Thread : Han Solo rolling with the plot, chapter three : Misdirection, assumption and warning, or how Han Solo passed off as a Jedi. Part two.
When Jocasta returned to the Temple some months later, leaving Ach-To investigation for another researcher team, she booked an appointment with Councilor Sifo-Dyas which she flagged as urgent then, in-between cataloguing new artefacts, pulled Obi-Wan Kenobi file. Master Yoda had shown an interest in the Initiate, but it had not lead to a padawanship offer. Kenobi scores were honorable enough he should have had an offer, unless none of the potential masters, upon meeting the lad, had felt any pull. His later records showed some attitude problems, but the boy had clearly grown out of them with guidance, and a bit of hard work had never frightened a proper Jedi. Maybe the potential masters had felt something indeed, but a push back rather than a pull…
"Did you find something on Ach-To that need my expertise?" came the politely curious voice of Councilor Sifo-Dyas, interrupting her musing. "Or are you regretting to not have taken a padawan?" he added, peering at the screen. Jocasta closed the file to salute her fellow master "It is not the padawan that intrigue me so much as his master. A Corellian Jedi gifted in foresight". A sad smile appeared on the Councilor face "cursed, you mean. Visions hazy enough you become aware of their significance too late to act upon it, and painful as of late". "Then you will be interested by Han Solo, his visions appear most clear and his interpretations are frightening". Sifo-Dyas cocked his head on the side "I have not been to Corellia in many years, but I do not recall the Force being clearer there than on Coruscant. Maybe in one of the old temples. I believe I will visit Ach-To sometime in the future".
"I do not speak of Corellia. Han Solo spent most of the last years in the Outer Rim and offhandedly mentioned the Force being clearer there, in the same breath as the return of the Sith". Sifo-Dyas stayed silent a bit too long at the last comment for Jocasta peace of mind, and understood this "Sith is a far-fetched theory of mine. Merely a convenient scape-goat actually for what I saw, but a fitting one. I do not believe they are back, but I freely admit that opinion may change in the future". Jocasta stayed silent, pondering his words. Such a belief would not be kindly accepted in the Order, and may even cost Sifo-Dyas his seat in the Council. "I have never heard of Han Solo and I should have for one with the foresight you describe. Is he young?"
"No, a human of seemingly sixty to seventy standard years, but a former Shadow". Sifo-Dyas hummed, clearly unconvinced. "It mays explain why I never heard of him" he conceded "Shadows are notably secretive and the Temples about housing them. It would also explain a particular sensitivity to Sith and Dark Siders. Are you sure of his foresight?". Jocasta shook her head "As you know, I never had a vision, but there is a curious succession of happenstance around Solo. He found Ach-To. He is the one who gave the coordinates to Dooku. A six-thousands years lost Temple, far from any hyperspace road. I have also circumstantial evidence he wasn't only a Shadow dedicated to fight Dark Siders, but also to track them. In the last century Coruscanti Shadow as an average confronted five Dark Siders in the course of their live, while actively seeking them out. Solo confronted six, and was aware of three others to a degree showing a direct involvement."
"You believe he used visions to track them. It is feasible" mused Sifo-Dyas "it would take an extremely talented seer geared toward near future. With time and training, one could theoretically develop a location based awareness enabling to physically pinpoint a place in space and time where one could corner a foe. Yes, it is feasible, and a masterful exploitation of foresight talent. A dangerous one as well, putting the Jedi at risk of falling for having peered too long at the Dark Side. What did he felt like in the Force?" "Nothing. He was shielding and never wavered. His shielding was so consistent I believe it is unconscious."
Sifo-Dyas brow creased then said "I would be interested to meet him. I trust you can arrange a meeting or give me a comm number?" Jocasta nodded, Sifo-Dyas hummed, pulling up Kenobi file again with a series of code Jocasta was no privy of. "For the sake of disclosure, I must add another happenstance to those you already remarked upon. Master Yoda was convinced young Kenobi would have a major role in the future, but could not discern which. However, none of the Jedi he pushed toward him felt any insensitive from the Force to take him as a padawan. Some even reported he wasn't meant to be their padawan. The last Jedi was Qui-Gon Jinn. He mays have bonded with young Kenobi, but refused to do so due to his previous padawan. At the time, I thought it puzzling: Jinn is well-known for his unorthodox views, and for him to be deemed an appropriate teacher for one with an important role spell a change. Which change I do not know, but it made some Councilors a bit angsty."
