Chapter 3 The boy
She finally found a planet that looked as if it was nothing but a giant city, pulled from another planet and thrown into space to drift. Risika flew around in her shuttle, searching for a place to land. It seemed as though the buildings were so tall that they went on forever, never touching ground. She noticed a large landing platform below her, so she slowly lowered to it. When Risika climbed out of her escape pod, there was a man waiting right in front of her. He was about her height, bald, and had purple triangle tattoos above each eyebrow. He wore dark brown robes, and she could see from one foot sticking out from underneath his robe that he wore boots superior for combat. "Who are you?" he asked. "I should ask you the same question." "No, I asked first, and I have more of the right to know, since this is my planet." "What planet is this?" "This is Coruscant." "What? Never heard of it. I am Risika. I seek refuge. My home was destroyed. How did you know I was here? I mean, how did you get here so fast?" "Master Yoda knows. Master Yoda sent me here to greet you. He also would like to meet you. Follow me." Risika followed the man down a small path. She looked over the edge to see a never ending abyss of skyscrapers. Skyscrapers that didn't touch ground. There wasn't a ground at all. She began to lean too far and nearly fell. But as she lost her balance she felt the man's hand on her shoulder. "You must be careful Lady Risika. You wouldn't want to fall. You'd die before you got any where near the core." As Risika followed the man into the building and through many hallways, she stared at a purple triangle that nearly covered the back of his head. It caught her eye from the moment they walked inside the building, and she hadn't been able to take her eyes off it. It was rather peculiar, and somewhat hypnotizing. She heard a voice, a familiar voice. To some extent like the hologram that she would often battle for training. Curious, Risika peeked inside a doorway in the hall, allowing the bald man to continue on, without even realizing that Risika had stopped following him. Inside the room she saw a boy, near her age, training just like she did, except the light saber was blue instead of red. She walked inside the room quietly. The boy instantly looked at her. His blue eyes were breathtaking. It made her heart skip a beat. "Who are you?" the boy asked. "Is everyone going to ask me that today? I'm Risika. What's your name?" "I'm Anikin. Anakin Skywalker. What are you doing here?" "I came to this planet seeking refuge, my home was" "No, I mean why have you disturbed my training?" "I used to train too, with a light saber. It just reminded me of home. I thought that maybe I could practice with you." "A girl? Use a light saber? Who ever heard of that?" Anakin chuckled to himself. Risika felt anger deep within her. She couldn't let him talk to her that way. Master wouldn't allow it. She kicked the saber out of his hand, caught it, turned it on, and forced it centimeters away from his throat. She smiled roguishly. Anakin swallowed hard. "Okay. That was an ass thing for me to say. I beg your pardon. "I thought you'd say that." She continued to smile. She gave him his weapon back. He looked into her eyes. "You have eyes unlike anyone I've ever seen. Besides" he paused for a moment, remembering the flaming eyes of Darth Maul. "Never mind. There's no relation, impossible." "Relation to whom?" "I said never mind. Now do you want to train with me or what?" "I do. Get me a saber." "Don't you have one of your own?" "It's broken. It was cut in two." "Oh, well then I'll get you a new one." The bald man barged into the room and grabbed Risika by the arm. "I have to keep my eye on you better. Master Yoda wants to see you." he pulled her out of the room. "Maybe later I guess." Anakin smiled at Risika. "Yeah." She bit her lower lip, and could feel her face blush thinking about Anakin as she was pulled down the hallway. She never really knew this feeling. She wasn't quite sure as to what it was, but it felt brilliant. The man hauled Risika into another room. In it were several beings, seated on meditating chairs or something of that sort. The one being on the far side of the room was rather small, and old. His flesh was green, and really caught Risika's eye. "Master Yoda. You requested to see the girl." "Yes, come closer please do small one." The small man said. "Yes sir." Risika swallowed hard and filled with fear, walked toward the small man. He closed his eyes, and took a deep breath through his nose. He opened his eyes and concentrated on the features of Risika. Anakin crept to the door, and listened carefully. "There is much hurt in you past. Someone close to your heart was stolen from you. Revenge you seek. I can't see much further in you. Very dark your soul is. I can sense some evil, but I'm not sure that evil it truly is. It seems somewhat like confusion, it does. I'm sorry, but I do believe one dark young soul is enough around here. Anakin is a lot like you, affection for him you feel. And affection he feels for you. But leave you must small one." "No!" Anakin stormed