Sweating over free real estate

Kururugi Suzaku, Knight of Zero

Kyoto, UFN airfield

Some hours after meeting Nunnally

Gluing one hand to the steering wheel, Alice casually untied a wrapped piece of candy between her teeth and spat out the plastic jacket into an empty cup in the cupholder. Bringing the spare arm back into the cupboard underneath the driver-side armrest, she fetched another piece of sweet and extended it to her co-driver.

"It's free real estate."

"It's free- what?" The shorter knight spoke just a bit too fast for Suzaku to catch it properly.

"…Don't sweat, you taking it?" She jiggled the boiled sweet closer to Suzaku's face. The generous offer didn't seem to match with her lacklustre mood. But then again, the Knight of Zero hadn't noticed any method of nonverbal communication from her since they met.

"I'm alright, thanks."

"…" Humming once, Alice withdrew her arm and repeated what she did with the first candy to the second one.

Suzaku turned his unfocused glance outside the window. Their inconspicuous van had just emerged from an underground tunnel, putting them next to the paved runway of Kyoto's first and newest airport. The UFN flattened a field outside of downtown Kyoto soon after deciding the necessity of air travel, not wasting a single day to establish their foothold.

Even though they're relocating the headquarters to Honolulu by the end of this year, but who am I to tell Kaguya what to blow her budget on… The fine-print of politics interested Suzaku none, airfields were a dime a dozen in fully developed countries anyway.

Turning a corner, the familiar sight of the Avalon's armoured hull came into view. Their destination. Alice pulled up next to an elongated ramp from the airship, where a few mechanics were going about their day. Both knights briefly checked their surroundings as they exited the vehicle, Suzaku let his new co-worker take care of handling their VIPs.

Sliding open the van's backdoor, Alice was welcomed by the delightful sound of childlike giggles. "Your Highness, we've arrived." She escorted the third princess out into Suzaku's care before leaning in to unbuckle the one she was responsible for.

"Thank you, Alice."

"Anytime, Nunnally." Lustrously, the Emperor's sibling smiled at her protector.

"Hmm… smells of caramel… and two of them, how greedy of you, young lady."

"I am a sexualized version of Homer Simpson."

"…That's kinda gross." Nunnally giggled, and Alice soon mirrored. "Although I'm sure you're more willing to share?"

"I'll grab you one." Alice took a step out of the princess' personal space to deliver the sought-after goods, but a tug of the sleeve halted her.

"I want one of yours."

"…Mine?"

"Yours."

"…I don't think…" Alice turned around and was met with Suzaku's questioning glance, injecting a surge of awkwardness into the exchange between her and the crippled youth.

She slightly parted her lips wanting to say something, likely anything. Tragically, Nunnally dragged her attention back before she could. "An order of one caramel candy please, sunshine."

Alice conveyed a mixture of emotions in one short sigh, before letting Nunnally pull her in closer than any two persons should be naturally. Suzaku continued to confusingly conceal his gawk from a distance, not sure what to make of the peculiar interaction between a knight and her liege.

"-Stare any harder and your drool will be hitting the ground, love." Only an interruption from his own ward stopped Suzaku from boring a hole into Alice's back by his glare.

"Why… what're they doing?" Euphie started to chuckle at Suzaku's bewilderment, but it soon died down when she saw the genuine bafflement in his demeanour. "I just… is there anything desirable about food in someone else's mouth?"

"Surely, you can't be serious, Suzaku."

"No- I mean, I just don't…" Realizing the cooling attitude Euphie was giving him, Suzaku stopped himself before presenting any more reasons for the princess to be disappointed.

"You know that one scene of the funny cartoon man who does this pose with his hands," Euphie brought both of her open palms to the side of her face and pointed them directly at Suzaku. "-and he says 'you dense mother— and then the F-word', you know what I'm talking about?"

"No… no?" He honestly had no clue.

"Ugh… but that's you! Because you're just so- you're so you!" Euphie's hands inched in closer to Suzaku's face. What he initially thought would be an affectionate stroke turned out to be a wave of slaps, rapidly bouncing his cheeks between her fingers like drummer tapping the batter head to the rhythm.

As much as he enjoyed her playfulness, Suzaku had a layer of pride he couldn't leave vulnerable to her fondness. "…Okay, okay! Your point is taken! Maybe!" He caught both her hands and returned them to her side. "Let's just grab our luggage and get to the hotel. I don't want to waste too much of Nunnally's time."

Finally letting him off the hook in a fit of laughter, Euphemia interlinked their arms and intended to head aboard their carrier. "…Alllll-rightly, buddy."

Suzaku turned his heel to follow his liege' lead, content to let the previous uncongenial conversation fall by the wayside. However, before he managed to climb to the top of the ramp, a very distinguishable noise filtered through his eardrum and registered in his aptitude for peril.

