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The Fett Dynasty, Episode One of a Trilogy	By : WLTDNFADED Category: Star Wars (All) > General Views: 3625 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own the Star Wars movie series, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 6
- 7
- 8
Luke Skywalker leaned back against the mammoth tree and devoured a long, voracious breath of Orri Prime�s sweet spring air. It was warmer this day than previous days, and the blun gln glinted off the mountain peaks and their surrounding forests. He had removed his boots and now dug his toes into the defrosted soil, enjoying its cool sensation. In the far off distance, he could see two huge birds of prey the natives called taminaes circling the peaks of Heavens Brace. He looked over the cliff on which he sat. I�Lai�s palace sprawled majestically below him, a beautiful white granite haven entirely surrounded by a huge garden that was just starting to awaken te kie kiss of the hemisphere�s spring. The palace�s space dock was situated about half a kilometer from the palace, and he could see the tiny figures of mechanics and droids rustling about, awaiting the return of the Millennium Falcon and its spoil, the Slave I.

*It�s so beautiful here, so peaceful, so�unscathed*, Luke mused in his mind. *I wish we could just stay here.*

�Well, we can�t. We�ve got a lot of work ahead of us on Coruscant.�

Luke leaned over and peeked around the tree to see Leia standing a few paces behind him, smiling. �Hello, Brother Luke,� she said. �Mind if I join you?�

Luke broadly returned her smile, extending his hand. �Of course, Sister Skywalker.�

Leia giggled as she bounded over and sat on the ground next to him. �I like it when you call me that.�

Luke shot her a sidelong smirk. �When do I get to call you Mistress Solo?�

Leia laughed. �I don�t know�you�ll have to ask Master Solo about that.�

The smile faded slightly from Luke�s face. �At this rate I�ll be lucky if I get an invitation to the wedding.�

Leia sighed and slumped her shoulders. �Oh Luke! You know what a pig-headed nerfherder Han can be!� Luke stifled a guffaw through his nose�he loved when Leia called him that. Leia smiled as she continued. �I understand why you didn�t say anything about Boba Fett and I�Lai. And I think Han will too, eventually. He doesn�t stay mad for very long.�

�I hope you�re right, Leia.�

Leia looked out over the indigo peaks of Orri Prime�s mountains. �You really love this place, don�t you, Luke?�

�Well,� Luke snickered, �when you�ve spent the first twenty years of your life staring at nothing but sand, mountains and trees and fresh air are a very welcome change.�

They sat quietly together for a while, gazing upon the magnificent landscape. Luke began to feel an apprehension in Leia, as though she wanted to say something. �Leia, is there something troubling you?� he asked.

Leia turned and met Luke�s gaze, a sad look in her eyes. �Actually, yes, there is.� She hesitated for a moment before continuing. �I feel I owe you an apology.�

Luke knit his brows. �Why?�

�Because�because I haven�t exactly been sharing in your grief for�for��

�For our father, Leia?� Luke volunteered.

Squng hng her eyes shut, Leia bowed her head and placed her palms against her eyes. Luke could tell she was fighting back tears. �Luke�I�m so sorry, but�it�s going to take me a long time to come to terms with it. Please forgive me.�

Reaching around her shoulders, Luke drew Leia closer to him, letting her lean her head into the crook of his arm. �Leia, there is nothing to forgive. These are your feelings, and one�s feelings are never wrong. I am not foolish enough to say you must forgive Vader�Father immediately, if ever. It will take time.

�But I will tell you this,� he added, his tone growing lower, more serious, �When your strength in the Force progresses, you will understand what an� overwhelming temptation the Dark Side can be. I can vouch for that first-hand.� Luke could see the concern growing in Leia�s eyes and averted his own for a moment before he continued. �During our fight on the Death Star, when Vader threatened to turn you�I came very close to succumbing myself. Very close.�

Leia looked up into his face, her eyes becoming enormous. �Luke�I had no idea.� She reached down and took his hand. �That must have been terrifying for you.�

