Author's Note:

Greetings my fellow readers! Thank you once again for continuing with this story. Tax season put me on a bit of a steep learning curve, with my business being brand new. Anyway, it took up a fair amount of time and effort, thus rendering my writing time pretty much nil. I hope this nice long update makes up for it :-) Some good news is that I've got most of the next chapter already written, so you shouldn't have to wait too long for another update!

Enjoy Chapter 8!


The next month flew by for Lance and Ilana, and the investigation efforts were expanding rapidly.

Hearing that their allied kingdom was under serious threat once again, many neighboring planets began offering their aid to Galaluna to provide assistance in whatever way was needed. Lance was especially grateful, knowing that additional troops and supplies would be readily available, should the need arise.

Several scouting and reconnaissance teams had been sent to Mutrad in the past couple of months in order to gather more data, and hopefully pick up a lead on where their enemy might be hiding. As of yet, they hadn't been able to find out much of anything; whoever was behind all of this was covering their tracks well. They had been smart enough to wear gloves when slaughtering the first two teams of deployed soldiers, and didn't leave anything behind to trace them by. On top of that, a few other soldiers had disappeared while deployed on Mutrad to investigate, and their bodies had yet to be found.

All in all, things were looking pretty dismal at the moment; both on Mutrad, and at home. There had been some mysterious deaths on Galaluna the past couple of weeks, and no one could track them to any one suspect. The first one had been one of the more prominent members of the king's cabinet, Mr. Ronald Logan. He was head of the foreign affairs committee, and personally advised the king on all matters of foreign relations. He had been found at his home, sitting in his armchair; his jugular vein sliced open. There didn't appear to be any signs of a struggle, and the knife was found by his seat. The police had deemed it a suicide, but not many who knew the man actually believed that was likely; he had been a happy man with a good job that he enjoyed, a loving wife, and three grown children. No one believed he'd do something like that to himself.

The second had been a maid working at the palace by the name of Anna Reynolds. She had been found in the courtyard in the early hours, long before most anyone would be awake, by the kitchen maid. She had been struck in the back of the head, and stripped out of her uniform. Paramedics believed she had been dead for several hours at that point; most likely killed on her way home from the palace the previous evening.

Though the deaths didn't appear to be connected at first, further investigation uncovered one similarity between the two murders: both people knew, and were rather close to, the princess. Ms. Reynolds was the maid who attended the princess daily, and Mr. Logan had been the princess's tutor on foreign affairs in her early teen years.

Lance had a feeling that they were missing something in plain sight, but he just couldn't see what. After the murders, all he and the king were focused on at the moment was Ilana's safety. It was no coincidence that these two victims happened to be close to her, and they didn't want to take any chances.

So, due to the current situation, in just a matter of a couple of weeks, the palace had turned into more of a high security prison than anything else. Guards had been stationed at every point of entry, and every door in the palace. No one got in or out without a whole security team knowing about it.

Lance was missing Ilana, and regretting that he couldn't be with her more; but, now that the palace was loaded with soldiers, it was almost impossible for him to just sneak in like he used to. 'War deals out strange tasks, Lance...just hang in there.' he kept replaying over and over in his mind.

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For Ilana, those weeks that followed the deaths had been full of grief and loneliness. She had come to view Mr. Logan as something of a father-figure when she was younger, and they had enjoyed many conversations and exchanges of views over the years; especially during her lessons. He had always been so kind to her, and she was grateful for everything that he had taught her. As for Anna, she was starting to become something of a friend, rather than a maid. They had passed the mornings many times talking with each other as Anna had gone about her duties of cleaning the room, sorting clothes, and dressing the princess. Ilana had always looked forward to her morning talk with the young woman. Coming to grips with the fact that they were both gone was a struggle for her.

Lance was both extra busy investigating the murders, and unable to visit her easily, like he used to, now that the palace was crawling with security detail. So, she had seen little of him since the discoveries. Her father, too, had been very taken up with the investigations, and wasn't at the palace much anymore. So, she had been trying to deal with the grief on her own. She craved their comfort, though, however much she tried to appear strong.

Deciding that she was tired of her own company, along with being locked in the palace, Ilana decided to take matters into her own hands, and visit Lance's office; she would stop by the investigation room to see her father on her way back home.

She also had her annual physical scheduled with Octus for tomorrow morning, which she was anxious for; she had some things she needed to talk to him about.

Throwing on a pretty – but simple and comfortable – gown, she got her feet dressed before heading out her bedroom door; making her way down the stairs, out the main door, and through the palace gates. She couldn't wait to get to Lance's office, so she could have some breathing space; she was currently almost completely surrounded by body guards.

