Wisdom
How could it have come to this?
The occupants of the Jedi Temple looked on as a spectacle took place in the temples training arena. Jedi crowded in the second level balconies above the chamber with younglings clinging to the rails and padawans shouting out cheers. Knights and masters stood quietly by with a watchful eye over the battle unfolding below.
In the arena, a lightsaber duel played out between two figures, one tall and red, the other short and green. There lightsabers spun, twirled and finally clashed with masterful grace that put all the younger Jedi in a trance of amazement.
The duelists were like blurs with the smooth flow of their lightsabers being the only noise between them. And as the two fought, they had peculiar grins on their faces that spelled out there joy of facing one another.
Every Jedi was excited and intrigued to see their own Grand Master Yoda exchange blows with Adas, the last of the pureblood Sith. That is everyone except Ahsoka Tano who watched the fight from the balconies, her palm burning with anxiety…
Three days earlier…
The stone walls shuddered as another volley of cannon fire impacted the canyon that concealed his home. Adas staggered and put great effort to keep up his hurried pace through the long halls of his hidden fortress. The Republic warships have arrived and were now laying siege to his world, killing all of his people without discrimination. The Sith Empire was doomed.
His home was well hidden inside the canyon and would be hard to hit with cannons from a warship. But even so he wasn't going to take any chances. He went throughout the fortress home and established telepathic links with all parts of it which gave him the ability to trigger traps and change walls with a mere thought. All preparations were made in case Republic soldiers managed to find the entrance.
It made his blood boil to learn that his empire was doomed to destruction. The blame for which can solely go down upon the arrogant Sith Emperor who believed he could conquer the Republic with one massive attack. The Emperor failed, all Sith forces were lost and every Sith world was now defenseless against the Republic's retaliation. The second the Republic began to bombard Korriban Adas knew they weren't here to conquer but rather exterminate and wipe out all trances of the Sith.
His people may be extinguished but he will not die here and neither will she.
Adas finally came into a burial chamber inside the depths of his home. It was meant to be used as his own tomb when he passed away. That day was far off from now and yet she insisted on its preparation.
A woman sat meditatively in front of the open sarcophagus. Her normally white skin was far beyond pale and her brown hair had hints of gray in it with age lines coming across her otherwise smooth face. Her tan eyes were amongst the sharpest of her human features. She was in fact the only human amongst the Sith who was free while any other human, or any other species for that matter, was enslaved. It struck Adas as an odd thing to see her so gloom at a time like this. Her calmness would radiate through the Force in any situation but now… now she was cold and felt wrong to Adas. He couldn't quite pick up on her feelings and thoughts which suggested she was blurring them in order to keep them away from him. Something was amiss.
"Anya, itt az ideje, hogy tavozzon." He said as he approached, urging her it was time to leave.
The woman lowered her head slightly and then rose. She turned and beckoned him to join her next to the sarcophagus.
As he stood next to her he could clearly see the despair churning in her eyes. He had known her for all his life and he had never seen something so foreign as despair within her.
"Mi a baj, anya?" Adas asked her what was wrong.
The woman didn't respond as first and then she slowly leaned forward, wrapping both shaking arms around him in an embrace. Adas returned the embrace and held her there for minutes. He waited for an explanation - or anything - that would tell him why she was like this. Yes, the world she has be forced to call home for the past eighteen years was burning down but that shouldn't have bothered her as much as it did to Adas. She was treated poorly by her master just like Adas and they both clearly disliked and even distrusted most other followers of the Sith way, despite their own Sith training.
"Kerem, munnunk kell." Adas urged again that they must get to the ship immediately. Very soon it will be impossible to leave Korriban without being blasted out of the sky by the Republic armada that hung over the red world like a roof of death.
The woman tightened her embrace around him once more and then let go. Her eyes met his and through the Force, Adas felt a life time of memories with her pass through him in a flash. It felt like a wave of nostalgia had hit him square in the chest, overwhelming him and removing strength and breath from his body.
