After learning who the Seeker was, Jacques had no doubt that he would return successfully. Soon, he was proven right. His new ally returned to Rishi after paying a visit to the Cabal listening post, and he had news to report.

"I installed the virus as we planned. We now have a secure frequency for contacting anyone on Odessen." He explained.

"Wonderful," Xarion said with pride. "Finally, the real game begins. Jadus is too preoccupied with his delusions of grandeur to notice an uprising emerging right under his nose. Will will know of his plans, and then…"

"We end him." Scourge spoke with anger. "I will gladly cut the conspirator's head off myself."

"Slow down, big guy." Kira intervened. "We haven't even made the first step, so how about we focus on that for now?" She brought him back to reality while the Seeker continued.

"We would have to make a call carefully. Using any main terminals you have there would arouse suspicion."

"Hm…" Jac pondered. "Lana would be the first person I'd contact, if we can reach her holocomm, that's what we should try."

"As long as you have her contact."

"I do."

"Then, let's not waste any time."

…

The course has finally been set to Alderaan.

Vaylin and Cassian had no desire to stay on Zakuul any longer, and so they claimed the ship before them. A testament to the engineering of Eternal Empire, elite shuttles that were fit for highest-ranking generals, if not for royalty. The ship's interior was colored in silver and gold and contained four separate bedrooms, a kitchen, the main room, lavatories, and the piloting room. More than enough space to relax and take a break from their continuous misadventures.

"It will take us a couple of hours to get to Alderaan; we might as well get some sleep while we have the chance…"

Vaylin didn't feel like falling asleep; she felt too invigorated after their encounters with Doran and Tasara for that, but she still felt like she needed a brief moment alone. There was much to consider and think about; everything, after they went for the archive, happened far too quickly to process. Vaylin still felt slightly bitter that she was not able to talk to Kaia, but after what she told the girl, this kind of parting was the best they could hope for.

As for their destination, Vaylin wasn't sure what to expect. She had no doubt that Alderaan was a beautiful, gorgeous planet, but she had doubts that it could live up to her expectations. Vaylin didn't want to think about it much, yet the memory flashed before her. A little girl trapped in a dark cage, watching a painting of a beautiful foreign world, a complete opposite to the dead wasteland her parents subjected her to. She wanted to go there for so long, yet when she was finally free to do so, Vaylin didn't have it in her. She couldn't allow herself to ruin that dream, to see this majestic world and for it to be somehow imperfect…Now, there was no choice but to finally land on it.

But even the looming visit to Alderaan didn't cloud Vaylin's thoughts as much as their battle with Tasara, Cassian's words and actions especially. As Vaylin lay down on a large, comfy bed, she thought back to their fight. The two ended up working really well as a team, and Cassian was a talented swordsman even without the force on his side. He was strong and dedicated and evaded Tasara's strikes with perfect precision before counter-attacking her. It was like a dance, and she never saw any knights of Zakuul or even her brothers perform it as swiftly and eloquently. And his desire to protect and fight by Vaylin's side made him even stronger…The woman wondered why. Why was it that he cared and wanted to help her so much, even after she pushed him away? She couldn't deny that this wasn't a ploy or a trick anymore. All of his words and feelings were genuine. After he admits that he cares about her in front of his former ally, Vaylin realizes that she wants to feel something about him, too.

Maybe she did already.

The thoughts of his impeccable style, his cold yet protective behavior, his ruthlessness…Thinking about all of this at the same time made Vaylin weak. Made her vagina tenser and wetter the more she imagined him, imagined herself getting close…During her time as High Justice, Vaylin got similar albeit weaker feelings every time she watched a holodrama in her quarters. Most of those were romantic, she watched everything there was about valiant knights of the Zakuul and the princesses they thought for, always ending in love. Many of them felt like a variation of the same story, but Vaylin didn't mind. It was delightful to see knights treat those women with chivalry and admiration, genuine admiration and not fear they felt every time those annoying gnats looked at her. She envied those characters, seeing them wanted and loved, and it was fun to imagine herself in that situation, especially with how excited it made her feel. However, she never got a chance to actually feel this delight herself. Got close once, but that hardly ended well. She was somewhat close to that knight captain, but nowhere near as close as she was to Cassian, not to mention him exceeding that man in strength. Maybe this was an opportunity?

