Episode 01 - In the Path of Keepers Part 8
"Connection established." Visas confirmed.
She climbed off the bed and leaned back, popping a kink in her back. She had been meditating for a while now to help them. Son continued to overlay his hand over the Miraluka and probe him. "His signature is shifting." Son confirmed. He found their energies to both be shifting inside, and begin to sync in some ways. Then the draining sensation started with her, while lessening on him. Almost immediately Varus breathed easier and some color returned to his complexion.
"He does look better." Koj confirmed.
"Hm." Son hummed, not really paying attention. He felt he was close. The shift in how Varus' signature naturally felt helped a lot, because while his own signature shifted with the 'sharing' it started to do with the female, there was a part of it that didn't change. He focused his attention on that area. "Found you." Son smiled viciously. "Okay, nobody panic. This will only hurt, a lot."
"How comforting." Anakin muttered.
Son focused himself a moment. With power, normally, he would consider his techniques to take many forms. Explosions, draining, a wrecking ball a mile wide. He had complete control over his power and it was massive in scale. He was Dark Side incarnate. The only area that was difficult was in, perhaps, holding back. No. Difficult was not the right term… Annoying.
He had to more or less fire a nuke inside Varus with all the precision and gentleness of a surgical scalpel. Not the easiest thing he has done in the last few years.
He tsk'd. "Might be helpful if someone held him down."
Anakin and Koj shared a glance, and took up both sides of him. One held down the man's shoulders while the other grabbed him by the waist. To get a better position, Son climbed on top and straddled his chest momentarily with his hand pointed down over his stomach.
"Time to panic." He shoved his fingers into Varus.
Anakin nearly screamed at him for driving his sharp fingers into him like a blade, but Varus screaming in agony as well as a deep red glow overlaying the 'wound' and no blood kept him from reacting. Varus thrashed around, and even Ahsoka screamed in pain and rolled off the bed. Anakin and Koj could barely hold him down. Lightning poured off of him in massive waves, a burst of energy caused everything around them to fly into the walls and the window shattered, the void within him reacted instinctively and grasped at them. Koj jumped away from the void while Anakin and Son both endured it. It visibly weakened Son to do so, but he could hold on for a time.
After one of the longest few seconds of Anakin's life, Son slowly retracted his fingers out of Varus. There was no wound and the red glow disappeared as his hand was removed. Varus collapsed on the bed utterly exhausted and looking worse than before.
Visas returned to Varus' side and looked at him closely. "The bond has been severed."
Son unsaddle him and jumped to the floor. "You should be glad you had me handle it. Should anyone else have attempted that, they would be dead now. That… thing… on the other end was not happy." Son looked to his brother. "What exactly is that? I realize you call it Nihilus, but I had assumed you were discussing something remotely mortal."
"Nihilus is difficult to explain… But, I would say, he is comparable to you and Sister. You are born of the Dark Side. Sister is born of the Light Side. Nihilus… is born of the Void. The absence of both."
Son scrunched his brows in concern. "I have heard of it, but never truly encountered it. It is a troubling. Brief as it was, I felt it flowed as easily as the Light, yet as much power as the Dark. This Nihilus is a great foe."
"You don't know the half of it." Anakin looked down on Varus in concern. "And he has spent his life devoted to fighting it."
Son briefly glanced on the young man. A moment of respect lingered in his silent gaze.
…
"The man is still an idiot." Son smirked.
"Remember, Valkorian is greater still." Koj spoke up. "Nihilus is great and powerful because his very nature is against nature. But Valkorian taught him, and is a creation even greater than you."
Son pinched his lips tightly together, insulted, but neither could refute the statement logically. Valkorian was Plageus' greatest creation, born of death, the Dark Side, and started with the power of Marco Ragnos and part of Plageus right from the beginning. A thousand years of growing in strength… even Son felt small in comparison to what the Firstborn could be.
Didn't mean he didn't want to argue. "I'll just kick his ass and show Father who is his greatest." Son swept out the room with his hurt pride. They watched him leave before Anakin stooped down, lifted Ahsoka, and placed her on the bed.
"You really think it was a good idea to provoke him?" Anakin asked.
"Provoke or not, it is important to keep focus on what we must accomplish in our life time." Koj replied.
Anakin nodded in agreement. There was much to be done. Preparations needed to be made, and immediately. He sat back in his chair and looked at his two students again.
Dark Side. Light Side. And they found a way to make it work.
But then… they were both outcasts in their own minds, in their own ways. They were both abnormal to begin with. Anakin could accept his former students being together and see it work now, but he wouldn't consider it to be a sign that the majority of Dark and Light could work together. The outcasts, the thinkers, the innovators, could make it work. But the stereotypical Jedi and Sith were as opposite and hateful of each other as anything else Anakin could imagine.
