Hey guys, it's time for another chapter! I'm going to start this chapter but I'm not sure how long it will take for me to finish it. Hopefully, it doesn't take too long! I've been so happy with the progress the story has made and all the comments you guys have made. I always try to like or reply to your comments so feel free to continue leaving them! Finally, here's the chapter!
Ch. 22: First Night Together
(Luna's POV)
The three of us reached the ship, and Merrin stopped to stare at it.
"It is much bigger up close," she commented, looking over the metal edges and corners of the Yacht-style ship. Cal smirked and put his hands on his hips.
"Wait till you see the inside. In my opinion, it's way too fancy for Greez."
I stepped up beside him and mimicked his pose.
"If I remember correctly, I think he rented it and then never returned it," I said with a laugh. That's something Greez would totally never do. Never!
"That sounds about right," Cal remarked with a snort. Merrin stood there looking confused, and we stopped making inside jokes.
"You'll see what we're talking about in a minute, Merrin. Now, they don't know who you are so they might be hostile at first," he warned her. I waved my hand in front of me and shook my head.
"Don't worry, we got your back."
Merrin's lips stretched in a look of reassurance, and we stepped up the ramp to enter the ship. Greez and Cere were sitting on the couch in the living room when we came in.
"How'd it go?" Cere asked.
Cal took out the Astrium and her face lit up.
"You got it! I knew you would!"
Greez seemed to notice Merrin lurking awkwardly behind us, and he threw his hands up.
"Who is this!? Isn't this the witch that tried to kill you two yesterday!?"
"I am a Nightsister. You do not need to fear me."
"Guys, this is Merrin," Cal and I said, introducing her. Cere looked displeased while Greez looked horrified. I jumped in, trying to diffuse a situation that was growing increasingly out of hand.
"She helped us get the Astrium. We couldn't have done it without her and we fought Malicos together," I said looking at both them and Merrin. Merrin looked down at the ground as I talked.
"She's right. The point is we trust her."
"And we trust you," Cere said before looking at Merrin. "...You will have to earn our trust, though," she said. Greez threw his hands up, muttered something under his breath, and made his way to his usual seat in the cockpit. Cere followed him and stopped once she got to Merrin.
"Welcome aboard."
She then went back to her communications seat. Merrin stayed silent and her face was blank, possibly from embarrassment or not liking that she had to be in that type of situation. Cal smiled a bit and turned to us.
"I think they like you!"
"You do?" she said, unsure.
"I would say so!" I said to her optimistically. She still didn't seem too sure. I tried to reassure her.
"Look, it's going to take some time for them to warm up to you. They don't know you and you don't know them. Give it time and they'll be like family if you stay with us for a while. Trust me, I had the same doubts," I said. Cal smiled even more.
"Same with me. You just have to be patient. Why don't you let Luna show you to your room?" he offered. She nodded and walked to the kitchen. I went to follow her but stopped when I realized something. There were only four bedrooms on the ship and then of course the living room couch to sleep on. Cere and Greez were in one, and Cal and I each had our own rooms. There wasn't enough space for Merrin…I got close to him and whispered, "I just realized that she won't have her own room…We can't let her sleep on the couch. It feels wrong."
His eyes widened for a split second before he replied.
"Umm, well I…don't mind sharing my room with you…I mean, only if you want to!"
I blushed at the thought. To be honest, I had no problem sharing a room with Cal. We completely trusted each other and we've slept in the same bed together a few times already. Plus, we're a couple now! It feels like a good next step! Though, admittedly it happened much earlier than I thought it would. Thinking back, I always slept amazing when I was next to Cal. He gave me this sense of safety that I craved, and it was something only he was able to give me. Another thing to think about is that sleeping in the same bed from now on would increase the chance of…well, you know…good stuff happening. Alright, I'm done thinking about it!
"Cal, I…I'd love to share a room with you as long as you're okay with me being in there. I definitely want to give you your personal space and all, so if I do move to your room just let me know whenever you need it."