It was the combined sound of a roaring engine and metallic shape cutting through the atmosphere, but it was growing in volume way too fast to convince him there was any chance of a happy landing.

"Euphie, get inside now. Go!"

Behind him, Alice was likewise ushering Nunnally to join her half-sister in the safety of the Avalon. Both princesses agreed to their knight's protection without any protest.

"You two, please be careful, okay!?" Euphemia shouted after them as they explored the vastness of the airport's tarmac. Searching the skies for the source of danger.

"Eyes on Bogey. Eight O'clock, fast descending." Alice was the first to spot it, and by following her instructions, Suzaku was the second.

A passenger jet of Britannian design was falling out of the sky right before their eyes. A thick trail of dark smoke gusted out from its turbine engines on the brink of expiration. The airplane weaved and swayed on its descent, barely extending its landing gear in time as the craft crashed down tumultuously and dragged a line of damage across the tarmac until it came to a gradual stop due to friction.

Both knights cautiously judged all their options available for a brief moment before agreeing wordlessly to approach the crash site. Like Alice, Suzaku drew his sidearm and checked its ammunition. Armed and ready, he contacted the Avalon through his earpiece, hoping for a response.

"—Avalon, Zero to Avalon. I have visual on a crashed Bogey out on the runway by my position, requesting instructions." While talking on the radio, Suzaku inched close enough to the jet to smell its fume. From the looks of it, the aircraft paid its toll in some turbulent air and was on its last legs regardless of crashing or not.

"—Zero, we have an update from Control. They say the unknown aircraft came in from the west and requested an emergency landing. No further directives are available at this time. A security team is en route. You're free to investigate at your discretion." Cecile on the other end informed Suzaku of the situation, hearing her crisp voice brought a bit of peace to his tension.

"—Roger that Avalon, proceeding to investigate." Suzaku and Alice reached the edge of the undamaged pavement. Just some metres in front of them was the private jet's entry ramp sealing the compartment shut.

Suzaku wondered if he should force his way inside the cabin, as there were likely to be survivors. Although that ended up not being a decision he had to make.

Following a whispering hiss, the ramp unbolted itself from the fuselage and unfolded towards the ground. The imperfect parking of the aircraft resulted in a wobbly path from the interior to the exterior, but the unsteady passengers emerging from the shadows of the jet were still determined to exit their vehicle.

Almost miraculously, Suzaku was surprised that he immediately recognized the identities of the UFN's unsolicited guests. And judging by the quiet gasp of the figure carrying her partner, she too was unready for the Knight of Zero to be there to greet them.

"Cornelia… and Nonette?" Suzaku confirmed the names of the two visitors, still entirely perplexed by their presence.

Albeit not perplexed enough to miss the massive smudge of blood painting the front of Cornelia's uniform in red as she held an unresponsive Nonette in a bridal carry, where an even larger bloody crimson drained every range of colour from the older Round's skin.

"K-Kururugi! Help- help her! Get medical! Hurry!"

Aerial Battleship Avalon, Kyoto airport

"Wooh… this is… it's rather tense. It really is." Euphemia formed an 'O' shape with her mouth and excitedly cycled through a few inhales and exhales.

Together with Suzaku, the two lovers were standing before a sliding door to Cornelia's room in the Avalon's sickbay. The ship's doctors had cleared the elder sister of any life-threatening injury soon after helping her aboard. It was her subordinate, the Knight of Nine, who was in critical condition and required a surgical operation.

"I'm sure there's nothing you can do wrong in there. Cornelia will be overjoyed to see you." Suzaku reassured her.

"Of course, I'm just thinking about how to greet her, like- casually or formally? What do you think?"

"It depends on how you want your relationship to be from now on, just do what you're most comfortable with."

Euphemia seemed to have taken Suzaku's suggestion to heart, her head held high and her stature energized. With a jubilant smile hanging over her lips, she effortlessly barged her way into her sister's room.

Cornelia, predictably, was surprised beyond words upon seeing her lost kin. The proper means of dialogue escaped her as her arm crossed the distance between the bedframe and Euphie's dangling fingers when she sat down by her bedside. The former Viceroy held her sister's hand dearly for what felt like an eternity, putting it under a conscientious inspection as she let it touch her on the cheeks.

"It's you… Euphie… it really is you…"

"I sure have gotten prettier since we last met, right sis?" Ever so gently, Euphemia pulled her dearest sibling into a tight embrace, a soothing reunion for the two sisters once worlds apart. The pink-haired princess comforted Cornelia as she sobbed into her bosom, a rare sight of momentary weakness from the infamous and renowned Goddess of Victory.

"How did it…? What happened for you to…?" Slowly letting go of her reconciled warmth, Cornelia struggled to procure the right terms to describe her wonderment at Euphie's revival.

