Nearby The Pool of Knowledge, Abeloth's Planet; 44 ABY
"What are we going to do, Ves?" Ben asked as they trekked through the treacherous undergrowth. They were both being drawn to the Pool, for reasons unknown to them. They had just fought the most draining battle they'd ever participated in and still had the vigor to keep walking. The powers from the Font were even more potent than they'd thought.
"We're going to do whatever it is we have to," Vestara huffed. They might still be walking, but each step left her winded, "If there's another Abeloth up there, we need to finish it off while we can."
Nodding his agreement, Ben looked sidelong at his companion. "How do you feel, Ves?"
"Like I just went toe to toe with a Force Goddess and mopped the floor with her," she quipped, "You?"
Ben chuckled, but it subsided after only a few beats. "You feel dark, Ves, really dark."
She slowed and stopped. Sighing softly, she turned to him. "It's who I am, Ben. I wanted to be different. Different for you, different because of you, but I can't change it. I always go back to the darkness, to the Sith way of doing things."
"You don't have to."
"But I always do. Just look at what the Font gave us. It gave you what you already had within you, and it gave me what I had." Vestara twisted away to look back where they came from, where they knew the Font of Power rested. "I want to be with you, but I can't join you like you want to. I don't think I'm evil, I actually rather like what the Jedi do, I just can't do it like them."
"You've made good choices so far," Ben said after a pause, "You were fighting with the Jedi to retake our Temple. That's not a Sith thing to do, to put yourself at risk for others."
Vestara gave a short and self-loathing laugh, "You think anything I did was selfless? I did horrible things, selfish things, because I'm not what you want me to be."
"Things like?"
"You'll hate me for them, and maybe you should. Maybe I don't deserve love."
"Maybe you should let me decide that. You don't get to choose if someone loves you or not."
Vestara went over to the nearest outcropping of rock and sat, holding her arms out before her, head down. "I killed Natua Wan."
"What?"
Playing with a twig she'd plucked from the ground, Vestara refused to meet his eyes. "You'd lost your mask in the caves when the Rhak-skuri attacked. It was going to take you, but I wouldn't let it." She said in an emotionless tone, as if she were talking about it happening to someone else, "I didn't think Natua and I could defeat it and save you . . . so I cut off her mask and let the creature take her instead."
She could feel his sorrow, especially knowing he'd blamed himself for not being able to protect her, only to find that was all too true, but from the wrong thing. "You know what you did was wrong, Ves, otherwise you wouldn't feel like you do about it."
"Was it? Given the same situation, I would do it again, because you're more important to me than she was, you always were." She sent an electric charge through the branch, cracking it asunder with a pop.
"What else?"
Looking sharply up, she knotted her brow in confusion. "What do you mean 'what else?'"
"You said horrible 'things,' not thing."
A small tug at the edge of her lip. "I could have meant what I did and lying about it, that would qualify as 'things,' you know."
"But that's not what you really meant."
"No."
"Then why not tell me all of it now, it won't get any better in time."
She have a heavy sigh, she really didn't want to admit this. "I never intended to be a Jedi, Ben. In the beginning, I did, I wanted it, but when what happened at Upekzar . . . happened, I knew I couldn't be." Vestara said softly, "I stayed with the Jedi so I could be sure all the High Lords were dead, they would have come after me for killing Taalon and, well, to spend as much time with you as I could before my actions came to light."
"About pretending to be a Jedi?"
"Initially, yes, but I could have kept up that charade for some time. What I did during the assault on the Temple, not so much. I doubt I'll make it off this planet if it isn't in stun cuffs because of that."
Ben had taken everything so far standing, but he had a feeling that what was coming next would be the worst of all, and that was saying something when the other choices included 'murder.' Ben found his own rock-seat, "It's about the Millennium Falcon, isn't it? That's what Abeloth was talking about."
"Yes, I was trying to escape the Temple when we'd gotten separated. I thought I wouldn't be a priority, I didn't know Abeloth especially wanted me." Vestara said, as she nudged a small pebble in the dirt. "I was trapped just at the exit hatch when they caught me. I needed to save my own skin, so I claimed that I was still working on the mission Taalon assigned me, to find the Jedi Queen."
"No, you didn't, Ves."
"I told them that it was Allana Solo, Tenel Ka's daughter, masquerading as Amelia Solo." Vestara gave a melancholy sigh, "They were pleased and it just so happened that when the escape hatch opened, the Falcon was there. They had me lead the charge, but I was still brought to Abeloth in the end."
That one had hurt more than the others, she'd given important information to not only the Sith but ultimately the rest of the galaxy. Allana would never again be just the 'daughter' of Han and Leia, she'd be forever defined as the Chume'da of Hapes. Ben was surprised he wasn't more angry, the Font's cleansing power seemed to be continuous, not letting anger at the betrayal get in to darken his purity. Or maybe it wasn't so simple, he'd always had an unusual amount of forgiveness for her. "Do you regret it? Any of it?" He asked, hoping to hear the answer he wanted.
