14 BBY – FIVE YEARS AFTER THE GREAT JEDI PURGE
Wobani - Bryx Sector
3rd person POV...
Sometimes, when tasked with an assignment like this, she can't help but wonder the reason why. Is it because she has personal experience with situations like these? Because she knows all too well what it is like to be the youngling that tries to hide away? Perhaps they're testing her resolve to see if she'll obey their will without question, without remorse. Or maybe her masters just simply have a cruel sense of humor.
She tries not to think about it much. When she does, painful memories resurface.
The night is still young on this backwater planet, but the heavy fog provides perfect conditions for what she's been ordered to do. Get in, get out, discreetly. Without error. Eliminate any who get in her way. Easy enough for one of her talents. If there is any doubt from her superiors about her resolve, she'll be sure to quash them when she returns triumphant.
She's one of the most skilled of her order. She doesn't fail.
After setting her TIE Fighter down in the hangar bay designated strictly for those with higher authority, she set out on her own through the town, utilizing the thick fog and smothering darkness to her advantage. The occasional beggar, vagabond, or low-life scum could be seen roaming the streets here and there, none of them noticing her. For those that did, she would look at them and send fear into their hearts through her power, ensuring they'd scurry away without looking back.
It took some time to travel to the outskirts of town but she was not without patience, for the sign of a skilled hunter is one who can wait in silence for their prey.
She's good at that.
The farther she travels away from the city center, the more her anticipation rises. She already knew where her target was, thanks to the Imperial census, but now that she's close enough she can confirm it for herself. She stretches outward with her senses, still keeping herself out of reach from the gaze of others.
There.
She can sense a presence nearby. Small. Young. The being in question is no more than a small child. But there is great potential. She can see why the Emperor desires her.
Soon enough the place from which the youngling's Force presence is emanating comes into view. It is a small home, perhaps even humble in a way, with nothing too noteworthy of a description. The only thing she cares about is that the house is relatively obscured from unwanted eyes by weeds and foliage, perfect for what she needs to do.
She takes her lightsaber into her left hand, a simple black hilt with a semi-circular guard and prepares to enter, but just then something makes her pause. A prickling sensation in her mind causes her to frown, and she focuses on it with trepidation. It almost feels like a…
Strange. As sudden as she sensed it the feeling was gone. Had she imagined it? Or was the Force trying to warn her about something…?
No matter. The presence is gone. If there's anything she should acknowledge from the feeling it's simply that she must be swift in accomplishing her goal. Waving a hand in front of the doorknob she unlocks it easily and moves silently into the house. Immediately greeting her is a lone man sitting at a table in the corner of the room. He looks up in surprise at the door opening and brandishes a nearby kitchen knife, anger contorting his features.
"Hey! What do you think you're doing in my house?!" he demands.
He marches toward her as if to threaten her, but with a casual flick of her wrist she yanks the knife out of his hands and strides forward, igniting her lightsaber with a flourish. The man gasps in shock and stumbles backward with newfound terror.
"Careful where you point such things," she hisses.
"No, I– I'm sorry, I didn't realize…" he stutters.
"I need something from you. Cooperate, and I shall leave you in peace," she states.
"What do you want?" he asks hesitantly.
"You have a daughter, am I correct?" she says slowly. "It has come to our attention that she possesses certain… gifts."
The man widens his eyes in alarm and shakes his head in denial.
"I'm not sure what you mean… y-you must have the wrong person," he protests.
"Do you truly intend to defy the will of the Emperor with your lies, Mavren Jade?" she scowls, taking a step forward.
He steps backward while shaking his head vigorously in protest.
"Please, she's our only child!" he pleads with her.
While speaking, Mavren slowly reaches behind him with a trembling hand, an action that does not go unnoticed by her.
"Wrong answer," she growls.
From the hallway behind Mavren a woman appears. A drop of sweat rolls down his forehead, fear and resignation taking hold in his mind.
"Mavren, what's—" the woman starts to say, only to freeze at the sight before her.
In a blur of movement Mavren pulls out a blaster pistol and fires a shot at her. She was ready though, lifting her blade to deflect the shot harmlessly to the side.
"HELEN, RUN!" Mavren yells.
He fires several more shots at the intruder but she dashes forward and, in a single swipe of her blade, disarms him of his blaster by removing his hand. She gives Mavren a moment to holler in pain before he's silenced by her removing him of his head.