Anakin expressed his thoughts to Koj.
Koj replied, "It is little more than racism. Show both sides how similar and different they are, how they both bleed, how they both cry, how they both laugh, how they both have values, and you will bridge gaps no one has in a thousand years."
The Jedi nodded, and chuckled. "I see why Varus likes you. He has always needed guidance in one form or another, and his choice in family reflects that."
They fell into silence a time, before Anakin's composure darkened heavily. "And Brother has to do that to my son… repeatedly."
Koj flinched in empathy. "May I suggest it be done quickly and with him unconscious."
"Definitely." Anakin agreed. He rose and straightened out his robes. "May I trouble you with watching over them in my absence?"
"Not at all. If anything, request a servant find Cahjinawl and inform her the demon has been removed."
"Will do." Anakin left.
The hours to follow were filled with screaming and pain. Cahjinawl was very much new to the Force, but even she felt the waves of pain being emitted from downstairs. She stumbled herself sleepily down, her teddy tucked under one arm, and recalled that she had been disturbed about something related to Uncle Varus. She couldn't remember. She stumbled towards it to find Luke Skywalker's room with Padme crying her eyes out and the father barely holding it together. Luke was shaking on the bed and curled in a ball. The creepy bald vampire-man in the dress looked exhausted. She heard someone say, "That was like trying to do surgery with a rusty spoon."
The creepy, bald vampire-dress man left, barely giving her a glance, and Cahj wasn't even noticed by the rest. Leia noticed her and Cahjinawl waved to her friend. Leia ran to her, she had been crying. "What happened?" Cahjinawl asked.
"Uncle Son," What kind of a name is that? "did something to Luke. He says Luke is better but will need time to recover."
"Is he better?" Cahjinawl wondered. She knew Luke had a demon, but if this Uncle Son person could fix it, then great.
Leia shook her head, then changed her mind. "Well," she sniffed. "They say the connection to Nihilus is gone… but Luke still feels… hollow to me."
Cahjinawl opened her mouth to respond and give her friend some sort of comfort, but then Padme for her and Leia rushed off after smiling apologetically and bidding her good night.
Cahjinawl watched them leave. Once they were out of sight she rolled her eyes and breathed deeply, "Another demon I gotta fix… Come on teddy."
She entered Luke's room. Luke laid under the covers shaking curled up in a tight ball. His eyes were on the moon. He did not make a sound. He did not cry. He did not complain. He did not groan. He was clearly in pain, but he showed no sign or expression to reveal his thoughts.
Cahj wasn't sure how this inverted-planet could have a moon and sun in transition, but it did. As well as stars. The moon disappeared in the day to be replaced by the sun. Perhaps the moon was the 'suns' core with the light dimmed? She couldn't say.
She climbed into the bed and started to go to sleep. Be it a testament to the bewilderment he was experiencing that this act brought out the first words he had uttered of his own whim, without being directly prompted, since he had been there. "What are you doing?"
"Sleeping. Shut up, I'm tired."
"But why are you sleeping in my bed?" Luke asked. "Mommy says girls shouldn't be in bed with boys, since we have more than two beds around."
"Yeah, well. Daddy says for me to be with Uncle when he has a demon, and right now you do."
"I don't have a demon. I was…" Luke tried to grasp for the right word, but being a child the word for 'possession' surpassed him. "made to do things. Nihilus was in me."
"Nihilus is a demon to Uncle Varus."
Luke did not have an argument for that. He could offer no counter. Realizing he couldn't make her leave, he felt… uncomfortable, so he kept his distance from her. However she was having none of that and scooted closer until she was at his back, prompting him to move. They kept up the stalemate until Luke inevitably reached the end and nearly fell.
Now he was getting aggravated. "Why are you bothering me?"
"Oh? Am I bothering you? Here," she reached around him and plopped her teddy on his lap. "This is teddy."
Luke eyed the bear and sighed. He repeated, "Why are you bothering me?"
"I'm not."
"Yes, you are."
"Why?"
"Because you are!" Luke raised his voice ever so slightly.
"See, that's rude. You shouldn't let me bother you. You think I like hearing I'm a bother?" She complained.
Luke blinked. He couldn't wrap his head around the statement. He tossed the teddy bear back at her, only for it to land on the floor. "Shut up and go away. Take your thing with you."
"And now you have gone and insulted teddy!" She whined. She poked his back. "Apologize to teddy."
He growled and sat up. He glared down at her and grit his teeth angrily. "Why are you bothering me?! Does it make you feel good to make fun of my pain!? I just went through 'surgery with a rusty spoon'! It hurt a lot, almost as much as what I went through with your demon!"
