"It's so hard to forget pain, but it's even harder to remember sweetness. We have no scar to show for happiness. We learn so little from peace." Chuck Palahniuk

Zero walked throughout the portable base of the Black Knights. He could not believe what had happened…he literally froze up when he was about to fire. He could have ended X there…paved his way to attack Britannia without being held back.

And he couldn't do it. And his negligence on the matter cost Phantom's life.

"Zero!" Lelouch shouted.

Zero stopped where he stood, knowing that this conversation was going to happen at some point. Lelouch's steps came closer and closer to him, until he was nearly touching Zero's hair.

"I heard what happened." Lelouch said. "Why didn't you do it?"

Zero remained silent, not uttering a word.

"Don't you realize what you have done!?" Lelouch shouted. "Taking out piece after piece on the board gets us there one by one. But to destroy Brtiannia completely requires the King to be placed in checkmate. With his Queen gone, Charles would be completely open for you to end."

"I know." Zero said.

"So why didn't you do it!?" Lelouch shouted. "Don't you realize that with X gone; we would have been able to end this war!?"

"I know." He said again.

"Don't run from the question!" He shouted.

"I don't know why I did what I did!" Zero shouted, turning to Lelouch. "I thought I would be fully prepared to retire X! I thought it would be easy to pull the trigger and end this fight once and for all! But I didn't! I don't know why either! It's done and over with! Nothing more can be said on it."

Zero's anger stayed with him for a few moments, and then dissipated just as quickly. He then turned around to face away from Lelouch. Lelouch stood there, in pure anger for how the situation turned out. Zero was correct though…to argue about it now was pointless.

"I guess you're not as strong as I thought." He said, turning around and walking away.

"…Yeah…guess so." Zero said, as he stood there with his hand placed on the wall for support. Lelouch continued to move farther and farther away from him. Zero then put his hand off the wall and stood there.

"Lelouch…" He asked. "Is it true what Kallen said?"

"Hmm?" Lelouch muttered.

"Suzaku…he's the White Knight isn't he?" Zero asked.

"…Yeah…guess so." Lelouch said.

Zero's suspicion was confirmed. And the worst part is that he himself had in some way befriended Suzaku. Things were not looking well for both of them. Neither of them wanted to fight against their friends, and the problems only continued to mount up for both of them.

"Guess we both have our own share of problems." Lelouch said.

"Looks like it." Zero said.

Both of the individuals walked away from the other, not looking back. Both of them couldn't answer for the mistakes that they had both made today because of previous friendships.

The attack had left many Britannians dead, and many Knightmares that now lay in smoldering ruins on the ground. But the Black Knights had fled the scene. There was nothing X could have done, as he wasn't even supposed to be there. All he did was take Alia into his arms and leapt from the area. Suzaku was not in the area, and there was no living Knightmare frames as well; so X vanished as quickly as he had come into the area.

He returned to the R&D lab. All the other Reploids had either gone into their capsules for the night and/or had gone out for something else (more than likely to contend with the attack from the Black Knights). Alia was still awake from the fight, but had said nothing in between the time X and her had approached the lab. After X sat her down on a repair table, he himself sat down, as he gripped his severed arm. There was mass silence between her and X, as the Reploid began to repair Alia who was still damaged on the table.

"X…" Alia said as X began to repair the part of her stomach which had been cut. "X…your still injured."

"It's not bad…" X said. "I'll be fine."

"No; you're not!" Alia shouted. "Your arm has been cut off. All I got is a simple cut! You need to fix yourself!"

"I'm more worried about you." X said. "I can't lose you…not like with Neo Arcadia…please…let me…uggggh…" An electrical spark from his came out, causing him to recoil back into his chair. He held his hand until the elcetrcity stopped surging from his arm, and then went back to fix Alia. He spent over an hour repairing her, and no matter her plea to attend to himself, he did not attempt to until he had repaired her. He then began to repair his arm which had been cut off.

