A/N 1: Well, an update as soon as I could muster, with what, my work and everything. I really went out on a limb on this one. Needless to say, all elements are now pretty deviant from Canon/EU, with a lot of Original concepts that I've actually thought plausible at various times.
I hope you guys like this one too.
PLEASE, review and let me know what you like/don't like. PM for any queries, as always.
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Koelmi: Order 65 is actually Canon and a part of the original set of Contingencies the Clone Army was created with. I didn't make it up.
May The Force Help You Never Go Back On Your Word, Dattebayo!
Chapter 8
(Mind Space of the Sith Talisman; Jedi Temple, Tython)
Anakin Skywalker was as tired and annoyed as one could be, spiritually speaking. Not only did the "Voice" not answer any of his questions in a helpful manner, but it also seemed to insult him now by sending hordes of creatures at him that he banished without a second thought. If it was supposed to be a quest, it might as well be a little bit challenging, but no, the said governing Presence seemed bent on teaching him it's own version of the Jedi's 'Patience is a virtue' rote. He was thoroughly irritated, and the next time the presence made itself known, he was going to make sure he gave it a piece of his mind.
After the Voice had first told him to complete his "Quest" to obtain "answers to all his questions" and such, he just sighed to himself, accepted his ridiculous fate and started making an inventory of his options and finding out more about his surroundings, something that had been drilled into his head as a Padawan by Obi-Wan Kenobi. The first thing that he checked for, and was relieved to find, was that he had his lightsaber.
Out of sheer curiosity, he switched on the blade and brought it close to his hand. "Oh, what the heck, I'm a mind projection anyway. None of my own constructs should be able to hurt me.", and slashed it across his hand. As he expected, the blade passed straight through, without leaving a mark on him. Next, he swung it at a rock outcrop and saw that it sliced clean through.
"Right, no friendly fire. That should make things easier."
Apart from his saber, he only had his Jedi robes on himself. He could channel the Force, obviously, as he was basically in a Force construct. Squaring his shoulders, he peered into the depths of the cave and said to himself, "Well, let's see about this quest now, shall we?"
Even though it all looked real enough, it was still very surreal to him. The air was absolutely still, for one, and he realized that he was not really breathing either. Drowning wasn't going to happen, then. Irrespective of how much further he went, he could see a few feet in front of him at all times, not more, not less. Once again, out of the sheer number of repetitions, Obi-Wan's advice called out to him: "When you think your senses are deceiving you, trust in the Force. Let it guide you."
Well, it was time to take that advice literally.
As he was in a completely Force based construct with no physical body, Anakin found it very easy to extend his senses beyond his physical self. The Force that flowed around him also seemed to augment his senses, making it easy for his presence to flow outward. He extended his senses and felt the path ahead of him, realizing at the same time that he had probably passed some kind of initial test when the way ahead seemed to almost light up in response to his Force presence. He moved forward, idly wondering if this is how the Miraluka perceived things at all times. For one, he felt that this particular form of sensing was much more precise and detailed compared to his own eyes. He was able to take in every detail without having to pause and observe, unlike when he saw things with his eyes. He was also able to perceive Force signatures for all things around him, and how the Force flowed in and around them.
Shaking his head, he refocused himself on to the path in front of him. The Force-sight bore investigation, but he could try that later when he was back in his own body. He was on a clock here.
"Well, if that was part one of my test, part two should be showing up after this.", he thought to himself.
From somewhere ahead of him, a deep roar emanated.
Anakin really hated his luck.
Lightsaber in hand, he forged ahead, all the while making sure to observe his surroundings as best he could in order to prevent falling into any traps.
The tunnel finally opened up into a wide cavern, more than half of which was occupied by a clear lake. Many stalagmites rose up from the ground, and stalactites to meet them, giving a very real and eerie feeling to the entire cavern.
Right between him and the lake stood a Disturbance, which Anakin realized was the source of the roar. As he strode towards it, it morphed into the shape of a Gundark and roared yet again.
"So, you're trying to feed off my fears. Well, nice try, but I've handled more corporeal Gundarks before."
Igniting his saber, he ran forwards just as the beast also started running in his direction. It lunged at him when he was in range and swept it's gigantic hands in a low arc, but Anakin simply leapt upwards and brought his saber down to impale it into the beast's head.
