Forever Home: A Luke and Callista Story
Part 7
Luke entered the highest room in the ancient temple. Unlike the main hall, which had exuded a majestic, ancient civilization dating back untold centuries, this room was small, cramped, and empty. A large window provided a view of the jungle horizon, but that was it. And yet...Luke could sense that the answer to defeating Kara lay in this room. He just didn't know what. He closed the door behind him and paced in the small room, the sun's heat beating down on him through the tall window. He stretched out with the Force, clearing his mind of questions, as Obi-Wan and Yoda had taught him. His mind probed every corner, every crack of the ancient temple, searching, searching. He could not quite pinpoint it, but something about the temple put him at unease. It was as if the walls themselves were trying to speak to him. Luke closed his eyes as he went over to the nearest wall, his fingers lightly touching the centuries-old limestone. He opened himself to the Force, reaching-
Suddenly, a storm of emotions hit him all at once, causing him to stagger: fear, terror, anger, betrayal. The Force emanated from the wall, sending goosebumps all over his skin. In his mind's eye, he saw images, faces. Kyp. Kirana Ti. Streen. He could see all three of them, their souls, their essences, burning within the walls of the temple, screaming in agony and fear. And at that moment, he realized what had happened to them.
Kara hadn't killed them. She had taken their spirits away from their bodies, and placed them within the temple itself. It made perfect sense.
Exar Kun had kept his spirit alive for over four thousand years, trapped within the walls of the Great Temple. The same thing had happened here with Kyp, Kirana Ti, and Streen. Only this time, it wasn't by choice. He could feel their terror, could taste it on the tip of his tongue, their fear of being trapped within this temple forever, with no way of ever getting out. Luke was filled with a new sense of hope, accompanied by a small dose of dread. There had to be some way to free their spirits from the temple walls. The question was, how? Luke stood in the center of the room, reaching out with his mind. With invisible fingers, he touched each of the three spirits, reassuring them that everything would be all right. He held onto them tightly, never letting go. Then, with a small groan, he began to pull. It seemed to work. He could feel their spirits being slowly driven out of the temple walls, and back into their bodies, could feel the hope of his three students are they were freed from their ethereal prison-
His concentration was broken when a shadow appeared from behind him. The Jedi Master turned around, and Kara tackled into him. The two ended up on the ground, with Kara on top of him, her fingers grasping him by the throat, squeezing. "You Jedi are beginning to become very bothersome," she said, her eyes blazing.
Luke gave her a confident grin, and his fist hit her in the jaw, knocking her off him. "It's over, Kara. I know the key to defeating you."
Kara scrambled to her feet, not looking the least bit intimidated. "Well then, I guess I can't allow you to leave this temple alive." With that, she sent blue rain of fire toward Luke.
Kara shrieked as she slashed her lightsaber toward Callista's head, and growled in frustration when she dodged the attack. They clashed blades again, over and over. The minutes melted away as they continued the fight in the Great Temple's hangar, the hissing of the blades as they made contact the only sound uttered by the two combatants. Callista fought on, but her muscles began to grow slow and weary. She was a good fighter, and in excellent physical condition, but this fight and her wounds were beginning to take their toll on her. Her blows grew sloppier; her focus began to lose its edge. Likewise, Kara began to lose some of her finesse as well, resorting to brute strength as her energy left her. Callista quickly looked for a way to end this fight before one of them ended up dying. She found an opening, and ducked beneath another slash. She dropped to one knee and hammered her hilt into Kara's stomach, drawing the wind out of her. She doubled over in pain, and Callista rose to her feet, moving behind her opponent. Calling upon the Force, she struck Kara squarely in the back, knocking her forward against the Shapeshifter's closed ramp. The young woman almost fell to her knees, but somehow steadied herself, and turned to face her opponent, her eyes burning behind the mask that had been Tionne's face. Callista dropped her with a swift roundkick to the face.
Luke rolled aside as the lightning bolts burned a hole through the stone wall, sending debris and dust flying in all directions. Luke had managed to avoid the blast-just barely, though. Kara didn't even give him a chance to fight. As Luke got up, Kara went over to him and raked her nails across his face, tearing five long, ragged lines down his left cheek.