"X…" Alia said after a few minutes. "You…you saved me."

"Yeah." X said. "I'm doing my job to protect the people of Britannia…and those who work to protect it."

"I've never see you fight the way you did before." She said.

"I've picked up some new tricks." X said, beginning to repair the wires that had been severed from his circuitry. Many times did a surge come off from his arm, and eventually Alia began to help X get his arm reattached. By the time 2 AM had come around, X's arm had been fully repaired.

"Thanks Alia." He said.

"No problem." She said. "You looked like you were struggling with that."

"That pain was distracting; I will say that." X said.

He then deactivated his armor. His wounds from his armor that still remained still displayed over his body; though X had not noticed it.

"X…your still hurt!" She said.

Before he knew it, Alia was helping him get his shirt off.

"Alia; what are you doing?" X shouted.

"Hold on X…" She said. "Let me get this off…I can fix you from here…"

Alia pulled off X's shirt, revealing his bare chest (with the exception of small holes that still had some blood stains on it). And then Alia began to notice how…enticing his chest was. He was firm, tone. His bio-metal body made him look like a body builder (Not a body builder as a wrestler, but one who had the perfect abs, chest, and everything). This sudden realization had Alia move her hand up too fast, breaking off the right strap to her dress, causing part of her boobs exposed. X nearly froze up, as well as Alia; yet she did not attempt to cover herself. And X couldn't stop staring at her chest as soon he got a glimpse of it. They stood there for minutes on end, contemplating what to do.

Then X dove on her, and began to fiercely make out with her. Alia at first propped herself up using the table as support, allowing herself to keep her mouth and X's locked. As her and X's tongue wrestled for control of one another, X felt the temptation to slip his hand onto her exposed breast.

Which he did. Alia began to moan with pleasure, moving her leg on the back of X"s , pressing herself as close to X as she could. X moved his tongue from her mouth and began to lick the side of her neck as Alia began to grasp for air.

"Oh god…" She moaned. "Is this what humans feel when they engage in these amorous acts? I'm so jealous of them!"

Eventually, X slipped off the other strap to her dress, causing it to fall to the floor below her. She then began to let herself fall onto the repair table, as X began to crawl on her as if she was lying on a bed. She then withdrew any further attempts to resist X, and allowed herself to be engorged in the passion that was ensuing.

"X…" She moaned. "What…what about the cameras?

X slipped his tongue into her mouth for a few seconds as he began to unbutton his pants. "No…worries…I deactivated them remotely as soon as we got into this."

"Good." Alia said as she began to feel the first thrusts from X into her abdomen, moaning considerably. "I really will have to talk to Cecile about the dress."

They continued this passion for over an hour, taking no calls or transmissions.

Zero walked down the hallway as Ciel and Neige eventually came up to him.

"Zero!" Ciel shouted. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine." He said. "Not even a scratch."

"Man, you haven't changed." Neige said. "Even now your still maintaining that cocky attitude of yours."

"I'd rather be confident than unsure of myself." Zero said.

"Why didn't you shoot him?" Ciel asked.

"You too huh?" Zero said. There was a long silence between him and Ciel for a few minutes as Zero tried to think of the reason why he froze up. X was out to kill him, but he couldn't even bring himself to shoot him. What was he thinking?...Clearly not thinking well enough right now. "I don't know…I thought I had it in me…I thought I would be able to fire and be unable to think back on it. But then…I thought about all the times me and X shared as Hunters…all the Mavericks we retired, all the Reploids we broke down into basic particles of matter, all the laughs and tears we shed as battles slowly degraded our feelings on humanity. Those feelings were stronger than I thought…and it got the best of me."

He stood silent for a long time as Ciel and Neige watched him.

"But that's not bad right?" Neige asked. "I mean…he's still your friend right?"

