We're trying something different with the Sequel material. Considering the trilogy isn't complete, and thus neither is the story, I take more of a dive back into history before getting into the present. We do go to the end of The Last Jedi, so (if somehow you haven't seen the movie yet) there are spoilers. Also age changing force ghosts because I will ride this train until I die now.
We're getting close to the end of what have for Echoes. I've got a Rebels chapter I want to post, but I need a rewatch of the series before I do that, plus I have a few more prompts kicking around in my head. Including more OT-era shenanigans and an AU of the main story. (Okay, how deeply in trouble are you when you stark thinking about AUs of your own AU? Because I think I'm stuck down that rabbit hole)
If/when I get more prompts or requests, I'll be adding them to the fic. So, if you want to stay updated, click that Subscribe button because I cannot promise consistent updates and I wouldn't want you to miss anything!
Without further ado, I hope you guys enjoy!
-Becks
Sequels
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Ben Solo knows ghosts exist.
And not the creepy kinds of ghosts who steal faces and eat children that Poe likes to scare other kids with. Ghosts are nice. They're always there for him with kind words and gentle smiles, encouragement when he's frustrated, and comfort when Daddy's gone for too long. Ben tries to tell the other kids about his ghosts and let them know there's nothing to fear. But they'd rather believe Poe's tales of horror than listen to Ben's reasoning. None of the other kids can see Ben's ghosts.
Uncle Luke sees the ghosts, and when he is around, Ben and Uncle Luke will sit and talk with them. Obi-Wan always listens to Ben's stories with rapt attention. Yoda talks funny and is a little hard to understand, but he makes Ben laugh.
Mommy doesn't like the ghosts. It's confusing because she doesn't seem to mind it when Ben sees Obi-Wan and Yoda, but sometimes he hears her yelling at a ghost. She'll say things to the ghost, like they can't see Ben, and they're not allowed to talk to him, she throws around a lot of words that Ben doesn't understand. Sometimes Uncle Luke gets into the argument, but Mommy must always win because he's never met any other ghosts.
Well… that's not entirely true. There is the invisible ghost, but Ben figures that if he's never seen the ghost, or talked to the ghost, then it's not technically considered "meeting." The invisible ghost sounds like an old lady to Ben and she only seems to come around at nighttime. Sometimes Ben will wake up in the middle of the night and he'll feel a hand brushing his hair, and someone will be softly singing a lullaby. But every time Ben opens his eyes, there's nobody there, and the touch of a hand in his hair disappears.
Ben's tries talking to the Invisible Lady, but she never answers. He thinks she wants to but can't, and he doesn't know why. Ben thinks that she must be awful lonely if she can't talk to anyone. Sometimes, if he can't sleep right away, Ben will start talking to the Invisible Lady. He'll tell her stories and talk about his day, and he thinks the Invisible Lady really likes that.
Ben wishes he could see her. Maybe then she'd talk back to him and she wouldn't be so lonely.
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Ben knows he shouldn't be snooping through his Uncle's belongings.
But Luke is teaching a class to a younger group of students, so he's not even paying attention. Sure, Ben's supposed to be studying, but he's always studying. He thought being a Jedi had more to do with lightsabers and mind tricks than it did with reading through dry, boring, old texts and meditating for hours on end. He jimmies the lock open to a room that's packed with boxes. A thick layer of dust coats everything and it looks like the room hasn't been touched in years. Ben cracks open the lid on the first box. There's a holey orange flight suit, covered with burn marks and char. An old-styled pilot's helmet has been wedged into the corner. The next box has a random assortment of what looks like droid and ship parts, all melted wiring and damaged beyond repair. Ben frowns somewhat disappointed. It just looks like some old junk from the Rebellion that Uncle Luke never got around to throwing away. He looks around for anything that might be remotely promising and his eyes fall on a smaller box. It only takes up about a square foot of space and it's been shoved into a corner and had other things piled on top as if it was supposed to be hidden.
