Definitions of Destiny: Chapter 19
Title: Definitions of Destiny
Author: Caryn B
Fandom: Star Wars (film canon only - see notes)
Timeline: 6 months after RotJ
Pairing: Luke/Han, slash
Rating: NC-17 overall; this chapter PG-13
Warnings: None
The list of chapters is here
Chapter 19
Han came out of hyperspace just short of the narrow corridor that stretched between the asteroid belts of the destroyed Outer Rim world. It was the only safe route into the heart of the cluster, and led directly to the largest, inhabited rock that kept the name of the world it had once belonged to.
It'd taken him less than two days to reach Polis Massa, and Luke, having traveled in the much slower Chandrilan cruiser, would've only been on the asteroid for a relatively short time. But it might have been enough for him to have come to a decision about the future. Just the simple fact of getting away from Arudin and his responsibilities to the Alliance may have been the only trigger Luke needed to see things from a clearer perspective.
But there was also Senator Danu. Luke had said that he suspected the politician knew more about the assignment than he was letting on, and that, combined with the Senator's knowledge of the Jedi code and old Council ways, left Han feeling on edge.
That left him, and the way he'd acted. Luke would've had plenty of time to reflect on that. Whatever the outcome, there was no doubt that Han had pushed things, in one direction or another, to a point where something had to change. Whatever that something turned out to be, he'd get to find out soon enough. He just had to hope that coming here wasn't one of his crazier ideas.
He'd spent the trip considering how he was going to explain his sudden arrival to Luke, but hadn't given any thought as to how Senator Danu or the administrator of the mining colony might view his visit. Polis Massa was hardly a closed community, but travelers probably didn't just show up out of the blue. It didn't look like there was much to see. Mind you, he'd once thought that about Tatooine... He switched his communicator to a subspace channel and prepared to request clearance to land.
A short time later, as he waited for the Polis Massans to connect the Falcon to the air-lock of the connecting tunnel, he noticed the frank stares from the crew of the landing pad.
"Do you have an appointment with Administrator Que-raik?" one of them asked him, tapping in a query on a handheld datapad, as if checking Han's credentials.
"Do I need one?" he replied, more brusquely than he'd intended.
The Polis Massan bowed his head. "Our colony welcomes all visitors, but few choose to come here without a reason."
"I didn't say I didn't have a reason. I've got a message for one of your other visitors. The ones from Arudin."
He hadn't really needed to add that qualifier. He could probably count on the fingers of one hand the number of human visitors who'd come here in the last couple of decades. And the guests from the Alliance were no doubt the focus of every inhabitant's curiosity.
"I'll take you to the central hub. The Alliance visitors are being looked after by the Administrator."
They boarded a repulsorcar, and the transport wound its way through a web of corridors towards the center. Han would've preferred a much less formal approach than a meeting with the Administrator, but the set-up here didn't leave much room for anything else. It wasn't as though he'd been able to slip in unobserved. Besides, as Luke was here on official Alliance business Han supposed it wouldn't hurt to be diplomatic.
It turned out that the central hub contained a suite of rooms which, at first sight, seemed to belie the Polis Massan inclination for intimidating brightness and shiny surfaces. Wooden paneling softened the artificial daylight and unrecognizable, ancient-looking artifacts strewn about were an indication of some fascination with the past.
Within the room were Senator Danu and two Polis Massans, one of whom was wearing a decorative chest plaque that Han thought probably signified official status. All three stood at Han's arrival.
"General Solo. It's an honor to welcome you to Polis Massa," Que-raik said, dipping his head in welcome. "I'm the Administrator, and this is my colleague, Sheni-dain. You're already acquainted with Senator Danu, I presume?"
Han glanced at Danu, who gave him a curious smile in return. "Yeah, we've met before."
"Let me fetch you a drink," Que-raik said. "It's a long trip from Arudin."
"Thanks. It wasn't too bad - only a day and a half."
Danu raised his eyebrows. "Then the Millennium Falcon really does live up to its reputation."
Han grinned. "When everything works."
He took the proffered green drink and took a seat on a low bench. Danu sat beside him.
"Are you here on Alliance business?" Que-raik asked.
Han shook his head. "Only indirectly. I've got a message for Luke Skywalker."
Que-raik nodded. "I see. But I hope you'll stay and make your trip worthwhile. I'll have a room sorted out for you."
"No, it's okay. I don't know how long I'll be here. I can stay on my ship anyway - save you the trouble."
"We have plenty of rooms, and I won't hear of you sleeping on your ship. Besides, it's a pleasure to have another member of the Alliance joining us, even if for so short a time." He rose up from his bench seat. "Excuse me whilst I contact someone."
Sheni-dain stood up immediately after Que-raik's departure. "I must go too. I have to transfer some new cell colonies into provisional hosts. Perhaps we'll have a chance to meet again later," she said to Han. "If you have the time, I would be pleased to show you around the laboratories."
"Thanks, yeah," Han said, bemused. "Good to meet you."
