Esinon groaned softly as she rolled over, this didn't feel like her bed. She clasped a fistful of grass gently as she opened her eyes. She was in a forest of some sort, the trees looked like the same ones on... Mortis? How did she know that? She sat up slowly,
"Are you happy child?" a soft voice whispered, she jumped to her feet searching for the origin of the voice. The creek she had been sleeping by had mist covering the water, she could see a large figure looming. She tentatively stepped towards the figure, he emerged from the mist, it was the zabrak from last night. She drew her lightsaber, ready to kill. "Calm yourself, I'm not here to fight you."
"You killed my friend last night," she growled,
"Did I? He was already dead in the first place," He did have a point, "But are you happy?"
"Happy about what?" she asked, refusing to lower her saber, he shot her a look,
"With the Jedi?"
"Of course I am," she snapped, but she knew deep down, part of her was lying. The Zabrak smirked,
"I'm sure you are," Esinon held her lightsaber out to his heart,
"What do you want?" she snarled,
"To offer you another option. The Jedi are forcing you to push away who you truly are, whether you know that or not." he said, "I can show you your true potential, become my apprentice and together-'' he morphed right in front of her eyes into the son. She should have known this was a trick, "we can change the very balance of this universe." She stepped away from the son,
"I would never join the dark side willingly," she snapped, the son chuckled,
"How simple you make it, light and dark as if one can exist without the other. Balance eludes you, I can help you find it if you wish."
"And you would do this by me becoming a Sith, never." she snarled, turning on her heel and walking away. She felt anger knock into her as the son burst into flames,
"We will destroy the Sith!" he screamed, "And the Jedi! It isn't about them! This is about you! YOU MUST FACE YOUR DESTINY!" he morphed into his batlike creature in the flames, screeching at her. He charged her and she held her hands up in defense,
Esinon shot up out of bed, nearly hitting her head on the ceiling. She blinked a couple of times, she was still on their ship. She was alright, she let out a sigh of relief, placing her head in her hands for a minute. She was really sick of having all of these insane nightmares. She jumped off her bunk, careful not to wake Anakin. She started for the cockpit but promptly ran into Ahsoka,
"Sorry," Esinon mumbled, still rattled from her dream.
"You ok?" she asked, noticing the crease in Esinon's forehead.
"Yeah, bad dream, I'm fine though," they were both torn from their trains of thought when Anakin shot out of his bed, panting,
"Master are you alright?" Ahsoka asked, he nodded, "Were you having a nightmare?"
"Something like that," he replied, rubbing his eyes, they were all jostled as the ship jolted.
"If you're done napping I could use some help up here!" Obi-Wan called,
"I'm coming," Anakin grumbled, Esinon gasped as a hand squeezed around her neck, she felt so cold, and she could hear Ahsoka having the same reaction next to her. She clawed desperately at the cold hands of the son,
"Leaving so soon?" he cooed, "Not without these, you won't." The catwalk of the ship opened and the son dropped out, clasping both Esinon and Ahsoka.
"Ahsoka! Esinon!" Anakin screamed, the son transformed into his bat creature and took both of them flying through a raging thunderstorm. Esinon could still hear the roar of the ship behind them, as they dove into a canyon dodging large rock towers. The son was desperately trying to lose Anakin as they bobbed and weaved through the rock formations, the son spun, making Esinon's stomach flip. The son flapped his wings sending them forward at incredible speed into the fog that she couldn't even see through. She couldn't even see Ahsoka who was hanging right next to her, they passed by a large throbbing green orb, the force raged with the dark side, she scrunched her eyes trying to fight off the cold and pain. She eventually lost the battle and passed out.
A few minutes later…
Esinon groaned at the pounding in her head, as another cold shiver ran up her spine.
"Finally awake," the son murmured, Esinon grumbled something under her breath as she blinked her eyes a couple of times. The son was leaning up against a wall, she tried to move but realized she was restrained.
"Why take me? I'm not Master Skywalker's padawan," she replied, standing a little taller in her restraints. The son lazily cocked his head, studying the padawan before him, he didn't answer her question. "What do you want from me? What could you possibly hope to gain?"
"It's not about what I can gain from you," he began, starting to circle her, "It's what you can get from me." She simply glared at him,
"Why did you come to me in a dream?" she asked,
"Because balance eludes you, and the darkness is ever building. If you don't learn to control it, it will overtake you."
"Like it has you?" she asked, staring at him, "Don't think I haven't sensed the darkness, but there is conflict, it isn't too late for you." The Son chuckled,
"The conflict you sense, it isn't me. Look inside yourself, there is war raging," he took a deep breath like he could smell whatever he could sense. "I can feel it." Esinon flinched slightly, this was the second of the 'gods' that had told her they could sense conflict in her. She didn't want to believe it… but the Father had proved Anakin was the chosen one. To be perfectly honest, she was terrified, terrified about what all of this meant.