Zero slammed his fist into the wall. "That's not the point!" He shouted, turning around to them. "This is a battle! X is my enemy! I shouldn't have any problems in destroying him; yet I hesitated! This isn't like me at all! If I didn't hesitate and pull the trigger, Phantom would still be here!"

Neige and Ciel backed away from Zero as he made his sudden outburst. He then placed his body against the wall and sat back. "Back then…Copy X…he was the enemy. It wasn't really X…just an imitation. That much alone made it easy to retire him…but this is X we're talking about. The real one. Not only is he tough…he's my friend. I can't just go up and kill him…that's not me…even if the feeling is not mutual."

"This battle is taking a heavier toll on you than you thought?" Ciel asked.

"I guess I'm not as strong as I thought I was." He said as he walked off throughout the hallway.

Leviathan stood on the top of the Black Knight's transport as it drove throughout the city in the smoke. She had been in pain since she watched Phantom become engulfed in the X-Buster, utterly destroying his existence. Though she did not know Phantom as well as the others, she still considered him a friend. She had cried earlier, but was now over it. No sense in mourning someone you barely knew as it was anyway.

Axl came up behind her and sat back down next to her.

"You alright?" He asked.

"…I'm okay." She said. "Not fine though."

"It's tough…losing someone you know." Axl said. "I know that feeling."

"Since when have you lost someone you cared for?" Leviathan asked.

"Believe me…I have." Axl said. He stood up on the car. Leviathan then stood on the car alongside Axl as he began to tell his story. "When I first joined the Hunters, I was working with another group that terminated Mavericks…we called it Red Alert. Our group was basically a bunch of mercenaries who fought off mavericks that the hunters missed."

"So what happened?" She asked.

"Well…Sigma somehow managed to get within our ranks…ever since then…things went to hell." He continued. "Red Alert went Maverick, and we were forced to bring him down. I've never had one of my friends disappear on me like that…it was all so sudden too…I know what it feels like to lose a person."

Leviathan stood there for a few minutes, and then shook her head.

"It's so hard to forget pain, but it's even harder to remember sweetness. We have no scar to show for happiness. We learn so little from peace." She said.

As Neige walked away from Zero, leaving Ciel by herself, she saw Craft in the distance. At first she didn't recognize him…but after her brain began to work for a few minutes, she realized who she was staring at.

"Craft!" She shouted.

As soon as Craft heard her voice, he stopped in his tracks. Neige kept walking over to him, until she was right next to him.

"Craft…is it you?" She asked.

Craft stood there, stoic as ever.

"How long has it been since I heard that voice…that voice addressing me?" He asked. "Yes…it was when I betrayed you…Neige…what are you doing here?"

"What am I doing here?" She asked. "What are you doing here? Craft…I…your…your back."

"I am." He said. "But…I did not ask for this. I don't deserve to come back after what I had done. I don't deserve life. I shouldn't be back! I should be dead!"

"Don't say that!" Neige said. "You were only doing what you thought was right! You were trying to protect me…you didn't know how bad Weil actually was. You can't blame yourself."

"But I could have done something about it!" He shouted. "I could have saved more lives! I could have…"

Before he could continue, Neige went up behind him and hugged him, embracing him from behind.

"Stop…just stop." She said. "None of that matters anymore. You don't have to fret about it anymore."

Craft stood there, his mood unchanging in the matter.

Over the next few days, Lelouch and Zero began to reorganize the Black Knights in preparation for another operation. Rakashata and the KYOTO group provided Lelouch with a large battle submarine (a stealth one at that, allowing them to move by Britannian waters without being detected). When it was provided, Cerveau and Ciel constructed a shield generator on the sub, as well as a cloaking module on the generator, making the submarine's shields both online and hidden. The Black Knights were approaching an island known as Shikine. Inoue and Axl were currently on the top of the submarine, watching the island for any incoming attacks.

"We used to have trouble getting a single motorcycle; now we have a submarine." She muttered to himself.

"What a jump." Axl said.

