Author Note: Thank you for my first reviewer for reading the story! I greatly appreciate the kind words and the review. Here is a long chap for you guys, next one should be visiting the air temple one. I think this chapter was pretty good but I would love to hear your opinion about it! Thank you all for reading you wonderful and awesome people. Remember to favorite, follow and review it helps me with motivation. Thank you all for reading and have a wonderful and awesome day!
Chapter 7
"So…this is all that remains?"
Sokka's voice arose along the beach. The heavy dark clouds letting out small rain ripples that would douse the sand. Ben and the rest gazed at Sokka, the young warrior still holding onto that strange water tribe blade that he found.
They had docked Appa here in another forest clearing, to hopefully get something by the nearest city. Leaving the bison by himself as they went downhill, though Sokka found something down the ridge. Remnants of some sort of battle between the fire nation and the water tribe.
He didn't need to be told why it was so important to Sokka and Katara…he could hear it from there conversations, there talk about the war and such. Sokka was a warrior, but Ben understood that he was far too young to go off with his father and the other men of his village.
War is war…a child had no place to be there. A sentiment or rather a statement that Benjamin had learned from firsthand experience. Ben dug into his jacket pocket instinctively, though Katara was only a couple feet away from him.
She would just smack the tobacco from his mouth and would ruin another of his fresh smokes. He was able to convince Aang and the others to lend him some money to get some new clothes and to pick up some supplies.
His left hand trailed the pouch attached to his belt. The leathery skin prickled his fingers as he went back to paying attention to what they were saying. "Look…there's a boat from dad's fleet." Sokka spoke, his finger extended towards a rugged boat.
Ben and the rest followed him as Ben's eyes glossed over the vessel. Grafted from wood and most likely pieces of whale, it was relatively small. 'No wonder the fire nation is winning…they have massive iron battleships while the water tribe has wooden fishing boats.'
"Ay, Sokka." Ben called out to the boy. His eyes looking sullen, and Ben could detect the sadness emanating from him, Katara was sad as well…though it was a different kind of sadness. "Let's make camp for tonight alright." He spoke up.
They began to prepare along the beach. There gazes still unhampered as the sun was swiftly swallowed by the horizon and the white of the moon took over. Four people sat limply along the edges of a rugged campfire, there gazes still stuck to the bright orange flames or the embers that would breach and reach to the sky.
During this time that they all sat down together. That was when the siblings began to open up with Benjamin. Telling him of the home in the water tribe…of their grandmother and their family, of the loss of their mother. They explained more of water tribe culture to Benjamin, even Benjamin lying that he was born in the earth kingdom.
They didn't ask much of the Jedi…opting out and telling Benjamin that when he was ready, he could tell them. Though, he had no plans on telling them. He was already feeling disgusted with himself of how he acted with Katara and the lack of self-control he displayed.
He couldn't tell them the truth…he could never tell them. Not just of where he came from, they would probably think he was mad if he told them the truth, but also of his stance as a Sith Marauder…and his prior role as the grand executor of Revan's Sith Empire.
They're smiling faces, those people that he only knew for a short time. Though, their lives have been saved by him and his life saved by them…he wanted to protect those people. He would do what he must and make sure for the remainder of the time he knows them that they shall be protected.
"Sokka, do you miss your father?" Ben's voice arose the campfire. He stared towards the star filled sky as the rest of the trio locked onto him.
Sokka's eyes widened as Ben's voice arose through the camp. "Um…yeah, why do you ask?"
"Ben can feel emotions." Katara interrupted, a small grin over her face as she remembered what happened a couple of days ago. "A Jedi trait." Aang added on as Sokka just softly grinned.
"I can still remember him leaving, he had to go off and fight in the war, all the men had to."
"Such things have to happen, this war…the fire nation needs to be stopped, there nothing more than animals and butcherers." Benjamin added on, snorting after the end of the sentence.
"I wanted to go with him, even being young. Though, he told me to stay here and to protect my sister and grand gran. Said that a true man…a true warrior knows their place and where there needed, I still don't know what that means." He followed Benjamin's lead. The boy staring into the bright expanse of the night filled sky. "Though, sometimes I wonder what my life would be like if my father took me with him. If dad thought that I was ready or was born earlier. Would I have been able to help the tribe or my father then?"
Ben turned towards Sokka, who was expecting to be told that his place wasn't there, but here with his friends and the avatar. "No…you'd probably die." Ben yawned. The trio's eyes widened at the bluntness of Ben's own words. "War is hell…and you still haven't fought in any real battles. Even now that you're a teenager your still green. It's for the best that you stayed here."
Ben wasn't paying attention to Sokka's grimace. His gaze directed towards the star filled sky as he removed his bandolier from his thigh, his head laying on the animal skin bedroll.
"Benji, do you have anyone else?" Sokka whispered, the flame starting to slowly die out. The others were now beginning to rest on there bed rolls.
"No…Jedi aren't allowed to have families or loved ones. We give ourselves to the force."
"That's…" Aang was about to say something. Though, he was interrupted by Katara, the conversation had been steered way to the point of sadness, they needed to improve the mood somehow.
"What's the force like, Ben." Katara said.
Ben shrugged his shoulders. "I can't remember…sometimes when I use it. It feels like a whisper, an echo. All I can remember is cutting myself off from it."
He could feel their emotions…the disappointment they felt due to that one sentence. "Fine." He muttered; he still didn't face them as he spoke. "I guess…it's like feeling the warmth of the sun, without the glare. Knowing that there is truly life in the galaxy, and you are not truly alone."
Though, the thought did spur Benjamin's own mind. His palm outstretched as he began to gaze along it. 'If things were different, would I have not taken your hand…Kreia? If things were different…would I still have followed you, Meetra to the ends of the galaxy…would I have still committed those great sins that haunt me to this very day.'
Ben shook his head softly, closing his eyes as he felt the waves of exhaustion and sleepless nights begin to dawn on him. Putting his hand down as he let the noise of conversation softly dull in his ears as his eyes began to feel heavier. Ben rarely slept, the horrors of his nightmares and the demons of the night would prickle into his broken mind.
The mandalorians bombs that turned the serab cities into glass sculptures, the feeling of his dual blades cleaving through the Mandalorians on the planet of Dxun…and the feeling when he pressed that button because Meetra was too much of a coward to end the war.
The death of the force that would end everything…the bomb that would end Malachor V, the corpses and dead ships still form a ring along the destroyed world of that dead planet.
…A true death in the force…
Ben's form jutted up as he swiped the plastered hair stuck to his sweating brow. His eyes training around him only to see the rest of the trio asleep, their eyes closed as the cold salty breeze of the ocean began to rejuvenate him.
