Author's Note: Nope, not a hoax, this really is chapter five. Sorry for the year and a half wait.

Chapter 5: A Knight's Duty

"Princess Euphemia is ready to be seen."

Ogi stirred, the crackling of his radio drawing back from his dreams. His eyelids pursed, refusing, for a moment, to give up the last images of Chigusa, before finally, they opened. He shut them tightly, wincing as the light burning his eyes. What was happening? He opened one as a slit, looking around the room. His blurred vision catching sight of the prisoner before him. He grimaced, rubbing his eyes and checking again, watching Suzaku stare at him.

"Ogi," The radio crackled back to life again, "are you there?"

Ogi grabbed the radio from his side, "Yes, Zero. I was just..." He paused, wiping the tiredness from his eyes, "distracted for a moment."

"Bring Suzaku to the conference room, Princess Euphemia will be waiting there for him."

"Yes Zero." Ogi murmured, and put the radio away, "I told you, she's getting better, she's not even in the medical facilities." But they were close by, he thought to himself, reaching into his pocket and pulling out the keys to Suzaku's restraints.

"Who is Chigusa?"

The question caught Ogi by surprise, and he looked up, the anklet that bound Suzaku to the chair still in his hand. "What?"

"You said the name a few times while you were asleep." Suzaku looked up, ignoring the sudden flush of Ogi's cheeks, "Is that who you are fighting for?"

Ogi looked down to hide his blush, "She is someone I care about."

Suzaku nodded, watching Ogi unlock the chains that held him in the chair. There were others, a pair on his wrist, and pair on his feet, which remained, but the second set slipped away, and Ogi pocketed the keys once more. "I hope you get to see her again soon."

"I hope so too." Ogi murmured, lingering images of Chigusa in his mind. The last chain fell away from his hand and he rose, "Well then, we should get going," he said, a wan smile on his lips, "It doesn't seem right to keep royalty waiting."

Zero pocketed his radio, "Suzaku should be arriving shortly."

Euphemia looked at the table before her, clasping her hands together, "Thank you." The weight of indecision lingered in her voice, and she forced a smile, struggling to maintain control over her fears. Zero remained motionless for a moment, Lelouch watching her carefully from beneath his mask.

"Excuse me."

At first, the words didn't register in Euphemia's mind. It was the gentle whir of the door opening that finally drew her eyes from the table. A sudden jolt of panic filled her, "You're leaving?"

Zero stopped at the doorway, "I still have to explain what's happening to our allies. Tamaki will be staying with you."

"What?" A voice from just out of sight rang out, almost shrill with shock, "Me?"

Zero turned to the voice, "Is there a problem?"

"No!" The voice was almost frantic, "No problem Zero. You don't have to worry about a thing. I'll take care of everything."

"Good." Zero strode into the hallway, looking back to Euphemia to give her an almost imperceptible nod, then turned to leave. There was a long pause, Euphemia watching him walk down the hall losing sight of him as he turned the corner. She lowered her gaze, drawing a sharp breath as she heard the door begin to close.

"Hey wait-ow!" Her eyes shot up, watching a set of fingers wiggling at the edge of the door. The door clicked for a moment, another set of fingers gripping at the edge just as the door finally registered and opened once more. The figure in the hallway grabbed his hand, looking at the door warily as he entered the room.

Euphemia rose from her seat, "Are you ok?"

"Yeah..." Tamaki grumbled, "stupid automatic door..." He aimed a kick at it, and gritted his teeth as he turned around, almost falling. "Ok... that... wasn't a good idea."

"Maybe you should sit down." Euphemia walked around the table, grabbing the chair Zero had been sitting in, "Here, take this."

"Thanks." He grabbed onto it, almost sitting down when he finally looked at her, "It's really you."

Euphemia shook her head, "I'm sorry?"

Tamaki's mouth moved, shaking his head slightly, forgetting his injuries, "You, I mean, you're princess Euphemia."

Euphemia winced, "I'm not a princess." She fought back the urges in her mind, a headache beginning to form. Still, she managed to smile at him, "You can call me Euphie."