in. "You can't send her away." "But the dark side I sense in her." "You sense the dark side in everyone besides Mace Windu. I might have finally made a friend, a friend my age. And now you're going to send her away? You can't. I won't let you." "Anakin, just go back to your room." The bald man with triangles on his eyebrows said. "No. I won't. Yoda...can I keep her?" "No Anakin, listen to me, go back to your room!" the bald man said again. "Stay out of this Zachin." Anakin looked back at Yoda. "Please master, can I keep her?" "Does she want to be kept?" everyone looked at Risika, waiting for an answer impatiently. "Uh..." she felt introverted. "Uh...sure." "Very well." Yoda sighed. "You may stay Risika. Zachin will show you to your room." He waved his hand motioning for Anakin, Risika, and Zachin to leave. "Zachin sir, could I go with Anakin?" "For what?" "So that I can teach him some techniques in swordsmanship." "You teach me? Yeah right." "Shut up!" Risika chased Anakin down the hallway into the warfare room. Zachin simply rolled his eyes. "Teenagers." Anakin and Risika practiced their modus operandi together. Each learning a new trick or two. They eventually sat down to respite. "So where is your master?" "He went on a mission or something. He should be back sometime in the next few months. What about yours?" "I don't know. He might have died, but I'm not sure." Risika desolately looked at the floor. "I'm sure he's fine. If he can train a girl to fight that good, I'm sure he can do anything." Anakin tried to cheer her up, but she instead glared at him. "Again with the girl thing. Do you have something against girls? We are just as, if not more capable than men." "Sorry, sorry. I'll try to stop. I'm just not used to having, uh...well the last woman near my age that I really had contact with was Padme'."
7 months later...
Risika lay on her small bed, thinking about her time with Anakin. They had grown closer. She felt like she could be with him forever. She still hadn't met his master, but she knew she would eventually. She still didn't know what Anakin's culture was. But she didn't mind. She felt that even if he was the same culture as her enemy, he would still be special to her. "Risika! Get out here!" she could hear Anakin shout from the hallway. Risika rolled her eyes. "I need time to rest Anakin. You don't own me." "Actually I do own you. Remember, I asked to keep you, your mine." Risika smiled and walked out the door. "What?" Anakin put his arm around her and rested his hand on her hip. "Risika, this is my master. Master, this is Risika." "And Risika would be?" the man with a buzz cut, and a small braid on the side of his head asked. "My...uh..." Anakin looked at Risika for help. "What are you looking at me for? What do you want me to say?" Risika smiled lightly. "Never mind it Anakin. Where are your manners anyway? Is my name master?" "No master. Sorry. His name is Obi-Wan Kenobi." The smile instantly straightened. Her amber eyes began to flare. "Obi-Wan K..Kenobi?" she stuttered. "I, I have to go lie down. I don't feel so well." "Okay." Anakin kissed her on the cheek. She walked through her door, sat at the desk, and buried her face in her hands. "Out of all the places, I could have landed anywhere. No, I just had to land here. As soon as he finds out who I am he'll destroy me. Father, what do I do?" "He won't have the time to find out who you are." Risika heard a familiar voice behind her. She turned around and saw her father. "Father. Daddy. My daddy." She stood up and wrapped her arms around him. He was cold, but she didn't mind. He stroked his fingers through her long orange hair. "Am I dreaming?" "No. I'm here only in spirit." "What do I do?" "You know exactly what to do. Kill Obi-Wan." "How?" "Sidious trained you well. You should know." "What about this necklace Auntie Za gave me?" "You have the spirit of the phoenix. Die a couple times and you'll see." "What is that supposed to mean?" he shook his head, chuckling to himself. Risika heard a knock on the door and jumped. Zachin opened the door. Risika looked back at where her father was, but he was gone. "Are you alright in here? I heard you talking to someone." "um...I was...talking to myself." Zachin looked at Risika as if she was insane. "Crazy teenagers, talking to themselves. They should all be locked away until they're 40." He mumbled to himself as he walked away, shaking his head. The door closed, and Risika sighed with relief. She then sat down at her desk again. She fell asleep there. A few days later, Risika stood in the kitchen with the cook. She was an older woman, but sometimes fun to talk to. Everyone pretty much just called her Cookie. Ludicrous, but simple to remember. "So what's in the pot Cookie?" Risika asked reaching toward the lid of the large pot on the stove. Cookie slapped Risika's hand away. "Tonight's meal. Soup. It's so hot right now, that if it was poured on you, the skin would burn off your bones." "So you'd die?" "You bet'cha." Risika smiled to herself. When Obi-Wan walked through the kitchen to get to the dining area for breakfast, he'd have a little surprise. "Is the soup