Cahjinawl was silent. He huffed and slammed himself back into the bed and turned away again.
"I know what it's like…" She whispered. He showed nothing. "Pain. Death. I am a Ghorfa… it is our history and in our blood. I watched our people and families be slaughtered to invaders. I watched us be enslaved, and I was one of the few considered not good enough for death or service." She scoffed. "What good is a child at manual labor… I-I have a demon of the mind. They are in my head… telling me to… die."
Normally, if Luke was his prior self, he would have said he was sorry. That he was sorry for saying what he did, that he sympathized, that he felt sorry for her. Just a lot of things to say sorry about; however this was not the same Luke from before. Luke didn't know who he was anymore. He may have been able to say his name was Luke, but before that would have entailed an energetic, curious, humble, mama-boy. Now… he couldn't say.
"They are in my head, too." he admitted. "But they do not tell me what to do… they take it away. I don't hear my own thoughts anymore. I don't hear Leia anymore. I hear nothing. I feel nothing."
"Wrong." Cahjinawl chuckled.
His curiosity touched, he turned over to face her and asked, "How so?"
"Papa says emotions are just our body's expression of thought. If you didn't feel anything or think anything, then how come you got angry with me?" She smiled in victory.
Luke stared, once again bewildered by her train of thought, but finally understanding. He felt a smirk tug at his lips and huffed in amusement. He turned back over and didn't say another word. The last several days had not been… pleasant… to him, as he had to endure much probing and poking and watch his family mourn him as though he had died. He hadn't felt anything the entire time, but then… at least he thought he didn't. Perhaps he truly hadn't, as his connection to Nihilus had been more open at the time, but now… Now there was perhaps a little hope he could allow for himself.
His thoughts were interrupted by Cahjinawl's snoring. He rolled his eyes and shook his head.
Meanwhile Visas had not gone to rest as the others did. She still had a mission. As soon as she was sure Varus had established a proper connection with Ahsoka, she stepped through the portal.
Just as Varus had freed her of her birthright, she would do the same. Even if it meant enslaving herself to it in the process.
Visas returned to Forge. As she flew over the land towards the Fleet Mother, her senses scanned the land around her. The Star Forge had created a sizable droid army and a small fleet. Fighter drones filled the skies and droids walked across the land like ants. She could sense Force-users among them, Miraluka, leading them, towards the capital.
The Miraluka were marching to retake the capital.
She set the shuttle to autopilot, and called the Fleet Mother. She arranged a space in the hanger, as well as a message to be sent straight to the Admiral: To hold the army and assemble a team of seekers in Ashley's room. Visas docked in the Fleet Mother hanger and made her way to the ship's barge. She was there first. The guards let her with little more than a nod, as she had frequented the cell often.
She closed the door. The room was dark. A detail unimportant to her as a Miraluka, but only showed the kind of place it was, as most of the ship was automatically lit when one of the few non-Miraluka entered. The room was empty of all items, as it would be a danger. Rather, the room was padded. Its single occupant was restrained in a vest with her arms wrapped around herself, and a series of chains kept her from gnawing at herself, and another set kept her near the wall.
"Hello, Sis." Visas greeted the prisoner.
The other snarled and tried to lunge at her, but the chains kept her back inches from Visas' face. Visas didn't flinch and showed nothing. If she had eyes, she would not have blinked as she gazed into the insane face of her sister.
"Ironic that I should be the stable one here." Visas mused. "Or perhaps, I have lived my life with what you have only just gone through. Now you know a portion of what I am… Is it further ironic that what I see on the outside of you is a reflection of what is inside me?" She chuckled darkly. "That I am but a cage to a monster you do not know how to hide."
Visas turned aside and leaned against the wall. "I am the only one who think you are still in there. The rest are willing to cut you off. Even the little alien you adore like a little sister of your own is scared of you after you attacked her. Varus sympathizes, and he believes there is hope, but he has his doubts. I alone know for a fact that there is. Because I have gone through exactly what you are. I have been in the darkness… raped in body, mind, and soul. I have had my emotions toyed with and tossed aside at the whim of a psychopath. I know it is little consolation, Sis, but when this is all over, the awkwardness you have felt in my presence will be gone. I know you reached for me, and I have taken your efforts in turn, but there has never been true understanding. How could you? You have not seen the monster inside you eating away at your every joy, twisting your joy into agony, the bodies that pile you."
Visas stopped momentarily. She sensed the Admiral coming, and there were a small squad of Seekers on the way as well. Even if the Admiral hadn't called them, she had. And she had authority over them.
Visas thrust out her hand and pinned Ash to the wall with the Force. She walked up to her little sister, and hugged her. Restrained as she was in so many ways, Ash could not attack her. "But now, you will understand."
