Beyond - Legends Keeping the Light Burning - NJO AU - H/L, L/M, OCs, CCs - COMPLETE!

Gemma Anak and Mikayla are the long lived ones and yes Mikayla acted as a blood cleanser for Mara.

Nyota's Heart well the future is fluid and at the same time there are a events that a predestined to happen; at least that's how I see it.


Hey guys, sorry that I’ve not updated this sooner. I have been working on it but was stuck and then the beginning of the week happened. Monday evening one of our goats had triplets. One of the babies wasn’t well and that was worrying us and then sometime during the night of Tuesday/Wednesday their mother died. So then we were in a frenzy to not only find someone to take the babies in but to take the other goat since they are herd animals. The babies are in the care of someone that has milking goats so the babies won’t starve and we found someone to take the other one last night.

Then this morning I had an appointment with a neurologist to see what I should be doing and looking for my Neurofibromatosis. It went well, unless every time he stabbed me with that safety pin I was supposed to say that the pain was sharp on my hands and dull on my arms. Either way I have to look forward to an MRI and an EMG Scan.

I’m fine beyond the emotional distress and the nerves of doing something that I haven’t done in over twenty years.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Eras, three days later . . .

Shang watched as Adra descended the ramp of the supply ship with Mara Skywalker, Leia Solo, a few children and a bunch of cargo droids.

He could tell that something was bothering Adra.

“What is it?” he asked her once she was closer.

“Find Tisha Skywlker and bring her to our private chamber.” Adra told him as she walked passed him.

“Adra, what happened?” he asked as he hurried after her.

“I would rather say what I am about to say as few times as possible to the right beings.” Adra informed him simply.

Breaking away from his usually calm wife Shang set off to find Tisha Skywalker; his mind abuzz with possibilities. It could be anything to bio warfare to refugee relocation.

It didn’t take him long to find Tisha going over the medical records of the newly arrived Jedi. He didn’t want to interrupt her but Adra told him to get her.

“Tisha,” he called out, “Adra wants to see you.”

“Did she say why?” Tisha asked as she set the datapads aside.

“Only that she didn’t want repeat it too many times.” Shang responded.

“Tei, please place these in my office.” Tisha called out as she started to follow him.

With little effort the pair made their way through their home and hurried up the long flight of stairs. Years ago he and many other ghosts had dragged one of Sidious’s servants down these stairs to the lower levels and tore away his identity before implanting new ones and setting him loose on the galaxy. Even if Sidious had by some miracle found his servant he would be useless to the Sith Master and unable to explain why he had no memories of being trained in the ways of the Force.

It had been most enjoyable to get back at the Sith.

Shang wondered some days where and how the former Hand was doing but they hadn’t thought to track Moritz Holt after they turned him loose with a new identity.

Finally he and Tisha entered his and Adra’s private chamber and found Adra standing next to a table looking at a collection of what appeared to be devices meant for holos and holo recordings.

“Shut and lock the door.” Adra ordered Tisha softly as the Healer crossed the threshold on the heels of Shang.

Shang watched as Adra played with the devices before she let out a long, loud sigh. “I learned the fates of Anak and Mikayla.” Adra told them; her voice didn’t betray anything.

“They didn’t perish the same day we did. They survived and fled Eras a few days later. Don Darklighter married them on Coruscant.” Adra continued flatly.

Shang knew then that something was wrong. Something terrible must have happened to the young Ashlans for Adra to use the tone she was using.

Carefully Adra picked up a holo recording and pressed a button and a holo sprang to life showing Anak and Mikayla with three beautiful children playing.

There was no audio but Shang could tell that the children were playing Piko, a game of balance and hopping. He could see joy and laughter in their eyes. Their two sons were handsome and their daughter looked like she would one day be a true beauty.

He watched as Tisha slowly reached out with a hand to touch the holographic images of her son and his family.

“Something terrible must have happened to them.” Tisha whispered softly. “You wouldn’t be so distraught unless something terrible happened to them.”

Shang locked eyes with his wife and saw her slowly nod her head.

Tisha looked straight into the eyes of the High Priestess. “Did the Sith find them and-” she started to ask only for Adra to shake her head slowly but oddly emphatically.

“No, the Sith never found them or discovered that they were members of our Order.” Adra said as she turned off the recording.

Using his powers Shang called one of the holo devices to him and activated it. Immediately a holo recording of a decent sized sitting area sprang to life.

“Momma?” a child’s voice asked as the holo recording shifted to show a small girl that looked to be three or so standard years old.

“Yes Leia?” a more mature sounding Mikayla responded somewhere out of view.

“I want a baby sister.” The girl, Leia, stated.

Mikayla laughed, sounding amused but sad.

“Just because you want a baby sister doesn’t mean that you will get one.” Mikayla informed her daughter. “You might get more brothers.”

Leia frowned.

“I feel that the next baby will be a girl.” Leia declared with a bright smile.

“You do?” Mikayla asked; her voice wasn’t as steady as it had been a few moments ago.

“Yah, a baby sister,” Leia declared.

There was silence.

“Momma, you and daddy seem different and Luke and Edge agree with me.” Leia said.

“Oh?” Mikayla asked gently.

“Yah, when the old speeder was stolen you and daddy were upset. Then Edge said that you and daddy were having nightmares about a speeder accident. He said he could hear the sound of metal on metal and daddy being slammed against the yoke in the speeder and your neck looked funny.”

“It was only a horrible nightmare.” Mikayla whispered; her voice breaking ever so slightly.

Slowly Leia smiled brightly, looking presumably at her mother. “I’m glad.” The child said before hugging her mother.

Puzzled Shang turned off the recording and moved it back to the table before calling another one to him.

This one was a holo of the family when the children were older and the eldest was holding a piloting certificate for freighter class starships. After a bit the holo switched to show the middle child holding a piloting certificate for freighter class starships while the eldest held a certificate for passing a business class. It shifted again to show the youngest, Leia, holding her freighter class piloting certificate while her older brother had a mechanic certificate saying that he could do repairs and maintenance for most freighter class starships.

There were a few other holos on the holo album showing the children getting married and a few grandchildren before abruptly showing holos of random people including holos of Anakin Skywalker, his children and their children.

“Anak and Mikayla are Shunned Ones.” Adra stated gently. “One day they were driving in their speeder when they were cut off by another speeder. There were faults with the speeder and they would have been killed if they weren’t Shunned Ones.”

Shang called the nearest chair to hi and sank into it. He had known long ago that Mikayla would do something foolish but something that would cause Ashla/Bogden to make her a Shunned One was something he had never considered.

Xxxxxxxxx

Mara had hugged all of her daughters, spoken to her apprentice and reviewed some of the training recordings with Leia but she still couldn’t wrap her mind around the concept that Mika and Nak were so old or had been around for so long.