good?" "Na. It's pretty sickly. But hey, we don't have to eat it. You and me can sit in back and eat leftovers." "Do you have any back-up plans for dinner?" "Why are you askin me all dees questions for?" "Just answer it." "Yeah, yeah I got a back-up. You wanna know what it is too curious monkey?" "No. That's okay." After a while Cookie sent out a breakfast call. Beings began pouring through the kitchen door on their way to the dining area. Risika noticed Obi-Wan was walking alone. Perfect opportunity. He walked by the pot of soup and Risika knocked herself into it, forcing it to tip over. Obi-Wan bounced out of the way. "Be careful Risika. What happened?" Obi-Wan asked. Risika just glared at him and stomped out the door. Later that afternoon, Risika stood alone, looking off the balcony of her room. She had to think of something. She could fight him, but if Anakin realized she was trying to kill Obi-Wan, he'd hate her. She had to make it look like an accident. Somehow. She decided to go out for a while, out of the building. She grabbed her backpack and left. She climbed into a hover speeder that was parked on a different platform than the one she first landed on. Before she took off she saw Anakin walking toward her. Quickly she turned the vehicle on and jetted off the platform. She landed in a hectic area of the metropolis planet. She walked inside a bar. Though she was only 15 at the time, they let her in. Risika looked around the dark vicinity. It was jam-packed with intoxicated losers and scumbags. She noticed a group of men who looked somewhat like ruffians. She could tell they were trouble. She knew they could help. Risika sauntered toward the gangsters, and they all looked up at her. "What do you want princess?" one said as he took a swig of some sort of alcohol and let out a large belch. Risika winced in disgust. She then cleared her throat. "I need help...getting rid of someone. I need advice." "Ah, right this way lovey." Another thug said. They all stood. Two stood at her sides and pulled her back into a dark room. They tossed her onto a divan and sat on each side of her. The brute that seemed to be their leader sat in front of her. "What you need doll, is a living weapon. A poisonous creature to eradicate him in his sleep." "Kill him in his sleep? Wouldn't that be unfair? That's rather brutal." "Na, he'll awaken once he's bitten by one of these. He'll feel the pain, suffer, then die." The thug snapped his fingers and another ruffian handed him a glass casing. Inside it were the most abnormal snakes Risika had ever seen. They were an odd blue with green swirls churning down their spines. "The blue ones are the worst." He had a large impish smile spread across his face. Risika felt a smile broaden on her own lips. "All you need to do is put one of his hairs in this jar and they'll know exactly who to kill." She glanced at the hooligan who said that. He was standing in the corner. He held a knife and was gazing at her. He licked up and down the blade, cutting his tongue a bit. It sent shivers down Risika's spine. She recoiled again, disgusted. "Well I'll just take these and...uh...leave. Thank you for all your assistance." She stood up and began to walk for the door. "You're not going anywhere sweetie. We could use a female toy to toss around, couldn't we boys?" all of them grinned and began to stalk toward her. She began to sprint toward the exit. They caught her and forced her against the wall. She struggled to escape, but more than six men plastered her to the wall. One ripped off her sweater so she wore only a small tank top. Another pressed a stiletto to her throat. A ribbon of blood seeped down her flesh. She squeezed her eyes shut, waiting to depart this life. She then heard the door be kicked in. She could hear a light saber be turned on. She heard it spin about, and one by one the thugs fell away from her, dying summarily. Risika saw Anakin, slaughtering the brutes. She never thought of him as the type to kill. She just saw him as a martial arts expert, not a slayer. As he continued to fight, Risika put the snakes in her backpack, in order to hide them from Anakin. The fight went on. The gangsters put up a rather good struggle with daggers and crowbars. Anakin was struck on the head, and his chest was cut. He hardly felt the pain until the fight was over. Every mugger was dead. Not one remained breathing. Anakin, weak and out of breath toddled over to Risika and took her hand. "Are you okay?" "Yes, I'm fine." She looked at him with a worried look in her eyes. He smiled weakly. "Good." He then fell to the floor. Risika sighed. She tried to lift him off the floor, but he was too heavy. She put his arm around her shoulder and stood him next to her. She pulled him out of the bar, dragging his feet on the ground. She put him in her speeder, and fit herself in next to him. It was built to seat only one person. Risika hauled Anakin into their home building. She stood in the hallway. Merely three steps away from her bedroom, but ninety leaps away from his. His quarters were so far away. She was tired from dragging him. He was quite heavy for his size. She stood for