1.
Among the vast empty plains of the planet Tatooine, the homestead stood alone and dark. From a distance, there were only a few small structures noticeable on the barren, rocky landscape. Most of the rooms and living spaces were built off of a deep, wide pit dug into the desert bedrock. This was the easiest way to protect the habitat from the worst of the elements, and provide a comfortable space in which to live.
A strong gale was blowing down from the Judland wastes, kicking up a haze of dust in the slow brightening of early morning. Soon the wind would grow stronger as was common during the harsh season between harvests. The last of the laborers, a mix of native and off world families that would descend on the region during harvest, had left nearly two weeks ago, and the quiet that remained was becoming difficult for Anakin to bear.
He woke from a dream, common and unsettling. In it, he was being drawn into a black void. Not falling, but slowly being enveloped in it like a blanket with infinite folds. He did not feel suffocated, but he did feel lost. Once inside the void he was unable to find his way out, his way home. Every time that he thought he was on the brink of escaping from the darkness, he would suddenly know that he had somehow circled back to find himself at the center of it again. It was as if the nothingness was alive, playing with him, tricking him.
The recurring vision made him feel weak and uneasy, which was far from the reality of his everyday life. Anakin was a strong young man, able bodied, fast, sure, and intelligent. He was an exceptionally good mechanic as well. All of this made him endlessly useful on the farm, not only with manual labor, but also fixing broken down and outdated equipment. Thanks to Anakin, his parents saved precious time, and credits, that they did not have.
He had been working at a rate to match any of the hired hands for at least six seasons now, even though he was still young. When he was several years younger, they had often mocked him when they first arrived, thinking that the skinny youth would just slow them down, but within a few days they would realize that he was beginning to make them look bad, and then some would stop talking to him altogether. Over the past year, however, Anakin had grown, and had filled out substantially, giving him a new air of maturity. The last set of hired hands that had come and gone had treated him with almost the same respect that they held for his father, realizing that Anakin may be the boss of this farm someday.
Anakin shook his head to clear the memories of his unpleasant dreams. He slid quietly off of his cushioned block, up a long tunnel, through a messy storage room, and then slipped out into the deep red light of a rising sun. Dull shadows began to appear as he pulled his roughly hewn cloak across his face to keep the choking particles out of his nose and mouth. Across the compound he could hear three dewbacks grunting at the irritating dust, as they tried to salvage the small amount of moisture that had collected on their scales overnight with their long, serpentine tongues. He took off towards them, trying to keep his back to the worst of the blowing sands.
"Father should have brought you into the station days ago" he spoke softly to the beasts. "we don't have the proper shelter for you here to keep you safe during the storms."
Normally at this time of year, the wild native dewbacks in the region would gather in herds along the large rocky outcroppings, ridges, and canyons to the north, seeking refuge from the worst of the harsh weather. It rarely rained in this region, or anywhere else on Tatooine for that matter, but if it did, the natural rock formations would collect and hold water much longer than the open plains. This could be an unusual treat for any species hiding among the rocks.
There was water on the planet, but it was mostly trapped in the atmosphere, and was seldom manifested in any form other than vapor. That was where the moisture farms came in. They would use large high efficiency condensers to pull the water out of the air and collect it into large underground cisterns, which would later be pumped and moved to the various population centers in the area. Typically, these large scale extractions would rotate through the farm's sixty-eight collection points three times a year, with the longest break in work occurring during the yearly storms.
Anakin lifted and leaned a large sheet of scrap metal up and against the thick wire fencing which penned the animals in. The wires sagged from the weight, but after checking the supports he nodded to himself, satisfied that they would hold.
"That should keep you a bit more comfortable in the meantime," he continued to inspect the remaining support poles and the heavy gate latch, making sure it was tight. "hopefully the winds won't get much worse today."
A swirling vortex of sand appeared and quickly dissipated while Anakin made his way back to the main habitat entrance. Just as he was approaching the dugout, the second sun broke the horizon. Larger and brighter than the other star of the Tatoo system, this began to make the shadows sharper and the air seem instantly warmer.
"Not surprising that this land is laid waste every day" he thought to himself, watching for a moment as the flying sands continued to brighten and shimmer, reflecting the light in every possible direction. He knew that within moments the air around him would not only be difficult to breath, but also impossibly blinding. He stood for a few more heartbeats and let the light wash over him, drawing him into its center, before he finally ducked through the sunken door and down into the dugout entry chamber.
...
"Anakin? Are you up and about already?" Cliegg Lars was plodding up the ramp from the lower living chambers. He grabbed a crate that was halfway up the tunnel and hauled it into the room. Cliegg was a burly man of medium height; broad in the shoulders and thick in the neck. Anakin was already taller than him, with a leaner, more athletic physique. "I told your brother to finish clearing all of this out days ago! I wish he could be a little more responsible," he glanced around at the precariously stacked boxes and equipment, "and organized."
"Go easy on Owen, dad," Anakin smiled, observing the disarray around him as if just noticing it, "He's still young yet."
Anakin knew that his little brother had been spending most of his days recently in the shop, trying to figure out how to install a new converter unit in a broken down T-6 speeder. Owen wanted so much to be like his big brother, but nothing ever seemed to come easy for him like it did for Anakin.
"Young enough to be lazy, old enough to get into trouble every five seconds," Cliegg frowned and added the crate in his hands to one of the piles. "I don't know what to do with that boy."
"Is it ok if I bring the dewbacks into the station later?" Anakin changed the subject. "I don't think they are enjoying the weather much."
"In this wind?" Cliegg grimaced.
"They'll be fine dad, and so will I." Anakin stood tall to show he wasn't worried.
"You're not indestructible you know…"
"Besides, if we don't take them soon we really will be stuck with them. You don't want to have to pay old Tosche for off season leases, do you? Plus, I would have to keep feeding them." Anakin started towards the ramp back down to the lower living quarters. "And I don't think mom would appreciate the smell if we had to bring them inside."
As usual, Anakin seemed to know exactly what to say to convince Cliegg. "Well, I guess if the storm doesn't get worse you can take them, just leave by midday so that you'll have plenty of time. Tell Merl I'll settle up our account next time I'm in town. And when you see your brother, please tell him to get this mess cleaned up… on top of all his other chores!"
"I will dad. You know, I'm sure I was just like that at his age," Anakin shouted as he headed down the tunnel to find something to eat.
"No," the lines around Cliegg's eyes seemed to deepen as he looked out at the dancing diamonds of light beyond the doorway, "you are nothing like each other."