A/N: Expect another chapter soon. I'm rather slumped with the ending to this story, so suggestions are welcomed. I'll hear anyone out. I apologize beforehand, if my bluntness comes off as being rude.
"What nonsense are you spouting? Curse?! Kill her?! What power did you give me?! What have you done to me!? Answer!" Lelouch shouted after having enough of the woman's vague commentary.
C.C. stared at the enraged boy, and thought on how to explain his inevitable end. It was Renya all over again. At least he found some happiness before the Curse took full affect, and C.C. wondered if this would be the case once again.
They all heard the echoing boom simultaneously, and watched as skyscrapers surrounding them were accidentally bombarded. More canon fire resounded, and this time passed over them to presumably damage the fortified palace.
"Seems there is no time for explanations." C.C. said.
Lelouch looked upward at the damaged buildings then back at C.C., and fellow geass user, "You found me...can I count on you to do it again?" He asked.
C.C. seemed exasperated, "No...well yes, but I won't walk through this maze of a city again. I did not wander for days to appease my own boredom; even with our connection, it took me ages to find my way to you. Technically I never did find you, since you unknowingly came to me."
"Then we'll meet up somewhere familiar. Head to the Shinjuku ghetto, near where we first met, and make sure he is with you. We cannot trust him to remain in Tokyo unsupervised." Lelouch focused on the blond for the first time.
Oz looked at both confused, "What? I did nothing to oppose you. I shouldn't even be here in the first place!"
"Then why are you here? Clearly you have a greater purpose than tourism, and given how you managed to steal a Chinese uniform, I doubt a mere citizen would do something when "they shouldn't be here in the first place."" Lelouch walked forward. He passed C.C. who rolled her eyes.
"Rather dramatic aren't you?" She commented, "But you wouldn't be wrong...after all he's the cause of this explosion."
Lelouch looked towards her to find any indication of a lie, but found none, "Why tell me this?" He questioned.
She shrugged, "I'm curious as to why V.V. would want to invade Area 11. Like you said his presence here is not coincidental."
Again Lelouch was confused, "V.V.? What are you talking about?"
She sighed, "Didn't I say we don't have time for explanations? Besides, I thought you would connect this faster than I since you think you're so intelligent. It's no revelation that he," C.C. motioned to Oz, "Played a part in this invasion."
Lelouch faced Oz once again. The blond instinctively took a step back. Lelouch eyed the ruined area, and a moment passed before he realized what C.C. was insinuating.
Lelouch then found himself holding Oz by the throat and lifting the Geass user off the ground, "Tell me..." Lelouch started slowly, "Did you plant those bombs?"
Oz felt the cold fury lingering behind Lelouch's calm voice, and grabbed the angry teenager's arm in an attempt to lessen the force around his throat.
"I didn't know." Oz replied with a strangled voice.
Lelouch expression turned cold underneath his helmet, "You didn't know…?"
His grasp tightened around Oz's throat, "Didn't know! What did you think would happen if you planted bombs in residential areas?"
Oz was confused by the outburst since it wasn't what he thought Lelouch was questioning him about, but he could not express his confusion due to being strangled.
"Because of you, someone dear to be was blown half to hell! You didn't know?! As someone who commits murder, you should know well what you are doing! Who you are killing! Maybe then you can at least pretend to justify the blood on your hands! So tell me, how do you justify killing innocent people...those who know nothing of the horrors of reality." Lelouch kept Oz off the ground, and kept squeezing tighter as his speech progressed.
"I doubt he can talk with you on the verge of crushing his windpipe." C.C. pointed out which knocked Lelouch out of his anger filled stupor.
Lelouch tossed Oz aside, and allowed the blond to cough and breathe heavily to stabilize the intake of oxygen.
"I...knew...what I was...doing." Oz said between breaths.
"So you knew you were killing innocent people?" Lelouch replied.
"No...I placed the bombs in places that would be vacant at the time of detonation...I knew no one would be there." Oz rubbed his neck to clear it of the constricted feeling.
"You miscalculated. There were hundreds of people at the concert hall. One of which was myself. You now have the blood of hundreds of innocent people on your hands." Lelouch observed Oz's reaction, and gave the teenager credit. The blond hid his emotions well.
"I knew there was a concert, but that was meant to end at 10. An hour is enough time for the area to be cleared." Oz grew defensive.
