All characters, locations, and events labeled within this story are not my property - no direct financial profit has been made through this work or the intellectual properties, nor do I claim as my own or any third party. LucasArts, LucasFilms, and Disney are the sole owners of said intellectual properties. All content herein may be seen as a fiction work of fan admiration and should not be considered canonical to any project officially promoted by the rightful owners of said IP.
3AM in the morning, and I'm downright exhausted - I'm praying I didn't overlook any sloppy writing, haha...
Many thanks to Pente Patrol Star Wars on YouTube for the motivation to even begin this story, and for all the What If? videos that have given me more creative inspiration than I could have found otherwise.
I honestly wasn't expecting myself to hit the ground running as I have been - less than a week in and I'm already putting out the third chapter in this story. I'm actually quite happy with myself, though I'm much happier than I actually have so many people enjoying the story enough to have Followed it and listed it on their Favorites. I didn't think I would even hit the 20/20 mark until maybe chapters six or seven.
I may slow down, though, and give myself a week to cooldown, but we'll see how it all goes. Well, that said, I do hope everybody enjoys the new chapter!
As always, if you do enjoy it, Follow, Favorite or leave a review!
A Long, Long Time Into The Future,
In a Galaxy Far, Far Away
He felt so different…it was as if he didn't belong here, yet he knew that there was nowhere else he should be. He was but a lost puzzle piece that had been return to its original set, yet stacked in the incorrect spot, his sides misaligned and failing to connect properly.
Taking a deep breath, he furrowed his brow beneath the mask, his eyes scanning the vast entirety of the terrain before him - rocky fields creating plateaus of barely formed grass that cropped all along the horizon. He wasn't sure what planet this was, but it was not one he had ever been to, nor did the landscape fit anything he had studied in his years as a Jedi and travelling the galaxy. The air was fresh and much too clean to be one the known core worlds - even Alderraan's vibrant and scenic atmosphere reflected the dense cities emissions, though one had to truly be attuned to the Force and practiced in its finer abilities to notice. No, this world was untainted by the more advanced civilizations of the core and even inner galaxy, it was almost…pure.
Yet something lingered here, something that called out to him through the Force - so subtle, that he could have mistaken it for his own instinct.
It was…soft, like the brush of a gentle wind that ran through one's hair. It was no different than the instinct he had always felt at the back of his mind, that urged him to crush the Republic forces yet maintain its infrastructure intact, so that when the day came, they could mount the greatest defense the galaxy had ever seen against…whatever was out there.
Reaching up, he clasped his lead hand, his right hand, along the edges of the mask and unclasped it as he pulled down the hood of his robes with his off-hand. Taking a deep and unfiltered breath, he closed his eyes and allowed himself to fall adrift within the Force as he allowed his subconscious to float away.
Taking a seat atop the outstretched arm of the extended arm of the imposing statue of a man with a sharp and significant head adornment and fell into a deep meditation.
Something had pulled him in through that strange realm and led him here, he would figure out what it was.
Revan would not rest until he found it.
Lower Level Of Jedi Enclave
Standing at the foot of the atrium, Anakin tilted his head upward in an effort to capture the beauty of its design.
There was a certain aura that the Jedi Enclave emitted which he could never envision at the High Temple in Coruscant, even when he thought of it through the rose-tinted glasses of nostalgia. Unlike the elegant and classical architecture that reigned unchallenged all along the interior of the colossal building, the enclave's was much more simple in its approach - the simple rectangular aesthetic gave it a less grandeur appeal, yet when you took in the life that filled its halls and corridors, it fell in line with a much more intimate appeal that could not be replicated from his memories of Coruscant.
The large stone basins that upheld numerous flora, from flowers to bushes and small trees sat as a testament to that belief, their placement surrounding a small bench that stood at the center of an elevated platform a meter off the ground. At his feet was a stream of clear water that flowed through an small canal built into the floor, allowing the comforting sound of a stream to accompany the sight before him.
"You seem to enjoy the enclave's atrium, I take it," interjected Master Kavar's voice, pulling Anakin from his thoughts and grounding him back within the corporeal world of reality. "Are you more attuned to nature than others?" he asked. Folding his arms, the Jedi Master leaned back slightly and kept a close observation on his younger counterpart, taking in any and all expressions and reactions.
Anakin, however, merely kept his gaze on the plants, before glancing up to the skylight above them.
