I run as fast as my wobbly legs can carry me and then I notice Pollux has stopped not so far ahead. I stop once I reach him and study the contemplative look on his face. He surprisingly doesn't look as afraid as I feel right now.

The rest of our squad reaches us and when I look behind me I realize that the rebels have stopped following us. In fact, it seems like they've disappeared into thin air. There is no tall pink haired Elcian in sight and then I feel the ground shake beneath my feet again.

My head whips towards the palace and my eyes widen when I see the Space Splitter rise up in the air, looking untouched unlike the destroyed palace dome behind. The market place is quiet now, it's occupants having deserted their stalls the moment the first blast whipped through the air like a siren.

The hair at the back of my neck raises and I glance around me as I the feeling of being watched washes over me. My hand reaches for my gun and I curse at myself for forgetting about the rebels disarming us.

The six of us huddle closer together with our backs touching so that each of us is facing a side. I nearly jump out of my skin when I see Plutonian soldiers emerge from the shadows like apparitions and then I see some of them holding Taygetians and Elcians.

I recognize the Taygetian who asked me what I was and then I see the pink haired Elcian being dragged by another Plutonian officer.

The Space Splitter lands right in front of us, crushing some of the stalls and inns and it's ramp falls to the ground.

My entire body floods with relief when I see Lucian walk out unscathed with his head held high, all business like and authoritative.

"Good work team," He smiles at us proudly and the confused looks on my squad member's faces mirrors my own. It looks like Lucian didn't tell any of us the entire plan.

I didn't realize my body was shaking and my eyes were teary until he gave me a tight hug.

"Aria, what's wrong? Everything worked out fine, except maybe a few things but nothing too terrible," He says soothingly while he rubs my back.

I squeeze my eyes shut and nod my head even though he can't see me because my face is pressed up against his chest. A part of me is still frozen with the fear of Lucian being hurt by the bombs, I have to consciously tell myself that he holding me right now, therefore very much alive.

I hear the soldiers approaching and quickly push him away, feeling embarrassed.

"I'm fine. My eyes must have been sweating because I ran," I quickly wipe my tears and he squeezes my shoulders.

"If you say so," He teases me with a large grin on his face and my heart weakens at the sight.

I join my squad and we watch Lucian instruct the soldiers to bring the rebels onto the ship to be placed in holding cells. Once the commotion is sorted, we walk up the ramp and somehow end up in the control room.

I notice most of the officers are here instead of their quarters. Everyone is huddled in groups, most likely discussing what just happened.

Lucian joins us after a while and he sits down next to me, crossing his long legs under him. He is still wearing his Taygetian outfit like us. Pollux, Altair, Deneb and Sirius start taking out their accessories making up their disguises while we listen to Lucian explain about the bomb blasts in the palace.

"Sorry I had to keep you guys in the dark about my suspicions. I didn't want you to worry about my well being and compromise the mission," Lucian says. "I've been monitoring the Taygetian traders even before the attacks on their moons. There's been a lot of evidence that points to their involvement with the rebels and I had a hunch that they destroyed our moon bases as an excuse to get a high ranked official here."

"That is the reason I wanted to join the Generals for this visit and naturally Lazarus and Luna wanted to get involved as well. Plutonian leaders almost never travel together and I think the rebels weren't prepared for that. My surveillance team were able to locate the bombs before the banquet, giving us enough heads up to escape."

"But why was the dome destroyed then, PG?" Remulus asks Lucian and his expression turns grim.

"We were able to locate the bombs planted in the main halls but not those in one of the quarters. General Grievous was almost killed by one of the blasts. We were able to save him but he is under intensive medical care as we speak," Lucian tells us and for some reason I instinctively look at Lazarus who is sitting by the dashboard.

Luna, General Ursa and General Lyra are no where to be seen, I'm guessing they must be with General Grievous.

"How badly was he hurt?" Pollux whispers.

"He's currently on life support," Lucian replies after a long pause.

I lean back and soak in this piece of news like a sponge. General Grievous is injured, most likely on the brink of death. Who would have thought?

I suddenly feel someone staring at me and turn to see Lazarus's strangely unique turquoise blue eyes fixed on my face. He smiles at me before turning back to discuss heatedly with Sergeant Commander Physus.

Something about their sordid exchange causes a bout of uneasiness to settle in the pit of my stomach. Commander Physus is looking at the floor while Lazarus is patting his shoulder almost in consolation. Is it just me or does Commander Physus look miserable for some reason?

"Did something happen to them?" I ask Lucian and he turns to face them.

"Not that I know of," He says dismissively and turns back to discuss his plans for the rebels once we return.

"I didn't expect to catch this group of rebels so easily so we need to keep an eye on them once we get back," He instructs us. "I don't trust them one bit."

I lean my head against the wall and listen to him but the uneasiness lingers like a parasite in my gut, eating away at my insides mercilessly.

We reach Pluto after about five cycles and the moment we reach home I grab my communicator and call Cassandra.

She doesn't answer.

I try again but the ringing continues with no response on the other end. I tap my foot on the floor impatiently and stare at the smooth surface of Lucian's cupboard. He insisted on monitoring the transport of the rebels to their prisons himself so he left the moment Phillius dropped me home.