Mara had seen with her own eyes as Mika’s injuries had healed; repairing both shattered bones and deep wounds. Then Nak had come in and blocked lightsaber blades with his bare hands before allowing himself to be stabbed in the gut with one.

It had been horrifying.

They had filled in some gaps about themselves and what they had been doing for the past one thousand years: freelance freighters and members of ship maintenance crews. They had ‘died’ countless of times both to hide what they were and because they had chosen to seemingly kill themselves to protect others. They had even admitted to trying different ways to end their existence or seeing what they could survive.

Mara could imagine ramming a large capitol ship with a smaller ship in an effort to save lives or possibly turn the tide of a battle but to purposely blow herself out of an airlock just to see if it would kill her and if not than see how aware she was during the experience was horrifying.

Closing her eyes for a few moments she let the Force wash away the memories and emotions. She needed to focus on the here and now. She had an apprentice to train, daughters to look after and protect.

As she released a breath she Sensed something in the Force that Felt simple yet complex. Confused Mara searched the Force for a nearby animal and found a few small rodents hiding in the walls but none were the presence she had momentarily Sensed.

Slowly shaking her head she sent a silent prayer to the Force to keep her family safe and that the war would end soon.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Yeah, not much happened but I think I have my footing again for this and I think that next time I will do a good sized time jump.

Part of me is tempted to do the unthinkable and in two or three chapters wrap everything up.


Anyway the last part hints that there is a son for Mara and Luke.

 

Nice scene of revelations with Adra and Shang I liked the recording of Leia talking with Mikayla. Squee on what Mara was sensing.

 

Finally, I caught up. And even though I have taken strong pain killers due to my hurt foot, I enjoyed this update (and the others before that) immensely.

As she released a breath she Sensed something in the Force that Felt simple yet complex. Confused Mara searched the Force for a nearby animal and found a few small rodents hiding in the walls but none were the presence she had momentarily Sensed.

Slowly shaking her head she sent a silent prayer to the Force to keep her family safe and that the war would end soon.

Especially this part was beautiful.

 

Nyota's Heart thanks!

AzureAngel2 she won't learn the meaning of it for a bit but she'll be happy!

Gemma you've missed a couple updates.


Well, a little longer than usual but that’s great. And guess what today is? My birthday! I just turned twenty-seven years old!

I just want to apologize up front for any really odd stuff during the Vergere piece. The story that Yoda tells her I cut at one point since I wasn’t sure if it fit with the rest of the discussion there but I decided to do some tweaking of the story and now it seems to fit much better but there still might be some bumps with the conversation with Vergere and I apologize for them. She really is a complicated character and trying to discuss her motives was difficult.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Coruscant, Jedi Temple, one week later . . .

Vergere was lonely.

Master Yoda hadn’t spoken to her in a few days and the Guardians had barely uttered a single word to her. She had asked them questions and depending on the question they would give her an answer but it was usually short and not very descriptive.

She had tried to learn their names but they had refused to give them.

She had grown used to listening to Master Yoda talking about various neutral subjects. He talked a bit about his training and different missions he had been on. He had even told her several stories from when he was a Knight.

However Masters Yoda and Windu had visited her along with other to specifically ask her what she had done and endured during her decades with the Vuuzhan Vong and whether or not she had given the Vong any information that could lead to the loss of untold lives. She had replied that she had not revealed major details to the Vong but that she had dropped hints and guided a few of the War Masters.

Alone Master Yoda accompanied by the Dark Guardian had asked her about how she had come to her conclusions about the Dark Side and what she had been planning to do with it. She had explained how she had come to the realization that there never was a Dark Side after observing how the Vong trained their students whether they were in the Warrior Sect or in the Priest Sect. The instructors had done horrible things to their students in an effort to make them stronger and better. In some ways their actions hadn’t been much different from those of her instructors and Master.

Then she had thought of how she had been taught to fear the Dark Side as a Youngling and a Padawan. It had seemed so strange to her that she should fear something that fed on fear. She had thought long and hard on it and wondered if perhaps the Jedi had been wrong about the nature of the Force. She had meditated on it and wondered about it for several years before she concluded that the Dark Side didn’t exist; that one was only in danger if their intentions weren’t pure.

The Dark Guardian had fallen to the floor because he was laughing so hard. She had been angry that he was laughing at her and had informed him that she expected someone that had supposedly joined the Dark Side to know about intentions. He called her an ignorant child that didn’t know the dangers of the galaxy.

At that point Master Yoda had sent the Dark Guardian away and another Guardian replaced him. Master Yoda had then talked to her about the possible dangers of believing that the end justifies the means and how that it could lead her down a Dark and twisted path.

She had scoffed at the idea and told him that he was just afraid of being wrong about the nature of the Force. However a small part of her wondered if maybe she herself was wrong and the supposed Sith and Master Yoda were right.

The door opened suddenly, disturbing her thoughts, admitting Master Yoda and the Dark Guardian.

“Master Yoda,” she greeted politely.

“Vergere, well are you?” Master Yoda asked.

“I am well Master Yoda,” she replied.

“Feed you do they remember?” he asked.

Vergere nodded.

The other Guardians from what she could gather barely cared if she lived or died. Their attitude seemed to be that she was a traitor worse than the Dark Guardian and most of the time ignored her unless it was to bring her food; she had only seen a living Jedi once and that had been Luke Skywalker not long after she had been placed in the Gray Room.

Part of her didn’t blame them since she was with the enemy and had admitted to giving the enemy aid in fighting them.

“Story I have for you. Cheer you up it might.” Master Yoda said as he set his cane on the floor before he sat in a meditative position in front of the Ray Shield.

She blinked in surprise. She thought that Master Yoda might want to know more about her new philosophy or try to get more details about her time with the Vong out of her.

“A long time ago now, a decade after my Knighting, sent to patrol the grounds of the Senate at night I and my apprentice Airen Bosco were.” Master Yoda began, a small, fond, smile. “At first quiet the night was when interrupted the silence of the night was by loud singing.”

Master Yoda now had an amused expression on his face.

“Investigate I and my apprentice did and found a drunk humanoid trio we did. Singing the Galactic Republic’s Anthem the lone female was to the wrong tune with provide a vocal rhythm one of the males was. Singing an odd song the other male was; something about the desired traits of a ‘tar’. So drunk they were in public started to disrobe themselves they did but stopped they were by security.”

The Dark Guardian had made a coughing noise indicating that he was stifling laughter.

Master Yoda paused for a moment to let the Dark Guardian gain control again. Vergere watched though as his expression fell and he looked troubled and weighed down by sorrow and guilt.

“Say something disturbing to me the female did before pushed into the security speeder. ‘The galaxy is going to burn Master Jedi. The Shadow is waiting for the opportune moment to strike. Will you and the Jedi be ready? Or will you and the survivors be helpless to watch the galaxy burn and be consumed by the Shadow?’ She told me. Disappear she and her companions did before more questions we could think to ask of them.” Master Yoda finished.

