Hey, everybody. Back with another chapter.
Hope you like this one. Let's get to it.
RicoRodriguez2018: It depends, mainly on my inspiration level and time available. Sometimes, it can take me days to write a chapter. But, for the most part, once I actually begin writing, it can take me anywhere from 1 to 3 hours to actually write the chapter.
Shan01: Undecided on those points.
Guest: I'm still working on an aquatic species.
rangerhero: I don't plan for the Alliance to learn about the Emperor's trap beforehand. And no, the Emperor doesn't yet realize that the Alliance knows. He will still leak the information. I do have a plan for a side story about Thrawn, though I'm not yet sure about what the plot will be.
Guest DCDGojira: Not sure about Inferno Squad
pervy sage: I think the Alliance will try and devise methods for undoing brainwashing.
Chapter 60- The Good Life
(April 20, 2017)
Kelly claps and cheers as Hall's team hurries out to take their places on the field. Luke had just come back from a journey to the Andromeda Galaxy to continue his training with Yoda. The day after he came back, they had received an invitation from General Hall to a barbecue and small party on his property in northern Virginia.
Hall had purchased the large property years earlier. It was essentially a small ranch, with many luxuries. Among the additions Hall had made to his property was putting in a baseball field. It was about the size of a baseball field that one would find at any American college or university, although spectators would just sit on the small hill that curved around behind home plate.
Many of their friends had come, including the Adams family, General Rommel and his family, General Mofaz and his family, the men of Clone Force Five, Captain Rex, several Jedi, a few other ASAT members, and the Ghost crew, who was visiting Earth at the time.
Before dinner, Hall decided to have a baseball game. They had managed to get 20 people to agree to play, ten for each team, as well as three more people to serve as umpires. Luke is on Hall's team as shortstop. Her dad and brother Calvin are also on Hall's team. Fives is captaining the other team.
"Go, honey!" She calls as Luke takes his position on the field.
Echo walks up to the plate, swinging his bat. Echo had taken up baseball as another favorite sport to play soon after moving to Terra, and had gotten quite good at it. Even though he was in the equivalent of his early 70s, he and the other clones were still in very good shape thanks to their genetic engineering, and Echo still loved playing.
Calvin, who is serving as pitcher, smiles as Echo steps up to the plate. He waits for a moment before throwing the first pitch. Echo takes a swing at it, but just misses. Behind the plate, Zeb, who is serving as home plate umpire, calls out, "Strike!"
Echo steps back to take two more warm up swings before stepping back to the plate. Calvin waits for a moment, then winds up and throws another pitch. This time, Echo swings and hits it. The ball heads out towards third base, where Dakota Hall is serving as third baseman. Dakota scoops up the grounder and throws it over to first base, where Jesse is serving as first baseman. Although Echo is sprinting as fast as he can, the ball gets to first base about a second and a half before he does. The first base umpire, Wrecker, calls him Out.
"Good job, honey!" Kelly smiles as she turns her head to see Ahsoka, who is sitting only a foot or so away, cheering for her husband.
"Your husband is a good athlete, Master Tano," she says.
Ahsoka smiles. "Yeah, he is. He loves baseball especially. He's been teaching Jacob a lot lately," she says.
Kelly smiles at that, then looks down at Ahsoka's swollen belly. "How far along are you again?" she asks.
Ahsoka smiles as she rubs her belly. "38 weeks and 3 days. Almost there. I can't wait for them to be here," she says happily.
"Do you think this is your last baby?" Kelly asks.
"Probably. Dakota says he wants at least one more daughter, and if this is a boy, we might have to try one more time, but I'm thinking this is probably my last," Ahsoka says with a laugh, making Kelly laugh too.
"You're still waiting to find out the gender?" Kelly asks.
"Yeah. We thought it should be a surprise," Ahsoka responds.
Kelly smiles. Ahsoka then asks, "What about you and Luke? Are children in the near future for you two?"
Kelly smiles, blushing a little. "Not in the near future. We want at to wait until the war is over, and then have at least a few years to be a normal married couple before trying to have a kid. But, being parents is definitely in our plans for the future," she says.
"Well, I can promise you it's a very rewarding job," Ahsoka says.
Their attention is quickly brought back to the field as Cal Kestis, who is now up at bat, hits a line drive almost right over second base. Luke leaps to get in its path, and just manages to catch it in time for the 3rd out.
Kelly cheers and claps. "Yes! You got it, babe!" she yells loud enough for Luke to hear her.
