Three weeks later....
He grimaced as he made his way down the smoke filled hall. Things seemed to get more depressing, or so it seemed to him. First his best friend commits suicide a few weeks back, and now this raid on a slave colony. Hopefully they could save a few.
"Check every one of them! If any are alive, get them down to medical bay at once!" he ordered.
He then continued forward, looking over the unmoving bodies of slaves in the hall. It sickened him to think that people would want to own other sentients. It sickened him almost as much as the horrid scene of abuse and torture that he now witnessed. It brought up the dark image he had buried in the dark depths of his mind. The thought of his best friend's death.
He had been the one to find him. He had gone over there because he had received a message from Luke telling him that he needed to speak with him. He had knocked on the door and received no answer, so he decided to go in. He had searched the house, and finally found him, in his room. The image would forever be burned into his mind. The pale face, nearly white from the loss of blood. The blue eyes devoid of emotion, transfixed upon the opposite wall, unseeing. The blood upon the floor, soaking into the carpet around him. The slits in his wrists and the dagger he had taken his life with still in his hand, blood all ready drying upon it....
He shook the thought from his mind. He didn't need that right now, he was too sick in the heart as it was.
"Hello! This is the Alliance! We are not here to harm any of you, just get you medical attention!" he yelled, hoping for any kind of response.
"Wedge," a whispered call came.
He looked around, and saw one form trying to move. He hurried to the person and rolled him over. He nearly shrank away from the bony, bloody, scared face in front of him, but those blue eyes reminded him of someone...
"Luke?" he whispered out loud.
"Yeah," the other laughed slightly, wincing in pain at the other's touch on his shoulder.
"How can you be here?" Wedge asked softly.
"I have been here, abandoned, for nearly six years or so. Where the Sith were you guys?" the other asked bitterly.
The other's eyes then rolled back and he went limp. Wedge checked his pulse, and found it, thready and irregular, but there. He gently lifted the other in his arms.
"We didn't know," he whispered before hurrying toward the medical station.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Wedge watched from the window as they worked on the person he found. He couldn't believe it. Was it really Luke? If it was, how? Luke was dead, wasn't he?
He glanced over as a healer exited the room.
"Is it really him?" Wedge asked.
"Yes, the DNA says so anyways. But we won't know for sure until we get samples from Skywalker's or whoever's remains back on Coruscant. But his blood does not have the element a clone's does, so either he is a superior clone, or really Luke Skywalker," the healer said.
"What are his injuries?" Wedge asked.
:"He has not been treated very kindly in the past six or so years, though we suspect he has been in slavery for less then six, but it is hard to tell. His back is a mess of whip lines, and his face has been scared badly. There is trauma to his brain, and his heart is straining slightly. His legs are a bit deformed, since they have been broken before. His back is over stressed, his lungs are weak from breathing that stench for so long. He is dehydrated, and has not had substance for nearly a week. He was being extremely punished when we came, Commander, you're lucky to have found him alive," the healer said, then entered back into the room.
"It wasn't luck, it was the Force," Wedge said softly, quoting one of Luke's favorite sayings.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"Mistress Leia, there is a call on the comm for you," the droid chimed as he entered the room.
She sighed and stood, "I'll take it now," she said.
The droid trundled out as she switched on the comm.
"Wedge, what can I do for you?" she asked.
"Leia, you know about our mission to the slave colony?" Wedge asked.
"I have heard of it, yes," she said.
"We found something, Leia, actually we found someone," he hesitated, then finally he burst out with, "The healers just confirmed that we found Luke."
Leia drew back in shock, "That is impossible, Wedge. Luke died three and a half weeks ago. Are you sure?" she asked, a small bit of hope rising in her, but she quickly crushed it.
She couldn't hope, she would only get hurt, and she couldn't be hurt again.
"The tests proved it. This is really Luke. The other was just a clone, Leia. The real Luke has been gone for nearly six years," he said, sorrow filling his eyes.
"By the Force," she gasped.
How could she have not known for so long? Was it possible? How could this be?!
"Where are you, we'll get there soon," she said suddenly, she had to make sure.
"We are coming home. He needs more care then we can give. We should arrive in Coruscant in less then three hours by now. Sorry it took me so long to tell you, we only now got the results. Meet us at the landing pad thirty six?" he asked.
"Yes, we'll be there," she said softly.
He nodded, and the comm shut off.
She sat back and ran a delicate hand over her face. How could this be? Had the real Luke been gone all this time, as a slave? How badly was he hurt? Oh, she could not begin to imagine. Her emotions swirled in her, hope, fear, pain, happiness, all together in a mosaic of emotions.
[i]Pull yourself together, Leia! You don't know yet, you have to see it first. Wait, wait for it![/i] she chided herself.
She dialed up a number on the comm. Han's face came into view.
"Honey, what is it?" Han asked.
"Han, Wedge just called, they found something on the slave base raid. They found Luke," she said.
"Luke? How can they? Luke is dead," Han said.
"I know, but they said he was a clone, and that the real Luke has been in a slavery camp. Their bringing him home, and they want us to meet them at pad thirty six," she said.
"Leia, I am coming up to you now. We are going to face this together, okay?" he said softly.
"I hope we can, Han, sincerely hope we can," she whispered.
"We will," he assured her.