To his surprise, as soon as his saber touched the Gundark's skull, the beast promptly exploded into a cloud and morphed into shadows, fading from existence almost instantly. Warily, he looked around for other signs of danger, but not sensing any in the Force, he switched off his saber.
Peering around for an exit, Anakin's attention fell on the lake as his gaze crossed it. The giant body of water lay still as a mirror, sparkling for some reason. Realizing that the lake was not just decoration as he already knew that he could breathe underwater here, he strode forward and knelt at the edge of the water.
His confusion grew when he saw he could only see reflections and nothing of what lay under the surface. And yet, the lake seemed to call out to him. Perplexed, he reached out with a finger and touched the surface of the water.
The surface rippled, and the next instant he was yanked under into complete darkness. Before he could scream, or realize that he couldn't really be harmed by physics in here, he came to an abrupt halt, lying prone on a cold floor.
"Definitely not my favorite mode of transport. Flying is much better."
Anakin heaved himself up and looked up, trying to adjudge exactly how he had fallen here, but all he could perceive was darkness. Even Force-sight didn't either extend that far, or something was preventing him from sensing anything about. Realizing the futility of it, he set his sights down the (yet another) tunnel that he was in. This one seemed to be steeper than the last one, but wider.
His observations were cut short as he heard sounds of something, or things, scuttling along the tunnel floor. Yet again igniting his saber, he carefully walked forward, using Force-sight to watch for the source of said sounds.
This time, however, instead of one adversary, it proved to be a horde of Rakghouls. Anakin had never really seen these ghoulish creatures firsthand before, but he did know that a bite from an infected Rakghoul could infest any human and turn them into one, Force sensitive or not. He had a feeling that a bite from one of them, even in this non-corporeal state, would affect him adversely.
He slipped into a more defensive lightsaber form, as opposed to his usual, much more heavy utilization of Djem So, and sliced through the creatures before any got close enough, using his Force powers from time to time to give him some breathing space.
He made slow progress. Even though they posed no harm to him as he was way faster and stronger, and they also exploded into shadows on contact, it still started tiring him out mentally. He was also starting to get very annoyed, as he really didn't understand the point of this. All he had wanted to do was garner information about the nature of the Talisman, not play charades with some spirit and it's pets.
Another thing that bothered Anakin was that he had no idea about the amount of time he had actually spent in the mind-space. He knew for sure that if he didn't get back to his body soon, it would not bode well. A "mind" should never stay away from its original physical container for too long.
Seeing the next batch of creatures around the corner, Anakin gave up on taking them down one by one. Using the same trick he did back on Tython, he smashed an extremely condensed ball of Force into the ground, causing it to rupture and spread out in a Force wave, neatly dispersing all the incoming monsters.
He looked up at a vague point and shouted "Seriously, is that all or is there more of these pointless visions that you want to bother me with? No, really, just let me know now so I can decide on whether there actually is a point in going on."
He felt his awareness prickle as the same Presence from before made itself known.
"You lack patience. You must gain that first."
"I lack my body too. I'd rather just gain that."
The Voice halted. Apparently, it was not used to people not falling at its feet in awe, in search of more knowledge. Well, Anakin didn't care. He was annoyed as it is, and didn't feel like continuing being anyone's pawn, let alone a disembodied voice trying to play supernatural. Well, two could play at that game.
The Voice spoke again."For a solution, you must look within yourself. Focus, not on your surroundings, but yourself. What do you see?"
"How do you think Tuskens mate?"
For the first time, Anakin could literally see the meaning of 'having an air of confusion about you'. The entire air around him seemed confused, completely not expecting his reply.
"...What?", the Voice ventured, eloquence at its creative peak.
"You answer my questions with stupid riddles, so I decided to do the same. I don't have time or patience for your badgering. It's impossible for me to learn what I haven't all these years in such a short span. Tell me a way to find more information about the Talisman, else I'm out of here. I'm done with your stupid quest. I never liked RPGs, anyway. Racing was more my type."
The Voice seemed unsure on how to reply to him, and paused with possible consternation. Still, Anakin knew that the preaching types never shut up that easy, and so he probably had to sass the spirit, or whatever it was, until it acquiesced. At least it didn't seem outright hostile as of yet.
