Title: The Abnormal Life of a Skywalker
Author: Deja Vu
Summary: Callista left him, his Academy was attacked, and he and Mara aren't on the best of turns. When Luke, who decides that things can't get much worse, is told to go to Dagobah, he finds that many things are not what they seem...
—This was the first fanfic I ever wrote, and I have revamped it (I did not change the plot or the characters (some of which are not very in character, and I apologize—I did, however, delete some dialogue to make them a little more in character), I just tidied a few things up). This fic warps some of the stuff that happened in the movies, and I have compressed the books and movies together A LOT so that Luke is about twenty-three years old.
Rating: Mild language, mild torture.
Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars, but this story is mine.
Author's Thanks: Many thanks to my friend Sarah, without whom this story would not have been made.
Quickly, the barren desert sped by.
The lone shape floated swiftly forward atop the ground. The noise the swoop caused was tremendous, adding to the thrill felt by its rider.
Beggar's Canyon was a very dangerous place for rookies to pilot in, and the Eye of the Needle was coming up fast...Would the swoop be able to "thread it"?
It made it—but just barely. A rock brushed the pilot's sleeve, tearing it slightly, but thirteen-year old Luke Skywalker grinned like a successful space pirate nonetheless. He watched the canyons fly by, reveling in the speed and glory of it all.
It wasn't his swoop, unfortunately. He had borrowed it from his friend Windy, though the boy had taken quite a bit of convincing to be assured that Luke wouldn't wreck it.
Of course, Luke thought, amused, just watch me crash and burn...
Luke quickly brushed that thought away. It wouldn't help to think negative when he was already pushing for the positive.
Luke took a turn too sharply, gasping at the close call.
Adrenaline was rushing through his system, and he felt like he could conquer the galaxy. "Wahoo!" he yelled.
Dust flew up all around the swoop, enveloping it like a cloak.
If Windy knew how fast this thing was going, he'd kill me!
Luke smiled at that thought, imagining the expression on his friend's face. He was so caught up in his musings that he almost didn't notice the canyon wall coming right up at him. Luke swerved at the last instant, inwardly cursing his own foolishness.
Up ahead, in a small enclosure, Luke could just barely make out a small, lithe form. Frowning, he slowed the vehicle down to a stop. He squinted for a moment before getting out to see what, or who, it was.
The shape, he saw upon further inspection, was curled up into a ball in the corner and seemed to be...shivering.
He ducked under what passed for a ceiling and wandered over to where the...creature was. After cautiously observing the form, he asked, "Who are you?"
The small robed figure looked up, the robe's hood falling back slightly.
It was a girl! Why was she out here all alone in the desert?
"Get away from me!" she demanded, quite forcefully for someone in her situation. "If you don't, you'll be sorry!"
Luke laughed, amused by her warning. "I'm not gonna hurt you." She didn't look convinced. "I promise, I don't bite." She didn't seem comforted by that either. "What's your name, and what are you doing in here?"
"I can't tell you my name. But, I got lost in a sandstorm...and...," she stopped, looking down at her feet.
After a moment's silence, Luke cleared his throat. "Do you need help finding your way back? You certainly don't look like you're from around here..."
She hesitated. "Yes...Could you help me?" She still wouldn't meet his gaze, but she seemed more confident that Luke wouldn't harm her.
Luke studied her. She appeared to be around his age, give or take a little, and she seemed to have quite a bit of spunk too, he thought humorously. It didn't take long for him to make his decision. "Okay, I'll take you out a bit. But it's getting late, so Mos Eisley is probably about as far as I'll be able to take you..."
She smiled slightly and looked up. She had a nice smile, Luke noted. There were a few strands of red hair peeking out from under her hood, and she had remarkably striking green eyes that seemed to be able to stare into his soul. Striking green eyes...Striking...green...eye—Luke bolted up in bed.
A dream. Just a dream...
No, that wasn't entirely true. It had actually happened in real life. He'd snuck the girl into his uncle's house, and she had stayed part of the night. During the middle of the night, however, he had woken up to the feel of something brushing against his cheek. He had started to groggily swat at the annoyance, but something told him to open his eyes instead. After doing so, he had seen the young girl standing over him. Then, with a rustle, she'd just disappeared. He had thought at the time that her sudden disappearance was just a dream, but in the morning, the girl had really left. He hadn't thought about it in a long time...
