It's back!

"Resources are still the biggest issue," Solomon pointed out. "Even if we could make another weapon which could counter the Marionettenspieler we would need the resources to produce even a small device."

Seth bowed her head. Her other idea had to do with her brother and herself. The moment she had mentioned it, the idea had been shot down. It was what she had excepted. After all, she was the empress and her brother was – well, there hadn't been a chance at anyone agreeing to Abel placing his life at risk again.

"But the problem is all trade with terran nations has been cut off," Alexander pointed out.

The group was meeting in one of the many dinning rooms within the palace. The room had been converted into a war room. Seth, Baybars, a few nobles, the founders, and those from the Vatican were all gathered there. Thomas stood close to her. Solomon was on her otherside.

Her love was looking at the map spread across the table. A very small frown played at the corner of his lips. His sharp gaze skimmed the map.

Abel was there at Caterina's side. His gaze flickered from Solomon to the map and back. A frown was far clearer on her brother's face than her love's.

"All right, what are you thinking?" Seth asked. She looked between them.

"The old UN mines," Abel started.

"Most are collapsed or in other territories," Seth pointed out.

"Not those," Abel shook his head.

"The ones in the ones in the desolate area," Solomon finished. "It could work."

"In what world?" Seth demanded. "Those mines will be radioactive. It takes thousands of years for radiation on the scale we're talking to dissipate."

"What about Thema's machine?" Solomon asked. "It would have degraded but with the materials we have, we could repair and modify it to remove radiation from the materials we salvage."

Seth frowned. It was a good idea. There was still a great deal of risk sending crews into the desolate area.

"Machine?" William asked. The professor had been following the conversation closely from Caterina's other side.

"Thema was a scientist who created a machine with my and Solomon's help which cleansed radiation from the soil and air. We only used to expand a little into the desolate area after the Terran-Methuselah War." Seth kept her gaze on Caterina. "It's been in storage for the past eight hundred years." She turned her gaze to her love. "Even if we could repair the degradation done to it, there is no guarantee it will get the radiation from the ore we bring back. Or even have teams able to enter the desolate region. We don't have the suits."

"What about on the Ark?" Alexander asked. "All of the suits were stored up there save for the few we needed at the time. It's vacuum sealed so some of the suits might have survived at useable levels."

Seth let out a breath. It was a good plan. "We don't have away up to the Ark anymore?"

"Ark?" William asked, frowning around the pipe.

"There should be one shuttle we can repair," Solomon stated. "We have a pilot trained in such vessels," – he gestured to Alexander – "so it is only a matter of repairing the shuttle and the machine. Perhaps a few of the suits."

"All right," Seth conceded. "But I don't want any unnecessary risks taken when people do get into the desolate are or even on the trip up to the Ark." She glared at Alexander.

"What?" the pilot demanded.

"I think she means for you not to goof off while piloting people," Athy stated.

"Me? I'd never."

"We're going to have to come up with two teams to repair both the shuttle and the device," Seth ignored the pilot. "I wish I could say there were many in the empire deverse in older technology and coding but there aren't."

"I'm fine with aiding both teams," Solomon started.

It would just mean he got little sleep. Seth bit back the urge to point this out to Solomon. There was no point. He, like her brother, didn't know when to stop working and rest.

"If Abel agrees, we have a coder who can repair and rewrite the functions of the machine." Solomon looked at Abel.

"William is well versed in lost technology," Caterina titled her head towards William.

"It would be a pleasure to aid in these projects." The professor's eyes glittered.

"So we have parts of a team then." Seth nodded. "We should get started on the projects as soon as possible."

"Agreed." Solomon bowed his head.

"There is also the matter of the war," Caterina changed the subject, "and what will happen if we manage to resolve the matter without too much bloodshed."

"We will try to continue pushing forward towards peace." Seth smiled. "I already mentioned we are interested in doing so. Besides, the empire has a vested interest in a peace treaty with the Vatican." Seth didn't glance at her brother. She kept her eyes locked on Caterina no matter how much she wanted to look at her brother. "We can discuss this more just the two of us."

"I would like that." Caterina bowed her head.

Solomon turned to both William and Abel. "Shall we?"

Abel let out a small breath. He muttered something under his breath, but Seth didn't quite catch it. He and the professor followed Solomon out of the room.

Seth led Caterina from the room and to another seating room. Only Tres and Baybars followed them. The rest of the founders moved after Solomon and Abel. They might not be able to help much but she figured they all wanted nothing more than to stay close to Abel.

Seth settled herself in a chair across from the coffee table from Caterina. "There is a matter I would like to discuss which I wanted to bring up later in the negotiations," Seth started. "Given the war, I was unable to go through with this plan."

Caterina raised an eyebrow.

"My brother sold his freedom to the Vatican for peace, as I'm certain you're aware."

"I am."

