"You're killing him!" Daughter shouted, advancing upon the horrific scene. She reached up and grabbed his arm, shaking him.
The grey man snarled and tried to push her off but she refused. "Let him go, he's going to die! Let him go before our guest sees."
"Too late for that." Anakin Skywalker entered the throne room, lightsaber ablaze as he watched the scene unfold. He had not been able to sleep in the dull room the Daughter had provided for him. And with the Force so out of whack here Anakin had decided his time would be better spent exploring his host's home. He had entered just in time to see a Jedi stranger get wrapped up in a chokehold by a grey man he had not yet seen in this odd place. "Put him down. Now." Anakin poised his lightsaber.
The grey man snorted and laughed uproariously. But before he could act suddenly his arm holding the Jedi was wrench at an odd angle, forcing him to drop the Jedi. The tall one, the Father, abruptly cast the grey man aside and into the far wall.
Anakin narrowed his eyes at the show of power before slowly approaching the prone Jedi. "You three like getting off on messing with lost Jedi?" He mocked, his lightsaber still raised as he knelt by the darkly clothed human. He laid a hand over the Jedi's neck. Thankfully the Jedi was still alive.
The Father looked thoroughly upset and did not speak. It was Daughter who came forward, stopping only when in range of Anakin's weapon. "Allow me. I can heal him." She said. And the infinite sorrow in her voice convinced Anakin just enough to lower his weapon.
"Try anything and I-" Anakin was cut off by her fierce gaze.
"Get him up." She snapped. "Injuries inflicted by my brother are not to be taken lightly."
Anakin frowned, but nodded and put his lightsaber away. Carefully he pulled the Jedi up and over his back before following the Daughter. He glanced back briefly to see the Father approach the grey man. But he did not wait to watch what would happen next.
Daughter led Anakin back to his guest room and instructed him to lay the strange Jedi down.
"What did he do to deserve all that?" Anakin asked as he sat down and looked the Jedi over. He was small, ragged faced and had shaggy dark blonde hair. The Jedi looked a little older than Anakin with thin lines around his mouth and eyes.
The Daughter looked grim as she knelt on the other side of the Jedi, her glowing hands touching the fast forming black bruises around the Jedi's neck. "Something that my father risked his life to lock away has come back." She said grimly. "We believe this Jedi is responsible for unleashing it. They are afraid... but that is no excuse." She shook her head.
"Abeloth?" Anakin ventured, having heard the name.
Daughter nodded hesitantly. "A corruption of the Force... she's here and we don't know how nor what she will do to us for locking her away."
Anakin nodded slowly. "That's why your brother tortured him? Abeloth is a big bad monster to you?"
"That is an understatement." Daughter said with mild irritation. She removed her hands from the Jedi's neck. "The bruises will heal by morning. He breathes normally. I will fetch him water, and his lightsaber." Daughter stood and offered Anakin a bow before she took her leave.
Anakin shook his head, glancing down at the stranger left in his charge. "This place just gets weirder and weirder."
~~~
"Dad!" Ben sprang from the ground, his head swiveling as he searched the dimly lit cave.
Obi-Wan startled awake at the boy's shout. Ahsoka had reacted similarly and both were quite confused as Ben gathered up Luke's empty cloak. "Where'd he go?" Ben turned to Obi-Wan and then towards the cave opening, on the brink of panicking. "I can't find him, I can't sense him, I can't- I can't-"
Obi-Wan got up and grabbed Ben's arm before the boy could run out into the night. "Calm down young one." Obi-Wan said gently. "Breathe, Ben. Breathe." The boy seemed absolutely petrified. And Obi-Wan could not blame him. Not one but two of their friends were missing. And the nature of Luke's disappearance was so sudden and disturbing. Obi-Wan took a deep breath, signaling Ben to copy him.
Ahsoka had gone out to the cave opening and returned with a shake of her head. "I don't see any tracks."
