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Beyond - Legends Learning the Lesson (Mara and Myth Challenge) : Mara, implied Luke

Discussion in 'Fan Fiction- Before, Saga, and Beyond' started by divapilot, Jan 11, 2006.

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  1. divapilot

    divapilot Force Ghost star 4

    Registered:
    Nov 30, 2005
    Title: Learning the Lesson
    Author: Divapilot
    Characters: Mara Jade, implied Luke
    Time frame: Post VOTF
    Summary: Luke has challenged Mara to one of her final trials before she can rightfully be called a Jedi: build her own lightsaber. However, she has trouble understanding the lesson she is supposed to learn from the experience.
    Note: Written for the Mara and Myth Challenge. Thank you, Jedi_Trace, for beta?ing
    here.


    START RECORDING

    The woman in the recording looks down at the table while tucking a strand of red hair behind her ear. She tips a box full of an amalgamation of parts toward the camera.

    ?Look at this. He gives me this box, this camera, a set of instructions, and a crystal and tells me to complete this.?

    She looks up at the camera, clearly annoyed. ?Then he says, ?Give me your lightsaber, Mara.? And that?s that. No ?good luck? or ?I?ll miss you, Sweetheart; whatever will I do without you?? No, just ?Give me your lightsaber, Mara.? Then he tells me he wants me to record my efforts and make a journal. And I?m forbidden to come home until I?m done.? She rolls her eyes.

    She picks up the individual pieces and examines them. She looks back at the camera and smirks. ?This shouldn?t take long. I can rebuild an engine; how hard can this be??

    END RECORDING


    START RECORDING

    The woman sits back in the chair, apparently after adjusting the camera. She is scowling. She places a cylindrical device on the table then leans in toward the camera.

    ?I finished it. I made it perfectly to specs, and let me tell you, getting the crystal right was a trick. Burned my hand and everything. I even triple checked it. So I was ready to show it to him, right??

    ?I brought it to him to prove I made it. He took it, looked it over, shook his head, then said, ?Go back to the beginning. Give me your lightsaber, Mara.? She huffs and pulls her hair off her forehead, dragging her hand through the long strands.

    She slams her hand on the table. ?What does he think this is, some kind of joke?? Her tone turns mocking. ? ?Give me your lightsaber, Mara,?? she says mincingly. ?What did he think I just spent two weeks working on, a new opera??

    She picks up the object and displays it for the camera. ?Look at this lightsaber. Quality craftsmanship. Every part of this is exactly what the schematics called for. The instructions were flawless ? I could mass produce these babies. How could this not be perfect??

    She puts the object down and fumes. ??Go back to the beginning,?? she mutters. ?Okay, Farmboy, I?ll take it right back to the beginning and start all over.? She gets up and is gone from the recording, returning momentarily with a screwdriver. She aggressively begins to dismantle the device.

    She looks into the camera and gestures fiercely with the tool. ?You want me to do this over then give it to you again? All right, but it?s going to be just as perfect as I made it the first time. I?ll give you this lightsaber again. And you better take it this time, or I?ll put it right up??

    END RECORDING


    START RECORDING

    She sits back in front of the camera, the device on the table in front of her. She is quiet for a long time. Then she leaves the recording range.

    She returns a few minutes later. She stares dejectedly at the device and sighs.

    She continues to look at the device. ?Well, guess what. I?m still here.? She sighs again and lets her fingers toy with the device, spinning it gently. ?And you?ll never guess what the herald of bad news said. ?Go back to the beginning. Give me your lightsaber, Mara.??

    She folds her arms on the table and rests her chin on her arms. She stares at the device. ?What does he mean? What does he want from me? I gave him the lightsaber twice. Twice he sent me back.? She reaches out and examines the device more closely.

    She sits up and looks at it again. ?What if he?s trying to tell me to make it mine, to personalize it? Sure, anyone who can read a schematic can make a lightsaber.
     
  2. ZaraValinor

    ZaraValinor Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    May 31, 2002
    wow. I love Mara in this. Good job.

    Luke is light, but I liked how Mara connected it to the Force. That the Force was the beginning and the end and there was no need to fear.
     
  3. Jedi Trace

    Jedi Trace Former RSA star 6 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Dec 15, 1999
    I just love this, DP!! I think I?ve read it ten times and, each time, I find something subtle and new. :)



    She rolls her eyes.

    She picks up the individual pieces and examines them. She looks back at the camera and smirks. ?This shouldn?t take long. I can rebuild an engine; how hard can this be??