a moment longer, still debating on where to put the boy. Then she gave up. Her room it was. Risika drug him through her doorway, and lay him on her bed. She sat next to him, staring at his face. She lightly touched his short dusty blonde hair. She smiled lightly, bit her lower lip. She leaned down and kissed his lips, he did not stir. Risika stood to her feet. "I'm sorry Anakin. I really am. But your master has got to go." She whispered as she pulled the snakes from her bag. "Now to get a hair." Risika snuck out of the room. The area was quiet. As quiet as the deceased. She found Obi-Wan's resting chamber, and quietly opened the door. She crept in and tiptoed to his robe that was stretched across a wicker chest. She set the jar down on the chest and felt around on the robe. Her fingers rolled across the fabric, gathering up no more than one hair. Just enough to send the miniature assassins to execute the latent Jedi. Obi-Wan rolled over in his bed. Risika jumped. She didn't quite realize that he was there, but she didn't make a sound. She quietly twisted the lid off the glass container and dropped the hair in onto the snakes. She then dumped them out onto the floor and jolted out of the room. Proud of herself, she slipped back to her room. Risika threw the empty jar off the balcony, destroying the evidence. It was very late, and she was weary. She sat down at her desk, lay her head down, and became dead to the world. When Anakin awoke, he could taste Risika's kiss on his lips. He stood and strolled over to the desk, where she still slumbered deeply. He ran his fingers softly through her hair. Her eyes opened and she sat up, startled. She looked up at him. His face was bright with a smile. She was a bit confused. She didn't know why he was in her room. She didn't know why she wasn't sleeping in her bed. She didn't know what the hell was going on. Then it flickered back into her mind. Obi-Wan Kenobi was dead. Her lips curved into a large smile. They left the room, on their way to the kitchen for breakfast. Risika was completely inside her head, thinking about how great it was that her enemy was lying lifeless stretched across his bed. Dowsed in blood. When they reached the dining area, Risika looked at the Jedi sitting around one of the large tables. Her smile dropped to a frown. Obi-Wan Kenobi sat in the chair. More lively than ever. Laughing. Cheering. Joking with his friends. She glared at him. If looks could kill Obi-Wan would have dropped dead. Oh how Risika wished he would have. Hatred overwhelmed within her. "My snakes." She whispered to herself. "What was that?" Anakin asked. Risika just turned away and treaded heavily back to her bedroom. She sat on her bed for most of the day. Angry with herself. She didn't know what else to do. He was too powerful. The door opened and Obi-Wan walked in. "Yes? What is it?" "Look familiar?" he dropped two snakeheads on the floor. Risika gasped, then swallowed hard. "No. I've never seen them." He then dropped a few shards of glass on the floor. "This was dropped from your balcony last night. You released those monsters in my room to kill me." "I would never" "Silence. I want you to stay away from Anakin. You'll corrupt his mind. Risika Maul." "How'd you" "From the moment I saw your fiery eyes I knew. I'll be rid of you soon, don't worry little Sith." He turned and walked out the door. Risika peeked out the doorway, waiting until he turned around the corner, and then ran for Anakin's room. Once inside, she wrapped herself in Anakin's arms. "What is it?" "Just hold me. Be silent." She glanced over to his end table. She saw a picture of a woman on it. She wriggled out of Anakin's arms, and walked toward the picture to get a better look. "Who's she?" "That's Padme'. The woman I'm going to marry. She lives on the planet Naboo. She's now the senator, but she used to be queen. I hope to meet up with her again soon." "Marry? You're in love with this girl?" "I love her more than love." "Than what am I?" "You? I'm so sorry Risika. I" "No. Just don't even talk to me." Risika ran out the door and stormed down the hallway. She hurt inside. Her heart felt as if it were bleeding. She stared at her feet, just incase someone were to pass by, they wouldn't notice the tears swelling up in her eyes. Abruptly, she ran into someone. She looked up and saw a boy her age. She had seen him once or twice before, but never met him. "Sorry. I should watch where I'm going." He smiled. Risika smiled back. "No, I'm sorry. I shouldn't stare at my feet when I walk. I could run into a wall or out a window doing that." She felt her face turn a little pink. His brown hair hung in his eyes, but she could somewhat see that his eyes were a beautiful shade of green. "Oh, where are my manners. I'm Anton. And you are?" "Risika." "Beautiful name." "So is yours, I mean yours is nice, I mean I like your name too." She bit her lip, feeling stupid. He chuckled. "Well maybe I'll see you around." "Actually I'm leaving." "Leaving? Right now? For good?" "Yes." "But I haven't even gotten to know you yet." "Maybe we'll meet again." "Maybe." He smiled and walked past her. She let out a big sigh.
