Part 10: Stronger Together Than Apart

Hearing Luke's voice again was like an elixir replenishing her energy. Gone were the doubts that she had while inside the mind of Mary Jane Skyler on Earth that she would ever listen to the sound of her husband's words again. She took a small moment to cherish them. Only for a moment. As usual, they had a crisis to avert. She forced herself to pay attention to the problem at hand. She didn't want to for the moment. She wanted nothing more than to collapse into Luke's arms and have him hold her. She knew that would be impossible now. Not to mention physically impossible. Which made her question.

"Where are you?"

"I just into the Hapes Cluster. I'll be there shortly." He paused and then said, "So, we have a new Sith in the family."

"You know?"

"I felt him. I'm guessing that was who you were hunting when you left. You knew about Jacen. You and Ben, apparently." He then added solemnly, "And neither of you could tell me."

"Luke...I know that I made a mistake. I told Ben that we shouldn't involve you yet. I only did what I thought was right. I was wrong. I wasn't acting like myself."

"Yes, you were. You were acting like your old self. Except, I'm not the Emperor, Mara."

"I know. I was trying to be someone I can never be anymore."

She could hear Luke give his famous chuckle before he quoted, "When a rock is thrown into the pond, the ripples disappear, but the pond is forever changed."

Mara crinkled her brow. "What is that?"

"An old saying that Yoda told me during my training. Of course, he said it backwards, so I didn't know what it meant at the time. Not until after my father died. It could apply to you now."

"What does it mean?"

She could almost see his cryptic grin as he stated, "You'll figure it out." He waited a moment and then noted, "I can't feel Ben in the Force. Is he all right?"

Mara answered, "Yes and no."

"What does that mean, Mara? Don't tell me he's learned how to hide in the Force like Jacen."

She started to say, "Actually..." She never finished the sentence. Her confession was cut off by a burst of static combined with Luke's grunt. She gasped her question. "What happened?"

"I just got hit by something. Nothing's on the scope. Did Jacen get back into his Stealth?"

"I don't see how he would have time. He took off from here by shuttle. What hit you?"

"Turbo blast. From behind."

"No source?"

"No, not yet. I–" His words were cutoff again by static. In that instant, they both felt the presence in the Force.

Lumiya.

Mara yelled into the comm, "She's in the Sith ship."

"I've got a visual. That's a ship? It looks like a shiny egg."

"Trust me, it's a ship. And she can fire anything she wants at you. I suggest you get out of her way."

There was another burst of static. Luke said through his X-Wing's comm, "A little late to do that. She took out my port stabilizer. Artoo, see what you can do with that. What? Oh, great. Mara, I'm losing pressure quick. I've got to land before I crash."

Mara was frantic. No, Didi, you can't let me finally speak to him after so long and then have you take him. She cried out, "Luke! Where will you land?"

There was too much static for her to understand his answer. "Luke, repeat. Where are you landing?"

Amidst the static, she could faintly hear Luke say, ".....system.....Artoo....us down....says....Kavan."

Mara cursed. "That place again." The comm was finally dead on Luke's end. Despite her heightened worry, she faced Tenel Ka, who was looking on concerned.

Mara requested, "You have an extra shuttle or fighter I can borrow? I have to go after him."

"You don't know where he will land. That system has very remote areas."

"I know all about it. And I'll find him. I have to."

Tenel Ka slowly shook her head. "It seems illogical to go after him now. Jacen is gone. Darth Caedus took his place. He took Allana. Luke can take care of himself."

Mara sighed and asked her point blank, "You were never really in love with Jacen, were you?"

She had rarely seen Tenel Ka taken back by a question. Mara's made the Queen stutter. "I...I don't know. I thought I was once. Even if I was, Jacen and I could never reach the level that you and Luke have. Not many couples can. I suppose you know that."

Mara grinned as she replied with, "This is a fact." When Tenel Ka grinned back in return, Mara added, "You will find out someday that falling in love is the most illogical act."

"I am already learning that." The Queen Mother paused before stating, "There is an old Z-95 in Hangar B2. We keep it for emergencies."

"This would be one." Mara breathed and assured her, "We will find a way to bring Allana back, Tenel. We just have to take care of Caedus's Sith partner first."

"Understood. I already have my people at the ready if needed."

"You do realize what this could mean."

Tenel Ka gulped. "I do. That's the risk of falling in love. Correct? Besides, we won't act until we receive instruction from either you or Luke. Matters as delicate as this should be well thought out."

