Chapter 6
Leia's Organa was running down a long narrow hallway as blaster fire rattled the area. She was firmly in her 20s at this point and had been practicing for many years now. Not too far away the sounds of marching boots and a biomechanical life suit could be heard. Leia had run out of room to run away and ignited the cylinder which produced a green blade. She held the cylinder in her left hand as she placed her right behind her back. Blaster fire rocked the air and Leia took the blade blocking each and every shot. Before returning back to the same stance. Emerging from the shadows was Darth Vader carried by a group of stormtroopers. Vader's suit had been damaged as his breathing was erratic. Anger unboiled like any other dominated the room, "Maiden Alma has trained you very well. A testament to her skill and abilities as a Temple Maiden. But all that education will not serve you here. This will be our last duel so I will ask again what did you find at the Jedi Temple on Naboo?"
"Unfortunately for you Darth, that is not information I am willing to share. Now let me ask you a question: what did you do to my father?" Leia asked with anger in her voice.
"Your father was weak, I destroyed him," Vader responded. Which only angered Leia who jumped into the air screaming with a lash of anger. The green blade glowed brightly and the vision shifted. Leia's green blade slashed as the entire room shifted as they were now standing in a dark room that was overlooking a massive city scape. A cold draft had formed in the room as it was a dark place with wide open space. In the center of the room was a throne that overlooked a cityscape. Fear, misery and evil were thick in this particular room. Sitting in the throne was a cloaked figure laughing with evil in his eyes and the aura of power of true domination filled the room. Vader's breathing apparatus was loud and clearly distracting. "Leia, Leia. You cannot stand up to the power of the dark side forever. Did I ever tell you how pleased I was that Tarkin destroyed your home. How close I was to murdering him during your recovery? The fear and terror in his eyes as I choked his very life ou-"
"Nooo!" Leia screamed as suddenly out of nowhere a green blade. Pierced the suit of Vader straight through his chest. Before removing the blade from his chest as Vader's now lifeless body fell to the floor. Her eyes were golden yellow twisted by emotions. The man with the yellow eye could only gleam in pure anticipation.
"Well done, very well done. And at last you have discovered the true power of the darkside. Only through me can you achieve your full potential. A potential that was stripped from Vader after his duel on Mustafar. Never to reach his full power, but you do not have those limitations." The cold calice man said, "You have simply completed your destiny. Join me, become my new apprentice, learn the secrets of the Dark side of the force. And avenge all of the dead people of Alderaan. Only through me can you do this Leia Organa."
Leia fell to her knees and looked at the man, "My allegiance shall be yours." She spoke with the purest form of anger in her voice.
"We must end this vicious war that is tearing our galaxy apart. Rise my new apprentice henceforth you shall be called Darth Lana lady of the sith. Return to the rebel base and destroy them all, take Death Squadron and complete this most essential command."
"It will be done…master," Darth Lana said.
The images shifted into a new scene with Darth Lana holding a red lightsaber as she slashed through bodies. Blaster bolts rattled the air as screams filled the room as suddenly a blue sword ignited as Lana jumped into the air and slashed at the figure. It shifted again back to the throne room from earlier. "You have served me well. Far better than lord Vader ever did. Our empire has regained its rightful place as leaders of the galaxy-" Lana cut him off.
"You mean my empire," Lana said firmly. "It's time for you to be replaced Darth Sidious." Lana ignited her lightsaber and Darth Sidious looked in surprise as Lana moved faster than he could imagine. As her blade slashed deeply into his skull ending the reign of Darth Sidious as Darth Lana took her master's place on his throne laughing.
14 year old Leia screamed as her meditation broke. Sending her sprawling down as sweat was pouring down her forehead. What was that? It was all a blurb, but one particular piece stood in her mind Naboo. What was so special about Naboo? She sat in the dark cave for sometime breathing heavily and focused on the world around her. Slowly her breathing stabilized and once she gained enough wit she stood up. Only to notice the cave was different from when she entered. Its rugged road moved to a smoother finer surface. Wherever Leia was it wasn't the cave that she had been meditating/dreaming/whatever. Forced to find her way she just chose a random direction and began to walk. It was quiet with the only sound reverberating around the cave was her footsteps. The deeper she walked into the cave the more quiet it became. Why was all of this happening to her? "Hello?" Leia called out, but the only response was her very own echo. Where was she?