Honestly, she loved Lance and her father dearly, but she felt that they were going too overboard with the protection; she could take care of herself quite well enough. 'I don't really have much of a choice at the moment, though. Guess I'll just have to wait it out.' she thought as she began her trek to the barracks.

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Despite being smothered by security, Ilana had decided to take the long way so she could pass through town, and see her people on her way to the barracks. If she was to rule the kingdom one day, she needed to make her people feel safe. Unsurprisingly, ever since the murders had been reported on in the local papers, the people of Galaluna had been on heightened alert. They knew as well as anyone else that there was something ominous lurking in the shadows, both on Mutrad and their own home planet, and everyone was on edge. Ilana wanted to try to ease those fears as much as she could; though, she knew that however much she tried, it was inevitable that people would be wary of even their closest friends. They had already lived through one war with the Mutraddi, which had been long and bloody; she knew they would do anything in their power to prevent another.

After making her way through town, she found herself in front of Lance's office door. Ilana glanced over her shoulder at her entourage of guards. "Thank you; you may go now. It's close to lunch time, you all should enjoy a meal at the mess hall; I hear the food is delicious. I will call you after I am finished speaking with General Lance, and ready to go back to the palace."

The men of the guard all nodded their heads, and started making their way to the mess hall in the large dome-shaped building just down the road.

Ilana gently knocked on the door, hearing a muffled "Come in" from the other end. Slowly, she turned the door knob, and opened the door.

As Lance heard the door open, he looked up to see who had knocked. Upon seeing his fiancé, a large smile made its way onto his face. "Ilana! What are you doing here? I thought you weren't leaving the palace today." he said as he put the papers in his hands onto his desk, and made his way over to her.

Ilana moved into the room, closed the door behind her, and walked eagerly into the open arms of her lover. She took a moment to relax, and enjoy the embrace. They hadn't had a minute alone together in almost two weeks, and she was missing these small intimate moments terribly.

After a short time, she pulled away from his chest, gave him a kiss on the lips, and proceeded toward his desk; sitting on the small part of its smooth surface not covered by paper.

Once she was situated happily on the top of his desk, she gave him a crooked smile. "I wasn't, but I've been feeling too much like a prisoner these past few days; stuck in the palace by myself. Besides, I've missed you, and we can't really get alone time like we used to anymore. Not at the palace, at any rate."

Lance gave her a sympathetic smile in return, walking towards her. "I've missed you too, and I'm sorry I've been neglecting you lately; It hasn't been intentional. I promise, I'll try to find some time for us to be alone more often."

As Lance stopped in front of her, Ilana reached up to run her fingers through his hair. She looked at him, noticing the dark bags under his eyes, and the worn-out look on his face. Slowly, she brought her hand from his hair, and onto his cheek, gently stroking it with her thumb.

"Lance, when was the last time you slept? You look exhausted." She asked, worry making its way onto her face.

Lance closed his eyes, knowing she wouldn't like the answer. Nevertheless, he knew he had to tell her, or she'd just keep hounding him. Sighing, he looked at her again. "I haven't slept in 3 days. The boys think they may have a lead, and I've been trying to help them on the information end. I've got contacts that I've been in communication with, and we're trying to dig up anything that might be useful."

A look of surprise came onto Ilana's face. "They really think they might have a lead? What've they found?"

Lance looked to the side at some of the papers on his desk, picked them up, and handed them to her. "Here. These have pretty much all the relevant information on them."

He passed them to her, and continued speaking as she read. "Colonel Jameson noticed a small trace of dried blood on the teeth and tongue of one of the beheaded soldiers. They didn't think much of it at first, since everyone had been slaughtered in a bloody pool; they figured it was just the blood of one of the men. So, they passed the bodies along to the coroner for autopsies without mentioning anything. The coroner noticed, and decided to run a DNA test, not expecting to find anything."

Ilana looked up from her papers, then. "But they did, didn't they?"

Lance nodded in reply. "Yeah, they did. The soldier must have bitten someone hard enough to draw blood before he died, 'cause the sample drew a match...just not with any of the murdered men. The match came back positive for both Modula, and a soldier named Arthur."

Ilana watched Lance's face grow dark, and focus fade away, at the mention of this solder, Arthur. He must have known this person in the past. She moved to grab his hand, getting his attention back, and his focus back on her. "Who's Arthur? Did you know him?"

