Chapter 10: Memories of a Dancing Girl
"Who was here?"
Luke snapped his head around to face the entrance of the chamber as Mara made her way down the steps to reveal herself in the room's dim light. Mara had followed him to the palace and, obviously, she had heard his statement. But what could Luke tell her? He had managed to avoid a discussion of his Force abilities so far and telling her that he had come to this place because of a vision was going to force the issue. Perhaps she hadn't heard him as well as he thought. "No one. It's nothing."
Mara crossed her arms over her chest and raised a skeptical eyebrow at Luke. He was hiding something from her and Mara wasn't about to let him get away with that. Mara wasn't going to be thrown off that easily. "So you mean to tell me that you hiked across the desert for two hours to come to some deserted building for nothing? Try again."
Luke let out a sigh and brushed a hand through his hair. She obviously wasn't buying that one. At this point, it would be best to just come out with the truth. Perhaps, being in this place would help jog Mara's memory, although Luke didn't know if that was a good thing considering the emotional impression she had left in this place. But it wasn't his place to deny Mara a chance to get her life back. Luke would just have to deal with whatever fallout occurred. "You were here. A few months ago. I know because I was here too." At the astonished look he got from Mara, Luke pointed to the place she had been standing when he had come to face Jabba months before. "I don't know why, but you were standing there dressed as a dancer for the gangster who used to live in this place."
Mara walked over to the place Luke was indicating. If she had stood here before then maybe she could remember why she was in this place. Mara reached the spot and turned, surveying the room. She let out a sigh when nothing came to her. It had been a long shot, but Mara had hoped that she could get even a small clue. Anything to tell her who she had been and why she had the abilities…and nightmares that she possessed. Brushing her hands through her hair, Mara turned around to face Luke, frustration evident on her face. "A dancing girl working for a gangster? That doesn't tell me much and it certainly doesn't explain everything else."
Luke nodded slowly, agreeing with Mara's statement. Taken out a context, Mara's presence in Jabba's palace as a dancer was just as much of an enigma as every other clue they had found. She needed to know the emotional turmoil Luke had felt in his vision. Mara had to see what Luke had in order to understand. Ready or not, it was time for Luke to take one of his first steps in the role of Jedi teacher. Luke had to show Mara Jade how to reach into the Force and relive the past. Hopefully, this would work out for the best.
"Mara, I want you to do something. It may sound strange, but you're going to have to trust me. I may be able to help you remember what you were doing here." Mara looked a Luke hesitantly for a moment before nodding. If it could help her get her memory back, Mara was ready to do just about anything. And Mara Jade did not fail in her given task.
Luke let out a deep breath and walked over to stand next to Mara. Closing his eyes, the Jedi reached out to draw the Force's energy into the room and make Mara's task easier. Feeling the impressions of the room's last occupants arise once more, Luke opened his eyes to find Mara staring at him with a mixture of curiosity and worry. Luke placed a hand on Mara's shoulder to put her at ease before starting to give his instructions. "I want you to close your eyes and try to feel the room with your mind."
Mara's eyes widened at Luke's statement. What kind of idea was that? Mara shook her head. The long hike across the desert must have shorted out Luke's mental processes. This was a ridiculous ploy to focus her attention elsewhere although she didn't know to what purpose.
Sensing Mara's doubt, Luke brought himself around to look her in the eyes. "Do you trust me?" Mara bit her lip for a moment before nodding. Luke was the only one she could trust right now. "Good. Then do this for me. Please."
Unable to resist Luke's request, Mara let out a deep breath and closed her eyes to do as Luke asked. She was surprised at the sensations she picked up when she cleared her mind. It was as if the empty room had been filled with the chatter of a time long past. The sensations soon coalesced into a vision of the room, filled with all manner of species. Mara found herself walking through a specter of a time shortly, unnoticed by the room's shimmering occupants. A large, slimy blob sat in the center of the room, the focus of everyone's attention.
Mara looked around at the room to see events starting to speed past her. She couldn't comprehend just what she was seeing until she found herself standing at the edge of the chamber, surrounded by its sleeping occupants. Scanning her surroundings once again, Mara noted that the giant slug was still in the center of the room, this time with a human female chained to him. Mara turned away and suppressed a shudder. Something about the display disturbed her. She knew that wasn't right even though she had no idea who the petite, brunette woman was.
The stirring of the now waking thugs throughout the room brought Mara's attention to the chamber's entrance. A hooded man dressed in black walked through the archway to stand in the center of the room as a particularly vile looking Twi'lek made his way to the massive blob in the center of the chamber. The slug woke from his slumber with obvious displeasure at the sight of the hooded man. The Twi'lek was pushed to the ground for his troubles and the man lowered his hood to confront the slug.
Mara was slightly surprised to find Luke's face was the one hidden under the cloak, but for some reason she didn't find it odd. It was almost as if she had expected it to be him on some level. Mara watched the way Luke carried himself, ignoring his words. He seemed darker, more authoritative than the man she knew. It was almost as if he was haunted by something. He looked like she did after the nightmares.
Mara did not have time to reflect on why Luke would look like that before a sensation rolled over her. A cold, bitter sensation. Mara looked to the edge of the room to see a woman that she knew was her standing against the wall, staring intently at Luke. Her eyes were cold and calculating and Mara couldn't help but feel like she was a predator sizing up her prey. But why would she have been looking upon Luke like she was sizing him up for a kill? Surely, Luke hadn't done something to deserve one of the expedited executions she saw over and over in her dreams.
Time seemed to accelerate around Mara as she saw flashes of herself pass by like a series of holos. She could see bitterness at the sight of Luke standing over some fallen beast. She felt frustration toward a woman who had stopped her from grabbing a blaster off of a nearby guard for some unknown purpose. Finally, Mara was overcome by a feeling of failure as a large vehicle hovered over the sands away from her. Throughout the visions, Mara could also feel a sense of anger. Anger directed at Luke.
The vision of the craft fading into the horizon finally vanished from her sight and Mara found herself in the dark, empty chamber once more. She felt her legs go out from under her, her body drained by the intensity of what she had seen. Mara barely felt a pair of arms grab her just before she hit the floor. Instead, her focus was on the vague pieces of a past she was sure happened. She knew more than she had, but the visions only gave her more questions. The most important being how she had seen those things in the first place. What had Luke's advice unlocked within her? Mara felt oddly more connected to everything around, but wasn't sure if that was something she wanted.
Luke pulled Mara so that she was upright once more but didn't release his grip on the obviously dizzy woman. He had to have made a mistake in showing Mara the Force because she had done too much too soon and her body was having trouble handling it. From now on, any teaching would have to be in smaller steps. The last thing Luke wanted was a repeat performance of Mara's near fainting whenever he taught a student to use the Force for the first time.
Feeling Mara start to recover her legs, Luke lessened his grip but kept a supportive hand on her arm. "Are you okay?" Mara nodded weakly in response to Luke's question, not entirely convincing either him or herself.