"I don't know what you're feeling, but it isn't conflict. I've chosen the light. I am a Jedi." she said firmly, the son cocked an eyebrow,
"Really? Because you seem to trust the force and it's will more than the members of your own order." Esinon didn't argue, because she knew it was true. The son stepped closer to her until he was inches away from her face, he then pressed a button, releasing her restraints, she jumped away from him, it made her head spin. "Alone again, it seems you always do end up alone."
"You don't know anything about me," She snarled, as they started to circle one another,
"I do in fact, everyone leaves you alone, whether you accept that or not. You will always be abandoned." he snarled, his fingers morphing into large claws. He slashed across her arm,
"Ah!" she cried, clasping the injured appendage to her chest. The fiery pain began to spread through her body. You will always be left all alone. She collapsed onto the ground, the son peering over her as the world went black.
The son watched Esinon's body flinch a few times as her veins turned black, and her skinned paled. His lips curved up into a demonic smile, as the padawan rose to her feet, eyes glistening bright yellow, deep red blood trickling down her arm onto the floor.
"It's time,"
A few minutes later…
"Anakin… always on the move." Obi-Wan muttered, running a hand over his beard. His mind flicked back to Esinon, it was like Anakin had forgotten that it wasn't only Ahsoka who had been taken. He needed to get to the father, the father could help him get his padawan. He wouldn't leave Esinon behind. "But how do I even get to the Father?" he wondered aloud, a bright light flashed behind him, catching his attention. He whipped around, seeing the monastery that hovered over the arena from earlier. There, there is where he would find the father. Obi-Wan rushed towards the cliff, and began his climb, with one name pounding in his mind. Esinon, Esinon, Esinon, he soon reached the top of the monastery and sprinted towards the steps. A flash of red light and the Father came flying down the flight of stairs.
"I hate you!" The son screeched, he morphed and created a powerful blast with his wings before disappearing into the night sky.
"Father!" the daughter cried, running down the steps, Obi-Wan knelt down and placed a pair of fingers onto his neck.
"He's alive," the daughter pulled her Father's head into her lap,
"Father," she whispered, pressing their foreheads together. Obi-Wan's head was drawn upward as a soft chuckle hit his ears. There was a dark figure at the top of the steps,
"Esinon," he whispered,
"Come back for me have you, Master?" She asked, her voice wasn't right, it was high pitched and teasing. That wasn't his padawan, whatever it was may have looked like her and talked like her, but that wasn't Esinon, "No?" she cooed, cocking her head, folding her hands in front of her. Bright yellow eyes flickered as lightning cracked. "He was right. Right about everything."
"Esinon…"
"Everyone always leaves Esinon alone," she growled, beginning to pace the top of the steps.
"What's wrong with you?" he murmured, starting towards his padawan.
"Always with the criticism, Master." she snapped, walking down a couple steps and jabbing her hands at her chest. "Never really believing in me, trusting me. You never wanted me to begin with!"
"Esinon I-"
"I know that you didn't ask for me. I was thrust down upon you. No one ever wanted me." she hissed, "Well, I don't need you anymore." She turned her back to him,
"Esinon. Esinon, listen to me, something is wrong with you. This isn't you!" he begged,
"Isn't it?" she snapped, "Can you sense it? Sense what they sense… the conflict?" she whispered, creeping down the stairs towards him. Obi-Wan had always sensed conflict in Esinon, but there was conflict in all padawans. "Afraid? You should be. He asked me to give you a message, either convince Anakin to join him or he'll kill me." She cackled,
"No, I won't let him," he replied, stepping towards his padawan,
"Then you will be forced to kill me." she snarled, she called her lightsaber into her hand, the blue blade igniting slowly. He shook his head, as a satanic grin spread across his padawan's face. She leaped into the air, saber over her head, he drew his saber quick enough to block his padawan.
"Get him inside," Obi-Wan ordered, the daughter nodded, taking her father inside as Obi-Wan shoved his padawan away. She advanced on him taking harsh swings, each coming inches from his body. She really was trying to kill him. "Esinon, I won't fight you." She flipped, kicking him in the face, sending him to the ground, she did a couple of back handsprings landing in a crouch. She stood back up as Obi-Wan struggled to get back up, staring at his saber that was a few feet away.
"And now the student will kill the Master," she snarled, igniting her blade again, she ran towards him as he called his blade to his hand, blocking her savage attack.
"Getting a little ahead of yourself aren't you padawan mine."
"Stop calling me that! I HATE IT WHEN YOU CALL ME THAT!" she snarled, Obi-Wan kicked her in the stomach, she slashed her saber, colliding with his. One, two, three, and sparks flew, he spun their blades around each other, throwing her saber up in the air. He used the force to throw it into the monastery. He threw his saber inside as well, she screeched in rage, trying to lunge for his neck. He grabbed her fists,
"Esinon, please, listen to me," he begged, she scrunched her eyes, shaking her head, trying to fight off pain. "I know you're in there, come back to me."
