As promised, here is my version of Episode VIII. Given the numerous Jedi I added to the narrative from the original Star Wars Expanded Universe, it is not titled The Last Jedi. That would be quite the misnomer. Rather I called this episode The Blood that Binds.
I’m not certain how good a title that is, but if you like it, please let me know. Titles always take a little while to figure out, and there is never really a set formula to find them. You figure them out or you do your best with what you have and I would really like to know if this one is fitting.
Okay, enough chit-chat. I will step aside and let you enjoy this version of Star Wars Episode VIII.
Star Wars Episode VIII: The Blood that Binds
At a New Republic base on an ice world some months after The Force Awakens, Leia watches Tahiri Veila Solo with Hananiah and Allana, who are playing with the ice foxes. Han steps up behind her in winter gear, wrapping his arms around her waist. “Allana has her father’s touch with animals,” Leia murmurs.
“Yeah,” Han agrees. “Little Hananiah seems to be catching on, though. I know Anakin was hoping he would have different Force abilities. ‘We can’t all be mathematical and technological geniuses. Somebody’s got to be able to do something different!’” he says, quoting his younger son.
The two of them chuckle, then fall silent as the children squeal and chase the foxes while Tahiri laughs. Leia sighs and puts her head back against Han’s shoulder. “I hate running,” she whispers.
Han kisses her. “I know. But if we stayed in one place, he’d find us.” Looking up, he watches their grandchildren tumble in the snow. Hananiah wasn’t expecting it and starts to cry, only for one of the foxes and Allana to pounce on him to dry his tears and try to cheer him up. “He’d find them. If he gets Allana back….”
Leia shivers. Han gives her a warm squeeze. “Anakin needs to be moved, too,” Han murmurs. “He still hasn’t woken up. We can’t afford to leave him alone, either. At least running and caring for the kids keeps Tahiri from breaking down entirely.”
“Most of the time,” Leia reminds him, reaching up to scrub at her eyes. Han nods to concede the point. “Is Tenel still with Bel Iblis?” she asks her husband.
“Yeah. They’re planning to hook up with Pellaeon and take Brentaal. Or at least,” Han amends, “that’s where most of the Hapan Navy will be.”
Cocking an eyebrow, Leia looks up at him. Han grimaces. “Tenel’s nervous, distracted. More so than usual. I’ve got a bad feeling about it.”
Biting her lip, Leia looks back at the playing children. “Is the hyperdrive working?” she asks softly.
“Chewie and I checked it, and he’s still guarding the Falcon, just in case,” Han murmurs. “This base is supposed to be out of the way….”
“Jacen can still find it,” Leia says grimly. “And his First Order officers are competent. They found each of our other refuges, usually just after we left. Every time.” She closes her eyes and a tear slips out. Han kisses her again and reaches up to squeeze her shoulder. “Every time, Han.”
“He’s our son,” he reminds her, pain in his voice and expression. “We taught him how to find us if he ever needed us. I just wish he realized he did need us now.”
Leia sniffles and turns around in his arms. Han hugs her close and gives her a squeeze as Tahiri dusts off the children. Allana waves the foxes away, calling out, “Bye! Goodbye!” Her voice swirls off into the wind, swallowed up by the cold as the animals run off.
Meanwhile, in the same base, Jagged goes to see Jaina, who is training vigorously for when she next meets Jacen. Since he didn’t let the oldest Solo know that he was coming into the room, Jagged nearly gets decapitated when he startles her and she swings around with her saber raised, stopping at the last moment as she recognizes him. Although Anakin is not dead, Jaina is still furious with her twin for nearly killing him and throwing his spirit out of his body, so her training has been skirting the Dark Side. She gets mad at Jagged and tells him off for “sneaking up on” her. Jagged reminds her that he fell in love with her as a Jedi, not a Dark Sider, and that he doesn’t want to lose her. “What if you’ve already lost me?” she whispers, looking him in the eye.
“If that was the case, my head would be on the floor, and we wouldn’t be having this conversation,” he replies, pulling her into a hug.
Jaina sighs into him, closing her eyes and hugging him tight. “I can still sense him out there,” she murmurs. Tilting his head, Jagged looks down at her, his expression sad. “It’s cloudy – he’s blocking me. We used to share everything, Jag. Now I can just barely tell he’s alive.”
“He used to be so warm,” she continues softly. She starts to shake. “We’re twins. He was one half of my soul and I was the other half of his. At least we used to be. Now…”
“Don’t give up,” Jagged whispers in her ear. “Don’t give up, Janna. Your grandfather turned, and he was the worst person anyone can think of, short of Palpatine. Jacen’s not gone that far yet.”
“He nearly killed Anakin!” she retorts, opening her eyes and pulling back to look at him. “He was going to murder Dad!”
Jagged takes her face in his hands. “And somewhere inside – somewhere he doesn’t want you to see – is your little brother, crying and hoping there’s a way out. I don’t know him as well as you do,” Jagged adds as she opens her mouth, “I don’t know him as well as your parents do, or Anakin does. They haven’t given up on him. I’m not giving up on him yet. You shouldn’t, either.” He puts his forehead against hers. “Not yet, Jaina.”
Closing her eyes as the tears fall, Jaina hugs him again. Jagged hugs her back and kisses her temple.
