There was a calmness in Bova Country since the issues had been resolved between the Tre and Silvas. There were still some that were loyal to Andre Silva and wanted to continue the rebellion. Small groups of Silva soldiers were roaming around the boarders. Iya sent out scouts, a convoy of soldiers to scan the area for any Silva rebells who were looking to cause havoc. The Sagens were almost done changing the terminals. The terminals in Silva country were being saved for the last. Iya and her people had to get the planet Ren finished already. Tonight will be their last night in Bova Country. After fixing the terminals in Silva they were leaving the planet Ren that same day.

Iya was getting ready to accompany the last convoy because she wanted to see how many rebells were gathering. The Sagens could not stay forever but they could help to come up with a plan to keep and maintain the peace. Kal watched as Iya packed her bag and strapped it to her horse. He walked over and decided to help, "Hey, tonight the Bovas want to throw us a festival of some sorts. A celebration for getting things back in order here. I was thinking while everyone was away..."

Iya turned and smiled at Kal, "We could get away..." They looked around making sure no one was around to hear their conservation. "You read my mind. I have a surprise for you but I can't show you until tonight."

"A surprise? I like surprises, what it is?" Kal grinned as he wanted for Iya's answer.

"It's a surprise... I can't tell you now. Remember the Tavern where we met the brothers, the one in the woods?"

"Yea, I remember..."

"Meet me there when the moon is high in the sky. When it's almost directly right above you." Iya inched closer to Kal as he did the same. They were whispering as much as they could.

Kal let out a sigh, "It sounds kind of kinky..."

"Kinky? What till you see the surprise... you promise you'll be there?"

Kal placed his hand on Iya's shoulder, moving it slowly down her arm. "Of course I'll be there..." They shared a smile once more before a soldier approached them. He looked a little confused for how his commander and captain were standing so close to one another. Both turned and looked at the soldier as Kal dropped his hand from Iya's arm. He looked at the soldier and said, "Yes, is there something wrong?"

The soldier coughed into his hand before replying, "No sir, I wanted to let you know Commander that, we have finished gathering all of what we need. We will be in Tre Country within an hour and Silva Country within three tomorrow."

Iya looked at her soldier and nodded in agreement, "Thanks and good job. Tell the others to begin the scout. I will join you all shortly..." The soldier bowed his head and turned around quickly. Iya and Kal could sense how confused the soldier was but found it entertaining. Iya climbed on the horse swinging her leg around and getting on the saddle. She was so excited for tonight that she almost forgot she was supposed to be accompanying her men for. She bit her lower lip looking down at Kal, "When the moon is high, ok..."

Kal quickly caressed Iya's leg before smacking the bottom of the horse. The horse jumped up and dashed forward. Kal yelled out, "I'll be there!" Iya looked behind her once more before looking straight head. Kal stood there watching Iya leave until she was out of view. Although he didn't show it, he was equally as excited about tonight's secret surprise.

As night begin to fall, Kal noticed the locals setting up the decor and lights around the town markets. The smell of grilled food overwhelmed the air and big barrels of alcohol were carried in from the stellar. He looked all around for Iya but he didn't see her yet. Part of him was beginning to worry. He was hoping to see her walking around in the market.

When Kal saw her convoy had returned, he quickly had a sense of relief. If something had went wrong, he'd know by now. That reminded him to look up at the night sky. The bright blueish white moon was almost high, in the middle of the sky. Kal looked around at his people as the night really began to turn exciting for them. Slipping away would not be a problem, so he started making his way towards the Tavern.

The forest behind the war carrier was dark with barely any light. The only source of light was the moon which was enough for Kal to find the wooden Tavern. When he arrived, he was surprised to see Biff and Cliff sitting outside at the table. They were playing their board game, sitting in the same spots they were when they first met. Kal was confused when he saw them. He started really wondering what Iya was up to. He slowly approached the two brothers, walking out of the darkness. They looked up at Kal and smiled, like they were expecting him. When he got to the table he greeted the brothers, "Hey guys, what are you two doing here so late? I thought you all would be at the festival."

Biff didn't say anything to Kal. He just smiled then looked up at Cliff. Kal's attention turned to Cliff as he waved his head to the side, towards the Tavern. He was telling Kal to go inside without saying it. Both brothers giggled as they returned their attention back to their board game. Kal looked inside the Tavern and saw it was lightly dimmed. What was this girl planning? He thought.

