Cornelia sipped slowly from a glass of wine that had found itself in front of her. It would have been rude not to partake, especially considering this whole thing was supposed to be in her honor after all. But the last thing she needed was for her judgment to be impaired because she got a little tipsy.

Her eyes scanned over the room, and she nodded in satisfaction. It's going well enough. The nobles the Duke had brought with him were hard at work doing nothing of importance, gossiping to themselves like proper nobility. But that meant they were here, and that was all she needed them to do.

The longer she kept them, and by extension the guards away from the innermost parts of the castle, the more time Leila's squad had to retrieve Lelouch.

Although…this banquet was beginning to become a problem. She needed the crowds outside the castle to help mask their escape, but the only reason they were gathering was to catch a glimpse of her. If they realized she wasn't going to show herself, they might begin to depart.

I can wait a little longer, She decided. But not here.

She made her way slowly to the end of the room, opening a door to a balcony with a beautiful view of the city. The fresh air did wonders to clear her head, and she let out a satisfied sigh.

Her eyes narrowed as they settled on a well dressed figure further away, peering over the city. Even from behind him, Kururugi was easily recognizable.

I was waiting for an opportunity to speak with him in private, wasn't I? With one last shake of her head, she walked slowly over to the Knight of Seven.

They stood together in silence for a few minutes, taking in the sight of the sun beginning to set over the horizon, casting an orange light over the city. "Do you have nothing to say to me, Sir Kururugi?" She finally asked.

Suzaku shrugged. "What is there to say, your highness? I was surprised by your sudden arrival, but it is of course an honor to host a princess. Particularly one as esteemed as yourself, Chief General."

Cornelia frowned. "Stop with that," She ordered. "That sycophantic nonsense…it sounds ridiculous. We're old friends aren't we?"

Suzaku pursed his lips. "Forgive me. I seem to remember it differently," He said coldly.

She laughed. "Yes, I suppose you would. I can hardly blame you for that. You were an eleven who wormed his way into piloting an experimental Knightmare frame. I loathed you from the start. When you got closer to Euphie, when she knighted you…It grated on me, I admit. But times have changed, Suzaku. Euphie's gone now, and I find it tiring to keep hating you for such a petty reason."

"It is your right as a princess to consider me however you like," Suzaku said passively.

"I told you during the Black Rebellion, you were a true knight," She reminded him. "I wouldn't have knighted you for a second time otherwise. Or do you think I would do something like that on a whim?"

"No, your highness." Suzaku said.

"You would have been a fine knight for her," Cornelia said, not really knowing why. She didn't come here to speak about Euphie. But he's standing here in front of me. It's hard not to. "I know how devoted you were to her, and her to you. In truth, I wasn't so opposed as I claimed back then. At least I knew you had her best interests at heart, and not one of my siblings, or worse, the Emperor. You'd have made a damn fine knight for Euphie. And something more in time, I'm sure."

Suzaku choked, before stiffening. Cornelia snorted. "Don't think I'm blind, Kururugi. I know how you felt about her." She paused, before letting out a sigh. "She loved you too. I couldn't for the life of me tell you why, but she truly loved you. Had things gone differently, you might have wed."

"I…whatever myself or the princess felt, I doubt the Emperor would have ever permitted such a thing." Suzaku was uncomfortable. Good. Perhaps he'll let something slip.

She found herself grinning. "Please. You really think Euphie would have let something like our father stop herself from marrying you if she truly wanted to?"

She saw Suzaku smile faintly despite his obvious discomfort. "No. No, I don't. I don't think she'd let anything stop her if she put her mind to something."

"That was always the trouble with her," Cornelia reminisced fondly. "I remember once she was intent on dragging me away from my duties to celebrate that Ashford girl's birthday when they were children. It got to the point where she enlisted Lelouch to fake a broken ankle to get me to the party."

Suzaku fell silent. Cornelia took this as her chance. "Whatever else he did, I still remember Lelouch as a child in the Aries Villa. He doted on Nunnally even then, and Euphie as well. And he idolized his mother." She paused. "Of course, everyone else who met her did as well. Mariannie was a hard woman not to look up to. At least, if you were anyone outside of a jealous noble."

"You would know best, your highness," Suzaku said stiffly.

"No, I don't think I would," Cornelia said with a shake of her head. "I…never even met him after his exile. Not really. Only Zero. My last real memory of Lelouch was as a boy. But you…you met him after. After Marianne's death, Nunnally's injury, their exile. And you met them again, later at Ashford. You knew him far better than I."

"I didn't know him enough to know, did I?" He asked bitterly. "He played me for a fool for months. And I certainly didn't know him enough to know how much of a monster he truly was."

