Han, Chewie, Luke and Leia all stood up from their seats. When Jon tried to do the same, Han held up a hand to stop him. Jon looked up at his father in confusion.
"Hey, what'd you do that for, Dad?" asked Jon.
"You're staying right here," said Han
"That's not fair, Dad!" Jon protested. "You let me come this far. When you gave me this poncho back on the cruiser, I thought I'd actually be allowed to explore Endor. And I told you I'd go wherever you went. But now you're telling me I have to stay here with the ship. Why? And don't give me any crap about how I'm "too young." or it's "too dangerous." Do you know what other other dangerous things I've experienced in my young life? Growing up as the son of a smuggler, for one thing! Always being on the run! Sure I had you, my father-which is one more parent than you had as a kid. And you love me. But it was still a dangerous life. The older I get, the more I realize that. And then when I was ten, you left me on Yavin IV."
"I came back for you" said Han. "Just like I promised I would." Han grabbed his camouflage trench coat, and put it on.
"Yeah, I know," said Jon. "And I'm glad you did. But sometimes, I can't help wondering what would have happened if you'd been just a second too late and the first Death Star had blown up the Rebel Base. And also, what if you'd made it back to Tattooine, but Jabba killed you. Had that been the case, and no one ever discovered you died, I would have spent the rest of my life believing you'd chosen to abandon me."
Jon's words struck a chord inside of Han. He remembered flying away from the Rebel Base four years earlier, and having those exact same thoughts and feelings. In fact, they were his catalyst in deciding to return for Jon, while also helping out Luke in the process.
"But none of that happened," Han countered.
"Then there was my thirteenth birthday," Jon went on. "And you gave me this, Dad." Jon touched his training blaster. "That night, there was the...incident. Remember when I almost shot you?" Han, Leia, Luke and Chewie all nodded silently. Each of them remembered that night very clearly.
"And afterwards, I kept saying how sorry I was for almost hurting you, Dad," said Jon. "In all honesty, my biggest fear is that you could have died at my hands."
"Jon, it's a training blaster," said Han. "One that's always set to stun. You couldn't have killed me with it."
"Yeah, well, you never know," Jon muttered.
"That explains some of Jon's nightmares," Leia realized.
"Huh?" asked Han. "Oh, you mean the nightmares Jon had about me dying. The ones where Vader killed me sounded really bad."
"Wait a minute," said Leia. "Jon told you that Vader would kill you in some of his bad dreams? Well, he told me that these dreams involved Vader handing his lightsaber to Jon, then he would be the one to kill you himself."
"Yeah, what Mom just said is actually the truth," Jon admitted. "I didn't tell you, Dad, because...I was afraid."
"Those aren't the only types of nightmares Jon had while you were frozen in Carbonite, Han," said Luke. "He'd sometimes dream of a mysterious figure wielding an unusual lightsaber."
"It's a red lightsaber, like Vader uses," Jon further explained. "However, in addition to having one long red blade, this one has two smaller blades that form a cross-guard."
"So, I take it Vader's not the person holding this lightsaber, then, huh?" asked Han.
"Yeah, that's right, Dad," Jon confirmed. "As I've told Mom and Luke, I've never actually been able to clearly see this person. They may be wearing a mask, but I'm really not sure."
"Listen to me, Jon," said Han. "They're just dreams. You can't let them bother you too much."
This coming from a man whose bad own dreams were so horrible that they caused him to hit me, and nearly cost him his life, thought Jon.
"Hey, we're getting away from the point I wanted to make," Jon said aloud. "And that is, I'm fourteen-years-old. People like Mom, Luke, Chewie, Kes, Shara, Lando and Wedge all can see that I'm growing up. Why can't you, Dad? Sure, you keep saying how proud you are of me for flying the Falcon and stuff like that. But then you turn it all around, and treat me like I'm still a little boy." Han took a deep breath.
"I realize I can't stop you from getting older, Jon," he said as he exhaled. "But I also want you to stay safe."
"And you really think I'd be safer here than going with the rest of you to the shield generator, Dad?" asked Jon. "I mean, the Imperials would just as easily be able to find me here. And you don't want that to happen, do you? Also, who knows how long you'll all be gone for. Because first you have to find the shield generator. Then it has to be destroyed. Finally, you'd all have come back for me. And that's assuming nothing bad happens to either me or any of you guys before then."
"Ok! Ok! You can come, Jon!" Han exclaimed. "But be careful. And keep close to me, your mother, Luke, Chewie, the droids, Kes and the rest of the strike team at all times."
"Sure, Dad," said Jon.
"Hey, what's the holdup?!" Kes Dameron asked from the rear of the shuttle.