He stared at her, nearly falling into the seat she had given him, "Euphie..."

She nodded, "I take it you're Tamaki?"

"Yeah, Shinichiro Tamaki."

He was looking at her with an expression she couldn't quite grasp, still, she smiled, "It's nice to meet you."

"Princess." Guilford stood at the doorway, watching as Cornelia weeded through the information scattered in front of her, "Everything is ready."

Cornelia cast a sideward glance, making her disdain known before returning to the maps and tactical information sheets spread before her, "Did any of the elevens picked up earlier have any useful information?"

"No." Guilford shook his head, "Most of them have been released, but we are retaining a few for further questioning."

"And the patrols we've sent out?"

"Nothing. They've reported no terrorist activity anywhere around the Special Administrative District."

Cornelia's slammed her fist on the table, "How have these terrorists hidden in plain sight?"

"Princess, if you desire, I will deliver the speech for you."

Cornelia broke from her maps and tactics, looking at him, "Are you questioning my ability to lead?"

Guilford stiffened, "Never."

Cornelia opened her mouth and let out a deep breath, turning away from her knight and bracing herself against the table, "I am sorry, Guilford. I never meant to question your loyalty."

Guilford bowed his head, "Thank you Princess."

"I am not my brother." Cornelia stared at the useless scraps of paper before her, "For him, the media, the press, and all of the useless dribble that feeds out of it, it was all a game to him." She shook her head, "To have my sister taken from me, by some mere terrorist? To have to explain to the braying fools of the media why we cannot find her? To do that instead of going to find her myself?" Her hand balled into a fist, "Give me my knightmare, give me my lance, give me Zero and all of the Black Knights, and I will destroy them all."

"Princess," Guilford waited, watching as she rose and turned to look at him, "When that time comes, I will be honored to stand at your side."

Cornelia managed to smile, "Thank you Guilford." She sighed, looking away from her knight, "The speech has been prepared then?"

"Yes, the podium has a teleprompter, as well as there being a visual feed a few feet in front of the cameras."

"Very well then," Cornelia barely veiled her scowl as she walked towards the door, "it's time to feed the jackals."

"Really? Commander of the second special forces squad?" Euphemia smiled, "That sounds very important."

"Yeah, it does, doesn't it?" Tamaki leaned back in his chair, grinning.

"What does the second special forces squad do?" Euphemia asked innocently, and Tamaki stiffened.

"Uh..." He laughed nervously, scratching the back of his head, "I... actually don't know yet."

"Oh." Euphemia drew back, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to "

Tamaki laughed, "No, it's fine. It's just I was recently appointed and I haven't actually done anything yet."

Euphemia smiled, nodding, "I'm afraid I know that feeling..." She tucked her hands into awkward fists as she felt something gnawing on the back of her mind.

"Huh? But you're a princess. I wasn't sure you had to do anything..."

"No." Euphemia shook her head, headache growing, "That's not true."

Tamaki blinked, leaning towards her, "Are you ok?"

Euphemia's eyes snapped open, finding a concerned look on Tamaki's face, "I'm fine."

Tamaki regarded her warily for a moment, not quite believing her. He opened his mouth, but never got the chance to say what he wanted to, the gentle whir of the automated door catching both of them off guard. Euphemia rose from her seat, staring at the white clothed figure standing at the threshold, "Suzaku..."

She barely whispered it, but he looked up at her, relief spreading over his face, "Euphie." He took a tentative step into the room, the chains on his ankles rattling, "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine." She murmured, her smile failing her as she found herself staring at the chains. "Are those really necessary?" She asked, looking first to Tamaki, then to the man who had followed Suzaku inside.

"Huh?" Ogi blinked, taking a moment before he realized what she meant, "Oh..." He frowned, looking at her with uncertainty, "Zero told me not to take them off."

Euphemia frowned, glancing at Suzaku sadly, "I'm sorry."

Suzaku nodded slowly, taking a step forward then whirling, clutching his hands together and slamming them into Ogi's stomach like a hammer, doubling him up, right into Suzaku's raised knee. Ogi collapsed, blood pouring from his nose as he slumped to the floor, leaving a red stain on Suzaku's knee.