A slightly uncomfortable silence fell between them as Vergere tried to take in the story. It wasn’t uncommon for highly Force Sensitive individuals to be missed by the Jedi Order. Some were born outside of the control of the Republic or born into rich families that had their child’s Midi-Chlorian Counts fudged so that they could either have an heir or because they simply didn’t like the Jedi.

“So there was no record of them?” she asked.

Master Yoda chuckled.

“Records yes, but know that we did not.” He answered cryptically.

Frowning Vergere wondered what he meant by that phrase.

Instead the words of Master Yoda’s mystery woman ran in her mind. It apparently had been a warning given centuries before the Shadow, the Sith, struck at the Republic.

“Have you come to any conclusions about her warning Master?” she asked, curious.

Solemnly he nodded.

“Warned I was then of the threat of the Sith but blinded we were to the facts. Prideful we were in our abilities and knowledge. Think we did that know we would if return the Sith did or any other great threat to the galaxy. Fools we were.” Master Yoda lamented.

“How do you know that?” Vergere asked, “I thought you couldn’t find her to ask her about what she had told you.”

Master Yoda and the Dark Guardian laughed a bit.

“Recently opportunity I had to ask her about the warning she gave me. Wished to know I did why tell me she did. Told me barely remember telling me something prophetic, too drunk to remember she said.” He answered.

“How was that possible seeing that she was a humanoid and encountered you about eight hundred years ago? Unless she is dead, was put in stasis or like you and the Guardians you couldn’t have met her again let alone asked her your question.” She almost demanded.

“You are not ready for that answer.” The Dark Guardian stated.

After a few minutes passed Vergere decided to ask the Dark Guardian, as she called him since she didn’t know what else to call him, a question that had begun to prey on her mind recently. The Dark Guardian claimed to have joined the Dark Side and the Sith but yet here he was guarding the Jedi Temple and he didn’t Feel like one would expect a Sith let alone a Dark Sider to Feel in the Force. Sure there were eddies of gray but those appeared to be his emotions not his True Nature.

Perhaps someone who claimed to have had walked the Dark Path could help her find any errors in her thinking even though part of her doubted it. He had insulted her thinking but she needed to know more.

Mustering up her courage she looked at the Dark Guardian and decided to ask her questions before she lost the nerve to ask her question. “Dark Guardian,” The Dark Guardian started slightly; no doubt surprised that she had addressed him in such a manner. “You claim to have walked the Path of the Dark Side as a Sith Lord am I in as much danger as you and Master Yoda claim?” She asked

“Yes Vergere, you are in grave danger. The end never justifies the means and it is one of the means that you can be ensnared by the Dark Side. You tell yourself that there is nothing wrong with your actions because you are saving lives by choking that helpless prisoner or not keeping a tighter grip on your anger or hate. It is one way that the Dark Side erodes at our morals until they become questionable or downright wrong. This is one way I was left open to the Dark Side. I had justified some of my actions before my Fall to the Dark Side. If I was saving lives what did it matter that I used the Force to choke that prisoner to get the information that we needed to save said lives?

“What I could not see was that I was compromising myself to save sometimes just a handful of beings by Dark means. It also became easier to continue to justify Dark actions when the end justifies the means and you start to allow yourself to consider some fairly Dark options because you can’t see how far you have Fallen.”

He looked right at her.

“If we hadn’t captured you when we did you could have done untold damage to the galaxy by teaching an unsuspecting Force Sensitive or a young Jedi still learning about the Force. Darkness might have been given a foothold to try once again blanket the galaxy in Darkness and despair.” He informed her almost flatly.

“If you joined the Dark Side and became a Sith Lord then how and why are you here?” Vergere asked.

The Dark Guardian hesitated but slowly nodded his head.

“I did something that is for anyone that starts down the Dark Path impossible: I returned from the Dark Side. Unlike so many of my fellow Dark Siders I felt regret for my actions and never fully embraced the Dark Side. I was full of self-hatred and in so many ways was empty of any other emotion. I had nothing and nowhere to go so I served Darth Sidious. Many of them either enjoyed the power that the Dark Side granted them, couldn’t or wouldn’t let go of their hate or had long ago deluded themselves to the point that they truly believed that they were doing the right thing.” He responded.

Vergere blinked.

“So you managed to return to the Light because you felt guilt for your actions?” She asked; trying and failing to hide her skepticism.

“Yes and no,” he answered. “I had to let go of my self-hatred and forgive myself for what I had done to myself. I also wasn’t about to watch my Sith Master murder my son in front of me as he begged for my help.”

“You have a son?” she asked, she hadn’t thought that he had a child. It went against the teachings of both the Jedi and Sith.

“I have two children and grandchildren; not only do I love them but I have been charged with protecting the Jedi Order from internal and external threats.” The Dark Guardian stated.

“Think of the cost of the Darkness. I never really knew my children and never had a hand in raising them. I became tempted by the Darkness; thinking that it had the answer to help save the woman I loved. Instead I was one of the reasons my wife died and my family was broken. At the time I didn’t know that my children were alive so I gave in to pain, despair and self-hatred.” The Dark Guardian informed her icily.

Vergere’s eyes widened in horror as the Dark Guardian’s words sank in. She moved away from the Ray Shield in unashamed fear. “You are Lord Darth Vader!” she gasped.

“Yes, that was my Sith name.” He answered with a nod.

“Now that you have heard the dangers of the Dark Side from the lips of a former Sith will you reconsider what you are doing?” He asked.

A deep silence fell in the room as she processed what he had said to her. It left her feeling strangely empty as his words rang in her thoughts. She Felt the truth of his words and knew that she couldn’t refute his words.

Slowly she lowered her head so they couldn’t see the tears that were beginning to form.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Eras, one month later . . .

Jacen was doing his best to not grimace at the food on his plate. It looked like grey weave mixed with sand and smelled like he imagined dying plants would smell like.

A few days ago they were all informed that there would be no more outgoing communications and no more unnecessary ships entering the system for that matter. They would be tight on supplies for a while since they hadn’t originally planned for fewer beings then had shown up. This just meant that food wouldn’t taste the greatest for a month or so.

His oldest brother Bail thought that it was great since this would help them prepare for the harder missions that were sure to come in the future.

Sighing Jacen lifted a spoon full of the goop to his mouth and with a tight grip on the Force closed his mouth around the spoon and tasted the stuff. It was mostly tasteless, something he hadn’t been expecting, and had the texture of cooked grains.

It didn’t mean that he liked it but that least it was tolerable.

Out of the corner of his eye he saw his younger siblings and cousins milling around a table chattering with other students.

A smile slowly formed on his face as he thought of his mother and newborn sisters; Dalia and Dana. They were really tiny and his mother had decided to stay mostly in their assigned area until the twins were three standard months old.