"I suppose lying at this juncture would be counterproductive, Ben." Vestara gave a sad smile, "I wish none of it had happened, I wish the situations hadn't come up, but I can't say I regret what I did because at the time I did what I thought I had to, whether it was to save you or myself."
"I wish I could understand why, because I can't." Ben rose and resumed their walk to the Pool.
For a moment her eyes swam with regret, she knew he'd reject her for what she was. She'd done so much for him, and not all of it good, but love just wasn't enough. Maybe it was just one more thing to feed her new power. Emotion was the fuel, it didn't really matter if it was love or pain, did it?
"I don't hate you, Ves, but some of your choices do bring me pain." Ben called from up ahead, as if he'd known her thoughts, "And you do regret it, you just said it yourself. You just need to act knowing that you may not like what you've done later. If you think about that, you'll do a lot less bad and more good."
Just as quickly as the pain had welled, Vestara felt a ray of hope. It was small, a pinprick, but there nonetheless. She'd bared her soul of the wrongs she'd done, but he'd not abandoned her. Maybe things could work out after all, she just needed to figure out a way to stay in Ben's life without ever encountering his Aunt, Uncle, Father, Cousin, basically any relatives, and she'd be fine.
"As if that's going to happen," Ben called from further ahead, "Are you coming or not?"
Vestara couldn't help ut grin and sped up to catch Ben.
She knew she shouldn't ask, that it didn't really matter why he forgave her, only that he did, but she had to know. She just couldn't fathom how he could be so . . . good in the face of her constant betrayals. How he could see a light when no one else had seen anything but darkness. "Why?" She asked simply, trusting him to understand the full impact of the question, something uniquely Ben.
He shrugged easily, "I've seen a lot in my time, done things I wish I shouldn't have. I was apprenticed to one of the most destructive Sith Lords in the galaxy for a time and saw how easy it is to fall to rationalizations, till they're all you have left and nothing that meant anything means anything any longer. But that's not an answer, really it's just who I am, Ves."
They moved swiftly though what was left between them and the Pool of Knowledge. The plant life seemed to be dying, at least anything directly associated with Abeloth. It grew a pale waxy yellow and leaked viscous liquid. The normal fauna seemed to welcome the change, as they had been struggling to survive in the hostile landscape for untold generations. The creatures skirted through the underbrush without the lashings of carnivorous flora snapping after them.
Ben and Vestara could feel the fatigue in their bones as they reached the mouth of the cave. They'd, of course, been here before, but something was different. The white marble of the Pool glistened in the darkness, calm water was like a layer of glass over the bottom. Clear and crisp as the most expensive crystal, with nothing to disturb it. That was the problem.
They'd both felt the calling to come, it was powerful, but there was no one here, just the Pool.
"What do you think it means?" Ben asked.
"I don't know, could it be something to do with the Pool itself?" Vestara was uneasy, she remembered Ben's words about the Pool when they were tempted by the Font. Still, that had turned out well, all things considered, didn't it?
"I hope not, we don't exactly have fond memories of this place, you and I." Ben mumbled, but walked closer to the edge.
He peered over the edge into the still waters. The image rippled, though the water didn't. He saw himself, much as he had before, older and more experienced. Vestara walked up beside him and looked down, too. She had joined Ben in the vision, hands intertwine. Their other hands held scales, the kind used to crudely measure weight. Ben's glowed white and gold as Vestara's was silver and shadowed. They looked closer and the Vision-Ben and Vision-Vestara smiled wide grins, too wide for human faces. Their eyes were dark and held small sparks of light they both recognized all too well. At the feet of the vision pair lay a sickly snake with the same mouth, though this one in grimace, and eyes, though they looked to be in pain. tangled yellow hair framed the worm's head and it struggled to get out from beneath their feet. Behind them, war raged, but nothing tipped the scales, there was balance in the universe. Order risen from the chaos, but an order that demanded struggle.
On the Vision-Ben's side, the Jedi raised monuments and Temples to house the future. Luke Skywalker reigned from a high tower, pulling up beings in Council chairs to govern, sharing power to strengthen the Jedi. Vision-Vestara's side were ruins and tombs, but yellow eyes looked out from the darkness. A man in Vonduun crab armor, tainted with corruption, sat on a throne of skulls as tattooed Chagrians, Twi'leks, and other species prostrated themselves to their master. Neither the of their vision duplicates seemed to care, they looked at one another and kept the scales level. Their clasped hands were gripping a sword, whose handle materialized when their hands touched it. They both plunged the dagger into the Abeloth snake. The maggot screamed and curled up around the blade. In death, it posed no more threat to the balance. A white throne rose from Abeloth's corpse and a little girl cuddled a nexu on it, as beings of all kinds clustered around.
Ben and Vestara, the present ones, stumbled back, surprised to find they had been holding hands much like the ones in the vision, though lacking the ornate blade. "What do you think it means? What does all that have to do with us?" Ben asked.
"I'm not sure, but I certainly liked the part where we end Abeloth for good." Vestara snorted, "Why do you think our eyes were like that?" Both moved at the same time to look at the other's, only to find nothing different about them.
