Chapter Three

Safety…Obscurity…

Aerick stepped out of Reinna's office and was met by the chief of security. He ushered Aerick to a door a few yards from the office he had just left. The guard typed in his clearance code and opened the door, stepping through into a small room. A pane of transparisteel separated the small room from the larger room that Aerick's wife was being held in. Aerick was looking at Crystal's back, looking for any signs of abuse or torture. None were evident. The officer took up positions beside the door that led into the larger room.

"Where is my wife's lightsaber?" Aerick asked.

"It will be returned to her as soon as you are leaving the building." The officer handed Aerick Crystal's dress, the ripped seam repaired by Reinna's droids.

"Okay. Let me in there." Aerick demanded. The officer pushed a button next to the door and it slid open. Aerick took a tentative step into the room, wary for traps and any surprises Reinna might've set up. Seeing no immediate threats, Aerick took a few steps into the room.

"What do you want?" Crystal asked, scorn evident in her voice. "Don't you have everything you wanted from me? You take my lightsaber, you take my dress…" Aerick heard in her voice that she had started crying. "You take my dignity…don't you have everything you want?!" She cried. Aerick closed the distance in a few steps and wrapped his arms around her waist.

"Oh, Crystal. You have no idea how happy I am to see you," Aerick said, his vision blurring as his eyes filled with tears.

"Aerick! Aerick, it's really you!" Crystal sobbed, tears rolling down her cheeks. "By the Force, I thought I'd never see you again!" Crystal turned her head as far as she could, trying to get a glimpse of her husband. Aerick untied the bonds holding Crystal to the thin column of marble. She fell to her hands and knees, rubbing her wrists where the rope had dug into the flesh. She stood up a second later, then ran over to her husband and wrapped her arms around him, burying her head in his shoulder as she cried tears of joy. Aerick gently patted her on the back and rested his head on top of hers. He felt tears run down his cheek and felt the dampness in Crystal's hair where his tears landed.

"I'm…s…so glad to…s…see you, Aerick." Crystal said in between sniffles. Aerick ran a hand through her silken hair, cradling her head with his other hand.

"You're gonna be ok, sweetie," Aerick whispered, wrapping his arms around her and holding her tight, reveling in the feeling of Crystal's body pressed against his. He held her for a few minutes more, letting Crystal get control of herself. When he was certain that she'd calmed down, Aerick stood, pulling his wife up with him.

"Are you okay, hon?" Aerick asked.

"Yes, I am now," She took the dress from Aerick's hand and put it on, instantly transforming from a scantily-clad prisoner to the stunning vision she had been just a day earlier.

"By the Force but you look stunning in that dress," Aerick said, slowly taking in the way the dress fit his wife like a glove, hugging the curve of her waist and the swell of her breasts. She took Aerick's hand in hers and the pair walked back toward the hallway.

As the pair exited, they were met by Reinna and Johann. Reinna was holding a datacard in one hand and Crystal's lightsaber in the other.

"We have an airspeeder waiting to take you to your hotel. On this datacard, you'll find my comlink frequency. Call me tomorrow and I'll provide you with the passcode to decrypt the rest of the data on there. You have transport back to Coruscant, right?"

Aerick nodded. "Yes, my ship is docked at Bay 12."

"Very well. Here's the keycard for your room at the hotel. My security chief will lead you to the exit." Aerick took the card from Reinna's hand and walked toward the exit. It took him a second before he realized his wife wasn't beside him.

"Can I ask you one question?" Crystal asked Reinna.

"Let me guess: Why?" Crystal nodded. "Ask your husband later. He'll explain it." Reinna spun on her right foot and walked back into her office. Johann glared at Aerick and Crystal, then followed Reinna into her office.

"Come on, Crystal. Let's go." Aerick offered his elbow and Crystal looped her arm through his.

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Halfway across Coronet City, the pair arrived at the Coronet Hotel. As they stepped into the lobby, Crystal was dumbstruck at the opulence of the room. Tapestries covered the walls, a large chandelier reached from wall to wall, and there was a huge rug in front of the check-in desk.

"Aerick, this place is wonderful!" Crystal said, drinking in the extravagance of the decorations that were scattered around the lobby. Aerick showed his keycard to the bellhop and was given directions to their room.

A short elevator ride later, Aerick and Crystal were standing in front of the double doors that led to the interior of their room. He swiped the keycard and pushed the door open. The pair moved inside…

…And stepped into one of the most lavish rooms in the entire hotel. The carpeting was a quarter inch thing and looked unbelievably soft. A sofa sat on one side of the room and Crystal recognized the sofa as one of the most expensive in the galaxy. A pair of armchairs sat side-by-side in front of a large holoprojector. It took Crystal a few seconds to recognize the name of the manufacturer and figure out that it was the same brand of holoprojector that the squadron used for briefings. The unit was worth more than her X-wing!

On the wall opposite the sofa, a set of double-doors led into the bedroom. Judging from the size of the living room, Crystal deduced that the bedroom easily dwarfed their quarters on Coruscant. Aerick stepped into the living room and walked towards one of the armchairs. Crystal followed suit, setting herself down in the most comfortable chair she'd ever sat in. She drew her knees up to her chest, resting her chin on her thighs and shooting her husband a loving gaze. Aerick smiled.

