Chapter 24: Father and Son Talk

After some time Luke came looking for Anakin. "May I speak to you for a moment..alone," he added address Ezra who was sitting right beside Anakin.

Anakin nodded wondering what this grandmaster-grandboy wanted as he led Anakin away from the group.

Luke opened up with a very unexpected comment. "You don't have much trust in the force do you."

Anakin looked at him in surprise, "I do too."

"It's alright," said Luke holding out a hand to stop the objection. "I'm not accusing you of anything."

"I follow the force," continue Anakin as if he didn't hear him. "I obey all the orders rules."

"I'm not objecting to that. I'm just curious," he said slowly clearly realizing how thin skin Anakin was. Anakin hated that even more. "It doesn't seem like you have trust in anything, and that alone should be something to be concern with."

Anakin stared at him dumbly, "I do have trust I trust my men."

"No real trust. Trust that when you are down and out and there's nothing you can do you have faith that someone will help you, whether the force of a physical being you know that they will help you. Do you trust your men to do a job without you? Here picture this, you are capture, there's no escape, who you know that without a doubt will come for you. It's a question that decides if someone will break or not. If you can't answer it then I recommend not putting yourself in a position where capture will be possible. The last thing you would want is to become an enemy of the Jedi."

Anakin opened his mouth to object but then close his mouth. Did he trust his men like that? He trusted them to have his back in a battle but did he trust them to rescue him, to go into a battle alone and come out of it alive. Maybe not. There was Obi-Wan he always had Anakin's back and was capable of fighting just as well as Anakin. But he was keeping secrets from Obi-Wan, if he didn't trust Obi-Wan to know about his marriage then did he trust him at all.

"I trust myself," he objected "I know that I will always be there for myself and no matter how much trouble I am in I know that I will get out of it."

"Now that is a sign that you have nothing," chuckled Luke. "For not even the most egomaniac believes that." Luke studied him carefully, "I'm just worried that you have no one to lean on, no one that you trust to truly have you back when things get tough. Forget about the force or being a Jedi, this is just not a way for someone to live. Think hard and ask yourself has there been anyone that you trust to have an idea for when you have none. There is a big difference between having someone back in a battle and trusting someone to take the lead. You need that. Everybody does. It's the whole reason why the new order was founded. We all have a special skill that none of the others have and by pulling our resources together even if I am up against something that I can not handle I know the others will. They wouldn't just always be there for me but also have an idea when I have none."

The two of them walked in silence for a while as Anakin absorbed what Luke was saying. "Of course," continued Luke, "I suppose in your condition it's difficult to trust anyone."

"What does that mean."

"Well, that response alone suggested the problem, your very…" Luke waved a hand in front of Anakin as if trying to figure out the best way to describe the person in front of him. "You are like a tempest," said Luke finally, "your force signature is very static, erratic. You don't seem to have a calm patience that Jedi and even Sith have, it's quite unstable."

Anakin looked as if he was about to object but Luke continued onward. "Meditation isn't easy for you is it. I can help you, I have worked with many people including Galen and even a few other siths. I am very used to dealing with difficult people."

Anakin looked straight into Luke's eyes for a few minutes and concluded that there was no judgment in Luke's face but the earnest willingness to help. Perhaps that was Luke's secret to being a grandmaster of a colorful group. And Luke was right, he did have Jedi who probably had an even harder time than Anakin at mediation. Galen alone was impossible to get calm, Anakin had seen first hand how his fellow Jedi had to restrain him at times.

"It's difficult," said Anakin when he finally caved in "I can't empty my mind."

"Well don't empty it."

"What."

Luke smiled at him. "If you can't remove the pain then replace it with happiness. I'm an empath remember."

"Right."

"Well that's how I find my peace in the force," continued Luke, "I don't try to remove all my pain and suffering, I replace it with happiness and content. As you have discovered that happiness tends swirling out to encompass not just me but everyone around me.

"Yes," Anakin smiled at that. "I remember when you woke up."

Luke smiled at that. "It was quite painful waking up and only feeling this echo of darkness. I didn't like it so I replace it with brightness, happiness. The things that you release in the force tends to remain in the air around you."

"I guess it can't hurt to try."

"Perfect. I will guide you."

