I do not own Code Geass.

…

Hanyu, Saitama Prefecture, United States of Japan, December 2017

Yoshida came to slowly, painfully. He was covered in muck and grime, his throbbing head in his hand as he rose sluggishly to his feet. His mouth was dry, his tongue adhering to the roof when he flexed his jaw. He gazed to his left and right, sighing hard at the sight.

The trench was filled with bodies, Black Knight and JLF tangled together in a river of limbs and frozen blood. Some had been torn to pieces by artillery shells or grenades; some, he could see, were riddled with bullets; and still others had no discernible injury at all, and would likely have to be examined by a professional to determine the cause of death.

He glanced up at the machine gun mount from which he had been firing. To his total lack of surprise, all that was left was a crater and a mound of dirt and snow, the machine gun turned into a twisted wreck of metal and plastic that was useless even as a club.

Yoshida gnashed his teeth as pain lanced through his head. He trudged down the length of the trench, taking care not to stumble over the stream of corpses he forded along the way. He pulled his coat more tightly around himself against the sudden chill breeze that stripped him to the bone.

If I could just make it to the forward base, he thought. Surely someone is still alive over there.

He kept an eye out for a weapon or a canteen as he slogged his way forward. It was growing lighter, the first rays of dawn casting a silver sheen over the mud and blood and grime of the battlefield. In the steadily spreading light of day, he could see more in that dugout of the dead than he could have possibly wanted. Body parts, entrails, skulls separated from their bodies. The stench of blood and feces was omnipresent. He regretted that the explosion which had rendered him unconsciousness hadn't also blown away his nose.

He lost his footing on a treacherous shoulder, coming painfully face down into the exposed belly of a JLF fighter. Flesh and human waste covered his face. He pushed himself back up, rubbing his eyes and cheeks in a mad rush to get the gore off. He paused to stared down at the body he'd fallen on top of.

It was just a boy, no older than sixteen, his face covered in acne, frozen forever in terrified pain, blue eyes staring into nothing.

What a waste, Yoshida thought morosely. What goddamn waste.

He climbed back to his feet carefully, silently, his hand against the trench wall as he moved.

The forward base came into view just a few minutes later. As he stumbled towards it, a nervous voice called out, "Halt! Who goes there?"

Yoshida rolled his eyes. "It's me, you idiots!" he answered.

"M-Minister Yoshida?" the same voice called out. "We thought you were dead!"

So did I, Yoshida thought.

He staggered into the dugout, sitting on a stool proffered him by one of the younger soldiers.

"Have any water?" he asked.

"Yes, sir!" The lookout, a youngster who looked to be in his late teens with a plain face and black hair, pulled a canteen off his hip, and handed it to him.

Yoshida uncapped it, taking several hard swallows. The cold water was impossibly refreshing in his dry, cracked throat.

He gasped as he finished, handing the water back to the young man with a word of thanks. "What's the situation?" he asked. "What happened while I was out?"

The lookout came to attention. "After your position was hit, the Rebs struck us pretty hard," he said. "As they started to overrun our position, we fell back to this base and turned the trench into a death trap. The attacks stopped about an hour ago. We've been holed up here ever since."

Yoshida nodded and regretted it immediately. Pain lanced through his skull. His squinted his eyes shut, bringing his hand up to his head.

"Minister, are you alright?"

Yoshida waved him off. "Just a headache. I'll live." He rubbed his eyes. "Any word from Zero, or the Capitol?"

When no one answered him, he looked up. They were all squirming, looking one to another, as if daring the other man to make the first move.

"Spit it out, boys," Yoshida said.

The lookout stiffened bravely. "The traitor, Tohdoh, sent out a general frequency broadcast claiming Lord Zero had surrendered."

Yoshida snorted. "And do you believe that?" he asked.

A hard glinted entered the young man's eyes. "Not for a second, Minister," he replied.

"Good, because I know the man. I'll believe the Emperor suddenly grew a conscience before I'll believe that." No way that fanatic would give up to anyone.