Sheni-dain dipped her head to Senator Danu and Han, gathered up her datapad, and left. Han turned to Danu as soon as the door had hissed to a close behind her.
"'Transfer of new cell colonies'?"
"She's in charge of clone-cell technology. This place has been working on medical advances using cloned skin for years."
"I thought cloning was illegal."
Danu gave a dry laugh. "It was. As was opposition to the Empire, defecting from the Imperial Navy and destroying Imperial property, including Death Stars. Shall I go on?"
Han grinned back at him. "Don't bother. I see what you're sayin'."
"You must be tired from the journey, but I expect you'll want to see Luke before you get some rest."
"I'm okay. I got enough sleep on the journey. But if Luke's busy..."
"He's with the archaeologists in the Eellayin caverns." Danu paused for a moment, his expression adopting a trace of hesitancy. "It's good that you've come. There've been some... incidences here."
Han frowned. "What kind of incidences? To do with Luke?"
"I only know a little, but I think something more has happened. He's not letting on - at least, not to me."
"I don't get you. He's okay?"
"Oh yes," Danu reassured him. "But don't hear it from me. I'll leave him to tell you everything."
"How do I find him?"
"I'll take you there. At least, part of the way."
Traveling in the public repulsorcar, Han studied his fellow passengers surreptitiously. It was impossible to gauge their demeanors - the thick, featureless membranes that formed their faces made them seem unfathomable. Han supposed they had a subtle form of body language that transmitted their responses in the same way humans would read facial expressions. Between themselves they didn't appear to use much speech, even though they'd produced it freely when talking to Han and the Senator.
Listening to them now, the sounds they made had a curious construction that Han had never come across before. He could usually define the origins of a language, even if he couldn't understand the words, but there was no core to this one that he could pin down. He wondered if it wasn't really conventional speech at all, but an alternative means of communication.
The transport served the mines first before carrying on to the excavated caverns of the Eellayin. There were numerous mining stations on this route alone - all glaringly-lit, high-tech tributes to the Polis Massan preoccupation with the asteroid's ancient history. Most of the passengers disembarked at the mines, their feet encased in heavy boot covers, ready to compensate for the reduced levels of artificial gravity that existed away from the main mine complexes. Only a few remained on board to make their way down to the caverns.
Han tried to study the wall carvings as they went along, but the repulsorcar moved too quickly for him to make out the detail. What he did see came across as uninspiring and soulless.
He turned to Danu. "This place kinda gives me the creeps."
Danu nodded. "You know, Luke said much the same thing. I think he could sense a mood that wasn't entirely pleasant. I get nothing like that, but there's certainly a feeling of emptiness here."
As the repulsorcar approached the duracrete hut, Danu shifted in his seat. "I'll introduce you to Perek-tain. If Luke's not with her, she'll know where to find him. I'm going to head back because I'm due to talk to the clone-cell group in just over an hour. We're very close to finalizing cooperation. Luke, by the way, is partly responsible for that, but by purely unintentional means."
"What d'you mean?"
Something passed across Danu's face that looked a little like guilt, but he didn't offer an explanation. Instead, he simply smiled back at Han. "I'm sure Luke will explain."
The elderly Polis Massan archaeologist had offered to lead Han to Luke, but Han had wanted to make his own way through the caves. His attempt to explain this to Perek-tain in a way that didn't cause offence hadn't quite gone to plan, and Perek-tain had regarded him with something like laughter in her eyes. She'd nodded and explained how to reach the final cavern.
"There's only one way to go, and no way to get lost," she'd said.
So no way for Luke to avoid him either, Han thought. Not that Luke would ever do that. It wasn't in his nature to avoid anything. Even idiots who spent hours explaining how they weren't going to make demands, just before broadcasting all their secrets to the entire Rebel Alliance.
The lofty, echoing caverns were mostly empty of other presences, although every now and again Han would come across an inhabitant intently peering at one of the carvings. Sometimes they'd be tapping details into datapads, or just simply gazing at the images. Occasionally, Han stopped to study some of the carvings, recognizing aliens from many worlds. Strange for a species with such a hermit-like existence to be so widely knowledgeable of all corners of the galaxy. Danu had explained that the Polis Massans had a strong affinity with the extinct lifestyle of the Eellayin because it partly reflected their own, inwards-looking existence. It didn't look like the Eellayin had been that withdrawn to Han, but then he knew next to nothing about them.
As the rocky trail grew ever more precarious, it felt to Han like he was walking to the end of something. Of course he was, literally, but it was a feeling based on instinct and had little to do with the caves themselves. They just seemed to personify the journey of discovery that had been his life in the past few weeks. Or was that months? Or years?
The sound of his boots against the stone was duller here, the lowered roof taking away the hollow resonance of the echo, and the rougher surface absorbing the sounds of his progress. It wouldn't make any difference. Luke would know he was coming anyway. He didn't know when Luke had first begun to sense the presence of others, but like everything to do with Luke's knowledge and use of the Force, it was a trait that had developed rapidly since Endor. It had never felt intrusive to Han because Luke didn't consciously go searching for people in that way, and although he noted and absorbed the subtle changes in the Force that an approaching person brought about, he mostly left it at that.