Luke hissed in pain, feeling warm blood pool around the gashes on his face. Reflexively, one hand went up to his cheek, and it came away caked with fresh blood. A split second later, he felt Kara hit him in the jaw. A bright flash of white pain exploded behind his eyes, and Luke felt himself fall to the right, hitting the wall. He managed to steady himself before he ended up on the floor, knowing that things would only grow worse for him if he fell. As his hands rested upon the limestone wall, he could feel the three spirits again, begging him for help. I have to free them, he thought, closing his eyes. It's the only way I'll ever manage to defeat Kara. Seconds later, Kara pounced.
Callista ducked as Kara threw another slash toward her head, and then another a second later. Sweat plastered to her forehead and in her blood- soaked hair as she backed away and faced the younger woman. A shadow suddenly appeared behind Kara. Both turned and saw one of the feline creatures snatch Kara, wrapping its brown-furred, muscular arms around her upper body. Kara shrieked, and Callista felt a ripple in the Force as she threw the monster away from her. It crashed against the temple wall and slid to the floor, knocked out. Callista had no idea why one of Kara's own creatures had attacked its own master. Whatever the reason, it had distracted Kara, giving Callista just enough time to attack.
Even as Kara turned back to face her, Callista strode forth and punched her in the face, knocking her back against the Shapeshifter. Kara looked up at her, stunned, her eyes slightly widened. She quickly recovered from it and threw one of her own blows, a jab toward Callista's neck with her sky-blue blade. Callista anticipated the attack with the Force, and her blade came up, intertwining with Kara's. She slashed the saber at her daughter's head, which Kara easily evaded. The woman spun, the blue beam sailing toward Callista's neck, which Callista ducked seconds later. The fight continued.
Luke reached down deep within the endless well of the Force and pulled. Even as Kara leaped toward him, her hands outstretched toward his throat, even as the world began to spin and blur, he managed to ignore everything around him and concentrated on one thing: the temple itself. He could feel his spirit leaving the outer shell of his body, just as it had done when he had first fought Exar Kun. A haze of blue-white light suddenly surrounded him, nearly blinding him, as he entered the ethereal world, the spiritual plane. Up ahead, he saw three shapes, blurred and distorted, nearly unrecognizable. But as they approached him, he could slowly make out their faces. He saw Kyp Durron, Kirana Ti, and Streen, felt their relief as they found their Master, saw the smiles lighting their faces. I knew you would come for us, Master, Kyp spoke through the Force. Luke nodded and offered his hands to them. The three joined hands, as Kyp and Streen clasped Luke's. They stood there together in a circle, surrounded by the ever-moving light, as they let the Force flow through them, opening them back into the physical world. Luke could hear Kara's horrified scream, as distant and faraway as a dream. A bright white light engulfed the four of them, and they left the spiritual plane.
Callista and Kara were at a standstill, and they both knew it. They had been fighting and exchanging blows for over ten minutes, and still neither showed any signs of giving up, despite the exhaustion and pain that permeated their bodies.
Callista knew that she had to keep fighting. But a growing feeling of desperation began overwhelming her as she began to see no end in sight to this skirmish.
The two women exchanged several more blows with their lightsabers, until Callista finally reached out, grabbing Kara by the throat. She tightened her grip just enough to keep her from breathing.
Kara's free hand went up to snatch Callista's arm, and the two stood there, locked together in a deadly embrace.
"No!" Kara screamed.
Luke found himself back in the tiny room in the temple, his hands still placed on the limestone wall. He looked over and saw Callista's enraged daughter bearing down on him.
"You'll pay for that, Jedi Master!" she snarled.
"Do us all a favor, and shut up!" As Luke spoke, he struck Kara's body with the Force, knocking her down on her side.
The demonic woman started to get up, and Luke ran over to snatch his fallen lightsaber. With a flick of the switch, the green blade hissed to life.
Kara, her eyes ablaze with fury and revenge, dove down upon the Jedi-
And let out an ear-shattering scream as the lightsaber cut into her chest.
Kara fell down, blue flames, not blood, spewing out of her wound. Luke shielded his eyes from the power he had just unleashed, and Kara finally fell silent.
When the fire had faded away, Luke turned back to Kara's unconscious form.
And watched as she got back up.
Luke raised his lightsaber, preparing to strike her again-then looked into her eyes.
They were no longer black.
Mother-of-pearl.
"Tionne?" Luke asked, feeling a tremble of relief.
"Master Skywalker?" Tionne looked around. "Where am I?"
As Callista and Kara held onto each other, Callista felt something pass through her body. Her surroundings seemed to dim, become distorted, like an abstract painting, causing her to lose her focus. Her body convulsed, and she fell to the ground gasping, her grip on Kara lost.
"Callista?"
