"Here," said Nayeli as she handed Anakin a tan-colored tunic, "it might be a little big, but it should help you blend in."
Anakin accepted the light tunic and slipped it on over his undershirt while Nayeli helped wrap a white turban around his neck and showed him how to use it to cover his head so that it would protect him from the sun and from being easily recognized.
"It used to be Raji's," she said as she took a step back to observe the teenage boy in the traditional clothing of her home planet and felt a sense of pride at how well she had managed to make the boy look like a native to the planet. But even Nayeli knew that no amount of traditional clothing could hide the fact that his attitude, his accent, and even the way he carried himself was not of Ben'we.
He would have to be extremely careful as to not draw attention to himself seeing the way he naturally stood out from other people. He was not the sort of face that could just disapear into a crowd unnoticed like most other people and somehow, deep down Nayeli knew that he meant to stand out. She could feel it in her bones, he was special.
"Does it fit?" she asked as she observed his tall frame, noting that the clothes appeared to be well formed to his lean and muscular body. He was just a boy and already he towered over her with his height to the point where Nayeli had to sometimes crane her neck just to stare up at him.
Anakin nodded his head as he took his utility belt and wrapped it around his waist before clipping his lightsaber on it and using his tunic to cover up the cylindrical metal before slipping on the jacket that Nayeli had given him to protect his arms from the sun. Nayeli watched him quietly as he slipped his boots on before she turned around to start packing him some food and water for the journey as well as stashing away his dark robes in the animal skin pouch so that he wouldn't lose them.
As soon as Anakin slipped his boots on, his gaze traveled to the window where he could see Raji preparing their speeder for the journey ahead of them. The older man had agreed to take Anakin into Yanasia but from there he would be on his own as was part of their agreement.
"You ready, kid?" asked Raji as he poked his head through the door, his eyes traveling over the worried ones of his mother.
"He'll be ready in a moment," said Nayeli as she stuffed the last of Anakin's robes into the bag. "Go wait by the speeder, I want to talk to Anakin."
Raji nodded his head and whispered something under his breath before disappearing down the muddy road to where the speeder was parked.
"Here," said Nayeli as she handed the younger man the bag, "I packed you some food and water as well as your robes."
"Thank you," said Anakin as he took the pouch from her and slung it over his shoulders.
"I'm sorry that we could not help you any more than we already have," she said with guilt lining her large brown eyes that reminded Anakin of his own mothers. "I feel so bad about leaving you by yourself in an unfamiliar city. Promise me you'll be careful, okay? If anything were to happen to you I don't know if I could forgive myself."
"I'll try," said Anakin with a small smile as he tried to lighten up her dark mood, but Nayeli's eyes only darkened.
"When you go into Yanasia," she said as she smoothed out the shoulders on the tunic, "you should avoid speaking to anyone unless you have to. The Empire isn't the only threat you need to worry about, there are countless Bounty Hunters that will gladly capture or kill you for the standing bounty on Jedi. There are also the slavers to worry about. They take anyone they can get their filthy hands on. My sister Shmi was taken by them when she was just a little girl and we never saw her again. Please, Anakin, do not let that happen to you."
She grabbed his hands into her own hands. They were small and calloused from hard work, just like his own mothers had been. Anakin's eyes widened, his blue eyes latching onto the familiar brown eyes of his mother's newfound sister as he inhaled a deep breath. The Force stirred around them as the connection between them became apparent, leaving Anakin with no doubt in his mind as to the validity of Nayeli's statement. The more he looked at Nayeli, the more he saw his own mother staring back at him. Nayeli looked almost exactly like Shmi, but older and more worn out, but the resemblance was uncanny. Anakin wondered how he could've missed it.
"My mother's name is Shmi," he said softly, his voice barely above that of a whisper.
He had never known much about his mothers past, only that she had been captured and sold into slavery at a young age. She had never liked to talk about it because of the pain it brought her to think of her old life and Anakin respected his mother enough not to press the subject. She had told him only once when he was younger that she had a sister once. Her eyes had filled with tears as she told him and it was apparent to the seven year old that she was heartbroken over the matter. He hadn't wanted to cause his mother pain, so he never asked.
He had never thought he would actually get the chance to meet his mother's family. To Anakin, the notion of his extended family had always been an inanimate concept. It had always just been him and his mother and that was it.
Nayeli's eyes widened as she clutched her chest, "Is-? Please tell me… Is her last name Skywalker?"
