Chapter 8 – Revelations

Gedera was an isolated star located in the Outer Rim. A red giant, Gedera was old and cool compared to most other stars. Of the fifteen planets caught in its orbit, and the one hundred moons orbiting the planets, only one planet was inhabitable enough to allow beings to spend their entire lives on it. Gederon, as it was called, rotated slowly enough so that one half of the planet was always facing the sun. But there were so many moons and planets between them that the planet experienced daily solar eclipses. Part of that area formed what was known as the Temperate Pole, which was a tropical rainforest with a diameter of 550 kilometers. The remaining area on that half of the planet was moderately cool and grassy, while the other half was dark and snowy. The Gederonians mostly settled in and around the Temperate Pole, where the ground was rich with mineral deposits.

Ashla Fett's ship came out of hyperspace over Gederon shortly after escaping from Hoth. Now that Ashla was safe, she could contact Boba Fett so he could help her capture Han Solo and Luke Skywalker. While she was excited to be collecting such a large bounty and starting a family with Boba, she couldn't help but feel somewhat guilty about wanting to turn Luke over to the Empire. During her conversation with him, she had noted all of the similarities between him and his father, Anakin Skywalker, who had been a close friend to Ashla in her former life. Would capturing Luke be the same as betraying Anakin? Perhaps. But, she reminded herself, that was years in the past. Now, she was a bounty hunter who needed to capture people in order to survive. Once she had taken care of Luke, Ashla would never have to dwell on her past again.

The scanners on Ashla's ship picked up another ship coming out of hyperspace. It was Luke in his X-Wing starfighter – again! Ashla snarled in annoyance. Just like his father, he wouldn't give up. Well, Ashla wasn't going to face him again. It was time to get rid of him, once and for all. She pressed a button on the cockpit dashboard, and an auto-turret rose from the roof of the ship.

Through the transparisteel cockpit of his X-Wing, Luke saw the auto-turret on Ashla's ship. "Artoo, raise the shields!" From the astromech socket behind the cockpit, R2-D2 whistled and activated the fighter's deflector shields, which would protect it from any blaster bolts that happened to hit it. As the turret began firing, Luke pushed and pulled the throttle in every direction so as to avoid the blasterfire. The turret's droid brain would automatically track the X-Wing and continue to fire at it. However, it couldn't predict where the fighter would be in the future, so Luke could avoid being hit as long as he didn't stay in the same place for too long.

R2-D2 let out an electronic squeal as a blaster bolt whizzed past his domed head. The droid then beeped a question, which was relayed to Luke through a translator screen in the cockpit. Luke replied, "No, Artoo, I'm not going back. Ashla knew who my father was, she knew how to use a lightsaber, and she was skilled enough to beat both Han and Chewie. If that means what I think it means, I need to know the truth." R2-D2 chirped a comment, and Luke added, "Even if I have to shoot her down. Unlock the laser cannons and open the S-foils into attack position." The fighter's four wings – two on each side, one on top of the other – opened to form an X, and the laser cannon on each wing began firing when Luke pushed a button on the throttle.

Ashla watched Luke's X-Wing through her rear-view camera. He was successfully dodging the blasterfire from her turret and returning fire. Not only that, he was performing evasive maneuvers that Anakin had used many times. He, too, was a fighter ace. So not only did Luke look and act like his father, but he also flew like him, too. Keeping that in mind, Ashla knew that Luke wouldn't easily be shot down, although it was possible. She needed some kind of weapon or maneuver that would take him down.

And then it hit her; missiles! Missiles were designed to lock onto strong heat sources, such as starfighter engines, and follow the sources until the missiles ran out of energy. And, luckily for Ashla, her ship was equipped with two hidden missile launchers. Luke wouldn't be able to see them coming. Ashla pressed a series of buttons and two missile launchers were lowered from underneath the rear wings. The launchers rotated to point at the X-Wing and then they each fired one projectile programmed to fly directly into the fighter's engines.

Luke was rapidly gaining on Ashla when he noticed the two missiles. He tilted his fighter so that the first missile went in between the left wings, but he inadvertently raised the bottom-right wing into the path of the second missile. The missile plowed across the surface of the wing, tearing off a large chunk. "We're hit!" Luke exclaimed. "What's the damage, Artoo?"

R2-D2 analyzed the ship's systems and reported that some of the wiring connected to the bottom-right engine had been severed. Although the wires could be reconnected, and the ship was still flyable, the engine had lost power, causing the ship to slow down. To make matters worse, the first missile had turned around and was flying straight at one of the remaining engines. Luke tried several tricks in an attempt to lose the missile, but with one of his wings damaged, he had lost some maneuverability.