The voice startled Callista. She looked up, and saw the woman sprawled on the ground next to her.
It wasn't Kara.
And then it hit Callista. The woman she had been fighting for the past ten minutes in the Great Temple's hangar bay was not Kara. It had never been Kara.
It was Mara Jade.
"Is she gone for good?" Tionne asked as she and Luke walked down the stairs into the main hall.
Luke was about to reply, when he heard someone approach him from behind. He spun around, expecting to see Kyp, Kirana Ti, and Streen, their spirits returned to their bodies-
And gasped.
A young woman stood before them, draped completely in black. Her malt- brown hair fell over her shoulders, her dark gray eyes fixated on the Jedi Master.
"Hello, Skywalker," she hissed.
Luke stepped back, aghast. "Kara?"
Weak, Mara walked over and helped an equally weak Callista up. They stared at each other a moment, a silence two feet thick between them.
"I thought you were-"
"Yeah, me too."
"I'm s..." they both said at once.
Mara gave a small chuckle. "We weren't ourselves."
"Thank the Force," Callista muttered, examining herself for injuries. She touched her face-a bruise there, and then some, she thought, tasting blood.
"She is impossibly strong in the Force," Mara said, thinking out loud, face concentrated in thought. She turned to Callista. "I know how strong the dark side is." She cleared her throat, wary of breaching the subject of her past, because she knew that many people-and especially a Jedi Knight from the dark days of the Empire-could not understand her past.
"I've seen the likes of Palpatine and Vader use it. As for this Kara-" Mara shook her head. Suddenly, her breath caught, and she stumbled backwards. Callista's head whipped up at attention, and together, they collectively gasped. "Luke."
Callista and Mara tore through the jungle at breathtaking speed, praying that they weren't too late.
"This isn't going to end quietly, is it?" Mara panted.
"It doesn't look like it," Callista returned.
A rustle in the bushes to their left stopped them both in their tracks. They held up their weapons, ready to defend themselves-
When Kirana Ti, Streen, and Kyp Durron emerged from the foliage, looking dazed and confused.
"What the-" Mara couldn't find the words to do justice to what stood before her.
"You were dead!" Callista brilliantly observed.
Kyp blinked. "M-Master Skywalker. He's fighting someone-" He looked at Callista. "She looks like you."
"Surprised, Jedi Skywalker?" Kara said, her lightsaber inches from Luke's neck.
Luke was unable to believe what he was seeing. Kara-she looked so much like Callista. She had a slightly different chin, and her hair was a bit longer, but the resemblance was amazing. He swore he was looking at the Human Replica Droid. "What do you want, Kara?"
"Want?" She shrugged. "Oh, I just want to get my revenge on my dear old mother for abandoning me. Which means destroying everything-and everyone-she loves. Including you."
"Kara, Callista didn't mean to-"
"Silence!" she snapped. "How would you know what had happened, Skywalker? You weren't there! You don't know anything about what happened! I want my revenge, and I'm going to get it. This ends now!"
She brought the lightsaber up and around, aiming to chop at Luke's neck-
And cried out as someone snatched her by the wrist, pulling the blade away from its target.
Luke, Tionne, and Kara turned to see Kyp Durron, alive and well, holding the woman by the arm, grinning. "We're just getting started, Kara," he said.
Kara looked around to see Callista, Mara, Kirana Ti, and Streen standing behind Kyp, their lightsabers activated.
"Are you going to fight us all, Kara?" Luke asked. "You can end this now."
Kara stared at him for a few moments, and then turned slowly, studying the others. Each of them met her gaze squarely.
She turned back to Luke, lowering her lightsaber. "No," she said. "I'm not going to fight." She grinned, looking past Luke. "They'll do that for me."
Luke immediately spun, only to be knocked sprawling by one of the cat creatures.
Kara smiled and gestured, using a Force push to send him rolling halfway across the temple.
The others had no chance to react before more of the cat creatures poured into the temple. A dozen of them went down under the lightsaber blades in a few seconds, but their numbers drove the Jedi back.
"Leave her!" Kara screamed, pointing at Callista. "She's mine to kill."
Callista turned as the cat creatures surged past her, and saw Kara glaring at her.
"Come, Mother," Kara said, raising her lightsaber into an attack position.
Callista glanced at the other Jedi, and then Luke, who was climbing to his feet. She shook her head, telling him not to intervene.
This was her fight.
Raising her lightsaber, she walked towards her daughter.
Kara grinned briefly and leaped over Callista's head in a twisting somersault.
