Just
as the Falcon started flying towards the coast, the entire temple
caved in, sending debris in every direction for miles and taking
large pieces off several of the temples in its immediate vicinity.
The resulting crash could be heard for miles; many peasants in
neighboring villages thought the end of the world was upon them and
hid in their homes or ran to churches to pray.
The
diminutive Spanish pilot chattered a mile a minute as he just barely
dodged flying bricks from one of the damaged temples. Laurence
nodded, shuddering, as one part hit the top of the plane. “That was
too close.”
“Hey!”
Harry, Charel, and Artie joined them up front. Harry glared at him.
“You promised you wouldn't hurt my baby!”
“You're
lucky your friend down there with the light beam didn't do worse. He
almost took a few propellers off.” Niem tapped his shoulder,
pointing out the window. “Yeah, buddy?”
“Shit!”
Harry gasped as a cloud of gray dust and dirt from the temple clouded
the cockpit's windows. “Turn on the turbo engines! It's the only
way we're going to make it!”
“I
know how to drive this plane, thank you!” Laurence made a face. “I
used to own it, you know.”
No
one said anything for a few minutes. The only sound was the roar of
the propellers and Luke sobbing quietly in the seats. Leia could hear
her heart beating triple-time as the Falcon sped through the foggy
grayness.
Then...suddenly...the
Falcon burst from the clouds like a bullet out of a gun. Larry waved
his good white summer fedora in the air. “Woo hoo! We did it!”
“We
did it!” Leia threw her arms around both men, then gave Harry the
biggest, most passionate kiss she possibly could. She had to stand on
her tip-toes, but it was worth it to see the shocked and delighted
look on his handsome face.
“Sweetheart,”
he said breathlessly, his eyes a little wide, “did you mean that? I
mean, I love you, sweetheart, but...”
She
smiled and put her fingers on his lips. “I know, sheep-herder.”
Leia
left the quartet in the cockpit to celebrate their escape and made
her way to the back of the main passenger area. Luke sat quietly in
the last seat, his head bent over his notes. Artie and Clarence sat
in front of him, talking softly among themselves.
“Luke?”
He looked up as she slid next to him. “How's your story coming?”
“It
isn't. I don't know how I'm going to explain all of this to Miss Tano
or my readers. I never did get any photos.” Tears ran down his thin
cheeks. “Leia...when we get back, I want to bury Father, and Ben
and Yoda, too. Well, at least pay for headstones for them.” When he
lifted his eyes to meet hers, she couldn't helped noticing how
red-rimmed and haunted they were. “They should be buried with
Mother, at her family's plot in Naboo County. From what Father said,
he missed Mother so much.”
Leia
put her arm around her brother. “I have the feeling we're going to
disagree about this one until the end of time. There's no excuse for
what he did to us – to you, to me, to Harry and Ben and the world.
He killed our mother, Luke!”
Her
brother shook his head. “We only have Palpatine's word for that.
Besides, no matter what he did later, he was a great archaeologist.”
He tried to give her a shaky smile. “You know, Yoda had a big
collection of Alderaanian artifacts. I think he said he was going to
donate them to UCLA or Berkley College when he died. Maybe we could
start some kind of museum for them. The Swords could go there, too.
It could be for Alderaanian and other artifacts from South and
Central America and the southwestern US.”
“I
like that.” Leia squeezed her brother. “It would be a good place
for Yasmin Hutt's collection, too. If nothing else, she'd be livid
that everyday people are breathing on all her fancy relics.”
Artie
and Clarence came over, their hats in their hands. “We were
talking,” Clarence began, “and we've come to a decision. We're
simple men. Our needs are few. The Organas and the Skylarks were
always very kind to us. We'd like to donate our shares from the
expedition to help establish that museum you were talking about.”
The horse-faced translator had a rather sweet smile, when he wasn't
in a constant state of panic. “Your parents and godparents have
helped us. Now, we want to help you.”
“We'd
also like to do somethin' to help our buddies the howler monkeys back
at the temples.” Artie's grin split across his wide, dark brown
face. “They helped us more n' they know. Maybe someone could talk
the Guatemalan government into startin' a nature preserve. Make sure
no one else besides the occasional archaeologist disturbs them or
their breedin' grounds.”
