Chapter 6 - Flames Ignite and Eyes Alight
Author's Note: Behold the climax. :D
~ Amina Gila
This is the moment they were fighting to reach for years, and they finally have their chance to destroy the Sith. Ahsoka's hands tighten around her saber hilts as she surveys the dark room surrounding them.
There's not room for everyone to fight at once, so there's nothing she can do right now but stand and watch as the fight progresses.
There's two or three Jedi fighting each of the Inquisitors and Maul, but unwillingly, her eyes drift to Anakin. He's fighting Windu in the center of the room, and with how fast and furious their duel is traveling across the room – narrowly missing repeatedly hitting the frozen statues that seem to be positioned in all the most unideal locations possible – there's no room for anyone else to get close enough to fight Anakin at the same time.
One of the other Jedi jumps at him, trying to stab him when he's holding off Windu.
Ahsoka's heart nearly stops for a moment, as she watches, Anakin hurls the Jedi back even without flicking his hand. Anakin is – he could die here.
That's what the point of this is. The Sith are supposed to die here. And she knows he's a Sith and she has to stop him, but it never felt so real until this very moment. She thought it would be different if she didn't have to do it herself, but standing here watching the fight, she's beginning to realize that... that isn't true.
She's standing here watching as Anakin's fights for his life when they fought side by side every day for years. He saved her life countless times, taught her to become everything she is now, and – She saved him, too, the times she had to.
He's the one who chose to turn on all of that, to tear down everything they fought for and believed in together, but –
(Did he, though? She knows some of what the Rebellion's doing is wrong, that they're killing countless people in their efforts, sometimes entirely unnecessarily. But the Empire is doing the same thing, and they have to be stopped, but sometimes...)
Ahsoka may not be a Jedi anymore, but she still knows that sometimes she has to make impossible decisions that no one else can. And that should mean –
But – but she doesn't know that she can do that. How can she stand by and watch as he dies?
Maybe it's for the best that there's nothing she can do to stop it then, because this has to end, even if every bit of her is crying out against what she knows is about to happen. (She doesn't think it's a guilt she's ever going to be able to let go of, if Anakin's really going to die here.)
A yelp from across the room catches her attention, and Ahsoka's gaze follows the direction of it. One of the Inquisitor's lost a limb, and another Jedi stabs them before they can even... anything.
(That's not the Jedi way, either. It's not how they're supposed to handle this. Anakin is entirely wrong that they're going way too far, isn't he?)
Another one of Inquisitors is run through by one of the Jedi, but what catches Ahsoka's attention next is how well Maul is doing. He bisects two of the Jedi he's fighting before they can block him, spinning around to snap the neck of another as a few more charge for him.
He's fighting like every bit the savage he is, and he definitely has to stop here. Finally finding her opening, Ahsoka flips across the room, landing briefly on top of one of the statues – for as unnerving as that feels – before landing behind Maul and swinging for his head.
Aayla materializes out of the crowd of other Jedi a moment later, attacking Maul also. He swings his double-bladed lightsaber back between them, fending her off on one side, and Aayla on the other, but she managed to defeat Maul once even if it was only a matter of circumstances. Still, they should be able to finish it now too.
Her blades clash against one side of his, shoving back against it. Aayla swings for his unprotected side, and Maul jerks back as her blade singes across his side. Ahsoka feels the Force abruptly tightening around her neck, and she can see Aayla's fairing no better.
This is stupid.
She's not going to die like this, of all things.
Struggling back against it – and trying in vain to draw in air that won't come – she tries to gather the Force to her, to make him let go.
Except, two other Jedi pounce Maul in the moment he's distracted, and Ahsoka lands unceremoniously on her knees, gasping for breath. She presses her hands against the cold floor beneath her, dusty from millennia of sitting here abandoned as a living tomb.
There's no more room for her to go after Maul again, and as she pulls herself back to her feet, her gaze darts back over to Anakin. Somewhere along the way he Force-threw Windu back, cutting his way through all the other Jedi who have attacked him since. None of them are nearly strong enough to match him, and it's... admittedly sickening to watch as he runs another Jedi through.
But...
They are trying to kill him, too, in a fight that's entirely unfair. Because for as well as he's doing now, there's no way he isn't starting to tire. And what that will mean...
Something is shifting in the Force, suddenly. It feels like the Dark Side is suddenly growing even stronger. It's maddening enough already with how much it's drowning every inch of the atmosphere here. It's hard to draw on anything but the Dark with how suffocating it is, but somehow, it's getting stronger.