Visas stood at attention as the Admiral entered along with the Seekers.
He was angry. It was evident in the way he briskly entered, the way he was tense and restrained around her, and in his twitching expression. He undoubtedly had every intention to lock her up and throw away the key. Did he have the law on his side to do it? Yes. But the law was made with the intent to protect the people. When the law fails, you must go with something far simpler. That which is good, and helping each other. The law is not meant to do that. The law is meant to restrain that which is evil, not to encourage that which is good.
In this way, Visas knew she had all the cards. "Before you do whatever it is you want to do, whether kill me or what. Before you go and raise our own city to the ground, I have some news for you."
"I'm listening." The Admiral said coldly.
Visas smiled. "You want a Keeper? Done. Varus has made a connection with his 'alien girl' and is now a proper Keeper." She put up a finger the moment he opened his mouth. His eyes were wide in shock and outrage. "No. You want a solution? You got one. You want the Keeper gone? You will find the solution is here."
"What are you talking about?" He demanded.
"When Varus made the stable connection with his lover, I made a connection as well."
"You took up your role as Chosen?" He asked.
"No. I made the beginning of the Network all over again." Visas lowered her finger. "Varus is no longer important to you, and if offered, will no longer need any place in your politics outside of being a celebrity to an ancient bloodline and respected family. Varus no longer plays a part in this beyond living and…" She felt a bit guilty. "Perhaps having a difficult time being emotionally stable for a while."
Becoming a Keeper was not easy. Experiencing your own emotions was bad enough. Experiencing the emotions of multiple people simultaneously? He would need to rely on his friends a lot for the coming years, especially Ahsoka. Visas did not want to be in their shoes.
Unfortunately she had to be in an even worse position. She walked up to the Admiral and looked him in the face. "You want the Network back? It goes through me. I am your only connection to the Keeper there is. In return all debt Varus has with us, is null."
He snarled. "You think you can blackmail me?"
"I just trash-talked a demi-god an hour ago. Try me."
Ahsoka was used to a lot of different ways of being woken up. Explosions in war, alarm clocks, a rough and urgent hand on her shoulder, being gentle nudged by a nurse, the tweeting of birds, the roar of a waterfall, the walking of people passing by, the gentle transition from sleep to wakefulness under a bright sunny day, but she had to admit… she had never woken up quite like this.
"SOCKS!" Varus yelled.
Ahsoka blinked awake. A feeling of great realization came to her just as much as confusion. What great revelation had she made? She was sleeping. She was confused as to why Varus had yelled it, just as much as what she was feeling.
A feeling of joy entered her. Again… why?
The joy turned to confusion as well. Now she was confused why she was confused on top of being confused by him and… Ah crap. Is this what Visas had hinted at? Ahsoka looked over at Varus by her. His face was an open transition from joy to confusion.
'What the hell? Why am I so confused all of a sudden?' Varus thought.
Shit. The bond was stronger than she expected.
His eyes widened in shock and he looked at her. "What? What are you doing in my head?"
"We made a bond again, remember? Only much stronger." Ahsoka struggled not to think. She literally could not even hear herself think. Varus's mind was a maelstrom of thoughts and feelings in a pattern that was jumping all over the place.
"Oh, yeah." He deflated a bit. She felt he was unsure how to feel about it. He didn't like bonds. Maybe- 'Too many things in my head as it is!'
Varus grabbed his head and groaned. He said outload, "Stop thinking… please."
As if she could just stop thinking! What was she? A robot? She thought indignantly.
'What the hell is her problem!?'
"What do you mean what is my problem?" She demanded heatedly. The response she got back was not what she expected. He was surprised, put on the defensive, and came to the same realization as she did. They needed to find a way to keep sending to each other EVERY little thought and feeling. There was no filter right now at all. As a matter of fact, Ahsoka could feel he found her hot when she was a little ticked off.
'Ignore that. We got a bigger problem here… unless you want-.'
Not right now. They really had a problem.
'Gre-'
Ahsoka put her hands up, and she felt Varus come to a halt. She closed her eyes and meditated for a few seconds, just long enough to calm down. She crawled across the bed, the same as before, and put her hands on his shoulders. "Right now, no thinking."
'Right, no thinking. No thinking about the elephant in the room. No thinking about the pink elephant. The elephant with the fluffy ears. The fluffy ears can't be pink, that would be weird. No thinking about the pink elephant with the weird fluffy non-pink ears.'
"Varus." Ahsoka said patiently.
His eyes widened slightly. "Yeah, news flash. This will be hard." There had to be a way to do this. Thankfully, Varus was managing to keep his emotions in check, even if his thoughts were a scrambled mess. Funny enough, it was Varus' scrambled thoughts that landed on a solution. His emotional burst of revelation hit her and it took some control to keep from being confused in the process. Last thing they needed was an endless loop of emotion bouncing back and forth. "I have an idea."
