Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker: Aftermath

12: Cass Lenna

Night came to Pantora swiftly. Jacen's soft breathing and Amaliea tossing and turning, murmuring in her sleep, were the only sounds of the ship. Water from a nearby river flowed steadily, and Rey watched the blinking lights from the city quietly, rubbing her eyes.
Sleep was coming for her, but she couldn't close her eyes. She was afraid of where the Force might take her unconscious mind. If it would involve Ben, and her unborn daughter. As soon as she let sleep overtake her, she would be letting down her defences.
She rocked in place and struggled to stay seated upwards. She could not control her fatigue any longer.
"I haven't slept in four days.. perhaps a few minutes wouldn't hurt.." she mumbled, laying down on her side. She opened her eyes and groaned.
She was back in the treehouse.
She tried to wake herself up by slapping herself and pinching her body, but to no avail. Sighing, she lifted herself from the double bed and sat up, facing the glass doors that led to outside.
"I do wonder what is out there.." she murmured to herself. She stepped forwards and slid open the doors, covering her eyes at the light that suddenly pierced her eyes.
It was a flat field terrain, with other treehouses that resembled Rey's on either side of her. A forest grew in the distance, and in the shade of one of the treehouses stood three graves. Rey was too far away to make out the names engraved in the stone. Five or six small children played together below.
"Mama!" cried a small girl from below. Reys ears perked up and she saw a girl of about six waving up at her. Freckles and rosy cheeks, as well as a gap between her two front teeth. Hazel eyes with a hint of gold glinted beneath a mop of curly dark hair, framing her face perfectly and covering most of her left eye, with the rest of it falling just past her shoulders. She was beautiful.
"Come down and play!" Bea yelled.
Rey grinned. "Where are the others?" she asked the child. She tilted her head.
"If you're talking about Leé and Ryland, they're getting food from Evie." the girl grinned cockily. Rey hesitated for a fraction of a second.
"And Amaliea? And Jacen?"
"Well i assume they're with everyone else! You and Daddy should join us!"
With that she ran into the treehouse on Rey's right and disappeared from view.
"She's right, we should join them." a familiar voice said from behind her. Rey covered her ears and shook her head vigorously. "No, no, no, you're not here, you're dead, you're-"
Strong hands lowered Reys from her face. She raised her gaze slowly. Warm brown eyes met hers.
"Love, have you gotten enough sleep?" Ben Solo laughed. Rey froze. He leaned in to kiss her and she shoved him away.
"No, no! The moment we kiss everything goes wrong!" she cried, wrapping her arms around herself and sinking to the ground. He crouched beside her.
"Woah, okay, no kissing, got it." he raised an eyebrow at her with a slightly hurt expression.
"No, that's not it. I just-" Reys voice caught and she dropped her head into her hands.
"I just wish I could stay here forever." she sighed, her voice slightly muffled. "Everything is so peaceful and good here,"
Ben lifted her face gently. "You will get here." he told her seriously. "You have to work for it. Peace will come. Stay strong, Rey." he tapped her belly. "For her."
"For her." Rey agreed.
She awoke to the sound of repeated and urgent tapping at the entrance to the ship.
——
-several hours earlier-
"My dear Cassie, who in the stars were those-" Cass's father hesitated, looking for the correct word. "-colourful people?"
Cass didn't miss a beat. "Just some creeps looking for some credits and trying to trick me," she lied.
"Hmm.." her brother, Vor'en Lenna, exhaled suspiciously. A guard entered the great hall. "Sir, the intruders have left," he addressed Aldor Lenna, Cass's father.
Cass spoke before her father could. "Trail them." she ordered. The guard glanced at her father for confirmation. He gave a shallow nod. The guard inclined his head and left the room.
"Oh! I forgot to tell you, my dear." Aldor exclaimed, clapping his hands. "Me and your brother have found a suitor for you! Very rich." he added, elbowing his daughter with a wink. Cass looked disgusted. She bit back a retort and settled on a much simpler question. "How old is he?"
"Ehh, maybe around twenty five.. ish.." her father scratched his large white beard in thought. Cass sighed. "Better than the last one," she told herself under her breath. She excused herself from her father's presence and he called one more thing after her.
"You're meeting him tomorrow!! Make sure Nira dresses you up nice and pretty!"
Cass collapsed onto her bed in defeat. "I have to get out of here," she whispered. She remembered the people that had come for her. She decided. She was going to catch them before they left. She guessed that they weren't going to give up after only one attempt. Or at least she hoped. The sky was darkening outside her large bedroom window. She peeked out and estimated the drop down. Perhaps seven or eight feet. She could make it.
She opened her closet and went through her clothing. She finally decided on a pair of grey pants, a lilac tunic matched with a dark overcoat, and a burgundy scarf that she had bought from a merchant. She looked at herself in the mirror one last time.
"My body will remain my own." she hissed at her reflection. She looked out the window again, looked behind her, and jumped.
She landed on her feet surprisingly softly and glanced around. No one had noticed her, so she kept her head down and followed the speeder which held the guards she had sent to search for the strange people. She ran unnaturally fast after them, keeping in the shadows.
They began talking to one of the merchants still standing outside after the sun had gone down. He pointed in the direction of the marshes outside the city, and Cass was grateful that she had opted for large black boots instead of her normal attire. She began following the speeder again, before they eventually got in view of a semi-large ship that resembled a T-6 shuttle from the Clone Wars, which surprised Cass.
"Where in the stars did they manage to get such an old ship in perfect condition?" she asked herself. She spied where her fathers guards had stationed their speeder. All she had to do was get to the other side of the ship and get in without them noticing her bright pastel pink hair. She stayed low and made it to the other end of the ship, where the ramp would lower. She rapped on the metal, hearing it echo inside. Cass bit her lip, waiting.
The ramp began to lower and Cass stepped back in alarm. To her surprise, it was the small Mirialan boy that poked his head out first. He widened his eyes in surprise. "Uh, guys? We're not gonna need that plan anymore." he called over his shoulder. "She's here!"
"Keep your voice down," Cass said cautiously. "My father has guards stationed a few metres away. Can I come onboard?" she added, a desperate note in her voice. The green-haired man faded into view and placed a hand on the child's shoulder. He smiled. "Yeah, for sure," he motioned for her to come on. Cass stepped into the ship cautiously. Two bunks sat opposite each other, with three more cots propped up against the wall.
"Uh, welcome to The Newest Jedi Order," Jacen grinned. The three people standing jumped as two more female voices, one coming from the lower bunk on the left and the higher bunk on the right, shouted in unison:
"We are not calling it that!"