Chapter Three

Guidance

Ahsoka slowly walked through the twisting and winding canyon for nearly two hours before stopping to rest. Ahsoka collapsed onto a large boulder to rest, she was exhausted, and severely dehydrated. "Gotta... Gotta find water" Ahsoka said to herself as she looked around a little. There was nothing though, the canyon housed no sources of water, and the chance of rain was slim to none. Ahsoka let out a light sigh before pushing herself to her feet, then she leaned on the canyon wall and continued walking through it. Another two hours passed, and by that point it was starting to get dark, and the temperature was rapidly dropping. Ahsoka looked down at her naked body, she knew she wouldn't survive the night without shelter, she was still cold from the place Vader had held her. Ahsoka looked around a little and found a small space underneath a slab of rock that was jutting off the canyon wall. "It'll do." Ahsoka said to herself as she walked over to the gap, then she laid on her stomach and slowly squeezed into the narrow space. It was tight fit, and it was equally cramped within the space, but that confined area would help reduce the amount of heat she lost throughout the night. Ahsoka closed her eyes and fell asleep. Ahsoka slept as soundly as she could, but it was cold in the canyon, and she could hear various animals wandering throughout it. It reminded her of the time she was stranded on Riptuje, only this time she was all alone. Eventually the morning sun hit her face, and she slowly opened her eyes. "Morning? Uh, I need to get moving before the sun hits its peak, it'll be so hot after that." Ahsoka said to herself before slowly wiggling her head out of the small gap, then she moved her arms through. She struggled a little bit with her chest, but she was able to slip it back out, her rear wasn't so cooperative though. "What? Oh no." Ahsoka quietly said as she looked behind her, horrified to see that her butt was stuck in the narrow space. She had been able to push it in last night with the right angle and a little force, put pulling it back out was another thing. "You've got to be kidding me!" Ahsoka yelled as she pushed against the rocks as hard as she could, but her butt just wouldn't budge from the small space. "Okay, calm down Ahsoka. You got in, you can get out. Just think for a moment." Ahsoka said to herself as she took a breath. Ahsoka tried to think of an idea, but she was exhausted and in pain, she just wasn't able to think straight. "Kriff! Why does this shit keep happening to me?! I'm always getting kidnapped and stuck in things nowadays! I don't get it, what's wrong with me?! My damn brain hasn't been the same since I crashed on Ami's planet! I just wanna go home! I'm tired, I don't feel good, and I'm scared! Anakin, Padmé, where are you?!" Ahsoka shouted before bursting into tears and laying her head on the ground. "I'm gonna die here, all alone and scared. I want Merida." Ahsoka quietly cried as she laid her head in her arms.

"Stop crying and pull yourself together." A voice instructed from what seemed like all around her.

"Who's there?! Please help me, I'm stuck!" Ahsoka yelled as she looked around a little.

"I cannot help you physically, but I can give you the strength to carry on." The voice informed as it drew closer.

"Who are you?" Ahsoka asked with a sniffle.

"Someone your padawan once saved." The voice answered as some sparkling blue orbs floated in front of Ahsoka, quickly fusing together.

"Maul." Ahsoka quietly said as the orbs fused together, revealing the force ghost of Darth Maul.

"Hello lady Tano, it's been a long time." Maul said with a smile as he stared at Ahsoka.

"Maul, please, I need your help. I'm stuck in this crevice, and I'm lost and hurting. I don't know where to go or what to do. I don't even know how to get myself out of here! My body hurts, and I'm all alone in this scary canyon. Please Maul, help me." Ahsoka cried as she stared at Maul.

"I wish I could, lady Tano, but I'm just a spirit. All I can do is try to encourage and guide you. But I know that you can get yourself out of there, you have lost a lot of weight after all." Maul replied with a smile.

"You know about that, huh?" Ahsoka asked with a sad smile.

"Indeed, and though I may have let go of my hatred towards Kenobi, I was quite angry with him and the others that drove you to such a state. But you healed from that, and if you can do something like win against an illness like that, then you can get yourself out of a little hole." Maul replied with a smile.