"State it, don't think it. I can't understand most of what is in your head." Ahsoka said.
Varus was a bit hurt, as though it made him out to be dumb. Ahsoka flinched apologetically. "Sorry... And I think I know why it is generally considered bad to not hear every thought of your lover. People need some secrets, at least enough to work through their thoughts without being judged and decide on what to do or say properly."
'This was your idea, you know.'
She raised an eyebrow. Did he really want to get into who's fault this is when he was dying and Visas came to her with the only solution? Would he rather be-
"You just said something about not responding to each other's every thought." Varus interrupted her thought. Ahsoka felt a bit shamed suddenly. She had judged his thoughts, when that was all it was: thought.
"Okay, solution." Varus offered. "Rather than deciding to not think anything, think something very specifically? I'll count in my head."
'1. 2. 3. 5. 4. 8. Taco. 6. Snorkeling. 7. 10. 9. SOCKS!'
He knew how to count, but she felt his thoughts were jumping around, and it was just distracting.
"That's dumb. Sorry, but it kind of is." Ahsoka sighed. She pinched her nose. She was already getting a headache, and she knew for a fact he was getting one. His was wincing in the sunlight through the window. "I think it best we just ignore everything inside our heads and only go with what is said verbally. Including our own thoughts, except ones we form clearly enough for it to not be anything but intentional."
"Isn't that exactly what people do without a bond?"
"Yes, but-" Ahsoka wasn't sure how to say it, but they would need to take baby steps in this.
"Agreed." He flinched. "Sorry, reacted to your thought. But I understand. Perhaps… a lot of meditation."
"Right." She agreed. "So… Ways to relax or focus our thoughts properly."
"I find nothing better at that than training against an army of PROXY droids, or a good duel."
"That we can do." She agreed. She wondered briefly how her lesson under Daughter would change now that she had a bond perhaps strong enough to let her go deeper into it. She felt Varus's curiosity peak at her thoughts. She did her best not to think, but it was so hard! She just to let her mouth run. "I found Daughter's pool idea relaxing, and Son's sauna was to die for. A shower is relaxing too."
Before she could react, Varus lunged her, grabbed her by the hips, and picked her up on his shoulder. She squealed in laughter and surprise. "Shower it is! Then food and training!" He decided. "We can do those other things later! No time for thinking! Let's go!"
"So…" Skywalker cleared his throat. He pointed to the first pair. Cahjinawl was unrepentant and leaned back, and Luke was indifferent. "You were sleeping together?"
"Yeah, so?" Cahj wondered. Luke just shrugged.
Skywalker heard the reason, and he had trouble making heads or tails of it. Her logic was odd. Though he got the idea she was trying to help, and it seemed to. Luke was not near as emotional as he was, or as Anakin hoped he was, but it seemed he at least had a breakthrough of some kind. He showed and felt at least something now. Mostly around Cahj.
"And…" He pointed to the second pair. Unlike the first pair, which was largely emotionless and uncaring, the second pair was twitchy as could be and showed every emotion possible on their face in the span of seconds. It was literally as though their every thought and emotion was in a never ending game of pinball. "You two can hear each other's every thought and emotion?"
Varus and Ahsoka both nodded, then suddenly Ahsoka snapped her face to Varus with an indignant look, and he was briefly bashful. Then Ahsoka blushed from her neck to her forehead. As a man, himself, Anakin figured Varus thought something in the 'typical male' category. From how tired they were walking in, and how famished, he wouldn't be surprised if it was a fresh memory. Then she was confused, and looked at him like he was insane. "What do you mean 'Ah-sock-a?' Is that where the sock thing came from?!"
"Yep." Varus smiled proudly.
Anakin pointed to Leia. "Now what did you do?"
Leia crossed her little arms. "What makes you think I did something?! I was just sleeping!"
"You can't just tell me you didn't do nothing last night. I'm batting hundred right now."
"What is that supposed to mean?" Leia asked, completely perplexed. She looked to the others, and Cahj shrugged.
Leia started to sweat. Anakin kept a firm stare on her, and finally she bowed her head. "I may have left a pale of pink paint over Son's door…" Varus burst out in laughter and gave her a high five.
Anakin turned around and looked desperately at his wife. "Are you sure we don't have more than two kids?!"
"Pretty sure." She tried not to laugh. Tried to. It failed.
"Thanks for the help." He whispered. She only laughed harder. He sighed and put his head in his hands.
