Return of the Jedi

                                By Moriah Organa

                                Summary: ROTJ from Luke's p.o.v. Warning! includes non-canonical characters like Dai-Men
                                Jinn and Chani Kenobi..
                                Disclaimer: This is really by George Lucas, I've just put a different spin on it. All rights
                                accrue to him.
 

                                Local tradition says Jabba's palace was originally a monastery. I believe it, who but a bunch
                                of ascetic monks would choose to live on the edge of the Dune Sea? But for the last couple of
                                hundred years it's served as the headquarters of one gangster chieftain or another. Jabba's
                                just the latest in a long ignoble line.

                                I got out of the speeder, and stood for a moment considering the sandblasted portcullis
                                guarding the entrance to the Hutt's stronghold.

                                'Guess we don't have time for a plan.'

                                I smiled involuntarily remembering Lando's disgruntled comment at our last meeting.

                                'There's no point in making plans,' I'd replied patiently, 'there's no telling what Jabba'll do. Don't
                                worry, the Force will guide us.'

                                'You sound just like Jinn!' he'd grumbled. And then he'd gone back to the palace like I'd asked
                                him too.

                                I was getting used to that. To people doing what I wanted even when they didn't like it. They
                                all did now, Lando, Chewy, even Leia. Nobody tried to boss the 'kid' anymore. It was one of
                                the things I missed most about Han. I wondered what he'd make of the change in me.

                                I'd stood out here long enough, if nobody saw fit to open the door I'd open it for myself. I
                                reached out with the Force, found the opening mechanism and gave it the necessary nudge.
                                Slowly, grudgingly it creaked upward.

                                I knew what I wanted to accomplish, all I had to do was keep my eyes open and the means
                                would present themselves. But I didn't quite have my Master's faith, not yet.

                                I'd taken care to plant a few allies; Lando and the droids, (poor Threepio! I hoped he'd forgive
                                me. Artoo'd insisted it was better he not be told and he knew his counterpart better than
                                anybody). And yesterday I'd sent Chewy and Leia in to look after Han. By now they should all
                                be together in one of Jabba's cells.

                                Finally the door finished grinding open and I entered. Cool, damp air rushed out flapping my
                                long cloak as I headed down the wide, dimly lit tunnel.

                                It was possible all my precautions would prove unnecessary, Jabba might be willing to deal.
                                Yeah, and there might be rainstorms in the Jundland Wastes. Odds were I'd have to kill him to
                                get Han out. The prospect did not displease me.

                                A pair of bulky Gammorean guards tried to block my path. A gesture closed their throats, sent
                                them reeling back fighting for air before lapsing into unconsciousness.

                                I continued on. A pudgy, unhealthy looking yellow Twi'lek male came bustling out of the
                                cavernous room below babbling indignantly in Huttese.

                                "I must speak to Jabba." I told him.

                                It seemed Jabba didn't want to see me. Too bad. The Twi'lek was no challenge at all. "You will
                                take me to Jabba now."

                                "//I will take you to Jabba now.//" he echoed obediently, still in Huttese, turned and led the way
                                into Jabba's throne room.

                                It must have been quite a party. Empty cups and bottles, and trampled remains of food littered
                                the floor. Dozens of unconscious or sleeping bodies huddled in the dim corners of the big
                                chamber.

                                "You serve your master well." I told the Twi'lek, no compliment that! "and you will be
                                rewarded." As he deserved.

                                He repeated the words with smug pleasure as he went to wake his master.

                                Leia wasn't in any cell, she was right there with a chain around her neck dressed in a skimpy
                                slave-girl costume. Stupid of me, I should have remembered Jabba's taste for humanoid
                                females. I should never have sent her into this place. Force only knew what she'd been
                                subjected to, certainly *she'd* never tell me. I carefully stifled the first stirrings of anger as I
                                came to stand before the Hutt's throne.

                                There was no blame in her eyes, only apology and fear she'd somehow ruined my plans. I
                                returned her look for an instant projecting reassurance: Everything would be all right, I'd see
                                to that.

                                Threepio was there too. "At last Master Luke's come to rescue me!"

                                Good old Threepio. I looked at Jabba. I'd heard of him all my life, he controls practically
                                everthing on Tatooine, but I'd never seen him before. It wasn't a pleasant sight. Hutts are
                                unlovely anyway by human standards but Jabba was a particularly repulsive specimen with
                                an ugliness that went well beyond the physical, all the way to the rotting distortion that was
                                his soul. No, I wouldn't mind killing him one bit.

                                The Hutt woke with a start and the Twi'lek Major-Domo presented me. "//Luke Skywalker, Jedi
                                Knight.//"

                                "//I told you not to admit him.//" Jabba snarled.

                                "I must be allowed to speak." I responded. Was echoed by the Twi'lek. Jabba was gross and
                                evil but not stupid, he immediately realized what I'd done. Knocked his Major-Domo backward
                                off the dais with an angry blow.

                                "//You weak minded fool! He's using an old Jedi mindtrick!//"

                                I put back my hood and stepped closer. "You will bring Captain Solo and the Wookiee to me."
                                the suggestion rolled off him like oil off metal plate.

                                He laughed. "//Your mind powers will not work on me, boy!//"

                                It'd been worth a try but Master'd warned me the mindtrick probably wouldn't work. Hutts tend
                                to be resistant anyway and a powerful, soul dead specimen like Jabba would almost certainly
                                be immune.

                                But I sensed the Hutt was not as confident as he seemed. There was a definite undercurrent
                                of fear. Good. Fear leads to anger and I wanted Jabba angry with me - and my friends.

                                "Nevertheless, I'm taking Captain Solo and his friends." I told him quietly but with all the
                                certainty I could project. "You can either profit by this or...be destroyed! The choice is yours
                                but I warn you not to underestimate my powers."

                                I know, real diplomatic. Han once said attitude and arrogance were the only line to take with a
                                Hutt - and Jabba's sense told me he was right. Anything less confrontational would be taken
                                as weakness.

                                I was rewarded by a flare of fear from the Hutt, ill concealed by his forced laughter.

                                "Master Luke," Threepio began, "you're standing on-"

                                Jabba interupted him. "//There will be no bargain, young jedi, shall enjoy watching you die.//"

                                Extending a hand and the Force I called a blaster to me. A Gammorean seized my arm
                                wrestling for it. It went off powdering us both with stone dust from the ceiling then the floor
                                dropped out from under us.

                                I disintangled myself from the Gammorean as we slid down a shute and shot out into a dank
                                pit carved into the living rock beneath Jabba's throne room. I rolled to my feet discarding my
                                cloak.

                                I felt like a fool. I'd fallen, literally, for one of the oldest traps in the book. Whatever was down
                                here with us it was going to be nasty - the Guard's hysterical terror made that much clear.

                                A toothed metal portcullis, not unlike the front door, rumbled upward. I didn't need Threepio's
                                faintly heard, "Oh no, the rancor!" to recognize the monster facing me.