She finally found a planet that looked as if it was nothing but a giant city, pulled from another planet and thrown into space to drift. Risika flew around in her shuttle, searching for a place to land. It seemed as though the buildings were so tall that they went on forever, never touching ground. She noticed a large landing platform below her, so she slowly lowered to it. When Risika climbed out of her escape pod, there was a man waiting right in front of her. He was about her height, bald, and had purple triangle tattoos above each eyebrow. He wore dark brown robes, and she could see from one foot sticking out from underneath his robe that he wore boots superior for combat. "Who are you?" he asked. "I should ask you the same question." "No, I asked first, and I have more of the right to know, since this is my planet." "What planet is this?" "This is Coruscant." "What? Never heard of it. I am Risika. I seek refuge. My home was destroyed. How did you know I was here? I mean, how did you get here so fast?" "Master Yoda knows. Master Yoda sent me here to greet you. He also would like to meet you. Follow me." Risika followed the man down a small path. She looked over the edge to see a never ending abyss of skyscrapers. Skyscrapers that didn't touch ground. There wasn't a ground at all. She began to lean too far and nearly fell. But as she lost her balance she felt the man's hand on her shoulder. "You must be careful Lady Risika. You wouldn't want to fall. You'd die before you got any where near the core." As Risika followed the man into the building and through many hallways, she stared at a purple triangle that nearly covered the back of his head. It caught her eye from the moment they walked inside the building, and she hadn't been able to take her eyes off it. It was rather peculiar, and somewhat hypnotizing. She heard a voice, a familiar voice. To some extent like the hologram that she would often battle for training. Curious, Risika peeked inside a doorway in the hall, allowing the bald man to continue on, without even realizing that Risika had stopped following him. Inside the room she saw a boy, near her age, training just like she did, except the light saber was blue instead of red. She walked inside the room quietly. The boy instantly looked at her. His blue eyes were breathtaking. It made her heart skip a beat. "Who are you?" the boy asked. "Is everyone going to ask me that today? I'm Risika. What's your name?" "I'm Anikin. Anakin Skywalker. What are you doing here?" "I came to this planet seeking refuge, my home was" "No, I mean why have you disturbed my training?" "I used to train too, with a light saber. It just reminded me of home. I thought that maybe I could practice with you." "A girl? Use a light saber? Who ever heard of that?" Anakin chuckled to himself. Risika felt anger deep within her. She couldn't let him talk to her that way. Master wouldn't allow it. She kicked the saber out of his hand, caught it, turned it on, and forced it centimeters away from his throat. She smiled roguishly. Anakin swallowed hard. "Okay. That was an ass thing for me to say. I beg your pardon. "I thought you'd say that." She continued to smile. She gave him his weapon back. He looked into her eyes. "You have eyes unlike anyone I've ever seen. Besides" he paused for a moment, remembering the flaming eyes of Darth Maul. "Never mind. There's no relation, impossible." "Relation to whom?" "I said never mind. Now do you want to train with me or what?" "I do. Get me a saber." "Don't you have one of your own?" "It's broken. It was cut in two." "Oh, well then I'll get you a new one." The bald man barged into the room and grabbed Risika by the arm. "I have to keep my eye on you better. Master Yoda wants to see you." he pulled her out of the room. "Maybe later I guess." Anakin smiled at Risika. "Yeah." She bit her lower lip, and could feel her face blush thinking about Anakin as she was pulled down the hallway. She never really knew this feeling. She wasn't quite sure as to what it was, but it felt brilliant. The man hauled Risika into another room. In it were several beings, seated on meditating chairs or something of that sort. The one being on the far side of the room was rather small, and old. His flesh was green, and really caught Risika's eye. "Master Yoda. You requested to see the girl." "Yes, come closer please do small one." The small man said. "Yes sir." Risika swallowed hard and filled with fear, walked toward the small man. He closed his eyes, and took a deep breath through his nose. He opened his eyes and concentrated on the features of Risika. Anakin crept to the door, and listened carefully. "There is much hurt in you past. Someone close to your heart was stolen from you. Revenge you seek. I can't see much further in you. Very dark your soul is. I can sense some evil, but I'm not sure that evil it truly is. It seems somewhat like confusion, it does. I'm sorry, but I do believe one dark young soul is enough around here. Anakin is a lot like you, affection for him you feel. And affection he feels for you. But leave you must small one." "No!" Anakin stormed in. "You