degree of Japan's sovereignty in the post-war period. The master plan was for the JLF to defeat in detail the Britannian forces stated in the west, possibly retaking Kyoto to serve as a symbolic provisional capital. From this position, assistance lent to us by the EU or the Federation would be seen as complementary of our own efforts to regain sovereignty instead of us being beholden to foreign powers for it."

That was a rather optimistic plan in Kallen's opinion seeing as at minimum it would require the EU to actually work up the nerve to challenge Britannia militarily. Then again it was a less bad plan than the JLF trying to take on the Britannian military alone and expecting to actually win.

"I can see the appeal of such a stratagem," Kallen stated blandly.

Kaguya smirked at the other woman's tone. "The odds of success would have been long regardless of what we attempt." Her face tightened into a grimace. "And a recent development may have placed genuine independence beyond our reach."

That elicited frowns from everyone on Kallen's side of the table but they waited for Kaguya to elucidate.

"Our overtures to the EU and the Federation were met with what we thought to be promising responses," Kaguya said. "The EU has even been providing us with modern weapons that, while not completely offsetting Britannia's air superiority, would at least provide the JLF with a fighting chance. The Federation even indicated that it might be willing to commit forces to help pin down the Britannian marine division in Okinawa. With such support it seemed the JLF was on the verge of being able to launch its offensive against the Britannian occupation. We have however learned that the JLF leadership intends to follow a different plan of attack, one that would see them attempt to take Tokyo."

The reaction from the others was more than a frown. Ohgi's mouth dangled open while Inoue stared at Kaguya wide-eyed. Kallen's face twisted into an almost angry snarl.

"That's insane," she declared. "Tokyo is probably one of the most heavily defended regions in Japan, the Britannian military has not only their main army and air force base there, they also have a naval taskforce anchored at Yokosuka. That taskforce by itself has enough firepower to level any invading force."

"Agreed again," Kaguya said. "Which was why until now Kyoto House and the JLF never considered launching such an attack. Unfortunately, it would seem that control of the JLF has slipped from our hands to that of another."

"Huh? How is that even possible?"

"Several months ago after the Lake Kawaguchi incident members of the French SDECE made contact with the JLF," Kaguya said, pausing briefly.

"The French foreign intelligence service," Kallen said to make clear she knew what the SDECE was. She had better, that was C.C.'s original cover after all.

Kaguya nodded. "They came with an offer of material support, weapons, equipment, even possibly the positioning of EU forces at Vladivostok to threaten Hokkaido and pin the Britannian armored division there. We thought that our prayers might well be answered and over the next few months they made good on many of their promises, smuggling in a great deal of modern weaponry. Last week however I received word from one of the senior JLF officers that its upper echelons had been subverted and were planning an attack not on the Britannian forces in western Honshu but on Tokyo itself." The girl grimaced. "I have issued requests for explanation from the JLF's leadership and been met with silence."

With her geass having been active this entire time Kallen could see that Kaguya was being completely honest with her. That did not make the news any more pleasant to hear.

"How exactly could these SDECE agents have taken over the JLF?" Kallen asked. "Surely if they tried anything untoward they would have been dealt with."

"I thought much the same," Kaguya responded. "But the responses from the JLF have been absent of any actual meaning for some time now, even when inquiries are made in person." The girl's head tilted to the side. "In fact Ichijo-san just returned yesterday from trying to obtain details of what they intend."

The man nodded. "The JLF leadership was, noncommittal and even evasive."

Kallen blinked. That was not right, the man's heartbeat had quickened when he spoke. But Kaguya had been entirely honest in everything she said.

"They revealed nothing at all?" Kallen said.

Ichijo shook his head, his breathing steady but his heart once again quickening for the briefest of moments. Kallen frowned. The man was definitely lying but the tells were completely inconsistent. Something was wrong here. Kallen looked back at Kaguya but kept her senses locked upon Ichijo.

"Have any of your other retainers been able to get anything out of the JLF?" she asked.

"Ichijo-san has been the only one I dispatched," Kaguya said. "Previous to this I had had no reason to doubt the veracity of the reports I received from the JLF."

"I see," Kallen said.

And then she was across the table. Before anyone could react she had the man in question pinned down.

"Kallen!" Ohgi exclaimed.

Kaguya shuffled back hurriedly even as other retainers entered, several bearing weapons.

