Gah, I'm so depressed that Star Wars Celebration is over. I loved the Mark Hamill panel, I didn't want it to end! And nor did he! (I'm gonna watch it again...)

So...this is the last chapter of The Past Meets the Future...Next up is a new book, mwahahahaha

So you know that you all have GOT to review now, since it's the LAST CHAPTER. Just like I usually do, I will be posting an Alert as a 42nd chapter whenever the next book is posted so you'll know it's up.

So...this is an interesting chapter. I decided to end it on a rather interesting note...

So please review!

Enjoy!

He was to be sent off to the undisclosed location immediately. There was only one Council member that was going to hold the coordinates for the planet he was being exiled to, and it wasn't going to be his father. At this very moment Luke was being rushed away to the Hangar Bay where he would board the ship that would take him far away from everyone and everything he knew. Surrounded by six sentinels, still in the thick binders, Luke was being rushed towards the ship.

His stomach twisted painfully. He wasn't ready! He wanted to see his family one more time! He wanted to see his sister, his mother, his father. He wanted to see Galen, Han, Chewy, Obi-Wan. He wanted to tell Ahsoka she did what she could and he was grateful for everything she did. He wanted to see Mara one more time before he was forced to leave. He wanted to see them all, to say goodbye. He couldn't go now!

"Wait!"

Luke's head whipped around at the cry, though he kept moving forward, ushered on by the sentinels.

It was his mother, rushing to catch up to them with his sister, Galen, Han, and Chewy close on their heels. At the sight of them, Luke committed his first act of non-compliance since he'd been arrested. He stopped immediately, digging his heels into the ground and resisting the arms that tried to push him forward.

"No, wait, my family—" he said desperately, his gaze locked on the figures that were rushing forward. "Please, at least let me say goodbye," he said desperately.

The sentinel that was in the lead hesitated, but that was all the time that his mother needed to reach him. Luke pushed out of the grip of the two sentinels that had a hold of him, freeing himself from their grip so that his mother could encircle him tightly into her arms.

"Mother," he murmured softly, burying his face into her shoulder and placing a cuffed hand gently on her side.

"Luke, you can't go, we just got you back," Padme sobbed softly into his shoulder.

Luke sighed, burying his face deeper into his mother's shoulder before he pulled away. "I must...I need to atone for my mistakes, and I won't complain." He lightly kissed her cheek. "I love you mother, please remember that."

Padme's eyes shamelessly let their tears fall freely down her face. "And I love you too Luke. My little boy..."

Luke smiled sadly before he turned to his sister. "Leia," he murmured, hooking his bound arms around her so he could give her a real hug. Leia buried her face in her brother's shoulder to hide the tears that were about to become rampant upon her face.

"Luke, please don't go, I need you. Maybe we can change their minds..." she tried desperately.

"Leia, you've always been strong," Luke reminded her softly. "I'll be all right."

"Maybe I can come with you—"

"No," Luke said firmly, cutting her off. "No, Father's already losing one of his children, he doesn't need to lose both of us. Besides, it's exile, I don't think anyone is supposed to come with me."

Leia pulled him closer. "I don't want you to go."

"I have to Leia...I love you," he said softly, kissing her forehead before he pulled his arms back over her head and freed her from his embrace. He moved over to Galen, Han, and Chewy, who were standing off to the side with grim expressions. Han had a grimace on his face as he clasped Luke's shoulder.

"So...you're going to be leaving us, are you kid?" he asked, trying to be nonchalant about the whole thing and avoid making the conversation grimmer than it already was.

"It appears so," Luke said with a strained smile. Han thumped him on the back and then pulled him into a tight hug.

"I'm going to miss you Luke," he said in a low, gruff tone.

"I'm going to miss you too Han. Take care of Leia for me," Luke forced out. Beside them, Chewy let out a mournful growl and grabbed Luke into a bone crushing hug the moment that Han let go of him. Luke laughed weakly. "Yes Chewy, I'm going to miss you too."