"No," she grunted, her eyes flickering back and forth from brown to yellow. "No, you don't care about me, you'll leave, they always leave, always, always, always,"
"Esinon, I'm not going to leave. I know that you're afraid that I will abandon you, and I can't promise to be around forever, but I promise to stay by your side as long as I can." She stared in his eyes, her face softening, eyes continue to flicker, "Come back to me padawan mine,"
"Master?" she whispered, her eyes turning back to brown, passing out in his arms.
"Don't worry, I've got you," he whispered, her whole body was still covered in black veins, but they were starting to slowly retract. She had beat the darkness, he picked her up and carried her up into the monastery. Esinon groaned, instinctively wrapping her arms around his neck. "It's alright," the Father was laying in between a pair of statues, the daughter waving her hands over his body. "How is he? I need to talk to him,"
"Not until he's stronger," the daughter snapped,
"Please, your brother hurt my padawan, he's losing himself to the dark side. He also captured our friend."
"Master?" she whispered, her hands tightening their grip on his robes.
"Shh," he whispered,
"Then he must have his reasons," the daughter replied,
"The same reason he had for attempting to murder your father?" Obi-Wan asked, the daughter flinched,
"He would never do such a thing,"
"I saw him,"
"It is not his fault, my nature is to do what is selfless, his will always be to do what is selfish."
"Then you must help us," Obi-Wan begged, Esinon tapped his shoulder, motioning for him to set her down.
"I cannot interfere with the ways of the force. My father forbids it," she said, rising to her feet.
"Please, he did the same thing to me that he did Ahsoka, he's gonna kill her. I can't lose her," Esinon pleaded, the daughter sighed.
"Because he corrupted you… you can wield the dagger." she said, "Come with me," The Master and Padawan pair followed after the daughter as they walked down a set of stairs, deeper and deeper into the monastery. They finally reached a cliff in front of a set of rocks that led to an altar. "I can go no further, your padawan must go and retrieve the blade."
"Why me?" Esinon whispered, terror, filling her eyes. The daughter placed a hand on Esinon's shoulder, and she instantly felt warmer.
"You carry great darkness with you, but that isn't a bad thing," she said, getting eye-level with Esinon. "You are stronger than that, you can beat it, you just did. You are strong and brave. Confronting fear is the destiny of the Jedi." A few tears trickled down Esinon's face, the daughter gently brushed them away, "You can do this," She nodded, determination replacing the fear.
Esinon leaped onto the next rock, jumping until she reached the altar. Green flames illuminated the darkness, the hilt sat spinning slowly in front of her. Esinon reached her hand out through the flames, they licked at her hand and arm but didn't hurt her. She grabbed the hilt, power surging through her body, she pulled it out, and as soon as she did a blade formed in her palm.
She looked back up at her Master in astonishment to make sure he had just seen what had happened. He nodded in equal astoundment, Esinon jumped back up to join them.
A few minutes later…
"Sister," the son greeted, his back turned to them as they neared him. "What a pleasant surprise. And you brought a friend. Esinon! I see you broke out of the stupor I put you in, but you might want to look at your arm." Esinon glanced down at her arm, the slash marks still oozing blood… she had forgotten about that wound.
"I'll be fine," she growled, resisting the urge to hover her hand over the dagger hilt on her belt.
"Mmm," the son responded,
"What have you done brother?" The daughter snapped,
"Done? I have done what is right… or what is wrong, depending on your point of view." The son sat down on his Father's throne,
"Our father is dying, did you do it?"
"He is just so selfish," the son said, steepling his fingers, "And he was just taking too long to die… so I decided to move things along. Now, why are you here?"
"I won't let you leave this planet." The daughter said firmly,
"You are not strong enough to keep me here," he replied, rising from the throne. Esinon had had enough, she was done letting the darkness control her.
"Not alone she isn't," Esinon snapped, stepping towards the son.
"Are you referring to your friend, the Chosen One?" he asked, stepping towards the window. "You might want to check up on him, he's a little bit preoccupied at the moment."
"Soka," Esinon whispered, dashing to the window and peering out, and sure enough, a corrupted Ahsoka, with the same hunger for her Master's death as she had once been. "We have to get down there, now," Obi-Wan drew his saber, slashing the window twice and using the force to shatter it. They both leaped out, landing in a roll on the ground and leaping to their feet, sprinting towards Anakin. Ahsoka jumped into the air, flipping up onto a platform, catching her lightsaber in her outstretched hand. She whipped around, igniting both blades,
"Three Jedi, finally, a challenge." she snarled, she leaped down smashing her lightsabers against Anakin and Obi-Wan's, kicking Esinon in the stomach. Esinon quickly leapt to her feet, tackling Ahsoka around the waist and bringing the Togruta to the ground. Both of Ahsoka's lightsabers flew out of her hands, Esinon grappled with her friend. Her best friend, Ahsoka decided to play dirty, sinking her nails into Esinon's wounded arm. She howled in pain, as Ahsoka kicked both her feet into Esinon's chest throwing her halfway across the courtyard,
"Esinon!" Obi-Wan cried,
"I'm fine, get Ahsoka!" she shouted, clutching her wounded arm to her chest. Anakin finally managed to gain some ground on Ahsoka, shoving the corrupted padawan back.
