A New Hope Will Emerge
A Star Wars fanfiction by Andrew J. Talon
DISCLAIMER: This is a non-profit fan-based work of prose. Star Wars is the property of Lucasfilm Ltd. and Disney. Please support the official release.
Set after "The Empire Strikes Back" but before "Return of the Jedi".
Ahsoka and Jar Jar led the way through the tunnels, Luke and Aphra walking behind as Artoo brought up the rear. The older companions followed the dark corridors like they were in broad daylight, memory guiding them through the maze. Ahsoka caught Luke's eyes, and smiled at him almost cheekily. Like she was remembering a time she was Luke's age.
"You have no idea how many times we had to sneak into this palace," Ahsoka said with a grin. "It began to feel like home, after a while."
"Ya. Was home fer me, for a long, long time," Jar Jar spoke softly, his eyes swiveling on their stalks. "Went with Anie 'n Obie 'n Padme, plenty o' times durin' the war."
"You've lived here most of your life, Jar Jar," Ahsoka said gently. The old Gungan smirked, a trace of sadness in his usually cheery eyes.
"Lived here. Not home fer long time," he said. Ahsoka nodded back, eyes back on the path ahead. Luke sucked in a breath. The Force was... Tensing around him. As though holding its breath. Above him, he could sense the goings of people, back and forth. All unaware of them. All unaware of the torment beneath their feet. The danger...
They reached the end of the corridor, and Jar Jar tapped out a few hidden buttons in the wall. A hatch slowly opened in front of them, exposing the cool night air of the palace. Luke sucked in a deep breath, and pulled his hood up over his head. Aphra and Ahsoka followed suit, and all three were following Jar Jar as he strutted out into the courtyard. A pair of Stormtroopers waited at the entrance to a secured facility, and stood at attention when they saw Jar Jar.
"My Lord," they intoned. Jar Jar waved and grinned, stumbling a bit. He landed in the arms of one of the Stormtroopers, who awkwardly caught him.
"Ah, my lord! Sir!" The poor Stormtrooper said.
"Oh, no, meesa so sorry!" Jar Jar apologized profusely. He righted himself, adjusting his robes before patting the Stormtrooper over. "Yousa all right dere, laddie?"
"Ah, yes sir, I am fine," the trooper said, sounding embarrassed. He gestured to Luke, Aphra and Ahsoka. "Who are these individuals?"
"Oh, ah, justa friends fer dinner," Jar Jar said, waving his hand about. "Will not cause trouble, ya know, ya know!"
The troopers looked at each other, then back at the grinning Jar Jar. They nodded, and stood at attention.
"Of course, sir," they said in unison. Jar Jar nodded, adjusting himself again.
"Well! Let'sa go!" He ordered, walking forward with a bumbling gait in the dark corridors ahead. Luke, Ahsoka and Aphra followed, with Artoo trailing behind. None of them looked at the troopers, and through the Force Luke could sense the troopers saw what everyone else saw: A harmless, eccentric favorite of Palpatine.
They were another corridor ahead before Jar Jar rummaged in his clothing, and pulled out an identity cylinder. He handed out three more just like it to his companions.
"Randomly updated ident cylinders," the Gungan explained, "got his codes too."
"I forgot how handy you were at pickpocketing," Ahsoka admitted. Aphra smirked.
"Gonna teach me that some time?" She asked. Jar Jar shrugged.
"Maybe, iffen yousa be good..."
"How do you define that?" Aphra asked, blinking curiously. Jar Jar smirked.
"Good t' Luke!"
"Oh, that I can do~," Aphra purred, hugging and nuzzling Luke from behind. Luke blushed hard.
"Aphra, not now," he muttered. Aphra sighed.
"We'll just have to work on our relationship even harder, I suppose," she pouted. Luke rolled his eyes.
They arrived at a large, imposing double door. Jar Jar stuck the cylinder into the lock, and it slid open with creaks and squeaks. Jar Jar headed in, the others following. "Dis be de old security center. Still hooked in," the Gungan explained as he headed over to a computer console. He tapped a few keys, and the terminal warmed up. The screens cast light onto the aged Gungan's face, and Luke was startled at the change. Before, he'd seemed wrinkled and withered and tired, even while smiling. Here though... It was like the years were cast off. It was the same look on Ahsoka's face, as she studied the read outs.
