A/N: Again I apologize for killing and making the wonderful characters of this show old.
Disclaimer: The creator of this show's memory lives on.
Abel sat under the awning. It was a beautiful spring day. He sat back for a few moments and enjoyed the warm breeze. He smiled to himself as he remembered that awful day a year ago. He had thought he would never be happy again, but after a few months of moping, he was reminded by his old friend Father Leon about the note Esther had left him.
She was right, of course. Then again she had seldom been wrong. He enjoyed life to the fullest extent and had not gone on any serious missions in a while. Of course, he was hurting inside, and the hurt never went away totally, but it could be ignored for a while. For moments like this.
He remained the scatter-brained priest he always was. He was quieter than usual, only talking when necessary and most of his time was either spent alone. Except when he was with Father Leon.
"Father Abel!" there he was. Father Leon sat next to Abel. "Are you doing alright? Ye looked a little… ye know…. Stormy last night."
This was Father Michael Leon, son of the original Father Leon and was quiet a bit younger than any of the others priests and nuns that worked for AX. No one knew how the young father came about, with the celibacy rules and all. The rules were optional, but Father Leon had taken them after needing to show his… loyalty to the church. Father Leon had disappeared for a few months, and came back with a young child and quite a few more lines on his face. Besides the wrinkles, father a son looked exactly alike. Both had the long black curls and tan skin. And even at this young age, Father M. Leon could fight as well as his father did in his younger days. Of course, Father Leon Jr.'s vocabulary rivaled his father's. it was for all these reasons and more that Father Abel and Father Tres had taken the young man under their wings.
Abel smiled at the boy's concern. "Of course, I just was thinking on the past."
Father Leon fixed him with a glare. "You know you should not try and think of awful things of these nice days." Leon stood up, yawned and stretched his arms behind his head. "See ya later. I'm going to go and bug people before Tres finds me."
Abel smiled. Then his smile turned to an all out grin. Surely Tres was coming to tell them to go see Sister Kate. No, thought Abel. She was promoted last month.
Last month, after much pushing, Lady Catharine had been 'persuaded' to retire and Sister Kate had taken her place. The Sister was able to fill out her duties as cardinal and remain captain of the Iron Maiden. Abel insisted on calling her Sister Kate, to her chagrin.
Abel was excited as Tres came walking up. He was sure to be allowed to go to this one. Though he liked the peace and solitude of an unofficial retirement, he wanted to get out in the field again, however much stress it caused. Father Tres stopped in fron of him.
"Father Abel Nightroad. I have been ordered to retrieve both you and Father Michael Leon and report back to Cardinal Kate's office for a briefing on a new assignment."
Abel grinned. "Well let's go, then."
"Negative." Tres replied in his usual monotone. "Objective one: find fathers Abel Nightroad and Leon: fifty percent complete." Tres continued in the direction father Leon had gone in.
Abel followed; his eyes eagerly scanned the shrubs and scenery of the young father. As much as he loved his friend's antics, he wanted to get going as soon as possible. They found Father Leon talking to a group of blushing nuns. Father Tres's deep voice sent them scurrying away.
"Father Michael Leon you are to report to along with Father Abel Nightroad and myself to the office of Cardinal Kate."
"Alright, I was bored anyway." Leon walked away with his hands crossed behind his head.
"Acceptable. Objective one: complete. Objective two: in process." Tres followed Leon.
"No doubt you've all heard of the new civilization that we have recently found." Sister Kate began as soon as the door closed behind Abel.
They all nodded. The civilization was a wonder. Set on a huge continent, it was a flowering country that apparently started out with a huge group of refugees from a Terran slaughter hundreds of years ago, supposedly a few years after Armageddon. It had been completely untouched by anyone except the few Methuselah and Terrans that needed hiding.
"We've come in contact with them a lot over the past few months and we are a little confused. It seems that their culture is of strict design. We want to know if the people are, well, suffering. We have had evidence that might support that the people are being treated very unkindly and the way their king talks about expansion… well, lets just say it is more than a little strange."
Cardinal Kate had been worried about the people's well fare ever since the incidents at Albion thirty-one years ago. She wanted to help all people, and had even gone so far as to send Vatican spies out to see if every city on the continent and the Empire was content.
"I want you to stay there for a week and gather as much data as you can about the lower rings of their society. See how the people are treated and how they feel about it. Understood?"
"Acceptable." Tres answered for them.
"Good. Now, as for money, you'll go into the city with two hundred dinars. I'll leave you, Father Leon to take care of that." Sister Kate fixed Abel with a stern glare. He could only manage a weak smile. "Father Abel, I put you in charge of the personal affairs of the trip. Where you go, what you do, that sort of thing. Of course, you'll travel incognito; we don't want a war on our hands. When asked for your reasoning for leaving our country, tell them you are treated unfairly because of family bloodlines. Abel, you and Tres will be brothers, and Leon, you shall be a friend that is also prejudiced against. Is everything clear?"
Even though everything was not clear, as Kate talked rather fast, Abel nodded. They were dismissed to pack their things. Abel practically ran down the hall with excitement. They were finally going on a mission!
A/N: sorry, about the uninteresting chapter. I had to bring you all up tp date. I'll get a really good one in soon, though.