"Any suggestions?" he asked, Esinon used her speed to rush over to them, drawing the blade from the altar.
"We cut her free," she replied, aiming the dagger towards a corrupted Ahsoka.
"What is that?" Anakin asked, shocked,
"It can kill the son," she replied, lowering the blade slightly,
"Where do you get that?" Ahsoka snarled, eyes fixed on the dagger, "Give it to me!" The son's voice erupted from her mouth as she lunged towards Esinon, Obi-Wan and Anakin leapt in front of her, protecting her from Ahsoka's barrage of attack. CRACK! Glass shattered above and the son and daughter came flying out in a rainstorm of glass. All four Jedi ducked out of the way, to avoid further injury, nevertheless, they were all thrown to their feet.
"So glad you could join our party father," the son said mockingly, a bright flash of red erupted in front of Esinon's eyes as lightning splayed from his fingertips.
"You will stop this," the Father commanded, his voice strained as he blocked the son's lightning. Esinon struggled to her feet, all the soreness of the battle starting to set in.
"You are too weak for me old man!" the son cackled, doubling his efforts. "You mean nothing to me anymore," Esinon glanced at Ahsoka to see her lips curling into a grin of sadistic pleasure. Esinon knew that darkness, she had just had to fight through it. The Father was losing this battle, his shield finally fell and the lightning hit his already weak body. Obi-Wan rushed to the daughter, helping her up as the son rose towards the father. Esinon clutched the dagger more tightly in her hand, she knew she didn't have the strength to defeat the son as he tormented his father with more pain, but Anakin did.
"Anakin, now!" she shouted, tossing the dagger towards the elder Jedi. Just as it was about to reach his hands, Ahsoka darted in, grabbing it from the air. She landed gracefully next to the son, peering over her shoulder and holding the dagger teasingly, letting Esinon know that she had failed.
"Everything has transpired exactly as I have planned," the son said, as Ahsoka stood in front of him.
"You showed them the altar?" the Father asked, weakly rising to his feet. The daughter hung heavily on Obi-Wan for support.
"I am sorry Father, I didn't know how else to stop him,"
"Give it to me child," the son commanded, Ahsoka peered around her shoulder,
"Ahsoka, no!" Anakin begged, reaching out a hand for his padawan, Ahsoka's hand curled around the dagger's hilt for a minute before handing it over to the son. He ran a finger down the edge of the blade,
"Thank you," he cooed, "Your usefulness has to come to an end," He pressed his fingers to the diamonds on Ahsoka's forehead, she instantly crumpled to the ground, her lightsaber rolled out of her limp hand.
"No!" Anakin screamed, Esinon crumpled to her knees feeling Ahsoka's force aura leave her body.
"No," Esinon whispered, her arms shaking, rage starting to burn through her body.
"The Jedi have brought me the dagger, and you have brought yourself," the son growled at his Father, Esinon leapt up to her feet.
"I'm going to kill you," she snarled, sprinting towards the son,
"Are you now," he murmured, he waved a finger, sending Esinon flying across the courtyard, crashing into the wall. She groaned, but she couldn't get up, the son was holding her in place on the ground. "Now Father, you will die." The son raised the dagger to stab his Father,
"Father!" the daughter cried, rushing away from Obi-Wan and catching the blade in her back, the light around her body dimming.
"Why!" The son screeched, the sky thundered and cracked. Esinon was released from the ground because in a large wingbeat he was gone. Esinon jumped up sprinting over to the still body of Ahsoka. Anakin was kneeling next to Ahsoka, the elder padawan's eye rolled up into her head. This was all her fault, if she hadn't tossed the dagger, this wouldn't have happened! She felt Obi-Wan rest his hand on her shoulder, sensing the hurricane that was her force aura.
"All is lost," the father murmured, Esinon finally snapped back to, as the trees began to disintegrate, Esinon could sense the darkness surging, "The balance is broken. I thought by bringing you here, I would…" The father began tearfully, clutching his daughter's flickering hand. "But I have destroyed everything,"
"Can you help her?" Anakin choked between tears,
"There is no light. The evil has been unleashed, and the dark side will consume her."
"You must help her!" Anakin shouted,
"I cannot undo what is done!" The Father shot back, tears trickling down his face. "There is no hope."