"If it's at all possible, I would like him to be returned home to the Empire, freed from his contract. He's given eight hundred years of service to the Vatican. It has more than paid the debt and fulfilled the contract Pope Gregory signed with him."

Caterina didn't even blink in reaction to Seth's request. "It would be his decision."

This made no sense. Abel had signed away his freedom. A slave had no choice in any matter. Unless – a smile spread across Seth's face. "You destroyed the contract already?"

Caterina bowed her head. "I did."

This meant Abel had been staying in the Vatican for Lilith and perhaps for this child. Her heart twisted. Her brother would have done anything to see the peace Lilith envisioned become a reality. "Would you mind if I spoke with my brother over returning to the empire then?"

Caterina's eyes flickered away from Seth. Her head didn't move and the look lasted only a heartbeat. It was enough to know she did mind, but in the same instants it was now Abel's choice.

"As for peace itself, the empire is willing to open trade with the Vatican once the matter of the war has been resolved. It would be nice to open our gates rather then keeping them closed to your nation." To all nations. When her brother had first been the emperor he had traveled all the time to the Vatican and other terran territories. Perhaps, if this happened, then such a thing could happen once more.

It had been centuries since Seth had left the empire. Her heart flickered. It would be nice to see how the world had changed over the past eight hundred years. Then there was a chance at getting her family back. Her brother, her love, and her nephew all home and together after so many centuries.

x – Abel – x

Abel moved around a large machine. His fingers traced lines through centuries of grim and dust. He had never seen the machine outside of a blueprint Thema had once shown him. Some of the metal had degraded. They would have to replace the metal.

Whispers trickled to Abel as he looked over the damage with Solomon.

"Are we really going to be working with the emperor and founder Solomon?"

"I think so. Look there."

Abel could feel the curious stares burning into his back.

"Hmm." William was standing over the computer close to the machine. "An interesting design. We're going to have our work cut out to repair her." He grinned. "Abel, have you seen this?"

Abel moved over to the professor. "Once, long ago, Thema shared the designs with me." Abel looked over his friend's shoulder at the information displayed there. "The hardest part is going to be repairing the internal structure."

"True," William agreed. "But it sounds as if we have one of the original inventors working with us."

Solomon moved from them to address the team. "You will be broken into three team. Both are going to be working this project and the shuttle. Each team will work either under myself, his Majesty, or William Wordsworth."

Excited muttering buzzed through the group.

"I hope I'm with the found."

"Imagine being stuck with the terran."

"I expect everyone to listen to their lead," Solomon continued. From there he started breaking up the group by their skill sets. Solomon's team was going to focus on where the machine had degraded the worst while William worked on the modifications and enhancements it would be needing. Abel's team was to work on the coding while also rendering aid to William's and Solomon's teams if it was needed.

Abel's team moved over to him. Many stared him, faces flushed and eyes wide. "We will be focusing on repairing the damaged code." Abel divided the group by what little information he had on them. The more advanced coders he placed to repair the worst of the code as well as to aid in redesigning parts of it to work the way it would be needed. He also placed a few to reprogram chips and boards.

The rest he had working to repair parts which were still good or interrogate it back into the system. He moved between the two groups, helping where he was needed the most while dividing his attention evenly between all of his people.

The shuttle was in a little better shape, but it had been stored in a better location. There was still repairs which would need to be done on it and sooner than the machine. It would need to be space worthy in order to get the suits far before the machine would be put to use to cleanse materials brought back from the desolate region.

"Both are progressing well," Solomon commented. He and Abel had stepped back for a moment's breather. More because Seth had contacted them saying she was on her way down.

They had been working now for a few days on getting both the machine and the shuttle back into working order. Abel hadn't slept much during this time.

"They are," Abel agreed. The shuttle would be ready by the end of the week. There hadn't been much to do with it. The machine however would take a lot longer to finish repairing and modifying. "Did Seth say what she wanted to discuss?"

"No."

Abel looked away from Solomon. During the time the group had been in the empire, Seth had been busy with the war and running the empire. There had been little time to just talk. That and Abel knew his sister would want to discuss him returning to the empire. An ach settled into his heart at the thought of leaving Caterina and others from the Vatican. Sure there were those he wouldn't miss too greatly, but Caterina, Esther? He would miss the two girls dearly when the war ended and they both returned to the Vatican.

Within the empire, time passed at a different pace. It was easy to lose track of years when surrounded by those who didn't age as well. Not that time passed slowly during his time in the Vatican, especially after meeting Caterina. Thirteen years had passed in the blink of an eye.

Being in the empire would also mean there was no chance Abel would ever be able to be with Lilith again. Or keep the promise to her of being with her when peace came.

"Are Barack and Alexander speaking again?" Abel asked. The question helped pull him from the depressing thoughts. Thought he knew shouldn't have been depressing. He should have wanted to spend time with his sister, especially now Azul was also alive. He shouldn't have been thinking of the full promise to Lilith.

"They are." Solomon let out a breath.

Abel chuckled. "They're allowed to act like kids now and again."

