Disclaimer: If I owned these characters instead of George Lucas, do you think I'd have let them
get to this point? No.
Rating: PG
RETURN TO SELF--Chapter 3
It may have been a living dome, but the Yuuzhan Vong bio-sphere couldn't have felt more
dead to Mara. It was still eerie for her to see the Vong and yet only have black holes in the
Force where they stood. The walls of the dome were bulbous and rough, like the skin of a
sarlacc. She couldn't say for certain, but if she was allowed to stand still for long enough,
sometimes it looked like they were pulsating.
Her arms were starting to hurt. Her two "escorts" were holding her quite firmly, afraid to lose
their latest sacrifice. There wasn't any where for her to go, but as a "new" victim, she probably
wouldn't know that. The corridors they walked her through seemed to get longer, not shorter.
She really wanted to sit down.
*Note to self--do not go on any more dangerous missions less than a month after giving birth.*
One of the guards knocked politely on a living panel at the end of a hallway. It slowly slid
aside and Mara was thrown to the floor in front of a Vong with a broken ankle. She tried to
stand up, only to find her back was being held down by one of their living sticks.
The Warmaster hobbled over to her and lifted her chin up with what appeared to be a cane.
She looked up at his scarred, tattooed face and cringed. *The more powerful, the uglier.*
"This is our latest sacrifice?" he asked her two guards. "She is not very strong."
One of them must have shook his head. "Respectfully, Warmaster Lah, she did destroy one of
our smaller attack vessels and damage several others."
The Warmaster looked her over again. "Brave? Or stupid?" He shrugged. "No matter. Put
her in with the war coordinator. She will help him grow."
*****
Mara had to catch her breath and filter the air to her nostrils with the Force. Thousands of
refugees-turned-prisoners were crammed into a space twice the size of her own apartment
on Coruscant. With all the different species, and none of them getting a chance to bathe, the
smell was both overwhelming and disconcerting.
After careful consideration, Mara made her way over to a group of forlorn-looking humans.
Three males and one female huddled together in a corner, talking quietly amongst themselves.
The next closest group, about twenty paces to the left, was a large contingent of Bothans.
*Bothawui hasn't been attacked yet.*
Hunching her shoulders, Mara spoke to the group in a broken voice.
"Mind if I join you?" she asked.
One of the males, a brunette with striking violet eyes, gestured towards the ground. "Have a
seat," he said.
Nodding her gratitude, Mara sat down on the ground, drawing her knees up to her chest. She
peered out at her new companions.
"Jada," she finally said, "from Zhar."
The same male spoke for the rest of them. "Arin," he said, pointing to himself. "These are my
brothers Ithen and Odwurd." He nodded towards the woman. "She doesn't say anything."
Mara examined the woman closely. When cleaned up, she must have been quite beautiful; her
hair was long and blond, her eyes were a deep blue. Gently, Mara reached out with the Force
to read the young woman, but all she got from her was sorrow.
"You all have to help this war-coordinator?" Mara asked.
Arin nodded. "Yup, we do it in shifts so not all of us are tired. It will be our turn soon. Stick
close and you'll learn."
Mara nodded. "I'll keep that in mind."
*****
Luke Skywalker decided that he had to do something. Since Mara had left their son and her
lightsabre with Tionne a month ago, he had called to her, reached for her and searched for her
through the Force. He had found nothing. He had given Jaina permission to search their
apartment on Coruscant, but all she found was that two days worth of clothes were missing and
that she'd left her wedding band behind.
"I'm going after her," he said to his sister over a transmission to the core.
Leia shook her head. Her hair, more gray than brown, was just starting to touch the tip of her
ears. "No, Luke, you're not. She left instructions with Han that we were allowed to surround
you with yslarammi if neccessary."
"Leia, she's my wife. No one knows where she is, or why she left. What kind of woman
abandons her infant child for a mission?"
The words were off his tongue before he realized he was talking to such a woman. "Leia, I'm
so sorry..."
She waved him away. "Don't worry, Luke; I get plenty of it from Jaina." She sighed. "But as
a woman who sometimes chose duty over family, I can tell you that whatever Mara's reasons,
they're pretty honorable." She paused, scrutinizing her brother carefully. "If you promise to
stay where you are, I'll do a little more governmental snooping and see what I can find. She
had to get that B-Wing from somewhere."