The more Vaylin thought about it, the more she felt like actually trying it out…

"Ah, fuck…" She whispered to herself, still mentally debating her next action. Who knew what awaited them the moment they landed on Alderaan? Maybe this was her only opportunity? It was idiotic not to take it. Vaylin stood up and looked into the nearby mirror. Her face looked almost identical to her old one, thanks to the plastic surgery, and Syl was a fitting host. She was a woman of the same age and build as Vaylin, with the only difference being slightly smaller boobs and and healthier skin, looking the way Vaylin would've looked if not for years spent in the darkness. The dark side in her eyes was gone, too, leaving the yellow glow in the past. Overall, Vaylin could come to a simple conclusion.

Despite a few imperfections here and there, she is still pretty damn cute. Not worse than any of those princesses she saw in the holograms.

Eventually, Vaylin braced herself and walked towards Cassian in the central room. He sat on the sofa in silence, occasionally sipping from a cup. Judging by the smell, it was some traditional Zakuulan golden-leaf tea.

"Hard time sleeping?" Cassian looked up at her.

"Eh, I just don't feel like it." Vaylin shrugged. She needed to come up with a strategy and get him into the mood for something naughty. All her favorite characters started slow and then gradually got to the point where maybe she could pull off something similar. Cassian was tired, too; maybe helping him relax would cheer him up? Vaylin tried to think of romantic scenes of how a woman would sit by her man's side and gently put her hands on his knee. She wanted to try it…But she sat down way too quickly and awkwardly and raised her hand more than she intended, immediately making Cassian raise an eyebrow.

"You alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." Vaylin sighed and tried to relax. "How long is it till we're near Alderaan?"

"Should be an hour and a half from now."

"And we have to spend them all alone on this ship…"

"Not the worst ship to fly," Cassian said. "Not my kind of color scheme, but not bad, either. The tea, on the other hand…I didn't know Zakuulans had something this nice." He smiled and took another sip.

"It's golden leaf tea, it's mostly for those with royal blood and high ranking captains…Too expensive for everyone else."

"Golden leaf?"

"Yeah. We have trees with golden leaves on Zakuul; they're very rare, though…"

"Guess we're lucky to stumble upon some of it, then." Cassian chuckled. "You should have some as well, I haven't drunk something this good for a long while…"

"Do you want to have sex?" Vaylin blurted out suddenly, causing Cassian to cough and spit some of the tea on the table.

"What? Did I hear that right?" He said in shock and disbelief.

"Yeah." Vaylin nodded.

"Seriously?"

"Of course. We have a long flight ahead of us, and there's nothing else to do, so…We could make it fun, and you could show me how it's done in real life."

"You mean…You haven't had sex before?"

"No." Vaylin shook her head. "Well, tried with one knight once, but it didn't go well."

"If you don't mind me asking…"

"It's fine, I get that you're curious. We were close back in the day, not really a relationship, just…Kinda close. I agreed to have sex with him, just out of curiosity."

"But you decided not to last minute?"

"Sort of…When I took my clothes off, it just…" Vaylin's voice grew quieter and angrier. "It felt wrong and gross. He just stood there and looked at me, at my tattoos and scars from Nathema and…I think I wanted to puke. I killed him right there and never tried again. Until now, that is."

"And…How sure are you that this won't happen again?"

"Well, for one, I don't have any tattoos or scars on this body. Then you are much stronger than any of my knights, so if I suddenly decide to bash my head, you can probably survive."

"That's not the most exciting way to put it, you know."

"And also…" Vaylin attempted to muster a playful smile and hide her embarrassment. "You wouldn't say no to me, would you? You don't think I'm ugly, right?" She said before putting on an exaggerated pout.

"Don't even start." Cassian chuckled. "I've more that a few women who played that trick, it…Only sometimes works."

"Does it work with me?"

"To be honest, I have always found you beautiful since we met in the throne room," Cassian admitted. "We just never got a chance before, and I didn't expect you to think about sex now of all times."