The two sides switch, and Hall's team is now up to bat. Hall's team manages to get two men on base, including Luke, who manages to hit a double, but fail to score any runs before Fives' team gets 3 outs.
Kelly and Ahsoka continue to watch with excitement as the teams continue to play. Finally, in the bottom of the fourth inning, with Luke and Dakota both on base, Calvin hits a home run, leaving Hall's team now winning. Kelly jumps up cheering as Luke crosses home plate, causing him to smile and wave to her.
The next person at bat, David Ronen, unfortunately gets out, ending the 3rd inning and returning Fives' team to bat. Immediately, Hunter, who is first up to bat, manages to hit it far into the outfield, and thanks to an error, manages to reach third base. Then, Hardcase, who is up next, hits a line drive past first base. He is thrown out at first base, but it's enough for Hunter to score Fives' team's first run.
Hall's team manages to get two more outs, leaving the score still 3 to 1. Then, at their next at bat, they are able to get one more run.
The fifth inning goes with nobody scoring. Then, in the top of the sixth inning, Fives' team scores three more runs, leaving the score tied up at 4 to 4.
Neither team manages to score in the seventh inning. Then, in the eighth inning, Fives' team manages to score two runs, while Hall's team scores only one. Then, it the top of the ninth inning, Fives' team scores two more runs, leaving the score 8 to 5 in favor of Fives' team.
Finally, it comes to the bottom of the ninth inning. Hall is up first, and manages to get to first base. Dakota then makes a bunt that puts him on second base.
Unfortunately, Sabine, who is next up to bat, hits a line drive right to Echo, who catches it easily. Luke then comes up to bat, managing to hit a single, leaving the bases loaded. Calvin is then up next, and hits a pop fly to center field, which Hardcase catches easily.
Kelly is now clenching her fists tightly. It's two outs and bases loaded at the bottom of the ninth. This is their chance to win.
Now, Ronen steps up to bat. He takes a few practice swings before stepping into the batter's box. Fives throws the first pitch, and Ronen takes a swing at it, barely missing.
Fives throws another pitch, this one well to the side, and Ronen ignores it. Zeb calls it as a ball.
Fives then throws his next pitch, right down the middle. Ronen takes a swing at it, and hits it perfectly. The ball goes sailing out into left field and over the fence.
Everyone watching begins cheering as they realize that Ronen just hit a grand slam. All three base runners finish their trip around the bases to home plate. Then, Hall's whole team gathers around home plate as Ronen rounds third base. The moment Ronen crosses home plate, Dakota douses him with a jug of Gatorade, and everyone on the team jumps on Ronen, cheering like mad.
Kelly is also on her feet, clapping and cheering. She then turns to Ahsoka while cheering, "They won!"
"Did you ever doubt them?" Ahsoka asks with a smile.
"Never," Kelly says, beaming. She then helps Ahsoka to her feet, and the two head down to the field to celebrate with their husbands.
As they reach the field, Kelly sees Luke moving towards her. She hurries over to him and hugs him tightly, crying, "You were amazing, Luke!"
"Thanks, babe," Luke says with a laugh. Kelly then pulls her head back a bit so she can give him a kiss.
The two teams move together to exchange handshakes. Then, Hall calls out, "Alright, everybody. Let's head back to the house and fire up the grills!" Everyone present cheers loudly, and the whole group starts moving back towards the main house.
Once the group gets back to the main house, they find the grills ready to go. Hall, Dakota, and Adams all fire up the grills and start throwing burgers, hot dogs, and steaks onto the grills.
Soon, grill smoke and the smell of grilling meat spread around the large outdoor patio. The three men chat as they grill as everyone else is chatting and waiting.
Before long, everyone is spread around the patio, chatting and eating. As Kelly and Luke are sitting on a small outdoor couch, talking with Dakota and Ahsoka, Kelly smiles and leans her head on Luke's shoulder, feeling so happy to just have a little time of peace in the midst of this great war.
(April 21, 2017)
Kelly's expression grows a little somber as she and Luke walk out of the building. After a fun night at Hall's place the previous day, they and a few others, including Adams, Calvin, Dakota, Ahsoka, and Rommel, had come up to DC to visit the Smithsonian.
One of their first stops was the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center of the National Air and Space Museum. They had enjoyed seeing many of the incredible displays, including the Space Shuttle Discovery and the B-29 Enola Gay.