Anakin nodded his head, "yes, and so is mine."
Nayeli cried out as tears of joy spilled down her face, "where is she? Is she alive?"
Nayeli looked up at her nephew, silently pleading to know where her long lost sister was and where she had been all these years. She was just so happy and relieved to be finally getting some answers that she didn't even question how it was possible that her sister's son would somehow find his way back to them.
Out of all the planets in the galaxy, he had crash landed on this one. His mother's birthplace and the home of all the Skywalker's to come before him.
Was this the works of the spirits? Or of the mysterious Force?
It had always been said that the desert of Ben'we beat in all of its children's hearts and that in some way or another, they would always find their way home. Had the spirits seen fit to lead Shmi and her son back to them? Had Be'Neth, the Great Sky spirit who walked among the heavens, chosen this boy to reunite Nayeli and her sister?
Nayeli did not know but her heart was overjoyed nonetheless. She would not question what omnipotent power had brought her nephew to her, or whether or not it was true that he was indeed Shmi's son because she knew in her heart that he was. She could feel it in her bones as true as the beating of her heart. This boy was her sister's son.
"The last time I saw her she was on Tatooine," began Anakin slowly, "but that was eight years ago, I-"
He looked so helpless standing there, with bewilderment in his sky blue eyes as he thought back to the last memory he had of her. He hadn't realized if before now, but he was not sure what had become of his mother.
A lot could happen in twenty-eight years, a lifetime of sorrow or happiness could have taken place in that amount of time and Anakin was just at a loss. He would like to think that he had made good on his promise and that she was no longer a slave, but nothing was certain.
"Is she- Is she still a slave?" asked Nayeli. If Anakin was not a slave, then hopefully Shmi had gained her freedom, but there were so many extenuating circumstances to consider.
"I-I don't know-" said Anakin as he shook his head, "I mean I hope she isn't but I haven't been in contact with her for years."
"Why not?" asked Nayeli in confusion. What son would leave his mother behind to live a life of slavery?
A pained expression came over his face and his eyes fell to the floor in shame and guilt. He had left her there while he had gone away to learn the ways of the Jedi and there was a part of him that would always feel guilty about how he had just walked away from her.
He missed his mother so much and it was moments like this that threatened to tear him apart.
"Hey," said Raji as he stuck his head through the door to stare at his mother and Anakin, "are you ready yet?"
"Yes, he's ready," said Nayeli as she straightened up and looked over to Anakin with a longing look in her eyes. She wanted him to stay so that she could get to know him better so that he could tell her of the life her sister had been living. But at the same time, Nayeli knew that he could not stay.
He had to leave for the sake of his life and theirs.
Nayeli quickly wrapped her arms around the boy, who she already felt so protective of and leaned up to whisper in his ear.
"Contact us when you get somewhere safe," she said before pausing, "I will see if I can hire an investigator or something to see if they can find your mother. I only have a few credits but Raji will be able to get us more if necessary."
Anakin licked his lips before nodding, "thank you for everything you've done for me, Nayeli. I hope I'll be able to one day repay you for your kindness."
Anakin bowed his head in respect before he turned and made his way over to the speeder where Raji was seated in the driver's seat. It was strange to think that this older man with his dark curly hair and broad shoulders was his cousin, but Anakin could see that he was every bit Nayeli's son as he was Shmi's.
"So, you're really Aunt Shmi's son then?" he asked out of the blue as his eyes swept over the teenager with skepticism and disbelief. He had listened in on their conversation from outside and he hoped for his mothers sake that the boy was speaking the truth. He could not bear to see his mother get her hopes up only for them to be crushed. He knew she had longed for her sister all those years and not knowing what happened to her or if she was even alive had taken its toll on Nayeli. Which was why Raji could not help but be suspicious of the boy that had seemingly fallen from the sky and into their care. It was a remarkable coincidence that the boy he found unconscious near the side of the road would be the son of his long lost Aunt.
"I'm not sure if they're the same Shmi," he said simply. It was a statement meant to infer that this could all be a coincidence and that somehow there were two Shmi's in the galaxy who had been sold into slavery. It wasn't a very good one though and Anakin could still see the suspicion in his cousin's dark eyes, but Raji said nothing as he revved the engine and pulled out onto the road.
Anakin said nothing as the hut where Nayeli stood watching them from the door faded away from view.