The air around him started thickening and moved towards a central point behind him, coalescing into a physical shape. The shape further solidified into a female humanoid figure, with proportions that would've left any other member of the same species gawking in disbelief, emitting a soft glow that was usually only associated with immortal and God-like beings.
Sensing the presence, Anakin whirled around, saber in hand and then paused.
The figure completely solidified into a form at the same moment and frowned, looking down.
"Did you just run me through with your saber?", in a rich-chocolatey feminine voice, that seemed to reverberate, like there were multiple beings speaking at the same time.
"Well, I have been only fighting monsters all this time, with zero encounters with friendly beings, so excuse me if I didn't recognize you as an ally from the back of my head. Not that it's doing any damage to you anyway."
"You could pull it out."
Struggling to maintain a straight face at the ridiculous situation he was in, and the way the previous sentence was phrased, he replied, "No, I think I'll let it stay in, until you tell me exactly who you are and what you want."
The Presence simply took a step back out of the blade, unharmed. Anakin swung his saber back down to his side, but kept the blade switched on.
"So, it's decided on a face to face interaction. Or is it a confrontation?",Anakin thought, and then paused. "Right, you know you've been spending too much time with Padme when everything is either a diplomatic solution or an aggressive negotiation. Damn, I miss her."
The figure, meanwhile, just stood with folded arms and gave him a once-over.
"Sure, take your time, we've got all year."
"Chosen One, We are the Force."
Anakin stumbled, his eyes widening. "Wha-? How? But-"
He paused, shook his head and then looked back up. "Explain. I find that rather hard to just accept."
"As you have come to believe, no doubt, the Force, or rather We, are a conscious being, collectively made up of the souls of every single being that has lived, is living and will live."
"Okay, I'll bite. Why appear to me, though? And why this 'Quest' nonsense?", Anakin queried, realizing that it was best to gather as much information as possible before the being went back into riddle-spouting mode.
"Because you, are Our child."
"...What?"
"Come now, you know you were born of the Force."
"Yes, but... I thought that was an accident."
"An accident? No, all that transpires has been, and will be, the Will of the Force."
"Right, someone has a very high opinion of themselves. For all that Will nonsense, she still never saw the saber coming."
The Presence continued, "Your story started with a so-called Sith Lord, named Plagueis." Anakin mentally groaned here. "We know neither the Light, nor the Dark can survive without the other, but when one meddles with the balance, We set it right. Darth Plagueis wanted to become immortal and stop death, which is against nature and Our Will. All things must become One with the Force, and that is the only decree. When he started meddling with the secrets of immortality and failed, but in the process set forth a much more powerful and ancient evil, We decided to take action, and hence, you were created."
"So, the Prophecy is true."
"The Prophecy of the Chosen One is an extension of our Will, passed down to the keepers of balance, the Jedi. It speaks of not just you, but every single being born of Us."
"There have been others?"
"Yes, and you have met them. They were called the Ones. They were Our embodiment, until your arrival. The Ones were created the last time the Galaxy faced a huge peril, one that we fear has returned. The reason they were created, has returned to the Galaxy, and only you stand in its path. No pressure."
"Great, no pressure. I'm reassured.", he said in a deadpan manner. "But still, why am I here?"
"You must grow much stronger if you are to beat this evil, and to become stronger, you must defeat your inner Demon. Face your fears."
"I have an inner demon? Can't anything ever be simple?", he said, exasperated.
"You-"
"That was rhetorical, don't answer that."
The Presence frowned at that.
"Irrespective, you must face your demon, and face it fast. Time is short. Ahead lies another cavern, with your final test. You must defeat what you have created."
"Right, back in riddle mode. I suppose that was not too bad, though.", he thought, and then asked, "Will I find what I'm looking for?"
The Presence smiled and started turning misty, slowly fading from vision.
"The Force is always with You, Anakin Skywalker."
"Great, thanks."
Turning around, Anakin saw that the previously long tunnel was now much shorter and he could see an archway some distance away. He strode forward mentally wondering what exactly he'd have to face ahead.
The archway led into a cavern much larger than the previous one. This one, like the other, had a pool at the far end, with the only exception that it was full of lava, rather than water. The heat from the molten lava was palpable, as he felt it all the way at the entrance, even in his astral form. There was one rocky platform in the middle of the molten lake, and on top of it, a Dark presence was gathered. Like a droid, his legs carried him towards the lake, his mind taking in the surroundings and the Dark presence's feeling.