When Chewbacca finally put him down, Luke moved over to Galen. "Galen...will you please take care of Mara for me? She needs someone to show her kindness and forgiveness around here, and I'm afraid it's going to be a while before all of my family warms up to her again."

Galen nodded tersely. "Of course Luke...anything."

"Luke!"

Luke turned in surprise at the voice that echoed towards him from the other side of the hanger bay, but it was easy to spot the flaming red hair as Mara Jade rushed towards him, his black cloak in her hands. Something fluttered in his stomach and he took several steps away from the group to meet her halfway, with Mara slinging her arms around his neck as soon as she reached him.

"Mara," he murmured, eagerly breathing in the scent of her hair and wishing he was free of his bonds so he could actually pull her closer. She trembled against him, and it didn't take him long to realize that Mara was crying against him. The tough Ex-Emperor's Hand Mara Jade was crying. Luke felt his heart throb as he pulled back to look her in the eyes. "Mara, please don't cry..."

"I don't want you to go," she said softly. "I need you here."

Luke sighed, using his thumb to wipe away some of the tears on her face. "You know I have to. I'll be all right, you know that I will."

"We may never see you again though," she responded in a broken hearted tone.

Luke nodded slowly, burying the pain the reminder brought as far down as he possibly could. "I know...I know...but you'll have to move on without me. Whether or not I'm brought out of my exile will be by the will of the Force. Until then, I want you to continue living your life, all right? Don't let it stop you from living, okay?"

Mara was still watery eyed, but she gently situated Luke's black cloak over his shoulders with steady hands before she punched his shoulder. "You better come back Farmboy, or you and I are going to have a long talk."

Luke smiled weakly at her. "I'll see what I can do." Both of them knew his heart wasn't quite in those words. Tenderly, he leaned over and gave her a kiss on the cheek. "Stay safe," he whispered.

Luke cast his eyes upward, scanning the bay for his father. He couldn't see him anywhere, and his heart dropped. He couldn't see Obi-Wan anywhere either, and he knew that the sentinels wouldn't wait much longer.

Sure enough, the two sentinels were approaching him again, and each seized one of his arms to start dragging him back towards the ship that was going to be taking him away. Mara reluctantly let him go, hanging onto his hand until the last moment, and the entire group that had gathered to see him off bunched together in collective support for one another as the sentinels dragged him away. His foot had just touched the landing ramp when one more protest rent the air.

"Stop!"

Considering the familiarity of the voice and all the authority that it held, the sentinels came to an immediate halt, and Luke turned around with his heart soaring. It seemed he was going to be able to say goodbye to his father after all.

Obi-Wan and Anakin hurried over to the ramp and the sentinels parted out of their way without a word while Luke stayed firmly rooted in place. Anakin didn't even halt as he pulled Luke into his arms, cradling the boy close to his heart as if the moment he let go he would die.

"You have to know I did everything I could to change their mind so you could stay with us. You know I didn't have a vote because of our relations but I was still allowed to voice my opinions and I did everything in my power to keep them from exiling you. Obi-Wan too," Anakin said in a rush.

"It's all right Father, I know you did what you could, and I'm grateful for that," Luke said softly. "But this is something I have to do...and it's a path that I have to take alone."

Anakin pulled back and searched Luke's eyes before he nodded in understanding. Luke was the only one who could face his demons, and he needed the time to re-find himself without outside influences. In a way...this exile was helping him. It was painful being ripped away from his family and friends, but at the same time it was necessary. He needed to atone for what he'd done, and though he'd taken the first few steps, there was still several more miles to cross.

Anakin reached into the folds of his cloak and pulled out both of Luke's lightsabers, hooking them onto the young man's belt for him. "You're going to need these."

The sentinels moved to protest, but Anakin held up a hand. "He will be of no threat to you and will not present any resistance; he may be armed, and he will be armed so that he can protect himself wherever he is being exiled to."

Luke nodded gratefully. "Thank you Father."

Anakin tightened his grip on Luke's shoulder, reluctant to let him go. For a moment, Luke was convinced that his father was going to sling him over his shoulder and take off with him, fighting the Jedi Order singlehandedly the whole way if he had to. However, the moment passed, and Anakin managed to let his hand drop away. "Take care of yourself Son."

