Old Man and the Desert

Chapter 11

Location: Imperial battleship, Thrice's quarters

Thrice disliked obeying the Sith. She may have given the dog her word, but he would never have her heart. She knew he must have of blackmail Lord Swan, but she didn't know what it was. She had to find out. She had to put a stop to his evil plan and slay him. She would slay them all.

"Thrice? Are you really going to keep me as a slave?" asked Luke.

The she-warrior turned to face him. She had been given quarters on board the Imperial battleship. It was a clean and barely furnished. The seating room had only a sofa, desk and two chairs. Thrice was seated on the black sofa. She was dressed elegantly in a dark red gown and her long black hair had been cleaned and re-braided. She looked like a noblewoman, but inside she felt like a painted doll.

"No, that was all a lie. I just wanted to get you out of that cell."

"Why? I mean, thanks and all, but why are you helping me?"

"Ben said he promised to watch over you. I thought I'd keep an eye on you in his place."

Luke narrowed his brow. He never heard about a promise like that before and he wasn't sure if she talking about the same Ben. He asked, "Do you mean old Ben Kenobi? The hermit that lives in the caves?"

"Yes. He will come for you. He is a man of his word. I guess all Jedi are."

The teen moved away from the window and sat down next to her. He was eager to hear more. He had heard about the Jedi. He always thought they were a myth. He asked, "What do you know about the Jedi?"

Puzzled, Thrice said, "Not much. I know that Ben is a Jedi. He told me he promised your mother to watch over you."

Luke was shocked. He faced the she-warrior and exclaimed, "Ben knew my mother? My real mother? Then, why didn't he ever tell me?"

Thrice took his hand to claim him down. She gently said, "I don't know. That was all he told me, but he will come. He will rescues you."

"No way, Ben's just an old man. He can't save anybody even if he did used to be a Jedi."

Thrice smirked at Luke's disbelief and confidently replied, "He will come. A warrior never stops being a warrior no matter how much time passes. So, you must be strong, Luke. You must never lose hope."

XXX

Meanwhile, down the hall Darth Vader couldn't help thinking about Thrice's partner back when they first met. The young man was strangely similar to his former-master. They had the same face, hair and mannerisms. It was uncanny. Though, Vader knew that the young man could not be Obi-Wan. Obi-Wan was dead. His body had been incinerated on board his ship. Though, Vader sensed that something was wrong. He thought perhaps that he might be Obi-Wan's son. It was an unsettling thought. He couldn't imagine Obi-Wan siring any younglings of his own. He was too dedicated to the Code. He would never allow himself to become attached and Obi-Wan wasn't the sort of man to have a one-night-stand.

Yet, Vader's curiosity kept bothering him. He wondered what sort of relationship the young man had with the female-warrior. He wondered how they met and what her connection might be to Obi-Wan. Intrigued, he decided to go ask her.

Vader marched towards her room and entered unannounced. He was surprised to see she sitting on a sofa while comforting the boy from Tatooine. She was holding his hand and speaking to him softly. Vader was surprised by her femininity. He thought all the Blackswan warriors were barbarians, but oddly she seemed very tender.

"I wish to speak with you," commanded the Sith.

Thrice turned to face him and glared. She released Luke's hand and dismissed him with a wave of her hand. "Leave us."

Startled, Luke got up too and walked towards the other room. Vader watched the boy go, but noted that he did not shut the door all the way. He sensed he was protective of the war-maiden. He guessed that she might have cast a spell on him.

"What do you want?"

Vader drew his attention back towards her and asked, "I want to know who that man was who was with you on board my ship?"

"Oh? What man?"

Vader was irritated by her false ignorance and stated, "You know the man I mean. The one with you at Cloud City. Tell me who he was."

The she-warrior shrugged her shoulders and replied, "He was nobody. I just used him to break on board your ship. Though, humans are so frail and tiny. I really can't tell the difference between you."

Vader was displeased by her answer. He felt that she was hiding some thing. She was cunning and full of deceit. He did not trust her, but he discovered that she was hard to read. He couldn't read her thoughts and she had muted her feelings that she seemed hardly there.

"You are hiding something. I demand to know what it is."

Thrice boldly stated, "Only the Emperor can command me, Lord Vader. I don't answer to you."

Irked, the Sith growled in rage. He disliked the witch even more. He didn't understand why Darth Sidious would want such a revolting creature. Yet, he knew that she had a secret. He could read it in her eyes. Vader was confident that he would learn what it is soon enough.

"Very well, I will leave you, Lady Thrice, but you can never defeat the Sith. You are now my Master's and you will be his forever."

XXX

Location: Millennium Falcon, space

Meanwhile, elsewhere Han, Chewbacca and Ben used hyper-drive to reach the Core. It was an uneventful trip and Han was glad that no Imperial ships were scouting for the Falcon. Though, he was curious to know Ben's rescue plan. So far, the tightlipped Romeo had been keeping his plans to himself that Han was starting to think he didn't have a plan at all.

"So, how exactly are you going to save her? Are you just going to rush in there and just grab her and the kid? Or is there something I'm missing?"

