[Dedicated to butterflytattoo - a huge congratulations on getting published!]

"WHERE IS SHE?" Klaru repeated, louder. Louis once again failed to give her an answer and I could almost picture the steam coming out of her ears as he stood his ground like a defiant child. "Loudrix."

"Klaru," he began, "I have no idea what you're talking about. Where is who?" He paused and I assumed it was because Klaru was preparing to snap at him again. Before she could even utter a word, Louis surprised me by raising his voice at her. "You mean Flora? Flora's missing? What - how? How can she be missing? You left her on the ship! She should be on the ship, Klaru! What the hell have you done with her?!"

It sounded like a scuffle was taking place all of a sudden; shoes were skidding across the polished floor and several voices arose, shouting and grunting angrily. I presumed it was because of Louis. Had he tried to attack Klaru? It appeared to be the only justifiable explanation and my mind instantly began reeling with worrisome questions. What if he got hurt? Would Klaru threaten him again? What about Nix and the others? I tried to push the doubt to the back of my mind as the spat above grew louder. I listened harder as Louis shouted and Klaru taunted. If he had tried to attack her then there was no doubt her minions would've jumped to her rescue. After all, Klaru was too scared to get her own hands dirty.

"Do you take me for a fool, Loudrix?"

Yes, I thought.

"Of course not, Princess," Louis said sarcastically. "There are far more appropriate and derogatory terms that could be used to describe you."

She laughed - a high-pitched shriek that made me wince. "You think you're so clever, don't you? I'm no fool, I assure you - I know you had something to do with her escape and you will tell me this instant where she is!"

Louis, undaunted by her threatening tone said, "And I am no fool either. I know you're a liar - you have been from the very start. You're lying right now! You've done something with her, I know it!"

Oscar worthy performance, my mind muttered as I listened to his false accusations. Witnessing just how far he'd go to keep me safe made me want to hold him close and never, ever let go. I wanted to make him feel as safe as he made me feel.

"If I was going to harm her in any way I would have done it by now," Klaru informed Louis. "I'd have killed her when we first became acquainted if the situation of your whereabouts hadn't been so desperate. And ... well, what can I say? She's awfully fun to use against you when you defy my orders and need a little push to make the right decision."

My fists clenched. "I feel so useless down here," I whispered to Jason.

When I turned to look at him, he just nodded, like he knew exactly how I felt - he had no idea. "I know. But there's nothing you could have done if you were up there, Flora. You're more useful out of the picture."

"How?"

"I – well, if you were up there, Klaru would just lock you up again. Not to mention, she'd most likely kill you this time, Flora. You've slipped through her fingers so often that it's bound to be pissing her off and it seems to me that she's not exactly in the right frame of mind to let you off again." He took my hand as Klaru's voice rose. "I know she said she would've killed you before if she'd had the chance, so what's to say that this time she won't actually do it? Because if you ask me, she's out for blood now."

All I could think was, Better me than Louis. That woman was a force to be reckoned with and the sooner she was out of our lives, the better. However, Jason's words made a shiver run down my spine and it wasn't so much the thought of Klaru killing me ... it was the how she would kill me. Undoubtedly, she would incorporate a little torture before finishing me off for good, probably with a Striking Blade.

"You're right," I eventually said. "But I still want to do something to help."

"Like what?" Jason asked. "We're powerless down here, Flo. Hell, we're powerless on this fucking planet let alone down here. Even if there was something we could do, how do you suggest we out-smart a superior race?"

Just as I was about to offer a suggestion, the doors to the balcony flew open behind us.

It took everything in me not to yelp as a Councillor stepped forward and glanced slowly back and forth between Jason and I. When they made no abrupt move to call backup, I balled my hands into fists, prepared to fight if necessary. The silence between us drew out painfully but what made the situation even worse was the fact that I recognised the Councillor – I recognised her; the bitch who I'd slapped back on the Mothership.