"Yeah." She said. "The military district of India will be in big trouble if the Britannians ever find out. How did Zero do it?"

"Beats the hell out of me." Axl replied. "I'm still wondering how I guy with no previous knowledge of us Reploids figured us out in such a short time span. And he's a human more or less?"

"Correct me if I'm wrong; but didn't I hear from Ciel that full human cyberization could have been implemented back in your world?" Inoue asked.

"Yeah; but we get detect that kind of technology if were close by; and I have nothing when I'm nearby him." Axl said. "No electronics on that guy."

"How strange." Inoue said. "Where did he come from?"

A meeting was gathered within the Black Knights submarine confides. The Black Knights had now become a full military might, having waves of Knightmares that they could use against Britannian forces, and an arsenal of Reploid technology that was actually far superior to the Britannian's at this point. The meeting room consisted of a single screen where Kirihara Taizou's face was on the screen. Lelouch stood among the crowds, delivering his speech.

"Now then…" He said. "Due to our recent reorganization, a few changes have been made. Our new chief of military affairs will be Kyoshirou Toudou." Everyone cheered, especially among the Four Holy Swords. Tohdoh had no facial expression whatsoever, much like Zero who was off to the side with his back to the wall.

"Taking charge of all intelligence, espionage, and public relation matters…Diethard Reed." Lelouch continued. This selection seemed to spike up the most controversy among the Black Knights as most of them turned to him and with anger and angst.

"This Britannian pretty boy?" Tamaki asked.

"Not to mention a media hound." Urabe added.

"Zero…" Chiba began. "I'm not a racist; but what's your reasoning for putting one of them in such a sensitive position?"

"Simple." Zero said off to the side. "Zero's not Japanese either; everyone should be aware of that now. It doesn't matter what your background is…only the ability to produce results. Petty squabbles like this do nothing but undermine our group."

"Besides…" Marino said as she walked over. "If that was the case, I would be worried about us than this Britannian. You all know we Reploids are not human and were Britannian made…" Marino winked the direction of Zero, attempting to keep up with the lie that Zero had created for the Black Knights so long ago. Only a few people (Kallen, Lelouch, and Diethard…though he assumed they were alien made from the beginning). "We're super human war machines, capable of leaving paths of destruction. I think you would want to be more worried about us."

This of course may not have been the best thing to say, as some of the members had a feeling of unease when they looked at her and Zero.

"Working as Diethard's Second in command will be Neige." Lelouch said. "MY deputy commander will be Kaname Ohgi."

"Who me?" Ohgi asked.

"You object?" Lelouch asked.

"Well…no." Ohgi said.

"You were are leader to begin with." Kento said.

Ohgi lowered his head. He trusted Lelouch, but still had yet to tell him about the Britannian pilot who was living at his house yet. He hoped that something like that never got out to the Black Knights.

"For research and development, I am cutting it into three separate branches; and placing Doctor Ciel as the head of the science wing." Lelouch said. This came to a surprise to Rakashata who had half expected to be the head of that department. However, even she wasn't too shocked. After all, over the last few days, she had been reviewing Ciel's notes and was genuinely surprised with what Ciel was able to make. "For Research and Development, I will place Rakashata. And for all weapons construction, I place Cerveau and his team."

"Well now…" She said. "To be undermined by a mere fifteen year old. Then again…even this little one shocked me with a bit of her own research."

Ciel turned to her and smiled. Zero gave her a smile (though she didn't see it) and simply kept himself resting in the back.

"Captain of the Zero squad will be Kallen." Lelouch stated.

"The Zero squad?" Kallen asked.

"An elite squadron under my direct command." He answered. "Think of you like my own personal knights."

Kallen smiled. She couldn't believe that this was actually happening. The Black Knights were becoming so strong that Lelouch had the ability to take forces out of their reserves to make his own unit. And Kallen was the leader of it. Her feeling of excitement was overwhelming to say the least."

"For all matters of infiltration..." He said.

