Star Wars_ The New Jedi Order_ Dark Tide 01_ Onslaught - Michael A. Stackpole [24]
He entered the room quietly, hoping not to disturb her, but her eyes flickered open. “Luke. Good, it’s you.”
“Who else would you have expected?”
She smiled, a bit haltingly, but with enough strength to send a thrill through him. “Anakin. I don’t want to be late for our departure.”
“Don’t worry about that. Anakin is a very understanding boy.” Luke set aside the folded garments and seated himself at Mara’s feet. “How are you?”
One corner of her mouth tucked itself into a smirk. “You’re the Jedi Master, you tell me.”
Luke reached out through the Force toward her and quickly encountered the defenses she’d set up. It felt as if she’d wrapped herself in thorns, then cobbled together body armor from starship hull plates. Beyond that were kilometers of wrappings holding her in all tight. Each line of defense brought his probe up short, then a little, tiny gap opened, allowing him to move deeper and deeper.
Finally, beyond the wrappings and past an ocean of images, hopes, and fears, he reached Mara’s core. When he experienced her through the Force this way she always appeared to him to be white-hot, flaring brilliantly. She was the most vibrant and alive person he’d ever known—something made all that much more remarkable since the Emperor would have tried to dampen down her vitality while she was in his service.
The illness she had contracted had sapped some of her strength, but her resilience kept it at bay. He could feel the Force flowing through her, constantly rebuilding the damage done and keeping the disease beaten back. While the initial encounters with the Yuuzhan Vong had distracted her and allowed the disease to advance, she had made a major effort toward recovery.
She is not yet whole again, but she is gaining in strength. Luke gave her a smile. “I’d say you are doing very well, my love.”
Mara sat forward and reached out to stroke Luke’s cheek. “I’m doing better, but not well enough.”
“Give it time, Mara.” He kissed her on the wrist. “Impatience is handmaiden to despair.”
“And despair is of the dark side.” Mara nodded slightly. “I understand, Master Skywalker.”
Luke shook his head. “You know what I mean.”
“I do, Luke, and I know why you warn me that way. Your empathy and caution are two of your more endearing qualities.” She lay back down, drawing her knees up to give Luke more room.
Luke rested his chin on her right knee. “You don’t mind having Anakin accompany you to Dantooine?”
She shook her head. “I can go it alone, if you need him elsewhere.”
“If you don’t want him with you, I can find another assignment for him.” The Jedi Master kissed her kneecap. “I don’t want you burdened with something that’s really my problem.”
“Luke!” Mara’s voice gained in volume and developed a little of an edge. “When we married, your problems became my problems.”
“Yes, but Anakin is part of my family, and the way you grew up, you didn’t have a chance to—”
Mara spitted him with a green-eyed stare. “Want to consider again what you’re saying there, Raised-as-an-only-child Skywalker?”
Luke laughed silently for a moment. “Point taken.”
“Take this one, too. When I agreed to marry you, I knew what I was getting into. We agreed to share our lives, which means we agreed to share all of the problems as well as the joys.” Mara closed her eyes for a moment. “I like Anakin. I can sympathize with what he is going through.” She opened her eyes again. “He feels responsible for Chewbacca’s death. At one time I felt responsible for the Emperor’s death. Both of us have lost someone who was part of the foundation of our lives. If I can help him through that, well, he won’t have to go through the things I did to find his way back out again.”
She glanced up at Luke. “Of course, I imagine he’s not thrilled at being saddled with a sick old lady heading