As Adas struggled to recover from the intentional overwhelming the woman leaned in close again and whispered. "This is not your destiny Adas. The Force has shown me a different path for you." She spoke in Basic, her native tongue and language of the enemy. She only spoke it in the most extreme of circumstances.
Adas stared wide eyed at her as he couldn't move his muscles. His entire body was paralyzed by her mastery of the Force. She spoke again, her words heavier in grief then they ever have been before. "Forgive me my son…"
Adas' body was picked up and pushed gently into the sarcophagus. He didn't understand what was going on but he wasn't going to let it happen. He was going to leave her!
Adas deliberately bit his lower lip and drew blood from it. The pain that spiked through his body was enough for him to overcome his paralysis. But it was too late. The door slid closed and the sight of his mother's tear-stricken face was the last image he saw when the door closed shut and left him in darkness.
A roar came out of him in rage as he smashed his fist on the inside of the sarcophagus. "Anya! Anya! Anya!" He screamed over and over again calling out "mother" in Sith tongue. The door wouldn't budge and Adas resorted to drawing upon the Force for power. The sarcophagus shook furiously as he impacted the door again and again. He would've succeeded in freeing himself if the Force hadn't suddenly drained him. It left him cold and weak as if he was stricken by a plague. His senses dulled and disappeared entirely as he felt his eyes become unusually heavy. He was growing weak and tired and soon he slumped down with only a few words escaping his mouth before falling into coma like state.
"Why… mother… why…"
Adas awoke in his bunk aboard the Ember Shadow with sweat dripping from his forehead and hands balled into fist. It was all a dream… or rather a memory from the not so distant past.
"Adas," A voice called out to him. The young Sith suddenly became aware of the second presence in the room. Ahsoka stood back from the bed out of his arms reach with a concerned look on her face.
Adas looked away. "What is it Ahsoka?" He said, wishing she'd go away. Her mark enabled her to see within him easily which was something he didn't want her to be doing at all right now.
Ahsoka's concerned look turned into a glare. "What is it?" she repeated him. "How about you tell me what is it with you? I clearly heard you screaming through the Force from the other side of the ship. When I tried to wake you, you nearly punched me and ended up putting a dent in the wall." She pointed at a fist shaped dent the wall next to the bunk and she also pointed out his knuckles were bleeding. "I've heard of bad dreams but you were fixing to kill something. I can't have you around if you going to be set off like this."
A long silence ensued with neither of them speaking a word. What Adas experienced was personal and not something Ahsoka needed to know about. "It's nothing you should worry about." He said as calmly as he could. "It won't happen again."
Ahsoka continued to glare at him and then sighed, losing her expression and replacing it with a neutral one. "Please be sure that it doesn't." She wondered if she could use her mark to make him talk but such actions were unfair and led to the darkside. She'd have to find out another way. "We've arrived in Coruscant system. Our destination is just over the horizon."
Adas nodded and they both of them went to the cockpit to take the Ember Shadow in for a landing. The ship entered Coruscant's atmosphere and glided its way down towards the Jedi Temple. The Ember Shadow touched down on one of the rooftop landing pads, its black exterior being a stark contrast with the temples white color.
Ahsoka asked Adas to stay aboard the ship. The Sith agreed acceptingly as he wasn't too fond of other Jedi and he expected them to feel the same about him.
Ahsoka left him and made her way into the Jedi Temple. It has been months since she's seen its gleaming halls and just walking through them again brought back memories.
The first and foremost thing she must do is find her master. Being missing for several days will defiantly cause him to act a little rash. She predicted he'd embrace her and then scold her for the reckless stunt she pulled over Korriban.
The Temple's War Room was the best place to start looking. The room was used as a meeting place for military personal and Jedi who have accepted officer roles in the Grand Army. When she entered, it was particularly bare as only one person was present. That one person happened to be a Jedi Master whom she considered to be the closest thing she had to a father.
