My shortest chapter yet. It should really be called the epilogue but whatever.

Enjoy!

Chapter 11: Arrival

He slowly picked himself off of the floor and turned to face the window. His quarry was nowhere in sight. The stars were all wrong. They were still stuck in this deplorable universe.

She got away again…..

With a furious cry, he smashed his fist onto the table, causing the flickering candle to topple over. The entire tabletop caught fire, casting a terrible, flickering light on his features.

"My… Lord…?" His fool colonel was there, trembling at the sight of his enraged Lord.

"Where did they go?" He hissed, eyes blazing in the flames.

The man was shaking. "In….into the flux…. My lord….."

"Follow them immediately!" he commanded.

"Y….yes…..yes lord!" The man flew off.

Inexpert turned back to the window, the fire behind him burning into his back.

What terrible power she releases when she's furious….. Inexpert thought as he straightened his clothes and shook himself off. It's a pity I have to kill her… the Shadow would make such a useful weapon…

And the princess….. He clenched his teeth. "You will not escape me Ansa. You can run and you can hide with the Shadow's precious little rebellion, but I will always find you."

Inexpert's fingers went to his collar, where his son's amulet burned at his throat. The flames behind him crackled as he stroked it. He let out a small chuckle.

"I have something that matters very dearly to the both of you…. It's time I started using that leverage…. And once I do…. You will suffer and you will die."

A terrible smile glowed in the firelight.

"Even Shadows can be killed…"

The fire burning on the tabletop burned itself out until the room fell into darkness again.

Slowly, the Leviathan turned and headed for the universe flux.

Becky floated next to the sleeping girl for what felt like hours. But with no sun or moon to tell her the time, she couldn't be sure exactly how long it had been. She wasn't even sure what she was waiting for. At least she wasn't tired; last night (?) had been the best sleep she'd had in the past week and she felt much better than she had at the trial.

As the immeasurable time passed on, Becky found her thoughts wandering. What had happened at the trial? Was everyone okay? Did anyone get hurt in the stampede? For a second, she even found herself sincerely wishing that Tobey had escaped unscathed, but quickly squashed the thought down.

But the question that stood out most in her mind was this one: Because she had been a target, did everyone now suspect her?

If, no, when she returned home, would she finally have to face the music and tell her family the truth about her? Could she?

Becky began to squirm. How long will it be before I see them again? She stared down at Sarvavi, sleeping peacefully on the bed. Will I meet my real family on Lexicon?

Sarvavi's eyes suddenly flew open, startling Becky so much that she fell out of the air and landed hard on the desk. "We're here…" Sarvavi said, with no hint of exhaustion or illness.

Becky picked herself off the desk, rubbing her back where the edge had dug into it. "What… What…?" Then she realized the significance of what Sarvavi was saying and froze.

Sarvavi swung herself out of the bed unsteadily, a smile dominating her face. "Go see for yourself."

Becky flew into the cockpit and stared out of the window. Her eyes widened in awe.

"This is…?"

"Yes." Sarvavi had followed her to the cockpit, floating slowly and unsteadily several inches above the floor of the ship. She looked over Becky's shoulder, eyes overflowing with joy.

Huggy chuckled at their reactions. "Yes, it's good to be home." He said.

Sarvavi placed a gentle hand on Becky's shoulder. "Welcome back to Lexicon."

End of part 1.

I'm going to take a little break from this before part 2 and focus on the prequel I started (among other projects). To all my reviewers: you guys have been absolutely wonderful with this story and I hope you will stick around for part 2!

Peace!

wolfchic011

6/25/11