His eyes focused on Katara's sleeping form. His fingers trailing into his pocket as he plopped the cigarette into his mouth, he tried to strike up a match, only for the lone match to fall into the sand. He didn't have time for this, he had to be quiet or Katara could possibly wake up, he wasn't in the mood for a lecture and to lose another one of his smokes.
He could still see the outline in the middle of the beach. His fingers combed into the sand, parting into it as he tried to grasp it, only for it to slide between his fingers. "What the hell?" He muttered underneath his breath, his eyes widening as he paid attention to his fingers.
His left hand was trembling, splattering around like a water bottle that was thrown at a wall, his fingers were tense and relentlessly shake. His right hand grabbed his palm as he tried to force it to calm down. "Stop thinking about it…stop it…"
He whispered the order, his hand not following the command. He quickly went through one of the pouches and found a piece of paper and a pen. Dragging his right hand, his good hand out as he wrote a message.
'I'm fine…went to town to get supplies.' He wrote down. He got up the trickle of smoke filling his lungs though it wouldn't be enough, he needed to get a drink and to forget.
As Ben began to cut through the brush. His pouch feeling heavier and heavier along his thigh as he made his way through the dense brush of the forest. His eyes droopy and red as he felt the waves and waves of exhaustion start to slowly dawn on him.
Aang sat on Appa. His eyes gazing along Benji's note, the handwriting was horrendous. They knew that Ben wasn't the smartest tool in the shed though, this was completely unacceptable.
It was badly written, uppercases were wrong and his period looked like a comma. It looked rushed and frantic like Ben was being chased by something. Though, as Aang tilted his head towards the rising sun…Bato.
He had come during the night and all three went to his hut. The old warrior telling them about Sokka's and Katara's father and the great warrior he was…Aang remembered Ben's own words. How Sokka would have had died in the war.
Are they really going to wait for him…weren't they next going to stop by the air temple and see what was happening there? To find more airbendors!
Aang could understand this feeling well in his stomach…contorting and distorting his bowels as he felt sick, the stinging of tears hurting his eyes as his knees went into his stomach.
A man approached along some strange beast. "I am looking for Bato of the water tribe."
"I know, Bato." Aang whispered as he hesitantly watched the man.
He tossed Aang a parchment of paper. The young boy catching it in his hands as the man quickly rode away, tracking up sand as he began to vanish in the distance. With a quick wisp of his staff the air strode and collapsed along the floor bed, wiping the tracks as the note vanished within his robe.
The crowd of people at the bar surrounded the table. Their eyes darting between the players as the chips of poker danced along the hum of music. Their eyes cascaded along the chips and the cards as the crowd made way, a significant sigh erupted from one of the men as he pushed past the crowd.
"Come on there, old man." Ben sat at the edge of the table. Taking a sip from his glass of gin as his eyes trained along the crowd, the chips stacked high as the ex-Jedi sat there with a shit eating grin spread across his face.
The stench of alcohol rose high from him. His eyes were narrowed as his gaze went through the crowd. His eyes were slightly dilated as he felt the waves and waves of stares running through him.
Ben didn't mind the attention…after he made his way from the campsite, he got himself involved within the bar. A couple of drinks later the boy was in a high risk, high reward poker game. That pouch simply doubled in size now.
The power of the force was truly something else, the ignorant had no idea that he could read their base and lesser thoughts. Though, something was being carried throughout the crowd. Ben got up as he pulled the chips in.
That was a long night…the crack of the sun was now in view over the horizon. Ben's eyes were narrowed as he shrieked from the light, the night of drinking and smoking was taking its toll on him. Even though such things limited him to the force, he could still use it to read base impulses.
The dealer took Ben's chips as he began to arrange the rolls of coin for Ben. Benjamin couldn't help but smile as he saw the numerous coins being poured into a separate pouch as he felt the rolls of envy rolling through the crowd. Though, now the late drinkers have begun to leave the establishment due to the long game finally taking a close.
Ben's fingers uncertainly traced along the bar stool. His gaze uneven as his words came out slurred, he couldn't maintain the calm and composed aura of the poker game anymore. "Oh, a drink…or two." He raised his palm, raising four fingers conflicting the request as the bartender shook his head in dismay. "Huh, Bill would have had scolded me for drinking and smoking like this." He whispered to himself.
"Ah, this Bill…he's a friend of yours."
Ben turned to his right. His eyes glossing over the figure. The voice was clearly feminine, sort of had a small bite to it, a ray of coldness etched like a blade traced her words. Ben didn't really feel…comfortable. He was running down one of his nightmares and was trying to forget using alcohol and whatever he could get his hands on, even then he could tell that there was something off with this girl.
It was a chill, though the room was far from cold. The air felt electric, filled with power or something else. He was surprised that he could keep himself calm.
He couldn't detect her; he could feel the force in nearly everything. He should have been able to feel her vibration in the force, though these last few days have been harder and if he recalled he couldn't detect the ill intent of the pirates.
'Maybe, I am just being paranoid.' He thought as he felt his lips extend into a smile. His eyes glossed over the figure. She wore a large black cloak that covered her front and her back. It held a certain craftmanship towards it, not a single imperfection or stain.
She had vanilla like skin with piercing grey eyes, her hair was tied into a singular braid that went down to her back. Her raven like hair, the braid also didn't hold a singular imperfection.
It felt…weird. He knew some stuck up assholes back in the order, they reeked of vanity even though they were so called jedi. Even then, he couldn't shake the feeling that there was just something…
"Friend, I guess. The old man and I were close…" Ben's ears perked up as he heard the sliding of a drink come his way. His right hand instinctively jutting out as he grasped it. "I guess he was one of the closet things to a father that I have ever known."
The girl nodded her head as Ben took a sip from the drink. He was trying to regain that poker face from before, trying to act like he had nothing to hide…though something was slipping. He couldn't shake this feeling.
Even as his brow began to form sweat, and his fingers began to feel clammy along the cup. The force and his own very instincts were just telling him to run away, as fast as he could run. "What's your name?" He smirked at the girl, she seemed to be around his age, she returned his smile as she raised her gloved hand to him.
"Kiara, I am a fire nation warrior. Though, keep it to ourselves…the fire nation aren't welcome in places like this." She whispered.
Ben nodded his head as he absolved the information. 'This is weird, what is a fire nation warrior doing out here. I knew that there was a battle that Sokka recognized here, though this girl doesn't feel like a normal fire nation soldier.' Ben shook his head slightly, his gaze locking onto the girl as her small smile enlarged along her face. 'This girl called herself a warrior.'
Ben didn't understand why he was feeling like this. Why those two words mattered to him in that situation, maybe because he lived on the colony and was so used to hearing the soldiers refer to themselves as soldiers rather than warriors.
