The Senator sat at the desk in his study in quiet contemplation. He had seen first hand the prowess of the Amazons as they stormed the city and the palace, and had made short work of Helios' troopers. He was irritated with the commander of the NKFR. The coward had fled, and while some had escaped along with him, the force left behind had been decimated by a bunch of women. The Senator grunted. Things were not going the way they had planned.

He looked around his study. Over the mantle of his fireplace was a portrait of his family. His wife was smiling, probably because she was insipidly annoying. His two chunky children were grinning as well. He quickly looked away and continued scanning the room. There were multiple glass displays containing a variety of relics. Keeping his eyes moving, he landed his gaze on his bookshelf. The shelves were lined with the Senator's volumes. He walked over and scanned the titles. He smiled when he spied his favorite, The Prince, by Machiavelli.

"The ends justify the means..." he mumbled. It wasn't an exact quote, but close enough in meaning. He looked to the immediate left of his book, and saw the bookend holding it up. It was a flat surface on one side. On the other, a pair of pewter ram's horns bulged out. He reached out and stroked the object. He felt a surge of anger roll through his body. Suddenly he turned and slammed his fist down on his desk.

"A bunch of women!" he yelled, not surprised when no one answered him. He unceremoniously plopped down in his seat, and rubbed his temples. In enraged silence he sat carefully contemplating what his next move would be. After close to an hour of brooding, he was no where closer to a solution in his mind. A knock on his study door shook him from his deep thoughts.

"Come in."

Through the doorway came Commander Helios. The dark haired man strode forward, and stopped at attention behind a chair looking straight ahead.

"Were you followed Commander?"

Helios scowled but did not shift his gaze. "Of course not. I was very careful to make sure no one knows of my presence. I realize the repercussions if we are seen together at this juncture. Besides, we are not in the city, and no one knows to look for me in your home away from home."

"Your invasion of the capital was pathetic." The Senator stood from his chair. He circled around his desk, glaring at the taller man. "In fact, Commander, you were beaten twice in one day."

Commander Helios gritted his teeth and said nothing. He continued to look forward.

The Senator continued, "You have been armed with the best in technology, weaponry, and you yourself are the result of years of research and ,illions of Euros. You literally command the power of the fire of the sun, and yet...YOU RAN!" The last part of the sentence was screamed. "You had the Queen in your grasp and what was the result? She is still alive, the Amazons kicked your ass, and I am wondering how the hell we are going to recover from this."

Commander Helios stopped looking forward, and slowly stalked towards the Senator. His rage came bubbling to the surface. "You know nothing of engagement. It is easy for you to sit and judge what was a victory, and what was a defeat, but you slink behind the scenes like a snake. I made a miscalculation that was regrettable. But I have learned so much from the engagement. We were not at our full capability. The next time we engage the Amazons we will be. And we will crush those interfering women."

The Senator scowled, "Are you really standing here telling me that you may have lost the battle, but not the war? Get a grip Commander. You weren't any match for the Amazons, and you didn't even engage Wonder Woman or Shayera Hol. What do you really think will happen when you do? Face it, you are outmatched."

"Senator, as a civilian you believe that you know about war, and about strategy, but this is not a movie. I will bring the Queen to her knees again, as well as the Amazon nation. Make no mistake that I will..."

The Senator railed, "Enough you pompous ass! Explain something to me. Why, when you had the Queen and her son at your mercy did you not kill them both? Two bullets and this whole thing would have been over. Instead you ran and the Queen and her bastard child were saved. I really must know why you didn't pull the trigger."

"The invasion of the capital was a test. I got to Audrey and Dane with no issue. I can do so again. The queen is vulnerable."

The Senator spat, "She was vulnerable! Now she is protected by two members of the League! Speaking of which, it is now just a matter of time before they arrive in full force. They had no reason to interfere, and now, they are likely to come running right into Kasnia. Tell me, since you did not square off against Diana, how the hell will you beat her, Hawkgirl, and whomever else the superheroes decide to send? Right now, there are two more of the League's members inside our borders. Superman requested to send a team to investigate the dam at Fastad."

