Back on Base

After a long journey in hyperspace they finally reached their destination.
Nomi was sitting at Dash's bedside when Leebo contacted her over the Outrider's intercom.
"Anoat is right in front of us, Nomi. I sent the codes and will land shortly."
The young woman pressed a button to answer the droid.
"Thank you, Leebo."
Then she looked at her husband.
"Did you hear, Dash? We're home," she said happily.
Her husband felt a little better now, although he was still in pain. Nomi suspected that he had suffered such serious injuries because he wasn't a Jedi and couldn't defend himself against the destructive energy of the dark side. But how could she have protected her husband when Bel-Baal attacked him?
"I want to leave the Outrider on my own feet," Rendar said, snapping his wife out of her thoughts.
Nomi shook her head.
"No, you're still too weak, darling. I'll either levitate you or we'll have medical staff take you to the medbay on a stretcher."
"I don't want that, Nomi," Dash protested.
His wife sighed when she saw that her husband was just as stubborn as their sons. She knew from years of experience that there would be no point in arguing with Dash.
"Ok, if you want to walk, do it."
But that wasn't all her husband wanted.
"And I don't want to be taken to the medbay," Dash said firmly.
"Shouldn't we let 2-1B decide?" Nomi asked with a sigh.
Her husband shook his head but regretted it the moment he felt a sharp pain.
Nomi noticed this but said nothing about it.

Rendar slowly got up and dressed with the help of his wife.
By the time they were done, Leebo had landed the Outrider on the assigned landing pad. When they reached the hatch, the droid and children were waiting there.
As they exited the YT-2400, Dash leaned heavily on his wife. Luke Skywalker was already waiting for them at the foot of the ramp. He looked knowingly at Nomi, who was supporting her husband on the way down.
"You killed Bel-Baal, Nomi. I felt it in the Force when he died. Your father almost killed your husband." He paused for a moment and looked at Dash. "You were lucky to survive that attack, Dash. I can imagine how you feel now."
Then he turned his attention back to his childhood friend.
"Wasn't there a way to bring your father back to the light side, Nomi?"
The young woman shook her head as the triplets and Leebo left the ramp behind them. Laughing, they waved at Luke before heading to their parents' quarters.
That gave Nomi a little time to collect herself.
"I felt like everything that was once good in him was completely erased. He was too deeply involved in the dark side. It wasn't possible to bring him back to the light, Luke."
"So it was different from my father. I'm sorry Nomi," Skywalker said with a sigh.
The young Jedi gave him a sad smile before speaking to him about her greatest fear.
"Tell me, Luke, did I take the first step on my journey to the dark side by killing Bel-Baal?"
Skywalker gave her a friendly look.
"No, Nomi," he replied. "You did everything right and only used the Force for defense. You didn't want to kill your father. The moment he died there was no hate in you."
"Yes," she confirmed. "I was only defending myself when he attacked me."
Her childhood friend gave her a serious look.
"The Force was with you, Nomi. If your father hadn't been killed, he would have killed you. Nothing could have prevented this and your children would be servants of evil. You are not to blame for what happened, Nomi. You have to try to get over it and forget it. Even if you wish it so badly, you can't undo it."
Forget? She wondered how she could forget when the image of her dying father haunted her dreams every night. But she just nodded.
"I should bring Dash to our quarters. He needs to rest, Luke."
"That's understandable. I'll see you tomorrow then."
Skywalker turned and went to his own quarters.
It took a while for Nomi and Dash to reach their quarters. The former mercenary was exhausted and immediately went to bed while his wife took care of the children.

In the middle of the night, Dash woke Nomi up.
"What's the matter with you, Nomi?" He asked softly. "You screamed in your sleep"
His wife opened her eyes and looked at him confused in the dim light.
"Did you dream about your father?"
When she nodded, Dash took her gently in his arms despite the throbbing pain it caused.
"You've changed a lot since your father died. I hardly recognize you. You need to finally free yourself from your guilt. Would you prefer it if you were dead instead?"
"No, Dash, but this guilt is so incredibly difficult to live with," Nomi replied, avoiding his gaze.
"Why do you always talk about guilt, Nomi? Damn, he attacked you. You aren't to blame for your father's death. Be honest."
He kissed her.
"Try to sleep, darling. Everything will be fine."
Dash let go of his wife, slowly turned around and closed his eyes.
In her mind, Nomi knew it was inevitable. But her gut told her that what she had done wasn't right. She shouldn't have fought Bel-Baal. But if she hadn't fought him, she would have been killed by him and her children would serve the dark side and bring misery to the entire galaxy. Still, she found it difficult to deal with the fact that she had killed the man who had once given her life.