"I wonder about that too, sometimes," She mused. "It's such a stark contrast. The boy I knew, who doted on his sisters. And the terrorist who murdered Euphie. I find it difficult to understand."

"There's nothing to understand," Suzaku said, barely keeping his voice from a growl. "He was a hateful, spiteful bastard who deceived everyone around him."

"Perhaps," She conceded. "But he was also my brother, and I can't bring myself to forget that. And now he's dead."

Suzaku froze, before relaxing. "Yes, he is. His evil isn't our concern any longer."

So bitter. With good reason, perhaps, but still…what have you done, Suzaku? She didn't want to believe he was fully complicit in her brother's imprisonment, but how could he not be?

Cornelia shut her eyes. At least Euphie isn't here to see this.


Cornelia was as good as her word, it seemed. From the moment they breached the castle they had run into practically nobody who challenged them, only needing to hide themselves once or twice as an odd patrol passed by. Like the princess said, most of the guards must be occupied dealing with her arrival.

Yukiya wasn't going to complain. It gave them a straight shot to the cells. Unfortunately, his suspicions that the cells would be a waste of time turned out to prove true.

The princess at least had the foresight to mark Kingsley's quarters on the blueprints she had provided for them, allowing him to navigate without much trouble. It gave him plenty of time to think.

Something about this entire operation seemed strange. Why would Cornelia, a princess and general of Britannia, kidnap a military advisor bearing the Imperial Scepter? If it was some political ploy to further her standing by jeopardizing Euro Britannia, he might have been able to understand. But then why insist on bringing him alive? Unharmed?

And why were her orders so strange for dealing with him? Expect Kingsley to act odd. Expect him to resist, or maybe not. Yukiya stifled a snort. How very helpful, your highness. Why did Cornelia treat this like a rescue mission if she expected Kingsley to possibly resist? And what was that nonsense she said about an eyepatch?

But more than any of that, what puzzled him most was the question of why Euro Britannia would bother keeping Kingsley away from her. Kingsley's presence wasn't officially acknowledged by the homeland, but in three months even much of the civilian populace had heard his name whispered as the architect of so much destruction.

I suppose the princess has been absent for some time, Yukiya mused. Perhaps they hope she hadn't heard of Kingsley, and can still keep him secret from her. But that still begs the question…why bother?

It was a maddening riddle. And one he regretfully didn't have the time to solve.

"He's here," Yukiya announced, as they came to a stop in front of a beautifully engraved door.

"You're sure?" Akito asked.

He shrugged. "These are his quarters. He could be somewhere else, sure, but these are his rooms. Assuming the princess marked them correctly."

Akito nodded, satisfied. "Good work, Yukiya. Let's grab him." He almost marched right past him, but Ayano grabbed his shoulder.

"Wait a second, Akito!" She whispered. "Maybe we should at least try subtlety? We're elevens dressed like soldiers, and Kingsley's a Britannian noble. He's going to realize somethings wrong immediately."

"It can't be helped," Akito said with a twinge of regret. "If we had tried our luck with those Britannian soldiers, we might have been able to take them out, steal their uniforms. BUt that would have introduced other risks. As it is, we have to make do with what we have. Besides, the princess said he may not try to resist. We might get lucky."

Yukiya snorted, stepping aside to let Akito take point. When are we ever lucky?

They took only a moment to form up behind Akito. He tried the door, to his surprise finding it unlocked. Akito shrugged, before pushing it open, quickly entering Kingsley's room.

Kingsley himself was hunched over his desk, nose nearly pressed into whatever paperwork he was going over. He sighed when they entered. "I told you already, Shaing, I'm busy. Now leave me be, you-" He looked up, trailing off as he realized they weren't who he thought they were.

He stared at them for a few moments, no doubt running through all the myriad possibilities for who they were. Never once did panic cross his face, though. Only curiosity. "This is a kidnapping, I presume?"

"Only if you resist," Yukiya said. "Otherwise it's a rescue."

Kingsley scoffed. "A rescue," He mocked. "Don't make me laugh." So much for us being lucky. Kingsley looked at them closer. "You're elevens, aren't you? Who sent you? The Black Knights? No, they hardly have the resources anymore to pull this off. The EU?"

"Who we are doesn't matter," Akito said. "You're going to come with us."

Kingsley grinned. "Really now? Don't tell me you think this'll honestly end in your favor. Lay one filthy hand on me, and Sir Kururugi will have your heads. He's a dullard, but the eleven's stubborn, I'll grant him that. And one does not become a Knight of the Rounds without a bit of talent."

