Chapter Seven Atonement..
     Large tents were propped up in the town square of Mos Eisley where the
Ceremony was scheduled to be held. Many weeks of preparation  were placed
upon this ceremony and the importance was very evident as thousands of
citizens flocked in the small marketplace with an open podium for all
citizens to see.
    The entire area was enclosed by a wall except for one or two openings
with a gate for people to come and go as they wished. Security was tight as
Thieves and Jawas were known to sneak in, and this was no exception.
Security had gotten the hang of pushing the Jawas out but pickpockets were
still a problem.
     Moving causally through the crowd, ignoring the cries and barters of
salesmen and Con artists, was Dariel Anglethorn and Mara Jade. Both women
were dressed in Tatooine loose fitting garbs, complete with a head covering
and goggles to disguise and protect their semi-delicate complexions from
the scorching suns rays. But Inside, Mara, strong anxious emotions began
the swell. Beside her, removing the goggles to get a better view of the
nearby podium and the surroundings, Dariel quietly observed Mara, the
podium and did a quick scan of the guards. Eighteen at least. Five on the
podium. Nine of them were close to a concealed alleyway, behind which their
sand skimmer was waiting for them complete with a driver. To get to it ,she
would have to first fight the crowd and the guards once they got Luke under
her wing.
   Dariel grabbed Mara's arm gently and they made their way to the front of
the podium which seemed to be getting crowded more quicker than usual.
Obviously this was the big attraction coming up and everyone seemed to not
want to miss it.
     A series of hard steady drumbeats began as a high priest emerged from
a door at the side. Making his way to the middle of the stage. Slowly the
crowds, including the loud and annoying vendors fell silent as the priest
raised his arms and spoke in a loud demanding voice.
   "Citizens of Tatooine. Let it be Heard that on this day, a very special
and sacred day. We Come together to rejoice in our worlds future and our
worlds past. We welcome a tradition passed down from our grandfathers. We
welcome the great bantha hunt!"
    The crowd broke into loud cheers and joyous waving. After a moment the
priest spoke again.
   "We the Citizens of Tatooine, Take  pride in our work. We take great
pride in our worlds future. We do not let anything stand in the way of that
future, We have learned to survive here.When our grandfathers landed people
once said reproduction and new life was impossible to establish here. But
we, we have made it happen here. Here on this world we have survived war
with this atmosphere and one with a mighty Empire! let us resume our future
as we dispose of our past!" the crowd cheered again even louder and the
priest brought his arm up and gestured to the door behind him. "Bring them
out!" he called over the roar of the din.
    Instantly Five men were dragged out. All were very pale and looked
extremely unhealthy. The crowd booed and hissed maliciously at the men and
some even jeered. Wincing in the sunlight and their own private pains, the
men had their hands bound in front of them.One of them glared and spit in
the face of the high priest.
   In the crowd, Mara felt her heart leap into her chest as the last man in
the line she recognized as Luke!
    The priest held his hand up again, and the crowd quieted somewhat. He
spoke in a condescending manner to the men and gave a warning edge for the
young people in the crowd.
   "Let it be heard and seen that these  men, all having reached the age of
forty and not having conceived or bred a spouse or child for the next
generation of our people,are considered an embarrasment and a disgrace to
us! We, the people of this world  offer these men as a last chance for
redemption and mercy. Which of you will atone for any of them? Anyone for
this one?" he grabbed the first man in line by the neck roughly and the
crowd booed and hissed and threw raw vegetables. A moment later the high
priest shoved him aside and another man led him off the podium to a back
door. The door of death to receive the final dose of poison. Or to be hung
by the neck.The same fate was met by all the others. Finally the priest
reached for the last man in line.
   Swallowing hard and trembling some, Luke was grabbed in the same fashion
as the other men and again the priest asked  "We the citizens of Tatooine
offer you Luke Skywalker a last chance at redemption and mercy. Who here
will atone for this man?" a strong series of jeers hisses and shouts rose
from the crowd....
   ... then strong and demanding  to be heard a voice cried out."Mercy!