“I
like that idea.” Harry came over, followed by Charel. “We've
talked, too. Most of our share is gonna go into repairin' the Falcon
and startin' our own cargo haulin' business, with legit partners this
time. You guys can have whatever's left for the scholarship and the
museum.”
Laurence
leaned over his shoulder from the cockpit. “Niem n' I are going to
put our shares into my hotel and helping more people like Charel and
his family escape Coruscant and other countries under fascist rule.”
“Don't
forget,” Clarence added, “there's Empire Industries. As the sole
heirs of Derrek Vader – aka Dr. Andrew Skylark – it's more than
likely you're now the owners of the entire company.”
Leia
spoke before Luke could. “We'll see what we can do about selling it
as soon as we get back. Neither of us know anything about running a
business.”
“And
we're happy doing what we do.” Luke chewed thoughtfully on his
pencil. “I wonder who's going to take over Coruscant now that
Palpatine's gone?”
“That
geezer probably has eight hundred relatives squabblin' over who gets
that right.” Harry smirked. “I'll bet they're all as ugly as him.
Inbreedin' runs high in those royal European circles. I wouldn't be
surprised if his sons had three eyes or were insane or somethin'.”
Clarence
shrugged. “I think his next-in-command was a cousin, one of his
generals. Some fellow by the name of Henrich Snoke.”
“I
just want all of this to be seen.” Leia ran her fingers over the
etchings in the flat side of the Sword. “I'll be going back to the
temples once they're cleared. There's more to be learned there than
even what we found today. I'm more interested than ever now in
Alderaan and its culture.” She sighed. “And especially why the
Swords chose Ben and our parents and Harry and Luke and me. We're
just ordinary people.”
“I'm
going to disagree with that.” Harry leaned over and gave her a
kiss. “You're far from ordinary, sweetheart. I'm startin' to think
those hunks of wood n' crystal knew what they were doin' when they
picked you. And considerin' what I saw from your pop and Kenobi, them
too.”
“I
think I'd better see if I can call the airfield in Mexico we took off
from.” Laurence flipped a switch on the control board. “It's time
we started hauling our rears home, before those officers in Coruscant
figure out what we were doin' there and why.”
The
second he turned the radio on, a familiar British accent could be
heard over the wires. “Hello? Is anyone there?” Luke grinned as
Wedge Antilles' plane came up alongside them. “Where have all of
you been? Do you know what I've been through? About an hour ago, I
was shot at with a...light beam, or a ray gun, or something that
looked like it came from the Buck Rogers serial! The Rebel
Underground is never going to believe this!”
Luke
laughed. “Try us, Wedge. We know all about it. We were there,
trying to stop it. I can't say too much over the radio. I'll explain
when we get back to LA. It's kind of a long story.”
“Hey
Luke?” Wedge's voice rose an octave. “When we get back, would,
uh, like to have a flying lesson? We could meet in LA and talk about
it.”
Harry
grinned. “I know the perfect place for it, too. Maz doesn't care
what kind of people show up in her bar, as long as they don't kill
each other.”
Leia
nodded. “Enjoy yourself, Luke. You deserve it. Besides, I think
you'd be a great pilot.”
He
turned back to the radio as Laurence and Niem gave him thumbs-up
signs. “Yeah, Wedge, we can talk when we get back to LA. I know the
perfect place, too. There's a little airfield up in the hills. I'll
give you the exact location later. It has a great bar.”
“Perfect!”
Wedge waved from his cockpit, grinning under his orange leather
helmet. “I'll see you when we get back, Luke. It's been...it's been
really wonderful meeting you. I hope your story makes the front
page.”
The
others chuckled as Luke turned six shades of red. “Yeah, me too,
Wedge.” He waved to him as Wedge pulled behind the Falcon.
Harry
put his arms around Leia as they sat down in the back seat. “So,
now that you've found your Papa's life work, what do you want to do
next?”