"If you can believe it, I actually had the most difficult time attuning to nature; machines and piloting were always my escape from the stress and difficulties in life," he responded, slowly clasping his organic hand around the gloved wrist of his mechanical hand. Stepping forward, he walked up the small staircase that led him to the bench at the center of the atrium, his eyes washing across it as he took in the basic design. It was a bench, no more and no less, without even so much as a basic engraving.
"I find that hard to believe, actually," replied Master Kavar, still standing at a distance. "I may not be able to sense the exact thoughts of others, but I can certainly sense the air about them - I have never actually come across somebody who has put as much thought into the atrium as you have in the past few minutes. I rarely come across Jedi as young as yourself that have such…a patient outlook on the simple things around them," he continued. Anakin couldn't stifle the short-lived chuckle that escaped his lips as he looked back over his shoulder at the Jedi Master, offering him a small smile.
"You could say I have an old soul, Master Kavar."
That actually got the Jedi's attention, though he kept silent and instead stepped forward, slowing down only when he reached the bench and took a seat. Nodding to the open spot next to him, Anakin sat down and made himself comfortable; seconds ticked by and they soon turned into minutes before Kavar finally spoke up.
"This World Between Worlds, the realm you claim to have travelled through…what was it like?" he asked, his eyes never leaving the doorway that led away from the atrium and outside onto the enclave's training grounds. The occasional Knight and Padawan would enter, giving the two men brief and polite nods, before carrying on about their own business - something that the pair lost themselves in watching. "I find it…almost impossible to imagine such a thing could ever exist," he admitted as he leaned forward, resting his elbows on either leg to allow his chin to weigh down on the interlaced fingers of his hands.
Anakin watched him from the corner of his eyes, before looking back at the passing faces.
"...imagine standing at the center of a void in space, faint bridges of light connecting one end to another. No matter where you look, you can see innumerable pathways like the one you stand on connecting one side to another, and while you may not be able to see the end of each one, you know that if you continue to walk, you will eventually come to it. If you take some time and look off into the distance, you could almost swear you can see galaxies or stars forming, though I was never able to tell which was which," he explained, his eyes growing distant as he thought back to the time he had spent in that realm.
It was strange to recall, as he now had to look down at his hands and remember that they were truly corporeal - it was not a mere ghost or shell of who he once was in physical form, but his actual body. He was alive once more, in the body that he once fought Obi-Wan in.
Obi-Wan, he thought, looking up at the skylight.
"...the concept of somebody, anybody, having access to a world in which they can reach out to different points within history is a terrifying idea, Anakin," spoke Master Kavar, his tone growing quiet and somber. Running his thumbs across his jawline in pensive thought, he closed his eyes and shook his head. "I can't tell if I want to disbelieve your comments about this World Between Worlds because it sounds ridiculous, or if it's out of fear that it could be as real as the bench we are sitting on," he admitted with a deep sigh.
Anakin nodded in understanding.
"I can agree with the latter," he responded in kind, meeting Master Kavar's eyes for the first time since arriving at the atrium. "I don't believe I need to state the obvious danger in such a realm being accessed by just anybody. I would assume that I'm the only who knows of it, but…I wouldn't want to blindly presume things."
"No, no, you don't," agreed Kavar.
As the seconds continued to pass by, they once more turned into minutes and soon a half hour had come and gone, when Kavar finally spoke up again.
"What was your era like? The time you came from, what were the Jedi and Sith of that era like?" Kavar questioned, drawing Anakin's attention once more. The younger Jedi took a moment to ponder the query, though not due to hesitation as much as it was precaution.
Now that Kavar had brought up the consequences of the World Between Worlds, Anakin had to ask what it would mean if he handed out certain information on the future - if this was indeed the past. What would happen if he told Kavar of what would become of the Jedi, or what the Sith managed to accomplish? He still did not know what the condition of the Republic was in this reality, so he couldn't even be sure if Kavar would understand some of what he said. Anakin also knew that he had no recollection of a Sith Lord by the name of Revan who had come to pose war with the Jedi Order, which had to mean that he was likely thrown further back than he could have imagined.
Then again, Anakin had always understood that he was never the greatest student when it came to the history classes of the Order, so that had to play a factor as well.
"...we did not have Sith where I came from, as they were believed to have died out nearly a thousand years before I joined the Order," he began. That caught Master Kavar's complete attention, as his head whipped around to face Anakin.
"A thousand years?" he asked, his voice rising ever so slightly. "How did that come to be?"