                                Yoda can say what he likes but there are some advantages to spending your whole
                                childhood looking foreward to leaving home. I'm a real expert on xeno-zoology. Not only did I
                                recognize the rancor I knew what planet it came from and what it ate; anything that moved.

                                I eased back, trying not to be noticed. The Gammorean guard panicked, tried to climb back into
                                the shute squealing with terror, catching the creature's attention. In an instant it'd caught him
                                up and devoured him, armor and all.

                                The crowd above cheered. I felt sick. The reverberations of the guard's death and the
                                bloodthirst of Jabba's courtiers roiled the Force around me. I tried to block the disturbance out
                                as the rancor slowly swung towards me. I spotted a long bone, remains of some previous
                                victim, and snatched it up holding it instictively in the usual two handed sabre grip.

                                The rancor reached for me. Another cheer from above as its massive paw nearly crushing
                                my ribcage. I struggled to breath and found myself looking straight into the dripping cavern of
                                the monster's mouth. I shoved in the bone, wedging it tight, and the rancor gagged, dropping
                                me.

                                I quickly rolled into the cover of a convenient crevice. Peering up at the creature as it flailed
                                around in angry pain. I didn't want to kill it if I didn't have to. It wasn't evil, just a poor mistreated
                                animal, half starved to make it vicious. I would have loved to give it a good square meal - say
                                Jabba and his hangers on, but that seemed impractical.

                                The bone snapped, and it chewed up the fragments casting around for me. Rancors are petty
                                bright it quickly figured out where I'd vanished to and tried to reach in after me. Dodging
                                scrabbling claws I caught a glimpse of the cavern behind it, its den, and of a door leading out.

                                I smashed a rock down on a groping digit and it was snatched back with a roar of pain. Then
                                took advantage of the brief distraction to make a run for the door. It opened but the way was
                                blocked by a metal grate. I gave it one good heave but it was solid, turned back to face the
                                monster.

                                Maybe a quick death would be kinder than leaving it here to suffer. Not that I had a choice. I
                                looked around for a way.

                                And there it was - the control panel for the big door seperating the den from the feeding pit.
                                The rancor lumbered towards me. I picked up a skull and hurled it, with a little help from the
                                Force, right into the panel just as the creature stepped beneath the portcullis. The controls
                                exploded and down came the gate full on the rancor's skull. It died almost instantly.

                                There was a stunned silence from above, then Jabba began roaring orders right and left as
                                his court exploded into excited comment.

                                The grate opened but the guards were thrown aside by a bulky man draped in an animal skin
                                making a beeline for the rancor's body. The guards grabbed me and I was careful not to resist
                                as they dragged me out. A second beast keeper passed us, glaring pure murder at me.
                                Looking over my shoulder I saw him trying to comfort the first keeper who was sobbing
                                openly over the dead monster.

                                I guess he'd been fond of his charge. I felt bad too. The rancor had been the cleanest thing in
                                this hellhole.

                                I was dragged up a spiral ramp and back into the throne room. Han and Chewy were being
                                hustled in through another door. Good, all together now except for Artoo, and I knew where
                                he'd be.

                                "Han!"

                                "Luke?" He looked around blindly. Master'd warned me the long hibernation would affect his
                                sight.

                                "Are you all right?" Not that he'd admit it if he wasn't.

                                "Fine." he answered, predictably. "Together again, huh?"

                                "Wouldn't miss it." I grinned. Just being with Han made me feel like a wide eyed farm boy
                                again.

                                "How are we doing?" he asked as we arrived in front of Jabba.

                                "Same as always." I admitted.

                                "That bad, huh?" with genuine concern. "Where's Leia?"

                                "I'm here!" she piped up from her place on the dais. It was just as well Han couldn't see Jabba
                                fondling her as he made a brief speech in a Huttese dialect I couldn't follow.

                                "Oh dear." said Threepio. Began to translate. "His High Exaltedness, the Great Jabba the Hutt,
                                has decreed you are to be terminated immediately."

                                "Good." Han said promptly. "I hate long waits."

                                Yeah, he was okay.

                                Threepio continued unhappily. "You will therefore be taken to the Dune Sea and cast into the
                                Pit of Carkoon, nesting place of the all-powerful Sarlacc."

                                Perfect! even better than the Arena or the Shivering Sands.

                                "That doesn't sound so bad." Han commented, ever the smart aleck.

                                "There you will find a new definition of pain and suffering as you are slowly digested over a
                                thousand years." Threepio shuddered.

                                I wondered idly how on Tatooine Jabba could know that. Somebody climb out once after only
                                a century or two of digestion?

                                Chewy barked a comment lost on anybody who didn't speak Kasshyk-ka. Han translated
                                freely. "On second thought let's pass on that, huh?" he sounded a little worried.

                                I wasn't. This was exactly what I'd been playing for. "You should have bargained, Jabba." the
                                guards began to drag me away and I had to call the final words over my shoulder. "It's the last
                                mistake you'll ever make!"

                                He took it for bravado of course, which was just fine. Leia looked upset though.

                                "So, what'd you do to piss off his exaltedness?" Han asked me after they'd thrown us into a
                                holding cell.

                                "Killed his pet." I admitted.

                                "His what?" incredulously. "You mean the rancor?"

                                "It was just a little one." I told him. True enough, they can grow to twice that size back on their
                                homeworld - or so the books said.

                                "//I told you, he's a Jedi Knight.//" Chewy growled.

                                "Yeah." Han said, unconvinced. "No offense, kid, but I'll believe it when I see it - if you'll
                                excuse the expression."

                                The door creaked open. Didn't anybody in this place have a can of lubricant? A squad of
                                guards entered, Lando at their head.

                                He went straight to Han, grabbing him in a way that looked rough but wasn't. "Okay, you, time
                                to go."

                                Han pulled away. "What's your hurry, got a hot date?"

                                "Yeah, but not as hot as yours!"

                                I sensed the exchange meant more than it seemed. That Lando had just apologized - and been
                                forgiven.

                                Good. I'd been afraid Han might hold a grudge, be unwilling to trust Lando. I should have
                                remembered they'd been friends for a long time - and this wasn't the first time one had done
                                the other a dirty trick.
 
 
 
 
 

                                I actually enjoyed the trip out to the Pit. We, Han and Chewy and I, rode in an open sand skiff
                                with Lando and three other guards. There was a second skiff for escort and Jabba's sail
                                barge, a lumbering red sailed thing.

                                We skimmed over the slow moving, wind blown waves of the Dune Sea with the hot dry air
                                of Tatooine rushing over us and the light of the double suns reflecting blindingly off the golden
                                sand.

                                It was beautiful in its harsh, sun scoured way. I'd learned to appreciate Tatooine during the
                                two weeks I'd been living in Ben's hut. Maybe I was somehow tuning in to the presence he'd
                                left behind and seeing my homeworld through his eyes.