Tatooine

Across Tatooine's inhabited surface there was one area that truly had no spect of life. It was known as the desert ocean for across its wide length there was nothing, no Tuscans, not even the smallest little lizard cross its sandy land. In the center of this inhabited area there stood a cliff and on top of the cliff what is a circular building with a steep spiral that seemed to be a lighthouse, the only landmark for miles around. This was Jabba's palace. The palace was usually quite loud, especially compared to the quietness of the area, but today was different. All the bounty hunters that usually stayed within to guard Jabba were gone, sent away to retrieve the Tatooine slaves. All the remain was a skeleton crew of Jabba's most loyal henchman and a few of the slaves that hadn't succeeded in escaping. The silence was broken by an angry shout by Jabba. He had just received a call from his hunters that had went to retrieve the slaves. Not only have the entire army of slave hunters, who specialized in and their businesses had failed but many had lost lives. And the reason why had nothing to do with the slaves or those who guarded them but rather mysterious creatures who lived on the planet. Mysteries creatures, who according to the hunters that had managed to make it back to the ship, were ghosts. They disappeared as soon as the stroke a hunter. To make matters worse a giant mountain head opened fire on his ships and that was their turn for what happened, for they claimed there was no offensive station on the planet capable of attack. It was like the planet itself had attacked.

Jabba was furious about the silliest claims made by his hunters and he insisted that they return to Tatooine so he could yell at them some more. He was screaming in his native tongue when a dust warning came across the comms. A Dust storm was common on Tatooine, especially for the desert ocean. The storm that came out of nowhere and was sweeping across the land towards his palace. Another sandstorm that was scraped and chip at his paint. He shouted at his servants to leave him alone in his throne room as he glared up at the walls thinking about the best punishments for his bounty hunters when they return.

The sand storm hit his palace, it screeched across the windows, scraping against the walls and roof. However, there was something hidden in the sand, something that caused more damage to the palace than just paint scrapping.

A Nexus reared itself as it demolished the outer walls of the palace. It had appeared out of the sand storm and on top of it was a human figure dressed in a white cloak and wielding a white staff. The hunters almost ran right then and there, for they recognize the character from the stories that the slaves love to tell. That was Leia the warrior, there was one story that claimed that she was the child of the nexus and here she was out of the stories rearing on top of her nexus kin and wielding a staff that shot blaster fire at them.

First, there were those stories from Lothal about strange creatures appearing out of nowhere and now out of a story came a legendary character on top of a Nexus, the most fearsome beast of the desert.

Leia was ecstatic that all she had left was one final battle then she'll be off this desolate planet. How anyone managed to survive here was a mystery to her. She had only been here for a few months and she was already sick and tired of all the sand that seemed to get everywhere. She was also convinced that she had eaten a literal ton of sand since being here. She couldn't wait to leave this place, and take a long shower, and wash off all the sand. Maybe she would do something she hadn't done since being a child, and take a bath, and waste all the water that she once had to scrounge for.

She also wasn't a fan of the nexus that she was perch onto. Unlike Luke, she didn't have a good connection with wild animals. It took too much patience and they tended not to like humans who would bite them back out of vengeance. In Leia's defense that gerbil had it coming. But Luke had insisted on it. He had proclaimed that the image of her appearing out of a dessert storm on top of the nexus would terrify the men and continue to be a story told for centuries to come. It would encourage slavers to never come back to Tatooine.

So Ezra and Luke had teamed up to entice a nexus out of its den and to Leia. Then all Leia had to do was lie and wait with the free army, waiting for the signal. But first, the slavers had to leave Tatooine. It took a lot longer than Leia thought it would for them to discover Lothal. She was even beginning to debate whether or not giving them a hand.

Finally, they discover Lothal, and Jabba sent his guards out, leaving his palace wide open. Leia was attempted to take it then but once again she had been outraged by Luke. Luke had insisted that the attack not occur until news of Lothal came back, demoralizing the hunters. To make matters worse the generals of the free army had agreed with Luke. The generals had once been slaves and now had taken over leading the army, leaving Leia as a figurehead as was the goal, but still, they couldn't side with her.

After a few days, their slicers had picked up the call made from what was left of the hunters who were returning with their tails between their legs back to Tatooine. Finally, Leia could give the order for the attack to begin.