Something's changing. Ahsoka can guess what it is, even if she's surprised it's actually happening.
The entrance way to the room lifts again with a screech of rock against rock, and the Emperor himself strides into the room, yellow eyes practically glowing in the darkness.
(Are Anakin's eyes yellow now? She has no idea. All she can see is his mask. She hasn't seen his face in almost two decades now. She never will again if he dies here.)
Sidious raises his hands without warning, bluish white electricity leaping from his fingers, crackling into the Jedi right near the entrance, frying them inside out. They don't even have time to scream before they're dead.
But this – this is why they have to stop the Sith.
"Now," Windu calls.
Ahsoka doesn't know what he means, but obviously, some of the other Jedi present do.
Windu spins for the nearest statue, slashing through it. A number of the others immediately start cutting through the statues in the room too, and suddenly Ahsoka has the feeling she knows exactly what they're doing.
**w**
Leia senses something in the Force again. Something's wrong. It's not like when her father fought Ahsoka, either. It's something... far worse than that. There's an itching sense of wrongness, and it's burning deep inside the Force itself. Something's happening, something dark that should not be happening. As usual, it's something with her father, and she – she needs to get to him.
He's in danger, and he needs help.
He told her, right before he left, that the mission he was going on was a... dark one, one that he didn't want to risk dragging her into in case something went downhill. She hadn't been happy about it, but what could she do? He's right that she could easily get killed fighting Jedi.
He's trained her well, but still. It could be dangerous, though she doesn't much care for the thought of him being hurt any more than herself.
She needs to get to Malachor to help him, but she already knows Cody won't help her. He's too protective of her, and that isn't what she needs right now. There are other people who can help, though.
"You sense it, too?" Ventress asks, catching her discomfort.
Leia breathes out slowly. "Yeah. Yeah, we need to get there and help him."
"It's the endgame," Ventress agrees, "If we're trying to end the fight, now would be the strategical time to do it."
"I have to get to him." She pushes herself away from the table she's at – Ventress was really only in here because Leia wanted the company, and they've bonded fast. She hasn't known many girls. Leia stands and is already halfway to the door when another thought occurs to her. "You wanna come? We could use your help."
Ventress stands, rolling her shoulders. "Sure. Nothin' else to do, is there?"
That's a fair enough point. There isn't, and if she's going to help, she needs to put an end to this.
One last fight.
Leia still senses the ex-assassin's hesitation, though. "You okay?" she asks, pausing.
"Never thought I'd be fighting the Jedi again," Ventress shrugs, standing, "But we don't have much choice, and I don't have much to lose."
"They're destroying the galaxy," Leia reminds, "It's the right thing to do." And she feels a little bad at the thought of having to go on an all-out massacre, at having to kill people in up-close combat – space battles are different somehow – but this is still... it isn't something she exactly looks forwards to, but there's no other choice.
If they don't fight back, they'll be destroyed. They need to go on the offensive, and now isn't the time to wait. If everything they've fought for is reaching its final time now, they need to win, no matter what the price of victory is.
"Oh, I assure you, I have no love for them," she quips, "Not anymore."
"What was it like for you as a Jedi?" Leia asks as they walk through the halls, mostly curious. She's never known a former Jedi before except her father, and he doesn't talk much about those times. It's too... hard for him.
"Wasn't one for long," she responds, "My Jedi master found me after my... previous master died."
Leia's eyes widen a bit. Previous master? Ventress was a slave?! So was her father. Maybe that's part of why she sometimes thinks they're similar.
"We weren't with the main part of the Jedi. I never saw the Temple – my master was trapped on the planet I grew up on. He was killed by pirates, which was when I... embraced the Dark Side."
That actually explains so much about her. That is why she acts so carefree towards everything – not because she doesn't care, but she's too afraid too, afraid of being hurt or losing again. "You were alone all that time?" Leia asks quietly.
"Don't think into it too hard," Ventress chides. "I'm still alive."
She'd laugh if she weren't so worried, or trying to construct a perfectly indisputable argument to persuade Hunter that sneaking her into a suicide zone is an ingenious idea.
And that, evidently, is what she needed to do. The boys and Omega beat her to the hangar, but she can sense Hunter's serious disproval halfway through.
"We have to go," she finishes. "I need to help. My father's in danger, and something's happening there. I can't just ignore it."
"Taking you there would put you in danger, too," Hunter cautions warily.
"I know," Leia replies, "But I have to go." She looks searchingly at the others.
