Hello there!
Happy New Year! (if it isn't too late)
What if Ahsoka Tano had gone to Mustafar instead of Obi-Wan Kenobi
About the Story:
I have a vision here: To formulate and create a story, a journey of characters, thoughts and emotions that can touch upon the themes of the Star Wars universe; and a product that is on par with canon material.
Ahsoka Tano instead of Obi-Wan Kenobi? What do you think would have happened? This novel is premised upon the reality that a very different outcome for the galaxy would have arisen had certain small variables been different; if different events took place, or the same events took place in different ways.
Now, the characterisations of men, women and aliens of Star Wars is open to fans for interpretation, and hence debate, but what I have tried to do is grasp a very nuanced and deep understanding of these characters, the main heroes, and villains of Star Wars - to see what makes make them tick or feel the different ways they do.
The novel will go deeply into the political situation of Star Wars, and will have my - a junior historian's - analysis of political systems, mediation and conflict, and it will also go deeply into the mythos of Star Wars. George Lucas envisioned the films with heavy spiritual, philosophical and religious meanings, symbolisms and outlooks. The trademark reflection of this is the Force but the very dimensionality of the force is something that is beyond a simple common sense understanding, and is, as the word is, mystical.
About the Novel itself:
The novel has the scene length and pacing of films; events happen very fast; dialogue happens fast; and action happens very fast. Don't expect it to be like a traditional book that may take over weeks, and have other possibly colourful elements and items. Therefore the chapters are very short, from as low as 400 words, though the average range is 800 - 1300 words. There might be some longer chapters in the future. I do not know yet. As such description is more or less limited; where there are long paragraphs it is mostly to do with character introspections. And dialogues are film length, with short or one two crisp hard liners.
[You may notice a single speech mark at the opening of dialogues every string until it is finally closed. This means that the same person is speaking that dialogue. In traditional books, speech marks are opened in such a fashion usually with more paragraph length speeches - such Gandalf or Dumbledore, but here it is replicated in short one liners as well. The essence is to a give a significant pause between the lines]
The novel will use unconventional writing techniques, that is something that I have experimented with. There is, for one, in the matter of perspective, a shift in the story from first to third person depending on the context. I have been pointed out that this can be confusing, so I have been repositioning them to ensure they come out clear. The narrative of the story, 'what happens here? who shot where? who walked where?' will be in third person omniscient, whereas the inner dialogue, thoughts, and emotions of characters can be in both first person or third person limited, though primarily and for more forceful and predominant thinking, first person will be used.
For two, there is a myriad use of typographic styles, much more so in than in conventional books, and even emphasis will need to be detailed. Italicised words, sentences or paragraphed in the story mean an emphasis of a heavy stress, such that the sentence or word is dragged out and spoken slowly. Words, sentences of paragraphs in bold, possess an emphasis of heavy force, determination, fierceness, anger or coldness. And of course, there may be a combination of both.
This may read a little distracting at times, but I am hoping you can traverse the story with an open mind, and possibly these styles may have, in some subtle form, given you that particular experience, whether good, ambiguous or bad, that will have its unique character and nature that can be preserved within our psyches... if it is Star Wars, then I am sure it will memorable.
Obviously, this has stretched hard grammar a bit, but simple grammar, of tenses, parts of speech, conjugations and syntax (except with Yoda... but linguists actually say his syntax is grammatically correct) will be rigorously followed. As far as punctuation goes, virtually, a substantial portion of modern literature stretches hard grammar, for the sake of poetic and cinematic license - for example, while a full stop can only take place after a sentence, which is a phrase that has to have a verb, there are countless exemptions to this, as well as in the case in the case of commas, for a better described list. In the case of semi-colons, which are a more specialised literary device, many people understand that their use can seem pretentious. There are frequent uses of it here, but I feel its value to add full colour to description, action, and in my story, thoughts as well, is too significant to not appropriate.