Amused, Ben rubbed the growing ginger-brown whiskers on his chin and said, "No, Captain. We are going to Alderann. The Prince owes me a favor."

Surprised, Han turned in his chair and gapped at him. He narrowed his brow and said, "The Prince! Since when did you know the Prince?"

Ben smiled and patted the space-captain's shoulder. He said, "Just get us within transmission range and I'll handle the rest. You needn't be so suspicious, Captain."

Han was puzzled, but shrugged his shoulders and decided to just go with it. He pressed the navigation controls and plotted a course and replied, "Yeah, sure. Who doesn't know the Prince?" Then, he turned to Chewie and said, "Gee, and I here I thought I knew how to scam them. This guy must be a pro."

In response, Ben tried not to think about being compared to a thief. It irked him to be compared to a swindler, but Han Solo could think what he liked. Ben was counting on Senator Bail Organa to help him rescue his friends from the Sith. He could probably help him get in contact with the Rebels so that they could make their escape.

Though, a second later Chewie roared and handed Ben a headset. They were in transmissions range and immediately Ben made contact with an official from the Royal Palace. He heard a technician scold him for using a restricted channel, but he ignored him and continued to speak. He said, "I have an important message for Senator Organa. Tell him the Great General is back and wishes to speak with him immediately."

Han and Chewie heard the man on the line asked, "Is this a prank?"

"No, and the more you delay the more I'm sure your superiors will be cross, so relay my message now, Officer. It's urgent."

The space-captain couldn't help smiling. Ben was a great liar. He could probably make a killing at poker. It was hilarious. He had talent. Yet, a few minutes later the communicator went back online and somebody else picked up.

"Hello, I heard you wanted to speak to me?" asked a baritone voice.

"Yes," answered Ben. "Its good to hear your voice again, old friend. I need your help."

Shocked, Bail exclaimed, "Obi-Wan! It is you. So, the old general has returned. Yes, yes of course I'll help you. Why don't you meet me planet side and then we can talk face to face. Here, I'll give you the coordinates."

Ben replied, "Thank you, Senator. We have much to discuss. Obi-Wan, over and out."

Yet, when Ben turned to give Chewie back the headset he saw that both the Wookie and Han were looking at him perplexed. For a whole minute no one made a move. It wasn't until Han finally shook himself out of his stupor that he jumped out of his seat and shouted, "Who the hell are you!"

The Jedi Master was taken back. He humbly turned away and said, "Oh…nobody. I'm just really an old man. Tell me when we land. I'm going to go meditate. Excuse me, Captain."

Then, without another word, Ben left. Both Han and Chewie were still confused, but the space-captain finally returned to the controls and said, "Well, Chewie. I guess we're going to find out."

XXX

Location: Alderann

Bail couldn't help smiling from ear to ear. It had been years since he'd last seen Master Obi-Wan Kenobi. He wondered what had happened to his Jedi friend and had always hoped that he was alive and well. He knew that he was out there somewhere in exile from the Empire, though he was curious to learn what had caused him to return to the Core.

"Father, who are we waiting for?" asked Leia. "I've never seen you act so thrilled before."

Bail grinned and patted his daughter's head. Leia was getting tall and it wasn't unusual for her to be so curious. She was a passionate believer of democracy and had already made an impression of the Senate. He knew that he'd like to meet his Jedi friend.

He said, "Oh, it's just an old friend, Leia. An old friend I haven't seen in years. I think you'll like him."

Then, breaking out from orbit came the Millennium Falcon. The ship circled near the city and landed on a platform next to the palace. Bail was surprised to see such an unusual ship, but a second later the hatch opened and the ramp was lowered. Then Chewie, Han and Ben stepped out and approached them.

At first, Bail was confused. He was expected to see Obi-Wan and not two young men, but a second later he recognized him. Stunned, he saw that Obi-Wan looked the same. In fact, he looked even younger then before he went into exile.

"Obi-Wan? Is it really you?"

Ben smiled and bowed his head before reached out to him to grab his arm and pat his back. Bail also grinned and returned the gesture. The man certainly behaved like Master Obi-Wan Kenobi, though he was dressed a little strange. Bail noted that Ben was wearing a very Jedi looking robe, but had on a dark battle-suit underneath. He also didn't have much of a beard. It was more like a five o'clock shadow.

"Yes, Senator. It's me. Though, I'm sure you can see that I've been changed."

"Yes, but how?"

"It's a cloning process called reincarnating. I had a bit of trouble sometime ago and a friend had the process done to save me. I want your help so that I may save her. Vader took her. I fear that he may kill her. She's a Force-sensitive being. Also, Luke was taken as well."

"What! The boy too?"

Leia then stepped between them and said, "Hey! Just wait a minute. Who are you people? And just what exactly do you want from my father?"

Ben paused and said, "It's simple, Princess. I want your father to help me take on the Sith."

XXX

TBC

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How should Ben and gang save Luke and Thrice? What is Sidious doing to blackmail Lord Blackswan? I don't know. I'll have to brainstorm. Though, I'm glad I got Princess Leia in the story. Maybe she'll cross paths with Luke.

Please review. I love positive feedback! Thank you.