"But Jinn did not take Obi-Wan Kenobi as his padawan". "He did not. Not even when Master Yoda interfered and placed Jinn and Obi-Wan on the same transport for Bandomeer. Let me say the Council wasn't pleased when Jinn came back padawanless. As Bandomeer wasn't the assignment we were planning for young Kenobi, another transport was sent a few weeks after. The Jedi sent did not find young Kenobi on Bandomeer. He never even reached the Agricorp. Later inquiry showed Jinn had booked passage for young Kenobi, but did not see fit to deliver him himself to the Agricorp. Other findings were made at the time: a slave ring controlled by a Hutt and trace of a Dark Sider presence in the near past." Fury dawned on Jocasta face. "Yes, the Council will not take kindly on Jinn if he attempts to take another padawan after this negligence" Sifo-Dyas noted idly "but there is no need to go confront him. I doubt Obi-Wan ever fell in the hands of the Hutts, or for a very brief time. As for the Dark Sider, I do not believe young Kenobi had to fear, based on your claims. The captain of the transport was named Han Solo. His name came up during the inquiry but no one ever thought he was a Jedi. Jinn remembered him because he was lectured for his negligence of his padawan by Solo".
"You mean Solo took charge of this transportation to meet Obi-Wan, implying he had knowledge of Obi-Wan through a vision" summed Jocasta. "Not quite. I mean Solo was aware of Obi-Wan through a vision, but believed him to be Jinn padawan. Then, when he found out he was not, he intervened and took young Kenobi as his padawan, therefore derailing Master Yoda predicted outcome. A classic example of Force-sensitive acting exactly against the desired outcome by relying on a vision. But, considering the presence of a Dark Sider, it mays have been for the better. I believe Solo perceived Obi-Wan importance much like we did, but unlike most of the Council was not rebuffed in his attempt to take young Kenobi as his padawan. Most curious. He must be a very interesting man". "Master Dooku referred to him as such".
Han parsed through the message a second time. It was Leia level of politeness coupled with Luke best channeling of Old Ben. Some of the words there were definitely not used in their common meaning. No wonder Jedi had gone a bad end if that was how they communicated. No way he would have been able to understand if he had not been wed to an Alderani royalty diplomate and kin to a learning Jedi. Well, Han was not able to use those words back, but he definitely knew a golden opportunity when it landed on his laps.
Luke used to have fainting spells and prophetic dreams and revelations through meditation. More often than not, following them was a good idea. The times it ended dreadfully wrong, it was because someone was tampering. It stood reason that other Jedi operated under the same assumption. Han never dreamt anything, but instinct certainly served him well. Besides, he had young Ben – tiny Old Ben, not Little Ben – translating ability between Luke puzzling and Jedi terminology. Chibi Kenobi woke him up enough times rambling about Felucia genocide and ecosystem disaster or massive shipwreck that Han at least had some vocabulary explained to him. So Han understood perfectly well that a Jedi he never heard about had become convinced Han had prophetic fainting spells.
In Han experience, the less understandable their language, the more high-up people were, at least in the Republic. Hutts and criminals were another thing altogether. This Sifo-Dyas certainly did talk fancy, even if, like every other Jedi out there, his clothes were not. In the first weeks, understanding when he landed, Han had thought about warning Jedi and saving the day. Killing the Empire before it came into being and all that stuff, but reality had quickly ascertained itself. Han was good at staying alive – the reason of his presence in the frecking past discounted – but most of the players would hack him in tiny bits, or distance-choke him or, well, other exotic and painful deaths. As for telling the Jedi outright, that would have probably ended with a padded room and not much results, so he abstained. But now? Some maybe high-up Jedi was sure his word was accurate and Han had much to tell.