Which unfortunately for Leia meant one more difficult step. As if being on top of a Nexus wasn't already a difficult setup she had to create a sandstorm. Being a powerful force user who was born on a desert planet, had given Luke the ability to move sand particles. Due to their lightness, one will assume that they will be easy, and it was, to move sand. But the amount needed to create an entire storm. The amount of focus needed to move that many and in a specific direction could only be done by a master. So while Leia was leading a battle on top of a nexus and as the most obvious target, she couldn't even defend herself. Her entire focus was tied to the sand.

This was her least favorite part of the confrontation, but Luke won her over by stating that the nexus and sand would protect her. This meant by the time that the nexus hit the wall and Leia had struck the palace with the sand that had to cover her and the armies approach, she was ready to get off the nexus and join into the fight.

For this battle, Corran had given her a quarterstaff, another ancient Jedi weapon. Leia preferred it to the two swords. The quarterstaff was power by a kyber crystal that allowed it to fire blasts at her enemies and if they got too close the staff specifically designed for melee, Leia's favorite.

As soon as Leia was able to drop the sand shield, she quickly jumped off the nexus and let him roam free without any leash. The only understanding was that he would only destroy the building. Leia didn't want to be on top of the creature anymore then she had too. She never cared for ridding animals whether palace horses, don-dons, or nexuses.

Leia launched herself at the nearest guard and quickly took him out, with a fling of the staff and a bolt of power she made quick work of all the guards near him. Followed behind her and cover by the storm was the army. They quickly join her in the melee, using blaster and riffle, and a few carry swords and axes. The courtyard quickly turned into a war zone with many bodies. A majority of them though were the guards.

Leia continued to lead the group through the front yard. She moved swiftly and quickly through the guards, cutting them down as if they were like butter. Finally, she reached what had once been the door to the palace but now was nothing but an opening in a pile of rubble. Behind her lay a path carve from bodies. In the rest of the yard, the armies still fought.

"Tari," she shouted as she though the quarterstaff into the air. Up on the only wall still standing was a woman dress in a cloak. With an amateur wavier she clutched the staff with the force and brought it up to her. From her perch, she began to rain fire down at the group while slamming the end of the staff into the face of any guard who tried to remove her.

Tari had been the one good thing from Leia's Tatooine adventure, and the only thing on the planet that she will miss. Tari was a slave who turned out to be very strong in the force. If Qui-Gon Jinn had stayed a little longer on Tatooine, he probably would have brought her to Coruscant as well.

Instead, Tari remain in slavery until Leia freed her and since to win the war they needed all their people to do the best they could, Leia began to teach her the basics. Tari was good when it came to sensing things through the force it was what allowed her to survive slavery and was also why she was able to cause so much destruction with the staff. She had hinted that if Leia didn't need it could she have it and since the melee staff wouldn't be handy in the close-quarter fighting of an indoor battle, Leia decided to give it to her.

Instead, Leia pulled out her twin blades and enter the building. It was quiet. All the guards were outside fighting and the slaves would be hiding until the fighting ended one way or another. This was all according to plan for now Jabba was all alone and left unguarded.

When the sunburn, sunstroke, and sandblasts had become too much over the months, Leia's temper came out. To prevent herself from lashing out against people who didn't understand the difference between an actual threat and a grumpy Leia, Leia channel it to destroying Jabba. She told herself that it was because of Jabba that she was stuck on this sun-baked planet. After a while, she began to fantasied about killing him. She had come up with a few ideas, feeding him to his worm, choking him, maybe cutting him up into pieces. And of course her speech. What she would say, the final jibe as she killed him. Finally, Leia was forced to admit that elaborate killings were more Sith then Jedi, heck more cartoon supervillain than Sith, and she decided to keep it simple. One strike with a blade, no words, no time for him even realize what happened.

She stopped outside the door that led into the throne room. She could sense only one lifeform behind it. He was alone. Leia tapped the door which slowly creaked open.

A booming voice demanded something in a strange tongue that Leia had learned after all the months stuck on the planet. "I thought I said that I didn't want to be disturb," it demand. Leia didn't respond. She just entered the room, blade raised.

Authors note: yes the part about trust, Luke potentially said it to help Anakin realize that he could trust Obi-Wan. By having Obi-Wan to go to he wouldn't fall by trying to solve all his problems by himself. I just wanted to state it a little clearer.