Twisted inside chapter 30
At first it could she was only able to move a few inches and that in of itself was just baffling to her. A black mist surrounded Ahsoka as her body seemly fazed in and out of sight from within the thin cloud. With her eyes closed tightly Ahsoka concentrated all of her energy in to willing her body to move. Sweat dripped off her forehead and evaporated the second it touched the black mist and suddenly she vanished. Less than a second later she reappeared several feet away from where she had been originally.
Ahsoka opened her eyes letting out a ragged breath "I did it" she panted heavily. Bogan was standing a few feet away with a pleased smile on her face "you're getting better my dear. I'm very pleased with how far you've come after just learning this technique a week ago" she said.
"It's a lot harder than it looks" Ahsoka admitted sitting down to take a short break. Bogan walked over and sat down in front of Ahsoka "well what did you expect, that it would be as simple as using the force to open a door?" she replied. Ahsoka shook her head taking several deep breaths "no but it takes a lot of energy out of me" she said. "You'll get use to it and soon it will become as easy as opening a door with the force" Bogan assured.
Bogan looked out at the forest, the akul were still there keeping about a one hundred meter distance from them. Smiling Bogan looked at Ahsoka "can you sense them dear?" she asked. Ahsoka had sensed them since she had woken up but it was strange, normally the akul would leap at the opportunity to attack a lone prey but for some reason they were keeping their distance. "Yea but their keeping their distances they haven't once tried to come any closer…it's strange" Ahsoka replied.
"Tell me about them" Bogan said wanting to hear her vessel's opinion on the predators of Shili. "Their called Akul, their vicious predators with long clawed paws with orange fur which can make them hard to spot if their hiding in the grasslands. They often hunt in packs of three or four at a time and if villagers aren't careful the akul will attack them" Ahsoka explained. Pointing at her headdress "we hunt them to help keep their population under control and we use their teeth to make headdresses as trophies. It's very dangerous to hunt them so only the most skilled and fieriest of togruta warriors can hunt them" she added.
"So you killed one of them and made your own headdress as a trophy of your success?" Bogan asked. Ahsoka nodded her head "Master Ti brought me back to Shili so I could go on the hunt, it's kind of a tradition" Ahsoka replied. "The reason the akul are staying back is because they can sense the aura surrounding you" Bogan explained "I want you to reach out and call one of them to you."
Ahsoka's eyes widened in surprise "y-you want me to what…?" she asked. "I want you to call one of the akul to you I want to show you something" Bogan replied. "You don't need to be scared dear, simply reach out and beckon one of them to you" she added. Ahsoka looked at Bogan hesitantly, it was one thing to hunt the akul when they weren't expecting you but it was completely different to bring one to you. "Go on dear it will be alright" Bogan assured with a kind smile.
Taking a deep breath Ahsoka looked behind her where the akuls presence was coming from. Slowly standing up Ahsoka closed her eyes and took a moment to calm her nerves before reaching out with the force. There were five of them hiding in the forest to afraid to come any closer yet to hungry to run off. Taking another deep breath Ahsoka focused, the darkside enhanced her hearing to the point that she could pick up the animals growing and snarling, the sounds of their claws digging into the dirt and the sound of twigs breaking underneath the weight of their tense muscles. The akul were ready to charge the moment the dark presence vanished.
Slowly Ahsoka called out to one of the akul and the best's head suddenly snapped in her direction. The akul snarled, saliva dripping from its mouth and eyes narrowing in on the dark presence it sensed before taking off in a run toward it. Ahsoka could feel it drawling closer, her muscles tightened in anticipation as her heart started to race. Her lightsaber was inside of the broken down house and she was itching to go it get it, to have something to defend herself with before the akul reached them.
Bogan however was calm compared to her vessel, standing up she walked over to Ahsoka and took a hold of her vessel's clawed hand "relax" she whispered. Ahsoka however was finding it incredibly hard to relax as her entire body started to tense up. "Now listen closely dear, this is what I want you to do" Bogan said "gather all your hatred, your anger and your rage and focus that power into your eyes."
"M-my eyes?" Ahsoka asked confused.
Bogan nodded her head "Focus it all into your eyes and look at the beast when it comes" she repeated.
Ahsoka turned her head back to the forest, the ravage sounds of the akul were much closer now. Her montrals could pick up the vibrations it caused every time its foot landed on the ground only to push off a second later. She could sense the akul's anger, its primal instinct to attack. It had been weighing its own hunger verses the danger it sensed emitting from Ahsoka and the second Ahsoka reached out and touched the beast mind its hunger won out.