"Master Plo," Ahsoka called out and hurried over to give him a quick embrace. The Kel Dor was taken aback by surprise as he returned the hug.
"Ahsoka you're alive and well." He breathed with astonishment. "Many of us believed you have been lost."
The younger Jedi smirked. "It takes more than a couple of droids and a rusty old planet to put me down." She said. "Although I did have some help getting back."
Plo Koon regarded the state of her clothes and noted the darkened patches were blood and grime had been washed out. "Indeed, then I assume Skywalker's mission was successful."
She blinked. "What mission?"
Again Plo Koon was surprised. "Your master took half of a fleets worth of ships to Korriban in order to find you. He requested the ships directly from the Supreme Chancellor who was all too happy to agree. But it sounds as if you've returned on your own accord. Tell me, how did you escape?"
"Well…" She tried to find the right words. "I met someone who had the means of aiding my escape. He and his ship are atop of the Temple right now."
If she could see his eyes, Plo Koon would be giving her an inquisitive look right about now. "Something is on your mind Little Soka. What troubles you?"
"You see, the person who rescued me… is Sith"…
Hours later an emergency Jedi council meeting was held. Plo Koon was cautious about the news Ahsoka had given him and he passed it on to the half dozen Jedi Council members who were able to be present. Grand Master Yoda and Master Shaak Ti along with Master Plo Koon were the only masters present in person with the rest of the six broadcasting in via hologram. Anakin Skywalker though was too far out of range for a signal to reach him and due to the war the rest of the council was also out of reach.
Shaak Ti was the first to speak up after Ahsoka gave a brief report of the events that took place over the past few days. "How interesting, an actual Sith from ancient times." She said deep in thought. "And by releasing him you received a mark upon your hand?"
Ahsoka nodded with a hint of uneasiness as she showed the masters the mark on her right palm. Many of them had curious expressions but Plo Koon had no expression due to his breathing mask and Yoda's face was a solid as duracrete.
"Does anyone here believe he is telling the truth?" Obi-wan Kenobi's hologram spoke up. "He claims to not follow the Sith ways and yet he used emotion to combat battle droids. I find that contradicting." He has fought too many Sith Lords in his time for him to openly embrace the idea that a Sith wasn't inherently evil. After all, his old master was killed right in front of him by Darth Maul and his former padawan lost an arm to Count Dooku.
"Whatever his beliefs are it does not matter. We must be taken into custody." Ki-Adi-Mundi said. "We know two Sith Lords roam the galaxy, a third one will spill untold disaster."
Several of the masters nodded in agreement. Ahsoka grimaced as she knew Adas wouldn't accept such a treatment. He'd go down fighting.
"Quick to judge, we must not be." The eldest and wisest of the master spoke. "Doubt and suspicion, lead to the darkside they do." Master Yoda said.
Mace Windu's hologram blinked once and regarded the master. "With all due respect Master Yoda, Master Mundi has a valid point. The Sith is dangerous no matter what belief he holds. The risk of letting him walk freely is far too great."
"That decision, not ours to make, it is." Yoda shook his head in disagreement. "Help him adjust to the galaxy, we can. In doing so, bring balance to him it will as well as peace."
"Now is not the time for philosophy Master Yoda." Mundi said. "This is a Sith we're dealing with."
"Nonsense!" Yoda's voice broke the calm atmosphere. "To think we can hold an innocent against his will, arrogant it is. Being about more hate it will. An enemy he does not have to be."
Mundi opened his mouth to speak but Yoda raised a hand to silence him. He gathered up his cane beneath him and walked towards the exit.
"Where are you going Master Yoda?" Shaak Ti asked.
The old Jedi flashed her a grin. "Fallen asleep my legs have. Going for a walk I am." The door to the Council Chamber slid open. "Continue on without me." He waved a hand behind him and the doors slid shut.