He grimaced as he made his way down the smoke filled hall. Things seemed to get more depressing, or so it seemed to him. First his best friend commits suicide a few weeks back, and now this raid on a slave colony. Hopefully they could save a few.
"Check every one of them! If any are alive, get them down to medical bay at once!" he ordered.
He then continued forward, looking over the unmoving bodies of slaves in the hall. It sickened him to think that people would want to own other sentients. It sickened him almost as much as the horrid scene of abuse and torture that he now witnessed. It brought up the dark image he had buried in the dark depths of his mind. The thought of his best friend's death.
He had been the one to find him. He had gone over there because he had received a message from Luke telling him that he needed to speak with him. He had knocked on the door and received no answer, so he decided to go in. He had searched the house, and finally found him, in his room. The image would forever be burned into his mind. The pale face, nearly white from the loss of blood. The blue eyes devoid of emotion, transfixed upon the opposite wall, unseeing. The blood upon the floor, soaking into the carpet around him. The slits in his wrists and the dagger he had taken his life with still in his hand, blood all ready drying upon it....
He shook the thought from his mind. He didn't need that right now, he was too sick in the heart as it was.
"Hello! This is the Alliance! We are not here to harm any of you, just get you medical attention!" he yelled, hoping for any kind of response.
"Wedge," a whispered call came.
He looked around, and saw one form trying to move. He hurried to the person and rolled him over. He nearly shrank away from the bony, bloody, scared face in front of him, but those blue eyes reminded him of someone...
"Luke?" he whispered out loud.
"Yeah," the other laughed slightly, wincing in pain at the other's touch on his shoulder.
"How can you be here?" Wedge asked softly.
"I have been here, abandoned, for nearly six years or so. Where the Sith were you guys?" the other asked bitterly.
The other's eyes then rolled back and he went limp. Wedge checked his pulse, and found it, thready and irregular, but there. He gently lifted the other in his arms.
"We didn't know," he whispered before hurrying toward the medical station.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Wedge watched from the window as they worked on the person he found. He couldn't believe it. Was it really Luke? If it was, how? Luke was dead, wasn't he?
He glanced over as a healer exited the room.
"Is it really him?" Wedge asked.
"Yes, the DNA says so anyways. But we won't know for sure until we get samples from Skywalker's or whoever's remains back on Coruscant. But his blood does not have the element a clone's does, so either he is a superior clone, or really Luke Skywalker," the healer said.
"What are his injuries?" Wedge asked.
:"He has not been treated very kindly in the past six or so years, though we suspect he has been in slavery for less then six, but it is hard to tell. His back is a mess of whip lines, and his face has been scared badly. There is trauma to his brain, and his heart is straining slightly. His legs are a bit deformed, since they have been broken before. His back is over stressed, his lungs are weak from breathing that stench for so long. He is dehydrated, and has not had substance for nearly a week. He was being extremely punished when we came, Commander, you're lucky to have found him alive," the healer said, then entered back into the room.
"It wasn't luck, it was the Force," Wedge said softly, quoting one of Luke's favorite sayings.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"Mistress Leia, there is a call on the comm for you," the droid chimed as he entered the room.
She sighed and stood, "I'll take it now," she said.
The droid trundled out as she switched on the comm.
"Wedge, what can I do for you?" she asked.
"Leia, you know about our mission to the slave colony?" Wedge asked.
"I have heard of it, yes," she said.
"We found something, Leia, actually we found someone," he hesitated, then finally he burst out with, "The healers just confirmed that we found Luke."
Leia drew back in shock, "That is impossible, Wedge. Luke died three and a half weeks ago. Are you sure?" she asked, a small bit of hope rising in her, but she quickly crushed it.
She couldn't hope, she would only get hurt, and she couldn't be hurt again.
"The tests proved it. This is really Luke. The other was just a clone, Leia. The real Luke has been gone for nearly six years," he said, sorrow filling his eyes.
"By the Force," she gasped.
How could she have not known for so long? Was it possible? How could this be?!
"Where are you, we'll get there soon," she said suddenly, she had to make sure.
"We are coming home. He needs more care then we can give. We should arrive in Coruscant in less then three hours by now. Sorry it took me so long to tell you, we only now got the results. Meet us at the landing pad thirty six?" he asked.
"Yes, we'll be there," she said softly.
He nodded, and the comm shut off.
She sat back and ran a delicate hand over her face. How could this be? Had the real Luke been gone all this time, as a slave? How badly was he hurt? Oh, she could not begin to imagine. Her emotions swirled in her, hope, fear, pain, happiness, all together in a mosaic of emotions.
[i]Pull yourself together, Leia! You don't know yet, you have to see it first. Wait, wait for it![/i] she chided herself.
She dialed up a number on the comm. Han's face came into view.
"Honey, what is it?" Han asked.
"Han, Wedge just called, they found something on the slave base raid. They found Luke," she said.
"Luke? How can they? Luke is dead," Han said.
"I know, but they said he was a clone, and that the real Luke has been in a slavery camp. Their bringing him home, and they want us to meet them at pad thirty six," she said.
"Leia, I am coming up to you now. We are going to face this together, okay?" he said softly.
"I hope we can, Han, sincerely hope we can," she whispered.
"We will," he assured her.