Chapter 112: Executioner

Lelouch narrowly dodged the Guren as it lunged at him from afar, sliding away to build distance. Though, the red head quickly pursued, driving their fork knife downward, which he tried dodging, only to realize at the last moment the attack was a feint, allowing for his opponent to grab him with their surger. Even so, the Zero System figured out a way to escape by firing a slash harken at the Guren's head, forcing it to retreat at the threat of being auto ejected.

Kallen effortlessly switched from defense to offense, leaping over the Kagero and firing her harken, which was easily dodged, causing the black frame to land with its back turned, which she took advantage of. The red head lunged at him once again, only for the Prince to duck at the last second, allowing her to pass over his head, "I can barely keep up. Even with the Zero System."

The Guren recovered with a roll, following up with a kick which knocked him backwards, which she accompanied by sending a punch that pushed him to the ground, "Lelouch… please die." Kallen pleaded while spinning her fork knife, "At least this way… we can be together."

"We already are together!" the Prince shouted, dodging a strike and countering with a kick, only for his leg to get captured by the surger, and used to fling him into the distance, where he was caught by the Gawain's harkens.

"A couple's disagreement?" Maya asked with a raised eyebrow, "Didn't know they could get so violent."

"Kallen's been Geassed!" Lelouch quickly informed, causing the siblings faces to harden as they tossed the stabbed the capsule into the ground, keeping it upright.

"Good thing you're already missing that arm, then." Mario said while letting out a breath, "There's no way we can beat her, especially in the Gawain."

"Yeah. Rai totally kicked our asses." his sister added, earning a scowl in return, "What?"

"You could've left that part out."

"Really? Because I think it's necessary to-"

Sensing danger, Mario brought his hand up, blocking an incoming kick from the Guren at the last possible moment, "No more joking around!" Lelouch reprimanded, "This is serious!"

"R-right…" Maya fired her harkens, trying to capture the Knightmare, only for it to expertly backflip away, "She's even faster than Rai!" she exclaimed while watching the red head effortlessly turn her retreat, into an attack by boosting toward them with her air glide system, landing a devastating kick that knocked them backwards.

Meanwhile, Lelouch opened the capsule, which contained a plated black arm, "Seriously? This was supposed to help me win?" he quickly calibrated it to operate in place of his right arm, and managed to attach it with little difficultly. And not a moment too soon, as Kallen quickly approached with her surger extended, forcing him to block with the new arm, before attempting to kick her away. Though, the red head would easily back step and fly overhead, where she would land a critical blow using her surger.

The Prince tumbled through the dirt, recovering after a few seconds just in time to bring the plated arm up to block his opponent's fork knife, not leaving a dent on the armor, "Lelouch!" Maya shouted, "Activate your Blaze Luminous!"

Doing so, the shield on his new arm came alive, taking on a red hue that sliced the fork knife in half, forcing its user to retreat, "A new shield?"

"The arm's plating is modelled after my Sougetsu's shield." Mario explained as the red head circled them, searching for an opening, "It can defend against most basic attacks, but that's not the real ability is the new Absolute Defense System Rakshata's working on. It's currently only on the arm, so using the same button to activate your Blaze Luminous, will activate the new System."

"It's supposed to be unbreakable or something." Maya added as Kallen came to a stop, "But if you ask me, I don't buy it!" she fired a single harken at the red head, causing them to dodge while approaching rapidly, "Oh! And you also have the brass knuckles tiger-man had when he beat me!"

Mario pulled back, dodging a punch from the surger, only to get grabbed by the arm and slammed into the ground, where the red head would follow up by kicking their head, meeting the Blaze Luminous instead. That's when Lelouch jumped in, tackling her off the twin's. Their fight ensued with Kallen sending a punch forward, which was easily parried using the Zero system and countered with a knee to her chest, barely fazing the Guren as it grabbed the Kagero with its surger, placing a foot between its legs. Remembering this move from their spar, the Prince pushed her away, breaking the grip by slamming his left arm into the surger, before firing his wrist cannons.

The bullets were easily soaked up by the radiant wave shielding, and the red head punched him in the gut, lifting him slightly before following up with a spinning kick, knocking him into the ground, where he would bounce upward into a follow-up punch. This final blow sent him flying into a burning building, recovering by dragging his feet across the dirt.

