Stage 3: The Desire for Strength
Before Sena knew it, he had spent a week at the Ares Villa with Lelouch. It was all just waiting for news about Nunnally's recovery. It had been rather quiet, the brothers going through what would be taken with Lelouch and Nunnally to Japan, talking about silly things like what they could do in the future in only a manner a pair of boys so young could.
They were making the best of time they couldn't guess how much longer it would last for. Amid it of course had come several more chess games, and true to Lelouch's words Sena had lost every single match but had gotten close to winning yet again a few times. Something Sena was more than happy to carry with him.
To Reina's clear irritation during this period, there was also the news of how Marianne's funeral would be handled. Not only would her children be shipped off to Japan without even being able to bury their own mother, but to Lelouch's disdain, despite her station Marianne was not to be given a funeral with full honors as one would expect of an Empress.
Instead, for reasons that hadn't been disclosed to a frustrated Lelouch and a much more openly irate Reina, the funeral was going to be as a commoner's would. Simple, understated, and not at all made a show of.
In a dark manner of hindsight when preparing, Sena concluded it made sense.
Twisted sense.
Before she was an Empress or even a Knight, Marianne had been a commoner. On top of her children being stripped of their royal titles, so too was she. This of course wasn't made public, but among the nobility they all took it as the Emperor posthumously punishing the Empress for her son's "rash actions" towards him. But there had been questions as to the necessity of such a thing, but none dared to speak of it aloud.
So rather than the attendance of a funeral, it was the cold steel and asphalt of an official airstrip where Sena found himself and several other royal children there to witness the departure of Lelouch and Nunnally, along with a few nobles sympathetic to the loss of Marianne.
Of said royals, among them Sena counted his elder siblings Schneizel, Clovis, and Cornelia, and those his age or younger, Euphemia, Marrybell, Carinne, and Laila. Sena also recognized the lady and son of the Weinberg household present, and a young woman Cornelia had told him about, Nonnette Enneagram.
"Lelouch, Nunnally, one more thing before you leave," Sena broke away from the crowd and to his departing siblings. Grabbing Lelouch's hand, he pressed an item into it. Lelouch opened his hand, his eyes widening to see it was the white king from the chess set they'd been playing with. "As a reminder. When we see each other again, give that back to me so we can play properly, yeah?"
"Of course," Lelouch nodded.
"Nunnally, good luck," Sena knelt before the blind and wheelchair bound girl, taking one of her small hands. "Mother tells me Japan's weather is pretty rough."
"Don't worry, I have Big Brother to look after me," Nunnally said, her soft voice bereft of much of an idea of even why this was going on. "Will you be okay, Sena?"
"He'll be fine, Nunnally," Lelouch assured. "Sena is a lot stronger than he used to be. We have nothing to worry about."
"I would say something but… I was in bed being crazy sick just a few days ago," Sena chuckled.
"Your Highness, they must leave now," Sena tensed a bit when a large hand came to his shoulder, looking up to see the scarred face of Andreas Darlton, a respected officer in the military and a close friend of Cornelia's.
"Of course. Until we see each other again!"
As he was ushered back to the crowd, Sena waved his brother and sister off as they were taken up into the plane that would take them to Japan. All was silent among the watching crowd as the plane started up and departed. The soldiers gave their salutes to the departing craft. Cornelia had to keep a hold on Euphemia as the pink haired girl began crying, despite attempts to hold it in as she bunched her dress up. Yeah… until next time. However long that takes. Sena took his sleeves to his eyes to dry his own forming tears.
As the crowd began to disperse, Sena's eyes fell to one of the soldiers still watching the departing plane. The man was barely holding back his own tears, his jaw tightly clenched to the point it was shaking from the strain. I recognize him… he was one of Marianne's guards. As his mother ushered the boy away, Sena had a thought occur. If there's anyone I should ask… I'm sure it would be him. At the least, he might know something.
Despite the plan forming in Sena's head, after the departure of the plane, Reina had gathered the nobles who'd attended the departure up for a summary discussion. Sena had heard her talking it over with the staff of the Aries Villa.