"Well… Geass is a- a pathway to… to many abilities— aha… hahaha…!" Euphie started an explanation of her origin, but couldn't deliver the lines between her guffaws of laughter. "-Sorry, sorry! I just couldn't… anyway, it's thanks to Suzaku. He borrowed a fragment of my epoch from heaven. Apparently, they don't have anti-theft detectors up there."

"Huh… I see… I feel I should be more surprised but… I've seen these kinds of things, maybe too many …" Cornelia traded glances with Suzaku, unsure of how to react to Euphie's preposterous story and comical attitude.

"Well… you have my everlasting gratitude, Kururugi. I-I owe you my… my…" The older princess' vagueness spoke more of her indebtedness than anything she could've offered to the knight. Perhaps there was nothing comparable to the life of her only sister, Suzaku would like to believe that to be the case.

"Oh… well, don't sweat." A period of silence washed over the three, allowing Suzaku to regret his response.

"Look at this lad, just been given the Spector and has already adopted this attitude." Euphie rested both her hands on the Japanese youth's shoulders, playfully leaning close into his chest and demonstrating their amity.

"You knew about that?"

"They don't make those carrying cases for any random stick, you know."

"I suppose they don't." Suzaku was reminded never to sell short the talents of the Britannia bloodline. The royalties were all uniquely gifted in their own ways.

Noticing the stagnation in the conversation, it prompted Cornelia to speak of something else. "Nonette, she is okay? She shielded me with her body…"

"Regarding her…" Suzaku started to think of a fitting reply to Cornelia's urging curiosity. "She's lost a lot of blood. The doctors have her in the ER. They're doing what they can to save her."

The bedridden commander acknowledged with a nod. There appeared to be a lot on her mind. "Have you heard the news of what happened in Cambodia?"

"No…" That was Schneizel's stronghold, and Lelouch and Marrybell's objective.

"I-I don't know how to say it… Lelouch… he- it might have been…"

"What? What happened?" Suzaku controlled his mettle to not let aggravation show, but how Cornelia was reluctant to explain didn't help.

"Schneizel wants to use the Toromo Agency as bait for Marrybell and Lelouch. He's going to detonate a F.L.E.I.J.A on the base after they arrive. We were on our way out of there when he explained it to me, plus the fact that only the handful of us knew. He is sacrificing everyone on the base to get Lelouch."

Suzaku felt his mood sour, but he kept his face flushed.

"We argued over it… things got messy, and Nonette took some bullets for me. We barely managed to grab a jet onboard and flew it here. It's the only place I could think of." Cornelia stopped a snuffle by sniffing back something in her nose. "I couldn't let him just kill Lelouch… I just thought… if someone knows about Euphie's video, it'd be him."

Euphemia patted her sister's back, willingly letting her melancholy affect her.

"Can you get into contact with Lelouch?" Suzaku's princess asked sternly.

"I'll—" -give him a call. That was what the Knight of Zero thought he would do, but the call got the drop on him before he even dialled a number.

Pulling his ringing phone out of his pocket, the number on the Caller-id was one he didn't recognize.

"—Identity yourself and send traffic." Suzaku picked up and put the caller on speaker.

"—Snapshot 1-0 transmitting in real-time. Operation Switcheroo failed. The Glinda Knights betrayed us. Security of Pale-King is compromised. Aerial carrier HMS Stranger Tides and World's End sunk. HMS Prometheus, Next Generation and Great Britannia commandeered. It's calculated that the Glinda Knights are advancing on Pendragon. Requesting immediate medevac outside the AO. Suzaku… we need your help, Kallen needs your help."

That was a great deal of information, almost overwhelmingly so. Suzaku had to put a brake on Anya to process everything she was telling them.

"—Slow down, I need to understand everything you're saying. Did you say the Glinda Knights betrayed us? Tell me what happened."

Accordingly, Anya broke down the misadventures of Lelouch's party thus far. Tales of Marrybell's deceitful tricks, of her smoking gun, of Lelouch's disappearance. Suzaku trusted the Knight of Six to divulge everything that transpired without leaving out essential details. Once her narrative was at its end, the three listeners took a bit to understand the implication of her account.

"—So… if I got this right, it was Marrybell who fired the F.L.E.I.J.A?" Cornelia picked herself to speak first.

"—Yes, Your Highness."

"Then things are as she says, Kururugi. Lelouch is M.I.A." Cornelia confirmed the presumption Suzaku warily accepted, that her information was out-of-date and the reality wasn't a better alternative.

"—Anya, send coordinates, we'll pick your team up." The Japanese ace continued his call. Out of his peripherals, he noticed the annoyance of a cancelled trip faintly materializing over Euphemia's worried frown for the king.

"—Transmitting." Suzaku's smartphone beeped once, a set of numbers flashed onto the screen.

"—Confirmed. We'll get ready for take-off, although I have no ETA available at this time."

"-Wait, wait. I don't think that's a good idea! This ship is still in the process of refuelling and resupplying, taking off now is gonna be a mess for the logistics department!" Interrupting his conversation, Euphie provided a reminder of a snag Suzaku was well-aware of without any solutions.