"There is nothing there to find."

The Senator stared at the Commander. "Get out. I am tired of squabbling with someone who clearly has no clue as to what a cluster we are in now. Regroup your men. I will contact you soon."

Helios clenched his jaw, but offered no reply. He silently walked out the door. The politician paced the room, seething at the arrogance of the other man. He turned his attention back to his bookshelf. "What should I do?" he muttered.

He sat back down at his desk. He looked over at his phone and dialed a number. It was his last resort. Since Helios had left the Queen alive, he was forced to take matters into his own hands. The connection rang once when a familiar voice answered.

"Go ahead Senator."

The politician sighed. "How soon can you get into the city?"

"By tomorrow," came the short reply.

"Good. The Queen lives. I want that rectified. Soon she will come out of hiding and show her face to the people. I will find out where for you. I want her dead. Do you understand?"

"Of course." And after the reply, the line went dead.

The Senator hung up the phone. This would be the only way, he thought to himself. With the assassination of Audrey, the alliance with the Amazons would crumble. Time was of the essence. The longer she lived, the more of a threat she was to him. It would not be long until the investigation would begin as to how the NKFR knew that the capital was left virtually undefended. Shayera Hol, and that trifling intelligence officer wouldn't hesitate to suggest the idea of a mole. It would be his undoing. But, with Audrey dead, he could get away in the confusion. He could retire to a country with no extradition, and live off of his Swiss bank account. Of course he would retire alone. He wondered if he should call his assassin back. It wouldn't be too hard to make sure his wife was killed too. No, he thought, an angry mob needs people to lynch. Retirement started to really appeal to the politician. "Soon, Audrey, soon."

Diana, the former Justice Lord, took the final few steps to the door of the lodge. She knocked, and announced herself to the occupants of the makeshift hideout. "Queen Audrey, I am here to protect you."

She waited only a few moments at the door before it was opened by the blonde queen. "Diana?" she questioned.

"Sort of. Not yours, but yes, that is my name."

Audrey's eyes began to absorb the appearance of the woman standing before her. She was not dressed like the Diana she knew. Her eyes went wide, and she tried to shut the door. Diana reached out with her hand and stopped the progress. Audrey immediately back peddled into the lodge. "Stop!"

Diana took a step forward, but stopped as she saw the fear in Audrey's eyes. She raised her hands in submission. Her tone softened as she addressed the queen again. "You have nothing to fear from me. I was sent here to protect you. Please, can we talk?"

"Talk from there."

Diana nodded, "Very well. My name is Diana, and in another world, I was Wonder Woman."

Audrey whispered, "You...you are the Justice Lord aren't you?"

"I was. But that is no longer who I am. I was stripped of my powers, imprisoned, and eventually released. Long story short, I was visited by Aphrodite and my powers restored. The condition was that I come here, and keep you safe. I mean you no harm."

"How do I know that you are telling the truth?"

"You don't. But if I was going to kill you, I could have already. And if you know DIana, then you know if she was intending physical harm, she wouldn't knock, and frankly neither would I."

Audrey took a step forward, "Are...are you the same person?"

"No. The Diana you know is very different from me. That is irrelevant though. I have been told that you are to be kept safe, and I will do so."

"You say you are different. How so?"

Diana sighed. "I will be blunt. I am not here to be your friend. I am here to make sure you survive this war. After that, I get to leave. In the meantime, you will need to get used to me being around. And don't get ideas. I am not interested in picking up where you and Diana left off."

Audrey felt her anger rise. She stormed to the door and slapped the Justice Lord.

Instantly she recoiled in pain, her wrist throbbing from the strike. The former Justice Lord rolled her eyes. She reached out and took Audrey's hand into hers. There was a slight swelling beginning at the wrist. Diana crossed the threshold of the door and gently led the queen into the kitchen. She reached into the freezer and grabbed a few ice cubes and wrapped them into a small hand towel.

"Here. This will help. And maybe you should refrain from trying to slap me again."

Audrey snatched the towel out of Diana's hand, "Perhaps your manners should improve then."