A low archway, only just visible in the reduced light, led into the final cavern. Han could see the flickering of candlelight inside, but not much else. He wasn't quite sure why he hesitated, but it took him a few seconds of deliberation before entering the cave. He had to stoop down low to avoid the rocky overhang, and when he straightened up the cold was the first thing that hit him. He hadn't realized that the preceding caverns had been artificially heated, but that could've been the only explanation for the marked drop in temperature.
Save for the small pool of candlelight, it was very dark in the cave. It took his eyes a few moments to adjust and it was only then that he saw Luke. He stood at the far side of the cave, looking almost as one with the shadowy images on the panels that circled the walls. He held his cloak tightly wrapped around him as though warding off the chill. He'd pulled his hood up over his head, obscuring his features and creating a barrier that even the light from the candle at his feet couldn't break through.
Han stayed in the entrance, uncertainty striking him with more force than usual. Luke seemed almost unapproachable, hidden away beneath his cloak, and the strangeness of their surroundings intensified the aura of inscrutability around him. The air was thin in this cave and Han began to feel peculiarly light-headed from the lack of oxygen. It was a bizarre sensation, to be so deep below the surface yet to find the pull of gravity reduced, and the anticipated dense air to be just the opposite. It all added to the sense of unreality that had crept up on him and frozen his feet to the spot.
"Han."
The single word, spoken quietly, gave nothing away, but it broke the awkwardness that had kept Han from moving. He strode forward quickly, his impulse grounded in a need for reassurance that he wasn't sure Luke could offer. But in the first step Luke took towards him, Han recognized a matching hesitancy. It wasn't detachment that had prevented Luke from coming to find him in the chain of caves, but simple doubt.
To say they hadn't made things easy for each other was about as big an understatement Han could think of, and Luke was bound to wonder at the reasons for Han's visit. Too concerned with the consequences of all his self-questioning on Han, Luke had probably considered an outcome where he ended up being alone in any case, regardless of other pressures. But doubt could spring from other sources too - ones that were at the heart of Luke's quandary. Han reminded himself to be rational.
But all that calm analysis threatened to go to hell, simply because he couldn't control his reactions at being with Luke again. The warmth of Luke was startling in contrast to the rank cold of the cave, and Han reached out to pull him close.
It was almost back to that sense of belonging, and Han took a deep breath in, letting the subtle scent of Luke override the staleness of the cave's atmosphere. The action caused a dull pain in his lungs, and a momentary struggle to find enough oxygen.
Partly out of necessity, and partly out of a wish to escape the cave, he tugged Luke back towards the archway and into the heated, air-controlled comfort of the adjoining cavern. His fingers gripped Luke's hood, pushing it away from his face and off his head, needing to rid Luke of the symbolic shield of his cloak. Underneath was just Luke, looking as he always looked, hair mussed up and beginning to drift across his face, slightly breathless from the poor air, and a smile of apology in his eyes for the discomfort he'd caused Han.
"I was waiting for you," Luke said.
"Yeah." Without any further thought, Han placed his hands on either side of Luke's face and kissed him, ignoring the rasp in his chest that demanded he let his breathing return to normal first.
He didn't want to let go. Didn't want to return to second-guessing what might've gone on in Luke's mind these past few days by covertly examining every nuance of Luke's behavior. And it was tempting to take Luke's obvious enthusiasm for kissing him back to have some longer-term significance.
He pulled away reluctantly, tracing the outline of Luke's jaw with his fingertips, and answered Luke's question before he could ask it. "I had to see you. I've got things to say."
Some vague voice in the back of his mind told him that everything he'd planned in advance had already strayed off course, but Luke's ensuing comment spared him the inevitable scrabbling around for the right words.
"Don't say them now. Tell me when we're away from this place. And I need to speak to you too."
It was what he'd been expecting. Luke's decision, one way or the other... "Something's happened hasn't it?" Han crushed the disquiet in his voice. If he had to argue this out with Luke, he'd make damned sure he kept his own desires as just one part of his case, and not let them cloud the issue with all their attendant emotions.
"Yes, something's happened. It's made me see things differently."
"So you've decided then? About the future?"
Luke looked back at him for a long moment. "I know what I should try to do."
"But is it the same as what you want to do?"
A slow smile spread across Luke's face. "Yeah. But if it's gonna make any sense to you, I'll have to start from the beginning." He put his hand on Han's arm, pulled him back towards the archway. "Come on, I want to show you something."
Luke stopped for a moment just before re-entering the cave. "The air's not so good in here."
"You don't say."
"You need to breathe as evenly as you can. You'll get used to it after a while."
"Great," Han muttered.