He snickered to himself.
"Luna, I love spending every minute with you. You don't have to worry about me getting annoyed or anything. If anything, you'll probably get annoyed with me," he joked. I smiled and pecked him on the lips.
"Doubt it."
"Heh, then it's settled."
I turned to Merrin, who was checking out the kitchen and motioned her towards the hallway.
"Here, Merrin, your room's this way. This actually used to be my room, but I'm going to move in with Cal so that you can have the room to yourself," I told her. She stopped just in front of the room and shook her head.
"What? No, you do not have to do that for me."
I shook my own head and smiled.
"No, it's okay! I don't mind at all. We just started dating, if you can call it that in our situation," I laughed off. We weren't really going on dates anytime soon given that the Empire was looking for us so that they could murder us and all. I guess you could say that our missions are like dates. I enjoy them anyway."
Merrin's cheeks turned a darkish-gray color, and she looked to see if Cal was listening. He was in the kitchen making us food like the awesome guy he was. We felt the ship lift up off the ground of Dathomir and jump into hyperspace with ease. We were heading back to Bogano to see what the Astrium had in store for us.
"You two seemed close but I did not want to assume," Merrin admitted shyly. Her introvertedness was kind of adorable. I waved my hand at her.
"No, you're good! We've been together for a while now and just kind of kissed finally. Before that, there was a ton of flirting and I loved every minute of it!"
Merrin bit her lip.
"I would not know about any of those things. There weren't many others on Dathomir."
"I'm sorry, Merrin. I wish Cal and I could have stopped what happened to your people…Flirting and dating with people isn't something that you should be ashamed of if you haven't had any experience with it. It's never too late to try it out with someone you find attractive. Now that you're with us, we'll be visiting a lot of planets with a bunch of different people. You'll be able to explore whatever and whoever you want, don't worry," I told her as we walked in what was now her room. My stuff was still sitting on the bed and on the dresser when we made it all the way inside.
"I might need your help with that, Luna," she said back to me quietly.
"Of course! I got your back! Also, this is your room! You have a bed, dresser, nightstand, and…my personal favorite part about the room…"
I stepped to the door next to us and opened it, revealing the bathroom.
"Your own bathroom and shower! Trust me, having your own bathroom is a lifesaver. Another thing I like is the ceiling. It's see-through to the outside so you can stare at the stars or the blue streams of hyperspace. It's pretty relaxing when you're trying to go to sleep."
Merrin stared at the blue beams passing us by and then looked at the bathroom.
"I have never had anything like this before. It is overwhelming, but I am grateful to you and Cal."
I grinned and nodded. She was so sweet!
"We're glad to have you on the team. You deserve to do what you want. We just want to make sure you're comfortable while doing it. Now, let me show you how everything works…"
I proceeded to show her how the shower works and where she could put her things before moving my own possessions to Cal's room. I didn't have much to move. For a guy, Cal was pretty clean. The only thing out of place was the bed being slightly unmade. I sat on the bed and internally screamed. From now on, I'll be sleeping and cuddling with Cal every night! It felt unreal! I just don't want to ever get annoying to him or something.
"Luna! Merrin! Your food's ready!" Cal yelled from the kitchen. I sighed and stood up from the bed. Meeting Merrin in the hallway, we walked to the kitchen and saw that Cal had made us a couple of Scazz steak sandwiches. My mouth was watering just looking at it.
"What is a Scazz steak?" Merrin asked innocently.
"Just a type of meat basically. Hopefully you like it," Cal said. On my end, I was already devouring the sandwich without pausing to take a breath. I'm serious, I really need to eat alone because I'm a monster when it comes to food. Thank the Force for my good metabolism. Cal laughed behind his hand and Merrin had a look of being mildly flabbergasted at the sight in front of her.
"I was hungry! Gah!" I whined. Dabbing my mouth with a napkin, I cleaned the plate in the sink and wrapped my arms around Cal from behind.