                                I'd hated the planet as a kid, lived to get off it but I didn't feel that way now. Actually Tatooine
                                wasn't half bad compared to say, Dagobah or Had Abbadon or Kessel. And it was my home.
                                If I lived I'd be coming back here. Chani wouldn't mind. It was her home too.

                                "I think my eyes are getting better." Han announced suddenly, before I had to ask myself just
                                when Chani'd begun to figure in my future. "Instead of a big dark blur, I see a big light blur."

                                I almost laughed. "There's nothing to see. I used to live here, you know."

                                "Your'e gonna die here, you know. Convenient."

                                No, not here. "Just stay close to Chewy and Lando." I told him, "I've taken care of everything."

                                "Oh....great." He wasn't buying it. I didn't blame him. I knew he was remembering the feckless
                                kid without sense enough to come in out of the snow. I'd changed but he couldn't know that -
                                yet.

                                The Pit of Carkoon was something else I'd heard about but never seen. A whirlpool of sand
                                with a gaping, toothlined maw and predatory beak at the bottom. I grimaced, this was no
                                innocent, misused animal. There was sentience there, of a sort, and malice. A guard
                                unfastened my bonds and shoved me onto a sort of plank extending over the Pit.

                                Threepio's voice floated to us from the barge. "Victims of the almighty Sarlacc: His Excellency
                                hopes that you will die honorably."

                                Sure he did.

                                "But should any of you wish to beg for mercy the Great Jabba the Hutt will now listen to your
                                pleas."

                                I bet he would. The sadistic slug.

                                Han agreed. "Threepio! You tell that slimy piece of worm ridden filth he'll get no such pleasure
                                from us! Right?"

                                There was a distinct pause before Chewy growled "//Right!//".

                                I saw Artoo emerge onto the barge's deck and roll to the rail. Now everything was in place.
                                "Jabba! this is your last chance. Free us or die." Not a threat, a simple statement of fact.

                                Of course he didn't take me seriously, the barge fairly rocked with laughter. Well I'd tried.

                                "//Move him into position!//"

                                The guard nudged me with his vibro-axe. I walked out to the end to the plank and looked
                                down. Nasty. Then back over my shoulder to give Lando the nod.

                                He returned it. Completely confident I knew what I was doing and ready to back me to the hilt.

                                Han on the other hand looked desperate, casting around for a way out. But Chewy was right
                                next to him. He'd keep him from doing anything crazy.

                                I hoped.

                                I looked up at the barge. Smiled reassuringly at Leia, tense and anxious beside Jabba, then
                                threw my faithful little droid a salute. I saw his head dome open.

                                "//Put him in!//" Jabba ordered.

                                I jumped. Twisted in mid-air to catch the end of the plank as I fell. It rebounded catapulting me
                                upward, over the heads of the guards to land on the deck. I put out a hand and my lightsabre
                                fell right into it. Igniting it I cleared the skiff with a few swipes of my blade. I got no style but I'm
                                effective.

                                Han was demanding to know what was going on and Chewy growling reassurances. Lando
                                was wrestling with the helmsman but seemed to have matters in hand so I took a second to
                                cut Han and Chewy's bonds. Then a blast from the sail barge rocked us, sending Lando and
                                his opponent over the side. I saw the guard roll into the Sarlacc's maw but Lando managed to
                                grab a dangling rope.

                                I moved to help him and Boba Fett landed directly in front of me laser rifle aimed. I cut it in half.
                                This guy's a slow learner, you'd think after Had Abbadon he'd know better than to pull a gun
                                on a Jedi.

                                The skiff shied under a second volley. Chewy knocked Han flat with a roar of alarm or maybe
                                pain.

                                "Chewy you hit?" Han demanded frantically, "Where is it?"

                                I spared them a quick glance. Chewy was okay, hanging on to Han trying to shield him from
                                the incoming fire.

                                A cable wrapped itself around me. Another bounty hunter gadget. I gave Fett a scornful look.
                                Was this the best he could do? a flick of my sabre and I was free. Then a well timed if
                                ill-aimed blast from the barge knocked Fett on his face and right out of the fight.

                                Lando's voice came from over the side, close to panic. "Han! Chewy!"

                                And another fullisade of fire, this time from the second skiff, detonated around me. I decided
                                I'd better take care of that and made a Force jump into its bow landing right in front of the
                                astonished guards.

                                They had good reaction time, I'll give them that. I deflected their volley with my sabre and
                                waded into them. Jabba didn't keep a very high class of mercenary. In minutes I had the
                                second skiff to myself. I turned in time to see the first skiff heel over under fire from the barge.
                                My heart stopped as Han nearly went overboard. Started again as Chewy caught him just in
                                time. I had to do something about that gun.

                                Another leap to the side of the barge. A guard popped out of a hatch and I grabbed his gun
                                arm pulling him all the way out. He tumbled down the slope into the Sarlacc's gullet. I was
                                going to give the creature a bad case of indigestion if I kept this up.

                                A finger breaking scrabble up the hull then over the rail and onto the deck. I ignited my sabre
                                and took out both gun and gunner then turned to face the guards converging on me, deflecting
                                their fire. I was getting better at placing my returns - but not much. I struck down anybody that
                                got within blade length and they soon learned to keep their distance.

                                Suddenly Leia emerged from below followed by Threepio and Artoo. She started to go for a
                                fallen hand laser.

                                "Get the gun!" I shouted, meaning the deck cannon. "Point it at the deck!"

                                She obeyed instantly while I did my best to cover her. "Point it at the deck!"

                                A laser bolt caught me on the hand, the prosthetic one luckily. Not that synthetic nerve
                                endings don't hurt just as much as the real thing for a second or two before the safeties cut
                                in. I recovered and downed a guard who'd gotten to close. The others backed off.

                                I saw Threepio and Artoo tumble over the side. Right, time to go. Jumped up on the afterdeck
                                gun mount, grabbed a convenient bit of rigging and held an arm out to Leia. "Come on."

                                She put both her feet onto the one I'd hooked in the rope and wrapped her arms around my
                                neck. I kicked the trigger with my free foot sending a full volley straight into the deck and
                                launched us towards the skiff.

                                The others were safe aboard with Lando at the helm.

                                "Let's go!" I ordered. "And don't forget the droids."

                                He grinned. "We're on our way!"

                                Behind us the barge disintigrated in a chain reaction of explosions. A final blast sending a rain
                                of firery debris after us as we skimmed away.

                                Then Leia threw herself at Han - and Lando, Chewy and I hastily found ourselves things to
                                do: Steer the skiff; clear the deck of debris; brush sand off of the droids. Every one of us
                                wearing a big silly grin.

                                Evenutally the muffled endearments became a little more coherent. When Han demanded to
                                know what Leia was wearing I knew it was safe to turn around.

                                "Practically nothing." she replied grinning up at him.

                                He grinned too, lasciviously, hands running over her bare back and shoulders. "Wish I could
                                see that."

                                "I'm glad I can." Lando piped up from the stern.

                                She did look good. I thought how much the troops would appreciate a picture in this outfit and
                                grinned to myself.

