(Y/N) seemed peaceful, or at least Anakin believed she was. The bunk she was placed on was anything but comfortable, but at least she wouldn't wake up to the Jedi Temple's coldness or the med bay's clinical fears. For a moment or two, Anakin let his thoughts wander to the war raging around the pair, his wife fighting for the people of the republic to be heard, the council and their many secrets, and the past with the woman before him. He could sense her conflict. The same conflict he had struggled with and the same one he sensed Ahsoka had faced at least once since meeting Lux Bonteri.
"I know what bothers you," worded Anakin. Although his focus was on (Y/N), his words were meant for his young padawan. "You're worried about Bonteri doing something else stupid after the Death Watching fiasco," added the Chosen One, turning his attention to the Togruta, one he'd come to view as a younger sibling and care for as such.
"How did you know?" asked Ahsoka, not bothering to hide her shock. She'd thought she'd hidden her dwelling thoughts well enough. Only to find out they were loud enough for her master to hear them.
"(Y/N)," replied Anakin, remembering when their friendship had begun to grow. They bonded over the massive change and the feeling of loss, bonded over feeling out of place among a sea of warriors. "I lost count of how many times she almost throttled me growing up. Especially when I went street racing, and she had to cover for me," he chuckled as he recalled her always getting even in lightsaber training. Ending their short-lived battles quickly and often changing tactics when he believed he had finally gained the upper hand.
"How long has she had the visions?" asked Ahsoka cautiously. She knew many in the order had visions in some form or another. Anakin did, too, primarily as a dream of his loved ones. The ones revolving around his late mother still haunted him, even when he didn't voice it. He still held anger over the inability to save her even when the force practically screamed at him he could.
"They started just after she was incorporated into the Order," responded Anakin, recalling the incident in question. The council ignored when she went missing and when several, including himself, told them something was wrong. Only when Chancellor Palpatine visited as part of his first tour in office was something done about her sudden and abrupt disappearance. Even then, it was almost seven months before (Y/N) was returned to the Jedi; Jango Fett had refused to return her until the culprit had been sufficiently punished. "After she was tortured," he admitted, as he once again found himself questioning how (Y/N) managed to be civil with the people who allowed it to happen and welcomed the person responsible back with open arms as if nothing had happened.
"Jango Fett?" asked Ahsoka, spite dripping through her voice as she assumed the Mandalorian Bounty Hunter had been responsible for the pain and torture.
"Jango saved her, kept her safe and hidden, I assume, on Kamino. He's part of the reason she knows so much about the underworld," worded Anakin, correcting the wrong assumption of his Padawan, although he'd admit he would've thought as she did if he didn't know any better. "The person who hurt her was a Jedi, a council member; it's why she doesn't trust most of them."
"A Jedi," repeated Ahsoka, her words uneasy as if the foundations of her trust in them had been shaken. Ever since the war started, she had begun to see her very kin in a different light. The people had, too. Many times had she seen where the civilians were coming from, especially those of distant worlds who didn't see a difference between the Republic and Separatists; both sides brought war, destruction, and suffering wherever they went. To many, both sides were just as corrupt as the other. Slowly, she realized the Jedi were not the heroes she'd once believed them to be; they weren't the peacekeepers they had been centuries ago.
"Easy," soothed Anakin when (Y/N) woke with a jump. Quickly, she surveyed her surroundings. No longer was she in the lower levels of the city, nor her previous hideout. Thankfully, she wasn't in a medical bay or her old chambers in the Jedi Temple. "You're at the military base. Your boys and Commander Wolffe are next door," placing his hands on her shoulders to calm her racing heart, offering the rarely given comfort that was considered forbidden by the Jedi, among a list of other things.
"You gave us a scare," voiced Ahsoka, coming into (Y/N)'s line of sight, seeing the softness wash over the other Jedi Knight. She seemed to relax more upon realizing there were no other Jedi around, just the two in her company. "Savage is keeping his distance for now, although Master Kenobi thinks he would have attacked if you went to the Temple," added the young Padawan, recalling the whispers of the Jedi to visit and the clones roaming the base. Despite being prepared for an attack, none had come. Instead, Savage had turned his attention to mindless chaos in the lower levels as if to occupy himself while he waited.
