Sooo good news for you. Since it's mi cumpleaños, here's a gift from me to you. Happy regular ole Tuesday for all of you darling readers. Hope you enjoy!
DCDGojira & .2019: Thanks!
Zikashigaku: There are so many things I wanna say but that'll spoil what I wrote lmao. Also, I realized that I couldn't in good nature kill off Boba considering his death in the movie was seriously pitiful.
Kaia: That's why I love writing Kal 'cause I have serious daddy issues, so writing someone who does actually find a decent father figure is just so fulfilling, even with Boba's faults. Since you like his protective mode, hope you like his interaction in this chapter, too.
BTW: Some of the dialogue in this chapter is taken from the script from Return of the Jedi that wasn't used in the released movie or in deleted scenes. I just thought I'd share that in case some of you are confused. And I did include a mention to the comic Boba Fett: Enemy of the Empire. I don't believe it's canon but who cares? It's not like Disney has come out with the absolute best stuff or had an overwhelming amount of fantastic ideas anyway.
4 ABY
The journey to where the Falcon and Luke's X-wing were parked was far more tense among the group than slaughtering half of Jabba's patrons. Kal knew it was because of Boba Fett's obvious, unavoidable presence. Kal forged ahead of the group with Luke and Boba. Leia, Chewie, and Lando walked with Han, who was still recovering from the hibernation sickness. The two droids trailed behind them constantly bickering.
The desert wind blew harshly. Luke had tried no less than four times to get Kal to take his cloak since Leia still wore Kal's long coat, but she continued to refuse for the Force was her ally against the biting sand threatening to eat her skin. Boba had watched, mildly entertained. There was no doubt in Boba's mind that the blond man was the one who had gotten Kal pregnant.
Boba, for reasons Kal couldn't tell, was the one to break the silence after a time. "I tried to kill your father once," the bounty hunter said, facing Luke as they walked a step behind Kal's brisk pace. "Although, he was also trying to kill me."
"I'm sorry, what?" Luke asked, taken aback. Kal raised an amused eyebrow at their conversation but didn't look at them.
"It was on Maryx Minor," Boba explained, recalling the memory. "He had hired me to acquire something for him. Once I found out what it was, I didn't want to hand it over. But I had crossed paths with him a few times when he was still a man. Almost killed him a few times."
"So. . . you know that my father is. . . "
"Darth Vader? Yeah. Who do you think gave him your name?"
Luke's steps faltered but Boba continued walking forward with Kal. Luke couldn't find it in himself to be surprised, he just hadn't expected to ever find out that information.
Once the ragtag group reached the Falcon and the X-Wing, Kal spotted an impending sandstorm on the horizon. "We should probably hurry," Kal said, gesturing to the sand cloud. She turned to Boba as Chewie and Lando climbed aboard the Falcon to ready it for takeoff and Luke talked to Han and Leia. "I know you won't join up, but thank you for helping us out."
"Anything for you, Kal," the bounty hunter replied. "Be safe, and you might want to take it easy." He wanted to say more. A lot more. But Boba Fett had always been a man of few words. They were about to get themselves into trouble. She didn't need to know something that would hold her back.
Why would she want to take it easy? She didn't quite understand. Kal smirked, ignoring the minorly confused part of herself. "I'll try." Boba began to walk away. "Wait, Boba!" Her old mentor turned around. "Do you know where Dengar parked his ship?" He tilted his head. She could feel his pointed stare and questioning gaze, but it didn't faze her. "What? He won't be needing it anymore."
"Docking Bay 87 in Mos Eisley." She nodded with a cheeky grin and saluted him.
He was about to walk away again when his name was called. Boba resisted groaning and turned once again to see Luke jogging over to him. Kal bowed out and went to check on Han and Leia. Luke held out his arm civilly for Boba to take. "I wanted to express my gratitude. We can't exactly pay you or anything-"
Boba cut off the young Jedi. "No payment necessary." He couldn't remember the last time he had said those words if he had ever said them at all. Boba grasped forearms with the young man before him. "Take care of her."
"I will."
The older man had to admire the kid's conviction. "If you hurt her, I won't hesitate to hunt you down."
The slightest hint of amusement showed on Luke's face. "I can say the same."
Boba smiled beneath his helmet. He may not have completely liked the idea of his surrogate daughter being an adult who no longer needed his aid, but he knew she was in good hands and would become a wonderful mother herself. They dropped their arms and Boba went his own way.
