Happy Wednesday, readers! Not gonna lie, I'm not happy with the last third of this chapter, but enjoy I guess? Lol.

12

I focus on my training. Or, I should say, try to. I channel all the anger, frustration and impotence I feel in every lunge of my sword; in every run, jump and punch.

It doesn't go unnoticed by Phillipus.

On my third day of training (that's how I refer to it in my mind, not 'the third day of Steve's torture'), I'm sitting on the grass in the training grounds trying to knock over one of the three vases that are in front of me by manipulating air. I have been here for 30 minutes trying to conjure up an either stronger or more contained current of air. So far I've knocked all three vases at once (several times) and I accidentally knocked Phillipus over one time as well.

"That's it. Everyone, leave." Phillipus says in a raised voice.

I shake my head in frustration as all the Amazons start leaving and I stand up to go anywhere but the palace.

"Not you, Diana."

I look at Phillipus stunned by a second and exhale loudly. Great, I think. I'm about to get yelled at by my trainer.

I become defensive before even listening to what she has to say, "I'm trying, okay? It's not exactly easy to manipulate one of the elements at will."

She stares at me, basically with a 'are you done?' face. "When I set up this exercise I thought it would be simple enough. It seemed to me that it required a reasonable amount of focus for you to do it. That's what I saw less than a week ago in the beach when Antiope came back. You cleared that cloud in a matter of seconds. I know your mind is somewhere else, but if you can't focus enough to complete this simple exercise, what exactly are you going to do when you fight Steppenwolf?"

What she's saying is true. But my mind is a jumbled mess; my mind is with Steve. My heart is with Steve. The last thing I care about is having a better grasp of my powers, and I know that's not fair to everyone who is depending on me, but I can't help it. I have never felt as powerless as I do now.

What good is it to be part God if I can't help the one person who needs me the most?

What good is it for me to manipulate air if that won't stop Steve's pain? What good is it to fly, if it won't stop Steve's pain? What's the point?

"I've fought things not of this Earth before and won, Phillipus. I can handle whatever Steppenwolf throws at me."

She narrows her eyes at me. "Can you now? Then knock the middle vase over right now. It's just an object. It should be nothing compared to fighting 'things not of this Earth'. Do it."

I feel her words feed my anger and I take a step closer to her menacingly. She does not flinch. "I don't have to prove myself to you."

"It's not me who you have to prove anything to. It's yourself. I know you, Diana. I know you're hurting, but the Captain's pain will stop. Right now what you are training for is for a future with him. Do you really believe Zeus would have come to you if Steppenwolf were so easy to beat? Have you really become that arrogant?"

It almost feels like she's trying to get me to open up by provoking me. Almost like she was hoping for me to shout what I'm truly feeling.

She succeeds.

"It's not arrogance. It's fear! The stronger I grow, the bigger the target on my back will be. Before I had nothing to lose. Now I have everything to lose. I have a weakness and that's Steve. If I go up against Steppenwolf with everything I have, he won't target me. He will target what I love most, because that's what a smart person would do. I can't risk his live, especially because of what he's doing right this instant to get it back!"

The magnitude of what's coming dawned on me this morning. My training was going fine, it could've been better, but with the realization that Steppenwolf is not someone I'm going to beat with a few good punches, suddenly I wasn't so sure of myself. It was also in that moment that I finally understood my Mother. I cannot bear the thought of something happening to Steve because of the things I might decide to do. The urge, the impulse I feel to protect him is bigger than my desire to beat Steppenwolf.

It's a vicious circle. If I beat the alien, then the impulse to protect Steve over fighting him will fade, but fighting Steppenwolf goes against what I feel in the first place!

"As Amazons we fight for what is right. As Amazons we fight for peace and justice, and as Zeus' creation, we fight for the love we feel towards others. That's what fuels the fire in our veins, Diana. The key to unlocking your powers lies in your ability to find the balance between your duty as an Amazon and who you are deep inside," – she points to the vases – "Find that balance and those vases will be knocked over in a blink of an eye. Fuel yourself with love, not anger. You want to try again?"

I absorb her words and nod.

I look at the middle vase and focus on what I want it to do. I close my eyes and allow myself to think of all the happiness I've experienced in my life, not just since I left Themyscira. Flashes of many moments of my life go through my mind and my thoughts slow down when I get to Steve. Soon, I feel a tingling sensation in my fingers that starts traveling up my arms and down my body all the way to my toes.