Koj entered in. Everyone looked up at his approach, and Ahsoka mysteriously elbowed Varus in the chest, to which he only smiled. Koj eyed the exchange, but didn't say anything in regards to the oddity of it. "We have received a transmission from the Miraluka. The situation has changed. It seems the Network is being revived. There is still war and bloodshed, but at least now it seems something has happened which is allowing recovery. It will take time."
The relief was clear in Varus. He looked like a great weight lifted off his shoulders. "Anything else?"
Koj shrugged. "I hung up, but the Admiral of Ribs wishes to speak with you."
Varus chuckled. "Admiral of Ribs. Good one."
Koj raised an eyebrow and asked in all seriousness, "Isn't that what you call him?"
"Well, yes… but… Okay, you know what. Your OWN joke is lost on you, and that is just sad." Varus rose to leave. Ahsoka did the same to follow. Something that struck Anakin as out of place.
"Ahsoka?" He asked, curious.
Ahsoka looked perplexed suddenly, as did Varus. "Oh, woops. I just… naturally followed." Judging from how she was incredibly confused and unsure suddenly, Anakin figured the bond was much stronger than he thought, if his urgency to leave either dragged her with it or was mutually shared so naturally.
Something for them to look into later. "It's fine. But I don't think the two of you are the most… stable right now." Anakin looked to his wife. "Want to give them a hand? This sounds like it is up your alley."
Padme put her finger on her chin in thought. "A chance to talk shop? Babysit a couple hormonal grownups? Sure." She rose to join them.
"We are not hormonal." Ahsoka pouted.
Padme laughed mockingly. "The two of you are the definition of hormonal right now. I haven't seen your emotions jump so sporadically since I met you." She hugged Ahsoka briefly. "Relax, I'm just tagging along to do everything and babysit along the way. And we can talk."
"Like what?" Ahsoka wondered.
"Well, girly things, and make him endure hearing your thoughts in the process."
Varus groaned loudly.
Anakin watched them leave. That was not a mess he wanted to be involved in. He couldn't imagine having two people's thoughts melded so closely together. He already had a connection of some kind with Padme, but that was one born of just knowing each other. Not from directly having your thoughts and emotions transmitted.
"Those two will require a great deal of self-control and training." Koj said.
"That they will." Anakin agreed. He turned his attention to the children. "However, something you may wish to know is-"
"They slept together." Koj stated simply.
Anakin blinked, twice, then looked from the Ghorfa, to the child, back to the adult. "You knew?"
Koj nodded. "I felt it necessary to allow such a moment of child-like compassion. Both of them have something to gain from mutual understanding, and sharing, of how far down a child's mental state can be, and taking comfort in it."
"Well, damn. What can I possibly say against that without sounding like a complete and utter ass." Anakin glared at him. "They're people… of the opposite sex!"
"So?" Both Luke and Cahj asked. Cahj went further in groaning with a throw-back of her head. "Why do people keep telling me that!?"
"You will understand when you are older."
"They tell me that too!"
Anakin gave a glance to Koj that basically said, 'She's your brat. You deal with her.' Or at least he hoped that was what his expression was giving off. Whether it was, or if Koj already was on the same wavelength, Koj concluded it was time to have a fatherly talk with her. She was old enough.
I sit at the lounge table with my hands clasped together in front of my lips. I stare down at a piece of paper. At the same time Socks gazes at me in worry, and Cyborg-Hugger glances at me out of concern.
The paper is a motion being passed by the still-recovering Miraluka council, and we had just spent an hour at this table where I stay quiet, Socks stays quiet, and Cyborg-Hugger talks shop with the Admiral of Ribs. (I think that is an even better name than what I made up.)
As it turns out, Visas had taken control of the situation and blackmailed the Miraluka into restoring the Keeper bloodline through the Seekers. So far as it is explained to me, the way it is supposed to be done is that I, personally, go out and create the foundation of the Empathic Network with each of my Seekers, and they, in turn, pass it on for me. It leaves me at the center of it all. What Visas did was do it herself, making herself the center. I am still the anchor, and I feel it.
It feels weird. I can hear their heartbeats, I can feel their emotions, but it is distant. It is like the time when I was at the hotel on Coruscant, I could look out my window and see people playing in the pool. I could hear their laughter, but it was distant and only really noticeable if I focused on it. It feels like that to me. The worrying part is that it is growing. More and more people are getting in the proverbial pool.
I'm worried the number of people attached to me, even at a distance, will be overwhelming.
'You will be fine.' I hear Ahsoka think. 'I feel it too.'
The paper in front of me is in relation to what Visas' blackmail stirred up. She successfully forced the Admiral of Ribs into political submission, but the Council is still afraid of a second Leland event, and so are presenting a compromise. At the same time, they recognize my lack of political understanding.