"Thanks for the food, Cal. It was really good."
"No problem, you both deserve it after the long day we've had. Is your sandwich okay, Merrin?" he asked. She had taken a few cautious bites so far and fortunately for us she nodded to him.
"Yes, thank you, Cal."
Cal smirked smugly and smiled to himself, knowing he had satisfied the both of us. I rolled my eyes, and decided to walk over to Cere and Greez to see what they were up to. They always seemed to be doing the same thing. I wonder if they ever get bored…
"Hey guys, how's everything going?"
"Beep boop boop."
I glanced down and saw that BD-1 was hanging out with them as well.
"Oh, hi, BD-1! I didn't see you there!" I picked him up and tapped the top of his head like a cat.
"We should be landing in Bogano by tomorrow. Everything that we've worked for could all be worth it by then," Cere informed me. That was exciting. It felt like we were so close to securing that list of force sensitives and rebuilding the Jedi Order.
"Yeah, it better after all the crap you guys put ME through!" Greez complained.
"Oh, you know you love us, Greez," I rebutted.
He made one of his unique sounds and gripped the pilot wheel.
"Sure, the love is overflowing! First you take us back to the planet that almost killed us. And then, you invite a witch to our crew! What's next I wonder!"
"I know and I'm sorry. We should have given y'all more warning, but she's opening up more and more and I believe she'll be an amazing member of our crew. You're not mad at us are you?" I asked, getting quiet near the end. This was a technique I used to make Greez feel guilty for complaining. Greez paused for a few seconds and finally shrugged his shoulders.
"Nah, you're good, kid. Don't feel bad for doing what feels right. Just don't forget about my mental health, will ya?" he said in a calm and fatherly tone. I grinned and patted the top of his head.
"Thanks, Greez, and I won't."
Works every time.
I walked back to Cal and Merrin, and they seemed to be talking about the road ahead. Cal was updating her on everything that had happened to us so far and Merrin was listening intently.
"You both have been through a lot…" Merrin muttered.
"I think we've all been through a lot," I said as I joined them at the table. Cal nodded and sat back in his chair.
"But now we're all together. It should all go better from here. Luna, knock on some wood," he joked. I knocked on some anyway.
"So, we are going to Bogano?"
"Yeah," Cal answered her, "We finally have the key to the vault there. We can finally see what Cordova has been hiding from us from the very beginning."
He looked at me with a look of nostalgia.
"It's kind of crazy how long it's been since we both explored that vault together, Luna. Somehow, I knew you'd be the best person I'd ever meet. I think it had just been wishful thinking back then. Luckily, I was right."
He always knew how to make my heart feel this incredible feeling of warmth when he spoke. He was mesmerizing at times. My lips curled up into a joking smile, and leaned my face on my palms on the table.
"I remember when you almost killed yourself touching those wires and I had to make sure you were okay."
His face instantly turned a crimson red from embarrassment.
"H-Hey, I didn't know they would electrocute me like that!" He argued.
"Well, I knew at that moment that you were prone to injury and that I would be treating your wounds from now on. You were cute so I didn't mind," I said, taking a sip of my drink. That crimson redness didn't leave his cheeks.
"I'm not…that prone to injury…"
That was all he could think of as a retort. I let him have the last word since he was so embarrassed. All the while, Merrin sat there with a dumbfounded look on her face. She's never been in a social setting like this. I assume so anyway.
"I am not very good at this…but you two are…right for each other," she said, trying to think of the best way to put it. Cal and I exchanged a glance before letting out a chuckle.
"Thanks, Merrin."
"Tomorrow will be the first time I have ever visited another planet. I will need my energy," she said as she stood up from the table.
"We'll be going to bed soon, too. If you need anything throughout the night, just let us know, okay?" I said to her. She nodded and thanked Cal for dinner before going to her new room. I hope she does okay in the room by herself. Being in a new place for the first time can be a scary thing. Though, she knows how to take care of herself. It doesn't hurt that that bed is extremely comfy.
