"Jaina…had a kid?" Deke asked, confused as all heck. Finn nodded solemnly.
"Yes. His name was Cade Solo Skywalker. But he died just under three years ago." Finn told Deke. "He was barely five years old," Finn continued, looking away.
"How did he die?"
"I'm not sure of that myself. One day, Jaina took off with her son, she said Cade's father had made contact and she was going to see him. I don't know what happened, but I could feel her anguish and pain through the Force. It was unbearable. I just knew Cade was gone. I couldn't feel his presence through the Force anymore. That was the last time I saw her. I was so worried, and I tried reaching out to her, but she just…disappeared. Then, a year later "Lady Amenia" emerged. She was responsible for so many deaths across the galaxy. Her involvement in the war turned the tide in favour of the Sith Eternal. It's all the Republic can do to keep their forces at bay," Finn explained.
"You…you said Darth Plagueis found a way to influence the midi-chlorians to create life. Do you think…" Deke began to ask but didn't know if he could finish that sentence. This level of absurdity was new to him. It couldn't be true could it?
"Do I think she joined Plagueis because her goal is to bring her son back from the dead? Yes, Deke. I believe she became his apprentice to learn this power for herself," Finn explained, finishing Deke's thought for him. Deke didn't even know what to think.
"Do you think it's possible?"
"I don't know, but Amenia believes it is."
"She's gotta know this Plagueis guy is using her! Come on! He even has an evil name! I mean, which good guy in the history of ever would call themselves Plagueis?" Deke exclaimed.
"Hey, I tried telling her that. Why do you think I'm in here, kid?" Finn remarked.
"So, you were the one who sought her out?" Deke asked.
"Well, she intentionally made it easy to find her. She's always been resourceful. I was stupid enough to fall for it," Finn said.
"Don't blame yourself, she was like a daughter to you. And trust me, I know first-hand how…persuasive she can be," Deke said. Finn scowled at him.
"Yeah don't remind me," he muttered. Looks like Finn was still weirded out about Deke sleeping with Jaina.
"So, she just wanted to keep you here?" Deke asked, changing the subject.
"I'm the only Jedi left. I was Rey's first and only student. She and Ben were supposed to start a new Jedi Order but then the Sith Eternal happened, and they were on the run and Han was in exile. I chose to stay with the Republic Fleet. I taught Jaina so she could pass on what she had learnt but Jaina is gone. She's Lady Amenia now and Amenia's only keeping me here because I'm useful," Finn said. Deke nodded and sighed. Looks like they were both here until they weren't needed anymore.
"What does she want from you?" He asked
"She wants the location to Ahch-To. Luke Skywalker was in exile there for a long time and there's a large collection of Jedi artefacts and history that I have managed to collect all these years. There's a lot of knowledge about the Force there as well. It was the birthplace of the ancient Jedi Order. She has not been successful in getting it out of me just yet," Finn said. Deke could catch a hint of a smirk tugging at the corner of Finn's lips.
"You're the only one who knows about this…Ahch-To?"
"Yes." Finn replied and didn't elaborate but Deke caught something in his voice that made him think that wasn't entirely true.
"How could she do this? You raised her. You taught her. You were there for her," Deke said, getting angry.
"As I said, she's desperate to get her son back, Deke. It has come to the point where Lady Amenia has consumed her. What's left of Jaina is just a broken shell, fighting to be whole again," Finn said.
They sat in silence, both lost in thought. Deke was still processing all that he had learnt. He missed the S.H.I.E.L.D. team more and more. At least with them, the craziness that got thrown their way could be handled. He didn't know how to handle this situation in the slightest bit. He also had no idea how to escape and made no progress with that wall panel. He could reroute the access point to redirect the opening from the inside of their cell, but he still needed some sort of code or key to actually open the door and there was no way to get it. He laid back on his bunk in frustration.
It had been quite a while since their talk and Finn was meditating in the corner. Deke was starting to get hungry and wondered when their food would get here. Just as he finished that thought, he heard a click and the door open. The Sith Trooper who was guarding their door entered and brought them two trays of some disgusting sludge and Deke made a face at it. At that moment, he caught a glimpse of something in the trooper's hand. It was some sort of small cylindrical device and Deke was willing to bet this was what they needed to escape. It was now or never. As the trooper started placing the tray down on the floor, Deke pushed him back and slammed his head against the wall, knocking him out. Finn opened his eyes and raised his eyebrows, unimpressed. He didn't look very happy.
"You shouldn't have done that. You should've been patient. If you were as smart as you were bragging to be, you would've found a good solution," Finn reprimanded.
"What do you mean? We're getting out of here! Come on!" Deke said, grabbing the cylindrical device from the trooper's hand.
"This escape seems too easy, Deke," Finn said, cautious. Deke rolled his eyes. He honestly didn't care if it was a trap or not, he just wanted to get out of here.
"Look, if we're fast, we can make it to the escape pods before they notice anything amiss, and you can signal your Republic friends to come pick us up. It'll be fine. But we've gotta be fast. You think those joints can get you moving, old man?" Deke said and smirked. Finn still did not look impressed, instead he stood up and stretched out his arm. For a moment Deke thought Finn was going to use his Force powers against him but instead he heard a loud thud behind him. A Sith Trooper that somehow managed to sneak up on them was lying unconscious against the wall. Finn had used some type of Force Push to incapacitate him. Deke was astounded.
"You coming, kid? Or are you gonna stand there gaping all day?" Finn asked and ran out the door. Deke smiled in spite of himself and followed, right behind him.
