Happy Friday, readers! I have some Diana and Steve for you! Enjoy! Btw, long ass chapter.

9

I spent all night next to him. Epione gave Steve the same medicine she gave Antiope and they both had a restful night's sleep. After checking Steve, Epione arrived at the same diagnosis she gave Antiope; no physical injuries to treat, just an incredible amount of pain.

Now as I sit next to him, my eyes going over every single line on his face, I hope that he remains asleep for as long as possible. His pain will be much worse than Antiope's, as it's his whole body that's in pain and not just his chest.

Mother told me to go to my chambers and rest, but I said no. What if he woke up in the middle of the night with no clue of what's going on? No, I would rather stay here.

"Diana,"

I turn to the bed opposite Steve's and see Antiope is awake. I start preparing myself for when Steve wakes up, since it shouldn't be long now. I stand up and walk towards her bed, bringing the chair closer and sitting down.

"Hey. How are you feeling?"

She shakes her head. "No change, I'm afraid. But I don't feel as exhausted."

I nod. "You should try to sleep some more. Everyone is working very hard to find a solution to this."

She looks around me and nods her head towards Steve. "I see he made it back,"

I look over my shoulder and smile. "Yeah, he made it back. I don't know how yet. Don't take this the wrong way, I'm glad you're here. But why are you back? Mother and I both agree that there must be a reason,"

She nods. "I met a man, his name was Dertiri. He told me someone named Steppenwolf was coming to take Earth hostage with an army of Parademons in search of Mother Boxes."

My eyes widen. "I was warned by Zeus about this Steppenwolf and how he must not take possession of any of the Mother Boxes. He told me to come back to Themyscira."

She smiles at the mention of Zeus. "I knew the Gods had a plan for me. The reason I came back is because Dertiri told me that the Mother Boxes have a fault in their design. They will only perform their task for 6 days. That's it, no more, no less. 6 days."

I absorb the information. This is vital and will grant us a huge advantage. "He still could cause a lot of damage in 6 days. We will fight him and stop him from laying a hand on any of the Mother Boxes. Thank you, Antiope."

She looks at me and inspects my face. "You have changed much, Diana. There is this hardness in your eyes that wasn't there before."

"I've experienced much in man's world, Antiope. I'm afraid that my innocence had to be shed in order to be able to survive there. I've grown much during your absence."

She nods. "Yes, I'm afraid that happens when you go into battle. How long was I gone?"

"100 mortal years,"

She accepts this information well. "Not nearly as long as I expected then,"

"Yes, I don't know how he'll take it though. 100 years is a long time for a man," I say looking over my shoulder at Steve.

"I know. That's why I didn't mention anything to him."

Antiope lets out a groan. I turn back to look at her. "Let me go look for Epione so she can give you some more medicine,"

She nods and I leave the room to look for her.

I don't sleep much that night, my mind to busy trying to come to terms with everything that's happened since I arrived to the island. I don't know how Steve will react when I tell him he's been gone for a century. I don't know what will happen once we do leave the island.

What if they can't find a way to ease their pain? What will I do then?

I shake my head and rub my eyes. No, don't do that. They will find a way.

I hear footsteps and I turn towards the threshold and see Epione come in with a tray full of vials.

"Did you find a way to stop their pain?" I ask her hopeful.

She shakes her head. "No, Diana. But we're not giving up yet, there's much to research still,"

I nod slowly. "What is that?"

She lays the tray on the table. "We didn't find a cure, but we found a way to numb their pain. So far what we've given them puts them to sleep, this won't. That way they can stay awake."

"That's great! How fast will it work?"

Epione starts mixing the contents of the vials in a mortar. "It should work immediately, but it won't wake them up. The effects of last night's medicine have to fade first."

I nod and look at Steve. This may not be the cure, but it's a step in the right direction. I hear the grinding of the pestle on the mortar and the scraping as Epione pours it into new vials. I see her apply a paste under Antiope's chin, then she approaches Steve and does the same. It smells like eucalyptus.

"Antiope should be waking up first since she was given the medicine before he was. I'll send word to the Queen."

"Thank you, Epione."

She leaves the room and I decide to go take a bath and change my clothes since it's going to be a little while before they wake up. I lean over Steve and give him a lingering kiss on the forehead, already anxious for him to wake up since I now know he won't be in pain. I walk over to Antiope and do the same.