What's curious is that the memory that triggered that reaction wasn't a memory of something I had lived through, but a dream I once had years ago. It was a silly little dream, where Steve and I were coming out of the movie theatre and we were, quite animatedly, discussing the movie we had just seen. I can't remember the movie we had just watched and I can't remember the discussion we were having, but I do remember feeling how utterly happy I was. I felt so light and unburdened I could've floated away in that instant. We both had a sparkle in our eyes I will never forget.

I open my eyes and throwing my right arm forward, air moves from behind and around me to knock the middle vase over. I keep my arm extended for a little bit and then bring it down.

"Balance. See you tomorrow, Diana,"

Phillipus walks away and I'm left on the training grounds by myself.

"Balance,"

I stay for a little while longer testing my newfound ease with my ability to manipulate air. I knock over vase after vase and I even manage to put them up right, although that took a couple of tries. Eventually I feel my energy running out and I go to the palace, but avoid going anywhere near my chambers.

It hurts me to keep myself away from Steve, but I don't think I'll be able to tell him no again. If he asks me once again to stop his pain, I will. I left clear instructions to anyone near him to let me know immediately if anything happens, even as little or insignificant as it may seem. Nothing has changed in the last three days since I saw him.

After training I struggle with my own thoughts and feelings, all too conflicting and confusing, so I distract myself and that distraction is called Bruce Wayne. He usually watches me train and analyzes everything everyone does. I wonder if he's thinking about making something or if he's silently learning some new techniques.

Over the last three days I always find Bruce in the balcony of the great hall playing with one of his many toys. He keeps connecting and disconnecting cables trying to get a signal and for the 500th time I tell him,

"Bruce, you won't get a signal. The island was cloaked by Zeus himself. Do you really think you will be able to connect it to the closest satellite? Do you really think you will be able to outsmart a God? The God?"

He gives me a quick glance and then returns his attention to his engineering. "I tricked you into liking me. Why not trick your Father into letting me connect to the outside world? Maybe put a good word with daddy dearest?"

I shake my head and rest my elbows on the rail. "Why exactly do you want to establish a connection? That could be dangerous for my home, Bruce."

He stops what he's doing and looks at me. "I know that. This is not some kind of thing I'm looking to add to my list of achievements. A thought popped into my head after you told me about Steppenwolf,"

"What thought?" I ask curiously.

"Remember Victor Stone a.k.a Cyborg?"

I nod.

"You said the Mother Boxes could sustain life past fatal injuries. What if Victor is half man and half Mother Box? No such technology has been created. Wayne Enterprises has tried for years to come up with the technology to help coma patients regain consciousness without success and suddenly one man is able to bring his son back to life? A son that was in pieces." – He shakes his head – "I think Silas Stone was hiding something in S.T.A.R Labs, something… alien, perhaps."

I think back to the video of Dr Stone in his lab with Victor's vital organs as the only thing left of him and how he used this box and then… Oh my God.

"Bruce, I think you're right. We know where one of the Mother Boxes is now. We have to let Victor know he's in danger,"

He grabs, what I think is a transmitter and shakes it at me. "That's what I'm trying to do!"

If it weren't for the severity of the current situation, I would have laughed. "Ok, but I meant what I said. You won't get a connection. Maybe you could cross the barrier, send the message and then come back? And while you're there, would you bring me my duffle bag?"

He stops trying to find a connection and puts the transmitter down. "Yeah, I had pretty much decided that's what I had to do. I was hoping that maybe I would get a lucky break if I kept trying. Where did you leave your duffle bag?"

I smile. "The room I was staying at. Top shelf of the closet."

"I'll bring it safely back with me,"

"Thanks."

Day four, five and six show great improvement on my powers. I have almost complete control over air manipulation. My fighting has improved as well, as I can now use air to increase my advantage over my opponent's. Phillipus used a similar technique to the vases to help me direct my energy blasts, instead of just wiping out everyone and everything in front of me. And I get to do all of this with my armor and lasso since Bruce brought my duffle bag from the yacht.

There hasn't been any news on Steve other than he spends most of his day unconscious. I'm not sure if that's good or not. I feel guilty that I hope he remains that way so that I can go see him without him kicking me out again. I step quietly into my chambers to see him still restrained, but this time his arms are by his side. Probably Epione thought of a more comfortable position to keep Steve from continuing hurting himself.

I sit next to him on my bed and run my hand as gently as I can through his hair, not knowing if that would be too much for him. He moves against my hand and I take that as a good sign, so I continue with the gentle movement.

"This will be over soon. I'm sorry I wasn't here more often, but I was afraid you didn't want me near you."

I feel a little silly. I know he won't hear me and much less answer me, but I'm hoping he will, even though I know he won't.