When Nomi woke up the next day, she felt exhausted.
Nevertheless, after breakfast she got ready to go to the simulator training.
As she was about to leave, her husband stopped her.
"I'm going to simulator practice with you, darling," he said, to Nomi's surprise.
"I don't know if that's a good idea, Dash. Your injuries haven't healed yet. You need rest and not the vibrations and shakes of the simulator."
Rendar wanted to say something back, but a sudden, stabbing pain prevented him.
"I think you're right, Nomi," he said with a groan. "Damn, that hurts. Your father did a good job. Will I never get rid of this pain?"
The young Jedi reached up and stroked his cheek.
"Oh Dash, you're too impatient. I'm already doing everything in my power. Maybe you should have gone to the medbay after all. The Bacta tanks..."
Her husband didn't let her finish.
"Wild banthas couldn't drag me there. Being treated by you is much more pleasant. When you gently stroke my body with your small, delicate hands and let the Force flow. Oh my darling, it's a wonderful feeling. Bacta, on the other hand, is sticky and you can't get the smell out of your nose for weeks."
Nomi sighed.
"Do you know how exhausting it is for me to focus the Force on your injuries? I was hoping the Kaiburr crystal might help. But Luke says it has no effect on injuries inflicted by the dark side of the Force."
"Did I just hear my name?"
They both turned and saw Luke Skywalker who had just entered.
"Good morning, Nomi. Good morning Dash."
The triplets rushed towards their teacher.
"Hello, Luke!" They said almost simultaneously.
The Jedi leaned down to the boys and smiled at them.
"Well, you three? Did you do your exercises?"
Instead of an answer, the Rendar offspring nodded eagerly.
"Yes? Then show me what you can do. It's a bit cold in your parents' quarters, make sure it gets warmer. Now it's your turn, Corran. Think about what I taught you."
The youngest of the triplets closed his eyes and concentrated.
His mother could feel him using the Force. The boy managed to gain access to it without much difficulty. Seconds later, everyone felt the room getting noticeably warmer.
Corran opened his eyes and looked proudly at his parents. Nomi gently stroked her son's curly hair.
"You did very well, sweetie," she said, smiling.
Suddenly she felt a disturbance in the Force emanating from her other two sons. They were jealous of their younger brother.
Nomi couldn't believe her eyes when a smaller stone flew straight at Corran. Looking at Dash Jr. and Biggs, she saw that they had reached out with their small hands and aimed the stone directly at their brother's head. She immediately focused on the stone and changed its trajectory so that it hit the wall and couldn't do any damage.
Her sons reacted with an outburst of anger when their plan was foiled.
Nomi was shocked by what they had tried to do and yelled at them.
"Junior! Biggs! Damn, do you realize that such behavior leads to the dark side? Never do that again! Do you understand me? You have absolutely no reason to be jealous of Corran!"
Her husband stood by and stared at his sons and wife. Dash didn't know how to handle his children's abilities.

Nomi realized that the week the triplets were under his influence was enough for the Dark Jedi to wreak havoc when it came to his grandchildren and their use of the Force.
Luke looked at his friend in surprise. He had never seen her lose her temper like that.
"Nomi," he addressed her in the Force. "You have to stay calm. You don't help your sons by shouting. They are children, even very small children. The triplets don't know what they're doing yet, Nomi. They aren't yet aware that they have tried to do something bad."
He took a deep breath before continuing.
"It looks like your father was a bad influence on them. But I also learned something from this incident. Future Jedi must be systematically protected from harmful influences. Don't be afraid Nomi, I will keep your sons on the path of light. I promise."
"Thank you, Luke," the young woman answered him in the Force. "Luckily, Bel-Baal couldn't influence Tasherit. She was far too young for his purposes."
Because of what had happened, she again couldn't speak of Ulic Bel-Baal as her father.
Her childhood friend looked at her in astonishment.
"You always say Bel-Baal when you talk about your father. Why? Can't you accept that he was your father?"
"My father is Jula Darklighter!"
Luke flinched and Dash looked at his wife in surprise when he heard her reply, loud and sharp, because he hadn't heard the conversation in the Force.
Skywalker shook his head.
"There's no point in denying the truth, Nomi."
"You don't understand, Luke!"
"More than you think, Nomi," he said with a sigh, looking her straight in the eyes. "When Vader told me in Cloud City that he was my father, I didn't want to believe it. It took a long time before I could really accept this truth, which was terrible for me."
Dash walked up to his wife and put his hand on her shoulder.
"Luke's right, Nomi," he said reassuringly. "You must finally accept the truth that Ulic Bel-Baal was your father and that you are not responsible for his death. No one knows why he once walked the dark path where there was no turning back for him. Perhaps he had no choice and secretly hoped that once he had completed his task, he would be able to return to the light."
Nomi shook her head, but she had calmed down now.
"There was only darkness, Dash. Everything good in my father was completely erased. He was totally consumed by the dark side."
Tears came to her eyes. For a long time after the events on Algarian, she cried for her dead father. She hadn't been able to save him from the dark side. Dash held her in his arms while fits of crying shook her.
The triplets stood by, not knowing what to do.
"Mama cwying because us?" Biggs looked up at Luke.
"No, your mother is crying for her father, who fell victim to the dark side of the Force. I hope she never has to cry for you three or your sister."