Obi-wan was the first to break the awkward silence. "I guess Master Yoda has come to a decision."…
The last grey scorch mark was finally buffed out of the Ember Shadow's hull and Adas let out an accomplishing breath as he sat on top of his ship. The black hull was now glistering in the sunset and was in a better state then it was after the skirmish over his home planet. The Ember Shadow was the last piece of home he had left aside from the holo of his mother. It has served him well over the years he's had it.
Adas tilted his head back as memories of the time when he built it dripped into the back of his mind. He remembered the pains he went through to get every piece right and double and triple check his work. It took many days but when it was finished it was one of the fondest moments of his rather bleak life.
The sound of wood against metal ranged from behind and Adas spun up and found a little green alien tapping a cane against the ship's hull.
Adas had his fist half raised and halfcocked as he wondered if the little thing was a threat or not. He also wondered when and how he got on top of his ship without him so much as hearing him. There was something about the ancient looking alien's humble stature that was disarming. The robes he wore suggested he was a Jedi and his age most likely meant he was an experienced one.
The alien ran a three fingered hand over the smooth black hull and smiled. "Much attention you give to it. A sign of great resolve this is."
Adas dropped his arms into a fold. "Who are you? What do you want?" His tone was fare from polite.
"Yoda, I am. Teacher of many and mentor of most." The alien was of considerable strength in the Force, Adas could clearly sense it without having to try.
"That answers my first question." Adas growled.
Yoda tilted his head and one of his long ear twitched. "Hear your distrust I do. Jedi are not your friends, hmm?"
"No, they're not." He retorted as Yoda kept deflecting his question.
The Jedi flashed a prying look at the young Sith. "If Jedi are not you friends, then what does that make young Ahsoka?"
Adas opened his mouth for a rejoinder but then closed it. What did that make Ahsoka? She saved him and for that he was grateful but that was because she wanted to escape. If she could have escaped without releasing him she would've left him there. Or would she? He remembered the warm smile she gave him as they escaped from Korriban. It was genuine, tangible and real. Few things from back then were like that. Perhaps they were friends but that wasn't important to him, only his duty.
"She's… an ally." Adas finally said.
Yoda chuckled hysterically. "The same they are! Allies are friends, friends are allies. Trust Ahsoka you do, yes?"
"With my life," Adas meant that in a literal sense. He will gladly throw his life away if it meant saving Ahsoka's. "You think just because I trust Ahsoka it means I'll trust the rest of the Jedi? Don't you know what I am?"
Old and wise Yoda folded two hands over the handle of his cane, his expression palpable. "That depends, what do you think you are? No one can know, except for you. You think and you listen to your feelings. Tell you the truth they will."
What truth was there to have? He was Sith, period. He felt no shame in being a member of the crimson skinned race that followed the ways of the darkside. He did wish that ever being in the galaxy would not assume he is malevolent in any way. If doing what needs to be done to to protect and survive is evil then he is the scourge of the universe and deserves punishment along with every other living being that cares for their lives.
"I am Sith. There is nothing more." Adas said in all seriousness.
"Nothing more for now, that is." Yoda said. "Come now, show you something I must."
Adas hesitantly nodded and walked over to the edge of the ship. He was about to jump down when the little green alien tugged at the end of the sash around his waist.
"Help an old man down will you?" Yoda asked childishly.
If he needed help down then how did he even get up here? Was he just toying with him or testing him?
Whatever the case, Adas didn't want to think about it. He let the old Jedi hang on to his shoulders as he jumped down from the top of the Ember Shadow in one smooth jump. He they hit the rooftop of the Jedi Temple, Adas felt soreness in his feet that reminded him of the fall he took to escape his tomb with an injured Ahsoka. It certainly did hurt.
Yoda led the way into the Jedi Temple at a slow pace. Adas didn't mind taking slow strides as he studied the interior closely. He wanted to remember the exact route back to the roof incase the Jedi turn hostile on him. But also he couldn't help but gaze at the remarkable architecture. Everything Sith built was all stone and eerie which was quite a distance from the glided halls and polished floors of the Temple.