She was trained well, Callista thought as she spun and blocked Kara's lunge. She knows far more than Luke ever learned from Yoda in his abbreviated training. No wonder she could beat him that easily.
"Reading my thoughts, Mother?" Kara asked mockingly. "The Emperor-or perhaps, Darth Sidious would be more familiar to you-trained me well. Far better than that overrated 'Emperor's Hand' over there." She sneered, gesturing towards where Mara and the others were fighting off the cat creatures.
Callista parried a high stroke and swept her leg through Kara's, dropping her to the stone floor of the temple. "It's not too late, Kara," she said. "Vader abandoned the dark side. You can do the same. You can't win, as Luke said."
Kara glared up at her. "As long as I destroy you," she spat. In a blurred motion, she rolled aside and extended an arm towards Callista, sending bolts of Force lightning at her.
Callista reacted even faster, lifting her arm towards Kara, palm out, and calling on the Force. The bolts of lightning simply disappeared a meter away from her. "Don't underestimate me, Kara," she said calmly. "Master Djinn taught us about fighting dark side powers. After the appearance of Darth Maul, the first Sith for a millennia, we were prepared for them."
Kara laughed. "Not well enough," she said contemptuously. "Sidious wiped out all of you except Yoda and Kenobi. You'll be the next Jedi to die." She swept a low cut at Callista, who somersaulted backwards to avoid the saber.
"Did I really treat you that badly, Kara?" she asked quietly. "Your birth was the proudest moment of my life."
Kara hesitated for a second, lowering her lightsaber fractionally, and then her gaze fell on Luke, Mara, and the others. Her face hardened again. "Don't waste your breath trying to sway me," she hissed, striding forwards. Callista swallowed, briefly feeling sorrow at the inevitable outcome of this battle. Whoever won, she would lose Kara forever. Then she pushed the regret aside and advanced to meet her daughter again. "You kill me, or you die," Kara barked, swinging her blade a hard left before spinning away from Callista's next blow. "There is no chance for my redemption, Mother," she spat. "I know my place. Your fate, I will decide."
"I don't want to have to kill anyone today, Kara," Callista gritted. "Then you lose."
"Kara, you are..."
"Your daughter?" the younger mirror of herself hissed. "Your pride and joy? Then why did you abandon me?"
"I died, child! I didn't know you were still alive!" In the backdrop of their confrontation, Luke and the others fought desperately against the cat-like creatures. Kara's eyes flickered over to the Jedi Master, reading her mother's thoughts. "All you think of is your new husband. Is my father nothing to you, too? And you didn't know because you made no effort to remember me or find me. Did the possibility not even occur to you that I was still around? No!"
With a vicious roundkick, Kara lifted herself from the ground and flew at Callista, striking her square across the nose. Callista's lightsaber flew from her hand, skidding beneath a pile of broke rock. Kara approached sinisterly. "I thought you more of a challenge. Perhaps it was best that I never had to grow up knowing what a weak, sentimental old fool you were."
"Callista!" Mara shot a quick bolt from her wrist blaster before shutting down the blue flame and throwing her lightsaber over to Callista. "Catch!" Mara then fired off another succession from her blaster.
"Luke, cover me!" With that, Mara ran to where Callista's lightsaber had fallen and retrieved it, switching it on again and fighting off Kara's creatures. Callista stretched her hand out and pulled in the weapon with the Force, igniting it as soon as the metal touched her skin. Forcing herself upwards, she defended herself against Kara's next blow. "It's not over yet, Kara!" And they continued their endless battle. Callista spun to parry Kara's next swing. Her daughter advanced with every blow, preparing for the final kill. There seemed to be no way to beat her. Even if she did manage to defeat Kara, her feline creatures would destroy them all. It was then that Callista noticed the amulet her daughter wore around her neck. It peeked in and out of her tunic, glistening in the light.
A round crystal, deep blue, like Chad's oceans. Thoughts started swimming in Callista's head. She could feel the dark side of the Force seething from the crystal, giving Kara an enormous wellspring of power.
Perhaps the cat creatures were controlled by it. It was worth a try.
Callista lunged at Kara, driving her against the wall. Kara dropped her lightsaber, clawing at the stones with claw-like fingers. "You can't win, Mother," she sneered. She saw Callista looking at the amulet. "You think that will destroy me? Please. That's such a fairy tale."