�That was the scariest thing about it, Leia. It wasn�t terrifying at, it, it was�� Luke took a breath, �almost� liberating. It was alluring, soothing. It dangled promises of power and dominion in front of my mind. It offered me everything from leading entire armies into battle to�an embrace from Padme, our mother. The Dark Side promised me you would never be turned or harmed, that you would always be safe and content. At that point, I would have done anything to protect you.� The trace of a bitter smile briefly crossed Luke�s lips. �And all I had to do for all of it was�kill my own father.� He paused, closing his eyes. �The Dark Side made Father seem as if he were nothing more than an insect under my shoe, just something to kick out of my path to glory and happiness. It made it seem that easy.�

He turned to Leia, who still stared at him with a mix of pity and horror. �I started my Jedi training when I was twenty years old. Father started his at the age of nine. So you can imagine how much more powerful he was in the Force by the time he was my age. Knowing what the Dark Side promised me, imagine what it offered him.� He tilted his head as he met Leia�s gaze. �Do you understand a little more now, Leia? Father was not born evil. He was just so gifted in the Force that the temptation was just too great to refuse.�

Leia lowered her gaze to the soft earth under her feet. �I�think I understand, Luke. You mean the stronger one is in the Force, the greater the Dark Side�s temptation?�

Luke nodded. �Yes, ts ris right.� He paused briefly, weighing his words heavily before adding, �And that is why I am worried about I�Lai.�

Leia gasped. �Luke, you don�t honestly think that I�Lai�?�

�She�s�just so powerful, Leia. She is completely untrained, and yet she harnesses a raw strength in the Force that I could almost compare to Obi Wan Kenobi, even Master Yoda. Completely resisting Vader�s subconscious invasion? Spontaneous telekinesis? And waking astral projection? I can�t even do that yet.�

�But Luke�you can teach her, can�t you? You can train her like you�re training me?�

Luke sighed and shook his head as he started to pull on his boots. �I�ll do what I can, but I�m not a Jedi Master by any means. Not yet. All I can do is teach her how to control her strength until I become better trained myself...and hope her powers remain hidden from any remaining followers of the Sith.�

Leia tried to shake off the chill that was running up her spine. She was about to remind Luke that the ways of the Sith were now passed with the deaths of Vader and the Emperor, only to remind herself that the Jedi of her mother�s generation had mistakenly thought the same thing about the Sith�

Instead, she stuck to the subject of I�Lai. �Her parents must have been very strong in the Force,� Leia commented as she raised her face to catch a particularly sweet mountain breeze. �Or at least one of them. But she has no idea of her parentage, correct?�

Again, Luke shook his head. �No, not at all. She told me she was brought to the Imperial Courtesan Discipline when she was a toddler. She has no memory of her parents whatsoever.�

Leia furrowed her brow. �It seems so strange for a child that exceptional to wind up in the Emperor�s brothel. It just doesn�t make sense.� She turned to her brother. �But Luke�I don�t think you have to worry too much about her. I�Lai has a heart as big as this galaxy. I have never known anyone as courageous or as kind as she is�well, except for you.� With that, she leaned up to kiss Luke on the cheek.

Luke smiled and pulled his sister closer to him. �Just promise me you�ll help me keep an eye on her.�

�I will,� Leia replied, smiling broadly.

A dull roar in the distance pulled Luke�s and Leia�s attention toward the massive peaks of Heaven Brace. They both looked up to see the Millennium Falcon soar through the peaks� entrance, followed by the smaller and disturbingly familiar form of Boba Fett�s Slave I.

�They�re here�come on, let�s go,� Leia said as she rose and offered Luke her hand in assistance. As she helped pull him to his feet, she added, �I hope the med team brought an extra ice pack for Han�s jaw.�

Luke squinted at her. �Why, what�s wrong with Han�s jaw?�

Leia smirked a sly smile and winked at Luke. �When I become stronger in the Force, huh?� She reached up and rowdily tousled Luke�s hair, then took off sprinting down the dirt path. �Come on�I�ll race you!�

Luke laughed and started running after her. Leia bent swiftly to grab a bunch of leaves from the ground, tossing them at Luke. As they dow down the tree-lined path, they continued to laugh and play like the children they never had a chance to be together.