"So you actually put thought into your attack. Your morals do not go with what is happening. Why would you help China invade Tokyo? Surely you knew they would only take it for themselves, and that your little attempt to save civilians was in vain." Lelouch said.
"That is what I didn't know...I had no id-"
The screeching of land spinners drew their attention away from the conversation. Several Gun-Ru knightmares caught sight of the three.
"Looks like we overstayed our welcome." C.C.'s snarky comment went unnoticed.
In a few seconds they were surrounded, and Lelouch felt conflicted on what to do. Believing he could not just wait for the inevitable, he grabbed Oz without the blond's permission, and pulled C.C. toward himself with his cape.
He ignored their startled comments, and held them firmly under each arm. He pushed himself off the ground, and flew high into the sky with C.C. and Oz at his sides. He flew high above the skyscrapers, and faced his destination.
"After living for so long, this is a first." C.C. said rather loudly. It was hard to speak over the excessive winds.
"What the hell are you doing?!" Oz shouted as he comically held onto Lelouch for dear life.
"We are not finished talking! I still have to deal with this invasion, so I'm taking you somewhere you can wait for me." Lelouch explained as he flew toward Ashford.
Off in the distance, he saw the cause of the new explosions. A battleship entered Tokyo bay, and begun a strategic bombardment on parts of the city.
"Of course...that's where the leader is. Hidden behind an armed, floating fortress." Lelouch realized he needed to attack the ship as soon as he could, but he needed to deal with the two first.
He neared Ashford academy, and saw the campus overrun by the invading force. With camps, and command vehicles scattered through the main Ashford lawn which was in front of the main building. It was more or less a makeshift military base. Ashford's expansive grounds probably provided a decent amount of room for an army.
"Dammit...what is the Britannian military doing? I hoped they would try to take land back. They've done nothing but fortify themselves in the palace. At this rate, Tokyo will fall solely on the military's incompetence." Lelouch thought before being spotted by the ground forces. Various explosions went off around him, and he quickly wrapped himself in his cape which also protected the two in his care.
A tank round hit him, and he plummeted to the ground. Right before he hit the ground, he lessened his velocity by extending his wings wide. He landed somewhat graciously, and kept C.C. and Oz protected underneath his extended cape.
"Well this plan was flawless." C.C. gave another snarky comment. This time gaining a response.
"Please tell me you aren't always like this." Lelouch replied over the sounds of gunfire.
"Only on good days." She replied.
Lelouch released a heavy sigh, "Then let us pray for bad days."
"If you're done with your lover's spat...we should focus on the enemies currently firing at us." Oz interjected.
Lelouch saw his opening in the form of various knightmares closing in on him, "I'll get us an opening." The armored boy reached out, and activated his knightmare control. At first nothing happened, which made Lelouch realize it only works within a giving range, but as the Gun-Ru's neared, some stopped moving all together before he willed them to attack the others. Chaos erupted as Gun-Ru's fired upon their former allies. The pilots within the controlled knightmares fought unconsciousness, but eventually gave in.
The controlled knightmares formed a semi-circle around Lelouch and co, "Keep up, and stay near." Lelouch broke into a near sprint which caught his two companions off guard. They watched as he ran away, and quickly joined him.
C.C.'s expression was nothing but annoyed, having grown tired of this contract already. She never expected it to escalate to this level.
Oz remained indifferent since his mind was now on survival. He eyed the knightmares which remained around them protectively, and actually moved as they did, never slowing down or speeding up, just keeping a stable pace.
The controlled Gun-Ru's were pelted by gunfire, and tank fire, but remained protective as long as the knightmare remain upright. Oz wanted to ask how this was possible, but felt he shouldn't waste his breath. He needed all the stamina he had.
An explosion to the right drew their attention, but they kept moving. The Gun-Ru half circle shifted to make up for the sudden loss, and to continue protecting the group.
Oz heard the familiar sound of mortar fire, "Mortars!"
Lelouch spun around faster than he thought possible, and brought C.C. and Oz close to him before shielding them underneath his cape. The bombs hit, and Lelouch's hearing was rendered null due to the cacophonous explosions.
When the smoke cleared, Lelouch looked around him to see the knightmares he controlled were defeated by the combined effort of anti-knightmare tanks and other Gun-Ru's. VTOL aircraft flew overhead with their lights directed at him.