Mercy! Mercy to this man!"
   Luke gasped. Who was speaking for his behalf?
   The crowd fell silent as a woman came to the front of the podium.
Speaking above the jeers so the crowd fell silent.Reaching the priest she
repeated again "Mercy my lord. I request to take this man under my wing and
give him sanctuary."
   "On what grounds?"
   "He is a good man who helped me once. I wish to take him to my  grounds
under conditions number 9572. Payment and restoration services."
   "Are you aware of the risks you are placing yourself under ?"
   "Yes I am. I wish not to have my identity revealed now."
   Luke turned his head to the high priest, waiting to see his reaction. A
moment later he shoved Luke into the woman's arms and adressed the crowd
again.
   "Let it be heard that this woman here ,has put in a plead of Mercy and
atonement for this this man's life. His life, as it is, is in your hands
mystery woman. You have a maximum of ninety days to restore him to our
standards of pride. If there is no physical evidence in that ninety day
period, you  will be prone to our punishment of death!"  the priest stepped
down from the podium but adressed his next word softly to luke as he walked
by. The anger in his eyes were clear.
   "She is your saviour Former Farmboy. Respect it and her." then he
stormed out.
  All around him Luke could hear the soft whispers of various people in the
crowd.
   "..stupid ignorant farmboy..."
   "...should have known this would happen..."
   "...why in the heck would she choose a savage like him..."
   "...that girl need eyeglasses..."
     Luke stepped off the podium slowly and looked at his saviour
suspiously. Even through the Tatooine covering he could tell it was a woman
who saved him. She was a good half head taller than him and with a strong
build. Slowly she removed her goggles to reveal strong round brown eyes.
She grabbed his still bound hands and began to pull him through the
crowd.He ignored the whispers of the upper class folk. He'd heard all the
insults before.
   "Come on we have to get you out of here!" she said in a familiar voice,
one he'd heard before but it didn't belong to Leia or Mara, if it wasn't
them then who...?
    ...a hand grabbed Luke roughly and spun him around, Luke struggled
momentarily as the farmers who grabbed him menacingly began to run his
hands over Luke upper torso. "Mind if we check out the merchandise?" he
asked coldly rousing Luke's anger.
   With an angry growl, Luke slammed his elbow into the farmers face
sending him flying into Dariel and  sprawling them both into a nearby
vendors tent. Customers yelled and scrambled to get out of the way as
another farmer came up to luke from in front another from behind. The one
behind him, grabbed Luke and pinned his arms to his side. as the man in
front began to charge with a knife drawn Before he could stab him luke's
strong leg came up and gave him a hard karate kick to the solar plexus
sending him to his knees. Dariel in the meantime, quickly stood up and
angrily grabbed the man holding Luke giving him a hard punch into his face,
knocking him unconscious with a bleeding nose. Luke looked up at Dariel
with an admiring look on his face.
   "Thanks." he said simply allowing her to undo his manacles. Once free,
she took him by the elbow and led him through the vendors once again.
Punching at anyone who tried to harras Luke and yanking one young lady by
the hair as she tried to approach them. Luke couldn't make out much of what
Dariel whispered but he  remembered her whispering"I wouldn't do that if I
were you..." then a few seconds later the woman left looking like she was
ready to scream and run for her life.
   Luke smiled as he followed the woman to the outer gates. This woman
whoever she was, definitely knew what she was doing.And she did it really
well. a smile of amusement played across his lips as she spoke to the
guards for a moment then gestured to him to follow her.Smiling he did as he
was told.
  Once past the outer gates Luke walked quietly and without comment past
the Wall Of death. where someone was carving in the names of the four
previous victims before him. His eyes caught sight of two names on the wall
that caused a momentary pain to come to his chest, but he said nothing.
                    Owen and Beru Lars.
****************************************************************
   Once outside, Luke saw they had made their way to a side entrance where
a speeder was waiting. next to it another woman stood waiting. she too had
tatooine garb covering her eyes and head as he gazed at the other woman
next to the speeder his rescuer begin to remove the coverings from her
face, as she did so he began to speak.