"Sorry, Kes!" Han yelled. "We'll be right there! I guess we'd better get going." He, Jon, Luke, Leia, Chewie, R2 and 3-PO met Kes and the other members of the strike team in the hold.
"Sorry about that," apologized Han. "There was just a family matter that needed to be taken care of."
"We heard," said Kes. "Don't worry about it, Han. It's all part of being a parent."
"And how would you know?" asked Han.
"Because Shara and I have a son of our own," Kes replied.
"WHAT?!" Jon, Han, Luke and Leia all exclaimed at the same time. Chewie growled in confusion. R2 beeped questioningly. And 3-PO gasped.
"Are you serious, Kes?" Jon further interrogated. "Well, what's your son's name?"
"Poe," said Kes. "And he's two-years-old. Here's a holo of him." Kes pulled a holocube out of his pocket. He pressed a button, and the holo of little Poe appeared. He was a two-year-old boy with brown eyes, and curly dark brown hair. He wore a multicolored shirt, and smiled for the camera.
"Aw! He's so cute!" Leia crooned.
"He looks just like Shara," Jon observed. "But how come neither you or her ever said anything about Poe before? And where is he now?"
"None of you ever asked me or Shara if we had any kids," Kes answered slyly. "And as for Poe, he's back on Yavin IV, where Shara's father is looking after him."
"You and Shara came from Yavin IV?" asked Jon. "And I'm sorry for all these questions. I'm just curious."
"No problem, Jon," Kes reassured. "Yeah, Shara and I settled on Yavin IV shortly after we got married. And that's where Poe was born. Whenever this crazy war is over, you're all welcome to visit me and Shara on Yavin IV, so you can meet Poe."
"Thank you for the invitation, Kes," said Leia. "We'd be honored." Jon could sense the sincerity in his mother's voice. He had to admit that he was also interested in returning to Yavin IV and seeing where Kes and Shara made their home. As the teenager continued to look at the smiling, happy face of young Poe Dameron, he imagined becoming a friend, and maybe even something of an older brother to him. Jon Solo would meet Poe Dameron one day. They would become best friends. But right now, Jon couldn't even begin to imagine that Poe was just one of several extraordinary people he would eventually meet who would shape and change not only his future, but that of the entire Galaxy.
Unfortunately, darker thoughts began to form in Jon's mind, too. This mission was the Rebellion's last stand against the Empire. But what if it went wrong? What if Han and the strike team couldn't bring down the shield generator? What if Lando, Wedge, Shara, Norra and the rest of the pilots out in space failed to blow up the Death Star? Would Jon and everyone he loved die?
"But you're right, General Solo," Kes said as he put the holo of Poe away. "We gotta get going." Han pressed the button that lowered Shuttle Tyderium's ramp. He led the other onto Endor's soil. Jon took a deep breath, exhaling slowly. The air on this forest moon was perhaps the cleanest and freshest he'd ever breathed in his entire life.
"Woah!" Jon heard Luke exclaim from behind him. The boy turned to look at his friend.
"I know Luke," he said. "You'll never get tired of seeing trees."
"Yeah, but these trees have got to be the tallest I've ever seen!" Luke marveled. "I bet they're at least a thousand feet tall. And look at their trunks, covered in that shaggy rust-colored bark."
*Pah!* Chewie scoffed. *These trees are mere sticks compare to the mighty Wrosher trees of Kashyyyk!*
"Always gotta be a critic, don't you Uncle Chewie?" Jon asked sardonically.
*Bite your tongue, Jonathan Jacen Solo!* Chewie scolded, but not in an unkind way. *Back on Kashyyyk, my people built towering cities among the branches of the Wrosher trees. We lived that way for thousands of years. But that was before the Clone Wars, which lead to the formation of the Empire.*
"You don't have to say anything more, Uncle Chewie," said Jon. "I know how painful your past as a slave still is for you."
"Hey, will you guys be quiet?!" Han hissed from the front of the line.
"Sorry, Dad," Jon mumbled. He, Luke and Chewie quieted down after that, joining Han and Leia out in front. Han motioned for everyone to crouch down. Jon followed their example.
"Oh, I told you it was dangerous here!" 3-PO nervously proclaimed.
Apparently, 3-PO must think Dad's warning to stay quiet doesn't apply to droids, thought Jon. He, Han, Leia, Luke and Chewie peered over a log. Jon could see two Scout Troopers on patrol in a clearing.
"Should we try to go around?" asked Leia.
"It'll take time," said Luke.
"This whole party will be for nothing if they see us," added Han.
"You got that right, Dad," Jon whispered.
*We should try to get a closer look,* Chewie suggested.
"Chewie and I will take care of this," Han rasped. "You three stay here." Jon was about to argue that he wanted to join his father and the Wookiee, when Luke spoke up.