Diana looked at the smaller woman. She eyed the other woman's face. Determination is what she saw in her eyes. She thought for a moment, and then spoke slowly. "You are right. My manners were...lacking. I apologize for offending you."

Audrey arched her eyebrow. "I do not need you to apologize. I want you to leave. Diana, Shayera, and the other Amazons will make sure I am safe. Never mind that once I return to the capital, the remainder of my guard will be waiting. I can't imagine that you are needed in any way."

"I have been commanded by a Goddess not to let you out of my sight. You asking me to leave will not sway me."

"What part of leave did you not understand?"

Diana grinned as the queen's faced was scrunched in an stubborn look. She chuckled, "You are an obstinate woman. Hardly an attractive quality."

Audrey immediately sniped, "You are commenting on MY attitude? You are a bully."

Diana's eyes narrowed, "A bully?"

"That's what I said. You and your pack of villainous friends suppressed the free will of the people. I know all about you."

Diana gritted her teeth. "You know nothing about me. So do not stand there in judgment."

The two women glared at each other, neither backing down. Finally Audrey spoke, "Fine. You can stay until Diana and Shayera get back. I am sure they will make you leave."

"Queen Audrey, whether you like it or not, I am not leaving. Diana and Shayera will not be able to do anything about the fact that I am going to be your shadow until this war is over. So you might as well get used to the idea of me being around."

Audrey snorted. "My shadow?" She tossed the towel into the sink. "So I get no privacy?"

Diana shook her head.

Audrey's face turned red with anger and she stormed out of the kitchen.

Diana closed her eyes and took a deep breath, "For Hera's sake...the Amazon's better win this war soon." She exhaled and followed the Queen out of the kitchen, down the hallway to a bedroom. The blonde woman had stopped in the doorway staring inside the room. Diana walked up behind her slowly and looked over her shoulder.

Audrey sighed and whispered, "My son is sleeping finally. After the monster of a day he has had, I am grateful that he is doing so peacefully. I am worried that he will have nightmares though given today's events."

"What is his name?"

"Dane. He is the one thing that I have managed to get right so far."

Diana gazed at the little boy snuggled under the covers. "What happened?"

"We were held hostage by some crazy man who is hell bent on killing us both. We barely survived."

Diana hesitantly put her hand on Audrey's shoulder. "I will see to his safety too."

Audrey looked at the hand on her shoulder, and then into the face of the woman offering it. She was confused to be sure. This was Diana, and yet it wasn't. This version seemed cruder in some ways. She was more the warrior and less the diplomat that the Wonder Woman she knew was. Still, she inwardly reflected, this Diana wasn't terrible.

"Thank you. I must ask though if it ever comes to it, that his safety be given priority over mine."

"So you are giving in to the fact that I am going to be with you?"

Audrey arched her eyebrow. "Perhaps. But I have not acceded to the idea just yet. In the meantime, I would be grateful if you would agree to what I have asked."

Diana looked at the blonde, and then back to the small child sleeping. She nodded slightly. "I was asked to specifically keep you safe, but I will make you a promise. As long as I draw a breath, I will fight to keep you both unharmed."

A/N: So there was a slight delay in posting this chapter. Laptop died, but my terrible month of June is over. I have my fingers crossed that July will be a bit nicer. AND...now you know who the Amazon was that Aphrodite sought out. A small handful of you guessed her identity, but it was pointed out to me that using the term brunette to describe her was a bit confusing. I apologize if that was the case. It was not my intention to mislead you in anyway. And now that you know who she is, what do you think? Also, we see that Helios' treachery runs a bit deeper than just himself. On a side note, I used the word "Senator" to describe the politician. My co-author and I realize that this is a term that most Americans would identify readily. More than likely, given that Kasnia is a slavic country, they would have a "Duma" as a Parliamentary house, and senator would not be the appropriate term to use for the politician. But given how some of you felt about brunette, I figured I would acknowledge the slightly improper use of the term, and hope that all would be forgiven on both accounts. Please let me know what you think, and where you see this headed.