"What is the meaning of this!?" one demanded.

"Silence!" Kallen thundered, her eyes never leaving the man beneath her. "Ichijo-san. Would you please explain, in detail, what happened when you met with the JLF?"

"Wha-what are you insinuating?" Ichijo responded.

"You're lying about not knowing what the JLF is up to," Kallen stated. "Why."

"This is ridiculous," the man retorted. "I have served the Sumeragi family loyally since childhood, how dare you suggest I would deceive Kaguya-sama!"

Kallen's eyes narrowed and she leaned closer in. Again that discrepancy between the man's breathing and his heartrate, a discrepancy that was not explained by his surprise at Kallen's actions. In fact, there was something else. Something, in his eyes. Kallen's own widened as she caught a glimpse of the barest of light glowing within Ichijo's.

"Bloody Hel," the girl said. "You've met him, haven't you."

Everyone continued staring at Kallen in confusion, not least Ichijo himself.

"Who are you talking about?" the man demanded.

"The bastard that hit Ashford," Kallen said. "You met him, and he did something to you. Just like he did something to those gendarmeries."

The Sumeragi retainers exchanged nervous looks before glancing over at Kaguya. The girl however was watching intently the exchange and made no move to order intervention.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Ichijo said.

The man's heart, just barely settled after the initial adrenaline rush, sped up again. And with each pulse Kallen sensed something else, something throbbing not in the man's heart. Her eyes widened again. It was in his brain.

"Oh Hel," Kallen muttered. "He's done something to your brain."

"Wha-what are you talking about!?" Ichijo demanded. "Unhand me, you have nothing with which to prove your patently false accusation!"

"The proof is right in front of me," Kallen said. "Your mind is the proof. He did something to it and I can see it."

Indeed she could, the throbbing of the arteries that ran through the brain delivering blood. There was something drawing a lot of blood too, to the point where it was even causing swelling. A swelling that was getting worse. Ichijo blinked, apparently starting to feel the effects.

"I-I have no idea what you're talking about." He gazed over at Kaguya. "Kaguya-sama, please, order Akakishi-san to withdraw."

Kaguya gave Ichijo a measured look before shifting her gaze over to Kallen. "Akakishi-san, what do you mean you can see what has been done to his mind?"

Kallen grimaced. Maybe she should not have said that aloud, but it was too late for that. How to explain this without sounding completely insane.

"At Ashford," the girl began, "when the gendarmerie launched their attack I sensed someone orchestrating their movements. I sense the same thing now inside Ichijo." Kallen frowned. "In fact, it's, getting worse?"

The uncertainty caused attention to shift back to the pinned man whose face was starting to contort in seeming pain.

"I-this is ludicrous, no one can sense, inside, a mind? I-"

The man's body slackened and had Kallen's sense not warned her she might have loosened her grip reflexively. Instead she tightened it and was ready when Ichijo's body jerked.

"GAAAHHHHHHH!"

The man's body began convulsing and he suddenly slammed his head, hard down on the floor.

"Grab him!" Kallen shouted.

Two other retainers piled on, seizing hold of the man's head to keep him from shacking it about. From the red that soon stained their hands they were already too late in some respect. And then blood began pouring out from the man's nose.

"Ichijo!?" Kallen exclaimed.

It was too late, her senses had watched the entire thing unfurl in grim detail. The saturated blood vessels in his brain had ruptured, inflicting a devastating and almost immediately fatal stroke upon him. Ichijo twitched a few more times but that was the only movement left in his broken form.

"Damn it," Kallen muttered. "What the hell did that bastard do!?"

"Akakishi-san," Kaguya spoke up.

Kallen looked up at the noticeably pale girl.

"What just happened," she said in an icy tone.

Kaguya's response was a mask, Kallen knew, to hide the shock the girl was feeling. And she was not without some sympathy for the younger girl.

"I'm sorry," she said. "I suspected that he had been somehow turned, so I acted."

"Turned," Kaguya said softly. "Against, his will?"

Kallen looked back over at the still form. The other retainers had arrived at the same conclusion as her and were gently lifting the body. One of the servants knelt by Kaguya, ready to lend any support that the girl might need.

"I don't know for sure," Kallen finally said, "but I think so. When he started talking about not being able to get anything out of the JLF I sensed he was lying, but not consciously so." Her lips thinned. "It was as if, he was made to believe the lie."

