AN: Thanks to everyone who is bothering to check this new story of mine out! I'm really excited to show this to everyone! Before we start, I thought I'd explain how I came up with this story and to make sure I give credit where credit is due. This fic goes by the EU canon. It picks up near the end of Legacy of the Force: Invincible when Jaina Solo must defeat Darth Caedus. While planning this novel, author Troy Denning believed the series to be too dark and gloomy and made a suggestion for the end of the novel o brighten things up a bit. This story is my take on how things might have turnd out in that galaxy far, far away if Denning's idea had been used.

There's a cross on the side of the road
Where a mother lost her son
How could she know that the morning he left
Would be the last time she'd trade with him for a little more time
(so she could say she loved him one last time)
And hold him tight
But with life, we never know when we're coming up to the end of the road
So what do we do then
With tragedy around the bend

-Superchick, We Live

Once an inquisitive, innocent boy, Jacen Solo was now no more than a set of memories too painful for his parents to remember. Now, that same boy was a man better known as Darth Caedus. As merciful as a hutt and forgiving as a Yuuzhan Vong, he was a very different man than he had once been. Like his grandfather before him, he held his own twisted beliefs, all his actions justified in his own eyes. He swept aside an arm and planets fell and crumbled at his will. Like Vader crushed Alderaan in his fist, Lord Caedus lit a lighter and held it above Kashyyyk, illuminating the forest world in unforgiving flames of fury. Then, his love for anyone extinguished save a young girl and her mother, he took any life he dare and used others.

So vanished Jacen Solo, a caring, loving, compassionate soul. However, with every death comes a revival . . .

From across the grashal, he could see the desperation- the fear- in Tahiri's eyes. He understood it. He felt it, too, but he couldn't stop. Not even for her. He had to keep going.

And even though it filled him with so much pain, he forced his next words to be stern, almost harsh. He snapped at her, "Do it! You need . . . " His ribs heaved and burned with every word he somehow managed. He continued, "To help Tekli. I'll be along."

"Yes, Tahiri," he was aware of the small Chadra-Fan responding as she gently pulled at Tahiri before returning to Tesar's side. She slapped the Barabel, then, with a frown, reported, "Tesar is not responding. I cannot move him and work on him both."

He could tell that she clearly didn't like the idea of leaving him, but Tahiri nodded to Tekli. She couldn't just refuse to help. A tear glimmered in her eye, but she blinked it back as she leaned forward to press a kiss to his lips. He anxiously waited for it, starved for it. He needed it. His eyes fluttered shut as he prepared himself.

But then Tahiri stopped, shaking her head. Startled, he stepped back, blinking. "No," Tahiri cried. "For that, you have to come back."

So many doubts flooded his mind, but he forced his best smile as he promised her, "Soon, then."

Tahiri repeated, "Soon. May the Force be with you."

Then, she left him. And the weakness he was succumbing to returned to his attention and he drew upon the Force for strength. He started to run for the makeshift doorway. It was slow and painful, but he drew heavily upon the Force that he could still get back up even when he dropped to a knee twice.

He passed Yuuzhan Vong warrior after warrior. Somehow, he held them off, slew them. At one, he threw his blaster. He bent to retrieve it, then stood. But not without dropping his head to throw up a pool of blood.

He couldn't stop.

The Force kept him strong and he continued to draw upon it as he lifted himself back up and kept running. He drew a thermal detonator from his belt just as a seemingly recognizable figure drew near. "Lowie?" he called out, but he only felt the hazy presence of another warrior. "Impostor!" he yelled. "Trying for pens."

Somewhere far behind him, Jaina yelled for a charge.

He couldn't stop.

He opened himself completely to the Force. He became one, grabbing ahold of the power and pouring it into himself, finding the energy to fill every cell and fiber in his being. With love. It was with all the love he felt for his family and friends that he found the strength. He thought of his parents, perhaps back at Eclipse, or on the Falcon. But he imagined them together and he grabbed ahold of that image. He thought of his uncle and aunt and even his little cousin who would be with them. He thought of his siblings who were back with the rest of the group, still fighting, still going, still yelling out to him.