There was much to be finalized when it came to what happened to Marianne's estate among the nobility, plus among those who supported her more directly such as the Ashford family. But that then left the younger ones to be ushered off to another room to wait for the adults to finish their meeting.
It was as Sena was letting his pendulum pendant swing in front of his eyes to focus that he was approached by Euphemia, the princess's eyes red from her continued attempts to stop herself from crying.
"Did they really have to go?" Euphemia asked. Sena stopped the pendant, giving a shrug as he pat a spot on the sofa next to him.
"I'm not sure just why the Emperor decided sending them to Japan was the best idea," Sena admitted. Not like one could expect a nine-year-old to understand politics that well. "But… if it helps, Euphie, Lelouch and I promised we'd see each other again. It might be a long time, but you know he keeps his promises."
"Yeah. Though he can be silly and mean. I hope he does well," Euphemia sighed, then turning her concerned look to Sena. "Will you be alright? I heard from Big Sister about how you were the other week. Are you really all better?"
"Yeap!" Sena gave her a bright smile. "I feel better than I have in a long time. Still not super strong, but maybe I can get there now. I don't think I'll get sick like that again either."
"So then… we can play outside like I've asked Lady Reina about now?" Euphemia's expression brightening made Sena feel a bit at ease from her earlier sad look.
"She might let me," Sena's nod got his sister to laugh happily. "So hey, wanna know something? Lelouch and I had been playing a lot of chess these past few days, and I was actually able to beat him twice in a row… though he beat me every other time after."
"Ehh? You beat him twice?!" Sena's nod made Euphemia's eyes widen even more. "But you've never beat him more than once before he gets back at you! I've only seen him lose a lot against Big Brother Schneizel."
"I don't think anyone can beat him at chess anyway," Sena gave a defeated sigh. "And besides, the other games Lelouch and I played were close."
"Still…" A new voice brought the two to look over, Marrybell approaching. "That you got closer each time is impressive, Sena. You always do talk about how badly you want to get better at these things."
"And I want to keep getting better," Sena said. "There was another promise Lelouch and I made. That next time we saw each another, we'd both have the power to change things. The Britannia that sent them away… I don't like it. But… well, I need to prove to everyone even the weak 99th Prince can become strong too."
"Now you're sounding a bit like Oldrin," Marrybell chuckled. "Talking about getting stronger… you sound like a Knight!"
"Huh. Does the title Prince of Knights sound cool?" Sena's musing earned laughs from his sisters. Looking across the room, Sena caught Carine looking at the small bundle. Sena waved to her, and the younger princess huffed as she turned away. "Carine doesn't like me, does she?"
"If you get more chances to talk with her, I'm sure you'll get along," Marrybell said.
"She's not so bad," Euphemia added.
"Finally, we're out of that!" The door to the lounge flew open, Reina entering with Cornelia behind her. "Sorry for the wait Sena, that meeting went on longer than I hoped. There's far too much speculation going on among the nobility."
"It's alright. Euphie, Marry and me were just chatting," Sena said.
"Lady Reina, if Sena really is getting better, then it'll be alright if he plays outside with me, right?" Euphemia trotted up to the woman. Reina gave a warm smile to the little girl, while her older sister gave an exasperated sigh.
"Of course," Reina said.
"Euphie, we can't be sure just how much better he'll actually be," Cornelia interjected. Euphemia pouted at her, but it hardly deterred the young woman. "I just don't want you to push him."
"You worry too much," Sena said, Cornelia giving him a raised look. "Also, there was something I wanted to ask you, Big Sister?"
"Me?" Cornelia hummed as Sena nodded. "Alright then, what is it?"
"I want to meet one of the soldiers who was here," Sena's request got a raised brow from Cornelia. "The man with the blue hair. He looked like he was trying not to cry."
"Children really are harsh in some ways, aren't they?" Cornelia's sigh was met by Reina putting a hand to her shoulder. "That soldier is named Jeremiah Gottwald. He was a member of Lady Marianne's guard like me. Why do you want to meet with him?"
"Just to ask some questions is all," Sena said. "Lelouch and I made a promise… and I don't want to waste a moment. Please?"
"I can certainly arrange something. Please don't be getting any silly ideas," Cornelia put a hand to the boy's head. "You should focus on recovering and having fun. Not the business of us adults."
