Woah, long one! Sorry about that, or maybe you're happy about it, or maybe you're just pissed I made you wait... I don't know. I hope you are still enjoying the story!

All iz well
~Rebecca

They followed the same process as the train zigzagged southwest across the great expanse of the Eastern Commonwealth. The train would pull up to a station, Kai would make a speech in the public square and mingle with the people, and Scarlet and Cinder looked for potential supporters of the Lunar Resistance. They would point these people in the direction of helpful information, however they kept a far lower profile than in Kashgar and sought out no one specifically.

Scarlet, Cinder, and Wolf had planned carefully for these two days. They would not get this chance again to recruit from the Commonwealth, to pull together all the pieces they needed, and to have those pieces agree, thanks to the support of Emperor Kaito. Long conversations among the main Resistance crew had stretched into the Moroccan nights. What did they want from the Eastern Commonwealth? What could they get? Well the Emperor already said air ships were a go, and Kashgar's support is a must for that. We could ask for supplies for the ships? Yeah. Propaganda? Ummm maybe subtly. Direct support? No, are you crazy Kai's trying to appease Levana at the moment. Yeah, and that's working out so well. Hey, I'd like to see what you would do if—Children, maybe we can ask for food for the volunteers that keep joining up to help make Bios? I don't know, I think the Commonwealth is having trouble with food cause of the AU's sanctions… What about oil? It's difficult as is to get enough oil to make the Bios. The Commonwealth has tons of oil, literally. Kashgar's not much help, but we could move production to the southwest of the Commonwealth. Hmmm, not a bad idea. It can help the local trade. And then the volunteers are in prime position to leave from Kashgar for Luna when the time comes to march on the capital. Gah, don't remind me. Come on, Scarlet, Wolf will do fine leading the charge. All we need to do is make sure everyone's mind is protected…

Kai had spent the days before leaving New Beijing talking to Torin after they'd told him the things they wanted. In the end, he agreed to shipping out planes from Kashgar, spreading word of the Resistance in general, and manufacturing Bios in the southwest.

So Tehran was the only other place where Cinder, Kai, and Scarlet sought someone out specific. The woman they found was unusual, the only foreign-born citizen to serve in both Emperor Hiro's and Emperor Rikan's courts and one of the Commwealth's most respected figures. She was still mentor to the MP which had replaced her. Kai wanted her to help organize the project to manufacture Bios. The old woman refused. She wanted to write. Poetry, she said, essays. The kind of thing that would call the people to action. As she said it, she had stood and put her cane in front of her at an angle, lifting her chin. Cinder and Scarlet, who had not revealed their true selves, had glanced at each other. The old woman had cackled when Kai's expression turned a bit bemused.

"No, lad, the fightin's fer the young. The sneakin' around and getting' in ter trouble. But don't you worry. I'll stir yer people's hearts to a passion!" And she had shaken her cane at the world, daring it to take her on.

Incredulity aside, they eventually settled on the woman's granddaughter, Arezu, whose contrast with her grandmother was comical. She would help Cress get volunteers to the Commonwealth and Bio materials to the volunteers. The girl, whose olive skin was flawless and whose brilliant green eyes had been far more observant of her emperor than necessary, would report to her grandmother. She would also keep an eye on the "batty old lady" - wink. And if Kai ever needed a direct report, Arezu would be more than happy to go the extra mile, she had assured him with a smile. Cinder had resisted the urge to slam the door on the way out.

Now they were almost done with Kai's last stop in Damascus. When they got back to the train, Cinder and Scarlet would sneak Kai away from his royal escort. The Imperial Express would loop around the coast of Africa, letting off passengers in the major cities – including Rabat –before arriving in Lagos, Nigeria, the capital of the AU. No one would know, when it arrived, that the Emperor had not been on it for most of the time.

And then they were at the station and Torin was giving the engineer the okay to start, as three non-descript young men slipped into the jostling crowd and onto the train. If the conductor had looked closely, he might have noticed that the men's appearances didn't quite match their ID chips, but somehow his mind just glossed right over the fact.