Doing just as Bogan instructed Ahsoka started to gather her darker emotions and channel that power into her eyes. When the akul finally closed the distance and broke through the forest and into the small abandoned village snarling and growling like the savage beast it was it started to run at Ahsoka.
Ahsoka's eyes started to glow with all the fury she could muster and when she turned her gaze toward the akul barreling down at her the beast suddenly yelped in pain and skidded to a halt. Surprise and showed riddled Ahsoka's face as the akul howled in pain as smoke started to come off of its body.
The akul tired to back away but the pain it was in kept it from moving more than a few feet. "That's it dear very good" Bogan said from behind Ahsoka with a twisted yet pleased smile on her face. The akul howled in agony shaking its body furious from side to side. Suddenly it's body started to disintegrate starting at its head and quickly working its way over its body before turning into a pile of ash on the ground.
Ahsoka stood there shocked speechless as she stared at the pile of ash that was just moments ago a fully grown Akul. When it was over Ahsoka was covering her right eye, it was throbbing painfully unlike her left eye which felt completely fine. Leaning over a bit Ahsoka took several moment to process exactly what the hell just happened. "W-what…just happened?" Ahsoka asked in complete shock.
"You killed it" Bogan said simply with a pleased smile on her face. "B-but how…i…I just looked at it" Ahsoka stuttered the throbbing in here eye slowly starting to fade after several minutes. "By channeling all your hatred and burning rage into your eyes you have the ability to turn them into a deadly weapon wiping out anything you set your gaze on. It's an ability known as Deadly sight" Bogan explained.
Ahsoka turned and looked at Bogan slowly lowering her hand from her eyes as the pain finally ebbed away. "Using this power put tremendous strain on the eyes but don't worry the pain will fade" Bogan continued "I am surprised but pleased you were able to pull it off on your first attempt my dear" she added with a smile. Ahsoka took a couple deep breaths and smiled back tiredly.
"You are doing very well my dear, it thrills me that you are progressing so quickly" Bogan praised her vessel. Ahsoka smiled again, she was grateful that Bogan thought highly of her abilities. "Take a few moments to rest before you try it again" Bogan instructed. Nodding her head Ahsoka sat down on the ground to catch her breath, she still found it hard to believe that she just killed a full blown akul just by looking at it. The evidence however was right in front of her so she had no reason to not believe that it could not be done. Still though, it was hard to believe.
Since she had arrived on her home world and continued her training the tendrils had spread a little further over her body. Though her appearance was shocking Ahsoka couldn't care less about how she looked, she never felt closer to Bogan than she did right now. Taking another deep breath Ahsoka took a moment to bask in Bogan's presence radiating inside of her. Though Bogan felt like a raging storm that Ahsoka was stuck in the middle of she never felt calmer and more relaxed than when they were together.
The Jedi had been wrong about Bogan, she believed that down to her core that Bogan was good just that Bogan had been through something horrible long ago. Opening her eyes Ahsoka looked at the mirror image of herself that was Bogan and smiled warmly again "I know I've said this before…but thank you for everything you've done for me" she said. Bogan simply nodded her head and after a few more minutes she stood up "let's continue" she said.
Ahsoka once again looked at the small pile of ash that lay on the ground a few feet from her before nodded her head "alright" she said. Bogan pointed at the hut that the two of them had been staying in "the weapon inside bring it out here dear" she instructed. Ahsoka quickly vanished inside of the hut and came back out a few moments later holding the lightsaber in her hand and held it out toward Bogan "are you going to train me with it?" Ahsoka asked curiously.
Bogan shook her head and raised her hand making the hilt lift up off of Ahsoka's palm. The hilt floated in the air for a moment before Bogan closed her hand in a tight fist and the hilt suddenly cracked as it was forced to bend in on itself wadding up like a piece of balled up paper. Casting her hand toward the side she flung the destroyed weapon into the forest and looked at her vessel with a serious gaze "you will not use a weapon that a servant of Ashla once possessed" she said sternly.
The young togruta's eyes widened in surprise "what did you do that for, I needed that lightsaber" she asked. "No you do not" Bogan quickly silenced her vessel "that is a weapon made by a servant of Ashla forged by Ashla's power and I will not have you use it" Bogan snapped rather fiercely.
"But how else am I suppose to defend myself?" Ahsoka asked "what if another Jedi finds us and tries to take us back before I'm ready to fight Sidious?" she said.
"I am the only weapon you need!" Bogan growled in frustration "or have we done all this training for nothing?"
Ahsoka was shocked into silence at Bogan's sudden change of attitude "Bogan...i…"
"I am your weapon. A mere lightsaber's power is nothing compared to my power. Do you honestly think you would be able to take on Sidious with a lightsaber and win?" Bogan asked.