"Cornelia you're not that old," Sena stated. In turn, the ruffling of his hair turned into a light chop from Cornelia. "Ow."
"Don't get smart," The warning from the older princess earned some laughs from the others, and a playful smirk from Sena.
It was only a day since the departure of Lelouch and Nunnally, and the young Jeremiah Gottwald felt as if Heaven itself were bearing down on him. He could only pace in anxious worry at the foyer of the eternal oddity of the royal villas, the Libra Villa.
Designated for the Lady Reina, compared to the European stylings most expected of Britannian palaces, Libra Villa was a hybrid of Britannian and Japanese construction, giving the grand estate a unique look since it's remodeling so long ago, especially with the gardens of imported plants meant to give the estate a feel like that of its mistress' homeland. It certainly drew the eyes of visitors, especially during spring when the yaezakura trees were in full bloom.
Despite his anxiousness Jeremiah felt that the interior of the estate certainly gave a comforting feeling. Warm light matched by Japanese decorations along the walls of the hall lent to the foreign nature some found so exotic about the royal concubine, yet also gave it a homier feeling in its paper walls fronting traditional stone, and wooden flooring kept at a welcoming polish.
However, as he paced the staircase, Jeremiah felt no ease too his anxiety. He knew well that Lady Reina and Empress Marianne had been close to one another, practically sisters. A rarity among the Emperor's mistresses, but it was made notable since both were considered out of place among Britannian nobility.
And Jeremiah only felt that exact closeness was why he had been called to this villa today. Or rather, that it was perhaps why the Lady's son had seemingly asked for him.
"Sir Gottwald, the prince will see you now."
Jeremiah cleared his throat as a maid approached him. He followed the young woman out from the hall and into the central garden of the villa. It felt almost like walking into a different location entirely as the hybrid architecture gave way to an elaborate garden done purely in the style of Japan. Lush grass and artificial streams coursing along wisteria trees currently hanging thick with their blooms, all leading to a central building styled after the shrines known across Japan. The knight felt rather out of place strolling through the stone pathways of the garden.
He also felt his feelings were only punctuated by the rhythmic doink from an object made of bamboo he saw near the shrine set among river stone.
Once they reached the door, the maid bowed to Jeremiah and took her leave. Through the paper entrance, Jeremiah could see a small silhouette standing out against the light inside of the shrine.
"Your highness, it is I, Jeremiah Gottwald. You sent for me?"
"You can come in."
Jeremiah slowly entered, finding the room beyond to have an even warmer feeling to it than the grand hall. Perhaps it was the smaller size, as it made the soft light of the candles lit across the traditional room stand out even more. And sitting at the center of the room, almost framed by the traditional Japanese swords mounted on the wall behind him, was Sena. The prince that not a week before Jeremiah last knew to be laid up in hospital near death's door.
And yet now here the boy was, dressed in traditional Japanese attire with a series of books to one side, and before him a chessboard lacking the white king. He didn't merely look recovered, but outright better.
The knight had heard of the prince's seemingly miraculous recovery and newfound health but wasn't sure of it himself. Yet now, even if the boy before him was still as thin as a child of his former health could be expected, Sena now looked as if a strength had entered his body, one even more evident in his bright blue-violet eyes.
"I heard you've been promoted to lieutenant," Sena stated, looking up from the chessboard. "I suppose congratulations are in order?" The prince took on a stilted smile when Jeremiah turned his head away in shame. "Or perhaps not?"
Despite what investigations had revealed, the fact was, Marianne had died while under his watch. By all accounts Jeremiah's chances for further progress should have been dead in the water. He found the very notion of being given such a promotion absurd. Much less the fact none had questioned the insane decree. It defied all he believed Britannia to be – Harsh yes, but a rational, ordered meritocracy where those with skill and strength were rewarded and failure was punished. The reverse came off as utterly insane to the man.
"I did not deserve such a promotion," The man admitted. "I desire glory, but I desire to earn that glory. If I am to be honest, your highness, this silver bar feels more like a mockery than anything."
"Yet you didn't turn it down?"
"To do so would have only further besmirched my career."