"Though, I must say that the poker game was something else. It really was…entertaining. Nothing like the things in the fire nation." She whispered towards Ben. The boy shook his head, the praise gracing his ears.
For a second…the air began to return to normal. Maybe it was Ben's pride, or how a pretty girl was giving him some attention. "Oh, come on…stop buttering me up, with your looks maybe I should be the ones complimenting you."
She chuckled, causing Ben's smile to begin to falter. She was a beautiful girl around his age, he wasn't a jedi anymore, so he didn't have to worry about personal relationships anymore. Though, there was something so…repulsive about her.
"Though, I could feel it in the crowd you know. The way you tracked them along, made them follow your lead or rather…your commands." She spoke. Her right hand cupping her chin as she softly rubbed it, like a detective examining the evidence of a crime scene.
Ben's fingers tightened along the cup. His eyes widening, and he knew that Kiara noticed. 'How could she have known…that I have been using the force? No, that's impossible. The Jedi are all dead and gone, I am the last of them. There is no way anyone else could know the truth.'
"Though, I must say. It was almost like you were able to read their minds, almost predict the cards that they would pull. Though, that would be insane to accuse someone of, how could someone know when something was going to happen?"
Ben's breathing got shallow. His eyes flared as he felt the stillness of his breath as his shallow breathing began to slip through his nostrils. She was trying to get him to say something, to fuck up and to play right into her hands.
'What does she want…it almost seems like she…'
Ben's eyes dilated. A vision coursing through his very form as he felt the wisp of the force flood through his body. He saw it, he knew what was coming…
Kiara was going to grab his cup with half-filled alcohol and slam it against his face. He could feel the glass fragments breaking and implanting all over. His eyes blinded as his arms flailed wildly through the air.
The air grown still, Ben acting in precision as the back of his palm slapped the cup away. He could hear the rupture of glass as the music died down. He could see from the corner of his eye the fragmented glass and the large brown stain dribbling down the wall.
He turned towards the girl. His eyes broadening as he saw it…a smile. She was smiling, her hand laid where the cup would be, he broke off from the chair. He grabbed onto the dealer and took his pouch as he made his way onto the fresh streets of the city.
The wooden buildings loomed with a certain elegance, it made sense due to the primitive huts that he had seen others live in. Some houses were made of brick or stone, cascaded like shadows along like large shadows.
It was morning and people were now beginning to empty out from their homes. Dropping off their children at school or heading out to work. Ben pushed through the crowd of people, some even taking a glance or to say something to him.
Though, they were stopped by the horrendous smell of alcohol and smokes that littered the boy. Ben ducked into an alleyway, when he was sure that he just about lost the girl. He rested his head along the brick wall. His eyes scanning the floor of the disgusting alleyway.
All that running…bile flooded from Ben's mouth as he collapsed to his knees. Spitting out a wad of green bile as he wiped his mouth, his eyes glued down the street. He dusted himself off and began walking as he blended into the crowd.
This time he was calmer, though the wretched smell didn't dissipate at all. He was truly a sight to behold. A boy not even of sixteen, riddled with the smell of cigarettes and radiated the sulfuric smell of bile and cheap gin.
'Damn it…what am I even worried about.' Ben thought as his fingers combed through his face. As his time walking began to clear his head, the lack of smokes and drinking made him begin to think better.
He began to wonder of the state of the vision, he knew that force visions weren't perfect…though what reason would the girl have to hurt him? Sure, the girl was weird…though he didn't think she was insane or something along those lines.
Ben didn't know what else to do…this strange feeling that this girl impacted him with. It felt so familiar, like a cold blanket smothering him, wrapping around his throat and chocking the life out of him.
"The dark side…"
There were times that minor force sensitives or those that can hardly feel the force would develop a small affinity towards the dark side. Even then…he moved the long tendrils of hair free from his eyes as he stopped in front of a small building.
"A library?" He whispered underneath his breath as his gaze began to trace through the building. He began to see figures move around, though. A sudden thought began to course through him, an idea to just check something.
Sokka used his boomerang to push through a thick expanse of brush. The young warrior angrily cleaved through the bush that was standing in there way, Katara followed after. Though, after each step she took she would always…
Sokka glared at his sister. "Is there a problem…"
Katara shook her head, Sokka grinding his teeth as he plopped the next foot in front of the other. His boomerang efficiently cleaving through vines or branches that were getting in the way of there path. "Your worried about Aang, aren't you?"
"Yes, I am." Katara spoke up. She stared at her brother as he stopped his advance in the tree line. "I know how much you want to see dad, but is this right?"
"Right…Aang lied to us about where dad is Katara, he betrayed our trust!" He responded back. The young warrior slamming his boomerang into the ground. "It was wrong, he could have had told us…but I don't understand why."
They heard something deeper in the forest, Sokka was about to reach for his boomerang, as Katara began to go into her bending stance. Only for Ben to appear, covered in tree sap and leaves sticking out of his hair.
"Sup!" He anxiously spoke, dusting off the sap and leaves clung to his body. Sokka, and Katara took a step forward, only to wince as their fingers went to plug up their noses.
"Uh, that's disgusting, Benjamin…when was the last time you have taken a shower." Katara gagged as she took out her water flask, Ben couldn't react in time as the high-pressure water slammed him face first.
He fell to the forest floor with a thunk, as the barrage of water began to cease as the smell began to die out the water was quickly whipped back into Katara's water flask. "Ah, what the hell Katara!" Ben screamed. The boy shaking his head as his long hair thrown off the water droplets.
Ben's eyes locked to the duo, how their bags were tied up and how they seemed to be going somewhere. "Hey, where are you guys going?"
The trio sat down. For the last five minutes Sokka and Katara explained what happened with Aang, how Aang revealed that he had hidden where their father's location was. Now…they had wanted to leave.
Ben let out a heavy sigh as he combed through his hair. This whole situation was messy, too messy and usually he wouldn't get involved but with the things he learned in that library…
"I get that you guys want to see your father again, I can understand that. Though, we can't leave Aang yet." Ben butted in as the sibling stories ended.
Sokka grimaced as he sucked his teeth. "What do you mean…me and Katara have basically carried Aang all the way here, aren't you a Jedi. I recall Aang saying that you were some sort of peacekeeper or something along those lines, we done our part now you deal with it."
"Sokka, your being insensitive…sorry about that Benji." She shook her head as she listened to what her brother said. Her feelings for the matter were complicated, they were having so much fun before though, there were way too many close calls. She had a feeling that their journey would only get much more harder as the situation got worse.
"It's fine, Katara. Though, Sokka…you can't leave." He raised up his hand to stop Sokka from speaking. "I'm not a force user anymore, I can hardly touch upon my abilities like I used to. I am not even a licensed Jedi knight; I still am a Padawan formerly. I am not ready both mentally and emotionally to take the blunt of this journey." He spat out. Sokka still held his tongue.