Ben can't explain it, but he feels the box calling for him while something inside him pulls away from it. Following the siren song, he walks over, uncovers the box, and slowly lifts the lid. There's only one item inside, a melted and twisted black mask. A ghostly echo of mechanized respiration fills the room. Ben can't help but stare at every detail of the mask. The ash stuck in the crevices, the dulled black finish, the way the warped metal made the whole thing look sad and ghoulish.
The hissing breaths still filled Ben's ears. He knows whose this was. It's Vader's mask… his grandmother's. He reaches out to touch the relic.
"Stop that!"
Ben jumps as someone slaps the back of his head rather sharply. Uncle Luke must have found him. Oh, he is going to be in so much trouble! He slams the box shut and turns around, his hand at the back of his head and an explanation ready on his lips.
The room is empty.
Ben gulps a few deep breaths to calm his racing heart and looks around to be extra sure. He is alone. He can't hear the hissing breaths anymore, and he doesn't want to look at that mangled mask again. Ben scurries for the door and makes sure to lock it behind him.
In the back of his mind, Ben can almost hear another voice scolding him, calling him an idiot boy and demanding why he'd even think of doing something to stupid. The voice reminds him a lot of his mother. His mental scoldings often come out in his mother's voice.
He shakes himself and hurries off to his studies. He might be able to ask Uncle Luke about his grandmother. Before, Luke has always put off telling him until he was older. And Mother never talks about Vader. But Mother isn't here, and Ben is old enough now to handle the whole story. And if Luke isn't going to talk, he might be able to ask Obi-Wan or Master Yoda. Their ghosts like to hang around the new school.
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Leia doesn't see ghosts very much anymore.
Quite frankly, the dead Jedi lost interest in her when she made it quite clear she had no intentions of joining Luke in his quest to rebuild the Jedi Order. It wasn't a great loss, in Leia's opinion, having ghosts pop in at any given moment to offer sage advice or tell her how to raise her son had grown very old very fast. Sure, Master Yoda had a wealth of wisdom to offer, but rebuilding a war-torn galaxy was new ground even for the ancient Jedi Master when they didn't have several thousand Jedi to send out to every system. Leia wasn't sad to see them go when Luke set up a permanent spot for his new Jedi School. They had new, young Jedi to teach after all. And Anakin must have finally respected her wishes to leave Ben alone, because Leia hadn't seen her in years.
Once she had sent Ben off to learn with Luke, Leia entered a blissfully ghost-free existence. In fact, she has almost forgotten about them entirely in the intervening years. Resistance work never ends and she is kept deliriously busy most of her days.
When the ghosts reappear, Leia knows it as a bad omen. They are preceded by an overwhelming sense of dread, of pain and fear. Leia instinctively reached out for Luke and Ben. Their bonds are strong enough to cross the greatest distances of space. They've never failed yet, but now… Leia can't sense Luke, and Ben feels cold and distant, brittle and tainted.
Icy fear grips Leia's heart. She must make contact with her son and brother. She turns around and nearly runs though Anakin – looking old, tired, and guilt stricken. Leia gets one look at the apologetic and mournful look on her face and then demands, "What happened? Why can't I sense Ben or Luke? Where are they?"
Anakin won't meet her daughter's eyes. "Luke has severed himself from the Force. We cannot reach him."
"And Ben?"
Anakin's jaw tightens. She looks as if she wishes to be anywhere but here. "Ben has fallen to the Dark Side."
Leia's wrath burns the dead like fire. It is no wonder the other ghosts did not want to bear this news to her.
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Kylo Ren doesn't see ghosts anymore.
Not in the way he used to as a child. He supposes renouncing the Light meant renouncing the ghosts of the Light as well. Not that it matters much to him; the last thing he needs is two ghosts hanging over his shoulder all day, begging him to come back to the Light.
There are other ghosts; ghosts of the Dark who like to lurk around particularly powerful locations, but never seem to fully manifest. Even in death, they still follow the call of the Dark, and if Kylo makes the necessary sacrifices, they offer their wisdom. Oftentimes, Supreme Leader Snoke will send Ren off to a sacred sight to gain wisdom from the great teachers of the past.