I watched her go until the shininess of her silver hair was gone from my view. I looked back at Cal and he was yawning. Like every day of our lives, it's been a long one. His yawn was a contagious one, and I soon found myself unable to hold one back.
"I'm gonna tell Cere and Greez goodnight."
"I'll go with you," he said tiredly. We walked to the cockpit, and it looked like the two were finishing up with whatever they were doing. Greez was in the process of putting the ship on autopilot when we walked up to the back of his chair.
"You two done for the night?" he asked.
"Yep, what about you guys?" Cal said. Cere took off her headset and nodded.
"I think so. Everything we've done will finally pay off tomorrow," Cere said with an ignited flame in her eyes. Seeing that look in her eye gave me some confidence as well.
"Yep!"
"It better pay off is all I'm sayin'," Greez remarked.
Yes, Greez, we get it.
"Don't worry, it will," Cal told him. Greez grunted in annoyance and flicked the overhead lights to the cockpit off. We were now surrounded by the bright blue rays of hyperspace and the blinking buttons on Greez's dashboard. There had to be at least a hundred of them. I don't even know what most of them do. I just let him do the driving. Cal might know since he's worked on a lot of ships before.
"By the way…" he said before trailing off. He looked at me, and I knew what he was about to say.
"...We're together now." he said, pointing at himself and me. To my surprise, neither of them seemed surprised. In fact, they were the complete opposite.
"Atta boy, Cal!" Greez yelled, slapping his hand on his back. Cal tensed up and rolled his eyes at him. Cere crossed her arms and gave me a small smile.
"It was only a matter of time. Just don't let it get in the way of why we're doing what we're doing," she said as she passed us and went to her room.
"Yeah, what she said. I don't want an inquisitor attacking us, and you two are in the back doing it!" Greez complained.
"We'll focus on the mission!" I yelled. He stared at me for a second and then waved his hands at us.
"I'm just playing with ya! Ya know, I used to be a pretty well-known ladies' man back in the day."
Cal's eyebrow arched up.
"Oh really?"
"You bet! Still am!"
I hid a laugh behind my hand.
"Yeah, Greez, you are," I said to him. Greez hopped off his pilot seat and put his hands on his hips.
"When this is all over, I'll take you two to a club and show you the attraction I have with women of any species. I get so many womens' numbers I even surprise myself! But hey, I can handle it, I got four arms!" he exclaimed.
The thought of Greez doing anything remotely sexual made me shiver. Cal had his face in his hands when I looked at him. Greez, of course, was oblivious to our reactions.
"Alright, anyway, I'll let you two get some shut-eye. I got some sleeping of my own to do!"
He waddled to his room, and we watched him until he was around the corner of the hallway.
"I didn't think they would react that way, but oh well," I laughed. Cal smiled and looked at the ground.
"Do you think Greez looked any different when he was younger?"
I thought for a moment before shaking my head.
"There's no way. Like…There's no way."
"Yeah, I don't think so either," he agreed with me. We both laughed, and he took my hand to go to our room. I felt my heartbeat through my chest on the way there. This was mine and Cal's room now. From now on, we'll be sleeping in the same bed. On the way to the room, Cal looked back at me and squeezed my hand.
"You okay?"
"Yeah, just nervous is all…I don't know why…"
""No, I get it. I'm kind of nervous too. I want you to be comfortable being so close to me."
"I will be, my heart's just…doing it's thing," I said with a dry chuckle. I needed to pull myself together. Cal showed me that amazing smile of his as we finally made it to his room.
"Mine too."
BD-1 ran past us with his little pitter-patter footsteps, and he jumped on Cal's dresser.
"That's where BD usually sleeps," Cal told me.
"You don't like the bed, BD?" I asked. BD-1's antenna's perked up and he made a series of beeps.
"Beep boop boop beep!"