Wrecker and Crosshair, as always, will follow Hunter's lead no matter what it is. Echo wants to help – she can feel it, because that's what he always does, as does Omega. Tech is... wary, but he wants it, too.
"If we end this now, we won't have to worry about any of us being in danger again. This is an assembled group of all known remaining Jedi," Leia continues, "If we don't stop this, if they escape, everything we fought for? It'll have been for nothing. We can't let that happen."
Echo and Omega look at Hunter, Omega nearly hopeful.
"She is correct," Tech says finally, "Leia is perfectly capable of handling Jedi. It is what she trained for."
"Alright," Hunter concedes reluctantly, "Where are we going?"
"Set course for Malachor," Leia replies, moving for the ship. "We have to hurry. The fight's already underway."
Good thing the ship's fast.
**w**
Vader feels as something changes, shifting in the Force. He doesn't realize what it is, or what the purpose of what the Jedi are doing is, until he feels it. Those aren't statutes – they're people frozen in carbonite. And they have been for centuries.
Some might be Jedi, but many are Sith, and either way, with their bodies destroyed so suddenly? They're going to try finding another host.
That was the Jedi's grand plan? Possession?
Convenient, really, and despite how difficult Vader already know this will be, he can't help almost admiring it. It was ingenious, though it's also proof of how far the Jedi have fallen.
The Force presences that formerly felt so still suddenly feel alive, at least in the way spirits do. They feel more elusive than a living being, but he can still distinctly feel them, and they're... angry.
The ones that are capable of moving on, dissipating into the Force will do it, are doing it already, but they've been trapped there for so long, feeling the world shifting and changing without them, that most of them have entirely lost their minds.
To be fair, anyone would.
Vader takes a step back, readjusting his grip on his lightsaber and gathering the Force to him. He can't use a weapon to fight these things. All he can do is fight them off with the Force and hope they don't get to anyone... important to him.
Force. Ahsoka is here, and she could easily get caught in the crossfire. He's so, so glad he didn't bring Leia, though it would be far more difficult for her to get possessed than Ahsoka, considering her strength in the Force.
He wishes he could say he that he's surprised Windu would fall to this level, but really? He isn't. He's Fallen, like so many of the Jedi survivors, and continuing to pretend they are better than the Sith.
The howling starts up next, and he raises his hands to shield himself from the fluxing energy. He can see some of them – twisted red and black forms. Sith, no doubt. They're Sith spirits, and they're angry.
One of them lunges at him, and Vader catches it with the Force. It might not be physical, but it's still there, and he wraps the Force around it, forcibly ripping it apart. It feels wrong to do it, but these things shouldn't exist, and the Force cries out with wrongness at it.
The one good thing that'll come of this, Vader has to admit morbidly, is that these spirits will be forever put to rest.
Doesn't mean it will be worth the many other lives taken because of it.
There are so many, and there's nothing he can do large-scale.
Fighting one-on-one is far too slow, and certainly not ideal considering the numbers. People are going to die, and there's not much he can do to stop it.
Another comes at him, and Vader flings it back, jumping off the platform they're on. They need to retreat and find cover.
The Jedi are fortunate in that regard because they have a layer of protection, as do the Sith and Inquisitors. The non-Force sensitive stormtroopers aren't so lucky. They have nothing with which to protect themselves because weapons are useless against the spirits.
He doesn't think about how many they're losing. He just focuses on moving, on searching for Ahsoka amidst the chaos. Maul and Sidious will no doubt be fine, but he needs to make sure Ahsoka's alright.
That comes before everything else.
"This wasn't supposed to happen!" yells the black-haired padawan that Vader had seen Ahsoka with earlier.
"That we know of," his master replies, as they run.
Malachor is dark, and seeing is admittedly difficult, but Vader lets the Force lead him. The now possessed stormtroopers are pursuing them, including the... one with fancily painted armor. She's going after the other two Jedi Ahsoka were with, and Vader has the sense of mind to briefly hope they don't kill her, because Vader kind of liked her.
He pauses a few times to destroy some of the spirits without hosts, but he's the only one strong enough to do it.
Probably, Leia could, too, but he doesn't want her to have to face these things.
It's a prickle of danger that draws him to Ahsoka. Vader can feel it from a good distance away – feel her fear and frustrated confusion. She didn't know this would happen, clearly. She didn't go along with it, and that alone gives him hope that there's still... something to what they once were.