Not long after this, Finn wakes up and is greeted enthusiastically by BB-8, who explains that he has been recovering for months. The duo is then approached by Jedi Knight Ezra Bridger, who has been one of the people watching over Finn and waiting for him to wake up. He escorts the former trooper and his droid out of the room; as they leave the medical wing, they pass a room where Bridger’s daughter is currently watching over Anakin’s body on Tahiri’s behalf. The rabbit-like Master Ikrit, Anakin’s master, is standing watch alongside her. Master Ikrit has no lightsaber, so Finn at first mistakes him for a pet.
Master Ikrit opens one eye, surveys Finn, then turns to the amused Bridger while Bridger’s daughter bites her lip to keep from laughing. “Not all Jedi wield a lightsaber, young one,” Master Ikrit says as he closes his eye again. “Jedi Knight Bridger, I believe the mess hall is that way,” he adds, pointing out of the room with one ear.
“Just thought he’d like to know where Anakin is, Master,” Bridger replies, nodding respectfully to the small alien. “And making sure my daughter isn’t getting up to trouble.”
“Dad!” she gasps. “How could you? You always say I’m better behaved than you were at my age.”
“Which still leaves lots of room for trouble, my dear,” he says, leaning down to give her a small kiss. Finn watches the exchange with consternation and then wistful sadness, as he realizes he lost the opportunity to have such banter with his family when the First Order kidnapped him.
They leave the room and, as they walk along, Finn admits to Bridger that he cannot remember much following the near-fatal duel with Kylo Ren. Ezra explains that bacta treatments can leave a sapient’s memory a bit foggy. “You were also unconscious when you were rescued, so that’s probably another reason why you’re having trouble remembering things,” he adds as they work their way through the corridors. “It’ll clear up, eventually, but you still might not be able to recall much. Luckily, you’ve got friends who will want to help you remember.”
With that, Ezra and Finn round the corner, coming face-to-face with Jagged Fel. “Finn!” Jagged says, surprised and happy to see him up.
Smiling slightly, Ezra admits he has work to do and heads off down a different corridor. Jagged and Finn talk, with the Hand pilot (who has officially been loaned to Rogue Squadron since the battle to destroy the Sun Crusher in TFA) asking if Finn is hungry. The former trooper admits he is and Jagged takes him to the mess hall, where he introduces Finn to several Rogue and Wraith pilots.
Members from both squadrons greet the two men and BB-8, whom they all remember and treat like a squadron mascot. The combined squads do their best to help Jagged make Finn feel at home, and after their meal, they head to the simulators for training. As they go, Finn admits he wishes he could fly like they can. The group share looks. The next scenes have him in the simulators, where several of the Wraiths and Rogues are teaching him how to fly, with BB-8 in the simulator as Finn’s droid copilot.
Jagged is one of the pilots not in the simulators watching the lesson on large screens in the room. He stands a little apart from the other watchers, though. This means that when Wedge Antilles pokes his head in to see what all the fuss is about, he walks over to Jagged and asks for an explanation. Once Jagged tells him what is going on, Wedge nods. “Good. We could use another pilot, and he could use the distraction, since Rae isn’t here. Did you tell him where she went?”
“Yes,” Jagged says, cocking an eyebrow at the General. “No offense, sir, but what do you take me for?”
“A good friend and a good pilot,” Wedge responds easily. “And a good man. The Wraiths need another member – they’ve been understaffed since Dantooine. Do you think Finn would…?”
Lots of happy screaming from the assembled pilots interrupts Wedge as Finn wins his first match and comes out of the simulator, to be slapped on the back and pounced on by the Rogues and Wraiths. While Finn grins at the adulation and friendship as BB-8 bumps up against his leg, whistling proudly, Jagged licks his lips and affects a semi-serious demeanor. “He’s rough around the edges, sir, but with a little work, I think the Wraiths will take him. They’re primarily espionage and sappers, anyway, and I hear his close combat skills are pretty good. He should fit in just fine.”
“Good to hear,” Wedge says, giving him a grin. “I’ll leave him to your, ah, tender mercies then. Tell your father he still owes me a brandy, by the way, and that I want to see my sister sometime this century, too.” With that, he turns on his heel and leaves. Jagged watches him go, grinning at his uncle, before turning back to the celebration and giving a sharp whistle as he adopts a stern expression. Everyone goes to attention (even BB-8) at once and he proceeds to dress down most of them for their “unprofessional behavior.” “Dismissed!” he says at the end.
Everyone but Finn relaxes and moves off, giggling. BB-8 bobbles and chirps happily while Finn looks around in confusion until Jagged slaps him on the shoulder. “Not bad, kid. Ready for some one-on-one training in the simulators?”
“Against you?” Finn says, clearly nervous.
“Not right now,” Jagged tells him. “For now, you would be my wingman up against simulated enemy fighters. Think you can handle that?”
Finn blinks at him, startled. “You’d trust me with that?” he says finally. “With – with your back?”
Jagged shrugs. “You had it before. If the odds hadn’t been so bad, things might have gone differently. What do you say to being ready for next time?”
After another blink, Finn straightens up with clear pride and salutes. “Yes, sir!”
Laughing, Jagged slaps him on the shoulder again. “All right then. Let’s go kick some simulated First Order ass, shall we? BB-8, what do you say?”