"We'll have a lot to do once we're on Alderaan, so why not now?"

"Hm…You sure?"

"I am." Vaylin smiled shortly before Cassian stood up and gazed towards the nearest bedroom.

"Come along, then." He smiled and beckoned for her to follow. Vaylin didn't need to be told twice.

"Have you had sex before?"

"Of course I did," Cassian responded in a slightly snappy tone.

"Sorry for not making assumptions, I guess…"

"Never shared a first time with any woman before, though."

"That's sweet; we can both try out something fun."

"So…" Cassian turned towards Vaylin as they sat on the bed, looking right into her excited eyes, and this excitement allowed him to cultivate some of his own. "Considering that you don't have any experience, I feel like I should say, if you feel uncomfortable at any moment, just tell me."

"I'll be fiiine! Do you know how many holo-movies I watched? We take each other's clothes off, you shove my cock into my pussy, and…Oh, look." Vaylin gazed at Cassian's pants, noticing that his penis was already erected. "You're already hard!" She said in excitement.

"Do you even understand how difficult it is not to get hard with someone as pretty as you near me?" Cassian said in a semi-joking tone, but Vaylin loved the compliment.

"Awww, you're so sweet." Now that they had begun, Vaylin felt much more confident. It will be alright, and they'll both have some fun. Cassian took out some spare condoms from the ship's cache and returned to Vaylin. "Ladies first…So undress me." He said with a smirk.

"Is that a challenge?"

"Depending on how you want to take it."

Vaylin got close to Cassian and slowly took off his coat. The Chiss, meanwhile, gently squeezed her boobs, allowing Vaylin's pussy to get even more tense as she finally realized just how badly she wanted him inside of her. Eventually, she reached for the pants and got the proper view.

"Holy Izax, it's big! And blue…"

"Did you expect something else?"

Vaylin smiled and allowed the Sith to undress her, too. Soon, both of them were naked, hugging each other and reaching out for boobs and cock. The two lay down in the bed with smiles on their faces as Vaylin felt nothing but comfort and joy. It wasn't just like the movies, but still lovely nonetheless. He wanted her body, and Vaylin finally didn't feel ashamed of it. Was it because of her new vessel, or did she actually become a little better since the last time? Vaylin didn't care as long as she could finally bathe in this delight. Soon, she began moaning as Cassian got on top of her. She rubbed her pussy off him to prepare for the climax, closing her eyes and surrendering to the flow of their act. And then she finally felt him inside her, letting out a scream of pure pleasure.

She made a split-second decision then and there, and this was a decision to trust Cassian. To play along for now and allow herself to enjoy those moments he was so willing to give her. Vaylin knew that he might betray her just like all her previous 'friends'…She knew she wouldn't be able to handle it. But if that was to happen, she always had a way out. She would kill him and then herself, ending this torment once and for all. But if the best-case scenario happened and this bliss went on…

Perhaps life wasn't so bad after all.

…

No matter how dire the situation seemed, Lana Beniko continued to cling on to hope. It was unusual for her, always the pragmatist and realist, always serving to ground idealistic Jacques and, to an extent, Cassian…But now, hope was all that she had to cling to, especially when trying to distract herself from intrusive thoughts by working in her apartment. Creating a formidable was an extremely slow process, yet Lana still believed that it would bear some fruit soon. First Raina, now Vette…The young twi'lek was a smart and witty woman, and her undying loyalty to Cassian, whom she met on Korriban more than a decade ago, ensured that she would never fall for Jadus's lies and manipulations. Now she had another spy, and Lana knew there could be more. There were many who wanted to resist the oppression their new enemy wrought upon the people of Odessen, but few knew what exactly they could do.

In a way, this was exactly how she felt when Cassian was frozen in carbonite a d Arcann conquered the galaxy. Most had no choice but to submit with only a few of them who still had the willpower to continue the battle. Compared to the chaos that the Eternal Empire brought, those conspirators were nothing and Lana would never stop resisting them. Never…

The ring of a holo-comm echoed in her ears, a call that she couldn't ignore.

"Lana…Can you hear me? Are you alone?"

"Jac?"