Tenel Ka had more than once expressed just how jealous she was of him and Jaina. She apparently didn’t have any younger siblings and wanted one for years. He and Jaina had informed them on countless occasions with others that younger siblings could be fun but annoyances as well.

“Is the food good?” young Luke Moondancer asked.

Jacen managed to not jerk in surprise at the sound of the Force Spirit’s voice. It wasn’t rare for Force Spirits or Ghosts to sneak up on the Living but usually they made their presence known.

“Tastes better than it looks,” Jacen answered.

The young Spirit laughed as he settled onto the bench opposite of Jacen; a bright, infectious grin on his face. “Guess what?” he asked him.

Jacen was silent for a few moments as he tried to think of what could have excited the Force Spirit. He really was still getting to know Luke but knew that the young man was a bit of a jokester.

“Ah, you rearranged some of the statutes in the gardens?” Jacen guessed. Luke shook his head in the negative and his smile widened. “You managed to beat my Jaina’s high score on the flight simulator?” Another negative shake, Jacen sighed and made another guess. “You saw my brother, Bail and Ailyn Jixton kissing in some secluded corridor?”

Luke laughed as he shook his head.

Jacen frowned. “Did you beat Jimmu Avakian’s high score on Ga’Aysa?” He knew that the young Spirit had vowed to topple Jimmu’s high score after the Mirialan adolescent had beaten his high score.

Luke laughed shortly. “I wish; give up?”

Jacen nodded as he took another bite of his food.

“My sister survived the Sith’s attack on us!” Luke announced; his voice and face were full of excitement. She got married, had three children making me an uncle!”

Jacen stared at the Spirit. He really wasn’t sure what he had been expecting but he was happy for Luke.

“It must be nice to know what happened to her after so many years of not knowing.” Jacen said after a moment of silence.

The Spirit’s smile widened as he nodded enthusiastically.

“Want to see her?” He asked Jacen.

“Sure,” Jacen answered; not wanting to deflate the Spirit’s good mood.

Luke closed his eyes and Jacen’s mouth opened slightly as an image of a lovely, vaguely familiar looking woman shimmered into existence beside the Spirit. The Force Image was full color and highly detailed; Jacen could see the designs decorating the beads in her braids.

She was very pretty and must have had many guys asking to date or court her. However the more he looked at the image the more he felt that he had seen her somewhere before. It was impossible for him to have met her though seeing that she would have died over a thousand years ago.

“It’s a pity though that her face was scarred from the shards of transparisteel when some Sith threw her through a window.” Luke said as the image of his sister vanished.

“I’ve seen an Ashlan woman with scars on her face from transparisteel. She still is pretty despite the scarring and her husband doesn’t seem to care either.” Jacen told Luke.

“Is she from Inamreg?” Luke asked, curious.

“I don’t think she and her husband are from Inamreg. They don’t seem to have roots; just a large collection of really old ships along with stories, tales and legends.” Jacen replied.

“Huh,” Luke said after a moment. “I wonder if my ancestors created another haven for our people and your Ashlan friends came from there. Did she show you her Lineage Braids and tell you which families each bead represented?”

Jacen was silent for a few minutes as he remembered each and every bead that was either strung in the braid itself or dangled from the ends. He recognized a good number of the beads from when his mother stylized her hair after their Ashlan ancestors.

“I think she has Starlight, Moondancer, Darklighter, Stardust and Whitesun beads strung in her hair with Windwalker and Pathfinder dangling at the end of her Lineage Braids. Mika and her husband don’t talk about their families but I do know that they had a son named Luke and that he died some time ago.” Jacen informed Luke after a minute.

“Luke isn’t an uncommon name among us so it can’t be used to trace where she and her husband could have lived before becoming wanderers. Families also intermarry often so only the most important or recent families have their Lineage Beads displayed. Darklighter is the most common family so no help there.” Luke responded.

“Excuse me, Luke Moondancer, but I have a question that I hope you can answer.” A gentle, feminine voice stated.

Jacen looked at Aditi Grunewald who was standing a short distance away.

“Why are you asking me and not one of the Priests or Priestesses?” Luke asked Aditi.

“I am afraid to ask them because it seems silly on the surface.” She confessed. “In any of your lore do have beings that can’t be killed and if injured their injuries heal in a blink of an eye?” She asked slowly.

“Why do you ask?” Luke queried.

“I saw someone that is an Ashlan be crushed by a bunch of crates. I watched as his Ashlan wife used the Force to lift the crates off of him and set a broken leg and his crushed arm healed right before my eyes.” Aditi explained.

Jacen watched as Luke’s face paled.

“A Shunned One, an Unkillable, a Cursed One and many more names.” He breathed in a mixture of horror, confusion and some awe. “They are Cursed by Ashla and Bogden to wander the galaxy for an unknown number of millennia for asking for horrible things. There are stories that Ashla and Bogden cursed Keila Darklighter was given such a sentence when she stripped our people their heritage but if she was supposedly she was released several millennia ago.” Luke continued thoughtfully.

“What are their names?” Luke asked.

“Nak and Mika Skywalker,” Aditi responded.

Jacen’s jaw dropped. He knew that they were different but to say that they were unkillable seemed to be a stretch.

“Do you have a holo of them?” Luke asked Aditi.

She nodded and retrieved a holo storage device from a pouch on her belt. She activated and Luke gasped in shocked horror.

“There has to be a mistake,” he stated.

“No that’s Mika and her husband.” Jacen said.

Luke looked at him with tears threatening to fall from his eyes. “That’s my sister Mikayla and Tisha Starstone Skywalker’s son Anak.” He stated as his face crumbled.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Wow!


Okay, I think KtLB is beginning to come to a close even if nothing really happened in this chapter. Probably another three or so chapters it depending on what happens in those chapters.

 

Great scene with Yoda, Vergere and the "Dark Guardian." You did excellently expounding on her motives and the philosophical debate over the nature of Darkness and the real consequences of losing your moral compass.

 

“What I could not see was that I was compromising myself to save sometimes just a handful of beings by Dark means. It also became easier to continue to justify Dark actions when the end justifies the means and you start to allow yourself to consider some fairly Dark options because you can’t see how far you have Fallen.”

Yes, this chapter was long, but you put a lot of brilliant dialogues and self-reflections in it. Well thought through and done!

 

Nyota's Heart thank you, I tried to think of what her motives were and what might have driven her to do what she did.
AzureAngel2 thanks.


Sorry for the lack of an update. I was hung up on a couple of things, visiting family in Virginia and then uninspired.

This is almost over.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Unnamed World, Outer Rim, Vong Held Space, two months later . . .

They were losing.

Every day the news of another horrific defeat came in and they were slowly being pushed back. On one planet all but one warrior had been felled by one of the fearsome unkillable warriors that lived in this galaxy. Like all of the other warriors that were left alive by these immortal fighters he had been told to inform his leaders to either leave the galaxy or surrender to the forces of the Republic. If the Yuuzhan Vong didn’t surrender or leave then they would all be destroyed.