Cal translated him for me.
"He said that he prefers a solid surface rather than the waviness of the bed."
"Hmm, makes sense!"
I sat on the side of the bed and brushed my fingers over the comforter. The softness of it was so inviting. Cal walked into the bathroom and started changing into his shirt and shorts for bed.
"Do you usually sleep on the left or right side of the bed?" I asked from inside the room.
"The left!" he answered.
"Cool, I sleep on the right!" I said happily.
"I knew you were perfect," he commented, coming back into the room. He had a black tank top on with gray athletic shorts. I slept in something similar. The only real difference was that my shorts were shorter and my colors lighter. Cal's tank top was slightly narrow so you could see the edges of his pectorals along with his toned arms. Is the heat on in here? I stood up and turned on the fan just for good measure. Cal slipped into bed and I got into the bed from the other. The combined heat from both of our bodies instantly warmed me up, and I felt all cuddly inside. It was similar to the feeling of drinking hot chocolate. The feeling of internal comfort.
"You good?" Cal made sure before turning out the lights. I smiled and nodded.
"Yeah, this is perfect."
I scooted closer to him, and wrapped my arms around his chest and waist. He felt so sturdy in my arms. He smiled back at me and leaned down to kiss me. His lips were so soft and gentle on mine. I closed my eyes, and let myself sink into it as he went for another. Turning off the light, all that was left was our kisses and moments of rest to catch our breath. No French kissing or anything like that, just gentle and loving kisses of passion. I had never "made out" with someone before, at least not like this. I moaned softly with each kiss as Cal held me close. Sometimes he would give one long kiss that made me feel hot all over before continuing with the shorter kisses. I glanced at the clock next to the bed, and it had already been thirty minutes since we started. It felt like only a couple minutes. Cal glanced at the clock too and paused.
"Time flies when…you're making out with your girlfriend, I guess," he joked. I smiled and touched my tongue to my lips, feeling the taste of his lips on mine. The urge to go back in for another kiss was strong. Seeing the look in my eyes, Cal leaned in and kissed me one more time.
"Am I doing alright?" he asked. I nodded quickly and rested my arms on his chest to talk.
"Yeah, I'd say you're doing pretty well. You sure you never kissed anyone before me?" I asked out of curiosity. He chuckled and nodded his head.
"Yep, pretty sure."
"You could've fooled me. Maybe it's the Force."
He raised his eyebrows, and I giggled as I rolled beside him.
"What do you mean?"
I hid my face in the pillow goofily so that he could only see my eyes.
"Like, maybe every Jedi is good at kissing because the Force gives them special sexual prowess."
Of course I was joking, I just wanted to see how he would react. He stared at me for a second, and then finally snorted.
"I don't think that's a thing."
"Okay, so you're telling me you're just a natural-born kisser?"
He grinned and laid his head on his pillow.
"Looks like it."
His confidence was extremely enticing. Whenever he got like this, I felt a special tingling inside that only went away when I stopped thinking about him. There was something about his voice that did indescribable things to me. He laid his hand on my arm, and I snapped back to reality.
"You tired?" he whispered. He brushed his fingers along the goosebumps on my arm, and I put my hand on his.
"Yeah, my eyes are starting to burn."
"Mine too," he replied. I looked down at the end of the bed and saw that BD-1 had already gone into "rest mode" a long time ago. Looking back at Cal, I grasped the bed covers and covered both of our bodies up to our shoulders.
"We should get some sleep then. Tomorrow's going to be a huge day for us," I said.
"Isn't every day a huge day for us?" he said ironically. I tilted my head in agreement and fluffed my pillow.
"True, but I wouldn't have it any other way!" I told him ecstatically. He laughed and wrapped his arms around me under the covers. I did the same and rested my head on his chest. The blue beams of hyperspace made it easy to fall asleep. Being this close to Cal made it even easier.
"Goodnight," I whispered to him before I drifted off.