Now, they were on their way outside the main center to visit the museum's most popular exhibit. The Boeing 757 that, 15½ years ago, was United 93 on 9/11. The museum's number of visitors skyrocketed after United 93's 757 became an exhibit. Many people come not only to see the historic airplane, but also to pay their respects to victims of 9/11. It's not uncommon for people to bring flowers to lay on the ground around the airplane.
As they approach the airplane, other museum guests visiting the aircraft see and recognize Rommel, and begin to chatter and cry out in recognition. While Rommel visits the museum and spends time on the aircraft every September 11 to remember that day, he visits often throughout the year, as the events are still so fresh for him, and he sees it as a way of honoring the two who died on the flight. He'll also often share his story with any visitors when he comes to visit the plane.
Kelly, following right behind Rommel, walks up the boarding stairs with Luke and into the forward part of the aircraft between the cockpit and first class. She can see the cut out cockpit door, still burned and melted from Rommel's lightsabers, lying against the far door, and she can see some of the damage from the scuffle with the hijackers, and even a small bloodstain on one wall. She feels a sense of sorrow fill her as she thinks of everyone who died that day.
"What was it like that day, Dennis?" Kelly asks.
Rommel looks back somberly. "Scary. Once I found out what was happening, I knew everyone on the plane and everyone on the ground was counting on me to make the right decisions and fight with everything I had. I've never been more nervous or felt more responsible for anything in my life. But, once it was over and done, the relief was overwhelming," he says.
Kelly looks around the aircraft, trying to visualize Rommel and the other passengers storming the cockpit, trying to take the plane back. "Well, I'm glad you succeeded," she says. Rommel smiles at her.
Their group continues their self tour of the aircraft, taking time to take it all in and render their own private respects to the dead. Then, Rommel finally says, "How about we head back inside?"
Everyone starts walking down the boarding stairs. As the group is walking back towards the main building, Adams says, "Why don't we go find a place to get lunch before we head up to DC itself?"
"Sounds like a plan," Calvin says.
Suddenly, without warning, everyone hears a loud gasp. Everyone turns around and sees that Ahsoka has frozen where she's standing, eyes wide.
"Ahsoka, what is it?" Adams asks, thinking she's sensed something through the Force.
Instead of answering immediately, Ahsoka looks downwards. Several others look down and see a wet stain spreading across her pants.
Ahsoka looks back up and looks directly at Dakota. "Honey, it's time," she says.
Everyone is frozen for a moment before Dakota says, "Well, what are we waiting for?" He then swoops Ahsoka up in his arms and starts carrying her back inside as fast as he can go. Sarah and Jacob, who were with the group for their museum visit, stare at their parents in surprise at this sudden development.
Everyone else looks around for a moment in stunned silence before Hall says, "Well, let's move it, people!" Everyone begins to smile and hurry back inside.
By the time everyone has reached the parking lot, Dakota is already closing the door of the car behind Ahsoka. Hurrying around to the driver's side, he looks at everyone and says, "I'm taking Ahsoka to the hospital. Tyler, watch Sarah and Jacob. We'll let you all know once the baby has arrived."
"Go!" Hall says with a big smile on his face. Dakota smiles in return before hopping into the car. He quickly backs up and speeds out of the parking lot.
"I'm gonna be a big brother!" Jacob exclaims. Everyone laughs, and Sarah, who is now almost 12, embraces her little brother.
"Alright, everybody. Why don't we go get some lunch, and then go find some more museums to visit while we wait for the newest member of the Hall family to arrive?" Rommel says with a grin.
The group gets in their cars and drives up to DC, where they find a restaurant near the National Mall for them to eat.
As they're eating, Jacob looks up at Hall and asks, "Uncle Tyler, is momma gonna be okay?"
Hall smiles down at his nephew. "Of course, Jakey," he says, using one of his nicknames for his nephew, "Your mom is one of the strongest people I know. And remember, this is her third baby. She's done this before. She is gonna be just fine, and before long, you're gonna have a new brother or sister."
This brings the smile back to Jacob's face. "You're right, Uncle Tyler. Mom's strong," he says.
Hall smiles and pats Jacob on the shoulder before taking another bite of his lunch.
(10 hours later)
"Push!"
Ahsoka cries out in pain as she pushes again. Her labor had progressed rather quickly compared to when she had Sarah and Jacob. Less than 10 hours after her water broke, she was ready to push. She had now been pushing for almost 20 minutes.
Finishing the push, she allows herself to fall back against her pillow, taking several deep breaths. Feeling a hand on her shoulder she glances to the side and sees Dakota smiling comfortingly at her.
