The Adventures of Nomi Darklighter

Chapter 76 - Dangers of the Dark Side

The next morning, Nomi was woken up by Dash standing in front of the bed with a tray.
"Good morning, darling. I hope you slept as well as I did," he said, smiling at his wife, who looked at him with sleepy eyes.
"Yes, I slept well," Nomi replied, rubbing her eyes.
The truth was that she hadn't slept well, but why should she bother her husband with her nightmares?
Rendar bent down and kissed her.
"That's for starters, and now look what I brought you for breakfast."
He put the tray down on the bed.
"Blum fruits. These are my favorites," said Nomi when she saw what was on the tray.
"I know because your little brother told me, darling."
Nomi took one of the fruits and bit into it. The Blum fruit was very juicy and the juice ran down her chin. Her husband lovingly wiped the juice away with his index finger and licked it from there. Nomi continued to eat, enjoying the taste.
The couple was so caught up in the moment that they didn't realize the triplets were awake and about to climb onto the bed. Having successfully conquered the bed, they grabbed the fruits on the tray.
"Hey, they're for your mama," their father said, wagging his finger. "Go to Leebo in the kitchen, your breakfast is there."
"Stay mama."
Biggs pouted.
At a standard year of age, the triplets could be very stubborn.
"Not kitchen. Herit here. Dash too," their oldest clenched his small fists.
"Tasherit is always with me because she needs me," Nomi tried to explain to her sons. "You're already big boys. Your sister can't eat or drink by herself like you can. She is still a baby and needs my milk."
"Corran arm," their youngest demanded, reaching out to his mother.
Nomi took him in her arms and kissed his forehead.
"I think it's better for the triplets to have breakfast with us, Dash. Otherwise they'll get jealous of their sister."
Dash stood up and went into the kitchen to get breakfast for the triplets.
"You spoil our sons too much, Nomi."
As soon as her husband left, Nomi got up and went to Tasherit's bed. There she picked up her daughter to feed her. The triplets watched their mother with interest as she sat back down on the bed and started feeding their little sister. A few minutes later, Dash returned with breakfast for the triplets and himself. He put the tray on the bed, sat down and together they enjoyed their meal.

After everyone was fed, it was time for Nomi to go to Luke. She got out of bed, took a quick shower and got dressed. As she was about to leave, her husband stopped her.
"I want to come with you today, Nomi."
She looked at him in astonishment.
"Why, Dash?"
"Well, I want to know your progress," Rendar replied, smiling. "I like to watch you fight too. I love your graceful movements and your skill with deadly weapons."
"Okay, you can come with me. But promise me you won't be scared if you see me doing something unusual."
Her husband nodded his head.
"Fine, then we can go, darling," Nomi said, stepping out of the door.
Dash turned his head before following his wife.
"Take care of the kids, Leebo."
"Of course," the droid replied.