Kaguya was now staring intently at Kallen, her pale complexion now coloring with something else entirely. Something that Kallen herself was intimately familiar with.

"Someone, forced Ichijo to believe a lie?" she repeated.

Kallen nodded slowly, ignoring the nervous expressions Inoue and Ohgi were making behind her.

Kaguya considered the possibility for a few moments before looking at Kallen once more. "And how can you know this."

Kallen's jaw tightened. There was no telling whether Kaguya would even believe the truth here but lying to the younger girl did not seem like a wise decision in the long term. Trust, that was what they needed right now, amidst all this deception and even betrayal, unwilling though it may be.

"Tell me Kaguya-sama," Kallen began carefully. "You said the JLF had been subverted. How was it subverted?"

The only visible reaction from Kaguya was a slight twitch of an eye. The girl's heart however was hammering away. The retainers and comrades of both seemed to simply disappear into the background as the two held each other's gaze.

"What do you know."

Kallen's eyes wandered over to the Sumeragi retainers. Kaguya quickly inferred her meaning.

"Kaede, remain here. Everyone else, see to Ichijo-san's arrangements."

"Milady-"

"Now," Kaguya said, the volume of her voice rising not one bit for all the force behind it.

The other retainers exchanged nervous glances before lifting Ichijo's body and retreating from the room. The only one that remained was a young woman with seemingly perpetually closed eyes. Even without her senses Kallen could tell that the other woman served as Kaguya's personal bodyguard. With her senses Kallen easily noticed the tanto the woman was somehow hiding under one sleeve and the pistol in the other.

"We are alone," Kaguya said as the screen slid shut, an implicit order for Kallen to begin explaining herself.

Kallen regarded Kaguya for a few moments before shifting her gaze to Kaede. That might well make for an informative demonstration.

"You have a tanto in her right sleeve," Kallen said, eliciting the quirk of an eyebrow from Kaede while Kaguya's eyes widened. "And a pistol in your left. A Browning, if I'm not mistaken."

The other two women stared silently at Kallen for several minutes. Behind her Kallen could feel Ohgi fidgeting nervously. Inoue was doing a much better job of remaining, or at least appearing, composed.

"You possess the third eye of a Nyorai," Kaguya said, both a question and a statement.

"In a manner of speaking," Kallen said cautiously. She had been raised as a follower of the Norse pantheon and her knowledge of Japanese Buddhism was admittedly spotty. "What I possess has finite limits."

Kaguya nodded slowly. "But it was enough to sense what had been done to Ichijo."

Kallen returned the nod.

"Does that mean you also know what was done to him?" Kaguya asked.

The red haired young woman pursed her lips. "Regrettably not. I could sense that something was, off, and I can say that it had something to do with his brain, but I'm afraid beyond…"

"But you can detect it," Kaguya pressed.

Kallen considered the question. "I detected it this time. And During the attack on Ashford I didn't notice anything about the gendarmerie until after they started shooting."

That drew another questioning look from the other two women. Before they could make comparisons about her ear as well Kallen went on.

"I also didn't notice anything about Ichijo-san until after he started, well, lying."

Kaguya's expression became thoughtful. "So this, compulsion or whatever it is, must be active for you to sense it."

"That's what it looks like," Kallen agreed, "and even then it's extremely subtle. It felt like Ichijo was both lying and telling the truth at the same time."

"Is that so," Kaguya muttered before meeting Kallen's eyes once more. "Could you apply your, sight, to another person?"

"I, guess?" Kallen said quizzically.

"The JLF officer that came to me and warned about the movement's subversion," Kaguya said. "We must determine whether he is a plant."

Kallen raised an eyebrow. "You, believe me?"

"What you have said thus far is not outside the realm of the impossible," Kaguya said. "And in fact the existence of an individual with the ability to perform mental coercion would actually explain a great deal."

Raised eyebrow morphed into a frown. "What do you mean?"

"While our penetration of the Britannian command structure has lessened considerably since the arrival of the Princesses Euphemia and Cornelia, we are still able to obtain certain reports," Kaguya said. "One such report detailed the results of the battle against the Blood of the Samurai."

Kallen said nothing, simply waiting for Kaguya to make her point.