He couldn't stop.

He thought of his friends; the ones here with him and others far away. He thought of how hard they were fighting, how battle-weary and afraid they were. He wished he could encourage them.

He thought of Tahiri. He thought of the last years he'd known her, of their early friendship and its beginnings on Yavin IV, of the awkwardness that had settled in when he'd returned to Yavin not so long ago. He thought of of how they'd resolved that, of what things seemed to mean between them and how much more had come to be since their reunion and the memories they'd shared together since. Of the time and feelings between them that had become so much more.

He couldn't stop.

Now, he noticed, his injuries no longer pained him. He was one with the Force and he used that extra energy and power to defeat all the warriors he passed. His aura shone brighter than Tatooine's twin suns and he was dimly aware of this. He kept going. A throng of warriors surrounded him, waiting for their chance. Razor bugs swarmed him and he threw his lightsaber into zigzag motions in an attempt to get them away. While he was distracted with them, a hard hit was delivered to his thigh and he groaned in crippling pain at the blow. In response, though, he kept fighting.

He couldn't stop.

Still behind him, Jaina cried out his name, but it so closely resembled a desperate scream.

He was crowded by Vong, attacking from all sides. Jaina and Jacen were nearby, watching. Both of their faces were wet with tears and he sent them away.

He couldn't stop.

Another slew of Yuuzhan vong warriors herded around him and he did his best to fend off the attacks. Three amphistaffs pierced him, sending poison racing for his blood, but the Force cleared it from his system immediately. Another amphistaff caught him in the side and he roared with pain, but kept fighting. He pushed back and defeated more warriors.

Then, he saw him. Nom Anor came, entering through the doorway. He lumbered forward, his mouth twisted in a sneer as he surveyed the scattered team of Jedi Knights. He, himself, could have smiled if it didn't hurt so kriffing bad.

Sending his last reassurances to his team, to his friends, to his siblings, he gave one last push in his own fight. He threw his detonator across the grashal. Nom Anor's gaze followed it and he nudged the silver sphere, sending it away from the executor. His aura dimmed to a faint glow, flickering to near nonexistence. The fire inside of him was dying now, and he knew it was time. As Nom Anor continued to rush for the detonator, he shoved it again. Nom Anor cursed.

But he didn't hear it.

Jaina's lungs filled with fire as she heaved for another breath. The exhaust fumes being released across the biodisposal room certainly didn't help. She coughed, uselessly swinging an arm at the rolls of steam.

Across the chamber stood a dark man. Darth Caedus had- since their last fight- replaced his arm. He wore a prosthetics now, disguised in a long, black glove to match his dark cloaks and pants and glossy, black boots. Except, they weren't so glossy anymore as they were smeared in both his and her scarlet blood.

Jaina's body was tense, burning- well, her hair literally was burning- and every muscle in her body ached and screamed in protest. She wasn't sure how much longer she could keep going, but she knew she couldn't stop until she stopped Caedus. And there was only one way to do that.

Caedus's blade came suddenly slashing forward, but Jaina had anticipated it and she was quick to throw up her own blade to block the blow. She pushed back and their blades locked in their own war, fighting for leverage, fighting for the upper winning hand. Realizing she couldn't win out, Jaina drew back her lightsaber and spun away, completing a full twirl before spinning her violet blade around her body. She angled her blade to cut across Caedus's midsection, but, in a less graceful move, he stomped around and shoved her back with a Force shove. Jaina felt like her ribs were just about to collapse on her. Or, what of her ribs were still holding out. Subconsciously, she touched a hand to her chest before she forced herself back up, groaning with the effort. Crushed durasteel had formed around her with the pressure of Caedus's power. Jaina pushed back to pull herself out of the indent. A few shrapnel bits, however, stuck to her, some stuck in her back and shoulders.

"We don't have time for this!" Caedus's voice boomed from across the room. To his side, fresh fires burned from the biodisposal pit. The flames framed his silhouette, crackling to the sound of his heavy footsteps. He was losing strength too.