"Yes there is, there's always hope!" The Father sighed, his eyes closing. The Daughter reached up a flickering hand towards her father, and then weakly pointed at Ahsoka's still body. The Father gently stroked her cheek, before rising to his feet and motioning for Anakin to get in between them. Anakin obeyed, closing his eyes in meditation. The Father raised his hands, Anakin in sync with his movements.
"Then let my daughter's last act to be to breathe life into your friend." Anakin placed his fingers on the daughter's forehead and then onto Ahsoka's forehead. His eyes shone with bright light as both bodies on either side of him lifted into the air. The light pulsed, along with the thrumming of her crystal, it soon subsided as both bodies drifted back to the ground, and Anakin fell out of the meditative trance, his hands hitting the ground as he panted. Esinon stared hopefully at Ahsoka, she didn't move… it hadn't worked. She buried her head in her hands, her best friend was dead and it was all her fault. She heard a gasp, she looked up to see Ahsoka shooting upward, coughing and gasping for air. She was alive! Anakin immediately pulled her in a tight embrace,
"Hey Snips," he said, with a strained chuckled,
"What happened?" she murmured, returning his hug, looking around confusedly, cocking a concerned eyebrow at Esinon's tear stricken face. She didn't remember anything…
"Um… nothing much, it's good to see you," he replied, Esinon grabbed Ahsoka's saber off the ground and handed it to her.
"As the balance in this world crumbles, so shall war escalate in your galaxy." The father knelt down next to his now unmoving daughter, "As my son has descended into the dark side, so have the Sith gained strength."
"We will stop your son," Esinon said confidently,
"No, you must leave, now!" The Father exclaimed, "He needs your ship to leave the planet. You must go before he can take it."
"What about you?" Obi-Wan asked,
"I will mourn all that I have done… and all that is yet to be," he said sorrowfully, and with that, they all turned and left.
A few hours later…
Esinon continued to type out more code as she struggled to get a transmission through. It was difficult because of the rain for one, but her computer kept glitching out because of this planet.
"Well, do you want the bad news, or the really bad news?" Ahsoka asked, popping out from the inside of the ship, Esinon joined them all in the main hallway.
"How about the bad news laced with a little optimism," Obi-Wan said,
"Well, we've got two busted shilo pins, a busted power converter, the engines should be fired twice to clear the debris, and the backup vents need charging," Ahsoka explained, heaving herself out of the ship's insides.
"Well that is terribly downbeat," Obi-Wan remarked, a hand going to his beard. "What about you Esinon, any luck getting a transmission through?"
"Not yet, the weather's not helping, and I think there's a latency issue with the frequency, there's a lot of atmospheric interference."
"Can the ship be fixed, Snips?" Anakin asked as Ahsoka jumped back down into the belly.
"Uh… I can reroute the primary initiator, weld the dampening vents and that might give us enough power to leave the atmosphere. After that, I have no guarantees she'll hold,"
"If Ahsoka gets us out of the atmosphere, it'll be easier for me to get a distress signal out," Esinon added,
"Well we'll take our chances, better than staying here," Obi-Wan replied, exiting the ship,
"E, can you hand me the socket plug," Ahsoka asked, holding up her hand out of the belly. She handed it to her as Anakin pushed a BARC out of the ship, where in the world was he going? After Ahsoka dying, and her being corrupted by the son, she just wanted to get off of this planet. Esinon subconsciously rubbed her newly bandaged arm, Cody was gonna have questions about that, but how was she supposed to explain it? Esinon headed back to the cockpit, tucking her laptop under her chin, how were they going to explain any of this? Her eyes drooped sleepily, as she struggled and lost the battle to sleep.
A few hours later…
"Esinon, Esinon," she jolted awake, to see it was only Master Kenobi,
"Oh, sorry," she muttered, already opening her laptop to continue working,
"Esinon, I… I have a question." her Master said, sitting down in the seat across from her, Esinon nodded, crossing her legs. "Did the son take you for another reason other than trying to get me to convince Anakin to help him." Esinon nodded,
"He visited me, in a vision right before I was taken," she explained, "He said I needed to accept my destiny… he said we could rule the galaxy together." She didn't realize it until Obi-Wan rested a hand on her shoulder that she was shaking. "Master you don't think that I could be a Sith… do you?" she asked quietly,
"I don't Esinon, everyone carries darkness inside of them. Even Master Yoda, just because you have the potential to be a Sith, doesn't mean you will become one. It's about not letting the darkness control you, you have to control the darkness. I know that your strong enough to do so, the embodiment of light told you." he said, smiling at her, "Besides, you're known as the sunshine child in the temple, I don't think you could become a Sith if you wanted," In a flash her arms were around his neck, hugging him tightly,
"Thank you, Master," she whispered,
"You're welcome padawan mine," he replied, hugging his padawan tightly. And to think he wasn't going to ever train another padawan, thank goodness Master Yoda assigned her to him. He definitely had a different relationship with Esinon than Anakin, and that was ok, the moment was promptly interrupted by a soft snore coming from the belly of the ship.