                                "Watch it 'old friend'." Han warned.

                                He didn't sound serious but still.. "Lando's been a great help to us. Without his recce work we
                                wouldn't have had a chance of getting you out." I thought Han should know just how much
                                Lando had done for us - and him.

                                "I know." he answered, glancing over his shoulder. "Chewy explained things." turned back to
                                his old friend. "So what happened? Vader just march in and make you an offer you couldn't
                                refuse?"

                                "Something like that." the former Baron shrugged, "He said he needed you and the others as
                                bait for Luke. Once he had what he wanted he'd go. You were supposed to stay on Cloud
                                City with me."

                                "You believed that?" Han asked incredulously.

                                Another helpless shrug. "Like I had a choice? I had my people to think of - and Vader has a
                                reputation for keeping his bargains."

                                Leia frowned. "That's right, he's never broken his word before."

                                "Aw come on!" Han protested.

                                "No it's true! I know how he operates, Han, I've been fighting him for years."

                                "He's always kept his word?" the question came out a bit more forcefully than I'd intended.

                                She turned to me, "Yes, always. Frankly I couldn't believe my ears when I heard him tell Lando
                                he was altering the bargain. It just wasn't like him."

                                Wasn't like him? So Vader had a sense of honor did he...oddly I believed it. It fit with what I
                                had sensed during our contact. He wasn't all dark, there were still a few sparks of light.

                                "He must want me very badly." I said, mostly to myself. Like a father wants his son?

                                A distinct Force touch brushed my mind questingly. Automatically I shut it out, like it was one
                                of Yoda's exercises, then looked up and saw Han's blind eyes fixed on me with a little frown.
                                I stared at him in disbelief, he'd just tried to Force probe me!

                                "Maybe because you're a Jedi?" Leia was still worrying about Vader.

                                "Maybe." I answered absently, my attention on Han.

                                "Look, kid," he said sharply, "you can't go around calling yourself a Jedi Knight."

                                "I did kind of overstate." I admitted, ruefully. "Actually I'm only a Padawan." But that wouldn't
                                have impressed Jabba.

                                Han's face went still with a kind of shock. "What did you say?"

                                "A Padawan," I explained, watching him intently. "it's the Jedi term for an apprentice or
                                student."

                                "Whose student?" he exploded, "the old man's dead, Luke, and one sabre lesson doesn't
                                make you a Jedi or a Padawan or anything!"

                                "I found another Teacher." I couldn't help smiling, remembering my first encounter with Yoda.
                                "And a Padawan Master found me."

                                "The Jedi were all destroyed by the Empire." he argued. "Whoever these guys are they *can't*
                                be the real thing!"

                                "Trust me, Han," from Lando, "they are. I've seen Jinn fight, he's a Jedi all right."

                                "Jinn?" A flash of bewildered, near recognition.

                                "That's his name, Dai-Men Jinn." I explained. There was something there all right, long buried,
                                almost forgotten. But what connection could there be betweeen Han and my Master?

                                "Dai-Men Jinn." he repeated softly. I sensed confusion, conflict.

                                "Han?" Leia snuggled into his side, trying to get his attention. She succeeded.

                                He looked down at her, preoccupied frown clearing a little. Admitted. "I feel like I've heard that
                                name before somewhere."

                                "Not likely." I said. "He told me he hasn't gone by his real name in years." Master wouldn't tell a
                                direct lie - but it was possible Han'd known him under an alias. Could he have picked Master's
                                image out of my mind and recognized it?

                                "Yeah, well, maybe that carbonite's still playing tricks with my head." he said uncomfortably.
                                Obviously wanting to drop the subject. I decided not to press him. He was still recovering. It
                                wouldn't be fair or kind. Besides Leia'd kill me.

                                "Master said hibernation was very disorienting." I soothed. "The confusion, like your
                                blindness, will pass."

                                "Soon, I hope." Han muttered. He wrapped his arms around Leia and I felt his confusion
                                vanish, put aside and sealed off as he focused determinedly on the moment "What about my
                                ship, how's the Falcon?"

                                I barely heard the banter that followed. It took discipline to clear the mind like that, Jedi type
                                discipline. Somewhere, sometime Han had gotten some rudimentary training.

                                Master'd never so much as hinted he knew Han, which meant precisely nothing where
                                Dai-Men was concerned. Had we shared a teacher?

                                If Han was a trained Force user why did he pretend not to believe in It? I could understand him
                                hiding it at first, but after all these years? Surely he knew he could trust us by now.

                                He must have used Force powers to find me on Hoth, and maybe to keep us both alive over
                                that long freezing night. And there'd been other things too over the years.. those hunches of
                                his and what he liked to call his Corellian Luck. Untrained myself I'd missed the signs... until
                                now.

                                But why this conflict, this resistance at any mention of the Jedi? There was something very
                                strange here....I looked at my friend and wondered: Who are you, Han Solo?
 
 
 
 

                                Han couldn't understand why I wasn't coming back to the Fleet with them. I considered trying Yoda's name
                                out on him, just to see what happened, but decided against it. Things were complicated enough already.

                                "I made a promise," I explained, "and I'm running out of time to keep it."

                                Leia understood, gave me a kiss 'for luck'. "Be careful."

                                "Always." I assured her.

                                Dagobah's no garden planet, a slimey mudhole I'd called it once, and full of voracious life forms. Dangerous,
                                but not to me. At least not this area. I knew where the quicksand pools were and the trapfalls and predators'
                                lairs and other hazards. Threaded my way easily among them. Yoda's house looked like any other mudheap
                                except for the yellow light streaming from window and open door.

                                My Master was standing on the sill waiting for me. He'd changed in the scant year since I'd left him. He'd
                                shrunk, become more withered and frail. I tried to hide my shock as I knelt to greet him.

                                "Expecting you I have been." he announced. "Hungry are you?"

                                "Uh - no, thanks, Master." I'd have to be starving three days before I'd eat rootleaf stew!

                                "Come in, come in. Darkness falls, chilly it grows."

                                I crawled through the little round door and tucked myself into my usual corner. Master Yoda took the kettle
                                off the fire then turned and made his slow, effortful way towards his bedplace.

                                Suddenly he directed a sharp glance at me. "That face you make, look I so old to young eyes?"

                                I hurriedly rearranged my expression. "No...of course not." Not much point in lying to a Jedi Master. He saw
                                right through me of course.

                                "I do," he corrected, almost gleefully, "yes I do. Sick have I become. Old and weak." stopped to shake a
                                finger at me. "When nine hundred years old you reach, look as good you will not! Hmmm?" he chuckled at his
                                little joke and I tried to smile dutifully as he settled himself on his bed, near me.

                                "Soon I will rest. Yes, forever sleep. Earned it I have." He sounded as if he welcomed the prospect.

                                "Master Yoda, you can't die." I pleaded.

                                "Strong am I with the Force." he replied. "But not that strong! Twilight is upon me and soon night must fall." He
                                was having trouble with his blanket, I reached over to help him. "That is the way of things....the way of the
                                Force."