Rising to her feet, Jaina yelled at him, "Then die already!" With a snap, her bladed was reignited and she came rushing at Caedus. His hand rose and from his palm and fingertips sprang jolts of Force lightning. She caught the forks on her blade.

"You don't understand!" he screamed at her. His murky yellow eyes flared with fury and he raised his other hand to join the first.

Jaina rolled out of the way. On the trip, she used her weapon to cut down a support beam and it fell with a heavy, echoing thud before Caedus, but the Sith Lord seemed unaffected as he continued following her about the long, empty room.

"I don't understand?!" Jaina exploded. But while fury thrummed in her chest, sadness also constricted her heart. She felt the stinging threat of tears just behind her eyes and she blinked them back. She didn't have the time for that now. "No! Don't you dare try to sell me that bantha fodder! We both know what's happened and why I'm here. So, how about you rethink that. You don't understand. You must not because you won't stop. You won't stop hurting Mom and Dad!"

She knew that she couldn't let herself think of this man before her as her as even her lost brother. For if she did, she would never be able to end this. But maybe she could guilt him. Maybe, she would be able to reach and touch the shred of humanity that he had left- this little sliver that belonged to Tenel Ka and Allana. There had to be room enough for her and her parents. Or, she hoped. However futilely.

"Don't you care about that? Mom? Dad?" She screamed across the chamber at him, "They've given up on you! They've lost all hope! You're dead to them!"

"Good." His lip twitched. "Because they're dead to me." He rounded on her and drew up his sword. Their weapons clashed in a fury of sparks and sizzling. Their blades were forced higher and higher above their heads and Jaina struggled to keep up. She was too short for this- thanks to her mom. Caedus was just taller enough that he won, but let her stay in the fight as a distraction so he could raise a knee and crush it into her stomach. Jaina gasped, falling steps back. She caught her own feet and forced herself to stand tall. Above her head, she carried her lightsaber proudly. "You aren't meant to win this one," she warned Caedus.

His eyes flared once again. "I don't need to. I just need to stop you and the Moffs."

"The Moffs?

But Caedus provided no explanation as he sneered at her and brought his lightsaber back clashing down at her.

Han had been spending the last hour or so watching Leia, anticipating The Look. He knew it was to come. He knew it was inevitable. He just hoped and prayed when she got it- it wouldn't be their daughter.

Of course, he hadn't wanted to let his daughter, his only remaining child run off to face against Darth Caedus. He'd liked it no more than he'd liked allowing his son Anakin's plan- the one that had sent him to his death. But- like he had then, when forced to watch his child leave to never see him with his eyes open again- Han forced himself to remember that his child was right. And it was their destiny and he was just their dumb father.

Leia seemed just as anxious and nervous as he. Her hands worked quickly as she tried to distract herself from the same pain and fear Han was experiencing. He wished he could numb it for her, but that wouldn't help either of them. Eventually, they would have to face the pain together.

Leia's hands shook as she worked feverishly. Han just wanted to seize her hand and hold it, crush it in his, and keep it still.

It wasn't until Leia's nervous twitching paused and she turned to look at him that Han realized he actually had taken her hand. Her face was pale, but she managed the smallest, faintest smile as she squeezed back. She took a long breath and rested her head against his shoulder. Neither of them said a single word. They didn't need to.

Caedus was losing the perseverance, he was losing the strength and he couldn't afford that. He needed to do something and fast. He needed to bring about a quick end to this before Jaina did. He needed to stop her. He'd enjoyed showing off his new Force tricks to the Solos and Skywalkers. He'd enjoyed watching them fumble about; lost, confused, fearful. He'd taught them plenty and he still had a couple tricks up his sleeves. He had tricks that they would never think of or anticipate. He had tricks that would shatter them. And he knew the perfect one to use right now.

What he needed wasn't an overwhelming Force shove or some fancy technique like shatterpoint. No, he knew something even better. Something that would rock Jaina to her core. Something that would torture Jaina and leave her crippled. Something that would hurt her worse than her current burns and broken ribs and singed hair. Much worse. And its effect was guaranteed.