That's odd. Why do I suddenly remember it now? Luke shook his head to clear it, ignoring his subconscious and attempting to go back to sleep. After a few hours of tossing and turning, he finally fell into a troubled sleep.
"Beepp tweet tootle dee?"
Luke shot up in bed, again. He glanced at his chrono, which told him it was 0300.
Artoo hooted again, this time more insistently. Luke mustered up a sleepy glare in the droid's direction.
"Artoo, it's too early," he complained. He was about to say something else when he heard the familiar sound of a blaster whine. "Blast!" Luke exclaimed, rolling off his bed and onto the floor. He quickly grabbed his lightsaber off the bedside table and began crawling towards the door. He used the Force to open it and immediately crawled outside. Artoo tried to follow him, but he waved the little droid back.
Several Stormtroopers were marching down the hall, shooting at what looked like very perturbed Security members. Luke inched back into the room to avoid getting hit by ricocheting bolts, and he used the Force to call his blaster out from under the bed to his hand. He leaned on the door frame, still on the ground, and shot a few blasts at the Stormtroopers before ducking back into the apartment. He reluctantly got to his feet, switching his lightsaber on and throwing his blaster onto the bed.
He stepped into the hall, making sure to avoid the blaster fire, and he began reflecting the enemy's laser bolts back to the source.
The Stormtroopers saw him, and, strangely enough, slowed down their attack. The Imperials eventually started backing off, but they only did so after Luke saw a seemingly high-ranking officer speaking at length into a comlink. Before he knew it, all the Imperials were gone.
Luke wondered how they could sneak onto Coruscant and fool New Republic Security...And what in space were they after? Semi-amusedly, he thought, The NRS must be real paranoid about this security breach.
A few members of Security and Intelligence came up to him to ask a few questions. After the questioning, Luke went back to his room, yawning all the way.
He drowsily answered Artoo's warbled queries before collapsing on the bed and falling instantly into a deep sleep, forgetting all about his dream...
A large, dark figure stood, cape billowing eerily in the wind. A cloaked form walked up to him, and stood at attention. The taller one nodded, and the other talked in a low voice. "Things will fall into place, soon, m'lord..." The large figure nodded again, and the smaller form seemed more than slightly disconcerted at the sound that continuously rose and fell like a hollow wind...
The next morning, Luke woke up to a pincer pulling at his skin. "Ow!" Luke exclaimed, rubbing his arm. "What is it this time Artoo?" He yawned and glanced at the chrono, then he did a double take. It wasn't like him to sleep in so late!
"Blast! Why didn't you wake me up earlier? I was supposed to be at Leia's for lunch!" he groaned.
Artoo gave a long exasperated whistle that ended with a raspberry.
Luke rolled his eyes at the domed astromech, and then he got dressed in a hurry. He rushed over to the Solo's apartment, hastily ringing the door chime. Leia opened the door and smiled upon seeing him. "Oh, Luke, welcome. You're just in time." Luke was relieved that he wasn't late, and he gave an inner sigh of relief. Han soon appeared at the door.
"Yeah, well, I personally wouldn't mind being late for this particular meal, seeing as Leia actually cooked it hersel—" Han broke off as he was jabbed in the ribs with Leia's elbow. "Uh, I mean, Leia is a, umm, great cook." He began muttering to himself something about the injustices of wives dominating their husbands.
"Next time be more enthusiastic about it!" Leia commanded, elbowing Han again. Han gave her a blend of his two of his favorite looks: his "Hey, it's me!" face and his hurt expression. Luke rolled his eyes with a grin, and Leia looked over at Han sternly, though love clearly showed on her soft features.
They make a great couple,Luke reflected. Their faces were so joyful they seemed to shine, and he felt almost envious of them. Although he was disappointed that his sister was constantly avoiding her Jedi training, Luke was happy for her. She shared something with Han that Luke would probably never share with anyone. 'A Jedi feels no passion,' he silently quoted. His thoughts flicked momentarily to Callista, the woman he had recently lost, then he shunned them away.
"I'm neglecting my duties as a hostess. Luke, come on in," Leia gestured with a smile, practically pulling him in, while Han mouthed at Luke, "She is getting more demanding all the time!"
Luke chuckled softly.
Everyone sat down at the table where the plates were set out. The twins, their brother, and Chewbacca were all seated on one side, while Han, Leia, and Luke were on the other.