Suddenly, Kallen landed before him, cocking her first back for a punch, which the Zero System picked up, setting a course where the Prince could easily parry it. However, things don't go to plan as when she launches her fist, she feints at the last moment, pulling her fist back, leaving Lelouch's hand staying out for a second too long, leaving it vulnerable to get grabbed by the surger. Following this up, the red head sends two quick punches into his gut, before using the arm as leverage to slam the Kagero into the ground.

Zero rolled out of the way, dodging a curb stomp, only to get hit by a sweeping kick, knocking him away where he would flip onto his feet. Once again, the Zero System picks up Kallen's next attack, which was a flying kick. Lelouch chose to duck this time, avoiding the kick, only for the Guren to somehow backflip midair, and position herself above the Kagero, grabbing it by the face with her surger. Then, she began dragging it across the dirt until they reached a tree, where she slammed the Black Knightmare into, obliterating the flora instantly.

Even so, Lelouch wasn't done yet, as he landed on his feet once more, bringing his fist up, launching a swift left jab at the red head as she approached. After dodging the attack, Kallen used the back of her hand to slap the Kagero, causing it to stumble to the side in disbelief, "Wh-what!?" the Prince thought as his girlfriend effortlessly overpowered him, "No way… she's actually keeping up with the Zero System-no! She's surpassing it!? At this rate…" he dodged a high kick, only to get hit by an upper cut from the red head's surger, which she launched by using the same momentum from her previous attack, "There's no way I can keep dodging!"

From behind the Guren, 10 harkens from the Gawain invested the forest, chasing the red Knightmare as it leapt from tree to tree, before catching sight of the Black Knightmare, and rushing it midair. Maya pulled her wires back, trying to ensnare the Guren, only for it to fly through the gap upwards, and land an axe kick on them from there. As they were falling, Mario fired their Hadrons at full-blast, forcing the red head to dodge backwards, straight into his sister's harkens, dragging their opponent to the ground.

Kallen used her surgers claws to cut herself free, only for Lelouch to land a devastating punch that tore the Guren's main weapon in half thanks to his brace knuckles. The Prince turned to face his girlfriend, just to get his face grabbed by her remaining arm, and slammed to the ground in an overwhelming display of power.

"K-Kallen…" Lelouch called her name as she stood over his defeated Knightmare.

"Lelouch…" the red rings around her eyes faded for a second, "I'm so sorry…" a tear fell onto her dashboard as the command returned in full force. However, thanks to her hesitation, it gave their savior just enough time to arrive.

Out of nowhere, the Siegfried tackles the Guren into the air, shouting, "You who dare harm Lelouch Vi Britannia, shall feel the wrath of my loyalty! Jeremiah Gottwald!" suddenly, the former Margrave activated his canceller, creating a blue dome that encapsulated the red head, freeing her from the cruel Geass command, "Now, be free from your ensnarement!"

Castor chuckled to himself while running through the forest, internally cursing his Big Brother for thwarting his plans, "At least now… he'll die alongside that half-breed bitch. I'd say that's pretty poetic. Dying by the hand of whom loves you the most." he clenched his fist while leaning against a tree, "Just like he did to me… bastard."

The cyan-haired boy continued running, tripping on a rock, causing him to tumble down a hill, straight into a creek, "Argh!" he moaned in pain, holding his ankle, "D-did I break it? No… it feels fine…" he shakily got up and began hobbling up another hill, making it to a clearing where his face dropped upon spotting a familiar face, "S-Suzaku…"

The corrupted Knight sat on a rock, sharpening a stick into a spear calmly, "Yo. Long time no see." he said without facing the Prince, "Where are you going?"

"N-none of your business!" Castor shouted while carefully walking past him.

"You were the one who killed Euphemia, right?"

Those words caused the Prince to freeze, "N-No… that was Cornelia-"

"Don't lie to me. Your brother isn't the only one who has Geass." Suzaku finally got up, signaling for Castor to begin running into the forest at full-speed. Though, he didn't give chase, not yet, "But, I didn't expect you to have one so similar." taking off his sunglasses, which had been damaged from the Guren's surger, he threw them to the ground, destroying it with a quick stomp.