Spelling is British English: I am just used to that, and I am having the most irritating time, seeing ever so many words of mine on the doc manager having that demeaning red line under them. I can't 'ignore' all of them. :)
I hope you enjoy. And that this resonates on some... any level. May The Force Be With You.
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Prologue
A figure stood on the heightened bridges of the Mustafarian Mining Complex... that overlooked the soaring pools of lava and ashes of fire that flamed downwards onto the planet.
Anakin Skywalker... Darth Vader glared ahead.
A single tear trickled down his cheek.
This was the sadness and mourning for Anakin who had been destroyed.
The slave who dreamed of being a Jedi, the knight who fought for peace. The Hero with No Fear.
"Mom, you always told me, the problem with the world is that nobody helps each other."
I have chosen this path for myself...To save everything that can ever go losing from me.
Vader felt the bloodlust. The thrill of annihilating each one of the Separatists at the centre who begged and screamed for mercy. Anakin is dead.
At that time, however: Anakin saw gliding through the sky, a Starfighter - its markings could not go undetected from him... What is she doing here?
Padme rushed out of the ship, right into Anakin's arms.
"Oh, Anakin!" She exclaimed.
"I saw your ship. What are you doing here?" Anakin asked gently.
"I had to meet you.
"Obi-Wan… he told me terrible things. That you killed Jedi… even… younglings…." She was whimpering and so fragile.
"Obi-Wan…" Anakin shook his head.
"Anakin…."
Anakin looked straight, but tense and stiff; and cold and dark. "Everything I am doing, Padme, I am doing for you. To protect you. "
"Protect me?" Padme replied. Their embrace had terminated, and Padme had retracted a step backward.
"From what would happen to you. I will not lose you."
Padme shook her head, recollecting Anakin's premonitions of her death.
"I am not going to die in childbirth, Anakin."
Anakin did not move. He did not appear comforted or reassured or anything ever touching something as tender that could be discerned from his expressions. All he did then, though, was shake his head.
Padme felt alarmed, in a way never before. Anakin had often scared her; whether it was his near lethal rage towards Rush Clovis or similar such events she has been plagued to witness, but this fright right now was on a different level. Anakin did not seem to be the Anakin she knew. From the child she knew and remembered, and to throughout the three years they were in love. He was not himself, right now. Why?... She thought whimpering... And her strength had almost entirely receded from her. She was now, depleted of all her energy reduced to primal desires of safety for the life they lived, and their love that she was carrying.
"Anakin... Let's run away! Help me take care of our child!.. Leave everything while we still can."
She pleaded.
Anakin looked at her, with an almost maniacal, but still desperate grin that fell upon his face.
"Don't you see, Padme? We don't have to run away anymore. We don't have to do anything we don't want to… I am more powerful than any Jedi! I am more powerful than the Chancellor! I can overthrow him!"
The fear I have is true, Padme thought.
"Obi-Wan was right." She said softly.
"I don't want to hear anything more about Obi-Wan. Obi-Wan is trying to turn you against me."
"He cares about us." She desperately began imploringly. "He knows."
"Don't you turn against me, Padme. I won't let you"
"Anakin!" A voice emanated.
Anakin turned his face towards the bridge of the ship.
"Ahsoka...?" He looked temporarily bewildered.
In a second, his fury returned as he turned back to his wife. He pushed her with the force onto the floor. "You brought her here, Padme?"
"I came on my own, Anakin." Ahsoka said.
She looked at Anakin, her Master... now minacious and besides himself...
"What do you want?" Anakin said, hardly. "You can't kill me."
Ahsoka could hardly defeat him. And not now... when he exceeded himself further than any Jedi.
"I don't want to fight you, Anakin.
"I don't know what to do…." She said, much less forcefully. This is the truth, Ahsoka thought. I never thought it could be real. It cannot be… And yet, it is.
Anakin gazed at her intensely. He looked back at Padme who he had just thrown across the ground. Padme looked stunned and dazed as she stood up.
Anakin stood fixated, staring between the two of them. His emotions which had spurred up his blood suddenly took a break; came to a stop.