I walk the short distance from the infirmary to the palace and I start thinking about all the obstacles that are coming my way. When Steve wakes up, he'll have questions and lots of them. Everything he knows will be turned upside down, so even if I look for the best way to answer, the impact of the shock will remain the same. He is going to find himself in the same position I was in when I first came into man's world, the only difference is that other than me, he will be completely alone with everyone he knew now dead.

I climb the stairs and I find 3 servants leaving my chambers with empty basins.

"Good morning, Your Highness. The Queen asked us to prepare a bath for you. All you need has been placed for you already," A sweet looking girl tells me with a smile.

"Thank you,"

All 3 bow their heads respectfully and wait for me to move past them and into my chambers before descending down the stairs. I walk in and stop to look around. Everything is exactly where I left it. The leather braid I was making to tie to my saddle is still seating on top of my nightstand; my diary is still on my desk, the book I was reading next to it.

I walk deeper into the room and run my hands over the soft, silk sheets covering my seashell shaped bed. I sit down on the bed and I see the book Mother used to read to me as a child resting on top of the centre table. I stand up, pick it up and start flipping through it.

Zeus created beings over which the Gods would rule. Beings born in his image – fair and good, strong and passionate. He called his creation 'man'. And mankind was good.

I keep flipping through the pages and stop at the image of the Amazons coming out of the sea.

Greek warriors, men and women looked on as Hippolyta, and Antiope, Eliana and Artemis, Phillipus, and all other Amazons rose out of the sea, full-grown. The Greeks were awestruck by the majesty of Hippolyta and all her perfect, strong, loving subjects. The bringers of not war, but of harmony.

I close the book with a sigh and put it back down. If it had only stayed like that, peaceful, this whole mess could've been avoided. I look across the room to see the steam coming off of the bath and next to it, my armor. I smile as I walk up to it and touch the cold metal. The same gold armor I wore during my life here to represent my royal status. At first I didn't like how I would stand out amid a sea of black, brown or red armors, but I came to embrace my role and trained hard to earn the honor of being called an Amazon by an Amazon. Of course my training was never completed, but I look forward to picking up where I left off.

I discard my clothes and step into the hot bath and allow myself to relax. I close my eyes and try to clear my mind as much as possible. I must approach what's to come with a leveled head. And not just with Steve, but with Steppenwolf. I have a feeling this fight will require a combined effort from mankind, the league and the Amazons. Men will be difficult to convince, they always think they can win every fight, their ego their biggest weakness.

And where will Steve fit into all of these? He was never one to stay put and if I ask him to, he won't listen to me. But this fight – this one is different. I need to make sure he's safe. I can't lose him again.

I stay in the bath until the water is cold and since no one comes looking for me, I assume Steve and Antiope must not have woken up yet. I stand up and reach over for the long piece of wool that has been made into a cloth, not quite a towel, but gets the job done. I step off and dry myself before putting on my golden armor. I stand in front of the mirror and stare back at the reflection of the woman I see. If it weren't for all the things I know hides behind my eyes, I could've fooled myself into thinking I was staring at the person I was before I left.

Antiope is right. There is a hardness in my eyes that wasn't there before. It's in the slight frown I seem to permanently have. It's in the way I approach everything in distrust until proven differently. It's in the way I measure how deserving people are of my help before sprinting into action.

"Now you look like my Diana,"

I turn to see Mother looking at me from the threshold of my chambers. She smiles at me and moves to stand behind me looking at my reflection in the mirror. I feel her take the cloth out of my hand and she runs it through my hair, trying to dry it as much as she can.

I don't say anything back.

"I know you're not the same person who left this island. But you haven't changed as much as you think you have," She leans to the left and grabs the comb from my vanity and starts brushing my hair, focused on her task. "You still fight for what you believe is right, even when everyone tells you not to. You care deeply and that only drives you to fight harder. You're loyal and you're compassionate. That's who my daughter is."

I feel her section my hair in three and start braiding it. She looks up momentarily at me, "In case you were wondering,"

I smile but it fades quickly. "Sometimes it's hard to remember who I am,"

Under, over and under, adding pieces of hair as she makes her way down, that's what I feel as she braids my hair. "I understand why that might happen. Especially when you go into battle. But the thing I learnt was that you don't have to put aside who you really are and replace it with the warrior in you. It's the other way around."

I frown at that. "What do you mean?"

"What I mean is that it's the warrior in you who you have to put aside. You don't need the warrior when you're at home and you don't need the warrior when you're with family. Don't ever leave out who you are when you go into battle because that's what makes you different from the evil you're fighting. Doing that is very dangerous, Diana. I wouldn't want to see you make a mistake because you couldn't remember who you were during those split second decisions you have to make in the battlefield."

