Chapter 5 – Dark Side Nightmares

Author's Note: The start of the climax. :D I know a lot of people ship Ezra and Sabine, but I have not yet seen anything in their friendship that's anything other than borderline sibling, so... I'll just continue considering them as such, until/if I notice something that implies anything else. ^-^

~ Rivana Rita

We have finished a second tribute for Vader on our YT channel. Check it out if you're interested. :P No spaces in the link: youtu . be / TrRylvLR0fE

~ Amina Gila

Kanan knew it was going to be a bad night. The day had been chaotic enough already, and he really wanted some rest. Except, of course, he's not allowed to have any. When he opens his eyes, he's an adult again, back in the cell. How is he here? He and Ezra destroyed the ship, so what...? Before he has time to figure out what is happening, the door slides open and the Grand Inquisitor steps through, smirking gleefully. "You think you can escape me?" Except he was dead, too, right? He was. Kanan saw him fall into the flames, so how is he here? How is any of this happening?

"Your apprentice is a servant of the Dark Side," hisses the Grand Inquisitor, suddenly sounding suspiciously like Maul. All confusion turns into outright panic when Ezra steps through the door. No, no, he couldn't have. He would never.

"You held me back," the boy insists, eyes glowing golden.

"I –" he blurts, fumbling desperately for a response. Words fail him completely. He failed his Padawan. His son. You failed, the voice sings in his head. You knew you'd fail, but you tried anyway. Maybe if he hadn't tried this wouldn't've happened, but –

"My family is gone because of you," he hisses.

Kanan doesn't know why he thinks of the Ghost crew instead of Ezra's parents, and somehow manages to slip even farther into panic mode. Hera, Sabine, Zeb, even Rex and Ahsoka, what happened to them? Only vaguely does it register that something about all of this doesn't sound quite right, that someone else should be there too and none of this makes sense. But this is... they... Gone. They're... what happened? Did the Empire find them? Why wasn't he there? Why–?! He failed all of them. Somewhere through his shock and confusion, the crushing realization hits – that his family is gone a second time. They're just – Maul. It had to have been Maul. He's right here, and – wait, wasn't he left on Malachor?

He can hear the voices in his head now, whispering all those things he can't think about. That he's a coward, he ran when the clones turned on him and tried to kill his master. If he'd been fast enough, she might still be here. It should've been him who died that day, not her. At least she could've been the master Ezra needed.

But now, Ezra's gone, he – it – this –

"Kanan!"

The voice is distant and far away, but he can feel it breaking through the haze of his mind. That voice – it's Hera. She's calling him. She needs him. But he's trapped here. He couldn't go even if he wanted to, but right now all he can do is watch his former padawan who – how could this have happened?

He sees a flicker of the memory of his master dying. Flashes of the Grand Inquisitor again, of fighting Vader – something about that shakes him the most – and images of fighting the empire, the countless times his family nearly died. Of fighting Maul, Vader, and the Inquisitors on Malachor, but above all, the image of yellow-eyed Ezra remains, haunting him.

"Kanan!"

Sabine now. If they're gone, how can he hear them? But the image in front of him shakes suddenly, trembling. Like an earthquake. Flickering through his memories again. Something is wrong. This shouldn't be happening. Everything feels cold, the Dark Side. He knows that feel. It's holding him down, pinning him in place through he struggles against it.

"WAKE UP!"

Leave it to Zeb to scream at the top of his lungs even from the dead. And oh, how he wants to wake up. How he wants this all to be a dream. Some horrible, terrible dream. He can feel it more distinctly, the coldness. Kanan may contain much darkness, he realizes suddenly as he struggles to stop the images flashing through his mind again, but he could never feel like this. It's something else there, in his mind. It's as if that realization allows him to feel another crack in the haze.