Some of them are closing in, and Vader reaches into the Force, drawing it in and reaching out. He's learned a lot, which was part of how he knows how to do this, but it's not something even he can keep up with.
He reaches deeper, feeling the Force around him and flicking out a hand.
There's not much flammable material on Malachor, which is largely what makes it so difficult, but he can still feel the heat in the air, and all he needs to do is gather it enough in just the right way to make the ground catch fire.
It's just rock, mostly, but the flaming circle is enough to keep the possessed people back. The flames will die fast, but it's all he can do to keep them back temporarily as he searches for Ahsoka.
He feels her soft presence nearby, and the way it's curled with fear at the edges makes him simultaneously sick and angry. The Jedi did, they risked Ahsoka, and they could hurt her. That is not something Vader's willing to forgive or go easy on them for.
The Dark Side carries him, flooding him with a new wave of power as he reaches out towards the spirits and rips them back, shielding himself and pushing onwards towards where he can feel her fighting a rapidly losing battle with at least one.
He can see the two translucent figures circling around near Ahsoka, their fury and malevolence radiating strongly into the Force. She's trying to hold them off with the Force, but it isn't working.
Vader reaches for them instantly, trying to rip them apart so they dissipate. One of them instantly tries latching onto his mind, struggling to break through, but it's not nearly strong enough. He shakes it off, moving swiftly to Ahsoka's side.
She's leaning against a nearby pillar, breathing hard. They must've come closer to hurting her than he thought.
"Ahsoka?" he asks, concern flooding him every bit the way it would have a lifetime ago, despite what's changed between them.
"I'm fine," she replies, looking up at him, a hint of... guilt? in her eyes, "Thank you. We need to get out of here."
"Yes," he agrees, scanning their surroundings. More spirits are already heading this way. The only way to defeat these things is to run, and he thinks most everyone has figured that out without being told. Not even Maul could be stupid enough to want to fight those things to the end. Probably.
"Come on," she urges, and they sprint for the nearest exit.
The Sith Temple at least isn't half as complicated or difficult to navigate as the Jedi Temple on Lothal – Vader has to give it that.
They're almost to the heavy, rock door that seals the way to the outside when Vader spots the two Jedi who have been with Ahsoka all this time. Sabine is shooting at them half-blindly, and her Force presence is strangely hazed over, twisted into something close to insanity. Her helmet is off – which also makes no sense – and her eyes are glowing an unnatural red.
"Ahsoka!" exclaims the Knight, then pauses, looking warily at Vader.
Which is the same moment Sabine jumps at them blindly, nearly impaling herself on their lightsabers. The spirit is trying to get out of her, into them instead.
"Can we get this out of her?" the padawan yelps, as he tumbles to the floor, trying to shove her off.
"I know you can help them, Anakin," Ahsoka says, gaze darting between them. She's scared for them, and they're obviously somewhat close.
He can, and these Jedi aren't hopelessly lost to their own vengeance like the rest. Not that he'd want to leave anyone to that fate, but he can't help everyone here, either. It's dangerous to stay here.
He can hear a high-pitched howling coming closer. It probably means there's a whole flock of spirits on their way here, and if they try to latch onto any of them, it'll be easy for them to get out of the Sith Temple and maybe even try to get off the planet. They can't let that happen.
Vader delves into the Force, reaching for the spirit possessing Sabine.
It's especially difficult with her own spirit still inside, barely managing to hold on. They're somewhat intertwined and prying them apart is... difficult.
It's at risk of breaking Sabine's mind entirely, but finally Vader wrenches the spirit out of her, letting it dissipate into nothing. She slumps motionless to the floor, and the padawan approaches her, a little warily.
Finally, Sabine's eyes blink open, and she lets out a startled yelp when she sees who's hanging over her.
"Hi," the padawan offers, cheerfully, "I'm Ezra. You were possessed, but we got you out."
She sits up with a muffled groan, pressing a hand to her head. "What do you mean you got me out?"
"Hey, we're all trying to stop the spirits now, right?" Ezra asks, "And your armor is cool. I thought that wasn't allowed."
She shrugs, standing unsteadily. "Didn't expect a rebel to appreciate it."
"Hey, we can appreciate art a lot more than the Empire!"
"We must leave," Vader interjects, moving for the exit. Except, he's the only one here who can use the Dark Side, and he can't open it alone.
He doesn't have the chance to ask anyone, though, because a couple spirits swarm around the corner, right alongside Windu. He's moving strangely, and glowing red eyes stare back at Vader, from behind the purple lightsaber he's still holding.
