The Chess Match

12

-L/L-

"You do not go against my orders like that. Ever." Lelouch was furious, the heat from his anger forming fog-patches on the inside of his helmet. His voice came in clipped phrases, and he found it difficult to not reach over the table with his handgun to pistol whip the man across the face. He turned once more in his pacing walk. "Do you understand? Next time, the consequences will be swift and severe, and you will not survive whatever Tamaki wants to do to someone I call a traitor. Is this clear, Diethard?"

The man in question swallowed thickly, his adam's apple bobbing like a viscous tumor. He had already gone from thoughtful explanation as if he could convince Zero he was correct in his actions to rushed apologies while repeating how much he respected Zero as he feared for his life to simple exhaustion. For now, Diethard Ried was broken and manageable again. Lelouch wasn't sure how long it would last, but at least for this next mission, the Britannian propaganda-maker was under Zero's thumb. He would have much rather approached the situation quietly and spoken with Diethard in secret, but since Ohgi had been the one to call him, the information was probably all among the upper ranks and retribution needed to be evidenced.

"I made you an official in the Black Knights because I believed that you were capable of following my orders despite your previous defection and your heritage," Lelouch's voice was softer now, almost coaxing. Annoyingly, he also had to play good cop to his own bad cop. "But I can just as easily take that away and the whole of the Order would support that precisely because of the things I overlooked. I base this organization on merit—not everyone agrees with that—so you had better show your worth as the Chief Intelligence Commissioner and prove that I was not wrong in promoting you."

Diethard nodded, his lock of bangs bobbing as he hung his head dolefully.

Lelouch glanced at the clock. He'd spent perhaps too much time reprimanding Diethard; the submarine would be close to the island now. Toudou would be looking for him on the bridge. Without waiting for further acknowledgement from the man slouching defeated in the chair, Zero exited the room.

Kallen was waiting for him just outside the door. This was to be expected; Ohgi had probably told her that Zero would be dealing with Diethard's punishment. However, he did not expect Light to be with her. He tilted his mask towards her, so it was obvious he was addressing the captain of Unit Zero.

"I am going to the bridge. Walk with me if you like."

Kallen nodded, falling into step next to him. Light followed, a strangely submissive distance behind for the high schooler. "Zero… I… I'm really sorry."

Lelouch didn't pause his steps. "For what?"

His question seemed to catch her off guard. "I-I nearly killed Kururugi. Even though it wasn't an order from you. I… I'll take any punishment you see fit."

"Kallen." Lelouch finally stopped, and turned his whole body to face her. "You didn't kill him. Therefore, no punishment. The Black Knights are not so cruel as to punish where one is not at fault. We have enough pain from the Britannian army and repression from the citizens who took Japan from us. In my eyes, you have done nothing wrong—in fact, you were essential to finding out that someone was going behind my back. For that, I should thank you instead."

Lelouch waited to see how Kallen would deal with this information, and thanked his own genius once again when he had made the mask impenetrable from the outside. He was actually more interested in how Light would react. He had seen Light try to stop Kallen the night of the party. There was no way that Light would be squeamish about death in front of him considering his constant companion, so he wouldn't have stopped Kallen just to prevent bloodshed. Although Lelouch didn't like to admit it, Light might have already known Zero well enough to understand that he wouldn't order Suzaku's assassination, although he also might have not wanted Kallen to be immediately captured and his own self questioned. He must have known Zero wouldn't let Kallen be sacrificed so easily. So, would he let Kallen take all the glory now for foiling the assassination?

Kallen blinked, clearly thrown by the turnaround. "Well, I… you shouldn't thank me, Zero. I really was about to kill Kururugi last night, but…" she swallowed, and then stepped back, gesturing to the man behind her, "…Light helped me figure it out. If anyone, you should be thanking him."

"Oh?" Lelouch let the word hang in the air, giving Light the opportunity to claim or deny it.

"It was nothing, Zero." Light said it effortlessly, and if Lelouch didn't know the other boy well enough, he might have thought his words meant he felt like he wasn't owed any thanks for the job. Since Lelouch did, however, he could tell it really meant that to Light, it was nothing. Any normal high schooler unfamiliar with Zero would likely stammer and look down. It was in the corner of his mouth, the barest hint of a smile, along with how easily the confident words flowed from his lips. If Lelouch hadn't spent so much time observing Light, there was no way he would have caught it. Light clearly thought his abilities were far greater than anyone else's.