Someone is talking. He can make out voices. Hera, hovering right nearby. Sabine. Zeb. Rex. Chopper beeping in the background. Why isn't Ezra there? Or is he dying? No. It doesn't matter, because in the world he's seeing, Ezra is gone. It hurts too much to think about, but he keeps pushing. Fighting off the haze.

"Kanan, can you hear me?" Hera. She's holding his hand he realizes with a start. The contact helps ground him, and with one final shove, the presence slips free of his mind. Kanan jolts upright, eyes wide.

"Hera!" he exclaims, glancing around as everything starts crashing back down on him. The irritating wrongness of his voice is enough to remind him of the stupid holocron. The Ghost crew are hovering around worriedly, and he instantly turns around to scan the rest of the room. Anakin has backed himself all the way into a corner, though Kanan can't tell if he's awake or not. He can't imagine someone could thrash so much in their sleep – not to mention getting off the bed in the first place – without waking themselves up. The other two aren't much better off. Ahsoka seems to have somehow mastered the ability of crying in dead silence even though she's sleeping – but he can tell from the way she's moving that she is – and Ezra is curled up completely, twitching slightly. Kanan can sense everyone's fear and unease. "What's happening?"

"We were hoping you could answer that," the Twi'lek replies, concern lacing her voice.

"I couldn't sleep," Sabine shrugs a little. "Went to check on everyone else, and we were all having the same problem."

"And then we came in here," Rex adds.

"And no one was sleeping," Hera agrees, thankfully not going into any more details. "We assumed it had something to do with the Force?"

Kanan scans the room again, eyes suddenly landing on the Sith holocron. It's sitting innocently on the corner, except it's almost glowing. It should never do that, unless someone is using it. The darkness coming from it is the same that was permeating his mind earlier. The holocron was causing all this, and it doesn't look like any of the others are in any better shape than he is. he scrambles to his feet, slightly irked by the long fall from his bed. "We have to wake them up," he insists. "The holocron is influencing everyone. We have to get it out of here."

"How do you plan to do that?" Zeb grumbles. "We were calling you all for at least ten minutes."

"It didn't seem to be working for anyone else," Sabine adds.

Kanan eyes the three sleeping figures again. They're right. Calling them won't help, at least not out loud. But through the Force? That might be a little different. "I have an idea, but there's no guarantee it'll work."

**w**

They're back on Malachor again, except the entire crew is together this time. Anakin is there too, somehow looking like he does in that holocron. No one takes the time to question it.

With three madly cackling Inquisitors, but Ezra is suspicious those aren't the end of them. Maul is strangling the Seventh Sister again. "You must kill her," he urges, but Ezra firmly refuses and spins around to parry a sudden blow from behind which would've beheaded him. Where do all these people come from? He and Kanan have already killed four.

That's when Kanan arrives to join the fight, and they would've won easily, if Maul hadn't suddenly dropped the Seventh Sister. Everything seems to go into slow motion as she jumps up and lunges for Sabine. The Mandalorian fires her blasters, but it's not nearly enough to stop the advancing Sith.

"No!" Ezra yells, breaking away from the fight and running towards them. He's not fast enough. The lightsaber stabs her through. He skids to a stop, only able to stare as she crumples to the ground. His sister just... she...

"What was it I told you about not hesitating to kill next time, or one of your friends may die?" Maul asks with a cruel smirk. He spins around suddenly, throwing his still-ignited lightsaber at Kanan.

The world around him seems to slow to an abrupt halt. He can't breathe. Can't move. Can't even process what just happened. There is no way this could've just happened. He doubts it would've hurt as badly for the blade to have gone through him instead. Kanan, Sabine, they just... His knees buckle and he falls to the ground. He can't even process what just happened. Kanan, his master, his father is – is...

Ezra suddenly finds himself falling. When he hits the ground, he's on the floor of the Ghost. "I'm glad he's gone," Ahsoka is insisting from the next room. What? He doesn't have the strength to push himself up off the floor. It doesn't even matter how he got here, even if it should've been impossible. Maybe he passed out? He feels strangely numb. Like nothing matters anymore. Kanan, Sabine...

