The Arcadia Chronicles

Arcadia sat on the narrow cot, bored out of her brain. She absolutely hated this feeling of powerlessness that had settled over her. Being locked in this tiny cell was starting to make her go stir crazy. She wasn’t used to the feeling of isolation, she was a social being and needed to be around people. Sure she liked having her private moments where she could reflect and meditate but this wasn’t the same.

An overwhelming feeling of restlessness was creeping up inside her, growing stronger with each passing minute, building to the point where Arcadia couldn’t stand it any longer.

“Argh!”

Bounding off the cot she started to pace the room, three long strides to the door, five long strides to the wall, backwards and forwards like a caged animal. Instead of offering her some release from the excess energy it actually made her feel worse. Throwing her arms up in exasperation she dumped herself back down on the bed.

“If only I had someone to talk to,” she thought

Her eyes widened as a thought occurred to her. “Luke!” If he was right and they did in fact share a connection then maybe she could somehow contact him. A smile touched her lips and her body began to relax now that she had something other than the confines of her cell to focus on. Sitting with her back against the wall she took some deep breaths and closed her eyes. Willing herself to relax, she imagined sending her thoughts across the vast blackness of space and picturing Luke in her mind, she began silently calling his name.

After about a minute she heard a soft scraping sound. Opening an eye she searched the room but saw nothing.

“Hm,” she thought, “as if I really expected it to work.”

Leaning her head back against the wall in disappointment, she heard the scraping sound again, much louder this time.

“What is that?”

She climbed off the cot and began to search the room, cocking her head to the side each time she heard the sound, trying to pinpoint its location. When she was just about to give up in frustration she thought about looking under the low cot. Getting down on her knees and leaning her head on the cold hard floor, she peered into the dimness, straining her eyes to distinguish shapes amongst the shadows.

Suddenly a huge moc bug came scurrying out. She screamed and jumped back in disgust. The bug stopped and seemed to look up at her, insect contemplating human then with a twitch of its hind legs it hurried toward her. Backing up against the wall, Arcadia frantically tried to pull her shoe off as the bug continued its relentless approach. Finally managing to free shoe from foot, she wildly started pounding at it.

The bug stopped its approach after the first strike and looked up at her, its hindquarters flat to the ground, grey ooze splattered behind it. The second and third strikes were accompanied by loud crunching noises as the moc’s shell shattered. The other consecutive blows sending ooze covered limbs flying in all directions.

“I think its dead.”

Looking up wild eyed from her battle with the moc, Arcadia saw a shimmering Luke apparition grinning smugly and reclining against the wall. Returning her attention back to the shattered insect, she smirked.

“You sure?” she asked

“Trust me,” he replied with a smile.

“Well, if you say so,” standing up she returned his smile and leaning against the wall she put her shoe back on, stamping her foot to remove the excess moc entrails.

Luke’s shimmering form moved to stand in front of her and ran the back of his fingers across her badly bruised cheek. Her eyes closed as the tingling danced across her skin. Concern washed over Luke’s face, when he had seen her last, her injuries looked bad, now they appeared much, much worse.

“Does it hurt,” he asked.

She was going to lie and say no but the look in his eyes changed her mind. She averted her gaze and nodded.

The anger rose within Luke, startling him with its intensity. Thoughts of revenge flashed across his mind, making the golden glow surrounding him pulse a deep red. Realising what was happening; Luke tried to distance himself from the anger and was surprised by the considerable effort he had to exert to regain control of his feelings.

“Oh Cadi, I’m so sorry.”

Raising her eyes she studied his face, “It’s not your fault Luke.”

He shook his head then gazed deeply into her eyes, willing her to feel the extent of his emotions for her. “I will never, ever let anyone hurt you again, Cadi. Never.”

The sound of running feet and muffled explosions echoed through the building. Both Arcadia and Luke turned to look at the door in surprise.

“What the Hell is that? Cohen? Talk to me,” the gruff voice demanded outside her cell door.