He knew that he would be back here one day and that this was not the last he had seen of Nayeli. The Force had brought him here for a reason and he believed that this was a sign that he would free his mother and reunite her with her sister.
Why else would he have fallen into the arms of his long lost family?
They traveled in the speeder for a short amount of time, the both of them remaining completely silent as Raji drove and Anakin stared out at the vast and desolate terrain that he had hiked through only hours ago. He recognized the rock formation with its ancient pictographs where he had stopped for a short while before continuing south where he had been certain the settlement was.
"That's where I found you," said Raji as he pointed to an enclave of rocks once they were further down the road. Anakin squinted at the place as he tried to remember passing out there but found nothing in his memory to indicate that he had ever been there.
He must've been severely dehydrated to have not remembered and his mind most certainly woul've been playing tricks on him. The desert was known to be a cruel and merciless place full of evil spirits and tricksters who inflicted mirages and hallucinations to lead people astray before the spirits finished them off. Many people on Tatooine had believed in the lore that surrounded the desert, but it wasn't tricksters or evil spirits that caused people to die in the desert. It was delirium and thirst.
"You were suffering from heat sickness when I found you. You didn't even stir when I picked you up and put you in the back on the speeder," said Raji. "You're lucky I decided to travel this route last night or you would probably still be there."
Anakin nodded his head, "I never got the chance to thank you for that."
Raji exhaled, "if anyone deserves a thanking, it's my mother. She's the one who urged me to take that route this morning. I've no idea how she knew something was going to happen, but she did. She's always had a way of knowing stuff like that."
Anakin wasn't surprised by that statement. He could tell that his Aunt was slightly sensitive to the Force. Not enough to have been trained or to even wield it like a Jedi, but sensitive enough to get an inkling when something was going on. His own mother had always had a strange way of knowing where he was or if he was hurt as a child, indicating that perhaps she too had a small connection to the living Force just like her sister.
Raji took the speeder down a dirt road until they reached the bottom of the hill and the settlement became visible to them. The settlement of Yanasia was surprisingly larger than Anakin imagined with its large wall that surrounded the city and towers that barely peeked out from behind them. It was more of a city than an actual settlement.
"The rest of the city is underground," said Raji, "it was built that way so that the ancient tribe who built it could easily hide from their enemies as well as find shelter from the heat. When they left, it sat abandoned for years until settlers recolonized it and added more onto the city. They then turned it into a trading post."
"What happened to the people who built it?" asked Anakin out of slight curiosity.
"They mysteriously disappeared," said Raji. "No one is sure what happened to them."
"Oh," said Anakin as he hopped out of the speeder and followed Raji up the path that led into the city. He knew that Raji had only agreed to take him as far as the city gates before Anakin would be left on his own to find this Philio person to take him off world. But Anakin was not so sure that he would go through with finding this Philio person, not when he could feel that bright and shining presence growing closer and closer by the second.
He still was unsure about what he should do and the Force remained quiet on the subject. He could also feel that dark and foreboding presence growing closer and closer as well and he wasn't about to take his chances when it came to them.
He didn't want to cause a scene and he didn't want to fight them unless it was absolutely necessary, but that didn't mean Anakin was unequipped to do so if push came to shove.
Raji covered his head with his Baten'ii and motioned for Anakin to do the same when they came upon the crowd of people on the road that were either carrying trading goods or just trying to get past the long caravan lines.
"I guess this is it," stated Anakin as they both came to a stop in front of the entrance into the city.
"Head down this street until it comes to an end, then turn left and walk until you see a sign for Travelers Cantina. Keep your head down and ask for Philio, tell him that Raji Skywalker sent you and that he owes me a favor. He should be able to get you off the planet no questions asked and if he doesn't then give him this," he said as he handed Anakin a small coin.
"It's an ancient Nirubian coin, a very rare archaeological find here on Ben'we. Philio likes to collect them so he'll appreciate it."
Anakin nodded as he stashed the coin into his pocket where he knew it would be safe until he could give it to Philio.
"Be careful out there kid. The people here are dirt poor and probably wouldn't think twice about turning you in for the reward."
"I'll be careful," said Anakin as he watched two white guards walk by him. Raji had called them Stormtroopers and Anakin knew that they were here because of him. They were scouring the crowds for him, ready to take him into custody if they managed to find him. He could also see the posters that depicted his grainy picture as well as his physical description. The picture somewhat looked like him, but at the same time, Anakin highly doubted that anyone would be able to identify him from it.