Which is where Lelouch would catch him.

"Light, is it?" he asked, playing the game. "Why don't you come with Kallen and me to the bridge then. If Kallen thinks this highly of you, then I'm sure I can find something more suitable to a man of your merits."

As he turned back towards the bridge, he saw Light's split-second and nearly invisible reaction to the news. Those almond eyes narrowed for a fraction of a second, the ghost of a smile tightening his lips. It was somehow terrifying, especially as Kallen's response was so normal—her chest puffed up with pride and happiness and her eyes went wide with excitement. Lelouch completed his turn and with his back fully to Light, he fought back a shudder. Especially with a creepy look like that, Lelouch didn't like Light to be out of sight.

After several hallways and turns, Lelouch arrived at the control room of the submarine. Toudou was already there, discussing something with Ohgi who was always to stay at the helm when Zero left the room. The two Japanese men turned to face the new arrivals. Rakshad looked up from her bench-seat-turned-lounge, a thin trail of smoke echoing from her mouth. Within moments, the upper echelons of his army were spread out before him in a line.

"Zero," Ohgi commenced, "We're about ten kilometers from Shikinejima."

"Right on schedule," Lelough replied, letting the smile show in his voice. "I have discussed with each of you your specific goals for the day, but nothing more. Let me explain further then. Euphemia is going to that island to greet a nobleman from the mainland later today. Suzaku Kururugi, whom I gather seems to be a larger problem to some of the Black Knights than I anticipated,"—this gathered an ill laugh from Toudou who must have just been informed of Diethard's disobedience—"should be with her. Because they are so far away from the mainland, they will be effectively cut-off and unable to receive support for several hours. This makes for an excellent opportunity. Our mission objective is to capture both Suzaku Kururugi and the Lancelot. We will win this battle and take them fair and square."

Toudou nodded sagely, seemingly pleased with the fairness of the battle. Rakshad stretched as if sleepy, but Lelouch was beginning to read her well enough to know she was looking forward to capturing new machinery. Her eyes had lit up when he had mentioned the Lancelot. Ohgi saluted, and then turned back to the submarine monitors.

Zero stepped over to one of the side panels where the remaining Holy Blades were waiting to be called down to the hangar, "Kagesaki," Zero began, addressing the Unit Three captain, "I want you to start training Light here as a pilot. He might be new, but he comes with a strong recommendation from Kallen. Unit Three doesn't have a very difficult plan today as we are not expecting reinforcements after the initial breach, so if he could tag along as far as it's safe to do so, I believe he would learn a lot faster through practical means. I would like him to be ready for combat as soon as possible… we are getting a new unit that is attuned to someone roughly his size…."

Kagesaki nodded to Zero, then sized up Light with a half-smile. Kallen gasped from behind Zero, and he knew she couldn't believe how lucky Light was to get to train as a pilot. No doubt she was thinking how great it would be to fight alongside him.

Inside his helmet, Lelouch couldn't help his smile. This would be the chess game that Light must lose. The real battlefield was where Lelouch excelled beyond mere games, where he held absolute control, and where Light would fall. Not today, unless Lelouch got very lucky, but it would be only a matter of time before Light would be in the line of fire. This Kira would be gone from the list of Lelouch's worries, and Nunnally would be safe again. He didn't like to think too closely about killing off one of his classmates—even Light—but it was necessary to secure Nunnally's future. Her happiness. He was still carnage incarnate and must press on.

Check.

-L/L-

But how did it come to this? He heard a scream—was it Kallen?—followed by a man's shout and a roar growing in his ears, but disregarded them all. The only thing that mattered was that Suzaku was preparing to die.

"You're going to die with me! Do you really want that?!" It was impossible. After all he'd been through; after all they'd survived… was it really going to end this way? When he was ten, he had thought that he, Suzaku, and Nunnally would all die together when the Britannian invasion began. When the bombs fell. He'd been angry then, thinking that he wouldn't get revenge on his murderous father. But now…now, what would Nunnally do without him? And Suzaku wouldn't be there to protect her either. Suzaku would be….