A loud trill and an eager bounce are the little droid’s affirmative.
Meanwhile, out in deep space, a small detachment of New Rep ships is destroyed by the First Order. Only a few fighters escape, and Jacen has the bridge crew put a trace on them before going into the elevator, where he takes off his helmet. There, the female voice from the previous movie reprimands him through the Force for not properly sacrificing Anakin, as well as for leaving “that old wizard Snoke” as the “face” of the First Order. She wants Kylo Ren to be the leader in front of the First Order but due to his apparent reluctance to seize power this is not possible.
The scene shifts so that, while he is still in the elevator, Jacen can see into a dark, cold room in a space station. Visible through the window is the Sun Crusher, which is still under repair. A cloaked figure that moves in a feminine manner turns from the window to look over her shoulder at him. Only her eyes are visible and, when she lifts on hand, the glint of metal shows it to be a cybernetic limb. “Skywalker and his son elude you as well,” she hisses. “If you cannot find them, then strike while you may. Through passion, I gain strength. Through strength, I gain power. Through power, I gain victory.”
“Through victory, my chains are broken,” Jacen finishes, having repeated most of the Sith code under his breath up to this moment. “This I know, Dark Lady of the Sith.”
“Knowledge serves you little,” the Dark Lady, Lumiya, reprimands him. Her voice hisses harshly and there is no kindness or friendliness in her. “Jedi believe knowledge gives them wisdom. But can wisdom prevent the future you see in your dreams – your nightmares?”
As she speaks, Jacen receives a vision of his young daughter Allana being tortured while crying out to him. The person torturing her tells Allana that her father will not hear her because he has abandoned her to her fate. “NO!” she screams. “NO! DADDY! Daddy, please! I love you – Daddy, Daddy, where are you?! DADDY!”
Angered, Jacen slams his helmet into the wall, destroying it. The Dark Lady of the Sith stands motionless, watching him shake as he pulls back the remnants of the helmet. He casts the pieces to the floor of the elevator and looks up at her, his breathing ragged. “Passion grants you strength,” she whispers, the hiss slightly less noticeable this time. “Your Jedi family lack this strength, suppressing their passions. They are weak. You must be stronger than them – if you wish to avoid that fate for her.”
With that, Jacen’s double vision ends. Although he is still shaking it becomes clear his resolve is hardening. Protecting his daughter might mean killing a family member but she is his daughter. What would any man not do for his child?
Still, Jacen feels constrained to point out that so far, his family has protected one another. They may prevent him from killing anyone. “In that case, a substitute must be found,” the Dark Lady of the Sith hisses. “Find him – or her – and end that person, Kylo Ren. Else you will not have the power that you need to save your child.”
Jacen looks up, but he is alone in the elevator again. A communication comes in from Snoke, who does not realize there is anyone higher than either him or Jacen in the First Order hierarchy. Their discussion quickly becomes acrimonious, as Jacen reminds Snoke that he is nothing but a withered old creature who spent so much time studying Sith records on Korriban, he is now too physically weak to move much. “Had I not needed you, you would still be there, reading old spells to your heart’s content,” Jacen snaps.
“Ah, but you do need me,” Snoke says with a skeletal grin. “You need the secrets only I have found, and my ability to teach these so-called Ren Knights things their predecessors had forgotten.”
Jacen’s eyes narrow. “On that subject, how do they fare?” he asks, his tone becoming casual and almost bored.
Snoke snorts. “The weakest are gone. The rest are passable and will give a good account of themselves, though some will fall, surely. A few scheme to positions of prominence but you need not fear yet. None are ready to try to challenge you.”
“Comfort? From you, Snoke?” Jacen asks blandly. “Why, I’m touched.” He receives a notification that they are coming up on the New Republic base, acknowledges it, and looks back at Snoke. “It seems I must be going.”
Obviously displeased to be reminded that he cannot move or fight, Snoke glares at Jacen with pure hatred. The two end the transmission and Jacen goes to the bridge without a helmet. A couple of officers do a double-take at the sight of him without his mask but otherwise do not mention it. Jacen seems briefly troubled by their looks but becomes all business when told that they will be dropping out of hyperspace soon.
At the base, Finn has been getting to know the members of Rogue and Wraith Squadrons. He has also made some friends among the Jedi. His new routine is interrupted by the fighter squadron that Jacen almost destroyed, which arrives to report what happened and to lick its wounds. No sooner have they appeared, though, than the First Order drops out of hyperspace right behind them. The remaining fighters are wiped out and the First Order proceeds to attack the base, which barely raises its shields in time.
Han gets to the command center along with Finn and they get a readout on the situation. With the combined New Rep/Imperial Remnant and Hapan attack on Brentaal happening now, as well as the New Rep fighting to take other locations while the Imperial Remnant holds other places against First Order incursions, they can’t expect backup and they cannot hold Jacen off. The planet’s small – barely more than a moon – and the base is just more than an outpost. That’s why Han took his family here in the first place; it was such an insignificant and out-of-the-way spot with so little defenses, they would be crazy to hide here.