"Quietly," he warned. "There might be more of them out there."
"Hey, it's me," Han said, flashing a roguish grin. He and Chewie turned to set off after the Scout Troopers. Jon, Luke and Leia exchanged glances with each other that said We know, and that's what we're afraid of.
The trio looked up over the log. Chewie growled, but he was too far away for Jon to understand what he said. He also couldn't see the way Han, holding up his DL-44 blaster pistol, nodded at Chewie before following behind one of the Scout Troopers.
Snap! The sound of a twig snapping as Han accidentally stepped on it traveled all the way up to where Jon, Luke and Leia waited, making them all wince. Unfortunately, it also alerted the Scout Trooper that he was being followed. He spun around and saw Han, who moved to point his blaster at him. But the Scout Trooper was quicker, and he swung at Han, hitting him, which caused him to fall to the ground. He must have pulled his blaster's trigger as he went down, because a laser bolt hit the tree behind him.
"Dad! No!" Jon cried.
"Go for help! Go!" the Scout Trooper who'd attacked Han ordered his colleague, who took off on a speeder bike.
"Great," Luke grumbled. "Come on!" He, Leia and Jon rushed into the clearing just as Han regained consciousness, and hurled his assailant into a tree.
"Dad! You're ok!" Jon exclaimed in relief. Chewie shot at the escaping Scout Trooper with his bowcaster. He hit the speeder, and the trooper went tumbling to the ground. Han was still fighting.
"Over there!" Leia shouted, pointing. "There's two more of them!" Another pair of Scout Troopers were escaping on two more speeder bikes. She rushed after them, climbing onto an speeder bike that had been left behind.
"I see them! Wait! Leia!" Luke called after his sister, even if he was currently the only person among them who actually knew she was his sister. He climbed on to speeder bike behind her. Then, before he could even explain what was happening or why he'd done it, Jon joined them, sitting behind Luke. He held onto his friend's waist for dear life, and Luke did the same to Leia. The bike took off through the forest.
"Hey, wait!" Han called after them. He felt the ever-persistent Scout-Trooper grab him from behind. But Han Han flipped the other man over his shoulder, knocking him out cold.
"And that's how you do it," Han said smugly. "Did you see that, Jon? Jon? Jon?!" He spun around in circles, looking for his son, who was, apparently, nowhere to be found.
"Chewie...where's Jon?" Han asked nervously.
*Luke and Leia took a speeder bike, and Jon with went them,* Chewie answered.
"Dammit, Jon!" Han muttered under his breath.
*Come on, Cub,* said Chewie. *We should get back to the rest of the squad. I'm sure Jon, Luke and Leia will be fine.*
"Yeah. Sure, Chewie ," said Han. Then he and Chewie left the clearing to rejoin the other members of the strike team.
End of Chapter 14.
Author's notes.
1.) Ever since The Force Awakens came out, I'd believed Poe Dameron, who was canonically 32-years-old in that movie, had been born after the events of Return of the Jedi. But according to Wookieepdia, he was actually already 2-years-old during the Battle of Endor, meaning there is a 30-year gap between ROTJ and TFA. Wookieepedia also stated that his maternal grandfather, Shara Bey's father, cared for Poe at this time. Knowing what I now know about Poe's age in correlation to when TFA take place, Jon will be 44-years-old when I do that book. (I'd previously thought he'd be 46, and that there would be a 16-year age difference between him and Kylo. That's actually now 15 years, because Kylo was 29 in TFA. While I'm on the subject of character ages, Rey was 19, while Finn was about 23. Even after learning this information, I still intend to fancast the actor I've always had in mind for adult Jon in TFA, TLJ and Episode IX, because he's close enough to what Jon's age will be in those books, and IMO, shares a very striking resemblance to Harrison Ford. But of course, you'll all have to wait until I actually start writing TFA to find out who I picked. Speaking of TLJ, as I think I've mentioned before, despite what that movie told us about Rey's parentage, she and Jon are NOT going to fall in love at any point when I do the Sequel Trilogy. I'm sticking to my overall plan for their relationship to have a brother-sister dynamic.)
2.) Poe really was born and raised on Yavin IV. And that came about because the scenes there from ANH were filmed in Guatemala, where Oscar Issac, who plays Poe, was born.
3.) Speaking of Oscar Issac, the pic of the boy I used to represent the holo of Poe as a toddler is not a childhood picture of him. It's just a random stock photo I found online that I thought most resembled what 2-year-old Poe might have looked like.
4.) Yes, Jon went along with Luke and Leia for their iconic speeder bike chase. I'll write about that scene, and explain why I chose to do so, in the next chapter.