Anakin had to give the Jedi Master credit; he seemed to have as much emotional restraint as Obi-Wan did.
"I believe there was a series of battles on the planet of Russan between the Sith and Jedi…the Sith were defeated and it was the last confirmed sighting of the Sith, until I was discovered by a Jedi Master and his Padawan on Tattooine," he answered, though he didn't expand much further than that. "It wasn't until ten years after that, however, that they truly reappeared and chose to lay out their hands. The Sith Lord of that time had infiltrated the Galactic Senate and manipulated the Republic and even the Jedi into an open war with a Separatist coalition of independent systems - the Separatists had manufactured an army of battle droids, while the Republic contracted the service of a cloning facility to produce troopers in mass number from the template of a Mandalorian bounty hunter," he continued, opting to leave out the name of any specific individuals. It was still quite a bit of information, but with him leaving out any particular dates and names, he was hoping to at least leave it ambiguous enough to avoid any issues.
"I see…" replied Kavar, clearly losing himself in deeper thought.
Anakin took the chance to stand up, sensing that their conversation had come to an end for the time being - it was clear that Master Kavar would not be moving for quite a while.
"I take it we're done for now? You seem to need time to think things through - I'm guessing that this is already enough to take in," he asked. Nodding, the Jedi Master allowed a sigh to escape his lips as he pressed both palms onto his thighs and stood to his feet. The pair made their way back down the small staircase, though Kavar didn't move to join Anakin as he made his way out, instead turning to head deeper into the enclave's bottom level.
Not thinking to question the man, Anakin made his way outside - content to seek out Bastila and ask how her own meeting with the other Masters went.
Training Grounds, Outside The Jedi Enclave
Standing at the edge of a small hill that overlooked the grassy plains of Dantooine, Bastila looked on with a heavy gaze at the vast expanse stretching as far as her eyes could see. Unlike most days, she didn't feel a breeze - the weather was unusually still, which she wasn't sure if it was simply a momentary phenomenon or perhaps a sign within the Force that something strange was happening.
She was willing to consider the former, given that the levels of frustration she was feeling only served to dampen everything around her - it was as if she wanted things to be wrong in some way, and that if anything stood out to her it was at the hands of some terrible machination beset by the universe. Closing her eyes, she tried her best to shut those emotions down, but she could have sworn that the anger only seemed to boil even more violently the harder she clamped down on it.
It wasn't until a man's voice cut through her efforts that she she briefly forgot what was happening within her.
"They say that when a child is afraid of losing a balloon, they often squeeze it so hard that they end up popping it," they commented, causing her turn around and see Anakin standing a few meter behind her. Swallowing hard, she forced a smile and shook her head.
"I'm fine, Anakin," she quickly began. "How did your meeting with Master Kavar go? The council mentioned that you two were going to discuss a mission you were on for the High Council," she asked, watching him as he walked around her, leaning in almost as if he were trying to whisper a private joke between the two of them.
"You're not too good with changing the subject, but I'll bite," he smirked softly as he came to stand next to her. Falling into a comfortable posture, he again clasped both hands behind her back and relaxed into his position. "He seems more open to considering helping me with that mission - he and the others were cautious about getting involved with my mission, but Masters Zhar and Dorak were able to convince him to at least listen to me," he answered, drawing a confused expression from the young woman.
"Why would Master Kavar be hesitant to help you with a task the High Council handed to you, if he is a member of the council itself?" she questioned. Anakin simply shrugged, but tilted his head.
"Master Kavar wasn't there when it was handed to me and he understands that not every Jedi is aware of everything that is happening - he's simply being cautious," he explained, before giving her an expectant look. "But if we're on the topic of missions, how about that strike team that you were sent with to take out Revan?" he mentioned, diverting the topic from himself and back onto her. Bastila gave him a knowing look, but she allowed herself to roll her eyes as she sucked in a long breath through her nose out of clear exasperation.
"The council…says he is dead, or at least, they no longer sense his presence in the Force - it was like he vanished alongside me when his flagship was destroyed. However, unlike the two of us, he never reappeared…so for all intents and purposes, our mission was a success," she replied, though Anakin could sense that she had more to say. When she failed to hear him reply, Bastila furrowed her brow and gave him an expectant look as if she were waiting for him to say something. Anakin, however, lifted his mechanical hand and rolled it a few times to signal for her to continue - which caused he to open her gape for a moment, before she formed the words. "There is nothing more to say! The mission was a success and they informed me that there is nothing else to say about it," she snapped quietly, though it sounded as if she were trying to convince herself more than him for the second time since they first met.