"According to that report the Blood of the Samurai fought fanatically to the point of committing suicide to avoid capture. The only ones actually captured were those too wounded to take their own lives. Even after this however they continued to resist and a later report indicates that all of them died, some from biting off their own tongues and bleeding to death, others from, well their bodies ultimately failing due to the strain of their ceaseless struggles."

By now Kallen's silence was for another reason entirely.

"Thus far the Britannians have kept a very tight lid on what happened at Ashford, the only thing we know is that they took only a single prisoner." Kaguya's eyes darkened. "All the others committed suicide at the school itself."

"As if someone wanted to make sure they wouldn't be able to talk," Kallen said.

Kaguya tilted her head once. Kallen's own face twisted into pure and burning rage.

"I am going to tear that bastard to pieces!"

"To do so you will need to find him," Kaguya said. "And to find him we must be certain that what intelligence we do have is unadulterated. Do you believe that is within your abilities, Akakishi-san?"

Kallen regarded Kaguya thoughtfully. The other girl was holding up surprisingly well considering what had transpired this day. And she was right, Kallen did need to know more about this bastard in order to end him.

"You know you can probably just call me Kallen now," she said. "Not much point in the Akakishi alias anymore."

"Symbols can be important," Kaguya responded. "And I believe that there is yet a role for the Akakishi to play in the coming battles." The girl managed a slight smile and to Kallen's surprise extended a hand. It was a very un-Japanese motion. "Shall we see about facing them together, Kallen?"

Kallen Stadtfeld-Kouzuki, the Red Knight, the Akakishi, regarded the extended hand for a few moments before chuckling.

"Why the Hel not."

And took it firmly in her grasp.

The day was remarkably clear and the sun bathed the grounds of Ashford Academy with a gentle warmth. Students, parents, and faculty filled said grounds, all gathered to commemorate those whose lives were so suddenly stolen. Security was predictably tight but even so it came as a surprise to many of the attendees of the number of soldiers present in the colors of the Princesses Cornelia and Euphemia. That was, until they came upon an even greater surprise.

The students were arranged based on homerooms and in all too many cases there were empty seats within these sections. In at least two cases the empty seat was off to the side for a now forever absent teacher. One section however had a few additions in the form of Euphemia li Britannia and two of her armsmen seated diagonally from the princess. Like the other students she wore the uniform of the academy but there was no hiding exactly who she was. The students seated next to her tried hard not to fidget.

Euphemia was not even the only imperial scion making an appearance. Schneizel el Britannia, Heir Secundus and Prime Minister of the Holy Britannian Empire, was also present and likely making the family members he was seated with equally nervous. One person whom this could not be said about however was the Baron Heinrich Stadtfeld, here representing his daughter who was officially still recovering from her ordeal. The baron's attention remained fixed on the platform at the front of the seated crowd as if seemingly oblivious to the prince just a few chairs down from him. The only other people who seemed similarly unperturbed were the Kraft family, though that might well because their anxieties came from another source.

On the platform before all of them were seated the student council. Ruben was still recovering and while present was not yet strong enough to oversee the ceremony. That responsibility would have been left to his son but Milly had insisted on performing the task herself. When the anointed time arrived she stood and walked over to the podium. All trace of her usual good humor was gone, replaced instead by a most solemn air.

"I always knew that there would be a day when I would say farewell to the students and teachers of this school," Milly began. "I would be handed my certification and take the step on a new stage of my life." She took a deep breath. "Today I am here however to bid a far too final farewell, to those classmates and instructors who will not be there with me on that day, who will not be wishing me good fortune for my future and in turn will not receive those wishes from me."

The young woman looked out across the crowd, her eyes shining sadly. And then she began reading names. Thirty-three names that represented the sum of her fellow students that would never set foot upon the school grounds again and conversely would never leave these grounds either. As she spoke each name behind her Rivalz, Shirley, and Nina began lighting candles one by one. Thirty-three candles, out of the thirty-five lined up on the platform.

Upon reaching the thirty-fourth name Milly paused and took another deep breath.

"When I first entered sixth form, my parents informed me that they would require mathematics be one of my A-levels." The young woman allowed a mirthless smile. "I threw a fit because I knew of Mr. Mansfield's reputation. He was exacting, demanding of perfection from all of his students. I didn't want to suffer through that kind of class, I wanted to enjoy myself for my last two years of school."