Luke glanced at the table and noticed an extra place. Frowning, he inquired, "Why is there an extra seat?"
Leia answered with a mischievous smile, "I invited Mara over, too. She had some business to attend to, and she said she might be a little late. She told us not to wait for her, but we might as well wait for a few minutes."
Luke looked at his sister suspiciously before reaching out with the Force to brush her emotions. All the Force told him was that she was amused.
Luke mumbled, "Mmhmm," and stared down at his plate with a blank expression.
Han glanced beside him at his wife and mouthed, "I don't think he's buyin' it." Leia shrugged back at him.
"Mommy, daddy, want eat now!" declared two-year old Anakin. He pounded on the table with his little fists, his head barely above it, despite the fact that he was sitting in an elevated seat. Anakin got cranky when he was hungry, and he looked defiant and stubborn.
"Us, too!" Jacen and Jaina said simultaneously.
"We're waiting for—" Leia was interrupted by the door chime. "There she is." Leia got up from her seat and answered the door. Mara stood in front of her, wearing formal business attire. Leia motioned her in, smiling, "Come on in." Mara nodded and stepped inside.
They went into the dining room, and Mara started, seeing Luke. She swiftly regained her poise and sat where Leia directed her: next to Luke. Mara then seethed with annoyance, smiling unconvincingly at Leia.
Leia pretended not to notice Mara's anger, and she took the lids off the steaming dishes. The food looks edible, Han thought, humored. He smiled at his wife gratefully, despite his earlier feigned attitude at being wary of even touching something she cooked.
The kids began digging hungrily into their food before the thought of picking up eating utensils had come into the minds of the adults, but soon all of the food was passed around the table and the adults were eating.
The way Chewie scarfed everything down would make one think he hadn't ate anything to eat for days. Han snickered and muttered something to him about table manners. Chewie snarled a very indignant reply, and Han backed off.
After that, things were quiet, and the only sounds were silverware banging against the plates and Chewbacca eating.
Leia looked up at all of the solemn faces, and she decided to start small talk. "Mara, what have you been doing lately?"
Mara's head came up sharply. She finished chewing before replying. "Oh, the usual. Just doing Karrde's bidding..." Mara trailed off. She wasn't feeling very talkative, and she didn't know how in space she had let herself be persuaded to come near Leia Organa Solo's apartment, much less come to a meal inside of it. Leia must be working on her diplomatic skills...
Leia, seeing her first conversation attempt fail, decided to try her brother. "Luke, I heard you had a little incident outside your quarters last night..."
"Yeah, Imperials snuck into the building somehow. Intelligence tell you much about it?" He glanced at Leia questioningly.
Leia shook her head. "No. The NRI can't seem to figure out what their objective is...However, they assume it's something that has to do with you, since they were close to your quarters when they attacked..."
Luke seemed to digest that before responding. "Imperials. All they ever wanna do is bug me...or kill me." He glanced jokingly at Mara, the woman who had indeed threatened to kill him numerous times, and she shot back a look full of venom.
"I think there's something else they weren't telling me...I have a feeling that it might've been a test the Imperials constructed, or maybe it has something to do with your Jedi skills," Leia said, looking at her brother.
With the mere mention of the word Jedi, Luke felt sick. It had been only a few days since Callista had left him...
But the pain was still as sharp now as it was then.
They had been the perfect couple.
If only she'd been able to get her Force powers back...
It was all his fault. He intimidated her.
If only he had—
Leia cut into his thoughts, "Luke, come on. She's gone..."
Mara and Han looked questioningly at the two, wondering what in space they were talking about. Then, Han caught on and, with a knowing look, went back to eating. Mara lifted an eyebrow before copying Han with an added snort.
Anakin, finished with his food, ran over to Chewbacca as fast as his short legs would carry him and hopped up onto the hairy Wookiee's lap. Chewie was also done with his meal, so he swung a giggling Anakin up into the air and onto his shoulders. He grabbed their dirty plates and went in the kitchen for a minute. After putting their plates up, with Jacen and Jaina following closely after, Chewie and Anakin ventured into the playroom.
Mara glanced at Luke, then Leia. "Did I miss something?" Mara asked.
Leia mouthed "Callista," and Luke looked sharply at her. Mara looked away from Leia, not even bothering to hide her scorn.
"Face it, Skywalker, she chickened out of any relationship you two might have had. She never was more than the daughter of a b—" Mara was interrupted by Luke, who angrily stood up.
