Disclaimer: Sue me not. Me in college. Have no money.
Anakin Skywalker stood before him.
"Ani," Anakin said, a kind smile on his face. "You're not me. You have my memories, but you aren't me."
"I know that. I never said that I-." Anakin gently cut his clone off.
"You say this, and I know that you want to believe it. Unfortunately, in your mind, you have twenty-two year old me. I didn't know then, how to react reasonably instead of emotionally. I didn't know the extent of the kind of power I could wield. And most importantly, I didn't care about others."
"Yes, you did. You cared about Padmé and Obi-wan and your mother." Ani protested.
"But Ani, I didn't stop to care about strangers. That is an important part of being a light Jedi. I didn't care about that village of Tusken Raiders. I didn't care about any of the people I killed. I never considered what the ramifications would be. Most of the time I just acted, letting my emotions run away with me." Anakin continued. "You do it too. For instance, you lost control when you helped Luke. You reacted in defense of my family, and I thank you, but it wasn't needed. He can easily escape from TIE fighters, but you didn't consider that, and reacted. Consequently, you had to run from your life."
Ani was clearly thinking over these interpretations. "But I didn't kill the TIE fighters, I just spun them." Thinking he had won a point, he looked up at his originator. "Yes, a fact that makes you more cautious and in control of yourself than I was. But, you still ran from your life, the part of you I could never be, nor ever was. You need a life Ani. Something to separate us and keep you light. You aren't me."
"But, Yoda and Qui-Gon and Obi-wan said that Luke's new order would need my help. I don't want to get to the point where they need me and then I fail and mess things up again. Or if I get so attached I lose it when something goes wrong. If the Sith can manipulate me that easily I-." Ani shook his head in sad bewilderment. "I don't know what to do." He paused, thinking. "And I'm more in control only because of what you did as Vader. I don't want to see that happen again." Ani stared at the floor.
No one spoke for a moment. When Ani looked up, he could see a brilliant smile on the middle aged face. "That's exactly right. What I did. You did nothing to kill those people; it is not your responsibility. Look,-." Ani cut him off.
"But, I have those memories. I can still see every Jedi I-." He let out an exasperated sigh. "No, you killed. I can see every last Raider that followed my mother. I can see all of their deaths. And it's no different than if I had been the one behind the lightsaber, because in a way, I was.
"I understand Ani, believe me." There was a long pause. "Let me carry the responsibility for their souls Ani. I know it's hard, and you feel guilty, but let it go. It is admirable that you learn from my crimes. By knowing that you are capable of the same kind of destruction, maybe you won't lose control.
"Now, back to what you were saying. You're right, Luke will need you. You are the only one who can tell him of the ways of the Old Jedi Order. You are the only one who can show him where all the old Libraries and Sanctuaries are. Palpatine and I destroyed most of them, but you know where at least one of the hidden ones is. Okay. Besides that, you saw what's coming. You still remember right?"
"How could I forget? What can hunt down Jedi that way? They weren't even outnumbered."
"I know." The expression on Anakin's face reflected the seriousness of the situation. "To make the invaders go, the people of this galaxy will need all the Jedi and Force that they can get. But even more importantly, they will need to unite, and work for the common goal of getting rid of the Vong. They need to put their differences aside; otherwise they will become sub-sentient slaves and never be free again. The Force adepts would be sacrificed to their pagan gods, whole worlds would be destroyed far worse than Alderaan or Caamas. Compared to the Vong, Palpatine and the rest of the Sith lords were benevolent."
"I can see that, but Anakin, I can help Luke rediscover Jedi Lore, I can help fight the invaders when they come, but how can you expect me to unite the whole galaxy?" The demands the Force was making on Ani were ridiculous.
"We don't expect you to unite the whole galaxy; just try to encourage groups to be open to unorthodox alliances. You're going to be meeting some influential people. The Force will get you where you need to be. Please, stay light. That's the only way you have a prayer of helping anyone."
"I'll try, but-." Anakin interrupted his clone.
"No. Do," The emphasis was clear. "Or do not."
"There is no try." Ani finished.
"Don't forget, Peace-." Anakin begun the opening stanza of the Jedi Code.