Now the only option they have is to battle their way out and run, because they can’t withstand a siege and they don’t have the weapons to effectively fight back. Han tells the commander to evacuate, adding that he and his wife will be on one capital ship to draw the First Order’s fire. As they leave, however, Han pulls Finn aside and tells him to take Tahiri, Hananiah, and Allana to Wedge’s capital ship. “If Jacen’s got to choose between killing us and taking his daughter back it will split his forces and keep him distracted. Be ready for them to try to grab her, though. We’ve been hiding for months to keep her away from him, but the First Order knows he wants her. They don’t care why – and they might not mind hurting her, Tahiri, or Hananiah in the process.”
Finn nods. “Understood. Come on, BB!” With a whistle, the little droid follows him as he and Han split up.
Though the Republic fights their way out, it is a difficult battle. Many of their ships (though none with our guys on them) are destroyed before Jacen takes off in a fighter to enter the fray personally and kill his parents, who are loading Anakin’s body aboard the Falcon since their capital ship is severely damaged and must be abandoned. While this is going on, Phasma gets aboard Wedge Antilles’ capital ship with a contingent of Stormtroopers to snatch Allana for the First Order. Hananiah and Tahiri are also targets but, according to one Trooper, their condition matters less than Allana’s.
Remembering his kidnapping and the child whose father was killed on Jakku, Finn attacks the Stormtroopers to protect the three. Tahiri fights as well, using the Force in creative ways to shield the children and blocking several blaster bolts with her lightsaber. BB-8 helps by bowling over Stormtroopers and zapping a couple into losing focus, enabling Tahiri to hit them with items grabbed through the Force or Finn to shoot them down. In this way the five make it to a hangar bay to get aboard a transport Wedge is preparing for them.
Things go well until Captain Phasma appears, blocking access to the transport. Finn engages her in personal combat to protect Tahiri and the children. While BB-8 and Wedge help Anakin’s wife get away from the other Troopers with the children, Finn seems to be doomed to suffer Phasma’s vengeance – until he is saved by Bridger, Kam Solusar, and Corran Horn. Bridger tells Finn to get to Wedge’s transport as the Jedi buy them time to escape. Phasma makes some comment to Bridger along the lines of, “You think you can handle me, Jedi?!”
In answer, Ezra says, “Lady, I’m married to a woman who is ten times tougher than you are!”
“Better double that!” Kam laughs, lunging at Phasma after killing a Trooper who came to back her up. “Not that Tionne would ever brag about it – she’d much rather avoid a fight, anyway.”
“You think you two have tough wives?” Corran asks, blocking a strike from the female Trooper. “You should see Mirax in the mornings!”
Forced back by the three Jedi and suffering several lightsaber burns, Phasma and her remaining Stormtroopers abandon ship. As they do the vessel suffers a direct hit, and the remaining crew is ordered out into the escape pods or fighters. The three Jedi just manage to bail out in time.
Jaina occupies Jacen for most of the fight, protecting the Falcon as she does, but he nearly slips past her before a flotilla from the Hapan navy – led by Jacen’s wife and the Queen Mother of the Hapes Consortium, Tenel Ka Djo – arrives to cover the New Republic fleet’s escape. Having sensed through the Force that she would need to help them, Tenel didn’t join Bel Iblis and Pellaeon at Brentaal but collected a flotilla to arrive just in the nick of time here.
She manages to give several New Rep ships breathing room to jump to hyperspace, including the Falcon, but Wedge’s ship and Rogue Squadron are among those cut off by First Order forces thanks to some swift maneuvering by General Hux. Tenel receives a taunting message from him about the fact that Hapes’ ships and warrior ethic are no match for First Order discipline. Raising an unimpressed eyebrow, Tenel replies: “Then it is good that you front not only the Queen Mother of Hapes, but a Witch of Dathomir.” She raises her only hand and makes a slight gesture –
On the command deck of Hux’s Star Destroyer, the communications’ officer screams and jumps back just before his console explodes. Tenel’s ship does a quick roll, to be followed by two others, and makes an attack run on the Star Destroyer. Hux barely avoids panicking as he orders the cannons fired. Though one of Tenel’s ships is seriously damaged, all three manage to wound the Star Destroyer badly enough to give Wedge’s ship enough room to escape, getting Finn, Tahiri, Allana, and Hananiah out of danger.
More New Rep ships slip the net, given cover by the Hapes flotilla even as they start to lose vessels. Rogue Squadron acquits itself well, covering several vessels and helping them escape before turning to help the Hapan ships. Just as they’re all getting ready to bail, Jacen closes in on his sister and lines up on her – but hesitates.
Seeing his girlfriend in danger, Jagged peels off from pursuing a TIE, calling Jaina’s name. In her own cockpit, Jaina grimaces as she realizes Jacen has her in his sights. Before anyone can do anything another Rogue, a friend of Jaina’s named Anni Capstan, dives in to help. “Sticks,” Anni calls, using Jaina’s nickname among the Rogues, “look out!”
“Anni, no!” Jaina shouts just as Anni’s X-Wing interposes itself between her and Jacen, whose thumb lands on the trigger. His TIE spits fire and Anni’s X-Wing explodes in a shower of dust.
Jaina screams: “ANNI!”
Over the comm, someone calls, “We just lost Rogue Twelve!”
“This is Rogue Leader. The Hapes ships are leaving. Everyone, we’re pulling out. Form up and engage your hyperdrives.”
“Jaina!” Jagged calls, firing on Jacen to chase him away from her. “Jaina, we have to go!”
