Chapter 15

(Darklighter Home stead)

Practicing their saber skills against each other, Luke and Mara locked their weapons together as they dueled outside the domed house. Luke had suggested this, in order for them to keep their minds off Ben. The two had been dueling for about two hours now, wearing tank tops and light pants due to the desert heat.

"It's been a long time since we did this." Mara said as she freed her blade first and stepped back, taking a defensive stance.

"I agree. It's important for a Jedi Master to keep up their dueling skills," Luke responded, as he began to circle Mara.

"Spoken like a true warrior. Now prepare yourself!"

Luke watched as Mara used the Force to blow up some dirt, which clouded his vision. Though he couldn't see, Luke was able to sense where Mara was. Turning to the left, he blocked her attack, which came close to hitting his face. Pushing her back, Luke leaped into the air over his wife, then used the Force to turn her around, pulling her into an embrace, which ended with a kiss.

"That was a dirty trick! Where did you learn that?" Mara asked as she looked at her husband.

"Truth be told, I just made it up," he answered with a smile.

"I'll need to remember that the next time we practice," she stated, then went back inside with Luke to clean up and change.

Once they were done, the two heard something approaching. Going back up, they thought it was Han and Leia returning, but instead saw it was a Y-Wing Starfighter, of all things.

Both were on the alert as they watched the ship land near the Falcon. Grabbing their weapons, Luke and Mara readied themselves as the pilot of the ship exited and walked towards the domed entrance.

They had trouble seeing who this cloaked visitor was, but the two did notice something that surprised them: this individual was strong in the Force. Then they watched as the visitor stopped a few feet from them, near the domed entrance.

"Please do not be afraid. I mean you and your family no harm."

"If that's true, then reveal yourself please!." Luke replied.

He and Mara watched as the stranger lowered it's hood, revealing a mammalian looking alien with orange and white fur. It had two ears with black highlights, a pointed snout with whiskers, and round, green eyes with two black slits for pupils.

"My name is Kira Nara, and I am a Jedi Knight," the alien said with a bow.

"So you say, but I'm afraid we don't know you. Who is your master?" Mara asked in a cautious tone.

"I am not a student of one of the Jedi you know. I was trained by one who was part of the order your masters served."

This was getting more interesting by the minute. Luke had not expected to hear this from the stranger. "Do you have proof of this?" Luke wondered.

"I do, in fact it was my Master who sent me to find you. He asked me to deliver a message to you," Kira answered with a serious look.

Luke went silent. From what he had sensed, this Kira Nara seemed to be telling the truth. But then again, it could be something else.

"Very well, I shall see this message of yours. Over there," Luke said as he pointed to the Falcon. Nodding to this, Kira followed them to the ship.

(Guardian)

In recreation room, Captain Rex was typing up the information that Anakin and Jaina gave him about the Yuuzhan Vong. The siblings told the clone veteran about the different classes and groups from the warriors to whom they had faced on the Worldship. Jaina said the warriors were common among Yuuzhan Vong, as they fought with ferocity like a wild Gundarks. She then spoke that the one who commands the armies of the Yuuzhan Vong: Warmaster Tsavong Lah.

Jaina said that he is a fierce warrior and master strategist at planning battles. And that it's because of the Warmaster that the galaxy has turned on the Jedi, when he lost a duel against Jacen in which he cleaved off his foot. This lead him to vowing a vendetta against her brother, making him public enemy number one.

'Great, another General Grevious. Just what the galaxy needs!' Rex thought as he noted the comparison of this Warmaster to the late leader of the Droid Armies.

Rex would need to tell Padme about this later. For now he listened as Anakin spoke of a different Vong group called Shapers. He explained that Shapers acted as scientists/engineers that created the organic technology the Yuuzhan Vong used, from ships to weapons, armor and so on. Their technology could even manipulate a person's memories as well. Anakin said that one of the Shapers did this on his friend Tahiri, making her believe she was one of them.