Euphemia and Tamaki stared, momentarily too stunned to respond. Tamaki recovered first, pointing accusingly at Suzaku's back, "Y-You can't do that to the vice commander!"

Suzaku ignored him, falling to his knees, rummaging through his former jailor's pockets, scrambling to get the keys to his chains. He felt the bits of metal when he saw a flash of black, barely pushing himself out of the way as Tamaki's boot came flying past his jaw. Suzaku gritted his teeth, crouching and then springing backwards into Tamaki's leg, sending both of them sprawling, Tamaki slamming into the floor with Suzaku ontop of him. Without a moment's thought, Suzaku rolled off of him, scrambling for the keys once more.

He reached the pocket only to be yanked back, Tamaki grabbed Suzaku's leg, yanking him back, and Suzaku regarded him coldly, kicking him in the face with his free leg. Tamaki slammed his eyes shut, letting go of the leg and grabbing the foot Suzaku had planted in his face. It twisted against his face, and Tamaki shouted, pulling away. Suzaku scrambled on his hands and knees, reaching the pocket and fishing the keys out just before Tamaki slammed into him.

The motion rolled both of them over, the keys ripping against Suzaku's shirt before he landed ontop of Tamaki. Hands frantically clawed at him, and Suzaku drove and elbow into Tamaki's stomach. The man beneath him bucked, slamming a fist against his back, and grabbing at his wrist. Suzaku twisted his elbow into Tamaki's gut, eliciting another shout, but then, his elbow was torn away, both hand grabbing and pulling at his other, still shackled hand.

Suzaku twisted, rolling over Tamaki and crouching in front of him, fumbling with the keys as Tamaki sat up, trying to catch his bearings. He twisted, looking around, and pushed himself off the ground, "Bastard!" He shouted, throwing another wild kick at Suzaku. Suzaku brought up the chain, catching it, and twisted his hand around it, the chain tying Tamaki up. Tamaki's eyes widened, and Suzaku kicked off, yanking Tamaki with him. Tamaki's body was pulled into air, and with a garbled squack, he slammed into the floor.

Suzaku untwisted his hands, the chain chaffing agaisnt his wrists. He winced, and began fumbling with the keys. He'd only seen them for a moment when his jailer had freed him from his chair. He tested a key, then another. Tamaki tried to sit up, failed, and rolled over. Suzaku felt the third key work inside the lock twisting, but Tamaki threw himself into him, slamming them both into the wall, Suzaku's hands trapped beneath Tamaki's chest. "Let's see how you like it," Tamaki breathed, and slammed his fist into Suzaku's side. Suzaku shouted, and Tamaki slammed his fist into his side again. Tamaki pulled back, and Suzaku pushed out with his hands, slipping against the wall. Tamaki watched him slide and opened his mouth. Suzaku grimaced, reared back, and slammed his fist into Tamaki's crotch.

The black knight immediately doubled over, his chest and face leaning against the wall for support. He dropped a second later, and Suzaku pushed him away, finally freeing one of his hands. Tamaki groaned, and rolled over, "Bastard!" He shouted, his voice a whine, and kicked Suzaku's knee. Suzaku winced, and rose, backing away as he freed the chain from his other hand.

Tamaki drew in a sharp breath, pain vividly coloring his vision, watching Suzaku toss the handcuffs away, then kneel down and begin to work on his ankle restraints. Tamaki groaned and rolled onto his side. His body ached and burned, but he pushed himself off the floor, unsteadily rising to his feet. Suzaku glanced up at him, and tried another key. Tamaki took a few stumbling step, steadying himself. There was a click, and the ankle restraint fell away from Suzaku's foot. Tamaki moaned and threw himself at Suzaku again.

Suzaku rose, catching Tamaki's arm, twisting him around and slamming him into the wall with a sickening squelch. Tamaki slid down against the wall, leaving a trail of blood from his shattered nose, and tumbled back over his legs, sprawled on the floor. Suzaku took a few ragged breaths, knelt down and tossed off the last cuff. He shook his head, still breathing heavily and turned. Euphemia was staring at the scene before her, aghast, hands shaking in shock.