"Goodnight, Luna," he whispered back. The room went silent except for our combined breathing. His calm breaths slowed before mine but not by much.
I was the first to wake up in the morning. You couldn't really call it morning since we were in space, but that's what the clock said. I opened my eyes and tilted my head up to see Cal's sleeping face. His face was completely stress-free, and he had a remnant of drool running down his chin. I smiled a bit and grabbed a tissue from the nightstand, dabbing it off his face. He groaned quietly and shuffled himself in the bed.
"You're such a heavy sleeper," I whispered in amusement. Pecking him on the cheek, I got up and took a shower. The good thing about his sleeping habits would be that I'd always have the bathroom first! Every girl's dream! By the time I got out, he was still in bed like the cute and lazy bum that he was.
"Hey…Cal…?"
I rubbed his arm and his eyes fluttered open.
"H-hmm?"
"It's morning," I said to him. His eyes darted to the clock to confirm it.
"Damn."
"Were you having a good dream?" I asked. He sat up in the bed and stretched, his muscles flexing for a second. I bit my lip and brushed a strand of hair behind my ear.
"I think so. I don't really remember it now," he said with a smile. I smiled back at him and gave him a hug.
"Well, I can say with 100% certainty that our first night together in one room was perfect! I slept like a baby!"
"Yeah, it was. You're softer than the pillow," he said with reddened cheeks. I laughed and rubbed my arm.
"I do try to moisturize when I can."
He got up from the bed and headed towards the bathroom.
"Oh, I can tell."
He disappeared from the room as I swooned over his comment. He thinks I'm softer than his pillow! He can sleep on me whenever he wants! Okay, I'll stop being a dork now…I patted BD-1 on the top of his head and his system lit up from the sudden touch.
"Good morning, BD."
"Beep boop boop!"
"Yes, Cal and I slept pretty well. Did you?"
The droid nodded and hopped in my arms. I giggled and gave him a few Eskimo kisses. He was basically a cat in my eyes. Walking out of the room, I entered the kitchen to see Merrin sitting on the living room couch. She was wearing the same dark red outfit we had seen her in back on Dathomir, and her hair was in a tight bun, per usual. I took a deep breath and smiled the best I could. I could be so awkward sometimes…
"Good morning, Merrin. How was your room?"
Merrin turned her head at the sound of my voice. Her posture was very stoic, almost as if she didn't know how to relax.
"Good morning, Luna. It was good. The bed is good for aching muscles. You were right about the shower. It is my favorite part of the room," she told me. Her face was neutral even though there was happiness in her voice.
"See! The shower makes everything perfect! I'm so glad you like it!"
She nodded.
"I also spoke to Cere and Greez a little. They are still untrusting of me, but I introduced myself more to them."
"Greez still scared of you?"
"Yes."
I giggled and rolled my eyes.
"Don't let it get to you. He's a big scaredy cat! Good on you for trying with them. I know it's hard," I said in understanding.
"We will be together from now on. I do not want them to fear me."
"Cere will warm up to you eventually. As for Greez, just complement his food. That's the quickest way to his heart," I advised as Cal walked into the room. His fiery red hair was still damp from the shower he had taken.
"I can vouch for her on that. Greez is easy if you know what he likes and what he doesn't. You two ready for Bogano?" he asked us. Coincidentally, the ship exited hyperspace as he said this, and the planet that was just mentioned came into view.
"Out of my way! Out of my way! I got some landing to do!"
Greez came flying through the cabin on his way to the cockpit. Cal and I got out of his way while Merrin just stared.
"He's very proud of his landing skills," Cal muttered. The ship quickly approached the planet of Bogano, and the ship's turbulence increased as we entered the atmosphere. I held onto Cal and he held onto the end of the couch. Merrin didn't move an inch. As we landed, Cal took out the Astrium and put it on the table. Merrin watched it with uncertainty. It had come from her planet, but she had no idea what it was capable of.
"I see you all are ready to go."