Yoshida stood slowly to his feet, wincing at the aching pain in his head. "Send a runner down the eastern line and get us fresh reinforcements," he ordered. "We'll move west along the trench and cut Tohdoh's forces off. I want bazookas, rocket launchers, anything you can get your hands on so we can knock that armor out when Tohdoh's boys come retreating back in this direction." He gestured to the other side of the dugout, to the eastern doorway. "Hop to it, soldier!"

"Yes, sir!"

…

Satte

"Where is she, Your Highness?" the Glaston demanded, his expression murderous. "Where is this C-Two woman the Emperor wants so badly?"

Lelouch just looked up at the man with an almost bored demeanor. Kallen would have thought it funny were there not a half dozen guns trained on him.

Goddammit! she cursed internally. What are we going to do?

The Brit was smart. As soon as Lelouch was on the ground, his arms bound behind him, he had proceeded to attach an eyepatch over Lelouch's closed eye. He wore a visor as well, ensuring double the protection against Lelouch's geass.

They know about it, she lamented. How? How do they know?

"Are you Elevens surprised?" the Britannian asked. "Your fearless leader isn't just Britannian." He backhanded Lelouch across the face. The gathered Black Knights howled their protest. "He's even a prince!" He smirked. "Black Prince Lelouch vi Britannia, exiled from his homeland for daring to defy our glorious Emperor. The unloved son, raising the banner of rebellion to usurp his father's throne." He backhanded Lelouch again. "Traitor!"

"Get the Hell away from him!" Kallen demanded, covering Lelouch with her own body.

Darlton glared at her, furious. "Harlot!" he declared. "Slut! Race traitor!"

He grabbed Kallen by the shoulder and punched her hard in the gut. She doubled over his fist, retching.

"You son of a bitch!" Lelouch shouted. "Leave her alone!"

The Glaston slammed his foot into the bottom of Lelouch's chin, sending him sprawling.

He turned back to Kallen and smashed his fist into her gut again. She vomited across his boots.

"Filthy whore!"

He struck her belly a third time, and everything went black.

...

Satte

Tohdoh rubbed his eyes, eyeing his reflection in the screen of his console. He pushed back the graying hairs, taking in the lines on his forehead and face, the wrinkles forming around his eyes.

I've become an old man, he realized. With age came wisdom, it was said, but the man before him did not look wise. He looked tired and defeated, worn down by the terrible burdens he had taken upon his shoulders.

I would like to retire, when this is finished, he thought. I'm sure Nagisa and I can find a nice place. Somewhere out in the countryside. A place to put my hands to work for life instead of death.

He could see it; a cottage on a hill, overlooking a bright blue lake. He would fish there, and his children would fish there, and their children after them. In the day he would farm and his children would play. At night, he would share drinks with Senba, and Katase, and Asahina, and Urabe. He would go upstairs and tuck his children in bed, and Nagisa would be standing in the doorway, the proud smile on her face that all mothers had.

Tohdoh smiled slightly. He resisted the triumphant euphoria that arose in his breast.

The surviving Black Knights were all lined up in a row, surrounded by his men. Zero knelt with his hands behind his head, his left eye covered by an eyepatch foisted upon him by Sir Bart. Next to him was Kozuki, who glared daggers at Tohdoh's Gekka. Above them stood the knight himself, his visor gleaming in the morning sun.

The whole company was dismounted, what few survivors remained of the joint command taking special care of the prisoners under their charge.

Tohdoh observed their kneeling captive. He wasn't too surprised at Zero's ethnicity; it had already been known within the Black Knights that Zero wasn't Japanese. Once that fact was combined with Zero's mastery of Knightmare tactics, it was only natural that Zero would be a Britannian. What did surprise him was how young he was.

I wouldn't put him any older than Kozuki, he thought. Given his prowess as a commander, I was expecting someone in his twenties, if not his thirties.

That estimate made sense given Zero's proven experience as a leader of men. That Zero was this young, with as proven a battle record as he already had, was nothing short of extraordinary.

Is it possible this isn't Zero? Tohdoh wondered. A decoy, perhaps? No, a Britannian youth wouldn't make any sense as a decoy. No one would believe it.

