Entry 48

I should have called for the crew to bring the ship in early. Waiting just made me nervous. What if the Imperials spotted us leaving the party early? What if an Inquisitor was on planet? So many things could go wrong.

"Jax will you relax. The mission is a success." Sacha went to the wet bar cooling unit of our hotel room and brought out a cold bottle of wine. "Let's celebrate."

My stomach was a flutter of nerves. I didn't think I could hold down any alcohol. I had already taken a hot shower in an attempt to sooth the knots out of my muscles, but that only gave me warm, wet, knotted muscles. I guess having a drink wouldn't hurt. "Sure."

I decided to distract myself further by watching the holonet. I ended up on the news channel where I was subjected to Imperial propaganda and human supremacy ideology.

Sacha sat next to me and handed me a glass of wine. We both were now garbed in loose tunics and shorts having stripped out of those uncomfortable formal clothing as soon as we arrived to our room. I smiled and took a small sip. "Thanks." I put the glass aside and returned to channel flipping.

"How does your special Jedi power work? Can you tell the future with it?"

I gave a shrug. "I can see ribbons of color. The lighter the aura the better. Dark ribbons usually mean the person is currently evil or will fall prey to evil. I can sometimes see how that person is connected to others. Occasionally I will see things that might be in that person's future, but unless the person looks older in the vision, I really wouldn't know if I was seeing the future or the past."

"And Organa's daughter has a bright aura?"

I put down the remote control and turned to her. "It is the brightest I have ever seen. There was a swirl of ribbons of white around her. She will bring change to the galaxy."

She leaned back into the cushion of the couch. "I gathered from your conversation with the Prince, you think her biological father is Anakin Skywalker?"

"Who is now Darth Vader. I believe Organa's daughter was conceived while Anakin was a Jedi Knight and not a Sith. In fact, I'm positive. When I saw her connection to Anakin he wasn't stained with the darkside."

Sacha nodded then looked up at me tentatively. "Jax…can you see my aura?"

I gave her a playful wink. "I usually don't peek."

She lowered her head and fiddled with her wineglass. "Would you be able to see if anything bad is going to happen to me?"

My stomach sunk. I know where she was going with this conversation. She wanted me to peer into her soul and examine her connections of the Force. She wanted to know her fate. The thing is, I didn't want to know.

She put her drinking glass on a side table and turned to face me. "Read me," she insisted.

"No…I don't want to know."

Her face fell. "You think something bad is going to happen to me, don't you?"

I sat quietly knowing that was exactly it.

"Answer me Jax."

I let out the breath I was holding. "Something bad happens to everyone I love."

"Love?"

I closed my eyes regretting my choice in words. "I meant that as…friends. The people I care about. They have a tendency of dying on me." I turned away not wanting to see the disappointment in her eyes.

"So you won't look because you are afraid you will get a glimpse of my death?"

I nodded with a sigh.

"Jax…we have a decision to make concerning our future. The future of our group. We fear leading the Inquisitors to the Rangers. If you can look at our auras and get a glimpse of things to come then we can make a more informed decision." She reached over and put a finger to my chin turning my head toward her. "Please look."

My stomach clenched and my chest tightened, but I agreed. "Okay, but it will have to be fast. I don't want anybody sensing my use of the Force." I turned in my seat to face her fully and then immersed myself in the flow of the Force. I saw ribbons of energy surrounding Sacha that vibrated and changed from white to blue and yellow. These bands of energy swirled and reached out. I saw various people at the end of the ribbons. They were individuals I recognized, except they were older. Den had wrinkles around his eyes. I-Five had another new chassis, Norro was now a young man and Magash had a few gray hairs. I looked around and finally spotted a slightly older version of myself and…" I sucked in a sharp breath before breaking the connection.

"What is it Jax? What did you see? Did I die?" Sacha stared at me wide-eyed.

My mind was reeling, unsure of the accuracy of the vision. I have never seen such clear and concise connections to others before. Perhaps the strength of the vision has something to do with my involvement with the future I glimpsed.

I could feel Sacha's dread quicken with every second I remained silent. "What is it?" She raised her voice to a panic level. "I should never have asked. I'm going to die." She looked up at me pleading. "At least tell me I went fast…that I didn't suffer."

"Sacha…" I hesitated enough to panic her further.

"Oh Gods, I'm going to have a painful death." She covered her face with her hands as she shook her head in disbelief. She looked back up to me. "Did Vader get me?"

"No."

"Am I eaten by a Rancor?"

"What? Why would you be eaten by a Rancor?"

"I don't know. I'm just imagining bad deaths and I have a great imagination. So please just answer me!"

"Sacha, calm down. You didn't die." I put my arms around and held her tight.

"I know it can't be good. It must have been a really bad future to get that type of reaction out of you."

"It's not bad…at least I don't think you will see it that way. You may actually like what I saw…but then you might not. I'm not sure how you are going to react."

Her eyes closed to narrow slits. "Are you going to tell me or am I going to have to dunk your head in the bidet until you talk?"

I couldn't help but chuckle at the image that comment conjured up. "No need for that." I tightened my embrace. "I'm sorry to scare you. The people connected in your future simply surprised me." I took a deep breath and let it out. "It's nothing bad. You're fine. We're all fine."