If it were any other time, Lelouch wouldn't feel cornered, but now that he has people to protect, he found himself momentarily slumped. Which raised the question, did he need to protect them? Lelouch hardly knew the two.
C.C. was the person who granted him his power, but she was apparently immortal. The blond, which Lelouch had yet to learn his name, was just someone caught in the middle. Even if he caused the explosion which injured Shirley, Lelouch really had no reason to keep him alive. What would he know that C.C. didn't?
The lack of gunfire caught their attention, and they all realized no one was attacking them. Instead they worked to surround them menacingly. Various tanks, Gun-Ru's, foot soldiers, mortars, and VTOLs all ready to open fire.
Meanwhile inside the battleship, General Cao watched the live footage silently, "So he returns to the same area...why does Britannia wish to protect an academy?"
Something from the footage caught his eye, so he asked for them to zoom in. The camera operators inside the gunships did as ordered and zoomed in on the caped adversary. It was small, but he swore he saw movement coming from underneath the villain's cape. Not to mention the armored figure remained still far longer than last time.
Then he saw it due to the fluttering of the figure's cape. It was brief but there was no mistaking it, the caped villain protected someone, and clearly they were important enough for him not to take any further action. The monster may be able to protect itself, but the moment it moved, all the Chinese forces would open fire which would kill those he protected.
"Armored man!" Cao shouted over the connected speakers.
Lelouch recognized this gruff voice. The man from the highway. There was no doubt now...this is who leads this invasion.
"Last time I underestimated you. That I will admit. Even now, I know attacking would do nothing. Whatever weapons you wield, they are stronger than what we throw, yet you remain still. Clearly you have someone to protect, and attacking would only end in their death, correct?" Cao wasn't really asking, but felt the need for rhetoric at the moment.
Lelouch let out an exaggerated laugh which was obviously fake, but It seems in impromptu acting was believable enough to fool them.
"Leader of invading forces!" Lelouch started. Mocking the tone Cao used when addressing him.
Cao suppressed his anger in favor of listening to the armor clad figure had to say.
"If you think such an indirect threat will get me to surrender than you are foolish!" Lelouch's modulated voice resonated with those present.
"Then you do not care if my men gun down your ward like dogs?" Cao said.
Again Lelouch release rambunctious laughter which oddly seemed to drown the VTOL engines, "Ward? I prefer the word prisoner! Trying to use my prisoners against me is pathetically stupid!"
Said "prisoners" spared each other a glance before addressing the cape clad teenager.
"Boy...what are you planning? I may be immortal, but I still feel pain. Being mutilated is not what I call a thrilling experience." C.C. said not at all worrying about Oz.
"Geass user...I have yet to learn your name." Lelouch ignored C.C.'s comment, and whispered to Oz.
"Oz." The blond replied.
"Well then Oz...you have about a minute to tell me why I should let you live." Lelouch stated bluntly.
Oz was surprised, and didn't speak for a few seconds before realizing Lelouch was most likely serious, "Honestly there isn't one. I don't even know what you want!"
"Back then I asked you why help China. You clearly aren't Chinese or Japanese, and you seem to uphold the morals you preach. So why did you help them?" Lelouch asked again.
Oz did not understand why he was being interrogated here of all places, but realized this could be his end, "They hired me. But I didn't know China was going to invade." Oz answered.
"I still have a lot to ask you, and now isn't the time. You've managed to convince me, but we aren't out of it yet." Lelouch replied causally and without explanation.
"Wait what?" Oz questioned.
"Oz, since you said they hired you, I assume you are a mercenary or something like that?" Lelouch received a nod so he continued, "Then you must be skilled with weaponry to some extent. I'll take out the knightmares and you get C.C. into the main building."
"Wait! Its not like I'm an armory! I only have a pistol, and one magazine left." Oz argued.
"Can't you see where we are? This is a military base, there's bound to be more guns lying around." Lelouch reasoned.
"Can't you see we are surrounded?" Oz said.
"I said I'll take care of the knightmares. The foot soldiers are in front of us while the back is covered by tanks and knightmares. Once I take out the knightmare, you use the chaos to escape from the rear, then remain hidden as I draw all their attention." Lelouch explained.
Oz thought the plan had too many loose ends, but what other option did they have. He then remembered something, and pulled out a small package wrapped with tape, wires, and plastic.