Angry but also crying, Jaina grits out an acknowledgement and inputs coordinates into the navicomputer. Jagged pulls up on her wing quickly, punching in coordinates as he goes. With that, the combined remnants of the Hapan and New Rep ships flee into hyperspace, once again out of Jacen’s reach.
Some time later Rogue Squadron and the Hapes ships arrive at a New Republic base closer to the Core Worlds. As everyone dismounts and tiredly leaves to find rest or start maintenance, Tahiri and Leia make their way to Finn and thank him for protecting Hananiah and Allana. He also gets slapped on the back and thanked by Han, who says he knew the former Trooper had it in him all along. “I hear Phasma almost got you,” he adds, nodding to him. “Word of advice? Next time, fight dirty. She wants you dead as much as the rest of us. I’d rather not give her the satisfaction.”
“Thanks,” Finn says, shaking his hand.
Ezra Bridger compliments Finn as well before going to help some other Jedi take care of the injured, but Bridger is met halfway by a woman wearing Mandalorian armor. The two begin talking quietly as she pulls her helmet off, revealing hair that’s been painted an outrageous color. Finn looks at them wistfully. Tahiri sees his face and tells him she has a feeling Rae will be back soon. BB-8 chirps in agreement.
Shaking himself, Finn offers to escort Tahiri and Hananiah to the room where Anakin has been taken with Master Ikrit. With a smile, Tahiri accepts.
Jaina climbs out of her X-Wing, tear streaks visible on her face. Jagged meets her and pulls her into a hug as soon as she hits the ground. Neither of them says anything but when she starts to sob into his flight suit, he plants a small kiss on top of her head. Anni was a good friend of hers and he feels as responsible for her death as Jaina does.
Aboard his Star Destroyer, Jacen goes to his quarters. He uses the Force to pick up a chair and throw it at the wall. He proceeds to toss it around the room, making a great mess, before collapsing to his knees crying. “Jaina,” he chokes. “Jaina, Jaina! Janna!”
They’re brother and sister. They are twins. He knows he has to kill someone, but his own sister? The other half of his soul, whom he can feel grieving even at this distance, when they’re both trying to block each other out?
He can’t kill her. Jaina is his sister. Anni getting between them saved more than Jaina, but his sister is still in pain. Pain Jacen caused. He cannot block that out, no matter how hard he tries. “Janna,” he mutters again, clutching at his chest as he weeps. “Janna…”
Back with Jagged, Jaina coughs into her boyfriend’s shoulder. “Jasa,” she whispers. That’s her old nickname for Jacen. “Why, Jasa? Why? Why?!”
Squeezing his eyes shut, Jagged hugs her tight. In that much, Jaina is better off than Jacen, whose wife pauses on her way to pick up Allana. Tenel Ka watches Jaina sob into Jagged’s shoulder and closes her own eyes. But the tears fall regardless as she has lost her husband, seen her sister-in-law break down in grief, and watched the man she loves become intent on destroying everything they once held dear for two years.
Clinging to Leia, Allana buries her face in her grandmother’s dress and sniffles as she senses the grief in her family. Leia leans down and pulls her into a warm hug. Han joins them a moment later, hugging them both. “It’s all right,” he whispers, rubbing Allana’s back and kissing Leia as she cries silently. “It’s all right. We’re not giving up on him just yet.”
“Han,” Leia says, almost choking on his name.
“We’re not,” he repeats, pulling back to look at his granddaughter’s tear-stained face. “Not yet. Not until we have to. Okay, sweetheart?”
Looking at him for a long moment, Allana sniffles and nods. The three hug tight again.
Meanwhile, on Ach-Toh, Luke and Ben have been training Rae while continuing to search in the records of the first Jedi enclave for the origin of the “Knights of Ren.” Rae has been helping as best she can but, while she can read, the scrolls are ancient and in scripts she cannot recognize. Ben struggles to read some as well, and Luke can only make partial sense of a few. Training often consists of Ben teaching Rae how to fight with a lightsaber while Luke reads (and keeps a weather eye on the two of them), then switches to Luke teaching her the more spiritual aspects of the Force and techniques that need finesse while Ben reads through the records.
By now Ben and Rae have become very friendly with each other, often needling and teasing one another like siblings. At one point, while Luke is having Rae practice lifting things with the Force (including Artoo), Ben makes a snarky comment that causes her to fall over laughing. She loses her hold on most of what she was keeping airborne in the process, only managing not to drop Artoo (though he wobbles in her grip and whistles in alarm). Luke catches the other items as Rae sets the droid down gently, still laughing on the floor of their hut. “You did that on purpose!” she gasps at Ben as she finally manages to sit up.
The younger Skywalker looks up and blinks at her innocently. “Me?” he says.
“Yes!” she exclaims.
Ben shakes his head. “No, I didn’t.”
“Did!”
“Didn’t.”
“Did!”
“You lost your concentration, now you’re trying to blame it on me,” Ben replies.
“Oh, you little –!” Rae starts.
“Ahem,” Luke interrupts, raising an eyebrow. Ben quickly ducks his head, pretending to read the scroll in his lap as Rae glares at him, clearly itching to launch herself at him but also reluctant to make Luke stop her. Luke narrows his eyes, then starts to smile. “I think that’s enough training for now,” he says, standing up. He uses the Force to take the scroll from his son. “And if I remember correctly, we’re almost out of fish. Why don’t the two of you catch some while I see if there’s enough left to make a decent dinner?”