"That's what they're paid to do. We can top off over Honolulu, resources aren't my concern right now. We need to get to them out of there and make way for the capital."

"I'm just saying it'll take us too long to get to them! Maybe… I dunno, they can get a unit stationed closer to them to give them a ride." There appeared to be discontent in his princess which was mounting by the second, Suzaku was nearly blindsided by Euphie's lack of empathy.

"Are you- what're you even talking about? Anya already said Kallen needs a medevac, not many ships around the world have the same medical facility as us. Also, there's a chance other Britannian bases near them might be compromised, we're the only ones they can trust." An infrequent occurrence, but Suzaku wasn't bowing down to Euphemia's tantrum.

When the pink-haired royalty prepared a counter on the edge of her lips, the Devicer knew promptly to cover the microphone on his phone so as to not share her complaint. "I-I know! B-but we just got here and- and I don't wanna just up and leave! Also! You're not the only captain of this ship! Don't I get a say in this?!"

In that exact moment, Suzaku was made uncomfortably conscious of his own heartbeat. Here it was, his first real argument with Euphemia. The subject matter being none other than whether they should rescue their friends and prevent a coup d'état befalling the nation instead of remaining in blissful ignorance on their vacation.

"I… sorry, but I'm not having this conversation with you right now." Dismissively, Suzaku opted to ignore Euphie's nonsensical demand and broke off their connected gazes.

A rustle of motion abruptly arose beside him in the instant the pilot looked away from the spoiled princess, he barely perceived Cornelia's alarming astonishment. Unyielding fingers grabbed on his arm, yanking him back.

Did Euphemia intend to get physical with him? Suzaku couldn't tell in that fraction of a second as he was being pulled back. However, fortunately or not, a distraction in the form of the door opening behind them froze her action. The newcomer incentivized everyone in the room to turn their heads for a glance.

"-I hope it isn't inappropriate for me to interject, and call me presumptuous if it comes down to it, but would my dear friends care to hear a solution to this dilemma I can offer?" Announced Nunnally, smiling as usual with Alice behind her steering the wheelchair.

"That-! That wasn't what you—!" Dreading something only herself understood, Euphie timidly addressed her younger sister. However, there was no relieving sympathy to be uncovered in Nunnally's unvarying smile, only the fear of judgment behind her lavender irises.

"Just some minutes ago, the UFN received a transmission from the Britannia embassy in Cambodia. They're informing us of a terrorist attack on the Toromo Agency in the country and their responses to it, telling us not to interfere with their internal affairs." The younger girl said, professionally so while ignoring Euphie's panic.

"That's the response you'd expect." Cornelia commented. It didn't sound like an incorrect assumption.

"And the request we agreed to. The Toromo Agency and the soil it's built on is Britannia land, and that's largely where the bomb vaporized. The UFN can overlook the environmental damage it might have caused to the surrounding areas, I'm sure." Nunnally inserted a pause to her rhythm, albeit only a slight one. "As far as the UFN is concerned, this matter is Britannia's internal affair. We have no jurisdiction to interfere unless the scenario escalates to involve additional UFN interest." Speaking for on the federation's behalf, Nunnally politely declared like she was reciting a script.

"However, I just happened to overhear something about the Britannia forces left in Cambodia requiring a fast extraction with medical assistance. I'm sure Kaguya won't mind me adding a little extra parameter to the rapid reaction force en route to survey the impact zone. They can be transferred here on the first ship out."

"You're willing to do that?" Suzaku asked, no hint of insincerity in his tone.

"To be frank, the UFN doesn't want to see the current Britannian ruling structure going down the drain… again. Emperor Lelouch is serving as a fair and ethical leader, one who we can negotiate terms with. Change comes with a degree of risk, after all." Nunnally briefly broke away her sight to the side, a crack in her confident aura. "Also… there's the obvious reason for me, not just for my brother, but Kallen is a good friend as well."

"Nunnally… that's very generous of you…" Suzaku was grateful for the wheelchair-bound ambassador's gesture, although her kindness couldn't overcome the very realistic limitations. "I know we don't have the room to bargain, but Kallen really insists she needs to be combat-ready by the time we reach Pendragon. Judging by how serious Marrybell is, I'm thinking we'll need her there. She needs a ship with applicable medical equipment."

Once Suzaku issued his concern, Nunnally's reaction was to giggle cutely. "I'm well-aware of what she needs. She'll surely find her ride to be reminiscent."

"That's excellent, thanks again, Nunnally. We're depending on you." If he had her reassurance, Suzaku could chalk the hassle up as resolved.

The young girl happily smiled back, letting their subject fall to a close. "—Back with you, Snapshot. The situation is evolving as stated, be ready for a fast-medevac."

"—Roger, ending transmission." Anya clicked off the call when the next step was decided on.