A few Jedi passed by them and they all took the time to glance and or glare at Adas before moving on in a quickened pace. Adas ignored the prejudice looks. Let them think he was bad or something, it meant he wouldn't have to bother with any further ridiculous questions…
They were no longer in the main ziggurat but rather underneath it inside one of the Temple's seemingly endless sublevels. There were no Jedi or staff or droids to see as the halls were eerily quiet. If they were going to ambush him, this would be the place to do it. Adas kept his guard up and senses sharp.
Finally Yoda stopped walking and faced a thick wall that had no significance to it what so ever.
Adas flashed a questioned and Yoda answered by waving a hand at the wall. It separated in two and opened up another passage way. Apparently the Sith weren't the only ones who favor false walls.
The secrets passage was lit by dim blue floor lights which cast shadows on everything. At the end of the passage was a cylindrical door that Adas could guess to be several feet thick and made of a highly resilient material. It opened at Yoda's command and he entered, gesturing Adas forward into the room.
Adas kept trying to sense if it was a trap but nothing he received in the Force told him so. He entered what appeared to be a vault room with Yoda right behind him. The things inside made his jaw drop.
"What is this place?" Adas gawked at the many items encased in glass boxes that dotted the room like a museum. The objects were not of Jedi creation but of Sith. The vault was filled with ancient artifacts from his time and from other points in history he did not know off.
"Secured away from the galaxy these items were, in an attempt to prevent the Sith teachings from ever being learned." Yoda said and Adas immediately spun on his heels to face him.
"And I am to join this vault aren't I?" Adas growled and dropped into a fighting stance. Yoda merely shook his head.
"Know the Sith ways you do but follow them you do not. A strong choice this is, to reject the means for greater power is something many are incapable of." A grin played across his face. "A Jedi quality this is."
Adas dropped his stance and glared at Yoda before turning to the rest of the vault. He walked amongst the object on display and studied them as Yoda patiently followed. "Is this all you wanted to show me, or is there more?" He asked, deflecting away Yoda's observation.
Yoda turned his gaze over to a specific glass case near the center of the vault. "Dangerous these artifacts are. Here in the Black Vault they stay and remain." He gestured Adas forward to the case Yoda was looking at. "But when used by the proper hands, they can become mighty tools for bettering the galaxy."
Yoda activated the lock release on the case and the contents floated from the pedestal it sat on and landed firmly in Adas' hands. It was a lightsaber and a magnificent one at that. Adas gazed at it in all its beauty.
"Impressive," He commented. "This weapon carries many Sith designs in it." The lightsaber had a blade emitter on each end making it possible to have two blades at the same time. The hilt was short for a double-bladed lightsaber but that gave it more maneuverability at the sacrifice of flexibility. A ring around the top of the hilt acted as a blade length adjuster which could extend the blade from a mere half meter to triple the length. As well as length, the blade intensity could also be adjusted. All of these characteristics of the lightsaber screamed Sith along with the negative energies that surrounded it.
"Belonged to a Jedi turned Sith it has." Yoda said. "Many generations ago, the Jedi fell to the darkside and embraced the Sith teachings. His lust led to his fall, along with the death of many innocents."
Adas felt the grip and touched the dark energies surrounding it. They were minute and nothing compared to what was on Korriban. The fallen Jedi must not have been a very good Sith. "By showing me this are you trying to emphasize the irony of me rejecting the Sith ways?" He sighed and flipped the blade in his hand and caught it with the other. "I don't care much for power. I've learned that long ago from a wise woman who taught me the consequences of having a lust for power."
"Hmm," Yoda began. "Know you do indeed. A wise person she must've been to teach such an important lesson. A Jedi lesson this is, taught to everyone and stressed greatly."
"An important lesson it was." Adas said under his breath and continues to study the lightsaber.