Kal watched Boba walk away from them, leaving on good terms instead of bad. Her heart ached to see him go, but she knew it was for the best. He didn't belong in a group or fighting for a grand cause. Boba Fett would always be a loner. Luke turned around and noticed her watchful, sad gaze. Walking over, he took her in his arms, setting his cheek on her crown. At least the craziness was over. They had to return to the larger fight. Luke's arms were too comfortable, she didn't want to move. But she did, pulling away to look at him.
He brought a hand to her jaw and rubbed his thumb over her soft cheek. "I need to go back to Dagobah."
Her eyebrows pinched together. "Why?" she asked.
No matter how many times she made the same expressions, Luke would forever love them. And her. "I promised Yoda I'd return," he explained. "I know there's still much I need to learn." He paused, looking over her face. "I think you should come with me and meet him."
One of her eyebrows quirked up. "There's no way we'd both fit comfortably in that cockpit. Luckily, I know where to get a ship."
He recognized her evil smile from a mile away even before it sprung to life on her face. "Do I even want to know?" he asked tentatively.
Kal shrugged. "It's a dead man's ship. He won't be using it from the hell he's in."
A light laugh escaped Luke's lips. "Like that makes it any better. Do you need an escort?"
"I'll get a ride to Mos Eisley from Chewie and Lando."
"I'll wait for you in orbit." Luke bent to place a gentle kiss on her lips.
She smiled up at him, biting her lip, before turning and hurrying up the loading ramp of the Falcon. Luke climbed into his own ship with Artoo having already begun preparing for takeoff.
Kal pushed the button to close the ramp and heard a beep and whistle from further down the corridor of the Corellian freighter. She recognized the familiar noise. Making her way down the passage, Gray zoomed forward to meet his master, whistling excitedly and floating around her. "I missed you, too, buddy." Placing a hand on his top, she rubbed the droid like she would pet an animal. Gray settled himself on her shoulder as Kal asked Chewie to drop her off in Mos Eisley and stayed there for the duration of the short flight, except for when Kal pulled her coat back on after getting it back from Leia. Thankfully for Leia, no one in the rebellion would see that slave outfit. Kal couldn't help but think Han would be mildly disappointed he didn't get to see her wear it.
Dengar's ship was a sight to behold. Twenty meters long and valued at over four-hundred thousand credits, Kal had heard plenty of stories of the now-deceased bounty hunter only taking dead bounties and spending much of his rewards upgrading the crescent-shaped scout ship. The red accents would certainly have to go once Kal had the time to transform the Punishing One into her own ship. Perhaps a cyan to match her lightsaber or a green to match Luke's.
Kal almost flew out of the pilot seat once she flew the ship out of the docking bay and through the air. "That's got a kick," she said to Gray. Dengar really knew how to modify the ship. Gray beeped in agreement. When the ship left the atmosphere of the desert planet, she flew it next to Luke's X-Wing. They nodded to each other and entered hyperspace. With the ship securely on the path, Kal had one request for her droid. "Gray, scan the ship to find out what's been modified and upgraded compared to an assembly line JumpMaster 5000 model." He beeped and got to work, happy to be useful once again rather than collecting dust on the Falcon or watching Artoo and Threepio bicker.
Once finished, Gray plugged into the main console to show his master the schematics of the ship with lines pointing to modifications. Kal hummed as she looked over the changes. "Well, Dengar had a lot of time on his hands. Who needs a quad laser cannon, an ion cannon, and a proton torpedo launcher in addition to the twin laser cannons that come with the ship? Paranoid much? At least he upgraded the damn hyperdrive and backup, too." Why a scout ship would only come with a Class 3 hyperdrive, Kal wasn't sure. The logic didn't exactly add up, but at least Dengar had enough sense to upgrade it to a Class 1, the same as an X-Wing. Not as fast as the Millenium Falcon's Class 0.5 but still far better than it was originally. Kal did a double-check for one feature Dengar added. "He installed an astromech brain to do the shooting for him? Lame."
The moment the ship left hyperspace, Kal was hit with large Force energy, leaving her momentarily breathless. Knowing Dagobah was highly attuned to the Force was one thing. Feeling it was another. The clashing energies of the Light Side and the Dark Side could be felt in orbit. No wonder Master Yoda had chosen the planet as his place of exile. There was no possible way the Emperor nor Darth Vader would be able to feel his Force signature on the jungle planet.
