A pair of birds flew over the walls of the palace of New Pendragon and settled on the grounds gracefully. A pair of black clothed guards walked by without even paying them a second glance as they made their rounds.
Once the guards had turned the corner and entered another courtyard, the two both shifted into the form of Black Knight guardsmen.
"You're sure this is how you want do do this?" C.C. asked as she glanced around suspiciously.
"Yes," Lelouch replied simply as he gestured towards a doorway across the yard, "go that way, I'll go the other way. We'll meet up in the throne room, okay?"
"Yes, my lord," C.C. deadpanned as she saluted and made a half-bow in an over-dramatic fashion.
"Shut up," Lelouch replied with a roll of his eyes—which were lost on the witch due to their helmeted attire—before they split up in search of their prey.
It took Lelouch only five minutes to locate Kallen and Gino lounging in a sitting room with Rivalz—who had joined the knights shortly after his "death"—and another two knights he didn't recognize. They were all watching a broadcast by Milly with interest and barely noticed the new arrival.
"Captain Kallen, Her Majesty requests your presence," Lelouch said as he half-bowed.
"Huh? Okay?" The red-haired captain said in confusion as she stood up with Gino and made her way towards the door, only for the guard to block Gino's path with an outstretched arm.
"Only Captain Kallen, Knight Weinberg." Lelouch said with a pointed glance at Kallen. "Zero is talking with Her Majesty. Alone."
Nodding her understanding, Kallen patted Gino on the shoulder, "it's okay, I'll be back in a minute. Let me know if Milly does anything...or Rivalz for that matter."
"Very well," Gino said as he glances at the guard for a moment before returning to his seat by Rivalz.
Lelouch led Kallen through the palace and into the throne room, where he turned around and waited after Kallen shut the doors.
"Where is-" she began to say.
"A little shorter than the long way around, eh, Kallen?" Lelouch said softly as he shifted into his original form, causing her jaw to drop and grab onto the door frame for support. Not even a second had gone by before Nunnally and Zero walked into the room through the imperial entrance with another guardsman, who shifted into C.C. upon seeing Lelouch.
A pin could have dropped from across the throne-room and it would have been heard whistling as it fell.
"L-Lelouch!?" Suzaku and Kallen cried out in equal parts stunned joy and outrageous disbelief.
"It is I!" Lelouch cried out as he struck out both arms dramatically, "Lelouch the Demon has returned from the gates of Hell to conquer the realm of man once more!"
He was then promptly tackled without a shred of dignity to the floor by a furiously crying Nunnally.
"You were dead! I watched you die! I watched you die!" She wailed as Zero and Kallen hesitated in how they planned to deal with the situation they had suddenly found themselves in.
For her part, C.C. simply sat down on the floor and held Cheese-kun in her arms as she waited.
It took more than a few minutes, but eventually the Ninety-Ninth Empress of Britannia came to a slow and tired halt as Lelouch hugged her fiercely for the first time in a little over two years.
"You...you died big brother..." She repeated weakly.
"Yes...yes I did..." Lelouch said emotionally as he pulled out of the hug to look her in the eyes.
"Someone...explain this...please..." Kallen said as she stared at Lelouch with tears streaming down her face as Suzaku fell to his knees and removed his helmet.
"It...cannot be..." He claimed, sounding far off as he tried and failed to look at Lelouch through his own tears.
"I made a contract with God," Lelouch stated simply.
"H-huh?!" Kallen and Nunnally exclaimed in surprise while Suzaku's eyes widened in understanding.
"You went to C's world again..." He questioned as he got his emotions under control.
"I did. And I was contracted much like I was with C.C." Lelouch explained. "It is now my duty to protect the peace I died for. However, I will no longer be known as Lelouch or seen by anyone in this form. I will go on as a new man with a new face." He paused as he glanced at Kallen and Suzaku, both still very emotional as they finally came close to hug him as well. He then stared down at Nunnally with even more emotion.
"This is goodbye." He stated with finality in his voice.
"B-but...you just came back." Nunnally stammered as Kallen and Suzaku echoed her statement.
"I know," Lelouch said sadly as he hugged his sister again. "But don't worry, there is still one thing that has to be done before I can completely turn away from my former life..."