Chapter 47: Pumpkin and Honey Bunny
                 -----------------------------------

     For a long time, Sascha and Garland sat in silence, staring
dreamily into each other's eyes. 

     "Where have you been all my life?" the young military
commander sighed. 

     "Well, actually, first I was a couple of thousand years in the
past. And then..."

     "Well, nevermind," she interrupted. A crooked smile crept
across her face. "The important thing is, you're here now!" With
this, she grabbed him by the collar of his cape and kissed him full
on the lips.

     "Wow," mumbled Garland, when he was able to disengage his
mouth, "I think I felt the earth move..." Sascha looked around,
momentarily puzzled.

     "That wasn't the earth! That was... the CEILING!" A
loud rumbling, followed by a rain of mortar from above,
confirmed her fears. "The bombing must've caused some structural
instability! These tunnels are going to collapse! What are we going
to do?" Her voice took on a panicky tone.

     "We've got to get out, and fast!" Garland's statement was
punctuated by the total collapse of the section behind them. "Run!"

     Sascha was only too happy to comply, but it seemed that
her legs were moving in slow motion, just like in her childhood
nightmares. She couldn't run fast enough! She was going to die
here, in this horrible sewer! Then, suddenly, she found herself face
down in the foul water. Her foot caught on a crack in the floor. 
"Garland!" she cried out in terror, as another tremor shook the
corridor. All of her fear dissipated, however, when she felt his
arms around her.

     "Don't worry, Sascha," he said as he picked her up, "I won't
let anything happen to you..."

*         *         *         *         *

     About fifteen minutes later, the two star-crossed lovers
stood outside the entrance to the Jidoor Drainage System. The din
of fighting could be heard, but only just barely, over the sound of
Garland gasping for air.

     "Are you all right?" asked Sascha. He couldn't help but
notice how cute she looked when she was worried...

     "Yeah... It's just these heroic antics... take a lot... out of
me..."

     "Oh! You're so sweet!" Sascha smiled adoringly. "But
there's just one thing. I don't want you to think I'm jealous,
but... um, who was that woman you were with?" Garland stopped
panting and looked at his beloved questioningly.

     "Woman? What woman?"

     "You know," she said, staring at the ground," that woman.
The one with the blue hair, and the... legs."

     "Huh?" Then, it clicked in. He fell to the ground laughing.
"You mean KRAKEN!"

     "What? What is it?" Now it was her turn to be confused. 

     "Well," said Garland, wiping tears from his eyes. "I'm sure
_he'll_ be glad to know he has such a nice figure!"

     "Oh... oops."

     At this point, their conversation was interrupted by a series
of small explosions, and the sound of screams from close by.

     "We can't stay here," stated Garland. "There are so many
people around, no one knows whose side anyone is on..."

     "You're right." Sascha seized his hands passionately.
"Come with me back to Doma! You could have anything you
wanted! And... we could be together..." Garland looked into her
intense green eyes. He could see the deep longing in them, and
knew his held the same emotion. How could he resist her?

     "Well... Okay. But how are we going to get out of here
without getting killed?"

     "That part's easy," she replied with a mischievous grin. "I
think I'll introduce you to a friend of mine.... Shade! Show!" 

     The air around them seemed to thicken with a dark fog.
Then, out of the ethereal mist stepped a creature unlike any
Garland had seen before. It looked like a small winged statue,
carved of the darkest obsidian. It looked at him with burning violet
eyes that seemed to radiate the essence of darkness. 'So this is
where the Empire gets its power...' he thought to himself. Then, the
strange creature spoke.

     "You could have contacted me telepathically, Lady DelAubre."

     Sascha smiled, which seemed to unnerve it. The Elemental's eyes
narrowed ever so slightly. "I know," she said, "but I wanted to show
you off. This," she motioned towards Garland, "is Garland, the love
of my life!"

     "I see," it said. "How very... nice."

     "Anyway, what I need is for you to bring a message to the
Defiant. Tell them to come to these coordinates and lower the hook.
I seem to have lost my jetpack along the way..."

     "I swear it shall be done, Mistress." With this, the small
creature departed in the same manner it had come.

     "Weird little guy," said Garland.

     "Ah, you get used to him."

     "So..where's the Defiant?" The sky, as far as he could tell,
was empty. "They'd better hurry up, or we're going to be toasty
oats..."