Lance nodded, closing his eyes, and sighing as he pulled a chair over to sit down and face Ilana. "Yeah. He was my bunk-mate when I first arrived at the academy. He was my only friend until Baron started including Arthur in his harassment of me; that's when Arthur decided to ask for a room transfer. He said he couldn't take what Baron could dish out. I don't blame him; it wasn't his fault, after all. Anyway, we didn't speak too much after that. I started training my butt off, and didn't really make time for anything or anyone else. My goal was to win the Medal of Excellence to show everyone that I had it in me; that I was good enough to be there. Arthur, on the other hand..." at which point, Lance stopped, and chuckled. Ilana watched as a small smile appeared on his face, his eyes reflecting memories of days gone by. "Arthur was never really elite material, physicality-wise, if you catch my drift."

Ilana smiled humorously at that. "Yeah, I think I do."

Lance's smile grew wider as he continued speaking. "Well, he found his talents were more suited to surveillance and intelligence. So, after graduation from the academy, they set him up at the military base with one of our surveillance teams. He never had to see actual combat, except through a computer screen...until the day we came back from earth, and retaliated against Modula."

Ilana watched with sadness as Lance's face darkened once again. "It was when we had Modula on the run, and were driving him toward the mountain range. We had deployed a group of elite soldiers to pursue him, before reporting back to you and me about his position so we could finish him off."

Ilana nodded. "I remember their call. They had mentioned casualties, and one soldier being MIA after an attack on their camp. Was that Arthur?"

Lance nodded somberly. "Yup. They'd asked him to come along to set up surveillance cameras around the periphery of what they thought was Modula's approximate location. They went out scouting, and while they were gone, the camp was attacked by Mutraddi. Arthur disappeared, and after the soldiers got back and engaged the enemy, two of the ten men were killed. There was no trace of Arthur anywhere; no one could figure out what happened to him."

Ilana took Lance's hands in her own, locking eyes with him. "So, with this DNA match, you're thinking –"

"That he was taken prisoner, and used for experimentation before we were able to track Modula to his safe house, and kill him. Yeah, that's exactly what I'm thinking. What I don't understand though, is why Arthur? Outside of his extreme intellect, I don't get why they'd pick him." Lance finished her thought.

All was quiet for a moment, both processing their respective thoughts.

Finally, Ilana spoke. "So, with this mixed DNA result, what're you thinking is the most likely scenario?"

Lance was thoughtful for a moment, mulling over all the options in his head. "Well, my primary thought is that whatever attacked those soldiers is some kind of engineered clone. That's the only explanation for the presence of both of their DNA in the sample. Whether or not Modula really is still alive...your guess is as good as mine. I was so sure we'd killed him, but I could've been wrong...and if I was, god help us."

A pause, and then Ilana asked one more question. "Do you think this is the same person behind the recent murders on Galaluna?"

Lance took a moment before answering her, thinking it over. Finally, he spoke. "Maybe. There's a good chance, anyway. Then again, though, there were no signs of a struggle at either crime scene, which means the victims must've known and trusted their attackers...I honestly don't know, Ilana. None of it makes sense."

Ilana reached up to cup his face in her hands, feeling him relax beneath her touch. In that moment, she could truly see how tired and worn out he was. Her heart ached to see him like this: wearing himself to a shadow from work, and grieving over this recent discovery of the fate of his friend.

Gently, she leaned in, and gave him a soft kiss on the lips. She could feel him melt into it, and pull her closer before she withdrew to look him in the eyes. "We'll get to the bottom of this; I know we will. We fought too hard, and sacrificed too much, all those years ago to fail now."

Lance smiled tiredly at her; closing his eyes, and resting his forehead against hers. He took comfort in her presence. Ilana had a way of removing even the most deep-rooted fears from someone. It was one of her many gifts that she didn't know she possessed.

Ilana, enjoying the companionable silence for a moment, suddenly smirked. "Too bad I can't just ask everyone to text 1279, and the battle will be won."

Both of them broke out into laughter at that, enjoying the memory of when Ilana broke into the principal's office at Sherman High during the siege of the Mutraddi tar monster to announce through the PA system for all the students to text 1279, allowing them to win the day.

As soon as the laughter subsided a couple minutes later, Lance heard a knock on his door. Standing up, putting the chair back in its proper place, and helping Ilana off his desk, he called for the person knocking to come in.

The door swung open, and in walked the king. He broke into a smile upon seeing his daughter. "My darling! What are you doing here? Is everything okay?" he asked.

Ilana smiled, walking over to him. "Hello father. Yes, everything's fine. I decided I needed an outing, and I wanted an update on how things were going. I enquired about General Lance's location so he could tell me about the most recent events, and I was told I could find him here. We've just been catching up."