"I suppose they are. It is still ridicules to not accept an apology for so long."

"Barvon has never been one to like the waste of food."

"True."

Seth rounded the corner escorted by Baybars. She smiled at them. "How are the projects progressing."

"The repairs are slow, but the shuttle will be ready by the end of the week," Solomon informed her. "The machine is taking longer."

Abel bit back asking why Seth hadn't tried to help with either project. In the past she would have leapt at the chance. However, the answer now would be the same to as why Abel hadn't helped with many projects during the dawn of the empire: politics and the running of a nation. Both took up one's entire time and left little else free. Though out of himself and his sister, Seth would have been far more useful on these projects than Abel was. Coding, he could do, repairs to machines and shuttles, not so much. He had never really dabbled in such fields only learning the basics the UN had needed of him in order to determine he shouldn't be the head of the science division for the Red Mars Project.

His sister had always loved the sciences. It was the reason she had been picked as the best option out of herself, Lilith, and Cain to lead the science parts of the Red Mars Project when they reached Mars.

"To be expected. I wish we had known we would be needing it again. I would have had crews keeping it up like the shuttle." A small breath escaped Seth. Her troubled expression melted away when she looked at Abel. "I also came by because I wanted to have lunch with you, dear brother."

"Not Solomon?" Abel tilted his head towards Solomon.

"I would rather not," Solomon stated. "There is much to be done and little time remaining to complete it. You two enjoy." Solomon nodded to them and moved to rejoin the crew working on the shuttle.

"Solomon and I have had dinner and breakfast together, but someone keeps working through meals." Seth glared at Abel. "Besides, I need to talk with just you."

Abel hesitated. There was a lot of work to finish.

"Your team will be fine without you for an honor."

Abel followed his sister. It wasn't long before they were back in the palace. The dinning room they entered was empty outside of a few servants. Food was already on the table.

Seth settled herself into one of chairs. Abel sat across from her. It felt right to be seated at a table with his sister again. In the same instance his heart flickered and he couldn't stop from looking around as if he expected someone to be judging him for sitting with the empress. Really the only times Abel had been dinning with his sister was with others around.

"What did you want to talk about?"

"Caterina told me you were released from your contract already," Seth started. "I wanted you to come home and stay after the war." Her eyes locked on him.

It was just as he had been dreading. "Seth, I—"

"Listen, terrans have short lives, I can't imagine what it's been like living in the outer and watching all those you know grow old and die in the blink of an eye. You belong here, in the empire. What you did eight hundred years ago was never meant to be a permanent solution."

"I know."

"Do you remember promising me you would one day come home?"

Abel bit back stating he had never fully made such a promise. She was right in the fact he had implied it.

"And do you remember my stating I was only going to hold the throne?"

"I do," the words fell from his lips as a breath.

"Then, come home, return to the throne." Seth reached across the table and touched Abel's hand. "You were always the one the people wanted to follow, not me."

A small laugh escaped Abel. "I doubt that's true anymore, dear sister. Your people love you. They view as their mother." Heck, all of the nobles Abel had ever met worshiped the ground Seth walked upon. They saw her as symbol and idle. She wasn't just their empress but their mother, their protector. In many ways she was their world. "If I took back the throne, the people wouldn't be too happy about it."

"They would be," Seth countered.

"I can't."

Her eyes narrowed. "That's an excuse and you know it. You can rule. You have ruled. You were a far better and greater ruler in the century you lead our people than I have ever managed to be in the eight I have."

Abel closed his eyes. It was just pretty words. Abel wasn't a good leader, he never had been. He had lead his people into war, been the cause of so much pain. There was no way he had ever been a great ruler or leader.

"It's not up for discussion." Seth's hand moved from his. "You're going to return as the emperor, brother."

"No." Abel opened his eyes a slit. "I was never a good leader."

"That's depression speaking. Look, I've already gotten everything set up for you take the throne. All the paperwork is in order and the nobles have been preparing for the transition since I announced you were still alive and who I really was to them."

"Seth," Abel protested.

"No, no you're not going to fight me on this, brother. You can't keep wallowing in despair. And if I have to shove you into taking back your throne then so be it, I will shove you!"

Abel opened his mouth. The words logged in his throat as he met his sister's determined gaze. He tried to protest again but no words came out. She was dead set on this. There was no denying this. There was no denying she would fight him on it until he caved or he tried to flee the empire. Fleeing would get him no where either.

"Fine," the word was heavy, bitter on his tongue.

A grin spread across her face and eyes glimmered. "Great! I will have your second take over what you're working on and we can start preparing for you to take the throne after lunch."

(Author's Note: Because of popular demand, here is a chapter. It's not a very long chapter, sorry about that, but at least I finally updated it. Also Abel was fighting most of the book against becoming the emperor, trying to deny it, and the book is getting long, so I am trying to start wrapping up points. Hopefully not too many more chapters remain after this.)