The two young Force-users share a look. Cut to the two of them by the seaside, up to their knees in the surf, splashing one another and shrieking. Rae and Ben start tussling and she manages to knock him into the water, but he drags her down with him. The two wrestle around in it, laughing like maniacal little kids. Luckily there are plenty of fish in a basket on the shore, so they are not going to be scolded when they get back to the hut.
In said hut, despite being “too far away” to hear the noise, Luke smiles as he prepares dinner. “Kids will be kids,” he murmurs.
Uncle…
Luke freezes, mirth forgotten. He turns, looking throughout the kitchen. Setting down the spoon he was using to stir the food, making sure the heat’s not too high and nothing will catch, he goes further into the house. But he isn’t looking with just his eyes.
The call comes again: Uncle….
“Anakin?” Luke murmurs, still seeking his nephew’s presence.
Silence falls. Luke stops, standing still in the center of the room. A sudden wind rushes through the house, causing him to raise his arm to shield his face.
One book is thrown open by the gust. The pages flip forward quickly before stopping as the wind dies down. Casting a suspicious glance around the room, Luke goes over to the book and starts reading. He stops and focuses in on part of it.
When he finishes it, he looks up, disturbed. “Artoo,” he calls softly.
The loyal droid chirps and wobbles forward. “How did Mara wake you? I left you with two options to wake up. One was a code phrase I felt sure she would puzzle out, when the time was right. Did she say it?”
Artoo tilts his head as if confused. He whistles and beeps a series of baffled notes. Luke looks at him sharply. “What?” he asks, his voice so soft it can barely be heard.
Twisting his dome around, Artoo repeats himself. Slowly, Luke sits down in a chair. “How…” he starts, then closes his eyes. “After all this time.”
Silence descends. “You’re sure?” Luke murmurs after a moment. “The other key – it was specifically meant for Ben.”
Cocking his dome in surprise, Artoo coos and twists it again in a negative. Luke reaches up and covers his face. “Force,” he says quietly. “Oh, Force. After all this time….”
All is quiet. “How do I tell them?” Luke asks, taking his hands from his face. He looks stricken. “How do I tell them?”
Later that night, with both Rae and Ben cleaned up and eating soup, Luke picks up the book and explains what he found in it while they were out. It seems the Knights of Ren have been around for centuries and have been waiting to spring a trap on the Jedi; infiltrate the Order with fully trained Dark Siders, then split the Order in schism and destroy it by internecine warfare. They found this impossible to accomplish after the Jedi instituted the practice of training infants and had had only moderate success before that, in part due to the constant Dark Side threats faced by Revan and others. Because of those menaces the Ren Knights were never a great threat. They also appeared to be defeated about the time the Order began training from infancy forward and banned marriage (to the Old Order’s clear detriment).
Apparently, though, the Knights of Ren – so named for the fallen Jedi who founded the group – thought they had missed their chance after Palpatine took over the galaxy, but the Rebellion showed them they were wrong. So they started to work on their age-old plan by sneaking some of their own knights into Luke’s new Jedi Order. After all, who would suspect a bunch of newly discovered Force sensitives were actually fully trained Dark Siders? Any records on the Knights were long lost to history. If it hadn’t been for a tome from an Antarian Ranger murdered in the Jedi Purge that Luke unearthed elsewhere and brought with him to Ach-Toh, he still wouldn’t have this much of the picture.
This would be where Luke admits that he feels great guilt, since Jacen fell under the tutorship of one of these Ren Knights, a female alien named Vergere. A fallen Jedi from the Old Order, she joined the Knights of Ren to escape Palpatine’s purge, falling deeper and deeper into the Dark Side the longer she was with them. When Luke’s new academy on Yavin opened, she entered it under false pretenses. He eventually gave her the rank of Master and allowed her to take Jacen as her apprentice.
Vergere precipitated Jacen’s fall when he was fully trained. Unlike his siblings, Jacen always had an unhealthy fascination with Vader and the Dark Side. He believed that the Dark Side could – could – coexist peacefully with the Light Side of the Force inside a single person. Luke had never come down on him for it because he didn’t want to alienate his nephew. He also reasoned that since they already had Jedi Masters who could use both Dark and Light Side techniques, as long as his nephew talked with them, Jacen had a decent shot at not falling off the wagon.
But it wasn’t Kyle Katarn, Mara Jade Skywalker, Kam Solusar, or any of the others whom Jacen talked to about this. It was Vergere, who used his interest to draw him away from the Order into the Knights of Ren. But Luke didn’t know that until Jacen and a coterie of young Jedi he had begun tutoring attacked the main temple on Yavin.
Ben grumbles that if he hadn’t been on a mission with Jaina at the time, they might have been able to do something. Tahiri was in labor then, too, so Anakin was also not on Yavin when Jacen attacked it but with her on Coruscant. “Mom was on a mission, too,” Ben adds, glowering to the side. He misses Luke wince at that, but Rae notices it and wonders about it. “Jacen chose a time when only you were there, Dad. Sith need a sacrifice, and if the Ren are Dark Siders….”