Things were turning away from the worst-case scenario Suzaku had initially thought it would be. It still wasn't preferable to have his vacation cut short thanks to a coup attempt by a princess of considerable renown, but it was miles better than going home and finding someone else had stolen the crown.

I kinda understand how Bismarck felt now.

Nonetheless, there was another pressing plight he had to deal with, one who carried immediate ramifications. "-Eup—"

"-Suzaku and Euphie, can you two go check on Nonette? I'm really worried about her." Of course, that was also another problem, even if Cornelia had to cut him off to point it out.

"I'd be happy to. Let's not faff about, love." Euphemia was eager to tend to the Knight of Nine's health, so much so that she hurried out of the room.

"Yes, we'll go take a look, she just forgot to agree." Watching his princess go without a word, Suzaku was left behind to answer the amused general properly.

"Thanks. Nonette… she deserves better than what she got. I shouldn't have let her get injured in the first place." Cornelia ashamedly shook her head.

"She's Nonette. She wouldn't be herself if she can't come back." The older knight was a close friend to Suzaku as well, just one he didn't know how to deal with.

"Right… even I couldn't tie a leash on her back in the academy." The purple-haired patient mildly dipped her chin, smoothly transforming her frown to a refined simper. "By the way, I don't want to sound rude, but there could be a better time to argue."

Rather abruptly, Cornelia shifted the topic to something more present. Suzaku had to think for a moment before opening his mouth. "Like never?"

"Never is good, just not doable. Euphie could get like that sometimes. It's up to you how you sort her out."

"You're not gonna ask me to back off instead? I won't always play the yes-man forever." Suzaku elected to adopt a more casual attitude to the overprotective older sister's advice. He was convinced that acting meek and spineless wasn't going to earn him Cornelia's blessing.

"You literally brought her back. I don't care how you did it, but that makes you the right candidate for the overbearing and underpaid job of being her partner." Apparently, his new poise was doing wonders for his image.

"So I'm hired, then?"

"Welcome to the 'I can't believe I have to put up with this girl' club."

Kallen Stadtfeld, Knight of Ten

Britannian Embassy, Phnom Penh, Cambodia

An hour after contacting Suzaku

"Fucking Suzaku… not even once…" Kallen mumbled under the shroud of her bandages. She might have been slipping in and out of consciousness for the last handful of hours, but there was no way she could let herself miss a chance to dump another bucket of contempt onto her already mounting pile for the Knight of Zero.

The massive shadow casting over the capital of Cambodia quelled the blinding rays beaming down upon her from the dazzling afternoon sun. In a country so near the equator, the time of year had almost no relation to the suffocating hot air pestering her.

Although her sweating brow wasn't due to the November heat, it was all because of the familiar battleship floating overhead.

"Look, Suzaku sent the Ikaruga to pick us up." Anya specified, but all Kallen heard was a taunt.

"He sure did, didn't he?"

"…It's funny because you used to be with them, but now he managed to get them—"

"-No, no. I understand, really. Your joke is apprehended, okay? Like- haha yes, no need to repeat yourself."

"You sound upset."

"This shit is gonna be so awkward…"

As the two Rounds bantered, a smaller VTOL from the Ikaruga touched down in the parking lot behind the consulate. From its extended ramp, a group of Black Knights stepped out escorting a few doctors in white garbs. Kallen typically wasn't one to remember faces, but she quickly recognized many of her old comrades even through their visors.

After the swarm of soldiers secured the parking lot, their captain gestured for the medical team to tend to the wounded. At least the redhead could be grateful her help wasted no time acting surprised over her identity and instead immediately guided her onto a more comfortable stretcher than the one she was on.

"You three looks like our mission objective, any identifications?" The Black Knights captain asked, his rifle at the ready, but its trigger guard was clear.

"Anya Alstreim, Knight of Six." Kallen's shorter friend provided her smartphone to prove her title's validity, one glance at her papers certified her claim for the captain.

"Glad to pass off this job without a hitch, let's get you fellers onboard." The soldiers around them made way for the trio to pass. "You need to bring your KMF aboard, correct? I'll link you with our AWACS, standby." The captain said to Anya before both of them clicked away on their devices.

Having no reason to dispute their extraction, Jeremiah followed Kallen and the medics into the VTOL. "—Foxtrot 4-1 to Songbird. We have your foreign packages, RTB." The squadron leader spoke something more into his radio, somewhere in there he inquired the cyborg as to the whereabouts of the rest of the survivors, but none of the jargon really interested Kallen that much.

God… time flies. Being strapped in the stretcher left Kallen with only the freedom of exploring her imagination. The depths of her mind brainstormed lots of possible scenarios for when she will eventually encounter Ohgi. Or any other members of her old resistance gang.