"I miss you so much. There's a lot I want to tell you. I have gained so much control over my powers. I think you would be proud of me. Bruce figured something out too. He thinks he may have found one of the Mother Boxes. It was right under our noses too. One of the potential members of the league Victor Stone, also known as Cyborg, was saved by the Mother Box and is now a part of him. Bruce sent a message to him to tell him that he might be in danger. There was no response as far as we know, but if he answers then we'll have confirmation that he has one of the three Mother Boxes. That's a good first step, I guess."

Bruce stayed in the yacht a full day waiting for Cyborg's reply, but it never came. He might not have received it or he might have ignored it, which is less than efficient. But at the same time, the lack of an answer is, to an extent, an answer in itself. Bruce will take care of the finer details in understanding the technology keeping Cyborg alive when we get back, but for now at least we have let him know of the looming dangers.

"I was also thinking about what we're going to do when you finally beat this. I was hoping that maybe you would go back with me to Paris. I know is a big step to ask you to move in with me, but I don't want to lose more time. I love you and I'm ready to start a life with you." I look at his face to try and spot even the slightest sign that he might be listening, but nothing. "When you wake up and have regained some strength, I'm going to ask you. I hope you say yes. If you say no, the ride back is going to be very unpleasant."

I laugh, but it doesn't quite reach my eyes.

"You don't have to worry about that though. Just focus on getting through this. I went to see Antiope. She's in pretty bad shape too."

Antiope hasn't stayed in a state of unconsciousness as much as Steve has, so her screams have been more constant. When I went to see her, Ersa was holding her hand and letting her squeeze as hard as she needed. I sat down for a moment with her and reassured her and reminded her, just like Steve, that this was not permanent. She nodded and after a moment, I left. Seeing her like that is incredibly hard.

I wish I were stronger, but I'm not.

On day seven I try flying. There's not much progress in that. I can hover for about 5 minutes before I feel my energy being drained. And flying? I can barely move 3 feet before I'm plummeting to the ground. I lost count of how many times I fell.

And I know it's stupid, but I keep getting distracted by Bruce flirting with Venelia. I don't know if it's because I find it incredibly amusing or incredibly annoying. Again, since it's Bruce, I'm going to go with incredibly annoying.

When I fall for the millionth time, I turn sharply towards Bruce and send a gust of wind strong enough to knock him backwards from the rock he was sitting on and he falls with a thud on the grass.

Venelia and the rest of the Amazons giggle and Bruce looks offended at me.

"Hey! This is Salvatore Ferragamo and now you've put grass stains all over it!" He says standing up and dusting himself off.

"That's what you get for distracting me. Next time I'll send you flying over the cliff. Let's see how much of a Bat you are."

Bruce gives me the 'come at me' hand gestures and I narrow my eyes at him.

"You're not going to do that to me when I annoy you, right?"

I turn around, eyes wide to see Steve standing there with an arm thrown over Epione's shoulder helping him stay upright.

"Steve?!"

I start moving in his direction and before knowing it, I'm throwing my arms over him, almost knocking him over. He lets out an 'oomph' at the unexpected force of my hug and laughs.

"Hey, you,"

He sounds like… Steve. He sounds tired and you can tell the walk from the palace to the training grounds exhausted him, but he sounds like the Steve I know and love.

"When? How? Are you okay?" All my questions come out in a rush, but I don't care. It's over. The worst of it is over.

"It just stopped. I was sure I was about to lose my sanity and then, it stopped. It's like this heavy weight that had been dropped on me was lifted. Hey," – He lays his hand on my cheek gently – "I'm sorry for how I talked to you. I didn't mean any of it. Thank you for keeping your promise. I don't know if I could've been strong enough."

I shake my head and lean into his touch. "No, there's nothing to apologize for. I'm just glad you're back."

My desire, my need to kiss him becomes overwhelming and not caring that everyone is staring at us, I lean forward and kiss him. I'm only self-conscious for half a second, but the relief I feel at having him back outweighs everything else.

"So why do you get to kiss humans but I can't kiss Amazons?"

The spell is broken once again by the incredibly annoying Bruce Wayne. I pull back and look at Steve.

"Deep inside he's a good person. Just remember that every time you talk to him,"

He chuckles and I take his hand and carefully guide him towards Bruce.

"Steve, Bruce. Bruce, Steve," I say motioning to one another.

Bruce looks at him with amusement, "Well, it's not everyday you meet someone who escaped the seventh circle of hell. Nice to meet you, Steve."

He stretches his hand and Steve takes it. "Nice to meet you, Bruce. It's not every day you meet a millionaire."