"How would you know? You never knew her well, or even attempted to. She was a great woman!"
He took a breath in an attempt to calm himself. But it didn't work. "At least she was kind, which is a whole lot more than you can say!" Luke hissed, blood boiling.
Chewie popped his head in, then he thought better of it and stuck it back out. Luke was about to say something vulgar when Leia cut in.
"Luke, it's okay. She's gone. You're right: Mara didn't know her well, and she can't form a real opinion, so calm down!" Leia ordered, throwing a glare that could melt durasteel to Mara, who seemed unintimidated.
Luke took a few deep breaths. "I'm sorry for losing my temper..." he trailed off, looking expectantly at Mara.
Mara muttered something unintelligible about men and their mourning periods, then she growled, "Sorry for upsetting you."
Luke nodded, then he went back to wallowing in self-pity. "But she is not sorry for mentioning, in her own way—" Leia glanced at Mara, "that you should get over Callista." Luke looked up, startled at his sister's statement. "She was a great person," Leia said quietly. "But you need to get on to bigger and better things. You can't let a tragedy ruin your life."
Luke considered his reply, then he began, "But—"
Leia wouldn't let him finish. "No but's about it. Now, Han and I—" she elbowed Han sharply, "have to go and check on something in the kitchen. Right, Han?"
"Ow, oh, yeah! The uh, kitchen droid has been um, acting up." Han lied unconvincingly. He rushed into the kitchen with Leia, leaving Mara and Luke alone.
They both stared at their plates, unsure of what to say. Luke glanced up, deciding to attempt conversation and make up for his sister's rare failure. "When did you arrive on Coruscant?" He looked at Mara's face, waiting for a reply.
She paused. "A few weeks ago." She shot Luke a look that clearly meant that he should remain silent.
Luke pretended he didn't see it and continued on. "Why are you on Coruscant?...And why didn't you drop in and say hi?" He steadily met her gaze.
"Is that any of your business?" Mara snarled. She looked at the expression on his face and sighed. "I'm here for...business-related reasons..."
"Oh, really? Smuggling something or another for Karrde?" Luke said, looking exasperated. "Transporting some black-market spice?"
"For your information...I am...negotiating with some...future business prospects," Mara finished, feeling a bit lame.
"Are these so-called future business prospects spice dealers?" Luke demanded. Mara didn't answer him. "Are they?" Luke looked at her, angry. After glancing at her face, his anger faded away like leaves in the breeze.
It was at that moment that Leia came in the room, her face white, as if she'd seen a ghost. "Luke...C-could you come here for a minute?"
Luke froze: he had a bad feeling about this. He got up, muttered, "Excuse me," and went in the other room with Leia and Han.
"What is it!" Luke asked, afraid of the reply.
Leia bit at her lip, then said, "You better sit down." As soon as Luke was seated, she began. "The Jedi Academy...was...attacked." She looked at Luke's expressionless face, then continued. "They're sending a droid over to report the casualties..." Then, as if on cue, the doorbell rang. Leia got up and let the droid in, and it followed her back to Han and Luke.
"Requesting password and voice analyzation," the droid said, monotoned. It was a small, compact dark gray droid with red sensors, repulsorlifts, and pincers for arms.
Leia licked her lips, "Blue dewbacks and black gornts are not party animals." Luke and Han looked at her quizzically, and she shrugged. "The twins came up with that one."
"Password and voice analyzation complete," the droid droned.
The droid started on with the casualties, and Luke listened, sickened. So many were dead...
He sat back and squeezed his eyes shut, a small part of his brain wondering why he hadn't felt their deaths, through the Force.
Leia looked at him sadly. She wasn't very close to most of them, but some were her friends.
The list seemed to never end. Kirana Ti was in a coma. Kam Solusar had a concussion, and was in no condition to talk. Tionne was also in bad condition, but might be able to speak soon. Kyp...was dead. Luke had listened with horror when all the names were read, but this one was among the worst...Han must hurt terribly at this one. He had been very close to Kyp.
Sure enough, through the Force, Luke could sense Han's shock, and had he looked he would have noticed that Han had a panicked look on his face.
"He—Kyp was just a...just a...kid...," Han stammered out. "He was too young to, to die..." Han's eyes were pain-racked, and he strove to keep them from welling up with unusual tears. Kyp had been his companion on several adventures, and they'd saved each other's necks as well.