Tohdoh studied the young man on his monitor. There's something...familiar, about him. Do I know him from somewhere?

He studied the youth's messy dark hair, the paleness of his skin, the single violet eye that stared up at him dispassionately.

I can't sense an ounce of fear from him, Tohdoh thought. He nodded. Admirable.

"You were a worthy opponent, Zero," Tohdoh said to himself. "But it's over. Your reign of terror has ended."

He glanced down at his Sakuradite filler. It read 'Two percent.'

"And not a moment too soon."

Tohdoh's comm suite crackled with Urabe's voice. "General," he said, "encountering heavy resistance. Black Knight reinforcements are wrapping around my flank."

Tohdoh frowned. "They did receive my transmission, didn't they?" he asked.

"They have," Urabe said.

"Then why are we still fighting?"

"I made contact with my opposite number," Urabe replied. "He didn't believe Zero actually surrendered. He says we're faking it."

Tohdoh scowled.I don't have time for this. He needed to get to Chiba's position. Radio contact had been lost entirely. There was no way of knowing what had happened to her. Were it not for his need to process Zero's capture and organize the prisoners, Tohdoh would have already left.

He opened up a general hail. "This is General Kyoshiro Tohdoh," he said. "Who speaks for the forces in the Ushiku area?"

"You're Tohdoh himself?" a man on the other end asked incredulously. "Holy shit. I'm moving up in the world."

"Identify yourself," Tohdoh demanded.

"Right, sorry. Captain Rai Sumeragi," he replied.

"Captain Sumeragi, you did receive my transmission, yes?" Tohdoh asked.

"Oh, we got it loud and clear," Sumeragi confirmed. "I've got calls coming in as far away Nagasaki. We thought it was real funny."

Tohdoh's eye twitched. "'Funny?'"

"Yeah. Helluva joke, dude," Sumeragi said, laughing. "I mean, you gotta be jokin', 'cause there's no way in Hell you coulda thought we'd actually believe that."

Tohdoh ground his teeth. "I have Zero in my custody right now," he said. "I'm staring right at him."

"That's great, bro," Sumeragi condescended. "Me, I'm staring at these twin beauties, and man are they fine. The titties on this girl, you would not believe!"

"Cut the act!" Tohdoh growled. He gripped his yoke tightly. "This is serious! Stop playing!"

The other end was silent.

"Surrender to Colonel Urabe, now," Tohdoh ordered him.

"I take orders from one man, Traitor," Sumeragi retorted, his tone deadly. "You ain't him. We're gonna send you to Hell, Tohdoh. HAIL ZERO!"

The transmission cut out, though whether it was Sumeragi doing so, Tohdoh didn't know. His Gekka broke down at that moment, the clasps on his cockpit releasing to allow him departure. He slammed his fist into the computer bank.

I should have made Zero make that broadcast, he reproached himself. It was stupid of me to do otherwise.

He climbed out of the Gekka, his bones creaking as he rose. He give a little stretch to relax his cramped limbs, and walked with calm, measured steps over to where Zero waited.

By the time he reached them, Kozuki was crumpled over on the ground, and Zero was on his back, Sir Bart's boot heel digging into his chin.

"Enough!" Tohdoh demanded. "What the Hell is this?"

"The prisoners became unruly," the Glaston replied. "I had to reassert myself."

"Release him! Now!"

The knight shot a glare at him, his mouth open to say something. He seemed to think better on it, since he shrugged and lifted his boot. "As you wish," was all he said.

Tohdoh gave him one more warning glance, then turned his attention to Zero. "Zero! You have fought gallantly. Never before have I faced a more daunting foe. You have my respect." He gave a brief tip of his brow.

Zero sat back up, but made no response.

"Your men's loyalty does you great credit," Tohdoh continued. "Even now they fight on, not believing that you have surrendered. For the sake of your men, who fight on in your name, and for the innocent people that have been caught up in the fighting, I must request that you announce your surrender in your own voice, and command your people to lay down their arms."

Zero only stared at him, a predatory gleam in his eye. He reminded Tohdoh of a tiger, caged, five hundred pounds of killing intent barely restrained.