"All right…who else could take my role?" He interrupted, holding his guns above his head. Lelouch simply shook his head.

"Marino." Lelouch said. This caused Axl to turn in shock as said that, as if Lelouch didn't think of him as useful. "Had Phantom not been killed in the previous fight, I would have him placed over you. However, due to his loss, I have no choice but to go with Marino. Cerveau has shown me through her data that she has been infiltrating buildings longer than your service record; and without the need for cloaking devices and teleport units. I am placing you as second in command, but know that I do so reluctantly." Axl still couldn't believe that Lelouch was depriving him of being the leader, something Axl would have loved to have.

"I place Commander Craft as Commander in Chief for all of the Reploids." Lelouch said. Craft simply bowed his head slightly towards Lelouch. "And finally…Red Knight…" Zero raised his head so he could see Lelouch. "I place him as field commander for all the soldiers on the field. If he gives you an order, it will override any order given to you by of the captains, who I will name now." Zero nodded and waited for Lelouch to finish up reading off all the names, committing them each into his hard drive.

Field commander huh?...Makes sense…I was never one for desk work anyway. I'd rather be out fighting that cramped up here…override any order? Lelouch must have decoded the data files on the Day of Sigma…I guess he knew I lead the entire Maverick Hunters to dealing with Sigma's forces after the bastard went maverick. Sigma…

While thinking on that, the Reploid reentered Zero's mind. He could not comprehend why Sigma was aiding Britannia, and how his memory disappeared. Surely his virus would have reignited his memories by now…or…was there something else going on?...Come to think of it, he noticed that Lelouch seemed to be having an easy time convincing people to make them do what he wanted…something didn't feel right. Something he couldn't explain or understand.

"And finally Tamaki will lead the Second divisionary squad." Lelouch said. "That is all."

"All right; I'm the man." Tamaki said.

After a moment of celebration and cheering, Diethard spoke aloud to the group.

"There's one issue we need to go over." He said.

Though Lelouch had acquired his submarine and was on his way to the island, the truth was this was two weeks later. Three days after the battle in the prison, Suzaku had received a letter, informing him that he was to become the personal knight of Princess Euphemia. This sparked immediate interest with the R&D squad, as well with X and the others…forcing them to having a small party.

"Congratulations!" Lloyd said as he handed a glass of wine to Suzaku. "You finally did it! They've finally recognized your talent."

"I couldn't have done it without you." Suzaku replied. "Although…I'm not sure if everyone there will approve."

"Who cares what they think?" X asked. "You are the one who wanted to show your worth to the Britannians. To change the system from within…this is your beginning for this. If they do not approve, let them. Continue to show them your strengths, and soon…they won't care where you're from."

"You're sure?" Suzaku asked, as he took a small sip of the wine. X shook his head.

"More or less, I'm praying that I'm right." X said.

This didn't exactly help Suzaku's disposition on his coronation tomorrow. He knew there would eyes cast on him with doubt and uncertainty, as well as radical racism. Then again, X himself was at least honest with his analysis.

The door to the facility opened up, revealing a large muscular man, coming through the door. He was extremely built (muscles and abs firmly toned and giving him the appearance of a body builder) and had long red hair (bound in a ponytail). As he came through the door, the others turned to the direction.

"So…this Suzaku guy is going to be a knight eh?" He said. "Well then…nice to meet you…Sir Kururugi."

"Massimo…" X said. "Good to see you. I guess I owe you got chasing off those Mavericks earlier in the fight against Zero."

"All in a day's work." Massimo said. "I'm glad I was able to aid you; and not the other way around like it was during the Rebellion."

"Yeah." X said.

"Oooohhhh…" Lloyd said. "And I suppose this Reploid is a friend of yours X?"

"He is." X said as went to a computer to begin with working on assembly code for some of the architecture he and Lloyd was working on. "An old friend…"

Suzaku's coronation was the next day; and was televised live. Lelouch and Zero watched it from their school as Zero jotted down notes into Lelouch's study book…seeing as Lelouch for some reason refused to do it himself.

