"Are you hurt?" Tusk asked as we approached Angelise and Vivian. At that time, the latter turned into a DRAGON again.

"Tusk... Zero..." Angelise called us before realizing something. "I thought we were above the water."

"Same thing I'm thinking, Princess Angelise," I said as we looked at our surroundings. We were in a city that is filled with forestation or something which could explain why it is covered like grasses.

"Where... are we?"

That's what I want to know, too. I wonder where we are being teleported to.

My sister tried to call Arzenal through the Villkiss, but there are no responds. If I'm not mistaken, we must have been teleported to another dimension. If this is the dimension where the DRAGONs live, I wonder if they got Lelouch's tracking device. That must be his way to send a message to them. Tusk doesn't get any frequency as well and said there is no place like this in Arzenal.

"Maybe it's some ancient ruin, from when humanity was at war," Angelise suggested an answer.

"Not only that, but also we were in another world or something," was all I could say.

"I've never heard of such a thing still around," my mentor added. "I think with the Villkiss, that's possible.

He started explaining that the Villkiss did something to protect us; maybe teleported us our something. What a special machine that is. Even Sister couldn't believe what she is seeing of her machine. When she asked Tusk if he can fix it, he said somewhat. He can get it flying again.

"I'll just go and fix the Shinkiro," I muttered as I started fixing my Knightmare Frame. Good thing I study this thing a lot, so this is no difficulty in fixing it. While I do this, Angelise has decided to scout around the area by riding Vivian. If she's a DRAGON, I hoped to communicate with her people.

After a few seconds, I successfully fixed the Shinkiro. This is just easy since it was barely damaged from the blast Brother pulled. By the time Sister got back...

"We're in the Misurugi Empire?" Tusk asked. As in our home?

"The palace and city were gone," Angelise explained. "But the Dawn Pillar was there. I'll always recognize that."

"Same thing I'm thinking," I added.

"How is it you know about the place?"

"We liv... I mean, I used to live there like you."

Come to think of it, now that I chose to fight with Lelouch's rebellion, I'm going to find atonement to Sister for betraying her. Good thing there's that suicide note I made from last week so I can't go back to my home.

Looks like Sister and I are not so different after all.

She continued on with her explanation with the Dawn Pillar and the city looked like they collapse long ago.

So we were in a different dimension.

"Maybe a few hundred years passed while we were out cold?" Tusk joked.

"Same thing I'm thinking," I agree with his joke.

"This isn't funny, you two!" Sister snapped at us.

"Sorry..." we said altogether.

Sister...

I just wish she could laugh at my own jokes.

Suddenly, we saw a little person or thing in the way so we hid by the Villkiss.

Wait, is that a robot?

Anyway, it said to meet it at central park.

"Survivors?" Sister asked.

"Let's go," Tusk instructed before we follow that robot.

As soon as we went to Capital City Shelter #3, we saw dead bodies inside the shelters. That must mean they have lived there for years and never made it out alive. What a tragedy this is. If that wasn't enough, the management computer known as Himawari told us that this city was destroyed a long time ago by war and the Villkiss.

This means Angelise has a war machine at her hands.

Even so, she chooses her own destiny as far as she told Jill.

Anyway, all of civilization has been destroyed by the Villkiss or something. The world has ended leaving us the only survivors, the only humans in the planet Earth.

As soon as we leave the area for the night...

"Five hundred years, huh?" Tusk believed in the story as he looked at the can that was dirty as years go by. "I guess that's long enough for writing to change, too."

"I guess this proves we were in the future or something," I said my suggestion.

"You two really believe that little skit?" Sister demanded while shining her gun.

"Well, Sis..." I started talking to her but I realized what I'm calling her. "I mean, Angelise. There's no doubt since there are decomposing bodies we saw back there."

"It could be all a lie," she suggested.

"Why would anyone do that?" Tusk asked.

"How would I know?" Sister snapped again. "I'll only believe what I see with my own eyes."