Listening to Luke explain what the carvings depicted, and studying the images that mirrored each other in intent and composition, Han began to see things differently too. Before meeting Luke, the Force had been an abstract and never entirely understood concept to Han. It was something he'd heard about in stories told across the galaxy, but had never knowingly encountered. He'd always been inclined to dismiss it as a myth. His growing awareness of all the facets that made Luke into the person he was had led to Han's belief in the existence of the Force, but not to a realization of its scope. His experiences with Vader had shown him the Force's ability to warp behavior if allowed to, but Vader had been unique. Han had seen him as an isolated individual with a propensity for cruelty, and not as one element in a far greater scheme.
But now Han was beginning to understand the ties that bound Luke to the Force. Here was something that, for thousands of years, had motivated those who could access it to believe in a chain of destiny. Luke had always been aware of the hold the Force had in shaping the future, but its true powers had never struck Han as strongly as they did now. He gazed at the carvings, with their predestined rituals of death and greed, with something like dismay, because they brought home the full weight of Luke's burden of choice. Luke hadn't only been battling with the specters of Vader and the Emperor, but with thousands of years of Sith history - the repercussions of wrong choices laid out with chilling inevitability.
It was far from the whole story, but it was enough for Han to recognize how Luke might see his own hopes and desires as insignificant in the overall picture presented. Han had come here wanting to persuade Luke that staying was the answer, but his argument had its roots in the obvious distinctions between Luke and his father. He hadn't anticipated having to counteract such historical evidence, but even so, he wasn't letting Luke go without a fight.
Yet for someone who might have decided leaving was the answer to averting potential disaster, Luke seemed surprisingly content. No, more than content, he seemed happy. But that could easily have been the result of finally working his way through all the paradoxes he'd struggled to understand in his own life, and in the old ways of the Jedi.
Han gestured to the carved walls. "All this stuff gives you an answer, doesn't it? Now you know where you stand." He tried to keep his tone neutral, but the undertone of uneasiness was impossible to disguise from Luke.
Luke turned round to look at him, his face yet again shadowy in the candlelight. There was the incongruity of Luke's smile again, faint glimmers of which Han caught in the flickering light.
"It gives a sort of answer, but not in the way you're thinking it does. The point is, there is no real answer. At least, not one carved in stone. Not for Leia and me."
"I don't understand."
"There's another panel I haven't shown you yet. And I'm going to explain it all," Luke said.
"Okay..."
Luke moved up close to Han, his fingers finding a hold on Han's arm. His eyes searched Han's face for the source of the disquiet Han had given away. "You think I'm going to leave?"
Han shrugged. "You've always told me it was a possibility. And now there's all this evidence..."
"This is Sith history. I'm not a part of this, and never will be. It is evidence, but the thing it shows me most-" Luke cut his words off, glancing towards the cave entrance. "There isn't time to explain this now."
"Why not?"
"Someone's coming."
Han looked round at the cave entrance, frowning. "Who?"
"I don't know. Not someone I've met."
Luke moved towards the archway and, after a short delay, Han followed him. Moments later, there was the sound of booted feet shuffling their way down through the adjoining cavern.
A frail and very elderly Polis Massan nodded her head slowly in greeting, as she completed her laborious progress towards them.
"Forgive me for intruding," she said. "At least I know I won't have startled you." She addressed her last comment to Luke, who returned her greeting with the customary bow of his head and a smile.
"No, you didn't startle us."
"Good. You see, I knew several Jedi in the days before the Empire. Those who used to come here. I'm aware of the Jedi ability to extend their senses beyond their immediate surroundings."
"Comes in handy sometimes," Han put in.
"General Han Solo." The Polis Massan inclined her head yet again. "Your reputation has reached even these remote parts."
Han grinned. "Always good to know. That way, people know what to expect."
"Assuming you believe everything you hear. I'm Tiriss-elain, by the way. Perek-tain told me where I might find you."
"You're Perek-tain's predecessor?" Luke asked. "She's talked about you. I hadn't realized..." he tailed off apologetically.
"That I was capable of making it down this far?" Tiriss-elain finished for him, mild amusement evident in the depths of her dark eyes. "Every now and then I try to make the effort. You gave me a good excuse this time."
"I was hoping there'd be a chance to meet you," Luke said. "But we could've come to find you."
"But it wouldn't have been the same would it? If I'm going to explain things to you, it's better if the evidence is there before our eyes."
"Explain what? About those who made the carvings?" Han asked.
"In a way. But I think you already know about them." She waved her hand in the direction of the final cave, and directed her gaze on Luke. "It's the last panel that concerns you the most isn't it? And there are things you've understood about it that I never knew. But I can tell you more than that. I can tell you what it meant to the Jedi."
Luke nodded slowly. "The name they gave the cave..."
"Yes," Tiriss-elain said. "You'll want to know why they called it that." She pointed to a low, carved stone bench on the other side of the cave. "I need to sit down."