As Kal walked inside, he slowly looked around. He whispered out Iya's name hoping she would hear him, "Iya... where are you?" He continued walking slowly through the empty Tavern. To his left, he walked by the long dinning room table where the meeting took place. That was as far as he went, everywhere else is unknown to him. When he turned to his right, Kal saw a narrow hallway where the light was coming from. He called out Iya's name one more time as he turned down the hallway. At the end of the semi long hallway was an old wooden door. It had an old fashion door knob and long black key hole. Kal noticed the door was cracked open a little. As he got closer to the door, he heard Iya whisper back.

"I'm in here..." she said softly but loud enough for Kal to hear.

Kal slowly opened the door with his hand peeking inside before walking in. When he opened the door two hands reached out and grabbed Kal inside the room. It was Iya... she pulled him in for a firm kiss while wrapping her arms around his neck. Kal was happy to taken by surprise. He wrapped one arm Iya and closed the door with the other. He locked the door as he set Iya down to her feet. When he stepped back from her to get a better look, he noticed she was half naked. Iya was just in her under garments.

Kal's mouth slightly opened as he admired what he saw. He thought the room they were in was a little small but he didn't care. Kal reached out to continue kissing Iya when she unexpectedly stopped him. He pulled back a little shocked. Iya took Kal's hand and whispered, "This isn't the surprise... follow me." She guided him to the door that was behind them. Kal didn't even notice the second door. The second old wooden door looked similar to the first. The foyer between the two rooms was small enough to fit about three people. There was no furniture or any place to put your belongings. The only thing that was in the room was a small mat to put your shoes on. Iya looked over her shoulder and said, "Take your shoes off and your clothes. You're not going to need them where we're going... this is sacred ground."

Kal kicked his boots off as Iya opened the mysterious door. "Sacred? Iya, where are we going?" Iya smiled as she continued to guide Kal through the door. There were spiral stairs that led down a narrow stairwell. As they got closer towards the bottom, bright colorful lights started filling the stairwell. Kal stopped a few times trying to figure out where the lights would be coming from. When they reached the bottom of the stairs, Kal was amazed at what he saw.

It was an underground cave with beautiful colorful gems in the walls. The gems were of all sorts from blue, green, yellow and red as well as diamonds glistened from the moon light. There was a small hole on top of the cave that allowed the sunlight and moonlight to shine through. When the light hit the walls all the gems lit up. There was also a small pool of water underneath the hole where water would fall and collect over time. The floor of the cave was soft warm sand which made the cave feel like an underground beach.

Iya watched Kal as he was in awe with how amazingly beautiful the gemmed cave was. He turned his attention back to his half naked princess. Iya stood there was a smirk with her hands crossed behind her back. Behind her was a large fur blanket laid out on top of the sand. Kal was ecstatic, no one has ever done anything like this for him before.

Iya was just as excited but more from Kal's reaction. She knew he would appreciate the scenery as much as she did. "It's breathing taking isn't it? The wall of gems lighting up the whole cave. The sand floor and the small pool of water. That was my first reaction when Cliff brought me down here..."

Kal interrupted, "Cliff brought you down here? By yourself..?"

Iya laughed at Kal, "To show me this cave, silly... to bring someone special down here too. Biff and Cliff are keepers of this cave and they don't just anyone down here. Like I said they consider this cave sacred ground." Kal walked up to Iya as he looked around at the gems covering the walls. "I know I had to bring you down here once they gave me permission. They told me we've brought them good fortune and the cave will do the same for us. It has a sense of magic to it..."

Kal caressed Iya's cheek softly and gently, "It is magical down here... but nothing compares just being alone with you."

Iya smiled turning her face into Kal's hands, "You were right yesterday. We don't get the enjoy the same luxuries. From now on we are, I want you Kalvanius. I want you today, tomorrow, whenever... however. I don't care where we have to sneak off too. I'm not waiting for our festival, I want you now and forever..."

"As many times as you please." Kal leaned in and softly kissed Iya on her lips, "I love you no matter what. Now and forever..."

Their words of affection really turned up the intensity between them. Iya grabbed Kal's hand from her face and let go while walking backwards. As Iya turned around, she was unhooking her bra. She slowly turned her back towards Kal. She extended her arm out and dropped it. Playfully teasing him, she turned looking over her shoulder showing some the side of her breast. Kal tried to hurry up and finish taking off the rest of his clothes. He almost tripped trying to walk and remove his pants at the same time.