   Okay, now that we're out here would you mind telling me where we are
going and who you are?"
   "You mean you don't recognize me Luke?" the woman said turning around
and allowing him to get a clear view of her. His eyes went a little wider
in recognition.
   "Dariel? Dariel Anglethorn?"
   "Yes Luke." she smiled gently. Luke gave a small laugh and came forward
pulling her into a strong hug of greeting. Pulling away to look at the
second woman he smiled politely to her. Not removing her goggles, she
gestured for Luke to climb into the speeder. Shrugging in confusion at this
woman's apparent coolness, Luke  got in as she sat down next to him, and he
blinked, she seemed familiar to him  but without the force it was
impossible to tell how or who right now.
    "Better then to find out later" he thought to himself as Dariel fired
up the speeder and they skimmed lightly over the sand into the north-east.
******************************************************************
 Deadly Laws-Chapter 8-At the fair and in the speeder.
     Han licked  dry lips that were not entirely cracked by the sun. For
once this Correlian's luck was running low. He'd gone around the
underground sections of the city asking questions and not gotten any
answers of The depressed Jedi's whereabouts. He checked three bars and
around Mos Eisley without much succes. Where could he be?
   Suddenly his mind went to the events happening around  town and to what
Threepio said. There was only one place left for Luke to be!
*******************************************************
   Han scanned the now bare podium with people scurrying around. Han gasped
in horror as he saw four corpses  hanging on ropes ,their heads covered.
People still scurried around, gossiping and bartering from the vendors.
After a couple of hasty questions Han was relieved to recieve the
information that he so desperately needed. Luke had been a prisoner here,
or rather a sacrificial victim. He'd come to die in accordance of the law,
as Han suspected. But when it came to the question of who saved him. No one
seemed to know.
   "Where did they go?" Han asked a civilian vendor.
   "North East. But no one is allowed to see him."
   "Why not?"
   "Are you family?" the vendor asked.
   "Yes."
   "Then you can't see him."
   "Why not?!" Han demanded, his tone becoming more threatening.
"Family is not allowed to inturrupt  the ceromony of preservation of the
young. Only a woman unrelated to the condemmed can set him free. She must
win his heart to keep it beating for the rest of his days alive if he is to
remain  that way"
   "Are you saying that my brother-in law has to be married to stay alive."
   "That's the sum of it. It's a tradition going back thousands of years.
We know the value of family. Any man who is single at their age of forty is
considereed dishonerable to our standards and a disgrace to our world. They
are  lesson material for the men of this planet"
   "Cruel examples" Han snapped
   "It isn't your place to judge us Captain Solo.!" The vendor shot
back."You're not of this world! Your arrogance has gotten you into a fair
share of trouble but you were fortunate to latch to a princess to provide
for you and give you your future. It seems your brother in law has run out
of his infamous farmboy luck civilians say they are supposed to have.
Strange you should have given him some of his martial luck when you had the
chance. From what I understand, he's had hardly any kind of luck when it
comes to the ladies. How many relationships has he had so far?" the vendor
sneered in comtempt at Luke's history "Three ?and none of them worked out.
Surely after all that, you'd think he'd have learned something. He must
have some kind of curse from that uncle of his or that wizard teacher who
twisted him around so much. Maybe Papa Darth gave him a curse considering
he came from him."
   That was the breaking point for Han. He couldn't stand it anymore. With
an angry cry, Han grabbed the vendor and slammed him into the wall behind
them. when he spoke his voice was in a furious whisper.
   "Don't you dare speak that way of my brother in law!!If I ever bump into
you again and hear you insult him like that you'll find a blaster burn in
you stomach faster than you can blink!" Drawing in a deep breath, he
released the vendor. Luke was alive and in safe hands he hoped.He might as
well leave thie area, despite the heat a chill went up his spine.
******************************************************************
    Sitting in the speeder feeling the wind whipping through his hair and
bringing back a thousand bittersweet memories Luke gazed with narrow
suspicious eyes at the two women who saved him.