*****
The NRI offices were empty except for one young man who'd drawn the short spice stick this
month. Wearing a pair of headphones, he listened in on the Yuuzhan Vong establishment on
Duros. Nothing was going on and he was bored to tears.
The woman with the implanted tranceiver coughed what sounded like "NRI" and then was silent again.
"I hear you, Operative, what is it?"
Her voice, although barely a whisper, sounded very close by. "There are at least three war
coordinators on Duros. Whatever they've been telling us about trading Jedi for freedom is a
lie."
"Understood, Operative, I'll let the higher-ups know."
*****
Mara massaged the rough skin of the war coordinator in time to the beating on a platform above
her. Various unhappy species did the same, sweat pouring down whatever passed for brows
among their kind. Mara wanted to drop too.
She had been careful. The war coordinator kept reaching out to beings, trying to draw on their power. She was doing her best to shield her Force-ability from the creature. She had to find
out more about their plans before she went off in search of the captured Jedi.
A gong sounded somewhere and a Vong appeared above them. "Excellent work; the war
coordinator is pleased. Now go fill yourselves with nutrient suppliments. Your shift is done."
Tired and hungry, the masseuses filed out one at a time, rarely breaking away from species groups. There was comfort in familiarity; it was best to associate with those you knew you'd
get along with rather than branch out and possibly have problems later.
Sliding down the wall, Mara passed on the bowl Arin offered to her. For some reason, she
concentrated better on an empty stomach. *Must be all those times Palpatine sent me to bed
without my supper.*
She inhaled and exhaled experimentally, checking for the guards. Seeing that they were on
the other side of the hold, she closed her eyes and slowly dipped into the Force.
She knew she should be judging the proximity of the other Jedi, but instead she found herself
searching for Jaina, Anakin and the rest of her new family. All were alive and counted for.
Mara almost reached out for Luke, to send him a comforting thought or two, but drew back from
the instinct. No, if she did that, he would find her, and then where would young Ryft be?
Strangely enough, she didn't feel a need to be with Luke, mentally or physically. This distance
she had created had been strangely rejuvinating. She felt less...tied-down.
get to this point? No.
Rating: PG
RETURN TO SELF--Chapter 3
It may have been a living dome, but the Yuuzhan Vong bio-sphere couldn't have felt more
dead to Mara. It was still eerie for her to see the Vong and yet only have black holes in the
Force where they stood. The walls of the dome were bulbous and rough, like the skin of a
sarlacc. She couldn't say for certain, but if she was allowed to stand still for long enough,
sometimes it looked like they were pulsating.
Her arms were starting to hurt. Her two "escorts" were holding her quite firmly, afraid to lose
their latest sacrifice. There wasn't any where for her to go, but as a "new" victim, she probably
wouldn't know that. The corridors they walked her through seemed to get longer, not shorter.
She really wanted to sit down.
*Note to self--do not go on any more dangerous missions less than a month after giving birth.*
One of the guards knocked politely on a living panel at the end of a hallway. It slowly slid
aside and Mara was thrown to the floor in front of a Vong with a broken ankle. She tried to
stand up, only to find her back was being held down by one of their living sticks.
The Warmaster hobbled over to her and lifted her chin up with what appeared to be a cane.
She looked up at his scarred, tattooed face and cringed. *The more powerful, the uglier.*
"This is our latest sacrifice?" he asked her two guards. "She is not very strong."
One of them must have shook his head. "Respectfully, Warmaster Lah, she did destroy one of
our smaller attack vessels and damage several others."
The Warmaster looked her over again. "Brave? Or stupid?" He shrugged. "No matter. Put
her in with the war coordinator. She will help him grow."
*****
Mara had to catch her breath and filter the air to her nostrils with the Force. Thousands of
refugees-turned-prisoners were crammed into a space twice the size of her own apartment
on Coruscant. With all the different species, and none of them getting a chance to bathe, the
smell was both overwhelming and disconcerting.
After careful consideration, Mara made her way over to a group of forlorn-looking humans.
Three males and one female huddled together in a corner, talking quietly amongst themselves.
The next closest group, about twenty paces to the left, was a large contingent of Bothans.