                                I knew he was right - "But I need your help. I've come back to complete the training." It had taken me long
                                enough.

                                He shook his head. "No more training do you require. Already know you that which you need."

                                'Follow your feelings and trust in the Force.' I'd learned to do both. Yoda was right, there was nothing more to
                                teach. "Then I am a Jedi." I whispered. I'd thought It would feel different somehow. I'd be stronger, surere of
                                myself.

                                Yoda made a snorting noise, a laugh? "Not yet. One thing remains." He opened his eyes to peer up at me.
                                "Vader, you must confront Vader. Only then a Jedi will you be."

                                Yes, of course, the Trial. Vader was my final test. But who was he? Now was the time to ask but it took me a
                                few moments to screw up the nerve.

                                "Master Yoda....is Darth Vader my father?" There! it was said.

                                To my astonishment he tried to evade answering. Turned away from me muttering as if to himself,
                                "Mmmmm....rest I need. Yes...rest."

                                I pressed him. "Yoda, I must know."

                                A long pause. Then, wearily, "Your father he is."

                                I knew it...I knew it. Oh, Ben how could you?

                                "Told you he did?"

                                "Yes." I whispered, still coming to terms with it. My long lost father, my worst enemy...

                                "Unexpected this is." said Yoda. "and unfortunate."

                                "Unfortunate that I know the truth?" I flared. They'd lied to me both of them, Ben and Yoda too.

                                He turned laboriously back to face me. "No...Unfortunate that you rushed to face him....that incomplete was
                                your training. That not ready for the burden were you."

                                He was right. I hadn't been ready for such a devastating truth. I could understand them not telling me Darth
                                Vader was my father. But why had Ben lied and told me Vader had killed my father?

                                Going to Bespin had been a mistake. Not only had I failed to be any help at all to Han and Leia. I'd very
                                nearly been lost myself. If Leia hadn't rescued me...."I'm sorry."

                                Yoda's eyes were fixed on me, wide and intent. "Remember a Jedi's strength flows from the Force. But
                                beware. Anger, fear, aggression. The Dark Side are they. Once you start down that path forever will it
                                dominate your destiny."

                                I saw now I'd been flirting with the Dark Side on Tatooine. I'd *wanted* to destroy Jabba, enjoyed doing it.
                                Anger, vengeance had colored my actions.

                                "Luke...Luke..." My Master's voice was very weak. I'd pushed him beyond the little strength he had left. He
                                struggled to get out what he must say. I leaned in closer to hear it.

                                "Do not...do not underestimate the power of the Emperor or suffer your father's fate you will."

                                Where had Father gone wrong, what was his mistake? Too late now to ask.

                                "When I am gone the last of the Jedi will you be."

                                The shock went through me like a blaster charge. Followed by a wave of grief. Dai-Men... Chani... Jayce...all
                                gone?

                                "Luke," Yoda's voice was little more than a thread of breath now. "the Force runs strong in your family. Pass
                                on what you have learned."

                                Pass it on to who - Han? Somehow I couldn't see him accepting me as his Master.

                                "Luke....There is another Sky...walker."

                                What? His eyes sank closed, he seemed to crumple into the pillow. I felt him go leaving an empty husk that
                                faded away seconds later. I was alone. All alone.

                                Eventually I made myself move. Damped down the fire and crawled out of the little house for the last time.
                                There was no reason to come back here. Not ever.

                                Artoo had elected to pass the time by making some minor adjustments to the sensor systems. He's always
                                tinkering, a real perfectionist my little droid. I looked back in time to see the fire flicker out in Yoda's empty
                                house. Then crouched down to inspect Atroo's work. But I had no heart for it - or anything else.

                                "I can't do it, Artoo, I can't go on alone."

                                And a familiar voice, one I hadn't heard for over a year, said; "Yoda will always be with you."

                                I looked up and there he was, a shimmery blue apparition working his way towards me through the
                                undergrowth.

                                "Obi-Wan!" his real name. But it didn't fit. I'd never known Obi-Wan Kenobi, Jedi Master and General of the
                                Republic. He'd always been 'Old Ben' to me, the crazy desert hermit who told strange and wonderful stories.
                                But now I felt as if I'd never really known him at all. He'd lied to me. I could hardly believe he'd do such a
                                thing but he had.

                                "Why didn't you tell me?" I demanded, ducking under my ship's wing and going to meet him. "You told me
                                Vader betrayed and murdered my father."

                                He met the accusation squarely, luminous eyes steady on mine. "Your father was seduced by the Dark Side
                                of the Force. He ceased to be Anakin Skywalker and became Darth Vader. When that happened the good
                                man who was your father was destroyed. So what I told you was true - from a certain point of view."

                                He had to be kidding. "A certain point of view!" I repeated incredulous.

                                "Luke, you're going to find that many of the truths we cling to depend greatly on our own point of view."

                                A man's either dead or he isn't. It's not a matter of opinion! I watched Ben seat himself on a fallen trunk. I
                                didn't want to fight with him. He was all I had left... But he'd lied, betrayed me....

                                "Anakin was a good friend." the sadness underlying the words disarmed me. I let go of my anger and sat
                                down beside him.

                                "When I first knew him your father was already a great pilot. But I was amazed at how strongly the Force was
                                with him. I took it upon myself to train him as a Jedi. I thought I could instruct him just as well as Yoda." a
                                defeated sigh. "I was wrong."

                                That wasn't quite the way Dai-Men had told it. According to him Yoda'd wanted no part of training my father
                                and Ben had taken him on in obedience to his own Master's dying wish. Ben made it sound like it had all been
                                his own idea. More 'point of view'?

                                "There is still good in him." I knew there was, I'd felt it on Bespin.

                                Ben disagreed. "He's more machine now than man, twisted and evil." How bitter he sounded. Father had
                                betrayed the Jedi. Killed them...killed him....

                                I knew what he and Yoda wanted me to do. "I can't do it, Ben."

                                "You cannot escape your destiny." He told me. "You must face Darth Vader again."

                                "I can't kill my own father!" How could that be right? How could the Force want it?

                                "Then the Emperor has already won." Ben's shoulders slumped in defeat. "You were our last hope."

                                That wasn't true, it couldn't be. "Yoda spoke of another."

                                Then he stunned me. "The other he spoke of was your twin sister."

                                Sister??!! "But I have no sister."

                                He almost smiled. "To protect you both from the Emperor, you were hidden from your father when you were
                                born."

                                It was crazy, like something out of a fairy tale, and yet...Growing up I'd had this strange feeling part of me
                                was missing. Somebody who should have been in my life but wasn't, like my parents...

                                "The Emperor knew, as did I, if Anakin were to have any offspring they would be a threat to him." Ben
                                explained. "That is the reason why your sister remains safely anonymous.

                                The feeling of loss had stayed with me for years, until I met....."Leia! Leia's my sister!"