The king looked between his daughter and Lance, noticing that the young man looked more vibrant now than he had for the past few days. He knew the boy had been running himself ragged, and was about to order him to take a day off to get some rest before he dropped, out cold, onto his desk. Now, he looked a little rejuvenated. Once again, the king marveled at Ilana's ability to cheer almost everyone she came in contact with. Nevertheless, he knew that Lance did need a break; hence his visit.

Getting back on track, the king faced his daughter once more. "Very good, Ilana. I'm glad you're wanting to stay informed, and I'm even more glad that you forced him to take a break." the king said, the smirk on his face now aimed at Lance.

Lance returned the smirk with one of his own as Ilana chuckled in the background. "I've told you already, your highness, I'll take a break when I'm dead."

The king shook his head in amusement. "I know, and if you don't take care of yourself, you'll be six feet under more quickly than you expect. So, go get some much needed and well-earned sleep. I'll stay here, and keep going with trying to dig up information. You need to rest, Lance."

The king looked from the disgruntled soldier to his daughter. "Ilana, could you see to it that he's brought back to the palace for some rest? I know that if he stays here, he won't get any sleep."

Ilana smiled, happy that her father was forcing the issue. She knew Lance wouldn't stop of his own accord, no matter who asked him to. "Of course, father. I'll even tend to him myself to ensure that he rests. General, would you escort me back to the palace? I'll see to it that a room is made up for you."

Lance looked from Ilana to the king, and back again; sighing, and hanging his head in defeat. "I'm not gonna win, am I?" he asked.

The king and his daughter shared a look, before replying in unison with a simple "No."

Smirking, and accepting the inevitable, Lance stood up from his leaning position on his desk, and proceeded to follow Ilana out the door.

The king called out to him as he and the princess began walking away. "I'll come get you tomorrow afternoon! Rest up!"

Lance looked back, and nodded his head in acknowledgement before returning his attention back to Ilana; continuing on their way to the palace.

"Well, there is one good thing about my father forcing you to take a break, and stay at the palace." She said as they proceeded on the path toward her home.

"And what's that?" Lance asked, a knowing smirk on his face.

Ilana looked up at him briefly, a smile forming on her face, and warmth glowing in her eyes. "We can finally spend some time together; and as you've been so neglectful lately, I trust you'll make it up to me. I actually wanna have some real conversation that doesn't involve all this madness; just some quality you and me time."

Lance's smirk was replaced with a smile, a warm glow appearing in his eyes. "Yeah, I'd really like that. I promise that, tonight, you'll have my undivided attention."

The princess threw him a grateful smile before noticing her entourage catching up with them. "I'm glad to hear it." She said as her guards appeared beside her once again. She had forgotten to let them know she was returning, but, in hind sight, she didn't feel bad about it. They deserved a break, too.

With Lance falling into step behind her and her security detail, they proceeded down the path that would lead them back to the palace.

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Once they arrived at their destination, Ilana went to the housekeeper to request a room be made up for the General; after which, she brought him into the kitchens for something to eat.

Lance eyed the chicken, potatoes au Groton, salad, and wine hungrily; his stomach reminding him how long it had been since he last ate.

Sitting down for a late lunch, Ilana watched with amusement as Lance's food very quickly vanished in front of him, only to be replaced with a second helping by the cook; this one being attacked as enthusiastically as the first. 'He must have neglected to eat, as well as sleep. Typical.' She thought with sad amusement.

For herself, she didn't have much of an appetite, so her portion was small. She'd been feeling unwell on and off for a few days now, and had a feeling it was because her nerves had been strained from everything going on lately. She had been a nervous wreck ever since the night of her party last month, when her father almost discovered Lance in her room. Ever since then, she'd been on edge; worrying about how to keep their romance a secret with their current circumstances. The constant surveillance put her on high alert all the time. She was so afraid that she would let something slip, and it was wearing on her. She was looking forward to seeing Octus in the morning for her physical, so she could get his opinion on it. After all, he knew more than most medical professionals. She even thought some tests wouldn't hurt, if he felt it advisable. She wondered if she may be coming down with a cold, too. Her energy levels had been very low lately.

Not much was said between the two throughout lunch, due to the kitchen staff coming and going. So, they ate their meal mostly in silence, but exchanged looks that only the two of them could decipher.

After they had finished, Ilana rose, and checked the time: 4:00 pm. She hadn't realized it had gotten so late in the afternoon. Rising as well, Lance followed his princess out of the kitchen, up the grand staircase, and down the hall to the end of the gallery.

Stopping in front of the last door at the end of the corridor, Ilana proceeded to open it, and step through the threshold. "General, this will be your room. Would you like me to bring some herbal tea or hot chocolate while you change out of your uniform?" she asked.

