Chapter One – Vision Overload
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The first thing she could smell was the stench of oil. Gas and oil pooled together in some putrid, unique combination that made her lightheaded and yet struck an unusual flash of fear through her abdomen, the likes of which she hadn't felt in years – not since the lab. Coughing, she turned her head side to side, trying to locate the rest of her hunting party. Nervousness pooled in her when the only thing she saw was dark red. The uneasiness turned to dread when she realized she had sight in only one eye. However, she didn't panic; some unnatural force was assuring her, its comforting presence enough to only remind her that this was normal. Her eye, at least. Her patrol was still nowhere to be seen.
She took in a deep breath to yell for them when the scent of the gas and oil returned, stronger than ever. Gagging and choking, she quickly doubled over and dry heaved, her scarred body quivering. Her sharp hearing picked up unusual noises and her ear twitched, turning toward the sound while she leapt up the closest tree, bounding from one thick, green vine to the next. She strained to comprehend the strange thuds; it almost sounded like their own machines but much louder and . . . synchronized. Her eye narrowed suspiciously. It seemed like they had come. She had hoped that, due to their far away and 'haunted' position, her people would be left alone but it seems as if she was wrong. Instead of running toward the village like she should have, she hid behind a large cluster of leaves and waited. She still clung to the faint, faint hope that the loud, nearly unmistakable noise was something other than them. Her hopes were smothered into a pile of smoldering disappointment when the sources of the noises came into view and her one of her worst fears came into the bright, hot sunlight that just barely made it through the thick canopy.
They were Separatist droids, marching in a perfect formation, blasters at the ready. Her eye narrowed when she saw a couple of scratches on them and blood splattered into their golden parts. Her blood began to boil; Darkus blood had an unmistakable smell and there was too much of it for there to be any survivors, especially when not all of them had shifted yet; she could tell because the scent of the blood wasn't tainted by the smell of fur and the musk of unsheathed claws and gnashing teeth. She bit back her snarl; there was no pride in striking down a couple of civic hunters. Unfortunately, she had to push that thought to the back of her mind when another realization came to mind; if the Separatist droids had already come across them and had seen them shift – at least a few of them shift– then it wouldn't take them long to find the rest of the village. With that thought burning in her mind, the Darkus turned around and began to make her way back toward her village.
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Ahsoka woke up with a startled gasp, jerking upright in her bed with a hand over her heart, feeling it beat wildly through her chest. She couldn't help but frown when she realized what the dream was. But unlike her other visions, she felt like this one was happening at the present, not in the future. However, before she could delve into it, someone began to bang on her door.
"Hey, Snips, get up! We have a mission!" Her master's muffled voice called out, dragging her back to the present.
"Alright, Master, just give me a minute!" She yelled back. She leapt out of bed, grabbing her belt and lightsaber and clipping them both on. With a quick glance in the mirror, she dashed to the door and opened it to reveal her master, Anakin Skywalker, standing with his arms crossed.
"Ahsoka, didn't you hear me calling you through your comm earlier? I was practically yelling for you." His voice sounded annoyed and concerned at the same time.
Ahsoka was surprised. Even for a Togruta teenager, she had impressive hearing; her montrals were slightly bigger than normal. It stunned her that she hadn't woken up from her vision to answer her master's loud voice. She frowned slightly. She hoped her Togrutan senses weren't getting rusty in the time-consuming war. Deciding to talk to Master Shaak Ti about it later, Ahsoka glanced toward her master and shrugged, "I don't know, Master. But I - "
"Alright then, let's go!" Anakin ordered, turning and marching toward the direction of the Jedi Council. Ahsoka, with a glare and a huff, began to follow while pondering her vision. What could it mean? It seemed vaguely familiar, but, hard as she might try, she just couldn't remember who the woman with one eye was. Eventually, master and Padawan arrived at the door to the Jedi Council. They stepped in and bowed to Masters Yoda, Mace Windu, Plo Koon, and Obi-Wan Kenobi. Everyone else was caught up in a battle or too far away for stable contact.
Yoda didn't waste any time in giving them their mission. Rather, missions. "Go, you will, to the Saleucami System, Skywalker, with Kenobi."
Master Windu picked up there, his ever present glare lessening ever so slightly, "There have been rumors that the leader there is tired of the Separatists using him and he getting nothing in return. You and Kenobi will go there and see if they can be talked into joining the Republic. As for you, Padawan Tano," he added, turning slightly to Ahsoka, who was watching with eager excitement. "You will go near Lwhekk, in the Unknown Regions."