The terms are that I will stay as prince, but my role will be more of a celebrity one than actual leadership. I have no say in politics. In addition, all children below the age of five, and all future children born to the Miraluka, will be added to the Network at level 1 rather than level 2. This will mean they will feel less of the effects of the Network, the burden on me and the future Keeper will lessen, and so far as they want, the Network itself can be lessened to the point that if it fails, it will not cause damage. People need to be able to handle themselves and be self-reliant on their emotional growth without an Empathic Network doing it for them.
In addition, the idea of modifying the Keeper role is here. Signing the contract will allow the Keeper role to be extended to create a 'lesser-Keeper', which will be a group of the highest-level Seekers. This will allow for the Network to not collapse in the case of my death, and the burden will be dramatically lessened.
"What of my clones?" I ask. I tap the backend of my pen on the paper.
"A short council session decided that they will be adopted by a number of parents that are willing to live in a small community where the children will all be within a single block of each other, and will be attending the same school at the same grade level in the next year when our schools reopen."
I nod. I don't know if that is a good thing for them or not.
Cyborg-Hugger asks, "Define the distance. They are very close to each other."
"You really have no say in this matter. They were left to the Miraluka to care for in Mrs. Marek's passing."
"No, but it will reassure him."
"Very well, the ten families that are taking them in will all live in the same tower. An entire five floors have been donated to them. They need only use an elevator."
"Sounds reasonable." Cyborg-Hugger consented. She looks to me. "That means they will stay together."
That makes me feel better. I whisper that I would like a moment, and she says, "Will you excuse us a moment?"
The Admiral nods and leaves. The door closes behind him. I close my eyes briefly as well, and through my Miraluka sight I cannot see past the walls and door. The room is sealed through the Force. Rather, I can see the walls and doors, but the amount of nodes is so thick, it is just as much a wall to my sight as a normal one.
"What do you think?" I ask her. I explain my thoughts and what I got from it.
Cyborg-Hugger passes the paper to herself and looks it over. She flips through the documents. "You have it oversimplified, but it is good. It keeps your position of importance and creates a number of guarantees for your people. What I see is them trying to one day remove the role of Keeper, and the Network entirely, but considering what they just went through, they will be wary to try it anytime soon. This is just a step in that direction. The biggest concern I have though, is the Star Forge."
"How so?"
"The agreement made before was that you would have ownership of the Star Forge as prize, and it would be passed down to your heirs. The term 'heir' is easy to claim as being either the next Keeper or a child of your own. Now with this contract allowing the creation of lesser-Keepers, possibly in the council's pocket, it will allow direct access to the Star Forge. Not to mention they have already used emergency powers to use the Star Forge in the creation of a small droid army already."
"I will not say it was wrong to do that." I argue. "It… it was truly an emergency."
"That it was, I am not denying it, but this will create a power struggle between you and them over the Star Forge, where before there was less flexibility and interpretation for error." She pushes the document back to me. "What I would do is have them add in that your ownership of the Star Forge will not be passed on to future Keepers, but to whoever you specify in your will. Which… you do need to make. I can help you with that when we have a free day. Also you will want to include the Ravager with the same condition but with a second ownership so they are separate. As well as your droid."
Oh right, HK. Haven't seen it in a few days. It is probably recharging its batteries on the Ravager.
I sigh and put my head in my hands. With all that is going on, I realize how serious this document will be to sign. The only reason I am not panicking is that I feel Ahsoka's calm assurance. She thinks this is a good thing. She thinks I am burdened in something I don't belong.
I agree.
You don't take a slave and make him a king. It simply doesn't work. You take a person raised in leadership and politics and make that guy the king. My thoughts are too simple to be a leader.
I know Ahsoka hears my thoughts as well, and while the whole thought-pinball back-and-forth thing is leaving me almost dizzy, one thing I can say for certain is that we agree it is a good thing. It just leaves the question of: what now? Because if I were to be honest with myself… If I were to be really, truly, honest with myself… I want nothing to do with the Miraluka.
I appreciate them getting me out of slavery. It makes me feel… not alone… to know my people are here and alive and kicking. It is scary being tied into a network of hearts and emotion, but rather than drowning in it, it just feels like I am inside a massive community where I only need to look and I can see… just people going about their daily lives. (Granted those daily lives right now are a mess of confusion, pain, and a lot of PTSD from what they have endured for the last while.)
But this is not where I belong. It is not where I see myself being. If I consider my future with my people, I see myself being either miserable or devoting my time to helping Koj and Squirt and the Ghorfa. Even in that version I see myself mostly wanting to limit my time with my own people. The only true ties I had were Visas, Ash, Leland, and my mother. I can say I respect the Admiral of Ribs about as much as he gets on my nerves, but I am sure both of us can live just fine without the other.