Tiriss-elain hobbled across to the bench and settled herself down on it with obvious relief. She held a hand out, gesturing for Luke and Han to join her. "Come on. Let me tell you about the Prophecy."
chapter 20
Author: Caryn B
Fandom: Star Wars (film canon only - see notes)
Timeline: 6 months after RotJ
Pairing: Luke/Han, slash
Rating: NC-17 overall; this chapter PG-13
Warnings: None
The list of chapters is here
Chapter 19
Han came out of hyperspace just short of the narrow corridor that stretched between the asteroid belts of the destroyed Outer Rim world. It was the only safe route into the heart of the cluster, and led directly to the largest, inhabited rock that kept the name of the world it had once belonged to.
It'd taken him less than two days to reach Polis Massa, and Luke, having traveled in the much slower Chandrilan cruiser, would've only been on the asteroid for a relatively short time. But it might have been enough for him to have come to a decision about the future. Just the simple fact of getting away from Arudin and his responsibilities to the Alliance may have been the only trigger Luke needed to see things from a clearer perspective.
But there was also Senator Danu. Luke had said that he suspected the politician knew more about the assignment than he was letting on, and that, combined with the Senator's knowledge of the Jedi code and old Council ways, left Han feeling on edge.
That left him, and the way he'd acted. Luke would've had plenty of time to reflect on that. Whatever the outcome, there was no doubt that Han had pushed things, in one direction or another, to a point where something had to change. Whatever that something turned out to be, he'd get to find out soon enough. He just had to hope that coming here wasn't one of his crazier ideas.
He'd spent the trip considering how he was going to explain his sudden arrival to Luke, but hadn't given any thought as to how Senator Danu or the administrator of the mining colony might view his visit. Polis Massa was hardly a closed community, but travelers probably didn't just show up out of the blue. It didn't look like there was much to see. Mind you, he'd once thought that about Tatooine... He switched his communicator to a subspace channel and prepared to request clearance to land.
A short time later, as he waited for the Polis Massans to connect the Falcon to the air-lock of the connecting tunnel, he noticed the frank stares from the crew of the landing pad.
"Do you have an appointment with Administrator Que-raik?" one of them asked him, tapping in a query on a handheld datapad, as if checking Han's credentials.
"Do I need one?" he replied, more brusquely than he'd intended.
The Polis Massan bowed his head. "Our colony welcomes all visitors, but few choose to come here without a reason."
"I didn't say I didn't have a reason. I've got a message for one of your other visitors. The ones from Arudin."
He hadn't really needed to add that qualifier. He could probably count on the fingers of one hand the number of human visitors who'd come here in the last couple of decades. And the guests from the Alliance were no doubt the focus of every inhabitant's curiosity.
"I'll take you to the central hub. The Alliance visitors are being looked after by the Administrator."
They boarded a repulsorcar, and the transport wound its way through a web of corridors towards the center. Han would've preferred a much less formal approach than a meeting with the Administrator, but the set-up here didn't leave much room for anything else. It wasn't as though he'd been able to slip in unobserved. Besides, as Luke was here on official Alliance business Han supposed it wouldn't hurt to be diplomatic.
It turned out that the central hub contained a suite of rooms which, at first sight, seemed to belie the Polis Massan inclination for intimidating brightness and shiny surfaces. Wooden paneling softened the artificial daylight and unrecognizable, ancient-looking artifacts strewn about were an indication of some fascination with the past.
Within the room were Senator Danu and two Polis Massans, one of whom was wearing a decorative chest plaque that Han thought probably signified official status. All three stood at Han's arrival.
"General Solo. It's an honor to welcome you to Polis Massa," Que-raik said, dipping his head in welcome. "I'm the Administrator, and this is my colleague, Sheni-dain. You're already acquainted with Senator Danu, I presume?"
Han glanced at Danu, who gave him a curious smile in return. "Yeah, we've met before."
"Let me fetch you a drink," Que-raik said. "It's a long trip from Arudin."
"Thanks. It wasn't too bad - only a day and a half."
Danu raised his eyebrows. "Then the Millennium Falcon really does live up to its reputation."
Han grinned. "When everything works."
He took the proffered green drink and took a seat on a low bench. Danu sat beside him.
"Are you here on Alliance business?" Que-raik asked.
Han shook his head. "Only indirectly. I've got a message for Luke Skywalker."
Que-raik nodded. "I see. But I hope you'll stay and make your trip worthwhile. I'll have a room sorted out for you."
"No, it's okay. I don't know how long I'll be here. I can stay on my ship anyway - save you the trouble."
"We have plenty of rooms, and I won't hear of you sleeping on your ship. Besides, it's a pleasure to have another member of the Alliance joining us, even if for so short a time." He rose up from his bench seat. "Excuse me whilst I contact someone."
Sheni-dain stood up immediately after Que-raik's departure. "I must go too. I have to transfer some new cell colonies into provisional hosts. Perhaps we'll have a chance to meet again later," she said to Han. "If you have the time, I would be pleased to show you around the laboratories."
"Thanks, yeah," Han said, bemused. "Good to meet you."