Not so much about the galaxy in general at this time period, but Luke had been very interested in Jedi after the fall of the Empire and it turned out his teaching line had been very involved in galactic events. Han had known some about the Negotiator and the Hero-with-no-fear role in the war, but had no idea that the kriffing leader of the opposite side was basically the Jedi version of Old Ben grandfather or that the green goblin of Dagobah had been the head of the Jedi Order and the equivalent father of the leader of the opposite side. Speak of a messed up family. No wonder the Skywalker ended badly with that type of history. And Leia could rave for days about the reasons for the fall of the Republic and Palpatine subverting the democracy and all that wasn't well under the Empire. As her husband and pilot Han had listened much of her tirades and even tuning out after some iterations, a lot of things stayed ingrained in his brain.
Naturally, all of this was a bit dry and not the things tiny Ben woke up screaming about, so Han had to wrap it up into a lot of traumatic situations. And considering Jedi were lie-detectors, Han had to do it in such a way as to be truthful all the time. He was not keen to discover whether that only worked face to face or at distance. Luke could only do it face to face, but Vader Force-choked people miles away. There was no telling how good the Jedi of this generation were. Rather depressingly, Han had still much to tell afterwards, which spoke some of the life he led and that his acquaintances led.
He started by the death star. Or, more precisely, Alderaan being blown up before its very princess eyes after she refused to disclose to the Empire the location of the Rebel base. Han had not been here, but he had held Leia when she was unable to sleep for years after the fact. Sifo-Dyas visibly did not think it was crackpot because he left a message on the comm asking for detail. More precisely several worrying inconsistencies and whether Han had a guess for when his vision took place. Apparently Moff had been a title used in a Sith Empire thousands of years ago and unheard since then, and an Empire had been mentioned. But Alderaan was clearly still around on this day, and there was never a senate in that Sith Empire and the technological advance that allowed the death star construction were not yet made. Han guessed he had properly spooked the Jedi with that one. Which was both good because he was very insistently sniffing out for more, and bad, because Han bullshitting on the fly did not lend itself for long deceptions. Well-timed pirates enabled him to cut short a particularly dangerous call Han should not have picked up, and tiny Ben and Luke remote dealt with the problem before Han had to do more that shooting once. The Jedi had come pretty close to guess Han was flying blind without navigation instrument and that would have compromised the opportunity to stop the Empire birth. Messages over comm were infinitely safer and less taxing without having to worry about improvising.
When the conversation turned on where the Jedi were, he told of Yoda taking a young human as a student. He did not name Luke, but Yoda he felt safe about naming, because he was kinda well-known amongst Jedi even as young as tiny Ben and Han knew he spoke backward. Luke had made hilarious imitations with dubious tea and failed ear-twitching during their Temple exploration spree, before everything went to shit. That rightfully worried Sifo-Dyas who correctly guessed that it was indeed the future, that some Jedi may have been in hiding but most were probably dead and led him to ask how this happened. Situation had to be pretty dire before the grandmaster of the Jedi Order exiled himself on a swamp planet to eat roots. Han pulled the next "vision" from Luke account of Bespin mess, a wet-behind-his-ears Jedi barely escaping from a Sith offering him an apprenticeship to overthrow the Emperor. Thereby proving that a Sith Empire was going to rise and extinguish the Jedi Order. By then, Sifo-Dyas was building sand-castles which were rather accurate with what Han knew so Han mainly left him to his musings, because he was not supposed to know too much.
He then spoke of Old Ben revealing to Luke his father had been a Jedi killed during the Temple sacking, an event Ben had also witnessed. The trick was to stay factual: in a dingy hut in the middle of a desert Ben said that, but not that he in fact lied because at the time Luke had told so to Han he did not know Vader was in fact his father. Sifo-Dyas worriedly confided his own visions of the Temple afire and a growing shadow. Han dug his childhood memory of the clone army, thousands men with one face, a war raging in the galaxy with sides unclear and ultimately senseless. That was more Sifo-Dyas period, because the Jedi could leave five-hours long analysis on his comm about the war and more on each potential player. Must have spooked himself quite well even before Han entered a picture. Han just hoped that his presence could change things, because Sifo-Dyas had clearly failed in the time before.