"Secondly, Aang is your friend and I know you guys are just hurt from this betrayal. I can understand what it is like to have things hidden from you and the pain it can cause, I can get that…but Aang was most likely just scared and afraid of losing you two. He's already alone…"
Katara remembered what happened with her and Ben when he opened up to her. Of how he spoke of how the masters of his academy lied about him and his abilities. The cold wind ruffled her hair as she looked at her brother.
"It's your responsibility to do this…you started this journey, didn't you?"
Sokka raised his head as he heard the last part of the sentence. Ben was right, though he still felt hurt and betrayed. "Don't talk to us about responsibility, I know that you're running from something!" Sokka jumped to his feet, Katara grabbed his hand to try and calm him down before he said something and took it too far. "You stole that medical alcohol from us and got drunk with it, you abandoned us in the middle of the night with a note that we could of hardly read, your running from responsibility like the rest of us…so stop being on your high horse."
Ben's feet pounded into the ground as Sokka took a step back, the outburst reaching both ears as Ben's mouth opened. "What the fuck do you know about responsibility, Sokka! He's your friend and he need your help…stop acting like this responsibility to protect the avatar is that hard, it's your duty!"
Ben's hand latched along his mouth as the words finally resonated with him. He remembered the conversation he had with Meetra days ago, he was being a hypocrite right now. Saying how protecting Aang was him and his sister's responsibility…when he was willing to abandon them on the second day they met.
They were all a bunch of teenager's way out of there league with what they were doing. Sokka's outburst was due to feeling that someone he could trust lied to him about something very important and close.
Did Ben truly have the right to judge him…when he had been running away for years?
Ben sighed as he went back to sitting on the floor. "I'm sorry, Sokka."
Sokka eased up as he also went back to sitting on the floor. Both men staring at the floor as Katara's mouth began to open. "You mentioned that Aang was truly alone, what does that mean?"
Ben took a deep breath as his mouth opened. "Aang is truly the last of the airbendors…"
"Duh, we already knew that. The next stop was to find the remaining survivors." Sokka uttered out interrupting Ben. Only for the boy to shake his head.
He gazed to the floor. He didn't know how to say this, and he didn't want to look at them while he spoke. "There are no survivors, the air nomads…are all dead. The fire lord made it his mission to exterminate them."
"What?" Katara nearly shouted. "But…Aang told us there may have been sur…"
Ben shook his head, cutting the girl off as he raised his head to meet their eyes. "Listen, I get that Aang is trying to be hopeful, though the airbenders have vanished for over a hundred years. There all gone, it was a genocide." Ben's lips formed a snarl as the words escaped free from his lips. "The Jedi and any knowledge of the sith as well are gone…they've all been destroyed; the fire nation has won."
Ben climbed back onto his feet. Sokka and Katara taking in the information as Ben began to walk away. Only to stop as he turned back towards them. "Guys, I know what Aang did was wrong…but please try to forgive him, he's all alone now. The last of his kind, he needs a friend."
He took a step forward, only to be stopped by Sokka's voice. "Aang, isn't alone…so are you. Please, don't forget that Benjamin."
Ben exited the library again, though there was something different about him. Ben grappled the twine wrapped along his shoulder and back as he adjusted the blade of the sword.
It cost quite a bit of money. It was a fire nation blade, crafted from there metal. The pommel was small, and the guard was the size of a cigarette carton. Though, the clean silvery blade caught the gleam of the sun.
As he parted his way through the library door, he was compounded with what he already knew. That he was truly alone in this world…there was no one else like him anymore, and just like Aang they were all extinct.
There was no way back home…no one to fight for…no cause to commit themselves too…it was over. Ben watched a squadron of fire nation soldiers march down the street, the sneers the crowd gave them as they watched their metallic armor glisten underneath the afternoon sun.
'What is the point of fighting anymore, the fire nation won.'
"Hey…Benjamin."
Ben turned his head. His eyes widening in view as he saw the black braid first. It was the girl, her smile plastered across her face. Her grey eyes glistened like the silver fountains in the Coruscant library, though there was a certain hollowness in them.
"Come with me." She whispered into his ear as she leaned in. Ben didn't move, her fingers latched onto his palm as she began to drag him away. They were in an alleyway now. The area was confined and long, the stone bricks reeked with a certain inelegance befitting of a rural city as the pair stared into the other's eyes.
"Do you know why we're talking…why a noble woman of a fire nation is gracing you with my presence."
Her words were money, her voice was untampered and controlling. Ben didn't want her to dictate the conversation, he wanted to play it somehow stupid…most likely she was after the avatar and that would explain the high number of soldiers around.
"No, I don't really…" he said.
She smirked, crossing her arms. "You are able to read people's minds, like how you did in the poker game."
Ben's eyes widened in alarm. 'How did she know…that's impossible. How the hell did she know that I was able to use the force like that?' He thought, he shook his head as he combed through his long hair.
"No, I can just read people…it's pretty easy when you get the hang of it."
She ignored him, continuing with the conversation as she began to speak. "You can tell things right before it happens, your cards perfectly lined up. You knew when to perfectly fold and to play your hand, that was why you never lost…only losing on purpose so the other betters would stay in the game for you to steal more of their money."
Ben shook his head again. His fingers tensing into fist as he didn't know what to do…this girl had him completely figured out, it should have been impossible. The fire nation wiped out all records of the force and any source of the Jedi. "That's not true. It's impossible to tell the future I'm not a…"
"I was going to slam that bottle against your face. Though, you reacted like it was going to happen…you knew it was going to happen. You felt my killing intent, and the echo that the force radiated."
"The force…"
Ben's fingers went to his mouth, though it seemed that Kiara didn't realize any of Ben's preexisting knowledge of the ability, rather she continued. "The force, it's an ancient power. It's blessing grace only a few though some believe that their powers surpass the avatar. The force has guided you here. It echoes within you, yet I sense it…"
"It is good that I have sought you out. The avatar's awakening has set currents into motion, let me be the first to welcome you onto your destiny." She parted her hands from around her, both hands laid outwards towards ben, almost like she was asking him to grasp onto her hands.
Ben knew that he had to act, if she detected what he once was…he already knew that Kiara wouldn't hesitate to kill him if he revealed that he once was a jedi or that he cut himself off from the force, he had to get out of this somehow. "Tell me about this destiny."
"It is good that you are willing to hear the truth of the force. The force is a power that breathes through everything, the fire nation acolytes harnessed this power."
"For such a strong ability, to even rumored to rival the avatar. I have never heard of it." Ben feigned ignorance, only for Kiara to smirk as her lecture continued. As Ben listened, he began to pick up the fact that maybe Kiara liked to hear herself speak.