But that was no reason to not be cautious.
Raji nodded, "you better be, especially if you really are Aunt Shmi's son."
Raji gave Anakin a hard look before he turned around and made his way down the path back towards where the speeder was. Anakin watched him until the older man disappeared into the dense crowd, leaving Anakin completely on his own.
Anakin made his way into the entrance, careful to not make eye contact with anyone as he passed under the arches before he set off in the direction that Raji had pointed him. Anakin was more than capable of finding his own way through foreign and unfamiliar places due to his time with Master Kenobi on missions, but he knew that Raji and Nayeli just wanted to make sure that he would be okay without him.
He walked through dirty streets that were lined with vendors, each one full of exotic foods, jewelry, clothing, and other goods that the native people were trying to sell. It vaguely reminded him of Mos Eisley and how the people would try to sell anything just to make something. There had been an older woman on Tatooine who made her own jewelry and every day she would sit out on her mat and sell it to anyone that was interested. She had always been kind to him, giving him some of her homemade snacks and asking him how he and his mother were doing.
Anakin hadn't thought of her for years, but he suddenly found himself missing that nice old woman.
Anakin turned left when the road ended and made his way down the cobbled streets, careful to avoid the screaming children as they chased each other through the streets while their mothers sat together chatting as they weaved baskets and clothes. The children waved at him with large toothy smiles and Anakin waved back to them before continuing down the street, his eyes wondering over the various establishments before he finally spotted the Travelers Cantina.
He was about to walk in when he spotted a group of Stormtroopers turn the corner, their blasters drawn and ready. Anakin was not sure whether or not they had recognized him or if they were simply asking anyone if they had seen the rogue Jedi, it was hard to tell considering no one could see their faces behind those strange looking masks.
"Halt!" said one to Anakin and a few other people that had been walking by, all of whom paused at the command.
"Have any of you seen a person matching this description?" he said as he held out the wanted poster for all to see. Anakin made sure to keep his head down and not make contact with any of them for fear that they would somehow recognize him. The people looked at the picture for a few moments as if they were trying to decide if they had seen someone like that in the hundreds of faces they had probably seen today.
"No," said all of the people as they shook their heads.
Anakin held his breath as he shook his head and was about to turn away from them when one of the Stormtroopers approached him.
"Hey, you there. Have you seen this person?" he said as held out the poster for Anakin, who held his head low and shook his head. He was about to walk away when a huge gust of wind hit him in the face and spread his light jacket wide open so that his lightsaber was visible to everybody who was looking at him.
Anakin realized his mistake almost instantly and quickly tried to button it up not before the Stormtroopers got a clear look at it. It was pretty obvious that these Troopers had been trained to spot Jedi because Anakin would've thought most people wouldn't recognize the hilt of a lightsaber and just assume it was something else.
Anakin was surprised that they could recognize one, and even more so when he found the end of multiple blasters pointed in his direction.
Just kriffing wonderful.
"Jedi!" they yelled as they started firing at Anakin, who at that point already had his lightsaber drawn and ready.
He easily blocked their shots as the people around them started screaming and running away from the blaster shots and the swinging of Anakin's blue lightsaber. They had already called for backup at that point and Anakin knew that there would be a large number of troopers already closing in on their position.
Anakin did not want to cause a slaughter and already he was making quite the scene. He just wanted to get off the planet, not have to fight off these troopers when he had been so close to escaping. It was infuriating how this had played out when he had been standing in front of the very place that would've helped him get off this damned planet. Somehow, Anakin was starting to believe that this may have been the will of the Force, for him to not go with Philio but to instead wait for either of those two presences to catch up with him.
He held back a shudder at the thought of meeting that darker of the two presences and the Force churned violently around him as if to tell him that his intuitions were true. He needed to stay as far away from that presence as possible, no matter what happened.
But he could sense that that would not be an easy task.
He hadn't realized it till now, his mind having been so occupied with trying to find the Travelers Cantina that he hadn't realized how extremely close the dark presence had gotten. They were here, on this planet and making their way in his direction and Anakin was worried at how close in the vicinity they were.
