Author : Wild-Melody

Disclaimer : I don't own 'em, though sometimes I wish I did.

Class/Genre : Drama/Angst, maybe a little romance

Summary : The New Republic is unraveling from the deadly invasion of the Yuuzhan Vong, can the reappearance of a missing hero bolster their moral?

A/N : Well, you all asked for it, so here it is, the continuation of I'll Be Missing you. I'm not gonna tell you exactly who is in the 'friendly skip', not yet at least. I hope you enjoy this next chapter, third chapter is in the works. Thank you to all those who have reviewed.

STAR WARS : THE NEW JEDI ORDER

I'LL BE MISSING YOU

Chapter 2 : Torn Asunder

A few months had passed since the death of Jaina Solo and the New Republic was slowly unraveling. Defeat after crushing defeat had become too much for the moral of the war ravaged people. All hope of ever reaching the end of the war alive was beginning to spiral down into the deep pits of Hell itself.

The forces of the New Republic could not live through another crushing defeat at the hands of the Vong. The losses were becoming too many, to numerous. The count of lost lives was unfathomable, reaching into the hundreds of thousands and far beyond.

First Anakin, then Jacen…then last but far from least was Jaina. Who would be next? Leia Organa Solo wondered to herself as she stared up into the night skies of Borleias. Mara? Luke? Perhaps even little Ben? Leia stopped her thoughts right there. No one else in her family would die, she vowed but knew just as soon as she had thought that that there was no way she prevent the deaths of her loved ones. They all ran the chance of dying in battle, there was no exception in this war.

She watched as a shooting star streaked across the sky then suddenly changed its course. That was no shooting star she belatedly realized as the warning claxons suddenly began to blare all around her. She sighed deeply as she heard an automated voice begin to speak over the comlink.

"All pilots please report to your fighter craft. All pilots to your craft. This is not a drill, repeat this is not a drill. All pilots report to you fighter craft."

She watched as the various squadrons assembled and took to the skies. She could make out Colonel Darklighter's X-Wing at the lead of Rogue Squadron. She spotted Luke's X-wing. He and Mara had returned for Jaina's funeral, if that's what it could be called. They had returned temporarily from their deadly mission on Coruscant. Mara had left shortly after the service to take Ben back to the relative safety of the hidden Jedi Base. Then had returned back to Borleias to help in the fight.

She saw the Falcon take off with Han at the controls. Mara was with him at one of the gun turrets. Leia had become severely ill after Jaina's death and was now helping Wedge coordinate the battles against the Vong.

She sighed again and turned to walk back into the old biotics building that was serving for their base. She caught sights of Jagged Fel's claw craft lifting off with Kyp Durron's X-Wing not far behind. They would be going up to meet with Luke and his squad.

Jag seemed to be doing all right since Jaina's death, but it was hard to tell with the young man. He kept his feelings and emotions under close wraps, Jaina had just started to draw him out of his Chiss-raised shell. Their relationship had just been starting, now it never would be. Thanks to the Vong, yet again.

******

"Twin Suns report," Luke called out to his squadron.

"Twin Suns Four ready and waiting."

"Twin Suns Five, four lit and green, waiting for you go Lead!"

"Twin Suns Six ready."

The squadron radioed in, all but two of them.

"Two, Three report please," Luke said, not really worrying that the two hadn't reported in right away. Their minds were still on a certain young woman.

"Twin Suns Three ready," Jag reported. Luke could tell nothing of his feelings from his voice, or the Force.

"Twin Suns Two ready Master Skywalker," Kyp radioed in. Kyp also had changed a lot since the death of Jaina.

"Our directions are as follows: We are to hold back and wait for the Rogues and Wild Knights to engage the enemy."

"Wait Lead?" Jag asked. That was something the Chiss-raised man was not use to.

"Yes Three, we are to wait. Once the Rogues and Wild Knights have engaged the enemy they will bring the fight back to us in hopes we can surprise the-" Luke was cut off as the light indicating that someone was using his private frequency began to blink. "Hold Twin Suns," he ordered as he flipped the switch for his private frequency.

"Skywalker here," he said.

"Luke, we have a problem," came Wedge's voice, tinged just a slight bit with worry.

"What sort of problem?" He sensed nothing out of the ordinary, nothing relatively dangerous besides the Vong.

"We're not sure yet," came Wedge's reply. "We're not sure if it's a trap yet or not."

"What?"