What had Alerka always told her? Leia thought for a minute, 'Only when you are calm, passive and at peace will the universe unveil itself to you'. Closing her eyes Leia stood there for a minute slowly allowing her calm composer to return. That's when Leia heard it soft at first, quiet but in the silence of her mind. She remained stationed as she was listening to the world around her. Listening to the quiet shifting and that's when she felt it. Something cold, something evil lurched from the shadows. A sound unlike anything Leia had heard before and she made a sharp right as a red blade appeared. Opening her eyes Leia looked at the figure who stood there on the opposite side of the room. With a red blade in hand looking at her with a twisted smile the figure ignited a second red blade and looked directly at her. "You're going to die, Jedi!" The figure was the exact same height as Leia.
Wearing thick black plated armor a fusion between mandalorian in design and Darth Vader's. Leia looked around as she was stuck in a flat open room, "Soon you will discover the dark side." With that the figure jumped into the air and Leia moved as quickly as she could, but this strange mystery figure was faster than her. Leia narrowly dodged a slash as she pushed the woman backwards and took off running. With that the ground began to rumble beneath her as rocks and boulders buried beneath the ground emerged. "You cannot outrun me forever Maiden Organa. You haven't been able to outrun me since the fiasco on Naboo."
Rocks and boulders went flying into the air narrowly dodging Leia as the mysterious stranger slowly approached her. Moving like an unstoppable force Leia could barely hold her own. "What are you? Why are you attacking me? And finally I have no clue what you're talking about."
"Oh don't like Maiden all you have to do is simply search your feelings," the figure said. As the ground grew more violent with that the figure jumped into the air. Throwing one of the blades to focus all of their power into a single red blade. Slamming the ground hard which caused a storm to rise sending dirt and debris flying. Leia rolled narrowly avoiding the figure and landed right by the stranger's cylinder. Handling it Leia fumbled until she could find a way to ignite it and held the blade towards the figure. Stumbling back as the figure lifted their blade and laughter followed. "You think that…stance is going to do anything. Tell me what did you learn in the temple on Naboo?" The figure asked.
"I don't know what you're talking about," Leia shouted. Taking the blade and slashed into the air with it. She had some level of training with a sword and a stick. Her little training was nothing as the figure made a movement and soon the blade went flying out of her hand. This overwhelming power began to lift her into the air as if she was being choked. The air was restricted as Leia fruitlessly tried to free herself as a sense of terror and death overwhelmed her. "Who are you?" The figure moved their hands and removed their helmet which made this living nightmare even worse. As standing in front of her was her. An exact copy of Leia with only minor scarring on the face with a sense of laughter.
"I am Darth Lana, lady of the Sith. I am what you will become Maiden," Darth Lana said. "Now then tell me, tell me the secrets of Naboo."
Leia stood in her grasp watching as the evil version of herself grabbed the blade. Then a memory remerged, "The rest is in your capable hand Princess, but be warned. These places are tricky, filled with puzzles and mazes. And will often test you with illusion of reality. Other times you will have to use your wit to complete your goals. Jedi Temples are not places for children and filled with dangers." Alerka's words struck a chord as Leia looked at Darth Lana. She wasn't real, none of this was real. With that Leia pulled in all the power of the universe she could muster letting this power build inside her. Which caught Lana off guard as the figure looked at her with a sense of confusion emerging
"What are you doing?" Lana asked.
"You're not real, none of this is real!" Leia screamed as she went out everything she had mustered. And Lana screamed in terror as the world was surrounded by a beam of light.
Leia walked out of the cave on her own terrified. As the feeling of confusion and terror was douching in her mind. She was practically running to find some way to get away. Selis and Myrock were looking at Leia as she made her way back to the clearing. "You have made a unique choice. An unexpected choice that I could not foresee you making. Curious. You fought your very own dark side and won on your own terms. That cave has been twisted by the force for eons now. Many have gone in and very few come out sane. Tell me Princess, why did you survive while so many others didn't?"
"A memory," Leia said. "My instructor Taskmaster Alerka told me about Jedi Temples. Testing your mind with false illusions of reality, but that. That was something else that felt so…real. So cold."
"And that my dear is the power of the force," Selis said. Leia looked at him, "This universal energy as you so describe it. That gives you strength, clears your mind, hears your wound and guides you. That my dear is the power of the force in its purest form with outside or barriers it exists and guides us all. It has will and a way, but it needs a commander. Inside you the power of the Force goes ever stronger, but the seeds of the dark side grow. The brighter the light, the darker the shadows you cast. Within you the seeds of the dark side grows and the danger to the galaxy with it. But if you stay with me Princess I can give you the tools. The tools to defend yourself against the growing evil in this galaxy if you are willing to learn."
"Learn about the Force?" Leia asked. She looked at the ground, "I want to know more…"