I'm taken back to the hangar, when I was holding the tank above my head looking down at Dr Poison with Ares tempting me to kill her, about to crash her. If it hadn't been for what Steve told me, I would have killed her.

It's not about what you deserve. It's about what you believe.

"You're right, Mother. It's just… hard." I laugh sardonically since it's the only word that comes to mind.

She ties my braid with a leather cord and throws the end over my shoulder. "If it were easy, then we would have no wars."

I turn around and hug her. "I know. I love you, Mother"

"I love you more."

This woman is full of wisdom. I wish there was someway I could communicate with her once I go back to Paris. Or maybe she could come visit…

"They're awake. I came to tell you that, but they were still tired when I left. I was hoping they would be more awake by the time I came looking for you,"

I pull back. "Mother! You should have started with that! Let's go!" I take her hand and pull her towards the door.

"My body feels funny," I say looking at my hands and moving my fingers.

"It's the effect of the paste under your chin, Captain. It has a numbing agent."

"Oh"

I woke up about 20 minutes ago to find myself in a very comfortable bed. At first I thought I was still in the Underworld since the first thing I saw was the rock above me. But then I heard Antiope calling my name and I sat up slightly to see her across from me in an identical bed.

She explained to me where we were but my mind was still heavy with sleep. I think I heard the voice of Queen Hippolyta, but I'm not sure.

"You're awake,"

I turn my head sharply to the left to see Diana standing at the entrance looking exactly the same as the day I met her.

"Yeah, I'm awake," I say a bit dazed having forgotten what that smile made me feel.

She walks over and sits on the chair next to my bed. "Hey,"

"Hey, yourself." I stare in fascination at every single part of her face, wanting to commit to memory every single detail. "So…"

She lets out a laugh, "So…"

The look in her eyes is very similar to the one she had in the hotel in Veld. I'm sure I have the same look.

Oh how I've missed her. Her eyes, her smile, her li-

"So! This seems to be a good time for you two to explain to us how is it that you escaped," Queen Hippolyta breaks the spell bringing Diana and I back to reality.

Diana turns and looks at her Mother, knowing exactly what she's doing.

"Yes, Mother. I guess this is as good a time as any." Diana leans back on the chair and intertwines her hand with mine and she gives me a sideways look. Our small exchange in the streets of London plays in the back of my mind.

Why are they holding hands?

Probably because they're together.

"Well sister, it all started when the Captain interrupted my escape by landing on me… -"

As Antiope and I tell the Queen and Diana our adventures in the Underworld, it dawns on me how incredibly lucky I have been. When I was running on that tarmac chasing the airplane filled with poisonous gas, leaving Diana behind and hearing her call my name, I thought that it wasn't meant to be. I thought that the time we had was the last piece in the puzzle for me to fulfill my destiny, the one thing that would push me, motivate me to do what I was put on this Earth to do.

Now as I lie in this bed, with my body numb but the feel of her hand in mine as real as ever, I really feel like the luckiest man alive.

Alive. I'm alive.

"…and that's how I managed to get past Cerberus. It was all them."

"We will have a ceremony in their honor. What they did was worthy of all the praise and respect one can give. They will be remembered as the heroes they were," Queen Hippolyta says with pride.

Antiope sits up a bit. "I agree. It is the least we can do."

There is a moment of silence, when I remember the current state Antiope and I are in. "Um, can somebody explain to me why we felt like we were about to die all over again?"

The soft smile that everyone had on their faces drops and Queen Hippolyta and Diana share a look.

"We don't know yet, Steve. We believe you are both relieving the pain from the injuries that killed you. Physically, there's nothing wrong with either of you, so there's nothing our healers can treat. But they are working really hard to find what exactly is happening with you."

I feel Diana tighten her hold on my hand. I guess it couldn't have possibly been that easy. Not that it was actually easy to escape, but all things considered.

"If we could figure out a way to escape from the Underworld, we'll figure out a way to beat this. We'll just have to. Isn't that right, General?"

"That is right, Captain." Antiope says determined.

I have to remain positive. I decided to comeback, there were risks when facing the unknown and I accepted them. This is one of the many consequences. I'll face it and beat it, just like every other obstacle in my life. I just hope I remain on this Earth for a little while longer, just enough to feel like Diana and I got enough. Even though I know I will never get enough of her.

As the infirmary seems to be somewhat underground, we hear the echo of the footsteps of somebody approaching before we see them. We all turn our heads in the direction of the entrance to see Epione come in with another woman.