The sound of another explosion drowned out any reply. Arcadia shot Luke an inquiring look but he was just as much in the dark as she was. Swiftly she moved to the door and placed her ear against it, straining to hear over the echoing explosions.

“Terran? You’re sure?”

“Zac?” the word was barely a whisper. Turning the Princess stared wide-eyed at Luke. “What’s going on?”

“I don’t know. We’re just entering the Corellian atmosphere now. He must’ve gotten here before us.”

A mixture of fear and adrenalin coursed through her. Turning her attention back to the door she listened intently. “Damn it Zac, what are you doing? You’re going to get yourself killed.”

The sound of blaster fire and explosions came to an end and an uneasy silence settled over the building.

“We have him boss.”

“No!” Arcadia held her breath as the information sunk in.

“Alive?”

An eternity seemed to pass as she waited for the answer, her heart pounding frantically in her chest.

“Yeah.”

She exhaled loudly in relief.

“Good. Take him to the warehouse. I’ll be there in a minute.”

Turning she looked at Luke as the cell door hissed open. Grey eyes surveyed the room. He smirked at finding her standing with her back to him, knowing full well that she had overheard the conversation. He chuckled, taking a hideous pleasure in her misery. Grabbing a fistful of her hair, he pulled her head back roughly and dragged her out of the cell.

“Luke,” she whispered. The fear and pleading in her eyes wrenching at Luke’s heart as she disappeared from sight.


Jabbing pain shot through his right shoulder and he stumbled forward, the solidity of the wall breaking his fall. Turning to face his captor, Zac narrowed his eyes and all but growled. If his hands weren’t secured in front of him, he would have pulled the blaster out of his assailant’s grip and smashed it in his face. The hostile glare was enough prompting for the man’s companion to aim his weapon at Zac.

“Move,” he ordered.

Zac flashed him a dirty look and stood his ground. The other man grabbed Zac by the shoulder and forcibly shoved him in the right direction. Zac shrugged the man’s hand off his shoulder and stomped along, acutely aware of the two rifles aimed at his back.

Turning a corner, the narrow corridor he was in disappeared into a large cavernous room. Crates were piled high against the walls, some draped in cargo netting others lying open, their contents strewn around them. The two men marched Zac to the far side of the room where a group of people where congregated. He studied them as he approached. There was a woman, maybe ten years his senior with brown hair and grey eyes, a young girl standing next to her. On her other side was a teenage girl. Zac’s eyes narrowed as he caught a glimpse of green flash at her throat. Standing off to one side of them where two men. One held a rifle in his hands the other had a pistol in his holster.

The group fell silent on seeing Zac, their attention focused completely on him. The two men shoved him towards the group and ordered him to stop several metres from them. He glared at each of them in turn then returned his attention back to the teenage girl, focusing his emerald green eyes on her grey ones. She blushed and looked away from his intense stare then smiling shyly she looked back up at him, her fingers stroking the emerald around her neck. Zac licked his lips and smirked.

“Funny,” he said, cocking his head to the side. “I could’ve sworn I gave that necklace to my fiancée.”

The girl’s eyes widened as Zac’s gaze turned hostile and she took a step back, half hiding behind her aunt.


“Argh! Let go of me you bastard!” Arcadia’s voice echoed around the room.

Turning their attention towards her voice, everyone stared as she was dragged in by the hair, struggling wildly. Out of the corner of his eye, Zac saw a satisfied smile on the teenage girl’s face and his anger began to boil. He was going to turn and glower at her until he caught a glimpse of the prominent bruising marring Arcadia’s face through her dark hair.

“Cadi!” he growled.

She stopped her struggles and focused on him, taking in the gash just above his temple that still dripped blood and the binders securing his hands. His top was torn and he was covered in grime. His muscular arms were host to multiple scratches and grazes. Locking eyes with him, she couldn’t help thinking how damned gorgeous he was with his mussed up hair and blazing emerald eyes, oozing all the power and strength of a wild animal ready to pounce, his pure masculinity speaking to her on a primordial level.