Meanwhile, the Prince continued running through the thick brush, ducking tree branches, and leaping over exposed roots in the process, letting out quickened breaths in the process, "I can't die! I can't die! I can't die!" he repeated to himself, as if trying to create some kind of miracle.

Though, such a thing wouldn't show itself to him.

Instead, he tripped on a stump, causing him to fall flat on his face. Castor shook his head while getting up, checking behind himself in the process, only to find Suzaku horrifically catching up to him at a walking pace. Panicking, the Prince got up and continued to hobble away, entering another clearing where he could see a small dock in the distance with a row boat, giving him some hope of survival.

That's when the spear the Knight was fashioning earlier came out of nowhere, piercing straight through his ankle, crushing the bone effortlessly, "AUGH!" he cried out in fear while dragging himself to safety, noticing the impending shadow of his assailant looming over his body, "W-wait!" he pleaded while facing Suzaku, whose green eyes darkened. "I-I'm sorry about Euphemia, and I swear I won't harm her in the future! Just let me go, please!"

"You're right." the Knight kept a hand on his sword, "You won't be harming her in the future, especially after I'm done with you."

Feeling immense pressure, Castor activated his Geass and shouted, "Be my slave, Suzaku Kururugi!" The command made the Knight flinch slightly, only for his entire body to relax as the Prince laughed maniacally, "You forgot your stupid sunglasses, punk!" he taunted, "Now, help me to the boat!"

Now with his hair covering his eyes, Suzaku picked up the cyan-haired boy, and began walking toward the boat, as if he had truly fallen under his Geass. However, after a few steps, he changed course and began walking toward a boulder, causing his 'master' to panic, "Y-you oaf! Are you too stupid to realize what a boat is!?"

Finally, Suzaku slammed the Prince into the ground, before kicking him into the boulder, "If there's one thing I can respect about Lelouch… it's how prepared he can be." the Knight revealed his eyes, which were free of any rings.

"H-how!? How did you resist my Geass!?" the Prince asked in a pained tone.

"You probably never bothered pushing your Geass to its limit, so let me explain…" Suzaku pointed at his green orbs, "In order for a command to go through, you need direct eye contact. However, things like sunglasses can disrupt this due to the tint."

"I already know-"

Before Castor could finish his sentence, the Knight landed a heavy kick to his back, "But that's not the only thing. Colored contacts can do the same thing."

"C-colored contacts!?"

"Lelouch forced me to wear these in my timeline, that way I wouldn't be affected by another visual Geass like his." Suzaku picked the boy up by the throat, "You and your brother don't belong in this crowd. You should've died in whatever state you were in prior to V.V's intervention." he began slowly applying pressure as blood from the leg wound began seeping out, "Because I'm about to give you a slow and painful death. And even then… it'd be letting you off easy, considering what you've done."

Instantly, Suzaku slammed Castor into the boulder, causing him to scream in pain before feeling the sharp steel of the Knight's Katana drive through his shoulder, keeping him in place, "W-wait! Have mercy!"

The Japanese boy delivered a devastating punch to the Prince's face, knocking out a significant number of teeth in the process. He followed this up by breaking the boy's ribs with a kick, before suddenly pulling withdrawing his Katana, allowing for Castor to slump against the boulder, only to have his arm grabbed, and broken in an instant. Suzaku let out a breath while watching tears stream down the cyan-haired boy's face, reminding him of Lelouch. While he couldn't punish the man who had inflicted so much pain onto the world in his own timeline, this would suffice for now.

The corrupted Knight slammed his foot into Castor's clavicle, snapping it upon contact, earning another cry of pain, "Stop! Stop! Please stop!" he pleaded as more tears began to fall.

"You hurt Euphie." Suzaku punched him once, "And tried to make me your slave." he followed with another, "And now you want me to stop!?" after tightly gripping the cyan-haired boy's head, he began slamming him repeatedly into the rock, leaving small splotches of blood with each strike. Finally, he pulled back and brought out his Katana once more, before driving it into Castor's other shoulder.