"I see," Sena hummed. "Well, it's not like I brought you here to interrogate you like some officer. Cornelia showed me the testimonies of the guards, so I know you're innocent. I was only… curious, to why Lady Marianne's guards were absent. It's a bit confusing when I think about it."
"I am as well," Jeremiah said. "Princess Cornelia said we had been ordered to clear the Ares Villa for a time. It puzzles me as to why, but to think that in my absence she was…"
Sena let out a hum, picking up the black queen from the chessboard and rolling it between his thin fingers.
"Does putting that burden on yourself really help?"
"Highness?"
"It just doesn't feel right to go and make yourself bear all the faults," Sena stated. "See… before he left, Lelouch and I spent a few days digging through what information we could. There is a trail. One that, unfortunately, two princes with a week to dig around couldn't get enough to pin down. However, I don't believe for a second Lady Marianne was killed by terrorists. Mother herself and other nobles in the court believe it was a plot by someone else within the line of succession."
"I have heard such rumors myself," Jeremiah hesitated for a moment when Sena gestured for him to take the cushion on the other side of the board. He found the need to sit crisscross the slightest bit uncomfortable but bearing with it felt necessary. "However, such rumors would prove ill for many. What information did you and Prince Lelouch find though?"
"That a trail of people who could be connected to what happened have all gone off the radar," Sena set the black queen back onto the board, then he began to pick pawns off the tiles. "The Brigadier responsible for your promotion? Vanished, seemingly retired to take his family to the countryside. And that the man after him is also gone. Meaning the line of questioning with the Capital Guard now ends at you. A man proven to be innocent of any wrongdoing in the Empress' death."
"Are you saying whoever was behind this plot had the means to make my higher ups vanish? All to cover a trail to their assassination?" Jeremiah had to admit, the fact that two boys the age of the princes were able to put that much together in such a short time was astounding, even if in the end it was barely anything at all.
"That is the conclusion we came to, yes. But obviously, being sent to Japan means Lelouch can't dig further into it," By now all the black pawns had been removed from the board, and Sena eyed the black king with a despondent look. As if he saw his now absent brother in that piece. "But I intend to continue looking into this as much as I'm able. I'll have to be careful about it. But I feel my unique position among the royal hierarchy will give me a certain leeway to do so."
"May I ask, if you knew all of this, then why even call for me personally?" Jeremiah asked. As the prince looked up at him, the man felt a gasp catch in his throat. In those young eyes, the knight saw a burning ambition. An ambition he would dare not think a child seemingly aware of his place in the world would dare to have.
"Because you feel as if something is wrong with all of this too, right?" Sena asked. "Sir Gottwald, let me tell you something. Lelouch and I made a promise, that next we met, no matter how many years it may take, that we would both have strength. Strength enough to change this Empire, one both of us think needs it. An Empire that would allow the assassination of its Empress, who's ruler would cast aside two of his own children as political tools. The Empire that continues to conquer nations, strip their identities, and cast those people into squalor. I want to change Britannia, and whether I do so from within or from without, either path is one I'll take."
"My lord, I mean no disrespect, but what you're saying is near treason!" Jeremiah shot to his feet as shock ran through him. It was a different kind of insane to hear this child speak of such things. Yet as Sena rose as well, the burning ambition in his eyes only appeared brighter.
"Maybe it is treason, in a fashion. It's ironic that to change this Empire, I don't have a choice but to act as it expects me," Sena gave a chuckle as he turned to the swords hanging on the wall. "I need to prove to an entire Empire that a child born of two nations and frail of body can become powerful. As I am now, I have none. I have no influence, no merit, no soldiers. For now, I need to gain that strength. I need to learn in both mind and body, so that one day I can keep the promise I made with Lelouch. And eventually, perhaps learn just why I was pulled away from death… someone else asked for my help as well. I need to keep that promise too."
"Someone else, highness?" Jeremiah gave the boy a questioning look.
"It's nothing, for now," The prince said, turning back to the knight. "And I feel as if like me, Sir Gottwald, you believe that what has happened is wrong. The Empress is dead, and yet the man ordered to leave her side has been pushed up the ladder, while all above him have been taken out of the question. Don't you believe such a thing to be worth looking into?"