“Sacrifice is part of becoming a Jedi as well,” Luke reminds his son gently. “But generally, it’s a sacrifice of an inordinate attachment that opens us completely to the Force, and that doesn’t mean anyone needs to die. For a Sith, a living sacrifice is needed.”
“Yeah,” Ben growls, “because the worst thing you can have as a Sith is someone you love trying to turn you away from the darkness.”
Luke closes his eyes and sighs. “Yes,” he murmurs. “Unfortunately, that is often why Sith kill those closest to them to achieve more power. Though if they have no one they love, they can also sacrifice someone they despise or who is a threat to them.” His mouth twitches uncomfortably. “Or they can circumvent that altogether and sacrifice a great number of innocents, as Exar Kun did in the Massassi temples on Yavin.”
Rae’s eyes widen. “Wait. Are they still –?”
Both men shake their heads. “No, Anakin freed the Massassi child spirits,” Ben assures her. “The rest of the early students banished Exar Kun, too.”
“Though it almost cost us all,” Luke admits. Taking a deep breath, he looks at his son for a long moment. “We’re going to need more books. Do you think you can pull them from the library? I have a list I made while dinner cooked.” He passes Ben a piece of paper and the young man dutifully heads off to collect the books.
Rae watches him go, then turns to Luke. “He’s angry at Jacen.”
“Mara and I had…missions which took us away from Yavin for long periods of time,” Luke explains slowly. “After yet another attack, though, I had to stay at the Academy most of the time. Mara would go on missions more often for that reason. When he was old enough Ben went with her, and he spent nearly as much time with me at the Academy. But in between those times, he lived with Han, Leia, and his cousins.”
She winces. “Anakin and Ben were perhaps the closest,” Luke murmurs, reaching up to rub his face with a sigh. “The news you brought – we both felt something when Anakin was struck down. But it wasn’t possible to get the clear picture at this distance. Jacen had been the one they both admired, so for Ben to hear what he did to his own brother, and the cousin Ben loved most as a brother….”
Rae makes a noise in her throat and glances toward the door. “You think…?”
“I think I don’t want them to meet any time soon,” Luke admits to her. Then he sighs. “But I may not be able to prevent it, either.”
Over the next few days, the three learn more about the Ren Knights, including that there is a prophecy about their destruction, but no record of the prophecy seems to exist. After almost completely emptying the shelves in the library trying to find it, the three decide to attempt a Force vision in the hopes it will help them find out more. In the vision Mara, Jaina, and several other Jedi go to take out Snoke and Jacen to end the war before it spirals completely out of control. Jagged and Finn are there as well, along with Han and Chewie, while Leia and Tenel Ka are with Bel Iblis and the others in the Republic attack force above the planet.
Mara appears to die in the vision at Jacen’s hand and Ben immediately wants to take off to protect her, having already lost his favorite cousin to Jacen. This leads to an argument between him and Luke, after which Ben storms off. Rae can tell Luke wants to go after Mara, too, but that he’s truly worried doing so will lead to her death. She follows Ben to talk to him as Anakin’s disembodied spirit speaks to Luke, mentioning that his uncle has “realized why Rae is so strong in the Force.” Luke admits he has realized why, but he doesn’t know how to tell her or Ben about it.
Rae catches up to Ben and volunteers to go save Mara so he can stay with Luke and learn more about the prophecy. Despite his protests, she points out that, “he [Luke] needs you here, Ben. He really does. I’ll keep Mara safe – I promise. But that means you have to promise to take care of your father. You’re lucky you’ve got one. I never knew mine.” Convinced to stay, Ben hugs her and helps her prep her ship. She goes with R2 to join the Republic/Jedi strike team for the mission against the First Order’s hierarchy, who are presently aboard a space station they have been using as a mobile base to avoid detection. Rae is welcomed by many and gets a moment with Finn before going to meet Mara, who asks after her husband and son. “Did they treat you well?” she asks.
“Luke was a perfect gentleman,” Rae says, then smiles mischievously. “But I had to dunk Ben a few times.”
Mara laughs. “That’s my boy!”
The attack gets underway and not long after it starts, Jaina separates from Mara, Rae, Han, Chewie, and the others when she spots Jacen. Lowbacca, Raynar Thul, Lusa, and Tenel – friends of the Solo children from their academy days – try to go after her but end up in battle with other Ren Knights instead. Jaina herself briefly fights with Vergere before escaping her to continue pursuing Jacen. Back on Ach-Toh, Luke puts the final pieces of the puzzle together and tells Ben they need to leave – now.
The battle aboard the First Order station rages on. Several Knights on both sides die, but Mara herself is saved from death at Jacen’s hands by Rae. Rae and Jacen duel fiercely until Snoke begins torturing Mara with Force lightning. Desperate to keep her promise, Rae jumps in front of the next blast. She and Mara begin sharing strength through the Force to fight Snoke when Jaina arrives and drives Jacen from the room temporarily.
As Mara and Rae’s minds meld, Snoke states that they have an affinity unlike that of master and student. It’s more personal and primal, the kind of connection that exists between mother and child. Stunned, both women are easily disarmed by the Dark Side wizard as they realize they are related. Mara states loudly, “That’s not possible!” and is echoed by Rae. But Snoke laughs and tells them their feelings confirm it. Thus, Rae learns that Mara is her mother, Luke her father, and Ben her older brother.