The truth seemed to register on Suzaku's face for a moment as his green eyes widened. The air was completely still, except for the sound of Suzaku's breath fast and shallow. The Britannian army communication link crackled again. "—rugi, your death… …not in vain… …opportunity to kill Zero! You'll be… …forever!..."

"Shut up!" Lelouch shouted, unable to contain himself. The damned radio was only making Suzaku lose his self-reason. It was like a frightening mantra that could shut off emotions. Suzaku's eyes narrowed again, the gun in his hand steady once more. Lelouch couldn't take it. He didn't want to, but….

"A soldier does his duty." Suzaku's voice was cold. It barely sounded like him and made Lelouch all the more angry.

"That must be nice! Having someone else make all the decisions for you!" How on earth could Suzaku be so calm in the face of his—their—death! Didn't he know how much was at stake here? Didn't he know he was important? "Don't you think for yourself?!"

"Of course!" Suzaku retorted, finally catching some of his fire again. "I decided this for myself—!"

A shadow swallowed the light. It was too slow to be the missiles. It was like an enormous cloud, but stuck deep as he was inside the cockpit, Lelouch couldn't see what it was. Suzaku's eyes slowly roamed up the ceiling and then into the sky. The slight 'o' of Suzaku's mouth made it clear to Lelouch that no matter what shape it took, it was Death above them.

"Suzaku!" He let slip before he could help himself. Not Kururugi. Suzaku. His friend. "You're going to die!"

The brown head whipped back down to face Lelouch's mask, anger and terror etched in his face. "That's better than breaking the rules!"

The ground trembled, people screamed, and even the air inside the cockpit seemed charged with an electric hum. He had no choice… he didn't want to… Suzaku was his friend… but… time was running out… Suzaku… he had to do something….

"You idiot!" Lelouch shouted, activating the eyehole on his helmet. Suzaku's eyes widened in only surprise, not fear, and for a split-second, his green eyes looked directly into his unburdened purple one. And then….

"Live on!"

Armageddon rained down and the earth swallowed them whole.

-L/L-

Wet sand clung to his uniform and there was something heavy wrapped around his middle. Light had never felt so disoriented in his life. His ears were ringing. He wasn't sure if he could move… or whether he should. The heaviness could be something broken….

Then he heard the rasping laugh and knew he was definitely going to live. He groaned; Ryuk laughing was not helping his mood.

Light opened his eyes, and then squinted them against the harsh sun. He pulled his head up with difficulty and blinked slowly until his eyes adjusted. Even that small movement demonstrated how his muscles ached from a bone-deep exhaustion. He looked down at the rest of his body.

A large piece of kelp was twisted around his stomach. The tail end trailed into the water that played about his feet, gently sloshing his shoes. That would explain the heaviness, as the long-leafed seaweed was still dense with water, but it had probably helped keep him buoyant. With his muscle density, he didn't float horribly well on his own.

Kept alive by kelp. It could have been much worse.

Light gently eased himself up, trying to gain his bearings and judge whether he was injured. Incredibly, as his disorientation wore away, he found that with the exception of a few scrapes, sore muscles, and an oncoming headache, he was completely fine.

Light sighed, glad to be alive, and glared at Ryuk, who stopped laughing almost immediately like a dog who had been reprimanded.

Light remembered quite clearly the events that had led him to his new predicament. How Kallen had persuaded Kagesaki to let Light ride along with her instead. How she proceeded to dive right into the middle of the battle with Light in the cockpit behind her. He had been both impressed by her fighting prowess and shocked by her stupidity. Who brought her untrained boyfriend into a war zone?! And then there was all the shouting at her enemies. What kind of insult was "your defense is anemic!" anyway? Who says that? The last straw was that she ignored him the whole time. To be fair, he could understand why she would in the midst of battle, but then why would she coerce him into riding along in the first place? And how on earth could the rest of the Four Holy Blades have just let her do as she wished? Whatever happened to the consequences of disobeying Zero? Just what had Kallen been thinking? Light had been delighted to find that she was smarter than he first considered, but her latest actions had just blown apart his previous assumptions. She clearly had not been thinking.