Ben's breathing was coming back to normal. Obi-Wan slowly released the shaken boy and looked to Ahsoka. "This planet is playing tricks and hallucinations." He informed the two padawans. "I am certain Luke is still alive. If we find Daughter or perhaps even Anakin, we'll be able to find Luke too."
Ben had startled beside Obi-Wan. Obi-Wan frowned and turned to the boy. "Are you okay, Ben?"
Slowly Ben nodded. "Yea... yea I'm fine. Just... really worried."
"I know." Obi-Wan offered a small smile. "The sun is coming up, let's get an early start."
~~~
Daughter had returned with a water jug and the Jedi's lightsaber as promised. She had then left again, saying she would keep her father and brother at bay so the Jedi could recover peacefully. Anakin thanked her and resigned himself to a long wait. He would have tried to meditate to pass the time... but the Force was so intense here. Anakin feared he may get hopelessly lost in it. He could not relax enough to do that anyways. He kept seeing things. Things he could not explain. Like a fever dream one could remember as vivid, but not what it had been about. It unsettled him. Anakin found it better to study the Jedi's lightsaber as the sun came up.
It was odd, the Jedi's lightsaber looked a lot like Obi-Wan's in basic design. It also seemed slightly more advanced and at the same time very makeshift. As if the Jedi has scrapped and dumpster dived his material rather than being provided with most of his material at the Temple. The crystal was synthetic, likely grown by the Jedi himself. But it was green like the natural crystals from Ilum. The Jedi was an oddity.
And he was waking up. Anakin set the lightsaber aside and moved closer. The bruises were reduced to faint yellow marks and the redness was gone. That was good. Maybe the poor guy would be able to talk after all. Blue eyes blinked up at him. Anakin offered a grin.
Weirdly enough, the Jedi scowled at him. "Now you show?" The Jedi said, his voice was filled with bitterness.
Anakin frowned. "Excuse me?"
The Jedi's scowl deepened as he sat up and rubbed his neck. "Your timing sucks." The Jedi continued as he stood and stepped away from Anakin. "What? I saved you and how do you repay me? A little smile and then you're off. Not a word, not one thing since Endor." The Jedi shook his head. "Not when Jacen fell, when Anakin died... not even when Mara was murdered? How could you do that to me?"
Anakin opened his mouth, completely and utterly confused. "Now wait-"
"I am your son!" The Jedi shouted, shaking his finger at Anakin. "I was the only one who believed in you! After everything you did I still believed in you! And you left me! Everything has already fallen apart, I've been exiled! My wife is dead! You chose now to help me? Damn you to hell Anakin Skywalker!" The jug of water cracked and shattered, shards and water spilling everywhere.
"Hey calm down!" Anakin shouted, sidling away from the broken glass. "I have no idea what you're talking about, just calm down."
The Jedi straightened, his hand rubbed at his throat while his bright blue eyes starred angry daggers at Anakin. An incredibly personal anger at that. Anakin raised his hands in a gesture of peace.
"Just breathe, look, I don't know what's going on but you've got this all out of whack." Anakin said slowly, noticing even the window had cracked. "The grey man, the Son, he attacked you and you've been out cold all night. You're just confused. It'll pass."
The Jedi frowned and took a deep breath. He looked away and worked to unclench his fists. "I am confused." He admitted, taking another deep breathe before he looked to Anakin again. "You're not a ghost."
Anakin shook his head. "No... I don't think so."
The Jedi frowned and looked Anakin up and down, brows furrowed in a look of confusion. But it also felt like the Jedi really knew him... "Why did you call yourself my son?" Anakin ventured when several moments of silence had passed.
Those icey blue eyes looked into Anakin's sharply. There was a hesitance. Anakin frowned and took a small step forward. The Jedi backtracked immediately, wariness bled off him. Anakin raised his hands again. "It's okay."
"Because I am." The Jedi said bluntly, and suddenly the Jedi looked so tired, the lines on his face deepened and his shoulders sagged slightly. "My name is Luke Skywalker."