He could feel the dark and tainted presence even clearer now and he had to fight back nausea from how sickening their mere presence was. But there was something about the presence, something almost familiar-
Anakin swiftly blocked a blaster bolt as he started to slowly back away from them, hoping that at some point he would be able to turn and flee down one of the alleys so that he could try and throw them off his trail. He knew he needed to get out of there as soon as possible before that presence caught up with him and he would have to act fast if that was to be accomplished.
By then, even more troopers had appeared and Anakin wasn't completely sure that he would be able to hold them off much longer. He would have to go on the offensive if he was to get out of this alive.
Anakin used the Force to push a few of them away and in their surprise, he sprung forward and started using his lightsaber to incapacitate them one by one. Obi-Wan had always told him that in these certain circumstances that it was either them or Anakin and that sometimes one must take drastic measures to protect themselves.
Force, he could use some help right about now!
"Hey!" yelled a new voice from somewhere behind Anakin, "watch out!"
Anakin whipped his head around to see a Stormtrooper that had been knocked down had raised his blaster and was about to use it on him while Anakin was distracted. The Force blared in alarm as Anakin raised his lightsaber and blocked the blaster bolt before using the Force to throw them back against the wall, effectively knocking them out.
By then, a new person that Anakin did not recognize had run up next to him and had drawn their lightsaber and they too started blocking blaster bolts and using the Force to incapacitate the troopers.
Another Jedi! Anakin could feel that this was the person whom he had reached out to with the Force!
Anakin briefly looked over at the new person and saw a man who didn't appear to be much older than him with moppy blond hair that reminded Anakin of his own hair when he was younger and living on Tatooine. He too looked over at Anakin with an unreadable expression, both of their blue eyes meeting for a split second before returning to the current situation at hand.
Anakin didn't know what it was, but something strange had just happened and he knew that they could feel it too. He didn't even know this person, but he could not deny the familiarity of him and how this person just felt right to Anakin. It was almost as if they had known each other for years with how strong their connection had been and even the Force seemed to agree.
There was something about this person, something strange that Anakin just could not put his finger on.
The blond Jedi was not alone. He had brought a companion with him, a woman with dark hair who was currently using one of the alleys as a cover to protect herself from the blaster shots. From there she would poke her head out and fire back at the troopers with such precision and accuracy that Anakin was impressed.
She reminded him of Padme with her intricately done hair and the blaster in her hands.
"Hey," said the other Jedi casually, "how are you?"
I've been better," mumbled Anakin. "Thanks for coming by the way."
"No problem," he said with a coy smile. "I'm Luke and that's Leia," he pointed at the woman before looking back at Anakin.
"I'm Anakin," he said deciding to leave his last name out. He didn't know why, but the Force was warning him that it was best to leave the last name out, at least for now.
Luke almost seemed to stiffen next to him before he quickly regained his composure, but not without Anakin noticing.
"Kriff!" yelled the woman as she narrowly dodged a stray bolt. "Luke there's too many! We need to get out of here!"
Luke nodded, "agreed," he said as he gave Anakin a hard look, communicating with the younger Padawan what their next move should be.
Anakin nodded his head in understanding as they both reached their hands out and let the Force surge from their fingertips, knocking every single Stormtrooper back with their combined power. As soon as they had done that, they all turned and ran and down the street as fast as they could go.
"Where's your ship?" said Anakin as they ran down the dirty streets, trying not to knock screaming people or vendors over in the meantime.
"It's parked at one of the shipping bays," said Luke over his shoulder as he pointed to the dome-like building where people usually paid to keep their ships if they were visiting. "Sorry, we're a little late! We had a little trouble getting past the Imperial scouts!"
"A little?" said the brunette woman sardonically.
"Okay, a lot of trouble!" said Luke with an annoyed look on his face.
They were about to run down a side alley when they came across another group of Stormtroopers, all three of them quickly ducking behind the wall as the rain of blaster fire began again. It was beginning to look as if they would never get off the planet with how things were going.
"So this was your rescue plan?" asked Anakin from where he was plastered against the wall. "To just come in with blasters a blaze and hope you made it off the planet in one piece?"
Force he was beginning to sound like Obi-Wan! But then again he had been hoping to get out of here without causing too much of a scene but seeing all the destruction that they had caused, he knew that it was already too late.
"We wouldn't have to if you hadn't managed to gain the attention of all the Stormtroopers here!" said the woman snidely.
Anakin was about to open his mouth to respond to her little comment but was interrupted by the older blond man, who was trying to deflate the tense situation as much as he could. It was probably a good thing he did too, or Anakin would've probably said something he would've regretted later on.