“Set
up that museum, for starters.” Leia was going through what remained
of the notebook. She'd thrown it in her pocket, and was just happy to
see that the whole thing wasn't incinerated or torn to bits after
they'd dived through all that shattering crystal. “Sell off Empire
Industries. Keep an eye on everything going on in Europe. I really
appreciated working with Jyn and Cassian and their people. Maybe I'll
see if I can do more for them.”
“How
about us?” Harry leaned over and kissed her forehead. “Maybe a
little of that money could go to a bungalow somewhere in LA for the
two of us. Nothing fancy. We probably won't be there a lot, anyway.
Not at first. After all, we're going to need a place to raise our
children.”
“Children?”
Leia made a face. “We've barely gone on a regular date, and you're
already making a family? Harry Solomon, you are the biggest, most
annoying...”
He
finally softened her complaints with a kiss that left her insides
feeling like warm cocoa. “How about we get a place near the
airfield?”
She
gave him her most charming smile. “All right. But it'll have to be
near where we put the museum. And I pick where we're holding the
wedding.”
That
was when Leia heard a sigh that didn't come from either of them. They
both turned as one to face the seat across the aisle. Luke stared at
the two of them, his eyes nearly filled with cartoon hearts. He gave
them a dreamy grin. “Well, go on! This is better than a Joan
Crawford movie. Maybe I ought to write a lonely hearts column instead
of news stories.”
“Luke!”
they both yelled at once in annoyance. The trio finally just looked
at each other, then at Luke's romantic smile, before bursting into
laughter.
~*~*~*~*~*~
October
27th, 1970
“Well,
then what happened?”
Leia
jolted out of her reverie as she stared at the Sword of Wisdom in
it's glass case. She finally turned back around to the three young
people behind her, the ones who were hearing this story. She'd
specifically wanted to meet these three here. She had suspected for
some time that they were the ones. “Well,” she said briskly, “the
first thing I did was donate the Swords and Papa Bail's work to the
university. The money from selling off Empire Industries funded the
creation of the Bail Organa Museum of Cultural History and the Benton
Kenobi Scholarship for Journalism.”
“I
know about the scholarship.” Rey Ryder, a diminutive, dark-haired
Brit in a patchwork miniskirt and tight blouse, nodded. “I won it
this year. Which,” her pretty face was turning a bit red, “I'm
still a little embarrassed about. I can't believe I did it.”
“Professor
Holdo says you do outstanding work, dear.” She lead the trio to the
Sword of Light. “You all do. Finn, I've heard nothing but good
things about you ever since you came here.”
“Glad
I didn't stay with the First Order Company in Coruscant. They were
hell to work for.” Finn was dressed far less colorfully than Rey in
a plaid sweater vest over a yellow shirt and tan slacks that were
mellow against his chocolate-colored skin. “Captain Solomon was
nice enough to pay for my first year's tuition.”
“I
just wish he was here.” Poe tugged at his Air Force jacket. “How
long is it going to take him to arrive?”
“He'd
better be here any second.” Leia sighed. “I wish Luke hadn't run
off to the Middle East to work on stories about the situation there.
I could use his help with this.”
“With
what?” Rey gently placed her fingers against the glass that
protected the Sword of Wisdom. “Ever since I came here, I've felt
this place...call to me. I didn't know why, until you said that you
felt the same call.” She looked up, her hazel eyes wide with
wonder. “Do we have the Force, Dr. Skylark? Is that why I feel the
need to hold this?”
The
older professor nodded. “So it would seem.”
Finn
nearly pressed his nose against the case that held the three swords.
“What happened after that? After you opened the museum and sold off
Empire Industries?”
“First
of all, I spent a lot of the next few months after that cataloging
Professor Chiang and Mrs. Hutt's collections. Between the two of
them, they had at least a million dollars worth of precious
artifacts. Professor Chiang already willed his collection to UCLA,
which donated it to us. Yasmin Hutt's family wanted nothing to do
with the artifacts and sold them to us as quickly as they could.”
Leia frowned. “They started planning the museum in 1941, but it had
to be put on hold for three years due to the war. The artifacts were
kept in storage during that time.”
“You
were in the war, right?” Poe grinned. “That's how you met my
parents. You were working at UCLA, and my mom was a student, and you
two looked for artifacts together and apparently did some spying.”
“Shhh!”