We looked to the kitchen to find Cere looking at us proudly. She came over to us and sat on the couch.
"...Cordova was a mystery even to me, but I trust that he led us on the right path. Hopefully you'll be able to use this to access the Holocron," she said. Merrin appeared confused for a moment.
"You mentioned that the Holocron contains a list of force-sensitive children, yes?"
We all nodded at her question.
"...Would it be dangerous to access it? Won't the Empire come after the children like they are coming after you?" she asked in pure curiosity. The three of us went silent before Cere chimed in.
"Getting that list makes sure that it stays out of the hands of the Empire."
Cal and I exchanged glances before the ship's hatch opened beside us. A small part of me realized that she maybe had a point. We had to get that list though. The Second Sister was right on our tail looking for it as well. Not obtaining it was out of the question.
"Alright, everyone get some fresh air," Greez told the group. We all filed out of the ship like ants. I looked at Merrin as she was taking everything in.
"So? What do you think?"
"It is…so different from Dathomir."
I smiled and nodded.
"Yeah, it is."
"Dathomir is a complex place filled with all kinds of emotion and being. This place is simplistic, yet I can't figure it out. I like it," she said as she knelt over some grass and felt the green blades through her fingers.
"Every planet will feel different. I'm excited to explore them with you," I told her. She gave me what can be described as an attempt at a smile and continued to scan the grass and flowers that littered the planet floor. Pulling my attention away from her, Cal was speaking to Cere. I walked up to them as they finished talking.
"Be careful, you two. Cordova went through a lot of trouble protecting this Astrium. That doesn't mean the tests for the Holocron are over. If you have any trouble at all, come back to the ship."
"Don't worry about us, Cere. We're ready," Cal told her firmly. He looked at me and gave a small nod. I nodded back and touched Cere's arm in comfort.
"We'll be okay."
She looked at me with worried, yet hopeful eyes.
"I know you will."
I smiled and dropped my arm to my side. Cal began walking towards the vault, and I started to follow him.
"Do try to get to know Merrin. She's antisocial, but she's actually a very nice person. She's just not used to people yet," I said.
"I'll try my best."
"Thanks, Cere."
I ran to catch up with Cal, and we made our way to the vault. The trek up there was much easier than last time. BD-1's map was complete this time and we knew the path. It wasn't long before we were in front of it again. I grimaced at the mud slope right in front of the vault.
"I'm going to need to clean my boots when we get back to the Mantis," I commented as we walked up the slope. Cal sighed in response.
"I was thinking the same thing."
Once we reached the top, we saw the narrow slit in the rock that led to the huge panoramic room where we got our first hologram of Cordova.
"No matter what happens in there, we're together," Cal said to me.
"Agreed. We've gotten this far, Cal. What's another deadly test going to do to us?" I asked with false excitement.
"With our luck, I don't even know. As long as I'm with you I know I'll be okay."
"Likewise," I said before kissing him. We stood there for a few seconds before separating. I could feel the Astrium reacting to the vault. It was almost as if it was alive. It was a feeling of putting the last piece together on a puzzle. Cal and I entered the narrow slit in the rock and were now in the gigantic room from before. In the center of the room, there was a round-shaped indentation in the floor. It was the exact size of the Astrium. Cal took the key out of his pocket and gripped it in his fingers. I wonder if he was afraid to let it go in fear of losing it. I moved close to him and laced my fingers over his on the Astrium. We were going to put it in the indention together.
Cal sighed and we knelt down on the ground.
"Well, here goes nothing."
And that is the end of the chapter! This is probably the last "in-between" chapter I'll write. The rest will be main story stuff! We're almost done with this story and I've been thinking of a good epilogue as well! I'm really sorry it took me so long to update this story as well! School's been hell! I'll try to at least update another chapter later this month before it starts back up again! Who knows, I might even finish it! Anyway, please review or comment on the story and let me know what you think! Finally, I'll see you guys next time!