What was worse, was that she hadn't been thinking about him.

So of course, when Suzaku had captured Zero, Kallen had rushed in despite his shouted warnings, neatly bringing Light directly into the center of the Gefjun Disturber net. The Guren had shut down—as he had told her it would—and she tried to jump out. Light had caught her on the sand, heaved her over his shoulder and ran for the side of the net. It would be no good for her to get herself blown up if Light could help it—she was a great in to the organization and as much as he tried not to get his personal feelings involved, he had to admit she was a decent person. If she deserved to die, he would have already killed her. The dark shape of a floating ship had overshadowed them and then Kallen began screaming and flailing as the first round of missiles hit. Ryuk's echoing laugh had pierced his skull. Not yet, Light had thought. He still had so much work to do! The air lit up around him, sand exploding and cascading over his back, in his hair, hotly scorching his arms. The world turned in slow motion, surreal and strangely beautiful like a movie. And that's when he saw his chance. The Lancelot, shining white and gold in the flashes, was moving.

Right at him.

He wasn't sure when he had lost Kallen; she had been struggling so much over his shoulder that she must have disentangled herself or else an explosion had knocked her off with sufficient force. All he could do now was focus on his own survival. Wheels spun across the sand, propelling the white foot. Light jumped straight for the white Knightmare Frame, landing solidly on his feet, his arms grasping for purchase around the slick ankles of the machine. The speed nearly ripped him off immediately, but he clung on and flattened himself against the machine.

He was almost immediately dizzy as the Lancelot pirouetted and leapt. Light closed his eyes. He was feeling naseous, his ears ringing, his muscles shaking, his head might even be on fire…

And then he woke on the beach. He knew time had passed, but wasn't sure how long. The sun was lower in the sky, maybe midafternoon of the same day, or… midmorning of the next.

Either way, he didn't know where he was. He glanced down at his slowly drying uniform; he could be in a lot of trouble if the Britannians found him. It was mostly likely that he was on some other part of Shikinejima, and whoever controlled the island probably depended on which day it was.

Getting gingerly to his feet, Light scanned the shore. There was no sign of anyone nor habitation for as far as he could see. Seagulls soared and chattered above him. Bits of driftwood and seaweed were scattered distantly along the beach. An insectan hum emanated from the forest behind him. It would be best to find a place to hide until he could learn more—enough to find a way out or be rescued.

He felt a pang of sadness, then wiped it out. If Kallen were alive, she would no doubt have sent out a search party. However, it was most definitely her own fault that she was dead, and that he was in this situation. She had been stupid and had nearly dragged him down with her. If the Lancelot of all things hadn't almost rolled him over, he would have surely died. Like Kallen undoubtedly had.

"Good riddance," he said to Ryuk, although the monster had no idea what he meant. Light didn't care if his hulking follower understood. He was angry, suddenly very angry. The biggest curse of his life wasn't that Ryuk would kill him someday. It was that he couldn't lie to himself.

It was that he still wished Kallen were with him, despite everything she'd just done. Despite how he was still angry with her, he was still angrier at the world for taking her away from him.

The world was not yet perfect, and Light swore again that he would make it so. He would be its benevolent god and no one—not even idiots like Kallen or Suzaku—would be sacrificed for such petty things like war over territory.

Gritting his teeth, Light walked into the jungle, the shadows and greenery masking him from the world, except for one last sun-splintered glimmer from his watch.

-L/L-

The dead were all around him. They clawed at his arms, his legs, and closed slimy, blood-slicked fingers around his neck. No matter what Lelouch did, he couldn't break free. Clovis' face appeared before him, the bullet wound oozing blood from his forehead, his expression lifeless and empty the same way it had been when Lelouch shot him. His blue eyes stared forward, seeing nothing. Lelouch wanted to vomit, but he couldn't breath. They held his throat. Shirley's father appeared next, and then Shirley herself. Lelouch wanted to scream that she wasn't dead—he knew she wasn't dead!—but he couldn't say anything at all. The dead and those he had wronged held him down, laughed, cried, and screamed in the darkness, and were dragging him deeper and deeper, he was drowning in blood, drowning in his sins, drowning, drowning—