The Force was like one long chain of life. It connected and flowed through the past and the eternal future. It binded history together; every planet to ever hold life, every war to have been fought, every person to have lived. It all existed somewhere along the Force's endless line of existence. And somewhere along the chain were a set of memories that Caedus had boxed away and sworn to never dwell on again. But he had to go back now. He had to open the box and revisit the end of Jacen Solo's youth. He had to revisit some of Jacen Solo's worst memories. Which also happened to be some of Jaina's worst.

Caedus felt his way along the timeline of the Force until he came across what he was looking for. He found the place to which he'd been visiting often lately with Tahiri. Biting back his own disgust, Caedus found the Jedi Knights' mission to Myrkr during the Yuuzhan Vong War. He found the young Jedi Knight who'd been famed to take over the Jedi Order and become the next Luke Skywalker- until his untimely death at the hands of a swarm of Vong warriors. Caedus reached back, put himself in the moment, and saw Anakin Solo as he fought off an onslaught of warriors. He saw Jaina watching him, her dirt-caked face wet with tears. She screamed at her little brother, but he- being oh, so heroic- pressed on. And Caedus, standing so near to the young man, snagged that image of the mortally stricken Anakin Solo and pulled him to the end of the Force where Jaina Solo and Darth Caedus of 41 ABY were.

Go back.

There was now a man at the end of the grashal, near the doorway. It was a dark figure and he stood there, yelling incomprehensible words. He shook his raised fists in anger, then screamed one name above the roar of the battle between the Jedi Knights and the Yuuzhan Vong."ALLANA!"

But he seemed to be the only one to notice any of this. Then, the dark man looked at him, his eyes gleaming murky yellow in the dim light. His eyes were full of overwhelming hatred and fury and he snarled at him before his own stomach twisted and turned and his heart beat violently in his chest and the screams of his friends across the grashal became all he heard before completely disappearing so suddenly. And a sharp noise filled his ears before it all stopped at once-

The energy of the duel had been replaced by a whirling maelstrom in the biodisposal room. It caught Jaina buy surprise as some kind of wind suddenly came to be and whipped at Jaina's skin and her hair and she fell to the floor and covered her head to shield herself. Her ears roared with the tearing of the violent winds. She was sure this had to be some trick of Caedus's, but she didn't know what else she could do in the middle of this storm. The storm blew over her, biting at her, so she stayed low. She held onto the Force for strength and drew it to her in hopes of recovering as much as she could before she had to return to the fight. But the maelstrom lasted for less than a minute and it died as suddenly as it had come to be. Jaina hurried to pick herself up, but struggled to stand. Her gaze darted around as she searched for Caedus, but he was nowhere to be found.

The room was oddly peaceful.

But something still wasn't quite right, Jaina could tell.

Somebody else was still in here with her.

Across the room, she found a crumpled form. She focused her gaze, but couldn't see well. Slowly, cautiously, she reached out through the Force. It wasn't Caedus; she could feel the body's living presence. But it was still eerily familiar. It felt like- No, she didn't want to think about what it felt like. That was too painful. She swallowed hard over a dry throat, then started forward on all fours. Her ragged breaths were loud as they echoed and she groaned with every tremor that was sent across her ribs. But she continued on, groaning and grimacing and panting. She finally reached the form and she dragged herself to the side of the body. She leaned over the person. He was lying face down. Jaina reached her hands underneath his stomach, then flipped him over. She fell back for a moment, her heart pounding and her breaths wheezing. Her hands came away bloody, she noticed. So, then she hurried back to his side. She ran a hand up his side before she reached his face.

Her spine straightened, posture erect as the sensation hit her. She couldn't explain why it came to her at that moment, but it hit Leia like a whip behind the knees. She gasped, throwing her body forward as the sensation of his presence filled her mind. All external awareness left her and that feeling became the center of her eye.

Her hand flew to her stomach, alarmed. For the longest second, all she could think about was the timing and it was so soon and the twins weren't even a year old and what would Han think.

And then she laughed because she'd forgotten how happy this made her.

She told Han with an overjoyed smile. And he knew right away because he'd only seen that smile on her once before. Maybe the timing wasn't the most impeccable, but Han could hardly care when he thought about having another child with his wife.