* * *
The first thing that infiltrated Boba Fett�s waking awareness was the banging pain in his skull. Every heartbeat gonged against his eardrums from the inside out. His blood felt like acid in his veins.

He attempted to open his eyes. They felt thick and opaque. He absently tried to lift his hand to wipe them, only to growl in agony. Then he remembered that was the injured shoulder. He switched hands, rubbing the dried crust away and slowly opening his eyes.

Although the lush curtains were pulled closed over the window, the room was still too bright for Fett�s liking: Without the visor of his helm, broad daylight was too intense for his altered eyes. He held his hand as a shield over his brow as he surveyed his surroundings.

The chamber was white, sterile. He painfully turned his head to the side, responding to the blips of the medical monitors: It was only then when he fully realized he was lying prone in an infirmary bed, wearing a patient�s robe of soft beige fabric. He glanced upwards to see two intravenous drip containers dangling from atop the monitors and followed the tubes to where they were stuck into his arm.

Fett blinked hard several times and took deep breaths through his nose as he ferociously tried to shake his grogginess and remember how he came to this place. Soon, images that began fuzzy morphed into clearer pictures and sensations. He recalled a fleeting moment of being strapped down and carried on a stretcher in a space dock and hearing voices�familiar voices-- over him. He then remembered the feeling of his armor and suit being cut away from his body as a blaring ceiling-mounted surgical light blinded him�

Then his clearest memory emerged�he had been floating, weightless yet tethered by tubes and wires and a breathing mask in the thick viscous contents of a bacta tank. He remembered being naked, save for a pair of short trunks. He remembered seeing misshapen, watery faces through the plexiglass wall of the tank as they stared at his progress. The faces were those of Luke Skywalker, Leia Organa, Lando Calrissian, Han Solo, and an old, white-haired man wearing a medical coat�and he remembered pounding the glass with his fist in rage and humiliation as he floated there, exposed and vulnerable, wishing his murderous glare would be enough to snuff out their lives and blind their gawking eyes.

It was then another face emerged behind the glass, a face of pure ivory surrounded by raven black curls. He found himself staring into wide, sparkling eyes of teal. The eyes were imploring, concerned, yet soothing, hypnotic. He saw her rose-hued lips curve slightly up in a warm smile, and she placed the palm of her slender hand against the glass. Fett had calmed a little, and he found himself raising his own hand to press against the glass-shielded palm of hers as he briefly lost himself in the tranquil comfort of her eyes�

But his anger and his arrogance had begun to surge in his blood once again. Seeing her standing in the same room as his enemies, the very ones who had tried to send him to a thousand year demise, only reminded him that he was there as a prisoner, the Rebels� prisoner-- her prisoner. He found that he could no longer bear to look upon her any longer. He remembered clenching his pressed hand into a fist and furiously turning away from the angelic visage.

After a few moments, in spite of himself, he had turned his head back over his shoulder. The beautiful face with the teal eyes had disappeared, and all he saw at that moment were her raven curls cascading down her back as she hurriedly fled through the door�from then on, Fett could recall nothing more.

Lying in his bed, Fett sighed deeply and clenched his eyes closed again.

He kept them closed when he heard the chamber door swoosh open. He listened to footsteps walk across the room toward the window and heard the curtains flung open, flooding the room with agonizing daylight�

�SHUT THEM! SHUT THEM NOW!� Fett yelled, raising his arm to shield his eyes.

Poor old Dr. Him�bron nearly jumped out of his skin. He swung around, and momentarily clutched his chest. �What! Oh, yes, your eyes�I forgot. My apologies.� He pulled the curtains closed again, and Fett lowered his arm to glare at the doctor. Him�bron ran his hand through his white hair and cleared his throat. �Well, we�re awake. And how are we feeling?�

�Come closer and we�ll show you,� Fett sneered.

