Sister of Revolutions and Lies

Chapter Seven - My Choice?

Excitement, despite everything, despite the return of Zero, the Black Knights, all the Third Princess of Britannia could feel right now was excitement and pure utter joy. The reasoning was simple, because she wouldn't be alone anymore. The one thing Artemisia loved more then life itself, the one, out of two, person she loved more then her half siblings was not dead. Princess Artemisia walked, anxiety eating at her chest as she waited, then Yuki appeared. "My princess!" She turned. "The Viceroy! Is being attacked!" Her head turned.
"What!" The princess turned in her heel, eyes moving up to the sky, her hand flew to a the her neck right below her right ear . A spot usually hidden by her hair, moving her hair the Princess pressed sight that made Yuki feel sick. For I stalled into the princess's neck, right under her ear usually hidden by her hair. Was a device, one that looked like the same material the Nightmare's usually had. "Eris! Come to me!"
'Coming, my Princess.' She turned, but Yuki had no idea why. For unlike Artemisia, she did not hear the robotic feminine voice of Eris, the princess's beloved gun-dome. For that was something the princess could only hear due to the devise in her neck. Connected to her brain and system. A device she and her father had been working on for years, the device being part of the reason she was littered in scars. There was a blast of wind, as the gun-dome appeared.
"Open! Eris!" The princess jumped, and somehow she flew up, the latch opened as she entered, leaving Yuki's sight as the latch closed. Artemisia turned, her cloak flying as she stood in the middle of a clear space. She stepped onto a circle, wires shot out, and the princess closed her eyes, preparing for the pain as one inserted itself into the nap of her neck, one in each shoulder blade, one on each hip, one on the back of each of her elbows, one on each of her knees, black and purple boots shot up, covering her heeled combated boots foot, and her hands. Then, the princess gasped as her mind was connected to Eris.
"I am sorry, my princess, I know this hurts."
"I am, fine Eris. We, I, have been trying to create this for a long time now, and we've finally finished."
"Yet your father does not know this?"
"I will never allow him to gain this information." She felt as copies, more like holograms with parts similar to Eris's own weapons and other accessories were placed onto her. "Now, are we ready?"
"Yes, my princess." In the end, the two made one met up halfway with Suzaku, who carried her sister. She relaxed and flew beside the knight of seven. Together the two brought Nannally to safety.

Artemisia lunged forward, hunting her sister after her speech, and in the safety of the shadows. "Oh Nally!" She pulled away, stroking her sister's hair out of her face and smiling at the girl. "Nally, I've missed you so much." The younger girl smiled.
"Big sister!" Artemisia's heart warmed. The older girl kneeled as her sister's hand reached up. Nannally smiled at her as the younger princess outlined her elder sister face. The older girl began to cry at the feeling of her sister's hand. 
"I'm so happy, that you're alright." The tears fell from her eyes as her sister's hands rested on her cheeks. Alone they were yes, but this. This was the closest Princess Artemisia felt to bring whole in years. There was only one thing, person, missing. "All that is missing is..."
"Big Brother Lelouch is still alive." Nannally said, Artemisia's eyes shot open, something coming to life as a fire in them as she pulled away.
"Lulu, Lulu is alive..." she stood slowly, shock in her chest but she pushed it away, instead smiling at her sister and pushing her. "Why don't you tell me what you've been up to the past eight years?" She began to walk, her four knights following her. "I would like to hear everything."