                                Ben nodded. "Your insight serves you well." warned. "Bury your feelings deep down, Luke. They do you credit
                                but they could be made to serve the Emperor."

                                I didn't feel very insightful. My own twin sister and I'd never guessed. Had in fact mistaken my feelings for
                                something quite different....or had I? I hadn't been a very insistant suitor. Maybe I had known, deep down, all
                                along.

                                "When your father left he didn't know your mother was pregnant." Ben continued. "Amidala and I knew he
                                would find out eventually but we wanted to keep you both safely hidden for as long as possible. So I took you
                                to Tatooine to live with my brother Owen."

                                Uncle Owen. All he'd ever wanted was to keep me safe and I hadn't understood, had resented him for it.

                                "And your mother took Leia to live as the daughter of Bail Organa, Prince-Viceroy of Alderaan."

                                Great. I get stuck out on Tatooine, she gets to grow up a princess.

                                Ben picked up the thought, smiled. "We planned for the son to follow in his father's footsteps and the
                                daughter to walk her mother's path."

                                I understood. Mother had opposed the Empire too, on the political level as a Queen. It was only fair one of
                                her children should carry on her fight.

                                "So Leia became a princess, an Imperial Senator and a Leader of the Alliance. Your mother would be proud of
                                her, of both of you."

                                I wished I could remember her. Maybe Leia did.

                                "The Force is strong in your sister, as it is with all your family." Ben went on. "Soon she must learn to use it
                                as you have."

                                Of course, the other Skywalker, the one I must teach. But - "We can't let her get involved now, Ben, Vader
                                would destroy her."

                                "There is no avoiding the battle." He warned. "You must face and destroy Darth Vader. If you fail your destiny
                                becomes hers."

                                He was right. I couldn't pass this burden on to Leia, to my little sister. She'd already done so much, lost so
                                much, it wouldn't be fair. I'd have to try, for her sake. "I understand."

                                Ben leaned foreward to lay a hand on my shoulder. To my surprise I felt an actual, physical touch, cool and
                                tingling. "The Force will be with you." he promised, as he had all those years ago. "Always."

                                It was a long jump back to the Fleet. I had to stop over on Panna to recharge my life support systems.

                                Returning to my ship I heard Artoo happily bleeping away. To another droid I assumed, then a familiar human
                                laugh stopped me in my tracks.

                                Dai-Men. Yoda'd been wrong, he was alive. I could feel his presence, warm, vibrant and untroubled - so the
                                others had to be all right too. Relief overwhelmed me. I wasn't alone after all.

                                It took me a few moments to get myself back under control. Then I wiped my eyes and ducked under my
                                X-Wing's nose and there he was in his brown Jedi robe, sitting on a crate listening intently to Artoo's
                                electronic monolog.

                                "You can understand him without a translator?"

                                He looked up with a smile. "Not every bleep and whistle but I get the gist. You two have been having
                                adventures."

                                "You could say that." I agreed ruefully, finding myself a seat on another crate. "We finally got Han back at
                                least." I didn't want to talk about that, there were more important things I needed to say.

                                "Master, Master Yoda's dead." *still winning prizes for tact, Skwalker!*

                                He nodded, unsuprised. "I know. He will always be with us."

                                "That's what Ben said."

                                My Master spread his hands, eyes glinting amusement. "There you are then, who should know better than
                                Obi-Wan?"

                                I managed a weak smile in response. "I thought you were dead too." Dai-Men raised his brows in mild suprise,
                                I explained. "Yoda told me I was the last of the Jedi, I thought that meant -" I couldn't finish, didn't have to.

                                "I see." Master said pensively. "Perhaps he just meant you were the newest or youngest Jedi. Or...there are
                                other possibilities." smiled at me. "It's a mistake to take a Master too literally, Luke, their words don't always
                                mean what they seem."

                                "Tell me about it!" I snorted, remembering Ben. "You knew about my father." it wasn't a question. But he
                                nodded confirmation.

                                "And didn't tell me." an accusation.

                                "You didn't ask."

                                I opened my mouth to erupt. First 'point of view' now this! He stopped me with an upraised hand.

                                "It wasn't my place to second guess Yoda and Obi-Wan. But if you had asked I would have told you the
                                truth."

                                I let out a breath, there was no point in being angry with Dai-Men. "I knew that. Maybe that's why I didn't
                                ask." I hadn't been ready for the truth.

                                "I have never lied to one of my Padawans." he continued seriously. "Withheld or evaded truths when
                                necessary, but never lied."

                                A fine line, but I understood. Sometimes it was necessary or wise to withhold information. I'd done it myself,
                                another thing I'd learned from him. But Ben had lied outright!

                                "Ben lied to me." I said bluntly, still aggrieved. And I'd believed in him, loved him...I still did of course, but I
                                was finding it difficult to forgive that deception.

                                "Yes. But with a kind of truth." Master pointed out.

                                "'From a certain point of view.'" I quoted scornfully.

                                "Don't judge him too harshly, Luke." Dai-Men chided. "You've never had a student, you don't know the pain of
                                losing one." his eyes went out of focus, remembering.

                                "I nearly lost Jayce to the Dark Side. He was able to turn back before it was to late but - I know how Obi-Wan
                                feels."

                                Jayce? But Yoda'd said there was no turning back...

                                "He really does think of Anakin as dead and Vader as a completely different being." Master sighed. "I feel
                                that's a fallacy but it may be all that's kept him sane." a wry smile. "And and an Obi-Wan Kenobi running
                                amuck with grief and guilt doesn't bear thinking about."

                                I remembered the pain, the self blame I'd sensed from Ben. "He said it was his fault."

                                Dai-Men shook his head. "A teacher always feels responsible for his student's failures." he explained. "But if
                                you're thinking Obi-Wan somehow pushed your father to the Dark Side, no, that's not true. The choice - and
                                the blame - are Anakin's alone."

                                I'd never really believed Ben's self accusation anyway.

                                "Master, I can't do what Ben and Yoda want me to do. I can't kill my own father."

                                He gave me a steady, measuring look. Calm and unjudgemental. "Then what will you do?"

                                He would ask that. "I'm not sure." I faltered. "If I could talk to him - there's still good in him, if I could reach it
                                -"

                                "Obi-Wan tried that twenty-four years ago," Dai-Men pointed out, "and failed."

                                "I know but -"

                                "Your father has given you little reason to love him." Master continued dispassionately. "He tortured your
                                sister and your friend. used them as bait to trap you and then cut off your hand."

                                He'd done all that, and more. I should hate him - or since a Jedi doesn't hate - at least accept the necessity
                                of his destruction. Why couldn't I?

                                "He governs the Imperial Fleet by force of terror. Kills officers who fail or even displease him -"

                                I interupted. "There is good in him! I felt it when I touched his mind on Bespin. I feel it now."

                                Dai-Men smiled. "Then follow your feelings and trust in the Force."

                                I knew he'd say that sooner or later. And he was right - but it was hard, especially since all my Masters said I
                                was wrong. All but one.