Oh, shit.

She looked much the same as the last time I'd seen her – glowing skin, dark hair tied back, clothed in the Councillors' uniform of a scarlet tunic. But she wasn't glaring at me this time – she was smiling. I concluded it was a victorious smile, for she had finally found us and would have the privilege of handing us over to Klaru. I wouldn't have been surprised if she decided to ask Klaru to help torture us in the dungeons.

She surprised me, however, for her skin began to change. I frowned. What was she doing?

"Come with me. Quick," she rushed, motioning for us to follow her. She turned and started jogging away down the spotless corridor without another word.

I looked to Jason and shook my head. "We can't trust her."

"How do you know?" he returned. "Your alien friend said there were more Councillors who were loyal to the throne, right? What if she's one of them? After all, she changed to tell us-"

"No, Jason, listen. She death glared me the entire time I was on the ship and she started freaking out when I slapped her."

Jason just stared at me like I was crazy. "Because people are often thrilled to receive a slap in the face?"

"I..." I paused, unsure how to explain the gut feeling that she was leading us into a trap. Then again, the little voice in my head reasoned, there doesn't appear to be any other choice. There was that – plus the fact that all she had to do in order to give away our position was shout up to Klaru and announce she'd found us. And yet she hadn't. Norkar had told Louis and I that there were others, others that disagreed with Klaru's manipulative and unjust way of keeping Junito safe. Could we take the chance of trusting that she was one of them? Jason seemed to think so.

"Flora, we have to. If anyone looks down, we're dead meat." He took my shoulders and squeezed gently. "C'mon. We don't have any other options. And for all we know, she's on our side."

"Or not," I muttered, glancing after her doubtfully. She'd stopped halfway down the hall to look over her shoulder, waiting for us. She jerked her head in the direction she was moving, encouraging us to stay close. "Alright." I decided. "But I'll be fucking pissed if she murders us. Then I'm gonna murder you."

We followed the Councillor with extreme vigilance. Every now and then she would hold out an arm to stop us from walking into the sights of oncoming guards. As we moved, I realised just how much of a maze the palace corridors were, twisting and never-ending. If Jason and I had tried to navigate through them without a guide we'd end up going in circles. When the coast was clear, the Councillor practically dragged us along until we came to a stop at another tapestry hanging from the wall. Just like the previous one we had encountered, there was a secret passageway behind it and it seemed that we were heading through it.

Once the three of us had shuffled in and the door was closed behind us, I didn't hesitate as I pushed the Councillor up against the stone wall. I shocked even myself as I pressed my arm against her throat. "Why should we trust you?" I demanded without hesitation.

My actions appeared to have rendered both Jason and the Councillor speechless but that didn't lead me to question my moves – I wanted answers and I was going to get them from her one way or another.

"Why should you trust me?" she scoffed. "Leading you away from impending doom was not a good enough first impression?" she asked, a brow raised.

"The first time I met you was on the Mothership, where you constantly tried to kill me with your eyes. Not to mention you went crazy after I slapped you."

She chuckled. "I am quite positive that no sane person would appreciate an assault like that which you bestowed upon me."

I saw Jason look at me out of the corner of my eye and I just sighed and loosened my grip ever so slightly.

"In all seriousness," Jason continued, "can we trust you?"

"I swear upon the life of our future king," she said with a nod of her head. "My name is Nettie and I live to serve the royals of Junito. I took an oath on my first day that I would protect the royal family, no matter the cost. I understand your doubt completely, especially after my little outburst upon the Mothership, Earthling. I must apologise for that but if the minority of us were to act too kindly towards you, it would have the princess asking questions." She paused like she were waiting for me to say something. When I didn't, she continued. "I was informed by Norkar of what has been going on and your current plan to stop that foul woman from marrying the Prince."

I nodded. "How much do you know?"