Before Ahsoka could think of a reply Bogan continued to speak. "Lightsabers can malfunction, they can fail and as strong as their blades are there hilts are always weak therefore the weapon is flawed. My power that courses through your body is never weak, it will never malfunction, never break down and it has no weaknesses."
Suddenly the left side of Ahsoka's body, the side that was covered in the dark tendrils started to go numb. Looking at Bogan she saw her mirror self lifting the clawed hand toward one of the more rotten out buildings tends started to appear from the arm slithering down toward the hand like a serpent. The tendrils started to bend on themselves and rotate forming a tight ball that spun in her open hand.
Ahsoka then felt her own left arm suddenly begin to move and tendrils started to appear from left arm. Confused Ahsoka tried to pull her arm back down but it wouldn't lower. "Bogan w-what's going on my arm it won't" when she looked back at Bogan who was staring at her with such intensity in her eyes the black ball shot from both their hands toward the structure. The instant Bogan's black ball of tendrils touched the structure it vanished but when Ahsoka's hit it exploded and the tendrils wrapped themselves around the structure turning it to ash faster than Ahsoka could blink.
Staring at her vessel who was staring at the destroyed structure she said "no weapon that any sentient being could forge could ever come close to my power especially that of a servant of Ashla!" she said spiting out the word Ashla as though it was a foul taste in her mouth. Ahsoka slowly turned her head and looked back at Bogan for the first time with a fear in her eyes. What…what had just happened, for a moment she had lost total control of the left side of body or more correctly it was as if something had taken control of the left side of her body.
Bogan had such fury, such a burning rage smoldering in her eyes and Ahsoka could feel that anger swelling up inside of her. It was like a uncontrollable fire and for a second Ahsoka feared that she would get swallowed up by it and lose herself to Bogan's power.
Seeing the fear in her vessel's eyes Bogan took a deep breath and calmed herself down a bit. She didn't need her vessel scared of her; it could interfere with the bonding processes if she feared her. Bogan walked up to her vessel who was slightly trembling "you wield unimaginable power my dear" she spoke in a much softer and calmer tone than before "you have no need for such weapons as a lightsaber because I am more powerful than any lightsaber."
Reaching up Bogan gently rubbed Ahsoka's cheek "I told you dear, you have only seen the tip of the extent of my power" she whispered in a soothingly calm voice. "Relax my dear you don't need to fear my power, I don't want you to fear it I want you to embrace it" Bogan continued slowly pulling her into a hug.
It took a few minutes but Ahsoka started to calm back down as if a soothing presence washed over her and soon her trembling ceased but her mind was racing. Just moments ago there was a building next to them and now it was nothing but ashes. It wasn't just the sheer destructive power that had frightened her but for a moment she had lost control of the left side of her body. Looking back into Bogan's eyes she suddenly felt all of her worries and concerns vanish mysteriously from her mind. Bogan was right; she shouldn't fear the power that she needed to change the future. Slowly Ahsoka returned the embrace wrapping her arms around Bogan and letting out a deep breath "you're right Bogan…I'm sorry" she said.
After a few moments Ahsoka pulled away and glanced at the large pile of ash that was once a building. "How did you do that Bogan?" she asked. Bogan looked at her vessel and grinned "You did that my dear not me but I'll show you" she said leading her vessel over to another abandoned hut.
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After Ahsoka's rather violent escape from the Jedi temple it had left more than a dozen or so Jedi in the halls of healing. Jedi healer Talis like many other healers had their hands full tending to many of the wounded. Only a few days ago had they been able to burry the dead. Taking a break from her work Talis was sitting in the room of a thousand fountains trying to clear her mind.
Ever since Ahsoka had escaped from the containment cell she had been plagued by strange but vivid nightmares. The dear would always start the same way; it would be raining and black clouds would cover the sky above Coruscant. The air was filled with the stench of blood and death while screams filled her ears. She always found herself standing in what once was the great Jedi temple but had been reduced to a pile of rubble. Scattered around her were the bodies of fallen Jedi and clones alike. The jedi's faces were twisted in pain during their final moments and she assumed the clones were as well.
She could hear the cries for help of someone not far off but they suddenly turned to a scream before falling silent. The Jedi temple was gone, the Jedi Order destroyed and Coruscant left in ruins. No one had survived; no one would survive this destruction that poured over the planet. An enraged roar filled the air and she'd turn her head and come face to face with the cause for all this destruction.
It was more of a wild animal than anything that much she was certain of. It's rage filled crimson eyes stared down at a Jedi who was screaming in pain as misty tendrils somehow devoured him. The animal grinned in a sadistic fashion with large sharp pointed teeth seemingly enjoying the torment it was causing the Jedi. As the Jedi's cries were silenced the animal would turn and look directly at her and she would be struck with so much fear that she couldn't move.