"A skip dropped out of hyperspace before the rest of the Vong fleet. A scout ship we assumed, we're not so sure now though."

"Why, what's going on?" Luke asked.

"The Vong Fleet is attacking the skip. They're not trying to destroy it, they're trying to cripple it."

"And?" Luke asked, there was more, he could sense it.

"Leia thinks it's Jacen," Wedge answered, somewhat hesitantly.

Luke's head whipped around to look out his canopy at the on-coming battle. Jacen? Could it be after all this time? Luke wondered to himself. He reached out through the Force but felt nothing. "Is…is she sure, I don't sense anything."

"I felt it briefly Luke, but it felt like Jacen. He was scared and injured. You have to help him Luke!" Leia exclaimed, her heart in her voice.

"If it is him, we'll bring him home safely," Luke said, all the while hoping his sister wasn't wrong.

"New orders have been issued to the other squadrons. I want your squad to protect that skip. If it is Jacen, bring him home. Control out," Wedge ordered.

"As ordered Control," Luke said then flipped the switch back to his squad's frequency. "Alright Twins, change of orders. We are to intercept the lead skip and bring it back to the base."

"What?!" Chorused from various pilots.

"Control has reason to believe that there is a friendly pilot in that skip. If that is the case we're to bring him on home."

"Question Lead," Four said.

"Go ahead Four," Luke responded.

"Who do they think is piloting that skip?"

"Jacen Solo."

******

The skip jinked and bounced, just narrowing missing the plasma bursts coming in from behind it. A formation of X-Wings flew past it, sending bursts of random fired laser fire at the oncoming skips beyond the lead one.

The battlefield erupted into colorful bursts of light that reflected garishly off of the yorik coral of the skip. Another flight of X-Wings swooped past, not paying any attention at all to the single skip.

Another squadron of X-Wings approached, their S-foils locked, lasers blazing. They broke formation and surrounded the solitary skip. An escort.

The skip did not fire at them, instead in settled into the middle of the escort formation.

So far so good, Luke thought to himself. He reached out through the Force to the pilot of the enemy ship. He felt absolutely nothing, nothing at all. His danger sense suddenly tingled.

"Watch out Twins Lead!" He heard Gavin's voice urgently call out.

Luke rolled his X-Wing right and up over the skip they were escorting. An enemy skip suddenly flew through the spot he had just vacated, a burst of plasma heading toward the friendly skip. That skip suddenly rolled out of the way, almost colliding with Jag's clawcraft. Jag threw his craft up and over the skip's hull. Luke could almost imagine the young man glaring at the pilot of the skip.

The burst of plasma just narrowly missed the friendly skip. Luke watched as the friendly shot two bursts of plasma at the enemy skip. A dovin basal sucked up the first burst of plasma but missed the second.

Twin Suns squadron watched as the enemy skip exploded, sending chunks of yorik coral in all directions. "Regroup Twins!" Luke called out, "You alright Twins Three?"

"Affirmative Lead," came Jag's reply.

"Ok, then let's bring this guy home," Luke said.

******

More skips broke through and tried their luck at destroying the skip that Twin Suns Squadron was escorting. Now they're trying to destroy it, Luke thought as he once more reached out through the Force toward the pilot. Someone else reached back toward him, it was a brief contact but Luke now understood why his sister thought it was Jacen. Welcome back, Luke thought to the pilot.

"Twin Suns Squadron requesting permission to land," Luke said into his com.

"Permission granted. Once your cargo is safe we'll need you back out in-" Control paused. "Delay that, just come back home, the Vong are withdrawing." Control ordered.

That seemed just a bit to easy, Luke thought to himself. He glanced over at the skip that was on his right wing. If they wanted you so bad, why did they give you up so easily? He silently asked the pilot.

There was no answer, not that he expected there to be. He couldn't shake the feeling that something just wasn't quite right.

If it is Jacen, who is to say they didn't convert him the way they tried to Tahiri? How do we know this isn't some elaborate ruse for him to kill us? Luke wondered silently as he set his craft down outside of the main base, just within the kill zone. We won't know till it's to late, he thought as he watched the skip softly land next to him, Jag Fel's clawcraft on the far side of the skip.

Did they convert Jacen the way they had tried to Tahiri? Is he going to kill all of them? This and much, much more in the next chapter. The main question though, is it really Jacen in that skip or is it a Yuuzhan Vong agent? Review, thanks!!