Picking up on the observing guards manning both her room and the king's down the hall, Lance immediately made sense of the formality in her speech. "That would be appreciated, princess. If it's not too much trouble, a hot chocolate would be nice. Thank you very much."

Ilana nodded in response. "Very good. I will send down to the kitchen for it directly, and return in about fifteen minutes; along with a heating pad for your injured shoulder, and a deck of cards. My father did entrust me with the task of keeping you from returning to work, after all; I don't intend to disappoint him."

Lance smirked ever so slightly, which Ilana returned. "Yes, princess. I promise, I will live up to my word, and rest."

Ilana smiled; turning, and walking back out of the room, closing the door behind her.

Lance sighed before obeying his unvoiced instructions. Stripping out of his uniform, he hopped in the shower for a quick cleaning; he was sure he probably smelled atrocious. After which, he dried and combed out his hair, changed into his sweatpants, and cleaned up his scattered garments, before he heard another knock on the door.

In came Ilana, now dressed in her own pajamas and bath robe, with two cups of cocoa, a heating pad, and a brand-new deck of cards. He doubted they would be using the cards tonight; most likely, it was just for show. He was excited about the heating pad, though.

Giving her a look as she set the tray of goodies down, he closed the door behind her, and gave her an inquiring look. "How did you know I needed a heating pad for my shoulder?"

Smirking in reply, Ilana handed him the pad, as well as his cocoa. "I know you better than you know yourself, babe. I noticed you were favoring it a bit when you hugged me in your office. What happened?"

Smiling and shaking his head, Lance threw the hot cloth over his shoulder, enjoying the soothing feel of the heat ease his tense muscles. "Baron came by the other day with a new sword; he wanted to test it out, and make sure that it was up to scratch. So, he asked me for a quick dual, and of course I accepted."

Ilana just smirked as she listened. She had a feeling she knew where this was going.

Lance continued, "Well, let's just say that the sword was in better shape than I was. I hadn't stretched in a couple of days, so I pulled a muscle in my back close to my shoulder. It's fine, it'll mend; it just hurts right now, is all."

Walking over to him, and circling her arms around his neck, she kissed him slowly and deeply; Lance quickly setting his cup down to pull her as close to him as he could. It'd been a while since he'd been able to hold her like this, and feel every inch of her body fitted perfectly against his. Having her close to him like this made him feel calm, and at peace; as if nothing in the world could touch them.

Slowly, Ilana pulled back just enough to look him in the eyes. "I've been wanting to do that for so long... I missed you; missed this. To be honest, Lance, it's been really difficult coping with everything that's happened on my own. I wanted you with me so badly."

She could see the sadness in Lance's face at her words, as he pulled her into a tight hug. She knew he regretted not being able to stay with her while she grieved. "I'm sorry, Ilana. I'm so, so sorry." He whispered.

Squeezing him tighter to her, he could hear her mumble 'I know'; feeling her tears slowly start to leak out, and gradually soak his chest. He hadn't realized how vulnerable she'd really felt until this moment, and he was kicking himself for not having been there for her more. Well, he was going to make it up to her now. Untying her bath robe, he got her to release her grip around his waist so he could slide it off of her, and toss it onto a nearby chair. After which, he picked her up, bridal style, held her with one hand as he pulled the bed sheets down with the other, and climbed into bed with her still clinging to him.

He knew what she needed right now was to just be held in strong arms by someone that she loved and trusted, and he was going to make sure she felt safe and protected.

They laid like that for a while, while Lance just let her cry. He held her close; rubbing her back, and whispering sweet nothings to her; hoping that it would help.

Finally, after what felt like hours, the tears ceased, and her grip on him loosened. Slowly, she looked up to meet his eyes. What she saw reflected back at her was love, sorrow, and compassion. She knew he was sad for her, and she was so thankful that she had him here with her now. Ilana hadn't realized how much she'd needed to just cry in the arms of the man she loved until now.

Slowly, she brought her hand up to the back of his neck, pulling him down for just the first of many kisses. He melted into it, and both of them could almost taste the sorrow, grief, tiredness, frustration, and anxiety that they'd both been feeling lately. It felt like a sweet release; being able to communicate their deepest emotions without having to speak a word.

Soft whispers of emotion-filled 'I love you's filled the room. Neither of them could remember when they'd last felt in such need of the other's presence. The past few weeks had reminded them of how fragile life was, and they wanted to make sure they conveyed how much they meant to each other; for fear that one day, they would never be able to again. Talking could wait till later.