Sheni-dain dipped her head to Senator Danu and Han, gathered up her datapad, and left. Han turned to Danu as soon as the door had hissed to a close behind her.
"'Transfer of new cell colonies'?"
"She's in charge of clone-cell technology. This place has been working on medical advances using cloned skin for years."
"I thought cloning was illegal."
Danu gave a dry laugh. "It was. As was opposition to the Empire, defecting from the Imperial Navy and destroying Imperial property, including Death Stars. Shall I go on?"
Han grinned back at him. "Don't bother. I see what you're sayin'."
"You must be tired from the journey, but I expect you'll want to see Luke before you get some rest."
"I'm okay. I got enough sleep on the journey. But if Luke's busy..."
"He's with the archaeologists in the Eellayin caverns." Danu paused for a moment, his expression adopting a trace of hesitancy. "It's good that you've come. There've been some... incidences here."
Han frowned. "What kind of incidences? To do with Luke?"
"I only know a little, but I think something more has happened. He's not letting on - at least, not to me."
"I don't get you. He's okay?"
"Oh yes," Danu reassured him. "But don't hear it from me. I'll leave him to tell you everything."
"How do I find him?"
"I'll take you there. At least, part of the way."
Traveling in the public repulsorcar, Han studied his fellow passengers surreptitiously. It was impossible to gauge their demeanors - the thick, featureless membranes that formed their faces made them seem unfathomable. Han supposed they had a subtle form of body language that transmitted their responses in the same way humans would read facial expressions. Between themselves they didn't appear to use much speech, even though they'd produced it freely when talking to Han and the Senator.
Listening to them now, the sounds they made had a curious construction that Han had never come across before. He could usually define the origins of a language, even if he couldn't understand the words, but there was no core to this one that he could pin down. He wondered if it wasn't really conventional speech at all, but an alternative means of communication.
The transport served the mines first before carrying on to the excavated caverns of the Eellayin. There were numerous mining stations on this route alone - all glaringly-lit, high-tech tributes to the Polis Massan preoccupation with the asteroid's ancient history. Most of the passengers disembarked at the mines, their feet encased in heavy boot covers, ready to compensate for the reduced levels of artificial gravity that existed away from the main mine complexes. Only a few remained on board to make their way down to the caverns.
Han tried to study the wall carvings as they went along, but the repulsorcar moved too quickly for him to make out the detail. What he did see came across as uninspiring and soulless.
He turned to Danu. "This place kinda gives me the creeps."
Danu nodded. "You know, Luke said much the same thing. I think he could sense a mood that wasn't entirely pleasant. I get nothing like that, but there's certainly a feeling of emptiness here."
As the repulsorcar approached the duracrete hut, Danu shifted in his seat. "I'll introduce you to Perek-tain. If Luke's not with her, she'll know where to find him. I'm going to head back because I'm due to talk to the clone-cell group in just over an hour. We're very close to finalizing cooperation. Luke, by the way, is partly responsible for that, but by purely unintentional means."
"What d'you mean?"
Something passed across Danu's face that looked a little like guilt, but he didn't offer an explanation. Instead, he simply smiled back at Han. "I'm sure Luke will explain."
The elderly Polis Massan archaeologist had offered to lead Han to Luke, but Han had wanted to make his own way through the caves. His attempt to explain this to Perek-tain in a way that didn't cause offence hadn't quite gone to plan, and Perek-tain had regarded him with something like laughter in her eyes. She'd nodded and explained how to reach the final cavern.
"There's only one way to go, and no way to get lost," she'd said.
So no way for Luke to avoid him either, Han thought. Not that Luke would ever do that. It wasn't in his nature to avoid anything. Even idiots who spent hours explaining how they weren't going to make demands, just before broadcasting all their secrets to the entire Rebel Alliance.
The lofty, echoing caverns were mostly empty of other presences, although every now and again Han would come across an inhabitant intently peering at one of the carvings. Sometimes they'd be tapping details into datapads, or just simply gazing at the images. Occasionally, Han stopped to study some of the carvings, recognizing aliens from many worlds. Strange for a species with such a hermit-like existence to be so widely knowledgeable of all corners of the galaxy. Danu had explained that the Polis Massans had a strong affinity with the extinct lifestyle of the Eellayin because it partly reflected their own, inwards-looking existence. It didn't look like the Eellayin had been that withdrawn to Han, but then he knew next to nothing about them.
As the rocky trail grew ever more precarious, it felt to Han like he was walking to the end of something. Of course he was, literally, but it was a feeling based on instinct and had little to do with the caves themselves. They just seemed to personify the journey of discovery that had been his life in the past few weeks. Or was that months? Or years?
The sound of his boots against the stone was duller here, the lowered roof taking away the hollow resonance of the echo, and the rougher surface absorbing the sounds of his progress. It wouldn't make any difference. Luke would know he was coming anyway. He didn't know when Luke had first begun to sense the presence of others, but like everything to do with Luke's knowledge and use of the Force, it was a trait that had developed rapidly since Endor. It had never felt intrusive to Han because Luke didn't consciously go searching for people in that way, and although he noted and absorbed the subtle changes in the Force that an approaching person brought about, he mostly left it at that.