There is one, however, who follows Ren wherever he goes. It only ever appears in the corner of his eye, or behind him in mirrors. It takes months for him to catch enough of a glimpse to realize the ghost is a woman. She always wears a reprimanding frown, and sometimes Kylo sees her mouth moving as if she were lecturing him. But he never hears a word from the ghostly woman, and he learns to ignore her while she dogs his every step.
The only times he never sees the ghost is when he's near his grandmother's mask. The dark relic seems to repulse the ghost and Ren takes advantage of that when he grows tired of pretending to ignore the woman. He knows eventually she will grow tired of her haunting and move on. To acknowledge her would be to give her validation.
And she can no longer offer him anything of value anyway.
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Rey has always seen ghosts.
Jakku was full of them. The smoky gray shades hovered around the salvage sites, vestiges of old uniforms sharpening and fading depending on where in the downed cruisers they chose to lurk that day. Oftentimes, they ignored her, or tried to drive her away – throwing curses her way for daring to steal from the Empire. Rey ignored them and continued her work. Ghosts couldn't hurt her and she had to work to eat. There were a few rare ghosts who ended up being rather helpful; claiming that Rey reminded them of a loved one and pointing her to yet unreached salvages.
Rey didn't know why she could see the ghosts. Not everybody could, but there were enough at Nima Outpost that she wasn't immediately labeled 'crazy' the first time she mentioned seeing a ghost as a child. There was no rhyme or reason for who could see the ghosts and who couldn't. It wasn't based on species or age or gender. All Rey knew was that she saw more ghosts than anyone else, and that fact she kept to herself. Jakku claimed a lot of lives, and while not everybody who died left behind a ghost, there were far more on the planet than the handful of ghosts the others spoke of.
Jakku wasn't the only planet with ghosts either. Maz Kanata's cantina had a few ghosts lingering in the corners. Luke's island had been riddled with them; though all those specters seemed quite content to ignore Rey and the Jedi and float mutely through the ruins.
The Falcon didn't have ghosts. Rey had spent enough time on it; she is sure of that fact. So she can't be blamed for screaming a little when one speaks to her.
Not many in the Resistance opt to venture into the cockpit of the Millennium Falcon, the ship is still very much so Captain Solo's and the cockpit is almost like hallowed ground. Chewie may also have something to do with it as well. When the Wookie isn't copiloting, he is playing bouncer. The cockpit is the only private space on the ship and there are a lot of private conversations that have to be held.
Right now, though, Rey is alone. They are on their fifth jump to throw the First Order off their trail. Most of the Resistance is catching what sleep they can, piled together in groups on any suitable surface. Pretend to sleep so others won't see them mourn. Now is not the time for weeping. The dead will be mourned when the First Order is no longer a threat.
Rey is turning over the lightsaber's crystal in her hands, mesmerized by the play of the dashboard lights on its facets. The crystal is no longer glowing blindingly, but it still has a soft aura to it. Try as she might, Rey cannot find the source of the light. She figures there has to be a pocket of luminous minerals or some type of bacteria or lichen, but it is pure throughout. The crystal is warm in her hands, like a stone warmed in the sun only it never fades or changes no matter if she holds it tightly in her hands or lets it sit on the dashboard.
"I remember finding that crystal. The Force made me swim for it."
Rey jumps and a small alarmed scream escapes her lips. She clamps her hand over her mouth. Wraps her fingers around the crystal, and spins in her seat. The ghost of a woman sits in the copilot's seat. She wears long robes, and keeps her hair braided away from her face in a simple plait. Her age is indeterminate, one second she looks like a woman near Rey's age, and another she looks older than General Organa. She looks very corporeal, more so than Rey has ever seen before in a ghost. If it wasn't for the slight glow around her, Rey would have thought she was a flesh and blood human being.
"Who the kriff are you?" Rey asks in a hushed, but terse voice. Ghosts couldn't harm her; there was no need to wake up the entire ship.
The ghost woman looks surprised, but pleasantly so. "You can see me?" A small smile crosses her lips. "It's been so long since someone actually payed attention to me."
"Who are you?" Rey asks again.