"Let's find out," Callista countered. She grabbed the amulet and ripped it from around her neck. Kara lunged for it. Callista, taller than Kara, held it out of her reach. "Mara!" Callista caught her attention. Mara turned, still keeping an eye on the feline that advanced on her. "Smash it!" Callista tossed her the amulet. Mara snatched it out of the air and hurled it to the floor. In that instant, the cat leaped to pounce on her. Mara smashed it beneath her boot heel. The cat screamed and vanished, as did all the others. The Jedi stood from their defensive stances, looking around for their attackers. Kara began panting like a cornered animal. Which, to a degree, she was. Tionne, Luke, Callista, Kyp, and all the other students stood around her. "You are beaten, Kara," Callista commanded. "End this while we're all still alive."
Kara blew air through her teeth in a wicked laugh and shook her head. "Never. Not unless you come with me!" She lunged at Callista, hands outstretched to latch around her throat. Kyp stepped in the way and pulled out his lightsaber. In a swift motion, he swung the weapon through her midriff, cleaving her in two. Mother and daughter screamed, "No!" Kara fell to the floor, finally dead. Callista fell to her knees beside her daughter. Very gently, she lifted her head and brushed the blood away from a cut on her cheek.
"May the Force be with you, Kara." A tear slid down her cheek. Luke knelt beside her and put his hands on her shoulders. "I'm sorry," he said. "She was beyond saving." Callista bit her lip and nodded. "I know. I just hoped that there would be a way." Luke nodded. "I know."
The funeral pyre cast an eerie glow on the faces of the Jedi Knights. As Kara's body was consumed by flames, Callista watched with stony solemnity, her eyes focused on the face of her evil daughter. Luke stood beside her, his arms circling her waist. They didn't move until the pyre had been reduced to ashes.
Mara sat on the steps of the Great Temple, struck in a thoughtful pose. Day was fading into dusk, and distantly, she could see the final fingers of smoke rising from Kara's funeral pyre.
She sighed a heavy, remorseful sound resounding from the bottom of her gut and stirred slightly. Yavin 4 would have only more bad memories, she could sense. Far more than Kara had died today. How long it would take everyone involved to heal-she doubted anyone could determine.
In some cases, she doubted a lifetime would do.
Blinking, she shielded her eyes from the dipping sunset and saw a shadow figure emerging from the jungle just a bit beyond.
Luke.
And without Callista.
She stood up and lifted a hand in greeting. He gave her a half- hearted wave, shoulders slump and face blank. He finally came up to her, and they stood face-to-face.
"She's still there," he said quietly in response to her silent question.
Mara nodded. "It's going to be a long, long road, Luke. Callista has a lot of issues here. First Cray...and now Kara. She's got ghosts she needs to face."
He bit his lips. "I know, I know."
Mara questioned her next action, but as she saw the agony on his face increasing tenfold per minute, she shed her inhibitions and gave her friend a comforting embrace. It was feeling altogether strange and familiar. He seemed to feel a little better, connecting again to the real world.
"Give her time, Luke," she said softly. Pushing him gently away, she continued, "I think you know what is needed. Talk to each other, but give her space. Communicate, and most of all, love her." Mara seemed to choke on the words. "It might not be your cure-all, but it's a start."
"Thanks," he said huskily. Straightening his back and regaining his poise, Luke attempted to push on, at least for the time. "I'm guessing you're leaving again."
Mara shot him a wry smile. "I see you're beginning to notice a pattern developing here."
"Mara."
"Luke."
"You proved yourself more than enough that you have what it takes to be a great Jedi. You have the skill, stamina, and heart of a warrior, and you have the key element of control...and self-control."
Mara could almost visualize Luke forming the picture of Kyp sending his lightsaber through Kara.
"...that I think, with some training, you could truly become great. Perhaps a Jedi Master."
"We've gone through this before, Luke. It's like beating a dead bantha. My priorities lie elsewhere, my responsibilities in another world entirely. You may not think it's the right decision, but as for me, this is what I need to do right now. Corran made the same decision. You seemed to accept that. Why not me?"
He grew silent, unable to answer her.
"Anyway, I think I'm more than you can handle right now. You've got a lot on your mind." Her throat became tight. She blinked. Something was in her eye.
"Will you ever be coming back?"
"I seem to have a bad habit of doing that, so I wouldn't count it out as a possibility." Mara shifted her feet. "I should go soon. Get it ready, you know." She turned as if ready to go, but paused again, returning to Luke. "I never...I never congratulated you on your marriage," she said hesitantly. "So, I'm guessing that's what I'm doing right now."