"He was only getting us into more trouble," Hera agrees, and he suddenly gets the distinct impression they're talking about him. He wants to get up, to make the voices of the people he cares for most, everyone that is still alive – the others are dead because of him – stop. He knows it's his fault, but he can't bear to hear it. If he had just killed the Seventh Sister when Maul told him to, he would've been able to save both of them, but he didn't because he was too afraid of disappointing Kanan. He should've. It would've been hard, but at least he'd be here. At least he wouldn't be gone.

"Well guess what?" Ezra suddenly hears Anakin announcing, voice suddenly growing into something that sounds deeper and more sinister, like Vader. "He's still here." The door slides open. No. No, he can't deal with this. Not now. Except then he suddenly hears the sound of a lightsaber, of Hera calling for him. No. Not now, not now, not again. He can't lose them too, but if they don't even want him, what's the point in fighting?

Then he hears another sound. Darth Vader stands in front of him, armor and all. He should get up, he should fight, but he suddenly can't remember why. It would be so pointless to get himself killed in a battle he could never hope to win, and if he doesn't fight, what is there to lose? "This was the path you chose," the Sith remarks. "When you allowed me to stay."

"We helped you!" Ezra shouts, but even through his anger he feels numb. Hollow. Empty.

"You were weak. The strong take from the weak. It is the way of the Sith. You were foolish to trust me."

He wants to yell back some sort of retort, but what good would it do? It wouldn't bring anyone back. If he weren't so weak, if he would have just gotten up to fight...

"Ezra?" a voice suddenly calls. His head jerks up, and he instantly spots Kanan standing nearby.

"Kanan?" This is impossible. What's happening? How is this happening? Everything freezes except the two of them, as if it's nothing but an image.

"You need to wake up," he insists, crouching and holding out a hand to Ezra. "We need to go."

"This... I thought you were gone," he whispers. Maybe this is a figment of his own imagination. This can't be possible, can it? A tentative flicker of hope awakens, and he slowly reaches towards his hand. Was this all a dream? A terrible, terrible dream? Like the one he'd seen in the Temple of Lothal? It was similar now that he thinks about it. Cracks start slowly appearing along the dark walls of their surroundings.

"I'm here. It's okay. I'm here."

Ezra takes his hand, focusing on the light reaching towards him. The cracks across the walls widen and spread rapidly until it all melts away. Calm replaces all his former emotions, though he's confused as to what happened. Something was influencing him, and he broke the connection, but he doesn't know beyond that. "What do I do?"

"We come out." He feels the mental tug, and the image dissipates, being instantly replaced by one of their room in the Ghost. They're young again, but he doesn't care. All that matters is that everyone is here. He doesn't hesitate even a moment before throwing himself into Kanan's arms. It bothers him more than he cares to admit that they're basically the same size, but he's not going to complain about it. At least they're all here, they're all alive.

"That went well," Zeb remarks.

"Are you alright?" Hera asks worriedly.

"Yeah," Ezra mutters, pulling back and looking at the others. She steps forwards and seems more than happy to scoop him up when he runs over to her. This feels... right. It reminds him painfully of his mother, and it's a slightly strange thought, but he welcomes it. He glances over his shoulder when he realizes Kanan is still sitting there, now looking at Ahsoka worriedly. "What?" he inquires.

"We need to get the others up," he replies. "We were all having nightmares. The holocron, I think. Sith holocrons influence people like that." That makes sense. He hasn't been able to sleep properly since Malachor. Glancing across the room again, he sees Anakin backed into a corner and Ahsoka still on the bed. Ahsoka feels of misery and guilt, while Anakin feels of overwhelming fear and pain, and he really doesn't want to know exactly what either of them are seeing.

"Any ideas, anyone?"