"There is no shame here, Zero," Tohdoh said. "No dishonor. You fought a good fight. It is time to admit when you have lost."

Still Zero said nothing, his lone visible eye promising only murder.

Tohdoh unconsciously squeezed his fist.

"You heard him, Zero!" Sir Bart snapped. "Do what he says!"

"Sir Knight, that's enough!" Tohdoh ordered. "Shouting won't get us anywhere."

"Go to Hell, Tohdoh!" the knight retorted. "The war's over! I'm not required to listen to your prattle anymore!"

"I am still in command of this operation. You will follow my orders."

"I will do as my conscience dictates, terrorist." Bart gestured to Zero. "Right now, it dictates that I beat him to a bloody pulp."

"Terrorist?" Tohdoh asked dangerously. "You tread on dangerous ground, Britannian."

The Knight seemed to want to say something, but thought better of it. He took a slight step back, just barely inclining his head.

Zero's eye flicked over to him. "Your father died screaming, Darlton," he said, his expression still placid. "I thoroughly enjoyed planting the explosives that turned him into hamburger meat."

Sir Bart made a strangled sound, whipping around. "Y-You bastard!" he snarled.

"I wonder," Zero said, cocking his head, "was it an open casket funeral, or did you just have a cookout?"

Tohdoh scowled. "Zero, that's enough!"

Sir Bart punched Zero on the cheek, sending the young man back to the ground.

Angry shouts rose through the air as the captured Black Knights protested their leader's treatment, hurling obscenities at them.

They were silenced when he began to laugh, high and loud and cold.

The hairs on the back of Tohdoh's neck rose.

It really is him!

Darlton kicked him in the stomach, sending Zero into a fit of coughing.

"Sir Bart," Tohdoh said calmly, "lay hands on our prisoners again, and you will find yourself without them. Permanently."

The knight scowled at him furiously. "After all this bastard has done?" he demanded. "After all the lives they've ruined? After all the help we gave you, you threaten me?" He gesticulated behind them. "My boys are dead or dying out there, and you're defending them?"

"I will not have abuse of prisoners of war, Sir," Tohdoh replied coldly. "All of our prisoners will be treated in accordance with the laws of war."

"He broke every law of war!" Bart shouted. "He should get no such treatment!" Bart spat on Zero. "Damn him! And damn his followers!" He placed a hand to his chest. "My father! He murdered my father! General Andreas Darlton! The greatest man in all the world, and he turned him into mush! David, my brother! Murdered at Tokyo, by his men!"

"Actually," Zero drawled, sitting back up, hunched over, "that was Katase. I had nothing to do with it."

Darlton slapped him across the face. "As if that fool incompetent could have-"

"General Katase commanded the troops at Tokyo," Tohdoh interrupted without thinking. His hand clenched furiously. "If you have a problem with him, you have a problem with me."

Darlton shifted his stance to fully face Tohdoh. "Maybe I do," he agreed. His hand hovered around his pistol. "You people killed my father, my brother, my friends, and my Princess. And God only knows how many civilians when you Elevens attacked Tokyo."

Tohdoh shifted his hand over to his sword. He glanced down at Zero, back up to Bart.

"This bickering is pointless," he said carefully. "We have won, Sir Bart. Let us not undo our victory just when we have achieved it."

Darlton made no sign of backing down.

"I didn't even order Katase to attack Tokyo," Zero said into the stillness. "Katase did that all on his own."

"Silence, Zero," Tohdoh growled, his eyes not leaving his erstwhile ally.

"Every death, every injury," Zero continued heedlessly, "all of that was Katase. So," he said silkily, "the JLF had far more to do with your brother's death than I ever did."

"Zero!" Tohdoh barked. He studied Dartlon intently.

His expression was twisted into a rage. His fingers wiggled near the butt of his gun.

Tohdoh's fingers glided along the hilt of his sword.

His boots rubbed across the rubble.

Darlton leaned forward.

Somewhere, a piece of concrete struck the ground.

Tohdoh's sword flashed from the scabbard. Darlton's gun was up and firing.

...