Slowly, the screens shifted to images taken from security cameras. All over the city, scanning across Theed, the cameras recorded everything. People in shops, people in bedrooms, people in baths, in the transports, eating meals... Luke sucked in a breath, a deep sense of horror settling in his stomach. Aphra grimaced, taking it all in.
"Someone might have seen us already," Aphra muttered. Jar Jar shook his head.
"Don't be scared, no. Member dat slicing trick ya taught me?" The Gungan pointed out Luke and Aphra's faces on a holo monitor, taken from when they arrived. Their faces were blurred out, distorted just enough to be unrecognizable. "Keepin' Rebels safe, see?"
"Okay, you're definitely teaching me that trick," Aphra grinned. Ahsoka rolled her eyes.
"Maybe later. What about our 'Padme', any idea where she is?"
Jar Jar flipped through the scans. He grimaced. "Few hits, nuttin firm," he admitted. "But-Oh, lookie day!" He pointed to a screen. A woman who matched the build of Padme, dressed in a cloak and hood, was entering an alley near the palace. "Recognize dat?"
"The way we came in," Aphra murmured. She checked the time stamp, and her eyes widened. "She just entered!"
"She's here?! Why?" Ahsoka demanded. "Why would she-"
"Where is she now?" Luke demanded, leaning over. Jar Jar flipped through several monitors, showing parts of the palace interior. A woman in a cloak darted past one recorder... And Luke felt a trigger in the Force. His eyes widened. He turned and ran out the doors, running faster than he ever had before. His heart pounded in his ears and he felt fear burn deep inside him. Cold and gripping, like icy fingers. Yet even here, the Force called to him, guided him. He ignored Ahsoka's calls over his comm as he flew through hallway after hallway, until he reached a large open courtyard. Far beyond him, under a separate pavilion, was an ornate mausoleum. He ran, the stars shining high over him as the city of Theed's lights burned in the distance.
He ran across the bridge, so very fast it seemed to happen in less than a blink of the eye. Then he was here. In a place he'd dreamed about. He caught his breath, looking about the interior of the mausoleum. It was all cool marble and stained glass, with small blue lights glowing in the ornate carvings that covered the inside. In the center of the round room was a sarcophagus, smooth and beautifully shaped from stone. He walked over to the head of the carved woman, and stared into her face. His hand rose, shakily. He rested it on the face of Padme, breathing hard. He closed his eyes, trying to calm himself and find the Force. Find his center...
"Luke?" a female voice spoke shakily, echoing in the chamber. Luke froze, the chill of familiarity running up his spine. He turned, and stared at the woman. She stood at the entrance to the mausoleum, her pale hands squeezing together. She stepped into the pale blue light, her deep brown eyes gazing at him with unshed tears. Through the Force, everything was sharpened and focused. He took a deep breath.
"Who... Who are you?" He murmured. The woman removed her hood, her curly brown hair bouncing out. She didn't look a day older than she did in the holograms, physically. Yet on her face, and in the Force, he could feel weariness. He could sense relief, love and joy. All genuine, all threatening to burst like a weakened fusion reactor. She reached out a hand to him, shaking as much as his.
"Oh my... Luke... You have grown so much," she sniffled. "I never... I never could imagine seeing you. You're so much like your father..." Her hand reached his face, and cupped his cheek. She closed the distance, and Luke found his arms going around her. He hugged her tightly, the Force singing through her.
"Mother?" He gasped, amazed at the truth of it. She smiled, and hugged him back just as tightly. Her small frame nearly vanished in his arms.
Ahsoka stopped at the entrance, gaping in shock and anger. "Luke, what did you think you were-!"
Padme looked back over her shoulder, and smiled. Ahsoka's words were stolen from her throat, and her eyes bulged. The woman smiled brightly, her tears falling down her dimpled cheeks.
"And Ahsoka... I missed you so much, too," she said.
"Padme?!" Ahsoka gasped. "How...?"
"Something to explain when we're not in the center of Imperial Power on Naboo, perhaps?" Padme Naberrie, formally Queen of Naboo, said with a smile.
To be continued...