momslilassassin | The Embrace, Aing-Tii homeworld [weeks later in GFFA but Friday, Fandom time]

Ben had not been pleased to hear that that place where Aing-Tii artifacts was called the Embrace (a word that was going to be followed by "of Pain", at least for the next little...decade...) and had been even less pleased to learn that Taran'Do's "few kilometer" walk to it was a three day hike up mountains on a planet already too light on oxygen for humans. The rift between Ben and Luke about Ben's flow-walking training had become tense to the point of uncomfortable silence.

Finally they had gotten to the passageway, where their only instructions had been: "Inside, you will find all the artifacts we have painstakingly gathered over many thousands of years. Tread carefully, for this is sacred ground to us. Go to the relics. Be with them. Please...find answers for us that we cannot, so that we might heal this terrible rift that wounds us as a people so deeply."

They had descended into a cavern lit from within by glowing stones in every color along the spectrum and imbued strongly with the Force--not the dark energy Ben had felt on Ziost, but one that refreshed.

...or it had a week ago. Now, as they lifted and stared at relic after relic, no closer to an idea of what they were looking for than when he'd began, Ben wished that the words that reverberated in his head weren't his father commenting that he still had nine years and a few months of his exile to fill.

"They couldn't have narrowed it down to blue things, or something round?" he complained.