She fell through a sea of sickening blackness, eyes shut tight against the nausea that threatened to erupt from her. There were loud booming sounds coming from somewhere close by. Someone was nudging her shoulder.

"Kallen! Kallen, wake up! Wake up!"

Go away, she wanted to say. Go away, I'm sick.

"Kallen, goddammit, we don't have time for this!"

She tried to sink back into the black.

Something warm, soft, and impossibly gentle pressed against her lips. Her heart pounded in her chest, washing away the sick feeling and the black lethargy that clung to her.

Her eyes fluttered open.

Lelouch was above her, a panicked look on his face. "Kallen!" he said. "Get this goddamn thing off my eye!"

...

Tohdoh felt a burning streak touch his cheek. He read the direction of the barrel, dodging just enough to stay close without the bullets striking him, slashing upward.

The knight dodged to the side, his face split by a murderous scowl, gun firing at point blank range. Tohdoh felt his right ear shear away from his head. He kicked Darlton in the chest, sending the younger man into a somersault. Tohdoh ducked beneath the answering gunfire, sprinted to the side to evade the shots.

They were'nt the only ones duking it out. The Britannians and the Japanese were opening up on one another, their alliance broken in a matter of seconds. In his periphery vision, Tohdoh could see Kozuki on top of Zero, shielding him from the impromptu firefight.

You would have made a fine samurai, he thought approvingly.

A bullet tore away two fingers on his left hand.

Ten, eleven, twelve...

Darlton fired. The bullet ripped through Tohdoh's coat.

Thirteen...

A bullet carved a track above his temple, white hot.

Fourteen...

He spun around a bullet.

FIFTEEN!

Darlton's gun clicked empty.

"Shit!" Darlton shouted, ejecting the magazine.

Tohdoh sprinted forward, low to the ground, then jumped into the air just as the Glaston recharged his mag, and slashed.

Darlton's hand went flying, the gun still gripped tightly in it. The Britannian bellowed, from pain or rage Tohdoh didn't know, a combat knife in his remaining hand. Tohdoh flipped his sword around, the blade slicing through the base of Darlton's hand and out the other side.

Darlton staggered past him, his face ashen. He fell to his knees, holding the stumps of his severed wrists before him.

Tohdoh considered, briefly, calling out for a medic, but he restrained that impulse. He sighed heavily.

"I'm sorry," he said, raising his sword.

With a single, swift stroke, he chopped the knight's head off. Blood geysered out of the stump of his neck, showering the ground around the body. The headless body collapsed onto its chest. Sir Bart Darlton's head rolled a few feet away, the expression on his face forever frozen in pained stupefaction.

Around him, the fighting had come to a stop, the last Britannian soldier dropping dead to the ground.

Tohdoh cleaned off his blade, his shoulders sagging as he sheathed it.

I'll say they died honorably in battle, he thought. Such an end is far preferable to this.

Maybe they would still be able to keep the peace.

"TOHDOH!"

Tohdoh breathed sharply, furiously.

He turned around to Zero.

A wicked smile warped Zero's features, his white teeth showing in a manic rictus grin.

His left eye was open now, and it glowed an eerie red.

Tohdoh scowled at him. "Zero, you-"

"NOW YOU'RE MINE! OBEY!"

….

Infirmary, Presidential Palace, Tokyo

"Come out and surrender!" Villetta heard a voice shout from outside the door.

"You're the ones who need to surrender!" her lieutenant shouted back. "You heard the transmission, same as the rest of us!"

"Like we'd ever believe Zero would just give up!" came the retort, this time from a woman.

"Yeah, you Brits are stupid if you think we'd ever fall for that!"

"General Tohdoh is a man of unimpeachable character!"

"He's a murderer and a traitor, and he'll get what's coming to him!"

Villetta glanced worriedly down at Ohgi. His skin was pale and clammy, his breathing ragged and shallow. Their medical supplies were exhausted.

"Kaname," she whispered, squeezing his hand gently, "just hold on."

She released his hand and stood up, approaching the door quickly. "This is Major Villetta Nu, commander of this detachment," she called out. "To whom am I speaking?"