"I guess Soka isn't the only one who was sleepy," Esinon joked, pulling away from him.
"I'll go find some tea, keep working on trying to get a transmission through," he instructed, before leaving the cockpit, she nodded,
"Yes Master," she set back to work, still sensing a lingering bit of trouble coming from Obi-Wan, he was worried about Anakin, who had left a few hours earlier, and it didn't take a bond to know. She could hear Master Kenobi talking to Ahsoka,
"We need to change plans," he said, "You must focus on the firing drives. Disengage them."
"But I almost finished putting this junk heap back together," Ahsoka said, her voice bordering towards a whine.
"Just do as I say. Please," he said, grabbing the last BARC speeder, "We don't have much time," Ahsoka shrugged,
"Mmkay, you're the boss," she replied, disappearing back into the belly. Esinon hesitated, letting her Master go… something had gone wrong. She could sense the darkness growing,
"Come on," Esinon said, starting for the catwalk, Ahsoka heaved herself out of the underbelly following Esinon outside.
"Anakin has gone to confront your son, hasn't he?" Obi-Wan accused the Father,
"Deep within this planet exists a place where all that is dark channeled," The Father explained,
"How do I get there?" Obi-Wan asked, climbing onto his speeder,
"You cannot interfere." The Father said firmly,
"The way I see it if we were not supposed to interfere, Ahsoka, Esinon, and I wouldn't be here in the first place." The Negotiator shot back, "Stay here and watch the ship, I'm going to get Anakin." The two padawans nodded as their Master sped off.
A few hours later…
Esinon hadn't given up on trying to get a transmission through, but she was getting discouraged. Just as she was about to give up, the light flashed green,
"Finally!" she exclaimed, "This is Jedi shuttle 634, calling on all secure channels for help. Do you read? I repeat, we are stranded and need immediate evac. Come in please," No one responded, but her message was out there, to anyone who was listening. She walked out to where Ahsoka was putting the finishing touches on the ship, Esinon sat down, hanging her legs over the edge. "I managed to get a distress signal out, to anyone who was listening."
"First win of the day," Ahsoka muttered, Esinon was still feeling out of balance after watching Ahsoka die, and yet her best friend was standing right in front of her. "You ok E?" Ahsoka asked, patting her friend's knee as she passed.
"Yeah, just thinkin' that's all," she replied,
"About what?" Ahsoka wasn't one to stop probing about something, especially when she could sense something off with Esinon.
"Master Skywalker and Kenobi have been gone a while, with everything happening here, I can't help but worry."
"I'm sure everything will be-" Ahsoka spoke too soon because Esinon's comlink buzzed with the frantic voice of Master Kenobi.
"Esinon, Esinon can you hear me? Come in please! Esinon!"
"Yes Master, any success with Anakin?" she asked, Ahsoka joined her at the comlink, her force aura stirring slightly with anxiety.
"No, quite the opposite."
"Master… what are you saying?" Ahsoka asked slowly.
"Anakin has joined forces with the son." Both of their stomachs dropped, "Don't engage him!"
"But-" Ahsoka began,
"Just do as I say!" Master Kenobi sounded more stern and panicked than usual, Esinon could sense the force stirring with darkness. Her crystal shuddered, "Listen to me, you have to disable the ship."
"But I just finished putting it back together," Ahsoka said, gritting her teeth together, trying to hide how worried she was.
"Ahsoka please listen, we have to prevent Anakin and the Son from leaving," he said,
"We'll do it Master," Esinon said, squeezing Ahsoka's shoulder reassuringly. The roar of a speeder neared, making both of them perk up. "I'll grab the power cell, hide and we'll get off the ship." Esinon used her speed to grab the power cell and joined Ahsoka on the ceiling. Anakin stormed through the ship into the cockpit, as soon as he passed, the two padawans dropped and ran out to the parked BARC speeder. "I'll run," Esinon whispered, as they took off.
"So how exactly do we find this Darkside place?" Ahsoka shouted over the speed of the wind as Esinon kept pace with the speeder,
"Just go straight till we hit it? I dunno, just keep going until it feels cold!"
A few minutes later…
Esinon peered over the edge of the well that was full of lava at the bottom, she could see the form of Master Kenobi climbing up the side. Of course, he would try and take matters into his own hands,
"I see him," Esinon said, Ahsoka began to climb off the speeder, "Soka, what are you doing? You've gotta ride down to get him,"
"I thought you would want to," she replied, "He's your Master,"
"At this point, he's our Master, go get him I'll keep watch in case Anakin tried to trail us here. The son can be here in a couple of wing beats." The Togruta nodded before descending into the fiery mess, a few minutes later Ahsoka had risen to the surface with her Master in tow.