Yoda's ears perked up as if straining to hear that last part. "Know much about the Force you do. Hesitant to use power unless threatened or others are threatened. Strike when attacked. Kill when necessary."
"They are merely instincts. Anyone will kill when threatened or if anyone or thing of their care is at dire risk. It's a law of nature. No Force included." Adas said.
"The will of the Force guides all. Nature is the Force." Yoda said.
Their eyes locked onto each other's. "If that is so then was it the will of the Forces to exterminate my people and eradicate my civilization? Was it also the will of the Force to start the war that currently plagues this galaxy?" Adas challenged.
"Yes! All is guided by the Force. It is not good nor is it evil. Balance must exist in order to prevent disasters. When balance goes, so does peace in the galaxy. Wars such as this begin and end with disturbances in the Force." Yoda said.
"How can you be so sure? Has the Force been acting so disturbed lately that a galaxy-wide war just suddenly appeared out of nowhere?" He rolled his eyes. "From what I've seen only the greedy bureaucrats can be blamed."
"Blame not important, stopping the war is." Yoda said back. "The Force influences all things."
"If you insist," A sharp glare came across his face while a sharp grin came across Yoda's.
"Take this conversation elsewhere, we shall. Not enough room here, there is not." Yoda said and began his slow walk towards the exit. "Bring the lightsaber. We shall share our views in an orderly way." He smiled and continued onward.
If Adas didn't know any better, he was certain he was just challenged. He didn't care if Yoda believed in what he did, it wasn't his problem. But then again, he never has refused a challenge before…
As Ahsoka walked from the Council chamber to Adas' ship, she found many padawans rushing in the opposite direction to one part of the Temple. Most of the younger Jedi had eager looks on their faces which made Ahsoka wonder what had them all so hyped up about. She decided to catch someone coming her way and, as the Force would have it, she ran into her friend Barriss Offee.
"Barriss, what's going on?"
The Mirialan and recently prompted Jedi Knight regarded her friend. "Everyone is going to the training arena. There are whispers that Grand Master Yoda is fighting someone with red skin and yellow eyes. I've also been told he's Sith."
Ahsoka's jaw dropped half an inch before she wrenched it back up. Surprised rolled over her like a shockwave. "Is something the wrong Ahsoka?" Barriss asked.
"That depends," She replied. "Are they sparing together or fighting?"
"Judging by everyone's eagerness to watch, I would presume it to be the latter." Barriss said. "Shall we go see?"
"Yeah," She said with worry. "Right behind you," This can't be good…
Ahsoka and Barriss entered the arena balcony area where hundreds of Jedi, young and old, crowded into the limited space. Below in the pit of the room Ahsoka spotted Adas with a lightsaber clipped to his sash and Yoda standing across from him.
What could they be fighting about? She wondered but more importantly. How did it ever come to this?
"Quite the crowd, you sure we should be conversing here?" Adas asked as he studied the circular room. Most of the rails were clung to by Jedi Younglings with Padawans watching over them careful to make sure they don't lean to far over. Jedi knights and a few Masters stood in the back with watchful gazes on him. They were all interested in a display which is exactly what they'll get.
"Here we may speak as loud as we want." He looked around the room and waved to some of the Younglings who were all too excited to wave back and cheer. "Not the only one in the Temple with big ears, I am. Words spread quickly amongst young students." The Jedi Master grinned sharply. "Do not worry, Master Yoda won't speak too loudly." The old Jedi teased. Almost as if he were sticking his tong at him.
Adas grinned sharply. "If you seek to goad me in making the first move then you've succeeded!" The lightsaber he wielded project a single blue-white blade and Adas used it masterfully to get into an attacking stance. "I won't be foiled by your age and size. You must be stronger then most Jedi to attract such attention."
Yoda let out a short laugh. "Wisdom is greater than strength." A short lightsaber floated from his robs and slipped smoothly into his small hands. It activated with a short green blade that was several shades darker than his skin. "Come young Adas. Share your views of the Force!"