They share a look – Rae bewildered and wounded, Mara in deep emotional pain and lingering disbelief. “I thought you were dead…,” she murmurs, tears forming in her eyes.
Before Snoke can kill them, Finn arrives in time to help. Shooting at Snoke, he distracts him long enough for mother and daughter to regain their lightsabers and engage the wizard. Rae isn’t skilled enough to attack Snoke as capably as Mara, however, and can only back up or cover for her mother. That is when Luke and Ben arrive to help them out, making it a five-way Force duel while Finn holds off the Stormtroopers that have come to try to protect their “leader.”
Meanwhile, Jaina is forced to cut her duel with Jacen short when Jagged, who snuck up to help her, interferes to save her from the Dark Side and nearly dies for his trouble. But the gesture serves to help Jaina get past her anger since, while she is telling him off, Jagged kisses her. The two share another big kiss before joining up with Han and Chewie as Jacen doubles back and kills Snoke, who is already on the ropes due to the pressure the Skywalkers have put on him.
Jacen’s eyes turn yellow as Snoke dies and the Skywalkers all pull away when he absorbs the wizard’s power. “I suppose I should thank you, Snoke,” he laughs. “You make a good sacrifice – and now I am a Sith lord, at long last!”
Luke grimaces. “Jacen!” he calls, his tone half warning and half pleading.
Turning to him, Jacen sneers: “That name belongs to a dead man, Master Skywalker. I am Lord Kylo, head of the Knights of Ren and Lord of the Sith. Forget it at your peril.” With that, he raises his hand and everyone scatters to avoid the blast of power he fires – one which fries several Stormtroopers at the same time it sets the space station to blow. Luke, Ben, Mara, Rae, and Finn escape along with everyone else, but Jacen and many of the Ren Knights also get away before the station goes up in smoke.
At a New Republic base after this, Luke and Ben officially rejoin the New Republic before going to the medical bay to meet Mara and Rae, whom Mara wanted to get checked out since she was hit with Force lightning. Luke goes on to explain to a bewildered Ben and a betrayed-feeling Rae that she was kidnapped when she was a toddler. It was a Knight of Ren who stole her, perhaps to have her trained in the Dark Side or perhaps to protect her from the other Knights of Ren. At this point, it doesn’t really matter which, since whoever did the stealing died while Rae was still young, leaving her in Plutt’s “care.”
“I had begun to suspect you were our daughter when you first arrived on Ach-Toh,” he adds sadly as Rae’s expression softens a bit. “But…it seemed very unlikely. Anakin’s spirit came to give me a hint to finding mention of the prophecy, and when he did, I realized I never asked Artoo if Mara had activated him.” He nods to the droid, who coos as he rolls out of a corner. “I left Artoo in stasis with two keys to awaken him: a code I knew Mara could deduce –”
His wife rolls her eyes. Luke catches it and gives her an affectionate smile before adding, “And a continuous, low-level scan that would recognize Ben, because if we had to split up, I intended to send him to Mara with whatever we found.”
Mara blinks, looks between her husband and her daughter. “I thought it was Anakin’s lost presence that activated Artoo.”
Luke nods. “That was my initial suspicion as well, which is why I asked Artoo if you’d awakened him. He said it was because his low-level scan had been triggered.”
“But I was still with you on Ach-Toh,” Ben murmurs, turning to Rae in wonder. “So it couldn’t have been me he detected, but it had to be someone with Skywalker DNA.”
Luke nods again before explaining that Mara about tore the galaxy apart trying to find Rae as Ben was growing up, which is why she wasn’t there when Jacen and the Ren Knights attacked the temple. She only came back to the Order full time when the war with the First Order started while Luke went looking for answers. (It also looks like the First Order got its name from the Knights of Ren, who consider themselves a “First Order” before the Empire and one that is more primal than the Jedi Order.) The reason Luke and Mara didn’t tell Ben about his sister was because it was too painful for her to discuss. Luke and the rest of the family respected that. Besides, most of them thought that Rae was dead, so what was the point of upsetting him?
This mollifies Rae, but she’s still confused about why Luke and Ben disappeared in the galaxy’s hour of need. Luke explains that he knew there was more going on than met the eye, and they needed answers. Fighting wouldn’t let them find these answers in time and he wanted to keep Ben close after Jacen turned on him. “I had already lost your sister and Jacen,” he admits as Ben’s expression loses some of the animosity which he naturally feels at all these revelations. “I couldn’t bear to lose you as well, Ben.”
Looking a bit sheepish, Ben glances away.
Mara looks at her son and then her daughter before turning to her husband. “So what did you find?” she asks quietly.
“A prophecy,” Luke answers, “about the Ren Knights’ destruction. And I think it refers to Rae.”
Immediately everyone in the room turns to face him. Luke explains that, while she was nearly killed in battle with Snoke, Rae is still as strong as the rest of her family in the Force. The Force has a destiny prepared for her, though Luke can’t make out what it is and it may very well cost Rae her life, as defending her mother today almost did. Mara seems upset, bordering on angry, while Ben and Rae share a worried look.
Later, after Rae has left the medical bay, she and Finn have a moment where they talk about their future, if they live long enough for one. Looking out over the countryside, the two lean together and Rae kisses him. BB-8 twists around on the spot with a slight whistle of embarrassment, making the two of them laugh as they pull apart.
To be continued in Episode IX….
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