Him�bron clucked his tongue against his teeth and shook his head. �I�ve had my share of difficult patients in my day, but you, sir, have won first prize.� As he pulled the medical datapad from his coat and lowered himself into a chair, he continued to mutter. �My poor nurse is sporting a black eye, and I�ve had to order new parts for the surgical droid you damaged�and that was while you were going under anesthesia! I won�t even discuss what happened when you came out of it. We had to pump you with enough sedatives to keep a Cammendon asleep for a week!�

Fett forced down the grin trying to spread across his face. He had obviously put up a good fight, and he was a little annoyed that he couldn�t remember any of it. �How long have I been out?�

Him�bron looked up from his datapad for a split second. �Three days.�

�THREE DAYS?� Fett roared. He bolted straight up in his bed, but bellowed in agony, clutching his side, and was forced to lie down again.

Him�bron struck the datapad with his stylus, utterly annoyed. �Now stop that! We fused those ribs and that shoulder back together, but the muscles are still highly inflamed, and they need to heal. Don�t thrash about so! Behave yourself.�

�Where is my armor?� Fett demanded through rasped breaths. �Where is my ship?�

�That will all be covered in the briefing,� Him�bron flatly replied.

Fett narrowed his eyes. �What briefing?�

Him�bron completely ignored Fett�s question. �As id, id, we fused all the broken bones you had, including the fracture in your skull. The bacta tank has cleared all signs of infection, surgical nanites have repaired your internal injuries, and the constant IV drip has replaced most of the nutrients back into your body. So it seems you are on the road to full recovery.� Him�bron glanced up from his datapad to look Fett directly into his cold stare. �You have had rather extensive genetic altering done, particularly in the systems of fast-twitch muscle growth, connective tissue enhancement and flexibility, and overall cell regeneration. You know that kind of genetic tampering is illegal outside of Imperial military parameters.�

�So arrest me,� Fett replied dully.

Him�bron huffed. �I would hate to meet whatever disreputable quacks you paid off to do this. However, it seems this tampering is what saved your life. No ordinary man could have survived those injuries in those conditions for that long.� Him�bron rose from his chair. �I see that you are still in pain. I can give you something for it��

�I don�t want anything.�

�It will help you feel better��

�Are you deaf, old man? I DON�T WANT ANYTHING!�

�Fine. You don�t want anything.� Him�bron stuffed the datapad back into his coat pocket as he strode toward the door. �By the way, the briefing I mentioned is about to start.�

Fett turned his head away from the doctor toward the window. �I�m not in the mood.�

�I�m afraid, sir, you don�t have a choice.� With that, Him�bron opened the door, nodding to the group waiting on the other side and strode through, mumbling, �Impossible man��

As soon as Him�bron had passed, Leia Organa walked in, followed by Han Solo, Lando Calrissian, and Luke Skywalker. All wore freshly crisp Alliance uniforms indicating their rank and position except for Luke, who still wore the dark tunic and cloak of the Jedi.

Boba Fett lay back against his pillow as a disgusted sneer crossed his face. �Well, if it isn�t my judge and jury.� His eyes fell upon Leia, now sitting in the chair at the foot of his bed. Shooting a quick stabbing glance at Han standing beside her, his sneer broadened somewhat. �But a pleasing judge nonetheless. You are dressed a bit more modestly since last I saw you in Jabba�s palace, Princess Organa.�

Leia immediately felt Han�s outrage at the comment and instantly grabbed Han by the arm as he angrily stepped forward. Still holding Han�s arm, she firmly met Fett�s lascivious glare with the light trace of a smile. �As are you from last I saw you in the bacta tank, Master Fett,� she crooned with feigned innocence. Han and Lando both blocked a laugh through their noses as Fett�s leer disintegrated into a scowl. Luke shot them both a severe look, and they fell silent.

Leia folded her arms over her chest. �As for being your judge and jury, Master Fett, we are neither. We are merely representatives of the Alliance here to discuss your future.�

�My future?� Fett scoffed indignantly. �That�s rich. And exactly which aspect of my future will we be discussing, Princess? Lethal injection or blaster squad?�

Leia sighed deeply and lowered her eyes. �It pains me that, after all the years of bloodshed and suffering this war has caused, that there are still those like yourself that confuse the Alliance with the Empire.� She raised her eyes to meet his again. �We are not going to execute you, Master Fett.�

�Although there are several hundred on this planet alone that would give their right appendage for a ticket to that event,� Solo quipped bitterly.