With one step, Adas leaped forward, closed in and was right on top of the smaller foe with lightsaber raised for a crushing strike. The older sidestepped and spun up high for a strike to the head. Adas took his feet out from under him and purposely fell forward to avoid the counter. He placed his free hand on the ground to prevent his body from slamming against the floor. Although Yoda missed his initial counter, he was still able to fall downwards upon Adas for a stab. Adas projected a blast of Force energy from the hand that supported him and the resulting push sent him spinning across the floor and safely away from Yoda's blade.
"Now then, what did you mean by the Force affecting all things." Adas said and used both hands to project a wave of Force at his opponent.
Yoda replied by jumping over the wave and coming down right behind Adas who managed to block just in time. "Simple that is. The Force touches all things and affects everything." Yoda twirled his saber up high and then low in order to slip past Adas' guard.
The Sith took a step back and swung hard with both hands. Yoda parried and stopped it from slicing his head in half. "Including things that are not alive, such as the droids that nearly killed Ahsoka?" They exchanged several retorts before pushing back from one another and landing outside of each other's saber reach.
"Yes, the Force acts in mysterious ways. Without the droids chasing her into your tomb, having this conversation we would not!" He held his weapon high and Adas was all too happy to charge.
Master Yoda was barely a meter tall which made most of Adas' attacks downward sweeps. Yoda also used the Force to empower his movements, making him as agile as he was eight hundred years ago.
"I see but," Adas spun and jabbed with his free hand once he swept for Yoda's feet. The master dodged both attacks. "Why do things like murder and war happen? Why would the Force allow that?"
The two exchanged blow for blow at an increasing pace before locking blades again. "Balance comes in all shapes and forms. The Force brings balance to itself, but if changed, disaster strikes."
"Sorry Yoda but you've already used that line!" Adas sent a wave of Force into the ground which bounced upwards and pushed Yoda into the air. The Master flipped and spun to avoid Adas' offensive and came safely down several meters away.
"Well played young one." He turned and raised a hand at Adas. "Now it is Master Yoda's turn to ask questions." Yoda projected a wave of Force at Adas who, instead of dodging, met it head on and used both hands to contain it.
"You seek to know why balance affects all and yet you embody it!" Yoda kept up the push and Adas' legs began to buckle. "Why seek something clearly in front of you? The will of the Force guided you here, to this time."
Adas grinded his teeth as he dropped down to one knee. He was losing his hold over Yoda's attack. His mind then flashed to his mother's last words.
This is not your destiny Adas. The Force has shown me a different path for you.
A spark ignited within him as the pain he felt from that fatal moment came rushing back to him. Instead of rejecting the emotions, he embraced them and they in turn empowered him. It coursed through his body like a tsunami across an ocean. It was incredible and yet dangerous.
"I…" He began and rose back to two feet. "Don't…" A blast built up in him, ready to explode. "Know!" Energy ripped out of his fingertips in the form of jagged blue lightning and spiraled at Yoda.
The Jedi Master was surprised but only for a moment. He summoned knowledge and used it to properly absorb the wicked light into his hands. His grin was gone as he stared at a panting Adas whose arms hung from his sides with tiredness.
"I don't know," Adas repeated. "And I don't care. What good would it serve me to know? I'm bound here to her and that is all I need to know. Grieving over the past brings me nothing!"
Yoda found a cord and had struck it. Something connected to him being here has provoked a powerful emotion within him. The old Jedi was glad to see Adas was able to control it and put it to use, even though he had just projected dark lightning in front of many Younglings who were now not so eager to stay close to the railing.
"The truth will bring about peace." Yoda replied. "Peace is a part of balance as is conflict. Too much conflict I sense in you. There is no emotion, there is peace."
Taking a few deep breaths, Adas calmed down a bit with the emotions leaving him along with their power. Yoda was right, he need to put a lid on things and keep that way. But he will still use his emotions if he must. Nothing Yoda says will change that.
