Disclaimer: I own nothing except my three OCs, whose backgrounds are heavily influenced by Sylvia Engdahl's novel Enchantress from the Stars. Anything you recognize is from the Trinity Blood manga, by Kiyo Kyujyo, or the novels, by Sunao Yoshida.

Chapter 1

Matxin was flying. All around him were the giant trees of his home planet Igia, and they echoed with the sound of his brother's laughter. "Come and find me!" called Evrek and Matxin saw a flash of red hair and copper skin from the corner of his eye. He flew to the right, and alighted next to his older brother on a giant branch, where Syeira waited. Sunlight shone down on them, and they laughed. They laughed so hard that Matxin felt himself beginning to fall. He opened his mouth to scream, but his brother's hand was on his wrist and Evrek twisted his body, pulling Matxin back onto the branch, sending himself flying off. "Evrek!" Matxin screamed. He tried to follow his brother, but was restrained by Syeira. He was answered by a distant voice calling his name.

Matxin sat bolt upright in bed, chest heaving. It had been that dream again, but usually his scream was answered by silence. So why had there been a voice? His question was answered when he registered Zera's telepathic call. Matxin! Matxin! Oh, you're finally up. We've reached Earth!

Matxin sprang out of bed and didn't bother putting on a shirt or combing his sleep mussed hair. For a ten cycle they'd been stuck in the small transport ship agents used to get from the main ship to there target planets, and he was eager to get out. He ran to the viewing area of the ship as fast as his legs would take him. Zera and Syeira were already there. Zera had been on watch and looked wide-awake and excited. Syeira looked alert, her unbraided hip length brown hair the only sign that she too had been roused from sleep. She was sitting in the pilot's seat, a mug of tea in hand. Matxin slid into the co-pilot's seat beside her, and waved away her offer of a sip of tea. He was too captivated by the planet below.

Below them was the planet Earth. Clouds partially covered continents that had once been green and teeming with life, now blackened by nuclear war. Only one small area survived. According to the mission file, it was called Europe. Or had been called Europe? He sent his thoughts to Syeira. She chose to answer him out loud, possibly for Zera's sake.

"Technically the areas still inhabited are parts of Africa, Europe, and Asia. Though occasionally still known by their pre-Armageddon names, most areas have been renamed. For example, the islands that were once England and Ireland are now the Kingdom of Albion. Similarly, Germany and its surrounding countries have become the Germanic Kingdom." Matxin sent her his thanks, and Zera nodded distractedly, too enthralled by the planet below them to make a sarcastic remark about Syeira's lecture.

Matxin hated that his two colleagues didn't get along. He and Zera had been on first name terms since their time together in the lounge aboard the main ship and in hyperspace had become even better friends. Secretly, Matxin hoped they could be more. Syeira was, well, Syeira. They would always be close. It was hard being friends with two women who hated each other's guts.

At least, thought Matxin, Syeira's stopped being downright rude. Not that cold and distant is much better, but she really went too far the first day. Even if they did assign her an inexperienced trainee…what were they thinking? He wished that Zera could see the side of Syeira only he saw nowadays, the kind and gentle side. Not to mention, when she was in a good mood their leader had a wicked sense of humor.

Said leader took the controls and guided the ship down to the barren waste she informed them was known as the Darkland.

Upon landing, the first order of business was to remove from the ship the clothes they would wear to blend in with the native population and the unminted silver and gold they would be exchanging for money. Then, Syeira used the portable captain's control panel she carried with her to send the ship back into orbit. They couldn't risk it being discovered, even out in this desolate land. A spherical, noiseless ship without any visible means of propulsion was obviously not technology that Earth had ever produced and would give away an alien presence. For recovery missions such as this one of the Society's favorite sayings was "Death before discovery", meaning an agent had to be prepared to die rather than use their superior technology or powers in a way that would expose them to the native population.

The reason behind this maxim was that if Younglings knew how far behind the Republic they were, they'd start questioning their own worth, their place in the universe; they might get so discouraged they'd simply give up. Even if they didn't they'd skip steps in their development, and they'd be hurt because they'd be exposed to knowledge they didn't fully understand. At best their civilizations would become poor copies of the Republic, instead of keeping their uniqueness.