It was then that Anakin had realization hit him. His creation, his demon. The surroundings. There was only one thing that actually terrified him. It wasn't the Sith, it wasn't some scary monsters.
It was him himself. The part of him that which wanted to defer to the future he had seen in the visions. Anakin looked up and gazed at the Dark presence that had now solidified
Sure enough, on the platform, stood a tall black-clad figure with a terrifying mask, wielding a red lightsaber, heavy mechanical breaths escaping it's voice box.
"Welcome, Anakin Skywalker, to your doom.", the monstrosity said, in a heavy, raspy mechanical voice.
"You pose no threat to me, demon. I know who you are. What I can create, I can destroy too."
"Well then, good luck destroying yourself, weakling. What you see in front of you is one who has transcended morals and other such baseless virtues for true power. I am no longer Anakin Skywalker."
Anakin's breath hitched in his throat, eyes widening as the being took a step forward and curled it's finger into a fist, it's Darkness in the Force now radiating in every direction.
"I am Darth Vader."
(Dark Council Chamber, Sith Academy; Korriban)
Vitiate's eyes flew open as he realized what was happening. Under no circumstances could the boy be allowed to find out about his relation to the Talisman. The boy's connection to it had to be cut, and the Talisman's mind-space had to be shielded once again.
To this end, he sunk into the Force, drawing in on the Dark side to augment his strength, and reached out to the Talisman again. To his surprise, he found he couldn't connect to it as well as he could before and his ability to remotely view through it and control other beings was being interfered with, by something elusive. He couldn't quite put his finger on what was blocking his connection, but it felt very familiar. Still, he had to get through, even if he had to brute force his way across the blockage.
Gathering his mental strength, he smashed the interference that he could perceive with a powerful blow, but the surface barely cracked. Vitiate realized time was something he didn't have, so he had to get through quick.
He drew in on the Force again, and pounded the Force construct once more.
(Talisman Mind-Space, Tython)
Anakin stumbled backwards on hearing the words escape the malevolent being's mechanical mouthpiece, his mind reeling from the effects of facing something so Dark and malevolent from within himself.
Vader leapt towards him in that moment of insecurity, and crossed the entire lava lake in one jump. He swung his saber above his head, looking to cleave Anakin in half as he landed. Anakin barely managed to dodge and roll aside at the last moment.
Rising up to one knee, Anakin realized his movements were slightly sluggish because of the way his mind was still in shock, and also partly because of how powerful his opponent was in the Dark side. This power was, in terms of presence in the Force, much more powerful than Sidious had been, the last time they had fought in Coruscant. Anakin knew he had to get back in complete control and win this duel quickly, because drawing it out was not an option for him.
Today was apparently the day when all words of wisdom started making sense, as it was at this point that he understood what the Entity's words "Look within yourself" made sense. Without taking his eyes off Vader, who was advancing slowly yet surely and menacingly, Anakin felt the Force flow within himself.
Calm. Decisive. Powerful. Balanced.
He knew immediately he had succeeded, as his vision turned into Force-Sight once again, sharpening his vision and reflexes. Vader appeared Dark, with a capital 'D' to emphasize. Light seemed to distort and succumb to him as it neared his outline. Only a power strong enough to withstand such negativity could face him.
An equal and opposite power, being Anakin Skywalker himself.
Vader dashed forward and swung his saber at the kneeling Jedi, which the latter avoided by gracefully flipping over and igniting his saber. Anakin met Vader's next swing head on. The Sith was powerful and his blow felt like a bar of Mandalorian iron being swung, rather than a lightsaber, but Anakin was used to fighting opponents much stronger than him. To this end, he reinforce his body with the Force to augment his strength and speed.
The two swung their blades back and forth, exchanging blows and testing out each other's mettle. Anakin realized after a few strikes and parries that the Sith also used the same lightsaber form that he preferred, Djem So, to attack quickly, powerfully and decisively. He needed to gain the upper hand in this battle, and quickly, and a plan formulated in his mind.
Anakin deflected the next blow, rather than parrying or blocking it, using his opponent's much higher strength effectively against him, and saw Vader overreach, but pull back instantly, making the former grudgingly appreciate how good a duelist his opponent was. He took every opening and rarely left one.