Anakin looked as surprised as Ahsoka felt, "Lwhekk? That's Wild Space, there's nothing there but . . . well, nothing."
Windu glared at him before explaining, "We thought so as well, but there is a planet near there with a hospitable climate and plenty to live on, but no natives were ever found."
"Yeah," Ahsoka muttered, struggling to dredge up memories long forgotten, "yeah, if I remember right, it's called, um, Karinartio, right?"
Master Obi-Wan nodded, "Yes, little one, Planet Karinartio was discovered around the time we decided to take a few Academy students – the ones that showed the most promise, that is – and show them what Wild Space looks like. You were one of them, correct, Ahsoka?" At her confirming nod, the Jedi Master continued, "Well, at the time, there was no sign of any civilization except for a burnt down old building. However, it seems now that we might have been wrong, as one of our holo-projectors recorded something . . . interesting." He paused and clicked a remote. A large picture showed up.
Trees with trunks thicker than a human torso were everywhere; the distance between them was an approximate two standard yards apart, with thick vines curling around them like shackles. Beautiful flowers of every design were scattered throughout – on vines and trees alike. The holo-projector seemed to be positioned on a high outpost. It was only when it turned and Ahsoka caught a glimpse of burned stone did she realize that it was on top of the destroyed building. The projector kept turning slowly, carefully recording every beautiful blue detail the landscape had to offer. However, it only managed one rotation before someone – something – cast a shadow over it. The screen flickered out a few seconds later.
Ahsoka was less sure of herself then she was before. Whatever it was, its shadow was huge. As were its claws. And it had a really, really loud roar. And it sounded angry. She glanced at the Jedi Council who looked troubled and asked meekly, "Am I going alone?"
Yoda, to her relief – not that she would tell anyone – shook his green head, answering, "No, Padawan. Accompany you, Master Koon will. Leave tomorrow, you will."
"Wait, wait a minute," Anakin interrupted, waving his hands. "Why am I not going with her? I am her master, after all."
Obi-Wan answered him this time. The Council seemed to have anticipated all his questions and had their answers ready, "Anakin, you need to come with me to the Saleucami System. The people there have heard of you and admire your 'courage' – although I'd sooner call it recklessness – and the leader does as well. You coming along will help tremendously. And the Council has decided it see if Ahsoka preforms as well as she normally does under another master. It will help her to learn to work with others. And I'm sure she will appreciate having to not go along with one of your rash plans." Ahsoka tried and failed to hide her smirk while Obi-Wan didn't even try. Yoda covered a snicker with a cough. Windu didn't even blink. Plo could have been smiling, but it was difficult to tell with his mask.
Master Windu took over, "We need you and Master Plo to investigate. We believe the Separatists aren't aware of this planet and it could be valuable as a place to keep people that are in danger or, in the worst situation, be used as a back-up base."
Master and Padawan alike bowed and left, but after they closed the doors, Ahsoka glanced at him in worry and he did likewise. "You sure about this, Snips? That thing looked kinda mean."
The Togruta snorted, "Kinda? I thought Master Windu looked a little scared." Anakin chuckled slightly at that. "But I'm sure I'll be fine. I got Master Plo looking after me, don't I?
Skywalker nodded but still looked uneasy, "I don't know; I got a bad feeling about this."
Ahsoka smiled at him, brushing her own worries aside, "I'll be fine, Skyguy. I gotta go; I wanna review the tape again, see if there was anything I missed," she explained. He nodded and said his farewells, which she returned before turning toward the wall and sitting down, waiting until the Council to adjourn. While she was meditating, she dosed off, her head slumped forward. However, even in slumber, she was plagued by visions.
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She was running. From what, she didn't know. Sure, her people had a few droids, but nothing like those droids. She had seen them marching in perfect formation, not even an oil spot on their shiny gold armor. Not being the most clever of Darkus (A few thought that she had been a malfunction or early test), she had tried to get a better look at them and ended up tumbling down the tall tree she had been napping in. They all stopped and stared at her; she stared back. Then they seemed to realize something and pointed their blasters at her. Startled, she had turned to see what they were going to shoot at, but when she turned, the shot grazed her ear just as she turned. Surprised at the flash of fire and smell of burning fur, she had wasted no time in leaping into the very tree she had fallen out of. However, not turning toward the creature that they had to have been aiming at, they turned their gold bodies in her direction and continued to shoot their blasts of red bolts. She guessed that they were aiming at something near her and began to run; trying to outmaneuver whatever was chasing her. The streaks of red that were right behind and even beside her told her that whatever was chasing her was close. A blaster shot just barely nicked her tail. Very close.
