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❶ "Destiny of a Jedi"—The Rise of Skywalker OST

❶ The Bendell System consisted of a transfer point for long-distance ships and a few elements of the underworld hiding in dark corners of the rocky planet. When Leia left the transport and entered the station, she was surprised to discover her contact was Lor San Tekka.

The elderly gentlemen still wore his formal cleric robes of soft velvet, which were cut down the middle to reveal brown trousers and an embroidered tunic in rich earth tones. His golden chains of office swung from his chest as he said, "Prin—"

Leia raised her finger to her lips. "Not here. Is there a place we can go where we won't be overheard?" Her amber eyes glanced from side-to-side, looking for an alcove or alley. As she tilted her chin down, her chestnut braids glinted in the harsh fluorescent lighting.

"Follow me," the elderly gentlemen said as he led her and C-3PO down a pristine corridor toward his temporary quarters. "We're perfectly safe here. Oh, Princess, it is good to see you." He took her coat and hugged her in a traditional Alderaanian greeting.

"I prefer Senator these days."

"You will always be royalty to me, Your Highness," he said with a kind smile and twinkle in his eyes. "Refreshment?"

"Please."

"So, what is your problem? Why did your brother send me to you? It wasn't to reminisce about Alderaan . . ." he said while handing her a glass of juice.

"No, I need your help. You have always been loyal to my family, and I can trust you to be discreet."

"Of course."

"I'm pregnant."

Lor San Tekka let out a breath he had been holding. "Congratulations."

Leia wrung her hands not daring to look him in the face.

He leaned in and touched her clenched fingers. "You're also married, Your Highness. This shouldn't be a problem." The cleric coughed with discretion. "Or, is your husband not the father?"

Leia blushed and lowered her eyes. "No, nothing like that. Han's the father, but he doesn't know. We're not together anymore—I can't tell you why, but he doesn't know. And I don't want him to know," she said as her thoughts rambled.

"If the child is his, he has a right to know."

"San Tekka, he doesn't want to be a father. He never was around for our son Ben, and I don't want to add an extra burden on him now."

"You must do what you think is right, of course," the old man added with a wink. "So where are we going? Hosnian not comfortable enough?"

She stared him in the eyes. "This doesn't leave this chamber. I could be imprisoned for revealing top-secret information from the Senate."

"You can trust me, Your Highness, I assure you."

Leia darted her eyes around the room, sensing with the Force for any nearby lifeforms that might be listening in. "Is this room clear?"

"It should be."

She inclined her head, whispering in his ear. "We're not safe on Hosnian. The First Order has already taken over some key systems in the Outer Rim ... and ... and the Senate guard foiled a covert op last week. They ... they took hostages ... children. Our children."

Lor pulled back, his mouth open, aghast. "No. Was anyone hurt?"

Leia nodded. "A few guards during the extraction." Her hand shuddered as she tried to sip the juice. "But they saved the children ... this time." 

"Why wasn't Master Skywalker informed? We knew nothing of this at the academy. I'm sure he would have intervened."

"I don't know. They won't discuss it with me, but they didn't want the Jedi involved." Leia shuddered as a wave of nausea hit her. "All I could pick up was something about a mission to Ru—"

"Then why did they honor Master Skywalker with the title of Grand Master?"

Leia bit her lip and scrunched her nose while thinking. "At first, I thought it was another way to control him, but now—diversion. Keep him distracted. They don't want him involved with these planet takeovers." Tears welled in her eyes. "I wish they had. Maybe this wouldn't have happened. I can't stay here, San Tekka. They came to me. To my suite. Looking for Ben. Calling him by name."

Lor San Tekka set his glass down on the table and leaned forward. "If this is truly as you say, I will help you in whatever way I can. You need a secure location, a planet or a moon no one knows about. One that the First Order wouldn't know how to find. How about Khalkha?"

Shaking her head, Leia said, "No. Ben ... you don't know what's going on with him. I ... I can't trust him. I can't let him know he has a sister, not when he might have already—"

"Turned to the dark side?"

"You see it, too?" The tears streamed now. "Oh, San Tekka, is it too late for him?"

"Only the Force knows. But now, now I know why it led me here to you. You need its insight, its leading. And I need to show you how to seek its wisdom for yourself. But, think, what is the one civilized planet the Empire and the First Order have never attempted to take over since the founding of the Empire."

"There aren't any."

"Yes, there is. The home of the Emperor himself. Naboo."

Images from the geography modules popped into Leia's mind. The cascading waterfalls around the capital city of Theed. The marble buildings with the domed roofs. The expansive meadows and ponds. And, of course, their unique elected monarchy. She knew almost as much about Naboo as she did Alderaan. Her father's dear friend, Senator Padmé Amidala was from the planet—who died in the early days of the Rebellion. He made sure Leia studied everything about the woman. Leia hoped she had carried on the Senator's legacy, speaking her mind when all around her in the Senate were blinded by greed and ignorance.

"Amidala was from there. Senator Amidala. She was my father's friend." As she spoke, the Force impressed on her mind with such urgency she knew this was the place. The safest place, if there was one. "Naboo it is," she said while smoothing her braids. 

"There are other places we could consider. I doubt the First Order would find Navarro or Tatooine quite to their liking."

"No. It's Naboo." Leia slowly curled her lips upward and nodded slightly. "The Force has spoken. Until I can no longer train her, we'll live on Naboo."

"And then?"

"You'll take her to Luke as a Padawan."

"How can you be sure she will possess Jedi powers?"

"I've felt it since the day she was conceived. She'll be more powerful than her brother . . . with the right training. I just don't want to make the same mistakes I made with Ben."

"All right, Your Highness, but we're going to need a private medical facility, one that will not report the birth to the authorities. Naboo just won't do." He pushed a few buttons, bringing to life a holo map on his console. "Now, what's on the opposite side of Khalkha? Hmm, we have a choice of two systems with methane gas for atmosphere or the Anoat system."

"The Anoat system. There's not much there. How about Koda Station?"

"No, too close to Khalkha.  Perhaps the mining colony on the asteroid Polis Massa. They have a reputation for handling births with discretion ... for the right price, of course." He pointed to the colony on the map. "And when you are both ready, we can move to Naboo."

"All right. Five months on a mining colony and the next ten years on Naboo," Leia said. "Sounds like a plan." She tapped her foot and wondered yet again if she were making a mistake keeping Han out of her life and their daughter's life.

Did you know . . .

● Lor San Tekka has been described as both a traveler and a Jedi cleric. But how did he end up on Jakku with the map?

● Leia is four months pregnant with her daughter right now.

● Lando indicates in The Rise of Skywalker that the First Order was overrunning planets and stealing children for their stormtrooper training program, specifically targeting the children of the Rebel Alliance Leaders.

Tell me what you think . . .

● How many Easter Eggs did you find in this chapter?

● What foreshadowing is in this chapter?