"In the Sith Code, peace is a lie and there's only passion." He reignited his lightsaber, this time with both blades active. "I'm trying to find a middle ground to stand on. I can't give up emotion entirely but I do not want to embrace them when possible." He took a deep breath and steadied himself for an attack. "Now tell me, is that also the will of the Force, to find perfect balance for using my abilities?" He approached, lightsaber twisting.
Yoda parried and dodged as Adas adopted an entirely different fighting style with the double blades. He swung wildly at Yoda with the lightsaber revolving around him and striking with an opposite blade each time. His attack doubled in speed as well making Yoda put an actual effort into blocking and dodging.
"Interpret the Force clearly, few can." Yoda remarked as he kept blocking. "Clear to me its wishes are. Balance within you will result within greater balance across the galaxy."
There is was again, a different path for him. Adas mind blazed again with past memories. Was that what his mother wanted for him, to better the galaxy, to bring balance to the Force or to himself or even both? "You think I have a destiny, and I must take on the task of bring balance to the Force all by myself?"
Yoda caught Adas' blade and jammed it forward into the ground. The younger pulled back as Yoda predicted which left an opening for the old Jedi to land a decent kick to Adas' chest. "Not alone you are." He said as Adas stumbled back a few feet before regaining composure. "It takes two weights to balance a scale. You are only one."
Adas caught the meaning and turned to see Ahsoka on the balcony overheard, her eyes wide in with worry. He grimaced as he was sure the lightning had left a bad impression on her. So he reached out with the Force and touched Ahsoka's mind to calm her worried thoughts.
Everything is fine. It won't happen again. Promise.
He wasn't sure if the entire message got through but judging by the nod and smile he received, he was certain she got the gist of it.
"The two of us then," Adas returned his attention to his opponent. "We bring balance to the Force, Sith and Jedi, how appropriate." He flicked his weapon forward and raised it high. "And how are we supposed to do that?"
Yoda giggled and also raised his blade high. "Speak clearly the Force doesn't! Drops hints it barely does!" The two charged at the same time, Force flowing into their weapons. They clashed with words and spoke with lightsabers with a magnificent Force talent. The resulting crash made the air ripple all around them and a loud crash echoed of the walls in all directions. They both stood there with lightsabers barely touching, each looking at the other.
"One thing I do know," Yoda began. "Fall too far and you may never come back. Trust Ahsoka to keep you safe and she will trust you to do the same." He smiled and pull back his lightsaber and deactivating it. "There is no passion,"
"There is serenity," Adas finished the line from the Jedi Code, another thing he learned from his mother. "I'll take on whatever challenge the Force has for me, as long as I do it with Ahsoka. She is my friend and I am bound to protect her as a friend and not a guardian." He bowed his head before the master. "Thank Master Yoda," He said and presented the double-bladed lightsaber.
The little green Jedi pushed the lightsaber back. "Keep it, use it wisely I trust in you will." The master then returned the bow which shocked so many younglings to see there master bow before a Sith. The Jedi in the room were all silent for a long moment before one brave soul began to clap.
Adas searched the balcony to find the source of the clapping and found it to be Ahsoka. Soon after a Mirialan Jedi Knight began to clap too and soon, the whole chamber was applauding.
A touch of happiness squirmed its way into Adas' heart and gave it a nice jolt. It was a feeling he had rarely experienced until now. Whether he was accepted amongst the Jedi or not, he did not know but in time he will learn to adapt to his new environment and hopeful establish a closer bond with the girl that saved him twice already…
Hope you've enjoyed reading it. Oh and I know the whole balance theme is encroaching on the "Chosen One" prophecy. I'm just going to tuck that in a corner for now. I'll see if I can't tie a knot somewhere in the story that makes sense.
I'm trying a new thing where I'd write a little sneak peak in the beginning and then have the reader go through the rest of the story with their minds wondering what happens that leads up to the event. Tell me if you like this type of introduction and I may use it in another chapter.
xander867