Obi-Wan stepped out from behind Anakin, giving Luke a sad smile. "I wish we could have done more for you Luke. Though I must say...exile isn't as bad as it sounds. Just remember that the Force will be with you—"

"Always," Luke finished for him. Obi-Wan smiled, reminiscent.

"Yes...always," Obi-Wan said quietly.

"We'll try to bring you back Luke; I promise," Anakin said passionately.

Luke smiled sadly once again. "Don't make a promise that you can't necessarily keep Father...but thank you anyway." He sighed, and looked away towards the ship. "Tell Ahsoka that I'm grateful for everything that she's done, will you?"

"Of course," Anakin said with a curt nod.

Luke nodded slowly. "Thank you..." He sadly looked up into the ship, where some of the sentinels were already starting to board. The two that had taken ahold of his arms were the only ones that remained, and Luke could tell that they were getting impatient. "I love you. I'm going to miss you Father"

With that he turned to leave, ascending the ramp as Anakin whispered his own parting. "Goodbye Luke. I love you too."

If his father said anything after that, Luke didn't hear it, because the ramp started to lift and Luke was led to a holding cell in the back of the small ship where he was going to be kept until they arrived at their destination. When the ray shield activated behind him, sealing him inside the small cell, Luke simply stood numbly in the middle of the cell, his hand floating towards the holo of Luke and his father that was still safely tucked inside his pocket.

The trip was long, signaling to Luke that he was either in the Outer Rim or, more likely, the Unknown Regions. The latter option worried him, as there were hardly any mapped planets in the Unknown Regions part of the galaxy. He did remember making a trip or two into the Unknown Regions while he was apprenticed to Sidious.

Luke stopped the train of thought there before any bad memories could intrude. He was already in a grim enough mood, he didn't need to make it any worse. Besides, he just felt the ship make the distinct—at least distinct to him—change from space to atmosphere. They would be landing on the planet soon...

The ray shield was deactivated, and Luke turned to see the two sentinels standing outside the holding cell expectantly. Luke didn't need to be told that it was time to go; he already knew. Wordlessly, they all made their way over to the ramp, and Luke stared at the ramp as the ship slowed down. He kept waiting for the ship to touch down on the planet's surface, but it never did. When the ramp started to lower, Luke realized that they were not going to touch down; they were literally dropping him off on the planet.

One of the sentinels leaned down and undid his binders at the same time that the ramp lowered all the way, and he was prodded forward towards the edge of the ramp. Thankfully, they were at least hovering above the ground of wherever he was. He could see long prairie grass below the ship as he shuffled forward to the edge of the ramp, peering at the landscape around him. The moment he left this ramp, he was all alone...

The ship started to slowly climb back up to the sky, and Luke took it as his hint to get off. He jumped off the ramp before the ship could get too high into the air, tucking in and rolling until he was lying on his back. He propped himself up on his elbows, watching as the ship took off, became a dot in the sky, and then completely disappeared. Luke stayed where he was for a few moments as the reality that he was now utterly alone fell over him.

Slowly, Luke got to his feet, dusting himself off as he let his gaze roam across the clearing he had been dropped off in. There was a thin forest surrounding him, and he could see mountains in the distance as well as nearby.

At least it wasn't a wasteland...or Hoth...or Tatooine.

But something about this planet was...familiar...

And that bothered him immensely.

Luke shook himself out of his stupor and pulled his hood up as he started to walk. He didn't know where he was going, but he knew that he wanted to get a good feel of the planet and that he needed to find somewhere to seek shelter. Who knew what kind of creatures lived on this planet?

Besides; focusing on survival would keep his mind off the grief.

Unfortunately, Luke found out rather quickly why this place was familiar.

He had been here before.

And not while he was on the side of light.

There was no recorded settlement of this planet in the depths of the Unknown Regions, and this planet was not mapped either. However, there had been a colony of twi'leks, togrutas, and humans that had settled on this planet off-record. They were the only colony, and had kept themselves cut off from the Galaxy in an attempt to avoid the many problems that plagued the Galaxy, therefore resulting in being completely isolated and safe, kept secret from the Galaxy. They had called their sanctuary Xenon.