Ani continued it. "Over anger. Honor over hate. Strength over fear." Ani decided to repeat other reminders this visitation had clarified for him. "I must be considerate of strangers as well as friends. I must learn from the past without letting it consume me. And I must think and center before I act, or I'll lose the control I need."
"Here, this might help you." Something flew out of Anakin's hands and landed in Ani's. Anakin's kindly face smiled down on him, as the Jedi faded away, into the Force.
Slowly, Ani's mind rose out of the trance. He found himself sitting on the floor of the cave, with his back leaning up against the crystalline wall. It was pitch black. Thankfully, the air was clear, the dark left him alone.
Feeling weight in his hands, Ani felt along the object. It had the cylindrical feel of a lightsaber hilt.
Ani held the weapon out horizontally and depressed the button. Three feet of light extended into the dark. The blade was beautifully balanced and glowed a dazzling navy blue. Anakin had always favored his blade in a lighter shade, but Ani felt that this deeper hue suited him perfectly.
After a few minutes, Ani realized he was mesmerized by the weapon's glow. Glancing up, he saw the light refracted and reflected in the obsidian cavern. It produced and effect similar to a stellar cartography lab; thousands of stars shining from the fabric of space.
He bent closer to the wall to examine the engravings of the Jedi history. The record extended four thousand years, from the era of the Sith rule to merely a year before Anakin had turned.
"I suppose I ought to be flattered." He'd known the appearance of the Sith was important enough to be etched in stone, the whole Qui-Gon story was right there. But he hadn't expected to find that whoever the Jedi had been who had carved this had included Anakin, the rumored Chosen One, as well.
No one had ever explained that to him. What did balance mean anyway? "Do any of you even know?" he addressed to open air.
The silence had an uneasy feel to it, as if there was something the knights of the old orders didn't want to tell him. Knowing full well the mysterious nature of the Force, Ani was not surprised. That prophecy didn't even apply to him; it had been Anakin's. It was over. He was content to let the question die unanswered.
"Would you mind if I told you what happened next so that someone could, I don't know, complete the record?"
At that the air laughed, in a way only a Force adept could interpret. "Can I take that for a yes?"
Anakin Skywalker stood before him.
"Ani," Anakin said, a kind smile on his face. "You're not me. You have my memories, but you aren't me."
"I know that. I never said that I-." Anakin gently cut his clone off.
"You say this, and I know that you want to believe it. Unfortunately, in your mind, you have twenty-two year old me. I didn't know then, how to react reasonably instead of emotionally. I didn't know the extent of the kind of power I could wield. And most importantly, I didn't care about others."
"Yes, you did. You cared about Padmé and Obi-wan and your mother." Ani protested.
"But Ani, I didn't stop to care about strangers. That is an important part of being a light Jedi. I didn't care about that village of Tusken Raiders. I didn't care about any of the people I killed. I never considered what the ramifications would be. Most of the time I just acted, letting my emotions run away with me." Anakin continued. "You do it too. For instance, you lost control when you helped Luke. You reacted in defense of my family, and I thank you, but it wasn't needed. He can easily escape from TIE fighters, but you didn't consider that, and reacted. Consequently, you had to run from your life."
Ani was clearly thinking over these interpretations. "But I didn't kill the TIE fighters, I just spun them." Thinking he had won a point, he looked up at his originator. "Yes, a fact that makes you more cautious and in control of yourself than I was. But, you still ran from your life, the part of you I could never be, nor ever was. You need a life Ani. Something to separate us and keep you light. You aren't me."
"But, Yoda and Qui-Gon and Obi-wan said that Luke's new order would need my help. I don't want to get to the point where they need me and then I fail and mess things up again. Or if I get so attached I lose it when something goes wrong. If the Sith can manipulate me that easily I-." Ani shook his head in sad bewilderment. "I don't know what to do." He paused, thinking. "And I'm more in control only because of what you did as Vader. I don't want to see that happen again." Ani stared at the floor.
No one spoke for a moment. When Ani looked up, he could see a brilliant smile on the middle aged face. "That's exactly right. What I did. You did nothing to kill those people; it is not your responsibility. Look,-." Ani cut him off.