What will I say to them? What will they think of me? However, nothing in her creativity could provide a tangible perception of the future to convince her that the upcoming sequences of events were going to play out like the schema in her head. If only she could just avoid having to confront her former friends altogether, that was the much-preferred substitute.

However, she was in too deep to make a run for it now, not like Kallen had anywhere else to go or could even escape.

Leaning up for a glimpse beyond her constraining binds, Kallen could see they had travelled to the heart of the Ikaruga now. Anya and Jeremiah were nowhere in sight as the doctors continued to roll her stretcher towards the ER, the only recognizable person in the distance was someone she didn't dare to tackle.

"-Kallen! It's really you! This… Jesus, what happened to you!?" Ohgi ran up alongside her, solicitude and anxiety were written all over his front.

Somehow, one peek at his caring expression opened the floodgate to her pool of sealed away memories. When she left the Black Knights for Lelouch, she was motivated by passion and affection. Now that she found herself back to where everything began, it was difficult to stop herself from feeling unsettling.

"Hey… Ohgi, I'm glad to see you again. Look, man… I kinda got blown up." Kallen coughed between some of her breaths, unsure why she was suddenly choking up so badly.

Kallen's relationship with Ohgi had always been something she cherished forever, doubly so after losing the brother she admired so deeply. In many ways, they were just as close as she was to her family. He was her only connection to her lost sibling, even though she had to forsake his dream for accomplishing her own, it didn't lessen the ache in her heart when she turned them away.

But I can't go back. I've already renounced the name they know me by.

It was clear the general secretary had complicated thoughts circling upstairs, but it wasn't what he opted to say to the injured Devicer. "…It's alright, kid. You'll be alright, let's get you fixed up. We can catch up after that."

"Yeah… yeah, I think… I'd like that. I'm getting a bit tired again… we'll talk later… for sure." Kallen murmured as she felt her consciousness seeping away through the cracks. Suddenly it made sense why the surgeons wheeling her into the operating theatre was telling their leader to step out.

Kururugi Suzaku, Knight of Zero

Aerial Battleship Avalon, Kyoto airport

"Yo, check'em! You're the new hot-topic in town, humm?"

"Who's asking?"

"Can't you tell just by looking? I'm your new co-worker, Nonette Enneagram."

"…The Knight of Nine."

"Seems like you got your head on straight, dear boy. Remember this pretty face, yeah? You'll be seeing it."

— —

"—Visual on fast inbound Bogeys to the west, no positive-ID."

"—Anyone in this AO without an IFF is a Bandit. Go wild and show 'em how us Rounds dances, Kururugi."

"—Lancelot is moving to intercept inbound Bandits, no assistance required."

"—Hah! Ain't you a cocky one, partner? I'll be here to rate your romps."

"—Let's not pretend your approval means anything to me, Enneagram."

"—Well…! Ain't that the truth, dear boy."

— —

"Hey, hey. Hold your horses, young man."

"What do you need, Enneagram?"

"Always so friendly, ain't-cha, Suzaku. Just trynna give you back this feather you dropped."

"That's-! When did I drop it?"

"Just now. You're welcome, by the way. You're always polishing that thing, it's an heirloom or something?"

"It is… something. It's important to me."

"Maybe keep it in a safer place than your pocket, humm? You'd be in shambles if you lose that on your way to Area Eleven."

"I will. Thanks, En- Nonette."

"That's more like it, dear boy! Go have yourself some fun at school, yeah? Back in my days, Cornelia and I sure had our blast. You should live a little, too."

"I… I shall try."

"Wonderful! No need to be Mr. Reaper when you're off the clock, let's turn that frown upside-down!"

"We're not that close yet, Enneagram."

"Alright, alright. Off you go then, laddie. Don't be a stranger across the pond!"

— —

Suzaku and Nonette. Acquaintances by trade, colleagues in the sky, friends by association. Was there any more relation between them beyond sharing the same job, Suzaku couldn't rightly discern. Regardless, being the only child in his family and raised without a proper childhood, sometimes outlandish thoughts would zap through him when looking at Lelouch and Nunnally during the days of old.

That a sibling wouldn't be all that bad.

An older sister like Nonette… that could be not overly negative. It would still be pretty bad, to be fair, just not his worst nightmare.

However, that was a daydream nested inside a fantasy, unlike the very real prayer for the older Round to come out of her operation safely as Suzaku waited in suspenseful tranquillity outside the OR.

To his left, as far away on the bench as possible was Euphemia. Like him, his princess had been waiting for almost an hour for Nonette to hopefully recover. In that time, Suzaku couldn't find a single snippet of common ground, and not for his lack of effort. Her sulking posture and muddled demeanour made it very clear she wasn't up for a discussion on their earlier quarrel in Cornelia's room.

So, both of them stewed in awkward silence and endured the weird consequences of their first argument up until the 'operation' electronic sign on top of the theatre dimmed out. A group of surgeons walked out, dressed in surgery scrubs dipped in dim pools of blood.