Leia waved a finger at him. “That's top secret. We're not really
supposed to talk about it. Your father and my husband would have
never gotten involved if it wasn't for that business in Sacramento.”
“Captain
Solomon told me he flew during the war.” Finn finally looked away
from the Sword of Light. “He flew bombing missions over Japan and
brought cargo to the soldiers across enemy lines.”
“Yes,
he did.” Leia looked at her watch. “He'll tell you more about it
himself if he ever appears.”
“What
about everyone else? I know you became the head of the Archeology
Department at UCLA, Dr. Skylark.” Rey had one eye on the Sword of
Wisdom and the other on her mentor. “Wedge Antilles, the rebels in
Coruscant, Laurence...”
“Laurence
is still in the Riviera.” Leia chuckled. “He and Niem did take in
refugees from countries persecuted by Nazi and fascist rule. He was
still taking them in well into the early 50's. He expanded his
holdings after that. He bought two more hotels and has added a spa
and an extension to the Ville Du Nuage. Harry and I took Ben to visit
him from time to time.”
“Ben.”
Rey looked up at the change in Leia's voice when she said that name.
“Your son, Benton. He's not in UCLA anymore. Not that we ever saw
him much. He was happier when he was off brooding somewhere.”
“No.”
Leia didn't really want to talk about what had gone wrong with Ben.
“He never understood why the Swords didn't speak to him, like they
did his grandfather. He studied the Force with me, and then he
studied journalism with his uncle.”
“I
know this story.” Poe made a face. “He burned half Luke's school
down, the one he started in London for aspiring journalists after the
war.”
“He
was arrested for arson, but got off on a technicality.” Leia rubbed
her head. “I don't know what to do with that boy. I guess we just
weren't around enough. Didn't pay enough attention to him.”
“If
you ask me, too many people are paying attention to him now.” Rey
rolled her eyes. “He thinks that changing his name to Kylo Ren and
working for the First Order Company in Coruscant will make him a
big-shot. It makes him a Communist. Everyone knows Hemilich Snoke is
the real owner of the First Order Company. The Hux family takes
orders from him.”
Poe
nodded. “That's why Mr. Skylark took that assignment in Iran. He's
trying to get away from the disaster with his school.”
The
college girl returned to pressing her nose through the glass. “I'd
like to meet him someday. I really admire his articles from the heart
of Coruscant, Germany, and Poland during the war. I heard he even
flew right into Berlin during the worst of the bombing and caught
Hitler right before he died.”
“There's
a lot of stories flying around about my brother. Some of them are
even true.” Leia reached over and pulled a switch behind a box.
“And you'll get to ask him about them yourselves when we find him.”
“Us?”
Finn pointed to himself. “Us? Go to Europe, or the Middle East? Oh
no. I can't. If the First Order Company knows I've left the country,
they'll come after me.”
“Don't
worry, buddy!” Poe threw his arm around his best friend. “You
have the Guardian of Strength to protect you!”
His
friend snorted. “No offense, Poe, but that isn't reassuring.”
Rey
ignored the boys. “What about the Rebel group, Jeanne and Cassian
and their friends?”
“And
Bodhi?” Finn pulled away from Poe and returned to the Swords. “I
liked him. I know how he feels about being a traitor and all.”
Leia's
smile faded. “We worked with Jeanne and Cassian a few more times
early in the war, shortly after the US entered. They and their entire
unit died when they were shot while sending coded messages to Allied
spies during the Battle of the Bulge.”
“That's
so sad.” Finn frowned. “I kind of wish they survived.”
“Me
too.” Leia gave them a small smile. “A part of me wonders if at
least Jeanne and Cassian aren't in hiding somewhere, raising children
and protesting the Vietnam War.”
“Dr.
Mothma is retired, right?” Poe leaned on the glass case holding the
Sword of Strength. Leia smacked his shoulder off the glass. “I
think I remember her from when I was in school. She retired during my
fourth semester.”
Leia
nodded. “Still alive, but very much in retirement. Admiral Ackbar,
as you know, is now president and chief curator of the museum. He
swears he's too active for retirement.”