The young men slipped into the car where Wolf had been for the past two days. One locked the door behind them. Another made sure to set a dark tint on the windows before relaxing, and the glamour slipped off the three of them.

There was an awkward moment as they all stood, trying to shuffle around each other. There was not really room for them all to stand in this compartment, but Wolf refused to sit before Cinder had and before he was given an introduction to Kai. Scarlet fell back in the seat across from Cinder, who was squished between Wolf and the window. Cinder sat too. Kai and Wolf still stood, trying to size each other up but too close to do so.

"Emperor Kai," Cinder said, hidden behind Wolf's bulk, "May I present Wolf, my ground forces commander. He's in charge of our security."

Wolf gave a solemn nod and a small smile, but Kai was still eyeing him. "You're one of Levana's soldiers?" His gaze paused on Wolf's exposed teeth.

"Was." Wolf said quietly.

Kai grinned a little. "You have good reason to fight her then." Here he stuck out his hand for Wolf to shake. "It's good to meet you, Commander."

Wolf hesitantly took Kai's hand, but made the gesture more formal by bowing low over it. Finally Kai sat on the remaining seat next to Scarlet, who was already starting to nod sleepily.

The air hung silently between them for a minute.

Then Kai started, "Um. So. Wolf. Uh, you grew up on Luna?"

"Yes."

"What is life like there?"

Wolf fixed him with a baleful stare. "Hard." Typical Wolf, but Cinder was getting annoyed with the attitude.

"Do you—"

"Wolf," she interrupted Kai, "I think we should give you a run through of what happened out there. We met a few interesting people…"

A few hours later they were rushing by Tripoli. Scarlet's sleep schedule continued to defy all norms of waking and sleeping. Though she tried to stay awake to help fill in Wolf, she clearly needed to sleep. Cinder was anxiously getting Wolf's opinions on her crowd-control issues.

"It's terrifying, honestly. When there's a crowd, there's so many different thoughts and moods and emotions, and the more people there are, the harder it gets to control. And that's just with a crowd! Forget a mob. I was so scared. That's the first time I've been the last line of defense, and I couldn't handle it."

"I disagree. You held them off when they were ruled by emotions. It was only when they were in danger and instinct took over that you lost control. They panicked. The same thing happened with me and Jael. When he crossed my instincts, I was able to fight his power. So I think you did pretty well."

"Thanks," Cinder said, "but if we'd gotten killed in their panic, it wouldn't have mattered how well I did. I need more practice with crowds."

"Do you think you're getting too used to my pack's consciousnesses? Maybe you need some more variety…"

They lapsed abruptly into silence when Scarlet's head finally drooped down to rest on Kai's shoulder, her normally tense face now utterly slack. Kai looked down at her in surprise. Cinder watched as he gave a small smile and adjusted so that she would not fall off. She reflected for a moment on how truly odd a royal Kai was. People get killed and kidnapped wandering around the way he did. People catch the plague by having friends like he did—friends like her. How many princes would make friends with mechanics? How many emperors would let dusty, sweaty, foreign peasants fall asleep on their shoulders?

Wolf was clearly not as touched by the gesture as Cinder. A low warning sounded in his throat. Kai looked up, his smile fading and his eye widening. He made to wake Scarlet up and shift away from her.

At that, Wolf's warning increased quickly to an audible growl, and Kai froze.

From the corner of his eye, Kai could see Cinder trying very hard not to grin.

Kai leaned back where he had been, being exceptionally careful to neither disturb Scarlet nor look at her. He met Cinder's eyes, fear in his own, and she pressed her lips together more tightly, managing not to laugh. For the next hour, Wolf watched him closely as Scarlet slept on his shoulder. Kai sat stiffly, starting determinedly at the passing scenery or his own shoes and glancing at Cinder every now and then with a pleading look.

