“She will stay here with us, in the Palace.”
Ben looked up at his master. “Here, sir?”
“Yes. And you will protect her. You will not rob her of the one parent she has left.”
Ben choked, unable to speak.
( ...mother... )
“She will remain a princess and you will be her guardian. Guard her well, apprentice...or it will not go well for you.”
Caedus left Ben, his cape billowing in his wake. Ben had a wild urge to hurt Caedus’ daughter, just to end the nightmarish cycle; but Allana’s eyes were young and innocent and he would have to stay his hand.
Just as his master had foreseen.
Mara, Leia, Jaina, Nelani, Seha, Allana, Jysella, Myri, Syal, Tionne, Mirax: the women who had touched little Ben Skywalker’s life returned to haunt the young man’s dreams. Brown eyes faded into blue, blue eyes faded into emerald. It was always his mother who began and ended the dreams, her eyes bright with relentless purpose.
She stood silent in his dreams, as if guarding him. The other women would crowd around him and simply look, saying nothing.
“Nothing else helps.” Luke Skywalker’s soft voice cut across the dreams and suddenly the women were laughing to see him dancing with an empty crooked arm, where baby Ben had been cradled next to his father’s heart. And as Ben watched, his baby self would suddenly appear in Luke’s arms and his father would stop and hold him close.
Caedus held Allana close and kissed her goodnight. “The galaxy for my princess.”
Luke held Ben
close and kissed him goodnight. “I love you, little Ben.”
Luke’s eyes stared into Ben’s with the same relentless purpose as his mother’s. “We’re waiting for you. Come back, Ben.”
I can’t come back. There’s nowhere for me to
go back to. The dark is safe; I can hide...
Time passed. But Time, often called a healer, had not been kind.
The Jedi had given Ben up for lost; Kyle Katarn had succeeded Luke as Grand Master; Luke had quietly withdrawn into himself and to his small quarters in the Jedi Temple, no longer teaching, no longer talking. The Luke that haunted Ben’s dreams with that relentless purpose did not exist anymore. The Luke Ben always saw was only an echo of Luke’s spirit. The man himself was a shell.
His Force presence was soft and muted, barely felt unless one was looking for it. His dark-blonde hair had grayed overnight and the sunlight betrayed the years of his life.
He had come to the point of wanting to become one with the Force; he had no fight left in him anymore. His wife was gone, his family splintered, and his only child a direct heir to the darker side of the Skywalker legacy.
What had he done? Or, what had he left undone that had led to this?
Caedus had assured Luke through the Force that he was taking good care of his son. And for the first time in a long time, Luke Skywalker was paralyzed. He could do nothing; he knew Ben would have to find his way back to the Light on his own. There was not much he could do for his son.
But isn’t your part one of a redeemer? his wife’s voice chided him. Bring him back...
“I have done all I can,” Luke said clearly. “I have given everything, and now I have nothing. Nothing but the fruits of my failures...”
He had taken to holding his lightsaber in his hands, staring at it without seeing it, his mind a blissful blank. He no longer feared the day when he would turn it on himself.
But even now, at his lowest, as a failed father and teacher, he still had the barest hope that his son would return to the Light, would return to him. And it was that hope that, unknown to Luke, reached across the galaxy to haunt his son.
Luke could wait, but for how long?
“Master Skywalker?”
The days had dragged on into weeks, weeks into months. There were daily reports of developments in Darth Caedus’ reign and of the progress of his red-headed apprentice. Luke still took them, hoping to see his son’s face.
He laid in bed, still dressed in yesterday’s clothes, a full week’s growth of stubble on his face, and a voice called again, “Master Skywalker?”
He did not move or answer. He did not respond to that name anymore.
“Luke?”
“I’m coming,” he said softly and groaned as he hauled himself to his feet. Pressing the door release, he found himself face-to-face with Corran Horn.
“Keiran,” he said warmly.
Corran
smiled sadly. The master was slipping—back into happier days it seemed, more
and more. “Master—Luke, Malinza Thanas has sent you a message through the
Luke nodded, staring at Corran’s hand. Corran handed him a datacube.
“I’ve arranged for your X-wing to be on standby, Luke,” Corran said. “Let me know if you need anything...”
Luke nodded and stepped back into his quarters. He looked at the datacube and activated it.
Little Malinza, he thought. His adopted daughter. He had been wrong—Ben was not his only child. Maybe Malinza could share some Balance with him, or warm his soul just as her mother had done so many lifetimes ago.
“Hi, Uncle Luke,” came Malinza’s voice. “I wanted to let you know that I’m with you. If you need anything at all...”
—I’ll be there. That was what everyone said.
“But I also wanted to tell you—I’m getting married! And I want you to be there. It would mean so much to me if we could spend some time together before the wedding, and if you could give me away...”
In spite of himself, Luke’s heart swelled with love and pride. Little Malinza, getting married. Her mother would have been proud.
“I consider you my father too,” her voice continued softly. “I know you are hurting...but I need you...and I think you might need me too...”
The recording ended and Luke tucked the cube into a pocket of his robe. The memory of her smile chased some of the sadness away. It was time to shake off his depression and be with those he loved.
“Artoo?”
R2-D2 beeped an affirmative from the wall socket.
“We’re
going to Bakura.”