"Well, we know that Taalon had those lights when he fell into the Pool here, could it mean we're supposed to do that?"
"Minus the falling in part, I'd hope."
"I don't know, I could push you in and run for my life."
They were smiling again, as if the talk they'd had before entering didn't matter. Now that Ben thought about it, it really didn't. He'd always feel what he did regardless of what she did, just as she'd always do what she thought needed to be done, despite what he'd feel. The pull from the Pool was increasing.
"If we do it, we do it together," Vestara said firmly.
"Yes, together and always," Ben gave a shy smile, "so we can stop the other from doing something too stupid."
Vestara gave him a playful swat through the Force before offering the crook of her arm. "We can't change our destiny, but maybe we don't have to. I didn't not like what we saw, we were together."
Ben moved to take it, but faltered. "What about Dad? He was lonely without me."
Vestara's gaze softened. "I didn't see anything in there saying you couldn't be close to him, Ben, and even if it did, you always say we have a choice."
Looking out over the still waters, Ben seemed to come to a decision. "Okay, Ves, let's see what destiny has in store for us."
With their arms intertwine, they took a tentative step into the Pool. Ripples expanded out, disturbing waters that had not been broken since Taalon's fall. They were ankle deep and felt nothing special. Knee-deep they could feel a slight tingle. When they were in up to their waist, the pulse of the Pool timed with their own blood pulse, which had synchronized. They went to take another step, but the stair dropped off, a sheer fall to the bottom. Both Ben and Vestara were well under the water, the Pool had to be at least three meters deep.
Their eyes had closed as soon as they felt the drop, but now opened them as one. The water didn't sting, but they saw things move about in the liquid, as if the aquatic environment was a three-dimensional holodrama. Governments rose and fell, people were born and slain in a blink of an eye. They watched the fall of the Jedi Order before the Empire, the Shadow that had pulled the strings. The Shadow's fall was far, it was banished far beyond 'normal' evil. They saw their fathers both take their places as Force masters. Before that, they witnessed the first Jedi fall to the Dark, how it sparked a 5,000 year war that culminated to them here and now. Everything. They could see how it all fit together, they could see how they fit together.
As one, the past and future blurred, but they experienced their own lives, though one another's eyes. Ben using a glass blade to slaughter First, a helpless girl, and praised for his actions. Vestara going with her cousin to stop Centerpoint Station. He, knuckling under his father's drive to be the best, to make his family name proud. She, protected by a loving mother and father who came from such different backgrounds. Ben striking down his father after it was clear he'd abandoned the Tribe. Vestara losing her mother, killed by her cousin in cold blood. His love for her, her love for him, the two of them together bound by Fate in a silver and gold tether.
Knowing each other in the most intimate way possible, but neither judging nor scorning, they turned to the future. What would be done, needed to be done, had been done already. Ten Jedi searching for an artificial planet, their mission one of grave importance. The rise of a new Sith, at the same time many, but only one. A descendent, blade glowing, opposing the Yuuzhan Vong-like Sith. And there, rising from fragments, with yellow hair and wide lips a tentacle reaching to strangle the galaxy. Reach forward, out through time to them.
The lavender appendage lashed out from the vision and took corporeal form, wrapping itself around Ben's neck. Vestara felt as if it were on her, too, both struggled frantically to get it off. Vestara grabbed it tightly and sent an electric surge through the water. She, Ben, and the attacking limb tensed as the Pool took the power and amplified it. For the first time since entering the Pool, neither of them could breathe. The ringlet let go and they swam to the surface. Braking the surface of the water, the crawled up the steps and lay there.
What little might they had mustered to come this far has been sapped. They stayed motionless as their auras pulsed with light and dark, mixing to balance, but neither seeking the upper hand as the water dried.
Author's Note: And here we come to my biggest issue with Apocalypse. It just feels like Denning just veered off the course that we were on in Ascension. Suddenly Vestara has no ambition to be a Jedi and is just using them to kill off the High Lords. Not only that, but if she had actually told Ben about what happened at the Falcon, he wouldn't have reacted so badly to it. Jysella, as I pointed out in Chapter 2, saw Vestara running from the Sith, so she obviously wasn't working with them at that point. Furthermore, how do they actually know she was the one to tell the Sith? A few of the Masters already guessed, so why not someone else? I mean Allana and Amelia aren't all that dissimilar. But most importantly, what about Abeloth? We already established that she can see the future, so what if she told the Sith?
Now we have the complete background to how they got where they are. From here we go on to the more adventurous part of the story. I have general plans and know what the end game is (the foreshadowing isn't that subtle). I'm already planning on bringing in a few dark side spirits to temp Vestara and help Abeloth. The latter I'm hoping to fill with a certain Sorcerer of the Rhand/Emperor's Hand. If you got the reference there, you've just gained three dark side nerd points. Can anyone say Prophet of the Dark Side throwback? No? Well fine, then.
As for the Pool, I hope that better explains why Ben and Vestara are closer than before.