"Seeds of the Dark Side, planted by your master…Do you feel it?" Ahsoka looked at the Togruta women that stood in front of her. She knew it was a trick. "No, he is like no other Jedi. Passionate, impulsive…But I trust him with my life" said Ahsoka, getting irritated at the phantom that was claiming to be her future potential. Despite her irritation she secretly agreed with this apparition. Anakin did have a hint of the Dark Side that came out occasionally. The ghost that loomed over her continued - "Be warned, you may never see your future if you remain his student, leave this planet!" And with that warning the image disappeared jarring Ahsoka awake.
15 years later, aboard the Ghost
Ahsoka Tano mind raced back to the warnings she received in the cave. "Seeds of the Dark Side, planted by your master…Do you feel it?" burned into her. Could the cryptic dialog from the vision in the cave be true? She had saved herself long ago by leaving the Jedi Order and avoiding the horrors of Order 66 and now another prophecy may have come to pass. In a moment of disbelief and horror Ahsoka connected, through the Force, with what she believed to be her old master, Anakin Skywalker. The anger, the hate, the fear. It surrounded the Sith Lord like a dense fog. He was alive…At least it felt like Anakin. Suddenly a familiar voice invaded her mind and spoke just three words, piercing through her like a Sandcrawer tearing down a mountain.
"The apprentice lives"
This echoed through her mind before the darkness enveloped her. Ahsoka screamed and fainted. It was just too much for her to take in at once. The possibility of not only Anakin surviving Order 66 but also becoming the Sith Lord responsible for the destruction of the Jedi Order shook Ahsoka worse than anything else had in her life. She had believed the reports that he had been killed during Order 66 but now that was in question. She was devastated by the news of Anakin's passing. Believed for so long that her mentor was gone. This Sith Lord flying in front of the Ghost felt like Anakin, but it could also be a Sith trick to deceive her, to push her and Kanan off balance.
Ahsoka woke up on the floor of the Ghost, surrounded by Kanan and Hera. She stood up with the help of her friends and sat back into her chair. "I'm fine" Ahsoka said, "I just got spooked by this Sith Lord" she said to her concerned friends standing over her. Hera fetched a glass of cold water and handed it to Ahsoka. "Just relax, you've had a big shock" said Hera, ever the concerned, caring mother figure of the Ghost crew. Ahsoka smiled, waving off Hera's worried look. "I'm ok but I would like to speak with Ezra" said to Hera. She had to know who this Sith Lord really was.
8 months later
Darth Vader sat in his regeneration pod with his helmet off and thought about his past when he was a Jedi. Three people in particular dominated his thoughts when he would reminisce like this. Obi Wan, his former brother in arms, his former friend, his hated enemy. He was consumed with anger and hatred for his former master and he longed for his revenge on the one that cut him down. The second was the one he loved, Padme. He would never forget her or forgive himself for what he did to her. The last person from his past that stayed with him was the Togruta Padawan Ahsoka Tano that used to train under him. Unbeknown to the Emperor, Vader still held on to Ahsoka's old silka beads that he tried to return to her after she was proved innocent in the bombing of the Jedi Temple. Vader afforded himself this one luxury from his past. It was times such as these that he held the beads in his hand and slowly rolled them through his robotic fingers, thinking of Ahsoka and the adventures they shared. She had left the Jedi order prior to Order 66 so she was spared the horrors of the great purge. After she had walked into the sunset on Coruscant Anakin had never seen or heard from her again. While this caused him great pain it also gave him great pleasure. He had connected with Ahsoka through the Force eight months ago and she would be of use to Vader by leading him to Obi Wan, or she would die by his hand. Ever since that day he had relentlessly pursued the Ghost crew to crush them and confront his old apprentice. The various inquisitors that had been dispatched over the months had proved less than successful against the Ghost crew now that Ahsoka had joined the crew. The force was strong with her and she was highly skilled, perceptive and agile.
An imperial captain walked into Vader's cambers and stood at attention. Vader pushed a button and his helmet and face plate re-attached to the rest of his suit, hiding the mangled face of Anakin Skywalker. "What is it captain?" Vader said to the officer standing in front of him. "My lord we have captured the rebels that escaped from the Lothal system eight months ago" said the officer. Vader was pleased. At last, he would face Ahsoka and give her the choice of turning to the Dark Side. The emperor had commanded him to use Ahsoka to track down lost Jedi, but in true Sith fashion Vader would undermine and, eventually, seek to kill his master and take his place. He hungered to get revenge on Obi Wan but he would do it on his own terms, after he turned Ahsoka to the dark side. If not successful with Ahsoka he would still find Obi Wan on his own, with or without her help. He felt little for Ahsoka, just a cold familiarity with his past and he would use her to find and destroy any Jedi he could, especially "him". He would not hesitate to destroy Ahsoka if she resisted him.
Ahsoka was led into Vader's chambers in force-handcuffs to prevent her from using Jedi mind tricks to escape. The troopers that were escorting Ahsoka handed Vader her two light sabers. "Leave us" said Vader and his subordinates obeyed without question. After they were alone Vader removed Ahsoka's handcuffs with a wave of his gloved hand. The dark lord had played though this scenario in his mind multiple times and, despite Vader and Ahsoka now being enemies, he wanted to relish this moment when she realized, without a shadow of a doubt, that her former master stood in front of her. The Jedi just stood and looked at Vader, a look of sorrow on her face which shifted to anger as the Sith Lord began talking.