In his distress over the missiles, Luke had almost forgotten about Ashla. He looked out of the cockpit and saw her attempting to escape in her ship. She must have figured that Luke's fighter had been damaged enough that it was no longer a threat. Luke shook his head. "Oh, no you don't." He angled his X-Wing to follow Ashla's ship and fired the laser cannons. A few of his shots collided with the ship's left engine, causing it to trail smoke. "Got her!" Luke yelled triumphantly.

"Blast it!" swore Ashla. Across her dashboard, alarms blared and lights flashed, indicating that the ship had suffered serious damage. Ashla cursed herself for underestimating Luke, especially since she knew that his piloting skills were the same as his father's. On the plus side, the remaining missile Ashla had fired had just hit one of the X-Wing's engines, leaving it as crippled as hers was. Now both ships were descending toward Gederon's surface.

R2-D2 squealed as the X-Wing plummeted toward the planet. "It's okay, Artoo!" said Luke. "The damage isn't bad; we still have control. I think I can still land the ship." R2-D2 asked another question, to which Luke answered, "No, I'm not giving up. I need to know the truth. We're going after her."

Unbeknownst to the Rebel Alliance, the Empire had established a chain of bases throughout the galaxy to replace the recently destroyed Death Star. The space station had been designed not only to serve as a military base and superweapon, but also to intimidate the galaxy into obeying the Empire. Therefore, the Emperor had dissolved the Imperial Senate, placing power directly into the hands of the Moffs, the regional governors of the Empire. When the Death Star was destroyed, the Empire erected Imperial bases throughout the galaxy to serve as military outposts and law enforcement headquarters. Each base was headed by the Moff who governed that particular area of the galaxy.

One such base was in the Temperate Pole on Gederon. An area near the edge of the rainforest had been cleared away to make room for a complex of barracks and armories arranged in a circle around a central tower that served as a command center. The entire base rested on a foundation of concrete and was surrounded by four-meter tall poles connected by beams of energy, creating an electrified fence. Imperial AT-AT and AT-ST walkers were parked throughout the base.

In the command center at the top of the tower, Moff Arndt oversaw the grey-uniformed Imperial officers manning the control stations. He was fiercely devoted to the Empire and to destroying the Rebellion. If any of these officers picked up any sign of rebel activity, Arndt would see to it that it was quelled immediately. He turned to look out of the wide windows, allowing him to observe the entire base and the surrounding area. Near the edge of the rainforest, he saw two objects falling from the sky, both of them trailing smoke. "What is that?" he asked the officer at the scanner station.

The officer zoomed in on the two ships and announced, "One of them appears to be a modified recreational vehicle, while the other is a starfighter, X-Wing class."

"X-Wing?" repeated Arndt. "They're rebels! Send a squad out immediately! I want them alive!" In response to the Moff's command, another officer pressed a button that alerted one of the barracks of the intrusion. Within moments, twenty stormtroopers were armed and loaded onto troop transports. The gunships took off, flying toward the rebel ships' crash site.

Ashla Fett managed to steer her ship toward the edge of the Gederonian rainforest. Keeping her ship level, it slid across a grassy area. Once the ship had stopped moving, Ashla checked the damage readouts. The crash had barely hurt the ship, but Luke's shots had succeeded in piercing the left engine housing. The main exhaust pipe was broken, so excess heat was not expelled properly. Ashla would have to patch the holes before she could take off again.

But that would have to wait. Luke Skywalker's X-Wing starfighter had landed right behind her. Ashla sighed in defeat. It seemed that there would have to be a confrontation after all. Quickly, she looked around the ship for extra weapons; the rebels had taken everything she had when they captured her. Luckily, she found an extra blaster pistol in her weapons drawer. After checking to make sure the pistol was armed, she opened the ship's hatch and stepped outside to face Luke.

Luke had hopped out of the X-Wing's cockpit and was standing next to the starfighter's nose. Ashla stopped several meters in front of him and asked, "Don't you know when to give up? If you had just left me alone, we could have avoided this mess."

Luke shook his head. "I'm not leaving until I get some answers."

"Then you're wasting your time, Skywalker. No one will ever get me to talk."

"I just want to know how you knew my father."

Ashla was surprised by the vagueness of his question. "I've heard stories about him, as have many other people."

"Then how did you recognize his lightsaber?" Luke unclipped his father's lightsaber from his belt and held it up for Ashla to see.

This time, Ashla hadn't been entirely prepared for the question. Thinking quickly, she answered, "I didn't. I just assumed that it was your father's because you share the same last name. I've never seen it before."

"But you used it in your escape, almost like it was part of your body. Where did you learn to wield a lightsaber?"

"I'm a bounty hunter," answered Ashla. "I've been trained in all types of combat."

"Commander Dain said you mentioned that you were wanted for conspiring with the Jedi," Luke pointed out. "Did they teach you to use it?"

