Disclaimer: See Summary.
A/N: So, this is based on a dream I had a few nights ago. I only remember vague details, but I know that at some point, it involved Barriss, Ahsoka, and a Symbiote. The idea's been swarming around in my head since, so I figured I'd put it down in writing. I don't know which category to put this under in the crossover section with Star Wars: The Clone Wars. I can't decide between Spider-Man or Venom. I'm leaning more towards Venom, even though the OC Symbiote is going to be the only one that will be featured prominently. Please leave a review with your suggestions and I'll recategorize it accordingly. Also, if anyone has any suggestions for a name for the Symbiote, feel free to let me know. (Names I can't use for obvious reasons: Venom, Carnage, Anti-Venom, Toxin, Riot, Scream, Sleeper, Mania, Scorn, Knull.)
As a note, this will take place in an alternate version of my ADU storyverse, so Kaori and Nazo (Pre-Stalker era) will be featured.
Also, there will eventually be Barrissoka, so you have been warned.
"Search everywhere, men." Kaori's voice barked. "Barriss has to be here somewhere."
"Sir yes sir!" The Clones said in unison, as they set off to find the missing Jedi.
Kaori slumped against the wall. "Oh, bugger it all." She grumbled. "Who could've done this? An' to my own sister, too. Why?"
She slid down the wall, burying her face in her hands. She knew that showing this level of emotion was frowned upon because of the Jedi Code, but damn the consequences. She was a living being with the capacity for emotion, so she was going to grieve.
"Something bothering you, Kaori?"
The Correllian Jedi looked up to see her two brothers-in-arms standing over her. Anakin Skywalker bent down and offered her a hand up. She accepted the offer, and surprised him with a tight hug.
"Hey, it's okay." He said, hoping he could soothe her. "We'll find her."
They pulled apart, and she looked between the two of them.
"I hope so," Kaori said. Then she slumped against the wall again, slamming her fist into the wall next to her. Nazo raised an eyebrow at the sound.
"Damn it all." Kaori spat. "How'd life get so buggered up?"
"Because most everyone decided to throw common sense out the window." Anakin said bluntly. "Honestly, I can say with certainty that there'd be far less conflict if people just took the time to think things through."
"There's more to it than that, and you both know it." Nazo added. "I've studied the entirety of the Archives, and I can attest that the Jedi of old would be disgusted with the way things have become." At the looks they gave him, he sighed. "I mean that the Jedi of the past believed that we as Jedi are meant to channel our emotions in a safe manner, not deny them completely. How it changed so drastically, and when, I can't say for sure." He scoffed. "But I'll be damned if I don't do something to fix that."
Then, he walked up to the wall where Kaori was sitting down. "If only the brilliant Jedi Council wasn't blinded by their misguided ways." He grunted.
"Not every Jedi in the Order has a stick up their ass," Kaori grumbled as she started counting Jedi who didn't "Fit the Mold" off her fingers. "There's the four of us, then Master Vos, Obi-Wan, my m...Master, Shaak Ti, Master Oros, Master Fisto, Aayla Secura..."
"Shh." Nazo interrupted, an ear pressed to the wall.
"Did you just shush me, mate?" Kaori asked, shocked. "I'm tryin'a argue about how not every Jedi has that backwards way of thinkin'. The bloody nerve o' ya to..."
"I said, quiet!" Nazo snapped, as he knocked on the wall.
"What are you doing, Nazo?" Anakin asked. He received no answer, as Nazo continued knocking on different sections of the wall.
"It's hollow," Nazo said after a moment, his brows furrowing in thought. After hitting a specific spot, he held up a finger, and stepped away from the wall. Then, he wound up and smashed his fist against the wall. The other two Jedi winced, but Nazo didn't even flinch as he punched into the wall again. Then, on the third punch, the wall completely collapsed.
"The hell?" Kaori exclaimed, even as Nazo stepped back. Then, the three of them saw who was inside. "Oh my gods, Barriss!" Kaori shouted as she rushed to her sister-in-arms.
The Mirialan Jedi stirred slowly, even as her friends helped pull her out of the small hole. "Ugghh..." She groaned as she blinked her eyes open. "What...what happened?"
"Barriss," Nazo began. "What's the last thing you remember?"
"The last thing I remember?" Barriss repeated, as she slowly regained her bearings. "I think...I think it was talking to Ahsoka after the funeral. Speaking of which, where is she? Is she okay?"
Anakin's face fell. "She's gone." At the shocked look on Barriss' face, he clarified. "She's left the Order." Barriss' eyes remained wide.
"How long was I gone?" She gaped.
"Quite a while, sis." Kaori said. "We'll 'ave to fill ya in on what's been happening."
"So, let me just make sure I've heard you right," Barriss said, having heard their collective story of the past few days. "Someone invaded the temple, reprogramed one of those training droids to disguise itself as me, and framed me as the culprit. And then, the fake me framed Ahsoka, and she left the order because she thought I'd betrayed her?"
"Actually," Anakin said solemnly. "Part of it is because of Mace Windu. He had the nerve to brush the whole mess aside as a "Great Trial" or whatever."
Kaori scoffed. "Total bullshit, if you ask me." She said. "Like I said before, that man has a stick up his ass."
Anakin clenched his fist, even as he smirked. "And I have half a mind to kick him in the ass for saying that to her face. Screw the consequences."