"It's okay Han, shh," Leia said quietly, enfolding him in her arms. She sent soothing thoughts through the Force to him and then glanced at Luke. His eyes were still tightly pressed together, and she could sense grief emanating from him through the Force. The emotions were abruptly blocked off when Luke sensed her attention towards him.
Luke stood up, eyes open, looking frantically around. He muttered, "Gone, all gone." Then, he himself was gone.
Leia wasn't sure whether to chase after her brother, or to comfort Han. Mara chose that moment to walk into the room, and Leia felt a small amount of relief.
"What happened?" Mara inquired, looking at Han and Leia, then around the room. "Where's Skywalker?" she questioned, noticing that Luke was gone.
"The Academy was...attacked, and Luke's taking it very hard. Do you think—" Leia glanced up hopefully at Mara, "—you could go try to calm him down?"
Mara looked at Leia with a harsh reply on her lips, but the words died unsaid. "Fine. I'll go," she said with a sigh. Then, with that, she too left. Leia watched her leave, worried, then she went back to soothing Han.
Mara reached out through the Force and sensed Luke's turmoil. She picked up her pace, and finally caught up with him in the halls. He was quietly wandering around, looking like he had somewhere he needed to be, though it was likely that he didn't actually have a specific destination. Mara put her arm on his and tugged slightly. He jerked his arm away from her and stopped walking, glaring at her, his eyes full of a mixture of hate, pain, fear, sadness, and many other emotions.
For a moment, Mara was sure that he was about to lash out at her angrily through the Force.
Luke trembled, as if pondering whether to do just that, then he seemed to make a decision, and he started moving swiftly away from her.
"I don't think so, Skywalker. Get back here, now!" she yelled after him, noting with satisfaction that he halted, although he didn't move towards her. She went up to him, and with an icy look in her eyes, she asked, "Where do you think you're going?"
Luke just looked at her blankly.
"Well? I asked you a question!" Mara demanded.
"I...was going...to the...hangar bays...I was going to fly my X-wing." Luke finished, inwardly startled that that was where he really did want to go.
"Were you just going to fly your troubles away? Do you actually think that would help?" Mara said, with disgust. "When something bad happens, talk to someone about it. Keeping everything inside won't help you!" Mara realized then that this was advice she should also listen to. Not that she ever would, but still...
"That coming from a women who hides inside a ship all day from her problems!" Luke sneered. His mood shifted suddenly, and he sobered instantly. "So many are dead. I was close to several...trained them...All were like family...They're dead, not just gone, dead. Some aren't, but they're mortally wounded...My life..." Luke trailed off, got a somewhat better hold on himself, then asked her a question that had been bothering him, "Why didn't I feel their deaths?"
Mara ignored his last question, not having an answer for it herself. "Yes, they're gone, and they aren't coming back. They were an important part of your life, but you need to cope with their...departure. Mourning the loss of friends is honorable, but not at the expense of the present," Mara told him. She also found it a little strange that he hadn't felt their deaths, but she didn't want to dwell on that now.
Luke heard from her words that he'd said to himself before with other tragic deaths. Many people close to him had died: Uncle Owen, Aunt Beru, Biggs, Obi-Wan, Yoda, Darth Vader—no, Anakin Skywalker, he inwardly reminded himself. There were other deaths too, several from Rogue Squadron. He tightly closed his eyes, leaned back against the wall, and slowly slid down into a seated position. He pulled his knees up and rested his head on them. After a few moments, he looked up with pain-filled eyes. "I've been through so much—" his voice broke.
Mara was slightly surprised that for once he wasn't being selfless about everything. She went over and sat down beside him. A Duro passed by them in the hall, glanced at them curiously, then continued on to its destination. "You do realize that crying about it won't help anything, farmboy," she said, trying to distance herself. She wasn't good with emotional matters.
"I know sympathy isn't your strong point, but can't you even do a good impression?" he questioned, almost begging her.
She didn't know what to say...
Luke fought against the tears at first, then he did what he'd wanted to since his aunt and uncle died: let himself go. Sobs shook his body, and his sorrow and misgivings came pouring out.
Mara sat next to him stiffly, unsure of what exactly she should do.
"Well, one thing you could do is go away and save us all the trouble," Luke gritted, clenching his legs tightly.
Mara just stared at him, miffed that he had read her thoughts.