Ashla couldn't think of an answer that would suffice. Finally, she said, "That's none of your business, is it? Now, stand aside. I have a job to finish, and, this time, you will not stand in my way." Ashla raised her pistol and aimed it at Luke.

Luke ignited his lightsaber with his right hand and drew his own blaster with his left. "I know you know more than you're telling me."

Ashla smiled in amusement. "Very good, kid. I see you're using your brain correctly now."

In the astromech socket on the X-Wing, R2-D2 whimpered nervously. He could tell that there was tension between them, and it was only a matter of time before one of them fired the first shot. The question was, who would that be?

It was neither of them. A red energy bolt whizzed out from the trees and hit the side of Ashla's ship. Luke and Ashla turned to see a squad of stormtroopers emerging from the edge of the rainforest, firing their blasters. Luke and Ashla returned fire, but the troopers had the tactical advantage of using the trees as cover. The two ships offered no protection, leaving Luke and Ashla vulnerable.

Luke used his lightsaber to block as many blaster bolts as he could. In the short time Luke had known Obi-Wan Kenobi, the Jedi Master had taught him how to deflect blaster bolts. In the time since then, Luke had begun to improve, efficiently defending himself against more and more bolts. His training was now paying off. Ashla began to move behind Luke so that he was covering her while she fired at the stormtroopers. Luke didn't mind, despite their confrontation earlier. After all, they were both under attack by the same group, so they might as well help each other to defeat them.

Ashla was firing her pistol with surprising accuracy. Many of her shots hit the stromtroopers, although their armor was strong enough in most places to resist damage. And with the troopers taking cover behind the trees, they were even harder to shoot. Ashla knew that her blaster and Luke's lightsaber alone wouldn't be enough to defeat them. They needed another weapon, but Ashla didn't have anything else in her ship. And then she remembered that Boba had given her a weapon before they parted.

Ashla leaned in closer to Luke and said, "I have something in my ship that can help us, but I need you to cover me closely."

Luke nodded and said, "I can do that. Whenever you're ready."

"Okay…. Go!" Ashla began to run toward her ship while Luke jogged to keep up with her, continuing to deflect the stormtroopers shots. When they reached the boarding hatch, Ashla ran inside and dug through her crates while Luke stood in the hatchway. Finally, Ashla found what she was looking for. "Get down!" Luke ducked just as Ashla appeared in the hatchway, toting a large Z-6 rotary blaster cannon. She pointed it at the trees and yelled, "Charge!"

On her command, Luke ran alongside her as she pulled the trigger on the cannon, unleashing a deadly barrage of blaster bolts. Some of the bolts hit the stormtroopers, killing them as they peeked out from the trees; others damaged the trees themselves, causing them to fall down, thus exposing the troopers. By the time fifteen stormtroopers were dead, the remaining five retreated into the rainforest. Ashla and Luke continued to pursue them until the trees became too thick and the Z-6 cannon's ammunition had been depleted. In the end, only two troopers managed to escape.

With the danger over, Luke and Ashla lowered their weapons, panting from exhaustion. As they returned to their ships, Luke asked, "Where did you get that cannon?"

Ashla answered, "Boba gave it to me – as an engagement gift."

Luke was shocked. "Boba Fett? Engaged? As in, getting married?"

Ashla smiled. "Oh, it's not that weird. He's always been into me." Ashla decided to change the subject. "You were really good with that lightsaber. How did you learn to defend like that?"

Luke replied, "Obi-Wan Kenobi taught me."

Ashla's eyes widened, remembering something she had heard Luke say in Echo Base. "You mean, Jedi Master Kenobi? So you do know him?"

Luke sighed sadly. "I knew him. He was killed by Darth Vader."

Ashla was bewildered. "Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. I had no idea that he survived the Jedi Purge. When so many others didn't."

Luke suddenly came to a realization. Ashla didn't just know who Obi-Wan was; she had known him personally. She had also known Anakin Skywalker, had been affiliated with the Jedi, she knew how to use a lightsaber, and her skills were unmatched. He decided to take a stab at his theory. "You were a Jedi, weren't you?"

Ashla was silent for a moment, not sure of how to answer. She had worked for twenty years to prevent anyone from knowing her secret. And now she had been unmasked by none other than Anakin's son. Knowing of Luke's connection to him, Ashla decided it would be easier to tell him the truth. "Yes. I was a Jedi Padawan during the Clone Wars. My real name is… Ahsoka Tano."

Luke sat in Ashla's – Ahsoka Tano's – ship, listening to her as she told her story.

"When the Jedi Temple was attacked by the clone troopers," she explained, "I, like all of the other Jedi, tried to defend it. But we were unsuccessful. All of the other Jedi were killed, and I was severely wounded and left for dead. One clone, Captain Rex, whom I had served with since the beginning of the war, decided to turn on his brothers and save me. He healed my wounds and gave me a speeder so that I could escape. There was only room for one, however, and I was forced to leave him to his death. I will never forget his sacrifice."