Just when she was sure that the thing – whatever it was – was further behind, she missed a branch and fell, hitting the ground with a dull thump. Dazed, she turned her head and saw the strange gold droids surrounding her with their weapons pointed at her. Turning her head a full three hundred sixty degrees, she saw nothing. When she realized it was her they were shooting at, she felt confusion. What had she done wrong? That was her last thought before the very faint whirr of the blasters caught her haywire attention for the last time . . .
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"Little 'Soka, wake up!"
The deep, comforting voice of Master Plo shook Ahsoka from her slumber with a gasp. Turning to meet his concerned face, he asked," Little 'Soka, what's wrong?"
Not answering him at once, the Togruta glanced around her, searching for the droids when she realized that she had another vision and her shoulders sagged. How many more visions was she going to have? None of them made any sense at all. Despite the faint flicker of remembrance from her first vision, the second one was completely foreign to her. All she knew was that the second woman – although she seemed more child-like – was dead. There was no other alternative. But when Master Plo shook her again and she felt his concern through the Force, she remembered his question, "Oh, uh, n-nothing, Master Plo." She stammered, shaking her head slightly, smiling up at him. He wasn't buying it, however.
But he decided to ignore it, against his better judgment, "What are you doing out here, 'Soka? Shouldn't you be getting ready for the mission?"
Ahsoka smiled again, standing up and stretching, "Actually, Master, I was going to review the tape again. See if I can see anything that we might have missed before." Plo nodded, saying it was a good idea and he left to gather his troops and ready the ship; Ahsoka made her way to her room with the small memory chip that Master Plo had given her. When she made it to her room, she immediately sat down at her desk and plugged it in. The same, beautiful landscape appeared again, but this time, Ahsoka knew something else was out there and she watched intently for any sign that she might have missed. She saw nothing out of the ordinary before the thing destroyed the holo-recorder. Signing, she checked again and again. It wasn't until several times later that she caught something.
Another shadow in the trees, almost completely blending in, then another and another. With a small gasp of horror, she realized that there were several creatures there and they all knew how to work together and blend in with the foliage. But then another thing caught her attention. She replayed it again to make sure she wasn't hallucinating. No, she was right. They didn't make any sound at all when they approached the recorder. I don't care how good they are, they had to have been on the planet before for a while to do that, Ahsoka thought. Those burned stones were crumbling and a zephyr could have knocked them over. I have to tell Master Plo, the Padawan realized and dashed from her room to find him.
As she was running, she ran into Barriss Offee, a fellow Padawan learner. Groaning, she scowled at whoever she had run into, but then she realized it was her friend. "Oh, hey, Barriss, what's up?"
Barriss glanced at her in worry. Ahsoka had a near frantic look on her face and was itching to get somewhere, if her tapping fingers were of any indication. She shrugged, getting up off the floor while Ahsoka did the same, "Just going to the Jedi Archives. What about you?"
Ahsoka beckoned her to join her while she began to walk fast, "Walk and talk, Barriss. I'm going on a mission with Master Plo to Karinartio. We got some video from a holo-recorder there and it's not too good."
Barriss gasped, "Oh no! Not the Separatists!"
Ahsoka nodded, "Exactly, not the Separatists. It seems like someone or something has returned to Karinartio. The holo-recorder didn't get a good look at it, but it was big and it sounded angry."
The elder Padawan looked thoughtful, "Would you mind if I took a look at it?" Ahsoka replied no and gave Offee her own pocket sized projector, onto which she had downloaded the video. When Barriss played it, she looked quite shocked at the size of the shadow, "Oh my! It must be at least twice a human's height!"
Ahsoka looked grave, "That's not all. When I was reviewing it, I saw some shadows in the trees that looked like that creature's shadow. I'm afraid to say that there are more of them and they are intelligent."
Barriss slowed down when they got closer to the Jedi Archives, which was in the direction of the hangar. "I'm sorry I wasn't much help to you, Ahsoka, but I wish you the best of luck," she called out to her. Ahsoka waved and kept on running, praying that no one would try to talk to her. Fortunately, no one did and she dashed inside the hangar. However, Master Plo was nowhere to be seen.
She grabbed the first clone she saw; that clone just so happened to be Rex. "Rex, have you seen Master Plo?" Ahsoka asked urgently.
The faithful clone shook his head, "No, I haven't. Is something wrong?"