"Let us worry about Kururugi," Akito told him, raising a pistol and aiming at Kingsley. "You just worry about keeping yourself alive."

"If you were here to kill me, you'd have done so," Kingsley pointed out. "You need me alive."

Ryo rolled his eyes, pushing his way past Akito only to slam his fist into Kingsley's jaw, knocking him out of his chair and onto the floor. "We need you alive. We don't need you whining. You can come with us, and make this nice and easy for everyone, or we can carry your unconscious body around the palace like a scrawny little ragdoll. Your choice."

Kingsley glared up at him, massaging his jaw, but stayed silent. Akito sighed, shaking his head. "At least it worked," He muttered before turning to him. "Yukiya, contact the commander."

Yukiya nodded, already pulling out his communicator and walking out of earshot. Leila picked up in two minutes this time. She must have been able to find somewhere private. "Report," She ordered.

"W-0 has secured the target," Yukiya grinned. "We're moving to exfiltrate now."

"Confirmed," Leila said. "We'll both make for primary rendezvous. If either of us reaches there before the other, don't wait longer than five minutes before leaving the palace. I'll notify our partner."

The call disconnected with a click, and Yukiya snapped the device shut. "We're good. We need to reach the primary rendezvous point now."

"Hang on!" Ryo said quickly. He grinned, opening up a briefcase laying on Kingsley's bed. "Didn't Leila mention the Imperial Scepter as a secondary objective?"

Kingsley's eye widened. "Don't you dare-"

"Shut up," Akito warned. "And good work, Ryo. Grab it. We need to get a move on, I…I don't think we have much time before they realize somethings wrong."

Yukiya frowned. "And why is that?"

Akito shook his head. "It doesn't matter. Just hurry." He grabbed Kingsley by the arm, despite the Britannian's protests, leading them out back into the halls.

Yukiya paused before following him. Akito…what's going on?


They moved fast, not quite running. Despite the present danger, Shin found himself once again keeping count in his head, wondering how long it would take her to ask.

"Lord Shaing?" Jean broke the silence, and he allowed himself a small smile. Three minutes. "Forgive me, but if we've truly been betrayed, shouldn't we take more urgency in alerting the Duke? He could be in danger. Or perhaps the Princess could be, or even Lord Kingsley."

"All possible," Shaing agreed. "But which? Kingsley? The Duke? All of them, or perhaps none of them? I don't know. But relax a little Jean. Something interesting is happening. Take the time to enjoy it, savor it a little. We'll inform the Duke in person."

"How do you even…" Jean cleared her throat. "Are you certain we've been betrayed?"

"Positive," Shin replied. "You'll simply have to trust me on this. You do trust me, don't you Jean?"

"Of course," She answered without hesitation.

"That Breisgau girl is at the heart of this, I'm sure of it." He said, mostly to himself. "Perhaps she wasn't so willing to betray the EU as the princess was led to believe." But then, how did Akito manage to breach the palace? He had to be here, he knew it. He felt it.

Shin slowed to a halt. Idiot. Akito was here. In the palace. And if he could sense his brother's presence, then no doubt Akito could sense him as well.

"On second thought, Jean," Shin said slowly. "I think I will call ahead. The Duke needs to know immediately. And Sir Kururugi as well for that matter. Go find our dear Knight of Seven. I'll inform the Duke."


Cornelia watched with interest as Suzaku frowned, lowering his phone. "Forgive me Princess, but I have to leave. There's…a security problem."

Her heart skipped a beat. Shit. "What's wrong?" She demanded.

"I don't know, exactly," Suzaku admitted. "The Duke just informed me that Lord Shaing alerted him of potential hostiles within the palace. You may wish to find that Breisgau girl of yours, find somewhere safe."

No keeping him here, then. Damn it all. She had tried, and she managed to buy plenty of time for Leila's squad. The time for subtlety had passed, it would seem. "Tell me, was it hard for you?"

Suzaku tilted his head in confusion. "Was what hard for me?"

"Killing my brother," Cornelia said. "Hauling him to Pendragon, throwing him at my father's feet. I know you were close, once. The best of friends."

The Knight of Seven scowled. "Once, your highness. But he was not the man I thought he was. He wasn't the boy I befriended, back when he first came to Japan. He was a monster. Only a monster could do what he did. Only a monster could murder someone like Euphie. I would think you of all people would understand."

She nodded along, staring over the Balcony. They were rather high, weren't they? "I thought so too, not so long ago. I was angry. Grieving. I thought he deserved to rot in the lowest hell for what he did. I'd have put him there myself." She shook her head. "At least, I thought so. It's so much harder to hate him when you see what you've done to him. Even he doesn't deserve such a miserable fate."