"I'm not a servant you know." He said.

"You sure act like one." Lelouch said.

Zero grunted in anger, but didn't stop what he was doing. As they were jotting down notes, Zero couldn't help but overhear two Ashford students talking in the computer lounge.

"No; it can't be!" One shouted.

"They're making him; a major!" The other shouted. "An eleven!"

In his mind, Zero wanted to go up and pummel both of them to the ground. But he managed to restrain himself…which was weird because even in his mind, this wasn't like him to even think about doing that to someone. After this moment passed, he watched as Suzaku agreed to the terms of swearing fealty to her, and Euphemia knighted him in the same manner that a medieval knight would be appointed. Afterward, he turned to the people to face the applause of a single man. But as soon as General Dolton and Sigma began to applaud, the others went along with it.

"Suzaku…" Zero said to himself. "To have two friends fighting against you…why does it have to be this way?"

"You've got to be joking!" Vile shouted in the bar. "I've served the army better than dolt! An eleven a Knight…what a joke!"

Vile had gone to a bar to get a drink. In his human form, Vile looked like someone who had a long black ponytail on his head, and had sunglasses obscuring both of his eyes. He was wearing a black and white vest that made a V when the zipper was partially opened. He also had black pants and dark brown combat boots. Next to him was Agile, who in human form had purple hair, sunglasses with a green lens on it, and a similar appearance to Vile, only he wore a fedora on his head.

"Geez…" Agile muttered. "Calm yourself. Kururugi may be an eleven, but he has a much longer service record; as well as bigger accomplishments. No one knew he was the pilot for the White Knightmare up until recently."

"Damnation." Vile said. "That should have been my position! Curse that wench!"

"Watch what you say." Agile said. "We may be new recruits and the better in comparison to the soldiers and Knightmares…but…we could still end up in a heap of trouble. With Mega Man X on their side…well…it's not like we could march in and do something about it…I suggest we wait…now that he's a Knight, he's going to have a much bigger work load, as well as more danger. We'll have our chance soon enough…if X hasn't been chosen as a replacement."

"X this…and X that…" Vile said. "Sure he ain't getting media attention…yet this guy is the talk of the military and science wing. What's he got that we don't!?"

"A better question." Agile said. "Why are you angry about it?"

"I really don't know." Vile responded. "I just really hate him."

As X walked through the hallway, the door to his side opened up. The person who came out was Alia, and of course this created some awkward tension between them. Although X and her had talked earlier, it was all work related, and nothing about what occurred three nights ago. As soon as they got there, X and her both turned from each other and blushed.

"Ummm…" She said. "So…what? Are we just going to avoid each other like this?"

"Alia…" X muttered.

"What?" She said. "Out with it already? I want to know what's going on between us. I mean…we can't pretend like what happened several nights ago just didn't happen."

"Your right." X said. He took a deep breath from his bio metal lungs and then stood there. "Alia…it's not like I don't want to start something with you. There…was a definite chemistry between us during the maverick wars…and even now I can feel the familiar vibes that all logically point towards us doing this…"

"So…" She began.

"It's…it's too dangerous right now for us to start something." He said.

"Dangerous!?" Alia barked. "Dangerous! What the hell are you talking about? You were able to fight them off."

"No I wasn't." X said. "I was only able to destroy 1 of them…but the rest beat me to the floor. I don't know why Zero didn't shoot me, but whatever the reason, I wasn't able to beat him. If that maverick is still wandering about, I don't want to start something, just for something to happen to you. If I get attached like that, then the result will be I will have a liability on my end that could easily be compromised."

"What; you mean Zero kidnap me!?" She shouted. "You and I X know that he would…"

"I'm referring to the other Zero." X said. "I know full well Zero would never stoop to those levels. He'd rather face like a warrior than a coward. But the other one…I dare not think of anything he might do. So please…can you give me some time to sort this maverick mess out?"

