Star Wars IX- Balance Of The Force

Epilogue - The Dream is Real

The Lanais were the caretakers of Ahch-To, and they had been cohabiting with the new inhabitants for a few years now. The female inhabitant Alcida-Auka remembered from when the last outsider had been residing with them. He'd said it was his niece. Alcida-Auka hadn't been sure how honest that was. The woman before had been a rude, destructive girl destroying the rock face, blasting holes in the huts, but she was different now. Like the last outsider, the girl had learnt their language, as did the tall, dark man with her who appeared to be her companion. They did chores and gathered food alongside the Lanai, and they appeared each month at the Festival of Return.

When the pair had first arrived, they had taken up accommodation in one of a cluster of huts, and later, they had requested permission from the Lanai to merge together several of the shelters. The man had even made a covering for the huts using mud, sand and water from around the island to make the shelters more weatherproof. Their presence didn't affect the island as the woman had when she had resided here previously. It was in harmony with the island. Alcida- Auka had seen the pair walk together, staring out over the sea or meditating high up on the cliffs, or during the warm summer months, she had even seen them swimming and bathing together in the shallows.

The woman had returned the old religious relics thought lost from the lightning hitting the ancient Uneti stump, bursting it into flames. As a sign of gratitude and mark of respect, Alcida-Auka had taken the pair to the store where all the belongings of long-past inhabitants were kept. The man, in particular, had seemed moved by the robes, weapon, star, compass and a pair of golden cubes on a chain that the last outsider had left. It turned out the previous outsider had been his Uncle, which meant the woman couldn't possibly have been that former outsider's niece- these companions were not brother and sister. They had embraced in shared grief right there in the store beside Alcida-Auka. Alcida-Auka was not Force-sensitive, but she knew it flowed through this pair more strongly than anyone else who'd been on the island before. They were two halves of the Force that together made one. Not long after the moment with the belongings, at one of the Lanais' monthly Festivals, the Lanai had performed a ceremony of sorts at the pair's request, where the two had made life vows to each other.

Sometime after that, Alcida-Auka, her daughter and a few other caretakers had supported the pair in bringing a baby into the world, a strong baby boy. In all her time on this island, a human child had never been born here. There were no such stories of human babes, not even in the old songs they sang to each other. Surprisingly, even the presence of the babe had not affected the daily life on the island much although at times it was less peaceful, chores were still done, the moss was still cleared, and the maintenance of the island went on as it always would ready for any who came to this sacred place.

-X-

Rey sits at a driftwood table in a stone hut. The domed shelter is sparsely furnished and old; the stones are dark with stains from the moss, which has long since been cleared away. Since they've lived here, changes have been made to make it a home- a table, a fireplace, benches, the open holes for windows have shutters and cloth to keep out the wind and rain during the storm season. They have combined several of the huts, with the Lania's permission, of course, so there are sleeping quarters off this main one. One quarter belongs to her and Ben and the other to their son, furnished with simple beds and handmade blankets. A simple, peaceful life.

Rey sits reading an ancient book, pouring over the words she's read many times before;

There is no light without dark.
Through passion, I gain focus.
Through knowledge, I gain power.
Through serenity, I gain strength.
Through victory, I gain harmony.
There is only the Force.