"Euphie." Suzaku's voice shocked her back to her senses, "Euphie, are you ok?" She looked at Suzaku in stunned silence, taking a step back as he stepped towards her. "Euphie, it's me."

She shook her head, "They aren't dead, are they? You didn't," Words failed her for a moment as she looked between the two fallen forms, "You didn't kill them, did you?"

"Kill them?" Suzaku shot glances at both of them, almost wondering about the fighter, "No. They're still alive, but Euphie, we have to leave."

Euphemia shook her head, "Suzaku, why did you do this?" Suzaku started walking towards her, and Euphemia stumbled backwards, backing in towards the wall, "Stay back!"

"Euphie," Suzaku controlled his voice, keeping it flat as he walked up to her, "we have to get going, now. It's not safe here."

"Go?" Euphie shook her head, "No, we were just... we were just supposed to meet. This wasn't..." She caught his eyes, "Why did you do this?"

" I had to." He reached out and grabbed her arms, "These people are terrorists Euphie. We have to get out of here now, before anyone comes to check."

"No! This, this shouldn't have happened. If we stay—" Euphie felt the breath leave her lungs, and she looked down to find Suzaku's fist still lingering against her chest. She looked up at him, almost in disbelief, and slumped against him. Suzaku cradled her body against his, then hefted her dead weight over his shoulder, carrying her towards the door. He stopped, looking at the guards, his mind running frantically over what few drills he'd recieved, but, other thoughts, older ones of more desperate times occured to him as well.

He placed Euphie in a chair, making sure she didn't fall off, and checked his jailor, pulling out his radio, a set of keys, and a picture of the man and a dark skinned, beautiful young woman. "Chigusa?" Suzaku murmured, but put the picture back. He doubted the keys were anything other than house key, but it couldn't hurt to take whatever he could get. He moved onto the guard, pulling out a few dollars, some pocket change, lint, and keys. He frowned, about to rise when he saw the chain around his neck. He reached down and pulled it out, the long flat key falling along the chain. Suzaku's eyes widened and he turned it over in his hands, then yanked the chain free, pocketing the key. He rose to his feet and stopped.

"Stop..." The guard grasped feebly at his ankle, "Stop..." His voice was garbled, blood pouring into his mouth from his shattered nose. Tears streamed down his eyes, "You can't," He coughed, "She can't go back."

Suzaku pulled away from Tamaki, watching his hand flop down against the floor. Tamaki took another burbling breath, and passed back out.

Kallen leaned against the railing overlooking the docking bay and sighed. Rakshata smiled, "Not what you were expecting?"

"No." Kallen didn't bother to keep the boredom from her voice.

"Am I not good company?" Rakshata tapped a finger against the length of her pipe.

"You're fine." Kallen sighed and straightened up, "But being passed over for a mission..." She trailed off, "I just don't get it."

"I did tell Zero I needed to do maintenance work on the Guren." Rakshata offered with a shrug, "Although I didn't expect him to take you off duty for the day."

"But we're not even doing the maintenance." Kallen struck the railing, turning to hide her wince, "Is he punishing me?"

"For what?"

Kallen turned around, leaning against the railing and looking back at the scientist, "He certainly doesn't want me seeing Suzaku again."

Rakshata shrugged, and lounged back on her couch, "That was quite a scene earlier. If I didn't know better, I might have thought..."

Kallen stiffened, "Thought what?"

"You managed to get him to lower his weapon and then had him cry on your shoulder, promised no one would hurt him, and," She tapped her pipe, "I could swear I saw you kiss him before you pulled away."

Rakshata smiled as she watched the various expressions play their way across Kallen's face, but in the end, rage won out, "I did no such thing!" She shouted in a huff, and Rakshata chuckled.

"I know, I'm just teasing. Although I would never make a joke like that to Diethard." She rolled her eyes, "Besides, I know better."

Kallen sniffed, turning away from the scientist to allow her blush to fade, "And how is that?"

