Disclaimer: This piece of fiction is written for non-profit entertainment only. Star Wars, and all the characters therein are the intellectual property of Lucasfilm, Ltd. and The Walt Disney Co.
Tag: Shortly after the Yuuzhan Vong war, a grim anniversary approaches for Kyp Durron. Taking his thoughts to a desolate world, he is interrupted by a companion and victim of his wavering balance. - Reviews appreciated.
Note: This story was a long time coming; I started it seven years ago, but left it. But today is the 20th anniversary of the release of Kevin J. Anderson's "Jedi Search." Therefore, I thought it appropriate to finish it and publish it.
"Requiem"
AlphaGammaSigma
PART ONE
31 ABY
Gravel cracked beneath Kyp Durron's feet; his footfalls the only sound breaking the quiet stillness of the uneven terrain. He was, most likely, the first person to ever walk on the planet. Although charted, it held no value to anyone, with no natural resources of which to speak; and being so close to its parent star, its day was tidally-locked to its year, making it unsuitable for colonization.
In the narrow, barely-temperate twilight zone between perpetual day and night, it was warm enough for simple, non-vascular plants to have evolved. He could not escape noticing the irony that, on this backwater world, life had found the balance between light and dark that had escaped him for as long as he could remember.
Shaking his head, Kyp continued walking along the primeval rock fall, the ground fracturing further with every step. His pace quickened moderately upon hearing waves crashing against rock, the sound growing into a roar as he approached, overwhelming the rhythmic crunching of his steps. He stopped at a rough outcropping, the uneven ridge dropping sharply towards a turbulent sea that stretched horizon to horizon.
It was a truly spectacular sight. Looking to the west, he viewed one of the beautiful sunsets he had ever seen. The red-dwarf sun, likely one of the most ancient in the galaxy, hung as but a sliver over the water, permanently fixed in place. His gaze moved eventually from the sight, and followed the water to the east. Pack ice covered a great deal of the sea, having floated from somewhere in the direction of the night side.
Finally, his gaze turned skyward. From the vantage point of eternal dusk, he could see the fiery, orange-red sky darken to the familiar violet-black of so many other planets' nights. Towards the nighttime horizon he searched purposefully for a single yellow-white star.
There it is…
Carida.
Or at least, Carida as it was twenty years previous, just a few hours before it had been destroyed.
Before I destroyed it.
TBC