Mara uttered, "Wish I could have learned that a few days ago."

"Just remember, this is now involving my daughter."

"I know."


Mara proceeded to the Hangar and quickly found an old dusty Z-95 Headhunter sitting in a far corner lying dormant. It had similar markings to the one she piloted as the Hand with some minor aesthetic differences in color. She climbed into the cockpit and went through start-up procedures. The repulsors sputtered and coughed from non-use. As she adjusted the pitch and thrust controls to her liking, she was reminded of her old Z-95.

Stop it, she screamed at herself. No. Not herself. Not Mara Jade Skywalker. She was speaking to the Emperor's Hand Mara Jade. That life was now gone. What has passed is past. Her life with Luke had taught her that. The allegory that Luke quoted from Yoda suddenly clicked with meaning. She understood it now.

It wasn't a long journey back to Kavan's system. There were no ships on her scope. That meant that Luke had either landed on the planet below, or....

She ejected her next thought out of her mind. Instead, she reached into the Force. She could feel him. She couldn't pinpoint where he landed. Yet. She scanned the area for any X-Wing emission signatures. Immediately, the computer found one. It was arching down towards the surface of the planet. She nudged him in the Force and he returned the greeting.

The feeling was interrupted by the presence of Lumiya. If Mara and Luke could detect each other, Lumiya could detect both of them. Not wanting to give the other former Emperor's Hand the satisfaction, Mara dissolved into the Force. It was scary to Mara at how much easier it was to hide within the Force. She was almost getting used to it. Hopefully, there would be a time when it wasn't required to hide from your enemy. She could still feel Luke, but the bond was now only one way. She felt his confusion.

Mara calculated the coordinates from the emissions trail and followed it. As she broke Kavan's atmosphere, the same beige-white color of the rocky terrain came into view. She soon spotted Luke's X with the Sith ship nearby. Mara started the landing cycle. She landed in between the two ships. There were no signs of human activity anywhere near them. She looked past the ships to see a large sand dune that looked to drop off into a ravine beyond it. She glanced to the side and saw large caverns that looked similar to the labyrinths where she and Jacen fought the first time out.

She climbed out of the Headhunter and walked behind Luke's X-Wing. She could see where the pressure gauge on the port stabilizer had been damaged. It was actually a quick repair albeit temporary until they could lock the tear in the valve down. As she examined the damage, she heard the familiar beeps and whistles of Artoo greeting her.

"Hello, Artoo. Is Luke around?"

The R2 unit gave a sad note, which spoke volumes. She looked down in the mix of sand and dirt and found two sets of foot tracks that had shuffled about. The evidence of a duel. The tracks extended to the large dune and beyond. She started in that direction to see if the duel was continuing when she was stopped by a voice.

You are here because of the Jedi Master.

It was the Sith ship.

"That's right." She made a point to speak her answer because she was afraid Lumiya could hear their conversation in the Force.

She cannot detect you.

"But, you can."

You are well hidden from others, but not from me.

"That's really great to know," her sarcasm dripped. "Was Luke and Lumiya fighting here?"

Yes. I am curious. Why do you refer to the Jedi Master by name?

"He's my husband."

I know not of husband.

"We have a personal bond between us."

My memory indicates that emotional bonds among the Jedi were forbidden, as it is for the Sith.

"That was a long time ago. Times change."

They do. They will certainly change when the new Lord comes to power.

Mara hesitated. "Caedus."

His true name. He is weak now, but he will gain strength and knowledge quickly.

Mara dared to ask, though she could anticipate the answer, "Is there a way to stop him from gaining Sith knowledge?"

You intend to defeat him?

"In a sense, yes."

That is understandable. I sense no Sith attributes in you, yet your skills are based on Sith doctrine.

"That is good to hear." There was no sarcasm in her voice this time. "You never answered my question. What will it take to defeat Darth Caedus?"

The ship's answer gave her a surprise.

The new Sith Lord can only be defeated by those beyond the Force.

Before she could take in the cryptic answer, there was a distant shriek of pain coming from beyond the sand dune and into the ravine. It sounded like Luke. She focused in the Force and she felt his pain. She ran to the edge of the dune. There was a small downward incline that led to a flat ridge. The path was lined with sharp rock formations. On that ridge below was Luke and Lumiya in a heated duel. He had his green lightsaber in one hand and the shortened blade shoto in the other to fend off Lumiya's light whip. Even from several meters away, Mara could see the darkened wound of a scorch mark on Luke's right arm. The result of a light whip thrashing on it. Mara started easing herself down the incline to get nearer to the scene. She kept herself hidden inside the Force.