Supreme Overlord Shimrra had ordered the all of survivors to be killed after the fourth one gave the same warning as the three before him and forbade anyone from passing on the knowledge of these immortal warriors to anyone that wouldn’t possibly face them; except for the Shapers who had been ordered to attempt to replicate it.

The Shapers involved in the attempt to replicate the phenomenon failed miserably and had begged the Supreme Overlord for more time but he killed them for their failure.

Somehow the knowledge of the immortal warriors that fought for the inhabitances of this galaxy had been passed on to all of the castes and there was talk of how they must have angered the Gods. So many Warriors had refused to fight in a war that wouldn’t bring glory to the Gods or their people while young Shapers when they heard what had happened to their friends and teachers became afraid that they would be asked to work on the impossible task of creating warriors capable of surviving the same way that the infamous immortal warriors were and many threatened to take their own lives if they were asked.

They couldn’t win a war if they couldn’t get the warriors to fight against foes that couldn’t be killed or the Shapers to do their jobs.

The Supreme Overlord had ordered an extensive search to find the culprit behind the leak but it turned out to be unfruitful.

Maybe the Gods had truly abandoned them and this was their punishment for killing their original home and invading this galaxy.

It was a frightening thing to think that the Gods had turned away from them.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

Unnamed Planet; Code Name: Starburst, Outer Rim, Republic Held Space, one month later . . .

Wedge Antilles watched as the Ghosts and their living helpers milled around the room as they waited for someone on Coruscant to answer their holocall.

It reminded him a bit of the atmosphere on Home One before the meeting about the Death Star; tense, excited, hopeful and determination.

The hastily built hangars were filled with ships of all shapes, sizes and for various purposes. A couple of the hangars were filled with really old ships; some of them he was sure were easily over a thousand years old if not more. He wondered where those beauties had come from and what they would be used for.

There was talk of making direct attacks on the Vong if they refused to leave or surrender.

“Did you see that large collection of old ships in about half the hangars?” a feminine voice asks no one in particular.

“I did, it looks like some bizarre space ship museum with ships from different eras and for different purposes.” A masculine voice answered. “I saw a couple of rare ones that are worth several decent sized fortunes.”

Wedge couldn’t help but whistle upon hearing that. He had heard that some older ships were worth a lot but worth a fortune? It was always shocking to hear such things.

“You hear that Bien-aimé, some of our ships are worth several fortunes.” A familiar male’s voice stated.

Wedge turned and smiled when he saw Nak and his wife Mika.

“I didn’t know that you owned a virtual fleet of ships.” Wedge commented to the freelance freighters.

“There’s a lot that you don’t know about us.” Nak told him with a slight smile.

“The plan is to load x amount of the ships with containers of Rhydonium and have them piloted by droids to purposely collide with Vong Ships.” Mika informed him and the others in the room.

“I think it’s a brilliant plan.” Wrenga Jixton stated with his trademark grin. “Even if some of the ships are destroyed they will still cause some damage like at that war conference in orbit of Carida during the Clone Wars when the Seps hijacked a Republic Star Destroyer and filled it with Rhydonium in hopes of crippling the Republic’s war effort.”

“I remember that meeting,” one of the Temple Guardians commented. “Almost all of the Jedi Council was there with several Jedi Generals and most of the top leaders of the Republic Military with a couple of senators. It would have been a terrible blow if the Republic if that plot had succeeded.”

Wedge shuddered at the thought if Palpatine had managed to kill so many important military figures that day. He might have taken power much sooner than he did and there could have been much harsher consequences; maybe the Rebellion would have failed to started.

Xxxxxxx

Two hours later . . .

Luke stared down at a hangar teeming with ships, beings, droids and equipment from a catwalk.

The day was fast approaching that they would attack the strongholds of the Vuuzhan Vong. They would win; the Force had shown him so. Some of the Vong leaders would surrender since they knew that they couldn’t hope to stand against them and survive.

However, his father had said something to him that didn’t make complete sense. He told Luke that there were beings that would be coming to decide the fate of the Yuuzhan Vong.

He had asked his father who they were only to told that he knew them and it wouldn’t be wise to anger the.

For now he was choosing to not dwell on why his father who was normally straightforward person decided to be secretive and speak in riddles.

He turned his thoughts away from the upcoming battle and thought about how much he was looking forward to having his wife and daughters at home again. The last time he had conversed with Mara through the Force she had heavily hinted that their long awaited son was on the way.

“All personal prepare to board your respectful ships. The Final countdown will begin in three hours.” A strong masculine voice announced on the base’s PA System.

Closing his eyes for a few moments he found peace in the Force and turned to head for the Defender.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

For those that are interested I did post a one-shot that takes place after this by about a year. It’s sort of Halloween inspired with some of the older students trying to choose a movie to watch.

 

Like the feeling of preparedness for victory contrasted with the sense of upcoming defeat on the other side.

 

You never fail to intrigue me, Lady_Misty. You give old concepts a totally new coat & twist them around. Adding a lot of mystery & suspense in.

 

This is a brilliant thread & I love your talent as a fanfic writer. But I am leaving the boards & I am sorry not to be able to comment any more. This way I just want to say good-bye! And I am not sure if I ever come back! After I received an important PM today, I understood that it is better to leave all behind. Even fanfic!

 

Nyota's Heart thank you! I tried for that feeling and I'm glad I was able to hit the nail on the head.

AzureAngel2 thanks for your kind words, I hope I continue to surprise you! I enjoy all reviews I get.



The last chapter of the year 2015!

I will warn everyone that this ends with a cliffhanger.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Uninhabited planet, Wild Space, two months later . . .

Wedge Antilles stared down at the rocky world that the Guardians had suggested that they maroon the Vong on. They had succeeded in delivering the Vong a major blow. Luke Skywalker had led a group of Jedi into the stronghold of the Vong’s Supreme Overlord and had killed him along with a Force Sensitive Vong that apparently was somehow controlling the Supreme Overlord.

It seemed surreal.

Luke was worse for wear but alive and not missing anything he might or might not already be missing.

It had taken them this long to mop up the Vong and corral them to this planet before dumping them on the planet below. In retrospect it was probably a good thing it took so long since it allowed them to set camps up for the Vong to be held in and to divest them of all weapons and anything that could be used to communicate with other camps.

The last thing they needed was the Vong to try to fight their way out of their holding camps. Some might argue that since the Temple Guardians were guarding the camps the Vong were in it wouldn’t be a problem but there were still Vong unaccounted for in the galaxy and a few knew how to use technology without the bio components that the Vong preferred to use.