As it was early morning in the Darkland when the agents landed, they took some time to exercise their new abilities. The Abaran nanomachines, or Crusnik as they were called here on Earth, were originally designed to give humanoid soldiers enhanced strength and senses as well as the ability to fly. Syeira suggested they test their wings, as she planned for them to fly to Byzantium as soon as dusk fell. She herself had four wings, of feathers in shades varying from gold to deep peurple, but primarily blue. Matxin's two feathered wings were solid gold. Zera's six, on the other hand, were the iridescent and translucent wings of a dragonfly. While Syeira and Zera enjoyed flying, it reminded Matxin of his recurrent nightmare, and preferred to stay on the ground. Syeira noticed his discomfort and glided down to him. Mat, are you alright?

Yes. Flying just makes me uneasy.

It's that dream again, isn't it? Oh, Matxin. She wrapped her arms around him, giving her friend what comfort she could. He hugged her back, and they stayed that way for some time, not noticing the jealous glares coming from Zera.

When dusk came, the three comrades ate their last Republic meal, savoring the taste of home. They picked up their packs, activated their nanomachines, and took off. They flew over the Darkland until they reached the Black Sea. Now over Imperial waters, they had to take care not to be seen by ships. They reached the coast just before the sun rose.

Landing on an isolated beach, they stopped only briefly to admire the sunrise over what was now lush and fertile land. Syeira ordered Matxin and Zera to change from their Society uniforms, now torn up by wings, into the clothing of Terran commoners in the Empire. Zera noticed that Matxin and Syeira had no problem changing in front of one another and accidentally let down her mental shields, allowing Syeira to feel her jealousy. Though an Earthling might think his coloring odd, Matxin was an attractive man. Syeira was irritated by the trainee's feelings, but was not about to explain the complexities of her and Matxin's relationship to a woman she disliked. Matxin noticed none of this, as he was too busy admiring how Zera looked in her new clothes.

They hiked from the beach towards Byzantium, guided by the global positioning system in Syeira's control panel and a paper map. Soon they reached a dirt road which they could follow, and at this sign of civilization Syeira put away the control panel in case they should be seen by Younglings. It was good she did so, because soon after a Terran man with a truck full crates of fresh fish came driving along. Syeira surprised her comrades by revealing she spoke the language of the Empire and convincing the fisherman to give them a ride. Climbing onto the crates in the back, Matxin asked her "Since when do you speak whatever language that was?"

"It's Imperial and I used one of the language transfer computers in Records to pick it up so quickly. If you relax your mental shields, I can transfer the knowledge to both of you," Syeira explained. The transfer process was long and difficult, and by the time Matxin and Zera had complete knowledge of Imperial, they had reached Byzantium.

The sunrise over Byzantium was truly beautiful. Unlike in most cities, however, it signaled the end of the business day, not the beginning. It took some searching for Syeira, Matxin, and Zera to find an inn that was still open. Once they did find one, all it took was a little bit of silver to purchase rooms for the day. The innkeeper seemed a bit suspicious of them for carrying silver in the land of Methuselah, but he bought Matxin's stories about seeing the world and how hard it was to find an honest money changer easily enough. He even gave them a map of Byzantine tourist sites, with the name and address of a Terran merchant who would buy their silver at a good price written on the back.

As Zera had been on duty when their ship exited hyperspace, she hadn't slept in over twenty-four Earth hours, or one day, and retired immediately. Syeira and Matxin stayed awake a while longer to plan out their actions for the next day- or in this case, night. First of all, they needed the lay of the land, so to speak. It was decided they would first spend their time memorizing the layout of the city and learning more about the Empress from the people. The previous agent had stated in his report that she rarely left her home, the Forbidden Palace of the Empire, but her behavior could have changed within the past hundred stages. Unlikely, but possible.

That settled, Syeira stood and went to the door of Matxin's room, where they'd held their planning session. Reaching for the door handle, she turned to face Matxin on his bed. "You like her don't you?"

"Like who?"

"Don't play dumb with me Mat."

"Maybe I do. What is it to you?"

"Just be careful. I'd hate for anything to happen to either of you. She reminds me of you as a trainee…so enthusiastic, so eager to please…" Unconsciously, Syeira clutched at the locket around her neck. Matxin was out of bed and standing next to her in a flash. "Don't think of that," he said. "Don't ever. It won't happen again. We'll never lose each other, or Zera."

"Like Evrek," came Syeira's haunted whisper.

AN: Yes, another rewrite. Please, dear readers, give me your opinions! Many thanks to Shadowmaiden3 for looking over these chapters and putting up with my constant pestering!