What they hadn't expected was a certain Sith stumbling across their solitary home in pursuit of another planet to use as a base just in case they were forced to relocate again.

That colony was no longer on this planet. They had been completely eradicated in a massacre that Eius had executed out of pure boredom from a long trip.

It had taken stumbling across the remains of their small village for Luke to remember, and when he did, he wished he hadn't.

Very slowly, Luke made his way down the dirt path with the remains of wooden houses framing each side of the path. He tried not to think of the remains of the victims that still littered the streets and also probably hid within the rubble of the demolished homes. He tried not to think of the horrid acts that had been committed here.

But he tried in vain. He didn't make it down the dirt path very far before the guilt became too much and he decided that he had to do something to make up for what he'd done here. The only thing he could think of, however, was giving these victims a proper burial. So, he left the small village to search out the right materials to build a funeral pyre similar to the one that he and Ben had constructed for the Jawas on Tatooine.

By the time the large pyre was constructed and all the bodies were added to the flames—at least the ones that could be added to the flames—Luke's hood had fallen and he was covered with soot and sweat, dirt and grime. He still had one last building to check, and that was the large stone building that he guessed had served as the town gathering point or something like that. He made his way gradually to the building, cleaning off as much of the filth off of his face that he could with the sleeve of his cloak. The action reminded him that he only had one change of clothes, and that was the clothes on his back. He grimaced at the thought, but he was sure he could make due. Perhaps...perhaps there was something in the remains of the village that would fit him.

His footsteps on the stone steps to the large building clicked and echoed within, causing an ominous sound that even cause him to shiver slightly. He didn't spot any bodies on the first floor, but there was a second—

Someone coughed.

The sound caused Luke's head to snap up as it echoed down towards him from the second floor. It was a hacking cough that he knew all too well. Yoda had made a similar sound when he had been on the brink of death. Still, it signaled that someone else was here, and that perhaps not all of the villagers had been killed in his massacre.

Without thinking, Luke took the steps two at a time, sticking his head hastily inside every single door down the extensive hall until at long last he came to the door at the end of the hall that revealed the source.

On a bed pushed in a far corner was an ancient, wizened woman who released another hacking cough as Luke stepped into the room, so far oblivious to his presence as far as he was aware. She had the blankets pulled all the way up to her chin, and an almost empty glass of water was on the nightstand beside her. Right across from the foot of the bed was a closet that was slightly ajar, and there was a collection of pillows and blankets on the floor next to the bed, but other than that there was nothing in the room. Luke took a few steps closer to the woman with every intent of helping her, but such an endeavor was forfeited once the woman laid eyes on him.

Suddenly, Luke no longer thought that this survivor had been out of town. Now, he could tell that she had been here when the massacre had happened, but she had been well enough hidden that Luke must have overlooked her in his bloodlust induced haze. The woman's eyes widened in absolute terror and she suddenly started screeching at in-human decibels.

"Demon!" she shrieked. "Murderer! Monster! It's back! It killed them all and now it's here for me! It wants my blood!"

Luke winced and withdrew as if she had stabbed him through the heart—a feeling he actually was acquainted with. The old woman continued to shriek, and he simply stood by the door, not quite sure what to do to calm her. When she paused for another violent round of hacking, her pillow fell to the floor and Luke darted forward to catch it. She drew away with a strangled hack of terror, but Luke refused to be deterred from his attempt at a good deed. He made sure that his movements were careful and slow as he set the pillow back in its spot, pulling the blanket back into place despite the old woman's tremors of terror. As soon as he'd done what he could for her comfort, he pulled away, keeping his eyes cast downwards.

"I'm so sorry," he said softly. Unable to bear whatever look would grace the old woman's features, he got up and grabbed the glass of water off the nightstand. He was sure he'd seen a sink in the tiny kitchen downstairs; hopefully it still had running water.