She pulled away from me and slapped my shoulder angrily. "Don't try to placate me. You reacted strongly. What got you so riled up if it wasn't somebody dying? What was it?"

I rubbed my sweaty palms over my shorts and I noticed my one leg was bouncing up and down nervously.

"Jax, if nobody died, then what did happen?"

I gazed in her eyes and gave her a weak smile. "Somebody was born. I saw our son."

Her jaw dropped. "What?"

"I saw a child connected to you…and to me."

She sat very still, staring at me in disbelief. "Could it be another stray we adopted, like Norro?"

I shook my head. "I saw Norro, but the Force ribbon connecting all of us was a different color and not as…prominent. The young child I sawwas our son."

I sat there waiting for her response. She did confess that she was interested in me, but that is a far cry from realizing the father of your future child was sitting on the couch with her. I don't even know how I felt about the subject.

She took a couple deep breaths letting them out slowly. "So…what do you think about this vision?"

"It is a surprise, but a happy surprise. We were older in the vision, all of us-Magash, Den, Norro, you, me. If the vision is accurate it indicates we survived for at least another decade. The boy was young…probably eight years old. " I gave her a grin. "That's good news."

She made a face and I knew that wasn't the answer she was looking for. "That's great that we live. I wanted to know what you thought about ushaving a child together."

"I don't know," I admitted. "Sacha, the vision is a shocking revelation. I honestly haven't had time to process the information. I can tell you we looked very happy together…in the vision. All of us. We looked extremely happy in that future."

"And how do you feel now?"

I took a couple ragged breaths. "Stunned…" I stopped and really thought about it. What did I feel? "Sacha, I don't know what to say. This is a shock. And it may not actually come to pass. The future is always in motion." I ran a frustrated hand through my hair. Sacha stared at me silently, her posture tense. I knew this had to be hard on her. I just revealed a possible future where we are together and have a child and she wanted to know if I embraced the idea of having a family or am I ready to hyperdrive my way out of her life. I rubbed my thumb against my temple where a headache was forming. "Just give me a minute to collect my thoughts."

I know I was reluctant to move on after the death of Laranth, but to be honest, I didn't want to live the life of a Jedi monk. I concentrated deeply, analyzing my emotions and thoughts. I loved being around Sacha. My soul always felt lighter in her presence. It was a sensation that I cherished, but steadfastly avoided out of respect for Laranth's memory. But now…now the Force has shown me I could possibly have a life with this woman…if I wanted it…if she wanted it.

'What do I do?'

I turned to Sacha whose anguished expression broke my heart. She thought I was rejecting her. I reached out and pulled her closer to me. "Sacha, I am very happy at the thought of us together." I smiled brightly. Once I said the words I was surprised at how joyful I felt. "As I said, this future might not come to pass…but I liked what I saw. Maybe it's time for me to move on." I grinned. "See, I told you when the time came you'd be the first one to know."

She gave a short nervous laugh. I looked into her eyes questioningly. "What do you think about the vision?"

Her face lit up. "It sounds wonderful."

"Good." I hesitated slightly before I leaned in and lowered my mouth gently to hers. She momentarily stiffened with surprise but soon melted into my arms. Sacha groaned in pleasure as she slowly slid her hand behind the nape of my neck and pulled me closer, deepening the kiss.

After a moment we pulled away from each other breathless. She averted her eyes shyly. "Sorry. I don't want to rush things for you."

I reached up and brushed a few wayward strands of hair away from her face. "You're not…but perhaps we shouldn't jump into a relationship based on a vision. That may not be the best foundation for a long-term relationship."

She gave a nervous smile. "You're probably right." She stood and looked down at me fondly. "I'm going to bed."

"I think I'll sleep on the couch tonight."

"You don't trust me?" She gave a teasing smile.

"I don't trust myself."

She shrugged a delicate shoulder. "Good night, Jax." She leaned down and brushed her lips against mine and I jumped when a crackle of pure Force energy passed between us. It felt like the floor dropped out from beneath me as an overwhelming surge of emotion and images flooded through my body pulling us together and intertwining our destinies. In that moment, I knew Sacha and she knew me…intimately. The last time I felt this type of Force connection was with Laranth.

Sacha's face went slack with awe as her knees grew weak. I pulled her back down on the couch next to me before she collapsed. "Sacha, don't worry…it's the Force doing this." I thought of the best way to explain what was happening. "It's a…"

I was going to tell her it was something the Jedi called a Force bonding, but I never got the words out. She wrapped her arms around my neck and pulled me close, capturing my lips in passionate kiss that prevented further conversation.

As I explored her mouth I could feel a string of invisible energy binding us tighter and tighter until I could no longer resist the will of the Force or the beautiful women in my arms. Passion transcended caution as I poured everything into the kiss. I could feel her hands slipping under my tunic and running up my back in a motion that sent ripples down my spine. "We shouldn't be doing this," I whispered, my voice deep and husky with desire.

"I don't know how we can stop." Her hands moved from my back to my chest. Her sensual touch broke down my last shred of resistance.

I knew she was right. We were now too far gone. I wrapped her up in my arms and lifted her from the couch before gazing down at her lovingly. "Are you sure about this?"

She pulled my head down to hers and answered with a lingering kiss. Through the Force I could feel her answer.

'Yes.'