Beyond the Force...

The Sith ship's words haunted her. Did it mean that only someone hidden in the Force can defeat Caedus?

She put aside the thought for now as she approached a short rock that she crouched behind. The duel was still going on a few meters away. She peeked around the rock to view the fight, anticipating the moment when she could join in. She may not be required to. Luke was winning. She was close enough to hear their banter.

Lumiya commented to Luke, "Your powers are stronger since we last fought."

Luke countered, "Because I remember your weakness, Shira. Pride. You always had it, even when we were together. I suspect that was how you were involved with the Empire to begin with."

"That person you knew is gone."

"Funny, that's what I'm trying to teach my wife."

Mara mentally cringed.

Lumiya replied to Luke, "Your wife will always be an Emperor's Hand. She will always think like one. That is why she set out on her own to kill Jacen."

"You're wrong, Lumiya. Mara may have come out here for that purpose, but since she failed she has regret at choosing to do it alone. She is shamed at not telling me about Jacen. Are those the traits of an assassin?"

"She became weak ever since she met you. She should have killed you long ago on Tatooine as what her mission called for."

"But, she didn't. And didn't soon turned to couldn't. And that decision has made her stronger than ever over the years."

"She was willing to die to kill Jacen when she came out here. She knew it was the only way to stop him before he gained his Sith status. Something must have happened to her on the way out here and she allowed Jacen to live. That was her undoing after Darth Caedus rose to power."

"Maybe not. He's not at full power yet. And Mara decided not to kill Jacen because she chose her son first. She gave up saving the galaxy to save her son. Which choice do you think took more courage, Lumiya?"

"You fool. Your son is already gone."

"You don't know that."

"I do, in point of fact. The truth is that you cannot feel your son in the Force."

"There are a number of reason why."

"Including death."

"No. I can tell the difference. I won't believe that."

"Believe what you will. I have it on the highest authority that it's true."

"Who? Jacen?"

"There is no more Jacen Solo. He has shed that identity to become the greatest Sith who ever lived. And his sacrifice was your son."

Immediately, Mara could feel Luke's anger. She had always suspected that Luke could equal, or even surpass the amount of anger that his father had. She felt the proof in him as Lumiya was telling him of his son's death. She could hear his loud cry of "No!" and then the clashing sounds of lightsaber to light whip in quick sucession. Lumiya had no chance to compete with a fully raged Luke Skywalker. It took her every effort to keep up with the quick strikes from his green blade and his shoto. The backwards momentum started pushing her close to the edge of the cliff. With a final swipe, Lumiya lost her footing as well as her light whip. She began to fall over the cliff onto the rocks far below. But, she didn't fall. She hovered in the air over the cliff by Luke's hold of her in the Force.

Lumiya started to laugh maniacally. "Go on, Skywalker. You know you want to. My death will be insignificant compared to the power that Darth Caedus will have. He will even be more powerful than Darth Vader...your father."

"Shut up!" demanded the Jedi Master. "What did Caedus do to my son?"

"I was never much for details. Suffice to say that your son is gone. Not dead. Not alive. He is beyond the Force."

"You lie! Where is Caedus now?"

Lumiya only chuckled in answer. "Yes. I can feel the dark anger in you. It's in the Skywalker blood. It was in your father. In you. And now, in your nephew. He will eclipse all Sith before him."

"Enough! Don't make me do this."

"Do what you must. Your wife couldn't kill me. She didn't have enough hate. Maybe you do. Or...maybe you just want to hold hands again in your false sense of peace."

"No."

Mara could see the images of the past forming in Luke's mind. The Emperor. She could hear his sinister cackle as if he were standing before her. Only, he wasn't speaking to her.

I can feel the hate flowing through you. Strike me down. I am unarmed.

Mara felt Luke's strong desire to act on his anger. He so wanted to release Lumiya from his Force-hold and let her plummet to her death among the rocks.

Then, all at once, Luke's anger subsided. His famous calm soon returned. He used the Force to bring Lumiya back over the surface of the ridge. He let her go. Luke stated, "I won't do it, Lumiya. Whatever has happened to my son, it is not worth falling back into the dark. It is not in my nature."

Without thinking, Mara sprung from her crouch and came out from behind the rock quickly. She reached into her sleeve for her trusty blaster and extended her arm to aim at Lumiya. She then announced, "But, it's in my nature." And she fired.