"Ah yes, the fire nation after wiping out the airbendors rid the world of any knowledge surrounding the force. The fire nation is the only nation to harness the true power of the force, and when this war comes to its climax…me and the other force users will be by the fire lords' side to put an end to this war."
She thrusted both of her arms down, the act cutting through the wind like two swords. "I am Kiara…a dark jedi, a Sith. I was recruited into the Sith academy in the fire nation when other acolytes felt my potential, just like how I felt yours. Though, your power is something else…your skill with the force, I can feel it radiate within you. Even the darkness inside is comparable to the…"
She took a deep breath. Coughing as she cleared her voice. Her hand went from her thigh to wrapping both around herself. "I shall not reveal more. Until I am certain of your choice…if you choose to walk the path of the Sith, to become as powerful as I have become."
Ben already knew his answer, it was now the time to appropriately decline her advance. "I am sorry, though I wish to not walk this path. I have taken an oath against using such abilities again. I am sorry, but you will have to find someone else." He spoke
"Why would you…to abandon the blessings of the force?" She asked, seeming genuinely concerned.
"I made a promise to myself. To never go that way again…"
There was a stillness in the air. Maybe it was due to Kiara wondering if she should cut down Ben, or maybe it was because she was analyzing why someone like Benjamin…blessed with so much power why would he would turn away from it.
"Well guess it can't be helped. I am still going to be here tomorrow so if you changed your mind just let me know." She casually spoke, waving already as she turned to head out the other entrance of the alleyway.
She turned away ready to walk the opposite side of the alleyway. Ben already forming his plan to escape as he began to fully process the information that was being crammed into his head. His heart skipped a beat, as he saw something attached…
Something attached…a faint cylinder item that caught the gleam of the sun. The dark emitter of the hilt contrasted the overall blade as he stared at it. "A lightsaber…but how?"
"Wait…what did you say." She turned towards Ben, glancing down at her lightsaber as her grey eyes narrowed at Ben, the killing intent wafting off of her. "You know what my weapon is called? However, how could someone like you know. You weren't integrated into the academy, the only academy in the fire nation is in the capitol and in the other major cities and I have visited them all, I have never seen you there. Only if you were a…"
Ben felt it through the force…the killing intent like a fierce wave of heat striking him head on, the boy heard the clicking of the lightsaber blade as the whizzing of his sword broke free from his scabbard. The sparks radiated along the two figures as Ben broke free from the sword lock.
"A jedi!" She shouted, her yell trailing through the alleyway.
She lashed out with both of her hands. Ben felt the wind fly through his feet as he plummeted through the air. Landing back first onto the cold dirt street as the wind escaped his lungs. He heard a rupturing crack radiate along his left shoulder; the pain so strong that he was seeing stars.
Ben's spit flew free from his mouth. His good hand gripping the dirt as he braced his head up. His vision was distorted, the cut from the harsh tumult cut an inch above his left eye, crimson poured free as the bits of blood got into his eye, clamping that one shut.
"My turn, Jedi!"
She gripped the blade of her lightsaber. The red blade whirring as it cut cleanly through the dirt. Ben braced his body, pushing himself off the floor in the last possible second. 'If she was only a second quicker…I would have been dead.'
Ben used the force to catch the sword in his good hand, though he couldn't bear the weight of using his other hand. Even as his arm limply held to the side, the moment it would grind against his shoulder joint a blast of pain would soar through him.
His eyes even began to water as he gritted his teeth at Kiara. He gazed down along the blade; he was astonished to see how such a sword could hold its own against a lightsaber. Maybe this world's metals were stronger, maybe even possibly held ingrained cortosis.
Cortosis, was used all throughout the galaxy. It was a well-known mineral that was used in many things. From massive hulls in capitol ships to swords, these sorts of blades were known to even repel lightsaber blades.
Ben's eyes trained along Kiara's form. Her smile still spread out as she readied her hand in front of her chest, the closed grip parting her form in two as she readied her guarding stance. Ben's eyes traced along her stance.
'Strange, she's utilizing Makashi…I was expecting something else.' He thought. Makashi was a lightsaber-on-lightsaber combat type form, utilized when two lightsaber wielders would go against the other. He saw it used quite a lot during the Jedi Civil War.
Though…Ben had a sword, why did she?
Ben's eyes narrowed as he gripped the blade tighter with his good hand. Kiara was smart, she was thinking of the worst possible outcome. The last Jedi must have died years ago, so many generations of both dark jedi or Sith must have both trained and fell before the next emergence of Jedi.
The age of the Jedi…to this generation of Sith must of have been nothing more than legends and tales passed down from one generation to the next.
Kiara may have never been in real combat with another force user before. So…Ben nodded his head as he felt the tensions of the force surge through his very own being. His gaze locking daggers onto the girl.
She was thinking of him of being a jedi knight, one equipped with another lightsaber. She was probably thinking in her head that he was merely using a sword to just avoid detection from the fire nation.
Ben knew he couldn't defeat her, if he was the same Jedi that he once was than he could of. Though, he mentally blocked his skills with a lightsaber and his force abilities, vowing to never to use them again.
Her force barrier wouldn't budge from his force pushes or force pull's. He doubted that his blaster would be able to pierce through her defense as well, he could only fire off a couple shots before it would overheat.
"Come on, Jedi. Let us begin…give me the glory of killing the first Jedi in nearly a hundred years!"
Ben smirked, his mouth opening. "Trust me, I will!" He shouted, Kiara tensed as his loud voice echoed as the crowd began to form a tighter circle to observe the two duelist.
Ben swiftly turned around. His legs pounded along the dirt road as he broke through the watching crowd, Kiara gnashed her teeth from the cowardly Jedi. "Pathetic!" She shouted, the force welling up in her legs as she began to run.
Force speed, it was a core force ability. Ben needed it…even as the pain was getting worse, he concentrated onto that breeze, his legs welled up with force sensitivity as he broke down into the road, nearly tripping and falling as the earth bending guards tried to stop him.
Ben broke through there defenses. Lifting himself three meters into the air as he jumped over the men. Ben's feet tracked up dirt, again falling and rolling to avoid the encroaching crowd who has gone to see what the tumult was about.
Ben turned around. His eyes widening as his mouth parted, Kiara was running after him. The girl leaped into the air, landing right in front of the earth bending guardsman. "Run away!" Ben yelled towards the guard. The guardsman and the crowd turned towards Ben. "She's a dark jedi, you won't win!"
"What is that kid…"
"We're earthbenders kid, relax. We were getting real sick of the fire nation loitering around this town anyway."