"Villetta?" the female voice asked. "Ohgi's girl?"

"Yes, that Villetta," she confirmed.

"Small world," one of the male voices said.

"Listen," Villetta called out, "Ohgi is injured, badly. If he doesn't get better medical attention soon, he...he won't make it."

"Then surrender yourselves and the Second Consul over to us," the female voice said. "You'll be treated fairly and reasonably, under the Conventions."

I strongly doubt you've even read the Conventions, Villetta thought but did not say. "That's not happening," she refused. "Zero has already yielded. I won't allow myself or my men to become hostages for barter."

There was silence on the other side of the door for a moment. Villetta wondered if they were finally seeing reason.

"Villetta," one of the male voices called out, "we just received word that our forces have broken through the last of your troopers outside the Palace. You are outgunned, outnumbered, and running low on ammunition, if not completely out. If you don't surrender, we will storm this room."

Villetta's stomach lurched. Kaname will be killed if you do that! "If you do that, I can't guarantee Kaname's safety!" she declared.

The female voice responded, "Then you never loved him. If you love him, throw down your weapons and surrender."

That isn't fair! Villetta wailed internally. This is bigger than me, bigger than any of us! She glanced around at her men. Their eyes were flicking back and forth, between the door and her. They were worried, tensed, their fingers at the trigger guards.

Villetta knew, without a doubt, that these men would obey a surrender order. It was for that precise reason that she couldn't give it. The Empire had caused so much pain and suffering here. However small a gesture it was, she would not betray these men now.

"I will not surrender," she said. "Nor will my men." She glanced back at Ohgi. "But," she said hopefully, "if you'll allow it, I will release the Second Consul to you. He's of no use to us."

"That's acceptable," one of the male voices said immediately. "But, no tricks! You try anything, we'll burn you all out!"

"That's fair," Villetta agreed. She gestured to one of the men at the door, pointing him to Ohgi's bed.

The soldier nodded, lowering his machine pistol. He strode quickly over to Ohgi, grabbing the push bar and rolling him across the floor.

Villetta stopped him with a look. She leaned over Ohgi, brushing back his curly hair.

"Kaname," she whispered, "I'm sorry, but this is all I can do for you. I wish we could have reunited under better circumstances."

Ohgi's only response was a raspy breath.

Villetta placed a soft kiss on his forehead so as not to interrupt his breathing, then gave the soldier a nod. The soldier returned it, rolling Ohgi to the door. It was cautiously opened by the soldiers surrounding it, their weapons at the ready. The soldier pushed Ohgi just outside of the doorway, where the Japanese on the other side, just out of Villetta's sight, tugged it the rest of the way as quick as they could.

Ohgi groaned painfully.

"Be careful with him, you idiots!" Villetta demanded, her heart twisting.

"S-Sorry," a female's voice, different from the previous one, called out sheepishly.

The door was slammed shut by her men.

"Take up defensive positions!" Villetta commanded.

They turned over the remaining beds, forming a wall against the expected assault. Villetta checked her magazine, clicking it back into place a moment later. The door reverberated with a loud bang as the soldiers outside battered it, with what she had no idea.

"Gentlemen," Villetta said as the door began to bend inward, "serving with you has been the honor of a lifetime."

The door split just a crack, not enough for her to see anything beyond the merest suggestion of limbs. She breathed nervously, licking away the sweat on her lip.

The radio on her hip crackled. "This is General Kyoshiro Tohdoh," it said. "I have issued a formal surrender to Zero. All fighting is to stop, effective immediately."

The words reverberated around the room. Villetta's jaw dropped.

"What?"

….

Satte

"Kneel."

The assembled JLF went to one knee.

"Stand."

They did so.

"Hop."

Their feet lifted in unison.

"Shout 'Hail Zero!'"

"HAIL ZERO!" they shouted.

Lelouch let out a peal of laughter, high and cold, with just the barest edge of mania.

Kallen, her gun pointed squarely at Tohdoh, frowned in disgust. "Do you really have to do that?" she asked him. "What your geass does is bad enough, without you adding in the creep factor."