And fired again. And again. All of her shots were aimed at Lumiya's waist where metal met flesh. It wasn't enough to kill her. It was enough to push her backwards. And over the cliff.

Lumiya released her last shriek as she fell into the deep ravine. A mechanical crunch ended her cry. And her life.

Her arm still extended with her blaster pointed out, Mara crept to the edge of the cliff and looked down. Lumiya had been severed by sharp rocks far below which she landed on with great impact. Her mechanical torso sparked with its last remnants of energy. Lumiya was now part of the Force.

Mara spat out, "Always hated that lezt."

Luke stood beside her, bewildered as he stared at his wife. He almost chuckled when he remarked, "I didn't know you knew that word in Huttese."

Mara looked over at him and instantly her satisfaction of ending Lumiya was dissolved. In its place was disbelief. Pure emotion started to fill inside her. It built up quickly as she stared at her husband. The emotion overflowed and spilled out of her eyes. She thought the image of Luke could be an apparition. Was he in an alternate universe? She had to ask. "Are you real? Are you really here?"

Luke answered in his gentle and soothing voice, "Yes, I am." He reached out to her with his human hand to touch her cheek ever so lovingly. She breathed sharply in at his touch. It was the touch that she almost believed she would never feel again. She brought her own hand up to cover his. It was real. She could feel him again. She closed her eyes to experience their bond in the Force fully for the first time in a while. They pulled each other closer as she dropped her blaster to the ground. They embraced with gentle ease. Her tears fell and she was catatonic with utter joy. Then their lips met in a exquisite dance. In that moment, nothing else outside of them existed. The galaxy disappeared around them. She wanted to hold onto their passion for each other. She didn't want him to let her go. It was easily one of the happiest moments of her life.

He was the first to separate them to ask, "To what do I owe this moment?"

She looked at him and answered, "I figured out your riddle. The ripples made from throwing the rock in the pond are temporary changes. Yet, the rock will forever alter the look of the pond because it will always be there. The ripples signify my life as the Emperor's Hand." She kissed him again quickly and then said, "And you are my rock."

Luke smiled and acknowledged, "Very good. Now, what really happened to Ben."

"He isn't dead. He's in a coma. From the self destruct of my Stealth that Caedus set. It was really set for me." She paused to breathe. "The Hapan medical staff is keeping him safe. I told Jac–Darth Caedus that Ben was dead."

"Why?"

She gave him a raised eyebrow and sneered, "Always give your enemy a disadvantage."

He gave her a warning glance.

"Hey, my life as the Hand may be over, but it is still a part of who I am."

"I know. So, you told Caedus that Ben was dead. He believed it since we can't feel him in the Force. Then he told Lumiya. The question of who his Master was is answered now. And now she's gone." He glanced at the ravine.

"He can always try to find another recruit."

"Let's not allow that to happen. His next possible runner up would be Alema Rar. No word on where she is however."

"She'll be hiding her broken leeku after she hears Lumiya's dead."

"Speaking of hiding, how long were you going to stay behind your rock before you came out and helped me?"

"It looked like you didn't need any help. Wait, you knew I was there? You could sense me?"

"You were faint, but I could sense you. I don't think Lumiya did."

"The surprise on her face when I appeared told me that."

Luke said seriously, "You were hiding in the Force. Like Jacen can."

"Your son taught me. And Jacen taught him."

"Wow. This new honesty from you is a real treat. Anything else I should know?"

She sighed before she was about to answer when she eased her new mechanical hand along his right arm. Over his new burn wound. He gasped in pain. "Oh! Sorry. We need to tend to that."

"It's all right for now. We need to regroup. And we need a plan to confront Darth Caedus."

"And you don't have to remind me. We will confront him together."

"Actually, I thinking more along the lines of certain Jedi family members of Jacen's."

"That's great, Luke, but it'll be near impossible to get Han and Leia. They are still fugitives."

"Then we'll choose a neutral location to meet."

"Are there any left?"

Luke shrugged. "Not many know Polis Massa. Only our immediate family would know that."

Mara stared at him. "Polis Massa was an old Imperial outpost, Luke. Why would our immediate family know of that place?"

Luke frowned in confusion. "Mara...that's where Leia and I were born."

"What? You two were separated at birth. Who could have possibly told you where you were born?"

Luke was still in confusion when he answered as if Mara should have known. "Our mother did, Mara. Surely, you remember Padme Nabarrie Skywalker."

COMING SOON - Part 11: Family Intervention