The solemn smile was now reflected on the expressions of many other students.

"And so I tried to put in the absolute minimum amount of work necessary to skate by his class," Milly continued. "I even got lazy with the homework, asking my classmates how to do problems because I didn't bother paying attention in class." The girl's face became more serious. "And then two months into the school year that stopped working. The questions that I got were suddenly completely different than that of my classmates. And it wasn't just me, everyone's homework was suddenly unique. I thought it was Mr. Mansfield trying to prevent cheating. But then one of my seniors let me in on a little secret. Mr. Mansfield demands perfection from us as students, but he also demands it of himself as an instructor."

Now nods of agreement came, from not just the students but also a few of the other teachers. Many of the parents and other family on the other hand looked on in surprise.

"There were at least a hundred of us in the three A-level sections he taught," Milly said. "A hundred, and he still was able to tailor our homework to each of us on an individual level. From our coursework he could figure out what we were having trouble with, what we found easy, and he made up problems that reinforced what we understood while also striving to teach us what we struggled with. He demanded perfection, but he did his utmost to give us the tools we needed to achieve that perfection."

Milly paused, closing her eyes for a brief moment. "Halfway through the year Mr. Mansfield made a comment to me. 'Your efforts have seen you make excellent progress, Ms. Ashford.'" She opened her eyes once more and a single tear streaked across her cheek. "I made that progress because Mr. Mansfield always matched or even surpassed the effort I put in."

The young woman stepped back, took ahold of the lighter from Shirley, and added one more burning candle to the count.

The brunette herself now stepped up to the podium. She was still coming to grips with her near brushes with death and it was only this morning that her participation in the ceremony was even finalized. But hiding from the world was not the answer and for Shirley this was one step of many in overcoming the pain that lingered from that awful day, no matter how much it might hurt further in the process.

"Mr. Taylor never addressed us by our first names," the girl began. "It was always Ms. Fenette, or Mr. Cardemonde. It was considered one of the mysteries of the school why he did this. One day, I got curious enough that I asked him. And he said to me, 'I see the students I instruct as the gentlemen and gentlewomen they aspire to be. How else could I address them?'"

Shirley's expression darkened in grief even as surprised looks appeared on many of the students in the audience.

"Mr. Taylor believed in each and every one of us, that we would go onto greater things. He considered it his duty to impart upon us the knowledge that would help temper our judgment for the future. He encouraged our curiosity, implored us to ask questions. And if there was something he could not answer, he was honest of his ignorance and considered it an opportunity to learn alongside us."

More nods as the other students recalled their own memories of such instances.

"I wish," Shirley said, her voice suddenly cracking. "I wish, that I could thank him properly, for everything he has done. I had intended to on the last day of classes, but now it is too late." The tears flowed more freely for Shirley than the older girl. "And so I find him imparting one last lesson, one that I will always take heart in. To not wait in expressing my gratitude, for it is never too early to say thank you."

Wiping her tears away, Shirley turned about and took back the candle lighter from Milly. And then there were thirty-five.

The ceremony had wound down but many still lingered, students swapping stories about their missing classmates and instructors, family offering each other comfort and support. The Baron Stadtfeld regarded the scene and took a deep breath. He had nearly been one of those parents in need of such support. In fact he may well become one in the future.

"Baron Stadtfeld."

Heinrich turned about to find himself facing one of the Princess Euphemia's armsmen.

"Yes?" he said brusquely.

"Her highness has requested to speak with you in private," the soldier said.

The only distinction between a request and an order from an imperial scion was formality, both men knew, and after a few seconds scowling at the soldier Heinrich nodded.

"This way please."

The privacy of their conversation would apparently be provided courtesy of the Ashford family seeing as Heinrich was led to one of the school buildings. The interior was well appointed, not surprising considering the school fees, and seated in the main room was the Princess Euphemia with her two armsmen positioned to her rear. Heinrich came to a halt before the princess and bowed courteously. The scowl was still on his face.

"Your highness."

"Baron," Euphie greeted, indicating that she would be taking the lead in these discussions. "Please, have a seat."

Heinrich did so. His eyes never left the princess for a single moment. Euphie met his gaze without flinching.

"I presume you know why we wished to speak with you, Baron Stadtfeld," she said.