A reserved smile spread on his face. "Thank you, Mara."
"Be happy, finally," she added. "Heavens know you deserve a little peace. And so does she" She winked. "Also another reason why I'm going to be making my exit early."
He laughed. "I appreciate it, I think."
"Luke." she hitched. "Did you ever think that...what I'm trying to say is." She paused, collecting her thoughts. Did she really want to say this? "I had a vision once-of you and me, in a...similar situation."
He seemed puzzled.
"A vision of us, together. In lo...Did you ever think.?"
"Yes," he answered quickly in a voice that could have been mistaken to have been filled with tentative love, if an onlooker had not known better. A shy look overtook him. She was taken a little aback. "I once had a similar vision," he said slowly, as if remembering something. "It was like a different world, and we...let's just say that that world was also a nice place."
She was touched. Impulsively, she reached out and touched his cheek. And then gave him a light slap on the face. "In another universe then, huh?"
"Yeah," he murmured thoughtfully. Then in the distance, Mara could see Callista beginning her slow, sad walk back to the temple. She nudged Luke. He turned and saw his wife, her head bowed. They let her take her time and come to them. She walked up to Luke, and he slung an arm protectively around her waist. Their heads touched, and they seemed to be having their own private conversation. Embarrassed, Mara turned away.
"Mara." It was Callista. "Can I talk to you?"
Mara nodded, conceding to the request. Luke excused himself.
"Thank you," Callista started, "for helping me out there. I would have been..."
"You would have done the same, all things past aside. Think nothing of it. Some things are greater than the small things that may dominate our lives. These things need to be pushed aside." Both women were quiet for a moment. "I am sorry for your loss, Callista. I really am. I won't claim to know how you feel, but I can understand how deep it goes."
"Thank you. Mara-"
"Yes?" Callista pushed the hair away from her gray eyes, a moment of blunt honesty riding on her lips. "I'm sorry that I still have trouble seeing you beyond the role of the Emperor's Hand. So, I won't claim we are friends."
Mara held up a hand to stop her. "It's okay. I'll have to admit, I still have trouble seeing with what you have become. I still see Cray, and I don't agree with the method you took in reclaiming life, but those, too, are my judgment calls. Maybe one day, we can work those things out."
Callista nodded, and Mara let the corners of her mouth betray a kind grin. "Call us a work-in-progress," the ex-smuggler suggested. "I have to go now. Callista-take care of Luke. He cares for you more than I can dare say without gagging," she said jokingly. "I know he'll take care of you."
And the rest of the universe, she thought to herself. "Farewell, Mara," Callista called as she watched the redhead dash off to her Headhunter.
Luke joined her side and also bid Mara goodbye. "Goodbye, Skywalkers!" Mara yelled, disappearing and leaving husband and wife alone together, but not before casting one last, lingering look at whom she was leaving. "May the Force be with you."
The gaseous ball of Yavin loomed overhead, casting a bronzing glow over the jungle as they carried into the evening.
Callista stood atop the Temple of the Blueleaf Cluster alone, marveling at the turn her life had taken. Only a month ago, she had been less than a lingering ghost on a doomed ship, condemned to an eternal prison there. Now, she was married to Luke Skywalker.
Luke Skywalker. The thought of his name alone filled her with pleasure. Her stomach fluttered, and her heart pounded with every breath.
They had endured so much in the month since they had met, in the week since their wedding. And Callista knew that it was not only a beginning to their trials.
But a beginning to their lives, as well.
Staring out over the broad vista of Yavin 4, Callista found herself smiling.
Her smile increased as her husband slipped his arms around her waist from behind.
"I wondered where you were," he whispered into her hair, kissing her ear.
She reached behind her and touched his hair, which blew gently in the twilight breeze. "Did you?"
Luke chuckled. "No, I knew where you were the whole time. I could sense you."
She turned around and kissed him.
"What did I do to warrant that?" he said.
"Existed," she said simply. "Luke, when you sensed me, did you sense...anything else?"
"Like what, exactly?" he said.
Callista turned in his arms teasingly, pressing her back against his chest and returning her gaze to the jungle. "Like a baby, for example?"
Luke thought about that; then she looked at him. "Go on; reach out. You can feel it inside me."
Luke obeyed, sending questing tendrils out towards her.
She was right.
Callista was going to have a baby.
Their baby.
He hugged her close with a happy laugh. "Callista." he said simply, stopping before his tears choked his voice.
But there was nothing else he needed to say.