"All of it, including the wedding disruption," she informed me with a grin. She was actually gorgeous when she smiled sincerely. "Quite an ingenious plan, may I add. I hope you can enforce it according to plan because let me be honest with you - it's not going to be easy. First and foremost, subtlety is completely lost to your plan and breaking the news to the king that his son has been cavorting with humans ... I shudder to think how he will react."

I wanted to roll my eyes. Seriously, what did the king have against humans?

After a moment of careful consideration, I lowered my arm completely from her throat. "I hope we can trust you, Nettie."

She smirked. "I'll prove it; I'll help get you out of here and into Bu's ship before nightfall. Isn't that how the plan begins? In one of the hovercrafts?"

"Yeah, that's the plan. But I'm not sure what will happen now that Klaru knows I've escaped. I assume the security will be doubled and getting in and out of the palace will be even trickier than before. We made it into the palace by luck last time."

"Norkar informed me, yes," Nettie said, flashing me a sympathetic smile. "Pretty ingenious once again."

"How exactly do you plan on getting us out of here without being caught?" Jason asked when her attention trailed away from my face. She eyed Jason almost warily, like she were shocked to see him standing there. "Yeah, the plan is to get into the hovercraft and then land in the middle of the ceremony but it's the actual getting onto the ship that's the problem."

"I understand," Nettie murmured, scratching her chin thoughtfully. "We shall have to wait for a little while as the Council and Guard are on high alert at the moment. They are carrying out a thorough search in the Prince's room at the moment."

My skin crawled at the thought of Klaru being in the same room as Louis, let alone his bedroom. I was more worried for him than myself – it must've been horrifying for him to stand within such a close proximity to her. At least she would never know we'd been there. If Louis continued to act his heart out as the clueless royal, everything would be fine. Hopefully.

"I'm going to find Norkar to lead you through the escape routes until you come to the transportation level. All members of staff leave their vehicles there when they come in to work. I'm not entirely sure which one will be Bu's so I'm that's why, I'm afraid, I'll have to leave you momentarily while I try to find them inform them of-"

"You're leaving us?" I questioned, my eyes narrowing in suspicion. "How do we know you're not going to get Klaru?"

Nettie sighed and then finally offered me that signature glare I'd become so acquainted with. "Here," she said as she unhooked something from her belt. It turned out to be a sheath and inside was a very heavy yet intricate looking blade.

I stared at her, baffled. "Why're you giving me a knife?" I asked as I fingering the carvings upon the hilt. There was a gemstone embedded at the very tip of the hilt, glinting almost as brightly as the skin of a Councillor.

"I'm giving it to you as a peace offering. This is the first weapon a Council member receives and with it comes the responsibility of upholding your oath to the throne and also your loyalty. Both of mine are, at the moment, questionable." Her eyes lowered to the dagger almost sadly. "I now leave it with you in hopes that you will understand my loyalty to you is as strong, perhaps more so, that that of my loyalty to the throne. After all, the fate of our prince is in your hands, Flora. If I break your trust in any way, you may use this dagger on me. And for that matter, anyone else who threatens you."

I just looked at her warily. The thought of using the knife on someone made me shudder. What if it came to the unfortunate situation where I had to use it to defend myself? Would I have the guts to stab someone?

"I shall lead you both further down the tunnels before I retreat to find Norkar. I shall inform him to follow through on leading you down to the transportation level while I lead Nix and her team down through the palace. We shall meet again upon Bu's ship. No doubt you and your companion shall have any other choice but to remain on board while this whole thing blows over."

I nodded. Jason looked to me with a frown. I could tell he was worried and quite rightly so; anything could have gone wrong.

When Nettie finally turned and left us standing alone in that dim, cold stone-way, one thing became clear to me: Junites sure liked to take their time. It seemed like hours that we stood (eventually sat) in the tunnel awaiting Norkar's arrival. Jason had even begun to hum quietly to himself again.

"What's taking him so long?" he asked me eventually.