�Han�� all admonished him in unison. Han merely held up his hands apologetically and looked innocently up toward the ceiling.

Leia resumed her diplomatic tone. �We have discussed your case with the leaders of the Alliance Council. Since you hold the rank of free citizenship and have no formal position with the defeated Imperials, you do not fall under the official Alliance rules as a prisonerwar.war. However, the Council feels that, because of your crimes against Alliance personnel, you pose too great a risk to be freed immediately. Therefore, after careful consideration, we have decided that, under the circumstances of recent events, you will remain here under Dia-Orri system jurisdiction in the custody of its governor, the Lady I�Lai.�

Leia was taken aback for a split second as she endured the wave of mixed raw emotions emanating from Fett at the mention of I�Lai�s name. But just as quickly as the muddle of resentment, shame, and longing had hit, Fett erected a black mental wall within his mind and shut her out. He resumed his cold business-like demeanor. �And how long will I be detained here?�

Leia paused before answering. �Indefinitely.�

�Indefinitely,� Fett repeated. �Or until the Alliance decides in committee that I have met their official guidelines as �a good boy�.�

�You will remain in custody until you no longer pose any threat to any member of the Alliance or the newly appointed galactic government of the New Republic,� Leia corrected him sternly. She softened her tone a bit as she continued. �Do you have any questions?�

�Where is my armor? And my ship?� Fett demanded.

�Your armor is beyond any repair,� replied Lando Calrissian, the Dia-Orri system�s newly appointed Security Chief. �The Saarlac�s acids completely broke down the molecular structure of the plating and the systems inside. As for your ship, it will remain here on Orri Prime in a storage facility in an undisclosed location.�

Fett remained silent as he stared toward the curtained windows. �Do you have any other questions?� Leia asked.

�Just one.� Fett turned his cold stare back to the Princess. �Where is I�Lai?�

Leia glanced toward Luke, who had stood silent and stoic throughout the briefing. Fett noted that, although no words were verbaspokspoken, they seemed to be communicating with each other. He saw Skywalker nod slightly to Leia, and she turned her attention back to Fett. �She is tending to your son, Master Fett,� Leia replied softly, adding, �She was�unsure if you wanted to see her.� Both Luke and Leia heard Fett�s heavy-hearted mental response�

That makes two of us.

Princess Leia smoothed the front of her uniform as she stood from her chair. �If you have no other questions, then we will take our leave. I must inform you that you will be under constant Alliance guard until the Council decides that security may be relaxed. I ask only for your cooperation in making this situation more comfortable on all sides, Master Fett.�

She turned toward the door to leave when Fett�s words stopped her in her tracks. �You must be very amused by all this, your Highness,� he murmured, his face and tone devoid of any particular emotion. �How satisfying it must be to see your lover�s captor beaten and broken before you.�

The Princess shot Han Solo a look, pleading with him to hold his temper. She sighed deeply, taking a moment, before turning to Fett. �I take no pleasure whatsoever in others� misfortunes, Master Fett. I am not you.� With that, she strode proudly through the door.

Before leaving himself, Han stepped toward the infirmary bed and glowered over Fett. �If you ask me, you got off easy, pal. Just remember that.�

The corner of Boba Fett�s mouth curled up into a sinister smirk as his eyes bore into Solo�s. �We�re not done yet, Solo. Not by a long shot.�

Han leaned forward to meet Fett�s frosty glare head-on. �Name the time and place, Fett. I�ll be there.�

Fett�s smirk grew even wider. �And who will you bring to fight for you? The Wookiee or the Jedi farm-boy?�

Han cocked his fist back and lunged toward the bounty hunter before being caught and dragged out the door by Lando. �Come on, come on, let�s go, hot shot��

Fett watched the pair scuffle out the door. He turned his attention to Luke, who had not yet moved from where he stood and looked at Fett with calm, almost compassionate eyes. Fett narrowed his own into deadly black slits. �You have something to say�Jedi?� He spit out the word as if it were filth in his mouth.