Suzaku had only a moment for his eyes to widen in realization, before Cornelia grabbed him by the throat. She didn't bother trying to choke him out. She'd lose in a straight fight with the Knight. But with the element of surprise, she could at least get rid of him. Quickly, she pushed him forward, squeezing his throat even as she hauled him over the balcony railing, throwing him over the side with a grunt of exertion.

Cornelia leaned over the railing eagerly, trying to catch sight of him. She saw him, twenty or so feet down, clinging to one of the balconies below them, glaring murderously up at her. She scowled in return. I suppose it was too much to hope the bastard simply fell to his death. He was far too stubborn for that. No wonder her brother became such fast friends with him. Still, if nothing else, it had bought her time. Suzaku was climbing slowly, and that would provide her with the opportunity to get away, and buy a little more time for Leila and her squad. After all, every second counted.

She left the seclusion of the balcony, returning to the banquet thrown in her honor. Noticing her presence, a guard quickly ran up to her. "Your highness!" He said urgently. "The Duke has sent word throughout the guard, there's an attack underway!"

Cornelia nodded, seizing the chance he had given her. "Indeed there is. Lord Shaing has betrayed us," She told him.

The guard's eyes widened. "Lord Shaing? He's an eleven, but I always thought…Lord Manfredi always trusted him. And Lord Kingsley named him his replacement."

"Shaing is a cunning man, and a patient one at that," She said. "It seems he had us all fooled. I only recently learned of his deception myself."

The guard gasped. "Then…that's the purpose of your visit! To reveal his treachery!"

"Of course," She lied smoothly. "But I fear I was too late to stop the worst of the trouble. Quickly now, you must listen to me. Send word throughout the palace. A contingent of enemy Knightmares are closing on the city as we speak. Direct your forces to the outermost walls of the Palace, let no enemy breach us!"

"It will be done at once, your highness!" He bowed quickly, before running off.

Good. Whatever guards were left who might have stumbled upon Leila's squad should be heading for the walls before long, too focused on preventing the enemy from coming in to realize they were already leaving.

And when Suzaku finally hauled himself back up, it would take some time to sort through the confusion and chaos her orders sowed.

Every second, She repeated to herself.

She waited until she was back out in the hallways, clear of any observers before she broke into a run. I have to trust they can handle the rest. She had done what she could, bought them enough time, and created plenty of havoc. All she could do now was go to the rendezvous and trust they would manage to rescue Lelouch.

She ran into Leila not far from their exit point. The young commander's eyes widened when she saw her. "Cornelia! The guards are all leaving the palace, heading to the walls."

"That was my doing," She admitted. "Though it won't be long before my orders are countermanded. We're on the clock now, Leila."

"That was you?" Leila breathed a sigh of relief. "Good. That means they haven't realized yet."

"Realized what?"

"Kingsley's been secured,' Leila said, and Cornelia felt a rush of relief. "Akito and the others have him. They're moving to exfiltrate now. I was on my way to regroup with them myself."

Finally, a bit of good news. The palace was in chaos, Lelouch was safe and in their hands, and all they needed to do was leave the palace and get out of the city.

"Let's hurry then," Cornelia urged, only to halt in her tracks as Shaing emerged from around the corner.

"Hello, your highness," He greeted with a grin. "Pardon, but you should find somewhere to keep yourself safe. There's been an intrusion." His eyes flickered over to Leila.

"I know," She told him. "I already gave the order to man the walls and prepare for an enemy assault. You may go to them and command the defense." And stay the hell away from her and Leila.

Shaing tilted his head. "What do you mean? There's no big attack coming, they're already in the…" He trailed off, the confusion vanishing off of his face. "Oh. Oh that's very good, your highness. I thought Breisgau was the traitor, but I suppose it would make more sense for it to be you."

She narrowed her eyes. "You're accusing royalty of treachery, eleven," She warned, hoping he would back down.

"Hardly an accusation," Shaing snorted. "It does make things nice and neat, though. I was wondering why Kururugi would be hiding Kingsley from you. That's what you're here for, isn't it? Kingsley?"

Cornelia snarled, drawing her sword. "Go, Leila. Meet up with the others, and carry on as planned. I'll hold off Shaing for a while, and meet up with you when I can."

She frowned. "Are you sure you can…?"

"I am the Chief General of the Empire, girl," She snapped. "Princess or not, you don't attain that rank without a bit of skill. I can keep Shaing off your trail for a little while at least. Don't wait for me. I'll meet up with you at the fallback point. If…if I don't…" She swallowed. "Remember your promise. Don't just kill him. Don't bring him back to the EU."

"I won't," Leila said, before turning away. "Good luck, Princess."