"Maul sent him?" whispered (Y/N) as if it had just dawned on her who was out there searching for her. Who the threat the Jedi seemed to be concerned about was. Anakin could only nod to her words, noting she didn't seem surprised by the attempt to retrieve her. Nor was Savage even roaming the galaxy when he'd previously shown no interest in the war. Much like all Dathamirians had before him, he'd not shown any care for the Clone Wars as long as it stayed away from his planet.
"You spoke of a monster," calmly worded Anakin, his voice barely above a whisper as he began to word his bugging questions. Soon enough, he shifted, allowing (Y/N) to sit up and gain comfort. At the same time, Ahsoka returned her lightsabers to her, ensuring she had her weapons in case anything happened. "What else did you see?" he asked, curious now. It was as if he, too, had similar dreams, haunting ones of what was to come and of the future that had yet to be written.
"Hunters," simply put (Y/N), squeezing her eyes shut as she tried to remember the things she'd seen, things that were far past the war all currently lived through. "Brothers and sisters drowning in the dark, friends decommissioned and repurposed, an apprentice of hate and fear," she listed, as she ran a hand through her braided hair, sighing deeply as she tried to push away the fear gripping her. "Dark Troopers and Hunters working together, worlds falling, a boy from a world of twin moons, another war."
Ahsoka had so many questions, too many for her to order and adequately word without coming across as a jumbled mess. Slowly, she was beginning to understand. (Y/N) wasn't seeing the horrors of war but the harsh future that awaited them all if they lost, or at least that was the conclusion she had come to. Anakin, too, seemed to understand what she was speaking of wasn't the present, as many would have assumed, but the future. However, he'd also correctly guessed that the future was not what waited in the months after the war ended but years down the line.
"He twists the love he has for another," cryptically said (Y/N), her words a little louder than before. "Corrupts from within until he becomes a weapon no one sees coming until he becomes the executioner that ends this war," she spoke this time with fear appearing through her voice and tears in her eyes as if she could see the same images that haunted her the last time. "Worlds will burn until the last hope, once split in two, becomes one again until he remembers who he was before and sees the true cost of hate."
"Who is he?" asked Anakin, quickly determining that whoever it was was someone (Y/N) knew. The fear in her eyes suggested it was someone she loved. Maul was his first guess, but soon enough, Anakin eliminated him. Maul had always gained power from his hatred; few knew or realized Maul's most significant strength came from his love for those closest to him. (Y/N) included.
(Y/N) only shook her head in response to Anakin's question, a stray tear slipping down her cheek as she fought to push away the memories of her visions, of the horrors only she knew were to come. The Jedi weren't the only ones to fall; her kin in the Night Sisters were, too. All would be slaughtered, and she'd be helpless to stop it.
"Find him," began (Y/N), her eyes clouded as if she were seeing something again. "Find him, Fives. Find him. Fives," she uttered as if the words were stuck on repeat, as if she was repeating the phrase another would one day say. Anakin and Ahsoka looked at each other. The mention of one of the Arc Troopers among the ranks of the 501st seemed to intrigue both.
"(Y/N)," gently called Anakin as if to wake her from a peaceful slumber. Once again, he buried the concern deep down, hoping she wouldn't sense it. His gut feeling told him Fives was only a tiny part of what would come. That the Arc Trooper wasn't the him referred to.
"Tech," muttered (Y/N), once again her voice a little above a whisper; another stray tear broke free of the heavily fortified barriers of her clouded eyes. However, it was more evident that whatever she had seen hadn't got anything to do with her previous words of warning or repeated phrases. "His journey doesn't end with the fall; it starts with it," she whispered before shaking her head and shuffling into the closest corner as if she were a scared little girl once more. Once again, her behavior comes across as erratic.
"Wolffe," started Ahsoka, taking a leap of faith and mentioning the name of the commander who seemed to be a source of uncertainty for (Y/N), perhaps more than she was to him. "Do you see him? What happened to him?" asked the Togruta, softness coming to her as she allowed herself to hope for a better future where every clone could retire and build a life for themselves as regular citizens. A life many believed they deserved, considering the horrors they had thrust far been put through.