"Certainly, but… is it our place?" Jeremiah looked to the floor as his hands bunched. A part of him certainly, desperately wished to agree with the boy's ideals. The failure he felt would never leave him, the agony of knowing the children of the woman he had failed were now half the world away, that his chance for redemption was seemingly stolen. He wanted to believe in this wild idea it was simply wrong. "If your enemy is someone who can kill an Empress and get away with it… what hope is there?"
"I have no idea. But that's what makes it interesting," Sena's admittance felt almost casual, flighty.
But the smile he gave Jeremiah was one of confidence. It wasn't that of childish naivete. Like the burning ambition the prince held, he said those words with nothing but conviction.
"Even if there isn't hope, I believe an answer can be found. I only need to put myself in the proper position to find it. To put it simply, Sir Gottwald, I desire power. Enough power to tear out the rotten core of this Empire and see it change. Quite Britannian of me, wouldn't you say?"
"I've read the stories of the Japanese warlords of old who had such ambitions themselves," Jeremiah stated. "Perhaps it is that you bear the blood of both that allows you to feel so confident."
"Perhaps," Sena chuckled. The fact the young prince shared these ambitions with him so freely impressed the knight, even more so considering the boy's still seemingly fragile nature.
"But my lord… if I may ask, why tell me this? What would you ask of me?"
"Only one thing," Sena lifted one of his thin arms to the man, extending his small hand out to him. "I ask that, as a man who also wants to know the truth, that you fight alongside me. Would you become the first Knight to lend me strength in this mad, childish ambition to change an Empire, even if it means in the future I become it's enemy? Will you lend your strength to a frail prince who has none? If you decide not to, I will understand. I only ask you recognize my ambitions where others won't at the very least."
The young knight felt a sudden spark in his chest.
Here was a boy, not even ten years old, who had been on death's door not that long ago, staring at him with eyes burning with pure conviction to see his ambitions through. Sena was setting himself onto a path Jeremiah could only see as arduous, long, and filled with hardships.
One that may well turn him into a traitor to the very Empire he was born into.
Prince he may be, but the boy would have to claw his way up near literally from the bottom. No one expects anything of this child. His place in the ascension is little more than a formality, an empty claim even he must be aware of. And yet he is placing himself before a foe others would see as insurmountable. The man thought it insane. Yet somehow, the clarity the boy saw in it made even the worried knight feel that, perhaps, if the boy could gain the power he desired, then just maybe it was possible.
As a Knight, Jeremiah understood he was being called on by one of his sworn lords. And yet, Sena was also giving him the option to turn away. To carry on and maybe even forget this dark chapter of his life, the only price being to recognize this boy's desire despite his station. But, as a Knight, Jeremiah knew he was sworn to otherwise. To be gallant, fearless, no matter the danger. If he turned away from this, even if there would be no turning back once he was down this path, would he really be worthy of that title?
If he did turn the prince down, he would surely break that code he had sworn to uphold. I see now… there are only two paths before me now, just as there are two before him. Jeremiah chuckled to himself as he realized it. Here was his chance at redemption. His options were clear: Spend his days living in security and shame for turning down the prince who sought the truth of that day, or risk it all on the wild ambition of a boy determined to change an Empire in whatever way the future presented him.
Taking the boy's hand, Jeremiah knelt before the prince in the very same manner he had when he swore his oath to Britannia. But now, it was to a new lord he would renew that oath too.
"Wield me as you would a sword, my Prince."
"I can't offer you anything Jeremiah. No fame, riches, or glory. Not as the child I am now."
"It makes no difference. Until the day the debt I now owe you is repaid, I will fight by your side to see your ambitions through. Even if one day, we must turn against this Empire to see it through."
"Thank you, Sir Jeremiah. I'm honored to have you by my side."
The loud doink of the shishi-odoshi came down as if to accent the moment. There, in the middle of the mimicked shrine of the land his siblings had been sent to, Sena took the first steps in gaining the power he promised Lelouch he would acquire. That day, with the fealty of his first knight earned, Sena felt he had taken the first move closer to his goal.
Yet again, the Prince felt as if he was witnessing the Pendulum of Fate swing to a new direction.