Guess she doesn't believe in what that computer told us. Once again, she takes a ride with Vivian for the night just to prove of what we're seeing happens to be a lie. After a few minutes...

"Vivian, come on. We haven't gone up north yet," she demanded our DRAGON friend to get up. "Come on, wake up, Get a grip."

"Hey, she's tired so don't force her," I tried standing up to her for Vivian.

"Wake up, you useless thing!"

That hurts Vivian so much that she starts running off.

"How could you say that?" Tusk attempt to get to Sister.

"Let go," the latter snapped.

As we looked at her eyes which the sides looked black, which means she looks tired...

"I'm gonna go and talk to Vivian," I suggested.

"Then that's what you'll do," Tusk agreed.

I looked for Vivian, and I saw her in the other side of the area looking sad.

"Hey, Vivian, I'm really sorry about what happened back there," I approached her.

"You must be Zero, aren't you?" she asked.

"Yup, that's me."

"I don't know why Ange is being mean."

"I think it must be because of how she used to live in the Misurugi Empire. You know, she could have been ruthless like her brother if he didn't exposed her of being a Norma," I sit down next to her.

"Brother? What's that?" Vivian asked.

I realized what I just said. How could I've been careless of keeping my face a secret.

"Vivian, I'm going to take my mask off. I want you to promise me not to tell Angelise, or Ange, of it."

"Why not?"

"Because I'll reveal it on the right time."

"Okay, then. Show me who you are."

That's when I took off my Zero mask and the black half-mask off, showing my face to her.

"Who are you?" Vivian asked.

"My name is Sylvia Ikaruga Misurugi, and I'm Angelise's little sister," I told her about myself.

"What is... 'sister'?" it's obvious she wasn't thought about terms in family.

"Well, Vivian, a sister is someone who shares the same parents. To make it meaningful, it's a girl who shares the same interests like ancestry or character."

"If you're Ange's sister, then why are you hiding yourself from her?"

I decided to tell her the truth.

"Because... I let her down," I replied a little story of that night, not to mention I cried.

"I see..." Vivian said with understanding.

"Anyway, just stay here. I'll talk to my sister," I put on the black half-mask and Zero mask back on. "I'll show her my true identity when the right time comes."

"Okay."

That was a nice talk I had with Vivian. As for Tusk talking to my sister...

"My dead comrades, and my parents' wishes..." he snapped at her when I show up. "It's all garbage to you, is it?"

"Well..." my sister tried to come up with an answer, but he walks away from her.

I never thought I see the night my mentor snapped at my sister.

Just what did she say to cause him to snap at her?

Why does Sister have to be so mean?

Then again, I thought back on that night...

You took it all. You destroyed everything. Bring back Mother. You monster! You monster! I hate you!

Why did I have to be so mean to her?

Looks like we're not so different.

I think I'm the real monster, not her.

If only I never existed...

The next day, Tusk has been ignoring Angelise, and I think I should do the same. At least for a while. I'm going back to Vivian and that's when we started to have a good bond like never before. We have become sisters.

By the afternoon, I saw Sister leaving a pendant for Tusk to see. That must mean she is giving him that as an apology.

"Ange..." my mentor calls to her.

"I thought it might look good on you, that's all. How is it?" Angelise said as she turns to see Tusk putting on her gift. "I think it's good."

"Thanks," Tusk thanked her. "You must be tired. Let's eat."

"Hey. I'm, um... I'm sorry"

Did Angelise just apologize to Tusk? Even I'm surprised by this.

"You know how to apologize?" he asked.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Sister asked.

"I'm sorry for being so harsh, too," my mentor approached her and offers his hand and she grabs it in reply.

Just then, Vivian went back to us.

"Vivian," Sister hugged her. "Sorry about last night. I said too much. Thanks, Vivian."

So Sister does know how to apologize, contradicting on that night of her execution.