Luke remained undaunted by Fett�s hatred. �I understand you, Boba. I understand your anger and why you hate me so much.�

Fett�s expression remained frigid and dim, but he felt his heart pound violently in his chest. �You understand nothing, Skywalker.�

�I understand that your grief led you to sell your soul, Boba. But it�s not too late to buy it back.� He stepped forward, never averting his eyes, sounding every bit the wizened Jedi. �Vader is dead, the Emperor is dead, Jabba the Hutt is dead. The dawn of change is rising, and you may want to decide whether to face it or continue to live in the dark night of your hatred and vengeance. Maybe someday you will understand the reasons the Alliance fought so long and so hard. Maybe you will decide to join us instead of fight us, because we surely could use a man of your genius and fortitude.� Fett said nothing. Luke continued. �If you and General Solo can keep from killing each other for five minutes, you may want to ask him how the love of a good woman changed him for the better.�

�Enough, Skywalker.�

Luke sighed. He turned toward the door, the rush of air billowing his cloak, when he stopped before leaving. �Your father has been dead for decades, Fett. Let him rest and be with the family you have here and now.�

Coldly, impassively, Boba Fett raised his eyes to Luke Skywalker and quietly hissed, �Get out.�

Luke bowed respectfully and walked out, leaving Boba Fett to stare at the sterile white walls of his room and deal with the raging black torment in his heart.

* * *
Lando released his hold on Han�s uniform jacket as they came out into the corridor. Han shook himself straight and smoothed the creases out on his sleeves when he felt the piercing stares of Lando and Leia. He looked at them and shrugged. �I can�t help it�I just really hate that guy!�

�Really? I never would have guessed,� Leia replied flatly. Her attention suddenly turned to Wedge Antilles coming down the corridor of the palace, motioning to her. �I�ll be right back�Wedge and I have to discuss the details regarding our trip to Coruscant.� She began to walk toward Wedge down the hall.

Han turned toward Lando. �So, you�re sticking around here for a few weeks, huh, Security Chief?�

Lando laughed a little. �Yeah. Orri Prime is going to be a hotbed for a while. The remaining Imps will try and rebuild their fleet, and they�ll be hurting for durasteel. We�re going to set up new security patrols, a heavier perimeter defense system, and put the new Orrian militia through boot camp. We�re going to make sure this place is safe. You and Chewie going to Coruscant?�

�Yeah, we�ll being meeting Leia and Luke there. Then the real fun begins.� Han laughed and shook his head. �I don�t know what kind of politician I�m going to make.�

�My advice to you is�just nod a lot and leave the heavy stuff to Leia.� Lando smiled and playfully punched Han in the arm. �See you later, General Pirate.� With that, Lando Calrissian strode down the corridor toward the space dock where his shuttle awaited to take him to his new headquarters in the Southern Hemisphere.

�Han,� Leia called as she came back down the hall. �Wedge and I are leaving now.�

As she approached him, Han gripped her arm and pulled her into a recessed doorway. �Come here for a second, Leia.�

Leia was surprised by Han�s action. �Han, what is it?�

Han turned Leia to face him. He looked intensely into her eyes, and very gently, very lovingly touched her face. �You are�the bravest, most beautiful girl I have ever known. And I am deeply, madly in love with you.� He leaned down and, taking her face into his hands, pressed his lips to hers in a sweetly passionate kiss. When he broke from her, he could see the twinkle of tears in her eyes. He smiled. �I just wanted to tell you that.�

Leia smiled through her tears. �Oh Han�I love you too.� She wrapped her small arms around his waist and buried her face into his chest, breathing in his warm, familiar scent through the stiff fabric of his uniform.

Han held her tight for a few moments. �Get to your ship. I�ll see you on Coruscant.� He lifted her hand to his lips and kissed it before Leia, still beaming, walked down the corridor toward a waiting Wedge Antilles.

Han stepped out from the doorway to see Luke standing in the middle of the hall. Things had been tense between the two friends of recent days. They met each other�s gaze with a sense of caution and worry.

Han placed his hands on his hips, nodding slightly and pursing his lips. �Taking your X-wing to Coruscant?� he asked Luke in a nonchalant tone.

Luke quietly nodded.