With her back still facing Kal, Iya took her index finger and slowly pulled down her cloth panties. The last piece of clothing she had on. Kal stopped just before getting to her and examined every inch of her sexy naked body. Although he'd seen it before, he will never get tired of seeing his love. When he reached her, Kal turned Iya around slowly. He picked her up and walked her to the other side. They laid on the blanket together but Iya got on top this time. She kissed Kal passionately, moving down to his chin line to his neck. She kissed him on his collar bone down to his muscular chest. Iya moved her hips down, positioning herself on top of Kal's waist. She slowly began to rock them back and forth.

Kal sat up after a few minutes and started kissing Iya's chest. Licking and squeezing her breast as she wrapped her arms around his neck. She held on for the ride as he took over, pumping up as he held on to her thighs. He then flipped Iya over to her back and began having her that way. Kal was nowhere near done...

From her back, Kal flipped her over on her knees. With Iya being on all fours, Kal grabbed her by the hips pulling her back to his waist. That was a position they haven't tried before. Iya let out a huge gasp from the sensation. She squeezed the fur from the blanket in her fists as she tried not to scream. Their moans got louder as Kal picked up his speed. He turned her back around and climbed on top missionary style. They kissed fast and intense right before finishing together.

Both were breathing hard as they laid intertwined together into each other's arms. They laid there covered in one another's sweat. The cave was quiet and still... peaceful just for them. They could hear the music playing from the festival back in the market. Tonight was meant for Iya and Kal to spend together. Iya got up from laying in Kal's arms and got the bottle of wine from her bag. She also pulled out two glasses that were wrapped in cloth. When she returned to the fur blanket, they shared their glass of wine still in the nude.

Kal sat up on his elbows as he slowly drink from his cup. He had a look on his face like he was lost in thought. Iya cling her glass against Kal's when she noticed his mood had changed. She leaned over and kissed him on his neck and cheek, "What's wrong? I thought you would be happy..."

"Iya... I don't know what I've ever do without you. If something happened to you or to us. What are we going to do if we get caught? We don't..."

Iya interrupted by placing her index finger over Kal's lips, "We'll worry about that if the time comes. Let's enjoy the time we do have... Like I said earlier, I want you to be with you as often as I can. I'm done caring about what others might think. Yes we'll still have to be discreet but if that times comes. I'll be happy to say I love you."

"Even if your father finds out? Jayce or our military? I don't want to wait I want to shout it out now. I'm serious about making you my wife one day. It's what I most desire..."

Iya grabbed a cloth from her bag and grabbed Kal's hand. She placed her hand on top of his and wrapped the cloth around the both of them. She looked up at Kal, in his bright brown eyes and asked, "This wasn't a part of my original plan but what the hell... Have you ever heard of handfasting?" She tired the cloth around tight and snug. "I bind myself to you, now till the day I die you are my... husband. Say the words back to me."

Kal's heart was pounding, he was shocked and happy Iya wanted to do a such a thing. He gave her a serious look before resiting the words back. "Are you sure?" Kal looked Iya deep into her eyes and saw only bliss.

She smile gently and said, "Yes I'm sure. I told you I want you now and forever..."

"I never imagined this was how the night was going to end for us. Iya you've truly made me the happiest man alive." He squeezed her hand tight while still wrapped, he resiting the words back, "I bind myself you Iya, now and till the day I die you are my wife."

They hugged and kissed with excitement. What they just did could get them in a world of trouble but they didn't care. They were in love. Nothing could stop them now. They made love once again to consummate their handfasting marriage. They didn't truly know or understand the magnitude of their actions if others found out. It was critical they kept it discreet as possible. All they wanted was to be together and not they were more than that now... they were one.

In the back of Kal's mind, he was thinking hard about what Andre Silva had said. Kal knew Silva and his men were after him and Iya. He had a feeling Andre believed that it was more a part of a plot to take him out than his commander. Twice he overheard Silva saying to take him out, and twice Silva came after him. Kal felt in his gut there was more behind all of this than just communication terminals going out. He felt there much more to Gerok's motive to kill him than to kill his own niece. All Kal knew was, he'd gladly give his life to save his wife’s. Nothing would ever come between them now, he thought.

He prayed that night as he wrapped his arms tight around Iya as she slept. He prayed the feeling he had towards Gerok's plan was just paranoia. Deep down he knew this had something to do with Iya but he doesn't know how yet...