Luke's comm patched through to hers. "You alright?" he asked, looking over through his own windshield into hers.
"Yeah, yeah," Kal replied. "I've just never felt this much Force attunement in one place before."
"Be careful on the descent. Don't rely on the computer. If you do, you'll crash."
"Is that what you did?" His distinctive silence told her everything she needed to know. "I'm following you, farmboy."
The atmosphere was filled with a thick fog which quickly melded with the vines and branches of the jungle, but as Luke had recommended, Kal felt her way through, ignoring the disrupted computer scanners of the ship until she broke through the fog line and landed on the hard ground near Luke's X-Wing.
"Stay with the ship," Kal ordered Gray as she disembarked. "I don't know what to expect here." The ground soft and the air damp, Kal found the planet to be the strangest she had ever visited. Perhaps it was because she had just left the arid Tatooine. She had been on jungle planets but not swamp planets.
Luke climbed out of his fighter and dropped to the ground. Kal watched as he stripped off his flight suit. It wouldn't be good to get it dirty or torn. When Luke fully faced Kal, he asked, "You ready?"
With a lopsided grin, she replied, "I'm not sure I like the black on you." She waved up and down his body. While he looked good, it didn't suit him. He needed something light.
"That didn't answer my question." Nevertheless, he chuckled and held out his hand which she happily took in hers. "His hut's just over there." Luke nodded his head towards a small brown building a short way away.
Luke and Kal crouched down and crawled through the entryway. "Master Yoda," Luke called out. The dwelling reminded Kal of her old hut on Tatooine. Humble, scarcely decorated and befitting a Jedi Master.
"Returned, have you?" an older, hoarse voice asked. "And a friend you brought, hm?" Kal looked up once inside and saw Master Yoda, exactly how her father had described him. Old, small, and green with big ears and simple clothing.
She sat next to Luke, careful not to bump her head on the short ceiling as Luke replied, "Master Yoda, this is-"
"Kaleena Kenobi, yes," Yoda interrupted. She hadn't gone by the name Kenobi since she was a child. She had favored the use of her mother's surname as it was more inconspicuous than her father's. It felt strange to hear it. The wise Jedi Master studied her. He walked slowly up to her with his cane. "Learned much about you, I have, from your father, yes. Powerful Jedi was he. Tell me, why have you come?"
"Luke thought I should. It's an honor to meet you," Kal told him.
"Answer the question, you did not."
Kal let out a slow breath. Barely two minutes into meeting the famed Jedi Master, and she realized just how much her father hadn't been joking about. "For many years I was disillusioned by the Jedi Order, and now I find myself wanting to preserve it."
His ears dipped lower and his gaze softened. "A wise Master will you be." Yoda looked to Luke sitting beside her. "Hmm, that face you make. Look I so old to young eyes?"
Luke tried to change his expression. "No, of course not." The truth was, the longer Luke sat there, the surer he became that something was wrong with Yoda. The Jedi Master seemed more frail and weak than he had been the last time Luke had been there.
Yoda chuckled, still cheerful despite everything. "I do, yes, I do! Sick have I become. Old and weak." He pointed at the two young Jedi. "When nine hundred years old you reach, look as good you will not, hmm?" Yoda chuckled again, coughed a little, and hobbled towards his bed. "Soon will I rest. Yes, forever sleep. Earned it, I have." Yoda sat on his bed slowly.
"Master Yoda, you can't die," Luke said.
"Strong am I with the Force, but not that strong. Twilight is upon me and soon night must fall. That is the way of things. The way of the Force."
Luke shook his head sadly. "But I need your help. I've come back to complete the training."
"No more training do you require. Already know you that which you need." Yoda lied back on his bed. Kal could see and feel his struggle. It wouldn't be long before he passed and became one with the Force.
"Then I am a Jedi?" While Luke tried to make it sound more like a statement, Kal didn't miss the slight uptick in his words. He was still unsure of himself, but no training could change that. He had to.
"Ohhh." Yoda sounded amused but shook his head. "Not yet. One thing remains, Vader. You must confront Vader. Then, only then, a Jedi will you be. And confront him you will."
Kal reached over, placing a hand on Luke's as he was silent for a long moment. "Master Yoda, why didn't you tell me he's my father?"