"You know what, you're right. I beat a crippling eating disorder that had consumed me for months! So there's no way I'm letting some stupid little rock stop me! Thank you Maul, I really needed some encouragement right now." Ahsoka thanked with a smile.

"I'll always be here if you need me Ahsoka, though you'll only see me when you have no one else. Which in your case, thankfully, is very rare. Goodbye lady Tano." Maul said before vanishing. Ahsoka let out a breath to steady her nerves, then she twisted her body a little and pushed with all of her strength. Slowly but surely, she started to squeeze out of the narrow gap, jerking forward once most of her butt had gotten through.

"Yes! Thank you Maul, you're a good friend." Ahsoka said with a smile as she looked up at the sky, then she turned and continued through the canyon. Ahsoka continued walking until the sun hit its peek, then she stopped and sat in the shadiest spot she could find, which was still pretty sunny. She was exhausted, and her insides ached from the torture she'd endured during her captivity, though if any good came of it, the water boarding had unintentionally ensured that she was well hydrated for the time being. Ahsoka rested in the partial shade for a few minutes before deciding to move on. "Alright, break time's over Ahsoka." Ahsoka said to herself as she slowly got to her feet. It was getting harder and harder to stand due to the many injuries she'd suffered during her torture, but if dying was her only other option then she could deal with the pain. "Ah." Ahsoka groaned as she placed a hand on her throbbing knee. "I can't believe she broke my kneecap. What a bitch." Ahsoka grumbled before standing and leaning against the canyon wall, then she slowly started moving forward again. Ahsoka walked for a few hours before the pain in her knee became too much and she had to stop. "Ah. Oh my knee, and my head. Uh, I'm seeing spots." Ahsoka quietly said as she held her head in her hands.

"You're concussed, Ahsoka." A voice informed as the bright orb returned.

"Maul?" Ahsoka asked as she looked at the orb.

"Not this time." The voice replied as the orb took the form of Qui-Gon.

"Master Qui-Gon." Ahsoka said as she stared at Qui-Gon's force ghost.

"You need to rest, Ahsoka." Qui-Gon instructed as he sat down next to Ahsoka.

"I can't rest for long, I'm afraid I won't get back up." Ahsoka replied as she rubbed her head a little.

"I understand, in that case you need to dig deep and keep moving forward. If you can make it another ten miles, there's a small village past the canyon." Qui-Gon informed in a calm tone.

"Thank you master." Ahsoka thanked as she stood up, stumbling a little as she did so.

"You're a brave and strong woman Ahsoka, I believe in you." Qui-Gon encouraged before disappearing. Ahsoka took a breath before limping forward, she was determined to reach that village. Nearly twelve hours passed as Ahsoka slowly made her way towards the village that Qui-Gon had told her about, it had gotten dark hours ago, thankfully Ahsoka had excellent night vision. There was a clap of thunder over head, followed by a flash of lightning.

"Uh oh." Ahsoka said to herself before searching for shelter, she had to find something fast, the rain on Genosis was extremely acidic. Ahsoka spotted another opening in the rocks, thankfully it wasn't as tight as the last one and she was able to slip into it with relative ease. The rains started a few minutes later, and the wind howled like a loth-wolf. Ahsoka curled into a small ball and closed her eyes, she tried her best to rest while she could, but she was cold, thirsty, and her pain was getting worse. Eventually she fell asleep, and by the time she woke up the sun was starting to rise. Ahsoka crawled out of her shelter and slowly stood up, but she immediately fell against the wall as a wave of nausea and dizziness washed over her. "Uh! Oh my God, I think I'm gonna puke." Ahsoka said to herself as she tried to walk forward, she took a few steps before hunching over and vomiting. "D-don't...give up...Ahsoka. Just...a few more...miles." Ahsoka said to herself as she started walking forward again. Three hours went by before Ahsoka just couldn't take anymore and her body gave out from the exhaustion and pain. She was tired, hungry, dehydrated, and in an enormous amount of pain. "M-mas-ter." Ahsoka said with a few breaths as her eyes started to close, but just before she did she saw a figure in front of her. "M-master." Ahsoka said as she reached for the figure, then her eyes closed and she went limp.