"Where do we start searching for Anakin?" Ahsoka asked,
"I'm not sure at this point," Obi-Wan said, Esinon grabbed her head as memories flashed through her mind, it was only bits and pieces but it was enough to give her a location.
"The arena, he's with the Father," Esinon said,
"How…" Obi-Wan began,
"I'll explain later, we've got to hurry. The son is closing fast," Esinon said, and in flash she was gone.
A few minutes later…
Esinon skidded to a halt, with Ahsoka and Obi-Wan entering the arena where Anakin and the Father were standing.
"Master!" Ahsoka shouted, jumping off the speeder and running to him,
"Are you alright?" Obi-Wan asked, walking tentatively towards his former apprentice, this time it was Esinon's turn to soothe the qualm of anxiety that swirled around her Master. She placed a hand on his shoulder as Anakin stood up,
"I think so," he said, "But we must stop the son once and for all," Maybe Anakin had been forced to join with the son, been corrupted as she had because she knew that Anakin would never join the dark side willingly.
"We will have little time, and you'll only have one chance," The Father said, "You know what you must do,"
"How quaint," the son cooed, he descended gracefully into the arena, "My own personal send-off,"
"I ask you one last time," The Father said, the son's red eyes flickered, "Do not leave my son,"
"You have no power to keep me here old man," The son snapped, "You must understand by now, this planet is not my destiny."
"What will you do is destroy all that is good." The Father said, "I beg, restrain yourself and stay."
"I cannot," The son said, turning his head from his father,
"And this it shall be," he replied sorrowfully, "I love you, my son."
"Do you?" the Son asked, Anakin ignited his lightsaber, he struck a couple blows, but the son blocked with his arms. The son lunged, locking his hand around Anakin's neck and throwing him across the arena. The three remaining Jedi ignited their blades, in an instant the son had wrenched their blades from their grasps. All three of them tried to lunge at him, but with one flick of his hand, they were on the ground halfway across the arena. Esinon groaned, as she attempted to push herself to her feet, but she was too sore to. All she could do was lay there as blurred voices floated into her ears, Esinon gasped as she felt the force surged, life passing on. The Father and Son were both dead,
"Esinon, Esinon!" Ahsoka shouted, shaking her, "Wake up!"
"I'm awake Soka, calm down," Esinon groaned, as she forced herself into a sitting position. The seventeen-year-old togruta hoisted Esinon to her feet, as the three went to join Anakin. The world around them began to crumble, the crystal at the top of the monastery fell and shattered into a billion pieces casting a white light over the entire planet. Esinon raised her arm to shield her eyes, wondering if this was it, and-
"General Skywalker come in," the voice of Rex said, Esinon groaned, blinking her eyes open, they were back in the ship.
"We read you Rex. Can you hear me?" Anakin asked, Esinon glanced at Ahsoka who shrugged, she was just as baffled.
"Yes sir, we read you and are standing by. We were worried, you were off the scopes there for a moment." Only a moment? They were gone for two days at least.
"A moment?" Anakin chuckled, "We've been gone longer than a moment, Rex."
"Sir, I don't understand. You'll have to explain," Rex said, all four of them glanced at each other,
"You wouldn't believe me if I told you." Anakin said, Rex shrugged, probably used to the Jedi antics by now, "We're coming in now."
A few days later…
All four of them had agreed not to speak of what they saw on Mortis, but Esinon still wanted answers. She had been scouring the library for any record of Mortis.
The Father had mentioned that Qui-Gon knew about these force beings, but she had been struggling to get in contact with him. He seemed to work on his own timetable, Esinon scanned a few shelves, pulling out a few more data cards.
She sat down at a console and inserted the card, using her speed to read the hundred-page long document in seconds. She blinked a couple of times making sure she was retaining all of the information, Madame Nu passed by her smiling softly, she had been in the library all day.
Information about force users was scarce, but it looked like these people had been around since before the Jedi-Mando war. And it seemed like the Father had contained his children shortly after that war ended, the son probably thrived off of the darkness, but never acted on it because he couldn't leave the planet without a ship. She could feel her eyes drooping as her head dropped down to the desk.
Esinon jolted awake, surveying her surroundings. She was in the forest, on Mandalore she suspected. Somewhere outside Sundari, she got to her feet and set off to find Qui-Gon. Since realizing their bond, the memories and dreams had been easier to control, and reach. She'd even gotten to the point that sometimes she stretched out beyond the memory, so she had to go find Qui-Gon. After a few minutes of walking through droopy trees she found a campsite, where Qui-Gon was busying himself with a card game. That's often how she found him, doing something else so the teenagers could sleep. She joined him on the log,
"Ok so I have some questions," Qui-Gon hummed thoughtfully laying another card in a pile,
"You've had quite the adventure," he said,
"Indeed I have, and I think you'll have some answers." She said, sitting up a little taller, as the firelight flicker,
"And what makes you think that?" he asked,
"Because the Father said you knew about their existence,"
"Yes, I did. I have notes on them somewhere, Obi-Wan probably has them. He's always been sentimental like that," Qui-Gon said, offering her a card for him to help her. She laid it down in the appropriate pile, and he handed half the deck to sort.