Helen witnesses the murder with a scream of horror and anguish before running back down the hallway. She follows her calmly, stepping over Mavren's body on her way down the hallway. Turning into a room she sees Helen desperately attempting to pry open a window while carrying a crying toddler in her arms. Just as Helen started to push it up she angrily gestures at the window to slam it shut once more with the Force, causing Helen and her daughter to fall backward.
"Mama!" the young girl cries.
Helen crawls over to her daughter, who is no older than three years of age with startlingly red hair. She stands protectively in front of her against the Imperial assassin.
"Oh, Helen, do you wish to join your husband?" she asks.
"You're not taking my daughter!" Helen yells at her, tears flowing freely.
"Well… I'm afraid there's nothing you can do, my dear," she states dismissively.
She then stabs Helen in the abdomen, causing her to gasp in pain. Her daughter screams in terror.
"Mama!"
Second Sister deactivated her lightsaber and grabbed the small child's arm harshly, picking her up.
"You're coming with me," she said.
The small child continue to cry and struggle as Second Sister forcibly carried her through the house outside. Passing by the hacked off body of Helen's husband without a care only made the little girl sob and scream harder. Eventually, Second Sister was fed up and had enough of the annoying cries.
"Shut up!" she snarled, smacking the girl's head with her lightsaber hilt.
The girl cried out in pain but got the message, quieting to lower sounding sobs, but she still continued to try and free herself from the Inquisitor.
He was crouched on the side of the street, eyes narrowed as he watched the commotion.
To his great regret he hadn't made it in time as evident by the screaming child and the Inquisitor storming out of the house, practically dragging the toddler with him. He may not have been able to save the family, but he will certainly save the child from the horrors of the Emperor.
Rushing out from cover he jumped through the air, causing the Inquisitor to look at him in surprise before he slammed his foot into her mask, using the Force to enhance his kick. She flew back into the wall of another house with a startled cry. The little girl was thrown into the air and she screamed in fear before the man caught her gently.
"Shhh, you'll be alright, you're safe now," he soothed her, calming her mind with the Force. She instantly quieted down and looked at him with scared, yet curious eyes.
"Who are you?" she hesitantly asked.
Before he could respond the Second Sister leaped back to her feet.
"Jedi!" she growled out.
She activates both ends of her lightsaber furiously, and he sets the girl on the ground beside a house.
"Stay here. You'll be alright, I promise you," he said gently.
The little girl nodded her head, preferring the nice man over the scary masked creature any day.
The Jedi then stood up confidently and pulled out a dark, slightly curved, silver cylinder from his belt. He pressed a red button, causing a brilliant sapphire colored blade to spring forth.
"You won't be taking anyone today, Inquisitor," he said firmly.
"Then you will die like her parents!" Second Sister roared, lunging forwards.
The Jedi met her charge with his own blue blade, and the two entered a blade lock before Sister backpedaled, swinging her lightsaber in an attempt to cut him in half. The Jedi dodged the attack before unleashing a counter with his own blade, slicing through the air. She blocked it, and the two exchanged in a quick flurry of strikes and parry's, although Second Sister was slowly forced backwards. She snarled angrily and activated her sabers spinning feature, swinging at the Jedi wildly.
He dodged out of the way, backing up again and occasionally deflecting a strike from the twirling saber. All the while the young girl watched in awe and fear, wanting the nice man to win.
Eventually, in her rage, Second Sister miscalculated her next strike, causing her to overshoot her attack and stumble. Taking advantage of the opportunity, the Jedi rushed forward and grabbed the cylindrical guard of her saber with his left hand, forcing the device to stop spinning and screeching in protest. She gapes at his ridiculous strength in shock before he swung his saber down, slicing her hilt in half with his own blue blade. He then swung out his left hand and Second Sister saw a gleaming silver from metal before his fist connected with her mask, knocking her to the ground where she fell unconscious.
Satisfied, the Jedi deactivated his lightsaber with a sigh, his expression grim. He looked over at the little girl, who ran over to him happily, glad that the scary creature wasn't a problem anymore. Her face then returned to fear, and she ran towards her house.
"Mama!" she cried out, moving faster than a three year old should be capable of.
The Jedi rushed after her quickly, hoping to save the girl before more Imperial's arrived. They entered the house, where he spotted the father's corpse lying, his arm and head separated from the body. The little girl was standing there, sobbing hysterically. The Jedi then sensed a weak presence in the Force from the other room, and steered the young girl away from the destruction.