Lelouch hit the rock and was thrust abruptly out of his nightmare into stinging saltiness. The water roared around him, and before he could do anything else, he was slammed against the rock again. He gasped for air and only got the salty water that filled his helmet. The wave pulled him back and he ripped off his mask, finally gaining air just to hit the rock a third time. His shoulder stung hotly in the chill water, but he was getting the feel of the waves. On the fourth one he paddled desperately to the side, still clipping the rock with his helmet—his cape was slowing him down—but the water carried him further to the shore and almost unbelievably, he tip-toed the bottom.

With a rush of effort, Lelouch dragged himself through the shallow water, tripping over the long slanted rocks, and collapsed to his knees and hands on dry land. He panted with exhaustion and gulped in air, coughing and spluttering. He knew there was water in his lungs, and his body heaved to rid himself of it. Water dribbled from his mouth, salty and disgusting, to splatter on the large, mostly flat rock.

When he felt like he couldn't possibly squeeze anymore water out and his stomach ached from clenching, Lelouch shivered and let himself finally drop, rolling on to his back. He lay where he fell for a long time before finally feeling uncomfortable. The shore seemed to be all rock here, and an edge was digging into his spine. His shoulder and arm were also stiffening up, and Lelouch knew he had to move it soon or else it would be completely useless.

He clenched his teeth, hissing in pain as he raised himself up. He had survived, and there was no doubt that Suzaku would have as well. He put the mask back to his face and stood. Even in the short time he'd been laying there, he had managed to dry out considerably and he decided he could keep his cape. He had no idea how long he would be stuck on the island, so it might come in handy if he were still there when night fell. He should find drinkable water, and something to eat….

No doubt everyone would be looking for him. Unfortunately, that included the Britannian Army as well as his own. Staying out in the open where he would be seen before he saw anyone would be no good. Hobbling over the shore and holding his throbbing arm, Lelouch headed into the woods.

-L/L-

"What the hell would you know? You're just Zero's bitch!" Tamaki growled.

"Oh? It's been a long time since someone used that word to describe me," C.C. began, drawling out the words. She seemed thoroughly unimpressed and as far as L could tell, she wasn't embarrassed in the slightest. "It's even stranger coming from a dickless boy like you."

The room quivered with nervous shuffling. Tamaki's mouth was open in shock that someone—anyone—would address him that way.

"I… I don't think insults will get us anywhere," Ryuuzaki piped up, giving the right amount of force to be heard, yet timidity for his station as he interjected into the conversation of people who actually held titles.

"And who the hell are you?!" Tamaki shouted, shifting his target as Ryuuzaki expected he probably would. But it would still start to help him get noticed, and likely in a good way since everyone was tired of Tamaki's airs. Toudou and Ohgi were watching carefully, waiting to step in.

"Rue Ryuuzaki."

"Who?" Tamaki continued, jeeringly, "Nobody gives a fuck what you think!" L contained his smile; if only Tamaki knew just what people paid for what he thought.

"That's enough, Tamaki," Ohgi said, his voice calm and sounding tired. The second-in-command looked back to C.C.. "I'm sorry about that. We will of course send out a search party…."

C.C. nodded matter-of-factly. "And you will find him alive."

The woman walked to the end of the mess hall, her green hair waving behind her like a mermaid tail. As she passed, she gave Ryuuzaki a slight smile. Then she passed through the door.

It wasn't really so much how he was noticed, but rather who noticed him, he thought. Perhaps she had some kind of locator on Zero or a transmitter. Her utter confidence in Zero's survival was not the same as a lover's. There was no emotional attachment or need in her words; it was simplicity. She knew.

And L wanted to know how she knew. That was also simple.

He waited a few minutes and several people before slipping out himself. He went straight to a bathroom in the top floor area that was used infrequently. Once inside, he pulled out his cell phone and first searched which network he wanted to use. There were, after all, very few that were strong enough to work in a submarine, even if he were as close to the surface as possible. Luckily, he had hacked several military channels in his lifetime, and then let Matt do the rest as a test at home. L smiled at the memory, then he dialed a familiar number.