   "All right now that we're out of Mos Eisley and we're not being
followed, would you mind telling me what's going on here?"
   "Nothing's 'going on' Luke as you think. " Dariel answered him
sincerely. inclining her head a bit  "We're here to  help you. Nothing
more, nothing less." Luke's eyes held a 'you -don't -expect -me -to
-believe that' look. Remembering what happened with Callista . They were
obviously taking him to a moisture farm. He knew the open country of this
planet well. What was Dariel trying to pull here?
   "Yeah well, before you get any ideas in your head my girl" he spat the
word out like an insult. "I have absolutely no interest in staying here.
You can try to help me if you wish but I won't accept it! You'll be the
ones who will need the luck when it comes to keeping me here. it'll only be
a matter of time before some kind of tragedy strikes you. I'm not  a good
luck charm you're bringing home."
    "No you're not" Dariel shot back smoothly, setting her jaw determindly
as the wind whipped through her hair. "I don't believe in curses. And I'm
not afraid of taking this gamble on you Luke."
   "You will Dariel" Luke said his voice rising half an octive and sounding
more upset than threatening "You will. just wait and see!I know what I'm
talking about."
   "and I know you're just upset and tired Luke! People in your position
aren't usually in a good mood after they've recieved four doses of poison
and told they're supposed to die because they're not married and considered
discgracefull. Well I think you're worth a lot more. Both of us here" she
gestured to Mara who's eyes  smiled through the goggles. "Now hush up and
calm down. We're almost home."
   Luke slumped back in his seat and did as he was told. It was true. He
was tired, tired of everything that happened to him. He needed time to
grieve and a place to lick his wounds in private. With the New Republic
that would have been  Impossible.. Leia wouldn't cry but he never had her
strength. He needed to cry and to heal.
   Up ahead, a larger than the average farmhouse started to show. It was
lovely and twice the size of the house he'd grown up in. Luke couldn't help
but let out a gasp of surprise at the dwelling in front of him In the
tatooine sun, the building seemed to have open arms and to be saying to him
"Come in! come in! you are welcome!"
    He couldn't believe it. the house was so beautiful and so well kept.
looking at Dariel he said quietly "This is where we'll be staying?"
    Dariel smiled her brown eyes warm. "Yes it's my rent out cottage. Your
place of santuary. I wanted to make sure it was prepared for your visit."
She stopped the speeder aand the three of them clambered out.
   "Well you certainly did an excellent job of that" he gasped. Gaping at
his surroundings. He wasn't quite sure what to believe yet.
   Sensing his uncertainty, Dariel gave an easygoing laugh and took his arm
gently. "Come inside Luke and I can show you both to your quarters"
**************************************************************************
Deadly Laws Chapter Nine Sanctuary
     The first four weeks passed by lazily for Luke at Dariels rent out
cottage.  Nothing  seemed to be happening on the outside. Inside the minds
of Luke, Dariel and Mara was another question.
   On the first day he arrived on the farm., Luke went through a routine he
knew was necessary to keep him alive. Dariel placed six small skinny
tattoos on him. A precaution and a mark to other citizens to leave him
alone. There were six tattoos in all, two went on his wrist and bicep, the
other went on his right ear and the other went on his chest. He didn't
object to them, they weren't permanent, large, or unattractive. But his
stay on the farm itself,  was another thing.
   Luke remained hard, cold and distant to Mara and Dariel. He was
distrustfull of them. His eyes were always holding a scrutinizing gaze on
them, as if he were searching for fault in them. If he wasn't suspicious of
them he seemed to be anticipating something.
    Luke's lack of trust was irritating to both women. At first they
thought Luke would warm up to them, but now, nearly a month since his
rescue, Dariel and Mara were beginning to become downright angry. Wasn't he
gratefull for all they were doing for him?
   "All right Mara, We have to discuss this" Dariel said on the beginning
of the second month of their stay.
   "I know we do, Luke isn't improving here. He doesn't trust us. I was
hoping I wouldn't have to tell you this but now I see it will be necessary
for you to know more about him if you really want to help him. "
    "Yes I do want to help him, why is he like this? When I knew him, he
was much more confident and cheerful. How could he become so moody?"