In truth, Suzaku was gaining satisfaction from torturing the Prince. Not because he enjoyed the action itself, but because he reminded him Lelouch. Being able to have his revenge, while imagining Castor as Lelouch, brought him immense gratification. After all, the two weren't so different in his eyes. Speaking of which, Suzaku pinned the cyan-haired boy to the rock with his other foot, while using both thumbs to dig into his victim's eyes, gouging them out shortly after.

Though, Castor didn't scream. No. He was screaming, it's just that he had been doing so for so long, that his voice finally gave out. The Knight crushed the two orbs in his palms, letting the blood drip onto the dirt below, as his victim tried running away, only to twist the Katana further into his body.

That's when the assailant took a step back, and took out his handgun, emptying the entire magazine into the Prince's body shortly after, finally killing him. "Bastard." Suzaku muttered while throwing his empty weapon at the bodies head, and retrieving his Katana, "That felt… so good." he took out the keys for the Lancelot, calling it through the forest, where it would open its cockpit automatically for him to leap into.

"Suzaku!" Rai's voice called over the radio, "Suzaku! Come in!"

"I'm here." the corrupted Knight answered, taking to the sky in the process, "What do you need?"

"What do I need? I've been trying to contact you for the past 10 minutes! Where the hell are you!? We're about to leave!"

"Stop yelling." Suzaku ordered while flying over the mountain, taking note of the Guren standing over the Kagero's defeated figure, "I'll be there soon."

"Hurry up."

After hanging up the call, the Japanese man let out a heavy sigh, gazing upon his bloody hand, then toward his energy filler status, "I don't have enough to fly in there to kill Lelouch… actually… I might barely have enough to even make it to the port."

Orpheus and Oiagros separated from each other, skidding across the main street, surrounded by the burning wreckage of Gun Ru's, and Pluton Knightmare's. The Byakuen changed to its combined blade and charged forth, clashing with the Vincent's MVS, which struggled to push him to the side. To amend the sheer difference in strength, Oiagros drove his knee into his opponent's chest, before fully pushing the combined blade into the ground, and kicking him away. "You're still too green, Orpheus." the Elder Zevon thought, leaping to a building to gain distance, only for it to be covered instantly thanks to the Byakuen's air glide system.

The Vincent ducked the impending drill, while using both legs to kick the White Knightmare away. As he hurtled through the hair, Orpheus quickly analyzed the situation, coming up with a plan of attack. To begin, he zigzagged toward his Uncle, making sure his moves were as erratic as possible, until he got close enough to bait out an attack. An attack that never came.

"I won't fall for such a simple trap." Oiagros thought to himself, "If I lunge now, you'll use that float system to get behind me."

"Smarter than I thought…" the younger Zevon pulled his frame back, before pushing full speed toward the Vincent, "Then how about a frontal assault?"

Surprisingly, his Uncle positioned his MVS downward, and stabbed the roof, allowing him to fall through the subsequent hole, easily avoiding the Byakuen. Despite having his own float system, Oiagros chose to keep close to the ground, using his surroundings to fend off his nephew. The Mercenary watched as the Pluton Agent bursts from the building, before flying down to meet him. The Vincent stepped back, dodging a strike from the combined blade, and countering with its MVS, only for the weapon to be caught by the White frame's scissors, leaving him defenseless as the sword was snapped in half.

After switching back to his combined blade, Orpheus lunged forth, causing Oiagros to use his shoulder to strike the Byakuen's chest, and used his weight to flip the Knightmare overhead, "He used my center of gravity!?" the younger Zevon used his air glide system to fly out of there just as he was about to hit the ground. But that's when he noticed the Vincent finally chasing after him, using its float system to catch up, delivering a devastating axe kick, sending him into the building below. Though, the Mercenary instantly recovered and flew out, extending his combined blade, which forced Oiagros to dodge at the last moment.

"Oiagros." Suzaku's voice called over his radio, "We're leaving. Now."

From behind the Vincent, the Lancelot flew by at blinding speeds toward the Avalon, which was taking off, "That tone… I'm assuming you've killed them?"

"Correct." the corrupted Knight answered, "The battle has turned fruitless."

The Elder Zevon dodged an incoming strike from his nephew, before kicking him back to the ground, "Until we meet again." he bid farewell to Oz, flying after the Lancelot at full speed.