“Is
that what we're going to do?” Rey looked up from the Sword of
Wisdom. “Help the Admiral? One of those top secret things you
mentioned?”
“No,
it has to do with the First Order Company.” Leia sighed. “They've
been poking around in Guatemala, at the temples. The rubble of the
Jedi Temple was cleared years ago, but the remains are still there. I
think my son is after something. I just wish I knew what.” She
sighed. “But first, I wish Harry would actually keep an
appointment.”
“Sorry,
are we late?” Her husband rushed over, skidding on the highly
polished wood floor. “The downtown traffic in LA is hell at this
time of day.” His old Army Air Corps cap and jacket had been
replaced by an Air Force cap and jacket, his handsome face was lined,
and that scruffy mop of his had turned silver, but he was still her
sheep-herder. “So, did you brief the kiddies on what they're gonna
do?”
Charel
growled behind him. Other than a few silver threads in his beard, the
hulking Russian had barely changed in thirty years. Leia wondered if
chasing after his family and grandchildren kept him young. She was so
glad they'd managed to get them all over, just before the war started
in the US.
“Yeah,
buddy. We know what we're doin'.” He patted Charel's shoulder.
“Still
selling illegal pets to millionaires?” Leia rubbed her temple.
“Harry, we've been over this. You promised me you were going to get
legitimate work.”
“Hey,
it paid well.” Harry grinned at the three youths. “Rey and Finn
helped me out with the last one, right?”
“Oh
please.” Rey rolled her eyes. “Those big cats? They almost clawed
us to death, and they did kill three of the men who were trying to
get money off you.”
Finn
nodded. “And one almost killed me! If we hadn't accidentally let
them out of their cages, we'd all be dead right now!”
Her
boss tried to give his skeptical wife a smile. “Honey, those
leopards are worth big bucks! I swear, this is the last one!”
“Sure
it is.” Leia patted his cheek. “We'll discuss this later,
flyboy.”
“So,
now that we're all here,” Poe leaned against a mannequin wearing an
ancient Alderaanian ceremonial costume, “what's all the fuss about?
Besides the First Order.”
“These.”
Charel and Harry helped Leia get the glass off the Swords. “Don't
worry,” she assured the younger trio. “I had the security alarms
for these turned off before I unlocked them.”
“Wow.”
Finn eyed the Sword of Light with amazement. “Can we...you know...”
This
time, Leia's grin did reach her eyes. “Go right ahead. They want
you to.”
“Sure.”
Poe picked up the Sword of Strength easily as gold light flowed over
his hands. “I thought this would be heavier.” He swished it
around, doing pretend feints. “Ha! So we meet again, Kylo Ren, for
the first time! Have a taste of my crystal!”
Harry
ducked out of his way. “Kid, you watch way too many old pirate
movies on late-night TV.”
“Stop
goofing off, Poe.” Rey took the Sword of Wisdom gently, but
reverently. She pointed it in front of her as watery green light
flowed over her fingers. “I can feel it, Dr. Skylark. It's there.
The power...the Force? Is that the Force?”
“Yes.”
Leia put her hand on the girl's. “That's the first thing we're
going to teach you on the plane to the Middle East to pick up my dear
brother.”
“The
Middle East? But they're killing people over there!” Finn gulped.
“I don't think this is such a good idea after all...”
“Aw,
come on, kid.” Harry handed him the Sword of Light. “It won't
bite you. I promise.”
Finn
took the Sword delicately, like it would shatter with even the
slightest touch. “I feel it, too,” he said softly. “It's like
it was made for me. It needs me. The light...it's so warm,
so...strong.”
Even
as he spoke those words, a light beam that came in through the
skylight over their heads reflected off the blue crystals on Finn's
sword. The small beam just barely missed Poe, vaporizing a stuffed
parrot in a display of Alderaanian warrior armor shown in its natural
habitat.
“Sorry!”
Finn squeaked, nearly dropping the weapon. “I'm sorry! Really, I
am! I'll pay for it! Honest! I didn't know I could do that!”
Leia
sighed. “Don't worry, Finn. The museum can easily replace the
parrot. That does illustrate why we called you here. We need to work
with the three of you on directing and controlling your powers.”