His plan now set in his mind, Anakin thrust his saber forward in a powerful strike and Vader parried, flipping around and swiping at his head. Anakin ducked low and pressed his offensive, slashing his saber at the black-clad monster's chestplate, which Vader instantly defended against with a two-handed downward block. Not relenting or wanting to give his opponent some breathing space, Anakin feinted at his opponent's left, and then swung around and slashed towards his left leg, making Vader actually step backwards at the speed of the former's onslaught.
Anakin continued striking and parrying, pressing his attacks with a ferocity he had never before displayed in a duel, but his opponent was just as effective, given it was an incarnation of himself. Vader drew in on his rage and anger, fueling the strength and speed of his attacks. Still, neither of them gained any proper ground, but the stalemate was a furious one, both opponents getting nicked in various places. Any single slip or distraction, and it would mean the other's victory.
This is where Anakin's Force-sight helped him. His augmented vision helped him see the oncoming blows perfectly and block them with his full strength, and then attack at an undefended side. It also helped him analyze the strength of his opponent's blows, and hence, wait to spring his next move.
Anakin made sure his attacks and blocks were at his full power, making it seem like he wanted to win really quickly with a decisive blow. Hence, when Vader delivered an even more powerful than before, he never expected Anakin to not block.
Which is exactly what he did. He simply pulled his saber back and side stepped, rather than block, while at the same time gather the Force in his free hand. Vader's strike overreached, and he lost his balance, unable to pull back instantaneously unlike last time. Anakin simply slammed a Force Blast into his opponent's side, flinging him a good ten meters away, his lightsaber falling from his grip and skittering away. Unlike the previous monsters, however, he didn't disperse into shadows, but coughed and rose to his elbows.
Without losing a second, Anakin closed the distance between them, slashing upwards at the downed Sith. The latter pushed himself backward with unnatural speed, but the saber still cut through the helmet, leaving one half of his face exposed.
A face that looked absolutely nothing like Anakin now did, but had the very same eyes he did, except they were tinted yellow and red. The rest of the face seemed burnt, with no hair anywhere, including the part of the scalp he could see.
Before Vader could get back to his feet, Anakin drew in on his power and caught Vader with the Force, hold him in stasis, a foot off the ground. Vader struggled mightily, both physically and through the Force, but Anakin did not relent, preventing any sort of movement from the former. Vader eventually gave up trying to force his way through this and stared at Anakin hatefully, choosing to unsettle his opponent instead.
"The face worries you, I see. Would you like to know how that happened? It-"
*SMASH!*
The entire cavern shook as a massive blow struck at it, seemingly from an external source, drowning out Vader's words. Rocks were dislocated from the ceiling and fell downwards, while the entire cavern seemed to rock dangerously, as if hit by an earthquake.
Anakin's balance wavered and Vader broke his hold, landing on his feet. The cavern stabilized a moment later and Vader's eyes locked with Anakin's.
"It was because of betrayal, by none other than your own-"
*SLASH*
Vader's eyes widened in disbelief, and a moment later his head separated from his neck and fell apart, his body toppling a moment later.
"Keep your snake tongued lies to yourself, I have no need of it. You're an abomination, end of story.", Anakin said, gazing at the dead body of his own Sith form.
The body now dissolved into shadows, leaving behind a replica of the very same Talisman whose mind space he was inside.
"Well done, Chosen One. You have conquered your own fears and darkness, by primarily relying on your strength of balance. The Talisman's information is yours, but We fear time is short.", the Presence's voice floated over from all around him.
*SMASH!*
The cavern shook yet again, this time much more powerfully, throwing Anakin off his feet.
"Wha-? What is that?"
"Quick, take the Talisman! All will be explained in eventuality! There is no time!"
Anakin leapt forward, his hands closing around the trinket just as the cavern's walls collapsed all over and a Dark Presence rushed at him, one so vast that he was left absolutely defenseless against it's onslaught.
In less than two seconds of the walls collapsing, Anakin was forcefully thrown out of the mind space, his mind slipping into unconsciousness.
(Dark Council Chamber, Sith Academy; Korriban)
It was safe. There was no way the boy had learnt of anything related to him. His powers had not failed him and Vitiate had managed to rip the splinter of his soul from the Talisman before it could compromise anything. Sure, it meant that the Talisman was just some useless relic now, but it was better off that way. He had also learnt a lot about his opponent's strength.