"Honestly, I'm glad we have a backup plan in case things fall through." Nazo said. Anakin raised an eyebrow.
"We had a contingency plan in case you got th' boot from the Order." Kaori explained. "Barriss, Nazo, and I agreed that 'appened, we'd leave with you and start our own order somewhere. An' we'd find Ahsoka too. I'm sure she'd be on board."
"Thanks, guys." Anakin said with a small grin.
Barriss sighed. "If you'll excuse me." She stood up and started walking away.
"Where ya goin'?" Kaori asked.
"I..." Barriss sighed. "I just need clear my head. I'm going to go meditate. I'll...see you guys later."
"Okay, sis." Kaori said. "We'll see ya at dinner."
The Room of A Thousand Fountains was the ideal place to meditate. It provided the closest thing to nature available in this part of the planet, aside from the zoos. It was here that Barriss hoped to find her center. A lot was on her mind, and she couldn't help but feel afraid. It felt like nowhere was safe from corruption.
Not to mention, her best friend was gone, having thought she had been betrayed by those she cared about. Maybe she'd convince her Master to let her try to find Ahsoka and patch things up with her. Even if their friendship dissolved after all this, Barriss would make sure it ended on a high note.
"Something troubling you, is there, Padawan Offee?" croaked a familiar voice.
Barriss was jolted from her thoughts, and she spun around to see the diminutive Master Yoda approaching her. He looked up at her with his typical, wizened look. "Oh, I'm sorry, Master Yoda." She said. "I didn't expect to see you here."
"Mmm. Visit here frequently, I do." Yoda replied. "Looking for you, I was."
"Looking for me?" Barriss repeated. "Why?"
"Clear your name, the Jedi will." Yoda explained. "Speak before the Senate, you must, and explain what has happened."
Barriss sighed. "But what about the true culprit?" She asked. "Whoever planted that droid is still out there. We need to find out who's behind the attack and stop them."
The old Jedi Grandmaster nodded solemnly. "Agree, I do, that find the true culprit, we must. But first, assure the Senate, we must, that a threat, you are not."
"I...I understand, Master Yoda." Barriss replied. Then, something crossed her mind. "The others told me about what happened with Ahsoka. Do you truly believe what Master Windu said about the situation being her "Great Trial"?"
"Hmph," Yoda scoffed. "Speak for all Jedi, Master Windu does not. Agree, I do not, with his reasoning. However, a test for us all, it was. And failed, we did."
Barriss hugged her arms, as she formulated her words. "Do you think I should be worried about Ahsoka?"
"Somewhat," Yoda replied. "Concern for her, natural, it is. But strong, she is. Take care of herself, she can. Her choice, it was, to leave the Order."
The Mirialan Jedi nodded. "I understand," She said. "When is the hearing?"
"Three days from now." Yoda answered. "Time enough, to rest and recover, I think."
"That works." Barriss said.
The diminutive Jedi tapped his cane against the floor. "Remember, Padawan," He said. "That friends, you have in the Order. Be afraid, you need not, to ask them for help."
"Thank you, Master Yoda." Barriss smiled softly.
Yoda smiled back, and turned to leave. Barriss returned to her thoughts, knowing that she could always rely on Anakin, Nazo, and Kaori if she ever needed help.
She was left alone with her thoughts for about ten minutes before something caught her attention. "Is someone there?" She asked, opening an eye. She got to her feet, and tried to locate the source of the sound. According to her senses, no one else was in the room. Then where was that noise coming from?
"Anakin?" She asked. "Kaori? Nazo? Is that one of you guys? Hello?" Maybe it was one of the younglings trying to spy on her. "It's alright, little one." She said, in a gentle voice. "I won't be upset. You can come out of hiding now."
She turned a corner around one of the small patches of flowers and raised an eyebrow at the sight before her. A small mass of dark green slime lay in front of her. She looked around, but no one else was there.
"Excuse me, uhhh..." She called out, wondering if anyone else knew of this. "There's something messy here, and I'm not sure where it came from." Then, she looked back down at the strange blob. She knew that she shouldn't, but she had the strong desire to touch it. "It looks solid enough," She mused. "Maybe I could bring it to Nazo. That bookworm would certainly know what to do with this thing. A lot more than I do, that's for sure. I guess it wouldn't hurt."
She lowered her hand to touch it, just to make sure it would fit in her arms, and then it moved. She pulled her hand back for a moment, caught off guard. Okay, so this was some sort of life form. No big deal, random animals would find their way into the temple every now and then. Now she knew she had to bring this to Nazo.
As she reached down to pick it up, the weird blob did something unexpected. It reached out and latched onto her arm. Her eyes widened at the chilling sensation, and the last thing she saw was the blob crawling up her arm. She could feel it absorbing into her skin as she blacked out from shock.
A/N: Yeah, you probably shouldn't have done that, Barriss. But don't worry, it's not like anything bad could come from that, right? Mwahahaha...
Anyway, yeah. This takes place in an alternate version of my Altered Destinies Storyverse, and the idea of the four friends ditching the Jedi Order if Anakin were to get kicked out is something I have in mind for "What We Could Have Been."
Again, any name suggestions will be taken into consideration (except for the ones I mentioned in the beginning A/N). Next chapter, we get more fluff among the friends, and the first few consequences of Barriss' curiosity start to show.
Until then, please Read, Review, Favorite, and Follow, and I'll see you all next time. Peace out, and may the Force be with you. Always.