Cornelia smiled. That must have grated on her to say that. Across from her, Shaing drew his own sword. "Skilled or not, I am the Grand Master of the Order of Michael," Shaing pointed out. "And unlike you, I had to rely entirely on my ability to attain my position. You do understand you're outmatched, yes?"

"That hardly matters," Cornelia snorted. "I don't need to beat you. I just need to waste your time."

Shaing smiled. "Then by all means, your highness. Waste away."

He lunged forwards, and she brought her sword up to meet his blade.


"I'll have the flesh stripped off the brutish one first," Kingsley noted. "Before that, I'll make sure special attention is paid to your hands. You punched me, you oaf, and worse laid your filthy paws on the Imperial scepter. You'll suffer for that one."

Ryo groaned. "Shut. Up."

"The quiet one seems to be leading you all," He continued with a grin. "I think he'll enjoy watching the rest of you die first. As for the scrawny one and the woman…hm. I'm not too sure. Any suggestions?"

Ayano stopped in her tracks, shoving her elbow into Kingsley's gut. The Britannian crumpled to the ground, gasping for air as he got the wind knocked out of him. "I have one," She growled. "Close your fucking mouth, or I'll sew it shut."

"You…you wouldn't," Kingsley mumbled painfully. "The quiet one, he told you not to harm me."

Akito suppressed the urge to shoot the man. "I said not to hurt you too badly, but the more you go on, the more I'm tempted to simply look away and tell the commander you were injured during your retrieval when she asks." He had never met a man who managed to infuriate him like Kingsley did. It was…honestly rather impressive. He rarely got worked up like this.

Kingsley spat on the floor, hauling himself up to his feet. "I will be free," He promised. "And I will return to his majesty. And when I do, I'll petition him to take command of Area 11's military. And I swear, I'll raze those barbaric little islands to the ground like we should have done in the invasion."

Akito laughed. "Go ahead. None of us have ever been to Japan. We could care less about what happened to it. But you're wrong about one thing. You aren't going to be free, and you will never go back to Britannia. I can promise you that."

"An eleven's promise isn't worth spit," Kingsley snorted. "I'm giving you my word as Julius Kingsley, as the envoy of his majesty's Imperial will, I shall make sure you suffer for this transgression."

"When you can land a punch on one of us without breaking your hand, then I'll feel threatened," Akito said bluntly. "Until then, you have to keep yourself alive to take your revenge, don't you? So stop dragging your feet and keep up, or we'll cut our losses, kill you, and make off with the Scepter."

Kingsley scowled, but finally shut his mouth. Akito sighed in relief, shaking his head. What the hell would Cornelia even want with him? He was everything wrong with Britannia, a snobbish, arrogant noble. He was insufferable to be around for more than ten seconds.

So why exactly would a princess go behind her country's back, put her life and station at risk, and work with her enemy just to kidnap him alive? It didn't make any sense to him, but then, he didn't need it to. Whatever Cornelia had told Leila was enough for her to agree to this, which meant it was enough for him.

He didn't need to ask questions. Questions always just made everything more complicated anyways.

Leila was waiting for them at the old servant's entrance where they had made their entry. Akito felt a weight leave his shoulders when they laid eyes on her. "Commander," He greeted. "Meet Julius Kingsley."

Leila crossed her arms, scrutinizing the Britannian. He stood up straight, glaring at her. Despite his ruffled clothes and abhorrent sneer, he managed to look every bit the noble he was. "You're so young," She said with a shake of her head. "Our age. And you've brought so much horror into the world."

Kingsley grinned cruelly. "All done in service of his majesty. I regret nothing. You, however, are a traitor."

Leila raised an eyebrow. "If you haven't realized that I lied about spying on the EU yet, I'm going to have to reconsider my belief that you're a competent opponent."

He shook his head, his grin widening. "Not to the EU. You're a traitor to Britannia."

She scowled. "I have never once fought for your empire."

"You don't need to, it's in your blood." Kingsley said. "Britannian nobility flows through your veins, yet you throw away your birthright to play in the EU." His eye widened in realization. "This is your squad. They're elevens…The Ghost of Hannibal…that's your work, isn't it?"

Leila held her tongue, and Kingsley laughed. "It is! I knew something was amiss. The Ghost of Hannibal actually seemed mildly intelligent. I knew even your futile attempts at resisting me were far beyond the capabilities of the French. Still, I must laud you. You accomplished quite a bit with very few resources. If you were taught the Britannian way of things, I imagine you could become a fearsome tactician indeed, in time."

She spat at him. "I'd sooner die."

"No need to rush," Kingsley chided. "There'll be plenty of time for executions later. At least wait until Sir Kururugi finds us."