    That is SO Mara Jade!! :D


    She looks into the camera and gestures fiercely with the tool. ?You want me to do this over then give it to you again? All right, but it?s going to be just as perfect as I made it the first time. I?ll give you this lightsaber again. And you better take it this time, or I?ll put it right up??

    [face_laugh] [face_laugh] [face_laugh]



    The woman?s face reveals a dawning of understanding. She looks at the device as if seeing it for the first time. She holds the device in both hands, palms up, as if it is an offering. ?One Force. Everything given will be returned, because the Force is everything, no beginning and no end. My life is the Force. This weapon is my life. I give it freely and without conditions.?


    :eek: Wow! Absolutely beautiful! @};-


    I know I?ve already said it, but I love Mara?s progression in this: from haughty, to angry, to morose, to enlightened.

    And if Mara made a saber of her own in profic, we never got to see it (that I know of); so this is such a treat!

    Wonderful job! =D=





     
  4. ginchy

    ginchy Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    May 25, 2005
    Hey! This is really great, and original! I enjoyed it very much...Mara is very in-character here. You've done well with her! =D=
     
  5. AzulSaber

    AzulSaber Jedi Youngling star 2

    Registered:
    Sep 15, 2005
    Wow! Very nice, original idea. I love how Mara is frustrated at first, then doubts herself, then finally gets what Luke wants her to learn.

    Wonderful job! I enjoyed it very much. :) =D=
     
  6. divapilot

    divapilot Force Ghost star 4

    Registered:
    Nov 30, 2005
    :) Thank you! I'm glad you approve.

    It intrigued me why the lightsaber was the Jedi's weapon (I know, an elegant weapon for a more civilized time and all that), but why not a blaster? or a thermal detonator? or a spiffy little switchblade? It has to be the light. You see that glow and hear that old snap-hiss and you know who you're dealing with. Since this is a civilization that can build intersystem transports, how come only the Jedi have the lightsaber? Why aren't they selling them at the intergalactic K-Marts? (the real ones, not the plastic ones.) Well, it's not so much the weapon as the attitude.:cool:

    If you're gonna talk the talk, you'd better walk the walk.

    Thank you again for your kind words!
     
  7. Healer_Leona

    Healer_Leona Squirrel Wrangler of Fun & Games star 9 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Jul 7, 2000
    Oh, just superb divapilot. [face_love]
     
  8. JadeLotus

    JadeLotus Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    Mar 27, 2005
    Wonderful fic. I love Mara's orginal detremination ands confidence and her slowly eroding sanity until she discovers the real truth.

    Trust Luke to set a test like that. :D
     
  9. Gabri_Jade

    Gabri_Jade Fanfic Archive Editor Emeritus star 5 VIP

    Registered:
    Nov 9, 2002
    Very interesting idea, and nicely handled. Great job! :D
     
  10. MirandaFair

    MirandaFair Jedi Master star 4

    Registered:
    Jun 13, 2005
    This seems so realistic...a true test that Mara would be handed. I enjoyed the beginning of each recording and where they left of. Leading up to her discovery...nicely done! =D= :)
     
  11. AliKatKelts

    AliKatKelts Jedi Youngling star 2

    Registered:
    Feb 25, 2003
    Oh I love how you entertwine the meaning of the lightsabre and what it is to be a jedi. Love Mara's journy in this fic. absolutly wonderful
     
  12. divapilot

    divapilot Force Ghost star 4

    Registered:
    Nov 30, 2005
    Thank you, HealerLeona!
    Glad you liked it. I had to find a balance between stream of consciousness and mindless blabbering. I guess this works.:)

    Jade_Lotus: I love Mara's orginal detremination ands confidence and her slowly eroding sanity until she discovers the real truth.

    Trust Luke to set a test like that.


    Yes, she starts off so sure that she has the answer, then she realizes that she doesn't even really understand the question![face_thinking]

    Gabri_Jade: Very interesting idea, and nicely handled. Great job!

    Thank you. It's nice to hear I'm doing something right.[face_dancing]

    MirandaFair: This seems so realistic...a true test that Mara would be handed. I enjoyed the beginning of each recording and where they left of. Leading up to her discovery...nicely done!

    By the end of the story, she's forgotten that she's recording. Her mind is ... elsewhere ... , which, ultimately, was Luke's point.

    AliKatKelts: entertwine the meaning of the lightsabre and what it is to be a jedi.

    Yes! It's a symbol, not just a tool. In AOTC, Obi-wan chides Anakin for being careless with his lightsaber (again). He tells his apprentice, "This weapon is your life!" I took it a step further, metaphorically speaking.

    Thank you all for your encouraging words. [:D] It means a lot.

     
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