The baron spent perhaps a second consider a response.

"You obviously intend to accuse my daughter of something, your highness, so I suggest you stop dancing around the topic and just come out with it."

Blunt and to the point as the report from Villetta and Monica said he was. Euphie was torn between amusement and a mild, very mild, indignation at the baron's seeming rudeness. But being too caught up in one's self-importance was one of the biggest flaws of the nobility and Euphie had no intention of succumbing to that particular vice herself.

"Very well," Euphie said. "I shall be frank then. Your daughter, Baron Stadtfeld, is the Red Knight that has been actively undermining Britannian authority in Area 11 for the last few months and we believe that the attack on Ashford Academy was intended by an unknown party to silence her."

Heinrich stared at the princes for several seconds, blinking a few times in the process. "What?"

The flatness of his voice was a combination of sheer surprise and incredulity. It also sounded completely genuine to Euphie's well practiced ear.

"It is exactly as I have said, Kallen is the insurgent, or rather vigilante, known as the Red Knight."

"My daughter is anemic," Heinrich stated frostily. "How in Hel is she supposed to be running around playing vigilante? Just a few months ago I approved her hiring of a personal medical assistant."

Euphie raised an eyebrow. "Cecilia Clermont?"

The baron frowned. "Yes. Why would you know that?"

And not a highness from the man beyond his opening statement. Euphie idly recalled the background information the Inquisitio had provided her with. The Stadtfelds were Germanic in origin, specifically fleeing Germany in the wake of the Peasant's Rebellion over four centuries ago. The Stadtfelds had been minor nobility, knights in fact, whose holdings had been destroyed by the princely armies over the course of the war. This ancient experience with the capriciousness of the great lords of a land had been cited more than once as the cause for the Stadtfeld family's wariness of the imperial family, though the Stadtfelds had never pressed to such a degree as to threaten their own titles. In this case however the baron was likely simply too surprised to bother with the formalities.

"Because Ms. Clermont was not a certified medical assistant," Euphie responded. "We have reason to believe that she was in fact an accomplice to Kallen's vigilantism."

Heinrich's eyes narrowed. "And what proof do you have of these accusations?"

"Sufficient evidence exists for a warrant to be issued for Kallen's arrest," Euphie said, noticing the glint in the baron's eyes. "I have refrained from doing so however because I would prefer a more peaceable resolution be reached and so am willing to extend Kallen the opportunity to surrender herself into custody. I will assure her fair treatment."

The baron regarded Euphemia silently long enough that the princess started to feel impatience welling up. She squelched it.

"Is that all, your highness?" Heinrich said, his tone so flat and devoid of inflection that Euphie at first barely registered that it was a question.

"With the understanding that my patience is not without limit," Euphie said. "As much as I would prefer not to, I will order a warrant be issued for your daughter's arrest as the Red Knight, Baron Stadtfeld."

Heinrich's eyes flickered. "That is your prerogative as viceroy, your highness." The man stood. "As it is mine to stand in opposition to whomever names my daughter their enemy."

This time it was Euphie's turn to blink in surprise. She did not even notice the slight shift in her armsmen's postures and if the baron did he ignored them as he held her gaze.

"Baron," Euphie said carefully. "You and I both possess obligations as peers of the Empire."

"So we do," Heinrich said with the slightest of nods. "But I consider my duty as a father to supersede all others." The man bowed formally and courteously. "A good day, your highness."

And thundered out of the room. Euphie regarded the figure, a mixture of emotions swirling within her. Irritation that she apparently had had no greater success in garnering the baron's cooperation, a mild anger at the man's seeming disrespect, and strangely enough envy that someone whom deceived her father so willingly like Kallen could yet garner such devotion from the man. Euphie took a deep breath and sank into the chair. That devotion might yet bring the baron great misery though a part of the princess devoutly hoped it would not be so. But for all her efforts the world was not yet a kind or gentle place.

Figures emerged at the wide open door, all whom Euphie recognized. Milly she had expected, the older girl was the one that let her into the clubhouse for the meeting with Baron Stadtfeld after all. Cole Kraft, the son of her Exchequer, on the other hand was a surprise. An even greater surprise was when the young man entered with Milly.

"Umm, your highness?" he said hesitantly.

"Yes?" Euphie responded, trying to sound reassuring.

"I was, hoping to have a few words with you. About Kallen."