"Yes. No. I don't know," the Togruta shook her head. She wasn't so sure if she should tell Plo anymore. If she did, he might make her stay at the Temple instead of going along and helping him. She glanced at Rex and saw that he had a worried look on his face. After she assured him that she was alright, he left and she continued to search for Master Plo. After a while, she found him prepping his fighter. "Master Plo! Master Plo! I found something!" She shouted from across the hangar. Startled, he sat up abruptly as she dashed over, Force-jumping over clones and machinery alike.
"Little 'Soka, you need to learn to slow down some," he sighed when she reached him.
"Master Plo, you need to see this," she panted, reaching for her holo-projector. When the scene came where the recorder was destroyed, she paused it and pointed, "There! See it!"
He frowned, "'Soka, I don't see it. What am I looking for, exactly?"
She explained, "I was watching it and I saw something in the trees. It looked like more of those creatures." She pointed them out and he seemed to pale slightly, if that was even possible. "That's not all. Notice that there is no sound. At all. They would have to have been there for a while to know the place that well, right?"
"Right," Plo murmured, replaying the tape again as if to see for himself. When he did see it, he sighed and stood up straight, a sign that Ahsoka took that he had made a decision. "Ahsoka, you are not coming along on this mission," he stated firmly.
Although she was expecting something like that and already had a plan in mind, she was still shocked and made it very clear, "What? Y-You can't do that! I was the one who saw them in the first place!"
Master Koon stopped her rant by raising a clawed hand and she fell silent, glaring at the ground, "Little 'Soka, I know that you want to go on this mission, but it's too dangerous. I was unsure before, but this has made up my mind. You will stay here and study further. Perhaps you could find out what those creatures were, to help us?" He suggested not unkindly. With a heavy sigh, Ahsoka nodded glumly; she still wanted to go.
As Plo turned back toward him fighter, Ahsoka felt the urge to tell him about her visions when she realized that telling him that might result in him being even more adamant in her staying at the Temple. Too late, she had already called him. "What is it, Little 'Soka?" He questioned.
She paused then shook her head, "Nothing, Master. It's nothing."
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He couldn't find her. She had always been erratic and unpredictable, but this was unbelievable! A search party had been sent out when Spot didn't return and Lady Petal had been resolute in allowing only the Civics to go. Madam General Dogtooth didn't like it but eventually allowed it to happen. 'I wish there was a war here, just so Madam General Dogtooth would lead,' Stripe thought bitterly. He had always thought that Lady Petal was too soft and kind with her actions, and way too possessive. 'If the Warriors were allowed to come along, then we would find Spot faster!' He growled. The search party, led by Crisscross, had split up to 'cover more ground'. 'Phff, more like get us killed quicker,' He snarled to himself. The Warriors wouldn't do that, they were actually smart. His internal rant was cut off when a peculiar smell hit his sensitive nose, a horrible stench that made his fur curl and his teeth clench.
The smell of burnt flesh and scorched metal.
Abandoning all previous thought, he dashed forward, shoving the exotic bushes and plants out of his way franticly. He was, however, far too late.
Lying on her side in a tiny puddle of blood was Spot. His breath halted before he was at her side in the same moment. "S-Spot? Hey, come on now, Spot. Stop playing games and get up now," Stripe whispered heartbrokenly, desperately trying to find something – anything – about her that would tell him that she wasn't dead. She couldn't be. Just the statement 'Spot is dead' sounded wrong and . . . just wrong. But her once bright eyes were dull and unseeingly staring at him, as if accusing him that he got to be the one that lived. Shakily, he activated the comm on his head, "Stripe here. I f-found her."
"Stripe, it's Crisscross. What's her status?"
"She's . . . here, 'Cross." He couldn't even say she was dead. His mouth just wouldn't form the words.
". . . Right. We're on our way. We're tracking you. Don't move."
Stripe didn't even hear him. Instead he threw his head back and howled in the most painful, bone-deep way, a way that made even the sky cry.
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Ahsoka didn't wake up abruptly this time. When she sat up and felt something on her cheeks, she realized she was crying. 'Ok, that's it. I'm telling Master,' she thought to herself firmly, wiping her face dry.
"Snips? Are you alright?"
Ahsoka's head jerked up to see Anakin standing by her bed, a worried look on his face. She sighed, "Actually, Master, there is something wrong. I've been having visions. In the first one, I think I was in the mind of someone, but I didn't recognize the species. Anyway, this person, she had lost her hunting patrol to the Separatists droids – and they hadn't been there before. She left to tell her village." She decided to leave the part about her having one eye out; it wasn't that relevant. "In the second one, there was another woman, but I think she was a little slow in the head; at least, that's what it seemed like to me. Anyway, when she encountered the droids, she didn't realize that they were trying to kill her, but they did. I found out her name in the third one: Spot and she had a brother named Stripe. He found her dead and he . . . grieved, I guess. Then that's when I woke up."