"Welcome Ahsoka Tano" said Vader, inspecting her light sabers. She just stood with an angry look on her face in front of the man that had connected with her through the Force months prior. She had felt the presence of her old master, Anakin Skywalker, but she had concluded that was impossible. Her old master had died defending the Jedi temple when Order 66 came, or so she had been told. Ahsoka racked her brain to think of who could have fallen so far and betrayed the Jedi in such a horrifying way. All her old Jedi friends were dead or in hiding. Her thoughts shifted to the Jedi master that she had considered closer than a brother. She felt proud to have served alongside Anakin Skywalker but also enormous guilt for not being by his side in the end to fight the Sith Lord that had decimated the Jedi Order. She once again felt the presence of her old master, it was unmistakable. "No" Ahsoka thought to herself, "this has to be another Sith trick, my master died an honorable death." Still, Ahsoka felt that she knew this Sith lord and wanted to squash any doubts.
It can't be him…impossible
Ahsoka now looked at Vader and frowned. "So we know each other?" she began. Vader was going to break it to her slow, he wanted to watch her slowly break when she came to the realization of who he used to be. "Tell me about your old master" Vader said to Ahsoka. With this question he could feel her anger build and it gave him strength. "She glared at him, the hatred growing in her. "He was a great man, passionate like no other Jedi and I wish I could have been by his side so I could have stopped you." Vader stood indifferent and cold to the horrors he had committed. "Oh snips, always getting ahead of yourself" said Vader in a moment of unchecked discipline. Underneath the icy cold veil that was Darth Vader was a broken shell of a man that was the very personification of hate and anger. Any sense of humor that Anakin Skywalker may have had was almost completely eradicated when he was seduced by the dark side. This small lapse in Vader's character surprised the Sith Lord almost as much as it did Ahsoka. She looked at Vader for a moment in shock and then collected herself. "Nice try, it was common knowledge that my master gave me that nickname". Vader realized that nothing he said to Ahsoka would convince her so he decided to take a more extreme approach. Vader could survive a short while without his mask that assisted his scorched lungs to breathe. Although his breathing would become labored but it would afford him the opportunity to give Ahsoka the proof she sought. Vader reached under his helmet and pressed a switch that unbuckled the top and back portions of his helmet. Ahsoka grimaced at the sight of the pale, scarred flesh that made up the top of Vader's head. The dark lord pushed another hidden switch on his face mask and his face mask unhitched, allowing him to remove it.
Ahsoka screamed in horror when she saw the man behind the mask
It all came crashing down on her now. The pain, the hatred, the guilt of leaving Anakin. There was no doubt anymore, her old master stood in front of her. Tears welled in her eyes and she clenched her jaw, taking in the realization that her former master Anakin Skywalker was behind the destruction of the Jedi, the death of her friends and was part of the driving force behind the Empire and its agenda. "WHY?" she screamed at Vader, tears streaming down her face and hitting the floor. Vader replaced his mask and helmet after a few seconds. "You don't know the power of the dark side Ahsoka, it is my destiny" he replied, indifferent to her suffering. He walked over to Ahsoka, frozen in place with horror and grief. "Join me and together we can destroy the emperor" Vader began, standing in front of the Jedi. "Become my apprentice once again and I will complete your training. Learn to use the dark side of the force". This offer was something Ahsoka was not prepared for. She had never seen herself in this situation, confronted by her old master, asking her to join him again as a Sith. She thought back to her adventures she had with Anakin so long ago; all the fun and laughs they had together, the friendship and the joy they shared while she trained under the "Chosen One."
"No" she said, looking up at Vader. "I'll never turn to the dark side" she replied, trying but failing to regain her composure. Vader just stood in front of her, giving her time to consider her answer. Her refusal was a death sentence and he would take her life without mercy. "If you will not be turned, then you will meet your destiny" said Vader, almost in a whisper. Ahsoka knew what was coming next. She knew one of them was going to die that day. There was no other course of action for her than to lash out at her old master for his betrayal to the Jedi, to his betrayal to her.
In a flash Ahsoka regained her composure and flew into action. She threw out her arms and used the force to retrieve her lightsabers from Vader's hand, something he let her do. The dark lord wanted her to have a fighting chance, however futile. Vader's own lightsaber flew into his hand and engaged. To her credit Ahsoka was highly skilled in light saber combat and may have stood a decent chance if she had mastery of her emotions at that moment. The grief and pain she was experiencing caused her to fight recklessly and was simply no match for the calm, disciplined brute force that was Darth Vader. Even if Ahsoka had been mentally prepared to face Vader, her skills and speed was simply no match for his cold mastery of the dark side.
In the end Ahsoka fell. Despite her agility she was cut down with ease by Vader in a flash of red. She dropped her light sabers and slumped to the ground, holding a large wound in her abdomen. Vader stood over her for a moment before he granted her a swift death. Ahsoka looked up at him and smiled. "I…knew…you…would…defeat…me" she said, her breathing becoming more labored. Vader didn't reply but simply raised his light saber and finished her off like a dying animal. The dark lord stood over the body of Ahsoka Tano and thought back to when she turned her back on him and left the Jedi order. The dark side had snuffed out almost all emotion he may have felt for her now. Almost all…He had slaughtered her like he would have any Jedi. No difference. Apart from his dead wife, the dark lord loathed his past life as a Jedi and everything that went along with it, save one other thing. Vader kneeled down and placed the silka beads he had been carrying for so long into one of Ahsoka's lifeless hands and closed her fingers around the last memento from his past.
The End