Orpheus tried to follow, watching as his Uncle banked right, flying toward a Britannian warship, while Suzaku returned to the Avalon. That's when out of nowhere, Rai cut him off, "I won't let you disrupt our retreat." he said while kicking the Mercenary back.

Once the Byakuen recovered, it rushed in, forcing the Knight to dodged left, before catching its arm, and tossing it toward the city. The two began flying around each other at high speeds, clashing their blades at every intersection, stopping for a moment to enter a clench at the center of their paths. They separated for a moment, allowing the Club to charge in with a swift kick that Orpheus ducked. Trying to counter, he activated his drill and went for an uppercut, only for the attack to be dodged with a backflip, when once completed, Rai put his arms together, aiming to impale the White frame with a dive.

However, the Mercenary dodged by side-stepping the attack, firing his slash harkens at the opposing float unit, getting deflected with a kick, before receiving four more as a counter. Orpheus dodged the incoming projectiles with great precision, and eventually found himself at the side of Xingke, who hovered solemnly in the Shen Hu, "Rai Sumeragi." he called, "I must ask for you and the forces of Britannia to retreat for now, on behalf of Empress Tianzi. Any further violence on our homeland will be met with an equivalent reaction."

The Knight of Ten sheathed his wrist blades and stood straight, "So, you're going to be harboring the Black Knights?"

"I never said such a thing." the Chinese Warrior stated while holding his hand out, stopping Orpheus from flying after the Britannian warship carrying Oiagros, "We've just made a decision to take care of things ourselves."

"Very well." Rai nodded, "However, may I give you a warning?"

"Go ahead."

"Britannia won't appreciate it if the Chinese Federation chooses to publicly harbor the Black Knights. So, if such a thing were to occur-"

"Which it won't."

The silver-haired boy sighed, "In that case… as long as it's not public record, then the homeland will have nothing to say."

"Tell me, Rai. Is this going to be the same Britannia, which just had an assassination attempt on one of their own conducted on our soil?" Xingke pressed, "Because from an outside looking in, this could be perceived as Britannia trying to frame the Chinese Federation, giving them an excuse to go to war."

"No such thing is present." Rai calmly answered, keeping an eye on the Avalon, "That should be enough distance…" his eyes returned to the Shen Hu, "At least not to my knowledge."

"But can you truly gift your loyalty to such a nation? One that would so easily throw away its own blood?"

"My loyalty… lies with Princess Euphemia first. Whatever actions she chooses in the future, is what I'll support."

"And what about the Emperor?" Xingke asked, "You pledged your loyalty to him at the knighting ceremony, didn't you? Doesn't that mean your loyalty for him comes first?"

"Perhaps on-record… that's the truth. But I also serve for the prosperity of Britannia, and if Euphemia is the key to that, then I'll protect her with my life." the Knight turned around, "Until we meet again, Li Xingke."

"Are we seriously letting them go?" Orpheus asked calmly once Rai was gone.

"For the Chinese Federation, we need time to deal with this…" the Chinese Warrior turned around, gazing upon the fiery city, where the sound of gunfire was finally quelled, "And… then there's the Black Knights."

"Kallen!" Lelouch opened the cockpit to his girlfriend's Knightmare and pulled her out by the shoulders, "Kallen!"

The red head laid unconscious in his arms as Jeremiah leapt out from his Knight Giga Fortress, "It will be alright, my Lord." he said reassuringly, "The Geass she was under must have taken a great toll on her mind, resulting in her passing out once the need to fend it off disappeared. It's a good thing Miss C.C explained the situation to me, otherwise who knows what would've happened?"

"Even so…" Lelouch held Kallen close, "There were other ways to keep her safe. If I didn't get caught up in my victory… if I had simply used my Geass on her…"

"If I may speak my mind…" Jeremiah stepped forward as Maya and Mario joined them after kneeling the Gawain, "Perhaps she had faith in your combat abilities? After all, she might've known you could've been able to last the brief amount of time it would've taken me to arrive. Which, might I add, are certainly impressive."

"We should head back." Mario interjected, "Naoto just said that Xingke wants to talk."

