What came next continued to sweep through Thal-ion Serr.  Alethea's presence was beyond wonderful...beyond warm and inviting, and he loved staying with her more than anything he had ever previously experienced.  Every breath she took while they lay together was enchantment...another touch in his time with her he would never forget.  The quietness of their snuggling was so perfect that the young Sentinel had absolutely no words to describe such a moment.  The kiss to her neck had been rather startling and pleasant...far more than he had realized was even possible.  Something about this particular kiss seemed to ignite a new flame inside his companion, and it was something he filed away for a later time.  For now was not the time to let their passions roam freely.  He could sense it wasn't...no matter how much he wanted to.  The slow exploring kiss which came after certainly kept his own fire going, and he let her know how much he enjoyed it by simply massaging the back of her neck under her mane of hair.  It was a kiss of appreciation and affection...one he deeply shared with her.<br/><br/>The ship's warning sounded throughout to warn them of their approach to Tatooine.  He gulped hard as he listened to it, but he did not get to think long on the klaxon alarm.  For Alethea suddenly cupped his face and kissed him hard and passionately.  He barely had time to kiss her back in the same fashion...a kiss she was sharing with him to show there would be another time...another place, and that they both would survive what was to come.  Only then did she get up to leave - telling him she would be in the cockpit getting them ready.  Thal-ion could only nod wordlessly as she left, and had to take a long slow deep breath to steady himself.  Never in all his life had he felt so alive as he had in those moments now shared with her in his cabin.  Slowly, he sat up, and ran his fingers through his own mane of red hair.  One breath after another came to restore some measure of balance, but he knew nothing would ever be the same again.  A new door had been opened, and it was one that could not be closed so easily.<br/><br/>Nor did he have any desire to close it.  This particular path now open to them was one he deeply wanted to explore with her, but it meant first making sure they could live like that.  To do that - he needed to focus on the troubles to come, and that meant starting with Tatooine.  Another deep breath came as he brought his attention back to the present, but even as he did so...Alethea was with him.  She always would be now, and to him...there was no greater reward for this precious time spent together as they had.  Some part of him realized that intimacy was not solely confined to the physical, but to the touch of souls and minds as much as anything else.  What had passed between them was powerful...a power he had never known about or explored, but he knew one thing with absolute certainty...<br/><br/>...he would never share such with any other woman in his life.<br/><br/>Running his long sleek fingers through his hair once more; Thal-ion stood up and made his way to the cockpit.  It was time to see what they could do to help the Queen of Naboo and her escort in this newest stage of their strange journey.  With ease, he was soon sitting next to his companion in the co-pilot's chair, and gazing out among the void before the stars returned as she brought them out of hyperspace.  Just ahead of them was the Queen's transport.  He wondered why Qui-gon had chosen this particular place to come to, but the reason was not all that hard to guess.  Here, the Queen's transport might not be so easily recognized, and here they could find the parts needed to fix the transport's hyperdrive without too much extra notice  Both of these things would give them an advantage from anyone trying to find them, but Thal-ion remembered the red and black tattooed Zabrak that attacked them in the hot sands.  Was this at Tatooine where it was to take place?  The young Sentinel frowned slightly in concentration and wondered as his eyes narrowed.  It would certainly have fit the scene.  Tatooine was a desert like world, and he had remembered seeing the Queen's transport in the background.<br/><br/>There had been something briefly mentioned in the annuals of this time period about a lethal Sith Warrior by the name of Darth Maul...a male Zabrak by all accounts.  Now Thal-ion wondered if this was him they might soon be facing.  Yet, after having fought two Sith already; he was not quite as concerned as he once would have been about such a future engagement.  Of course, he had not desire to be over confident either.  Maul would be a truly lethal adversary, and not one to underestimate.  Nor did he have to warn his companion.  She had seen what he had, and she would be wary of such an encounter.  Following the ship down; Thal-ion wondered how things would proceed.  There was nothing in the history of what was to come as far as this particular trip to Tatooine other than the brief mention of a duel between Master Qui-gon and Darth Maul.<br/><br/>"I don't think we should attend them until we have explored this situation more in the Force.  We have no idea what is to come, and a misstep now might very well prove to be a disaster.  No doubt Qui-gon will be glad to leave us behind as we are an unknown factor to him," Thal-ion spoke up even as they prepared to land next to the Naboo Royal Transport.