This was turning out to be a very successful calculated risk.
(Somewhere in the recess of Anakin Skywalker's mind; Tython)
Anakin woke from his unconscious state to realize he was still in Ghost mode.
"Whe- Where am I? What happened?", he voiced out loud to nothing in particular.
"You are back in your mind, my Child. The Presence you saw right before being thrown out was the Master of the Talisman, the very threat We spoke of earlier."
"Who is that? How can I defeat it?"
"That is for you to find out. It is the purpose you were born for-... Oh, We see. You are as resourceful as ever."
"Yeah.. Well, I'm not sure how, but in those two seconds I had access to the Talisman, I felt similar Force signatures across the Galaxy. And, well, that 'map' seems to be burned into my memory.", Anakin replied.
"You managed to use the incoming power to amplify the Talisman's Force signature, making other such relics around the Galaxy resonate. Well done. Our work is complete, and we will not test you again. Return to your mind, Anakin Skywalker, and guide the Force back to balance."
Anakin did what he always did at the end of such climactic events. He blacked out.
(Plo Koon's meditation chamber, Jedi Temple; Tython)
"Ugh, I really hate this.", Anakin said, his voice feeling thick, with sensation slowly returning to his leaden tongue.
"Yes, you really should stop fainting every chance you get", came Obi-Wan's voice, as Anakin's vision slowly swam into focus. He realized he wasn't kneeling in front of the Flesh Raider anymore, but actually lying down on a mat in a corner of the same room.
Struggling to one elbow, he saw that Masters Obi-Wan and Fisto were also present, apart from Plo Koon.
"I sent for them when you suddenly collapsed and underwent a seizure of sorts. You should probably give your questions a rest for now.", Master Koon said, clarifying his doubt before he could voice it.
"The Talisman. Is it-?"
"We can no longer sense a Force presence in it. Whatever you did, that thing is just another relic now, a worthless one at that. It's not even a rare crystal."
"How-? No, never mind. What I learnt in that Talisman's mindspace is of utmost importance. We need another Council meeting. Now."
"Anakin, you should look at yourself in a mirror. You look more disheveled than that Flesh Raider. And given how you've been out for almost an hour, I'd say you need your rest.", Obi-Wan interrupted.
"Okay, meeting first thing tomorrow, then. For now, please just get me a datapad. I'll get to resting right after, I promise."
"Right after what?", Obi-Wan queried, frowning as he handed his own personal datapad over to Anakin.
"Sorry, by your own request, I can and will only tell you in tomorrow's meeting.", Anakin smirked, punching coordinates into the datapad.
The various locations of the Force signatures might be burned into his memory for now, but he didn't trust it to be eternally so, and he had no idea what state he'd be in once he woke up. If he forgot even one location, it could lead to a potential disaster on a Galactic level.
He saw that a few locations were not mapped in the datapad's archive, and realized that they might be on long-forgotten planets along no longer existent Hyperspace routes. He simply plotted an approximate location from his memory, but averaging out the distances from various other Force signature locations that did map to actual planets.
His work done, Anakin sighed in tiredness and handed over the datapad back to Obi-Wan.
"Keep that safe, Master, and bring it to the meeting tomorrow. You're all in for a pretty nasty surprise."
Slowly rising to his feet, Anakin realized that his muscles were actually aching, apparently from the seizure he had, which was no doubt when he was fighting Vader.
Vader.
For some reason, ever since he'd woken up, Anakin felt like a great burden had been lifted off his shoulders. He no longer carried the darkness he previously did not know existed, but could feel its absence very clearly. He was much more in tune with the Force than he had been hours ago, to an extent that he felt he could use Force-Sight in the physical realm, something that very few could achieve, that too after years of practice.
Impossibly high Midichlorian counts didn't come with drawbacks apparently.
Except for the Sith Lord gunning for him, and the centuries old prophecy, of course. Anakin had a nagging feeling of familiarity when the massive Dark Presence had assaulted him at the end of his so-called quest, but still, he couldn't quite place a finger to it.
Still, all of those were worries for tomorrow. He had his bed and Padme to get back to, and as long as that was there, all his worries took second place. His features seemed to relax much more, just thinking about her, and their children.
He couldn't wait to see Luke and Leia.