Kiara's crimson blade held limply to her side. Her smile now re rendered into one of annoyance and disappointment. She didn't let the first guardsman speak, the man collapsing underneath her blade. With a swift cut down the mid-section he had already fallen before someone could have blinked an eye.
"No!" Ben shouted, too frozen to do anything. He was too riddled by pain and exhaustion; he could hardly move.
The second earth bending guardsman sent out a blast of earth bending rocks towards her. The rocks cutting through the air like a blade. Kiara lifted her gaze towards the earth bending guard, her right hand still holding onto the lightsaber, merely parting two fingers…
The rocks stopped in midair…fragments of dirt and sand falling off. "What the hell, but she's a firenation sol…"
Before he could have uttered the remainder of his sentence. The large stones flew back to him, he couldn't even react to bending them. He couldn't protect himself, he was sent careering down the long road, flipping and twisting as the rocks pounded through his form. His skull was annihilated under the weight of the boulder, while his right arm was completely ripped free from his joint as the second boulder impacted him. His body flew half a dozen times as a resounding thunk jolted through the road. All that remained was a bloody misshapen mess, you couldn't even identify the man if you tried.
Kiara's cold steel eyes locked back onto Benjamin. His eyes stuck to the newly formed corpses as he trained his head along the massacre.
The whole exchange lasted less than five minutes…
The crowd erupted in unparalleled fear and hysteria, screams radiated along the city as the pounding of steps along the street erupted like an orchestra. Kiara's eyes went back to Ben, though. She spat out as she looked around, the streets were empty now.
The messy haired boy was no where to be seen, even then the crowd that had formed dissipated as the strong smell of blood tickled her nostrils.
Yet, her lips parted. Her eyes staring daggers to a broken window, where blood seeped through. Her lips twisted into that disgusting and vile smile.
Ben hid behind a crate. The crate was large, but Ben could only properly hide if he tucked in his legs to his chest and sat down, his jacket was ripped up by his blade into cloth fragments. The cloth was now used as a bandage along his head to stop the flow of blood that would leak into his right eye.
He was able to see in his eye right now, the tears that began to flood from the pain was able to clear up the blood. Though, it still did sting and Ben found it hard to open.
Kiara, she was something else. She was combat oriented, able to utilize the force and her lightsaber. Though, he couldn't plot what she may very well be. She didn't seem to be a guardian or a consular, possibly a sentinel of the order, a person who blended those traits evenly.
However, she didn't hold no whims of taking innocent lives. Ben knew that this could very well be it…Kiara was stronger than the average dark jedi, maybe if he was like who he once was, maybe if he went back and…
'Accept who I once was, only for a little bit. Remember, the man I tried to forget.'
"No…I reject that desire."
Ben shook the thought out of his head. How the hell can he even think of that, to entertain the idea of allowing the monster within to take control. It was a monster, an evil beast that would ravage and destroy everything in sight.
It wouldn't just be this once…if he allowed himself to use the dark side again, he would just chase for an excuse to use it again and again, until he very well let himself be consumed by it.
He would die before he would allow the dark side to control him again. If this was it, then it was it. He gazed out of the window. The afternoon sun slowly being swallowed by the horizon, the yellow of the full moon starting to pierce the skyline.
Katara, her strange hair. Her smile and those bright blue eyes. She seemed bossy, though she felt motherly…it felt like she kept the whole group together.
Sokka, he was quite the fool…though he had quite the heart. Ben was glad, he was glad that Sokka didn't leave his friend. He'll be a good leader.
Aang…the boy was the avatar. A force that was rumored to be legendary, he wished he gotten to know the young nomad better. He wished that he had more time, they were the last of there kind. The last airbendor…and the last of the Jedi.
Aang, and the rest of his gang…in the end they'll be alright. They'll stay with him and do what is needed to be done to restore the world, he'll bring back balance.
'I was never one of you guys anyway…it felt nice though to have Sokka and Katara welcome me, though. Please don't think about me often, I couldn't bear it…being a burden back in the academy and being a burden that weighs you three down. You'll all be alright without me, I'm tired…it's cruel to let a man suffer this long. I was just a stone in the road that you stumbled upon; it means nothing. Your goals lies far beyond this…'
Ben's eyes began too slowly close. The pain beginning to dull as his gaze began to falter, his sword slipped and clattered along the floor as his head began to slump forward. 'Was this the reason I am here…to die? To pose as a distraction for Kiara, maybe that's for the best in the end…knew I was never going to die old in bed.'
He wanted to sleep, let the pain dull his sense. Let Kiara come with her lightsaber, he didn't care that she would cleave off his head while he was asleep and present it to the fire lord and other corrupted Sith. He didn't care anymore; it's been a long life…and he just wanted to sleep.
Though, there was something stirring inside. Not the force…not the self-loathing…not of his commitment to the Jedi and the Galaxy. Though, there was something there. A flame being lit in the bowels of his stomach.
It was just like that time in the colony…where he had to lash out with the force. Though, it felt strange…it felt stronger now, maybe because…there faces lighted up like sparks of a match.
"Not…yet." He muttered, his teeth grinding together like a machine. "Not now!"
He grabbed his arm. His teeth grinding along the other as he felt the tears starting to well up once again, he felt the tension of the force along his messed-up arm. As he used the force to relock the arm back into place.
The pain soared through him like liquid nitrogen along a piece of bread. The form buckled under the pressure as vomit flew freely from his mouth. His eyes glossy as he heard a significant hum of a lightsaber blade.
He wasn't ready…not yet. To die here, in this place. He still wanted to learn more about those three other people that he was tasked with to protect, not yet…not here in some shitty warehouse. He didn't wait, feeling the force flood through him as he gripped the sword handle with both of his hands.
He swung horizontally, the blade would be strong enough to cleave someone in half, though Kiara was shocked. She gripped her blade with both of her hands as both sword and lightsaber connected.
The flurry of sparks radiated between the two dualists. Ben broke the saber lock again. Kiara flipped away as Ben held the blade with both hands, his knuckles turning white as he tried to figure out his next movements.
Kiara now seemed to get the memo. She dropped out of her Makashi form, now it seemed more like she was in…soresu. 'So, your smarter that you look, just thought you had a pretty face and a whole ton of arrogance, but your smart.'
Soresu was a defensive technique, a lightsaber form that specialized in exhausting and using the strength of there opponent. 'She already knows what I am planning on doing, she probably knows that I don't have a lightsaber anymore and now I am using my brute strength against her.'
Both duelist roared as they charged at the other. Ben twisted his head up towards the roof to see the skylight. A large white blip was soaring over the horizon.
Kiara took this opportunity. Jutting out her blade with a steady poke to penetrate his defenses. Ben lifted his sword abruptly as the blades crashed, he was able to redirect Kiara's shimmering red blade towards the sky. Her eyes widening as she began to realize the error of her mistake. Now Ben had an opening to properly cleave through her.