"This room is extravagant!" Crystal said, awe evident in her voice.

"Yes…It reminds me of home."

"Why would…what was her name, anyway?"

"Reinna. Reinna Brianti. She claims to be the heiress to the Dukedom of the Northern Province of Derfala on the planet Delaya. But, I've never really heard anything about her before."

"Me neither…Why would Reinna give us such an opulent room?"

"She wants us to be comfortable, I guess."

"Why? She kidnapped me, stripped me of my dignity, and she wants me to be comfortable? Something's not right here. And, I couldn't touch the Force in that building, so I don't know what she's up to."

"Yeah…she told me about the ysalamiri."

"The thing that bothers me…Wait. We're nowhere near that building, are we?"

"No, why?"

"Because, I still can't touch the Force."

"What?"

"I've been trying and…" She took a quick, deep breath and relaxed.

"Crystal? Are you okay?"

"The Force…I can touch it now. What the…" She stood up and threw open the curtains. Aerick saw a small Lambda-class shuttle heading away from the hotel.

"I knew it," Crystal said. "Someone was spying on us and they had ysalamiri."

"It has to be Johann," Aerick said, standing and walking over to his wife. "…That bounty hunter."

"Maybe he wanted to see if we were going to betray Reinna. I have no doubt that she was on that shuttle with him. They've probably left Corellia by now."

"What did they want?"

"I'll tell you later." Aerick took Crystal's hand in his and closed the curtains. "For now, I just want to be here and spend time with my wife. After all, we did just get married." Aerick led Crystal into the bedroom, closing the double-doors behind him. He pulled Crystal in as close as he could, wrapped one arm around her waist and the other he placed behind her head. Aerick stared deeply into Crystal's eyes for what seemed like hours. Then, without warning, he gently pressed his lips against hers.

Crystal was taken aback for a few milliseconds, then responded to the kiss, wrapping her arms around Aerick's neck. She pulled away for a second, long enough to see a sparkle in Aerick's eye as the light from the setting sun reflected off his retina. Then, she closed her eyes and pressed her lips against Aerick's, harder and more passionately than he had.

The pair stood in the bedroom for what seemed like hours, locked in a passionate kiss. Aerick's hand moved, almost of their own volition, to the zipper of Crystal's dress. He grasped the zipper and started to move it down to it's base. Crystal broke the kiss and pushed her husband away.

"Not yet, Aerick. I need a bath." Crystal unzipped the rest of her dress and let go, allowing the garment to wrap around her feet in a forest green puddle. "I need to find a change of clothes…"

"Don't worry. I'll catch a hovercab to my mother's house. She should have something that'll fit you."

"Remember, I'm a size 7. And a 38D." Crystal said, sitting down on the bed and turning on the holoprojector. "I'll wait until you get back."

"Ok. Oh, use the comm unit and contact Admiral Ackbar. Tell him you're safe and I will get in touch with him ASAP. Then, use this comlink and contact Lieutenant Page. Tell him that the mission was completed and he can return to Coruscant. Make sure you identify yourself and mention my name."

"Okay. Get going. And hurry back!" Crystal said, kissing Aerick on the nose. He walked out of the bedroom and to the door, off on his errand. Crystal stood and walked over to the comm unit mounted on the nightstand. She punched in the frequency she memorized the day she became the XO of High Flight Squadron; that of Admiral Ackbar's office. It only took a few seconds to connect.

"Admiral? It's Commander Sandskimmer."

"Commander Sandskimmer? I take it Captain Needa's plan worked, then?"

"Not quite, and that's why I called you. First, Aerick wanted me to tell you that I am safe and he will contact you and give you all the details as soon as he returns."

"As soon as he returns? I take it he's not in the room with you, then."

"No, sir. He went to visit his mother and get me a change of clothes. From your tone of voice, I assume you have something you want to share with the two of us?"

"An astute assumption, Commander. Your squadron is en route to Corellia as we speak. I don't know how or why, but someone gave orders to your Twi'lek officer…"

"Lieutenant Commander Krinuv'ani."

"That's her. Anyhow, someone rerouted your entire squadron to Corellia and placed them under a comm blackout."

"That's odd. Krinu wouldn't do anything to jeopardize the squadron. She's very good at following orders as well; and neither Aerick or myself have issued any orders to the squadron."

"Strange. Have Captain Needa contact me as soon as he gets in."

"Yes, sir. Sandskimmer out." Crystal picked up the comlink Aerick gave her and pushed the call button.

"Page here. Captain Needa, are you okay?"

"I assume I'm talking to Lieutenant Page?"

"Correct. Who is this?"

"I'm his wife, Crystal. Lieutenant, Aerick said to tell you the mission was successful. He said you can return to Coruscant as soon as possible."

"Acknowledged. My men are already packed and ready to go. Tell Captain Needa that I'll debrief him upon his return."

"Copy." Crystal turned off the comlink and lay on her back, staring up at the ceiling of the bedroom. She stretched out with the Force and tried locating Aerick. She felt him leaving his mother's house and heading back towards the hotel.

She also felt something she couldn't identify nearby. She thought that she felt something alive in the room with her. As she stood up to search under the bed, she tried reaching with the Force to get a better read on what it was.

She recoiled in shock as she realized that the sensation was emanating from her. Not her, but from inside of her.

"By the Force…" She whispered.