Yoda's eyes were weary and his smile sad. "Told you, did he?"
"Yes."
"Unexpected this is, and unfortunate. . ." Yoda trailed off.
"Unfortunate that I know the truth?" Luke supplied.
Yoda mustered all his strength. "No." He said it with more conviction than anything he had said since they arrived. "Unfortunate that you rushed to face him. . . that incomplete was your training. Not ready for the burden were you."
"I'm sorry."
Yoda looked up at the two young Jedi. Both had come a long way from the immature children they once were. He knew they were the future of the Jedi Order. Once again, he had hope, something he hadn't had since before the fall of the Republic. "Remember, a Jedi's strength flows from the Force. But beware. Anger, fear, aggression, the dark side are they. Once you start down the dark path, forever will it dominate your destiny. Luke. . . Luke, do not. . . Do not underestimate the powers of the Emperor, or suffer your father's fate, you will. When gone am I, the last of the Jedi will you be. The Force runs strong in your families. Pass on what you have learned." Yoda struggled to breathe. "There is. . . another. . . Sky. . . Sky. . . walker."
A shiver ran through the old Jedi Master as he died before their eyes. Yoda disappeared underneath his blanket, becoming one with the Force.
Luke put a hand over his mouth as he stared at the bed. Kal rubbed the back of his other hand with her thumb, trying to provide comfort and reassurance. She hadn't known Mater Yoda, but she could tell Luke had grown fond of the old Master in the short time he had known him.
"I'm sorry, Luke," she said gently. "But we should return to the fleet." He slowly nodded, knowing she was right. Part of him wanted to stay hidden on Dagobah forever, but he knew he couldn't. And Kal wouldn't let him.
The two crawled out of the hut and made their way back to the ships. "I can't believe he's gone," Luke said, mostly to himself and still holding Kal's hand.
"Yoda will always be with you." Kal and Luke turned to see the Force ghost of Obi-Wan Kenobi approaching them through the swamp.
"Obi-Wan! Why didn't you tell me?" Luke asked. Luke and Kal walked forward to meet him. "You told me Vader betrayed and murdered my father."
"Your father was seduced by the dark side of the Force," Obi-Wan explained as he sat down on a fallen log. "He ceased to be Anakin Skywalker and became Darth Vader. When that happened, the good man who was your father was destroyed. So what I have told you was true. . . from a certain point of view."
Luke's hand tightened around Kal's. He was slightly peeved at her father and she completely understood. "A certain point of view?" he repeated with derision.
"Luke, you're going to find that many of the truths we cling to depend greatly on our own point of view." Luke didn't reply and Obi-Wan studied them for a moment. While he had once hoped they would grow close, he hadn't thought they would be closer than mere friends. It didn't matter at that moment, however. Luke needed to know the truth. "I don't blame you for being angry. If I was wrong in what I did, it certainly wouldn't have been for the first time. You see, what happened to your father was my fault."
"No, it wasn't, Dad," Kal interrupted before he could continue. "Even you couldn't foresee Palpatine using Anakin's insecurities against him. It's what the Sith do. You did your best to teach him."
"I could have done better," Obi-Wan argued. He looked to Luke who moved to sit next to the ghost. "When I first knew him, your father was already a great pilot. But I was amazed at how strongly the Force was with him. I took it upon myself to train him as a Jedi. I thought that I could instruct him just as well as Yoda. I was wrong."
While Luke was in awe to finally learn more about his father, he was certain of one thing, "There's still good in him."
"I also thought he could be turned back to the side of good. It couldn't be done. He is more machine now than man. Twisted and evil."
Luke shook his head. "I can't do it, Ben."
"You cannot escape your destiny," Obi-Wan insisted.
"I tried to stop him once. I couldn't do it."
Ben gazed sadly upon his young pupil. If only he could see the potential that both Kal and her father could see in him. "Vader humbled you when you first met him, Luke," Obi-Wan explained. "But that experience was part of your training. It taught you, among other things, the value of patience. Had you not been so impatient to defeat Vader then, you could have finished your training here with Yoda. You would have been prepared."
"But I had to help my friends."
The ghost grinned at Luke's indignation. "And did you help them? It was they who had to save you. You achieved little by rushing back prematurely, I fear. To be a Jedi, you must confront and then go beyond the dark side-the side your father couldn't get past. Impatience is the easiest door, for you, like your father. Like Kaleena and I, as well. Only, your father was seduced by what he found on the other side of the door, and you have held firm. You're no longer so reckless now, Luke. You are strong and patient. And now, you must face Darth Vader again."