"Did you… tell him about this?" Lelouch asked.

"The topic… didn't come up."

"Are you going to?" Maya questioned, "It is his sister, after all."

"That depends on what happens." the Prince carried his girlfriend to the Kagero, "Can you take the Guren back?"

"Of course." Mario returned to the Gawain, followed shortly by his sister.

C's World.

Kallen shuddered while removing her hand from the pedestal, and turned around, only to accidentally bump into Lelouch's chest, "That was… intense. Wasn't it?"

The red head looked to the side and rubbed her arms, "I… guess…"

"Lelouch." Suzaku called from his right, "I think that was more than just 'intense'. That Kallen nearly killed the other you." his eyes shifted to the red head, who was clearly shaken.

The Prince nodded, before turning to the girl, "How do you feel?"

"Scared…" she uttered in a mere whisper, "I… It's hard to describe… but the only word I can use to describe, but… the only thing my other self could feel was terror."

"Terror? Of Geass?"

Kallen nodded, "The whole process was absolutely terrifying. Getting drowned by Naoto… Suzaku, and that cyan freak."

Meanwhile, the Japanese boy nudged his friend while the red head continued to shift uncomfortably, only to find the Prince already resting his hand on her shoulder, "I understand." he said before releasing a sigh, "You're alright now."

"I know that!" Kallen looked away, but staying within the Lelouch's grasp, "It was just overwhelming… especially for her, feeling like she couldn't move no matter how much she tried."

Suzaku rubbed his temple as his friend retracted his hand from the red head, "So now what?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Lelouch turned to the Lancelot and Guren, "We're going to wait by the Geass Order's thought elevator. If I was V.V, I'd be trying to pack my things and leave the Chinese Federation as soon as possible."

"How do you know he'll take the thought elevator?"

"I don't. In fact, there's no reason for him to use the Thought Elevator, especially when they have an underground train system to escape with. Us waiting at the Thought Elevator is just a precaution in case he does choose to leave through there for whatever reason."

Kallen nodded in agreement, secretly hoping the Immortal does show up, as she was seeking revenge for her other self. Sure, she understood that the twins were against V.V in the end, but that doesn't change the fact that the blond was the reason they were able to hurt Lelouch and Kallen so much, "Wait… Lelouch?" she shook her head, "No. I'm not doing this for him." she told herself, "Yeah… no way. There's no way…" suddenly, her eyes wandered to the Emperor, followed by a question, "By the way, have you made any progress in learning how to get our bodies back?"

Lelouch smirked at the question, "Why? Are you trying to see someone?" he asked, expertly changing the subject, causing the red head to blush at the implications.

"N-not at all!" she stormed past him and entered the Guren, "Let's just get going."

Suzaku and Lelouch stayed behind as the Knightmare's cockpit closed, which is when the former turned to his friend and asked, "How do you feel?"

"Fine." the Prince responded blankly.

"Oh come on, you don't have to lie. Wasn't it scary seeing Kallen like that?"

"Wouldn't be the first time."

"Lelouch."

"What? Everything's alright now. Kallen's been safely retrieved, and my other self only got a minor wound." he walked past the Japanese boy, but not without saying, "Honestly, the one we should really be worried about is you. After all, that other Suzaku is a walking nightmare, isn't he?"

"I mean… yeah. But he's hurt. That doesn't make what he's doing right, but it's understandable why he wants revenge so badly. He's just going about it all wrong." the Knight responded as Lelouch began hovering over him, "I can't help but feel sorry for him."

"I suppose that makes sense… considering what you see looking through his eyes."

"By the way… Lelouch. About the returning bodies thing…"

"I'm working on it." the Prince replied, "It's just taking time. C's world is still a very confusing place, and the only person who I suspect knows how is the Dimensional Supervisor. And I don't think they'd answer any questions I have for them."

Suzaku hopped into his Lancelot and booted up the systems, "Hey, do you think V.V's going to be surprised by these Knightmares?"

"If he's from Suzaku's timeline, I'm sure he'll freeze for a moment. Hopefully long enough for us to capture him." Lelouch took a moment to find the Geass Order's Thought Elevator, pinpointing it in mere moments, "Alright, make sure you two keep up."