A low archway, only just visible in the reduced light, led into the final cavern. Han could see the flickering of candlelight inside, but not much else. He wasn't quite sure why he hesitated, but it took him a few seconds of deliberation before entering the cave. He had to stoop down low to avoid the rocky overhang, and when he straightened up the cold was the first thing that hit him. He hadn't realized that the preceding caverns had been artificially heated, but that could've been the only explanation for the marked drop in temperature.
Save for the small pool of candlelight, it was very dark in the cave. It took his eyes a few moments to adjust and it was only then that he saw Luke. He stood at the far side of the cave, looking almost as one with the shadowy images on the panels that circled the walls. He held his cloak tightly wrapped around him as though warding off the chill. He'd pulled his hood up over his head, obscuring his features and creating a barrier that even the light from the candle at his feet couldn't break through.
Han stayed in the entrance, uncertainty striking him with more force than usual. Luke seemed almost unapproachable, hidden away beneath his cloak, and the strangeness of their surroundings intensified the aura of inscrutability around him. The air was thin in this cave and Han began to feel peculiarly light-headed from the lack of oxygen. It was a bizarre sensation, to be so deep below the surface yet to find the pull of gravity reduced, and the anticipated dense air to be just the opposite. It all added to the sense of unreality that had crept up on him and frozen his feet to the spot.
"Han."
The single word, spoken quietly, gave nothing away, but it broke the awkwardness that had kept Han from moving. He strode forward quickly, his impulse grounded in a need for reassurance that he wasn't sure Luke could offer. But in the first step Luke took towards him, Han recognized a matching hesitancy. It wasn't detachment that had prevented Luke from coming to find him in the chain of caves, but simple doubt.
To say they hadn't made things easy for each other was about as big an understatement Han could think of, and Luke was bound to wonder at the reasons for Han's visit. Too concerned with the consequences of all his self-questioning on Han, Luke had probably considered an outcome where he ended up being alone in any case, regardless of other pressures. But doubt could spring from other sources too - ones that were at the heart of Luke's quandary. Han reminded himself to be rational.
But all that calm analysis threatened to go to hell, simply because he couldn't control his reactions at being with Luke again. The warmth of Luke was startling in contrast to the rank cold of the cave, and Han reached out to pull him close.
It was almost back to that sense of belonging, and Han took a deep breath in, letting the subtle scent of Luke override the staleness of the cave's atmosphere. The action caused a dull pain in his lungs, and a momentary struggle to find enough oxygen.
Partly out of necessity, and partly out of a wish to escape the cave, he tugged Luke back towards the archway and into the heated, air-controlled comfort of the adjoining cavern. His fingers gripped Luke's hood, pushing it away from his face and off his head, needing to rid Luke of the symbolic shield of his cloak. Underneath was just Luke, looking as he always looked, hair mussed up and beginning to drift across his face, slightly breathless from the poor air, and a smile of apology in his eyes for the discomfort he'd caused Han.
"I was waiting for you," Luke said.
"Yeah." Without any further thought, Han placed his hands on either side of Luke's face and kissed him, ignoring the rasp in his chest that demanded he let his breathing return to normal first.
He didn't want to let go. Didn't want to return to second-guessing what might've gone on in Luke's mind these past few days by covertly examining every nuance of Luke's behavior. And it was tempting to take Luke's obvious enthusiasm for kissing him back to have some longer-term significance.
He pulled away reluctantly, tracing the outline of Luke's jaw with his fingertips, and answered Luke's question before he could ask it. "I had to see you. I've got things to say."
Some vague voice in the back of his mind told him that everything he'd planned in advance had already strayed off course, but Luke's ensuing comment spared him the inevitable scrabbling around for the right words.
"Don't say them now. Tell me when we're away from this place. And I need to speak to you too."
It was what he'd been expecting. Luke's decision, one way or the other... "Something's happened hasn't it?" Han crushed the disquiet in his voice. If he had to argue this out with Luke, he'd make damned sure he kept his own desires as just one part of his case, and not let them cloud the issue with all their attendant emotions.
"Yes, something's happened. It's made me see things differently."
"So you've decided then? About the future?"
Luke looked back at him for a long moment. "I know what I should try to do."
"But is it the same as what you want to do?"
A slow smile spread across Luke's face. "Yeah. But if it's gonna make any sense to you, I'll have to start from the beginning." He put his hand on Han's arm, pulled him back towards the archway. "Come on, I want to show you something."
Luke stopped for a moment just before re-entering the cave. "The air's not so good in here."
"You don't say."
"You need to breathe as evenly as you can. You'll get used to it after a while."
"Great," Han muttered.