Anakin had always had a way of clashing with people, and it seemed as though he and this woman would be doing a lot of that in the future. She might've reminded him of Padme at first, but Anakin could clearly see this woman was nothing like the young Queen he had met on Tatooine. Her personality was something else entirely.
"Hey!" said Luke, "both of you calm down. We'll find a way out of this, okay?"
"I hope we do before Vader shows up!" said the woman, her hair swiveling around her head and coming undone out of their intricately done braids, the stray pieces coming down to frame her sweaty and pale forehead.
Anakin shot Luke a look, "is that the Sith presence I've been feeling?"
"You bet it is," said the woman, "and you better hope you aren't on the receiving end of his red lightsaber when he shows up."
As much as Anakin was always willing to put his lightsaber skills to use, he wasn't so keen on doing it with a powerful Sith in a place like this. He had already caused so much damage with his mere presence and he knew that the locals were being put in harm's way with everything that was going on.
"I agree with her," said Anakin pointing at the woman, "I don't want to be here when that Sith shows up."
"Will both of you shut up?" said Luke tensely. "Vader isn't going to find us so just calm down."
"Don't tell me to calm down!" said Leia as she hit three Stormtroopers with her blaster before ducking behind the wall again.
"Just hear me out," said Luke as he deflected another shot, "I have an idea that hopefully won't get us killed."
"Great, we're all ears," said Anakin sarcastically. He didn't intend to be rude to his rescuers, but his sarcasm always had a way of manifesting itself in situations like these.
The situation was tense and all formalities had gone out the window by that point.
"I'll hold them off while you two make a run for it," said the older Jedi as Anakin shook his head. He didn't like the plan, but it was perhaps the best chance they had at escaping.
Leia shook her head, "No, we're not leaving you behind."
"You have too," said Luke urgently, "I'll be right behind you."
Anakin looked over at Leia, "it's the only chance we have. Either we stay and wait for Vader to show up or we get off this planet in one piece."
Anakin didn't like it any more than this woman did, but he was able to recognize that it was their only chance for survival. He could already tell that this older Jedi was more than capable of handling himself with a lightsaber, although he had noted earlier that his technique was a little sloppy around the edges but good enough to hold an army of troopers off.
"Don't worry," said Anakin as he drew his lightsaber and looked down into her brown orbs, "I won't let anything happen to us."
She seemed unsure but quickly made up her mind as they both ran out from behind their protected spot and into the open where the Stormtroopers were. She led the way as Anakin deflected any blaster shots that came their way while Luke had also come out and was charging into the group of Troopers so as to provide a distraction for the other two to escape.
"Come on!" yelled Leia as soon as they were out of the blaster fire, Anakin followed closely behind but was on high alert for any potential threats they might encounter on the way. By then, Luke was following them as well as keeping the white guards at bay, which was proving to be a tedious task.
Anakin and Leia ducked into the port and ran over to where a Correlian YT-1300 was parked in all of its rustic glory. This ship looked old and a little bit worn out, but it was obvious that whoever its owner was they took good care of it. Anakin could appreciate an owner that took care of their ship, especially one like this.
"Can you pilot?" she asked they both ran up the ramp and into the bowels of the ship.
"Yes, I can pilot," said Anakin as he ran to the pilot's chair while Leia waited for Luke to appear.
He had always been a natural when it came to piloting so he wasn't worried about flying this ship, which was way more familiar to him than that little thing he had escaped the Vigilant on.
Anakin revved the engine, "what course should I plot?!"
Leia quickly rattled off coordinates as Anakin set the course and turned back just in time to see Luke barrel onto the ship, his lightsaber still drawn as he continued to block the blaster fire while Leia raised the ramp to the ship.
"Go!" yelled Leia as soon as the ramp was raised. Anakin thrusted the ship forward and off the ground and away from the Stormtroopers as the world beneath them fell away. The ship soared into the sky as Anakin made sure to avoid the Imperial blockade that both Luke and Leia had spoken of before he took the ship into hyperdrive, leaving the planet of Ben'we behind as blue waves surrounded the ship.
Anakin swiveled the chair around to face his two rescuers, who were staring at him with unreadable expressions. He knew they would want some sort of explanation to his story, but Anakin had no idea how he was going to go about that. He wasn't even sure of the whole story himself.
Anakin breathed out a heavy sigh.
This should be interesting...