"Watari? I don't have much time. Forward satellite pictures to my phone for a radius of ten kilometers around Shikinejima from the last three hours. Any islands within the ten kilometer radius need to be fully covered, even is sections are outside that radius. Please scan for any short-range transmitters as well, especially any that measure vital signs. As soon as possible."

"Of course. Expect them in your inbox within five minutes."

L hung up, and then figured he might as well use the urinal. Before he left the bathroom, he had a message in his inbox. There were a number of muted electrical signals from a cave on Kaminejima that indicated sporadic mobile phone usage on the otherwise uninhabited island and of course, the pictures.

One intrigued him particularly. It was also on Kaminejima. Three people stood or sat around a campfire; seen from above and at such a distance, L didn't have the accuracy and detail he wished. But still, the picture captivated him and put his detective senses on to red alert. One seemed half-pink, half white—it could only be Princess Euphemia. One was dark-haired and wore white. It was easy to deduce it must be her knight, Suzaku Kururugi. The third one, however, was the most interesting, precisely because L didn't know who it was.

Dark clothes, dark hair. There were three people from the Black Knights unaccounted for.

He could eliminate Kallen Kouzuki—her red hair and bright red flight suit didn't match. That left two.

Which gave him a fifty percent chance that Princess Euphemia and her knight were calmly arranged around a campfire with Zero. He didn't seem to be bound, none of the positions from his bird's-eye-view suggested he was being particularly guided. He dropped it down to forty percent simply because the unlikelihood of the situation. Then again, C.C. had made it clear that Zero was still alive. The chances that any of those on foot during the explosion had survived were slim—Kouzuki and Yagami were likely dead. Perhaps one or more of the three were severely injured and thus incapacitated. Restraint would not be necessary… but any soldier would not make those assumptions too easily when dealing with an enemy of the caliber of Zero or the White Knight.

But it would be even stranger if they were being friendly to one of Zero's underlings, the other who had been lost when the Avalon had fired. Wouldn't it? It certainly couldn't be anyone from the cave since there would be no reason to stay on the beach. A Princess would surely be cared for among whatever comforts the inhabitants had. A call would have been made to arrange her pick-up.

Speaking of calls… it was risky, but he knew it would get him all the help he could ever ask for later. He dialed another number, snapping his voice-disturber into place as he did so.

The other end picked up. L began before the speaker could answer. "You know who this is. Do not make any reply. Your sister is alive and safe, and I will ensure she remains so, if you give me three days and no interference. When you see her again, there is a ten percent chance she will know Zero's identity. That is all."

He ended the call immediately, although he heard the gasp and near-choking sounds from the other side. L had no idea how he would get the Euphemia back to Cornelia, but he was determined to use this chance. He had given himself a whole three days to figure it out.

However, it was an uncertain bet. He needed to convince those that mattered onboard the Black Knights' Submarine that they had to go to Kaminejima. Without telling them how he knew. Who would do something for him and had the authority to do it?

A grin spilled on to his face. Dropping his phone into his pocket, he exited the bathroom and went straight to Zero's locked room and knocked.

-L/L-

Well, hello readers! Thank you everyone for waiting so patiently for me to write this story! I know many of you continue to be surprised when I manage to update months and months (er, it hasn't been a whole year this time, right? *wince*) between updates. But never fear! Your continued support means that this story is never too far from my mind, even if I am sometimes far from uploading a chapter. Certain changes in my life will likely make the next chapter MUCH sooner than you lovely reviewers are used to, but like usual, I make no promises.

A special thank-you to SlvrSoleAlchmst1 for talking with me last night and even though she doesn't think she helped, this chapter is SO MUCH BETTER than the first draft that I felt quite unhappy with. So everyone should probably thank her too.

Another thank-you goes to the song "Seven Devils" by Florence + The Machine to which I wrote ALL OF THIS CHAPTER to. Not that I think Florence + The Machine reads "The Chess Match," but it was still super helpful to me. Playcount is at 124 which, if anyone does math, you could probably use to figure out how long it took me to write this chapter (and a bit of the 13-yes! it's already in the works!) as the song is 5:03 long.

~anja-chan