Not to mention many of the Vong so far had the attitude of killing as many of the enemy as possible or they just didn’t want to believe that a ‘Shamed One’ had been controlling Supreme Overlord Shimrra since before they entered this galaxy.

He guessed he would be embarrassed or in denial as well if someone that wasn’t supposed to have that kind of power or influence was able to control an entire government.

Now that Wedge thought of it if he hadn’t been told by Luke that Sheev Palpatine had been a trained Force User and a Sith Lord to boot he wouldn’t have believed it if someone had told him out of the blue. He would have laughed in their face and asked them if they had been drinking or what kind of Spice they were doing or asked them if they had escaped from a mental institution somewhere if they thought that Emperor Palpatine was a Force User.

It did explain a lot though about the late Emperor and how he seemed to just know things.

A few years ago Wedge had summoned the courage to ask Luke the question that sometimes weighed on his mind. He wanted to know how Palpatine had messed up as badly as he had if he could see the Future. Luke had informed him somberly that Palpatine had become overconfident in the little over two decades since he had taken control of most of the galaxy. He had no true enemies to worry about and he had forgotten a potential danger he kept near him often.

Wedge hadn’t quite understood the ‘potential danger’ that Palpatine kept close but he did understand arrogance and overconfidence. He saw it in hot shot pilots after daring runs now and back during the Rebellion. If they had no dangerously close calls they thought that they were invincible, untouchable or somehow immortal. Knocking sense into them was the hardest thing to do and sadly one of the most reliable things to wake them up to the reality of the situation was the loss of a comrade.

He had recently asked the Temple Guardians seeing that they were dead about the potential danger that the Emperor had kept close and was told that he would never believe them if they told him the answer. He had pressed and said he could believe a lot after learning about the Emperor and about that they, the Temple Guardians, were ghosts of dead Jedi. One of them told him rather flatly that this piece of information would challenge his thinking in more ways than one and it really was Luke and Leia’s place to tell him; not to mention he would have to not tell another living soul for the rest of his life.

He had decided to drop the subject and live without learning the answer. Besides, he guessed he was better off not knowing because if he was told that Darth Vader was the ‘potential danger’ that Palpatine had kept around he would have some serious questions for everyone.

“Is the view pretty?” a familiar voice asked him off to the left.

Startled, Wedge turned to see Leia Solo standing a short distance away.

“I thought you and many other Jedi were hiding on some planet; safe from the Vong.” He said; ignoring her question for now.

“We were until a week ago. We decided to lure the unaccounted for Vong to Eras with the belief that they could murder the next generation of Jedi and the families of many Jedi as well in retaliation for the heavy losses that they have suffered. Last I heard the remnants of the Vong were masses their free forces for the attack.” Leia told him.

“If we can capture all the Vong than we will be able to end this war and everyone can go home.” Wedge said thoughtfully.

Out of the corner of his eye he noticed Leia blink several times.

“Has something happened?” he asked her; a note of concern bleeding in.

“No, I just Felt something odd for a few moments.” She told him.

Something about her tone prickled Wedge’s battle instincts but if she wasn’t overly worried about it than he guessed he would let it go.

Xxxxxxxxx

Surface of unnamed planet, two weeks later . . .

Luke took a private moment to shake his head in an effort to clear it from a haze that seemed to come and go. He needed a clear head for the discussion that would be ahead of him and the few politicians that they had brought with them to the surface of the planet his father and the other Force Ghosts had told him to use as a prison for the Vong.

Over the past two months and two weeks they had managed to lure the missing Vong into various traps and the last group would be brought to this planet within the hour.

The night before he had briefly reunited with his wife and daughter and it had lifted his spirits to have them near him again. Mara and the girls had already left to return to Coruscant with so many of the other Jedi. Leia was still here with her two youngest children to serve as a buffer between the politicians, military and Jedi.

For a moment the strange haze came again. For several moments Luke Felt more connected to the galaxy as a whole then he had ever Felt even in the deepest meditations.

Then it was gone.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

Uninhabited planet, staging area, two hours later . . .

Han Solo watched from his place was the surviving high ranking Vong were led in front of a handful of Senators, high ranking military personal and four Jedi Masters.

He watched the body language of everyone instead of listening to their words. You didn’t spend as much time as he had in the Underworld and not pick up on body language. It came in handy when you needed to get away in a hurry.

From his position he could see something was wrong with his wife and Luke. This was the third time both siblings had straighten unnaturally and their eyes changed colors for a short time; and whatever was wrong seemed to be lasting longer each time it happened.

The conversation didn’t seem to be going well as far as the body language was concerned.

Suddenly Luke stood straighter and his eyes became a lighter color. Leia also straightened and but her eyes became darker.

“No matter what has happened or how many years pass I am always surprised by how shortsighted so many Sentient creatures are. They think so much on the here and now they can’t see the future.” Luke said sadly as he stared at the sky; but it wasn’t in his voice.

“But when they are shortsighted they show their true colors and plot against each other for scraps of power and disagree over the Nature of the Force. When they are looking to the future they are either plotting galactic domination or neglect their true purpose.” Leia commented drily as she also lifted her gaze to the sky, her voice was also different. “We can’t win no matter what we do.”

As one they lowered their gaze from the sky and turned to look at the gathered beings and Han felt his eyes widened when saw their eyes. Gone were Luke’s bright blue eyes and in their place were pools of white light that glowed and gave off light. Leia’s dark brown eyes had been replaced by pools of the purest black that seemed to suck light in where it vanished; forever lost.

“I think we have frightened the Sentients here.” Leia commented with a tinge of amusement.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Please leave a review and let me know what you think.

 

Whew, that is very very interesting! Like the two of them are not quite themselves only.

 

As one they lowered their gaze from the sky and turned to look at the gathered beings and Han felt his eyes widened when saw their eyes. Gone were Luke’s bright blue eyes and in their place were pools of white light that glowed and gave off light. Leia’s dark brown eyes had been replaced by pools of the purest black that seemed to suck light in where it vanished; forever lost.

“I think we have frightened the Sentients here.” Leia commented with a tinge of amusement.

That was freaky as much as it was interesting. I sense a Kylo coming, I mean a storm.

 

WarmNyota_SweetAyesha thank you, and let's see now what's up with Leia and Luke.

AzureAngel2 Maybe, and I am glad that you found it freak I meant it to be.


This took a while; I had to restart a few times and then added a few things so hopefully everything flows well if not I apologize.

We have nearly come to an end of this fic and my rewrite of part of the LEU; it’s been fun and I thank everyone that has been along for the ride.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Luke tried to fight the Thing that had somehow seized control of his body. He knew that Leia was in the same situation as he was in.

‘Stop struggling Bringer of Light, we will be done with you and your sister in a few minutes.’ A voice that seemed to come from everywhere and yet nowhere told him.

“What have you done with Masters Skywalker and Solo?” Admiral Ackbar demanded.

“We have done nothing to them.” The Being inside of him informed Ackbar lightly.