"You're doing amazing, honey," he says. Ahsoka cracks a small smile.
"Alright. Again, Mrs Tano. On three. One, two, three," the doctor says. Ahsoka takes a deep breath and pushes again, crying out from the pain.
Flopping back against her pillow at the end of the push, Ahsoka hears the doctor say, "Alright. Just one more push."
Dakota leans in and gives her a kiss on the cheek, squeezing her hand tightly. "Come on, baby. One more push, and you'll be holding our baby. One more. I believe in you," he says.
Ahsoka looks back up at him, smiles, then looks back at her doctor. She takes a deep breath, and when her doctor directs, begins pushing with all she has.
After just a few seconds, she feels a relief of pressure. Then, a second later, she hears the shrill scream of a newborn, and hears the doctor say, "Hello, little one."
Ahsoka looks down as a screaming, blood covered little baby is laid on her chest. The baby looks almost entirely human, but with a little bit of her skin color and patterns visible. Ahsoka then looks downward to see the baby's gender, then looks up at Dakota in tears.
"We have a son," she says.
"I know," Dakota says, smiling brightly at her.
Ahsoka looks down at her new son, clutching him tightly to her chest. "Oh, my little boy. Oh, you're perfect," she whispers, planting a light kiss on the top of his head. As she pulls her head back, she feels something. Opening herself up to the Force, she looks at her son, and is surprised at how brightly the Force shines through him. Instantly, she can tell he is much stronger in the Force than either of his siblings.
The doctor soon takes him back, and Dakota cuts the cord. The doctor then hands the still crying baby boy off to a nurse to clean him up.
As their baby is whisked away to be cleaned up, Dakota leans in and says, "You know, we still don't have a name."
Ahsoka looks up at him and says, "Actually, I have a name picked out."
"What is it?" Dakota asks.
Ahsoka smiles as she whispers her name idea to her husband.
(Several hours later)
"Alright, remember, keep quiet. The baby may be sleeping," Hall says as he leads his niece and nephew down the hall of the maternity ward to the room the nurse directed them to. Sarah and Jacob both nod.
Reaching the door, Hall knocks a few times. A few moments later, Dakota opens the door.
Dakota smiles down at his children and says, "You want to meet your new sibling?"
"Yes!" they both say excitedly.
Dakota steps aside, letting them come in. The two of them walk in, followed by Hall.
As they all walk past the curtain, they see Ahsoka resting peacefully in her bed, cradling a bundle of blankets, smiling brightly. She then looks at Sarah and Jacob and says, "Hey, kids. Come meet your little brother."
"It's a boy?!" Sarah asks excitedly. Ahsoka smiles and nods.
"Come sit down over here and you can hold him," Dakota says, pointing to an armchair next to the bed. Sarah bolts into the chair.
Dakota carefully takes the baby from Ahsoka and then rests him in Sarah's arms. Sarah is in instant baby adoration mode.
"Congratulations, little brother," Hall says with a grin, making Dakota and Ahsoka smile.
"Well, what do I call my new nephew?" Hall asks.
Dakota and Ahsoka glance at each other, and Ahsoka smiles brightly as she says, "Anakin. Anakin David Hall."
Hall looks at them in surprise. "You named him after Skywalker?" he says. He usually refers to his old friend by his last name if he refers to him before he became Vader, as using his first name feels too painful.
Ahsoka nods. "Yes. I wanted to honor who he used to be," Ahsoka says.
Hall is quiet for a moment before he smiles. "It's a good name," he says, remembering his old friend and teacher.
"Hopefully, he grows up to be as great a man as his namesake used to be," Hall says, looking fondly down at his new nephew, looking forward to spoiling him rotten as he grows up.
And, I'll end there.
I hope you liked that chapter. Since we did a football chapter last story, and a chapter including the Super Bowl earlier in this chapter, I thought it was about time for baseball to make an appearance, even if it wasn't professional.
So, for those wondering about the museum visit and the United 93 757, that's my first real reference to "When the World Stopped Turning" in this story. If it made you confused, go read that story.
So, Ahsoka and Dakota have welcomed their third child, a new boy! So, I decided to name him Anakin because I thought it would be something Ahsoka might do, and it worked for an idea I have for a scene I have planned. I hope you like the name choice. As for his middle name, I didn't have a reason for choosing it. I just thought it sounded nice with Anakin.
Next chapter should be up soon. It will begin to kick off the events of Return of the Jedi. I hope you're excited. Until it's up, please leave a review, and stay tuned!