With one last sniff, Luke said, "Now, I—" he hiccuped, looking sheepish, then continued, "—am going to go to the hangar now..." He stood up, and started to leave, but his manners kicked in. He mumbled a good-bye to Mara, barely keeping himself from offering a hand to help her up, and shot off down the corridor, leaving Mara behind, staring at his back and muttering something about a lonesome farmboy/Jedi Master.
Luke went to the hangar bay, and his curiosity was piqued when he found several techs standing by his X-wing. When he saw they were arguing with Artoo, he laughed, momentarily forgetting the tragic events that had been weighing so heavily on his mind a few moments earlier. A Verpine technician came up to Luke and said, "Sir, we were trying to make some modifications to your X-wing, but this little droid would not have it." He gestured to Artoo.
Luke looked sternly at the R2 unit, but there was a bit of humor in his voice. "Why are you bossing them around?" Artoo tootled a reply. "Right, they were making modifications..." Artoo gurgled something else. "Oh? So the shields were boosted...That's a bad thing?" Artoo twittered exasperatedly. "Ohh..." Luke looked sharply at the nearest technician. "Were you boosting the shields at the expense of losing 15 of the speed?"
"Yes, sir. We thought the extra shield power would be handy in a battle," the technician said, looking a bit afraid, Imperial propaganda about Jedi coming to mind.
"Have you ever fought against a TIE fighter Mister—?" Luke asked.
"Jantah. Fernd Jantah," the technician supplied.
"Mr. Jantah, have you ever been in an X-wing in a dogfight against a TIE fighter?" Luke asked, looking at him.
"No sir," he answered.
"Imagine this. You're in a X-wing, heavily shielded. You shoot at a TIE fighter, but it jerks out of the way. You head after it and keep shooting, but the TIE, which is much faster than you because your ship just got a modification that took a lot of your speed away, comes around and maneuvers into a good position behind you and blasts away at your shields. If you were too slow to move away from the TIE's fire, would the extra shield power actually help much? It might keep you alive for a little while longer, but the inevitable would happen anyway: your death. So, isn't it better to have everything equaled out, rather than concentrated on one area?" Luke finished. Fernd remained silent. "Well?"
"You're right sir," Fernd motioned an astromech droid over. It beeped an inquiry, and Jantah answered, "Could you give Mr. Skywalker a list of possible upgrades, showing good and bad consequences, in case he should change his mind?"
The droid hooted an affirmative, and a small datadisk popped out from one of its compartments. It extended its pincer-claw with the disk gripped in it. Fernd took it, and handed it to Luke. "We hadn't yet made the modifications, thanks to your droid." Fernd paused, "Oh, and one more thing...Don't you wish to get a new astromech droid? That one is outdated and we have in stock—"
"Get rid of Artoo? Never. We've been through a lot together," Luke cut in, grinning at an indignant Artoo and feeling a sense of deja vu.
"Sorry, just a suggestion, sir."
"Thank you. I'll look over this." Luke tapped the disk. "Is that all?"
"Yessir," a different technician replied, motioning for the others to follow. They all moved on to other business, Jantah giving Luke a last ambivalent look, full of awe and a touch of annoyance that a pilot would dare to give him orders, even if that pilot was the only Jedi Master in the galaxy. Luke turned back to Artoo and his X-wing, shaking his head and grinning in exasperation.
"Wanna go for a ride?" Luke asked the droid.
Artoo beeped an excited confirmation, and Luke climbed up the rope ladder, donning his helmet. He shut the hatch and ran a quick maintenance check. "Everything okay back there, Artoo?" Artoo, who had just been lowered by a crane into his socket, warbled an affirmative.
Luke got clearance to get out of the hangar, and he took his X-wing into Coruscant's atmosphere. The X-wing went through many seemingly impossible flips and other maneuvers, as Luke released some of his excess energy and frustration into flying. He had done just such a difficult flip when an unidentified blip popped up on his scopes.
"Hey, Luke, thought I'd drop by," came a voice on Luke's comm unit.
"Wedge!" Luke exclaimed. "What are you doing here?"
"Oh, I was going out for target practice." Wedge said innocently. "Would you like to join me?"
"Uh huh." Luke glanced at Wedge's X-wing suspiciously. "Oh, all right. Where are the targets set up?"
"Out a few klicks from Coruscant's atmosphere." Wedge answered.