I pace back and forth wondering if I am worrying for nothing but I know Lazarus and I know what he is capable of. That is what frightens me the most.

I leave my room and dial the directory. I then ask them to connect me to the last person I would ever want to speak to.

"Hello?" Stela's usual flighty tone is absent. She sounds tired.

"Stela, it's me Aria," I say cautiously only to be met with silence.

"Are you there?" I ask.

"What do you want, Aria?" She snaps at me and I can almost imagine her frigid expression.

"I just wanted to ask if you've heard from Cassandra. I tried calling her and she isn't answering."

Again silence. I grit my teeth in vexation. If only I could strangle someone through the communicator.

"Stela, can you please just tell me--."

"She's here in the medical facility," She answers suddenly and my stomach churns with dread.

"Why?" I croak and Stela cuts the line, leaving me to wonder what happened.

I all but run out of Lucian's mansion and call for Phillius because there is no way I can reach the human quarters on foot. We rush to the familiar large grey building and I dash through the main entrance.

I pass through the security check points, letting the guards frisk me and scan my suit and then I run to the main counter.

The nurse tells me where Cassandra is being treated and it only takes me a few minutes to sprint up the stairs and hallways that lead to the intensive care unit.

I walk through the disinfection chamber and the cool air inside stings my skin. The familiar beeping of the ventilation units chimes through the air and my head whips around frantically looking for my best friend.

Her bright red hair immediately catches my eye and I hurry to her side. I see Stela sitting by her bed, she is holding her hand with her eyes closed but they immediately open when she hears me approaching.

"What happened?" My throat constricts painfully, barely letting the words out.

I look down at Cassandra's beautiful face and notice a large purple bruise on her left cheek extending down her neck and disappearing beneath the neckline of her hospital gown. My gaze trails lower and lower and I suck in a breath when I see the lower half of her body covered in bandages.

Stela stands up abruptly and glares at me ferociously. "She was in her glider when it crashed. The driver survived but Cassandra didn't fare so well."

No. no. no.

The world spirals around me as I sway on my feet, feeling giddy.

"The baby?" My question hangs in mid air and when Stela shakes her head, it feels like my heart just broke into a thousand pieces.

I hold on to the bars by her bedside to steady myself and look down at Cassandra's face. Her eyes are closed but I catch a single tear sliding down her cheek.

Is she conscious?

It's hard to tell with all the tubes connected to her mouth and nose. I grab her hand and squeeze it tightly.

"Cassandra, we will get through this, okay? You hear me," I say sternly but her hand remains limp in mine even as another tear slides down her cheek.

I bend over and wipe her tears with my thumb. "Don't cry, Cassandra. Remember when you told me we were the strong humans who survived? We are survivors, Cassandra and you are so strong. You are much stronger than I will ever be. You are a fighter and you will survive this, okay?"

My voice shakes as I squeeze her hand like my life depends on it.

"I swear you make me sick," Stela says suddenly and I look up at her. "Don't act like you don't know why this happened. If Cassandra wasn't your friend she might still be alive right now. You were trouble from the beginning and she was stupid enough not to realize it."

My eyes narrow at her but it is too late because shards of doubt have already lodged themselves into my heart and mind. There is no denying the truth in her words.

My legs feel numb and I collapse onto the chair. My entire body feels heavy, the guilt of it all weighing me down like my arms have been shackled to the floor.

I ignore her and hold on to Cassandra's hand stubbornly, silently praying for her to wake up. Stela and I stay on through the night and I ignore the consistent buzzing from my communicator, not wanting to let go of her hand.

Stela doesn't talk to me after her outburst and she nods off to sleep after a while but I stay awake. I must have been staring at the monitor assessing her vitals when I feel her hand move in mine.

I jerk back like I'd just been electrocuted and then suddenly come to my senses, realizing she just moved. My heart beats furiously in my rib cage as her heart rate picks up slightly, even Stela stirs from her sleep.

I feel her grip my hand and my chest swells with hope that she might open her eyes but the monitor suddenly goes crazy. The irregular beeping doesn't stop and a few nurses rush over to us. They take out a machine and place them over her chest.

I feel her grip on my hand loosen and I squeeze back hoping she will reciprocate again. The nurses presses those machines to her chest, making her entire body jerk in response but the monitor is still frantic.

A nurse pushes me out of the way, making me release Cassandra's hand. The absence of her warmth reminds me of the first day we met at the slave quarters, before I chose to be a fighter and she chose to be a paramour.

I watch her hand fall limply to the side of the bed and then the monitor goes silent. There is no more pulse.

The nurses try again and again with those devices but the monitor doesn't change. I stand still, like a frozen statue, not quite comprehending what is happening.

Stela starts screaming in a high pitched voice that should have grated my ears but I barely hear her. All I can see is Cassandra, lying there on the bed with her hand reaching out to me.

A whirlwind of misery threatens to swallow me whole but I push it aside and allow myself to feel rage like I've never felt before.

My hands bunch into fists by my sides and my body shakes with an uncontrollable anger when I think about Lazarus consoling Commander Physus on the ship.

I'm going to kill him.

Okay guys, I'm wrapping things up. Things are about to get serious.