With a twisted laugh the animal would make its way slowly toward her, its long clawed talon like feet crushed the lifeless bodies of her fellow Jedi. The animal itself resembled the characteristics of a togruta however several things were different. Its skin was black and covered in the misty like tendrils, long curved montrals at the top of his head its lekku went all the way down past its waist. It had very muscular arms that were likewise surrounded by the tendrils and clawed talon like fingers that were sharper than any blade ever created with a set of medium size breasts on its chest. Several tendrils seemingly flowed out of its back twisting together at the small of her back into a long tendril like tail.
The power she felt coming from this animal was so overwhelming that she was almost chocking as it was so hard to breath. There was so much darkness, so much hatred and furry in its crimson eyes as they bore down on her. Slowly she would be picked off of the ground in a death like grip and pulled toward the animal. And no matter how hard she tried to get away it was futile. It would look at her for the longest time before suddenly becoming enraged and roaring loudly. Lightning exploded in the sky strike one of the partially still intact skyscrapers causing it to suddenly explode. Then she would feel a sharp pain piercing her chest and she would cough up blood. The animal had plunged its clawed hand inside of her chest and with a violent twist and pull ripped her heart right out. If this creature was ever at one time a togurtan female that it had been twisted by some evil power into the animal it now was.
Taking another deep breath Talis attempted to rid her mind of the gruesome images that plagued her during the day and focus on the force. But even that, the flow of the force seemed more out of balance than before. It was harder, more difficult for her and the other healers to use the force to help heal the wounded and she didn't know why. It was almost as if the force was resisting her but that just didn't make sense. Maybe it was the fact that she like so many other Jedi could feel the darkside of the force growing strong and the lightside of the force subsequently grew weaker.
It was terrifying to think that the darkside could grow so strong in such a short time and with no viable explanation. Shaking her head Talis sighed, she couldn't focus enough for meditation. She had too much on her mind and after a few moments she decided to seek the council of Master Yoda. Maybe he could help clear her mind. Standing up and walking out of the room of a thousand fountains Talis started to look for the Grand Jedi Master.
After twenty minutes of searching she found Master Yoda inside one of the meditation rooms. She waited for a moment before pressing the button that made a soft chime inside of the room. After a few seconds the door slid open and she saw the small green Jedi Master sitting down in the center of the room.
The green Jedi master opened her eyes and looked at her "something on your mind have you?" he asked. Talis nodded her head and sat down on one of the chairs "Yes master Yoda" she said brushing some of the hair out of her face. "Wish to share do you?" the grand jedi master asked.
The healer nodded and took a breath to calm her nerves, the dream still unnerving her. "You've felt it haven't you Master Yoda, the darkside is growing…it's so strong now I fear for the Jedi Order" she said. The elder Jedi nodded "sense the growing darkness I do sense the chaos in the galaxy I do. Clouded the future is uncertain of what is to come I am."
Jedi healer Talis sighed "Master yoda…I'm uneasy about all of this. I've been having dream…or visions of the future I can't be certain of which but there full of pain and so much death."
Yoda sighed and thought for a moment "yes similar visions I have had, disturbing these visions are influenced the darkside have no doubt I do. Trust in the force we must" he replied.
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"What are you doing here Ashla!?" Bogan snarled glaring at the glowing ball of light had just appeared in front of her. Bogan had been enjoying her meditation basking in the anguish of the galaxy after several hours of training her vessel.
"Bogan why are you doing this? You're causing so much pain throughout the galaxy" Ashla asked.
Bogan growled "you stabbed me in the back!" Bogan snapped.
"No Bogan I didn't it wasn't my fault" Ashla protested "please Bogan don't go down this path, don't destroy everything we built and the lives we created because of what happened"
"You betrayed me for them! You made me into what I am today and now. Now I will destroy everything you hold dear and make you watch and then; then I wipe your existence from the face of the galaxy" Bogan spat enrage and flared her power.
The orb dimmed and flickered for a moment underneath the weight of Bogan's intense rage before brightening back up. "Bogan how many times must I tell you that what happened was not my fault. I didn't order them to attack you, please Bogan…"
"Enough!" Bogan shouted loudly. "No more of your lies Ashla, I will destroy everything you hold dear and finally Ashla, my dear other half" she said mockingly. "I will be free from you" she said waving her hand and the orb vanished from her sight.
Opening her eyes Bogan took a deep breath and looked down at her sleeping vessel. "Soon my dear" she said stroking Ahsoka's head "soon it will all be over" as the tendrils spread a little further over her body.