                                "For what it's worth, I agree with you. I too felt Anakin Skywalker still alive within that black armour." He
                                shook his head sadly. "We couldn't reach him through all the layers of guilt and anger but perhaps you -"

                                I interupted again. "You felt! You've seen him?"

                                "A few weeks ago."

                                "I thought you promised Jayce you wouldn't challenge Vader!" In fact I distinctly remembered Jayce telling me
                                so - and warning me Master could wiggle his way out of any promise.

                                "I didn't challenge him. We talked to him."

                                Talk about your fine lines! I felt a familiar mental touch and images poured into my mind: A volcanic planet
                                and a black castle moated with lava. Vader, my father, what he'd said, what he'd done and what Dai-Men had
                                done.

                                "And the sabre fighting?" I sputtered as my Master released me.

                                He shrugged. "We had to get his attention."

                                "Jayce is right, you are nuts!" Fine way to talk to a Jedi Master. But nobody could call walking into Darth
                                Vader's private stronghold a prudent move. "And what's this 'we'?" I demanded. "I didn't see anybody with
                                you."

                                "My father was with me." he replied serenely.

                                I was confused. "You said your father was dead."

                                "So is Obi-Wan."

                                Oh, right. "Good point." Death was not necessarily the end. Not for a Jedi.

                                Master changed the subject. "You're going to join the fleet?"

                                I nodded. "Something's brewing, I'm not sure what." Leia hadn't explained.

                                "The Alliance's final throw I think. Win or lose." Master rose, so did I. "The Emperor is building a new Death
                                Star. They say he's going himself to inspect the work. My guess is the Alliance plans an ambush."

                                "That would make sense." I looked up at him. "Can they succeed?"

                                He smiled. "The future is always uncertain Luke."

                                I rolled my eyes. "I know, concentrate on the moment. Feel the Living Force." Master just smiled, eyes
                                twinkling, not at all offended. And right, as usual.

                                "I've got to get back." I told him. "I'm still an Alliance officer, maybe I can help."

                                "I don't doubt it."

                                "But - what about my father?"

                                This time I got a straight answer. "He will come to you." It was a chilling thought. "He wants you badly."
                                Dai-Men warned. "And so does the Emperor."

                                An even scarier thought. "I'll be careful." I promised.

                                "Be mindful." He corrected, Master isn't much for being careful. He put a hand on my shoulder, like Ben had.
                                "And trust your instincts. May the Force be with you." Turned to go in a swirl of brown robes.

                                I called after him. "Master!" And he turned back in the shadow of my X-wing's nose. "Where are you going?"

                                I couldn't see his smile, but I sensed it. "To Coruscant."

                                "What!" To the central system of the Empire, the Emperor's own stronghold?

                                "Don't worry," Master sounded amused. "Palpatine won't be there. Or Vader. They will be waiting for you at
                                Endor."

                                Yes they would. Endor was a trap deliberately set for me. One I had no choice but to walk into. Oh well, at
                                least I could be a diversion for the Rebel Attack.

                                "But why?" I pleaded. Why must Dai-Men risk his life on Coruscant when the real confrontation would be at
                                Endor?

                                "To see to something that needs doing." was the cryptic reply. He added reassuringly, "I won't be alone."

                                "Jayce?"

                                "And the others."

                                That made me feel a little better. Okay, a man who can walk in and out of Darth Vader's fortress unscathed
                                can definitely take care of himself. I'd seen Dai-Men in action, I knew how formidable he was but -

                                "I don't want to lose you too, Master."

                                "I'll do my best to see you don't." was the gentle reply.

                                "May the Force be with you." I said with real fervor, and resignation.

                                Master bowed slightly, accepting the blessing, turned and was gone.

                                Time for me to go too. "Come on Artoo, let's get back to the Fleet."
 
 
 
 

                                The flight deck was deserted. No white suited ground crew tinkering with the ships, no pilots standing around
                                in gossipy groups. Obviously things were happening.

                                I climbed out of my X-Wing, took off my helmet and looked around. There had to be a Deck Officer on duty at
                                least - somewhere. Right behind me as it turned out.

                                "'Bout time you showed up." It was Denay. We'd met four years ago on Yavin when I was a wet behind the
                                ears pilot and she a very junior ground officer. We'd both come up in the world since.

                                "I was begining to get worried." she continued. "Princess Leia said you'd just be a few hours behind them."

                                "I had to stop over on Panna." I explained. "And ran into Master Jinn."

                                "Ahhhh." eyebrows arched. "And did he happen to have that pretty little lady Jedi with him?"

                                I was *not* blushing. "No, he did not."

                                "Too bad."

                                I hastily changed the subject. "Where is everybody?"

                                "Big briefing in the War Room. You better get a move on, you're supposed to be there."

                                I started for the door - and was stopped in my tracks by a long, loud electronic protest.

                                "Sorry, Artoo." I reached out with the Force lifting him from his socket behind the cockpit and lowering him
                                gently to the deck. Complaining in bleeps and hoots the whole time. Artoo hates being levitated but hates
                                missing out on the action more.

                                It wasn't until I turned back to Denay and saw the dropped jaw that I realized what I'd done. Then I did blush.
                                "There haven't been any droid lifts where we've been." I explained awkwardly. "I kind of got into the habit of
                                doing it myself." I was begining to take my Jedi powers for granted, was that good or bad?

                                "Pretty handy." she managed, "I don't suppose you could teach me to do that?"

                                "Probably not." Denay, like many Rebels, was a bit stronger in the Force than most but nowhere near Jedi
                                level.

                                I arrived outside the War Room just in time to hear General Madine say, "General Solo, is your strike team
                                assembled?"

                                Naw, couldn't be.

                                But it was. "Uh, my team's ready. I don't have a command crew for the shuttle."

                                A roar from Chewy. "file://What am I, Banta Poodoo?//"

                                "It's going to be rough, pal." Han apologized. "I didn't want to speak for you."

                                "file://You think I'm going to let you go off and get yourself killed without me? What are partners for?//"

                                Han laughed. "That's one!"

                                Leia's voice, pleased and proud. "Uh, General...count me in."

                                A cue if ever I heard one. I stepped through the open door. "I'm with you too!"

                                And was greeted by a wave of excitement and relief. Even Mon Mothma and the Admiral seemed reassured
                                by the presence of a lone Jedi. It was frightening, the responsibility.

                                Leia - my sister - flung herself into my arms then pulled back, smile fading into a little frown. "What is it?"

                                I was tempted to tell her, but the middle of a crowd wasn't the place to go into a lot of complicated - and
                                painful - family history. "Ask me again sometime."

                                "Luke." Han was sensing things too, I could tell, and wasn't sure what to make of them. Which made us even.
                                I didn't quite know what to make of him either.

                                "Hi Han....Chewy." Grinned at Lando. "*General* Calrissian, somehow that doesn't surprise me. But *General*
                                Solo sure did! what got into you, Han?"

                                He shrugged, embarrassed. "I guess all this heroism is contagious."

