And, the alarms stop blaring.

Abdol gasps and checks the drain, "They've stopped. His powers...he pulled them back."

"Doctor." Kathy whisper, pointing at the unconscious form of Lillian Andrews. They watch in amazement as her body fills with a yellow light that reminds Kathy of...something she can't quite recall.

It flares brightly and then...the woman is gone.

Abdol takes a step backwards. "What the hell?"

Kathy reaches out and touches the spot where the woman had lay. Her heart plunges in her chest. "She's gone..." And with her went every hope of her son's awakening. She looks down at him, his head cradled in her lap. She strokes his forehead until the furrows there relax, "I'm sorry, Baby. We tried. We tried and it almost killed you. Forgive me. Forgive a foolish old lady."

Alex's eyes flutter open and focus on her, "You aren't old." He whispers, "You're just mom."

Kathy stares at him, afraid she is dreaming, that she'll wake up because this can't be happening. She summons her courage and manages a hesitant, "A-Alex?"

He smiles, wearily, "You look just like I remember you."

And, it is too much for Kathy. She falls over her son and begins to cry. He folds his arms around her and his tears join hers.

Annie enters, and opens her mouth to speak. Dr. Abdol stops her, "Shhh." He urges.

"What happened?" the nurse whispers.

"He came home." Abdol says, "Alex came home."

Corsair's wounds have healed. He has been a guest of Lilandra while he mended, and Hepzibah has never left his side, eventually sharing his bed as the man at last allowed himself to return her love. She is devoted to him, and while he still doesn't understand why a creature of such perfection would want a man like him, he cannot deny that he is in love with her as well. They are inseparable, and for the first time in a long time, they are happy.

The New Majestrix has spent the past month rebuilding from her brother's failures. D'Ken and Deathbird's bodies were burned and the ashes scattered according to Shi'ar funerary rites, and no charges of wrong doing have been levied against Lilandra, who had not, in fact, disposed of either of them. Those that the tyrants had imprisoned in the mines had their conditions re-evaluated and though not everyone is set free, enough receive an official pardon that the Insurrectionists, who are not so blind as to not know which amongst them were truly criminals, are satisfied. The new ruler of the empire is not a dictator.

Raza, and by association, Ch'od have gained a passing respect for Corsair, understanding now the lengths he went to do what he thought best for his child. They are not quite friends, yet, but they are no longer enemies.

One day, Corsair, healed now full, but still tended to by his beloved kitten, comes to Lilandra and asks what is to become of him, "I cannot sit in the palace idle, Majestrix. It is not my nature. But neither can I walk freely in the city. There are still too many that I wronged when I was the informer."

Lilandra smiles an enigmatic smile and says, "Come with me."

An hour later, Corsair finds himself before the most magnificent craft he has ever seen, "This is the Star Jammer." Lilandra says, "The jewel in the crown of a fleet that my brother all but destroyed. They captured her, intending on learning to fly her, but no one ever figured her out."

Corsair's eyes shine at the sight of the beautiful craft, but he feigns nonchalance, "How do you know I will be able to do what others have failed?"

"Because you brought a floundering plane down to a safe landing while your mind was stuck between dimensions." Lilandra says, "Who else could have done that? Who else deserves this ship?"

He reaches out and strokes the copper colored metal of the ship and it almost seems to ripple beneath his touch like Hepzibah does when he strokes her white and orange fur. To fly again. He never expected it. "A ship like this...she needs a crew."

"You have one." Lilandra smiles, even wider, her exotically marked eyes, as bright as his, "It has already been arranged." She beckons and two figures step out of the ship.

Corsair is pleasantly surprised to see Raza and Ch'od waiting there, their faces stern but expectant. They are, like Christopher, like Hepzibah, the only ones of their kind. This is not their world, though Raza, had once belonged here. It is time for them to leave. There is a universe waiting for them, a thousand dimensions that needed to be explored.

"What is all this?" Corsair asks.

"We're waiting for our captain." Raza smirks, a lopsided smirk because of the mechanics on his face.

Corsair turns to the Majestrix, "Lilandra, what are you asking of me here?"

Lilandra shakes her feathered head, "I am asking nothing of you. I owe your son, Christopher Summers. Had he not stranded me on Earth, I might have continued as I was, a conqueror and a monster. I might have ended no better than D'Ken. Instead I am a better person, a better leader, for having seen that other worlds are filled with people, rather than just resources for the Shi'ar to steal. The Star Jammer and its crew is yours because it is the only way for me to thank you both."

Hepzibah takes her love's hand and leads him up the gangway of the ship, to the pilot's seat.

He hesitantly takes it and Christopher Summers, now and forever Corsair, realizes at last that he too is home.

The End