Chapter Fourteen

Less than forty-eight hours later, Jim was scrambling for his X-wing. The Death Star was in the system and closing on Yavin IV, Jim knew Yavin VI would be next without question. As he dropped into the cockpit, his flight-crew finished up with the X-wing and he took his helmet from the crew-chief. His cockpit hatch sealed and he checked his flight-instrumentation. When he got the thumbs-up, he maneuvered onto the central aisle and aimed straight.

"Alright back there, ArCee?" he called. His astro-droid, a chirpy unit named RC-10 gave an affirmative whistle. In no time, they were airborne and on their way to rendezvous. Jim watched as Rogue Squadron and Ghost Squadron dropped into position and listened as they made their call-ins one by one. For this suicide-run, Bones and Nyota were his wingmen. Wherever he went, whatever he did, they were right there with him.

"Rogue Group, Ghost Group, this is Rogue Leader. Listen up. It's gonna get hot and close down there once we reach the Death Star. No matter what happens, stay with your wingman. We will be running cover for Red Group and Gold Group. Whenever they make a run, we'll cover for them as needed. Engage any and all enemy fighters and keep the air clear for them. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Rogue Leader." He got nineteen affirmatives and looked to his right, "How are you holding, Rogue One?"

"Give me something to shoot at, Rogue Leader, and I'll be a lot happier."

"You know I wouldn't have held it against you if you changed your mind Rogue One." Jim could hear the tension in Bones's voice.

"I picked the greater of two evils this time, kid."

"Fair enough. Lock S-foils into attack position." He flipped the proper switch and said a quick prayer. If this didn't work, it wasn't just the Alliance who would be in deep trouble, the Federation would have problems of it's own.

As long as everything seemed to take once they engaged the Empire, it all seemed to be over too fast. One minute Jim was shooting TIE bogeys, the next he was hauling ass to beat out a spectacular disintegration as the Death Star went boom. It had all happened so quickly, he was still trying to figure it out. He had been hurtling down that narrow canyon at dangerously high speed, depending on bare eyesight and instinct to tell him when to fire the damn missiles, three TIEs on his ass, Luke, Bones, and Nyota circling overhead and in full panic mode, when the Millenium Falcon had come soaring out of the sun, blown two of the three TIE fighters to smithereens and given Jim the perfect opening. Seizing the chance to pay a favor back, he fired the missiles and prayed. It was good and away, time to run. That reminded him of something. He reached over and switched on his com-link.

"Hey, Han."

"Yeah, Jimmy?"

"How many do I owe you now?"

"You don't owe me for that one, kid."

"Bullshit I don't."

"Look, I'll collect when I need a favor, alright?"

"Fair enough." Jim smirked, "Hey, Luke, you alright back there?"

"I've been better."

"Figures. Bones?" comm.-silence. Jim rolled his eyes, "Rogue One?"

"My teeth are chattering so hard I can barely talk."

"Only to be expected when you do the one thing you absolutely hate the most to defeat the one thing you hated more." Jim smiled, "Don't worry, Bones, we made it."

"Yeah, yeah we did." Bones sounded a little stronger. Jim looked behind him at the rag-tag band of twenty-two star-fighters clustered together as they limped home and felt a stab of pride.

Hours later, Jim joined Luke and Han on a podium as a hero of the Alliance. Leia looked absolutely radiant in her white gown, his father looked sharp in dress-uniform. Jim found it ironic and fitting that his father had forgone Alliance dress-uniform for a green-and-white Starfleet dress-uniform with the rank-stripes and shoulder-tabs of Admiral. Jim wore the same uniform with the rank-stripes and shoulder-tabs of Lieutenant Commander. The ceremony was blissfully short, the celebrations that followed it were not.

Hours later, with a beer in one hand, Jim sat in a corner with his pilots.

"Well, this sure beats trekking across the Dune Sea for two weeks, huh?"

"I don't know about that, but we sure learned a lot more than we would have." Bones mused, leaning his head back.

"I'll say." Jim smirked, "We learned there's one thing you hate more than space-flight." The others laughed and ribbed Bones, who glared at Jim with very little heat behind it.

"I have as many reasons as you do to hate the Empire, Skywalker."

