A/N: I KNOW THAT IT'S BEEN A WHILE SINCE I LAST UPDATED. YAH, I SUCK BUT ANYWAY, I FINALLY GOT AROUND TO WRITING THIS CHAPTER. FINALLY! WELL, THIS ISN'T THE END. I'LL EXPLAIN AT THE END OF THE CHAPTER. BUT READ AND REVIEW, OKAY.


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"I know you're disappointed." Tess said softly as she stood in front of Kyle, Alex, and Michael. Liz and Maria had gone off with Sheriff Valenti and Isabel to see Max and Lex.

"Well of course we're disappointed." Michael blurted out honestly.  He still could not believe that she was leaving.

"That's not what Michael meant." Alex said sending a glare towards Michael who just glared back.

"No, actually, that's what I meant." Michael argued resolutely.

"What they mean is that this isn't exactly the ending that we wanted you and Max to have. We just wanted you to be together and be a family; live happily ever after you know?" Kyle interrupted both Michael and Alex.

"But this isn't a fairytale guys." Tess declared softly. "We don't always get the happily ever after."

"Tess, that's what you deserve. After everything you and Max went through, you've earned that kind of ending and as your friends, we want what's best for both of you." Alex declared.

"I know, but Max has to be honest with himself. He needs time to think this through. I want him to be sure that he wants to be with me because he loves me and not because he feels that he has to because of what I've done." Tess explained quietly as she gazed at the three boys-now men-who had as much influence in her life as Max did.

"So that's it? You're going back to Antar while Max thinks this whole thing through for god knows how long?" Michael argued impatiently.

Tess sighed, suddenly feeling like she was defending Max from his own friends. "Have faith in him. Please. I owe him that much. We all do. He's been shoved from one thing to another, forced to make decisions in a heartbeat. Can't we just give him a few more weeks, months to let this whole thing settle in his head?"

"Tess, do you know what can happen in months? People can die within months or they can fall in love with other people or they can grow apart, more than they already were. Please, don't do something that you'll regret in the end." Alex pleaded.

Tess shook her head.

"If one of us does die, or Max and I find other people to care about or if we drift apart to the point that we can never be together then so be it!" Tess said firmly as she shot the three of them a determined look. "I am not forcing him into this life!"

"Even when he's already made it clear that he wants you and no one else?" Michael demanded; his eyes narrowed as he waited for Tess' rebuff. "I heard him Tess. I heard him say over and over again that he loves you and he wants to spend his life with you and Lex. Why can't you just accept that?"

"Michael, don't push it." Tess said sternly.

"I know that you've sacrificed a lot for Max and maybe, you are punishing him for what you went through but why can't you see that you're hurting yourself too?"

"I'm not punishing him, Michael! And I sure as hell am not hurting myself or anyone else in the process. Why can't you see it from my point of view? It's not that easy! We can't just resume from where we left off. A lot has happened!" She hissed angrily. "Max needs time and so do I!"

"Tess-" Kyle started but she snapped at him too.

"No! I'm not going to listen to this! I am going back to Antar. Now, Max has accepted that and he knows, even though he doesn't understand, what I want and he's had enough decency to accept my wishes. Please, please, trust me in this. I am trying to do what I think is right." She said, her eyes softening.

Michael, Kyle and Alex nodded somberly. They didn't want her to do this. They didn't want Tess to leave and if she did, they wanted her to take Max and their son with her.

"I hope you know what you're doing." Michael said grudgingly as he stepped forward and hugged her; finally giving up his argument. There was no point fighting with Tess. She had made up her mind and she was going to go through with it.

"I do know what I'm doing.  I've always known." She whispered as she hugged him tightly, giving him a quick kiss on the cheek before letting go. A part of her loved Michael. He was after all family, and he had been there for her when Max wasn't.

He was the protector, the guardian of the Royal Family and she always felt safe with him and for that she was grateful.

"Good luck, Tess. I'll miss you." Kyle said, taking his turn to say his goodbyes to his almost sister.

"I'll miss you too, Kyle. But it's not the end. I know that you all think that, but it's not." She smiled as she gave him a hug too.

Tess then turned to Alex who looked at her with sad eyes. "Thanks for everything." She said a she gave him a quick hug. "I don't know what I would have done if you hadn't helped." She smiled tearfully.