With deliberate moments the Beings controlling Leia and him moved towards the Vong; the Force Ghosts stepped aside with deference and respect.

‘They know what we are and recognize that they have done horrific damage. What makes things better for them is they were led astray because their teachings had been altered thousands of years ago.’ The voice told Luke as they continued to move towards the Vong.

“Abominations!” one of the War Masters breathed in terror.

The Being in Luke ignored the comment and seemed to examine the Vong in more ways than one.

“You are the abominations,” the Being in him said calmly, “sacrificing your bodies and selves to false gods. You sow death and destruction wherever you go and would burn this galaxy to the ground if we let you.”

“If we didn’t know any better we would say that you wanted a face to face with us.” The Being in Leia said.

“SIT!” Two distorted voices suddenly commanded.

The Vong suddenly fell to their knees, their faces frozen in almost blind terror. A distant part of Luke’s mind realized that one of the voices had come from him or really the Being controlling him.

“At least they still know how to obey Commands.” The Being in Leia commented flatly.

“I think if we Ordered them to perform Squid Lake they would despite having never seen a performance or having any training.” The one in Luke said lightly.

“I am almost tempted to Order them to do it know just to see how well it would go.” The one in Leia said with interest.

The sound of a rustling cloak reached Luke’s ears and the Being inside him glanced down; allowing Luke to see a very small figure wearing a large cloak weaving between him and Leia.

Luke would have smiled if he could as memories of all of his daughters dressing up in his and Mara’s clothes replayed in his mind. They had all liked the cloaks the best and would retrieve the spares from the closets if they were allowed to so everyone had a cloak to wear.

The sound of pure, warm laughter startled Luke for a few moments and he watched as the one in Leia knelt to pick up the child.

“Would you like to see them attempt to perform Squid Lake?” It asked the child who just looked at her with wide innocent eyes. “You saw part of a performance of Squid Lake years ago. I can promise you it will be better than the first time.”

The child made a noise that made the parent in Luke want to reach out and comfort the small child.

Immediately the Being in Leia made comforting noises and spoke in a language that tickled the back of Luke’s mind as It used Leia’s hands to comfort the child. It started to hum what sounded like a lullaby. The black eyes that had replaced Leia’s brown ones glowed with an inner light that changed the dead cold black depths to something comfortingly warm and the tenderness in them belonged to a loving parent.

The child calmed and fixed the Vong with a look that held curiosity.

“Can you Sense them?” The Being in him asked the child. The child just stared at the Vong until the Vong looked away in uncertainty and few muttered in their language fearfully; one even made a strange sign that made the Being in Leia chuckle in a menacing manner.

The toddler suddenly squirmed in her grip and reached for the one in him. The Being in Leia tightened It’s’ grip on the child and began to hum the lullaby from earlier but the child continued to struggle.

The Being inside of him spoke in the language from earlier to the one in Leia and held out his hands. For several heartbeats the two Beings held a staring contest but the one in Leia relented and held the child out for the one in him to take.

A part of Luke’s mind suddenly asked the question he hadn’t considered until now: where had the toddler come from?

‘That’s a good question Bringer of Light; one you will have to figure out yourself.’ The Being informed him lightly as It took the child from It’s partner; a strange sensation burned through him when his hands touched Leia’s.

Once the toddler was in his arms the Being inside him scanned the child with the Force. Luke wondered what It was looking for but apparently It was satisfied with the results of the scan and gently bounced the toddler up and down.

The child stared at him with eyes that held pure innocence and at the same time something from your worst nightmares.

Luke probably would have flinched if he was in control of his body.

The child continued to stare right into his eyes and scenes of destruction and echoes of fear and death flashed in his mind until the child blinked.

‘There are two kinds of destruction: Natural Destruction that comes with the March of Time and the Pointless Destruction that is brought by Sentient Beings. What kind did you see Bringer of Light?’ It asked him.

Luke pondered on the brief images he had seen. They had been so quick but he had still gotten an impression from them. It had been Life on some planet he didn’t recognize dying but he hadn’t been able to see what was causing it. The Force had vibrated with fear and death on a large scale but it had been different from anything he had Sensed before.

‘I don’t know why but the images were of a Natural Destruction.’ He answered the Being.

‘A Star in the early stages of its death throes, the deaths of stars are violent and destroy anything within a certain radius as you know.’ It told him. ‘Yes, all or most life dies in the system if they can’t escape it but new stars form and the Circle of Life continues.’

‘You’re the Beings my father said were coming to weigh in on the fate of the Vong; but why?’ Luke asked.

‘Don’t you know? Can’t you guess Bringer of Light who we are?’ It asked him.

Luke slid into a meditative trance and considered everything he had been told and impressions he got off of the Being he was Hosting.

He had Felt a deeper connection to everything in the moments leading up to It taking control and he Knew that all the times before when he had Felt similar were either early attempts to take control of Leia and him or preparing them for it,

The Force Ghosts showed these Beings respect, They wanted to have a say in the fate of the Vong and They seemed to be able to control the Vong; making them kneel with a single command.

He knew that there were gaps in his knowledge of Force Wielding individuals but something told him that They weren’t some sort of Force Ghost or immensely powerful Force Users. If They were Force Ghosts they would have taken Their own forms and if They had Their own bodies They would have come in person.

There was only one other option; one that years ago Luke would have thought impossible and would have laughed at the thought but now he knew that things weren’t as they seemed and sometimes the truth was stranger than fiction. However, why had It taken control of him and Leia instead of just appearing like the Force Ghosts did?

‘The Vong can’t see us because they are more or less blind to the Force in nearly every way. It’s no different than when Qui-Gon would speak to Obi-Wan on Tatooine in public to help his Apprentice sell his ‘crazy old man’ image.’ The Force told him.

Luke was sure if he could he would have collapsed from the flurry of emotions that were suddenly rushing through him.

‘You will feel drained once I leave your body and will need several days to regain your strength but it will return.’

Carefully the Force had both him and Leia kneel in front of the Vong; careful of the child in Luke’s arms.

“Your people will be marooned on this planet until further notice.” The Force said in his voice.

“We will leave trusted beings to guard you and keep you here until we deem you worthy to join the galaxy.” The Force said using Leia.

‘You have such a simple view of things.’ The Force whispered to him. ‘We find it refreshing instead of exasperating for a change.’

Then he was standing and him and Leia were walking away from the Vong. Once they were safely back with their people his vision blurred and he knew he was on the verge of passing out.

He was vaguely aware of handing the child to one of the Force Ghosts and the worried looks of his friends, colleagues and family.

Then the world went dark.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

So, how many of you saw the twist coming?

 

WarmNyota_SweetAyesha
AzureAngel2

Wow, this is the last chapter. It’s been an amazing time and this series has taken about seven years to write. *whistles* SEVEN YEARS!