"You can call me Anakin." She nods to the crystal hidden in Rey's fist. "That crystal was mine. As was the lightsaber it belonged to."
Rey holds the crystal out and studies it again. It seems to glow a little brighter in the presence of the ghost. "I thought it was Luke's lightsaber…"
"It was his after it was mine." Anakin's eyes look up searchingly, as if remembering. "I built that lightsaber three days after my wedding. It was at the bottom of a frigid, icy pool," she scoffs with the disdain that only a native desert dweller could muster for things that were cold and wet. Rey can sympathize. Anakin sighs softly and frowns down at Rey's hand. "You be careful with that crystal. It has a violent history. It was born for wars and I'm beginning to think it thirsts for blood."
"What should I do with it?" Rey asks softly.
"A kyber crystal is a powerful weapon. In ages past they were used by the Jedi in their lightsabers, and the whole galaxy feared their blades. The Empire used them to destroy planets. Now…" Anakin regards Rey appraisingly. "You're not a Jedi, and you have nothing of the dark impulses of the Empire or First Order. My kyber came to you, and I'm not entirely sure why."
"What do you mean it 'came to me'?"
"You can see the glow, yes?"
Rey nods slowly. Can't everyone see the glow?
"When a kyber chooses its Jedi, it glows for them. To any other eye, it wouldn't be more than a pretty rock."
The crystal in Rey's hands looks innocuous enough; nothing more than perhaps a harmless hunk of quartz. Rey had collected rocks like that as a child whenever she stumbled across them on Jakku. They held no value and couldn't be traded for food, but she liked them regardless.
"May I?" Anakin asks, holding her hand out for the crystal.
Rey opens her palm, hardly expecting anything to happen. Ghosts couldn't touch real matter, not even a Jedi's ghost. She gasps softly when the crystal lifts from her hand and hovers across to Anakin. She floats the crystal around her hand for a moment, weaving t between her fingers, examining every facet.
"The crystal is the heart of the blade. The crystal is the heart of the Jedi," she recites in a whisper. She pushes the kyber back gently into Rey's hand. "That crystal likes wars and underdogs. It has big plans for you."
Rey opens her mouth to ask Anakin what the hell she is talking about. How could a rock have plans for anyone or anything? But she is interrupted.
"What the hell are you doing here?" A new voice snaps from the cockpit entrance.
Rey and Anakin turn to see Leia standing in the doorway, leaning heavily on her cane. She glares daggers at the ghost. Finn hovers behind her, looking rather confused at the specter in the copilot's seat.
Anakin opens her mouth to speak, but the General beats her to it. "Bah, figures you'd show up now of all times. Move. You're dead, you don't need to sit." She shuffles into the cockpit and makes for Anakin's seat.
Anakin obliges, stepping to the side to let Leia through. Finn steps in as well, pointing at the ghost and looking between Rey and Leia for an explanation. "Who is she?" he asks when no immediate answers are forthcoming.
"Oh, he can see me too?" Anakin asks, looking rather delighted.
"Obviously," Leia says dryly. "Rey, Finn, meet Anakin Skywalker, my birth mother."
"Your birth mother?" Finn echoes at a whisper, studying the ghost. His eyes widen as realization dawns. "You… you're Vader."
Rey looks the ghost over sharply. She certainly doesn't look like the epitome of the Dark Side of the Force, the one person Ren idolizes and built himself to become. Anakin however, doesn't deny Finn's accusation.
"Yes. I was."
Finn draws back, scowling at the ghost. Anakin looks down and away from the former storm trooper, guilt pulling at her face.
"You don't look like…" Rey begins and then trails off. Finn is looking at the ghost as if she is evil incarnate. Rey wants to trust her friend's instincts, but her own instincts tell her a different story. Anakin has shown no inclination of harm or ill will in their conversation… But then again; Rey knows how deceptive the Dark Side could be.
"What did you expect?" Anakin asks, with a mischievous quirk of her brow. "Kylo Ren with tits?"