I took a deep breath under the mask. I found the right time to show her my face.

"Angelise Ikaruga Misurugi, I wanna talk to you privately," I told her.

"Um, okay," she agree with surprise.

Tusk must know what I'm going to do and decided to just watch with Vivian.

Now that it's just between me and my sister...

"Angelise, I've been helping you much, right?" I asked her.

"You sure did. You took me a bath, gave me some food and lyrics to the Endless Song. What's more is that you helped me when I tried to take the Villkiss back from Salia and when I tried to kill Julio. I think you did more than enough," she replied.

"Looks like I have your trust," I said with a smile under the mask. "I'm going to show you my face, but before that, I'll tell you a story as a hint."

"What is it, then?"

"There was this little girl who had everything in life. That is until one day, it was all ruined when her eldest brother exposed her elder sister of one thing: being a Norma. Their mother tried to save her middle child, but she died. It was then the little girl's brother told her lies which caused her to betray her elder sister when she came to her rescue. Their father got hanged for hiding the truth about their middle child to be a Norma. With this, she started whipping her on the night of her execution, blaming her for all the misdeeds she didn't even mean to do like pushing her off the horse when it was an accident. Before long, this boy came to her rescue and thanked her siblings for their misdeeds."

"Just what are you saying, Zero?"

"I'm saying, Angelise, thank you. Thank you for saying I showed you the true, filthy nature of human beings."

Upon hearing those words, she looks surprised as she is starting to realize who is under this mask. After all, it was her little sister whom she said those words on that night.

"Sylvia?" she asked.

That's when I took off the Zero mask to confirm her answer. Not only that, but also the black half-mask. After this, she turns away from me as she can't find anything to say about this.

"I know you have mixed feelings for me, Angelise. I'm not anymore that betrayer that night. Lelouch told me everything," I tried explaining to her while I'm crying with tears coming out of my eyes. "He opened my eyes, showed me that I was wrong about everything. I just you wouldn't forgive me easily when I defected from the Misurugi Empire, so I became his alter ego, Zero, as my atonement. I helped you lot, but I'm not sure if that's enough. I'm not asking you to forgive me for betraying you on that night. I'm just asking you to understand that I'm working for Lelouch now to keep you safe. He understands that you're the one who can destroy the world which you both think it's rotten filled with those Mana people whom you think are the real monsters. Now I understand Norma are not evil, but us humans who use Mana. Look at me now. I'm killing my own kind for your sake. You may be a Norma, but you're still you. I get it. You and I are truly the same."

Before long, I wiped off my tears because I'm going to face death bravely once again when I point a pistol to my head.

"Goodbye, Angelise. I'm so sorry."

As I closed my eyes and ready to take my own life again, I felt I was being grabbed, so I opened my eyes to see Sister grabbing the gun away from my head.

"Sylvia..." she started crying as she wrapped her arms around me for a hug. "I forgive you."

That's when I hugged her in return. This is the day we have our reconciliation.

"I knew it. I knew all along you're Zero," she explained, and that's what surprises me.

"You knew it?" I asked.

"Lelouch told me about what he's planning while I was in a jail cell for a week. He kept me updated," Sister added. "To tell you the truth, he told me of what you're going to do that night when I came to your fake rescue."

She also knew this?

"Lelouch told me that before I came. I was betrayed earlier on, but I kept it sealed until you wound my left arm and said those words," she explained. "The only reason I fell for the trap because he told me to. If I hadn't, then Brother would know about his plan and try to go after me the hard way."

It all makes sense. Lelouch saw through my transmission, so he told Angelise about it. He must have planned this all along to have us distant for a while so I can regain her trust without letting her know who I am under this mask.

"I'm so sorry, Sister," I apologized again as we let go of the hug.

"There's no need to apologize, Sylvia. You're only doing what he wanted you to do so he can train you to be the atoner I see you now. I'm really proud of you."

With her forgiveness for me, we have become sisters once again.