She'd spent but a day with her sister before her father called her to speak to her. Now, Princess Artemisia sat alone on her room. 'You have a month, if you cannot find someone to marry upon your own. Then you shall marry my choice.' Her teeth gritted as she dipped her head, anger simmering in her chest. 'We all must do things we do not want daughter.' Her head turned as she huffed. 'My choice?' Her head shook as she leaned back, plopping on her back. 'I will not tell you that yet daughter.' She knew it was because he was still debating between two people, the man she knew as Tristan, but was really named Gino, she'd called him Tristan at first to annoy him. Because it was the name of his gun-dame, he just laughed abd smiled at her, then he started calling her Eris.
She sighed as she leaned back up.  If he chose Gino she wouldn't mind, he was her age and he was kind and funny. The other choice though. Artemisia shivered. Was Schnizeul, her half brother. Her teeth gritted as she sighed, fighting back her anger as she stood. "He's finished what he's wanted to do." She whispered as her head dipped. "He claims to love me, to care for me. But as I knew it, it was all lies." She sat up and walked towards her window. "So why does it hurt? I knew once he finished his experiments, once he fulfilled his goal of turning me into a..." her eyes dropped down as she stared at her hands. "What even am I now?" She whispered. "..."
She knew the answer, tears pricked at her eyes as she pulled her hands to her stomach. "What a foolish question, I'm a weapon, nothing more nothing less. And he wants me to reproduce, too... to create more of me." Her head dropped. "That's why..." A knock, and the princess turned, blinking as her four knights walked in. Feng reached out. "Let us go..." she blinked.
"What? To where?"
"Away from here, away from the emperor." Yuki said, moving. "We already got Apollo, Ares, Athena, Aphrodite, and Aeolus ready and on the Iceburg ship, hidden thanks to Mr. Li." She froze.
"What?" This, this wasn't what she expected. She expected him to betray her.
"We are going to take you away, to hide you so you are no longer a weapon." Her heart stopped eyes widened as her hands moved behind her back. Clasping together, she looked calm but on the inside she was terrified.
"How do you know of that?" The four stiffened. She realized her mistake then. "Forget it, what do you mean? Where would we even go? Father would hunt us all down, he'd lock me away. What little freedom I have would be stripped away and you all would be killed." Her chin lifted. "Despite you being a spy for your brother Feng I do not want you dead." Now it was Feng who stiffened, and the other two, Yuki and Amelia who had been aiding him.
"You knew?" Jeremiah was glaring at the three at Feng's reply.
"I am not blind, nor am I a fool." The princess answered. "I knew your job was to spy not only on me but my father. To gather information and at one point in time, either kill or kidnap me." She sat down, smiling a sad smile. "I thought I'd end up dead honestly." She stood up once again and walked towards the window. She stared out to the garden, the exact copy of the Aries Villa. She just stared at it. Stared at the one thing, that still linked this Artemisia to the old one. Though Nannally was here and alive. To her relief, Artemisia had long since mourned and said goodbye to her sister. She now feared that her presence will only endanger her sweet, sweet sister. Her smile stayed on her face. "And now here you are." She turned her smile now a bit bitter. "Offering me a way out which would what?" Her gaze hardened. "Put you all in danger!? Leave Nannally alone for no one to protect her!?" She turned. "I can't leave my sister, not now that I just got her back... it'd break her."
"We have a plan." Artemisia stared at Jeremiah. He was in on this? "We have faked in place. Made by the Chinese federation to make it look as if Amelia, Yuki, and Feng died defending you. While I will stay behind, having followed your orders to go ensure the Viceroy's safety while you and the others fought of the intruders." He stepped forward and kneeled. "Your dogs will be seen as dead, as for the other knights, and your horse. It will seem as if they died, while you were either killed as well or kidnapped. While your gun-dume, the Eris, will seem as if it's been stolen." She blinked at him, staring at him.
"You've... planned this?" She looked at her knights. "All of you?" Feng stepped forward.
"It is true yes, that our original duty was to spy on you, and at one point in time either kidnap you or kill you." Feng came to a stop before her, cupping her shocked face in his hands. "But you won is over. You cared for us and you protected us." He stared at her. "You defended us and protected us from everyone. Even your own family." He pulled her into a hug. "And we watched from a distance as you suffered. You were alone, in pain, yearning to be loved." The princess began to cry silently. "Please, my princess. Let us take you away. My brother agreed to help Zero, he agreed to help us sneak you away." He pulled away, and showed her a new piece of jewelry. "You'll need to wear this, it'll cast an illusion of sorts over your scars." He cupped her cheeks. "It'll hide your normal jewelry under this illusion. I know you won't take them off." He pulled away. "We got a wig and eye color contacts to hide your identity." He looked back. "We all will, well..."
"Take off your eye color changing contact, wigs, and ask the dye out of your hair?" The princess said. Whipping away her tears. She smiled at them. "As much as I'd loved to." Her eyes closed. "I cannot leave." Her head turned out to the city. "I can't leave the people..." she looked down to the gardens. "The numbers would be in danger if I left, and not to mention the outrage my father and siblings will have..." she shook her heard, hugging herself. "I can't do that to the people, to my people." Her eyes glazed with tears, as Feng walked towards her.
"They will understand, plus Cordelia, Schnizuel, and Odysseus won't let all your hard work be for nothing." He seized her shoulders, turning her to look at him. "Please, let us do this, let us protect you." He kneeled, taking the princess's hand. "Let me serve and protect you my princess, like I swore I would when I became your knight." Her heart lurched and her eyes closed. She couldn't believe she was... she stared at Feng, her heart breaking. She had to choose, her eyes looked up to the city. Her people, her father's empire... or... she looked down at Feng, herself, her freedom. It was an easy choice. Her eyes closed as tears welled up in her eyes. It should be an easy choice, so why? Why was it so hard? She should pick her people, her empire, her family... Nunnally. But, oh, she so desperately wants to leave, to disappear.
"I—" she looked up at Yuki, her black hair no longer black but now a dark navy blue with pretty green eyes. Amelia was now golden blond with bright blue eyes, her eyes finally dropped to Feng. This whole time, as they've stood with her, they've looked like they truly looked. Feng's hair was whiter then freshly fallen snow, his skin paler then it to with bright red eyes. He was albino, and he was beautiful. She blinked, tears falling from her eyes. "I'm terrible..." she whispered, and for the first time in her life, she looked at Feng, and... "I'll go with you..." she chose herself, and it broke her heart. "What did this all cost?" She whispered as Feng stood. He grimaced.
"Zero wants to meet you, after all how we're getting away is thanks to his plan as well..." her heart stopped, the cost of her freedom not only may result in her only friends life being taken, the betrayal of those she loves, but she's to escape with the man who may very well be the killer of her beloved brother Clovis, and sweet sister Euphemia. Her eyes closed at guilt ate away at her chest and stomach.