**w**

Jagged bolts of white electricity crackle in the background as she dodges another strike, swinging her right lightsaber up to meet his. She backs up, suddenly slipping over the edge. She feels Vader watching her even as she falls, feeling her brother's gaze on her back. Ahsoka lands on the floor below, hastily picking herself up. She has to get back there. They need her help, and she won't let the Sith get that holocron. Ahsoka jumps back over the edge, running towards Vader.

Something about this isn't quite right...

She jumps over his head even as he turns, blades slashing downwards as his swings up to block it. It wasn't timed quite right – it wasn't exactly supposed to be – and she lands on the floor on his other side. "Ahsoka!" The sudden voice that haunted her dreams since the temple on Lothal – even since she left the Order – sounds again. She can't believe it, she's actually hearing it, hearing him again. "Ahsoka..."

Ahsoka pushes herself up, turning slowly. Vader – Anakin – stands, and as he turns, she sees the hole she cut through his helmet. If he hadn't moved that last very moment, she would've killed him, but all she can focus on now is his face. His eye – the one she can see – is golden, as expected, but there's something distinctly caring in it. Something she's longed to see for far too long.

"Anakin," she breathes, pushing herself up and picking up her lightsabers. "I won't leave you. Not this time." It's a plea of pure desperation. She couldn't believe this happened to Anakin, until she actually saw it, but she can't deny it anymore.

He stares at her, and for a moment he thinks she might again, but then his eye grows golden again. "Then you will die." It's not a promise, it's a warning, but she can't bring herself to care. She'll stay here with him, with her brother, until the end.

"Somebody has to save his skin."

"...is going to pay for what she did!"

"I would never let anyone hurt you, Ahsoka, never!"

"You will be turned over to the Republic courts to await your trail and whatever punishment they will set for you. Henceforth, you are barred from the Jedi Order."

"What about me? I believed in you. I stood by you!"

"I know you believe in me, Anakin, and I am grateful for that, but this isn't about you."

"I have to sort this out on my own. Without the Council. And without you."

"I understand. More than you realize, I understand wanting to walk away from the Order."

"I know."

"Hello, master. It's been a while."

"We'll have to catch up another time."

"He is the key to everything."

For a moment, she could almost swear she sees Obi-Wan, standing alone out against the sandy landscape, two far-too familiar suns standing out in the sky, but that image is gone as quickly as it came.

A lifetime of memories dance before her eyes, then fade out, replaced again by Vader standing in front of her. He stalks towards her, and she hears Ezra calling, but throws him back towards the ship. She won't let anyone take them apart again.

The doors close the rest of the way, the only sounds being Vader's breathing and their lightsabers clashing, echoing ominously through the darkened expanse. The place is about to blow up, and the sudden explosion from above shows of just how imminent the danger is, yet Vader doesn't seem to care. Is he trying to get himself killed? Yes, he was. He told her, though Ahsoka has no idea when or how or why. She just knows, and she isn't about to let that happen. A Force-shove sends him skidding backwards, and she stabs her lightsabers into the floor, which starts cracking instantly.

Except instead of falling through with her, he steps clear of the cracks right before the floor gives way. Her head snaps up towards him, but she's falling again. She can't hear his voice, but she somehow gets knows the thought. If she left him alone in life, she'll leave him alone in death.

She wants to scream, to cry out in denial, but she knows there's no way back up. She's stuck here alone, falling through the endless darkness – not endless – while her brother who she so nearly got back is up there alone, and he's going to die. She's used to the fear, but it's never been the same certain knowledge as it is now. And it's all because of her own stupidity, because she didn't know he was trying to kill himself. She wasn't fast enough to stop it. She failed him. Her master, her brother, the one person she'd give anything for. He's gone. He's –

Ahsoka doesn't know how long she spends in the icy darkness, trapped and alone, before a sudden very, very loud sound jolts her awake. Her eyes snap open to seeing a smug-looking Sabine hovering over her, lowering her blaster.

"That seemed to work," she announces. "One more to go."