"How do I get them? He doesn't know about you,"
"I did plenty of research on the living force while I was alive, tell Obi-Wan it's for a project in class and he'll hand them over. He trusts you more than he does most,"
"There are two problems with that, we promised not to lie to each other, and he never talks about you. If I ask for your notes about the living force when he's never brought up that you've studied it."
"Then find some way to get him to bring the topic up if you seem interested enough he'll show you,"
"I feel bad being manipulative," she muttered, resting her elbows on her knees, her attention discarded from the cards in her hand. Qui-Gon sighed, "Why doesn't he talk about you? When he does, it's fondly, he loves you a lot."
"When I died, Obi-Wan was still a padawan. He was trapped on the other side of a ray-shield and watched helplessly as I was stabbed. I… died in his arms, it's an unpleasant memory, and he still blames himself for my death. I'm pretty sure that's the reason he doesn't want to talk about me." Esinon's stomach dropped, so that's why he didn't want to bring it up. Obi-Wan knew not to probe about her traumatic memories unless it was really necessary. Such as after Sarrish nightmares, she didn't want to indirectly hurt him because she needed answers.
"Master, I…"
"I know, but he has to talk about it sometime. The Jedi Order messed far too much with his ability to grieve any of this properly," he said, patting her hands, prompting her to continue helping him with his game. She obliged,
"Master… do you not trust the order?" she asked tentatively, Qui-Gon paused for a moment,
"I don't know if I would say I don't trust them. I just don't agree with some of their methods, and rules. Do you know how long the order has been around?"
"Almost as long as the galaxy," she replied,
"And we've had the same code for almost as long as the order has existed. Times are changing, and the Jedi are refusing to change with them. The Jedi have become detached, and political, forgetting that at the core of our beliefs is love."
"But what about attachments Master?" she asked,
"Attachment isn't love. You love Fives and Echo, correct?" she nodded, "But you do not try to possess them, you let them go about their duties as ARC troopers, and have other friends. You appreciate their companionship but are prepared to let them go, you have more practice because they aren't always looking with the 501st. If you tried to keep them around you all the time, not let them have other friends and tried to prevent them from going on missions that you deemed dangerous, that wouldn't be love. That would be attachment, love is willing the good of another person. And as a Jedi you must be ready to let people go, people come and go and that is simply a fact of life. Does that make sense?"
"Yeah… but why does the council teach it differently?" she asked, finishing their game. Qui-Gon scooped up the cards shuffling them to play again.
"And that, my little runner, is why I wasn't on the council while I was alive. Let's just say the council and I had very different views," he said, starting a few new piles of cards.
"Master Kenobi said you were a maverick," she mumbled, stealing half the cards to help him.
"That's one word for it," he replied, moving a card to a different pile she had just put down.
"Why did they let you stay? I've heard them exiling people like you," she said, she shuddered slightly at the thought of the Jedi abandoning one of their own for differing views. Jedi left with nothing, and nowhere to go. Qui-Gon sensed the young padawan's anxiety and placed a hand on her shoulder.
"I may have differing views, but that doesn't mean that I'm wrong and I think you know that. The order is not going to kick you out because you believe something slightly different than you. You are strong and wise, much wiser than I." he said, she nodded slowly,
"The things that the Father and the son said, they scare me… to be honest. I… the darkness, it's there. I can feel it," she whispered, scrunching her fists a couple times. "I'm scared that it'll come out, and will be something I can't come back from." Her face heated up as she could feel a couple tears making their way down her face. She wasn't supposed to be crying, she was a Jedi. Jedi don't cry. Yet she had, she cried so many times over Foxtrot, over every trooper she couldn't save, over Knox, and her mother. She was supposed to be stronger, Master Kenobi didn't cry, Anakin didn't cry, even Ahsoka, didn't cry. She felt Qui-Gon wrap an arm around her,
"Little runner," he whispered, "I know that you are scared, and a lot of new things are happening, and things are changing, but you must remember that you are stronger than the darkness. The way you love gives you strength because you fight for something. Most Jedi don't fight for anything at all, they fight because they are told to. So keep loving my little runner, it makes you stronger,"
And Mortis comes to a close
This was originally two chapters, but I finished school and have more time. I finally got it together, we're all gonna be ok.
Next up on let's make that canon corner: all of the clones are extremely artistically talented (this is basically canon) I mean have you seen their armor,, and if they don't get paid, then they have to do each other's tattoos and haircuts. Plus the art on their gunships? The clones beat me at art. Gosh darn it.
Thank you for reading and make sure to leave a review! Love you all!