The Adventures of Nomi Darklighter

Chapter 103 - The Punishment

The next day, Nomi woke up early after a restful night and had just finished feeding Tasherit when Dash sat down on the couch next to her. He gave her a tender kiss and stroked his little daughter's hair.
"Good morning you two. Did you sleep well, darling?"
His wife nodded as she closed her robe.
"Are our sons still sleeping?"
The Jedi reached out with the Force and sensed the triplets' presence. As she felt the gentle and calm flow of the Force in the children's room, she smiled.
"Yes, darling, our sons are still sound asleep," she answered her husband's question before calling his trusty droid. "Leebo!"
Surprisingly, the droid came immediately, contrary to his usual behavior.
"Yes, Nomi?" He asked in his mechanical voice and pointed his photoreceptor at the Jedi.
The young woman held the baby out to him.
"Please take Tasherit, Leebo. She needs fresh diapers."
The droid took the little human as carefully as possible. He wasn't programmed to care for children, but he did his best.
"Of course, Nomi. C'mon, little one, let's go to the children's room now."
Tasherit chuckled happily as the droid carried her into the adjoining room.

After handing her daughter to Leebo, Nomi stood up and went to the refresher to take a shower. Once she had taken off her robe, she went into the shower and activated it.
It didn't take long before Dash followed her. As soon as he entered the shower, he kissed his wife tenderly and began soaping her back.
Suddenly there was a pounding on the door and they heard Leebo's voice.
"Nomi! Captain Rendar!"
Dash let go of Nomi and looked at the door, slightly annoyed.
"Isn't it possible to be undisturbed? What's wrong, Leebo? I hope for your sake it's important!"
Dash exited the shower, wrapped a towel around his waist and opened the door.
"Damn..." he paused and stared at the sight before him.
In the meantime, Nomi had also left the shower, put on her robe and went to the door.
She looked at the droid standing on the doorstep holding Biggs. The boy was bleeding from a wound on his forehead and whimpering softly. Rendar took his son from Leebo and examined the wound.
"It's a cut, Nomi. How could this happen, Leebo? Anyway, you can tell us later. I'll take Biggs to the medbay."
Dash hastily dressed before leaving with his bleeding and crying son.
His wife reached out with the Force to see if all was well with their other children.
As she reached for Dash Jr., she felt dark emotions emanating from her eldest. His mother wondered if he was responsible for Biggs' injury.

After her husband left, Nomi got dressed and went to the children's room. She opened the door and walked in. Her eldest son looked at her guiltily, still holding the vibro knife, but the dark emotions his mother had felt before were gone.
"Why have you hurt your brother, Junior?" Nomi asked with a serious expression, her arms crossed over her chest.
The boy looked at his mother with his big brown eyes and dropped the knife.
"There was a man, Mama," he whispered, looking down.
The answer made Nomi prick up her ears and she knelt down in front of her son.
"What man, Dash? How was he supposed to get in here?"
Corran approached them and placed his small hand on his mother's shoulder.
"Yes, Mama, a very old man," her youngest confirmed his brother's statement. "I saw him too. He looked kind of strange. The man was wearing black clothing and his face was half covered by a hood. His eyes were a strange color. They were almost yellow. What's wrong with you, Mama?" Corran grabbed her hand. "You're suddenly so pale."
Nomi shook her head.
"It's nothing, Corran. Tell me more. Has the man spoken to you?"
"He wanted me to hurt Biggs to punish you for your failure, Mama," Dash Jr. started crying. "I couldn't resist that voice in my head. Suddenly I had the knife in my hand and Biggs was bleeding"
The Jedi pulled her eldest into her arms and stroked his unruly curls to calm him.
"It's all good, Junior, it's certainly not as bad as it looked. Your father went to 2-1B with Biggs."
Dash Jr. wiped his tears on his sleeve and sniffled. Nomi took a cloth, wiped the boy's nose and gave him a kiss. Her son looked at her hopefully.
"You're not mad at me, Mama?"
His mother hugged him.
"No, Dash, I'm not mad at you. It wasn't your fault, sweetie. I underestimated the dark side. From a certain point of view, what happened is my fault."
Her sons looked questioningly at the Jedi.