     "Oh, they're already here," said Sascha, and that crooked
grin appeared again. "You just have to know where to
look... _Kravshera Amquildan!_ ShadowCloak, engage!" Darkness
folded around the young couple, and Garland found himself for the
first time in the realm of Shade.

     "What is this place?"

     "The Shadowlands," she replied casually, as if they were
not in the plane of Eternal Darkness. "This is how we were able to
attack the Returners by surprise every time. Look up." Above them
was the fleet of the Empire. One of the ships, a sleek black craft,
was angling towards their position. "Here comes the Defiant,"
Sascha continued, with more than a note of pride in her voice. "I
can't wait to show her to you!" As Garland watched, the craft
lowered a large hook down to the ground. "Now," said Sascha, as
she grabbed the thick cord, "you just hang on to me!" At these
words, Garland's spirits regained their former buoyancy.

     "That," he replied, with a devilish grin, "will NOT be a
problem!"

*         *         *         *         *

     "And this is the Magic Missile Battery!" Sascha's arm made
a grand arc, indicating a large sophisticated-looking machine.
"And that concludes our tour!" she giggled. "So, what do you
think?"

     "She's an impressive ship, all right," said Garland. "But
nowhere near as impressive as her commander..." He smiled
winningly and put his arms around her waist. Unfortunately, his
romantic overtures were interrupted by an all-too familiar voice.

     "Umm, ahem, er, that is, excuse me, Lady DelAubre, but,
ah, we, um, kind of need to know what your orders are..."

     "Mason!" shouted Garland spinning around to face him.

     "You!" spat the soldier, glaring at him fiercely.

     "Oh good," said Sascha, "you two already know each other.
Now, now, play nice! Mason, assemble the men on the lower flight
deck, and I will dispense the new directive there."

     "Right," said Mason tightly. With a final glare at his
nemesis, he turned and exited.

     "Oh well," sighed Sascha wistfully. "It would appear that
duty calls. Shall we?"

*         *         *         *         *

     Lieutenant Thomas Oliver stood impatiently on the flight
deck, wondering why they couldn't ever have chairs at one of these
briefings. Heck, he'd almost given his life for the Empire down
there today! The least they could do was give him something to sit
on. Looking around, he could see that the rest of the soldiers were
equally uncomfortable. There were quite a few of them, too.
Unlike some divisions, Defiant Squadron had been able to get out
of Jidoor with minimal losses...His train of thought was interrupted
when Commander Mason bustled in.

     "Attention!" the officer barked. "Her Excellency, Co-
Supreme Commander of the New Imperial Army, Lady Sascha
DelAubre, has arrived!" After introducing his superior, Mason
stood aside. Oliver craned his neck to get a better view of the C in
C. He'd always thought she was a babe...But who was that with
her? A man in a violet cloak. Why did he look so familiar? Wasn't
he one of the...Returners?

     "Good afternoon, loyal subjects of the Empire!" Sascha
intoned. "You have indeed fought well today! Our main objective,
the destruction of the Returner base, has been completed! With
this in mind, we must consider our losses to be...acceptable. Your
new orders, as well as those of the rest of the fleet, are now to
recover all remaining troops from the ground, and return to base
under cloak." There was a murmur of assent through the soldiers.
"And now," she continued, "on a lighter note, I have someone I'd
like to introduce to you. This," she motioned to the man at her
side, "is Garland, my..." Here her voice took on a dreamy cadence.
"... soul mate. He will be with us from now on. You will obey his
orders as you would mine. That is all." With this, she took the
stranger's arm, and left the deck. With her exit, a murmur of
confusion spread through the ranks. A lieutenant next to Oliver
turned to him with a questioning look.

     "Who was that guy?" he asked.

     "Beats the heck out of me..." answered Oliver, "but I think
he might be... a Returner..."

     Someone behind him spoke up. "She sure is acting weird. Not
her usual nasty self...."

     "If you ask me, I think she's been into the Romulan
Mushrooms..."

*         *         *         *         *

     "Oh Garland! Everything is working out so wonderfully!"
exclaimed Sascha. The two were sitting on a sofa in her quarters,
enjoying a late lunch. "Who would ever have thought I'd meet
someone as perfect as you..."

     "You're no slouch yourself, Sascha..."

     "Mmmmm... This is going to be fabulous! With you at my side, the
Empire will be invincible! We can rule the world together! It's so...
romantic..." She looked up into his violet eyes, and sighed blissfully.

     "I love you, Pumpkin."

     "I love you, Honey Bunny."