“Yeah.”
Harry crossed his arms. “We had to learn the hard way, without
supervision, while on the field. We figured you kids will need more
help. After all,” he gave them his famous half-smirk, “we gotta
get the old team back if we're going to deal with that new weapon
they're building in Coruscant.”
“New
weapon?” Poe stopped pretending to have duels with an invisible
Errol Flynn. “The Starkiller Ray. I had heard about that right
before I left the Air Force. I hoped it was somebody's imagination.”
“It's
real, all right.” Leia sighed. “But we'll discuss that on the way
to the airport.”
“Wait!”
Finn shook his head. “I'm not ready! I have to pack! What about
school? And our jobs?”
“Kid,
you work for Char and me at the air field, remember?” Harry grinned
and Charel let out a booming laugh. “I'm officially giving you your
first vacation time as of this second.”
“What
about my job?” Rey frowned. “Maz will be out a waitress, and it's
going to be the holidays soon.”
“I
think she'll understand.” Leia turned to Poe. “And you work for
me at UCLA. As of now, you're also on sabbatical. I'll continue to
pay your salary.”
Poe
grinned. “Groovy! We're going on an adventure!”
Harry
laughed. “Yeah, well, no one's going anywhere unless we get
moving.”
“He's
right.” Leia took three plain wooden boxes lined with cotton and
velvet from under her arms. “This is for the Swords while we're in
LA. We'll keep them under lock and key at our house until we're ready
to leave.”
“And
that will be in about three hours.” Harry put an arm around Poe.
“Hey kid, wanna go get a drink at Maz's and talk planes? Leia told
me you're quite a pilot yourself.”
“Oh,
I've been around a plane or two.” Poe smirked. “I've got some
stories about the Viet Cong that will make your hair stand on end,
old man.”
Harry
gave him the smirk again. “Try me, kid.”
Charel
sighed and growled to Finn as Harry and Poe walked off together. “I'm
not much of a drinker. I need to pack, anyway.” He nodded at his
booming bass. “You'll drive me and Rey to our place? Great,
thanks.”
Rey
raised an eyebrow. “I didn't know you spoke Russian.”
“Only
a little.” Finn shrugged. “I hope that's what he's saying, at any
rate. We've gotta pack, and I need lunch, and to write my will and
call Rose and ask her if I know what I'm doing and if I'm crazy to be
doing it.”
“Oh
Finn!” Rey shook her head. “I'm sure we'll be fine.”
“Rey,”
Leia turned to her as Finn headed out with Charel, “I want you to
be careful. One of the powers the Sword of Wisdom grants is
precognition, or second sight. It's cloudy, but I have the feeling
something terrible is going to happen...and it'll involve you, me, my
brother, and Ben...Kylo Ren.”
“You
too?” Rey frowned. “I've felt gloom-and-doom-y for months, and I
don't think it's just what I've been seeing on the nightly news.”
“Snoke
is planning something big.” Leia held the boxes closer, almost
dropping one. “And I'm sure my son has something even bigger in
mind. I just wish I knew what.”
Rey
took one of the boxes and gave her a reassuring smile. “We'll find
out together. All of us.”
Leia
nodded. “Thank you, dear. Yes, we will.” She flashed Rey a
slightly harried smile of her own. “Now, let's get going, before
those crazy men of ours get themselves drunk and use those strength
powers to start bar brawls.”
“Now
Leia,” Rey laughed, “what's the use of powers if you can't have
some fun with them?”
“You
know, Rey,” Leia chuckled, “I think we're going to get along just
fine.” She put her empty arm around the girl's shoulders. “Let's
go rescue our men from themselves.”
The
girl just grinned at her. “Don't we always?”
As
they walked out of Alderaanian culture room, Leia took one last look
over her shoulder at the mock-up of the Temples in the warrior
display. It may have been made of paper mache, but it brought back so
many memories. If only Luke was there!
“Don't
worry, brother.” Leia whispered to the quiet room. “We'll make
things right.”
Her
only answer was one last warm, reassuring golden sun beam from the
skylight, warming her face and her heart, as encouraging as if her
dear, silly brother was right there with her. He would be, again.
Someday.
The
End
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