When he returned, the old woman did not shriek, but she did scoot away from him when he offered the glass of water to her. Instead, he placed the glass on the nightstand, glancing at the old woman with worry when he heard how ragged her breathing was. He wished he could do something for her, but from his experience, there was nothing much he could do but make her comfortable.

How fitting he should arrive when the only survivor of his massacre here was about to die.

He hated sitting there in silence as the old woman continued to deteriorate, but to his surprise it was not he who broke the silence when he could take it no longer.

It was the old woman.

"Why are you here?" she rasped at him. Finally, the woman held his gaze, and Luke was able to see that she had pale brown eyes that were rapidly losing their luster. Luke was about to answer that he'd been exiled here, but something about that response—even if it was true—seemed wrong. He was silent for several moments, looking inwards in hopes to receive guidance towards the true reason through the Force. The only sound in the room was the old woman's breathing as it continued to slow and become more labored with every moment. Finally, Luke spoke.

"To atone for all that I've done...or at least start to," Luke told her quietly. The old woman looked at the glass of water and Luke, realizing that she was too weak to get it on her own, reached over and grabbed the glass, helping the old woman sit up and sip from the cup. He touched her as little as possible, not wanting to make her uncomfortable. However, it seemed the closer to death she came, the less she cared about who he was. When she had gulped down the last drop of water she fell back on the bed, and Luke could tell by her ragged, short breaths that she was close to death. To his surprise, the old woman reached up and grabbed the front of his shirt, pulling him close to her with a last burst of energy.

"Cleanse...yourself...take...re...Jeza...clos...t..." she croaked, her voice cracking and fading several times before her hand dropped from its death grip on his shirt and fell limp on the bed. The old woman breathed no more, and Luke sat staring at her body for several long moments before he even started to function again. Bitter tears stung at his eyes as he stood up from the bedside, and he cast his gaze over to the closet across from the bed. Gingerly, he closed the old woman's eyes before he pulled the blanket up over her face and then quietly he approached the closet, peeling back one of the double doors. He froze halfway through the action when he heard a child-like whimper from within.

His mind reeling, Luke pulled the door all the way back to reveal the source of the whimper.

In the far back of the closet, wedged in a small, tight space between the wall and a tall crate, was a tiny light gray skinned twi'lek girl with deep, midnight blue eyes that were currently wide with fear as she stared at Luke. Luke stood frozen in the doorway of the closet for several moments, simply staring at the child that couldn't be more than ten years old in shock.

Through the Force, he could tell that she too recognized him from the massacre here. Hesitantly, Luke stepped forward, proffering his hand. The child shrank away from him with another whimper of fear, and Luke drew back slightly before he started to speak in soothing tones.

"It's all right...I'm not going to hurt you...I promise..." Luke said softly, stepping towards her again and reaching his hand out. The little girl hesitated, so Luke kept talking in the same soft tone. "I'm Luke...I'm going to get you out of here, and take care of you...your name's Jeza, right?"

The little girl nodded slowly, and Luke stepped a little closer. "I won't hurt you Jeza...come on, let's get you out of here," he said gently.

Finally, the little girl took his hand and allowed him to pull her out of the tight corner. Gently, he picked her up and situated her on his hip. The girl instinctively wrapped her arms and legs around his neck and waist, burying her head in his shoulder while her lekku's dangled down her back. Luke was alarmed by how skinny the girl was, and momentarily worried that maybe the planet was deceiving and not as habitable as first appearances suggested.

The girl murmured something in Ryl, and Luke sighed. "I only speak Basic, Jeza, I'm sorry."

Jeza spoke again in a childlike, melodic tone, but this time in Basic. "Where's Denna?"

Luke's gaze darted towards the bed that the old woman's body was concealed in. "She's gone Jeza...I'm sorry...I'm going to take care of you now though, okay?"

Jeza nodded against his shoulder. "All right."

With that, Luke left the building, and eventually the town, keeping Jeza's face turned inward so she wouldn't have to look at the ruins of her village. As he left the painful reminder of his crimes behind, the gist of the old woman's dying words came back to him.

Cleanse yourself. Take care of Jeza.