I shrugged. "No idea. I suppose that he's mixed up in one of Klaru's search parties. If that's the case then he probably has no choice but to wait it out. I can't see Klaru letting any of them off without a pretty damn good explanation as to why."

Jason huffed. "So we could be here all night?"

"Maybe, maybe not. I guess we'll find out."

"Great," Jason muttered. "Like this couldn't get any worse."

I looked to him, observing how unruly his already messy hair had become and his squint glasses, now in need of a polish. He looked exhausted and I suddenly felt guilty. I hadn't taken enough time to consider how he was feeling, my best friend, who deserved more love than I had offered for the entire duration of our adventure.

"Jason," I said quietly. "I'm sorry."

He looked confused suddenly. "Sorry? For what?"

"I'm just sorry. I realise I've not been the best of friends lately. I've been so caught up trying to keep Louis safe that I've not really been paying enough attention to how you're feeling. And I'm sorry for that. I feel so terrible for not asking you how you're doing – how you're taking all of this."

He chuckled. "Wow. What can I say? It's a change from good old Hoveton, ain't it?"

I just laughed with him, reminiscing the little things about home that I actually missed; the seaside, the supermarket where I worked, my bottle of wine and new copy of Heat magazine. I wondered what Jason was missing most.

"It certainly is. I can't say that our experience of Junito has been all too great so far."

"Well that's for sure. Not quite your average walk in the park," he joked. "But in all seriousness, I'm frightened." He paused to assess my reaction. I raised a brow, surprised to hear him admit to it. "I really am. I mean, we're so far away from home. Like, really far from home and I don't know how this scenario is going to play out in the end. Flora, we're literally stuck between life and death at the moment and that scares the crap out of me."

I took his hand and squeezed it tightly. "I know. It scares me too and I'm so, so sorry that I dragged you into this mess."

"Technically I dragged myself into it. I did end up following you and Louis into the woods that night when you went looking for this ship. If I'd just stayed at home then perhaps everything would be different. But then you wouldn't have someone you can trust completely here with you."

I chose my next words carefully. "Jason, that's not true. I have-"

"Yes, I know – you have Louis. What I mean is, yes I can see you care for the guy and he obviously cares for you too but we've been friends for years. I know you better and you know me better. Plus, I'm human so therefore you don't feel as alone as you would have if I were still on Earth, clueless and in a panic because of your sudden disappearance."

I couldn't take my eyes off of him. "I can see you in a mad panic," I teased, nudging his shoulder. "It's so you, isn't it?"

"Well, what can I say? You went through a rough time at school and ever since you started your own life, got your first job and house, you've been ... well, miserable. I like to think that I play some part in your happiness." He paused and looked at his feet. "Even if it's not the same kind of happiness that Louis can give you."

I knew there had been a time when Jason had felt a little more than platonic affection for me. That had been years ago, when we first met and back then I told him, before he got his hopes up too much, that I loved him, I really did, but as a friend. He hadn't brought up his feelings since and I liked to think that that was because they had curtailed over time.

Recently, I'd begun to think otherwise.

"You both make me happy in very different yet such important ways. I could never ask for a better friend than you Jason, even if you do tend to be a little possessive and jealous at times."

"Jealous?" he scoffed. "You think I'm jealous of Louis?"

I eyed him, puzzled. "Well, I assumed so given how you react every time Louis comes up in a conversation. Aren't you?"

He laughed then, a little too loudly for my liking. We were still hiding, after all. "Flora, I'm not stupid. I can take a hint. You told me a long time ago that nothing would ever happen between us and I knew from the look in your eyes that you meant it. My teenage self was crushed but I put that pain to good use and decided to be the – to the best of my ability, anyway – greatest friend you could have. So, no, it's not jealousy. I just have this unshakable fear that this whole thing is pulling us apart. Hell, we've nearly been killed God knows how many times and I can see as plain as day that you have feelings for Louis. But I'll let you know right now that if anything happens to you, I'll blame him. Even if he's miles away, I'll blame him because he's the reason that you're here."