"I still have some C4. We can use the explosion for further cover." Oz said.
Lelouch almost parted his cape to look at the blond with exasperation, but realized such an action would leave the two vulnerable, "You mention this now?"
Oz subconsciously shrugged, "I forgot, and you didn't ask."
"Just give me the explosive and detonator."
Oz did as commanded and placed the C4 and detonator in his right hand, "Flip the cap the and press the button."
Lelouch didn't reply, but heard Oz's brief explanation.
"Sorry to interrupt your planning, but what of me?" C.C. interjected.
"To what extent are you immortal?" Lelouch asked.
"I was beheaded once." She replied casually
"Alright, you stay with me for now. I won't be as tense knowing you won't die, but I'll try to keep you unscathed. Here take the detonator; I'll say when." Lelouch finished speaking, and slowly crouched before reach out from underneath his cape to place the C4 directly in front of him.
Cao grew suspicious, "He's planning something..." He said to himself
Lelouch hands return to their position hidden underneath his black cape, and his activated his D.O.M ability.
Oz eyed the hologram like symbol which appeared in front of Lelouch's palms, but got passed his amazement to focus on his task.
Lelouch then opened his arms wide, and kept them straight on either side of him with the D.O.M ability in full affect. He then spun around to capture the knightmares around him in hopes they were not too far. Luckily they weren't. Unluckily Cao seemed to have learned.
"Do not let that light touch the knightmares!" Cao shouted.
Some knightmares moved away thus leaving the effective range of the beam of light, but most of the Gun-Ru's were hit by the beam, and erupted into fiery, pink-hued explosions. Sakuradite was such an explosive compound, and knightmares would not work without the pink colored mineral.
The explosions clouded the area, and any tank near the exploding knightmares were easily destroyed. With the walls of smoke clouding them, Lelouch enacting his plan.
"Oz go! C.C. now!" Lelouch shouted.
Oz left the protective confinement of Lelouch's extended cape, and sprinted as fast as his body let him. C.C. pressed the C4 detonator which went off with more force than anticipated.
Oz was only a few feet away, and stumbled due to the C4's force. He kept himself from falling over, and ran to his destination. The cloud of smoke from several knightmares exploding was thick, and extended high into the sky. He reached the "edge" of the smoke wall, and placed his arm in front of his eyes before leaping into the smoke. Oz regretted leaving his stolen helmet since the smoke burned his eyes, and he could barely breathe.
That did not stop him from running, instead he felt the need to run faster to clear the toxic fumes. After what felt like several minutes, he cleared the smoke, and coughed continuously. His eyes were filled with tears, and Oz let his body naturally clean the particles from his eyes.
He blinked rapidly a few times to let the tears fall, and looked around him to see several soldiers in a worse state than him. He could only assume they managed to get out of the tanks which were engulfed by the explosions. They hadn't noticed him, but he couldn't wait until they did. Hopefully they wouldn't notice him through their blurry eyes. He was somewhat disguised with his body still covered in armor.
He ran passed them, and headed toward the giant tents which acted as the buildings to this makeshift base.
Meanwhile Lelouch did the same as Oz, but in the opposite direction and with C.C. running beside him. Lelouch knew the gunships were surely going to fire any moment, so he turned to C.C., "Keep running! Hide inside the smoke!"
She nodded, and didn't falter when Lelouch stopped leaving her to continue on her own. He watched her disappear into the smoke, and he ignored the bullets which bounced off him.
He leapt into the sky, and propelled himself higher than the gunships flew. He turned his body to look down at the gunships which dispersed to stay out of his reach. Lelouch dove onto the nearest VTOL which caused it to spin uncontrollably due to the impact. Before the pilot could steady the aircraft, Lelouch cut through its engines.
He then jumped off and narrowly grabbed onto the right engine of another gunship. It spun wildly in the air, and smashed into another. This caused the gunship Lelouch hung onto to explode which sent him spinning wildly downward.
He skipped off the ground like a stone once, twice, then came to a halt when his velocity reached a level that allowed him to dig into the once beautiful grass. His crashing uprooted the grass and left it a disheveled dirt mess.
The fallen prince pushed himself up quickly, and looked at his surroundings. Tanks moved around him and readied their canons. There were maybe ten, which made Lelouch realize the forces of this camp were not as grand as he initially thought. That and he probably took most of them out with his initial attack.