Akito cleared his throat. "We really should be leaving, commander. We don't have much time. Where's-" His eyes flickered over to Kingsley, and he caught himself just in time. "Where's our informant?" He asked instead. We're not supposed to mention Cornelia to him, not until she sees him for herself.

"Occupied," Leila said. "She'll meet up with us later if she can. She gave us the go ahead to leave without her."

Occupied? No. Stop. We can figure it out later. Focus on getting out first. He shoved Kingsley forward hoping to get him to move along faster. The moment he stepped closer to Leila, however, he fell to the ground, his hand shooting up to clutch his eyepatch. He screamed, and quickly Akito covered his mouth, restraining the Britannian.

His eyes widened as he saw Leila fall to the ground beside them, whimpering in pain. "Leila!" He shouted, furious at his inability to help her. He felt Kingsley go slack in his arms and he pushed him away, rushing over to Leila's side. He helped her to her feet gently. "Are you alright?"

"Nightmare…" She muttered, shaking her head. Her eyes were wide, haunted. "It wasn't real. Just a dream, that's all. It was so long ago, it had to be a dream."

"Leila?" He was really worried now.

She shut her eyes, taking a deep breath before she opened them again. "I'm alright. Someone grab Kingsley."

Akito obliged, lifting the scrawny noble in his arms. "Leila…what happened?"

"Not now," She said harshly, regretting the words as soon as they left her. "I'm sorry. Just…later. Not now."

He nodded. She didn't need to explain herself to them. Certainly not in the middle of this whole mess.

They emerged from the servants passage back into the streets of St. Petersburg, just as busy as it was when they entered. Only, instead of everyone funneling towards the palace, they were trying to leave. Akito frowned. "What's going on?"

"This is Cornelia's work," Leila said. "She claimed enemy Knightmares were closing in on the city in order to move the guards towards the walls and help us escape."

"At least it's giving us good cover," Ryo said. "Where to now? Back to the woods?"

Leila shook her head. "We go to the motel Cornelia rented first. We'll wait as long as we can safely afford to. If she arrives by then, we'll go from there. If not…we'll have to take Kingsley with us, and try to make contact with her later."

They slowed to match the pace of the crowd, trying not to stand out by running. Akito pared a look back towards the palace, spotting a number of soldiers beginning to pour out of the gates. Searching for us, I'd bet. He pointed them out, and Leila led them off of the main road they were following.

Thankfully they had a head start, and it didn't take long to reach the motel. Akito stumbled through the door with a groan.

"At least the princess rented the whole place out," Ayano said, trying to cheer them up as they entered the lobby, setting down their gear and taking a moment to catch their breath. "That's one bit of good news."

Ryo snorted, crossing his arms and leaning on the wall. "Right. The same princess who is currently missing, possibly captured, leaving us with the world's most annoying war criminal."

"It could be worse," Yukiya pointed out. "He could be awake."

Kingsley shifted with a groan, slowly raising a hand to his eyepatch. Ryo rolled his eyes. "You just had to say something," He muttered.

Kingsley mumbled something too quiet for him to catch. "Don't you start," Ayano warned.

Wincing, Kingsley rose to his feet, supporting himself by placing a hand on the wall. "Water," He whispered. "Do you…do you have some water?" Akito frowned. There was something different in his voice, in the way he spoke. It was almost gentler.

Ryo laughed bitterly. "Seriously? All that blustering and whining, and now you wanna beg for water? Screw off." He shook his head, before switching to Japanese. "This asshole. After everything he's done, he's lucky we don't just off him now."

Kingsley tilted his head curiously. "Water?" He asked, in Japanese, and the entire lobby fell silent. "Please, do you have any water?" He took his hand off the wall, stepping towards the door. Akito prepared to step in front of him in case he tried to run, but he made it two steps before falling to the ground.

Leila blinked in surprise, staring down at the unconscious form of Kingsley. "Was that…did he just speak Japanese?"

Ryo nodded almost robotically, his eyes glued to Kingsley as well. All of them were staring. "Y-Yeah. It was. He just…he just said the same thing he did in english. He was asking for water."

"Why does a Britannian noble speak Japanese?" Leila asked. "And why…why was he acting so strange? He was so much quieter, more…out of it. Like he wasn't really all here."

"Maybe it's just shock," Ayano suggested. "We did just kidnap him."

Leila shook her head. "I've seen shock. That was something else." She grabbed Kingsley, dragging him and propping him up against the wall so he wasn't lying on the ground. "I'm not sure what's going on," She said slowly. "But I think I'm going to have some questions for the princess when she comes back."