Sadly, Han did not know much about the war. Even back then there was a lot of propaganda so he could not rely on the news he watched as a kid, and beside the main action had been on Coruscant, not Corellia. Han just had a list, Leia list she had told and repeated in the rebellion years to keep going, in the Senate to keep moving. An hour-long list of worlds devasted one way or another by the Empire, going back as early as the clone war. Han did not know it by heart like Leia had, but he had memorized at least half of the names on there and repeated them in turn to Sifo-Dyas, complete with dubious foretelling about which got blasted by Ion cannons, which got its ecosystem poisoned, etc. The princess of Alderaan, in a bunker, uttering name after name, from Muunilist to Coruscant, Serenno, Alderaan… He spoke of Hoth and the many battles since, flashpoints of fights and hunger and fear and slavery across the galaxy until his voice was raw. To make Sifo-Dyas understand that nothing had been spared in Palpatine rise to power, not even the Corellian kid orphaned in the early days of the Empire.
Sifo-Dyas seemed to understand all too well the danger, for he invited Han to convene on Coruscant with other seers. Which was something to avoid because at first glance they would understand Han could not guess the weather on the next morning. Happily he had a commission in the Outer Rim to use as a shield and soon they switched on other visions. Not than Han had many of those left, but he had a saying Leia had told him once and her father had told her before being blown up along his planet and whom had first been uttered by a founding member of the Rebellion "And so die democracy, under a thunder of applause".
"You said your sight diminished lately" Mace noted, slowly scrolling through the holopad content. "I said the visions became hazy, not that their frequency or potence decreased. In fact, a sense of urgency has even appeared attached to them" replied Sifo-Dyas. Mace put down the holopad to look his fellow councilor. "What you told us of your visions was worrying. Worrying and did not seemed to belong to our future, let alone a near future". "Allow me to correct that statement: you wished it did not belong to our near future and saw fit to shrug me off rather than confront your fear. Now there is a second prophet which I never heard of before he reported similar visions of his own, you are frustrated to have to listen to my warnings".
"The Corellian say there is no Han Solo in their ranks". "Did they give you a roll of their present and past Shadows? Would you communicate such information if the Corellian asked them of you? All evidence point toward an long-term uncover mission to unearth Force-sensitive traffic and when I raised the subject Solo was able to tell me the culinary habits of Jabba Desilijic. Would you risk the wrath of the Hutts on your Temple because far-off cousins on not so good term ask if a man on an undercover mission is on your payroll?" Mace sighed "I would not. But I have slightly more trust in Yan Dooku who believe that man is not a Jedi". "I've heard Yan on this subject. He believed Solo was a Jedi during a whole day before realizing he was not, and is understandingly miffed about the subterfuge. I postulate Solo effectively tricked Yan, but in believing he wasn't a Force-sensitive."
"Develop" "Thanks you. By all account, Solo had met three Jedi in the past years and gave three versions of a teaching line including the same individuals: Leia, Luke, Chewbacca, Ben, Rey. He told Jocasta, Yan and young Kenobi of the same events and each remember a whole different life-story for Solo, excepted Yan who also know the version that was told to young Kenobi. I drew the following conclusions with Yan: all initial account were short, packed in a little time and sparse in detail. All necessitated the interlocutor to make sense of apparently unrelated events. In short, all versions are the interpretation of the interlocutors of what they believe Han Solo was telling them. A classical fallacy of the mind Han Solo appears very talented at exploiting. Two of these stories are concordant: those known by Yan and Jocasta. Young Kenobi, when contacted had more details and an amusing story about the moment his master discovered he was exchanging about visions with a Councilor. I will return on this point later. I explain that last fact by the lack of time Yan and Jocasta had with Solo, while young Kenobi spent over three years with his master.