Rey can't respond because the answer is 'yes' and 'no'. Vader's name and face had become so synonymous with monsters that even scavenger orphans all the way out on Jakku knew what face to scrawl on scraps of sheet metal when telling tales of horror. It was not a kindly older woman's face.
Anakin's face loses all mischief and a deep frown pulls at her lips. "The Force was far kinder to me in death than I deserved," she admits; her hand reaching up to trace the right side of her face.
"Stop being so melodramatic," Leia scoffs. "Why are you here?"
"To see you, Leia, and Rey."
"I don't want to see you." Leia shoots back.
"I know."
Several moments of uncomfortable silence fill the cockpit.
"Luke's dead, did you know that?" Leia asks sharply and suddenly.
"Yes." Anakin bows head but looks at her daughter. "Your brother will be around. It takes time to get accustomed to navigating the Force after death."
"And you've seen the fine mess your grandson has made all in your name?"
Anakin glares at her daughter. "I stayed away from him, just as you asked."
Leia returns the glare and opens her mouth to retort. Rey can foresee this quickly developing into a heated argument and then a shouting match – not what anyone needs right now. So she interrupts quickly, "Why are you here to see us?"
Anakin turns to Rey. "To warn you."
"About what?"
"The Force is in turmoil. There is a void, a power vacuum if you will, where the Sith and Jedi used to reside. They were opposing ends of a spectrum, always at odds, but maintaining equilibrium. The Sith were destroyed thirty years ago, and the last Jedi has destroyed himself."
"So what?" Finn asks, crossing his arms tightly. "You want Rey to find more wanna-be Jedi and fill that void with good and eliminate evil throughout the galaxy?" He ends his question with a small flourish of his hands, wiggling his fingers, as if the concept is a ridiculous dream.
"Luke's final act was to end the Jedi," Rey says, looking sharply at the ghost. "I'm not going to subvert his sacrifice to rebuild a failed religion."
"I'm not telling you to rebuild the Jedi. I'm telling you to make something better."
"Better how?" Finn asks suspiciously. "More inclined to stealing children, and breaking up families, and enslaving their soldiers?"
"Try less," Anakin fixes Finn with a look caught between a scowl and a frown. There is a tense moment of silence between them. "You and I aren't so different, Finn. I spent my whole life as a slave. Only you actually have true freedom. When I thought I had been given freedom, I really just traded one set of shackles for another."
"Yes, becoming a Jedi was just another form of slavery. I've heard it all before," Leia says disdainfully, her patience running thin. "Now get on with it. Some of us haven't slept in a week."
Anakin scowls at her daughter, but it is much gentler than it could be. "When I destroyed the Jedi Order, many believed that was the end of the Force in the galaxy, or at the very least, the end of the Light Side. But there's a funny thing about the Force, that even the Sith and the Jedi never fully grasped – or, more likely, chose not to understand – Light and Dark are a matter of perspective. The Force just… is. Millennia of prejudice between the Jedi and the Sith warped their perspectives of the Force until certain emotions became synonymous with either the Light or the Dark. An unbroken chain of teachings persisted across the ages, only becoming more inflexible with every generation. But now…"
"Now that chain is broken with Luke gone," Rey finishes. Luke had taught her so much and yet so little. Rey might not have learned any traditional Jedi teachings, but Luke had imparted plenty of wisdom.
Understanding dawns on everyone present. Anakin nods and continues. "The Force likes to be alive. It loves being in trillions of creature all at the same time. It never stops making Force-Sensitives because it loves to be played with. You can find them and fill this void in the Force with true Balance."
"No more Jedi." Rey says quietly. "No more Sith. Just..." she looks to Finn and smiles. "Just us and people like us."
Leia looks at the ghost and then at the two kids before her. She realizes that the mantle of rebuilding the galaxy was slowly being taken off her shoulders, and placed onto theirs. Much as it had been given to her at their age. The cycle continues, and new generations build off the teachings of their predecessors. "Balance cannot be achieved through absence, only acceptance," she says quietly, almost sage-like. "You cannot have day without night. But when they join together, you have –"
"The dawn of a new era," Anakin completes, looking at her daughter. They share a soft smile of understanding.