Where I see myself being, or rather wanting to be, is in the one place I've ever been happy. Well, two places. Either with Koj and Squirt in the simple life of miserable slavery. Or with Socks and Tree-Hugger-
'Stop calling me Socks!'
I chuckle. The only other place I've been happy is with Socks and Tree-Hugger… Koj and Squirt are great, and they are my family, but… I want a life with Socks. I want to have the relationship with Tree-Hugger we once had until the betrayal (forgiveness or not) and we never really put time into restoring what was lost. Koj is my brother, but he never really laid out the foundation for who I would become as much as these guys.
I've never tried having a single day of my life where I can actually claim it to be normal, by normal people standards. I've never attended a theatre, I've never seen a concert, I haven't taken a vacation to fish or relax in the sun since I was five, I've never gone to a nice restaurant just to relax and enjoy good food in as long as I can remember, I've never gone on a simple normal date…
I feel Socks blushing at the idea. She is also happy. So much so it is wonder she isn't bouncing in her seat.
One thing I have to get used to is the sheer magnitude of emotion she has. I know Tree-Hugger told me once that girls have twice the emotional capacity as guys, but I didn't realize how true that was till now. It's almost overwhelming how much she feels at times.
I sigh and make my decision. I explain my new terms to the Admiral of Ribs, and while he is a bit hesitant, he agrees and says he will have an updated document for me to sign in an hour after his attendees write up the new clause.
I look to Cyborg-Hugger, hesitantly, I will admit, and ask, "Do you mind… If I… you know… come with you guys?"
"Hm?" She hums in curiosity. "To where?"
"Naboo."
Cyborg-Hugger smiles widely. "I would love it."
Socks jumps out of her chair to hug and plant a kiss on me. She is all giddy all of a sudden. Not that I am complaining.
"Let's just wait till after the funeral, alright?"
"Funeral?" I ask.
Cyborg-Hugger nods. "So far as I know, you and your people never properly mourned your mother, and with all that has happened, there will be a public holiday to set aside some time to mourn all that have been lost."
The realization that we never did mourn, not even for mother, hits me like a ton of bricks. Her body is still in the morgue just waiting for the proper send off.
'Don't feel guilty. There were other concerns.' I hear Ahsoka think. I squeeze her hand briefly.
"They do need it." I agree. "Admiral?"
"Hm."
"When is the ceremony? We are having it, right?"
He nods. "It will be in two days. I had already asked Mrs. Marr to pass on your invitation to you, but it seems you haven't received it yet."
"No, not that it matters. I'll attend." I sigh.
The ceremony was quiet. It was largely a blur, but I remember standing out in the open field with a bonfire in the middle of a large gathering. My family and friends were there. The Ghorfa attended. Darth Plageus attended out of respect for what had happened 'right next door', so to speak, even if he had no relationship with the Miraluka themselves. Most of the bodies lost could not be accounted for so pieces of paper with their names inscribed by hand (an effort that took several thousands of people to do in a day) would account for the dead. The only ones whose bodies would be used in the bonfire were mother and Leland.
Tree-Hugger, Koj, and the Admiral all insisted I carry her body, but I couldn't move. I felt numb again. Not the vindictive, destructive numb of before, but the kind where I knew if I let myself feel something, or move, or think, it would leave me a miserable mess. As nice as it was to have my family and friends there, they could only do so much. Socks didn't leave my side, and in a way she kept me from going entirely within my shell. The collective mourning of my people in the back of my mind only made it worse.
Seeing as how I was going through too much, the Admiral himself carried mother's body. It surprised me to see him crying as he did so. He placed her body quietly in the center of where the bonfire would be, then what was left of Leland was placed next to her, and then a hovercraft dumped a load of millions of papers on. Names were inscribed on every line. Then the whole mess was set on fire and a number of Miraluka poured their Force energy into it, shaped it, and made a giant pillar of fire.
The Pillar of Fire reminded me of the last time I had seen my people as a child. Of the last time I had seen my father. Of the time Nihilus had taken me. Of the beginning of the next chapter of my life that would prove to be an utter hell. Now it will be the beginning of a new one.
The sight was the last thing I remember before falling to my knees and weeping.
I wake up to find myself in bed on the Ravager, with a teddy in my arms, and me in Sock's arms.
Meh, Socks won't work. If I wanted to come up with a nickname for Ahsoka, I should have done it when I first met her. It's too late. Oh wait… I called her 'slut' when we first met. That might work… but she would hate that. Mother Hen doesn't work anymore now that we sleep together on occasion. She wouldn't want me to refer to her as Mother in bed… 'Shoka? Maybe. Soka? Sokka? Hmm… Could work. Nothing else really does.
I love her too much for her to be anything less than Ahsoka.