He was possessed, too, and a dark part of Vader finds it oddly fitting that he was a victim to his own plan. Certainly, he doesn't have any sympathy over it, though he's mildly concerned about how this fight will go.
The sound that escapes Windu is something of an enraged howl as he jumps at them, lightsaber flailing. Vader moves forwards to meet the blow. It's not with the same skill Windu used to have, though it's somehow similar enough to make it hard.
He never wants to approach any haunted anything again in his entire life.
It doesn't help that the other two spirits lingering nearby seem to simultaneously decide he's the tastiest host, and they're struggling to latch onto his mind. And it's much harder to fight off Windu when he's trying to rip the other ones apart at the same time.
Mostly, Vader's just trying to duck all three right now, as he and Windu's blades slash through the rocky walls around them. The others wisely stay out of reach, even though Ahsoka's holding her drawn lightsabers, and one of the spirits slams wildly into his mental shields again. It almost throws him for a moment, and Vader finally lashes out, throwing everything he can into ripping them apart.
It's hard to constantly rip apart spirits like this because it goes against the very nature of the Force, but with these things, there's nothing else they can do.
Except his moment of distraction was a moment too long.
Windu leaps at him, blade swinging for his head, and Vader twists around to block it, but he's not moving quite fast enough.
Ahsoka swings for Windu in a flash of white, her blades running straight through his chest, before she jerks back. She looks... shaken as she steps back, unsurprisingly when she just killed the former Master of the Order, and the head of the rebellion all this time.
And she did it for him. Windu could've killed him, and Ahsoka stopped it. Even if she was attacking him not long ago. It gives him a small hope that maybe there's still a chance of... something. Maybe she will be willing to stay with him again, after all. Maybe.
But he's... gone, and Vader doesn't quite know what to feel. He certainly can't say he feels any regret, not after all the destruction Windu's caused, even if it's jarring to actually see him dead.
The sound of howling is increasing again, though, right as the rocks groan quietly behind them, and the door starts lifting.
Vader twists around to watch as the doors lift, reopening the Temple to the outside world. Ventress and Leia are standing there, against the darkness, hands outstretched towards the door. Which – okay, he's grateful for the help, but Leia was not supposed to be here.
He'll worry about that later.
"Come on," Ventress says, drawing her lightsabers, "The ship's out back. We came to help. Didn't quite expect a needed evacuation, though. I don't know how you do anything without us."
"Opinion noted," Vader replies, running past, the others close behind.
He's still considering if he ought to go back alone, to see what's going on with Sidious and Maul, and the other Imperials, but the entrance to the Temple opens again before they even reach it.
Sidious and Maul sprint out moments later, closing the entrance behind them. Not that the Jedi are trapped inside. They obviously used the Dark Side to get into it in the first place.
"We must leave the surface. Nothing will stop the spirits from escaping the Temple," Sidious says, and it's the first time Vader's seen him slightly... almost shaken by anything. Even if it's not outwardly visible, he can still sense it. "Any Jedi who attempt to flee will be captured when they try leaving the planet."
It... makes sense, though Vader can feel the other three's distinct unhappiness at the prospect.
"I will deal with them," Vader asserts immediately, before Sidious can get any ideas. He's not letting him do anything to Ahsoka, and the other two are her friends. He may be able to reason with them.
"Very well," Sidious replies, gaze lingering on him in a way he knows is intended as a pointed reminder of the purpose of capturing Ahsoka in the first place, before he heads for his own waiting ship.
"What happened?" Leia asks, looking at them wide-eyed.
"The Jedi and Sith fought here a millennia ago, and somehow, they were all frozen in carbonate," Vader explains.
"In true keeping with their code, they slaughtered them and unleashed their spirits on us," Maul interjects, clearly very unhappy.
"Are you okay?" she queries, gaze darting between him and Vader.
"I am fine," he promises.
"Of course, I am," Maul replies, approaching her. They know each other minimally, and he'd been rather enthusiastic at the thought of getting to train her, something Vader had flat-out turned down. No one was going to be teaching his daughter about the Dark Side, other than him. Especially a Sith who he, at the time, didn't trust at all. "What are you doing here? I cannot imagine Vader called you in for help."
"I sensed something was wrong."
"And you let her come?" Vader asks, eyeing Ventress.
"She's more competent than you think," Ventress drawls, "And how would I know you were fighting the undead?"
Point.
"Let's go," Vader urges finally because he can sense the spirits getting closer again. They can talk once they're safely away.
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