can't send her away." "But the dark side I sense in her." "You sense the dark side in everyone besides Mace Windu. I might have finally made a friend, a friend my age. And now you're going to send her away? You can't. I won't let you." "Anakin, just go back to your room." The bald man with triangles on his eyebrows said. "No. I won't. Yoda...can I keep her?" "No Anakin, listen to me, go back to your room!" the bald man said again. "Stay out of this Zachin." Anakin looked back at Yoda. "Please master, can I keep her?" "Does she want to be kept?" everyone looked at Risika, waiting for an answer impatiently. "Uh..." she felt introverted. "Uh...sure." "Very well." Yoda sighed. "You may stay Risika. Zachin will show you to your room." He waved his hand motioning for Anakin, Risika, and Zachin to leave. "Zachin sir, could I go with Anakin?" "For what?" "So that I can teach him some techniques in swordsmanship." "You teach me? Yeah right." "Shut up!" Risika chased Anakin down the hallway into the warfare room. Zachin simply rolled his eyes. "Teenagers." Anakin and Risika practiced their modus operandi together. Each learning a new trick or two. They eventually sat down to respite. "So where is your master?" "He went on a mission or something. He should be back sometime in the next few months. What about yours?" "I don't know. He might have died, but I'm not sure." Risika desolately looked at the floor. "I'm sure he's fine. If he can train a girl to fight that good, I'm sure he can do anything." Anakin tried to cheer her up, but she instead glared at him. "Again with the girl thing. Do you have something against girls? We are just as, if not more capable than men." "Sorry, sorry. I'll try to stop. I'm just not used to having, uh...well the last woman near my age that I really had contact with was Padme'."
7 months later...
Risika lay on her small bed, thinking about her time with Anakin. They had grown closer. She felt like she could be with him forever. She still hadn't met his master, but she knew she would eventually. She still didn't know what Anakin's culture was. But she didn't mind. She felt that even if he was the same culture as her enemy, he would still be special to her. "Risika! Get out here!" she could hear Anakin shout from the hallway. Risika rolled her eyes. "I need time to rest Anakin. You don't own me." "Actually I do own you. Remember, I asked to keep you, your mine." Risika smiled and walked out the door. "What?" Anakin put his arm around her and rested his hand on her hip. "Risika, this is my master. Master, this is Risika." "And Risika would be?" the man with a buzz cut, and a small braid on the side of his head asked. "My...uh..." Anakin looked at Risika for help. "What are you looking at me for? What do you want me to say?" Risika smiled lightly. "Never mind it Anakin. Where are your manners anyway? Is my name master?" "No master. Sorry. His name is Obi-Wan Kenobi." The smile instantly straightened. Her amber eyes began to flare. "Obi-Wan K..Kenobi?" she stuttered. "I, I have to go lie down. I don't feel so well." "Okay." Anakin kissed her on the cheek. She walked through her door, sat at the desk, and buried her face in her hands. "Out of all the places, I could have landed anywhere. No, I just had to land here. As soon as he finds out who I am he'll destroy me. Father, what do I do?" "He won't have the time to find out who you are." Risika heard a familiar voice behind her. She turned around and saw her father. "Father. Daddy. My daddy." She stood up and wrapped her arms around him. He was cold, but she didn't mind. He stroked his fingers through her long orange hair. "Am I dreaming?" "No. I'm here only in spirit." "What do I do?" "You know exactly what to do. Kill Obi-Wan." "How?" "Sidious trained you well. You should know." "What about this necklace Auntie Za gave me?" "You have the spirit of the phoenix. Die a couple times and you'll see." "What is that supposed to mean?" he shook his head, chuckling to himself. Risika heard a knock on the door and jumped. Zachin opened the door. Risika looked back at where her father was, but he was gone. "Are you alright in here? I heard you talking to someone." "um...I was...talking to myself." Zachin looked at Risika as if she was insane. "Crazy teenagers, talking to themselves. They should all be locked away until they're 40." He mumbled to himself as he walked away, shaking his head. The door closed, and Risika sighed with relief. She then sat down at her desk again. She fell asleep there. A few days later, Risika stood in the kitchen with the cook. She was an older woman, but sometimes fun to talk to. Everyone pretty much just called her Cookie. Ludicrous, but simple to remember. "So what's in the pot Cookie?" Risika asked reaching toward the lid of the large pot on the stove. Cookie slapped Risika's hand away. "Tonight's meal. Soup. It's so hot right now, that if it was poured on you, the skin would burn off your bones." "So you'd die?" "You bet'cha." Risika smiled to herself. When Obi-Wan walked through the kitchen to get to the dining area for breakfast, he'd have a little surprise. "Is the soup good?" "Na. It's