She was a murderer…efficiently slaughtering two earth bending guardsman doing their job, he'd be doing the world a favor by eliminating a dark jedi. She was a monster; he felt his grip tighten along the blade as he…
"A murderer, do you really have a right to take another life. False Jedi?" The voice within murmured in his ears.
Ben couldn't do it. Hesitation, it rippled through his core as Kiara gripped the lightsaber blade with both hands striking above him as she used the momentum and her weight to slash downward.
Ben's defenses crumbled as he rolled to avoid the next flurry of attacks. What remained of the boy was now a sweating mess as he struggling to maintain his breath. "Pathetic, is this truly the last of the Jedi."
"I thought you were going to be stronger than this. That this would truly be a battle that the lords of the Sith would reward me with a grand title, instead this is all that remains." She clicked her teeth as Benjamin fought for breath, the pain still there as he tried to muster up more strength, hoping that her rant would distract her. "A drunken fool…a coward that couldn't take a life, you could of have been so much more. I felt the darkness that is within you, the way the force has blessed you is something that I have never seen or experienced…instead you chosen to cast it all away, and even when you could have taken my life…you choose to spare me, or was it rather the hesitation of a coward."
Appa's mighty roar breached the warehouse, shaking the foundation. Ben's eyes locked to see Appa beelining towards them, the trio were with him. "Ah, I see…you are protecting someone. I heard rumors that there was a fourth member following the avatar with strange abilities. Though, I shall simply kill the last of the jedi and the avatar."
"No!" Ben snarled. His eyes training along Kiara's grey orbs. "I won't let you touch them!"
Ben's feet unsteadily pounded onto the floor. His back slouched as the blood leaking from his lips graced the cold wooden floor, even his bandage was torn off due to the insanity of the duel. The blood now getting into his eye. Kiara moved slowly forward, soaking in the pain that Benjamin was clearly excruciating in.
Though…
It was like a shiver. A cold breeze cut through her, the ripples of her legs forced her still as every hair on her body was sent up and down as the shudder coursed through her very being. She didn't know what happened, before she was so sure…so proud, but now…
Her eyes widened as Ben lifted his head. "I won't let you touch them!" The boy screamed; his closed fist parted open as the violent strands of purple lightning began to engulf his form. Kiara's eyes locked onto his own.
Ben's once golden and worn eyes were gone…now replaced with a sulfuric and disgusting orange, red outlined as they jutted out like veins. She only seen such things once, the woman that gave her the mission.
Those eyes…the eyes of the true Sith. Not like her or the other dark jedi recruited at an early age and trained at the academy in the fire nation capitol. No…of the true Sith Lords.
Ben's howl erupted from his core, his hands lashing out, but Kiara was already too late. The blast of unrefined force lightning erupted from Benjamin's palms. The smell was what hit Kiara first, the smell of burning air that was filling the warehouse.
The lightning radiated and spread out in tendrils. It cut through the air, soared around her left and right, even went straight at her in massive arches of violet. The room crackled and hissed, as Benjamin's orange eyes was the only visible thing she could see from the blast of lightning.
Kiara tried to raise her blade to catch the torrent of lightning, but it was far too strong, and the beams were jutted out from every corner, she knew that her lightsaber wouldn't be able to protect her, she even tried to harness her force barrier as she hoped to reinforce it to protect against the massive arcs.
She never had a talent for the skill of force lightning, though she had seen the lords of the Sith use it. Though, she had never seen any other members of her academy or even the lords possess such strength with the ability, she didn't want to believe it, that this boy…this drunken fool was able to maybe even exceed the might of the masters.
The lightning pounded along her light blue force barrier. Her blade deactivated as the sweat began to pour down her brow as she tried to hold off the enveloping arcs of lightning. It rocked and shook the warehouse, tendrils that would refract from her barrier would land and destroy cabinets or even dent into crates.
The air hissed and became charged with electricity, Kiara had to hold back the urge to not claw and itch at her skin.
"Come on, show me…Jedi Killer!" Kiara's eyes widened, as she felt it…maybe for the first time in her life…fear. She knew from a young age that she was stronger than the rest, she knew that she exceeded others with her noble status. She wasn't a firebender, she was far more than that…a force user. She honed her talents with a lightsaber and with her force abilities to outshine the rest.
Anyone…anyone that would have gotten in her way. Earth, Water and Fire would die from the severe magnitude of the force, even then she felt no fear as she would crush the life of her enemies, rip through them with her lightsaber blade.
Though, she heard…laughing. Ben was manically laughing. "Come on…Sith!" He sprouted again as he manically chuckled, the blast was only getting more and more intense, the air stilled and became hard to breath…even the heat of the barrier was increasing.
She even had to close her eyes…those silver eyes of hers couldn't even stare at the lighting for a second due to the feeling of her retinas getting slightly burnt, though Ben didn't…his orange eyes filling with even deeper insanity, the dark side at his fingertips…using an ability that Kiara knew she couldn't hold against.
"What's the matter, Kiara!" He feigned and mocked sincerity with his voice. "Is your pitiful skills of the force of no use against a true warrior of the dark side?"
When those words were spoken, her barrier cracked. Her scream erupted and filled the air, the crowd that was running could hear it as they shielded their ears from the dreadful shriek. Aang, who was steering Appa pushed them downwards, they knew that was where Benjamin was.
Ben's breathing was visible, though the fresh cold air didn't do anything to him. Every time he raised his left arm he was thrown with a river of pain, though he didn't turn away from it. His hatred towards Kiara for murdering those people…his pain from his head and his arm…his own hatred towards the Sith and the fire nation was fueling every step he took towards her.
His eyes glowed a sulfuric chemical orange, surrounded by the red outline. His left was completely clear, while the other was stained crimson from the wound above his eye. For the first time…ever since he cut himself off the force and abandoned his role in Revan's Sith Empire. This was the first time he felt…powerful!
He gazed down at Kiara; the girl was trembling on the floor. The sparks of the remaining lightning had her muscles tense and squirm as she shivered onto the floor. "I know you can hear me." He spat out. His eyes turned towards the girl. "Tell me…where is your master apprentice!"
Though, she didn't answer. Her body stilling as the lightning diminished, she had passed out. Ben grunted as he eyed the blade of the dark jedi. He jutted out his right hand, the lightsaber blade cutting through the air was a distinct whizz as he used the force to pull the blade towards him.
The blade was smoking, the cables were exposed and there even seemed to be a small fire beginning to spark in the emitter matrix. Though, Ben found the blade quite interesting at the very least. The lightsaber blade looked identical to the ones from his universe…maybe the Jedi and the Sith here perfected the knowledge of lightsaber building.