"But, I have those memories. I can still see every Jedi I-." He let out an exasperated sigh. "No, you killed. I can see every last Raider that followed my mother. I can see all of their deaths. And it's no different than if I had been the one behind the lightsaber, because in a way, I was.
"I understand Ani, believe me." There was a long pause. "Let me carry the responsibility for their souls Ani. I know it's hard, and you feel guilty, but let it go. It is admirable that you learn from my crimes. By knowing that you are capable of the same kind of destruction, maybe you won't lose control.
"Now, back to what you were saying. You're right, Luke will need you. You are the only one who can tell him of the ways of the Old Jedi Order. You are the only one who can show him where all the old Libraries and Sanctuaries are. Palpatine and I destroyed most of them, but you know where at least one of the hidden ones is. Okay. Besides that, you saw what's coming. You still remember right?"
"How could I forget? What can hunt down Jedi that way? They weren't even outnumbered."
"I know." The expression on Anakin's face reflected the seriousness of the situation. "To make the invaders go, the people of this galaxy will need all the Jedi and Force that they can get. But even more importantly, they will need to unite, and work for the common goal of getting rid of the Vong. They need to put their differences aside; otherwise they will become sub-sentient slaves and never be free again. The Force adepts would be sacrificed to their pagan gods, whole worlds would be destroyed far worse than Alderaan or Caamas. Compared to the Vong, Palpatine and the rest of the Sith lords were benevolent."
"I can see that, but Anakin, I can help Luke rediscover Jedi Lore, I can help fight the invaders when they come, but how can you expect me to unite the whole galaxy?" The demands the Force was making on Ani were ridiculous.
"We don't expect you to unite the whole galaxy; just try to encourage groups to be open to unorthodox alliances. You're going to be meeting some influential people. The Force will get you where you need to be. Please, stay light. That's the only way you have a prayer of helping anyone."
"I'll try, but-." Anakin interrupted his clone.
"No. Do," The emphasis was clear. "Or do not."
"There is no try." Ani finished.
"Don't forget, Peace-." Anakin begun the opening stanza of the Jedi Code.
Ani continued it. "Over anger. Honor over hate. Strength over fear." Ani decided to repeat other reminders this visitation had clarified for him. "I must be considerate of strangers as well as friends. I must learn from the past without letting it consume me. And I must think and center before I act, or I'll lose the control I need."
"Here, this might help you." Something flew out of Anakin's hands and landed in Ani's. Anakin's kindly face smiled down on him, as the Jedi faded away, into the Force.
Slowly, Ani's mind rose out of the trance. He found himself sitting on the floor of the cave, with his back leaning up against the crystalline wall. It was pitch black. Thankfully, the air was clear, the dark left him alone.
Feeling weight in his hands, Ani felt along the object. It had the cylindrical feel of a lightsaber hilt.
Ani held the weapon out horizontally and depressed the button. Three feet of light extended into the dark. The blade was beautifully balanced and glowed a dazzling navy blue. Anakin had always favored his blade in a lighter shade, but Ani felt that this deeper hue suited him perfectly.
After a few minutes, Ani realized he was mesmerized by the weapon's glow. Glancing up, he saw the light refracted and reflected in the obsidian cavern. It produced and effect similar to a stellar cartography lab; thousands of stars shining from the fabric of space.
He bent closer to the wall to examine the engravings of the Jedi history. The record extended four thousand years, from the era of the Sith rule to merely a year before Anakin had turned.
"I suppose I ought to be flattered." He'd known the appearance of the Sith was important enough to be etched in stone, the whole Qui-Gon story was right there. But he hadn't expected to find that whoever the Jedi had been who had carved this had included Anakin, the rumored Chosen One, as well.
No one had ever explained that to him. What did balance mean anyway? "Do any of you even know?" he addressed to open air.
The silence had an uneasy feel to it, as if there was something the knights of the old orders didn't want to tell him. Knowing full well the mysterious nature of the Force, Ani was not surprised. That prophecy didn't even apply to him; it had been Anakin's. It was over. He was content to let the question die unanswered.
"Would you mind if I told you what happened next so that someone could, I don't know, complete the record?"
At that the air laughed, in a way only a Force adept could interpret. "Can I take that for a yes?"