*Bothawui hasn't been attacked yet.*
Hunching her shoulders, Mara spoke to the group in a broken voice.
"Mind if I join you?" she asked.
One of the males, a brunette with striking violet eyes, gestured towards the ground. "Have a
seat," he said.
Nodding her gratitude, Mara sat down on the ground, drawing her knees up to her chest. She
peered out at her new companions.
"Jada," she finally said, "from Zhar."
The same male spoke for the rest of them. "Arin," he said, pointing to himself. "These are my
brothers Ithen and Odwurd." He nodded towards the woman. "She doesn't say anything."
Mara examined the woman closely. When cleaned up, she must have been quite beautiful; her
hair was long and blond, her eyes were a deep blue. Gently, Mara reached out with the Force
to read the young woman, but all she got from her was sorrow.
"You all have to help this war-coordinator?" Mara asked.
Arin nodded. "Yup, we do it in shifts so not all of us are tired. It will be our turn soon. Stick
close and you'll learn."
Mara nodded. "I'll keep that in mind."
*****
Luke Skywalker decided that he had to do something. Since Mara had left their son and her
lightsabre with Tionne a month ago, he had called to her, reached for her and searched for her
through the Force. He had found nothing. He had given Jaina permission to search their
apartment on Coruscant, but all she found was that two days worth of clothes were missing and
that she'd left her wedding band behind.
"I'm going after her," he said to his sister over a transmission to the core.
Leia shook her head. Her hair, more gray than brown, was just starting to touch the tip of her
ears. "No, Luke, you're not. She left instructions with Han that we were allowed to surround
you with yslarammi if neccessary."
"Leia, she's my wife. No one knows where she is, or why she left. What kind of woman
abandons her infant child for a mission?"
The words were off his tongue before he realized he was talking to such a woman. "Leia, I'm
so sorry..."
She waved him away. "Don't worry, Luke; I get plenty of it from Jaina." She sighed. "But as
a woman who sometimes chose duty over family, I can tell you that whatever Mara's reasons,
they're pretty honorable." She paused, scrutinizing her brother carefully. "If you promise to
stay where you are, I'll do a little more governmental snooping and see what I can find. She
had to get that B-Wing from somewhere."
*****
The NRI offices were empty except for one young man who'd drawn the short spice stick this
month. Wearing a pair of headphones, he listened in on the Yuuzhan Vong establishment on
Duros. Nothing was going on and he was bored to tears.
The woman with the implanted tranceiver coughed what sounded like "NRI" and then was silent again.
"I hear you, Operative, what is it?"
Her voice, although barely a whisper, sounded very close by. "There are at least three war
coordinators on Duros. Whatever they've been telling us about trading Jedi for freedom is a
lie."
"Understood, Operative, I'll let the higher-ups know."
*****
Mara massaged the rough skin of the war coordinator in time to the beating on a platform above
her. Various unhappy species did the same, sweat pouring down whatever passed for brows
among their kind. Mara wanted to drop too.
She had been careful. The war coordinator kept reaching out to beings, trying to draw on their power. She was doing her best to shield her Force-ability from the creature. She had to find
out more about their plans before she went off in search of the captured Jedi.
A gong sounded somewhere and a Vong appeared above them. "Excellent work; the war
coordinator is pleased. Now go fill yourselves with nutrient suppliments. Your shift is done."
Tired and hungry, the masseuses filed out one at a time, rarely breaking away from species groups. There was comfort in familiarity; it was best to associate with those you knew you'd
get along with rather than branch out and possibly have problems later.
Sliding down the wall, Mara passed on the bowl Arin offered to her. For some reason, she
concentrated better on an empty stomach. *Must be all those times Palpatine sent me to bed
without my supper.*
She inhaled and exhaled experimentally, checking for the guards. Seeing that they were on
the other side of the hold, she closed her eyes and slowly dipped into the Force.
She knew she should be judging the proximity of the other Jedi, but instead she found herself
searching for Jaina, Anakin and the rest of her new family. All were alive and counted for.
Mara almost reached out for Luke, to send him a comforting thought or two, but drew back from
the instinct. No, if she did that, he would find her, and then where would young Ryft be?
Strangely enough, she didn't feel a need to be with Luke, mentally or physically. This distance
she had created had been strangely rejuvinating. She felt less...tied-down.
