Disclaimer: Lucasfilm and Disney own SW (including Legends). Not me.
An irritated sigh cut through the peace of Yavin IV. "I can't keep doing this."
Luke Skywalker, head of the new Jedi Knights, eyed his academy's latest and most frequent guest in the recent month. "Doing what?" Luke asked.
"Coming here," his guest said, resting his bearded face on a bony fist. Those strange spectacles swept across the jungles outside the academy grounds, once the Rebel Alliance's hidden base from the Empire years ago. "I know I don't do it that often, but I'm seeing myself here more recently these days."
Luke silently stood by the edge of the academy's rooftop, where his guest sat cross-legged. The former saw the dozens of students whom he had trained in the ways of the Jedi. Maybe not the old Jedi, as knowledge about them was scarce. However, each colorful lightsaber and presence shone like a newly born star appearing in the galaxy. It had taken over a decade to find that many students and turn some of them into fully-fledged knights.
"It's all pointless, y'know," said Luke's guest, having looked down at the same spot. "This place won't be around after the Vong show up."
Luke filed the name away. Vong. Perhaps, it was the threat Thrawn perceived when he and Mara went through his secret lab on the planet Nirauan. There had been no signs so far, but Luke felt the same ominous dread hanging over him since then. "Do we win?" Luke asked.
"Yeah, you do, but not after a lot of people die. First is Chewie while saving Anakin. Then, Han blames him for Chewie's death. Then, Anakin dies, Jacen goes missing for a bit, Jaina goes crazy, and so on and so forth."
Luke tried not to double-take or say anything. It was like his father mutilating him on Bespin, only cutting every finger and limb piece by piece. He understood death was a part of life, and he understood war would threaten those he loved, but to do so suddenly and to affect his family like that? What had he been doing, or what was he going to do, about it?
"Oh, and the New Republic is destroyed. Y'all join the Imperial Remnant to form the Galactic Alliance. That is after a quarter of the galaxy dies or gets terraformed." When Luke thought it was over, his guest went on after a brief pause. "That's not the end of it. Jacen has a love child with Tenel Ka–in a secret relationship, by the way, which doesn't make much sense when you really think about it–and falls to the dark side to 'protect them,' supposedly. Sounds familiar, doesn't it? Of course, Jaina kills him in the end."
'And Mara Jade died for all of that,' Luke heard from his guest's mind.
The thought might as well have been a great ax. Luke's guts could have spilled open, bathing the black of his Jedi cloak and his guest's beard in red. How Luke wished to the Force everything he just heard wouldn't come true. How he wished he didn't just imagine Mara–the former Emperor's Hand, fellow Jedi, and most of all, his wife–lying on the ground with the other friends and family proclaimed dead.
There was more, as Luke heard his guest say, "And a century or so later, it starts all over again. Sith wipe out Jedi, rule the galaxy, and a Skywalker comes in to save the day. Of course, that guy's an emo addict. Some peace it all turned out… It's not even the worst timeline imaginable."
Not the worst? By the Force, what could be worse than his loved ones and the galaxy falling into chaos again within his lifetime and not so long after it?
Luke guessed he either asked it, or the question was obvious on his face because his guest went on. "Basically, take everything I just said and condense it into thirty years," the guest said. "Remember that other timeline I mentioned? Well, imagine Leia and Han had only one son. He's a temperamental kid, but you train him. Then, you try to kill him after sensing darkness inside of him. You run off to some island, your nephew falls to the dark side and kills Han, then you train Palpatine's granddaughter who knocks you on your hind, and you die after Force projecting yourself across the galaxy. And that's before Palpatine returns from the dead, and his granddaughter, the same one you barely trained, kills him after accidentally killing Leia through her Force bond with her son."
After a few long moments, Luke swallowed. Both literally and metaphorically. It was hard to digest every single worst, more so with this "other timeline" or "canon" or whatever his guest had called it. "You never mentioned any of this before," Luke said, earning a harsh snort from his guest.
"Because I thought something might change. But now, really thinking about it, it won't ever. Why? Cause it wasn't just the future, either. I never liked what happened in the past, with your father and how he fell. I felt confused by how the Republic became the Empire, how little sense it made for the Jedi's memory to simply disappear around the same time you were born, and everything else." He snorted again, and his voice rose. "Might as well just have been the starting point of it all, 'cause I keep seeing the same thing, again, and again, and again. Every century, every millennium! Some emperor coming back, the Sith rising and falling, the Jedi constantly fighting them instead of upholding the peace, some dumb Solo trying to do the same stupid crud his grandfather did–IT'S ALL THE SAME BUL–!"
The raised bony hand, held in a tight first, stopped a centimeter off the rooftop before it could strike. The guest flexed and uncurled to reveal a slightly pinker palm. The red color in his face, which rose with every word, faded in his silence. The anger, as Luke felt, remained swelled inside the container that was his guest's mortal form.
