The next day, Sayoko has found a aircraft carrier from the castle. With it, we can use it as our headquarters to take stand against Julio, and it's cool because it not only goes by air, but also goes by water. He doesn't know that Sylvia and I are going to rebel against him, but he'll know when we make a surprise attack out of him. Inside, Sayoko and Jeremiah are piloting the vehicle, but there are times they can put it in autopilot. As for seating arrangements, Suzaku sits on my right, while Sylvia sits on her left. Luckily, I added additional passengers like Misty and the little kid known as Hilda. I thought they could be useful for my plan.
As for little Hilda, I looked guilty when I see her sad.
She just lost her mother, and I thought back on that visit.
"So, Hilda's still alive," Mrs. Schlievogt stated when I gave her a picture of her firstborn from Arzenal.
"And she's fighting a group known as DRAGONs," I replied.
"I see..." she said before putting up a sweet smile. "It's good to see her all grown up."
"Yeah, but she's just waiting to be reunited with you and stop this. Too bad I can't have that. I need her to keep on fighting and get her to be friends with her people in order to contain a threat that would be beyond my imagination."
"And how will you do that?"
I told her on how will do that. It would be require a sacrifice.
"I see..." Hilda's mother looked calm while we were sitting on the same table. "You want me to cast Hilda out?"
"Yes, to give her a reason to keep on fighting and see the true colors of the people using Mana," I stated with my hands clasped on mouth level. "Addition to that, she will kill you for rejecting her via the Geass command I will inflict on her which will activate when you reject her."
"Lelouch, can you promise me one thing?" Mrs. Schlievogt said with a still calm expression. "Take care of Hilda; both of them."
When I hear those words, I started to get teary-eyed from the request.
"Understood," was all I said as my hand was shaking.
"Do not fear. Is that what you're planning, is it not? Compared to you, my pain will be over in an instant. Even if I cast Hilda out as soon as she went back home, I'm really proud of her. You're both gentle children," Mrs. Schlievogt said.
I stood up from the table and I grabbed one last slice of apple pie from her.
"Get ready when she gets here. First, pretend you don't recognize her, and as soon as she reveals her true identity, you know what to do," I said before I left.
Back to reality...
"Lelouch..." Sylvia asked.
"Hmm?" I turned to her.
"I'm curious. Between you and your sister, what happened between you two and how did she regained her love for you?"
Upon hearing this question, I decided to tell her the entire story.
"You see, Sylvia, before the conflict, I was Zero, the leader of the Black Knights to take up the fight against the Holy Britannian Empire for their dictatorship. Anyway, it didn't last long when my own troops turned against me because of my half-brother, Schneizel. He told them the truth about my identity and my Geass power."
"Wait, you have a Geass power?" Sylvia question and I showed this to her. "I see..."
"This Geass power I have, it can make anyone obey me, but there are rules. I'll finish my story first before I tell you the rules, okay?" I turn off my power.
"Okay, but does Angelise know about this?"
"Yes, she knows, and so does Momoka. Back to the story, I was about to die by my own troops and I accepted it because I didn't have a reason to live anymore, lest my sister, Nunnally, was proven that she's alive. I was saved by some kid kid who pretended to be my brother. Because of this, I dedicated to taking down my father, Charles zi Britannia, and become emperor for Britannia. Too bad Nunnally didn't took it well when Suzaku and I found out she's alive, so we had no choice but to fight her as enemies. It didn't last long when I had her captured and ruled the entire world as a dictatorship, but what happened was just a part of my plan."
"What plan?" Sylvia questioned me once again.
"To die," I replied bitterly. "You see, kid, I made the whole world hate and to get rid of that hatred was that I had to die."
"And I had to kill him so that his plan will become successful," Suzaku added.
"You killed him?" the girl asked him.
"Yes, as Zero," was his reply.
"My death... was for the world to get along with each other, ending the war once and for all," I added.
"But you're alive. How could...?" Sylvia started to ask me the question that I can't answer. Not yet, anyway.
"How about I tell you that some other time, kid. Wanna hear the rules of how I use the Geass?"
"Yes, I wanted to hear them."
"For starters, the Geass can only be used once per person. Second, you have to give out precise commands. And lastly, eye contact is what it causes the power to work, not on a distance. Got it?"
"Yes, I think I got it."
"Good. Well, if only you have the same power as mine..." I commented.
No sooner than later that we all arrived on the island where Tusk lives as his headquarters. Suzaku and I accompany Sylvia as we decided to talk to him about our little idea.
"I don't believe this!" Tusk looks outraged of my idea. "What have you guys done?!"
"We broke her free from the Mana users programming of hating Norma, and because of this, she will be fighting for our side," I explained.
"But she's too young to fight!"
"That's why we request that you should train her to fight. That way, she can learn how to take care of herself. You know, the only reason she betrayed Ange, her sister, was because she's dependent on Julio, her brother. Now that she's willing to make amends for her, she will have to choose her own destiny willingly. Besides, I'm sure there are Norma kids fighting DRAGONs, so it's no big deal if Sylvia wants to fight. After all, she chose this willingly," I explained.
As Tusk started to think about my offer, he puts up a smile.
"Well, that's good news," he approached Sylvia. "So you're Sylvia, Ange's little sister, right?"
"Yes, I am," she replied.
"Now that you don't hate her anymore, I'm sure you and I can be good friends. Well, as long as you don't hit me for any slightest infractions. After all, your sister took quite a beating out of me when I said she's blonde below."
"Good. You can train her for about a week," I instructed. "But I will give her a test for tonight."
"What's my test, Lelouch?" Sylvia asked me.
"You'll hear that from me for tonight," I replied as it's time to go back to the aircraft carrier. "Come on, Suzaku. Let's go."
"Right," Suzaku followed me.
In the meantime, I will be monitoring what Ange is doing in Arzenal. If I'm not mistaken, Jill must have punished her for desertion and she might have probably locked her up in a jail cell or something for a week.
If her punishment is for a week, then that should be no problem.