Alia put herself in deep thought. It was obvious that X really cared for her, and probably had been thinking about this for awhile.

"Suzaku Kururugi." Diethard said as he went through a meeting with the Lelouch and the current leaders of the Black Knights in their private RV. "He's become a focal point among Japanese who are Britannian supporters. I recommend we assassinate him."

"Assassinate him?" Lelouch asked.

"He may be right." Rakshata said. "You've been the sole focus of the resistance movement. The masses lack such a hero."

"People aren't moved by idelogoy alone." Diethard said. "If things don't go our way, the Britannians may hold this boy up as a symbol. I think that taking him out would be the smartest decision."

"I object." Tohdoh shouted. "The Japanese would be revolted by such a cowardly act."

"He's right." Zero said. "Not to mention if it's discovered that the Black Knights were his killers, we would definitely have a reverse effect. Instead of gaining recruits, we could easily find a munity on hand."

"And how would they discover that?" Diethard asked.

"They don't have to." Zero said. "You're not the only media hound out there…there will definitely be someone else who could twist the story into their own way, given the right amount of editing and dialogue. You should know that better than anyone."

"He's right." Neige said. "Outright killing him might be too risky."

"Yeah." Ohgi said. "The Black Knights aren't in the business of murder!"

"Calm down." Diethard said. "I am merely saying we should minimize a risk in the most efficient way possible; and it's still Zero's call."

Lelouch didn't answer. He simply moved the group onto other matters and then retired to his chambers. He stood there, swirling a chess piece in his hand for hours on end.

The next day after Suzaku's coronation turned ugly for Euphemia. She sat in her well decorated office, complete with emerald curtains and her finely crafted wooden bench. During this time, she received a rather nasty call from Cornelia. She stood there with her laptop, conversing with both Sigma and Cornelia.

"You haven't said a word about it." Euphemia muttered.

"Appointing a knight is a matter of royalty; it's out of my hands…even as Viceroy." Cornelia said, in a rather nasty tone.

"Don't you see, Suzaku Kururugi is an honorary Britannian, and has proved himself on more than one occasion." Euphemia whimpered. "Sister…"

"It's Viceroy." Cornelia snapped. Euphemia began to become rather annoyed with having this conversation with her sister, but resumed. "Viceroy even you should know he is worthy of it."

"Discrimination against the numbers is our national policy." Cornelia snapped back.

"Then it's time I change that." Euphemia muttered.

Cornelia looked at Euphemia as if she had popped a vein. Never once had Euphemia ever been this hardline with her before.

"Oh…" Cornelia muttered. "Is it now? Well…when you become Empress, feel free to do so!"

She immediately canceled the line, leaving Euphemia in the room with just Sigma on the other line. Euphemia took a deep breath and then looked at Sigma.

"Family members can bicker so much over little things." He said.

"Sigma…" She began. "What do you think?"

"That depends...are you asking me as a General or Britannian?" He asked. This left her with a confused look on her face, of which Sigma only sighed from. "If you want my unbiased opinion, I've never been one in the past to look at race in terms of abilities. I only look at the soldier's abilities to produce results; and that lately is what Suzaku has been able to do. I feel he was a fine choice. If he was a lazy mongrel like some of the honorary Britannians, or even some of our soldiers from the mainland, then my opinion would be more cross…does that please you?"

"Yes…yes it does." She said.

"I'm sorry I can't be of much more help, but this is a royal matter to deal with." Sigma said. "I do hope you and your sister manage to work this out."

Sigma then ended the line himself.

CHANGES DONE TO CHAPTERS 1-13

A. Fanfiction,net was being a jerk to me again and removed all the border lines I placed so people could know when the scenes transitioned from one to another. So I went back to re-input them back in; and then lost all motivation there to make any edits this time around.

B. Minor changes...fixed some more spelling errors and grammatical ones.