Obi-Wan is persuaded his master has only modicum Force-sensitivity and exposure through in-law, namely his wife and her brother. However, none of Solo interlocutors perceived a lie when he was telling life-stories fraught with Dark Siders and near-death brushes. It stands reason that one has been fooled, and the most probable was the at the time Initiate. When speaking with young Kenobi, he informed me Han told him of his family on their first meeting, then referred them by names with nearly no mention of relation, apart from repeatedly stating Luke and Leia were siblings. Sibling padawan, I wager. Which meant that young Kenobi never heard that story once his awareness in the Force increased, but added what Solo told him to his preconceived understanding.
Moreover, as the Corellian Temple did not see fit to send us Solo files, we can only be certain of one Dark Sider confrontation. By young Kenobi account, he did not even had time to act: Solo shot with a blaster before his padawan could ignite his lightsaber, then precisely timed an apparently instinctual defensive gesture who resulted in the deactivation of the Dark Sider main weapon, and shot him dead before he had time to react. Now, Han Solo can have been very favored by the Force on this instance, or he has reflex matching those of a Force-sensitive because he is a Force-sensitive, and enough experience against Dark Siders to be confident his bluff would not be deadly for him.
Further proof was given by Yan. As I said previously, none of Solo interlocutors ever perceived a lie in his storytelling, not even Yan who was told both. But note when Solo told him he wasn't a Force-sensitive: after Yan was surprised by having already reasoned on his own Solo wasn't and while Solo was appearing overly flustered. I add to that Yan does not remember if Solo effectively told him he wasn't a Force-sensitive. By the way Solo manipulate his interlocutors, I doubt he was that straight-forward."
Mace raised a hand "You believe Solo is effectively a talented Shadow and an exceptional manipulator. Allow me to postulate another theory for the sake of the argument: Solo seeks to manipulate us and was never a Jedi. Have Padawan Kenobi ever be able to tell of his master presence in the Force?" "He did not and before you ask I did not sense falseness in his words". "Neither have Yan or Jocasta, both of which have commented on his exceptional shielding. Now, I agree with you Han Solo is most probably a Force-sensitive and a skilled one. I have here Yan assessment of Padawan Kenobi. Excellent communion with the Force and advanced shields for his age, efficient if unusual in Jedi instincts, skewed knowledge of the galaxy with stress put on disappearance capability, trade, politics and psychology including manipulation of other beings with and without the Force. Shoddy footwork, abysmal lightsaber skills. Doesn't sound much like a Jedi, does it? The absence of lightsaber skill is the most glaring and immediately caught Yan attention, as it would any Jedi, but I am more concerned by the rest. To vanish if needed, to manipulate every who come across and an interest in understanding the galaxy for one sake. What does it reminds you?"
"You believe Han Solo is a Dark Sider, maybe even a watered down version of Sith and will vanish from our sight once his apprentice shields are good enough to fool Jedi" surmised Sifo-Dyas in a dark tone. "Indeed. Note which Jedi he crossed path with. A clearsighted mystic who did not perceive anything unusual about him, a testimony of Solo skills at shielding his Force signature and manipulation. A distraught youth who will play a pivotal role in the future. An old padawan of Master Yoda, partially disillusioned with the Order. There is potential here, isn't it? The head of Archive, with a direct access to our Sith artefacts. A Councilor worried about the future and whom worry he fed by echoing his visions and a glimpse of his own planning. Efficient way to weaken the Order from the inside, no? And to dare such a gamble imply either a fool which I am told Solo sometimes masquerade as or a Sith with the power to back out if he were discovered. Maybe even the power to influence the visions of a prophet, or sew a veil to cloud Jedi sight from his manifestation. And then, another seer who can still peer at the future speaking of tidings dark enough we would exhaust ourselves looking elsewhere what is under our very eyes. Maybe we should invite him on Coruscant to confer with our prophets? A burning temple, you saw. Sith, you narrowed some days previous. And you never made the link with your friend. Answer me, what do you think of my theory?"
Silence settled. "You do not believe so" Sifo-Dyas, pale, finally said. "Padawan you called young Kenobi". Mace nodded "Indeed, I do not believe Han Solo to be a Sith Lord. I am uncertain he is a Jedi either, but I believe him to be Force-sensitive. Most of your points were good, but you did not reach the conclusion: there has been a lot of hasty thinking about Han Solo and very little proof of anything. And in the troubled times ahead we need more than hasty thinking".