"I monitor the Guren, if you were slacking, I'd know about it."

Kallen opened her mouth and then closed it, "Well, at least you're not suspicious."

Rakshata tapped her pipe, "That said, he is rather cute, isn't he?" Kallen stiffened and slowly turned back to face her.

Suzaku shifted Euphemia on his shoulder, hovering just inside the doorframe. He'd been lucky so far, finding the hallways of the Britannian battle carrier empty. How they'd acquired a battle carrier, and how the Britannian government hadn't figured it out, was beyond him, but he was glad that he at least had a clue where he was going. He'd reached it moments ago, quietly opening the door before stopping.

Kallen was above him, talking with someone. Someone who apparently thought he was cute. He swallowed a hard knot in his throat and slinked into the hangar, hanging just below the railing. He'd probably only get one shot to find the knightmare frame, so he'd have to find the right one. He continued edging himself along the railing, looking for the right ID code. There could be dozens of them waiting, but as he passed by, found the bay almost entirely empty. He looked around, trying to spot any knightmares, and caught sight of them. Across the hangar, away from any cover, and in plain view of anyone above him that was paying attention.

Kallen sighed, "Aren't we supposed to be discussing ways to improve the Guren?"

Rakshata smiled, tapping her pipe, "I know you pilot my baby, but, I'm it's mother." She sat up, smirking, "And the moment you can improve it in ways that I haven't thought of yet, I'll quit."

Kallen's shoulders drooped, and she leaned over the railing, "So why did Zero send me down here?"

Rakshata shrugged, "Maybe—"

Kallen straightened up suddenly, cutting her off, "No... it can't be."

"Hmm?"

"It's Suzaku!" Kallen stared for a moment, eyes widening, and Rakshata joined her, rushing to the young pilot's side. "How? What is he doing here?"

"He has the princess." Rakshata drew back, "He's heading to the knightmare frames." She paused, frowning, "Does he think he can just hotwire one?"

"It doesn't matter, I'll stop him." Kallen grabbed the railing and jumped over, rolling across the deckplate and breaking into a run. Suzaku had already reached one of the knightmares, Euphemia slumped over his shoulders. He pulled something out of his pocket and swiped it. Kallen slowed to a stop, watching the ladder descended. "He has the access key?" Her heart stopped, "He has the access key!" She turned, running, "Get the Guren up and running, he's stealing one of our knightmare frames!"

Suzaku struggled up the last few steps, Euphemia's weight finally taking it's toll while climbing. He dropped her into the seat and climbed inside, the door sealing behind him. He looked around, it was nothing as sophisticated as the Lancelot, but he at least knew the controls. He grabbed the key from his pocket and inserted it into the system, entering the code scrawled on the back of the card. The knightmare began to come to life, system lights flickering online. An empty can of soda was sitting on the console and Suzaku knocked it away, peeling through the center of the hangar.

A light flickered and Suzaku pressed down the trigger, a hail of gunfire ripping through the wall of the hangar as he sped towards it. The metal wall was torn to shreds, the weight of the knightmare punched through the wounded metal. Sunlight poured over the machine as it slammed into the ground, it's knees absorbing the shock of the fall. The wheels span in the dirt kicking up a brown spray before jerking forward, the knightmare frame skidding away from the Black Knight's base.

A moment later, the Guren MK-II slammed into the ground behind it. "Suzaku, stop!" Kallen's voice rang through Suzaku's stolen Sutherland, her face popping onto the screen beneath him. "What are you doing?"

Suzaku glanced down at the console, "I'm taking her back, Kallen."

Kallen bore down at him, the more agile Guren gaining speed, "Suzaku, she can't go back." Suzaku gritted his teeth, swerving and skidding over a hilltop, trying to maintain distance from the Guren, and Kallen crested the hill, "They'll kill her." Suzaku twisted, firing one of the slash harkens and darting aside. Kallen pivoted out of the way, still gaining on him. "Suzaku, listen to me—"

"No." Suzaku keying in a few more buttons and widening the channel. "This is Suzaku Kururugi, I have rescued Princess Euphemia, but am being pursued. can anyone hear me?"