   "It's not an easy story to tell you, but he's changed a lot since the
last time you saw him." Mara needed to be selective about this. But unlike
Ben Kenobi Or Uncle Owen she would not lie to her. Only tell her what she
needed to know.
    And she did.
   She spilled the story about Luke and Callista's perilous, passionate and
very forbidden romance to her. Told her about Callista's love of power and
abadonment of him and his desperate unsuccefull search for her on Nom
Charios. Dariel listened to the story and she gave a look of sympathy.
   "Poor creature. No wonder he doesn't want anybody close to him." she
stood up and walked to the window thinking. Mara joined her.
   "It's not just Callista he lost .He's been in various other traumatic
situations that he lost too. He lost a former lover of his twice and I
think in more ways than one he feels responsible."
   "Isn't there somebody he can talk to about everything he's been through?"
   "Yes he has a sister." Mara paused a moment but decided not to mention
Leia's name "But she has a family of her own to take care of. Two boys and
a girl."
   "Yeah, and with everything he's been through, I wouldn't want to go to
someone who had everything I wanted in a relationship and failed to get.
Too much pain."
   Mara cocked her head, piqued in the turn of conversation "You've been
married?"
   "Yes. Twice."
   Mara turned back to her, her questions more eager. Dariels staement
intrigued her. Maybe she could help Luke in understanding his grief and
pain in a way Leia couldn't.
    "Who,..who were they?" she kept her tone soft, for she did not wish to
hurt her.
   Dariel smiled and gazed out at the dessert, remebering things from a
long distant time ago.
   "My first husband was a joker, someone who made me laugh all the time.
With an intelligence to match, he was a geologist who loved traveling. Six
months after we were married he was killed when his shuttle was gunned down
by a small band of renegade  Tie-fighter pilots."
   Mara was about to apologize but Dariel waved it off, continuing her
story. " I was angry for what they did to my husband but eventually I knew
he would want me to go on. I moved to this rent out cottage here and even
though it reminded me of home, it held enough interesting differences for
me to heal and move forward. that's how I met my second husband."
   "Where is he?"
   "I don't know. he's been missing for almost a year now. the last time I
saw him he said he was going out on a regular day of work but he never made
it." She had to fight her own battle of personal restarint as the memories
flooded through her. " I waited and waited for him for a week then a month.
Neighbors have gone searching for him but so far nothings come of it."
   "Dariel I-"
   "No Mara, Don't say anything, you wanted to know well, now you do. I
don't want your pity and now that I know where Luke's coming from-" she set
her jaw in a determined expression "-I'm going to see that both of us knock
some sense into that farmboy head of his or die trying!"
**********************************************************************
    Sleeping in his quarters that Dariel assigned to him, Mara  crept up to
Luke's bed and for a long moment, watched him peacefully sleep. Without the
Force she didn't have to worry about him waking up or sensing her.
    Mara watched his peacefull breathing as she stroked his lovely
sandy-blond hair, The Former Jedi stirred but did not waken. She crept to
his room every night for the last week to send him a little bit of healing
power through the Force  as he slept. Luke and Dariel were under orders not
to do anything about his illness and after everything she considered, this
was the first  gift she could give to him. But she had to make sure it
remained secret. She'd talked with the Jedi healer Cighal at the academey
and read the books on healing but had never applied it to anyone before.
Now she had to use it.
    A few moments later, after sending him some warm healing thoughts to
him through the force, Luke's face slowly broke into a sweet smile as if
he were telling her he recieved her dosage of healing power. Then he slowly
rolled onto his back.
    Gazing into the still sleeping Jedi she found her thoughts tenderly
reaching to him "Don't leave me Luke! I've come so far with you! You're the
only real friend I've ever had. I need you."
   Slowly she moved closer to him and  very tenderly brushed his lips to
hers before stealing away into her quarters. The Farmboy turned Jedi slept
on, oblivious to what Mara had done.
***************************************************************************