Euphie frowned. And then her eyes widened as she recalled that day seemingly so long ago when she was escorted to the school dance by the student council's vice president, and Kallen was escorted by Cole. The envy that Euphie had felt mere moments ago was quickly turning into irritation. No girl liked to be made to clean up after another's relationships after all, especially when the man in question was of good character like Cole.

The princess sighed. "Have a seat Cole. This might take some time."

End of Chapter 36

Oh hey, apparently that review display issue wasn't just an isolated hiccup.

I wonder whether Sadistic Choice refers to Euphie choosing between releasing or not releasing the prisoners, or the prisoners themselves having to choose between continued imprisonment or forfeiting their identity as Japanese in exchange for freedom.

I have to wonder why people 'follow' completed stories. I mean, In Tune has been done for a few months but I still get notifications from the site that someone has subscribed to it. Is follow treated as a lesser favorite or something? Anyway.

Okay, I think we're more or less done with the Ashford attack arc. The ensuing investigations and etc can be considered part of the next arc, which will be the last before the Black Rebellion kicks off, which will cap R1. Hopefully I can jam all of the stuff I need to jam in within the next, four chapters, I think. And there's a lot of stuff.

A couple of notes. First, I'm changing Baron Stadtfeld's first name to Heinrich from Henry. This has been changed in my master draft but I probably won't bother going back to change it in the published version until such time I do a master upload after I finish the story itself. Yes, I'm aware of the various spelling/grammar mistakes. Yes, I correct them as I discover them after the fact in the master draft.

Second, Pendragon in my story is not in Arizona. I literally can't think of any good reasons to put it there and I swear the Code Geass writers just picked an arbitrary spot and called it there without even bloody trying. Anyway. Assume for now that Pendragon is on the east coast, probably in the Philadelphia/NYC range. If there is a need to provide a specific location, I'll do so, but for now I retain the ambiguity for flexibility purposes.

Finally, the long one. I received a message from a reader who had a couple of issues that they believed made the story unrealistic. There were two specific examples and an overarching gripe. The first issue is the reader's belief that Charlotte should have been able to run into Nunnally at Ashford and then be able to tell Lelouch about his sister being alive. The second issue is that as C.C. was the one that both got Nunnally to the Ashfords and then spirited Lelouch to the EU, she should have been able to keep him from going insane by telling him Nunnally was still alive. The overarching complaint was that I was going to unrealistic lengths to create drama and conflict by going out of my way to make sure the various characters wouldn't get a chance to meet, talk out their differences, and then work together. I think by now most everyone can see a theme.

Let's take a look at the above in detail. First, Nunnally and Charlotte. Right now Nunnally is in the middle school section of Ashford whereas Charlotte is in the high school section, or the equivalents thereof in the British education system. These two sections have classes in entirely different buildings on the Ashford campus and neither one has any real reason to go to the others' building during school hours. Outside of school hours, Nunnally lives on campus and commutes directly from the Ashford family residence to her classes whereas Charlotte commutes by train and enters the school from the main gate like most of the other students. Their paths do not cross. In fact considering Nunnally's situation it would not surprise me in the least that even if originally Nunnally's commute did take her through the stream of students entering the main gate, the Ashfords would have rerouted her explicitly to help maintain her relative anonymity.

The only other time that Nunnally really runs into high schoolers is when she is visiting with the student council or Cole's culinary club with her friends. In the former, the student council is extremely discreet and basically never talks about Nunnally to outsiders. Milly didn't pick the members of the student council randomly. In the latter, Nunnally is one of several middle schoolers and though she isn't entirely 'lost' in the crowd, she's not exactly standing out much either. In neither case does Charlotte have any opportunity to just run into her, Charlotte's never been invited to meet with the student council in their clubhouse/office and she sure as hell didn't join any afterschool clubs seeing as she was working on compromising Suzaku.

Furthermore Charlotte's never met Nunnally or even seen a picture of her and whatever descriptions Lelouch might have provided would not be nearly enough to make up for that. So even if Charlotte did see Nunnally offhandedly on campus, she wouldn't recognize the girl. Now if she found out that Nunnally, or rather Abigail, was Milly's sister, and she passed this information onto Lelouch, Lelouch might have been able to infer everything. Charlotte on the other hand wouldn't know that Milly did not have a little sister back in Pendragon. So in other words, for Lelouch to find out that Nunnally is alive from Charlotte, a lot of things have to happen just right and it sure as hell is not as simple as Charlotte catching a glimpse of Nunnally and 'realizing' that she's Lelouch's sister. Note that Charlotte only discovered C.C. because she had seen a photo of the other girl and I explicitly mention this in the story.