Lelouch laughed again, this one much more natural. "I just won the war, Kallen," he said, grinning triumphantly. "I think I'm allowed to enjoy myself."

"We beat the guys here," she reminded him. "The north is still under JLF control."

That sobered him up. He nodded. "Fair point," he conceded. "Not all of them will surrender when they hear about this." A small smile lifted his lips. "But, most will."

He turned to his newly minted minions. "Find and eliminate any and all units that refuse my surrender order," he commanded. "Infiltrate and destroy them. Once you've finished, march to Mount Fuji and join the work gangs up there."

"YES, YOUR HIGHNESS!"

As the geassed rebels scattered in different directions, Lelouch approached Tohdoh. The man was on his knees, his forehead touching the ground in a traditional bow.

"Where are the other Holy Swords?" Lelouch asked.

"Colonel Kousetsu Urabe is in Ushiku," Tohdoh began in a monotone. "Colonel Nagisa Chiba was near the Arakawa Bridge. Colonel Asahina was in Kawagoe. Colonel Ryoga Senba is dead."

"What's the status of all surviving Holy Swords at this moment?"

"Colonel Urabe was being pushed back by Black Knight forces. I lost contact with Colonel Chiba just before we caught up with you. She said something about the ground, then it cut out."

"Good," Lelouch said, nodding. "Very good. Is Asahina dead, then?"

"His IFF tag singaled 'Lost.'"

"Most excellent. Contact Colonel Urabe and order him to surrender. If he refuses, tell him I have Chiba in custody. If both you and her are my prisoners, I doubt he'll continue fighting."

"Understood."

"Well, hop to it!" Lelouch said cheerfully.

"At once, Your Highness."

Tohdoh stood and headed for one of the Knightmares so he could use its comms suite. A pair of Black Knights followed behind him.

Kallen observed them.

It is astonishing how quickly people make a turnaround when they know the truth.

The knew who he was now. They knew everything.

And they didn't care.

Each man kept his head bowed and mouth shut, all of them practically kneeling where they stood.

"What comes next?" Kallen asked. She ignored how her lips were still tingling.

"We start accepting surrenders," Lelouch answered gamely. "If what Tohdoh was saying is correct, his troops were on their last legs when he pulled this. Hearing that their leader has surrendered with the entirety of their High Command will sap the morale of most of their forces." Lelouch chuckled darkly. "Especially when they hear what I have in store for them."

Kallen raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

Lelouch clasped his hands behind his back. "Tohdoh will have to be executed," he explained. "That much is clear. The man has to die, and it must be publicly. It will be broadcast, both over the working TV networks and radio. I'm certain those in the north that can will be listening." He smirked. "I wonder how they will react when they hear their great leader and hero begging for his life?"

Kallen felt bile rise in her throat. She ducked her head. "I see," she said.

"You don't approve?" Lelouch asked her.

She raised her head, crossing her arms over her chest. "No, Lelouch, I don't," she agreed.

Lelouch narrowed his eyes at her. "He would have killed me, Kallen," he said. "He had every intention of doing to me what I'm about to do to him."

"I know."

"Is it because I'm using my geass on him?" he asked. "Is that what you're so hung up on?"

"No, that isn't it." Kallen blushed at his disbelieving stare. "Okay, yes, that does have something to do with it, but it isn't just that."

"It's the only problem you've raised thus far."

Kallen sighed. "Don't worry about it, Lelouch," she said. "There are more important things to do than argue about this."

Lelouch looked as if he wanted to press the point, but he seemed to think better of it. "Very well," he agreed, "we can discuss it later. For now, let's get the enemy folded up." He gazed over at the rising sun. "With any luck, we'll have this wrapped up by lunch." Lelouch narrowed his eyes at Tohdoh as he returned. "But first..."

He swung around to the geassed man as he came to attention. "Transmission sent," Tohdoh reported.

"Good. Very good." Lelouch rested a hand on his hip. "Now I have some questions. You will leave nothing hidden. Is that understood?"

"Yes, Your Highness," Tohdoh replied.

"When did you come into contact with Mao?"