“Zac!”

His eyes softened as they locked with hers, both of them sharing a private moment. Intimacy, trust, love flowed between them with that one look. His eyes roamed over her face taking in the dark bruising on her cheek, her swollen lip, the yellow tinged circle around her eye then moved down over her blood stained clothes. When he looked up again the softness was replaced with fire. His body trembled as it fought to contain the raging torrents of anger that coursed through his veins.

Before him, with his hand gripping Arcadia’s hair was the man responsible for her pain. A pair of cold grey eyes focused on his and mocked him. With a smirk he pulled back hard on Arcadia’s hair making her scream in pain. A blinding fury consumed Zac, leaving no room for rational thought. Before anyone realised what was happening, Zac turned, grabbing one of the men by the shirt, he threw him into his companion, both of them falling to the ground in a heap. In three long strides he covered half the distance between him and the Princess before a searing pain shot through his side. A shocked expression washed over his face as he fell to his knees, his eyes locking with Arcadia’s.

“NO!” The scream echoed through the room, reverberating off the walls, mingling with the still echoing sound of the laser blast. Arcadia writhed in her assailants grasp, flailing around wildly until he let her go.

“Hold your fire,” he ordered.

She covered the distance to Zac’s fallen body quickly and cradled him in her arms. “Zac,” she sobbed brushing the hair off his face. He looked up at her, agony marring his handsome features. Frantically, she pulled his shirt up to get a better look at the extent of his wounds. Shock covered her face and her hand trembled as she bought it up to cover her mouth. Time seemed to stand still as the enormity of the situation struck her. Turbulent emotions crashed within her, pounding in time to the throbbing in her head. Fear gripped her soul as she felt Zac’s life slowly ebbing.

The laser had removed a large chunk of flesh from Zac’s waist. Bones, muscle and internal organs were visible, neatly sliced through. The heat of the laser had cauterised the wound, blackening the flesh as it touched it. Returning her tear streaked focus back to Zac’s eyes; she ran her hand over his cheek then leaned in to kiss him. “Oh baby,” she sobbed unable to hide her fear. Placing her cheek on his she spoke softly in his ear. “I’m going to get you out of here, babe. You’ll be ok.”

Between gurgled moans and gasps, Zac managed to get the word “Knife,” out.

Arcadia pulled back and looked into his eyes. He motioned down with his then looked back at her. With an imperceptible nod, she indicated that she understood, just as Zac’s eyelids fluttered closed and he slipped into unconsciousness. Feeling for his pulse, Arcadia was relieved to find that his heart was still beating and although shallow, his breaths were regular.

“I love you,” she whispered sitting back on her haunches.

“Get up!”

Wiping the tears from her eyes, she noticed the man standing beside her. The adrenalin coursed through her veins, mixed with blinding anger and reckless determination. Nothing was going to stand in her way. Zac needed medical attention now or he would die. Placing her body between his line of vision and Zac, she ran her hand down his leg and felt the handle of the long bladed knife that Zac kept hidden in his boot. Gripping it firmly she pulled it out and in one swift motion, buried it in the man’s stomach. Before he had a chance to gasp, the Princess had pulled his weapon out from his holster and had fired off shots at the remaining thugs, sending them sprawling to the ground.

Rolling across the floor she sprang up behind the youngest girl and grabbed her, lifting her off the ground and pointing the pistol at her head. The smell of ozone hung heavily in the air, mingled with scorched flesh and blood. Screams of “No!” and “let her go!” assailed her senses. Breathing heavily she whispered in the young girls ear. “Sh, stop struggling. I don’t want to have to kill you.”

The girl’s struggles ceased immediately.

“I know you’re not going to shoot her so you may as well put her down.”

She contemplated him for a moment, this man with the grey eyes that had caused her such anguish, thought about what he said then realised that it wasn’t true. Shaking her head she growled at him. “That may have been true five minutes ago but not now.” She pressed the gun hard against the girl’s temple making her scream.