"You get what I mean," Luke's guest said, still seething a little. "There's nothing new. Just using what's popular and nostalgic to hide the bad writing, not finding a way to fix or have a redo until it's too late. And that's not even what ultimately pushed me away. Sure, I thought that way for many months. I even tried to get away from it all. Then, I was reminded of what I liked about this god-dang galaxy and tried to get involved again. It was fine, for a little bit."
"But something happened. You said something that reaffirmed your decision," Luke said. He was surprised he could even speak after being given tons of information that could affect the course of the galaxy.
"I brought up a point about a, well… I don't know what you'd call a cartoon here. It was about the Clone Wars. I definitely could've handled it better. Probably be less confrontational, I guess."
There was a pause, and Luke noticed his guest removed his spectacles to clear his eyes. Something about "stupid allergies," which had been a legitimate issue in the past. It didn't last long, though.
"The point is, I said I didn't like that Clone Wars because a lot of what happened, to me at least, seemed like it was the precursor to that other timeline I mentioned. When others replied, I doubled down," Luke's guest had said, having cleaned off his spectacle and put them back on his face. "It was just two or three people, but I let them walk right over me. I responded once or twice but I don't know if I got my points across. They made their points–some really flawed, looking back on it–but the way they said it… Ugh, I don't know, maybe I had it coming 'cause I said it the same way first, and maybe I was sensitive, but they were saying what I liked was dumb. No to mention, no matter how I tried to think up of a defense, I'd be defending things that are legitimately bad. It was too much effort for something so… worthless, so I got fed up. That nonsense reminded me about what I just said earlier about this galaxy cycling through its crud, so I turned away again. After that day, I knew I'd get the same trash if I said those things ever again. I was in the minority, even before, so what's the point in sticking around? It's petty, I know, but maybe I should be petty. No point in being around idiots like them."
Luke paused to think about his words. "I'm not sure about it being petty. To be honest, I don't understand a lot of what you are saying," he said at last. "But I understand what you feel if only a little. You feel hurt in a way. It's not the first time it has happened, and you want to stop hurting, so that's why you try to keep away from here. You justify it, rightly so, and with very reasonable arguments. However, you don't know how to completely separate yourself from what you once loved."
The guest stared up at Luke, then cursed in his amazement. "That's one way to put it," he said. "Yeah, it's true. I don't want anything to do with this stupid galaxy, but I feel like there's something telling me to come back. I mean, I grew up with it! Everyone back home did, seeing you and your adventures."
Luke wasn't surprised. His guest blabbed about such things in his previous visits. "So, what is it you think draws you back here?"
"Aside from some tidbits on the side, you." Now, Luke blinked in surprise. "For all the things that piss me off, I can't ever get angry with you. You were what people related to, looked up to. Even despite… everything I said, I mostly remember you being like this. Strong, yet kind. Hopeful."
"And because of me, you still keep coming back here."
"I do," the guest sighed, sounding annoyed with himself. "It reminds me of a time when things seemed like they would keep on improving. This place... it's kinda my little getaway in my head, I guess."
'Even if it's just fiction.'
Luke tried not to frown at the openly projected thought. There was so much knowledge and foresight yet he couldn't ignore everything else. Every grievance he had heard may have seemed so little, so insignificant when compared to what was going on to the rest of the galaxy. His guest said as such in previous visits as if trying to wave it off. The same guest didn't today. Perhaps, this younger man couldn't hold it in forever and poured out his troubles to the one person who might listen.
"I should go," the same younger man said and stood on his legs. He didn't leave yet, though. "I don't know how much longer I can keep doing this. One day–and I seriously mean one day–I'm gonna leave this behind. Even then, I don't know if I'll ever escape it fully, no matter how hard I try. Not until it dies and everyone forgets it."
Despite the morbid words, Luke offered the best smile he could. "I don't know if that will ever happen, but you don't have to feel so reserved. While it's here, the academy will always be open to you if you need it."
The guest's voice and eyes softened. "Thanks. It's… it's a kind offer."
"May the Fo–"
Luke stopped, having blinked and found himself alone atop his academy. A wind blew through his cloak and almost wiped away his smile. He wasn't sure he could ever settle his troubled mind now.
Truth be told, Luke wasn't sure what was true. He didn't know much of the past. He knew less of the future, which Master Yoda said was "always in motion." At the same time, the dread he felt before had grown heavier with the knowledge he heard and now held on his shoulders. He could tell his family and students about it. He wasn't sure if anyone would believe him, since they had never seen his special guest. No doubt, Mara would about question his sanity. Still, to be forewarned was to be forearmed.
Inhaling and exhaling, Luke left the rooftop and hoped to face whatever came at him.
AN: Wrote this strange bit a little less than a year ago, about a month before SW Visions ever came out. I definitely have more reasons to not get back into SW (aside from the project I have in mind and even then, I plan to be done with both franchise and fandom after I've finished), but this more or less still remains the crux of it all. There will still be SW ideas popping up, but I doubt I will ever fully write them into a story. Until next time, take care.
Raika out.