He moved out of the way of a singular cannon shot, but failed to dodge another, and tumbled across the ground. Releasing a tired sigh, Lelouch pushed himself up, and sent his cape through the nearest tank. He aimed to low and only damaged its continuous track. Then it blew up suddenly without warning.
Then another tank made itself known, and Lelouch readied himself to attack, but the opening of the tank's hatch, and the sight of a familiar woman stopped him.
"C.C.? How the hell did you get a tank?!" Lelouch shouted, completely ignoring the fight.
"That would be Oz's doing, seems he has more skills than he let on." She replied calmly.
Meanwhile inside the commandeered tank, Oz kept his eyes on the periscopes in front of him. A tank wasn't really something driven by one man, so he was really hoping C.C. would take her seat as his "co-pilot" again before the enemy tanks made a move.
Honestly he never planned to steal a tank, but was better than hiding while Lelouch took out the camp. It was also pure luck that he came across C.C. Said immortal wielded an automatic rifle she picked up off a corpse.
"C.C., get back inside before you get shot!" Oz said.
"Worried? We've only known each other for no more than an hour, and you've grown attached. Such malleable trust will be the death of you." She replied.
"You'll be the death of me at the moment! I'm more worried about myself since this vehicle needs at least two people to drive it properly!" He countered angrily.
Lelouch heard the muffled screaming coming from within the tank, and found himself agreeing with the blond, geass user, but now wasn't the time, "C.C., get back inside, and take out any remaining foot soldiers, an-" He was caught off by cannon fire hitting him. A smoke cloud replaced him as he was launched away.
C.C. jerked violently due to the tank moving suddenly. It was reversing, "We are sitting ducks! C.C. man the canon!"
The immortal entered, and closed the hatch before taking her place in the gunner's chair. Even with this being the first time she ever used a tank's gun, Oz seemed to know how to operate it, and thus briefly explained it to her the basics.
"They are targeting us." She stated.
"Given we just destroyed one of them, it makes sense." Oz replied as he kept moving the tank back.
"Targeting the tank furthest right." She held them in her view, but a sudden shift in the tank's movement obscured it.
"Try to keep this thing stable." C.C. said.
"I can't help if I'm trying not to die. We can't all be immortals!" Oz screamed.
"It's not as joyous as it seems, and firing." Still as impassive as ever, she fired upon the tank directly in her vision. She hit it, and the compact, explosive shell destroyed the enemy tank.
"On to the next one, and try to keep the tanks steady this time."
This time Oz remained silent, growing tired of C.C.'s constant comebacks. Various shells flew over and near their tank. One managed to hit the ground directly in front of the tank, obscuring Oz's view.
"On the left!" Oz shouted.
C.C. moved the gun's to aim at the tanks situated left of them, but an explosion directly in front of the cannon stopped her from acting.
"Were we hit?!" Oz exclaimed.
"Not exactly, it seems he managed to shield us." C.C. replied.
Oz watched as the smoke cleared, and how Lelouch ran toward the main building of Ashford Academy, "Looks like an attack from above. Probably an RPG."
"He did mention ridding the area of foot soldiers first, and I can see why." C.C. commented.
Lelouch looked back to see the tank unscathed, and proceeded toward the building. As he passed the enemy tanks, he cut through their tracks to immobilize them. Thus they became easier targets for Oz and C.C.; He leapt with his wings active, and was over the building's roof. He could see two soldiers, one with an RPG in hand while the other helped in loading the launcher.
They ran away from the edge, but steel clumsily loaded the rocket launcher. Lelouch landed on the roof in front of them just as the soldiers finished loading the projectile. The armored prince ran forward, and reached for the explosive just as it was launched. His hand wrapped around the projectile when it was no more than a few inches away from the launcher.
He held the rocket in his hand before it exploded. The soldiers were killed, and the ground below him crumbled away. He fell through the roof, and nearly fell through the floor below.
He pushed himself up, and looked around to see a familiar room. One of the many filing offices which belonged to the academy. He landed on filing cabinets, and destroyed them which sent papers everywhere. He looked up to the hole in the roof, and could see the night sky.
Lelouch jumped out onto the roof once again, and looked over the edge. The occupying force was basically gone, and from here, there weren't as many as he thought. The Gun-Ru knightmares were all gone, the foot soldiers were injured or dead, and the tents were in shambles more or less. All that remained were the few tanks below. Most abandoned their disabled vehicles, and were killed by gun fire.