When they got to Luke, the Jedi was waiting at the door as usual.
"Hello, Nomi. Oh, Dash, I didn't expect you to come too. Is there a particular reason for this?"
"No particular reason, Luke," Dash said, walking to a log and sitting down.
Luke looked questioningly at Nomi and then she heard his voice in her head.
"Why did your husband come with you, Nomi?"
"He's curious about my progress, Luke," she answered him in the Force.
"You know that today you'll fight me and I'll use the Force?"
His childhood friend nodded her head and Dash looked at them in surprise.
"Hey, what are you two doing?"
"We're just talking, Dash," Nomi answered him in the Force, not considering that her husband wasn't Force sensitive.
It wasn't until he asked her a second time that she became aware of it again.
"We spoke in the Force, Dash."
Rendar frowned and it was obvious he was annoyed.
"I don't want you to do that while I'm around."
Luke ignored Dash's comment and addressed his student.
"It's best if we start with the exercises right away. Put the boulder back in its original place, Nomi. Here in front of my quarters it is a hindrance."
Nomi nodded, reached out to the rock and felt the Force between the stone and her.
Slowly the boulder rose and this time she effortlessly guided it to its former place.
Dash watched in wonder at what his wife was doing.
"I can't believe my eyes. What you just did is impossible, Nomi," he said, glancing between his wife and the boulder.
"Nothing is impossible when you have the Force as an ally," Nomi said, smiling at him.
Rendar looked at her confused. He had vague memories of his Jedi grandfather, but couldn't remember him doing anything like that.
"Will our children be able to do that too?"
"Of course, Dash," Luke replied. "With the right training, they will learn to use the Force like their mother and I did."
Then the Jedi turned his attention back to Nomi.
"It's time for our lightsaber duel, Nomi. Are you ready?" Skywalker asked, activating his lightsaber.
"Yes, I'm ready, Luke," the young woman replied, also activating her lightsaber.
Seeing the activated lightsabers, Dash jumped to his feet.
"Are you both crazy? You can't practice with these dangerous weapons."
It occurred to Nomi that maybe allowing her husband to watch her practice wasn't such a good idea after all. She looked at Dash while holding the glowing lightsaber in her hands.
"Calm down, Dash, I know what I'm doing. Nothing will happen to me or Luke. Trust us."
She got into a fighting stance and waited for Luke to attack. The Jedi didn't keep her waiting long.
The young woman realized that Skywalker was blocking her in the Force so she
couldn't anticipate where his attack would go.
It was only through her battle-hardened reflexes that she was able to react in time and deflect the blow. She launched a counterattack, but Luke easily dodged it.
Nomi struggled to regain control of the Force while Luke laughed at sensing her efforts.
"I thought you were strong in the Force, Nomi. But apparently I'm stronger than you," the Jedi said, preparing for the next attack.
"Please, Luke, stop mocking me. Can't you feel me trying?"
Dash looked at his wife. He knew very well how hot tempered she was and he wished the young man would stop laughing.
Meanwhile, Nomi tried to remain calm, but Luke's laughter at her futile attempts to access the Force infuriated her. And then suddenly she felt the Force stronger than ever. She attacked Luke with such force that he couldn't counter it. Nomi broke through his defenses with rapid blows and thrusts. Suddenly, Skywalker stumbled, lost his balance, and his lightsaber went flying through the air. Before he could get to his feet, Nomi was standing over him, her lightsaber firmly gripped in both hands. Without thinking, the young woman swung in for the killing blow. Luke looked at her, eyes wide with fear, and raised his arm in defense.
"Nomi! What are you doing?"
Her husband's voice snapped Nomi out of her trance-like state and she dropped the lightsaber, which immediately deactivated.

Dash ran to her and roughly grabbed her shoulders while Luke got off the ground.
"Have you gone mad? You almost killed Luke. What got into you?"
"Leave her, Dash. It was my fault. I shouldn't have teased your wife like that."
Then the young Jedi turned his attention to his student and looked at her seriously.
"You really need to learn to be more in control of your emotions, Nomi. Otherwise, the dark side easily takes possession of you. It's readily available because it's always lurking in the background. It makes you invincible, but consider the price it demands of you."
Nomi felt tears welling up in her eyes. Once again she had failed.
Her husband hugged her and tried to comfort her.
"It's okay, darling. Calm down."
But his wife couldn't calm down. She was aware that if she fell to the dark side of the Force, she would lose her children and her husband.
"Control your feelings," Luke said, hooking his lightsaber to his belt. "Then you can easily distinguish the dark side from the light side."
Nomi looked at her childhood friend while still being hugged by her husband.
"Tell me, Luke, how do you keep yourself under control?"
Skywalker smiled.
"I don't always make it. But I try not to let my passions and desires take over," he began. "You're a very emotional person, Nomi. Maybe that's why you find it so difficult to control your emotions. I think we'll stop practicing today, Nomi."
Nomi squirmed out of Dash's embrace and nodded while wiping away her tears.
"See you tomorrow," she said and turned to leave.
Skywalker inclined his head and glanced at Dash, who seemed absent-minded as he followed his wife without saying goodbye.

On the way back, Dash suddenly stopped and looked Nomi straight in the eyes.
"I've made a decision, Nomi. You will end Jedi training immediately, do you understand me?" He said in a serious tone. "I am serious. I don't want you to be exposed to these dangers any longer. You seem overwhelmed with training and the boy is unable to train you. I worry about you and I don't want to lose you. And I will if you keep going, I can feel it."
Nomi met her husband's gaze.
"I can understand your concern after today's events, Dash. But I have to keep going. You know what can depend on it. I sincerely hope that if I am prepared and master the Force, I can prevent the events of my vision. You shall live, Dash and our children shall grow up in peace and freedom. Therefore, I must continue to face the dangers of Jedi training. Please don't try to change my mind."
"You don't want to understand me!"
Angry and disappointed, Dash turned and headed to the base's command center to report for duty. Nomi watched him go with sad eyes before continuing to their quarters.

Back in their quarters, Nomi absentmindedly watched the triplets' play. She wondered what to do. If they were still on Dagobah, she could have retreated to her favorite spot. But on Anoat she had no such place.
The young woman was afraid that there might be a serious rift between her and her husband because of her Jedi training.