Thank you to everyone that has read and/or reviewed, your support and words of encouragement.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Jedi Temple, Coruscant, Skywalker Family Apartment, two years later . . .

“Tell me about the planet Merica.” Mara Kryze Skywalker told her Padawan Pter Rivers.

“The planet Merica is Class M with a planetary axial tilt of 23.4 degrees, multiple different climates and seasons that vary in intensity and length depending on the location. It has a population of roughly six billion beings; roughly 90 percent of the populous are native Mericans. Mericans are near humans, their skin is striped: the shades vary from white to jet black, their hair and eye color are varied from pale blue to a deep brown.

“Merica is separated into seven regions: Iasa, Rarifca, Roupe, Traulias, Ticara, and Dacana and Azomona. Each region has its own governments with different views; they have lived in relative harmony and have agreements to have each other in times of need.

“The history of Merica is fairly average with all the upheavals that all societies go through as they develop.

“A few years after the end of the Clone Wars a Rebel Cell murdered several high ranking Merican diplomats in an attempt to assassinate high ranking Imperials. When the news of the senseless murders reached Merica the whole planet became hostile towards Rebels and more than one Rebel Recruiter and Sympathizer lost their lives to ‘mob justice’ and family members of the deceased diplomats. The Over Government of Merica begrudgingly recognizes the New Republic as the rightful government but some wounds run deep.” Pter recited.

Mara nodded, pleased that Pter had done thorough research on the planet they would soon be paying a professional visit to.

“Can you tell me why we are going Merica?” She asked.

“We have been asked to be neutral mediators in several internal matters on Merica since they do not trust mediators from the New Republic to have pure or ulterior motives or to be in league with the other side.

“They view the Jedi as unbiased even though Palpatine and the Empire viewed the Jedi in a highly negative light and after the Galactic Civil War we became connected to the New Republic.

‘Their view on the Jedi is one of the reasons they recognize the New Republic as the legitimate government even if they do not like how the New Republic came into power.” Pter answered.

“What are the internal matters they have asked us to help mediate?” she asked him.

“They have refused to disclose why they wish to have mediators. However looking at some of the recent and past events on Merica it most likely has something to do with the murders of their diplomats during the early years of the Empire and some recent civil unrest in Dacana. This being said there still could be different reasons why they have asked for neutral mediators.” He informed her.

“Good,” she told him.

A clang from the kitchen had her wincing, both at the sound and the reminder that her father would soon be leaving them for whatever place the Force Ghosts went during their downtime.

She knew it was coming since the Vong War had ended but still she had hoped that they would have more time. The time they had had together would never be enough. Maybe there was still enough time to learn some of his recipes.

A slight shift in the Force had her turning her attention to her and Luke bedchamber but the sleeping mind within just drifted back into the realm of dreams.

Relieved that her son was still sleeping she turned back to her Pter. “Anything else that you think is important?” She asked.

Pter was silent for a moment before he spoke. ‘We should be relatively safe during our time on Merica but there are citizens that might see our connection to the New Republic as a threat or view us with suspicion. Depending on the exact nature of the situation some might view us as a threat to the status quo and try to prevent the mediations from succeeding. We should be careful and pay close attention to those around us and what they say.” He told her.

Mara couldn’t help the smile that came to her face. He had come far since he was first assigned her six years ago.

The door to the apartment opened and Luke came in looking tired.

“Is everything alright?” she asked him; knowing that Luke had been in a meeting with the Jedi Council and other Masters.

“Pter, can you go get Beru, Luka and Ilona from their classes?” Luke asked the Senior Padawan; whatever the answer was he wanted to share it without others listening.

“Yes, Master Skywalker,” Pter said as he stood; no doubt Sensing what she had Sensed.

Luke waited for a few minutes; whatever the meeting had been about he would rather not have anyone below a certain rank knowing about it.

“Vergere is dying. Cilghal believes that it’s a combination of old age and stress of being confined to the Gray Room and restricted access to the Force; our research backs this up. We are considering the possibility of removing her from the Gray Room and taking her to the Halls of Healing to give her some comfort in her final days.” Luke told her.

Mara grimaced at the thought of removing the Fosh from the Gray Room and taking her to the Halls of Healing. What if she tried to escape or made a recovery and then tried to escape?

“We have also discussed the possibility of temporarily turning a cell into a medical room so she’s still secure but will still be able to receive care. Most of us are worried about students gathering in curiosity if we move her and them trying to find a way to speak to her because they are curious about her even though they know she was working with the Vong and would have gladly stood by as we were killed.” Luke continued.

“That might be the best decision.” She told him.

They were silent for a few minutes, contemplating Vergere’s impending death and the future of the Jedi Order.

“How are you doing?” she asked him after twenty minutes of silence.

Silence stretched again between them as Luke weighed answering her question.

“The whole Sensing what’s happening on the other side of the galaxy and being Aware of those around you is not as bad as it has been and happening less and less.” Luke told her. “At least I don’t See how my actions or the actions of others can affect those around me and the possible futures.” He continued with a slight smile.

If Knowing when disaster struck a planet somewhere was bad then Knowing the possible consequences of the words and actions of yourself and others had to be worse; Leia was plagued by that.

“Has Leia weighed in on the situation?” she asked her husband as she collected the datapads on the low table in the sitting area.

“We haven’t asked her but when I dropped by to tell her she told me that Vergere could destroy us from within if given a sliver of a chance.” Luke told her.

At that point, Luke went to start on supper, leaving her to organize her and Pter’s datapads.

Not long after that Pter returned with the younger girls how started talking about their day.

The door chimed and Luke answered the door before she could stand. She watched as Luke spoke with Ric Shiva in low voices. Luke sighed after a minute, radiating relief before he nodded before thanking the other Master.

Luke didn’t look at her as he walked back to the kitchen but she knew what Ric Shiva had come to tell him: Vergere had died.

Xxxxxxxx

Life went on of the inhabitants of the galaxy. People met, built friendships, married and had families. Warlords rose and fell, governments came and went.

The Jedi were not immune to the changes; some changes were for the better and others were for the worse but they emerged from each one , sometimes limping and other times they walked away with no visible damage.

The future is bright.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

END

Xxx


Once again thank you for reading and reviewing!

 

Life went on of the inhabitants of the galaxy. People met, built friendships, married and had families. Warlords rose and fell, governments came and went.

The Jedi were not immune to the changes; some changes were for the better and others were for the worse but they emerged from each one , sometimes limping and other times they walked away with no visible damage.

The future is bright.

There might be reasons why Luke wants to be the last jedi ever. Reading the end of your story, I would even go so far and say that the order was too solid, to stubborn in their belief system. In their rules.

 

I hope this is a good thing.

And thank you for your reviews.

 

You always deserve a good review for your imagination and interesting plot lines. And your language games!

 

Excellent conclusion & congratulations on finishing too.