Now with the base gone, there is no risk of them finding a way down to the Lifeline level.
He turned toward the bay where the battleship fired its massive guns. He needed to get there to end this invasion. From the looks of it, both sides were getting tired, and would probably have a moment of ceasefire before fighting once more. Tired soldiers are dead soldiers.
Before attacking the gun, he needed to get C.C. and Oz into the Lifeline level, where Sayoko will keep them restrained until the battle is over.
Lelouch jumped off the building, and landed on top of a tank. He ripped open the hatch, and pulled out the commander before killing him. He then tossed a grenade inside the tank before jumping off and walking toward Oz and C.C.
The front lawn of Ashford Academy was now littered with dead soldiers, dismantled tanks, scraps of knightmares, and remains of gunships. Grass was uprooted, the cement walkways were in shambles, and the main building had broken windows and a crumbled ceiling. Smoke still rose into the sky from explosions, and the irony smell of blood was ever present. The very definition of a battlefield.
"Alright, get out of the tank. There doesn't seem to be anymore soldiers here." Lelouch smoke to the tank's occupants.
C.C. opened up the hatch, and lifted herself out, "Haven't fought in a war like that since the forties, and even then I wasn't exactly on the winning side." She commented.
Oz followed, but Lelouch stopped him, "Oz use the tank's cannon to destroy that tent," He said as he pointed at a military tent, "It's the weapon cache."
Oz turned toward the tent before slipping back into the tank. C.C. and Lelouch watched as the tank's cannon moved to aim at the armory. Then it fired, and the explosion was light. Well light for an explosion. It soon expanded, and the explosion increased exponentially. The shockwave shattered nearby windows, and C.C. protected her eyes from the dirt.
"Rather explosive." Lelouch said.
"That tends to happen when you fire an explosive round at various explosives." C.C. replied flippantly.
"Good point." Lelouch commented when he walked up to the tank.
Oz jumped off the tank's body, and landed on the uprooted grass, "We survived…" He said before remembering who he was with, "Well there was never any doubt with you two…but I was worried for a second."
Lelouch stepped up to the mercenary which gained the blond's attention. Then, without warning, Lelouch grabbed Oz's neck and slammed him onto the ground.
Oz wiggled around, and fought back, but Lelouch's grip only tightened. Oz's expression was pure shock, and slowly turned into subtle fear. His struggling slowed, and his strength faded. After a few moments, Oz's eyes closed, and his body went limp.
Lelouch released his grip, and quietly watched. He got the confirmation he needed, so he lifted Oz's body over his shoulder, and turned to face C.C.
"For a moment I thought you were going to kill him." She said.
Lelouch passed her, "For a moment I thought I did. That was the first time I strangled someone to unconsciousness."
C.C. followed closely behind, "Big gamble."
"I don't care if he lives or dies, but if I can gain more knowledge about this power from him, then helping him survive is beneficial." Lelouch said.
"Even after he fought alongside you? Rather cold." She stated.
"He fought alongside me, physically, but as allies is another story. He was fighting for survival, and using you was only a part of that. He knows you cannot die, and that he cannot harm me, so he took the best route. The smartest route was "fighting alongside me", as allies." Lelouch explained.
"Or you are crazy, and your speculations are merely delusions created by your morbid view of the world which came about due to traumatic childhood experiences." C.C. retorted with a cheeky smile.
Lelouch remained silent until they reached their destination. They stepped over the broken glass doors, and made their way down the halls before reaching the elevator leading down to the Lifeline level.
"You've yet to explain." C.C. reminded.
"I need you two somewhere I know you'll be secure. Underneath the school there is bunker of sorts where you shall stay until this invasion is over." Lelouch put in the code for the lift, and the doors opened. Lelouch stepped in followed by C.C. He pressed the button with a small "3" etched into it, and the doors closed. They remained silent as the floor numbers passed by.
A/N: I have two "endings" for this story in mind, and they're both rather shit. One will make you scream "bullshit", while the other is a little too gruesome. I might go for the first one, since I have it more played out, but who knows? I might use both. That would be controversial. I might use one then release an extra "Alternative ending" chapter. We'll see.
Opinions? Suggestions?