The second issue is C.C. should have been able to prevent Lelouch from going insane by telling him Nunnally was still alive. This is to be frank the only one of the objections that I think can be justifiably argued, but it relies on enough assumptions that aren't supported by the text that it's still fairly straightforward to deconstruct. Let's take a look at the background behind this idea. First, the person who declared that Lelouch was insane was Kallen and Kallen made that determination by interpreting C.C.'s garbled attempts to convey information about Lelouch.

Second, the person who asserted that Lelouch went insane from grief was also Kallen, again by interpreting C.C.'s less than clear paraphrases. Are we seeing a pattern here? Finally, assuming that Lelouch actually is insane (we have plenty of scenes from his perspective for all of you to make your own judgments on the matter instead of simply relying on Kallen's interpretation), why is the presumption that he went insane solely because of grief? Or that C.C. was in any way capable of stopping his descent into insanity? Or that she even wanted to? Which leads us to overarching point three.

The idea that all it would take is for the primary characters to gather and talk about their differences and then be able to work together implies that their respective goals are mutually complementary, that achieving one set of goals will not require the failure of another's. I can say right here that none of you have enough information to convincingly argue that this is the case. Thus far the only person whose goals are unequivocally clear are Kallen's. Large parts of Euphie's have been revealed and thus far the majority don't require Kallen's failure for them to succeed. There is however a big point of contention between the two, namely the issue of Japan's sovereignty. In this case Euphie's position is actually more uncompromising than Kallen's and working out their differences will not be trivial to say the least. But in theory, Kallen and Euphie could set aside their differences in pursuit of the greater good. But that's just Kallen and Euphie, there are two other major players in which this may not be the case.

Lelouch. So far the only 'goals' that you have seen is his intent to see Euphie and Cornelia dead. That's it. The motivation behind that goal, whether there is a greater goal that would be served by the death of his half-siblings, none of that has been revealed. If one attempts to claim that Lelouch's goal can be complementary to Euphie's and Kallen's, at this point you're making stuff up without any actual support. Canon Lelouch's ambitions and objectives don't have much if any relevance to my portrayal of him due to their radically different circumstances. Or rather, you could try to argue that because it is Lelouch, he has to be after similar things to his canon version for him to be Lelouch, but there's been no textual evidence of it in-story so it still amounts to making things up.

And then of course there's C.C. At this point she's probably the most radically different in terms of portrayal due to her speech pattern. Her behavior on the other hand is still identifiably C.C. She enjoys trolling the people around her and she's always giving evasive answers to questions. But thus far there is almost exactly zero information about what her goals are. The only piece of information that any of you have is that she requires a contractor, but beyond that none of you know what that contractor is for. What her actions thus far, in terms of 'letting' Lelouch go insane, should tell you is that she is operating under a very different set of priorities than in canon. In other words, stop trying to create a one-to-one mapping of the anime to this story, every incongruity represents an intentional, fundamental divergence.

Said reader more or less lays out after the three points how they want Lelouch to be portrayed, which is at odds with how he has thus far been used in my story. At which point the issue isn't a matter of realism or internal consistency within the story, it's a disconnect between what the reader wants and the story that I am telling. This has already happened with Suzaku so I'm not surprised in the least that it's happening with Lelouch. And my response now is the same as back then.

In theory I could have answered the message privately, but if I'm going to write up an explanation this damn long I'm inclined to let others get a peek at the rationale behind my choices so that they can better understand the narrative decisions I have made.

Anyway, long rant aside, I hope all of you enjoyed this chapter. The eulogies for the two teachers took a bit of work to get down. One of the issues was deciding which other teacher to kill off. No, there is no subtext in me choosing the math teacher. Oh, and Ichijo's death. Hopefully that didn't come off as too blasé, but I needed to get the bigger plot point going. We'll see more of Kallen and Kaguya next chapter and their plans for countering Lelouch. Any guesses which franchise the slit-eyed ninja is from?