Her Master looked thoughtful, "When did the visions start?" When she replied that they had started that morning he said simply, "Oh, well, I'm sure that you were nervous about the mission and had a nightmare and these two spiked off from it when you found the extra shadows in the video."
Her eyes widened and she tried to protest, "But-"
"Alright, now Snips, I gotta go see Padm- uh, I mean, Senator Amidala before I leave. See you when I get back!" and he left. Ahsoka could only stare where he had been blankly. Did he really not get that these were visions that she was having? And why in the galaxy did he need to go to the Senator before he left? It didn't make any sense to her, so she tried to fall back asleep. However, the fear of another vision kept her awake. She lay in her bed, thinking about the dreams. Especially the first one. 'What is it about that first vision? Why does it feel like I know her?' Closing her eyes, Ahsoka struggled to dredge up memories of the past. However, in doing so, she found herself in another vision.
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"What the hell, Petal! What the kriff have you done!" A tall, tan woman shouted at an old, wrinkled woman who was glaring at younger one.
"Calm down, Dogtooth! This situation will not be made better by you yelling at me! And I demand that you call me by my proper title!" Petal growled out, obviously struggling to contain her anger.
Dogtooth, however, wasn't trying at all. Her single deep red eye glared at the other woman, "I call you by your title? What the kriff? You won't even call me by my 'proper title'!"
Petal snorted in distain, "Well, it should be obvious. I am the highest power here, Dogtooth. There is no war here." Her tone sounded like she was scolding a youngling.
The anger that Dogtooth held turned to black hate in an instant, "Don't you dare try to dumb me down, you stupid, old prune." While Petal was gapping at Dogtooth, she continued furiously, "I lost my – I'm sorry, your – entire hunting patrol to the Seps and Spot was killed! Stripe is devastated and it's all the Seps fault! How can you say that we aren't in war right now?"
The old woman's dull green eyes narrowed, "First of all, whose fault do you think it was that that patrol was lost? Secondly, Spot was . . . slow. It would have been easy to kill her and Stripe was much too attached to her. Thirdly, there has been no official declaration of war; therefore, every action that concerns the Darkus is under my jurisdiction. If, and only if, our village is attacked, I will gladly hand over control to you."
"By then it will be too late!" Dogtooth shrieked in utter fury, slamming her hand down onto the table. Startled, Petal jumped in her seat, quickly adjusting the thick-rimmed glasses that framed her old eyes. Dogtooth was much too angry to sit; she was standing intimidatingly over the smaller woman. However, Petal was undeterred and made it clear.
"Madam General Dogtooth, while I understand your frustration, I am sorry that I cannot change anything. I have complete faith in the Warriors' ability to protect our only village," Petal tried a different method this time; it was much better to coax a wild animal to calm down with promises of honey rather than threats of pain.
"While I do as well, you won't give a us chance to do what we Warriors were created for!" The black haired female snarled darkly, "And don't try to butter me up. It may have worked for the Civic people, but it won't work on me."
Petal shrugged, "Whatever you wish to believe. You still can't do anything without my permission." With those words, she turned and left the room inside of the thick wall that separated the Civics from the Warriors.
With the glare in the old woman's direction, Dogtooth snarled quietly, "We'll see about that." A bit louder, she said, "Camo, Uflage, Iris. Did you all get that?"
A sarcastic voice echoed slightly, "No, sorry. You'll have to scream our ears off again, Madam General." A short redhead stepped out of the shadows while two brunette twins dropped from the ceiling.
"Wow, I still can't believe they didn't know we were there." Camo muttered rubbing the back of his neck while staring in the direction Petal had walked off in in confusion.
"That's because they're Civics, Camo. Our senses are a lot better than theirs," his twin sister, Uflage, pointed out.
Dogtooth growled, still furious from her argument with Lady Petal, "Iris, I want you to gather the Sky Squadron and have them prepare for a full out scouting mission. I need them to locate the Seps base. This will help us in creating battle plans. Camo, Uflage, I need you two to set some of your traps near the Seps camp. If you are seen, consider your mission failed. "
"Aye, Aye, Madam General!" The three Darkus barked in union before slipping into the shadows silently, like water through fingers.
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So, what do you think? I've been on a Star Wars craze lately. Review, please! Oh and the '()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()' means that it's a vision, just to make it more understandable.
Ja ne,
-Vixen