"I think everyone in this room has reasons to hate the Empire. Whether they have more or not doesn't matter." Jim shrugged. It took him a minute to realize that Bones had called him Skywalker. A few minutes later, Bones vanished. Jim went to find him and found him standing outside, staring up at the stars. They could see the remains of the Death Star burning in the atmosphere, and Jim wondered how long they would be there.

"Bones?" he stood by his friend and wingman, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing."

"Liar. I'm standing right next to you and the sheer volume of hate would knock me over if I was anyone else." Jim went around in front of Bones, "You changed your name, didn't you?"

"I don't know what you're talking about." Bones snarled. Jim arched an eyebrow.

"Oh yes you do. If I was two when they razed the Temple, you were five. Tell me you don't remember that."

"Of course I do! Of course I remember that!" Bones spat hatefully, "I remember where I was hiding, for Chrissakes!"

"The High Council Chamber, at the top of the tower. You and nine other Younglings were hiding up there, or trying to." Jim faced the rainforest beyond the temple, "Do you remember anything else?"

"I remember the Jedi Knight who found us there and then kept us safe by transporting us out of the Temple. He had some weird kind of magic he used to save us, I remember he stayed behind to face Anakin Skywalker. I had Tiberius Skywalker with me, he was only two."

"Bones?"

"Hmm?"

"Look at me." Jim waited for Bones to focus on him, "Do you remember what the Knight looked like?"

"Yeah."

"Look at me, then remember that Knight's face." He watched Bones, saw the recognition and understanding.

"Holy god! That was you?"

"I messed up my own past to save my future." Jim looked up at the stars, "Do you remember what my father told you when he gave me to you before the Clones came?"

"He…told me to take care of you…to make sure you were kept safe." Bones blinked, "They took you away when it was over, and I just remember I screamed and cried because I couldn't understand why they didn't want me to take care of you anymore."

"And I was too young to understand anything beyond knowing that something was making you upset." Jim sighed, "Dad told me once that taking me away was the hardest thing he ever did. Harder than turning on Palpatine."

"That took guts." Bones made a face and finished off his beer, "Gutsy and stupid, but it worked."

"Taking on the Death Star in snub-fighters was gutsy and stupid, and that worked." Jim reminded him, "So, when did Leonard McCoy start sounding better than Lanke Qusell*?"

"It sounded normal. Do you have any idea what people would think if they heard my real name?"

"Hmm, yeah. You have a point." Jim turned to go back inside, "I guess Lanke Qusell is a little on the weird side for Terrans."

"Just a little. So, we're good?" Bones caught up with him. Jim looked at his friend and smirked.

"You start wearing your lightsaber in plain view and we'll call it even."

"No."

"Don't be an ass, Bones."

"Forget it! I don't even know where my lightsaber is right now!"

"Then we'll just build you a new one. They seeded some kyber crystals on Yavin VI, we'll go there after things calm down."

"Are you sure that's a good idea?"

"I need to build another one anyway, so I'll go with you."

"What's wrong with the one you have?"

"It's the same lightsaber I've owned since I was thirteen. Time for a new one, at least a new crystal."

"Oh, true." Bones shrugged, "All right. We can go to Yavin IV."

"Right now, though, sleep sounds like a really good idea." Jim headed inside, Bones followed. They made it as far as Jim's quarters and got out of their clothes, stripping to tee-shirts and boxers before collapsing on the bed. With any luck at all, they would have no dreams.

Two days later, Jim and Bones flew their X-wings to Yavin VI. Nyota joined them last-minute and the three of them searched for the crystal-patch near the Sensora Temple. By sundown, they had completed their lightsabers. They spent the night in the Sensora Temple, it was easier than flying back to Yavin IV. Jim told Qui-Gon about Obi-Wan, and how they'd taken on and defeated the Empire together a few days ago. He was proud of them for taking the risk, and wished them well at Starfleet Academy. Jim looked at his wingmen and just smiled. With this kind of experience under their belts, Jim had the feeling Wolf Squadron would be leaps and bounds ahead of their classmates. But that was just his opinion.

*Lanke Qusell (pr. Lan-kay Cue-sell): Dr. McCoy's name before he fled the Empire and adopted an entirely unassuming Terran name and lifestyle.

We'll see more of Jedi!Bones and Jedi!Jim in future chapters, I promise! Read on, enjoy, and don't flame me, please! I'm just playing with the sand that fell out of the sandboxes of Mr. Lucas and Mr. Abrams, and of course Mr. Roddenberry, may he Rest In Peace.