"Okay. You lead the way." Wedge's X-wing started moving away from the planet, and Luke followed him. "Are we gonna just hit the targets? Or are we going to engage in a dogfight, too?" Luke queried.
"Well, you are a bit rusty...How about targets first, then a one-on-one battle?"
"Me? Rusty?" Luke snorted. "Yeah, right...You're on!"
"All right. I'm sending you the target coordinates."
Luke's X-wing beeped, "Got 'em. You go in first, General." Luke taunted.
"Okay, Commander." Wedge replied.
Luke made a face at the use of his resigned title. He turned around in his not-quite-so-spacious X-wing. "Everything okay back there, Artoo?"
Artoo whistled back. Luke looked at the translation: Of course everything's okay. What do you expect with a good droid like me?
"Well, you were being awfully quiet. And what do you mean 'good droid'? I remember a certain little droid defying its rightful master and—"
Artoo beeped harshly. I saved you didn't I? scrolled across the screen.
"That's beside the point—"
"Luke, are you there?" Wedge's voice came over the comm.
"Yeah. Sorry, I was just having a little argument with my astromech," Luke replied.
"Uh huh. Prepare to watch me blow these targets out of the sky. Come line up beside me," Wedge ordered.
Luke complied, bringing his X-wing in line.
"All right, Luke. Get ready, on my mark. Three...two...one...mark."
The X-wings sped towards the targets, blasting away with their low-powered beams. Finally, they called it quits and tallied up the scores. Luke had one point more than Wedge.
"Hey, Luke, I was being easy on you." Wedge said, smiling inside his X-wing. Gate, his R5 astromech unit, buzzed quietly, amused.
"That's not what I recall you saying, I clearly remember hearing that I was rusty and that you would blow the targets out of the sky," Luke grinned.
"I changed my mind."
"Right," Luke said, sarcastically. "Ready to dogfight?"
"You better believe it." Wedge looked at his sensors. "Tell me when you're ready."
Artoo bleeped that everything was go.
"Okay, Wedge, prepare to be defeated."
"Nope, sorry. It's vice versa. May the Force be with you, because you're definitely going to need it!" Wedge's X-wing twisted around to face Luke's.
At the word Force, Luke's gut lurched. He pushed those thoughts out of his mind, this time a bit annoyed at himself. "No, I think that's vice versa!"
Luke brought the joystick up between his knees, bringing his X-wing straight up, the cockpit's artificial gravity pushing down on him. Wedge tried to follow his maneuver, and Luke curved downward, heading straight towards Wedge, "lasers" blasting away at his shields. Wedge sustained a little simulated damage according to Gate, and he curved out of their head-on collision. "Ya gettin' scared Wedge?" Luke asked him, grinning inside his cockpit, as he brought his X-wing "level."
"Nah." Wedge replied. "I'm just trying to give you a little bit of a chance!" Wedge turned abruptly solemn. "Hey Luke, I wanted to ask you a question..."
"Sure, Wedge, what is it?" Luke asked, curious.
"Well, one of our pilots decided to retire, and we have an open spot in Rogue Squadron for someone," Wedge said slowly. "I was wondering if you might be interested?"
Luke thought for a moment. His responsibilities at the Academy were mostly void now, since there were few survivors...He winced. It would be pointless to try to rebuild until this threat was taken care of...So he might as well join the Rogues—perhaps he'd run into the person who had killed and harmed several of his students...
A little voice in his head tried to speak out against the idea, but he tried to convince it that he wasn't running away from his problems. "Sure, Wedge," Luke heard himself saying, "I'd love to."
Wedge reached a hand up to wipe his brow in relief. Instead, his hand met up with his helmet. Wedge grumbled a little profanity before saying, "That's great, Luke! We have a mission coming up soon, with a few days before we have to do anything, so you can pack and say your temporary farewells."
"Okay...So who is in with the Rogues now-a-days?" Luke asked Wedge.
Wedge began listing off members of Rogue Squadron that Luke really didn't know, and then he said mischievously, "And, of course, there's Corran Horn...I believe you remember him."
"Yes, I remember him vividly...He made me thankful Han doesn't have Jedi potential," Luke said solemnly.
Wedge burst out laughing, "You got that right! Anyway, do you remember Tycho?"
"Yeah, I remember him very well." Luke remarked.
"There's also Hobbie...and Wes Janson." Wedge made a strangling noise in the back of his throat.