“If Zac dies, I will personally hunt down every single member of your family and kill them. Slow, horrible deaths and when I’ve finished with your family I will hunt your friends. Your every waking hour will be filled with pain and misery. I’ll make you wish you were never born.”

They glared at each other through narrowed eyes as he considered her statement.

“Drop it,” she ordered. When he failed to comply quickly enough she took aim at one of the thugs on the ground that was stirring and splattered his brains all over the wall. Raising an eyebrow, she pressed the gun against the girl’s temple.

“Daddy,” she sobbed.

“Alright, alright,” he said and placed his weapon down, kicking it across the floor out of reach.

Turning to the teenage girl, Arcadia glowered at her. “My necklace,” she said. When the girl hesitated she pointed the gun at her head and bellowed “NOW SYMONE!” The girl jumped and quickly unclasped the chain from around her neck and offered it to the Princess. “In my pocket,” she ordered. The girl quickly complied.

Seeing her back turned the man reached slowly behind him and pulled out a concealed weapon. Just as he was taking aim, he flew through the air and slammed with a sickening crunch against a wall, leaving a long streak of blood as he slid down to crumple in a heap on the floor.

“Cadi!”

Turning, Arcadia saw Leia, Han and Chewbacca running in with weapons drawn. Luke was already in the room. He lowered his outstretched arm and came jogging over to the Princess.

“Are you okay?” he asked searching her eyes, there was a wild glint to them that sent a shiver up his spine.

“Yes,” she nodded vaguely.

Placing his hand on her weapon he lowered it. Taking the girl from her arms he gave her back to her aunt, then swept his hand over them. “Sleep,” he ordered and they all crumpled to the ground. Pulling Arcadia into his embrace he held her tightly, relieved that she was alive. After a moment, the Princess pulled back sharply.

“Zac!”

Arcadia sat beside the bacta tank watching the screens that monitored Zac’s progress. His heartbeat was very weak, his breathing laboured. It seemed that his life was slowly draining out of the large gaping wound on his side. Tears streamed down her cheeks in an endless flow, the tight knot in her chest constricting her breathing.

“How’s he doing?” Luke’s voice was low.

Leia shook her head, “I don’t think he’ll make it. His injuries are too severe. The medi-droid doesn’t think he’ll survive the night.”

Arcadia looked up at them through bloodshot eyes. “No!” she stated. “He is not going to die.” Turning to Zac’s unconscious body, she placed her forehead on the bacta tank and whispered, “Hang in there, baby. I love you.”
Flashing them a determined look, she stormed out of the medlab and into the cockpit.

Sitting down in the pilot’s seat she ran her hands over the communicator and after a moment of static the screen came to life. A woman in flowing robes smiled and bowed her head slightly, her deep blue skin covered in small intricate patterns. A profound sense of serenity flowed from her touching all in her presence.

“Arcadia of Alderaan,” her melodious voice was soothing, “We await your arrival.”

“Nadine of Tor’quae,” she replied, pressing her palms together in front of her and touching her index fingers to her forehead, “I thank you.”

The woman bowed her head slightly again in acknowledgement and then vanished just as Luke and Leia entered the room.

“You’d better take a seat,” she told them.

Luke and Leia exchanged a glance then quickly sat down as the control panel lit up brightly. The ship shuddered for a moment then was consumed in an explosive, blinding, white light. They instinctively covered their eyes but as quickly as it had appeared, it disappeared, only to be replaced with a large blue/green planet that filled their vision.

“What just happened?” Leia asked nobody in particular.

“What the Hell was that? Where are we?” Han’s bewildered voice emanated through the communicator.

Pressing the switch, Arcadia addressed them all. “This is Tor’quae, home planet of the Enlightened.”

“Tor’quae,” Luke’s voice sounded reverent. “I thought the Enlightened were a myth.”

“Sorry to disappoint you honey, but they are definitely real.”