"An island, A life he chose. A life earned after the war and loss to come. But at a cost. Brothers, a life, hope and torment, a rebellion twice over, love and grief," whispered (Y/N), sadness taking over once more. Another war waited in the future, and although the stakes wouldn't be any different from this one, it did at least have a more desirable outcome. "Three must fall for him to remember," spoke (Y/N) a little louder this time; however, her words didn't seem to be meant for either Jedi in the room with her but for the group of five troopers to quietly enter.
"I believe she is referring to the hero returning," spoke Tech, a matter-of-factly tone to his voice, as if it wasn't the first time he'd heard her talk about the hero's long journey. "The redemption of a friend, as she had previously mentioned," he added, seemingly oblivious to the others turning their attention to him or the words (Y/N) had spoken of him.
"Did she say who the friend was?" asked Anakin, confusion lacing his voice. (Y/N) had always confided in him when something bothered her. Yet this time was different. Her troopers, specifically Tech, seemed to be the ones who had all the answers. Although unsure how to feel about it, he could at least find some comfort in knowing she wasn't internalizing everything.
"No, however, she did say Mortis would repeat in the outer galaxy the last time," replied Tech, still not understanding what Mortis was; despite his best efforts to find information, he'd come up empty-handed. However, the moment his attention turned to the two Jedi, he knew instantly the pair knew what Mortis was and what (Y/N) was referencing.
"Mortis?" spoke Wolffe, his voice far harsher than he intended it to be and louder if Hunter's startled reaction had been any indication.
"Obi-Wan has the best memory of that," replied Anakin, scratching the back of his neck. He'd believed it was all an elaborate dream before (Y/N), and Ahsoka remembered it. Ahsoka seemed to remember the person known as the Daughter more, even sharing that she thought an owl was following her. Meanwhile, (Y/N) had previously mentioned scattered memories, most blurry, as if someone had tried to erase them. "He wrote everything down, including seeing and talking to Master Qui-Gon."
It wasn't long before Anakin's communicator began to beep, signaling someone was either trying to contact him or he was again late for something. Perhaps the council was finally ready to share their combined intel and knowledge with everyone else in the order, or maybe they had another assignment to send himself and Ahsoka on or needed an errand boy for something.
"Go," called Hunter, his voice seemingly neutral, the normal smokey tone. "We'll keep watch over the princess," he added, attempting to encourage the master and padawan duo to attend to their other duties, even if it was clear at least one of them didn't want to leave. From the corner of his eye, he noticed as Wolffe stepped closer to (Y/N), hesitant at first as if expecting a volatile reaction from her, when none came he gained a little more confidence, but still held caution.
"Who is the monster, Ca'tra?" asked Wolffe, recalling when Fox had repeated the scared words (Y/N) had spoken before being stunned by Cody. Although Tech had been the one to request the repeat, Wolffe had listened in the hopes of understanding her further. As if to understand the part he'd unintentionally played in the chaotic mess.
"A man in black," replied (Y/N) as if she was afraid to speak the words further. Her fear only hammered home further when she cowered away into the corner, away from the warmth and care others would give her if she allowed it. "His face hidden behind a mask, cold and hateful, the hero he was forgotten along with the love he once freely showed."
"Tech," spoke Crosshair, removing the toothpick from its resting place between his lips.
"She has not mentioned a man in black before," admitted the intelligent clone, proceeding to go through past recordings, hoping to find anything to do with the man in black. Although he was beginning to realize clues were hidden in her cryptical words. Clues to who her fallen hero was meant to be. "However, the brothers and sisters she's mentioned before, acolytes of the dark side, hunters working to eradicate what remains of an order."
"That doesn't sound comforting," commented Crosshair. His words only had hints of his normal sarcasm, almost as if attempting to lighten the darkened mood and the sense of doom that seemed to hang over them. The sniper was at least relieved; his words seemed to spark a sense of comfort in (Y/N). It was almost as if his words reminded her the things she had seen had yet to come to pass, things that had yet to strangle the galaxy.