"Sorry to interrupt, Your Majesty. We believe we have found what ails both the General and the Captain,"

All of our eyes widen, but what we notice is that neither Epione or the woman who accompanies her seem to be excited or proud of their discovery.

"What is it, Epione?" Diana asks with certain trepidation.

"I'll let Ersa explain, Diana, since she was the one who found this particular information,"

Ersa, who is not as built as the rest of the Amazons I've met, but still incredibly fit, takes a step forward and pulls from behind her dress a small book. "It occurred to me to look for information about the history of the Underworld as opposed to medicine. I came across this small book that contains conversations the Gods supposedly had during the time of the division of Earth,"

Thanks to Penthesilea's explanation back in the Underworld, I know what they mean when they talk about 'the division of Earth'.

Ersa continues, "After the draw, Hades was not completely content with what he had gotten. He argued that his role was that of gatekeeper, whereas Zeus and Poseidon's role were much more active. As Hades was known for his outbursts, Zeus and Poseidon were afraid he would have one and cause severe damage, so they decided to grant him power over how the Underworld was run."

Well, that was a bad call 'caused it sucked. And I fought in a war that lasted 4 years. Or at least I hope it didn't last long after I was gone. I have to ask Diana what happened after I died.

"One of the things Hades did was built a failsafe of sorts. He took every possible measure to avoid souls escaping his realm, but in case they did, they would be condemned to eternal pain. Hades took pleasure in knowing that even if souls managed to escape, they would not be able to continue living since they would have to relive the pain of the injury that killed them."

Queen Hippolyta shakes her head. "I have never heard of this! I think something like that would not have escaped all of us."

"There is a reason for that, Your Majesty. When Zeus and Poseidon heard of this failsafe, they confronted Hades. They argued that if the soul escaped, then they should be able to return to the land of the living unscathed, as a prize for succeeding in the almost impossible. Hades told them that they should be more concerned with who escaped, for if it was an evil person that would not be good for mankind. They soon realized that they needed to comprise. Poseidon suggested that any soul who escaped would feel that unbearable pain, but it would only be permanent if they had committed evil deeds during their lives, otherwise the pain would only be temporary. Hades agreed under the condition that this agreement would not be spoken of, so that he could enjoy when the unexpected pain was felt by those who escaped."

My blood boils with the knowledge that Hades is laughing right now at what Antiope and I are going through.

Diana stands up from the chair she was sitting on and walks a little closer to Ersa. "Wait, then how does this book exist? How do we know that the information it contains is true?"

I'm glad she's asking the important question because right now, I'm unable to.

Epione answers, "We don't. That's why I said we believed we had found what ails them. There is no way to confirm that what it says is true."

I think back to the beach, when I felt the pain of the fire that killed me. It was physically unbearable, but psychologically, it killed me all over again. Feeling the slow burn and how it increased in intensity, my nerves being fried and yet, when I looked at myself, there was nothing.

"Correct me if I'm wrong in my assumption, Ersa, but what you are saying is that the pain we are both in right now will stop?" Antiope asks.

"Yes, General. But upon further study of the text, I have come to the conclusion that Hades wants you to feel that pain, therefore any kind of medicine we give you will only delay the inevitable. You must feel that pain until it fades. No medicine. No numbing."

"Are you certain, Ersa?" Queen Hippolyta asks.

She nods, "Should the text be a true transcript of the conversation the Gods had, then yes, Your Majesty, I am sure. Pain must be felt in order be rid of it."

There's no way around it then. If this is the price I have to pay to stay here, next to Diana, then so be it.

"Do you have any idea how long we'll be in pain?" I ask for the first time since they came in here.

"No, Captain. My best guess would be days, no more than a week. After all, the point of it all was to punish you for escaping but at the end, allow you to live."

I nod accepting what she's telling me. "Better get to it then. No point in wasting time. I personally would want to not continue to be medicated."

Diana sits back down and tries to give me an encouraging smile, but the fear in her eyes gives her away. "I'll be next to you every second of it."

"That's all I need."

AN: I know! Still not quite the reunion you guys probably want to read, but I'm trying to keep it realistic/believable. Am I succeeding? No freaking clue!

I HAVE SOME ANNOUNCEMENTS. Starting Monday updates will be made in the afternoon/night since my shifts at work have been changed to the morning/afternoon, so I won't have time to update as early as i have been doing. It sucks, but like I've been replying in the comment section to you guys, I have NO intention of stopping this story. And if I were to miss an update I would let you know before hand.

See you Monday!