"Let's not look at that little one," he spoke gently, leading her to the back room. Remembering the state of her mother, the young girl rushed into the room, the Jedi following after her.
There, laying on the ground by the window, was Helen, and she was taking in pained breaths, her daughter sobbing by her side. The Jedi immediately moved forward and knelt beside the woman, taking in the state of her wounds. He closed his eyes sorrowfully as he realized she wouldn't make it.
"I'm sorry," he spoke softly to Helen.
Helen gasped painfully, her gaze shifting to the Jedi and she slightly widened her eyes more than they already were.
"J- Jedi…" she coughed out, trying to raise her head.
The Jedi shushed her and gently forced her to lay back on the ground.
"I'm sorry I couldn't make it in time," the Jedi said regretfully to Helen.
"What- what's your name?" she weakly asked in between coughs.
Her daughter continued to sob, holding onto her mother's hand tightly.
"Jarik Shan, miss," he responded.
Helen coughed again.
"Jarik… take care… of my daughter- will you please?" she pleaded desperately.
"Mama don't leave me!" the little girl cried.
Helen stroked her daughters hair sadly.
"You'll be alright… Mara, he'll take care of... you," she spoke painfully, her eyes starting to glaze over before she gazed sternly at Jarik. "Promise me you… will take care of Mara Jade!"
Jarik nodded his head determinedly.
"I will, don't you worry about that. Just rest," he assured her gently.
Helen smiled in relief, before her eyes closed for the last time, and her body went still.
"Mama? Mama please wake up!" Mara pleaded desperately, shaking her mother. "Wake up mom!"
The sound of Imperial's approaching caught Jarik's attention, and he looked out the window with narrowed eyes before raising his arm to his head.
"R5, prepare the shuttle for take off," he ordered his astromech.
R5 beeped in confirmation and Jarik closed the transmission, putting a hand on Mara's shoulder.
"Mara we have to go," he told her.
"No! I won't leave Mama!" she cried out fiercely, holding Helen's still form.
"We have to go Mara! She wouldn't want you to stay here, please Mara!" Jarik said sternly, but trying to be comforting at the same time.
When she refused, Jarik sighed before grabbing Mara gently but firmly.
"I'm sorry Mara, but we have to leave her!" he said.
"NOO! She'll wake up! She always does!" Mara cries out, struggling against Jarik as he rushed out of the house.
"She's gone Mara, she's gone," he replied, struggling to to contain his emotions.
No family should ever have to suffer through this pain.
Mara finally stopped struggling but let out an agonizing wail, as Jarik carried her away from the home and the Second Sister, just as Imperial Stormtroopers began to swarm the place. Mara cried into Jarik's shoulder as they ran through the forest towards his ship, where R5 was waiting to take off.
12 BBY - SEVEN YEARS AFTER THE GREAT JEDI PURGE
Unidentified planet - Unknown Regions
Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the III sighed angrily, trudging through the dirt back towards his house. The moment he left the forge, Snotlout and the twins immediately pounced and started making a fool of him, calling him names and shoving him to the ground. Gobber wasn't there to stop them since he was at the Great Hall. His father wouldn't be of any help either.
Even at seven years of age, most of the kids were already developing some muscle or Viking skill, but not Hiccup. He was seven himself yet had no Viking talent or skills whatsoever, besides his intelligence and creativity, which nobody cared about.
He looked up at the two setting suns longingly before entering the house, thinking about his current situation in life. He remembered some old books that Gothi once allowed him to read, which showed their people's history. One story that really fascinated him was when the gods themselves apparently came down from the heavens and taught them the Norse language a few millennia ago, and rumors were they even constructed a Temple on a long lost island.
The gods also named their world of great archipelago's and oceans Ahch-To, which every Viking takes pride in the name, no matter who they were. To them the name of the world Odin gifted to them was holy, and should not be insulted in any way, otherwise it would be considered blasphemy. Hiccup has always loved this tale the moment he heard of it, and he wished he could be so fortunate as to be like the rest of his peers.
With these thoughts, he entered his house to get ready for bed, and the next day of torment tomorrow.
Author's Note: So how's that for a twist in the story? We've got Mara Jade rescued from what she would become as the Emperor's Hand, and then the planet that the HTTYD universe resides on is actually Ahch-To! The reason I thought of this is that the planet Ahch-To is a massive archipelago of islands like HTTYD, with a climate that fits perfectly with Berk and the HTTYD world.