The train jostled them when they were pulling out of a station and Scarlet woke up. She stretched and blushed a little upon realizing where she had been. She muttered apologies to Kai who just squeaked out something about it being no big deal. Wolf took her hand then and they left for the dining room.

Kai dove across the tiny space for the now vacated seat beside Cinder, landing like he just escaped a crazed enemy in hot pursuit. He breathed in relief, and could still see Cinder trying to contain herself. He made a show of wiping sweat from his brow for her. She burst out laughing. Kai glared at her, which only made her laugh harder, grasping at the windowsill for support.

Begrudgingly, Kai started chuckling along with her. When they had both calmed down, Kai sighed.

"That is the last time I let new acquaintances fall asleep on my shoulder."

"You usually make a habit of it, hmm?" Cinder choked, still amused.

Kai rolled his eyes at her. "You didn't tell me they were dating."

She nodded. "Yeah, sorry. Never come between a wolf and its mate. I learned that one the hard way too."

Kai stared at her. "You and… Wolf?"

"Oh, no! No," she laughed, "nothing like that. When I first came across Scarlet and Wolf, I thought he was trying to kill her, so I shot him with a tranquilizer. He didn't make a big deal of it when he first woke up, but you should have seen his reaction when he realized how much danger I had put Scarlet in by doing so. I don't envy people who really get on Wolf's bad side."

Kai's eyes were round. "You shot him?"

"Only with a tranquilizer. Scarlet shot him with a real gun. The one she showed you the other day, actually."

He laughed in disbelief now. "She shot him, and he still likes her?"

"Privileges of being a mate, I guess."

"Mate, huh? Hmmm. A Lunar-Earthen and a Wolf-man. Interesting." He thought for a moment. "It's kinda funny how different pieces seem to fit together, huh?"

Cinder coughed a bit uncomfortably, and changed topics. "Speaking of mismatched couples" she said, "How are things going? Back in New Beijing?"

Kai's whole face changed. He wished she had not brought this up. He blanched white. He did not want to talk to Cinder about being married to Levana, nor did he have any idea how to. It took him a minute, but his voice was flippant when he spoke. "You know, I resent that. I think we're quite a good couple—so much in common! We're both rulers of the Eastern Commonwealth. We're both mildly terrified of Dr. Erland, and completely terrified of you. We're interested in the same stuff…"

Cinder raised an eyebrow at him. "The same stuff?"

"Oh yeah, well," Kai continued his tone, "You know we've both been getting very involved in Lunar activism lately. She has a more hands-on approach than I do. Though I'm sure it will bring us closer in the end, or maybe just closer to the end."

He chuckled when Cinder refused to smile at his black humor.

"Seriously. Are you OK?"

He sighed and scratched his neck. "Honestly, I'm happy to still be walking around at this point. She's running about the palace taking control of everything she possibly can. I'm worried, Cinder." His brow creased. "I guess I shouldn't expect to survive this whole thing, but I want to know that things will turn out all right." It was true. He had come to terms with the fact that if it came down to it, he would sacrifice himself for this cause.

"Hey, that's not true." Cinder looked at him with concern. "You'll survive. We'll all be okay. You made it this far didn't you?" She paused, voice curious again. "How did you manage to convince her not to kill you, anyway? Did you promise her something? Does she trust you now?"

Kai coughed uncomfortably. "Ahh…" he looked down and scratched his neck again, "No, um, I wouldn't say she really trusts me. And I, uh, no I didn't quite promise her anything. Um."

Cinder watched him curiously. Kai knew that he should tell her. After all, what happened with him and Levana could affect the whole Resistance. But as she watched him he began to feel more and more like a trapped rabbit.

Kai sighed. "She… she wants me to give her an heir." His head hung.

Crickets. Tiny crickets with soft tiny socks wrapped around their legs could not be quieter.

Cinder stared at him in blank shock, and then revulsion started creeping in to her expression. Her mouth bobbed open like a fish's.

"What."

"Hehe…" He tried to laugh, but it was painful.

"You aren't serious." He just ducked his head further. "You… you haven't… I mean…?"