"I can't kill my own father."
Obi-Wan leaned back. "Then the Emperor has already won. You were our only hope."
"Yoda spoke of another."
"The other he spoke of is your twin sister."
If Luke could look even more confused, he did. "But I have no sister."
"To protect you both from the Emperor, you were hidden from your father when you were born. The Emperor knew, as I did, if Anakin were to have any offspring, they would be a threat to him. That is the reason why your sister remains safely anonymous."
Luke glanced down, taking in the information he was given. As a child, he had often wondered what it would've been like to have a sibling. He never legitimately believed he would ever have one. But there was one person who he had been drawn to from the moment they met. At first, he thought it was an attraction, yet it wasn't the same as the attraction he had felt towards Kal. "Leia," he finally said. "Leia's my sister."
Obi-Wan nodded. "Your insight serves you well." Kal was shocked, to say the least. While she could feel Leia's Force-sensitivity, she never thought for an instant that Leia was the twin her father had once told her Luke had. "Bury your feelings deep down, Luke. They do you credit, but they could be made to serve the Emperor."
Luke looked into the distance, trying to comprehend everything. Kal set a hand on his shoulder, feeling the turmoil and confusion bubbling within him. At least he finally knew the truth.
"Your mother died after giving birth to you," Obi-Wan explained. Luke looked at him, wanting to hear more. "To the galaxy, she had lost the child when she died, but you and Leia lived and were separated. Senator Organa of Alderaan had been a good friend of your mother. He and his wife had always wanted a daughter, so they readily took her in while I brought you to your father's step-brother on Tatooine. The Organa household was high-born and politically quite powerful on Alderaan. Leia became a princess by virtue of lineage. No one knew she'd been adopted, of course. Leia, following in her foster father's path, became a senator as well. That's not all she became, of course. She became the leader of her cell in the Alliance against the corrupt Empire. And because she had diplomatic immunity, she was a vital link for getting information to the rebel cause. That's what she was doing when her path crossed yours, for her foster parents had always told her to contact me on Tatooine if her troubles became desperate."
While the explanation was long, it filled Luke with a sense of responsibility towards keeping his sister safe. "But I can't let her get involved now, Ben. Vader will destroy her."
"She hasn't been trained in the ways of the Jedi the way you two have, but the Force is strong with her, as it is with all your family. There is no avoiding battle. You must face and destroy Vader. Yoda and I will be with you every step of the way, but this is something you must do for the good of the galaxy and the lives of your friends."
Luke slowly nodded, still not quite content with the idea of facing off against his father once again. He knew he had to face him, but he wasn't quite sure he could kill him.
"Thank you, Ben, for telling me the truth."
Obi-Wan gave him a smile. "When you're ready, Kaleena can tell you more about your mother. But only when you're ready." Luke and Kal donned matching confused expressions. Kal knew she could tell him all about Padmé, but why did he add the discretion of Luke needing to be ready?
"How will I know when I'm ready?" Luke asked.
Obi-Wan stared forlornly at the two of them. He could sense what they haven't been able to. Or perhaps they could but didn't recognize it. Or Kal couldn't sense it over the Force stemming from her mother's necklace. Too many Force-signatures could be confusing to the mind. He glanced down at Kal's stomach but quickly returned his gaze to their faces. He couldn't bring himself to tell them. Not right before Luke had to face his destiny. The fewer worries, the better. The less he could let slip to Vader, the better. "You'll know."
The old Jedi Master then disappeared, leaving them alone.
Luke stood, still confused but ready to move forward. He turned to Kal and wrapped his arms around her waist. "Your father enjoys being confusing, doesn't he?"
Kal chuckled and placed a quick kiss on his lips. "You didn't have to grow up with it. I'm sure we'll figure it out in time. But right now, we should hurry to the fleet. They'll be expecting us."
They began walking towards their respective ships, greeting their droids. Before either fully boarded, Luke called out, "Do you know what you're going to name it?" He pointed to her new ship.
Ship names often had to do with their owners, such as an aspect of their personality or something in their past. Kal could only think of one thing that truly defined where her path first began. In the desert with a krayt dragon. She smiled and answered, "The Desert Dragon."