pretty sickly. But hey, we don't have to eat it. You and me can sit in back and eat leftovers." "Do you have any back-up plans for dinner?" "Why are you askin me all dees questions for?" "Just answer it." "Yeah, yeah I got a back-up. You wanna know what it is too curious monkey?" "No. That's okay." After a while Cookie sent out a breakfast call. Beings began pouring through the kitchen door on their way to the dining area. Risika noticed Obi-Wan was walking alone. Perfect opportunity. He walked by the pot of soup and Risika knocked herself into it, forcing it to tip over. Obi-Wan bounced out of the way. "Be careful Risika. What happened?" Obi-Wan asked. Risika just glared at him and stomped out the door. Later that afternoon, Risika stood alone, looking off the balcony of her room. She had to think of something. She could fight him, but if Anakin realized she was trying to kill Obi-Wan, he'd hate her. She had to make it look like an accident. Somehow. She decided to go out for a while, out of the building. She grabbed her backpack and left. She climbed into a hover speeder that was parked on a different platform than the one she first landed on. Before she took off she saw Anakin walking toward her. Quickly she turned the vehicle on and jetted off the platform. She landed in a hectic area of the metropolis planet. She walked inside a bar. Though she was only 15 at the time, they let her in. Risika looked around the dark vicinity. It was jam-packed with intoxicated losers and scumbags. She noticed a group of men who looked somewhat like ruffians. She could tell they were trouble. She knew they could help. Risika sauntered toward the gangsters, and they all looked up at her. "What do you want princess?" one said as he took a swig of some sort of alcohol and let out a large belch. Risika winced in disgust. She then cleared her throat. "I need help...getting rid of someone. I need advice." "Ah, right this way lovey." Another thug said. They all stood. Two stood at her sides and pulled her back into a dark room. They tossed her onto a divan and sat on each side of her. The brute that seemed to be their leader sat in front of her. "What you need doll, is a living weapon. A poisonous creature to eradicate him in his sleep." "Kill him in his sleep? Wouldn't that be unfair? That's rather brutal." "Na, he'll awaken once he's bitten by one of these. He'll feel the pain, suffer, then die." The thug snapped his fingers and another ruffian handed him a glass casing. Inside it were the most abnormal snakes Risika had ever seen. They were an odd blue with green swirls churning down their spines. "The blue ones are the worst." He had a large impish smile spread across his face. Risika felt a smile broaden on her own lips. "All you need to do is put one of his hairs in this jar and they'll know exactly who to kill." She glanced at the hooligan who said that. He was standing in the corner. He held a knife and was gazing at her. He licked up and down the blade, cutting his tongue a bit. It sent shivers down Risika's spine. She recoiled again, disgusted. "Well I'll just take these and...uh...leave. Thank you for all your assistance." She stood up and began to walk for the door. "You're not going anywhere sweetie. We could use a female toy to toss around, couldn't we boys?" all of them grinned and began to stalk toward her. She began to sprint toward the exit. They caught her and forced her against the wall. She struggled to escape, but more than six men plastered her to the wall. One ripped off her sweater so she wore only a small tank top. Another pressed a stiletto to her throat. A ribbon of blood seeped down her flesh. She squeezed her eyes shut, waiting to depart this life. She then heard the door be kicked in. She could hear a light saber be turned on. She heard it spin about, and one by one the thugs fell away from her, dying summarily. Risika saw Anakin, slaughtering the brutes. She never thought of him as the type to kill. She just saw him as a martial arts expert, not a slayer. As he continued to fight, Risika put the snakes in her backpack, in order to hide them from Anakin. The fight went on. The gangsters put up a rather good struggle with daggers and crowbars. Anakin was struck on the head, and his chest was cut. He hardly felt the pain until the fight was over. Every mugger was dead. Not one remained breathing. Anakin, weak and out of breath toddled over to Risika and took her hand. "Are you okay?" "Yes, I'm fine." She looked at him with a worried look in her eyes. He smiled weakly. "Good." He then fell to the floor. Risika sighed. She tried to lift him off the floor, but he was too heavy. She put his arm around her shoulder and stood him next to her. She pulled him out of the bar, dragging his feet on the ground. She put him in her speeder, and fit herself in next to him. It was built to seat only one person. Risika hauled Anakin into their home building. She stood in the hallway. Merely three steps away from her bedroom, but ninety leaps away from his. His quarters were so far away. She was tired from dragging him. He was quite heavy for his size. She stood for a moment