"My pleasure. Let's just not do that again. Ever." Alex smiled.

"Thank you. All of you. I owe you so much and I am grateful for everything you've done for me and Max and our son. I will never forget your kindness." She smiled as she took a step back from the three men as if she was memorizing their faces in her mind.

"Take care of yourself, Ava." Michael said softly in their native language.

"I will. You too, Michael. Tell Isabel, the Sheriff and Liz and Maria I said thanks and bye." She said softly before she turned away from them to met Kail.

The three men stood together, the wind slowly blowing the dirt on the ground and the sun just setting in the horizon. They watched in silence as Tess walked side by side with Kail, and then disappeared into one of the black jeeps. It then sped away, taking her further and further from them, leaving them feeling somewhat fearful for her safety but more saddened that she was leaving them again and this time no one was forcing her.

Max stepped out of the hotel, just as the jeep that carried Tess finally disappeared. Isabel followed just a few feet behind him with Lex in her arms.

"Is she gone?" He asked, his eyes taking note of the expression on his friends' faces.

"Yeah with Kail." Michael replied for all of them.

Max nodded unhappily, his chest heavy from the thought that Tess had left again. He turned his head to the direction that she had gone; his eyes steady as if he was trying to see her face. He sighed and turned back to meet his sister and his son.

"Let's go home." He told everyone.

Max gave Lex a quick kiss on the forehead, hoping that Tess was right and that he wouldn't fail her again. In the end, Max knew that would choose her and finally, after so long, they could finally be together for good.


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Heavy footsteps echoed into the large halls of the Palace. Men dressed in armor suits walked from one direction into another, many of them shouting orders. They quickly cast a respectful glance on the small figure that walked amongst them.

"Your highness, the rebel troops have seized the front of the city." One of the leading soldiers said as he approached her.

Tess nodded grimly as she removed the helmet from her head, spilling long strands of uncombed blonde hair over her shoulders.

"We have to fight." She said firmly, her eyes never leaving the soldier whose name she couldn't quite remember.

"We know your highness but we need orders." He said with a small nod.

Tess sighed as she gripped the helmet on her side tightly. "Do what you can to protect our people." She said quietly. "I'll see you in the battlefield." Tess then nodded, indicating that he was dismissed and finally for the first time in almost three months, she was alone.

She cast a quick glance towards the hall where men and women, most of them soldiers and their families, before turning to the balcony to let herself think.

Taking a deep sigh, Tess ran her cut and bruised fingers through her hair. She looked down at them, pained that the delicate features of her hands were now covered with cuts, dried blood, mud and bruises and blisters.

She looked out into the horizon, her hands completely forgotten, and saw smoke rising into the once clear sky of Antar.

Refusing to cry, Tess placed her thoughts on her son and Max and the rest of her family. In earth times, she hadn't seen them in almost six, seven months, give or take a few weeks. She had not heard from Max, Michael or Isabel. She had sent Kail to earth a few weeks before the war started and she was glad that Max hadn't made up his mind yet.

Tess was even more grateful that she had decided to leave Lex with his father. Had she taken him back with her, she would have endangered his life again.

Relieved but saddened, she realized how fortunate they were that she and Max hadn't resolved whatever it was that kept them apart. As much as she wanted to be with her family, as much as she wanted to hold them again, she didn't want them here to face this war that she knew was coming.

I was right, Tess thought unhappily. Her instincts had told her to return to Antar as soon as possible once the ordeal with Khivar was finished. She knew that the larger fight wasn't over yet. But she never mentioned it to anyone.

Only Kail knew.

When Tess reached Antar and the news of Khivar's death have spread over the planet already; it only took a month for before an army of his supporters rose up against Ava who was now the sole ruler. The Council had stood by her side, demonstrating its loyalty to the Queen.

One by one, the Royal Four's supporters were assassinated, some murdered in broad daylight by many of Khivar's men.

Now Ava and the remainder of her supporters and people were left in the middle of a war that seemed to have no possibility of ever ending.

Tess was tired. She would never admit it but she was exhausted of having to burden the problems of her people by herself. Her ordeal with Khivar hadn't even cooled down but she was forced to fight again before she could let herself sit back.

