A/N: Hi guys! Here it is, the last multi-chapter in my post-TROS universe. I was so excited to start posting this… until I remembered the lackluster response its predecessor, Lothal, got. As stressed as I've been, I wasn't really looking forward to little to no feedback. But you know what? I LOVE this story! I LOVE this universe I created! It got me back into writing which has helped get me through the pandemic, a huge personal loss, the resulting depression, and just keeps me going every day. So, to hell with it… I'm posting this for ME!
Welcome to Yavin IV!
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Pain.
Relentless, unceasing, excruciating pain.
It was so intense, there was nothing else. No thoughts. No sounds. No anything.
Finally, a conclusion formed. I haven't felt pain this bad since Ren. That was almost forty years ago.
That thought led to more. How did this happen? What is causing this? A tenugo. That's what it was. A small, venomous mammal native to Bracca. It had bitten him. If he remembered correctly, only about 10% of people bitten by a tenugo survived, and then only if they had immediate medical care. The poison caused paralyzation and agonizing pain. While the action of the venom could not be reversed, medical help could support the victim until it worked its way through the system, which could take days, even weeks. Sometimes even then, a person's heart gave out due to the constant pain.
So, where was he? Getting immediate medical care or about to be eaten alive?
He tried to reach out with the Force, to sense anyone or anything around him, and found several faint signatures. He could not reach beyond that, but he did feel the nervous energy that swarmed around them. Not the animal that bit him, then. People trying to help him.
His mind's eye suddenly recalled how he had gotten bit. Jagger! With as much speed as his brain could muster, he searched for one signature in particular among the people near him. There! A faint light in the Force, very similar in color and strength to his own. Bright, worried, but not hurt. Thank the Force! He had jumped between the tenugo and Jag, and that was how he had gotten bit. But Jag was okay, and that was the only thing that mattered right now. His life was of no consequence as long as his grandson lived.
"Don't you dare think like that!"
He knew the 'voice' in his head was his imagination. Not only was she not here, but even her considerable strength wouldn't be able to penetrate the shell of pain the venom had created. However, he knew that is exactly what she would say if she could read his mind. He pulled his thoughts inward, trying to tuck them away from the pain and helplessness. If he could live to reach her, she could help. She would not be able to heal him, but she could push him through the pain. He was sure of it.
He had no concept of time. Just the pain. Every once in a while, he could feel one or more of the beings helping him. Sometimes, he could sense Jag at his side, but he could not feel the boy's touch, either physical or mental. Finally, he became aware of different entities, some with stronger Force presences. One he recognized. Doctor Diibb Kofra, the Rodian who had made his home on Yavin IV over a decade ago.
He was home.
The pain intensified as his anticipation grew. Then she was there, her presence like the radiant sun that comes out after a hard rain, warm and comforting. The pain eased greatly, enough that he could reach for her in his mind. He felt her fear and her worry. He hated making her worry. He wished he could move; he knew without a shadow of a doubt that she was holding his hand, and if he could squeeze it, it would give her comfort. But nothing. He couldn't even feel his heart beating, though he knew it must be. So, he allowed himself to sink into her warmth, content with the knowledge that should he die, at least he was with her.
Rey.
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Jedi Master Rey Skywalker sat close to the bed, her hands wrapped tight around her husband's clenched fist. Every wave of pain that emanated from him caused her to stiffen and she had to remind herself to breathe. A tear tracked down her cheek as she focused on the Force, sending as much of her energy as she could toward the deathly still man in front of her. She knew she couldn't heal him, but damned if she was going to let him die.
Very few humans had survived the bite of a tenugo, and those that had were mostly young, strong individuals with no previous history of medical problems. Not so for her husband. Yes, he was strong, and still fit and active for his age, but his physical history was a rough one, full of blaster wounds and broken bones and torture, not to mention hours upon hours spent crammed into the cockpit of an X-Wing. At seventy years of age, Retired General Poe Dameron had many more years ahead of him, if he could just hold on through this trial. She was going to help as much as she could, even if it meant never leaving his bedside.
Doctor Kofra walked in, his antenna swiveling back and forth as he scanned the room. Rey gave him a soft smile. The doctor had been here on Yavin for over ten years now, but Poe had yet to really accept the green-skinned humanoid; not because he didn't like Rodians, but because it had been Kofra, then a young first-year doctor, who had informed them of Kes' death. Poe's father had passed away from heart-failure while working alone in his Koyo grove, but it had been Dr. Kofra who had determined the cause of death and who had contacted Poe and Rey on Kashyyyk where they had been living at the time. Poe had never forgotten that day.
"Do you sense him?" Kofra asked, his head tilted curiously.
Rey nodded. "A bit," she told him. "More so when I first got here. He's more relaxed now, not struggling so much to do the things he can't, including communicate through the Force."
Kofra looked at the monitors and bobbed his head. "He is more stable since you have arrived." He paused and considered her carefully with his big, black eyes. "I am surprised he survived the trip home," he said softly.
Rey shuddered and bit her lower lip, the she smiled at the doctor. "He's always been more than what he seems," she whispered. "Done more than what was expected." She let her thumb rub his hand. "He'll do the same this time."
Again, the Rodian nodded. "Let me know when you need a break, Master Skywalker."
Rey cleared her throat. "Finn and Shaina will make sure I get them when they get here, Doctor," she told him with a wry smile. "And Shaina can help hold back his pain, too, when I'm not here." She lifted her chin, a determined set to her jaw. "Until he comes back to us."
Kofra gave her a soft smile. "Of course." He bowed slightly, then turned and left the room.
Rey focused once more on her husband and sighed. "I know you probably can't hear me," she started. "At least, not yet. But Jagger is feeling really guilty right now for talking you into taking him to Bracca, so you need to make sure you wake up sooner rather than later and tell him it's not his fault. He won't listen to any of us."
Jagger, Shaina's thirteen-year-old son, had been keen on visiting the junk planet for the last month, after learning that one of his favorite bands, The Scrap Rats, had originated there and were doing a benefit concert for the local juvenile hospital. Poe had volunteered to take him; though he was comfortably settled into retirement here on Yavin, he admitted to getting the occasional wanderlust from time to time, and though Bracca was not one of his favorite places, his first grandchild was one of his favorite people. Like Poe himself, Jagger only had minimal Force strength. So far, he was the only child or grandchild of Rey Skywalker to not have extraordinary abilities, and Poe had taken the boy under his wing very early on in order to insure he never felt like an outsider or a mistake.
When Jagger had shown interest in spending some time with his grandfather camping on the plains after the concert, Poe had jumped at the chance. He had commed Rey, letting her know how much he was sure he would enjoy the outdoor experience more than he had the so-called music of the show. She wondered if he would still feel that way when he woke up.
When. Not if.
Taking a deep breath, Rey lowered her upper body down to rest her forehead on Poe's arm. She closed her eyes and let the Force swirl around them both. One day at a time, she thought. One day at a time.
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