                                I smiled at the excuse. I'd known, and Ben had known, almost from the begining that Han was a much better
                                man than he gave himself credit for. I wondered how long it was going to take him to admit it to himself.

                                "I wish you'd pack a blaster as well as that antique of yours." Han complained as we entered the flight deck
                                together. It sure wasn't deserted now, flight crews, pilots and droids were everywhere, the noise and
                                confusion were formidable.

                                "A blaster would just get in my way." I answered. "You know it would." On the leg back from Panna I'd
                                suddenly realized who - or rather what - Han had to be.

                                Hundreds of children had lived in the Old Temple, training to become Jedi. Master had told me how the few
                                surviving knights rescued them from the Emperor and hid them in the Outer Rim Territories. Han was just the
                                right age to have been one of those children.

                                "I don't know what you're talking about, kid." he blustered.

                                "Yes you do." We'd both been hidden away by the Jedi to protect us. The difference was Han'd known he was
                                hiding and I hadn't, not until four years ago.

                                I stopped him, made him look at me. "You gave yourself away on Tatooine." That shook him, I could see it -
                                and feel it. "It's all right, Han, you can trust me. I'm a Jedi too."

                                "I - of course I trust you, Luke." he faltered. Took a deep breath. "I don't want to get into this now."

                                He was right. This wasn't the time. I nodded. "Later then." thought of Leia. "We'll have a long talk once this is
                                over." All three of us.

                                "Sure, whatever you say, kid." Han's relief was palpable, even without the Force. "Look, I gotta have a word
                                with Lando, see you at the shuttle."

                                The strike team was loading their equipment. And Wedge was waiting for me at the foot of the ramp.

                                "I sure wish you were the one leading this mission."

                                "Don't worry, I've seen Lando fly. He's well up to Rogue standards."

                                "Yeah, but it was you who blew the first Death Star."

                                "I couldn't have done it if you and Biggs hadn't bought me the time." I reminded him. "You don't need me as a
                                luck piece, Wedge."

                                He sighed. "It's just....I've got a bad feeling about this mission."

                                "So do I." I heard myself agree. Way to go, Skywalker, that'll really pick up morale.

                                It sure wasn't what Wedge wanted to hear. "Damn. I hoped it was just me, nerves."

                                "Maybe we both have nerves." he looked at me astonished, I smiled ruefully. "Jedi aren't made of stone you
                                know."

                                I watched him assimilate that. Realize maybe I hadn't changed all that much after all. "You watch yourself
                                down there, Boss."

                                "I will. May the Force be with you." and us all.

                                Han came into the cockpit just as Chewy and I finished bringing up the flight systems. The strike team leader
                                had given me a camouflage poncho to go over my black suit. One of these days I'm going to have to see
                                about getting some proper Jedi robes. Problem is you're supposed to make them yourself and I don't sew.

                                "You got her warmed?" Han asked.

                                "Yeah, she's coming up." She was a nice little ship - for all she was Imperial make.

                                Chewy would have agreed only with the little. "file://Everything's too small!//" he complained to his partner.
                                "file://I bump my head on that overhead display one more time it's coming out the hard way!"

                                "I don't think the Empire had Wookiees in mind when they designed her, Chewy." That was a safe bet. Han
                                settled into the pilot's seat and fell into a brown study looking out the port at the Falcon.

                                Leia came in from the hold. Even camouflage looks good on my little sister. She put a hand on Han's shoulder
                                startling him. "Hey, are you awake?"

                                "Yeah." he glanced up at her than back at the Falcon. "I just got a funny feeling. Like I'm not going to see her
                                again."

                                "file://What?//" Chewy barked, looking from his partner to their ship in alarm.

                                I hoped Han's feeling was wrong. It would just about break both their hearts to lose the Falcon.

                                "Come on, General," Leia said softly, sympathetic but firmly calling him back to the job at hand. "let's move."

                                My sister has great focus.

                                Once again I sensed Han changing focus, Jedilike, putting aside fears and anxieties to concentrate on the
                                moment. "Right. Chewy, let's see what this piece of junk can do. Ready everybody?"

                                I took my seat behind Chewy. "All set."

                                Behind me I heard Threepio tell Artoo, "Here we go again."

                                We came out of hyper just light minutes away from Endor's Green Moon. Space was swarming with TIEs,
                                Destroyers, support ships and a gigantic command ship. I guess I should have expected that. This was after
                                all a trap and here I was walking, or rather flying, right into it. Like Raj says; 'You don't have to be crazy to
                                be a Jedi, but it helps.'

                                "If they don't go for this, we're gonna have to get outta here pretty quick, Chewy." Han warned.

                                "file://You can say that again!//"

                                The radio acknowledged our presence and requested identification.

                                "Shuttle Tydirium," Han responded, "requesting deactivation of the deflector shield."

                                A pause, then; "Shuttle Tydirium, transmit the clearance code for shield passage."

                                Han: "Transmission commencing."

                                "Now we find out if that code is worth the price we paid." Leia said grimly.

                                "It'll work." Han assured her, "It'll work." but there was no conviction in his voice. He was uneasy too, I could
                                feel it.

                                And as the Super Star Destroyer got closer, something else. A familiar dark presence with a buried spark of
                                light, my father. "Vader's on that ship."

                                "Now don't get gittery, Luke. There are a lot of command ships." he knew how unlikely it was to sense, much
                                less identify, another's Force presence at such long range - but he had to be picking up some of what I was
                                feeling. "Keep your distance though, Chewy, but don't look like you're trying to keep your distance."

                                "file://And exactly how am I supposed to do that?//"

                                "I don't know. Fly casual."

                                "file://Fly casual?//"

                                I'd known Father would be here but I sure hadn't expected to sense him so strongly, or at such a distance.
                                Our shared blood and those moments in rapport off Bespin had created a much more powerful bond than I'd
                                expected. And if I could sense him, then he must be able to sense me...

                                "Shuttle Tydirium, what is your cargo and destination?"

                                Questions, not a good sign. "Parts and technical crew for the forest moon." Han replied, his official, slightly
                                bored toned belied by the tension on his face.

                                How could I have been so stupid? "I'm endangering the mission, I shouldn't have come."

                                "It's your imagination, kid." Han said desperately, knowing it wasn't. "Come on. Let's keep a little optimism
                                here."

                                I tried to think. Whatever happened Leia musn't fall into Father's hands, she was our last hope.

                                "They're not going for it, Chewy." Han began, finally facing facts - and the radio crackled to life.

                                "Shuttle Tydirium, deactivation of the shield will commence immediately. Follow your present course."

                                "Okay! I told you it was gonna work." Han beamed. "No problem."

                                Big problem. What was Father up to? He knew I was on this ship and would be on the Moon. He must intend
                                to confront me there, away from the Emperor. Good, if I could talk to him alone, away from his Master's
                                influence....but my presence was still a danger to Han, Leia and the mission. I'd have to get well clear of
                                them as soon as possible.

                                                                                              To be continued ->

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