Ender	"If they had, they probably wouldn't have needed us," Ender said, shooting him a wry look. "But they could've done with a catalogue."
Ben	"Or even neat rows of stuff," Ben replied, making another face. "I know they can't touch them, but they couldn't they direct someone to build shelves?"
Ender	"I'd say they're afraid to even look on this place, let alone formulate thoughts on the architecture," Ender said, reaching down.
Ben	"This could take forever," Ben said, and not for the first (or tenth) time. "What are even looking for?" "Guidance," Luke said from the other side of the cavern. "A...hit, a bit of insight. You'll know it if it happens." "There are times," Ben said to Ender, "when I empathize with those who express frustration with the vagueness of the Force."
Ender	"Observing this really wouldn't give anyone a more concrete understanding of the Force," Ender agreed, and held up an... egg.
Ben	"Maybe it's definitive proof of which came first?" Ben replied, grinning.
Ender	...feelsstrangeforceimpulsestrangedon'tlikeit... Ender frowned for a second before he managed to smooth over his expression, and put the egg down. "It's comforting to know I'm not the only one who doesn't know what I'm doing for once," he said.
Ben	"If you don't know what we're doing, and we don't know what we're doing, we are in a lot of--" Ben broke off as he saw his father holding a relic and having a very peculiar expression on his face. "This can't be good."
Ender	"Depends," Ender said. "It might be our ticket out of here." He looked towards Luke.
Ben	"Dad?" Ben called, forehead furrowing a bit. "What happened? You all right?"
Luke	Luke shook his head and stared at the item in his hand, then gently placed it back down on the pile. "I--yes, I'm all right." He noticed Ben's worry and added, "It's called the Codex. It enhanced my Force powers, made them much stronger."
Ender	Ender's eyebrows went up briefly. "So I believe we've found something different from the others..."
Ben	Ben nodded, looking curiously at the device. "That's kinda astral. How's it do it?"
Luke	"I haven't the faintest idea," Luke said. "It's old...powerful. While it enhanced my Force abilities, it also--" he groped for words explain. "I felt vulnerable. As if my ability to resist the temptations of the Dark Side was being tested, like there's a price for that kind of power. I sensed a disturbance in the Force." Ben sighed. "That's never a good thing."
Ender	"And yet it sounds so cheerful," Ender said, vaguely. The Hive Queen's rattling around in his brain was becoming lesser, thankfully. "But it's not what the Aing-Tii are looking for, is it?"
Luke	Luke pursed his lips, then shook his head. "Not unless Those Who Dwell Beyond The Veil also dwell in the Maw," he said. "We need to find Taran'Do. Our time here is finished."
Ender	"Ah, Ben," Ender said, and shot the other Jedi a slightly mocking glance as he backed away from the artifacts. "Your suffering is at an end. Field trip's over, etcetera."
Ben	"I'll never be able to look at tongues the same way," Ben said with a grin, heading for the entrance.
Ender	Ender wisely refrained from comment on that, but followed. "What are you planning to present to the Aing-Tii?" he asked of Luke.
Luke	"What I think some of them, at least, have already realized," Luke said quietly. They met up with Tadar'Ro, who set an even more grueling pace back down the mountain when he realized that Luke wasn't going to tell him anything individually--what he had to say was for all of the Aing-Tii together. By the time they reached the Jade Shadow, dozens of Aing-Tii were waiting for them, still as stone. Luke felt almost buffeted by their emotions in the Force: fear, excitement, hope, anger, resentment, gratitude. A rainbow. Luke took a deep breath and spoke. "When we came here, we had many questions about Jacen Solo. Thanks to Tadar'Ro, we have learned more about him. We also learned many things we didn't expect about how the Aing-Tii and how you use the Force. How you regard it. We are richer for that knowledge. "And in return, you asked something of us. Something that no one among you could do--consult the relics and seek guidance from them. We have done so. I give you my solemn word that Ben, Ender and I have handled every single artifact in the Embrace, trying to find the answers you, our hosts, asked of us. And here is what we have learned." Ben shifted uneasily. "While we learned much from the relics, and while we touched the Force through them, it is with deep regret that I must tell you we gleaned no insight from them. No direction, no guidance, nothing that we could bring to you as proof that Those Who Dwell Beyond the Veil had plans for you at this juncture. I am afraid that the Aing-Tii are on their own. You and you alone must decide your destiny. "Whether you continue to believe as you have in the past, that the Force guides everything, or what the Prophet told you--that everything is pre-ordained--you must chart your own path." It was a much different approach than the one he'd used with the Baran Do sages, and while he was hardly seeking Ender's approval on anything, this seemed to be the correct path of non-intervention with these beings.
Ender	It wasn't quite some tactical master stroke to reunite warring factions, but it was one the Aing-Tii could work with-- at least from what Ender had gleaned in his talks. This time, he really was content to stand back and do nothing, though his eyes slid from one Aing-Tii to another, identifying those he knew, by sight or by tale or by chance meeting. It felt important, to make sure that they knew he'd remember. That he did remember. Then another wave of confusion-impatience came over him. He shut his eyes to push it back, though in the flash moment before it he could have sworn one of the rock creatures had reacted somehow. He pinched the bridge of his nose and opened his eyes back up, and forced a smile.
Ben	Ben, standing next to him, was wincing from the power of grief and anger the Aing-Tii were pouring into the Force. His hand was twitching toward the lightsaber, but he didn't touch it. As quickly as the anger and come, it abated, and the Aing-Tii's tongues began flickering wildly in a discussion that was passionate but not angry. He glanced at Tadar'Ro, who provided a translation. "Some of them say this is proof we don't need offworlder aid to decide our own issues. Others say that Those Who Dwell Beyond the Veil have turned against us--while still others say they have enough faith in us to choose what is right. And still others say that if it were not for you three, we would still be hostile to one another." Ben smiled. "I think I can live with that."
Ender	"You'll be host to fierce debate for some time yet," Ender said, refocusing. He must have been mistaken about the Aing-Tii - misinterpreted some of their own rage for recognition of the being that had been plaguing him ever since he set foot here. Hopefully, departure would mean she'd stop-- except that thought made him feel guilty, because she had nothing if not earned her right to inundate him with her frustration. "But I think you'll be all right, as long as you give it time."
Ben	Ben gave Ender a quick, worried look before focusing back on Tadar'Ro. "I agree," he said. "And thank you for all you've taught me. I think we're going now." Tadar'Ro looked momentarily confused. "Aren't you going to flow-walk, Ben Skywalker? We've discussed this." Ben shook his head, glancing at his father. "I think I'm good." Luke pursed his lips and stepped closer to Ben. "I'll be honest. I'd be just as happy if you never learned this skill, never used it, and especially not to see Jacen. But you're giving this up to appease me, not because you don't want to. And just like the Aing-Tii aren't babies who need the watchful eyes of Those Who Dwell Beyond the Veil and can make their own decisions, so can you." Ben looked at him searchingly and Luke nodded. "Go on, if you need to do this."
Ender	Ender didn't have a speech ready, nor did he see the need for it. "Good luck," he said. That was all.
Luke	Ben gave them all a little smile, then started walking back to the rocks where they'd spent so much time learning together. Luke turned to the ship and sat down on the ramp. Tadar'Ro looked surprised. "You're not going with him?" Luke shook his head, then gazed steadily at the other boy still with them. "Ender will."