When it grew too difficult to hold his gaze, I averted my eyes to our linked hands. His were much larger than mine, practically enveloping them from sight. Jason was my friend first and foremost but second, he was my fiercest protector. Countless times he had been there for me as a shoulder to cry on, the person to share secrets and simply to talk to. People often took such small things for granted. Jason was the first person that made me feel like I could be myself whole-heartedly.

I should have been there for him like he was for me.

"I know you blame him for all of this," I began, "but what you don't understand is that it's actually my fault, Jason. I offered to help him. That night when he came wandering into my life was both wonderful and terrifying at the same time but I loved it. I loved that feeling; the rush. How often does something as crazy as an alien landing on Earth happen?"

"But back then you didn't feel what you do now for him. I'm worried that ... no, never mind," he heaved, flashing me a small smile. "It's stupid."

"No, no, no, tell me," I urged. "Nothing you say could ever be stupid. You are a genius after all."

He just chucked at my comment and looked to me with the saddest eyes I had ever seen. "I'm just worried – terrified, actually – that after all of this is over, you'll want to stay. Here on Junito. With Louis. I'm scared that you won't want to come home because compared to this place, what does boring old Hoveton have?"

My throat tightened at his words. Suddenly I wanted to cry – he made me want to cry because never had I seen him so hurt.

Oh, Jase, I wanted to say. You know how much I hate Hoveton and its lack of excitement but I would never leave you, my friends and family for a life where I would always be considered an outsider. I care for Louis, yes, but I could never do something as crazy as live with him on another planet. I may be young and reckless but not stupid. Not completely.

But despite how much I wanted to tell him that, something held me back. And that something was Louis. It was difficult to explain the thoughts in my head at that moment – a baffling jumble of home and aliens – but the truth was that it had never even crossed my mind to live on Junito. I hated Hoveton, sure, but I didn't hate Earth. And considering that Louis and I had only confessed our feeling for one another the night before, it seemed even more ridiculous that Jason thought so low of me as to make a absurd decision like such.

"I would never leave you," I eventually managed to say but it sounded like a question "Earth is my home and I'm going back after this all ends."

Jason's eyes lit up at my words and he moved in so quickly for a hug that I jumped. I couldn't tell whether the action hurt his feelings, but I felt him tense ever so slightly.

The sound of a door opening and closing echoed down the tunnel towards us.

Jason was the one to jump this time before we both got to our feet.

Instinctively, my grip tightened on the blade that Nettie had burdened me with. It felt too heavy in my sweaty palm and as the footsteps drew closer the sickening thought of using it gnawed at my mind. My fingers twitched.

Please be Norkar, please be Norkar, I prayed as a body came rushing down the stairs toward us. It was definitely a Councillor, for the blaze upon the walls as they neared radiated a brilliant red throughout the stone tunnel.

I tightened my grip on the knife.

There were tons of Councillors, it could have been any of them. My heart hammered in my chest at the thought of one of Klaru's minions finding us, Striking Blade at the ready. It hardly seemed a fair fight – like a kitchen knife against a machete.

The footsteps drew closer. When the on-comer turned the corner, their identity proved tricky to determine; unfathomable due to their blinding complexion. It took a moment for my eyes to adjust and I was relieved to find Norkar standing before us.

Once he resumed his human exterior, all he said was, "Follow me."

And we did so without question.

Thank you for reading, as usual! You guys remain incredibly patient with my lazy arse so thank you.

As we're nearing the end of the story, I'd like to address something: please don't comment your theories and such in the comments. There's nothing more irritating than when someone figures out the ending of your book (which you try so hard to keep secret) and leaves it for other people to start assuming it will/won't end that way. Thanks guys! 

Alien Joke: What do you call an alien with big muscles? A flextra-terrestrial!   

Cazza