A hand squeezed his shoulder, but Obi-Wan watched numbly ahead the creaking pyre. "I do not know which Temple he hailed from, but you have your place in Coruscant, padawan" Master Dooku whispered softly to him. Young Kenobi did not answer and Dooku shared a glance with Mace, on the other side of the fire. Han Solo death had been unexpected and moreover the way he died. After tales of facing off Dark Siders which were as vague as they were probably true, Han Solo had died peacefully in his sleep. No warning and no discernable cause of death either. It was as if the Force had recalled him.
And sometimes Mace nearly thought It did. There was no trace of Han Solo. Once contacted, Corellian Temple did not acknowledge him as one of its members, would not see to his parting. More than their previous denegation, it was this gesture that confirmed to Mace Solo had not been a Green Jedi. Jedi honored fallen brothers even if galaxy did not acknowledge their grief as such. A doubt persisted however, for they had asked a midichlorian sample. But Padawan Kenobi had reached the Temple after the midichlorians in his master had died out, as they were prone to do less than an hour after death. Still, a Green Jedi came, a wizened crone towering over all of them in her serpentine body who peered long at Solo but did not say a word to acknowledge or deny him. Did not ask for his ashes afterward, did not say her name. She stayed until the fire engulfed Solo, then departed sometime during the night, unseen despite her height.
There was a story there. Maybe not about Solo, but a man appearing seventy who could have been Solo, and whom the Corellians did not dare to identify by a DNA test. Knowing the Force and the little certainty they had about Solo, that man had been Solo and his mission file was more sensitive than Solo had hinted at. Considering the tales Solo had been prone to give, Mace was curious about that file. The Corellians probably had it under lock, but Mace intended to satisfy part of his curiosity with the blood-sample he had taken. No match came forth, making Mace raise his eyebrow, as a Jedi would have been in the Republic database, unless he was under witness protection. But Solo had not been, he had sailed to the most dangerous parts of the galaxy and been unafraid to drag a padawan in them. Solo, who had not put feet on Corellia for ten years by his own count and hardly acted as a Jedi should. It was not Solo this absence protected but the Green Jedi if he had ever been one of them and relatives if he had them.
There was no Han Solo in the database corresponding to the signalment of the man cremated two days past. Maybe has he bore another name before taking this one. A Corellian name. A random Corellian name, void of meaning, except that it belonged to a Corellian. But Han Solo had undeniably been Corellian. His blood showed his parents were Corellian and the closest match found were of two Corellian children. One was named Solo, a boy of thirteen, half DNA shared. Mace closed the file, erased the request and made sure to destroy the blood-sample. No need to shame the man by such an indiscretion. Rumor mill was already rushing amongst the Order. Mace blamed the presence of the Green Jedi, which attracted the attention on the thought-to-have-become-a-farmer padawan, two Councilors, the grandmaster, one of his old padawans and the Head of Archive having attended the pyre of an unknown Jedi.
It would die on its own, even if proper respect could not be paid to the information Solo had given. Solo had made them think, and pushed them to convene. He drew the attention of those in the know on Sifo-Dyas visions and cleared a number of them, revealing the coming war. Allowing them to prepare. It made them realize the veil who obscured their vision, and through him the Sith who had sewn it. Allowing them to be careful in their judgement and to know where would hinge the Sith plan for their destruction. He made them question hastily drawn conclusions and revealed a flaw many Jedi shared. And he offered them a path, Mace believed, when revealing Ach-To to them. Coupled with taking Obi-Wan Kenobi as a padawan, Mace had little doubt Solo had nearly shouted at them change was needed in his manipulatory way to communicate. His padawan kept insisting Solo was a frank speaker, which proved even death could not end the headache Solo was.
Mace was certain now Solo had been a Jedi of some sort, or at least the Force had been with him to a ridiculous degree. Strangely, the Force appeared to be laughing right now.