The notion of that made Rex sick. And reminded him of what happened to Echo, when he was captured by the Separatists and used to analyze the attacks and predicated their moves.

Next they told Rex about the Priests who served and devoted themselves to the various gods the aliens worshiped. Hearing this made Rex recall the image of seeing several Vong bowing before a statue of one of their gods.

Anakin then told him about the last group which were the Worker caste. They were largest of the various castes as they were comprised of servants, slaves and those who were deemed failures among the Vong's society. The young Solo spoke of how a member of the Workers caste known as the Shamed Ones helped him save Tahiri on Yavin 4 when it was attacked by the Vong.

Anakin said this warrior, named Vua Rapuung, chose to turn on his people due to past actions with a member of the Shaper Caste. And that he believed it was the will of his god to help the young Jedi, and gave his life as Anakin and Tahiri escaped.

Hearing that a Vong helped him was quite a surprise for Rex. Given what he had seen on the Worldship, he assumed that all Yuuzhan Vong were evil. But unlike the Battle Droids who were programmed to fight, these were aliens who battled for their own beliefs and faiths.

"Everything okay Rex?" Jaina asked when things got quiet.

"Oh yes, I'm fine, just thinking," he replied, then decided to stop here.

"Why don't we take a break and go get something in the mess hall?" Rex asked, to which the Solos agreed.

It didn't take them long to make it there. Once inside, Anakin saw Tahiri and Tenal sitting at a table.

"What are you doing here?" he asked.

"We were bored after laying around for awhile, plus Ganner was getting on our nerves. So we came here for something to eat," Tahiri responded with a smile.

"What about you three?" Tenal asked.

Jania informed her friends about what she and Anakin told Rex about the Vong.

"And Jacen?"

"He and Chewbacca are still on the bridge. I think." Jania added as she sat down with the two, while Rex and Anakin went to get some food for them.

(Meeting Room)

For the last 30 minutes, Jacen and Chewbacca told Padme about Mara. The first thing they said was that she used to be a former Imperial Agent trained to use the Force for evil. But over time, she started to shift towards the light side after meeting Luke. At first she saw him as a enemy due to his defeat of the Emperor.

That part concerned both Padme and Ahsoka at first, but both were told that Mara would later come to see Luke as an ally and friend over the years. This, of course, lead to the two falling in love and marrying each other, after the war with the Empire ended.

Jacen decided to leave out Uncle Luke and Aunt Mara becoming parents. He felt it should be a surprise for Padme to learn she had a another grandson.

"So Jacen, now that you've told me about Mara, are there any other people I should know about? Perhaps a special someone you, Jania or Anakin like?" Padme asked in a teasing way.

This made Jacen blush a bit. He didn't want to talk about his or his siblings love lives. Seeing this made Chewie chuckle a bit, as did Padme.

"It's alright, you don't have to tell me. Why don't we go for a walk. I could use a stretch," Padme suggested, to which Jacen and Chewbacca agreed.

Ahsoka said she would stay behind as she wanted to go over the star charts on the bridge, and to meditate in peace.

(Millennium Falcon)

Inside the main hold of the ship, Luke and Mara sat at the curved table with Kira. She pulled out a circular disk, saying that the message was on it. Handing over to Luke, he sloted it into the portable holo-projector. It whirred on, and before them a life-size image appeared.

It was a tall alien wearing a tan colored tunic with a dark brown robes. The face was concealed by a straw hat.

Luke and Mara looked puzzled at first, until they saw the figure reveal its face. The alien was a Whipid, a

sentient alien race were known for having elongated skulls with long, bowed cheekbones. Two long tusks were protruding from the lower jaw which rested against it's mouth. The two also saw the alien had wild long hair which matched the color of his fur.

"Greetings Luke Skywalker, I am K'Krunk, Jedi Master. If your watching this, then it means that Kira has succeeded in her mission," the Whipid said in a gruff voice.