'Though, that brings the question. If they can build lightsaber blades, then why is everyone in this world struggling, they haven't even reached the industrial age yet.'
Ben gripped the fallen Jedi's lightsaber. He pressed the red power button as the blade sparked to life. The lightsaber burned into his hands; his knuckles turned white as he clenched along the blade. The crimson fiery blade whizzed and hummed in his hands, he could feel the hate that the power crystal held. Truly, a weapon worthy of a dark side warrior like himself. He took a deep breath as he lifted the blade overhead as he was going to strike her down…
"No…Ben!"
Ben turned around. Appa broke through the skylight. The large beast landing in the middle of the warehouse as the broken glass littered and fell like spent snowflakes. Ben didn't turn around. Parting his hands from the blade as he held the still ignited crimson blade limply with his right hand.
Aang disembarked from the bison as Katara and Sokka began to follow. Though, it was like a blast of cold air soured through them all, there legs frozen in place as fear began to soar through there being.
Sokka, he knew that Ben was powerful…even having his issues there was something off about the boy. He saw it when Aang spoke highly of the Jedi, and he saw it once again when Ben used the force to destroy that fire boulder midflight.
Though, he had never felt this before. The amount of rage and hate that he felt wafting from Benjamin…he didn't even turn to face them, his gaze locked solely on the girl, the shimmering red blade freaked out Sokka.
"What." Ben spoke, his singular word cutting through the air like a blade. Katara reached out towards Benjamin, though only to be stopped by her brother's hand closing along her shoulder. "What are you doing?" She pointed to the boy. "Ben, he needs our help."
Sokka shook his head. "No…we're not doing that. There is something wrong with Benjamin, can't you feel it? I don't want to come near him right now."
"Yes, I can feel it. Don't be ridiculous right now…he wouldn't ever hurt us…he saved us Sokka!" She argued with her brother, though unknown to the pair the nomad was walking towards Ben.
"Benjamin, what are you planning on doing now." Aang's voice arose. Even then, Ben didn't turn around to meet the avatar's gaze.
He stood silent, the only sound being the whizzing and the faint hum of the crimson lightsaber blade. Until he parted his mouth. "I'm going to kill her…and I'm going to use the dark side and slaughter the fire nation. I'll kill the Sith…the fire nation and anything that gets in my way." He slightly moved his head towards the right, it was enough for Aang to see the change of Ben's eye. "I already have a lightsaber…my weapon."
"A weapon, it's funny. I can recall you calling it a tool but not a weapon, I don't think red suits you anyway." Aang smirked as he playfully rubbed his head. Trying to ease the tension, trying to make Ben laugh and to relax. He wasn't an idiot; he could tell that there was something wrong with Ben. Though, even then he wanted to help. "Also, I got to train first to deal with the fire lord. Let's just put a pin in it for a little while, though just deactivate your lightsaber."
"No…" He bluntly answered.
"Why are you going to kill her?" Aang asked. The boy holding his staff, he wouldn't let Ben make this mistake. He was his friend, and he knew that Ben would regret it…he was just not in a good place right now.
"She murdered two people." He spat out; Ben twirled the lightsaber blade with his hand to get a better grip of it. "She's nothing more than a wild animal, if I don't put her down here…she'll just become a problem for later."
"The monks taught us how it is easy to take a life, it is even harder to spare it." Aang spoke, his arm going to Ben's shoulder. "You're not in a good place now Ben. I can feel your spirit, it is warped, and the darkness inside will consume you if you don't seek control."
"I feel more in control than I have ever felt in years!" He pushed the airbender from him. Katara and Sokka both yelping as they saw the state of Ben's eyes, the sign of dark side clear for all three to see "I was such a fool…cutting myself from the force, not using the dark side. I am powerful!"
"It's perverting you; don't you see it…Benjamin!" Katara brushed her brothers grip from her. She began walking towards Aang side as she continued speaking. "Don't you get it, Ben. This isn't you that is speaking, you're in a dark place right now!"
"It's all my fault…if I just accepted the dark side and the force. I would of have been able to save them all, I would of have been able to save Bill and the rest. Though, I was too much of a coward!" He screamed out, his words blunt and gnarled like a rabid mutt.
"Ben, you speak of Bill. The old man that told me to save you…from that colony, right?" Aang spoke up. "Ben, do you know what he told me right before we left?"
Benjamin didn't turn around, his eyes fixated once again to the floor, the blade was still ignited. "He told me to watch after you…that you were an amazing kid. That even with all the drinking, the smoking and the nightmares…he mentioned before that you were broken."
Ben gritted his teeth, only for him to lock eyes with Aang. "Though, he mentioned that because you have been through hell that someone like you…can help others not walk that path, that you can become a hero."
Ben looked up as the sentence concluded. The sulfuric orange of his eyes now returning to the normal gold as the tears began to fall down his face. Even after all of that…even after just being a pest, Bill saved him and wanted the best for him.
In the end…he nearly desecrated his memory and fell to the dark side. "Oh god! What have I done…I nearly…I nearly fell!"
Ben fell to his knees. His arms losing any will as he felt the weight of his body as the pain shot through him like a roller coaster. The tears fell like a fierce rainstorm as his palms collided with the floor. Though, he felt three figures draped over him.
"It's okay, I know it must of have been rough." Sokka's voice graced his ear, the boy wrapping his arms in a tighter hug. "Though, you're not alone anymore, this journey is for the four of us. We'll get through it."
Katara and Aang followed as the four embraced. Ben wiped his eyes as Katara's mouth parted. "What are we going to do with her, the girl."
Ben shook his head as the others began to walk away. The fire nation soldiers would be on them soon. They had to leave. "Nothing, we leave her here…she won't forget what happened. Hopefully, that will stop her from attacking us in the future."
The lightsaber deactivated or rather shut down would be the proper word for it. The shimmering red blade collapsing on itself, the lightsaber was already damaged due to the barrage of force lightning.
Though, Ben didn't just drop the blade yet. The boy opened the blade. He carefully plucked through it, until he found what he was looking for. The Red Kyber Crystal shone under the white moon light.
"Ben, come on!" Aang screamed as Katara and Sokka climbed aboard. Ben stuck the kyber crystal blade into his pocket as he began to climb onto Appa.
Ben took one last glance along the destroyed warehouse. Guilt, it soured through his very core…he was an inch from falling to the dark side and without there help he would have fallen completely. He couldn't keep walking down this path anymore…
As Appa lifted up and they began to fly off during the night sky, Ben began to understand something. As he stared into the large yellow moon, he began to understand…that a choice would come soon.
Would he walk the path of a drunken fool…or would he once again walk the Path of the Jedi Knight?