"God no. Stars no. I—," he shook his head, running a hand threw his hair, "I managed to convince her to give me time on that front. I honestly was not expecting that… request."

"Um. Yeah."

"I guess I can't fault her for wanting an heir. I mean, doesn't every ruler, at some point?" Stars, how did he manage to come up with the most awkward things around her? "I mean, she's spent so long building this iron empire of hers. I suppose it's natural that she clings to it so hard. That she's so quick to use her gift to preserve it." Kai was thoughtful.

Cinder eyed him with some alarm now. "Are you defending her?" Her voice was quiet.

Kai was taken aback. "No, I'm not defending her. I'm just… trying to understand a little more. Aren't I supposed to be doing that? Understanding her? Figuring out her weaknesses?"

"Understanding her weaknesses doesn't mean you should be sympathetic to them. After all, everyone has weaknesses, but look what she's chosen to do with hers."

"I wouldn't call it sympathetic. I mean, yeah, it's hard to be completely heartless when you start to get to know someone. I just think she's afraid. You know she has this horrible burn across the right side of her face?"

"Probably from when she burned me and my mother alive." Cinder didn't give Kai a chance to respond before she continued, "And heartless? Your Highness, do you realize who you're talking about?"

The formal title stung, coming from her lips. Kai threw her a look. "Come on, Selene. I'm just trying to figure her out. Can you not understand why I would want to come to terms with why someone has used the Lunar gift on me? Why someone has lied to and manipulated me?" His voice was wry and flat, but Cinder still flinched.

"I thought you believed me when I said I hadn't manipulated you."

"I did. But I barely had time to turn around back in New Beijing before you were gone again. I didn't get to talk to you about it. And you still lied about who you—"

"I explained that!" Her voice was choked.

"I know. And I believe you—I do. But can you imagine how it was to have been dancing with you one minute, and not five minutes later find you at the bottom of the palace steps like…?"

"Can you imagine what it was like to lie there?"

Kai winced. "I know—"

"Do you?"

"It's just that it was a lot to take in. It wasn't what I was expecting. You're just—"

"Lunar? Cyborg?"

"No! No," Kai floundered at Cinder's obvious anger, "just different than what I thought is all."

She snarled out her next words. "And so, because I'm so different, you have to figure me out. To come to terms with what I am, just like you do with Levana?"

Oh, this hurt. Stabbed Kai right through to his insecurities because honestly, he wasn't sure if he could deal with the fact that she was Lunar. But it broke him a little to see the anguish on her angled, feminine features.

"That's not fair. You know it doesn't mean nothing that I found out what you are. If it did, you would have told me, wouldn't you? But you hid it from me." She looked like he had slapped her. "I'm not saying you're like Levana. Although, I do think you need to be more careful about how you use that gift—"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"You were going to manipulate that crowd in Kashgar into forgetting their complaints. Just like what they do on Luna. How could we claim to be better than them if we did that?"

"I was just trying to protect you and everyone else there—including them!"

"But where's the line between safety and freedom?"

"I'm doing my best, here, OK? It's not exactly as easy as turning your hand over, you know."

"I realize that, I just think it shows how dangerous it can be to use the Lunar gift…"

Cinder had had enough. She stood, and pulled something quickly from her suitcase before flapping it in Kai's face. "You told me you had feelings for me before you figured out what I was. Well, who's the liar now? Because either you were lying or those were been pretty damn weak feelings to have disappeared just because you found out I have a few metal pieces and a Lunar gift."

Kai blushed to the roots of his hair. She dropped what she was holding in his lap and stalked out of the compartment. He looked down to find the remaining glove from the pair he had given her, back when those feelings were uncomplicated by politics. Or less complicated, anyway.

Kai pulled his sweatshirt over his head and rushed after Cinder. She was already at the other end of one of the sitting cars. That accursed gift of hers! It let her move too quickly. He tried to be subtle as he squeezed through the people. He made it to the other end in time to grasp Cinder's wrist, speaking her name. She squeaked when she saw him and pushed him into the little space that divided the train cars from one another. A group of teenagers was sneaking out the door next to them and up the ladder to the top of the train. Cinder dragged Kai after them.