I hope you're all doing better than I am, Tess thought to herself, her thoughts yet again drawn back to her family on Earth who she assumed had no knowledge of the war in Antar.

She wanted to send them a message or at least visit them for a few hours but there was no time for that. She was needed in the battlefield. She had to lead her troops to whatever doom that awaited them. And it was too dangerous to leave the planet now. Any ship that left was either shot down in the air or sabotaged before it could leave the ground.

She prayed that the war would end already so she could return to simpler worries such as Max and his undeniable love for two women. She wished that she could destroy the army that Khivar created in secret with the snap of her fingers.

"If only things were that simple." She whispered darkly.

Heavy footsteps interrupted her and someone cleared their throat. "Your majesty, I have sent the rest of the troops to meet the Rebels. I suggest you leave the county as soon as possible for your own safety." Kail declared firmly, wearing a suit very similar to Ava's.

"No." Tess declared. "I'm not abandoning my people. This war is more mine than theirs. I will not leave them in such desperate times."

Tess then turned away from him and placed the helmet back on her head and braced herself for another anguishing and never-ending day.

"Go back to your post Kail and meet me back here when the war is over. I won't stop fighting. Not ever." She said firmly before disappearing into the crowd of wounded soldiers.


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Max looked up at the dark sky sprinkled by tiny stars. "Mommy's up there, Lex." Max pointed out one of the stars to his son.

They were sitting in his backyard. Lex was on his lap, leaning comfortably against Max's chest and also looking up at the sky.

Spending time with Lex had given Max a chance to learn about his son, to understand his tiny baby moods and to bond with him.

"Mommy." Lex repeated eagerly as he clapped his hands together.

Max smiled as his eyes grew distant. "We're going to see her very soon, Lex. Maybe even tomorrow." He said hopefully as he tried to think of what Tess was doing in Antar.

He wondered if she missed them, if she thought of them constantly, or if she took a few moments from her presumably very busy day to look up at the sky and wonder the same thing they were thinking.

Max had not heard from her in almost seven months. He was ready. He was sure of it. Spending time with Lex had made him appreciate Tess more. They were parents and they loved each other despite the constant hardship that they faced.

Tess was right though. He needed time to let things settle down, to think everything through. He had spent time with Liz since Tess left. They have spoken to each other but whatever bond they once shared in the past, Max could not seem to find it anymore.

They had grown too distant from each other. Their hearts had been wounded but soon learned to heal and love other people. Max loved Tess. That he knew for certain.

Liz, whatever she may have meant to him in the past, was now just a friend to Max. His heart didn't skip a beat whenever he thought of her. His chest didn't tighten whenever he heard her name.

It was Tess who made him feel like he had no control, like the world was spontaneous and exciting. It was her that taught him about sacrifice, about love and trust and loyalty. It was in her absence that Max felt hollow, like a part of him had been ripped off and his body needed that other half to survive.

It was Tess.

Not Liz.

Max smiled, liking the feeling that he felt whenever he thought of Tess. "The mother of my child." Max said proudly as he looked down at his little boy. "Mine and Tess'." Max whispered as he placed a kiss on Lex's hair.

"Stars." Lex said as he continued to gaze up at the night sky.

"How about we go home to mommy, Lex? Would you like that?" He asked his son who grinned at the mention of his mother. "Okay, we'll pack as soon as possible and then off to Antar." Max smiled, feeling excitement fill up in his body.

He couldn't wait to see his wife.


~*~


IT'S NOT THE END OF THE STORY. I KNOW. I'M HORRIBLE. I KEEP SAYING THAT IT IS BUT I HAD ELEVEN PAGES AND I THOUGHT THAT THAT WAS WAY TOO LONG. SO I CUT THE OTHER HALF OFF AND THAT WILL GO AS THE ENDING. ILL MAKE IT EVEN BETTER THAN IT IS NOW, IF I CAN. ILL MAKE UP FOR IT. I PROMISE. ANYWAY, PLEASE TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK AND SOME SUGGESTIONS ON HOW YOU WANT THIS TO END. I ALREADY HAVE THE ENDING. I JUST WANT SOME OF YOUR INPUT.

READ AND REVIEW PLEASE. THE SOONER YOU DO SO, THE SOONER I POST OF UP THE FINAL CHAPTER.

THANKS.