"You know, you are about as easy to tease as another Padawan I once knew - you're easier to read, though," he pointed out, before shaking his head. "You feel frustrated, I can sense it…there's no point in denying it, Bastila," he informed her, cutting directly to the core of the problem. As much as he did enjoy getting a reaction out of her, it was also clear that she wasn't accustomed to speaking about such a thing as her emotional struggles. If he had to guess, however, it sounded like it was an issue of pride - whether it was her pride as a Jedi or something else, however, he had no way of knowing at all.
"I…how do you sense it so readily? Is my lack of self-control so poor that you can practically see it so easily?" she asked, catching Anakin by surprise.
He wasn't expecting that response, honestly.
"I wouldn't say that it's a matter of self-control as much as it is a matter of you not wanting to acknowledge certain emotions," he answered with as the softness of a rock. There was a time for tact, however, and then there were times when simple truths were needed. "You can't solve your problems by ignoring them - if you're feeling frustration or anger, that means it has to have a source. Until you identify the source, however, you won't be able to truly ever be rid of it - and to do such a thing, you first have to admit that you do feel it," he added, meeting the younger woman's gaze.
Bastila, however, turned her focus down to the ground as if began to ponder his words.
Anakin began to wonder if perhaps he had been too direct with her and overstepped his boundaries, but as he opened his mouth to apologize, Bastila finally spoke up.
"I failed the council by not bringing back Revan," she admitted. Not wishing to interrupt her now that she had begun to open up, Anakin clasped his hands behind his back once more and straightened up to give her time to continue. "…or, rather, I feel like I failed them. When the strike team turned up to face Revan, I was meant to stand back and use my Battle Meditation on the others to help them maintain cohesion and bolster their abilities. Instead, Revan proved to be more than any of us expected - even with my powers, we were only able to force a stalemate against the Sith Lord, so I ended up jumping into the fight. That was right when his apprentice, Darth Malak, decided to betray Revan and fired upon his ship…the others died before I could help them, but Revan was only just able to cling to life. I wanted to save him so that the council could help him recover and later draw upon his memories, so that perhaps we could figure out something to help turn the tide of battle against the Sith…the council didn't know that I was bringing him in, so…they don't understand just how much we possibly lost when he died….but I do. Any secrets we don't find out now will be my fault," she continued, finally drawing a picture for Anakin to understand.
She was angry because she felt that she had failed herself.
"That could be true, in which case it's understandable that you're upset with yourself," he responded. Catching her look of confusion, though, Anakin shrugged. "There's nothing wrong in being angry with yourself for feeling like you let others down, but there are a lot of things wrong in not knowing to how to express it and in turn understanding how to let go of it when it becomes too much," he stated.
Bastila looked up to meet his blue eyes, her brow furrowing at his words.
"But…the Jedi Code says there is no emotion, there is only peace," she countered.
Anakin looked back out to the fields of Dantooine, before he nodded to them.
"Would you say Dantooine is temperate planet?" he asked her suddenly. Bastila blinked in confusion, but slowly nodded.
"Yes, as I told you yesterday…it's a planet that is temperate all year long," she replied.
"So there are never any storms or rainy seasons?"
"What? No, of course there are, it would be impossible for life to sustain itself if there were no rains to water the crops and fields," she answered. Anakin offered a small smile, before looking at her expectantly.
"Are emotions not like storms in an otherwise ideal climate? Farmers don't survive the storms by ignoring them and claiming they shouldn't exist - they survive and adapt to them by acknowledging them and learning to handle them," he replied. "There is emotion, but there is also peace, Bastila," he continued. Bastila said nothing, but instead slipped into a pensive state that Anakin could have sworn rivaled that of Master Kavar's.
As the seconds slipped by them, Anakin looked at her curiously, before speaking up and ripping her from whatever thoughts were crossing his mind.
"No comment to deny my observations?" he asked, raising an eyebrow as she stared back at him. There was a flustered look on her face, but she rolled her eyes and sighed.
"No, I…just need to think on what you've said," she replied. "It doesn't sound like anything we were taught by the Jedi Masters that came before us, and the last time a Jedi Knight as powerful in the Force as you said something so…different, he ended up becoming a Sith Lord."
Anakin said nothing to that, but instead nodded. As the moments ticked by, however, it was actually Bastila that broke the silence.
"Say, Anakin, how good are you with a lightsaber?"