Bruce smiles. "Fourth richest man on Earth, but who's keeping track?" He looks at me and raises his eyebrows. "So? You didn't answer my question. Why do you get to kiss humans but I can't kiss Amazons?"

I complain loudly. "You know what? Do whatever you want. Don't say I didn't warn you when they beat you to a pulp,"

He smiles. "No, no. We'll be all smiles by the time I leave."

I look at him skeptically but say nothing else on the matter.

"Here's where you've been training, huh?" Steve says looking around.

I nod. "Yeah. I was trying to fly today, but I haven't really succeeded."

"Show me what you can do,"

I look at him and see the amazement in his eyes.

"I would love to see what you have accomplished too, Diana,"

I look over Steve's shoulder to see Antiope with Mother. I walk towards her and inspect her a little closer. I can see the same exhaustion Steve has in her eyes, but she stands tall like she always has.

"Antiope," I hug her with the same strength I hug Steve and she lets out a laugh. We hug each other for a little while and then she tells me in a whisper,

"Show me your power, Godkiller."

I pull back and nod. I walk back to the middle of the training grounds with Phillipus next to me. She looks at me with a small smile on her face and gives me a barely noticeable nod. She turns towards the Amazons I've been training with for the last week and looks at every single one in the eye.

"Warriors, it seems that now we have an audience. So let's give them a spectacle. Don't hold back. Steppenwolf won't. Diana - " She turns to me, "Balance,"

I nod and she walks to the side to give the Amazons and I our space. Trigona is the first to step forward with a sword in hand. We look at each other and I lean down to pick up my own sword. I nod to let her know I'm ready and half a second later, she lunges forward and I block.

Her strategy is different from the last time we fought. Now she's being a lot more aggressive and I let her attack so that I can try to learn her movements and eventually anticipate them.

Attack on the right, then left, hit over the shoulder, jump to avoid her leg sweep. Right, left, left, right again. I block for a good 20 seconds before I read her next movement.

I move my sword to block her lunge towards my right shoulder and with that fraction of a second gained in my advantage, I hit her under the chin with my elbow sending her stumbling back. I kick her on the chest and she falls to the floor, sword dropping from her hand. I hear the whizzing of the arrow coming from my left and everything slows down as I turn and cut it in two with my sword.

I see three archers pointing arrows at me and I sheath my sword and focus in creating a strong swirl around me to prevent any of the arrows from hitting me. I succeed in a matter of seconds and all arrows shoot upwards when they hit the wall of air around me.

I hear the heavy steps of someone running and I see Artemis with her axe running towards one of the rocks and she jumps towards it and then uses it to push herself off it and over the swirling protective barrier around me. She lands on the centre of it, right in front of me and she hits me on my right side and if it weren't for my armor, I'm sure my ribs would've cracked.

My concentration is broken and the swirl disappears from around us. I find myself in the same position I was when Antiope pushed me and started hitting me with her sword, only this time is Artemis and it's not a sword, but an axe. I raise my arm to protect myself, my gauntlets taking the blunt of Artemis' hits. Because the axe is heavier than a sword, it takes her milliseconds more to bring it up over her head and down onto mine, so I take advantage of that and block her next hit with my left arm and with my right, I send an energy blast right at her legs making her wipe out and land on her face.

I quickly look up and see five Amazons have surrounded me and are waiting for me to attack.

I wouldn't have waited.

Once again, I know what I have to do the moment I do it. I whip out my lasso and tie it around Athena's ankle and yank hard. She falls on her back and I decide to heave her at the other Amazons. She flies through the air and collides with two of them.

Euboea and Niobe are left standing and I see Niobe pull her shield from behind her back and she starts running towards me. I run too and I jump high to bring my fist down on her but she skids under me and throws the shield up at me. It hits me and I fall to the ground hard. It is in that moment, when I raise my eyes and I see Steve looking at me, that I feel something unlock and a surge of raw power rages inside of me.

Balance.

I feel like there are magnets in my arms as I swing them up and I feel myself rise into the air. From there, I see more archers preparing their bows, more warriors coming at me with their swords and suddenly I find myself moving forward at lightening speed. I knock all incoming warriors down and send an energy blast towards the archers that makes the ground beneath them explode and they are pushed back by the force of it.

I lower myself down for the first time and when my feet hit the ground, I look around at what I have done.

There's no one else coming at me. All warriors have been beaten.

I finally have control over my powers.

AN: It was meh, wasn't it? That last third. I didn't feel Steve showing up at the training grounds was spectacular enough. I will definitely try to fix that in later chapters, but also, there aren't many chapters left. Yes, the end is near, dear reader. Let's see if I manage to fix, what I think, is a disastrous reunion. Tell me what you think.