He came earlier than Leia would have preferred. Much too early. But she held him to her chest, lovingly stroking his head while Han flashed her tearful smiles in between speeding across the hoverlanes to the medcenter.

Leia took her time walking to the boys' room as her Mother Sense directed her. She turned the corner and peered into the room. Sure enough, he sat there, in the middle of a mess of his siblings lunches and half the room's toys. She sighed, then began tiptoeing her way to the center of the room. She picked her little boy up in her arms and cooed to him, "Guess who's going to take a bath now?" Leia kept finding him in the middle of these huge messes far too often for her liking.

She felt his fear before she and Han heard his whimpering from the living room. They traded a look before Leia got up and hurried to his room. He'd buried himself under all his blankets and the little mound shook with his sobs. "Hey, buddy," she soothed as she came over and carefully peeled back the layers. When she uncovered him, his hair was back to its usual tousled mess. She brushed her fingers through it- not to straighten the hairs out, though. Her little boy hurried into her lap and she embraced him, holding him close to her. "Don't tell me it's another wretched nightmare."

"I don't want to be like Vader," he cried into her chest.

His words hit her square in her heart and she shook her head, rocking him in her arms as she bent her neck to drop a tender kiss on his head. "Oh, no, honey! You won't. It was just a nightmare. You don't need to worry about it. Daddy and I won't let anything happen to you."

"But what if you and Daddy can't stop me?"

Leia- her heart filled with anger at Vader for leaving this shadow over her son, but anger at herself, too, for hanging the burden over him. She cried while she held him, shaking her head in earnest. "No, honey. That will never happen. You could never be anything like that monster."

"But you and Daddy always say that I'm a troublemaker."

"We don't mean it like that!" She sat him up and took his face between her hands so his bright blue eyes were glued to hers. "Don't you dare ever think that Daddy and I think you're bad like that. You're too good, baby. You're too kind and generous and selfless. You're just too good."

"I placed quite a burden on [him], didn't I, by giving him that name." But while the guilt tugged on her, Leia found that she could not bring herself to regret it. She'd had reason behind her choice and she still firmly believed in her reasons to this day. Something about it had just always felt right- and it still did.

Elegos A'Kla, a Caamasi senator, smiled encouragingly at her. "He is strong enough to accept that burden, Leia. He has you and the Jedi to sustain him."

They were ready to leave, ready to run off and head straight into the face of danger. It twisted at Leia's heart and she cursed herself for raising such stubborn, selfless kids. "Hey!" she called out to Jaina and pointed to the ground. "Come back here and give me a hug." Her daughter smiled and fell into her arms. Leia added quietly, "And promise me you'll come back."

Jaina pushed herself back and nodded curtly. "I promise I'll come back."

Jacen took his turn and nodded, but didn't smile. Then, he kissed Leia's cheek and promised her, "I'll try to come back."

Then, there was her baby boy. He embraced her before she could take him in. She smiled. He kissed her cheek, then stepped back. "It's cruel to make such a promise," he said simply.

Stinging tears filling her eyes, Leia nodded. "I know it is. I just like to hear it."

He shook his head and kissed her cheek again. "I love you, Mom."

Before he could walk away, she pulled him in for another hug and nodded. "I love you too, baby. I'm proud of you, you know. Your dad and I both are. We just don't like the idea-"

"I know, Mom. I don't either, but-"

"But my babies are growing up and they're becoming fine adults I'm proud to call mine." She smiled softly and nodded. "Now, go. Save the galaxy."

He chuckled, then hugged his father who stood at Leia's side. "Take care of Mom," he told Han, then joined his siblings and the rest of the strike team and left Eclipse base far behind.

Leia gasped, not sure why she did, then unbuckled herself from the copilot's chair and hurried for the refresher. "Leia!" Han called after her. She found herself before the sink and rinsed her face, trying to catch her breath and calm her racing heart. You're about to lose another one, a wicked voice taunted in her mind and Leia couldn't stop the tears this time. Any moment now. And then there was one.

Long tendrils of light brown, dirty hair fell over the face and Jaina swept them aside to take a look.