Outside, you could truly feel how fast the train was travelling. At least it wasn't one of the high-speed trains out of Shanghai, Kai thought. But this train stopped so often that that wouldn't have made sense anyway. The teens settled themselves in a tight circle on top of the train car, and started playing with a deck of cards, passing around sunflower seeds and a smuggled bottle of alcohol.

Kai and Cinder sat a little ways off, the whistling wind hiding their words.

"What were you thinking?" Cinder hissed at him. "You weren't glamoured."

Kai stared at her. Anger and hurt were written across her face, replacing the panic at having found him wandering through a crowded car in his true form, when the Emperor was supposed to be in his private car at the other end of the train. Kai still held her wrist in his hand.

"I'm sorry," he said. "Look, I know this hard. For both of us. But we have to trust each other, right?" He took a deep breath. "You're cyborg. I could care less. I called off the draft for you, Cinder. I mean, also cause I thought it was the right thing to do, but mostly for you." He paused here for a moment. "You're Lunar. I—I'm sorry that it's taking me some time to wrap my head around that. Really sorry. It's not that I don't trust you, I… It's just going to take me a bit to rewire how I think about Lunars. Is that okay? I don't want to hurt you. I've just… thought that way about Lunars my whole life. Feared them, I guess. But maybe you can help me get past that?" He looked at her hopefully. Her expression had softened. He smiled encouragingly, and her brow lost its crinkle. "Tell me what it's like to have the gift."

She raised her eyebrows at him.

"Or what it's like to be cyborg. I don't know that either."

Cinder looked down and sighed. Finally she met his eyes again and gave him a small smile. "The gift is… really strange. I feel out of control sometimes…."

They talked in this way for a while. Kai did not notice as his grip relaxed more until he was holding her hand instead of her wrist, but Cinder did. It made her stomach flutter, as did his rapt attention as he tried to learn what makes cyborgs and Lunars tick. Eventually, Cinder chuckled at him.

"What?"

"You're so earnest, Kai." She laughed fully now.

He tilted his head at her, considering.

"You know, you use my name against me."

"What?"

"My name. You use it as a weapon. When we're friends, I'm 'Kai.' When we're around others and the heavens forbid anyone think we're anything but professionals, I'm 'Emperor Kaito.' When you're pissed at me, I'm 'Your Highness.'"

"Ahh." Cinder laughed nervously, tugging at her ponytail. "Do I do that?"

"Do you know how many people call me Kai?"

"Um."

"One. You, Cinder." He studied her thoughtfully. "Most people don't bother to look past the title, you know?" He looked away and over the endless desert to their left, then the Mediterranean Sea to their right. "Those that do are usually just looking to gain favor. They're false. It's not as though I have no friends, but still. There's a wall there with them. They still call me 'Highness' or 'Emperor' or something like that. And then there's you…" He smirked to himself.

"Kai." She gave his hand a squeeze and he looked up to meet her gaze before withdrawing his hand. "I'm sorry. I guess I haven't been that easy on you, either, have I?"

He threw his head back and laughed. Cinder smiled, a little embarrassed. "But I think I can handle sticking to 'Kai' from now on."

He flashed her a winning smile. "Does that make us friends, then?"

She laughed. "I guess so."

He looked at her meaningfully then. "Even in front of the others?"

Cinder hesitated. "I guess, if you're okay with that, then I can be too. But it might mean that the others in the Resistance will start calling you 'Kai' as well."

Kai grinned. "The more the merrier."

"Hey!" A voice called over the wind. It was one of the kids from the group playing cards beside them. "We need two more to play Zhao Pengyou. You guys want in?"

Cinder and Kai looked at each other. "Yeah, sounds like fun." They walked over to sit on the teens' blanket, introducing themselves as a couple of friends just passing through.