Listening to Luke explain what the carvings depicted, and studying the images that mirrored each other in intent and composition, Han began to see things differently too. Before meeting Luke, the Force had been an abstract and never entirely understood concept to Han. It was something he'd heard about in stories told across the galaxy, but had never knowingly encountered. He'd always been inclined to dismiss it as a myth. His growing awareness of all the facets that made Luke into the person he was had led to Han's belief in the existence of the Force, but not to a realization of its scope. His experiences with Vader had shown him the Force's ability to warp behavior if allowed to, but Vader had been unique. Han had seen him as an isolated individual with a propensity for cruelty, and not as one element in a far greater scheme.
But now Han was beginning to understand the ties that bound Luke to the Force. Here was something that, for thousands of years, had motivated those who could access it to believe in a chain of destiny. Luke had always been aware of the hold the Force had in shaping the future, but its true powers had never struck Han as strongly as they did now. He gazed at the carvings, with their predestined rituals of death and greed, with something like dismay, because they brought home the full weight of Luke's burden of choice. Luke hadn't only been battling with the specters of Vader and the Emperor, but with thousands of years of Sith history - the repercussions of wrong choices laid out with chilling inevitability.
It was far from the whole story, but it was enough for Han to recognize how Luke might see his own hopes and desires as insignificant in the overall picture presented. Han had come here wanting to persuade Luke that staying was the answer, but his argument had its roots in the obvious distinctions between Luke and his father. He hadn't anticipated having to counteract such historical evidence, but even so, he wasn't letting Luke go without a fight.
Yet for someone who might have decided leaving was the answer to averting potential disaster, Luke seemed surprisingly content. No, more than content, he seemed happy. But that could easily have been the result of finally working his way through all the paradoxes he'd struggled to understand in his own life, and in the old ways of the Jedi.
Han gestured to the carved walls. "All this stuff gives you an answer, doesn't it? Now you know where you stand." He tried to keep his tone neutral, but the undertone of uneasiness was impossible to disguise from Luke.
Luke turned round to look at him, his face yet again shadowy in the candlelight. There was the incongruity of Luke's smile again, faint glimmers of which Han caught in the flickering light.
"It gives a sort of answer, but not in the way you're thinking it does. The point is, there is no real answer. At least, not one carved in stone. Not for Leia and me."
"I don't understand."
"There's another panel I haven't shown you yet. And I'm going to explain it all," Luke said.
"Okay..."
Luke moved up close to Han, his fingers finding a hold on Han's arm. His eyes searched Han's face for the source of the disquiet Han had given away. "You think I'm going to leave?"
Han shrugged. "You've always told me it was a possibility. And now there's all this evidence..."
"This is Sith history. I'm not a part of this, and never will be. It is evidence, but the thing it shows me most-" Luke cut his words off, glancing towards the cave entrance. "There isn't time to explain this now."
"Why not?"
"Someone's coming."
Han looked round at the cave entrance, frowning. "Who?"
"I don't know. Not someone I've met."
Luke moved towards the archway and, after a short delay, Han followed him. Moments later, there was the sound of booted feet shuffling their way down through the adjoining cavern.
A frail and very elderly Polis Massan nodded her head slowly in greeting, as she completed her laborious progress towards them.
"Forgive me for intruding," she said. "At least I know I won't have startled you." She addressed her last comment to Luke, who returned her greeting with the customary bow of his head and a smile.
"No, you didn't startle us."
"Good. You see, I knew several Jedi in the days before the Empire. Those who used to come here. I'm aware of the Jedi ability to extend their senses beyond their immediate surroundings."
"Comes in handy sometimes," Han put in.
"General Han Solo." The Polis Massan inclined her head yet again. "Your reputation has reached even these remote parts."
Han grinned. "Always good to know. That way, people know what to expect."
"Assuming you believe everything you hear. I'm Tiriss-elain, by the way. Perek-tain told me where I might find you."
"You're Perek-tain's predecessor?" Luke asked. "She's talked about you. I hadn't realized..." he tailed off apologetically.
"That I was capable of making it down this far?" Tiriss-elain finished for him, mild amusement evident in the depths of her dark eyes. "Every now and then I try to make the effort. You gave me a good excuse this time."
"I was hoping there'd be a chance to meet you," Luke said. "But we could've come to find you."
"But it wouldn't have been the same would it? If I'm going to explain things to you, it's better if the evidence is there before our eyes."
"Explain what? About those who made the carvings?" Han asked.
"In a way. But I think you already know about them." She waved her hand in the direction of the final cave, and directed her gaze on Luke. "It's the last panel that concerns you the most isn't it? And there are things you've understood about it that I never knew. But I can tell you more than that. I can tell you what it meant to the Jedi."
Luke nodded slowly. "The name they gave the cave..."
"Yes," Tiriss-elain said. "You'll want to know why they called it that." She pointed to a low, carved stone bench on the other side of the cave. "I need to sit down."
Tiriss-elain hobbled across to the bench and settled herself down on it with obvious relief. She held a hand out, gesturing for Luke and Han to join her. "Come on. Let me tell you about the Prophecy."
chapter 20