longer, still debating on where to put the boy. Then she gave up. Her room it was. Risika drug him through her doorway, and lay him on her bed. She sat next to him, staring at his face. She lightly touched his short dusty blonde hair. She smiled lightly, bit her lower lip. She leaned down and kissed his lips, he did not stir. Risika stood to her feet. "I'm sorry Anakin. I really am. But your master has got to go." She whispered as she pulled the snakes from her bag. "Now to get a hair." Risika snuck out of the room. The area was quiet. As quiet as the deceased. She found Obi-Wan's resting chamber, and quietly opened the door. She crept in and tiptoed to his robe that was stretched across a wicker chest. She set the jar down on the chest and felt around on the robe. Her fingers rolled across the fabric, gathering up no more than one hair. Just enough to send the miniature assassins to execute the latent Jedi. Obi-Wan rolled over in his bed. Risika jumped. She didn't quite realize that he was there, but she didn't make a sound. She quietly twisted the lid off the glass container and dropped the hair in onto the snakes. She then dumped them out onto the floor and jolted out of the room. Proud of herself, she slipped back to her room. Risika threw the empty jar off the balcony, destroying the evidence. It was very late, and she was weary. She sat down at her desk, lay her head down, and became dead to the world. When Anakin awoke, he could taste Risika's kiss on his lips. He stood and strolled over to the desk, where she still slumbered deeply. He ran his fingers softly through her hair. Her eyes opened and she sat up, startled. She looked up at him. His face was bright with a smile. She was a bit confused. She didn't know why he was in her room. She didn't know why she wasn't sleeping in her bed. She didn't know what the hell was going on. Then it flickered back into her mind. Obi-Wan Kenobi was dead. Her lips curved into a large smile. They left the room, on their way to the kitchen for breakfast. Risika was completely inside her head, thinking about how great it was that her enemy was lying lifeless stretched across his bed. Dowsed in blood. When they reached the dining area, Risika looked at the Jedi sitting around one of the large tables. Her smile dropped to a frown. Obi-Wan Kenobi sat in the chair. More lively than ever. Laughing. Cheering. Joking with his friends. She glared at him. If looks could kill Obi-Wan would have dropped dead. Oh how Risika wished he would have. Hatred overwhelmed within her. "My snakes." She whispered to herself. "What was that?" Anakin asked. Risika just turned away and treaded heavily back to her bedroom. She sat on her bed for most of the day. Angry with herself. She didn't know what else to do. He was too powerful. The door opened and Obi-Wan walked in. "Yes? What is it?" "Look familiar?" he dropped two snakeheads on the floor. Risika gasped, then swallowed hard. "No. I've never seen them." He then dropped a few shards of glass on the floor. "This was dropped from your balcony last night. You released those monsters in my room to kill me." "I would never" "Silence. I want you to stay away from Anakin. You'll corrupt his mind. Risika Maul." "How'd you" "From the moment I saw your fiery eyes I knew. I'll be rid of you soon, don't worry little Sith." He turned and walked out the door. Risika peeked out the doorway, waiting until he turned around the corner, and then ran for Anakin's room. Once inside, she wrapped herself in Anakin's arms. "What is it?" "Just hold me. Be silent." She glanced over to his end table. She saw a picture of a woman on it. She wriggled out of Anakin's arms, and walked toward the picture to get a better look. "Who's she?" "That's Padme'. The woman I'm going to marry. She lives on the planet Naboo. She's now the senator, but she used to be queen. I hope to meet up with her again soon." "Marry? You're in love with this girl?" "I love her more than love." "Than what am I?" "You? I'm so sorry Risika. I" "No. Just don't even talk to me." Risika ran out the door and stormed down the hallway. She hurt inside. Her heart felt as if it were bleeding. She stared at her feet, just incase someone were to pass by, they wouldn't notice the tears swelling up in her eyes. Abruptly, she ran into someone. She looked up and saw a boy her age. She had seen him once or twice before, but never met him. "Sorry. I should watch where I'm going." He smiled. Risika smiled back. "No, I'm sorry. I shouldn't stare at my feet when I walk. I could run into a wall or out a window doing that." She felt her face turn a little pink. His brown hair hung in his eyes, but she could somewhat see that his eyes were a beautiful shade of green. "Oh, where are my manners. I'm Anton. And you are?" "Risika." "Beautiful name." "So is yours, I mean yours is nice, I mean I like your name too." She bit her lip, feeling stupid. He chuckled. "Well maybe I'll see you around." "Actually I'm leaving." "Leaving? Right now? For good?" "Yes." "But I haven't even gotten to know you yet." "Maybe we'll meet again." "Maybe." He smiled and walked past her. She let out a big sigh.