Han sniffed. �That thing�s taken a beating, Luke. When are you going to get a real ship? Like a cruiser or something?�

Luke allowed a soft smile to penetrate his austere demeanor. �Eventually, Han. When I can afford one.�

�Well, come with me to Corellia sometime. I got friends there. I can get you a good deal.�

Luke relaxed his severe Jedi posture and walked toward Han. He extended his cybernetic hand, and Han took it in his own in a hearty shake. Suddenly, Han huffed and exclaimed, �Oh�come here!� and wrapped his arms around Luke in a big bear hug. Luke returned the hug enthusiastically, patting Han on the back.

Han broke the hug, and the two comrades-in-arms, beaming from ear to ear, began to walk down the corridor together. �Come on, kid--come to the Falcon and have a drink with Chewie and me before you go.�

�Han, you know I don�t drink.�

�Then you can watch me and Chewie drink. That sounds like a good time, huh?� The friends� laughter rang through the ivory white corridors as they headed for the palace�s space dock.

* * *

With a long, deep breath, Boba Fett stirred himself awake. A low, frustrated growl emerged from his throat. He had fallen asleep�again! Damn it, it seemed all he did was sleep! Him�bron had insisted that he was no longer administering sedatives, that Fett�s chronic need for sleep was merely his body attempting to heal itself, but�This can�t be normal, Fett thought to himself. I�ve slept more in the last four days than in the last four months! How can I blast myself out of this place if all I do is sleep�

He bolted upright in his bed, rubbing the muck out of his eyes. In doing so, he noted that the pain in his torso and shoulder had subsided dramatically in the last day. He also noticed his head didn�t pound nearly as much. He faced the curtained windows as he lowered his hand. The early morning light of dawn broke through the cracks in the curtain, softly illuminating the white sterile walls of his chamber with a pale azure hue.

Fett stared blankly toward win window for a moment, then turned his head to scan his medical monitors�when his gaze stopped cold upon the large overstuffed chair positioned at the foot of his bed and for an eon of a moment, he could not find his breath.

There, curled up in perfect sleep, was I�Lai. Her plush white robe was draped just below her bare shoulders and was open at her breast and Fett saw a tiny, blanket-wrapped bundle cradled in the crook of her arm.

Slowly and silently, Fett pulled the blankets off his and swung his legs over the side of the bed. As he stood, the IV tubes stretched taut from his arm. Reaching down, he grabbed them and yanked them out, completely oblivious to the pain the action caused.

Ignoring the ache spreading up his leg from his healing ankle, he moved quietly toward the sleeping lady, lowering himself to kneel before her. His eyes drank in every detail of her face, every curl of her ringlets, every soft breath she took in her slumber. Even in sleep her lips, moistly parted, seemed to curve in a soft smile. Fett remembered the last time he saw her on the Executor was just like this, sleeping and dreamful, and that had been the image he had carried with him for these many months�but that image paled to what he saw before him now. Her skin was freshly scrubbed and radiant, her ebon hair tousled about her shoulders, her expression innocent and serene. He felt he was truly gazing upon an angel.

He reached up to gently touch her lips. He ran his finger along the outline of them, being extremely careful not to disturb her. He touched the alabaster of her cheek, losing himself in the softness and warmth of her skin.

He became suddenly startled by the tiny gurgle that emerged from the blanket-wrapped bundle in her arm. Looking down, he saw a tiny hand break free from the wrap to flex tiny fingers and reach for I�Lai�s breast. The bundle cooed and wriggled closer to her, and Fett could hear the almost inaudible sound of suckling.

Fett sat there, frozen and amazed, unable to look away.

I�Lai�s eyelids fluttered, and she stirred with a deep breath. Slowly, she opened her eyes. She lightly blinked a few times as she focused on the man in front of her. Soon, her drowsy gaze met his eyes, and her mouth spread into a soft smile.

�Good morning, Boba,� I�Lai whispered.

For only the second time in I�Lai�s presence, Boba Fett could think of nothing to say.