"I'm sure your wondering who I am, and why I've chosen now to contact you. The first is that I served and defended the Galactic Republic in its final years. I knew many of the Jedi at that time including your father, Master Kenobi and Yoda."

Luke said nothing as he heard this. He was keen to learn more about this Jedi Master as he continued speaking.

"Like many at the time, I fought in the Clone Wars, leading the Clone army against the Separatists Droid Armies.

Around the time that the war came to an end. I was in the Inner Rim when the Emperor's purge began. I was able to escape with a group of Jedi Students when the order was attacked."

A feeling of sadness was felt as Luke and Mara heard this.

"That makes sense. I'm sure that's what Obi-Wan and Master Yoda did along with those who also survived," Luke thought.

"Afterwords, our group crashed onto the planet of Arkinnea. We were found by the locals there who aided us and led our group to an abandoned Jedi outpost. Over time, we rebuilt it with help from the Yunu: Think of them as being similar to Wookiees, but much larger," K'Krunk said a grin at the last part.

"Since then, the students and myself have survived thanks to the planet being forgotten by the Empire. This allowed us to continue their training in peace. During this time, we wondered how things were transpiring in the galaxy without the Jedi."

'That would explain how he remained safe!' both noted after learning this.

"Then one day, I felt a powerful shift in the Force which puzzled me for a time. Later on as I was meditating, I was visited by someone whom surprised me. It the was the spirit of my old friend: Yoda."

Hearing this interested Luke and Mara as they listened carefully. "It was strange at first seeing him as a ghost. But Yoda told me about he became one with the Force and had found a way to retain his conscious after death. When I learned this, it saddened me to learn that Yoda, whom was the wisest of the Jedi, had passed into the next life."

A look of sorrow was seen on K'Kruhk's face as he spoke of this. Luke could tell that him speaking of this was hard for the Jedi Master.

"But my old friend told me of what had I had sensed. He told me about the Emperor's death, along with his second in command Darth Vader. And how he taught you the Jedi ways and that the order would return one day. This brought joy to my heart," K'Kruhk said with a grin.

"Afterwords, Master Yoda told me that he had a vision. It was of the future in which a dark force would threaten the galaxy. And that I was to help you and your order when this occurs. Which brings me to why I sent Kira to you."

"I would like you to bring your students here, they will be safe on Arkinnea. Kira will guide you if you decide to come. Til that day, May the Force be with You." The message ended as no one said anything. Luke and Mara looked at each other at first, then turned to Kira.

"Now that you've seen the message, do you believe me?" Kira asked.

"...I do believe your intentions are pure. Jedi Kira. But I'm going to discuss this with the other Masters and Students first. And I would like you to come with us, as they will want to see the message as well," Luke answered in a serious tone.

Nodding to this, Kira agreed to Luke's request. As the three left the Falcon, they stopped at the sound of Speeder approaching.

(Author's Notes)

Hi Everyone.

For those who are Star Wars EU fans, bringing in Master K'Kruhk is something I have been thinking about for awhile, because he's a major fan favorite and is confirmed to be one of the few Jedi from the old order still alive. But it will be awhile before Luke or the others meet him in person.

Also Kira Nara is an original character that I came up with and is inspired by three characters from Japanese Anime. The first is the Nine Tailed Fox from Naruto, along with the last name of Shikamaru Nara. The first name is from Kira Yamato from Moblie Suit Gundam Seed. Both shows are two of my favorites.

I have read in the comments about the Jedi Path book and how it contains writings from Qui-Gon and Ahsoka. And as far as it being in my story, I will say it's in a safe place, guarded by Tionne Solusar, the historian of the New Jedi Order. So I wanted to thanks those who brought it up.

Next month not only marks the start of the New Year, but also the Story's one year Anniversary. There's plenty more to come next year with new surprises, battles and so on. And the long awaited meeting between Padme and her family will finally happen.

Til then, Happy Holidays everyone and May the Force be with You all.