The Adventures of Nomi Darklighter

Chapter 110 - A disturbing Discovery

Nomi felt tired after hours of keeping watch and was glad when Tycho sat down next to her.
"I think it's my turn, Nomi," he said. "You should try to get some sleep."
The Jedi stood up and nodded.
"Thank you, Tycho."
She then walked to the spot the Rogue Squadron pilot had just left and curled up under the blanket, still warm from the man's body. Shortly afterwards she fell asleep.

When she woke up, she was surprised to see that she was lying next to Wedge. She hadn't paid any attention to it as she lay down dead tired.
The commander slept very restlessly and his face... It looked kind of tormented. Suddenly he screamed.
"Biggs!"
Now Nomi knew what was haunting him. He relived her cousin's death in his dream. It had been so long and he still couldn't forget it. She touched Wedge's shoulder to wake him up.
Antilles woke up with a start and looked around sleepily.
"What?"
Nomi put her hand over his mouth.
"Shh! Quiet, Wedge. You had a nightmare."
He looked at her and sighed.
"It's always the same dream, Nomi," he said quietly. "I could have prevented your cousin's death if I had stayed in the Death Star trench."
There were tears in his eyes. This was no longer the tough commander of Rogue Squadron, but a man who blamed himself for the death of his best friend. The Jedi shook her head.
"No, Wedge, you wouldn't have had a chance. The TIE pilot who killed Biggs was Vader."
Antilles looked at her in surprise.
"How do you know?"
"The Dark Lord told me so himself when I was his prisoner on Vjun. If you had stayed in the trench, not only would my cousin be dead, but you would have been killed too."
"Maybe you're right, but I still can't forgive myself..."
"You have no reason to blame yourself, my friend."
Wedge nodded, but he knew it would take longer before he could come to terms with what had happened.
Nomi looked up at the sky where the twin moons rose as Corran, who had the last watch, woke Tycho. The two men rolled up their blankets and stuffed them into their backpacks before coming over.
"We should eat something before we go," Nomi suggested, pulling out some ration bars, taking one and offering the others to her comrades.
The three men accepted the offered food and began to eat, swallowing each bite with some water from their canteens.
After finishing their modest meal, Wedge and Nomi rolled up their blankets and stowed them in their backpacks. Corran and Tycho were already ready to go and were waiting for them.

After three standard hours they had reached the first foothills of the rugged mountain range. They knew it would be difficult to hide from Imperial patrols in this area. They began the climb slowly and carefully. It was just a narrow path almost overgrown with unfamiliar plants. The light from the twin moons was barely enough to see the way. But they couldn't risk using glowrods or Nomi's lightsaber to light the way.
The Jedi reached out with the Force and stopped in shock.
Wedge nearly bumped into her when she stopped so abruptly.
"What's wrong, Nomi? Do you sense danger?"
The young woman shook her head.
"I'm not sure. Somehow I sense a disturbance in the Force. But it feels different. Like...We have to go there."
There was a small plateau in front of them, towards which Nomi, followed by the men, headed purposefully. That was where the strange disturbance in the Force she had felt came from.
In front of them they saw a settlement or rather its remains. Only the foundations of the houses, which were deep in the ground, were visible. Wedge stepped next to Nomi and pointed to the remains, some of which bore burn marks.
"Do you have any idea what happened here?"
The Jedi was about to shake her head when a vision of the past hit her like a punch in the gut.
What she saw in her mind's eye was terrible. Jedi had lived in the village, hoping to avoid persecution by the Emperor's henchmen on this remote planet. But there was no escape.
One day, a Star Destroyer with Lord Vader and her father on board entered the Lip'a'rii system. They tracked down the Jedi and destroyed them in a firestorm that they unleashed using the dark side of the Force. Nobody could escape.
Wedge touched her shoulder.
"What's wrong, Nomi? You've turned very pale."
The Jedi was unable to answer him. She was too shocked by what she had seen.
Corran looked up at the sky.
"We have to go, the sun will rise soon."
"Corran's right," Wedge shouldered the backpack containing the explosives. "Let's go."
Nomi still stood in a daze before the remains of the Jedi settlement that had been destroyed by Lord Vader and Lord Bel-Baal.
Antilles turned his head.
"Come on, Nomi. We must go."
Eventually, Nomi broke out of her daze and followed the men back to the path to continue the climb.

Two standard hours later, morning dawned and they looked for a sheltered place to get some sleep. After they had eaten their rations, Nomi sat off to the side on the rocky ground to meditate. But she couldn't concentrate and didn't feel well. She couldn't shake the images of the blazing inferno her father and Vader had unleashed, in which so many Jedi died.
Wedge came towards her.
"What's wrong with you, Nomi? You look so pale."
"It's nothing, Wedge."
"You can't expect me to believe that," he said quietly. "I've known you too well and too long."
Nomi stood up and wanted to get away from him, but he followed her.
"Please leave me alone. I don't want to talk about it."
But Wedge was undeterred.
"It has something to do with the destroyed settlement, doesn't it?"
Her reaction to his question was sharp.
"Yes, it has! My father and Vader destroyed it! The inhabitants were Jedi! Are you happy now?"
She ran up the mountain sobbing and just wanted to get away.

It wasn't long before Nomi heard footsteps behind her, but it wasn't Wedge who had followed her, but Tycho. He grabbed her arm tightly.
"Let go of me, Tycho!"
He pressed his free hand over her mouth as he tightened his grip on her arm.
"Be quiet, Nomi," he whispered. "Should the Imps get wind of us? You are jeopardizing the mission."
The Jedi shook her head and Celchu loosened his grip. He smiled with relief and finally let her go.
"That's much better, Nomi. Let's go back to the others."
She followed him and was grateful that he didn't ask any further questions. Wedge and Corran met them halfway.
"Is everything okay, Nomi?" Corran asked with a worried expression.
She nodded.
"We'll reach the garrison this evening," Wedge said, glad that Nomi had calmed down. "It's better if we go to sleep now. Tycho..."
"Yes, Wedge?"
"You take the first watch."
It didn't take long until everyone except Tycho Celchu was asleep.