Suzaku stood up from his seat. The intent to speak was impeded by the understanding of its pointlessness. He could ask for Nonette's condition, but then again, he was going to be told that in the next second anyway.

I hope… He didn't know what to hope. Wishing for her survival when he could do nothing to help might just well be a jinx, not that Suzaku believed in such things.

"-My Lord… she won't make it."

"…Oh." And that was that.

The next half a dozen minutes passed in a blur. He was told why Nonette was dying, which was because she lost too much blood. He was told when she was dying, which was soon. But that was about all he really cared, when he refocused the haze under his eyelids, he was already sitting by the platinum-haired woman's side on her deathbed.

"Hey…" Suzaku uttered one word as a greeting.

"…Ku-rurugi… is… is Cornelia…?" Mumbling in a miserably weak voice, Nonette asked.

"She's fine, she's safe. You protected her."

"I'm kinda… regretting that… though." That was more like the usual Knight of Nine.

"You did great, she's very grateful to you."

"How long… have I got left?"

"You… you'll be alright. We'll get you back on your feet in no time." Suzaku complied with the universal tradition of lying in these situations, even if the truth was plainly obvious.

"C'mon… Mr. Reaper… you shouldn't be refusing me this ride across the Styx." If the Japanese knight were anywhere else, he'd have chuckled out of respect.

"You're thinking of Charon. I am Death, different characters."

"…You were great in Darksiders II… I really liked your design in that…" Suzaku rattled his brain for a way to continue Nonette's train of thought, but he was coming up dry.

"I think you lost me there, Nonette."

"Just tell me… how long I have. I promise I won't get mad…"

Braving a plea so sincere, Suzaku couldn't stand to refuse her one request any longer. "A couple of hours, Nonette. You lost too much blood, there's nothing they can do."

"…Heh… so that's that then…" Nonette broke her fatigued gaze from staring into Suzaku's regret and sorrow, appearing surprisingly at peace in her final moments.

"I'm sorry…"

"Don't let me bog you down, young man… it's just the hand I'm dealt."

"If you need anything…"

"Nah… don't waste your time with me. Leave this old hag to her thoughts." Nonette scantily managed a meagre smile, the dark rings under her eyes growing too apparent for the false cheerfulness to prosper.

"I can't just go."

"It's okay… I've done my part and made my peace. You don't have to worry about me." Steeping her final statement in determination, Nonette feebly lifted her right hand to wave away her last visitors.

"Nonette…"

"Now go, I don't wanna anyone seeing me dying." Heeding her humble entreaty, Suzaku stepped back from the bed.

The only wish of a fiery warrior about to depart the living world was a wish Suzaku wasn't sure if he could accept. Being one of the few Rounds to truly earn Suzaku's reverence, the Knight of Nine deserved so much more than what she received from the fickle finger of fate.

Is there nothing I can do? Except there was something, a power he knew too well.

Can I do it… should I? However, the dormant Geass he touched only a handful of times was an untamed ability in an unexplored frontier. Suzaku borrowed the supernatural of the Collective Consciousness once to fulfill a dream that was his calling, he didn't know if a miracle can transpire twice.

"-You should help her. If you can." In his hesitation, Euphemia who stood standoffish to the side had snuck next to him. Her earlier displeasure completely evaporated by that point. Whispering heartfelt advice in his ear, she gently folded her arms around his shoulders as her pinkish hair brushed against his cheek.

"I'm not- I don't know if I can." There were still too many unsolved mysteries, too many uncertain risks.

"When I was stuck in the ether, it was your voice that called out to me. Your love and affection on the end of spider silk dribbled down for me to grasp. You asked for me and I received. You should give her the same question."

"But… what if there can only be one?" After all, that was his ultimate deterrent. It was a trade he could not make. Euphemia was a soul he could not desert, not for anything else.

"I won't ever leave you again, love. Not even heaven itself can revoke me." By the compassionate request of his princess and her voice of assurance in her tenacity, Suzaku was convinced to give the otherworldly magic another go.

"You'll be with me till the end, right?"

"Beyond the end, my love won't be hampered by anything." And that was where Suzaku found an extra slice of confidence.

He returned to Nonette's bedside, a newfound purpose fueling him to act.

"I thought I still got some time left, Mr. Reaper." The Knight of Nine greeted him with a strange welcome.

"It- there's something I can do for you, Nonette." Suzaku made his approach very deliberate, closing the distance between them to inches. "It turns out there're ways to circumvent me."

"So you're getting sloppy with that scythe, humm?" Suzaku scarcely snickered. How the older woman still had the energy to jest, that he could not decipher. Although he had to dissipate the humour in the air, it was going to take forever if they went by Nonette's pace.

"What do you think about Euphie's return?" Saying that, Suzaku shifted his body for Nonette to catch a glimpse of the fluffy princess. Euphemia kindly gave a wave and the dying Round recognized her grace with a nod.