There was a flicker of light and Suzaku pulled on the controls, the Guren's slash harken slicing into the Sutherland's shoulder. "Suzaku." Kallen's voice cut into the frequency, "You're not in the Lancelot, that Sutherland is no match for the Guren."

Suzaku gritted his teeth, ejecting the arm and swerving again, " Can anyone hear me? This is Suzaku Kururugi, I am in need of immediate assistance."

"Kururugi?" A new voice came over the radio, "What is your location?"

"I don't know." He looked about frantically, trying to pinpoint his location, or at least find a defining landmark, "I just escaped with princess Euphemia, and I'm being pursued."

"We're trying to locate you, stay in the open."

The Guren leapt through the air, slamming into the ground in front of Suzaku, "I'm not giving up, you know." Kallen reminded him, and Suzaku skidded to a halt, "I may not be able to use the radiant wave surger, but that doesn't mean I can't rip the limbs off your Sutherland."

Suzaku gritted his teeth, the Sutherland's wheels spinning in reverse. The Guren came at him, and he twisted, the older model unable to match the movements he was so used to. He barely had time to raise his arm before the Guren reached him, the clawed hand grabbing it and wrenching it, almost pulling it free. Suzaku bit back a curse, firing bothi his slash harkens, the arm falling limply to his side as the Guren ducked under them.

Beneath him, the radar began to ping, Suzaku caught a glance of three more knightmare frames moving towards him, all of them designated friendly. He let out a strangled breath, he was about to be outnumbered four to one. The Guren was more than enough to stop him, how could he possibly handle more than that? The Sutherland peeled backwards the arm dangling uselessly at his side as the Guren moved to swipe his legs from under him.

And then, more pings, almost a dozen popped up on the radar. Suzaku's shoulders fell, and the Sutherland slowed to a stop. "You win Kallen. I surrender."

The Guren stopped in front of him, extending it's arm, "Get out of your pod Suzaku, I'll bring you back."

Suzaku sighed heavily, reaching for the release when more knightmares began to register on the radar screen, more than a dozen. Suzaku blinked, even if they had expected trouble, there hadn't even been that many inside the Black Knight's base and none of them were coming towards him. The first three he'd seen were driving past him. And now, a few of the new arrivals were registering up as enemies.

'They're being pursued' Suzaku's eyes widened, and he twisted his controls, the Sutherland twisting in place, it's useless arm coming up and slamming into the Guren. "What?" Kallen's startled voice came over the comm, but Suzaku ignored it, speeding towards the other knightmares.

"This is Suzaku Kururugi, carrying Princess Euphemia, I'm in an enemy Sutherland, don't fire!" Two of the friendly blips veered towards him, but at the same time, so did several more of the enemy blips. As he watched, one of the Black Knight knightmare frames was torn to pieces by six of the Britannians. Dozens of more blips came up on the radar, and Suzaku stared at the line of Britanian knightmares swerving from their pursuit to reinforce his crippled Sutherland. Already six of them formed a circle to guard him, with more than a dozen more moving in to support.

The Black Knight's retreat slowed to a crawl, almost two dozen of their knightmare frames swerving back towards him. And then, suddenly, they stopped. Suzaku felt his heart racing as he watched them all of them, even the Guren, turn and flee, leaving only enemy signatures on the Sutherland's radar.

Author's Notes: As crazy as this sounds, this has really been in the works for almost two years. I truly am sorry about the delay, but nothing I wrote FELT right. The fight between Tamaki and Suzaku in particular was a real pain in the ass to write. Hell, even getting to that scene was an exercise in frustration. Still, all in all, I'm damn glad I finished it. See, I've been meaning to read those comments everyone made on the last chapter, and I promised myself I wouldn't until the next chapter was up. Call bullshit all you like on that last bit, but then, you probably didn't expect me to continue this story, didn't you? Oh, and yes, I am planning to continue. Just hoping it won't take me a year and a half to finish the next chapter.

I do hope you have enjoyed!