I�Lai sleepily raised her head from her shoulder and extended her hand to Fett�s face, touching his scarred chin in a gentle caress. �How are you feeling? Better, I hope?�

�Yes�yes, I�m�better.� He shifted uncomfortably as he struggled to say something to her�anything to her��Was it�painful, I�Lai?� He mentally kicked himself for such an idiotic question.

I�Lai�s smile only broadened. �A little, Boba.�

Fett shifted his gaze back to the tiny bundle in her arms. �I�I want to see him.� I�Lai gingerly adjusted the blanket away from the baby�s face to allow Fett his first view of his infant son.

Fett stared into the child�s little face, again taking in every minute detail he saw. He smiled slightly at the tuft of dark hair on the infant�s head, and noted the child�s skin was a darker hue, like his own. He noted the child�s strong brow and nose were like his as well. But what drew his attention most were the baby boy�s eyes. They were not dark like his own, but a sparkling hue of sapphire-jade, like his mother�s, and as they looked up into Fett�s eyes, they bore into his very soul.

*By the Slayer, he looks like�he looks like my father.*

�Does he�have you named him?�

�I thought�we could do that together. Would you like to hold him, Boba?� I�Lai asked softly.

Fett suddenly felt overwhelmed by a rush of unfamiliar and upsetting emotions. �No�no!� he snapped quietly as he rose to his feet and moved toward the window. He did not open the curtains, but rather leaned against the window�s edge, furiously running his hand through his hair and over the healing gash in his scalp.

I�Lai adjusted her robe around her and rose from the chair, clutching the babe to her breast. �Boba, what is it? What�s wrong?�

Fett remained silent for a moment. I�Lai could see his shoulders tremble before he turned and faced her. His face was a mixture of anger, confusion, and anguish. �I do not understand, I�Lai. I do not understand any of this. The rescue�the baby�why? Why have you done all this?�

For a moment, I�Lai herself was speechless. She glanced toward the floor, fluttering her lashes, before raising her eyes to him again and answered, �You apologized to me.�

Fett furrowed his brow in even more confusion. �What�?�

�That night on the Executor, when you became angry and frightened me. You apologized.� She held his gaze in the innocent snare of her eyes. �You had never done that before, had you?�

Fett felt as though he was going to explode. He wanted to shake her senseless and crush her in his embrace at the same time. How, how does she know these things about me? What is this maddening hold she has on me? Why do I yearn so fiercely for her�why does she make me so weak..?

Once again, he latched onto his familiar tone of cruelty and arrogance when he spoke this time. �This situation does nothing to change the fact that I am a prisoner heroes oes it, Lady?�

I�Lai blanched. �But, Boba�I assure you, you will have freedom of the palace and its out skirting areas along with access to all it can provide you��

�Under armed guard. Answer me this, Lady--am I or am I not your prisoner?� Fett moved toward her threateningly when she remained silent. �It is a simple yes or no answer. If I cannot have my freedom, at least pay me the respect of answering my question.�

Her lip trembling and tears beginning to well in her eyes, I�Lai calmly replied, �I would rather think of you as�my guest.�

�A guest who cannot leave, correct?� Fett�s tone had turned ice cold.

I�Lai struggled to find a suitable answer. �You will be able to leave�in time. When��

�When your Rebel friends decide I have been broken.� Fett swung around toward the window again, folding his arms. �I want you to leave, I�Lai. Tend to your son.�

�But Boba��

�LEAVE,� Fett snarled with quiet venom.

I�Lai clenched her eyes closed and held her sob in her throat. Before she went through the door, Fett blurted, �Kai.�

I�Lai stopped and turned her tear-drenched face toward him. �What?�

Fett didn�t turn to face her. �I want to name him Kai. Kai Fett. Now you may leave.�

I�Lai nodded. �All right. We�ll name him Kai.� Holding her son close to her breast, she turned and walked out the door.

When she had reached the farthest stretch of the corridor, I�Lai could no longer hold her anguish. She fell against the wall and slid down, sobbing uncontrollably and clutching baby Kai to her as if he were her very lifeblood.

When Fett was certain I�Lai was well down the exterior corridor, he turned and with full force punched a hole right through thambhamber wall.

* * *
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The Fett Dynasty, Episode One of a Trilogy