"I just thought… she was never gone." That was the most popular and widely accepted theory across the globe ever since Euphie's upload, and probably the fairest and most logical one.

"That's not it. Coming back from death is possible… in a sense."

"Well… shit! Sign me up." Nonette could just about laugh if she weren't pale as a ghost and about to become one.

"I can try to do that for you, but you have to trust me, absolutely."

"…I always do, young man."

"And… I have to cut your time left here a bit short. It's safer that way." Suzaku had a somewhat muddled idea of what he must do, just a little.

"It's time I won't miss, do what you have to." That was Nonette, headstrong and courageous even in the face of death, or in defiance of it.

"Alright… look at me now, listen to my voice." The silver-haired warrior complied, ushering the last sparkle of life in her eyes to stare intensely into Suzaku's own pupils. "Remember who I am, remember what I sound like… remember our friendship, if that's what we have."

"Don't sell us short… dear boy. You're my best girlfriend." Finally, Suzaku found the mood to share his laughter with Nonette.

"Remember me, hear my words when I call upon you." While his one hand was firmly interlocked with Nonette's fragile fingers as he lent her a human touch in her final hour, Suzaku reached for her life-support switch with the other. "Are you ready?"

"Trust in my self-righteous suicide." It was technically suicide by proxy when Suzaku pulled the plug.

"I see you on the other side."

— —

Author's note

Hey, it's a chapter mostly focused around the guy that everyone hates, big yikes.

Quick rant: I don't understand all the people that hate Suzaku enough to write stories where he just eats shit. It's not that I don't get why people dislike him, but it's awful a lot of effort to put into something you hate. I write this shitty fanfic because I'm absolutely engrossed by the pathos in the show and the story, because I think it's good. I guess bashing Suzaku isn't the only focus of some stories, but I think the show really makes the viewer understand why he is the way he is, making him much more relatable and how can anyone possibly ever dislike anything that's (((relatable)))? Maybe it's about respecting the authorial intent behind his character, which not everyone has to.

Speaking of hating someone. Guys pls no pls don't hate Marrybell she's my OC self-insert even though I'm a CSI dude and I like her and you're not allowed to not like her or you're banned! BANNDED!

What I'm saying is: I don't write characters with the intent of drawing a specific emotion from the readers. So if you dislike Marrybell, the antagonist for this arc, (because she BTFOed Kallen kinda hard?) that's based. If you don't hate her and understand where she's coming from, that's also based. I personally do like her because her character design is pretty kino, also the art in OZ the manga part two is nice, and she's a music person, which is cool. (unless that's my headcanon, then fuck)

The previous few chapters is a good indication of how combat will be handled in this story going forth. Writing fights blow by blow is super boring if written poorly, so I'll have none of that. It'll mostly be lots of radio chatter and dialogue, something that's fun to read, maybe.

Now to reply to some reviews. (This is in bold so you can skip it)

To Tahkaullus01: Will Gawain and Guren return? Yes.

To Jupiter's Bull: Will things get better for the main cast? No lmao. (No, it obviously will. I'm a big coward and I don't think I really have the guts to kill off any main characters, not yet at least.) I do have a happier ending planned, even if it's not as cathartic as the show. Because you're right, why bother writing cringe fic if I'm not making stuff up. I'm not sure about satisfying though, I won't have anyone get dunked on.

To Goten Askil: Why Jeremiah didn't ride Mordred's hand? Don't leave that jeep dude. Also, it doesn't matter. (But thinking about it surfing a mech's hand is kinda dangerous, no need to take that risk.) Don't think I explicitly stated Marrybell's endgame, only alluded to it. But it's probably what everyone thinks it is, so it's not likely to actually happen if I still want a next arc. Canonical Marrybell isn't a big dummy, she's just not Lelouch-tier smart. Glad you enjoyed my take of Kallen back there though. I don't want her to just be Lelouch's lackey, but also have her still reliant on him.

To TykkiMikk: If only anime characters do the rational thing and just talk everything out, right? In the likely scenario Marrybell survives being the enemy, she won't become totally irrelevant to the story, so maybe she'll get better, or won't. One thing I don't like is how seamless Lelouch's recording trick was in season two. Against Mao his recording is pretty realistic, it pauses at places and doesn't directly address what was said, but the one for Schneizel is obviously written as a conversation first and we're just shown it's a recording afterwards. It's a nitpick, I guess.

To Jiggly Joe: I need some context to what you're arguing for or against, but I think the aftermath and effectiveness of Zero Requiem are mostly up for interpretation. Until the movie, anyway. The movie shows us that it just works, so there's no point arguing about what it'll do. But it also doesn't matter in regards to this story since it won't happen.

Done.

I just realized there's a button that lets me reply to reviews in PM, I'll do that from now on. I'll still leave one at the end if it's from a guest reviewer though.

Wake me up-