Luke laughed, "Has he gotten that bad?"
"Worse, much worse. Don't be surprised if you find anything like a stuffed toy Ewok floating around," Wedge said, grinning.
"Ah...Still has the brain of a two-year old, but somehow manages to be a genius at pranks, eh?" Luke rolled his eyes.
"That would be putting it lightly...Anyway, he's a great shot with a blaster, which helps for ground missions..." Wedge listed off the rest of the Rogue pilots, then he glanced down at his wrist chrono. "Hey Luke, I have to go to a meeting. You know how busy us Generals are." Wedge laughed, "See ya later." His X-wing did a final loop to show off, then he headed toward Coruscant's surface.
Luke grinned. He'd probably better go back, too. "Artoo?"
The droid hooted a query.
"Let's head back."
Artoo bleeped an affirmative, and Luke took his X-wing back to the hangar. He climbed down the ladder's rungs and used the Force to levitate Artoo out of the back of the fighter. Artoo was used to this, but, nevertheless, a muted beep came from him. The R2-unit wanted to be left behind with the X-wing, so Luke let him have his wish.
Luke headed back to his quarters and collapsed onto the couch. He told himself he would just rest there for a moment, but he dozed off, due to his previous restless night.
Luke was coming into one of the temples on Yavin 4. Earlier, he had sensed a dark presence in this temple, and even now he saw a shadowy figure. It stepped out of the shadows, and Luke saw that it was a caped figure...with a dark helmet on. The mechanical breathing of Darth Vader echoed tauntingly in Luke's ears.
Vader brought his lightsaber up and ignited it. Luke stared at the man in shock. He had thought he'd died long ago.
Luke snapped out of it and swiftly brought his own saber out, adding some green to the dim red light in the room. They locked sabers, slashing and parrying with one another. Vader's saber slipped past Luke's defenses, cutting off a piece of his sleeve and burning some of the skin underneath. There was a sizzling noise and Luke cried out in pain—
—and woke up.
Luke was sweating heavily, and the arm of the couch where his head was resting was partially damp from his perspiration. Luke gasped for air, and touched the part of his arm that'd been burned in his dream. There was a slight red mark there, but Luke just put it off to banging it against the couch.
Darth Vader was dead.
Luke wiped a hand over his brow. It came back wet, and he sighed before going into the 'fresher to take a shower.
He shed his clothes and turned the water on hot. It felt great against his skin, and he could imagine it cleansing his soul of any remainder of Darth Vader that was still inside him.
Reluctantly, Luke finally got out and put on his robe. His chrono said that it was late, but he didn't feel like sleeping.
He went into his kitchenette and prepared a cup of hot chocolate.
Sipping it, he went out on the balcony. Leia always got him a room with a great view when he visited Coruscant. He looked out over the city at the lights that were blinking brilliantly. Coruscant was always active, even at night.
Luke took a deep breath, then let it out.
He could really use guidance right now.
Getting back in with Rogue Squadron felt right, but was that what he really needed to be doing? Should he be searching directly instead of indirectly for whoever had destroyed the Jedi Praxeum? Were these dreams he'd been having an important link of some kind? Luke had rarely had dreams since he became a Jedi Knight.
He groaned. His life had been harder than most average creatures. He had met up with many deaths, more likely to come, and he had seen much in his 23 years. Yes, he was still young, but he felt old. Depression nearly began to overwhelm him.
"Luke, you've led a troubled life, and you will continue to lead one, filled with danger." Luke looked up quickly and saw the shimmering spirit-form of Obi-Wan Kenobi. "I wish I could take away that danger, but it is an action that I am not capable of. Thus, I can only instruct you, and even then, only a little. I am giving you another option that you can take. You may continue with Rogue Squadron, or you may go to Dagobah, for you will find something there."
"What will I find there?" Luke asked.
Obi-Wan seemed to not be able to hear his inquiry. "This is your path, you must choose. You have a short amount of time to think about it. Use this time wisely. I must go, I should not have appeared to you even now..." Obi-Wan slowly began to fade away. "May the Force be with you...Always."
"Ben, wait! Don't go!" Luke said frantically. He didn't want to lose him again! But it was too late; the spirit was gone. "More decisions...More decisions," Luke mumbled almost deliriously. He put his mug up and walked, zombie-like, into his bedroom. He collapsed on his bed and fell asleep, still thinking about the future and his "other option."