Meanwhile, Dash gently wiped away Nomi's tears.
"Yes, crying will help you, darling. Now that you have finally accepted that Ulic Bel-Baal was your father, perhaps your terrible nightmares will end."
His wife pulled away from his embrace and wiped her tears with the back of her hand.
"I have to go, Dash. The simulator training is waiting for me. I'm already late. See you this afternoon, Luke."
She turned and left, hoping not to think about the whole mess during simulator training.

The training went well and when Nomi exited the simulator pod, General Madine was waiting for her there.
"Major Darklighter, may I speak to you for a moment?"
The young woman saluted and then stood to attention.
"Of course, General," she answered curtly.
"So formal? I don't know you like that. At ease, Major." The general went on talking. "As far as I know, you are making good progress in your Jedi training with Master Skywalker."
"You must ask Master Skywalker, sir. I can't allow myself to judge that."
Crix Madine nodded thoughtfully.
"Anyway, your results in the simulator are still above average. In fact, I think your Jedi skills enhanced your military skills. Well, to cut a long story short, we'd like to offer you command of your own squadron, Major. You will then be promoted to Commander and command our best pilots."
Nomi was speechless when she heard that. All her dreams would come true.
"The squadron would be on the front lines like Rogue Squadron. But I know you're used to it, Major."
On the front lines. This was the moment when the young woman woke up from her dreams. Since she had a husband and four children, it was impossible for her to accept the offer.
"Do you accept, Major?"
"No, sir. I have to decline your offer, tempting as it is to me. Please don't get me wrong, but I can't. I have a family that needs me. My children, my husband... it's not like before."
General Madine nodded.
"I understand and accept your decision, Major," he said without showing his disappointment. "There's something else. The base will be dismantled and all personnel relocated to Coruscant. We will depart in two standard days. Dismissed, Major."
Nomi saluted again, turned and headed back to her quarters.

When she entered her quarters, Dash was already waiting for her.
He immediately noticed that his wife had something on her mind. In all the years they had been together, he had learned to read her face like an open book, even without Jedi skills. He hugged her and gave her a long, tender kiss.
"What's the matter, darling?" He finally asked.
"General Madine has offered me command of a squadron, Dash."
Dash looked at her questioningly.
"And what did you answer him?"
"I declined, Dash," she replied.
Her husband breathed a sigh of relief.
"I'm glad you didn't accept."
"General Madine also told me we're being transferred to Coruscant."
Rendar pulled his wife closer.
"It's a pity, my love. This decision means saying goodbye to our forest lake. What do you think? Shouldn't we... "
He stopped talking and kissed her deeply.
"You still haven't recovered from your injuries, Dash."
Rendar kissed her again before whispering in her ear.
"I'm much better. Let's drive to the lake."
"No, Dash," his wife said firmly.
"Who knows if we'll find such an idyllic place on Coruscant," said Rendar, clearly disappointed at his wife's rejection.
Nomi looked at the chrono hanging on the wall.
"I have to go to Luke's for practice, Dash."
Her husband nodded his head and let her go.

The training was, as always, very strenuous and in the evening, when she had looked after the children, she fell into bed dead tired next to her husband.
Before long she fell into a deep and dreamless sleep for the first time in a long time.