Cornelia winced in pain, quickly stepping back. She dabbed her cheek with her free hand, pulling it away with a grimace. He cut me. "You drew the blood of a princess," She growled. "That's a death sentence."

"And what's the sentence for killing a traitor?" He asked with a grin. "I wonder…perhaps they'll make me a Duke?"

"Is that what you're after? Advancement?"

Shaing snorted. "Perhaps I simply want to be able to say I killed a princess? Not many people can claim such a feat."

Cornelia darted forward with a horizontal slash, catching part of his coat as he dodged, tearing a section. "You'll have to try harder if you wish to join their ranks," She scowled. "I'm not so easy to kill."

"No?" Shaing asked mockingly. "Your sister didn't put up much of a fight when Zero put a bullet in her heart."

Her eyes narrowed, seething in fury. "Mention my sister again cretin, and I'll kill us both if that's what it takes to shove my sword through your heart."

"As you wish," The eleven shrugged. "How about something more interesting then? Why the interest in Kingsley?"

She parried one of his blows, turning aside his blade and landing a punch on his chin. "I have no idea what you're talking about," She denied.

"Don't bother," Shaing said with a gasp, massaging his jaw. "There's only one reason you would come here, now, and betray your homeland. The only question is why?" His grin widened. "Although I think I can hazard a guess."

"And what's that?" She asked, humoring him. The longer he talks, the further Lelouch gets from the palace.

"Julius Kingsley is Zero," Shaing declared, and Cornelia froze, her face turning pale. Shaing noticed, and nodded to himself in satisfaction. "I thought so. I've suspected for a while now, of course. His tactics, his genius, his flair for dramatics…throw in the absolute secrecy of his past, and the fact that he was escorted by the very man who brought Zero to justice…well, it's hard not to reach the obvious conclusion. The only part I don't understand is why you're here." He struck at her lazily, pushing her back. "If it were simple revenge, I would understand easily enough. He murdered your sister after all. But if you wanted the man dead, you wouldn't bother going to the trouble of organizing this little mess. You want him alive. Why is that?"

"I owe you no answers," She snarled. Shaing feinted, but she saw it too late and received another cut across her stomach for her mistake. She grimaced in pain, stumbling further back. The cut wasn't bad, skin deep, but it was obvious she couldn't go on for much longer. Shaing outclassed her, and it wasn't very close. The only reason she was still alive was because his curiosity hadn't been satisfied.

She caught something at the edge of her hearing, and her eyes widened. Footsteps. She took a chance, spinning around and running towards the sound. A group of six men, guards from their uniforms, came into view, looking frantic.

She seized the opportunity before Shaing could interrupt. "The eleven's betrayed us!" She snarled. "He's working with the enemy, and tried to kill me!" She held her arm to her stomach for emphasis, and winced for effect. "Seize him!"

Behind her Shaing frowned, and for the first time in a long time Cornelia thanked her luck. She knew exactly what question was running through his head. Who would they believe? A scarred and bleeding princess, or an eleven already disliked by most of the court? He tilted his head before slowly, he began to smile. "Well played, princess. Well played indeed. Go on then, run along! You won't get far. You've made yourself a pariah, princess, an enemy to the empire. I hope it was worth it."

More than you could ever know. Her brother would be free by now, hopefully. They only needed to get out of the city. But first, she would need to leave the palace herself.

The guards hesitated only a moment before running past her to surround Shaing. Cornelia didn't stay around to watch, breaking off into a run down the hall. She doubted they'd be enough to capture him, but she just needed time to put distance between herself and Shaing.

The rest of the palace was mercifully empty, or at least empty enough no one else tried to stop her. As expected, Leila and her squad were gone by the time she reached the servant's entrance that had provided their exit. That was fine. Hopefully, it meant they were already waiting for her.

Her eyes fell on a small bag she had left here the last time she entered. She quickly rummaged through, pulling out a large brown poncho and throwing it over herself. She'd still stick out if someone bothered to pay attention to her, but from a distance it would hide her clothes, hopefully stopping her from being marked as royalty by whoever might be searching for her.

She slipped out of the palace and into the crowd, breathing a sigh of relief. She pulled the hood over her head, and allowed herself a small smile.

I promised you, Lelouch. I came back.


Suzaku snarled, hauling himself over the balcony with a grunt of effort. His muscles were sore, and he had split his head open when Cornelia had thrown him over the railing. He took a moment to steady himself after his climb, breathing deeply, before forcing himself to keep walking. At least it's not more climbing, He told himself in an effort to look on the bright side.