Ahsoka paused to dwell on the tale of her friend's death. Luke had never imagined that an Imperial stormtrooper would sacrifice himself to save a Jedi. It wasn't unbelievable, though. Some members of the Rebellion were once stormtroopers who defected to the rebels' cause. As for the deaths of the Jedi, Luke realized that it must have been traumatizing for Ahsoka to watch as every person she had been close to was killed mercilessly by the Empire.

Ahsoka continued, "After I escaped the temple, I threw away my Jedi uniform and destroyed my lightsabers so that no one would target me. I left Coruscant on a cargo vessel and went to Naboo to seek the help of one of my friends, who was a Senator. When I arrived, however, I learned that she was dead. After her funeral, I went to the lake to consider my next move. But I couldn't think of anything. Everyone I could trust was dead, and I had no money, no home, and no job. And that's when Boba happened to show up. He offered me protection, a home, a job, and, most importantly, he offered me love."

"How did you know Boba Fett?" asked Luke.

Ahsoka replied, "Months before, he had been hired be the Sith to deliver a holodisk containing secret plans. I intercepted and captured him, and I took the holodisk. At first, we didn't like each other at all, but then we began to develop feelings for each other. I brought him along on a mission to a Separatist base, where we bonded. Thanks to him, the mission was a success, and we discovered a Separatist plot to build nuclear missile launchers. When we went to destroy the launchers, however, it turned out to be a trap by the Sith, who saw Boba as a traitor. Not just to the Sith, but also to me. He admitted that at first he had only pretended to help me just so that he could get his disk back, but then he confessed that he really had fallen in love with me. We were almost killed in the trap, but we were rescued by the Jedi. After we had been healed, Boba left to protect me from the Sith, knowing that they were after him."

Luke shook his head. "Sorry, but I still can't imagine a bounty hunter like Boba Fett ever really loving anyone."

Ahsoka laughed. "He doesn't want anyone to think of him as nice or caring. He wants to uphold this reputation of being deadly and dangerous. Once you really get to know him, you see that he's actually a good man. After the Jedi Purge, he helped me into my new identity. He was there to comfort me when I was sad, and to love me when I felt alone. He taught me how to be a successful bounty hunter. That's how I became who I am today. Do you understand?"

Luke nodded, and then shook his head. "No, I don't understand. I don't understand why you act like a villain when you're really a hero."

"I don't want to be a villain, but I don't want to be hero anymore, either. The Jedi are extinct. That part of my life is over. I needed to put my past behind me and start over. I admit, I think I overdid it, but as long as I never have to face my past again, I feel that it's worth it."

"Why don't you come back with me and join the Rebellion. We could use someone like you, and I could vouch for you."

Ahsoka smiled apologetically. "I'm sorry, Luke, but I don't belong with the rebels. Besides, even if I did join, I don't see how a small band of rebels can defeat the Empire. I mean, look at them. There are too few of them, they're untrained volunteers, and they don't have nearly as much firepower as the Empire."

"But some of them are Imperial deserters, and we have things that the Empire doesn't have. We have resolve, determination, courage, and heart. And we're fighting for peace and freedom for the entire galaxy. We're fighting the people who killed the Jedi, your family. And I'm not going to stand by and let Vader kill thousands more people, like he did my father. You're the last of the Jedi. Doesn't that mean anything to you?"

"Of course it does! But that's all in the past. There's nothing I can do for them. I understand what you mean, and I'm truly sorry about what happened to your father – really, you have no idea how bad I feel about him – but I can't go with you." Ahsoka stood up and said, "Now let's get our ships fixed so we can get out of here. I always keep some metal plates I can use for patch jobs."

Luke stood and asked, "You're going to help me? I thought you wanted to put your past behind you."

"Well, fortunately for you, I'm in a good mood right now. A bounty hunter needs to be unpredictable so she can outsmart her enemies. Once we're off the planet, we never have to talk about this again, to anyone."

Luke nodded. "I won't tell. I'll just go back and say you were a good sport and let me go."

"You can also tell your friend Solo that I'm still coming after him, and that he has one week to get that junker of his fixed." As Ahsoka dug through her crates of supplies, looking for the metal plates, she wondered if she should have told Luke the whole truth about the attack on the Jedi Temple. Was he old enough to know? Perhaps, but he never knew his father. If she told him, he would probably be aggravated. It would be best for him to find out on his own when he was ready.

Some of what Ahsoka tells Luke at the end is featured in my first story, The Clone Wars: The Final Season. For more details, read chapters 8, 9, 11, 21, and 22. Or just read them all!

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