He scowled. Cornelia. What the hell was she doing? She had to be going after Lelouch, but why? And what was that nonsense she was going on about? He didn't deserve this? Euphie didn't deserve to be murdered in cold blood, her reputation tarnished forever as the massacre princess. Had Lelouch found a way to Geass her somehow?

It made no sense. He would have thought she of all people would understand. She of all people would have pushed for revenge. Did she not understand this was justice?

Apparently not. And now for whatever damned reason, she was trying to kidnap Lelouch. Maybe to free him. Maybe just to kill him for herself. He didn't know, but he had his orders straight from the Emperor. Lelouch was still needed, both to serve as Kingsley and to lure C.C.

"Sir Kururugi!" He narrowed his eyes, turning towards the sound of the voice. It was Jean, that knight that was always hanging off of Shaing.

"Rowe," He acknowledged with a nod of his head. "Report."

"The palace is in chaos!" She said in a panicked voice. "The guards are all heading for the walls, claiming there's an incoming attack, but I've heard nothing about it. And Lord Shaing is certain we've been betrayed, that there's already infiltrators in the palace."

"Your master is correct." Suzaku told her. "Cornelia li Britannia is a traitor to the throne, and is either attempting or has already kidnapped Julius Kingsley."

"The princess?" Jean sputtered. "You must be mistaken, sir."

"She threw me off a balcony," He said with a snort. "It's rather hard to mistake that as a friendly gesture." He sighed, shaking his head. "We need to get the palace in order. Where's the Duke? And Lord Shaing?"

"The Duke has been escorted to a safe room," She informed him. "Lord Shaing…he was trying to reach you, sir, to inform you of the treachery in person until he changed his mind and had the Duke call ahead. I can't say where he's gone to now."

"We need to find him," Suzaku urged. "I need to leave in order to search for the princess and for Kingsley. I've no doubt both are already clear of the castle, but I need someone competent to get things back in control."

"I couldn't agree more, Sir Kururugi," Jean said. "I shall attend you."

As it happened, they found Shaing quickly enough. He wasn't far from the Balcony Cornelia had thrown him off, though he was...occupied. Six soldiers had surrounded him, and Shaing was fending them all off. Several were marked with cuts and bruises, but Shaing's outfit went unblemished.

Suzaku took a deep breath, before shouting at them all. "What is the meaning of this?" He demanded. "I order you to stop this at once!"

The guards immediately broke away, forming up in front of Suzaku with their swords toward Shaing. "Sir Kururugi!" One of them called out. "Lord Shaing has betrayed us. He tried to assassinate the princess!"

"I fear you are mistaken," Suzaku said, reining back his anger. "It is the princess who has betrayed us. She tried to kill me, and has most likely kidnapped Lord Kingsley while you sat here wasting your time attacking a loyal man."

The guards fell deathly silent. The only sound was the noise of Shaing's panting as he fell to a knee, resting on his sword. He laughed quietly at Suzaku's words. "What…what did I tell you all?" He winced in pain.

"Lord Shaing!" Jean ran up to him, trying to help him up but Shaing pushed her away with a growl.

"The…the princess?" One of the guards asked in disbelief. "Are you certain, Sir?"

"Yes, I am, and if someone else asks me whether I'm certain if I was thrown out of a balcony, I'll have their head!" He snapped, before forcing himself to take a deep breath.

Lelouch…Lelouch was gone. Missing. He hadn't let himself really think about it yet. But now it was really beginning to hit him. The bastard was free.

Not for long, He told himself. They won't get far. Calm yourself. He opened his eyes. "Kingsley has been captured by the enemy. By the authority granted to me by his majesty, I hereby take command of all forces within Euro Britannia until he is retrieved. Lord Shaing, you may begin by restoring order to the castle. Someone inform the Duke it is safe to return to his own duties instead of hiding away."

"It will be done, Sir," A guard bowed. "What about yourself?"

Suzaku grunted. "I have been charged with the safety of Lord Kingsley, what do you think I'm going to do?"

His hand went to the pommel of his sword, and he narrowed his eyes. "I am going to get him back."


Bit of a longer chapter this week. Still not going to a set schedule, but I have made SIGNIFICANT progress. As in, I have 38 chapters planned, and I'm finally beginning to figure out where the fic is going. For reference, that's 31 pages and ~20ish thousand words worth of planning. There's still quite a bit left to plan, although I promise the wait is going to be worth it. Besides, I'm still uploading mostly weekly, even if it isn't the same day, or on a set schedule.

I'm really excited for this fic, and I hope all of you are as well. Feel free to leave a comment, I read through all of them, and it always cheers me up to read people's thoughts on my work.

Next chapter: I mean, like I said it's probably going to be sometime next week, but don't be super surprised if it isn't.